Words for Women to Live By...

1. Aspire to be Barbie - the bitch has everything.   2. If the shoe fits - buy them in every color. 3. Take life with a pinch of salt... A wedge of lime, and a shot of tequila. 4. In need of a support group? - Cocktail hour with the girls! 5. Go on the 30 day diet. (I'm on it and so far I've lost 15 days). 6. When life gets you down - just put on your big girl panties and deal with it. 7. Let your greatest fear be that there is no PMS and this is just your personality. 8. I know I'm in my own little world, but it's ok. They know me here. 9. Lead me not into temptation, I can find it myself. 10. Don't get your knickers in a knot; it solves nothing and makes you walk funny. 11. When life gives you lemons in 2010 - turn it into lemonade then mix it with vodka. 12. Remember where ever there is a good looking; sweet, single or married man there is some woman tired of his bullshit! 13. Keep your chin up, only the first 40 years of parenthood are the hardest. 14. If it has Tires or Testicles it's gonna give you trouble. 15. By the time a women realizes her mother was right, she has a daughter who thinks she's wrong. 'Good friends are like stars.........You don't always see them, but you know they are always there'   'Remember yesterday, dream about tomorrow, but live for today'.

This and That....

So yesterday I picked up Finley from daycare and we were on our way to the library when I heard her burp, followed by flowing liquid and tears.  This repeated itself 4 times that I could hear.  I immediately turned around and went straight home.  Seeing as how it had only been 5 minutes at the most that we were in the car, I wasn't expecting a huge amount of vomit on her or her carseat.  But then the car started to smell so bad and I thought I was going to vomit too!  I pulled the car into the garage and opened up the backdoor to get Finley. OMG! I coudn't believe how much had come out of my poor little girl! I took off my jacket and my top so that i was just wearing a tank top and leggings.  I pulled Finley out and started undressing her in the garage.  She seemed to be quite happy now despite being COVERED in vomit.  I took her into the house and then I went back to the garage to open up the windows of the car so the smell could air out until Greg got home to clean it.  I went back in to the house, threw her clothes and jacket into the washer and went into the living room and she was running around the house pushing her baby in her shopping cart so she appeared to be ok.  I gave her some water and then bathed her which she was not happy about but she stunk so she had no choice!  I made some chicken noodle soup and crackers for supper and she ate everything in site plus some fruit and cheerios.  She acted like nothing had happened, which is good I guess.  I put her to bed and she woke up happier then ever.  Perhaps it was just something she ate....but trust me, I don't know if I will ever eat strawberry yogurt ever again!  She's at daycare today and I am keeping my fingers crossed that there are no incidents!

I got a phone call late yesterday to confirm my appointment with my obstetrician.  Since I am having another c-section with baby #2, I have to see both a pre-natal doctor and a obstetrician. I was happy to find out it was with Dr. Donnelly, who performed Finley's c-section.  She was a wonderful doctor and I absolutely loved her!  I look forward to delivering this baby with her too!  The first appointment with her is on June 16th!

What is with this weather!!  It is so cold and rainy this morning - makes me happy I don't live in Vancouver or Seattle!  It's the kind of day where you would just like to stay home in your pj's and watch movies and play with Finley but alas here I am at work.  I am much more concerned with the impending Winter Storm Warning in effect for Calgary and most of the surrounding area.  We are supposed to get 20cm by Thursday night with possible clearing by late Friday afternoon.  This sucks because we have a wedding in Saskatoon on Saturday and were planning on driving out Friday late afternoon!!!  I really hope it's not as bad as it looks and that we will be good to go on Friday!  Finley and I both have new dresses we just have to show off...haha

It's also on days like today that I really miss working in the Petro Canada Building or as it's called now the Suncor Center! We moved buildings while I was on mat leave and we are now located in a brand new building across from Stampede Station.  It's a much nicer office but we have NO Starbucks or Second Cup in it or even that close to us! There has been a sign saying "Second Cup" coming soon for the last year and we still have an empty space where it should be!  I would sell my soul for a beverage from either place at this very moment....

I think that's all for now...Happy Wednesday Everybody!

Pregnancy Update

This photo was taken last night before I went to bed, so I am 22 weeks, 1 or 2 days.  I was happy with how this photo had turned out because usually Greg manages to take the most unflattering photos of me and I typically look miserable in all photos because I hate getting my photo taken.  But most of all, I was happy because I don't look like massive like I thought I used to.  I was traumatized when I was showing right at 12 weeks and even a bit earlier.  With Finley, I didn't show very much at all until almost midway so I was expecting much of the same this time round!

My cousin's wife Nancy told me that it will all even out in the end, and so far she is right.  When I look at photos of me being pregnant now and then, I don't see much of a difference.  Maybe next week, I will do a post of 23 weeks with Finley and this one - just so we can see the difference!

This pregnancy is still going really well - so much better then it did with Finley.  I hated every minute of being pregnant with her so this is a pleasant surprise! I think it helps because this baby is carrying much lower which is much easlier on my back - Finley carried high - right at my ribs and was in constant pain for months, which ultimately led to being induced and a csection.  Regardless, aside from some minor heartburn and being tired, no complaints.  I don't even have any cravings and spicy food isn't bothering me as much either!

The new room for baby on the way is coming along great! We have finished painting for the most part - just some touch ups to do which should be finished sometime this week.  Once that is done, we are putting down laminate in this room and then moving the crib and change table over as well as building her bookcase and dresser.  Finley will sleep in this room for a few days so that we can replace her carpet with laminate as well and build her new bed.  First we need to find a mattress but we will worry about that when we get back from San Francisco (22 days until we leave...).  I am happy to announce that I found lime green sheets for Finley's room.  I was worried that I would never find them!

Not much else to report pregnancy/Finley wise but will do another update in a couple of weeks...

Happy Tuesday!

Before I Was A Mom

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.


Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom 

Thanks Kimmie for sending this to me!

Finley's New Playcenter!!

Last weekend, daddy and frunkl jack gathered in our backyard to build a playset for Finley! They started Friday night and were hoping to finish it on Saturday.  The instructions said it would take between 8 - 10 hours to complete it and they said it would be done in half....do you think they made it??

Finley has her hammer ready to help out if needed!  Jack & Greg were just getting set up

Luci trying to escape....
Quincy decided he would try too!  Now on our Greg's to-do list: fill hole going into neighbor's yard that their cat dug...

Getting the frame situated!
They moved it on to our deck to make sure it was level and straight.  Why couldn't they do this on the grass, you ask?  Well, our backyard is seriously slanted...which I HATE!
Day 2 began shortly after lunch on Saturday....

Finley watching daddy and frunkl jack finish up her playset.  It was way too windy for us to be outside




So 2 days, 12 beer, and 2 suppers later, it was done.  It's not in it's final resting spot yet as we still have to decide where to put it, whether we have to move our flower bed and fire pit and dig up the ground to make it even and then lay wood chips around it.  We wanted to install the rubber flooring that most Calgary playgrounds have but the cost for that would over $600 and I don't want sand because sand will be dragged into my house and would drive me crazy so I think we are going to go with wood chips.  We want to eliminate alot of the grass in our front yard and replace it with flower beds and wood chips so we could do it all at once and it would be alot cheaper.  Why do we want to do this?  Well, it's better for the environment and I hate yard work!!  HAHA


So did Greg & Jack get it done in half of the alotted time?  Nope they did not.  It took them 8 hours total to get it built.  But they were happy since it didn't take it longer then expected...of course they said that it was because a board was warped and they needed to fix it and that took alot more time then necessary.....boys I tell ya...

Happy Earth Day!

Here is Finley wishing everybody a HAPPY EARTH DAY!!! She is wearing her "Please Recycle" t-shirt in honor of Earth Day. I apologize for the poor photo but it was the only good one that was taken before daycare this morning!

She is hoping that you all do your part in saving the environment - remember, every little thing counts!!

Maternity Doctors & Passport Photos....

Today I had my first appointment with my pre-natal doctor. I had dragged out as long as I could appointments with my family doctor because I absolutely love him but I knew this time would come. He had told me that I could pick a maternity doctor if I wanted to so I had wrote up a note with the name of the clinic that looked after me during my pregnancy with Finley but had forgotten it at work. I told Dr. Bernhardt that any doctor who delivers at the Rockyview was fine with me. I really didn't want to deliver at any other hospital - no offense to anybody at PLC or Foothils but I have had really wonderful care during my stays at that hospital.

So they called me and told me to go to Glenmore Landing on April 21st at 11am. So there I went this morning. It took me FOREVER to find a parking spot and then when I walked into the building it was so hot and old. I was surprised when I entered the office on how small it was compared to my last maternity clinic or even my regular family clinic. I thought immediately that this was a good thing. Small clinic, nobody waiting - this is fabulous! They brought me into a room at 1053am and the doctor was in there promptly at 11. She was so nice, funny, and young. A huge change from the doctors last time. I was done at 11:19 and on my way back to work! I am not so very happy that I forgot my preference list and ended up here!!

The only downside is that because I am having another c-section, on top of seeing her once a month until 30 weeks, every 2 weeks until 36 weeks and weekly after that until the baby comes, I have to have 2 additional appointments with an Obstetrician who can assess the situation and book my csection date (which I am keeping a secret....sorry guys). I was just happy though that the doctor suggested it considering everything that happened last time...but more about that in another post!

So yesterday Greg took in Finley's passport application and photo into the passport office to be processed. They told him that there was a 50/50 chance that they would reject it - which cause to lose a few days which is not good considering we leave in exactly 4 weeks. Yes I know we are procrastinators.... The reason they rejected the photo was because there was a tear in the corner of her eye and some red eye. I was quite annoyed with the red eye because the person at Black's said it should be fine. I guess I should've looked more closely at the photo and I would've seen the red eye but i didn't. Thankfully, Black's retakes the photo and refunds you the money of the photo so we ended up back there last night for another photoshoot. This one went SO much better. The girl who was taking the photos knew what she was doing and I am very confident that when Greg takes in her passport today that she will be fine. There was some concern because she was smiling but we managed to get one where she is not really smiling. I think it's ridiculous that toddlers have to go through the same process as adults, I mean, really how many 18 month old terrorists have you heard of? Exactly...

A Introduction To Potty Training

So I have read 4 books on Potty Training Your Child. There were 2 really good ones and two really bad ones. The worst was How To Train Your Child In One Day. The book spent one chapter on the actual potty training and the next 200 pages on different themes you can have for a potty party. Seriously, are you kidding me? Anyways, the 2 good ones I read advised to let your child play with your potty before actually putting them on it. So I brought out the potty and let her play with it. I also put her on it before bed but she was having no part of it. Here are some photos of our first "potty party" - beware some child nudity is shown but trust me it's all in good faith of potty training. Sorry if I offend anybody!

Testing it out for the first time!
Her pretty royal potty chair, i love the crown as the back part!
Loading up the potty portion with her toys. Apparently only liquid makes the potty sing because nothing came out with this stuff in it!

Giving it a try with no success. She has no interest in sitting for long periods of time unless it is on your lap which she tried to do. The book also said to put the potty in the room you use the most at first to get the kid used to this change. Once kids are ok with the potty then you can move it to the bathroom like it should be! We have 4 bathrooms in our house and all are pretty far away from the bonus room so we could be having an accident or 5....haha
I gave her some pajama's to play with while on the potty. I was impressed that she attempted to put these on and on the right way! Score Finley!
More toys to occupy her time!
She is loving the potty but no pee was to be had. That's ok, I am just glad she likes her potty! We have a travel one that sits on the toilet seat for when we are away from home, but I think we are still a ways away from that! I am a bit torn on what to do and how fast to go with her. I understand we can only go at her pace but I don't want to get her going somewhat and then when totally lose it all when we go to San Francisco because I can't promise that I will be diligent in getting her to a potty on time - or even if i could. We leave for San Fran a month from yesterday so I could possibly get her trained by then but am still worried about a week away from her routine. Any ideas?

I think instead of giving her sweets as a reward for using the potty I am going to use stamps and stickers. My friend Kristie suggested this and this way Finley will have a brag book to show everybody how wonderful is! She may not get this now, but one day she will!

Also, I want to use re-usable training pants since I have been using cloth diapers so it seems like I should follow in those steps, plus I like to continue doing my part for the environment, so if anybody has any suggestions to training pants or potty training in general - that would be MUCH appreciated!

I promise to keep my progress with potty training on here so y'all can see what it takes or help me if you can see that I desperately need it!

A New Red Door!

I have always loved the fun colored doors you see on some houses these days. I looked at the prospect of purchasing a new door but when I saw how expensive they were at Home Depot, I quickly changed my mind. I decided to paint my door, seeing as how many I knew had done the exact same thing! So yesterday, Greg, Finley and I headed to Home Depot to purchase some paint for the door! I am so excited with how it turned out but not so much that it took 5 coats of paint! Insanity!

The original boring door
Without all the hardware!
First Coat!!
Second Coat
Third Coat
Forth Coat
Fifth and FINAL coat and all the hardware back on

Absolutely loved how it turned out!! And I did it almost all by myself which is a feat in itself!

Roughneck Finley

Last Saturday, Frunkl Jack's rugby team was having a fundraiser by selling Roughneck tickets, so we bought a couple and down to the dome to watch the final home game of the season for the 'Necks. The last 2 seasons I have been trying to desperately to get Finley a tshirt or something Roughneck with no luck. But the Fanattic actually had toddler Roughneck bunny hugs on sale for 10 bucks, so we bought Finley one. As you can see below, she was excited to have it on...or maybe it was the nacho's? Haha!

Frunkl Jack who played with Finley when she started to get restless. It's amazing how much a piece of paper can entertain a 17 month old!

As you can see, Finley looks very cute in her new Roughnecks bunny hug but she barely had it on when....
she headbunted her daddy and gave him a bleeding nose. She had blood on her hoody and her hair. Thankfully, daddy was able to get it out later that night!

The roughnecks ended up winning and with the victory made the playoffs! Hopefully we get a playoff game or two at the dome!

Last Day Of Work...

Is going to be on July 30th. 2010 (barring any surprises). Yes it is a month before my due date which is on August 29th but Finley was born a week after I went on mat leave last time and I want to be able to spend some one on one time with Finley before her little sister arrives!

So the countdown begins.

Ok let's be honest, I started the countdown the moment I thought I was pregnant back in December but today is when I started counting actual working days as opposed to days in general until July 30th.

I have 66 actual working days left. That's already eliminating our week in San Francisco next month, 2 days off for U2 in Edmonton in June, and July 2nd off for my super long weekend in Jasper. On top of this I still have 12.5 vacation/flex/sick days alotted to me that I haven't booked yet so really I only have to go back into work 53.5 times. Although, Greg pointed out to me earlier today that I would have to go into work 54 more times but one of those would be a half day. Whatever, I still only have to work 53.5 more times and that is enough for me!

Russian Delight....

Last weekend, Greg, Finley and I were invited over to Julia, Olag and Michelle's house for a Russian supper. Both Julia and Olag were concerned that I wouldn't eat anything seeing as how I am so picky. Thankfully I proved them both wrong. Olag prepared a wonderful meal that was so delicious that we added 2 of the recipes to our collection. The skewer pork was so good, it was so tender and full of flavor! Olag told Greg what was in it and I can't wait until we attempt to make it ourselves. I was most proud of myself for trying the Eggplant. I had never had it before and as usual was very apprehensive about trying it. Although I removed the grated cheese and tomato from the top, I did try the eggplant with the mayo/parmasean/garlic mixture on top of it and I LOVED it! It was probably one of the most delicious pieces of food I have ever tried!! All in all, the meal was completely fabulous!!

Here is their daughter Michelle who is three and a half. She is possibly one of the cutest little girls in the entire world! Her english is positively delightful and her little accent is perfect. I could just listen to her talk all day long!

Michelle loved posing for the camera!

Finley really has no idea what sharing means and Michelle is still just learning what it is so they didn't get along very well - although there was a brief moment where they were both playing happily!

When they got along it was wonderful to watch but when they didn't, Finley would cry and Michelle would scream in Russian. She is probably the cutest little angry Russian girl in the world although I am sure Olag & Julia would disagree!

Julia's mama making sure Finley and Michelle were behaving. This is Finley carrying around Michelle's potty. She quite enjoyed it. Finley's just came out and she is just currently playing and sitting on it. Gonna try the real deal this weekend....

All in all, it was a great evening spent with great friends with great food!! Thanks guys for the wonderful time!