HAPPY BIRTHDAY QUINNERS!!!

Her Yoga outfit from nana Darling. She looks adorable in it!
Posing for the camera on my second birthday! So beautiful - and big.
Blowing out the candles. Last birthday she would not have ANYTHING to do with cake. Cried the entire party. Maybe it was not the cake but the fact that we made her wear a dumb party hat. Oh, what we do on our kiddie's first birthdays....
Digging into the pudding cake.........last minute decision and they loved it........they being the daycare kiddies, Roger, Hayley and Quinners.
Hello everyone, I am two years old today! I was born at 10:45am, weighing in at 5lbs12ozs, and 19 inches in length. I had JET black hair and dark skin. Here I am, two years later, weighing in at 24 lbs, 28 inches long, blonde locks and fair skin. Here is to Quinn!!

Gotta love dirt!

While we dug up our entire front yard to get ready to landscape on Sunday, Quinn sat silently and ate dirt. It was in her teeth, caked on her jeans, all under her fingernails, and shaped like a goatee on her face. It was hilarious. She kept tipping the bucket up to her mouth and saying, "yum, dellicioso (aka the Spanish word for delicious, from Dora*).Well, at least she entertained herself.
Filling up for a second course of yummy dirt!
Come on mommy, why won't you give me a kiss? huh, what is wrong? What is not to love about that face!

Rainy day blues

OK, got em. Got the rainy day blues. Seems as though Mr. Weather Man needs to issue us a water restriction here on the Island. Only 40 hours of sunshine so far this month of March. If I would have known it to be this bad I would have stocked up on lumber and built myself an ark. At least then me and the girls would have something to do. Here are some reasons why I hate rain
*I hate my pantleg bottoms wet
*I hate wearing a hood, but think that carrying around a Hello Kitty umbrella is more my style
*no outside play for the daycare kiddies
*rubber boots are the black hole for socks - then little kiddies feet stink after they wear them
*fuzzy hair (mine is naturally curly, which quickly becomes naturally obnoxious when you add rain
*feet have been in socks far too long
*dirt, dirt and wet dirt on my hardwood floors
*I have had enough arts and crafts
*Hay's new bike has yet to be rode (ridden??)
*gray, gloomy skies which add further insult by showing the daffodils blooming and the cherry blossom trees all aglow.
*I on-line shop for scrap supplies far too much......

Which season are we actually in?

A typical day here

This is how many kids I looked after on Wednesday! Four from left is Hayley, and right on the end in the red sweatshirt is Quinners. All the rest were only "visiting" and I got to say goodbye to at the end of the day. We actually had a blast, with a disco party upstairs, lunch and then who can go wrong with a showing of the movie, "Madagascar"? All in all they are great kids. Oh ya, Quinners, Mouse and Bruiser all napped at the same time....YAHOO!

In high demand and antibiotics....

So I have been a bit worried, financially, lately. We are taking a leap of faith with me not working outside the home and instead running a daycare here. I have an extensive background in Child and Youth Care and felt as though it was an area in which I wanted to return. So I took a leave of absence from Moxies. Each month it is like playing roulette in hopes that what I generate income wise will cover all that I like to spend, and also what the phone/cable/hydro/internet likes to take out of my account. Every time that I begin to get worried, I get a call for another few days, or a new contract, or a new amount of time that a child requires.

I have been watching "The Secret" and beginning to understand the shear magnitude of what the power of positive thinking can bring about. Maybe this is what is happening......But all I know is that I am very thankful for the great news.

And guess what...Quinners is on antibiotics for bacterial bronchitis and Hayley is on antibiotics for a ear infection. Keep on thinking positive thoughts right????

Three down, one to go....

For those of you that do not know, every person in our family has a birthday in March. We start off the month with Hayley on the 2nd, move on to me on the 14th, then Roger on the 19th and round out the month with Quinners on the 30th. A month where I get to have birthday cake three times! Well, actually four because Roger's dad is the same day as mine. And, if it still counts, Hayley's biological grandfather's day is on the 15th. That is a whole lot of cake!

Last night we celebrated Roger's 31st. I made a yummy gluten-free chocolate cake with whippy icing. It was very good, tasted like a brownie! We tried to have a great time, with lots of laughs and attempted to take his mind off his dad. I am still unsure of whether or not this was a success, he is taking the news very hard.

More birthday cake please mommy! She will not sit on a booster anymore, and her little chin barely is over the table.
Come on, let me take a photo! Ya, right, not on your life!

Spring Break is upon us here, and it is rainy and yucky outside. Thanks Mother Nature for the help in this category! Yesterday it was an all day barbie and kelly fest and about ten daycare kids (always more when there is not school - but honestly there was NOT ten, do you think me to be nuts??) Today she is going to a Library Program called "Grossology". She is very excited about what the science experiments might be....

Well, pitter patter of feet coming down the stairs, so that means off goes the news and on goes some sort of cartoon....oh well, there is nothing but accidents and strife to hear about, much rather spend it with my kids...

Sad update

MRI tests results today - Cancer is everywhere. I have not broken the news to Roger yet as he is in Vancouver celebrating his best friend's 30th birthday. We promised each other, no bad news over the phone.

I am so saddened to have to explain to him that his dad is ravaged with cancer. He probably has six months at best - think of me, pray for strength for the conversation and how he reacts.

Gilles, we love you and you are in our thoughts.

Birthday at the Sooke Legion

On my birthday, we drove out to Sooke to surprise Roger's dad. It is also his birthday and the Legion had a HUGE birthday celebration for him. At the Legion, Gilles is a a volunteer, he runs the kitchen on the weekends (Gilles Grille) and is the local fix-it/electrician/ticket collector/jack of all trades. It was very touching to see him honored in this way. There were probably 75 people that passed through the course of the night, wishing him a Happy Day and talking to him. It is a bit surreal to me though, as I did not grow up in a military town, and to see all the uniforms about is still taking some getting used to. Victoria is not just the Capital of BC, but is also a huge military base, with uniforms a plenty everywhere that you go.

It meant even more to Roger to see his dad. In the Spring of last year, we found out that he had Cancer, and after a series of radiation and treatment, was proclaimed to be "Cancer-free" in the summer. There are not two more lying words in the English language we have since found out. The cancer is back, and this time it is terminal, with an unknown amount of time for Gilles to enjoy his family. Roger did not grow up in a close knit family unit, with his mom booking out of town when he was ten, leaving his sister and himself with his dad. His dad was an electrician with the Navy and spent a lot of time at sea. So Roger spent his teenage years with Navy housekeepers, but mostly just running amok and being alone. He is learning, every day, how to be a father, a partner, a companion, and mostly learning how not "to do it alone". His father is much the same way. He sees the importance of family, but does not SEE his family a lot. Now that he has three grandchildren, Hayley, Quinn and Mackenzie, he is making a point of seeing us more. Who knew that grandchildren would be the soft spot in this tough Frenchman's heart?

Anyhow, that is how I spent my birthday, and also how I spent my first night out since the surgery. It is tough enough to go out when you have Celiac (potluck = nothing for me to eat), but now throw in a sore mouth and a black eye and you have the recipe for an interesting night.

Does Baileys on ice count as a meal? How about when you add milk on top? Kind of like boost, only better tasting.........

Thank you to my mom

Just a post to say thank you to my mom. Thank you for enduring nine months of carrying around a small baseball, all the while playing basketball and teaching swimming lessons. Thank you for knowing, with mom intuition, that it was nearing the time of my birth and stayed close to the hospital in Campbell River. Thank you for always telling me that I was an easy labour; water breaks and 20 minutes later me making my way into the world. Thank you for telling me that I was the most beautiful baby alive - and were my number one fan. Thank you for putting me in the trust and care of your mom, Grandma Tish, when you knew you were getting too sick to take care of me. Thank you for introducing me to the "caddy book" and many hours of entertainment. Thank you for the disposition that I inherited from you to know that it "is all good". Thank you for moving clear across the country for a job that my dad had taken, even though it took you away from your family. You had me. Thank you for believing in all the doctors, specialists, and even the "lookie-loos" to know that a groundbreaking operation will save your life. And mine. Thank you for this. Thank you for knowing that I needed a sibling and adopting my brother. He adds balance to my life, although far too much excitement too. thank you for my sister, whose bond is stronger now with me now that we have daughters to compare and love. Thank you for being the best NANA ever, always loving, reading, caring and asking about your granddaughters. They love you. I love you.

It is my birthday today. I wanted to have a tribute to my mom, for without her - NO ME. Thank you for being my best friend!!!!

What is a mom to do??

Suddenly, as in yesterday, Quinners decides that she does not want a diaper anymore.

The problem is that she will not allow her little 23 month old butt to touch the potty, the toilet, or any other waste receptacle.

So she is running around, with only "bob the builder" underwear (saved from when Hayley wore them...so cute) and we keep asking her if she needs to use the potty. She replies, in her biggest big girl voice - "Potty power". But not venturing anywhere near the vicinity of the bathroom.

Five words will save my life right now.......thank god for hardwood floors.

Does the kid have ESP? She just peed, gotta go.

This and that....

So, I am well on the road to recovery now. I am feeling better every day - the black and blue has turned to green and yellow, and I look like myself (somewhat) again. Under my chin is quite bruised, as well as you can see the remnants of a black eye and a bruise on the lower cheek. All in all, everyone is pleased with the "look one week later".

Please don't take this the wrong way, but I know that I will take some getting used to the teeth. Everyone says that they are nice, but in my opinion they are big. I guess it is like when you have braces, you take some getting used to your new smile. I am in the getting used to phase. I just don't want to come across as ungrateful. They look natural, but big.

I am mentally preparing myself for my big 36 birthday on Wednesday as well. EEK. Another year gone. I am so happy with where everything is going that it was not a hard year to say goodbye to. Is it just me, or do they go by faster when you are older? Who knew that when you are a "grown up with kids" that you would spend your Friday nights at the indoor lacrosse box playing pass with your daughter, all the while having to wear a helmet with a cage so that you don't get whacked in the face with a ball. Should have got a photo of that!!!!!

Raining now outside, although did manage to score a deal on a "nearly new" double stroller today, now I can sell off the troublesome sit and stand. Nobody likes to ride in that relic. Peace and love to all of you, blog soon.

An update for you

Beautiful roses from Roger - this is one of the only times that he has bought me flowers. If I would have known that he was THIS good, I would have asked before...
These, my friends, are the BIGGEST bunch of flowers that I have ever seen. They are from my mom and dad, and were hand-picked from my friend Tina. They are so incredible. They have gerbera Daisy's, calalilies, freesia, and tons of really pretty smelly ones that I don't know the names too. They are, by far, the most beautiful bunch I have ever received. They add class to my house!!! Then at 8am this morning, Barbra, (one of my daycare moms) dropped of a bundle of gerbera Daisey's too. I am feeling spoiled!

So an update, I am doing well. Basically from 4pm on Friday until 8am on Sunday I stayed in bed and slept. I did get quite swollen, with big puppy-dog jowls, and today I am sportin' a black eye, but all in all I feel alright. My mouth is sore, don't get me wrong, but let's be honest, it was sore before! I know that this is a soreness that will decrease every day. My new teeth are very pretty, very white, and very big (in my opinion). After going for so long with broken, black, and decayed teeth, I would have been more than happy to have the mid-range model and not the mack daddy Caddy model that I have now. That and my Julia Roberts lip - I look different.

Peace my friends.....

It's Jeniflower's Birthday!

Happy birthday my dear friend! Enjoy your day with your lovely daughter, Amanda, and your weekend away with Steve. You deserve it all.

Remember, HEY HOTTIE - happy birthday!

xxooxxooxxooxxooxxooxxooxxooxxooxxooxx