my little helper

I am not sure if Aidan is better at helping make the cookies, or the actual clean up part.

You be the judge!

So what do you think?

Judging by the pics I think he is better at the cleaning up part...seems like it is more fun right! That is....until the cookies came out of the oven, then it was all about taste testing and quality control.

a new table

Here's a shot of Aidan & Maelle's new table that I (yes me!) built on the weekend. I can be quite the little construction worker you know!

So now I find myself thinking about what I could build next with the pile of scrap wood in the garage!

Poor Brent! He just can't seem to keep up with all my new ideas from one moment to the next.

Check out Dakota anxiously waiting for a crumb or a piece of food to fall from Maelle's lunch!

the weekend....

It has finally melted!! Yeah! The snow is gone! Well, except for a few nooks and crannies in the backyard, but for the most part it's gone. So...what did we do this weekend?

We started Friday off by being a little silly...

Saturday we took the kids to Cassie Campbell's Street Hockey Tournament & Family Festival up at the U of C and the kids had a blast playing mini-golf, playing a gigantic "kid size" game of Connect Four....

....Aidan tackled an obstacle course (he actually did quite well!)...

...and then Aidan and Brent built a snowman with the remains of snow in the backyard. I think it was melting just as fast as they were building it!

So....we have had quite a busy yet very productive weekend. Aidan and I spent Sunday morning in the garage building a kids outdoor table for the deck, doing some chalk drawings on the driveway and enjoying a Starbuck's hot chocolate thanks to daddy!

After the kidlets have some quiet time we will be back outside and enjoying that much needed warm weather and sunshine!

spring will come.....it really will!

Oh how I miss that warm weather we had about a week ago. Don't they say if you see a robin then spring is just around the corner?

Well, we had about 20 of these little critters chowing down on the rotten crab apples in our frontyard....so, wouldn't that mean that spring is coming for sure? I have never seen so many robins than I have in the past few days. I think our house has turned into grand central or a major stop in there migrating path. The kids are just fascinated!

Aidan was outside this morning, trying to dig out his playset and all of the trucks that were buried by that white stuff...

...and Maelle and I decided to make a little whipped cream for some much needed hot chocolates.

I think she liked it!

So....hopefully we will see the warmer weather soon and we can get back outside and enjoy that sunshine. The weekend looks promising, so let's keep our fingers crossed!

My little "Bob"

How cute are these pics?

I grabbed a few (ok a lot) of shots yesterday as Maelle was scampering about the house saying "Bob" and wearing one of Aidan's favourite hats.

You can tell she has an older brother!

A wintery hello!

Ok...I am back in business. The new camera is up and working great (I love it), and I have figured out my new uploading process....so here we go!

We have had quite the blast of winter this weekend. A huge storm hit us Friday and finally let up late yesterday. I am not sure how much snow we ended up with (it depends which part of the yard you're loooking at!) but needless to say it was more than enough. Brent is currently soaking up the sun in Arizona, and is probably sitting by the pool as I type this post! I do hope that he is having fun....he deserves a little vacation for all of the hard work he does. Ok....I must admit I was a tad jealous Friday evening as the major blizzard outside was battering our house, and he kept asking where the sunscreen was. He did manage to keep his laughter contained for the most part I guess.

Anyways....I have included a few nice pics of the kidlets, along with a few wintery ones so all of you people in Ontario who are enjoying the warm weather can have a good laugh!!

Still full of giggles despite the wintery weather...

Aidan....not so impressed that the sandbox is buried yet again.

We do have a firepit somewhere in front of the chairs!

(Can you believe that Brent and I were sitting in these chairs last weekend enjoying a fire!)

What do you think this Robin is thinking?

Grrrrrrr.......

Yes, I am a tad grumpy today....it is currently snowing (yes snowing) and it is supposed to snow today, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and maybe Tuesday. Oh I am so very unhappy. Brent is off to Phoenix, Arizona tomorrow (lucky guy!) and while he is seeking shade on the golf course, I will be throwing a log on the fire and shovelling snow non-stop! Oh well. It will be a good weekend to get caught up on all of those little (ok and some big) projects that have piled up in my "craft area". Oh....and if you're wondering why there are no pics with this post (I am so very sorry), I have just purchased (finally) a new digital SLR camera and I am just trying to figure out all of the fun features. Believe me....I will get some pics up as soon as possible....that is...if I am not buried in snow! Boy, did Brent time his trip right!!

time out?

How's this for a time out spot?
Judging by Maelle's expression...not very effective.



Don't let her cute looks fool you! As we are slowly finding out, little Maelle is the source of many trouble causing antics around here!

Signs of summer!

Well...now this is more like it!

Get those summer toys out of the garage, clean off the patio furniture, put up the hammock, put away the shovel...(ok, maybe not given what happened the other day!) but what a fabulous day to spend outside. The weather was awesome today and will be even better tomorrow. I am happy to say that I officially have spring fever! Yes, I am aware that it is only April, but hey, when it's this nice how can you not be excited?

a little "summer" treat...(no, she didn't eat the whole thing, it was Brent's!)

"...now that was nice Aidan!"

give them a little fresh air and they'll sleep anywhere!

never forget where you live....

Ok...I have lived in Calgary coming up on 7 years this summer. This happens every year, so you would think I would learn.....this is what we woke up to this morning after such a beautiful day yesterday.



A blizzard....with about 6" of fresh snow. What happened?
Now that you have all stopped laughing at me....I will now be heading outdoors to shovel the snow....not dig in the sandbox!

glorius sunshine

You gotta love it when the days are sunny, the temperatures are warm and the trees and shrubs are starting to bud! I LOVE SPRING!!! Not to mention the abundance of tulips that are poking through the ground....it won't be long now! (Well....let's hope we see them blossom, usually the rabbits get to them before I do!)

We spent a wonderful morning at the zoo today....lucked out huge with what we saw! The tigers playing up close and personal, the baby elephant, the sting rays, the hippos were playful, Aidan and Maelle got up close and personal with a few tortoises that were wandering around the gorilla building, and Aidan sat side by side and eye to eye at the window with one of the gorillas! A huge thing for Aidan. Oh...and yes...if you can believe it I forgot the camera today. Yes...you heard correctly, me who takes the camera everywhere, forgot it today when we went to the zoo. I guess I learned my lesson!

But...without fail...I managed to snap a few pics of the kids while we enjoyed that sunshine after lunch!

Lovin' the pea gravel!

Catchin' a few of those glorius rays!

Oh...Maelle is a bit of an adventure seeker and adrenaline junkie (wonder where she gets that!)She has finally figured out how to sit down at the top of the slide in perfect position, and really doesn't care if you are there or not to hold her hand while she goes down the slide. By the time I make it around to the slide after helping her up the ladder, she is already half way down and I just manage to stop her from falling face first into the mud puddle at the bottom!

What does Maelle do? Giggle and walk around to the ladder to do it all over again.

growing up too fast

What happened to that little boy riding his red and blue truck up and down the street? Can you believe that he now is learning how to ride a red and blue big-boy bike? Where has the time gone?

Today it really struck me that Aidan is growing up. I saw him in a brand new light today....not as a tiny little boy anymore, but as a boy who is growing up right before our eyes. Even though I am excited about this time and all of the new experiences it will bring for everyone...I can't help thinking back to when he was taking his first steps on this very same sidewalk as I rushed along behind him hoping that he wouldn't fall. Sigh! Now it looks like I will have to move a lot faster and hope that I can still catch him if and when he takes a tumble.

ok....yum!

The kid's have just retired to their rooms for quiet time...and I have just finished a batch of Soft & Chewy Chocolate-Peanut Butter Cookies....ahhhh.....silence! And what a better way to enjoy this silence than indulging in one of these yummy, delicious, chocolaty morsels that just melt in your mouth....yummmm!!!
These are my new favourite cookies by far! Well...that is until next week when I find a different recipe to try out.
But for now.....the silence and a chocolate cookie is the ultimate way to spend the next hour or so!

catchin' up & planning

Here's a funny shot of Aidan and

Maelle just chillin' out at their table.

Doesn't it look like they are planning out

what they're going to do today....or,

maybe what they're going to get into today...

yeah...that's probably what it is!

"Maelle...if we start by dumping the Lego....

then we could "re-arrange" the bookshelf,

yep...then it's onto the blocks......"

Ah yes...destruction at it's finest!