Dots of Life

handmade valentines

 
this year, the kids and i opted for handmade valentines vs. the traditional store bought variety.  and what fun we had making our little lovelies.

for anna's valentines, i was inspired to use what we had hanging around the house. we chose to make paper hearts out of scrapbook paper and prettied them up by attaching cherry lollipops with some left over wool from our knitting class.  anna chose not to help in the "card-making" process (that girl has a busy social life) but adi was more than excited to get her little hands right into the nitty gritty.  and she helped me finish off all 27 of them.

 

i think they turned out darling...

 

anna pearl's "almost" complete valentines... just before she added her personal love notes...

 

for adisons valentines, i was inspired by the girls over at www.eighteen25.blogspot.com.  they have the cutest ideas and i fell head over heels with this idea when i saw it (thanks liseanne for introducing me to this fabulous website).  we started off with a simple 4x6 picture...

 

then we added the text on the picture using picasa and printed them off.  next, we used a hole punch to punch holes directly above and below adi's outstretched hand.  we finished them off by inserting a cherry lollipop, afixed with a piece of scotch tape on the back.  and voila... the cutest darn valentines that you ever did see.... and they cost under $5 in total... including the lollipops!

adi was quite pleased with her handmade valentines cards, but...

 
 

adi wasn't finished with her valentine making just yet... nope... it seems she had one very special valentines message for her very special valentine...

 

and my sweetie surpised me with a handmade valentine as well.... or, 2 dozen of them to be exact.... oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.  cookietines... he totally knows the way to my heart!

 

i hope your valentines day was filled with everything sweet and lovely!

shifting into gear

we are making some progress around these parts.  a certain someone is embracing some of his new responsibilities... like learning how to cook.  ben now gets to cook a meal with mom, one night a week. i offer the direction... and he takes the lead...

 
so far, so good...

 

dear Lord... thank you for our sloppy joes...

 

so far so good...

 
and bens first attempt at making supper for the family was a success.  thumbs up all around!

mont blanc 2011

 
the kids have been bitten by the ski bug.  ben started skiing a couple of years ago with the school... on class trips to batawa and he has loved it since day one.  anna and adi had been itching to go and so they put a family ski trip on the top of their christmas list's this year.  and nanny jen came through with gift certificates to mont blanc in quebec.

so we planned a 4 day weekend, packed up the kids and all of the ski gear and headed to the mountains.  the kids were so excited.  we drove the entire 5 hours to mont blanc without even turning on the radio.. just talking and laughing and enjoying some really great family time.  that experience in itself is my favourite memory of the weekend i think.

we arrived at our condo late friday afternoon and it didn't take long to get a fire started in the fireplace... matt and the kids loved tending to the fire.  growing up, we always had a wood burning fire place and it was always a "chore" to go get wood and to put wood on the fire.  but my kids were fighting over who's turn it was... they wanted to do it.  they even had to fight their daddy! ha!

 

 

we made a quick pizza dinner then headed over to the pool and hot tub.  a nice relaxing way to end the day and get ready for a full day on the slopes. 

we were up early on saturday morning and matt prepared a yummy bacon and eggs breakfast for us.  it was funny to watch ben eat, while staring out at the people on the slopes... he couldn't wait to get out there...

 

after breakfast we bundled up and set out for the slopes... but we grabbed a quick family pic first...

 
 then it was full steam ahead... 8 hours on the slopes, including 5 times down the bunny hill for anna and adi.  it didn't take long until they had their sights set on bigger and (scarier) better things... like a black diamond...ackkk!  i still can't believe that they were so skilled and so fearless.  i on the other hand was happy to stay on the "small" hill.

we skiied until they shut the ski lift down.  and matt and the kids were pooped! happy, but pooped.  i swear this pic was taken about a half an hour after we got back to the condo... out cold!

 

which allowed me some unrushed time in the kitchen to make lasagna and cheesecake... perfect comfort food for our cold and aching bodies.

 

sunday was pretty much a repeat of saturday...  happy, eager kids and lots of skiing.  we pulled them off of the slopes at about 2 though, so that we could make it back home at a decent hour.  i think the kids could have stayed and skiied for a week, they loved it that much.  they even declared it the best family vacation ever.  i on the other hand still prefer the sun and a sandy beach, but if they are happy, then i am happy.

 
 

pressing the shift key

hard to believe that 2011 will make me a mom to a 7, 10 and 13 year old.  crazy how fast that happened.  and as i adapt to the realities of my aging/maturing kiddo's i realize that the time has come for me to make a shift in my parenting responsiblities.

since they were babies, my number one responsibility has always been to be there as much as possible for them.  to never miss a minute of them learning, seeing, doing.  to give them every opportunity we could and to share in it!  to spoil them and DO for them.

i still want all of these things for us/them, but i think it is important for me to focus on the parental responsibility that i have to raise future adults.  to prepare them for life outside of our home.  to enable them to DO for themselves. 

not so much for the girls, but for sure... for ben.  he is admittedly a little green in the responsibility department.  he doesn't really have any assigned chores around the house and he is reluctant to help out most of the time.  but i don't blame him... he was never made to or expected to do things.  he does help out with watching his sisters alot, but to tell you the truth, i think it is usually his sisters taking care of him when we are not home.  he also shovels the church each winter for a small stipend, but believe me... this often takes some encouraging for him to get out and DO it.

i have been asking more of him lately though... little things like... feed the dog, sort the recycling, put your dishes in the sink, pick up your clothes... baby steps to bigger responsibilities.  i just have to keep his daddy from jumping in and picking up where i left off... so matt if you are reading this... it really is good for him to learn how to make a sandwich for himself!! LOL!

i am also trying to instill in all of the kids that being a part of a family requires team work. and i think that chores are a good tool in accomplishing this.  i don't like the idea of chore charts or rewards.  we've tried those routes in the past and they have just never "stuck" with our family.  to forced, too rigid... i don't know... just not us.  but i will be expecting more of the kids from now on.  they need to learn to do their part... without being asked or reminded. if YOU make a mess, YOU pick it up.  sounds simple...

i don't think that i could expect any more out of anna pearl.  she is a Godsend.  she loves housework, is always quick to help out and often seeks out ways to pitch in and help out.  this has thankfully rubbed off onto adison who also likes to help, but only when she feels like it.  and expecially if it means that she gets to sweep the floor or wash the windows.

 

so here is to new priorities and new responsiblities.  and to realistic expectaions, flexibility and teamwork.

 

we love snow days!

cuz we get to do fun things like...

climb snow mountains in our backyard...

 

relax in the snow...

 

and make snow icecream!  if you haven't tried this before, then you must... it is so yummy! and easy!

first you gather some clean, fresh snow (yellow or brown snow is not recommended but snow pants and mittens are)

 

 

then you combine the snow with the special ingredients... sugar, milk and vanilla (splenda works well too!)

 

 

 

then you shake it or stir it until all of the ingredients are blended together so that it looks like ice cream.  grab a spoon, and enjoy!

 
 

i love taking pics of the kids in the snow... it is always easy to capture their beautiful smiles...

i love the snowflakes in anna pearl's eyelashes!

 

and adison's new "almost a big girl" teeth!

 

while the kids spent most of the day outside, i spent most of the day inside, baking.  i made cookies, banana loaf, chocolate chip banana muffins, glazed ham and cheesy scalloped potatoes.  i probably should have ventured out and shovelled the driveway or something, but our awesome neighbour paul is always quick to get us plowed out...

 
but i did say thank you by sending over a few muffins, fresh out of the oven.

so, here's hoping for another snowday or two!