Emma - the fire safety Pro!

Last week we went to Prayer Night at L'Arche Winnipeg which is held in the house Richard works in. Since the whole Community was gathered, it was thought a good idea to have a fire drill.

Emma was in the washroom when the alarm went off. She ran out of the washroom so quick, she hadn't pulled up her pants! Luckily a female coworker of Richard's helped her pull up her pants. Emma than ran out of the house (without hesitating to put on her shoes) with her little brother Xavier in tow. They were out of the house even before I was! I credit her preschool for teaching her such great fire safety rules! Awesome girl!

Xavier has now started preschool. He seems to be enjoying it very much and has made quite a bit of crafts already. He also has started dance class, which I'm happy to report he's really enjoying!

Lucas is now 5 months old. We went to the doctor's on Tuesday, he is now weighing in at a very healthy 19 lbs 15 oz and is measuring 27 3/8 inches long. I definitely have some big boys! In other news he's been able to roll over for more than a month now and has been able to sit unassisted for about 3 weeks! He is such ahead of the game, it's like he desperately wants to catch up to Emma and Xavier. What a little cutie.

For myself, I have started to sell Epicure Selections, which I'm really enjoying a lot! Send me a message if you want to order anything ;-)

Oh happy day

Despite waking up to a very upset stomach this morning, I can not help but be in a good mood. Yesterday was a special day for a variety of reasons.
First of all it was mine and Richard's 1 year wedding anniversary. Even though we have been together for over 5 years, it's still a special day and I'm glad that we were able to share it with Emma and Xavier :) It will always be a treasured memory.
Yesterday two wonderful things happened: sweet Sebastien finally received a new kidney! Let's keep him in our prayers that everything keeps going well and without any complications.
The second thing is that our good friends Tomo and Shella welcomed a bouncing baby boy whom they named Yoshi. We are so overjoyed with this news! Can't wait to meet the little sweetie :)

I like Hannah Montana

There I said it.
Emma discovered Hannah Montana almost 1 year ago when my friend Ross (who has down syndrome) had a Hannah Montana themed birthday party. She had never seen an episode of her television show or listened to any of her music, but Uncle Ross liked her so that was good enough.
For Christmas, Santa brought Emma the Hannah Montana Movie, which is mildly entertaining. A few months ago, after having watched the movie a hundred million times, a hunted for the television show. Hasn't too hard to find since the Family network plays the Hannah Montana show at least 20 times a day, or so it seems.
I like the show. Billy Ray is funny and so is the actor that plays Hannah/Miley's brother. I actually enjoy watching the show with Emma.
Lord help me.

Life continues to be busy

It's a crazy life, but one that I do enjoy.
We're broke, but happy, crazy.
To help supplement our income, I have decided to start selling Epicure. I think it will be really great, I can't wait to start doing parties and showing people how yummy Epicure products are.
It means having to pump milk so that Lucas can stay home with Richard, but that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make. I will miss my munchkins as I'm working, but it will also be nice to be working and having a night out all rolled into one!
I won tickets to go see Weird Al Yankovic at the beginning of the month. He is hilarious, he played of course some of his classics, still funny today.
I am writing this at 1 a.m. because I could not sleep, but now I hear the sleep fairies calling me. I bid you goodnight....

Growing every day

Lucas is now a little over 3 months old. He is "talking" a lot, squeals with delight whenever he sees his siblings and can roll over. Time sure does fly.
Xavier is semi potty trained. I can not wait until the potty wars are over with him. He knows when he needs to go, he'd just rather poop in his shorts or pee on Emma's bed (for example). Gah!
It will get better, it will get better, it will get better. Do you think I could just wish it and poof???? Here's for hoping anyway, LOL.
Emma is really shaping her own unique style and personality. She is choosing her own favourite shows and fashion styles. It's amazing. She is such a girly girl, she constantly wants to go shopping and loves doing her nails. My sweetie. When Lucas is a bit older and can be left home with Richard for a little while (without needing to breastfeed), I will take my sweetie girl out for lunch, do a little shopping and get our nails done.

Life can be crazy at times...

...especially with three children.
Some days I have a hard time keeping my thoughts straight. LOL.
We have definitely been enjoying this wonderful weather we've been getting.
Last weekend we spent some time at the farmer's market in St-Malo run by my sister-in-law and we definitely scored some great deals and yummy treats! I can't wait until we go back. We also spent some time at my brother's farm visiting his newly remodeled house. They really did a good job.
We went to my dad's place for supper. Other than my siblings and their families being there, my aunty Michelle was there with her son Michael, his wife Louise and their daughter Eden who were visiting from Kitimat, BC. Michael really is funny, it was an excellent time.
Danika came back home with us for a sleepover for a couple of nights. The girls (and Xavier) seemed to have a really good time together. I love the relationship between cousins. It's so sweet.
On the bad side of things, some vandals came into our yard and stabbed (yes actually stabbed) our pool more than six times! Why would somebody do that!? Richard has put some patches to fix to puncture holes, fingers crossed that works.
Lucas had his first set of shots this week. Poor little guy was quite grumpy afterwards. At 11 weeks old he weighs in at a hefty 15 lbs 14 oz and is now 25 inches long. That's my big boy!
Oh, Richard and I went on date (with Lucas as our little sidekick) to go see Inception. What a great movie, it definitely keeps you thinking. I highly recommend it!

Busy weekend!

We had a very busy weekend and it was worth every single moment.
On Friday, after bringing Richard to work, the kids and I decided to visit Memere, Nicole and Tony's new apartment. The kids really like the new apartment, because it has one more bedroom the hallway is longer which the kids enjoy. The apartment is two floors up and Emma really enjoys the new high views. After a nice supper and some Bugs Bunny, we made it back home.

Saturday morning we had a visit from our old friend Carlos, in the afternoon my cousin Elizabeth came over with her two kiddies Amy and Alex. We spent a really nice afternoon in the backyard where the kids played in the pool and so forth. The kids had a great time playing with their cousins, it was fun.

That evening my wonderful sister-in-law Patsy Karina invited me to go see the movie Eclipse. I hand expressed a little bit of breast milk and once all three kids were all in bed, we headed off to the movie. It was great, not only because the movie was absolutely phenomenal, also because I had an invitation to go out, just me! I can't remember the last time someone invited just me out with them. Feels good :)
On Sunday, we went to church for Samantha's baptism, daughter of my friend Julie and her husband Marty. She's such a little cutie, she's only 6 days younger than Lucas. I hope they can become friends.
In the afternoon we headed out to celebrate Darrion's 5th birthday, he's Emma's closest friend right now. The party started at a nearby wading pool. One of the dads brought a bag full of water guns and the kids really had a great time soaking each other and the dads, hehehe, that was super fun. Lucas slept almost the whole time.
We went back to Darrion's house where we were treated to a nice bbq and a really yummy rocket shaped cake.


What a great weekend!

Oh Canada!

I hope everyone had a great Canada day yesterday! It definitely was an interesting one here in good old 'Peg city.
Minutes after arriving at the Assiniboine Park Zoo, it started to rain. Sometimes the rain was light, other times a little heavier. We ducked into places like the Tropical House and Discovery Centre in an effort to stay dry while still visiting some animals. After a little while the rain subsided, but Xavier had had enough by this time. He wanted food.

We knew that the Lyric stage behind the pavillion was going to have shows on all afternoon and evening, where there is entertainment, there's food.
We made the short walk from the Zoo and quickly found the food vendors. Richard had some smokies and I bought a large cheese pizza which we all shared. It was yummy.
We watched a historical play about Manitoba and the Chinese Lion dance.

We really were having a great time, but it was HOT outside by this time, not to mention a little muggy because of the aforementioned rain. We came back to our nice air-conditioned home :)

We had Nicole and Tony over for dinner to wrap up a nice first Canada day for Lucas.

Recycling made fun

It's been raining so much lately I've been saving up some recycling to make a craft with. Yesterday we made juice box trains. The kids had a great time making their trains, although Xavier's is already a little bit taken apart. LOL.
Basically, we cut the bottom of the boxes, leaving it as a flap so we can wash out the juice. Left them to dry. After they dried out, we taped the flaps shut and let the kids decorate the boxes as they wished. I cut a toilet paper roll in half and used those as smoke stacks for each train. It was fun and Emma really loves her homemade train.

Having fun in the park!

Yesterday was "La Saint Jean-Baptiste" day. It's a provincial holiday in Quebec, here the Francophone community celebrated with a party in the park.
It was a very warm and muggy day,thankfully the city had sprayed for mosquitoes the night before, so we weren't bugged :)
First thing in the morning, the kids helped me bake cookies and pack a picnic.
The kids had a lot of fun playing in the park, doing the different activities set up and listen to the free concert.
Lucas did not enjoy staying in his car seat. I had to hold him the whole time, so I had to improvise to keep the sun off of him. He was wearing my hat.
We met up with a lot of people we knew, including my cousin Joel and his beautiful family.
We spent most of the time hanging out with Gen, who on top of her own two, was babysitting two more. Once the party was over, Gen and her gang came over to our place to continue the fun. I think the kids had a blast.
Emma had so much fun yesterday that she actually slept in past 9 a.m.!
What a great day.




In soccer news, Italy was eliminated from the World Cup. With France being eliminated earlier in the week, Italy and France become the first teams in the history of the World Cup, where the finalists from the previous World Cup do not advance to the final 16! Amazing!

Lucas's Baptism

Our sweet little boy received his baptism this past Sunday. As with our older two children, he was baptised by my father "Pepere". It was a really nice ceremony. There were 3 other babies getting baptised at the same time. Two of the babies looked about the same age as Lucas, whereas the third looked to be around 9 months old. Lucas did really well, he was sleeping when the time came to pour water on his head and I was positive this would wake him and he would scream. My boy proved me wrong, he frowned a little but just kept on sleeping. The anointing of the oil bothered him a little and it woke him up, but he didn't cry or scream. Such a good boy.
He is soooo big, it's incredible how much he has grown since birth, I can't wait until his next doctor's appointment to see where he stands.

In other news, Emma "graduated" from her first year of preschool. She really does enjoy going to school. I think she will miss it during the summer, I know I will LOL! Next year both Emma and Xavier will be in preschool, different times and days of course, because of their ages. At least I hope Xavier will be in preschool, we're having some trouble with Xavier consistently using the potty. I have three months to get him completely out of pull-ups (at least during the day). I'm hopeful, he understands and recognizes when he needs to pee or poo, he just chooses the easy way. Thankfully it's summer and I can just let him run around in underwear, eventually he'll get the point (I hope) and stop doing in his pants. I keep you posted on the potty training wars.

My little ballerina

Yesterday was Emma's big recital at the Centennial Concert Hall.
She did such a good job. Dance to the steps as best as a 4 year old can do and kept a big smile on her face the whole time.
My beautiful girl.

What a busy life

It has been quite busy around here since Lucas has been born.
We've had something to do everything single weekend and that doesn't look like it will be letting up anytime soon. Which is not a bad thing.
This past weekend we had to miss our dear friends wedding, which was quite disappointing. We had really been looking forward to the attending the wedding and celebrating with our friends. Unfortunately, during the night before the wedding, I was up all night being very, very ill, came down with some kind of flu, only feeling better today. Richard woke up the morning of the wedding feeling sick himself. Xavier was sick on Monday. Everybody seems to be doing better now, which is good.
This weekend we have Emma's big dance recital on Saturday, I can't wait. It's going to be so cute. She's been talking about it for weeks now, my little diva is really looking forward to being on stage again. LOL.
Lucas has grown leaps and bounds, it's amazing how much babies change in such short periods of time.

The kids are great

It's a little crazy around here since our newest addition has arrived. The kids are doing really great, but are suffering from some cabin fever, which is driving me nuts. Any moment that they can be outside, they have been, unfortunately the weather hasn't really been 100% cooperative. It's been quite rainy the past few days.
Now about those kids:
Emma is changing it seems almost every day. She is very helpful and can often help me get things I need, especially when I'm breastfeeding. She will get the phone if it's ringing, even get me a bottle of water. Her understanding of her surroundings is expanding and she's really turning into a little lady. She is clearly able to vocalize what she enjoys doing and things she does not.
Xavier just keeps growing, he never stops, he is so tall that most people mistakenly think he is either 3 or 4 years old, while he is only 2.5 years old. His vocabulary is quite developed for his age, he is able to speak in full, clear sentences. He is quite active, climbing, running, playing everywhere.
Lucas is great, he wakes every 2-3-4 hours at night. He nurses what seems to be all the time and has grown leaps and bounds. At his two-week check up he was already 9lbs 5oz!
Life with 3 kids is definitely an adventure!

Breakfast in bed with my 3 angels :)

It's a boy!!

Lucas Pedro was born April 30, 2010 at 5:24 am. Everybody is healthy and happy!

Playing the waiting game

Baby's due on Monday and my next doctor's appointment is on Tuesday. Will I make it that far or will this one be early like my first two?
I get the feeling that this baby really is enjoying its present location and is in no hurry to make its way out.
Tuesday, when we went to the doctor's I was 1 centimeter dilated and he said my cervix felt "soft". However, we know that you can be 1 centimeter for awhile, so I'm not holding my breath :)
Let's hope my delivery will be without any complications and that baby is healthy.
Keeps us in your thoughts :)

I promise to blog more

I used to be really good at blogging all the little updates and what not. Somehow I fell out of the habit, but that will be changing now.
I promise :)
Xavier has grown into a beautiful 2.5 year old. He talks up a storm, is half potty trained (going at his pace with this, I'm not in a rush), and in general is great. The doctor at his last check up in December found that his heart murmur was significant enough to be referred to a specialist. So last month we went to the Variety Children's Heart Centre, where he had a couple of different tests. The tech was so impressed with how well behaved Xavier was that he suggested I come back with him to teach others his age how it's done. LOL. Anyway, turns out that Xavier has what is called an innocent murmur, meaning that his heart basically beats at it's own little beat, but doesn't affect him whatsoever. YAY!
Emma is doing really well. My beautiful 4 year old princess. She loves going to preschool and being with her friends, definitely a good decision. She's such a little girl now and very helpful around the house, which I'm taking full advantage of while I can, lol. Emma is doing great is dance class and we're gearing up for her big recital on June 5.
Baby is still in the belly, our doctor is pretty optimistic that baby will be here before my due date (which is Monday). I can't wait to meet our next little treasure. Tickets for Emma's recital go on sale on April 30, so I hope I'm either back from the hospital or not in the hospital yet, so I can purchase the tickets, I want good seats, lol.
Until next time!

Guess I've been hibernating or something :)

I have been a very bad blogger. I just haven't had the time and/or energy to write anything. I have a lot to talk about, but the most important is that my baby girl is now 4 years old! How time flies, it seems like just yesterday I was expecting my beautiful Emma and now I sit waiting the arrival of my third little treasure.

Emma's party was really fun. We decided to something different this year and had Emma's party at the Manitoba Children's Museum, her theme was Fairy Tale. The kids each made their own little crowns and all paraded around the museum proclaiming Princess Emma's birthday. I think the most fun the kids had was during their free play after all the food and cake were consumed, and presents opened.

Xavier channeling his inner African

Oh what a Friday

Emma starting coming down with a cold on Tuesday and Xavier soon followed. Now it's Friday and they are both still stricken with an awful cough and little runny noses.
This morning did have an interesting start however. I woke up just before Richard was heading out for work, once he left, I felt it was a little cool. I checked the thermostat, it was set a 66 degrees, but the interior temp was 64... hmmmmm. I turned the thermostat up to 70 and.... nothing. I waiting about 15 minutes, still nothing, went downstairs to look at the furnace, couldn't figure out how to check on it, so called Richard. He suggested that I call a service man since he couldn't leave work.
By the time I came back upstairs, Xavier had woken up and was wondering around the house crying looking for me. Poor little guy. I set up a little heater, changed the boys diaper and dressed him up to keep him warm. About 30 mins passed by and the interior temp had dropped another degree. I called the service man and about 10-15 mins later, the furnace just started working again. Weird. So I called back to cancel the service man, he suggested I keep an eye on the furnace, because there must be a reason why it stopped working in the first place.
The kids are both cranky and whiny, Emma is mad at me for deciding not to take her to school today (it's her turn for show & tell, but I'm sure the teacher will let her do it another day).
Now I'm waiting for 9 am to call furnace guys during regular hours so I can schedule an appointment for a furnace inspection.
8:30 am and I feel like I've been through a whole day already! This is going to be a very long day....

Just a little tired

I have been suffering from a cold since last week. Am doing better, but still really tired. I could go to sleep right now if it wasn't for my two (hyper) little munchkins. Baby seems to be as active as it normally is, my cold hasn't seen to affect the little one. Maybe that's why I'm so tired, sapping all my energy! LOL!

Richard's birthday celebration

Richard's birthday was last Friday. He was working all day and all night Friday, as well as all day Saturday. On Saturday evening we went to my Mom's place for a family dinner to celebrate Richard's birthday.
For Sunday, I decided to surprise Richard by inviting some friends to come over to celebrate. It was a great time.
For appetizers I had made a crab dip and some store bought salmon in cream cheese, as well as chips and gouda cheese. For supper I ordered some sopapillas and empanadas from the Chilean Corner at the forks, I also had a salad (ceaser, Richard's favourite), I made some perogies (for the vegetarian), Richard's sister made some anticucho and I also made a curanto.
There was a lot of food and a lot good people and good time.
It was really fun.
Not how am I supposed to top this for next year...?
Oh yes, I must not forget that Emma helped me bake the cake and that both kids helped to decorate it. They're such cuties.

A look from the inside

And the winner is...

Yesterday decided to head down to the "Baby shower" Sears Kildonan Place was holding. They were talking different safety issues with different products and that sort of thing. We arrived late, of course. We ended up winning the door prize. Pays to be late. We won a couple of outfits, blankets, a little bathtub,teddy bears, just to name a few. All in all, I would say it was a pretty good weekend.

My little Al Bundy

The weekend

The New Year started normal enough. Emma slept in. Both kids ate a nice hearty breakfast. Emma helped me make bread and prepare lunch.
Richard returned from work and proceeded to remove our old ancient washer, leaky sink and old cabinets. He was to start making a level floor in the furnace room, however,sometime by late afternoon Emma complained of a sore stomach and proceeded to vomit everywhere. Richard came up to help me out. We soaked all the puke stained (and later diarrhea stained) clothing in the bathtub and stuck the laundry basket outside.
Poor Emma was very ill, Richard and I took turns staying up with her as she was sick throughout the night. We spent most of Saturday with one watching after Emma and the other running after Xavier, as well as making necessary errands, for which my car almost did not want to start.
On Sunday morning things seemed to be looking up. Emma seemed to be getting better and Xavier was eating up the whole household and running around. The only snag is that the house was freezing cold, the furnace had stopped working! After about an hour, Richard was able to restart the furnace and heat returned to our humble abode. Richard than proceeded to keep framing the floor in the furnace/laundry room, while I started cleaning the dishes and make a homemade turkey noodle soup for Emma.
At lunch Xavier was refusing to eat. Finally I convinced him to sit on my lap and I would feed him. Next thing I know Xavier's throwing up and I'm catching it in my hand! At least I didn't get any on my clothes, if you want to find a bright side.
Xavier was now down for the count.
Since Emma seemed to be doing well, I brought her with me to my mom's for supper. Unfortunately it was too much too soon. She's still not 100% and stayed home from Preschool today. Xavier seems to be doing better, after a bumpy night.
I feel like crap.
That was our weekend.

Make a guess on the baby

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Xavier grooving

HAPPY NEW YEAR!