Bella is Two!

I can't believe my baby girl is two already! I just wanted to take some time to write down some things about her at this age. It doesn't seem like two years ago that we brought our pink little bundle home from the hospital. When I think about how much she has changed in these last two years I am blown away at how quickly she has grown up! She has gone from the helpless little blob to a self-proclaimed independent little lady. In the past year Bella learned to walk, bug her sisters, talk, and become the boss. Bella is definitely a two year old in every way! She thinks that our house should and does revolve around her, and is busy testing the boundaries as well as teasing her sisters. Her verbal skills are amazing for a two year old, which really shouldn't be surprising because she NEVER stops talking. Bella makes sure there is absolutely no possibility of ignoring her, as she will just continue to become louder and use a more demanding tone, which as of right now is pretty cute. Our celebration for Bella's birthday lasted at least a week and she has been singing Happy Birthday to herself for much longer than that. We started by celebrating over pancakes in the campground, then her sisters threw her an informal birthday party, complete with a cake made from building blocks  and presents wrapped in dress-up clothes, and we concluded the celebrations by having a big birthday party with her "cousin-twin," Dexter. It was a blast, Auntie Renee had even planned a fish pond for the kids to "catch" their goodie bag. It was the second year in a row that we have done their party together. It is so fun watching them grow and change together. They have the funniest relationship and I look forward to seeing how the two of them grow as friends and cousins.

Here are a few photos of the celebrations:

                                                 Celebrating at the campground

The "sister" party, they even used a diaper to wrap things in!

The "cousin-twins"

                Auntie Renee made the cake, it suits their relationship perfectly, hahaha

 

                                                       Last year's party

                            This year's party, what a difference a year makes!

I just want to conclude by including a few "Two Year Old Bella Facts," and a few photos of our curly headed beauty:

   Her favourite food is any dessert.

   Her favourite person (other than us, lol) is Auntie 'Nay,' especially if Dexter is having a mommy day.

   Her favourite activities are playing outside and peeing on the potty.

   She calls daddy "Michael" if he doesn't answer quickly enough the first time.
   Doesn't like loud noises or big dogs.

   She can no longer be confined in a play pen, and has been found playing in my make-up during nap time.

   She loves her little brother and is always wanting to hug and kiss him.

   She enjoys dancing and singing along to the radio.

   She likes to do her animal sounds, and when asked "what does grandma say?" she answers "Grandpa NO!" hahaha, it is soo cute.

   There are so many things that I want to remember, like how she prays or the way she says certain words, but they are hard to write down so hopefully we will just enjoy them in the moment!

Enjoying a smore

using the potty

Her first time holding Mason

She slipped and fell into daddy's toast

   Bella we love you so much. You have brought an incredible amount of joy to our family and we love listening to the cute chatter that comes out of your mouth! We look forward to the changes that will come this next year, Happy Birthday Beautiful!

Camping, Birthday, and Father's Day

Whew, it was quite a weekend! We were gone for two days and yet it felt like we had been away at least a week. We decided that father's day weekend was the perfect time to experience our first camping trip of the season, and to test out the trailer before we head out for a long trip later in the summer. We camped at Fintry provincial park with my parents. It was so much fun and we packed as much as we could into the two days we were there, we swam, played on the playground, and took in the historical tours. I love history and it was so much fun to learn about such an amazing couple who lived so many years ago, and yet accomplished some incredible feats! We spent time hanging out with family and when we were all together I have no doubt that ours was the loudest campsite in the area! The water was still high and cold but the kids were up for swimming anyway, and they enjoyed playing in the sand. One of the highlights was coming across an amazing trailer! This trailer was an old little travel trailer that had been painted in John Deere yellow and green and named "The Hillbilly Deluxe."  Being a farming family John Deere anything is popular with us, and my mom couldn't resist asking to have Mason's picture taken sporting his John Deere hat and blanket. I have discovered that grandparents have no sense of shame when it comes to finding an opportunity to promote their grandchildren and snap a picture to prove just how cute they are. I was not willing to be a part of the experience so off grandma went with grandpa carrying Mason to ask for the perfect picture. During the photo shoot they discovered that Michael knew the owner through the farm and the photo shoot was extended to not only include the trailer, but a John Deere bike as well, and of course the all important conversation about crops and the weather. While we were there, Bella turned two (her party is yet to come) and couldn't have been more pleased as we all sang happy birthday to her over a pancake complete with the candle we could find in the trailer. She spent the rest of the weekend singing happy birthday to herself and anyone else that might be around. It seems like only yesterday that she was a baby, and now she is a two year old that loves to frustrate her sisters, tease her parents, and talk non stop! She is so incredibly cute and is always up for making someone laugh. I felt blessed to be able to spend father's day with my dad who was an amazing father, he definitely deserves recognition for the patients and understanding that he displayed raiding three girls, and my amazing husband who is also doing an incredible job raising his little princesses and our little boy. I was feeling slightly guilty as I had forgotten the paper and crayons for the kids to colour Father's day cards for Michael, and I knew that Sunday would be anything but relaxing (camping with kids is as exhausting as it is fun); however, he was given a gift from Cheyanne, one that I know meant more to him than anything I could have prompted or helped her create. Cheyanne is our beautiful little girl who has a way of using words to bless those around her. Saturday night as Michael was getting the girls ready for bed he asked them a question that he asks regularly at the end of the day, "what was the funnest thing you did today?"

Saturday had been a day full of fun, we had played on the playground, biked around the campsites, swam in the lake, played with Tyson, and gone on a walk in which the kids got a kick out of hiding and scaring the adults, and yet Cheyanne's answer was simply "the funnest thing I did today was just being with you dad," in an instant she melted her father's heart. Cheyanne had no idea that the next day was father's day and was unaware of how precious what she said was, but in that one comment she not only affirmed Michael in his role as a father (and he is an incredible father) but she gave us a reminder of how important it is to take time away from everything and make memories with our kids. Hearing that one comment from Cheyanne makes the work to get ready to camp, the work cleaning up after camping, and the insanity that can occur during the experience all worth the effort. 

Here's a few more shots of our trip:

"The Hillbilly Deluxe"

Bella's birthday pancake

She loves her broccoli!

The big family dinner (minus the Derksens)

Emme Makes us laugh!

So one of the reasons that I am so glad that I have decided to create a blog is because I want to take the time to write down some of the funny things that my kids say. Emmersen says something hilarious just about every day. She is constantly coming up with things that are off the wall and demonstrate the logic of kids. Emme is the kind of kid that wears her heart on her sleeve. She gives a hundred percent in everything that she does, she's the one who will notice that Bella needs help with her shoes and put them on for her, or will follow Grandpa around outside looking for ways to help him putter in the yard, but when things go wrong, she is devastated. She walks the line between laughter and tears regularly, and is always on the edge of her emotions. Today in church she set our family off in what one church goer called the "children's choir" as she started crying the domino effect began with each of our other children following suit as soon as the last stopped, to the point that the whole church burst into laughter and the pastor couldn't help but comment as the offertory ended. She keeps us on our toes and our household is blessed because of her unique outlook on life. So here are just a few of her latest quips:

        ~We were swimming in the river lately and Emme noticed that the water was higher than normal and asked Michael "Daddy, where's the drain?"
         ~She has taken to saying "ding dong" to get my attention when I am talking to someone else
         ~This my favourite, we were outside playing on the tramp and the girls were yelling so that they could hear their echos and Emme turned to me and very seriously said "Mom, is that God?"
         ~ "I think that daddy crawled into walls a lot as a baby and hit his head!"
        ~When I was pregnant with Mason she asked me if they would use a shovel to make a hole to get the baby out.
Oh Emme how we love you and the roller coaster of emotions that we ride each day along side you. You are teaching us as parents as much as we are teaching you!

Remember When....

 Mason is officially three months old. I don't know where the last three months have gone. I am realizing  that it is not only the "one days", but the "remember whens" that pose a threat to my ability to live in the moment. I can't believe that Mason is already moving out of the "newborn" stage of babyhood. I don't feel like I am ready to move on to the next stage of life. Sure, we have our days where I count the hours until Michael gets home from work, and I think about how the next stage will be easier, but in truth, I love this stage. I love the noise and chaos that comes from having all four of our kids home full time with me. It is so much fun watching them grow and interact with each other. They are teaching one another valuable lessons on love, kindness, and self-control. As of right now we, their parents, are the primary influences in their lives, they value our praise above all else. I love that I know where all of my kids are all the time, and I get to pick their play dates, lol. But soon all of these things will begin to change. I remember when we brought Cheyanne home from the hospital, and now we are making decisions about where she will go to school. As I think about how much my life is about to change in the next few years it is easy to shed tears about how quickly the time is passing. Mason has now officially left the "newborn" stage, not only is he huge for his age, but he no longer falls asleep while I just sit and snuggle him, he has control of his head, and he smiles and coos for us on cue. I can't help but be sad for all the "last times" that have happened and are coming as Mason grows up. I have spent as much time as I can just holding him, and cuddling him, hoping that I can slow down how fast this next year is going to pass, and yet I still wonder if I have taken the time to enjoy him enough. I think that the "remember whens" are far more difficult for me to avoid than the "one days". I have a wise friend who has told me that I need to be careful not to mourn Mason's milestones, but to instead celebrate each one just like we did for the others. So I am determined to stop focusing on how he is no longer a newborn (even if I shed a few tears) and instead laugh at his goofy little grin and enjoy the sound of him trying to talk to his sisters.