Hep B Shots

Today is the day grade 7s get their first Hep B shot. In previous years when Sterling has had a flu shot it was been drama drama drama. He cries and fusses and complains and basically makes life miserable for everyone in his immediate vicinity. Today however, he has to have his Hep B shot with his entire class. Man, would I like to be a fly on the wall today. You can guarantee there will be no fussing, drama or anything else. He did however try to bribe me to let him stay home. Needless to say, he's in school.

Tis the season

Since Christmas seems to be right around the corner, I thought I would start every week posting some pictures from Christmas past. In 2003, our first year in Ontario, we returned to Saskatchewan and Alberta for the holidays. In 2004 we had our first stay at home Christmas. It was the first time in my life I hadn't been with my family. That was the year we started some of our own traditions. Here is a picture from Christmas morning 2004 that I thought was hilarious. The boys would kill me if they knew I posted this. Thankfully they don't read the blog. That year the big gifts were GT SnowRacers and Rescue Heroes. This year it's an XBOX and a laptop. The funny thing is that those gifts probably wont be much more than the piles of little ones I have ended up buying in years past. We're looking forward to having the Klassens here for Christmas and the boys are excited to be playing with their cousins. Will miss my family as I always do, but after a tough year, I am glad Jessica, the girls and mom and dad will all be together.

What's on your agenda?

Today is the first day of my weekend and I am looking forward to spending the day with the fam. Craig was kind enough to take Kaedo to soccer this morning for his 9am game as I was still in bed (there are benefits to working until midnight). We are heading out shortly to see the new Harry Potter movie - love SCENE points! - and then Sterling plays at 4pm. Grey Cup is on this evening so the boys and I will be upstairs watching tv in our room while Craig cheers on his team downstairs.
In other news, my hunky husband's team won his football championship. He also won MVP and another honor. So happy for him. He looks a little worn out today but I know he will be back to playing pick-up ball next Saturday morning. I was thrilled for him and I know he deserves all the honors he got.
I can't believe Christmas is less than a month away. Kaedo has purchased his Secret Santa gift and I have as well. That's about as far as I've gotten. I have lists and lists and hope to make my first large purchase on Thursday night.
Thursday is an exciting day here as Craig was given two tickets to see the Oilers vs. Leafs play in Toronto. He and Kaedo will be joining the 1000's of other people flocking to the arena for a night of fun. Kaedo is super excited and anyone who knows Craig knows he's excited but doesn't show it. Kaedo will be sporting his Leafs Blue and Craig will be decked out in his Oilers gear. I'm thrilled that both of them are getting the chance to go.

Happy Sunday everyone.

A few weeks ago we sat down and played Dominoes. We had a lot of fun. We have a set that gives instructions on how to pay a whole bunch of games but as we are 'instructions challenged' we ended up playing straight Dominoes and Chicken Legs, a game Sterling taught us. I thought I had pictures of Chicken Legs but I guess not. It was a fun game and we enjoyed spending the evening playing games together instead of watching TV. I know Stan and Shirley spend time playing card games with friends and family and have taught Craig and I to play some. Sterling loves to play games and must get that from his grandparents.

15 years

For 15 years we have worn these rings. I love these rings. When we chose them way back in 1995 we knew they were the ones. I love that I have never seen another quite like them. I love that after all these years Craig still wears his and I wear mine. I love to look at my ring and remember our wedding and the vows we made to each other (I remember repeating those vows looking at the justice of the peace - ha). What I know for sure is that I love Craig and the life we have built together. Through our hard times and good times we have stuck together and have made the best of every situation. Thank you Craig, for standing by me throughout these years. I love you.

week 9

Week 9 and the weather calls for ski jackets. While it isn't really cold, the boys wore their ski jackets yesterday. I worked in the centre as I had an event to attend and the boys were adamant that they were not going to take the bus. They hate the bus. So they decided they would walk home. Needless to say they were bundled up in their ski jackets, had their toques and gloves and after school walked home. I got home around 8pm and was able to spend some time with the family before everyone headed to bed. I am so happy not to have to make the drive 5 days a week.

From the Archives

As we spent two hours in our freezing cold arena yesterday watching the boys play soccer I thought it would be fun to post a picture from way back in the day. I believe this was Kaedo's first or second year of soccer. He was only 4 or 5. Funny how things work out, isn't it? After starting both the boys in soccer, and with a few detours into other sports, we are back to soccer and the boys love it. While the arena is cold, it is better than rain and bugs.
Sterling played great yesterday, really getting into the game and making some excellent plays. Kaedo had two assists and really enjoyed himself. He played terrifically (is that a word??).

Ortho for Sterling this morning and off to school for both in the pouring rain. I am sitting in my office listening to the rain pounding down on the skylights, thanking my lucky stars I can hear rain instead of seeing snow.

Saturday

Hello All - Happy Saturday to you, whatever you are doing. All is well here. The boys are hanging out, Craig is at football and I doing this before spending a couple of hours with Sterling then work. 4-midnight today.

Kaedo is going to his friend's house of an epic Nerf Gun Battle. He is all kitted out and has got all his guns, ammo and "army gear". He has been looking forward to this for days. I remember the days when I said my kids would never have guns. Ha! How's that for eating crow? I truly believe it is in boy's DNA. You may disagree but anyone who knows me knows I have never suggested the purchase of guns or encouraged it yet both my guys love them.

Tomorrow we have soccer at 11am and 6pm and I am hoping that maybe Craig and I have time for a little date. We are trying to go out just the two of us for an hour or so on Sundays. Hopefully it will work out. If not, there is always next week.

Looking forward to a couple of days off - love having them in a row. I have cards to make (9) and want to get that done tomorrow or Monday. I am working at the centre on Tuesday so I am trying to get my kiss ass (not kick ass) holiday cards done for the bigwigs.

Hope you have a great Saturday, whatever you plan to do.

A Laugh

Last night we sat down and watched Two and a Half Men. In the episode Charlie got a replacement housekeeper for Berta who was away at a family reunion. At one point in the show Esmerelda (replacement) folded his toilet paper end into a point. Charlie thought this was fantastic.
This morning as I was finishing up in the washroom I looked down to see the toilet paper folded into a point. Ha!
Made my day.

Week 8

Week 8 and my boys just keep getting more handsome. The weather is great here. Knock on wood. We have been blessed with a glorious Fall.
Had the opportunity to speak with Shirley on Monday about our Christmas. This will be the first year in 15 we have ever hosted a Christmas. Granted, Shirley will be doing the cooking, everyone will be in our house. We are looking so forward to having everyone visit. Thinking about Christmas and our non-traditional traditions made me think of how much we have made Christmas our own. It will be fun sharing some of those traditions with the Klassen clan. Little kids in the house on Christmas will be fun. I'm looking forward to seeing those two cuties and their faces lighting up at the magic that is Christmas. My sweet boys still love everything that Christmas means but it's not quite the same as having little ones around.
Stay tuned for some Christmas tradition posts coming in December.

Joyride 150

Here are a couple of videos of Sterling at Joyride. He had so much fun and his bike has been such a wonderful gift. Thanks to gramma & grampa and amma & baba who made that happen. This is such a great facility for biking enthusiasts and Sterling and his buddies had a blast - again. Sterling hasn't mentioned his next trip yet but I know he is thinking about it. I can't believe biking season is over now for the outdoor bike parks. It is mid-November, so I suppose it makes sense!

Sterling had a great day. He loved going to Joyride (see video coming tomorrow) and got home from his adventure at about 7:15pm. He was spoiled by his two friends who went with him, as they each gave him $30. We sat down had supper and cake and then spent the rest of the night watching some shows and hanging out. He loved that Kaedo and I had taken the time to decorate the house and was thrilled with all the attention. Today they had eye appointments and then we went to the bank and he deposited his money and then ended up spending half of it on a video game. I guess that's what you're supposed to do with birthday money.

No longer a TWEENager

13 - how can that be? I can't believe it. Today started early with a regular breakfast, opening of his cards and gifts and then a trip to soccer. That has been followed up by a day with friends at Joyride 150 and lunch at McDonalds. We'll be having breakfast for supper, complete with mini hashbrowns and bacon and we will end the celebrations with cake and some singing. Since Kaedo didn't go to Joyride, we stopped at Dollarama and picked up some decorations and have decorated up the dining room with streamers and all that fun stuff. I'll take pictures tonight (camera is with Craig) and will post more tomorrow.
Above is a range of photos taken on his birthday since 2003. So many changes. Love the long hair.
13 - time has flown at the speed of light. My son is no longer a little boy but a young man and I am honored to be his mom. He is an amazing individual who has always held his head high and made the most of what life has to offer. He is so fantastic I can't even come up with the words to describe him. I love him to bits.
Can't wait to see what the next 13 brings us. An adventure I'm sure.
Happy Birthday, my sweet boy. I love you.

$2.97 - I think so!

While waiting for their haircut appointments on Sunday we stopped in to Zellers to pick up a few things. We were in the stationery dept and came across these Zwipes. Kaedo has desperately wanted one for about 3 months but they were just too expensive for him to justify. The sign said $2.97. We knew it had to be wrong as we had seen them at WalMart for $10.97. We figured we might as well go to the register to see what they had to say. When the clerk rang them up they were $5.97. So, being the mom I am, I went back to the stationery dept, pulled off the tag and brought it to her. Sure enough, we got them for $2.97. To boot, someone had drawn on the first page of Kaedo's so we got an extra 10% off his. Once we got outside and they tried them Kaedo's pen didn't work. So back into the store we went and 'mom to the rescue', we were able to switch out Kaedo's pen for one that worked. He was thrilled. He spent the rest of the afternoon drawing and erasing the cover to get it exactly as he wanted it. Not too bad for $2.51!

Free you say?

Sunday afternoon found us at Great Clips for some much needed haircuts. After

waiting about 20 minutes, the boys were in the chairs, getting their hair cut off. They both love their new cuts and I think they look great. I think I am still partial to Sterling's long hair but he advises me that I won't be seeing that again anytime soon. (boo). When I got to the desk to pay I was informed that since this was their 8th haircut, they were free! You can't beat free! So, now they have great cuts that only cost me $2 in tips.

Sale you say?

Sterling got his last pair of runners for Christmas last year. Since then he has worn them almost every day. I think Kaedo has had 4 pairs of shoes since then. Sterling isn't too hard on his and his

feet haven't grown too much so he has been happy to wear the ones he has. He recently mentioned that he thought he needed a new pair of shoes, so on Sunday we went out looking. These were the ones he chose. White - ack! They were regular $109.99 on sale for $49.99. Had to buy them for that price. The scariest part was Sterling telling the clerk that he thought he needed a size 10.5. Now his feet are the same size as Craig's. Hopefully they don't grow too much more.

Week 7

Week 7 already. Boy does time fly. Beautiful day here today as you can see from the lack of jackets at 9am. The boys are well and Sterling is on the countdown to his birthday on Sunday. He is going to an indoor BMX park with two friends and just can't wait. More details later
in the week.

Grandchildren

I was lucky enough to get a great picture of the 4 grand kids together. I love it. It turned out so cute. Avery and Em are just sweet darling little munchkins and the boys are my pride and joy. Love them all so much. At 15 months Avery is 'almost' walking, loving Fruit Loops, smiling, playing and being the sweetest baby in the land. At 5, Emma is talkative, a brilliant singer, engaging, hilarious and awesome. At 11, Kaedo is kind hearted, mischievous and loving and at 12 (only for a couple more weeks), Sterling is kind and gentle and smart. They all got along so well. It was great having them here visiting us. I can't believe the next time they will all be together won't be until June.

Halloween 2010

Terrible pictures but it was the best I could do. While waiting for hours to get trick or treating it, in came upon us quickly with the neighbors asking if we were ready to go. I quickly snapped a couple of pictures and off we went. Avery rode in her stroller and Emma raced off with Kaedo and the neighbors, gathering treats. Jessica and Avery lasted about 20 minutes and Emma and E (neighbor) about 40 minutes. I brought the girls home and Emma ended up next door playing with E for the hour that I remained out with Kaedo and L. They took in quite a haul and had a blast. Everyone has been enjoying the fruits of their labour, gorging on mini candy bars and chips.

100

On Sunday we had the opportunity, much to our delight, to celebrate GG's 100th birthday. As she had been quite sick, we were not sure if we were going to get the opportunity. On Saturday night the concern was she may not live until Sunday. It was heartbreaking to see my dad so sad. While she has said she has lived long enough and certainly doesn't want to see her 101st birthday, it was sad to see her struggle and sad to see my dad so torn between wanting to be with her and wanting her to go. However, my GG being my GG wouldn't let a minor thing like a broken rib and pneumonia stop her from celebrating such a huge milestone. So we met her in the manor's library and celebrated with some food, some entertainment by Emma, and brief visit.

While I hate to say it, I hope she gets her wish, and one day falls asleep and finds herself in heaven.

This week's picture had the added bonus of a cute little girlie joining in on her last day in Ontario. She really wanted to be a part of this picture and so I snapped two. She loves her cousins so much and they love her to bits. She was great to them and they were great with her. We had so much fun. She really is an amazing little person. I'm so thrilled I get to be her anti.

Pumpkins

Pumpkin decorating was done on Saturday night at our house. Last weekend we had gone to the patch to pick them out and after a week of them sitting on our front deck, they were carved up all scary. The kids had lots of fun. As always, Craig made a fantastic pumpkin. He was not feeling well, so kudos to him that he was able to get the job done. A special thanks goes out to Baba for stepping in and helping out. We got our customary lights on/lights off pumpkin pictures and they lit the way to our front door beautifully for the 6 trick or treaters we had.

Saturday was a great day. My favorite of their whole trip. After 7 years of living here, we finally went to Woodbine Race Track to 'bet on the ponies'. Amma fronted the boys each $20 and they spent the afternoon choosing their horses, reading the programs, cheering on the races, people watching, snacking and laughing. It was awesome. Kaedo came home with $23 and Sterling came home with $13. Kaedo has already told me he wants to go to the races for his birthday. Needless to say, it will be a family thing as I don't think a birthday invitation to his classmates inviting them to a day the races would be good form.