Andrew(wearing green) Skating

Sam Skating!

Ken turns 34!

I can hardly believe how fast Ken has grown up since I met him. Here's 34 random things you might or might not know about him.

1. at 34 he weighs 185 pounds and is 5'10
2. he eats 3 healthy meals a day and drinks a few beers, rarely naps and sleeps through the night... Luke pending.
3. his favorite meals are spaghetti and meatballs (his mom's recipe) and steak, garlic bread and salad
4. he has the worst eye vision imaginable (hopefully our kids get my eyes)
5. he teaches grades five and six at Coaldale Christian School
6. he went to the University of Lethbridge for education and had a short break in the middle while he travelled to Africa all by himself for 2 months.
7. Plays hockey in a men 's league in Lethbridge which usually averages to two games a week. He plays defense.
8. he is active in our church and school community by being a member of the Education Committee at School and a member of the Evangelism Committee in our church.
9. enjoys swimming and most weeks goes lane swimming with his sisters Ang and Denise
10. Has competed in 2 triathilons and ran in one 5km race
11. Quit smoking almost three years ago and I'm so proud of him!
12. Always thinks before he speaks and rarely, if ever, puts his foot in his mouth, unlike his wife
13. loves spending time at his parents cabin in the mountains and is the most relaxed at the cabin.
14. Loves to read a wide variety of books
15. Is a great Daddy and Husband
16. Used to drive a camaro.
17. Is an amazing water skier
18. Loves/Loved camping...we are taking a break currently from camping.
19. Grew up dirtbiking in the coulees with his big Brother Dwayne
20. Used to stock groceries in the local grocery store and painted truck bodies in a Truck Body Shop while in University
21. Loves the beach, and the sun, and drinking beer in the sun on the beach!
22. He is a perfectionist and sets very high standards for himself (don't tell him I said this)
23. He is a quiet serious guy
24. Loves lego and loses track of time once he starts building with the kids
25. Has so much patience especially with our kids. Apparently he wasn't patient at all as a child.
26. He is dangerous in the meat department. This guy is a real Alberta beef kinda guy and doesn't cheap out on steaks ever!
27. He loves grocery shopping and has actually done most of the grocery shopping in the last month. I make the list, and he goes at 7am Saturday morning and shops for the bargains.
28. He is content to just hang out at home with the kids and me on the weekend.
29. Has to have boiled eggs every Sunday morning for breakfast just like he did when he was growing up.
30. He has the softest hands and feet, I guess that's a perk of being a teacher.
31. Doesn't make quick spending decisions and his favorite line for me is : "There's always going to be another sale Shelley."
32. Along with me, his wife, is getting more and more grey hair by the day
33. Occassionally steps out of his comfort zone and gets pampered and enjoys it. example: recently got a massage and a hair cut at the salon.
34. Makes the BEST big breakfasts ever.

Sweet Little Sam

Sam at Four:

• can get so excited about things that he jumps up and down squealing with excitement


• when he's nervous or the center of attention he sticks his tongue out of his mouth and grins at the same time. It's quite cute.


• can be the most stubborn child. examples: refuses to participate in gym class at school, trying new foods, swimming at the local town pool, using public bathrooms


• hates getting his hair cut by Mommy but will allow Daddy to cut it


• surprises himself all of the time. example: he has been refusing to ride his bike without training wheels for months and then when we took them off and he actually tried, he began biking all over the place without a problem at all. He also wasn't enjoying skating very much until recently we took the brace along to help out, now he refuses to stop and take a break.


• Loves his brothers but is inseparable from Andrew. They play so well together and want to share everything in life together.examples: school, hockey, presents, snacks, the bench at the table, a bedroom, adventures, toys


• still loves his blankie that he's had since he was a baby


• is very affectionate and loving, he loves crawling up in people's laps, giving hugs and holding your hand


• whenever I stop being busy and make eye contact with him, he immediately says "I love you mom" and when he's having a really great day he often says " I love all of you guys" to the family.


• loves playing games, like fish, matching games, hide and seek and numerous games at school


• is very shy at school and doesn't want to participate (likes to observe) but amazes us with what he retains. Recently the speech teacher made him a black glove with pumpkin stickers on the finger tips. His teacher at school has one and has been singing a pumpkin song for weeks with it. He never sings along with the class but when he got his own glove the other day he sang the whole song to us at home with all of the actions and everything. I laughed so hard.


• He loves going to storytime at our church on Wednesdays because then he gets to go to "school" with Andrew. They ALWAYS sit beside each other and look out for each other.


• Loves pancakes, that's what he chose for his birthday meal last week. I asked him the other day what his five favorite meals were for supper and his answer was pancakes, fruit loops and cheerios. Trust me we don't eat these things for supper in our house.


• he knows how to write his own name already, knows his letters and can count to almost twenty


• loves playdoh ( this keeps his attention for the longest of anything, he will play for an hour on his own with playdoh)


• has beautiful eyes and gets comments about them all of the time


• he is most happy at home with the family and is content with simple things in life, on his birthday he was so happy that he was 4 and to see the balloons and cake that he never even asked for presents all day until 4pm. Sometimes I ask him what he would like to do the next day leaving it wide open and he says "play outside".


• loves going to the cabin, parks and getting quad rides
• Loves his cousins and always wants them to come over for sleepovers.
• Refuses to cooperate with doctors, dentists and the hearing specialist. He will not let these people get within 4 feet of him and is very untrusting??? Makes things hard on Mommy when she has to take him to appointments. Not sure what's gonna happen with his kindergarten needles.
• Hates getting his toenails cut especially the baby toe??
• Every time we announce that supper's ready, he starts whining and says " But I don't like supper," before he even knows what we are having.
• Loves apples and often will choose an apple over junk food.
• Has been to NS on an airplane twice to visit Nana and Papa.
• loves animals and is very gentle with them

I think we've pretty much described Sam at four. We love you Sam and thank God for blessing us with you everyday. Your smile and laughter warms our hearts and we love the little boy that you are. Kind, gentle, shy, lovable, cuddly and I'm sure we will look back and laugh at your stubbornness someday. Happy fourth birthday!

Sam turns Four con't.

I had to post this picture of the boys new street hockey gear they got at Sam's b'day. This gear is passed down from their big cousins Kevin and Curtis. Auntie Denise recovered the navy set and put oliers crests donated from Auntie Mel on them. It was quite a project. I do think I need to put the oilers set away until the boys are a bit bigger. Don't you agree? The thigh straps could probably go around their waists. We love all the hand me downs we get from the boys big cousins! Pretty spoiled.
All the buddies.

Little Isaac slept through the whole party but these three were in the middle of all the festivities.

Sam turns Four!

These two always help each other open presents and they don't mind sharing their new gifts with each other. It is so awesome how excited they are for each other.

See the banner flags I made for Sam's party hanging on the rail behind them. I used old scrap booking paper to make them. I think I get just as excited about the birthday party as the kids.

More lego. What a surprise!

This is Sam's motocross cake. I can't take credit for the idea, I found it online. It was a lot of fun making this cake but took 2-3 hours. Sam was thrilled and thinks we should make the same cake for Daddy whose birthday is coming up. The theme of the party was motocross/monster trucks. We got Sam a remote control monster truck for his birthday as well as 3 nerf guns and some lego. Pretty spoiled! We had two birthday parties, one Thursday night with family and one Friday morning with friends.

Odds and Ends

I couldn't resist taking this picture last week. Front row seats to bulldozers and graders, every little boys dream. They were entertained for 1/2 hour, I even managed to have a quick shower while they all watched.
I was so excited last week when I dropped into the thrift store and found these costumes marked to 50% off. I paid $20 for 4 adorable costumes. The honeybee is missing from the picture.

Sam helped me make cookies for his Pumpkin and spider class party.

We've gone skating three times in the last month. It's free, local and the kids need the practice. Sam just started using this thing to help him and what a help it has been.

Lots of fun!