In the beginning...

Dating 4 Months, February 2005 - Mill Lake, Abbotsford

 Shuswap Lake July, 2005

(3 months Engaged)

Biking along the Adams River

 August 28, 2005

Costume Party, October 30, 2005 (married 2 weeks)

Today is our 7 year wedding anniversary (tomorrow will be our 8 year dating anniversary) and it has been just over a decade since Jonathan and I met. I thought it would be fun to look back at a few photo's from our beginning and share then with you as well!

I could go into details about what we have been up to since we started our blissful union seven years ago but if you read our blog you know all about our lovely children and they are certainly the highlights!

I can't say that every minute of the last seven years has been blissful (though I doubt any one else, single or married could either) BUT I can say I have been incredibly blessed having Jonathan beside me through the good times and the bad.

Early this week David was listening when Jonathan and I exchanged "I love you's" on the couch and he said "Oh, I didn't know that Mommies and Daddies love each other too!" I've always thought that we are fairly openly affectionate but after that remark we may have to work a little bit harder to make it more noticeable to our children that we are in love.

Thank you to my Husband for putting up with my "bad times" and always helping me to see the good in our circumstances when life overwhelms. Thank you for putting 110% into everything you do. You are an amazing provider, father and friend... and more ;)

Looking forward to our celebrations tonight. With 4 kids we celebrate a little differently. We will be putting them to bed early and ordering Greek. I'm sure it won't go according to plans... little does anymore but we will celebrate together.

Happy Anniversary Jonathan... I love you more each year!

22 months

Samara is now 22 months and to me she is still my "baby", along with her little sister. She likes to play with her older brother and sister but also plays well independently. She loves being a big sister to Rebekah and can even sometimes be seen sharing "her" blanket.

She is going on 2 and has been for a while now.

Her list of words is slowly expanding but I would consider to be "behind" her peers in her vocalizing. She "talks" non-stop but it is all with the sound "ein" in varying tones. 

Because she can say words using many different sounds and her comprehension is good I am not concerned that it is related to her hearing. It seems that she just needs to connect words and their meaning to conversation. (She will say "mouth, teeth, ears, eyes, nose" and point to where they all are).  It is nothing to worry about at the moment but just something we are keeping an eye on.

At the moment we are struggling with her at nap and bed time but that is a mix between typical difficult two year old, too much change, and lack of routine. 

Samara likes to make us laugh and she "entertains" us with dancing and singing. She loves her Mama and Dada very much and if she is with one of us she will as for the other. She LOVES bath time and wishes this could take place 3 times daily. We love watching her continue to grow into a little girl and are anxious to hear what she has to say. I think once she starts talking she isn't going to stop.

2 months old

October 2nd marked Rebekah's 2 month birthday and Jonathan's first day back to work. Having him home for 8+ weeks made a world of difference in all of our adjustments to life as a family of 6. I can't look back and wish we would have taken parental leave sooner but I can certainly say we would do it again if the opportunity presented itself ;)

I can't count how many people commented to me during her first 2 months "you don't look exhausted!?" That's because I wasn't. Now that Jonathan is back to work that is a different story. 

We are both tired. One night this week Jonathan fell asleep reading stories to David and Angeline, while I fell asleep cuddling with Samara. The other challenge is getting to and from different activities and also finding time to homeshcool. Instead of working downstairs we have been doing school at the kitchen table which allows me a few more options for where to put Rebekah and also lets me get some housework done when David is working independantly. I am sure we will soon adjust and develop the current craziness into a regular routine. 

As for an update on Rebekah herself she now weighs 11 lbs (on her 9 week birthday), 22 inches long. She smiles, coo's and even squeals with excitement. Nana says she got a giggle out of her too the other day. She does spit up a bit more then my other babies but she is probably the best sleeper so far. She stole all our hearts on day one and we are continue to enjoy our newest addition.

Tad Lake September 2012 (3 post series)

 Just after midnight we returned home from our first trip to Tad Lake. We spent 7 days at our family cabin in the woods, had lots of fun, great weather and lots of memories made. I was a bit worried about the long drive with 4 young kids but it went really well. 

I've heard "a picture is worth a thousand words" but pictures just don't capture the magic of this place. It is a wilderness paradise.

I don't have time to write a thousand words but I hope you can see some of the fun we had in these moments we have digitally captured.

Lots of outdoor fun and bike ridding.

 Jonathan's first grouse (yummy)!

 Collecting food from the garden.

 Dreaming he's 16!

 Fun on the Tire Swing.

 Oma & Opa

 David has his first loose tooth.

 Rebekah is now 8 weeks old.

Quad Rides

 I decided I had to make a separate post for our quad pictures at Tad Lake. Here are 11 pictures with various family members all going for a ride. You can also see some glimpses of the property and cabin. Samara went for several rides each day. Anytime someone asked her if she wanted to go for a ride she answered with an enthusiastic "Yah!" Angeline took a little while to warm up to the idea. When someone asked her if she wanted to go for a ride she would answer "maybe when I'm 4." By the end of our week she was enjoying it just as much as the rest of us. I did go on a few rides with Jonathan but didn't manage to get any pictures this time around. My first ride in the woods I got quite the scare when something snuffed at me (possibly a moose or a bear) though I can't see how we surprised it making all that noise. David also enjoyed it and thought it was extra special when he got to go for a ride on the Rhino. (Above picture is Uncle Jared with the bike, Grandpa, Angeline, David and Jonathan on the quad.

First Day of School - Grade 1

Today is David's first day of Grade 1 at his Community Class. He attends Community Class on Fridays throughout the school year and we are continuing to homeschool. We actually started school 2 weeks ago and everything is going well. Surprisingly he hasn't seemed to forget much over the summer so we have been able to skip over a lot of the review. He was excited to go to school today, although he expressed a little remorse over not being able to play with his sister. He was also a bit concerned that he might have a different teacher but he was happy to see that it was the same teacher as last year.

Rebekah is 6 weeks old!