Nova

We got a new Cat!!! And shes gorgeous.

A few months ago Kael came into my room first thing in the morning and said "I think we need two kitties."
I asked him why we needed two kitties.  He said it was so Zuli could have a friend! I thought it was so cute. I told him we would look into it. We almost bought him a new kitty for his birthday but the one we really like had already been adopted. A trip to the SPCA became a regular weekend occurance. The kids loved going to see all the cats and playing with them. After not finding a cat we were 'in love' with after a few weeks we put the thought of buying another cat off to the side for a bit.
While looking for something to do this weekend Kael said he wanted to go look at the kitties, so off we went to the SPCA. We didnt go there with the intention of buying another cat. But then Evan pointed out this cute, fluffy and loveable kitten. I went over to check her out and she snuggled right up and was purring instantly. Im a sucker for a cuddly kitty! We checked her out a bit more. She  was super friendly with the kids and has some very unique quirks about her. So we adopted. After all, who could resist this face!!!

Here is one of the things we found so interesting about her. We loved her pointy ears and long hair between her paws. Reminds me of a Lynx. While they couldnt tell us what breed she was, Im pretty sure there is Lynx Point and Tabby in there (Zuli also has some Lynx Point in her). Also, she has somewhat of a 'two face'. It doesnt take a second glance to notice the line directly down her face. One side is more black, the other more copper. Kinda cool!
But the MOST unique thing about her is this.....Notice anything a little strange???

Not really a great picture but still noticeable. Still cant see what I mean? Then check this one out!

Thats RIGHT! This kitty has THUMBS!!!??
She is a "Polydactyl Cat" and I thought it was the coolest thing!

Anyways, we are loving her to pieces. Zuli is having a hard time adjusting but im hoping that with time they can learn to be in the same room! We're in trouble if that doesnt happen.
Here are some more pics of the kids and Nova.

I managed to get some new Kitty beds made up this morning. Zulis bed was looking pretty gross so she needed a new one anyways. They arent the greatest, but will do until I have more time to make some better ones.

Sah-Moovies

One of my kids' favorite things. "Sah moovies", but more commonly referred to as 'Smoothies'.

As a kid we always made these. Our freezer was never lacking in frozen berries. Now, I had a sweet tooth as a kid but when it came to 'snacking' we chose relatively healthy things. Like Smoothies. It was our after school snack. Especially in the summer. We used to make them so thick there was NO WAY you were getting it through a straw. Spoons were very much necessary.

I went years without making these -then I got pregnant with Kael and I started craving fruit with a passion. I couldnt get enough. So I started making smoothies again. And its something ive stuck with ever since. I make them every morning for breakfast and as soon as my kids were old enough to eat solids, they were getting these fruit smoothies. Ive noticed that the kids were more likely to catch whatever cold or flu thats going around when we missed a day or two with no smoothies. Ive tweeked the recipe somewhat over the past couple years to make it crazy healthy. Also so that I could sneak food in that was good for them that they just wouldnt eat in their true form. I prefer to use fruits filled with antioxidants. Ive come to favor a pomegranite berry mix. (pomegranite seeds, cherries, blueberries and strawberries).

Now, every morning my kids ask for Sah Moovies (two words, not one). I love the feeling of knowing that ive passed a little of my childhood onto them, and hopefully its something that sticks with them through their lives. Sure its just a smoothie. But its nice knowing that ive created a memory to them. And its a yummy one!
So I thought Id pass the ingredients onto you. Try it out!

Mix of frozen berries

Yogurt

100% fruit juice

Avocado

Water

First add Yogurt (about 2 heaping tablespoons), Then half an Avocado! (trust me). Add about 1 Cup of frozen berries. Add about a cup of fruit juice then 1 full glass of water. (should settle around the 1L mark pre blend)  Blend for 2-3 minutes.

This smoothy is AWESOME. The kids love it, and its crazy full of healthy stuff. This is just one of the smoothies we make. Other things you can add are...

Ground Flax Seed

Banana

Spinach

Probiotics

(I suggest the more of these you put in, the more juice you add over water,

otherwise you begin to taste the 'healthiness')

Whats great, you cant taste any of that yucky 'green' stuff and the kids chug it down. There are a ton more things you can put in smoothies, but these are just some of the ones we do. So go ahead. Try it! I dare you to put ALL of it in.  

High 5!

Jacek sure has been blowing us away with his milestones lately and hes only 5 months! Hes slowly changing from Baby to Little Person. Hes gunna be walking before we know it.
We started feeding him solids a little sooner than they suggest. For his size and the amount of food he demands I just couldnt keep up on my own anymore. Plus with Jacek being so demanding (explained in my previous blog 'Giving Up') I was despite for some sanity and was hoping the food would help with his krankiness. So we tried some rice cereal. While it wasnt the miracle I was hoping for I have seen a slight change in his mood since. Just this week he graduated from rice to oats and apple sauce. Ive never had a baby eat so quickly!

Jacek has been my strongest baby so far. He was rolling over when he was only weeks old and by 2 months he was rolling all over the floor. A few weeks ago I tried testing his skills and plopped him down on the floor to see if he could sit up. I wasnt surprised when he was able to hold his own for a few seconds before flopping over to the side. Then last week I tried again. And this time he stayed sitting up and it was a good minute before he fell over! and since 3 days ago he is a full time sitter upper!!! I tell yah. Im so happy to be at this stage.

Another thing that surpised me last week was looking over at him and seeing him up on all fours!!! Great. Not only did this kid suddenly decide to sit up he's soon going to be crawling!!! No seriously, im excited about this. Most mothers seem to dread this stage because now their baby is mobile! But I LOVE it. Cause that means no more kranky, yelly, screechy, whiney, complainy baby because he cant get the toy he wants or because he doesnt have the strength to sit up!
This isnt the best shot. This one I took a couple days after I first saw him flirting with the idea of crawling. With him being on the hardwood and not the carpet he was having a hard time staying up cause it was too slippery.

I love that hes becoming a little more independant and can now go longer than 30 seconds with out sitting on my lap. Playing in his crib is something he enjoys to do after he naps (when his nap actually takes place in his crib). He got a cute little Monkey from one of Evans business partners and he enjoys wrestling with it. Here they are sitting up in the crib during a little 'break from mommy' time.

 

wrestling with his monkey

His choice in toys is somewhat bizarre and i am yet again question why we BUY toys for our children. Jacek loves plastic bottles, cups, bowls and pretty much anything else that looks edible. (and thats everything at this age). And when something that sparks his interest comes anywhere near him hes quick on the draw to wrap his little fingers around it. While cooking dinner one day he was being awfully 'pleasant' and was having a hard time finding enough toys to keep him distracted. I finally resorted to dishes. I handed him a little strainer and oh man this kid was in heaven. He would have played with that thing till the cows came home. You can imagine the fury whenever he accidently dropped it out of his reach!

Despite all our challenges we've been having with Jacek so far we still love him to bits. I love watching him explore new things and trying to conquer his challenges. All in all he is a pretty happy, fun loving, spunky kid and hes a huge blessing in our lives.

FOUR

Kael is 4. WHAT!?

Its crazy. Hes growing up so fast. Its amazing the difference between 3 and 4. We see huge leaps daily with him. He's been going to playschool AND preschool and im seeing a huge change. He interacts so much better with kids (though we still need to work on the teasing and pestering). He listens better, he cleans up his toys and clears his dishes without being asked and his manners (which were always good to begin with) have gotten even better! The 'baby' days are over with him and it kind of makes me sad. But Im so looking forward to watching him excel in the years to come.

Kael got the ultimate birthday this year when it came to 'spoiling'. With Christmas being so close to his birthday and all family located out of town the presents came in somewhat of a 'series'. 4 weeks straight of present filled weekends made it a hard adjustment for him when suddenly there wasnt any.

On the actual weekend of his birthday Kael was lucky enough to have his Nanny and Papa Jevne come up and visit. We took them to see the Kerry Wood Nature Center where Kael attends playschool. They were having a 'rock and gem' show that was worded to be very exciting. Things like ' learning about dinosaurs' and 'digging for fossils' and 'lots of crafts' made it sound appealing for young children. After paying a donation to go in we realized that this wasnt was it was made to be at all. It was simply a rock and gem 'craft fair' filled with people who had made jewlery...and then way over there in the corner was a tiny table with a slab of clay, a couple mini plastic dinosaurs jammed inside and a little shovel. ??? So we were rather disappointed when we found out all we did was pay to look at jewlery made from glittery rocks. But we still managed to find the single craft table located in a completely different location. And they had fun making a paper bag dinosaur puppet. Afterwards we grabbed some burgers and then it was time for Nana and Papa to head back home. Later on that evening we gathered some ingredients to make a fun birthday 'dinner'.

Naveahs Dinosaur was eating her.

We got Kael a Night Sky Projector!!! its pretty awesome.

Making their 'Dinner'

Blowing out the 4 year old Candles! its official!

What could be better than Donuts, icecream, sprinkles, candies, whips cream
and chocolate syrup.....for dinner!? mmmmm

 

The following weekend we had a very small but fun Birthday party for his little friends. He is still quite fascinated with Space so we kept that the theme (two years in a row). We had "Mars" pizzas, Pinapple "UFO's", Milky Way smoothies, and "Galaxy" cinnamon rolls. And for dessert we had 'Asteroids!' aka Cow poops....aka "no bake cookies". For such a small party it was a very loud house! The kids had so much fun playing together! Thanx to Brant, Corbin and Berkley for making it such a fun day for him!

Showing off his B Boy skillz

Optimus Prime!



"Happy Birthday to YOOOOU"

  

ASTEROID cookies for Dessert!

Hello Jorja

We finally got a chance to go down to Magrath to meet the newest member of the family.  (Beginning of January) The kids had lots of fun playing together. Its been ages since theyve all seen eachother!

Jorja Jennalyn.

December 8th, 2010

Welcome to the world little one!

The two newest littles. Jacek and Jorja. 3 months apart.

The Fairest of Them All.....

Naveah is quite the spirit. She can go from high to higher to freaking out and then back again in nano seconds. But we love her all the same. I love her quirky personality and shes gunna be quite the rukkus causer when shes older im sure of it.

Shes a pouter....and a GOOD one at that. Just check out that lip!

She is a bit of a junkie when it comes to sweet. Not like it wasnt to be expected from at least one of my children. It was a teensy bit of a problem when I was a child.

She loves pulling funny faces and amuses Jacek with them often.

Like every other little girl Naveah has become quite taken with the idea of "princess". Though she really has no idea what the idea of a "princess" actually is (according to disney). Having a boy first and being quite jaded myself on "princess" things and the color PINK (barf), the word "princess" or shows that included such things were just not something that was ever tossed around in this house. Princess to her simply means, dress. So here she is in one of her cute little outfits in which she thinks she looks like a princess. :)

Naveah very much keeps this house alive. She is so fun and gets excited over little things. She has the greatest imagination, the quirkiest expressions and one of the cutest, softest and loudest voices you've ever heard......I sure cant wait for this one to be a teenager!!!