Kijiji

I am a lover of kijiji.

There I said it.

For the most part I mostly do selling.  Anytime that I run across something in my house worth more than $5, I take a picture on my phone and post it to kijiji to see if I can get any takers.  Some times I do, and sometimes I don't.  Either way, I feel better throwing something in the garbage or donating it after I have tried to sell it.  Somehow, it makes me feel better.

I have sold old lulu stuff, a bridesmaid dress, lots of toys and baby clothes, and most recently a record player holder unit.  I expected an older lady to come and pick it up but the woman who picked it up was younger than me and beyond excited to 'win' the antique like record holder for her new home.  I was thrilled that it was going to a good home.

I say 'win' because making a sale (or purchase) on kijiji is not easy.  First you get tons of email that only ask if the item is still available. Of course it is, I just posted it 5 minutes ago.  The first few sales I would hold the item for the first responder only to have that person not show up to pick it up.  Then I learned that you never alter your plans around a kijiji buyer.  You tell them when you will be home and don't change your plans only to have them not show.  This happens all. the. time.   The key to making purchase is to check often, respond fast, and pick up the same day. If you don't do these 3 things you will never make a purchase.

I digress.

The record player holder has been in our bedroom since we moved in 9 years ago.  It doesn't really hold anything very well except a record player and some records (obviously).  We have neither.  So it held a few board games we never played and the rest sat empty.  Empty except for the clothes that James piled on top of it.  Until recently, you never saw the top of the thing.  In that past few weeks the laundry has been laundered and now sits in baskets instead of the unit so I quickly snapped some pics of it and put it on kijiji to see if there was any interest.



See the board games in the right hand corner of the picture?  They needed to find a new home.

I didn't know what to call it so I just it as a shelving unit with the more accurate description in the body.  I priced it at $40.  James thought it was under priced but we have different pricing strategies when it comes to kijiji.  He wants to price it at a high price and take a lower offer only if he deems it reasonable. I price to sell. I have already decided that I don't want it and I just want it out of my house.  It turns out I probably could have priced it a little higher as I had 3 interested parties within 12 hours.  I tried to give it to the first one but he couldn't find a truck so I put a 12 hour deadline on him before moving to the excited young couple that ended up buying it.
As James and I brought it downstairs and wiped it down we were sad to see it go. It was James' Dad growing up and it really was in great shape and vintage looking.  If we had space in the basement we would have kept it to store games, puzzles, and random toys that would fit, but sadly we don't. So I couldn't have been happier when the young woman was so eager to make it a part of her home.

Now on to the point of this long winded worded post.

Now we finally had a space to put a dresser.

Since I moved to Calgary almost 11 years ago, I haven't had a dresser. Now that I think of it... I don't think I had one in university either, so make that 15 years with out a dresser.  I wanted a dresser.  I need a dresser.  Before kids, I had my very own bedroom which stored all my clothes and I had more than enough space between the closet and the wire shelving unit we bought when I first moved to Calgary and placed it at the bottom of my closet.  After Grady was born, I lost that room and James and I started sharing. Not going so well considering James likes to keep clothes that he hasn't worn in 10 years or more.

Another side story.  I often make James go through his closet and get rid of old and ugly items.  There was this super ugly Mondetta collared shirt that I couldn't believe he would ever wear again.  He told me he would wear it tomorrow.  He came home from work and said we could get rid of it as he got harassed all day. 1 point for Christy!

Back to the dresser.  After the unit sold, I started watching kijiji to buy a dresser.  We don't want to buy our 'forever' dresser set quite yet so we decided to pick up a one second hand in the interim.  We wanted something on the cheap side but not too ugly.  So I knew I had my work cut out for me.  As I said before, making a purchase on kijiji is not always easy.  You have to be fast and pick up same day.  I made an offer on a Ikea dresser that got ignored 100% after emailing twice.  That is how fast some things sell.

This past Monday I saw a few that peaked my interest.  I emailed them to James and I made an offer on one and 'won' a dresser, mirror, wardrobe, and end table!  It isn't the color I wanted but I like the style and the size so figured it was worth a try for the price.

James and his friend picked up the units in the rain while I got a massage.  When I got home, I found this

and this

waiting for me.

The wardrobe is in our bathroom while I wait for James to empty his existing dresser so we can take some pictures and get it up on kijiji to sell and leave not only our bedroom, but our house!

I cannot wait to start filling the dresser and wardrobe and clear out our closet.  Why we didn't do this ages ago is beyond me....

Wordless Wednesday

Fall Fun!

We have been so fortunate this month with the weather.  Sun, sun, and more SUN.  It has been fabulous.  We have been spending every moment possible outside either playing in the backyard, scootering around the block, or playing at the playground.

James and I went to a wedding on Saturday so we left Sunday wide open not knowing how we'd be feeling.  Sometimes days like that can work to your advantage.  With no plans. no hangover AND up at 8am the possibilities for the day were endless.

We decided to try a park I had never been to.  I follow this blog that throughout the summer goes over all the playgrounds in the city and she evaluates them with the help of her 3 year old son.  I think it is a great idea, not to mention a lot of fun!  This playground  was worth the drive.  There was a community park and a school park in the same field so essentially 2 for the price of 1.   The best part was that is was only a few blocks away from one of our friends house so they met us to play.

The kids loved both parks so much that Grady couldn't decide which one he liked the best.

I liked that both of the parks worked for both Cooper and Grady who obviously have different abilities.  Right now, I love playgrounds that have stairs and ramps rather than just ladders so I don't have to boost Cooper up to the top.

Miss K was no stranger to this park and showed Cooper how it was done.

We put the second lens on our new camera today which is supposed to be a wide angle zoom.  I haven't actually read the manual so I don't really know what that means.  I could tell that the zoom on it was much better than our other camera.  I loved that I could get great pictures of the kids while sitting on the bench chatting with a good friend.

I also love the backdrop to the photos.  Who doesn't love a giant yellow tree in the background.  Have a mentioned lately how much i LOVE this time of year.  And it is way to short if you ask me.  September may be my favorite month of the year :)

When it comes down to it, I don't think the kids mind it to much either. No hats, no sunscreen, and still wearing shorts.

Cooper (and Grady) is A-OK with that!

Apple Trees

We have these 2 trees in our yard. One crab apple, and one regular apple tree. I hate them. I loathe them. Every year, they flower and look really pretty for about a week. Then 4 months later apples, apples, and more apples fall from the tree on to our lawn, left for us to pick up or to have them rot over the winter.

The past few years, the apples haven't fallen off the tree in the fall and have frozen on the tree for the winter only to fall for us to pick up in spring. If you ask me it is just one huge stinky mess. I obviously inherited my yard from someone who loved to garden as it was once filled with perennials and pretty flowers. Now, our yard is mostly weeds. I do not have a green thumb what so ever and left to me we would replace it all with stone.

Despite my dislike of our backyard friends, the kids and our company sure do enjoy them. As we play in the backyard, it is not uncommon to see adults picking apples from the tree to eat right away. The kids prefer to eat a few and collect the remainder in buckets to tote around the yard.

 This year, I have enjoyed watching the kids (and adults) pick apples from the tree.  It is simply a 'fall' thing to.

Looking for the perfect berry....

 On top of the crab apple trees, we also have a tree that grows some sort of berry on it.   The kids are picking from the berry tree in the photo above. The nanny next door recently tried one and said that they do not taste good, very bitter.  Now we at least know they aren't poisonous since I was not willing to try one!

There is nothing like eating an apple right after you pick it!

 We also bought  new camera while we were on vacation and I am just loving the pictures it takes. I just wish I had more time to read the manual.  Instead I am just using the auto setting and taking pictures like mad.  I especially love how this camera takes a great zoomed picture as I am sure Grady wouldn't let me get this close to take a picture!

Enjoying a sunny September afternoon!

I couldn't resist posting this picture of Miss E.  What a great smile! Such an indication of how much fun the kids had in the back yard picking berries and apples.  Miss E was the one trying to eat all the berries. 

The bigger kids preferred to stand on the stool while picking the apples directly from the tree and collecting them in the wagon below. 

Cooper was napping through our first apple picking date.  But when he got up he was none the wiser.

You guys did what while I was napping?

 A few days later we were playing in the backyard with different friends and the same thing happened.  The kids started picking the apples and eating them.

 

They walked around the trees and pointed out that there were really big one small apples.  And the adults followed suit.  Everyone ate and enjoyed them on a sunny fall evening.

When it was noted how much the kids liked the apples, before you know it, the adults were picking some apples to take home.

 

This year, the apples trees somehow symbolized fall and the gathering of kids and adults alike to enjoy fruit in its freshest form.  

Notice the half eaten one at the top of the pile.

 Somehow, I didn't hate the trees as much this year.

KD

When we were in Phoenix we picked up a few boxes of our trusted Kraft Dinner, good 'ol KD. Notice that it is not called Kraft Dinner in the US, it is called just 'macaroni and cheese'. How boring is that? Why don't they call it KD? Or maybe the better question is why do we call it KD as Canadians? It is obviously the same product in the box yet goes by a different name. I remember being in Maui a few years back and buying a box of the infamous macaroni and I couldn't find it so I had to ask and I of course asked for Kraft dinner. He seriously looked at me like I was crazy before I quickly corrected myself with the boring macaroni and cheese name.

It is kind of like calling chocolate milk Vico. OR wait, maybe that is a Saskatchewan thing.

 Or like ordering an iced tea in the US and not clarifying that you want it sweetened so you get a glass of cold tea. Yuck! I remember that happening as a kid.

I digress... So while we were cooking the said KD in phoenix I stopped to read the box.

I couldn't help but smile when I read the box. It is 100% true. Before Grady started eating solids we hadn't eaten KD in years... like 10 years. Then all of a sudden it became a staple in our diet. Most recently Grady has preferred spirals with is so crazy as I remember my brother being the same way.

We have KD at least once a week. Each time a make it I dish out a bowl for each boy and then have a few spoonfuls for myself right from the pot. Yummy! Sometimes I even help myself to a full bowl depending on my mood.

There really is something magical about that bowl of KD straight from your childhood. The box may have changed, but the inside sure hasn't!

Corn Maze

The Corn Maze was a great way to spend a lovely fall afternoon with friends. What I loved about it is the entire morning was spent outdoors getting dirty like kids are supposed to be doing :) Grady has been asking all weekend when we can go back.

It all started a few weeks ago when a blog I read featured the corn maze.  In the pictures I could tell that there were more than one tunnel slide which I have mentioned several times is Grady's current obsession.  I showed the pictures to Grady and he agreed that it would be a great place to go.

We started out going down this tunnel slide.  It was a hit with both boys!

We went on a tractor pull ride.  This is the closest we got to the corn.  In the end we ran out of time and didn't even go into the corn maze.  That is how much there was to do there!

I would say this was the biggest hit with the kids.  And also the dirtiest.  It was a giant slide built into the side of a hill.  Even the adults went on this one!   The kids just couldn't get enough.

At one point we split up the bigs and littles.  The bigs went on the giant bouncers that they had. They are very similar to a trampoline.  The first time Cooper went on he liked it but kept face planting into it and his little nose was taking a beating.  Instead, Stacey and I took the littles to look at the animals.

In the picture above the kids are petting a cat.  We went inside and got to pet the cat's 4 kittens that were 2-3 weeks old.  Cooper loved it.

I also learnt during the visit that Stacey is not crazy about barnyard animals, so I took the littles to pet the goats, sheep, and donkeys.  One of the donkeys had just had a baby a few weeks ago.  Very interesting place to be!

Finally before leaving we checked out the pig races.  The first race was at 12:15. I had wanted to leave at noon to make it home for naps but James insisted on staying to watch and I am glad we did!

I have never seen anything like it.  There was an actual 'race track' and they let the pigs out and they took off at top speed around the track.  Apparenlty they do it at lunch time and they are racing for food.

 

My personal favorite of the entire morning was the pig races.  I have never seen anything like it. 

With Grady still talking about when we will go back, there is a chance that the our family will make a reappearance before the season is through!

An Extended Weekend Getaway!

As I mentioned in our anniversary post, we did something a little different for our Anniversary this year -we went to sunny Arizona!  It wasn't an anniversary trip per say... the weekend was chosen because the rest of our September is filled with weddings, stagettes, and fall shopping trips with great girlfriends (super excited!).   Unlike our last kidless trip to Phoenix, the kids and Nana joined us for this adventure.

Those of you that have travelled anywhere with young children know that taking kids on vacation is not easy.  I have heard others call those 'vacations' business trips.  You have the same duties as you to do at home without all the amenities.  You don't have all your toys, food, cribs, night lights etc etc.  It makes you wonder why we go on vacation at all, BUT in between the lack of sleep, the meltdowns, and the fighting, there are many great moments that you can't enjoy without putting in the effort it takes to bring your little people on vacay.  This trip, for example, Grady saw his first cactus.  Now he notices all the cacti in his McQueen books that he had never paid attention to before. 

As the trip approached I was watching the Phoenix forecast.  Hot, hot, HOT weather was predicted.  Every time I looked it was expected to be 40 degrees or more!  I was excited about the heat, but I am not so sure that Nana was or how the kids would react to weather that warm.  As the trip approached, the weekend was expected to be in the mid 30s and rain.  WE were very fortunate that it didn't rain hardly at all the whole time we were there except a sun shower one afternoon and a downpour during the night.  In the end, I think that the overcast weather worked to our advantage in that we didn't have the sun beating down on us all day.  What is really odd is when you hear the locals talking about how cool it is and you see people at the park in pants and tshirts while you are wearing a mini skirt and a tank.

We arrived on Friday late afternoon and headed to our vacation house. Cooper promptly fell asleep after missing his nap yet again.  He slept all the way to the vacation house, James unloaded the van while the rest of us waited, and then we headed to McDonald's for lunch/supper since we hadn't really eaten since breakfast and Cooper was still snoozing away.  Cooper woke up just in time to pound a kids meal back before hitting Target.

Let me just put this out there... I love Target.  It is so cheap and has everything.  This one was a smaller scale Target but we still managed to find many things to buy.

Grady was by far the happiest.  We went to the toy section first. Of course.  He went nuts.  They had so many cars you can't find in Canada and at such a reasonable price. No word of a lie, I think he got 10 cars that day.

OMG it's Lewis Hamilton - can we buy him?

Grady is not a runner in stores generally, but in Target he was running up and down the toy aisles saying we wanted to buy this and that.  He was beyond happy.  He asked to go back to Target all weekend.  There is no way I was taking him back after the purchases we made on the first visit.  Nice try buddy!

I was happy to as I bought 2 pairs of colored jeans.   I have been eying them up for a while now but couldn't bring myself to pull the trigger.  I was unsure if they will be 'in' for long so hesitated spending a lot of money on them.  I bought 2 pairs for $23 each.  How could I pass them up?  I also purchased the coordinating Tshirts for $8 each.

This picture is for Deena who is very proud of my fashion forward purchases.  I now wear leggings, scarves, and colored jeans... what will she have me wearing next?

On the way home from Target I was telling James that now I felt like I was on vacation.  He was confused and asked why?  I told him because I had done some shopping.  He didn't get it.  I know that my friends would understand that it is not a holiday until you start shopping!

One area of our trip that could have used improvement was sleep.  Cooper was so out of sorts.   After having a power nap in the car we put him to bed at 8pm and he got up at 10pm and couldn't sleep.  His playpen was set up in our room so James slept with Grady and I tried to sleep with Coop.  He wanted nothing to do with it.  He would toss and turn and then come within inches from my face to see if my eyes were open and this went on and on and on.  I put him back in the playpen and he screamed so I brought him back to bed.  At this point I was exhausted.  The last tine I looked at the clock it was almost 1am.   I decided that I had had enough. I put him in the crib and slept on the couch downstairs.  I didn't hear a peep from him. 

It seems that kids just know you are on vacation and that you want to get some extra sleep so instead they sleep less then they do at home.  Grady on the other hand slept really good.  He is getting easier and easier to travel with... finally!

I can't even say that Cooper slept good in the afternoon.  After the lack of sleep at night he still wouldn't settle into good napping.  He had a nap a total of one day while we were there other than the car nap.  What a kid!

The day he did nap, James and I headed to the only other store (besides Target) that I wanted to shop at... DSW!  I got 2 pairs of shoes and a pair of boots I can't wait to start wearing them.  Neither can Cooper....

I heart blue shoes.

At home, Cooper often wants me to take my jacket off so I don't try to leave on him.  So when he wanted me to take my shoes off I assumed it was because he didn't want me to leave.   No!  It was because he wanted to wear them!

It didn't take us long to get into a routine of going to pool first thing in the morning and then doing an outing before what was supposed to be nap time.  The kids loved the pool and it was empty all but one time we went all weekend.

'This water is cold' says Grady.

They REALLY loved the hot tub.

The hot tub is so much better!

I can't understand why they wanted to sit in the hot tub when it was so hot out.  We were in and out of the hot tub so many times I can't even count.  At this point, I am just happy for them to be in the water, but I would have much preferred the cold pool!

We didn't turn on the jets the first few days and when some other kids turned them on there were bubbles everywhere!  Some one had put dish soap in the hot tub and the bubbles that resulted were a hit with the kids.  I even admit that it was pretty cool.  Not sure how adults without kids would have felt though!

Nothing like bubbles in the hot tub!

One of our outings was to a Train Museum with an outdoor park.  I was surprised with how much the kids loved the miniature trains.  They couldn't get enough.   Even Cooper!

 

Another outing we did was to a park.  James went to the Arizona Cardinals football game on Sunday so Nana and I had the kids all day.   On the way to the house we spotted a park with 3 tunnel slides. Grady is still slightly obsessed with the slides so we thought it would be perfect for him.  And we were right!

Tunnel Slides!

I actually wondered it he tunnel slides were to provide some shade on the slides. One of the parks we went to the slides got super hot - almost too hot to go on.

The kids played so hard that they were sweating through their hats.  It was interesting that the entire park is covered by a tent to provide shade.   What a great idea to protect the little ones from the sun.  Check out Coopers sweaty head when we got back to the van.

I'm tired and sweaty - I need my milk.

For our anniversary, Nana watched the boys so James and I could go for supper.  It was a nice treat and many margaritas were consumed.  I still can't believe it has been 7 years.  On the way to dinner, James asked me if I got him a card and I said no.  He was relieved since he didn't get me one either.  Gifts don't mean much to me for anniversaries. I would much rather have a nice dinner out.

Our first picture in a long time where everyone is looking and smiling.

We packed so much into a short vacation and overall I think everyone had fun.   I did take away a few things to remember for our next trip.

Do not bring your own car seats!  If Nana wasn't with us, we wouldn't have been able to push all our luggage.  We had 2 car seats, 2 strollers, 3 suitcases, and a play pen.

Bring double stroller.  We chose to bring our 2 umbrella stroller so we could separate if we wanted to.  Well this did not work well in the airport.  Grady didn't want to walk and with me pushing the stroller and James and Nana each pushing a cart full of luggage, Grady had to walk.    Next trip we will bring the double so I can push both of them.  I am still amazed with how little Grady wants to walk - he is over 4 years old after all!

Go for longer than 3 days not counting travel.  We packed the same amount of stuff as if we were going away for 2 weeks.  The amount of luggage we had was ridiculous and when you think about it, we were only there for 3 full days.  Wish we would have stayed at least 5.

Always have 2 ipads.  These were lifesavers on the plane.  Each kid had their own and it really helped keep them busy on the 3 hour flight. 

The hard part for me about travelling with kids to cool locations is being so close to so much shopping and fab restaurants and not being able to enjoy any of it the way I want to.  I love to shop and going to the mall and only going to the play area and the Disney store was painful for me.  I wish I could have just had a few hours to stroll the mall with a coffee and get that 'shopping' part of vacation out of the way for me.  Being in the mall with the kids is just no fun and there wasn't enough time for me to work in a trip by myself.  Not to mention I was scared to drive in the mall parking lot - it was so busy!

In the end, Grady and Cooper got their cars, I got my shoes and colored jeans, James got his football game, and Nana got to spend time with her grandsons.

A good trip was had by all!!

Smiles after a great vacation!

Fall

Some people my want to punch me in the face after I say this... but I am kind of excited for fall.

Don't get me wrong, I love summer.  I love the sun, the heat, the long weekends, I really do.... but there is something to be said with the kids being back in school, the pumpkin spice lattes, and the crisp air first thing in the morning as I leave for work.

Not to mention that my scarves, sweaters, tall boots, leggings, and everything in my closet that is warm and fuzzy is calling my name.

As I walk through the mall I find myself wanting to buy warm wooly sweaters, colored jeans, and warm scarfs rather than the dresses and tanks that I was looking back only weeks earlier.

Maye it is that alll our summer vacations are over. Maybe it is the multitiude of fall weddings we have to attend this year.  What ever it is, I sure am excited for the leaves to start to change colors and for the warmer clothes to make an appearance in my wardrobe.

Don't think that this makes me excited for winter though.  Yuck, I still hate winter :)

Seven

Today marks seven years of wedded bliss for me and my hubby. I really can't believe that it has been 7 years. It has gone by in the blink of an eye, it really has. Also, I don't feel old enough to be married 7 years. I remember when I started my first job after articling and my boss was celebrating his 7th wedding anniversary and I told him he didn't look old enough to be married for 7 years. I hope people think that about me when I tell them how long we've been married.

In 2012, we will attend a total of 5 weddings. We have already attended Serena's wedding back in March, and my brother's wedding last month.  We still have three wedding in the next 2 months. We haven't had this many weddings since the year we got married when our wedding marked the 5th of the summer. Since my year has been focused around weddings, showers, stagettes etc, it is hard not to reflect back on memories of your own wedding and wishing you could relive that day again. Wishing you could experience that feeling of fresh love and anticipation of the future and what it may hold. I love that feeling.

(I noticed when getting the links for the weddings that I wore the same dress to both weddings.  In my defense, the only repeat person at the wedding was James, and he probably didn't even notice!  Don't worry, I don't plan on wearing it to our 3 remaining weddings!)

But there is a certain feeling of comfort that comes from being with the same person for 10 years and married for 7 years.

For example, James and I both wear night guards on our teeth at night.  Not an issue at all.

I love that James and I still plan date nights.  It isn't nearly enough, but we both like to get out of the house together without kids.

We have comfortable silence.

I laugh that James still asks 'permission' before he makes plans for the most part.  Mostly because he can never remember our schedule.

I enjoy our text messages that we send each other through the day.  A day never passes that we don't make contact at least once to see how the day is going.

There is comfort in being with someone that knows you so well.  The security of knowing that even though you have a disagreement, that you will make up.  The security of knowing that another person has your back.  I like that.  When I look at our kids, I love that they are a part of each of us.  I love that he is the only other person that loves those boys as much as I do.  I love being a family unit.

As much as being married for 7 years is a sign that I have aged 7 years, it is also a sign that our marriage has not aged, but matured and blossomed into something great.  No it isn't perfect, and I would never try to convince anyone that it is.  But, it has worked for us.  We fight, we make up.  We disagree, we compromise.  That is real life, isn't it?

So today, on our 7th anniversary, we will celebrate the 7 years and reflect on our memories of the day....

I'll remember that feeling of anticipation I had as I waited at the back of the church and my parents told me how proud they were of me.

I'll remember the overwhelming feeling of love that I felt as I walked down the aisle surrounded by every important person in my life.

I'll remember the rain.  If you were there, you probably remember the rain as well!

I'll remember Deena pinching my butt during photos.

I'll remember Gina's umbrella flipping as we ran to ride the train at the reception.

I'll remember how every window on the train was so foggy you couldn't see out them, but nobody seemed to care.

I'll remember how much I loved the cocktail hour and that they gave us so much extra food (including seafood) in error.

I'll remember the speeches.  The toasts to us and our marriage.

I'll remember arriving at the hotel in my wedding dress and seeing 2 other brides.

But most of all I'll remember the love.  The love I felt from all of our friends wishing us well on one of the most important days of our lives.

oh how I wish I could relive that day.

On that note I will leave you with the photos of us with our bridal party enjoying the day.......

I actually can't believe that they took this photo.  I don't even want to know whose idea this was.  So I guess tarps were optional at my brother's wedding and pants were optional at ours. 

I think this picture was taken right after Deena pinched my butt.  I love that each and every one of these ladies still play a very important role in my life.  I couldn't have picked a better bunch to spend the day with me.

So with all that being said.  James and I are doing something special on our anniversary this year.  Details to follow next week....

Happy Anniversary James!

Then and Now

As our wedding anniversary approaches and we are still on the tail of my brother's wedding only a few weeks ago, I thought it was only fitting to compare the two events in pictures. Here we are at my wedding in Sept 2005:

This picture was taken during the formal portion of the pictures. It poured rain all day on our wedding day so this was taken in the lobby of the building James worked in at the time. We were lucky to have a back up plan. Most people don't need their back up plan, but we sure did!

 I was 26, James was 24, Blaire was 16, and Kolby was 14.

Fast forward almost 7 years to Aug 2012 and here we are at my brother's wedding last month:

Something tells me that we had consumed a bit more alcohol before this photo was taken. Pardon my sweaty face and gross hair. After I put the boys to bed I put my nicely curled hair in a pony tail and traded in my pretty teal shoes for flip flops. Good thing I did as there was a lot of dancing to be done (hence the sweat).

The above photo was taken right after the dance where the woman at the wedding dance with the groom. In true James fashion, his 'tarp' was off on the first dance. Couldn't resist updating the family sibling shot at that exact moment.

For interest sake, James caught the bouquet at my wedding and Kolby caught the garter. I encouraged Kolby to dive for the bouquet at James' wedding but alas, she refused.

Good times... good times!

First Day of School - Pre K

Yesterday was Grady's first day of 4 year old preschool.  Last year, I was excited for him, but nervous that he wouldn't like it.  I was excited for him to make new friends, but nervous that I would get a call that he had an accident in his pants.  My oh my what a difference a year makes.

This year he talked about school and which of his friends would be in his class and which ones may not.  One of his little friends that came to his birthday party has changed schools this year and I haven't had the heart to tell him that he won't be going to the same school anymore. I am hoping he doesn't notice... fingers crossed....

We have talked about the fact that he will be in the same room as last year but that he will have a new teacher that only teaches 4 year olds.  He seems quite pleased with that. Thankfully, one of the teachers will be the same as last year making the transition really smooth.

It is hard to believe that at this time next year we will be sending the young lad off to a real school with real teachers and real expectations.  It makes me so excited for him, afteralll, I met my BFF of nearly 30 years on my first day of kindergarten! 

All in all, the morning went well.  We posed for our 'first day of school' pictures on the front step before getting in the van.  Which by the way I plan on doing until they absolutely refuse to have their pictures taken. 

We even let Cooper get in on a few of the pics.

Cooper would have gone to school with Grady if he could have.  We arrived at school and when the door opened both kids charged in and went for the toys.  As I sat and listened to the welcome speech from the teacher, the kids played nicely with the toys and didn't attach themselves to me like they did last year.   When the teacher was done talking, I told Grady we were leaving and gave him a kiss. He was perfectly content that I was leaving, unlike last year when he screamed bloody murder!

Cooper on the other hand started screaming and kicking his legs when I told him we were leaving.  I picked him and his shoes (that were now on the floor) up and carried him out of the class.  I stopped to briefly talk to the teacher on the way our and Cooper charged back in.  He really wanted to stay.  I hope I don't run into that problem every week!

When I picked G up after school the teacher told me to be sure to pick up his picture and that I had a real little artist in Grady.  Which is true, Grady loves arts and crafts right now.  He is finally coloring in the lines and loves to sit at the table with stickers and markers.   Very unlike last year when he didn't do crafts willingly, only when required.

I am so excited to see what G will learnt..... Here's to another great year of preschool!!

Wordless Wednesday

A trip to the doctor

Last week we took the boys for thier well checks at our family doctors.  With Grady's birthday in June and Cooper's in November, we decided to meet in the middle and schedule it for August before Grady is back at preschool (yikes!).  In anticipation of another complete meltdown from Grady, Nana joined for the trip.

We had one kid that behaved perfectly well and another that wanted nothing more than to get out of the doctor's office.  Guesses?

It all started calm.  Both boys got weighed and measured with no issues.  Grady usually starts screaming at this point and continues to cry until we vacate the doctor's office completely.  This year, with a little guidance from me he listened to the nurse and did what she asked. 

Grady weighed 37 pounds and Cooper weighed almost 31 pounds.

We moved into the office and waited for the doctor. Grady continuously asked about whether the doctor was going to put a stick in his mouth and I said I didn't know even though I was quite certain that he would.

The doc came in and all was well.  He took Grady's blood pressure, checked out his umbilical hernia, and looked in his mouth and ears with only a light.  No sticks!  All was great and Nana left the room with Grady so it could be Cooper's turn.

Cooper was less than impressed.  He was eager to follow Nana and Grady right out of the room.  He proceeded to cry through the rest of the appointment and try to escape out the door while I attempted to ask questions. 

This turn of events was completely unexpected.  Obviously it must be an age thing.  Grady started hating the doctor at his 2 year appointment and apparently doesn't mind him at 4.  So using that as guidance, next year will also be a tough year at the doctor for Cooper and then maybe the appointments will become less stressful?

I was just thankful to get them in on the same day rather than making 2 trips.

Here's to hoping that the dentist appt this fall goes as well as the doctor.  Not that may be wishful thinking!