A while back I bought Matthew a whole bunch of puzzles at a kids sale. Recently, a lot of pieces have seemed to go missing. I couldn't believe that we could lose that many pieces in just a few weeks?!? Boy am I a bad mom!
But, you see, Matthew has a new toy. It's kind of like basketball, baseball and golf all in one, for toddlers.
It has these big plastic balls that you put into the basketball hoop and they fall down a tunnel and come rolling out the sides.
It didn't take Matthew long to figure out that you had to pick the balls up from the bottom and put them into the hoop at the top.
The other day I caught him with his hand down the tunnel all the way to his elbow. I asked him what he was doing... he pointed to the hoop. So, I stuck my hand down there and guess what I found?
You guessed it, 3 balls... and 6 puzzle pieces! Next time I can't find my keys I'll know where to look :O)
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Friday, April 25, 2008
Random Friday
"What do you mean you can't change my bum like this??"
Munchkins at play. (aka Matthew and Kate). Can you believe they're both almost 1 year old?
"...trust me, I know this gig. Just smile and she'll let us go play.... "
Munchkins at play. (aka Matthew and Kate). Can you believe they're both almost 1 year old?
"...trust me, I know this gig. Just smile and she'll let us go play.... "
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Update:
... So I just took a test to find out my carbon footprint and found out it was higher than average, so here are the things I will pledge to start to do:
- I will use my clothes dryer conservatively
- I will plant a tree
- I will not dump my used cooking oil down the drain
- I will switch to biodegradeable, phosphate free dishwasher detergent (YAY! Stupidstore is finally making something no one else has yet... they have one)
Even I have a long way to go, but hey, it's a start.
For more ideas on what you can do, visit Earthlab
- I will use my clothes dryer conservatively
- I will plant a tree
- I will not dump my used cooking oil down the drain
- I will switch to biodegradeable, phosphate free dishwasher detergent (YAY! Stupidstore is finally making something no one else has yet... they have one)
Even I have a long way to go, but hey, it's a start.
For more ideas on what you can do, visit Earthlab
Happy Earth Day!
Earthday... I can remember the very first Earth Day. I was still in Elementary School. I was on the student council and we were very excited to be a part of Earth Day. For our part, we set up a store in an empty classroom and had students bring in newspapers, cans and bottles to be recycled and exchanged for "tickets" that could by them candy and toys in our pretend "store".
The promise of candy was all it took to have the kids bring in every piece of paper, can or bottle they could find. By the end of the week we had a mountain of paper so high that it almost touched the ceiling. No kidding!
Then we decided to have a student lunch. We ordered several hundred cheeseburgers from MacDonalds and preached to the kids about how much better it was for the environment to use paper wrapping instead of the styrofoam containers that McDonalds was still using at that time.
Well, we've come a long way in some respects (unfortunately, there's still a lot of styrofoam coming out of restaurants), but I think we've only gone backwards in other ways. Here are some startling facts about what we humans do (thanks to my neighbour for the research):
- Every year, Canadians use 1.5 BILLION coffee cups. You can bet most of these arent' recycled
- You could run 100,000 cars for a year on the amount of oil it takes to make plastic water bottles each year. Stop buying small water bottles!!
- The average household buys 18 kg of HARMFUL household cleaners. (pssst... I've
switched to METHOD, but there are tons out there, even Superstore has GREEN products now... no excuses!!!)
It's not practical for all of us to change the world, (i.e. I still use disposable diapers) but every little bit helps. I try turn off the TV and lights when we're not in the room. I buy GREEN products. I buy compact fluorescent lightbulbs. I try recycle everything I can (stupid Calgary for not recycling as well as Vancouver does)....
If you can change even just one thing, you're making the world better for Matthew and all other babies.
So what are you going to do?
Happy Earth Day :O)
The promise of candy was all it took to have the kids bring in every piece of paper, can or bottle they could find. By the end of the week we had a mountain of paper so high that it almost touched the ceiling. No kidding!
Then we decided to have a student lunch. We ordered several hundred cheeseburgers from MacDonalds and preached to the kids about how much better it was for the environment to use paper wrapping instead of the styrofoam containers that McDonalds was still using at that time.
Well, we've come a long way in some respects (unfortunately, there's still a lot of styrofoam coming out of restaurants), but I think we've only gone backwards in other ways. Here are some startling facts about what we humans do (thanks to my neighbour for the research):
- Every year, Canadians use 1.5 BILLION coffee cups. You can bet most of these arent' recycled
- You could run 100,000 cars for a year on the amount of oil it takes to make plastic water bottles each year. Stop buying small water bottles!!
- The average household buys 18 kg of HARMFUL household cleaners. (pssst... I've
switched to METHOD, but there are tons out there, even Superstore has GREEN products now... no excuses!!!)
It's not practical for all of us to change the world, (i.e. I still use disposable diapers) but every little bit helps. I try turn off the TV and lights when we're not in the room. I buy GREEN products. I buy compact fluorescent lightbulbs. I try recycle everything I can (stupid Calgary for not recycling as well as Vancouver does)....
If you can change even just one thing, you're making the world better for Matthew and all other babies.
So what are you going to do?
Happy Earth Day :O)
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Diaper Wars
The baby manual didn't mention that when your child turns near the age of 1, they may decide that they are no longer required to lay on their backs in order to have their diapers changed!
My child has decided that he will only lay happily on his stomach, or stand on the diaper table and that with almost 1 year of diaper changing experience, I should be able to put on a diaper from any angle!
As soon as you lay him on his back, he immediately flips to his stomach where he lays happily. I will admit, sometimes this makes bum cleaning easier, but I have yet to master the art of putting a diaper on an upside down baby.
Standing up is even worse. Sometimes I have to call in reinforcements. It takes Daddy to act like a three ring circus and entertain Matthew and Mommy to work feverishly to get the diaper duty done in 5 seconds flat. That is because even Daddy cannot keep him on his back for very long.
And don't think that I could just put that cute little strap that comes with the diaper pad across his tummy and he'll lay flat. Already tried that. Somehow the stomach area stayed up but the bum and head areas still twisted. Not a good idea.
Then today I gave him the bottle of baby oil spray stuff, which he happily began to shake and shake to his hearts content. You've got to be kidding. I've tried every toy, rattle, cloth, book, you name it, that I could think of... and all he wanted was a bottle of liquid to shake!
.. I guess it is true that they always keep you guessing ;o)
My child has decided that he will only lay happily on his stomach, or stand on the diaper table and that with almost 1 year of diaper changing experience, I should be able to put on a diaper from any angle!
As soon as you lay him on his back, he immediately flips to his stomach where he lays happily. I will admit, sometimes this makes bum cleaning easier, but I have yet to master the art of putting a diaper on an upside down baby.
Standing up is even worse. Sometimes I have to call in reinforcements. It takes Daddy to act like a three ring circus and entertain Matthew and Mommy to work feverishly to get the diaper duty done in 5 seconds flat. That is because even Daddy cannot keep him on his back for very long.
And don't think that I could just put that cute little strap that comes with the diaper pad across his tummy and he'll lay flat. Already tried that. Somehow the stomach area stayed up but the bum and head areas still twisted. Not a good idea.
Then today I gave him the bottle of baby oil spray stuff, which he happily began to shake and shake to his hearts content. You've got to be kidding. I've tried every toy, rattle, cloth, book, you name it, that I could think of... and all he wanted was a bottle of liquid to shake!
.. I guess it is true that they always keep you guessing ;o)
Friday, April 18, 2008
11 Months Old
.... I'm a little behind getting these up. Photos courtesy of Daddy while Mommy was in Vegas!
The Serious Pose:
...and the happy pose:
..and by the way, it's not supposed to be like this on April 18:
The Serious Pose:
...and the happy pose:
..and by the way, it's not supposed to be like this on April 18:
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
The typing test
... ok, I saw this on one of my friend's blogs and couldn't resist. Guess all those years of piano lessons paid off! I ranked 20587 out of 1,792,065, with only 2 wrong words. How fast do you suppose #1 can type???? sheesh!
Can you beat me?????
100 words
Can you beat me?????
100 words
Beep Beep!
It's true that I often see little babies and can't wonder how mine went from a little boy to the boy he is in such a short amount of time. It's true that there are often times I secretly wish I could sneak him out of his crib at night just to rock him in the rocking chair. But it's also true that as he gets older it is so amazing to see his personality develop and to start to have a lot of fun playing with him!
So, I take you to the scene in our sunroom upstairs tonight after I came up from finishing piano lessons. Daddy and Matthew were sitting on the couch reading a book together... aww... what a cute moment. Mommy sits down and all of a sudden it turns into a big game.
Matthew: (points to Mommy's nose)
Mommy: Beep, Beep
Matthew: (points to Daddy's nose)
Daddy: Beep, Beep!
Mommy: (points to Matthew's nose) beep beep beep!
Matthew: finds this hysterical and starts to giggle
Matthew: (points to Mommy's nose and Daddy's nose at the same time)
Mommy and Daddy: BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!
Matthew: Just about falls off the couch in hysterical bits of laughter
Mommy: just about to pee myself from laughing soo hard
.... and so the game goes on!
So, I take you to the scene in our sunroom upstairs tonight after I came up from finishing piano lessons. Daddy and Matthew were sitting on the couch reading a book together... aww... what a cute moment. Mommy sits down and all of a sudden it turns into a big game.
Matthew: (points to Mommy's nose)
Mommy: Beep, Beep
Matthew: (points to Daddy's nose)
Daddy: Beep, Beep!
Mommy: (points to Matthew's nose) beep beep beep!
Matthew: finds this hysterical and starts to giggle
Matthew: (points to Mommy's nose and Daddy's nose at the same time)
Mommy and Daddy: BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!
Matthew: Just about falls off the couch in hysterical bits of laughter
Mommy: just about to pee myself from laughing soo hard
.... and so the game goes on!
Monday, April 14, 2008
The First "boys weekend"
So this past weekend I headed off to Vancouver with some of my girlfriends from the coast. I had been looking forward to it for months since it's been almost 2 years since I've seen most of them and I missed the yearly "GONE" (aka Girls Only No Exceptions) weekend last year. The thing was, this was my first experience away from Matthew though, so at the same time I was getting excited to go, the thought of leaving him was pulling at my heartstrings a bit.
I left last Thursday amidst the craziest snowstorm I've seen in Calgary yet. Just as we were getting ready to go to the airport, Westjet's website claimed my flight was not going to leave until 10:45 p.m. at night, 4 hours late. I was quite upset by this, thinking I was going to miss the first evening with the girls. Good thing Darren checked 1 more time because not 20 minutes later, the website said it was back on track... oh crap! So we threw everything in the car, buckled Matthew in and headed down Deerfoot in traffic... and round 2 of the snowstorm.
Running just a little late, I suggested that Daddy and Matthew just drop me off and don't bother coming in. (Secretly, this was easier on Mommy than having to prolong the goodbye any more than I had to). So, with very teary eyes, I kissed them both goodbye and off I went.
Luckily, being back with my friends, getting to have fun in Vegas and getting a break to be "on my own" made it not that hard to be away! A few text messages back and forth and a few phone calls and everything was great! I was ready to come home by Sunday morning, but honestly had a really nice break in between.
It sounded like Daddy and Matthew had an absolute blast at home! Of course, my house looked a bit like a tornado went through it... but as Daddy said to me "I was only getting into the routine, if you'd have stayed a few days longer, I'd have been able to get everything cleaned up!" sure, sure! I didn't mind though. I was glad that Daddy and Matthew finally got to spend a lot of quality time together.
Apparently, their days were filled with a few trips to the "guy stores" (probably Future Shop and Golf Town)... some time outside... lots of time playing.... and some time to watch the Masters. Daddy bought Matthew his first set of golf clubs for the occasion. I think he spent most of the weekend trying to get him to swing at a ball so that he could amaze me when I got home. It was not to be, but Matthew sure is interested in pulling the clubs out of the little plastic golf bag that came with them..... and then banging the TV with them! Daddy may change his mind about playing with golf clubs in the house in a few months when Matthew can actually stand and swing them!
I returned Sunday and couldn't wait to see Matthew waiting with outstretched arms..... except instead he played shy with his own Mommy and didn't want to come to me at first. Luckily, this only lasted a few minutes and there were little smiles poking out of the corners of his mouth the whole time. A few big hugs and kisses and everything was back to normal :O)
I left last Thursday amidst the craziest snowstorm I've seen in Calgary yet. Just as we were getting ready to go to the airport, Westjet's website claimed my flight was not going to leave until 10:45 p.m. at night, 4 hours late. I was quite upset by this, thinking I was going to miss the first evening with the girls. Good thing Darren checked 1 more time because not 20 minutes later, the website said it was back on track... oh crap! So we threw everything in the car, buckled Matthew in and headed down Deerfoot in traffic... and round 2 of the snowstorm.
Running just a little late, I suggested that Daddy and Matthew just drop me off and don't bother coming in. (Secretly, this was easier on Mommy than having to prolong the goodbye any more than I had to). So, with very teary eyes, I kissed them both goodbye and off I went.
Luckily, being back with my friends, getting to have fun in Vegas and getting a break to be "on my own" made it not that hard to be away! A few text messages back and forth and a few phone calls and everything was great! I was ready to come home by Sunday morning, but honestly had a really nice break in between.
It sounded like Daddy and Matthew had an absolute blast at home! Of course, my house looked a bit like a tornado went through it... but as Daddy said to me "I was only getting into the routine, if you'd have stayed a few days longer, I'd have been able to get everything cleaned up!" sure, sure! I didn't mind though. I was glad that Daddy and Matthew finally got to spend a lot of quality time together.
Apparently, their days were filled with a few trips to the "guy stores" (probably Future Shop and Golf Town)... some time outside... lots of time playing.... and some time to watch the Masters. Daddy bought Matthew his first set of golf clubs for the occasion. I think he spent most of the weekend trying to get him to swing at a ball so that he could amaze me when I got home. It was not to be, but Matthew sure is interested in pulling the clubs out of the little plastic golf bag that came with them..... and then banging the TV with them! Daddy may change his mind about playing with golf clubs in the house in a few months when Matthew can actually stand and swing them!
I returned Sunday and couldn't wait to see Matthew waiting with outstretched arms..... except instead he played shy with his own Mommy and didn't want to come to me at first. Luckily, this only lasted a few minutes and there were little smiles poking out of the corners of his mouth the whole time. A few big hugs and kisses and everything was back to normal :O)
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Monday, April 7, 2008
The First Step
Matthew took his first steps this weekend!!!!!
By no means is he walking... he of course, took 5 steps but then wouldn't do it again :o)
But, Mommy and Daddy were waiting with open arms to see those two little feet take the first steps all by himself and although we weren't smart enough to get the videocamera out before we encouraged him to walk... we'll have the kodak moment lodged in our memories forever :o)
I wish I could have captured it though, just for his reaction!!! He was so pleased with what he did, that he couldn't stop giggling and laughing for 5 minutes afterwards!
phew... well at least that didn't happen while I was in Vegas :O)
Oh, and by the way, he also has started to repeat Da-da about 10,000 times a day. If you ask him where Da-da is, he will look at Darren, but I think he just likes singing to himself all day. It's so cute! Sometimes it's a little high pitched da-da-da-da that he sings to himself while he's playing or climbing the stairs :O)
By no means is he walking... he of course, took 5 steps but then wouldn't do it again :o)
But, Mommy and Daddy were waiting with open arms to see those two little feet take the first steps all by himself and although we weren't smart enough to get the videocamera out before we encouraged him to walk... we'll have the kodak moment lodged in our memories forever :o)
I wish I could have captured it though, just for his reaction!!! He was so pleased with what he did, that he couldn't stop giggling and laughing for 5 minutes afterwards!
phew... well at least that didn't happen while I was in Vegas :O)
Oh, and by the way, he also has started to repeat Da-da about 10,000 times a day. If you ask him where Da-da is, he will look at Darren, but I think he just likes singing to himself all day. It's so cute! Sometimes it's a little high pitched da-da-da-da that he sings to himself while he's playing or climbing the stairs :O)
Thursday, April 3, 2008
It's almost time
I refuse to countdown, so let's just say it's getting close...
but I think I'm ready. As much as half of me doesn't want to go, the other half is excited to go back. I think that's the way it will always be!
It's taken me a good year, but I've taught myself to do things differently. Being an engineer, my mind things very logically, so naturally, I'm comfortable when everything at home fits logically into place as well.
I've started meal planning which is a HUGE timesaver. It is amazing how much relief it is to not only know what you're having for dinner tonight, but tomorrow night as well! And, I've started to get into the habit of cooking or prepping as much as I can on the weekend for the next week. So far, it's been quite helpful. If I can stick with it, I think we'll have the dinner problem licked!
If I can stay on top of housework, it's really not that bad... (sssh.. don't tell Daddy though, because I still might lobby for a cleaning lady :O)
And as long as I'm always thinking two steps ahead, my mind is relaxed at the end of the day... and that's a good thing!!!
How's Matthew by the way? He's on the go every waking moment these days! He's rediscovered stairs and so we're practising going UP and DOWN... 20 or more times a day! He's walking with his push toys or a chair and is now going to them himself and trying to get up... it's kind of hard though, because the wheels start moving as soon as he gets up!
Next weekend, Daddy and Matthew have their first official Boys only weekend at home... I bet it's going to be fun!
but I think I'm ready. As much as half of me doesn't want to go, the other half is excited to go back. I think that's the way it will always be!
It's taken me a good year, but I've taught myself to do things differently. Being an engineer, my mind things very logically, so naturally, I'm comfortable when everything at home fits logically into place as well.
I've started meal planning which is a HUGE timesaver. It is amazing how much relief it is to not only know what you're having for dinner tonight, but tomorrow night as well! And, I've started to get into the habit of cooking or prepping as much as I can on the weekend for the next week. So far, it's been quite helpful. If I can stick with it, I think we'll have the dinner problem licked!
If I can stay on top of housework, it's really not that bad... (sssh.. don't tell Daddy though, because I still might lobby for a cleaning lady :O)
And as long as I'm always thinking two steps ahead, my mind is relaxed at the end of the day... and that's a good thing!!!
How's Matthew by the way? He's on the go every waking moment these days! He's rediscovered stairs and so we're practising going UP and DOWN... 20 or more times a day! He's walking with his push toys or a chair and is now going to them himself and trying to get up... it's kind of hard though, because the wheels start moving as soon as he gets up!
Next weekend, Daddy and Matthew have their first official Boys only weekend at home... I bet it's going to be fun!
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