a Seinfeld episode

So sometimes kids have to learn lessons the hard way.  Sometimes parents do to.  My older son didn't want to get dressed to go out with Dad and his brother.  There was a lot of running away, laughing, bouncing and no co-operation what so ever, which is so unbelievably frustrating when you need to leave the house.  This time I was staying home so it didn't matter too much if my son went out or not.  The opportunity to teach him a hard lesson, as in "you don't help in getting dressed, means you don't go", turned into what might be a Seinfeld episode.

My husband said to my son that he was leaving without him since my older son was being so difficult with getting dressed.  While naked, wearing black socks, my son began to scream, throw stuff and run to the door yelling "Daddy don't go".  While it was heartbreaking to hear him, and funny at the same time, we stuck to our guns and Daddy left.

My son decided to go on the porch and yell for Daddy.  I thought that's where he would get too cold and run right back in since it was probably -15C.  NOPE, that's not at all what happened.  His little skinny naked butt decided to run down the walkway in his black socks to the car while crying at the top of his lungs.  Our neighbours who were shovelling snow and a van driver, turned to see what the noise was all about and all at once laughed out loud.  I had to laugh too.  If that was not an episode from the Seinfeld show than what was.

My husband quickly run out and brought my son back home and left.  The temper tantrum continued until my son felt tired and decided to lie down in his bed.  We had a good talk and hugs and kisses.

So, did the lesson stick?  Not really.

thick and blue

Today while the boys are out tobogganing with their friends, I am making a birthday scarf for my friend.  I love this super think and blueish yarn and because of that it doesn't take too long to crochet.

I love making things for friends and I am considering selling some of my pieces on etsy.  I'm inspired by the compliments I have received, but I don't want to take away from the joy of making things.  However, I love the idea of a sweet little etsy shop where I get to be creative and help to pay for some of my crafty projects.

just a little more snow

Second time shoveling in one day.

February 25

February 16

a little ramble about our day

My little baby just fell asleep to Daddy singing "you are my sunshine".  How sweet is that, to fall asleep in your daddy's arms all tucked in and hearing a lullaby.

My older son, fell asleep in the car, so Daddy carried him home and I tucked him in his big boy bed.  I guess this morning's gymnastics class and bath time with his baby brother took a lot out of him.  While doing afternoon crafts, he said, "thank you Mommy for buying me markers".  If that wasn't sweet enough, he also said "I love that you made me a milkshake".  He is such a sweet little person.

I just want to remember this when the temper tantrums start...hahahaha

11 months and counting...

One more month and my baby will be one.  How quickly that one year passed by no matter how hard I hugged or cuddled him.  I guess time just moved on by.  

But I'm in some kind of disbelief that my baby will soon be one, that my baby won't be a baby.  Seven teeth, crawling, throwing, eating, hitting, pulling, signing "more" and now letting go and trying to stand on his own.  All that happened in front of my eyes and still I can't believe it.  

What replaced sweet little baby noises was loud laughter between two brothers, so I am happy.  At the same time I am sad too, because I wish it would all slow down a bit.  Eleven months and counting...

one more crochet hat

So it is February and winter is still here in full force.  I noticed my older son's knit hats were riding up and exposing his ear lobes to the cold wind so I made him another hat.  I crocheted a green one that covered his ears and back of neck.  I made a slightly different one for his baby brother.  I didn't follow a specific pattern but started out with double crochet and ended up with single crochet to make it more dense on the ears and neck.  Once again I used the same youtube videos to help me get started as I did in my other hat project.

This time it took me three tries to get the right size and I kept trying on the hat on my son as I made it.  He was sleeping at the time, but I knew it might be a struggle to get a three year old toddler to cooperate during the day.  By the time he woke up, he had a brand new hat with a pom pom, which he loved.

legos and dressers

Photo from LegoExpress    

For our kids' room we will be combining legos and two dresses, one for each son. We found the dressers in the alley and I couldn't resist.  We are still in the process of painting them and  somehow legos will be involved.  Once we are finished the project, I think our kids will love us more...hahahaha.  

doing crafts

Crafts are big in our family.  Sometimes it's not even a real craft but a chance to just play around with stuff like pipe cleaners, feathers, kid scissors, glue, markers, beads, noodles, chalk, paint, sparkles, wooden figurines and so many other things.

I love to make things all the time, hence my knitting or crocheting or whatever happens to interest me.  I've noticed my older son loves it too.  So he often asks to play with something and we end up making things.  Here are some of those fun things that either he has created on his own or with my assistance.

Reindeer antlers for Christmas 2011 (pipe cleaners)                                                                                                                                                            

Decorating a rock September 2011 (paint, stickers)

Chalk drawing (very intense concentration)

Bathtub crayons (washable crayons)

Feather Crown/Hat (feathers, glue and paper)

Painting wooden dinosaur (for a special birthday present)

Drawing with markers (my son's very first drawing of a car at age 3)

Can you tell we are proud!

"not yet spring" season

I love decorating, always have and always will.  During the long winter months, decorating becomes my hobby and that includes the outdoors.  So, now that it's passed Christmas, not yet Spring or Easter, how do you decorate outside?  While the St. Valentine's Day look is festive, it's not for the long run and what do you do after February 14th?    

You can liven it up inside with flowers and bright colours, but it might not be a good fit for the outside with all the snow and cold temperatures still around.  At the same time, it's time for a little colour to liven up your spirits.  We need a little spirit lift because the snow here can last all the way up to May.

Here in Canada most people leave behind their outside arrangements from Christmas.  I have tweeked ours to transition from Christmas to "not yet Spring" season, while not committing to a specific holiday either.  I love green, therefore making a monochromatic arrangement of different shades of green really appealed to me and it made sense of the old pine branches.  So after buying a few bunches of long leaves from Ikea, spray painting old decorative twig balls bright green, and reusing the pine branches, we have a new outside arrangement.  Ta Da!

Now onto decorating the inside...

funnel pom poms

So while shopping at Ikea my older son took two funnels and placed them over his chest and run around saying pom poms.  Hmmmm...I wonder what people were thinking but I had to laugh out loud.  It was too funny.  I'm not sure where he got it from.  Hahahahahaha

On another note, it's been two nights and my ten month old hasn't woken up at 3 am.  Woohoo!  That's one of the best sleeps I have had in a while.  Fingers crossed for tonight.

favourite part of our day

Everyday we ask our older son what his favourite part of the day was and today he said, "Eating chocolate."  He got special chocolates and cars from his grandma for St.Valentine's Day.  The little one enjoyed some chocolates too and it looked like that might have been his favourite snack as well.

two boys. one love.

July 2011

December 2011

Every time my boys play together and chase each other from one end of the house to the other, I stop and listen and watch.  I have to make sure that no one, mostly my ten month old, is getting hurt, but I just love to listen to their laughter and watch how their eyes sparkle with joy around each other.  The love between them is so amazing.  It is almost tangible.  It fills the entire room and you have to stop whatever you are doing and watch their beautiful friendship grow.  With every giggle and cry and tumble, they are becoming closer and closer.  I love that they love each other so much.  It is worth every sleepless night to see my little boys becoming brothers.  It's pure love.

when i grow up...

While driving back from gymnastics my older sons said, " When I grow up I want to be a cell phone and when you grow up, Mommy, you will be a cell phone."  Who knew we will both grow up to be cell phones.