Running with the Bulls

It is hard to believe that in one week, Sophie will be 10 months old. What is also amazing is the leaps and bounds she has made over the past few months.  It is really quite surprising how fast time has gone by since I have been busy watching Sophie grow.

Sohie is now walking, correction, running around the house while holding only one of my hands.  I don`t even need to go to the gym with the amount of exercise I get, accompanying her everywhere.  She doesn`t seem to really need my hand for balance; it is more for reassurance.  Because she is still so young, she isn`t quite ready to let go of her mommy yet.  She made a big break through last week, when she mastered transitioning from lying down to sitting up to pulling herself up on anything within her reach.  The unfortunate part is she is short like her mom and doesn`t have as many options to pull herself up on as some might.  But there is enough to practice with.  Sophie was so dedicated to learning these skills that she would practice them in the middle of the night.  For several nights, I would wake to find her not sleeping but sitting up.  I couldn`t quite tell if she was asleep or awake while doing this.  She seems satisfied enough with her new abilities now that she has stopped rehearsing at night.  However, it has made nap and bed time a bit more challenging.  Sometimes I put her down in her crib and a few minutes later when I peek in to make sure she is asleep, she is standing with her arms outstretched, waiting for me to rescue her. 

Sophie is so much fun to play with. She loves to mimick the sounds and actions we make, and enjoys when we copy her as well.  Sticking out and clicking her tongue, and making kissing noises are just a few of the noises she likes to make.  Once she gets going she can be quite silly and is all giggles.  This, of course, gets us laughing which she loves more than anything and encourages her to continue. 

Other things Sophie loves to do:
stare, point and coo at the Christmas tree.  Surprisingly enough, "no" has worked pretty well so far at keeping her hands off the tree;
open and close doors and drawers, which makes me jump in fear if it happens when I'm not looking, I then wait for the howl to know whether her fingers have suffered or not.  So far it hasn't happened but it is only a matter of time;
pick up and carry things from one end of the house to the other, especially shoes.  We are constantly putting things back where they belong;
dance (which is mostly bending her knees and bobbing up and down) to music, especially Christmas music which her mom loves to play all day long when Dad isn't home to complain.  We tried to include a video but she was more interested in the camera;
blow bubbles in the tub;
babble to herself or to us.  She is going to be a chatty one;
read the same book over and over and over.  Flipping the pages is the most fun.  Sometimes I don't actually get to finish reading what is on the page before she is ready to move on.  She will actually, more often than not, choose a book to read instead of playing with her toys, provided there is someone around to hand the book to and read it to her.

One thing that hasn`t changed is Sophie`s teething situation.  She still only has two teeth although she continues to have restless nights, is constantly pulling on her ears and chews on everything.  However, the really bad nights aren't nearly as often as they used to be.  She seeems to be a bit better at ignoring the pain.  Ryan started giving her a bottle of formula just before bed and this seems to help her sleep better at night as well.  I thought we would have to fight her to take a bottle since she has never used one up until now but she took it no problem.

Ryan and I went on our first date since having Sophie a couple weekends ago.  We went out for lunch and then to a movie, while leaving Sophie at home with Mamie and Pepere for the day.  Oh, and Ginger came to help as well.  It was great.   We only called home once and it was because we saw that someone had called from the house.   Of course, I needed to know what was going on, there must be something if they are calling. It was only Hunter who wanted to know if he could open the bag of Christmas jelly beans.   Phew!  All went well and Sophie was pleasant enough for her sitters that they even agreed to do it again for us.  Yeah for us!  It was nice just having some time alone with Ryan.  I tried to make an effort to not talk only about Sophie the whole time, but it really is difficult when she is the biggest part of my life right now.  I am sure this will get easier as she gets older and more independent.

Here is a link to our December Photos so far.

Happy Halloween!

This was Sophie's first Halloween and it sounds like it might be Hunter's last.  He almost didn't go trick or treating this year but changed his mind at the last minute. 

Sophie was dressed up as a cat and helped me hand out candy...sort of.

Hunter went trick or treating with Matthew and his friend.  Like every year, he came home with way too much candy.  Anyone want some?

Sophie's Baptism

Sophie was baptised Saturday, October 29th, at St. Peter's Church by Father Nelson.  A special thank you Natalie and Rob, who are Sophie's godparents, and to all those who came and shared this important event with us.

To see more pictures of Sophie's baptism, click here.

Finally mobile...sort of

Sophie just doesn't like to get down on her hands and knees.  Can you blame her?

Crawling is for the birds, really.  Oh, and Sophie's second tooth came in yesterday.  Another week full of success!

Discovering Autumn

Ryan and I were out doing some yardwork this weekend, so we bundled Sophie up and let her enjoy the leaves.

Her first taste of autumn...

Big Week

Well, this has been a big and important week for Sophie.  I get to add two stickers to her milestones calendar!  First, she finally cut her first tooth a few days ago and second, she has been busy practicing standing all by herself.  We caught one attempt on video.

Delicious Breakfast

Usually on the weekend I get up with Sophie and give Nicole a few minutes extra of sleep.  This morning Sophie might have been acting up a bit while I was feeding her.  Sorry it's not in focus I've just recently learned that our camera doesn't auto-focus in video mode.

Mesa, Arizona

Ryan, Sophie and I just returned from our week long vacation out in Arizona.  We stayed at Richard and Karen's place, which they purchased earlier this year, and had a great time.  The weather was perfect; first day there was 28 degrees celcius and the last few days were plus 35.  This allowed us to ease into the heat.  We were pretty much the only people that frequented the pool because the locals found the water a bit too cold.  We made sure that we went every day.

While we were there we managed one day trip; we drove through the desert to the Superstition Mountains.  Once in the mountains, the road is very windy and the establishments along the way are very much of a western theme.  We ate at an interesting saloon that was covered in dollar bills.  This saloon was said to have been established by Jacob Waltz, the man from the legend of the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine.  It was a unique restaurant with stuffed animal heads and snake skins mounted on the wall, some interesting plaques sharing all sorts of wisdom and saddles as bar stools. 
Other than our one day trip and a day of shopping, we didn't venture too far while we were there.  We did visit downtown Mesa and tried a few mexican restaurants , the Tia Rosa being our favorite.  Wanting more of a relaxing vacation, we sat out on the patio in the backyard while Sophie napped and spent most of her waking hours by the pool. 

All in all, a great week of vacationing!  Thanks again Richard and Karen!  To see more pictures of our trip, click here.    

Over Half a Year Already!

It has been a while since I have written about what Sophie has been up to lately.  It may be in part that both Ryan and I are suffering from sleep deprivation.  Our little angel has not really improved on her sleeping habits since the entry where I mentioned that she didn't like to sleep at all.  Over the past two months, there always seems to be something that is keeping her from learning how to have a good night's sleep.  After our camping trips, those 4 weekends in a row, I thought it was best to stick around home for the month of August in hopes of developing a stable and predictable routine which would lead to better sleeping.  This is what "they" told me to do ("they" being the 101 books that I have read on parenting and half of them being specifically on sleep).  So we did.  First week home, Sophie got her first cold.  This of course doesn't help anyone sleep well.  After she got over her cold, she went through her six month growth spurt, where she was feeding every two hours all night long; just like when we brought her home from the hospital!  "They" say this should only last a few days, but it lasted a couple weeks with Sophie.  We couldn't seem to get her on solids fast enough, in hopes of keeping her asleep longer.  Last week, there were a couple nights where we thought things were really starting to improve and as quickly as they came, it fell apart.  She now has another cold and is so stuffed up that the other night I had to sleep sitting up, holding her, supported by pillows all around us.  I never would have thought I could sleep that way, but I did.   We also continue teething but with no teeth to show for it.  She sometimes wakes up in the night screaming.  She is not hungry, nor does she want cuddles, the only thing that calms her down is orajel on her bottom gums.  Poor girl, it really shouldn't be this bad.  So she sleeps from 8 pm to 6:30 or 7 am with 3 or more wake ups a night and has 3 naps a day (still ranging from 40 minutes to an hour and 20 minutes depending on the day).  As far as Ryan and I go, it is funny how you just learn to function on no sleep, but we do continue to be hopeful that eventually she will get it.  I have followed all the advice "they" have to offer on no-cry sleep training and I'm just waiting for it to pay off.

Despite the fact that she is depriving us of sleep, we really are enjoying Sophie as she continues to learn and grow.  It's amazing how one smile first thing in the morning can make you completely forget the frustrations of the night before.  We are finding this stage a lot of fun since she has become so social and is quickly learning the different uses of all her limbs.  She has been sitting up unassisted for weeks now.  When she wasn't sick, I could put her down on her playmat and she could entertain herself for a while.  That was great for both of us.  Whenever possible, she likes us to walk her around.  She has figured out the concept of putting one foot in front of the other; she just lacks the balance to get anywhere on her own.  Her most favorite thing is when her dad walks her around the house chasing Baron.  Poor Baron!  Ryan is teaching her to torment him at an early age.  She still hates being on her belly so crawling doesn't seem to be an option for her yet.  We are trying though.  I don't think it will be long before she figures out some way to get herself around.

Feeding Sophie solids has been a slow process.  The first month was painful; she didn't seem anymore interested in eating solids from one week to the next.  But we persisted, continued to make food, only for it to often end up in the garbage or in Baron's dish.  Now things are much better and we even have a few options as to what to feed her at meal times.  She doesn't like rice cereal (can you blame her?) and only now seems to be interested in purees, only the vegetable ones though.  She mostly likes finger foods, avacado being at the top of her list and bananas second.  Also she really likes plain yogurt.  For some reason, Sophie has not really taken to fruits, other than banana chunks.  "They" told me to feed her vegetables first, for fear that once she tasted something sweet, she may never want to eat her veggies.  But so far this hasn't happened; she doesn't seem to have her mother's sweet tooth at all.

During the week, Sophie and I try to stay busy by visiting with other moms and babies.  We try and see Lori and Nixon, and Tannis and Gabby once a week, as well Candice and Caiden, from Baby and Me class.  We either end up at someone's house, chatting and letting the kids play and share germs, or we meet up at a park for a walk.  There have been weeks where Sophie and I have had to skip outings due to colds or mere exhaustion from a rough night.  However, we do try hard to get out of the house or have visitors as much as we can.

That pretty much sums up what Sophie and I have been up to these last two months.  Hopefully my next entry will be about her becoming mobile or teeth!  I have also added a few more pictures to our August album.

Summer is coming to an end

August is almost over and although we haven't gone camping lately, we have still been very busy.

The last weekend of July, we headed to Edmonton for Madeleine's baptism.  We had a great weekend visiting with family.  Unfortunately, we did not get a single picture of Madeleine in her baptism dress.  When we got to the church we realized someone had forgotten the memory card in the computer at home; there really is no need to point fingers because I am sure that the person who did this felt really bad about it and learned her lesson.  Click here to see pictures of the family gathering after the baptism.

We had a couple visitors during the month of August, the first being Janae, who came to stay with us for a few days and since she was having such a good time, she decided to stay a few more days.  She pretended to have car troubles but I know it was just an excuse.  During her week here, we took Sophie for her first trip to the Calgary Zoo.  Wow, was she impressed!  She showed as much interest in the camels as she did in her cousins, Ally and Grace.  Actually that isn't true, she found her cousins far more interesting.  Maybe next year she will be truly dazzled by the zoo creatures.  To see pictures of our day at the zoo, click here.

Hunter came home the same week Janae came for a visit.  He had been gone to camp in London, Ontario for a month.  He had a really great time and made friends from around the world.  The kids were encouraged to bring items and clothes from home to trade so he came back with a lot of cool stuff from different countries.  He even traded for a shirt and vest from Norway.  We thought he should wear it for the first day of school but for some reason, he didn't agree with us.

 My parents also came for a visit this month.  During their stay, we spent a day at Bowness Park.  While my dad and Hunter played minigolf and took a paddleboat out on the lake, Sophie, my mom and I put out a blanket, relaxed and enjoyed the weather.  It is always fun to visit with family! 

A Poem for Sophie

Six Months Ago

Six months ago, I was given a gift

Which has caused my life to alter and shift.

A precious little girl who was born out of love

Was truly a blessing from Heaven above.

She is oh so perfect from her head to her toes

With her small gentle hands and adorable nose.

Her smile is amazing and truly divine

Her eyes when she's thinking they sparkle and shine.

Her giggles are priceless and so very dear

That she just can't help but draw everyone near.

And since she seems to be growing so fast

I cherish each moment more than the last.

She can't possibly know the joy that she brings

My beautiful angel who's missing her wings.

Ten Things I Learned About Sick Babies

1 - Taking care of a sick baby is like having a newborn all over again - feeding every one or two hours, rocking her for forty minutes to have her nap for twenty even though she is clearly exhausted, sleepless nights of feeding and rocking (oh and sitting in a steamed bathroom to help her breath).

2 - Housework just isn't an option when there is a sick child to take care of.

3 - A sick baby is much more cuddly than a healthy one.

4 - A classroom of twenty eight year olds suddenly seems way less challenging.

5 - Everyone should be born with the ability to blow her nose.  It's sad and cruel that babies can't.

6 - A cold trumps teething. 

7 - When your husband is sick, you kiss him on the cheek and make him wash his hands a hundred times a day for fear of getting his cold; if your baby is sick, you throw all caution to the wind.  Suddenly getting sick doesn't matter quite as much.

8 - When your husband is sick, a runny nose is gross.  When your baby is sick, it's endearing.  No one can pull off a pink nose and teary eyes like a five month old can.

9 - When your baby is sick, she looks much smaller and more fragile.

10 - A sick baby can look like she has completely lost all will to live.  It may be the saddest face I have ever seen in my entire life.  It looks a little like this:

To see pictures of Sophie's first feed, click here (and no, it wasn't one of the cookies she wanted so).

Camping Trips 3 and 4

Two weekends ago, Ryan and I met my mom and dad out at Red Lodge.  The night before we arrived, there had been tornado warnings in the area.  Mom and Dad had gone a day early so I was a bit worried.  They were fine but they did have quite an adventure with golf ball sized hail smashing against the trailer.  Ryan, Sophie and I arrived Friday and had a very relaxing weekend, despite the fact that Sophie just doesn't sleep as well camping as she does at home.  We played cards in Mom and Dad's trailer Friday night since the weather wasn't great.  Saturday, we went for a walk and Dad told us about the moose he missed while he was out walking the day before.  That evening was nice enough for a fire and then Sunday we packed up and headed home. 

Camping trip #4 was at Mount Kidd.  Every year Ryan's parents, siblings and families get together for a weekend of camping.  Unfortunately, Jordan, Cyd and Gus couldn't make it this year since Jordan just started his residency in Toronto.  We arrived Thursday to meet Warren, Ave, Ally and Grace.  They decided to leave Buttons at home to Baron's disappointment.  I don't think he would have liked anything better than chasing that cute little bunny around the campsite all weekend.  Maybe next year, Baron.  Richard, Karen and Janae arrived the next day.  I have never seen Janae quite as excited to camp as she was this weekend.  After a few years, I guess it has finally rubbed off on her.  The weather was great all weekend, we even spent time in the kiddy pool on Saturday.  Sophie just loves the water.  What she doesn't like, though, is sleeping. 

      With every weekend of camping, her sleeping just seemed to get worse and worse.  But this weekend took the cake.  Ryan woke up Friday morning to find Sophie and I frazzled from a sleepless night.  I may have been a touch more frazzled than Sophie as I told Ryan in tears that I never wanted to camp again...ever!  I told him that I thought we should pack up the trailer and go home that very day.  Poor Ryan.  I think I burst his beautiful camping bubble.  He immediately took Sophie out of the trailer so that I could get some rest.  After catching a few more hours of sleep I felt better.  Ave also helped me feel better by telling me that she had had similar experiences and feelings when the girls were younger.  She told me that she was sure she said the exact same thing to Warren before.  I helped Ryan reinflate his bubble by saying we would stay and of course, we would camp again.  However, we did agree that camping every weekend with a baby was overly ambitious and that we would try to keep it to every other weekend in the future.  

Our days were great.  It was nice to see the family and everyone was eager to give our arms a break by holding, cuddling, playing and rocking Sophie.  Ryan's mom even got her to nap in her arms once.  What a lucky girl!  It was Ryan's turn to have a tough man contest with Warren this year, as they spent time comparing axes and seeing who could do the most damage to the wood stack.  We headed home Saturday afternoon feeling better, only to come home to the worst night ever.  Sophie woke up every 40 minutes all night long.  I was up until 4 am, then Ryan took the early morning shift.  I thought it was mostly camping, but it also had to do with teething.  I read that some babies can breeze through teething without really noticing and others can have months of unbearable pain, causing restless or sleepless nights.  Unfortunately we got the latter.  The poor girl is barely consolable at night.  After fighting to get her to swallow the medicine (which is often concealed in the back of her throat and then spit out when we are not looking), it can take a while for her to settle down and the only way we can get any sleep is by taking her to bed with us.  Maybe Ryan was right after all, maybe she will be in our room until she is five.  But at least we will be well rested...or somewhat rested anyway.     

To see more pictures of our camping weekends and Sophie in her new favorite toy, click here.

A Tough Week

Sophie has had a difficult week.  It all started last Thursday when she went to get her 4 months vaccines.  Need I explain more.  After going alone last time and staying in the nurse's office for almost an hour (for moral support), I made Ryan come with me this time and share in this traumatizing event.  He had to hold both her and me after it was over.  She was a little tender in the legs and had a bit of a fever for a day or two.  But we still packed up and went camping the next day.  She was mostly pleasant during the camping trip, except for a few sleepless nights.  However, since we have been home, she has been fussy, cranky and just not herself.  I called the health link and figured out that not only was she getting over her shots, she also had a stomach bug.  And to top all that off, she has been teething like crazy this week.  Her mouth is constantly bothering her.  I have tried every natural remedy for teething but they seem to be giving Sophie no comfort.  I have had to resort to the good old fashion Tylenol or/and Advil.  It's been several days and she seems to be getting a bit more used to the pain.  I am starting to see her smile again, thank goodness!  I have been trying my hardest to make her as comfortable as I can but there is, unfotunately, only so much I can do for her.  After that I need to just let her deal with it the best she can.  Being a mom is hard!

Despite her rough week, Sophie is still being very active.  Every time I lay her on her back, a few seconds later, she rolls to her belly.  Where once this only happened by accident, now, she has really got the hang of it.  She is also sitting up by herself.  My little girl is growing up!

To see more pictures of Sophie sitting, click here.

Camping Trip #2

This Canada Day weekend, we headed back to Bow Valley for another camping trip.  This weekend was spent with our good friends, Scott, Lori and Nixon, and Tim, Tannis and Gabrielle.  We headed out Thursday afternoon and came home Sunday.  We had a great time going for walks and lounging in the sun during the day.  In the evening, we sat around the campfire and visited.  Both Nixon and Gabby got a taste of their first roasted marshmellow.  Saturday was so beautiful, we broke out Sophie`s new pool and had a pool party.  I think Sophie enjoyed the pool the most.  What a wonderful weekend!

To see more pictures of our camping trip, click here.

Merrick Camping Trip

A number of years ago, my cousin Natalie and her husband Rob were married at Bow Valley campground.  They reserved a group site, threw up a large tent and had a pig roast for their wedding (weird seeing as how she is a vegetarian and all...the things we do for the ones we love!).  Every year since then, they have reserved the same group site and we all go back for a great weekend of camping and catching up with one another. 

This year was extra special since it was Sophie's first camping trip.  All in all, she did pretty well.  Of course she didn't sleep quite as good as she does at home and we were so busy during the day, she didn't get a whole lot of napping in.  But she seemed content in her carrier and even napped in it a few times.  She got to spend some quality time with her cousin Madeleine and visit friends and family.  

One unfortunate event was Sophie waking up at 11:00 pm on Saturday night, screaming so loud that I couldn't calm her down.  Poor girl had started teething.  Good thing we were camping with Dan and Tina.  Tina had some advil on hand so I gave Sophie some medecine.  She got to stay up extra late and watch the fire for a bit until she felt better.  Then she went back to sleep for the night.  Sunday was a bit tough on her as well but her pain seems to have gone away for now.

To see more pictures from the weekend check out the album here.

May and June Showers Bring?

Even with all the rain we've been busy. One of the tasks this year was more work on the back garden.  We planted lettuce, beans, cucumbers, and carrots. They are starting to sprout a little, so we're hoping we actually have a larger variety of veggies this year.

Also the back flower bed is looking nice.

Hard to imagine it all started from this.

There's a bit more work to do. The back is a little bare, and we're waiting to see how things spread before making too many more adjustments.

All in all the yard is looking good and green and yellow (stupid dandelions.)

Growing Up

Three days ago, Sophie turned four months old.  She has changed so much over the last four months, it is hard to believe sometimes.  Where once there lay a helpless infant who could barely stay awake for more than twenty minutes, there is now a strong, capable baby, determined to begin her long journey to independence. 

Sophie does not like lying down anymore.  While taking in her surroundings, she insists on being sat up or would even rather stand (with our help of course).  I think this is why she seems to really enjoy the jolly jumper; it is something she can do all on her own.  She smiles spontaneously and squeals with delight.  However, she often wears a serious face while she examines, explores and tastes everything possible.  She will reach for things and as long as it can fit in her hand, will grasp it and bring it to her mouth.  Her aim has improved so much over the last couple weeks and she seems happier having a bit more control of her limbs.  She does still need to be swaddled at night though, because those pesky arms aren't always willing to co-operate.  I try leaving her unswaddled every once and a while and she usually ends up looking like she lost some fight.     

We did figure out a bedtime routine that seems to work for Sophie.  We start with a feeding, followed by a bath.  After, she is rubbed down with cream and put into her pyjamas.  Then we read "The Going To Bed Book."  I now know this book by heart, which is handy because she rarely wants to stay on the same page as the one I am reading.  Finally, we have another feeding, in the hopes of keeping her asleep longer.  Once she was used to this routine, we switched her bedtime from whenever Ryan and I went to bed (somewhere between 10 and 11 pm) to somewhere between 7:30 and 8 pm.  This has allowed Ryan and I to have our evenings again, without having to stand and rock her for hours on end, since she would become so fussy after 7 pm.  This has also done wonders for my back!  The downside to this change is she wakes up a lot earlier.  She once would wake somewhere between 9 and 11 am but now thinks that anywhere between 5:30 and 6:30 am is a good time to start the day.  Luckily, when her dad wakes up, he takes her down and has breakfast with her.  Usually after this she is ready for a short nap which gives me a few more minutes of sleep.

 She is sleeping in a crib in her own room now.  This change happened about one week before she became three months.  I was determined to show Ryan, who warned me that we needed to make this transition when she was three months old, that I wasn't a needy, overbearing mother who needed her daughter to sleep in her room until she was five years old.  I was worried that this move would effect her sleeping and cause me to get up more during the night.  At least this is the excuse that allowed me to keep her in our room for as long as we did (we had both agreed before Sophie was born that a baby should be in her own room from the very beginning, my opinion on this matter changed the moment I became a mother).  So although my concern was mostly for my child, thinking that she would have a hard time sleeping without her mother by her side, the transition seemed hard only on her mother.  I may have snuck into her room one or two times and put my hand on her chest to make sure she was still breathing. 

Napping has also improved.  I remember, not that long ago, most of my days were spent rocking her and trying to get her down for a nap.  It could take me 40-60 minutes of walking and rocking to get her to sleep for 20 minutes.  It was a bit frustrating.  Now we sit in the rocking chair for 5-10 minutes and then I put her down in her crib.  She will sleep anywhere between 30 minutes to an hour and a half on a really good day (this is usually in the morning).  As the day goes on, it gets a bit tougher to put her down.  By the time Ryan gets home somewhere between 4:30 and 5:30 pm, it can take two or three tries before she finally settles down, and that is if Mom is feeling more stubborn than Sophie and refuses to let her stay up.  It doesn't always happen though.  Now that we have a fairly stable napping routine, Sophie seems to have trouble napping when we are out and about.  While I have heard many stories of parents taking their child for a drive to put them to sleep, Sophie rarely will sleep in the car.  Saturday, Ryan and I went furniture shopping.  We left around one and didn't get home until dinner time.  Sophie refused to nap the whole day.  She may have slept 20 minutes on the way home, only because I sat in the backseat and held the soother in her mouth.  I am hoping this will change because it is good for both of us to get out of the house.  However, even when she is overtired, she is still a fairly pleasant baby.

All in all, I would say we are pretty lucky.  Not only do we have a good strong, healthy little girl but she is a happy, calm and easygoing baby.

A June Update

June has been whizzing by.  Hunter is done school in just a couple days and then he's off to London Ontario for a month.  Here is the delegation that Hunter is apart of.

Sophie has been busy growing.  She continues to find new and exciting parts of her body.  Currently she's trying to figure out how to get her toes into her mouth.  She has also found the joy and excitement of the jolly jumper.

Here's a link to our June pictures so far.

Father's Day

This year was a pretty special Father's Day.  Not only did I have two kids to shower me with love and attention, but we had Mom and Dad here as well.  And if that wasn't enough, it was also Hunter's birthday.  I'm pretty sure this is the first time that his birthday and Father's Day have coincided.

It was such a big day that Sophie figured it should start at 6:30am just so we had enough time to honor me as a father. I guess she didn't know that Father's Day isn't supposed to actually start until 9:00am.  Might be a Van Orman thing, her not quite knowing how things are done. I understand for Mom's first Mother's Day, I bought her Turtles chocolates even though she's allergic to nuts. I guess at 4 months old I wasn't really into the details just yet.

Hunter put together a great present for me.

I'm wondering how much he really contributed and how much help he may have had. Either way it's a great picture and I can't wait to put it on my desk at work.

Nicole and Sophie also spoiled me. I got a new golf outfit and golf balls.  The best part of this gift is the ability (and I am guessing the permission) to spend a bit more time golfing this year.

So as you can see, it was a great day. I have an amazing wife and wonderful children who appreciate me.

April Showers Bring Spring Soccer

Nicole wrote a post about soccer a while ago, but it seems to have magically disappeared, so I'll write another one but not as well.

The Van Orman house is in full swing of spring soccer.  Both Nicole and Hunter are playing outdoor soccer this year so soccer is a big part of our lives at the moment.  Nicole plays twice a week and Hunter the same but with a practice as well.

Nicole is playing for the team Purple Rush and so far this season, they've been all wins except one game.  Nicole has also already recorded an assist.  Sophie and I were lucky enough to attend one game and I think Sophie made all the difference as she cheered her mother on.

Also, being the Soccer Mom, I've spent a lot of time at Hunter's games as well.  It's amazing how much his games have changed since U6.

For more soccer pictures, check out this album, they are towards the end.

The Travelling Versa

This past week we packed up the car and headed to Edmonton.  Ryan had some business meetings so I decided to tag along and visit my family.  I had dinner with Mom and Dad Wednesday evening and spent the day Thursday with my grandparents.  It was great to see everyone and I think Sophie enjoyed the visit as well.  She is getting better and better at travelling, which is good since we will be gone almost every weekend once camping season begins.  Click here to see more pictures of Edmonton.

Friday we headed home, did the laundry and relaxed.  Two days later, we packed up the Versa again but this time we headed for the mountains for a romantic getaway (as romantic as it can be with a 3 month old).  The rain held out and we were even able to take Sophie on her first hike Sunday.  Click here to see more pictures of our trip to Banff.

We came home to a rainy Calgary and noticed that all our neighbours had planted their flowers while we were gone.  So we rushed out and got some flowers. The project of the week is to get everything in the ground.