12 Great Things in 2012!

Looking back 2012 was a great year! We have enjoyed many blessings and so here are the top 12 of 2012!

1) I turned 30 in January and was surprised with a visit from my closest University friend, Megan. A great weekend of catching up was had!

2) I got a new job (that started on the exact day of the end of my mat. leave) in Arborg. I was blessed with an opportunity to move to the public school system and have enjoyed my time there immensly!

3) Griffin started walking (at just under 10 months) and the fun began! The monkey continues to be an active boy! Jumping off the stairs is a wonderful pastime around here now!

This is a more recent picture but walking is a favourite pastime of the little Dude!

4) Griffin started Daycare and mommy had a hard time adjusting. Thankfully the Riverton Daycare cuddled and coddled and loved my goofy boy!

5) We celebrated a wonderful boy turning 1! How time flies when you are having the most enjoyable time raising a sweet, polite, spunky little boy!

Happy Birthday!

6) Jay got a new job, after his term at Sport Manitoba ended, that he is very much enjoying. Rec Connections has been a great job for him and he is enjoying looking toward the future there.

7) We puchased our first house in the town of Gimli. It all happened so quickly but was such a great decision!

New house

8) We introduced Griffin to the wonderful world of swimming during his summer swim lessons in Arborg and have continued his love of the water this fall/winter as we continued lessons at Misty Lake.

SWIMMING!!

9) The move came and went (with minor hitches) and we spent time getting settled in our new home.

10) G an dI enjoyed our summer outside, playing, sliding, walking and hanging out in the back yard. Moving to Gimli really allowed us to enjoy the outdoors more than ever.

Swinging!

11) I headed back to work and Griffin started a new (home) daycare. The transition was way easier than I expected and he has been so happy there!

12) We had a wondeful Christmas break that we are enjoying as a family!

Smiling 18 month old goof!

Merry Christmas!

I will post a life update at some point but it is Boxing Day so a Christmas post makes sense!!

I L-O-V-E Christmas, and having a 20 month old makes Christmas better than ever! We decided to spread Christmas out over many days and just a few events/gatherings. It has been relaxing and exciting all at the same time.All through December Griffin celebrated Advent by opening a different Christmas book. i had a bunch and bought some more in November. I got a wonderful 5 book box sent of little board books that tell the story of Jesus coming to cave the world. He really enjoyed those ones the best (good for his level, and I liked the message). By the end of the month he looked forward to each opening in the evening.

We enjoyed  a lovely Christmas Eve service at our church here in Gimli and spent Christmas morning at home (AWESOME). We decided not to go crazy with presents this year, in fact Jay and I did not buy each other presents at all. Instead we watch Griffin open, play and explore the gifts he received. His excitement and love of his new toys has been awesome to watch, and despite us not going present crazy he has racked up a nice present haul thanks to the generosity of others.

While Christmas is not all about presents Griffin is at the stage where his child-like wonder makes his reactions so much fun to watch! My crazy generous sister-in-law (and brother) got him a kitchen, complete with tea cups and pot, pots and pans, and a ton of food. He has been saying "cook, tea, hot, cook" very, very often since we opened and put it together on the 23rd. It has made going to bed at a reasonable time impossible, he is absolutely enthralled by his kitchen! Thankfully we have spread out the present opening because on Christmas morning Santa delivered a farm, complete with animal sounds, and his Great-Auntie Linda (Boaz) sent a truck with cars and animal drivers. Both these presents have been played with; when asked if he wanted to open more presents he responded enthusiastically with a "NO"! His Spiderman mitts have been adored and the books have been read. Finally he agreed to open play-doh from friends, and a Bubble Guppies book and dvd from Mom and dad. He was also given a truck by one of my students that has kept him occupied at family gatherings!! The best gift for sure (in my opinion only) was a BC Lions t-shirt :)! Clearly he did not suffer from our frugality this Christmas. He was in need of new toys as he was getting rather bored of his old stuff, the thought and care put into each of his gifts has made him a very happy boy!!

We still have a trip to McGregor at the end of the week for a couple of days. Until then we will have some family time and enjoy our little boy! Family time is one of the best parts of the Christmas Season!

Fall in the Boaz House

We have been a busy family this fall, but have gotten into a nice routine! I am back to work and I must say I am thoroughly enjoying my job. I have a fantastic class of Grade 5 and 6 students that make me smile and laugh every day. I enjoy working with a team of teachers that are teaching the same grade that I am; I must say I am not excited that I am leaving at the end of December. That is the life on term contracts I suppose.

We were so lucky to end up with a home daycare spot in Gimli for Griffin. I drove to Riverton for two weeks every morning at the beginning of September before a spot opened up here. I have to say the transition for him was a breeze! He runs up the stairs to see the cats every morning and is so happy at the new place. I am so grateful for that! He is in a home daycare and having the same caregiver each day seems to have really made the transition easy. All this added to the fact that the daycare is one house away makes life even easier! We walk to daycare each day and Jay walks him home. It has really been a good change.

Jay is still driving to and from the city each day. Our daycare closes at 4:30 so he leaves mighty early so he can get Dude on time. I am so grateful for a husband who puts in so much effort (an little sleep) to make our family work. I have certianly noticed that the few hours that Griffin and Jay have spent together each day has made them a tighter unit. G is becoming less clingy to me and enjoys his "man time". There is a chance that Jay may be able to work a few days out of Gimli each week which would sure be great for his sleep, out schedule, and of course our gas budget! He is really enjoying his job!


We continue to love living in Gimli. Last weekend we took our Monkey to the playground at the beach, he loves slides and climbing!

Of course we live in Manitoba so this weekend we broke out the new snowsuit and had a blast in the sled. I ran around the backyard pulling him as he giggled up a storm!

Love this kid!!

Griffin Update!

It has been a little while since I dedicated a post all about my baby boy, and for posterity's sake I need to keep some record of all things Griffin, plus he is pretty cute so a few pics will brighten my day too!

Griffin is now almost 16 months old, how has time gone so quickly! In general he is active, playful, giggly, and mommy-loving. Here are some specifics:

On His Slide

• He loves to go outside, and now gets his shoes and ours when it is time to go out in the backyard. He knows which shoes are mine, and which shoes are Jays and brings them to the correct parent. He also know that he needs to take his shoes off right as we come in. He sits down and unvelcros them, but can't take them off without help. When outside he plays with water, on his slide, chases bubbles or collects leaves and brings them to me. 
• When inside he can often be found bringing books to one of his parents. It makes my heart happy to see him so into books. He has about 12 in the rotation, and these 12 books get read numerous times throughout the day. His favourite is "I Love You So Much", but he likes his counting book, an alphabet book, nursery rhyme/song books, a Spiderman book and books that have textures. I can now read most of them without looking and he turns the pages! He has now been "reading" when we tuck him in; we always read him a story or two and then leave the book open for him, he flips through the pages before falling asleep. So cute!
• He says a few words: mom, dad, please (it was out of the rotation, but I heard it twice today), what's this?, duck, dog, moo and baa all in context. When asked he can point to his ears, eyes, hair, teeth (his fav.), feet, and hands. I am sure he has said more words that we haven't picked up yet, and often says the same babble over and over in the same contexts, I am sure he knows what he means, I just haven't figured it out yet! 
• He loves talking on the "phone" and every remote, speaker, plastic object is a phone these days. When my mom and I talk on the phone he is sure to get me to put it on speaker so he can "talk" too!



A toy?!? If not it is now!

•  Although he plays with his toys, he much prefers random objects that he makes into toys.  Containers, boxes, tools, pots, wooden spoons (one week he went everywhere with a wooden spoon), etc. all make great toys for a one year old, at the least this one year old loves them!
• Sleeping has improved so much over the summer. At this point he goes to sleep without tears most of the time. He naps for an our or two in the mid day. At night he wakes up at least once and gets a cuddle and nurse with mom the first time (as long as it is before 2am). After that he just ends up in bed with us. Not perfect, but it works for now.
• I marvel at how fast he learns things, everyday it is something new. I am such a teacher that we have "tests" every day, he thinks it is a game, I just want to reinforce what he knows. He always passes with flying colours (or is completely distracted and just laughs at me).
• I had always planned on nursing until at least a year but this baby boy will have nothing to do with quitting yet. He drinks milk from a cup when we are out or I am not around but he is a nurser through and through when we are home. I am sure it will dwindle drastically when I go back to work... for now we enjoy many cuddle times throughout the day.
•   He eats solid food like crazy! People are shocked when he chows down on steak, and broccoli (some of his favs.); he can't go a day without fruit (watermelon, bananas, pears, cherries), and generally loves all food! No complaints here!



Dressing up at the cousins house!



•   I am so grateful to have spent all these summer days with this cutie! He is amazing (yes, I am biased) and so much fun (until the whining starts). He is busy but not trouble, he listens fairly well and has a ton of fun. Although I am sad to be back at work soon he is in need of some playmates. He really like social interaction and I can tell he misses being at daycare with other kids. Until then though we will enjoy our mommy and son days!

Home Sweet Home!

Our new house is feeling like home, actually it didn't take long! We feel fairly settled (we have a few boxes left but mostly things like home decor stuff), and this is already home! Our moving days were crazy, long, and tiring; but successful and worth the lack of sleep. It all got done, and we are very happy to be in the new house. After a few rough weeks Griffin has even settled into this new place. We even went to what will become our new church this past Sunday (there were other kids there, and a toddler room, for the first time in 15 months I sat, with Jay, in a service)!!

I have to say life seems easier here. Griffin is very capable of going up and down the stairs with no help (yeah, no baby gates required) and has the run of the house (he couldn't go in the basement in the old house). He happily travels wherever he wants to (downstairs to get books, upstairs to bust the bathroom door open, to the kitchen to ask for food), of course usually he is within touching distance of one parent or the other. Our backyard is fenced, allowing me to drink coffee on the patio while he goes exploring, ball throwing, or sliding. But what has been really nice is the ability to walk places. Almost every day I hit the streets with baby in tow. He is loving his stroller and happily rides as I grocery shop, get mail, chat with friends, or get a coffee. The beach is easy to walk to, and he enjoys running along the pathway (we have avoided the actual water up to this point). Today we hit the spray park and hit the slides at the playground before going for a walk and picking up the mail. I get exercise, he gets fresh air and playtime, and we get errands done. How is this not a win-win situation!! I LOVE it! It sure has made all those pesky errands so much more enjoyable.

So in a nut shell we are loving the house, the town, and everything that comes with this move. Jay is home at a reasonable dinner time, and is less tired then he was driving 4 hours each day. This really has been a good move for us!

My Little Starfish Who Sleeps By Himself!

Playing in the bubbles!

Blowing Bubbles (He doesn't quite get the idea that your lips need to be in the water)

  This past week was a busy one for Griffin and I. He had swimming lessons everyday. Some may say he is too young for swim lessons but my goals wasn't to have a swimming baby, but rather to get him used to the pool and be happy in the water (he already loves his baths). There are not many pool options out here and ublic swim times are packed and crazy so this was a greeat way to introduce him to the wonderful world of swimming. He LOVED it! On Monday he was a little unsure of it, but by the end of that lesson, and a few slide rides he was as happy as a clam, and almost threw a fit when it was time to leave. By Tuesday he was walking in on his own (holding my hand) and by Friday he refused my help in any way shape or form (which did result in a few face fulls of water). He officially passed Starfish!

Going down the slide all by himself! Daddy is on the side and mommy is at the bottom :)

My first ever "report card"!

 And DRUM ROLL PLEASE......

My baby sleeps by himself!! We decided to bite the bullet and do a little but of crying it out so that Griffin would sleep alone rather than in my arms or in our bed. It took about 4 days of serious crying (think four hours per nap/night), they were brutal days and he was so sad... and then it happened he went into his crib, had a story and hugs and kisses, and without much crying (5 min or less) he is out! It is wonderful not to have to sit in the rocking chair for three hours for his afternoon nap! Our bed is all of a sudden bigger, and I can go to bed when I want (up until now I went to bed with him). It really is wonderful. Of course he sleeps sitting up, which is retty funny, but whatever works! There is a part that misses him at night, but I see him when he gets up between 12 and 1 (although we did have a full night sleep the other day). All in all I am so happy to have some down time, and I enjoy him so much when he is awake! Yeah Griffin!

Bring On Summer!!

The first weekend of summer is here!

After going like a crazy person the school year is over, and although I only worked three months I am ready for a bit of a break. The year ended in a whirlwind, as they always do. I am already dreaming about the fall and looking forward to a new year starting (teachers never stop thinking about work!).

For now though I am focused on home life, and that in itself will be a busy task this summer. Little Dude will spend his days at home, and he is BUSY these days! In fact as I write this he is learning to fall asleep in his own bed. Until this point he has been rocked or nursed to sleep (and yes daycare has rocked him to sleep), and he needs to learn to fall asleep and sleep alone. So right now my phone is singing to him, although I am not sure he can hear it over his crying, but he will survive, and be better for it! When not sleeping Dude is going non-stop! Books are a huge hit right now, as he develops his language skills. Mom, dad, yes, and please are his first words! He eats like a horse, plays a ton and generally gets into everything. Sometimes we wonder why we buy him toys as it seems like the good ol' pots and pan drums are some of his favourites! We have a week of swimming lessons next week, which should prove to be a fun, new experience for him. He brings so much energy into our live, and I can't help but love him to bits!

The other excitment comes from the move this summer. After Jay taking a job in the city (which he is enjoying very much and is going well) we have decided we need to live somewhat closer to the city while still allowing me to teach in Evergreen. We have bought a house in Gimli (a three bedroom split level) and are so excited to move in Aug. 1st. I dream of a nice backyard, a patio, more usable space, and of course something that is our own. Although not perfect (what place is) this is the right house for us at this point in our lives (and gives us just enough room to grow when the time is right). Packing will be a big task this summer (which is why I canèt rock and then hold Dude through each nap). So to end this post here are some pictures of the new digs (from the listing, we donèt have as nice of furniture :) ):

Front of the house

Upstairs livingroom

Dinning Room (I really want to paint away the yellow)

Kitchen

Downstairs Family Room

Backyard

A Month of Change

Wow, we sure have had a busy month around here!

I am enjoying my job very much but with me working there sure isn't much time for blogging (or anything really)! Most nights I hardly do anything except nurse and play with me sweet little boy. He is pretty demanding of my time when we are together, and I have decided that it is okay for him to need me in the evenings. He has adjusted fairly well to daycare and while he still needs to be rocked to sleep, he is eating well and not crying when we drop him off. We are still working on him drinking more there, but I am assuming he gets plenty to drink when we are at home!

Work is busy, but I don't have duty like I used to and have some prep time most days. Up until now I have gone in for around 7:30 but usually leave arounf 4:30. I have never started a job at this time of the year and it certianly has its' challenges but overall I have a great bunch of students! It is also nice to have teachers at the same grade levels as me. It is nice to be able to learn from others!

So in the last month I have started working, and recently accepted another term position at Arborg for Sept.-Dec., Griffin has started daycare, and turned one, and just yesterday Jay accepted a new position (his Sport Manitoba job ends on the 18th). As of this coming Tuesday he will be working at Rec Connections as their special initiatives co-ordinator. He is super excited about this opportunity and is really looking forward to it... however he is not super excited about the commute. The job is in Winnipeg, which will mean a 2 hour drive each way... YIKES! IT will mean that we will start to loook at the posssibility of moving south in order for him to drive less. Of course with my job in Arborg we will stay in the interlake and commute. we have no idea how this will all work out, but have trust that it will all turn out just the way it should! So the next 2 months will be even more crazy as I become the Griffin drop-off and pick-up (until now Jay dropped off), and Jay spend less time at home and more time on the road, but we know that summer is just around the conner, and I have two months to be a full-time mommy again! Tomorrow will worry about itself, for now we will enjoy our jobs and our family!

1st Year in Pictures!

Me VERY Pregnant... Waiting and waiting!

Me getting loaded onto the ambulance stretcher at Selkirk. That oxygen mask should have been on my face.

Hours old... not exactly as planned but very loved!

Healthy an no longer a bionic baby!

Almost 3 weeks old

Jump, jump, juming!

First food at around 5 months old.

Daddy is already teaching me how to curl!

Sliding down my slide at 1 year old

I will walk there myself!

Happy Birthday Baby Boy!

My Dearest Baby Boy,

Today is your 1st birthday! This first 12 months of your life has flown by. Wasn't it only yesterday I held your foot and prayed for you to be off those machines and breathing better? Wasn't it just this morning that I finger fed you milk and brought you home from the hospital? I am sure it was just this afternoon I fed you your first solid food, rice cereal, you loved it. You have grown so quickly! Every day I see you becoming more and more a little kid, and less and less a baby!

You are walking pretty much full-time now. At least once a week the daycare writes us a note telling us how you bumped some part of your body and got a bruise; most of the time you don't cry and stand right back up! You are excellent at shaking your head to say "NO", maybe we could learn how to say 'yes' soon too? "Momomomomom" and "HUG" come from you pretty regularly. You like to read books, play with toys and generally have a blast. You have your two front bottom teeth, and just this past week you "fangs" started to appear. You still don't have your top front teeth so you might have a silly smile for a little while yet!

For your birthday we bought you a slide and you have been enjoying more and more time outside exploring the world you live in. I am sure you woudl spend even more time out there if we didn't make you sleep! You are ticklish and so easy to make smile and laugh. I enjoy watching you sleep, smile, laugh and play, you bring me joy and laughter with every minute I spend with you!

Now that I am back to work I miss you like crazy all day. I miss our sleepy cuddles, giggle fits, and play time. Every evening we spend many hours together, playing, nursing, reading, tickling, and singing silly songs. You still love mommy and daddy the best, but you are loving spending time with other kids at daycare. In fact you love it so much that you tackle them, maybe we could stop that soon?!

You first year, although different then I expected, has been a most amazing year. Who knew that you would become this adorable, sweet, loving, and playful little boy?! I loved you before we officially met, but on this day one year ago my heart became yours, and my world changed. For every little thing we have given up you have given us so much more. I look forward to seeing who you grow and develop into over the next years. For now though I will enjoy every second I have with you, there seem to be too few!

Love you forever and ever my Dude!!
~Mommy

Excited and Sad... Torn!

So torn! Today is my last day of Maternity Leave. On one hand I am so sad to be leaving Dude, he is such a joy, and I have spent almost every minute with him over the last 11 months. On the other hand I am super excited for my new adventure. I am anxious to get back into a classroom and teach. So tonight I am torn and am pretty sure this is how I will feel, only more so, tomorrow morning!

Dude spent his first full day at daycare last Tuesday, Jay picked him up and didn't ask many questions but apparently it went alright. I got a ton of work done, work that would have taken me two years if he was home with me! On Friday I went to work and Dude stayed home with daddy, so nice to get stuff done and not really worry about him. This afternoon I went back to work while the boys did some grocery shopping, and I am feeling mostly prepared for tomorrow. Really though I am nervous to start a new job, and nervous about how Griffin will do without me!

Now if only Dude would wake up so we could play this evening!

Final Thoughts (Part 5)

I have enjoyed my time at home with Griffin so much. He has filled my days with patty cake, laughter, and lots of love. He has given me time to practice patience, taught me that not everything is easy, but it is worth fighting for, and helped me learn to become a mommy. It has been a joy to see him become a little person, complete with a personality. He makes me laugh all the time with his funny antics, he is impish and stubborn, easy to make laugh, and a cuddle bug when sleepy. He is independent, and loves to do things for himself (like eating) but wants his mom around to feel secure. He is fearless, adventurous and trusts his mom and dad to catch him when he falls. Although I don't want it to happen too quickly I look forward to seeing what Griffin becomes as he grows up; we have wishes and dreams for him, but most importantly we want him to grow up to be a kind, generous, happy, God-loving little man!

Firsts!

Being at home means I got to witness most of the "firsts" for my baby boy. We watched with great anticipation as Dude nursed all day (that was glorious), rolled over, sat without support, ate his first food, sat himself up, army crawled, got his first tooth, crawled for real, fed himself, pulled himself to stand, and took his first steps. Every first is so exciting! We look and him today and see a little boy and not a baby, he has grown and changed so much in this first year. We have celebrated each first, but I have come to realize that he could have slowed down just a bit! It was certainly easier when he would stay were we put him! I am so thankful that I have been witness to such great achievements, seriously it takes lots of trying to learn how to roll over! Realizing that he has already done so much makes me a little sad, time flies so quickly, it won't be long until he is learning to drive!

The Good and The Bad (Part 3)

Worst Part of Mommy-Hood in Year One
Not all parts of mommy-hood are roses and sunshine. Not matter who you are there will be tough days mixed in with the glorious ones. If I am being real we had our rough days, and I am sure we will have more. The days Dude hangs off me, not letting me go more than two inches away from his cute little hands, when I am an all day milking machine; those days are tough, for both of us. Sure I know he must be teething, or tired, or insecure about something and so I hold him tight, and allow him to nurse most of the day, but oh how I would love to have a moment to myself. I think God made babies so cute and parents love so strong to help us get through these days!One wonderful thing I learned is that usually these days don't happen back to back, so while one day might be rough the next probably won't be!

Best Part of Mommy-Hood in Year One
I was so amazed at how quickly my little boy knew who I was. Even as a tiny infant he knew his momma, and was often happiest in my arms. Now as he approaches his first birthday I have to admit it makes me secretly happy that when he is hurt/scared/hungry/sad he wants his mommy most of all! I love that he needs me (because secretly I need him to need me!). I was also glad he bonded with Jay so quickly. In fact, the good thing that came from all the breastfeeding challenges was that Jay got to feed Dude in the early days. Not only did that help me out, but they had some great daddy-son moments.

 Love really was the theme of the year, as I fell in love with Dude on his first day of life I realized life would never be the same, our house would be full of this new, crazy, unending love for this little boy. Maybe being a parent gives you more perspective on how God loves all of us, there is nothing like it!