I LOVE Being a Mom!

A few things I love about being a mom:

- Hearing the word "Mommy", even if it is a million times a day
- Hearing "I wuv you, Mommy" everyday
- Hugs and kisses! (To and from the kids... can't get enough!!)
- Turning on Jenna's light in the morning, greeting her with "Good morning beautiful", and getting a huge smile in return
- Hearing Jenna "find her voice" with her squeals of all tones in one octave!
- Seeing Colby give Jenna kisses and hugs
- Hearing Colby explain toys to Jenna and playing with her
- Seeing their big, beautiful, blue eyes
- Snuggles on the couch
- Reading books, books, and more books to our kids
- Listening to Colby 'read' books to me
- Capturing a great moment with photos
- Scrapbooking my favorite photos of the kids
- Taking our kids different places to expose them to many wonderful things in our world
- Having quite sophisticated (and funny!) conversations with our 2 year old little man
- Laughing!
- wondering where Colby comes up with some of his sayings
- Playing! Playing cars, trucks, and trains with Colby before the sun is even up!
- Seeing them smile, cheer ("Yay!"), and clap!
- Seeing a great imagination at work
- Witnessing learning happening... connections being made, puzzles fitting together, etc.
- Baking! Decorating cookies is a lot of fun with a 2 year old helping.
- Seeing the excitement and magic of every holiday through the eyes of a child.
- Explaining the magic of Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny
- Shopping for kids' clothes and dressing them in adorable outfits... kids' clothes are the cutest!!
- Hearing from others, "She really looks like you!"
- Having a living room and a basement full of toys for play, exploration, and discovery
- Going shopping and only buying things for the kids
- Looking at Colby and Jenna and knowing that my wonderful husband and I created these two beautiful children!

Colby and Jenna, you are more loved than you'll ever know!
xoxo Mommy

* I could keep going, but here are just a few of my favorite things!

5 months old already

Yes, she is! I can't believe Jenna is 5 months old already! The time is flying by so quickly, but we are sure enjoying her more interactive and fun personality as she grows older. We took her to be weighed and measured last weekend when she turned 5 months and she continues to do well. Jenna is 14 lbs. 6 oz. and is 24 1/2" long. I find it hard to get an exact measurement, but we think it's pretty close. This means she grew about 1 1/2" in one month! She's still pretty short for her age, but that's alright!! She's growing and doing well, so that's all that matters! She is now rolling over consistently from her back to her tummy. It's pretty funny that when we lie her down, she instantly is trying to get to roll over. At least she doesn't mind being on her tummy! I often wonder if she's going to be an early mover too... she likes to bring her legs up and then kick them back while on her tummy. It's pretty cute, since just her bum goes into the air and her chest stays on the floor. :) We gave her rice cereal last weekend for the first time and she now has cereal once per day at breakfast. She wasn't a huge fan and didn't really know what to do with it, but it's improving... slowly. This week, I introduced a sippy cup with her cereal too. She did really well with it! It's pretty cute how the sippy cup is so big compared to her face! But she held onto it right away and knew to put the spout in her mouth too! We are working on some sleep re-training with Jenna right now, since she has regressed from her fantastic sleep schedule the past few weeks. She had not been napping very well and was waking up in the middle of the night and eating an entire bottle... very strange for her! It seems to be improving... slowly. Last night she slept for 9.5 hours before waking up, which was good. Hopefully things continue to get better!

Jenna is completely in love with her big brother! She gives him the biggest grins and giggles when he's playing around her, talking to her, or kissing her! I love it! I really hope this continues and our kids remain friends as they grow older. I truly hope they appreciate family as much as I do and have a strong connection with each other as they age.

Gerry and Colby went to the Oil Kings game on Wednesday night. Colby had a nap on the way into the city, which was a blessing! We thought he might be ready to come home after one period, but it turns out he LOVED it!! They stayed and watched the entire game! He was pretty excited that Daddy bought him a new Oilers stick and when asked his favorite part of the game, he responded, "The red zamboni!" I'm glad they had such a great time together!!

Have a great week everyone! Enjoy the beautiful weather ahead!! We're loving these well-above-zero temperatures!!

xoxo The Cameron Family

On the mend...

Yes, we're all starting to feel a bit better. Colby is actually doing very well and only has two more days of his medication. He is hardly coughing at all anymore and I can tell he's pretty much back to himself because... he's not napping anymore! Yep, clear indication that the old Colby is back! When he was sick, he was so cuddly, wanted to snuggle with Mom all the time and napped great! Sadly, these moments are gone! But he's getting better, which is more important! :) Jenna has a bit of a cough occasionally still, but is doing much better. I hope her cold continues to improve and doesn't turn into anything else! My medication has been slow to kick in this time... I have a sinus infection (surprise, surprise!) and have not felt well in nearly two weeks. Today is the first day that I'm starting to feel like I'm on the mend. It's sure no fun being sick!

We had a great Valentine's Day weekend... low key, but great! On Sunday, Colby and I did quite a bit of baking! We made a giant heart chocolate chip cookie from a big heart cake pan. It was fun and delicious! Then we made heart-shaped sugar cookies and decorated them! He had fun working the cookie cutter and putting on the decorations and sprinkles. My, my, there were a lot of sprinkles to clean up! But the fun and enthusiasm he had was more than worth it! We had a fun weekend hanging out together and enjoyed Family Day together. It's nice to have Gerry home during the week on long weekends, as it doesn't happen very often.

This week was back to normal... we went to Preschool on Tuesday morning and had fun making Olympic and Canadian Flags for the craft. Colby is really enjoying the Olympics on TV and has been cheering "Go Canada Go" with his flags! It's pretty darn cute!! This morning we had Tick Tock Time, followed by some time at the playgym and then home for the afternoon. Colby and I baked banana bread and played in the afternoon while Jenna had a great nap. Swimming lessons were fun tonight... although very strange with only 2 children there, including Colby!! He's definitely improving in some areas. Last session and even at the beginning of this session, he wouldn't jump in on his own... he would need to hold hands. Now he is jumping in no problem! It's great to see improvement and his love for swimming!

I can't believe our baby girl is going to be 5 months old in a couple of days! We're going to get her weighed and measured this weekend... I know she has definitely put on weight and am hoping she has grown in length too! She hasn't been sleeping very well at night lately. This has been an adjustment, as she has been sleeping well through the night since a very young age. She is having a hard time putting herself back to sleep and is needing to eat in the middle of the night, which is very strange. I think we're going to start her on rice cereal soon. Hopefully her sleeping patterns improve quickly... it's tough getting up in the night again! LOL! She is doing great! Jenna's a pretty easy-going baby and likes to watch everything going on, especially everything Colby is up to! She has big smiles for him and likes "talking" with him too. Jenna is SO close to rolling over from her back to her tummy. She gets onto her side and then can't go the rest of the way. Soon, I'm sure... she likes tummy time, so hopefully it doesn't scare her too much once she finally does roll over! I love playing with her and helping her to interact with toys. She focuses on things very hard (just like Colby did) and you can see the concentration in her eyes! LOL! I'll keep you posted on her 5 month weigh-in this weekend!

We've been enjoying the warmer weather and have been outside quite a bit this week. Hopefully it continues... I can handle this kind of winter weather! :) The kids and I enjoy walks around the neighborhood and playing at the park nearby. Colby's a big fan of snow anywhere, so he's not too picky whether we play at the park or in our yard! But I am definitely looking forward to the arrival of spring! Fingers crossed!

Have a great weekend everyone!

The Cameron Family xoxo

One sick household

Sadly, this week hasn't exactly been the best. After a very busy weekend with little sleep for Mom, I got sick on Sunday. It seemed like a bad chest cold with lots of deep coughing. Ick!! Colby started coughing, sneezing, and having a very runny nose on Monday. We were quite the pair. Tuesday, I decided to stay home and not go to Preschool, as Colby wasn't feeling so great yet and we needed some time at home after lots of plans and outings the past several days. We also stayed home Wednesday and Thursday (I know... I never stay home this much!) and I took Colby to the doctor Thursday afternoon after he was complaining of an "owie" every time he coughed. He certainly wasn't improving with his 'cold', so I'm glad they were able to get him in. Although I loved it, Colby had been very snuggly and cuddly all week. He didn't want to play much and just wanted to be held. Very unlike him... Turns out he has pneumonia!! Poor little guy... what began as a cold quickly progressed into pneumonia. The doctor said he was very crackly and rattly on both lungs. So we got a prescription for penicillin and cough medicine (to alleviate some night-time coughing and help him get some sleep).

He also had to get some chest x-rays done. When we arrived at the hospital, he was very nervous about the rooms and machines, but the x-ray tech asked if I could wait in the hall. I really didn't know how he would do, but he went with her no problem and closed the door on his own (with the help of a sticker or two!) Everything was going well until the very end when I heard a lot of crying for Mommy. They asked me to go in and help with the last position. I needed to hold his arms above his head with another tech while one took the x-ray. All in all, he did pretty well and I was proud of him. Pretty scary place for a little 2 year old without Mommy to come too.

He has shown some slow improvement... coughing a little bit less and the runny nose has stopped. He takes the penicillin three times a day (at meals) and is doing well taking it. Now just to get him to eat something... He has had next to no appetite for most of the week. Luckily, he is still drinking lots, so I'm not too worried. Hopefully he and I will be feeling better very soon and we can get out of the house soon! My chest cold is now in my head, so I have a typical bad cold. Ugh... I'm so tired of being sick!! It's pretty exhausting being sick and taking care of a sick little boy. We are working on coughing into his elbow and we're doing a lot of handwashing. I'm hoping Jenna doesn't get sick too, but she began coughing a bit yesterday, so I hope it doesn't turn into anything else!! Fingers crossed!!

Jenna and I went to our niece, Emerson's 1st birthday party yesterday! It was a ladybug theme and everything was so adorable, including a great personalized banner and a beautiful ladybug cake made by Tracy! It was a lot of fun... I just wish Colby would have been better to have come too. He and Blake play so well together... Thanks for having us, Edmonton Camerons! :)

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!! I am so blessed to be married to the love of my life! Gerry is such an amazing husband and a wonderful father. I am truly the lucky one to have such a great, supportive, and loving man!! xoxo

We're looking forward to having Gerry home for Family Day tomorrow too. Again, I'm hoping Colby will be feeling better, so we can do something fun as a family!

Have a great rest of your weekend everyone!
Lesley

Las Vegas Vacation & Happy Birthday Gerry!

Gerry and I had a wonderful trip to Las Vegas from February 1-4. I really missed the kids and had a hard time being away from them, but it was really nice spending time with just Gerry. With two little kids, it's difficult to find time for the two of us, unless we really 'make time'. So this was a great little getaway to help celebrate Gerry's 30th birthday! We did a lot of walking, checking out the sights and hotels along the Strip, shopping!!!, saw the Cirque de Soleil show "O", went to Fremont Street, and went on a tour to the Hoover Dam. The Bellagio Hotel was gorgeous!! I would recommend it to anyone in a heart beat! We didn't do much gambling at all (just a few dollars in slot machines here and there), but neither one of us is big into gambling anyway. I hope to go again one day... some friends and I have been talking about going again next year for our 30th birthdays! Las Vegas is definitely an experience, but 4 days was enough. We were both ready to come home on Day 4. It doesn't help that coming home, our flight was delayed 1 hour 45 minutes! We didn't arrive at home until 3:30 am... needless to say, it was a very long day on Friday with less than 2 hours of sleep that night.

It was SO great to see Colby and Jenna when we got home! I actually only cried twice while we were gone, but then cried as soon as I saw them! SO happy to see my babies! It was even better Friday morning to hold them and talk to them! Colby was so excited to see us and talked most of the day about his adventures with his Grandmas over the previous 4 days!! We are so thankful our moms stayed with the kids and are so happy they were good for them! I think they were probably pretty tired, but we truly hope they enjoyed their time here! Thanks again!

It's amazing how much bigger the kids seem to me! I know it was only four days, but it seems like Jenna sprouted while we were away. Okay, who am I kidding, she probably didn't, but you know what I mean! Colby made us laugh with his continued 'curling obsession'. He loves to 'sweep the rocks' with his Swiffer broom and yell "Hurry... hard... hard" as he's sweeping. OMG, it makes us all laugh!! Jenna is so close to rolling over onto her tummy from her back. She's been close for a couple of weeks now, but now she gets right onto her side, but just can't go the extra little bit. It's good that she likes tummy time, so hopefully it won't scare her too much once she finally does roll over! Her newest thing on tummy time is bringing her knees up (like she's about to crawl) and kicking them back out. She doesn't move her arms at all, just her legs. It's pretty cute!! I love having little conversations with Jenna and hearing her coos, many sounds, laughs, and squeals! It's really in the evenings that we hear a lot of these, since she usually can't get a word in edge wise when her brother's around! LOL!!

We had some friends and family over on Friday night for Gerry's 30th birthday. It was a fun party and a lot of laughs were shared!! Gerry was pretty tired, but I think a nap that afternoon with the kids (and the rum that night!) helped! We were amazed at how well all of the kids did with such a late night!! It makes things easier, for sure! On Saturday afternoon, we went to Evangeline's 2nd birthday party. I went to high school with her mom, Irene, and it's been great having Colby and Evangeline so close in age! They play so well together!! Sunday was our godson, Jordan's, baptism. We are so blessed to be his godparents and share in his special baptism day. It was a long day with church, followed by a get-together at Kristy and Kyle's house until supper time. Thanks for having us, Kristy! What a delicious meal and a great afternoon!!

Whew... the weekend was very busy and tiring after arriving home late and having little sleep throughout it. It was nice to have a few days of staying at home, playing, and enjoying time with the kids this week. We didn't go to Preschool on Tuesday morning, as Colby (and I) have been sick with a cold since the beginning of the week. He has a terrible cough and a runny nose, so I decided it would be nicer to stay at home in our jammies!! We love pyjama days! Hopefully it passes quickly and doesn't hit Jenna. I really hate seeing the kids sick and don't want her to get anything... fingers crossed!!

Enjoy the rest of your week and enjoy the warm weather! We sure enjoyed being outside today and playing in the snow this afternoon in the bright, beautiful sunshine and above 0 temperatures!

Lesley

xoxo

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