19 Week Bump!

We are on vacation!  But despite this fact, i still felt the need to post a bumpdate,

for posterity's sake i suppose....

I will be back next week with some of our holiday adventures : )

Happy Canada Day!



Nineteen

19 Months

How big you are getting! 

All of that baby fat that was so chunky and squishy is gone,
and you are long and lean, tall and wiry.

You are obsessed with cars and trucks, and can play by yourself for seemingly hours.
This is totally amazing to me, as it gives me time for me,
and all of the seemingly endless things that need to be done.
(like reading books, napping, and ahem, occasionally doing housework ; )

Outside is the place to be, and there are almost always tears when we come inside.
Daddy was amazing enough to fence in the backyard,
so now you have a safe place to play and i don't have to chase you all over the neighbourhood.
You love your water table and sandbox, and helping mommy in the garden.

Somedays you eat and somedays you don't.
Some nights you sleep and some nights you won't.
But you are almost always happy and ready with a smile.
And i just know you will be an amazing big brother.

Photo of the Week

Week #18

Life, Lately.

Adventuring, dirt eating, bubble blowing, daisy picking, flower planting, sun bathing, belly watching,

living it up in the summer heat!

Have a wonderful weekend!

18 Week Bump!

Are you as hungry as i am?!

Where are those damned pickles?

Why am i crying?

Is it really hot in here?  

: )

Chicken Broccoli Braid

Around here, i am notorious for making super fiddley, time-consuming food.

Case in point: The first time i attended one of Dr. Nails' family gatherings i brought the yummiest individual baked cheesecakes. 

( Ahem, talk about setting the bar high! )

What most people don't know is that (most of the time) these things are actually super easy to make,

and just look really hard.

This recipe is certainly no exception: looks hard, super easy!

Dr. Nails had brought home some of those Pillsbury crescent rolls in a can 

(not something we normally have, but hey, i am not one to let a good ingredient die in the fridge...)

 so i threw together some stuff i had in the crisper and wrapped it up in dough!

Seriously, once anything's wrapped up in dough it's just yummy.

Chicken Broccoli Braid Recipe HERE!

Next time we are contemplating a pepperoni and mushroom filling.

Oohh, or what about seafood? Shrimp? Lobster? Scallops?

Yes Please!

Photo of the Week

Week #17

When I was small, my daddy started building a cabin out in the woods in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

I watched him drive his tractor out into the woods where he had selected only the finest, straightest trees,

with which he built the most amazingly beautiful log cabin.

Today i live too far away, and no longer watch him drive his old tractor off into the morning light,

but i'll never forget how big he was to me, nor how incredible he remains...

Happy Fathers Day daddy! and to all of the amazing daddies out there : )

17 Week Bump!

First off, I would like to say thank you to everyone who commented on yesterday's post.

It makes me feel better to know that i am not the only one dealing with this type of thing!

Of course I certainly hope it was an isolated incident, and I will be the first to say that I have never seen that little boy 

do anything like this before. He actually seems like a nice kid.

(not that I watch him all the time or anything, but I just might start : )

I know that sometimes in the heat of the moment kids get swept up, and when you're three you don't necessarily 

understand that what you are doing is wrong or hurtful.

He just really wanted to ride the car with his buddy, and I am not reading any more into it than that.

It was a bit of a wake-up call though, to the fact that I actually have to start PARENTING.

So far I have been coasting along on my laurels, thinking 'hot damn this mommy stuff is a piece of cake.'

(as if, but we'll just pretend.)  This is a game changer.  This is where making a silly face or singing 'you are my sunshine' just won't cut it anymore, and I have to start thinking about how to react like an ADULT in these situations.

I am so not an adult yet, and so ill-prepared for this!

Anyways, I'm sure the shoe will be on the other foot soon enough, and all I can do is hope that 

my eyes are open to see, and that I can teach the Little how to share and take turns. 

So, moving on to my other little bambino.....

I lost my little buddy again to the nap monster today, but this momma sure isn't complaining about that : )

The baby is the size of a red onion now,
and is definitely doing some backflips and summersaults!

Pimp My Ride

Most Wednesdays the Little and i head out to a little playgroup just up the road.

They have ride on toys, balls, blocks, dollhouses, costumes, crafts and a yummy snack every week,

and both he and i almost always have a good time.

When we first started going a few months ago, he was too little to ride on any of the cars.

Instead he would just stand in the middle of the floor and let the bigger kids tear circles around him,

all the while with a huge grin hiding behind the ever present thumb.

Now that he is bigger he can actually ride the cars himself, and is even finally going forward instead of backwards!

Let me just interject here and say that this in itself just shows how fast he is growing,

{sniff sniff sniff.}

But last week, while riding one of those plasma cars (that you just have to wiggle the wheel and it goes,) one of the 

bigger boys pushed him into a corner and made him get off so he could have the car.

I was right there, and was telling him that he couldn't do that, it was Jake's turn and he could have it after.

Of course the boy didn't listen to me, and despite my protests Jake eventually just got off, 

simply because he was backed in a corner and couldn't move. 

The little didn't even seem to mind, and just went to find something else to play with.

 I, however, was furious.

Now i know this is bound to happen over and over in the years to come, both on playgrounds and in school.

However, the fact that i was right there and couldn't stop it made me angry.

What was I going to do?

I wasn't about to wrestle the car away from a little boy, and the fact that i had been defeated by a 

three year old came as a real blow to my ego.

How do parents deal with this sort of thing? Leave them to figure it out on their own?

Get the other parents involved?  What would you do? 

I felt as though he had taken the car from me, not just my little boy, and i have been stewing about it since.

Once Dr. Nails caught wind of this little incident, it was game on.

And the very next day he came home with a car for the Little that no one would ever take away : )

As for that kid at playgroup? Whatevs, he certainly ain't rollin' like this....

Photo of the Week

Week #16

It's Friday!

We're hoping the weather holds for some digging in the dirt, barbequeing, and major treasure hunting,

as well as a few more sunsets over the bay like this one : )

Hope your weekend is full of wonderful finds, friends and sunsets!

Baby Yoga

Erm, i guess thats what you'd call it...

Whatever it is, its pretty damn funny :)

16 Week Bump

I almost didn't do a photo this week, citing shyness and my discomfort with the narcissistic 

nature of posting photos of myself on this blog as reasons not to.

However, after writing a long-winded post on why i didn't want to do this each and every week, 

i finally reasoned with myself long enough and talked myself off of that ledge.

The whole reason i wanted to do this in the first place is for me, so i can print this out and have it to forever 

remind me of this amazing time in my life. I always wished i had done this with my first, 

and i don't want to have that regret again.

So here it is, vain though it may or may not be, camera shy or not.

PS. The baby is already the size of an avocado!

Quesadilla's!

One day last week all of a sudden it was five o'clock and i found myself without a plan.

Now, understand that i almost always have a plan when it comes to food,

so this was a bit of a rare occurrence, and i was somewhat at a loss.

But then i spied the chicken leftover from the night before, and i knew exactly what i had to do,

make quesadilla's!

Quesadilla's are super easy, can be made with any leftover meat/seafood you happen to have,

and are something i almost always have everything for.

Simply take your tortilla, layer up your meat, any veggies you like, and lots of cheese,

fold in half and bake in the oven or fry in a lightly oiled pan until crisp and golden, and cheese is melty and gooey.

I like to use caramelized onions, corn, red peppers and pickled jalapenos with chicken,

but the sky's the limit here, put in whatever you like!

How about leftover turkey, cranberry sauce and brie?  (is it horrible that i am thinking of thanksgiving already?)

Or shrimp, tomato, onion, cilantro, and mango salsa?

Or my fav, leftover bbq'ed steak, caramelized onions and sauteed mushrooms with cheddar!

Top with sour cream, salsa, and guacamole, and life is good indeed : )

Photo of the Week

Week #15

( photo this week courtesy of Dr. Nails! )

After the Rain

The sun always comes out again : )

Have a wonderful weekend!

{ Shoot Edit Submit & Photo Story Friday }