The joy of being a kid

I'm far from a neat freak, but I do cringe a little bit when the kids get really dirty. It's messy, and I'm inevitably the one who has to clean them up. 

But, it's also so much fun to watch them play in the dirt. Today, the kids were dipping themselves in the lake, and then rolling over the sand into the lake. Oh the dirt!  And, oh the fun!

Summertime Fun

We joined Senobe Aquatic Club this summer and we've been enjoying it to the fullest!  The kids are

loving the beach and we're all looking forward to trying out the kayaks. 

Bedtime cuteness.

Back on the blogging bandwagon.

Maren and Beckett have taken to asking for "stories" before bed.  Beckett always asks for some kind of summary of his day - ie. "Mommy, tell me about the boy who loved Spiderman".  It's cute.

But, for the past month Maren has been stuck on the same storyline..."Mommy, tell me about the princess who goes to the gardening store with her flying unicorn...that has wings....with their whoooooole family". And so, every night, I dream up some kind of flowers that they find, and buy and take back to the royal castle to plant in the royal garden. Tonight, however, she added a twist!  The princess and her unicorn wanted to stop at the playground to play. As I started describing the slides and the swings, Maren (ever so logical) asked me who was pushing them, if both she and the unicorn were swinging?  Given that it was bedtime and I was tired, I pulled the "just because" answer which seemed to satisfy her curiosity for now!

In the blink of an eye, my baby is a big girl.

In just three days my first baby will start "big kid school".  It seemed fitting that she accomplished this milestone today, something she has been working for the past few weeks...

Stay tuned for her her first day of school pictures next Wednesday.

Out of the mouth of babes...

As Maeve and I were getting ready to make meatballs last night, we realized that we were out of breadcrumbs.  So, we used crushed crackers instead.  Maeve thought this "secret ingredient" was super special, and not wanting to give it away to Maren and Beckett, she decided to give them only a little bit of a hint.

She quietly turned to them while we were eating and whispered the hint: "Hey, Maren and Beckett these meatballs are made with crack".

New house, here we come...

In just 11 days, the movers will come and pack us up, ready to take us to our new house.  We're very excited about our new house which was a 2-year project to find, but are also a little bittersweet about leaving this house, the very first house we bought and brought our babies home to.

We moved in on March 17th, 2006  (St. Patrick's Day), and it proved to be a very "lucky" house for us indeed.  In July 2007 Maeve arrived, followed by Maren and Beckett in March 2010.  Of all the memories I have of the kids in this house, the living room window holds a special place in my heart.

All of the kids pulled up to this window as they learned to walk, watched countless dogs walked along our street, and waved to visitors as they arrived and left.  The little table the lives there has seen snacks, crafts and even tea parties.  As I look at the window tonight in the sunset, I see handprints and fingerprint smudges.  I know our new house will have its new special places, but I do wish I could take this spot with us.

Maeve - 5 months old

Maeve - 7 months old

Maeve 10 months old

Maeve - 11 months old

Maeve reading at her new little table - 21 months

Getting the window ready for Easter - 21 months

Beckett and Maren basking is the window's lovely evening light...

Maren - 6 months

Beckett - 6 months

Maren - 12 months

Beckett - 12 months

Snack tim!

Maren - 13 months

Maeve and Beckett - 12 months

Easter 2011

Beckett - 18 months

Beckett - 2 years

Dress up time!

Happy girl!

Wish us luck!

21 Questions

Nothing like a little humour to break my blogging hiatus.  Thanks to Tiresa for the inspiration!

Maeve, 4.

1. What is something mommy always says to you?
Stop jumping on the bed.

2. What makes you happy?
When Daddy makes funny faces.

3. What makes you sad?
When no wants to play with me.

4. What makes you laugh?
When Daddy shakes his bum and does a funny dance. (Sense a theme here?)

5. How old are you?
4 years old, almost 5.

6. How old is Mommy?
83 (?)

7. How old is Daddy?
16

8. What is your favorite thing to do?
Dance and make funny faces.

9. Who is your best friend?
Ellie.
 
10. What do you want to be when you grow up?
A veterinarian

11. What are you really good at?
Playing at school with my friends.

12. What are you not very good at?
Cleaning up my room.

13. What did you do today?
Had fun with my parents and family.  We went outside and we bought a new soccer ball.

14. What is your favorite food?
Spaghetti and meatballs

15. What is your favorite song?
Girls just want to have fun!

16. What do you want for (holiday or birthday) this year?
A Kitty kitty fun house (?)

17. What is your favorite animal?
A kangaroo

18. What is love?
It's means you loves somebody, and you really can't get your mind off them. And you have to have lots of friends.

19. What does mommy/daddy do for work?
Mommy makes money and does stuff. (I guess we need to work on this. ;) )
Daddy goes to work at his work. And he earns money for our car, van, house, fish and children.

20. Where do you live?
Halifax - it's a big town with lots of cars, building and apartments.

21. Where is your favorite place to go?
Kiddietown. (We've actually only been there twice, but I guess it left an impression)