Tuesday 31 March 2009

Spring Has Sprung!

This weekend was gorgeous. It seemed everyone in the neighbourhood was out walking or riding bikes. And we could hear motorbikes driving by all day long. It was sunny, we didn't need to wear our winter coats, spring had come.....


And this is what we woke up to this morning.


In this picture you can see where PChad tried to make a go of it, but the drift was too high.
For some reason it seems we get all the snow that blows off all the neighbours' yards deposited on our driveway.


And here you can see just how high the drift was the whole way down the driveway.

Monday 30 March 2009

Gender Issues


Yesterday Asher was playing with Fisher Price Little People in the living room & I was in the kitchen making dinner. I heard Asher say, "Are you a girl now?" I figured he was talking to one of the little people & didn't really think anything of it, but when I heard him ask, "Are you now a girl & not a man?" I figured I'd better investigate. Unbeknown to me PChad had joined him in there, & just as I walked into the room Asher asked PChad yet again, "Are you a girl now that you are wearing a necklace?" I guess we still have to teach him a few more things about the differences b/w boys & girls.

Sunday 29 March 2009

Sunday Pictures: week 32

Asher - 2.5 years
Chancery - 7.5 months
***********************************


Chancery: "Are you wearing nail polish?"


Asher: "You aren't serious, are you? I'm NOT wearing nail polish!"


Chancery: "Are you sure? Because it sure looks like you might have some on your toes!"


Chancery: "Mum, that looks nice, can I have some nail polish too?"


Chancery: "Here, I'll take off my shoes & then you can paint my toes too!"


Asher: "No, you may not take off your shoes!
There will be no polishing of your nails!"


Asher: "What do you mean, 'let her go'? She said I was wearing nail polish!"

Friday 27 March 2009

A Saintly Cat

The other day PChad told me he's never had a cat as tame as Thanet. You can seriously do whatever you want with him & he puts up with a LOT from the kids. I caught a cute moment Chancery was sharing with Thanet & couldn't believe he didn't cry, or squirm, or try to get away. He just sat there & took it.

A Grocery Conversation

When we are at the grocery store, Asher says, "Hi!" to everyone we pass. He'll keep saying, "Hi!.... Hi, Man!...... Hi!.... Hi, Man over there!" Until he is acknowledged, or 'til he can't see the person anymore. Frequently he'll tell me, "I said 'Hi!' to the man, and he didn't say, 'Hi'." Or, "I said, 'Hi!' to the lady, and she was talking to the other lady instead." He'll also throw in a, "What are you looking for, Lady?" Usually followed by a, "What's that lady looking for, Mum?"

Yesterday at the grocery store he said, "Hi, Lady!" and was rewarded with a "Hi" in response, which encouraged him to ask, "Are you looking for Hot Rods, Lady?" (because WE were looking for Hot Rods, he assumed SHE must be looking for them too.) She responded that she was not looking for Hot Rods. Asher took a moment to mull that one over & we started to move down the aisle.

Asher then yelled back, "Do you want to come & talk to me some more, Lady?"

She kindly answered, "If I see you in another aisle, I will come & talk to you some more."

Strangely enough, we didn't see her again, perhaps she was avoiding us so she wouldn't have to answer 50 questions about what she was looking for.

Thursday 26 March 2009

It's The Only Way To Play

Chancery has decided that she HAS to be a big girl NOW.


There will be no waiting until she has mastered the skills to stand on her own two feet,
she has determined that she will not be happy to play unless she is standing up.

It doesn't matter if there are no toys on the table, or if Asher is playing on the floor.

Chancery, it seems may also be a bit strong willed
& determined to grow up a bit faster than most.

Wednesday 25 March 2009

Sometimes I Get A Little Bit Crazy.....

There are days I don't feel like doing my hair at all. There are days my hair just doesn't want to look good & then there are days like today:

I am rockin' the faux-hawk today!

Time To Read

After we got home from the bookstore the other day, I was flipping through the sale flyer that they had put in the bag. I know it's just a way for them to try to entice us to come back & purchase more items from them, but sometimes, the "72 Hour Sale" can be a good thing. They have some items priced as "lost leaders" just to get you in the door, b/c they KNOW that once you're there, you are more than likely to buy additional items. You know it, I know it, & they know it. Sometimes I've had the following conversation with myself, If I buy one book for $5, & another for $20, then my average is $12.50 each & really, that's not a horrible price to pay for new books! Rationalization at it's best, folks!

So I'm thumbing through the flyer & nothing was really jumping out as something I'd need to go back for, until I read the little blurb about "A Bride Most Begrudging". I thought, Now that looks like a good book & it's on for a pretty good price, but I could just look for it online, I'm not in a real rush anyways since I've got a few books I haven't read yet anyways.

Later, I was going through my books, figuring out what I haven't read yet & looking for the next one to read. I have a bookcase of Christian books & a bookcase of non-Christian books, & right in the middle of the historical non-Christian books, what book did I find? Apparently I had thought the book looked intriguing on a previous bookstore jaunt!

Tuesday 24 March 2009

Breadsticks

Asher & I were playing with playdough yesterday & he cut a few thin strips w/ a pizza cutter type thing. Then he said, "Mummy, look at my bread!"

I asked, "Are they breadsticks?"

He replied, "Bread doesn't stick when it's playdough!"

Monday 23 March 2009

New Books!

Saturday we stopped by the Christian Bookstore "just to browse." I don't know why we try to fool ourselves into thinking we can just browse in a bookstore b/c we always find SOMETHING to buy! But we had a little money allocated for books that we hadn't used yet & I managed to find a few things that came in under budget.

I don't know about you, but when I get new books I am SO excited to go home & read them! But I usually have a different book on the go that I must finish first. So, I dutifully put my new books on the shelf & finish the book I had been reading before cracking a new one open. Then I head to the shelves to pick out what book I want to read next.....

Suddenly I am faced with so many options I don't know where to start. Do I want to read a fiction, or a non-fiction book? Do I want to read a Christian or a non-Christian book? Do I want to read a book that's part of a series, or a stand alone title? Do I want to read a new book, or an old favourite And I just have the hardest time choosing, and then I don't know what to do!

But it's a good problem to have!

Sunday 22 March 2009

Sunday Pictures: week 31

Asher - 2.5 years
Chancery - 7 months
*******************************

Asher: "I'm going to sit right here, in front of Chancery."


Chancery: "Do you see what Asher's doing, Mum? He's in my way!"


Asher: "Yes, ha-ha, that way Mum will have to focus on ME!"


Chancery: "Oh, now that Asher's moving, people will notice
that I've been playing with this car the whole time!"


Chancery: "See, Asher? I found a Mini in the couch!"


Asher: "She found my Mini! I'm so excited to play with it again!
Now I just have to devise a way to get it back....."

Friday 20 March 2009

A Housework Analogy

A few weeks ago at Coffee Break we were talking about how our relationship with Christ is something that we have to maintain & work at. It's a bit different from our relationship with our spouse b/c our spouse is physically present to remind us if we haven't spent enough time together & the effects of it can be a bit more obvious.

It got me thinking that living in relationship w/ Christ is a bit like cleaning house. It's not something that you can do once (accept Him into your life) & figure it's good. Rather it's something we have to keep working at. We have to keep asking Him to renew us & consciously keep Him as the number one priority in our lives.

Image what it would be like if you went on one date w/ a guy, then he asked you to marry him, you said, yes, but never saw him again. It wouldn't be much of a relationship, would it?

Thursday 19 March 2009

A Night With The Dominee Huisvrouw

I bet there are TENS of you out there who wonder, what does Sherilyn do after the kids are in bed at night? So I thought I'd share what a typical evening looks like for me.

Chancery goes to bed around 7:00, & Asher around 7:30. Quite often after Chancery is down, PChad will be w/ Asher & I'll hang out upstairs folding laundry, cleaning the litter box or some other activity that keeps me in the vicinity of her room b/c down doesn't always mean down for her & I quite often have to go back in & give her the plug a few times before she's officially asleep.

Sometimes PChad puts Asher down, sometimes I do. He's quite easy, read a book, pray & leave. Then I check email, facebook, google reader, muck about on the computer 'til about 8ish. PChad quite often has meetings or visits in the evening, so he's generally gone around 7:30.

I don't really watch many shows on TV simply b/c I'd rather watch them when it's convenient for ME, so I watch a few online occasionally, or descend to the basement to watch a movie, or TV DVD. And this is the routine:

  1. Put on jammies, put on the other jammies too (it's cold down there!)
  2. Get a BIG glass of water (Nursing mums should drink plenty of water!)
  3. Get a square/cookie/brownie, make sure it's a big one b/c otherwise I'll have to come back for another one.
  4. Get a bowl of popcorn twists too b/c otherwise I'm not likely to finish my glass of water.
  5. Grab the baby monitor & go down to the basement
  6. Choose a movie/TV Show & get remotes
  7. Wrap one blanket around my legs & place another one on the chair just so, then if my top half gets cold I can just wrap it around.
  8. Put another blanket over top legs (I'm telling you, it really is cold in the basement!)
  9. Watch movie w/ closed captions on (there's alot of things one can miss from not having the captions on!)
  10. About 1/2 way through, realize you need more water, pause the DVD, unwrap all the blankets & run upstairs for a refill. Don't forget to grab another square b/c they are SOOO yummy!
  11. Rewrap all the blankets.
  12. Resume movie.
  13. Hear Chancery crying on the monitor, unwrap blankets & run upstairs, & upstairs again to her room, settle her down, & return to basement.
  14. Rewrap blankets.
  15. Resume movie.
  16. After movie is over, watch special features.
  17. Realize one of the special features included is a commentary of the movie & plan to watch that tomorrow!
At 10ish it's bedtime (but there will be plenty of wake-ups between now & morning) time for some sleep!

I don't know why I like to watch the commentaries of movies so much, but it's a guilty pleasure of mine. Do any of the rest of you watch them, or am I the only one?

*Sorry I forgot 'til now, the answer to last Friday's question (about the blog title) is Chasing Liberty (which I just watched the commentary of!)

Wednesday 18 March 2009

No Splatter Rice Cooking -WFMW


Every time I use my rice coker, I end up with splatters all over the counter/stove/cupboards what-have-you. It was irritating. I'm not all that excited about cooking anyways, and I REALLY don't like to have to cook AND clean up a huge mess afterwards. So I started "tenting" my rice cooker with a dishtowel &, viola, problem solved!

I have only had one issue since I started doing this & that is sometimes the little vent hole gets a bit of rice stuck in it causing the lid to rattle around as the steam has no escape route.Afterwards I just peel the towel off & throw it in the laundry pile. Problem solved, easy-peasy!

For more great ideas, visit we are THAT family

Tuesday 17 March 2009

Obscure Kids' Movies

Brittany at BK just wrote a post about the Top 10 Kids' Movies (according to her roommates & herself). It got me thinking about some of the movies I watched as a kid & I decided to ask how many of these are familiar to you. In no particular order:

Bedknobs & Broomsticks -We'll start off w/ a fairly well known one. My brothers & I always enjoyed the battle at the end where the armour fights eachother. Definitely a classic & a must-see for everyone.




The Peanut Butter Solution -A fairly little seen movie made in Toronto about a kid who gets a "big scare," & as a result looses his hair, is teased, is given a recipe to grow his hair involving peanut butter among other things.... and it just gets better! PChad had never seen this movie, thought I was making it, up, but one year it was on TV & I made sure he watched it w/ me. He said it was an "odd" film.

Goonies -Filmed on the Oregon coast near the Washington border, a movie about pirate ships, treasure, Baby Ruth candy bars, & bad guys!





Snow White -This version was made for TV shown on the Disney Channel probably in the mid to late 80's. It wasn't a cartoon, but had real people & the favourite quote was when Snow White dies, one of the dwarves asks, "But who will protect her?" Another answers quite matter of factly, "The birds."

The Wizard -Starred Fred Savage, about a kid who's the ultimate gamer. He ran away from home to enter a video game competition where Super Mario Brothers 3 was debuted for the Nintendo.





The Never Ending Story -A kid sits in an attic at school reading a book & really gets into it. "Atreyu!" Still not sure why, if the story ended, there is a Neverending Story II & III





The Emperor's New Clothes -I believe this was also on the Disney Channel. We used to sing "Wed, wed, wed!" around the house, just like the guy w/ the lisp who liked red.





Adventures in Babysitting -How many of us wished something this exciting would happen when we were left w/ a babysitter?





Escape to Witch Mountain -Tony & Tia are aliens trying to get back to the mothership, armed w/ telepathy & aided by an old man in a campervan!





The Sandlot -"Smalls" is a poor shmoe who can't play baseball. Sadly, that's what everyone in his neighbourhood does. Luck for him the best guy on the team takes him under his wing, but some still say he's an "L 7 weinie!"




War Games -Matthew Broderick unwittingly starts to play a game on his computer that makes the government think someone is plotting against the USA. Chaos ensues.



White Fang -Ethan Hawke forges a friendship in the Alaska wilderness w/ a wolf. I always thought it'd be pretty cool to have a wolf, though I would have settled for a dog too.





Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken -Another fine film by Disney. A blind girl who won't take no for an answer decides to join the circus & become a diving girl.





The Boy Who Could Fly -A teenage girl befriends a mute boy & is rewarded with being flown around the town by the boy.






Yes, I know, I watched some weird movies as a kid, but there must be others who have seen these as well, or possibly remember some other odd films!

Sunday 15 March 2009

Sunday Pictures: week 30

Asher - 2.5 years
Chancery - 7 months
***************************************

Chancery: "I'm tired, Mummy."


Chancery: "Shall we conspire against Mummy?"


Chancery; "OK, here's how it's going to go down."


Chancery: "I'll lay right here."


Chancery: "And you lay over there."


Chancery: "You go & I'll be the look out, I don't think she suspects."


Chancery: "Here I come, Asher!"


Asher: "Do you see, you have bored us to sleep, Mummy!"


Chancery: "Ya, we are sleeping!"


Asher: "Ok, ok, we'll sit nice so you can take your pictures."


Asher: "Did we fool you though?"