I just liked this picture so I though I would post it, it is from about a month ago.

Well everybody is finally healthy again. Except for me of course. I feel like somebody hit me with a tonne of bricks, (maybe more then once).

Feeling ill

Half of our household is sick this week. Dan and Sara have come down with a nasty flu bug. Thankfully me and Hannah are unaffected at this point, but Dan has been sick since Friday morning, and Sara since this morning. Poor Sara, she has been puking everything she eats since five o'clock this morning. It is so hard to see her like this, she's so pale and tired. If she doesn't keep a meal down by tomorrow morning it will be off to the Doctors for us. I'm really hoping that Sara isn't as sick as long as Dan has been, she's too little to be sick that long. Everybody send healthy thoughts our way.

My Girls

Sara-Lyn

I have a hard time believing how much Sara has grown over the last five months. She has changed in so many ways. Five short months ago she was so small and delicate. That first night in the hospital the only way I could get her to sleep was curled up in a ball in my arm beside me. Now she is as long as my torso and can hold herself upright. Five months ago she would sleep making little squeaks as she snuggled against you, now she wants nothing more than to be awake, being part of whatever is happening. I'm amazed by her everyday. I love how graceful she is towards Hannah. She tolerates every hug, pat and kiss. She gives a smile to anybody who looks her way, but she is selective with who she will talk to. I love hearing her giggle, which only Hannah can invoke consistently. Sara is happiest when she is included in whatever is going on around her, she wants to sit at the table with us at meal times, when we read books or play on the floor. She watches Hannah so intently that I know she will be crawling soon enough to keep up with her big sister. When she is in her jolly jumper she puts her whole heart into, often jumping before I even have her in the thing. Everything gets thoroughly examined both with her hands and her mouth. I love how at night after I have fed her she will still snuggle, pushing her face against my neck. I love the smile she gives me when I walk into the room. There are so many things about Sara that amaze me it would take a month just to write them all down, and by then there would be so many more new ones.

Hannah

Hannah is my big little girl. She is becoming more of a big girl everyday. Each day she tries to gain a little more independence. I am so proud of how she: picks out her own clothes; puts on her own socks; goes potty by herself (sort of); Drinks from a big girl glass; reads books by herself; goes to bed easily; and the list goes on. Her recent discovery of the words "NO" and "mine" frustrate me, but I understand that she is becoming her own person, and this is all part of it. I love how thoughtful she can be of other people, concerned if they hurt themselves, and upset if somebody is missing out on something exciting. I love how concerned she gets when Sara is upset, and how helpful she is in giving Sara her toys back when she drops them. Her excitement about life is infectious and she can always cheer me up. I love how she still needs me to hug her when she hurts, and tuck her in at night. Hannah is my brave girl, she wants to try everything out. At the park she climbs to the top of the tallest slides, and runs across the swinging bridges without hesitation. She has learned to climb up various types of ladders including a rope ladder. She is shy of strangers but once she knows you, she is always willing to give away hugs. Hannah amazes me with her ability to find fun in anything, from running around in circles in the yard to reading a book by herself. She loves to smile, and I don't know anybody who can resist smiling back.

cooking disaster

Well I had my first true disaster last night with cooking. I essentially made dog food, it smelt like dog food, tasted like dog food, and I'm sure if I would have analysed it, it probly even had the molecular content as dog food. So I will drop that recipe and start completely fresh. Hopefully the next attemp taste a little better.

Parade

We went to the Santa Clause parade this weekend, it was an enjoyable experience we wondered around the staging grounds for a little while, and then took our places to wait for the parade. Hannah was fun to watch at the staging grounds she would slowly approach the various mascots until they noticed her and stuck their arms out for a hug, the she would shake her head and step back. When it was time to go find a place to sit though she didn't want to leave. She had a blast watching the parade itself too. I think she got the most fun out of the dogs, and a float that had two bucking horses on it. But what kid wouldn't love a whole bunch of people waving just at her. We rode the C-train to get downtown and back. It was Hannah's first time on Light Rail Transit. She got rather excited when we crossed the river. For her anyways it was a day with lots of new sights and sounds. Sara also enjoyed the parade, probably more for the fresh air and bright colors then anything else. But it just proves the point that you are never too old or too young to enjoy a parade.

Pictures

Superstore

I have offically given up on Superstore. I had decided that I would try shopping at Superstore more often, not because they're cheap, but because their carts fit both my kids without having to worry about somebody sitting on the bread. So today I went there early in the morning to avoid the craziness that is Superstore. I had three types of beans that I wanted to purchase, but as I walked by the beans section, I grumpily discovered that they were sold out of all three types of beans I wished to purchase. This was rather annoying as it meant I had to go somewhere else to buy beans, and honestly how do you run out of beans. I was so annoyed I grabbed milk and cheese, paid for the stocking stuffers I had picked up for Hannah and Sara and left. Of course after getting home I realized that I still needed all the stuff on my list so I spent the afternoon at Safeway grocery shopping for a second time. But at least I was able to find everything on my list, and in most cases actually had multiple brands to choose from.

Undecided

I am undecided whether this last weekend was a good weekend or not. On the fun side we went to Edmonton and enjoyed some time just relaxing and visiting with family. We also went to the Waterpark and had a great time splashing in the waves and going down slides. Even Sara got into the fun and spent some time frolicking in the water. Hannah loved the slides and showed great fortitude even when facing foot high waves. Both kids behaved well during most of the trip, and even on the drive both ways they were both phenomenal. But as mentioned above, this weekend was not all peaches and cream. It started on the way down to Edmonton with our van misbehaving. It wouldn't shift out of 2nd, at least not consistently anyways. So it took us a little longer then expected to get there as we couldn't go above 70. We were hoping to get it fixed on Saturday but remembrance day made short work of that idea. The second mishap was that because of the CFR, there were no hotel rooms to be had in Edmonton, (We booked a week in advance) So we were forced to accept smoking rooms, and were lucky to get those. But this meant that I had to listen to Dan cough and snore all night. Thankfully after the waterpark I was so tired I pretty much passed out and was dead to the world for a few hours at least. Then of course there was Hannah's cold which had been pretty much gone when we headed down there, but the swimming and smoking have given the bugs new strength. And last was the drive home which started out fine, we had hope for about 45 min. the van ran great but then we dropped into second and that was it. At least until Red Deer when after stopping for supper it gifted us with another half hour of 110 km/hr. So now we are home faced with fixing our transmission (praying it is just a sensor) but fun memories of the waterpark. I think I will concentrate on the fun parts and write it down as an enjoyable weekend.

Playdate

Well I successfully hosted my first playdate today. Who would've guessed there was room for 10 kids and 7 adults in my house. apparently there is, and I have enough toys to amuse 10 kids ranging from 4 1/2 months to 4 years. The other thing I learned today is that my table is not tall enough to stop little wandering hands from finding the snacks. And hosting a playdate is a great way to restock your baked goods supply.