A Bicycle Built For Five

I am number four

2011-05-28T18:29:00.000-07:00

I like to look at pictures of my sweet new baby. I am 24 weeks now.

BYU Old Spice Commercial Obsession

2010-09-09T20:52:00.000-07:00

You know you have watched this youtube video too many times when your four year old looks up at you and says "I'm on a cart! He-yaaaah!"

My quilts

2010-08-12T21:21:00.000-07:00

For the last year I have been working on these two quilts. One for my bed and a picnic blanket. They were a lot of work, but fun and a good learning experience. My mom and I were doing the one for my bed and my aunt and cousins helped me with the picnic quilt. It's definately more fun to quilt in a group and lightens the load. The second one has almost 1000 triangles in it and the first almost 300 circles. I can't seem to choose a simple pattern. I think that I am taking a break from quilting for a while.

The second one has now been quilted and the edging almost finished and the picnic one is done and already well used, but I don't have a picture. This one gives an idea of what it looks like. I'll have to add final pictures later.

MS bike tour

2010-08-12T20:42:00.001-07:00

We love to do the MS bike tour as often as we can, as it supports a cause very close to our hearts and it is a lot of fun!! Yes, biking 90 km is fun!! Especially with our crew this year. We were fortunate to have 2 babies with us this year. Isaac and Charlotte. Babies make most things more fun. There were four of us who biked; me, Patrick, my sister Ashley and our friend Gord. And we had two great drivers, photographers and baby carers along as well; Mike, Ashley's Fiance and Aleta, our friend from high school.

We had lots of fun, got really good burns on my part, got a great work out, and raised some good money for MS research thanks to much support. Thanks!!!

Aleta and Charlotte

Gord, Ashley, Patrick, Lindsay

My baby is one

2010-08-12T19:45:00.002-07:00

It was so fun to celebrate one year with our sweet little boy. He is such a happy lovable little guy. It's amazing to think another year has gone by. He has turned into this blonde, dark skinned little surfer baby. I love it!

Isaac was such a gentleman with his first cake, but loved every bite. Don't tell him I made it with whole wheat flour, pumpkin and half the sugar. We had some fun games, guessing facts about Isaac and then had a baby race with the three babies. They were all a little bewildered at first, but Isaac pulled through and came in first. He is pictured here with his friends Dawsyn and Landon.

Eliza's Birthday

2010-05-25T18:25:00.000-07:00

Took me a while to get these pictures up, but Eliza's birthday was definitely eventful. We ended up with about 14 kids there, with siblings and extra's and about 3 minutes before the party started our glass patio table shattered all over the deck. I was determined to still have the party outside, so we roped off the deck and Patrick kept the kids busy with lots of fun games.

I played with this picture in photoshop and didn't do what I wanted, but I thought it looked very hippyish and cool.

Pure Joy

2010-05-25T18:18:00.000-07:00

As I watched Isaac in the bath tonight, I was captivated by the pure joy in his smile and laughter at such simple things. He put a bigger cup over top of a smaller one and began to belly laugh, like it was the funniest thing he'd ever seen. I wanted to grab the camera, but was too tired. I think that it's one of the reasons we have children, to remind us of the joy in the simple things and just being alive. I have spent lots of time enjoying and watching Isaac, and as he nears his first birthday I hope that I will continue to observe the pure joy that he finds in things and incorporate it into my life as well.

We're in trouble now

2010-05-10T09:06:00.001-07:00

Isaac has just learned to crawl up the stairs this morning. I've been avoiding getting a gate, but we just might have to now.

Corduroy

2010-04-29T11:56:00.001-07:00

These are the heat bears I have been making for birthday presents. This is Adaline's They have been really fun. I keep meaning to take pictures of the quilt I'm working on, but haven't yet.

Eliza

2010-04-29T11:40:00.001-07:00

Eliza has just learned to ride a two wheeler and is loving it. Now her mother needs to get her a bigger bike. Eliza loved her dance class this winter and the girls always want to dance at home.

Adaline

2010-04-29T10:41:00.000-07:00

Adaline had lots of fun in her dance class this winter. She is loving joy school and being pretty. Last night she did her own hair with about 10 clips, it was actually pretty cute.

Isaac

2010-04-29T10:31:00.001-07:00

He is now crawling and getting into trouble, but we are so enjoying his sweet temperament and his bashful smile. He is 11 months today.

Quick update

2010-03-12T13:20:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't been into blogging much lately, but here are a few pictures that highlight the last few months. Isaac has been teething a lot which is always fun, but we are sure enjoying watching him try to crawl.

Halloween

2009-11-08T20:09:00.000-08:00

We had a fun Halloween and the kids had lots of fun dressing up. Isaac got to be a cow, bear and bee and Eliza was a Ballerina and Lion and Adaline was very committed to being Queen Esther. She got a little confused at the beginning and talked about being either Queen Martha or Ashley, because she knew it was one of her Aunts. I made her a special crown and she was very happy. We went trick or treating with Auntie Ashley for a while and then met up with the Larsens. The kids had so much fun running up to the doors. Freyja and Eliza are getting fast. And knock on wood, I managed to put the candy up in the cupboard again and no one has asked for it. No one tell my kids that most kids actually get to eat their candy.

My little bee

Eliza (Ballerina), Freyja (Vampire), Kyra (Princess) at the school party

Queen Esther

More photo fun

2009-10-22T09:02:00.000-07:00

Well, I didn't put these in order very well, but these are some pictures I did for my class and some I was just playing around with. See if you can find the letter in the pea picture. Patrick brought me home those daisies the other day and I have had fun taking different pictures of them. And poor Isaac has sweetly tolerated a few 45 min long photo sessions while I play. He's very patient.

Photo Fun

2009-10-15T08:48:00.000-07:00

I just started a photography course and have been having tons of fun. Here are a few of my first shots. We went to the pumpkin fest in Barnwell, which was a great photo op. Tons of fun and very cold. I have been learning the joy of taking pictures of things that don't move.

On the wall

2009-10-01T16:46:00.001-07:00

So, ever since we got our family pictures I've been wanting them on the wall because I love them and want to look at them. So here they are, thanks to help from my dear friend Kamille. I stole the idea from my cousin Nicole who got her pics in 12*12 in a square. I love them, but not sure I picked all the right pictures. They are above my two yellow couches in the nook, now I just need to get some sconces, so it doesn't look like a big black hole next to them. What a fun project!!

Family Joy

2009-09-22T09:54:00.000-07:00

What a great weekend we had in Kelowna. We had the opportunity to watch Caleb be baptized by his father, my brother. It brought tears to my eyes to see how life comes full circle. It's neat to watch our children make choices and do the things that we did and have taught them to do.
We are happy to have Brad and Tilane back in Canada so that our children can build cousin relationships. They all play so well together. I'm thankful for the great parents that Brad and Tilane are, for their example and their children. Families really do bring joy.

My new life

2009-09-22T09:46:00.000-07:00

I've had lots of thoughts and feelings as my new life of a child in school has begun. Eliza started Kindergarten this year and we are still adjusting to the new schedule of bus stops and early mornings. I am torn between the enjoyment of the break of one less child in the morning and the loss of time with Eliza and wondering what she is doing, saying, hearing, learning while she is away. I hope that she has learned enough at home to make good choices while she is away. She is very happy and making lots of new friends and enjoys having her buddy Freyja close.

The other part of my new life is that I actually get to be by myself during the day sometimes. Adaline is in Joy school, so about 6 days a month I have a morning to myself while Isaac sleeps. This is precious time and I am again torn. Do I relax and do something I enjoy, or do I clean as much as I can while I have less help? I guess today I did a little of both.

Family pictures

2009-09-22T09:22:00.000-07:00

We had lots of fun taking this years family pictures in Lethbridge. I was stressed about what we were going to wear and then that morning a $12 dress and a $16 sweater brought it all together. Again, Esther was our incredible photographer. Enjoy.

Isaac 8 weeks

2009-09-22T09:00:00.000-07:00

These pictures were taken by a girl in my ward, Jeanette Bruce. These are my favourites.

Isaac 5 weeks

2009-09-22T08:38:00.000-07:00

I'm a little behind in posting pictures of Isaac, and we've taken lots. So here are a few at the different ages. These were taken by my sister Esther who is a budding photographer. We rocked him to sleep in that bucket so we could get the pictures. He was so patient.

Blessing

2009-09-22T08:15:00.000-07:00

We Blessed Isaac on August 9th and it was a very special day with many friends and family to share it with us. These are a few pics that Esther took. Doesn't he look cute in a tux.

All smiles

2009-07-07T16:24:00.000-07:00

Isaac has been my most smiley baby, but it has been hard to capture the true extent of him smile on film. Here are my best efforts.

Patrick's last week

2009-07-07T15:55:00.000-07:00

We were blessed to have Patrick home for 6 weeks as we welcomed Isaac into our home. It was nice to have lots of help and chances to sleep. After the second day of having him back at work, I am exhausted and feeling a little sick. We had lots of fun as a family and have already taken Isaac to Canmore and Montana. We were in a bit of a panic as we headed out of the city to cross the border and realized that we had no way to prove that he was ours. (Just in case anyone needs to know, you can cross the border with the hospital record before you have the birth certificate.) We had a great week enjoying family and the water at Echo Lake. Patrick even set up a zip line. (So uncharacteristic hey!!) My sister Esther took some fun pictures of Isaac and here are a few that I took. I haven't got copies of her pics yet.

Our sweet baby boy

2009-06-23T19:45:00.000-07:00

Well, Adaline was right and We're sure enjoying this little man in our house. He is very calm and sweet and sleeps and eats good. He arrived 10 days late and caused me a little stress. This is the first time that I didn't wake up in full blown labour on day 10 and had to go for an ultrasound and then nonstress test at the hospital. When I had finally given up on him coming on day 10, that's when labour picked up. We got home from the hospital and left 30 minutes later to go back as labour had picked up. He was born 2 and a half hours after we got to the hospital and then we left to go home 3 and a half hours after that. We had a peaceful sleep in our own bed and the girls woke up to find their new baby brother. The day ended perfectly.

photo shoots

2009-05-17T18:20:00.000-07:00

The girls love to dance in the living room to music which inspired a photo shoot of Eliza. Adaline's hair was all over her face, so she didn't make it in. But here are a few we had fun with in March.

Now I'm ready

2009-05-10T20:08:00.000-07:00

I have been working like crazy to try to get the house "ready" for the baby. Babies really don't need much and if all we had were a couple diapers and all the clothes in the basement and a couple blankets, we'd be ready. But, I have had some serious nesting going on and wanted to work through a big pile of sewing and craft projects before this baby comes. They are not all done, but my biggest priority was the front hall closet curtains. My mom and I bought the fabric 2 years ago and it has been waiting!! So last week when my mom was in town, we finally did it. She actually did all the sewing and measuring, (my tummy seems to get in the way) and I did the grommets. It was pretty scary cutting holes in that gorgeous fabric, but it all worked out. Now we just need more than a bathroom tension rod to hang them on. OK baby you can come now.

Getting ready for baby

2009-04-26T08:49:00.000-07:00

We are getting closer to having a new baby in our family and are getting excited. I'm still trying to get the baby room set up, having to change it from a very full, messy craft room into a baby's room. We'll probably paint in the summer, but we at least need a crib and some clothes out. I've been 10 days late with both my other babies, so am planning for that, but i guess I could be surprised. I'm happy to have a little extra time to get ready though. I need more muffins in the freezer.
My sister Esther took some belly pics of me the other week. Here are a few. We had lots of fun!!

The year of the cake

2009-04-26T08:42:00.000-07:00

Well I have finally figured out how to download pictures and can show the girls birthday cakes that I made this year. I had lots of fun doing them, but don't think that I will do it every year.

My baby is three

2009-03-08T17:13:00.001-07:00

Adaline turned 3 last week and we had a fun, but very chaotic birthday party for her. I want to post some pictures, but have a new camera and haven't figured out how to download them yet. (It should be simple, but there is a warning tag saying that I cannot connect my camera to the computer until I have downloaded some software, which I can't do because Patrick just broke our CD-ROM drive.) I had so much fun making her cake and will hopefully be able to show you pictures soon. Adaline is such a happy part of our family and she makes us laugh all the time. She is very sensitive and caring of others and shares very well with her big sister. They can play for hours together.

From the mouths of Babes

2009-03-08T17:04:00.000-07:00

Adaline is still convinced that we are having a boy. When asked by my cousin what she will do if her mommy has a girl, she responds "My mommy is not having twins". I have a hard time not believing her, as this baby never stops moving and is way more active than the last two. I figure it must be different. I am feeling the effects of the third trimester and do not remember being this tired before. I therefore put my self of self prescribed bed rest this weekend and have benefited much because of it. I'm counting down the number of days of work I have left and am canceling as much as possible, while still trying to reach my goal to keep my license. I've been averaging 6-10 hours a week which still feels like a lot and am questioning my desire and motivation to keep my license once #3 comes.

First Photo Shoot

2008-12-18T19:59:00.000-08:00

Well, I have hit the 18 week mark which has come very fast. We had our ultrasound today and thought I'd share a few pics. It's amazing what technology can do. I told Adaline we were taking pictures of the baby today and her face lit up, she grabbed my tummy and said "My baby boy?" I said yes, your baby boy. She's convinced. I told Eliza and she said, "Mom, you can't take pictures of the baby, it's inside you." I haven't showed her them yet as it was a crazy day, but she will see them tomorrow. And, no we didn't find out the sex of the baby. So for those of you have been asking when I'm due, It's end of May.

Ups and Downs

2008-12-07T16:12:00.000-08:00

Well like most weeks, these past few have had their ups and downs. The glorious first few days of potty training were obviously to lure me into a false sense of security. Although things are still going very well and she had an entire week without a single accident, there were a number of days with some very tricky accidents. But that's how we all learn right?
We've had a rough weekend with each of us with a different ailment and pour Eliza continues to yoyo up and down with a fever. It's hard to see your kids struggling so much and there being very little you can do. Patrick has been amazing getting up the the kids at night as I have been more sick than him. We're glad we had the weekend to rest.
On the Up side, we are all getting very excited for Christmas and enjoyed spreading Nativities throughout the house. We are planning our annual parties and are mostly done shopping. One of our favorite traditions is to fill a small manger with hay as we complete different acts of service, so that baby Jesus will have a soft bed by Christmas Day. Eliza came downstairs the other morning and announced that she was going to make my bed. She did a really good job too. I enjoy seeing my kids learn about serving others and this is such a great time of year to learn these lessons.

I finally downloaded some pictures, so here are our new counters and kitchen (still a couple things to do) and a Halloween picture of the girls with their cousins Freyja and Cora and Eliza's snowman she made herself.

Counters and Panties

2008-11-16T18:20:00.000-08:00

Well we have had an exciting week at our house. We had our counters installed last Monday and I am really enjoying them. It is hard to believe that we went almost a year and a half without any counters. It's so nice to be able to wipe the counters with a cloth and not have them pop off when you lean on them. It's amazing what you get used to. I would post a picture, but I refuse to download any more pictures to my computer until the others are on disc which seems to be more difficult than it should be. Once I get my pictures organized I will post before and after pictures of the kitchen. We still have a few little things to do, but we are very close to the end of the kitchen saga.

The next excitement is the Panties. Adaline has been in underwear since Thursday and has only had one accident a day and made it through the night last night dry!! I'm excited to have 6 months with no diapers until the next one gets here. Adaline is hilarious to watch on the potty. She likes to go on the big toilet and she won't use a stool but climbs up on top so that she is standing and straddling the toilet and then sits down. The other day she came to me to tell me that her foot had fallen in. She is so funny!! I try not to watch as it makes me nervous, but it's funny because she is so small. This go around of toilet training has gone much more smoothly, but that seems to be Adaline's way.

I just keep adding random pictures until I get some more recent ones on the computer. This is Eliza way back in February, but a blog is more fun with pictures.

Family pictures

2008-11-02T18:42:00.000-08:00

My sister Esther took some pictures of our family a few weeks ago. We had lots of fun and got some great shots.

Two votes for a boy

2008-11-02T18:23:00.001-08:00

Well, the girls have talked about the new baby coming more than I thought they would. They are always wanting to kiss the baby (my tummy) and brainstorm ideas for what to name it. Eliza is often asking when it is coming, and then says that she is too excited to wait. The current vote is for a boy, but it definitely varies. Adaline has started praying for a baby boy. We had our first midwife appointment this week and heard the heart beat which was exciting and comforting. We have two new midwives this time plus Maura who has delivered both our babies. We are excited to get to know them. We are also excited that Midwifery will be covered in Alberta as of April 1st. So if any of you were thinking of making the switch, nows the time. We're not sure how much will be covered for us for this baby, but it is a promising change. So I guess that I'm going to have to change my blog to "A bicycle built for five"!!!

Enjoying the warm weather

2008-10-27T19:55:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm a sucker for warm weather and will put off all sorts of things like cooking dinner and house work if there is warm weather to be enjoyed. The girls and I biked around the neighbourhood to go visiting teaching even though our first trip was not quite warm. I sometimes get a little irrational when there is a promise of warm weather and insist we head to the mountains on the warmest day of the week. It didn't quite happen, but we went out on Saturday despite the chilling wind and enjoyed a beautiful walk in the protection of the trees. Of course I took my camera and left it in the car, so no pictures to enjoy. We went on a little walk we had done when Eliza was 9 months old and it is amazing to think what has happened since then and how much our children have grown. Hopefully there are a few more warm days to enjoy before the first snow hits.

Finding joy in the little things

2008-10-19T20:06:00.000-07:00

WEll, I'm not sure what to say. I feel like I need to come up with some introspective commentary about life. Usually I've got six months to try to catch up on, so I have lots to write. OK, here goes, My joy for the week, was teaching Joy school. We do this home preschool program where we take turns teaching and I really enjoy it. I love it when Eliza is off to play with her friends and I get a bit of a break, but I really love teaching too. We made apple sauce this week and learned about seeds and plants and I just love seeing them learn and their desire to experience new things. I love to see how they interact with one another and learn how to help and love and sometimes, what not to say. I enjoy being called "teacher" and have the opportunity to share what I know from my life experience and share stories about when I was a little girl. These kids grow up so fast and lately I have taken to just watching them and enjoying their expressions and dialogue and songs. I'm really trying to find joy in the little things.

My new goal

2008-10-12T14:52:00.000-07:00

My new goal is to try to update once a week, so we'll see how it goes. I also need to figure out how to attach all of your blogs to mine. Anyway, I have ordered my counters and they should be in before Christmas. It took weeks just to get a reliable quote, but it's finally in process. I'll post a picture as soon as the counters are in. I think the counters will do a lot for it, despite the advantages of random pieces of board for counter.
We also just finished taking care of four of my cousins for a week. It's very different having kids that can help out more and that stay up later. They are really good kids, but I have to say after being the mom of 6 for a week, I was a little more tired than usual. I guess it's a good preview as we are expecting our third child in May. We're very excited, but glad for the few months to get ready for the new arrival

I'm still alive

2008-07-27T14:59:00.000-07:00

Well, my record this year for updatinng my blog is bi yearly; it could be worse. It's been a crazy year for our little family with me working a couple days a week and still living in unfinished renos. But, we have now hired someone to finsh the kitchen and are feeling good about that. We've done a lot and have to be satisfied with letting someone with a little more time and experience finish it. My hope is to be able to send pictures of the finished kitchen by the end of the summer.

I've also quit my job at the children's hospital and will still pick up the odd shift. I enjoyed the work, but enjoy my children more. We've had lots of fun so far this summer being outside when the weather is nice, which is not that often ti seems.

What me stressed?

2008-01-30T18:40:00.000-08:00

I remember that my mom had a shirt when I was growing up that said "What me stressed" and then there was a very stressed out cat on it. Well that about sums up my month. I always think that things are going to slow down after Christmas. You'd think I'd have if figured out by now, but apparently not. I would add some pictures to my blog of Christmas, but I haven't downloaded them off my camera yet and have no plans to do it tonight. Sorry to all those who have diligently checked this blog to find no updates. I am not really a true blogger, it is just a new format for my once every few months update. The only exciting thing that has happened this month is that I now have some new holes in my roof, a few of which are filled with lights, so we will actually be able to see the food we are eating. We're very excited about this new development and continue to anticipate the day when we are finished renovating the kitchen. And I plan to have one big party when I do and you're all invited.

2007-12-14T14:02:00.000-08:00

Workin' Mama

2007-12-14T13:19:00.001-08:00

Well the other craziness around our house, is that I have picked up a part time job at the children's hospital, 2 shifts a week, so that I do not lose my physiotherapy license. It is only temporary, but still stressful. I have lost a lot of sleep over it and struggled, but feel that I am doing what is best for our family at this time. I enjoy being back at the children's with lots of familiar faces and an opportunity to challenge my brain a little more. It is hard though now that I have children, to see some of these very sick children, that are the same age as my children. It reminds me of the blessings in my life. I'm positive that I will learn important things in this short little phase of my life and hopefully help a few people along the way.

Kitchen Saga

2007-12-14T13:14:00.001-08:00

Well, we've taken a break from working on the kitchen so that we can focus on Christmas, but we have come a long way since our last posting. We have ripped out almost all the cabinets and put in the new sink. We installed the floor in the kitchen and then decided a month later the floor was not level enough, so we pulled it all up, got someone to come in and level the floor and then put the floor all back in. It's not perfect, but it's close enough and things are really starting to come together. We have all the bottom cabinets in place and functional, but have to wait for an electrition before we officially install them, so we're still a few months off, but it's close and we can function fairly normally now. Aah!

Enjoying Christmas

2007-12-14T13:08:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we put up the tree and pulled out all of our Christmas decorations. It took a while to find a place for all of our nativities. The girls are really enjoying playing with the kid friendly nativities and of course love to carry around baby Jesus. Eliza is excited for Christmas, although I don't think she really understands what it is, but knows she will be getting pink chapstick that she saw Daddy buying. We've also been trying to help Eliza understand service and have been adding straw to Baby Jesus' manger every time we help someone. She loves that. Hope all your preparations for Christmas are going well.

The kitchen awaits

2007-08-27T18:24:00.001-07:00

Our other big summer project has been our kitchen. We have slowly been ripping out flooring and cupbourds and are down to just a sink and appliances. We're just extending our camping experience into our home. Our plan for the long weekend is to put in the new flooring and at least get in the new sink and then slowly add the rest of the cupbourds. Every job takes way longer than we think it should, but we are having fun and enjoying the adventure and learning lots.

Chasing Sandy Beaches

2007-08-27T18:11:00.001-07:00

This summer we took off to BC with the tent trailer and no reservations or specific plans. We ended up at Shuswap Lake, Okanagan Lake and then Nakusp. We got very good at setting the tent trailer up and down and learned how important it is to not bring too much stuff. (You never know when you're going to need a 3 axes and a full size shovel). But in all our adventures we had lots of fun and enjoyed our last camp ground right off the Lake and an amazing sandy beach. Unfortunately the water was ice cold, but it didn't stop us from taking a plunge to test it out. Because our plans changed so many times, our original plans for church didn't work out and we ended up waking up at 5:30 to try to make chhurch in Golden, forgetting that there was a time change and arrived an hour late. So we kept on going into Calgary and managed to hit church at 2:30. It was a long day.

Our First Triathlon

2007-08-27T17:51:00.000-07:00

Patrick and I have been wanting to do a triathlon for a few years now and finally found one that we could do on Saturday. So last weekend we did our first sprint triathlon in Fort Macleod. It was lots of fun and we had a whole fan club cheering us on and I was only 10 minutes behind Patrick, which I was proud of. We enjoyed our training leading up to the event and hope to do another one next year. It was a fun way ot keep ourselves active and challenge ourselves.