Friday, February 29, 2008

Buddies


Kai loves to `pass' the ball nice and close and then plow you over.

Loving the books

Ani and Kai playing on the car bed...sort of a toy box/dance floor in his room right now

He likes to `hug' Ani. She doesn't like to be `hugged'.

Standing at the window to see Auntie Trisha

Eyes

Izzy is happy, she knows it, and she's clapping her hands:)
One other thing: Kai's bball net is really low so he can practice just getting it in BUT today he was hitting it off the backboard (50% of the time) which was pretty impressive! Go buddy go!

Engagement


Congratulations to my lil sis Jackie and her man Tyler. He proposed last weekend in Tofino (how romantic..I love Tofino!) and they are getting married in August. We are very excited to welcome Tyler to the family as he fits in perfectly while adding a new dimension. So, this will be a busy summer of weddings with my sis Jan in July and Jackie in August...looking forward to it!

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

My dad


My dad is a unique guy. Kai calls him Opi Gack (Opa Jack). This is a picture of a gift he bought for Kai. Please note that each pull up has a princess type character on it, I'm sure Kai would love it? It's the thought that counts:) I'm not entirely sure why my dad is encouraging the potty training but he always said that he wanted to take the grandkids up to Green Lake once they were potty trained. Also, my dad refuses to change any diapers as he claims that he did a life times worth when we were kids. Kai is def. taking an interest in the potty (he sits on it whenever we use the bathroom and tells us when he has to go) but we are not going to try to start anything til the summer probably. He is still too scared to sit on it without his diaper on:)
Today he went down for his nap with his basketball. That kid loves pass and catch and basketballs without us encouraging it any more than any other activity.
What else is new with him? He has been doing well at daycare. Phew. At home, we leave his blankies in the crib during the day which he has adjusted to rather well. He is not loving the stroller at all. I give him food and we sing but it is not enough. He is trying to jump out the entire time. I can't let him walk the whole way because he runs in every direction except the one I want him to go in. He also does not stop or come when I say, he just goes, goes, goes.
Today, Ani and Kai talked on the phone:
Ani: Hi Kai!
Kai: Ani!
That's it. But seriously, so cute!
I think I will dye my hair brown. It's a dirty blonde anyways. Once in gr.10 I did a wash out brown/red colour. I would get a wash out one. I'm such a chicken to even do that!!! I think I will wait til Spring Break. I can't wait for summer holidays. We still have 4 months of school...I can do it!

Monday, February 25, 2008

I love this weather!!!!



Today we played in our backyard. Our yard is so small but it was so fun. We threw ice cream bucket lids around like frisbees and Kai practiced his slam dunk. Kai thought my frisbee skills were unbelievable. I love this sun. I went for 4 jogs in one week. I feel so good..so happy. I didn't realize what a difference the sun made until we had it for 4 days in a row!
I feel slightly unbalanced in the sense that I have not read a book in almost a month. I'm not sure why. Any good books to recommend? I need a new one ASAP!!!

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Family Picture


When you are using a timer and have a 1 1/2 year old, you get one shot at a picture. Kai looking like a deer in the headlights is as good as we get! The sun this weekend made it seem so much more fun!






Saturday, February 23, 2008

Our date(s)!!!


Today Gary and I went on 3 dates (well, does shopping count as a date? To us, it does!). Our photo session this morning was postponed to a later date (due to a sick child) and so Gary and I brought Kai to grandma's right away in the morning.

We then went up to Seymour where we snowshoed for a couple of hours in the beautiful sun. I hadn't snowshoed in 3 years and it was great to be out again. If you are looking for a fun and cheap date idea....go snowshoeing!

We could've gone for a lot longer but I wanted to make sure we could watch a movie this afternoon as we haven't been in...um...a year? We came back to Langley and watched Juno, which I've been told I should see. We both enjoyed it.

Then, we went and bought a new computer tower. I can't even begin to tell you how many hours Gary put into the computer trying to fix it. Well, probably about 25+ hours. We brought it away twice and they said they fixed it. I'm sad that we put money into fixing it when it never worked in the end. I guess that's how people sometimes feel about their cars. Gary is hooking it up right now, let's hope our computer problems are gone!

I'm looking forward to Spring Break...I hope to do some hiking and mountain biking with Gary! Kai had a blast at grandma's so in all, it was a great day for all of us! Cheesy family picture will be taken tomorrow and i will post it:)

(Gary kept getting a little too close to the edge and freaking me out)

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Cheese!


Glad it was clear enough last night to get a view of the eclipse.

Kai being like daddy and mommy. He was saying `cheese' while taking the pictures.

Cute conversations...
Me: Kai, we're going to Christine's (daycare) today! What's there?
Kai: Baboons! (ballooons). Baby. Two babies! (she has twin 7 month old babies... so cute)

AND

Me: Kai, what's in your mouth? (after seeing him grab something off the floor and jam it into his mouth)
Kai: Grapes. Two grapes!





He is def. getting wilder and I have no idea where all his energy comes from. It's go, go, go and chatter, chatter, chatter. Apparently he has become a little rough at daycare so we are working more on being gentle. It's tough because I know he has so much energy and needs to get it out and sometimes it comes out in the wrong way, he doesn't mean to hurt anyone.


Today we went for brunch with my sisters for Maria's bday. Afterwards, we went to Toys r Us with the kiddies and they went nuts. I also dropped off our computer at the store to get fixed because I'm tired of Gary trying to fix it. He put in a valiant effort but I think there is a time when you just say, `I need help!'.


Hope you are all excited about `LOST' tonight!

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Sunny Days!

On Sunday evening, we went to celebrate 3 Chapman birthdays. Here's Kai with his Chapman cousins. I think Kai will look a lot like Jayden (boy up front with dark brown hair).

Playing dominoes with grandma. When he says `grandma', it sounds like `mahmah'. Kai LOVES playing with grandma.

On days like this, I just want to be home full time. This morning, Maria came by with the kids and we walked to the park. It is so beautiful out there. Once Kai wakes up, we'll go for another walk. The only bad thing about walks with him is that he does not like the stroller anymore and when he isn't strapped in, he is running EVERYWHERE. Here are pics of each of the kids at the park this morning.








Last night I saw Gary reach a level of frustration that I've never seen in him. For me, it is a daily thing to get frustrated but for Gary, never really. What caused it? Wasn't me! It's that computer!!! He's been trying to fix it for 2 weeks now...so annoying. Looks like we'll have to bring it in to get fixed...again. By the way, when I say `level of frustration', it really wasn't much. I think he just raised his voice or something. Also, I just have to say that I love our new lap top. I can do school work, check email, and hang out with Gary or Kai in the same room. It's also great for those online recipes so we don't have to walk from one room to the next (Gary doesn't `let' us print up stuff):)

And, very exciting news is that Gary and I are going on a date on Saturday! We have a photo session first but then off we go! I'm very, very excited. It's supposed to be sunny and grandma is taking Kai for the day, so, outdoors we go!

Couple new things with Kai....he loves chilli. He likes to sit on his potty (with his clothes on, refuses to attempt it without his diaper/pants etc). Whenever one of us is in the bathroom, he joins us and sits on his potty. He really thinks he's going, and sometimes he does do his business. He will not sleep in his car bed but he loves playing in it. He is such a great kid, I love him so much.

Saturday, February 16, 2008

Relaxing saturday morning...

(These were taken on the way to the park and while we were there. Please note Kai's cute new vest from auntie Jackie...thanks auntie Jackie!)





















Friday, February 15, 2008

Yo


(picture of me and VanTol as we were entertaining ourselves on the Bamfield bus...I have no other new pictures to post)
Nothing really new to report. Kai had his shots on Wednesday and did really well. He is 29.5lbs and 33.75" long. He is def. a big boy (90+ percentiles). The Fraser Health called today to say that he should go back and get his chicken pox shots because they changed the policy and even though he had it already, he still needs the shot. He has been very clingly and a little more grumpy these past two days but I guess that is to be expected. He takes my finger and leads me everywhere. His newest word is `itchy' and he rubs his belly. He also said his first three word sentence `Hit the ball' when we were playing hockey (he now uses two hands on the stick). Talking about the number `two', he loves finding two of something and stating it over and over. `Two apples', `Two bubbi's', `Two socks'. Funny guy.

Gary and I have been a bit stressed as we had both computers down today. The lap top is back in business and I think our main computer should be okay soon. We've also been dealing with the stroller company as the front tire fell off and we've been trying to get it replaced. We waited 3 weeks for the parts and of course, they sent us the wrong ones.

Talking about stress, in church on Sunday the pastor was saying that if we worry, its sort of saying that we aren't trusting God. I'm really generalizing what he said but, it did hit me because I think I worry too much. Great. I'm such a worrier and I always thought I was really trusting Him, guess that's more to work on. I think that I have learned to relax a bit, but, I do worry too much. Gary is good about not worrying. Balance.

Gary and I bought another new fancy lens. It is way too heavy for me to use and Gary will get quite the work out with it. We may take a few photos tomorrow so I'll show you what it can do!

Okay, time to start enjoying the weekend!!!!

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Happy Love Day


(pics of my niece Ani when we visited her yesterday)

The kids at school were curious as to what Gary got me for Valentines Day. Well, what did we do? Gary made a yummy dinner, I made dessert, and, we are going to watch LOST. How could it get any better. I realized that we have not been on a real date in 6 months (twice we have gotten out for one hour, does that count?!). BUT, fortunately/unfortunately Gary's team lost on Tuesday so I now have my husband back!!! Woohoo!! Our computer is broken though which takes up a ton of his time. We got it fixed, brought it home, and it didn't work again. GRRRRR.
Hey, only a month til spring break!!! woohoo! By the way, I don't love science as much as I used to. I still love teaching which is the important part but if Gary brings up something sciencey, I'm not as excited as I used to be. Weird. Also, not sure if its age or the fact that I have a kid but I'd say I'm only 82% as smart as I was 4 years ago. Gotta go, Jeopardy's got a whole column on biology! Maybe I am excited about science...
Bon nuit.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Good day

1. Kai had his first day at his new day care. I called at 1pm to make sure all was well and she said he went to sleep without a peep!!! When I picked him up, he wasn't anxious to get going and she said he was the easiest kid she's ever had in daycare. Yay!
2. When Kai saw me Friday morning, after I'd been gone for 4 days, he came at me with arms outstretched saying `huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuug'. Tears.
3. I was finally back teaching after a week of field trips and it felt good to be `normal'.
4. Gary has a very important bball game tonight; if they lose, they are done.
5. Gary and I did a photo shoot for a wedding yesterday, very fun and very tiring:)
6. Kai has his shots tomorrow...hope it goes ok!
7. I'm writing this on our brand new lap top!!
8. Kai's newest word is `Jesus'...very cute.

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Hockey!




The only thing Kai will watch on tv is football, basketball and hockey. We got him his own hockey stick yesterday. He hasn't mastered using both hands on the stick but he is loving it:)

Saturday, February 09, 2008

Bamfield

This week, I, along with 2 other teachers, took 29 students to Bamfield. There were 23 girls and 6 guys along which made for an interesting dynamic. The kids were fabulous, the food and accomodations were great and the weather was CRAZY!

Here is one of the groups (Team Ogopogo) out on the ALTA. You go out for 1.5 hours and do a dredge so that you can touch and see all the cool creatures out on the ocean floor.

Here are the kids in the whale lab (grey whale skeleton in the background). Here they got to touch a bunch of invertebrates and teach the class about them.

I love the sea anenome

Group shot on Brady's Beach

The weather was extremely stormy so the students were not allowed to venture out as far as usual. Unfortunately the tide was not all the way out so the tide pools were not optimal.

Maria, Nicole, and I on the ferry home. We were supposed to take the bus but unfortunately, we got stuck on the biggest hill, halfway between Bamfield and Port Alberni. We were there for about 6 hours, and at least 2 of those hours were outside in blizzard-ish conditions. The students did extremely well for such a unique situation. We spent time huddling and building a shelter for fun. Once it got dark, and students were wet and cold, we just huddled together and watched a bunch of people trying to free the bus. Fortunately, we had blocked the entire road so people had to help us! The tow truck we waited for (for 2 hours) was too afraid to come down the hill and help us as it was too icy. In the end, the students were fabulous and we went back to Bamfield for the night where they gave us accomodations and 3 meals for FREE!

You can't tell here but this is on a hill and they ended up swinging the front of the bus in the opposite direction. In all, I was gone for 4 days. Def. too long to be away from my little guy! But, def. a great trip.

Sunday, February 03, 2008

My Story...in a few more than 100 words

I've been reading the book `Just Walk Across the Room' lately and it encourages us to tell our story in 100 words or less. This is way more than 100 words, but, I am a fast talker so this would take about 1 minute which seems good enough to me:) I'm going to be pretty vulnerable here, so, here we go!


I was born into a Christian family and grew up believing that if I worked hard, I could achieve whatever I wanted. I liked having control and I liked knowing why things happen the way that they do. Everything in my life seemed to make sense until I was an adult. Then, I felt like I had less control. The guy that I thought I wanted to be with, no longer wanted to be with me. My mom got cancer and once it was in her bones, there was no chance of recovery. Why did this happen? I wanted to find a reason for it all, especially with my mom. Was it so I could grow closer with my sisters? Was it so I would have greater empathy and understanding? Was it so I would appreciate my mom more? There must've been an easier way to learn those lessons! I really came to rely on the verse in Proverbs that says `Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding'. I need to trust Him and not try to figure it out. It doesn't make sense now, but He knows the big picture. In no way is this easy, I'm still sad but I've stopped trying to figure it out and I know that He is in control. In regards to the man for me, God had Gary in store for me. He was well worth the wait. God knew who I needed in my life and helped join us together (along with the help of my entire science 9 class).


Recently, we've had to deal with this again. We got pregnant with Kai very easily, and this time around, it's not happening. We've started going for tests but it is very frustrating and worrisome. I find myself trying to figure out why and what I'm supposed to be learning from all this. I know we are so blessed to have a child, I would really just love to have a sibling for Kai. I would like to be pregnant just one more time. So, for now, I am working on trusting God and his plan for Gary, Kai and I.

Saturday, February 02, 2008

One and half years old!

My little baby is now a little boy. He is now 1.5 years old. I love, love, love this stage! Here is a picture of him on his new big boy bed. He likes playing on it but is too scared to sleep in it. So, during nap time and bed time, we put the mattress back in the crib. He does love his crib. We bought this bed off of craigslist and met a very fun and interesting couple in the process.

So, our big boy is now 29lbs. That's only 9 lbs in one year since he was 20lbs at his 6 months shots. Wow, they sure slow down!

Kai is still a momma's boy (and I LOVE that) BUT, daddy def. is more fun and wild and gets the best giggles out of him. We have found that if he wakes in the night, Gary needs to go in because if I go in, he won't stop crying because he knows I'm a sucker and will take him out and cuddle him etc.

His favourite place to hang out is on the bottom step. He's started liking books again and really likes us to read `I-O', you know, E-I-E-I-O! Did I mention how much he loves his football shirt? He loves it because its a 3D rubber feeling football on his shirt. In the car, we make sure he always has a basketball or football to hold on to.

Let's see...quick list of favourites!
Favourite food: pizza!!!!! If he hears the oven beep for any reason, he runs to it thinking that pizza is in there (we do have it on Fridays). Oh ya, but he really does love his applesauce too...good dutch boy!

Favourite things to say: peek a boo, money, happy, pizza, Bubi, pop (from his favourite song, `Raindrop Pop'), okay (which is REALLY cute), applesauce

Favourite `story': nursery rhymes

Favourite animal: in real life, a dog. In pictures, the zebra and cow.

Favourite piece of clothing: his football shirt

Favourite interaction: loves to say `ET' and point at the other person, when your fingers touch, you have to tickle him.

His chores: He puts his shoes by the door when we take them off. He hangs the tea towel back up on the oven door after we wash it (without being asked). He brings recycling to the back door.

His friends: He loves playing with Ani (cousin) and Claire (from daycare). I enjoy watching his interactions with other kids and I love that he has does go to daycare so he gets that. Note that his new daycare starts in one week, I am nervous!!!

Well, that's about it for this month. Love this little guy tons. Gary gets him for 3 straight days now as I am off to Bamfield with my Biology 11 classes...I'm sure they will have a great time together but I will sure miss them!