Proudly Canadian

We were invited to join my sister Corey and her husband and 2.5 year old daughter on a Camping Weekend at the Country View Park in Reece's Corners. We stayed in a decent size trailer that Craig's parents own. I love when Canada Day is on a Friday, so Ed is off for a long weekend. My sister had everything organized, from the kiddie pool to stuff to make smores, I hardly brought anything. The first night Craig bbq'd chicken and ribs, and Corey made a delicious potato salad. The dads then took Anthony and Emma on the hayride through the park, and out for ice cream. I was wishing I bought a Canada flag for Anthony to wave. He remembered from last year, and was asking for it. Once the kids settled down for the night, we had a campfire and a few drinks.

Saturday, was another hot day. We took turns napping in the morning, from staying up late. The kids loved playing at the park with the others. The kiddie pool was great fun for little Ava and Emma. Anthony was interacting with his sister and cousin pretty for the most part. Anthony went to the big pool and was showing his dad how he could jump in all by himself. His swimming has improved a lot since last summer. Thanks to his lifeguard cousin Lauren for teaching him.

The most exciting thing of the weekend happened Saturday around 6:45pm, when Ed was ready to take the steaks off the bbq. I was in the trailer finishing the caesar salad, and getting the plates ready to put on the picnic table. Ava was still playing in the kiddie pool, it was still pretty hot out, and she was content in there. All of a sudden the sky turns grey and the wind picked up. We didn't have the radio or tv on, so we had to rely on other campers. It looked like a big storm was coming and fast. We quickly brought the food in to the trailer, while the guys were busy putting all the lawn chairs, toys, games, stroller away, and the awning rolled in.
I was being calm for the kids, but my heart was beating pretty hard for a while. I actual like a good thunderstorm, just not being stuck in a trailer with 3 little kids.

It thundered for a good while and it was windy, but not as bad as some warnings were letting on. Thank God. We had heard reports of possible hail and funnel clouds. Afterwards, the fireworks went off at 10pm as scheduled (not sure why they chose Sat Jul 2 instead). Anthony was tired, but we convinced him to stay up to watch them. This was the first year, he liked them. We had a great weekend, and all the kids were good little campers. We would take them again sometime. Two nights was perfect for us.

Anthony opened his birthday gift from his Auntie, Uncle and Emma. He wanted to wear his new spidey shirt all week. And he loved his spidey goggles and back pack too.

Emma and Anthony with the Dads holding them up for us to see!

During the storm, I think this must be once we realized it wasn't as bad as it could have been. Judging from Corey's face- she gets pretty nervous when it storms.

While we were packing up on Sunday, Ava enjoyed a little pool play. All smiles here:)

O'Shea's Farm Fun

The end of June we visited O'Shea's farm with our playgroup friends. It was about a 25 mins drive outside London. We had a great time, looking at animals, picking strawberries and a picnic with our friends.
Somehow these don't look as cheesy with a cute 14 month olds face. It was natural for her to put her face in the hole. Anthony was the strawberry.

I threw this one in, but it was another day at the wading pool at springbank park. Ava posed like this for a good while.
Strawberry fields. It rained the week before, so we were a little late, but managed to pick some good ones., and eat a bunch.

Final day at Nursery School

June 15th was Anthony's last day at Grosvenor Nursery School. It was a very enjoyable and rewarding year! I'm so glad I registered him while I was off work with Ava. He made a nice card for his teachers and gave them both hugs and one even a big kiss! I hope his JK teacher is as patient and nurturing as these two teachers were. He made some new friends and so did I.

First Piano piece

On Anthony's 4th birthday he performed in the Year end Yamaha Music Concert. We were proud of him for following his teacher Ms. Kate's lead and pushing the right keys at the right time (only two keys). He came a long way from when he started in September. Normally his class has 7 children, but for the concert only Anthony and Zain made it.

He seemed to really blossom as the year went on and looked forward to each class. Grandma Greene gave next year's lessons to him again for his birthday gift.

Anthony turns 4!!

I'm late posting pictures because since summer has been here, we've been extra busy, enjoying the nice weather. This was on Sunday June 12th, after Anthony's music concert. We walked outside our building and noticed the farmer had plowed his field.
Saturday we had all three grandparents over for a little pizza and cupcake party.
Sitting on the rock in front of our place reminds me of the first days home from the hospital and the shrub was blooming beautifully. Yes, I like the little things in life.
Daddy and his big boy on his 4th birthday:)
We gave him a new bike!! What a surprise. My dad tried to get him to look up after he sat on it, but he was in awe, all he did was sit on it and stare at it. He says it's a "transformer" bike- but it's not. I guess he has a big imagination.

First Beach Day of 2011

Sunday, June 5th was the perfect 25 degree beach day. We packed up and headed to Grand Bend for the day. Ava loved the sand and was content to play and crawl around a bit. We ended up staying for 4 hours. Everyone was happy and had fun! We left at 3:30, and both kids slept on the drive home.

Beach momma and beach baby!

Ava was quite the social butterfly. She was crawling to other people, and especially liked the university students laying in front of us. She crawled to their volleyball. They were nice and let her play with it.
It was also an extra special day, as our little Ava took her first steps (well more than 2 in a row). Daddy was there to see it this time! So, for the baby book she is almost 14 months old, and her brother was 14.5 months.

Special springtime moments

Ava warmed right up to Uncle David's dog Bentley. He is the sweetest, most gentle dog I've met. I know he's still an animal, and you can't 100% trust him around little children, but he was so good with our kids. He is a 3 year old Schnoodle. A great hypo-allergic dog, that has hair, not fur, therefore he doesn't shed either! I was scared of big dogs when I was younger, and I want our children to be comfortable with animals. I got a kick out of seeing little Ava crawl towards Bentley saying "Baba" and petting him. I think the feeling was mutual.
Spontaneously playing together and having FUN!!! This was a proud moment for me to see my big boy wanting to play with his little sister. He had such a rough start when she arrived, it really made my day to see them having so much fun together!

6am May sunrise on our balcony. I've been getting up before the kids some days to go for a run.

I planned a picnic play date with my sister and two cousins. We met up at Pinafore Park in St. Thomas, with our kids. We spent 3 hours there, it was such a nice time.

I didn't manage to get them all sitting down at the same time. But in total the children were, Hewson-4, Claire- 11 mths, Emma- 2, Brody- 20mths, Anthony- almost 4, Ava- 14mths. My cousin Stacey is expecting her second baby in the fall.

Then and Now

~Sisters 1982~

I am holding baby Brooke aka Bertie, Brookie, Squirt! Corey is 2.5 here.

~Easter 2011~

Shelley (Ava), Corey, Brooke

My youngest sister Brooke came home for the first time in over a year (since X-mas 09). It was great to see her in person. Although, I think having skype helps make the time apart easier.

This was her first time meeting our little Ava. She just turned ONE, and she was making strange quite a bit. She wasn't sure what to make of her. Plus, I think having the whole family for Easter Dinner made her more anxious.

I kept asking Brooke what gift she would like for her graduation. Everything I suggested, she said she didn't need or wouldn't use. The things that she did like were above my and Corey's combined budget. So, I decided to treat her to a pedicure! Corey and I got one too! It was a fun sister's time out. The three of us don't get a chance to hang out much, and it was nice. We all love each other, and enjoy the time we spend together. We all have some similarities in our personalities, but overall, I think we are three very different people. It's amazing how we can come from the same two people. I think now that we are grown up, our life experience has shaped us into who we are today. It is not necessarily good or bad, just different- which makes things interesting.

Anthony and my niece Emma enjoyed playing with Brooke. She brought them some German made toys, which was nice. Anthony got some wide-up tin cars and Ava got a spinning top - she enjoys it! Even a week after Brooke's visit, Anthony was still saying "I really like Auntie Brookie".

Our pretty toes after our pedicures. Now, bring on the sandal weather!

Mine are pink, Corey chose orange and Brooke picked torquoise.

Keepsakes

I ordered this from Amazon for Ava's 1st Birthday. I love the idea of printing a few pictures from her 1st birthday until her 18th and then wrapping it up and giving it to her. There are pages with interview questions and pockets to keep invitations, cards.

I've always LOVED baby's feet. They are so tiny and sweet. This is from Anthony's baby book. His newborn foot and a year later.

Now, little Ava's newborn footprint and at ONE YEAR OLD!!! Wow, how they grow!

Ava's First Birthday!!!

Ava getting ready for her first birthday party!

On Friday we gave her a basketball net for her gift. She loves playing "ball".

Anthony thought it'd be a good idea to set her net up in front of his bigger net.

Anthony is giving his sister a hug here. He's come a long way since last year and now they are playing nicely most of the time.

Ava had fun playing with my cousin's son Brody. He is exactly 6 mths older.

ONE Birthday Candle!

Ava LOVED her first cupcake!!!

All partied out!

One year old loving her first park day of the year!

Happy 1st Birthday Ava!

Our baby girl turned ONE year old on Friday! The first birthday is always extra special to me. There's so much change from the beginning of your life as a newborn to an almost walking 1 year old. Ed and I like to invite the whole family over for the celebration. Saturday around lunch time our place, which is 1300 sq feet was getting comfortably crowded - (thank God we like eachother) with 10 adults, 3 teenagers, 1 preschooler and 2 babies.

Unfortunately, my sister and her husband couldn't make it, because my niece was sick in the night. My parents couldn't either. They just left on vacation with two other couples to Florida. I'm sure we'll have another little celebration on my side of the family when they get back. My cousin Stacey came with her little guy Brody (18 mths), which was a nice playdate for my birthday girl. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. I made a fruit and veggie tray and we ordered pizza. I decided to make cupcakes instead of cake. I know other years there is always so much cake leftover. Anthony finished off the last cupcake today! I'll post some pictures soon!

Mothers and Daughters

I've been thinking about this lately because my daughter is about to turn ONE YEAR Old on Friday. I never found out from the ultrasound that she was a girl. But, I had a feeling around the 7 month mark that she was a girl. She didn't kick me nearly as much as my son did. I remember joking to my husband that this baby has to be a soccer player. And what do you know, Anthony loves soccer. I didn't have any dreams about having a daughter. That was different than when I was expecting Anthony. I envisioned myself holding hands with a little boy in overalls. I think I've been thinking or dreaming about that since I was 16. I grew up with all girls, and most of my parents friends had girls. I really wanted a son someday.

After I gave birth to my daughter, the nurses held her up with her bum facing me. I thought they'd shout out "It's a Girl!" or maybe just on tv they do that. So all I remember seeing were four big rolls on her legs. I looked at Ed, and said is it a boy or girl? He said he couldn't tell either. We asked the nurses and they didn't say anything. But they turned her around. I usually wear contacts, but for labour I had my glasses on, and by then they were getting marked up. When they turned her around, I still wasn't 100% sure. I remember saying "I don't see a penis, it must be a girl". We were so happy to meet our 9lb 1 oz baby girl. Ed told me after that he secretly was wishing for a daughter.

One thing I thought about when she was a newborn, was someday hopefully she will want to be a mother. I want to raise her with a strong sense of herself and pride for being a girl. In so many ways, even today I believe boys are still given more attention in our society.

I look forward to relating to girl things with Ava. Some day I hope she asks me if she can get her ears pierced. We could go shopping and out for lunch, call it a "Girl's Day". I hope down the road I learn how to do little girls hair. I want to help guide her to make her own decisions in life. If she would rather not wear a skirt, and have her hair short, then that is fine too. For now, we are looking forward to celebrating her first birthday. Family is coming over on Saturday for her party. I wonder if she'll love her first taste of cake as much as her brother did.

Big bro making lil sis laugh

This was the first time they really started to play together without Ed or myself trying to get them to interact. I was thrilled to see them having so much fun. I was in the kitchen and ran to get my camera. Ava seems like she'll be pretty tough and I'm sure that will come in handy having a big brother around. Anthony loves getting a nice reaction from her, so I'm excited that he's come a long way since last summer.

Fresh Maple Syrup

Never too young to start reading. Ava and her friend Leighton looking at some books.

Making chocolate chip pancakes. Our picky eater Anthony devoured them :)

We also had frozen blueberries in some of them.

Saturday we went for a short drive to pick up some real maple syrup. Ed got a group deal online through wagjag. 1L for $9, normally it is $18. In a couple years we'll tour the sugar shack.

Back to running

I've always been a runner. It was one thing I enjoyed growing up, and I participated in track and cross-country teams in school. Since finishing college, I've really only ran at the gym. Now I've decided to have a goal to run a 10K race this spring. I've been increasing my distance for the two weeks. Today I ran 3.1 miles or 5K on the treadmill and I felt pretty good. Now that I have the pump, I can adjust my insulin levels easily to avoid getting low blood sugars. Being a mom takes a lot of energy and time focussed on our children. I think running will give me something to do just for me. I hope the weather warms up a bit, so I can start to train outside as well.

Sweet moments

Anthony is getting used to having a sister that is becoming more mobile. She's been crawling for a month and now she is pulling herself to stand. Ava follows him everywhere. He is pretty protective of his cars, but he is learning that it is okay to give one car to his sister.

Gotta love baby's soft skin. And her nice smile:)

My photogenic baby girl.

She is 10 months old here, and at lunch I split an apple with her. She started eating the cut up pieces, then she practically grabbed the apple right out of my hand. She seemed to be doing okay eating it this way.

Each Wednesday for 8 weeks Anthony goes to Kinsmen arena for Totskate. He spends a lot of time on the ice, so I was happy to get a picture of him standing up. He's very gradually improving each time and even though he falls a lot, he isn't crying to get off. The coaches are great with them, and do themes each week to make it fun! I have visions of our family skating together (or if he's interested in hockey, we'll see what the future holds.)

Snowy days

Last weekend we visited my parents. Anthony was so excited to go tobogganing on Big Bird Hill. Ed took him a couple times last winter, but this time I wanted to try it out. I hadn't been since I was a teenager and I forgot how much fun it was. We went over a small bump a couple times and Anthony kept saying "Let's do that again!" My mom looked after Ava while we went down the hill.

WHAT A WEEK

We had a nice time, until later on Sunday we went to Cynthia's for dinner and after Anthony had his first more serious injury. He was playing with his cousins in the basement when he tripped over a cord and cut the back of his head open on the tv stand. He didn't cry much, but was asking for mommy and daddy. The girls brought him upstairs and I hugged him while Ed and Cynthia looked after his bleeding head. It was just under an inch long, so they took him to Children's hospital. The doctor glued it together, instead of stitches. I guess the glue is faster and less itchy.

He rested all day Monday, but seemed fine. Tuesday seemed good and he went to Nursery school that afternoon. Wednesday the schools were closed because of the snowfall, but again he was fine. Thursday morning we headed to Petsmart to meet some playgroup friends and before I even had the van in park, he starting puking. Luckily, I had a plastic bag in the diaper bag (for dirty diapers) that I managed to grab and most of it got in there. We headed home and he went straight to bed. Normally, whenever he's had a stomach bug it lasts 24-48 hours. He seems to always kick it a lot faster than us. Today is Sunday, so Day 4 and all morning he slept. He ate a tiny amount of toast and kept that down. Later, I gave him a bath and some fishy crackers he asked for. An hour later he threw up again. He's been sleeping a lot and complaining about a sore tummy. He doesn't have any other symptoms though. I think I'll call the doctor in the morning, because it's gone on so long. He's had a rough week and I'm tired of doing laundry. I guess I'm just glad he didn't have this when we were away.