Time to get organized.

After 12 years in this house, I still have never felt "organized". I cannot boast that I am the most organized person in the world, as the dark recesses of my mind crave clutter, but I have always wanted to be. I know that my dear husband wishes I was, and I seem to still be failing him in this area.

What it comes down to is excuses. I can always find them, for cleaning, organizing and especially exercising. Now that I am home with my girls, I am determined to make all these things a priority. I am still lacking on the exercising one, but I refuse to admit failure at this point.

So my goal today was to start organizing plans for Christmas in an attempt to reduce the stress I seem to find over the holidays. So, thanks to FlyLady.com, I am trying to work through my Holiday Control Journal and come up with a vision and a plan for our family holiday time this Christmas. http://fldy.net/~StressFreeHolidayGuide

I encourage you if whether you are organizationally challenged or not to take just a little time to do something to enhance your daily life by taking 15 minutes today to give that area in your life that needs it, that little bit of extra attention. Do a quick sweep somewhere, it could be the closet that seems to eat all the kids winter hats and mits, your junk drawer, or even just taking the time to sit and reflect or meditate. If you allow yourself to do this everyday, soon you'll find those problem areas that have become your stumbling blocks, soon are no longer hinderances and excuses in your life and you can move on to other things.

Even though some days still feel like chaos in my house, this technique helped me to be prepared this year for Halloween. No last minute scrambling to find costume parts. Actually the kids even decided not to bother to go trick or treating, but still wanted to dress up anyway. Jack'o Lanterns were carved, games were played, fun was had and memories were made. I call that success!

My new Career!

Well, it was like pulling teeth but I finally managed to get my husband to make one of the biggest decisions of our married life, and he's aggreed to let me stay home with my girls!! YAY!! I've been praying for this for 11 years. I am hoping he has continued faith in me as I learn how to reach out to other Mom's around me and settle into home life.

I know I've had a year off on Mat Leave to do pretty much that, but there was always that window into my "working" world to peek out at every once in awhile. Now it's real, and I'm in uncharted territory, at least for me. I've never been able to be at home full time with my other girls during this stage of toddlerhood. Believe me, some moments I wonder if I can really do this alone, and actually get through the terrible twos and the terrorizing threes, without having any help. Some people are against babysitters & the working Mom, but I still think it really takes a "village" to raise a child. Both my older girls did benefit by being with some incredible people, away from Mommy, that helped in their raising; am I really enough to totally do this all on my own this time. It certainly is going to be a challenge!

So, I'm taking a 100% decrease in pay; no sick days; no days off; little back up and severe mental strain... but the heart rewards are PRICELESS! I love my girls, and I have been waiting for this day since my first daughter was born. I am finally a Stay at Home Mom :)

She is SO worth it! As are my other two beauties. So I encourage you to take a little time this week to look around you and see what God has given you, and be consciously thankful for at least 10 things. 10 things might sound daunting, because it's sometimes hard to start, but once you find one or two things, it's easier to find more.

One of the things I am most thankful for is a lasting legacy of my Grandmother. She turned 86 at the beginning of October. She's still vibrant and going strong. After my father in law passed away this summer I've come to realize the importance of some of those photos that we've been putting off and one of those was 4 generation pictures of my girls with her. So when we celebrated our girls birthdays with her a few weeks ago (although it's super busy I LOVE having their birthdays so close together) we finally took the time to take the pictures. Even though they are not professional photos, every moment taken, is a memory saved.

I love you Gram!

A time for all seasons.

Well... it's been a really long time since I've been on here with something I felt worthy of blogging. We've gone through a really tough summer with some extreme lows and some nice highs.

First and foremost I want to remind myself and you to take time any chance you have to not only tell those special people around you that you love them, but do something to show them. It does make a difference in their heart & yours. Each of us struggles everday to get over some hurt or loss or whatever, but we can make a difference to one another, by showing that we care.

We had been planning a dream trip (of a lifetime) for a year, to celebrate our 15th Wedding Anniversary year. The loss we experienced this summer brought to light that despite all the best laid plans, anything can happen, it is up to us to determine how we will learn from it and respond. My husband's response has been to 'seize the day' and was bound and determined to still take our vacation as planned.

I really couldn't believe I was standing on the soil of a place I dreamed of going my whole life. It was real, not just pictures in a book, or stories filmed and portrayed in a movie. We spent 2 brief days in Rome, Florence, Bologna and Venice; and each was an experience unto itself. I wished for more time in each place, but relished in the tastes and sights as much as I could for the time we had.

After getting lost amongst the tiny streets in Florence, we found our way to the river just in time to enjoy a beautiful sunset! What a blessing :)

We took an afternoon tour to Pisa... what a beautiful day. Tower is still there, and still leaning!

Venice was absolutely amazing. Here is another gorgeous sunset, this time from the Rialto Bridge.

It's hard to say goodbye.

It is with a heavy heart that I return and write this blog post. After an extremely brief battle with cancer, that we were aware of anyway, my father-in-law, the patriarch of the family went home to glory. It was a long 6 weeks of daily hospital visits, and over night stays with Dad in his last days, through to long days and nights planning a funeral no of us wanted to ever have to attend. Now we are left to pick up the pieces, and find ways to remember and honour him every day.



Although we rejoice that he is now in heaven, the loss will be felt for a long time to come. I stand by my advice I gave my husband from the first day his Dad went to the hospital, you will never regret the time you spend with your family. Some of our needs are more urgent than others, and we missed him very much over the weeks while he took the time to be with his Dad. My girls are still re-adjusting to having Daddy back at home some evenings without having to go to the hospital to see him.



Anya learned to crawl while Grandpa was in the hospital. That made hospital visits very difficult as she now wanted to go and explore everything, but I certainly wasn't letting her out of her stroller to do it. Just today she got her top two front teeth! Life certainly doesn't stand still for one minute in this household. I like how she's gotten both sets of teeth in twos; I'm already curious to find out if they will be replaced by adult teeth in the same fashion.



Hailey & Kaia finished out their school year in a flurry of school parties and field trips. Some were damped by all the rain we seemed to be "blessed" with in June. We almost felt like we should consider having a small boat close by in case we were going to float away... but it didn't get quite that bad; but was also just warm enough to grow an extremely unavoidably healthy crop of mosquitos. Seriously, you couldn't even go outside during the hottest part of the day without getting eatten alive through your clothes!



We were blessed to have a short window of time to shower love on Kendale's Dad, knowing how sick he was. Not everyone gets that opportunity. We often allow "life" to get in the way of things/people that really matter to you. Make those important people in your life feel important. Give them your time, your heart and your ear; even an extra squeeze now and again.

Please Pray!

Well, since my old laptop expired, I have't had much time to write here on my blog. When I was reminded by a dear friend that she enjoyed reading it, I thought maybe it was a good time to get back to it. It can be quite helpful to get my thoughts out and work things through a little.

My husband's family was dealt a tragic blow with the sudden decline of their beloved patriarch. At first we were quite hopeful that it was something "simple" and treatable, possibly a reaction of different medications he was taking for a painful back and anxiety. Knowing he needed help they took him to a hospital where he could see specialists, where he was quickly admitted and has remained while they run tests. The tests so far have come back far worse than we could have even imagined. The family has been through a lifetime of worry and woe in one short week.

I am entirely grateful that God is walking through this journey with us, without Him it would seem hopeless. I did not have that assurance when my Grandfather died when I was around 10 years old, and I was completely devestated. I still feel the loss to this day. This, however is an entirely different experience, where my Grandpa's death was quick and unexpected. Although the onset of this was completely unexpected, we've been given time to be with him to show our love and care for him with the understanding that we may not have long. God can still perform miracles, so we continue to have hope that he can be fully restored and will do so until proven otherwise. We hold fast knowing that God has a plan.

Before we were aware that he has cancerous tumors in his head, liver and lungs (and probably other places) we promised the girls that they could go see him in the hospital. We warned them that he was ill, confused and in pain; that he might be sleeping or not recognize them because of pain or medication, but that it would make both Grandpa and Grandma happy to go and see them. This is completely unfamiliar territory for me, as there wasn't a chance to say goodbye to my grandfather, and I have never been at the beside of someone so ill. No preparations are enough to not be affected by what you see and feel in that room. Understandably both girls were upset, but all of us were blessed that he recognized them and even spoke directly to them. Before we left, he told them he was proud of them and that he loved them. Confused or not, that was an extremely touching moment.

So, it is with a heavy heart that I ask you to join us in prayer for our father, and grandfather. Even though the news from the Dr's may be grim, through God all things are possible. Strength to fight, strength to stand, strength to help, strength to accept, strength to hope... all of these are possible with the help of prayer.

With Father's day coming up quickly, I urge you to take a little time to tell or show a Father in your life how much he's appreciated. This year I plan to do that by rubbing the feet of the man who lays in a hospital bed unaware of how little time he may have.

Whew, what a month!

It's been ages since my last post. Lots has happened. Dance makes May absolutely crazy for us, I can only imagine the instructors lives are 100x worse in May. I can barely manage. I think I only sat down with the family for dinner a handful of times all month and that was partly because it was Mother's Day, our Anniversary, and throw in a family birthday in there too!



Well, I suffered the loss of my beloved iBook G4, and could not cope with my old desk top. I broke down and bought a cheap laptop to "get me through". It by no means is loved as much as my previous laptop, and has been challenging to get used to but I'm up and running faster than before. Once I figure out the card reader feature, I'll post new pictures.



Anya is still sprouting firsts. She surprised everyone by getting her first TWO teeth on the same day! Now she has a cute little toothy grin that she loves to share with everyone. It is a joy to see her happy and smiling.

A restful Sunday.

I can't believe it's the middle of May already. There's been craziness, happiness, sadness and always the busy-ness since my last post. We're right in the middle of "Dance Season". From the end of April to the end of May our household is extremely busy with Dance recitals, lessons and Festivals. By June, we covet the time off until September when lessons start up again. Thankfully this year I don't have to juggle work as well as everything else!



I been blessed to have a brother who has gladly shared his technology hand-me-downs with me over the years, and I was quite attached to the laptop he'd given me a year and a half ago... until a week and a half ago it decided it needed a rest. I miss it terribly, and am hoping it can be fixed, but we'll have to just wait and see. Until then I have to survive with my out of date desktop that is slow and clunky.