The Day to Day Thoughts of Leah and Caleb's Mommy

Summer Vacation

2009-07-19T06:43:00.006-04:00

So far we have had some good times this summer. Despite the extremely non-summer like weather, we have managed to have some fun.

We started our summer off by taking a trip to Chatham. I wanted to do this for a couple of reasons. One, Leah is at the age where she is starting to appreciate the "little things". This visit gave me the chance to show her where I went to high school, the house that I lived in and even the fun places I used to go when I was younger. Two, we were able to meet up with some good family friends of mine which meant a lot to me for them to meet my children (they already met Chris before we were married). And three, we also stayed at the Wheels Inn. I used to work there when I was in high school so that was fun too. When I decided to organize this getaway, it came to my attention that the Wheels Inn was closing at the end of June, so this made it a definite booking.

We did a little bit of touring around the city after we got settled into our room. At first I wasn't sure if I would remember how to get from point A to point B because I hadn't been back in about 8 or 9 years. It all came back to me as soon as I started driving around. I showed them my high school, our old house and of course the Cone and Shake Shop (a favourite ice cream place of mine and my great friend Jen). The remainder of the weekend was spent at the hotel. The hotel has (or had now I guess) a mini indoor amusement park, waterslides and mini golf so the kids were sure to enjoy themselves.

When school finished up at the end of June, Leah went and spent a couple of weeks with my parents in Sault Ste. Marie. They camped in Thessalon, did some swimming both in Lake Huron and at the Queen Elizabeth pool. The visited with friends and family and made strawberry jam too. Is is the fourth summer now that Leah has gone away with my parents and she has a great time each time she goes. Her visit was extended last summer from one week to two and it always goes over the Canada Day long weekend. So where ever they are they always take in some Canada Day festivities.

So while Leah was away for two weeks, Caleb received some undivided attention from Mommy and Daddy. He really likes being outdoors. He loves to kick the soccer ball around, play on the swings, go to the park, and play road hockey so we decided to buy him a basketball net. He loves it. Every morning when he wakes up he want to go out and shoot some hoops. He is going to turn into a star athlete in something I am sure.

Next weekend I am headed out of town for a well-deserved, mommy-is-going-away-without-children holiday. I am headed down to Toronto to see and spend some time with my friend Jen. We have pedicures already booked for Saturday morning and we will see where the weekend takes us from there.

We are going to Thessalon for the long weekend in August where Caleb is going to get his chance to "go campin" with Gramma and Papa. It will only be for one night, but atleast he get his turn. Leah will stay with my parents again for another week as well.

Chris has a golf weekend lined up with some buddies of his. They are going to Lake Placid to watch some junior hockey and take in as much golf as they can in three days.

And we definitely can't forget the 3rd Annual Luau on Aberdeen. Our good friends and neighbours, Shawn and Patti put on a good party each summer. This is always a great time.

So then summer is pretty much over. Unbelievable! Back to school gets into full swing. I hope to do one more activity with the kids before August ends. Maybe the Toronto Zoo or perhaps Santa's Village.

Hope you are all enjoying your summer as well. I am having a difficult time uploading pictures to this post so visit my facebook page where I have posted them there.

Take care and I hope to blog again soon.

Rant of the Day

2009-07-06T19:22:00.002-04:00

As you are aware, Tim Horton's offers breakfast sandwiches on their menu in which you have the choice of either bacon or sausage. My personal favourite is the Bagel B.E.L.T. less the E. I am not a big fan of eggs ever since I was about 10 years old or so. So when I place my order I always ask for it without the egg. Below is a usual conversation I would have at the drive thru when ordering the B.E.L.T.

Me: "I'd like a large two milk, one sugar and a Bagel B.E.L.T. with no egg."

Drive thru Attendent: "Would that be with bacon or sausage?"

Me: "Ahhhh bacon? (I thought the B in BELT stood for bacon? No? This comment is usually under my breath)"

Drive thru Attendent: "So that is a bacon breakfast sandwich?"

Me: "No, a bagel BELT with no egg."

Drive thru Attendent: "So, you would like a BLT Sandwich? White or Whole Wheat?"

Me: "No, a bagel BELT with no egg."

Please tell me, am I doing something wrong here? I don't understand what is so out of this world that the Drive Thru Attendent doesn't get what I mean or what I am ordering. It is simple....A Bagel BELT with no egg.........

Should I be saying something different?

June B-days/Anniversaries

2009-06-01T08:30:00.000-04:00

Mel Herrington - 1st
Lee Anne (me) - 5th
Rayna Bethune - 17th
Ken and Nancy McClelland - Anniversary - 28th
Sandra Northrup - 29th
Josh King - 30th

Happy Birthday/Anniversary everyone!

Missing in Action

2009-05-31T19:49:00.003-04:00

Ya, so I haven't blogged in forever and with the month of June beginning tomorrow, I thought I should get back at 'er. May has been hectic to say the least. Leah and Chris returned home safely from their trip to Alberta. Leah had a great time and very much enjoyed the airplane ride. As you may recall this was Leah's first time on a plane. I think I was more nervous about it than she was. Chris really enjoyed showing her around his home town and their visit with Gramma Ingrid and Bob went well too.

Mother's Day came and went. Let's just say that Chris is going to be one busy dude on Father's Day. Enough said.

The following weekend was Mama's turn to get away. Jen, my really good friend from high school, and I went to New York City for the weekend. This event had been scheduled since October in anticipation of our 35th birthdays. Jen's in April and mine coming up this month. We had a great time! Beautiful hotel, lots of walking, show on Broadway and plenty of great shopping. After we checked into our hotel room on Friday night, we walked to Times Square and found an outstanding Italian Restaurant. Way too much food, but it was really great. At first, I was quite overwhelmed with the large abundance of people EVERYWHERE, but that soon wore off. Saturday was basically reserved for shopping. We walked to the Empire State Building and then went shopping from there. We hit some really great stores, had a nice lunch and walked and walked and walked some more. Later in the evening we got tickets to Avenue Q which was a very funny show on Broadway. Sunday we shopped some more on our way to Central Park. We strolled through park, had a coffee and then stopped in at Serendipity for a light lunch and of course dessert. The best strawberry cheesecake sundae I have ever had! For dinner we decided to venture away from the hustle and bustle and went to a Spanish Cafe in Greewich Village. Stuffed lobster tails, wine, and all was fine! We returned to the hotel early so we could pack up our stuff, as we had to leave to the airport early the next morning. My legs were sooooo sore from all the walking (you can tell who wasn't in shape). What a weekend! Thanks Jen for an outstanding girls weekend. Can't wait to do it again.

So now that I am back to reality...we have been busy around the house and the yard trying to get things cleaned up and brought out of the garage for summer. We cleaned up all the brush from behind the garage in anticipation of putting a small shed back there. This shed will hold all our yard tools, such as lawn mower, snow blower, rakes, shovels etc. This should give us much more room in the garage for our bikes, wagon and of course Chris' stinky hockey gear.

This weekend was supposed to be a continuation of the last couple, but when we woke up to snow covered grass, things didn't get done as I would have liked. Yes, you heard me right, SNOW! I just finished cleaning and tidying the trunk of my car which consisted of throwing the snow brush to the very back. I didn't think that I would have to use it on May 31st, but there I was digging it out so I could clear the mounds of accumulated snow off my car. Will Summer ever arrive? This is getting a bit ridiculous.

Work is still crazy busy. Sometimes I wonder if we will ever get things caught up. I still have stuff to file away from our year end which was October 31st. Yikes! It is stuff like this that there never seems to be enough time for. Filing? What is that?

So amungst the crazy busy work weeks and the busy running around weekends, there really hasn't been much time to sit down and blog. I hope to get back in a rountine of at least a few good posts each month.

My new haircut

2009-04-26T16:30:00.010-04:00

Today was the day. My only goal to accomplish while Chris and Leah were away was to get Caleb's haircut. This has been a long time coming because he never wanted to get one. We managed to get a little bit cut off before Christmas, but since then it was a "no go" in the hair cutting department for Caleb. And as you can see from this first photo, "the before", he definitely needed one.

I have been pumping him up all week about getting his hair cut. So much, that he was actually pumped to get it done. I used the "bribery" tool and told him that I would get him a treat. He also kept saying that he wanted "to make daddy happy". Even this morning he was all for the hair cut.

Until she arrived...(yes, we had to get the hair dresser to come over to our house) and the hair cut was definitely off. We talked to him a bit, he played with the clippers and comb and then I strapped him down in his booster seat which was directly in front of "the Cars movie". All this didn't matter anymore as he forgot about the treat and making daddy happy.

To make a long story short...see for yourself "the after". Caleb got a haircut and he looks so handsome. We went out to Wal-mart shortly after and he picked out a couple of cars (shock) to buy as his treat. Although he fought a hard fight, I am very happy that he got his haircut and maybe next time it won't be as much of an ordeal.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

2009-04-21T19:59:00.007-04:00

This week Leah and Chris are heading to Lethbridge, Alberta for a little visit with Gramma Ingrid and Bob and to also attend a wedding of a high school friend of Chris'. To most this is probably a little on the boring side and you are probably wondering why and the "bleep" I would want to blog about this. Well it is because this is Leah's first time going on a plane.

She has been up in a helicopter once (geez, I wonder how she scored that experience), but I think this is different. At this point I think that I am more nervous about this than she is. Leah has been known to have a little bit of anxiety when she is out of her comfort zone. She tends to get a little anxious when it comes to doing something new such as wondering who her teacher will be each September, when she gets a new swimming coach and even when she goes to visit my parents in the summer. This is something totally new and so far she doesn't seem to be nervous about it at all. (Ya I went and picked up some Gravol for kids tonight, I think I may have to take some too.) The only thing she wanted to know about the flight is, "what if I have to pee when I am on the plane mommy? Can I get up from my seat?"

So they head out to Toronto bright and early on Thursday morning. They are taking the Northern Airport Shuttle and should arrive in Toronto at 11:30ish. My good friend Jen is going to meet Leah and Chris for lunch and then they depart for Calgary at 2pm. Jen is also bringing Leah her birthday gift which she is really looking forward to receiving. Leah got a DS for her birthday and Jen got her a new game for it (one of which Leah wanted to buy tonight, but I steered her away from it.) The visit from Jen should make Leah less nervous just before she needs to board the plane. I know that it is making me a little calmer.

They have lots of plans when they get to Lethbridge. Chris is really excited to be able to show Leah where he grew up, where he lived, where he went to school and most of all the mountains. As a seven year old Leah is really excited to see the mountains. More importantly she wants to "climb the mountains". Her main concern, besides peeing on the plane, is what type of shoes she needs to climb the mountains with. I am not sure if they will get a chance to "climb the mountains" but they will for sure get the opportunity to get close to them. As I already mentioned, they are also attending the wedding of Sean Bailey and close high school pal of Chris'. This will give Chris a chance to see some of his friends that he hasn't seen in ages.

They return from their excursion out west on Monday the 27th and I am sure Leah will have lots of stories to tell and lots of things to show me as I am sure Gramma Ingrid and Bob will spoil her rotten while she is there.

So this weekend, back in the Bay, it will be young Caleb and myself basking in the sun and heat that we are expected to have. I am sure we will play a little hockey, and play catch and kick the ball around the backyard. I do hope it is a quiet weekend after the painfully busy weekend that just passed.

I will update you on their trip upon their return with some stories from a seven year old and some pictures.

Busy Busy

2009-04-17T11:04:00.005-04:00

This past week or so has been quite a busy one for us here in North Bay. There has been lots of changes for me at work. Good changes, crazy changes, confusing changes, but all in all things at work are going well. Lots of things to tackle, but I am definitely up for these new challenges.

Last weekend we also splurged at bit and bought two new televisions for the house. I have been wanting a new "get with the times" tv for the living room for some time now, but I was having a hard time convincing Chris of this. I know most of you will find that hard to believe, but you heard me correctly, the wife having to convince the husband to purchase electronics. Weird I know. It gets better! I finally have Chris convinced to buy a new tv and if he doesn't want to buy two. SCORE! So last Thursday, we went out and bought a 42" Plasma for the living room and a 32" LCD for the bedroom. Love them! We ordered up the HDTV for our veiwing pleasure and we got it all hooked up yesterday. We also got a new home computer this week as well. It has been technology overload at the Dawsons that is for sure.

Amongst all this excitement add in Easter, Caleb's 3rd birthday, Leah's 7th, and my parents and Granny are currently enroute for a visit this weekend. CRAZY! We are celebrating the kids birthdays this weekend with my family and also having a shopping spree party for Leah and a few of her friends on Sunday. Now just when you think that all this mayhem should be wrapping up on Sunday, we have to prepare for Chris and Leah's trip to Lethbridge on April 23rd.

I know that this post is a short one and it has taken me a while to actually sit down and find the time to blog, but here ya go. I will also post some pictures from the kids birthday celebrations as well, when I get a chance. Hopefully it won't be a long time coming.

April Birthdays/Anniversaries

2009-04-04T08:46:00.003-04:00

Below is a list of the birthdays and anniversaries of my friends and family as I have been doing at the beginning of every month. I figure it is a nice way to start off each month (even though it is already the 4th of April), by giving a shout out to my peeps for their yearly celebration.

Uncle Ken McClelland - 2nd
Tim Ferguson - 6th
John and Rayna - Anniversary - 9th
Jason Trottier - 13th
Sue Bayliss - 15th
Caleb Dawson - 15th
Leah Dawson - 17th
Jen Dumoulin - 18th
Adam Lynn - 22nd
Glen Couvrette - 25th

My trusty side kick, Deb (my mom) is in Mexico right now and she usually helps me out with others that I don't know. So, if I have missed any, please put them in the comments section so I can be sure to add it for next year (Aunt Mitzi you could probably help me with this one too).

This and That

2009-03-26T07:56:00.003-04:00

I feel like I haven't blogged in such a long time. My March Break....Madness post seems like such a cop out for someone who had a week off last week. It is funny how you have all these things that you can do or want to get done, and so many other things seem to take over.

Anywhoo, here goes a hopefully successful attempt at a blog post.

So, I am going to consider the March Break and my week off as a 50/50 success. On one side of things, I think I managed to keep Leah busy enough that she wasn't screaming out bordem too much. Like previously mentioned, we went sliding, shopping, and a trip to Science North. We also had a playdate with friends and we even went to open swim at the YMCA.

Now on the other side, the things that I wanted to get done around the house, never really got done. I managed to keep the house fairly tidy (it wasn't too hard cause Chris was away this whole time), and cook a few good meals for the kids, one of which I even took out the BBQ. The one thing that I really wanted to accomplish was a spring cleaning of my closet. I am about half done, and I feel this has been quite a success thus far. Before I went on holidays, I saw a little tidbit about closet cleaning and it inspired me to get this done. They were saying on it that if you haven't worn a piece of clothing in a year, to get it out. The more clothes that you have hanging in your closet, the less likely you are to wear them because you can't even see them. Your hangers should be free flowing so you can see everything. This is the half of the project that I tackled on the weekend. The other half, folded sweaters etc. is on my list of things to do this coming weekend. For the past few years we have been taking our unwanted/too small for the kids clothing to a local consignment shop and have been quite successful with that. So next week, we will get together all of our spring/summer items and unload it at the shop. With a large load we are usually good for about $80-$100 back.

Work this week has been quite stressful. With the economy the way it is, the company I work for is having to restructure. Although it is hard to come into work everyday right now, I am very thankful to still have my job. I have been a loyal employee now for 10 years, so it is difficult to deal with change. I am trying to stay as positive as I can right now and hope that all is well in the end. I am hoping that my positivity can rub off on my fellow employees so we can make it through these tough times together. Fingers crossed.

Well considering I am at work right now, I should get at 'er. Take care all and enjoy the remainder of the month of March.

March Break...Madness

2009-03-18T19:57:00.006-04:00

I am off this week so I can spend the March Break with Leah. On Monday we went sliding (which is probably the last time this season) and today we travelled with our friends to Sudbury for a little visit to Science North. I have attached a few pictures of our fun below. And with all this excitement I have still heard "I am bored".

"One Month from today....."

2009-03-17T15:38:00.004-04:00

One month from today will be Leah's 7th birthday. She is really looking forward to this one more so than any others so far. I am not sure why, maybe I should ask her.....stay tuned.

My question: "Why are you sooo excited for your birthday this year?" (as she saunters into the kitchen)
Her answer: "So I can finally be with my older friends at the Y and 7 just seems so much older than 6."

I think that she thinks that when she is 7 she will be able to do so much more. Something that she really wants to do is walk to school. This is something that I struggle with even though we live close to the school. Like really, she is only in grade one...for goodness sake. Back in September when the issue of her not being able to take the bus anymore, I told her that maybe "when she is 7" and "it is Spring" that I would consider letting her walk to school. The last couple of days she has been reminding me of that...probably because the weather has turned so nice and her birthday is "only one month away".

On the weekend we also took her training wheels off her bike. No choice this summer...if she wants to ride her bike she will have to learn to ride it without the training wheels...another instance of "being older".

She has been saying that she is "six and three quarters" now since January and with her birthday only being "one month away", she wants to know "what do I say now?"

Cute!

A Week in Review....on Wednesday?

2009-03-11T20:46:00.003-04:00

Since late last week it seems like a lot has been going on and I really haven't had much time to blog let alone even think of an idea to blog about, so I am going to follow suit (copy cat) my friend SC and quickly update you on what has been happening here in North Bay and the Dawson household.

Our fun neighbours returned from their trip to Dominican early Friday morning as tanned as ever. They stopped in for coffee on Saturday morning as per usual to fill us in on the great time they had. They were also so nice to have brought us each something back from the trip. We missed them a lot (even though we have yet to see a picture...hint hint) and are so glad they had a great time. I think Shawn's teeth got even whiter while he was gone :).
As per my last post the potty training has been going quite well. Caleb has graduated to underwear and pullups at bed time. He returned to daycare Monday only to bring home a bag full of wet clothes (including ski pants I might add), but since then there has been no accidents to report. We are very proud of his success.
Leah has been swimming up a storm. She is "front crawl" away from passing to the next level. Normally, I take Leah to her lessons, but the weekend before last Chris took her as I was in Toronto and he was amazed at what a great swimmer she has become. It is really nice to know that she has finally found an extra curricular activity that she loves. She swims twice a week and is loving every minute of it.
The last weekend in February my BFF Sandra and I hit the road for Toronto early Saturday morning. We stayed with my great friend Jen overnight and of course did a little shopping. We made it to IKEA and the Eaton Centre. It was so nice to get away and to see Jen at the same time. I was also fortunate enough to be able to have lunch on Sunday with my cousin Katie. It was a short trip, but a fun time had by all.
Chris left for Labrador City tonight. He flies out of Toronto early tomorrow morning. He is going to be filming Cain's Quest (a 4-day snowmobile race over 800 kilometers long). He will be filming from helicopter for the full 4 days...ooops I forgot to give him my gravol. Good luck! He will be returning late next Friday.
Therefore, because of #5, I will be single parenting it until next Friday. Yippee (can you sense the sarcasim)!
I have been trying to take in as much of the Tim Horton's Brier as I can. I can usually catch the evening game. I was lucky enough to see the "Best Shot in Brier History". Oh my goodness it was good.
Dancing With The Stars has started up again. This has become one of my favourite reality shows. Monday night was the season premiere and it was really good. Some definite favourites right off the bat, and some definite brutal dances. My prediction on the first to be booted will be Ty Murray. He proved without a doubt that cowboys can't dance. Melissa from the Bachelor joined the dancing cast a little late in the game because Nancy O-Dell having to bow out of the competition due to an injury. She did extremely well considering she only had two days to rehearse.
I am on holidays next week and can't wait for the break. It is March Break so Leah and I will be able to have some "girl time" and it will also give me a chance to get some spring cleaning done around the house.

Well, there it is in a nutshell. Next week I will probably have more time to blog so stay tuned!

Potty Training Update...

2009-03-08T12:03:00.004-04:00

Well, it has been just over a week and the potty training has been quite a success. Caleb tells us when he has to go to the washroom each time and the daycare was happy to report that he has been doing quite well all week. They suggested that it is time to start wearing "underwear". So we started today with "Cars" underwear.

Caleb has such a cute little bum and his pants are not-so-surprisingly fitting a little larger now that the bulky diaper is off. We will continue with the pullups at nap time and bed time for the time being as he still is waking up wet. But we are moving in the right direction with that as well because twice this week he has woken up in the middle of the night because he had to pee.

Yeah, Caleb!!!

Happy Birthday to my March Peeps

2009-03-03T15:46:00.003-05:00

Aunt Cyndy - 12th
Aunt Jen - 18th
Cousin Connie - 24th
Cousin Katie - 26th
Cousin Nancy - 28th

Happy Birthday to you all!!!

Kraft Hockeyville 2009

2009-03-03T15:40:00.004-05:00

There is only 1 day and about 8 hours left to vote for your favourite community. Help support the community of your choice by voting at www.cbc.ca/hockeyville. The voting is unlimited so vote as many times as you want.

The Dawsons are rooting for Woolwich and the Dan Snyder Memorial Arena. Let's bring Hockeyville back to Ontario. VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!

Let the Training Begin

2009-02-26T18:30:00.002-05:00

Well I have decided to take my mother's advice and put the Blankie issue aside for now and start the potty training process with Caleb.

We started the other night with great success thus far. Almost everytime Caleb sits on the toilet he goes either #1 or even #2 in some cases. We had a slight communication breakdown with the daycare on Wednesday, but that has been fixed and dealt with and we can now battle on.

So far so good...will keep you posted.

RRRoll Up the Rim to ....... Win?

2009-02-25T17:16:00.013-05:00

Since I went back to work from mat leave with Caleb, I have basically been a faithful (well atleast from Monday to Friday) Country Style coffee drinker for a number of reasons. 1) it is on my way to work, 2) never a line up and 3)the coffee is good. But whenever the Rrroll Up the Rim to Win contest at Tim Horton's starts up, I find myself back at Timmy's every morning to get my coffee and my "winning cup".

I love the contest...it is fun and adds a little excitement/anticipation to the morning with every cup. The last couple of sessions of this contest seem like there are less and less winners going around. It isn't just me as I hear it from friends, family and co-workers on a daily basis.

I can recall back in say 2001-2003 ish there used to be lots of donut, cookie, bagel, coffee winning tabs. At work we would pool together all the tabs and practically be able to buy a buffet of goodies for everyone to enjoy. Now, it seems very random to actually get one winner out of the bunch.

So what draws me back to Timmy's when the contest is on? I know there are winners out there, so maybe I am just sick of being a "loser" and am hoping to get back on the "winning streak".

When is it time to get rid of the “Blankie”?

2009-02-19T19:30:00.009-05:00

Both my children were proud owners of “blankie” (from this point forward I will refer to as B). Caleb still is and that is the point of this post. As you all know there are times during the early years of our children that we have to wean them off of things. For me, it was the bottles, the soothers (not so much for Leah) and the infamous B.

Bottles were easy, soothers weren’t that bad, but both my kids were in love with their B. Leah had a nice yellow Roots B which she chewed the heck out of the corners (one of which she called “my toy”, it was the corner that had the tag) and Caleb is the owner of a blue B with the shiny edging all around it. He sleeps with his B and takes it out from his bedroom when he is sad otherwise it usually stays put.

Caleb will be turning 3 in a couple of months and I am wondering when I should and how I should dispose/hide B. When Leah gave up her B it was when she moved into a Big Bed so it was easy because she was a “big girl now”. Caleb has now been in his big bed for almost a year and B still exists. He is really attached to it and I don’t know where to start this time around. Do I simply just hide it and tell him it is gone? Do I explain the whole “you are a big boy now” rant? I don’t understand why I find that it is a harder challenge this time.

Any suggestions? The next challenge to tackle after this will be potty training. YIKES!

All I Want for Christmas is.....a Wii

2009-02-18T21:59:00.004-05:00

This past Christmas I kept asking Leah want she wanted from Santa and she told me a Wii faithfully everytime I asked. I was against getting a Wii because I thought that for sure Chris would be on it all the time and that is definitely something I didn't want. I stuck to my guns each and every time Leah would say that she wanted a Wii. "We are not getting a Wii".

I played the Wii at my friend's place a few times and it is a lot of fun I won't deny that, but I just didn't think we would have time for "video games" as I thought it to be.

Until one day...I played Rock Band at my Christmas Party. I fell in love with Rock Band. I loved playing the guitar. My friend (or Santa) was getting Guitar Hero World Tour (pretty much the same as Rock Band) for their Wii and all through the Christmas holidays I would head over to her place to play GH.

So there we were, playing the guitar and drums more than the kids. Everytime the kids would ask if it was their turn, the answer was quickly, "after the next song" which turned into two or three more each time they asked. They loved the fact that we were rockin' cause out of the mouths of babes came "Our Moms ROCK"!

Sooooooooooooo, you guessed it, I wanted to get a Wii! I looked high and low, all over the city for a Wii between Christmas and New Years and into the beginning of January, but to no avail. It also helped that Chris won a football pool which put "free (or Wii) money" in our pockets.

The first weekend of January the kids and I were out at a friend's place for a playdate and I was mentioning to her that I had been looking EVERYWHERE for a Wii. She just happened to have two Wii Consoles that she bought over Christmas knowing that someone would be looking for one. So there I was, stunned as can be coming home with a Wii from a get together at a friend's house (which we now have nicknamed Penny-Mart).

The next day I packed the entire family in the vehicle to look for Rock Band or Guitar Hero and came home happier than a pig in shit. There I was rocking the GH (with my 6 year old) and lovin' every minute of it. The only thing is Chris has no interest in "rockin" with me so I now find myself "rockin" alone. I am such a loser, but it is soooo fun. I might add that I got my first 100% today.

We have since also purchased Wii Fit, which is A LOT of fun and highly recommended for all ages, a couple of sports games and another package of games for Leah to play.

So we are one happy family which now has a Wii....so much for stickin' to my guns.

Do you have a Wii? Which other games would you recommend?

25 Random Things About Me

2009-02-10T19:42:00.009-05:00

This post is in relation to something that has been floating around Facebook now for a few weeks and I have unfortunately been tagged which means that I am supposed to list 25 random things about myself. I have decided to follow suit of my good friend SC over at From The Desk of Sara and complete this task here on my blog. Here are the rules:

Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

1. My middle name is Anne....not Lee Anne Anne, but Lee is my first name and Anne is my middle name but I am known by both together.

2. I am going to New York City with my good friend Jen this coming May and am really looking forward to it as we have never taken a trip together after all these years.

3. I am a neat freak just like my mother.

4. Over the last few of years, I have really come to love my job. I will have been working at Gateway Helicopters for almost ten full years.

5. I am not one to ask for help cause I usually like things done "my" way. Don't you know there is only one way to fold towels.

6. I have lived in 5 different Ontario towns/cities. (Thessalon, Sault Ste. Marie, Cochrane, Chatham and now North Bay)

7. I love the sport of curling. I played the sport my entire life but then stopped playing after I had my first child but still love to watch.

8. As I get older I feel like I have less and less patience (thanks Wayne)

9. The last couple of weeks I have been listening to "Hair Nation" channel 23 on Sirius Radio and love it. Oh, it brings back memories of high school.

10. In high school I assisted my brothers friend Denis in playing a joke on him. Once he found out it was me, he beat me up. It wasn't the first time or the last time he beat me up.

11. I rode around in a green comet with my good friend Jen.

12. Pretty Women is my all time favourite "girl movie".

13. Made several 1 to 1 1/2 hour trips to Windsor or London just to go to Red Lobster.

14. I love being a mom.

15. I realize that my daughter is just like me in a lot of ways....but will still deny it whenever my parents say, "Geez, I wonder where she gets that from".

16. There is a number of foods that I don't like but I wish I did because they look so good. (Eggs and Yogurt to name a couple)

17. I am going to be 35 this summer and can't believe that I am that much closer to 40. Is that not just insane. But I was once told that 40 is the new 30 so I don't feel too bad.

18. I wished I lived closer to my parents so we could visit more often.

19. I am #14 of 25 grandchildren on my mom's side of the family.

20. My brother and I would make cookie dough when our parents were out and would eat it raw until it was gone.

21. I used to hide peas under the rim of my plate when my mom made me stay at the table until they were all gone.

22. I love listening to music....really loud. I also tend to sing to myself while driving in my car.

23. I have lots of BFF's, just ask anyone that was at my wedding.

24. Will sometimes find myself watching Hannah Montana when my daughter isn't even in the room anymore and actually liking it.

25. I love to scrapbook. The thought of creating something for my children for them to cherish as they grow up really inspires me. I just wish I had more time to do it.

That was fun...

February Celebrations

2009-02-06T13:43:00.005-05:00

Just a little shout out to all my peeps who have a birthday/anniversary in the month of February.

Wayner (my daddy) - 3rd
Tom (cousin) - 5th
Deb (my mommy) - 6th
Tina (aunt) - 11th
Grandma & Grandpa M (anniversary) - 14th
Gail & Murray (anniversary) -15th
Chris (my hubby) - 15th
Darcee (2nd cousin) - 17th
Brady (my friend Shana's son) - 17th
Mitchell (2nd cousin) - 19th
Timbo (friend) - 22nd

Happy Birthday/Anniversary to you all!

If I have missed any, please leave me a comment so I will be sure to add/edit.

Also a little side note....those of you going/gone on a "hot" vacation this month I hope you have a wonderful time.

Meaningless Entertainment

2009-02-04T20:36:00.003-05:00

I have been watching The Bachelor/Bachelorette for a few years now, but I would have to say that this season I have been a very faithful viewer. This type of television programming I like to call "Meaningless Entertainment" because you don't have to think about anything to "get" the storyline because there really isn't one. It rolls into the same category as daytime television (which I have to admit, I watch Days of Our Lives when I am home for lunch).

I am liking the fact that The Bachelor is on at 8pm for two hours this season. It doesn't seem to drag on this time around and I can actually stay awake for the entire episode. I have also been able to enjoy each show with my good friend P. with the odd bit of commentary coming out from behind the laptop.

I was very interested in watching this season when I found out that Jason (runner-up from last season if you will) was going to be "The Bachelor". He is definitely easy on the eyes and is the first in series history to be a single parent which I thought would give the show a whole new "look". And that it has. Some of the girls on the show obviously had no idea what it would be like to be an instant mother to a child and hence the reason for their early dismissal.

So after Monday's episode we are down to 4. Jillian, Melissa, Naomi and Molly all of which Jason has a strong bond with of course. Next week should give him a better idea as to who he would like to spend the rest of his life with because he travels to each girl's hometown and meets their families. Big episode indeed!

From the beginning, I have been rooting for Jillian, the 29 year old Interior Designer from Alberta. She has always had lots to say, but never catty like some of the others. I found that she stood out from the beginning when she cooked him up some hot dogs in order to test out her topping theory. Jason passes with flying colours when he garnishes his dog with mustard meaning that he would be one to take home to meet your mother. And that is where we are at with the hometown dates coming up.

During the season premiere, they showed several exerpts from the entire season one which revealed that DeAnna (The Bachelorette from last year that chose Jesse over Jason) makes an appearance on the show claiming that she made a mistake. This should add some definite drama to the show.

So there you go, my weekly "Meaningless Entertainment". Is there a show out there that you would consider Meaningless Entertainment? If so, share your thoughts.

'Tis the Season

2009-01-27T20:40:00.004-05:00

The new year brings all kinds of things to our lives, but those of us in the curling world it brings playdowns, playdowns and more playdowns. I honestly haven't curled or even been interested in curling myself since Leah was just a baby, but I still enjoy following and/or watching the curling playdowns to see who is going to make it to the Brier and the Scotties. I especially like to pay attention to the Ontario and Northern Ontario playdowns because I am sure to recognize someone that I have either curled with or against in the past.

The Scotties Provincial playdowns run from January 19th to February 8th. Some teams have already been determined and others are currently playing. You can check out all the results at the following address: http://www.tsn.ca/curling/feature/?fid=4864. All the provincial winners will travel to Victoria, BC to play for the big prize at the 2009 Scotties Tournament of Hearts from February 21st to March 1st.

The Tim Horton's Brier provincial playdowns are being played between February 2nd and 22nd with the winners being award a spot in the Brier which is being held in Calgary, AB this year from March 7th to 15th. Check out this link http://www.tsn.ca/curling/feature/?fid=4865 next week to see which teams will make it.

My predictions for the Ontario Scotties are:

Team Hanna vs. Team McCarville final with McCarville advancing.

To all you curlers out there, what are your predictions?

What's for Dinner?

2009-01-26T17:25:00.010-05:00

As you already know I work full-time and I have a husband that is very limited on his cooking skills. I always seem to struggle when it comes to making a healthy dinner for my family. It always seems to be something quick because the kids are "starving" by the time they get home from daycare.

I have attempted in the past to pre-cook some meals on the weekends, but with everything else that fills up my schedule such as laundry, cleaning and taking the kids here and there for their activities, the pre-cooked meals always get put on the back burner.

I also tried to create a weekly meal plan in hopes it would help my situation, but I always seem to be short on items when it comes time to make the meal.

We have designated one day a week as our "eat-out" night which usually consists of dinner at the mall for a couple of reasons. One, it is quick and we can each have what we want that night, and two because we can usually do our weekly "Wal-mart run" at the same time.

Our grocery shopping skills could probably use some work. Our lists are made up on the fly just as we are on our way out the door. Guaranteed everytime we get home from grocery shopping we have forgotten at least one item.

Any ideas...please help!

Stay positive my good friend

2009-01-25T20:32:00.003-05:00

The past few months have been crazy with the economy sinking as it has and is. With this comes a lot of negativity in our lives. How will I live, support my family, will I be unemployed are all things that crosses ones mind at times like this.

When negative thoughts are around me, I tend to fall into the same frame of mind. So lately, I try to surround myself with people who have an open mind towards all of this. Things could be worse. I have a wonderful supporting husband and I have two beautiful, healthy children that fill my life with joy everyday. I am very thankful for that.

It is really hard not be thinking negatively when all this is happening, but if we stay as positive as we can, we as a society and a nation can get through this slump. Take life one day at a time and live it to the fullest.

We will get through this.

Coffee's On!!!

2009-01-25T08:15:00.000-05:00

There is no doubt about it that I love a good coffee, but I have been struggling with the coffee we make at home. We have tried everything from the cheapy brands to the more expensive varieties such as Van Houtte and Tim Hortons, but still not really liking it from home. What could it be....the coffee maker, the water....not sure. Sometimes Chris and I will run out to Tim Horton's on the weekend, just so I can have a coffee. Cause to Chris, coffee is coffee and he will drink anything.

Everyday during the week I stop at a nearby Country Style (cause it is on my way to work) and pick up my usual 2 cream, 1 sugar. When I have the extra time, I will get a Timmy's. I make a pot or two at work (not just for me of course) and usually by the end of the day, I have consumed around 3 to 4 cups. I know, it is a lot, but I have considered cutting back until the devil was discovered. It wasn't that I didn't know about this devil, but over the last couple of months the devil has been one of my best friends (don't worry Sandra, the devil will never replace you). So you are probably wondering who this infamous "devil" is...okay I will tell you. Her name is Bailey. Bailey's Irish Cream that is. I love it....I can even drink the coffee from home, that I have never really enjoyed.

They (the LCBO) now have a few different varieties of Bailey's from Caramel and Mint, to the good old Original. Another type of "coffee creamer" that I really enjoy is Starbucks Cream Liquor. I highly recommend this one as it is very, very tasty.

I guess the moral of this story is....get me some Bailey's and I will drink the coffee from home so I don't have to send Chris out to Timmy's on bitterly cold mornings like this weekend.

As I sit and complete this post, I am getting up to get another coffee to enjoy with my new friend Bailey. Cheers!

Trying something new

2009-01-24T20:34:00.000-05:00

After being a faithful reader of a friend's blog for a couple of years now, the thought of blogging myself has crossed my mind a few times. So here I am, blogging for the first time. I am not sure how it will go because I find myself to be too busy to keep up with the day to day activities of being a full-time working mother of two. Ah well, we'll give it a shot and see how it goes.