my beautiful children!

these are my pictures... i know there are a few but i had quite a few "favorites" for once! a nice feeling!

i liked this one for my mom's wall, but my mom thought emerson's head was cut off :(

i also love this one... not sure why...
my group shot!
emerson showing off her tummy...

her eye's are always tearing... aw!


emerson LOVED this place, she wa so happy to be sitting here... and she wouldn't crawl on the floor... so she was sorta contained, although it was by choice LOL

standing on her own!

princess hallie - this one is going on my mom's wall, 8x10 size and *i* took it!!! at least one of mine makes it to the wall LOL!



poor emerson touched a cactus of some sort and has a bunch of prickles in her hand...

hallie wanted a pic of her and the fish!
my babies.... should we have another? they are pretty darn cute!

i have to share.... !!

Hope and i and all of our kids (and her husband) all met up at the Muttart Conservatory on the weekend! the kids had a blast playing together... we will have to get them together again sometime! and we enjoyed our surroundings and it felt like it wasn't winter for a couple hours! beautiful!!! of course we took some pictures too... the purpose of the visit there was for Hope to show me a bit more about my camera. these are the pictures HOPE took, which i love! thank you miss Hope ;) you never cease to amaze me!

this one is awesome, all of the kids together with emmy in the middle!







my favorite one of emerson!! my mom is getting this one framed for her wall in 8x10 size...

and my mom didn't want emmy's drool on the pic so *i* edited it... how does it look??
i also love this one, this is totally kai!
and this one was also printed in 8x10 for my mom's wall....

pb & j .....

the perfect sandwich.... COBS fresh white bread, and some smooth peanut butter and welch's grape jelly.... mmmmmmmm.... had to take a pic.........

my hallie...

she looks so tall in these pics..... kipp said they look weird!

fish lips!

i am still alive!

i haven't been to great at updating... and yet i hate when people don't update! and even more, i really hate when people don't even have blogs to begin with! come on sara! ;) ha ha!

so we are moving in 11 more sleeps!!!!!! AAAAAHHHHHH!!! i started packing a little bit... the kids' books and toys... maybe i'll do some kitchen packing later tonight... the stuff i don't use. (small appliances.. you know, those things that require cooking or baking, 2 things i don't really do! LOL)

oops - i just remembered LMO is tomorrow morning and i haven't yet started the book! we have to read 2 chapters before tomorrow. i'll get right on that! this time our book is called, "bringing up boys" ... should be good!

we skipped playschool today. instead, we went to emerson's doctor appt which was at 9:45am. we left our house at about 9:25am, so a bit late considering the roads were not good. it had snowed a lot last night, and was still snowing as we drove this morning. yes, roads were SLOW... it took us 1 hour to get to the university, when it normally takes us about 15 minutes. oh wait, i bet about 10-15 minutes was spent in the parkade... the one that didn't say FULL yet, it was full! AAAHHH that was not fun. us, along with like 5 other vehicles were driving in circles waiting for a spot... in a small area... it was like a race! and we couldn't exit the parkade either because you have to pay inside the building. OH - and it was a heated parkade so we were fogging up fast, and sweating like pigs! not fun... and i had 4 kids with me! ok, vent over!

soooooooo emerson's doc appt.... she will be needing surgery for blocked tear ducts. fun. it's a simple, quick procedure but it does involve general anaesthetic (sp?) and that is always a small risk. but emmy is a pro... she's done that 4 times before... so i'm not too worried. i'm not sure WHEN this will happen because we have to be referred, and who knows how long that all takes.

AND he is also sending emerson for hearing tests, as she is 16 months old and has no words yet. he's not worried about her not walking yet because she is close, and he won't worry until she is 18/19 months. also, i asked about her constant DROOLing LOL... and he said it is ok for her to be drooling up to age 2 - 2.5yrs... then after that if it's still a problem, they will do botox injections into their salivary glands.... it's a pretty easy procedure. this is what they do for kids like emmy, babies even, who can't swallow... they choke... emmy could've had this before as she choked a lot on her spit (she still does) -- but she never got sick from it (pneumonia) so they didn't act on it. the reason they would act on it after 2 - 2.5 yrs is only because they thought kids going to playschool don't want to be drooling everywhere. fair enough. sounds like it's still an optional thing though.

soooooooooooo that is the news on us. not a lot... the other kids are doing well, nothing new. and now, for some pics.... which will be above this post so you will have already looked at them before reading this... meaning there is no point in what i am writing... blah!!

random stuff...

aren't kids to cute when they sleep? i just checked on mine... fast asleep... i think i may go to bed early for once too...

we have swimming tomorrow morning. had ladies morning out this morning... it was alright but it'll take a bit to get "into" again... different group, different book... but still nice to have a tiny break from the kids with adult conversation! emerson FREAKED when i left her in the nursery but she was fine when i picked her up. they had her in the baby swing LOL and she thought that was pretty neat! hallie really had fun and can't wait to go next week!

we replaced our shopping cart after several months without one. dayhome boy had broke the other one... anyway now it's like a new toy! emerson was thrilled! it's also helping her with her walking....

the girls were having fun together yesterday afternoon....

my kids have to like such opposite things... the only thing they agree on liking is junk food... the are so competative and it drives me nuts! "i got dressed FIRST, i won!" "i'm getting out of the bath FIRST... me FIRST... ha ha, i said it FIRST..." i could go on and on. anyway today, they were arguing in the van over the song that was playing. kai wanted a song that had a MALE singing.... hallie wanted a song with a FEMALE singing. so we take turns... and really *i* am the one "winning" because it's my music choice, not theirs LOL! (sometimes i get away with grown up songs instead of kids... woo hoo!)

i'm having a hard time... help!!!

**this is a post for all of your lurkers to comment on too please!**

i'm having a VERY tough time deciding on which play structure to buy for our backyard. i know this seems trivial but i'm very stressed! i need some input PLEASE...

there are 2 options:

-spend a chunk of money and get the best of the "smaller" series...
-a very kool play structure with lots of options, however it's on a smaller scale and kids will outgrow it by around 8yrs old. the swings aren't as high as the bigger model, the rock wall not as challanging, etc. (this means only about 3 yrs left for hallie)
http://rainbowplay.com/SwingSets/Index.cfm?CatId=4&Id=55

OR...

-spend a bigger chunk of money and get the lower end model of the "bigger" series...
-still a very kool play structure, less options (doesn't come with steering wheel, telescope, etc.), but will be suitable for over 8yrs... up to around 12yrs... swing beam is higher so swinging is still fun for older kids AND little kids... more challanging rock wall and rope climber...
http://rainbowplay.com/SwingSets/Index.cfm?CatId=3&Id=44

help?!?!?!??? best of the smaller series or lower end model of the bigger series?!? i need some input here!

the 2nd option costs more... significantly... but is it worth it to have it last longer? i don't want to spend a chunk of money and then have them outgrow it... i hope that makes sense. these companies who make the units say, "shop as if your child were 9 or 10yrs old now -- they are to grow into, not out of."

help... mom... ? anyone??

the one i want that i know would last longest is too much, but here it is to drool over... i love the slide quality...
http://rainbowplay.com/SwingSets/Index.cfm?CatId=1&Id=1

YAY!!

ladies morning out starts up again this morning! i have been waiting 2 months! i hope it goes well... i'm a bit worried about how emerson will adjust to the nursery child care again.... i'll update later!

dance!

saturday night we went to the linking parents winter celebration... to be honest, this sort of thing is not something i will usually go to... however i KNEW my kids would have a blast so we went... and they did have fun! they loved the music... hallie is already asking to go to another dance -- i told her we will have to wait until the weddings this summer! we got there really late to avoid the sketchy potluck (sorry, potlucks aren't my thing unless it's with very close friends LOL ... no offense to anyone!!!) and then stayed for a little bit. we drove there with friends heather & prevail and met with a few others when there...

dress...

i had this dress made for emerson, it's so cute! it's still a tiny bit big, so it should be perfect for the summer! i also had a skirt made but the waist is waaaaay big so maybe that'll be for next year... or else i'll get it taken in. hallie was wearing it, it just was short on her! hallie was supposed to get a dress too, but it didn't work out so we scrapped that idea. oh well!

friday night my dayhome babe had a sleepover here! it actually went really well, so she is welcome back for another one anytime!

beautiful day!

last week it was so nice outside! we took advantage and walked to the "big park" with our soon-to-be new neighbors! it was very nice, but i underdressed us all and we were FROZEN by the time we got home. oops!!!

kai is re-discovering the park... funny how a winter away from the park can make everything seem new -- and sometimes scary! our little chicken is now a bit scared of the swings! last year he couldn't get high enough... i think it's a 3yr old thing. he is scared of a lot of things these days and i remember hallie going through this before too.

ice cube babies...

the deck!

our deck is done! kipp thought for sure it wouldn't be done when we moved in, but it only took them a day or so to build! ok maybe 2 days... but here it is! and still LOTS of yard left woo hoo!!

she is so cute!

emerson is such a little cutie these days! she is doing so much more... she's got such a personality! that is, when she is not sleeping... she still sleeps a LOT. 2 naps/day and sleeps about 14 hours at night. she is still sleeping this morning as i type this...

anyway last week she got her g-tube changed... it looks pretty and white again. the old one was too long, sticking out too far since she has thinned out from when she got that one last june. it had also discolored... ew! sorry for those who don't like to look at this stuff... this pic is pretty non-gross as far as gross CAN go!

awwwwww....


the kids were totally making her laugh last night after supper!


yesterday i joined hallie's playschool class on a field trip to the sea caverns at west ed! here is a penguin! his name is bam bam and he was being totally playful at the glass window!

my kids are nuts!
but i love them :)

busy week!

last week was busy! friday we ended up going to millenium place with juanita and her kids... it was great! we then headed for lunch at the nearby joey tomato's restaurant -- which was quite a sight! 2 moms with 7 kids all 4 yrs and under! it was really a bit krazy but the kids did so well and we managed to rack up a bill of $150! woo hoo! after the lunch, we were loading the kids into the vans and a lady came up to me... she went on about how she saw us in the restaurant and how she was amazed at how many kids we had between the 2 of us and she kept saying, "you are such a good mom, such a nice mom..." i was really surprised, especially because the kids weren't being little angels in there... it was so nice to hear that. i have to remember to be that old lady who makes the NICE comment when i am old... it truly just made my day!

saturday kipp wanted to take the kids on the rides yet again, so off to galaxyland we went. hallie and i went on almost every ride! she is such a daredevil! she can't WAIT for disneyland, the mall rides are now too slow, too boring ;) ha ha! kai, on the other hand, is a bit chicken! he goes on the kiddie rides, only SOME of them... and in the pic below look at his expression! "get me OFF!"

hallie on a ride... posing for the camera

kipp, hallie and kai on a new ride. kai was not impressed!


millenium place...


what a monkey!!
little emerson... she had a lot of fun here!

i just realized...

i have never been a mommy to a 15 month old and not been pregnant. this is a first for me! ha ha! i was pregnant from when hallie was 5 months old onward and then i was pregnant when kai was about 14 months old, onward.

let's play!

we went on monday and we were the only ones there for a while (us with 2 friends + their kids) which was nice! even when we left at noon, there were only about 2 or 3 other moms with kids there. i love non-busy places! although, let's play was pretty dirty... i was kind of put off... but the kids of course had fun.

beach day!

it was beach day at playschool today! kai enjoyed the pools in the classrooms! tomorrow is hallie's beach day.... how fun!

this was everyone's favorite pool... as you can see ;)

house...

our house is coming along... the exterior is almost done except for the cedar shakes in the peaks and the stone work by the garage and on the front posts. and of course proper front steps! oh, and they need to still build our deck in the back... less than 1 month until we move!!

the inside still needs flooring, railing on stairs, light fixtures, counters, baseboards.... but they have been so busy working on it... every time i drive by there are like 4 trucks there of random workers... kipp went inside last weekend and said the kitchen looked awesome... i want to see!! i'm SO impatient!

dexter's photo debut!

can be viewed here: http://new.photos.yahoo.com/halliekai/#page1

oh baby!!!

i got to meet a brand new baby today, mr. dexter! oh my goodness, what a sweetie! even though he puked at least 7 times during my visit, he is still just so so so adorable!!! and WOW is he ever tiny!!! i was hoping he was still going to look "newborn" like and he looks so newborn that he should still be inside that tummy! not even 6 lbs, he has lost weight. i hope tomorrow's appt goes well sara! thanks for having me over today and watch for some insanely cute baby pics to be blogged tomorrow when i get my camera back (forgot it at my parents' house tonight -- so sad!!)