Orange you glad?

So, what have I (we) been up to that's keeping me from writing on here? Well - our biggest project(s) would be home renos. That's something that seems to be never-ending in this house. I don't say that with any negative tone, but rather with some excitement, as we make our new house into OUR home!

On the list recently (including completed and ongoing projects, but not everything we have done to date):

• install 13 new windows
• trim said 13 windows, inside and out!
• complete kitchen remodel (almost complete and I'm in LOVE with it!!!)
• makeover of downstairs living room/play room
• custom built trim for down living room
• shop/garage re-do (new walls, door, etc)
• the eventual remodel of entranceway
• general "home-y" touches throughout the house
• Finally - Dylan's Bedroom!

Today I will focus on Dylan's bedroom. Since the day we bought this house, Dylan knew he could paint his room whatever colour he wanted. And also since that day, we all knew that colour would be ORANGE. Here we are, some 8 months later, and have now held true to our promise. I took Dylan to the store on Sunday and let him choose his paint colour. I honestly had no say, just layed out 1000 different orange samples and let him pick. He chose one, so I mixed it up to see if he really meant it, and sure enough, he picked the same one. Then when I asked if he wanted to look at any more, in a typical male response - "Why would we look at more? That's the one I want. Let's buy it."

So it was done. Dylan had picked out his new wall colour. It's called Mariachi and it is without a doubt, BRIGHT orange. I put the first coat of paint on the walls yesterday and the smile on Dylan's face when he saw his new wall colour was worth it's weight in gold. He LOVES it and is getting super excited to have a room of his own soon. However, the boys are pretty sure they are just going to BOTH move into Dylan's room, as I think they have grown quite fond of sharing a room. (Next project to add to that list - BUNK BEDS!!!!)

There you have it, folks. This is one busy household, with a to-do list that seems to only grow, never shrink. I know Mike is slightly stressed that we are all over the place with the projects (and I will confess that it's ME who keeps starting another project before completing the first).....but it's coming along. Our house is starting to feel more like our own and we are really enjoying it. There are times I still miss Fenwick. I miss the neighbours, the deck, and certain features of our first house, but I've come to realize that our new house is much more suited to our family and it's where we belong.....for right now, anyway ;)

Click!

Ever feel like if you blink you'll miss something. That's how I feel lately with my boys. They are growing up WAY too fast. I wish I could freeze time....

Sure, there are moments of frustration and impatience......but when I sit back and think about how they are little for such a short period of time, I try to savour every moment, rather than wish for them to be over, or for the day to finally end. I have to make sure I grab that little hand that reaches out for me every time, cause I know someday all too soon, they will be embarrassed to hold my hand! Every single snuggle, hug, kiss, "I love you, Mommy", just melts my heart and I hope they don't ever give that up!

I love you boys! Don't ever stop being YOU!

Busy, Busy!

This past week was an especially busy one. The boys and I took advantage of many of the March Break activities going on around us. We spent some time at the library, watched "The Wizard of Oz" live (45 minute play), visited the Niagara Butterfly Conservatory (which had a bonus snake and turlte exhibit), went for a stroll through Niagara-on-the-Lake, visited with friends and family, and spent LOTS of time outside, enjoying the Spring-like weather we were spoiled with. It was a wonderful week. All of us enjoyed ourselves. Next week we will return to our normalcy and Dylan will head back to school (Mon and Wed afternoons for 2.5 hours).

I can always tell when Dylan is really enjoying himself. If he really likes what we are doing and is having a good time, it's almost inevitable that I will hear "Mommy, can we do this EVERY day?!?!" :)

The most enjoyable experience we've had lately was the hotel sleep-over the week before. We went with Papa Ken (for his birthday), Aunt Wendy, and cousins Mason and Avery. 3 adults + 4 kids + 1 hotel room = great, great fun and lots of memories. We all had such a good time and hope to be able to do it again sometime soon.

I sure am a lucky woman to get to have this much fun all the time!!! :)

Tardy

I . O . U .

I acknowledge the fact that I need to post....been busy, but promise to check in soon!

Life after Death.

So, over the past few weeks, Dylan has been talking and asking about dying. This mostly started from a few farm visits, one of which included the purchase of meat right from the farmer. Dylan saw a baby cow on the farm and wanted to know if we were eating a baby cow or an old cow. I explained to him that when a cow gets old, it dies and then we eat it. He immediately asked if that cow has a mommy or daddy, to which I replied that the mommy and daddy cows likely already died, too. We've talked about eating animals before, so he was okay with that and proceeded to tell ME that we need to eat cows and meat to get big and grow. (for the record - no-one dare better teach Dylan about veal!!!!!)

Then last week Dylan's pet fish, Elephant, died. After he died, we flushed him down the toilet, because "that's what you do when a fish dies". Dylan sad he was sad and that he missed him, but no tears were shed and he surprisingly handled it really well. He hasn't said anything about Elephant (unless telling someone that he died), until tonight. Here is our conversation - I will highlight Dylan's words in red......

Mommy, is Elephant sad right now?
Is he sad??
Well, he doesn't live with us anymore and he is swimming in the pipes in the sewer now.
Honey, Elephant doesn't know he is in the sewer. After you die, you don't know what happens to your body.
Fish go in the sewer and people get burried, right?
Yes, that's right.
What do you look like when you die?
You saw Elephant; he looked the same, only he wasn't moving or breathing. That's what happens to people, too.
Do people die when they get old?
Yes, they do.
Mommy, are you getting old and dying?
(*insert broken heart here) No, honey, I'm not....
(we then talked a bit about how long most people live, etc)
Mommy, do you know anyone who was old and died?
Yes, Dylan. Gigi's Mommy died and so did Papa Ken's Daddy. They were old and got sick and then died.
What statue did they die on?
(*long pause.....had to think this one through.....) Ohhh, you mean where is their tombstone where they were buried??
Yes, where's the statue where they died?

*We went on to discuss the fact that people don't die in cemeteries, they are just buried there. And that the stone lets people know whose body is buried there. We have taken many walks through the cemetery near our house, and he's really trying to put it all together. Another example of the innocence of a 4-year-old's mind. I love how inquisitive that boy is! When Dylan starts trying to figure something out, he doesn't stop until he has an explanation he can really believe. Remind you of anyone?!

Tastes like chicken.....

Just took the boys grocery shopping. While we browse the store, I like to get them involved and be on the look out for the items on our list. They are great helpers and very observant. They often see things they aren't sure of and either make up a name/guess for it, or ask me. You can almost bet that next time we go, Dylan will name these new discoveries and tell ME all about them.

Anyway, today Dylan saw something that he apparently hasn't seen before. There was an end freezer display of boxed chicken "nuggets". Dylan looked at them then proceeded to tell me "See those round chicken things over there, Mommy? Those come from the chicken's legs. They are chicken ankles".

I swear this is a true story. And I swear I replied - "I bet you are right!" :)

Hello. My Name Is....

I am pretty sure the chances of people who don't know me actually finding this blog and reading it, are slim to none. However, I imagine some of the people who will follow this may know who I am, but not really know what defines me. I thought I'd write a little about myself, so you get a better understanding of the person behind the blog.

If you asked me 5-10 years ago - "Who ARE you?" - the answer you would have received would have been much different than the answer you would get today. To be perfectly honest, I am not even sure what the answer would have been, as I truly can't remember who I was before I became a mother. I know I was a student, with dreams of finding a job related to the environment, or a job in teaching. I was a girlfriend, finacee, then wife, to the man who is also my best friend. We started dating when I was 16 years old, and since then, he has always been included in my "dreams" of the future, too. We bought a house and renovated it (and are now on house #2); we added 2 dogs to our family and loved on them as much as possible; we enjoyed picking up and going on road trips, to whereever the car took us. We had a lot of fun, as 2 people, with the world as their oyster. We still have a lot of fun....But even back then, my dreams always included the day I would become a mother. I vividly remember the day we got the positive pregnancy test - it was on my 25th birthday! I knew our world was about to change, but never would have guessed by just how much. I also remember the day our first son came into this world (in a way I never ever dreamt of, which is a whole other story in itself), but from that day forward, I was no longer just Jenno.....I became MOM!

Fast forward to today and I certainly know who I am - 100% Mommy! My kids are my life. Being a stay-at-home-mom is wonderful and I wouldn't change it for the world, but it does leave little opportunity for me to be something or someone, other than Mommy. I am okay with that. I try and make room for the other important aspects of my life - being a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend. But being a Mommy comes first. Always. And being those other things almost always includes my kiddos now, too. I am no longer an employee, unless you consider my kids my "boss", so I have lost the social aspect that comes with working. Again, I am okay with that, as I wouldn't trade my life for any other job in the world. I know just how lucky I am to be able to stay home with my kids, and watch them grow up in front of me. I also know that this job isn't for everyone. It works for our house, and it works for me.

After becoming a mom, I still had, and still have, dreams of the future. Most of my dreams include my kids, and our family. I wonder what they will be like at 5, 10, 30 years of age. I wonder if they will love playing hockey, as much as their Daddy does. I wonder what their passions will be, what kind of goals they will set for themselves. I wonder about the kind of friends they will have, the social activities they will want to partake in. I wonder what tomorrow will bring. Or the day after that. And I wonder what kind of Mom I will be, every step of the way.

I also dream about what my future holds. Will I be a stay at home mom forever? Until they start school? Until they leave the nest? If/when I return to work, what kind job will I have? Will I ever get to teach again, something I truly enjoy doing? (Well, of course I will get to teach my kids, and that in itself is 100% fulfilling!)

Notice the pattern here? Every dream I have, everything I do, is always about my kids. I'm not saying this makes me the best mother, in fact, it could mean that it makes me less of everything else. I'm just trying to say that as a parent, as a Mommy, it is very easy to let that role be what defines you. I love that it does. I love pouring my heart and soul, my everything I have, into my children, our household, our family, OUR life. But I do understand that at some point, every mother or father, needs to make time to be more than just a parent. I know I need to devote more time to be just a wife. Not the mother-of-my-husband's children, but my husband's Wife. The woman he has spent the last 13 years with. The woman he decided to marry. A few months ago we went on a date, just the 2 of us, and for the first time in a long time, we were Jenn and Mike, not Mommy and Daddy. It felt good! I also need to make time for myself, to be able to re-charge, re-group, and re-lax! My "job" as Mommy and housewife is not 9-5. It's a 24/7 type job. But every employee is entitled to a day, or a few hours, off. I am fortunate to have a husband that lets me sneak away and enjoy a few hours of solitude now and then.

Anyway, I think I got a little off topic there. Point of all of this - being a mother is what defines me. I choose to let it be the main purpose of my existence. I love being home with my children. I love that at this point in their lives, I am tied for number one as their favourite person (let's not discredit Daddy!). I love experiencing life through their eyes, every single day. The innocence, the enthusiasm, and the wonder in which they see the world is breathtaking, inspiring, and down right awesome! I am one lucky woman....one lucky MOM!

Mommy is who I am. Take it or leave it......

The apple doesn't fall far....

Both of my kids are brilliant. But that was to be expected, considering who their parents are ;)

(Yah that's right. This is MY blog, so I can call it as I see it....I mean, write what I want)

Here is a little example of how incredibly advanced my 2-year-old's mind is:

Now that Spring is approaching, the boys and I have been talking about planting our spring garden. We discussed that we will go to the store, pick out our seeds, then plant them in the new garden in the backyard and wait for the plants to grow. Both boys are thrilled about this, and have acutally been talking about it since before Christmas! We had a tiny (pathetic excuse of a) garden at our old house. The new yard here will offer much more space to grow things.
Anyway, over the last few weeks, everytime we eat apples, Dylan (who is 4) asks about the seeds inside. They are learning about the connection between fruit (or vegetable) > seed > more fruit. Darwin (2) always asks to hold them. I didn't think much of it, and would give him the seeds to hold. I guess I never paid attention to the fact that the seeds always disappeared. That is until I discovered something in Darwin's closet yesterday. He has a small lid, turned upside down, in the back corner, filled with all of these apple seeds he's been "collecting". He watched me as I found his stash, and immediately said with the proudest smile on his face "See, Mommy? Now we can grow an apple tree when the snow melts!"

Oh, my little Darwin.......I doubt you will ever know how incredibly cute you are! And just how amazingly brilliant that little mind of yours is, even at only 2 years (28 months) old!!!

Here we go!

I recently started a blog to record 365 recipes in 365 days. I am 2 days in, and already addicted. Although I cook and/or bake almost daily, I think it will be a fun challenge knowing I HAVE to make something, in order to report to my blog. I also am excited at the fact that I can use the blog as a cookbook of sorts. It will be a place I can go to look for my favourite (or not) recipes that I have tried and want to make again.

I started thinking some more, and realized that the blogging world is a great concept. Why not use it even further to my advantage, and start blogging (ie. RECORDING) all the things that happen in my life, on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. I do write in a journal now and then, but those are thoughts I am not about to share with the world. The stuff I am always wanting to share with anyone who will listen, almost always has to do with my 2 boys - Big Little D and Small Little D. By writing it down here, you all can read about how adorably cute my kids are, and how clever they are, too! Or you can hear my random thoughts. Or frankly, whatever I feel like writing. It will be my public journal.

I look forward to documenting things as they happen, to be able to go back and read about it, and to share my life with you, as it unfolds. My kids are changing ever so quickly; days, weeks, months seem to blur together at times. So sit back, read away, and hold on for this fast pace ride called LIFE!