The holidays are over...

and how tired I am now, lol. We were all spoiled as usual, Sean got hordes of hunting goodies and he got me the car starter I have wanted for ever. Now Tanaya baby & I can have a warm car all the time, lol! The kids got lots of goodies as well, with their big gifts being Rock band PS2 and a PS3 for the family. The rock band guitar didn't work though so we are taking it back, but they picked up Guitar hero III Legends of rock on sale at best buy boxing day and a mic. We will go in next week for them to spend the rest of their gift certificates and pick up the wireless PS3 drum set and then good to go. Jasmine is singing and strumming as we talk, lmao. I keep thinking its Tanaya crying and she laughs at me. Damian & Jasmine are back at work today but off at 4 so if I want at that PS3 system I have a small window of time, lol, or I will lose out. I think Gramma Faye might beat me too it though while I'm blogging, rofl.

Well, we went in yesterday and swapped Gramma's. Karen came out on the 23rd and we took her home when we picked up mom. Had a short visit with Heather & Kim at Burger King and then off to Costco. Mom got some chocolates (stupid cheap now, mental note) and I grabbed a few groceries and some flash drives. They had them on coupon, so I got a 3 pk of 2GB each for &20, sweet!

I then kicked Sean's ass at the farmer's game last night and then we watched Get Smart with kids before they hit the sack due to work. We are just chillin' today with mom and Tanaya is telling her stories. Tanaya got some wicked cool toys for Xmas, an awesome mobile from gramma Faye and Auntie Heather & Grandpa MacDonald chipped in for an awesome high chair for Tanaya so that was sweet! the kids gave her their presents early and they tied for the awesome sibling award. Jasmine got her a swing and Damian got her a bounce chair.

Today I am trying (I stress Trying) to tidy up and chill. Time to upload pics (I'm also including a pic of Tanaya Baby in the wicked hot dress Uncle Devry, Ann & Sheridan got her for a welcome gift) and I will TTYL peeps! Happy Holidays!

December 1st is here!

Well, it is officially December people! Time to get crunching, lol! I spent the weekend cleaning and wrapping in readiness for the Christmas decorations to go up today. Yippee! Still arguing over when to get the tree (we always get a real one) I say now, he says later, lol! So I will compromise and say this weekend, lmao. But, on the bright side, wrapping is done minus 3 and my shopping is about 2/3 done so yay!! Plan to finish most this Friday and get the shipping ones shipped. Did a recipe swap with PIT store and am looking forward to receiving my set and drooling over all the beautiful creations.
Tanaya is 11 weeks old today and talking up a storm (in baby talk lol). She is more interactive now and smiles when you talk to her and tries to imitate the sounds we make. It is too cute! Going to get her weighed today, she is probably 12 lbs I am guessing.
Damian is still working hard and he made the "B" basketball team so YAY Damian!!! Don't have a schedule yet so we will see how often he is playing around with the team, lol.
Jasmine is getting alot more hours at work with the Christmas hours now. She is at a stand still on her diet currently, hoping to get past that crutch soon. But, she isn't gaining and that is a bonus. Her class ring came in and she is showing off her bling lol! A friend in cosmo dyed her hair last week and she gets the streaks in this week. Will take a pic and share the cool do.
Hunting season is over now and Sean has about 8 months to plan the next one, lol. Now he is mine again to order about, heehee.
I am just trying to get ready for Xmas as I said. Plan to make my butter tarts this week and hopefully more. Working on DT layouts, slow but steady (Tanaya doesn't like to let me scrap much, lol).

She's pissed gotta go!

PS> I was corrected on the number of days til Christmas. So I will start over....it is 24 days from today, lol.

TTYL

10 weeks old today!

Well, things are starting to get stressful around here (did you realize it is only 25 days until Christmas people! Yikes!!) as I try to start getting ready for Christmas. Yes, that's right...I said START! Hence the stress and freakin' out. I have been trying to shop like a maniac and am a little upset that other people have realized that it is time to shop as well....I usually don't have this problem until December, lol, but the stores here are INSANE!!! I am also having the "We are out of that" problem dammit! Hope every one's shopping goes better than mine currently is, lmao. Started the baking yesterday, got the first batch of Quiches done (have to do another as I guess you can't make them on a weekend and expect them to all hit the freezer, lol). Plan on making my fudge or butter tarts this week as well, not sure which yet. Cookies and more Quiche are next week, and that might be all, we will see. Kinda hard to bake some days as Tanaya is a time stealing monster, lol. Have the kids pictures all cut, dated and ready for me to start my cards. The ones to England have to be mailed like yesterday (the 2nd actually, lol) and the few announcements I did are still not complete, lol. Whatever.

Sean didn't get any other animals as of yet but has 1 week left of the season so we will see. He is still sooo hoping for an Elk. He is off to Fort Nelson tomorrow for work and it's an overnighter (I KNOW! You're thinking "What?!" Yep, I get a night to myself again after like 3 years. Whatever will I do?! Probably fall asleep, lol. What a waste)

Damian is trying out for the Basketball team at school today (I think) and is hoping to get on. He really likes Basketball and I've been encouraging him to try for the school teams since Grade 7. He doesn't play alot outside of school though so we will see. Still working and liking it.

Jasmine is getting more and more excited for grad by the day (what the hell am I in fir come March let alone May?! ROFLMAO) which we have just been informed is the last weekend in May (28th I think). Her school ring showed up in the mail Friday so she is slightly distracted by the bling right now, lol. Her friend in Cosmetology at school is highlighting her hair today so she will have a smashing new do after school, will try and get her to pose for a picture and show it off. Her boss told her that they have 3 late night shopping events for Christmas at the store and she is scheduled to work 2 of them. She looked at me and said " Sure hope I can stay awake Mom, you know I usually fall asleep before then." She has to work until 11 pm, lmao. Funny girl. Her and I are going in after school Thursday for her to start her Christmas shopping.

Tanaya is doing well. Has big trouble falling asleep on her own still, but had a couple really good naps yesterday thank goodness. No one likes a crabby over tired baby, lol, and most days for the last few weeks she needs help getting to sleep even for a nap (then wakes up after like 15 - 20 minutes and is crabby. Grr.) Her check up with the doctor last week was great. They all just keeping trying to swell my head with how beautiful she is and I just say Thank you and roll my eyes on the inside (I am sure they say that to everyone, lol). First set of shots was the day after and man was she pissed! Screamed blue murder for 7 minutes straight. Although, it might have been better if the nurse hadn't paused after the first 2 waiting for her to calm down before the third....I think that was a mistake, oh yes. A big one. LOL She weighed 11 lbs 3 oz, and has now outgrown all her newborn stuff....but still doesn't fit most of the 3 month stuff, lol. She is getting better at head control but still can't hold it up for too long at once. And she still smiles alot....that is it. That is the sum of what she can do, lol. Oh! I forgot. She can coo. OK. That's it, lol.

Well, I better get to crackin'. I have to get my third recipe done for the swap (need to mail them today) and have a scrap class tonight with a girlfriend. Figured a night out might be nice. Oh, and some scrap friends of mine just bought the local scrap store. Here's to wishing them the best of luck!! Can't wait to see what cool ideas they come up with.

TTYL

Bagged a deer

Sean & Damian had an awesome day yesterday. They got a big drop tine! Sean shot a nice 6x5 (which would have been bigger has it had two broken tines. They also said it had a large scar on its back which made them wonder what it had done.) It sure made their day, except Sean also found out yesterday he needs a new battery for his quad, lol. It was dead and wouldn't take a charge, so they had to take the deer out themselves, lol. Freakin' quads. I really hate them sometimes. Grr! Anyhow, he is taking it into the butcher today and ordering his sausage, then heading out again with his friend Stu to hunt again (still has tag for Elk). They had hoped Damian could have got his deer as well yesterday but it wasn't to be. Mom is secretly thankful as the butch bills for sausage get quite large (and I only kinda sorts like deer sausage, depends on the butcher). Well, off to phone butchers! Have a great day everyone.

8 weeks now

Time is flying so fast. Tanaya is 8 weeks old now and getting so big (or at least to me). We just got her weighed Monday and she is 10 lbs 13 oz., 22 1/4 inches long and her head is 40.2 cm. We are now starting to outgrown the odd clothing item and have pulled out all the 3 month outfits (although most of them are still quite big on her). She is colic according to the doctor but since finding that out I have switched back to decaf coffee (except the first pot let's be real people!) and we pretty much burp her 24/7 and it seems to help alot (colic is a build up of gas they can't expel). I still have to hold her pretty much all the time or she cries but the non stop screaming some have to deal with rarely happens, Thank goodness! Otherwise a really smiley baby,
Jasmine is getting excited about grad. Had fun trying on gowns on the weekend and has been ogling them on the websites ever since. We are putting off buying one just yet because a: it's bloody Christmas people! & b: she is doing awesome on her diet and has dropped 30 lbs already! We have great hopes that she will drop at least another 30 lbs before graduation so we need to wait on the dress (they tell us they can't be altered down whole sizes).
Damian is still working and loves the money, although lately has been spending most of his checks so his savings is at a standstill, lol. Got his first report card and did OK, but he still got the "You can do better, you're smarter than this
" lecture LOL! He could though, there were still a few uncompleted assignments that affected his grade, little bugger. So he has until next report to complete ALL assignments to the relative best of his abilities or he may not be allowed to keep his job. He definitely wont be allowed to work as many hours.
Sean & I aren't as exciting. When you get old there is just less of that, LMAO! Sean is on holidays this week and is enjoying hunting when weather permits. I am trying to work on some scrapbooking recipes for a swap I joined (tough at time s with only one arm, lol). I applied & got on the PIT DT, so I am super pumped about that! Stacey tells me I will get my first kit on Friday but she is a wee bit slow at the nailing so I may have to kick her ass, ROFL! I am wanting to play man!! BTW, the pic included her is one Sean took. He claims that is "quality" time with us, watching us sleep when we are supposed to be awake visiting, lol! Poor guy. OK, that's all my excitement that I can share for now.

TTYL

I'm awake!

So sorry for the delay in updating, still spend alot of my day in a tired haze, lol. But hey, my house stays fairly clean and so do I (thank goodness eh? lol) so that shows improvement for Tanaya and I. She even let me sleep for 5 hours IN A ROW last night! Whoohoo!! She is sitting beside me now cooing away. Yep we are "talking" now, started about 4 days ago and is seriously too funny (you'd swear there was real words in there) and the smiles started consistently about the same time (although we are all still arguing aver who got the first real smile, lol. Between you and me....I did. LMAO) The kids and I took her down on Monday, her 6 week mark, and got her weighed and measured. Tanaya is now a whooping 9 lbs 11 oz and 22 inches long. Such a big girl! She is almost big enough now to have officially outgrown her first clothing items, lol. What a milestone!! She still occasionally has bad "gas" days and gets a little needy, lol, but overall she is an awesome baby and very happy (I fluked out for the third time, lol) although at this exact moment she is trying to tell me to hurry the heck up as she is hungry!(Too bad her voice is so tiny, she's easy to ignore. JK!)

Jasmine is still working about 10 hours a week and having a blast helping me with Tanaya (thank god! The novelty wore off a bit for the boys...it's called Fable 2 for Xbox 360 and it seems to win out, lol!) Jasmine also scored us a wicked deal when she called me from school 2 days ago to say they were selling off their old laptops and could I bring her some money. Selfish kid...what about me?! lol So we ended up getting laptops for the computer junkies here (all but Sean) for $40 each!!! They are Apple iBooks and so far, that's all I know lol. Bro...where are you? I need help, LMAO!

Damian is till working at Esso and loving the paychecks although he is starting to get a wee bit tired of working so much (he asked me to talk to his boss and get her to understand to cut his hours a wee bit). He just bought himself an XBox 360 and some games as his first big purchase, good for him (saves me money AND I get to play it, ROFL What a good kid.) He is looking forward to his first year of "tricking", with a pile of rules though (can't let them have to much fun,heheh) and I will probably end up with a house full of boys again this weekend...seems to be a trend.

Well, she is getting ticked...

TTYL!

Tanaya Newborn Slideshow

Welcome Tanaya!!

Well we finally did it! Had our baby that is, lol. Tanaya Josephine was born Monday September 15th at 11:38 pm. She weighed 7lbs 12oz and was 20 inches. Labour was labour and she has all her fingers and toes (and they are straight so Daddy is happy, lol). Tanaya is a week old in this picture.

We got home on the Wednesday and have been trying to get into a routine ever since. Now that I have been to town way to much for kids appointments and for others to meet up and see her, I am done, lol. SO TIRED (but then isn't every "new" mom?) need sleep....flj.....OH! Sorry. drifted off there, lmao! She wakes up at night anywhere from every hour to every 4, and sleeps during the day anywhere from 2 to 4 so its coming. She is almost two weeks old now and is really a good baby. She doesn't cry just to cry and likes to stay awake and check stuff out for up to an hour at times.

The kids like her (but why wouldn't they, lol) and give her some attention before moving on each day with their lives (Jasmine does hover a bit, especially in the mornings before school just waiting for a squawk as an excuse to pick her up, lol). Tanaya doesn't keep them up much as they are now in the basement and cant hear her so they still get lots of sleep, lmao!

Sean did awesome, he came in with me and got to go through it all, hee hee hee (I can be difficult ya know ROFLMAO!) He was home with us the first week but had to go back to work this past Monday. He is adjusting so so (he seems tired...not sure why) and is wishing the weather would co-operate more as he'd like more time hunting, lol.

OK, that's all for now.....will upload some pics...hopefully now...if Tanaya doesn't wake up.

TTYL

Girls rule!

The boys are gone for their annual bow hunting trip and will not return until Aug. 31st. Us girls get to watch chick flicks, play games, read and basically just pamper ourselves! After all the work Jasmine and I have been doing to get the house in order I think we deserve it (not to mention that I am due anytime after September 3rd...which is 10 days!!!)
I still plan on finishing the scrap room, worked on it more last night...and now that the boys are gone, I emptied a lot of it into the hallway to give more space to work, lol.
Baby has started dropping (not friggin' far enough!) so at least that SHOULD mean I won't go 3 weeks over due like I did with Jasmine, thank gosh. For a joke with a friend I was measuring my circumference and was 52" around my largest point last week. Now I am 49", already dieting and haven't had the kid yet LMAO! (BTW, that was a 4'4" person that could wrap around my waist lol!)
Still no girl name, which is driving Jasmine bonkers 'cause she obviously wants a girl and we don't have a name?! LOL I won't post the boy name in case we change our mind, but we do have one of those, lol! Jasmine picked up a few more baby things (she likes to shop at work) and we got it all put away (please, please, PLEASE no more washcloths peeps! I think I have like 30!)
Anyways, I am wasting valuable Canasta time here so.....TTYL!

It's a freakin' nightmare!

Well we've got all the rooms finished (or as much as is being done for now) and have moved everything from here to there and back again, lol. Most of the scrubbing, washing and organizing is all done as well, thank god! All I have left is a wee bit in the office, one storeroom and (gulp!) my scraproom. I am not sure I can talk about it....it is that bad! I have already spent 4 hours or so in it and who can tell? Not me that's for sure! As you can see from the pic's, it is anyone's nightmare. Seriously don't know what the heck I am supposed to do there!! Anyways, it will get done. I am off to upload pictures of the rest of the house (we all know its about me first, LMAO!).

Almost a new house....

or it will seem like it in a few more days, lol. We've been cleaning and moving furniture like mad men the past few days. All the painting is finished and we've moved the kids to the basement (where they belong HA HA!) but they just had a chance to start setting up their rooms today. Well, Damian just got started, Jasmine wasn't here. Sean & I busted a move yesterday for about 14 hours setting up the downstairs and cleaning carpets upstairs. We have baby's furniture in place (yes, all three kids now have rooms, lol) and I have spent all day today (almost 6 hours of it anyways, man I am EXHAUSTED!!!) moving everything out of my "old" scrap room into what will be my new scrap room (yes, another one ROFLMAO!). Then Sean can clean the carpet in the old one and it will transform into our new Media room, whoohoo! No more fighting every time one of us wants to play a video game or whatever.

Today is also my sweetie's birthday (he's 36 years old today, heehee...what a geezer! LOL) so I have a wonderful meal of his faves planned and made him a carrot cake with cream cheese icing (his fave) for dessert. Supper is a bit behind schedule though as I had to run in to pick up Jasmine (she's back from holidays now) and there is construction everywhere so that took almost 2 hours. (I hate bloody construction Argh!)

No labour yet (not for lack of trying, lol, I have been working my ass off and nothing dammit!) so it looks like I will still be waiting up to another 4 weeks. Ah well, what does one do?! (Seriously?!!!! What DOES one do!!!!)

My GF Alanna & her hubby Alan are home now. They named their little guy Allister. Haven't got to see him yet...didn't make it there the other day. Hoping to go out this week if all goes well with my work here. Don't have a lot of days left that I will go that far from my hospital so I had better go soon, lol.

Well, that's all for now. TTYL

Reno's are coming along

Well, we have been busy beavers this past few days. All the mudding, sanding and such is now done. Sean worked his butt off painting yesterday and finished Damian's walls and has the priming done in Jasmine's room (hers is a bit more complex as it is multi colored, lol). I am off to the Doctor's this afternoon and then am picking up more paint so we can hopefully get this done! ( Starting to get excited, a wee little bit as we hit the home stretch)
Jasmine seems to be having a good time camping with her grandparents and her Dad, step mom & sisters done near Kelowna. She did mention that the mosquitoes have been glad of her company, lol. When will she learn to use bug spray?!
Damian has now worked two shifts and seems to be enjoying it but is definitely VERY tired when he gets home, lol. His job is very go go go so far. He is getting excited for his new room as well. (He obviously doesn't realize how much work there will be here for him moving stuff around when we are done, LMAO!)

My GF Alana had her baby last night! A bouncing baby boy!! I am going to try and pop in to see her this afternoon when I am in town. Last update I had, they hadn't decided on a name yet, maybe this afternoon?

Off to get ready. Ciao for now!! :)

A little bit more..

Things are moving along slowly but surely. Sean finished up the storage rooms on the weekend and his friend Darcy showed up last night to help Sean with the mudding so he is here now getting that done for us. (Almost ready for paint, cross fingers that it gets done by the end of weekend so I don't have to kill my hubby due to over stressed hormones!)
Baby is still trying to make my life difficult (although that's what kids are for right?), I know have started having more breathing issues and feel extremely crappy everytime time I ....oh right pretty much do anything LOL!
Jasmine left yesturday to head down to Kelowna to see her other family. She should be a gorgeous color when she returns on August 10th (she is lucky enough to tan deeply & easily).
Damian is getting excited to start his new job Friday (and possibly get out of some reno work, lol!)
I am about to start packing my scrap stuff but have a few projects I need to finish up first. My Thank you cards are just about done (goal of 30 am changing it to 26 so I can be done, lmao!) and then I have one gift to make before packing.

That's all folks! TTYS!

Alright let's try this picture thing, lol.

http://s68.photobucket.com/albums/i27/iam2gd/2008/First%20blog%20slideshow%20July/?albumview=slideshow

July 24th 2008

I am hoping that by creating this blog I will be better able to keep everyone in the know (yes, I realize I am a slacker lol). Better grab a drink first and a comfy chair.... here goes!
Well, we are almost (I use this term loosely) ready for our new addition. Sean has all the drywall up in the 2 bedrooms he built and is getting ready for his friend Darcy to come and help him tape & mud. I am getting antsy as I feel the clock ticking ever so quickly and there seems so much to do.
I am also very excited of course to move everything around and get my new scrap room set up (I know, how many scraprooms is one girl supposed to get LMAO!)........ and baby's room as well of course! (Almost forgot how this all started, haha!)
We are about 33 weeks along now and I am done with this pregnant stuff. Between the cankles, constant tiredness and the queasy that never goes away, I am willing to stop now. It's really too bad that isn't an option, darn it!
Jasmine is getting ready to head off to Kelowna to see Brian, Toni & the girls. She's currently working part time (with casual hours) at Field's here in town. She seems to enjoy her job, seems pretty easy. She & I are still bickering about the paint colors for her new room (I am pretty sure I will win but she may be scarred for life....therapy works wonders I hear) and is looking forward to grade 12. We have already started looking into Cosmotology schools for next fall (assuming that doesnt change, lol).
Damian is about to start his first job (sniff sniff, my babies are getting old...Oh yeah! I get a new one! :) It's all good.) as a gas attendent at the local Esso. He seems pretty happy about it (he really likes money) and is looking forward to his first day August 1st. As far as school for him, same old...he will go, doesn't want to, has no choice, lol!
Sean is getting all pumped about his hunting season creeping up on us. Planning their Bow hunting trip for end of August with Damian already (he does have to finish the basement though before he is "allowed" to go, lol). Still working hard (or so he says) at Pepsi in the service department. He is on call alot which sometimes makes me grouchy 'cause he can't go anywhere, but everyone's holidays are almost over then that will change thank goodness.
OK, now the important stuff....me! (Notice how nice I was to put them first? LMAO!) I haven't been up to much but I have been trying to scrap ny brains out as everyone keep stelling me I wont get to for quite a while after baby. Seens as how the baby wouldn't co-operate to let us know the sex, I decided to make a baby's first year calendar for a boy and a girl to be safe. I did them up as double page spreads so after they could be a first year album, and I finally got them done thank goodness. Took me about a month each! I also have gotten done some of Christmas scrapping gifts, including the calendars I make for people, and am currently getting Thank you cards for after baby done ahead of time. I know, I am told what a freak I am....but we all already knew that didn't we?! I still have a list of other projects I am trying to get done before baby, but I'm not stressing yet....I will still be pregnant forever at this time, LOL.
I have almost every annoying syptom you can get with this one (I wonder if we will get along after? Hmmm..) Insane water retention, a foot the size of my butt, skin conditions, tiredness that never has gone away, upset stomach 24/7, heartburn, a stomach the size of that Beaver on main, and the list goes on....but soon the cure will come, lol. We are expecting anytime after September 3rd (Doc wants to add a week since I can't tell him the exact date of conception, but seriously, you expect me to know that?!)
Well that's all for now. TTYS!