Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Weekend date night and family fun

Saturday  night my husband and I went out for a steak dinner! We went to a restaurant that has been around for over 50 years. The ambiance was romantic and old fashion as the restaurant is set up inside an old city house. We had a delicious dinner. Escargots, garlic bread and pickled veggies, steak and a baked potato and a nice bottle of wine. 
 

I took a Pinterest inspired fashion tip by adding a lace slip to my dress to add some length and it worked perfectly. 


The Sunday morning we went to Marineland with my brother and his family.



We had so much fun! And the kids loved it! 

Kris was shocked at the dolphins ha! 

We went on some rides and had a great time at the park. 

We even got to see a 10 hour old beluga whale! 



On our way home we stopped by the falls for a short walk. Kristian was so excited and loved seeing the falls.


Thursday, July 25, 2013

Jogging stroller success

My little toddler has his days where there is no way he will sit in the stroller longer than 5 minutes. 

I was considering selling my jogging stroller since it was hardly being used for months now! 

But this week alone I got in 3 jogs! Jogging/power walking to parks a little further away. We stop at the park and play which is perfect because I don't feel guilty about making it only about me. We play in the park then jog back home. Perfect! 

I'm not sure how long this will last but I will try and make a routine of it! 


This mama has 20lbs to drop! 

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

A beautiful emotional day

I've said it before... I stopped really expressing my thoughts on my blog. I keep it light and simple for the most part.  I try not to get too 'deep' anymore. Maybe I don't know what to really say sometimes or maybe a little fear of being judged. Or maybe it's just hard to be so open with personal issues. 

Anyway, today I'm emotional and I'm just going to write from the heart. My father passed away from liver disease and my aunt has been struggling with it now for years.  Yesterday we heard good news about a donor for her.(the second time this year) The family prayed and she was at the hospital with her family prepping this big surgery. I spoke to her and my cousin briefly but I felt the emotions through the phone. The hope, the fear the uncertainty of it all. I went to bed praying for my aunt. I woke up and called my mom right away. The surgery didn't happen. I don't know the details, but I do know my family is heart broken. 


I trust in God. And I trust that everything happens for a reason. 

(Google photo credit) 

I'm praying for the strength of my family. 

Today baby k is still stuffy and we were going to stay home but I thought a little drive would be good. So we went down to the city to visit my dad in the cemetery. Baby k is so young but I feel he understands why we go there. He knows that's 'Nonno' he says it, he plays and blows kisses. I want him to know that my dad meant a lot to me and even though he was far from perfect he was my dad and always always loved us. I have much more good memories with him than bad... and thats what matters. And I know that he is always here for me, even though he isn't here. He was never a candidate for a donor. He never made the list. He passed away at 46. 

So today we just spent sometime asking him to watch over us and pray with us. 

Told you I'm having an emotional day ;)

We ended our morning going to our favorite car wash haha 



and picking up lunch in our old neighborhood.  

It was a beautiful morning. 


Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Packing snacks for my toddler

When it's time to head out I gather a bunch of snacks and baby k's water sippy cup and head out. 

What does my toddler love to snack on? 

Other than the usual cheesy puffs, goldfish and cheese strings. I like to make little baggies or containers of his favorite fruits and veggies. I have them packed in the fridge ready to grab. Things like sweet pepper sticks, blueberries, cucumber. and throw in a banana or 2 sometimes too. 

Easy and convenient! 


What does your toddler like to snack on? 




Saturday, July 20, 2013

Project Paint RED

I've been getting inspired these days to do a little painting. I love DIY projects but I really haven't done much in years! When I lived at home oh soo many years ago haha I painted my own room a couple of times and even made myself a desk ha! 

When we bought our first home 8 years ago it was a fixer upper and I was right in the middle of all the work! Sanding, taking down walls, painting. And helped paint our current home too! Ok the husband did most of it but I helped! 


So painting some furniture... I can do! Well let's see. I picked out some pieces I have around to get started. I have soo many ideas! 


Picking a color was tough. At first I was going to go with grey, it's safe. But then I thought, I need a little RED in my life ha! 

So my ideas are: 

Getting some RED going on in our home by painting a black vase red! 


Painting a black chair red to use as a flower pot in the front yard. Pinterest inspired. 

Painting a wood stand red and adding chalk board paint to the top. Fun! 

And I want to paint half of baby k's little table with chalkboard paint too! 

Eee! First step I'll need to buy the tools and prep! 

If this all goes well.... Well, I have soo many more things in the house I want to paint and change up haha! 

Friday, July 19, 2013

Hot week!

This week was super hot and humid! 

Finding things to do with a toddler without spending too much time outside at once was hard.

We went to a new playland with a friend. The kids loved it! Watching them climb up stairs and climb over things being brave was so cute to watch. 


I made homemade juice Popsicles which kept us cool too! 

We also went to the splashpad for some fun too. It was fun until a little boy about 6 years old came and starting kicking water in Kristian's face until he cried. ;( horrible. It broke my heart! Kris was so upset. I picked up Kris and tried to calm him down, but he was afraid to go back in. Boo! 

Next week will be cooler and not as hot and humid as this week whew! We love summer and want to enjoy the outdoors! 


Sunday, July 14, 2013

While the husband was away...

Last week we received sad news that my husbands 94 year old grandfather passed away in Honduras. We had a nice family dinner last weekend to celebrate his life.  At the dinner my husband, 2 of his brothers and his dad decided to go back to Honduras to visit family during this tough time. So they booked a flight for Wednesday and he's been away for 5 days! 

5 days just me and baby k. 

The first day was good, I spent it with my sister shopping and playing. Then Thursday morning I woke up really dizzy. Dizzy and nauseous (not preggo) I couldn't even lift baby k out of the crib. I panicked a little, ok a lot. I never felt that before. I called my sister and mom and they rushed over. After speaking to telehealth they told me to get to the ER. So we did. My sister watched the kids (ha! She had her hands full, my cousin went over to help and my sister was able to put her little to nap and then put baby k to nap haha super mom!) 

After getting checked out, they said all seemed fine. But the nauseous feeling still lasted a couple days! I'll be seeing my family doctor tomorrow.

So glad for my family to help in a second when needed ;)

The rest of the days consisted of more shopping (sorry DH ha!) and lots of playing outdoors with Kristian. 

Yesterday was my brothers BBQ birthday party. It was nice, but with a toddler you can imagine I was pooped at the end of the night! 

Today is a beautiful day. Water fun and ice cream all day! 

Monday, July 08, 2013

Yes my toddler screams NO!

Ha! Other than my niece, I haven't been around many toddlers so the toddler life is new to us too. I read up a lot on behavior and know that my little toddler is acting exactly how a little toddler should!

 
But when around others that don't have kids we find ourselves having to explain his behavior. 

Yes my toddler has mood swings, yes he hugged and kissed you once then snubbed you a second later, yes my toddler will not share with you, yes that was my toddler that ate the soil and licked the rocks, yes that was my toddler that went up and down the stairs alone one thousand times to prove he can do it and yes my toddler will scream NO to NOO end! Ha! 

It may drive us crazy too sometimes but I get a kick out of seeing how independent my little guy is learning to be. He is learning about his surroundings and learning that yes those are his toys and you better not touch them. He is learning what he wants in his little life. When he says he wants a avocado you better get him that avocado or he will let you know how upset he is. 


Toddlers are so fun to be around they live in the moment and have so much fun doing simple things like licking rocks haha and jumping in puddles! 

Of course it's also exhausting because they are non stop! This weekend I looked forward to bedtime and naps to get much needed breaks. 

Monday, July 01, 2013

Canada day long weekend

Happy Canada Day! 

We spent the weekend at a cottage up north! 


I was concerned a bit going with a toddler but it was fine! He had a blast. The cottage was spacious and I brought lots of toys and the iPad of course. He slept in the play pen just fine. I brought our video monitor too, perfect for us not having to keep checking in him. He was right on schedule with nap and bedtime which was awesome.  Another couple brought their 8 month old daughter too which was great. Especially in the morning when we were the only ones up at 8am with our kids. It was nice company. 


We had a fun Canada Day long weekend enjoying our beautiful country.