Lil' Yoyo

Wow, I suck....

2011-05-16T17:57:00.005-06:00

...with this whole blogging thing. And being that I've had the last four weeks off from school, I've realized that even with my evenings free from studying, getting on the computer is the last thing I feel like doing. I started my practicum today, so in 4 weeks I will be done! Yahooo! The unit I'm doing my practicum on (Pediatric Day Surgery) has a full time position open so I've got my fingers crossed that they'll soon realize what a keeper I am ;) Other than having to get up at 4am and out the door with Yonas at 5am, it was a really good shift. Busy and interesting and fun and challenging. But yeah, let me say when I was setting my coffee maker last night to start this morning at 3:55am, I wanted to cry.
Anyway, here's a recap of the last few weeks with some pics.

Yonas setting up the chairs for a talent show...not sure who was putting on the talent show?!?!

Decorating Easter eggs!

We had a visit from some very special friends and enjoyed some fun playing on Yonas' birthday present ;) (which has been the best investment ever for him....non-stop entertainment!)

We had a little birthday party with our SK friends.

Thumbs up to the cool birthday party hat!

Bedtime snack while watching a movie.

Nice weather finally arrived and Yonas had his first water fight through the fence with the neighbor boy!

We ventured out again this year to Jurassic Forest which Yonas loved even more than last year...until he thought one of the dinosaurs was coming to eat his snack!

Well, there we go....a quick catch up of what's been going on in our lives. No promises on when the next post is coming but hopefully it'll start being more often than once a month. What happend to the days when I was posting almost every day??? Oh yeah, I became a mommy :)

I'm "That" Blogger :(

2011-04-17T20:44:00.002-06:00

Yep, the type of blogger that I used to despise is now me. I can't even remember the last time I read anyone's blog let alone posted on my own. Tsk tsk. I'm hoping to get back on track now. I finished school on Friday (2 months early, yahoo) and just have my practicum left which starts May 9th. And then fingers crossed, I will find a job soon thereafter! I'm already daydreaming of my first paycheck! Yoyo is doing awesome! Omg, he's almost 3!!! Crazy how fast this last year flew by! We just finished swimming lessons, which let me say went WAY better than the first time back in S'toon...no ripping off my top, thank heavens! He started Canskate lessons a couple weeks ago and it's not going so well. The kid can skate REALLY well for his age but for these lessons parents aren't allowed on the ice and so he cries the whole time....strange rink, strange people, and maybe just a wee bit of a momma's boy ;) His academic skills are coming along, slowly but surely. He can count to 12 (as long as you don't ask him to), knows most of colors (once again, as long as you aren't asking him), and can almost sing his abc's. So maybe not where he should be, but excels in other areas so I'm not worried. And, the kid is finally watching tv! Yay for me! Well he still won't sit and watch tv but he will watch a few choice movies (Shrek, Monsters, and Up only). And although I don't want him to start loking it too much, it is soooo helpful when I'm trying to make supper or whatever and it's awesome for getting in some snuggle time with my little man! Now I'm off to catch up on some of your blogs...I'll post again soon with some pictures!

2 Years Ago....

2011-02-12T15:13:00.002-07:00

Yep, we celebrated our second "gotcha day" on Tuesday! It truly is amazing how fast time flies when these wee ones come home! A lot has happened in the last two years and we've gone through a lot of changes but life is good and not a day goes by that I don't think how lucky I am to have this incredible little boy for my son!

Hockey, Snow, Hockey, Snow, Repeat

2011-01-26T09:49:00.004-07:00

My life for the last few weeks has been about nothing other than hockey and snow when I'm not in school. We got seriously dumped on. A record amount of snow since 1976...that's a lot of fricking snow. Which means a lot of fricking shoveling. And since Craig works out of town and was oh so conveniently gone while all this was happening, all that shoveling fell into my hands...literally. Every day for what seemed like forever, I was shoveling three times a day. The snow is now piled much higher than my head so if/when it snows again, I'm hooped.

Yoyo's hockey rink in the backyard is no more. I don't even know where it is anymore. Sighhh.

After I pick up Yoyo at the end of the day, we come home and I make dinner while he plays hockey...EVERY day until bedtime. Usually he strips down completely naked and wears nothing but boots, hockey gloves, and his helmet. The pictures below he is thankfully fully clothed ;) This kid is seriously hockey obsessed!

On occasion, while we were getting dumped on with all that snow, I would go out and shovel while Yoyo would stay inside (playing hockey of course). Every few minutes I'd poke my head in and make sure all was good...and it always was. Well, until this particular day when I opened the door and saw white powder all the way down the hall, into the kitchen, and around the island. That sweet child of mine had dumped icing sugar throughout the house to make himself a "hockey rink". I seriously didn't know whether to laugh or cry so I went back outside to shovel. I mean, really, at this point, how much worse can it get? He was having a blast playing hockey on his "rink" and the dogs were putting themselves into a diabetic shock licking the floors. It took 3 days of vacuuming and washing floors before I got all that crap out.

It's days like these when I selfishly wish I could plunk my kid in front of tv for the few moments when I need to get something done.

Reminiscing

2011-01-06T20:24:00.003-07:00

Ringing in the new year has brought with it some reminiscing. I was going through all our pictures, organizing and sorting them, and saving them on a backup. Wow, going through photos of my first meeting with Yonas, of our time in Ethiopia, of our airport arrival, of his baby days, brought back a flood of emotions. I wish I could go back to those days...just for a moment or two. They go by so fast.
This was our first meeting...one month shy of 2 years ago.

It makes me want to adopt again really really really bad. And although I can't compare it to having a biological child, I truly do think it is absolutely the most amazing experience. I'm not saying I love Yonas more than someone loves their bio child but when you wait so long and work so hard for something, going through so many ups and downs, I think you appreciate it more. I'm not sure what the future holds but I do know I want at least one more child but how that will happen, or even if that will happen remains to be seen.

Merry Christmas!!!

2010-12-27T22:44:00.003-07:00

Merry Christmas everyone!!! This month has been a little insane, hence my lack of posts. I have so much to write about but I'll try and catch up later and just keep this post mostly Christmas related. December was a doozy of a month. So busy with trying to get ready for the season tied in with exams, and me getting a nasty stomach flu for a week (my first time being sick and being a mommy at the same time, and wow, when I was pretty much the only one to take care of Yoyo it was NOT fun...talk about feeling a lot of guilt, especially when he hauls up a 4 litre jug of chocolate milk and a cup to my room upstairs and asks me if he can "pwease hab a little drink?"). But we both survived.
So, onto Christmas....let me say what a FUN age Yonas was this year. He was so excited about everything, from the lights, to the tree, to the decorations, to Santa. We took him to see Santa, and just like last year, he was excited until we got close to him, so once again it was a family picture with Santa and one unhappy looking child!

Yonas thought decorating the tree was fun for about 2 seconds. After the first couple of ornaments, he just wanted to play with the decorations instead of actually putting them on the tree.

The final result.

The weekend before Christmas we made a quick trip to Toon town to do a little celebrating with my family. 10 hours of driving for about 18 hours of visiting, but it was worth it.

Yonas opening up his first Christmas present of the year!

On the 23rd we went over to some friends for a little festive celebration and all Yonas wanted to do was hold the baby :) He's been asking for a baby sister lately?!?!?!

And on the 24th we went to Mama Leslie's for for celebrating!

And he found a new game he loves...pool.

When we got home that night we put out cookies and milk for Santa, which Yonas helped himself to a few bites... hope Santa didn't mind ;)

And finally Christmas morning arrived! He was super excited to see that Santa had arrived! But after about the 3rd present he wasn't too excited about opening them anymore so we were bribing him with smarties!

His dinosaur piggy bank.

Two of his favourite gifts were his new skates and hockey gloves. Those gloves stayed on for the rest of the morning...which made opening presents a little difficult!

He wouldn't take them off!

The only thing he had asked Santa for was an air hockey table, and lo and behold, Santa did not disappoint!

So now things are finally settling down! We went to an Oil Kings hockey game tonight and Yonas was in heaven! Well, until the mascot Louie the Lion came over to say hi. He was obsessed with the goalies and was talking about how he wants to be a goalie. Ugh, I thought just having him in hockey was going to be expensive, but if he wants to be a goalie, I'm gonna need to win the lottery to be able to pay for it.

There's so much more to write about but I'll have to save it for some future posts. Hope all of you had a very Merry Christmas :)

A Year Later It's Still His Favourite Song!

2010-11-25T12:18:00.004-07:00

He's still got the same good ol' moves, just maybe a little more perfected ;) And yeah, probably poor parenting to let him dance on the toilet...possibly a little on the dangerous side.

If my kid was white....

2010-11-17T19:56:00.002-07:00

...I suppose this is what he'd look like.

Last week I put him down for a nap as per our usual routine. All was quiet so I foolishly assumed he was lights out. That was until about a half hour later I heard "Mommy, open the door!"...which was a weird request, as usually, if he doesn't want to nap he just bangs and hollers. And then when I did open the door, I just about fell over. It took me awhile to figure out what exactly it was he had slathered over his entire face, and then in the back corner of his closet I found the empty container of bum cream. Yes, he had lathered himself in diaper rash ointment! And as you all probably know, this type of cream is a liquid barrier so the bath that followed was a loooong one. It took forever to get him clean...and around his eyes was no fun for anyone involved!

His reaction when he saw himself in the mirror!

The following two pics are backwards. It started off with him doing his "business" in the bathroom, which he prefers to do in private. When I heard the water running I asked him what he was doing and he replied he was washing his hands. So I opened the door to check things out and there he was sitting amongst bubbles galore. Then he took his shirt off so "have a bath in the sink". Ah well, what's a little soap and water all over the bathroom floor?!?!

Who is this kid?

2010-11-10T22:01:00.003-07:00

Yoyo has been at his new dayhome for two weeks now, and wow, what a change! Before, at the old dayhome, when we got home at the end of the day it was a non-stop battle with multiple trips up to timeout (which is even less fun when you have to carry a fighting, kicking 2 year old up to the second level of the house!). His behaviour was not pleasant and it sucked cause it felt like the few hours I had in the day to spend with him was just more misery than happy. It felt like his mission was to push my every button! But now, he is a new kid! He is happy when I pick him up and now we have FUN! He's in a good mood when we get home and we play and he listens (well, most of the time), and he is just all in all an enjoyable kid again.And we are actually enjoying our evenings together with lots of tickles, laughs, and smiles! Now don't get me wrong, the old dayhome wasn't all bad. He loved it there and asks all the time if he can go there. And I know she adored him and treated him like one of her own. But I think it was the whole structure thing...she's not much into a routine with her kids and they kind of have run of the house. She's the parent that lets her kids run around the restaurant and thinks it's cute. To make a long story short, we just have different ideas when it comes to raising kids. I feel sooo much better about things now. I have a happy and enjoyable kid again which makes me a very happy mommy!
And just a couple of snapshots of the little dude cuz what's a post without at least one or two pics of the little ones?!?!

Happy Halloween!!!

2010-11-02T20:12:00.003-06:00

We started off our halloween week with a little baking. For the sake of my waist line, most of the mini pumpkin cakes were taken out of the house to Yoyo's dayhome and a couple to our neighbours. I did however sneak one for my self one morning for breakfast (this was before Yoyo was awake so as him not to see!!).
Yoyo was an expert decorator!

The finished product.

Then Friday night we carved our pumpkins. Wow, what a mess it turned out to be with a two year old who insisted on taking out the pumpkin guts all by himself. Which then led to pumpkin goo on the floor, which the dogs ate, which led to some frequent nighttime poops.

The end result. Yoyo wanted a happy pumpkin, I carved Craig a scary pumpkin (he was working), and for myself, a cat.

Then finally the big day arrived. A friend and I took our kids to West Ed Mall for the afternoon. A great idea for kids, especially if the weather is cold (which it wasn't....it was +10). Almost all the stores were handing our candy and Galaxyland was all decorated and they had a place where kids got a halloween bag and got to fill it with coloring books, stickers, and halloween goodies.

Yoyo was a little unsure at first (he's terrified of anything scary and especially masks) but once he got his first couple of candies in his bucket he was a little more excited about the whole idea. That was until life-size Elmo showed up. While all the other kids were absolutely thrilled, Yonas was screaming in terror!

And then of course once he saw people playing hockey, that was it. He could have cared less about getting anymore candy.

Around 3 we left for home and he fell asleep. After a nap and some supper, we went trick or treating to a few friends' places and then back home. We only went to a few houses on our street and then it was home to hand out treats to our own trick or treaters!

The "dinosaur", which is actually a dragon costume, but shhhh don't tell him that.

Just a lipoma

2010-10-27T20:07:00.002-06:00

That's what Cassy has. Just a big ol' tumor of fatty tissue that thankfully is non-cancerous. It will most likely need to be surgically removed if it grows much bigger. But the bigger it gets, the more difficult the surgery so I'm thinking maybe after Christmas I'll get it done.

Halloween is just around the corner and although Yoyo is terrified of costumes and the scarier looking halloween decorations, he has been asking me every day to go trick or treating. I'm not looking forward to all the candy...for two reasons, one, I don't need a 2 year old hyped up on sugar for days on end, and two, I don't need my waist to expand anymore!!!
I bit the bullet and bought more halloween decorations for outside today. I wasn't going to but Yoyo was asking about his stolen pumpkin ALL the time so I felt bad. And by golly gee, if someone steals these ones, I am going to snap. So weird that everybody else's halloween decorations on our street have been left untouched.

My Wishes For Today...

2010-10-24T16:35:00.002-06:00

I wish I had more patience for a 2 year old that was up until midnight last night and refuses to nap today.

I wish that whoever stole all our outdoor halloween decorations would feel remorse and return them. I have a sad son who misses his big pumpkin that lights up.

I wish that Sundays WERE actually a day of relaxation instead of endless laundry, housecleaning, and prepping for the upcoming week.

I wish my son found joy and contentment in sitting and watching a movie (or just even more than 30 seconds of a cartoon) or colouring at the table for longer than 2 minutes.

I wish it was still summer so my son could happily play outside endlessly while I get some serious studying done.

Most of all, I wish my sweet little Cassy didn't have a baseball size lump in her armpit. And until Tuesday when I find out for sure, I will continue wishing that it is nothing serious.

Today...

2010-10-17T16:46:00.002-06:00

...my son told me to shut up. Uh, yeah, not impressed! I know he didn't hear that one from me (not to say that I haven't let slip a few not-so-nice words of my own). So I asked him where he heard that from and he told me "simon" (a boy from his dayhome) told him to shut up. Now that I believe, this is the same boy that pushed him down a whole flight of stairs. And that is just the tip of the iceberg. Nov.1 he starts at a new day home and I'm crossing my fingers that it is run a little better than the one he is at now.

Really???

2010-10-12T18:03:00.007-06:00

Has it really been over a month since my last post???? Where the heck does the time go? Well, it's time to do a little catching up I guess.

Yonas is still obsessed with all things dinosaurs and it doesn't look like that will be changing anytime soon, so we decided to give the little guy a dinosaur room. There's still a few things to do, like get some pics for the walls and whatnot but for the most part it's all good to go. And yes, Yonas is totally stoked about his new room.

Note: The setting on my camera must have been wonky cuz the pics didn't turn out so well.

I paid a small fortune for these dinosaur knobs (from Etsy) but I really do think they were worth it.

I'm not sure why, but Yonas had become very afraid of the dark. It started before his new room so I know it's not related to that. But he makes me leave his bedroom light on at night. And even if I wait until he is asleep to turn it off, he will wake up and either get up and turn it back on himself or cry for me to come and turn it on for him...and then gives me crap for turning it off in the first place. I've tried nightlights, flashlights, you name it, but nothing is as good as his actual bedroom light. So there is now the lowest wattage bulb possible in there but it still bothers me I have a light on ALL night long.

Last weekend we zipped out to Saskabush for a couple of days. I forgot my camera so no pics but Yonas had a blast with his cousins. And of course we were able to take a little detour to visit with Rhonda and Eden.

Life is good. Really busy with school and the dreaded studying and homework that comes with it which is why I don't post very often anymore. I refuse to go on the computer before Yoyo goes to bed...the small amount of time we have together at the end of the day is far too important for me to be sitting in front of a computer. And then of course after he goes to bed and I do laundry, clean, get ready for the next day, and my schookwork, well the computer is the last thing I want to spsend time doing. So yeah, we're doing awesome, just busy!

It's A Success!

2010-09-14T20:08:00.002-06:00

My "baby" is now wearing gitchies! It's been a week and a half since I did the 3-day potty training method and he's been wearing his gitchies every day since with only one accident a couple of days ago when he was playing outside and didn't make it to the potty in time.

Now in this whole process I have learned two big lessons. The first one being that if you put your newly potty trained child in timeout he will immediately tell you he has to go potty. And if you believe him and take him to the potty, he will sit there and smile at you but not produce. However, if you call his bluff and leave him in timeout, he will pee his pants. EVERY time.
The second lesson, if you torture your child with endless tickling you will soon feel a warm liquid seeping onto your lap. But all in all it's been a huge success!

And here's little Yoyo holding my friend's wee baby. Amazingly my rough and tumble boy was nothing but sweet and super gentle with this little one.

Our Long Weekend

2010-09-04T18:03:00.004-06:00

It's the last long weekend of the summer and well it's not too summery. Cloudy, rainy, windy. So this morning we started off by making some cinnamon buns. Mmm, we each had one and then when we went upstairs to put away some laundry...we came back down to find the remaining cinnmon buns had walked off.

Neither of the following two culprits are talking....

Later, we went shopping for some new big boy gitchies, and well let's just way there was some shrieks of excitement when we found dinosaur gitchies. He wanted to them right away so he put them on his head. Speaking of gitchie shopping, did you know that boys underwear costs like twice as much as girls underwear??? I was almost tempted to just buy him panties!

And this morning him and Elmo had some snuggle time. It lasted for approx 17 seconds cuz the kid can't stay still longer than that!

This is just a pic from the other night when we were out for supper. He loves sticking things in his hair and was quite proud at all the straws he got in there.

A Few Pics

2010-08-29T20:52:00.003-06:00

From our last few weeks of summer.

Yoyo is totally in love with this little girl from his dayhome.

We took a quick day trip out to Calgary to attend Afrikadey

Which meant, of course, that we got to spend some time with this little sweetie too!

Dinosaurs!!!

2010-08-05T19:58:00.004-06:00

Dinosaurs are Yoyo's new obsession. Last weekend we took him to the new Jurassic Park that opened just outside of the city. They have life-size dinosaurs that are on sensors and move and make noise when you get close. It's actually really well done. When we first got there Yoyo was a little apprehensive, but surprisingly he was soon completely fascinated...to the point that it was almost getting annoying.

The beginning...not too sure what to think of these big ugly things.

But once the dinosaurs were out of reach it was a whole different story.

And no, the kid doesn't smile when the camera is out...but he really is a happy, silly, funny little boy!

Here we are trying to leave but Yoyo did NOT want to say good-bye to his new dino-buddies. And ironically, it's dinosaur-week at the babysitter's, so he's been doing dinosaur crafts and learning all about these massive creatures.

Bits & Bites

2010-07-27T20:49:00.003-06:00

No pictures for this post...it seems nowadays I can barely find time to take a pee let alone be a photographer. Which is sad cuz I think it is really important to take lots of pictures of Lil' Yoyo while he is growing up so fast.
I'm into my second week of school and wouldn't you know it I've already gained almost 5lbs! If I keep going at this rate I'm going to be in big trouble (pun intended). I guess that's what happens when you no longer go to the gym every morning, and instead of chasing after a toddler all day, you sit in front of a computer.
As for Yoyo, he still cries when I drop him off in the mornings. Please son, for my sanity, stop doing that. It is sooo hard to walk away from your baby when he is crying for you.
The kid can throw a ball, hit a ball with bat, take a sweet golf swing and actually connect with the ball, and his slaphshots in hockey are definitely something to brag about....however, academically, he's having a hard time catching onto things. As for colors, everything is green...doesn't matter how many times we go back and forth that Elmo is red, when I ask Yonas, he's always "geeen". And counting is always "two, heee, gooooo!". Once again, I go over counting up to 5 and it's a no go for the little man.
And while I think education is important, I'm thinking instead of his college fund, I'm going to have to switch it over to a sports equipment/expense fund.

One Week Down!

2010-07-24T12:26:00.002-06:00

Yonas and I survived the first week at school. When I drop him off at the babysitter's in the mornings he cries and clings to my legs which makes me feel like a big ol' sack of poo. But when I go to pick him up at the end of the day, he is running around, happy as can be and just wants to stay and play.
For me, school is going good. I really like it so far. I've already completed 2 courses way ahead of time and did really well on the tests so I'm happy! But oh my is life busy now. Gone are the days of staying in my pj's until noon, drinking coffee and reading the paper. I was so relieved for the weekend to arrive, which is weird cuz I can't remember the last time in my life where the weekend was different than any other day(s) of the week.

Last weekend Yonas and I drove out to my parents cabin to spend a few days. It was so nice and relaxing but it really made me realize what a mama's boy Yonas is (which selfishly makes me smile). And he is a big chicken poop! He doesn't like/want to do anything out of the ordinary. My dad hooked up a trailer on the back of the quad to take the kids for a ride and Yonas would NOT get in so I had to climb in with him. And even just getting him to sit on the quad when it wasn't even running was a challenge. But you will see in the pictures he finally relaxed a little. And then there was the beach...the kid wouldn't get close to the water and spent the whole time laying on a towel in the shade. He's kind of an "unfun" kid. Ahhh, I'm sure that will change.

My dad built a zipline out at the cabin. The kids had a blast on it...super cool!

Well, Yonas is napping and I have a movie night out with girls tonight so I better run and get some things done around the house!

Day Two

2010-07-14T17:01:00.002-06:00

Monday when I went to pick up Yoyo from the dayhome, he was TIRED! She tried to put him down for a nap but he just wouldn't go...who wants to sleep when there are KIDS to play with!!! So of course he went straight down for a sleep when we got home and then I had to wake him up 2 hours later for supper. But all in all, she said it went well and he had lots of fun.
Soooo, today I bring him there for the second time and he freaks out when I try to leave....hanging on to my leg for dear life and crying "mommy up" and the top of his lungs. Sighhhh, you're not making this easy for me kid. All day, I'm thinking he's probably still crying for me and thinking that I abandoned him (which logically I knew he was probably just fine and having lots of fun). But of course when I went to pick him up this afternoon, he was running around happy as heck! I was happy to see that (and yet selfishly sad that he didn't miss me all day).
However, apparently Yonas calls his babysitter "mommy". Say WHAT???? I smiled when she told me this but I was and am heartbroken inside. Why would my son, who has only ever called me mommy, start calling another lady who has cared for him a total of 14 hours mommy too? What does it mean? Anything? Am I that easily replaced? Now my mind is racing with all the bonding/attachment worries that I thought we were clear of.
We are off tomorrow to my parents cabin for the weekend. A last little getaway before school starts.

Sniff, sniff

2010-07-12T14:45:00.004-06:00

In a week I start school full time so this week my little Yoyo is going to daycare for a couple of days just to prepare him (and maybe me too). I bought him an Elmo backpack which he was super stoked about to take his essentials in. And so like most parents who take pictures of their little ones' first day of school, I took pictures of Yoyo on his first day of daycare.

He was pretty excited. Dropping him off went smoothly (for him) but I don't think he realized that I was leaving him for the WHOLE day. It was really weird not having my day revolve around him and his schedule. I got an oil change, my tires rotated, a trip to costco, a fair bit of housecleaning done, did 4 loads of laundry, and even snuck in a nap. Now I am on the countdown to go pick him up. I really miss the little stinker :(

As for school, some of you have asked what I am taking. The course is a 12 month diploma program called Medical Office Assistant with Unit Clerk Specialty. So the plan is to work as a Unit Clerk in a hospital once I have completed the program. But it opens a lot of other doors too, so we'll see.

And just a few pics from what we've been doing lately...

Yonas lounging in the backyard reading his new Elmo book while Cassy pesters him to play fetch.

We went to the spray park with some buddies...and not surprisingly my chicken-poop son would not play in the water. Basking in the rays while eating snacks was much more preferrable.

He is also big into riding his bike. Cruising around the backyard just doesn't cut it anymore...he needs to go places!

And for all my blogging buddies out there...I rarely go on the computer hence my lack of comments on your blogs. I'll do a catch up one day!

Long Overdue...

2010-06-28T14:21:00.002-06:00

...for a post. Life has been busy now that summer has arrived (finally!). We are outside 90% of the time. And most days we even eat all 3 meals outside. In the other half of the duplex we live in is a super fabulous family with 2 boys (4 & 1 1/2) so we spend a lot of time playing with them. Yoyo has so much fun when he has little playmates to run around with. They are like our second family.

I have been trying the whole potty thing with Yoyo and he has absolutely no interest in it. He did a little tinkle in it for the first time a couple of days ago so I was trying to make it this fun exciting thing and dancing around and cheering. His reaction was looking at me like I had gone nuts. I think it's going to be a slooow process over here. Oops, I had to take out the picture of him sitting on the potty as his little "area" was showing.

Some days we go for a little treat to McD's and sit outside eating icecream.

And his fashion sense has yet to mature.

We are also dealing with a case of molluscum right now. I have no clue where he got it from but it doesn't bother him so hopefully it'll just clear up soon so we can enjoy some playdates again.

In 3 weeks I am going back to school. I'm excited about it but nervous about leaving Yonas. It's hard in a big city to find childcare that you really trust and feel comfortable with when you are looking at strangers to care for your heart and soul. I opted for a dayhome as opposed to a daycare. I want the homey atmosphere for him while he is young. I did find a lady who is only like 2 minutes away from us. She used to be a nanny and a preschool teacher and has a 3 year old boy and a 2 year old girl. We spent the afternoon at their place the other day and Yonas had such a blast that he threw a tantrum when it was time to leave. So I guess that's a good sign.

So yeah, that's been out life in a nutshell.

Elk Island

2010-06-14T16:09:00.002-06:00

Summer finally peeked it's little head out this weekend and so yesterday Yoyo and I met some friends out at Elk Island National Park for a picnic and some playtime. It was deliciously warm and summery. I can't say that I was all that impressed with Elk Island. It was okay but the water is absolutely disgusting...I wouldn't even let Yoyo dip his toes in it and that says a lot cuz I'm a pretty lax mom. You could actually SEE the leeches swimming around in the water.

So we spent most of our time playing on the playground. And I mostly got to just sit and relax on the grass while soaking up some rays while I watched Yoyo keep Jay and Eleni busy.

I found this really neat clear plastic backpack at Walmart that comes with a pail, shovel, and a couple other sand toys. It's perfect for Yonas (he has been wearing for 2 days straight) and is so handy for keeping and hauling around the beach toys!

Then on the way home we came across this "little" friend munching on some grass by the side of the road. And up close, these guys are huge and kinda ugly!

But sadly Yonas missed meeting our "little" friend cuz he was lights out about 30 seconds after we started driving.

Film Friday!

2010-06-11T22:36:00.002-06:00

A glimpse of the little guy when he's in one of his "bi-polar" moods. And how mean of a mother am I to find it entertaining and laugh???

A Few Pics and Whatnot

2010-06-10T20:10:00.002-06:00

We are almost half way through June and I'm starting to feel a little ticked off at the lack of summer weather we have been receiving! I am longing for some unbearably hot afternoons where I can sit on the deck sipping ice cold beer whilst spraying Yoyo and the dogs with the super soaker. And with summer, comes mowing the lawn. I used to love mowing the lawn...I find therapeutic in the same way some people do with gardening but I can't keep a plant alive for the life of me, let alone a garden. Anywayyyy, mowing the lawn is no longer as fun as it used to be. There are FAR too many toys to move, pick up, move back, and pick up again. It's almost rather annoying now.
But I guess it's worth it. We spend a lot of time outside and I would way rather have a mess of toys out there then in here.

Friends of ours came over to hang out in the backyard on Sunday and not only did I get to do some baby-snuggling (oh how I miss those days!) but I also learned that 2 boys running free in the yard makes for huge mess, a lot of bug catching, and a heck of a lot of noise!

I find it odd that my child is fully clothed in this picture. He has taken to stripping whenever he can. It is rare that he keeps his clothes on, especially outside. His choice of attire these days usually consists of a diaper (if I'm lucky), rubber boots, and his helmet (which is way too big for him).

If you can imagine, my sweet 2 year old angel, some days spends more than his fair share of time in timeout. And 95% of the time it's for throwing things...you think the kid would catch on NOT to throw. So the other day as I am carrying him up to his room for time out, he is sobbing with huge tears running down his face and yelling out "Abby, Abby, help me!". Not sure what he thought the dog would do for him?!?!

Film Friday!

2010-06-05T11:56:00.002-06:00

It wasn't long after this that Yoyo got stung by a wasp. He was some peeved and rightly so I guess. And he hasn't stopped reminding me about the "bee owie". Poor little guy!

Here's Hoping!

2010-06-01T22:00:00.003-06:00

That these 2 sweet little faces will soon know just exactly who the boss is in this household (and no I don't mean Yoyo).

Today we had our first visit from the dog trainer. Now it's not that I have really bad dogs by any means. They are actually super friendly and LOVE people. They are a little, ahem, misguided. Abby jumps up on people trying to fill the strong desire of licking their faces raw. They both pull really bad on their leashes, which makes walking them and Yoyo in the stroller more of a challenge and a chore than an enjoyment. And due to an unfortunate situation a couple years ago where Cassy was attacked by a large dog while we were out for a walk, Abby is really aggressive toward other dogs and Cassy is super fearful. But all that was tolerable for the most part. The kicker was when they both started to "correct" Yoyo when he was bugging them. It was just a little growl here or there but I was worried if/when it went further. I would hate myself if Yoyo ever got bitten by one of the dogs and then of course the dogs would have to go. Soooo, I came across an in-home dog training company and made the call. And ironically they were much calmer than usual when she came to the door and when we sat at the table they both laid down at our feet and for the most part we hardly knew they were there. Anyway she ended up working with me for almost 5 hours and I've already seen some major improvements from the pups...which is good, cuz it sure as heck wasn't cheap!

Seriously?

2010-05-29T20:13:00.002-06:00

It's been snowing like crazy for almost 3 hours now with no sign of it letting up anytime soon. Yoyo thinks it's awesome. I on the other hand think it's miserable. It doesn't help that it's been cold and rainy for a few days now and Yoyo and I have been butting heads non-stop during this time. So yeah, being stuck in the house isn't doing us any good. Even the dogs are miserable and mopey.

Film Friday!

2010-05-28T19:08:00.002-06:00

Hawrelak Park

2010-05-22T11:47:00.004-06:00

We had some super summer weather at the beginning of the week (which has since been replaced with cold, rain and wind) and so on Tuesday we went to Hawrelak Park for a picnic. We had lots of company in the form of feathered friends and Yonas thought it was hilarious to throw french fries to the seagulls and watch them fight for it.

And he wanted nothing more than to play with all the baby geese (gooslings?) but kept getting a little too close for the mama and daddy geese and so was getting hissed at (which he also thought was hilarious).

Yonas and I just got back last night from a trip to Toon town (which got cut a little short) so no Film Friday this week. And watching him have so much fun playing with cousins really gets me thinking he needs a sibling. If only it were that simple though.

Film Friday!

2010-05-14T23:53:00.001-06:00

A 2 Year Old

2010-05-13T08:00:00.002-06:00

I now have a 2 year old. It's fun having a 2 year old. He can be really silly and a lot of fun. And he can also frustrate me to no end and test my patience like no other. The kid knows what he wants (or doesn't want) and make no mistake, he will do whatever it takes to get his way. If he wants something (say like pudding for breakfast this morning) and I say no, it is quickly followed by rapid foot stomping and drama-queen screaming. The other day I was on the phone with a potential babysitter and Yoyo wanted in the fridge so I was blocking him and of course he starts having a spazz. And I'm thinking "kid I need you to shut up for 2 minutes or this lady isn't going to allow you into her dayhome!" I am also now noticing that when he asks for something, he expects it NOW. I am sure this is from the fact that it's just him and so pretty much anytime he asks for a drink or whatever, I am able to get it for him right away. But heaven forbid the odd time I ask him to wait 2 seconds while I finish something, well it's the end of the world. So yeah, I'm thinking we need to start working on this!
That being said, he's not all bad ;) He can be a really good helper (translate that into making a simple task take 10 times longer to complete than if I did it myself). And he's more snuggly now than he used to be and will sit and watch tv (well only if it's Elmo). The other evening we were cuddling while watching videos of him when he was a baby and I was telling him that I was thankful that I got to be his mommy, blah, blah, blah, and then I told him I was sorry for the times I was a shitty mommy. He then kept repeating, "shitty mommy, mommy shitty, mommy shitty". Alright then, lesson learned. Watch what I say.

A Few Catch Up Pics

2010-05-09T18:19:00.003-06:00

A couple pics from last weekend when my family was in town for my niece's hockey tournament. And although Yoyo is a huge hockey fan, he is not a fan of cheering. He gets terrified...like screaming, grabbing at me for dear life, terrified.

Yoyo and Grandpa in their matching jackets.

This is where he spent most of his time...right outside the rink eating popcorn with his cousins.

And we finally got a chance to put together the play structure we bought him for his birthday. It's been a big hit and well worth the fairly large price tag.

It's also the perfect place to have a picnic where the dogs can't steal your sandwich when you're not looking ;)

And a Happy Mother's Day to all my fellow mommies. After many years of hating this day because it felt like more of a kick in the stomach than anything, I can say now that it's one of my favourite days of the year. A day where I feel extra lucky to be able to hear my son call me mommy :)

Film Friday!

2010-05-07T16:04:00.004-06:00

It's a really short video like so short that you almost can't even call it a video. But it's Yoyo when he was much smaller and chubbier. I really need to upload my video camera to the computer so I can post better videos from when he was little.

Edited : I uploaded videos so added one of Yoyo back when we were still in Ethiopia

Party Time!

2010-05-03T18:35:00.004-06:00

Finally I am getting around to posting some pics from Yoyo's birthday party. It was a busy weekend with my family in town for my niece's hockey tourney.
Yonas had a blast at his little party and every day since he has asked for "more birthday party".

When it came to eat his birthday cupcake he started crying cuz he didn't want to eat Elmo but he was just fine with eating Cookie Monster :)

Happy Birthday Lil' Yoyo!!!!

2010-04-28T09:57:00.002-06:00

Some days...

2010-04-25T13:13:00.002-06:00

...are hard. I mean really hard. I mean so hard that the thought of leaving my child in the parking lot and driving away actually crossed my mind. We were having a super crappy morning where Yonas was NOT happy. He fought me on everything from changing his diaper to getting him dressed...and by "fought" I mean kicking and hitting and squirming and sabotaging my every attempt to do what needed to be done all whilst screaming "NO". So like every morning we then went off to the gym which I thought would be good for both of us, he loves it and I get a much needed break. Fastforward to us leaving the gym...he wanted to carry my car keys but when we got to the car he wouldn't give them back to me no matter what. So while he is kicking and screaming, and trying to hit me, I held his one arm down to grab the keys from the other arm, he then PUNCHES me in the face, with a fistful of keys. Me, his dear old mother who loves him and cares for him and gives him all the necessities of life and then some. A punch so vicious that my glasses went flying off my face. And this is where I thought of leaving him there and driving away. But like every mother, I held my breath, clenched my teeth and put him in his carseat. And then cried all the way home. How the heck do families like the "Dugger's" do it?????

Film Friday! (A day late)

2010-04-24T08:24:00.004-06:00

I actually took a few videos this week but thought Grandma would like to see this one. Don't mind my singing or the "rude" interruption part way through the song.

Signs Of Summer!!

2010-04-20T09:13:00.004-06:00

With the last couple of days reaching +23 we have been spending almost all our time outside. It makes me wonder what we did with our days back in the winter???
Yonas enjoying his first watermelon of the year! The boots are his choice only...he has an unhealthy obsession with them.

And no I don't normally have my child running around naked but the clothes would have never made it by the end of the fudgesicle!

And then we brought out the pool which was a huge hit...not just with Yoyo but with the pups too!

I blew that pool up with nothing but the precious air from my sweet little lungs. Made me a little light-headed but the ice cold cooler at the end was worth it.

Film Friday!

2010-04-16T21:53:00.003-06:00

I have decided to do a weekly post called "Film Friday" (not very creative I know) where I post a little clip of Yonas. Now some of my blogging peeps do Wordless Wednesday where they post a picture. I, however, have decided on a weekly video for the main reason of making me take more video of Yonas. Now that he is almost 2 (less than 2 weeks to go!), I look back and remember all these super cute things he used to do that I never got on video and that makes me sad that I will never get to see those little moments from him again. I can't promise that they will all be entertaining clips but at least it's a little weekly diary for me to always have of him growing up. So here's to the first week!

Please note that he has began on insisting on picking out his clothes. Hence, this little ensemble he is wearing. Which also meant that one day he wore his housecoat over top his clothes to the gym.

And also, a special congratulations goes out to Rana, Yvan, and baby Ade who FINALLY got news of a court date!!! It's been a long haul for this little family but now there is a light at the end of the tunnel! And if any family deserves a successful first court date and a record fast visa issuance, it's them! And I'll be damned if I'm gonna miss this airport greeting!!!!

"Bow-Tins"

2010-04-11T18:08:00.003-06:00

Yonas and I spent the last few days out in Hinton (where Craig is working) and being that it's not the most rockin' town, we took a drive out to Jasper on Friday and Yoyo got to see the mountains ("bow-tins") for the very first time. Unfortunately the weather was super crappy and even if I had been prepared (like a good mother would) and had proper clothing along, it was so freaking windy there wasn't much we could have done. Even the short distance between shops was miserable. So didn't even attempt to do a hike or anything of the sort. We'll just have to go back when it's warmer.

Yonas missed out on our first view of the mountains...

...and our greeting party.

Yonas, not being a tv watcher at all, was totally digging his dvd player during the drive. It was kinda hilarious cuz I could see him doing the actions and trying to sing along to the Barney's Sing & Dance movie. What's not hilarious is having to listen to the bloody thing 5 times in a row. And now he's constantly asking for Barney. Great.

Today we went to Baby Hailey's baptism. Yonas did surprisingly well until he pulled out my shirt, looked down and hollered out "Hi Boobies!". I was mortified obviously and could see the gentleman in front of me laughing so hard his shoulders were bouncing up and down. Should make for some oh-so-funny stories at the supper table tonight for a few families except mine.

A Face Only A Mother Could Love

2010-04-07T14:12:00.003-06:00

And it seems that the little dude has taught himself how to fart on demand. Nice. Just what every mom wants.

Happy Easter :)

2010-04-04T19:32:00.005-06:00

Yonas and I had a pretty good Easter even though it was just the two of us. Yesterday we made Easter cupcakes. It went well despite the fact that my son loses interest in something in about 2 seconds. Obviously the idea of being able to eat mini eggs while doing the decorating helped keep his interest longer than expected. Then for supper we went to "grandma" Leslie's and got to play with "uncle" Jay and "auntie" Eleni.

The finished product!

And of course this morning the Easter bunny did not disappoint. A bucket filled with balls, outdoor toys, and books made for one excited little boy!

I decided to do the egg hunt after his nap when the weather was a little warmer. I wasn't sure how it would go but after I showed him how to put the first egg in his basket, it was a hit.

This egg popped open when he picked it up and boy oh boy there was some serious excitement at the discovery of the car hidden inside!

And of course when it was all said it done, he kept asking for more. I helped him crack open the other eggs that had the cars in them and we spent the rest of the day playing outside. Even though he's still too young to understand what the holidays are all about, he's old enough to make it fun!

A Good Neighbour...

2010-03-29T20:21:00.002-06:00

...can be hard to come by these days. But thanks to a thoughtful young man, this little pooch has her best buddy back with her.

And this little trouble maker is back home safe and sound.

Yonas and I had just come back from the gym and while I was unloading our bags out of the car, a neighbour from a few doors down called out to me asking if I had 2 dogs. Apparently he had seen Abby running down the street and so called her over. He kept her in his backyard until I returned. He had even gone back to our yard to try and bring Cassy to his house too for fear that she would run off too but she wouldn't come with him. So he sat by his window to watch and make sure she didn't get out too. This is the same young man that helped Craig shovel out his truck this winter after the snow plowers buried it. It is so nice to see such thoughtfulness, especially in a big city where people have a tendency to keep to themselves. Tomorrow I am off to buy a thank you card and a Timmy's gift card.

23 Months!!!

2010-03-28T19:46:00.004-06:00

Well my dear boy, today you are 23 months old. Only one more month of being 1 and then we officially state your age in years instead of months. You are growing into a sweet, funny, charming, persistent, talkative, busy, loving young boy. No surprise your favourite thing is still hockey. Dancing isn't as popular with you as it once was. And now you are also getting into baseball. You enjoy looking at books more than you have in the past. And you still refuse to watch tv for longer than 10 seconds. While that is a good thing, some days mommy really yearns for some lazy afternoons of cuddling on the couch watching a disney movie with you. In time I guess.
With the nicer weather now, you want to spend ALL day outside. You wake up in the morning, put your boots on and are at the back door begging to go out. Throughout the day you are in the backyard playing as much as possible. At the end of the day when it is time for your bath and snack, you put up a pretty good fight when it's time to go inside. I have to say I am pretty happy that you would rather be playing outside than glued to the tv inside :)
You talk, and talk, and talk. We go for walks and for the whole hour you are babbling non-stop. Sometimes I can understand what you are saying and sometimes I can't. You can now recall events and tell me about them.
You are funny. You like to act silly and make us laugh. You also like to tease...especially the dogs. You like to "tell" jokes and then laugh at yourself. I love that you have a sense of humour.
And while you can be very persistent and really test my patience some days, you are a sweet loving boy and I think I am the luckiest mommy in the world to have you.

Our First "Conversation"

2010-03-25T13:31:00.003-06:00

Yoyo's vocabulary is increasing in leaps and bounds. He pretty much repeats any word that I say and I couldn't even try to count how many words he uses on a regular basis. Most words he says sound very close to the actual word except for "careful" (tay tee) and "timeout" (pom pam). Even the caregiver at the gym's childcare commented to me yesterday how amazed she is at the amount of words he uses and how easy he is to understand. And yes I realize I am doing a little mommy bragging :)
This brings us to yesterday's "conversation". We had just gotten home from the gym and Yoyo was sitting at the island having his bedtime snack while I was preparing my supper.

M: Did you have fun playing at the gym today?

Y: "Dim?" (gym)

M: Yeah, did you play there?

Y: "Teeta?"

M: Yes, you got to see auntie Teresa didn't you? (my friend that I work out with)

Y: "Wauw?" (wall) "Hahd?" (head) "Owie?"

M: Did you hit your head on the wall and get an owie? (apparently he was running and fell and scraped his head on the wall)

Y: "Beebee" (baby)

M: Was there a baby there?

Y: "Beebee tying (crying)"

M: Oh, was the baby crying? (there really was a baby crying when I went in to pick him up)

Y: "whaa whaa" (his version of a baby's cry)

And then he went on to babble other stories that I couldn't understand. But, seriously, we had an actual conversation where he wasn't just repeating things back to me.

Random Ramblings

2010-03-24T13:33:00.002-06:00

We've been having a couple of lazy days lately. Winter has decided to show her unwelcome face again. It has been snowing off and on for days now and I am sick and tired of it. I want my spring back.

We are now done with the whole teething thing. Yoyo's last 2 chompers popped through the other day. And while I'm happy to be done with the runny nose, cranky attitude, and no appetite, it's just another sign that my baby's no longer a baby.

Yoyo and I went shopping this morning and as usual we received many comments, all positive about how cute he is. Then this one lady approaches us and starts talking about his cute chubby cheeks and starts pinching them. Ugh! So I try to turn the stroller around and get on our way but she moved in front of us, continually touching his face and hair. Then she asks him if he's a momma's boy and I say he sure is, which she then replies "oh you can't be a momma's boy because you don't have the same colour of skin". Say WHAT??? So I said "actually he is 100% a momma's boy and no skin colour will ever change that" and I walked away. What I wanted to say was "you're a @#$%-ing ignorant #$%& and should learn to shut your mouth!".

This was "only" the 2nd negative comment we've gotten....the 1st one was way worse. But it sure makes me dread facing these situations when Yonas is old enough to understand what is said when these remarks are made.

Oh and speaking of remarks, we were standing in line at the grocery store yesterday and the lady in front of me asked me if I permed his hair. I had to laugh. Seriously?

I Was Foolishly Mistaken

2010-03-22T21:10:00.002-06:00

When I lived in S'toon, I worked out at the gym on a regular basis so when I moved here I was on the lookout for a new gym. I had no luck...either the monthly fees were too much, they didn't have childcare, or the childcare fees were insane. Then I heard about a new gym that was opening and the monthly fees were awesome and the childcare fees were even better! Finally last week it opened. After 2 months of not working out I was excited to get back in the game. The other night while walking the dogs my pants felt snug on my butt (been wanting to firm that flat, flabby thing) and the front felt loose. I was thinking to myself "wow, after only a couple days of working out and I'm already feeling the results...wicked!". It wasn't until I got home and changed when I realized that I was foolishly mistaken...I had been wearing my sweatpants backwards. Sighhh.

They're In Love :)

2010-03-18T20:03:00.002-06:00

Really, truly in love. And tonight Lil' Yoyo is sad that "Eeyah" is not here. We bid them farewell this morning after taking them swimming. It was an awesome visit and it is now my mission to convince them to move out here...or at least close enough so we can get together more often. Bet seriously, the kids couldn't get enough of each other. Yonas has found the love of his life. The amount of hand holding and kissing that was going on was shocking...moments where Rhonda and I looked at each other with the expression of "we're in trouble when they get older!". And while Yonas loves to play with other kids, he doesn't interact with them the way he does with "Eeyah". Odd...but in a good way.

This is when Rhonda had gone out to do a little shopping while the kids were napping. When they woke up I was trying to feed them lunch which proved to be difficult cuz I couldn't get them to unlock their lips. And when I'd push Eden's highchair farther away Yonas would just reach over and pull her back in for some more loving.

Oh and here they are playing the "party" game which was a huge hit and consisted of the mommies singing "we're having a party" while bouncing up and down. Parties were asked for frequently once this super lame game was invented. Craig thought it was somewhat annoying...and it really is.

Just playing around before bedtime. I wasn't the best at taking pictures so hopefully Rhonda will share more on her blog.

Watch this. They are walking around holding hands and then Yoyo takes her into the corner for a little "action"...which lasted until Minnesota scored against the Oilers and Yoyo started booing. He loves his little lady but apparently not enough to ignore hockey...it's a man thing.

All I can say is that I hope these two share this bond for life, even if they don't get married (but we all know that's what the mommies are hoping for).

Is This Appropriate?

2010-03-16T20:39:00.002-06:00

The kids are having a blast! They are so in love with each other. We had a super fun playdate with some of our other ethio peeps this morning. If I get permission from the mommies, I will post a pic later.

We are having a really good visit...will share more later in a few days!

Not Much Going On!

2010-03-14T12:15:00.002-06:00

I don't really have much to say but thought I better do a quick post cuz next week will be busy with Rhonda and Eden here. I am super excited to see them and to watch the little kiddos stir up trouble together! Oh, and the evenings of chatting and wine drinking will be nice too :)
The weather here has been super nice. Yonas would stay outside all day if I let him. In fact, he plays in the backyard by himself (well, with the dogs) when I'm trying to get things done in the kitchen. It's nice cuz it's all fenced in and the patio doors and big livingroom window face the backyard so I can see him the whole time.
The sleeping through the night thing is kinda of hit and miss. We had three successful nights in a row and now it's more sporadic. Oh well, slow progress is better than no progress.
Oh, and he's starting to talk in 2-word sentences which is really cute so instead of "na-night" it's "na-night so and so (Abby or Cassy or whoever) or another one I hear everyday is "boot on" or "boot ott (off)" (the kid wears his boots ALL day).
And today daylight saving begins so we turn our clocks ahead an hour...so weird for me coming from Saskatchewan where our time doesn't change.

FINALLY!!!!!!

2010-03-09T12:52:00.001-07:00

He slept through the night. At over 22 months old. Well, little dude, it's about time!

Baby's Got Moves!

2010-03-06T12:48:00.003-07:00

I am frequently requested by the little dude to come upstairs to "dints" (dance). And it really is too bad that I have to hold the camera cuz while the boy's got moves, mama does too. No actually, not at all...well maybe after 1/2 a bottle of wine ;)

Oh, and sorry for all the moving around, it kinda gives you a headache.

Spring is springing!

2010-03-02T20:29:00.003-07:00

The last couple of days have been really nice...so nice that Yoyo and I can play in the backyard without hats and mittens and me being completely miserable cuz I am a big suck when it comes to being cold. I can hardly wait until winter is over...I hate winter. Plain and simple. I could lay in the hot sun all day, every day. And hopefully in a couple of months I will be doing just that while Yoyo brings me cold drinks and fans my face when needed ;)
Just a few pics from today.

Last night I peeked in on Yoyo before I went to bed and this is how I found him. Kinda looks like he was out on a bender....hmmmm.

This morning we met up with our buddies Dom, Taye, Tye and their mommies for a little swimming playdate. The boys are so cute together. I am so happy that Yoyo has 2 little ethio buddies to grow up with and also to have Dom for a surrogate big bro! I can just imagine the trouble that they will stir up in a few years!

Yonas is still going to bed like a little champ but he's still not sleeping through the night and has decided that he wants to be the early bird that gets the worm. I'm trying to convince him that the worms aren't even out at 6AM but it is appearing as though our days of staying in bed until 9 or sometimes even 10 are gone.

Go Canada Go!!!!

2010-02-28T11:46:00.004-07:00

I am so excited for the hockey game this afternoon! Yonas is all ready to go (currently napping so he'll be in full cheering mode when the time comes) and we picked up a pizza and some munchies to enjoy while Canada wins the gold. I have a feeling it's going to be a pretty exciting game (it usually is when the US and Canada face off against each other!).

As for the rubber boots he's wearing...the kid's got a bit of a shoe fetish and has some sort of footwear on from the moment he gets up until bedtime. Yesterday he was throwing tantrums because he wanted to wear his skates when we went to run errands. No son, it is NOT okay or even remotely normal to wear skates when you are not skating.

Sleep and Such

2010-02-27T12:23:00.003-07:00

Thought I'd do a little update on the sleeping thing. Surprisingly, it's worked really well. I even took down his crib today (sniff, sniff). After the first awful night, he has gone to bed at night without getting up once. He is still up once or twice during the night but even that has improved A LOT. Although, I am finding it creepy to wake up with a little face only inches from mine. He doesn't say anything, just stares at me. Weirdo! Naptime has been a bit longer of a transition but today he only got up once.

This video is from this morning (seriously, it's the best way to wake up...he crawls into bed with me and the dogs and chatters away while giving us kisses). I wanted to get him while he was talking cuz it seriously is super cute. Anyway, he was drinking my crystal light which was fine, but as I went to turn on the light he dumped the whole thing on the bed. What the heck? I know the kid does numerous things throughout the day seemingly just to tick me off but THIS? And then I watched the video....he was actually trying to feed it to Cassy. You have to watch really close to catch it (right when the light comes on you'll see him put the bottle to Cassy's lips). Anyway, today was declared laundry day nonetheless.

I thought I was a champ

2010-02-25T13:14:00.002-07:00

Well for a little while anyway. Here's my baby sleeping in his big boy bed for the very first time...he's hard to see but his little hand is there so I'm sure the rest of him is too :)

It went well, too well I realize now. It took all of 5 minutes and me taking him back to his bed 5 times before he stayed there and fell asleep. I grabbed my glass of wine and feeling all smug and powerful came downstairs to enjoy the rest of my evening. I was even thinking to myself how easy that was and I must be good, I mean really good.

Oh haha, the joke was on me. At 10:30 he woke up. I took him back 26 times and then realized that he stayed in his bed if I was in the room so I sat on the floor at the end of his bed with my back facing him. After 45 minutes with him still happily chattering away to me and me no longer having any feeling in my tush, I realized this wasn't working either. So back out I went. It took another 40 times of me taking him back to bed before he went back to sleep. It was 1:02 AM. Huh, not such a champ after all I guess.

Then he woke at 3 and I was so tired I could barely function so I just gave him a bottle and back to sleep he went until 7:30 this morning. Yeah, I know, my bad.

Naptime didn't go quite as well as I had hoped. I layed him down at 11:40 and it took over an hour and 46 times of me taking him back to bed before he finally crashed.

But, it's got to get better....right?

Big Boy Bed!

2010-02-24T16:30:00.003-07:00

Friends of ours gave us this little toddler bed that their son had grown out of. I set it up a few days ago in Yoyo's room and tonight I am taking the big plunge and am going to start "training" him to sleep in his new bed. I'd like to keep him in his crib cuz let's be honest, it's a lot easier and he goes to sleep really easily in it. BUT, I've noticed a couple of times him making somewhat feeble attempts to get out. Also, I don't want him to start thinking of his race car bed as a place to play and jump around before he's learned to sleep in it. Add to that that I am desperately hoping that this will help him learn to sleep through the night. He still falls asleep with a bottle (say nothing you judgers whose children have naturally learned to sleep through the night on their own...you know who you are :) ) and I think when he wakes up he "needs" a bottle to fall back asleep as he hasn't learned to fall asleep without one.
So yeah, I'm a little terrified at what the next few nights will have in store for me...Yoyo is one super persistent little dude and I know he will put up a good fight. So the plan is to keep a glass of wine close by and hope that I can out persist him putting him back in bed a million times over. Yeah, wish me luck.

We've had a busy last week. We've had a couple of playdates, gone tobogganing, went out for supper with one of my toon town peeps and her husband, took Yoyo skating again, and due to the fact that I don't have a babysitter yet, Yoyo even accompanied us to our friends house where we watched the UFC (and he stayed up and was happy the whole time...well except for when he got put in timeout for throwing a car on their glass coffee table...and the kid has got a really good arm so lets just say he's lucky I didn't have to pay for a new table out of his bank account!). This week we don't have much planned but the weather is supposed to be really nice so I'm sure we will spend a lot of time outside.

Living In Perfect Harmony...Almost

2010-02-18T13:34:00.004-07:00

The dogs have been here just over a week now and all seems to be going well. The first couple of days Yonas thought Abby's name was "Abby Down" being that is what he heard me saying to her all the time. He was also a little annoyed at having his personal space invaded constantly. But now the three of them have seem to come to an understanding amongst each other. Yonas is getting used to all the kisses and now even puckers up for them and the dogs are loving following him around all day.

And Abby, who would eat herself to death if given the chance, loves when it's Yonas' mealtime as he likes to share with her...now I know where all his veggies are disappearing to. Oh and you'll notice he eats his toast with a fork...the kid hates getting his fingers dirty.

So yeah, I guess I'm pretty lucky at how well the transition has gone...Yonas has learned to tolerate them and they have been really good at letting him bug them even when they are eating. As for me, I'm happy...just readjusting to the daily woes of poop scooping and vacumming up dog hair!

First Time Skating!

2010-02-15T09:29:00.004-07:00

With Yoyo's obsession with hockey, it was obvious we needed to get the kid on skates as soon as possible. Well, not surprisingly, it is difficult to find skates small enough. Craig finally found a little pair of Bauer's in a size 6...they are tiny and extremely cute :) So on Friday we went out to Millenium Place where they have a little indoor rink to take Yonas skating for the very first time. I figured he would either love it or hate it....he loved it! Which you can't really tell by the expression on his face but I think he was just concentrating so hard ;)
And while I get that all parents think their child is the greatest, Yoyo did really well for his first time! Near the end he was even trying to push off with his feet and he was able to use the pusher thingy (not sure what it's called) without Craig hanging onto it. People. the kid is not even 2 yet!!!
Looks like there really is a future little hockey player living under this roof!

And The Dogs Came Back

2010-02-10T13:10:00.002-07:00

For those of you that followed my old blog, I'm sure you will remember my first "babies" Abby and Cassy. Well, they're back! Due to certain circumstance, my ex couldn't keep them anymore so last night they arrived. I am thrilled...it was really hard for me to let them go. And Yoyo is excited too, but a little overwhelmed at times at all the kisses the puppies want to give him. This afternoon I am going to make my first attempt at taking the 3 of them for a walk...should be interesting!

Happy Forever Day Yoyo!

2010-02-08T00:01:00.000-07:00

It has now been a full year since you were handed into my arms and I got to take you with me forever. We've had a crazy year full of ups and downs but we are settled into a really good place now and I can't imagine being happier. I have not only learned alot about who you are but I've also learned alot about who I am. Being a mommy is more challenging than I thought, but also more rewarding than I could have ever imagined. You are growing and changing so fast and I know that this next year will fly by just as fast as this last one did and so I really need to cherish this time. So here's to another year together!

This was the first smile you gave me :) Now I'm lucky enough to get them every day.

Laying in bed watching you sleep in your little crib beside me was surreal. It was hard for me to grasp the fact that you were finally here and we were together at last.

One Year Ago Today...

2010-02-07T00:01:00.000-07:00

I met you for the very first time. It's a day I will never forget. I only got to spend just over an hour with you but I got to hold you and snuggle you and even feed you a bottle. You fell asleep in my arms and to mark your territory, you even peed on me. It was bliss :)

You're not THAT big!

2010-02-05T11:39:00.002-07:00

Often when we are out in public people approach us, interact with Yonas, and ask me how old he is. When I tell them, I almost always get the same response "wow, he's a big boy for his age" or some variation of that. So, yesterday I plotted his measurements and he really isn't that big for his age. For height he's only in the 30th percentile and for weight he's in the 60th. He still wears size 12-18 month pants (size 24 month shirts) and his feet are only a size 5. So I don't really get why everyone thinks he's so big?!?! Maybe it's the mature manner in which he carries himself when we are out.

All is Well!

2010-02-03T15:43:00.002-07:00

It's been 3 weeks since we moved and while I do miss a few things (well, really just people), I don't know why we didn't move out here long ago. First of all, there is no wind! Seriously, this is HUGE! Living in SK you get so used to it that you almost don't really notice it, but here I notice almost every day when I step outside that it's NOT windy. So when the temperature is -10 it really is -10...none of that "oh, it's -10 with a -32 windchill" crap. So really, that in itself, makes the move worth it.
And our grocery store...I love it! Seems like such a silly thing to rave about but they have the best shopping carts for kids to sit in...Yonas LOVES sitting in them, plus they are still functional for loading it up with groceries. And the ladies there adore him (well really, can you blame them?). And they are always offering him treats while we shop...deli meat, cookies, suckers, cheese, etc (and the nicest thing is, they ask ME first if it's okay).
Plus, there is so much to do here. We have a monthly membership for Millenium Place (it also gets us into 2 other locations for free) which is an awesome place that has an indoor playground, waterpark, indoor skating rink, fitness centre, and lots more. And it's only $35! We go there all the time. And well, do I even need to mention West Ed Mall?
And one of the best things so far? Yonas has new little playmates that are close to his age and he loves to play with them. T & T are two little ethio boys who are only 2-4 months younger than him and D is the 3 year old "boss" that keeps the three of them in line! And we also have playdates with his buddy Austin who he asks for every day. We had a playdate with Austin on Sunday and he was sooo tuckered out after that he actually slept through the night! This was only the 2nd time he's done this...the first time was the night after he got his 18 month vaccinations. So bonus for mommy!
So yeah, all in all, it's been a great move for all of us.

Dancing Man

2010-01-29T20:37:00.000-07:00

This is for you Hazel :)

A few clips of Yoyo dancing...these are from October so his moves have developed a little since then. And yes he is all about the blackeyed peas...no pansy Barney sing along songs for this boy, he needs a real beat. Oh, and he does his own choreography. Impressive, no?

21 Months!

2010-01-28T13:14:00.066-07:00

Today, my sweet boy, you turn 21 months old! It's hard to believe how fast you are growing up. You are changing and learning new things every day and it's exciting to watch. You are talking so much now. You still do your constant babble in a language that only you understand but as you learn new words that is slowly diminishing (sniff sniff).

We have been working on your manners and now you know to say "please" (peees) when you want something and "thank you" (tinktoo) when it is given to you. Sometimes you get a little ahead of yourself and miss the please and go straight to the thank you.

You say the word "done" when you are finished doing something or think you are ready to be let out of time out.

You have so many words in your vocabulary that I can't even begin to list them. One of your favourite things to do is name all of the people you know (which of course then I have to repeat each person)...this can go on or a looong time.

You are still a busy boy, but will now sit with mommy for some cuddles and read a book. You also do this fake cry and bring your "bam bam" (blankie) then bury your face in my chest while you "cry". It's great for mommy cuz I get extra snuggles this way.

You are just starting to enjoy the whole drawing/colouring thing but must be closely surpervised in order to save the walls and whatever else from being decorated with your artwork.

You are becoming more independent and with that comes the knowledge of what you want or don't want. And when things don't go your way, you now throw little tantrums. I am trying to be persistent and not give in but some days are harder than others to do that.

You are very smart and know what you can't play with or touch...however this doesn't stop you. If I can't see you, I can hear you say "no" or "don't" and then I know you are about to do something you aren't supposed to. One day you will learn to not give yourself away so easily and when that happens I'll know that if it's quiet it probably means trouble!

You love to play with other kids and are usually drawn to the older ones (especially the girls!) but are still wary around adults you don't know.

And as always, you love to dance. I try so hard to get this on video but as soon as the camera comes out you stop and say "cheeeese!". One day I will just have to try and be super sneaky.

Well, little man, you are growing up at a rapid pace and sometimes I wish I could stop time for a bit. But that's the life of a parent and what reminds us to enjoy these moments while they are here. I love you lots lil' yoyo :)

This is your first time sitting at the island eating your breakfast.

You were pretty proud of yourself!

This morning I was in the kitchen and I heard you calling out "tuck, tuck" (stuck). Apparently you figured out how to climb up onto this window but couldn't get back down.

You and me just goofing around this morning!

Terrible Twos

2010-01-27T12:56:00.000-07:00

So I am quickly learning that the Terrible Twos don't actually wait until the age of 2 to unwelcomingly join the family. Lately Yoyo is becoming more persistent (that's putting it nicely). And when things don't happen on his command he resorts to throwing his body on the floor screaming "NO" like the world is coming to an end. This leads us to today. We ran out to pick up a few things and because he was being a good little boy he got to pick out a little treat (a single serving size bag of little crackers). He held his treat while we finished shopping and would repeatedly ask me to open it but I would tell him he had to wait until we paid for it. He even willingly gave it to the cashier and let her scan it and put it in the bag. So far, star performance. We get to the car, I buckle him in, I grab the treat bag, and go to hand him a couple of crackers....and instantly the kid lets out this blood curdling scream, so crazy and loud that I actually for a second thought something was wrong. He screamed and cried and threw the crackers back at me. I realized then that he wanted the whole bag but this little momma didn't want a car full crackers (long road trips only!). He continued screaming like I've never heard before and people walking by the car were looking with concern, I'm sure wondering if I was beating my kid in the back of the car. This lasted for a good solid 5 minutes (which may not seem like a long time but my poor little ears will tell you it felt like forever). And then just as suddenly as started, it stopped. Then I heard this quiet little "tinktoo" (thank-you...he gets the order of please and thank-you a little backwards some days) and so I handed him a cracker and all was well in the world again. I know I'll be jinxing myself but I am soooo thankful he has yet to do this in public. It is frustrating and embarassing! Nothing makes you feel like a star mother when you're child is acting up in the open, judging, eyes of the public!

A Year Ago...

2010-01-23T21:15:00.000-07:00

A year ago I got this picture of my baby from my dear friend. She was able to see Yonas when she was there picking up her little guy.

And here he is a year later. No longer the quiet cautious baby!

Some days it's really hard to look back at his baby pics...I really miss those days. He was so cute (still is) and chubby. When you miss out on almost the first year of "baby" time, the few months that are left go by even faster.

Ewww!

2010-01-22T11:29:00.002-07:00

This morning I found Yonas in the bathroom washing his face with toilet water...need I say more.

I'm Back!!!

2010-01-21T12:59:00.000-07:00

I finally caved and decided to start blogging again. Truth be told, I've missed you guys and I've missed the whole blogging "life". I'm excited to be back!
The last year has been a little crazy but we are finally settling into our new life and happy with where we are. We just moved to Edmonton and while I'm super excited to be here, I sure do miss my Toon Town peeps!
Yonas is one week shy of being 21 months old! Seriously, where did the time go? He is no longer my baby but is now my little boy. And some days the realization of this is hard to take. It's fun to watch him grow and change and learn new things but oh so sad to say goodbye to the baby days. And being that there is a very good chance he will be my only baby, it's even harder. That's life....I heard somewhere at sometime that when you are a parent, the days are long but the years are short and wow how true that is!
So, onto the little man...he is boy, all boy. He is loud and busy and rough and won't sit still for more than 30 seconds at a time. He loves to dance...and yep, he's got moves...moves that I'd like to take credit for teaching him but alas I have no rhythm so I know he didn't get his from me. And hockey....sighhh....I think it's in his blood contrary to what I was hoping. Now don't get me wrong, I actually love hockey...I enjoy watching it on tv and I love going to games, it's just that I was kinda hoping Yonas would lean more towards, soccer or basketball or football. The thing with hockey nowadays is that it is no longer a hobby, it's a lifestyle. And hockey parents can be a little crazy. But, it appears that this lifestyle will soon be mine and I will probably morph into one of those wacky hockey moms screaming obscenities at the refs from the stands. The kid is obsessed with hockey...it's all he talks about, all he wants to play, and it's also the only thing he will actually sit down and watch on tv. So I guess it would be wrong for me to deny him something that he clearly loves.

Here's just a few pics for those of you that haven't seen him since he came home.

I was trying to get a nice picture of him sitting in front of the Christmas tree, as you can see he was a little uncooperative.

His girlfriend. He asks for "Eeya" (Eden) a hundred times a day. Oh and you will notice he got his hair cut...it was very traumatic for me...I cried (really hard) and saved some curls in a ziploc baggie and now I can't wait for his curls to come back.

His first close-up with a horse (and no that toque is not his...although he does look good in pink!)

This was his first time tobogganing and that was seriously his expression all the way down the hill...I think he thought it was the stupidest idea ever.

I am trying to teach this kid to feed himself, but now you can see why I find it far easier, faster, and cleaner to just do it myself. I'm sure by the time he starts school he'll have it all figured out...I hope.

Well, just want to say it feels good to be back...I've missed you all!