This time three years ago I was holding my new freshly ‘popped’ out baby girl in my arms and enjoying that moment where you get to finally meet that little person that was beating you up from the inside for a few months. Now she’s all tucked into her bed after a busy day of family and partying. Time really does fly by. I’ve always enjoyed my kids and they all are my favourite for different reasons but today we got to celebrate Madison Moffat Beattie being chosen for us, a perfect fit to our family!
As per her request we gave her a rainbow party to the extreme. This week as I prepared rainbow jell-o, rainbow pudding pops, rainbow cupcakes decorated with rainbow icing I was continually motivated by her excited as she would jump up and down with the smile only Maddy can have each time she saw a rainbow treat made for her birthday. So I continued to work hard in the kitchen enjoying that smile. I even had an extra burst of energy and arranged skittles into a rainbow to let the adults take a guess at home many it took to fill the jar (846).
I’d like to point out that I proved social networking can work to someones advantage with this party since I took quite a few idea’s from pinterest to pull off the rainbow magic. All easy but time consuming since I had to make 30 of everything in case every cousin, aunt, uncle and grandparent wanted a taste. I have to admit I thought the JELL-O was pretty! and the frozen pudding pops didn’t turn out too bad either.
We made kool-aid ice cubes so they were rainbow-ish and filled cups with sprite and dropped the ice cubes in and Ryan topped them off with Rainbow licorice as straws, how genius is he!? Of course the grand finale was the cupcakes. I added food colouring to the cake mix and adding each colour individually causing the cupcakes to cook like rainbows and topped them off with rainbow swirls. Again really easy, just time consuming … I cannot say enough good things about Wilton’s colour gel when dealing with icing. Such vibrant colours!
And so as my baby girl isn’t a baby anymore I’d like to take a few moments and share why she’s just so special to us: A smile that melts our hearts – she has this look that our other kids didn’t really have that I can hardly resist. She’s always smiling (or screaming but mostly smiling). She’s our entertainer – Maddy LOVES attention and loves doing funny things to get it. She’s a dancing queen – She has always loved dancing and can’t resist a good tune, she especially loves dancing in front of a mirror or watching her reflection in the television. It’s hilarious. She is so polite – She thanks me for every dinner, almost always says please and thank you and loves to help set the table. She like me to sing to her when I tuck her in – I’ve sung to each my babies even though I’m tone deaf but Maddy recently has been asking me to sing to her the “Child of God song” or “Family” or “Temple” song when I put her to bed. It makes me feel good inside to have her like those moments with me. Her eyes always sparkle with happiness – I believe that my kids will never be able to deny they are loved. They are surrounded by people who love them and want them to be happy. Madison’s eyes are always sparkling with an inner happiness and I can even catch that glimmer on the camera from time to time.
So, yay for Madison and her turning three. We love her and I can’t imagine our little family without her being a part of it. She definitely is something special.
What do you do when there isn’t any snow to play in? You go and find some!
We took off to Waterton National Park to celebrate Winterfest 2012 for the day. We weren’t too sure what to expect as far as weather but as we started getting closer it looked like the mountains were lost in a dark grey cloud which promised snow! As soon as we parked the kids were out of the van and playing in snow like they’d never seen it before. The sled came out and all three kids squished on and Ryan pulled them as we walked up to Cameron Falls. The falls looked pretty amazing with the huge frozen icicles falling and the water running underneath. The kids took off up a hill and took turns whipping down, it’s the first time they’ve been able to go tobogganing this year and they definitely were pretty excited about it … Well, Brayden and Sydney at least. Madison seemed a little freaked out about the whole thing. Not a winter lover but who can blame our little Filipina? Made for the tropics.
We made our way back to the lodge for a warm up, filled our tummies with some food (FYI: wouldn’t recommend the yak steak) and took off back to Lethbridge. Over all nice day trip out of the city!
Happy Family Day weekend everyone!
Since we moved back to Canada we’ve been trying to get a couple things that we kind of missed out on being in the Philippines for 5 years. A few examples being: our super amazing van, our new big TV with surround sound and of course most recently, Ryan’s Harley. It’s been nice to finally get some of these ‘toys’ after dreaming about them for so long but I think one of the coolest things we got were these two little pocket bikes for the kids. They are awesome! No bigger then their bikes now, no heavier and just fast enough to make me worry (up to 50 km/hour). Brayden is in heaven! He loves that he can ride his very own motorbike just like dad but he does kind of think it sucks that he can’t drive it anywhere but the farm or the mountains. I think he was hoping he’d be able to drive it to school or to the park … UM, my worst nightmare. Watching him drive around the farm with a big smile on my face is hard enough. Thankfully he can’t see my toes curling up in my shoes and my fingers nervously clenched into fists as he rips around on that thing while I’m giving him encouragement and whooping and hollering with enthusiasm. Just a little bit of mixed emotions going on for me, that nervous excitement. *sigh* I suppose that’s parenting.
Now if we could only get Sydney going on a two wheeler so she can join him!
Well … Ryan decided it was time to add a Harley Davidson to the family so he patiently stalked the online auctions until he found one that would suffice for a time. I’d like to mention that I was the one who technically did the bidding and won the bike but under his direction of course. He’s not too sure that this is the bike for him but it will be a start for the season and give him something to ride once the weather turns a little warmer. Of course it’s nothing like driving around the Philippines with all the laws enforced in the true north, strong and free (Canada), but I guess the open highways at top speeds will make up for the lack of weaving in and out of treacherous traffic!
I like the bike, the kids like it but I guess it’s just not quite ‘big’ enough for him. It came with some nice soft bags which I love, no big scratches or anything like that. I guess the only thing I think has to go is the leather tassles … unless of course it’s going to be my bike one day, then they can stay!
I personally think that staying up until midnight to say happy new year to whoever happens to be around is a little over rated. Party pooper, I know, “every party has a pooper that’s why we invited you, Meeeghaaan Beatttttie.”
We turn a new page on the calendar just like any other month and we have to adjust to writing 2012 just after I finally got into the habit of writing 2011 not 2010 and my three little alarm clocks (Brayden, Sydney and Madison) are pretty consistent no matter what time they go to bed. However I do enjoy taking the time to reflect on the past 12 months and think of all the things we’ve learned and accomplished. 2011 was a pretty big year for us Beatties and I’d like to share a few our accomplishments with you:
*We are a diaper free family! Yay. In the first half of the year Maddy was potty trained. No pull ups at night or anything. Toilet only family.
*Ryan made it to 5 years in the Philippines with Focus. 5 years in the Philippines
*Ryan started a new job
*We packed up and moved back to Southern Alberta, Canada. No more whirl wind weekend adventures exploring Southeast Asia
*Brayden and Sydney started their first year in the Canadian school curriculum and are truly thriving
*Along the way with our experiences I gained a greater appreciation for individual trials and that mine are mine
*We added a member to our family, Sage the cat
*We finally got our first HD TV
*We also finally got a van, and not just any van but a fully loaded beauty of a van. Worth the years of waiting
*Somehow I fell even more in love with my little family
Looking back at all the different things we did and learned throughout the last year I feel so thankful for everything I have been blessed with and extremely grateful for all the different opportunities that have been put in our paths and all the support we’ve been given along our way. Not to say that our lives are perfect or easy because that is far from the truth but in the end things have always seemed to work out to benefit us just how we needed it to. He truly does know what we need and what we need to learn.
SO, our new years eve was pleasant and uneventful. We brought our fondue stuff out to Invermere, B.C. with us for a feast on New Years Eve. We had an enormous amount of food and dips and just pigged out. It was awesome. After the kids were done with their grub we dumped them all in the tub with glow sticks, turned off the light and left them to enjoy (thanks to pinterest for that idea). They loved playing with the glow sticks and they were in the tub forever. While they were playing around we took advantage of the lack of kids fondue sticks filling up the pots and let the oil reheat and ate some more.
Some how I managed to stay up until midnight when we facetimed with my sister Kait who was in downtown Vancouver. She gave us a tour of Raw Canvas, where they were spending their new years. We lamely counted down and wished them a happy new year from the night club (Raw Canvas) her boyfriend Matthew manages (I hope you guys appreciate the Raw Canvas plug) and then I went downstairs straight to bed.
Cheers 2012!
Invermere is sandwiched between Radium Hot Springs and Fairmont. Both nice spots and as nice as i is to sit in the hot pools at Radium it always seems to be over flowing with tourists … oh and did I mention the cover charge to get in!? Times 5. BOO. Instead of the over crowded, over priced Radium we went au natural and made our way to Whiteswan Lake Provincial Park to Lussier Hot Springs. It’s a small group of hot pools located at the base of the river. The top pool being the hottest and each pool getting cooler the closer you get to the river. We’ve been before when Brayden was 7 months old but shortly after that they got flooded out and destroyed. Thankfully they’ve been rebuilt and ready for the public to enjoy … for free and far better scenery!
We parked off the road and made the kids use the freezing cold porta-potties before carefully making our way down the ice covered path to the pools. Once at the pools we quickly stripped down in the freezing cold to our suits and jumped in the stinging hot water. We went early enough in the day there weren’t a bunch of people there (I think at most 2 other vehicles) and we had a pool to ourselves pretty much the entire time. The only bad thing about finding a place off the beaten road is the getting out into the piles of snow in your bare feet, dripping wet, drying off as quickly as possible and trying to run up that semi-steep path covered in a shiny sheet of ice as quickly as possible without falling face first into the snow. This was not what I wanted to be doing 5 minutes after getting into the water and settled into a semi state of relaxation when my beautiful little girl looked up at me with those big clear eyes of hers and told me she needed to “pee real bad.”
Looking at her, quickly looking up the snowy hill towards the porta potties and back to Madison I desperately tried to negotiate with her:
“Just go in the water”
Her eyes start to get frantic “NOOOOOOOO” and I can tell it goes against everything she’s been taught since potty training.
“Please Maddy, it’s ok. This is a special kind of pool.”
Again, “NoooOOOooo.” She’s not budging in her decision.
What do I do!? I know, I’ll tell Ryan. Maybe he’ll take the hike up the hill with her if I’m lucky. “Ryan, Maddy needs to pee real bad.”
He just kind of rolls his eyes as if to say sucks to be you.
Finally he takes her to the tiny warm pool off to the side making it the potty pool. He has to take her swim suit bottoms off and sit her in it as if she’s sitting on the toilet and off she goes. Crisis adverted!
After sitting in those hot pools for a while you start to get over heated and there were a couple of quick fixes: jumping into the ice cold river or just dumping big chunks of ice from the ice cold river into the hot pool with you. Trust me, it works.
I don’t know why I don’t take the kids ice skating!? They love it and they are pretty good. I had bought a couple of ice skating guides to help the kids keep their balance before we took off for the weekend which was perfect at the lake. At the ice rink they have pylons or chairs to use but on a lake it was great to have something. They took off without reservation. Sydney can get going pretty quick if she has something to lean on. Brayden has only been skating one time before and used the guide at first to get his footing and then he took off. He was so proud of himself and you could see how much he was enjoying it on his face. It was so fun to watch. Madison doesn’t have skates but she ran around on the ice and played around just fine.
It is just so beautiful down on the lake with the mountains everywhere you look. It’s nice to get out of the city sometimes and remember how amazing this world is and breathe in that fresh air. It was just amazing to get out there, watch the kids and see the views even if my toes were freezing off in my mesh toed runners. Totally worth it!
Thankfully this year it hasn’t been too cold yet. We definitely need the time to thicken up our blood and adjust back into these low temperatures after being spoiled for so long in the Philippines. Even though I appreciate the mild winter we’ve had so far I do miss the snow, especially the ‘white’ Christmas part of it. Brown Christmas with the dead grass, leaf less trees, and wind just is not pretty, just bland. After Christmas we went to Invermere for a few days to get out of town and a change of scenery. The moment I got excited and new it was going to be a great few days was when the scenery changed from brown to white!
Lots and lots of amazing white snow. The drive went smoothly with a few pit stops to get out and move our legs. At one spot there was a creek with a path packed down from cross country ski tracks up into the mountains. The snow was a few feet deep, more snow then we’ve seen all season in Lethbridge. The kids jumped out of the van and ran up and down the snow piles, threw some snow balls at each other (or more like Ryan threw snow balls at them) and when it was time to pile back into the van we had to brush the snow off their pants clinging up to their knees. While the kids ran around the parking lot happy with the amount of snow there I ran through piles of my own snow to find the bridge crossing the creek to take some pictures of the amazing untouched white white stuff surrounded by the snow topped trees. Maybe I was just a little excited because it’s been a while since I’ve seen that much snow BUT it really was beautiful I couldn’t resist! Usually the best views are off the beaten path but totally worth the extra few steps to get there, such a beautiful place.
The drive went smooth, the kids were distracted enough that it seemed relatively painless for them and we arrived with enough time to let them run for a little bit before getting them settle and into bed with promises of swimming and skating on the lake in the next few days. Yay!
We have one neighbour thanks to our corner lot and paved alley and she’s amazing. She’s always bringing over treats for the kids and Sage (the cat). Halloween she packs each of my kids a special bag of treats with a toy or two in there for them, she gave Brayden a big cardboard box of all the old LEGO she was getting rid of and since she’s on her own she LOVES to chat. You need to give yourself a good half hour if you are going over to say hello but her stories are interesting and she has a lot of history to share growing up in Germany. Two brothers died in WWII and the third was lost for a few years until the end of the war in a concentration camp. This year before Christmas she brought over a poinsettia, chocolates, her daughter brought us a Christmas tray filled with home made treats and she got the kids a gingerbread house. In return we shovel her sidewalk and keep an eye out on her since she’s getting up there in years and her husband is in a care home. The arrangement seems to work out for everyone.
So thanks Mrs. Hunter, the kids loved decorating this:
This time three years ago I was holding my new freshly ‘popped’ out baby girl in my arms and enjoying that moment where you get to finally meet that little person that was beating you up from the inside for a few months. Now she’s all tucked into her bed after a busy day of family and partying. Time really does fly by. I’ve always enjoyed my kids and they all are my favourite for different reasons but today we got to celebrate Madison Moffat Beattie being chosen for us, a perfect fit to our family!
And so as my baby girl isn’t a baby anymore I’d like to take a few moments and share why she’s just so special to us:
