Catching Up with Lots of Pictures

Madalyn lost her first tooth! I hope the going rate for a tooth is a toonie (2 dollars).

While Grandma was here she and Madalyn made a gingerbread Haunted House. I think they did a great job!

Malcolm and I got to go away for a couple of days to a church leaders conference in Kelowna. I tried to capture the beautiful drive through the car window. Does not really work! We had a wonderful time and it was SO refreshing spiritually and for our marriage.

The one time we actually stopped so I could get some pictures out of the car. What a gorgeous drive!


Foam haunted house that Madalyn made with Nan. They did a great job too! What artistic grandmas.:)

Playing on the swing set with cousin Ronan


Silly kids! We were all dressed to go take pictures at a pumpkin patch but they were all out of pumpkins!

Canadian Thanksgiving. It was a lovely day with great food thanks to Heather. I did the turkey and I don't know what I bought but it did not have very many bones. Just the two leg bones. I thought I was buying a whole turkey that was stuffed. I plan to make it up to you Heather if you will come for American Thanksgiving. :) You don't have to bring a thing! Well, maybe your buns, mashed potatoes and broccoli. Totally kidding!


Getting ready to go on a family walk. The sweat suit Connor has on says, Here I Come, on the bum and the hood looks like a dinosaur. Too cute!

Rubber Ducky your the one!

You make bath time so much fun!

Love this picture

Lunch with our friends- Martin and Roni

Disneyland Slide Show

September Fun

Ready for Dance class! She is taking Jazz and Tap this year. I am taking tap too but you get no pictures of me! :)
Ronan's third birthday party. It was lots of fun!
The parking lot for their bikes. Too cute
The great cake that Auntie B made. she and uncle Todd know how to throw a party!
Please! Mommy help me! She is dressing me up!

The dressing up continues in this video.

We have had a fun month with lots of new and exciting things going on and there is one more coming up this next week. Madalyn is going on a trip with her Nan and Papa. I am going to meet them in Spokane on Wednesday and then they will go home to Washington and then fly off to Disneyland. This is a big deal for a couple of reasons one being just going to Disneyland for the first time and the other is that she has never been away from us for this long before. I think she will do great because she is really excited and because of where she will be - How can you NOT have fun at Disneyland? So, I am praying that she does not get too homesick and just has a great time. I so wish I could be there to experience it with her but my mom says that she will take lots of pictures (and video, Mom?) We are hoping that when Connor is Madalyn's age we can afford to take them both and go as a family but it is not financially possible for us to go right now. My Mom and Dad are planning on taking all of their grand kids at some time and wanted Madalyn to experience the Princesses before she is totally out of that phase which we are at the tail end of now. So, all of that to say I am excited for her and thank you Nan and Papa for taking her and giving her such a fun experience. I am praying all goes well and I know she is going to LOVE it! It will be kind of weird but also nice to have one child for five days. The one that has two naps each day! :)

Our days have been filled with getting used to our new routine now that we have school every afternoon. It takes some good time management skills for Connor to get two good naps before we have to take sister to school and go pick her up. Good thing time management is one of my strengths! NOT! lol We have done pretty well and I am really loving the new schedule.

We took a family trip to Medicine Hat for Ronan's third birthday party and it was a lot of fun. Especially in our new van! :) Bonnie and Todd threw a great party with lots of fun and creative ideas and we got to see grandma and grandpa and great-grandpa Reynolds which was a nice treat too!

I better go try and get some stuff done before the day is gone!

First Day of Kindergarten

Today has been a really great day! Madalyn's first day of kindergarten I would say was a roaring success! We had a good morning preparing for the big afternoon and she was the 2nd one to arrive and I am hoping we can make this a habit instead of rushing so we are not late. :) Madalyn went in and hung up her backpack and put on her inside shoes and then hugged me and said that I could go. I was shocked but started to leave (as more kids and parents start to arrive) but then she got a little nervous and would not let me go and started crying. She has a very sweet teacher who came over and talked to her and then took her to look at something so I left. I knew she would love it if she would just stay and give it a try. When I went to pick her up she is so happy and on cloud nine telling me everything about her day. She said, "I love school"! I asked her what her favorite part of the day was and she said when she got to frost, decorate and eat a bear cookie. She also told me about a puppy puppet that made her smile when she was sad and then the puppet (she said a name I can't remember) asked her at the end of the day if she liked her day at school she said yes. She said her teacher is really nice and she really likes her. I asked her if they learned any rules she said hers was listen to the teacher. She must have raised her hand and said that or something. On the way home she told me that she did not want me to leave because she did not know that her teacher was going to stay there and she did not want to be alone in the class in case her teacher went camping or something. Funny girl! Never really know what is going on in that little mind of hers. We came home and I started dinner(her fav - taco salad) and she got to play outside a little bit with her friends. Daddy came home and we had dinner and then we all went for a treat to Dairy Queen. It was a fun and memorable first day of school. Memorable too because Daddy came home with a nice (and big) surprise! See picture below.
On the front porch ready to go
New backpack
Walking big sister to school
Her very sweet teacher
Having ice cream with Daddy and Connor
Ice Cream
Our big surprise that Daddy brought home. Yay! We LOVE it!

Side note: Malcolm did not just go out and buy a van today. Getting this van has been in the works we just did not know when it would happen and I had no idea it would happen today. So it was a fun surprise!

Meeting Her Teacher

We had a great morning meeting Madalyn's teacher and seeing her classroom. I really like her teacher and think it is going to be a great start to her school career. I didn't get a picture of her with her teacher but I will be sure to get one on Thursday(her first official day). I got to look at the class list and we found out that a little girl she liked to play with (and another little boy)who were on her soccer team are both in her class and then a little girl from her preschool last year. Madalyn was excited to hear that they were in her class too. I have always wanted to be really involved and a part of things when my kids started school so I bit the bullet and signed up to be the Special Event Co-ordinator. This is stepping outside of my comfort zone but I know I will be happy I did it later. I always think that some other mom could do a much better job than I could (which is probably true) but no one else had signed up yet so now they are stuck with me. When I was growing up I think I would have been called the Room Mom. I have to make sure we have enough food and things for any parties throughout the year and volunteers for field trips. I am giving myself an anxiety attack just thinking about it because sometimes I don't feel like the most organized person in the world but I know that I CAN do this! I will be praying a lot that the Lord will guide me through this and I can meet some people and make some friends along the way. I will update again on Thursday.

Walking to the school
Sitting in her assigned seat
She really liked the puppets and puppet show station
Out in front of her school. She really did not want me to take a picture.

Mommy-Daughter Date

Today, Madalyn and I went on a Mommy-Daughter date and had a great time. It was like old times before we had our sweet Connor boy. Just tooling around town together running our errands. :) We went to the movie and saw Kit Kittridge: An American Girl. It got kind of slow for Madalyn in the middle but it picked up about the time she told me she wanted to go and we made it to the end and both really liked it! Madalyn saw one of the girls in the movie come out with her American girl doll and knew what it was and wants one for her birthday. I would love to get her one and read the book to her at night but they are a little spendy so maybe when she is a little older. After, the movie we went to McDonald's for lunch and then did a little shopping at Wal-mart. We got her a new backpack and folder (to put important papers for Mommy in) and then we went and got her haircut. I thought this would be a fun tradition for us to do before each school year and as she grows older we can talk about the year ahead and hopefully start the year off great! It would have been perfect except for the fact that I have had a horrible sinus headache all day. Why do I get these all the time?! I wish I could get rid of them! We did have fun and I love, love, love my sweet girl. She is so inquisitive and always asking questions to learn more. I think she is really going to like school and do really well. Lord, please protect my sweet girl and her sweet, tender heart. May she grow in her love for You and her daily dependence on You. Please may she be a blessing to all she encounters and may you bring sweet friends to her that can grow and be a blessing to her. Please be with her teacher as she prepares to teach the children and fill her with love, patience and excitement for the school year that will spill over to the children in her care. I love my sweet girl. Thank you for the joy in getting to be her mother and entrusting her in my care. I know you love her so much more than I ever could so I surrender her back to you and the plans you have for her (Jer 29:11) and her future. Please help me (the controlling mommy) get out of the way!

I just wanted to document this so I don't forget it one day. I always forget the small things unless I write them down and since this is the only real journal I have going these days (and some months that is debatable) and it happens to be on the world wide web you are privy to it as well. Meet the teacher and first day pictures coming soon.

I wanted to post these pictures of Madalyn's first and last day of preschool back in the Spring but never got around to it so here they are now. I thought this post was an appropriate spot for them.

Wrong Video

So, in my last post I put up the wrong video. He never stands up! I think this one is much better that I took today. Hope you like it! In this other video I thought I would just try to introduce the idea of a sippy cup with water but he just likes to bang it around right now. Excuse my voice in this one. WoW! How do I not annoy everyone when I talk? I annoy myself! I think it is funny how I keep saying take a sip like he knows what that means! lol

Long Time No Post

It seems the summer has come and gone so quickly. I am hoping to start blogging more frequently after school starts and we are in more of a routine because right now this is really my only journal of memories and such. Madalyn starts Kindergarten next week and she is really excited. I don't know if she really gets that she will go EVERY afternoon but I think she is going to love it! We go meet her teacher on Tuesday and then her first official day is Thursday. Time goes by so quickly! Wasn't she just a little baby girl? Sunrise, Sunset, swiftly go the years! :) Ha Ha I have been trying to think of some first day of school traditions that we can start and I have a few ideas so we will see which ones I can actually implement on Thursday. :)

Our sweet Connor boy is growing so fast and is such a good, happy baby. He is crawling and can go anywhere he wants and he can pull up and stand on pretty much anything. He really wants to walk! He is always jabbering away saying da da da da da but still no mamama. He still has very squishy big legs and cheeks. I could just eat him up! On the eating front we might have some issues because of me. I have this very irrational fear that he is going to choke and I will have to try and save him so I don't want to give him anything but pureed food. I gave him a little chunkier food today and he did not like the texture and pretty much gaged on it choking like and it freaked me out so we went back to our nice pureed food. Don't know what to do about this if anyone has any idea? He has a doctors appointment next Friday so I will as the doctor what she thinks. Maybe it is still too early to be giving him this other kind. I can't remember what I did with Madalyn so I totally feel like a first time mom with his eating. Tomorrow is his 8 month birthday!

I will have first day of school pictures for sure next week!

Sweet Kids!

Jumping in the pantry



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Almost Crawling

Video

This is a video I took back in May of Madalyn feeding Connor for the first time. I don't think she has done it since because I never think of it until after I have already fed him. She really liked it and is a great big sister. The reason I am just now getting it on here is because we had to update our software to even get our videos on iphoto much less on here. Enjoy!

Still Here

Hi! Yes, we are still alive and kicking! :) I just have not been able to get back into the blogging groove at all. Kara this one is for you and hopefully it will get me back on track! I really do like having these to go back and read. So here we go!

Last Saturday, Connor turned 6 months old and I really can't believe it! It really has gone fast with him and it seems like we are just flying through the different stages. He had a doctor appointment a couple of weeks ago and is doing great! He weighs 18 pounds (75th percentile) and is 26.8 inches long (5oth percentile) and his head circumference is 16.9 inches (50th percentile). He really likes his bottles and a lot of that weight I would say is in his thighs! They are so squeezable and squishy. He is rolling around everywhere and gets up on his knees and rocks back and forth really wanting to go somewhere. I am not ready for him to go anywhere just yet! He is doing great and LOVES his sister. She still gets the best laughs and smiles out of him. The video below is not one where he is laughing that much (I will do that one later) but you can see him up on his knees trying to crawl.



We have been busy with some fun summer time activities with some wonderful warm, sunny weather! I love it! I will not complain about the heat because I was longing for it so much during the winter and especially when it was suppose to be Spring and there was snow everywhere! We are getting ready for Journey Day Camp next week so that will keep us really busy. Madalyn is going to be in with the big kids for the first time and I think she is going to love it! The thing she is most excited about is going on some of the field trips for the first time on a school bus. Not the field trips but the school bus ride! :) I will be going on the afternoon field trips too as the snack lady. My mom is coming and is going to stay with Connor and she said, "have dinner ready for us when we get home". How nice is that! It should be lots of fun and I am really looking forward to it! Lots to get done this week so I had better get to it while the boy is sleeping.

How was that Kakes? Am I out of the dog house? She may not read this till next week because she has her VBS this week but it will be a nice surprise. She might even have a couple to read. :)

Sweet Connor Boy

My sweet little boy will be five months old on Wednesday. He is growing up way too fast! We waited for him for a couple of years and then when I thought we were probably just going to have one sweet girl - he appears! We can't imagine life without him! :)

He is such a sweet and easy going baby. The only time he really cries is when he is hungry or we haven't gotten him out of his crib fast enough.

He loves his sister! He will follow her all around the room with his head and she gets the biggest laughs and smiles out of him. She is so sweet with him and it is just precious. I am glad that she has a sibling. I think it has been really good for her and I pray they always have a good relationship.

Connor just found his feet the other day. I think it is the cutest thing when they are on their back and grab their feet and play with them. I think it took him a while to find his because his thighs are so big! :) They are squishy cute though!

Connor loves his bottles! He does not like to stop in the middle for a burp and just lets out this pathetic, mad cry. When he is finished with the whole thing he will look at the empty bottle longingly while crying. He is so sad it is over. lol

He has always loved his swing. We now have him sitting up in it instead of laying back because he was always trying to sit up and look around. We have this butterfly toy attached to it that he really likes and when it falls over the side he looks over like , "where'd it go?".

I think he might be trying to get a tooth because he is always drooling and loves for you to massage his gums with your finger. He is also making this gargling noise whenever he is"talking".

We have a very sweet boy and we are SO thankful for him! His smile just lights up the room and our hearts. Cheesey but true! :)








We are leaving for our holiday so I will update when I get back!

Long Weekend Activities

We had a good and busy weekend that started off on Friday meeting Auntie B and Ronan at the mall for shopping and then to Chuck E. Cheese. I think the kids had a good time and I had a fun time shopping with a friend! :)



On Sunday we had all of the Calgary McMillans (plus the Baxters from The Hat) over for a bbq. I did not take one picture! We had a great time and I think we should do it more often. The kids entertained us with some great "shows" that were fabulously directed by Karlie. In one of the shows Malcolm was an evil fairy. I obviously did not get a picture but Rebecca got a great one! The picture below is of Uncle Todd playing with Madalyn and Ronan in the backyard before everyone arrived. That Uncle Todd is a great fella! He held and gave Connor his bottle why I got things ready for the bbq and then entertained R and M until everyone got here! Thanks Uncle T!
On Saturday we went to Heritage Park with our friends Mark and Ruth and their two little girls Emma and Sophia. Madalyn was not in to having her picture taken as you can see from the first picture! lol Emma has a cute smile going on.

Connor on his first train ride with Daddy
Sweet Boy! I got some cute close ups of him that I really like.
Taking a rest in front of the saloon

It was a fun weekend with gorgeous weather! I love the sun! We also got our back patio and garage cleaned up and a little more organized so that feels good. I have more pictures and some videos that I am going to try and figure out how to get on here in the next few days. Blessings to you on this cool, rainy day in Calgary. I love the rain too!

Creamy Chicken Salad

When I read other blogs I love it when they share a new recipe they have found and like so I made (a new to me) chicken salad the other day that is very yummy and thought I would share it with you.

Creamy Chicken Salad

2 cups cooked chicken breast
1 cup cooked ring pasta
1 cup halved seedless red grapes
1 can (11 ounce) mandarin oranges, drained
3 celery ribs, chopped
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1 tablespoon grated onion
1 cup reduced fat mayonnaise
1 cup light whipped topping
1/4 teaspoon salt

In a bowl, combine the chicken, pasta, grapes, oranges, celery, almonds and onion.

In another bowl, combine the mayonnaise, whipped topping and salt. Add to chicken mixture; stir to coat. Serve in a lettuce-lined bowl if desired.

Yield: 6 servings
1 cup equals 261 calories

We bought a new camera so I have some soccer pictures to post when I figure out how to load them onto our computer. It should be the same I just have not taken the time to do it! :) Tonight Madalyn has another soccer game that Malcolm will coach before he has to rush off to worship team practice while Connor and I will be at a kindergarten meeting at the school. So it begins the busyness that comes with having school aged kids. It seems for us that all of our activities (the few we are in) seem to fall on the same night. I am excited to hear what they have to tell us about what kindergarten will be like for Madalyn next year. A part of me doesn't want her to go but I mostly am excited for her.

I better go! Crying baby!

This and That

So, yesterday was Malcolm's birthday and I think it is safe to say that he has had better ones! I forgot about it until around 11:00am and we had had a little tiff in the morning. Poor guy! Madalyn and I spent the rest of the day trying to make the evening special. We decorated with a birthday banner and streamers (she was quite sad we didn't have any balloons) and then I found the recipe for the Olive Garden's Chicken Scampi. Malcolm really likes it and always orders it when we go there for dinner (usually for my birthday). It was really easy to make and tasted pretty close to the real thing. Madalyn was the waitress and had a fun time serving her daddy. She made him a basketball card (well a drawing of Daddy with lots of basketballs around him) that turned out pretty cute. I think the evening of his birthday was better than the beginning at least I hope it was! I don't know what has been wrong with me lately. I have been kind of irritable and on edge. I could blame it on PMS but I don't know if that is really it! I think I need to get more sleep. Malcolm and I are going out tonight (just the two of us) and I am really looking forward to the evening. We are way overdue for a date! I think we need a whole weekend! I know that time together as a couple is so important (I can tell when we haven't) but I find it hard to actually do it. One reason is that I am horrible at asking others to babysit for us. Even if they have offered I feel like I am so imposing on them. I have issues! We don't really have a teenager out here that could just come to our house and be here while they are sleeping. Connor is still a little young for me to be comfortable with that anyways but in the future that is what we need! It is at these times (and others) that I wish we lived by grandparents. Any thinking-outside-of-the box ideas on how to have some couple time without it being a big production? We do have part of the evening when they are both asleep that we could use more productively but I need to get out of the house sometimes. I know this is not a new problem and many couples have the babysitting problem. I hope I will remember this when we are empty nesters or have teenagers and will call a mom with young kids and offer (and make her pick a date right then because she might have issues like me) to keep their kids while they go on a date. :) I think it is so important and they also wouldn't have to pay me because that can also be a deterrent to actually going too. I did not mean to ramble on so much about this but for me I need that time and investment into my marriage. All of that to say, I am really looking forward to going out tonight! :)

Madalyn has not played in a soccer game since I last posted about it last Monday. Monday of this week she was sick with a horrible cough and cold so I did not think it would be wise to let her play out in the cold. Then on Wednesday it was cancelled because it was raining and the fields were wet. Hopefully, we can get some nice weather and enjoy some soccer games next week!

Last weekend we had a garage sale and it went amazingly well. We got rid of a lot of our junk and I am so happy. We definetly priced to sale because we only made about $60 but we got rid of a lot. We even shut down early to go to a wedding. Malcolm took the rest to Goodwill so we are getting closer and closer to getting more organized around here. Yeah! Now, to get the carpet laid in the basement and then we can really get some things done!

The wedding we went to was Bruno and Laurie's and it was just lovely. They invited kids to come to the wedding and reception which is so Laurie. All the kids at Journey love her so much. Madalyn had a great time! Before we went Madalyn said that she thought Laurie would probably wave to her when she went down the aisle. I told her that she would probably be looking at Bruno but Madalyn could give her a hug at the reception and talk to her. Madalyn followed her around at the reception and kept giving her hugs. Laurie told Malcolm that Madalyn had told her that when she (Madalyn) gets married she is going to where a beautiful dress like Laurie's but that her daddy is going to pick out her husband. Woo Hoo! Now, if we can get her to keep saying this until she is about 25 years old! :)

I must go and start getting everything ready for tonight! Have a great weekend!

A Few of Madalyn's Favorite Things

I thought it would be fun to ask Madalyn some questions of some of her favorite things as a five year old. I wish I would have done this when she was younger but unfortunately you can't go back and at least I will have some from now on until she starts rolling her eyes at me. Can't wait for that! ;)

Favorite Color? Pink (Shocker :)
Fav. Sport? Playing Simon Says
Fav. Food? Grilled Cheese
What do you want to be when you grow up? Ballerina Teacher
Fav Bible Story/Person? Baby Moses in the river because the princess finds him.
Fav place to go? Chuck E. Cheese because there are lots of rides
Fav T.V. Show? Toopy and Binoo and Dora
Fav thing in bedroom? My toys
Do you ever get in trouble? Sometimes Why? Not listening
Who loves you? Daddy and Mommy
Fav outfit? Skirts and pretty shirts
Who are your best friends? Kimmie and Bailey
Fav Song? Twinkle Twinkle Little Star; You Are My Sunshine; Jesus Loves Me
Fav thing to do with Mommy? Play Go Fish
Fav thing to do with Daddy? Play Hide and Seek and play doctor
Was this fun? Yes!
Anything else? Yes, I like spoons with little mouse holes in them. I like toenail polish and vans. Oh, one more thing! I like chalk and hula hoops!

Malcolm and I were asking her the questions and after she was finished she wanted her Daddy to answer them so here are Malcolm's favorite things at 33 (almost 34! We are only TWO months apart in age despite what he might say!).

Fav. Color? Blue
Fav Sport? To play: Golf To watch: Basketball
Fav Food? Pizza
What do you want to be when you grow up? Kind
Fav Bible story/person? Jesus Why? He saved my soul
Fav place to go? Kananaskis (sp?)
Fav T.V. show? The Office
Fav thing in bedroom? Bed
Do you ever get in trouble? Yes, for not listening (Ha Ha!)
Who loves you? My wife
Fav outfit? Jeans and T-shirt
Who are your best friends? Suzanne
Fav Song? Mighty to Save
Fav thing to do with Madalyn? Snuggle with a bedtime story
Fav thing to do with Connor? Make him laugh and smile
Fav thing to do with Mommy? Play cards
Was this fun? Scale of 1-10? 6

Now you know a little bit about Madalyn and her Daddy! I updated my play list! It is fun looking for songs to add to it. I love, love, love the first song! I even had a whole post written about it (in my head) a while back but I could not figure out how to get the song on here for you to listen to it. Maybe I will try to do another one some day! Tomorrow is Malcolm's birthday!