Hanna turns 6 months!

How did that happen so fast?

Hanna has a sweet nature. She is calm and cuddly, and yet still very active and curious. She has smiles for everybody and her velvety round head has a way of eliciting lots and lots of kisses. I have had many people stop me to tell me that they thought I was holding a doll until they saw her blink.

"Hanna Banana" has begun eating solids, and not surprisingly, her favourite food right now is bananas. She smacks her lips when she is eating them and yells for more. She sits up for short periods. She is on the verge of mobility, she can hold her weight on her legs and she moves her way along the bed or floor like a caterpillar. She is eager to be running like her older siblings.

The past 6 months with Hanna have been an absolute delight. I am torn between wanting to see the wonderful girl she will become, and a desire to savour this perfect moment of her babyhood. But inevitably, time will have it's way. *sigh*

If you had one wish...

I got a forwarded email today, so I checked it out at snopes.com. I visited his website called Shane's Wish and I was touched by what I read and felt compelled not only to get my children involved, but to pass this information along in hopes that others will do the same.

Shane Bernier is a courageous seven-year-old boy from Lancaster, Ontario who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia when he was only five. On June 6th, 2006 Shane and his family received some unfortunate news: Shane experienced a relapse after completing 108 of 130 weeks of treatment.

However, despite the bad news, Shane has managed to keep a positive outlook on his situation and has made a heart-warming wish... He hasn’t asked for money or toys or anything of the sort. Instead, his birthday is on May 30th and he would like to break the world record for the most birthday cards ever received. His goal is 350 million cards. With every card, Shane’s courage grows. Something as simple as sending a birthday card could be enough to help Shane find peace and joy in his current circumstances.

Please take the time to send a card to Shane and make his dream become a reality. Share his story with your friends, family and co-workers. If at all possible, get your youth groups, church congregations, employees, neighbours or communities to set aside a few minutes to write a thoughtful note to Shane.

With every card, Shane’s smile grows...

If you’d like to send a card to Shane, please send it to:

Shane Bernier

PO Box 484

Lancaster, Ontario

K0C 1N0

Canada

Update

Little Hanna is now over 5 months old! At her last appointment she weighed a mere 13 lbs 3 oz, but she was a very long 27 inches. Not only does she look a lot like Patrick, but she is built like him. She is an absolute joy. She really wants to be one of the big kids. She is curious about the world, but still loves to be held and will gladly snuggle against my shoulder or lean her cheek in to be kissed.

Kira is busy. She is excited about moving and talks about it all the time. She holds up cans of Campbell's Soup and says "Mommy, can we pack this for the new house?" Or she asks, "Mommy, will Puck be at our new house?" The boys all had a good laugh when she asked, "Can we bring Hanna to the new house? Should we put her in a box?"

Campbell is doing fine. He is excited to be in the community soccer league again. He will be playing with his friends from school and most importantly his best friend. He is fiercely competitive, and the league is a little bit too tame for him and his buddy, but his friend is going to Japan for part of the summer and we are moving, so they would both miss a good part of the competitive soccer league's season. So we look forward to another spring of watching the 2 of them dominating the game. He is training very hard for cross country and taking it VERY seriously.

Damon is much much happier at school now. When he returned to the French Immersion program, he had a wonderful teacher who was full of enthusiasm. Just what he needed. Then the regular teacher returned from her maternity leave and she has proven to be a very understanding and knowledgeable teacher. Damon is blossoming as a result. He enjoys his tutoring sessions at the Dyslexia Resource Centre and is working well. Damon's hockey season ended with him playing his heart out, but the rest of the team did not do so well and they finished in last place. Now he moves on to field lacrosse. Usually he plays box lacrosse which is indoors, but the season usually goes into August and we don't know what our moving plans are. Field lacrosse has a much shorter season and will be done by the end of May. We are a bit concerned that there isn't a lacrosse team close to where we are moving, hopefully if we ask around at the native reserve we can find some sort of lacrosse for him to play.

Patrick is doing well in school and sports. His team had an end of season party at Great Wolf Lodge and I took everybody and we had lots of fun. He is playing on a spring tournament team for hockey. He is training for spring cross country and the track and field season is just around the corner too. Patrick left last night for a week at Grandpa's house. He is staying there with Matt so that he can try out for the hockey team out there. Making this team would be a dream come true for Patrick. In our current city, Patrick is a pretty awesome hockey player at the very top level of play and his coaches said that they would pick him for their team again this year. However, where we are moving, hockey is even more competitive and the team he is trying out for has been very successful for the past 3 years. We don't imagine that it will be easy to make this team, but if he performs at his best, it is possible. They have 4 tryouts before they make any cuts, so this next week will be very nerve-wracking for all concerned. Personally, I can barely eat or sit still. (Don't worry, I have my reserves, I'm not wasting away just yet)

Matt returned from his month in Germany, and he was glad to be home. All day, Matt is busy trying to organize the company's move, and then he comes home and searches for houses for us on the internet. I'm sure he'll be relieved when the move is complete.

And me, I feel like a ball of stress. We jumped from playoffs to tryouts. Between packing, cleaning and painting, the house is torn apart and I need to get it ready to sell NOW. I haven't even wrapped my head around the thought of moving, I'm still stressed about the thought of selling.

And Puck is doing well too. He and Hanna are turning out to be great friends. She loves to grab his ears and hug him. I have to mention that he is LOVING his new diet. He is eating ORIJEN food and for the first time since we brought him home 2 years ago, he is finishing everything in his bowl and harrassing me for more! The whole concept of feeding dogs meat makes sense to me, and it is definitely agreeing with him, he's put on some weight, his coat looks great, his gas problem has passed (pun intended), and his messes are much easier to clean up.

"Hello Mother Robin, I like your wings."

Happy Birthday Campbell!

Campbell had a birthday. My baby boy turned 7.

Campbell is a man who knows his own mind.

Last Wednesday, we met my online friend Beth from the April 2000 expecting board. She drove all the way up here from NYC! Campbell and Nicole shared a cake at the restaurant. Then we went back to the hotel and they swam.

On Friday night, he wanted to go bowling with my mother. He chose to have his family party along with our regular family easter celebrations so he had candles in his bird's nest cupcakes.

On Tuesday, his actual birthday, he wanted to get take out and bring it home. He requested fish and chips and root beer for dinner and an ice cream cake.

What could I say about this wonderful boy? Well, Campbell is a very determined young man. He is "a gentleman and a scholar". He is unbelievably hard working, both at schoolwork, his chores and hockey. We gave him a Scottish name, and he is growing up as a stereotypical scot. He wants to save up his money and doesn't like to part with it. He still has $140 in Toys R Us gift cards from his last birthday. He goes and walks around Toys R Us and asks me what items he can afford. He always puts the gift cards back in his wallet and asks to go home empty handed. He cuts out coupons for us to use. He has collected 37 dollars in Canadian Tire money and 46 dollars in McDonald's money. He is tough as nails when he is playing with other boys, but tender and sweet with is mother and his sisters. He has a very dry sense of humour and he keeps everybody laughing. I have confidence that whatever he chooses to do, he will do well at.

How cute is he?

Hanna has her eye on you...

...even when she's sleeping.

Vater ist zu seinem Mutterland gegangen

Matt left for Germany today. He is there for the whole month. It was very difficult for him to leave this time. He is going to miss the kids and they made it obvious how much they will miss him.

Selling the house will have to wait another month.

Campbell's Playoff Game #3

It was a tearjerker. After the other team scored their second goal and crashed into the net (and Campbell), Campbell was crying out there. Then when his own teammate kicked it into his net, he fell apart. Other than a couple of kids, the rest of the team was not putting in much of an effort. One of the coaches asked the kids on the bench, "Who is here to play hockey?" Only one boy put up his hand. The final score was 7-0. Campbell is rethinking his plans of playing in net for a summer rep team. *PHEW*

In other action, Damon's team tied another game 4-4. Damon was on the ice for every goal that his team scored and was on for 2 of the goals against. Campbell's coaches came to watch Damon's game.

Patrick Playoff Games #3 & 4

Game 3 had to be rescheduled due to poor weather conditions on Thursday. It was a very evenly matched game and the results showed that, it ended in a 3-3 tie even after 5 minutes of overtime.

Now I know where the bad attitudes from the other team come from. I was standing near some of the fathers from the other team. While I was standing there, one of the moms marched over and said to one of the fathers, "Those parents are awful. They are over there calling Matthew's mom a bitch." I looked over to where she had come from sitting and none of our parents were near them and when I looked to see if there was interraction between the two camps there wasn't. I know that some of our parents are prone to getting worked up about poor refereeing at games, but this wasn't even happening, they were all avidly watching the game. I'll assume that the parents from the other team were just trying to stir things up. Having said that, I have had some lovely chats with a couple of their mothers. They have the maturity to see that we are all in this together and one even complained that she hates to see her son's team slashing our goalie.

Game 4 was a home game for us, but the referee was horrible. With a score of 2-1, he didn't count a goal that clearly went into their net, hit the back of the net and came back out. He didn't call many dirty hits and let the game get out of hand. The missed goal was a turning point in the game and our kids seemed to fall apart after that. The final score was 5-1.

Samuel Legault (Died February 26, 2007)

LEGAULT: Samuel Joseph Anthoni April 28, 1918 – February 26, 2007 Peacefully at the Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. Dearly beloved husband and best friend of Patricia Katharine (nee Wilson). Cherished father of Margaret, Tony, Suzanne, Stephen (Diane), Terry (Peter May), and Jane (Bill Chandler). Much adored grandfather of Lisa (Pedro Salazar), Karen (Doug McElroy), Laurie (Kevin Kozak), Derek (Julia), Daniel, Adri (Matt Fair), Dana (Rob Kahro), Craig, Liane, Barbara, Cynthia, Robyn, Amelia, Alex, Jacqueline, Jeff, Kerry and Brett. Devoted great-grandfather of Ambar and Amarys Salazar, Matthew, Jennifer and Scott McElroy, William, Ellie and David Kozak, Aidan and Carter Legault, Patrick, Damon, Campbell, Kira and Hannah Fair, Peyton, Maddox and Tenley Kahro. Sam was the beloved eldest son of Antoni and Maria Legault and beloved oldest brother of Amelia Macejunas (Wally), Julia Stroud (James), Lena Beebe (Ken), Ernie Legault (Trish) and the late Rupert, Dorothy Small (Harold), Betty Morris (Glenn) and Norah Leclair (Evan). Sam was born and raised in Montreal, and met and married the love of his life in Prescott Ontario on September 26, 1942. They lived in Coteau Station Quebec for 9 years, then Sam was transferred to Toronto and they made their home in Port Credit. Sam worked for the CNR for 40 years until his retirement as Circuit Engineer. After his retirement from CNR he worked for WABCO as an engineering consultant, doing stints in Buenos Aries Argentina, Tralee Ireland and Miami Florida, where he was the Chief Circuit Designer, and Signal System Design Specialist on the Miami Dade Metrorail. After his second retirement, in 1986, Sam and Pat settled in Oakville where they devoted their lives to their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Sam was very active in St. Mary’s Church, was on the Board of Directors of the St. Mary’s Credit Union, and a founding member and Chairman of the Port Credit Roman Catholic School Board, and Chairman of the Port Credit Library Board. He was very active in the Toastmaster’s Organization and became President of the Port Credit Chapter and then Lieutenant Governor of the central District of Ontario. He was an active member of the Knights of Columbus, and until he could no longer do it the secretary of the 60th Degree Knights of Columbus Oakville Branch. The Family would like to thank the staff of Northridge Nursing Home and the Oakville Hospital 4th floor for their care and support. In lieu of flowers kindly make a donation to the charity of your choice. Visitation will be held at the Kopriva Taylor Community Funeral Home, 64 Lakeshore Road West, (one block east of Kerr, 905-844-2600) on Wednesday 2-4 & 7-9 p.m. Mass of Christian Burial will be held 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, March 1, 2007 at Mary Mother of God Roman Catholic Church, 2745 North Ridge Trail, Oakville. Cremation to follow. Condolences and tributes may be sent to: www.koprivataylor.com
“May you always walk in sunshine, May you never want for more. May Irish Angels rest their wings Right beside your door May the road rise to meet you May the wind be always at your back May the sunshine warm upon your face The rains fall soft upon your fields and Until we meet again may God hold You in the palm of his hand”.
“Dad you were the heart of our family, we will love you and miss you forever”

Sam Legault 1918-2007

"Yea though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me." Psalm 23:4

Grandpa Sam now makes that journey. Early today, with my mother holding his hand, he gave up his fight. I think that the fact that he fought against his illness to the very end was not because he was afraid of death, he had faith. I believe that he just valued this life that God gave him.

We all lost a great man. He was a man of virtue. He garnered respect in his community. He was passionate about family. His strong love of his children and grandchildren led him to be an obsessive worrier. He tried so hard to make sure that we were all okay. And that's a lot of worrying because there are a lot of us! His love for us was apparent, he reminded us all the time how much he loved us and how proud he was of us.

I finally found the words that have been bouncing around in my head while I watched my grandfather's battle.

Do not go gentle into that good night,Old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light. - - -Dylan Thomas

Campbell's Playoff Game #2

Campbell is ready.

He gets the puck where he wants it

And covers it up until the ref blows the whistle.

Campbell's team played today. Our goalie did a pretty good job and we tied this game, 3-3. It is pretty funny to have all 3 boys tie this weekend.

Some of Damon's teammates have siblings on this team, including one little sister who is an amazing goal scorer. The last time we played her team, she scored 4 goals. Campbell has been playing mini-sticks with her during Damon's practice this past week and says that he was trying to learn how to "stone her", meaning not letting her score against him. And he did it, he stopped many shots by her.

His 4th game in net and now the player agents are scouting him. Really! I'll post more about that later.

Melanie, to answer your question about Patrick's tie, his team is actually playing a 7 point series (wins are 2 pts, ties are 1 pt) so they now have 3 points towards winning the series. For Campbell's playoffs it is different, they play each team in the league once, and the games count for points. If two teams are tied for points then they look at their goals against. The teams with the most points face each other in "Super Saturday".

Patrick's Playoff Game #2

Our team 2

Other team 2

I didn't see the game, as I was taking Damon to his game. It even went into overtime, during which time, Patrick had a nice shot on net that was stopped. There weren't any career-ending injuries, so that is good.

Patrick's team manager did a fantastic job photographing the team. It cost less and we got the photos back much sooner. I love Patrick's photo.

Damon is still in regular season play and his game was tied 3-3.

Patrick's Playoff game #1

Good-guys 2
Mean-kids* 0

Patrick's team won their first playoff game! The energy level was really low, and our kids looked tired, but I guess the other team's kids were more tired. One of our players was hit from behind, breaking his collarbone. A penalty was called and the other player was ejected from the game and given a one game suspension. So now, this boy on our team, who has practiced 5 days a week since last August for this moment, is going to miss the rest of the playoffs and the tryouts for next season.

Game 2 just started, I'm waiting for the outcome.

* The kind of kids who don't apologize to six year-olds, even when they accidentally hit them in the eye with their sticks while walking through the hall to leave the arena.

"Oh Mommy, I'm so sorry."

One thing you never want to hear from a boy holding a hockey stick is, "Oh Mommy, I'm so sorry." Then he hugged me tightly and said, "I SOOOO broke the window."

You can always count on kids to keep you grounded, when you are waxing philosophic about the meaning of life and death, they yank you back into the here and now. I've been keeping busy today talking to window repair contractors and stained glass shops.

Remembering happier times...

As I type, my dear Grandpa Sam lays dying. He has been in palliative care for a week now. So much for the 24-48 hours that they predicted for him when he was admitted. He has clung to life despite severe septic infection and a heart attack. Still there were some really tough moral decisions to be made.
It was a struggle for my mother, who is power of care, to make a decision. Other family members had opinions of their own, driven by how uncomfortable they were with watching their beloved father struggle for breath, they hoped he would go quickly and peacefully. For my mother his comfort was of utmost concern, but some of the measures were prolonging his death. My mother had to struggle with what his wishes would be. I suggested that as an unquestioning man of faith, her answer should come from the church, and that she should presume that he would want a Roman Catholic Living Will. She sought the counsel of the priest, but sadly was not helped much at all by that particular priest. However, while she struggled with this, his deterioration has continued and it has come to a point where things such as fluids, were only serving to flood his lungs, and any feeds through his feeding tube would only serve to cause him him to aspirate some. So barring heroic measures, the decision has been taken from her hands.

Now all that I can do is pray that this wonderful man has a peaceful journey to heaven. I know that he will find his way to heaven. In my dreams he is helping God by bouncing of all of the babies and children in heaven upon his knee.

Sometimes goalies happen

The most important thing I have learned as a parent is, "Never say never." This past weekend, I learned that this applies to hockey too.

Matt and I always vowed that none of our kids would be goalies. NEVER. Aside from that astronomical cost of goalie equipment, the experience of seeing the 12th goal slide past a 5 year old Patrick convinced me that neither my heart, nor my stomach could handle being a goalie's mom.

Damon really enjoyed his experiences as a goalie, and to his credit, he was a pretty decent goalie. Still, it was easy enough to convince him that his size and strength as a defenseman were far more valuable to his team.

Back in December, in the middle of a crazy weekend, Campbell had his first turn in net. Matt was accompanying Patrick and his team on a weekend away series. Damon had a tournament near Grandpa Bob's house, so the girls and I were there with Damon. Campbell's coach's family offered to keep him for the weekend so that he wouldn't miss the team Christmas Party and his turn in net. Damon's team lost in the semi-finals, giving me just enough time to get home to see Campbell's game. The photos here are of him on that day.


First a little bit of background, at the beginning of the season, MB, one of our players really started to stand out. By December, he was easily scoring 8 or 10 goals a game. His parents cautiously decided to move him up to the next age level so that he would be challenged a bit more. So when Campbell first played net, MB dominated the play, and Campbell only saw 3 shots on net. 1 went in, but we still won because MB scored a few hat-tricks.

That same week we had an "interlock" game with another arena's team, and no other goalies would have a chance to practice, Campbell got a second chance in net. This time he faced many more shots, and showed some impressive moves, helping his team win the game with a score of 5-2. Campbell won a "Super Sport" award for that game and I heard from all of the other parents how wonderful he was.

After watching everybody on the team took a turn in net, our coach needed to decide who was going to be in net for playoffs. I knew that he was impressed with Campbell, so I told Matt to tell the coach that he could have Campbell in net for alternate games, because I needed a week in between to recover my nerves. So when the coach asked Matt if Campbell would be the goalie for the playoffs, Matt looked down at a beaming Campbell and said, "Sure".

For weeks, Campbell let everybody know that he was going to be the playoff goalie. Family members, classmates, our family doctor, the cashier at the grocery store, they all knew that he, Campbell, would be the goalie for the playoffs. When it came time for a haircut, Campbell decided he needed a goalie haircut. So he asked Patrick who the best goalie in the whole wide world was. Patrick named a few names, and I did some google image searches. No offence to Patrick Roy, Ken Dryden or Dominik Hasek, but when we came across this photo of Martin Brodeur, it was clear to me who the best goalie in the whole wide world was, the one with the haircut that best suited Campbell! The next day we were at the arena all day for Patrick's school hockey tournament. Every hockey acquaintance we ran into at the tournament heard this, "I have da same haiwcut as da best goalie in da whole woild. Mawmmy, what's his name again? Oh yeah Mahtin Brodeu. An' I'm the goalie for da playoffs." At this point I was humouring him, but hoping that this was a phase and that a few tough games between the pipes and he would be singing a different song.

So Sunday rolls around, and we are playing against the top team in the league without MB. This team is used to winning with double digit scores. Campbell made some good saves, and that old feeling of dread in my stomach started to go away. He let a few in, but he got better with each save. By the third period, I found myself hoping that they would get another shot on him so that he could save it again! And I must say that he was just so cute doing it! My stomach was hurting, but that was from all of the cheering and laughing that we were doing watching him hop around in net. He kept his team in it, and the final score was 4-1 for the other team. The shots on net were 31-8 for the other team! He stopped 27. At his age, the goalies normally stop 50% of the shots. The other team's coach came to the bench, where Matt was as an assistant coach, to tell our coaches that the goalie was phenomenal. He asked where the goalie's dad was and Matt raised his hand. And he told Matt that he had a goalie on his hands. Other parents said, "that kid needs to be a goalie." In the hallways, I overheard strangers who had watched the game, "Did you see that kid in net, he was awesome."

When I got to the dressing room, I was surprised to see a teary-eyed Campbell. He was devastated. He wanted nothing less than a shut out. Matt and I reminded him that he played a very good team and then the coach started giving a speech about what an outstanding job Campbell did. Every parent and child from the team came and congratulated Campbell on his performance before they went home. That gave him some comfort.

His brothers gave him respect for the rest of the day. Damon was offering to carry his equipment to the van for him. Patrick was fussing over him all day. And little Campbell just basked in the glory.

So I learned that goalies do happen. And so does shameless bragging. Never say never.

How Many of Me?

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 0 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Weekend Delirium

I have been having a lot of vivid weird dreams, but some have been kind of creepy. For example the one where I look out of the dining room window and see a young woman with long brown curls walking in our side driveway area and opening the gate to our yard. The next day, I notice that our gate is open.

In the early morning hours of Friday, I vaguely remembered somebody walking into my room. But that's all I can remember. I woke up before the kids and went to the washroom. The box that I keep the medications in is normally stored on the highest shelf and it was sitting beside the tub. Then Patrick woke up and wheezed out, "So what am I doing today?" I asked him, "What is going on? Are you sick?"
"Yeah, I'm sick, don't you know that? I already told you that?"
"Did you come into my room in the night?"
"Yes, and you got up and came to the bathroom and gave me medicine."
"Did I give you the right medicine? What did I give you?"
"Yes, you gave me my blue puffer and told me to take my orange puffer in 15 minutes."
"Oh, that was good advice."

Thankfully I did the right thing, but I am disturbed by the fact that I am "sleep-parenting".

So I kept Patrick home from school, but he had to come with me to Damon's hockey tournament. When we got to the tournament, I was shocked to see that the majority of team siblings had taken the day off of school! Including the Campbell's teacher's children! Of course Campbell and his teacher were both at school. The families on this team have great team spirit and the siblings make a great cheerleading squad.

Damon's team lost 7-2.

Patrick had team photos that day, so despite his difficulty breathing, he suited up for photos. Then he undressed and watched the team practice and rested his lungs. Of course this was a "fun practice", both times he has missed practice it has been the 2 times the coaches have taken it easy on the team.

Matt took Damon to the tournament on Satuday. They lost their first game 7-2 again, and then they won their next game 15-0! Damon would not believe either of us when we told him that his team would not be playing in the semi-finals. "But Mom, we scored FIFTEEN goals, why wouldn't that count?"

The girls and I took Campbell and Patrick to Campbell's practice. Matt is an assistant coach for Campbell's team, so when Matt is away, Patrick goes on the ice to help the kids who are having difficulty with the drills. He is a very patient and compassionate boy. He has an amazing gift for working with children younger than him.

Kira plays with her "boyfriend", the youngest son of Campbell's coach, but this day she was not being very nice to him. She would only let him colour in Campbell's colouring books, not in any of hers. When she bought chips, she wouldn't let him have any and threw a tantrum when I insisted that she share with him. I talked to her about sharing, and pointed out how badly he must have felt when she treated him like that.

After a quick lunch, we were back at the arena for Patrick's AAA game. They played the second place team and they were winning until the last few minutes of the third period. Normally, our team is totally dominated by this other team. That wasn't the case this time. Patrick played a really great game. I was in awe of his grace and strength. I knew that he was having trouble with his asthma during the game, but it really didn't affect his play.

Kira played with an older girl, another sister from the team. She said that the girl was her best friend, and they had a great time. Eventually another sister from the team joined them and Kira came stomping over to me. "Why does J have to play with that SUUUPID girl? She's my best friend, why is she playing with that SUUUPID girl."

Patrick came home and changed and rushed off to a birthday party for one of his teammates. These boys are on the ice together 5 or more times a week. So what do you think they would do for fun? Of course, they played hockey. The parents rented a party room at an arena and the last half of the party was spent on the ice. Patrick had fun, but was very tired at the end of the day.

When I woke up this morning, the furnace was not working. It wasn't too cold in the house yet, but with the temperatures as low as they have been recently, you cannot go too long without a properly working furnace.

On Sunday morning, I made poached eggs on toast. Damon was thrilled when one of his eggs had a double yolk. He felt very lucky. I had never seen that before and figured it was a rare fluke. Then Campbell and Kira wanted seconds, I cracked open Campbell's egg and found another double yolk! And then Kira's was another double yolk! Damon wanted more eggs after that. He figured that at some point we'd come across triplets. To his disappointment, the rest of the eggs were singletons. So I googled "double yolk" and found that there are many superstitions about double yolks. Some say it is a bad omen, others say it is a sign of fertility. It seems like something from one of my strange dreams. All I know for certain is that the kids sure enjoyed their eggs.

Then Matt came home from work (yes, he was working on a Sunday to finish a project that is leaving tomorrow) and picked up Patrick to take him to an away game. We had high hopes that they would end the regular season with a win against a team they have beaten before, but the game ended in a tie.

In the meantime, I took Campbell to his last regular season game. I told him that it is his last chance to score any more goals this season. Based on his performance when it was his turn to play goalie, he has been chosen to play as goalie for the playoffs. I think he was having a difficult time focusing on goal-scoring, his focus was already on playing in net next weekend! His team lost 8-2, and Campbell was given credit for one of our goals. Everybody was hacking away at it, and Campbell insists that in the end the other team knocked it in.

When Kira first saw her "boyfriend' at the game, she asked his mom if she could hold his hand. He refused and clenched both hands together. Then she asked if he would colour with her. He politely declined. She asked him to come and sit with her, he preferred the company of some older boys. The little man was giving her some of her own medicine. Finally when she bought a bag of chips, she was very eager to share them with him, and he was ready to forgive her. All was forgiven over a bag of RINGOLOS.

I should tell you that during all of this hockey, Hanna is having a great time. She loves sitting on my lap and she watches the game. Very much like her brother Patrick at the same age, she turns her head and follows the play down the ice. She stops watching only to flash her dimples and coo for the moms who fuss over her.

When we got home from hockey, the furnace seemed to be working again. What a huge relief. We ate some lunch and waited for Matt and Patrick to arrive. They arrived and got ready to leave again. It was time for the Timbits Jamboree immediately following a local AHL game. Matt and all three boys went.

Us girls stayed home. The plan was to bake muffins and cookies, but in the morning's excitement over double yolked eggs, they were used up and I forgot to pick up more. So we made haystack cookies instead (sugar, margarine, cocoa & oats). Around this time, I noticed that the furnace was not working again. So the girls and I went upstairs to snuggle up and watch "Maggie and the Ferocious Beast". Puck slipped away, and I assumed that he was just going to get a sip from his water dish. I went down to the kitchen to find that he had eaten 3/4s of the haystack cookies off of the kithcen counter. BAD dog!

The boys returned with their arms full of signed souvenirs. The highlight was that Campbell had insisted that Matt needed to buy him the team's goalie's rookie card, and later on they met the goalie and Campbell whipped out the card and had him sign it! Cool! A few of the players signed Campbell's hockey stick too. They all got hockey cards and some life-sized Sidney Crosby posters. (Scratch under they eye is courtesy of Kira. Campbell thinks it makes him look tough.)

I let Matt know about the furnace's status and what the troubleshooting guides said to do next. At Patrick's game, he had talked to one of the parents from Patrick's team who owned a heating and cooling company and he had told him something to try. He followed the advice and it worked. At least for now.

I'm still waiting to wake up from this dream.

Size is relative

The girls went for a doctor's appointment today.

Hanna is much better. She is 24 1/4 inches long and weighs 11 lbs 7 oz, which means she is a long and lean little lady. She cried for her needles. She has been pretty cranky, a bit feverish and flushed. Nothing a bit of Tylenol won't help.

Kira had her 3 year check up. She is a gigantic 3 foot 3 inches and weighs 33 lbs. Patrick had EXACTLY the same stats at 3 years old, and at the time I thought he was so skinny. Kira seems beefy by comparison. The difference is probably that at that time I had a 10 month old 29 lb Damon in my arms, rather than my dainty little Hanna. The appointment came to an end when the doctor used her "Magical Fairy Dust" to help make Kira's "nipple" (wart) on her hand disappear.

A conversation with Grandpa

Dear Grandpa Bob,

Kira really enjoyed your visit yesterday.

Do you remember the other day when Kira put Hanna on the phone to talk to you? Well here she is listening to your voice.

We also thought you would like to see Hanna moments later when Kira took the phone away from her.

So even though she may not add much to the conversation, we know that you would want to know that Hanna really does enjoy "talking" to you.

Love,

Kira, Hanna and their Mom

Memo for Kira

Dear Kira,

Sock puppets are great, and sock puppet shows are fun. I don't mind you using your big brothers' socks, they are so big they make great puppets, but from now on please find your "puppets" from the clean laundry pile.

Thank you.

I love you,

Mommy

An update

Things have been hectic around here. I've had lots of appointments lately and I haven't had time to sit down and nurse Hanna in front of the computer until now.

We were offline for a while because Matt wanted me to install a wireless router so that he can have access to the internet on his laptop too. Well with a house full of sick kids and hockey, I had to install and configure it all in small steps. It took many days, but finally we are online.

We have all been fighting off a cold virus. On Friday, Hanna started with it, she had an awful post-nasal drip and gaggy cough. Saturday, Kira spiked a high fever and bad cough. On Sunday, I tried to decide whether she needed to be seen by a doctor or not. On Monday morning, I called our family doctor, but they were all booked up. By Monday afternoon, she had a low fever, and by the evening she was coughing so hard she couldn't catch her breath. We rushed to the E.R. and after 5 1/2 hours there, the pediatrician said it was RSV, but that she was doing well enough to be cared for at home.

She is such a doll. Despite how lousy she must have felt, she tried really hard to be social with the nurses and doctors. When the staff pediatrician finally came to see her, he leaned over her, cupped her head in his hands and "talked" to her. He has a wonderful way with babies. She responded by gurgling and cooing and flashing her dimpled smile at him.

She is dealing with it well, especially for one so young.

Campbell and Damon were really excited about the Primary Division from school going on a series of skating trips. They got to show off their prowess on the ice. Damon really enjoyed giving lessons to the other kids.

On Tuesday night, Patrick's team won their 4th game this year. That doesn't sound great to most people, but it's all relative. They won 1 last year, so 4 seems like winning the Stanley Cup to these kids. The final score was 4-1. Patrick really contributed to the win, he played amazingly on defense and got 2 assists!

In other news, Damon has been assessed for dyslexia. I had a pretty good idea going into it that he was dyslexic, so the results were not much of a surprise to me. Damon had been struggling with reading, despite being obviously bright. When I stumbled across some websites (like this one) about dyslexia, I was struck by how closely he fit the profile of a dyslexic. So many of the stories I read were just like Damon's, it was as if it was scripted. Dyslexia, while it hinders reading, is also an amazing gift. Many of the worlds great thinkers were also dyslexic, and this is no coincidence, a fact that thrills Damon. Dyslexia is the most common cause of reading difficulty and it is estimated that 1 in 6 people deal with some degree of dyslexia. Damon said something very prophetic during his testing, before he began a spelling test, he told the tester, "I have trouble reading because I never know what the vowels are going to say." (That explains why many of his spelling tests at school came back with NO vowels, but the consonants were perfect. For example, 'chalkboard' was spelled 'chlkbrd', 'ruler' was 'rlr'.) Damon was measured in three areas, dysphonetic, dyseidetic and dysgraphic. His results indicated that he is mildly dysgraphic, moderately dyseidetic and markedly dysphonetic. This is good news as this is the type that responds most quickly to the type of program that he is now doing at the dyslexia centre. Damon is also receiving extra help at the school, unfortunately it is not the type of program that is recommended to remedy dyslexia, which is upsetting considering how many dyslexic children, who are less fortunate than Damon, could be helped to succeed. (stepping down from the soapbox for now)

Number of t-shirts tried on and discarded onto bedroom floor: 7
Jars of texturizing hair product: 2
Blasts of hairspray: 9
Minutes spent singing into the mirror: 13
Minutes late for school: 4
Finally getting a "Civies/Crazy Hair Day" - Priceless

Happy Birthday Damon!

Damon is growing up much too quickly! Where did my cuddly baby boy go? As much as I want to slow down the hands of time, I must say that he is growing into a really fascinating person. Damon is a strong and active boy on the outside with a sensitive and generous soul. He has a vast memory for facts. He is very artistic, besides being a great artist, he has an eye for art in every day life. And he has an amazing understanding and passion for wildlife. I can't wait to know the man that he will become!

Yesterday, Damon turned 9. We had a very busy day. After dropping the boys off at school we did grocery shopping. Then we picked up Damon and his friend from school and took them out for lunch at a local diner. After lunch, Kira and I made cupcakes at home for Damon's hockey team. We picked up the boys, came home for snacks. Damon had a few minutes to open a package full of goodies from Aunt Gayle and Uncle Lynn.

Then we were off to Damon's hockey practice. He had a great practice and was serenaded by his coaches and teammates in the dressing room. The "music" could be heard down the hallways of the arena complex. Yet another birthday spent at a hockey rink!

Damon really wanted to eat dinner out, and no takeout Swiss Chalet would do. We waited for Matt to get home and at 9:00 we were finally ready to go out for dinner at Montana's. He really wanted to wear the horns, but the singing wasn't as exciting as normal, because by that time at night there was only one waiter working. Damon was satisfied with his solo though.


Then we went home to sing 'Happy Birthday' and let him blow out a candle on his birthday. As you can see from the photo, it had been a long day by then!

Happy Birthday Damon!

Animal School

This movie, while a little bit silly, struck a chord for me.

Winter finally arrived!

I woke extra early today to watch our local news and it's "stormwatch" coverage. By 7 am, bus service for our schoolboard was cancelled, and since I consider myself to be driving a bus, I went back to sleep, thinking I would drive the kids in later once the road crews had a chance to clean up the roads. Patrick woke up at 8 am and turned the news back on. By then the school board had decided to close all schools. YAY! I forbid him from waking everybody up, but by 8:30 they were all awake.

Ice is covering everything, I'm glad we didn't have to drive in this at 8:30 am.

The kids were finally able to build a snowman with what little snow we got on Sunday. Kira calls it a "Snow Kira". Her contribution is the "hair" on the top of the Snow Kira's head. Every good Snow Kira has to have "Kira hair"

Kira Hair

We were getting ready to go to the hockey rink for a couple of the boys games. I was brushing Kira's hair and putting it into a ponytail.

Kira: "I don't like that, I want it to be Kira hair."
Mom: "What is Kira hair? Does that mean you want it down and curly?"
Kira: "Yes."
Mom: "Okay, but I still need to brush it, right?"
Kira: "No! Kira hair is MESSY hair."

Happy Birthday Kira Jane!

It was 3 years ago today that Kira made her grand entrance into the world. She has since proven to be a very determined girl. She can flip from being a living doll, to a tantrumming monster, and then back again, all within 5 minutes. She is alarmingly smart. Her latest phrase is "Thanks Mom, you're da best." which she now says whenever I do anything for her.

As per Kira's orders, she spent the morning shopping at Toys'R'Us. I tried to talk her into many different toys. I was sure she would want a Little Tikes Kitchen, but she said, "Oh, no, that is too big for me!" She selected a small stuffed Dora doll, a carseat for her babydolls, and told me, "I think I already have enough toys, I don't need any more." I asked her if I could buy her a "Birthday Girl" t-shirt from the Gymboree across the road, and she said, "No thank you, I think I already have enough shirts, I don't need any more."

Grandpa Bob called to wish Kira a happy birthday and she sais, "Thank you, happy birthday to you too!"

After lunch, a parcel arrived from Aunt Gayle and Uncle Lynn. Kira loves her Furby and is telling them thank you in this photo. She was delighted with the coins taped to her card too and immediately said, "Oh, great, now I can buy my own treats at the hockey rink."

We picked the boys up from school and Kira had a little nap. Then we dropped Patrick off at a teammate's house to be driven out of town for an away game. Then the other kids and I took Damon to his team practice. Once again, Kira spent a birthday at the hockey rink.
Finally at 8:30 we got home and met up with Grandma Sue. The kids unwound to Dora the Explorer's Fiesta music.

Kira loves soup and asks for soup many times a day. It was no surprise when she asked for Chicken soup for dinner, so we made a Chicken Stew in the crockpot. I made some dumplings (which didn't turn out so great in a crockpot). For dessert we had a much requested "Strawberry Cake", which was a cake and icing made with strawberry puree. It was full of strawberry sweetness, and I'm having a hard time keeping Damon out of the extra frosting. It didn't turn out as great as I would have liked, but Kira was pleased with it and loved blowing out her candles.

She is looking forward to her family party with her cousins. We are having a birthday FIESTA!

Feliz cumpleaños a ti

Feliz cumpleaños a ti

Feliz cumpleaños Kira

Feliz cumpleaños a ti.

I hate school!

Why? I have to look at these sleeping beauties, knowing that I have to wake them up to drive their brothers to school.

This whole "education" thing had better be worth it. LOL

All of us

Here we all are with Grandpa Bob and Grandmama (Great-Grandmother).

Happy Girls!

Hanna is enjoying her visit with her great grandmother.

Puppy love

They make my heart melt. They are both so angelic when they are sleeping.

December 27th

At 7 am, Matt and I (not to mention the 3 little ones piled in there too) were lying in bed talking, when we heard a smashing sound. I ran downstairs to see what had happened and when I looked toward the living room, I saw Charlie make a dash out of the room and then I saw this:


Sadly some of our favourite ornaments were broken, namely the 2 glass balls with Patrick and Kira's names on them. I normally leave the tree and decorations up until after the Epiphany. But since Bob was here and was driving home that morning, I took the opportunity to pack up all of my ornaments and send them home with Bob. We are trying to get any excess stuff out of here before we put our house on the market, and I'd like to keep the breakables at Bob's house instead of in a trailer in the back of Matt's shop.