Events from the last month

Sleepover
My friend Wendy was home for a couple of weeks to visit family & she came with her girls, Ellie & Katie, to spend the weekend. To make the most of the kids time together we went bowling, out for dinner (10 kids + 5 adults = crazy), and there was plenty of playtime at home. It was sad to see them go, but friends can always come home again.

Illnesses Continue
Brad, Sydney, Jason & our daycare provider were hit at various times over the last month with more illnesses. Thankfully, I keep seeming to escape. Brad & I traded off half-days at home when Jo was sick & this is what Jason chose to do on his morning home with his dad. Kids are weird sometimes.


Sunday Dinners
Brad & I have taken some of the pressure off his mom for Sunday dinners. We are now hosting one a month (I know, that still leaves 3 for her- but you have to start somewhere). It means I spend a day in the kitchen getting ready, but it means that I get to have my family fill my house more regularly & I love that. The kids seem to love it too, because they are just as wild here as they are at Grandma & Papa's.
Getting ready for Valentine's Day
Yesterday Brad & Sydney spent the morning making valentines for her class. It was a much longer project than Daddy anticipated.

Pictures I missed from the Xmas holidays
Brooke & Bailey spent a night with us & the kids always love to play with their cousins.

Happy Belated 40th Bradley

A page from the birthday boy's baby book

A couple of weeks ago Brad turned the Big 4-0. I asked if he would like a party for his 40th & he said 'no'. Technically there was no party because it was just a family dinner like we would host any other time in the month, but I did invite Kim & Pete too. But really, it was Pete's birthday too.

I like to say that Brad got a new car for his birthday, since he did pick up a new one the very next day. However, the circumstances in which we got a new car were not good. The week before his birthday he got T-boned on his side driving to work. Thankfully he's OK, but his head got knocked pretty good & he had to go to the hospital by ambulance (for which we received a $45 bill this week). He still does not remember the accident at all- his first memory is the ambulance.

I think all in all he had a good birthday, but it seems that 40 is just another number for him.

Look at the candles!!!
(Jason is not too sure of the fire.)

Look at the smoke!!!
Thankfully the smoke detectors did not go off!

Baby Bradley :)

Let the 40's begin

Birthday boy & our hostess, Janet

For anyone that checks here with any regularity, you will notice that this post was actually posted on February 8th. I had every intention of posting this originally, but sleep won out & I have not been back since. Since Paul's 40th, Brad has also turned 40 & I think his nose may be a little out of joint that he didn't get his own birthday post...but in my defense, the end of January was a little crazy.

Anyway, here we are celebrating the beginning of the 40's. Brad's crew is all turning 40 this year & we celebrated Paul's with our own personal chefs (Janet's daughter is a chef-in-training) at a house in Niagara-on-the-Lake. It was a very nice time.

Our chefs who filled us with wonderful food!

After eating for 5 hours, Becky & I had to go for a walk.
There was a great climbing tree in our front yard that just had to be tried out.

Christmas Recap

I must say that I am getting bad in the picture taking arena. It is the end of the Christmas celebrations & I do not have the family photos that I like to have at the end of this season. Which will be very apparent as you look below.

Christmas Eve
Our day started with lots of snow & it was great to go outside & seeing all your neighbours helping each other. Jason & I went across the road & helped them shovel too. Afterwards there were snowmen to make, snowballs to throw & a general good time in the snow. Even though we got lots, the snow did not last too long because as I write this- there is hardly any left outside.


After the snow clearing, we spent the day with Brad's family, but we only have this one picture (which is a pathetic one at that- Brad you shot more of the table than the kids!) to show for it. I like to have a picture of us sitting at the table for dinner, pictures with Grandma & Papa & a picture of the kids by the tree. I have none of those. I am blaming Robb & Michele for this because their already chaotic life threw a wrench at them & they were late for dinner so that set everything off. Even though I don't have many pictures to show for it, it was a really nice day with his family.


Christmas Day
For the first time we woke up in our own home & it was only us. Mom has spent the last couple of Christmas Eves with us, but this year she was at Kim & Pete's. Christmas morning was a nice relaxing morning of opening Santa's gifts, having breakfast & getting dressed before opening our gifts to each other. Sydney asked why Mommy & Daddy give her clothes. I told her that Santa likes to give her fun stuff, but Mommy & Daddy will often give them stuff they need as much as they want. Note to self, next year wrap clothes all in one present- except p.j.'s- they seem to be an OK clothing gift, at least Jason thought so.

Sydney got a high chair for 'Baby' and a piano with microphone.
She is very intently trying to ready the sheet music.

Jason got a train set

Santa put a new hat in Sydney's stocking
& she informed us that it has a booby on top!

Santa also put some Dora socks in which got the biggest reaction of the morning.

Once all of Jason's train pieces were connected with his new ones (thank you Santa, Grandma, Papa & Nana) it takes up half of our family room!

Boxing Day
Kim & Pete hosted our Christmas this year & Sydney & Jason got their first introduction to video games. Both had fun with it, but thankfully were not too enthralled by it. They did love playing with their cousin Regan though.

Aunt Kim teaching Sydney how to bowl.

Of course Jason could not just be a bystander.

The spectators...

Love the hair Tyler!

Mom was a very engaged spectator.

Now that Tyler is a teenager it seems like we only see him a few times a year because his social calendar will often interfere with a gathering. He was sporting a new do & I must admit I quite like it.

Today
Well today we rounded out the holiday celebrations by heading to Brent & Christa's for the Robinson Christmas. It was incredibly windy & on the way there we went by a 18-wheeler that was tipped over on the highway. It was pretty freaky.
It was very nice to visit with my family & Brent & Christa did a wonderful job of hosting.

Sydney & Jason with G.G.
(I love Sydney's new do!)

G.G. and 12 of 15 great-grandchildren
(missing: Tyler, Liam, & Mallory)

Merry Christmas to you!

You will need to wait for a recap of our holidays on a different day. Not feeling so hot today & tomorrow we have another Christmas celebration to go to so it will be an all in one swoop post.

Polar Moods

This evening we had two children at polar opposites on the mood spectrum. Jason was happy & hyper & Sydney is sporting a fever of over a 103. Jason was being a ham through dinner & Sydney went up to bed.

I guess I better get prepped to work from home tomorrow, because it doesn't look like she is going to school.

Santa's Son

This morning we went to friends' for breakfast & they arranged for Santa to arrive. However at the last minute, it was noticed that the cleaners lost part of Santa's "look". So, since Santa could not make it, we had Santa's son. We told the kids that Santa was very busy getting ready for Christmas so he sent his son. I think they liked that even better. Santa's son was without the big bushy beard. Even Jason sat on his knee! Sydney however would not go near him.

The kids had a great time playing dress up, singing & tearing apart the Gingerbread house.