A and some awards...

A has been remembering all of these CRAZY things lately...we were driving down a road that we don't drive on very often and he pointed to an apartment building and said "Hey, this is where aunty chelle used to live!". I was surprised he could remember that far back, as they've lived in calgary for quite a while now.
As we contuned down the street he pointed to a road and asked, "can you tell me all of the names of the people in your family?". I started (there's a lot of them, 10 to be exact)...and as I got down the list to Uncle Seth, he said YA him! He used to live down there! Which, of course, he had....but that was about 2 1/2 or more years ago....how the heck does he have such a good memory?
He also has been losing his teeth, one so far, and another one is on it's way out. He pointed to the empty space in his mouth and said, "isn't it funny that this is the one I lost? and this is the one I am going to lose next? because those were the first teeth I got when I was little too!".....woah...k, someone had to have told him that one, ha ha, he says he just "remembers when he got them"....but that's doubtful, since how he was like 6 months old, LOL.
I hope he doesn't remember anything mean I may have said 2 1/2 years ago and a hold a grudge his whole life, ha ha. I better be more careful about what I say...he is always paying attention!!


On another note....my friend Emily from THIS blog gave me an award!! It's called the Liebster award, and once you get it, you have to pass it along to five deserving friend-blogs with 200 followers or less:

So here are my 5 TOP FAVES!! (although I do love them all):

1- Dallas at "From my arms to yours"

2-Andrea at "me...my...more...mama"

3-Chelsea at "The hardest thing I've ever done"

and 2 from my family:

4- My little sister at Table for two

5-My mom at "A Bit Crispy"

After you get the award your supposed to pass it along too...so, if you feel like it, pass this award on to 5 other deserving blogs!!

NOW...

I have been thinking a LOT lately. Not so much about the course of our life or where we will be in the next few months or years....but more about life NOW. What we are doing NOW. 
Because NOW is what matters doesn't it? 
Now is when we need to spend time with our children, give them the attention that they need, the LOVE  that they deserve....everything. 
I am a procrastinator in every regard...so I really have taken this to heart. It seems like I am always telling A, "Oh, just a little longer and I'll play with you...just another 5 minutes"...but the time is NOW when we need to step up and be the kinds of parents that our children deserve...not in a month, or a year or more. 
It has taken me a long time to realize this...and as I have been trying so much harder, my biggest fear is...is it too late? Have ANY of the choices that I have made up till now been SO big and SO hard of either of my boys, that they'll be long-lasting? 
Is it already too LATE to become the mother I know that I need to be? I can only hope that the answer is NO....that I can do SO much more...BE so much more...and that it will have been enough. That anything I have or haven't done in the past WON'T be remembered by their little hearts and minds. 
Boy do I ever LOVE them. I love them SO much that I want to absolutely everything I can NOW so that they will never DOUBT that I LOVE them, and care for them...and just want what's BEST for them. 
The Lord has told us what we need to do...such simple things...patience, charity, love, serving others, keeping the commandment, READING the scriptures and PRAYING daily...we ALL know these things that we've been told...and I know our lives and, more importantly, the lives of our children will be SO blessed if we do them. 
Off I go now to practice what I preach...little A is calling for me to spend time with him...I am so blessed to be able to raise these wonderful boys...and have ALL of this time with them...so blessed. 


(for an amazing blog post a long these same lines....PLEASE READ THIS...it is SO wonderful!)

how I plan on making millions...

We've been talking a LOT, probably too much, about jobs...what we're going to do, where, when, how etc....well, I think I've come to the realization that I can make millions pretty easily by making....YOUTUBE videos!! 
Yup, you heard right....crazy, dumb, ridiculous, spend-hours-watching-nothing type vids....it'll be sweet....
SA-weet!
I mean, how hard is it? One guys made a vid about him with 155 t-shirts on...or the girl who posted an e-harmony video crying about cats, or the backin' up song...there are SO many completely ridiculous videos.
And let's face it, our lives are pretty ridiculous....if you've spent enough time with us you would know that we love making up random songs to random tunes that have nothing to do with anything and sound horrible. We are both horrible dancers, our jokes are completely ridiculous, and we laugh at eachother and ourselves all the time...so, really, how hard could it be?
There are 2 ways to make a great video on youtube a) being very talented or b)being incredibly untalented.
So, we're going with B....32 million views here we COME!!!:)

home again, home again jiggity jig...

My in-laws are HOME!! They have been gone for an entire year and a half!! That's such a long time...we were so excited to meet them at the airport. My husbands grandma and aunt came down to meet them as well. We all waited with anticipation at the airport for their plane to arrive. As they walked through the gate, the boys just could't wait any longer and they ran through the gate, past security, to greet them. I think that everyone at the airport, including the guard, thought it was sweet, so he just let it happen. They hugged, we hugged, there was plenty of tears....it was sweet. We have been enjoying their company  over the last few days, and I've been realizing how much has changed over the time they've been gone (besides all of the reno's that we've accomplished, and all the weeds we've grown in our front yard, lol)
In the time that they've been gone: 
-My hubby convocated from the U of L. He applied for about 300 jobs before deciding to take a job at Sunlife. He worked there for quite a while, and then realized he needed to find something more suited to his education and interests. He started working concrete (again....story of our life, ha ha). He has applied to at least 100 more jobs since then, and has passed his CFA level 1(woo hoo!!). He stayed pretty much the same weight and height, but I think he's a little more tanned, and maybe a little leaner than when he was working at Sunlife. He continues to have several great business ideas, and continues to apply for jobs....we'll see what the future holds for him, but for now concrete is treating him well.


-R turned 1, finally started walking at almost 16 months and learned to talk very well, in clearly defined sentences by 20 months. His hair was super duper bleach blonde, but finally starting to grow, as he was pretty bald in his former year. He was sick for a while during that first year, but once he was diagnosed with anemia (and a severe bout of constipation) he started to feel better. We went from visiting his pediatrician every 2 weeks, to visit him once every couple of months. He also started to get a little teensie bit taller, and started gaining some weight back from being sick. Then he turned 2, he grew even more, and is no longer in the 0 percentile for weight and height. No more visits with the pediatrician, and now he even sleep through the night( most of the time)!!...He now he walks, runs, jumps kicks, talks in English and a bit of Spanish, recognizes some letters, counts very well, and does pretty much everything else you can imagine, ha ha.


-A turned 4, went to preschool for several months and now can write and spell several things, and say quite a few words in Spanish. He loves to learn new things, including all different languages, which he gets from the many exchange students that we've had during this time. He loves to dress up, and really loves anything and everything to do with superheroes. He loves learning about science, spaceships and anything to do with outer-space. He wants to be an astronaut, as long as it pays well, ha ha....he's always talking about money, he pretty much loves money too. He loves to play any and all sports, and continues to learn gymnastics. He starts baseball for the very first time, they let him in a year early which mommy was pretty happy about, because she loves to watch him play!! He is getting better at swimming every day, and has gone from barely putting his head under the water, to jumping into the deep end or going down the waterslides by himself and swimming himself to shore....he can swim about 5 meters now unassisted. Right before the year and half is up, like by a day, he loses his FIRST tooth! He gets his first bout of money from the tooth fairy, which is very exciting, as he still has a deep love for money. This love is mostly because money gets him toys at the dollar store, which is about his favorite thing to do. He enjoys shopping and picking out his own clothes, in fact, he is pretty picky about everything he wears, much to his mothers chagrin. He is gaining weight, but his height is staying pretty well the same, ending the time at between 52-54 lbs!! :)
-Mommy....hmmm....what did she  do the last year and a half? Nothing maybe? lol....I think she was the one who took everybody to all these things, swimming, baseball, gymnastics...and cheered them on. She also helped daddy apply for jobs, probably filling out close to 200 applications over this time. She stayed the same height, lol....but maybe not the same weight...she has been exercising a bit lately:) She has also been in charge of several exchange students, close to 10 over the last 12 months, which has been a busy time! She has planned WAY too many parties and weddings to count, but enjoyed every one of them. She's seen 2 of her bestest friends get hitched, which was SO incredible!! She has been getting a tan as of late, but hasn't gotten much leaner, guess she should start pouring concrete with daddy!! :)
She enjoys reading interior design blogs, and dreams of the day that she can use all of her ideas on a house of her own. Daddy and her also applied for adoption, and have been on the list for just over 4 months!...and counting...


That's what we've been up too....I wonder what the next 1 1/2 yrs will bring!!!


.

ashur's teeth and funny things...

We lost a tooth! yay!! I was honestly a little freaked out when it started getting loose...it seemed a bit early for A to be losing them (he's only 4)...but apparently when you teethe early, you lose them early too...and they can put in spacers for any crowding issues...so then I got excited. 
He's been telling absolutely anyone and everyone about it...down to the random strangers we pass on the street on whilst shopping...it's pretty cute. He asked me the other day, "mom, is magic real?" , I replied..."No, why?"..."well, if it was real, that's what I was going to ask the tooth fairy for, when my tooth falls out!" ha ha. 
It finally "fell" out yesterday....more like it got yanked out by A himself! He put it under the pillow...and told us that he wants "159 dollars" from the tooth fairy....ummmm...don't think the tooth fairy is that rich! lol
He was SO stinking excited to go to sleep last night, he was grinning from ear to ear. A few hours after he had been sleeping, JD and I both crept in, it was kinda fun to have our first tooth fairy experience!!
Another funny/weird thing he said was this (we were just driving home from the pool, talking about how his Grandpa and Nica were coming home on tuesday): "I think they might die before they get here mom!" 
me: "why would you say that? they aren't going to die!"
A: "I think they are mom...they are just SO old, they can barely move...they'll probably die really soon. I think if grandpa tried to move he would like break his arm or something." ha ha ha ha ha...his grandparents are barely in their 60's!! ha ha ha, he's a pretty silly guy. 
We are SUPER looking forward to seeing them, Grandpa Chile and Nica, as we call them...it's been a whole year and half since they've been gone on a mission for our church. Time has just flown by, we can't believe that they'll be home tomorrow, but we are definitely excited to see them!! 
We even had the cleaners come over today, and got the boys hair cut, so they all look nice and clean:)
Pictures coming soon!!

our van has serious MENTAL issues...

Most of you probably know, or have heard by now about our MAJOR can malfunction on my birthday....oh yes, that day, of all days. 
Anyhow...what happened was this:
We drove out to Writing on stone park....had a great day, climbed around the hoodoos, ate a picnic, got some slushies for the ride home....and we were off. 
Luckily the van didn't break down on all of the random little roads in the middle of nowhere....but unluckily, it chose to break down right at the biggest intersection in all of Lethbridge....biggest because it is SO long, but also SO busy....for sure the most busy one I can think of around these parts. 
As soon we we pulled up to the intersection we could hear some major noises, and knew that it sounded like it was going to die....but we hoped for the best and switched it into drive AND immediately it died. We did this again for about 4 or 5 change of the stoplights...and the gave up. 
At this point we wee panicking, as we had no cellphone, and we both knew that JD couldn't push it through that whole intersection by himself...we we just sat there and freaked out for a while. After a little bit, the people that we had gone out to the park with pulled up next to us. They had 2 big strong fellas with them, and so all three of the boys stood behind the van until it turned green...and when it did they ALL pushed as fast and as hard as they could, while I steered. 
Needless to say it was quite the sight....people were honking, laughing and waving...yup, good times.
We managed to change lanes and everything...they got it going pretty fast...and we pulled into the closest parking lot we could find. My sweet ol' hubby forgot to mention to me that it would be pretty much impossible to steer!! ha ha...so I might have almost ran into a huge RV??? LOL
Okay...so after several days of going back and forth with our roadside assistance providers (through our insurance company)...that's a whole other pretty ridiculous story actually....we FINALLY got it towed to our house....on tuesday, so 4 days AFTER the breakdown happened. 
We called our mechanic, he came over....and VOILA!!! The van starts. Completely normally....no throatiness, no dying...he drove it around forever and nope, not a problem. 
OF COURSE!! So, apparently our van just needed a 4 day break from us, maybe we were too stinky? or it was just getting tired of hearing the boys cry in it, or make a HUGE mess of it's seats? who knows??....I'm chalking it up to our van just having some serious mental issues...
lets just hope that next time it...inevitably....breaks down, that we are on a little less busy of a road??
Good times. 

On Plan A...

Saturday, August the 6th was my 26th birthday, and oh, what a day it was....full of fun, craziness and one massive vehicle breakdown. 
But alas, this post is not about what happened that day, but on what didn't happen that day, or the week or month or full year before that day. 
August the 6th officially marks the ruin of my life plan. 
You see, I am a planner...to the core. My life is full of lists, schedules, calendars...everything and anything to keep me on track. I love having a plan set out for everything, and I like my plans working out as well. 
I have had this life plan for quite some time now. I got married at age 20, first baby age 21, 2nd baby age 23...third baby was supposed to come at age 25...but you see, I'm not 25 anymore. 
This may seem like some little inconsequential thing, but to me, it's big. It's big because nothing in our life is on plan right now. Our job situation is still soo up in the air, where we are going to be living, what we are going to be doing....and the no-baby thing is like the icing on the cake(refer to our baby story here).
Up until that Saturday, I had always thought....well, we could get a call today, or tomorrow, or the next day saying, "we have a a baby for you, right now!" 
BUT...it didn't happen. 
My hubby has said several meaningful things to me over the past week or so, as I have pondered on our life plans, or lack there of. He said something along these lines "It's good when your plans don't work out, because then it leaves more room for the Lord's plan and the Lord's desires to become more prevalent in your life." And that's so true, isn't it?
Several years ago, as I lay in bed coming up with this wonderful life plan, I had several friends that were in this stage of life, where there plans were just not working out. Not once did I look at them and think, "wow, what if my plans don't work out?"....instead I thought, "well, that's them...not me, my plans will still work out."
How arrogant on me to think that. I had thought that because my husand was SO smart, SO driven and SO wonderfully awesome in every way that of course he would get a job right out of school...and an awesome one at that, paying millions of dollars, right? :) And of course our kids would be born easily, with good health...and plenty of kids for that matter. 
On this topic of plans not turning out...my birth plan not turning out has probably been one of the hardest ones for me, traumatic actually. Going into labor, and taking prenatal classes, not ONCE did I ever think the word c-section. I wasn't even planning on using ANY drugs....so surgery like that was completely out of the question. It had not even crossed my mind that it would happen to me...as everyone that had ever been close to me had had babies so easily. It might not have been SO much of a shock, if it had ever even crossed my mind.


JD recently said to me, "as soon as you had that first c-section I knew our lives would be different. Much different than we had planned." It was so true too....babies were supposed to come easy to me....lots of babies, close together too:) 
Over the last week as I have been thinking about this topic, and on all of our failed plans...I am reminded of a talk that I listened too at a women's conference in Calgary by Laurel Christianson. 
She said in her talk that she had had so many life plans fall through....first it was plan A, then Plan B, then C...pretty soon she had gone past Z and was on to the Greek alphabet. 
After some time, of woe-ing her life and how it had turned out...she pondered and read the scriptures unceasingly...until she came to the realization that her life needed to be on track with the Lord's plan. She was on plan A, and always had been...she just hadn't known that THIS was her plan A. 


Well folks...that's me. I am on Plan A....I am exactly where it is that I need to be, doing exactly what I need to be doing....but little did I know that THIS was Plan A. 


From now on, when I am coming up with all these plans, I need to keep in mind that I am on Plan A...and I need to plan based on what the Lord wants for me in my life...not always what I want. 
As I said several posts ago, "some blessings come soon, some come late and some don't come till heaven"...well, all of the blessings that I know I can and will receive may not come at the times that I want them too...but they will come...in the Lord's timing...and on His Plan A for me. 

good friends and telescopes...

I LOVE a good chat with a friend...or friends in this case. It's one of my favorite pastimes...and present times, and future-times for that matter. It's so enjoyable to be around friends that you can just relax, be yourself and chat about anything and everything....the only down side being...you lose track of time. 
I went over to a friends last night for some chatting and root-beer floats...we had a great time visiting together for hours, and kind of lost track of time. 
Two of us walked over to this friends house...thinking we would only be there for a couple of hours, so it would be totally fine to walk home...LOL...well, we stayed for a little bit longer than expected, ha ha (um...2:30?? am? he he)...
It was a strange feeling walking home that late at night...it felt like we were teenagers again walking around at night, way past curfew...except that this time we weren't worried about what our mothers would say, but rather our hubby's:)
My hubby is kind of sleep walker (and he might kill me for telling you this story...), before I got in,I told my friend M that I was sure he would probably be startled by my entrance...and be half-awake, sleep-walking and make no sense....well, how right was I?
I walked in and heard some noises...he was in the room rummaging around in the drawer looking desperately for something...I said, "what are you doing?"..he responded..."looking for...umm...umm..." (with a crazy look on his face)...and put his hands up to his eye mimicking a telescope, like he was a pirate...."looking for the telescope?" I replied. "Yes!" Oh, okay then, ha ha. Then I gently told him he should just lay down and go back to sleep(whilst suppressing my laughter, because he was just so serious, and I didn't want to be mean to him), which he promptly did...remembering nothing of this in the morning. 
Oh, what a fun life I lead, ha ha....
love you hunny!:)

why our little shihoko is truly a canadian at heart...

One of our students that we've had this summer is Shihoko....we love her! She is such a sweetie, so responsible, so helpful...I can't say enough good things about her. 
She fits it so well with our family too, and I think it is because she was meant to be Canadian, not Japanese:)
Here is why:
-she HATES sushi...what?! crazy....I know, and so do we...but what Japanese person do you know that hates sushi? She is perfect for us. Sushi is like a staple over there...I'm not sure how she has even survived over there as long as she has, ha ha.
-Her favorite food is pasta...we love pasta! What good Canadian doesn't really? We've made spaghetti like 4 times since she's been here, and she loves it every time. 
-Speaking of food...she loves food. She still eats very little...so I guess she may have some Japanese still in her, lol. She is doing a presentation on her favorite memories since she has been here, and she asked for my help last night. I asked her what sorts of things she just really enjoyed, and that she would always remember...she replied, "dinnertime"....ha ha. I'm sure glad my cooking is memorable, lol...she takes a picture of each meal that we have, she has loved every dish we've made so far. 
-She is very emotional...she calls herself a crybaby....ha ha...it's cute though. I'm not sure if that is really a Japanese or Canadian trait...lol....BUT..I got her to start watching The Bachelorette last week(a very Canadian thing to do, ha ha) and she LOVED it...she cried last night at the season finale, as we were ALL rooting of Ben...poor Ben:(
-This is the greatest one....she wants 5 KIDS!! That's right....I know 5 kids might not be super typical for the average Canadian either...but WAY less typical for Japan. Most families over there have 1 or 2 kids, every once in a while 3....but NOT more than that. I don't even think she could live in Japan after having 5 kids...do they have houses that big? ha ha.


Well...there ya have it, our little Shihoko is a closet Canadian...and I think we'll keep her, ha ha. 
We went to Heritage Days yesterday and she won 25 lbs of potatoes! I know, random hey? ha ha...anyways, she can't pick them up till October (and she's leaving us next week)...so I told her that she could use this to make her parents let her stay, "I have to mom...I won 25 lbs of potatoes...I have to stay at least until I eat them all!"...well, that would definitely take her all year or more....unless our eating habits start rubbing off on her more. 
Well Shihoko...you can be Canadian for at least another week...and we'll eat your potatoes for ya, if your parents don't take the bait, lol. :)