Ahh... the playing is unbelievable...

We have been here since late Saturday night and the kids have not stopped playing yet. I have tried to post three times, but each time I get a few words written I have to run away.

Today was a great sleep in day. J slept until 7:10am!!! He has slept past all of his at home wake up times every day so it makes me feel better to know 100% that yes it is my neighbours waking him up. Even though I know it, I still stop and wonder some days. But, this confirmation just makes it all the more worth while that they will be gone in less than a month. Hooray!!

Anyhow, I am here to talk of fun and travels here in Regina. Our flights were ok, the first one to Toronto was short but annoying. An older plane with armrests that didn't move made for a very uncomfortable ride for a pregnant lady. J made fast friends with Holly, a wonderful lady sitting beside him at the window. He told her all about Star Wars and she told him all about her book she had just started to read. She was so sweet and her kids were 18,19 &20 so she claimed to miss chatting with a 3.5 year old. And I should add that she looked younger than me, so I was shocked to hear of her kids ages.

The second flight from Toronto to Regina was starting off to be not so great as we were in a teeny tiny (to me) airplane. However, it ended up being a wonderful flight. They had tv's for each seat (just like Westjet) and there were only two seats in our row, so J couldn't disturb anybody. Within an hour J was asleep and I was able to catch a few winks too.

My Sister had a limo meet us at the airport as they were at a Gala for the night. The short ride seemed silly, but it was nice to not have to try to flag a cab. I sent the babysitter home and my neice was up and gave us the run down of all things Regina.

Sunday was busy, we went to Church where J attended Sunday school and loved it. From Church we sped off to GR's (my neice) ballet recital. J and his cousin were dancing along with the dancers trying to figure out what story they were trying to tell. It was wonderful to watch them (the boys). GR did a wonderful dance, she was a pink butterfly. It was great to see how well she is doing since our first time watching her in ballet three years ago (back home).

Monday was a trip to Chuck E. Cheese! J's request was to go for supper, but we went for lunch instead. We were the first ones at the restaurant, which meant we got all the free tickets from the machines that were newly emptied, and there was no one there to squeeze the kids off the games. They ran, they played, they ate pizza and salad and three and a half hours later we left. On to the grocery store for some food stuff and the mall for some Booster Juice. The kids played outside until supper and crashed early for bed.

Tuesday took us to the Science museum. And OH. MY. WORD. that is a science museum. Of course we happened to arrive on the first day of the Lego Exhibit, J was tickled pink. There was just so much for them to do. A whole half a floor dedicated to hockey where the kids could take shots at a screen. An area that is set up like roads and there are usually cars for them to drive (they were away yesterday), and two more floors dedicated to all things science for the kids. They made big huge bubbles played with sound waves, made a drum beat like their heart and used brain waves to move a ball. If only our Science museum was as great we would go every week.

Sadly the kids were exhausted and grumpy for much of the afternoon so we instituted a movie afternoon to avoid arguments. Then it was to bed and lots of sleep for all of them.

My Sister and I have been having fun, the two of us sitting here with our laptops, her with her gorgeous Macbook and I with my Dell. We have been to Starbucks, without kids, and we watched a movie last night. Which was hilarious just to watch Hugh Grant dance and sing. Truly hilarious. Oh yes and we watched the Sens game, my first game all season. Wasn't a great game, will see tonight how they do.

Photos to follow, I forgot my usb cable so I need to dig for one here in their house.

Regina or Bust!

J and I head off tomorrow for a trip to my Sister's in Regina. We did this same trip last year, our first visit, and are excited to go again tomorrow. J struggles with his excitement to see his cousins and the fact that he will miss his Dad, Brother and his Lego. I am sure there will be a few tears on the airplane but it will be lots of fun in the end.

We are taking an evening flight. Traveling on Air Miles means you don't always get the best flights. And in this case we are travelling on Air Canada, which means no tv's, and are travelling into the evening. We will arrive in Regina at 9:30pm their time which will be 11:30pm our time. My Sister and her Hubby have a Gala to go to and I insisted they go!! So we will be met at the airport by a Limo to take us to their house, where I will pay the sitter and watch her walk home and hopefully put J to bed before he wakes his cousins up with excitement.

We are already booked full for Sunday, complete with a trip to church and a dash to my neices ballet recital. The weather is quite a bit cooler than here right now, but I am hoping that the warm weather will kick in once we get there. There are plenty of activities going on in Regina and I am sure my Sister will want to go to all of them. We are just happy to be hanging out with them and watching the kids play.

We are mostly packed and we picked up some Sens gear for all of them today. Sad as it is, I think my Sister and her Hubby are bigger Sens fans than we are. Ok, I should say, than I am becasue Hubby really is a huge fan, I just don't watch the games as much as I used to. I was going to pick up some toys but realized this would be a bit more fun. I even got them one of those flags for their van. You know the ones that flap and drive you crazy (I tried to get a link, but couldn't find a working one). And they even had a sippy cup for baby Neice, that will be quite cute to see.

I will try to give updates as our trip goes on. I am hoping for lots of fun and major sympathy from airport people. You know the kind of sympathy where the hugely pregnant lady gets driven around the airport with her toddler on one of those golf carts. We will just have to see how that goes.

Bon Voyage, next posting will be from the Prairies...

Officially Booked

One beach vacation.

If the car doesn't want to make it, I am sure I can walk. But, either way we will be at the Beach for the first week of July!! I. Can't. Wait.

On a sad note we will miss Canada Day, something I haven't done since my cousin got married on July 1st in Bella Coola, BC 1990!! But, on the happy note, we will be at the beach for the Independance Day!!! Something A will be sure to enjoy. My cousin calls it the freak show and doesn't like to be too close to the beach at that time of year, but since I haven't celebrated Independance Day while in the States since the early 1980's it's time to have a new experience.

Think of it, sun, sand, rides, Grotto's Pizza, Nic-a-boli's, AND fireworks. Could I ask for more? Nope, well maybe a Pathfinder, but since Nissan hasn't called, we will be travelling in an Altima, it's been done before.

**Could I have more links? I got carried away, sorry.

Tags, tags, tags...

Thank you miss mel, for tagging me with a seven's meme. I think I may have done one of these before, but hey let's see if I can list seven things I haven't listed before. And if I repeat myself then I apologize.

Here are the rules... Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs the 7 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and to read your blog. Ok, so I don't really like tagging people, but if you want to play along leave a comment saying that you played so we can all check out what you wrote.

1. I lived in England for a year as a child. I was six going on seven and my younger Sister by one was born there. My father was posted there to open a church so we all tagged along for the ride. The six month stint turned into a year. I have fond memories of living there despite the rainy weather. I remember all and I mean all of the castles. I remember our trip to Paris and NOT going up the Eiffel Tower because I figured we would be back again soon (uh... thirty years later I have not been back) and I remember wearing uniforms to school and how cool I thought it was. We came home with a British accent and lots of jealousy from our friends here. I would love to go back one day.

2. I used to ride a motorcycle. Not that long ago either, ok, it was actually seventeen years ago... I am starting to feel really, really old. I miss my bike especially when the weather is this awesome and you want to feel the freedom of the open air. Hubby used to ride too, but neither of us have bikes now, such a shame. We can't even convince A to want to learn he thinks they are silly. Not when you have to pay for your own gas it isn't!!

3. I play a cello. It is such a strange instrument to play, but I wanted to go to a certain middle school and I had to play a stringed instrument. Lori Singer played the cello on Fame and always looked so cool, so I thought I should give it a try. I don't look quite as cool and I need some practice, but my cello sits in the basement eagerly awaiting to be held again.

4. I was a cheerleader in High School. And I loved every second of it. I was deferred for a year because my marks were a bit low, but eventually I made it to the junior squad and became captain, then on to the senior squad. I was so tall that I thought they wouldn't take me because of it, but that wasn't it at all. I even remeber some of the cheers. I would love to coach a cheerleading squad now with all the extra flips and dances that they do now compared to when I was a cheerleader.

5. I have a thirst for knowledge. Some days it just doesn't seem that way, but I truly love to know a little bit about everything. I loved it when my friends would call me up because they couldn't figure out how to work something or clean something or fix something. I get my thirst from my Dad. Although he is not always right when it comes to opinions about things, he is really truly right when it comes to fixing or putting things together. We think alike us two, and I love it!

6. I love to cook. And that includes baking. Sadly, as of late I have not been doing a lot of either. And it isn't because I am pregnant, although it plays a small part. It is because I am tired of cooking these awesome gourmet meals that I alone appreciate. When you spend a good 45 minutes making a delicious Chicken Wellington it just sucks the life out of you when two of your family members pour a bottle of ketchup over it and the other eats a ham and cheese sandwich. Cooking for one is just not that much fun. And baking is off right now because we can all stand to lose a couple of pounds.

7. I am my Mother. There I said it. Now if any of you tell her I admitted it on the Internet, I will find you. I can distinctly remember the argument that my Mom and I had back when I was about sixteen or seventeen where I yelled at her, "When I get older I will be the exact opposite of you!" That lasted about five years, then slowly I turned into her. Complete with the cleaning obsessively (I am not as bad as her though) and the way I bring up J, it is all my Mom. So it is true, you eventually become just like your Mom.

And those are seven things about me. Will be back tomorrow with an update on the long weekend, the basement, the new haircut and more.

First Long Weekend of the Summer...

... and we will be hanging here working on the basement. At least the forecast is looking good, unlike last years rain all weekend.

Wishing you all a wonderful long weekend. Happy Victoria Day!

Brought to you by the letter K and the number 3

The letter K for Kellogg's. J loves Rice Krispie Squares, but he usually has store bought ones. When I told him we could make our own it was like Christmas in May! He talked about it all the way through the grocery store, all the way to the mall to pick up more shorts for him, and all the way home again. He even talked about it while I put all the groceries away and set everything up.
And for the record, he is not stirring a hot pot of melting butter, he was getting ready to help and pretended for the photo op. On with our show... I love to bake, but haven't made Rice Krispie Squares in many years. I forgot how annoying it is when the marshmallows are melted and you have to add the Krispies and it gets hard to stir. Argh. I was having flashbacks of burning the marshmallows way back when (I was maybe 13) and Mom running around fanning the smoke detectors. I stirred and stirred and J bounced and jumped on his stool and added a marshmallow here and a Rice Krispie there. Then they were done.


For some reason today, he wanted to be Santa Clause. He was so excited for his Rice Krispie Squares and took a bite... an hour later took another bite.... and an hour later... you get the idea. Usually he eats them three at a time, but apparently only I eat them that fast when they are homemade. He didn't say that he didn't like them, he just keeps going back and taking a little bite at a time.

And brought to you by the number 3. It just made is sound all the more Sesame Street like. J's favourite number is 3 so it sounded good.

And a little update on the car thing. Well Hubby seems to think we have been driving with bad bearings for at least a year if not longer and doesn't see or feel the same as I do about it breaking down. That being said, he takes a bus to work everyday and I drive the car everyday (or almost everyday) so I still feel a little nervous. It does sound much better after our visit with the mechanic yesterday and our search for a new vehicle continues. It looks like the beach vacation may still be a go and we will firm up vehicles later in the summer or early fall (A can squish for a little bit). And Silver Creek Mom, I have taken your advice about your van and we don't have the Caravan on our short list at this point. Will see what the fall brings though. If Nissan is out there reading my blog (not bloody likely) we would love a nice Pathfinder for a Baby gift, I would talk about how wonderful you are all the time on my blog and post many photos of us enjoying the lovely Pathfinder. I'm just saying is all.

All Consumed

I wish I could draw on the computer. Then I would draw a picture of my oh so sad car. I love my car, I really do. But.... and yes there is a but... things are starting to go wrong. When this happens, I don't want to drive them anymore.

I don't mind fixing cars when they need fixing. But when you have been driving a car for almost eight years and know that there is possibly a (almost) new one that will fit your whole family in the near future I don't want to fix it. On the other hand, if we don't fix it more could go wrong.

Ack! I want to pull my hair out!

We have two vehicles, a wonderful '92 Ford Aerostar (total age = 15 years) that costs more to put gas in it than anything else. Hubby no longer drives it to work so it sits in the driveway for occaisional use. My Dad has actually been driving it for his work this past couple of months. This is the vehicle that we intend to not own anymore. It was given to us and has served us very well, but really without shoulder belts it isn't useful to us anymore.

Then we have my old car, a '98 Nissan Altima (total age= 9 years), oh how I love my car. With it's five speed manual transmission and leather interior, I truly love it. But, the plush comfy seats in the back aren't condusive to two car seats and a fifteen year old. I can certainly cram the carseats in, no problem, but adding a teenager who never really complains but asked how he would fit with his new Sister joining us (I already drive with the seat leaning back into his legroom, it doesn't always pay to be tall) it's time to look for something newer.

Last week was the start of the car troubles. Hubby hit a pothole (one of too many in our beautiful city) and broke the linkage bar on the right side. Our mechanic ( a wonderful man from Mexico, José, nothing like a good mechanic) found an oil leak and some lose ball joints. We left the ball joints for now, but today when I took her in to get a bracket installed on the muffler he saw that the transmission fluid was leaking out too! Further inspection revealed that the bearings are gone in the transmission (and probobly have been for a while as I drive it pretty hard) . José did say if we don't mean to drive it much anymore then he could probobly fix up the leak and leave it, but if we were going to keep it for a couple of years for our soon to be driving teenager, we should really fix it. Ack!!

The thing is, now I don't want to drive it anymore. I don't care when it's just me in the car, but with J I hate when things go wrong. And with Hubby taking the bus he can't just leave work and get me if something happens. I have to rely on my Dad to leave his work and fetch us, which he does with Love, but still.

So now I am on the search for a new used vehicle. We were hoping to wait until the fall when all the sales are on, but it looks like we might have to forego our annual trip to the beach (Double Ack!!) and get something sooner.

I hope that we can find a solution to our car troubles soon, this is beginning to stress me out.

Happy Belated Mother's Day!!

Sorry I have been awol this past week, but we had some really great weather here and I just couldn't stay inside. And you are probobly thinking, but you have a laptop. Yes I do, but running through sprinklers and water guns just don't mix with laptops. Unless, of course you want a new one.

The weekend was so much fun. I can't believe we had a fun weekend, it seems like we spend so much time doing chores on the weekends that we don't have enough fun. This weekend was different. There was a little fair on at one of the shopping centres so we took the boys for a few rides and some cotton candy for me. J was so excited he talked about it for two days. Once we got there he went on one ride, played one game and that was it, he was done. Hubby got A to go on the zipper again after about five years when they had a really long ride that scared the daylights out of him.

Sunday Hubby wanted to take me out to lunch, but all I really wanted to do was go to the Tulip Festival and take photos. I got my wish and we were at the festival by 10:00am. It was a gorgeous morning, cool in the shade, not to many people. I got lots of photos and J even took some too. We were able to stop and enjoy a Beavertail, an Ottawa original pastry shaped like a Beaver's tail, topped with different toppings. My favourite is the Killaloe Sunrise, cinnamon, sugar and a squeeze of Lemon. I suffered with heartburn for the rest of the day, but it was sooooo worth it. We got a balloon hat made for J and watched a Busker do his thing. By the end of the show the crowds were getting thick and J and I were getting tired. (Lots more photos on my Flickr page).

We came home, A was finally up and he played with J all afternoon so I could read and lay about, perfect. Hubbby worked on the basement some more and all in all we got a lot accomplished.

I hope all of you Mom's out there, had an equally as fabulous day yesterday and got to do all the fun things you wanted to do.

More About Me - Meme

A little more info about yours truly, courtesy of a Meme from Karen MEG. Let's see if there is anything I haven't shared before.

INSTRUCTIONS: Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot, like so.
1) Pointless Drivel
2) Shelli's Sentiments
3 Curiosity Killer
4) A Day in the Life (aka gliks)
5) Life is Good... At the Beach

Next select five people to tag: (if you haven’t done it already)
I think most bloggers I know have done this one, but if you haven't join in and let me know in the comments that you decided to do the Meme.

What were you doing 10 years ago?
Finishing University, Slinging beer for a living, spending summers by the beach and pool and hanging out with my future Hubby.

What were you doing 1 year ago?
Hanging out with my FIL who was cisiting from Vancouver, getting ready for a trip to Regina to visit my Sister and worrying that Hubby wasn't going to like his new job that he just started.

Five snacks you enjoy:
1) Skittles ( a weakness I am trying to overcome)
2) Cinnamon Sticks
3) Fresh fruit with yogurt dip
4) Coffee
5) Any kind of cracker that is just hanging around in a bowl waiting to be snacked on.

Five songs to which you know all the lyrics:
1) Jack and Diane (John Mellencamp)
2) One (U2)
3) Jump (Pointer Sisters)
4) Life is a Highway (Tom Cockrane)
5) Sunday Bloody Sunday (U2) - ok, so I know most U2 songs, and I can think of other words to songs right now, but can't think of the name of the song, so U2 it is.

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire:
1) Pay off the mortgage
2) Buy my dream beach house in Rehoboth
3) Make sure my kids were taken care of
4) Travel over to Europe and back to California
5) Spoil my family rotten.

Five bad habits:
1) Snacking when nervous
2) Fiddling with my hands
3) Not putting my soda cans in the recycling
4) Sun worshiping without the SPF.
5) Procrastinate when I don't think I can do something.

Five things you like doing:
1) Snuggling with J
2) Shopping at fancy stores
3) Blogging
4) Taking photos
5) Meeting Hubby for lunch

Five things you would never wear again:
1) Leg warmers
2) Addidas 'underwear' style shorts
3) My old cheerleading uniform
4) My little blue dress (unless I lose a good 20lbs or more after this baby, but if I do make it, I'll wear it and post photos)
5) Most likely my overalls.

Five favorite toys:
1) laptop
2) camera
3) car
4) phone
5) internet

phew! Be sure to let me know if you play along...

Missed Flowers and a New Basement

Friday was such a gorgeous day here that J and I packed ourselves up and headed downtown to meet Hubby for lunch. He was having a pretty busy day so it seemed like a good idea to break him away for a few minutes and rejuvinate.

We went to a nice restaurant tucked into Sparks Street at Place de Ville called Carmello's. Hubby has been raving about the gourmet pizza for months and wanting me to come down and try it out. And I have to say that I was not disappointed. I love thin crust pizza with no cheese and that is what I got, topped with artichoke, red pepper and sundried tomato, a sprinkling of a little fetta and a dash of parm. Not to mention the spicy dipping oil that was on the table. J had a Ceasar salad and rosemary bread and Hubby got a pepperoni pizza, how funny I know. We had such a delicious lunch and were out of the restaurant before the crowds kicked in.

We then decided to walk over to Parliament Hill so J could see the fire water it had been under repair the last couple of times we went downtown so it was lots of fun. J pegged off a couple of guys in suits with his coins, but they were good natured and gave him more to throw in (I have no photos from Parliament Hill because silly me didn't go back to the car to get my camera).

After lunch J and I were going to head to Dow's Lake to take photos of the tulips. The Tulip Festival started this weekend and knowing we were going to have great weather I really wanted to get some photos. But, J fell asleep in the car by the time I got to my perfect parking spot and when I told him he would have to walk he decided we should go this week. So, all I got was a shot of trees in bloom from the car as I passed by the Arboretum. So, this week I must get some tulip photos while the weather is still great and the rain doesn't crush the blooms.

On to the weekend. After reading Dani's post about being a packrat, I find it fitting that I had a Saturday full of unpacking and purging and sorting. We need to start finishing our basement. Currently it is an assortment of stuff. What you see below is our workout room, full of stuff from the shelves we have. Apparently I am not supposed to workout this week, but I guess you have to pick your battles. Eventually half of the workout room will become A's new bedroom (the half with the window) and the other half will be a much smaller workout space.

You probobly can't tell from this photo but there are two distinct piles here. On the right is the pile of 'to keep' stuff. And on the left, past the pole is the pile of 'to sell' stuff and our pool, which we are keeping. We also took a pile about as big up to the garage for garbage day today. I feel badly for the garbage guys today and only hope I am home when they come to offer them a soda.

All of that is going to fit back onto the shelves inside our soon to be finished storage closet! I am so excited with this little bit of progress because once the closet is finished I get to put that other stuff away and Hubby will start framing A's bedroom. Now that we have moved the shelves into the corner and framed it up, the closet appears to have more room so all of that and more should fit in there for our reno's. The most important part is A's bedroom, then we will add a full bathroom to the right of the closet, our weight room will just need to be drywalled as will the tv room that is hidden from view. My hope is that the tv room is finished for the winter and we will have an extra play place, but as long as A has a new room and the baby has his old room all will be well here in our house. Stay tuned for more reno photos as the weeks of the summer fly by.

Mother's Day Giveaway

5 Minutes for Mom is having a Mother's Day giveaway. An Apple ipod Nano from Best Buy! All you have to do is stop by and visit their site. They will be giving away a lot more than an ipod for Mother's Day and some of the contests (including the ipod) are available for Canadians to enter. Click on the button on my sidebar.

Sludgie Arrives!

Once again SAJ comes through with her creativity and fun. SAJ had her gaulbladder removed last fall and created this fun little fella "Sludgie - the evicted gaul bladder" then she had a contest and drew winners and sent us all a "Sludgie" of our very own. He is so cute and fun, J wants to hang him on the Christmas Tree and Cosmo wants to use him as a pillow. I found him hanging around the house in different places, you can check him out on my flickr page. Did I also mention I love receiving fun things in the mail? And it arrived on my anniversary, what a fun gift to receive yesterday.

In addition to "Sludgie" I had to take a photo of my hair, just for SAJ. I have the same freaky new hair that drives me crazy that she does so I figured she should not be alone in sharing with the world. Please note that I am going to add a disclaimer: It is early morning, this is a self portrait and this is why I rarely wear my hair up in public and oh yes and my face is puffy because it is early morning and I am still pregnant.

Eight Years

ago today, I was sitting around my Mom's house waiting for four o'clock so I could get married! Having been awaken at 5am by some kids staying at my Mom's it was the longest day ever. I actually think my Sister's and Maid of Honour took longer to get ready than I did. So, I sat around waiting... and waiting... and waiting.

It was a gorgeous May 1st. A little bit nicer than today. Actually, the May 1st the previous year was just as gorgeous (that was when we got engaged). Both were close to 30 degrees celcius, bright and sunny. And we have not had another May 1st since.

We got married at a Golf course, which is ironic considering neither of us really golfed at the time, but have since taken it up and love it! We had a tent set up outside for the ceremony, which went beautifully, except that I was so hot that I was worried that people could see the sweat bead running down my back as I said my vows. Then refreshments (read, lots of booze) was served to our families and friends who lounged and took in some sun while we had photos taken. Then it was inside for a delicious dinner of roast beef, some mingling and a little bit of dancing. We couldn't have asked for a better day and night.

Then it was off to Cancun (Oh Mexico, how I miss you so) for a week of booze, sun, surf and basic honeymoon stuff. When I was looking through the photos of our honeymoon, the first thoughts that crossed my mind were, "look how skinny I was", "why did I think I was so fat and hid behind Hubby?", "oh how I miss being so tanned year round", and "why oh why are we not at the beach right this minute".

I think I will be framing some of these photos for post baby to remind myself that it is indeed possible to get back to where you were.

Happy Anniversary Hubby, I love you!