Sydney Turns 5

There is something very exciting and sad about the fact that I had my first baby five years ago.

I honestly can't believe how fast time is going by. Sydney is now over half way through Kindergarten. She loves crafts and art, math and reading and running around outside. This spring she will be taking part in her first team activity playing kids t-ball. She is an amazing older sister and a great friend to all of her little buddies. We could not be prouder. 

When it came to planning Sydney's Birthday party for this year, we knew it was going to be different. We are at the stage now where she has her own friends to invite and her own ideas about what a fun party would entail. We decided to do her first "big girl" party at 4Cats studio in Summerside. They offer art based kids parties and the paint splatter party seemed like the perfect, age appropriate thing to do. 

The kids helped me with a paint splatter project one afternoon. We decorated the paper that we used for the outside of the invitations. They turned out great and the kids were happily covered in paint!

The next step was to put together treats for the party. We knew we didn't need to bring much based on the time of the party, so after agreeing on a fruit platter and cheese and crackers I started putting together something homemade for the kids to have in their goodie bags. We made these cute rice krispie treat paint brushes that ended up being a hit!

Next was the cake..... this is my favourite part! I love trying to figure out how to incorporate our party theme but still make it modern. This time it was all about achieving that paint splattered look. I did it by icing the cake in white icing and then I mixed Wilton gel colour with a bit of water and splattered away! I did one colour at a time and let the cake dry in the fridge between layers. Sydney was so excited with how it all turned out.

When party day arrived the kids were so excited! We got everything packed up and ready to go to the studio and the kids dressed in their best painting clothes. We started with some drawing and talking about the rules in the front of the studio. The kids each got to pick out their colours for the paint splatter and it was on to the Jackson Pollock room!

The studio owner Michelle was fantastic with the kids. They all listened so well and had an amazing time getting messy. Even Henry got the concept and was completely into it. 

Next step was the big canvas. Part of the party package was that all of kids would work together on one giant canvas for Sydney. I was able to pick the colours in advance so I picked some that are her favourites but are also more grown up. I want to be able to hang the canvas in her room once she is in her own space and the boys are sharing. The kids decorated the canvas with syringes, balloons filled with paint and paint brushes. The end result is incredible and has pieces of balloon all over it which I LOVE!

Cake, snacks and gifts and the party was done! It was so nice to be able to go home to a clean house and not have to worry about cleaning up after people. The whole experience was awesome and we now have an amazing piece of art to remember it!

Mrs. E

Valentines Day is for Lovers

I know that some people think that Valentines Day is a commercial holiday, but when you have kids it's so much fun!

There is something about decorating cards and getting little treats ready that turns it into a very special day for the entire family. We always try to get the kids as involved as possible and they love coming up with sweet things to do for each other. This year we came up with a pretty cute Valentine for Sydney's classmates. I feel like making homemade cards is so worth the time and effort. She felt so special walking into class with these cuties.

Instead of going on an adult date, we decided to spend the day as a family. We exchanged valentines treats and cards and headed out for a great brunch at Meat. The food was amazing and the kids had such an incredible time hanging out with us. It was such a beautiful sunny day and it could not have been a better way to spend it.

Of course, no Valentines day is complete without some sweets. David surprised me with a mini ice cream cake which we made a pretty good dent in. And, because Valentines day fell on a Sunday it was Walking Dead night. I made fresh brownies for our viewing friends as a treat and we had a "romantic"evening watching zombies. 

Mrs. E

Henry's Hockey Game

I don't know what you were really into as a kid.... But Henry is seriously into Hockey!

I still can't believe how young our tiny dude was when he started paying attention to the game and cheering on our beloved Edmonton Oilers. He has been playing "Hockey" with his mini hockey stick for about a year and constantly tells us that he is going to play hockey like the "big boys" when he is old enough. David has been taking him skating whenever he can and he is happy to glide around the ice on his bob skates and fall on the ice. The kid is ready to go. 

The only problem with having a hockey loving two and a half year old is that he has a hard time staying up late to go to any of the games. With a bedtime at 8pm he wouldn't make it much past the first period without melting down. So when an afternoon game is on the schedule, we know that means that it's Henry's turn to go. 

We packed him up and got him out of the house and ready to go early so that we could show him around the arena and make our way to our seats. We have been splitting season tickets with friends for years and have three seats which works out perfectly. Happy and comfortable sitting on a giant stack of coats wearing his headphones, he cheered, ate popcorn, danced and high fived. That kid had THE BEST time ever and could not have done better. 

I see a lot of hockey games in my future....

Mrs. E

Prenatal Yoga

Hooray for prenatal yoga!

There really isn't much in this life that I enjoy more than my family, my friends and a great Yoga practice. In the beginning of this pregnancy I really wasn't allowed to do too much Yoga. I was pretty restricted on physical activity and I also wasn't feeling great. The day that I was able to step back onto the mat was one of the best days I have had with this baby. It makes me feel more relaxed, more like myself and more in control of my body during an uncontrollable part of my life. This is me in my happy place. 

I am thinking of offering partner or private prenatal Yoga classes while I am still expecting. I feel like there is such a strong connection between pregnant women and I am probably in the best place I have ever been to offer such classes. We will see!

Mrs. E

Christmas Break

I love Christmas break. 

I know it has been a month already but there is something about looking back on almost two weeks of family time that just makes me deliriously happy! Our Christmas break usually means lots of time spent hanging in our pajamas, a million family get togethers and playing with all of those new Christmas gifts. The kids always refuel during this time and I get more and more exhausted. It is completely worth it though! Here are a few photos from our lazy Christmas days. 

Mrs. E

New Years Eve 2015

A few photos from our New Years Eve celebrations. An 8pm countdown, fake Champagne and lots of kisses. 

Mrs. E

Baby Boy ~ 22-22 Weeks

We have happily reached 22 and a half weeks and I have some seriously mixed emotions this week.

First off.... we found out we are having another boy!!!! We decided to do a low key surprise reveal for our parents one Sunday night. We had the ultrasound tech write the gender on a card and place it in an envelope that we took to the store to have them place balloons in a box and seal it. We took it home, wrapped it up and invited our parents for dinner. It was so much fun to surprise them with a small gender reveal and everyone was so excited to see those blue balloons pop out of the box. 

Oliver was born at 22 weeks one day. I now have tangible memories of holding a baby the same size as the one I am growing in my belly. I have a visual of what this little man looks like now and kind of wonder if he looks anything like his big brother. This little guy is now officially older than one of his older brothers. The whole thing has me feeling bitter sweet.

At 20 weeks we had our anatomy scan done at the Lois Hole Women's Hospital. We will be seen by the perinatologists there as a result of our history so we are considered high risk. The ultrasound went well and our little guys was perfect, but they did find an issue with his cord. He has something called a hypocoiled umbilical cord which means that it is slightly less coiled than the average cord. This means that he cord has less tensile strength than the average cord and could be more prone to kinks, knots and being squished. Apparently is quite common and the doctor does not seemed concerned at all.... but that doesn't mean that we are not going to be monitored more often. The combination of our history with CDH and the new cord issues mean that we will have regular ultrasounds at the Lois Hole. Not optimal. 

On the plus side, he looks so sweet in his ultrasound photos and he even gave us the best thumbs up. 

In terms of a bump update... here is what I look like now....

I feel huge but everything seems to be pretty standard as far as how I feel while pregnant. Cravings are all the same as they were with the other kids ( Mexican food, anything spicy, chocolate and CITRUS). I have been eating my weight in grapefruit. The kids could not be more excited and the great name debate has begun. We are going to have a VERY difficult time agreeing on names this time. Wish us luck!

Mrs. E