Babysitter Routine

The other day I informed Asher that after he woke up from his nap, I'd be gone & there'd be a babysitter here too play with him. He was very excited by this news. I figured it was b/c there'd be someone here just to play with him. He was grinning widely when he said, "And I'm going to have a Pizza Pop for dinner!"

I guess he's on to my dinner plans whenever there's a babysitter. What are yours?

Nightly Requests

After we put Asher to bed at night, we can count on him finding excuses to get out of bed, whether it be that he has to wee, poo, blow his nose, get a blanket, pray again for someone he forgot.... there is always a ready supply of reasons to keep him getting up. Quite frequently lately it has been that he needs to blow his nose. The other night:

A: "I need a kleenex!"

A: "I need a kleenex & I have to yawn too."

So I went in & performed my kleenex wielding duty.

A: "You have to put that in the garbage."

Me: "Ok, I will."

A: "There's a garbage in your room, if you want to put it in there!"

Not 5 minutes later, he was at it again. So I put the box of kleenex at the foot of his bed & told him he could do it himself if he needed to blow his nose anymore. Once I left the room, I heard him get out of bed & open the door....

A: "I need to throw this kleenex in the garbage."

I told him that he could put it on the floor by his bed & we would throw them away in the morning. When I went to check on him later that night, there was a HUGE pile of kleenex on the floor & the box was stuffed full of wadded up kleenex. When I asked Asher about it the next morning, he told me,

A: "I needed lots of kleenex when I blew my nose so my boogies wouldn't get all over my bed."

I informed him that he only needed one kleenex & that he had wasted all the other ones & he then had to put them all back in the box.

A: "But I CAN'T put them in the box! There are too many!"

Me: "They all came out of that box, so you have to put them back in."

A: "But I tried already & it's no use," he said sadly.

Forward Thinking

I think that whoever it was that decided the States should switch from metric measurements to the "American System" really was thinking about the future generations. I think I can imagine what they were thinking. It really was genius.

If you've grown up in the States, learning the "American system" & maybe dabbling in the metric from time to time in math or science classes, you become accustomed to the "American System" for almost everything. If you know metric at all, it's most likely a separate thing, & almost no one knows how to do conversions between the two.

Occasionally an American might take it upon themselves to move out of the country & this is where the genius of the plan lies. You go to the grocery store to buy 2 pounds of beef. However, meat is sold by the kilogram. Perhaps you'd like to buy a gallon of milk, no dice, all liquids are sold by the litre. How about an 8 ounce can of tomato sauce? Sorry, millilitres only. If you're unfortunate enough to have a recipe box full of recipes from the States, you might as well throw them out b/c you'll never be able to figure out how much of anything you need to buy at the store. It might even be easier to just move back to the States. If you're a US citizen, they're making you file taxes there anyways, might as well move back & simplify things.

The plan was actually twofold. There's another side of it. Not only does it keep Americans IN the country, all the other countries use metric, so immigrants not only have a language barrier, they also have a metric barrier. Good luck finding your 250 grams of shrimp for your salad. Need a pint of milk for something? Better make sure you know if that's an American pint or a metric pint, because they are different!

It's enough to drive a person batty!

Sunday Pictures

Asher - 3 years
Chancery - 1 year
************************

Chancery: "You'd think Mum could've gotten a better picture of my brother here..."

Chancery: "...but I think he's just not very photogenic....."

Chancery: "When Mum told him to look & smile....."

Chancery: "....this was the best he could do."

Friendly Fella

The kids & I were in search of a park the other day. Sometimes we just drive around & see if we can find a new one. The road we were on dead ended at a nursing home & there was a wooded area that shared the parking lot. I asked Asher if he would like to walk in the woods instead of finding a park & he said that would be alright.

We started walking down the path & since I hadn't taken the stroller for Chancery, we were going pretty slowly. We were soon overtaken by 2 older women who were also walking on the path. Since Chancery was crouched in the middle of the path examining a leaf, the women stopped to say "hi". Asher, not wanting to be left out, picked up a leaf for one of the women & pointed out that it was a nice orange leaf. After receiving some praise, he found another leaf for the second woman & pointed out that it was yellow.

By this time Chancery was ready to walk again, & the women joined us for a short ways.... not that they had much choice.... Asher had taken the first woman's hand & they were leading the pack.

After a short while, Asher's attention was diverted & the women carried on & left us behind. Once Asher noticed that they had left, he went chasing after them, but I told him that he needed to let them enjoy their walk together. His reply was, "But those ladies NEED me!"

Tales From The Backseat

Coming home from Coffee Break the other morning, I decided it was a nice day for a walk & since we were close to the Confederation Trail, I pulled off & parked. The kids & I walked for awhile, & Asher kept saying, "I'm a little bit tired now."

Up ahead of us was a little park, so i pointed it out to him & asked if he'd like to go there, or if he was too tired.

Asher: "I think I can walk to the park, Mummy."

Apparently he found some reserves & we made it there without anymore grumbling. There was quite a bit of grass along the edge of the trail, & it was still wet from the morning dew. I don't think 3 year olds are designed to stay on trails, so Asher's shoes were quite wet by the time we got to the park.

We had been playing a mere 10 minutes when a crew descended to mow the grass, so we were asked to vacate the premises. We headed back down the trail & Asher spent more energy running ahead & running back to Chancery & I. Occasionally he'd run ahead & then sit on the edge of the trail to wait for us, but then Chancery would see Asher sitting & decide that it looked fun, so every time he sat down, she would to.

A few months ago we had gone to this trail & taken some pictures of the kids in the grass. So today Asher kept going off into the grass & requesting that I take a picture. He was stunned that I didn't have my camera along this time.

Once we got back to the truck, Asher's shoes were pretty dirty, so I looked at the bottoms of them to see if they needed to be taken off, but decided they passed inspection.

On the way home Asher asked me, "Do you have yucky stuff in your mouth, Mummy?"

Me: "No."

Asher: "Yes you do!"

Me: "No I don't have yucky stuff in my mouth."

Asher: "You DO have yucky stuff! You got yucky stuff in your mouth when you licked off the bottom of my shoe!"

Despite my assurances that I never licked his shoe, nor would I EVER lick his shoe, he was adamant that I had done so & now had yucky stuff in my mouth. Where he gets these ideas, I do not know, but it sure keeps us on our toes!

Holiday Happenings

While PChad was on holidays a few weeks ago, we went to quite a few different parks. Here's what we did at one of them.




Chancery found rocks to carry around








Asher practiced jumping across the stepping stones









PChad got a ride to Tim's for some coffee










Chancery took a walk with Daddy









And Asher tried to play tag with a little girl, but both went running off in different directions.





We had a lot of fun with Daddy home, and now it's hard to remember to leave him alone while he's trying to work!

Bring In The Replacements

Asher is in swimming lessons this fall. He gets to go on Thursday afternoons & PChad takes him. He has gone twice so far & seems to enjoy it, but a week is a long time in between. He asks everyday, "Do I get to go to swimming lessons today?" And we tell him that he has to wait until next Thursday.

Friday Asher woke up from his nap & noticed that PChad was not around. As we were eating our snack, Asher asked, "Did Daddy got to swimming lessons with a different boy?"

Active Imagination

While the below post is a scenario that came purely from Asher's imagination, perhaps we should expose him to a bit more in some areas. Asher likes to wear hats. When he does, he has to be referred to as a worker man. Sometimes, the worker man has done all his work for the day, & sometimes he still has work to do.

He commonly puts his hat on & says, "I'm a workerman! I have WORK to do!" And then he rushes off to his room.................

....and sits down at his desk.

It might be time to explain that not all people have desk jobs.

Mirror, Mirror, On The Wall

We were in the truck last week & Asher piped up from the backseat, "Mummy, does Daddy take your clothes sometimes?"

Me: "No, I don't think so."

Asher: "Yes he does!"

Me: "Well what does he do with them?"

Asher: "He puts them on himself & then he looks in the mirror at them."

Apparently wearing my hat is trying on my clothes. :)

Sunday Pictures

Asher - 3 years
Chancery - 1 year
********************************

Asher: "Mum wants us to smile so she can see our teeth. Ready?"

Chancery: "Mine aren't big enough yet......."

Chancery: ".....but I'll come look at yours!"

A Balanced Diet

Chancery wasn't feeling to well the other day & PChad was trying to figure out if she had the flu, or just a 24 hour bug. He offered that she could have the same thing that Asher had a few days ago, "...or, it could be something she ate. There were lots of snails where we were playing the other night. She might have eaten one of those."

You're Too Shy, Shy

We were checking out at a store the other day & Asher was trying to engage the cashier in a little conversation:

Asher: "Hi! Hi, Lady!"

Lady: "Hi."

Asher: "What's YOUR name? .... What's your NAME? .... LADY, What's your name?"

Asher: "Are you shy? ... Lady, are you shy?"

An Amazing Testimony

The following video is about a friend of mine that I went to school with. He went on a mission trip & had a bad accident. In the last 2 months, God has been doing amazing things in his life & I just wanted to share his story with you.

Stingy Givers

On Sunday, a friend of mine informed me that the Superstore has a coupon for 2 free re-usable bags with every $50 purchase. She also mentioned that you have to specifically ASK for your free bags, since they have put the coupons behind the cash registers b/c they realized they'd be giving away lots of the bags if everyone knew about the offer.

So as I was checking out from the grocery store the other day, I asked about the free bags & the cashier said, "Um, I'm not sure that offer is still on anymore. I guess I could call customer service to ask them." I told her that I thought the offer was until October. She then OPENED HER DRAWER & REMOVED A STACK OF THE COUPONS to read the expiration date. Seeing as I was right, she then conceded that it was in fact, still on offer. She did mention that it was for the SMALL bags & not the normal sized ones. As I was not aware there were two sizes, I asked if she had any of the smaller bags. "Well, I might have a couple down here somewhere," she replied (I noticed a considerable stack of them behind her counter).

She then proceeded to scan the bags, & then the coupon, but for some reason the coupon wasn't scanning into the computer. "I don't know how these coupons are supposed to work," she says, "so I'll just give the bags to you & figure it out later." I'm not sure what they are trying to pull, but if you go to the Superstore & spend $50 or more, make sure you ask for your 2 free bags. I think if a company has an offer, it's pretty shady to try to discourage their customers from getting it.

*end rant*

Black Eyed Peas Dance Party!

Sunday Pictures

Asher - 3 years
Chancery - 1 year
**************************

Asher: "I'm scanning these books for Chancery, so she knows how much to pay for them."

Chancery: "Little does he know, I have no money!"

Robbie's Back!

Robbie Williams is one of my favourite British singers & after a long hiatus (almost 4 years) he's back with a new album coming out out next month. Here's his new video "Bodies"



And it sounds like he's getting spiritual....

God gave me the sunshine,
Then showed me my lifeline
I was told it was all mine,
Then I got laid on a ley line
What a day, what a day,
And your Jesus really died for me
Then Jesus really tried for me

UK and entropy,
I feel like its ****in’ me
Wanna feed off the energy,
Love living like a deity
What a day, one day,
And your Jesus really died for me
I guess Jesus really tried for me

Bodies in the Bodhi tree,
Bodies making chemistry
Bodies on my family,
Bodies in the way of me
Bodies in the cemetery,
And that’s the way it’s gonna be

All we’ve ever wanted
Is to look good naked
Hope that someone can take it
God save me rejection
From my reflection,
I want perfection

Praying for the rapture,
‘Cause it’s stranger getting stranger
And everything’s contagious
It’s the modern middle ages
All day every day
And if Jesus really died for me
Then Jesus really tried for me

Bodies in the Bodhi tree,
Bodies making chemistry
Bodies on my family,
Bodies in the way of me
Bodies in the cemetery,
And that’s the way it’s gonna be

All we’ve ever wanted
Is to look good naked
Hope that someone can take it
God save me rejection
From my reflection,
I want perfection

Bodies in the Bodhi tree,
Bodies making chemistry
Bodies on my family,
Bodies in the way of me
Bodies in the cemetery,
Bodies in the bodhi tree,
Bodies making chemistry
Bodies on my family,
Bodies in the way of me
Bodies in the cemetery,
And that’s the way it’s gonna be

All we’ve ever wanted
Is to look good naked
Hope that someone can take it
So God save me rejection
From my reflection,
I want perfection

Jesus didn’t die for you, what do you want?
(I want perfection)
Jesus didn’t die for you, what are you on?
Oh Lord
(Jesus really died for you) Ohh
(Jesus really died for you)
(Jesus really died for you) Ohh

Can You Handle It?

Last time we were at the grocery store, I bought some blueberries. For some reason, most of the blueberries in the box I picked seem to be sour. There's no obvious reason that they should be sour. They are all roughly the same shade of blue, & the big ones don't seem to be less sour than the smaller ones.

It's a bit funny to watch the kids eat them b/c all of a sudden, their faces get all squinched up, but they keep eating them. I can understand it though, I do the same thing. I guess you just keep thinking that the NEXT one will be better.

I'm wondering, though, why eating sour patch kids, or sour gummy worms don't seem to be nearly as bad as these blueberries, because, really, those are much more sour.

A Logical Conclusion

Asher wanted to go play outside, so I gave him two conditions.

Me: "You need to put a sweater on if you want to go outside."

Asher: "We live in Canada, so I will put on my Canada sweater, and THAT will keep me warm."

Me: "And you may NOT have any water, ok?"

Asher: "Ok."

Me: "What did I say?"

Asher: "No water."

Not 3 minutes later I heard the hose running. I ran outside & told Asher to come in since he wasn't listening.

Asher: "But, Mum, I was just filling up the pool!"

Did I mention it's COLD outside?

Dressing The Part

As we were stopped at a stop sign the other day, Asher noticed to men crossing the road. One was dressed in black trousers, with a white button-up shirt & a black tie. The other was dressed similarly, but with a tan sweater-vest.

Asher: "Mummy, are those men pastors?"

Me: "I don't know, buddy."

Asher: "Well, I think they are pastors because they look like pastors."

It's About Time!

When we moved here last year, I was happy enough that I found an espresso shop in town, even though it wasn't a chain, I figured that I could at least order my supplies through them if worse came to worse.

Well, their lattes leave something to be desired, & after a few failed attempts to get them to add to their Torani syrup order from their supplier, I have decided it's about time to say good-bye to them & just make my own coffees at home.

Driving through downtown the other day, I scared the bejeebers out of the family as I suddenly shouted, "Hallelujah!" quite loudly. I spotted this sign:


Now all this town needs is a Costco!

Happy Birthday, PChad!

Yesterday was a momentous occasion. It was PChad's birthday! We don't typically do much in the way of birthdays here, between naps & all the other normal activities, it's just a bit much. The kids aren't really old enough to know any better right now anyways, so we might as well save our money & energy for when they're older & want "real" parties!

Asher & I went to DQ to pick out an ice cream cake. Fist Asher picked a beautiful Hannah Montana one, but it was pre-ordered, so that was a no. He then narrowed it down to Dora, or a motorcycle. I asked him which one DADDY would like more & he chose correctly (I think, but I COULD be wrong).

PChad & his cake

We had to tell Asher that if he didn't sing, he wouldn't get any cake.....

...so, he mumbled his way through.

Much excitement over the cake cutting!

Chancery: "How come I ended up with Honeycomb?"

Sunday Pictures

Asher - 3 years
Chancery - 1 year
**************************

Chancery: "Mum, I thought we were done with this picture taking stuff after I turned one."

Nope, Grandpa & Grandma want to see lots of pictures of you.

Asher: "Well, I'm afraid this is the best you're going to get, because I have a book that needs some attending to."

Are you Coming In, Or Going Out?

Asher has a habit of coming in & going out & coming in & going out & coming in & going out & coming in & going out! when he is playing outside. So when he came in (for the thousandth time) this morning, & left the patio door open (yet again), I told him that he needed to go & close the door, or Thanet might run outside & go away.


Asher: "Thanet might blow away?"

Me: "Yeee-es" (I know that's not technically what I said, but it'll do)

Asher: "But, Mum, it's not even windy outside!"

The Forgetful Chef

Yesterday afternoon we went to the park, & since I thought we might be away for awhile, I set up the rice cooker on a timer so that the rice would be done by dinner time to accompany our Curried Beef.

While we were having a grand old time at the park, I started to wonder..... but then I figured it didn't really matter since I couldn't do anything about it anyways.....

Once we got home, my fears were founded. I had left the lid off the rice cooker. A quick search of the cupboard found no minute rice to salvage the situation, so we ended up having curried beef with raman noodles. Not a bad combination, but rice would have been better.

I always thought crock-pot & rice cooker dinners were impossible to mess up, but apparently, my skills know no bounds!

Getting A Better Coffee

PChad has been on holidays for the past week & a half, & we have been enjoying dropping in on people as we go for drives. Before we set out, we usually stop by Tim Horton's & grab a box of Timbits to gain entrance to our chosen coffeetime stop.

The other day as we were waiting in the drive-thru, I noticed there was a panel-van ahead of us. Upon further investigation, I discovered it to be a Maritime Coffee Services van. Just goes to show that everyone knows where to get the best coffee in Canada!

The Pitter-Patter Of Little Feet?

When Asher gets up in the mornings, he picks a few books from his room & brings them to us to read to him in our bed. The other morning, after hearing the *thump* as he jumped out of bed, we heard him exclaim:

"Aaahhh! I have to wee! Body, hold onto my wee until I get some books & bring them to Daddy & then I will got to the washroom & then you may push the wee out of me."