I don't really know what was up with Laura today. She was quite irritable all day - often sounding like a pterodactyl. She also got into the habit of swatting. Hitting me and Anna out of frustration. The calmest she was today was when we put her in the stroller and walked around the mall and then a bit around Mill Lake. It makes for such a challenging evening when Anna and Laura are ready for bed a 5. Too late for a nap, too early for bed. Speaking of bed, I need to get there. 2 more sleeps until Oma comes home. 3 more sleeps until my surgery. Yikes!

Oma is On Vacation

I don't know if maybe you put two and two together, but Oma is away on vacation. Yesterday, when Kirsten was over she asked if she should go and tell her that supper is ready. I guess I never really announced that she was on a much deserved vacation to Palm Springs. I hope she is having a good time. I have no idea what people DO in Palm Springs. We were there for 2 VERY LONG DAYS last September. If you don't golf, don't suntan, and don't enjoy cooking from the inside out - then I think that Palm Springs isn't for you either. We are looking forward to having her back home!!! We miss you Oma, and we love you very much.
I thought this was hilarious. I never knew how alike my mom and I look. I think the similar hairdo helps, but we do have other similar features. Oh, the wonderful amazing fun times of the early 90's. When glasses were too big, your hair could crunch, and your clothes didn't have to match. What a party!

Two Little Monkeys Jumping On THe Bed

My two jumping beans. Happy fun jumpy times!

Sweet little Eleanor. She is so precious and tiny. It has only been 9 months since Laura was this little (actually, was she ever that little?) and I already forget how to hold such a tiny person.

Cookie Day

Auntie Marianne and I decided that yesterday would be a great day to get together and make some cookies. I had not been feeling well but it is amazing how healing a good night's sleep is. So, we called up Auntie Kirsten and told her, "Happy Cookie Day!" She came over after lunch. Anna and I made the sugar cookie dough before school and then after school a special person picked up Anna with me - AUNTIE KIRSTEN!
The walk home from school was exciting. We were talking about the cookies we were about to make together: what shapes, what colors to decorate, etc. What fun expressions in this picture.

Busy at work.

Auntie Marianne had to juggle Eleanor and baking. At the end, Eleanor finally had a nap and Marianne was able to step up and be the gingerbread roll out Queen that she is! I was so grateful. After rolling out and cutting all of those sugar cookies I didn't know if I could take on the gingerbread! The cookies are now in the freezer and ready to be decorated another day.

New Rodeo Show

You know the Sitting Baby Rodeo SHow? Well it has evolved into the Standing Baby Rodeo!!! Laura is standing by herself for a few seconds at a time! She just did about 4 seconds. She is still up. She went down at 630. A late nap I guess. I hope she is ready for bed sooooooon!

Randomness

So, here is the thing that I came up with one day: the cookie diet (also known as the cupcake diet). You make a batch of cookies and then you hand deliver them to friends. By foot of course! THis way you can walk off the calories from the one yummy, gooey, fresh out of the oven cookie you ate. This is the best tasting one of them all really anyway. I find that if I keep them in the house I end up eating way too many and they never taste as good as the first warm one. Then, you get to go meet some friends and give them some cookies. THis is what Anna, Laura and I did on Friday. I wasn't called into work so it turned out to be the perfect day to do it. Steve was home and he was SICK! THis got us out of the house for an hour while he rested. In the picture Anna doesn't look very happy. DOn't be fooled. SHe did enjoy herself, but this was taken just after we left her friend's house. They were running around outside playing while the moms were visiting. When we headed to our next cookie drop she wasn't feeling well. She exerted quite a bit of energy chasing after the kids AND it was very cold and windy outside. I asked her to smile for this picture and this was the look that was plastered on her face. After about 10 minutes she said that she was ready to smile now.

We made 33 cookies and after eating 1 1/2 each and delivering to 8 different places there were only 3 left. I think Steve was a little choked. O well. More baking on the way I guess.

This was a monumental shopping trip. After a good wipe down of the handle and surrounding areas I placed Laura in the cart. This has NEVER happened before. I either have her attached to me in the carrier or we bring the stroller. She did very well! We headed to the baby isle first and grabbed what we needed (including babies biscuits) and then off to the bakery for a cookie. Both of the girls were very occupied for the first part of our shopping adventure and then when the cookies were gone we dug into the fish crackers. We went shopping on empty tummies but a snack along the way worked out ok.
Anna drew this picture last week. If you knew what it was you would think that the letters made sense! It is a picture of Peter when he ate too much Halloween candy and got sick (true story!) She can't seem to let this go. It happened a few weeks ago and she still thinks about it and she even keeps trying to give him things hoping it will help him feel better. Like when she found the balloon someone brought Steve in the hospital that said Get Well Soon. "I am going to go take this to Uncle Peter. It is to help him feel better," she announced to me one day as she headed downstairs. Anyways, the word could mimic his groaning sick sound, "IIHOOHO!" When I asked her what the words said she told me, "Dear Uncle Peter. I hope you feel better soon. Love Anna."
Last Thursday I got a few hours to myself. It was great and surreal. I never get out anymore! Mom watched the girls and I went out to Burnaby. One of my stops was the Roots outlet store. I spent LOTS of time in there. Usually we are in such a rush! I got some matching toques for us all. My head is rather large so I actually got a different style of red than everyone else. These are the toques we got - I just was wearing Steve's for the photos. THis was the night our power was out for like 2 hours. I brought home Wendy's and we ate it by candle light. It was a fun adventure of a night, and as it turned out - it was very good I got the hats. They kept us warm.

-today ANna told me she wasn't tired (after I told her that I was). She said that she must have sleep left over and that is why she isn't tired

-the girls love to have a bath together. I don't think ANna ever loved baths as much as Laura does. She just goes UBER crazy!! She crawls in the tuba and has fun chasing after toys. Tonight I had to take her out early because she discovered that the bath is full of - WATER! She kept on bending over and trying to drink it (losing air in the process).

-tonight we tried to keep the girls up as long as we could. What do you do when they are ready for bed at 5?!?!?! We stretched it out until 630. And now we are lame: 745 and off to get snoozages. Steve is still sick. I hope I can avoid this one. Maybe I gave it to him.

Happy Birthday, Sisters!!

Today is a very special day. On this day back in 1978 my sister Marianne, and my sister in law Cara were born. Same day, but one was in Mission and the other was in Abbotsford. Neither of them have ever had to go to school on their birthday, AND to add to the festivities Cara got married on November 11th. Happy Birthday girls. I was thinking of you throughout the day!

Here is a shout out to my big sis! I love you. You are one special lady!

click to enlarge

Mommy's Girl. My Fallen Apple?

Steve took this picture of Anna at fire prevention week. As soon as I saw it it reminded me of a picture of me when I was little. I am happy to have found that picture. It is funny how the exposure came out on the same on both of them. These pictures were taken 26 years apart. I am starting think more about the saying, "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." If that is true, I am super proud to be compared with Anna. She is such a little sweetheart.

Isn't this the most funnest cookie you have ever seen?!

WavE

Laura has started to wave. It is more like a hive five salute. It is pretty cute. I usually end up giving her a high 5 and she thinks it is pretty funny. She is babbling more these days and the look in her eyes seems like she thinks we know what she is saying.

Tonight she has pink rosy cheeks. You know, like those red circles they paint on dolls. I thought those were so lame and fake until I saw Laura's tonight. I wonder what is in the works: molars? cold? I hope she sleeps like a rock tonight.

Bring On the Sunday School Virus Challenge

I am so glad we made it to church yesterday. It was really great. They have started a series on compassion and many people shared their experiences in the mission field. For the past few weeks Steve has taken Anna and I have stayed home with our sleeping Laura. I have felt fearful about sending Laura to the nursery. The babies spend the whole time exchanging slobber. This week I was thinking maybe she could have a nap in one of the cribs or maybe she could stay with us in the service. As it turned out, Steve took her to the nursery. God is in control, right? Yup! It's just not my most favourite thing taking care of cranky, not feeling good, snotty, not sleeping well babies.

Well, Anna is sick this morning. I am guessing that Laura will pick it up too. Let the games begin.

On a side note: this picture reminded me of a part of my dream last night. I was sprayed my a skunk! It was totally gross. I also needed to capture a crow and it kept on escaping and it was really angry with me. It was hurting me with its beak and talons. I dreamt so much last night and it was all intense. It may have something to do with my gallbladder. It has been bothering me for the past few nights. I am very grateful that my surgery is coming up soon. I am so tired this morning.

Lovely...

... both girls in bed, asleep before 7:30

... my hubby made a yummy supper

... the bathroom is clean

... Anna is feeling better.

This morning with the dark clouds in the sky Anna said to me, "The sky is having a hard time waking up."

sunshine, lollypops, and rainbows (i can't get that song out of my head)

click on the image to enlarge.

We were so lucky to have such a beautiful day today. We didn't take it for granted. First we took a walk this morning (it started in the fog) to IGA. It was fun to bump into people we knew! After we had paid for our cheese buns Laura woke up and I realized that we should've picked up a bun for Laura. The check out isle is too small for our double stroller to fit through so I usually put our things on the conveyor belt and walk around to the other side. We had already done this once a few minutes before so the second time Anna offered to pay. I gave her 50 cents and she headed to the check out. I was waiting on the other side the whole time - watching her. I think the old ladies behind her were a little concerned that she was by herself. They finally asked me if she was with me. I was so proud of her. She even told the cashier that we forgot to get a bun for her little sister named Laura. It reminded me a bit of the scene from Home Alone. We quickly rushed home to make lunch and send Anna off to school. At 3 when I went to pick up Anna she was ELATED when I told her that we had to hurry home because we were going to the park at Mill Lake with Auntie Kirsten. "For real?!? Are you serious?!?!" Anna asked me. SHe then lunged towards me and gave me the biggest squeeze ever. Wow, she was excited. We packed up and headed out. It was so fun getting to see Auntie Kirsten and enjoy the beautiful afternoon. We had fun at the park and on our stroll around the lake.

A good day.

Wow, I have not laughed this hard in a while!

We were SO lucky to have auntie Kirsten come trick or treating with us. Anna called her up about 20 minutes before we were going out and invited her. We can never get enough of that lady! When we crossed the street ANna was a little hesitant to have to hold a persons hand. In the end she was reaching for Kirsten's hand every time we were crossing a road. I heard the sound of a melting heart (I believe, or maybe I smelt it).Two of the coolest peeps we knowz. There are days when I see Kirsten in Laura and Anna. THis makes sense: strong Schulz genes. We love you Auntie Kirsten!!

Yumm

Wonderful, sweet, goofy, lovely Laura has 8 teeth. Now she can really start to enjoy the wonderful world of food that needs to be chewed. This weekend she tasted her first piece of licorice. She loved it. She also had a taste of Anna's foot. She loved it too. I was sitting right next to Anna when it happened. I thought that maybe Anna was being a bit dramatic because I never saw it happen, I just heard the fakeish whimpers. When Anna told me that Laura bit her foot I asked her to show me. There, in perfect form, were 4 indentations. She must have gotten a good chunk. Welcome to the world of sisterly bites, scratches and other such things. I am looking forward to when Laura can understand that we don't allow these things. For now, we just tell her it is wrong (mostly for Anna's benefit). One day she WILL understand I guess.

Happy Halloween

My honey's homemade costume put together in minutes. He is awesome! He was an athlete - a luger I believe.
We got to go trick or treating with friends. The girls had a blast. We got some great pics of the girls but this one was just so precious. It really captured two buddies sharing in a moment of anticipation. This was taken just minutes before the fun began.
Laura did great. She didn't mind being in her chicken costume. I am so grateful for warm fuzzy costumes from Old Navy. She walked up to a couple houses with me and Steve but for the most of the time she stayed in her stroller. After being in her gettup for just over 2 hours she was done and ready to go home. Much better than my first trick or treating experience. Apparently my parents took me to 2 houses and then I asked if we were done yet. Oh my cute little chicken!
The only picture of Laura smiling. SHe seemed a little intense and focused in her outfit. Anna did SO great. SHe walked the whole time except for the very end. She loved trick or treating. We sent her to bed with earplugs - she hates fire crackers. I hope it starts to rain soon so the punk kids will go home and let my baby sleep.

New plan. Ear plugs are back in and she is going to lay down with us until the firecrackers stop. I hope we all get a little sleep tonight.

Wow, What A Special Girl

I am really proud of ANna. Sometimes she blows me away with her understanding for peoples feelings. Like tonight at dinner, she had a mouthful of meat that she couldn't chew and didn't like the taste of. I watched her as she had a disgusted look on her face. She went to go and spit it out on the nearest plate in sight. We were all kind of done and I was the only one sitting at the table still. SHe stopped mid spit, looked at me and mumbled, "Is he finished yet?" It was actually Steve's plate and there wasn't much food left on it. I said that I wasn't quite sure, so she left the table and walked to the garbage can to spit it out. What other 3 year old would do that? That was very considerate! Then, tonight when she was looking over her candy in her room the doorbell rang. I told her to run downstairs and give the trick or treaters some candy. I guess I failed to mention that we had candy at the bottom of the stairs to give to them. I just assumed she knew this. When she returned upstairs she told me that she gave them her candy. In her excitement to run down the stairs she still had a few of her candies in her hand. Those are the ones she thought I meant to give away. She didn't mind sharing at all!

It is now almost 1 am. Anna stayed in bed with us for 2 hours (that girl is a wiggly one!). It was so sweet to have her with us - she felt so safe and protected from the firecrackers. THis isn't something that I would want to do every night - have her sleep with us - but it was special having her with us tonight. THere she was, snuggled between her mom and dad. Sawing logs the moment her head hit the pillow. There were big banging noises still going off out of our window, but she wasn't caring so much about it anymore. She was with us. Do you remember that feeling of absolute security because you were with your parents? It's like everything was under control, nothing could harm you. What a safe place I would love to be in sometimes. The trouble is as I got older I realized that parents are human too. Sometimes us parents can put on a real good show that we got it all together, know all the answers, and are super human. We fart too.

definition of cute

☆ cute (kyo̵̅o̅t)

adjective cuter cut′er, cutest cut′·est

1) Laura stopping mid-play for a pit stop; head down

2) Anna turning everyday tasks into her own little ballad

smile! look what we did today

Reasons for Limping

Here is a video of one of the routines I had to learn this weekend. We did it over and over and over again!!! It was awesome getting to learn new things this weekend - now I just need to recover a bit. I am looking forward to practice on Wednesday to try out all the cool things we learned.

ALSO, I forgot to say in my last post that Laura also says, "baba" for for bottle. Today she said her first sentence. Among her tears for food she said, "mamamam baba mama baba." My smartee pants.

And now as I type this we are needing to protect Eleanor from Laura. She REALLY wants to play with her. Her idea of playing is whacking babies on the head - fun her her not too fun for the baby. For a while, it was working out for me to hold girlfriend (doll) and pretend she was a real baby. SHe was diverted from the Eleanor to me and my pretend baby. It worked 3 times and now she isn't falling for it anymore.