Tag!

So I'm participating because Erica called me out on her blog to see if I'm as practical as I seem. I'm not sure if she meant me when she said Heather, but I'm assuming (you know what happens when you assume...)

5 Placed I've Lived (since I haven't lived anywhere exotic, I will break this down into communities of Calgary that I have lived in!)

• Ranchlands (this has made up the majority of my life)
  
• Citadel
  
• Hidden Valley
  
• Cochrane
  
• And now, a little slice of heaven, just north of Cochrane
  

5 Snacks I love

• sour gummies (or chewies, as Max calls them)
  
• crackers
  
• strawberries
  
• cereal
  
• nachos
  

5 Jobs I've Had

• Janitor at Ranchlands Community Center
  
• DQ Swirl girl (they don't actually call it that, but I was pretty good at making that little swirl)
  
• Walmart cashier (very short lived! I worked there over thanksgiving, and decided I didn't want to try Christmas)
  
• Receptionist/Executive Assistant/Event Planner (varied places)
  
• Mom! (this is the best one, plus I get to be a jewelry designer on the side)
  

If I had a million dollars I would.....(I'm assuming this is where Erica thinks I will be practical)

• Pay off my mortgage so our rental income would be complete gain...and build my dream house
  
• Put money in my kids RESP's.
  
• Take my kids to Disneyland for their birthdays. What better time to go then with a 4 year old and 2 year old. That place is made for kids that age.
  
• Keep money in the bank so that Tyler could focus solely on achieving his PhD, and not worrying about paying bills.
  
• And one frivolous thing: I'd buy a Mini-Cooper because I think they're cute, but completely impractical when you have 2 car-seats and strollers, etc.
  

5 things I love

• Being organized (amen!)
  
• Max's little boy ways
  
• Lucy's laugh
  
• Tyler
  
• Family
  

5 people who should do this tag...

• whoever wants to...enjoy!

So, I don't think that was COMPLETELY practical...

Five, Six, Pick up Sticks

This afternoon Lucy invited her Dad and I to play a few rounds of pick-up sticks while Max was having his nap. Tyler was surprised at my skill level at the game and I told him that I used to play this game every Sunday at my Grandparent's house. As I thought about playing pick-up sticks, I became reminiscent and thought about all the other memories I have of my Grandparent's house on Bermuda Road.
I remember the basement with it's dark wood paneling and white stucco walls. I remember the large wood entertainment unit and the padded faux-leather bar at the bottom of the stairs. I remember thinking it was so amazing to have a working sink in the basement. I also remember the bathroom in the basement had a pocket door that didn't lock very well...or maybe too well, because I got stuck in there a number of times. I remember the painting of my Grandma on the wall from when she still had brown hair. She was wearing blue. And the sketch my uncle Christopher did of Ammon defending the flocks that always hung in the basement. I remember skip-bo, uno, and pick-up sticks. I remember Grandpa's workshop at the end of the hall, and how we didn't ever go in there, but every once in a while the door would be left open and we could see some new wooden toy he was making for someone. I remember cheeze-whiz on toast and roasted potatoes (not together), and orange juice with pop in it. I remember the orange plastic panels in the partition wall by the front door and grandma's knick-nacks and music boxes all over. I remember the brown floral couches that always seemed so big, and how their house was always warm. I remember the food storage room in the basement and how it smelt like onions. That's where the coloring books and the large margarine container full of crayons were stored, so I frequented that room every visit. Mostly, I remember at Christmastime, Grandma would put her plastic, electric candles in the front window and as we drove up on dark Sunday-afternoons, I would see their orange glow, and feel like I was home.

"You Look Like A Monkey, AND..."

Kari and Barrett came up for a quick round trip visit to Calgary on Kari's birthday. We had a delicious crepe breakfast at Scott and Janie's (courtesy of Scott's coworker) complete with real maple syrup, maple butter and maple sugar, and then hung out for a bit before heading to the zoo. Kari and Barrett are in the process of getting their papers together for adoption, and it's helpful to get shots of them doing things together and with family (especially kids), so I was happy to snap a few photos of the day...as I usually do. This was Lucy and Max's 2nd trip to the zoo in a week, and it was fun for them to explore some of our lesser visited areas, such as the Australian/Creatures of the Night exhibit. Previous, Lucy's been too afraid, but since her Uncle Jason was along, she was excited to show him the Australian animals (he served his mission in Brisbane, in case you're wondering). Here's a few snapshots from the day. Yes, that man standing apart from us is part of our group...apparently either he has cooties, or he thinks we do. Happy Birthday Auntie Kari!

Aloha Winter

I realize it's been a bit, and I have pictures that need posting. These ones were taken in the last snow fall. We headed outside quickly to play and realized that the snow was ideal for a snowman. I was lacking a bit on carrots and stones for the eyes, as well as a scarf, so we improvised. Lucy decided that reusing some of the long grass that we have in abundance out here for hair was a great idea, and our snowman quickly turned into a snowgirl. She's paying homage to warmer days I guess.
The kids have enjoyed having snow and the idea of it, but the actual execution of putting on a lot of layers and playing outside and getting cold and wet quickly dampens the excitement. Having runny noses, doesn't help the situation either. We all came back inside and each had a cup of warm apple cider.
Later that night, as I was working on the computer organizing some primary things, Max decided to start up another round of his favorite game: "Find the largest pair of shoes and try to walk around with them on." Maybe he's practicing for some snowshoeing event I am unaware of.

Another view from the Nexis

I came across this photo from back in the day and thought it looked a little familiar.

Trevor. Age: approx 3. Max. Age: 18 months. Weird.

Happy Bird-Day

I guess I should make a quick note about my birthday, although it feels funny to write something about yourself. But hey...it was great. On Thursday morning I walked into Lucy's room to say good morning and was greeted by a beautiful red-head, lying in bed, stretching, with a smile on her face and then the sweet words, "Happy Birthday mommy!" I'm not sure if she was excited for my birthday, or because she knew it meant halloween was only one more sleep away, but nonetheless, I enjoyed the sentiment. We headed in to my mom's house in the afternoon to hang out and so she could watch the kids that evening while Tyler and I went out for dinner. We headed to our favorite Vietnamese restaurant just off Bow Trail and had a fabulous, filling, and completely delicious meal for less than $25. I love it! The restaurant is awesome and the food is great. We've become pretty good friends with the owner and he always has our food out to us so quickly that it's hard to savor the time away from kids. Before we left my mom's house she told us not to rush, but since our meal was done in about 30 minutes, we decided to head over to Walmart to buy some new movies...one of my other favorite things. We got a handful and headed home to pick up our kids. We were rushing a bit, so that we could get them into bed and settle in to watch "The Office". We started watching one of our new movies, "The Rock", which is an oldie, but one we hadn't seen. The rest of the birthday festivities happened on Sunday, when we headed back to my parent's for a birthday dinner with the whole family. My mom made a fabulous roast beast dinner with all the trimmings, which includes two kinds of potatoes (mashed and roast) because I'm a potato girl. Mom and Sam even skipped out on their choir rehearsal for the evening to spend some time. And if anyone knows their choir director, that is grounds for execution, so I appreciate the gesture. It was a pretty awesome birthday and I'm excited about 28...it's gonna be a good year. Oh, and presents: I got a new watch from my hubby, which is cool and way more fashionable than any other part of me, a book that I am so excited to read from my in-laws and a mini crockpot and a food processor from my parents, because I love to cook. Oh, and an "Office" themed birthday card from my sister. Thanks everyone!

Before the Snow

Because we knew the weather was going to be changing quickly, we decided to take a quick trip to the zoo while it was still decent. We ended up being some of the only people at the zoo and decided to go and visit some of the animals that we rarely see. We ventured into the "Creatures of the Night" section, which we have avoided in the past, due to Lucy's fear. The kids were pretty interested this time, and we were able to see some pretty great amphibians. Usually if we can relate an animal to one that Lucy has seen on a movie sometime, then she's pretty ok with it. Here's a Dragonhead lizard similar to the one on Nim's Island.
We had a pretty great time, and the kids enjoyed playing at the park with no competition. With the change from Daylight savings, we left the zoo in the near cover of dark, and Max fell asleep pretty quickly on the ride home. It was nice to get out and get some fresh air. We're all suffering from sore throats and colds today, so it makes me especially grateful for our day out yesterday, since we'll be staying pretty close to home for the next few.
And here's a shot of our little gymnast, Max.
He has amazing balance and loves to stand on anything and everything. I attribute it to his massive calf muscles. He has spent most of his standing/walking days on his tip-toes and that has created some pretty significant stubs.

Trick or Treat?

What a fabulous halloween night we had. The weather was amazing. I can't remember a time when we were able to go out without snowsuits and boots covering our amazing costumes. Of course, when I purchased Lucy's costume this year, I figured snowsuits would be a part of the deal, so I got it a bit bigger than normal, so we had to deal with a too big costume, but it was well worth it to be able to walk around in a near sweat because of the weather.
The kids were so excited about trick-or-treating this year. When Max woke up in the morning, I asked him if he knew what day it was. He said, 'Haween'. And I asked him, "Do you know what you get on Halloween?" and he said, "Canny!" Start 'em young I guess. Lucy went out in her tinkerbell costume and Max wore the fireman suit we made. We completed the costumes with a little fairy dust on Lucy's cheeks and some soot from the fireplace on Max's.
Max was a little cranky when it finally came time to go out, so he made us carry him from house to house, until one lady handed out little plastic Halloween rings, and that totally made his night, and changed his mood. Lucy and Emma were quick to run to every door. We were out by 6:45 and home before 8, with the loot dumped out on Grandma's carpet.
It was a fun time, and I hope next year is just as nice! I love Christmas, but Halloween is definitely my favorite holiday. Maybe I'm biased.
Here's a few pictures of some other gouls hanging around Grandma's house. That person in the background is actually Tyler, wearing a perfect "Great Grandma" costume. I think he pulled it off pretty well.

Officer SlamHere's mom. She's not wearing a costume, but I thought I'd get a picture anyway. She got a few strange looks at work apparently. There is a German couple working in her building, and they had no idea what Halloween was, or why everyone looked so weird that day.

Dude and Becca