Welcome to Coaldale!

For those of you who haven't been to Coaldale before I thought I'd give you a little tour of our town. This is our home!

This is the local grocery store that we run to when we need something last minute. Lethbridge (the city) is 10-15 minutes away so I usually go there once a week for my big grocery order at Superstore.

This is our local library. I'm almost embarassed to say that we mostly go there to sign out toys for the kids and not books. You can sign out highchairs, wagons, strollers etc. Pretty handy if you have guests over with kids. I find it's great for trying out toys to see what the kids really like and what they get sick of right away.

This is our local sportsplex where we go skating for free. I used to also play women's hockey there once a week in the winter. It has a curling rink and an outdoor pool where the kids take swimming lessons in the summer.

This is the Christian school that Ken teaches at. I think they have 180 students or so. Ken has the largest class of 26 student. Grade 5 and 6 combined.

Simple Woman #10

A picture thought....

The boys at Parent Preschool. Sam is the giraffe and Andrew is a crocodile.

FOR TODAY November 17, 2009

...Outside my window

Dark. It was a nice day +10 or so. Thankfully the 70km/hr winds they fore casted didn't hit as of yet.

...I am thinking

that life sure is a roller coaster ride of ups and downs. One minute I'm hearing someones great news and the next minute I'm hearing of someone struggling. While I'm home taking care of my kids I spend my day thinking of people I care about and the things they are going through.

...I am thankful for

3 healthy loving boys, an amazing husband, a healthy pregnancy, for neighbor friends of ours that we have gotten close to in the last year or so, for a phone call from Nannie tonight, for a pep talk from my Dad, for my cousin Daniel and his wife who have just welcomed their first child into the world.

...From the kitchen

tonight was homemade bread, homemade applesauce and a chicken casserole

..I am wearing

pajama bottoms and a black maternity shirt

...I am going

to bed in an hour or so.

...I am reading

Acts 15 in my Bible shortly. I have Bible study tomorrow morning.

...I am hoping

that tomorrow morning when I drop Sam of to preschool that it is not a big display of him throwing a tantrum again.

...I am hearing

the lovely sound of my dishwasher washing my dishes and other than that total silence which is refreshing. Kids are in bed and Ken has parent teacher interviews tonight.

..Around the house

things are good. Laundry is done, meal plan done, lunches are made for tomorrow. Everything is good to go for another day.

...One of my favorite things

watching Andrew and Sam ride their bikes and race when we are out for a walk. They insist that their bikes are dirt bikes and make sound effects everywhere we go. Andrew loves to do "popo wheelies" It is so neat watching them grow up and play together.

...A few plans for the rest of the week

Weds. preschool and Bible Study

Thurs. Ken's birthday, Doctors appt. babysitting for a friend

Fri. Sam's hearing test appt., babysitting for another friend, Our school's annual fundraiser night "The Bazaar"

Sat. Having friend's Paul and Tracy over for a steak dinner.

Sun. Church

Just another day at the Park!

We took the boys to the park the other day and fought the brutal wind. We only lasted for 1/2 hour but it was still great to get some fresh air and for the boys to burn some energy. Ken's been off work for a lot of the week so we have had lots of quality time together.

Sam turns Three!

So one of our babies turned three yesterday. It seems really bizarre that he is only turning three and that we have Luke and are expecting another before too long. Reality kinda hit and yes we are a little crazy it seems. But I wouldn't change a thing! We are having so much fun as a family and yes we are a busy household. Sam had preschool on his birthday so we actually had his party the next day. We had a dinosaur theme as you can tell from the cake and the decorations on the walls. Sam was so happy and grinning from ear to ear. Everytime someone said "Happy birthday Sam!" He would reply " Happy birthday ______(insert name of whoever he was talking with)" It was so cute. When we ask how old he is , he usually says three and concentrates really hard on holding up three fingers. Sometimes he says he is five, only because Andrew is always talking about when he will turn five. Sam is our little sunshine boy most of the time. I say most because he can also be a bit of a handful. Sam is our tantrum thrower at times, he will stamp his feet and kick and scream when he's frustrated or doesn't want to do something. He is a little boy that likes to make up his own mind and isn't easily convinced to do something he doesn't want to. (Sounds like his mother and his father?...) Sam is a child that always has a twinkle in his eye and likes to tease and make people smile. He loves his brothers and is often a shadow to Andrew. Where one is, the other is close behind. It is so neat to see them bond the way they do and help each other out. When Sam is without Andrew he is always thinking of him. For example when we went to see the speech therapist, she gave Sam stickers at the end of the session and he insisted that he have one for Andrew as well, he's also this way when people give him candies. He unselfishly will get two candies and run to give Andrew one as soon as he sees him. When Andrew was learning how to ride his bike without training wheels this summer Sam was determined to learn too and he did and can ride without them. He just can't stop... and living in town is a bit hazardous so the training wheels are back on. Sam has had a little skip that he does when he is happy. He started doing this a few years ago and when we see him do it we know that things couldn't be better in Samuel's little life! Sam is also very affectionate and he'll be the first in our family to share a hug or a kiss with someone. Today at his birthday, every gift he got he took around the room to show all the moms and thank his friends. He will always go to Grandma and Grandpa for hugs or anyone else for that matter. He quickly warms up to others and will chatter away to them. Sam loves to play with playdough and lego and to play in the sandbox or ride his bike. He loves learning and is a quicklearner, proven by potty training and riding his bike. He also loves to eat, but he can be very particular. Example: won't eat the oatmeal packages with apple chunks in them, or pancakes with apple in them or yogurt with chunks of fruit in it. If you put strawberries or banana in his cereal he will pick it out piece by piece. Ken's Dad nicknamed him "Little Scothorn" and that is exactly who he is. When I went home to N.S last April I couldn't believe how similar him and Meisha were.

So like I said, on his birthday Sam had preschool in the morning. I made mini cupcakes for his class and picked up some vanilla slices for his teachers. He was quite excited to take the cupcakes for his class. He also got to wear a birthday badge at school all day. I was pretty busy most of the afternoon getting stuff ready for his party the next day so we went through the DQ drive thru for supper. After supper Sam got to open presents which his brothers graciously helped him do. Andrew couldn't get close enough and crawled right onto the kitchen table to help. Sam got a new playdough set that makes spagetti and veggies and some lego. We often buy a little gift for each of the kids on birthdays so Andrew also got a lego set and Luke got a gator toy. The next two-three hours Ken built lego with Andrew and Sam. When it comes to lego I can never tell who is more excited over it, Ken, or the boys? At Sam's party he got lots of hot wheel cars, a puzzle, a touque, mitts and slippers. Not bad considering when I asked him a week ago what he wanted for his birthday he said Cake...chocolate cake, with much enthusiasm.

Sam, like all the rest of our boys, is a one of a kind kid. We love him more than anything else in this world, and we look forward to seeing him grow up. Happy birthday Samuel!

24 weeks

Another pregnancy picture. 24 weeks and packing it on. I'm feeling pretty good lately and can actually stay up until 10pm or so. I'm finding that this pregnancy has been the hardest for me to get exercice. Our household has been much busier with preschools three days a week and Luke napping once a day, usually the whole afternoon. By the time he wakes up it usually is time to start making supper or time to pick Ken up from work. Then comes supper, baths, books and bed for the kiddies and by that time I'm pooped and very unmotivated to do anything but sit on my butt. We had our ultrasound two weeks ago and the baby is measuring big. What a surprise! I've heard this everytime and they usually want to move my date up. We could tell already from the ultrasound that the baby has big cheeks just like the others. The baby is very active and moves around lots. The boys are quite excited, Andrew wants it to be a girl really badly, Sam has kisses for my tummy at bedtime and Luke? well Luke must know something is up because I try not to carry him as much and when he sits on my lap there isn't much room. Overall things are great, I will admit there usually is a few times a week that I worry how I will handle a baby as well. I think that is normal for every expecting mother to feel.

Well that's my update, I'll keep you posted!

There were 2 in the bed....

I thought I would share a song with you that I've been singing to Luke every morning lately.

There were two in the bed and a little one said roll over, roll over.
So Mommy and Daddy rolled over and one crawled in.
Now there were three in the bed and another came and said roll over, roll over.
So they all rolled over and ANOTHER one crawled in.
Now there were four in the bed and another one cried from his room roll over, roll over.
So Mommy came and got him and plopped him into bed.
Now there were five in the bed and the Daddy said" It's time for me to go to work! and the Mommy said stop kicking me, and one little one said I want cereal, and another little one said I want chocolate milk, and the baby just smiled and was happy to see everybody!

Welcome to a typical morning in our household! Before long we will have another one wanting to crawl in with us. I think we need a KING size bed!

He Helps Me...

KEN HELPS ME...

• when we hear little feet pitter pattering in the hallway at 5:30-6am each morning by putting the kids back in bed and sometimes crawling in with the kids to make sure they stay there until a reasonable time.


• at mealtime which is the busiest time of day in our house unless we are prepared and organized. He helps by distracting and playing with the kids while I make the meal, set the table, cut up the kids food so it will cool off, pouring milk...you name it. And then once our meal is done he helps clean the kids hands and faces, and helps clear the table and again helps distract and play with the kids while I clean up.


• at bath time. We bath all three at once which usually causes some excitement in the tub with splashing and pouring water on each other. It's a real assembly line approach with brushing teeth, washing hair and bodies, then toweling off and getting PJ's on. I usually wash their hair and brush their teeth and then one at a time they get passed to Daddy to get their PJ's on.


• wipe bums. Usually at the most inconvenient times someone needs some assistance in the bathroom. Sam is very particular about how he goes to the washroom. He needs shoes off, pants and underwear completely off or he's in a panic. Andrew still needs some assistance with wiping. Often a child can be heard in the bathroom yelling " Mommy...Daddy...I'm done." If you are not there quickly enough tears of frustration often appear.


• by wanting to spend time with me and the boys on weekends instead of focusing on other hobbies - golfing, hockey etc. It's not that he doesn't enjoy these other hobbies and he definitely deserves a break from all the demands on him as a husband, dad and teacher but he chooses to stay with us and go swimming or skating, or to a park or quadding with the kids at Grandma and Grandpa's house etc.


• by supporting me and not giving me a hard time when I go to bed early at nights exhausted. We had a movie to watch last night and I was drifting off half an hour into it and left to crawl into our bed at 9pm. I'm not tons of fun to hang around lately.


• by listening whether I'm venting over some minor issue that seems like a big deal, or I'm worrying about family or friends, or missing my mom. He always takes the time to listen and not belittle my concerns. Hormones are raging these days, I'm like a roller coaster, very happy or very down.


• by quickly going into response mode when I have a migraine which happens on average once a month or so. Instead of leaving the details for me to figure out, he often snaps into action and lines up babysitting, dinner and even arranges rides to the doctor's if needed. This is HUGE for me. I get progressively worse if I try to take care of these details. He sometimes is doing all of this before he heads out to work in the morning.


• by providing more than enough for our family by his hard work. My husband gives 110% to his work and it is so evident. I always hear kids saying he is their favorite teacher and I always hear parents commenting on what a fantastic teacher he is. If I had to instruct and take care of 25 kids all day and then come home and help my wife with the kids and play hockey and attend meetings etc. I don't know if I could do it but he just does it without a complaint.


• by doing all of the little things that make my life easier like turning his stinky socks the right way before putting them in the laundry and hanging up the shower mat and making breakfast Saturday mornings and BBQing.


• by getting enthusiastic about projects and researching costs and quality etc. He certainly doesn't always attempt new projects all of the time but when he does he goes full force into shopping around and researching details. This has been with buying a washer and dryer, landscaping the backyard, buying a new BBQ, buying carpet for our family room, buying a microwave and many other purchases.


• by doing without material things. Unlike most men Ken will use/wear things until they become unusable/unwearable like his hockey equipment for example, he usually buys used skates and his other gear is literally falling apart. I took his skates to get sharpened on Friday and they needed a new rivet, a new eyelet, new laces b/c the two laces he had were different and falling apart. We don't have a fancy stereo or a fancy vehicle. I'm sure Ken would love to have all of these things but he makes them seem so unimportant to him whereas I usually am stressing the need for things like...new maternity clothes, highlights, new runners etc. He keeps me focused on what's important in life...faith, family and friends., and for him maybe I should add beer as well.


• by having a balanced life and sets a good example to me who usually tries to take everything on at once and ends up suffering because of it.
• by walking to school 2.5 kms so that I can have the van to take the kids to playgroups and Bible study.
  There are so many other things he helps me with, this list is unending but I just wanted to share a few things about my best friend and husband and show my appreciation for him.

Have you thought about or thanked your spouse for all of the little things they do for you lately?