Spring-Summer Sun

I was surprised when my calendar informed me that summer doesn't officially start until next Tuesday. With that surprise also came an instant wave of hope! Maybe, just maybe, Manitoba will get it's crazy weather patterns figured out and this sun again / rain again thing will leave it's system! We are still in Spring, so maybe Summer will bring consistent warmth and day after day at the beach/splash park! We can sure hope!

On those random days that we have been blessed with sunshine, we've been outside as much as we can stand it! (Though I should add we're still sporting the "pasty white" look... I'm "crossing my fingers" for an actual tan one of these years!!)

And if you've noticed a little trend here on the ole' bloggity blog, you know that snack time is one of our favorite indoor meets outdoor events!

Ummm... do you have a licence for that thing?!?

If you look in one lens of Alia's sunglasses you will see what the lovely humidity does to Mommy's crazy hair... and if you look in the other you will see little sister being a good warm weather girl and staying well hydrated! :) 

I know you guys are starting to wonder... but I assure you, we do more than snack all day long! It's just that snack time brings both girls together, content, in one spot, sitting still and the urge to escape my lens with every fiber of their body is mild for the moment.... so it's an easy photo op for me! That being said, I'll do my best to document the parts of the day that we're actually up and moving the ole' muscles!

I hope you are able to soak up some rays and sport the shorts in whatever corner of the country you may be in! As for us... well, we're glad that every thing matches white cause our summer shade won't be darkening anytime in the near future. Rain, rain, and more rain for the weekend! :)

Baby # 3 - 16 weeks

Still big and getting bigger.

BUT... am now feeling the baby as he/she flitter flutters around! Love. It. Makes my heart flitter flutter right along with him/her! :)

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Psst.

Have I mentioned that we're finding out if we're having a boy or girl this time around?!?! I'm so super duper excited about that! We've done the "surprise way" twice now, and just once I'd like to experience what's it's like "the other way!" Made the official appt. this week, so in July we'll know!

But... pstt.

Have I mentioned that we're going to try and keep it a surprise from the rest of ya'll. Mean, I know! But fun, none the less!

:)

Ice Cream Social

The other day it was warm enough that the girls and I could enjoy snack time on the verandah. And since we we don't have ice cream very often, I thought it would be a treat to whip out the vanilla, chocolate sauce, and colored sprinkles! :)

Larren didn't waste any time... if something is this good, than surely Mom won't let me keep it for long! :)

And if she happened to slow down, or get tired... big sister was there to help keep the feeding system in motion!!

For which Larren was very thankful!

There were some casualties... but it's to be expected!

Next we are planning on making HEALTHY : ) fruit popsicles! I have no doubts they'll make the top 10 snack chart as well!

Smokin' Weed(s)

Ya'll may remember that last summer we brought in a whopping 25 loads of dirt for our yard. Actually, we were GIVEN (for FREE!) an estimated 25 loads of dirt for our yard! We were super excited but unfortunately for our neighbors, we didn't have time to smooth it out before we left for our summer trip to Ohio. We returned to weed hills and lots of "Oh GOOD, you're back!" when we cruised the streets of our little community!

We have since leveled, smoothed, and smoothed some more with hopes of planting last fall, but due to this, that, and the other (insert : college classes!!)... it just never happened. So, two weeks ago was the LONG awaited planting day. With summer rounding the bend I had visions of luscious green grass running through my head... and the black pebbly soil that shook me to reality just wasn't cutting it! (HA!) Though that being said... our mowing time has been cut down drastically, so it hasn't been all bad!

We were trying to beat the rain (which came in FULL force later that night, and the next day, and the next!) and as soon as Alia heard the "R" word she ran in the house to get her umbrella quicker than a Manitoba minute!

She was quite the little hard worker!

Besides keeping Daddy company and counting the seeds as they fell, she made sure no dirt was left out of the planting party!

And of course there's always the ever needed supervising role! :)

Both girls proved to have great work ethic as they picked up rock after rock and placed them in the bucket. We're thankful the soil was free... but it ain't no potato soil, I can tell ya that! Let's just say it tends to be "bumpy"... and that I've picked up more rocks in the last couple weeks than I have in a lifetime!

The girls hard work was rewarded with a family four wheeler ride as we harrowed in the grass and a good long bubble bath to remove the layer upon layers of dirt!

All in all it felt GREAT to finally get our "crop" planted... but ya wanna know the part that I find a tad comical?

That night we had two things on the go - in one part of the yard we're planting grass... and in one part of the yard we're burning it!

It's all part of the cycle I guess!

It has been so rewarding seeing those little tiny green shoots come out of the ground! I know we're nothing close to REAL farmers... but I can only imagine what a joy it is to see their labor come to fruition as their hard work pops out of the ground!

I hope to show you pictures of a big 'ole yard full of GREEN  grass soon! :)

Quite the A+ Student

For the last couple of years Jon has been taking University classes to complete his teaching certificate. The first few classes weren't much to get worked up about... but as he's gone further, the intensity (and time commitment!) of the class increases! He's completed 10 out of 13... and will hopefully be wrapping up two more this summer.

ANYHOW... this last class involved driving to the city (a little over 3 hours round trip) every week plus homework time.

His final assignment counted for half of his grade, so Jon spent a few evenings reading and preparing his project for presentation. The project was to be presented to the professor one on one... so there was little room for error!

WELL... I wanted to see how things were going (and head to bed!) so I waltzed into the kitchen to take a peek over his shoulder. Before I could stop myself I blurted out... "That looks like crap!"

I know... I know... loving wife award, right here! But no, really.... do you see any resemblance to the word, or is it just me?!?!

Jon was a bit taken a back and I quickly explained that the placement of "C-R-A-R" looked VERY similar to another word, referring to something less pleasant, in our English vocabulary! After seeing my point, he had a good laugh and went about completing his assignment!

WELL... on the day of his presentation I was able to head into the city with him (THANKS again Sharon for watching the girls!) and when I picked him up from the campus he shared that his professor also thought his assignment looked like crap!

As Jon shared his information, the professor interrupted with a random smile and a "Hey! That looks like crap!" Because of his loving wife :) my husband didn't miss a beat! The professor must have been somewhat impressed because a 50/50 was offered! Jon said "Sounds great!" and after a hand shake was out the door without a look back! 

Honestly... I think it's Jon's "studious looks" and his choice of pink, magenta, purple, and green paper that won the prof over! :)

Jon may hate University with a passion... but thus far he has done AMAZING in his course work! Way to go, love, and thanks... again... for all your hard work!

Park Outing

Sunday was GOR-OR-GEOUS! So as soon as the girls woke up from their naps, we were out the door and on our way to a near by park!

Jon had taken the girls to this exact park last week (to give me some rest!) and Alia couldn't WAIT to show me the "giant, giant, GIANT" slide! Thankfully Daddy knows this place well... and knew of a shortcut (which doubled as a workout!) to get us to the monumental slide faster!

Here we are... at last!

This park has SO MANY different play areas, all quite a distance from each other! So it's awesome... if there happen to be people in one area, ya just scoot over to the next and play, play, play!

Poor Lars couldn't really tell if there were people around her though... her hat happened to be on the "tad too big" side! :)

But believe you me, it didn't slow her down a bit!

We're excited to be getting a new park in our little community, and since Jon is the head of the committee, he was taking notes. He was quite impressed with the use of old drainage tile!!! :) A "caterpillar" for the kids to crawl through/walk on, of course! What can I say... we're known for being thrifty in this area of the Province!

We mosied on over to a bigger slide (one that Alia hadn't seen before), but she was a little cautious this time around. Daddy had to go down with her for the first run!

But not Larren! She couldn't SEE how big it was so she just cruised on down! :)

The second her feet hit the ground, she's running to the stairs for another go... it's a wonder she didn't totally wipe out!!

Getting braver the second time around...

Ahh... thanks to big sister, "I can see the light!"

The mosquitoes were pretty nasty, so we called our game short... and headed for home. Here's Daddy, the work horse, in action!

Love Sundays. Love summer. Love family time. Hate mosquitoes.

The end!

Baby # 3 - 15 weeks

Here's the first of the series... the pregnancy picture series, that is!

No lies... I was this big with Alia at 6 MONTHS or more! :)

Goodness... I'll admit, I'm starting to feel a bit like a moose and I still have quite a ways to journey yet!!

Haven't felt the baby wiggle and wobble yet... which is odd since this is our third, BUT... the truth is I'm not sitting as much as I was able to with the other pregnancies! So... any day now I'm hoping to feel some baby flutters!

Simply savoring... and enjoying this miracle!

**And just for the record, taking a weekly picture of myself will be quite a CHALLENGE! Whenever I see myself in pictures I typically delete them as fast as I take them... so, this is an act of love! And I'll do my best to smile instead of state straight ahead! :) **

Life Trac - Motherhood

There are days when I simply don`t take time to read God`s Word. I don`t. It comes down to the fact that I  think something else is more important and I miss what He has for me. The life giving, stress taking, breath of fresh air that He offers me.

BUT... there are also mornings that I run to the radio right before 9 o`clock... in the midst of crusty oatmeal faces, breakfast dishes, and empty milk cups... to simply sit at Jesus feet. I may not be reading my Bible in the quiet of the morning, but listening to LifeTrac with Chuck Swindoll, for only a couple minutes, is one of the highlights of my day! Every single time I hear him speak... I SOAK it in. Every single time I get the privilege of hearing his challenge for the day... I am taken aback and reminded of what is important. I always end up feeling a little lighter, a little closer to my Daddy, and a little more encouraged that everything`s going to be okay.

I have SO MANY I want to share with you... but today is for you lovely women.

You might have grown kids, little kids, or no kids... listen to this anyhow! We all need this bit of truth!

http://www.insightforliving.ca/broadcast/lifetrac/motherhood#player