Desperate parents

I found out that I'm not the only parent who hunts far and wide just to find a duplicate of a child's favourite teddy.

After checking many major department stores I hunted more carefully online. There have been other parents looking for the exact same brand and having the same difficulty! Ebay was the recommended solution-and as my old account had expired, I had to set up a new one. All this so that I can wash my girl's teddy without her getting upset. And so I can have a spare in unlikely event that we lose her bunny. After all this effort, I could only find blue and green(not pink) bunnies. And the one I bought turns out to not be exactly the same, since it's not a full blanket attached.

But Jennifer is satisfied
and that is all that matters.

Playset

The playset is taking shape now. I'm pretty happy with how it looks so far.
The kids have been using it, even though there is no ladder yet. After all, aren't slides for going up too?

Already I have given many lectures about hard and heavy items going down (and up) to such heights carefully. Hopefully they get the idea.

Already Daniel fell down. I had figured there was no way he could fall from the top of the slide. I was worriedly watching that he didn't fall down by the big opening where the ladder will be. But being Daniel, he didn't do as I expected.

Down he fell, from the top.
I saw him when he was half of the way down,
and I was one step too far away.

He was quite winded and upset; so was I! Now he has is a bruise on his cheek to remind me of his close call. And now my safe yard has become another source of worry for me!

Relaxing at Grandpa and Grandma's

I was really bad at taking out my camera this holiday-I think I managed to use it four times. But I left it in the open, and my mother made up for my negligence. :)

These pictures were taken (I think) when Grandma and Grandpa were babysitting the kids.

There were plenty of fun things to do, and the kids were never bored.

They spent many happy hours at Grandpa and Grandma's just relaxing and playing.

After all, that's what holidays are for!


It took me three whole days to be ready to leave Daniel. He was not relaxed until about then. Philip and I then hit the slopes, but not without Grandma's cell. Paranoid me needed an assurance that Daniel and the others could reach me if they needed to. It took my pride down a few pegs when I realized even these precautions were unnecessary, and my children appeared to have no unquenchable desires for their mother. In fact, Phil thinks they were relieved to be away from me for a whole day, and to have Grandma and Grandpa to themselves.

Recover mode (we hope)

After having four sick kids yesterday, it is a nice change to see the boys pestering each other and fighting again. It is better than four sacks of potatoes strewn all over the living room.

Today it seems they are doing the finishing touches of the construction done last year. That is keeping the big boys out of trouble.

Daniel seems to be over the worst of his first flu. I've never had to deal with such a little sick guy before. I think he did, so far, remarkably well. It was pretty much 24 hours for him. I skipped church, because, after all, what kind of a mom would I be if I left my sick baby behind? I am still shocked that Phil suggested (multiple times) that I leave him for a few hours! (I know, I'm a little paranoid about leaving my kids.)

Melanie went through half of Sunday running around and eating in front of overly jealous Matthew. Then she got struck down too, and she is still looking pretty lifeless, and has no appetite yet. But 24 hours for her will be later today, so I'll be looking forward to noticing some vivacity returning to her.

As an aside, I just noticed today how skinny Melanie's legs are. When did that happen?? Now I've got two scrawny kids running around, and two chunky ones. (Sorry, no details on the adult sizes.)

Melanie is waiting for her next ration of water, so I should get on it.

My house is shrinking

My living room, dining room, and hallway used to be spacious in comparison with now. It is great fun trying to move around upstairs with three men doing their thing, and me and the kids doing our thing.

Our ever so thoughtful contractor put up plastic to reduce the amount of dust going through to the rest of the house. I mentioned several times about my fear of the dust, and just how bad did he think it would be? I'm just a little paranoid about dust. Once, just around baby delivery time (meaning, just over 4 months ago now), upon my request, my father took a skill saw to my bedroom walls to enlarge my closet for me. (Our contractor also volunteered to take the garbage ie. drywall pieces, from the closet expansion.) It was so dusty he couldn't see his nose on his face. He probably permanently damaged his lungs from dust intake. He probably permanently damaged my daily cleaned duct work. If I looked hard I could probably find some of that dust left lurking in the dark corners of my room. Some night when I'm sleeping they will be sure to creep out of hiding and demand to be cleaned!!! At any rate, this time the dust is barely noticeable in the majority of the house, of which I am grateful. A little.

Also, I can't believe my friend didn't take me up on my offer of a used and falling apart, but still fully functional, dishwasher. And for the mere excuse that it was formerly a home of cockroaches. Believe it or not, cockroaches can grow on you. After a few years of having them in your home, you may even find them cute. And you might find yourself getting up at midnight to turn on the light in the kitchen just to see if Dusty or Fusty is still hanging around.

Thus far things look better from the inside already. Mostly because the pink walls are gone, and replaced with the natural color of wood. And the smell of sawdust, I must admit, is better than any meal I've ever made!

I spy with my little eye

Five little munchkins at the park

For a paranoid mother like me, the challenging part of going to the park is keeping track of multiple little running people, and keeping them all in view all the time. Today was exceptionally easy because there weren't any other little people to confuse me, or any other big people to distract me.

I kept all five munchkins in scope the entire time!
(eight points for me)

Can you too?









hints: one munchkin doesn't move around at all
the five munchkins split up into two pictures once

Muddled Monday

Nathan made "a machine for breaking tree branches into little pieces, with stairs on it so you can go up and put the tree branches in." I think that's the long version of a fancy mulching machine. Our neighbours took down their tree the other day (yes, I shed some tears over it) and it was fascinating to watch, especially since they were amateurs doing it for free so they could collect the firewood. They had branches bouncing off the wires a few times. Fun stuff!

After party celebrations:




I finally cleaned up the party mess by the end of Saturday. That way the kids could think it was still a party all week long. ;) The balloons are still downstairs...may as well get our $ out of it! :p

This is how I found the kids halfway through my morning cleanup. They look so peaceful.
And innocent.



They played so nicely all morning that I took them to the park for an hour as a treat.

But then one of them had an attitude the whole time there, and wailed ALL the way home. All ten minutes.

Strolling

Since it's raining and we're not strolling, here's some pics to pretend we are.

Park day

After such a busy week, it's time we took a day to relax at the park. They never seem to object to that...

It's sure nice having a giant sandbox as part of the park!

I did have to break up three fights over Nathan's special big shovel, though. Too bad for them we don't have three of them...but hey, learning to share is something that might just maybe possibly perhaps come in handy one day in the distant future for them. Either way, it's banned from coming next time. Poor shovel.



Maybe I can retire from swing pushing permanently? Too bad he can't lift her up onto it too!


Since our camping trip, Matthew's been much more willing to walk on "rugged" terrain. That is, on anything that isn't perfectly flat. He does the sand in the park fantastically now!

And he loves the hill! It actually has a pretty good incline--which the photo doesn't capture. He knows how to do the up and the down. What a big boy! (sniff sniff)


It is so much fun to run!

The Massasauga

We tented in Oastler Provincial Park Thursday night. Friday we paddled into the Massasauga, with one portage. Saturday we paddled out.

For Laura and Colin:
Our random guess of 22 was pretty good. The ground was really damp in most places--but the tent, being new still, was indeed waterproof underneath.

It was a breezy location, which was essential for the conditions of our visit--buggy and muggy.

(Actually, the heat and mugginess didn't bother me, since there was LOTS of water nearby.)

I am indeed fully clothed (for bugs), and not uncomfortably hot. Yay! :)


Being pregnant, I was only responsible for the children during the portage, and Philip took care of the canoe and luggage. Fair deal, I say. ;) Because it was such a short trip, we(he) even managed to do it in two trips on the way back, and three on the way in. That has got to be a record for us!


A couple days before we left, Melanie and Matthew broke out with the boogers, and both of them were quite clingy, and a bit grumpy.

But camping is all about intimate family time, isn't it?



Campfire is mandatory for a genuine backcountry outing. After all, we're not allowed to have campfires in our own backyard, so we have to do them when we can.

This fire was nestled in behind a rock wall--it was a gusty location after all.


I was not disappointed when no rattlesnake encounters occurred. I'd imagined seeing 20 or so, with one or two bites...but not even a spot to be seen. I enjoy wildlife...but I must admit that I'm not too comfortable with poisonous reptiles just yet--I guess I just need more exposure. ;) I'd probably be fearless if I could pick up the antidote at the local drug store and pack it along, just in case. ;)


Climbing over rocky terrain wasn't something Matthew was keen on, especially since everything was still so new, and he was still not quite over the cold...but he loved having something to hang on to!


Melanie enjoyed camping, but really wished we could carry her around more often. She did request to go home on Friday, but she LOVED the marshmallows.


Even Nathan got sick of the bugs by the end. Especially after the portage on the way home when he was really tired.

It sure was easy to see the age difference in the kids. Nathan had a hoot, and was easy as pie. Melanie had several moments of weakness, and felt insecure with things, but warmed up to them once they became familiar. Matthew was a LOT of work. Once his walking improves, I imagine he will enjoy it more.