Vancouver Cruise May 2013

Vancouver Cruise May 2013, a set on Flickr.


Just got back yesterday morning from my first cruise. It was a girls trip with my Aunty Janet and Grandma Evelyn. We started in Vancouver, sailed to Port Alberni (where I was born), to Seattle and then back to Vancouver.
With 3 Nights away this Mommy had some time to relax. I missed Jonathan and the kids but it was nice to come home and feel that much more in-love. While I was away Rebekah got 3 teeth! Samara is talking even more and Angeline and David seem that much more grown up too. It's funny what can happen in just 3 nights.
Some highlights for me were the 2 dinners we ate in the dinning room, hot tub and pool and even sun tanning on the deck and the two singing and dancing shows (missed the magic show because the boat was really rocking and I had to go lay down).
The cruise was not without its share of hiccups so while I enjoyed my time of relaxation and the company I would not recommend Holland America or cruise with them ever again. We were turned away from the dinning room the first night because they couldn't accommodate us (empty tables but not enough staff). The food on the Liddo Deck was nothing to get excited about, there were quite a few mix ups and they frequently ran out of cutlery! The show ended at 9pm but there was no snack until 10:30pm... when they served us hamburgers. We took them back to our room only to find out after first bite that they were cold and red on the inside. (Just to name a few). The icing on the cake was the power outage while we were docked in Seattle. It went out around 3:30pm and was out for about an hour (during that time we could not flush the toilets) they transferred back to land power and we were not able to sail at the scheduled time of 5pm. We didn't sail until 11pm so thankfully Vancouver is not very far from Seattle. It was a worry trying to sleep when we didn't know where we would wake up in the morning.
Things went well at home while I was away and the kids were all happy to see me when I got back (Jonathan too)! Rebekah was happy to be nursing again. David said he liked all his presents but the best present was having mommy home (so sweet)!

Mothers Day 2013

I had a wonderful Mothers Day Weekend. Saturday we celebrated with Jonathan's side of the family and had a delicious waffle brunch. Sunday my Dad, Shelley and Taylor were here and Jonathan barbecued steaks and made caesar salad. He also ordered me my favourite cake. David made me a lovely card. I feel truly blessed to be called Mama by 4 beautiful children and to have a wonderful Husband. Rebekah started cruising yesterday which was a mothers day gift all on its own. At 9 1/2 months old she has also started shaking her head "no" when she doesn't want something and waving.





This storage bin unit is new to our playroom and we are loving it. It makes it a lot easier for the kids to clean up and to keep things sorted. We have been loving the weather this month. The kids have been in the pool and sprinkler and we have the water table out. Soon they will have a swing set to enjoy as well.

Soccer

David is in Spring Soccer this year. It is his first time in an organized sport and he is really enjoying it. He practises on Tuesdays and has games on Saturdays. His team is called the Thunderbolts. When it isn't raining we all attend his games and practices as a family. The girls like to play at the park and we all just enjoy doing things together. It is great to get outside.



Jonathan is playing on our Church Soccer team again this year. I think this is his 3rd year playing. The team is doing really well so far. We enjoy watching his games. He usually plays mid field. He's had one bloody nose so far but otherwise no injuries and it was probably a good thing that we were not at that game. This months games all have a later start but we hope to watch him play again in June.

Stand Up for Rebekah - 8 1/2 months

Yesterday Rebekah stood up all by herself. This is her second attempt caught on video. She is very proud of her new accomplishment and likes to practice. I am trying to keep her downstairs as much as possible where the carpet makes for a softer landing. Lots of new things happening in her 8th month, she recently transitioned from army crawling to hands and knees "proper" baby crawling. Her first tooth also broke through on April 3rd. She had a really hard time with it so I hope the others don't cause her so much discomfort or it could be a very difficult next few months.

We have been enjoying lots of time outside. Rebekah loves the grass. She doesn't mind crawling on it and she would even like to eat it if Mommy would let her.



Had to share this cuddle between David and Angeline that I caught... also this picture of Samara with her wind mill.

7 1/2 months

Four & Thirty

We had a wonderful time on Sunday celebrating March Birthdays. March is really a whole month of Birthdays in our family. Angeline had a little tea party at the beginning of the month to celebrate with a few of her girlfriends. Sunday was a celebration with Jonathan's side (Happy Birthday Grandpa Rob too). Monday we went to Granville Island and went out to dinner (I also had a chance to spend a few hours shopping on my own). Thursday Angeline had her shopping spree (never seen a 4 year old who loves to shop so much... she would honestly go all day if she could). With my Dad & Grandma's Birthday still to come we will likely do some more celebrating when we go to the Island. We also celebrated Aunty Lauren's Birthday and are counting down until her visit this summer.
I got a very special gift from my kids this year... the apron with flowers and butterfly are David, Angeline & Samara's hands and Rebekah's feet. Grammy organized it and the kids kept it a secret, very touching! I was really spoiled this year and am feeling really blessed. Thank you to my family and friends.

Rebekah, 7 months

Another month has come and gone and Rebekah is now 7 months old. I didn't get many pictures of her this last month so today with the older three kids gone to Grammy & Grandpa's it was time for another photo shoot. I was really happy with this one. I actually had over 20 favourites but I narrowed it down to these select 4.

In the last month Rebekah has tried quite a few new foods. Bits of bread, pancakes and waffles. Bananas, potatoes, rice, peas and beans as well as Oma's barley soup. She decided she does like rice cereal after all, arrowroots and cherios too.
When she is not working on developing her taste buds she likes to focus on getting around more efficiantly. Her wiggle is now a proper army crawl and she is getting faster and stronger every day.
She LOVES to laugh and Angeline is the most likely to "get her going."
She gives kisses and blows raspberries... such a fun stage! (This partly makes up for the fact that she has not been sleeping very well).

Rebekah is 6 months old

Today we are celebrating Rebekah's 1/2 Year Birthday. Took these photo's of her today, sitting on her own. She is getting stronger everyday so we have noticed a huge improvement on her ability to sit (though we still don't leave her sitting without something soft to fall down on). She sits in her highchair for mealtimes though she doesn't eat much yet. We have started introducing rice cereal to her but she is not very interested. I am constantly moving clothes from her dresser to the "too small" box so I know she is growing. She has a check up on Monday so we will see how much she measures then. She is wearing 6 month and 9 months clothes.
She has also been on the move. I think we may have an army crawler on our hands. She can be quite quick and can ever pull herself forward when she wants something.
She is teething but no white pearlie's yet.
Time is going by too quickly with our Baby Girl... we treasure every stage. Love you Rebekah!

Rebekah's Dedication

Rebekah,

Our plans for you began about 1 year before you were born. We knew in our hearts our family was not yet complete and we began dreaming of a new baby to love. Even before you were conceived these verses from Proverbs 2: 1-11 stood out to us as the verses we wanted to dedicate to you.

1 My child, listen to me and treasure my instructions. 2 Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. 3 Cry out for insight and understanding. 4 Search for them as you would for lost money or hidden treasure. 5 Then you will understand what it means to fear the LORD, and you will gain knowledge of God. 6 For the LORD grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. 7 He grants a treasure of good sense to the godly. He is their shield, protecting those who walk with integrity. 8 He guards the paths of justice and protects those who are faithful to him. 9 Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will know how to find the right course of action every time. 10 For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. 11 Wise planning will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe. (NLT)

We pray for the wisdom, knowledge and understanding that come from God as we parent you and your siblings. Sometimes it may seem that you are competing for our time but know that you are never contending for our LOVE. As you grow we pray that you will learn to fear the Lord so that you will seek his wisdom as you plan for your future. May he watch over you throughout your life.

Christmas Letter 2012

Christmas time is a special time for many, it certainly is for us. The kids are growing and beginning more and more to develop a sense of what Christmas means to them. With that in mind we spent some time reflecting this year about how we want to celebrate as a family.

Interestingly enough with all the thought we have put in to how we want to celebrate not a lot of celebrating has been done, so far. Because of the buisiness of December we decided to host a small get together in honor of Jonathan's 30th Birthday a few weeks early, in November. We had a lovely Wine & Cheese Party which went really well but that was the end of the celebrating. Soon after we all became ill with bad colds and for me a terrible sinus infection. So as soon as December showed up the Cancelations began! December 1 we had to cancel cookie baking. December 2 we cancelled going to the Canuck Place Winter Party. December 3rd we had only left overs from the Neufeld Family Christmas. Homeschooling was put on hold. Swimming lessons were missed. Rehersals and Christmas Pageants and Church Services too. I have not had time to make the Christmas Cards I designed earlier this year (so you'll have to settle for this online Christmas letter instead, sorry!) or to finish my Christmas Shopping. As I was grumbling about this (to myself) the familiar lines from "the Grinch Who Stole Christmas" rehersed in my head... "It came without ribbons... it came without tags... it came without packages, boxes or bags... somehow rather it came JUST THE SAME." When I find myself overwhelmed with the housework that needs catching up on and the "to do" list that has only gotten longer in the last few weeks I remember that Christmas came "just the same." In the business of a census, with travelers all around and no room in the Inn Jesus was born. Born in a stable!

2012 has been a great year for us. I started the year a little bit pregnant and a lot nausious but things smoothed out as we headed into our second trimester. We were very excited to be welcoming another daughter into the family in August. Once Rebekah arrived Jonathan started his first ever parental leave, taking almost 9 weeks off work. It was so nice to have him home as we all adjusted balancing a baby with our many other responsibilities. We concluded his parental leave with a trip to the new family cabin near 100 mile house (this is where the above family picture was taken in September).
There is lots to look forward to in 2013. A trip for myself. More babies (not for us). More trips to the cabin and a visit from Lauren, Brent and our new baby niece... Freya! We look forward to visits from Family on the Island and to visiting there as well.

We wish all our loved ones the same JOY we celebrate at Christmas. A JOY not dependant on turkey dinners, presents, or tinsil. The JOY that was born to us some 2000 years ago. Emmanuel; God with us. The Savior of the world. Happy Birthday Jesus! Merry Christmas.