Where Did January Go?

I can't believe it's the end of January already... the saying really is true "Time flies when you're having fun!" I truly love staying home with our kids and enjoy the fun that everyday brings. Colby is at such a fun age and comes up with some pretty hilarious things that always keep me laughing. And Jenna is becoming much more interactive these days and discovering her hands, rings, toys... anything that can possibly be chewed and drooled on!! In January, we visited Sea Life Caverns and the Sea Lion Show at West Edmonton Mall twice. First, we went with Kristy and the boys, and then we had to go again and take Daddy because Colby loved it so much! I'm sure we could go weekly and he wouldn't get tired of it! He kept telling Daddy all about the penguins, sea turtles, and sea lions that jump off the tower and clap their flippers!! He didn't enjoy when the animals got too close to him, but enjoys them from a bit of a distance!

Colby's new words that he uses regularly now are probably and maybe. "Maybe Mommy wants one too?" (usually about a snack) "I would probably like to go to Grandma's house." "My baby (aka Tip Top) would probably like a snack too, please, Mommy." It's pretty cute!! Tip Top has taken on a new identity as his 'baby'. Colby is also a blanket hog!! He will carry around 3 or 4 fleece blankets (including ones off of his bed!) everywhere he goes. He often asks Tip Top if he's cold and then he'll have a blankie right there for him!! He's really enjoying Preschool and had a lot of fun at this past week's class. It was in the gymnasium at the Tri because the meeting room was already booked. It was GREAT!! They did parachute games, kicking and throwing balls, building towers, dancing with ribbons... SO cute!! He loves going to Preschool and looks forward to seeing his friends there, namely Miss Logan! It has been great for me to meet some other moms there too and make some new 'mommy friends'. LOL! He also continues to love swimming lessons and having fun with Daddy in the pool. After every Tick Tock Time class (on Friday mornings), we hear him singing bits of many songs for the next few days. I've been trying to catch him on video, but he quickly stops once he realizes it's on! It's so true that the repetition makes them memorize the songs... and it's adorable how he sings it with the actions too! Jenna has been awake more and more during our classes and enjoys being in the action! I usually put her in the baby sling so I can still have my two hands free to interact with Colby. Again, a great outing with a trip to the playgym after class every Friday!

I'm in love... with another big toothless grin!! Jenna is often a pretty serious baby (just like Colby was), but when she's on the floor or in her chair talking with someone, she can smile, giggle, and laugh so much! I love it!! She is a great sleeper and we are very lucky! Her naps are getting much longer in length, which is also great. I can't say that she's on a 'schedule' yet, as her bottles and naps depend on what time she wakes up. While it's a loose 'schedule', it certainly isn't the same everyday. However, she enjoys her bedtime routine with bath, bottle, story and bed. Usually, we have both kids in bed and asleep by 8:00. Aaah... so nice! Jenna will usually sleep for about 12 hours! :) Yes, we are lucky! She truly is growing too quickly (okay, in age, not so much in size!) but we're trying to soak up every minute we can before the first year passes us by and I'm back to work. :(

Gerry and I are gearing up for an exciting week ahead! We are flying to Las Vegas tomorrow morning!! We're staying until Thursday night when we fly home and arrive back in Edmonton early Friday morning. Gerry's mom flies in this afternoon and will be here until Tuesday night when she will fly home to Grande Prairie. Then my mom will be taking care of the kids until we get home. I'm looking forward to our trip, but am not looking forward to being away from our kids!! :( I know it's going to be a great little getaway, but I don't like being gone from them. It will be a fabulous day on Friday when we get to see them and celebrate Gerry's 30th birthday as well!!! :)

Have a great week everyone and talk to you when we get back!
xoxo

Jenna is 4 months old!

Yes, Jenna is 4 months old today! I can't believe it! On one hand, it feels like it was just yesterday I was walking into the operating room, but on the other hand, it's hard to remember life without her in our family! She is still a great sleeper and is improving on her naps, too! We are following more of a routine that she seems to have developed on her own. She continues to grow, just slowly. Jenna has finally made it onto the growth chart and is now 23" long (10%ile for height). However, she is definitely eating well and it shows! She is 13 lbs. 10 oz. (50%ile for weight). She's getting some big, chubby cheeks, just like her brother had (and Mommy!), but she still looks adorable. We are baffled by the differences in babies! Colby was always in the 75%ile to off to charts in height and weight. Out of curiosity, I looked back at Colby's baby book... he was 23" long at 6 1/2 weeks old and weighed 13 lbs. 11 oz. at 2 months!! Crazy!! I'm sure she'll catch up, but right now, we're thinking Jenna's "short genes" are coming from Gerry's side of the family?!? She's healthy and happy and that's all that matters! Jenna had her immunizations on Tuesday night. Sadly, they didn't go as well as her 2 month needles did. She cried for a long time... in that terrible pain cry that no parent likes to ever hear! It took me quite a while to settle her down and we gave her Tylenol before bed and she was better the next day after a good night's sleep.

Gerry's team did very well in this past weekend's Men's Bonspiel! They won their first two games, so they played in the A Semi-finals on Sunday morning. They lost by 2 points, so they did not advance to the Finals and were out. But it was great to watch and Colby enjoyed watching curling and playing with trucks on the floor upstairs.

We've had a busy week with activities most days. We went to Tracy's house on Wednesday morning and Colby had a great time playing with Blake! It's nice that they get along so well and play quite well together too, being only 7 months apart in age. Preschool went really well again this week and Colby loves doing the crafts there. It's always the first thing he does! He loves that there are different toys out every week, too. He hasn't napped all week, which has been very tiring for Mom! It's frustrating because I see him yawning and rubbing his eyes, but he won't settle down to sleep. Grr... He still has quiet time in his room and reads books to Tip Top, but still not the same. His bedtime has been quite a bit earlier with no nap... I really don't understand how a 2 year old can be up for so long in a day without a nap!! It's tough for me to be! LOL! Anyway, we'll survive this transition period and maybe with spring and more time playing outside, he'll be more tired and ready for naps again?!? Notice the question marks!? Here's hoping!!

I'm very excited for a scrapbooking night tomorrow night with some friends here in our basement (that we've transformed into a crop space!) I'm hoping to get some work done from our San Diego trip before we head to Vegas! Have a great weekend everyone!

Gerry, Lesley, Colby and Jenna xoxo

A Great January So Far...

My caption on this photo that I put on Facebook captured it all... "Quick, take a picture... Colby is actually sitting for a picture with Jenna!" It doesn't happen very often, but I was so happy that he let me take a photo (or two!) of the two of them on the couch! I thought they looked pretty cute!

January is off to a great start!! We have had a busy week and it has seemed like we haven't been home much. We've had a few playdates, visits with friends, Preschool, Tick Tock Time, and swimming lessons. Colby did really well at Preschool again this week! It's fun seeing the kids from his preschool class in other places, like the playgym and the curling rink of all places! Kind of a funny connection, but Colby enjoyed hanging out with Hayden for a few hours there! He really likes playing and the craft each week! On Friday morning, we went to Tick Tock Time (a song/story program at the PERC building in Stony Plain). Colby enjoys it and often says, "More!" at the end of each song. It's a bit of a juggling act now that Jenna is awake more these days and trying to engage both of them. On Friday evening, Gerry and Colby went to swimming lessons! Both Tick Tock Time and swimming began last week, but Colby was still pretty sick with a cold so we decided not to go. He did great!! He's not such a fan of jumping in from the side of the pool and needs to hold Gerry's hands each time, but I'm sure that will come. He hasn't been in lessons for quite a while now, so he'll continue to improve, I'm sure! I'm glad he enjoys it... and he loved that Daddy went swimming with him (and Mommy, Jenna and Grandma came to watch)!!

Jenna loves to look around at everything and talk, talk, talk!! Her coos make me smile from ear to ear and I love the sounds that she comes up with! I put her in the Exersaucer for the first time this week and she LOVES it! More things to explore and discover, I guess! It's really fun watching Colby show her the toys and explain how they work and what she can do with them! Jenna will be 4 months old next week (I know, already!?!) and goes for her immunizations on Tuesday evening. I'm interested to see how much she has grown and how much she weighs now. She is definitely eating well, so I'm sure she has put on quite a bit of weight and I hope she's growing in length too. She did quite well with the two month needles, so I'm crossing my fingers that these ones aren't too bad too! I hate hearing that dreaded "pain" cry.

This morning, my mom and I took the kids shopping for a bit at WEM and then home to watch curling. Gerry, my dad, and uncle are in a curling bonspiel this weekend in Stony Plain. They have done very well and are playing in the "A Semi-Finals" tomorrow. It was a very close game this afternoon and my dad's last rock won the game with a draw to the button! Whew... intense curling! LOL!

We are definitely enjoying the beautiful weather this past week and have been going for walks and shovelling the driveway quite a bit to get some fresh air! It is supposed to continue to be nice for a while still, so we're looking forward to that! I can't wait until the snow melts, we get a fence built and can play in the backyard! Colby wants to go in the backyard all the time and play with his fire truck, car, dump trucks, balls, sand box, and the list goes on, but I have to remind him that sadly, everything is covered in snow. He is excited to get a bike this spring! Every time we go to Toys R Us, he wants to get one off of the shelf and take it for a test drive! I guess we'll have to get one once the snow disappears!

Have a great rest of your weekend (even though it's Sunday tomorrow already!) and enjoy this beautiful (although a bit bizarre!) January weather. Gerry and I are really looking forward to our Vegas trip... we leave in just over 2 weeks (February 1st)! It will be a great little getaway for the two of us and a fun way to celebrate Gerry's 30th birthday! We are very grateful for our moms who will each be taking care of our kids for a couple days while we are away. Thank you both SO much!!

Take care and talk soon!

xoxo Gerry, Lesley, Colby and Jenna

our baby girl, Jenna...

Now it's time for an update on Jenna!

I really think that time speeds up when you have children, but now that we have two, I feel like the days, weeks, and months fly by! Our baby girl is 3 1/2 months old and is doing really well! At around 3 months, she sort of set herself up on a schedule with feeding and sleeping. She usually eats 6 times per day and is sleeping really well too! Jenna was sleeping through the night quite a while ago (at 7 weeks old), but it has just continued to improve since then. She usually goes to bed at about 8:00 or 8:30 pm and doesn't wake up until 6:00 or 6:30. After she eats, she usually goes back to sleep for a couple more hours! So we are happy to be getting some sleep again and consider ourselves very lucky for having such a great sleeper!! Naps are a bit of a different story. It has taken us a while to figure out her naps and how to best put her to sleep. Jenna is a lot like Colby was... there is a very small window of time that she needs to fall asleep in. If I'm too late in catching it, it's very difficult to settler her down for a nap. She only naps for about 45 minutes to an hour at each nap right now. I'm hoping this gets better too as she gets older!

The last time she was weighed was at her 3 month checkup on December 21st. She weighed 12 lbs. 2 oz. (which is the 25%ile) and was 21.6" long (not on the charts yet!) I know she has continued to put on weight, but hopefully she starts growing in length soon too. She's definitely on the smaller side, but I don't mind it. She'll stay my little baby girl for longer, right?!

Developmentally, she's meeting milestones and doing great. She is more and more smiley every day and has begun to giggle and laugh out loud! I love it!! She is cooing and talking a lot and enjoys one-on-one conversations. This is often when the big smiles come out!! Jenna has beautiful blue eyes like Colby and you can see them light up with these big smiles!! She likes to stand up and is able to bear some weight on her feet! Jenna is quite strong and has good control of her head too! Good girl! She loves sitting up on the couch and watching what's going on around her. Colby keeps her quite entertained! She is very alert when she's awake and always seems to be taking it all in! We love doing different things with the kids and knowing that experiences will help them grow and develop later on! While she likes to be held and is a cuddlebug, she also enjoys her time laying on a blanket or on her playmat just kicking her legs and batting at her toys. She enjoys tummy time and is quite strong on her tummy. She is able to lift herself up on her chest and look around! Jenna is beginning to hold onto things, especially rings, blankets, and her bibs. We have now entered the days of wearing a bib (to catch all of the drool!) I really wish they made coordinating bibs to every shirt and outfit... a bib often spoils the outfit!!! Geez!! LOL! She has been rolling over from her tummy to her back and Gerry was quick enough yesterday to catch it on video! Yes! Good job, Daddy! While Jenna never took the soother as a newborn, she is beginning to take it now. I use the word 'now' loosely... perhaps the word 'sometimes' would be more appropriate. However, Jenna is a thumbsucker! I guess I should've seen it coming... I sucked my thumb as a child, so really, I'm not surprised! We look forward to her continued development and celebrating the new and exciting things that she can do!

Jenna, you are a beautiful baby girl and we love you very much. Your smile brightens our hearts and makes us smile even bigger! Thank you for the love, joy, enjoyment, (and snuggles!) you bring to our lives everyday. Mommy and Daddy love you very much, baby girl!! xoxo

our dear Colby...

I find that I'm so busy updating the blog with 'events' or 'happenings' in our daily lives that I really wanted to blog all about each of our children... so here's a little update on our little man!

Well, Colby is a 2-year old now, even though it seemed like we hit the 'Terrible Twos' a long time ago! No, all kidding aside, he is a really great kid, who just reminds us often that he is definitely a 2 year old! Colby was an early talker and continues to surprise us with his speech! He is putting together quite complex sentences and remembers words and various things from ages ago! After a timeout yesterday, Gerry asked him what he needed to do now (which is usually say sorry, hug, and a kiss for Mommy), and he responded with "Apologize to Mommy"!! What?!? I asked him where he learned that and he said from Mommy, so I must have said it a time or two for him to remember! He's quite the little character too! He has an infectious laugh and I absolutely love it when he gets giggling! He thinks it's really funny to tickle others and make them laugh too, as well as play tricks on you. For instance, when playing soccer or tossing a ball with one of us, he'll often throw it in the opposite direction instead of at us because he thinks it's hilarious! Pretty cute!! Colby loves playing with all of his toys, but he especially loves his new (very manly) kitchen that he got from Santa, trains, cars, and trucks (with trailers of course!) He doesn't go many places without his beloved Tip Top, who is like another member of our family! He feeds him, wraps him in 'blankie' and often occupies Jenna's swing or rocking chair with Tip Top. I have learned more about trains lately than I ever knew! Thomas the Tank Engine is a big deal in our house!! He also loves playing outside and is enjoying the snow a lot this year! He likes playing in the snow and going sledding on a hill near the Westerra Lake! It sure wears him out, so bedtime is usually a bit earlier on our sledding days!

Colby started Preschool this past week. It is a program called I'm Big Enough For Preschool! It is intended for 2 and 3 year olds and is held every Tuesday morning for one hour at the Tri. It is supposed to be a transition program to help the kids move into preschool on their own later on. So the parents stay at first and then can leave whenever you feel your child is ready to be in the room without you. He did really well! While he was pretty shy at first (as usual lately), he warmed up to the idea of playing with the other kids, did a craft with me, colored, and played lots! By the end of the class, he was sitting on the mat, right in front of his teacher, singing the songs and listening to the entire story. Once, I saw him scanning the room looking for me among all of the other moms, but as soon as he found me, he turned around again and was fine. I was very happy it went so well!

He was supposed to begin swimming lessons last night (Friday), but we couldn't make it to the first one of the session. (Gerry and I went on a double date with friends Jen and Dave to Jubilations!) So we're looking forward to him starting it next week with Daddy. We will just meet Gerry at the Tri for the lesson from 5:30-6:00.

Colby began his transition to a no-napping toddler about a month ago. I'm not going to try and sugar-coat it, but it is not going well. I was very sad the day that he decided he didn't want to nap anymore!! I really quite enjoy a bit of quiet time everyday. Anyway, he still has Quiet Time everyday and occasionally he falls asleep after reading, which is nice. On the days that he doesn't nap, it is a rough afternoon for everyone. I just wish he didn't fight it so much because he truly does still need the extra sleep!! Oh well I guess... what can you do?!

Colby is a great big brother! While it was a bit of a rough start with Jenna coming home from the hospital, he is doing absolutely great with her now! He likes to play with her, show her toys, help to bath her, and get her diapers when she needs changing. Thank you, Colby!! I hope he's going to continue to love her this much as the years go on... I hope our kids grow up to be good friends!!

You are definitely one of a kind, little man! We love seeing you grow and show excitement for everything through your big, bright, blue eyes! You continue to amaze and surprise us with what you know and communicate with us. Thank you for bringing so much joy, laughter, and love to our hearts every single day! Mommy and Daddy love you so much!! xoxo

Christmas and New Year's 2009

Happy New Year everyone! This blog is long overdue, but it was a busy week between Christmas and New Year's and so I'm finally getting to it now! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas filled with family traditions and new memories. We had a great Christmas! I truly believe that the holidays are all about the kids and we loved seeing Colby discover the magic of Christmas this year. (Sorry Tracy, I had this in mind and then read your last post using this line too! I guess we really do think too alike, hey?!) Colby is a pretty smart little guy and we were trying to explain to him the true meaning of Christmas and why we celebrate it. With his birthday just a couple of weeks prior, he was convinced that we were going to Jesus's house for a happy birthday party and kept singing, "Happy Birthday to Jesus!" I guess that made perfect sense to him and in a way, he's right! Although he was a bit confused why we weren't going to his house and having birthday cake. Hmm, we'll work on this again next year.

On Christmas Eve, we went to church as a family and enjoyed a beautiful service. Afterward, we headed back to my mom's house to enjoy the evening with my aunt, uncle, and cousins. The kids got Auntie Colleen a lovely necklace and gift certificate for Christmas for being the "Greatest Great Aunt" around! I hope she liked it! It was a very late night (not home until midnight!) but Colby did great. On Christmas morning, we got up and opened gifts together. It was really nice to be at home just the four of us and enjoying the time together. Jenna slept through most of it, but will be more awake next year, I'm sure! Colby LOVES his new kitchen that Santa brought him, along with the many, many other toys he received. He liked seeing the crumbs that Santa left on his plate, ensured he drank all of the milk, and enjoyed reading the message that Santa left him on the picture he colored for Santa! Pretty special!! We had my parents, along with Jody, Mike and Kendra over for brunch Christmas morning. I made a yummy wife saver (mmm!!!) and waffles for brunch. My grandma used to make the wife saver on our annual McCracken camping weekends on Sunday mornings for many years, so it was nice to do it on Christmas! Later that day, I told her I made it for brunch and she seemed very pleased with it! We stayed home for nap time and then headed over to my parents' house for exchange of gifts with my immediate family. It was pretty fun with all of the kids there! Thank you to everyone who completely spoiled our kids... Colby loves his new toys (and I'm sure Jenna will soon too!!) My dad's family came over for a big dinner late afternoon. It was great to see my aunts, uncles, and cousins! What a house full!! Again, it was a later night, but Colby did great. I was a bit worried, but he had a good nap, and hey, it's Christmas, right?! All in all, a perfect and wonderful Christmas!

Boxing Day brought a bit of a surprise! Colby woke up at 6:30 and wanted me to lie down with him. So I grabbed a pillow and blanket and he laid down next to me on the floor. Awww... I know! Next thing I know, Gerry is waking both of us up at 10:00 AM!!!! Wowzers!! I couldn't believe it! That has NEVER happened before. What a nice surprise!! :) Cal, Tracy, Blake and Emerson came over early in the afternoon, along with Bruce and Kourtney, and we opened up our gifts from the Cameron side. It was nice that Bruce and Kourtney timed it perfectly to come for a visit as they were passing through! Blake and Colby play so well together... I wish we lived closer so we could see each other more often!

On New Year's Eve, Gerry had to work until 2:30. We were planning to leave to Grande Prairie by then, but it didn't happen. So it was a later start to our trip up there. Oh well... we got away about 4:15 and arrived about 9:15. Colby did great travelling and didn't fall asleep at all, since he had slept for over 2 hours at home before we left. Jenna on the other hand, did not travel so well. She slept for quite a while of the trip and cried the rest. It broke my heart to have her crying in the backseat, but she was very happy to get out once we arrived and lie down and kick!! We stayed at Gerry's parents' new house. It was a bit busy this time with Katie there too. Colby and Katie got along fine and she really loves babies, so she was quite enthralled with Jenna! It was a nice visit and we enjoyed seeing Carmen and her crew for a while too! On New Year's Day, we headed out to one of Gerry's aunt and uncle's house in Sexsmith for a beautiful family get-together. We had a big turkey dinner with nearly the entire family there. It was great to see many family members that we don't see very often (some just once a year). Colby had a great time playing with all of the kids (and wrestling with cousin Dylan) and Jenna enjoyed the snuggles from all of her great aunts and cousins! We headed home today (Saturday) and the kids did so amazing on the drive home! Quite different for Jenna coming home than going there! Both of the kids (and I!) slept for quite a while and we only made one stop in Whitecourt for lunch! Jenna was very content, even awake and talking for a while in between naps and Colby really enjoyed the DVD player in the vehicle! Another great trip, but I think we'll be staying home for a while now. Two trips to Grande Prairie in 6 weeks is a bit taxing on us all!

Anyway, I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and are ready for a great 2010 ahead!

xoxo Gerry, Lesley, Colby, and Jenna