Lately

Well it has been nearly two weeks since I've actually done a "life" post. 
Somehow Thankful Thursday snuck by two weeks in a row. 
Most of what we've been up to lately is surviving! It's been really really busy between my work, David's work (yay!), social engagements, colds, housework... you get the idea!

Alas, here is a chronological photo upate/unload of what we've been up to lately :)

I've kind of fallen off with lettering as well because all of a sudden I don't have an hour to sit down and relax and do what I want every day. I know the time will come where I can again, so I'm just being patient. I managed to create a few pieces the last few weeks.

So jealous. I work Mondays, so David gets to take the kids to Tot Romp every week. That used to be one of my favorite times of the week! Some time I'll have to switch my schedule and work a different day instead so I can go.

Playing the hammer dulcimer at Opa & Oma's

Celebrating Audrey's first birthday

Watching "Cinicks" at Gramma & Grandpa's

Escaping to the park for some energy burning!

Coloring. She's mostly good with the markers, but occasionally tries to eat them. Mostly she likes to take the lids off and try to get them back on. I love watching them work on their fine motor skills.

Another gift from work :)

Realistically this is how we spend our evenings now a lot of the time. Not very romantic! Haha. We're in the basement working "together". On the other side, the hockey game is playing on the projector.

No complaints about work when it looks like this!

I guess I'm tired. Absent mindedly started pouring my cheerios onto a plate one morning.

The kids have been loving playing outside lately. He rides his blue bike and she rides/pushes the firetruck around. They'll happily play for 20-30 minutes at least! I need to get a nice chair to sit outside instead of sitting on the pavement...

This past Thursday, David had arguably the biggest job of his career so far. An online magazine (Curbed magazine) found his website and contacted him to do a shoot for their "House Calls" edition. It is a house in West Van that is very unique and was actually designed by the owner, an architect. In the very first email they came out and said how many images they want (14-15), how long they expect him to be there (around 7 hours), how much they pay, that they'll pay $250 for an assistant, pay $75 for meals for the day, and pay mileage for his commute. Ummm... okay! He obviously doesn't have an actual assistant, so I went to help him out with lights, moving stuff around, being a second set of eyes, etc. Easy way to earn an extra couple hundred bucks.
We had help from my mom and Scott & Ashleigh (and Adam I hear) to go out of their way to watch the kids for us so we could do this. Thank you for making this day possible!!

We ordered Subway for lunch, and then hit Cactus Club on our way home to use the rest of the $75. It was nice to see each other and be professional grown ups together. It felt like a date considering how little we'd seen each other the past couple weeks. 

The actual camera photos aren't ready yet, so for now we will deal with these phone pictures I took haha. Don't judge the house based on these! I'll do an official post about this job when David is done the photos :)

You can see how modern and clean and minimalistic it is! I love the polished concrete floors. We were talking to their youngest son and he was saying how cool they are because you can scooter on them haha.

It doesn't look like much from the front, but the backyard is amazing and the interior is incredible. If you look straight on at those white chairs you can see right through the house into the forest/cliff/back yard. 

Dave climbing up to get a good shot. 

The homeowners were home and randomly decided to pour us some wine. I mean... we're on the clock, but if you insist! Haha

Their work station. I almost feel bad for posting these pictures because David's actually do this place justice. My pictures/phone camera are poop. 

Yesterday we took Sherlock to get groomed, and while he was there we went to visit Bo Bo Moma. We had some coffee, cookies and a cheese bun! Dominic was insistent on seeing the fishies in the koi pond as we left. 

Okay, I'll try be more intentional about documenting my life for the next week or two and sharing actual posts/photos. We're so busy and exhausted, but it's all been really good things. No complaints here! Just adrenaline and healthy vibes! David is sick this week, and I actually had to cancel playing bass this weekend as it would have had me out half the day on Saturday and on Sunday, and then I work Monday. He's too poopered and busy for me to be able to leave the kids with him and feel okay about it. 

Kids Say

It's just been regular life around here lately for the most part, so time to post a Kids Say!
These go back to early summer I think; it's been a while.

D: Aww! A little birdy!
Me: Oh ya? Was it a cute birdy?
D: Ya! Birdy was kinda cute like Uncle Jeff!

Dave drank a smoothing and then headed to his office. 
D: Daddy, did you bring your drink?
Dave: Nope, I finished it!
D: Well did you put your cup in the dishwasher?

Playing outside on a windy day when a big crunchy folded leaf blows by.
D: Oh look! A little mouse!

Getting ready for the rehearsal dinner and Dom waltzes into my bathroom.
D: Oh mommy! What a cute little dress!

D: My boobs! My pink boobs are kinda tough. Too tight. Gotta tuck them in.

Playing with a puzzle and Dom points to the pig
D: This is bacon!

Sitting on the couch and Emilia randomly smacks Dom on the head.
D: Oh. Emilia is going STRAIGHT to bed!

Reading a book and a girl is holding an ice cream cone.
D: I am going to snatch her ice cream!

Packing up to go to Costco
D: Is Sherlock going to come to Costco?
Me: Nope. Sherlock is staying home.
D: I guess Sherlock will be too scared of the big green guy.
*It took us until we were at Costco and Dom freaked out to realize there is an animatronic witch. I didn't even notice it the previous time; clearly it made an impression on Dom.

At a friends house and they have a short-haired dog running around with its tail up. 
D (seeing the dog's butt): Mommy... Does Charlie got a bum?
Me: Yup. Charlie has a bum.
D: Ohhhhh.... To go poop with?

One time I asked Dom to clean up his toys so I could vacuum and he said no, so I said, "I guess I'll just suck them all up!" We then calmly cleaned up. I guess he internalized that chat... I pull out the vacuum while Emilia is reading a book on the floor.
D (calmly and matter of factly): Mommy, are you going to suck up Emilia?

Playing with my locked phone
D: Mommy, I'm going to take a picture!
Me: Okay, cool
D: I took a picture! I'll send it to you

He's supposed to be napping the day after we turn his bed back around to a big boy bed. I hear some clanging around 45 minutes after I put him to bed. I go upstairs and see him sitting on his floor.
D (sheepishly): Mommy... I'm making pancakes
Upon further investigation I see he has put the helipad from his firehouse in the shelf on the TV stand/play table in his room.
D: I'm going to take them out of the oven; they're very hot.
He reaches to take the "pancakes" out of the "oven" and I see he has a sock on his hand as an oven mitt. At this point stern Mom is gone and I burst into hysterical laughter. 

Dave: Hey Dom, why did the chicken cross the road?
D: Hmmmm.... oh i know! ummm..... oh! Cuz I kinda bonked it!
*He now tells this all in joke format*

Jumping on the couch and wants my attention
D: Hey! Watch this babe!

Dom being grumpy before lunch time
Me: Dom, are you hungry?
D: No. I'm HANGRY!

Sees a truck with some covered stuff on the trailer
D: What's in there? 
Me: I don't know, what do you think?
D: Maybe wagons

Me: Alright, let's go D-Money
D: Mommy, don't say D-Money. Just Dominic
I've been told!

Every time we're in the car it's NON STOP questions (see quote two before this). 
D: What's that car? Is it black? Where's it going? Is it going to work? Is it loud? Is it fast? Did it turn left? Are we turning left? Are we turning right? Is the light red? Is it green? Does yellow mean slow? SLOW DOWN MOMMY! Be Careful! What's that person doing? Where are they going? What's their name? Are we going to the grocery store? Are we going to Costco? Will the big green guy be there? What's that guy doing? Is that yellow digger digging? Is it taking a break? What are you eating? What's this song? 
(You get the idea)

Cute consistent word mistakes:
Aminals (animals)
Cofulur (colorful)
Ephalent (elephant)
Kanina (Katrina)
Tephelone (telephone)
Cinecks (Canucks)

Williams Lake

I got back yesterday evening from Williams Lake. It was a hard weekend, but I'm glad I went.

Friday morning I drove up there with my parents, and my brothers came up later that night and met us at Uncle Mike & Aunty Yvonne's. Opa, Oma, Uncle Ed, Aunty Michelle and my cousin Amanda were also up for the weekend. 

We checked into our rooms at the Best Western. The boys and I shared a suite with a king bed (for Jeff and Adam) in its own room and two queens in the main room which Scott and I slept in. 

The first night at Mike & Yvonne's was good. It was a very emotionally confusing weekend. We were there to support their family because the memorial for Jeff, their friend and captain of the fishing boat they were on who drowned, was that weekend. We laughed and had familiar visits, but they also reminisced about their experience and trauma, and everyone was in tears at some point. All the feelings. 

We went back to the hotel and I was exhausted and had a headache. I just wanted to go to sleep, but the boys wanted to hang out and drink beer and watch TV. I tried for a while, but finally asked them to go to the other room at midnight. I slept from midnight until 2am. At that point I woke up with a POUNDING headache. I was close to calling my mom to see if she had meds, because I forgot mine. I didn't fall back asleep. At around 5am I had to throw up. I continued to throw up until 830, and then was finally able to go back to bed and sleep for a couple hours. I have never felt so sick in my life. I didn't drink much the night before, but I wonder if the combination of the couple of beers, pizza, and lack of water I drank that day added up to one major dehydration event. What a terrible way to spend my first night away from my family! 

Despite this, I was able to catch a couple hours of sleep and keep some pills down eventually, and then I took a shower, got dressed and made it to the memorial service. 

The service was so well done. It was super emotional, but also very honoring and beautiful. I think everyone who didn't know Jeff left feeling like they knew him, or like they wish they knew him. He was the ultimate extrovert and a man always looking for adventure. During the slide show nearly every single photo of him he had a super goofy look on his face. The speeches given by the family and friends were perfect. 

After the service we walked back to Mike & Yvonne's and prepped dinner. A huge rib-eye roast, homemade double-deep-fried french fries and cesar salad. I opted not to drink that evening because I still wasn't feeling 100%. 

Everyone was pretty tired so we left around 8. Back at the hotel the 6 of us hung out in Mom & Dad's room for a couple hours. It has been 8 years since we were away with just the 6 of us. It was really nice to kick back, chat about our lives, share stories and laugh. We had a little cheers and then it was off to sleep. I slept like a champ! I guess the 2 hours the night before allowed me to sleep 8.5 hours straight. I slept in until 815! That hasn't happened in years. Sad, but true. 

We were all back on the road around 930am and made the trek back to Surrey. I drove with the three boys for the first stretch, and then we stopped at Spences Bridge and went to "The Log Cabin" restaurant for lunch. Funky place in "town" (if you can call it a town). The food was decent and the decor was really cool! 

We were back home around 430pm and I was ready to debrief about the weekend. I missed the kids and was ready to see them, but I did not miss the responsibility and wasn't quite ready for that yet! Haha. 

After we got the kids to bed and I had a shower, Dave and I sat down with some nachos and a glass of wine and I told him all about the weekend. I know he wished he could have been there too, so I tried to share as much as possible. We definitely shed a few tears again as I re-called the stories and memorial service. 

I took almost no pictures the whole time. That wasn't why I went, and I was sick half the time so nobody wanted to see a picture of the bathroom floor I'm pretty sure! 

I love our family and am continually reminded at how blessed we are to have everyone be so close. 


Side note. David was a champ and he and the kids had a great weekend. Ashleigh helped out Sunday morning because Dave was on media at church. I hardly talked to them all weekend though and it was nice not to have to worry! :)

"GUUUSSSS CHIGGINS!" (From a Will Ferrell SNL skit)

Jeff and Adam's romantic room

I had a brief 10 minute window where I was alone in the hotel room between arriving and heading to dinner. I put on some music, got changed, put on some makeup and had myself a sip of wine all by myself. Most relaxed I was all weekend haha!

Red Tomato Pizza (or something). It's been voted the best pizza in Canada and I do not disagree! It was amazing.

This is Amora, Carmen's 6 month old poodle puppy. She is actually a teddy bear I'm pretty sure. Quiet little fluff ball of love. Gina's dog Zoe (not pictured) is also an amazing dog. She's gorgeous and snuggly and soft; reminds me a lot of Shadow. 

Meaaaat! So glad I got my appetite back for this!

Haha maybe this is why I have no pictures. It was just chaotic and loud most of the time. It was fun, but hard for an introvert like me to focus!

Inside the bathroom at the pub. Everything was covered in Sharpie! Interesting!!

Anyway. Off to do some work now. No breaks for this woman! :) 

Thankful Thursday - 197

Well I'm officially peopled out! I had a great first week at work, but I'm toast now. It's especially hard when I'm being trained, because I'm talking, learning AND thinking all day! 

This week I am thankful for...

1. The rain. I don't love the fact that I feel trapped inside and get cabin fever, but I DO love the coziness of Fall! Bring on the scarves and boots! <3

I haven't done any lettering in nearly a week. Apparently things got busy! I hope to sit down and do some tonight!

2. Morning at the zoo. I love having a zoo pass. This morning we went out with the Chickalettas to the zoo. We got there at 9 and left at 1130. Great thing about a zoo pass is that A. It's free (including parking) and B. I don't feel bad for only going for two and a half hours!

Henry helped Dom build a happy face at the playground while we waited for our other friends.

Advantages of being some of the first people at the zoo: the big cats aren't sick of people yet!

Two attempts at a group picture. This one looks great, except it's missing Dom, Mikaela & James. Below is my attempt to get Dom in the picture hahaha. 

You can see my defeat, Emilia staring at her brother, and Dom laying flat on the ground throwing a tantrum. 

#beingtwoisfine...

This is the first time we've gone that Emilia really interacted. She climbed out of the stroller a few times and made animal sounds when she could!

3. New job. I had my first week and it's been great so far. I feel like I'm grasping the big ideas and databases pretty quickly, and have received a lot of encouragement and support! David was a champ with the kids and was able to schedule his shoots around me. Another bonus... On day 1 there was a bottle of wine waiting for me. On day 2 I was taken out for delicious sushi!

4. David - Super Dad! As stated above he was so great with the kids this week. This is no surprise, it's not like he's not involved in our every day life. The surprise to me is how he has not complained once that he is all of a sudden on solo-dad duty more often. He is even taking the kids this weekend so that I can go away with my family to Williams Lake. He's been so supportive and chill through all these huge changes!
*No pictures of super-dad apparently, so here are some recent one of other things haha!

At the church BBQ

PONYTAIL! Suddenly she looks so old 

At the Fleetwood Festival

Emilia - 16 Months

Little Wheelia is 16 months now. I feel like she's older already, and am tempted to say a year and a half all the time, but two months of development at this age is still significant, so I am reminded that she still has a ways to go!

Dominic at 16 Months

I cannot get over how massive he was

Weight: 23.6 lb (77th percentile)
Height: 31.5 inches (65th percentile)

Likes:

• Rough-housing. She's a little dare devil and her and Dom are often wrestling and running around and being crazy.
• Dancing. 
• Blanket (still her favorite, other than me :) )

Dislikes:

• Mashed potatoes. I think it must be a texture thing. I could tell she liked the flavor (covered in Bo Bo Moma's gravy. mmmmmmm!!!), but her face was definitely showing dislike for the texture haha! She still enjoys french fries though. 
• Being helped when she doesn't want help. Miss. Independent. Lord help you if you try to help her with something and she wants to do it herself. It will serve her well in the long run, but makes for fun toddler days!
• Having her teeth brushed. I'm pretty confident this has to do with the fact that I try to do it for her. (see previous bullet point...).

Notes:

• Moving towards size 18 month clothing, depending on the brand and how many times its been washed. Size 4 diapers, size 4 shoes. 
• Words: Ball , bless you (ah tu - with thank you sign), thank you (tae tu - with thank you sign), up (puh), book (bvoo), cheese, pee-u (while plugging her nose), no thank you (shakes head and says thank you), please (sign and peees), help (just signing), Daddy, Dom (Dah), Puppy, Milk/Water (woh woh woh), Hiiiiiiiiii, Bye (DAHH!), ya, toes, shoes (dooos), poop (boop), Oma (mmmmma).
• I think she's closer to potty training than Dom is. She does not like to be in a dirty diaper. If she poops she will stop whatever she's doing, come to me and point to her diaper and say, "boop" and then lay down on the floor and wait for a change. Makes things very easy for me!
• She tries to say everything we say with proper inflections and everything. 
• Animal sounds: dog (ruff ruff ruff), cat (me-owwww), gorilla (thumping chest Tarzan style), elephant (raspberry with arm as trunk), rabbit (hand up on her head trying to do bunny ears and smacking lips), fish (kissy face - always leads to a real kiss), snake, monkey, giraffe (she points to her neck and tries to say, "looooooong neck" - because I have no idea what a giraffe sound is), and my favorite... the whale!
• Whale. I didn't know what to do for this one, so I just started speaking like whale, "Heelllllooooooooo Doooooominiiiiic! Heeellllooooooooo Emiiiiiiillliaaaaaa!" Now she goes, "AlllllooooooweeeeeeeeliAH!" and is very proud of herself and it's so freaking cute. 
• Can point to head, nose, eyes, mouth, hair, ears, bellybutton, bum, toes. 
• She's starting to get her molars. I think there are three poking out. 
• She can do simple puzzles. All of a sudden something clicked. The animal Melissa & Doug ones are pretty doable now for her. She wants to try Dom's harder ones, but that just gets messy and annoying when she throws the pieces everywhere. 
• Tests the rules... constantly. The kids aren't allowed to bang their cups at the table whie we're eating. They get one warning and after that their milks get taken away and put in the fridge. It's an established rule and they both know it. Emilia will do a couple test hits and look at us, so we give her the warning. Then she looks up with a grin and does one more big hit and hands us her cup. How is a 16 month old winning at life already?! Going to be some fun teenage years. 
• She demands that I take her shirt off often. I'm not sure if she hates clothes or just wants to play with her bellybutton. Maybe both. I put her in a long sleeve for bed and she kept whining and pulling at the sleeves around her wrists. A summer girl already!
• She has the most hilarious giggle. It lights up a room. That's cliche, but it's true! If you've heard it, you know. 
• She's started playing better by herself and loves to read books. 
• Speaking of books, if I do try to sit down for 5 minutes and take a break I immediately have 2 kids on my lap with a pile of books being brought over. Sigh... at least I just rotated out our book supply so I'm not completely sick of all the ones on our main floor now. 
• She eats anything pretty much. She doesn't complain or fuss much at all. The kids are both champion eaters lately (except Dom and his stalling techniques, but he's not picky at least). 
• Dances along with some of the Wiggles songs
• Still won't sit and watch TV for more than a couple minutes. Sometimes I just want a break!!
• She is doing much better with other people. She uses her tears to manipulate a lot, and pouts if someone looks at her funny, but she has improved SIGNIFICANTLY compared to a few months ago. 
• Speaking of manipulation, I have to watch how I respond to her and Dom's tiffs. They'll be having an argument and she'll start crying and I assume Dom has done something to her (probably true), but I am learning that her reaction is often not appropriate for what was done. She jut likes when he gets in trouble and she gets a snuggle. I'm not exaggerating. She's tricky.
• Tries to open doors already. Dom JUST figured out doors. Hopefully it'll take her a while yet. 

I just had to do it. I also have a shirt that matches these. One day we'll get a pic of all three of us haha!

Now for a little Dominic Then & Now

I did not ask him to make this face. I hadn't even looked at his 16 month photos when we took these. He apparently is just the same cheeky child!

Something weird happens on the inside when you look at baby pictures of your babies. I can't remember what he was like at that age and that's so hard! Thank goodness for modern technology and Google Photos for making videos from those days easy to access. I now realize I have hardly any videos of Emilia.