Ariel is sleeping, and I am very much awake... I am covered in spider bites!!! Gross. I am so itchy now, ugh. I thought it first it was a mosquito, but on closer examination, it was indeed my enemy the spider. So I am sporting lots of tiny red bumps. Yuck. Bless the spiders, but keep them from me.
Had to post some of these super cute pics from bath time last night. Ariel was sitting in the tub herself, and boy did she look like a big girl. My baby is growing up so fast. Not sure what we are doing today, but Ken is coming home early since he has to go out tonight for a work related event. It will be nice to have him home in the afternoon, and I am sure Ariel will be very pleased. Ok, gonna go water the plants, cuz its another hot one today. Yikes!
Twas another beautiful day! Its really starting to get hot now, and it will be interesting to see what Ariel thinks. She discovered she doesn't like the feel of the hot deck on her hands and feet, ouch. But she does love the pool and so we got lots of pictures of playtime.
Had the meeting with Pastor Dave and Nana in regards to mom's memorial garden. Did some crying and sharing of the past seven years frustrations and changes. Like I said, it changes over time, it never gets easier, just different. You go through ups and downs as your life continues, with marriage, children etc. Just when you think you have let go so much, something brings it all back to the surface... like today... I just saw on facebook that a girl I know from church, just lost her dad. Sigh. Its one of these never ending things that will continue to break our hearts and shape our lives in ways we never thought. Keep Shannon in your prayers and that of her family.
Afterwards, had a stop over at Nana's and then on to Stella's. Had a nice lunch on the deck. Ariel attempted to drink from a cup, got over excited and basically got most of it on herself and Stella, pretty funny. Actually, I was laughing my head off and Ariel started laughing at me. It was something I wish I had on film because it was something you just had to see to believe how crazy and funny it was.
While Ariel played with my keys and tore up a People's magazine (she doesn't care for trash magazines much), we got the birthday dress all cut out. Whee! I am so excited, its gonna be too cute. During this, Kara called!!!!!!! It was great to talk to her live, and I hope the next 2 weeks go fast. It will be great to have her back home. Yay. Ariel is very excited too, so much that she nearly hung up on her when it was her turn to talk. Oops.
Came home, Ariel napped, I relaxed and made a yummy dinner. Ken has gone out to have 'guy time' with his buddy Toby. I think I may get princess ready for bed... later!
Yep, I haven't had to cook 2 nights now, and its been great! All comes to an end tomorrow, but thats ok. Got a new recipe to try, whee.
So on monday we joined Fran and John for a belated Christmas turkey dinner. We were to go back during the holidays but the house was full of sickies, and the turkey was cancelled. Nothing better than unexpected turkey goodness. Yum. Maureen, Darrel and the kids were passing through, heading on their way to Disneyland. Very exciting. I look forward to the day we get to take Ariel.
Its amazing to see how fast these kids are growing. Maureen mentioned something about Andrea going up 3 shoe sizes since Christmas. Good grief. They are both tall though, so its no surprise to see the kids sprout up. Ken and I aren't as tall, heck we are short, lets face it. Hehe. So I doubt Ariel is going to be as note worthy in that department, but maybe she will surprise us.
Tonight was dinner with our Life Group (aka Bible study). It was our summer wrap up, and we had a potluck, and I had to bring the buns... I guess those with the baby get off easy. It was really yummy and great to catch up with everyone. Ariel got to play on the trampoline and was playing dress up, just call her Tigger.
Tomorrow Nana and I are meeting with Pastor Dave to work out the details to the dedication of my mom's memorial garden. I was asked tonight how I am feeling about it. At this point, its just a circled date on the calender. Once I am there, it will be emotional I am sure. In a way, its a not so much a funeral but a documentation of her life that will be shared with our church, and all those who never got to know her. I look forward to sharing that with people. They missed out on a pretty fabulous woman.
Now the recap from the big 9 month visit to the doctors. Ariel is officially 19lb, and measuring at 28.5 inches. Long and skinny. Everything was great, and Ariel is right on track. Its always nice when the doctor tells you that your doing a great job, its encouraging that I haven't messed her up yet. Hahah. Give me time...
Oh, and here is a quick video of her 2 top teeth, and it turns out they aren't the lateral incisors but in fact the cuspids!!! Yes, my daughter has her 18month teeth first. Wacky girl. They wanted to see on the mommy board, so I got this little snippet. It makes me laugh, she is such a turkey.
...cuz its gonna be a long post! Maybe go grab some snacks while you can. Hehe. Been pretty busy since Friday, and got lots of pictures to share. Whee, here we go!
Ok, after the terrible migraine incident, which is pretty much gone now (I was still sore on fri. and sat.) I got back into the swing of things. Friday mid morning was our monthly coffee party. Since we were wrapping up for the summer, we had our potluck lunch but also tied in a surprise bridal shower for Carol. She is getting married next month on June 30th, a good date. Hehe. We will celebrate our 6th anniversary that day, crazy.
We played some games, ate lots of amazing food and had a great time. We gave Carol a day at the spa as her gift. I got my cake made and decorated the night before, and I was so happy with it. My little bride and groom strawberries were time consuming, but worth it. Ariel had a great time playing with the toy car outside and eating mango. Here are some of the pics from the party.
Afterwards, Stella and I had Nav come by and we got fresh pedicures. I got a very bright pink, complete with daisies and some tiny crystal stones. I feel like such a girl, hee. We are going to get Ariel's toes done for her 1st birthday, haha. Won't that be cute.
Then I was off to Christy's for a BBQ. Ken was going to meet me there, and then we had to go off to Dad's house to visit with Aunty Valerie who was in town. Ariel had a great time playing with the other kids. She loved the bubble machine, I think we need to get one for her. I got to see the new babies Christy's sisters had. Makenzie and Marissa, both around 3 months. Very cute. Christy's daughter is now 2 years old, wow. Alasyn was keeping good track of Ariel, but also made sure to let her know what toys were hers. Ariel just kept laughing at her, it was nice for her to have some girls to play with. She loves kids.... and dogs... there was a big one at the party as well, she liked him alot! He was like a bear! Ariel kept waving to get his attention, talk about no fear. Ok, more pictures!
Had a nice visit at dad's with Val (Jim was out investing... aka the River Rock casino). Watched Ariel dance and play for a few hours. Came home and crashed... It was a big day.
Saturday was scheduled to rain, and so instead of going to the concert at May Days with Ariel, we spent the day with Grandpa! He and Rita were buying Ariel's new car seat for her birthday present. So we drove off to Toys R Us, and checked out the pretty seats. We found a great 3 in 1 seat by Eddie Bauer that Ariel really liked. She sat in it and loved the fabric saying ooh. She even has her own cup holder! Lol. Its really nice so that is a very awesome gift, thanks!
We had lunch at White Spot while Ariel slept, too much excitement. Had a quick dash around the mall, doing some shopping for various gifts, then came home. Ken got home at 6ish, only to have to drive back out to the school to get his dvds he left out. Oops. He came home again, we had dinner and then a walk out to rent a movie, Dreamgirls, soooooooo good! We walked through the May Days to see the rides and games briefly to get a sneak peek.
Sunday morning we were out at the park bright and early for church. We had our service with a few other churches, and it was great as usual. Ariel loved the music and was quite into the fact we were outside. We got some fish and chips for lunch and found a spot to watch the parade. Had some friends from the church join us, so that was cool. Ariel was really into the floats, people and dogs. Yes, there were lots of dogs, and each one would get a bigger squeal!
Took Ariel to the petting zoo, she liked the bunny (which nearly escaped from Ken), got made a fire fighter, and took in the crowning of the new May Queen and may pole dance. Had lots of goodies... feeling full now.... Ariel even played a game and won a duckie! Saw lots of friends, including the newly engaged Kristina and her gorgeous ring! Yay. On the way home got to visit with Rose and Lori outside the coffee shop until Ariel started showing signs of being ready to crash. She fell asleep shortly after we started walking home and is still sleeping, so Ken decided to grab a nap too. Here are some more pictures from the fun.
Ok, I guess that winds it up, until another week starts! We have the big 9 month doctor visit tomorrow, new stats will be posted, so stay tuned. She had her first pancake yesterday morning, loved it! Also, one new thing she has learned is going up the stairs! Here is a short video from last night, Happy May Days!
No, not the power this time, but sadly my head. Yes my head went BOOM. Since its kinda made my day crappy, here is a happy pic of Ariel. Can you see that bottom tooth? Been trying to get a pic of it, but she is rather protective of it.
I woke up this morning ok. I had a bit of a sore head, but nothing usually food and some fresh air can't fix. I ate, and Ariel and I headed out to get the flowers we needed for the center of the cake for coffee group tomorrow. I was slowly realizing that it wasn't improving and started to head home. We stopped in the quilt shop where Stella was. While Ariel was having a great time dumping things over and crawling out the door to see the passing dogs (she is getting really fast!), I was really starting to hurt.
We left for home, and I was hoping the princess would go down for a nap so I could rest and sleep this thing off. I put Ariel in her crib and she played while I jumped in the shower. Sometimes the water helps the head. It didn't this time. I practically crawled out of the shower in pain. Everything was blurry and it hurt to open my eyes. I knew it was a migraine, as I suffer from them. Usually once every few months... but I didn't really have any during my pregnancy, so its been a long time since I have had one this bad... and it was REALLY bad.
Warning, things get a bit gross here. I tried to stand, bad idea... ended up back on the floor and was sick. Thank goodness for being in the washroom, and Ariel safe in her crib. As I sat on the floor, wrapped in a towel, the phone rang. Good thing I had brought it with me. It was Nana outside. Sometimes I am amazed at the Lords timing. Nana was able to take Ariel who was now upset and hungry for lunch.
Nana fed her and played while I sat upstairs, not getting any better. In fact I was sick several more times. I don't remember being that sick since I was pregnant (and no I am not pregnant, just in case you are wondering). Anyways, I had to get Ken home, I didn't know when this was ending and Nana doesn't have the energy to handle Ariel that long. I felt bad pulling Ken from work, but this was an emergency. I crawled to bed and fell asleep.
Ken was home by 2pm and Nana was able to go. Princess went down for a nap and Ken did some work in the office. I woke up at 4ish feeling slightly better. I was able to eat a bit but had to stay laying down for a few more hours until the pills took effect. By 7pm, I was finally feeling somewhat normal again... still have a bit of pain but I can keep on top of it.
I got my cake done, I will take pics tomorrow, looks awesome and I can't wait to see the reaction. I am getting good practice, and since I have a birthday cake idea for Ariel, any time I can try stuff, its all good. I have to give a big thanks to Nana and Ken for everything they did for me today. Heres hoping my head doesn't go BOOM anytime soon. It sucks.
You know with a title like that, it can't be good. Haha. Yes, well at about 5pm last night I was making dinner and Ariel was playing. The news suddenly disappeared from the tv, and I thought, oh great, you learned how to turn off the tv. Fabulous! Upon further inspection, I saw that Ariel was not guilty, but that the power had gone out... sort of. If anyone remembers the stories of the time when half of house's power was off and the other half wasn't, this is again the case. I scanned the room, sure enough, fridge off, oven on, stereo off and computer on. Ugh.
So I called BC Hydro, and they hadn't gotten word yet so thats always good to hear. yeah.... Well, I saw numerous neighbours yakking about it, so at least I knew it wasn't just me. Our building guy came by and told me that the think underground blew up.... again. This was the issue last time. Last time it took a day and a half to fix. I plugged the fridge into a working outlet and went about my business.
Ken got home, we had dinner and figured out we could plug the tv into another outlet using an extension cord. Huzzah, it worked and I got ready for a Dancing with the Stars Idol Showdown night.... at least I thought I was....
At 8:05pm, barley into Ryan yakking about how far these kids had come in the competition, POOF! No more power, AT ALL! Ugh. I heard the kids outside, the power is OFF, can we have the ice cream in the freezer! I called the Hydro line... no power till... 2am.
Considered me rather cheesed. Ariel was in bed, and I was without my big exciting line up. So I stitched until the sun went down and I couldn't see anymore. We watched my new 7th Heaven dvd on the laptop till it died, thus making it officially bedtime.
Around 3am, Ariel was up and I saw the power had come back, yay. Got her back into bed, and went to check the internet who won the dancing last night. Stopped by Facebook, saw a friend had gotten engaged! Woot! Then back to bed.
Here are the videos I said I would upload.... sorry for the camera shake on the one, I was laughing. Hehe. Also on the second one, listen for Ariel saying 'woo' in response to the singer saying it at the end the song.
What do you do on a long weekend? Sleep in!!!!!!! And so we all did. Yay.
Its been a nice weekend in general, rain and all. It all started on Friday when Ariel and I met grandpa John for breakfast. There was another baby sitting next to us and it distracted her quite a bit. She was older and yet didn't seem that interested in talking, something Ariel never takes well. Heh. Had a good visit and talked briefly about the big first birthday this August. I think we are going to have a BBQ, yummy.
After breakfast Ariel and I went to buy some new plants for the deck. Got some really pretty ones and saw about 5 people we knew. I guess it was a good planting day. Ariel took a nice long nap while I got them into the pots and I am quite pleased. I even got a new little tree to replace my dead topiery. Its a little spruce, and I look forward to decorating it for christmas, hee.
Saturday we took Nana out to Linens and Things to get a wedding gift, and hit Ikea for the $1 breakfast. Apprently, lots of people had the same idea, but we were fortunate to be given a table by a nice lady and her family. When we had finished, I saw a young family come in with their baby, much like we did, overwhelmed at where they could sit. I went over and offered our seat since we were leaving, mentioning there was already a baby seat there as well. They seemed surprised and very thankful. She kept saying, that was such a nice thing to do, I think its something we should always be doing... maybe the world would be better, one little thing at a time.
Only other major event is Ariel's obbession with the sterio! She can't get enough of it, and loves the High School Musical cd. Here is a sampling of the pics over the past few days...
See a trend? Hehe. I got another cute video, but I have to upload it later.... I am going out to sewing to see the girls, and Stella! She got back last night, so until later, bye and happy long weekend!
Hehe. Girls on the move! Another awesome day and the long weekend is approaching, can it get any better? Sure! The crazy gals went for a mall adventure. Whee! But first, an update on the past few days since my last entry.
Tuesday marked T-day, otherwise known as the Ladies Tea. We left the house at 930am to go help set up the church for the 211 ladies. Our theme was 'When life hands you lemons.' Lots of yellow, green and of course lemons! It was so pretty and smelled so fresh! Check out before and after... amazing! It was just so much fun. (click for larger view)
Ken came home from work and picked Ariel up so that I could relax and enjoy the night. They had some fun daddy and daughter time. However, when I got home, we had a few rough hours as Ariel was in serious teething pain. Poor baby girl!
The morning brought a happy face again, plus 2 white spots, one on her bottom front teeth and another lat. incisor on top. Yes, she really is a jack o' lantern now. Haha.
Since it was such a warm day on Wednesday, we decided it was a good time to scrub the deck. We had such a wet winter that there was lots of green icky stuff. We filled up the bucket and Ariel helped... well sort of. She enjoyed the suds and crawling through them whenever I dumped a rinse of water.
Half way through Ariel had enough and went down for a nap in her uber cute 'Wendy' bed dress we got at the Disney store in Michigan. I love this picture, its like she is waiting for Peter Pan. Hee.
I finished the deck and cleaned out my garden pots of the weeds and dead things. I sadly then cut up my very dead topiary tree that did not survive the winter. So bummed about that. I hope to find something equally cute at Home Depot sometime soon.
When Ariel got up we played for awhile and since daddy was going to be out working really late, we decided to eat earlier than usual. After a yummy dinner, we set up Ariel's cute mini deck pool I found at the dollar store. It was just perfect for her! I had gotten some cheap scoops and things as well, and she had a ball. Of course we had to wear the bikini!
We get the evening sun on the deck, so it was really nice to sit out with a cool drink. I was having a nasty headache, so to have Ariel happy was a great help. I couldn't help but think back to how much I was waiting for her arrival last summer and now she is here! These are the moments to enjoy, because it goes so fast.
Today, we headed to the mall in search of some summer clothes for mommy. Last summer I was huge and pregnant, this created a lack of cool non-maternity items in my closet. So I got some really cute things at Old Navy on sale, gotta love that. We also got Ken a Father's Day gift and a few treats for Ariel.... like that wouldn't have happened! We had a great time overall, and got a good walk.
We met up with Nana and Papa at Timmy's for lunch, as they were in Richmond for a Dr. appointment. Ariel was very pleased to see them but was showing signs of being ready for a nap. She fell asleep in the car on the way home and slept almost till 5pm! Thus giving me a wonderful rest and preparing me for a very busy girl until its her bedtime. Wish me luck!
What a beautiful day it was to celebrate Ariel's big 9 month birthday! We joined Erin and Carter on a walk around the town and then a fun play at the park! Carter and Ariel were having a blast on the swings and slide. Its amazing to see how their personalities are coming out and all the cool things they do now. Ariel's new tricks this month include waving bye bye and giving kisses. Too cute!
The walk was fantastic and I got to wear my uber cute new sunglasses! I finally found a pair I like after 2 years of looking every summer... can you say picky? I sat this time and tried hundreds of pairs on till I found the right ones. Ariel wasn't impressed at the time, but seemed pleased when mommy was happy. Plus they were on sale, score!
Anyhoo, we came home for lunch and Ariel was asleep for nap even before her head hit the bed. Wow. I was actually kinda shocked and checked on her a few times to make sure she was in fact sleeping and not just laying there quiet.
Now what your really waiting for, some of the cute pics of the kids.
The exciting news is that she is finally getting a bottom tooth in the front. Whee. She has a nasty red bump there at the moment and so its on its way. I realized that her other top 'fang' is coming soon too. Good grief, she is gonna look like a jack 'o lantern.
During her mega nap, I got some work done and even had some time to spare for some stitching. So that was awesome! It really relaxes me, and I could use that these days. Especially since tomorrow is pretty crazy with the tea! Speaking of which, I need to finish up some stuff, so bye bye for now!
And so today marks, as Natalie put it, my first alive baby mother's day. Yes, I had proof this year. Haha.
The morning started with Ken bringing me breakfast in bed, complete with flowers, cards from him and Ariel and a pretty set of earrings. After eating my pancakes and getting the flowers into water, we all got ready to leave for church. I was really nervous about the video getting shown today. Much more so than I thought I would. I guess its me putting a bit of myself really up on display regarding the loss of my mom.
We got to church, and met up with Kevin who was the guest speaker for Ken's class today. Great stuff and I think the class enjoyed it too. Nana arrived along with Dad, Rita, Aunt Penny and Uncle Bill and took Ariel as I was returning pictures to their owners. Thats when I had a meltdown...
While giving pictures back, I handed Irene the envelope that she had given me a last week with a photo that had been dropped off at the church. She looked a bit confused and said it was Anna's photo (as it had her handwriting on it). My heart sunk, I pulled out the only photo that was in there, clearly not Anna or her kids. The tears were streaming now, had I 1.- Lost someones picture? 2. - Or worse not got them in the video! Irene tried to calm me down explaining not to worry, too late. I felt terrible.
I pulled Ken out of the service and told him what happened, and asked if he could grab Anna so we could tell her the mistake before the video was shown. I cried while explaining what happen and then a surprise... her photo was never in the envelope! She was at the office when the gal whose photo was in there, dropped it off. She put it in the envelope and wrote on it, thus explaining her handwriting. I hugged her and cried, I think this was a deeper emotion than really the video. Feeling better we joined the family inside.
When the video was finally shown, I watched with tears again rolling down my cheek... I wasn't the only one this time. In the end the service was lovely and one I will remember for awhile.
Had lunch at Dad and Rita's, with now Papa, Kyle and Megan joining us as well. We split into guys or girls only tables, kinda funny, and had a fantastic lunch. After visiting, sharing the pics and video from our trip we all headed off.
Ken watched Ariel while I got some much needed time to finish up some things for the tea, while rocking out my music. Frankly, that was the best gift, just some time to myself! We ordered dinner from the Boot and ate together. We closed the night watching the last 7th Heaven and the Survivor finale. The part I really liked on 7th Heaven was the small scene between a character that had been introduced as a street person earlier in the season, but we all know there was something more behind him. As the family got into the big RV, taking a vacation of a lifetime, the character asked Eric to take him too. 'You can drive and I can guide you... come on, take me with you.' Take it as you will, but I know the underlying message behind that statement... and he does let him come along, just in case you were wondering.
I have been so busy the past few days and suddenly its saturday?! When did that happen? I don't remember anything about thursday... no thats wrong... its coming back. RIGHT, I had a work meeting and we had youth pastor Dan over for dinner. Meeting went well, and looking forward to the new project. On the dinner front, I made a pot of ribs, some baked potatoes, broccoli salad and a fruit cocktail cake. Yum. Best part, after sending home a huge doggie bag, there was still tons left. Yay leftovers!
Friday was nuts. Packed Ariel into the car for another craft making trip to Kathleen's. With the tea approaching this week, we had to make more of our little gift favors (since we only made 100 last time and we have doubled that number in ticket sales). This time Ariel was great, and we were done within a few hours. Yay.
Came home to rest and tried to get Ariel to nap a bit early so she would be fresh for watching the grad red carpet walk later. After a huge fight, she fell asleep, only to wake up twice, fight again, and go back to sleep. Argh. During that time I tried to get as much work done as I could. Irene came over to watch the mothers day video - since she would miss it on sunday. At that point Ariel was up and the look on her face told me not to push another nap.
We got ready to leave and walked down to the high school. It was sooooooo nice and warm. I'd like to point out at my grad, it was dumping rain. Ah memories. Anyhoo, some beautiful dresses, and classic tuxes... and a few not so traditional things... like say.... a gladiator. Had to get that one on camera. Hahah. The CPC kids were awesome! They all clean up so well. I am sure it feels pretty strange to walk a red carpet with people snapping pics left and right. A little glimpse into the celebrity life. One day we will watch Ariel do this, hee. Here is a few pictures of the event.
After that, we came home and I was so hungry that I ate my dinner early. Ken got home and had his dinner. At this point Ariel had fallen asleep in my arms, so I was able to get some work done. She didn't sleep long and was up again but Ken was able to keep her out of my hair while I worked, yay. During that time Ken got a call from his dad, and that the funeral for Grandpa was today, and it went really well. Now begins the large job of dealing with everything left behind. I remember with my Grandma, it took pretty much a year to sort everything out. We are getting sent the coo coo clock Ken loved so much and one of Grandma's stain glass pieces, so thats very special.
Finished at about 8pm and headed over to Nana's where Aunt Penny and Uncle Bill were. Had a nice visit and watched Ariel be a goof. Came home and watched a movie in bed, 'Because I said so'. I liked it, Ken didn't. Typical.
I guess that leads me to now... and I hear a little voice, so I better get going. Enjoy this video of Ariel dancing... her new love!
Ariel is sleeping, and I am very much awake... I am covered in spider bites!!! Gross. I am so itchy now, ugh. I thought it first it was a mosquito, but on closer examination, it was indeed my enemy the spider. So I am sporting lots of tiny red bumps. Yuck. Bless the spiders, but keep them from me.
What do you do on a long weekend? Sleep in!!!!!!! And so we all did. Yay.
And so today marks, as Natalie put it, my first alive baby mother's day. Yes, I had proof this year. 
