Christmas is coming!

All the signs that Christmas is right around the corner are upon us. Days are shorter, it's getting dark earlier, horrible traffic, crowded stores, school concerts, busyness at work...all mean that Christmas will be here before you know it.
Last night we went to see our kids school concert. It was a wonderful feeling to be able to sit in the audience and see "both" of our kids in the concert. It was almost like a date night for Marc and I. They were fabulous. Hannah looking so confident and in control, Ben looking happy and like he was thoroughly enjoying himself. Here are a few pictures of the night.


A couple of weeks ago the kids got to decorate their Christmas tree in the play room. Every year they enjoy doing this and this year was no different. I bought some new decorations and with those along with their favourites, I have to say this is my favourite "kid" tree yet. Take a look.

My Special Little Guy

Before Benjamin was born I often wondered what it would be like to have a son. Would I have the same connection that I had with Hannah? Would I be able to relate to him? I'm sure it's something all mothers wonder about. Well, almost six years later and I have to say that my Ben is a wonderful little guy. Yes, he's a mama's boy and he has me wrapped around his little finger. I love him so much and some days I find myself just watching him. What an imagination! What a personality! What a sensitive spirit! I am so blessed to be his mom!

CRAZY KIDS!

Once in a while Marc comes home from work and he brings little gifts home that his students have picked out for our kids. I don't know if they are trying to suck up to Marc or if they are just nice, generous kids. I'd like to think the latter. Here are the latest "gifts" given to our kids. They are sure good looking aren't they. Perhaps this will have to be the Christmas Picture instead of the ones we took on Sunday.

A beautiful autumn day

This afternoon we went out to do our annual Christmas Card Photo Taking. We had limited time because the sun was setting but it made for a lovely time out in the fresh air. You'll have to wait for the final family pic that made the Christmas Card but for now here are a few pics I took of the afternoon.

Halloween 2009

Halloween has come and gone and all we have to show for it is....soooooo much candy. The kids raked it in and we are all enjoying the benefits.
This year was a little different Halloween for me as I wasn't able to take the kids out trick or treating. We did, however, get to carve pumpkins together. Above are the kids pumpkins. This is the first year I let them do it all themselves (besides getting all the goop out of the inside). Ben's is on the left and Hannah's on the right.
The kids got to wear costumes to school on the 30th so Ben wore his robin costume and Hannah went as an army girl. She was pretty cute. They played carnival games and had a costume parade (just after the power went out...perfect timing for Halloween).

On the 31st Marc took them out. The weather was perfect and they had a great time. Here is a picture of them trick or treating. Ben decided being a kangaroo would keep him warmer. Does Hannah look happy or what?
Now to resist the temptation of all that candy. Will I be able to do it? Doubt it.

My big girl!

I've been watching her grow for the past 8 1/2 years and now she is turning into a beautiful young lady right before my eyes. Hannah is in grade 3 this year but she is in a grade 3/4 class and I love how she is being challenged. Everyday she's working on her math and her reading and the concentration in her eyes is priceless. I have to tell her to clean her room a little too much but there has to be something a mother and daughter argue about right? I can tell this is going to be a good year.
Hannah has taken up skipping this year and she is in a class through Parks and Rec. She absolutely loves it and she's getting really good at it too. I'm happy to see her enthusiasm when it comes to exercise because she clearly isn't going to get it from me.
Hannah has also started taking Piano lessons which she also loves. She wishes she could be Beethoven over night so I have to keep talking to her about baby steps. She has a fabulous teacher and I know she will pick this up very quickly.

Do I sound like a proud mom? I am...and I love her very much.

Last day of summer?

Sunday after church we wanted to do something outdoors as it was such a beautiful day. We ate a quick lunch and headed over to the river...along with 800 fishermen. It was amazing how many of them were out. You could see the fish jumping but no one seemed to be catching anything. Our kids love the water so much so it was pretty much a perfect afternoon for them. We found a great spot...deep, not too fast, and beautiful. A wonderful way to spend what could be our last day of summer.

Back to school

So my little boy started to school today (well sort of). It was basically an info day for parents but it was so cute to see Ben lined up with his classmates and quietly walking through the hallway. He's going to do well. He had his interview with the teacher and I think he figures Kindergarten will be pretty cool. He is very blessed with a wonderful teacher that has tons of energy. Hopefully when it finally starts (next week) there won't be too many tears (from me of course).

Hannah, of course, is turning into a young lady before our eyes and was so excited about today. She is in a 3/4 split and is so excited about all the things she is going to learn this year. She has a great teacher as well (she actually had her one day a week in Kindergarten). Looks like it's going to be a great year for both of them.

My best friend

My wonderful husband surprised me last week with some time for just the two of us. He picked me up from work and we headed over to Royalwood Golfcourse and had a fabulous afternoon/evening. We rented a motorized cart and it was just a riot. Marc didn't think he played so well but I have to say I think I played my best game yet. We love golfing because it's a solid 3-4 hours of time together. I was so glad to be able to spend that time with him before the routine of fall begins.

My bathroom is done...almost.

So this is what my bathroom used to look like. It was hideous. It was not only ugly, we were starting to get concerned that there may be rotting behind the shower wall. Luckily there wasn't. We ripped everything out and everything is new except for the toilet. A new window, a new fan in the ceiling, new plumbing, new wiring, the door was moved over, etc. My husband worked so hard and despite a few pitfalls along the wall it is pretty much done. Marc is currently working on a small shelving unit to go between the shower wall and the hallway wall. Thank you for all your hard work Marc, I appreciate it immensely. And thank you Dad (Phil) for your hard work as well...on the hottest days of the summer. Here is our journey.

Part III

When we had packed up our campsite the day before (see earlier post) the kids were kind of sad because they didn't want to be home. We had to figure out what we could do. So after putting our heads together we decided to head down to Bellingham for a day and a half and do some back to school shopping and sight-seeing. Our shopping was extremely successful and so we had plenty of time for other things. We headed down to the Fairhaven district and walked along the boardwalk along the ocean. It was a beautiful day.
Then we decided to head home a different way. Last year Marc went to a conference at the Semiahmoo Resort so we thought we would check it out. What a gorgeous place. I told Marc that we have to make it a priority to go there by ourselves this next year for some peace and relaxation. I love the ocean and getting a room that is a couple hundred yards from the water is paradise to me. I can't wait to go back. Here are a few pics. There are some really interesting old things to look at.

Part II

We have this favourite campsite in Hope right on the river and we have gone quite a few times. We always get a site with direct access to the river and we love it. We were planning on spending 4 days but the weather didn't cooperate. The first day was wonderful but it started raining that morning (very early) and it didn't stop. Hard to tent when it's raining really hard and you've done everything you can to have fun. We packed up in the pouring rain and went home.
Here is Ben enjoying the river on our first day.
Can you believe the kids worked on school work while we were camping?
Take a look at my Ben. He had hurt the lower left part of his mouth when we went swimming in Richmond and then he either got bit on the lip or chomped down on it...so he had a fat lip. Then we noticed that his right cheek was terribly swollen and his glands were huge. Marc took him into the clinic in Hope and the nice Dr. told him it was probably just a virus and would go away. It did and he doesn't look like he got into a fight anymore.
This is the view from our tent. We spent a lot of day 2 here, hoping it would stop raining.
Me and my poor boy trying to stay dry.
Watching the rain fall off the tarps. By the time we left we almost had our own river flowing through our campsite. When we decided to leave I had checked the forecast and it was supposed to just keep raining for the next few days. That decided it for us. However, the next day we woke up at home and it was beautiful out. Frustration!!!! Now what do we do?