Christmas time is here...

Last year we had cable and got to partake of the fire place channel. A channel that for all of December plays Christmas music and has a genuine fireplace burning 24-7. It was so fun to decorate the tree and wrap presents with it on; or just have it on during the day when I was cleaning or getting ready for work or whatever. I remember Linds saying she even watched it while she fed Alli in the middle of the night. I love that channel and I miss it - we have satellite tv now. So Brad got me this fireplace DVD! (Mostly as a joke, but I really do use it) The music isn't as nice, but a fire is a fire and I just play the music I want to listen to on the stereo. Roman even likes to watch it with me.


It's Romans first Christmas and of course he loves the tree and the ornaments and the presents. So my handy husband got some scraps of wood and built this little fence. It even folds up so when Ro is in bed or people come over it is easy to move. It is the perfect size for Ro to stand at and he spends much of his day just walking along it and trying to reach things on the other side.


The handy little fence leads him right to the window and he loves to look out and see cars drive by. So fun to just sit and watch him do laps on the fence and window and get excited when anything outside moves.


This is my early Christmas present. I have had my eye on this nativity set for quite some time. Brad finally let me get it - it was a really good sale. Basically I got three sets for the price of two. None of the people have faces, and I like how simple it is. A good reminder of the reason for the season.

hello hello

Last day of November, just thought I'd do a quick post so that I could say I actually got more than one or two posts in this month.

Just thought I'd do a little sharing. I got a new vacuum! Funny how excited I am about it. I was even all excited to try it out, and yep it did meet all my expectations and more! Seriously, I really like it. Oh what has my life come too, sigh. AND it came with a free little dust buster which at first I thought was silly, but man it clean up well after Roman! The best part is it only cost me $25! We get gas at Canadian Tire so we saved up Canadian Tire money for three months and then it went on sale, perfect timing. Brad picked it up, I was too embarrassed to actually use something like $70 in Canadian Tire money.


Roman woke up happy today from his nap. Don't you just love when they wake up happy. He usually cries until someone goes into the room, then he is happy. But today he played in his crib for 15 minutes and was all smiles when I went in. You lucky people who get that everyday... oh well, it could be worse.


One more thing - Happy Birthday Rhonda!

Happy #2 Thanksgiving...

Or should I say #1 Thanksgiving? Brad - my patriotic Canadian hubby - please forgive me for what I am about to say. And my American mom, you can count this as a small victory.

Born in the US, but with a Canadian passport I consider myself a Canadian who can take advantage of the many opportunities of also being an American. But really, what is the deal with Canadian Thanksgiving?

Does anyone really know where it came from? While it hurts me to say it, I honestly think they took this one from the Americans. Thanksgiving - it's about Pilgrims, Indians, the Mayflower, Plymouth rock, cornucopias, making buckskin jackets and head bands in second grade from colored feathers and paper bags, bringing home craft projects from school made from corn husks, and silly school programs where we all dressed in aprons or moccasins - and Black Friday shopping of course! In my experience Americans make a way bigger deal of the holiday than Canadians do. So really, why do Canadians have Thanksgiving? (And because we are thankful is not a good enough answer) I don't mean to offend any Canadians, I have just always wondered about Thanksgiving here.

I think I prefer the November Thanksgiving, to me it seams more like the real Thanksgiving. But really, I can't complain too much - because of two Thanksgivings, Christmas, and two families now that I am married I get FIVE turkey dinners in about two and a half months!

So Happy Thanksgiving. I give thanks today for many things I will not sit and list, except one... that Roman is not sick and puking anymore and that he took a long enough nap for me to take a shower, get ready, and make a pumpkin cheesecake. Yep, we had a full blown Thanksgiving dinner today. And now it's all about the leftovers - turkey buns and turkey soup!


Here are a few recent pictures of Roman. He's all over the place now, has been crawling and walking along furniture for awhile now, and he has his two front teeth. He has been sick for the last week, really sick. Glad it is over. I hate not knowing exactly how he feels and not being able to make it go away.

you had to know this was coming....

Happy Halloween! Lots of pictures to share of one of my favorite holidays.

This is on a farm outside of Raymond. We get a good laugh out of it every time we drive by.


These are the cookies I made and took to a bunch of people in town. You know, just to get in the Halloween holiday spirit. Really I just love sugar cookies and any excuse to make and decorate them... and eat them!


Roman as a train engineer for his first Halloween. The pictures don't do it justice. Seriously, he was so stinking cute in it! This is his inside costume for a party we went to. It was a good costume because... (next picture)


This is my at my first Halloween! So funny that I just happened to have the overalls and the hat and didn't even think about using them as a costume when I got them - and then we remembered this picture.


Here is his outside costume, my little frog. Fitting because one of his favorite things to do is jump in his jolly jumper. It was a tight fit to get him in. Last time I try to buy a costume a year ahead for a tall Davis child. Rhonda got a cute picture of him in his costume, click here to see it.


Rhonda came down for a few days with here kiddies so we went trick-or-treating with them. Ro and Lucy were just along for the ride and did very well, but poor Alden only made it to four houses. He was cold and not feeling to well, but he made a dang cute chicken. I guess he just figures why go out in the snow and cold when I could stay home with the big bowl of candy, and really can you blame him? Brad and I then DROVE - seriously so cold out - Ro around to a see family and friends.


Romes doesn't carve he eats. All night he just kept pulling the tops off the pumpkins and chowing down.


Brad really liked his puking pumpkin. Good times were had by all. (Especially me and Brad cause Roman got lots of candy and we get to eat it now!)

leaves

I love the fall. We were out the other day and passed a front yard covered in bright yellow leaves and we just had to stop and take a some pictures. Roman really enjoyed eating the leaves and sticks. We barely had time to take a picture between pulling the leaves out of his mouth and him putting them back in. Hard to pick my favorite, so here are a bunch.

here goes...

It's gunna be a long one, lots of pictures over the past few weeks. But I am in a picture posting mood, so if you don't like it then don't read it!




Two of my new favorite pictures. Playing in the crib before his morning nap. Mornings are usually pretty fun. Just me and Ro. Sitting around in our PJs and playing all morning.

He started doing this a month ago. My mom and I set him in the basket and walked away for a minute, then came back to a site just like this. He thinks it is sooo much fun. I don't find it very amuzing and don't let him do it that often - I am afraid it will lead to him learning to pull himself up on other things and in his crib. Then I will have to lower the crib mattress. I also don't encourage crawling and Brad gets a stern look when he does! But I guess it doesn't matter, he already rolls, scootches, and wiggles his way all over the house to get what he wants so he might as well be crawling.
My feet are holding it up so that he doesn't flip out while I am taking the picture. What a great mom I am, leave him standing in the basket so I can get the picture!

Went to the zoo last Saturday with most of the Davis cousins. Lots of fun to be with everyone, especially because Rhonda and Regan and kiddies can come now and we are closer too. Ro loved to be outside, as usual. He did notice a few animals that were close. (I must say that the Calgary zoo is not good for that, everything is quite far away. And not the best variety of animals. The Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake will be a must when he figures out what animals are) Anyway, he was facinated by the fish in the Hippo tank.

Got this costume for next to nothing after Halloween last year, I coudln't resist. 6-12 months. We aren't sure if it will actually fit by Halloween. Had to try it on and take a picture just in case. Legs are boarderline right now and the crotch/body is fastly becoming too short. We shall see in another month. Might have to make a few alterations to the little frog.

I know it's sideways, but just pretend it's not. I'm too lazy right now to turn it. This is what Ro does when he can't actaully be outside. He love to look at the trees. When he is outside he likes to pull the leaves off the tree and then he laughs.

Here is Ro's new hat. It has little hunting dogs and birds on it. Brad thinks it is silly, but me and my mom and everyone at church think it is cute. And he actaully kept it on for most of church.
Notice that behind Ro there is no cover on the light, yep I am still living in an unfinished house with lots and lots of unpacked boxes. Maybe it will end one day, maybe...

10 things

So it's been awhile, but Rhonda and Lindsay put up their ten super good things and it got me thinking....

1. I finally finally actually live in my house. It is far from being finished, I still have no front lawn just ugly dead grass, and the basement is full of boxes to be unpacked - but I live here now. And to go along with that, a handy husband and a handy dad. The house is looking awesome thanks to their work. I don't know what I would have done without their fix-it-skills. And a carpenter brother in law too.

2. My family is three blocks away. I can go to their house any time I want, it is sooo much fun. And lots of Brad's family is only a short drive away in Lehtbridge and Calgary. Yea for family!

3. On Wednesday I got to spend a day with Jacklyn and Brittany and their kiddies. Lots of fun catching up and remembering old times.

4. My new pommegranite martinie lotion and body wash from Bath and Body Works. It smells so yummy! It just makes me smile every time I use it. It's nice to leave the house and not feel like I smell like baby spit up.

5. Ro isn't back to sleeping through the night like he used to, but he is better than he was all summer - and getting better every night. And he is in his bed for most of the night instead of mine.

6. We are going to Calgary today and staying overnight. Doing some shopping and going to the zoo with family. Been looking forward to it all week.

7. Mint chocloate covered Oreos from the states. Yum Yum Yummy! I still have one box left from our last trip to the lake and I am doing a good job of saving them for a rainy day.

8. I may not be able to swim laps in Raymond, but October is approaching and we are getting our stuff ready for the women's hockey league. Best workout I have ever had. Hopefully it will get rid of that pesky fat left over from the prego days. Here's hoping anyway.

9. Ro's new Robeez boots. Lots of people have given me or lent me shoes, but the little guys feet are so chubby that none of the shoes fit him. But my grandma gave me the boots. Not only are they really really cute, but they are nice and fuzzy warm inside.

10. Fall is here! I only wish it was a longer season here in Southern Alberta. I love fall. I love the leaves changing, the crisp feeling in the air. I love getting out sweaters, hoodies,and vests. I love cuddling up in my down comforter at night to stay warm while the room is cold. I love seeing kids in Halloween costumes. I love Thanskgiving with family (two for me - Canada and USA!). I love starting to think about Christmas shopping. Yeah for fall.

Just one more,
11. Pictures of Ro. I have so so many fun ones from this summer, but here is on of my favorites.

catch up...

It's time to play catch up, been awhile since I posted.
1. We still aren't into our house. We knew when we bought it there were some things that needed some work - but WOW. It is a MESS. There were a few major things that needed to be taken care of that we did not anticipate so it is taking longer than expected. Ro doesn't help any either, he likes all the attention on him, not the house. So slow going. My parents have helped sooooo much. My dad had to practically redo the entire bathroom because there was rotted wood and mold all over. And between me and my mom we have almost repainted the entire house. But we still have a long list of things to do. My family is down at the lake so we are still at their house and will be ready to move in at the end of the month before they get back. So much easier to fix up when you don't have to live in the fix up mess. I'll wait and post pics when things are moved in and it is more together.
2. Brad is working for Bryan (his bro) doing finishing carpentry. A plus for our house because I am getting nice new 6 inch floor boards and new window and door casings. Working for your brother also a plus for getting vacation time when he wants it.
3. We went to the lake a few weeks ago. Ton-o-fun! Our vacation was cut short because of boat problems, but all that is fixed now so we will go back down for a few days sometime before the end of the summer. It was so fun to water ski agian! (didn't do much last summer because I was prego) Ro liked his first vacation at the lake. He loved to be outside and just stare at the trees and the lake. Whenever he was fussy we just took him outside and he calmed right down.
4. Ro is 5 months old now. Rolling over lots, learning to sit up and getting pretty good at it, grabbing for everything, drooling on everything, still always acting hungry but not liking rice cereal, teething on and off - the "on" is NOT fun, the whole world can hear when this is happening, not sleeping through the night anymore, and getting very spioled - at my mom's his crib is in the same room as us and because he isn't sleeping through the night anymore I am lazy and just end up putting him in bed with us. Also very spoiled becaues we have been with my family and everytime he creis he gets picked up. This fall should be interesting trying to get him unspoiled. Right now he LOVES being outside, LOVES the dogs, LOVES his jolly jumper, and LOVES his walker (which we had to sneak in from the states as they are illegal in Canada). He also loves to chase the dogs in his walker. Here are a few - well actaully a lot - of pictures from the lake. I'll put them in smaller - click on them to make them bigger if you want.

phantom

So guess what I did last night... went to Phantom of the Opera in Calgary with my mom and my sister. Our seats were on the sixth row back from the stage - well worth every penny that I paid. It was sooooo good! The costumes and sets and curtains were so rich and colorful. And the actors/actresses did such a wonderful job. For an hour and a half I felt like I was in a whole different world. It was also fun to spend time with my momma and Paige on the drive up and back. And to top it all off, Roman was a good boy for his daddy and grandma Davis - thank goodness he takes a bottle. The only bad thing is that yet again I am reminded of my total lack of any sort of singing voice. I have always wished I could sing.

On another note, the reason I have not posted in quit some time is because I am still not moved into my house. I spend all my free time doing two things.
1. Holding Ro because he is bored of laying down but can't sit up yet and has learned a new cry, at least until you pick him up and he can smile at you. And yes Lindsay it is a whole new kind of the-world-is-coming to-an-end cry. I don't feel like I can let him cry it out either because we are staying with my family and I don't want to annoy them. Soon I hope, soon we will be in our house.
2. Fixing up my house - which is made much much harder by reason number one. There are a lot more things than we thought that need to be fixed up. I know that is to be expected with a first house, but there are a few things that are a little hard to swallow. I won't get into it, but we are just working along as best and as fast as we can.

So hopefully sooner than later I will be posting from my own computer in my own house.

Ro and Alli

So as many of you know the Oilers lost game seven for the Stanley Cup. We were sad. But we did have fun wathcing the game and having a BBQ with Susie, Ryan, Lindsay, Derek, and Alli. Probably the last time we will hang out with all of them before we move - onle a few more days until we move! It has been fun being in Edmonton the same time as them. We were all in the same ward for awhile, me and Lindsay worked together, me and Susie played soccer together, and of course having Alli and Ro.
Here's Alli and Ro all dressed up for the game - not Oilers colors - we'll say they are in red and white for Canada colors.

dads

Ro doesn't like the computer; every time I sit down he cries or wakes up from his nap. I started this post on Saturday in anticipation of Fathers Day, and here I sit trying to finish it a day late.

Brad BBQ'd on Fathers Day. I offered to make whatever he wanted for dinner, but he wanted BBQ and he is the BBQer in our house. Ro and Brad took a nap together on the couch and we all watched the basketball game together Sunday night. A fun day.

1. Happy Fathers Day to my dad. I love you dad. I could never begin to tell you how much I love you and all that you mean to me on this blog, so I will wait until I see you in person (which is soon - only a week until we move down!)
I have always known that my dad would do anything for me, family comes first. Us kids come second, only to my mom - which is the way I think it should be - I have never questioned my dad's love for my mom. He has shown me how I should be treated as a wife. I have never questioned my dad's love for me. I am grateful that I have learned that love not only from his actions, but from him telling me he loves me all the time. I am glad he has always been worthy of his priesthood and has always been a rock for my testimony.

2. Happy Fathers Day to my dad-in-law. I love you too. I have felt so welcomed into the family by you. I could not ask for a better father in law. I admire the father and grandfather that you are. I am grateful to you for showing Brad by example how to be a good father and husband. Thank you.

3. And last but not least, happy first Fathers Day to Brad. I love you. You are an amazing father and husband. I always knew Brad would make a great dad, it is one of the reasons I married him. Fatherhood comes so naturally to him, I think more naturally than motherhood comes to me. I always tell Brad I love him - when he leaves for work, when we go to bed, when we talk on the phone... And of course I mean it when I say it, but I say it so much that it is - for lack of a better word - sort of redundant. So for fathers day I wrote Brad a letter telling him why I love him. It was nice to think it over and see it put into words. My love for him grows daily and writing the letter gave it an extra boost. I recommend that everyone write a letter like that now and then to anyone they love.

Funny how I know I have lots of good pictures of the dads, but of course none of them are on the computre, I guess these ones will do.

my new house!

We bought a house this week!
We were planning on moving back to southern alberta at the end of the month and living in my parents house for July and August while they are in Montana. Then we didn't really know where we would be in the fall. We had thought about buying a house, but we would just have to wait and see. Houses in Lethbridge are so expensive, and the opportunity came up to buy this house in Raymond. Houses are selling quick right now in Raymond, and it was a good deal. There were some other people going to look at it Monday night, so spur of the moment Monday morning Brad hurried home from work, we threw a few things into a bag, and took off for Raymond. We take possession on June 30! It all happened so fast but we are really exicted. For those of you from Raymond, the house is Mark and Becky Rompains.
We didn't get the best pictures of it, but here are a few. The grass is getting replaced. And of course Brad already has plans for the landscaping. It has three bedrooms and two bathrooms. It's a great "starter home". Becky has the house painted really cute, I might change a few things just to make it my own, but we can move right in and feel at home. So that is what we are dong this summer!

three months old

Took Ro to the doctor early this week. I totally forgot about his two month appointment and we missed it because we were down in Raymond, so we had to postpone it a bit! He is 15 lbs 1 oz. and 25 inches. He is doing good and we are having tons of fun with our smiley little boy. Three months old today. He doesn't take very good naps during the day, so it is hard to get anything done. But he sleeps really good at night, which is way better than a good day napper. He usually goes to bed around 11:30 and sleeps until 5:30 or 6:00, eats and goes back to sleep for a few hours.

I started back to work yesterday. I am only working a 4 hour shift a week. Four hours of work is all I can earn to not affect my maternity leave payments. It is just a little extra money and some time away for me and some good Roman and daddy time. He was really good for Brad last night, they sat and watched the hockey game together.


I enjoyed being back at work and seeing everyone, but I had an emotionally hard shift. The situation would have made me sad before, but I think it was made worse because I now have my own child. I can't say too much because of patient confidentiality. One of my patients was a little one with shaken baby syndrome. So tiny, so precious, so innocent - and his life is ruined. He is such a gorgeous little boy. I just don't understand it. I stood there in the dark of his hospital room and held him and cried. I couldn't help it. When I got home I hugged Roman and cried some more. I was so upset and angered, butI am comforted by the belief I have that this precious baby has earned his place in heaven. I am so thankful for my son, my husband, my family, and my in-law family. So thankful that my son, my siblings, my nieces and nephews, my self, and my husband know love from our parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles.

bod - images

So I skipped week two (layers) but I will come back to it. Here is my week three page. (click on it for a bigger picture) As you can see I "transferred" text instead of an image. I'll try an image another time. Great suggestion to use muslin - I have tons of it lying around because I use it for backing on quilts. I really like how it came out and will for sure try this again. Freezer paper is different in Canada and the US, so I'm not sure if it will work the same. Does anyone from Canada know?

I just taped the muslin to a piece of paper. My scrapbooker extraordinaire sis in law Rhonda suggested printing the text first then using that same piece of paper to tape or glue the muslin to - this way I knew exactly where the text was going to print. Worked like a charm, thanks Rhonda! My Tim Holtz Distress Ink pad worked well to darken/age the muslin. The text is from my journal, some thoughts I had when Ro was 5 weeks old.