Christmas '07 happenings

Well this year's Christmas wasn't all we had expected but I'd say it was just as good as ever! We had hoped to be in our new house for all the festivities but instead stayed put in our little (and I mean little) duplex. My (Kendra's) family came to visit us and we had a good, relaxing, delicous Christmas together! The neverending chocolate box. The gifts were all for Atalie this year. Our chunky little monkey didn't get many gifts this year but by the looks of him he doesn't seem to care:) Atta boy! Aiden will be 4 months old on January 4th and it seems that he hasn't stopped smiling for the last 3.5 of them:) I just can't stop kissing these happy little cheeks!! After getting up at 7:30 (or earlier) all but one morning, Kevin and I are still as tired as I look here... we'll catch up, one of these days.

~~~Swimming~~~

We went to Cranbrook's RecPlex yesterday to take the kids swimming. Atalie is high energy these days and desperately needed to get out of the house to have some fun! Here's some pics and a couple video clips of Atalie and Aiden. The above pic is of Columbia Lake - Canal Flats is at the far (South) end of the lake.

Goofin around!

Atalie was being her usual goofy, babbly self this morning. Kevin was home a little longer than usual this morning (loooong day yesterday getting most the insulating done!) so we had some fun playing with the kids. Kev made pancakes for us this morning and while we were eating he started humming the theme song from the movie "Rocky" (the training scene where he runs around boxing the air and cheering himself on... hilarious, by the way). So I thought it would be funny to get her boxing like Sylvester Stallone since she had already decided to take her shirt off (a new thing). Here's a clip of what we captured. It turned into a bit of an Atalie-gong-show.

Chillin~ Workin~

Daddy (with his work hair!) and Son. Aiden decided to chill after a good long session of jumping yesterday:) He looked as though he had never been so comfortable or content in his whole little life. He was limp like a steamed string bean;) Kevin had help from Ethan today ~ they worked on finishing up the fascia and sofit. Kev put up some insulation yesterday (master bedroom and kids bedroom). View from part of the kitchen window.

Jumping Jolly!

Aiden has his first "GO" at the ol' Jolly Jumper. Check it out in my YouTube videos. Atalie immediately insisted on "helping" her brother jump... he got more of a shake than a bounce however... ;) As for the house, we've got an electrical inspection tomorow (Wednesday) so if you think of us send up a little prayer. We keep hearing how picky they can be when the homeowner pulls the permit for the electrical... inspite of how well it's done they like to go the extra mile, looking for anything they can call unacceptable. Thanks!

Where's Waldo?

Do you see something in common with the last 3 pictures - other than the house? **Colour red may appear brighter than it is** Kevin, Ron (hired help) and Ethan (friend) got lots accomplished these past 2 days. We decided to hire Ron to help Kev get as much done as possible b/c he has to go back to his regular job in January... none of this is in the budget of course, but we've already anticipated the large increase of our final mortgage amount... so what the hay... ... and "Waldo", incase you couldn't see him, is the golden retriever standing in all but the first picture. Apparently he likes to hang around:) Kinda cute. Too bad Atalie is scared of any animal (stuffed or not) larger than a mouse (he's a cross of something else and is actually quite gigantic - twice her size anyways)... no wait... she might be afraid of mice too but I wouldn't know b/c she's never seen a real one.

Backframing

Kevin has been finding himself doing mostly odd jobs these past few days - the stuff you don't think twice about as taking up all your time, but it always seems to do exactly that... phone calling, faxing inspection applications, picking up unexpected materials at the hardware store, driving 50km/hr to and from work with a 2 hour delay on the way home. Ya, that last one really sucked. The highways are ice rinks here and there was an accident on one of the bridges between Canal Flats and Fairmont so Kev was stuck on the highway for 2 hours... fun! Anyway the backframing is almost complete (pics below - if you can make sense of them), we'll get the framing and electrical inspections this week (hopefully - and pass them, hopefully), continue with siding (the rain/snow combo has caused us to discover a couple leaks), then insulation and finally drywall. We'll be hiring someone for the drywall for sure. No time for goofing around anymore (not that there ever was) - time is seriously money (a lack of)! Here's some pics of the backframing completed: Fireplace Kitchen (back wall where pantry cabinets will go) Stairway to basement Front wall

A new perspective - and great reminder!

“What do you think an artist is? An imbecile who has only eyes, if he is a painter, or ears if he is a musician or a lyre in every chamber of his heart if he is a poet, or even, if he is a boxer, just his muscles? Far from it: at the same time, he is also a political being, constantly aware of the heartbreaking, passionate, or delightful things that happen in the world, shaping himself completely in their image. How could it be possible to feel no interest in other people, and with a cool indifference to detach yourself from the very life which they bring to you so abundantly? No, painting is not done to decorate apartments. It is an instrument of war." - Pablo Picasso (NEW PARAGAPH)I just had to share this quote, which I found on a friends blog a few minutes ago. I thanked her for sharing it b/c it really opened up my eyes and straightened my spine a little! Since being introduced to the busyness of Atalie & Aiden my interests and time have shifted in their direction. Spare time is now spent doing practical enjoyments like baking, catching up on sleep or cleaning up the house (yes, I admit to enjoying that one... somehow). My developing photography skills (among a few others) have seemed to stop developing as I have little to no time for them. The thing that draws me to a photograph is the ability to capture a glimpse of a person in less than a second, and yet be able to keep it for eternity. Something inside of me has the ability to see this in a person and capture it (the "capture" part is still a working progress) - it is unexplainable really, a gift which only God can give. For Kevin, it is the ability to hear and play music; for my Dad, it is the ability to figure out how to make/build/fix something without being taught; for my Mom, it is the ability to create a delicious recipe from scratch. All these gifts must be developed of course and some may take more time to perfect than others. With photography I feel as though I was just getting the hang of certain things when my kids came along and it was all put on hold (for a great cause none the less:)). I felt silly calling myself an "artist" when I hadn't held a paint brush or taken a worthy photograph in years. However I am now encouraged to call myself an artist in the respect that I long to express what others feel. A "warrior", in Picaso's words. I can be a warrior for my kids in prayer, sharing in their joys and pains. I can be a warrior for my husband and friends in the same way. When I get more time I will be a warrior through my photography, and if I get the opportunity I will be a warrior for those I don't know... however I somehow feel as though I have my hands full with the battles at hand;) and so I'll start there. Thanks for the post Natasha!

Fireworks, Framing, Fireplace & Frusteration

FIREWORKS: We took the kids downtown tonight to have a chilly evening stroll for the annual winter festival. The festival tied into the big World Cup ski event, being held at Panorama this weekend, so there were lots of extra people in Invermere, taking in the evening activities. It was fun! There were a few bonfires set up along the street with hay bails to sit on, free hot chocolate, apple cider and cookies everywhere, the lighting of the Christmas tree, a parade, live bands and fireworks. Kev and my Dad (here with Mom to help with the house) worked later than usual today so after much ado with bundling up the kids, we only left the house in time to take a quick stroll up and down mainstreet and see the fireworks. Atalie got quite a scare for the first few bangs but seemed to warm up to the idea of pretty lights in the sky once she heard everyone else say, "ooooh!" and "aaaaah!". She chimed right in! Not too shabby for a point and shoot I might add. FRAMING: Kevin and Ethan got the basement stairs built on Friday... after a "trial and error" run... we'll leave it at that. The heating guys also stopped by Friday to install the fireplace, electric furnace, etc etc. My Dad was also there doing the electrical. It was a FULL house! As you can see, the basement was FINALLY(!!) poured and Kevin was able to frame the basement, along with help from Tyler last weekend. The pic below is a sneak peak at the shingling on our chimney. FIREPLACE: Our snazy new fireplace:) will look more fireplace-like once we get the stone in around it... much, much, much further down the road I think. FRUSTERATION: We went to Calgary on Wednesday with the intention of picking up our kitchen cabinets from Ikea. When I say "intention" I mean we had a preconceived idea that it wouldn't take more than say, 2 or 3 hours, maybe 4 tops. Well, lemme say that it's a good thing my parents were there with us b/c we would have achieved NOTHING with Atalie as miserable as she was and Aiden pooping all over himself a million times. Ug! Talk about frusteration at its highest!! We sorted through our kitchen plan (which I had all laid out ahead of time so as to avoid this hastle) making sure we had everything perfect, then perfected it some more, and more, and more. The littlest most unexpected things come up when you're planning a kitchen to the exact 1/8 of an inch (so as to avoid the cabinets sticking out into the hallway - rather important actually). It's rediculous! Anyway, to sum things up it took 5 grueling hours on Wednesday and another 6 even more grueling hours Thursday (also due to waiting an insanely long time for them to put our order together). We weren't planning to spend the night so there was extra time and $$ spent, not to mention the fact that my Dad lost an entire day of wiring at our house to 11 hours of babysitting cranky kids in the biggest metropolitan maze on earth (yes, Ikea) and now has to take more time out of his own work schedule to make up for it. Sorry Pops. Don't worry, I've got my fair share of parenting sacrifices coming up that you can laugh at in return. In the end we came out with beautiful kitchen cabinets, a functional floor plan (almost identical to the one I had planned out, I must mention) and fantastic flooring, which we bought at an actual floor store in 1/20th the time it took to get our cabinets. Was it worth it? I'll say yes. But almost not! Here's a look at the cabinets we chose (pg. 38 & 39). We have white countertops as well, however the island will have a solid oak countertop for easy food prep (and a little eye candy:) - come on, you know I'm thinking it) and overall much more rustic, as opposed to sleek and modern. Our floors are laminate with a walnut look. Eating breakfast at Ikea ($1!) before the store opens, in a desperate attempt to go home. Grandma the babysitter! Atalie is watching "Finding Nemo" in one of the display rooms... what a relief!!