The Anderson Family

The Last 5 Months!

2011-01-30T09:16:00.000-08:00

How do I condense the last 5 months into something interesting and short enough that people will actually read it without getting bored!

The last thing that I blogged about was my broken foot since then it finally healed up... it took about 4 months but it's great and I've been able to start playing volleyball again.

Me and Travis were able to go a sweet holiday to Hawaii. We did a 7 day cruise around to the different islands and then spent 5 more days on Oahu. It was great to get away. We went para sailing, tubing, kayaking, some tours, ate lots of food, got sun tanned, and went to a lot of beaches! We love it there, the weather was perfect everyday!

Tobin turned 2 on Dec 19th! I know he's getting big. I made a monster truck cake for him and we had Dustin and Mindy and their kids over to celebrate. Tobin is starting to say lots of words and is getting quite the little personality! He loves to color with Emma, play with Emma, sit on Emma and make her mad, and in the morning he waits for Emma to come in and crawl into his bed to play! He really likes Emma!! We stayed in Fort McMurray this Christmas. It was really nice and quiet. Dustin and Mindy came over Christmas Eve and we had lots of fun. It was very low key and not stressful. Santa was good to us... He brought me a Kitchen Aid!! Funny how he just knows! And January!! I had my 30th birthday this month. So here is my excuse for not blogging... it's called old age. I just forgot! No actually I'm just a slacker! Travis planned a great birthday party for me with lots of our good friends. My face hurt so bad from laughing! I love having fun and playing games with great people so it was the perfect night! Travis made me a birthday cake, it was a white cake with vanilla and cream cheese pudding, pineapple and whipping cream on top! SOOO GOOD! Some good news too... Travis got a new job at work so starting probably in Aprilish he will no longer working nights!! Yay! Only during shutdowns. He is really looking forward to the new job... he won't have to babysit 15 grown men anymore!

I'm going to do better with the blog to look for more regular post to occur... hopefully!

I'm Broken, But Alive!

2010-10-04T15:16:00.000-07:00

K I'm not totally broken... just my foot! Lots of you have already heard the story but I really feel it is something that I need to blog about.

About a week and a half ago everything was pretty good. I had gone to the relief society meeting and felt like it went really well. I came home sat down to watch Grey's and just unwind. It was about 11pm and Travis works really early so he had been in bed already for 2 hours. I was walking down the stairs and it was all in like slow motion, like you know it's going to happen and you can't do anything about it. I missed the last 2 or 3 steps and landed on my foot really wrong. I landed on the edge of it and then all my weight went on it heard a nasty crunch, then I cracked my knee on the other leg super hard on the floor. I was laying there thinking " O My goodness I think I broke both legs" I have never felt pain like that before. I screamed and yelled for Travis but, because he had the door shut and a fan on there was absolutely no way in the world he was going to hear me. I was hoping that Emma might wake up but really who I'm I kidding she sleeps like a log! So after about 15-20Min's of yelling the pain subsided in my knee a little or at least enough to crawl up the stairs to the bedroom. Travis woke up and thought I was having a gall bladder attack, so he started rubbing my back really hard! I was like no I think I broke my foot. Thank goodness Dustin could come over and stay with the kids while we went to the ER. I got right in and got a x-ray done. The Dr. came back and told me it was broken. Then he added that because of how it broke they might have to do surgery to set the bone. I came back to the hospital in the morning to see the Orthopedic Dr. and he said that it would heal just fine and surgery wasn't needed! Hooray some good news!

So life is a little slower these days but that's not stopping me. Ok let me rephrase that life is not slower I'm just slower doing the stuff in it! I will not let a broken foot get in the way of the things that need to be done. I keep telling myself there are people out there that are way worse off that do more than me. I'll have an update after the 20th when I go back to see the Ortho Dr. My kids have realized that if they take something that there not supposed to all they have to do is run away and I can't catch them...very fast anyways. They are becoming a little more independent which is good.

I'm grateful for all the help and meals that we have gotten that first week. It helped out so much and was really appreciated. Now for the pictures... there sort of gross... just warning ya!

It's actually more pretty now than in these picture... my toes are actually almost all purple now!

A Little Late... But Here It Is!

2010-09-23T08:38:00.001-07:00

I know I'm a bad blogger but that's OK! Life is crazy and not just for me but for most people and how some of you are such good blogger's I will never know! Here's an update from about July until now!

We left on holidays the end of July and headed to Calgary where we met up with my family for a couple of days. We took the kids to the zoo which they loved! Then the next morning we were all off to Shuswap Lake in BC. We rented a cabin out there. It was beautiful. The entire week we were there it was in the high 30's and no rain! We rented a ski boat for 3 days too. So much fun. It was so relaxing out there all we did was hang out on the beach and play with the kids, play games with family and laugh a lot! This is definitely going to have to become a regular holiday. Oh ya there were some minor things that happened while at Shuswap... a few of us got swimmers itch! It totally sucked. Travis got it worse than anyone, he was so itchy! After Shuswap we headed to Taber to pick up the trailer. We were off to Waterton to meet up with Travis's family. I love camping and it was fun to see everyone. We threw lots of rocks in the lake... by the way I think every year we go there are less and less good skipping rocks, so for all of you that go to Waterton leave them for me!!! We went kayaking, hiking and did nightly drives looking for bears, which were successful every night we went. We had a lot of fun this summer as a family and look forward to next years holidays.

After we got home my family came up to visit for about a week. We took them out quading and had lots of fun. I love it when people come up to visit. I think more of you should come up. Winters are beautiful here;) Come check them out sometime!

September has been a crazy month. Emma started school for the first time and loves it. I like the quiet afternoons that we have. It's been great car pooling with Mindy. Each of us only has to drive 2 times a week instead of 4. I think the kids are adjusting good to the schedule. My kids have also started gymnastics every Friday. I put Tobin in this time and I think he really likes it. It good for him to burn off some of that energy! Travis started a shutdown this month. He is working 6 days in a row and then gets 1 day off. Or in Fort Mac terms a 6 and 1. It supposed to be over sometime towards the end of October! I can do this... at least that's what I tell myself almost everyday!

See you in 4 months for my next update! Jokes I'm going to do better... winters coming and with all the beautiful weather that we get I'm sure I'll have a little more time to update this blog!

Family and Canada Day

2010-07-03T11:53:00.000-07:00

We were so lucky to have so family come up and visit us this last week. It was so much fun to hang out and laugh and have a great time. We went out for crab legs, went quading, went quading again and then finished it all off with the Canada Day Parade. Emma, Kyla and Haley had a fun time doing makeovers every chance they got! They were so beautiful! Travis and Damon got some fishing in and actually brought one home to eat. Yummy! We had a great time together and look forward for summer holidays when we get to spend more time together!

This was a real live buffalo riding in the car for the Canada Day Parade! It was one of the best floats there!!

I'm A Nerd!

2010-06-14T07:56:00.000-07:00

OK I know you are all like nice blog background but I'm excited for this movie to come out in about 17 days... but really who's counting!! Actually I'm sure there are some of you that are counting down the days. It's OK you don't have to admit to doing it... especially you Jody! Well this background is for all you Twilight fans. I know that some people think that it's weird for so many women to be obsessed with these books and movies but really it's a way to escape from everyday life just for a couple of hours! At least that's what it is for me there are some people that do go a smidgen to far, I mean really your 45 do you actually think Jacob is going to come and marry you?!!

Boy's and Their Toys!

2010-06-09T11:31:00.000-07:00

Ok we finally broke down and bought a few new toys... well Travis did anyways. I'm excited though. This is going to be one fun summer outside and probably a little muddy too! I'm finally going to get to see some more of the area around were I live. It is beautiful forest everywhere and I have only been out it a few places. There is a really cool place to go quading up by 6 Lakes. I never knew this until a few years ago that Fort McMurray has sand dunes. Apparently it's the place to go. I'll hoping to get up there this summer to check them out.

A Little Update

2010-05-06T13:46:00.000-07:00

OK so not too much has happened in the last couple of weeks!! OK maybe just a few things. We have moved into our new house YAY!! It's all coming together kind of. I will take some pictures when we get everything all done.

Emma turned 4 on April 24th. We have been putting off her birthday party until we get settled in. Of course she is having a princess party... would it be anything else for my girly girl! She still dresses up in about 80 different outfits through out the day. Emma is loving her new pink room and both kids are doing great in there own rooms. It will be even better when we get blinds up on all the windows. Emma is a smart little cookie and loves her snacks! She gets to go into the early entry program this fall for school and is getting excited. I can't believe how big she is getting. We love Emma very much and are so proud of her. She is such a nice little girl and kind to everyone.

Tobin is seriously busy! He is into absolutely everything. I need some nice weather so that I can take the kids out for a walk during the day. Tobin is happy in the house and does have lots of space to run but, he won't just go and play. He is constantly following me around pulling out everything that I put away. So frustrating! He is a happy little boy and loves to play with Emma when she lets him! I love hearing them laughing and playing together... it makes my day so good when I hear that. I love my little boy so much and wouldn't change it for anything... well maybe just a little less of the pulling everything out!

Sunday was May 2. May 2 is a really special day for us. This is the day that Ethan was born. He was so tiny and small. We miss him so much. Ethan would be 5 years old. I can't believe it has been 5 years already. May 21 is another day that we remember... this is the day that he passed away. It was a super hard time in our life but I know as we turn to the Lord and let him guide us things will always be OK. I know the atonement is real. I can't wait for the day that I get to hold him in my arms again. It will come I know it.

Life is busy but it's pretty darn good.

It's Been So Long

2010-03-10T11:33:00.000-08:00

I know it has been a long time since I updated so here it all is! Actually I told Travis that it was his turn to do it. You can see he was all over that! Travis has been working like crazy lately. We thought that we were all done with shut downs and he would finally be back to a regular schedule... NOT! He got 7 days off which was really nice but found out before he went back to work that there was an unplanned shutdown that started. They estimate it to be about a month long. Ya right, Syncrude never estimates right! Anyways he isn't working the shut down just working a modified schedule of 9 days and then 3 days off. Not too bad. We decided that we should have a fun day with the kids before he went back to work so we took them swimming to the YMCA. The kids loved it. Then we went and played in the big indoor play ground after. It was a lot of fun.

Tobin is finally officially walking. It will be great when he is more confident and walks more. My back will be very happy! He is a funny kid. He knows how to push Emma's buttons that for sure. He also can climb up to the top of the table in seconds. I think that is how he pushes mine! He's a character.

Emma is still going to gymnastics and loving it. She does all kinds of things at home that she learns there. Head stands on the couch are probably the most practiced! I'm glad she likes it. She still like to draw and color and would do it all day. She loves painting but I'm not a huge fan of the paint all over the table... so I found a website that she can paint on the computer. Way cleaner.

Travis is well... still working but looking forward to his day off tomorrow. I'm keeping busy with the kids and practicing a few songs with some friends. There is group of us singing for are Relief Society March party and then another group of us doing an air band. I'll wait to post a picture in a few weeks after the ward variety show. Your all going to love it! We are having so much fun.

Oh ya here is a house update. So things are absolutely flying. We are not complaining. Are lease is up here in April which is perfect timing. We should have the key in are hand by the 20th of April!! Super soon. I went in the house a couple of days ago and all the mouldings and shelving is done. They were working on the banisters for the stairs. We are going back tomorrow to see what else has been done. Are cabinets should be in on the 25th of March. I'm expecting to have lots of visitors when we move in. Now that we have the space there is no excuses!

Bonus Room

Pantry with tonnes of shelves! YaY!

Great room

My 4 Valentines!

2010-02-13T10:24:00.000-08:00

I want to tell you about not just one valentine but 4 valentines!

First one I met in June of 2003. He was this super hot guy that moved into a house that some of my friends lived in. Rumor had it that he was looking for a wife so that he could move to Fort McMurray! Well when I heard this I jokingly said to my friend "I'll marry him". Little did I know that 5 months later we were engaged and married in Feb of 2004. He was everything I was looking for. He loved being outside especially in the mountains, he was kind, funny, had a strong testimony of the church, close to his family, liked sports, and had a plan for his future. I have to thank his parents for raising such a great man. He truly is my best friend and I love him so much. He is the best father any kid could ask for, and would do anything for anybody in his family.

My second valentine is a tiny one! In May of 2005 Ethan Travis Anderson decided to come 14 weeks early. He was a little fighter and did all that he could. He grew his wings 19 days after he was born. Ethan was a perfect tiny little guy. One day I will get to see him again and have the chance to raise him. I learned a lot from this little guy. I learned that you have to trust in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, they have a plan and there is nothing we can do to change that. My testimony of the atonement grew tremendously as we grieved over the loss of this little angel. I know he is safe and I know that his life has a plan too. It just wasn't going to be on this earth. We miss him dearly and he is always in our hearts. This is a little quote that is on his head stone. "We held you in our hands and now we hold you in our hearts"

My third valentine met me on April 24 2006! It was rough but we made it to the due date! A beautiful little girl that we named Emma Colleen Anderson. She had big eyes and looked like a little doll. She has a very good nature about her. Emma is kind to others and would never do anything purposely to hurt someone. She loves gymnastics and can't wait to go to school. She turns 4 in just over a month and wants to have a princess party. She loves princesses and dressing up. She makes me laugh on a daily basis. I think I laugh the hardest when we are in a public washroom together. Little kids always say what they think! I just feel bad for the other people that are in there! Emma is a good girl and really likes sunbeams. She loves her little brother and is always asking for another Tobin. I tell her that she is just going to have to wait longer! Sorry no announcements for a while. I love my little girl, she gives the best hugs and kisses.

My last valentine just turned one! Yes it's Tobin! He came Dec 19 2008. We named him Tobin Philip Anderson. He was my big boy from the beginning. He came 3 1/2 weeks early and weighed 8 lb 6 oz. Yes he was are other little preemie! Tobin has never been a small boy, at his year shots he weighed about 30lb's. He is such a true little boy, he is not graceful or gentle. Look out when Tobin is coming cause he will either plow the object out of the way or just crawl over it. He already has a sense of humor. He teases me and Emma all day long! Tobin is also my little monkey. The kid climbs everything! I can't leave him unattended for more than a couple minutes because I will find him on top of the kitchen table. Surprisingly enough we haven't had any major falls or hospital visits... knock on wood because now that I just said that guess where we'll be! Tobin keeps me super busy all day long until he is in bed. I don't get anything done, trust me my house shows it! I love this boy and can't wait to see what he is like the older he gets.

So those are my valentines, they are all so special in there own little ways whether they are here physically or here only in spirit. I love them all. Happy Valentines Day!

April... WHAT??!

2010-02-07T16:56:00.000-08:00

On Friday we did are first walk through of the house. I can't wait to be in it. We also picked out all the colors for the interior. That made it even more real! Things are coming together great. When we were walking through the house the building manager was with us. We were sort of wondering when the house would be done or when he thought it would be finished. I was expecting to hear like August and I think Travis was hoping for June! Well to are surprise the building manager told us the end of APRIL! That's what I said APRIL! I know I had to hear him say it again too! That's crazy, that would be only like 4 months from when the basement went in. Ahhhhh! We are not excited at all! Ummm OK we are... just a little bit.

This week Travis finally had a couple of days off. I think they were well needed! We tried to cram in as much as we could those days. We checked out the house, picked out the interior stuff, I played in a volleyball tournament, and then we went out for dinner and movie. We saw Avatar. We both really enjoyed it.

Oh ya and today me and Travis are celebrating are 6th anniversary! Time flys I know. 6 years already. I love him so much. He is such a good man and a great father. He is a super hard worker sometimes we wish he was around more to play but, when he is here he helps out lots. I couldn't ask for a better husband, father, and friend. He is the best! I love you Travis.

bonus room

great room

front entrance

Kitchen

Asthma and A Lot of Work!!

2010-02-02T08:28:00.000-08:00

We went to the Dr. yesterday because Tobin has sounded like he has had a cold. He was coughing a while ago then is sort of went away, then it came back. I had enough and wanted to find out what was going on. So I loaded up the kids and off to the Dr. we went. After the doctor checked him out for about 5min's she told me I had a really big boy! (Like I didn't already know that!) She told me that he has Asthma. I honestly wasn't that surprised. I asked her if he would eventually grow out of it. She said most likely but not until he is about 5 or 6. Great!! So it is a fight every day 4 times to be exact. He is one strong little boy. I also found out he has another ear ache. Let's hope he is on the mend and hope that winter will be over soon.

Travis has been working like a dog! We discovered last night that he has not had his full 6 days off since November!! Trust me I can tell. He is tired and hopes that all the work will come to an end soon. They were preparing for a shutdown that was supposed to happen in March but ended up starting early. Good news about that is it will be done sooner! He finally has 2 days off this weekend. Which couldn't have worked out better... I have volleyball tournament Friday and Saturday. Wish me luck! It will be some good well needed bonding time for Travis and the kids. Tobin is such a Daddy's boy. The other night Travis got home a little earlier than usual and got to see Tobin and Emma. I have never seen a little boy get off the couch so fast and crawl to the door to meet his Dad! It was so cute. It made Travis feel pretty special too!

Not too much other stuff has happened... I started making a quilt for Emma's bed for her new room. It is going to be super cute. Thanks to Sharisse for helping me out and providing some room to actually work on it. I had my 29th birthday last week too. I got 2 cakes that day, how I got so lucky I'm not sure. All I know is that I have an awesome sister in law that got me a cheesecake and made me dinner that day (thanks Mindy!) and my wonderful husband came home with ice cream cake and flowers! Emma is in gymnastics and loves it!

Our house is coming along great and much faster than we thought it would. We are getting cabinets ordered this week and picking out some of the fun stuff like colors, flooring, and counter tops. Here are some of the latest pictures. The roof should be on this week and windows will go in. AHHH the sweetness of progress... there really is an end!

Skiing and a Floor!

2010-01-25T16:40:00.000-08:00

Travis and I were able to go out skiing on Saturday. He asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday so I told him skiing! I love skiing and it had been about 7 years since I had been. Sad thing about it is that we have lived 15 mins away from a ski hill for the last almost 6 years! Travis had been twice in his life so I wasn't sure what to expect. Honestly I had convinced myself that it was going to be a day mostly on the bunny hill. Actually it was completely opposite. We went down the bunny hill twice and he was ready to hit the big slopes, well as big as they come in Fort Mac! By the afternoon he wanted to go down the black diamonds! Umm I wasn't so brave! We had lots of fun and can't wait to go again. I think I know what Santa might bring us next year!!

I drove over to the house after skiing and there was a floor on the house. And I went by a few days later and there is walls up on the first floor. I will get some picture in a few days! The framing is coming along really fast. I go by I think everyday just to remind myself that it is

actually happening!

Braces, Baking and Basements

2010-01-21T19:22:00.000-08:00

I did it! I have had a cross bite for my whole life and it will finally be gone. I'm one of the lucky ones though... I think! I only have them on for 8 months if everything goes good. I feel like I never get full from eating. It takes so long to eat that by the time I'm done I feel like I could eat another plate! I hear it gets better after a few weeks.

Emma wanted to make a cake so we made some cupcakes. Usually I'm not that big on cupcakes because they are small and tedious to decorate but I found the this awesome icing recipe that has no fat in it... that's right NO FAT!!! I know I know it has some sugar in it that will just turn into fat but hey... it sounds good! Anyways it is really easy to make on the second try. I did it the first time and it was not fluffy at all. What you do is cook the sugar, water and cream of tartar till it starts to bubble and all the sugar is dissolved then you add that gradually into some egg whites that are beat till soft peaks formed. You whip the crap out of it as you add the hot syrup until stiff peaks form. It was really easy the second time... you just have to make sure you beat the egg whites enough the first time. Let me know if you want the recipe... it tastes like marshmallows.

So the basement is in. Yippee! We are hoping that next week we can post some picture of some framing being done. Can't wait. Sorry that most of my posts have been about our house but I am using this as a journal so it is an easy way to keep track of the progress.

Tobin this week has sure shown us his true colors. He has decided to start throwing tantrums. It's kinda weird because Emma never really had those " throw yourself on the floor" kind. She just got mad! Well, lately if you put Tobin down when he doesn't want you too he will arch his back and lay on the floor screaming! It's driving me nuts! Let's hope this phase passes soon.

We found out yesterday that Travis's shutdown that is supposed to happen in March has been push up to Monday. Yes that is January 25th. I wasn't really prepared for this to happen but I guess the sooner it's over the better. We are planning to get away as soon as it is over for a while! Can't wait to get out of town for a bit. Hopefully only one more month of rarely seeing my husband. I really do like it when he is around... maybe I should let work know that!!!!

Hallelujah!!!! It's Finally Started!

2010-01-12T22:23:00.000-08:00

Well the title of this post about says it all!! It is finally started. The hole was dug today and the footer were poured. Tomorrow the walls and floor in the basement should be going in. It made me so excited that I actually had a hard time sleeping last night. So yippee were on are way.

This last week was a pretty quiet week. Not a lot happened. Emma did start her first day of gymnastics and totally loved it. She can't wait to go back. Tobin is still not walking! We honestly thought that he was going to be walking like 3 months ago. He sure is proving us wrong!

Travis is working a tonne and will be for the next 3 or 4 months. We really miss him when he is gone so much and can't wait for the shutdown to be over. Sad when we can't wait for something that has not even started yet. I wouldn't be so bad if it was warmer outside so I could get the kids out. Oh well... you do what you have to do. Everything is else is great. I have been feel awesome and have so much energy. I haven't felt like this for a long long time. It's great!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-04T17:36:00.000-08:00

Another year come and gone. I think the years are starting to pass faster and faster. Before we know it I'll be writing another post called Happy New Year! I would write some fantastic story about how awesome are new years was... but really there is not much to say. I spent New Years watching the movie Wall-E (have not quite decided whether or not I liked it). I watched this with my most favorite person in the world and when the movie was over I went to bed. The End! It was probably 10:30pm when I went to bed. I just couldn't justify being tired the next day. I knew the kids would be up early so I just went to bed. Travis was about a half hour after me. I know we are party animals what can I say! Maybe next year we will stay up late and play games until all hours of the morning... maybe.

I look forward to 2010 and the adventures that it will bring. I really have not set any new years resolutions other than the usual one that everyone sets... I'm going to eat healthier and exercise more! I promise!! Really! I would like to run a 5km race this year sometime. I have not decided where yet. Probably in Raymond or in Taber if I'm around for cornfest or July 1st. I think Travis is going to try and run the Melissa's Run in Banff this fall. Wish us luck! Hope you all have a great year and I hope that all your new years goals are fulfilled. Good Luck everyone!

Christmas!!

2009-12-30T14:58:00.000-08:00

We had a nice quiet Christmas this year! Not say that I don't miss being around lots of family. I missed that a lot. In fact anytime I would call home or someone would call me I could hear laughing and games being played! I wished we could have been there too. Needless to say we did have great Christmas just the 4 of us. It all started Christmas Eve at Sharisse and Aron's. They claim that they just needed a Mary for the nativity that's why they invited us!! Really they just can't get enough of us!! It was lots of fun we started off the night making homemade pizza's, eating wings, and yummy spinach dip! We were all so full. I made fruit pizza for dessert. ( thought that I would stay in the theme of pizza for that night.) Then we went down stairs to try and burn off are supper playing dance dance revolution... well that lasted not too long then we played the make a movie game which is tonnes of fun! Emma couldn't get enough of watching herself on the TV! We opened pj's, and then I attempted to put Tobin to bed. Well that was a fun mess to clean up! My children have a tendency to throw up if they get too worked up...well Tobin got really worked up. It was really nasty. After the clean up, he got new pj's on. We just kept him up after that. I think it was his way of telling us he didn't want to miss anything. We attempted acting out the nativity(so much for inviting us just for Emma) she really wasn't much of a willing participant. I guess acting probably won't be in her future anytime.

We hung for a while and sang some songs and then Me and Travis and the kids headed home so

that we could go to bed and Santa could come. We got up around 8am and came up stairs. Emma was pretty excited that Santa actually came! She has talked to him several times on the phone and not always because she has been a good girl! Anyways we opened presents and then we had a breakfast that included quiche, buffalo sausages, homemade hash browns and orange juice. It was really yummy!

Christmas was lots of fun the kids had a good time and we ate lots! Hope everyone had a great holiday!

Makeover's and First Birthdays!

2009-12-20T16:17:00.000-08:00

The other day I let Emma use my makeup to give me a makeover! Boy did she have fun. Then of course it was my turn to give her one! We were so beautiful by the end. She even gave Travis a make over... his was much more masculine though!

Tobin turned 1 on the 19th of December. I can't believe he is already a year old. It seem like I just brought him home from the hospital. OK maybe not when I look at how big he is but it really has gone by fast! For his birthday we went swimming with Michele and her kids. We had a lot of fun then we went home and had supper. Then it was time for the cake. It took him a few minutes of squishing the icing between his hands... I think he needed to get a feel for what he was going to be eating. Once the first taste of icing went into his mouth he was off. He thoroughly enjoyed his cake. And we all enjoyed watching him eat it.

For his birthday he got new bath tub toys from mom and dad

and new really cute shoes from short grandma and grandpa!! That's what grandma and grandpa are called around here. We have short ones and funny ones! Emma cleverly came up with that! Anyways we had a great day and love Tobin so much. He is trying to walk and is starting to let go of things and take a few steps. He is getting braver everyday! His favorite place to sit is on the couch anywhere that Emma is sitting! And he makes sure he is right on top. He does climb up there all by himself. He is full of energy and makes lots of funny faces. Tobin has 5 maybe 6 teeth now... honestly I haven't put my finger in his mouth for a few days. Sort of a dangerous thing to do! He loves waving bu bye and saying Dada. Those are a few of the things that he is up to at the age of one. Happy Birthday Tobin we love you!

We Have An Artist!

2009-12-13T19:43:00.000-08:00

Another week has gone by and not a lot has happened other than the fact that I really havn't left the house. Like everyone has been talking about it has been stinkin cold. As much as I don't like staying in our little house, it's much warmer than going outside! I think it got down to -50 c for a few days. Thats just deathly cold! So me and the kid have just hung out at home and watched a lot of movies, colored and well one day we did go over to Mindy and Dustin's.

I went over to Mindy's to help her with her growing business. It was a lot of fun and I actually really enjoyed helping her. So of course I took Emma with me because Kyla is one of her best friends and she needed to get out and play. We left the girls upstairs to play while we worked on the letters. Well... Emma came downstairs to show me how pretty she looked! At this point it was only on her arm and I got mad at her and told not to color on her. So probably another 20mins went by and down she came again. This time it was not just on her arm but all over her other arm, face, neck, and pants. It was red and green so at least she was festive! It was one of those moments where you are just not sure if you should get mad, laugh or just take a picture. You can tell by her face in the picture that she in not too sure what's going to happen to her. Moral of my story... don't leave 3 year olds unattended for a long periods of time!!!

We are all ready for Christmas and look forward to having a relaxing Christmas with just us. We love having family around but this year we just don't have the space for anyone and Travis has to work. Next year will be a lot easier to have people come up and stay!

We do have are news letter done we just need to mail some off and send the rest with Dustin and Mindy. Hope everyone is staying warm. Put on your slippers and pour yourself a mug of hot chocolate.

Christmas Hustle and Bustle!

2009-12-08T18:12:00.000-08:00

Well December has officially begun for us. It only took me a week into the month to get the tree up and decorated. I must say my house looks lots better with the Christmas decorations than it did before. We have had a busy month already and it is just starting!

Last weekend we went out to Kevin and Michele's house for our family Christmas party. It was lots of fun. Emma had a blast dressing up. She came out in about 7 different outfits... the yellow sparkly tutu and body suit was a definite favorite that's for sure. We did a white elephant exchange... Sharisse was the luckiest this year meaning( she got my present!!! Lucky girl!) It was an electric plunger! Everybody needs one of them. Travis was the second luckiest. He opened up 4 boxes of leftover Halloween chocolate bars. Just what we need when were trying to get ourselves into shape!! We had a good time and look forward the party every year!

The next day was the Syncrude Family Christmas Party. They always have some kind of performance like a magician or puppeteer. This year was a magician. He was really good but I think the adults were more entertained than the kids! Then it was off the eat good ole hamburgers and hot dogs!MMM! After that we went to visit Santa. I really thought that Emma would go and sit on his lap this year but... there was no way! She didn't want to get close to him. We finally convinced her to sit on the stool in front of him. We put Tobin on Santa's lap and well... I think the picture speaks for itself! Oh ya lucky me got to be in it too. The kids get really good presents every year too. This year who ever bought the gifts couldn't have been more on! Emma got a barbie princess throne, it came with earring, bracelets, rings, and a necklace. She loves it. Tobin got a Winnie the Pooh toy that makes lots of noise. It was perfect for the age that he is at. And they both got a balloon that really seems to be the high light of the day!

That evening Travis and I were off the the Syncrude Adult Christmas Party. Like always tonnes of people I have never seen and a few that Travis knew. We just go there for the food. We actually left and went to a movie after dinner. It was a good night.

I think for the most part the parties are over and now I need to do a little Christmas baking. Me and Emma made some sugar cookies that turned out pretty good! I'm still searching for a really good sugar cookie recipe... does anyone have one i could try?

We are excited for Christmas and look forward to all the joy that comes with this time of the year... even the cold weather... I guess!

Our House

2009-12-03T11:44:00.000-08:00

Well here it is! This is the house that we are going build. We are still waiting on the final architectural approval and permits but, one day it will happen. I seems so far away right now and sometimes it feels like it's never going to happen.

We have been trying to get into the Christmas spirit. I took the kids to the Santa Clause parade last Saturday. We froze are butts off but we did see Santa Clause. Was it all worth it...umm Emma got to wave to Santa. Honestly I won't be doing it again unless Travis is with me. Tobin pretty much cried the whole time. Or wanted to be held... and for those of you who have held my son before know that, that is not an easy task considering he weight. Thank goodness Sharisse and Michele were there to help me with him.

This weekend is going to be a busy one. I'm planning on taking some pictures for you all to see. We have a family Christmas party on Friday and then Saturday is Syncrude's family Christmas party and the adult party in the evening. I'm hoping for some good Santa pictures of the kids! Emma told me that she wasn't going cry! I guess we'll see. I will have pictures of are Christmas tree soon too.

I would take more picture of my kids but lately all Emma will wear no matter what I do is just her panties... has anyone told her that its winter out side!!! Then when I actually force her to wear something she insists on just wearing a princess dress. Does anyone else have this problem?

Funny Looking Y's

2009-11-28T09:12:00.000-08:00

The other day me and Travis decided that we should all get are eyes checked. I needed more contacts anyways so we figured we would get Emma's done too. Every time I would tell her to pick something up she would look all over and act like she couldn't see it. Well... she can't do that anymore! I know she can see just fine. She was a little scared at first but once the eye doctor got going she was loving it. She told her every letter. Even the funny looking Y's that were actually T's but she did great!
Emma and Travis came out with perfect eyes... me well mine keep changing on me, at least one of them did!

We are all done are Christmas shopping, thank goodness because things are going to get crazy soon. Now we just have to wrap them all. Oh and I'm going to be putting up my tree in about a week. I have been holding off as long as I can so that I don't have to worry about my son pulling the tree over. I should invent baby Christmas tree barricades extra sturdy ones for larger babies!

Give Away

2009-11-18T08:09:00.000-08:00

Everyone likes free stuff so go check out the free giveaway at my sister in laws blog. Click here to go there... www.theburntdaisy.blogspot.com she has awesome home and childrens decor.

The Real Lot

2009-11-17T17:49:00.000-08:00

I posted a picture back in July of the lot we were going to buy. Our plans changed several time from build on that lot to just looking for a house already built...(that never worked out because we could never find anything that we liked and then when we found one that we liked it was way too much!) We are now back to building and are hopefully done with all the paper work! We are hoping to have a basement the beginning of December. We have picked out all the colors of the exterior and are super excited. I think it's going to look really nice.

The lot goes all the way to the fence.

The colors of our house... but picture it with black windows instead of white and a black garage door.

We are all doing good. We are renting a super small townhouse in Abasand while the house is getting built. I remind myself everyday that it is only temporary. I think I've been a little on edge and so have my kid because we are constantly on each others toes. I go crazy because I can't seem to keep it clean no matter what. Smaller places don't always mean it's easier to keep clean. There just isn't the room to put stuff anywhere! We will live through this!!

Me and Travis have started back up with volleyball. It is so nice to have something to look forward to once or twice a week to keep us sane! Other than that we have just been trying to get settled into this place.

Emma is well... she drives me crazy right now. I think we have hit the terrible 3 1/2's. She never asks nicely for anything. It's always a fight and she won't help me carry anything EVER!!! She won't eat her food at meal time and insists on having a snack 5mins after a meal. Time outs are happening like crazy, and I don't know what else to do with her. Don't get me wrong I love her and we do have good moments through out the day, I just wish that happened more often. She is very creative and loves to color and draw. She knows her letter really good and spells out the name of every store around her when we go shopping. She has definitely turned into a little spit fire lately but we love her lots.

Tobin is getting so big. He is now 28lbs at 11 1/2 months. I know huge. He just cut 4 more teeth and has the rosy cheeks right now to prove it. I caught him standing in the kitchen today for about 6 seconds. Oh the day he starts to walk...my whole house will be terrorized!!! The boy is so busy and into everything. I barricade around my treadmill so that I can actually run and he is busy the whole time trying to climb over it. Last night he actually climbed out of the tub by himself. He is just rough tough happy little boy. I love him to death!!

I'm going to try really hard to keep this up to date at least once a week. I need to take more pictures. This will be my new years resolution!!!

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-03T14:12:00.000-08:00

I know I've been taking my time getting this updated but we have been a little busy believe it or not. Since my last blog we have moved and are settled into our temporary place. It's really small and not easy to find a spot for all are stuff but it will work.

We had a great Halloween, my niece and nephew were baptised on Saturday. We were blessed that day with a wonderful snow storm that had us at a standstill for over 2 hours. It should have only been about a 5min drive to the church that morning but was really long. The hill we were stuck on was shut down because of 2 jack knifed semi's one on each side of the highway! I love winter up here. We did however make it to the church for the baptisms without any dents on are vehicle which is more than I can say for some.

That evening we went over to Dustin and Mindy's for some trick or treating. Emma has been waiting since last march for this. Almost every day she would ask if she could go trick or treating. We all bundled up and went out. Tobin fell asleep in the stroller half way through the night ( he was really into it!) Emma and Kyla had lots of fun and got tonnes of candy! We had a good time even though we had to walk through the blizzard for trick or treating!

SOLD!

2009-10-10T19:15:00.000-07:00

So most of you have already heard that are house finally sold! We are just waiting for everything to be finalized. We have to be out of are house on the 29th of october. Now I'm just packing and packing and packing. We have also been looking for a place to rent while are other house is being built. I really thought that it wouldn't be that hard to find a place but I know now why I hate renting!!! It's so stinkin expensive. We looked at a townhouse in thickwood the other day thinking that it would be just right... 3 bedrooms and a basement that we could store everything in. I found out today that it wasn't just me that was thinking about the townhouse and how well... it was pretty gross. I kept telling myself it was only temporary!! Mmm that wasn't really working! So tonight we went a looked at a basement suite. It was ok, there was somethings that were better, like the kitchen but it was pretty beat up. Monday I'm going to look at another place... It is newer and is a walk out basement suite, it costs more so we are hoping that we can cram all are stuff in it and in my sister in laws garage! Otherwise we will be looking at a storage unit! Wish me luck!

Competitive Edge?... Not Really!

2009-09-26T13:42:00.000-07:00

We took Tobin down to the mall today for the baby crawl. It's a competition for baby's between 6 and 12 months. Since Tobin is such a speed demon around the house we figured that a little healthy competition wouldn't hurt!! We signed him up yesterday and could only make the waiting list. Getting to the mall early had it's benifits though. There were some no shows so Tobin made it in! They actually had some really good prizes... 1st place- $1000 RESP, 2nd place- photo shoot, 3rd place- $500 shoping spree at Please Mum, 4th place- $200 mall certificates, and 5th place- $50 mall certificates.

We did go down very hopeful!! Travis took him to the starting line for heat #5. I went down to the other end about 16 feet away and tried to get his attention. The judge shouted GO and the babies were off... well sort of. Some other baby decided that my cell phone looked way better than the toy her mom was waving at her. Tobin sort of just sat there. Then he turned his back towards me and started picking at the duck taped lines on the carpet. He really had no interest in crawling today! Not much for competition at this age... we'll have to try again some other time. I was going to take some pictures but then he never even did anything just sat there and looked cute! Even the annoucer couldn't take her eyes off of him. She actually announced at the end that Tobin won!! Maybe for sitting and looking cute! Anyways he was a little stinker but that's ok we still love him even if he is not much for competition!

Summer Holidays and Updates!

2009-09-07T18:35:00.000-07:00

Well summer is drawing to an end... at least up here! Leaves are starting to turn and before we know it the snow will be here. We had a great summer this year. It started off with my 10 year high school reunion. It was fun to see everyone and how much they have changed, and how there family's have started to grow.

Then we were off a couple days later to start are drive to Victoria. My Dad, Mom and little brother Denim came with us. We decided to do it in 3 days, are first stop was Spokane Washington. We decided to go down throught the states because there was less windy roads and mountains, we were pulling are trailer behind the truck. Anyways we camped in Spokane at sort of a crappy little campground. Everyone let me know it too!! Nobody else stepped up to book campgrounds ( at least it was only for 1 night!) Next stop was Port Angeles. Yes for all you Twilight fans that is the place they go prom dress shopping!!! I was only about 45 mins away from Forks... unfortunately I never made it there. We caught the ferry to Victoria early the next morning.

We spent 6 great days there. Thanks so much to my cousin Kami and her family for showing us a good time and feeding us 3 or 4 nights while we were there. We went crabbing 3 of the 6 days... it was so good. I learned that I like Thai Green Mussels!! We walked around Beaconhill Park, went to the inner harbor, Travis got to go Salmon fishing in the ocean, Emma got to go to the beach and totally loved it (she threw sand in her hair everytime we set foot on some sand!) and I got to go kayaking in the ocean and jig for some super ugly fish! It was lots of fun and we really want to go back in a few years.

On are way home we drove back through B.C. which was a WAY prettier drive than through the states! We had a great time. When we got back we spent some time with family and made it to cornfest in Taber. It was so much fun but really tiring. It's good to be back and have the kids on some kind of schedule again.

Updates!

Travis is back to work as usual!!! He says he enjoys his job about 10% of the time! Sounds great. We have also had are house up for sale for a month... lots of showing and no bites. That's ok because we really have been up in the air as to what we want to do. I know last you all heard we had a lot picked out and a house that we wanted to build... well we change are minds a lot!! Anyways we started looking around for a house just to buy but have now realized that there really is nothing that we like that's with in are price range!!! We have found a house that we are just waiting on the price of... I really do have a feeling that it's going to be too much!! Are other option is to build that house on a cheaper lot some where else. I'll let you know how all the house stuff is going when we finally come to a decision.

I have been hanging out with my kids, watching them learn a grow everyday. I'm trying to finish a baby blanket for my sister that is scheduled for a c-section in a week! Not a whole lot going on with me!

Emma is my little proper princess!!! At least in front of people. Grandma's just couldn't get enough of Emma's simple "Yes" to all the questions that she was asked. She loves dressing up and eating snacks. I threaten her at dinner time that if she doesn't eat her veggies that she is going to get scurvy!! She really doesn't want it!! We also found out Emma's reaction to her Daddy being cheap! Travis and I were talking in the truck... I mentioned that because Emma likes princesses so much that she probably is going to want pretty expensive wedding. Travis responded with a "who's going to pay for it!" I turned around at told Emma that her dad was going to be cheap when it was time for her wedding. Emma burst into tears and started bawling. It was so funny.

Tobin is now sitting, crawling, and trying to stand up. He cut 2 teeth while we were on holidays... it was lots of fun confined to a trailer while it was all going on! He is almost 8 1/2 months and is already a little tease. Tobin is about 25lbs (trust me my back can tell!) He is a really busy little boy and I can tell he just wants to run!

We are all doing great and had a good summer.

Spray Park 2

2009-07-24T15:33:00.000-07:00

Sharisse enjoying some sun!!

Ava looking so cute.

Me and my kidlets!

Tobin all tuckered out!

Spray Park!!

2009-07-24T14:59:00.000-07:00

One of the best things about Fort McMurray is the spray parks around town. There are 4 of them around the city! We decided to venture out today to the other side of the city to the waterways spray park. It was so hot today about 32 degrees C. We lasted about an hour and half and got too hot and decided to call it a day. Unfortunatly I never did get any of the kids actually in the water. First off Emma didn't want anything to do with the water and second there was some really great parks to play on. Today the park won out. I realize now that I never even got a picture of the spray park in any of the pictures! Oh well... they really do exist!

Presley in Pink and Jaycie in blue... with there momma Mindy.

Kyla... Mindy's oldest daughter.

Let The Building Begin... Soon!

2009-07-11T18:19:00.000-07:00

Okay maybe not right now but hopefully it will all start soon. Just to let you all know this is what my blog is probably going to be about for the next hopefully only 9 months or less. We are going to be putting up are house for sale here very soon. I'm actually kinda sad and will miss my little house. Mostly just because it is the first house that we have bought. It's been a great starter house but we are most definately out growing it. We do have house plans picked out and are just waiting for everything to be approved. We do have a lot reserved and are almost ready to buy that. I'm getting really excited and can't wait to actually get started... once there is a hole in the ground where that giant mud puddle is maybe it will become real!

Summer Begins!

2009-07-05T19:40:00.000-07:00

We just got back from are first week of holidays. It was great. We went to Waterton first to break in our new trailer. Jody and Damon met us there and camped for 2 nights with us. We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather. Then we were off to Raymond for July 1st. We hung out with lots of family and ate tonnes of good food. After Raymond we went out to Taber and took the kids swimming. It was actually Tobins first time swimming and I didn't even have my camera with me. We had lots of fun and will be home now for about 4 weeks then it is off to Victoria for a couple of weeks. I love summer.

This is what a man will do for ice cream!!!! BRRRRR!!

Nothing beats skipping rocks on waterton lake!

Tobin loves being outside!

This is what a 14 yr old will do for ice cream! Go Denim!

Look at that form! It skipped at least 14 times!

How To Get a Kid to Eat An Apple!! & And Other Random Pictures

2009-06-25T08:37:00.000-07:00

Today I was talking on the phone with my mom. Emma came over and was bugging me for a snack. I told her to go and get a muffin off the counter. Apparently muffins aren't snacks! I haven't been to the grocery store for a while because we are going on holidays this Sunday and I'm trying to use up what we got. So anyways my mom told me to make Emma an Apple Bird. Its amazing she ate the entire apple.
I haven't put up any pictures of the kids for awhile. Emma is still very into dressing like a princess... only she comes up with her own outfits. The outfits are very pretty! Tobin is my big boy. He had his 6month shots yesterday. He now weighs 23lbs 2oz. We actually had to go and buy a bigger car seat for him yesterday because he is too big for the other one. He has started on solid food and what can I say ... He loves it. It feels like I just had Tobin and he is already 6months old and the size of a toddler! I love my kids so much.

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T13:48:00.000-07:00

I just want to say Happy Father's Day to all the great Dads out there. I'm so greatful for the Dad that I have and the example he has been to me through out my life. I remember going on fishing trips with him and loving to just hang out and be with him. He has taught me so much and I thank him for that. I hope that my kids get to have some of the same experiences that I had with my Dad with there's. I also hope that they will get to have some fun times with there grandpa that I had growing up. I hope that they realize how wise there grandpa is and can have a great relationship with him. I love you so much Dad!

I also I'm so greatful for a husband that works so hard and helps me out tonnes. He is so kind and thoughtful. My kids absolutely adore their Dad. He means so much to us. Travis you make us proud everyday. You always put the family before anything else and I love you so much for that. Hope you have a great day. We love you lots. XOXOXOX

We've Come To A Decision!

2009-06-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

Over the last month I have been doing some real thinking. Yes we have been saying for a long time now that we want to move out of Fort McMurray and be closer to family. It would be great to be closer to family and one day we still want that but right now we aren't going to be going anywhere. I was think about where I want to be. The weirdest part about that was I couldn't picture us down south yet. All I could think about was staying up here in Fort Mac. So me and Travis made the decision that we are going to be here for at least another 10 years! I know SHOCKER!! I know some of you are like "ya we figured you would be here for that long!!" Anyways we have been looking into building a house. We are out growing this one and kept telling ourselves that if we were here for only 3 more years we could tough it out. Well 10 years is pushing it to tough it out. We are running out of space and if we add another kid in a few years we're going to be really squished. This October we can sell are house. We have been looking like crazy lately into all the builder up here and have picked out a few floor plans. We have some more to check out today. We were looking at show homes the other day and I totally fell in love with a house. I loved everything about it... except for one thing... the price. It was only $959 000!!!!! Of course it was because it was almost perfect! It could very well be my dream house one day. I'll update you more about are house search over the next few months. Oh ya and are Florida trip that we were going to take... well I had to choose a new house or Florida... Ummm I'm not dumb I obviously I'm going to chose the house! Here's to 10 more fabulous years in Fort Mac!!!

Things Kids Say!!

2009-06-06T17:55:00.001-07:00

You know how kids say things just the way they are. Well let me tell you 2 things that Emma has recently said. I like how people have written the dialogue like a script so here you go.

Me: Good girl Emma for pooping in the potty.
My sister ( she is on the phone with me): Was it a big poo?
Me: Yup it was a pretty big log.
Emma: It's not a log mommy, it's a poop!

Ya that was pretty funny and is one of her quotes that I don't think I'm going to ever forget!

Then today we were all laying on my bed and Travis had just gotten out of the shower and had on a pair or shorts with no top, he has some chest hair! This is how this conversation went.

Emma: You gots lots of hair Daddy.
Travis: Yup I do
Mom: Ya he's got a lot. Hey Emma we should put pony tails in it.
Emma: No put messy buns in it.
Mom: Ya those are better than just pony tails.

Anyone that knows Emma knows that is her favorite way to wear her hair. Needless to say we never did get any pictures of messy buns on Travis's chest, but it would have been funny to see. From the mind of a 3 year old. She is also quite into her dress up clothes. I found her one day dressed a little swanky too... I got mad at her and told her to put her clothes back on. She had no idea what was wrong with what she was wearing. Try and picture this... She had all her clothes off except her panties and then she was wearing a little black tutu as a skirt then she has this little purple tulle fairy skirt( totally see through) and she was wearing it as a tube top! Honestly I have no idea where she came up with that outfit, it sure wasn't from me!!! Emma and her dressing up are a whole other post! The things they do. On another note she is fully potty trained and has been wearing panties to be now for the last 2 nights dry, her pull ups have been dry every night for the last hmm I don't know how many months. She is great... I love her to bits and there is never a dull day when she is around!

Our Edmonton Getaway

2009-05-30T11:06:00.000-07:00

Travis and I went on a little 3 day holiday that was well needed. Oh ya it was without kids. Travis's sister watched Emma and Tobin for us, we were so greatful that she did that for us. We stayed at the Fantasyland hotel in the Roman room. It was really nice. We went to the waterpark, got those aqua massages and saw a movie every night. We also went travel trailer shopping. We hit up 5 dealerships in about 2 hrs and eventually went back to the first place we started. Camping is going to be great now with kids. We tried tenting it 2 years ago and that was it. We decided to never do it again until the kids are older. It was a great trip with out the kids, I was pretty anxious to see them though by the time we got back. I think Tobin got way bigger while we were gone. The kid is getting huge!

1/2 Done Life!

2009-05-25T15:26:00.000-07:00

So lately I feel like everything I do is half done. It's crazy how much harder it is to get stuff done when you have a baby and a 3 year old. I start the dishes and get interrupted and have to go and feed a baby then I get sidetracked with something else. I'll start laundry and forget about getting that all done because I need to put the baby down for a nap and that takes about 1/2 an hour because heaven forbid he'll just go to sleep the first time. By the time the baby is sleeping Emma needs a snack and won't stop asking until I get one for her then she has to play with mom, which is fine because I like to play with her and would rather do that then clean. Then I try to go outside and pull the dandelions out of the lawn because there are more of them than actual grass!! Emma comes outside with me and gets mad because I'm pull out all the pretty yellow flowers. The we get most of them out I think they multiply as you pull them out too. So in between pulling weeds I'm in and out of the house because Tobin still hasn't decided to fall asleep and is crying... when I finally think he is asleep I go back outside and start the lawn mower, mow part of the lawn and have to go back in because Tobin is awake and ready to get up... Its been about 10 mins since I thought he was napping! This post is making me tired. So my laundry is only half done, my dish are half done, the weeds are a little more than half done and my lawn is half mowed.... fewwwwwwwwwwwwwwsh... what a day, oh and after ever sentence I've had to go and roll Tobin off his stomach because he can't get back on his back when he rolls and he gets really mad! That was a lot of verbal diarrhea! And on top of all this Emma is now only half dressed!

Families Are Forever

2009-05-20T16:13:00.000-07:00

So I have to start by thanking Mindy for telling me about the awesome shabby blog website. It is awesome. I was just looking through the blinkers and stuff like that when I saw the one that says "Families are Forever". I couldn't agree more with that. I have especially been thinking about that this month as I have for the last 4 years. Tomorrow May 21 is a specially hard day for me. This is the day that my son Ethan passed away. He was born on the 2 of this month. Most of you know the story of what happened. He was born very premature (14weeks early) and developed some complications. Me and Travis had to make the decision to take him off life support. The hardest thing that we have ever had to do. I know I never wrote anything about mother's day so I'm going to tell you about the most special one that I have had so far. The first time that I got to hold Ethan was actually on mother's day. What a great day that was to finally hold my son. I'm so glad that we have the knowledge that we do about family's being forever. Knowing that Ethan will be are son forever and we will get the chance to raise him is a great blessing to me. Life doesn't always seem fair. Challenges and trials get thrown at us all the time. Some are definitely worse than others but we all learn and grow from these things. If only we could see the big picture it would all make more sense. No matter what happens we will always have family. I'm so grateful for my family and for all the love and support that they gave us during the biggest trial that I hope we have to go through. I know there will be more trials and we will learn and grow. We cannot progress without it. Ethan we love you and miss you every day. We look forward to the day that we can all be together as a family. I love you and your Daddy loves you so much. What a great day that will be to hold you in our arms again.

"We held you in are arms now we hold you in are hearts"

The Challenge!!!

2009-05-16T20:39:00.000-07:00

So me and Travis have created a new blog all about are weight loss challenge. Check out www.skinnyminiandersons.blogspot.com Its gonna be fun....who I'm I kidding it's gonna suck but we are doing it together and that's what counts.

Baby Boys!!!

2009-05-07T15:31:00.000-07:00

So the other day Travis was getting Tobin ready to have a bath. Most of you know that he is kinda chubby!!! Ok he's a lot chubby but I love it. Anyways Travis had all of his clothes off and thought he would be funny... he held Tobin up and said to me "Look at that cute chubby little bum!" It really is a cute little bum but, Tobin's timing couldn't have been better. Right after Travis said that, Tobin peed all over Travis's shirt. It really was too funny! I think Trav learned his lesson that night.

Tobin's Second Haircut!

2009-05-01T09:47:00.000-07:00

I know I'm a bad Mom and missed his first haircut... well I didn't miss it because I cut it I just forgot to take pictures. That is ok though because the second one is way more drastic. Tobin had a lot of hair on top of his head and a lot of patchy spots all the way around. So I took the clippers to it. I love rubbing his little brush cut!! He is such a happy little guy. He rolled over for the first time the other day. 3 times in a row from his tummy to his back. Tobin is starting to grab toys and loves to chew on his little toy puppy! He has had quite the rosey cheeks the last few days so it wouldn't surprise me if a tooth shows up sometime in the next month. I can't believe how big he is getting. Time really does fly.

Before the hair cut...

After the hair cut.

My Emma Turned 3!

2009-04-27T14:14:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how big she is getting. 3 years old already. I love her to bits. She is such a nice little girl to everyone. Emma still doesn't care much to hold her brother. I think she is just waiting for him to get big enough to run around and play with. Although she is not really into him that much she still is concerned about him and where he is. She likes to give him toys and make him happy. Emma loves to help me clean the house... unless it involves putting her toys and stuff away! She had a great birthday party with her two favorite cousins Logan and Kyla. We had lots of fun ate lots of cake. We still have lots of cake... anyone hungry?!!! Here's a few pictures from the party. Everyday she makes us laugh, somedays she cries, and somedays I want to cry too. We have a great time and couldn't imagine our lives without our cutie pie Emma.

Just a Little Funny Story!

2009-04-22T09:02:00.000-07:00

So last night I was on my way to play volleyball and it was raining. Naturally I turned on my windshield wipers and I thought all was good. I kept on driving and got to a big hill. For those of you who don't live in fort mac... there is no where to pull over on the hills once you are on your way down. So anyways I got to a stop light just before I went down the hill and noticed that my wiper was getting a little loose. I didn't really think anything of it... even though this little voice in my head was saying maybe you should fix it. "Nahhhh I'll be fine it's not that far to volleyball" I said to myself. Well sure enough just as I get to the point of no return on the hill I go to wipe off my window and there goes my wiper flying through the air! It was pretty funny. I don't think the truck behind me thought it was though... he totally swerved out of the way like a log flew at him. At least I didn't get any crazy looks or the finger from him. Just a little reminder when you see your window wiper come loose it's best to stop and fix it. So for all of you that live in Fort Mac if you are driving down confederation hill and you see a wiper blade on the road... its mine!

Emma and Tobin

2009-04-15T08:13:00.000-07:00

Wow how great it feels to finally be home. I was expecting to be home last Thursday but an unexpected event occured and we had to stay longer. My grandpa Francis passed away last wednesday evening. We knew that eventually it was going to happen just not that fast. He was always such a happy man. He always had a good candy stach for the grandkids... and himself. I loved his huge bear huges and wet juicy kisses on the cheek. I'm going to miss him. If I would have known this was going to happen I would have given him a message to send tell Ethan.

Travis got to fly down on Friday... thank goodness he finally got some days off. And I was happy that I didn't have to drive home alone.

While I was down south Emma got to go to the dentist and get her teeth fixed. She did well doesn't remember a thing! They did have to freeze her when she was out and she hated the feeling of it coming out. Also she bit her lip and it swelled up to the size of a small basketball!!! I had pictures booked for them too while we were down there. I was sure hoping the swelling went down before them!! I was pretty good by picture time. Here are a few of the pictures we had done. I think they turned out great.

You can see just how much Emma loves to hold her little brother. She was bribed with fruit snacks for this picture!!

The Doodlebops!!

2009-04-02T14:33:00.000-07:00

So I'm down here in Taber and it's nice to not see any snow!! I almost forgot what the grass looked like. Anyways we stopped off in Vermillion to go to the Doodlebops concert. I have never heard so many little kids yelling and screaming all in one place! It was so crazy. Emma loved it. She wasn't quite brave enough to stand up and dance. She did loosen up a little at the end! I'm at my parents house and can't download my photo's yet. Oh there will be pictures! You'll just have to wait for another week.
Emma also got to go to the dentist for the second time. Luckly this time she got to sleep through the whole thing so the dentist could actually do something. She ended up with a few fillings. Thank goodness she never go sick from the anestetic. She did good. She faught me for a few minutes but when she breathed in the gas it wasn't long before she was nice and relaxed! It's funny how they know something is up even before you stop the truck. We pulled up to the dental office in the back... and she was yelling "no, no, no...." How she knew where we were at 6:45am beats me! I'll post more about my trip when we get home.

MMMMM Cupcakes!!

2009-03-20T13:42:00.000-07:00

I was decorating cupcakes today and thought that I would share them with you!! Well not actually give them to you to eat but taste with your eyes! Actually some of you will get one tomorrow. Anyways the flowers just reminded me of spring. I needed something in my window sill to look at other than the 3feet of snow outside! Happy Spring.

My New Do!

2009-03-19T07:44:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I went over to Mindy's just to get my ends trimmed and color my hair. Little did I know I would be coming out with a new cut! I havn't had bangs forever, and when I did have bangs well lets just say that it was early 90's. You know that awkward stage around grade 7 when you wanted to grow out your bangs but you still had erges every now and then to "style" them. You know what style I'm talking about... a curling iron, back comb and a lot of hairspray to make them stay cause remember you are trying to grow them out and they are getting sort of long. Ya not real great memories. Anyways you'll probably look at the picture and be like... those arn't bangs Jill! Thats what Mindy said! But its the closet thing to them in about 15 yrs! Eww that sounds old! I really like the new cut though. It's great, thanks Mindy.

Oh Yeah! There's a Giveaway!!

2009-03-14T11:01:00.000-07:00

So you should all go and check out my sister in laws new website http://theburntdaisy.blogspot.com Comment on it and you are in a draw for a great prize! I know its great because I've seen them up close. She actually made Tobin's name for me when he was born! Such a nice person! Anyway's the projects she is doing is awesome I recommend you all go and look at it.

First Smiles!

2009-03-13T12:01:00.000-07:00

Tobin has been smiling now for about a month but it has taken me this long to capture it on camera. He is growing so fast, I feel like the baby stage is zooming by. It seem like yesterday he was just born... until I pick him up and feel my back almost go out!! He is a heavy weight there is no doubt about that.

I also finally got Emma to hold Tobin for a picture together! Its only taken me about 3 months to convince her that she wanted a picture with him.

The Days the Furnace Crapped Out!!

2009-03-10T07:18:00.000-07:00

Now I say DAYS cause of course it couldn't just be one day!!! Here we are in March... supposedly days are supposed to warm up, snow should be melting, and we should get rain instead of more snow... lots more snow. But then I have to remind myself that March never turns out like this and we do live in Fort McMurray so of course we would be getting -40 weather!
So on sunday Travis and the kids came home from church and the house was cold. Apparently while we were gone the furnace decided not to work! And it was freezing outside! The temperature was dropping in the house and we didn't know what to do to fix it. Luckly we have a guy in are ward at church that works with heating and air conditioning. We called him and he came right over. He told Travis to turn off the breaker so that the house wouldn't cool down as fast. When Jeff came over they turned the breaker back on the way it went... everything seemed to be working fine. Then... yesterday I was folding clothes thinking man its getting cold in here... I went and looked at the temperature and we were falling again. So me being the handy person that I am went downstairs turned off the breaker and called Travis! I know i'm so handy!!! HaHa. Anyways Travis told me to call Jeff again so I did. And once again he came over and turned the breaker back on... but this time in didn't work. I was like the flame would egnite then go out just like if the gas had been cut off... Dont worry the gas billed did get paid. It crossed my mind trust me! Apparently there is something in your furnace that if there is dust on it, it won't work. So I had Jeff come all the way over to wipe some dust out of my furnace! All in all we are still warm today so far! It's been crazy. We had a family over for dinner sunday and thought that we might have to eat on the floor all huddled together around the stove.
We are all doing good now and things worked out... thankgoodness for Jeff the furnace guy.

Tobin's Blessing Day

2009-02-27T14:45:00.000-08:00

Tobin was blessed on Feb 22. It was a really nice day once we got out the door for church!! Of course because he was all dressed in white he had to have one of those really disgusting poops and when I went to change that I didn't have any wipes left so while Travis was getting the wipes, Tobin peed all over himself. It was great!!!

After we got home from church we wanted to get some family pictures. Emma was mad and cried lots because she wanted her blanket. Tobin was screaming in some of the pictures. Finally we got some that weren't too bad. Emma wasn't happy in any of them! The best one is now the big picture on the top of the blog.

Tobin is growing so fast! He weighs 15lb 1oz. I know he's huge! I'm expecting a really big boy. Travis is sure that Tobin will be bigger than him. He's got a good start anyways. His head however is not at big as Emma's was!! She's got a big noggin!! Tobin's is in the 65%. I know my baby's are big and grow fast but at least they are healthy and strong. I'm going to get a shot of Tobin smiling too. He started at about 7 weeks. And on Sunday he started laughing for the first time. It was so cute. I love my kids, they are the best part of my life!! Travis rates up there pretty high too!

Our Best Trip Ever!

2009-02-14T18:02:00.000-08:00

Okay so maybe not are best trip ever. After the first night we were wondering if we should have even gone down to Edmonton. I got sick with this nasty flu that hit me like a tonne of bricks! I had really bad chills and couldn't stop coughing. But... because I'm a Mom I had to tough it out. We took are car to have a tune up and a remote starter put in. (Probably the best thing that happened on the trip!) We were shuttled over to the west ed mall to pass the day away. We took Emma on some rides which she liked once they started. I would post pictures but we left the camera in the car at the shop! So no pictures sorry. The we took her to see the Sea Lions which was actually a pretty good show. We got Emma's picture taken beside one of them and paid to have it emailed to my account... well it hasn't shown up yet. So again no pictures of that either.

I was so glad when we finally got back to the hotel so that I could just lay on the bed and do nothing. The next day after not having much sleep we got up and took Emma to the Space and Science center. (Thanks for the suggestion Lindsay it was great). Emma had lots of fun until just to top off my day... (just so you know before I tell you what happened Emma was in the bathroom with me about 5 mins before the best part of are trip happened!) We were in an area called the discovery corner for little kids. In here they have giant building blocks and water tables and a giant piano that you walk on! Travis took Emma to see the water stuff and ... well when he turned around to get Emma's attention... she got his! Her pants were soaked. Travis thought that it was just water from the toys, then he felt it and it was warm! Of course we had no other pants for her. We did have extra underwear and a pull up. It made me so mad because I had a pair of jeans in my hands at Old Navy the day before and put them down cause I was like I'll just get them when we go to south common! So we had to wrap her pants around her legs and make her sit in her stroller with no pants on only a pull up! It was a serious gong show!

Oh and then the next day we never made it to south common for more shopping. We were all too sick and just wanted to come home! Really we should have just stayed and hybernated in are house for the week! But I do have a nice warm car to get into now... I guess one good thing came out of are trip.

My Little Fashion Co-ordinator!

2009-02-04T19:55:00.000-08:00

So my daughter has a thing with clothes. Most of you know that she went through a phase of not wearing anything but her diaper. Well since she has been potty trained she now goes through her dressing looking for anything she can wear! Her personal favs are her princess dresses! Luckly she hasn't asked to wear them to church... yet! Today I decided to take some pictures of her in all her wonderful outfits. Just so you know this was just some of the many that she wore.

When she came out in her swimming suit she asked to go swimming... the best I could do was fill the tub and let her swim at home. There is never a dull moment at my house with her around, especially because I never know what she is going come out of her room in. Some days she has a very unique style ( lots of layering!) I love her to death though.

A New Family Picture!

2009-01-27T12:37:00.001-08:00

Just so you all know I do realize how awful my family picture is on here right now! I'm really hoping to get a better one up after Tobins blessing. We are blessing him Feb 22. Maybe by then there will be less bags under are eyes.

Its been hard I'm not going to lie, trying to adjust to a new baby. Tobin loves to savor his food. It takes him almost 1hr to eat in the middle of the night, and then he likes to poop sometime in the middle of that! So then I change him again and sure enough he is wide a wake again. So then we go back to eating again. At least when Travis is on nights I can lay in bed and watch TV. Honestly though there is really nothing on a 3am except for well... Treehouse! and advertisements. I thought maybe if I watched the P90X ad for while it would motivate me to exercise... actually at that time of night it just makes me way more tired!! Ok I'm done with the baby complains!! I do love having Tobin. He is a little cutie pie and is really a good baby. Its gonna be weird giving kid a hair cut before there 2years old! I'll have to put up a more recent picture of him to show you all how much his hair has grown in the last few weeks.

Emma is doing good. She is a little sweety and loves to help me out. She goes and gets everything for me. She has been potty training and is doing really good with the pee thing... the poop thing is another story. Why are kids afraid to poop in the toilet? If anyone has any insight on why that is or knows a secret to get them to go in it I would really love to hear it. Emma is really into dressing up in her princess dresses and loves make up. We have a friend that works down at walmart and she gave Emma christmas present with barbie chap stick in it. You know that kind of chap stick that is really pink and DOES show up when you put it on. I'll post a picture... I'm sure you will know what i'm talking about! Anyways she is adjusting good to being a big sister and as of now doesn't want to share her room with Tobin. I don't think she is going to have a choice soon! I'll let you know how that adventure goes.

Tobin Philip Anderson

2009-01-25T16:28:00.000-08:00

Well it has been quite sometime now that I have actually updated my blog... so today is the day!! Thanks to Mindy my blog has a new look, who knew it was so easy!

We had a new little one join our family on Dec 19, 2008. This came as a little bit of a surprise as my originial due date was January 13, 2009. I had gone into the hospital a few weeks before he was born because of contractions. I found out then that my blood pressure was pretty high and they wanted to watch that closely. Well after a week and a half it was still high and getting worse. I had toximia. I was told that they were going to enduce me Dec 23. Nice date I know... could they get it anymore close to Christmas! I was begging them to induce me even just a day earlier so that I could be home for Christmas. Well Dec 18 my last blood test came back not good so... we were off to the hospital to be enduced and I had him at 10:26 am on the 19th of Dec. Tobin Philip Anderson was born 3 1/2 weeks early and weighed 8lb 6oz. I know my little preemie that they weren't expecting to be even 7lbs. I shocked the nurses and especially the doctor. He is a pretty good baby he just needs to decide the night time is the time to sleep!

Emma thinks he's ok now... it took a few weeks to convince her! She is now the first one to him when he starts to cry or needs something. She is a great big sister! We are all doing good and are healthy and tired!!! We love are new little man.

Emma's First Hair Cut

2008-08-30T12:13:00.001-07:00

I know I have been really slow at updating this blog but we have been gone on holidays and have been trying to get organized ever since. I do know what my baby is but I won't be posting that until next week some time to feel free to give me your guesses!!

So the other day I was cutting Travis's hair and decided that it was time for Emma to finally get hers cut too. Actually it worked out good. She watched Travis get his cut then she got right up on the chair and was ready for her turn. She sat really good through the whole thing too. It seem way shorter to me now even though I only took off about an inch. I really didn't know what was doing either. Kids are so brave... at least they don't really care what it looks like when your done!! I was fun though. Emma also went through a lot of firsts this last week. She moved to her big girls bed and also had to give up the soother. I think the bed wasn't really hard part for her it was the loss of the sucky!! I actually cut the top off which works really good! She won't suck on it at all. She keeps telling me that her "sucky is broken , it has an owy" She is getting so big now and is really excited about the new baby coming. She puts her head on my tummy and talks to it all the time. I'll try and get some vacation pictures up soon. I do actually have most of them on facebook. You can check them out there.

Pool Party!!

2008-06-23T14:38:00.001-07:00

We had are first annual pool party the other day. We actually thought the pool was bigger than it really was. It really looked bigger on the box! Sharisse brought her boys and we all had some fun in the sun. The girls suntanned for about 20 seconds with me. Just long enough to take a picture. We finished it off with lots of popsicles. It was a great afternoon minus the tar sand beetles that sound like helicopers when they fly around... i'll have to get a good picture of one of them so everyone who hasn't seen one will know what i'm talking about!! There really gross. And yes I do realize how white I am... there is a reason that i'm trying to get some color. If that is possible!

Baby News!!

2008-05-26T12:25:00.000-07:00

So I thought I would post the news that we have a baby on the way!!! I'm due January 13th 2009. We are really excited and hope everything works out great. I have been feeling a little bit more sick with this one than with any of my other pregnancies. Mostly at night though so thankfully I can sleep it off during the night. Emma knows where the baby is but thinks if she lifts up my shirt she'll find it. I'm about 7 weeks along now. I'll post picture soon of a belly shot. Not that there is lots to see yet but its fun anyways.

Emma's 2nd Birthday!

2008-05-12T09:46:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how fast the time goes by. It feels like she just had her first birthday. We had lots of fun celebrating Emma's second birthday. Her cousin came to enjoy the cake with her.

Emma is starting to talk lots more now. She still has somethings that she says in her own little language, but we starting to figure out more of what she is saying which is making her life and our life easier. She is growing up so fast and is getting bigger everyday. Emma loves to play at the park and go for walks. She is a happy kid and we love her tonnes!

The Extravaganza!

2008-04-18T12:43:00.000-07:00

I caught you two!!

The Sweet Smell of Baby Powder!

2008-04-18T12:24:00.000-07:00

Well I had a great day today. I was watching both Emma and Kyla while Mindy went for her weekly appointment at the hospital. All was good until I was talking on the phone with my Mom and noticed a white cloud in the kitchen!! I caught both girls standing covered in white, my floor was totally white and it smelled really good! I think what they were trying do was change the dolls diaper. There were wipes pulled out too. These are the kind of moments where you either cry or just laugh and go get the camera!! I've mopped the floor twice now and will be doing it a third time this afternoon. There is a white film all over everything. I love my daughter! Especially the extra work that she creates for me. I love cleaning!! Yeah right!! Heres some shots of the powder extravaganza!!

I Finally Did It!!

2008-04-15T21:08:00.000-07:00

So there has been a few people asking me to make a blog... well here it is. I can't guarantee that it will be updated all the time but I will try my best and I have Mindy living with me to make me do it! Not a lot is new with us we were busy the last few months trying to finish off the basement so that Dustin and Mindy would have a place to live. Its about 80% done and has carpet so it is liveable!

We have been having a good time having family living up here close. Travis has 2 sisters that live here too so we do have family to hang out with. The snow finally melted enought that we can go outside and go for walks and play at the park. Emma loves going outside. She is getting so big and has her 2nd birthday coming up on the 24th. I can't believe she is already 2. The years go by so fast. Kyla and Emma get along good when Emma's not whining and Kylas not hitting her! I think they have a love hate relationship! They are still trying to get used to each other and adjust to the living and sharing with each other. Hopefully it will come in time!

I'm going to post some pictures here over the next few days. Wish me luck in keeping up on this blog thing!