Caeleb's Birthday! 3 years old! Chris Birthday! 3_ years old!

Caeleb turned 3 on September 14th. Chris shares that day with Caeleb for his birthday. As he likes to say, Caeleb was his "best birthday gift ever!" This birthday was a simple but awesome day. Camellia, Doug, Liam and Sterling came up for it. We spent the morning at a fun, new park in New Brighton. It was a hot day! Then we came home and I spent the afternoon making homemade pizza while Camellia entertained the kids. They spent some of it blowing bubbles out on the porch. We had pizza and pop and salad for supper and then a cake shaped as an Elephant (Caeleb's favorite animal) for dessert. Caeleb had fun blowing out the candles. Then it was time to Skype Nana and Papa in Korea and open gifts. Caeleb got some play animals (including several elephants), a pair of jeans, some play dough and some moon dough (from Aunty Camellia, Uncle Doug and Sterling and Liam). Chris got some clothes and a special date night that we did on Friday night (the day before). We went for a walk downtown and out to supper at a small Thai restaurant. Then we went to the hill on the North side of Memorial drive and looked at the lights of downtown while sitting on a bench and chatting. It was an enchanting evening.

I can not believe my little boy is 3 years old. He is growing into such a handsome, smart, kind little boy. He always wants to be a friend to everyone. His imagination is growing so fast and he loves to play with his toy animals in the living room while I am doing things in the kitchen. He lines them up, Mommies and Daddies with the babies and he makes sure they are well cared for. He is a wonderful older brother and he makes sure we treat Elva right. It brings him to tears and pleas when I am washing Elva's hair in the bathtub and she is not liking it. He takes small things away from Elva (and myself for that matter if Elva could potentially get ahold of it) and he says, "No, Elva choke on it). He is always watching out for her safety. He is a little trickster too and when I ask him to bring me something, he will go to an object near the one I asked for and pick it up smiling and say "this one." Then he will laugh when I say no and continue to pick other objects up close by and ask "this one" until finally he brings me the right thing. Silly little goo.  He loves to crack the eggs when I am baking and stir the dough. He always drags a chair over to the counter and stands on it when he sees me get out the baking supplies. He loves story time. He is getting good at navigating around Chris' phone. These kids today. He loves drawing animals, especially elephants. He loves going to nursery! It is not "church," it is "Nursery," I have a calling in nursery now and I love to watch Caeleb play, sing and participate with the other kids. He loves to do do do. There is so much to do in life. Caeleb's hair is getting quite long and curly and we will not cut it until Mom and Dad come home in October. He looks adorable.

I have been so blessed to have my little boy. He brings me so many smiles and laughs and tons of joy (didn't mean for that to rhyme but oh well).

Milestones for Elva!

Just a quick blog to let you know what Elva has been up too.  She started crawling the middle of August, about 2 weeks before turning 9 months. She is a quick learner, that girl. Even with being 5 weeks early, she crawled before Caeleb did. Must be a girl thing, right. Then, September 18th (I believe), she brought herself up to her feet by using a little chair to support her. Now she is standing with support! And she is starting to attempt the stairs. I need to watch her more closely now so that she does not get into too much trouble. She will be walking before we know it. I swear, I am not pushing her to do anything. I want her to stay my snuggly little Jean Bean. But this little girl is a go-getter, that is for sure. Stay tuned to hear about what she does next!

Summer of 2013

Well, I have been putting off updating this blog because this will probably take a long time to write - I need to cover the whole summer. It was a really great summer, that is for sure. A lot of memories were made. Soon after we moved into our new house the end of May, our slow motion "firework" (or flowerwork is more the right word) show started. Our yard has a lot of bushes and flowers that started blooming soon after we moved in and we woke up almost everyday to new, bright, colorful flowers. It was a lot of fun to watch and it helped me appreciate the beauty that surrounds us in this world. I planted a little garden as well and it actually did quite well since we had a lot of rain the beginning of the summer. We got peas, zucchini, carrots, spinach, lettuce, some radishes and lots of beans. And our raspberry bush gave us lots of raspberries. Caeleb sure looked forward to raspberry picking. He loves them!

Cousin Laura, her daughter Lydia, Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Gord came to visit Cardston for July first and so I went down to visit them. Camellia and I had so much fun catching up with Laura. We had not seen her in more than 3 years. We went for walks in the evening, out on the farm roads. We had a picnic in Waterton. We went on a Jeep ride with Nathan on some very bumpy, muddy roads and that was a blast. We went to the Raymond parade and had a Selman family lunch afterwards. It was good to see some of Mom's cousins and our second cousins.

My friend Lindsey stayed with us a week during the beginning of July. We just hung out and she helped with Caeleb and Elva. She is like an aunt to them. On my birthday, we headed to kids day at the Calgary Stampede grounds. It was busy and hot but we still had fun. I made sure we bulldozed the stroller through the masses of people to get to the Barney show at the Grand Stand and I yelled loud and jumped up high to get Caeleb a free Barney stuffed animal. Yep, he is a big fan!

Chris gave me the best present ever for my birthday - A really nice Roland keyboard - piano to complete our home. I have spent a lot of time practicing songs from the Children's songbook. I want to be able to play songs to our children on Sunday mornings before church and for Family Home Evening and other times as well. It relaxes me to play the piano.

The afternoon after my birthday, Chris, Caeleb, Elva and I took off on a fun road trip down to a Brown (Chris' moms side of the family) family reunion in Oregon. We stopped at a hotel in Great Falls the first night (Thursday July 11), then continued down to Rexburg where I met up with my Nursing friends Melissa and Toni. It was so good to see them. There were 6 of us that were really good friends in Nursing school and they were the only ones who could make it but it was great all the same. Melissa watched the kids on Saturday so that Chris and I could do a session in the Rexburg temple. What a beautiful temple on top of a hill surrounded by wheat fields and BYUI campus. It had not been built when I went there 2002-2005. Melissa has 4 kids now and I look up to her and her family so much. I was able to show Chris around BYUI campus and it brought back so many memories and feelings. I loved going to school there and I hope my kids can do the same. I felt the spirit so strongly taking Chris through the dedicated buildings. I introduced him to some of my Nursing instructors and we walked down a sweet memory lane. We camped Friday and Saturday night at Beaver Dick park (I camped there with Mom and Dad too - except in chilly October of a year that I was at school there). We went to Church with Melissa's family on Sunday and then took off to Oregon where we stopped on a border town and stayed the night in a hotel.

Monday started off the Family reunion - 1:00 at Camp Wallowa Oregon. It was a beautiful camp nestled in a small range of mountains that were surrounded by flat lands. The cabins were divided up between families and I think there were around 90 people there. All 10 Brown kids were there including Chris' Mom. And then children and grandchildren. We had a cute little circular type cabin that I would have loved to take home with me. There was not much organization in activities which I thought was great. Just time to relax and visit with family. The meals were prepared by the camp and that was nice. On the Tuesday, Chris, Elva, Caeleb and I took a Gondola to the top of a nearby mountain. It was a little rainy but a beautiful view. The traditional Brown auction was that evening and then some more visiting. We all left on Wednesday at noon and We caravanned with Lou Ann, Gary, Wendy and her boys. It was a hot day! We ended up camping in Washington somewhere - A town in the middle of nowhere it seemed.

On Thursday, we drove most of the day too and then took an afternoon ferry to Vancouver Island. I am so glad we decided to do a circle trip and go to Vancouver Island in order to see the rest of Chris' family that could not come to the family reunion. We spent Friday visiting and I was able to help my sister in law Rachel pack a little as they were planning on moving the next week. We went to church with the family on Sunday and went to a nearby beach on Sunday evening. I love being at the beach in the evening. It was beautiful and peaceful. Like usual, it took a very long day in the car to get back to Calgary that Monday. With the jumping ahead an hour we never get home before 10:00 or 11:00 at night. Just a side note before continuing. I noticed that Victoria seemed hot and dry with yellowing grass. Calgary has been wet and humid and green all summer. Funny, isn't it. It should be the opposite. Hmmm.

Caeleb had swimming lessons starting the Monday August 12. It was a Parent and Tot thing so Chris and I took turns swimming with him each lesson. The lessons were every night from 6:00-6:30 Monday to Thursday for two weeks and it was a blast! Caeleb has had an on and off fear of the water since he was about 9 months old. We knew we had to break that somehow. This seemed to do the trick. It took a bit to get Caeleb to put his head under the water willingly and he still is not perfect at that but he learned to love his swimming lessons and would look forward to them all day everyday. We played fun games like Going on a Bear Hunt, Humpty Dumpty, Herman the worm, and would sing a lot and Caeleb was a very animated participant and memorable kid in the class. We would sing the songs during the day as they were fun to sing. Caeleb's teacher was very nice and I think she had a special place in her heart for Caeleb. Swimming lessons, a level up, will definitely be on the list for next year.

We went and saw Les Mis at Cardston on August 10th. I saw this show (which is my favourite musical) at the Jubilee Auditorium when I was 17. It was just as well done in Cardston! I loved it! The characters were very well cast. I especially thought Javert, Eponine, Marius and Gavroche were excellent. Les Miserables was about the only music I would listen too between the ages of 8 and 12. I would put the tape in my Walkman and listen to it in the car or we would listen to it at home and I learned almost all the words. Mom read us a simplified version of the book when we were growing up and I fell in love with the musical as well.

Wow, every weekend in August was filled up pretty much. And most weekdays were spent going to the park with the kids and sometimes other friends and their kids, walking to the stores in McKenzie town nearby and hanging out at home. The weekend of August 17th, Camellia and Sterling came up and we canned peaches. Sterling and Caeleb play so well together and Camellia and I have a blast when we are together. We missed Mom being here to can with us though. We have such wonderful memories of canning peaches, pears, beats, cherries, beans etc on the farm as well as freezing peas and corn. Well, next year Mom and Dad will be on the farm and we will have to have a canning party. I love the smells of canning and the feeling that you get when you store the food you have prepared through canning. I also love my farm memories with my family.

The next weekend, August 24 (Saturday), Chris, Caeleb, Elva and I went camping in the Champion campground. Probably will be the only time we ever do that as the farm is 15 minutes away from Champion (but is being lived in by our Neigbor's Scott and his family at the present). We tried out Caeleb's recently developed "swimming type" skills in the Champion pool. I grew up swimming and doing swimming lessons in this pool and have fun memories. That night, I was able to attend my Elementary and High School friend's wedding outside of the Champion hall. They were married at sunset and it was a beautiful wedding. She looked gorgeous in her dress and the scenery was breathtaking. I am so happy for her! On Sunday, we went to church in the Champion ward and I enjoyed seeing the familiar faces of my dear Champion ward family. The ward has become a lot smaller and I would love to move back to the ward someday to help it grow if that is what is to be. I guess we will see what the future holds. I aim to be happy wherever I am.

Lo and Behold, guess who had her baby that same day. Camellia! How convenient that we were in Champion and she was in hard labour that morning so we just zipped down to Lethbridge after church ended at 1:00. I got to the Lethbridge hospital in time to hear little Liam cry his first cry. I was waiting at the Labour/Delivery Nurses Station but I still heard him and then I got to go and see him too. So little Liam joined the family at about 3:00 on Sunday August 25th 2013. What a cute little guy he is and I am so happy for Camellia and Doug. Mom and Dad will come home to 4 Grandchildren. Their Grandchild population doubled while they were on their mission!

Well, it is September 22 now (as I am writing this). Summer is still here. The grass is green and the leaves are just starting to turn color. It is still quite warm out most days but it hasn't been a very hot summer - just perfect really. I am excited for the Fall though. I love the Fall! I will keep you updated on future excitement. Until then, Goodnight!

 

 

 

Feeling Blessed.

I need to catch up on the story of my life. This summer has been full of adventure. But for now, I only have a few minutes before I go to bed to say that I am feeling really blessed right now. I laid down next to Caeleb tonight as he was having trouble going to sleep. I told him a story that just came to my head about our family living in the forest surrounded by Dinosaurs and Elephants (of coarse Elephants  his favourite). Caeleb took off on the story and started naming the rest of the family including some Uncles, Aunts , cousins, and Nana's and Grandpa's, making sure they played a part in the story too. He has such a cute little imagination and I love him for it. I love his smile full of light and purity. I love looking into those brown eyes and seeing so much life, wisdom and love. I love his high pitched little voice and I wish I could just keep it in my head forever. I soak it all in. I feel so much love tonight and want this forever. I have been blessed.

Live in the Moment.

It is the middle of Thursday. Caeleb is having a nap and I have been cuddling Elva. It has been a month since I have written anything on my blog and I want to send a little something out now. It is a rainy-ish day. Last night was filled with crazy rain and thunder and lightning and I was scared even. But today is just fine. We were outside this morning weeding the garden and playing in the backyard. We made a dozen cookies (and only saved 3 for the working boys - oops). I was just downstairs watching a movie on Netflix called "The Heart of Christmas." A simple movie about a really touching story. It is based on a blog of mother who's little boy had cancer. So I have spent the last couple of hours crying throughout this movie. The important lesson I have learned today: "Live each moment to the fullest." I must admit, I have not been doing that very well lately. My life has mostly seemed to go from accomplishing one goal to the next. I know that is important, but I do far too much of that. And I feel like that is not what Heavenly Father wants me to be like at this moment in my life. I do have goals but my biggest goal right now needs to be learning to live in the moment, cherishing and soaking up each and everyone of those moments. I want to cherish my children, my husband, and other family and friends. I need to work on my spiritual side so that I can feel more in tune with my testimony of the purpose of this life. I am going to work on these things. And now, scripture study and looking at Elva while she sleeps.

But before I go, a little update on our life. Elva has been eating solids for a few weeks now. She started with rice cereal and was unsure of it at first. Bananas and Avocados have not been a hit so far but squash and peaches, well, she snarfs them down - literally, with a snarfing noise and all. She is rolling back to front a little and continues to love her jolly jumper. She is about outgrown her swing. She weighed 15 lbs 2 weeks ago. Oh, and she is all toothless grins and little giggles. A very relaxed baby for sure. I wonder if she will always be that way?

I love our little home. We don't need anything more. Nathan just got a nice big-ish fish tank set up in his basement/TV family room and I love being down there listening to the water trickle in it and seeing the 7 fish swim around. A great idea to set that up, Nathan! Caeleb loves to go to the basement to see the fish and Nemo (a fish ornament in the tank). I ordered a blue and white braided oval rug for the kitchen and it arrived yesterday and it brightens up the whole main floor. It looks very Swedish in here with the blue tones of the house and rug and the yellow kitchen table cloth. You should be proud, Dad!

Well, I best get reading my scriptures before the little ones wake up.

Love you all and I love this moment.

We bought a house! And other odds and ends.

Well, life is always exciting and is keeping us busy. A big item on the new and exciting list. We have bought a house! It is in the Calgary community of Copperfield which is way deep Southeast. We decided a long time ago that when we were ready to buy, we would buy in the SE because it is close to my parent's farm. I work in the SW at the Rockyview hospital as well and Chris is all over the city with his work so we needed to stay in Calgary. There is a new hospital really close to where our new home is so I hope to work there someday. We actually decided on this house back in February (I believe) after two weeks of house shopping. We went out a lot those two weeks with our realtor and when we saw this house, we felt it fit us just right. It has been a long 3 months waiting for possession but we made it to that date last Wednesday and we got the keys. It is a cute small house and we sure love it. It is relatively new - built in 2005. It feels almost brand new as it has been well cared for. It has a nice big back porch perfect for Nathan's BBQ and some outside chairs and a table (when we get them) and a little front porch that I could put a couple of chairs or bench or old fashioned rocking chair (a little thing I want). The main floor is open and you can see from the front living room window to the back kitchen window. There is a 1/2 bathroom as well and a gas fireplace on the main floor (living room area). I have a window over my kitchen sink so that I can see into the back yard and watch the kids play. That was a must for me to have in my own house. There is a garden area out back and a place that we will build a garage but for now we will use it as an outside spot to park our car and Nathan's jeep. The back and front yard are well landscaped with a small  raspberry bush in the back, a type of Korean bush (I will have to get the name of the exact type for you mom and dad), two small trees (one in the front yard, one in the back) and some other flowers and bushes (maybe even a lilac bush). I am excited to plant my garden as soon as we settle in there. Upstairs there are 3 bedrooms and a bathroom. The basement has a small family room for the TV and a small room for Nathan and another bathroom with a shower. The laundry room and storage are down there as well. Down the street is a big pond (with ducks in it of course) and a paved pathway all around it and a huge playground, tennis courts, community center and skating rink on one side. We officially move in next Saturday but we have been there a lot already this last week moving some boxes over and hanging up pictures, etc. We love our little home and community and feel so blessed to move onto this next step in life.

Other odds and ends going include watching the children grow and learn. We love to watch them discover new things. They are so cute. I wish I could write down everything Caeleb says. Here are just a few things. When he gets upset and crys, he calls out, "yi yi yi yi yi..." between sobs. Don't have a clue why but it is funny to hear and adorable really. Today, when we were driving back to our current home (from the new home), Caeleb randomly breaks the silence in the truck (Nana and Papa's truck) by saying, "Daddy is Chris (kiss), Mommy is Katherine (Kathin), I... Caeleb, Elva is sister." Wow, I was impressed. I know I have told him my name before but that was a while ago and I am impressed on how well he remembers things.

Elva continues to grow and interact. She is not much of a napper. She likes to take many 10 minute "catnaps" throughout the day. She always wakes up during the night but I am used to it as Caeleb was the same way. He sleeps through the night now and she will too eventually. I am not a worried mom when it comes to that. She loves to smile and laugh that little laugh. She loves her hands too. She will stare at them for a long time and it kind of makes her go a tiny bit cross-eyed which is adorable.

Sunday was our last time at church in the 17th ward. We are going to miss that ward!!! I loved my calling as Primary teacher (I had a hard time being ward chorister in 3rd ward - it didn't come easy to me at all but I learned). I love 17th ward because there is such a mix of people in that ward. The old, the young, the established, the less established (whatever that means), the singles, the marrieds, etc. I love diversity. It was funny, I had a feeling that the Bishop was going to call on Chris and I to bare our testimonies in sacrament meeting. Low and behold, the speakers' talks did not cover the whole time. I was in the Nursery with the loud Caeleb and Elva as it was my turn to take them out, when Chris comes running into the room with a note. He gives it to me and runs out. The notes said, Chris and Katherine to share testimonies." So I head on back to sacrament meeting while someone else watches Caeleb, I hand Elva to Chris after he is done his testimony, and I proceed to the pulpit. I bore my testimony on personal revelation. Funny how the Lord will let us know things even if it is a simple as the fact that I was going to be asked to bare my testimony. I am not perfect at listening but I do know that we can have so much personal revelation in our lives if we read our scriptures, pray, ponder and listen.

Anyways, enough of me talking. I want to continue but will stop for now. Life is good.

Potty Training story

So we have been working little by little on potty training with Caeleb. It is not consistent yet. Not in the least. Caeleb usually refuses to go to the potty. He is just too busy playing to take time for that. However, the other night, after a long day of play, he really needed to and wanted to use his potty. I congratulated him afterwards and he proceeded to pick up his potty, walk it down the hall to uncle Nathan's room, knock on the door, and show Nathan what a good job he did in the potty. It was so funny and cute. Nathan and I were scrambling to find some sort of award to give him (to let him know he did a good job and to want to try it again). No such luck since but soon enough I am sure.

Things I know.

I am just reflecting on life as I go to bed tonight. Life can be confusing and bewildering. I lack so much knowledge, confidence, faith... I am slowly working on those things. But there are some things I know for sure and I want to tell you the ones that come to my mind before I go to sleep...

1). There is a purpose to life. There is a purpose for Eternity!

2). Heavenly Father loves us all individually and he knows us individually.

3). It is okay not to understand everything. We are not expected too. We learn line upon line, precept upon precept.

4). Reading the Book of Mormon will make you feel peaceful and good inside. There is an amazing power in that book!

5). Each person has his/her own potential and purpose in living this life and living throughout eternity.

6). Living in the moment has it's significance. It may be hard to understand but each moment in life can have such powerful and everlasting meaning.

7). Heavenly Father remembers the good moments in life and makes those moments infinitely outweigh the hard moments.

8). We will one day understand the hard moments in life. They have their place and meaning and actually can be turned into good.

9). Newborn babies can see past you into the heavens. They smile at the angels and people up there. The veil is so thin when babies are born and it slowly thickens. (I think it can get thin again if one gets close to the spirit).

10). Little children have a pure form of happiness that can cleanse the world from sadness. Heavenly Father intends for all his children to have that type of happiness and trust.

11). We can all be given opportunities in life to rise up and be a great support, teacher, friend, leader to another person. In doing so, it creates a glimpse (and practice) of what awaits us throughout eternity.

12). Life may seem incredibly complicated but in trying to understand little by little, and in accepting Heavenly Father's plan and the Saviours Atonement, it can be beautifully simple.

13). The knowledge and attributes we gain in this life continue with us and we can somehow eternally add upon them and perfect them.

14). The relationships that we make in this life will continue on into the next life. Family bonds will be everlasting and even those friendships we have will continue on.

15). Heavenly Father and the Saviour understand us completely. They know our weaknesses and insecurities. They know how to make them into strengths. We can trust in them to help us do so.

16). This is the plan of Happiness. Eternal Happiness! It is a perfect plan.

 

 

Caeleb is kind!

Have you ever read the book or watched the movie "The Help." I couldn't put the book down it was that good. There is a part in there where the maid teaches the little girl the importance of being kind. She says (in her southern accent), "You is kind, you is smart, you is important." I love that book and I love that saying! My Mother says that to her grandson Caeleb sometimes. I think Caeleb hears and understands her. Tonight, I got a compliment about Caeleb that showed me just how kind Caeleb is. I was driving a lady in my ward home from doing a service project. She has a calling in the nursery and so interacts with Caeleb. She is from a different nationality and she told me that the little children in the nursery have tended to shy away from her, maybe a little unsure of her. But not Caeleb. He went up to her from day one and played with her and talked to her. There were no differences in his eyes. Caeleb, I hope you always treat people kindly. Do not discriminate. Do not make fun. I love who you are and feel so happy to raise such a special son of our  Heavenly Father.

Zumba night at Home.

A funny-cute moment tonight. So the home teachers came over at 8:00 pm and I was not able to make it to my 8:30 Zumba class because of it. I decided that Chris and I would have our own Zumba class after we put the kids to bed. I put on the soccer song "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)," and we started to do the dance for it. (Youtube the song if you like - we sometimes dance to it in Tuesday night Zumba class). We soon hear mumbling coming from Caeleb's room down the hall and so Chris goes to check it out.

"Waka Waka, eh eh?" Caeleb questioned in his very sleepy toddler voice, "Waka Waka, eh eh?" He loves to dance to that song with me and we had been dancing to it earlier on in the day. He was about to get out of bed to come join us but Chris laid him back down and he was soon back to sleep being so tired. Chris came out of the room laughing and I just had to share the moment. Te he he. What a funny little boy. (He also likes to dance to Gangnam style. Oh, and Caeleb and I have our song that we waltz too - I See the Light...from the movie Tangled).

Life

Well, I have not written for a while because a lot of little special moments happen that are worth remembering but quickly pass by and by the time I get time to write them down, I forget about them. Sad, I know. But I am going to try harder to get more memories recorded.

This morning I was listening to a conference talk by Elder Bednar and he stated it was never too early to teach our children about the Gospel. Knowing I need to do better in that, I spoke to Caeleb right away,  "Did you know Caeleb, that Heavenly Father loves you!"

He thought for a few seconds and stated, "Santa Clause too... Ho Ho Ho." Te He He. That is our Caeleb. Always keeping us laughing. He continues to love going to nursery on Sundays and he never wants to leave church. (I hope that this attitude continues as he gets older). After church, he goes to the Bishops office to get his Sunday candy (it is tradition in this ward), and then he proceeds to the chapel to go explore the pulpit and choir stand. I have to chase him around to get his coat on.

Elva is a sweetheart. She has smiles and little giggles that would melt anyone's heart. She loves to cuddle at times but also loves to look outwards at everyone and thing around her. She will spend about an hour on her back on the floor just wiggling herself around in circles and talking to herself. She still doesn't seem to want to roll but that will come soon enough. She continues at about 11-12 lbs and looks just like a little person (not baby proportioned - looks like Caeleb looked at her age except she has blue eyes).

We had a busy few days this last weekend. Chris brother Jared came to visit and we love to have him around. He makes us all laugh so much and Caeleb loved playing tag and train with his uncle. Camellia and Sterling came for a visit too and we all went to Kyndal Gainor's baptism on Saturday. She looked beautiful with braids in her hair and her baptismal dress bordered with material from India. I also did a 7:00 am Temple session on Saturday morning with our Relief Society. Then Chris and I went to clean the church and then the family went to a BBQ put on by one of Chris' co-workers. A busy busy day but every once in a while I like a day like that where you come home so tired at night because you accomplished so much during the day.

Life is Good. I woke up this morning to the sunshine and started singing outloud, "There is Sunshine in my Soul Today." I hope that spring is finally here to stay.

 

 

The Watters Family Breakfast

Remember when I wrote about getting back into the grove of exercise. Well, I am slowly getting there. Caeleb, however, does like to interrupt my exercise video at times (well, today it was a lot of times). But, I am getting there. Oh, and remember when I was talking about eating healthy too. Like the breakfast smoothies that I make the boys in the morning. Well, today I felt so happy. I perfected my breakfast smoothie! Yesterday the kids and I walked to the nearby grocery store. I noticed that the bottled healthy smoothies that you can buy at the store have very basic ingredients. Chris used to bring me them when I was in the hospital because I loved them so much. Today, I didn't add yogurt to my smoothie like I have usually done in the past and it turned out really good. This is what I did:

1 banana

Approximately 3/4 cup of frozen berries (blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries all mixed together from a bag).

1/2 an apple cut up into small pieces (My blender is not the greatest and it handles small things a lot better). The apple is the new trick for me. It really sweetens the smoothie.

Approximately 1 cup of cold water (maybe a bit less).

a handful of spinach (it is tasteless in the smoothies and so healthy for you).

Anyways, this smoothie made my day today. (small and simple things). It was really yummy! Try it. (Actually, I think some of you do this already - I learned about homemade smoothies from some of my family). On another note, my cornbread that I made too didn't turn out so good. Blah! Oh, well.

 

 

 

Our 2013 Easter Bunny (named Camellia)

This Easter Weekend we went down to Mountain View to visit my sister Camellia and her family. They live in a beautiful little 100 year old house close to the mountains and far away from the hustle and bustle of the city. We love to go down there every chance we get. We go for walks outside and cozy up by the fireplace at night time in their cute little place. Camellia and Doug always feed us so well with their large supply of Deer and Elk meat in soups, stews and other delicious meals. They always have a nice warm bed for us to sleep in and are always more than willing to help with the kids. Their little Sterling loves to play with our Caeleb. This year, Chris and I went to the Mountain View cemetery (which is a short walk from Camellia and Doug's place) to watch the sun rise. The morning air was crisp and the sun rise was beautiful! I prefer watching sunrises to sunsets. I love to greet the sun in the morning (even though it is hard to get up with it lately).

Camellia was our Easter Bunny this year. She is such a creative, kind, diligent, caring Aunt and Sister and she made our weekend such fun! I remember when we were in High School, Camellia volunteered to dress up as the Easter Bunny for Children in the Vulcan community and did an Easter egg hunt with them. I didn't get to see her that day, but she told me about how she had so much fun, even if some of the kids were scared of her costume.

This year, Camellia set up a Easter egg hunt for her Nieces and Nephews. She is the best aunt to her 18 Nieces and Nephews! She spent a lot of time filling the eggs with candy and counting them to make sure there were enough for each person. She even boiled eggs and painted them with the little boys. Caeleb liked that! He also loved to look for the candy filled eggs outside and found his share fast. I so look up to my sister - always have and always will.

Most of my Nieces and Nephews live out on Vancouver Island, but even still, I need to do better to get to know and cherish each one like my sister does. I can feel the love she has for all of her family.

50 simple things (I love about my Chris).

For this last Valentines Day, I made a list of 100 simple things that I love about Chris. Here are 50 to share with you.

1. I love your loud laugh when I am in the bedroom rocking one of the kids and I hear it fill up the house from the living room.


2. I love the way you come home. I always know it is you. The way you open the door, put your bag down and come tromping down the hall. I get excited to see you.


3. I love how you get emotional at times when you read a story out loud or sing a song. Like the Christmas when you read the story of the Jewish Santa. And the song “Sweet Caroline (Katherine).”


4. I love how you look when you are sleeping. You have several completely different handsome looks. The smart handsome with you in your dress clothes and with your glasses. The church handsome dressed up in your suit. You look like a very young general authority (te he). The relaxed handsome with you in your shorts and casual shirt bombing around the house. The sleepy handsome, the one that only I am privileged to see when I sleep next to you when you don’t have your glasses on and I see those beautiful brown eyes. And when you have your eyes closed and I look at you when you are sleeping.


5. I love your crazy bedhead. I love that hair with the little bits of silver.


6. I love when you are happy - which is all the time. That expression when you are happy. It is hard to explain but it makes me feel closer to heaven.


7. I love how you are so quick to forgive. I can be mad and say things I should not say. Then I force out a sorry because I think that no one could forgive me for what I have said. And you forgive right then and there and never bring it up again.


8. I love how you make notes of things you like. You have done a report on Camera items that you want, carefully noting the qualities of each item, price comparison and why you like it.


9. I love how you rattle off financial information or information on mortgages or knowledge about the stars and universe and scriptures and life. I often give you a blank stare in that I don’t understand but you are so patient with me. You explain over and over until I say, “oh yah, I get it.” You never get frustrated with my simple-mindedness.


10. I love how you talk in your sleep and when I tell you, “Chris, you don’t make sense, are you awake,” you say “yes, I am awake.” Then you go right back to sleep and to snoring (at times).


11. I love feeling so warm and safe in your arms when you hug me.


12. I love how you call Caeleb “Snuggy Goo!!” and you give him horsey rides. He gets so giggly.


13. I love how you need a night table so you can leave your glasses on it.


14. I love how you enthusiastically say “Good!” every time I ask how work is going.


15. I love your cooking and watching you cook. You are so precise in your measurements and timing.


16. I love how you insist on shaving before a shower so you can wash off the whiskers.


17. I love the feel of your whiskers on my cheek.


18. I love how when I mention something from the scriptures, you take it so much further and pull out other verses and broaden my understanding ever further.


19. I love how you always keep track of who has prayed last and who’s turn it is. I never do.


20. I love that you hit the snooze button and can go right back to sleep. I marvel at that. I can’t do that!


21. I love how you slap your knees to 80s music and sing along – It makes no difference to you where you are when you do it although my face may go a little red.


22. I love how you play the drums on the steering wheel.


23. I love how you eat slowly and you have everything just right and in front of you before you eat. I always lost the “slowest eater” contests when we were dating.


24. I love listening from a distance as you talk in your daily meetings with your co-workers on the phone. You have so much confidence and power in your words. I look up to that so much! If only I could capture it and have it in my own life.


25. I love how you make yourself peanut butter and chocolate chip sandwiches.


26. I love how you have to have honey on peanut butter and banana sandwhiches. It just can’t be done without the honey. I never thought about that before. Also, some types of soup are not soup to you without crackers.


27.  I love how you shiver so much even when the day isn’t that cold. Yep, that is my man from the mild, “warm” Vancouver Island.


28. I love how you whistle a tune after your phone meetings in the morning. That is how I know you are done.


29. When you go shopping, it makes me giggle and smile. Yah, a bit upset too sometimes because of what you buy at times. But I love how you justify what you buy with, “but it was on sale.”


30. I love how you go up and down the ilse when shopping. Every ilse has to be seen just in case! I remember our shopping date to Costco when we just started dating.


31. Chris’ Chilicold + Katherine’s Spanish word isimo = Chilicoldisimo. To be used on really cold days.


32. I love how you baby powder up, not only yourself, but the whole bathroom as well.


33. You love miracle whip on cheese sandwhiches and a light in the room when watching a movie.


34. I love that you were never “popular” growing up. You don’t feel like you have a “cool” reputation to uphold.


35. Open face Jam sandwiches for breakfast, lunch and snacks!


36. I love that you are not obsessed with sports. Sports really aren’t your thing and that is okay. Your idea of a good sport is a nice relaxing hike in the mountains where you can take pictures or everything!


37. I love your knowledge of the stars. I mentioned this before but I really do marvel at the knowledge you have of astronomy. You know the answers to pretty much all of my questions about life and the universe.


38. I love how you go cross eyed without your glasses on. Just a little but it is so cute and handsome all rolled into one. Elva has that too. And Caeleb – just a little.


39. You can stay up until 4:00 am watching Star Trek and Dr. Who. In fact, when you watch TV, you cannot fall asleep. That amazes me! I can fall asleep in seconds to a movie.


40. I love how you brighten up when you talk to your Mom and Dad and brothers and sisters. I can see that twinkle in your eye and hear the excitement in your voice.


41. I love how you listen to 80s music while working and I can hear it anywhere in the house.


42. I love how you can stretch out your famous egg miracle whip sandwhiches into so many. It is like Jesus feeding the multitudes with fish and bread. It is like Mary Poppins pulling out a lamp from her handbag. When I make them, I can’t make nearly as many with so few ingredients. Amazing!


43. Mrs. Dash and Garlic for every meal!


44. I love a Chris song called “Name.” (the country song). It brings memories of short car trips around Calgary. It has new meaning in our life now since loosing Lily through miscarriage.


45. I love how you call me sweetheart.


46. “Why don’t we just dance.” That song on Youtube, dancing around our old apartment. You introduced me to that song.


47. I love how you would sing “making memories of us,”when we were dating and you would focus on “I want to honor your mother.”


48. I love watching you comb your hair in the morning. You have your own style.


49. You have never complained about changing a poopy diaper.


50. I have never met anyone with as positive an attitude and as even keel a temperament as you have. 3.5 years of marriage and I still feel that way.

 

Chris

My husband Chris is a very busy guy. He works long hours and has a busy schedule. I think Heavenly Father intends for husbands and fathers to work very hard and have a lot of responsibility. He is preparing them for eternity, to be as he is (and he is preparing his daughters as well for different responsibilities). He provides his sons with the capability of taking on so much. Most of Chris' spare time is spent with his family, playing with his kids, going on walks and having talks with me. He doesn't make a lot of time for just himself.

I know Heavenly Father gives his sons the ability and capacity to take on so much in this life! They have so much to do! We all do, really. As the wife of a very special son of Heavenly Father, I know that I have the responsibility to be by his side, supporting him, his work, his wisdom, advice and decisions and his church callings, as he supports his family. I hope I can be the support that he needs. I know I am far from perfect and struggle in many different areas (and I won't go into that), but right now in my life, I feel like this is so important! To support my husband in his many responsibilities so that his load can be lightened. My goal is to do better in this area and I have several ideas in how I can accomplish this goal.

One idea: By creating this blog journal as well as continuing on with our family journal, I hope to take the responsibility of being our family team's "recorder" in recording some of our family's memories and thoughts (not just mine) for future learning, future enjoyment of memories and for future generations.

Diapers

A part of our morning routine is changing the two little ones out of their wet diapers. When Caeleb wakes up, he drags me into the living room (it takes me a while to wake up these days and I feel I could sleep all the time). We usually watch a Barney video (Caeleb loves the music and sings along) or Bo on the Go (to do exercises), or something else. And during that time, it is diaper changing time. Elva is easy to do. She won't begin putting up a fight until several months from now. Usually I have to chase Caeleb around the house to get the job done. He thinks its a game and laughs and runs and I chase after him.

Caeleb shows no interest in potty training at two and a half. I have not pressured him by any means. I read my cousin Laura's blog about this and she knows kids and said that one should not pressure kids into potty training. We have a little potty with the cars movie theme. Caeleb loves to put his toys and food in it (but don't worry, he has never actually used it for its intended purpose).  He knows what it is for. We talk about going to the potty. He always says, "No, No potty," (in his cute, high pitched, determined but soft voice) after I make the suggestion to use it. The farthest I have got with the training is having him sit on the potty with his pants on. But, I am not stressing. It will come someday and probably too soon and then, as funny as it sounds, I will miss chasing him around the house in the morning trying to get his soaking wet diaper off and a new one on.

This morning I told Chris that I felt privileged and happy to be the diaper changer of two little ones. It may be a challenge, it may be icky at times, it may be expensive, but I love my important responsibility!

Back to Exercising.

Just to warn you all, I am using my blog more or less as a journal so not everything I write may be interesting to you. You can stop reading if it is not interesting. I won't be offended (well, I won't even know will I). I don't write about everything in this blog Journal (it would be hard to include everything) but I like sharing some of my thoughts and experiences with you all, just as I like to hear how others are doing and what is going on in their lives. Everyone's life makes an interesting story and we can all learn from each others life experiences.

I was reading a friend's blog the other day and she was mentioning how she was exercising more and eating well and how good it made her feel. My doctor wanted me to "take it easy" for the 1st two months after Elva was born but I have been putting off "getting into shape" for longer than that. Elva is 3.5 months old already! We have been pretty much homebound except for church as it has been too cold to take Elva outside for walks (except for a couple of times) and I have not been motivated to exercise in the house.

So a few weeks ago, I started to go to a Tuesday night Zumba class that is FREE. I know that I look horrible doing Zumba (I am not very coordinated) but I love it so much and afterwards I feel so alive inside. I look forward to it.

Today, I started exercising to a walking/jogging video my mom gave me a couple of years ago when Caeleb was a few months old. I would put Caeleb in his Jolly jumper and he would jump along to the music. Today, I put Elva in her Jolly Jumper, (we put her in it for the 1st time yesterday and she loved it - she looks so small in it but it gives her such freedom which gives us a lot of smiles from her), and Caeleb did his exercises right beside me and we all had a lot of fun! Elva is really getting the hang of the jolly jumper. She turns around in it well and is bouncing a little.

Anyways, the plan is to get into shape and back to feeling great (and to pre-pregnancy weight)! I am also trying to get us eating healthy meals in this house. We are eating a lot of baked veggies and veggie stews and soups. I am trying to send the boys to work with spinach and fruit/berry smoothies in the morning. I find it a lot of fun to create new and healthy meals.

Well, I try to keep you up to date on how my exercise program is going. Until next time...

Through the Eyes of a Two year old.

Caeleb  is such a funny little guy! And the things he says keep us laughing all the time. Here is a taste of his cuteness:

If he is a little sad or if I am sad, he will put on the most adorable pouty look with squinty eyes and say, "Ah, Mommy sad-cry."

If he wants to watch something or have a treat, he will put on a similar squinty eye look and ask in a high voice, " Mommy...cookies peas", or "Mommy...Elephants have Winkles," etc. (He loves the song "Elephants have wrinkles").

Caeleb singing his alphabet song: "A is for apple, Ah Ah Apple, B is for ball, Ca Ca Ball...

If it is cold out, he will say (like his dad says), "Chili-cold out."

Him talking to his sister in the sweetest voice: "Awwww, Jean Bean Elva."

When he wants to listen to the song "I want a Hippopatamus for Christmas" he says, "Hippopatamus Christmas" over and over. Hippopatamas was one of his first animal words and one of the only ones her really tries to pronounce correctly.

He loves Eggo waffles for breakfast and calls them, "Eggo soup."

I gave him some Tylenol in a bottle of water a few months ago because he had some teeth coming in and after he frequently asked for his Tylenol Juice (which I did not freely give him).

The other day I noticed Caeleb was chewing on something. I asked him what he was eating and he opened up his mouth and said in a muffled voice with tiny tiny balls of broken up white packing Styrofoam spewing out of his mouth, "popcorn!" It took a while to clear it all out of his mouth. There was a lot in there and it kept coming out! I guess I got to watch him more carefully.

Caeleb gets his yours and mines mixed up which is really funny to listen too. If you have something he wants, he will say, "No, it's yours, it's yours!" as he pulls it from you.

Caeleb's name for himself is "Cabub."

Caeleb loves Nursey or "Renurse" as he calls it. Every Sunday morning, he asks to go to "renurse" over and over again. He gets his boots and is all ready to go out the door whether we are or not (well, he may only be wearing pants but one can go to church in just pants, right).

This morning I was in the bedroom changing Elva's diaper and I hear some crying coming from the kitchen. Caeleb had pulled a chair to the kitchen sink, turned on the water and filled a dirty cup up with water. He seemed to want a clean cup to put the water in and I gave him one. He then got off the chair with his full cup of water and went to a plant in the living room that he had seen me water the other day and dumped the water in. I had been neglecting the plant and it was dying and it was so cute to see Caeleb have that desire to take care of the plant. It melted my heart.

I will add more to this post as I think of more Caelebisms.

 

Elva's Baby Blessing.

Well, March is almost halfway done. Crazy how time flys! It has been a busy month so far too. Today, Elva had a routine checkup. She weighs over 11 lbs now and that is what Caeleb weighed at his 6 week checkup. She is in the 50 percentile so is growing well as was in the 5th percentile at the last checkup I believe. But, what would you expect from a little girl who loves to eat and eat and eat! She also had a ultrasound at the Children's today to see how her hips are developing. She was born with a hip click so they are just seeing how things are coming together. Yesterday was a beautiful chinooky day and Caeleb and I went outside and made some snowmen. The four of us went for a walk as well. Today, it dropped from +14 to - 10 and it is snowing. Yep, that is Alberta weather for you.

We had Mom and Dad Watters here for a couple of weeks. They left last Monday (March 11). It was so much fun having them around. They are such happy people and they filled our home with a happy, peaceful feeling. We didn't do much as the weather was a little crummy - especially for the lst week. But, we did have alot of fun indoors talking and enjoying each others company. Caeleb loves his Grandma and Grandpa (and the yummy treats that come along with them). I was able to take Caeleb out on walks in the snow since someone was around to stay with Elva. Elva got plenty of snuggles and Caeleb as well.

March 3 was Elva's baby blessing. It was a blizzard out and I almost thought church would be cancelled. But, it wasn't, and the blessing was beautiful and Elva looked precious in a little white dress. We had a family supper of chicken and rice after. Camellia, Doug and Sterling came as well as Todd Gainor.

March 9 was the wedding of one of Chis' cousins on the Brown side. It was such a good experience watching this sealing done in the Calgary temple. It has been the 4th live sealing I have ever attended including my own and it was such a spiritual experience. It was a gorgeous day out too. Nice and warm and you could see the snow covered mountains off to the west so clearly. There was a family dinner at Nick's resteraunt after and I got to meet alot of Chris' relatives. Aunt Jan was there and she stayed with us for the weekend. She is so much fun to have around! She is so happy and bubbly and has such a zest for life and you can't help but feel like smiling in her presence.

Well, life has settled back to routine again. But I love this too. Caeleb is as fun as ever. He says the funniest things. He likes to talk non stop. The other day I told him we needed to clean up the living room and he started picking up his toys and singing, "clean up, clean up, everybody everywhere, clean up clean up, everybody do their share." I guess he learned it in nursery. It was so cute to see.

Elva is starting to throw a few giggles in with the smiles that started about a month ago. A few weeks ago she must have been having a funny dream because she was laughing in her sleep. It woke me up and made me laugh too. She is a beautiful little spirit and a joy to have in our home.

Vaccinations and a Hair cut.

Elva is almost 3 months old! It is crazy how fast time flys. She had her 2 month old vaccinations yesterday and is doing well. She weighed 10 lbs 2 ounzes yesterday evening (with her diaper on) so has about double her birth weight. She still sleeps and eats most of the day but has a few more awake moments now, looking at close objects and people, and has even smiled a few legitimate smiles (not gassy ones). About 2 weeks ago, she was doing tummy time and rolled on to her back. Then she did it again right after but has not done it since. I guess maybe she just was off balance but it was fun to see. Krystin Turner put on a baby shower for her on January 19. Camellia, Sister Macyntire (my visiting teacher), Jenny Allred, Lisa Hove, Kim Tyers, Tammy Michelson, Kamille Gainor and her girls and the Alvarez sisters (Jen, Rebecca and Judy) came and Elva got many new outfits, blankets and odds and ends. We feel so blessed to have such amazing friends!

On February 3rd we had a family supper at our place because Aunt Sharan was in town. It was fun to enjoy yummy tacos and each others company. Aunt Sharan brought the Gainor kids as Paul and Kamille were in India. Brian came and Aunt Brenda, Uncle Gord and Pheobe. Oh and of coarse Camellia, Doug and Sterling were there too.

Caeleb is so much fun these days. His personality is just exploding. He loves being around other people and goes up to random strangers and says, "Hi, how you doing," in his high pitched toddler voice. He is always asking me what I am doing or where I am going. He is starting to play more on his own and I see that he is getting my imagination installed in him.  A pile of laundry can become an elephant in his eyes. I think that is pretty awesome. He loves to sing Old Macdonald and Frosty the Snowman. When we skype Nana and Papa Smith, he goes and gets his toy animals and brings them to the computer screen and has a lengthy two year old conversation with Nana and Papa about his animals. It is really cute to watch. He loves talking with them on skype.

Caeleb got his hair cut a week ago Monday. He needed it! The curls are adorable and I am pretty sure they will grow back but there comes a point when they are so hard to manage and become a tangled mess. Caeleb didn't like the hair cut one bit until Uncle Nathan (who did the hair cutting), cut his own hair as well. Thanks Nathan! So they both have the same hair cut and now when people come to visit, Caeleb will point to his hair excitedly and say, "hair cut."

We have been down to visit Camellia and Doug a couple of times during the last month. Chris and I went to see the play "Annie" in Cardston which is something I can cross off my bucket list now. I love going to see plays and this was one I have been wanting to see since I was a little girl.

Well, life continues to be good. I love watching my children grow and develop more and more each day.

 

Caeleb and the Temple

Caeleb loves the Temple. He went to the Calgary Temple open house with the Gainor family and ever since then, when we drive in the area, he points in the direction of the temple and excitedly shouts, "Tempo!" Tonight our little family went to the temple. The lights were on around it and it looked beautiful lite up on top of the hill. It reminded me of my mission days in Ecuador when my companion and I would see the Guayaquil temple lite up on the hill every day when we were coming home in the dark on the bus. It was a centerpoint for that big city. And now we have this beautiful temple in our city. 2 weeks ago Chris and I were finally able to fulfill our anniversary wish of doing sealings in the Calgary temple. I felt the spirit very strong during our time there. Well, tonight we got Caeleb out and walked around in the snow by the temple gate. We looked at the Angle Moroni. Caeleb loves looking at the temple! Elva stayed in the car as it is a cool night out. Not too cold, but cool. I stayed close by her while the boys ventured further down the sidewalk. I thought about how blessed I am for eternal families and for the covenants that we make at the temple. When we left, Caeleb said, "bye bye tempo. See soon." It touched my heart. I hope that when he is older, age 12, 18, 25, 40, 60, 80 - whatever age - he will say (when he leaves the temple), "Bye Temple, See you soon." I love my family! And I love to see the Temple!

A Quick Update on our Life

Not much to update on my post today. I am loving being a mom to my little boy and girl. Caeleb is getting bigger and older each day - leaving toddlerhood more and more and entering childhood. He pretty much knows all his ABCs and numbers 1-10. I can't say I had the biggest hand in teaching him those. He is starting to put small sentences together. My favourite is "Mommy, What are you Doing!" He loves his sister Elva and is starting to be a big help putting toys away, putting things in the garbage, and wanting to hug and hold (with help) his sister. He still needs his 1.5 to 2 hour daily nap which is a big help for me as Elva keeps me up a bit at night and I can use a little time to have a nap or get some extra things done each day (like updating my blog). Caeleb has the cutest expressions ever and we adore his curly hair/fro. Elva will be 8 weeks old on Monday (January 28th). Time is flying by. She weighed 7 lbs 3 oz last Thursday so is growing well. She is getting good at holding up her head and Chris does a great job helping her work on her tummy time. She loves to eat, sleep and be held. I could hold her, snuggle her and rock her all day. She is my little angle. I love life at home doing the laundry, making supper, making cookies with Caeleb, playing (we built a snowman the other day) and reading with Caeleb and snuggling Elva, cleaning and organizing. I did my nursing pharmacology module exam (that I studied for during my hospital stay) yesterday so it is good to have that done. I don't have any big projects on the go at the moment but I am enjoying the simple life. I really do think a simplified life is a happy life. And life is good!

Our Merry Little Christmas and the start of a Happy New Year.

I have always liked the song, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. It is one of my Christmas favourites. We had ourselves a little but still Merry Christmas this year. Elva ended up getting sick 4 days after being discharged from the NICU and ended up getting admitted to the Children's Hospital Christmas Eve (Monday) because of a bad case of RSV. There was a scary moment in Emergency when her heartrate dropped to less than 1/2 of normal and her oxygen saturations dropped to 1/4 of normal and she went completely limp. The Nurse and Doctor were right there to see what was going on. Chris was out doing some last minute shopping with Caeleb and I called him right away to have him come. He dropped Caeleb of at the Radfords (our lifesavers) and came right over. They dropped Caeleb off at home once Nathan arrived and Chris and I spent the evening with Elva in an Emergency room watching Home Alone 2 . It was shockingly busy in Emerg for a Christmas Eve. Elva was put on some oxygen and sent upstairs to unit 2. I spent the night with her and came home for a few hours on Christmas morning to open gifts with the boys. Caeleb was spoiled this year. He got trains and tracks and clothes and other toys. Santa dropped by the hospital too and Elva had some gifts to open there on her 1st Christmas morning.

Boxing day was a stable day but the next day, Thursday, Elva was sounding worse. She was coughing more and I could just feel the crackles in her lungs. They did a chest x-ray and in showed that her upper right lung was collapsed. They also did some blood work which showed that because she was having to work hard to breath, she was not compensating as much as she should and was getting tired. The ICU team came up and saw her and decided that she should go to the ICU. I had a good cry and followed Elva in her bed and the ICU doctors and nurses down to the Pediatric ICU. They started her on a high flow oxygen but she never needed anything more than that and that is so wonderful. In fact, she did really well with the high flow oxygen. She ended up being in the ICU for 5 days but I was only really worried about her the lst day. The Nurses and Doctors were so wonderful and we were treated really well. Chris stayed with her 2 of the nights and said that he hardly got any sleep because she was awake and hungry all night (they were tube feeding her but that wasn't up to Elva's eating standards). I spent a few hours at home on New Years Eve and Chris and I sat by the "TV fire," drank hot chocolate and chatted after Caeleb went to bed. It was a really nice New Years party - just the two of us. Then it was back to the hospital for me to be with Elva and I watched the countdown until 2013 on TV.

We are so grateful for everyone's prayers. Elva was out of ICU on New Years day so it was a happy New Years for us. She came home two days later on Friday. It has been wonderful having her home. I am so enjoying being a mother again. Elva is a beautiful little girl and so good. Does not cry much at all. Caeleb is such a good older brother. I can tell he will always be protective of his little sister. He has a bit of jelousy I think, but really he is doing great and loves to have her around. We are keeping Elva at home for now so Chris stayed home with her on Sunday and Caeleb and I had a mother- son outing going to church. I now teach the 4-5 year olds in Primary and after one class with them I know that I am going to love my new calling.

Life is good and hopefully all is back to normal for good (fingers crossed). Maybe normal does not exist but I could use a relatively "normal" mother, wife and homemaker life right now.