Where To Start...

The end of 2009 and the start of 2010 has flown by for me. I keep looking at my blog, and can't believe that I have not had a second to sit down and update it. Here is a quick recap of the last few months:

• My sister in law Carrie and her hubby Chris had a beautiful baby boy on December 13th. They named him Carter Owen Hodgson. He is perfect! Ben loves holding him and is getting good at saying "Carter"... its so cute. He is so gentle with him and will "pet" his head. He will look at him and then hold his fingers up to his face like he is going to pinch you and then say "little little" - I love it!
  
  


• Ben had his second Christmas this year! What a spoiled boy. He is starting to understand "Santa" and loved his advent calendar each morning. He would wake up and the first work out of his mouth would be "ka ka", which is "chocolate". "Ka ka" would be followed by "Santa" and that would mean "get me downstairs so I can get my chocolate from Santa"... what a funny little man! He enjoyed unwrapping his gifts this year and was very patient with it all, which was very surprising. We did not do a Santa photo this year. He was so in love with Santa photos and Santa on TV or in the house, that I did not want to sit him on Santa's lap and have him get scared and then ruin the magic of Santa this year. I think next year he may be ready - we'll see. Christmas seemed to go by so fast. I had the Shaw family over for Christmas Eve dinner and then we went to my mom and dad's for Christmas Day. Lots of food and lots of fun!
  
  


• We spent New Year's with some friends and their little ones in Fairmont. It was a blast! Ben had so much fun with his two "girlfriends" Taylor and Emmerson and his little buddy, Baby Mack. The girls and I took a day to go to the spa and get pampered and went into Invermere for lunch and some shopping. Great dinners, good games and lots of laughs - a great way to start 2010!
  
  


• We got spoiled this year at Christmas by my parents and they took Dave, Ben and me to Kauai, Hawaii! It was amazing!!! We were there for a week and the weather was mostly nice. It was funny because one day while Ben was napping, my mom and I headed to the beach. It was windy and the sun was mostly behind the clouds, but that did not stop us. We got rained on (the rain was just a mist though - very neat feeling). I had to laugh, because only Canadians would be out in the rain in bathing suits trying to suntan! Dave, my dad and I went Zip lining one day - that was definitely an adventure! We went to a Luau at the Resort we were staying at - Ben loved it! There were the hula dancers, male and female, as well as the fire dancers - it was awesome! The food was amazing as well! Ben learned to swim by himself (with water wings of course). He was so proud! He grew up so much on that holiday! Our vacation seemed to go so fast and before we knew it we were home again.
  
  


• The very next weekend (this past Sunday) I threw Carrie and Mr. Carter a baby shower. There were a whole bunch of friends and family that came and I think it went well. Carter got spoiled! I had a diaper raffle where everyone could bring diapers and/or wipes and be entered for a draw to win some yummy lotions and bath stuff. Carrie ended up getting so many diapers and wipes - it was great!
  
  

And that takes us to today, where as you can see in the post before this one, I set up a new blog along with Colleen and Amanda. I think it will be lots of fun - we'll see if I can keep up with them both... I will try and get better because I am sure these super long posts are not THAT enjoyable - but at least everyone is updated with everything.... now for the photos! This will probably feel like sitting through a "family vacation slide show", so skip what you want and ENJOY!

Me, Ben, Dave, Carrie, Chris and Mr. Carter; December 2009



The "before" and the "after" - dosen't my little man clean up good!? This was right before we left to my office Christmas party... lookin' pretty spiffy!



Christmas morning. He was pretty good with the wrapping paper. Hudson waited patiently for it to hit the ground and then his fun began!



Christmas Eve at out house with the Shaws and Gillies... not sure why I don't have any Christmas Day photos... must be on mom's camera. The last photo of Ben in his hat was at bathtime... he would not take it off - his best gift this year overall - from his Gram and Grandad.



New Year's with the Caharels, Schneiders and Shaws - best New Year's Ever!







Ok, so that is all I can do tonight... I will add in some shower photos tomorrow if I get a chance. Almost all caught up... almost!

New Blog!

I have a fun new blog that my girlfriend, one of her friends and I started today! It is called Sticky Notes and I think it will be lots of fun! I got this idea from another blog that I follow and thought that it would be lots of fun to try!

The idea is that three people, friends on different sides of the world will blog together on one blog, at the same time of day, showing photos of their "world". It is such a fun idea I wanted to try it! I just happen to have a best friend that lives in Doha Qatar right now, and after talking with her last night, we decided to give it a try.... We also have a friend in Calgary - I know that is not too far from me, but it is still great! I know I hardly have time to update this blog, but this was something I really wanted to do with them! It will be fun to see each other's lives while we are living so far apart. I have a feeling, that other than the weather, our lives are still very similar!

Enjoy reading it and I PROMISE to update this blog tonight! PROMISE!

The link is on the right hand side of my page - it is called Sticky Notes

I'm Still Here

I can't believe that my last post was about getting ready for Christmas and it is already the New Year! My life has been flying by lately! I have so many photos to post, but I just cannot find the time, so for now, I'm just writing to say Happy New Year and a belated Merry Christmas! We spent our New Years in Fairmont with some friends and their kiddies. We all had so much fun! Lots of photos from that too!

We leave for Hawaii in 1 week - I can't wait!! Here is the link to where we will be staying - it looks beautiful!!! My dad is on a conference there, so we will be "tagging" along ;)

http://kauai.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp?icamp=grandhyattkauairedirect


As for photos... stay tuned - they will get on here!

Rested, Relaxed and Ready for Christmas...almost

This past weekend was amazing!!! 3 of my girlfriends and I went to the Banff Springs for the weekend and spent most of our time at the spa there - it was perfect! I have never been to a spa so beautiful!! I felt like royalty - lunch was brought to us while we rested in huge individual couches with warm blankets, we had our own private pool that was in the spa. There were 2 different kinds of saunas - one was a normal one and the other was a eucalyptus sauna (great for sinuses). I had a Hot Stone Massage and then a Pedicure in the afternoon....ahhhh!

We did some shopping, lots of eating and a lot of "spa-ing" - could not have asked for a more relaxing weekend. I was so happy to come home to my 3 boys though - I sure missed them all!

Ben was at my mom and dad's house tonight and Dave was out working, so I had the house to myself. I have a Christmas bake exchange this Friday at my house, so I thought I'd decorate a bit and start my baking. There are going to be 9 ladies, including myself, and we each need to bake 9 dozen of one thing. How it works is everyone shows up, has some drinks, talks, listens to Christmas music and basically gets a night "out" and then we all pass out our baking... everyone ends up with 1 dozen of everything that was brought.... Christmas baking done and December hasn't even started! I think it will be a lot of fun. As you can see, I made 9 dozen Butter Tarts tonight.... very tedious!!!

While they were baking, I made a quick Christmas banner to hang over the fireplace - nothing fancy, just something quick and festive (I added some "bling" to make it sparkle - you can't really tell from the picture)

All in all, it was a nice evening!

Swimming, Trees and Treats

This past weekend was a great one! Friday, Ben had swimming and Gram and Auntie Carrie came to watch... Ben was a bit grumpy and being a "mama's boy".. so at times it made it hard for Dave to keep him in the water and not wanting me. We got through it and then went to Montana's for dinner with Gram and Grandad. We were there for 2 hours and Ben was such a good boy! Gram and I sat and entertained him at our end of the table. We colored, read book and played with cars on the table, while Grandad and Dave talked. At the end of the meal, they brought us the bill and some suckers...Ben's eyes lit up (he has never had a sucker before). I did not think it was the smartest thing to give a 20 month old, but I told him to suck it and NO biting.... he listened so well. He licked the sucker the WHOLE way home, not once taking a bite! When we got home, the first thing he did was take the stick to the garbage - he is very tidy!

We had a nice visit with Gram and Grandad that night - it was late, so they could not stay long... Ben and Grandad were dancing like the Wiggles and Gram and him were playing hide and seek! I wish I had my camera that night.... next time!

Saturday we put up the Christmas tree! I know it is early, but I do not have a free weekend until December and wanted to get it up. I will not turn on the lights until December 1st, but at least it is up.... I love my tree!

Sunday was my mom's birthday. I made a cake and cupcakes and we had the Keg for dinner. Yum! It was a nice evening... hope mom had a good day!

This weekend was a great "family" one! We have not had a weekend where Dave has no jobs to go to and can just be at home! There needs to be more weekends like this past one!

If anyone is wondering.... I will not be showing photos of our decorated tree until December 1st when we turn its lights on....maybe a few days sooner if I get too impatient (like that will ever happen) ;)

Banana Bread and Lights

Last week seemed to fly by! Last Sunday, Ben and I spent the day inside while Dave worked outside. I did not know what to do with Ben... he seemed tired of playing with toys and I just could not bring myself to read "Peter the Cruise Ship from Alaska" one more time! My uncle - aka Great Uncle Booga, decided to get Ben a book when they were on their cruise with my parents a few months ago. When he was in Edmonton, he gave it to Ben and Ben was not too sure about either the book or Great Uncle Booga. It didn't take long before Uncle Booga and "Benny Terry" were buds... and the book has been one of his favorite ever since. We sometimes read it 5 times a day! I feel like a bad mom, but some days I "hide" it, so I get a break from good old Peter and his friends Push and Gulp the tug boats - oh, you can't forget his eagle friend, Baldie.... ;) Anyway, I have gotten off track....

I was sure the next thing he would want to do was get out the "Book", so I decided to see if he wanted to make Banana Bread instead... he raced into the kitchen and pushed the stool over to the counter (that's his spot for baking). He is getting so good... I read out the ingredients one at a time and how much we need. He watches me go and get the ingredients and then he helps me put everything into the bowl. His favorite part is turning on the mixer AND beating the eggs in a bowl..... what a cutie - he takes his time and is so determined. It is great, because he listens great and is so calm - a nice and relaxing activity AND we get baking out of it! He crouches down by the glass of the oven and watches his creations bake....love it!

I went outside after we were done to check on Dave and he was working away, putting up Christmas lights.... what a great guy! I can't wait until we get to turn them on!!!

I HAD to throw this photo in.... this was Ben after his new haircut... a Mohawk!

Halloween 2009


(a little blurry, but our only family shot of the night)

We had such a great day yesterday with Ben. This was his second Halloween, but the first one where he actually knew what was going on. He was so excited to get into his costume this year. We first stopped at a few of his friends' houses to drop off some goodies. We made cupcakes and little treats for everyone. We then went to Gram and Grandad's house and Auntie Carrie was there too! Ben got to see them for a bit before we went off trick or treating. He stocked up on some treats from their house and then we stopped at Uncle Jon's house - he was waiting for us all dressed up! It was funny, because Ben was a little unsure at first and didn't want his picture with him... When we were leaving we tried again, and we got a great photo of Mr. Penguin and Captain America - very cute!

Then it was on to Granny and Boompa's house, where we also got to see uncle Richard all dressed up and waiting for Ben. Ben loved that costume - a big Puppy! We all ate dinner and went off trick or treating. Richard and Ben would go up to the doors and get their candy... the first house Ben did not understand what to do, but by the end, he was running up to the doors and opening his bag himself(with a bit of help. We all had a blast...It was nice that the boys dressed up for him AND let me take their pictures! I think Rich and Ben had fun trick or treating together. I know I had fun "testing" Ben's candy to make sure it was all safe! ;)

Happy Halloween!



Captain America and Mr. Penguin



let the fun begin!



a puppy and a penguin



checking out the loot



after a hard night's work



sampling the goods

Before and After




Lately, Hudson has been shedding so much. I don't know why this year is the worst, but it is!!! There are clumps of hair all around the house and any free minute I have is spent vacuuming them up. It is starting to drive me crazy! I decided to take him to Fabulous Furballs to get trimmed and brushed. They shampooed, conditioned, blow dried, clipped nails, raked the heck out of his hair and gave him a nice "puppy cut". Before we left, I took a photo of him. Ben got quite mad that I was not taking His photo, so I had to take his too...

I was so impressed with this "salon"... all of the groomers were in smocks with "bling" on the backs of them (there names were done in Swarovsky crystals). Everyone there was quite trendy... lots of guys with tattoos and piercings and the women were all quite funky. The salon was beautiful... chandelier on the ceiling and great decor... quite out of place for a grooming shop - I liked it! Anyway, we picked Hudson up later on that day and WHAT a difference! He looked so much younger and less "frizzy".... When we got home, I took an "After" photo of him and again, Ben started to fuss. I asked him if he wanted his photo taken, and he quickly stopped whining and posed for a shot - what a funny guy!



This was Hudson's "before"


This was Benjamin's "before"


This was Hudson's "after"


This was Benjamin's "after"

"Num Num"




Today, Ben I and I did some baking. He had his breakfast and I was not sure what we should do until nap time, so I pulled out my cookie cookbook and the first page that opened, was.....my favorite cookie ever! SNICKERDOODLES!

I asked Ben if he wanted to "help mommy make cookies for daddy" and his answer was "num num" (I'll take that as a yes!). He was such a good helper - mixing the eggs with a spoon, helping pour the sugar in the mixing bowl and watching them in the oven while the cooked, all the while saying "num num".... When the timer went off, he can running to the oven. He knows to stay back while mommy has the oven door open...he will stand at the end of the kitchen and not even take one step until the door is fully closed and I give him the "okay". We let them cool and then sat in the kitchen and did our taste testing... you can imagine what words came out of Mr. Benjamin's mouth...."num num!"

I think we will try and bake more often - that way he learns about the kitchen and daddy gets fresh cookies when he gets home! Its a win win! I just need to find him a cute little apron (a cute BOY apron that is)






I got a cute Halloween plate a few weeks ago and thought it would be cute for our cookies today - we'll see how long they last on the plate ;)

Ooooohhh... Halloween is almost here!

I must say, Ben and I were quite productive today! We had his "Time for Two's" class this morning with his 2 "girlfriends" Taylor and Emmerson - they are twins that are 1 week younger than Ben. I met their mom in my mom's group about 6 months ago and honestly, I think they play together at least every other day. They are great girls and Paulette is a awesome girlfriend! Anyway, after our Class we came home and Ben had a 2 1/2 hour nap.. which gave me 2 1/2 hours to get some work done...very nice! When he woke up, we had lunch and then decorated the house for Halloween. He had so much fun "helping" me put decorations on the doors and on the walls...he is a hoot!

I loved this sign. It is metal and looks nice and antiquey (is that a word?)


My lovely cream colored pumpkin... a great Hallmark find (by my mom!)

A fun little metal sign... Ben likes to scream every time he passes by the spider...

Ok, so here is where the real fun began... I told Ben to watch Hudson for me as I quickly stepped outside onto the porch to take a photo of the front landing and my wreath. They were out of view and down the hallway a bit. I could see them, but the camera could not (as I was trying to get focused). I took the photo and looked at it on the camera, and saw my 2 boys right in the shot. I started to laugh, which made Ben laugh too... the next thing you know, he has his face pressed right up against the window and is laughing and licking it....

So much for a "Martha Stewart" shot.... oh well, I like this one better! ;)

I know I have been posting long blog entries lately... I have just not been on here for a while so I am making up for it now I guess. This little video is of Ben tonight. He is quite the performer lately. He LOVES the Rock A By Bear song by who else but the Wiggles. He knows all of the actions and whenever we are in the computer room, he points to the computer for me to play it. I had the camera on my knee and he did not know it was on. Here he is dancing one last time before his bath...it is so funny that even at his age, if he knows I am video taping him he gets embarrassed or shy and won't do it, but if I pretend that I am not he dances away!

Let's Go Bananas!


Last Sunday, we took Ben to his very first concert! It was the Wiggles...his favorite "band". He loves to watch them on TV and whenever he hears their music, he stops and starts to dance. I remember first watching them on TV when he was only a few months old and he loved the bright colors and music. I would get teary back then because I would imagine him at one of the concerts dancing and clapping.. I used to think I was so lucky to have a baby and that one day "when he was big", we could go to one of their concerts. I never thought they would come to Edmonton (seeing as they are from Australia and back then I did not know how "cool" and popular they are)...When I heard they were coming, I think I was more excited then Ben!!

Before we left, I told Dave that if we make it to at least the half way point of the show, I'll be happy. I packed books, water, treats and toys, just to make sure that he stayed in his seat and that he stayed occupied...he has a great attention span for certain things, but I was not sure how he would do. As soon as we got there and got seated he had his eyes glued to the stage. It was probably 15 minutes before the show started, but he did not even try and get off of my lap... he stayed there for the entire show! (he got up a few times in the aisle, but just to dance). We were so proud of him. When the show was over, he even walked holding our hands the entire way to the truck...what a big boy!

Dave got him his first concert T-shirt... it has all of the Wiggles' faces on it. When he wears it now, we have to first go through and he will point at each of them and I have to say their names. Sometimes, if I'm lucky, we'll get to do it a few times before the shirt goes on... needless to say - we only wear it if we are not in a rush to get dressed! ;) I love him to bits!

family photo....the best we could do

Ben and Dad rockin' out

the stage

the Wiggles!

Dave was able to get this video when Ben didn't see him... this is him half way in, clapping away to the music... I love it!