We have a one-year old... what???

Everyone told me that the first year will just fly by. Two weeks ago, I would have disagreed. I went back to work on the 1st and after returning to my desk, with everything left pretty much as I left it, I feel as though I've only be gone for a month. Then I come home and I see my little Maggie speed-walking towards me, giggling, and squealing, and reaching up for a hug, and I realize how much has happened in the past year.

I can hardly remember those late-night feedings, and the world that new moms become a part of during those late nights. You know what I mean... watching 90210 re-runs at 4:OOam, facebooking and that the only other people on at that time are other new moms, seeing the Turbo Jam infomercial and wondering if you should invest in it to lose your baby weight... yes, it's a whole world that I almost forgot that I was once a part of.

But she sure is precious when she's sleeping!

I remember the day that Maggie first smiled at me, and now I can't remember a day when I haven't seen it since.

I remember how exciting it was when she first rolled over. And then how scary it was when she rolled off of the bed. (I sure hope this isn't the first time James is learning of this... I think I told him... I think.)

I remember our first swimming classes, picnics, trips to the zoo, and so many other fun trips that we have made together.

A trip with Peyton to the zoo. Clearly, he is not interested.

Mom's 'n' Tots playtime with Joseph

I remember when she first pulled herself up, and when she started crawling, and now more recently, when she took her first steps.

Walking through the spray park at Bowness Park... not a wet t-shirt contest.

So now, when I'm sitting at my desk thinking about how quickly the year seems to have passed, I am reminded of how much has actually happened in 12 short months. And how even though it has only been 12 months, I can't remember life before Maggie.

Here we are celebrating her birthday with Clark and Mooney families. It was the perfect day! She loved playing the water, but not as much as her first experience with cake and ice cream... she ate it all!

The backyard set-up

Drew liked the water!

A lot!

Peyton loved it too... a little too much!

This picture was taken a split second too soon. The slide was wet so Peyton shot down it like a rocket!

Perhaps one of the most entertaining moments of the day!

Cake time!!!!

Oh this is good stuff!!

My new wheels!

Happy Birthday Sweet Maggie... we love you!

Two months... in pictures

The best way to bring you up to speed is through pictures. Here goes...

I need to begin with an update on my little nephew, Drew. Drew is my brother Jordan and his wife, Kari's, little boy who is 5 weeks younger than Maggie. Unfortunately, little Drew suffered a major seizure 8 weeks ago and has been in the hospital undergoing many, many tests since then. While he didn't suffer any damage from the seizure, he has been experiencing localized seizures in his limbs and, more recently, his face. Please keep little Drew in your prayers. He's an adorable little boy and we pray that he will be blessed with a long, happy, healthy life.

Drew and Maggie took a swimming class together earlier this spring. Here they are having some fun together!

With Drew in the hospital, I've been able to spend more time with Peyton... and learning what it is like to have two kids! Here we are at the zoo. Maggie isn't really used to having someone in her space, but they managed. Peyton is a good big cousin and Maggie puts up with him the rest of the time!

Peacocks roam freely at the zoo, but it seems that I rarely see them fluff their feathers. This one spread its feathers after Peyton walked up to him (not closely), and yelled, "Boo, Ceacock, Boo!"

We've been on a few picnics with my Moms 'n' Tots group. Here, Maggie is playing with her friend, Charlotte. Okay, I say playing, but really she is trying to steal Charlotte's food. Looks like Charlotte is ready to claw her eyes out, but she was a good sharer. Afterwards, Maggie went around and cleaned up the bits the other kids had left. We call her, "Hoover". I guess I'm supposed to take food to these things?!

We've been spending lots of time outside! Maggie loves the water...

and the park... especially the swing

And more recently, the slide!


This is at Gymboree. I wasn't too sure about Gymboree until the third week we went. Maggie loves to explore the entire area, and especially loves the balls and hoops. On this particular day, she really enjoyed the bubbles too.

And finally, a little snack before church. Perhaps it will keep her quiet. Right.

Our little girl is getting so big! She turned one at the end of June (already?!). I'll do a special birthday blog with party pictures, so stay tuned!!

Holy 'Mokes!

So James says to me the other day, "Do you know what May 8th was?" I'm thinking was it the anniversary of our first kiss? Or the first time he told me he loved me? Or did I even miss an important birthday?

Nope. It was the last time I posted a blog entry.

Sorry, faithful readers. I know you're eagerly anticipating an update of our (okay, Maggie's) lives.

And now you're going to have a wait a day or two longer so I can get some pictures loaded. Stay tuned... a long post is to come!

Side note: The title "Hole 'Mokes" is something my three-year old nephew says. It's cute because his mom (Kari) says it all the time, and Peyton doesn't say his "s's" when they are followed by a consonent. For example, if he were to say, "You can't go swimming with snakes when it's snowing", it would come out like this, "You can't go wimming with nakes when it's nowing."

It's cute and it makes me smile.

Caden's Birthday

Saturday was Caden's birthday, and we were lucky to be able to share it with him. He is a huge fan of Thomas the Tank Engine, who happened to be on tour here in Calgary last weekend. What a party for a two-year old! I'm not sure just how much of it he will remember, but I do know that he had an amazing day and enjoyed every minute of it!

Caden, Justin, Jen, and Judy rode the train three times around Heritage Park; James, Maggie and I waved them off. I wonder what it will be when Maggie is turning two... what will we have to wait in line for for Maggie? My Little Pony doesn't go on tour. Or the Cabbage Patch Kids... whatever it is, I'm sure we will be just as excited to do it for her as we all were for Caden.

Until then, it would appear that Maggie couldn't have cared less!

There was plenty more to do at the park than just ride a train. There was singing, toy trains to play with, castles to bounce in, and face-painting.

Caden really liked riding in this old fashioned swing. So much so that he nearly fell asleep!

I took these pictures at one of the train track displays. It was both funny and disturbing...

Then it was time to go back home for a wonderful birthday dinner. Caden was so patient all day long to finally get some cake!

And Maggie, well, she was into the party, but obviously mad that she wasn't getting any cake!

She was in a better mood once she found one of Caden's new toys. Forget My Little Pony, looks like she'd rather have a dump truck!

Alright already

So I have learned from a few of my readers that you don't particularly care about my first car, how to cook salmon, or even random things about myself (with exception of my trombone story, for some reason that provided some entertainment). What you want to read about is Maggie. Fine. Here are pictures and updates of Maggie... enjoy!

First things first... we had a dump of snow a couple of weeks ago. Welcome to spring in Calgary.

The good thing is that it melts quickly. This picture was taken the next day.

Sweet Maggie chugging milk before bedtime. You should see how bloated she gets afterwards, but you don't want to be the person to take away a bottle that might just have a drip of milk left. Baby likes her milk!

This is Maggie on Easter Sunday.

The dress fit well; the tights, apparently, did not.

Nothing like a sleeping baby. I love how she makes sure she knows where her soothers are at all times!

And here she is sleeping in a calzone position. Again, I'm certain Maggie will be a yoga guru when she grows up. Note the position of her soothers...

I love walking into her room and seeing this! How can you not smile?!!

I'm a big girl!!

Maggie loves to eat! Here she is trying oranges for the first time. It took her a few minutes to realize she had one stuck to her face. Silly girl, but what a surprise for her!!

Both of her bottom teeth have come in now, but this one was taken when she was showing off the first. Or was she showing off her hair??? This was a Sunday morning, when it's James' turn to get her ready. Nothing like spikes for church!

7 Random Things

It seems that there is a blog "tagging" trend going around, where you have to post 7 random things about yourself, then tag others to do the same thing. My friend, Dallas (whose blog I enjoy immensely), tagged me. So as not to be the party pooper... here you go...

1. I played the trombone for one year in Grade 7 (or, seventh grade). I wanted to play the flute or the clarinet, like the pretty girls, but there were too many already (players, I suppose) so the teacher convinced me to play the trombone. The only (and I mean only) time it was fun, was when we played the circus song and I had a special solo with the run. Other than that, it was the worst instrument ever. I hated when the teacher made us take our instruments home to practice. First of all, I couldn't pretend I took it home and just leave it my locker because it wouldn't even fit in my locker. So, while the other girls tossed their little flutes or clarinets into their backpacks, I had to one-hand my bike home while attempting to not fall over carrying the thing. To top it off, my dad suggests making a "trailer" to attach to my bike. I'm glad I had the brains to not agree to that.

2. There were 146 bobby pins in my hair on my wedding day. It was worth it... during the day. Spending the first hour of my wedding night having my husband remove them was not what I had planned.

3. I took a Greyhound bus with my friend, Sarah, from Little Rock to Los Angeles for Spring Break. It was nuts. The trip took 40 hours, both ways. I think we were on the bus for longer than we were in California. We met some interesting people, that's for sure. Although I have often wondered what happened to that guy who was kicked off of the bus in the middle of the desert at night.

4. I could watch re-runs of the Golden Girls over and over again. I miss the Lifetime network (we don't get that up here) and their episodes 4 times a day. My roommates in Tennessee used to laugh at me because they could hear me laughing in my bedroom before bed. Ah, what a good way to fall asleep! I also secretly love Reba. It just makes me laugh.

5. I am extremely inflexible. The last time I could touch my toes without bending my legs was in the womb.

6. I love golfing. I'm not the greatest player, but I'm always improving. And I love golfing with James... except for when he tries to toss me from the cart.

7. While my husband's biggest pet peeve is individually wrapped condiments, mine is when people flatulate in confined spaces, such as elevators, plus 15's, cars. Rude.

So there you have it - 7 things you may or may not have known about me. Now, I'll tag these people:

Roberta
Jen
Elaine
Brandi
Jill

Here are the rules:
Link to the person who tagged you.
Post the rules in your blog entry.
Share 7 random, or weird, facts about yourself.
Tag people at the end of the post, linking to them.
Leave a comment on their blog so that they know they’ve been tagged.

Sylvia: July 14th, 2000 - April 7th, 2008

I knew it was inevitable from the first day I met her. She was perfect for me... at the time. I was 23 and heading to Tennessee for graduate school and she was mine. My very own car (well, mine and Honda Finance's)! I loved that little car, but even from the first few days, I knew that this car, "Sylvia", would be perfect for only me as she certainly isn't a family car.

And so, last week, I said farewell to my first love. She's found a new home with a nice couple that is tired of gas-guzzling vehicles. Who isn't? If she wasn't a two-door, I'd probably keep her for that very reason; however, two-doors aren't great for families. Two-doors aren't even that great for pregnant women. I drove Sylvia during my final days before Maggie was born and there were days that I wasn't sure I could even get out of the car! Just the idea of shoving a car seat behind the passenger seat of Sylvia gives me a headache. I'm sure I'd bang my head with each attempt, then wonder why Maggie's first word was a curse. So, getting rid of Sylvia was simply good parenting.

We've replaced Sylvia with a much larger "mom" car. No, not a van. A "Nicola-mom" car: a Rav4. Surprisingly, I've forgotten all about Sylvia and the fun we had (which was lots and lots of travels: from Calgary to Tennessee, Arkansas, Florida, Atlanta, and all over Alberta and Saskatchewan). The Rav is proving to be the perfect car for me at this point in my life... just like Sylvia was.