Been Awhile ... I know!

What can I say ... I have been busy!  I keep thinking, "if I can just get through the shower ... if I can just get past ski day" ... things will settle down, but NO!  I keep 'planning' things like a girls' getaway this weekend (just one night ... gotta start small!) and a lunch date with family.  On top of which, I have some bags to pack for our 'getaways' in March, that are back to back.  And somewhere in there, the next ball hockey season will commence!  So, I think once Easter is over, things will settle down!  

Now to think back to all the wonderful things my Cadence has been doing ....

I have to say, she is really coming along socially ...  She has become the star of Busy Bees and Sneaker Snappers ... singing and doing the actions in the centre of the circle.  Sound like anyone you know?  At the shower, she mingled with the ladies and played with her animals like a good little girl.  These are huge strides compared to the days when she wouldn't even LOOK at anyone else, much less leave my side.  Even daycare is improving.  Cadence still cries the minute I say we're going to see the kids, and screams when we pull into the driveway, but for the past two days, she has stopped crying the minute I leave ... that's big and it eases my stress ... for the moment.  Of course, my little sweetheart won't take her coat off for the entire hour!

We set up Cadence's kitchen on the weekend and she is having a ball cooking and doing laundry ... oh how naive!

Cutest thing ... Cadence pointed to my friend Kim's belly and said, "Ball!".  Absolutely on the mark ... the 'girls' who were born the next morning, looked like a perfect round ball just 12 hours before entering the world. Congratulations again to you and the WHOLE family!

Here are a few shots of Cadence from this week ... and 'THE BALL'!



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Mommy's Day Out ....

Ladies Ski Day ..... $125
Tickets for prizes ..... $20
Glass of Wine ..... $5.90 each X your best guess

Rockin' with the band ..... PRICELESS!

Nap Time?

Cadence did get to sleep ... eventually!

My Little Monkey ...

My little monkey is giving me grief today at nap time (what else is new?! And wouldn't you just know it ... she was being such a ham that I actually gave in and started laughing ... upon which she started to crack up ... I'm creating a monster! So ... I've left the room and after about 20 minutes of babbling and carrying on (no crying!) ... all is quiet! I've peaked around the corner into her room ... her socks are off and tossed on the floor, along with blanket and there is slight movement so I'm giving it 5 more minutes before I feel safe! I pulled out the camera after our laugh fest and will upload a little clip afterward!

We tried daycare again today ... Sandy said she was better ... although when I picked Cadence up she was already wearing her gold puffy coat! Apparently she feels better and calms down if she can wear it ... she's too cute! I suppose wearing her coat gives her the security of knowing I'm coming back.

Well, sounds like she's finally out ... I'm off to tackle my list: first item ... clean the fridge! My life is so rich!

Photos of 'nap time' added later in the day:

Fifteen Months and Family Day

Today Cadence is 15 months old ... absolutely amazing! When I look back, just a few short months ago, I am amazed at all the changes in her! She has really become a little girl all of a sudden! She now goes down the stairs on her own, can undo her jacket zippers and helps herself to 'nacks', otherwise known as snacks! She is a happy girl and we are in awe of her every single day! AND ... just for the record ... she has been sleeping through the night for the past 3+ weeks ... I think we have finally turned that corner ... again!

Today was our first official government sanctioned Family Day! As much as we hoped to 'run with it' ... the weather this time of year is not really conducive to an action packed day for a child her age! Most everything was closed and the roads were brutal.
So ... we hung out around the house, went to the school for a little gym time and them went out for a family dinner. Cadence is definitely a little trooper ... our 20 minute wait, turned into about 45! She managed to keep it together and was well behaved the entire time! I will savour these moments as I know, we may not always get this lucky!

Not alot of photos to choose from this time ... here's out little bookworm ... getting her homework done:

My Little Genius

Here is Cadence doing her 'reading'.

Happy Valentine's Day!

The TOP 10 things I love about Cadence:

1) I melt when I pick her up from her crib and she puts her one arm around me and pats MY back.
2) It warms my heart when she calls out "Dada" from the landing in the morning while he is making the coffee downstairs and when she hears the garage door opener at the end of the day.
3) I love when she puts her hands way behind her, sticks her head out, purses her lips and runs. Wish I could capture that on video!
4) I adore the deep little voice she has.
5) I admire her strength ... she has been through a lot and is a well adjusted little girl.
6) I love it when anytime I am sitting cross legged on the floor, she comes and plunks herself between my legs.
7) I respect her independence.
8) I enjoy the way she likes to help with the laundry and how she gets mad, when I put an article of clothes in the machine.
9) I melt looking into those big brown eyes!
10) I love her big twinkling smile ... especially when she times it just right (ie. when she's supposed to be settling down for a nap!).

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE being a mom to Cadence. I love her curiosity about everything and even her strong personality. She is what has been missing from my life for a long time!

Journal Entry

We decided to introduce the concept of daycare to Cadence very slowly ... May will come sooner than we think! She has been going to a loving home day care for 4 days now (only for an hour!) and ... I think each day gets harder on both of us. Today she started 'growling' as soon as I pulled up in the driveway ... this girl is smart! I 'drop and go' which is tough and literally 'spin' for the hour trying to accomplish as much as possible! When I picked Cadence up, Sandy said she had taken the kids
downstairs to play and closed the door and Cadence was MAD ... she likes to wait by the door for me. So ... Sandy thought, well this isn't working, I'll take the kids back upstairs. Cadence went to the 'coat' area, found her coat and boots and was basically getting herself ready to leave. Not quite 15 months ... can you believe it?!!! She slays me!
At Busy Bees, Cadence made another little toddler cry when she took her hand off the toy the two of them had chosen to play with ... we definitely have work to do around the 'sharing is caring' motto!!!! I'm sure she's learned these 'bully tactics' at daycare! LOL!!!
I must share my tearful moment of the day too ... the Busy Bees teacher shared the 'craft' of the day with us, where I proceeded to blubber ... photos and explanation to follow!
And Daddy spoiled us today ... flowers for mommy and an animal rescue kit for Cadence ... complete with ... an elephant! She loves it!
We also enjoyed an amazing Chinese dinner ... ordered in ... hey, what can I say ... we're rookies at this! ... complete with a spicy Sechwaun dish in honour of Cadence's birthplace.
It was a LOVEly day!!!!!!

And now for some photos ...
Cadence in her 'Valentine' outfit:

The Valentine 'craft':

The poem says:
This is to remind you, when I have grown so tall,
That once I was quite little, and my hands were really small.

The presents from Dadda:



Hope everyone had a great day!

Too Sweet Not to Be Recorded!

Yesterday Cadence did the cutest thing (again!) and I said to Sean ... "I'm going to need to go out and get a really nice journal to record some of this stuff in!". Later that night however, I realized ... I have THE BLOG ... it's the perfect place to record and share those details. Am I right? So from now on, from time to time, I may just record some of those 'moments' that just ... take my breath away. I hope you enjoy it half as much as we do.

So, yesterday Cadence and I were playing with her tea set. Her doll was on a blanket beside us. In the midst of play she said, "Uh, oh", which she says about 100 times a day and then grabbed 'baby' who had been underneath Winston. It was adorable!

And I must mention her reaction to clothes. About a week ago, a friend stopped in and noticed the little dress I had bought Cadence (which hadn't made it's way to the closet yet) so I held it up to Cadence and she said, "Aww". Did the same thing yesterday when I held up some cute jeans against her at Gymboree. Yep ... she's my kid alright ... no doubt in my mind!

New 'tricks': touches her toes AND reaches up high, crows like a rooster, identifies 'nanas' in books, roars like a lion

Still having issues with videos ... there has to be another way ... any one????

Spring Fever!

I've got the spring fever ... and it's not from looking out the window I can tell you that! But those store display windows ... oh my!!! Luckily, Cadence was fairly set for the fall and winter so we hung onto the gift certificates and picked up a few 'sweet' things today!



And just in case you didn't get a good enough look at the sandals, here's a close up:

Everything was on sale ... somewhat! I usually look for better deals ... did pick up a few fall/daycare items cheap ... and MY jeans were 60% off at the Gap ... can't beat that!
Bring on spring ...

Tag ... I'm it!

I have been following blogs for quite some time now ... long before I started this one and have read a number of 'taggings', but have escaped them ... at least up until this point and by this Blogger ! Being tagged means I have to carry out some specific tasks:

The rules are to link the person who sent this to you and leave a comment on their blog so their readers can visit yours. Post the rules on your blog. Share 7 strange/weird facts about yourself. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, linking their blog. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

It's a lot of work and has taken a few days but ... here goes:

7 Strange/Weird Facts about Me

1) I am obsessed with my split ends and keep scissors in the car to trim them at red lights or on long drives.
2) I used to play the trumpet in an all girl marching band.
3) I love to blare and sing along with the soundtrack from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat especially on cleaning day.
4) I am addicted to reality TV ... Big Brother returns on Tuesday ... yahoo!!!!!
5) I hate onions and pick them out of everything ... BUT ... I love onion rings!  Go figure ...
6) I bawl every Sunday watching Extreme Home Makeover ... it is good therapy and I rarely miss an episode!
7) I have a major fear of heights!!! Don't ask me to climb a ladder, YET ... roller coasters ... the bigger, the faster, the BETTER!

Okay so I don't see myself as too strange or weird ... perhaps those who know me well would disagree ... feel free in the Comments section ( I believe I can edit them out if the need arises!).

Here are the blogs I am tagging ... sorry folks!

Bringing Home Olivia
Bottles and Bones
Forks and Chopsticks
Eliza
Spitting Wooden Nickels
Made In China
The Longest Wait

Okay ... now I'm off to check in and leave comments on these blogs AND deliver the news that they've been tagged too! As if we don't have enough to do!!!!! Honestly!!!! Who started this????

Snowed In ...

Not only were the buses cancelled ... for the 2nd time in my 15 year career ... school was cancelled! We received MORE than a foot of snow and were literally snowed in. The pictures don't even tell the full story ...




Oddly enough, it turned out to be a beautiful, sunny day ... perfect for skiing ... if only the streets were plowed! Ah well, there was plenty to keep us busy ... shoveling, laundry, returns to Walmart and a list of items for Canadian Tire. I did manage to squeeze in a little visit with a friend and, oh ... we finally won a hockey game!!! Losing would have meant we were done for the season, which I was really hoping for, but I gotta admit ... victory is sweet! We will have to play this team again and all I can say is #3 is MINE!!! Hope the new stick arrives before the puck drops!

Still not able to load video ... but here's who managed to sneak open the door while I was taking a couple of shots:

Ain't she cute?
New word this week: nana ... as in banana!

Photos

Well ... couldn't get the video to load, but here are some smiling shots ... finally!!! I've learned to shut off the flash ...

This Week's Review

I am really wary of telling you this but ... we have had a GREAT week!  Cadence has been napping well (2 hours most days) and sleeping pretty well through the night (only one short stint on the ottoman for me!).  AND I haven't even read the books on sleep I desperately purchased last week.  We also met with her daycare sitter on Monday and ... I LOVE HER! Cadence seemed very comfortable there and got settled quickly.  She wasn't too excited to be picked up and dressed by Sandy, but that will come, especially when mommy is out of sight. We are going to start slowly ... an hour on Wednesdays, which will give Cadence some independence and mommy a chance to get a few things done (like maybe dismantle the Christmas tree!).  Speaking of independence, Cadence is ALL over that at the moment.  She is now helping herself to her cookies and crackers in the cupboard, going DOWN the stairs on her own ... it's quite amazing!  Her new words for the week:  more, hot, Grover, milk.  And there are two more teeth to deal with ... a total of 10! 

It has been a busy week for mommy too:  course night, 2 evenings out and an afternoon hockey game plus lunch.  This has given Daddy lots of quality time with his girl!  He has even had some success with getting her to sleep!  On top of that, he's had TWO snow days so he hasn't had the typical 'homework' load.  It's all GOOD!!!  She has been one happy little girl I tell you ... we really have had the BEST week!!!  I could go on and on and on ... but I know you really only come for the photos and videos and I hate to disappoint!  By the way, thanks for all the comments this week ... I really enjoy hearing from you too!

Okay ... so this post has been sitting in the editting  spot for days as I have patiently attempted, with NO SUCCESS to add photos or a video ... I'll try again tomorrow.