Around our house, the topic of winning the lottery comes up quite often. Matt and I talk about how nice it would be to not have any bills, or not to work, or be able to share the wealth with others. When life gets super busy, and overwhelming, it is not uncommon for one of us to say that we are going to win the lottery! Of course we know the chances are slim to none, but it's not a bad dream to have!
The other day, while the kids and I were hanging out in the living room, enjoying a lazy morning, the topic of the lottery came up. Anna told me that once, a long time ago, when they were all quite young, all three of the kids woke up in the morning before Matt and I, got dressed up in their very best clothes, convinced that that was the day when our family was going to hit the jackpot! She said they were completely shocked when it didn't happen!! Oh my goodness!!! I had no idea that they had done this many years ago. I love my kids and I love the way they are!!!  They're older now, and understand that the chances are slim that we'll ever win, and they're ok with that!!! We'll always have the dream, and will probably always mention the lottery in the tough times, but we're good with what we have!

Since I was about 21 or 22 years old, I have been the driver of a minivan. Yes, the minivan is practical and convenient for families, but, to be honest, I never felt 'young' or 'cool' cruising around town in my good old mini in my early twenties! I often laughed as most of my friends had little 5 speeds that they whipped around in or they had fancy vehicles. I laughed as I pulled in to places in my family mobile toting around my three young children. I always wondered how long it would be when, once again, we could be driving around something other than a family mobile.That day was yesterday!
We had been looking on craigslist for a few months searching for an affordable vehicle. Matt was constantly looking at the good old faithful minivan. We talked about how nice it would be to switch it up, buy a 4x4 or an SUV, but everything we saw seemed so out of reach. Yes, we still had to buy something that was in our budget and couldn't just grab the first thing we saw. Thankfully, we came across a Ford Explorer that was perfect and that we could afford!!! YAY!!! I am now a driver of something other than a minivan!!!
I have to chuckle to myself though, because as much as I'd like to think I'm cool, or young, I'm still driving around with three kids in tow. I am no longer in my twenties and really don't worry about being 'cool' or 'young'. I'm still driving a family mobile and I wouldn't change a thing!

We Survived!

Well September is almost over and we have survived! We have survived the first day of school, homework, sports practices and games, making lunches and just being organized.  Thank goodness! I find September always starts with a bang and it takes a while to get into the swing of things. We have our routine down now and all is good!
Adam started high school this year. I can't believe that I have a child in high school!!! It still seems unbelievable! He is loving it and has settled in nicely. He's made a bunch of new friends and seems to be embracing his new opportunities! I love it!
I am also back at work. I am truly enjoying getting up each day and having something to do. I do admit though, that I am missing my days at home. I am missing having all of the laundry complete before the kids come home. I am missing having a clean house, a dinner that is prepared and lunches that aren't thrown together. I am missing just having some time alone. On the other hand, I know I have it really good and I know that so many other families are doing the same thing. Just trying to get through each day the best that they can. So many families rushing in the door after working and trying to prepare a healthy dinner, trying to help with the kids homework and trying to put a load of wash in so the kids have some clean clothes to wear! Everyone is just trying their best! So if you come over, and you see a plate of french fries and chicken strips, know that that was my best that day!

The last day of summer holidays. I can not believe it's over! I am not ready for the early mornings, the chaos of school and sports and the routine. I know it is inevitable but I'm not quite ready to let go of the lazy summer mornings drinking coffee on the deck, sitting in my pj's, while all of the kids stay sleeping.
Since my last post, my beautiful Anna turned twelve. She is turning into such a beautiful lady, inside and out. I am so proud of who she is and so proud to call her my daughter! I love her spunk and her caring heart. She truly is one of a kind!
For her birthday, we got her a scooter. She loves heading to the skate park with her brothers and loves polishing up on her skills. Anna is usually the only girl at the park. I love that about her. I love how she has the confidence to enter a place full of boys and just go for it! She never holds back and truly believes she can do anything! Last week, while spending another morning at the skate park, Anna did a super cool trick, but then ended up on her back. She got up, climbed out of the half pipe, and told me that she was  hurting. We waited a bit to see if the pain would subside. After about half an hour, the decision was made to go to the clinic to get checked out. Off we went. By this point, she could barely get into the van and had a very hard time sitting at the clinic waiting to see the doctor. The doctor looked at her and touched her back and ribs and came to the conclusion that he thought her ribs were broken! We went for x-rays and thank goodness they weren't broken, just badly bruised. Ahhhh......
To end off the summer, we headed out to a beautiful lake just past Hope, B.C. We went with friends of ours and it was amazing! We loaded up the canoes and headed out to the remote Silver Lake. Stunning is the only word that can describe this place! There were only a few other people there so we basically had the place to ourselves. We were tucked in between huge mountains in this little valley. The water was beautiful and the kids had a blast! It was pure relaxation and truly peaceful. It was a great way to end the summer!

Summer suddenly started flying bye...before we know it, it's going to be back to the routine day after day. I am so not ready for that yet!
One of our summer traditions, is to go camping at Cultus Lake. This year, I was unable to stay overnight because I needed to be home with our international students. At first, I was super bummed that I couldn't be up there every night with Matt and the kids, but when I woke up each morning in my own bed, I didn't complain! I drove the short distance each morning with Tim Horton's to deliver to Matt and to my brother Ryan, who was also camping with us. They didn't complain either when fresh coffee was delivered!
We were a little bit worried that this camping trip wouldn't even happen. About a week prior to the trip, Adam got super sick. We spent a full day in the emergency room. He had blood work done and a bunch of tests completed. We were sent home from the hospital and told to wait for results. The results came back positive for E-Coli....the poor kid was sooo sick! By the time we were going camping though, he seemed to be on the mend. He had one night of being sick and had to go back to the lab in the morning for some more testing! Other than that, the camping trip was a huge success!!
The kids went for many hikes, late night swims and discovered creeks. Caleb fell into the creek with his favourite purple shoes!!!!!! We laid them in the sun and they dried out quite nicely! Caleb also learned to do back flips off of the dock....I stayed away from the beach when he was doing this otherwise I would have had a heart attack! He's such a daredevil!
There was a fire ban on because the weather has been so hot and dry. A King camping trip without rain doesn't usually happen so we set up some tarps etc just in case it rained. Surprise, surprise the first night we were there, the skies opened up and poured on us! There was thunder, lightening and a downpour!! We still couldn't have a fire so we huddled around a little propane stove.....it was actually super cozy and a ton of fun! It wouldn't be camping without some rain!
Here are some pics of our Summer Camping Trip 2013! I love making memories with the kids!!