Central Albertas Childrens Festival

A very long time ago, way back at the beginning of the month we went to the Central Alberta Children's Festival... in Red Deer.  I convinced my Mumma she really wanted to go with me for the day.

The Calgary Festival had been the week before, but it rained all that week.  AND... for future reference, this one is way cheaper.  After admission ($5 a head) everything is free, snacks, the singer, the activities.  Enough to keep you busy all day.  PERRRRFECT.

When we got there we went and watch Fred Penner. 

Yes that singer from waaaay back when that you loved as a child.  And yes... he is STILL awesome.  I had found out about all of this from Amanda.  So I was keeping an eye out for her.  We sat ourselves down on the ground and I actually sat down right behind Amanda's Mom, who I had never met. 

What are the chances?

Next we got our faces painted.  I wasn't going to do it, but it was smaller than last time so it wasn't as messy.

We met up with my cousin Julie.  (She lived with us when she was in college and I love her like the sister I never had lol.  We use to eat crackers in the basement and She would tell me all the things she was studying.)

We spent the rest of the afternoon with her, her two boys, Roberts and Samuel ( lol) and the girl she babysits (who's name I have forgotten because this was so long ago haha)

We went in the bounce house

We used our big muscles ( that's Julie helping)

Jumped on giant bubble wrap

This is Julies Robert.  He was the cutest thing. 

Here are four of the kiddies having a snack break

little Sam, big Sam, Robert and Lizzy

Samuel and Robert got firemen hats.

We had a lot of fun and can't wait to go next year!

Backlog.

So I have noticed that posts have become...sad. I have just been posting when I needed an outlet because I was upset about something. And I don't think I have posted any pictures in a month. Sooo I am going to start posting good again. Sorry to bore you to death.

I guess the first thing I skipped was that we went and a did "A day out with Thomas"  with the Piskos at the beginning of May. 

Here are all the kiddies on our special train ride.  They kept looking out the window in awe.  They were all so excited.

Abbi was such a good girl.  (I love this toque on her)

My goofball children wouldn't look at the camera as I tried to take their picture.  So i have a series of pictures like this lol. 

We went around the park and watch Thomas movies and read Thomas books.  We went on Horsey rides and played games.

We even got our faces painted (well the kids did)

Every time Sam saw the train he would wave at it going by.

Death

Okay tomorrow is the ward lip sync. ... ... i hate my life right now. not to be dramatic. but... yeh.

So I really hate meeting new people (as I am sure I have said before) I don't like talking to strangers. Public speaking (aka talks in church) are worst nightmare territory. I mean it is up there with being covered in spiders. Even praying in front of people causes panic.

So after a few no's I managed to get a couple of reluctant yes's. But didn't plan anything farther. You know the whole theory of "ignore it and maybe it will go away". After coming up with a couple of really good plans of how to get out of going I realized I couldn't do that. why not? Because the RS president who asked me to do it has known my parents longer than I have.

But my teammates, although supportive of me in my endeavor, wanted to do it just about as much as I did. What is the only thing worse than doing this? making other people do it with me out of pity.

So I will be preforming the Mom song.



My plan is to listen to it about 100 times before tomorrow night and do it just like her. luckily because it is a lip sync I don't have to know all the words.

So there will be no costumes, no dancing just me trying to remember to breathe and not fall over for the 2:55 that I will be up there.


Is this a totally stupid plan? Actually don't answer that because if it is, it is to late to change now anyways so ... yeh

Whose children are these?

Maybe if I hadn't of married someone who is more stubborn than I am. Maybe if there wasn't redheadedness involved. Or maybe if my mother didn't curse me with the "one day I hope you have a child JUST LIKE YOU" curse (the only parental curse that ALWAYS comes true) it would be easier.

Stubbornness it seems to be one of the genetic traits Trevor and I passed onto our kids.

Don't get me wrong most of the time I think it is REALLY funny. (trying not to laugh as they throw their tantrum). But sometimes it breaks my heart.

Like right now as I type. Sam is crying. All he wants is his balloon which I have hidden in the sink. All I want is for him to take one lousy bite of his dinner. He is crying, I am ignoring. He knows what he has to do to get his balloon. I know that the one bite really doesn't matter in the long run. But I refuse to be out lasted by my two year old.

I mean, Lizzy is just as stubborn as Sam, but she plays the game (should I be afraid of this). She took her one bite and her balloon. will she take more. no probably not. but she did what was required.

maybe I can get him to take a bite if I take a bite. I'll go try that.

sick

So yesterday I was sick. Like REAAAALLLLY sick. every time I stood up I puked. I sent Trevor to work telling him I could muddle through the day. He was at work for an hour when he got the phone call from me that no, I couldn't do it. I couldn't even get up to feed the kids. He rearranged his whole schedule and came home.

He spent the whole day taking care of the kids.

Then... he did have one appointment he had to go to so he called up Amanda who took all 3 of my kids...with the two of her own and watched all 5 kids (under the age of 4) while Trevor had to work.

I feel much better today. But the only thing I have eaten since Tuesday night is 1 cup of ginger ale and about 5 soda crackers. I'm starving.

Petrified

Have you ever had one of the moments where you head is say "no no NO" but you find your mouth saying "Yeh sure I could do that".

I am officially in charge of the Relief Society lip sync number for my ward part in 2-3 weeks.

...(enter crickets chirping)...

It is now my job to find women who are totally okay with embarrassing themselves in public, figure out what to have them do in public, practice and deliver.

death.

-The first problem is the calling of strangers..

"ring ring - hey this is sister smith how do you feel about public humiliation? oh your not into that...well thanks anyways" ...

-and then picking a song... over done or not good

-and then figuring out what to have these women do on stage to the song (total lack of creative genius)

-organize practices


Right now I am down to 3 options

- call RS President back and tell her no
-Go out of town to escape it
-make my primary class do it instead

ANY IDEAS???

While the kids are away

Yes my kidlets are in Wyoming for the week. Weird. The house is sooooooo quiet. You are jealous. It is weird though. I am enjoying the time with just Abbi but I miss them. Good news is that the grass will be in the yard before they get home. SUMMA TIME HERE I COME

I have given up wearing makeup. Oh how I loathe the allergy season. If I put makeup on then I just end up rubbing it all into my eyes and looking like a raccoon. So rather than that I am going all natural.

Tomorrow is car cleaning day. Today was laundry and I got the walls washed on my main floor. This house is gonna shine. I wanted to have my garden in before they got home but I can't get dirt until next week. Boo.

I am doing a rock garden in the front yard. Should look good. I have all my big rocks, now I just need plants and some smaller rocks to fill in some of the gaps.

peace-

Baking Fail and Bugs

Today I made Banana Bread. I like me some good Banana Bread.

Problem #1 - I got distracted. I am babysitting and forgot about it. Yes I set the timer. It went off and they weren't done so I left them in. Now I have 2 lightly dark loafs. I can deal with it.

Problem #2 - I got to excited to take it out of the pan and half the loaf came out and half stayed in. sadness. So I guess now you can say I have 3 slightly dark loafs.


Yesterday I was helping Trevor finish the stairs on the deck. He asked me to go underneath the deck to tighten down the bolts. To me. under the deck is where bugs hide out. But in my own head I said "get over it. It has been to cold and there aren't any bugs yet." So I did it. Today I watch a spider make a web on my upstairs window. *cringe* ugh bugs

I hate bugs. especially spiders. It is something about the way they move. I have been known to trap them under glasses, with a book on top, and then leave the house and wait for someone else to dispatch of it. If leaving isn't an option I use the vacuum.

I have a deal with bugs and rodents. If I don't see or know about them they can live. If they let their presence be known to me they must die. About a month before we moved into our house I started putting poison out for mice. I have at least 6 traps in my garage at all times I don't do the poison anymore because of the kids. But let me tell you. We killed at least 20+ mice in our garage. (No I didn't touch a single trap).


Anyways on a brighter note. Abbi is crawling. woot. I use to wake up feed her and then set her on the floor with her toys and sleep on the couch. Guess that is done. Let the barricading begin.

Doing good

I am doing good at this no facebook thing. I had shut it down completely. Then I realized I had phone numbers I needed in my inbox. And I checked it on my birthday because it was my day. Otherwise I am skillfully avoiding it. I also am trying to limit my blog reading to 1 time a day.

Because I am cell phone free it has also got me wondering and thinking about a time when I didn't touch the computer for days.

Somtimes I think that should be the way it is again. Then I remember that I like the computer.

It's all about moderation isn't it.

Brooks and Dunn

was AMAZING. They played every song I could have wanted and a few that I had forgotten. It was great

Lizzy is sick. She puked twice. luckily once on the tile and once in the toilet. ugh. A few months back she use to puke every night (for about a week) in her sleep. It was so weird and soooo gross. To find her in the morning covered in vomit. I don't know why. She didn't have any other symptoms. and then it just stopped. So she seems fine now. fingers crossed.

Abbi can clap. It is so cute. and she totally knows it. She looks at you and claps, then babbles, then claps some more. She is getting really close to crawling too. She pushes her self backwards and gets up on her knees and rocks. Sometime this month.

Sam has another hearing test tomorrow. We don't think there is any problems with his hearing. we never really did. But it is the first thing they check if there is delayed speech. So we took him in about 4-5 months ago. and his one ear drum wasn't moving, but we are attributing it to that massive head cold/double ear infection. So just as a double checking we are going back tomorrow.

we went to the grocery store this morning. I got the kids the little carts they can push. My goodness. Sam grabs a hold of it and TAKES OFF. running running. me yelling stop stop. We had a discussion about if you run away with the cart you will be put in the cart and lose yours. We were all good ( the kids each with a little cart and em with the big one). Until Sam spotted the truck carts. The ones with the truck cab on the front that they can "drive". Then We had to trade in moms art for one of those and load all the groceries from moms cart and sams cart into the truck cart. Then lizzy didn't want hers anymore either. so lizzy and sam took turns with the last little cart and every once in awhile mom got to push the giant truck cart and the little cart. It was fun though. No major melt downs. We got doughnuts. (Except Sam ate mine and his boo). stinker.

Supper is in the crock and rice is in the oven.

Laundry... woot woot, you all know how excited I am now.

And that's all I have to say about that.