How can it be a month already

I know how a month can go by so fast - we've been SO busy! I have LOADS of pics on the camera, hoping to get them up here Monday!

What has the past month brought? I was gone to Pennsylvania Aug 8 - 12, so the boys had fun everyday with Chantelle (our neighbours daughter who babysat for us). There was no problems that I heard about, and both kids liked to eat crackers all day! aiaiai

Then home for a week - Landon went to daycamp again, and this time there were no illnesses contracted which was great. He sure enjoyed himself, and didn't complain too much when I dropped him off. I have to admit, those afternoons with Landon at camp and Arlan napping were dreamy!

Aug 20 we flew to Toronto - stayed a week and came home Aug 28. Liz & Rob kept the boys while John and I traveled on to Montreal for a wedding (which was actually 1.5 hours north of Montreal). The wedding was a LOT of fun, and it was so great to get out and see John's friends without the kidlets.
Then back to TO for the week. We had a lot of fun - swimming several times, we drove to Niagara Falls one day, we went to the Canadian National Exhibition and the kids went on rides ALL day -- so much FUN! It really was a great week. (except when Landon got bit by a yellowjacket ... that wasn't fun for him, right under his nose poor kid!)

Then home again to all the stuff I hadn't been getting to this past month, and here we are Sept long weekend already! It's been an incredible summer - so many great memories and visits! But I'm glad to stay home for a couple of weeks as well :-)

Watch for some pics to come...

PS - John took Landon's training wheels off of his bike today, and he zooms along the back path like nobody's business! How did he get so big??

PPS - And Arlan climbs out of his crib like a pro too ... started the week before Toronto. He actually dive-bombs out of it into the lazy-boy recliner sitting beside the crib. This morning I woke up to patting on my head "Mommy, I up now!" at 6:50 am :-/ Big boy bed coming right up ...

Full-fledged stinkerdom

Yup - both boys are fully back! We've had a couple of days at the beach, having a blast. I'll have lots of pictures of wet boys dumping pails of water when I get home and upload them :-)
We've tried to convince Arlan to nap at the beach, but that doesn't pan out. So we spend a few hours and then come back for nap time (which is fine because usually John and I steal a few winks in there too). Then when Arlan gets up we head back to the beach. It's so beautiful, even until past 7 pm. The sun is "setting", sparkling waters, and happy boys make for a nice evening.
Landon's exhausted himself fully - he's still sleeping (at 11 am)! Which is fine with us - it's a long day when you fight any possibility of napping! lol
Today is a bit cloudier (hence my patience with sleeping in Landon ... that and the fact that I slept in until 10 am too :-D), but we will still hit the beach for awhile. In fact, Arlan's been up for 3.5 hours and is getting antsy to get going lol
Speaking of antsy - my only real pet peeve with this place is the ants - YUCK! I HATE ANTS! We placed some traps today, so hopefully that'll clean some of the little buggers up.

That's it for now - just wanted to let everyone know that both kids are just fine now, wouldn't even know they were puking-pooping-monsters last weekend. Until next time ... (I'm off to Davison Orchards today for corn on the cob too YUM!)

THAT's BETTER

Well, the boys are back to talking non-stop, picking on each other, fighting, and general other boy-ish type things (like marveling over bugs, picking their butts, and throwing things). So I guess I'd have to say..."theeeeey're baaaaack!"
I did take Arlan to the dr on Wed, as he was still having trouble keeping stuff down. The doc was good - let us know that Arlan was very well hydrated (we'd done a good job there), and telling us to keep it up, plus give him a Gravol suppository. I think Arlan was at the turn-around point already, or perhaps Gravol really is that incredible, but he only needed one. Since yesterday afternoon he's been on a big improvement. Today we spent most of the day at the beach, and Arlan had a blast. Mostly he enjoyed digging holes and dumping water into them. But he also "swam" and jumped, and played on the dock with mom - looking at ducks and fish (and lots of teen-agers!). So we are VERY happy to have him back!

Landon has been 'recovered' for a couple of days, and is LOVING the beach! He puts his water wings on and has a BLAST! The water is great because he can go for quite a ways and still touch. Plus with his water wings he does very well. He splashes, and pushes John around in the "boat" (one of those floatie thingies, whatever they're called). He even helps Arlan dump water in holes (otherwise known as castles). His favourite thing today was being tossed into the air (I remember Uncle Murray tossing me in the air as a kid - that WAS FUN!).

So we're so thrilled to have the kids back - amazing how little time it takes to start rolling your eyes at the incesant questions in the car, and scolding when they fight. Ahhhh ... normalcy! lol

Until next time...

Swim lessons

Here are a couple of pics from the pool a couple of weeks ago. As you can see, Landon loves to be distracted by anything, particularly mom with a camera! So I didn't take many shots.
Arlan has so much fun splashing around the tot pool while Landon has lessons. Then we all go into the big pool for some fun. And mom's favourite is always the hottub at the end :-)

Another new tooth!

Arlan is continuing on his tooth-popping expedition, with another molar. The top left this time :-) He seldom lets us anywhere near his mouth, but I managed to feel it in there yesterday!! Could explain why he's been crying out in the night, maybe. He likes to cry out, but we try not to go in there too much. Usually a soother plug and he's back to sleep, but it'd be nice if he'd just quit throwing the soother out of the crib -then he could find it and plug it back in himself!! LOL But he doesn't sleep with a night-light, so it's very dark in there at night - no wonder he can't find his soother.

We've been having fun with swim lessons. Arlan goes Thursday morning, Landon on Friday. Because John hasn't been working Fridays, we all go swimming together, and that is a really nice time. Landon is doing SO well ... he can 'swim' with a life-jacket on, loves going down the slide, can almost relax enough to do a back float. He loves loves loves to swim, and I love watching him. He's splashing along, swallowing water and the whole 9-yards, and is completely happy. Next summer will be even better at the lake (assuming it's not miserable the entire time we're there!).
Arlan's doing well too. He'll let us get his head wet, and today I dragged him through the water for a couple of seconds (under the rope) -- no resulting tears!! He loves to fall off the edge, with me to catch him. And even was standing up to fall to me today. But most of all he loves going down the slide. Today we had him in a life-jacket and I'd almost toss him off the slide to John in the water. Then he'd get out and have huge smiles anticipating all that fun to happen again. It is such a fun time to swim with those stinkers!!
Must be tiring too - Arlan has nice long naps, and Landon is quietly playing play-dough with John!! LOL

Other than that, we are seeing winter settle in ... BRRRRR! Landon had fun playing in the snow this afternoon for a bit ... driving his loader around the backyard making tracks. I'm not ready for it though! In more ways than one ... primarily I need to get winter boots for Arlan!! Poor kid, can't get out to play yet ... Maybe I'll have to make a concerted effort to get them this weekend.

Our weekend will be quiet. Mom & dad were going to come up, but plans changed, so we're hanging out at home ... nice and quiet. Hopefully get some shopping done, and I'm planning to do a good long run in preps for my 10K race in 2 weeks. I contemplated painting, either our bedroom or Landons....we'll see if I find the energy to pick out paints today or tomorrow.

Oh yeah, we got the boys' Hallowe'en costumes in the mail the other day (ordered on ebay). Landon has been Winnie the Pooh ever since! He wakes up and wants his Pooh costume! I hope it lasts until Hallowe'en!! We put Arlan's "hunny pot" costume on him, and he loved it too. He's such a ham -- he knows he's adorable, and parades around for our entertainment!! LOL But at least he's not wanting to ALWAYS wear it, so he'll be good for Hallowe'en. I'm sure Landon will be fine too, although he may be a bit dirty...

Other than that - life is good :-) Until next time...

This week in our lives...

Well, swimming lessons with Arlan went well again. He loves to 'fall' off the side of the pool, and will even let me get his face wet sometimes :-) He giggles and laughs, but mostly wants to do his own thing, not what the 'class' is doing (that's the trouble with waiting until he's over a year for lessons!). But he's enjoying swimming, that's for sure.
Then on Friday we all went to the pool with Landon for his lesson. Arlan, mom and dad swam in the tot pool while Landon had lessons, then we all went in the big pool. Both boys loved it so much, and it was really nice to have us all there swimming :-) Landon's doing really well ... they go in the 'deep' water holding floatation things (in this case it was foam 'dumbbells' they had under their arms), and practise floats and putting their face in. Landon's loving his lessons, looking forward to them every week.
So Saturday morning, Arlan brings me his swimmer diaper and goes to the front door ... like "let's go swimming mom!" LOL He loves is that much. Today we went to a b'day party in Airdrie, and the pool there has a big waterslide and stuff, so we might have to check that place out with the boys one of these weekends. Landon was very excited for the waterslide.

Both boys loved the birthday party today. It took Landon awhile to 'settle in' with the large group of kids, but by the end he was shedding tears because we had to leave. We played with one of those big parachutes, which Landon was ok with as long as he was beside me. Arlan, however, was right in there, shaking the parachute and giggling as usual!! lol The lunch room had a big play structure too (like a McDonald's Playland sort of thing), which Landon loved and Arlan did too (although he was too little to climb all over it). They had such a fun time - it was nice to see them enjoying themselves.

That's about the extent of our excitement. It actually has been pretty good. The swimming has been a ton of fun - I love having something I do with just Arlan, and to see Landon so excited is heart-warming. We'll have to be sure to do more and more swimming.

Until next time...

Whoops -- where have the days gone!

Aunty Allison was here for a visit - Arlan of course checked her out, and once he determined that she was ok, she was REALLY ok!! LOL Both boys loved visiting and playing with her -- and Allison got the best form of birth control ever (gotta love kids!). Ah well. We didn't do as much this year as we did last year when she was here, I think because Arlan needs to nap at home now I don't have the same 'freedom'. But she and I did "float the Bow" (drop a raft in to the Bow River, and float downstream) ... it was 30' and clear blue skies that Friday, it was WONDERFUL!!

Other than that - we've been hanging out at home. Iden spent a day with Landon last week, they had a lot of fun. It was cute to watch them - they'd play, then get sick of each other and go their separate ways, then they'd play together again. I didn't see any hitting going on, so Landon must've realized he can just go play on his own - he doesn't need to hit the other kid to make them leave!! LOL

Arlan now copies every single thing that Landon does. EVERYTHING! Landon was humming / moaning / singing into the empty water can (making a lovely sound!), and Arlan was right over there. Landon has to 'bite' the top of the umbrella pole, Arlan got right up there too. Landon hands on the cross bar on the swingset, so does Arlan!! Arlan follows him around ALL day long, doing everything his big bro does. The nicest times are when Landon plays back ... like they chase each other pushing trucks around the back yard, or they'll play in the sandbox together, that type of thing. Makes my heart melt :-D heh heh

I've also noticed Arlan is starting to stand his ground and fight back a bit. We've finally just got to the point where we've implemented the rule: if Arlan is crying or fussing, Landon has to quite doing whatever it is he's doing to him. That also goes for dad ... if Landon starts crying or fussing, DAD has to quit tormenting LANDON! Landon is getting a bit better with that rule, since "LEAVE HIM ALONE!" just wasn't getting any of us anywhere!!
But Arlan was walking up to Landon and pushing him today -- quite a change. It was ticking Landon off too, as he was trying to eat his "treat" (a Froster from Mac's). I just let it go, I know I'll be refereeing often enough.

Arlan is absolutely HATING his bath these days too! It's weird, when we run the tub, he stands at the edge wanting to get in ... he loves to play in water (and has succeeded in thoroughly soaking himself in the TOILET on occassion!!!! YUCK!). But when you put him in the tub, he is crying full volume and scrabbling to get out. Tonight I got in with him to see if it would help, but nope. I don't know what it is ... I remember Landon going through a phase of being afraid on the faucet, maybe I'll put a sock on it next bathtime to see if that helps. Or else we'll try our big tub (that helped with Landon too).

We took the boys swimming to an outdoor pool on Sunday - they loved it. Landon could JUST touch at the edge, so he had fun playing around. Then he jumped in 100 times, and went down the big slide twice, and then the smaller slide many many more times. Arlan was tentative to start, but we got him in the water and he sort of enjoyed it...although he was clamped on pretty hard! It did convince me to register him for swim lessons though, so both boys are starting lessons mid-Sept (until early Nov). Landon is unparented lessons now, so I will take Arlan in the tot pool while Landon has lessons for some extra water time with mommy! A neighbour and I are doing a kid-swap for lessons, to Landon will go there when Arlan has his lesson, and I'll have Lexi when Camryn has her lesson - works out quite well!

I guess I should get myself ready for bed. A late run tonight has me all keyed up! LOL Until next time (with some pics hopefully...)

We're almost packed

And ready to go! A big airplane ride tomorrow to Thomson's house! and is Landon excited???? aiaiaiai Whenever you mention it he starts squealing like a school girl! LOL So we'll be up and out of here by 6:30 am (oh my GAWD!), flight at 8 am. It'll be a tough slog in the morning, but it means we'll be in TO by 2 pm (their time, noon ours) to get settled in nicely.

It's been a good week. Landon and Arlan still have a bit of a cough. I have a sore throat. Hope it doesn't get any worse while we travel though! We've really just been hanging out at home.

Landon had swim lessons last night - put the life jacket on for the first time there. He did really well - floating on his back without me holding him, and swimming for the instructor, and dropping like a rock (going all the way under!). He LOVES swim lessons, and he loves the hot tub afterwards even more. Then he usually has to pee and we go home. heh

So I will post again in about a week when we get back. Think healthy thoughts for us and safe travels thoughts and good sleeping while we're in TO thoughts ... Until next time...TK

A new Tooth!

Arlan got another new tooth today - on the bottom, to the left of his front teeth. I was starting to wonder when he'd get another one, it's been about 6 weeks.
And just like last time he got teeth, he's sick again :-( Poor kid. Runny nose, and today he has a bit of a cough too :-( He's back down for a nap already, after being up only 1.5 hours!! So hopefully he'll do a third nap today, or we'll be in for it. I feel so bad for him though, he's so miserable. And he has big black circles under his eyes - poor kid! So we'll let him sleep lots and hope that helps.

It's a nice(r) day out today, we're actually able to be in the yard. A rainshower just moved through, so everything's nice and clean and smells wonderful. The weekend's supposed to be great, so I'm looking forward to some yardwork -- and to having Landon play outside ALL day long!

I've found that Landon's naps are becoming the exception rather than the rule. He napped Monday on the way home, and yesterday, but not Tues or Wed. Likely won't today either. It's tough, because he really can't last until bedtime without that nap - so the end of our days are pretty grumpy on non-nap days (especially the second non-nap day in a row!). And he usually doesn't sleep as well on those nights either, as he's overtired. But when he naps, especially several days in a row, then he's up so bloody late! It's a catch-22. But I guess it won't last forever, and then I'll REALLY be missing the naps!

We went to Landon's first swimming lesson in over a year last night. He loved it!! It's a transitional lesson - meaning I'm in the water with him, but he does things with the teacher instead of me, and by the end of the classes, I shouldn't have to be in the water with him at all. He was very hesitant to go to the instructor, but we always made him, and he enjoyed everything she did with him. For an example, she'd just swish him back and forth in the water a couple of times, and spin around, then give him back. So it wasn't like he was with her for long. But he always enjoyed what she did, so hopefully he'll learn to trust her. He had such a blast though, especially jumping into the water! I'm hoping to take both boys next week (maybe Tues) and then Landon has Thursday lesson. I'll have to figure something out for the week that John's gone ... might have to have a sitter for an hour :-/ I hate for Landon to miss any more lessons, we already missed last week, and he loved it so much last night.

Anyways, that's the news from here for now ... hoping Arlan doesn't get any sicker (I hate coughs, they always worry me so much!), and I sure hope he can sleep at night! It'll be a gorgeous weekend, so we'll be sure to take him outside lots, that should help. Until next time...

For the first time in almost a year...

Landon got to go swimming today! He asks me about 3 or 4 times a week I think, and I just keep putting him off. But not today - we got ourselves ready to go and we went :-) And it was SO worth it!!
I guess I am used to dealing with Landon in the change room at Arlan's age, so I've really been avoiding this whole ordeal. But, you know, they're two different kids!! Arlan was quite patient in the change room - I used the playpen there to keep him contained while Landon and I got changed. The only time he was impatient was when I was actually changing him. But other than that, not a squawk!
And Landon is SO much easier now. We got him dressed, and he waited patiently for me to get Arlan ready. When we were done swimming, he showered while I got Arlan and myself changed, then peed in the toilet like a big boy (there was no way he was going to pee in the shower!), and we got him dressed to go. Of course, Landon was not anywhere NEAR ready to go (we swam for 1/2 an hour), but we got him convinced without too much trouble.

So it was quite successful. We stayed in the tot pool (it's only 9" deep or something like that). Landon had fun splashing around and jumping off the stairs and stuff. He did ask to go in the big pool - but I'm not up to that yet. I think once we get Landon into swim lessons again, where he's wearing a PFD, I might be brave enough to handle it, but not my first time!! lol

Arlan really was not sure of the situation for about 10 minutes. He screwed up his face to cry a few times, but I just held him close. I didn't get him in the water at all for about 10 minutes, and then only on the edge for 5 minutes or so. But by the end he was crawling all over the tot-pool, climbing up the stairs and trying to escape to explore some more!! Very cute.

So I am so happy to have that first experience with both boys in the water ... and am SO happy that it went smoothly. I think we may have to try swimming once a week or so. Landon will have weekly lessons starting next week, but maybe we'll go once a week the three of us too. Depends on how much more Landon wants to be in the big pool then :-)

That's the news here ... until next time...

No Baby Yet...

Sorry for taking so long to post - esp for those watching this waiting for baby news!

We've had a good week. Went swimming again with Landon last Wed, he had fun and I do enjoy just relaxing in the water a bit :-) We'll see if I can find the energy to take him again this week.

Thursday I had a good visit with Amy - she was up staying at Ricki's. Landon had fun playing too - Keaton has tons of trucks so Landon was well entertained!

Friday we went to the Science Centre, met Heidi and the boys there. It was an absolute ZOO again, so we spent most of our time in the Children's Museum. I really like the place, but it was overwhelming for me, let alone for the little ones :-/ There are so many school groups there all the time, and usually older kids, all running like mad. Maybe the weekends would be better....

Uncle Bob and Aunty Rosemary were here for the weekend ... we had a wonderful visit! Sat night they went to watch John play -- the new back-up singer has really added to the band and I guess they sounded great. Sunday we had a pretty low-key day. We walked down to the Northern Hills Summerfest for pancake breakfast, but we were too late :-/ So we walked on back home, as all the bouncy castles and everything were soooooooooo lined up it just wouldn't have been worth the wait for Landon - who may or may not have liked them. But it was a nice walk nonetheless. The weather is finally nicer, so we spent much of our time outside, either playing with Landon in the back or whatever. And we all had nice snoozes in the afternoon too. They went back to Saskatoon today, and Landon was soooo sad to see them go. He LOVED having them here for a visit. He could say Uncle Bob very clearly, and Aunty Rosemary was improving quickly throughout the weekend too (to 'Anty rrsmary' by today).

And we're still just a waiting for baby to decide to come along. We were hoping for yesterday - since we had babysitters here for Landon - but baby didn't cooperate. So we'll just have to see. I have dr appt tomorrow, so we'll see if there's any 'action' down there yet.

that really is the news. Oh yeah - we have a gopher living under our driveway; I discovered him today. Hopefully we can get rid of him - I really don't want a gopher living here ... :-/ Maybe we'll have to borrow a cat for a few days or something!!

So, just because I don't post, don't be assuming we're having a baby. I'm just really super tired these days, and I'm trying to do things with Landon every day so that I'm not just sitting here waiting. Now that the weather's nicer, Landon and I were outside all day today. Hopefully this weather holds, I'm so sick of rain.

And I'm hoping Landon doesn't get too sick - he woke up with a cough last night a couple of times - a real barking cough, and you could hear the congestion in his throat and chest. He woke up much better today, although he was a bit out of sorts. He had a good nap. He has a runny nose, and it seemed to get worse tonight. I gave him decongestant, and we'll see how he sleeps. Hopefully well. His eyes were watery tonight too, I sure hope it's not allergies .... we'll have to see what the next few days bring. Poor kid.

That's the news for now....

Where do the days go?

Landon and I did go swimming on Wed, and he really enjoyed it. I will try to go again next week, assuming no baby and that we're feeling good. It was nice for me too, just sitting in the water while Landon played and splashed around. He has me concerned though - he was going up to all of the girls and giving them kisses....*sigh* He also says that some toys are 'girls toys' when he doesn't want to play with them, just like things he can't have are 'daddys' or 'mommys' things. Heh heh Funny how those things get entrenched so young. I've been trying to use this to my advantage with things like 'soothers are baby toys' and stuff like that!!

We got the Amby bed, the bassinet, the swing and the bouncy chairs out and washed up last night. I've been bugging John, and last night I think he understood that I meant him to get them up NOW (as in this baby is going to come soon man, get this sh!t done!! LOL). Poor John - I think he finally had the realization last night that we're having a baby VERY soon (I had that realization about a month ago and have been panicking ever since!). I wasn't feeling well, and finally he asked if I was going into labour. When I answered that I was starting to wonder that myself, he 'got it'. Any day now ... 10 days to ultrasound due date, 2 weeks to dr due date.

Landon has been handling the rainy weather pretty well ... as well as any 2-year-old who's couped up inside while wanting to play outside. Yesterday Stephanie and Iden came for a visit - it was so nice to have them. Iden and Landon played very well together. It took Landon a little bit of coaxing to share all of his toys - whatever Iden had Landon wanted, even if he hadn't played with it in ~3 months or so. But he really enjoyed having a friend over, and I REALLY enjoyed getting a chance for a visit with Steph.
Tonight I think Landon and I will make chocolate chip cookies again ... or rather, he can eat the cookie dough and I'll make cookies! LOL Then we'll have to figure out what sort of fun we'll have tomorrow to beat the cabin-fever crazies..........

Poor Landon!

Landon has a ruptured ear drum :-( Poor kid! He had a runny nose Fri, thick runny nose Sat, and by Sunday the ear drum must've ruptured. That's all we can figure out. He didn't really fuss, nothing beyond the general 'I've got a runny nose' kind of complaints. Sat night overnight he woke up crying, which is pretty unusual for him these days. After laying with him for about 30 minutes, he would keep waking up and crying a bit, then going back to sleep only to wake a few minutes later, I could tell he was pretty uncomfortable so I gave him Motrin. He went right back to sleep and slept like a trooper. It wasn't until Monday morning that I noticed discharge from his ear, and took him to the doc Mon afternoon. So, another round of antibiotics :-/ 10 days this time (the previous 2 bouts have been 5 days each). Then back to make sure the ear drum is healing properly. The doc actually couldn't even see anything in his ear on Mon, it was too full of discharge.

Poor kid. And Landon will let you know when he's feeling particularly miserable ... he comes up and says "poor Landon". Cracks me up.
So no swimming this week, or next likely. Hopefully they'll have drop-in swimming still in the summer, although I'm getting close to popping here, so I don't know how much we'll take advantage. I guess we'll try to get in there sometimes, when John's off work. Plus when it's nice out we can fill the pool a bit.
We did get outside for a bit today, but his ear must be bugging him a bit as he would pull at it when the wind got up. But at least he did play outside for a bit.
The upside is that he sleeps LOTS! He's been sleeping in, then LoooooNG naps, and to bed 'on time' (which is still late, but it's on time for us :-/). John's been putting him to bed too ... getting prepared for baby's arrival. Landon doesn't particularly go for that yet, but he's getting better. I still have to go in and say good-night again after stories are read, etc, but it's getting better.

I'm anxious to get some yard work in. Hoping to get some trees ordered for delivery to go in maybe on the weekend ... if I can convince Landon to go to the nursery tomorrow. The only way to get him there is to promise that he can see the kitty that's there. But now that I know what I want, I just need to go in and order them and hopefully they can deliver in a reasonable time. We'll see... But it's supposed to be a beautiful long weekend (I'll believe THAT when I see it), so we'll spend time outside.

Until next time...

Little pisser!

That Landon - aiaiaiai. Last night, not once but TWICE, he took off his diaper and then peed in his bed! *shaking head* Now ... shame on me for not realizing the first time that he still had more pee in him. And maybe I shouldn't be quite so stern on the 'stay in bed' command ... I tried to explain to him that if he wants to pee on his potty he can get out of bed to do that, although I'd much rather he just went to sleep and peed in his diaper - that's what it's there for after all!! LOL Good thing we had extra clean sheets, and I could wash them all up right away today in preparation for tonight's waterworks (if there are any).

We went to the Telus Science Centre yesterday - met a friend from University there with her two kids. It was GREAT to see her and to watch the boys playing (it's a Bob the Builder display right now). It was WAY packed in there, but so much fun. We didn't go to the Children's Museum at all, and didn't even see all there was to see of the Science Centre, so I'm hoping to go back again before Bob the Builder is gone. It was lots of fun though. Landon loved the bulldozer (I guess that's the next toy we'll have to buy for him!), and then we discovered a farming section too with a tractor and everything right when we were leaving, so I'll have to take him back to explore that!

Landon did a bit better at swimming lessons on Wed. He didn't like it at the start, but by the end he was having more fun. So we'll see how it goes on this upcoming (last) week of lessons ... he'll probably start liking it now! It made me realize how I need to get him into some group things so that he can learn to appreciate doing activities as a group (vs always individually). Of course his favourite was playing in the toddler pool after his lesson - we were there for another hour. But at least we're there and don't get turned away for the pool being full (they were turning people away again Wed, just like on Mon when we went and were turned away).

On the sleeping front, things seem to be turning around. Landon is going to sleep easier (even with the peeing the bed thing!), and today he was awake and up all by himself at 9:30 (I don't remember the last time THAT happened). So maybe, just maybe, we're turning a corner? Maybe. We'll see. He's been fighting naps harder recently, although this afternoon he went down easier. If it's not one thing it's another I guess. At least right now he's eating his meals really well too - instead of fighting us at suppertime like he did for a few weeks!!

And YAY - they're putting up our fence posts today (yup - digging through the snow!!)!! So we should have a fence complete by next week! Hallellujia!! I can hardly wait :-) That and we're getting lumber / drywall / etc delivered today so John has his work cut out for him in the basement. We'll be working in the basement and in the backyard for the whole month of May (well, in the backyard assuming it stops snowing!! LOL)! I'm looking forward to it, sort of. Hopefully my back holds out - that's the only part of me that gets sore when I do too much. But I'm sure Landon and I will be spending plenty of time outside in upcoming weeks.

That's the news today. Oh yeah, other good news is that John doesn't have to go on his business trip next week (PHEW!) so Landon doesn't have to be all put-out that John's not home. I am VERY pleased about that. Until next time...

We Missed our Weekend Trip :-(

Nice weather, Calgary!! We ended up not going back to Sk for mom & dad's anniversary on the weekend, the weather was too miserable. It's been snowing (!!) in Calgary since Friday ... today's DAY 5! Enough already!!
But we had a nice weekend at home. I looked back and it's our first weekend without visitors or traveling since early Feb (and then Landon and I were sick, so does that even count?). No wonder it felt so good to just hang out at home! LOL

Landon wasn't too bad - I thought he'd suffer more from cabin-fever than he did. But we managed to get him out every day, even if it was just to the store with dad (he asks to do that now ... he must've had fun with dad!). We were going to go swimming yesterday, but the pool was 'full' (yeah, full ... wtf? they had only 2 lifeguards on for toddler swim time, so wouldn't accept any more kids ... like, get some more lifeguards on duty - don't they know it's been snowing for days!!??). So we just grocery shopped instead :-/ Landon was so disappointed though - he was standing at the glass looking in at the pool "swimming! swimming!" Poor guy. Instead he got to buy a loader tractor at Superstore. heh heh

We went to the doc today and FINALLY Landon does NOT have an ear infection!! YAY It's all cleared up. And he's done his 2-weeks of Sinulair, so now we see if this post-nasal drip returns. If so, he's likely got allergies. If not, he just had an infection that just wouldn't quit. He's eating WAY better now, at mealtimes even, so hopefully that's all it was and we're out of the woods.

Sleep - different story. He just keeps pushing at night and won't go to sleep forEVER when we put him to bed. I've been keeping him up later and later, hoping he'll go to sleep faster, but to no avail. Last night I put him to bed 1 hour earlier and he went to sleep 1.5 hours earlier, so maybe he's just been so wound up and overtired that he fought sleep that much harder? Who knows. He fought his nap today again ... grrrr. But we'll put him to bed at the same time as last night again tonight and see if that helps. It's a good thing he's so good natured, even so late at night. He's always in a good mood it seems, so it's easier to handle the wonky hours!! LOL

That seems to be the news for today ... still snowing, hopefully that will quit soon!

Swimming lessons still no fun

Landon still doesn't like his swimming lessons. He wasn't even that thrilled to be in the pool at all. He just wants to get into the toddler pool and play with the boats!! We made it through the lesson with minimal screaming, but also with minimal participation. He'd just cling to me, and wouldn't even blow bubbles (one of his favourite tricks in the bathtub). Ah well, only a couple of lessons left. Maybe next year he'll be more into organized play in the pool. He did love the toddler pool with the boats and other kids, and enjoyed the hottub too (I loved putting my legs in and really look forward to being able to sit in the hottub again!).
The best thing about swimming is he's so tuckered out he has a GREAT nap afterwards! LOL

Swimming is FUN

Landon definitely loves the pool! Not the swimming lessons part, but the time afterwards when he can play! He was fussing all through swimming lessons - wanting to play with the boats, and in the bubbles, and do everything except what we were doing. But once we got through lessons, he was very happy to play in the toddler pool - for an hour!! LOL It makes me think that Friday at the waterpark in Edmonton should be a ton of fun.

When we got home, Landon had a sandwich and then almost fell asleep on the couch. So I carried him up to bed - he hasn't been so co-operative to go down for a nap for ages! LOL But it's been a good nap, so that makes me happy.

Tomorrow Landon and I are headed to Edmonton to visit with Rhonda. I'm very much looking forward to that - it's been far too long since we had a chance to visit. And I know Landon will love the waterpark on Friday.

I found the camera today (it was in the bag with our pool gear...), so here's a picture of Landon in the tractor with Grandpa at the farm last week. He was pretty concerned about the whole thing when he first went in there, but once they got going Landon enjoyed himself.

New fun and games...

Yesterday I noticed that Landon is really starting to play with his toys in the manner in which they were intended (versus just chewing on them and throwing them around, or banging them together). Like his shape-sorters. Aunty Liz gave him a truck shape-sorter for Christmas. Now he's enjoyed that truck, driving it around, pushing the sounds to make buttons, and even putting the shapes in (with lots of help from me). But yesterday he was really 'getting' it with the shapes - understanding that the square goes in the side so he has to turn the truck, etc.

We also bought a shape-sorter toy (actually got it through the Pampers Gifts-to-Grow campaign) almost a year ago already. He's played a bit with it, but now he sorts the shapes and last night he figured out how to stack the lego pieces. You should've seen his face. Here's a picture, but it really doesn't do it justice. The moment he sat back and looked at the tower that he built (I held it so it wouldn't fall over, but he built it) ... well his eyes lit up, he had the hugest smile, and he put his arms up "ta-da!". It was soooo cute. Made me proud too :-)

And this morning he figured out the fun of putting the rings on his ring-toy thingy ( I don't know what it's called ... you know, where you stack the 5 rings ... *sigh* *shrug*). So he was doing that for awhile and loving it.

And the fun stage has begun in that he has also realized the sheer joy in pulling every single toy out of his closet that he can. And he knows how to open and close the closet doors himself (no pinched fingers ... yet) so he gets in there whenever he wants to. His room is looking like a cyclone has gone through it, and I'm thinking it will look like that every day for the rest of our lives!! LOL

This morning we had gym + swim again (every Mon til the end of Oct). Today he enjoyed the gym part more, especially the small trampoline where he jumped jumped jumped. The pool he wasn't as interested in, but I think that's because he played himself out in the gym :-) He really clung onto me in the pool. Also, he woke up a bit earlier today (now hold on to your hats -- he woke up at 9:30 am!!), and he felt a bit warm, so I'm thinking he might be getting teeth or getting sick. Last night his cheeks were sooooo red when he went to bed! You can see it in the pic above too, how red his cheeks were. So maybe some new teeth coming (which would explain his waking up in the night a couple of weeks ago - he tends to be fussy a couple of weeks before his teeth come, versus when they're actually coming in.

That's the news - not much really...but that's the news. Will post again soon...until next time! TK

Gym and Swim

We had our first 'gym and swim' class today. Landon was okay with the gym part - but it was the swimming that he really enjoyed. Actually, as soon as he saw the pool he was trying to escape from the gym to get to it :-) And once we were in the pool, he didn't really want to just hang out and do the songs and games, he wanted to do his own thing! Poor kid. He enjoyed running around the shallow part, doing some frontal floats (accidentally), and he still loves the river part. Thankfully he tolerated the games and songs too, so that wasn't too bad I guess. He'll likely get more used to it as the weeks go on.

We had a fun visit with Aunty Laura. So fun that Landon didn't want to go to sleep Sat night (of course). We are struggling to get his schedule moved up earlier ... but it's getting a bit better. We have been up at 10 or shortly after the past few days, and we'll move it up to 9:30 shortly. That's where we'll leave it I'm thinking, and when daylight savings kicks in we'll be getting up at 8:30. Maybe, we'll see how this all goes! LOL

Grandma and Grandpa are coming up for a visit this week. Will be here tomorrow -- YAY! We are planning some outings, but it's supposed to rain on Wed, yuck! But hopefully we'll get to either Butterfield Acres or to Heritage Park, and maybe the Telus Center if it's rainy Wed.

So not too much news really I guess. My chair is all pen-free and beautiful again (now that it's dry, there's no hairspray stains either). I'm still enjoying doing my yoga. John starts jamming with his new band tonight (he's been practising LOTS the past few days), and he starts his university class tomorrow night. That's that - will post again after Grandma and Grandpa are here....TK

Home again...

Well, we are home again after spending 5 days at Eston Park. It was quite nice - peaceful, relaxing. We went swimming several times, which Landon loved. He kicked, splashed, dunked his face in the water, blew bubbles (sort of). The pool was great, with a paddling pool, then a very shallow end of the big pool. So Landon splashed and ran in the paddling pool, and then in the big pool he'd run into the deeper water until it was up to his neck, then I'd catch him and we'd do it all again. He really really had fun.

We also did lots of walking around, it was very quiet out there so Landon was pretty free to run around. Makes it harder now that we're back home, he doesn't want to walk where we are at all, but it was great while there.

Carla and Dave, Jackson and Ryder were up for a few days too (to Eston). So Landon LOVED playing with Jackson and Ryder ... Ryder and Landon will be trouble-makers together for many many years I'm thinking :-/ They brought their quad up too, so Landon got to go for rides and he thought that was pretty cool.

We did some golfing as well on their very nice 9-hole course. And the kids did some mini-golfing too.
John was down for the weekend, it was a lot of driving for only one full day, but he enjoyed it too. And Yvonne was there for most nights (had to work during the day), and even Greg and Kyle came out on Friday for a visit too.
So it was a great weekend in Eston. Has John and I dreaming of buying a cabin again .... *sigh* We're just debating if the 4.5 hour drive is worth investing in a cabin or not .... hmmmm

So now we're glad to be home again. Funny how that works - you look forward to going away for a few days, then you're glad to be home again. Huh. Uncle Bob and Aunty Rosemary are planning to come next week Monday. And I'm debating about heading to the farm for the long weekend --- maybe I'll just stay home, that's a lot of driving. We'll see ... it all depends on how long it takes me to recover from this last trip. Even though Landon travels incredibly well.

On to other news...
Landon's learning to feed himself now, he did pretty well with apple sauce tonight. At least there wasn't any applesauce all over the house.... So that's good stuff I'm thinking, I'll be glad when he gets better at that.

That's the news from here for today. I'll get some pics up soon...until next time! TK