Swim Lessons!!

Caleb started swim lessons today! He is in the "Pikes". He had a lot of fun and did pretty well. The kids did really well listening to the instructor. The only thing Caleb wasn't real excited about was putting his full face in the water. He did it though and I think he will come around over the next 2 weeks. As a grand finale to their lesson today, the kids got to go down the slide and were very excited about it. It was funny that out of the 5 kids in the group there was only one I didn't know. The others were all parents I work with. You would have thought we planned it that way, but we didn't.

Mornings With Papa Jack & Nana!

The boys have been heading outside in the mornings before it gets too hot,with Papa Jack and Nana for some fun. Elton has gotten so used to the routine, that he even goes and gets his hat to let us know he is ready to head out.

Highlights Of Our Weekend!

Friday morning Dan and I set out by 8:30 am for about 36 hours on our own as we had Nana and Papa Jack to stay with the boys. We got coffee and hit the road. For lunch I introduced Dan to Fuddruckers as there has been one newly built. It has been year since I have been to one and Dan has never been. When I saw it I knew it would be perfect as Dan loves a good burger. He ordered a 1lb burger and was in awe when he saw it! That combined with the bacon cheese fries and it is obvious why he married me! This made it feasible for me to peruse the mall for 3 hrs. I only spent $20 (another reason he married me). We checked into our hotel and as we tried to recover from the heat, made the decision to go to the "Funnybone" that evening (a comedy club). We took a cab downtown and found a sushi restaurant across the street from the comedy club (how could it get any better?). The comedians were great at the show and we couldn't remember when last we had laughed so hard! We then walked around downtown and hung out for a while.

The next morning we got up and had checked out the free breakfast at the hotel. We then headed to a huge movie theatre and watched "Pirates Of the Carribean" in which we still agree that Johnny Depp is perfect for this movie. We got home about 6pm Saturday evening and at one point my car thermometer hit 111 degrees.

On Sunday Dan cooked a 8lb prime rib and we had a wonderful dinner with my parents and Dan's parents. All in all a great weekend!

No Alligator, But Papa Jack And Nana Are Here!

Caleb was pretty upset Sunday evening when daddy got home from work and the alligator hadn't shown up for dinner. However, we were able to tell him that my parents would be here the next afternoon.

Then, the next afternoon the best combination of events that could happen for an almost 4 year old did - we met Papa Jack and Nana at the Imagination Station!! (The toy store in town that sells "Thomas The Train" toys). They have a train table set up with a bunch of the toys and he would stay and play there forever. It was my parents that started getting him his trains and track and is what they get him for birthdays and Christmas'.

The boys have been having a great time and have been taking long naps in the afternoon from all their play in the back yard with Papa Jack. Elton stayed in the swing for an hour the other morning and still wasn't ready to get out. My dad said that when he put him on the grass he couldn't stand or walk at first (equilibrium off) from being in the swing so long. Elton has really taken to Papa Jack and goes to him frequently wanting him to pick him up. You can tell that this makes Papa Jack pretty happy.

Last night, Caleb told them that he wanted them to stay "lots of nights". They will be here for about 3 weeks, so he will get his wish.

An Alligator Is Coming To Dinner!!

Caleb saw a picture of an alligator last night and that is all he can talk about since. I told him that alligators weren't friendly, but I am having no luck at convincing him of this. He has informed me that a "friendly" alligator is coming and that I am to make chili cheese fries for him joining us for dinner. He said that then the alligator is going to spend the night. I have told him that I'm not sure he will show up, but Caleb is very adamant so I guess we will just have to wait and see!

Boys Room Done!

Yeah Dan!! All of the painting is done! Dan spent the last 2 days painting the boys room and bathroom. I hung the wall decor today. I am really happy with the color of blue we picked. The boys love their room. Caleb says that it is awesome and Elton just keeps walking around looking at it. Also, we are so glad to have the ugly curtains out of their and have nice new white blinds! The only thing left is to find a valance to suit the room.

I don't think we (Dan) will be doing anymore painting for a long time. The whole main floor and upstairs has had all of the wallpaper taken down and all completely repainted. Dan did an excellent job!! It has been 10 months exactly today since our closing date on this house and when we started to move.

A Bug Room!!

The boys toy room has been turned into the "Bug Room". Dan painted on Saturday. Then today he put in a ceiling fan which will be nice as it can get a little stuffy in their. He also put a new set of blinds in (which were badly needed) and hung the valance up. I hung the pictures and place all the bugs around the room (yes, I actually did something!!). We are quite happy with the results.

We just have the boys' bedroom and bathroom left. I finally made up my mind on the theme and how to do their room, but you will have to wait and see. We picked up the paint today so that whenever daddy feels ready to paint we are set!!

Wall Decor

Yes, I know the pictures of our painting a couple of weeks ago did not show the color well and the walls looked pretty boring. We now have hung some things up. I bought the sconces in our bedroom at Michael's and then bought the flowers to arrange in them. I am really happy with how they finish the wall off. Daddy has Elton in training as you can see by the last pictures. I think the color of the walls shows better in these pictures.

Our Fourth Of July

I have to start off by saying happy Canada Day to my Canadian readers who celebrated on July 1st!! This also marked the day that the new partnership and change of ownership occured at the hospital I work in which I am very excited about as it is going to provide a wonderfull opportunity for change and growth.

I worked an 8 hour shift on OB for the 4th as Dan was off and able to hang out with the boys. We then went to a friends' BBQ for a little while. It was an early night for us as Dan had to work today. Our fireworks were the little poppers you see Dan and Caleb with in the picture. They shot out streamers. This was good with me as I wasn't keen on the whole fire hazard/danger concept. Plus we didn't have to wait until it got dark. The boys were already bathed and in their jammies as you can see. Elton was very uninterested in the poppers. Caleb called it our "celebration" and said he was "proud to be and American" (like we didn't tell him to say that!).

Friends?

Look at how much Bingo has grown (if you look back at the pictures at the end of December)!! He is the same size as Max now as they both weigh 12 lbs. I don't know if this means Bingo may be a little bigger or if he is pretty much done growing. He will be 8 months old on July 9th.

When Bingo is calm, it would appear that they get along well and are friends. They also like to play together. However, Bingo can carry it too far jumping in Max's face and getting jealous if we are giving Max attention. Considering Max is 12 he has adjusted to Bingo extremely well.

I love Pekingeses so much!! They are wonderful little dogs. They aren't yappy, are very affectionate, but aren't smothering and are excellent with the kids. I couldn't believe how well Max adjusted when we had Caleb considering he was already 8 1/2 years old. They are also very smart and learn so quickly. That is why I prefer dogs over cats. These guys are just playful little fur balls!

Max kept me company and was my companion the five years I was on my own in Texas. He also adapted well to Dan coming into my life and sometimes I think he even likes Dan better than me. He saved me from getting stung by 2 scorpions down there.