A couple of days ago, I came across this quote on Pinterest. 

I loved it and felt super convicted all at the same time! 

It came after a week of many, many rough moments. Mainly, being a result of a 2 year old's behaviour. I realize that no 2 year old is perfect. No 2 year old listens all the time. I have even heard quotes like "if a toddler listens/behaves 60%, you are doing good". Sorry, but 60% just isn't going to cut it. Especially when most of the time, I have a beautiful little girl that is pretty good. We are blessed I know! And we have also worked hard in helping her understand boundaries, rules, etc, while balancing fun. 

That said, she has times in life where she just tests everything. She tests those boundaries of how far she can go. She tests us to see if we will both say the same thing (already I know! We are in trouble). She tests her limits in how far she can go and what will happen as a result. Ie. if we say "Hannah don't throw that" what happens if she throws it just a little. Or if I say, "Hannah, you can't colour on your brother! Only paper" and she colours on our ottoman behind my back as I look at Owens coloured foot, what exactly will happen? 

This was our week. To top it off she was fighting sleep like no tomorrow. 2 hour naps were 1 hour. 12 hour nights were more like 10, and sometimes with waking up for water or pee (which usually does not happen!). So not only was she testing us, but she was loosing it very, very easily herself! Oh and Owen was discovering his ability to reach all kinds of levels/tones in speech so we had on average 45 min monologues or songs to listen to in the middle of each night as he practiced. Cute, but total lack of sleep for us too!

So the quote? 

So I stopped. 

Thought. 

And prayed. 

We were coming away from having the grandparents down the visit, which meant getting spoiled, getting away with things with them that she wouldn't normally, lots more special attention and lots of treats. She was testing to see if that could be the new reality all the time. Can you blame her? 

She was caught in a cycle of sleep deprivation. Could totally understand that! I lost it more than normal. I made exceptions for me because I was tired, but did I do the same for her? 

It was crummy weather, resulting in being inside all the time. She was stir crazy and so was I! 

So this week, I have been praying, I would be more patient, talk through and ask Hannah more how she is feeling and help her out of this cycle. 

Bedtime was bumped to 6pm. 

Expectations were explained beforehand as much as possible. 

Special quality time has been a priority when possible, allowing her to be okay with times she doesn't get it. 

Im not saying all behaviour is excusable. There are still concequences when kids act out and I don't regret the ones we did last week one bit. But we can also stop, give our kids a little grace, put our place in their shoes and help them to thrive the best we can. Not spoiling and giving in all the time, that doesn't help. But small things can make a big difference! 

This week has been so much better! And we have seen and enjoyed sun!

Owen's second month

(Fair warning: This post has lots of pictures!)

Well my dear boy Owen, your second month has been quite the adventure! Here's the highlights of what we did...

Week 1: Daddy was on paternity leave, so you got lots of play time. You were dedicated at church on Mother's Day! (hope to get pictures soon)

Week 2: We started our massive road trip and ended up in Florida. You got to meet your Papa, Aunt Tara, Great-Nanny and whole lot more of your American family!

Nanny with her 7 great grandchildren (you distracted her from the camera!) 

Week 3: You attended your first wedding. Went in the ocean for the first time. First time at the zoo. Lots more driving. First time swimming in a pool. You got to meet your Auntie Ali!

Taking it all in...

shocked by the first wave...

then enjoyed having the waves hit you!

not too interested in the animals...

getting snuggled by Aunt Tara was much more enjoyable!

Week 4: More driving. Went to your first Aquarium in New Orleans. Went to your first baseball game in Pittsburgh. First time to Ontario. Got to meet Grandma and Grandpa. First time in the nursery (at the church where Mommy and Daddy grew up).

family pic with Auntie Ali

we got special seats since you were sleeping in the stroller at first 

which gave us lots of room, eventually we moved down 

to watch the end of the game in our real seats though since they were closer!

fun morning chat time with Grandpa!

It was quite the month! 

At the start of the month you were just starting to respond to our voices and we could get some smiles out of you. With each day it felt like you became more expressive and full of not only smiles but lots of things to say! 

You are growing fast. At your 2 month check up you were weighing in at about 14 and a half pounds and 24 and a half inches long! You are outgrowing clothes like no tomorrow. If you want to slow down just a little I'd be okay with that. You are still my little baby! 

You also probably set a record with how many times in a day a baby can wet through a pampers baby dry (up to 12hrs) diaper. I have learnt to bring not only a bunch of changes of clothes for you but also for myself (yeah that's a pee mark on me in our family pic at the aquarium)! 

This coming month we promise not as much driving since you have let us know you don't really love it. 

The things a toddler says with her Uncle

Hannah has always had an awesomely cute relationship with her Uncle Nathan. Now that we are at my parents visiting, and Uncle Nathan is home from Scotland they've been having some good times together.

Here are some of the best quotes and convo's so far between them.

Hannah, "It's not scary (referring to his crazy beard he grew while away)...I don't need to be scared".

Nathan, "Hannah, did you have a good sleep?"
Hannah, "No, I didn't sleep very well"
Nathan, "Why not?"
Hannah, "Just not anything"
Nathan, "so no reason you didn't sleep well?"
Hannah, "No, I just didn't sleep very well"
(she slept through the night without a peep...)

(While running into the living room after having a bath)
Hannah, "Uncle Nathan! Uncle Nathan! Do you want to smell my hair? It's all nice and clean!"
Nathan, "wow that smells good!"
(someone asks if she wants to smell his hair and if it smells good)
Hannah, "No!....it's doesn't smell very good"
(lots of laughter)
Hannah, "Maybe tomorrow you can have a bath...(all excited now with her idea), okay tomorrow you can have a bath and then later it can smell good!"
(later)
Hannah, "Okay, tomorrow I will put Uncle Nathan in a bath!"

(while hugging him and saying goodnight, she looks at him all adorable)
Hannah, "I really want to give you a goodnight kiss, but your beard is in the way..."


*And I've just been informed she said a lot more to him while they were hanging out alone together this morning too!

Owen`s first month of life

Well dear Owen, you have had quite the first month of life! It has been crazy - full of joys, trials and everything in between, but we couldn`t imagine life without you now!

Here`s the highlights what your first month brought:

First 24hrs: - you were a superstar - we got discharged early and had a bunch of friends visited us at home to welcome you into the world.

Week 1: -The flu hit the house! Everyone except for you and mommy were sick that week! Not a week we really want to remember. (you also thought night was day for most of it!)

Week 2: - A taste of `normal`! Everyone was healthy, Mommy was feeling better, you were sleeping and we got to get out and explore - hitting up the library, harbour front and local coffee shop!

Week 3: - Your first cold! Your sister already wants to do anything she can for you and I guess figured sharing her cold was the nice thing to do. Two days were deemed sick days with us all feeling awful, but you, my boy, got better first!

Week 4: - Dad started paternal leave and a heatwave (for the start of May in Nova Scotia) hit!

No week or even day at that matter has been the same! Your first month flew by fast and was full of many, many, many new experiences (starting with breathing and eating on your own!).

You are loved and celebrated for being here! 

(Hannah showing Owen her card she made saying, Happy 1 month birthday Owen!)

I hope you are prepared because month number 2 is gearing up to be even more adventurous - full of new experiences!

All she has to do is say "sorry"!

Matt, Owen and I are all dressed up and ready to go....

unfortunately Hannah has stalled our ability to go to church this morning!

For one hour and approx. 30+ minutes Hannah has been screaming her head off and refusing to say "sorry".

A simple request....

but she is stubborn!

When going down for breakfast, Hannah had a little temper tantrum when she wanted to watch a little show before breakfast and I said no we had to eat first. In her anger of crying she pushed me quite hard (while I was holding Owen).

Pushing has been her new thing, she does it for attention, she does it in anger and she does it to get her way. It started with pushing her cousin around, then friends at church and now her parents.

This pushing has got to stop!

She needs to know it is not okay to hurt and push people. She says she understands, but she continues to do it.

So this is a battle we have to fight. As much as I want to be at church right now, she can not think its okay to push and get away with it. She has to realize there are consequences and its not okay. And I am definitely not bringing her to a place where she can continue to push and hurt others without her knowing all of this and dealing with the punishment.

So the battle continues. She screams and cries. We get ready as normal. She says she wants to say sorry, I go to her, she doesn't say it, she looks away, I leave and she screams again. And the cycle continues.

I do hope she gives in soon!

I do hope we can at least make the second service! I was really really looking forward to this morning and aside from Hannah we were doing so well!

But alas, parenting toddlers is really difficult sometimes! And unfortunately for the sake of parenting we don't always get to do what we want. Giving in can only lead to wrong actions continuing...

Sometime the scream will stop and our house will be full of the joys and laughter Hannah brings once again.

Sometime....

I sure hope that's soon!

(Best quote of the morning - I was looking down at Owen and said "are you going to grow up to be as stubborn as your sister?", Matt pipes in "I sure hope not! Please be a push over like your dad!)

We have a little man!

I guessed I was having a boy.

Deep down I don't think I believe my guess was correct. I was prepared and expecting a girl.

Not going to lie, when they told me that it was a boy (and I could see they weren't lying), I was a little shocked! Couldn't really believe that I had just had a boy. (Couldn't also believe that I had just had a 9lb boy!)

That said, we couldn't be more thrilled!

He is perfect!



And the special bonus to it all - he decided he was ready to come into this world on April 8th. My grandpa's birthday was April 8th. He was an incredible man who left a great legacy, after impacting many, many people in this world. Now Owen gets to celebrate his life of that special day. Our prayer is that he will follow in his great-grandpas footsteps of being a solid man of great character, love and drive. And it was our delight to get to give Owen grandpa's name as his middle name - Gordon!

Some positive reasons I haven't had the baby yet!

Not going to lie, I am completely ready to have the baby now. Not that I feel awful and can't handle being pregnant anymore, but more that I am not so patiently waiting to finally get to see this little one and hold it and find out if it's a boy or girl! I'm so ready...but he/she is not yet!

That said, there are some positives that I have not had the baby yet. So I'm trying to keep those in mind! Here are a few:

- My mom was able to make it into town and will be here (unless I go to the very last day they will let me) for the birth and to help with Hannah!

Hannah excited to help with Nanna's bags when she landed! 

- Because my mom is here and I finished work last Friday, I have FINALLY gotten a chance to do some nesting I've wanted to do, but always fell low on my list of priorities to get done.
- We have gotten curtains sewn, made the sheets for the new cradle, made clothe diapers for Hannah's babies, gone shopping to get things I wanted, etc (truth be told my mom did a lot of the sewing, even though I would have done more, but whoever does it its so nice to have things done!)
- I finally have Hannah's clothes all organized for the next size up that she's now into and for the new season (I had been trying for weeks, but with Hannah at my side since it was all in her room and sleep time is not a time to do it, we never got very far before she had to try things on or sort it herself!)
- Baby stuff is more organized and ready for hospital and home!
- Matt had a big deadline for work to get proposals/plans/budgets type documents finished. Because he works with many different campuses out here, he had a total of 10 to finish! Which means he's been working like a mad man to get it all done. If we had had the baby a couple of days ago, it would have added a huge amount of stress and deadline worry that now he doesn't have to worry about and can just enjoy his baby being born without the nagging feeling of all he still has to do!
- now that Matt doesn't have to be working in the office which is being turned into the nursery my mom could start painting the nursery today! We may yet have a decorated nursery before the baby comes....although its unlikely (it will still have lots of office stuff in there for awhile until we get the basement den area organized for the switch. Which is okay since half will be functioning and the baby will be in our room with us for awhile anyway so we have time!)
- we have had lots of time for quality time with my mom visiting - sometimes we forget why she's really here, not just for a fun visit!

Reading - a favourite without a doubt!

All that said, we are ready to meet this baby, so any time they want to make an entrance we will be more than excited!