Let's talk about the potty

So it wasn't that long ago (maybe 4 months) that I snapped this darling picture of Paige using the potty.

photo courtesy of the iphone

I knew at that point that she was ready to be potty trained. I also knew at that point that I wasn't ready. So I did nothing about it. As the summer progressed it became more and more obvious that she was ready...and it became more and more obvious that I was just plain old lazy. It basically got to the point where she was exclusively using the potty, yet I still had her in diapers. Can you say lazy? Maybe denial? Crazy?

Well, two weeks ago Paige decided she was done with diapers. I literally could not get her into one...or to keep one on. So I said to my barely two year old:

"fine...but if you even almost pee your panties you're back in diapers!"

And so she actually listened. It's been two weeks...and not one accident. I didn't think potty training could be any easier than it was with Hailey...but apparently I was wrong.

Now before all you haters start your hating...let me remind you of a thing or two about this lively child of mine. So when you have "dream babies" that are so good you almost forget they're there, well I have babies that cry, some times a LOT. Or when you have toddlers that sit nicely and play...I have toddlers that empty entire toothpaste tubes, along with diaper cream, and lotion on a daily basis. And when your toddlers defy you...just remember this girl who potty trained herself is probably just trying to defy me. Once she figures out that I'm actually happy about it, I'm sure she'll switch directions. Oh and finally, when your kids are wonderfully/genius-ly/adorably smart...remember mine get to be too!

The legend of the Mini Van

Back in March when we finally made the transition from Car to Minivan, my dear friend Laura warned me that it would definitely result in another baby...whether we'd planned it or not. I assured her that my life was fully under control and that I would have a baby WHEN I chose to have a baby, and not when my minivan decided. But really, when in the past have I ever been able to choose when to have my babies? Never. They always come WAY later then I plan, and so who was more schocked than me when I found out we were having a baby a few months earlier then planned? Maybe Ben...that's who was more shocked. We've never been blessed with super fertility powers so I do feel like this pregnancy is such a blessing. It hasn't stopped me from constantly worrying though (just ask the ultrasound techs at all three ultrasounds I've had, who've patiently dealt with my full on meltdowns before and after I see that heart beat each time). I'm a mess...and that's ok. Pregnancy is full of so much joy and excitement for me...and it has also been a source of so much sorrow and pain. So I'm just a happy mix of every emotion.

I am very happy to be taking pictures of my growing belly...and if this is evidence of what's to come, I'm POSITIVE I'll have another HUGE belly again!
I'm also VERY VERY VERY relieved that the morning sickness Fairy didn't find me this time. In past pregnancies I've been bedridden for months with awful awful morning sickness. In preparation for this sickly time I went to the doctor VERY early and got a prescription of Diclectin to scare that morning sickness away. And boy did it do it's job, I haven't had to take ONE pill this pregnancy! Which is amazing since I usually spend hundreds of dollars each month trying to just survive. So I am blessed. Now don't get me wrong, I still feel sick at times...but THIS kind of 'barely there' morning I will take and I can easily handle!

Anyway, the baby's due to make it's arrival sometime at the end of March...maybe early April (depending on how things go). We're not sure what we're having yet, but rest assured, we WILL find out (if we can). We're going to be over the moon happy either way. I LOVE being a mother to girls and I would LOVE (LOVE LOVE) to have another. BUT, I've never had a boy and I think that would be exciting and so fun too! If I were a betting person I'd say it's going to be a girl (our record proves that we like to make girls...4 for 4), but if I were to guess based on my gut feeling, I'd say it's a boy. So We'll just have to wait and see. Any guesses?

A blog from my iphone

So there are lots of times when I'm running around or even doing really fun stuff but don't have my camera. I would love to blog about this kind of stuff, but what's a blog without pictures? Not worth it really. Anyway, I've discovered a solution...the blogger app. I'm not sure how this will work, but I thought it would be a fun way to blog about the pics on my phone. So here is a glimpse into our summer via the iphone camera:

Bike Rides...Hailey and Paige's view from inside the bike trailer

Calaway Park with the Taylor's

Camping Sept Long with Nate and Tan and Kids...these two LOVED each other

Cute babies sleeping

Spray park poses

Calaway park with Becc and her boys

Late night decorating for Birthday Parties

Spray park in teeny tiny bathing suits

Trips to the dentist for us all

Well...this was fun. I think I'll do it again. Maybe I'll find some more random pictures and share them on here.

First....Day of school

Hailey started Preschool this year. Last year a few friends and I did a little "joyschool" program for our kids. We just created our own curriculum and met once a week. So it was a HUGE change for me (and Hailey and Paige) to send Hailey off to school 3 days a week for 3 hours each day. It was even a BIGGER change because her preschool class is smack dab in the middle of the elementary school. So she shares the gym, the bathroom, the library and the park with older kids. She also will have grade 6 reading buddies come in to read with her and the other kids. WOW!! This seems like real school to me! It's a good thing she loves it, because I'm still a bit mixed on the whole thing.

The night before, I let Hailey pick her outfit from 6 different options. Apparently NONE of them were acceptable because not a single outfit was going to be big enough for her on her first day of "high school" as she calls it. She was also very worried as we put her to bed that night that she was going to break the bed when she magically grew up while sleeping! So adorable...so innocent...so perfect!

Somehow when she woke up she was BIGGER...but magically still fit into her clothes - AND her bed was still in decent shape.

Paige was certain she was going to school too...and therefore insisted on being in the pictures with a backpack too).

I think this little girls is so precious! So sweet, so tender, so kind so loving.

These two friends didn't seem so excited...me thinks they were just playing it cool in front of the bigger kids. Either that or they were sick of my camera in their faces (I needed something to cover up my teary eyes)
When I had her to myself she gave me one last smile before running off into her classroom to start the rest of her life.

First...Dentis Visit

So Hailey and Paige both had their first visits to the dentist this last month. Hailey's a thumb sucker and has two cavities that even I could see. So we knew we had to get her in soon. Paige just came along for the ride.

Hailey...what can I say about this child? She just breezes through life like she already knows what's going to happen next. Nothing phases her. She had no problems with the lights, or the glasses, or the loud buzzing of the polisher, or any of the visit. She was such a trooper!




Paige warmed up pretty quickly and let the hygienist count her teeth and inspect them. She wouldn't let the dentist anywhere near her. Which was fine...really she's only two.


"Mom look...I have teeth!!!"


I was the proud, sappy mom with the camera. I've been a little extra emotional lately and even the simplest of milestones has me nearly in tears. I thankfully held it together for this appointment...and will hopefully be ok when they freeze Hailey's mouth tomorrow to fill her cavities. She'll be fine I know...I'm the concern:)

The rest of our summer

The rest of our summer was spent...(can you guess?)...CAMPING!! We spent every single weekend of August travelling around BC and Montana. We camped with friends and family and by ourselves. It was a fun and busy month. We would get home late Sunday or Monday night...then I'd spend all day Monday recovering and unpacking. Tuesday was usually spent just having fun with my girls (i.e. spray park, Calaway park, the regular park) or running errands/completing necessary tasks (i.e. groceries, dentist visits, doctors appointments, paying bills) then Wednesday and Thursday I did Laundry and packed for the weekend, and then we'd leave Friday and start the whole cycle all over again. We made August the month of the quad. Every trip we went on had to be planned around our quads and we made sure we got some good use out of them. I also made August the month without my camera. I just got tired of taking pictures and therefore boycotted it almost altogether. I wanted to make some memories instead of just record them. And boy did we make memories!

Tie lake with the Hills...we were too lazy to walk anywhere, so we road this quad around the whole time. Hungry? Ride the quad to the trailer. Want to swim/boat? Ride the quad to the dock. Want to sit by the fire? Ride the quad to the fire pit. There was NO walking done this trip!
Hailey decided to test her mother's fear levels and swim in deep water!! That's her in the pink box (and blown up larger to see). She wore a life jacket the whole time and was very very brave. My heart on the other hand was beating very very fast.
Paige (bless her heart) was too afraid of the water for most the weekend. The old me would have encouraged her to swim, the new me was fine with her staying far far away from the water.
In Elkford with Ben's family - the girls LOVED the bubble machine
Hailey also loved the crafts she got to do during quieter times
I wasn't feeling very good this trip...and Ben's dad was feeling even worse (if an ambulance trip to the hospital with a very painful kidney stone is any indication of how poorly he was feeling), so my camera sadly didn't get much use at all after this picture. But we did a LOT of quadding in. We saw some spectacular views and just really enjoyed the time together as a family. It was a good way to end August.

Stay tuned for my next post...all about "Firsts"

Life changing

Sometimes you just can't pretend that things are normal...or ok. Or that nothing happened. Sometimes things happen in your life that change you forever. I've experienced a few of these kind of events in my life. The kind of life changing event that has you figuring out how to be YOU again....but with this new knowledge/experience. These kind of experiences aren't always bad...sometimes they are the best things ever, and sometimes they are important lessons disguised in heartache.

The first is when we lost the twins. I changed in so many ways during that time. I lost my innocent view on life. I found a deeper love for my husband. I longed for a baby more then ever. I grew up. I learned how to laugh and smile again. I learned what sorrow was.

The next was when Hailey was born (and Paige too of course). I learned how to love like I never had before. I learned what motherly guilt really felt like. I felt exhaustion like never before. I joined the 'motherhood club'. Again I found a deeper love for my husband. I learned what true joy was.

This summer our family experienced something else that changed me...and everyone involved. It's not really my story to share, but it's also something I feel strongly about. I feel like it wouldn't be fair to share the rest of my summer and not talk about this at all. I also feel like others need to learn from this. So I will share in minimal detail what it is that changed my life again.

My little family camped with my husbands family this summer. At one point we lost my sweet little toddler nephew and then found his lifeless body floating in a pond. We watched as his courageous mother performed CPR and brought him back to life. I can describe in great detail how horrifying this was for everyone there, and how awful the nightmares have been the haunt us still. But I won't. Like I said it's not really my story to tell. But, I do feel like sharing this with everyone:

PLEASE update your CPR! We're so grateful that my nephew's mother had recently re-certified her first aid/CPR.

PLEASE always watch your children. It literally takes 5 seconds for a child to disappear from sight. Be especially careful around water.

PLEASE always appreciate the beauty of your children...life is so precious!

Like I said earlier, this has changed my life in many ways. I have learned that no matter how difficult life with little ones can be, I need to be grateful for the blessing they are in my life. I've felt true fear. I've found comfort in my family and feel like family is more important then most anything. I've cried as my desperate prayers were answered. I'm still struggling to balance life with this constant fear I now have. I've learned to rejoice in every single breath my children take. I've learned to love a little bit deeper and a little bit more.

And then we had a Birthday Party!

I'm still working on July here. If I blogged for any other reason then to keep a personal record of our life...I'd just skip it all and write something truly witty. But the main reason I blog is to document this fabulously normal life I live...and therefore, I must and will slowly work my way through each and every little thing we do. If there are actually people out there who read this blog (and I suspect there are few), just deal with the deal. My life is boring, my documentation of my life might be more boring...so if you're reading this - what does that say about you? Sorry Mom....and anyone else who reads this thing. I'm just kidding.

Anyway, between camping trips this year I decided to have a VERY last minute, VERY small and VERY unorganized birthday party for Hailey. Basically we invited Hailey's cousins and whoever happened to be at church the Sunday before. Who knew so many people would be at church on Sunday...and who knew everyone who was there was also available!! It ended up being a very last minute, very HUGE, very unorganized party. I also didn't even have a chance to invite half the people I would have wanted to...but I'm sure they're glad they didn't have to participate in this gong show:

Pin the clothes on the princess
A million little mouths to feed
Hailey marrying her prince charming
Me - more excited then anyone to open presents (either that or a woodchuck impression)
And Hailey blowing out the candles on her Ice Cream Sunday (my kids don't like cake...I don't like to make it...so why bother?)

Anyway...I make it sound like it was this terrible party. But it wasn't. I did do lots of decorating and cute things for the party - and I enjoyed every minute of it. Hailey and her friends seemed to have a blast. And it was well worth the little bit of craziness you get with 12 Four year olds running around the house! I'm glad and feel very blessed every year that I get to have Birthday parties for my kids. I'm one lucky lady.