Auntie Jen plays baseball

...although there is no photographic proof, the hazzard of always being behind the camera I guess.

Justin and Isaac love baseball...I mean they really LOVE baseball. We played countless games in the backyard. (They grey cement block wall is where my eye received the lovely purple and green hue that still persists almost 2 weeks later)


We walked to the park one day and came across a baseball diamond, so of course we played there too. And on the last day we all went again...Tobin hung out in the stroller, quite happily watching, Kiah took turns batting, pitching and running with Auntie Jen, Mommy and Daddy. Justin & Isaac were superstars! They were on 1 team and the adults were on another team. I think at last count, they beat us eleventy-teen to four. :)

stephens on weekend

Happy Birthday Tobin

Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday dear Tobin
Happy Birthday to you

Recent Pic:
6 Months Ago: And only 1 year ago, this little sweetie was born:

Winterfest

Our little town had a wonderful Winterfest Festival this past weekend. We went with our friends whose kids are the same ages as Owen and Isabelle...they all had a blast! The weather was perfect - cool but not too cold and sunny with blue skies. It was nice to spend some time outside doing fun, family things. Here are my favourite pics of our day.
There was a giant bouncy-castle slide:
A standard bouncy-castle for bouncing:
Batting practice with a floating ball - kids thought this was super cool:
Other outdoor activities included dog sledding, spray painting the snow with coloured water, hockey, ice skating, horse-drawn carriage rides and watching an ice sculpturer in action:There were also a ton of indoor activities, crafts to make and face painting:

Conversation with a 2 year old

Me "Time to get dressed"
Isabelle "No like my dressed"
Me "Please take off your jammies"
Isabelle "My like it my jammies"
Me "Isabelle, Mommy has to get ready for work. Please take your pajamas off"
Isabelle (runs to bed and starts jumping) "I jumping"
Me "I am going to count to 5. Get off the bed and take your pajamas off." "1...2..."
Isabelle (still jumping with wild crazy hair flying) "free...five...eleven...six...seven..."
Me (laughing) "OK. Mommy is going to get dressed and then it will be Bella's turn"
Isabelle "No like my dressed" "I jumping"

The theatre came to me last night

No getting swindled on ticket prices by Ticketmaster, no spending a fortune on a babysitter, no need to get showered and all dolled up...the theatre came to me last night. The kids treated me to a wonderfully original puppet show last night. We have had these 2 dragon puppets forever and they are finally getting some use. Owen started our evening off with a wonderful little Snow Miser & Heat Miser number (inspired by his favourite Christmas this year). The blue one was Snowy and the orange one was Hotey. They sang songs, had a little fight and were told to behave by their mom (Mother Nature) who was not "in" the play in person - just in voice. I love that he thought this whole idea up on his own, so original, so creative. Here the brothers are either in the midst of a fight or are making up...I cannot honestly remember:
Then Isabelle went behind the blanket and put on her own show. We are assuming she held the puppets up, but we could not see them. She made some noises, played the piano a little and then came out from underneath and clapped. It was too sweet. Notice her feet below the puppet theatre:We had a lot of laughs, took tons of photos and just had a wonderfully simple creative night...my favourite!

{edited} Thinking of making some sock puppets tonight...might be a fun craft to do, get the kids sewing on buttons for eyes, practicing with scissors to cut out felt ears...look for more on that tomorrow hopefully.

Simple Kids Blog

I had to post this...it is a wonderful blog that just started and I adore it! They are having a giveaway right now that is simply wonderful. Click on the link and enter to win the wonderful prizes.
http://simplekids.net/giveaway-hearth-song-exclusive-triplet/comment-page-1/#comment-95

Responsibility

We, the parents, have been thinking a lot about responsibility recently. Our kids lead a pretty cushy life and neither of us want them to end up spoiled or never knowing how great it feels when you do a hard job and you do it well. I noticed over the Christmas break that Owen, and to some extent Isabelle, were content to spend hours in front of the TV, often choosing that over going outside to play, or even playing board games...this was a shocker for us and I sadly realized that I have let this happen...I, the parent, am responsible. Making the kids responsible for things around the house has never been our strong suit...they both put their clothes in the hamper...sometimes, they hang up their coats and put away their boots after playing outside...sometimes, Owen puts his dishes in the dishwasher after meals...rarely, they clean up their own toys...sometimes. It has not been something that we have focused on, but all that is behind us. A while ago I talked about New Year's Resolutions and one of mine is to focus on raising the kids the way we want to...not just going with the flow and letting things happen...to be purposeful and deliberate in our parenting choices. For me, that means - more outside - less inside...more creative play - less tv/video games...more board games and card games - less "mama is busy, we'll do that later"...more earning tv / video time - less hours spent mindlessly watching.

So, in that vein, I have created a Chore Chart for Owen. He is 5 years old and has 5 things to do in the morning before school, 5 things to do after school and 5 things to do before bed at night, also there is a Daily Extra - one for each day of the week. I presented this idea to Owen last night and it was met with excietment, this is a good thing. He read through the list and was thrilled to be responsible for getting the mail and packing his own snack. He was less than thrilled about cleaning the toilet (plugged his nose and made a funny face) but we talked about how mommy always has to clean up his 'dribbles' and how this will be a good way for him to learn to do it himself.
We started today with 5 checkmarks before I left for work this am - good start! We will check in in a week or so and update you on our progress.

The last of the flashbacks...onwards to 2009

There are so many great things happening around here right now and I have not blogged them because in my mind, I had to complete my December flashback posts before moving on. I really wanted to do a comprehensive review of December...it was fantastic...but I am letting that go. Here is the last 'flashback' post I am going to do - December 21,24-25 and that will be it. After this we are moving forward...to 2009.

Christmas Day
Adrian and I both said that Christmas Day this year was exactly what we wanted it to be. Full of fun for the kids, very low key, minimal time spent cooking the big dinner, more time playing with the kids, time for quiet reflection...really just a perfect day. Here are some of my favourite shots:Owen reading the letter Santa left. I love this shot because he is really reading, I am amazed at how advanced his reading has become over the past few months - he is now reading at a Grade 2 level!
Isabelle eating her Chocolate "B"...Owen figured that Santa couldn't find an "I" for Isabelle, so he got a "B" for Bella. She ate that chocolate B all day on and off...dropping it on the floor when she had enough and picking it up a little later.
These are presents that Owen picked out for me - a purple flashlight because it would match my shirt and a fire starter so I would not burn myself anymore. Side Story: a few weeks prior to this I was lighting a fire and when striking the match, the flame-lit end fell off the match and landed on my pj's burning a hole in them and burning my leg a little. Adrian took Owen shopping and he picked these out himself...my sweet thoughtful boys...thank you!
Adrian and Owen putting a new toy together. We made a point of putting things together right away rather than just moving from one gift to the next. It was nice to take breaks to play.
Isabelle wanted to have a "fleep" in her new doll house.

Santa got tricky with a few gifts, Owen had to follow the arrows to see who this gift was for.
Owen is wearing his Superhero cape from Grandma and holding up a new I SPY book.

This is a new game Owen got for Christmas (wonder pets Trouble) and I do not think a day has gone by where it has not been played at least once. Here he is taking a quick break from the game to wish Nana a Merry Christmas.
Breakfast happened around 10am...chocolate chip pankakes...yummy! (notice the game is being played)

Adrian putting together King Arthur's Castle - this was a tricky one...28 pages of directions...he spent hours and hours putting it together...what a great dad!
Isabelle playing Polly Pockets which she lovingly calls "Lolly Pocklets"
The kids got some new bath stuff from Santa - bath tints and foam soap...so of course we had to have bathtime mid-way through the day.


Mom came over mid-day and was the only one dressed - we all stayed in Jammies all day. Here she is holding up a present from Nora. And helping Isabelle feed her new baby. And opening up a button Christmas Tree that Owen had made for her.



Owen in Isabelle's new fairy wings...I am not sure they are supposed to give the wearer super lightning-fast speed...but that is what they did for this Spider Man.Here is Bella in the same fairy wings...looking like such a little fairy of the forsest flitting around the room in her wings and diaper.
Grandma always gets the coolest books...here are some shots of us reading the new 3D books.
Arian reading Jungle Animals
Grandma reading Dinosaurs
Owen and I reading Ocean Animals

A really great Christmas was had by all!