Ariel is no trick, but a treat!

Yes faithful readers, Ariel is marking this first halloween as a lobster! Lol. She got all dressed up this morning for pictures when she was fresh and happy, since dinner hours isn't her best time of day. We went for our walk with Nana, and showed off her outfit to the town. She smiled and cooed as she was gushed over. One elder man said if he was a week younger he like to court her. Very cute.

We stopped in to see Aunty Fran and then Stella. She is filling her nice bag that Stella made for her, with candy for daddy and me. What a nice girl. We had a visit with Stella and Ariel grabbed a quick snack and catnap. We got home at noon to put the ribs in the slowcooker, yum. I can't get over how cold it has gotten. So a nice warm meal tonight is gonna be great.

Ariel will go out briefly tonight to see a few people and try and score us some more candy. As for now, she is sleeping in her chair, resting up. Although, I am not one for this holiday, I must admit getting to dress Ariel up is fun. Maybe its will grow on me. I just wish is wasn't so spooky. Blah.

I have some things to do, so I will update soon on the past few days. I am pretty tired right now, so I want to try and get a nap in too. Hope everyone has a fun day!

The New Great Pumpkin

Ariel is the new great pumpkin in our lives this year. Hehe. Here she is all ready for her first coffee party. She is pretty pumped. We missed last time because we were both sick. Blah. No sickies today!

Last night we did our pumpkin carving and watching of 'Charlie Brown and the great pumpkin.' Ken was home earlier than he has been in a long time (even with a long meeting and bad traffic). It was nice to spend time together as a family. Ariel was glad to have him home I think. I'm sure she wonders where he goes all the time.

Here are some pictures from the event. It will be fun to look back on these this time next year, when I am sure she will be more into it. Well, I'm off to party! Bye!

Catch up...

... and not the stuff you put on fries....hmmm fries.

Here is Ariel giving her thumbs up for pumpkins. Yay pumpkins! I have been prepping her for tomorrow night when we kill, cough, I mean, carve the pumpkin. Poor Mr. Pumpkin...sniff. Oh well. He is waiting on the deck, should be a fun picture moment, even though Ariel won't have a clue whats going on. As far as she knows, pumpkins are soft and fun to pose with. Hehe.

So the shots went well. Ariel's only reaction was a mild low grade fever. I had her sleep in our room in her bouncy chair just in case she was extra fussy. In the end, she was a bit sore in her legs, but still ended up sleeping till 6am. So really, nothing out of the ordinary. She is a trooper.

Today was more mellow, no crazy running all over town for appointments. Just a nice walk through the shops and picking up a few forgotten things from the previous grocery visit. Saw Joanie at 'Fancy This', she has all the Christmas stuff out, so that was fun. Got a stocking stuffer for Ariel and one for Ken too. I am pretty much finished shopping for both of them, as I have ordered Ken's gift yesterday. Whee. Just need to finish up the family. That should keep me busy.

Also saw that the new bistro is opening today. It use to be the Boston Pizza, so I am kinda bummed its gone. Where will my high school girlfriends have our 8 hour gab session next time. Lol. (Serious, the last time we got together, we were there for 8 hours)

I tried a new recipe tonight, and it was very yummy. Tuna spaghetti casserole. I never thought of using spaghetti in a casserole, so I had to give it a whirl. Very easy too, so thumbs up. Ken gets it in his lunch tomorrow since he was working late again. He came home and had story time with Ariel, very cute. Gave me a chance for a nice long shower.

I really needed some time to unwind. Been kinda rough today. Got some news no one ever wants to hear. A good friend from church has been diagnosed with colon cancer. So I ask for your prayers for her and her family as they prepare for battle. I believe cancer is a battle, and it can be won. I refuse to be negative, so there, take that cancer!

In happier news, the christmas bazzar is coming!!! Next saturday, woot! Ariel's first one, oh the joy. Looking forward to fancy sandwiches, homemade goodies and crafts. It really does mark the beginning countdown for christmas for me. Whee!

So in closing, since I was lacking in blogs this week, here are some pictures to get your baby fix!

EDIT: I keep forgetting to say that Ariel is now 13 pounds even as of Tuesday. She is in the 95 percentile for weight, length, and head size! What a girl!

Ouch!

This is the math equation for the day. Sigh, we lived! Poor Ariel was not impressed and screamed to the high heavens. But once it was over and I could nurse her, she calmed down very quickly. In fact, she was all smiles again by the time we left. I wish you could have seen the dirty look she gave the poor doctor, who had to laugh. Ariel was such a brave girl, much more so than me. I was all red and blochly by the time we left. Oh well, its done until next time, which is right after christmas, sorry baby but Merry Christmas!

We got home and she took a nice nap and is now waking up as I type so I better go. Ken is working late so I won't be back till tomorrow. Will catch up then, later days!

Sunday Thoughts...

A baby asked God, "They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow,
but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?"

God said, "Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you."

The child further inquired, "But tell me, here in heaven I don't have to
do anything but sing and smile to be happy."

God said, "Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you.
And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy."

Again the child asked, "And how am I going to be able to understand
when people talk to me if I don't know the language?"

God said, "Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words
you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak."

"And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?"

God said, "Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray."

"Who will protect me?"

God said, "Your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life."

"But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore."

God said, "Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach
you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you."

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth
could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, "God, if I am to leave now,

please tell me my angel's name."

God said, "You will simply call her, "Mom."

She Did It!!!

Ariel slept through the night! Now I know this is going to come and go, but it was still pretty exciting to wake up at 7:15am. She went to bed around 11pm, and even when I woke up during the night (its habit forming) she was out cold. However, once Ariel was up this morning, she ate and wanted to play, play, play. I put her in her crib for a moment so I could freshen up, only to find her sleeping again. She can really tire herself out.

We then went to have coffee with Nana. All bundled in her kitty suit and warm in the snuggly, we made our way. Had a nice visit. Then we headed to the framers with the stitching I made for her room. Its been sitting on the table for weeks and finally I realized I had to wash it because it had so much dust in it. Blah. So, washed and pressed it, and FINALLY its being framed! Yay. Pictures when its done.

Then we walked down to the shops, I wanted some socks for the sock monkeys I am making for Trudy's boys for Christmas. I realized I need to get my butt in gear. Ack. Then to the grocery store for some stuff for dinner. I am attempting the duck tonight. Its all very exciting. I bought a small slab of this really awesome cake for dessert, so either way, dinner should end well at least. Lol.

Stopped in the quilt shop to see Stella briefly, but at this point Ariel had woken up completely and wanted to eat. So came home, and fed her. Nana brought her laundry over (yes Nana does Ariel's laundry, I can't talk her out of it, so I take it as a real treat) and told me about Papa being under the house again. Good grief. An 80 year old man doesn't need to be in a tiny crawl space, sigh. At least its not the middle of summer in the heat. I then told her about the really stupid driver at the intersection who never bothered to look in the cross walk before turning the corner, well, thats not true, she did look one way, just not the other way. I was standing there trying to get her attention but she was too busy talking to someone on the corner that I wanted to cross to. All the other drivers had their mouths hanging open at this crazy woman. I almost tapped on the side window to get her attention, but figured she might drive over my foot. I let it go, especially since I had Ariel, but its not cool. Blah.

Yesterday, I got the remaining bins for the closet thing for Ariel. Yay. Its much more organized for my liking. Its such a cute unit. Only thing missing is her new laundry bin that will sit on the lowest step. I ordered it from the Avon book, its blues clues. Hee. Love that show. Anyhoo, it frees up more drawer space for her and that makes putting the laundry away so much easier.

I also got 4 pages done for her scrapbook. I have to get some more pictures printed before I can continue. It was so much fun than the one I did for our wedding and honeymoon, I guess kid stuff is always cuter. Ken finished the drawing for the box top that will store her baby cards. I wanted to save them and because there are so many, a box was needed. Will post when I paint it. Its really cute.

Well, princess is awake. So, here are some pictures to get you through the weekend.

Suzy Homemaker

Thats something my mom always use to call me. Little miss suzy homemaker. I was thinking of that today while I went about my daily routine as the mommy manager of our home. I like being a homemaker. Sure I do my graphics work too, but there is something neat about being the stay at home mom that I always wanted to be. A big thanks to my adoring hubby for fulfilling my dream. Everyday is a joy, even if I have a crying baby in my arms. I am very blessed indeed.

Ariel and I went out early this morning to the store to get a few of the ingredients that we were missing for our baking day. It wasn't the best weather, so we decided to use the snuggly and an umbrella. We ran into Stella who was working at the Quilt shop today. Had a quick visit and we on our way again. We got the stuff we needed and got back fast as Ariel had fallen asleep.

As the princess slept, I got to my baking. I made 2 loaves of banana bread and 24 pumpkin muffins. Its fun filling the freezer. I hope to make some other meals and goodies next week. I sure missed cooking, I find it so relaxing. Some might think thats nuts, but I love it. The simple things are what life is all about.

Since Nana is lacking a computer, it died the other day again, I can say on here that help is on the way. The family is getting money together to buy a new one for her. Yay. I do believe its a surprise, so no telling! She sure misses it, who ever thought she be a computer nut!

Now I am going to get deep for a moment. Its been on my heart for awhile now. Been thinking alot about mom lately, how much she would have loved Ariel. Holding Ariel today and feeling her tiny hands hold on to me, suddenly made me feel so close to my own mom. Times have changed, and I am the mom now. My mom may have missed the past 6 years, as I became the adult she always wanted me to be, or the wife her example made me to strife for. I sometimes feel a piece of her is in Ariel's heart. When she smiles at me, I think I see her in Ariel's eyes. I miss her... Thank you Lord for giving me such a special gift, I will treasure it forever.

My heart has been broken since I lost her, and its been my prayer since she died for it not to hurt so much... and its finally been answered. I will always carry the memory and pain, but suddenly the world is new again and its such a wonder to look at it with fresh eyes. Its raining today, washing everything clean, including me... I love the rain.

Healing Rain

Healing rain is coming down
It's coming nearer to this old town
Rich and poor, weak and strong
It's bringing mercy, it won't be long
Healing rain is coming down
It's coming closer to the lost and found
Tears of joy and tears of shame
Are washed forever in Jesus' name

Chorus
Healing rain, it comes with fire
So let it fall and take us higher
Healing rain, I'm not afraid
To be washed in Heaven's rain

Lift your heads, let us return
To the mercy seat where time began
And in your eyes I see the pain
Come soak this dry heart with healing rain
And only You, the Son of man
Can take a leper and let him stand
So lift your hands, they can be held
By someone greater, the Great I Am

Healing rain is falling down
Healing rain is falling down
I'm not afraid
I'm not afraid

Written by Michael W. Smith, Martin Smith, and Matt Bronleewe ©2004 Word Music, Inc

Ariel's blue period

She is an artist already. Hehe. She is modeling one of her new blankies that I got finished today, in fact I got them all done because.... no doctor appointment, thus no shot. Got a call from Kristina at the doctor's office to say our favorite pediatrician was out with the flu or something. Sooooooo, once again we were rebooked for next tuesday. Hopefully, third time is a charm. I think this bumping it again only makes me more anxious. Blah.

Check out Ariel's new Robeez's for winter. Are they not the cutest things ever. Love the snowflakes. I wish they made them in my size. They even have a bit of silver stitching so they sparkle. Whee.

So we ended up visiting Stella this morning and making our blankies. Whee, way more fun anyways. The cat was checking her out in the carseat and Ariel started talking to her. Trust I forget the camera that one time. Next time for sure. Had a nice visit with Stella, and had lovely tea. Yum. When we were talking about Nana, she happens to pull in the driveway. She had found me, or more so Ariel, but the gal was in deep sleep. So Nana just drank tea and watched her sleep.

After sewing we headed home for a quiet afternoon. Ken is staying late again, some presentation of something the school is sponsoring. Either way, it will make for another girls night I guess. I just gave Ariel her bath and she is napping again, so figured I'd get my blog in for the day. Well, better get the dishes done, fun eh?

Another day, another pink outfit

I think she must like pink since she seems to smile more in anything that color. Maybe I should conduct a study? lol. Anyhoo, she is just waking up from a nap here. Its fun to go greet that grin. We shall see if she as happy tomorrow after her first shot. Ugh. I think I am going to cry more than her. Somewhat dreading it, but its important. Sigh.

Today we went for our first walk/shopping trip on our own into town. We went to the grocery store, drug store and then back home, making for a good 2 hour outting. Ariel slept for the first half and was awake for the remainder. She was quite happy and watched things go by. We had to go buy some veggies for the corn chowder I was making. I am taking time to get some meals in the freezer when I have time and energy. With uber leftovers of ribs, I don't have dinner to make tonight or tomorrow so its a good day for cooking and baking. I made enough for 3 dinners, so that was very cool. Yay.

One new thing I did buy to try cooking was some duck breast. I am really excited to try this after watching a cooking program last week on it. I love duck, so I can't wait. Stay tune for the results. Quack!

Tonight the lady from the Canadian Scholarship Trust Plan came by to talk to us about saving for her future education. Since we were given some money for her education from several friends as gifts, we are looking at how the best way is to make that grow for her. This plan seems pretty good, especially compared to what the banks offer. I still have lots of reading to do but it was nice to get some good info in person.

Ken is downstairs playing his guitar for Ariel who is on her way to dream land. Pretty cute. Apprently, instead of lullabies, she is getting Bon Jovi, and she loves it. She is our little rock and roll chicky.

This is some video I took earlier tonight of Ken making the starfish puppet dance for Ariel. She loved it as you can tell. Click here to see.

Girls just wanna have fun!

We had a really nice weekend, even though it was raining. In fact, it kinda was nice to see the rain again. Makes everything fresh. Saturday was once again just us gals as Ken went to teach his classes. Ariel was pretty mellow (what else is new). She watched me stitch and make her some new fleece blankets. Its getting cool so a few of those to cover her in her barrito state help keep the chill away.

We were having dinner at Nana's and ended up walking over since Ken called saying there was uber traffic on the highway. Turned out he pulled in the driveway of Nana's when we arrived too. Oh well. It was a nice walk and Ariel was able to show off her Kitty outfit again. We even were able to quickly pick up the photos we had waiting at London Drugs.

Dinner was good and getting to visit with Uncle Bill and Aunt Penny was fun. Rose was even there too. So lots of laughing and cooing over Ariel. Rose brought a new hat and mits for Ariel that were knit by her daughter I believe. The daughter with 9 children. She just had the 9th, and honestly I think she will still have more. She said she always wanted 10, guess we will see. She also home schools them all. Thats amazing, and she finds time to knit. Wow.

Ariel played on the floor and entertained us all. She even tried out the new excersaucer that Nana was given to have at her house. She really liked it and once again showed how incredibly strong she was for only 2 months old.

Sunday was church and a fabulous guest singer/speaker. A southern baptist with a real gift of worship and preaching. I don't think I have laughed that hard in church for awhile. Jo's sister Julie and her girls were at our church too. Her hubby was out of town so she came out to visit friends and see her mom. She had the coolest rubber boots, with funky designs on them. Rubber boots are sooooo much cooler now. Not like my old trusty blue ones I had back in the day. Those were ugly. Ick. Ariel was held by a few different people during the service. In fact, she was taken from me in the bathroom of all places once she had a fresh diaper change. Hehe. I managed to surprise people with a non pink outfit too. Gotta shake things up a bit.

After church and a quick lunch, we packed up Ariel and went to Ikea for the unit I wanted to get for the nursery closet. Good news, got the unit, bad news, they didn't have all the right sizes of the plastic bins that went with it. All I managed to get was 2 large bins, and I still need 2 mediums and 2 smalls. They are getting more this week, so another quick run down may be in order. Ken found his christmas gift for Ariel, and you will have to tune in to see it when she gets it. Its like sweeps week for my blog, must read stuff! Lol.

We also stopped by Michael's craft store and ran into Katie who was working and was nice enough to share her discount with us. Woot. Got some cross stitch bibs for Ariel and a few other little things for my scrapbooking. The whole trip Ariel was sleeping. Guess she needed that big nap.

Came home, and basically had a nice quiet family night. Got some stitching done on Ariel's stocking, while Ken got some daddy/daughter time. Its really past halfway at this point. Huzzah! I will have to find the right material for the backside of it. Choices...hmmm.

Ariel also was babbling up a storm last night. It was like she had so much on her mind and had to get it all out. Ken was laughing so hard and Ariel just kept on going. I think we may have a chatterbox on our hands. I love her smile, I can't get enough of it.

Today was quiet as well. I made yummy sweet and sour ribs in the slow cooker. Ken is staying late doing calls so it works well for him to come home to a warm meal. Ariel is sleeping again and is due to get up soon. Guess thats all, bye for now!

2 Months Old!

Time flies when your a cutie!

Fabric Girls

Ariel had a good day, can you tell? Here she is with all her new fabric for blankets. Now that she is bigger and much more drool, we find we go through them a lot faster. Not to mention I use them as sheets on her play yard bottom, so we needed some more so we don't panic so much. They had so many new flannels, so we found some great patterns and colors.

Stella picked us up this morning and we headed to vancouver first, then a lunch break, followed by richmond. Very successful as you can see. I also got all the fabric to make our family christmas jps. Yes, it will be photo worthy indeed for Ariel's first christmas. Lol.

Ariel was awesome the whole day, you'd think she liked shopping. Maybe its in her bones. She was catching everyone's eye, even a 9 month old. They smiled at each other, pretty cute. The only hard time was when we got stuck in traffic coming home and she wasn't pleased the car had stopped. She was in need of sleep at that point and just needed either a hug or movement and she wasn't getting either and it was hard to let her cry. Sniff.

We came home and got the laundry put away and got the house back together. Ariel had a small nap in her bedroom crib, we are practicing moving to the room soon, since we are both still downstairs (its finally cool enough for me to return). She loves her room so thats a plus. I think she likes the cd player and all the toys. New things to discover. Here she is making new friends, which one is Ariel?

Daddy is on his way home, another meeting so he will be late. We love him and everything he does for us girls!

Dancing Machine

Look out Aunty Kara, you may have a new student sooner than you think. Ariel is showing signs of being a dancer, heh. Boy can the girl bop! She loves music and wiggles around whenever something catches her fancy. Sadly, one of her new loves is that Pepto-bismol commercial. If she hears it she looks frantically from where its coming from in the room. She proceeds to wiggle and grin. Yes, my child is weird like her father and me.

Today was a rest day as we are going fabric shopping tomorrow with Stella. Woot! Very excited, so we had to lay low and save our energy. Ariel did well by sleeping till quarter after 6am this morning. She went down at 11pm so that was a nice sleep for me. We are missing Bible study tonight because Ken is developing a cough and frankly we don't need to get anyone else sick. Sigh, I think he got it from Mikey. Poo.

Nothing else to report, made a nice dinner, painted a shelf for Ariel's room and got some stitching done. It was a good mid-week day.

What day is it?

Don't you always feel like that after a holiday weekend. I woke up confused all day, which of course is really stupid. Can I still blame hormones? Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving dinner. I wanted to post one more pic of Ariel in her pretty dress. She was just getting up from a nap so she looks a little out of it, but still looks great.

Anyhoo, yesterday was nice and relaxed. Nana and Papa took Ariel so Ken and I could get some long overdue shopping done. So we left a very sleepy princess at 1030am and drove to richmond. The mall wasn't acutally that bad, which is always nice when you only have a few hours. We hit the Bay first and Ken found some cheap DVDs of some animated stuff. I'd like to mention they also had a large corner with.... CHRISTMAS STUFF. Yes, I have already seen my first tree of the season. I think that is a new record, thanksgiving day. Wow.

Then we hit Please Mum, where I had a gift certificate from Natalie and her mom Olga that was a present at the baby shower. Just my luck they were having a sale too, so score on the deals! I got these 2 cute dresses in 18 month size along with matching tights! Too cute. I love that blue, gorgous. I also got a cute cupcake t-shirt for $5. I loved the one Nat got in newborn size and was so sad when Ariel didn't fit it anymore. This one is different but it still has a cupcake on it. I LOVE CUPCAKES! Tee Hee.

We grabbed a quick bite and checked in with Nana, Ariel was still sleeping, yay. Then we hit old navy so I could get a few shirts and pants. I still am in transition, most things fit again, but are snug on top, and I hate that. I need loose fitting. Found some nice stuff, so I was pleased. Then it was to the Gap for work clothes for Ken. Got some great pieces and I finally got him to go with some things in chocolate brown. SOOOOOOOOOO NICE! He looked really awesome going to work this morning.

We stopped at a few other places before we came home to our girl who had just woken up and had her bottle. Got a big smile from her. She always misses us. Its neat having her know us and the look in her eyes when she sees us. Too cool.

Today was more routine, with a nice walk and lunch at the cafe with Nana. Ariel was wearing her new kitty outfit from her Grammy Priebe. Its perfect for fall walks to slip over her clothes and she is warm enough. I think she likes it. I told her to say meow when I took the picture.

Ken is working late tonight, so we are gonna hang out and watch some girl shows, Dancing with the Stars. Whee!

Turkey Day!

Love Ken, Jay and Ariel

Thankful

Its been a very exciting long weekend thus far. So much to report so here it goes...

Saturday was newly dubbed, girls day. Ken was teaching all day and then came home for a quick bite and was off to a faith and film discussion. Mikey was leading with his choice in movie, Garden State, which is one of Ken's favs. He did some reviews for Hollywood Jesus and so he had to go. He then didn't get home until midnight, but both Ariel and I were fine. There was a double bill of both Legally Blonde movies on the tv, so we hung out and I did some stitching. I was pretty tired from the long walk we took in the morning with the snuggly.

This morning we got up around 8ish and had a lazy morning till church. We got lots of neat news before things got started. First off, Ken's phone had a text message from Jeff and Marie that they were at the hospital, and the twins were on the way. Huzzah! Found out from Stella that Kara got a part in the Nutcracker with the National Ballet so that was awesome! Yay! Ariel was decked out in a super cute outfit, and as usual, enjoyed the worship and then slept through the message.

After church we did a food run at the grocery store. Its tricky getting lots of stuff when I am on my own, especially since I still can do a lot of lifting as I was told at my appointment. Apparently, they say its like a few MONTHS before you are really back together, so I can't over do it, but I can do some, thank goodness. So we got lots of yummy stuff for me to cook with. We also got Ariel's first pumpkin. She stared at it for a long time as it sat in the buggy with her.

Until we left for Dad's we basically hung out while Ariel napped. I packed up my maternity clothes, heheh. Yes people, I no longer need them as I discovered I fit many of my pre-pregnancy clothes now. Well, more so the bottoms of things, the tops are still a bit snug but when you nurse that comes with the territory. I must admit it was nice to see the HUGE shirts and things go away. I still can't get over how big I was. Gack!

We also kept checking Jeff and Marie's blog for any baby updates. She was at 7cm at the last post. Poor thing, I knew how hard it was waiting for one kid to show up, but 2. Wow.

Went to Dad and Rita's for the big dinner. Ken showed Ariel the turkey. Not sure what she thought of it. I was excited to eat turkey again. Boy, did I miss it. I was afraid I'd never like it again after the pregnancy. Some people told me some of the food they hated when pregnant, stayed that way after the baby arrived. I don't think I could have given up turkey for good, just last Christmas alone was bad enough. Ariel proceeded to sleep through dinner and then wanted to eat. After her tummy was full, she got a good workout with Aunty Jo. We kept making her smile and then she burst with a full out giggle. That was a first, so very exciting indeed. We then headed for home with a hungry girl.

When we got home we checked the net and we are happy to say the twins have arrived! Moria Grace (6lb 7oz) and Kasia Marie (6lb 12oz) were born at 3:31/3:33pm via c-section. From what we read, the surgery went well and everyone is happy and healthy. I saw a picture of Jeff, on his sister's blog, holding the girls. Thats gotta be such a feeling holding, not one, but two babies. A real blessing, and Ariel can't wait to meet them this spring.

Six Week Checkup

This morning was my 6 week postpartum visit with my Doctor. It went very well and I am excited to say my blood pressure has returned to normal! Huzzah! So thats a big stress off me. I did ask about future children and if I would need a c-section again, and it looks like I will. Most of the problem was that I wasn't big enough to birth her, so the chances of that happening again are high. The one upside is the fact we can schedule it, and then if Ken's family comes again, they will get more time with an actual baby. Its funny how family history has kept true, mom had surgery with both Mike and I, so I guess thats how it will be for us. Ken would really like to have 3 kids, but I am not sure I want to have surgery more than twice, if thats how its gonna be. I guess time will tell. I did recover well so maybe I will change my mind. I love Ariel so much I just might give in. Heh.

Ariel got another card from her Aunty Kara today, for her 2 month birthday which is next Saturday. I can't believe that actually. Time really does fly. I am starting to sort out the clothes that don't fit her anymore to pack up. Its hard to say goodbye to some of my favorites, but she has so many exciting outfits to wear in her next phase.

This weekend is the big turkey day! So pictures galore as Ariel has her first holiday!

Babies, babies and more babies

So here is the class picture for our prenatal group. 8 of the 12 couples made it out for the party and it was so much fun to see everyone again. We all seemed to agree its nicer not being pregnant anymore. Heh. So out of the 12, only 4 girls and the remainder were boys. The winner of the biggest baby was Harrison at 9lb 15oz. Of the 8 there, 5 of us had c-sections. In fact, 2 other girls had very similar stories like us with failed inducing etc. Nice to hear we weren't alone. One poor girl had a really rough time. They had to use the vacuum extractor, which ended up leaving her rather torn and needing 80 stitches! If that wasn't bad enough, baby wasn't breathing, and then she hemmoraged while in the bathroom and was passed out for 20 minutes. I am happy to say there is a good ending with baby Kaden being fine and his mom recovering. Only one somewhat normal, fast delivery in the class. Baby Josie was not waiting and her mom went from 4cm to 10cm in less than 20 minutes. She had to hold the baby in until the doctor arrived.

The pink and blue cupcakes were a hit, with everyone picking the winning color for their baby. Ariel was having a great time and was smiling when Ken was sharing our story of the baby who didn't want to come out. "Oh, you think its funny do you?" Big grin and many laughs from everyone. Silly little monkey. Baby Connor was checking out Ariel all night, so it has begun already, the boys are calling. Eek.

Yesterday we got sad news that my cousin Kyle and his girlfriend Megan's dog, Mischka passed way. With going through the same thing earlier this year with Lucas, I know how painful this is. They gave that dog a great life. Not many people adopt older dogs, so Mischka was very lucky to have those 2. He will be missed indeed. Another doggie angel...sigh.

Today I am hoping to get out a bit. Need to go to the grocery store for a few things, so maybe its a day for the snuggly. I can't go too far as my stupid ankle seems to be acting up again. Blah. I guess I need to get some runners again. At least my feet have returned to normal size again. Ariel surprised me this morning by sleeping till, get this, 6am! What a girl!

Finally, in news updates, we got invited to attend a baptism party this month, for one of the teens in our church who is taking the plunge. So thats exciting. We are also waiting for Jeff and Marie's twins to make their arrival. She was induced yesterday and is having some contractions. She has another appointment today, so prayers going out to you guys! Those girls need to come out!

Thats it for now, I am going to get another cat nap in while Ariel is still sleeping.

Canadian Bacon

Congrats to Ken who celebrates his year anniversary since becoming a Canadian, eh!

Love Jay and Ariel

Fall has arrived...

And boy is it cold. Yikes. Kinda a shock to the system this week with the major weather change. Had to pull out all the warm sleepers for Ariel, and soon realized some of them she won't be wearing much longer. Sniff. She is growing in length and is moving fast into 3-6 sizes, even though they a bit big still in some ways. Either way, she looks cute.

So yesterday, we decorated the house for fall. Lots of leaves, pumpkins and turkeys. I can't believe thanksgiving, the canadian edition, is this weekend. Ariel and I made some cute cards to give out this weekend. Hehe. I think she likes thanksgiving, or at least my decorations.

Tonight is our prenatal class reunion. So I am making some pink and blue cupcakes. No help with this one from the princess, she has fallen asleep already.

Other than that, its gonna be a mellow day so I shall go and tend to my cupcakes.

Blessed

Before I start, Ariel wanted to say that this blog entry is brought to you by the letter A. Hee. So it was a pretty crazy weekend for us, hence no updates. I was going to write last night but we ended up helping our friend Andrea get her school assignment on dvd for her presentation today. It was pretty entertaining too, the Bachelor Langley Edition. Heh.

Anyhoo, Saturday morning I had a worship committee meeting so Nana came to sit with Ariel. Meeting went well, different, but well. We have a new member of the team and with that comes a new personality and so it will take some time to be familiar with his style. Actually, he reminds me of folks I met back in the old fine arts college days. He is thinking really big at this point for the Christmas Eve service. Kinda overwhelming to think about pulling off, but maybe we can and it will be something very special. Time will tell.

After the meeting, had some hang out time with my little girl. We then walked to Nana's to help with dinner prep, not that there was much for us to do. I really am enjoying the snuggly, and its nice to have my hands free. Ariel seems to find it relaxing and will usually fall asleep.

Dinner was ribs and all the trimmings, for Mr Champions birthday. Nice to visit with Jo, Mike unfortunately double booked himself and wasn't there. He got a doggie bag, even though we thought just sending the bones home would have been funnier.

Then it was Sunday! We did church in the morning, Ariel slept through the whole thing in my arms. Came home, had a quick lunch and we were off to our long awaited baby shower! We were one of the first to arrive, but soon after the people started flooding in. These sorts of things always make me a little overwhelmed, but I felt pretty good and only cried once. Also, I was so happy my sis Jo could make it. YAY. I did ask her why Mikey didn't want to come too, hehe.

The party started with Corene welcoming everyone and Lesely playing her gutair and singing "I hope you dance." Which is not only a favorite of mine, but also a song that played on the radio during our ultrasound session. Then Irene and Stella both shared about me growing up and of course my mom. So lots of tears in the room. Irene even made the date slice, talk about awesome!

The funniest part came when I responded to the outporing of friendship and love from my church family, I was very emotional and basically was so overwhelmed I couldn't speak, that is until Natalie's cel phone went off and broke the tension and I managed to get out what I wanted to say. LOL. Thank the Lord for cel phones, they do help sometimes. These women were all mothers to me, and helped me so much since I lost my own. I did mention why Ariel was so late, that my mom wanted some extra time with her before she was sent to us. Sniff, ok, you all still with me. Excuse me while I take a tissue break myself.

We then moved on to gifts.... oh man did we did we ever. I basically unwrapped for what seemed like a few hours. Ariel all time time was being passed around like a hot potato. She never got fussy or cried. In fact, the only peep out of her was when Lesley was singing. Sounded like she was trying to sing too. My girl loves her music. So many lovely gifts, from clothes, toys, books, book ends, piggy bank, diapers, handmade doll and a quilt. I took a picture at home once I unloaded everything so Ken could see. I really don't think we are going to need Christmas gifts.

After it was all done, and I was relaxing on the couch with my family, all I could think of was how blessed we are. My church family is wonderful and supportive. Ariel is going to grow up being a part of that, and that is a blessing.

Here are some more pictures from the shower, some from Corene's camera, thanks!