Cheri and Family

Favourite Christmas Present

2011-12-16T09:09:00.005-05:00

The Christmas after my mom passed away was a little sobering for the family. We all missed her terribly. My mom loved this time of year, especially now that she had 10 excited grandchildren to share it with.

That year after all the gifts were opened, my dad produced one last present : a small box that was addressed to me from him. You could tell from the size that it was a jewellery box and I have to admit...I was a little nervous to open it. My dad loved to buy jewellery for my mom...which she loved but wasn't always my taste.

I said..."Oh, you've been out shopping have you?" as I unwrapped the present with a nervous grin. But that grin was quickly replaced by a look of shock and then tears as I recognized the tiny box under the wrapping. For in the box was my mom's family ring. The ring I had picked out, and my siblings and I gave to her for her 50th birthday.

I wear the ring all the time. It's a piece of my mom I carry with me and love to look at and remember her.

What is your favourite Christmas present?

Milkweed Memories

2011-10-23T21:49:00.003-04:00

I love milkweed because it reminds me of my childhood.

My dad runs a tree and junk removal business. When we were kids, there were many times when all 4 kids were piled into the truck with mom and dad to go "help" with a job. One of his clients was located at the edge of town with an overgrown weeded lot behind the building...a place for us kids to explore. I was fascinated with the milkweed contained in this lot, and the while fluffy seeds that you could pull out of the pod and free into the air. We would hunt for caterpillars and cocoons amongst the milkweed; hoping to take one home that we could watch transform into a butterfly.

I've introduced C to milkweed this fall and she loves it just as much as I did...or still do.

Dish Duty

2011-05-10T08:28:00.004-04:00

"I'm never doing dishes when I get older!"

"Who do you think will do them?"

"My husband."

Dreamer...

Wordless Wednesday - The Gigglers

2011-04-27T00:03:00.002-04:00

A Birthday Surprise

2011-03-20T19:03:00.005-04:00

Today, my family celebrated March birthdays....which includes mine. As I opened the present from my brother and sister-in-law, I tried to not get my hopes up...for the object wrapped in tissue paper was definitely the shape of a plate. I thought..."it can't possibly be THE plate...THE plate that was accidentally smashed to pieces". I pulled back the tissue paper, and there it was...

I was ecstatic (and a little emotional too). I never thought the 20 year old collectors plate would be replaceable any time soon. Thank-you Syl. :-)

Happy Birthday/Blogiversary to Me

2011-03-14T00:00:00.001-04:00

Today is my birthday and my 4th year blogiversary. I thought I would repost a story I shared three years ago on this day. Now that my mom is no longer here, this story is that much more precious to me. Here is the story of my birth, and the miracle that happened after, as told by my mom...

On a rainy March 14th morning around 5 a.m. I was awakened out of my sleep to a soaking wet bed; my water had broken. Contractions began almost immediately and by 7 a.m. I was on my way to the hospital. By 8:15 a.m. I had very quickly delivered a healthy beautiful 7 lbs 5 oz baby girl. As I lay in recovery I was elated that I not only had had an easy delivery but a precious baby girl

My excitement however was short lived as pain began to engulf my body. The nurses first kept telling me it was after-birth pains. I tried to tell them it wasn’t because the pains were in my right leg, but they thought I was imagining it, until the pains became so intense I had to be rushed into surgery. There it was discovered that the doctor who had done the episiotomy, had by accident cut the main blood supply to my right leg and not knowing this had happened, stitched me up, and a blood clot the size of a baseball had formed. After the surgery I was placed in a private room for rest.

Around 8 that evening I suddenly felt faint, and literally could feel death overtaking me. The nurses quickly pulled back the cover to discover that my bed was saturated in blood. Hurrying my bed out of the room they tried to take my pulse, and found it only read 60 over 0. They looked at each other and said “this one is a goner”. At that moment I cried out to God in faith, I couldn’t imagine my little girl growing up and I wouldn’t be there with her, or our son. Immediately on the tile ceiling over head of me in the hall a vision appeared of Jesus and the women who touched his garment with an issue of blood and was made whole. I said “Lord, if you can do it for her, you can do it for me”.

Into the operating room I was pushed, and the surgeon who was waiting for me was amazed to discover that on its own the bleeding had stopped. By this time I had lost so much blood my body was in shock. I was very blue, very cold and my veins had collapsed. I was wrapped in oven warmed blankets and they began to give me blood transfusions only to discover my temperature had dropped so low, they had to put the blood in ice water to match my body temperature so the veins would not sting as badly.

Through this ordeal they were surprised that I never lost consciousness, but an inner voice told me it would be alright and not to go to sleep, and there was an overwhelming sense of peace. I had tried to speak to one of the nurses that my husband and I knew, but she told the doctor she didn’t know me. The next day she dropped by my room to apologize for not recognizing me. The doctor who worked on me came into my room , looked my way and went out, to ask the nurses where I was. He couldn’t believe I was the same lady. As news spread through the hospital, nurses from different floors came by to see the lady who fought death and survived. It gave us then and still now a wonderful testimony of God’s faithfulness.

Another Goodbye

2011-02-24T22:42:00.002-05:00

Today our international student moved out.

C has been dreading this day for the last week and has begged him many times to not leave. She becomes so attached to the students we host, that I often wonder if we should be putting her through the painful goodbyes.

This last student has been amazing, and the brother-sister bond that he and C developed was deeper than the other students we have hosted. He wanted to do things with her and never seemed bothered by her crazy overwhelming energy that tires me out.

Yesterday morning C was eating breakfast when he left for school As he shut the door on his way out of the house, C yelled with a mouthful of food...

"Love you!"

I was shocked. I wondered if he heard, let alone if he would respond. There was an uncomfortable pause and then the door opened back up and he yelled back.

"Love you!"

As the door shut again, she hollered.

"I said I LIKE you."

Who needs a snow blower?

2011-02-15T00:07:00.001-05:00

"I think HB (our international student) is on the computer."

"That's fine C. He's allowed."

"I think he's plotting against us."

"Plotting what?"

"I don't know. He's probably emailing his mother telling her how horrible we are."

"Horrible? Why would he think we're horrible?"

"Because we make him shovel the driveway."

I told C that we don't make him shovel, he does it on his own and likes to because back home, they do not get much snow. I guess I need to watch who's listening when I joke about not needing a snow blower because our student shovels the driveway.

Soccer is Not an Indoor Sport

2011-01-25T23:56:00.002-05:00

I'm a big fan of the artist Sandra Kuck and own a few of her plates which have been given to me over the years. My favourite being the 4 plate Victorian Christmas series that I display on our fire place mantel during Christmas. The plates are usually the last decorations to be packed away (sometime in February) because I find the Christmas season is not a long enough time for me to enjoy them. This year...I wish I had packed them away with the other decorations....

Last weekend C and our current homestay student were playing in the loft with a soccer ball. It seemed so harmless...they were passing the ball back and forth. I was downstairs when I had a prompting that I should get them to settle down...but ignored it. Surely they would know to keep the ball on the ground...

Then I heard the sound I never wanted to hear...the sound of something breakable falling and smashing. I knew there was only one thing in that room that would make that noise...my beloved plates. And there on the floor was the first plate in the series smashed to pieces. Our student was horrified, hubby and I were a little speechless, and C talked for all of us...asking if it was rare and wondered if we could glue it back together.

I know it was an accident. Accidents happen. I'm sure we all have broken something that was not ours (I totalled my parents car when I was younger). There was nothing I could do about it now. I'll just have to look on ebay or in the secondary markets.

C kept asking me if it was rare. I tried to avoid the question as I didn't want to make our student feel any worse. Eventually I told her that it would be hard to replace, to which she went off downstairs. After the mess was cleaned up, C returned and proudly presented me with a gift from behind her back.

Her rendition of the plate. I couldn't help but laugh as she set her artwork in the plate stand and said..."When you get a real new one, we'll have to get a stand for this one so we can keep displaying it."

Toothpaste Antics

2010-12-21T22:26:00.003-05:00

We seem to have a budding artist in our house...one whom likes to use toothpaste as her paint and the bathroom mirror as her canvas. I have a hard time reprimanding her about it, when the artwork is so creative. She makes up songs in front of the mirror while drawing pictures to go along with it. I figure I'll just have to teach her how to clean a mirror.

But the other day, her toothpaste antics travelled outside the bathroom.

Around lunch time, a coworker told me I had something white all over my vest. I took my vest off to look and found big white splotches all over the back of my black vest. As I fingered it, I realized it was toothpaste. I had been walking around work for half the day with toothpaste all over my back. Eek!

That night at supper, I told Hubby and C that I had found toothpaste on my vest. C hung her head and told us that she had been swinging the toothpaste around when a glob went flying...she didn't know where it landed. Now she knew it landed on my vest that had been hanging in the bathroom. This meant...I smeared the toothpaste when I put my jacket on, and sure enough...I have toothpaste all over the inside of my jacket too.

First Stitch

2010-12-04T13:13:00.000-05:00

I have always wondered what my first experience with stitches (on my child) would be like. I know there are lots of moms out there whom are pros at this, but I'm sure there are also lots of others that have never had to experience this and wonder, as I have done, how bad will it be?

I have now been initiated into the first group of moms.

On Sunday night, I was visiting with friends when C hit her head on the corner of a bed. All the kids came racing downstairs with C crying and yelling..."My head is bleeding! My head is bleeding!" It took a few seconds for it to register that it was my kid yelling.

I have never seen a cut before that required stitches...so when we found the small gash on the back of her head, I wasn't sure what to do. One friend thought we could just put a band aid on it, the other was certain she needed a couple of stitches. I really didn't want to wait in ER for a band aid, so I took C to see my friend (a nurse) whom lived only a few minutes away (and where Hubby was watching football). She took one look at the gash and said C would need stitches.

I thought for sure we would be in ER for half the night, so I was quite pleased when we only had to wait a little over an hour. The doctor said she would put a single stitch in it, and when C started to get upset, the doctor said..."It's only a little needle. Do you want me to show her?". I took one look at the fish hook shaped needle and declined the offer thinking..."If you show her that...she'll bolt for the door.".

I was quite proud of C. She was very distraught when she first cut her head and had been adamant from the start that she did not want to go to the hospital. She does not like talking about any type of ailment...let alone blood (Not sure if some of this stems from all the time we spent with my mom at the hospital before she passed away). When it came time for the stitch, she wrapped her arms around me, buried her face in my shoulder and persevered through even though she said it hurt and she could feel it.

When it was all over, C was looking forward to school the next day to show off her hospital wrist band and tell her friends about her stitch. She also repeated back to me something I've told her in regards to other situations..."It might be the first time (for stitches)...but not the last."...I don't find that logic very comforting.

First Snow

2010-11-27T15:54:00.004-05:00

O the excitement of the first snow fall. C had to go outside and play in it even though very little had fallen.

Grandpa's Retirement

2010-11-11T08:00:00.009-05:00

Last Saturday night, we went to visit my dad. As we sat around the table doing a puzzle, the conversation turned to retirement...

"I don't want grandpa to retire!"

"Why"

"Because he would run out of money."

"No he won't. He'll go live with Aunt B." (my sis has an in law setup that we hint about)

"That's not fair! Aunt B gets all the good people!" (...not sure who the other good people are...)

Under my breath..."She's making my dad's day"

"What does that mean? Grandpa doesn't want to live with Aunt B?"...turning to my dad..."You can live with us. We have a spare room...and it would be a lot less noisy." (my sis has 4 kids)

I couldn't help but notice the smile on my dad's face which warmed my heart...seeing my daughter fill my dad's love tank.

C's Treasure Box

2010-11-05T22:07:00.006-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, C was given a treasure box assignment at school. She had to decorate a shoe box, place 5 special-to-her items in the box along with her published autobiography, and then give a 5 minute speech about her box, and its contents, on presentation day.

C and I brainstormed about ideas for decorating the box...paint it, wrap it...but the idea she liked best was to cover the box with pictures of herself. We went through photo albums, and digital pictures to find her favourites. It was an interesting task as she often rejected my favourites because she deemed the photo was too embarrassing to show her class mates. I couldn't convince her that at 18 months, diaper photos are not embarrassing. In the end, I was only able to convince her to allow me to OK any pictures she put of me on the box.

C picked out 6 things to put into the box: T-shirt from Old Navy with the words Break Dance on it (reminds her of her favourite hip hop band Manafest); her very first Webkinz; a picture of Georgina, her guinea pig; her softball medal; her Build-a-Bear (named after our last Irish homestay); and her lullaby (which we have to wind up every night when we tuck her in).

I think the best part of the project was her published autobiography.

Hi, my name is C. I live in Ontario. I live with my mom and dad. I also have a pet guinea pig. My dad's name is G. He was born and raised in S-town. My mom's name is Cheri. She was born and raised in B-town.

I like a lot of colours. They are pink, blue and lime green. I like to make crafts for my friends and other things too. My favourite holidays are Christmas and Easter. I like my birthday too. My birthday is July 5th.

My family likes to do stuff together. We like to watch movies and my mom reads me bedtime stories. We also have a Bible time. We like to go to my grandma and grandpa's trailer.

My family is special because my parents know what is best for me.

I read it and then had to ask her if she really wrote the last line as I wondered if it had been prompted by the teacher...but no, that was her idea. I think I might have to frame it.

Thanksgiving at the Family Zoo

2010-10-14T22:39:00.001-04:00

Family gatherings on my side usually seem like a visit to the zoo. I have 3 siblings and between the 4 of us, there are 10 kids. The oldest is 9 and the youngest 3. Seven girls and 3 boys...and all of them have lots of energy.

The minute we arrive at any family event, my sisters 4 kids race from the house squealing "C is here, C is here!" and surround her with a giggling group hug. It's not always well received (sometimes she locks herself in the car), but it always makes me smile to see it happen EVERY time.

The kids don't always get along as the older ones have to work out who's the boss, but it's always interesting to see and hear them play.

This year I asked my sister in law (who I think is a pretty good photographer) if she'd be willing to take some family photos of Hubby, C and I. We have very few family photos and I thought it would be fun to get some outdoor shots. Fun...it was more like crazy. Some of the other kids came along too and having just had dessert...they were pretty pumped full of sugar...including C. My sister in law still managed to get some good photos including one of my favourites below which really captures C's personality.

After the annual group family shot, my dad got a ladder and climbed the tree in the backyard. The girls then climbed the tree too to get some unique pictures with grandpa. I wonder how many of the neighbours were watching and wondering if we were crazy. We can be...

My sister shared with us how her 3 year old kept putting his fingers in her home made pumpkin pies that were meant for other people. So, as soon as she left the kitchen my dad turned to me and said..."You should put your finger in her pies." That was all the arm twisting I needed.

I Won Coffee

2010-10-06T20:39:00.001-04:00

Back in June I won a cool Gevalia coffee lovin' gift pack over at Crumbs in the Minivan. The gift pack included two boxes of Gevalia coffee (one was decafe), 2 coffee mugs, a travel mug, a stainless steel scoop, filters and cleaner. Yeah! I love coffee and could not wait for it to arrive in the mail. Unfortunately I had to wait a little longer because the first package never arrived (I wonder if the postal workers enjoyed it). Gevalia mailed another package which arrived mid September and I have to say the wait was worth it. The coffee was amazing...very smooth...probably the best coffee I have tasted. It was so good that Hubby looked at the grinds in the coffee maker and said..."I wonder what the coffee would taste like if I ran water through the coffee maker again." He wanted to make the grinds last as long as possible.

The Newest Member of the Family

2010-09-30T22:41:00.001-04:00

We caved and got a pet...a guinea pig named Georgina.

C loves animals and has been pleading with us for a few years now to get a pet. I know her first choice would probably have been either a cat, dog or horse, but hubby and I felt we would start small and let her have a guinea pig. Neither of us are pet people and would be quite happy to never have one, but we see the deep desire and love our daughter has for animals and felt we needed to fill it.

One of the first things that C wanted to purchase for Georgina was a leash. Her cousin has a leash for her rabbits, and C wanted one too. We went to 3 stores to find the identical leash, and spent about 20 minutes getting the harness on Georgina only to discover that guinea pigs are not really walkable.

C tried to coax her with food...or tug on the leash, but Georgina was not going to move. People would walk by and say..."Such a small dog"..."or I didn't know you could walk guinea pigs". Eventually C accepted that the only way Georgina was going to make it around the block was if she was carried.

C loves to wrap her up and carry her around the house or let her sit in her lap while watching TV. We really hoped that the guinea pig would fill her desire for a pet, but she is already asking for a dog. If only the guinea pig would walk around the block on a leash.

Back to School - Grade 3

2010-09-08T20:02:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was C's first day of grade 3. She was so excited to find out she was in a portable and that some of her friends were in her class. I'm sure the portable novelty will wear off once the colder weather is here and she has to go outside just to get to the washroom or library.

As we walked to school she wanted to hold my hand but when we got on the playground...she let go. Then she grabbed it again for a few seconds and let go again. It was like there was this internal dilemma being played out in her mind...she wanted to hold my hand but wanted to look mature also.

C wanted to look pretty on her first day and asked me the night before to put her hair in rollers. She created an outfit from her favourite pieces and presented it to me about 20 minutes before we were to leave for school...brown leopard print skirt, flowered top, socks and her new black Barbie runners.

I tried to convince her that her skirt and top would not go...but she argued saying that all the colours matched. Normally I would just let her wear it...not a battle I need to win...but on the first day I wanted to take pictures and the photographer in me did not want a clashing outfit. I knew the only way to win was to present her with a new favourite skirt that would match her top....and I had just the item in my bought-ahead clothes bin...an orange skort. I also told her she could wear her good sandals for the first day...which she gladly traded her running shoes in for since the good shoes had little heels on them.

Then there was the second day of school....the first day of many days to come where I don't say anything. She put together a new shirt with black ratty pants that are way too short. She thought it was OK if her socks made up the rest of the distance. When I asked her if she really wanted to wear those pants (in a tone that suggested I didn't approve) she responded with "Yes...and it's not about what other people think." I hate when they give you a taste of your own medicine.
In keeping with my trend from previous years (grade 1, grade 2), here is my grade 3 picture. Grade 3 was the last year for my trade mark ringlet pig tails. I cut my hair short in grade 4...and even shorter in grade 5. I asked C what she thought of my grade 4/5 pictures....she said "Ahh...you look OK...but you look a lot better now." I'd have to agree...I look at those pictures and wonder "Why did I do that?".

New Camera

2010-08-29T23:07:00.001-04:00

I got a new camera...a Canon Rebel XSi.

This is my first time shooting with a DSLR and I love it. My previous digital camera was a little Kodak EasyShare point and shoot that has done me well for over 5 years...but it was time for an upgrade.

I spent a long time deciding on which camera I wanted to buy. Nikon or Canon? A higher end Point and Shoot or SLR? Video? What model? I read review after review, and asked people lots of questions (so many I'm sure some were tired of me asking). I've never spent more than $200 on a camera and I wanted to make sure I made the right decision for me. In the end, I went with my heart's desire...an SLR...and a Canon. Nikon has a superior warranty compared to Canon, but in the reviews I'd read and photo comparisons I'd seen, Canon had better image clarity. (I can already hear protests from all the die hard Nikon users...but that's ok, we can have different opinions and still be blog friends...right?)

C has been looking forward to the day I purchased a new camera so that she could claim my old camera. I purchased my new camera just before leaving on our 18 day vacation out west (stories to come soon), so C was able to use the old camera on our vacation. It was pretty entertaining to see what she chose to take pictures of....close up of toys, candid photos of me (need to be promptly deleted), dogs (whether on magazines or lease when the owners aren't looking). Our plans are to eventually print and frame some of her better pictures and hang them in her room.

Conquering the Jungle

2010-07-31T21:28:00.005-04:00

The previous owner of our home was an avid gardener...we are not. We had no clue when we purchased our home the amount of effort and time it would require to maintain the gardens. We put little energy into them in the first couple of years, so it didn't take long for the backyard to turn into a jungle.

Weeds and plants were growing into the lawn, the Black Eyed Susans were crowding out all the other plants, and we discovered that we had a few rather large ant nests in the garden.

This is our rock garden, except you can't see it because of all the weeds.

After 5 years of letting the gardens go wild, I'd had enough. I was determined this year to get them under control. I spent hours and hours digging out all the weeds and unwanted plants from the gardens around the perimeter of the yard. Then we laid down 7 yards of mulch.

We are done for now, but not finished. We plan to rip out the middle garden and re-sod. We would like more grass area for kids to run around in. The rock garden needs a little more attention...we might actually take it out completely and put a shed there.

One of my goals this year too was to plant a vegetable garden. So I ripped everything out along the left side of the yard and planted corn, zucchini, peas and lettuce. Everything is growing really well...except the lettuce did not sprout at all.

I'm quite pleased with how the yard looks and I love looking out the window at it or checking in on the vegetable garden. I used to hate every second I was out in the garden, but now I enjoy it as I see the fruit of my labour. Next year we hope to take on the front yard where an evil plant we tried to dig out of the garden has decided to grow in the lawn instead and is creeping closer to our neighbours perfectly manicured/weedless lawn.

C's Softball Season

2010-07-19T22:55:00.000-04:00

Back in the winter, C requested that we sign her up for baseball. She had been reading the junior Nancy Drew books and discovered that Nancy Drew played baseball, so she wanted to also. I was a little hesitant as soccer last year wasn't a big hit. But she was adamant that she wanted to play baseball, so we signed her up for a girls minor softball team.

C has never played baseball before, so we were quite thrilled when after a few team practices...she hit her first ball and made it to first base. C liked softball because of the variety (catching, batting, running bases) it offered compared to soccer...and she improved each week.

Partway through the season she had an amazing game...playing first base she got 2 players out, and then playing the pitcher position, she caught a line drive off the bat. She didn't mean to catch it...she was standing in the ready position and the ball slammed into her mitt...she didn't more her arm or drop the ball. She then threw to first (which I didn't see because my jaw was still on the ground) and got the player at first out. Four outs in one game...who's kid is this? Funny thing is, it was this game that she finally started to understand the game as she said to me..."I didn't know you could get people out. I thought it was just a bunch of standing around. I want to do that again."

And then...the very next game she got hit hard in the cheek with the ball. It was all I could do to get her back out on the field. And if that wasn't enough...she kept getting hit at the following practices. She was now very nervous of the ball...no longer wanted to play bases, catch balls in the air...or get anywhere near the girl who accidentally drilled her with the first ball.

As a parent, it was very frustrating to sit and watch the downward spiral...to see little to no effort put into the game...to listen to her say how she disliked baseball so much and couldn't wait for it to be over...to hear the coach say that she thought C was just batting to get out.

It was time for a talk.

We sat down with C and explained to her how we understood that she didn't want to play baseball next year, but she needed to fulfill her commitment this year and not let her team down. We couldn't go out and celebrate a successful season if she refused to participate on the team. We also gave her a little example of what it would look like if other kids were letting her down and how would that make her feel?

C seemed to understand...and made a great comeback...even the coaches were surprised. Part of it could be the "incentive" I implemented for the last week of practices and tournament games...gumballs for getting on first, bottle cap candy when you cross home plate, and gum to chew on the way home if you've participated well. Some people would call it a bribe, but I call it an incentive...I knew she was really nervous of being hit and I was hoping the candy fun would help her to push past her fear of the ball. And it did work...by the last few games, she was back to trying to catch the ball in the air as opposed to only wanting to catch grounders.

C had a couple of really great moments in the end of season tournament too. Playing catcher, she caught a foul ball to get the batter out. I asked her if she had planned to catch the ball, she said..."Not really, I just put my glove out and it dropped in". Then in the semi-finals, she was up to bat with the bases loaded and 2 outs. It was a tie game and the bottom of the last inning. She made the hit that got the winning run home.

C's team won second place in the end of season tournament. She loves her medal and thinks 2nd place is pretty good since she "only got 4th place in soccer last year and 2nd is better than 4th."

Will C do softball next year? She has said "maybe". I'm kind of hoping she does.

C's 8th Birthday Party

2010-06-24T22:41:00.009-04:00

Last weekend, we celebrated Chloe's 8th birthday with some friends from school and church. Her birthday is not until next month, but we have found that celebrating it mid June prevents it from conflicting with family vacations.

We decided to do something a little special and different this year. Normally we just do a house party (I'm all about being cost efficient), and we had already planned well ahead that this year we would do tye-dyed shirts at her party. But a friend of mine told me about another great idea that I knew would be really special for C. So we went for it. Horse riding at a local Stable...Tye-dying can wait until next year.

C was very excited. The day of the party she followed me around with a clipboard. She was making a list of things we needed to take (with little check boxes beside them to mark off), as well as a list of what we would be doing there.

C invited 8 friends, and for the first hour, they took turns riding ponies around the arena, and down and back a path outside. They all loved it. They even allowed Hubby to lead C around on her pony, which I know she was thrilled about.

After the rides, there were snacks, cake, ice-cream, presents and a few games too. To go along with the horse/pony theme, I made C cakes in the shape of a horses head. I found the idea on the Kraft website here. It was really easy to do and turned out looking great. I did however modify the recipe and use my own icing instead of the suggested one.

C loved the cake, and so did her friends.

All in all, it was a great success. It was a beautiful place and I know some of the parents were thinking of doing their next party there too. C loved the day, except for one small part...I had been telling her it was horse rides, but it was actually pony rides. She had been hoping to ride big horses and not ponies. I told C that the ponies were safer for the kids and that maybe when she turns 12, she could pick a few friends and come back and do a real horseback riding party. She was quite pleased about that.

Lots of Lego

2010-06-14T00:10:00.001-04:00

Like most kids (and adults too), C loves Lego. I have been looking for more Lego to add to her small collection, but Lego is so expensive and paying an arm and a leg for it was not in our budget. I figured I would bide my time and hope that something would come up on Kijiji or at a garage sale.

And it did.

Our neighbourhood recently had their community garage sale and I thought this would be a good opportunity for me to find more Lego for C. I was a little anxious before leaving as I knew Lego was a hot item so taking the correct path through the neighbourhood was very important. Before leaving, I thought..."God, it would be nice if you could direct my path...tell me where I should go to find Lego".

And he did.

C and I set out on bikes...headed in the direction of a street I thought we were to go to. This was the street where I had missed out on Lego the year before. But for some reason, we turned away from that direction. Within a few minutes we stopped our bikes in front of a garage sale with a teen (the age I figured would be selling Lego). I asked if they had Lego for sale. To my surprise, the teen said Yes...that he had not brought it out yet. He returned in a few minutes with a large Rubbermaid bin filled with Lego. When I asked him "How much?"...he said..."I don't know...$10?"...TEN DOLLARS? I thought ...the stuff is worth WAY more than that...so I took it all.

C is ecstatic about all her Lego, and so are her friends when they come over.

Me...I think it's pretty cool that God directed me within minutes to such a great deal. But I'm also wondering if maybe she now has TOO much Lego...especially when I see all the pieces on the floor that seemed to have wondered away from the main pile.

Wedding Dress Blog Tour - My Dress

2010-05-27T06:30:00.003-04:00

This coming August, it will be 11 years since I wore this dress on my wedding day in 1999. Hubby and I were engaged for less than 5 months, so I didn't have a long time to look for dresses, especially if the dress had to be ordered in. I went to every bridal shop in the city and tried on lots of dresses. My hearts desire was to have a dress with a crinoline skirt, so I was quite happy when I found this dress in one of the local shops. They even had the dress in my size so I did not have to worry about time lines for ordering one in.

My favourite memory of that day...my dad singing me down the isle. My dad used to travel in a gospel singing group, so he can sing. Being the proud daughter I am, I still love telling people what he did that day.

Funniest thing from that day...probably the "instructions" the groomsmen wrote in marker all over my hubby's chest and back the morning of our wedding. Nothing really bad...hand outlines, arrows and some words. Fortunately it didn't bleed through his shirt that day.

Worst thing from that day...actually it would be the day before and that would be my car breaking down. I was 45 minutes from my parents house and the city I was getting married in. By the time I got a hold of Hubby (who would now have to be my ride home) and got the car towed, I was 4 hours behind on a day that was filled with appointments, decorating, last minute details and rehearsal. I had amazing bridesmaids who helped out and it all worked out in the end.

Have or would I sell my dress? No. I loved it too much to sell it. I also knew that I would only get a fraction of what I had paid for it. My daughter loves my dress and has told me she wants to wear it on her wedding day. She's not even 8 yet, so I have a feeling she will change her mind before that day comes.

Here is one of my favourite pictures of Hubby and I.

If you want to take part in the Wedding Dress Blog Tour, post a picture of your wedding dress (then and now if you still have it) , tell about a favourite memory and/or funniest/worst thing that happened that day, and whether or not you have or would sell your dress and why...then link your post up on my friend Shash's blog (who is hosting the tour).

Name that Plant

2010-05-18T23:33:00.004-04:00

We have been in our current home for almost five years, and this is the first year I've noticed this plant growing in our garden. You might wonder how I could possibly miss it. Well...our garden/yard normally turns into a jungle of weeds and plants that reproduce like rabbits each year. This year I'm determined to get our gardens under control and these pictures were taken after I had dug up a ton of plants that would eventually hide it from view. The leaves that grow out of each bulb/root are in a straight line (giving it a flat look), so each plant looks like a sailboat with green sails. Does anyone know what this plant is called?

Mother's Day

2010-05-13T07:00:00.000-04:00

Mother's Day was special.

This is the first year that C did not hand me her Mother's Day gift as soon as she got home from school. Instead, she hid the present under her bed and told me she had a lot of work to do. She then spent part of the afternoon preparing other Mother's Day items.

On Saturday night before she went to bed, she said she had to give me part of my gift. I was handed a large home made card that said....

Happy Mothrs Day
I love you. you are the Best MOM I evre HaD.

I turned the page to see...

Breckfist in BeD and we are goning...

That was all I got to read. As soon as I read the last line, she took the card away and said the rest was for tomorrow. She just wanted me to know that I needed to stay in bed.

Sunday morning, I was served heart-shaped peanut butter and jam sandwiches, toast and coffee along with fresh cut flowers (that she ran outside and cut from our garden) and presents.

I was then able to read the remainder of the card...

and we are goning to eat at a restront. you will get a bocay of flawrs. you will asow get presints and I will red a Bed time story to you.
Love C

A bedtime story...that made me smile.

My presents were a a home-made jewellery box and newspaper bead necklace that she had made at school, along with two of her paintings.

Before she went to bed, we had to crawl into my bed where she read me Max Lucado's You are Mine and Dora's Happy Mother's Day.

It was so special for me to see C make all these plans on her own, and watch her carry them out with such love and excitement. A child's joy is so sweet to see and I felt very honoured and blessed to have such a caring child. Partway through the day C said...I can't wait until Father's Day when I can do this all over again.

Who's the Boss?

2010-04-29T23:46:00.001-04:00

The other night when I came home from band practice, I found a rather large message written in sidewalk chalk across the entire driveway. It made me laugh at first, then curious as to why it was there..and then a little nervous about what possibly could have transpired between Hubby and C while I was gone.

It says..."I'm the Boss!"...and the big black rectangle...that's where she wrote her name. There would be no doubt in our neighbourhood as to who wrote the message.

I learned it was something minor that prompted her to write this message, something that did not go the way she wanted it to. I'm not completely sure why she chose to write this phrase, but I can tell you that she has learned that phrase from us. We have used it a few times on her when we want an argument to end...so I think she was just writing out what she had wanted to be.

We talked about it and the next day I found another message in our driveway.

I don't mind the messages in our driveway...it allows us to see what she is thinking/feeling so we can talk about it. I'm not so sure I'll use that phrase anymore on her...but I do know I'll be saving that picture for the day she gets married.

Bean-It-Up Salsa Chicken Combo

2010-04-21T21:46:00.002-04:00

The first time hubby cooked this recipe, I took one look at it and thought..."This is dinner?" Mixed beans, salsa, tomatoes...these are low on my list of tasty food and here they were all mixed into the same dish. It didn't look appealing to me at all, but I tried it and loved it. It has become one of my favourites dishes. C loves it too but we have to leave the peppers out or she complains its too spicy. We eat it wrapped in a soft tortilla with sour cream, but I sure it would be excellent with nachos.

Ingredients
1 lb ground chicken
1 can of chick peas
1 can of black beans
1 small can (14 oz) or 1.5 cups tomato sauce
1.5 cups salsa
1 tsp chili pepper
1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
1 clove garlic
Parmesan cheese

1. Cook chicken in skillet over medium heat until fully cooked.
2. In a large casserole dish, mix chicken with all ingredients except cheese.
3. Cover and bake at 350 F for 40-45 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese.

It's UBP 2010 Party Time!

2010-04-10T10:00:00.004-04:00

The Ultimate Blog Party 2010 has officially started and I'm so excited that you decided to pop by. Let me tell you a little bit about myself and this blog.

I go by the name Cheri; a nickname I had growing up. I started this blog just over 3 years ago because I wanted a place to share our family tales with friends and family, as well as create a keepsake of the journey life had us on...the times we laughed, the times we cried, the times we learned valuable lessons, and the times when God was so good (both recent and past). I wanted to share craft ideas (like this cool Webkinz shirt) and even share a few stories from my childhood too.

Who are the "and Family" part of my blog? For the most part, that would be Hubby and C. Hubby and I have been married for almost 11 years and we have one lively, bold, beautiful 7 year old daughter, who fills our life with many unexpected things, but at the same time brings us so much joy. We are also a homestay family, and have hosted numerous international students in our home. We often joke that we are practicing our parenting skills on other people's teens, so that we don't mess up our own.

This is my first time participating in the party, so I have no idea what to expect, but I'm looking forward to finding out. I'm really excited about the prizes too.

My top 3 picks from the 5 Minutes For Mom prize page are:

USC13 - A $100 Gift Certificate from Kay Jewellers
USC8 - A $55 Amazon Gift Card from Kelly's Lucky You
USC60 - A $200 Gift Certificate from Modern Wall Graphics, the Makers of Wall Slicks

If these are gone, I'd love to win USC57, INTL9, USC23, USC37, USC56, USC53, USC36, USC44, USC43...or anything else because winning is fun.

Blog Party Time

2010-04-07T23:04:00.002-04:00

Most of my blogging friends are going to the party this year...so I thought I'd check it out too. "What party?" you ask...it's The Ultimate Blog Party 2010 put on by the ladies at 5 Minutes for Mom. Head on over there to check out the prizes and see how you can participate too.

Sunday Afternoon Adventure

2010-03-30T21:14:00.004-04:00

Last Sunday, hubby and I drove to a funeral visitation in a city that was an hour and a half away. We left after church, and drove in separate vehicles because we had borrowed my in-laws truck and needed to return it to them. Hubby drove in front...and drove faster than me. I didn't want to go faster than 10ish km over the limit as it was raining and I didn't feel like being on the alert for police. I had a general idea of where we were going, and assumed that hubby would slow down once we neared our exit off the main highway.

So...I was quite shocked when 2 exits before the exit I assumed we were taking, I noticed the truck on the off ramp as I passed by. I tried not to panic as thoughts raced through my head...Where is he going? Does he know a short cut? What should I do? Turn around? Wait for him on the side of the road? What happens if he tries to find me while I'm trying to find him?...Neither of us has a cell phone.

I decided to pull off on the shoulder of the exit ramp I thought we were taking to wait for him. I figured he would come looking for me as he would have seen I missed the exit. After 20 minutes of waiting, I decided to turn around and go look for him, assuming he must be waiting for me back at the other exit.

I made my way back to the other exit (which took a lot of time because all the roads I was travelling on were highways and I had to rely on exits to turn around)...but he was not there either. It was now close to 45 minutes since I had lost him. I figured he must have continued on to our destination (which was about 25 minutes away) and I should just head there too and ask for directions to the funeral home once I got there.

Upon arriving at our destination, I pulled into the first gas station to ask directions. As soon as I got out of my car, a black vehicle pulled along side and the guy insided hollered..."Excuse Me." As I stepped towards him, I noticed the crest on his arm...a police officer. I was quite surprised when he asked me if I was looking for a funeral home...Hubby had phoned the police.

When I got to the funeral home and chatted with hubby...we figured out what had happened. It wasn't his truck that had got off the highway early...but an identical truck. He was still in front of me the whole time. He had pulled off the highway just before our destination to wait for me and assumed that I had had to make an emergency washroom stop for C. But after too much time had elapsed, he became concerned that I had had car problems. He had gone back a bit to look for me, but when he didn't find me, had continued on to the funeral home. Here, he phoned the police to find out if they had come across my vehicle on the side of the road. They must have put a notice out for officers to look out for my car.

And what did C think of the whole ordeal? When I got back into the car at the gas station she said...

"That was nice of daddy. That just proves that he really cares for you."

"Why?"

"Because he sent the police to find you."

Under Construction

2010-03-26T19:11:00.003-04:00

After 3 years of blogging, I've decided to jump on the blog redesign bandwagon. Some of my friends have been modifying their layouts...making some cool changes...and I want to do that too. I used to do web development at work, and I loved it. I'm not sure why I waited so long to give my blog a make-over.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be tryng some different looks out on my blog to see which one fits/suits me. I'm already on my second look. I first tried a green-themed background. It was nice and simple and matched my profile pic, but I soon realized it was too green and matching other colours to it was difficult.

So let me know what you think as you see the changes evolve.

Happy Birthday / Blogiversary To Me

2010-03-14T18:50:00.008-04:00

Today is my 37th birthday, and 3rd blogiversary. Yikes! I find it a little scary that I'm creeping closer and closer to 40. One thing I have noticed over the past year is that I have started to forget my age. I used to think it really strange when other people would do this...but now I realize why...once you reach a certain age...it becomes just a number and mentally you feel younger even though physically you may not be.

Yesterday, C and hubby went shopping. The minute she came in the door she shouted with excitement..."I got your birthday present! Do you want to open it now? Please!". Waiting another day would have been torture for her. Inside the bag was a small furry toy kitten with a button that made it purr. It was the perfect gift from her.

Today she told me on the way home from church..."Mommy, I took your advice when I picked out your present. I picked out something I would like." She is right. I have told her this, but it was in regards to picking out birthday presents for her friends.

Hubby told me that she spent all her money in her purse to buy it for me...and did not complain once. Parting with money is a big thing for her...and knowing that she did it so willingly made the gift even more special to me.

Fabric Painting

2010-03-02T21:19:00.007-05:00

Over the last few weeks, C and I have been working on some fabric painting projects. The most recent being a Webkinz T-shirt which turned out really well and wasn't that difficult to do.

C picked out the Webkinz she wanted to paint from a website I found that had cartoon drawings of all the Webkinz. I copied the image to Paint, blew it up, and printed it out in Black and White. I then outlined the print in black marker so that I could easily see it through the shirt to trace it in pencil. C was then able to go over the pencil outline using fabric paint. Once it dried, the painted outline provided a nice border to help keep the paint inside the lines when we painted the inside.

I was really impressed with how well it turned out, as well as how well C did. We have not fabric painted for almost a year and she has improved so much since then. She did a good job at suggesting colours/ideas too...the neon pink nose and hearts were her idea, and blended so well with the neon green shirt. I have learned that the neon and glow-in-the-dark colours are her favourite paints to work with and have suggested that we paint a colourful Webkinz fish on her next shirt...instead of neon orange whiskers on the cat.

Valentine Treats

2010-02-13T21:57:00.005-05:00

This year for Valentines, I thought it would be fun for C and I to make chocolate suckers for C's class. They turned out really cute, and C really enjoyed making them. I used a stove top steamer egg poacher to melt the coloured chocolate, which made it really easy to keep it melted. Originally all the suckers were going to be heart shaped, but when I realized how long it was going to take to make 21 suckers using a single mold that made 4 suckers at a time, I decided to use the flower mold as well so that while one mold was setting in the freezer, C could be working on the next batch. We had one extra sucker left over at the end, which C decided to sneak into her daddy's lunch on Friday with a Valentine.

The Tag Issue

2010-02-01T22:04:00.005-05:00

A couple of months ago, C started complaining about her wardrobe...something she's never done before. She complained about pants being too loose (she's a lean kid), sweat shirts being too heavy and...tags being scratchy. The tag issue bugged me the most. It seemed absolutely ridiculous to me that clothing she had worn recently, was now a problem because there was a tag.

At first, I told her I wasn't cutting tags out. She would just have to get used to them. After all, lots of people get used to tags and she couldn't cut tags out of her clothing for the rest of her life. For some reason, she didn't understand my reasoning and getting her dressed in the morning often resulted in lots of conflict.

I asked a few friends about their experience with tags and was told that for some kids, it's a real thing...tags do irritate them. So I relaxed...a little, and said I would cut out the scratchy, stiff ones. Once she knew I was cutting tags out, she'd brought me any piece of clothing with a tag...regardless of whether it was scratchy or not. I still wasn't ready to cut tags out of all her clothing, so mornings still contained lots of conflict.

On one such morning a few weeks ago, I was really irritated about the tag issue (and the whining), and concerned about the amount of conflict that was occurring between C and I. As I went to get ready for work, I heard a little voice say to me..."Are you going to build a wall between you and your daughter over tags?" I paused...All of a sudden, the whole situation seem silly and I realized that I was the one that needed to change. It was wrong for me to jeopardize my relationship with C over tags.

So I apologized to C, and I have now become a parent that cuts tags out of their kids clothing. I still have a hard time believing tags bother her that much, but it's not a battle I need to win.

Another Look at 2009

2010-01-14T00:00:00.003-05:00

Here it is already halfway through January and I'm just getting around to posting this now. Here are a few stories and pictures from 2009 that I never got around to blogging about.

C turned 7 this year. For her birthday, we made a Dive-On-In cake. In the months leading up to her birthday, C had poured over the Kraft website and watched lots of the cooking videos and looked at all the cakes to decide which cake she wanted. The Dive-On-In cake was her favourite. It was fun to decorate and yummy too.

I noticed early in the summer that wasps were getting into the brick wall on the front door side of the garage. There wasn't that many at first, but the activity gradually increased to the point that we knew we had a nest somewhere in the wall, or up in the soffits. Hubby called around for advice and was told that if there was only one entrance, we could block it and starve the wasps. That seemed easy enough, so one night after the wasp activity settled down, we blocked the entrance and figured the problem was solved.

The next day, there were a bunch of angry wasps flying around and pecking up and down the brick wall as they searched for an alternate entrance...we could no longer use our front door for fear of being stung. The wasps found what they were looking for and I watched in horror as I saw them getting in through many places under the soffits and front porch......we knew it was time for an exterminator. The exterminator told us that we should never block an entrance because they are determined critters and will find alternate entrances...even into your own home. Also it's much easier to deal with the problem when there is only one entrance. He laid the poison down and the wasp activity settled down very quickly. After many weeks of wasp activity by the front door, I was in awe of the silence that now greeted us when we opened the front door.

In the summer, hubby and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. We had planned on taking a trip to Europe, but decided to put it off for another year. Instead we spent time at my in-laws trailer, as well as taking some day trips to a couple of Ontario attractions...Marineland and the Toronto zoo...both highlights of the summer for C as she loves animals and rides.

She wanted to go on all the rides at Marineland... starting with the Sky Screamer...the scariest ride in the entire park. I said we'd have to work our way up to that one. She and I rode most of the rides in the park, but never made it on the Sky Screamer as she changed her mind after riding a real roller coaster for the first time.

At the Toronto Zoo, C could barely contain her excitement about seeing so many different animals that she starting screaming, pointing and jumping up and down when we first arrived and she saw wild geese in the parking lot. She wanted to see every animal in the zoo, so we walked the entire 10+ km trail through the park in one day. However, C was really disappointed that she didn't get to see the lion very well. He spent the whole time we were in that section sleeping with his back to us.

In the fall, I started to teach C piano. She had been asking me for a while to teach her and I thought now would be a good time to start. She was keen and enthusiastic at first, but that soon wained as she realized that it was going to be work if she wanted to play like mommy. I'm trying to take it at her pace and use a little bribery, or rather rewards, too. I have purchased some special dollar store items that she can pick from once she obtains enough lesson points. Hopefully one day soon I'll be able to post a little video of her playing.

C's reading ability has skyrocketed over the last couple of months. She loves to read and will read multiple early chapter books (around 75 pages) in one day. We love it...C is a talker so the silence of reading is music to our ears.

We hosted another Irish homestay this year. And like usual, it didn't take long before C became very attached to her and we were soon joking that our Irish girl had a fan club. We didn't realize how attached C was to her until she left for home and we were left with a sobbing child who was inconsolable. It made me wonder if we should be putting C through this all the time. The morning she was to leave for Ireland, C wrote her the cutest letter and pushed it under her door with chocolate. It read...I miss you a lot. I hop you can come to canada again. you give me the best presits. rit to me soon ok. Frum your #1 fan. The best presits being a matching hat, mitts and scarf set in leopard print...it was the perfect gift for C as she loves leopard print.

My sister-in-law works for an organization that was looking for kid voices for their Christmas fundraising radio ads. She asked us if C would be interested in recording her voice for these ads. It was a neat experience for C, who did really well...so well that they want her to come back next year.

Two years ago, my sister and I started a new Christmas tradition for my dad...we fill a stocking for him and leave it out with the kids stockings so that it looks like Santa brought grandpa presents too. This year, my dad wanted to tease the grand kids so he went out and purchased the largest stocking he could find. When he showed his large stocking to the kids and told them that he was going to leave it out for Santa, C's responded with...That doesn't mean you are going to get more stuff.

Blessings

2009-12-18T14:57:00.001-05:00

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

I've been a little under the weather over the last few weeks...feeling bummed at times that the recovery process has been a little slow...especially during the time of year when there is so much to do. But as a friend reminded me, I need to remember God's blessings.

I am blessed with an amazing husband who has had to do so much more over the last few weeks and has never complained once.

I am blessed with an amazing church family which has provided meals and even cleared snow too.

I am blessed with an amazing Heavenly Father that knows what his daughter needs....

Last Friday I was feeling really cooped up and wanted to get out for a walk. With the nasty weather, snow and being unsteady on my feet, I thought a walk at the mall would be perfect...but had no one to take me. As I humoured options of who could take me and whom I would feel comfortable taking their arm for support, I thought..."I want my dad". I knew my dad would be the perfect person to walk me around the mall...but I also knew that it wouldn't happen as he lives 45 minutes away and would probably be working. I decided I would just have to get hubby to take me after he came home from work.

But God had another idea.

At 3 pm, the door bell rang and when I saw whose face was pressed against the window, tears welled up in my eyes. I flung the door open and said to my dad as I gave him a hug..."Oh dad, I'm so glad you're here. I wanted you to come." I had not called him to come...but my Heavenly Father knew I needed my dad and had him come. Isn't that cool!

Back to School - Grade 2

2009-09-18T22:48:00.000-04:00

Last week C started Grade 2. She was so excited to be going back to school, and even more excited that a couple of her friends were in her class. I'm not sure if I'm ready for grade 2...she's growing up way too quickly. At least she still wants to hold my hand as we walk to school...even on the playground.

To continue what I started last year, here is my grade 2 school photo. Same ringlets...just a little longer...and it looks like mom did a better job on my bangs (or perhaps I start still better). I'm not sure how long I'll continue this tradition of posting my school photos...it starts to go downhill around grade 5 when I cut all my hair off and started wearing glasses that were half the size of my head.

Missing Daddy

2009-08-10T23:12:00.001-04:00

Hubby went away to a conference a couple of weeks ago and was gone for five days. C was quite upset the first night that he left, even hovering over the answering machine to hear his voice on the message he left to tell us he had safely arrived at his destination. When it came time for bed C had a tearful request that melted my heart.

"Can I sleep in one of daddy's shirts?"

"Sure. Go pick out one of his T-shirts from the closet."

"Which shirt does he wear the most?"

"I'm not sure C. Why don't you look and see which one you remember him wearing the most."

"I think it's the sail boat one."

"Alright, wear that one. Why do you want to wear the one that he wears the most?"

"Because then it feels like his arms are around me giving me a hug."

Wordless Wednesday - Toothless

2009-07-29T00:00:00.001-04:00

Thanks to my sis for the pic.

Soccer Season I

2009-07-22T23:23:00.003-04:00

Back in March hubby said..."I think we should sign C up for soccer. She needs an outlet for all her energy". At first I wasn't keen on the idea as there were practices or games twice a week. But after some thought I realized that it was only for 2 months and it didn't hurt to try it. It would be good to expose her to sports so that she wasn't sports challenged like her mother. I was always picked last for school gym teams and avoided most sport activities like the plague as I have no confidence or skill. The last time I was coaxed to play a sport (family friendly church baseball game), I ended up in emergency getting 3 stitches. I tried to catch hubby's pop fly, but missed and caught it with the side of my head.

It was a good soccer season and I was quite surprised at how much I enjoyed watching the games. We were also really impressed with how well C was doing by the end of the season. Every once in a while she would get a burst of energy and on a breakaway would take the ball up the field and try to score a goal. Pretty proud parents we were. We would love for her to play again next year, but we doubt that that will happen as we realize that soccer is not something that overly interests her...we'll see what she says next year. But at least with one season under her belt, she has more sports ability than her mother.

Proverbs 3

2009-07-06T23:03:00.004-04:00

"C, God tells us in the Bible that if we follow his commands it will go well with us...and we'll live a long life. Do you want it to go well with you?"

"Yes"

"Do you want to live a long life?"

"Well....I do want to see Grandma..."

Father's Day Coupons

2009-06-20T22:17:00.004-04:00

C could not wait to give hubby his Father's Day gift that she made him at school. So Friday after she came home, she requested if she could give the present to him early. She was just too excited to wait. She had made a coupon book in class of things that hubby could "rip a coupon out and ask for". Hubby and I had a good laugh reading them.

This coupon is good for...

...Dad's day out
...make breakfast in bed
...I'll take you out for dinner
...games
...back scratch
...tuck him in at night
...me making lunch
...Tickle party
...bedtime story
...movie and popcorn

It was so cute, because in her mind I'm sure she was thinking that she enjoys these things...so daddy would too.

Quest for Curls

2009-05-27T23:25:00.002-04:00

A few weeks ago our church organized a Princess Tea Party for all the daughters of the King. C was very excited about going to the party. We planned to wear matching dresses (thanks to my sister who had made C a dress for Christmas from the material left over from her wedding) and C wanted to have her hair curly for the event. Now C did not get my curly hair...she got hubby's dead straight hair. I didn't think it would be that difficult to curl her hair, but I was so wrong and very glad that we experimented ahead of time.

First I tried to curl C's hair with a curling iron. This has always worked very well for me, but curling curly hair is totally different than trying to curl straight hair. I wrapped her hair around the curling iron and waited a little bit. When I released her hair, there was only a little curve at the very bottom of her hair. I wrapped the hair around the curling iron again and waited longer. This time I got a little more curl...but not a lot. After about 5 minutes, I gave up on the curling iron.

I then tried to curl C's hair using hot rollers. I've never used hot rollers before and didn't really know how to use them. My initial attempt looked pretty pathetic. My second attempt was better as I figured out how the pin worked to keep the roller in place. The hot rollers did give more curl than the curling iron, but the curl quickly fell out.

My sister-in-law told me to try rolling C's hair in foam rollers and have her sleep on them. So I went and purchased foam rollers from the Dollar store and rolled C's wet hair in them. In the morning, C was quite happy with the outcome and I was impressed with how well the foam rollers worked.

The curl stayed in longer, but by mid afternoon it was droopy. I figured if I used more rollers and put less hair in each one, I would be able to get a tighter curl. So the night before the Princess Tea party, I put 30 rollers in C's wet hair.

I thought the curl would fall out of her hair if I took the rollers out too early, so I waited until 45 minutes before we were to leave for the Tea Party to take the rollers out. We both got the shock of our lives as the curl was so tight, her hair sprang up above her ears.

She was NOT impressed and quite upset. I tried to stay calm and reassure her I could fix it (even though I wasn't convinced I could). I tried to pulled some of the curl out by running my fingers though it to separate it. But it was still really tight. So I pinned the sides up so that they didn't fall in her face and hoped the curl in her hair would start relaxing soon. It did and looked great.

The Garden Battle

2009-05-03T22:08:00.011-04:00

Here are the gardens in our backyard. Actually, just half of them as there are more gardens along the back of the house and in the front yard. The previous owners planted them all.

You probably think it looks really nice...except maybe the sandbox in the middle. Lets take a closer look.

The weeds and plants are out of control. Every year we battle to keep the weeds out of the garden and the plants out of the lawn...but it looks like this year they have already won. It looks awful and extremely overwhelming. We have avoided using pesticides for the last 3 years thinking we could control weeds without the use of chemicals...but now realize it's impossible unless we plan to spend all our free time in the garden. So this year, we were going to use pesticides to regain control of the yard...but can't because pesticides have been banned in our area. So all I can do now is covet my neighbour's beautiful garden free backyard which also has a really nice deck and shed.

Although the task is daunting, I still love to see the new growth of the wanted plants coming back.

C was a great help in the garden this weekend...digging weeds and pulling out dead growth. I was a little shocked though at what she chose to do when she wasn't helping...cutting worms with a stick, or cutting an ant with the snipers, or poking holes in snail shells because she wanted the slug to come out. After I requested numerous times for her to be nicer to the bugs, she got upset and told me I never let her do stuff like this.

Sharing Jesus

2009-04-24T22:05:00.013-04:00

The other day C told me about how she tried to witness to a friend on the school playground. It went something like this...

"I asked L ... Do you go to church? She said ... Sometimes. I said ... cause if you go to church then you are going to come with me to a new earth because this earth will be destroyed by bad people. L started to freak and said ...I CAN'T leave my mom and dad!! I told her...Your mom and dad are coming too! L kept freaking and then told the teacher. The teacher said...Some people go to church and some people don't. It's our job to be nice to each other. That's not true. It's our job to tell other people about Jesus!"

I was then amazed by the question C asked me after her story was done....

"Should I tell my other friend about Jesus?"

She was not going to let the teacher's, or L's, reaction discourage her from telling others. I asked her why she wanted to tell her friends about Jesus. I was curious to know what the motivating force was...or rather how she would explain it. She became emotional and said that they were her best friends and she didn't want to leave them behind.

There are some days where I don't know what to do with my feisty firecracker of a kid...and then there are days like this where I see her boldness funnelled in a good direction. I have to smile as I realize she's getting it...the important it. She might not get it yet that bedtime is not the time to be goofing around...but she understands that people need Jesus.

Wordless Wednesday - Love at First Sight

2009-04-15T00:00:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday / Blogiversary To Me

2009-03-14T00:00:00.004-04:00

This blog and I are another year older today. I thought I would share a few pictures from birthdays past.

When I think back to some of my childhood birthdays, I think of cakes. My grandma would often make our birthday cakes. We'd ask her to make the cake a specific theme and she'd try her best to do so. The cakes probably weren't anything special to a cake decorator, but to us, they were awesome.

Marshmallow Truffles

2009-02-13T22:28:00.004-05:00

C loves to help cook. I'm not sure if she loves it because there's always the possibility of getting messy, or because she loves food and realizes that helping usually means sampling. For C's class Valentine's party, we made marshmallow truffles. I came across this really simple recipe on the Kraft website and knew it would be the perfect thing for us to make. Nuts are not allowed in the school, so we improvised and tested out some other options. Sprinkles, coloured sugar, Oreo cookie crumbs and drizzled pink chocolate (which ended up looking more like candle wax than chocolate). We also experimented and used mint chocolate chips instead of bitter-sweet to coat some of the marshmallows. These ones were really yummy, but the chocolate didn't coat the marshmallow as nicely as the bitter sweet chocolate. Next time we make them, (and we don't have to be concerned about nut allergies) we'll probably try some coconut and chopped nuts. Any other suggestions?

Wordless Wednesday - Cousins

2009-02-04T00:00:00.000-05:00

Dear Jesus, please put a rainbow in the sky...

2009-01-28T00:02:00.004-05:00

Here's a story from my pre-blogging days (Spring 2006) that I thought I would share here.

C has become quite fascinated with rainbows.

On Saturday night we drove to the lake. Saturday had been a cloudy and rainy day, but as we got closer to the lake...we got closer to being out from under the cloud cover and we could see the sun shining. Perfect conditions for seeing a rainbow. So I said to C...

"It's raining and the sun is shining...we might be able to see a rainbow."

So we watched out the car windows, searching for a rainbow. It was during this time that I over heard C praying quietly as she looked out her window.

"Dear Jesus....please put a rainbow in the sky...amen."

Then she announced quite loudly and confidently...

"Jesus is going to put a rainbow in the sky!"

I searched the skies harder. After hearing her prayer, I really wanted her to see a rainbow. Within a few minutes I spotted a rainbow out C's window and yelled at hubby to stop. We pulled into a parking lot so that we could point the rainbow out to C. She was so excited to see her first rainbow. As we left the parking lot, I heard C say...

"Thank-you Jesus for putting a rainbow in the sky".

It is so neat to see that God cares about the prayers of a 4 year old who wants to see a rainbow. And to see Him answer her prayers with an awesome rainbow. A rainbow that was vibrant and arched high in the sky, unobstructed by clouds or buildings. You could see the entire rainbow from one end to the other. It was beautiful.

C's Life Plan

2009-01-23T07:55:00.003-05:00

"I'm going to move in with H and S (two friends from school) when I'm 20. We're going to live on a farm with a cow, 3 dogs, 13 pigs and 100 cats. H wants to have 90,000 babies. I don't want to have any babies or get married...just have a boyfriend."

"Why don't you want to get married?"

"I don't want to have my stomach stapled. Will you live with me?"

"...Sure."

For some reason she associates babies (stomach stapled) with getting married...to the point where she's seen a bride in a park getting pictures done and asked if that's the girl having a baby.

Another Look at 2008

2009-01-06T20:58:00.000-05:00

To start the new year off, I thought I would post a few pictures and stories from 2008 that I never got around to blogging about during the year.

In February, hubby was invited to speak at a Father and Daughter Banquet at a local church. I thought I was going to have a nice quiet evening at home, but about 15 minutes after they left, hubby called home. He had forgotten his shoes and asked if I would bring them to him. Not such a hard task except...it was snowing quite hard out and I was driving a vehicle I wasn't accustomed to (my in-law's truck which was on loan to us while they were on vacation). I had to drive though the country...following the car tracks in front of me because the road was covered in snow. I slid a few times and was quite frazzled by the time I arrived at the church with hubby's shoes. I told him he owed me.

I found a really neat book at Winners about how to make different types of puppets as well as a puppet theatre. I taped a couple of cardboard boxes together and covered them with tissue paper. C and her friend had a blast painting the theatre and sticking stickers to it. The book showed curtains made out of tissue paper but I figured I could string a cord across the top of the box and hang some real material curtains. I found some scrap material and set about sewing the curtains on C's toy sewing machine. I became a little too zealous on the sewing machine and ran over a pin which broke the machine. The curtain project was put on hold...and the theatre boxes ended up being used for everything besides a puppet theatre...eventually ending up in the garbage.

A highlight for C during our regular hospital visits where the nights that the Therapy Dogs visited my mom's floor. The owners would ask for C when they arrived and she would follow them around...wanting to pet the dog, hold them, or feed them treats. I think the requests for a pet became much more persistent after getting exposed to these dogs.

For C's birthday, we made a pinata. I know I could have purchased a pinata, but I figured that C would enjoy making one since she loves getting her hands messy. What I didn't factor in was that she also likes getting her legs, feet, arms and face messy too. After the first layer of mache was applied, I was starting to regret the idea. There was glue everywhere...including all over C, who for reasons unknown to me, rubbed it all over her arms and legs.

Our church has started a kids club program that runs on Wednesday nights and I've been coordinating activities, as well as running some of the craft nights. In addition to making garden stones, painting T-shirts, puppet making, and cooking, the kids also practiced for a number of weeks and performed their first drama. I was very impressed. I've enjoyed running the craft nights with the kids and I learn things every night. I've learned which kids are the tactile kids and must be monitored during painting activities. I've learned that it's not obvious to everyone that glass should not be put into a garden stone sticking straight up. But most of all, I've learned that kids love the freedom to be able to express themselves artistically the way they want to...even if it means drawing a knight inside a Christmas card, or painting around dots.

C lost her first tooth in July, and has lost 2 others since then. She was so excited to lose her first tooth...an event she had been talking about for months leading up to the day it finally came out. She asked me straight out if the tooth fairy was real and I told her "No"...but she didn't believe me and wouldn't put her teeth under the pillow in case the tooth fairy took them.

I loved Little House on the Prairie when I was young. I've seen every episode of the TV show multiple times and have read and own all the books. This fall, C has fallen in love with Little House on the Prairie too and after watching a couple of shows, brought the book home from the library (she didn't know I had them already) for us to read to her. It's a nice change of pace from reading her picture books all the time.

In November, we went to baby Faith's 1st Birthday Party. A party to celebrate a miracle as a year ago, Faith was on life support, her body organs shutting down and the doctors giving her no chance of survival. Read these links (here, here and here) for an amazing miracle story. C insisted that she had to make Faith a blanket for her birthday...which ended up turning into a pillow after she stitched the sides together and filled it with fiberfil. She was so proud of it and couldn't wait to give to Faith. This is the second home-made present she's made recently...the first being a 2x3 foot "picture frame" she made out of twigs taped together for a 16th birthday party.

I finished C's stocking about a month before Christmas. She loved it and was so excited to have a fancy stocking with her name on it. I found the kit last year after Christmas and started working on it during my hospital visits but it got shelved half done when C and I started making cards.

For Christmas this year, C gave hubby a race track (so they can race cars together) and a "#1 DAD" key chain with a basketball and net engraved on the back (Basketball is hubby's favourite sport). Chloe was so excited that she said she didn't think she could keep it a surprise until Christmas. She loved the key chain and I thought I might be getting a key chain too after she asked me...Can you take Daddy and I back to that store and then leave for an hour?

Remembering Christmas Past

2008-12-26T22:47:00.005-05:00

This was our first Christmas without my mom.

Over the last few days, I've found myself thinking a lot about Christmases in the past...and mom. Mentally reliving different Christmas memories over and over again and wondering...if only we had known then what we know now.

I remember the Christmas that my dad presented my mom with a really large box. We all wondered what could possibly be in such a large box and thought it was very exciting that the large box contained another box...and another box....and another box....I do not remember how many boxes (to a kid, it seemed like a lot) there were, but I remember the new ring my mom found in the smallest box and was very excited about.

I remember the Christmas when I found out who Santa Clause really was. Santa had brought Lego to my siblings and I...regular Lego for the older kids...and big Lego for my younger sister. My sister had no interest in the big Lego...but wanted to play with the regular Lego. I over heard my mom telling my dad in the kitchen that they should have gotten my sister the regular Lego. Aha! Now I knew who Santa really was.

I remember Christmas mornings when my siblings and I would race back and forth between the living room and my parents connecting bedroom to tell them what Santa had brought us...squealing with excitement. We did this even in the years after we knew who Santa was.

I remember Christmas mornings when after all the presents were unwrapped, dad would bring out his presents for mom. Showering her with perfume, clothing, and jewellery. She would be excited about each one...just as my siblings and I were excited to see what gifts dad had hidden from her.

I remember the last Christmas before mom got sick. My sister and I (with families) stayed over night on Christmas Eve. After all the kids went to bed, my sister and I started to fill stockings. Mom got out her bag of toys and stocking stuffers...excited to be able to play Santa with her grandchildren.

These memories may not be that interesting, but they allow me to visual and remember my mom as if she was still with us today.

Gingerbread Village

2008-12-10T22:07:00.005-05:00

Last week, C and I made a gingerbread village. I’m not sure what I was thinking when we chose the village kit over the single house kit. I certainly wasn’t thinking that 5 tiny houses would be a lot harder than one large house. The packaging was deceiving. The picture on the outside of the box made the house look larger than the tiny pieces of gingerbread that were included in the box.

Assembling the ginger bread house didn’t start out on the right foot…I broke part of the church roof. I didn't realize the gingerbread pieces would snap apart easily and I had tried to use a knife to split them apart.

After assembling the houses it was time for C to go to bed...we would have to wait a few days before we would have time to decorate them. I followed the instructions and covered the unused icing with a damp cloth. Over the next few days I would dampen the cloth whenever I noticed it was bone dry not realizing that all the moisture in the damp cloth was seeping into the icing. By the time we were ready to decorate, the icing was quite runny. I had to add lots of icing sugar to try to get it back to the proper consistency. Now we were ready to decorate.

We had only been decorating for a few minutes when...the icing bag blew the tip out...I must have cut the hole too big. The kit did not come with extra icing bags...just a bag for each of the 3 colours. So...I tried to improvise with a dollar store zip lock bag by cutting a hole in the corner, inserting tip and then filling the bag with icing. All that work for nothing, the bag blew a hole on the first squeeze. With no other options left, I had to use the icing bag reserved for another colour. This time, I made sure to cut the hole smaller.

This is the third year that C and I have made a gingerbread house, and we have never had issues with the icing bags. So, I was quite shocked when after only a few minutes of decorating...the 2nd icing bag blew a hole in it. GRRRR. Now what? I didn't want to use my last bag for the white icing. So...I resorted to duct tape. Hubby was skeptical but humoured me anyway and retrieved the duct tape for me. I taped around the bag where the hole was....and away I went. The tape held for the entire time I needed to use the white icing. It also held the green icing bag together when it too blew a hole. I now have a whole new appreciate for duct tape.

Homesick

2008-11-23T18:00:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks after my mom's funeral, I came across the song Homesick by Mercy Me on one of my CDs. The words really spoke to me as they summed up really well how I felt about losing my mom. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

In case you wonder, here's a link to the story behind the song.

Wordless Wednesday - Pillow Improvisation

2008-10-22T00:00:00.001-04:00

Mom's Euology

2008-10-12T07:00:00.004-04:00

October 12, 1947, my mom was born en route to the hospital delivery room. She was the third of four daughters born to a milk truck company owner and his wife. As a child she loved to entertain family, friends and neighbours with her stories, spinning tales for anyone that would listen...often getting into trouble for telling stories that were not true. She had a strange desire to eat interesting things and was known to eat egg shells, wall plaster, crayons and cabbage salad mixed with scrambled eggs. She also had an interesting sleeping arrangement with her younger sister. She would put a board down the middle of the bed and tell her sister to not cross the board and to face the other way so that she wouldn't breath on her.

In December of 1969, my dad spotted my mom at a fellowship after church. After tracking down who she was, he invited her to a church Christmas banquet. Mom got all dressed up in her pink graduation dress complete with a corsage and off they went to the banquet...only to discover that my dad had the wrong date and the banquet was the following weekend. Instead they went out to a fancy restaurant. After a few months of dating they became engaged and were married in July of 1970. Together they had four children of their own.

In Proverbs 18:22 it says, He who finds a wife finds a good thing. And dad found a good thing. Mom was dad's best friend...his princess. She was the centre piece of the family and a Proverbs 31 women.

In the early years of their marriage, mom babysit a number of cousins and neighbourhood kids. She would make up silly names for different meals...just to be funny or to get our cousin to eat foods that weren't orange, or were different than what he ate at home. Mac and cheese was referred to as Noodle Scroodle from Bim Bom Boodle.

Mom was very creative...we had some of the best trick or treating costumes in the neighbourhood...often winning awards at school for the best costume. Some of the costumes she came up with were...a hobo, an apple, Little Bo Peep and Little Miss Moffitt.

Licorice allsorts, black licorice, chocolate, house coat, slippers, rose bushes, popcorn, snakes, broom and dust pan, clean socks and giggles. These are a few things that will always remind us of mom.

For many years, mom worked part time along side dad in the tree service business and in 1992, mom became a full time partner and was known as the "ground crew". She was a hard worker and did everything from axing wood, dragging brush, to meticulous clean up...building some serious muscle. She wasn't afraid to flex her muscles to her future son-in-laws to let them know that she might be tiny...but she was mighty.

Mom loved her grand kids. Mom adored her grand kids...all 10 of them. At family gatherings there was at least one grandchild attached to her...if not multiples. She would entertain them by reading stories or making interesting animal noises. Her favourite was pretending to be a gorilla...our daughter loved it.

When mom became sick, she was really sad that she couldn't be the grandma she wanted to be. But that didn't bother the kids, they still adored her and wanted to climb on her or push her wheelchair. They would come with us on our regular visits and fill the room with life...and a few squabbles too. They would make mom artwork...lots of artwork. Her room was full of artwork. The nurses would comment that they had never seen a room as decorated as much as mom's was. The grand kids would sing to mom, pick out special ornaments, blow kisses, pray for her and out of the blue...tell her they loved her.

Mom was a special women. I've heard so much praise from family, friends, and customers over the last few days. I was told...dad was a lucky man...your mom was such a beautiful women...faithful to her Lord.

A favourite memory of my mom was always hearing her pray for us before we left the house for school. If the hectic rush to get out the door caused this daily routine to be forgotten, we would run back inside and say..."You Forgot To Pray!". We knew everything would be OK if mom prayed for us.

She prayed protection over her kids. Even as grown adults, before we left for home after a hospital visit. She would tell my dad to pray and then say...Drive carefully...or Drive wisely...Watch out for deer. And God answered her prayer many times including last night as we drove back home. We hit a deer going 95km an hour. There was no time to react. The deer was launched away from the windshield. The damage to the front was extensive, but praise God, no one was injured.

So many people over the last few days have said to me...You look just like your mom....You sound just like your mom. I hear these words and I want to put my head a little higher and stand a little taller as that is such a wonderful, awesome complement...to be compared to a beautiful, classy, faithful, loving women.

Summer Summary

2008-09-27T21:55:00.014-04:00

Before we get too far into the Fall season, I thought I'd share a few events from this past summer.

Our summer started on a sad note. My mom passed away at the end of June after a 2 year battle with Multiple Systems Atrophy. A terrible disease with no medical cure. There are many things that I've wanted to share about this time, but I found it difficult to write the words down. I couldn't bare to see the words mentioning my mom's passing and I would delete them as soon as I wrote them. Words could not express the sorrow I felt. But, I'm ready now and I plan to share a few things over the next few months.

July started with a bang...literally. On the way home from the funeral visitation a deer ran in front of our car and we hit it going 95km an hour. We are very thankful for God's protection as the deer was flung over the car instead of coming through the windshield. There was enough damage to the car that the insurance company wrote it off...which at first was not the result we wanted. We liked our 99 Jetta...it was diesel, we had roof racks, extra tires, and it was paid for. But we soon realized that in a way, it was a God send (not that God sent the deer) as there were a lot of things that didn't work on the car...power windows, keyless entry, and speedometer to name a few...let alone the floor rusting and the gears grinding. The insurance settlement amount exceeded by far what we would have been able to sell the car for because they don't factor in the things that don't work. The Jetta was laid to rest at the scrap yard and the newest member of our family is a 2006 Toyota Corolla SE.

C turned 6 on July 5th. This year we held her birthday party in mid June so that her friends would be able to come (and not be on vacation). She wanted a "mixed-up" party so we made a Candy Land cake, bear pinata, Winnie-the-Pooh game, Strawberry Shortcake decorations and Princess grab bags.

C's swimming skills have dramatically improved over the summer. She can now swim with no water wings. She's not a strong swimmer and we have to watch her at all times, but she's able to jump off the diving board and swim over to the edge of the pool all by herself. And...she's learning to dive. We were pretty proud parents watching her practice....seeing her strong determination channelled in a positive direction with great results.

We did a number of day trips this year...which was quite fun. One day trip was to a local water/fun park and it was here that I saw just how much of an adventure seeker C is. She wanted to do everything...it didn't matter how hard or scary it looked...and she tried everything that she was permitted to (height requirement). At the rock wall when asked which course she wanted to try she said..."the hardest". She didn't do the hardest (the instructor directed her to an easier one) but she climbed to the top...3 times. At the trampoline, she master double flips and keep trying to do triples flips. And she loved the water slide and wanted to do it over, and over, and over again. I can't wait to go back next year when she should be tall enough to do more attractions.

Another day trip we took was to Niagara Falls. I haven't been there for probably close to 25 years and I was shocked to see how touristy it was. We had a beautiful, hot day and the cool mist off the falls was refreshing. We went on Maid of the Mist, Journey behind the Falls and of course...the Sky Wheel. A 175' + Ferris wheel which from the moment our adventure seeker laid her eyes on it kept asking..."When can we go on it?"

My Grade One Photo

2008-09-09T21:36:00.005-04:00

I thought it would be fun to post my grade one photo since C is in grade one this year. I don't think she looks like me at all and I have to admit, sometimes I wonder if C was switched at birth (she was a preemie and rushed away to be monitored). When I mentioned this to hubby he said..."She has your big toes."

I wore my hair in two pigtail ringlets until about grade 4. There's enough curl in my hair that my mom would brush it around her arm to form the ringlet and it would stay like that all day.

First Day of Grade One

2008-09-02T22:39:00.004-04:00

Today was C's first day of Grade 1. She was so excited and a little nervous too. Excited because she gets to see her friends again, and nervous because she has a boy teacher this year.

My little girl is growing up too quickly...confirmed by her insistent request tonight to walk to school by herself tomorrow. I'm not ready for that yet.

Breakfast in Bed

2008-08-17T08:06:00.003-04:00

Too much sun, too much hiking and not enough water meant I was in rough shape last night. This morning C insisted that I had to have breakfast in bed. She served me orange juice and heart shaped peanut butter and jam sandwiches. She said she got the idea from a Corduroy show. Breakfast was finished with a big hug from C who said she made me breakfast in bed to make me feel better.

6 Quirks I Have

2008-08-12T22:02:00.004-04:00

Shash has tagged me. When I read her blog the other day and saw that she was tagged...I knew before I reached the end of her post that she was going to tag me. At first I thought...I don't have any quirks...but as the day wore on, quirk after quirk kept coming to mind. So I thought I'd better do this post sooner than later...otherwise my list of quirks will greatly exceed the number requested.

Here are the rules...
1. Link the person(s) who tagged me
2. Mention the rules on my blog
3. Tell about six unspectacular quirks of mine
4. Tag six fellow blogger's by linking them
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

So here Shash is what you've been waiting for...6 quirks.

1. I drink orange juice when eating spaghetti. Growing up, my mom made us drink milk with our lunch and orange juice with our supper. Certain foods trigger a craving for orange juice...spaghetti is one of them.

2. I put potato chips in my sandwiches. I like the crunch.

3. I would rather not watch a movie at all than to start watching it partway through.

4. I don’t carry a purse. I'd feel like an old lady if I carried a purse. If I can’t fit my wallet in my coat pocket…I’ll carry it or just pull the necessary cards out and stick them in my pocket.

5. I love cereal and have eaten it for snacks and supper many times.

6. I can sit cross legged and hop up on my knees and walk while keeping my legs crossed.

So who do I tag…lets see…I’ll tag…

Redheads…because she has not posted in almost a year.
Max…because he shares a blog with Redhead so why not get him to post some quirks too.
Ang…because I know she has lots of quirks….like dry shaving.
Amanda…to see if she’ll post on her blogging break.
Ruth...cause I just realized the rules say "person(s)" so I can tag someone that Shash tagged.

Hmmm...This is difficult...I don't have a lot of people who I know haven't already done this. So, I'll break a rule and only list 5 and look for a volunteer for the 6th. Any takers?

Wordless Wednesday - Niece No. 6

2008-08-06T00:00:00.000-04:00

Wordless Wednesday - Cannon Ball

2008-07-30T00:00:00.000-04:00

Crusts...Good or Evil?

2008-07-21T21:26:00.003-04:00

"C, eat your crusts."

"I don't like them."

"If you want dessert, you need to eat your crusts."

A few minutes later...

"I prayed and asked Jesus and he told me to not eat my crusts."

"Eat your crusts."

"Jesus says to not eat my crusts. The devil says to eat them. Do you want me to listen to Jesus or the devil?"

Wordless Wednesday - Jetta vs Deer

2008-07-16T00:00:00.000-04:00

The Saddest Day of my Life

2008-07-02T15:28:00.001-04:00

I buried my mom today.

'Me and Mommy' cards

2008-06-26T23:00:00.000-04:00

Over the last few months, C and I have been creating home-made blank cards. We have a small suitcase full of scrap booking paper, embellishments, glue, tape, stickers and scissors that we take to the hospital so that we can set up production in my mom's room. C loves crafts and making cards helps to pass the time during these many visits.

This activity was a learning experience for me. I can be a perfectionist...so when it came to making cards, it was difficult at first for me to let C flourish in her own creations. I was concerned about wasting supplies, using items I needed, or making cards that would have no use. She got upset when I didn't use her ideas and I quickly realized that I had taken the fun out of the activity. I knew I needed to change. I gave her her own cards and paper and told her to do whatever she wanted. The speed with which she put together an orange card with metallic balloon and heart sequins and big green maple leaf gems on it, I was sure she'd complete all her cards before I finished even one. But over time, I saw her creativity and confidence grow as she moved from random designs to imitating my card designs to designing her own ideas. Here is a picture of the I'll-miss-you cards she created and gave to her friends on the last day of school. I was very impressed with them.

Here are some of the other cards we have created. C suggested the snowman as a card design. She drew a picture of a snowman, and then I cut out coloured paper to match the shapes she had drawn.

I told C that we needed a name for our card making company. I made a few suggestions, one being Mommy and Me. C said ..."How about 'Me and Mommy'". I know grammatically it's incorrect, but I liked it. So as a finishing touch we write 'Me and Mommy' on a small label and stick it to the back of each card.

Happy Father's Day

2008-06-15T00:00:00.001-04:00

"Mommy, why did you choose to marry daddy?"

"Why are you asking? Do you think I should have married someone else?"

"No. I just want to know...why did you choose to marry daddy? Because you liked him?"

"Yes."

"I like him too. I think you made a good choice for a daddy!"

C's Zoo

2008-06-04T22:55:00.004-04:00

C drew this picture in church on Sunday. This is the first picture I've seen her draw with this level of detail and I was quite impressed with how she sounded out the animal names. She has really progressed, over the last year, in drawing, colouring and writing/sounding out words.

I asked her who the 2 people were in the picture. I expected her to say "Daddy and me"...but instead I was told..."It's Rowan and me". This is a boy from daycare that she's told us she's going to marry.

Wordless Wednesday - Hanging Around

2008-05-20T07:52:00.000-04:00

Happy Mother's Day

2008-05-11T00:00:00.001-04:00

C arrived home from school on Friday with her mother's day gift. She couldn't wait until Sunday for me to open it...so she let me open it early. It was a paper mache baby jar with a candle inside. She was so proud of it. When I went through the rest of her back pack, I found this other mother's day gift inside that made me smile and feel so appreciated.

Wordless Wednesday - Who? What? When? Why?

2008-05-07T00:00:00.003-04:00

It's that time of year again

2008-04-20T22:32:00.009-04:00

When I look out into our backyard and think...

What did we get ourselves into?

I'm so glad the snow is gone. I'm so glad that it's getter warmer. But I'm not looking forward to the time and effort required to keep our came-with-the-house garden under control.

Hubby and I spent a number of hours this weekend clearing the garden of last year's growth and pulling up evil plants that like to take over our lawn. This is an act of service for me as I don't like dirt or bugs...and I was a little paranoid that I would find a mouse in the garden. I kept alert at all times, ready to run if I came upon such a critter.

I did discover one special surprise in the tree along the back fence line. A bird's nest. C and I will have to keep checking on it so that she can see the eggs and hopefully baby birds.

Praying for Good Dreams

2008-04-16T08:23:00.004-04:00

C was excited when she woke up this morning...

"Last night I had a GOOD dream! It was a movie dream."

A movie dream is a dream that has characters from a movie...in this case it was from Adventures in Odyssey.

"I had two bad dreams before my good dream. I prayed to Jesus to never have the bad dreams again and it worked!"

Wordless Wednesday - Puppy on a Bike Ride

2008-04-09T00:00:00.002-04:00

Oranges From Heaven

2008-04-02T22:24:00.000-04:00

As told by my mom...

God has been so faithful to us in other areas of our lives. Philippians 4:19 says “But my God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

When our children were very young, we had very little money. I became very concerned about them not getting enough fruit in their diets. So one day I got down on my knees and prayed and asked God if he would somehow give us a few oranges. Within that week the phone rang. It was a local grocery store looking for someone to take away their unwanted produce, as their truck had broken down. They wondered if my husband would be available with his truck. He came home with 13 dozen oranges, each bag had one bad orange in it. They could not sell them this way. God had given us 12 dozen good oranges.

This then lead to a fruit market giving us the job of taking away their produce for the next few years. God then blessed us with every fruit and vegetable you could imagine. We were so blessed that we began giving boxes away to other needy families in town. The more we gave away, the more we brought home. And do you know what? The day I could go to the grocery store and no longer had to count money in my purse... the fruit market moved out of town and the job ended.

Wordless Wednesday - My Mom and I

2008-03-19T00:00:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday to Me

2008-03-14T00:00:00.018-04:00

Today is my birthday and I thought I would share with you an amazing story of what happened 35 years ago today, as told by my mom...

On a rainy March 14th morning around 5 a.m. I was awakened out of my sleep to a soaking wet bed; my water had broken. Contractions began almost immediately and by 7 a.m. I was on my way to the hospital. By 8:15 a.m. I had very quickly delivered a healthy beautiful 7 lb. 5 oz baby girl. As I lay in recovery I was elated that I not only had had an easy delivery but a precious baby girl

Wordless Wednesday - Weekend Recordbreaking Snowfall

2008-03-12T00:31:00.002-04:00

Paper Plate Portraits

2008-02-29T22:29:00.009-05:00

Almost all the walls and doors in my mom's room are covered with artwork created by her grandchildren. The nurses tell us they have never seen such a decorated room before and will pop by my mom's room just to see new artwork.

One of the projects that C undertook was drawing family member's on paper plates. Here is a portrait of my hubby with his trademark goatee.

Wordless Wednesday - Pipe Cleaner Glasses

2008-02-27T00:00:00.002-05:00

How to NOT compliment your sitter...

2008-02-14T12:03:00.001-05:00

“My daddy is 40…so you must be 80 or 90. Are you in your 80’s or 90’s?”

C’s after school sitter is 42.

Wordless Wednesday - Buried in Snow

2008-02-06T00:00:00.000-05:00

Blogging Time

2008-01-25T22:38:00.001-05:00

Life has been busy here...so busy that our Christmas tree is still up. There always seems to be something more important to do than putting the tree away. Between work, church and family....there has been no time or energy left over to blog. I'm not giving up blogging (I have too many more stories I want to tell), but there are times when I can't post as often as I would like.

Wordless Wednesday - Snowman

2008-01-09T00:00:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas

2007-12-24T13:48:00.000-05:00

The gifts are all wrapped, the overnight bags are packed, the meatballs have been made and we are soon headed to my home town to celebrate Christmas with my family. This year, Christmas will be different than past years as part of the celebrations will be held at the hospital since my mom is unable to come home for Christmas. An adventure I'm sure it will be as my parents have 10 grandchildren, ages 6 and under. Too many to be in the same room together, so we have to do shifts. But before I go, I wanted to wish everyone out in blogland a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Wordless Wednesday - Gingerbread House

2007-12-19T00:00:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday - Live Nativity Camel

2007-12-12T00:00:00.000-05:00

The Name Game - Part 2

2007-12-09T23:33:00.001-05:00

Over the last number of months, I've been pondering my blog title...thinking about changing it. Cheri, mon Cheri didn't suite me as it had nothing to do with what I blog about. So I'm changing my blog title to...Cheri and Family...which is what this blog is all about.

Wordless Wednesday - Weekend Snowfall

2007-12-05T00:00:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday - Aquatic Touch Tank

2007-11-28T00:00:00.000-05:00

A visit to see Santa

2007-11-25T18:40:00.000-05:00

C's been asking lots of questions about Santa Claus. Out of the blue she'll ask...Is Santa really real? We been able to avoid giving her a definite answer. I'm not into lying to my child, so I usually say...You'll have to ask daddy. She's very perceptive, so I don't think it'll be that much longer before she figures out he's not real.

Today daddy took her to see Santa at the mall. She's been begging to go see him ever since she saw the display set up there. When she came home form the visit, she burst through the door all excited to tell me that there wasn't a lineup to see Santa, and that he gave her a candy cane and daddy let her eat it. She then said..."Guess What!!!" I was prepared to hear her tell me that she knew that the man in red at the mall wasn't really Santa when she blurted out..."I'm getting an iPod for Christmas!"

Wordless Wednesday - Santa and his Motorcycle

2007-11-21T00:00:00.000-05:00

A Birthday and a Farewell

2007-11-17T17:27:00.000-05:00

Yesterday we said goodbye to our Irish home stay. Her eight week work placement had ended and she was flying home to Ireland. C was quite sad when we dropped her off, and as we drove away C kept telling me that we had to get her back...she had become attached to her big "sister" that filled her purse with pennies.

During her stay, our Irish guest turned 19...so last Monday we had a little birthday party for her. C and I spent the day decorating the house with balloons, streamers and a sign as well as decorating a cake. Hubby lent us a basket full of a different sprinkle containers from his class room and C had to sprinkle the cake with each of them. Most of the sprinkles landed in the centre of the cake so I wasn't too surprised when C requested a piece from the centre of the cake.

C wanted to give a special birthday gift to our Irish guest, so we decided to pick out a couple of Christmas tree ornaments. It was a tough decision for her...one that required us to put all the ornament options on a display tree. I had to steer her away from the fragile glass ornaments that may not have survived the suitecase trip to Ireland, as well as the overly large ones meant for a over sized, extra tall tree. She really liked a white bird ornament with feathers that fanned in a half circle. The ornament was larger than a dinner plate and would have been hard to pack in a suitcase where I knew space was limited. After much deliberation, she finally chose a sparkly snowflake and purple stars.

We enjoyed this hosting experience and could not have asked for a better house guest. She was considerate, kind and gentle and did not mind the antics of an excitable talkative five year old that wanted to be with her all the time. We'll miss you L. God bless you on your future endeavours.

Wordless Wednesday - Hospital Amusement

2007-11-14T00:00:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday - November Sunset

2007-11-07T00:00:00.000-05:00

Face Painting

2007-11-03T22:26:00.000-04:00

Today we went to a parade and C was quite excited that part of the event included face painting. She asked to have her face painted as a lion. The guy did an amazing job and when he was finished, she looked liked she was ready to try out for a part in The Lion King. She loved it and said she never wanted to wash her face again and ran through the house roaring like a lion. I was prepared to let her wear it for the rest of the weekend, but by bedtime it was smeared and wearing off on anything she touched. By this time, she looked more like a character from Star Trek than she did a lion.