5.19.13

 Yesterday, we celebrated this beautiful girl.

 We went with a Minnie Mouse theme (although I admit from this view it looks like a baby shower).

 The dessert table.

 Minne Mouse cake!

Digging in to a cupcake while Minnie keeps watch.

What a hectic day!  We had scheduled Paige's 2 year photos on Saturday morning, but due to the rain, we had to cancel.  Then we had to make the decision to move the party inside - 20 people inside our house felt a bit crowded, but we are blessed to have that many people who wanted to celebrate with us.

Paige was spoiled with so many wonderful gifts - I should not admit this, but every parent out there with understand - there was nothing that I wanted to bury in the basement storage room. ;)

Right now the kids are both doing great.  Wyatt had attended a few pre-kindergarten sessions at the school he will be attending, and he has done so well both times.  I have no concerns right now as to how he will adapt.  It will be a bit different, as the sessions now only have 5-6 kids at a time, but after a week or so I think he will be fine.  Paige got a trike for her birthday, and Wyatt has actually been pedaling on it (much to Paige's dismay), which is great.  Paige's vocabulary is growing each day (I was quite concerned about it 6 months ago).  She continues to have NO fear when it comes to exploring.

Unfortunately, as of June 3 I will be forced into taking a leave of absence from work due to a lack of daycare (our current provider is moving).  I have tried so many people and come up empty handed (unless I want to leave my kids with someone who lists "inside time" as an activity, or someone whose rate is literally as much as I make per day).  My boss is understanding and thankfully will allow me to work some evenings while our walk in clinic is open, and hopefully something will come up quickly.

05.04.13

Apparently, some time has passed since I last updated this blog (sorry, Amanda).  In that time, I managed to turn 31 without my world falling apart. This year I had a lovely birthday. A few friends and I went to Clay Owl Studio in Winkler (a paint your own pottery place) the Friday before my birthday. It was so relaxing and wonderful, I had an amazing time.  Without sounding like a total hippie, I felt like I finally knew what it was like to be surrounded by friends who actually cared about me.
Enough of that.
I got some lovely gifts this year too (see above).  A gorgeous Guess wallet and David's Tea gift card from my sister - I cannot stop staring at the wallet. I feel ashamed to hide it away in my black purse.  But if I start walking around carrying a wallet, I suppose I'm just asking to be mugged. It could happen.  I purchased myself a fantastic cruiser bicycle (Kensington, from Canadian Tire).  Technically it's from Josh and the kids, but let's not get into that. I've taken it out twice now and I just love it. Listening to the birds singing, watching the sun set, and not getting that weird sensation when your crotch goes completely numb because of a bike seat the size of a Hot Wheels car (is it just me?).  My sister-in-law raided the store she works at for the remaining Dairy Milk bunnies from Easter (my favorite...and now they are all gone).  The painfully adorable salt and pepper shakers are from my parents (as well as a new hoodie) - but I can't decide if I actually want to use them, or just stare at them and squeal, "They're so cuuuuuute!".  Tough call.  The aforementioned Amanda got me some kickass coloured pencils (Prismacolor), which I have put to good use already.  I suppose I need to buy a pencil sharpener now. How odd, that I've been out of school for over a decade and never purchased a pencil sharpener before.  What have I done with all my dull pencils?  Thrown them out? Or do I have a stash of them somewhere in the house, just waiting to be put to good use?  Strange.
Other than that, not much has been going on. It's finally warmed up, so we're outside a lot more.  It's easier than it was last year, because Paige isn't crawling around. But it's more difficult than last year, because Paige is climbing around. Yesterday she fell off of the top rung of the ladder on the play structure, right onto her back.  In my defense, .0002 milliseconds before that, she had been following me into the garage.  Still, seeing her fall almost made me vomit, and something tells me it will not be the last time.  I have to find a balance between making sure she is cautious but encouraging her to explore. 
Wyatt had a kindergarten readiness class last week and did amazing.  He has another next week, and then a playdate for the morning with a "buddy" who is already in kindergarten, plus another meeting with Josh and I and the teacher.  We also had an offer to enroll him in a prep class for kids who are anxious or have "issues" (not special needs, but not just Joe Everyday kind of kids).  We declined that offer, I didn't think grouping him with a bunch of anxious kids would be a great idea. 
As of May 30th, we are out of daycare.  Our current provider is moving, and we still have not found a replacement. This whole childcare stuff is fun. Not really.

04.07.13

This weekend I accomplished EVERYTHING. Purged the kitchen (did the pantry today), the basement, did approximately 300 loads of laundry, finished a cross-stitch project, made Rice Krispie squares, banana chocolate chip muffins, managed to do 2 runs on the treadmill, and took the kids to the Children's Museum. It's no secret that I am on anti-depressants, but I'm wondering if the last refill was speed instead of Celexa.
Wyatt has one last OT appointment this month, then we get a month off. He's made some amazing progress, but we need a break.
Here are some pics from the last while.the last one (I think, posting from my phone makes it hard to tell) is Wyatt and his OT, Heather. His favorite thing to do at appointments is to sit on a scooter board and have her push him down a ramp. Pretty crazy for a kid who used to fear slides!

03.21.13

Front Entrance - Before

Front Entrance - After

"Helping"

My front entrance project is complete.  Looks much better, doesn't it?  We painted the entrance last Saturday night, and then Sunday we painted the hallway. Saturday night, Josh asked, "Why do we always paint at night?" Sunday afternoon, his question was answered when Paige backed into a wall of wet paint. Plus both kids were seriously unhappy about not using the hallway for about an hour while it dried.
I wanted to paint a feature wall in Paige's room as well, and attempted that today. It turns out I didn't really have the desire or the energy (or enough paint!) to finish it, so I have one base coat on. Oh well, it'll look great whenever it gets done. :P

3.16.13

After supper today, I started painting our front entrance - we (I mean, I) decided earlier this month that either we finally make this house ours or we burn it to the ground. I was getting quite tired of beige walls - especially a beige I didn't even pick. It used to have weird gold glaze feathers on it, which we attempted to paint over with the beige base coat, but when the sun shines in, you can still see weird feathers.
Anyway.
I bought paint today, and decided that if I didn't start today, it probably wasn't happening. While Josh was trying to watch the Jets game, I got started. And the kids both wanted to help, it got a little hectic, and the picture above was Josh's solution. ;)  Not that I need to defend myself, but they are both playing an app called Monkey Preschool Lunchbox and it's a great learning app for toddlers. I'm amazed at how quickly Paige has picked up on it!  It's also ridiculously adorable that they are sitting so close and not hitting each other.

3.14.13

Life has been a bit of a struggle over the last few months, and the last few weeks have been the worst. Wyatt's been having some mind-boggling tantrums, I've had the worst insomnia I've ever experienced and we're all just so, so tired of winter.  Soon enough we'll be playing in the backyard, swatting mosquitoes, making s'mores, going for long walks, splashing in the puddles, swinging in the hammock...we just have to carry on for now.

03.06.13

And now, without further ado, a short series of photos in which my children appear to be enjoying each others company: