amberfly00@hotmail.com

Good News!! (but a little more work for you...)

2007-01-25T10:30:00.000-06:00

Remember my very FIRST blog?

The one that holds all of my archives from March 2005??
The one that I was not able to post to after November 2006 because blogger wouldn't allow me to?
The one I made "private" for privacy reasons??

Well, I am pleased to announce that after 3+ months, blogger has heard my cries for help! I am able to publish my posts on that blog now!! The major plus will be I will have all my archives in one spot...and, more importantly, I will feel safe & secure in bloggerland once again. I have seen one too many scary & threatening anonymous comments lately on some of the blogs I read and they reminded me once again why I switched my blog to private a while back.

I really am not trying to confuse & lose my readers! Hopefully this is the last time I have to change my blog address. If you are a *NEW* reader of my blog and I have not yet invited you to read Under Our Tin Roof then please send me an e-mail and I will send you an invite. I love meeting friends through blogging, so I hope to hear from you soon!!

If you have ANY questions at all, or if there are problems with signing in to www.underourtinroof2.blogspot.com - where I will continue blogging, please let me know. Thank-you for your understanding! I look forward to you joining me as I continue to blog!!

My e-mail address: amberfly00@hotmail.com

(please note: those are two ZERO's after amberfly)

Celebrating Life

2007-01-24T20:10:00.000-06:00

The article below is my submission to the blog challenge sponsored by Art Bookbindery, "Empowering Writers to Self Publish."

Original post date: January 2, 2006

************

My precious Hailey,
Days like this I want to remember forever.

I love how you walk over to me and lift up your arms and say “mum mum mum”. When I pick you up you wrap your little arms around my neck and rest your head on my shoulder….not just for a quick snuggle. You are still for longer than usual and when you are satisfied, you want me to put you down so you can run along and continue playing with your toys. Days like this make the tough days seem miles away.

I love how while we are playing on the floor you climb on me and rest your head on my back. How you talk in your “I love you” voice and rub my hair with your hands. I love when you come to me and put your baby soft cheeks close to mine and open up your mouth to give me a kiss. Times like this make me feel so loved and appreciated—it’s like you are thanking me over and over for being your mom.

I love the sweet giggles that I hear when you are being playful and the teasing way you hold out a toy for me to take and then pull it away. I love your silly squinty eyed smile that you turn around and give to Daddy & me while you are pulling CDs off the shelf. Or when you walk out of the room and poke your head back around the corner to see if we are watching. When we make eye contact and start coming after you, you squeal with delight and walk away fast, with your hands up and waving in the air…the fastest getaway you know.

I love when we hear Daddys truck pull into the drive way and I tell you “I think Daddys home” and we go to the window so you can look out. Your big inquisitive eyes open wide as you watch for him to come into view on the sidewalk. Then your eyes light up and a big smile comes across your face as you see him. I put you down on the floor and you make your way to the enterance door. When Daddy opens the door, he crouches down and you walk up to his open arms and he picks you up and you give him your biggest hug, and rest your head on his shoulder as he hugs you back.

I love the way you snuggle with me when you are tired and drinking your bottle at the end of the day. Your big blue eyes staring up at me and one of your hands reaching up towards my face. I love the way you take your one little pointer finger and reach up so carefully to feel my eyelashes, or to play with the strand of hair hanging down, or to just trace your hand lightly over my face. As your eyes start getting droopy, I love leaning down and rubbing my cheek on your forehead. Times like this make the long sleepless nights worth it all.

Hailey, I thank Jesus for blessing me with a beautiful daughter like you. 10 months ago when I had my 1st look at my sweet sweet baby girl, I could never have imagined the joy you would bring to our lives. Days like this I want to remember forever.

every kids dream

2007-01-23T16:25:00.000-06:00

This past weekend Raquel, mom, Auntie M & I went to the Wonderful Wedding Show. It was a really informative & productive day, as Raquel booked her photographer there and found numerous other ideas & vendors for their big day. It was at this event that I learned about the Winnipeg Baby & Kids Show coming up on February 10th & 11th. OH.MY.GOODNESS. It looks like SO much fun!! Elmo & Sponge Bob are going to be there to meet and greet, but Hailey's not really into either of them. In all honesty they'll probably freak her right out. BUT, the part that she WILL be pumped about it the performance by the Backyardigans!!! I'm just trying to get Erik as excited about this as I am!! It looks like there will be plenty to do and see at the show - educational seminars, play structures and inflatable bouncy rooms, and many exhibitor displays with free samples & coupons. As I was browsing through the list of exhibitors I found Babymoon Ultrasound - a place in Winnipeg that offers non-diagnostic 3D/4D ultrasounds. I didn't know there were services like this! I mean, I don't think I'll be booking a $300 ultrasound package or anything, but it was fun to look through their website and see what they have to offer!

I'm really hoping to make it to the Convention Center for this show! I know Hailey would be in her glory running around in a place like this...maybe afterwards we'll even take her to McDonalds (barf.gag.ewww.) for her 1st time ever!!

I think it's funny that she's never really been to McD's! When she was 3 weeks old we went there after one of Erik's hockey games (but she didn't have anything to eat!) and one other time she had chicken nuggets from the drive thru - but she's more of a Red Lobster/Applebees kind of girl, hee hee!

Ag Days in Brandon

2007-01-21T21:30:00.000-06:00

A couple of months ago our hubbies pleasantly surprised Sherri & I with the idea of going to the Brandon Ag Days together. It's not too often that husbands scheme & plan mini "vacations" like this, so we were rather excited. On Wednesday morning we picked up Andrew, Sherri & Emma and made the trek out to Brandon. We stopped in Portage la Prairie for lunch at Subway and the girls fell asleep for their much needed naps about 1/2 an hour outside of Brandon...typical! We went straight to the farm show and wandered around until the voice booming through the loud speakers told us it was time to leave. Emma & Hailey had the time of their life seeing all the BIG combines, trucks & tractors & being able to sit in them and press all the buttons to their little hearts content!! They were really well behaved little farm girls and loved looking at everything!

the 4 of us

While their Daddys were googling (googling = approx. 45 minutes spent in one spot) over the brand.spanking.new. Gleaner combine on display, Hailey & Emma took the opportunity to have a little picnic. Mmmmmm, goldfish directly on the farmer-walked carpet in the middle of a booth. The best kind of picnic! Hailey pouting because Emma got into the cattle trailer ahead of her. HELLO? Is there not room enough for the both of you? It's pretty safe to say that once May roles around Hailey is going to have some major adjusting to do!

The girls especially liked putting their greasy paws (& foreheads!) on any sparkling clean window they could find. Hailey took it to the next level and actually started licking the windows on a few occasions. They were just THAT clean...and I guess it was hard for them to believe tractor windows could be that clean so they had to make sure they were the real thing!!After we left the show on Wednesday we could hardly check into the hotel & get in the pool fast enough for Hailey & Emma. "Swimming with Emma" had been hyped up for quite some time in our house and Emma apparently knew what was coming too :) and the fact that her swimsuit was left behind at home by accident didn't stop her for one second! We ordered pizza in for supper and Andrew & Erik went out in the evening to get some Dairy Queen icecream to bring to their pregnant wives :) It was taking them a really long time to get back to the hotel so we were starting to wonder what was up. They eventually did come back, with 1/2 melted Sundae's in hand and it leaked out that the DQ they went to was in the mall and there were sidewalk sales going on so they looked at a few things (well, Erik looked at hockey sticks & shoes, not sure about Andrew).

Ready, Set, JUMP!

All cozy!

Sherri & I are such troopers...the next day we went back to the farm show and stayed there the entire time with our men. Even though the mall with the sidewalk sales was just across the street!! The girls (this time I'm talking about ALL the girls, not just Emma & Hailey!) grew weary of the farm show after a couple of hours of Day 2 and were SO relieved to hear the magical words "I think I've seen all I want to see." We went out to Applebees for a late lunch before heading home. All in all it was a great couple of days away!!!

"a little help here Mommy??" I think Hailey thought me helping her climb the ladder up to the combine was more important than taking the picture, hee hee.

Hailey Mercedez

2007-01-21T19:28:00.000-06:00

I know that Haileys Grandma Jo & Grandpa who are out of the country are probably getting sick of my last post (and a few others - ahem, SUZANNE, no I am not STILL eating bacon & chocolate milk!!) and wondering where the pictures of their granddaughter are staying!

Well, here are a few pictures of Hailey today, dressed in her Sunday best.

Looking so tall!

Hailey spotted a nail that is too long. Seriously, she always lets me know when it is time to clip her nails! She's just like her mamma that way - when they go beyond the finger tip they are FAR too long!!

This is what happens when you try too hard to get a nice smiley face...

just one silly picture after another!

just throwing this out there...

2007-01-16T22:48:00.001-06:00

Isn't it gross that it's nearly 11pm and I can't stop eating Maple Leaf Turkey Bacon and can't get enough chocolate milk??

Long Distance Kisses

2007-01-15T11:15:00.000-06:00

Listening intently to her favorite far-away-voices!

Last night Hailey got to make a special phone call to her Grandpa & Grandma Jo. They have been gone for over 2 weeks and there are about 6 weeks left (but we aren't trying to keep TOO much track of that...) Hailey is funny when it comes to the phone. She was completely pumped to call them, but then when she hears their voice on the speaker phone it's hard to get a word out of her. I decided to take some pictures so that E's M&D could see what she looks like while she is talking to them. The facial experessions tell it all! Hailey was listening so closely to our conversation that she fell off the chair and smoked her chin on the table on the way down. She didn't really cry at all - I don't think she wanted to miss anything!! Towards the end of the phone call last night Hailey was feeling more comfortable and was breaking out in song - Jingle Bells and the Toopy & Binoo theme song were her songs of choice. Enjoy the pictures Mom & Dad!

We miss you & love you!!

This is a typical response from Hailey when her Grandpa or Grandma Jo ask her a question.

Long distance kisses

To finish off the weekend we went out to Red Lobster last night. After Hailey chowed down on Lobster/Artichoke/Spinach dip, Garlic Biscuits, french fries & popcorn shrimp (our little seafood lover, we are so proud!!) her kids meal was completed with her scoop of ice cream for dessert.

<--- Me & my lovely sister

In other "news," the apple consumption has slowed down a little in our house. Hailey has enjoyed them as much as I have, although my record is 3 in one day and her record is 1/2. I don't know when the Pink Lady apple season ends, but it will be a sad day indeed. Not only for me, it sounds like I have gotten a few other people hooked on them too ;) Delicious!!

Pocket Farkel

2007-01-13T18:10:00.000-06:00

Yep, you read correctly....Pocket Farkel.

best. game. ever.

Mike & Martha introduced us to this dicing game and it is a lot of fun! The game (which consists of 6 dice) comes in a film container, so it doesn't take up much room at all!

Has anyone else played this game? Or heard of it?!?

Bird Cage & a few other things

2007-01-09T22:26:00.000-06:00

BIRD CAGE!

Hailey got her 1st "real" hair cut today. I have trimmed her hair numerous times in the past but today after being at the hairdressers with Raquel, Mom & I from 10:30am - 1:30pm she wanted her turn in the chair too! Luckily there was time before the next client, so Hailey got her bangs trimmed and quite a bit taken off the back. She sat perfectly still and was so proud that she could join in the fun of sitting in the chair! Then she begged for a color & highlights like the rest of us, ha ha...right! I have never seen a 22 month old with dyed hair, but unfortunatley I'm sure it's happened to some toddlers poor pure head of hair!

Just a few more things...

Hailey has been doing really well at going to the bathroom on the toliet. We aren't making HUGE headways yet, but progress is being made none the less. I am just waiting and wishing for the day that she will tell me when she needs to go - instead of me sitting in the bathroom with her every 30 minutes or so, but I am not getting worked up about this. It will come eventually. For now I am just happy that she isn't scared of the toliet and does have something to flush down every now & again. How CAN'T she be excited to sit on the toliet when each time she sits on the toliet (whether she goes #1 or #2 or just tries and nothing comes out!) she gets to choose a sticker to put on her Dora Chart!! Hailey is all about Dora right now and I found a really cool printable chart here. I know Patti will probably be printing one for Hannah, if she hasn't found this site already ;)
Erik & I have been planning for quite some time now on spending a week in Louisianna at the end of the month to help with working on homes that were hit by Hurricane Katrina. His parents are project directors at this site for 2 months this year. Erik has joined the group from our area that goes with MDS to areas hit by disasters for the past 5 years and I have gone once before. Due to a number of circumstances I decided to give up my spot to someone who would be able to help out a lot more than I could for the week. I have been having quite a bit of pelvic pain lately and I knew the 30+ hour drive and then working for the week would be alot to handle for me right now. It was a tough decision - there were even arrangements for Hailey to spend some time with her Auntie Kristy & Uncle G for the week - but I decided it was best to opt out this year.
Speaking of Kristy, check out her blog for some info about her *new* space on the web.

My saddness about missing out on the MDS trip was soon turned into excitement about an opportunity for a play date with Janelle & Kamryn!! The flights are booked and Hailey & I are packing up and spending a few days in SK in a couple of weeks! Hailey often points at Kamryn's picture on the fridge and says "Kamryn! Airplane!! Mommy come too!" Needless to say we are both really excited and looking forward to our visit with these fine blogger friends of ours ;)
While shopping the other day I went into a store to use some of my Christmas money to buy some knitted slipper-socks that I have been eyeing for a while now. Within the 5 minutes I was in the store I got complimented on: the shoes that I was wearing, the slipper socks I was trying on, my purse and my name. It wasn't just "hey, I like your shoes" it was long, drawn out compliments for each thing. Sales-people can sometimes be pushy & annoying but Erik & I just laughed at this unique experience after we left...I guess I know where to go from now on when I need an ego boost!
My pregnancy is continuing to go well (and fast!). We are just over the 1/2 way mark!! I had a routine ultrasound on Dec.19th and it was really fun to take a sneak peek at the little life growing inside of me. They wouldn't tell us if we were expecting a boy or girl, but the profile of the face looked quite boyish to me!! I have been having a bunch of Braxton Hicks contractions lately...it was funny because the first day it happened right in the morning when I woke up and I was thinking "this can't be braxton hicks already!" but then I got a pregnancy-update e-mail that very same day that said "you may start to experience some b.h. contractions now..." So then my mind was put at ease that it wasn't entirely too early to be having them! Those e-mails sure are accurate, hee hee!! Hailey felt the baby move the other day. I told her to put her hand on my stomach so she could feel the baby kick. I don't think that was the right wording though - she felt the baby move with her hand, but I guess since she thought it was "kicking" her (usually a negative thing, right??) she moved her head back and headbutted my stomach! It was so unexpected and it actually hurt me!!! Erik & I were shocked, and don't really know what to make of that whole experience.
Today as I was getting out something out of the freezer I noticed something a little strange. There, in the freezer, was one of my new Christmas CD's that I bought last month!! I only listened to it in the car on the way home the day I bought it and it had been missing ever since. I knew it would turn up eventually - but I never thought I would find it there!! I know Hailey didn't do it, so I must have put it in there with the food I bought that day. Well, on second thought, I think I'm going to try to blame it on Hailey :) And to that she says:

"Uhhhh! Mommy - how could you??!"

A Verse to Start the New Year

2007-01-08T08:15:00.000-06:00

"Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths;

guide me in your truth and teach me.

For you are God my Savior,

and my hope is in you all day long"

Psalm 25: 4-5

~~~~

This verse really struck me the other night.

Whatever 2007 holds, I want to be walking with the Lord

as He TEACHES, GUIDES & gives us HOPE.

New Years @ The Cabin

2007-01-07T21:35:00.000-06:00

After saying good-bye to Erik's mom & dad who are down in Louisiana for 2 months (!) with MDS, we were off to spend Dec.30th - Jan 1st at Erik's grandparents cottage with my Dad, Ty & Stef, and Raquel & Darcy. My mom had to work, so unfortunately she had to stay behind this time around. The weather was absolutely AMAZING and had lots of fun running around on the lake. The temperature was hovering around 0 one day and the sun was shining. Almost tanning weather ;) The first night we were there we woke up at least a foot of light & fluffy snow covering everything! It was so pretty!

Stef, Hailey & Ty all snuggled by the wood stove, trying to keep warm. Since the cabin doesn't get used much in the winter all the power is turned off between visits. It really was colder inside the cabin than outside when we first got there. It took a good 3 hours to be able to take off our jackets & start to feel warm. Hailey's little nose was so cute all bright red, but I really felt sorry for her shivering & saying "Mommy, colddddd, Mommy!"

While we were all shivering inside, Erik was the smart one - doing stuff outside. Through a frosty window you can see Erik snowblowing paths on the lake - he makes trails from the cabin onto the lake and then to each fishing hole. He had to redo all of his paths the second day after the dumping of snow we got! He has fun doing it though, so I don't think he minded too much.

After it was warm enough to feel our fingers S,T & I started a game of Phase 10 to help pass the time of feeling frozen.

It's so cozy reading at the cabin -- feeling the warmth from the wood stove and hearing the crackling of the fire is the best!!

Raquel & Darcy showed up around 11pm and ordered everyone to go into the living room. They came in holding their hands behind their backs. Ice Caps for everyone!! They were so delicious - and tasted as if they were straight from the drive-thru window. They kept them the perfect temperature on the 1 1/2 hour drive to the cabin.

The path to the only functioning bathroom at the cabin. Thankfully there are special "rules" for going pee at night...it was a little harder for my bulging-bladder-pregnant-self to wait until night each day to use the bathroom but I did ok. The cabin has no running water in the winter so Erik has to flush the inside toliet manually with lake water every morning. What a nice guy!

Hailey taking a close look into the hole - waiting for the big one to bite!

It's hard to tell, but they are in the little fort they built for Hails.

Christmas socks!!

Care to guess whose feet these are??

R & D making new tracks

Stef & Erik during a heated game of Dominoes.

Hailey found the sand toys in the boat house and found out they work just as good in the snow! Her hands stayed surprisingly warm outside - I was worried about them being too cold. When I finally took off one of her mittins to check, they were toasty warm!
Ty made this game of tag in the snow. You can only run on the lines he made. Does anyone remember what this game is called?? We used to play it in elementary school. Darcy got quite the workout running with Hailey in his arms. She was squealing with delight the whole time though and loved being part of the action.

More games - Pictionary in the snow. Here is my kite. Dad's snowman

Awwww, Erik's romantic heart -- I secretly imagined that he was writting this in the sand on some far away beach, but a beautiful day on the lake is a close second ;)

We celebrated Stefanie's birthday on the 31st with candles in the Mexican Casserole I made for supper.

Hailey running out to check one one of the holes. She loved being out on the lake, and got right in there!!

"Yep, looks ok Daddy!"

Scooping out the slush...

Oh yes, and just in case you were wondering, Ty was the one wearing the fancy socks. Who would have guessed it??!

(they were Stef's socks...thank goodness!)

Pink Lady Apples

2007-01-04T22:49:00.000-06:00

I was OVERJOYED today when I stopped at our local store to do some grocery shopping and saw my ABSOLUTE favorite kind of apples for sale. "Pink Lady Apples" are THE best tasting apple ever. Maybe I just don't look hard enough, but I RARELY can find these suckers. Here is a mouth watering description from a website I found:

"The Pink Lady is an exiting new bi-colored apple that originated in Australia. Known as nature's health food, it becomes crisp and crunchy and stores well in the refrigerator and becomes sweeter with time. The fruit is medium in size and conical in shape with a distinctive pink blush over a yellow back-ground. The fine-grained flesh is crisp and crunchy and does not brown easily after the fruit has been cut. The first bite tastes pleasantly tart followed by a delicious sweetness."

I had 2 apples today (well, Hailey helped me with one of them) and it's SUCH a good feeling to snack on something healthy. My most favorite snack of choice are Miss Vickie's chips...my favortie flavor: Honey & Roasted Garlic but Sweet Chili & Sour Cream is a close second.

I actually chose an apple over chips this evening. Imagine that!!

I'm curious, what is YOUR snack of choice??

the last of the Christmas recaps

2007-01-04T19:22:00.000-06:00

Dec. 26th started off with the Waldner gathering in the afternoon. Uncle Harold read the Christmas story and had a little devotional. (missed you Kim & Alex!!!) We also had the Funk gathering to go to that day, so Erik spent a couple of hours there and then came back to the W gathering for supper and then in the evening we went over to spend some time with his moms side of the family.

Hailey had fun with all of my cousins - like usual!

(no that is not me playing air hockey with Hailey above, it's my look-alike younger cousin Elisa)

Brandi & Kalia

and

Hailey & I

Dec.29th found my

family finally celebrating Christmas together. The latest date in our family's history! Ty & Stef were supposed to arrive back on Dec.28th from Red Deer but due to bad weather they got stormed in in Brandon. They arrived on the 29th just in time for the big turkey dinner for lunch. Ty's car was jam-packed to the roof as they moved all of Stef's belongings to Manitoba! It is going

to be (and has been already!) so nice to have her in the same province as us!! I think Ty & her will especially be happy for the long distance travelling to be over.

Mom genuinely surprised by the new phone her & Dad got!

Uncle Ty putting together Haileys new shopping cart from him & Auntie Stef.

Hailey with some of her new toys. Ola Dora! One of Haileys most treasured gifts is the Talking/Dancing Dora doll. It sings "We Did It" while twisting her body and moving her arms. She has 30+ phrases, teaches Spanish, initiates games & teaches counting & colors! Phew!!That really takes some of the pressure of my job as a mom (ha, right).

A lot of Dominoes has been played these last 2 weeks. The game on the 24th in the evening really got me hooked and I actually crave a game of Dominoes more than any food.

Hailey enjoyed licking her Lollipop through the tiny slit I made in the top of the wrapper....come to think of it, I have NO idea where that Lollipop is right now. I know we had to find a clever way to take it away from her but I have no clue where we put it after that! Maybe it is stashed away with the FINGER PAINTS that we are saving for a (very) rainy day. In 2010.

We had a great day together as a family of 9 (!). What a great joy to be able to celebrate Jesus' birth all together under the same roof. In the evening Erik & I snuck away for a bit to his Uncle Rays reception (he just got married in November) and then came back to M&D's until Hailey was ready for bed. The next morning we were off to the cabin...

Winter Fun!

2007-01-01T22:49:00.000-06:00

All 3 of us got bundled up on Dec.27th in the late afternoon and Erik took Hailey & I for a ride around our yard on the snowmobile. It was short lived, but Hailey enjoyed the ride for the most part!

It's so crazy to think that in the summer months we can just walk outside without putting on a toque, hood, scarf, mittens, jacket, ski pants and boots! This has been a very mild winter so far, and as much as I hate to say it, the really really cold weather MUST be ready to hit us soon. It's just too good to be true :)

~~~~~~

We spent New Years at the cabin and just got back this evening. This was the last of our holiday events. These last 2 weeks have been incredibly fun (yet tiring!) and I am so much looking forward to the week ahead - for a number of reasons: I think Hailey is ready to start hard core potty training - so I'd like to tackle that while I have some ambition, as far as I know there are NO work deadlines and we don't have a single thing planned all week long and just getting back into the "normal" routine will be nice and getting all of our Christmas stuff (gifts, decorations, etc) put away. I know Hailey will enjoy staying home and playing with all her new toys.

(more pictures from our trip to the cabin to come...)

Happy 2007 Everyone!!

Christmas Day

2006-12-28T21:47:00.000-06:00

Christmas morning found Hailey waking us up by running full speed into our bedroom (as she does every morning) just before 8am and climbing into bed with us. We told her that it was Christmas morning - Jesus' birthday - and explained why it was a special day. Then we all ran to the living room and in the early morning light we took some pictures and opened our gifts to eachother.

Our family of 3 on Christmas morning. Crazy to think next year at this time there will be 4 of us!!! The sun was JUST coming up behind the evergreens in the window on the left...it was a beautiful morning indeed.

Mommy & Hailey

Christmas morning kiss for Daddy

Hailey was excited - it is SO much fun to see such joy in a child's eyes!!

I guess SOMEBODY didn't do any snooping this year - Hailey was genuinely surprised by her gifts!! I, on the other hand, found an Old Navy reciept just days before Christmas (why do they have to make those things SO detailed???) and Erik saw one of his gifts by accident too. I thought I had hid the new Mossy Oak floor mats for his truck so well...they were hanging in plain view in my parents garage and APPARENTLY when the garage door is open they are easily visible! Who knew!!

Hailey could never have too many dolls...she loves them - something I never really had much interest in as a little girl.

<--- Me & Baby #2 at approx. 20 weeks modeling one of my gifts from Erik: the 2nd most comfy pj pants in the world. Nothing is going to top my $70 red Roots sweats...those things feel like butter and were surprisingly worth every penny.

After we finished opening gifts, I went back to bed for about an hour and then we got ready for the Christmas Day service at church.

We didn't have any "official" Christmas gathering on Christmas Day - my mom was working until about 2pm and Tyler & Stefanie were having Christmas on their own in Red Deer (Stef's last shift at the hospital ended at 7am Christmas morning) so E, H & I spent the day at my mom & dad's house with Raquel & Darcy. We played games & had a fun day together. We missed Ty & Stef, but it was nice to be able to call & chat with them in the afternoon a bit. Hailey had a nice long nap in the afternoon (again, a MUCH needed nap...so many gatherings in a row did a number on her!) and then my Grandma & Grandpa joined us for a big delicious steak & seafood feast for supper. Snow Crab Legs, Shrimp, Calamari, Artichoke Spinach Dip, Steak, Potatoes & the works.

Having fun with Uncle Darcys "Operation" game. DOH!! Hailey found it quite funny trying to perform surgery on Homer Simpson.

Hailey & my Grandpa

My mom just had to give Hailey at least ONE of her presents on Christmas Day (my family is getting together on the 29th)...her first Cabbage Patch doll. It is the "newborn" CBD and it came with its very own carseat. Hailey loves toting that doll around in the seat.

After more visiting & more games in the evening it was time to head home to bed and get rested up for the 2 extended family gatherings we had the next day!

So THIS is Christmas...

2006-12-28T21:22:00.000-06:00

Our Christmas festivities started off on Dec. 17th when we celebrated with my Dad's brothers & sisters.

<---Dad reads the Christmas story every year.

Kalia & her beautiful Auntie Jenna!

Kalia gets a little taste of the Lemon Trifle that I made for dessert. Auntie Carol made her traditional German Chocolate Cheesecake....it was delicious, just like every year!

Among the gifts from the aunties & uncles was a special Care Bear for Hailey. It came with a toy necklace and when she hugs the Care Bear and the bears nose touches the necklace the Care Bear talks! Hailey loves it and was pleased to own some of her very own jewelry. The unique toys out there never cease to amaze me!Kalia & Hailey getting a ride through out the house in Kalia's stroller.

Hailey giving hugs. We are teaching Hailey from a young age that every gift recieved deserves a big thank-you hug...she didn't quite have all the "gift etiquette" down this year, but next year she will comprehend it a lot better. Example: one gift to her was a pair of pants & matching shirt and a book. Hailey tossed out the tissue paper looking for more. When she realized that there was nothing else in the box she said "Toys??" As if to say...."that's IT?" Then she proceeded to ask for more presents. Oh the innocence of a child!

On the 23rd we were off to spend the day with Erik's Dads side of the family.

Hailey & Jonas got to spend a little bit of time together at this gathering - they are about 7 months apart. Erik's cousin Jody, her husband Dave & Jonas are living in England right now so it was fun to catch up with Jody and see how much Jonas had grown since the last time we saw them. We were excited to find out that Jonas is going to be a big brother just weeks after Hailey becomes a big sister!!

The guys like to play Risk at this Christmas gathering. This year the game was quite a bit shorter than it usually is as after a couple of hours Jay wiped everyone out in a single turn!

Not only has Hailey enjoyed opening her OWN presents this year but she has enjoyed helping everyone else open their gifts as well.

The 24th was a special day and one that had been anticipated for much of the month. It doesn't happen tooooo often that Erik's family gets to spend the WHOLE day together. We all went to church together in the morning and Mom made her famous ribs with double baked potatoes for lunch. Hailey headed for a nap as soon as we got there, so she missed out on lunch and a good part of the afternoon, but she was getting a much needed nap. After getting a tour of Shaun & Vicki's house (they are in the middle of painting right now!) we headed back to M&D's for our time of sharing - every year each person has a chance to share about the past years low lights & high lights. Erik figured Hailey was missing out, so he went to wake her up (without telling me, of course - I would have DEFINITELY voted for letting the poor girl finish her nap!) and a very drowsy Hailey entered the scene. She eventually perked up and we started to open gifts. Starting with our stockings. My family never had stockings growing up so this is always a fun aspect of Erik's family. We questioned this year how many more years Mom would put together stockings for each of us...as there is another Grandchild on the way.

<--- Sleepy Hailey peeking into her stocking.

Giving & receiving...what a blessing to be able to give gifts as a reminder of the greatest gift of all - Jesus, who came to earth as a baby so many many years ago.

crokinole

Supper was a delicious spread of fruit & dip, jello, shirmp dip & taco chips, perishki's & cheese dip & bread, buffet style.

Aunties are so much fun - they get to have all kinds of special moments with their niece!! (I can't wait to be an auntie someday!!) After Auntie Kristy & Auntie Vicki gave Hailey a bubble bath it was time for a bedtime story (or 7!). Hailey was all cozy in her new Christmas jammies that her Grandma Jo made her. They are made out of the SOFTEST fleece ever.

After all the stories were read, we figured we could just put Hailey down for the night in the playpen upstairs. After I tucked her in to bed we started up a game of Dominos. Hailey just wouldn't stop crying, so Erik went upstairs to see what the matter was. When he went into the room and asked her why she was crying Hailey replied "Jingle Bells!!" It didn't take Erik very long to figure out what she meant. As we were mixing the Dominoes on the table, they were making a loud clinking noise that could easily be heard from Haileys room. Erik decided to take her home and put her to bed in her own bed. Shaun went with him and the 2 of them were busy playing their 40th game (ok, maybe not quite that many!) of NHL 2007 on PS2 when Graham, Kristy, Vicki & I showed up at our house a couple of hours later. Us 4 played a couple of games of Shanghi while Erik & Shaun CONTINUED to play hockey and around midnight the party winded down. Hailey slept peacefully throughout it all and woke up as happy as can be on Christmas morning...

Hailey's 2nd Christmas

2006-12-26T23:00:00.000-06:00

Here are a few recent pictures of Hailey. I cannot wait to continue journaling about Christmas 2006!! Now that my *new* blog is some-what up to date I am exhasted and ready to call it a night.

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I hope you all are enjoying your Christmas holidays - celebrating Jesus' birth with family and friends is such a wonderful feeling! May joy fill your heart & homes and may you take time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas!! Blessings to you all!

Christmas Goodies Galore!!

2006-12-26T22:10:00.000-06:00

On December 13th Mom, Raquel & I had a little Christmas baking marathon. It was so much fun! We made: Sour Cream Cookies, Haystacks, Red Sugar Cookies, Unbaked Cookies, Oreo Cookies, Shortbread Cookies, Toffee Marshmallows (mmm, my favorite!), Gingersnaps, and Chocolate Cupcakes. My Grandma joined us for a few hours in the afternoon - which made the day even more special!

Mom & Raquel had fun experimenting with Grandma's fancy cookie press - they created all kinds of fun shaped Shortbread Cookies with it!

Grandma & Raquel :)

Hailey had a nice long nap in the afternoon and then when she woke up she got to do some test-tasting -- it appeared as though everything got an A+ from her!!

Fun Night Away!

2006-12-26T21:45:00.000-06:00

On December 8th, after a busy work week, Mike & Martha took Erik, Hailey & I to the Victoria Inn for one night. They sprung this on us last month...they said they had had this idea for a long time already - one of their ways of thanking our family for letting me be with them in Toronto back in May. They waited to do it until now - now that Uncle Mike has had 6 months of recovery since his major back surgery. He is doing extremely well, and it is unbelievable how far God has brought him in the past 6 months. It's been a long, hard, road for their family but it has been amazing to see how God has brought healing & recovery and has been faithful to them. It was a special couple of days with their family! It was an EXTRA special day because it was the FIRST TIME since U.Mike's surgery that he carried Hailey. Auntie M & I were sitting and watching (and I took a short video of the momentous event - of course) and I think we both had a little tear in our eye ;) I know it's been hard on him when Hailey wants to go "up" and he hasn't been able to lift her. This was a fun step to watch. I know he would have loved to go down the water slide with her when she started pulling him towards the stairs...but it's not quite time for water sliding.

Hailey had so much fun with Jer & Zach. They took such good care of her in the water - Jer & Hailey even went down the waterslide a couple of times together.

All good things must come to an end. For Hailey that meant catching up on some sleep. Thanks again for the fun time...we love your family to bits & pieces!

Birthdays & Other Pictures

2006-12-26T21:40:00.000-06:00

On Dec. 1st we went out to celebrate my cousin Jeremy's birthday! He's a teenager now!! I started babysitting him when he was just a few months old - and all through his childhood years - and now he is 13!! He's such a special guy to me and it was a lot of fun celebrating HIM that evening. :) I often tell him things about when he was little and stories from when I used to baby sit him & Zach and the other day he said to me "Amber, now I will be able to tell Hailey when she is older that I remember her when she was young!" Love ya Jer!!

Hailey loves her cereal for breakfast...just like her Daddy! Honey Nut Cheerios - good to the last drop!!

Auntie Kel & Hailey were playing with my magnetic earings that I have had since Grade 7 or so. While it does look kind of cute on Hailey, I will absolutely NOT get her ears pierced for many moons yet. Erik & I have agreed since day one that when she ASKS to get her ears pierced we will consider, but until then it's not an option. Then there were Auntie Kel's magnetic piercings - lip, nose & eyebrow...not so cute! But of course I'd still love her if someday she gets all crazy and does all 3, hee hee. Don't do it Jill!

Family pictures - it takes some effort, but eventually a good one is captured! How do families with more than one child do it???!

I love Hailey's pointy little defined chin. ---->

This feature has stuck with her since she was wee little!!

Erik's Grandpa celebrated his 80th Birthday on Dec. 5th. The family threw a party for him and it was so neat to hear all kinds of stories & memories that a lot of his guests shared during the evening. Kristy put together a book of all the grand childrens memories which Grandma & Grandpa have loved looking through and reading. Here is what Erik wrote on his page:

One of my favorite memories of Grandpa was when he would take his grandsons golfing. It was always fun when we went golfing with Grandpa because there were a few special things he did:

1) He would always let us drive the golf cart. That doesn't seem like a big deal but to us little guys it meant a lot. We were not always the best golfers on the course so this was something to look forward to. Which leads me to my next point.

2) Seeing that 10 and 12 year olds are not the worlds best golfers as a rule, us grandsons often found ourselves in less than ideal golfing situations. However, when we were with Grandpa, he always had a rule or just a good reason that would allow us to move our ball to a better location. Also, when we were on the green getting ready to putt, he would walk around the hole and with his putter he would make sure that there were no lips or bumps that might affect our putts in a negative way.

3) At the start of nearly every round Grandpa would say to us grandsons, "If anyone beats me, I will buy lunch". Over time, we learned that this statement had multiple meanings. When we were quite young and nobody would beat him, then he would go back on the score card and find a hole that one of us beat him on and that would be good enough for lunch. If he didn't find a hole where we beat him, Then he would take us for lunch because he was the winner. As we got older we eventually started beating him and earning our lunches but it was never easy. These golf rounds are definitely the reason that I love Chicken Delight fried chicken.

It didn't matter whether we were fishing, golfing, or just fooling around, Grandpa always found a way to make the activity special for his grandsons. There are many stories of how Grandpa has influenced my life and even to this day, Grandpa always takes the time to ask about what is happening in my life and how the fishing, farming, and golfing is going. My Grandpa is my hero and If I become half the man he is, then I will have accomplished something great. Thank you Grandpa for those special memories. -Erik

Saying good-bye to Great Grandpa at the end of the evening. Hailey loves her Great Grandpa - she thinks he is especially funny when he makes his turkey noises!! He does the best turkey impression ever! We wish you a happy & healthy 80th year Grandpa - we love you!!

Extended Stay in Grand Forks

2006-12-26T21:30:00.000-06:00

Finally! A report on our Grand Forks adventure back at the end of November - it feels like a year ago already!! Right after the "Stormed In" post from our hotel blogger decided to oust me from the blogging world - anyway - here is Hailey loving the water! She was daring & adventurous in the kiddy pool. She even slipped and went completely under water one time! She didn't even seem to mind too much that she got her head wet once Raquel pulled her up so she could catch her breath!!

Bedtime story...the first night Raquel, Hailey & I shared Mom & Dad's room. It was a nightmare. After not napping at all the whole day (well, she did snooze a little in the Red Lobster parking lot before supper) I thought it would be a cinch getting Hailey to sleep for the night. HA! Too much excitment I guess!! It didn't help that she was squished like a sardine in between Raquel & I in the DOUBLE BED that we were all sharing!! As soon as the lights were off Hailey started crying - no wait, I'd call it SCREAMING - and saying "too dark, lights on! lights on!" Oh the joys of words coming out of their mouths :) Finally after pacing the room with her for an hour and patting her back like a little newborn again (practise I suppose!) she settled down and I could lay down with her. She didn't want to sleep on the bed though - I had to be on my lying on my back with her sprawled out on me. Argh. After about an hour I wiggled her off of me onto the bed and decided to hit the floor. The 2 foot crack between the bed and the wall was looking mighty inviting, so I lay on top of the comforter from the bed and tried to fall asleep. Hailey woke up every hour or so crying and the only thing that would get her back to sleep was letting her lay ON TOP OF ME!! So, I dragged her into my "hole" beside the bed and waited until she was sound asleep and then wiggled her off of me again. Then I got lay in bed with Raquel until the next time Hailey woke up crying. Me & Hailey seriously alternated like this 5 times. Bed, Floor, Bed, Floor. In between her waking up and the serious snoring going on I only fell asleep at 3:30am and then was up at 6am until 7:30 or so. THANKFULLY Hailey slept the best from 6am on and when she woke us all up I was pleasantly surprised that it was 10:30am!! We were planning on leaving for home that afternoon, but because of the storm we stayed one more night. (I know you all know that this happened thanks to my wonderful "Stormed In!" post that was on my blog for over 4 weeks...) We actually changed hotels in between & Raquel & I got our own room - with a play pen! and I told Hailey that when night time would come I was putting her in her bed and not tending to her all night long!!!!! (tough talker) The 2nd night was a lot better...Hailey went to bed with no fuss at 8pm and at 11:30pm when Raquel & I went to bed I took her into my bed with me, hee hee. We all slept great.

Maybe if we had all had our own beds the first night Hailey would have slept in comfort the whole night!!

Ga-pa (no more "Papa" for Hailey's Grandpas!!) and Hailey in the mall, taking a break from shopping. When Mom suggested Raquel & I come shopping for the day, I debated bringing Hailey with. Dad told me that if we didn't bring Hailey then we couldn't come!! He was pumped that he would have someone to keep him busy with while Mom, Raquel & I shopped :)

The things my Dad does with Hailey are incredible...pretty much anything she wants to do he does with her. There are limits though - I have heard on occasion "You better go ask your Mommy first" Then I know it's something really outrageous, hee hee.

Thanks Mom & Dad for letting R,H & I bust in and spend some time (& more time than expected!) with you in Grand Forks even though it was your birthday-gift trip! It was a lot of fun!!!!

Fresh Start!

2006-12-26T15:00:00.000-06:00

After blogger decided it was not going to allow me to post on my old blog (I tried EVERYTHING these last 2 months - believe me...) I figured the only way around it would be to start a whole new blog. I wish I could move all my archives to this blog, but that is not to be. I know it's going to be a bit of a pain to invite all of my readers over to this new blog, but I hope most everyone decides to follow me here. AND, I hope that blogger decides to be nice to me this time...it is Christmas afterall! I am looking forward to getting back into blogging...more posts to come soon!