an unforgettable Christmas

Ice on power lines caused a big chunk of Canada's East Coast to lose power this Christmas and we were among them.  Santa had already been here to eat the cookies and drink the milk, so Ryan and I were in bed when we noticed the power go out shortly after midnight.  It was still out at 6 a.m. when we were awakened by our little boy, Leo.

Having Christmas morning without power was actually really special.  I think I'll remember it for a long, long time.

I may have mentioned before that Ruby was really into Christmas this year.  It's her fourth Christmas on the planet but the first that she'll actually recollect.  People started asking her what was on her "list to Santa" back in November and since the very first inquiry she was adamant that she wanted a scooter.  I'm happy that she kept the list short (the scooter was her sole request to old Saint Nick) and I think I'm going to keep this a tradition for both kids.  One special request from Santa.  That's enough.  They have six grandparents to fill any gift void there may be, although I'm sure that's quite impossible.

Ruby's reaction to the scooter was priceless.  After running into the living room, she exclaimed,
"It is!!!  My scooter!!!!  I've always wanted a scooter!!!!!"

Riding her new prized possession. 

I think Christmas would have been complete just after that moment but we had much, much more to do. We were in Sackville for Christmas Eve this year and the kids both got some BIG wheels! 

Leo's Big Wheel is bigger than he is!

It looks like Ryan was pretty excited about whatever her was opening too. 

We headed over to my parent's house Christmas morning a little earlier than planned because we were hungry and getting cold. Thank goodness there was enough hot water to shower and the sun illuminated things by 8 a.m.   So, the rest of the day went something like this….

Can't seem to get a serious family photo. 

He's really loving Christmas. 

Once we started opening presents, Leo ran around the room saying, "More, more" and signing the word as well.  It's the only sign language he learned and it's served him well.

Snacking on cookies before turkey dinner. 

Two amigos, all bundled up.

Leo officially turned 18 months on Dec.24th.  He's getting big and smart and even more handsome, if that's possible.  He and Ruby are beginning to play really well together and it's a joy to watch them in action.  Here's to a crazy 2013 and an even crazier 2014!!  Bring it on!

playing catch up (again).

Six days until Christmas and here I am playing catch up…. again.

Since my last post, Ruby has become a performing artist, escaped the threat of pink eye, recovered from an ear infection, developed an allergy to Penicillin, has become extraordinarily more mature (in my eyes anyway) and has probably grown about 2 millimetres.

Leo has suffered from the pink eye, decided that picking decals off his bedroom walls is his new pastime and seems to have an aversion to going outside to play in the snow.  (maybe it's that he's just not feeling well…. I'll give him another chance).

Ryan has been sleeping on the basement couch because he has strep throat, a sinus infection and basically feels horrible.  He's missed an entire week of work.  We've missed two holiday parties so far and might miss another one this weekend if he doesn't smarten up!

I have managed to come out relatively unharmed and hope to stay that way.  Six days until Christmas and twenty-one days until Costa Rica.  No time to get sick.

Getting into the song.

(Side note:  I had a different dress picked out for her concert but Ruby insisted on wearing this one because it was more "fluffy". )  Thank goodness I have a few other fluffy dresses available for the Christmas season.

Play dough play time.

The kids have been playing really nicely together and play dough time is a nice break for mama.

Handsome despite the pink eye.

Playing outside during the 1st snowstorm of the year.

It's Ruby's last day of school tomorrow and she's also visiting the dentist later on for her first cleaning.
Fingers crossed that it goes well.

Hopefully our little family will be goo-less soon and looking normal enough to take a family photo in front of the Christmas Tree!

Ho, Ho.

the verdict

Ruby did not have pink eye.  She has an ear infection and the cold that came along with it was seeping out through her eyes and nose.  Lovely.  But, she's feeling much better now and after three days at home, she'll be going to school tomorrow so that she can participate in her very first Christmas Concert performance!

Can't wait.  Pictures to follow the performance.

the colours of christmas

Usually we think of red and green as the colours of Christmas.
This year, for the time being anyway, it's pink and blue.

Ruby has pink eye and she's feeling blue.

A pyjama day with her little buddy Leo.
Snacks and drinks on cushions in front of the tv.  

The truth is, I'm a bit sceptical of the pink eye diagnosis.  Someone at her school has it but the doctor at the clinic today says Ruby definitely has an ear infection and the eye may be just a side affect of her cold.    Time will tell.  So far, attempts 1 and 2 at putting drops in her eyes have been major catastrophes.

In other news - we have our tree!
We went to cut it down late last week without Daddy but he said it was ok.
So far, it's still standing but Leo is fierce.  He's broken two bulbs so far and I've threatened to throw the tree in the garbage if this nonsense continues.  A bit extreme I know, but it was in the heat of the moment.  I gotta watch what I say because Ruby is onto my threats.  She hears every word and called me on that one.  "The tree is WAY too big for the garbage Mommy!"


This is us on the way to Hillsborough to cut down our tree.

Ready to go cut our Christmas Tree!

And, just because it's so cute, here's Leo in the shower and acting silly with his ball cap.

Loving the shower.  

I'm a crocodile.

Chomp!

'tis the season

Ok folks.  I have finally realized that Christmas is just around the corner.  It's in 24 days, in fact, which is not a lot of time.

On the last day of November 2013, breakfast at the Grants went something like this…

Ruby's infamous "joker" nutella face.  

Then we kicked off the Christmas season with two tiny little trees…..

Two little trees for two little people.  

The kids decorated and undecorated and decorated and undecorated…. (you get the point) these trees for three, fight-free hours on Saturday morning!  It was absolute bliss.

A thin dusting of snow fell this morning so we all headed out for a walk.  Ruby insisted on a sleigh ride and luckily the .05mm of snow made for easy pulling.

Weeeeee!  Faster Daddy!  Faster!!  

Leo's not feeling well these days and you can see it in his face.  He was trying to have fun, but really, I think he was happy just to be lying down.

Here's a picture of him earlier this week.  He's learned how to pull his pants down.  Basically, if you were to come to our house at any given moment during the day, he would probably look something like this:

Ya.  It looks cute but when the diaper also goes off and pee is everywhere….. it's not so cute.  He has a new wardrobe of onezies.  Let's hope the phase doesn't last long.  

Hey Christmas!!  Bring it!  Let's get this party started!  

-L ox

proud moments

Aren't they what life is all about?  The proud moments when you feel so pleased and satisfied and content that life is running along smoothly.  All is good in my world right now.   The dusting of snow we just received seems to have given Miss Ruby a new independent attitude.  She came home from school, told me she was hungry and sat right up in her chair waiting for lunch!  (Those of you who have been around lately know that this is a far cry from a typical mealtime).  

Playing outside in the snow was her mission so after lunch she waited for me to put Leo down for his nap, then appeared in the kitchen with her snow pants on!  They were backwards… but they were on!  She's outside playing by herself right now…. waiting for me but I secretly intend to procrastinate until she's bored or too cold or just wants to come in.  Shhh…. let's keep that between you and I, shall we.  

Another proud moment was yesterday at Ruby's last Ballet class of the season.  She was so beautiful and happy it made my heart swell up with pride.  

My beautiful Ballerina!

A very happy little girl.  

P.S.  I also had a not-so-proud moment today at the gym.  I dropped my iPod into the toilet.  

Santa…. have I been good this year?  

Cheerio! 

  

i want to be a cow….

Yes.  That's correct.  A cow.  Not a cowboy or a cowgirl.  A cow.  Ruby has somewhat of a fascination with cows.  I first discovered it when written on the whiteboard outside of her classroom where the teachers make notes for the parents that Ruby's favourite animal was a cow.  Cute, I thought.

She and I were doing crafts today while Leo was sleeping.  Here are some of her first drawings.  

Very impressive I think! 

Mommy

Daddy

Mommy

She was so involved with the drawing that I took a little break and went to check my email.  That's when I noticed the silence.  After a few minutes, I went to check on her and sure enough, she was painting her fingers and hands all up with her new markers.  She was having so much fun and they're washable so I thought, what the heck.  Why not?  

It was quiet for a little while longer and I said, "I hope you're not marking up the table, Ruby."

"I'm not Mommy.  Don't worry", she said.  

This is what I found when I went in.

Me:          "What are you doing, Ruby!?".

Ruby:      "I want to be a cow.  A cow with purple hands and a purple bum and purple belly…… "

Oh boy! 

She really has quite the imagination these days.  In fact, she's been dreaming at night and often has dreams that wake her up.  Not happy dreams all of them.  Crazy dreams in fact.  One she remembers vividly and still tells us about is the one where Leo was a cow and he sneezed and it woke Ruby up and scared her.   

Notice that the main character of the dream was a cow?  Coincidence?  I think not.  

MOOOOO!  

to all my fans….

I know it's bad when people comment on how long it's been since my last blog entry.  In fact, someone even sent me an email telling me that my one-month anniversary since my last entry has come and gone.  I'm so thankful for my adoring fans.  What would life be without you?  So to all my fans, young and old, this one's for you.  

Now, where to begin?  A lot of things happen in one month!  We've had Thanksgiving, lots of parks, Halloween, sleepovers, marathons and an entire change of seasons. 

When the weather was still warm, (last month…. around the time of my last entry)….. we were hunting down new parks every weekend.  We've found some really good ones.  My goodness gracious, (that's Ruby's favourite saying at the moment) playgrounds certainly have evolved since I was little.  The playgrounds of my youth were made solely of wood, nuts and bolts.    From an environmental standpoint, yes, that's good I suppose.  But, they were the simplest of structures.  Today, there are pianos, horns, mazes, enormous figures to climb on, …. not to mention water parks!  

Eating rocks in the gigantic hippopotamus.

Walking along the boarder.  Evading departure time.

Oh my goodness gracious!!  I just had a thought that would totally contradict the entire last paragraph…. Back then, I remember playing on the playground in my neighbourhood for hours.  Climbing, falling, swinging, balancing, singing, laughing, pretending I was someone else.  It was very physical and I was using my imagination.  Maybe these new parks are too elaborate and don't allow kids to use their imaginations because it's all there for them.  Oh man.  I better move on to Thanksgiving.  

As always, we enjoyed two very fun Thanksgiving dinners this year.  The weather was beautiful for both and we spent lots of time outdoors.  While inside, Ruby enjoys doing her hair and putting on shows.  

Ruby's latest obsession - hair clipping.
She also likes to sing and dance.  

Taking time away from the camp fire to smile for the camera.

Happy!

Happy!

Happy!  

Very, very happy!! 

Then came race day.  Ryan singed up to run 5km in the Legs for Literacy marathon this year and the kids and I went down (in the rain at 8 a.m.) to watch him cross the finish line.  I was right there at the finish line, snapping shots like he was famous…. and he didn't even notice me.  That's focused.  :)  Way to go Ryan.  His time was 26:32 which isn't bad for a guy who hasn't run in about 3 years.  

Way to go Ryan!!

(Look at they eyes - I'm ten feet away and he doesn't notice me.  )

Leo was introduced to baking on October 18, 2013.  He really loved it and Ruby was a great help.  

I guess technically, Leo should have been her assistant, but it sort of worked the other way around.  Standing on two chairs like that was terribly dangerous and I'm thankful nobody got hurt.  I may have been slapped in the face trying to convince Leo it was time to clean up the baking, but I can't be entirely sure.  It's sort of a blur.  I do know that Leo does not like the word 'no' and he's becoming very strong willed.  

We clearly need a kid-sized baking station.

Onto Halloween.  I have to tell the story about their costumes….

Ruby and I were talking one day about what she wanted to be for Halloween.  I never imagined that she would come up with a pumpkin, but that's exactly what she wanted to be.  A few minutes later I asked her what Leo should be and without skipping a beat, she say boisterously, "A little pumpkin!"

So, here they are:  my Big Pumpkin and my little pumpkin.

I decided to get dressed up at the last minute.  It was fun.  Think I'll make it a tradition.

So, there you have it, an entire month of our lives.

Oh, I almost forgot.  Ryan's parents took the kids for the entire weekend last weekend and Ryan and I stayed home to clean up the garage/shed/backyard.  We worked long and hard and are very proud of ourselves!  I was also quite proud of my jack-p-lanterns this year so we took pictures.

One more thought:  There are an awful lot of tattoos at the gym.  Will tattoos make me cool?  I'm feeling a dip in my cool factor lately.

Until next time…..
Soon.  I promise.  

shucks, kids say the darndest things

Things are moving high speed around here.  I'm pleased to announce that Ruby has settled into the routine of going to school each morning and doesn't give us a hard time about it.  For the past two weeks, mornings have been good.  Knock on wood.  (I hate that expression but it fits.  And it rhymes.)

The weather has been amazing so I'm filling the afternoons with as much outdoor activity as possible.
Ruby and I went for a hike together last week.  She was so fast that the pictures are blurred.

Running!!! 

Jumping over the tree roots.

Then the three of us hit a market with the best selection of pumpkins.  We found 5 that we loved plus two little ones for them.  As we speak, I don't know where they are.  They've been in the trailer with us, the car, in the house.... Leo even started eating his.

 Ruby likes to procrastinate on her way into the house from the car.  Here she is dancing in the leaves for "just a little while, I promise."

Now I have to mention a few tidbits about Leo so they don't get lost in time.

He went from having only 2 teeth at his birthday to now having 12.  That's 10 teeth in 3 months!  Ouch.

He's eager to start talking and will attempt to repeat any words we throw his way and is thrilled when he gets it right!

He calls Ruby "OO-Bu".   It's adorable.
He can say "mama, dada, gamma, truck, tractor, ice, up, down, egg, oo-bu, Aimee, Eyoit (Elliott), Obin (Robin), Iya (Ryah), gapes, faster.....

Oh!  That reminds me.  When Ruby wants us to push her higher on the swing, she says "faster", so Leo has adopted this term as well.  He wants to go "faster" on his swing too.  One day we were driving out to my parent's place and I took the back road.  I got stuck behind a very old  man driving 40 km/ph the entire way.  I would normally drive 80 or so on this route, but I was patient and didn't really mind actually.  Out of the blue, Leo says "faster".  "faster".   It was hilarious, proving that he really does get the meaning of the word after all.

We were driving behind our friends on the way home from school one day and the kids wanted me to beep the horn at them, so I did.  They wanted it several more times and I tried to decline but majority rules and they won.  I beeped a few more times before our friends went their way and we continued along on ours.   We take the same route home every day from school so as a testament to how observant kids are, now, every time we arrive at the traffic circle (which is where all the beeping took place) Leo says "beep, beep."  Can you believe it?  The kid cracks me up.

I look forward to many more Autumn adventures with my two little buddies.  OH, that reminds me of something else.....

This morning Ruby woke up before Leo (that's a first).  He woke up shortly after so we went in to greet him.  Ruby says, "Good morning my best friend Leo".  She often calls him her little buddy, but best friend I really like.  :)

quiet time

I don't quite know where to begin but I suppose the beginning would be most appropriate.  As I sit here in the quiet on Sunday.... Friday night seems far in the distant past.

Friday, Sept.27, 2013

5:15 p.m.
With the kid's bags packed for one night, I drove to Spielo at 5 p.m where Ryan and I did a speedy exchange of vehicles.  He drove off with both kids and I drove off..... alone.

5: 20 p.m.
I was somewhat in a daze as I left the parking lot alone in a vehicle that doesn't scream 'I'm a mom'.  I opened the sun roof, stepped on the gas and squealed like a school girl.  Seriously.  (I know.  How pathetic).

This was the first time in I have no idea how many.... YEARS.... that I have been alone for more than 3 hours.  At this point, it had only been 5 minutes but I was giddy.  I had 24 hours to kill.  All by myself.  So, I got settled into my adult car and drove off..... all by myself.

6:30 p.m.
When I walked in the door of our home with my sushi supper in hand, I was struck by the silence.  It was too quiet.

I got settled, poured myself a glass of wine, checked my email, tidied up the rest of the toys that laid around and sat uncomfortably in the silence.  It was odd.

Saturday, Sept. 28, 2013
At 3:30 p.m. I went for a bike ride and completely settled into this uncomfortable freedom that was going to be mine for another two or three hours at most.  It had been almost 24 hours but all of a sudden I wanted more.  Now, 24 hours wasn't long enough....

When Ryan got home with Leo at 6:15 p.m. I was anxiously waiting their arrival.  Ruby had fallen asleep before supper so we decided to let her spend one more night with Nana and Poppy in Sackville.  Leo had fallen asleep on the drive  home.  I picked him up from his car seat and carried him in to his bed, as I have done so many times before but this time was different.  I had missed him.  I had missed his beautiful smell, the weight of his body and the feeling of perfect love when he laid his tiny head on my shoulder and hugged me.  He was home.  I was home.

Life these days is challenging.  Having two young kids is not easy.  I'm working hard every day to keep it together.  I respect all moms everywhere who have done this and managed to have a kind word at the end of the day to share with their husbands.  Ryan is a good man.  I love you and Thank you for sticking with me in these very tumultuous times.  And, to all the other helpers we have - Mom, Dad, Robin, Ryah, Margie and Norbert, Thank YOU!!
Life would be impossible without you all.

So.... there are no pictures of my 24-hours of freedom, just great memories in my mind.
Kids - if and when you are reading this..... no offence.  Seriously.  Let's talk when you have kids.

Love and Big Hugs.
-Laurie oxoxox

NOW you're three

Dear Ruby,

Now you are finally three.
You've been with us for three whole years!!
My how you've grown.
Thanks for always being honest and keeping me on my toes.

Love,
Mom oxox

We had a wonderful time celebrating Ruby's third birthday with friends and family on Sunday.   Here are some pics..... 

The Birthday Girl.

We let the balloons lose in the room and everyone had so much fun playing with them.  I figured if they were tied up in a corner as a decoration it would just cause trouble.  Actually, it was Ryan's idea and it was a good one.  Good job Daddy.

Waiting for the guests to arrive.  

Thankfully, the gift we got her was well liked.  :)  Phew.  

She received a lot of fantastic gifts.  Ironically, opening presents is often a stressful time for kids (and parents).  I've seen kids cry at their own party.  Kids just want to play with their new toys as they open them but the party rules dictate we must open everything from everyone, say 'thank you' and move along to the cake.  Would it be rude to just let the kid play with the first gift they opened for as long as they want and send a thank you card for the rest?  Hm.  Food for thought.  Maybe we should change the party protocol.

Elliott, Kate, Fern, (Jason) Ruby, Leo, (Grandma).  

(Not sure why the adults are in brackets.)

Smiling so sweetly.

Sunny and Kathryn. 

So, the party's over.  Everything but the 'happy birthday' sign is put away.  Ruby's three.  We missed Aimee at the party this year, but her mom, Sherri was here with Kate and Elliott.  As you see in the pictures, some new friends brought life to the party - Kathryn, Jason, Fern and Sunshine.  Thanks for coming everyone!  See you all next year!

I wonder how Four is going to be?

-L