More Early Celebrations

My mom and dad had us to dinner as they do every Monday night. For the record this is never taken for granted! Anyhow....this was to be an early birthday celebration for myself as they are packing their bags and leaving on a jet plane tomorrow morning. The old bones need a week of sun apparently!
My request for my birthday dinner was potato salad (no one makes it like Mom!) and chicken. I just felt like having it for some reason. Dessert was pineapple upside down cake. No candles as we didn't want to have a fire incident with ALL that flame but they did all sing a lovely Happy Birthday in my honour. I also received cards stuffed full (well not stuffed) of birthday money. Yeah, new clothes!

Liam was having none of this partying business. We decided he was in pain from his emerging molar and rubbed on a bit of Orajel. In no time he was ALL about the party as you can see....

A Great Saturday Night

My girls took me out last night for a very tasty sushi supper and a movie in honour of my upcoming birthday! It was a really nice treat to get out with them as we don't do it very often.

Slurping our Sunomono salad...yum!

I chose dinner box 'B'. It did not disappoint!

Killing time between dinner and the movie at McD's with sundaes!

We saw 'Leap Year'. It was cute and I sure enjoyed all the Irish accents and familiar Irish scenery!

Aside from my coughing, we had a good visit and some good laughs. Thank you to you both....I really appreciated it!

Just for Fun

10 years ago today...

-I was a mother of only one little boy.
-I was weight lifting regularly and was quite fit.
-I living in a condo that was 'leaky' and was stressing about how it was going to affect us financially.
-I was walking everywhere or bumming rides due to only having one vehicle.



Yesterday...

-I got up VERY early to make sure Keith and Chad got out the door in time to catch the bus to Whistler
-I really missed going to church
-I spent some time at the walk-in clinic with Liam who was diagnosd with croup
-I took a nice invigorating walk with Nathan and Liam


Tomorrow...

-I will get up at 6:10 to start my day
- I hope Keith will finish the bathroom tile
- I plan to get lots done at work
- I will meal plan for the week and make my grocery list
- I will try and eat right


5 snacks I enjoy...

- nachos
- chips (not potato....just corn or rice based chips)
- crisp apples
- popcorn
- a piece of good quality dark chocolate


Best impression...my mother?!

5 things I would do with $1 000 000

- sorry MEI but I would quit my job
- tithe and have fun doing it
- go on a GREAT trip with family and friends ... maybe around the world!
- pay off any and all debt
- be boring and invest wisely


5 locations I would like to run away to

- England
- any tropical island with clear water, sandy beaches and servant
- Italy
- Greece
- Portugal

5 bad habits I have

- being impatient
- jumping to conclusions
- not very compassionate
- eating too much
- too much computer time :)

5 things I love doing

- reading
- spending time on my computer either on FB or blogging
- socializing with my friends
- watching a family movie together
- travelling


5 things I will most likely never wear

- stirrup pants
- mini skirt
- stilettos
- a mumu
- crocs

5 movies I like...

-Slumdog Millionaire
- Gran Torino
- LOTR Trilogy
- Pursuit of Happyness
- Moulin Rouge

5 famous people I would love to meet...

there is no one that I would like to meet actually. I would have nothing in common with them and have nothing to talk about. Awkward! Oh wait...maybe just Ree.... 'The Pioneer Woman'. Just her.

5 biggest joys at the moment...

- My growing understanding of Christianity
- My friends/family
- That I'm healthy and my needs are provided for
- Thinking of upcoming holidays with my crew
- My new job....it's been such a blessing


My favorite toys

- my laptop
- camera
- my Kitchen-Aid


5 people to tag (but honestly no pressure - only if you want to - it was actually a lot harder than I originally thought it would be)-Jillian, Kerry, Terry, Rhonda, Jenn Stonehouse

A New Skiier

Chad had the opportunity on Sunday to go skiing in Whistler with his school. The program is for grade 4/5 but since there was room on the bus they allowed grade 3 students to join if they had a parent to accompany them. I had gone with Nate several years back so it was Keith's turn. That and busses make me horrible sick! Even Keith said he felt a bit off during all the turns with the bus swaying and rocking. ICK!

Chad did awesome for his very first time on the slopes. Keith took plenty of pictures and video footage. Maybe one day in the future we can all ski as a family.....a girl can dream!

And thank you Keith for bringing home a yummy treat from the Rocky Mountain Fudge Factory!

One Wall To Go

I do believe this renovation would have been done this weekend if 'real life' hadn't of gotten in the way. Thursday and Friday Keith was home with Liam. Trying to do anything with the bathroom AND superivising Liam was most challenging. Keith at least purchased the tile, supplies and concrete board on Thursday. Friday we were most fortunate to have our friend Clayton come over and give Keith an all day tutorial on 'how to tile'. Two of the walls were done that day and looks fantastic! Saturday, Keith was on a course at work all day and today Keith is up in Whistler with Chad on a school ski program. I know it'll get all finished soon and cannot wait for my first soak in that lovely deep tub!

Oh and if you want to see what I was up to on Saturday night...link here.

Nothing But Trouble!

Liam can now reach the third shelf of the pantry. Heaven help us!

Whenever I am baking or cooking or doing dishes (which is basically most of my day off) Liam is in there with me. He's not one to go and play on his own just yet. He usually throws around the tuna cans, rolls the soup cans across the flour and now tosses around my pudding packages. We've only had one incident with the vinegar but otherwise it's been 'clean' play so far.

New Year, New Bath

Keith said that smashing tiles was fun at first. Then it just became a whole lotta hard work!

This meant Liam has been shuffled to the kitchen sink for his nightly dip....

...Until we can get some new tile to surround the new soaker tub!

Stay tuned for 'after' pictures. I can't promise when it'll happen but my hope is sooner rather than later!

Why Not?

Often I feel like a real 'Hagatha' when it comes to my two older kids. I am impatient and bark at them for no good reason. Being aware of it is one thing but changing those bad parenting habits isn't that easy. My first step is trying not to say 'no' all the time just because the request inconveniences me or gives me a power trip. That being said, the boys wanted to sleep together tonight in Nate's bed. It was on the tip of my tongue to say 'no'! I thought it over quickly and decided it certainly shouldn't be an issue. I did warn them that if they were fooling around then it would be the end of it and wouldn't you know it...they went to sleep like angels! I think I'll get extra hugs tomorrow :)

You can't even see Nate rolled up in his quilt like a sausage!

Happy Boy

Middle school really agrees with Nate. He brought home both an honour roll and effort roll certificate from school today!

It goes without saying we're really pleased with his efforts so far this year.

Lumpy Buns

I need advice on my buns. Not the ones attached to the tops of my legs but my baking buns.

Can someone tell me how to get all my buns nice and smooth like this:

Instead of lumpy like this:
Thankfully Liam doesn't care if his buns have lumps! He loves to eat.

He's also keen to help as I find small children usually are. This disappears as they grow up so I put them to work as soon as possible. Liam is responsible for throwing away his own diapers. He even claps for himself afterwards for a job well done.

Felt like trying a new recipe tonight. Pesto Lasanga from 'The Best of the Best' cookbook (my favorite!). It's very very tasty but also very very rich. A dish best left for special occasions!

Bring On 2010!

My parents offered to take our kids for New Year's Eve this year! This let us enjoy a wonderful child-free evening with our besties last night. We had a wonderful night.

Kori and Roger made THE most delicious BBQ dinner. It was better than any restaurant...seriously amazing!
The gang! We have gotten together for New Years just about every year for as long as I can remember.

After stuffing ourselves silly on surf and turf, we found a bit more room in our tummies for a decadent chocolate fondue.

Time for games! We played a few different card games and then Mexican Train. Keri liked to stay warm and cozy in her new faux fur hoodie. She wants to assure everyone it's not a cat draped around her head :)

I think we rolled out of the driveway to head home around 2 am. The evening ended all too quickly but we certainly had a great time of laughing, eating and hanging out.

Best for Last

We finally came upon our last family gathering which was for Keith's side of the family. I wasn't tired of partying it up but Liam certainly was. He was a total bear the whole time and it was sort of a bummer. I suppose all the late nights, missed naps, delayed meals and general lack of routine was going to come to a head eventually.

Here's Liam meeting Carrot. Suz and Tyler don't have kids yet but do have a posse of animals they take with them when they travel. Along with Carrot are Freyja and Zoe (dogs).

Arian and Stacey were the guests of honor tonight. They are very close family friends and considered Keith's other sisters as they grew up together. Chad somehow charmed both of them and now had a girlfriend from Dallas and one from London. What a guy!

Chad even got a bit ole smooch from Arian before dinner. Although he protested I KNOW he loved it.

Tyler and Suz with their baby Freyja. She's a lovely dog!

Liam received a drum set from Grandpa and Grandma! Oh my....what lucky parents we are. We tried to convince them it should stay at their house but that didn't fly :)

It's been a great run. I loved each gathering and am going to miss the fun, laughter and excellent food. Just New Year's Eve left to celebrate and then we're back to routine again.

The Klassen Clan Celebrates Oma's 80th!

Our huge, extended Klassen family still gets together each Christmas. I love that! Of course, no one's home is big enough so for the past several years we have used various church basements. Of course it's not as homey but until someone purchases a huge mansion, it'll have to do!

This year's gathering was held at Sherbrooke Church in Vancouver. Each family brought a salad and then we had KFC and hashbrown casserole. It was very tasty!

Here's Liam patiently waiting for his dinner.

Nate and Chad with one of their second cousins Connor from Calgary.

The buffet tables.

A very special cake for my Oma's 80th birthday!

Doesn't she look fantastic for 80 years old? She's still in great shape and has more energy than most people I know.

Anyone else grow up having 'cow candy' at Christmas? The packaging has been redesigned but it's a vanilla fudge that's made in Poland. It's very nostalgic and I eat one every year even though I don't really love it.

Liam and his second cousin Hannah enjoying some play time after dinner. Fortunately most of my cousins are having babies like rabbits so there are always plenty of little ones running around.
My cousin Lynnette with one of her twin boys. He's scrumptious!



All of my Oma's six children gathered around her at the end of the evening to say a prayer over her.


Beforehand, each sibling took a turn speaking about their mom and what she meant to them. It was a very nice evening.

Boxing Day

I hosted a small gathering at our place on Boxing Day. Since we weren't doing Keith's family Christmas gathering until the 28th I felt like I should have a small party to hold us over. Keith's sister and her boyfriend spent Christmas up in Invermere this year so we wanted to wait until they got back to have our big 'do'. So it was Keith's parents, brother and cousins from Vancouver.

I put on a buffet of homemade buns, ham, cheeses, wings, cheeseball, crackers, crudites, appies and other assorted nibbles. It was really tasty if I do say so myself!

Here is Jacek with his son David who is three years old and Liam. The two boys got on really well and it's nice for Liam to have a second cousin around his age. David is going to have a new sibling next month and that's pretty exciting!

Oh, just yet another random cute picture of Liam!

And more presents! The kids did a little gift exchange with each other. Keith's cousin Jo and her husband are both engineers so our boys got Lego building sets of course! And everyone knows Nathan and Chad could never have enough Lego!!!

It was a nice evening....very relaxed with plenty of visiting and catching up with each other. We did miss a certain someone though. Due to a change in the family dynamic this year (how else to delicately describe a break-up???) it felt a bit different and sad. It will take time to adjust but if you are reading this 'T' we missed you!