Life Lesson for Hannah

No Hannah didn't steal anything. I know by the title of this post some of you were probably thinking that!

We took the kid's to Quizno's for lunch today and when we were driving through the parking lot on the way to Quizno's there was a homeless man sitting on the curb with a sign that he was hungry and looking for food. While we were in Quizno's Hannah said she had a 'tummy ache' and she didn't eat her sandwich... I think the 'tummy ache' was a farce since she wanted to eat chips and drink chocolate milk instead. Since Hannah chose not to eat her sandwich I decided instead of wasting it and throwing it in the garbage to get it wrapped up to go.

I handed Hannah the sandwich and explained to her that there are people in the world that are hungry and have no food to eat. I told her that since she chose not to eat her sandwich that I thought she should give it to this man who was hungry. As we drove out of the parking lot Dave pulled up to the curb where the man was sitting and we opened the van door on Hannah's side. Hannah gave the homeless man her sandwich and told him that she was giving it to him because he was hungry. The man was very appreciative and he thanked Hannah for being so kind.

As we drove away this was our conversation...

Me: Hannah how did it make you feel to give that man your sandwich?

Hannah: It makes me feel happy.

Me: It is nice to do something nice for others isn't it?

Hannah: Yeah... maybe next time I am hungry someone will give me some food!

So that was Hannah's life lesson 3 year old style... hopefully she gets that the point was that there are others less fortunate than she is. I think she may want to give her food away anytime she has something she doesn't want to eat like vegetables!

Kite Day!

The weather stayed nice this morning for 'Kite Day' at preschool :-) It was cold but at least it wasn't raining.

Teacher Vanessa and Teacher Kim needed quite a few parents to help out so I was glad that my mom was able to come to our house and stay with Victoria and Natalie so I could help. I had a group of 5 kids that I had to take from station to station. There were 4 stations: Paper Airplane Flying, Kite Flying, Bubble Blowing and Balloon Floating. The Kite station and the Bubble station were definitely the most popular so it was a bit challenging to keep all 5 kids together and to not let them wander off to the more appealing stations.

(Left: Hannah flying her kite - Right: Rebecca flying her kite)

The kids all had lots of fun and they ended by playing some parachute games before heading back inside to the classroom to practice their 'Do Si Do' for Party Day on Tuesday.

Boot Camp last night was challenging because I am so congested with this darn cold. I was able to complete two runs of about 1.5km each plus the rest of the circuit training but I was pretty tired afterwards. Tonight is the last night for this week so hopefully by next week I will be feeling better.

Hannah starts her Salmon level in swimming tomorrow morning... she is very curious to see who her teacher will be.

I thought I was pretty lucky since I had managed to avoid most of the nasty colds and flu's that have been going around this winter. This is a great accomplishment considering I live with 2 small children who bring yucky germs home with them from wherever they go.

Yesterday I started to feel like I was getting sick and by the time I went to bed last night I knew that the cold had finally found me. I am still going to stick it out and go to boot camp tonight even though I feel like garbage. I might have to miss a night or two next week while our family is visiting from Alberta so I can't miss any nights this week sick or not.

Hannah is looking forward to 'Kite Day' tomorrow at school... the kid's have all made kites that they are going to fly out in the field. If it rains it will be cancelled so I hope the weather holds out for the morning at least.

OK - I think I am going to try and have a nap now while Victoria is sleeping. I have put 'Hercules' on for Hannah to watch so hopefully she will be entertained and not get into anything!

Smelling Like A Rose

We went to visit GG and take her some supper tonight. I was in the kitchen cleaning up afterwards, Dave and GG were chatting and Hannah and Victoria were up to no good (big surprise!) Dave heard noises coming from GG's bathroom and when he opened the door he almost fell over. Victoria was standing there playing with a puppet she found and Hannah was unloading the entire contents of a can of air freshener!

GG had a good laugh and her apartment was still smelling like a rose when we left! Both Hannah and Victoria smell like air freshener and they stunk up the van all the way home.

These kids.... I can't believe how fast they can get into mischief!

Dora & Diego!

This afternoon my Mom and I took the girls to the mall to get their picture taken with Dora and Diego. Victoria is really getting into Dora now and the whole time we were in the line she kept pointing at Dora and saying 'Doda! Doda!'.

When we finally reached the front of the line Victoria changed her mind about how excited she was to see Dora... Victoria burst out into tears and started bawling. I wasn't surprised because she acted the exact same way about Santa... super excited in the line up and then hysterical when it was her turn to sit on his lap.

Hannah tried to hold Victoria's hand and drag her towards Dora which made Victoria cry even harder. So Buggy had to step in and hold Victoria in the picture... I think Victoria stopped crying but she was still eager to get out of there pretty fast.

It was a long day for the kids. We were in Chilliwack visiting GG all morning and then had to drive home and get to the mall for the Dora and Diego fiasco. Victoria only had about a 20 minute nap in the van so she was pretty cranky this evening. Hannah was tired too and I had both kids bathed and in bed by 7pm tonight :-) Now I am going to curl up on the couch with some popcorn and watch Survivor and ER... Thursday nights are my favourite TV night :-)

Bowling!

Mandy and I took Hannah and Rebecca bowling this morning. The girls seemed to really like it :-) Towards the end of the game Hannah was getting a bit antsy but she finished up her game with a score of 63. It helped that the bowling alley had the kiddie bumpers up to prevent every ball going in the gutter! A few of Hannah's balls barely made it to the end and one even started rolling backwards back towards the beginning of the lane. But we only had to get the bowling staff to retrieve a ball twice so the kids did well :-)

I brought my purple tournament bowling balls with me so the kids could use them. I thought because they were purple and more fancy looking the girls would like them. Hannah couldn't care less she just wanted to throw any ball down the alley. Rebecca on the other hand would stand and wait for the special purple ball to come back up the ball retrieval so she could use it. It made me laugh... I remember as a kid always waiting for the different coloured ball to come back so I could use it instead of the regular ones!

Dave stayed home with the little sisters while the big sisters were bowling (I thought it would have been too chaotic with the little ones running around). After bowling we picked up the little sisters and everyone went to McDonald's for lunch and to play in the playroom there. You should have seen Victoria come flying out the McDonald's slide and roll across the floor! She was up in the slide holding her own against all the big kids.

When we got home Hannah was going up our stairs and bashed her chin open again... what is with her and stairs?!?! So she was bleeding all over herself again and is now sporting an 'Ariel' band aid on her chin.

Tomorrow we are going up to Chilliwack in the morning to visit GG and then we have tickets for the meet and greet with Dora and Diego at the mall in the afternoon. Spring Break is going by quickly and we have been busy. I am looking forward to Hannah getting back to school next week for a bit of a break for me!

What A Mess!

Dave and I went out tonight and we had one of the neighbourhood girls babysit for us. Victoria was in bed and asleep before we left so it was just Hannah that the babysitter had to watch until her bedtime.

After she put Hannah to bed Hannah came out of her room and went into the bathroom where she got into the cupboard under the sink. Hannah squirted sunscreen, toothpaste and Vaseline all over the insides of the cupboard, all over the counter, all over the toilet, all over the floor and the walls.

The poor babysitter did her best to try and clean it up but it was a MESS! I don't think that the babysitter is going to want to come back again!

So much for a night out... we just finished washing the floors and walls. I am going to throw the rug into the wash now and head to bed. Kids!!!

She's a 'Salmon' now!

Hannah had her last swimming lesson this morning and she passed the 'Jellyfish' level. The next level is 'Salmon' and it looks pretty tough... she may be repeating this one a few times. She has a week off for Spring Break and then she starts her new lessons the following Friday.



While we were walking down the sidewalk on the way to the van after swimming Hannah wasn't looking where she was walking and she fell down an entire flight of concrete stairs! She didn't have a chance to get her hands out in front of her to break her fall and she hit the stairs chin first. Then she somersaulted down the rest of the stairs until she hit the bottom.

I rushed down the stairs to where she had landed and her whole face was covered in blood. Hannah was hysterical and when she opened her mouth all I could see was blood. I thought she had knocked her teeth out! Meanwhile Victoria takes off across the parking lot. So there I was with one child crying and bleeding on the ground and the other wandering a busy parking lot! I had to leave Hannah on the sidewalk while I ran over to get Victoria. Then I ran over to our van and I put Victoria inside the van and locked it and then ran back over to Hannah. I didn't know what else to do with Victoria because I couldn't hold on to her and help Hannah at the same time.

Two women actually walked right by Hannah while she was laying on the ground and neither of them stopped to see if she was alright!

I cleaned Hannah's face up (thank goodness for baby wipes in the purse!) and I found that she had bitten her tongue when her chin smacked the stairs and that was what was bleeding. Thankfully she did not knock any teeth out!

Hannah is doing OK now... she has a few bruises, 2 scraped knees, a banged up chin and a bruised tongue. But it could have been a lot worse.

Boot Camp Break!

I made it! My first four weeks of boot camp are done and I now have one week off!

Tonight I felt really good when I was done. Sore but good. I ran the entire timed 1km and I finished 1 minute and 43 seconds faster than when I began 4 weeks ago :-)

Measurements of my neck, shoulders, chest, stomach, waist, hips, thighs, calves and arms were compared to 4 weeks ago and I have lost 5.5 inches in total. It was really hard work but I am happy that there were some positive results! I was worried that all the measurements were going to be the same.

Now I have one week off to rest and then 4 more weeks of boot camp before the Sun Run.... hopefully Rhonda and I will be ready!

PS - Victoria is feeling better after a couple days of anitbiotics :-)

Poor Little Victoria :-(

Victoria has a sinus infection. I had to take her to the Dr. this morning because her eyes were so swollen and weeping. She is on antibiotics and eye drops now so hopefully she will feel better soon. I did notice that after two treatments with the eye drops her eyes seemed a little less red and swollen. She went to bed early so hopefully she will have a good night sleep.

It was so cold today! For some reason the furnace isn't working in our house tonight and I am freezing. I think maybe the pilot light is out or something... Dave will have to look at it when he gets home from work tonight. I really hope the weather warms up soon!

Monday night at boot camp I was having problems with my calves cramping after running the first km of my run. I think I might have pulled the muscle and the trainer is giving me tomorrow night off of running!! Although I will have to do squats or something the whole time everyone else is running instead. I will be running again on Thursday right back on track for my timed run and 4 week measurements.

I just got my Superteam Sun Run package in the mail the other day from the BC Lung Association. Anyone who wants to donate but doesn't want to donate online can do so by either cash or cheque directly through me. I have tax receipts that I can issue now.

Last Day of Skating

Today was Hannah's last day of skating. The kids got to have a bit of fun pulling each other around the ice on a sled.

Hannah has been improving with her skating skills this session and she passed Ice Bunny Level 2 :-) She will be going into Ice Bunny Level 3 this fall. Hannah was pretty excited to get her report card this time. She understands what it means to pass a level now... plus she knows she gets a treat from the vending machine. Hannah chose a box of Smarties and she polished the whole box off in the van before we even made it home!

WAY TO GO SUPER SKATER HANNAH!

Mixed Bag of Pictures

I just uploaded some pictures off the camera... a bit of this and a bit of that.

Hannah and Stallone having a little cuddle one afternoon :-)

Victoria got herself stuck on the ladder out in the backyard.

Pistol has taken over the Princess couch now.... she even has her own Care Bear!

We went to visit GG this afternoon and the girl's had Popsicles.... they love going to GG's house she always has treats for them. I didn't want them to get Popsicle all over their outfits so they wore Great Papa's big bibs :-) He lives on with his bibs! And the girl's thought it was so silly :-)

Hannah and Victoria posing for a picture with GG :-)

Sun Run!

OK so I might just be a little bit crazy. Rhonda and I decided to enter The Sun Run together on Sunday, April 19th... no this is not a joke! The Sun Run is 10km and our goal is to run 5km and walk 5km. This is a pretty challenging goal for two 'non-runners' like us (although Rhonda is WAY better at running than I am!)

Last night at boot camp I ran 1km (without stopping!) did about 15 minutes of circuit training and then I ran about another 2km (only stopping to walk about 3 times). So I am improving with my running abilities. I still don't enjoy it but I am pushing myself to get through the runs.

We have 6 weeks left to train before The Sun Run so I feel that we will be ready. Rhonda and I are going to get a hotel downtown the night before the run and make a weekend of it :-)

Today we officially joined the 'Superteam' through the BC Lung Association. You can follow this link to my donation page... click here!

I just bought myself some new running shoes tonight... maybe they will make me run better???

Boot Camp Update...

I keep getting asked by everyone how Boot Camp is going so I thought I should give you all a little update...

Here are some of the FAQ's and my responses:

Q: Do you love Boot Camp?
A: No. I don't think Boot Camp is something that I will ever love or even learn to love. I think people that love Boot Camp are crazy. It sucks.

Q: How's Boot Camp going?
A: Boot Camp is going OK. I don't like the sweaty torture but I know that hopefully I will feel better in the end. No pain no gain right?

Q: Is it Boot Camp hard?
A: Yes. Some people seem to find it easier than I do. I am not a runner and have no aspiration to become a runner. For people that like to run it probably isn't as torturous but I am not enjoying the running at all. Running is even worse in the snow. That's right she made us run in the snow... there are no weather exceptions in Boot Camp!

Q: Does the trainer make you do harder stuff as the weeks go by?
A: Yes and No. Each day is always different and you always go at your own pace. But each time you are expected to do better than you did the previous time so in that aspect it does get harder. Plus I dislike running so that is always hard for me. I don't mind the ab work and the weight work nearly as much as the running.

Q: Are you going to sign up again?
A: Yes. I have signed up for another month. I know... what am I thinking!

Q: Have you noticed any results from Boot Camp yet?
A: I think so. I have improved my time on my 1km run by 1 minute and 10 seconds since the first day. We get measured again on the last day so that will be the real answer!

So there you have it my Boot Camp update 2 and a half weeks into it. Basically it sucks, I don't enjoy it but I am hoping to see some good results at the end of next week that will have made it at least a little bit worth it! I'll keep you posted so stay tuned....

Hannah is a THIEF.

OK here's two Hannah stories for everyone....

Hannah Story #1

Dave had to run over to The Home Depot to pick something up this afternoon and he took Hannah with him. Hannah likes to go to The Home Depot with Dave it is a little bonding time for them. Well.... boy did they ever bond today!

They walked around The Home Depot and found what they were looking for and then lined up at the cashier to pay. While Dave was busy paying for the purchases Hannah must have seen some bubble gum on the rack by the till. When they got out to the van Dave noticed that Hannah had her hand in her pocket and she was acting strange. Dave asked Hannah what was in her pocket and Hannah wouldn't tell him. So Dave asked her again what was in her pocket and Hannah pulls out a package of bubble gum that she shoplifted!

Dave immediately took the bubble gum away and marched Hannah back to the store. Hannah burst into tears and cried the whole way back to the cashier where Dave made her give it back and tell the lady what she did. Dave said Hannah was crying so hard that she couldn't even talk.

When they got home Dave asked Hannah to tell me what she had done. Hannah just stood there bawling and shaking her head. She didn't want to have to say what she did because she knew she was in BIG trouble.

Hannah is currently sitting in her room... grounded. She has to stay in her room until dinner time and think about what she did. She has also been grounded from the TV and snacks. Let's hope she learns from this!

Hannah Story #2

Yesterday at Sunday School Hannah's class learned about how Jesus healed the blind man. Here is how the conversation went...

Me: Hannah what did you learn at Sunday School today?

Hannah: Jesus spat on a man to make him see.

Me: Actually Hannah, Jesus spat into the dirt and then made mud that he spread on the man's eyes to make him see.

Hannah: That's what I said.

Me: No, you said Jesus spat on the man. Jesus did not spit on the man he spat on the dirt to make mud and then put the mud on the man's eyes.

Hannah: OK.

Fast forward to this morning... Hannah walks up to Pistol (who is blind in one eye and almost blind in the other) and spits on her!

Me: Hannah! Why are you spitting on the dog?!? That is very rude!

Hannah: I was trying to help her see!