Starting to feel like fall...

Picking Apples
Jumping on Hay Bales

Will lifted Sydney up onto the bale, it was sooo cute.

Fall Fair

Jason is up there too. He didn't cry, but I am pretty sure he was scared. There was a couple moments of nervous laughter, so hopefully I have not scarred him for life. It was a pretty fast Ferris wheel.

Exhausted

Better late than never...the kitchen

Well, the kitchen was finished about 2 months ago- but only now am I finally getting around to posting the before & after pictures. Overall, I love it- especially the layout. With each detail however I could nit-pick. Things didn't exactly go smoothly- for example the granite counter top got cracked by the cabinet installer (long story I don't even want to talk about anymore- will only say do not use Canac Kitchens). Thank goodness the granite guys were fabulous!

But here's the before & after...

I tried to keep the brand new fridge free of clutter, but that lasted less than a week.

The choice of flooring was my challenge- I wanted the look of tile without the hardness of tile. So, I decided in laminate & I love it. Although, I do have heart palpitations about what we will do when/if we want to replace it...but that will be years from now, right???

Obviously in between the before & after there was this...

Our dining area functioned as our kitchen & dining room for well over a month.

Living without a kitchen sink was HELL!
You really don't realize what a luxury a sink can be.

Jason has had some accomplishments too...

The last month I have been very tardy on posts, so I have failed to mention the following:

• Jason's words are coming much faster now
• he is potty training & doing way better than I ever dreamed he would
• likes to sing (really he is copying his sister)
• loves to copy most everything Sydney does- even the stuff she asks him too
• and this weekend we switched his crib into a toddler bed

...my little boy isn't so little anymore. :(

You will actually let your sister lead you in many activities now.

I won't take a picture of him on the potty, but if you look close
you can see his funky training pants.

First weekend in the big boy bed & you did great! You didn't get out when you weren't supposed to & when you fell out of bed at 6:30am this morning you went right back to sleep when I put you back in bed. Thank goodness because it was a late night for Mommy. :)

Dr. Taylor

Could this be a sign of our future???

Portraits

I have always gone to Sears to get the kids' portraits done, but this year I knew that I just wasn't up to the task. Technically speaking the pictures have always turned out well, but the process was a little stressful. With Jason being such a cool cucumber when he first meets people, I knew that the success rate probably would not be as high this year. So, I took them to a friend of a friend hoping for some good shots of Jason. Sydney is typically a no-brainer, she is typically pretty good in front of the camera.

Our morning started off very early. Jason was up shortly after 5am & I thought that by 10:30 am he would be nicely primed for a nap & miserable. My efforts of going to some one's home & a more relaxed environment were not going to deliver the results I sought. However, Jason was in a great mood & wouldn't stop smiling. He was actually being a ham. Heather moved fast, so luckily we got some good shots to choose from.

Sydney's morning wasn't the greatest either. She wanted to wear her butterfly dress for her picture- no problem, but I also was going to bring some jeans & a shirt for her to wear for some shots. Thank goodness I did. On the way to our appointment Sydney got a nose bleed & that was the end of wearing the butterfly dress for pictures. It also put her in a mood for pictures, so it took awhile to warm her up.

Here are some of the proofs...

More birthday...the party

Sydney had her first "friend" party that involved the parents dropping the kids off & leaving. Thankfully my friend Tara stayed, because her hands came in handy. But, all in all, things went really well.

Here is a glimpse...

The first change to this birthday was that Sydney had to help with the cake.
I did the icing, she sprinkled sugar & lined with gum drops.

Mom found these aprons at Dollarama for the kids.
Didn't think we should have them digging in dirt with their party clothes on.

When the rain is pouring outside, you need to set up indoors. Nothing like hosting part of party in your laundry room/exercise room/workshop.

This is their "play". Not sure what it was about, but there was a lot of marching & laughter.


Smiles & laughter. This is what makes it all worthwhile.

First Day of School

Well, today was the day that we put Sydney on the school bus and watched her drive away from us. She woke up this morning crying saying that she was scared. I told her that all the kids in her class today were feeling exactly the same way that she was & that it was normal to be scared. Brad asked her to say "hi" to 2 kids today & we explained that if they didn't say "hi" back, that it didn't mean anything about Sydney. They just maybe weren't feeling as brave as she was.


We got through that moment & she got excited to go. I was feeling like a horrible parent that we hadn't taken all the extra stuff she needed (i.e. inside shoes, "just in case" clothes, markers, glue stick, etc) to school when we met the teacher. Instead all that in addition to her lunch pail & teddy bear were in her backpack this morning. The bear was at the request of the teacher since Sydney would need it for the bear hunt they would be doing. Her pack was so full, she could hardly lift it! And at the bus stop it nearly tipped her backwards!

I worked from home today so that I could see her get on the bus in the morning & greet her off the bus at the babysitters this afternoon. We went to the stop & things went well. She got excited waiting & marched right across the road when the bus came & stepped onto the bus no problem. When she got up onto the bus I saw her look back & she looked a little overwhelmed, but there still were not any tears. The good thing about where we live is that she is essentially one of the last kids on the bus so she does not have a long bus ride. The bad thing is that it must be pretty overwhelming for a newly four-year-old to look back at a bus packed with kids.


We tried to wave goodbye but we couldn't see her anymore & the bus was hardly away from the curb when my tears started. I was proud of her, but I was pretty certain that there were going to be some tears shed by her today & it really hit me that I wasn't going to find anything out until she got home this afternoon. At least with daycare you could call & see how she was doing. With school, they are completely in someone else's hands for the day & you mainly only know what your child tells you. But, I did what I hoped she would do- I sucked it up, came home & started working right away. I was thinking that I would post this blog first thing this morning- but I knew that wasn't going to help me at the time.


So, at 3:30 I saw her again & learned that yes she did cry. Three times she told me. It was so sweet the way she was telling me, because I could see she wanted to cry- but was trying so hard to be brave about it all. She said that she cried on the bus this morning & this afternoon & once at recess. The JKs play in a gated area & Sydney wanted to play in the yard with the bigger kids. She says that is why she cried.

I know that she went on her bear hunt & they went all over the school, the teacher read a story, they watched a show on t.v. (???), played with the balls in the gym, & made a necklace. She said "hi" to 3 kids, one little girl was bad & another little girl cried 3 or 4 times. She ate all her healthy items in her lunch & did not have time to eat the chocolate that I packed for her. All in all I think she had fun, but did find it a little overwhelming at times. I think Sunday night may present a challenge because Jason is sleeping over at Grandma & Papa's & Sydney isn't because she has school- so that I am sure will cause tears. I am glad that Brad will be putting her on the bus on Monday, because if she is teary- I don't think I am the best one to be there for her!

Made it home safe & sound
Her skirt apparently came of in gym. Thank goodness
I had her wear shorts under!

Four Years Old

Wow, four years old. It is hard to believe that you are four already & will be starting school on Thursday. Ever since you were born, I have repeatedly heard that I should hold on to this time & treasure it because once you hit school it all goes so fast. I find it amazing that time could travel any faster because it seems not so long ago that we brought you home from the hospital. I have often said you were a bit of a challenge for those first few months of your life, but really it has been pretty smooth sailing ever since. To be fair to you though, I was pretty new at the job- so maybe I was just as difficult as you.

Now that you are four & going into school I see this little girl before my eyes with no hint of baby anymore. I hope that you will thrive in school- you are ready to be pushed a little harder & you definitely love to please people. However, we already see hints of a perfectionist & I hope that trait of yours will not stop you from taking some risks. You definitely like to know that you can do something before you are willing to try it in front of other people. But hopefully with a bunch of other kids trying to find their way, you too will find your way to fit in & try a lot of new things.

Watching you with your friends I can tell that you do not often take the lead, but you also do not blindly follow & that thrills me. I don’t care if you want to rule the world, but I definitely want you to grow to make your decisions & do what you want to do. As your life in school begins there will be many opportunities to learn that girls can be the best of friends & the worst of friends. As long as I know that you will make your own decisions, I am much more comfortable to help you through the hills and valleys. Someone reading this may think that I am worrying a little early as you are only going into to JK, but from some stories I have heard from others- it can be a tough world out there for little girls at a pretty young age.

You are still not a “toy” kid, but you love to play with your brother as much as he will let you- he can be a little testy sometimes. J What you love to do is colour, cut paper, glue, & paint- hopefully some artistic talent will develop from all this busy activity. You seemed to really like gymnastics last year & are asking to do it again. So we are going to register you again, but this class will be structured in a way that hopefully will teach you more than your last class. We are also hoping you will try your feet at skating this year. You seem hesitant, but I think that is because you remember trying with Daddy last year & not able to do it very well. As we keep telling you, you need to practice to get better. There are very few things that people can do well the first time they try it & this lesson will need to be learned by you too.

You truly are a good girl & your dad & I love you dearly. You are so sweet with your brother, we could not ask for you to be a better big sister. You bring joy to us each day & you warm our heart with your smiles.

School Bus Prep

Last Saturday we took Sydney to the "First Ride" program. We went to a school & watched a Winnie the Pooh movie about school bus safety, then the owner of the bus line gave all the kids the rules & then we went on a 10 minute bus ride. I am so glad we did this because I think it will help a lot, but I still think that we will have tears from Miss Sydney on the first day of school. I sure hope I am wrong, but I am steeling myself for the possibility.

Train-obsessed

To say that Jason liked his birthday present would be putting it mildly. He loves his train & has played with it in every way manageable. He also brings his other toys to combine with it too which is nice to see him thinking in different ways.


The one thing that cracks me up is that he insists on sitting in the middle of the track. It is so tiny, so he barely fits in. But if it is in the oval shape, 90% of the time that he plays with it is with him sitting in the middle.

Developing Creativity

Neither Brad nor I claim to have any artistic skills & do not have high expectations for our children, but would be thrilled if they do. Sydney is finally starting to "think" creatively. Tonight she put ladybug stickers on her toe nails claiming that she was painting her nails. Brad & I both thought her rather clever.


Her drawings however are still a ways away from being life-like, or are they? She is starting to paint/draw pictures that have some theme to them. I still have a painting that she did a month ago that I could look at & say that it was an outdoor scene with grass, trees, "people", and sky. I was so proud it was posted on the fridge for over a month. One of her latest pictures, did not get posted on the fridge. Can you guess why?


She says it is a camel. Hmmm, what do you think. Not only is it a camel, but it is a camel with one hump not two. She can call it what she will, but it definitely looks a little phallic to me.