Summer is gone

Our summer was good, we had some ups and downs and visits with family and trips to the hospital. We volunteered in HighRiver to help the flood victims in early July, I went for one day and Matt went for two. We picked through 'mud' to clear out belongings and funiture, helped the vac truck to suck everything up and the gutted the basement down to the studs. It was smelly, hot, gross but very rewarding work. We had a good group of people to work with and the home owner was so grateful! He was a sweet old man in his eighties, his whole life was in the house and it was all gone! It was so sad to see him watch his life reduced to a pile of muddy garbage. But he could never have gotten his house cleared out unless he had help. 

About a week after Matt got really dizzy, after trips to emerge and the dr and blood tests and heart tests, we don't know why he is dizzy. The specialist said that working in hHighRiver May had triggered it because Matt is not used to so much physical labour. Today we went for more tests, a hearing test and some tests where electrodes are put on Matt's face and neck and then beeps or clicks are played at a specific decibel to stimulate the nerves in the balance centers of Matt's ears, and the electrodes can pick up if they are working properly. That one was pretty easy, but Matt always gets so nervous when he has to go for tests. We didn't know what they would be until we got there, and he hates needles so much( there were none, but he still worries poor guy). The other test was pretty neat. Matt got strapped into a harnes which attached on to a big three sided metal box with a screen to look at and the insides were pained with a bright landscape scene. The floor could tilt and slide and the box would tilt. The harness was to catch him if he lost his balance. The movements were to try and trick his body into losing his balance. He just had to compensate for the movements and the comuter recorded his reactions. 

I doubt we will be able to but I would love to know how he did on that one!

So he has been home all summer and mostly it has been really great having him home all the time, and I am so glad that we had such good benefits and a health care system that we don't have to pay for!

Anita turned six in June, which is crazy! She also started grade ones his fall, and is really enjoying it! Her teacher it fanominal! Julia is in the same class and they have been getting along very well.

My sister and her family moved to our town as well just at the end of August, they weren't too far away before, but I think they are enjoying the small town instead of the city.

At church I am now in the primary presidency and so far it's been great! The ladies I serve with are great fun! And Matt is in young men's which I think he likes.

I have done SO much driving this summer! Matt isn't supposed to drive ( he does once in a while but only on good days when he is not dizzy and never by himself) so I have done all the driving this summer, we've been to Fairmont B.C., Edmonton, Lethbridge, Red Deer, all over the place not to mention all the regular stuff like trips into the city etc.

So it's been good, I've got to brush up on my city driving skills, we've been able to spend almost all day every day together for three months (really this had been mostly great, I've only almost gone crazy a couple of times), I have only one child home half the day, (and it had been so peaceful!) we have traveled and visited.

It has been a good summer!

Happy thought

Matt has great benefits, he is still getting payed even though he hasn't been to work since the middle of july(except a few days in August but they sent him home)

My kids like school and have a teacher who loves them.

Spring

What a busy couple of months we've had, two new nieces and a nephew born, lots of visiting around and some family fun. My brother and his wife had a baby girl in march and a week later Matt's older sister also had a girl bringing our nieces up from one to three in about a week, they are both beautiful! We went up to see my brother for Easter and had a lovely visit and lots of Easter fun. And the girls are warming up to him finally too! Duncan is a pretty funny uncle! There was so much snow still and we had a super fun day playing in it making a big slide and a snowman. 

We had our Kelowna trip after that and then spent the first two weeks in may at Matt's parents for a few days and got to see Gumpo, Matt's Granada who was out from Ontario on his annual visit to see his kids and grand kids etc. then we stopped in Edmonton for a few hours to see Duncan and attend the baby blessing for Sierra. Then we continued our drive up north to spend a week with mom and dad. It was lots of fun and very relaxing. The leaves came out while we were there and we got to watch my very talented sister in her dance recital. We had quad rides and a hot dog roast and lots of yummy food and outside time and Matt got to go with dad to buy a new quad. Dad took Matt and I out to the gun range for an afternoon too. It was a very good time. And on the way home we stopped in to see my grandma and grandpa and one of my aunts.

Three days after getting home we packed up again to head down to Lethbridge to see our new nephew. 

So now we are home and should be staying put for a while. Anita will be starting swimming lessons in a couple weeks and I have to plan Matt's 30th birthday celebration (dun dun DUN!!). And I need to like wash my floor and get rid of some junk.

Matt went go karting with his best friend, it was his birthday the week before.

Robin's make up from one of her dances

Dad reading a book to the girls

Happy thought

We can afford to drive/have a vehicle that can go for ten hours to visit family. 

We have family who we love and loves us and wants us to visit and comes to visit us!

The Rest

The remainder of out little holiday to B.C. was very lovely. We went on a little walk around Knox mountain, took loads of pictures of orchards, drove out to Peachland to go to Parrot Island, which is not an island, did a little shopping and then make the long drive back home with a few fun stops.

Parrot Island is a sanctuary of sorts for unwanted parrots. The gentleman who runs the place takes in birds who are not compatible with the families who owned them etc. Parrots are very possessive and therefore an owner often has to give up the bird because the bird is jealous of other human relationships. We completely forgot to take any pictures, partly because it was deafening in the building due to parrots all clamouring for attention and partly because it was so interesting! Some could talk or wave or dance. Some thought they owned the place and if we weren't giving them attention they would scream till we came back. He had a hyacinth macaw as well as lots of green parrots and scarlet macaws and those light pink cockatoos and lots of others too.

On our way home we stopped at the log barn. It has lots of yummy food and a really cute gift shop. We each picked something! Julia got a long skinny bag of coloured popcorn, Anita picked a pretty mask, Matt got a sword, and I got a really cute ring. I also picked up a really cute little something for my sister in law's nursery. They had SO many pretty things there!
After that we drove back to crazy creek to spend the night there and go in the hot pools. The next day we stopped in Banff for lunch and drove past the Banff Springs Hotel.
We got home that evening and it was a lovely holiday.

Happy Thought
We have the ability to just take a few days off and go somewhere fun
We live in a country with so much beauty and diversity

Moved

We have been living here for four months now, five if you count living in a hotel during the week and at home on the weekends. Matt got a new job with the ATB back in November. And the relocation went pretty good, they sure treat their employees well. We had a moving allowance that was very generous. So we stayed in a hotel for the first month while we looked for a place to live and try to sell our house. We ate out everyday there were no chores other than laundry. It was pretty nice. 

Except our house didn't sell and so we didn't buy a new one.

 

So here we are in a little three bedroom condo renting after almost a year and a half in a much bigger house that we put a lot of work into. There is not a lot of room for all our 'stuff', we have been trying to de-junk. 

But we just sold out house in March. Like less than a week ago. So We are SO glad that is off out plate.

The town is really great it is smallish, with a big city half an hour away. Matt and I each have a sister there so it is nice to see them more often.

The elementary school, which is literally almost out the back door, is beyond my expectations. They have an alternative Montessori program for K-3, A is in the K-1 class and Juju will be in next year! It is SO fabulous! 

So we are moved and making friends and trying to decide what to do with out lives.

Happy Thought, 

Matt had a good job,

and our house is sold!!

Easter weekend

We have two new nieces. My brother and his wife had their first baby two weeks ago.  They live about four hours away so we took the long weekend to go and visit. My mom also came to visit (again. she loves her grand babies) a six hour drive from the opposite direction as us. We had a lovely time dyeing eggs, eating candy and holding the baby, hopefully the new mommy and daddy did too. Having a family with three small kids come to visit two weeks postpartum is a lot to handle.

  

We stayed for two nights (Thursday and Friday) because we needed to be back home for Sunday because my sister in law  had a baby girl a week ago and was blessing her this Sunday  We were planning on getting home Saturday night to have lots of time getting ready Sunday morning but stopped at my in laws  ( half way home) to visit and then stayed over night. Ooops. 

With just enough time to get home and change and then get to church we sped off. 

My poor little Juju has been having a hard time with her eczema lately and developed and huge gross patch of it on her neck which started weeping on Saturday ( we had a bandage on it) then I noticed that she was developing spots on her face and arms. 

Great. 

Thankfully I knew exactly what it was. Impetigo. 

Don't look up pictures of it. trust me. 

Any way Juju's doesn't look the same! 

So on the two hour drive home we decided that I will stay with baby S and Juju while Matt and A go to the baby blessing, they were late, but had a fun after noon with friends and cousins and food and other family. 

The two littler ones and I went to the hospital clinic to get her some meds. So the poor dear is on antibiotics to clear up he nasty little infection, so far she has been a champ at taking them. And after just three doses it is starting to look a lot better. And now we need to get an appointment with a dermatologist so we can get her eczema cleared up so it doesn't get infected... for a third time.

Oh and we had lunch with my good friend who I haven't sen in years! it was a great weekend.

Happy Thought

It really seems like its spring for good.

there is no school this week.

I love my family.

Sunrise

Matt is working this morning, I know a Saturday. This was never supposed to happen! He works at a bank! But lo and behold, it has! So he was of to work just before seven this morning and A woke up right before he left. This is good and bad because the girls get very upset if Matt leaves for work before they see him and it is way to early to be getting up on a Saturday (or any day for that matter!)

So up to my room came my dear little four year old who snuggled her chilly little body up to me to warm up. I asked her if she wanted to blinds closed so it would be darker and she said that was a good idea! As I got up to close the blinds on our east facing window above our bed I noticed the perfectly clear sky and the horizon about to spillover with sunlight. I asked A if she wanted to see the sun rise and with a look of pure wonder on her face she watched the sky for about ten minutes. The houses blocked the horizon so we couldn't see the actual moment the sun came up, but it was so fun to lay there and watch her little face as she talked about the colours of the sky (kinda peachy)and the birds and trees (they look like wind mills). We talked about how beautiful the sunrise is and how blessed we are that Heavenly Father made the world so beautiful for us.

Happy Thoughts: Matt for working hard to take care of us ( plus he gets a $50 gift card to the mall for working today !)

My girls and how fun they are and the silly and insightful things they think of.

Home!

My visit home was so great! I stayed in at my sisters on the friday night and stayed up till 2 am visiting with her and friends for her book club! I forgot my thyroid pills at home so I had to wait till saturday to figure out what I should to about that because it was a little late! As I set my alarm for the next morning to pick up my little sister from EFY (Especially for Youth, a conference put on by B.Y.U I think) My phone told me how long I had until the alarm went. Four hours and twenty minutes! Arg!! So off I went at about 6:45 saturday morning through Calgary ( I don't drive in big cities much) but at least there wasn't much traffic! With only one wrong turn I found where I needed to go , picked up my sister, went back for breakfast and off we went.

By the time I was almost to Red Deer around 10:30 I was falling asleep, so I called my wonderful in laws and stopped in to have a nap. My sister and my sister in law are close in age and good friends and the kids were happy to play with their uncles and grandparents!! The rest of the trip went well too even though Julia couldn't really sleep for the last hour, the poor thing she was so uncomfortable, but we made it and had a great time, quading, picking raspberries, helping in the garden, playing with the cat and jumping on the trampoline. Anita was so funny! Previously she has not been brave enough to try the quad but I took them both out for the first ride and she had a death grip around my waist, as we went down the road and a decent clip she bellowed, ' THIS IS AWESOME!!!!!' it was so funny!!

Plus there is all the yummy garden dinners with green beans and new potatoes with dill butter on them!! yum!!

The only hiccup was the flat tire on the way home! Thankfully we have roadside assistance! Although both the numbers I had/was given were WRONG!! ( how stupid) I finally did get help. and we were able to get a used tire for only $50! It could have been WAY worse than it was! It didn't happen in the middle on no where for one thing, and it took just over an hour for us to be on out way again!

Oh, and I was able to get an emergence supply of pills until Matt could send mine up, all in all everything worked out really well!!

Happy thought: I have a car that I can drive all the way home and not worry about it breaking. My kids have grandparents who love and are interested in them!!

Spring!!

I think its really here! There have been warm days earlier than the current ones, but they haven't felt or smelled right. We went for a walk yesterday evening and it was so lovely, warm enough for just a sweater and it was pretty late in the evening. It makes me happy!! And it smells heavenly. Its like you can smell the plants waking up. I read The Secret Garden a few weeks ago. I love the way spring is described, the smells and all the plants coming alive!

We had a lovely week off before easter, the visit from Mom and my little sister was great, and for once not too short!! I sure miss Dad and my brothers though.

(A, Me, Mom, and my little Sister)

Easter was nice too, we had dinner with our friends sunday, and the easter bunny cam saturday morning! We awoke to a very excited little girl exclaiming over the trail of chocolate eggs leading down the hall. She could barley wait for us to get up and wake her little sister!

I taught the easer story to my sunday school class (age 9 adn 10) and I think it went over their heads, they know the story I would guess but, they weren't too into it. Well, it was good for me either way, I am really learning to love the scriptures, and we are doing the New Testament this year so its extra nice to learn more about the Savior.

So now easter is over and its back to normal life but its spring!!!!! So that makes everything nicer.

Happy thought: The snuggles I get from a feverish little girl. I hope she gets better soon.

Catch up!

Whew! So I'm thinking I need to do a little better at this blog thing, 3 months is a little long.

Well a lot has happened, Christmas was great, the highlight being Duncan (my little brother's) wedding. He married a girl who I was friends with years ago, so it was a really fun time! And Julia turned 2!! ( I'll find the pictures soon).

Matt's job with ATB is going well. He spent tree weeks in Brooks. We were with him for two. It was fun while it lasted but being in a hotel for two weeks, well I was glad when it was over. It was also stinking cold!

We went to the temple last Saturday for the first time in ages. It was really great to go and spend time with Matt. On the way there I saw a robin!!!

Growing up waiting for the first signs of spring was done with much anticipation and celebration. I grew up in northern Alberta. Winter is a bit longer up there. Mom would celebrate when the sun had moved to shine in a certain window in the mornings! Down here it is different, the geese are here all year and the robins show up a month or so earlier than back home.

Plus there is no snow half or the winter.

In a was I miss the norther change of seasons. They were a bit more noticeable and drastic. Like the ditches over flowing with water and old ice that would slowly give way under rubber boots and you would have to move fast to avoid a bootful of frigid water.

The change of seasons if a fun and exciting time, but sometimes it is sad too. I feel the seasons of my life change a little once in a while as I go through new experiences, some exciting, some sad.

I recently had a miscarriage. It was very early. But it is still such a sad thing. It is interesting that sometimes until you experience something you have no idea how many others have experienced it too.

I have had such support from friends and family, and though I still have some days that are sad there are more and more happy ones in between. And I still need to give my body time to recover, I was pregnant and so my body has to get back to normal. And it is probably more difficult on my body to just be getting used to the idea of pregnancy just to have it end suddenly than it is to recover from a full term one where it can go through the steps properly.

Any way, I still get emotional over silly things. The girls were watching 'Lady and the Tramp' the other day and it make me cry. It was so silly. I wans't even watching it. I just heard Jim Dear on the phone to Aunt Sarah telling her they had a boy, he was so excited. And I just stood in the kitchen crying and laughing at myself.

Well I think I will quit while I am ahead.

Happy Thought: I am healthy, I can get pregnant again. I have a wonderful family.

Thanksgiving!

Whew what a week!

We had a wonderful visit with both sides of the family. The girls saw almost all of their living (great) grandparents, we spent some good time with Duncan who just came home from his mission, the girls weren't too shy of him (this was J's first time meeting him) and had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with my older sister and family.

I am so thankful for our new car so we can go and visit people, and that Matt has a job so that we can afford to go and visit people.

I'm thankful that my brother is marrying a great girl with a great family!

I'm thankful for my children and our health.

I'm thankful for our friends and our ward.

I'm thankful for my wonderful husband, who is so willing to help and so patient with me.

I am thankful for the Savior, the Atonement and the Gospel.

And I am thankful for prayer.

This is the short list, maybe I'll add one thing at the end of each post that I am thankful for each week. There are so many other things. It was a great week away, and I'm looking for ward to Christmas.