Southern Belle

New Blog!

2011-07-26T21:28:00.001-06:00

Hi All!

If you still follow this blog - Thought I would let you know that I now post on another blog. Check out http://theacreagelife.blogspot.com to follow me in my new adventures!

Melissa

There she is!!!

2010-09-29T13:08:00.003-06:00

For those of you who I don't have on facebook - there she is! Our beautiful little girl :) Hard to believe I am 22+ weeks now. It seems to be flying by so fast!!!

Thank You. Thank You. Thank You.

2010-07-28T13:05:00.009-06:00

Well, this blog has been a long time coming. I just want to thank everyone who has lifted us up in prayer and has been so encouraging to us over the past two years as we have been on our fertility journey! What amazing friends you have been and we/I have been so grateful for all your support! It is with great JOY that we announce we are EXPECTING A BABY!!!!!!!!!!! At the end of January, due date is January 29th, we are expected have a new addition to the McCullough family! God Is Good!

God Is Good, yes, he really is. It is actually kind of humourous as we found out we were pregnant the month before our fertility treatments were suppose to start. I had my prescription waiting to be filled. I took off the month of May from all charting, temperature taking and anything being "timed". I found it was funny that I had no idea what day of my cycle I was on and when I finally looked at a calendar I was day 34. I took a test and sure enough, I was pregnant!

We have had 3 ultrasounds and at each one the baby has been healthy with a strong heartbeat! Last week was our 12 week (3 month) ultrasound and it was amazing to see our perfectly developed little peanut on the screen with 2 arms, 2 legs and loud beating heart. How long I have been waiting to see that image - it was a moment I will never forget!

So thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your love and support. Please continue to lift us up in prayer throughout the next couple of months as this baby grows and develops. This baby is a miracle and such a blessing, I thank God every day for this special opportunity to carry another child and to one day meet this gift from God.

Just another quiet Monday!

2010-07-05T19:23:00.003-06:00

Another Monday night here in the Greens on Gardiner Show Home. I will take this quiet opportunity to once again update my blog and reflect on my crazy life. I look forward to Monday nights in the Show Home, even when I know they will be slow. Sometimes peace and quiet is a welcome to change, especially to a mom with a busy 2.5 year old!

The new house is coming along nicely. We had a minor set back when we had a record amount of rail fall and our basement flooded. Unfortunately the carpet all got wet and so did some interior doors, etc. What was really annoying was that the house became too humid and the hardwood floor people had to pull out from doing upstairs. This has probably set us back a couple of weeks in our possession date. Fortunately we still have time before the possession of our current house so this minor hiccup isn't too big of a deal. Now, if we could just get things rolling a little faster I would be happy. I deal so well with assuring my clients that they will get their house on time but I am nagging James and he says I am the worst homeowner he has had to deal with. Ah, the joys of being married to the boss!

Bedtimes with Sommer has come a long way since my last post! James has been working on the house till late at night so I took the chance to get Sommer on a good schedule which has included being in bed by 9. Now, what I think has really helped us is that I have cut out her nap completely so she is exhausted by bedtime. Luckily I have also convinced her daycare provider to do the same. It did take some convincing and she still isn't 100% keen on the idea but it has really helped... a lot! I have done the three warning rule at night because Sommer is the QUEEN of excuses and it has made her stay in her room. Usually the first warning is given up to letting her come out to pee and I have just come to expect this. But after that she is fine! I always hate telling her she can't come out to pee because since the day she became potty trained she has also been sleeping in underwear so really if she has to pee and wets the bed then it's more of a pain for me. (By the way... she has never peed the bed once... not in 8 months!!!) Tonight James is putting her to bed so we will see how he does with the new schedule. I am sure he will have a harder time because he seems to get her SO wound up before bed!

We got home last week from 10 days vacation. We spent 2 days in Calgary and took Sommer to the zoo. She loved it. Love all the animals. I think 2.5 is a perfect age for the zoo! We had beautiful weather and had so much fun seeing my best friend Lyn, Sommer's namesake. After Calgary we went out to Chase, BC for a week with my family. It was such a relaxing time. We had a lakefront house so we put out boat right in on the first day and took it out the last. We went to a neighbouring town and did some shopping. We played croquet, did some fishing, boating, tanning, reading - it was wonderful! Sommer was a trooper on the way home as it was a 16 hour drive! Of course she wanted out of her car seat every once and a while but I did too!

So that's about all that is new around here! Hope everyone is having a great summer!!

I hate bedtime.

2010-06-15T21:39:00.003-06:00

I am tired of bedtimes. I hate bedtime. Little Miss Sommer also hates bedtime - so you can imagine my frustration level at this particular time of night. Usually bedtime isn't until 10:00 pm because Sommer is the ultimate night owl. It's like she thinks she will be missing something SO important if she goes to bed early. Usually it's a fight - it starts off nice, sweet, quiet. Patience is in my voice and all my actions. After the 3rd time of her door opening I start to get a little less patient - I start to threaten ("There will be no park tomorrow", "I will take your noiseybox (music box) out of your room"). After this I am starting to get MAD - I will threaten to spank and then I will spank. UGH. Tonight was no different. I am exhausted.

I use to have the perfect child at bedtime. Kiss good night, say prayers, go to bed. And I wouldn't see her to morning. PERFECT. But for the last while (actually for a really long time...) we have had WWIII at bedtime. Doesn't she understand that I would give ANYTHING to go to bed early. Please, someone send me to bed!!! Kids are funny that way. I can remember fighting my parents over an afternoon nap. Why nap when the world is still going on outside my window? Now, I would PAY someone to send me to my room for a nap. Kids have it easy - if only they knew that.

Well I think she is finally asleep. I guess I will start my mountains of laundry that are waiting for me. Please tell me I am not the only parent who hates bedtime???

Thank You

2010-06-14T21:42:00.002-06:00

Thank you to all of you who prayed for our appointment today. It went so well and smoothly. We are able to continue to move forward in our journey and get some answers today. It is such an amazing feeling to know that people all over the world are praying for us and are lifting us up to God. I can't even begin to tell you how blessed we are to have you all in our lives. Thank you! Please continue to pray for us as we keep moving along the road God has planned.

What to write???

2010-06-07T19:29:00.002-06:00

Sometimes I don't even know where to start when I sit down on my computer to update you all on my life. I don't know whether to write about Sommer or the dogs or James. Maybe it's should be an update on the business or maybe that is too boring. Sometimes I just wish I could really share what's going on inside my heart but scared at the same time that is getting to personal in the blog world. I don't want to depress you with my complicated journey of fertility. I just want to share my heart. Can I really, freely, truly do that? I am not sure.

I think today I will just ask you to pray. Please pray for me as a Mom. Please pray for patience with Sommer who is trying to learn independence - and I try to teach her independence but all within arms reach of me. She is a beautiful little girl and I am blessed to have her. Please pray that I will always remember what a blessing she is to us and how lucky we are to be her parents. I find it hard sometimes to look at what a little girl she has become when I am trying to hold on to the baby side of her. I love the snuggles she still loves to give, the new phrases she comes up with every week, and watching her discover new things around her.

Being a Mom is not the easiest job but I want to be able to say that I did my best. My favorite part of the week is Sunday mornings. When Sommer was younger it was easy for us to skip church because we were tired or something else came up. Now that Sommer is old enough to learn about Jesus we have made it a priority to go to church every Sunday. Our amazing church has such a great kids program. Every Sunday morning before they are dismissed all the kids go up to the front for a quick little lesson. Every Sunday Sommer is the first one up there - sometimes beating the Children's Pastor. It just makes me smile to watch her eagerness and passion at such a young age. I love picking her up from Sunday school and getting the run down of what she learned. I challenge each christian parent to make Sunday School a priority for your child - you will not regret it. Please pray for us as we teach Sommer about her Heavenly Father and the love he has for each one of us.

We have an upcoming appointment on Monday(June 14) and I ask you to pray for us. I always feel nervous about appointments with our specialist and such doctors. Please pray that God will go before us and that his peace will surround us while we are there. Of course, I ask you to pray that God will have this appointment turn out for the best and that we will continue to move forward on this journey. So please, mark it in your calendar and pray for us on the morning of June 14th... I could use everyone praying!

Well, thanks for lifting our family up and following us through the good times and the trials. I appreciate each one of you!

Baby Bentley and Baby Update

2010-05-10T20:22:00.003-06:00

Another Monday night in the show home so I might as well keep everyone updated on what is going on in our lives!!! So much has happened this past week!!

The biggest news is that we have a new family member - Bentley McCullough has joined our crazy household. Bentley is a 3 month old Miniature Pinscher who has endless energy! I have always wanted a Min Pin and our local pet store had Min Pins and I just couldn't pass him up. There have been days where I have wondered what I have got myself in to but he his absolutely adorable so it makes up for all his accidents and mischief! Lexis seems to tolerate her new brother and Sommer is absolutely in LOVE with Bentley! I honestly forgot how much work puppies were - I think a newborn was easier than a puppy! He doesn't really sleep through the night unless he is in our bed in my arms - something I am not too fond about. Just like a newborn....

We went to our doctors appointment last Thursday. Turns out there is nothing wrong with us - really??? My levels are all perfect and James is good in his department. I am not sure what the heck is wrong, haha. So now we start a treatment called Clomid and pregnyl. Here is what it is - Clomid is a pill that I will take on days 3-7 of my cycle. This drug encourages strong and healthy follicles to grow. Starting on day 10 I will go through a series of ultrasounds where the tech will measure the size of my egg that will be released during ovulation. Once that egg reaches a certain size and ovulation will be occurring soon I will be given an injection of Pregnyl, a drug that causes ovulation to occur within 24 hours. This will allow for intercourse to be timed with ovulation. Quite the science involved! We will try this for 4 months and then if we still aren't pregnant we will move up to the next stage of fertility treatments - hopefully this won't have to happen. One exciting thing is what when on clomid your chances of twins is 10%! Wouldn't that be something!!

So those are the 2 major developments in our lives this past week. Just thought I would update you!

Road to a Baby Update

2010-04-25T00:11:00.001-06:00

I am such an emotional person today that it is actually annoying! I finished all my fertility testing a couple of weeks ago but I am still waiting for James to do his test (he assures me it will be done this week – I am no longer going to nag him). I always have such a positive attitude throughout the month while we are trying but sure enough the end of my cycle comes and I am met with despair over again. I read something the other day that really hit home: “For a woman who is TTC and every cycle end is met with the reality she is not pregnant it is like she is mourning the child she lost that month.” And that’s how I have been feeling these past couple of months. I have moved on from mourning the little baby we did loose in January and now I am mourning the loss of the baby that “should have been” each month. I must get out of this depressing state! I am sure it is because I am hormonal right now but still, what the heck!! I had a little meltdown today on the phone and my mom assured me everything will be fine. I am lucky to have a supportive family (and friends) who are lifting us up in prayer and encouraging us in our journey. We have an appointment with our fertility specialist on May 6th so we will get some answers and look at our options. I am curious to see what the results of the tests are as I feel like my body is all over the map. I am really excited to have some help finally and some guidance. To be honest, I am sick of trying…. Just tell me when to do it, haha, and please let it work! Please keep us in your prayers. Pray for our appointment with the doctor – that we will have answers if tests came back not normal, that the doctor will have the knowledge he needs to decide what we should try first, and that we will have peace about what is set before us. I will let you know what we find out!

By the way, I appreciate all the comments you all leave! It is encouraging to see who all is praying for us. So please, if you are keeping updated through this blog please leave a comment, even just a “hi”. And if i don’t know you personally but you are reading this I would love to hear from you too. Thanks for your prayers :)

Learning to Measure

2010-04-19T20:22:00.004-06:00

Let's just say that Daddy would be proud... sort of proud. Give her props that she is using a tape measure, on the job site, pretending to measure openings, etc. and she is 2. Never mind that she is yelling out measurements that make completely no sense and would confuse all framers. But she is darn cute pretending to know what she is talking about!

Good Bye Sadie

2010-04-17T20:51:00.002-06:00

Well it was a sad day yesterday as James' family's dog got ran over by a car while they were in town visiting us. Sadie was a special part of the McCullough family and things just won't be the same without her. She lived 8 happy years with his family and everyone loved her. No one is totally sure what breed she was but our guesses were part Jack Russell/Chihuahua/Beagle? She had a little prance she did when she walked. It looked like a little march as she would bring her little feet right up in the air. She had a ear piercing bark that she always let out at the most inappropriate time (nap time, movie time, when you were on the phone...). She loved to snuggle and always wanted to be held. When I first started dating James and I would go for the weekend to his family's house (they live in Outlook) Sadie would always sleep in my bed underneath the covers - she would sleep under the covers of any willing participant.

Today we buried Sadie at our acreage. It was sad. Sadie was loved and will be missed. What a special little friend you were Sadie-bo-badie. I hope you are having a smorgasbord of milk-bones, pigs ears and even a little human food in your doggy heaven.

We love you.

Our Caribbean Cruise 2010

2010-04-12T19:43:00.002-06:00

I just loved our cruise so much! I just want to go back all the time. Such good weather, food, friends... ah, the life. We went on a 7 day Eastern Caribbean Cruise that stopped at Nassau Bahamas, St. Thomas US Virgin Islands and St. Marrten which is a Dutch/France owned island.
Our cruise debarked from Cape Canaveral, Fl. and the weather when we left was so chilly! Lucky for us it did warm up quickly once we set sail.

Our first stop was Nassau and there we visited the Atlantis Hotel - what an awesome hotel!!! You could easily spend weeks there and never be bored with all it has to offer. We took an aquaventure package where we got to use the water slides, pools, beaches and go to the aquarium. The water was a little cold in the water slides and it was a cool breeze that day so I did spend lot of time on the beach chair - soaking up the beautiful sun.

After a day at sea we embarked at St. Thomas. It is such a great clean and friendly little island. It is the busiest of all the islands so no celebrities were spotted (I am such a celebrity junkie). There we did a snorkeling adventure which was so much fun! The first location we swarm right beside sea turtles, fish, string rays, and a barracuda! And I mean RIGHT beside! Such an awesome experience. The next stop was at a shrip wreck which I thought was totally creepy!! We also fed yellow finned tuna and those suckers are aggressive. Some of you may know that I have a phobia of fish and unfortunately James and our guide thought it would be funny to throw pieces of shrimp at me so that the tuna would attack me - needless to say I didn't last long in the water at that location.

Another day at sea and we arrived at St. Maarten and let's just say that was.... ummm... interesting? St. Maarten (the french side at least) allows European Bathing (*COUGH* NUDE BATHING!!). We didn't realize this until we were debarking from the ship and arrived at the beach. Lucky for us there was no NUDE bathing but the young women beside us in the beach chairs did participate in topless bathing!! I made sure James had his eyes on his book or took him out to lounge in the bathtub temperature water. Thankfully the girls were getting a bit burnt on their chest and had to lay on their stomachs for most of the afternoon. It was a different experience let's just say! Not my style.... that's for sure!

It was a nice vacation with our friends. We missed Sommer so much and I feel like she got so big while we were gone. She stayed with James' parents for 4 days and my grandparents for 5 days. She was spoiled, out of schedule, and played out by the time we returned. I can't wait for next year!!!

HELLO!!! I AM BACK!!!

2010-04-05T19:42:00.005-06:00

Easter Sunday with Mommy and Sommy - Annual picture by the piano

Silly Sommy with Daddy - What a goof :)

I ran into a friend of mine at a baby shower (HI HEATHER!) and she told me it was time to update my blog! I guess she is right - so much for my New Years Resolution!!?!

This past March has been an absolute CRAZY month for our family! We got back from a Caribbean Cruise and our month went into full swing. We packed up all the junk in our house one weekend, cleaned it the next, sold it the weekend after, participated in The Spring Home & Garden Show for Trademark Homes, and just opened up our Show Home this past weekend. It has been a whirlwind month! Now I am working Monday nights in the Show Home so I plan on updating my blog when it is slow in the show home - plenty of time to think!

As I mentioned, we sold our house!!! The market has picked up in Regina so we wanted to take advantage of the spring market so we decluttered the house and put it up for sale. 4 days later we had multiple offers and accepted a full price offer with a July 31st possession. We are currently building a house in Lakeridge for us to live in while we build our dream home at the acreage we bought last year. I am not necessarily a "Northender" but I will always give something a try once - especially when there is money to be made. So we plan on having that home finished by the end of July so we can move right from our home in White City into Lakeridge.

Sommer is growing up so fast - crazy how that happens. I looked at her today and realized there is no baby left in her. Sometimes I could see it in her cheeks or her eyes but not now. As you can see from the above pictures she has turned into a beautiful (if I do say so myself) little girl. Her hair is curly and she cheeks are so plumb and her little eyes are a deep dark brown. I just love her! The things she has come up with lately really crack me up. I love watching her try to put things together and make sense of the world around her... I love learning how a 2 1/2 year old thinks the world works. Just priceless.

Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See?

2010-02-15T21:57:00.004-06:00

Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See? is a favorite book of ours. Sommer loves sitting down and reading books - especially when she can read them too. We often hear her reading to her babies or by herself on the couch. Her voice is beautiful and I never get tired of hearing her read. She is precious. We love her!

Faithful

2010-02-14T22:40:00.003-06:00

Faithful: Steven Curtis Chapman

I am broken, I am bleeding,
I'm scared and I'm confused,
but You are faithful.
Yes You are faithful.
I am weary, unbelieving.
God please help my unbelief!
'Cause You are faithful.
Yes You are faithful.

I will proclaim it to the world.
I will declare it to my heart
And sing it when the sun is shining.
I will scream it in the dark.

You are faithful!
You are faithful!
When you give and when You take away,
even then still Your name
is faithful!
You are faithful!
And with everything inside of me,
I am choosing to believe
You are faithful.

I am waiting for the rescue
that I know is sure to come,
'cause You are faithful.
Yes You are faithful.
I've dropped anchor in Your promises,
and I am holding on,
'casue You are faithful.
God You are faithful.

I will proclaim it to the world.
I will declare it to my heart
And sing it when the sun is shining.
I will scream it in the dark.

You are faithful!
You are faithful!
When you give and when You take away,
even then still Your name
is faithful!
You are faithful!
And with everything inside of me,
I am choosing to believe You're faithful.

So faithful...

Though I cannot have the answer
that I'm wanting to demand,
I'll remember You are God
and everything is in Your hand.
In Your hands you hold the sun, the moon,
the stars up in the sky,
for the sake of Love, You hung Your own Son
on the cross...to die...

You are faithful...
Yes, You are faithful...
When you give and when You take away,
even then, great is Your faithfulness!
Great is Your faithfulness!

And with everything inside of me,
I am choosing to believe You're faithful!
Oh, oh, oh...
Oh, oh, oh...
When you give and when You take away,
even then still Your name
is faithful!
You are faithful!
And with everything inside of me,
I am choosing to believe...

...You're faithful...

A time for mourning and a time for dancing.

2010-02-12T14:51:00.002-06:00

I have been wrestling with the thought of posting this blog but I have decided that I should. There are many people out there who have been praying for us and our journey of having another baby and I truly thank each one of you. I am sure this is going to be a long post because I have so much to tell you so bear with me.

Last month (end of January) we found out we were pregnant. After 13 months of trying you can imagine my excitement when I took my, what seemed like, 100th pregnancy test and saw a faint positive sign in the window. I called James right away and asked him to come home to reassure me that it was in fact positive. Unfortunately he wouldnt come back home as he was already in the city. I ran around looking at it in different light almost not believing what I was seeing. I told myself to calm down and call the doctor in the morning to get them to confirm it. I was on cloud nine as you can all imagine. The next morning I took another test at 6:00 am because I couldn't sleep. And again it was positive. I called the doctor and went into the lab for blood work and a urine test. I couldn't believe it and we were so excited! The lab didn't call back the next day and I was going frantic... maybe I was imagining the positive sign... maybe this was a dream! Finally 3 days later the doctors office called and confirmed the news - we were pregnant!

I phoned my sister right away and we screamed on the phone and laughed. What a great feeling it was to know that God does answer prayers. We kept playing phone tag with my parents and on the weekend we finally told them the good news, well Sommer did. We had bought her a t-shirt that said "I'm the BIG sister!" Of course my parents were so excited! We all were just so thankful. We had plans to tell James' parents the next weekend because we were going down for his sister's birthday and basketball game. I just hated keeping it a secret from family, especially when we had waited so long for this day.

That next Monday when I got home from gymnastics with Sommer I noticed some blood after I went to the bathroom. I reassured myself that spotting was normal in a pregnancy... many women spot in early pregnancy (or throughout their pregnancy) and are totally fine. But I just couldn't get those bad thoughts out of mind. I called my dad and told him to pray but also told reassured him that it was probably nothing to be nervous about. All night I was just sick thinking about the "what ifs" and I could hardly sleep. Tuesday morning I woke up and I was bleeding heavier. My heart sunk. I called the doctors office and they had me go to the ER but also told me there was probably nothing the doctors could do because I was just over 5 weeks. James and I went to the hospital and the whole time I was thinking "this can't be possible God. What are you doing to me?" It was almost like I was in a cloud or thick fog.

We got to the hospital around 11:00 am and luckily they got me right into a room to be examined. When I saw the amount of blood I was passing I knew it was over - I had lost the baby that I had waited 13 months to conceive. The doctors examined me and prepared us for the worst - which I knew was already happening. At 2:00 pm they got us in for an ultrasound. I lay there on the table while the tech said, "Congratulations on your pregnancy!" I couldn't even reply back to her and was almost in tears and wanted to yell at her to look at the paperwork and see why I am here... don't congratulate me on anything. She was quiet for the rest of the ultrasound. She was clicking the computer mouse and waving the probe over my belly - a belly that no longer would have a baby in it. When she was finished they sent us back to wait in a chair area until the doctor was ready for us.

After what seemed like hours the doctor arrived. He tried to find a private place to talk with us but there were no rooms available. So he pulled us over to the side of the hallway and told us that we were loosing the pregnancy. There in a cold hospital hallway my dreams were shattered and I felt broken... the unthinkable had happened to us. The doctor explained that I could have minor surgery (DNC) to remove what was left in my uterus or there was medication that I could take too. I didn't want anything - I just wanted that baby back. He left to go make arrangements to refer me to a specialist, which looking back now was a blessing but at the time I didn't think so. So there we sat, in a chair area of the hospital, numb and in disbelief. I was balling and just kept questioning why God would do this to me? I felt like He had played such a horrible joke on us. I just didn't understand it.

The OB/GYN came and talked to us. She examined me and felt that surgery and/or medication were not necessary because of the amount of blood I was passing. She told us how common it was for people to miscarriage. She also tried to make me feel better by saying that it wasn't a baby I had lost - rather a mass of cells that didn't properly align... like that would make me feel any better? To me it was our baby. To me it was a sibling for Sommer. To me it was my answer to prayers that we had been praying for over a year for. And it was gone. All gone.

We went home that night and I looked at Sommer. She was beautiful and funny and perfect. I knew God had blessed me by giving me her but I was still mad. Why had He given us this answer to prayers and then taken it away? I didn't and still don't understand... but I guess I am not suppose to. It just wasn't meant to be. We had told Sommer she was going to be a big sister and that Mommy had a baby in her tummy. I was dreading the moment when she would talk about the baby and we would have to explain it to her. And unfortunately that time came the next morning at breakfast. Sommer was eating her cereal with me and said "Mommy! You have a baby in your tummy!" And I replied with "No Sommy, that baby is no longer in my tummy... it's gone to be with Jesus." Just at that moment James came down the stairs and Sommer said to him "Daddy, Mommy's baby is not in her tummy. It lives with Jesus now." And that was it, to her in made perfect sense. A perfect example of having faith like a child.

So these past couple of weeks have been hard. I have had to wrestle with a lot of sadness and questions - questions I will not have answers for. Last week I went for an ultrasound to make sure there was no left over tissue in my uterus. I sat in the waiting room with all these pregnant women going for a glimpse or their babies. And I was going to confirm that there was no remaining pieces of mine. Life is just not fair.

So that is the sad part of the story. A story that I wish wouldn't have happened but now I am trying to move past. It still hurts writing this out and reliving the sad day. But I think it is healthy for me. I just couldn't keep it inside. For those of you who are reading this and feel hurt that I hadn't told you in person please don't be hurt. I just haven't been ready to talk about it out loud. But now I am. I am healing and have worked through the dark part of it. It is sad yes but I honestly have faith that God will teach me something through this horrible experience. He isn't through with me yet.

Last Monday I had an appointment with my doctor. The appointment had been booked for a couple of months and it was to get my referral sent to a fertility specialist. I went to the appointment and my doctor said she would send the referral but also told me to expect a long wait. While I was in that appointment my friend Joan called. Her daughter is the doctor I had been getting referred to. Joan was just calling to let me know she had talked to her daughter and that her daughter said that the wait list currently had 800+ women on it and the wait would be over 12 months. I was sad and felt so alone. Why can't I just be normal and get pregnant. And I didn't want to wait another 12 months to start testing! But I also knew there was nothing I could do about it... I would have to wait.

Yesterday I went to a follow up appointment with the specialist I had in the hospital. He was just going to review my ultrasound results from last Friday and let me know if everything was okay. I didn't want to go - I knew everything had been okay at the ultrasound but I still went. When I got to his office the receptionist informed me that Dr. G (the one I was suppose to meet) was out of the office but that another doctor (Dr. T) would review my results with me. I had brought all my past fertility charts with me for some unknown reason, I had just felt like I was suppose to bring them. After a couple of minutes they called my name and I went to the room with the nurse. Dr. T came in and introduced himself to me and said that he was covering Dr. G's patients for the day. He went on to tell me that my ultrasound came back clear and that all my levels had returned to normal. He then asked me if I was trying to get pregnant. I said "Yes, I have been trying for almost 15 months now and I feel like it has consumed my mind. It's all I think about and really all I want." I couldn't believe what Dr. T said next, he said "Oh really? I am a fertility doctor. That is all I do. I only work with people who are trying to get pregnant. If you are at the point of wanting help then I can help you?" My mouth almost hit the floor. I had just been told last week that I was on a waitlist with 800 people, to expect a year, but here I was meeting with a fertility specialist who by chance was covering the other doctors patients for the just that day. Within the next 15 minutes he told me the steps we were going to take, set up the test for James to take to see if everything was okay with him, and had me set up for my test that would tell him if everything was okay with me. He also discussed what would happen after those test results and said if everything came back clear he would start me on the treatments. JUST LIKE THAT! In a matter of one divine appointment I had just bypassed a year of waiting. GOD IS GOOD!

I am just in awe of how God works behind the scenes of our lives. From probably what was the worst experience of my life came a opportunity that could only have been crafted by God himself. If I had not miscarried, I would not have gone to the hospital, I would not have been seen by the on-call specialist, I would have not had an ultrasound, I would not have had an appointment with that specialist to review my results, I would not have had to meet with another doctor who was covering for that specialist, who happened to be a fertility doctor, who happened take me as his patient and help us get this process started this month - not in 14 months.

So that fills you in on what has happened in out lives this past month. It has been the hardest month I have had to go through but God didn't forget about us. At the end of it He gave us a reminder that He is in control. He really is... even when I doubt Him. We appreciate all your prayers and ask you to continue with them.

A decade in review.

2010-01-09T13:58:00.005-06:00

A whole decade has gone bye and it just shocks me to think about what all happened in the past 10 years. It's absolutely CRAZY!! A blog that I frequently read, Muddy Boots, did a decade in review: so here is mine!

2000: I was in grade 10!! Y2K had the world in a frenzy and we all thought the world was going to come to a crashing end at midnight. If you didn't think the world was going to end then you were busy getting ready for the return of Christ which many people thought would also happen. I had just got my drivers license and drove the family's second car, a Buick Cutlass - classy!

2001: Grade 11 at Campbell Collegiate! No one will forget the terrible terrorist attack of September 11. I still get goose bumps when I watch footage of that horrible day in NYC. It changed the world in many ways. I lived at home with my parents, nothing too exciting really. I'm sure if I pulled out my old diary I would read funny comments about boyfriends I had, crazy times with my girl friends, etc. but nothing seems to stand out.

2002: Graduation from Campbell Collegiate! Wow, I felt so old at the time but man was I young and immature. I had a stressful year of self discovering and learning who God wanted me to be. I lost myself and found myself and gave my parents a run for their money, that's for sure. I decided to go for a year of Bible School and that fall attended Canadian Bible School.

2003: Freshman in College at Canadian Bible School. I lived in dorms and made many amazing friends! I went on a life changing trip to downtown Toronto where we lived in a homeless shelter for 10 days. I met James at CBC and spoke to him for the first time in April during the last week of school - never imagined we would be where we are now! In May 2003, James came to Regina to take me out to watch a football game. We have spent every weekend since then together. My parents moved to Vancouver, Washington (just outside of Portland, Oregon) in June 2003. I moved in with my grandparents. That summer we took turns traveling to Regina/Outlook and had a great summer together. In the fall I enrolled in University of Regina's social work program and James went to University of Saskatoon for Kinesology. On December 27, 2003, after 6 months of dating, James proposed to me while on a hike in Portland, Oregon. What a whirl-wind year for us!!!

2004: Decided that I didn't want to be a social worker and transferred over to the U of R's Arts department. I decided to major in Psychology. I also planned a wedding!! James and I traveled every weekend, taking turns doing the driving. In April James left for 4 months to go to BC for tree planting. While he was gone I planned the wedding (without having my mom or James near me!). James returned in August and on August 28, 2004 we got married! We went on a honeymoon to Banff, Alberta. That December we went to Orlando with my family for Christmas!

2005: James and I enjoyed our first year as a married couple. We both attended the U of R full time in the Arts department. James worked for Crawford Homes, a home building company in Regina and I worked for Living Hope Alliance Church as a Admin. Assistant. That summer James left again in April for treeplanting. Made for a really long summer without him! We bought our first house, on Mullin Ave., that year. What a great home that was!!

2006: We continued on with School for most of 2006 - same boring life of a poor student! We decided to build a our first new home that winter. I decided to no longer attend school and in June '06 I took a job as receptionist at Royal LePage Regina Realty while I took my license as a Realtor. James also decided to not attend University and he bought a new home exterior company from a man who was retiring. In August we sold our home on Mullin Ave. and had to move in with my grandparents until our new home was finished in November. Luckily for us my grandparents built a new house right beside us!

2007: In January we decided to try for a baby and the next month we found out we were pregnant! We went on a cruise in February during which I was incredible sick! I was probably sick for most of this year... or on meds to not make me sick! In February I also became a licensed Realtor in Regina. James' company was doing extremely well, especially with the huge housing boom in Regina and surrounding area. In July I went and visited my parents in Washington. At an ultrasound in August we found out we were having a baby girl - a shock to us because we were really thinking we were having a boy! I turned 23 in October - and I thought I was so grown up. On October 25, 2007 at 4:36 pm, after 17 hours of labour, we welcomed our greatest blessing: Sommer Lyn McCullough. She weighed 6 lbs 5 oz. That was the best year of my life so far. In November we opened up a new company: Trademark Homes Inc. with our friends the Cressman's.

2008: We enjoyed this new role of parenting and watching Sommer learn so many new things! Once again, we decided to build another new house, this time in a little community of White City/Emerald Park which is 10 km outside of Regina. My grandparents also decided to build another new house - again, right next door to us! At the end of June we traveled to Orlando, Fl. for a reunion with everyone from my mom's side of the family! We sold our house and moved in with my grandparents again until our house was completed in September 2008. We became Aunt Melissa, Uncle James and Cousin Sommer on August 30, 2008 when James' sister had baby Mara. Our little girl turned 1 in October and we could hardly believe how fast that year had flown bye!

2009: We did a lot of traveling this past year: Portland, San Diego, Las Vegas. I guess we wanted to go as many places as possible while Sommer was still flying for free! In February we decided that it was time to add to our family - something that we are still trying to do but we are trusting God to bless us with another child. This year we have been reminded that everything is done in God's timing, not ours, and only He is in control. It was a year that stretched me and made me grow deeper in God's promise to us. My verse for 2009 was Jeremiah 33:3: "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." I strongly believe this verse and know that God WILL hear our prayers and he WILL show us things we can not imagine!! God is so good. Another one of James' sisters had a baby in March, baby Kaylah, making us Aunt/Uncle for the second time! Sommer turned 2 in October, seriously hard for me to wrap my head around. She is now potty trained and in 2 weeks I will be registering her for Pre-School!

It was great to look back at this past decade and see how much can change in 10 years! I also look forward to what 2010 has in store for the McCullough family. I hope you stay turned to see what happens on our journey!

A crazy vacation

2009-12-01T16:26:00.001-06:00

Well I won't do that again. What was I thinking? I thought I would take Sommer out this morning for a nice mother/daughter shopping time.... I forgot she was 2. I had dreams of us walking hand in hand through isles of clothes, me asking her if Daddy would like this sweater, picking out Christmas presents together. And well, I was wrong. I instead took with me my screaming 2 year old who would not sit in the cart and insisted on blindly pushing the cart through crowded isles, yelling “no, myself do!” every time I tried to regain control of the cart. Yes, I was THAT person! I could just feel the stares of (disgust) sympathy coming from the women around me. I tried the candy bribe, which worked until the fruit snack package ran out. I tried the “want to go to McDonalds for lunch?” which worked for about 30 seconds. I then tried the “who’s child is that???” which worked until Sommer would come up to me and say “Mommy!” Ugh. One word – BRUTAL.

I went to Marshalls (like Winners in Canada) and found 2 nice sweaters for James. But I hate buying him clothes because he is picky. So I took a picture on my blackberry and sent it to him on Blackberry Messenger. Within minutes he replied back “Yup, I like it. Buy it!” What did people do before the invention of the media messaging system (MMS)? HOW DID WE SURVIVE? I would have hummed and hawed over this sweater for 20 minutes, putting it in my cart, taking it out, going back to get it for one more look, and then crossing my fingers that he would like it while the cashier says “all sales final”. Not anymore. Now I just snap a pic, push send, and have an answer from my husband who was in another country… thank you Blackberry!

I participated in Black Friday here in the USA. It’s like our Canadian Boxing Day. But, like I say every year, Black Friday makes more sense! I love the fact that you can buy your Christmas presents on a bargain shopping day! Who wants to go shopping the day AFTER Christmas? I want to go 3 weeks before so I can SAVE money!! Kristi and I were out of the house by 7:45 am on Black Friday. I know those of you who are “door buster special’ers” that is not early but to me it is. I didn’t even shower!!! We went to the mall and took advantage of all the great specials at Macy’s, Nordstrom, Charlotte Russe, and Old Navy. I got these great real black leather suede boots that were regular $69.99 for $28!! Best purchase of the year!

Speaking of adventures with Kristi can I just say that we cannot go on a road trip without something unfortunate happening? In the summertime we had the incident where she forgot her passport at my parents’ house and crossed into Canada to pick me up from the airport using a colour photocopy her passport. That was the same time she locked her keys in the car at the airport terminal. Well, this time she remembered her passport when she came to get us but then everything else went wrong. When we were pulling away from the airport to head back over the border I trusted her to know where she was going – she did after all just drive to the airport. After about 45 minutes of driving she turns to me and says, “I don’t know where I am going.” Why didn’t you tell me that like 45 minutes ago?? So we drove towards where we could see lights and asked for directions. Lucky for her we were only about 20 minutes from the border crossing but still we were now an hour and a half behind schedule. So we pull up to the border and tell the guy were we live, where we are going, when we are coming back. I guess we looked suspicious because he told us they were going to have to search our vehicle. Are you kidding me??? So we pull over to the inspection station, get Sommer out of the car (who thinks we have already arrived at Nana & Papa’s house… little did she know we hadn’t even started our 5 hour journey), go inside and answer all the border guards questions. They go and search our vehicle, they think they will find some suspicious terrorist stuff but unfortunately all the find is a car full of dirty laundry (Kristi was bring 2 months of laundry home from college.. . yuck), suitcases of clothes, and Kristi’s scrapbook she made (which they looked at every page). FINALLY WE WERE ON OUR WAY!

We drove in the pouring rain for 3 hours! At one point Kristi said, “Wouldn’t it be funny if my windshield wiper flew off right now?” I know, random, and NOT funny! I didn’t think anything of it until it actually happened!! We were driving on a busy freeway, right smack in the middle of downtown Seattle in the pouring rain and it just flew off! PANIC! I could see fine since my side was still working but Kristi was driving blind. And to make matters worse there was no exit for about 10 minutes since we were downtown. So I called my dad and told him he had to pray that the rain would stop NOW because we can’t see and we have nowhere to get off. Then Kristi tells me she has spare windshield wipers in her trunk! WHAT!?!? Who has spare windshield wipers!?!? So we eventually find an exit with a Chevron and pull into the parking lot. We pop the trunk and low and behold – EXTRA WIPERS! We both stare at these wipers and have no clue how to put them on. Enter our guardian angel…. This man pulls up beside us and I ask him if he knows how they go on. Within minutes we are on our way home, with brand new wipers on only to never use them because stopped.

Then yesterday Kristi is driving back up to Bellingham to work for the week and bring James back with her on Friday for my cousin’s wedding. She drove 2 hours and needed gas. She pulls into the gas station and turns to grab her wallet… it’s not there. Her purse, with her passport in it, isn’t there. Her computer, with her final papers on it, isn’t there. She is 2 hours from home, out of gas, and has no wallet or any money! She calls my dad and asks what to do... we honestly had no clue. All she has is an old cheque book, but no ID. My dad told her that he was probably going to have to drive 2 hours to deliver her purse to her. Kristi then decided to go to the bank and cry…. Crying always works, especially when you are 2 hours from your parents, 3 hours from your house and you have no gas and no money. The bank lady took pity on her and cashed a cheque for $50 so she could fill her tank and drive the rest of the way home. We had to overnight her wallet and her passport so she could survive the rest of the week and cross the border to bring James home. She really is a menace to society!

Well that has been my fun-filled time visiting my parents. And to think I still have another week here! What else could happen to make my vacation interesting???

And our slogan came to life...

2009-11-29T23:08:00.003-06:00

The 13th man makes all the difference.

That is the Saskatchewan Roughriders slogan. And tonight it has come true. But instead of referring to the fans it was unfortunately an extra player on the field that ended up costing SK the game. We are big Rider fans in our house. We are 2nd year season ticket holders. We are jersey owners (all of us - including Sommer). We have the flag flying on the side of our truck on game day. And although I have been a season ticket holder for 2 years it wasn't until this year that I actually got into the action! But now I love it!

My "friend" Tina's (and I say friend loosely because we have never hung out, but we met at Baby Signs classes and we talk on facebook... does that count as a friend???) husband is the Offensive Co-ordinator for the Riders, Paul LaPolice. They showed him at the end of the game and it pretty much broke my heart... his face showed defeat, shock, and sadness. I know to many of us this is only a game but to the players and the coaches this is their job, their career, their LIFE! My heart goes out to them.

The Riders had a great season and they should be proud. We are the Western Final Champs and we were the underdogs in the Grey Cup and gave Montreal a run for their money! The Riders worked hard and played hard all season, so I am not mad at them, just mad at an unfortunate mistake that should have been avoided. So, congrats Riders! Thanks for a great season! I am looking forward to next year!

Every good and perfect gift comes from above.

2009-11-28T01:38:00.007-06:00

Maybe it's the fact that I am celebrating another Thanksgiving with my family or maybe it's that I have been sharing more lately about the difficulty we're having getting pregnant but I am realizing more and more what a specially little girl I have been blessed with already. Lately I have been just overwhelmed with the amount of love I have for her and how special she is to me. I notice every little thing about her - how she smiles, laughs, jokes and how her baby teeth on the bottom are a little crooked. I watch her while she plays and I am overcome with this feeling of pride - I am proud of the little girl I am raising! She does have her moments, like every 2 year old has, but when those moments are gone she is an angel.

I loved being the one she ran to tonight when her baby feel off the chair, tears in her eyes, because things were not going the way she wanted. I loved being the one she said "bless you Mommy" to after I sneezed. And I loved it when she said, "Mommy, you're funny!" after I said a joke and everyone laughed. I love her indepent spirit and how she wants to try things on her own. I love her little tickles she gives me on my back. I love her sweet little voice and her big brown eyes.

I love holding her hand while walking down the sidewalk. I love that today we dressed the same - a sweater dress, tights, and we both had our new suede dress boots on. I love hearing her say my name first thing in the morning, her little arms wrapped around me neck while I carry her to snuggle in our bed. I love hearing her say "I 'oooove you Mommy" while I tuck her in at night after a hard day of playing. I love that she has her Daddy's face and she is a true "little McCullough".

Sommer completes me. She completes us. She is what makes us a family. I look forward to the years to come: watching her grow up, discover new things and eventually discover new things apart from us. But right now I am honored to be the one to teach her new things and have her rely on us for protection. I can't imagine my life without her, my baby, my angel. I know now that if for some reason my "life plan" doesn't work out the way I intend it to then I will be okay. Because God has given me Sommer, and every good and perfect gift come from Him.

The Road To A Baby

2009-11-24T13:25:00.003-06:00

Thought I would give another little update on the process of trying for another baby. We still are trying but I am finally more at peace with how things are progressing. I have been doing a lot of research lately which has helped me understand why it might be taking us longer for a second child.

This marks the 10th month of trying so I finally made the phone call into the doctors office. I was putting off doing this as it would mean that I might have to admit that something is wrong, haha. I have an appointment booked for Feb. 1 with my family doctor, who will then refer us off to a OB/GYN for fertility options. The referral appointment I expect can take a while. But in the mean time I just got this AMAZING book called "Taking Charge of your Fertility" which I have found to be so helpful. This book teaches women what happens before, during, and after ovulation and what changes your body does so you can recognize when ovulation is occuring. In my next cycles I am going to chart my basal body tempeture, check cervical fluids, and cervix positioning, all of which will show a pattern (or lack of pattern) that I & a fertility specialist will review to see what might be wrong. I have been avoiding doing this because it seems like so much work but I am at the point where I need some answers.

One reason why I think I might not be conceiving is because I think I have a too short Luteal Phase of my cycle. A women's cycle is divided into 3 phases, the follicular phase, ovulatory phase and the last being the luteal phase. The follicular phase is where an egg matures and the body "prepares to release an egg", the ovulatory phase is where the egg is actually released and when you are most fertile/fertilization can take place, and the luteal phase is the last phase and in the case your egg was fertilized this is the stage where the egg is developing and your body is going to send off a hormone so that you don't get your period: in other words it is saying "We're pregnant!! Don't reject this baby!" A healthy woman would ovulate around her 12-16th day which would allow for the minimum of 12 days of a luteal phase. 12 days is said to be the minimum amount of days that the phase can be for a pregnancy to survive, any less and the hormone wouldn't necessarily be strong enough and the cycle would come to an end. IN MY CASE I am thinking that I ovulate late, possibly around the 20th day of a cycle, which means my luteal phase is possibly less than 10 days and is not long enough for my body to recognize a pregnancy.

By charting my basal body tempeture I can find out if this is actually the case. Before you ovulate your body temp is around 2 degrees (or more) lower than after your ovulate. I know this doesn't seem like a huge difference but by using a basal thermometer and checking my tempeture at the same time first thing in the morning (after a minimum 4 hours sleep) and charting it I will see a significant rise once ovulation has occured. Then I chart my tempeture for the days after ovulation and until I get my next period which will show how long my luteal phase is. Again, it seems like a lot of work but it does give answers to some frustrating questions! One thing that helps lengthen a luteal phase is taking Vitamin B6, which I am now on!

Another thing that the book re-taught me is just how much a miracle becoming pregnant really is! It takes so many things lining up, going right, and working together to become pregnant that I am so so so so blessed that I got pregnant once before. I knew this all along, but reading it and really learning how your body works just took me by surprise! Sommer REALLY is a miracle and a gift from God and if for some reason I am not able to have more children I will cherish the one I have forever.

What a month!

2009-11-03T13:40:00.011-06:00

What a month!!! I feel like October just flew bye! I don't even know where to start the update! Well, let's start with Sommer turning 2! AHH!! I have a 2 year old - does that make me old? Because all of a sudden I feel OLD! I know, I am young, but I feel like my baby is gone and now I have a little girl! She had a really fun birthday weekend and was of course spoiled as ever. She had a family party on Friday AND Saturday and then had some little friends over to celebrate on Sunday. She got lots of colouring stuff (a new favorite activity), some play-doh (another favorite activity), clothes, books, a new wagon, and the list could go on!

Here is the birthday girl with Mommy! I love the shirt she wore - my mom bought it for her! I don't think Sommer understood what it meant to be "the birthday girl" but when you ask her how her birthday was she "blew candles" out. Okay, fair enough, you did blow candles out! Turning 2 was not a huge deal to her because ever since she turned 1 she told people she was 2. So now maybe she will tell people she is 3?

Daddy and the birthday girl - what a special bond these two have! For those of you who know James you know he is "all boy!" But this little monkey has Daddy wrapped around her little finger! He will do anything for her! It's a good thing that Sommer loves all his toys. When she sees a motorcycle she will say "Daddy see! Motorcycle! Vrrroooom!" She is a girl after his own heart!

This month we spent some time at the family farm. Papa Sam took us for a hayride (minus the hay) one warm Saturday afternoon. We had such a fun time and Sommer really loved it!

Here is Sommer on the hayride (minus the hay...). She is getting so big! She likes the tractor when it is not running but is afraid of it when it makes noise. If only we could have had horses to pull the hayride....

Here is my little Tigger! She had so much fun at our church carnival! There was a dino bouncer, which she was scared of, but love the face painting and of course the food! I love seeing her with her church friends - seriously, it makes the hard decision of switching churches worth it!

I already know that November will be a BUSY month in our household! I look forward to sharing and keeping you in the loop of what's going on in our house!

I am thankful!

2009-10-11T23:01:00.002-06:00

This time of year reminds of the many things I have to be thankful for in my life.

I am so thankful for my husband James. There are many people who say they could never work with their spouse every day but I am someone who is blessed to work with mine! We share an office, share a home, share a bedroom, and share a bed... wow! Don't get me wrong, there are days when I wish I had a little "me" space but my day just wouldnt be the same if he wasnt there beside me. I am lonely when he doesnt come into the office and I am especially lonely if we are away from each other at home. We are a couple that bickers but that has to be expected when you spend almost EVERY MINUTE together and share physical space 24/7, we don't let it get to us and that's why I love him! He is amazing, a hard worker, an excellent business owner, and goal driven!

I am thankful for my BEAUTIFUL daughter Sommer Lyn. Hard to believe she has been in our family for almost 2 years now - where has the time gone? She is so funny now that she is putting sentences together. Her new favorite sentence is "No buggin' me!" or "Lexis is buggin' me Mom!" Too funny! She has such a beautiful personality and is SO full of energy! She keeps us busy and on our toes but I love her for that! I am excited to see who she will become as she grows up, I know she will touch many people's lives!

I am thankful for my family and James' family! I have such amazing parents and a wonderful sister and brother! We have such fun times together and have travelled to many different places over the last few years. I love exploring new surrounding with them and going new places. I love how we tease each other and love each other at the same time! I wouldn't change my family in any way! I am also thankful to have such a great in-law family. There are many of them (12 of us kids and 3 grandkids) and they are loud but they are so fun and entertaining! No one can say they are bored when we are together because there is always something happening! I love each of my in-laws and I am blessed to have been given such a great second family!

I am thankful for having a job that allows me to work only 3 days a week so I can spend time with Sommer and do things that are important to me! I am also thankful to have a wonderful daycare provider who loves Sommer and cares for her! Going to work is easier when you know your child enjoyes where she is and looks forward to going back the next day!

I am also thankful for friends, many of whom I have been close with since elementary and highschool days. It makes a difference when you have friends that have grown up with you and have seen you through all your phases of life. I am blessed to have friends who I have also gotten to know over the past couple of years. My Friday morning playgroup friends are so important to me and I am so thankful to have them in my life! Every mom needs a group of moms to go to with questions, concerns, or anything - it really has made parenting that much more enjoyable!

There are many other things that I am thankful for but that's all for now! Happy Thanksgiving!

Jermiah 33:3

2009-09-11T14:41:00.006-06:00

Sommer has been a DIVA lately - total DIVA. (I wonder where she gets that from..... certainly not her mother...) We have been having problems with her going to sleep and frankly I have had enough. Up until last week we would lay her down in her bed, say good night, turn off the lights, walk out the door and see her at 9:00 am the next morning. BUT that has all changed. Now we lay her in the bed, say good night, turn off the lights, walk out the door and 1 minute later look up and she is standing there in the hall. GO TO SLEEP!!!!! After 4 night of fights I have nothing to give and no energy to walk her back to bed.... So today when nap time was beginning to be a struggle I set up the playpen! I told her if she came out again she would be treated like a baby and sleep in the playpen. 1 minute later she appeared in the hall so I put the playpen in her room, plopped her in it, and walked out the door. She cried for about 10 minutes but it didn't bother me (I'm a CIO type Mom - your not hurt, not hungry, just mad - get over it!) Then she was asleep!! THANK HEAVENS!!! I couldn't do another minute. I will do the same thing tonight if she puts up a fight!

Our family has also made a pretty big decision this month. After much prayer and thought we have decided to no longer attend the church we have attended for many years. We are at a point in our lives right now where friendships and relationships are very important for us and we need those with people our age. The church we were attending didn't have very many young families and it was getting hard for us to connect with people. Also there were not a lot of kids Sommer's age which was bothering me. Some of my best friends today are people that I have grown up with, some of us go back as far as toddler church!! I want to give Sommer that opportunity - to make long lasting friendships with people who have the same beliefs and standards.

It was a hard decision for us to make, especially since we do love the people there and have many found memories. We did not leave mad or disgruntaled - we just felt God was calling us elsewhere. The church we have decided to attend is one where many of my friends go. It is so refreshing for me to go to church on Sunday and be with people I know well and have close relationships with. It is also so encouraging to drop Sommer off in the toddler class with 20 other toddlers!!! We are excited to see what God has in store for us!

It's hard to believe that summer is over and fall is just around the corner! We had such a fun summer. It was so great to watch Sommer explore the world around her, learn new things, and play outside! I look forward to a great fall season and the year ahead... I wonder what things God will reveal to me. I'll leave you with this verse that has found its way into my heart. This is my new life verse: "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." Jeremiah 33:3.

A little lesson in patience

2009-08-28T14:20:00.003-06:00

*DISCLOSURE - I understand that people try for longer than I have been to have a baby. This is my story and a place for me to get my feelings out*

This month marks the 6 months mark of trying for a second baby. Half a year!!! I don't know why it has been taking us so long to get pregnant since with Sommer all we had to do was think about having a baby and I was pregnant. Every month I calculate and we try, and try, and try and 3 weeks later I am met with disappointment and I cry. I have told myself not to stress about it and to let everything happen on it's own yet inside of me it's all I think about. I just feel so frustrated and disappointed... I wish I knew what was going on.

I am a regular cycle gal - 29 days exactly for the past 3 months and before that it was maybe off by 2-3 days. I am a healthy gal, not overweight or underweight, I eat healthy, and my bloodwork all came back normal at my last check-up... I guess it's just not meant to be yet. I honesty try and stay positive because I know that God has perfect timing for my family. I just need to trust Him. Three of my friends just announced they were pregnant and I am truly happy for them. I am just so jealous and wish it was me joining them on the pregnancy journey.

This process makes me appreciate Sommer and how quickly I was blessed with her. I look at her and think how lucky I am to have such a perfect little angel who is so curious about life and loves her Mommy & Daddy with all her heart. Watching her grow up and explore the world around her is so fun. My life is blessed by her!

We will continue trying for our second angel and I will trust that God will deliever her/him when the timing is right. But if you think of it pray for me as I am frustrated and not the most patient person...

Summer time... and the livin' is easy!

2009-07-27T14:08:00.003-06:00

We spent a whole 8 days out at the McCullough Family farm. It is 12 minutes into Outlook and 15 miutes to the lake. We had our trailer out there, as did James' sister's family, his parents and his brother & his girl friend. It was such a great week of relaxation and fun! We went into Outlook and went to the community pool, the SAAN store, for slushes, and played at James' parents house. Papa Sam brought the tempeture down in the hot tub so Sommer spent a whole afternoon floating around in the hot-tub. Sommer found a new obsession - riding the motorcycle around in the yard. No - they didn't go fast since we had no toddler helmet but she loved every minute of it! "More Daddy Please" was what she said everytime they stopped. It has been such a fun summer with her since she enjoys playing and interacting with us. She helps us in the yard and waters the flowers (and us!). She is such a fun little person to be around!

Sommer's hair is finally long enough to put into pigtails! HURRAY! I have been waiting for this day forever!!! This is her on Saturday morning with her pigtails. She is eating a brownie because I had to distract her to do her hair. She left them in all day and was actually very upset when one feel out. She told me "My pretty fell out!" Funny how pigtails make her look so much older and mature!!!

We have now graduated to the big girls bed at our house. We are keeping our eye open for a twin bed but in the meantime our toddler bed does the trick. The first night she fell out 2x but never got hurt. She was sitting on the floor both time when I walked in, I picked her up and back to sleep she went. Not bad! She fell out again the next night but nothing for probably a week now! She looks so mature and old in a bed. So far she hasn't had any problems going down to sleep or naps but maybe she will eventually?

Sommer and I are heading to Vancouver Washington (Portland) to see my family on Thursday. We are really looking forward to the trip. Everytime Sommer see's an airplane she says "Go Papa's! On Airplane!"... someone is going to love the flight!!!

Sommer at the Spa

2009-06-06T14:51:00.002-06:00

Sommer at 19 months!

2009-06-06T14:22:00.003-06:00

Even though spring/summer weather should be here it's clearly not. I have been so frustrated with having to keep Sommer inside the past couple of days that yesterday we decided to go to the Temple Gardens Moose Jaw Spa. Papa Garnet & Nanna Sharon came with us! Sommer enjoyed the warm water so much! She swam around with her water wings on and didnt need me at all. I was so proud of my little fish! She sure has come a long way since last summer!

We have officially (and I say "officially" loosely because it's only been a week...) got rid of Su-Su & teddy during the day. She knows that she can have them for naps & bedtime and when she asks for either of them during the day I have become very creative at distracting her. Mainly she asks for them when she is upset or hurt but things are going well. She is in love with "babies" right now so she takes her baby everywhere with her.

I just love watching her grow-up into such a little girl. She talks all the time and every day says something that makes us laugh. She is a little rough and needs to learn to be "gentle" but it's coming. Hard to believe that I have a 19 month toddler all ready! Where has the time gone??

Twitter, Potty, and unfortunately poop!

2009-04-20T14:08:00.002-06:00

Sommer has been obsessed, and I mean OBSESSED with poop for the past 10 days. She no longer wants to poop in her diaper, which is fine by me, but we are having the hardest time to get her to go on the potty. She will come up to us and say "Poop!! POOP!" and we will run her to the potty. She will last on the potty for 10 seconds, yes 10 seconds. So we put her diaper back on and she will go play. 2 mins later it will all happen again. This will probably happen 10 times in a row. She does know when she has to actually go because finally I will get upset and refuse to put her on the potty and she will go in the diaper within a couple of minutes and come crying to me very upset. UGH!!!
We did have two steps in the right direction this past weekend. One time I was so frustrated with taking the diaper off and putting it back on that I decided to put her on the potty with the diaper still on - and she pooped on the potty! The second time she was yelling poop and I finally put her on the potty and she pooped a little. And man was she soooo excited to see her poop in the potty! She kept peaking, pointing at the poop, and saying "Mommy!! Poop!" Yes Sommer, that's poop, haha.

In other news I am now on twitter. Mostly to creep on celebrities - most people know I am a celebrity junky. I just find twitter a nice outlet to write a quick thought on - like a blog that can only be 140 characters. Perfect! Short sweet and to the point. You can follow me on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/mel_mccullough. Join so I can follow your thoughts too!

2009-03-23T15:21:00.002-06:00

I am alive. Don't you worry. This past month has been absolutely crazy it seems. We went to Cuba and had a wonderful time. Warm weather, time with James' sister and her family, the beautiful ocean... oh man. Cuba itself was interesting - not sure if I would return again. BUT if you have never been then I say go for it! I am glad that we went. We learned a lot about the country, saw how the people live and work, hated the boring food, and loved the ocean. Check out my pictures on facebook!

On Friday we are heading to San Diego for a week with my family! I am soo excited to see them again!! We arrive on Friday night, as does my sister Kristi, and my parents and Kevin arrive on Sunday. So Kristi and us will enjoy a weekend in downtown San Diego before my parents join us. We are staying right on the bay so there will be plenty to see and do! Once my parents arrive we will go to Romona (a town just outside the big city) for a week of timesharing! A pool, tennis courts, basketball courts, walking paths... heaven.

We are trying to break Sommer of her Su-Su (soother). It was going really well last week. She only had it for naps and bedtime. She finally gave up asking for it by Wednesday but this weekend we took 2 steps back. We had James' family here this weekend (10 of them) and she is getting two molars. So unfortunately I was tired of all the whining and she was a little overwhelmed by the people so I gave her back the soother. Now, we are going to have to try to break this habit once again. Already today everytime I have snuck it away she realizes it and says "Su su???" Oh that one word is soo annoying! Haha.

Sommer loves Grandpa Garnet (my grandpa who lives right next door to us). Sommer loves all her Grandpa's but she does see Garnet the most. Today I had to wake up Sommer because we were having a playdate at our house and she still wasn't up at 10:30 am (HEAVEN!). I walked into her room to wake her up and she stood right up and said "Papa??" I am not sure why she was expecting Papa to wake her up - he never has before - but it was still super cute! She LOVES her Papa Garnet!

I am currently typing on my new MINI Laptop! My other old one (2 years old) was crapping out and being soo annoying that James bought me a new one. Well, I bought it too but he likes to think that he got it for me for some odd reason. It's sooo small - only a 8.9" screen, it weighs like nothing and I love it!! I am sitting her on the couch while Sommer naps just typing away. It was super cheap too, $299, and it does everything I could ever need a computer to do - blog, facebook, and look at pictures.

My very sick baby!

2009-02-22T14:06:00.003-06:00

What a horrible weekend this has been!!! On Friday afternoon Sommer was really wheezy and had developed a wheezy cough. To be honest I didn't really think anything of it. But later I was talking to my mom and she said that she didn't like the sound of the cough. So I phoned my friend and got her opinion and then I phoned the health line... by the end of all this phoning we were packing up Sommer and heading to emergency at 10 pm at night! UGH! She was really wheezy by the time we got there and often couldn't catch her breath after her coughing spells. They took one look at her and put us right in a room, no waiting in the waiting room! Of course Sommer didn't like the nurses touching her and trying to get her tempature or blood pressure. She hated them listening to her chest but luckily after 3 hours we got to go home with a puffer & puffer chamber and antibiotics. Ends up Sommer has RSV chest infection and also an ear infection (which I had no clue about!).

Yesterday she had a pretty high fever and was super out of it! She spent most of the day sleeping and cuddling with whoever would sit with her. It broke my heart! She was sooo sick! She just walked around crying and hot and all around pretty grumpy! She doesn't like taking her puffer so it's a real fight to get it in her, but usually we can atleast get her to breathe a couple puffs. We are very glad that she got sick this week and not next as we leave for Cuba on Sunday, March 1st! By then her ear infection and RSV should be under control and hopefully gone! Please continue to pray a speedy recovery for her so she can enjoy the vacation! Today she is a little better than yesterday. She actually ate some lunch and is napping nicely upstairs right now. Her fever is pretty much gone and now she just needs to get rid of the RSV.

My interview from a blog friend!

2009-02-22T13:46:00.002-06:00

One of my blog friends, A Little Bit of Us , did an interview and I thought it sounded like fun. She asked if anyone wanted to be interviewed by her and I said yes! Here is what she asked me :)

1) Sommer seems like a sweet little girl. Any more babies in the plans?
Yes! I can't wait to have more babies! We wanted to have our kids 2 years apart but then James got on this kick about babies being born in the beginning of the year. Something about most of the great athletes are born Jan-March and babies born in November & December are disadvantaged in sports. So now our plans have changed to try for a baby that will be born at the beginning of next year... so stayed tuned :)

2) I worked in a real estate office for a few years and loved it. I always contemplated getting my realtor license. What made you decide to go that career path?
My grandparents use to own one of Regina's biggest home building companies so I have always been around the realestate market. I loved the lifestyle that they lived and how flexible it was, so when I wasn't enjoying University I decided to give it a try! I loved being a Realtor but I decided to let my license go since I was focusing on being a Mom and having more kids and the fees you have to pay as a Realtor are very expensive. Now I work for our own new home building company - Trademark Homes - so I am still in the market in a way. New homes has always been where my heart is at so I totally LOVE my job now. Not to mention I only work 3 days a week now :) It's wonderful!

3) How long have you been with James? How did you meet?
James and I have been together since May 2003. We got engaged after 6 months of dating (December 2003) and got married August 2004! We met at Canadian Bible College where we both did our first year out of highschool. We didn't really hang out while at College but at the end of school we started talking and the rest is history!

4) When you get a little bit of kid free time, what's your favorite thing to do?
Hmmm.... kid free time?? Wow... has it really been that long since I had a moment to myself??? I honestly don't know how to answer this question as Sommer is usually always with me :) But I like to go shopping and go to Chapters. I LOVE to read books so that is usually what I do with my "free time". HomeSense is a great place to go for an hour and find some good deals.

5) There are so many new restaurants popping up in the city. What's your favorite place to go and eat out?
I wouldn't say that I have a FAVORITE place to go. But we do like to go to a few over & over again. We like Brewsters for wing night/40% off appetizer night, we like Houston Pizza for their lasagna special, we like Joey's Only Seafood anytime, we LOVE Red Lobsters for special occasions, and if it's REALLY special then we love Golf's Steakhouse!

***********************************************************************************
If you would like to join in on the interview, follow these directions:
1. Leave me a comment saying, “Interview me”.
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions

Hoping Winter is Almost OVER!

2009-02-14T20:51:00.003-06:00

Happy Valentines Day! Hard to believe it was exactly a year ago when Sommer started babbling and I was able to catch it on video in a Valentines Special :) Now her vocabulary has come a long way and currently she can say: Mommy, Daddy, Puppy, Baby, Yes, No, Please, Thank You, Uh-Oh, Juice, Socks, Shoes, and probably many more than I can not think of off the top of my head! She does her "s's" backwards by instead of blowing out her "s" she sucks it in. Very cute little twist to words that end in "s". We have had a very low key Valentines day in Outlook visiting James' parents. Sommer was extremely tired this evening and everything was causing a meltdown. Funny how they get so clumsy when they are tired and anything can set them off into a crying meltdown. Its almost 9 and I think she is tucked away in the playpen in our room - hopefully sleeping!

This morning Sommer woke up at 8 am - which is early for us! She was ready for a nap around 11:00 am but I knew if she napped at that time our afternoon nap would be nonexistant. So I decided to take Sommer downstairs and snuggle with her on the bed for a quiet time. I wasn't sure she would stay but we snuggled for 1 hour together under the warm covered. She LOVES "criss/cross apple sauce" on her back and "round and round the garden" on her tummy. She was so snuggly and cute... there aren't too many days like that anymore. She is not a baby anymore and has turned into quite the independant little lady.

We are gearing up for a BUSY March! From March 1-9th we are off to Cuba with James's sister Jenn, her husband Dan and their 6 month old baby named Mara. We have got our twinrix and twinrix Jr. needles to protect again the carribbean diseases. I always watch those commercials about Hep A & Hep B and get nervous so I thought instead of stress about everything we would all get our shots. We are with Jenn & Dan for 4 days as they get there 3 days before us and we stay 3 days after them. It will be so nice to escape this cold weather! We are home for 2 weeks after March 9th and then we leave for SanDiego on March 28th for a week with my family! We are staying in a Condo there and hopefully will take in the Wild Animal Park, SanDiego Zoo, Tijuana Mexico, and hopefully some hot days by the pool.

HOPEFULLY we only have one real week of winter left as March will mainly be full of warm days spent elsewhere!

Baby Bobsledding & Swimming!

2009-01-21T21:13:00.004-06:00

Training for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics - Baby Bobsled

Swimming with her good buddy Dylan!
Yes, Sommer LOVES swimming now!!

Striking a pose at Swimming :)

Cardboard Testimonies

2009-01-18T10:49:00.004-06:00

We went to a Saturday night service last night at a church. Friends of ours are on staff there, well, the husband is. It was a refreshing service and we really enjoyed it. At the end of the service they did Cardboard Testimonies. It was so amazing to see how God has changed people's lives... I know He has changed mine.

Check out the Cardboard Testimonies clip from Youtube:

Happy New Year!

2009-01-08T22:21:00.003-06:00

I feel like so much has happened that I have not had a chance to write about. Before christmas I really had trouble sitting down and writing on here. I felt like I didn't have time and I was soo rushed. I love looking at the calendar in January because there is honestly nothing on it, no plans, no appointments, just free time!!

Sommer had her 14 month check -up today! Honestly, 14 months, where the heck did time go!?!? She weighs 23.5 lbs and is really tall! I am not sure how tall she is because the Doctor put down the same number (46cm) for her height and head circum. What the heck??? She loves to run, dance, climb on the couch (all on her own), and bite. Yes, bite! We are working on the biting thing and have been for a while. The unfortunate part is that her friend at daycare also bites, so they egg each other on. Poor Tanya has a horrible time keeping her daughter and Sommer from biting each other... we hope this is a stage she will soon grow out of! Sommer can say a couple of words: Mom, Dad, Dog, Ball, and her favorite "Yeah!". She will mimmick words if you ask her to copy you which is really cute! She is growing up too fast!!

We had a wonderful Christmas at my parents house in Vancouver, Washington (Portland). We got to see all of my dads side of the family as well as some from my moms side. Of course Sommer got spoiled with lots of presents including a blow-up bounce castle (complete with balls)from my parents. It was too big to bring back on the plane with us so my grandparents will bring it with them when they return from going south at the end of Feb. We didn't buy Sommer lots of gifts as she has no idea what Christmas is. We bought her a housecoat and a potty! No, I don't think I will have her pottytrained by 15 months but she does not what a potty is and she does know when she is going to the bathroom. So I figured it is never too early to introduce her to the potty - no pressure - so we will see.

In other news I have officially retired as a Realtor!!! It was a hard decision to make but I knew that my heart was no longer in that area. I will miss working in the re-sale world of real estate but am still working for Trademark Homes Inc. as their Client Care Rep and also in their office. My heart has always been in the new homes and that is where I enjoy working. We have around 12 homes on the go right now so I am very busy!! Right now I work Tuesday - Thursday (9-5 pm) so I love having my weekends, Mondays, and Fridays off to spend time with Sommer! There isn't a better set-up (maybe not working at all) and if something comes up and I don't go to work then there is no pressure!! I just don't go!

I am happy to be home from vacation and ready to get back to a normal life. I really hate winter - have I mentioned that before!?!?! I just wish it was spring time out and there would be a glimmer of hope that it is almost Summer time!!! I REALLY HATE WINTER! Right now, as I type this, there is a mound of snow piling up in front of my garage door.... I am not impressed!! I know in the spring I will complain on here about the mud we have outside and how we don't have a driveway, etc., etc., but I am still going to wish for that time to come soon. Anything is better than snow, wind and cold weather!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-23T13:40:00.002-06:00

Merry Christmas! Oh my goodness, I have been missing in action for the past month!! I always find tha December is CRAZY busy... christmas parties, shopping, working, and then we didnt have internet at our house for the past week or so. I was going crazy without it!! Here is a little update:

We are at my parents house right now for the holidays. We flew to Abbotsford yesterday and then braved the icy Northern Pacific I-5 to Portland. BRUTAL! It has been really snowy here and they we saying NO DRIVING but we are professional icy/snowy road drivers, HELLO SASKATCHEWAN!?!?! It's nice to be home and relax with nothing to do. We are here until next Friday and then we will head up to James' aunts in Abbotsford and spend the weekend with his family. In Portland they are calling the weather ARTIC BLAST 2008... it's only -3... if they want to see ARTIC BLAST 2008 then they should really come to Regina where it's was -45 one day!

Sommer is doing great! Talking (well, babbling) so much. She turns 14 months on Christmas Day, which is so hard to believe! She new words are "no" and "yeah"... which I find so cute. She loves getting into things and figuring out how they work. She LOVES the christmas tree and the ornaments... which have found their way off the tree and into the toy box. She is in the biting stage right now which is SO FRUSTRATING! It makes me almost scream! When I pick her up from the babysitters I get the daily bite report, ugh! Christmas this year will be fun now that she can open up her own presents. SO CUTE!

I hope everyone has a safe and merry christmas season! May 2009 be a wonderful year for you and your family!

The Big Surprise - Successful!

2008-11-29T00:23:00.002-06:00

I pulled off the big surprise! Tuesday night Sommer and I arrived in Portland to surprise my mom and dad (and siblings) for American Thanksgiving :) We flew to Abbotsford where my sister picked us up and then drove home with her and Kevin. My mom could not believe it when she came out to help carry in the "heavy bags" from the car. She kept saying "No way!! No way!!! Sommer!!" What a fun thing to do for a grandma who doesn't see her grand-daughter that often. Even more special is that we will be down here again in 3 weeks to celebrate christmas! We also surprised my grandparents who were visiting from Orlando as they were in Portland for the holidays too. On Thursday there was 20 of us celebrating thanksgiving in Salem, OR, some of whom had never met Sommer before.

Sommer is being REALLY clingy here. She loves grandma and Aunti Kristi and sometimes Grandpa too. But Uncle Kevin - that is a different story. She gives him high 5's and that is about it. She has really taken to screaming (more shreiking - but not crying) when he goes near her... it's pretty funny to watch!! Good thing he has a good attitude about it and thinks that it is funny too. She doesn't like me to be out of sight which makes things difficult. I can't go to the bathroom or take a diaper outside to the garbage without her crying. Usually she is fine but this is a new place I guess. Slowly we are getting better... we will probably be fine by the time we are to go home.

Tonight Kristi and I went to see 4 Christmases with Vince Vaughn and Reece Witherspoon. Totally recommend it - 5 stars, 2 thumbs up, probably best movie I have seen in a while!! It was super funny, held your attention, and had a happy ending. Better than my last favorite movie (The Break-Up) because the ending was actually good. It is the type of movie that I would go see again if someone wanted to see it.

Today was Black Friday here in America - like Boxing Day in Canada. If you think about it Black Friday makes WAY more sense than Boxing Day because everyone could use the "deals" to purchase their christmas presents instead of shopping after they have received all their presents. I really think Canada should incorporate this hoilday/tradition... it only makes sense! I didn't go shopping though because there was nothing that I needed and not to mention that with our dollar so low it was probably MORE expensive to shop in the USA! But there were some good deals out there that's for sure!

I should head to bed here as it is already 10:30 pm (12:30 am in Regina). I have another long day tomorrow with a Winterhawks hockey game in the afternoon. We are having a great time down here with family and now will look forward to returning for Christmas!

POOP! (WARNING T.M.I.)!

2008-11-19T09:41:00.003-06:00

On Monday Sommer was feeling under the weather. She was acting normal and playing fine but she had the poops. (THERE MIGHT BE T.M.I. COMING.....) She woke up in the morning and I took her downstairs to play while I made her some eggs for breakfast. When I was done the eggs I picked her up and put her in her highchair... I looked at my hand and it was COVERED in POOP! She started screaming in her chair and I tried to calm her down while washing my hands. I went over to her, picked her up, and poop was EVERYWHERE! I am talking highchair, diaper, down her legs, spilling OVER her diaper, up her back... EVERYWHERE! I didnt know what to do... it was like my mind totally blanked! I set her down to stand on her own but all she wanted to do was sit! Bad idea... it spilled all over the floor. Now I have a dog trying to smell everywhing, a baby covered in poop screaming... and I am standing there like an idiot wondering what to do next!! So I took her upstairs (praying that it wouldnt get on my carpet) and plopped her in the tub (diaper and all). Figured that was the easiest place to clean it up. UGH! After cleaning her up in the tub, cleaning the tub, and getting her dressed I went downstairs to tackle the highchair! That took forever! Luckily the rest of the days diaper changing sessions were not that eventful... but still gross. It was the type of day that you think, "why cant you pottytrain a 12 month old!?!"

I am hoping to get some christmas shopping and decorating down this week and next! I am so excited to decorate for Christmas... I dream of decorations :) I am thinking of putting the tree up next week just to get in the whole christmasy mood! I have no ideas what to buy for Christmas presents - except for James. That I have already thought of... now just to go and do it!

I should get to work here! Have a wonderful day!

Baby Fever Has Hit AGAIN!

2008-11-12T10:04:00.002-06:00

I got that loving feeling - BABY FEVER HAS HIT AGAIN! I feel like everywhere I look there is someone who is pregnant or has just had a baby. And now I want one. I am dreaming of that smell - that newborn in swaddling blankets with milk on its tounge smell. Is that really a smell? It's a wonderful smell to me! Sommer would be 21 months if I got pregnant right now. We had always said that we would have our babies 2 years apart so 21 months sounds perfect to me!

James took the 2 year difference literally - meaning the next baby should be born in October as well. WHAT?? That's not what I meant at all... I was talking approximately. Who wants all their kids born in the same month? Althought it would make for easy remembering on the dads part, it would also make the moms job oh so busy! Planning 2 or more birthday parties in the same month!!?? That would be asking for trouble! And what if they were born on the same day??

As some of you know I am a HUGE Jon & Kate Plus 8 fan! The show that comes on after them has also got my attention lately - 17 kids and Counting (with Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar). They have 17 kids and are expecting another one!!! HOLY CRAP! I dont have baby fever THAT bad... I think all they have to do is think about having another child and POP - it appears! I dont need 17 kids but 4 would be nice! If they all were as easy as Sommer was that would be awesome too... my precious angel (atleast she was today...).

I have been blessed with such a good baby that I have to pray that the next one will be the same. Some days Sommer does try me and does press my buttons but usually she is wonderful :) Although she has now learned what a temper-tantrum is we are working on calming down and asking for help from Mommy - I know, I know, she is only 1 but you can't start too early!!

Well I should stop dreaming about babies and pregnancy and get back to work... if I dont get any work done I am not going to be able to convince "the boss" that we need another baby. So congrats everyone who is pregnant or just bringing home that precious little bundle. I am jealous!

Princess Auto vs. HomeSense

2008-11-11T15:09:00.004-06:00

Princess Auto vs. HomeSense.

I hate Princess Auto. James loves Princess Auto. I can honestly say that I dont think there is a more boring store than Princess Auto. James would disagree. He would say Homsense. I love HomeSense. How someone can find HomeSense boring is beyond my imagination.

HomeSense

I could spend hours in HomeSense, heck, I could spend hours in just the picture frame section of HomeSense. I especially love HomeSense at Christmas time with all the decorations - shiney, twinkling, and bright decorations. They have such great deals - 60-80% below retail price (according to their slogan)!! The throw pillow department is 4 isles long and don't even get me started on the furniture department. I can always find a piece of furniture that I long to take home with me. I usually drag James in there to look at mirrior or a rug that I want to purchase but need his "final approval". He complains the whole time but I have learned to ignore him... usually leaving him sitting on a chair in the previously mentioned furniture section.

Princess Auto

Princess Auto on the other hand is full of boring objects. James said if he could spend 8 hours in one store it would be P.A. What the heck could he do there for 8 hours!? I can barely last 8 minutes or even 8 seconds. The past 2 times we have gone to the store I have choosen to stay in the car - leave me here, don't be long! He usually comes out after 25 minutes with special treasures that he talks about the whole way home while I pretend to listen and dream of the new things being unpacked across the street at HomeSense. I watch the people going into the store - Grease Heads I call them - but James says it's just people who love to "work with their hands". Guess I am not one of those people. The place has everything from livestock equipment to snowmobiling... it's a mish-mash of weird odds and ends that only a man could make sense out of.

Maybe I will get him a gift certificate to Princess Auto for Christmas with a piece of paper granting him 8 hours free to waltz around the shop... OH! the treasure he would find! OH... the treasures I would have to "pretend" to be interested in when he returned. There is no comparison between Princess Auto and HomeSense... HomeSense wins hands down :)

Returned to work!

2008-11-04T12:27:00.003-06:00

Today is the day! I am back at work now - 24 hours a week! I put exclaimation marks in my last 2 sentences but really I am not that excited :( I have loved only working 2 afternoons a week, my 8 hours of freedom sometimes. But Trademark needs me as they are very busy! I am now working 3 full days - Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I am going to enjoy my Mondays and Fridays off! Many people would love to only work 3 days a week and I have to remind myself that. I am blessed to be able to work for my husband's company.... there are some perks to sleeping with the boss, haha.

While I am at work Sommer is at a new babysitters. This lady - Tanya - is amazing! She has her education degree, is a mom to a 4 year old and a 1 year old, and is so loving and welcoming. The minute I met her I was excited for her to watch Sommer. She takes them outside to play in the yard, to the park, does crafts and has yummy meals for them. She is just great! Sommer cried when I dropped her off this morning so my heart was breaking. James texted me and asked if I had called yet to check on her - mainly because I think he was missing her - and I told him no. I cant bring myself to call incase something is wrong... but if something was wrong I'm sure she would call me.

I should probably get back to work here before one boss calls to check on me (or ask what's for dinner) and the other boss returns from his lunch meeting....

Karen Kingsbury

2008-10-31T14:15:00.003-06:00

My mom got me hooked on Karen Kingsbury novels and I look forward to each new one that comes out. With great sadness last night I finished the final book in my favorite 3 part series on the Baxter Family. Being a 3 part series I feel like I have travelled and got to know this family so well and I am sad that it has come to an end. I started off reading the 5 book Redemption Series, moved on to the 5 book First Born Series and just finished the 4 book Sunrise Series. WOW - 14 novels dedicated to this family. If you haven't read this series you are really missing out! Truely amazing :) All her books are amazing actually. She is such a talented and gifted writer. Check out her books - they are life changing!

Happy Birthday Sommer!

2008-10-25T22:35:00.005-06:00

Well it happened. Sommer is 1! So exciting and emotional all at the same time. She is so cute!! Today she finally had enough hair to sport the birthday bow :) I have been dying to put one in her hair and I am so glad that it could happen on her birthday. We had a pretty low key day with pancakes for breakfast (James made Sommer a Mickey Mouse pancake), went and did some shopping, had family (and Conrad & Sheena) over for a bbq and then the girls headed to Winners! She got spoiled of course by family... she has more than enough toys now! I put her to bed and kissed her good night... I feel like today she is no longer a baby, welcome toddler! She walks, talks, and has hair. WOW! This year FLEW bye.

Happy Birthday Sommer - Mommy loves you!

I am a Mom

2008-10-22T23:20:00.002-06:00

October 22, 2008

Exactly one year ago today was my due date.
WOW!
I remember how impatient I was to meet her, my daughter, my Sommer.
I just checked her in her crib, all snuggled beneath the MANY layers of blankets, fast asleep.
My angel, my precious daughter, the light of my life.

She has changed me - I am not who I was a year ago.
I am softer, more tender, less harsh.
I pay attention to the small things in life - like the sounds of little feet
I kiss hurts, wipe tears, smile.
I am a Mom.

2008-10-18T14:18:00.004-06:00

This past week I have been once again overwhelmed with the fact that my baby is turning ONE. I keep thinking to myself about where the time has gone. I feel as though I did not cherish enough of the small things and did I write enough stuff down to remember later on. People always told me to cherish every moment/memory because before I would know it she would be turning one, well the time is just around the corner and I am on the verge of tears.

Honestly, it seems like yesterday I was writing her a letter begging her to come out! Hard to believe that was a exactly a year ago tomorrow! I can remember so clearly how bad I wanted to see her and find out her personality. Man, does she ever have a personality!

The video above was the first video taken of Sommer about 1 hour after she was born. James and his parents were in the NICU watching Sommer and marveling in how cute she was. James was such a proud Daddy, he just couldn't get over how "cute" she was. One thing that amazes me was her ability to suck at such a young age... I really wish I could have been there in her first few hours to breastfeed her. Hopefully my next baby will have a safe delivery and be able to spend the first hours of their life in my arms.

One another note - Sommer learned to walk last weekend! So much fun :) She had never stood before on her own and we were sitting in James' sister's living room and all of a sudden we looked and Sommer was standing there. I took her and balanced her while James called her - sure enough she took 6 steps to him! By the end of the weekend she was walking from person to person or object to object. This weekend she is getting much better. She has a bit more confidence now and will walk all over the place. Yesterday she figured out how to stand up from the floor all by herself. So here comes trouble :)

We are at James' parents house this weekend in Outlook. We came to get our piano from them and also to attend an alumni Basketball game (which James' is playing in) at his high school. Every October they have a Home Coming weekend for alumni and present students. Tonight there will be fireworks, so I am excited to take Sommer! We will get her all bundled up for the event... she probably won't even care.

Hope you enjoy the cute video!

Ugh - Sasktel

2008-10-08T14:35:00.001-06:00

Sasktel - Why do you only do "all day bookings" in White City? I dont want to stay home all day waiting for you to come and hook up the phone! I hope you come on a rainy day....

Birthday, Bobcats, and Big Girl Chair

2008-10-06T22:11:00.006-06:00

Yesterday was my birthday - the BIG 2-4! Haha. I can remember when I was 19 I thought that 25 years old would be when I made it to adulthood and you are mature. HA! I am 24 and have been married for 4 years and have a daughter who is almost 1... I think I have made it to adulthood but maturity... that one is debatable and depends on the day (and possibly who you ask). Excuse the horrible birthday picture - ugly!

Baby Brandan Bobcat! James family (some of them since there are 6 kids, Mom and Dad) came down to watch his sister Christie Anne (holding Som's hand in the pic) play in a basket ball tourny at U of R and also celebrate my birthday. Sommer felt so important when she was standing with the team. She even stretched with them - too cute!

Sommer LOVES auntie Christie Anne. Christie Anne has been lucky enough to see Sommer lots this fall, something that doesn't usually happen.

Grandma Cheryl (James' Mom) loves Sommer and teaching her new things! She is the one who gets credit for teaching Sommer to clap and will probably be the one who gets Som to walk! Sommer hates walking for me - why walk when you can crawl as fast as a cheatah? She could totally walk if she wanted to but she is a speed crawler and is too busy for the walking stuff. But I'm not too worried - like her hair, walking will come eventually!

Sommer LOVES uncle Sammy!! She gets the biggest smile on her face when he comes into the room and speed crawls right to him. Uncle Sammy can do no wrong. He is so good with her too - I love seeing their friendship and bond get stronger each day :)

My Grandma (the one who lives next door) is going on a cruise this week (for 3 weeks around Rome, Spain, etc.) and will not be here for Sommer's birthday. She wanted to get Sommer a little leather recliner and searched EVERY WHERE but could not find one. So sad! She did find Som a little chair and Sommer LOVES it! She doesn't know how to get in it yet and get's very upset when she wants to sit in it, so hopefully she will learn soon. This morning she sat in her chair and drank her milk - she is growing up too fast!

Where did the year go??

2008-10-02T13:04:00.003-06:00

I just can't stop thinking about how fast this year has gone... it is consuming my mind lately and I just need to write it all out. It honestly seems like yesterday that I was praying for my baby girl to come, although scared of how she would come out, I really wanted to meet her. I wanted to know what she looked like, how she would act, what kind of personality she would have, all those wonderful things that I have now found out. I can remember feeling so grumpy and huge... my belly hurt, my legs hurt, my back hurt... I just wanted to feel normal again. And here I am... almost one year later missing those times. Am I crazy?

I can remember jumping at every twinge I felt in last couple of weeks of my pregnancy... maybe this is labour! People would tell me, "Oh, You'll know labour" and I when I finally went into labour 3 days late I thought, "OHHHH!! THIS IS LABOUR!!" I can remember driving to the hospital while having contractions, getting set up in Rm 1, and what the whole labour was like. So scary and exciting at the same time. What I remember most is when Sommer finally came - that last push when they said, "It's a girl!" Instant Love! I looked at that squished little face, squinty eyes and thought "Gosh, she is so small!" 6 lbs 5 oz... perfect size. I remember her being in NICU and just dying to have her in my arms. Thinking that a mother needs her newborn with her and how hard it was for her to be down the hall from me. The first night together was long - but a bonding time. WOW... all these memories... precious moments that I will cherish forever.

Hard to believe that Sommer has so many firsts in her little life. I remember each one: first smile, first laugh, first roll, first crawl, first time nursing, first bottle, first baby food, first table food, first word, first time standing... so many. I have a wonderful book by my favorite author, Karen Kingsbury, called "Let Me Hold You A Little Longer" where she doesn't talk about all the firsts, rather she talks about all the lasts. It made me think last night when I was reading it... what about all the lasts Sommer and I have had. The last time she slept in a bassinet, the last time she swang in her swing, the last time she rode in a bucket carseat, the last time she nursed, the last time she was swaddled. WOW! I can honestly remember each 'last' we had... just shows how much she is growing up.

Sommer is a blessing to us and each day I thank God for her. We love our angel :)

Looking Forward To The Weekend!

2008-09-26T23:05:00.002-06:00

For some reason today felt EXTREMELY long. My morning started off with waking up at 8 am when I got up, I woke up Som at 9 am and headed out to the church at 9:45 for our first Moms group! My playdate friends had been meeting at houses and in the park but today we met at Living Hope Alliance Church where there is TONS of room for us to bring friends, etc. It was awesome - 13 of us Moms and 15 kids! Such a great way to spend my Friday mornings :)

This afternoon was pretty low key with Som napping 2x and me cleaning up the house... I feel like I am always doing house work now that we have moved into a bigger house. I couldn't keep my 12oo sqft house clean, what made me think I could keep a 2000 sqft house clean???? Oh well, I feel so much better and can function clearer when I have a clean house. I also made 3 suppers this week!!! That's probably the most I have EVER made in 1 week. For those of you who know me you understand that is a VERY big accomplishment because cooking is a weakness of mine and something I have been trying to work on. I wish I could get some cooking lessons... just some tips on making family friendly meals that are quick 'n' easy!!

Lately I have been more tired than I have never been! Even more tired than when Som wasn't sleeping through the night or even more tired than when I first brought her home from the hospital. Maybe 11 months is harder than a newborn - man, can an 11 month old move fast!

Sommer learned the stairs yesterday. She can motor up them no problem! We have also taught her how to come down the stairs on her tummy! It's too cute to watch! She is really good at going up them but going down she sometimes forgets she is on the stairs and get's a little over confident but I have always been right by her so she hasnt fallen yet. This evening I was in the upstairs bonus room area and James was suppose to be watching Sommer and the football game. As I am putting toys in the box I see this little (and beautiful) face peek around the banister... she had escaped from her Dad's watch and climbed all the stairs on her own to come and visit me... needless to say, we will be purchasing a baby gate ASAP!

Well, I feel as though I am rambling... better sign off and head to bed! Good night friends!

11 months and growing!

2008-09-26T13:31:00.005-06:00

` Sommer and I started Starfish swimming lessons at the Lawson! She hated every minute of it. The water was so cold in the kid pool so I am sure that the water temp didnt help. The past 2 classes she has had a bad cold so we put swimming on hold but we will return to the water on Monday night! Hopefully the heater will be turned back on!

Sommer has discovered the toilet paper and she thinks it is such a fun game to unravel and play with the roll. I am sure that it is fun to make such a mess... now if she could only learn to clean up after herself.

We got new side tables for the basement. Sommer loved the little wrench that came with it and wanted to help her Daddy put it together. She is really good about not putting things in her mouth so she would bring me all the screws that James had put on the floor. If you notice in the above picture she is holding the wrench and was turning it on the screw - A girl after her dad's own heart!

Again, a bare bum little Sommer helping Daddy put together the bookshelf in the basement!

Sleepy Sommer

2008-09-19T10:33:00.002-06:00

Sleepy Sommer... she is still sleeping! The past week she has decided that she will sleep until 10:30 -11:00 am, and that's after going to bed at 8:30 pm! Who is the teenager?? So you probably think that I too am sleeping in, nope! I am getting stuff done before my little angel wakes up. I think it's a good thing that she is sleeping so long because she is sick. She has a never ending runny nose, which has been with us for as long as I can remember (teething??), battling the tailend of a cold, and now has Thrush! UGH! I am so glad that we are no longer breastfeeding because I hear that thrush is painful while breastfeeding. The other day I looked in Som's mouth and it looked like she had milk all over her tounge. I didn't think anything of it because honestly I didnt think you could get thrush when you were "older". Yesterday her milky tounge was still there so I took her to the doctors, knowing in my head it was thrush, and yup, we were told it was indeed thrush. So here's to antibiotics 4x a day and plenty of probiotics like Yogurt. Well, I hear my angel calling "Mama!" from her room. Best get her ready for the day... at 10:45... and give her round 1 of her meds....

Home sweet home!

2008-09-17T15:58:00.002-06:00

We are done! On Friday we finally moved into the new house after 2 years in the making. I could hardly believe I was sleeping in the master bedroom. Slowly we are starting to feel more at home and the boxes are making their way into the garage. When I look around I am not overwhelmed with what's left to do but there are still little things that can be done. There are no pictures of decor items out so it does feel kind of cold. Hopefully I can find some energy to start putting things in their new places.

We ordered our new furniture in May so that there would be nothing backordered or missing. When it came in June they told us that our bedroom suite was damaged so they had to return it - no big deal, we weren't needing it for another 3 months. On Friday, 10 mins before they were to deliever it, we got a phone call saying that the bedroom suite was damaged AGAIN, in fact they used the word "smashed". How can a bedroom suite be "smashed"?? So they delivered our bedroom suite, minus our headboard, footboard, side rails, and armour and our new leather couch & loveseat. After inspecting our loveseat I notice that there are scratches on it... ugh! So another 6-8 weeks until the furniture is all in the house.

We have Lexis back with us now that we have moved into our house. It's great to have our dog back and we did miss her. We decided that she has to wear dog slippers in the house so she doesn't scratch the hardwood like she did at our old house. At first she pretended that she didn't know how to walk, haha, but after realizing that we were not taking them off she "learned how to walk" and has accepted them. She looks soo cute!!

I will post some pictures once everything is set up :) Feel free to stop bye anytime!!

Introducing Mara Ruth!!

2008-09-03T13:52:00.002-06:00

Welcome to the world beautiful Mara Ruth! Our niece has arrived 2 weeks early but the timing could not have been better! I talked with Jen on Thursday evening at 5 pm because I wanted to get the McCullough Family Cook Book emailed to me so I could print it off. Jen said she was having some cramping but nothing out of the ordinary and that she was ready for this baby to come. I said it would be awesome if the baby decided to come over the long weekend as James' parents were already planning on coming for a visit and we could easily hop in the car because we were having a pretty laid back weekend. Jen phoned us at 7 am the next morning to say that the baby girl arrived... I could hardly believe my ears! I kept saying, "Seriously?? No Really?? I just talked to you before I went to bed!!!"

Her water broke at 1 am Friday morning so she had a shower before leaving for the hospital which would be a 40 min drive into Winnipeg. They left for the hospital at 2 am, arrived at 3 am, was pushing by 4 am and had the baby at 4:30 am! What the heck??? How come people are soo blessed with good, uneventful labours?? I would have loved to have that labour instead of my 15 hour labour!

So we went out on Sunday morning, arrived around 3:30 pm and went straight to the hospital. As soon as I got to the room I got to hold my precious niece Mara, and Sommer started bawling! So I went over to her and she wrapped her arms around my neck and cried, "Mama! Mama!" So I ended up giving the baby back, holding Sommer and then taking Sommer to meet her little cousin. In the end she was fine with me holding the baby but it did take a few minutes. Gave me a little insight to how Sommer would react when we bring our next baby home.

Mara was out of the hospital by noon on Monday so we were lucky enough to spend the day with them before driving home around supper time. We thought it would be a good time to leave because we would be at Brandon around 8 pm, grab some supper and stretch, and then put Sommer in her car seat and she would sleep the rest of the way... WRONG! Sommer cried from Brandon to Indian Head! The longest hour and a half of my life. "Mama! MAAAAAMA! Mama mama mama!" I would crawl to the back but that would make her so mad because she just wanted out of the seat. So in the end we drove in complete silence hoping that she would forget we were there and fall asleep. My poor angel!

Well, the baby is adorable. The mom is doing great! And our family can't wait for another baby to arrive!! If I was okay with having children in the spring/summer I would totally try for another but we do too much stuff in the summertime that I dont want to bring a baby along for. So, here's hoping to another fall/winter baby!

Our house had a major mix-up yesterday when the wrong carpet was shipped and installed. I know, BRUTAL! James didnt notice until the were completely done the upstairs which was very unfortunate. I came home and almost cried because I do not like the carpet that was installed. What makes it so bad is that I dont HATE the carpet but I dont LOVE the carpet... I just dont like it... is it liveable, PROBABLY.... I went to the carpet place early this morning to clear everything up. Our carpet (the right stuff) is sitting somewhere in Winnipeg so it will be shipped on Friday and we pray it will be installed on Monday. The Granite Guy hurt is back yesterday so our counters will not be installed until tomorrow, so everything is being pushed back a couple of days. Yes, unfortuantely we will not be in to our house until sometime next week. My sister comes on Wednesday so she may be helping us move into the house instead of helping me decorate. But I figure what's 2 more days.... ugh!

Soon enough we will be back to living in our own house and not living out of boxes in the basement of Garnet & Sharon's house! If only it was this weekend.....

Is the house finished yet???

2008-08-29T13:51:00.003-06:00

So this house REALLY needs to get done soon because I am not sure if I can take living with the grandparents for too much longer! Okay, so we have only been here a week and it's not that bad but they get up sooo early! Sleeping right below their room is a morning nightmare because they LOVE to walk around with their shoes on in the morning - and by morning I mean 6:45ish. Sommer is in the room beside us and I often lie there and pray that she will keep sleeping through the clomping that's going on above my head. Why - someone please let me know - WHY people walk around in the morning with their shoes on!!??

The house is almost done. The kitchen has been installed, the hardwood floors are finished, the travertine tiles have been laid in the bathroom/laundry room, and today the masonary guys are putting the stack stone on the fireplace. The carpet is being installed on Tuesday on the 2nd floor and in the basement, the granite will be in next Wednesday and then the baseboards are going in on Friday! OH MY GOSH!!! The cleaners are booked for Friday and moving day should be the next weekend :) I feel like this has been the longest year and a half of my life and the end is finally in sight. Ill post some pictures soon!

Kristi, my sister, will be here on Sept. 10 -16 and I can hardly wait! She will be the first person to sleep in the new guest room - you should feel honored Kristi! I can't wait for her to come and help me decorate and watch Sommer while I unpack boxes... I hate unpacking!!

I should get running here and clean up the basement since my grandparents are having company over to watch the football game this evening. Ill post later when I have more time :)

Happy long weekend!!

Sommer - My helpful packer!

2008-08-29T13:08:00.004-06:00

Sommer sitting in the empty kitchen.

Lovin' the sprinkles she found in the box!

Unpacking the box she found on the floor!

Happy 4 year Anniversary James!

2008-08-27T23:57:00.002-06:00

Hard to believe 4 years ago tonight I was lying in my bed thinking "I am getting married tomorrow". Now I am to awake to sleep because my mind is racing and all I can think about is how much has changed in 4 years. When we started out as a young married couple, James 20 and me only 19, I don’t think we fully understood what all we would accomplish together. Sure, we had dreams and goals but so does every young married couple. We wanted to finish university, get jobs in our specialized fields, have children, buy a home... but look where we are now. Some of the things we deemed important have changed, our outlook on life has been modified, but our values and beliefs have remained the same.

We both decided that University - as great as it is for some - was just not where we needed to be and we decided to pursue careers in the areas we were passionate about. For me that meant following in my grandmother's footsteps and becoming a Realtor - Helping people find the houses they love and assisting others in selling a place where memories lie. For James it meant opening his own consturction and home building business, being able to build a home he was proud of for our clients. God gave us similar passions and we are very blessed to be able to work together and value what the other person brings to our family company. 4 years ago our company was not something we even imagined, today it is something we both are proud of.

Four years ago we were not thinking of having children anytime soon. Today we have a beautiful 10 month old daughter who is the light of our lives. Her determination in learning new things comes from her Daddy while her firey attitude and short patience unfortunately comes from her Mommy, her beautiful features come from both although most people say she is a spitting image of James. The responsibilities that come with parenthood are sometimes trying but always rewarding and neither of us would trade it for the world. We both value family and know that we want many children because children are our hope for the future. They are the pride of their parents and we can not wait for our family to grow.

My husband has big goals and even larger dreams and I honestly believe that he will reach every one he sets in his life. He accomplishes everything he sets his mind to, I don't think there is something he can't do. His determination in accomplishing everything he starts allows his dreams to become reality. The love he has for his daughter is unconditional and heart melting - Sommer has grabbed hold of her Daddy's heart strings, the bond they are creating is unbreakable. He is a great provider for our family and works very hard to allow me the opportunity to work part time so I can spend quality time with our daughter. The sacrifices he makes do not go unnoticed, each day I am reminded how how much he loves us.

4 years ago I married my best friend and set out on a journey together. Today we are continuing on that journey - joined by a daughter and dog - excited to see what God has planed for us in the years to come!

I am a superior housewife!

2008-08-14T10:46:00.002-06:00

I am VERY surprised that I scored Superior on a 1930's houswife test! Seriously?? To be honest I dont think I am a superior housewife. I HATE cooking so much... it's honestly something I dread doing. If I had lots of money I would hire a chef to come and cook supper every night. I can do breakfast (Fruitloops work for me!) and lunch (Mac n' cheese is great) but for supper I will stare in my pantry and see nothing that works. Last week I cooked 3 meals for us and this week I have cooked 1... dont even ask me what's for supper tonight. My mom is always on my case to get me to cook, she is a good cook and always had supper on the table - where did I go wrong???

As for cleaning, that is something I can do no problem. I love to organize and straighten my house. I heard that the state your home is in can say a lot about a person and I believe that. Decor is important to me and I love it when my house looks good. Now, I am not saying that my house is always clean because it's not. But I do like it when it is... I always feel so good when it is straightened. That doesnt mean I dust and scrub my floors - oh no - it just means that everything is "tidy" not spotless.

Laundry is my constant tug-a-war... I dont mind doing the laundry but I HATE putting laundry away. I wish I was Kate Gosselin from Jon & Kate Plus 8. She does the laundry and then has someone come and fold it and someone else puts it away. Now I dont have 8 kids but still, if someone would come and put my laundry away my life would be grand! There are times where we have lived out of the laundry basket for weeks and weeks... it's not that hard to put away!

I am a good mom I would say, I love taking care of my child. I like to take care of my husband but I also thinks he takes care of me. Sommer is my responsibility, I am the mom in the house. I make sure she has stuff to eat and milk to drink, she always has clean clothes to wear. If she is up in the night then I get up with her and I also put her down to bed every night. James helps out by changing her diapers or feeding her food and he is a great help. He never complains when I ask him to do something and does so willingly. I don't expect James to get up with Sommer in the night because he has to work the next day and needs his sleep - I stay home and therefore can handle the night time needs. I put Sommer to bed every night and that is our bonding time. I rock her to sleep in the chair and give her a bottle, it's something I don't want to give up. James can put her to bed if I am not home and she will go down for babysitters too, but bedtime is my special time and usually I miss it if we dont have it. Luckily I have a great husband who loves his daughter too, parenting is a shared role in our family but I think that I oversee the department.

Well, I better get back to my housewife duties! I guess packing falls under this cateogory today...

A rest from packing!

2008-08-13T11:27:00.003-06:00

I hate packing!! But Im also cheap and will not pay for movers so I have to suck it up! Yesterday I took Sommer over to the babysitters so I could have a full afternoon of packing. My grandma and I packed up all the home deco stuff, the living room (minus the furniture), the hall closet, the main bathroom, and the guest room! Now I just have to do Sommer's room, the master bedroom and bath, and the kitchen! Ugh, the kitchen... I dont even want to think of how much work that will be!! I honestly didnt realize how much junk I had laying around the house, in drawers and in closets... stuff that I have never seen before! We will be making plenty of trips to the bins to through a lot of garbage! Last night my grandparents watched Sommer while James and I tackled the dreaded storgae/furnace room which has been the room where we put stuff that we dont know what to do with... it's all cleaned out and everything is stacked in the back entrance. Now to tackle the garage...

Our house is being painted this week and then all we have is flooring, baseboards and final fixtures!! Oh and the Kitchen cabinets but those only take a day. I am excited to go over and see the paint that I picked out spur of the moment... actually I am nervous but James said it looks fine.

Well I should get packing while Sommer naps. Have a good day!

2008-08-13T10:26:00.006-06:00

Sommer LOVED her little splash pool that we got her! She had her toys in there, apple juice, no shirt on - life was grand!

Swinging at the campground play area!
We had so much fun on our Trademark Weekend.
While the boys went golfing Auntie Sheena and I took Sommer to the park!

Someone loves the swings!

Sommer also loved the slide!

At the bottom thinking - can we do that again!??!

Thanks for coming mom and dad!

2008-08-06T12:33:00.003-06:00

My mom and dad left this morning at 5:20 am back to Portland. We were very lucky to have them here with us for a week and now my house is so quiet. Sommer got very spoiled with her grandparents. My mom taught her how to give high fives, we worked on sign language (she knows "more", "all done", "hi", and "bye"), went to the lake, and out for supper to Regina Beach. I love it when my parents come to visit us here in Regina, it's nice to show them what we have been up to and where we spend our time. Unfortunately our new house wasn't complete but they got a great idea of what it looks like since it is at the painting stage. Next time they come they will have their own suite downstairs so they don't have to shower amoung Sommer's bath toys and sleep in the room beside her. They spoil Sommer so much but it can only be expected when their granddaughter is so cute! My sister is coming to visit in a month (Sept. 10-16) so I am aiming for then for our house to be done.

Jeremy and Sheena have moved out of the basement so we have the house to ourselves. It makes me less stressed to think that half the house is ready to move since there is nothing in the basement that has to be taken care of. Now if I can get the upstairs packed I will be off to the races. I took down the pictures in the living room and kicthen/dining room today so my walls are starting to look bare. I hate packing so much but my mom told me that it is going to take a while to get this house in boxes. I can only imagine how long it will take me while having to entertain Sommer!! Luckily she can go to daycare when I need to pack so I will have to power pack during those times. Yesterday my mom and I cleaned out all the closets and put unused stuff into bags for the Diabetes Foundation Clothing Bins. I took 4 industrial garbage bags full of old clothes ovr to the bins so my closet will be much easier to pack now.

I should get some packing in now that Sommer is napping. Thanks for reading my blog and keeping up with my life!

Melissa

Allergies and what not!

2008-07-28T10:02:00.002-06:00

Man, I hate allergies! I had never had them before I got pregnant but last summer was my first experience. Now this summer they have returned... and it seems that Sommer is suffering from them as well. While James and I can take Aerius or Claratin poor Sommer is suffering with only a vicks humidifier and many warm baths. Poor baby!

Sommer is crawling around now and has 2 teeth. She just turned 9 months last Friday. My baby is getting so big!! Her crawl is hilarious, haha, with one leg in the crawl position and the other in a bear crawl... the bear crawl leg pushes off... too cute! Ill have to get it on video and post it here for you! to watch. Each day is an adventure with her and she is always doing new stuff.

Our new house is ALMOST ready! Currently we are at the trimming stage so my brother in law Sammy is busy doing his job! He is a wonderful trim carpenter and does really good work. He lives here in Regina so we spend a lot of time together. Most times he showes up at our house around supper time and "claims" he didnt realize what time it was, oh well, someone needs to watch out for him. He is exactly (almost to the day) one year older than my little brother and since my bro lives in the U.S. I enjoy having Sammy around to spoil.

My parents are coming this week!! I am sooo excited! Once again they were coming to see our house which once again will not be finished. They are bringing me my new vehicle (2005 Pathfinder LE) which I am also looking forward to having here. While Mom and Dad are here we are going to my great grandma's 96th birthday party, to the lake for the weekend and out to Regina Beach for Fish & Chips. What I am probably most looking forward to is having them stay WITH us. The last 2 times they have come to visit we have not had an extra bedroom for them but since we put the house on the market we turned the office back into a guest room. Now they are officially coming to visit us and even get to host them!

Well I should run here! Just wanted to check in and let you know what we have been up to! Have a great end of July!

Family Photos in Orlando!

2008-07-10T10:13:00.009-06:00

The Boda Clan! Celebration in Orlando, Florida!

Grandma & Grandpa with their grandchildren & great grand-daughter

4th Generation Picture!

The Williams Family!

The McCullough Family

Weekend at the lake!

2008-06-23T09:10:00.012-06:00

Ice cream with Grandma!

Hanging out with Daddy on the beach...

Kisses in the hammack!

Feet in the water...

Boat ride on Saturday!

Hanging in the hammack!

Sommer did not have a good weekend at the lake! She decided that she does not like sand and does not like the lake water. She was fine in the boat, just fell asleep but cried for 3 hours straight when we sat on the beach. Finally she exhausted herself soo much that she fell asleep in her play pen for a half an hour or so. You couldn't stand in the water with her, you couldn't stand on the sand with her... she just wasnt a happy camper!

Monkey in the crib!

2008-06-18T11:56:00.004-06:00

Here is a video of Sommer playing in her crib! A little monkey she is!!

SOLD!

2008-06-18T11:54:00.001-06:00

It has sold! All conditions have been removed and we are moving August 23!!! AHH!! Yes, that picture is an old one (since there is now on the ground and now there isn't). I want to take a picture with Sommer outside on the front lawn by the sold sign but I am waiting for the sold sign to be put up (by me.. haha). Thanks for all your prayers throughout the selling process. We look forward to our new house in Emerald Park now!

Too cute!

2008-06-11T22:46:00.002-06:00

Yesterday we went out for supper (You should know by now that I dont cook!). Sommer was fussy so I sent her out to the car with James while I stayed behind to pay the bill. I really wanted James to have to buckle her into her carseat (which is no longer a bucket carseat- she is now in a big girl carseat) because I wanted him to realize what a PAIN it is to bend over and do up all the straps! We are looking at SUV's right now and I want James to get me one sooner rather than later so I figured this would be a perfect opportunity. When I came out of the restaurant I was happy to see that James was sitting in the driver seat chatting on his cell phone. "Great!" I thought, "he had to buckle her in!!" But when I opened my door, I found someone buckled into MY seat! SHE WAS SO CUTE! She looked at me like she was saying "Get in the back Mom! Let's roll!" So independent she is getting... one day she can sit like a big girl in the front but until then in the back she goes!

Big Announcement!

2008-06-09T11:24:00.004-06:00

Just wanted to make a BIG announcment:

NO I'M NOT PREGNANT AGAIN!

Sommer is getting 2 teeth!!!

She has been SO MOODY lately to the point where I am getting frustrated because I can't put her down for 1 minute. She has also been waking up crying at night for no reason and the only way to get her back to bed is to sleep with her in the guest room. Yesterday I put my finger in her mouth and there were little bumps on her bottom gums. She wouldn't move her tounge for me to look in her mouth so when I was feeding her cereal I took a sneek peek! Yup, 2 little white teeth are starting to come up! WOW! They aren't all the way through the gums but you can see them just under the gum line. She is getting way to big! Crawling and teeth... where has my newborn 6 lbs baby gone??

A real gift from God!

2008-06-04T21:54:00.003-06:00

This picture was taken of a baby at 21 weeks gestation... This baby was diagnosed with Spina Bifida and needed to be operated on prior to birth. A doctor in the USA operated on the mother, having to remove her uterous to do so, made an incision in the uterous but could not remove the baby. On 20/20 when they interviewed the doctor he said that when he made the incision this tiny arm and hand came out and grasped his finger. AMAZING! It was as if this tiny unborn baby was thanking the doctor for saving his life! Today this baby is a healthy boy!!!

This little hand shows just how special pregnancy and birth is! This mother was only half done her pregnancy and look how definded and perfect this little arm and hand is. Littles ones are a gift from God and every day I thank Him for the special daughter he gave me!

Farewell Gma & Gpa!

2008-05-30T10:25:00.004-06:00

Today my grandparents move out to Emerald Park... the house beside us will no longer be theirs and for the first time in 2 years we will no longer be neighbours. What a weird feeling it will be to not have them beside us. I can no longer call on Gma to watch Som while I shower or watch Som while I unpack the groceries from the car or to run to their house when I need ice or milk. I know I sometimes complain about the lack of privacy but in all honesty it works out quite nice having them close. We now share a backyard with complete strangers so Lex is off to live with Gma and Gpa in E.P... we can't have her pooping in the new neighbours backyard or scratching at their back-door to be let in. I almost dont want to go outside because it's no longer our shared backyard and I just may have to say "hi" to the new people, the ones who are living in my "grandparents house". Our house has a conditional sale on it, we are just waiting for the new owners house to sell, so hopefully it's not long before we join them and return to being neighbours. Until then... I will smile politely at these new neighbours and probably will not spend much time in the backyard...

Good Monday Morning

2008-05-26T10:20:00.002-06:00

Seems like time just gets away from me and next thing I know it has been 2 weeks and I haven't blogged. I remember when I was so diligent in this task and would have it updated daily. Now with a 7 month old (yes, Som turned 7 months yesterday!) I hardly have time to do a thing.

Our house has a conditional offer on it! Now we just wait for the people who bought our house to sell their house. I listed there house so I am pushing to sell it fast! It's a beautiful home with many upgrades, in a perfect location, so I don't think there will be any trouble. Just a matter of finding the right person... which can be hard for a very impatient person to do! We went to our new house yesterday and snooped around. We went looking at new furniture on Friday at Kozan's and picked out lovely stuff. Yesterday we made sure it would all fit! I couldn't decide what to do with the "den" at the front of the house as we were going to make it an office. But we decided to not have an office at home because it is too tempting for James to work when he is "done for the day". So yesterday we decided to make it a piano room as we now have a beautiful piano from James' parents. It will look wonderful in that room!

This is another busy week for us around here. It seems that with warm weather comes kaos in our house. So much is needed to get down on this house and on our new house. My grandparents are moving on Thursday to their new house in Emerald Park so we will no longer have them as neighbours. Lex is going out with them as there is no fence between our houses currently and we don't want her pooping in the new neighbours backyard. So we are dogless for a few months until we join them out in EP.

I am really getting excited for our summer vaca to Orlando on June 27! It will be so much fun! My mom's whole family (39 of us, if I am not mistaken) will be down there for 10 days! My parents have rented a house for our family which will give us a nice break from being with everyone 24/7. Sommer will love the warm weather, pool and hopefully get her first look at the ocean. My camera will be busy snapping pics the whole time we are gone.

Well, I should start my day here as Sommer finally went down for a morning nap. Hope everyone is doing well!

Mother's Day Weekend!

2008-05-11T22:20:00.006-06:00

This was my first Mother's Day! I feel like I have been waiting for this day for some time now and it was finally here. Last year I was told that I could not celebrate it, as I was not "really" a mother yet. But this year I am. I love being a Mommy but I will admit that it is a tough job. Sommer and I have been sick with a cold (she gave it to me!) and I have just wanted to lay down and sleep. But there is no break for a mom! Since Sommer has had a cold she has not been sleeping well and some nights she was getting up 4x.... but I made it through. I have the greatest job in the world and I am so honoured to look after such a lovely little girl!

James (& Sommer) bought me new diamond earrings for Mother's Day! I absolutely LOVE them! Yes, he does spoil me! (But I LOVE it...) Now, what will I get him for Father's Day!?

Sommer found a new favorite thing to do at Grandma Cheryl's house... she figured out how to open the cupboards and take out the tupperware. She spent HOURS hanging out in front of the cupboard and it kept her very occupied. Too cute!

That's my baby... snotty nose and all. I LOVE HER! Notice that her hair is growing in??? What a cutie!

Emerald Park!

2008-05-11T22:14:00.004-06:00

Soon we will be moving to Emerald Park! So far we have been framed and windows and doors have been installed. We are waiting on plumbers because the ones who were suppose to do it have backed out of all Emerald Park contracts. Ouch! Hopefully things will be figured out soon and we will be on the ball. We were suppose to move in one month but that is not happening. But it's great to see the progress coming along!

Who's that pretty model?!

2008-05-05T22:51:00.003-06:00

That's my model baby! Sommer was putting on a little show for the camera so I started snaping pictures :) What a cute kid! Each day is an adventure with her. Today she was really into giving big kisses and then laughing when she kissed James and I. We went on a long walk with Shauna and Dylan, a 2 hour walk! We are very happy that Spring time is here and we can do fun and exciting things outside. It seems like we have been waiting so long for nice weather!

Happy 6 month birthday Sommer (April 25th)

2008-04-29T23:05:00.006-06:00

Hanging out with Mom

The Birthday Girl!

Acting Shy during pictures!

Playing on the floor, trying to crawl

Doing what Sommer does best... Sitting by herself!

Sommer and mom!

Time to catch up!

2008-04-29T22:38:00.005-06:00

WOW! Where has all my free time gone!?! Oh right... to my 6 month old!

Things have been pretty crazy around our house. Lots of exciting things are happening around our house... let's see:

First and foremost Sommer turned 6 months this past weekend. WOW! She loves to sit up all by herself, which she can do for hours! Many of her friends still tople over after a few minutes but Sommer is a professional sitter! I am very amazed with her balancing ability and she is very proud of herself too. She is attempting to crawl but so far has not figured out how to lift up her chest. Her bum gets up and her legs kick but she is stuck... but not for long I'm sure! She is teething but still no teeth. Another thing that I'm sure will happen sooner rather than later. She loves to chat and each day comes up with new sounds. This week it sounds like she is learning french or german, too cute.

Bath time is now an exciting time now that Sommer sits all by herself. She grew out of her baby bath a little while ago so I would go in the tub with her every night. Now she enjoys sitting in the warm water and playing with bath toys. Splashing is a new thing and it's pretty fun to watch. She sometimes forgets that she is in water and will reach for a toy and stick her face right in the water. Good thing mom is always close bye and can help her out when she comes up coughing.

I have been doing lots of research on BPA in bottles because we used the Avent bottles & the Playtex Advance system. Now with those bottles being on recall and deemed "unsafe" for babies I have had to fork out some serious dough for Born Free (BPA FREE) bottles. Good thing Toys R Us is taking back Avent/Playtex/Soothie bottles and giving store credits or else I would be broke! It's scary to think about plastics and just how "safe" they are. Now that I actually pay attention to the recycling number on the bottom of containers I find that #7 is on a lot of plastics. This does not go for just baby bottles but also Nalgene bottles, baby food container, and rubbermaid (just to name a few!). Scary!

I also dabbled in the life of cloth diapers for a few days. I went and spent a rediculous amount of money on cloth diapers because I am a fan of being "green". I believe saving the planet and reducing waste is important to do but cloth dieapers are just not for me! Sommer wore the first cloth diaper ever and pooped in it in a matter of 5 minutes! It was so gross that all I wanted to do was throw away the diaper! They are seriously cute diapers though... I have 2 Green Acres pocket/insert diapers (pink & blue) and 1 motherease bamboo diaper with an animal cover. SUPER CUTE (and rather expensive). I have them for sale on reginamoms.ca if anyone is interested.

We also put our house on the market a couple of weeks ago. The market has slowed down some (especially in our price range) which is sad. It's still really busy in the first time buyers price range but not so much in the upper price range. We had it listed for $429,900 but I reduced the price to $419,900 today. I would really like it sold soon so I figured I would reduce rather than wait it out. It's just too hard to keep the house clean with Sommer and everything. I have to be ready to show the house at any minute! AHH! Our new home is coming along now out in Emerald Park. We are currently getting shingles on and hopefully getting rough plumbing/Electrical soon. Our possession date was suppose to be June 15th but we all know that it won't happen! We are probably looking more towards the middle to end of July. We are building a nice 1900 sqft two story with a oversized double (the size of a triple) garage and wrap around deck. It's on a MASSIVE lot so I am super excited about it! I love driving out to Emerald Park and just staring at the house. I can't wait to move!

We also bought a trailer for the lake this Summer. It's a 28 ft trailer with a double slide. My grandparents brought it back from the USA and were going to sell it. I jumped on the chance and it has become my "purchase", as James refers to it. It was kind of an impromptu decison but I'm glad we made it! We have a seasonal camp site out at Douglas Park on Lake Deifeinbaker (sp?) so it will be a very nice place to stay. James' parents have one right beside or across from us so it will be nice to get away on the weekends and spend the time at the lake. I LOVE SUMMER! Sommer will be adorable at the lake... eating sand and rocks... learning to crawl & walk. Playing her in bikini! I can't wait! Anyone who wants to come camping just let us know! We have plenty of room :)

Well I should head to bed here. I'm exhausted! Yesterday evening Sommer went to bed early and tonight she was just not tired! Took me an hour and a half to get the munchkin to fall asleep! She wasn't sleeping well last week and was waking up 2x a night which is unlikely for her. Usually it's about 1x for a quick feed and then back to bed. But I have noticed that she is waking up earlier now! AHH!! I am NOT a morning person. Luckily she is only up for about an hour and then back to bed she goes (and I go). But still... I just hate mornings!

Hope you all have a good week... thanks for reading this LONG update :)

Yes Sir, that's my baby!

2008-04-10T11:15:00.002-06:00

That's my baby! 5 1/2 months old! So hard to believe she is getting so big. She is eating veggies, fruit, and cereal now and loving to put things in her mouth. She is starting to teeth, which is sad. She loves to hear her own voice (like her mom??) and is very social. She has a temper (like her mom??) but still loves to snuggle. She naps 2-3x a day and I think back to the time when all she did was sleep! Life sure is flying bye :)

Home from Washington!

2008-04-10T11:06:00.002-06:00

Sommer and I have made it home from our spring getaway. We flew to my parents house on April 1 and returned this past Tuesday. It was so nice to spend time with my parents and for them to spoil Sommer. She was a good traveller on the way there... on the way home she was a little bit cranky. Which stressed me out since I was all alone with her. But we arrived home in one peice and off to bed she went.

While we were there we went on a hike (pic above) and Sommer rode on my dad's back in the backpack. She loved it... until we took her out and she had a meltdown, and there was no way to get her BACK in to the pack. So we took turns carrying a screaming baby on the trail for 15 mins until we reached out car.

We did lots of shopping too, too much shopping (if that can ever be done??). I got her a bunch of adorable summer clothes, shoes, sippy cups, and other things that she didnt really need. I was able to shop at Ross and Marshalls, my two favorite stores and buy some much needed clothes. I have no spring/summer clothes as I was pregnant last season, oh well, just an excuse to buy more :)

I am back at work this afternoon and there is a lot of things I need to get done! Our new office is finished (in the Royal LePage Regina building) and it looks amazing. Just some finishing touches need to be done as in the granite top for the work station, blinds on the windows, and the decal on the back wall. But the office is finally functioning which makes me so excited!! Stop bye and take a look.

Well, I should run as I need to do a bunch of stuff before my babe wakes up from her nap!! Later!

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T23:16:00.003-06:00

Happy Easter! Seems like time has got the best of me and I have not had time to blog this whole month. We have had a busy month (as you can tell from my previous post) but a fun month. Sommer found her voice and keeps us entertained with her new noises, she loves to interact with us and keeps us laughing. Her new game is peek-a-boo, which she now can play along with. She throws the blanket over her head and then takes it off, waiting for us to laugh. She weighed 15 lbs at her check up last week, so hard to believe. She is not my little baby anymore! We went to Winnipeg for Easter this past weekend and had a great time. It was great to spend time with family and to let them spoil Sommer. Sommer was very cute in her new Easter dress, too bad it wasn't warm enough to wear without a sweater. Oh well, she was still cute. Our Mommy/Baby Yoga has now ended so we are going to find something else to keep us busy during the days. I am looking forward to spring time so we can go for walks around the lake and play in the grass outside. I am so happy that spring is here!

A month of firsts

2008-03-23T23:07:00.006-06:00

First Black Eye!

First time finding toes and playing with them!

First bumped nose!

First time sitting in the new high-chair

First time eating solid foods!

First time rolling over!

Computers and the elderly

2008-03-02T13:42:00.002-06:00

This is MY LIFE! I probably go over to my grandma's house once a week to check her computer
because she says that it is broken! No, it's never broken, it's just in sleep mode. Here are a couple of conversations I have had with my grandma regarding technology:
1) Grandma: Melissa, please come look at my computer, it's going to hiberbate.... why is it hibernating?
2) Grandma: Melissa, my computer is broken.
Melissa: No it's not.
Grandma: My computer keeps saying connecting.
Melissa: Your computer is connecting?
Grandma: Yes, the main screen says connecting.
Melissa: The main screen, what are you connecting to?
Grandma: I dont know.... but it still says connecting. It's stuck on connecting.
Melissa: Well, you shouldnt be connecting to anything. atleast not on your main screen.
Melissa: (Once I get to her house). THIS IS YOUR EMAIL! NOT YOUR MAIN COMPUTERS MAIN SCREEN. IT'S CONNECTING, LOOKING FOR EMAILS!
3) Grandma: I need a new digital camera. I don't have enough hyperpixals.
Melissa: It's Megapixels

My little angel!

2008-02-14T14:37:00.002-06:00

While we were at Walmart getting Sommer's passport picture taken we took the opportunity to get some "professional" ones too. This is the best one (and the one I have 40 pictures of) so we will be giving them out to family and friends. I always have shoes on her feet but the one time I didn't we decided to take her picture. What was I thinking... I should never let her leave the house without her shoes on! And I have really cute shoes for her too. The girls got 15 pairs!!! Oh well, fuzzy, bright, white socks will have to do for this picture. But you have to admit, she is dang cute!

Sommer's Valentine Message!

2008-02-14T14:21:00.002-06:00

Sommer wanted to wish everyone a Happy Valentines Day. You say that phrase and she will talk back. She loves to talk... wonder who she got that from?

Happy Valentines Day!

2008-02-14T14:15:00.004-06:00

Happy Valentines Day! Sommer is enjoying her Valentines Day outfit from Grandma Kim. She had ADORABLE jeans with little embrodered hearts on them but they were too big. But the shirt looks cute with just a pair of light pink pants.

So sleepy!

2008-02-11T22:15:00.000-06:00

Sommer is sleeping! HURRAY! She has not been sleeping good lately so I am very tired. Seems like most moms are tired that I talk to. I think she was going to sleep too soon (8 pm) because we have been cooped up in the house. Usually she goes to bed around 10 pm and will sleep through the night. So this evening I kept her awake and man was she tired and cranky! But I kept her busy by talking to her, giving her a bath, followed by a baby massage and then nursed her before putting her in bed at 10 pm. She was sound asleep in my arms by the time she finnished nursing and went to sleep no problem. WOW! I'm ready for bed too.

I hate winter so much! I cant wait for summer to come so we can go for walks around the neighbourhood, go to the park with friends and play in the backyard. I am going stir crazy in the house with a three month old. Not to mention I have an amazing summer wardrobe for Sommer to wear, haha! So many little skirts and shorts, tank-tops and sandles. AHH!!! I LOVE SUMMER! (and Sommer !)

Well, Im going to go to bed here... or maybe watch my favorite show (Jon & Kate Plus 8). Hope everyone had a good (cold) day!

3 month pics!

2008-02-05T23:52:00.001-06:00

These are some pictures of Sommer at 3 months. She always has to have her teddy with her when she sleeps, and her soother. Both of those items I would cry if they were ever lost, haha. She now weighs 12 lbs 6 oz and is 23 1/4 inches long! She loves to laugh at herself in the mirror, go to Mommy & Baby Yoga, swimming at the Leisure Centre, take bubble baths with her mom and swing in her swing. Life is pretty fun when you are 3 months old! Can't believe how fast she is growing!

Slow down time!

2008-02-04T13:45:00.001-06:00

People told me while I was pregnant that I would fall in love with my daughter, I just didn't realize how much they meant. The past three months have gone by so incredibly fast that I can hardly believe it. The once baby newborn girl who hardly opened her eyes has transformed into a loving and active three month who is ready to explore the world around her! I can remember placing all 6 lbs of her in the bassinett beside my bed, now I place her 12 lbs body in a crib down the hall. She once slept all day and now I am lucky if it's 2 naps which are often too short for me to get much done. There was a time when I was scared to bathe her because I felt like I was going to break her. Now I take her in the shower with me each morning and she plays in her tub. Time just seems to be going bye so quickly!

This little angle was sent from God and she means the world to me. It breaks my heart when she wakes up in her crib and cries because she doesn't know where I am. I hurry into the room and reassure her "Mommy's here. Did you have a good sleep? I love you!" I pick up her still tiny body and hold it close to me, give her head a kiss and whisper that I love her. Each smile she makes and little noise that comes from her warms my heart and makes me so proud. I am her mom, she is my daughter... we have a bond like no other.

Three short months, that's all it has been, and I can't remember life without her. My once busy days have turned into ones revolved around her. When does she need to eat? When is it nap time? Oh well, guess I won't get groceries today! But that's okay because one look in her little eyes and I can hold off on groceries or whatever was on my to-do list. Sommer is most important. I know time will continue to fly bye and in a few years I won't know where it went. I cherish each day I get with her because you never know what time will bring. Being a Mommy is the best feeling in the world!

Home... but truckless

2008-01-13T22:06:00.000-06:00

We are home!! What an adventure. On last Thursday the dealership said that the car would be done on Friday afternoon so we booked flights to Spokane and then have a shuttle come pick us up and take us to Kellogg to pick it up. When we arrived there on Friday we were told that they had broken a piece while putting it back together and it would be done on Monday/Tuesday.... if it worked when they started it! James by this time was going INSANE so we headed to a motel. It wasn't long until we were on the phone with my parents trying to figure out how we could fly home. We eventually booked flights home for the next day and my parents' friends from Spokane came out to pick us up. We flew out of Spokane at noon, arrived in Seattle at 3, flew to Calgary at 5, and then flew to Regina at 8! And we were home at 11! It was so nice to sleep in our own bed and put Sommer in her crib. James will be flying back down to Spokane (and then heading over to Kellogg, where the truck is) in 2 weeks to pick it up. Plenty of time for them to have the truck fixed!

Sommer was an excellent little traveller through all this. We are so fortunate to have a good baby. She slept during each plane ride since I fed her while we were taking off. But after 3 plane rides she was a little crabby when we got home but I got in the bath-tub with her and she settled down nicely for bed. Today she is enjoying having her swing back and has spent much of the day sleeping in it.

Truck Troubles!

2008-01-09T00:05:00.000-06:00

For those I know who don't know we are stuck in Portland. On the way down here (2 weeks ago) our truck's front end blew up in a small town in Montana. We got in to this small town after noticing smoke in our rear-view mirrior at 4:30 pm, just as the local mechanic shop was closing down. They said they could not fix it for us but could tow us to a dodge dealership an hour away. So we spent the night in this dingy $40/night motel. The next morning this guy came and loaded our truck (and us!) on the top of a flat deck truck and towed us an hour away. It was quite the experience going through the snowy mountains on the top of a flat deck, one I'm not sure I want to experience again. We reached the dodge dealership and they said that it could be a couple weeks before it was fixed. They were nice enough to shuttle us to Spokane (an hour an a half away) so we could rent a car. We rented a car and drove the last 6 hours. A long adventure with Sommer! So, we have been hanging out in Portland anxiously awaiting a phone call letting us know our truck is ready. James called this morning and they are still waiting on parts, so it could possibly be a couple more days. James is anxious to return home as he is eager to go back to work! I don't blame him, it's hard to be here because there is only so much that can be done over the phone. He has been in good spirits so far so I pray he keeps it up but I notice his patience slowly leaving him.

Since we had so much time here we decided to take a trip up to Vancouver BC to visit James' grandparents, aunt, uncle and cousin. It was wonderful for them to finally meet Sommer! His grandpa loved her so much and couldn't get over how small she was. He has dimensia so it was hard for him to understand who she was but it was still great to be able to tell her how much he loved her. We also had the chance to visit my sister's place in Bellingham, WA. She lives in an old Bed and Breakfast with 12 other girls. It's a big old house on the top of a hill. It could use some redecorating but it does the trick for the 12 of them. What a college experience that would be :)

Well, I should head to bed here since Sommer is down for the night already. Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and the new year is treating them good. Pray that the truck will be done soon so we can return home and get on with work and life!

Soothers!

2007-12-19T10:54:00.000-06:00

Mother's out there will probably agree with me that Soother's are LIFE SAVERS! Sommer only likes the soother that she got from NICU and the bad thing is that I can't buy that kind in the stores. I was freaking out because what if I lost it while we were travelling to the states... she only takes that one kind. I have tried switching the soother so she would like a store brand but nope, she totally knows the difference. Plus, the NICU soother is massive and bulky plastic green... but she totally loves it. Luckily my grandma's cousin is a nurse at the hospital and she brought me over 2 more just in case something happens. It pays to know someone at the hospital. When I'm in the states I am going to order some off the internet because this brand delivers to the states, not Canada. Oh dear... so much work for a passifier!

My other problem with her soother is that she really only falls asleep when she is sucking on it. So when she is in her crib not quite asleep and the soother falls out of her mouth she will cry. That means I have to walk down the hall just to put that stupid soother back in her mouth. There are some nights I walk down the hall probably 5 times for that soother. I have honestly contemplated sleeping on the floor in her bedroom until she is asleep to save me the walk down the hall. Currently she is almost asleep in her swing and I have got up 3x from typing this to put the soother in her mouth. I have such a love/hate relationship with that thing! Love it because she will be so quiet with it in her mouth and hate it because it doesn't stay there all the time.

Oh my... I use to blog about adult issues, now look at me, it's soothers and naptimes. Ha! Life sure can change :)

I have the cutest kid!

2007-12-02T19:09:00.001-06:00

The funny thing about Mat Leave is that I honestly don't know what day it is... each one fads into the other and I find myself asking James what day it is today. I look forward to Sunday when I know that it will be a special day that has structure to it. Regular Sunday routines can still happen with a baby, who knew?

Last night we went out for Supper with some good family friends and their kids. I have been nervous about taking Sommer out to a restaurant because what if she crys? But last night she did so good and slept the whole time! What an angel. I also have mastitis, which is an infection of breast tissue and/or milk ducts, and I have been nervous about feeding her away from our house. She tends to be very fussy during feeding times and freaks out when she has to eat from the infected side but last night I had to feed her at our friends house and she did so good! My worries are slowly fading now!

This week I am going to take Sommer to the chiropractors to see if they can do anything for her digestive system. She is really bad gas after each feeding and she just ends up crying because it hurts when she burps or passes gas. I hear that sometimes treatments can help with that. Keep us in your prayers as we learn what she needs and how we can help her. She sure is cute! At her check up on Thursday she weighed 10 lbs 7 oz!! WOW! That's a 4lbs 2 oz weight gain since birth! Little porker!

Well, Im watching good Sunday evening TV and it's almost feeding time (sounds like I'm a farmer!). I better head off. Hope everyone had a good weekend!

Grey Cup 2007

2007-11-25T19:35:00.000-06:00

Sommer has RIDER PRIDE!

Cutest Lil' Rider Fan!

RIDER FAMILY!
Mommy, Lexis, Sommer, and Daddy

RIDER FAMILY!

5 generations

2007-11-25T19:22:00.000-06:00

This weekend we had Sommer dedicated at church. Sommer was really lucky to have her grandpa Dave do the dedication. After the service we went back to my grandma's house where we had our 5 generation picture taken. WOW! Not many people today can do a 5 generation picture. Sommer is lucky enough to have 2 great great grandma's alive. Today we had my dad's side picture taken and in June we will have my mom's side taken. We are very blessed to have the opportunity to take these pictures!

I love Mommyhood

2007-11-19T15:36:00.000-06:00

The joys of Mommyhood.
1) Her sleeping on your chest. Day... Night...Day...Night
2) Seeing her curled up, sleeping soundly, knowing you brought her into the world
3) Feeding her and seeing her little eyes staring up at you with love
4) Little grunts, cries, and squirms... the sounds of life!
5) Little ears, nose, and mouth
6) All nighters, getting to know each other a little better
7) Seeing her with Daddy, Daddy little Angel!
8) Outfit changes, up to 5x a day, how does someone who never leaves the house get so dirty?
9) Nowing that she depends on you for life, a Mommy is someone special
10) Watching her discover new things, even as simple as the light above the kitchen table!

Sommer's Baby Shower!

2007-11-19T10:03:00.000-06:00

YOU ARE INVITED TO CELEBRATE THE ARRIVAL OF SOMMER LYN!

Sommer's Baby Shower!

Thursday, November 22, 2007

7:00 pm

Living Hope Alliance Church

Everyone is welcome to attend!

Come and meet Sommer and celebrate her arrival into our family!

Sommer Lyn's weekend with Auntie Lyn

2007-11-12T16:18:00.000-06:00

This weekend Sommer Lyn hung out with her Auntie Lyn. This is the first time that they met and Lyn was so excited to finally meet her! Sommer had fun getting spoiled and held all weekend that she is a little grumpy today. She can be a little bear! Here are some pictures from the weekend!

Update

2007-11-08T14:27:00.000-06:00

WOW!

I haven't had time to blog much now that Sommer is here! Seems like that little rascal is taking most of my time, haha. She is great! Growing so much each day. Already she is over 7 lbs 8 oz!!! That's over 1 pound from her birth weight! Her sleeping schedule was really good for the first 10 days and then Sommer decided to not sleep at all. But last night we got back into the old routine and got some much needed rest! Most of my day is spent nursing and burping and cleaning up spit-up. But I wouldn't change it for the world!

My mom made this video of Sommer's Journey into our family! Check it out!

Family Picture

2007-10-29T15:07:00.000-06:00

Our family of 3 leaving the hospital! Time to go home on Saturday night! HURRAY!

Welcome Sommer Lyn McCullough

2007-10-28T11:19:00.000-06:00

We are home! After 15 hours of labour, 1 night and 1 day in the NICU, and 1 day in the Mommy/Baby Ward, we are a family!

It all started early Thursday morning with contractions 10 mins apart at 1:30 am. By 2:30 am they were 5 mins apart and by 4:00 am we were checking into the labour/Delivery Ward Room 1. Contractions were 4 mins apart for most of the time and I spent most of the time in the bath tub where the contractions were not as strong. But you can't spend the whole time in there are when I would get out I thought I would pass out. I stalled at 4 cm and tried to hold off the epidural but I just couldn't do it. The pain was too intense. So at 4 cm I got the epidural and had a nap. A couple hours later I was checked again and I was still 4 cm so they hooked me up to the drip. Once that drip went in me I was off to the races... 20 minutes later I was 6 cm and 45 mins I was 8 cm. They broke my water at 8 cm and honestly instantly I was at 10 cm. TIME TO PUSH!My doctor was in a funeral so I pushed for 2 hours and got an episiotomy and the next push Sommer arrived.

Her heartbeat had been dropping a lot during labour so I was constantly rolling around to my side. So when she was born the NICU Team was in there to help her out and they stole her from me to observe her because she was in shock. It was so sad that they took her right away, but at least she was being cared for. I didn't get to see her until she was already 4.5 hours old but James was with her for quite a while. It was so sad to see her hooked up to all the wires and monitors and I couldn't hold her. Finally Friday morning they called me to feed her and they started to ween her off the I.V.'s as I feed her throughout the day. It wasn't until Friday evening at 6:30 pm that they gave us to her for good! We could hold her and fuss her up whenever we wanted to.

All in all we are doing great and enjoying life as a family of 3. Hard to believe that little angel was inside me for so many months, it's sure great to have her out and in my arms! Thanks for your prayers and encouraging words. The life of a mommy is one I would never trade anything for, I love it!

2 days over due....

2007-10-24T12:45:00.000-06:00

Hey Everyone.

Still waiting for baby. I am 2 cm dialated and 100% effaced, so it's just a matter of time. I have had some contractions but nothing timeable so that is frustrating. Hopefully a nice walk around the lake today will help speed things up. She is 2 days over due now but is moving lots and has a strong heartbeat. I am getting frustrated and can not believe the amount of phone calls I get to see if the baby has arrived. I actually changed my answering machine message so I dont have to answer the phone anymore if I'm tired, haha! So, if I dont answer just leave a message and I will call you back. One nice thing is that James has been working from home this past week, getting lots of paper work and stuff done before the baby actually arrives so it is nice to have him here.... even if he is hidding in the office.

Please pray that she arrives in the next couple of days! I'm getting anxious and uncomfortable. Thanks and I will keep you all posted!