Monday, August 31, 2009

Nieces

Today my nieces came over to play. It's amazing how fast the morning goes when the kids are busy playing!

I made some homemade cheese buns for us all for lunch but burnt my finger on the oven...burns hurt for soooo long. GRRRR. Good buns though!

Reading one of Kai's favourite books, `Chameleon's Colours'. It's a gooder.

Kai playing `Guess Who'...
Kai: Does your person eat hot dogs?

Kai complaining about his drink...
Kai: This drink tastes like dying water.

My friend is currently in labour. So excited for her...the waiting is the hardest part!!

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Diggers and Ribs

Koen is such a happy little boy. He just smiles all the time. I left him in the church nursery and he didn't care that I dropped him off there. He played happily the whole time, even though he missed his morning nap. We found out he can climb stairs as I found him on the third step. He also likes walking by pushing the wagon around. We no longer have to pick up put down...we just put him down and to sleep he goes. Yippee! Just this week he has learned to feed himself well which is sooo much easier! Just put down some chunks of bread, banana, chicken and away he goes.

(Isn't he just too adorable???? Ah, so in love with this little guy!!!)
Every time I sweat too much (football or running in the midday sun), I get such a bad headache which makes me feel sick for 2 days. I really tried to stay super hydrated yesterday but failed miserably and I just feel crappy again today. Wish I could just have an IV in overnight:) Next time I will drink twice as much water, before, during and after. Oh ya, but I forgot to say that we had our first football game yesterday! We were down, then we tied it, then they got another touchdown and then with about 3 minutes left, they decided not to rush me and I ran in a touchdown. We were down by just one point. I decided to go for the 2 point convert and it was completed! Woohoo, won by just one point. Great start. We have 4 women on our team that have had babies this year and all 4 are breastfeeding which means we can't be away from our kiddos for too long:)

Kai is 100% stereotypical boy. Sleeps with his diggers, cars, trucks etc. I've had to learn a lot about construction machines.
Me: Kai, look at that tractor!
Kai: Mommy, that's not a tractor, it's a backhoe.
OR
Me: Kai, look at the roller on that machine!
Kai: Mommy, that's a compaction wheel.
Um, okay.
He loves to learn about processes and parts to machinery or trucks.
I had a bad dream about Kai's first day of preschool. I got kicked out of the class for trying to help and Kai got asked to never return because of his inability to sit still:)

Gary is making braised short ribs from Vij's cookbook. If you've eaten at Vij's, you know how awesome tonight's dinner will be. If you've never eaten there and you want an amazing meal, go there! Def. in my top 5 of best restaurants I've ever eaten at. Rumour is, Gary is making banana cream pie for dessert (my fav.). What an awesome husband. I know.

Friday, August 28, 2009

Hiking Date

On Thursday morning, Gary and I got out for a hike. Yippee!!! I am feeling fabulous as I have somehow managed to get within 4 pounds of my pre-Kai/marriage weight (all together I have lost 16.5 lbs since Koen was 2 months old)! I find that just losing those 16 pounds allows me to move so much better and all my old clothes fit wonderfully. Anyway, so we did a `hike' around Mike Lake at Golden Ears Park. It's really just a 30 minute walk (without kids!) around a lake. I wanted to work up a sweat so we then did another trail called `Incline Trail' which was just that. Got a nice sweat going and it felt good!

We live in such a beautiful province. I have travelled all over Canada and the US and I would say that nothing beats BC. Maybe because it's home, but seriously, it's beauty is unmatched.

Gary and I had lots of time to just talk together and even hold hands. It's been a while since we've walked and not had to answer a billion questions from our wonderful 3 year old super question asker. Gary heads back to work on Monday....we'll see how it goes!

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Rough and Tough

Gary is gone for the day helping his brother paint. It's a good trial run to see how it'll be when he goes back to work. I have to say that there is something nice about getting back into routine ....going to the park, making dinner, cleaning the house etc. I know I'm spoiled having a husband at home for 2 months, and one that can cook too:)

Koen has been going to bed at 7:30pm each night. This is awesome. The only problem is that he wakes up at least 3 times a night. I feed him at about 10:30pm and then when he wakes at 2am, I send Gary in there to put him back to sleep. Then, I feed him at about 5am and he sleeps til 8am. Gary is so ready to just let him cry at night and not have me go in there and feed him....I'm thinking that I'll wait until he's 9 months old and then I might stop feeding him at night (unless he really needs it of course!). I would say that in the past week or so, those feeds seem to be just more comfort to him than need. I wish he sucked his thumb like his brother did!!!

We bought a black leather love seat last night, love it!! It makes the area look more grown up and it is soooo comfy! As you can see in the pictures, Koen follows Kai all over the place. Kai is pretty good with him but we def. have to watch him when he decided to give Koen a `squishy super hug'. I don't think he has the best intentions then:)

Kai loves playing `Guess Who?', running around outside, and still, helping out in the kitchen. I'm a little concerned about Kai's desire to be rough and tough. I understand that for some kids, it's just in them. Kai would love to wrestle and tackle every single person he meets. He usually just tackles bigger kids, but still, they don't always want it! He does get a lot of his energy out throughout the day but he needs to get that desire to be aggressive out. He will come up to me and tell me he wants to hit something and be rough. I don't want to suppress it and make him be gentle all the time because it's just part of who he is. He does get to wrestle with Gary each night but I don't know what else to do. It is very opposite to Gary or I so maybe its just the 3 year old stage? Maybe a punching bag? Sign him up for karate or something? Does this stage ever pass? Any tips? He loves it when we punch the air doing the `30 Day Shred' DVD:)

Football has started again which is exciting. We have our first game on Saturday and I'm nervous about it already. I also got to go see `The Time Traveller's Wife' with Maria VB and it made me cry. I love when a movie makes me cry. If you haven't read the book, do it. I'm currently reading `The Botany of Desire' which I'm really enjoying so far. Gary and I are planning on doing a hike tomorrow morning sans kiddos, we'll see how that goes!


So strange that school is starting for Gary next week and I won't be returning until December. I have to admit I am not eager to return. The idea that I will be teaching Chemistry is not the most enticing:) I'm hoping that by November I will be so ready to get out of the house to do something different....

Reminder..any tips for boys who need to get their aggression out?

Monday, August 24, 2009

Standing On His Own

Ignore my very crazy voice and insane laugh but ya, here's Koen's trick for the day. He's been doing it all day long. I'm thinking that he'll be walking by the time he's 9 months old!

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Dad

There are probably 4 major things going on in my dad's life right now, and I have been granted permission to share. That's always the thing with blogging hey? Things that affect your life, you might not have permission to share because they are someone else's business. Anyway, here are the four things:

1. My dad is marrying Joanne on October 11th. Kai gets to be a `ring' bearer but it will def. be a whole lot more original than carrying a ring down the aisle, that's for sure. We are excited for them but I think it will still be a bittersweet day for us all. I hope that's an appropriate word for it. Happysad day.

2. My dad's house has been sold. This is huge for several reasons. He has lived there for 20 years and it is the house that we grew up in...it will be torn down. More importantly, not sure if you knew, but my dad is literally my next door neighbour (across the street). There will be a lot of construction going on, but more importantly, I'm sad that we won't get to see him as often. I really think it's saddest for Kai as Opi is his buddy. They love hanging out together, fixing things, cleaning the house, or riding the lawnmower. I don't know how it's going to be for him to see the house torn down, other ones put up in it's place, and Opi now a half hour drive away.

3. Okay, my dad said this is how I had to say this part:) My dad's bladder cancer (had it 1.5 years ago) came back a couple months ago. I'm supposed to say `a touch of cancer' but ya, it's a bit more aggressive this time. He had surgery and is currently getting treatment for it. He is doing well. Obviously I have way more I could say about this but ya, we are happy that he is doing so well. Just tired.

4. In January 2010, he is retiring.

So ya, a whole lot going on. Thank goodness he's on his heart pills because that's a lot of stress and he handles change like I do...not well:)

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Running on Empty

This will be a short one with a few pictures I took a few days ago. We have been go, go, go since Wednesday, well, I guess since last Saturday.

Today I sat down at our extended family bbq for half and hour and relaxed and it was amazing. I think it was the first time I just sat and breathed and relaxed in 48 hours. I need to relax more. I just have a really, really hard time doing it when there's always stuff to do. I know in my head that it can wait, but I just have this need to do it before I can relax. I've been struggling with sleep too. I am so exhausted. I've actually lost an additional 4 pounds this week which were not a healthy loss, they are the `I'm so exhausted, I don't have time or energy to eat, I have so much to do' kind of weight loss. I know, I have issues.

Tomorrow I plan on only working for one hour and then just taking the rest of the day to play with the kids and not do anything else. We'll see what happens:)

Kai has been a little more nuts than usual and I really think its due to all the `fun' stuff that we have been doing. I think we really need to get back into our regular routine and stay away from junk food that he gets at certain people's houses:)

Kai watched his first movie this week. He watched `Cars' over about 3 days. I think he likes it. There's no way, at this point, that I would let him sit and watch it all at once, and I don't think he could do it either. I can't believe he starts preschool in a couple of weeks!!!

Oh ya, Koen's sleep update!! He is in bed by 8:30pm every night now. This is sooooooo awesome. His naps are still just two 45 minute ones and it takes about 10 minutes for him to get to sleep for his naps and at night. It is def. best if Gary puts him down. We are still doing the pick up put down. Once he is lying down and crying, we just leave him. We only go in and hold him and then lay him down again if he is sitting or standing. We have to do it anywhere from 1-10 times which is not bad!

Koen really does want to eat everything and anything so I'm trying to introduce things slowly but we are losing patience. He is def. a lot better at feeding himself now.

Kai has been giving Koen `super hugs' which are nice but I think its his excuse to squeeze his baby brother as hard as his can while still looking sweet.

Okay, I need to go to sleep big time. I am way too tired.

This is Kai waiting for Opi (my dad) to take him out for coffee. I do need to post a bit about all the changes in my father's life...there's a whole lot of them! I just need to get the `okay'.
Bon nuit.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Sleep Night #3

Koen is asleep at 7:30pm. I started at 7pm and only had to pick him up 10 times in the half hour. Either he is at the age where he was suddenly ready to go to bed early or this whole pick up put down thing really works! If it does work (aka in one week he goes to bed without having to be picked up and put down) I'll definitely encourage it! Gary `alters' the method a bit as he would rather just put down and not do the pick up part (aka let him cry it out), but he's kind of on board with it:)
I'm going to read!!

Oh, and because each post needs a picture of some sort...here is our office wall. We've updated our black and whites to include older pictures of Kai and new ones of Koen.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Cows and Stuff


Okay, sleep update first!! Today we used the PU/PD for naps and it only took maybe 5 times for him to sleep and his nap was over an hour long!

The craziest thing is that tonight Gary put him down at 8:30pm and he didn't cry for even a second. I know I will be feeding him tonight though, last night I fed him every 3 hours. Growth spurt? I really don't care though, its the early bedtimes that I am striving for.

I couldn't find Koen today and when I looked for him, I found him under the dining room chair, standing up. Our chairs are pub style ones that are extra high...he's not really that short!

This afternoon we visited my best friend, Lynette's, family farm. Kai LOVED it. Actually we all did. There is so much to learn on the dairy farm and Kai loved all the cows, tractors, and of course, the ride on lawnmower.









(The whole time in the milking parlour, I just thought of breastfeeding..it is so similar:)
This evening we did an engagement shoot for my lil sis and my soon to be brother in law. So here is Gary's `flirting' with me (he takes a shot of me each shoot...it makes me smile while editing:)

I loved that they wore shirts that were the other persons eye colour. Does that make sense? Steve's left eye may be slightly closed here but you get the idea. Trish, I will be able to finish editing and posting some pictures tomorrow:)

Let's hope tonight's a gooder. Bon nuit. Oh ya, Kai said that `hungwee is how you say hungry in french' today. He makes up lots of words, like `Wadoo' and says they are french. Goofball.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Sleeping Update And Another Party

Okay, so we have instigated three things to try to get Koen to sleep on time based on various suggestions. I am unable to let him cry it out (I'm an emotional softie) but the `pick up put down' method seemed like a happy medium. We will devote one week to doing this. We have also put the radio static on for some white noise (which worked when he was a baby) and we have given him his own little blankie/stuffed animal which he will hopefully fall in love with. Kai having his blankie, Bubi, has saved us.

NIGHT #1: My friend said that the first night they did this, it took 43 times so I was comfortable with doing it 43 times:) I did the PU/PD 40 times in a row, from 8:10pm until 8:45pm and he fell asleep. I think he was exhausted because each time I would lay him down, he would stand up. Quite the workout for him! Not bad, not bad. Let's hope he stays asleep! We're still trying to figure out what to do during the night as he can still have 2 full feeds at night....I'm really trying to fill him up with more food during the day to combat this. AND, don't suggest formula because he can't stomach it. Kai was a big boy too, but even he did not continue eating at night at this age. I think Koen may have surpassed him in the size department as he is still breastfeeding every 3 hours and having 3 full meals a day. When I weighed him the other day, it said 21lbs.

This video shows Koen standing up, you'll miss it if you are paying attention to Kai:) I cannot believe how much he has changed in just a week. He absolutely amazes me. He will climb anything and crawl anywhere. I would say that in this one week, he has changed more than at any point in his life. I can see already how he is so different than Kai in personality. Kai will learn by watching and asking questions, even as a baby he was just very observant. Koen is super hands on. He can't just look at something, he needs to play with it, eat it, get to it, climb it etc.

Today we celebrated Riley's first birthday. Riley is an incredibly mobile boy, I have never seen a one year old so stable on his feet. He can climb up and down stairs and walk up and down hills. Maybe that's what happens when you have two older brothers to keep up with! The party was at the Walnut Grove water park which was a fantastic location. I've never been to that water park but the little river was a super hit.

Kai with buddy Bennett. They were trying to find monsters down the drain. I love that these two love playing together...another generation of buddies.
Well, now that Koen is down, I'm going to get back to my book, `Plain Truth'. Bon nuit.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Kai's Third Birthday Party

Wow, who knew a three year old birthday party could be so tiring?! I was hoping to play a bunch of games but Gary said we should just let the kids play and that ended up working best in the end. Maybe next year I can reminisce about the games we played as kids and get Kai to play them with his friends:) We had a ton of family and friends over for a few hours. We had lunch, cake, opened presents, and played. It is also Kai's cousin Theo's (T-bone) bday today so that is why he is blowing out a candle.

Kai wanted cars on his cupcakes so I just put them on the extra fondant I had so they didn't get covered in icing. I decided to decorate the cake with frosting instead of fondant and I think it turned out okay. If anyone needs to borrow a car cake pan, I've got one! Kai was super spoiled with tons of trucks, cars, diggers etc. I'd say my favourite is a Melissa & Doug's magnetic body systems. Soooo cool and very anatomically correct. Kai and I have had several interesting conversations about the boy and girl ones already:)
We did do one pinata type game. This one was just a `pull the ribbon' one. So, each kid pulled a ribbon and some how, the 2nd last ribbon was the one that released the door and let all the candy out. Good thing they didn't pull that ribbon first:) Ani was pretty pumped that it was her ribbon that did it. And, call me crazy cheap but the car is in perfect condition to use as an actual pinata next year:)

Thank you to everyone that came and celebrated the 3 years that Kai has been blessed with. We are so grateful to have you in our lives and we love seeing our big boy being so loved. I need a nap.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Birthdays and Wrestling

Today I turned 31. No biggie. Feel the same. I like the 30's, they suit me. For my birthday, Koen slept 7 hours straight...awesomeness. Then, we got up, had a yummy breakfast, and went and ran 6.5km of the Fort to Fort Trail in Fort Langley. The kids did decently although it was drizzling and Koen was hungry. I love trail running sooooooo much. The plan for the evening is to get ready for Kai's 3rd birthday party tomorrow and Gary is picking up a `new' (craigslist) flash tonight because I could use an upgrade anyway and our good one is in the shop. The one in the shop won't be ready for the next 2 weddings so we `needed' another one.

My dad gave me a bunch of my baby pictures this morning. Do I look like someone we know and love? I think Koen looks so much like me! And yes, I was bald for forever. I guess my mom took us to Sears or something almost every month for a picture, who knew?

The boys are interacting so much more. True, it's quite a bit of rough interactions but they both enjoy it so ya, I'm going with it. Both are covered in bumps and bruises. Koen because he is trying to do too much, Kai, because he always falls when he runs.


(I like this shot..um, why is this underlined? I see no key for this...)
Thanks to all those who commented on the sleep issue. I guess what I needed most was empathy AND the reassurance that it can't last forever. It sounds like once they are one, things settle down a bit so I'll go with that. It doesn't bother me that much, except once 9:30pm rolls around and I'm exhuasted. If he slept til 8am, that would be a different story. However, he's usually up around 6am:) So much to figure out with these guys. We're at the stage where I'm a little frustrated introducing food so slowly. I know he just wants to eat our food and I'm just so tempted to give him exactly what we are eating, but, I don't want to give him dairy yet in case he does have a serious allergy to milk proteins and also, a lot of our food is quite spicy. So far, he will eat whatever I put in his mouth. He can only feed himself mum mums, bananas and bread. Hungry, hungry hippo.
Okay, time for dinner. Have a great weekend everyone!

Feel free to comment on how much Koen looks like me or how cute my boys are or something:)

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Sleep Advice Please

Okay, I need some help. If you know me, you know I don't like to ask for help:) Koen, our wild & wonderful 7 month old, does not sleep. He sleeps about 2 hours in the day time and 8-10 hours at night (and no, not in a row. Last night I fed him at 12:30pm and 5am). That's less than 12 hours a day. I don't think this is healthy for him. Admittedly, he is a very happy boy. The main concern is him not going to bed before 9:30pm EVER. I am concerned because I am exhausted. If we lay him down, he stands up and cries and cries. He will cry for an hour straight and I haven't let him go beyond that. If we keep him up til 10pm, he generally goes to sleep within 10 minutes.
Gary and I need our evenings back. I am well aware of the Pick Up Put Down method and will instigate it if you can tell me that it worked for you and your child that did not need a lot of sleep. We cannot cut out his daytime naps because he gets grumpy and tired during the day and needs a nap. He usually naps 30-45 minutes two times a day (9am and 1pm).
WE ARE TIRED. I AM TIRED. Please don't tell me to let him cry for 2 hours because I won't:) Please don't tell me to feed him to sleep because he won't. Please don't tell me what you've read. Tell me what you have done which has worked. I just want a couple hours to myself each evening and I think at this stage in the game, it isn't asking for too much.
Maybe I was spoiled with Kai sleeping 7pm-7am. I think he just fell asleep. 9:30pm...not bad.
By the way, today he was cruising along furniture and he went from one piece of furniture to another. He is one crazy, sweet kid. I think he will be keeping us very busy for many years to come. That's my new workout routine...take care of 2 energetic boys all day long.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Phew


(Kai and Koen's feet..Kai suggested getting a shot of their `toesies' so we did).
I'm all done editing from the last 3 shoots, just one more tomorrow and then we have 5 days off. It's about 4 hours of editing for 1 hour of shooting so that's been a lot of work on the computer. Thank goodness Gary is around or this would sure take a lot longer. I'm the kind of person who won't have fun and play until all the work is done so I haven't done much for fun this past week:)

(We were taking pictures of Koen in the mirror so Kai said he wanted pictures in front of the mirror too:)
Kai's birthday party is this Saturday. Originally I wanted to play games and stuff but I'm thinking 3 year olds (mostly boys) will just want to run around and eat so we'll just stick to that. I'm unsure if I will make a fondant or icing car cake but need to figure it out soon. He doesn't care so I shouldn't either.

(Look how red Koen's nose is from trying to kiss himself in the mirror)
Koen is nuts. Usually he has just been crawling around on our rug where all the toys are. However, today he ventured down the hall to the bathroom and then discovered the hall closet mirror. He spent a good amount of time playing with and kissing his `new friend'. He is fearless. He is a terrible napper. He is my beautiful baby.

We just sold our black rug on craigslist because I was having to vacuum it everyday. I loved it as it was so soft and matched well. Oh well, not worth the daily vacuuming. We got a cream shag one instead. Not sure if it looks okay but its actually a lot more functional.

We had our first babysitter yesterday who was not a family member or friend of ours. She is a 15 year old that goes to our church and she was perfect!!! Phew. We were only gone 2 hours but she handled it well. Koen refused to nap so she just took him downstairs and he fell asleep in her arms. She played with boats in the kitchen sink with Kai. This is a big step for me (trusting someone to watch our kids) and I'm glad it was successful.

(While editing I always find just one picture that Gary took with me in it. It always makes me smile. I think it's his way of flirting with me).

The babysitter was for a morning shoot and then in the evening, my sister Maria came by to watch the kids so that Gary and I could go to the Keg for our birthdays. We had a gift card so I was very excited to use it. I made sure to get a run in during the day and I'm glad I did. The food was amazing, I had lobster and steak. So much butter and cream sauce...soooo good but soooo bad!

We've been playing a lot of `Guess Who' these days. Brings me back to my childhood. One of us always plays on Kai's team. Two of his questions today were, `Does your person have a head?' and `Does your person have eyes?'. He's getting there:)

Kai: Daddy, I have a great idea!
Gary: What's that?
Kai: We should have my birthday party in my room!
Gary: But how will all your friends fit in there?
Kai: You can build a bigger room for me!

Okay, off to pick blackberries with the boys. I'm really loving this cooler weather. Life is good.

Monday, August 10, 2009

Bliss

For the past two nights, Koen has fallen asleep just cuddling with me. This is very, very unlike him. He hasn't done that since he was maybe 2 months old. I'm thinking it's due to his cold. Regardless, I was cherishing it. These moments pass by too fast. In this picture I'm post shower, in my pj's, looking tired etc but I had to post this because it's pure bliss to me.

I will have to show you a video of him. He boggles my mind with his no fear attitude. He can stand up holding onto anything. Today he was watching Kai in the bathtub, holding onto the outside, and then let go and grabbed onto me instead. Maybe this is normal and Kai was the abnormal one...or, just every kid is just so different. I'm thinking that this is the case. Regardless, my baby being comforted, snuggly and sleepy while lying on me makes me smile.
PS I know I'm blogging too much...I bet once Gary goes back to work I won't have this freedom to blog as frequently.

Sunday, August 09, 2009

Bobs & Lolo

This afternoon we went to the opening of Kidtopia in Surrey. It's a great store to find learning toys at. I may have bought Kai a thing or two. The main reason to go was to see Bobs & Lolo perform. Kai wanted to know what kind of car they drove and we found out it's a red jeep:) They sang Kai's favourite song, Raindrop Pop. Kai's buddy Noah was there too. Kai enjoyed the singing, bubbles, dancing, popcorn and face painting. He passed out on the way home. It was nice to have some one on one time with my 3 year old:)


Talking about Kai, here's a little conversation we had while he was in time out...
Me: Kai, why were you sitting on your brother's head?
Kai: Well mommy, I needed somewhere to sit.

I think Koen is going to be just as tough as his older brother. So far he hasn't complained when Kai has wrestled him and I'm trying to be a little more relaxed with the two of them jumping on eachother. All in all, great Sunday afternoon.

Saturday, August 08, 2009

7 Months Old

I can't believe I'm doing this post almost a week late...bad mommy. Koen makes me so happy, I seriously can't get mad at him. Yes, I've been frustrated that he hasn't gone to bed before 9:30pm every night, and that his naps only last 45 minutes, BUT, he's just too darn cute. I know the day will come where I can't wait to start on the time outs:)

Here's some stuff about Koen:
Weight: 21lbs
Favourite food: sweet potato, bananas, mum mums
Physical developments: crawl to sit, sit to crawl, sit to stand (pulling up on everything and anything), rolling both directions.
Loves: people, being outside, matchbox cars, drinking milk, big brother Kai, pulling mommy or daddy's hair, tickles, listening to singing, having a little receiving blanket to sleep with, being in the bjorn (soooo heavy).
Dislikes: being alone and especially away from mommy, eating carrots, going to bed at night (great at going down in the daytime though!)
Brotherly Love?: Kai gave him a hug without being asked and was pretty pumped that Koen is crawling.
Health: he currently has a cold but he seems to be handling the congestion and coughing just fine. I believe his reflux is completely gone and I would say that in the past 3 days, he has barely even spit up at all!! Woohoo!
Sleeping: has two 45 minute naps and goes down to bed around 9:30pm and wakes up for a feed at least once. Up for the day around 6am. He will def. have longer naps (maybe 2 hours!!) if we are on a road trip.

Koen, you are sooooo loved. I think that even though you look like an old man, you are the cutest old looking man out there:) Your dimples and giggles make me melt. I can't wait to see what kind of toddler you will be, well, I can wait. Don't get big too fast.

Caden at 2 weeks

Yesterday I visited Ali and got to visit Caden too...well, he had a feeding and diaper change:) It's amazing how fast they grow up! Talking about growing up, today when I got Koen from his nap, he was standing in his crib. He is a little monkey!

Exercise

Kai opening and closing the kitchen cupboards repeatedly at 7:30am....
Me: Kai, please stop making all the racket with those doors.
Kai: But mommy, I need to get my exercise.

Off to shoot a wedding. Thankfully pictures are early this morning before the rain is predicted to come!

Friday, August 07, 2009

Cloth Diapers and Mr. Climber

Well, we are back from holidays and back into cloth diapers. We only use them during the day so he actually only goes through about 3 or 4 a day at this point. I have to say that it is very easy to use cloth diapers when they are on solids...a little Flushie insert and all the `dirty stuff' is flushed down the drain. We throw our diapers into a pail in the basement and just wash them every other day. We'll see how long we stick with it:)

I have given away all of the newborn cloth diapers but will keep my all in ones and one size fits all ones as I could see myself using them again if we have another child. I'd say that the biggest drawback of cloth diapers are the large, large bums. I don't want to stretch out all his 12 month pants so he is pretty much going without pants or shorts while wearing them. Good thing it's summer! I've been LOVING this cooler weather and was more than happy to put on jeans today.

In about 2 minutes, he went from the middle of the carpet to standing holding onto the wagon. I even saw him reach down with one hand and pick up a toy while standing up. He can even do it with socks on the slippery laminate floor. Craziness! He has a random rash that looks like eczema on his face, I think it must be due to the dry weather up in Osoyoos. I hope that's it. There are 3 dry patches which you can see on the left side of his face. Anybody know if that's what it probably is?

We have a busy couple weeks. I know I've blogged a lot but I think the blogging will slow down as we have 4 shoots in one week and then Kai's bday party. So, if you don't hear from me, that's why. Be sure to check out our GC Photography blog though as there will be lots of new pictures in the upcoming weeks!

I can't believe I haven't done Koen's 7 months old post...I'm never behind on those. I will do it, um, soon.