10/31

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I'll be sure to get pictures of the kids in their costumes tonight and try to get them uploaded for all to see tomorrow!
Ruthie is at nursery school right now - it's their Halloween party and she got to wear her costume to school - very exciting for her!
Tonight we'll be going in to our friends' house to go "trick-or-treating" with them. They're in a trailer court, so it's awesome for taking the kids out - you don't have to go very far to have tons of candy, not so much walking or being outside in the cold for the kids. It's perfect for us!
We thought of this the other night though - Myles will be coming with us! I hadn't really thought of it until I was "planning" today in my head. Then I realized that if we leave candy out on the front step and kids are coming up taking it... well, Myles might not be too pleased if he's here alone. So, he'll be tagging along. I'm sure he won't mind!
And tomorrow is Josh's birthday! I'll be making his favorite casserole for dinner and a cake for dessert - and of course there's some presents!

Zech's party - 10/22

We had Zech's birthday party yesterday! There were a few mishaps with the cake on Saturday night, but Josh helped me salvage things and it all worked out okay in the end. Zech was really happy with his cake, and that's what matters!
I think he had a lot of fun - got to play with his friends, got cake, got presents - what more can any 3 year old ask for?!
I'm uploading some pictures...
done! Enjoy!

Happy Birthday Zechariah Joshua!

Zech is 3 years old today!!
We're going to have cupcakes after supper tonight, and I have a present for him to open as well. We'll have a party for him on Sunday, with Jill, Reg, Jen, Paul, and the kids.

10/12

Hello All!
I'm uploading some pictures and videos right now... they should be ready for viewing momentarily! :o)
Things are fine here, though everyone has a bad cold. The kids are coughing a ton all night (Ruthie just started last night) and Josh has no voice! Interesting for the tv classes, I'm sure. I haven't gotten much yet, though I'm ready and waiting for it to hit me sometime soon.
Other than that, we're all doing well and just keeping busy.
My friend from Saskatoon was in Brandon and came over for a visit yesterday! All too short, but I know exactly what it's like to visit and have to see everyone in a short time. :o) Ruthie took some pictures, I'll have to see if I can get them uploaded from her camera online.

10/08

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

No big plans for today for us. The kids still have dance class tonight, it's Zech observation class! I'll be sure to get some sort of video to share with you all!

Josh has today off, back to work tomorrow, and back to "normal" for us.

Hope you all have a great thanksgiving - wish we were there to share turkey and stuffing with you!

Hello! - 10/03

I cannot BELIEVE that it's October all ready! It seems like just yesterday it was the end of school, now Josh has been back at work a month all ready. Wow!
We're busy, as always, getting here and there to all the kids' activities. Unfortunately swimming lessons were cancelled this past Saturday again (though another extra lesson will be added onto the end, so we won't really miss any). But we managed the weekend fine without any swimming! Hopefully things are back to normal with the pool and we'll be back to lessons this weekend. I know the kids miss it.
At dance class on Monday, Ruthie's class had their "observation day". So, Josh made the trek in after work to watch. She was very excited to see him there! Next week will be Zech's observation class, and since there's no school (thanksgiving) we'll all be able to go in together. I can't wait to get to watch Zechie!
We're all battling colds right now. Isaac, as usual, is the worst of all of us, and he's also got those last 3 teeth coming through, which I'm sure is adding to his misery. They're the same 3 teeth he was working on last month, but they took a break for a couple weeks. Now, they're back and definitely cutting through this time. He looks so different with so many teeth - such a big boy now!
Anyways, with the colds, we're having lots of coughing at night, which means a lot less sleep for all of us! Isaac is still in our bedroom, unfortunately, so we are laying awake the whole time he coughs. Of course, so is he, but at least we should sleep!
I'm not sure how moving the boys in together is going to work out. They're both quite poor sleepers, and I think they'll just wake each other up all the time. Of course, I thought Ruth and Zech would never work out, sharing a room, and they did great, so hopefully I'll be surprised. I think, all the same, we'll probably wait until Christmas break to try moving Isaac in - more time to work on things when Josh doesn't have to get up for work.
I just uploaded a few more pictures, and a video of Ruthie skipping at dance class - you sure can see a huge improvement there! Enjoy!

another week - 09/24

I can hardly believe that it's nearly the end of September all ready! The kids are thinking ahead to Halloween right now, so in the next couple weeks we'll have to start getting some costumes geared up, I'm sure.
Last week went okay, all things considered. First we had to deal with the death of Jack, which we're all still a bit sad about. He's definitely missed in the house.
Then we found that the kitten had peed all over our bed. Of course, we figured this out when we went to bed, Thursday night, so all day Friday was spent (by me) washing bedding, comforters, and the mattress cover (many many times) and trying to get the smell out of the mattress. Didn't work that day. On Saturday we went into town for groceries and found some spray stuff specifically for getting rid of pet urine odors, so we got that and tried it. It seems to have worked. So far, I can't smell urine, though the mattress (and therefore the bedding) has a weird smell to it, but I am going to give it a bit of time for the spray stuff to completely go away, as it has a smell of its own.
Swimming lessons were cancelled on Saturday because of problems with the pool. We're all hoping things will be running smoothly for this coming Saturday. The kids were kind of sad about missing swimming, so we decided to take them to the 'Sportsplex' yesterday afternoon for swimming. We spent about 2 hours in the pool! The kids, of course, loved going on the water slide, and Ruthie even got the courage to jump off the diving board! After she did it the first time, she went again and again with no troubles.
And that's about it. We're starting another week, and I have lots of chores to catch up on, and the kids have dance class tonight!

R. I. P. Jack - 09/17

Our cat, Jack, was hit by a car and killed. We haven't told the kids yet.


I am very sad, even though I know he was just a cat - yet he wasn't. He was Jack. My Jack.


I feel like it's my fault, because I let the kids get the kitten. I feel like I chased him off or something - I've never seen him that far away from the house before now.


He was a great cat, loving and gentle with the kids. He will be sadly missed.

A quick hello - 09/16

Nothing really much to report.
The kids had their first swimming lessons yesterday, and, of course, had a blast! Ruthie did really well, I think having the time at the lake this summer really did her some good in the water! As with the dance class, I think she'll be a bit more challenged in this swimming class than the first time, which is a good thing! Oh, and we were able to switch her to the 2nd "floaters" class (starts at 11:20 instead of 10:40) - only a bit of difference, really, but it will make it much easier to get into town on time, and also will mean we have to wait less time at the YMCA. Isaac really is not happy about all the waiting he's having to do now, with the older 2 in things. I keep telling him his turn will come... eventually! :o)
We're still battling fleas here. I have NO idea how we're supposed to get rid of the things. At all. We can't afford to have an exterminator come, but that may be what it comes down to in the end. It's not so much having someone come that's the trouble, as it is the hotel bill (for us to be out of the house for a couple days) and we'd still need to have the animals all dealt with at the vet's ($$$$!!). I have no clue what we'll do next about these things. At all. Myles still has some, Daphne is COVERED. We bathed her Friday night and got a good 2 dozen off her. Last night we bathed her again, and held her in the water for a while, and got at least 3-4 dozen off her. It's just disgusting. I have no idea how Jack is doing, as I can't get a chance to check him over.
We're still not sure about keeping the kitten either. She's been doing all right with the litter box - she did go on our bed on Friday. I was NOT pleased. But yesterday she had no accidents. More importantly (to us) than the litter thing, though, is poor Jack. He's not taken to the kitten at all. He rarely comes in the house anymore, and usually just comes in and hears/sees her and wants to leave right away. He's definitely not the same cat he was before she came. Yesterday he even started to attack Josh and me. So, I'm not sure she'll be staying, if only for Jack's sake. I only hope that we haven't ruined him, that he'll go back to his normal self if she leaves.

Back in action! - 09/13

Well, we are definitely back to business this week!
Monday evening the kids had their first dance class of the year! Zech was a bit stand-off-ish at the beginning, he definitely noticed he was the only boy in his class, lots of other little girls, and he was a little shy. But, by the end of class he was playing and dancing with everyone, trying out everything the teachers were showing. He's excited to go again next week!
Ruthie will be challenged this year in her class - which is a good thing! She is, by quite a bit, the smallest in her class, and most likely the youngest as well. I could tell she was having a bit of trouble keeping up, but she was trying very hard, and that's what matters. She was SO happy that, when she got her sticker for class, her teacher told her she did a good job and the teacher could tell Ruthie was trying very hard. That made her feel much better about the class, I think. I do think it's good that she's being challenged, though. It's a much more serious dance class than the pre-school class is, not about playing games, but about dancing. And I think that's good for her, too. She will get a lot out of this year, I think. I can't wait to see her progress!
Oh, and they slept REALLY well that night! :o)
On Wednesday morning Ruthie started nursery school!!! She was so happy and excited, and so proud to be going to school. She couldn't care less that it's "just" nursery school, to her (maybe because it is to us?) it's school and a big deal! She did really well, had lots of fun (got to paint with "real" paints!) and is eager to go back next week!
Zech didn't do so well with her being gone, but I'm sure he'll adjust. He cried when we had to leave Ruthie at the school - he wanted to stay there with her very badly. But I talked about it with him and told him that this is Ruthie's time at school right now, and he'll have his turn (probably) next year. On the other hand, Ruthie cried when I went to pick her up!
And this morning was our first MOTS group of the year! I'm very glad to have this up and running again, it's such a nice break from the kids, to just be able to sit for a couple hours and drink a cup of coffee without having to wipe noses or take someone to the bathroom. The kids are tired again tonight (yay!).
Oh, and on Sunday (after bugging and bugging from my friend and our kids) we brought home a new kitten. Her name is Daphne. We're not completely sure she'll be staying (litter box issues) and Jack is NOT fond of her. At all. But she's a pretty nice little kitten.

Ruthie on her first day of nursery school!




Our new kitten, Daphne