Just Life!

I haven't written a post in a couple of days as I haven't had a minute to get to my computer. Anyways, I'm at the computer now, so thought I'd write a bit about what has been going on! Nothing too exciting, just life!
The kids had parent-teacher-student interviews yesterday. They all did so well! I got to hear how well they're doing in school, they're all near the top of their class in their studies and all of the teachers said they're really nice kids!. As a parent, I love hearing that! After the interviews, we went to McDonalds for a treat. We got home, and I finished the things that were on my to-do-list! YAY!!!! Matt even mailed off our passports! It's such a good feeling now that that's done!
This morning I dropped the kids off at school and I went off to the dentist. I have to say, that I think going to the dentist for me, is one of my most dreaded things to do! I almost called in and cancelled and was going to use a lame excuse like, my vehicle wouldn't start or something. I couldn't lie, so I calmed my nerves and talked myself into going. I showed up at the dentist office and waited patiently to be called in to the room. My appointment was to re-do an old filling. It was so annoying, because I didn't have any cavities, but just an old one that needed some upkeep! The whole time I was thinking that this was a pointless appointment. Anyways, they get me in the chair and give me some freezing. I'm actually fine with freezing; doesn't bother me at all. After that was done, my dentist came at me with a rubber dam! As soon as I saw it, I almost panicked! I can't stand the rubber dam!!! I was trying to be brave though, so I let my dentist and the dental assistant try to attach it to me. First attempt didn't go so well. I have a really bad gag reflex, and was gagging like crazy!!! They quickly pulled it off of me and gave me a moment to regain my composure. It was time for the second attempt. I closed my eyes and tried to keep breathing through my nose. They had it attached to my tooth, and the rubber dam was over my mouth. It was on....for maybe three seconds! Then the gagging started again! My eyes were watering like crazy causing what appeared to be tears to be streaming down my face! They quickly started to take it off of me. I think they were worried that I would gag so much, that I would eventually throw up! It was off and I could breathe again! My poor dentist! I felt so bad!!! My dentist just laughed, and told me it wasn't a big deal, we'll do it without the dam! Thank goodness!!! As I was sitting there, though, I was listening to the chair beside me and there was a child there who was maybe three or four, who was absolutely fine with everything that the dentist was doing! I'm 32, and almost threw up over a cavity! Gotta love it!
It's now just about 8:00 and I'm ready to get my pjs on! I'm ready to sit down and watch the rest of the Canucks game with Matt. I wonder what adventures tomorrow will bring?

Frazzled Wednesday!

I  have to admit that I'm a bit frazzled today. It's Wednesday, the middle of the week, and I am EXHAUSTED!!! The commitments with work, kids, family, sports, dance etc, etc, etc, seem to be catching up with me! I am working hard on trying to keep it all balanced. I know that sometimes in everyone's lives, life can become overwhelming with the amount of tasks that need to be completed. At times, it feels like everything piles up at once, and it's hard to manage it all. I know that this will pass, and life will calm down again, but when you're right in the middle of the chaos, it can be so insane! 
In order to try and gain some control, or at least a sense of control, I have written a 'to-do-list'. This list contains every little thing that needs to be done before the weekend. This list includes everything from making lunches, paying bills to sending off passport applications. I'm hoping that by looking at the list, and checking each thing off as it's done, I will feel sooooo much better!!! I have to say, even making the list has made a huge difference!
As tomorrow is Thursday, and I'm off on Friday, my goal is to have everything done and finished by Friday afternoon. This will guarantee that my weekend is somewhat free and organized! I'm looking forward to a fun filled weekend with the family!

Vintage Boutiques!

I love fashion.....well my own sense of fashion! I love hitting second hand stores, vintage boutiques and garage sales. I love the feeling of hunting for something and being so excited when I find something that is awesome! When I was a stay-at-home mom, I would hit these places on a weekly basis. I would pack up the kids, and off we'd go on our adventures. I'd often come home with super cool clothes, nick nacks or even furniture! Not so sure how much Matt loved this! I would browse through racks and piles of items searching for something that was different or unique. I would get all excited when I found something and then of course, the kids would be excited too!
I don't have as much time as I used to, but I still love doing this! This past weekend, we all went out to hit a few second hand stores. I was searching and exploring as was everyone else. I think it's so neat that my kids enjoy doing this as much as I do. Well, not too sure if they like it as much as me, but they seem to enjoy it. I found a few unique pieces that I'm really looking forward to wearing. I love that the chances of someone having the same thing as me, is very unlikely and I like wearing something that's just a little bit different! I think it's amazing that I can buy things at such an affordable price, that I love!

I remember a few years ago, Matt and I spent a night in Vancouver. Spending time in Vancouver is definitely one of my favourite activities. Anyways, whenever we go into the city, we always pop into the stores that we don't usually get to go into. There are so many fun and neat stores, that it can take us almost the whole day to explore. We went into one of the stores, and as usual, I was trying to find a bargain. I'm a big lover of jeans, so I automatically went to that section. Bear in mind, this was not a second hand store. I found a few that I really liked, and was thinking of possibly buying a pair or two, that is, until I looked at the price tags! They ranged in price form anywhere between $500 and $800.00. I was shocked! I always thought that $100.00 was a lot of money for jeans! Seeing that made me very happy that I enjoy thrifting....I think it made Matt happy, too! I think for now, I'll stick with my second hand stores, vintage boutiques and garage sales!

Bouquet of Roses

What a beautiful day! Spring has definitely arrived and I am loving it! I started the day by working a few hours of overtime....it was really hard getting up soooo early on a Saturday, but the OT went well! I was home by 11:15 in the morning, and we had the rest of the day to enjoy! Matt came home around noon, and in his hand, was a beautiful bouquet of roses. I've had a bit of a rough week, and he went out of his way to cheer me up and to show that he cares! It was so sweet and I love how he thinks of me! After feeding the kids lunch,  Matt washed the van and took the kids for a bike ride. While he was doing that, I was fortunate enough to grab a half hour nap. I really needed it! Once I woke up, I did a quick clean of the house, and off we went! We decided to take the kids out for dinner as they had all received excellent report cards a couple of weeks ago. After that, we went up to Cultus Lake. It was gorgeous up there. The water was so still and it was so quiet. The kids skipped rocks and played on the dock. It was a wonderful way to spend a Spring evening. We were driving home around 8:15 when Matt said to me, "wow, we're sure pulling a late one". I had to laugh! I guess we're starting to show our age lol! We're usually in our pjs chilling around the house at that time of the night!

I can't believe tomorrow is the last day of Spring break for the kids. I have enjoyed not having to make school lunches and not getting the kids off to school in the morning. We have one more day to enjoy, before reality starts again. I think we'll make the most of it tomorrow!

Style....or lack of it!

My kids and I have many conversations that revolve around clothes! They seem to think that I have no style and I don't know what's 'cool'. It makes me laugh! I think I have a great sense of style as I walk around in my flared jeans, big comfy sweaters and my hair pulled back into a pony tail. Apparently, I'm supposed to wear skinny jeans and leggings and have my hair 'done'. My kids are constantly saying that I dress like a hippie. A few months ago, I thought that I would entertain the idea of buying a pair of skinny jeans. I went to the store with every intention of buying a pair. I pulled them off the rack and went into the dressing room. I was all prepared to put them on and fall in love. I pictured images of women parading around in their skinny jeans looking beautiful. So there I was, in the change room, with the skinny jeans on. I prepped myself before looking in the mirror. I took one look, and gasped! Oh my goodness!!! These are definitely NOT for me! I came out and told my daughter that there was not a chance that I was going to buy these! They're just going to have to be content with me in my flares!!!

Busy times!

Wow! What a crazy, busy day! I am exhausted!!! As I sit down on the computer thinking about the day, I started to think about the time in our lives when we had really small children and I was a stay at home mom. I remember being so poor and not having an extra cent to our name. In many ways, life is still like that lol, but we have definitely come a long way! I remember scouring the couch cushions for change and having to ask my parents once for a few dollars so that I could buy a jug of milk. I definitely had to swallow my pride in that moment. I remember waiting desperately for it to be payday and being so thankful when it finally came! As I think about those times, I also remember how I was willing to do almost ANYTHING to bring in a few extra dollars for the family. I used to read the newspaper like crazy, trying to find any work that I could do from home. I once came across an ad for stuffing envelopes. I remember reading it and thinking, this must be too good to be true! I don't know if I was desperate, or naive; maybe I was a bit of both but I convinced Matt to let me send $100.00 to order this package. At the time, $100.00 was a lot of money for us to spend! I waited anxiously everyday for the mail to come. I could not wait for this to arrive! I really thought that I could do this and I could really make a lot of money! The day finally came when the package arrived! I sat down and opened it with such anticipation and excitement. Was I ever disappointed when I saw what was inside! Basically, the whole concept of stuffing envelopes involved a lot of mailing out stuff things for people to buy; including homemade jewelry. It definitely was not just stuffing envelopes and getting paid for it. I was heart broken to say the least and kind of felt taken! When I look back on the memory, though it makes me laugh! I love how I truly believed that I could do this! I loved how I trusted what the ad said in the newspaper, never believing that the advertisement was completely false!!! I love how Matt agreed to let me try! I love how, when telling a friend about it, who was also a stay at home mom, she said that she did the same thing!!! Too funny! I wonder how many other stay at home moms attempted to bring in some extra cash by stuffing envelopes? I wonder if anyone actually made any money doing it?

                                         
                                           A picture of the kids when they were small!

We're now at a stage in our lives where I no longer have to look for odd jobs like that. We still have to work hard for our money and we still wait anxiously for payday. We have bills like crazy, a mortgage, school to pay for, sports...you know, the everyday costs of life! I love looking back on the memories of the early days and the many different things we tried just so that I could stay home! Some of the ideas were crazy, some of them worked, most of them didn't, but it lead us to where we are today!

Spring Break

Anna is coming home tonight! As it is Spring Break, she was invited to spend two nights with my cousin and her three little girls. Anna was so excited and was really looking forward to it! I was glad that she got to go and had the chance to spend some time with just girls! Having two brothers, sometimes the activities in our home are geared more towards them, than they are for her. She got to watch girly movies, make cupcakes and spend some time with a little baby. I'm sure that Anna loved every minute of it!
I'm surprised at how much I've missed her and how anxious I am to see her! Without Anna at home, it has completely changed the dynamics. I miss sitting with her in the evening and talking about her day. I miss her helping me around the house and I miss just having her here to cuddle with. I am a very lucky mom to have a daughter like her. She'll be home in about an hour and I can't wait!
While she was away, I texted my cousin to check on how everything was going. Everything was going great, and my cousin was enjoying having Anna there. She replied with such a nice text stating "it's nice to see how much Anna loves you and she hopes that her girls love her that much when they are older". It was so nice to hear that Anna conveyed such a love of her parents to others!

I sometimes think what it would be like if we didn't have children. At times, I imagine Matt and I travelling and exploring the world. I imagine us living in a big beautiful home and having nice things, but there's so much more to life than that! I could not imagine a world where I'm not greeted at the end of a work day with big smiles and stories about their day, a world woken up with good mornings and kisses, a world where I didn't get to tuck my kids into bed at night. I'm a pretty lucky mom!