Kate Plus 8

Yay they dropped the douchebag!!

Starting on November 2nd, it will be Kate Plus 8. According to PEOPLE.com, it was because TLC was growing increasingly tired of his recent antics. Not sure if it was because it was revealed he had sex with his very young babysitter, or if it's because his now girlfriend had a boob and most likely started their relationship prior to the end of the marriage, or because when it's his "time" with the kids, he leaves them and goes back to NY? Or if because his version of the high road was telling GMA and the rest of the world that he despises Kate and loves Hailey more then he ever loved his wife? Who knows. Who cares really, I am just glad I don't have to fast forward the Jon portion of the show anymore.

I wonder if Kate will have to pay alimony to Jon??

Happy 6th Birthday Tan Da Man!!

Over the weekend, a bunch of our family met up in Lloydminster to celebrate Tanner's 6th birthday. Is actual birthday was today so Finley is really happy to wish one of her favorite cousins a happy birthday today!! We love you Tan Da Man! Have a great 6th birthday!!

Dayhome Dream!

I have found the most wonderful dayhome for Finley to attend. It is about 400 million times better then the one she was supposed to go to. It is operated by a mom and daughter team. They have 4 girls including Finley all around the same age. We met Ann & Alicia last night and was so impressed by what we saw. When we left, I felt like we would be leaving her with my mom and sister. This morning Finley and I went again for a playdate with the other 3 girls and Finley had a blast. I hid around the corner so she couldn't see me and she didn't even notice that I was gone! She starts going Monday for mornings all that week and then full time the week after. I think she will have alot of fun and really learn alot from the other girls!

I must admit that I was really concerned regarding the dayhome situation especially since it was so close to my return to work date and I wanted to get her in slowly so she could adjust to her new routine.

I think yesterday I emailed 25 dayhomes, posted a wanted ad on Kijiji, and spoke to about 15 different dayhomes. Many wanted a carseat so they could drive around Calgary with her. Are you serious? Nobody has ever driven a vehicle with Finley in it other than myself or Greg. Yes I know I am over protective. Some just sounded completely insane, some had terrible hours so needless to say, I was so happy that Ann & Alicia worked out for us!!

Good luck to all my fellow baby mama's searchin for a dayhome!!! It is so incredibly stressful but trust me you will know when you have found the right one. And, ALWAYS TRUST YOUR GUT INSTINCT!!

Dayhome Nightmare

So I found the perfect dayhome in March for Finley. Or so I thought. At the time, it seemed great. 2 ladies looking after 5 kids 2 blocks from my house and was relatively inexpensive. I was so excited that I had gotten so lucky. Fast forward 6 months to our first playdate with the dayhome. The head of it all had left that day for a 5 day trip to the states so it was the other dayhome girl and the other girl's mother in law.

There were 2 kids a little older then Finley who by the looks of it, hadn't had their diaper changed in hours - it was droopy I am not sure how it stayed on. The same 2 kids were so filthy that I was speechless. I was told that 2 other kids had stayed home that day because they were sick and 2 others around the age of 4 were playing wii. Or at least one of them was. So I added it up - that's 7 kids including Finley. Then she told me that her sister was bringing her 2 kids starting in November. 9 children for 2 women? That's not what I signed up for.

The two older kids that were there were on the couch playing the Wii. Well, it seems that only one kid was playing because it was his wii, his house and because of that he didn't need to share.

His sister was one of the dirty kids and was also running around the house eating a hotdog. Did they not have to eat in the kitchen? Did they not realize that the child could choke on the hotdog by running or what would happen if they fell? Perhaps I am overreacting but these situations could occur. Finley went to grab a book and she grabbed it and said mine mine mine. They just laughed. Technically it was hers, but I would like to think they would encourage the kids to share.

Another thing that bothered me was that the carpet was filthy. I am not sure when it was vacuumed last. Also, the couches (which were leather) were filthy, you could see sticky spilled juice stuck on it and yet she said she just cloroxed it with wipes. She obviously didn't do a good job. The gate that separated the kitchen from the front room was broken and nothing there to keep Finley from crawling into the kitchen. At one point she did do this and the 2 ladies just kinda laughed and I had to go get her. When I entered the kitchen, the island thingy was covered in bottles and all kinds of other crap - nothing very sanitary!!

As I was getting ready to leave the 2 closest to Finley were walking and playing with Pencils. This did not please me. God knows what kinda damage you could do to a child if they fell.

Lastly, both toddlers still had bottles which is fine I guess but I am working really hard trying to get Finley onto a sippee cup and this will not help the situation.

Perhaps I am overreacting, my standards are too high some might thing, but when it comes to my child, nothing but the best will do. So now I am looking and looking. I have emailed probably 20 dayhomes in the area and have 2 playdate/meetings lined up today and tomorrow. Hopefully more will follow. I still have one more playdate at said nightmare place tomorrow but I am pretty sure that we will be attending a new one more sooner then later.

Anybody who has any ideas regarding dayhomes or daycares, please feel free to share!!

Calgary Corn Maze

Last weekend, we headed out to the Calgary Corn Maze which is located just east of the 22x, just past the new neighborhood Mahogany. When I looked outside it looked cloudy and cool so we all dressed as such. Were we in for a surprise when we got there. It was ridiculously windy and so humid it felt like 90 degrees outside. Regardless, it was a great time and did both mazes in about 90 minutes which wasn't bad. There is also a petting zoo, cowtrain rides, corn shooting, bumper tractors, mini mazes for kids....I so can't wait to go next fall when Finley is a bit bigger and can do more things.

Here are a few photos, not very good of Finley but best I had!

Vipers Game

A few weeks ago, Greg and I took Finley to meet up with Frunkl Jack at the Vipers game. They play at Foothills Stadium which is right by McMahon Stadium. If you have ever attended the Rider Tailgate Party at the McMahon, it is held here. The night we went was game 3 for the championship. If the Vipers won, they would win the championship. They didn't win, infact they were humiliated, losing 12 -1 or something stupid. I think they jinxed themselves by playing We are the Champions - BEFORE the game even started. They ended up winning the next night 18 - 10 but we did not attend. It was a beautiful evening and Finley had a great time!!

Walmart Photo Flap

This morning I was flicking through TV channels and came across this story on Good Morning America. A couple with 3 children from Arizona had their children taken away for a month and were put on a sex offender's list because they sent photo's of their children in the bath tub and after the bath wrapped in towels.

They took the memory stick of over a hundred photos to Walmart to have developed and the Walmart worker was offended by the photos and called the police. Of the 144 odd photos, 8 photos were questioned. They were being investigated for child pornography.

This poor family. I can't even imagine what they must be going through. The moter, who is a school teacher, was suspended from her job because she was considered a sex offender and nobody wanted her teaching their children. Thankfully the suspension was rescinded, but will she ever totally be free of this scandal? Probably not.

A report issued by the local authorities described the photos as "child erotica" and "sex exploitation" according to their lawyer. They were able to release 4 of the photos in question but they were ones of the children wrapped in towels posing for the camera. When asked why not release the other 8 in question, the lawyer responded by saying that he would be charged with distributing child pornography.

Who knows what kind of damage being separated from their parents have done to these children. They are all under the age of 5. They still don't understand how these photos were lude or pornography or exotic or exploitation since every family in America has these same photos. And they are right.

I mean seriously, who does have photo albums back at Mom & Dad's full of photos of you naked in a bath tub or running around the house - Let's see a show of hands. Exactly, that's what I thought. Are your parents child pornographers? I know if have lots of photos of me naked either by myself or with my sister, both in and out of the bath tub. Is my mom a child pornographer? No she is not.

I, myself, have taken numerous photos of Finley in the bath tub and crawling around naked after refusing me to re-diaper her. Infact, those photos are on this blog. Am I distributing porn? No, definitely not. And I am pretty sure the nurses at RockyView General Hospital who took naked photos of Finley when she was born, aren't either. I am not sure if I have developed any of Finley's naked photos but I must stay I am mighty tempted to see what would happen. So completely ridiculous.

The charges were eventually thrown out by a judge but now the couple are suing Walmart and the City of Peoria for damages relating to this. They have already spent over $750,000 on legal bills because of the charges & investigations.

I hope they bankrupt Walmart personally, but in the end, regardless of how much money they win, it will never ever compensate for the hell they have gone through in the last 14 months.

If you want to read an article on the ordeal, here is one that I found:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/arizona-couple-suing-bathtime-photos-prompt-wal-mart/story?id=8624533

Looney Spoons

Who needs fancy expensive toys when I can just help myself to a spoon while Mama is unloading the dishwasher?? I love my spoon!

Laundry Time

A few weeks ago, I had washed all of Finley's diapers and brought them upstairs to fold and put away. Finley thought she would help me out with folding the diapers. The thing was, I had already separated the liners, the diapers and wipes when she decided that they should all be one big pile!

Thanks for the help Finley!!

CHOO CHOO!!

Yesterday we decided to get out Finley's Little People Circus Choo Choo Train. We were hoping that it would help her to stand on her own and walk with it. She really seems to love it! This would make her Great Uncle Lloyd so proud!

She was trying to get the package off of the train

She was so excited to play with it!

Still trying to get it open. She was excited with all the sounds it made!

Finally she was able to get on it.

I WANT MY KITTY!!!

The other day I noticed that Finley was at the gate laughing her little laugh that she does when she chases Quincy. I went and looked and saw that Quincy was kickin' it back on the stairs and that Finley wanted out to go chase him. Much to Quincy's delight, Finley was forced to stay upstairs. Quincy can't wait for Finley to start daycare....Actually I think Luci & Iggy feel the exact same way!!

Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou

Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand orFall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
The palm of my hand,
The need of my care
,'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Naked Baby

Last night I was trying to get Finley's diaper and pajama's on. She let me undress her but refused to let me get her dressed. I have to admit that she really looked cute playin naked. In the end, Greg was the one who got Finley in her diaper and pajamas....not sure how. She seems to be developing an aversion to getting diapers on in general, it seems to be a more than a casual occurance!

Here are some photos taken last night of my naked baby...

Quotes I've Come Across Lately....

Just thought I would share some of these that I have come across recently. I love good quotes, so if you have any to share let me know! Some are just too inspiring....

"The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong."
Ghandi

"Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable or happy & strong. The amount of work is the same."
Francesca Reigler

"I am not upset that you lied to me. I am upset that from now on I can't believe you"
Friedrich Nietzsche

"Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you hoped for"
This is one is so true for me!!!

"Every man dies. Not every man really lives"
William Wallace

That's all for now, will post some later!!


Every man dies. Not every man really lives. William Wallace

Finley is 10 Months Old!

I am a little behind as Finley actually turned 10 months on Saturday. I apologize for the delay but we both had colds and she has 2 new teeth coming in!!

Some highlights this month were mine & Finley's firstever road trip without Daddy. We headed back to SK for a 6 day visit. We had great visits with my family, she went to the PA Fair for the first time, she visited her Great Great Aunty Ann, and got to play with her cousins Easton & Ashton. We took a different route back and detoured through Lloydminster where she played with her cousins Madison & Tanner. Madison then came back to Calgary for the week to stay with us.

Madi came to stay with us for a week and Finley loved loved it. She missed Madi so much when she left. Finley loved all the attention and the play time. We also took Finley to her visit to the Trico Center's Wave Pool where she had a tonne of fun with Madi. We hoped this would her bath time problems but unfortunately it has not. We also went to the Calgary Tower which was the first time for both Madi & Finley. Madi requested that we take the CTrain because she had never been on it before. I tried to explain to her how long it takes me to get to work on the CTrain and I don't think she quite understood that it was anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half. So I was like the distance from North Battleford to Lloyd. I am not convinced she believed me. (Side note: commute should be shorter when I go back due to change of building). Madi really enjoyed the CTrain Ride.

August also had Jimmy, Nancy & Tanner come for a visit to pick up Madi. We had a great time going to the zoo, going shopping and having a guitar hero & mario Kart evening. We missed them when they left.

We then headed out on our 10 day camping trip to Seattle, Olympic National Park - both in Washington and to Vancouver, BC. It was a great trip - especially now that we have a massive tent so we were all able to sleep comfortably. We all survived it and look forward to many more camping trips next summer!! Seattle has some wicked shopping!!!! I bought so many fabulous items......love love outlet shopping!!

Finley also got to attend her first MLB & NFL games while in Seattle. She seems to love them both, which is just great, not that I am surprised considering who her parents are! HEHE

We got back from Seattle and Aunty Kristy came to visit for a week which was great, since Finley hadn't seen her in awhile. We did some shopping, playing, more shopping and enjoyed an early birthday cake for me!

We ended the month with Finley catching her first cold and cutting 2 teeth. These 2 teeth have been more painful for Finley then her first 5 but she is doing really well!!! She also started to pull herself onto her knees....am excited for what comes next!!

Here are some photos that were taken on Saturday. As always, check out the picasa site for WAY more photos of her!