How sweet

Emma's birthday is coming up on Sunday.....so Chrish decided he wanted to give his sister his old pair of heely's. In case you don't know, heely's are shoes that have small wheels in the bottom of them. He got the relialbe can of lysol wipies and gave the rather worn shoes a good ol' wipe down. Then he carefully and colourfully wrapped them in a box. He did a great job too! The next day he could hardly wait to give them to her. I had suggested he wait a week for her actual birthday but he just could not contain himself. You would've thought HE was getting the gift. It was a very sweet moment! She tried them on, and though they are a bit big for her and she'll have to learn to get used to them she appreciated the thoughtfulness. He's such a sweet boy with a huge, generous heart. I love my little boy so much!!!

Cherishing the moments

It's SO precious to me how sweet the kids can be with each other and rather incredible considering some of the sibling squabbles they can have sometimes. These are the moments that I cherish and hold close to my heart. Unless you're a parent you can't fully grasp just how priceless these almost heavenly moments are. I don't know if it's all the sweeter BECAUSE of how ridiculous they can get when they aren't getting along or what. Sometimes you don't really appreciate the good things in life unless you've had heartache or struggles.
Right now my two little ones are busy building a fort together that they intend on sleeping in. We'll see how long that lasts. They really can surprise me though you know. I so enjoy watching them do things together. Like singing, having "band practice", riding bikes, skateboarding together, cuddling, colouring, dressing up, you name it. What's fun too is that all four of them interact and mix it up together. Sometimes the older one becomes very nurturing of the youngest, or my middle takes pride in protecting and defending his sisters (especially from the infuriating neighbours unfortunately in close proximity to us). My little artist enjoys drawing, and will from time to time teach her siblings whom she sparks interest in.
They definitely know how to fight as most siblings do, but it warms my heart and tickles my toes how they really do love each other and have their own unique relationship with each other. I do pray that they will continue to have a special bond with each other throughout their lives. That they'll continue to encourage and cheer each other on. I am SO amazingly blessed beyond belief with and by them. I am honoured to be called their mommy.

Pain in the neck : (

This is what I would love to do the way that I feel today! I currently feel as though I have a knife stuck in the left side of my neck/shoulder. Could be worse, but I sure would love to be laying on a beach with my head covered, the warm sun beaming on me. The sound of the crashing, powerful waves hitting against the rocks, and to just do....nothing. Especially not feel this annoying and surprisingly painful, inconvenient pain in my neck. I can't turn my head to the left or I have to move my whole upper body to do so. I don't normally like to take medicine, I like to think I'm a pretty tough lil' lady, but I've been taking regular doses of pain meds today and it's not helping as much as I'd like it to. I really am bummed that I've been so cranky today, just because I have this pain. I've tried explaining to the kids, that it's not them "Mommy's just cranky and not feeling well" and I'm trying not to take it out on anyone.
Anyway, today was a pretty mellow day thankfully. This morning I met my neighbour for coffee which is always a treat. We see each other here and there but don't really get much of a chance without all the kids interrupting us to actually have a conversation. Mind you, my brother in law decided he'd do that for us.( Just kidding, it was nice of him to stop by and say hi. He enjoys his Starbucks too!
After coffee it was time to pick up my youngest from pre-school. Went home to get some lunch, and had to laugh at myself for locking us out of the house (long story...not really just boring). Luckily my sis'n law lives across the street so we could use her potty. Seems like the bladder always insists at the worst times! I got a spare key from sis and headed back home (all the way across the street) for 15 minutes before picking up the other kids. It was a short day today, where they get out a bit early from school. After a quick trip to the grocery store, we came home did homework (well they did that) and I did the usual cleaning up bit, took my star athlete to his baseball game. One hour for two innings! They just started coaches pitch and oh boy, it took quite a while, but he did a great job! By the time we got home and I had to make dinner, I was in so much pain I had to cancel going to bible study. How come when you want to go somewhere your kids are like "No mom! I want to stay home! It's boring!....." and when you decide to stay home they get all mad at you and complain that they will miss out! That's not really a question, I know it's just the way they are. They like to be contrary at times.
My lil' "strongwilled" baby (almost 5) fell asleep on the couch right before dinner (of coarse) I was afraid of her getting woke up by the other kids (when she wakes on her own she is usually fine, but if woken up....OH BOY...watch out!) Well, it's WATCH OUT time! I'm trying to ignore her irrational, annoying screaming right now. The more I try to interact with her the worse it gets. If I give her space she'll come around.
After all the kids are in bed and asleep I'm hoping to just relax, and imagine myself at the beach with the towel on my face without a care in the world. Then, I'll start some new adventure tomorrow. I'd prefer to not have the annoying pain in my neck though. Sweet dreams my friends!

The Luckiest Girl....

These are my parents!
I am the the luckiest girl there is! My mom and I go way back, 32 years that is.(I guess you could add 9months to that, I just don't quite remember that part) My mom is a hero of mine. I've seen her go through all sorts of things and no matter what, she never gave up! I am incredibly proud of her and grateful to her. She has been such a huge source of encouragement, unconditional love and support to me always. She's one of my best friends really.
My dad......well I remember being about 14 and helping out at church. I couldn't help but stare at this man holding this precious, angelic little girl. She was just glowing with the look of "I'm in my Daddy's arms!" and he was beaming with a very proud "look at MY beautiful girl!" I remember thinking "one day I wish I could have a daddy just like him!" I think that it was shortly after that when it really hit me that I didn't have one. Though it was a rather hard season, God used it to show me that He wanted to fill that void in me and wanted to be my Father. Which He really did show me! It was one of the most precious seasons in my life that I will always cherish, one that also ended up leading me to meet my husband on my 17th birthday but that's for a different time.....back to Dad. Ok so I'm not great at math, but about 10 years later my mom ends up marrying a man. He seems to make her really happy, which is extremely important to me! My next visit back to Canada....I meet mom's new husband, he's very quiet, but smart, an intellectual computer-whiz. It hits me! HE"S the one! The very same dad I had wished for ten years earlier. I've been spending the last 11 years getting to know him and right from the beginning he's had his arms wide open to me. In a lot of ways, you would think he was my biological father. The curly hair (well his does when he sweats. His brown hair and hazel eyes. Like our brilliant sense of "humour" the way we enjoy photography - he's really great at it! I was a little reserved and guarded of my heart when I first met him. Now I must admit, it didn't take long for him to win my heart. Though I was in my mid-twenties when he came into our family(an adult thinking, "I don't need a daddy now!"), he was worth the wait and I finally have an earthly father I am proud to call Dad, and love very much!
So, you see.....I am the luckiest girl! I know God really loves me......he put them in my life!

All better now.......

Well, we just got the plumbing fixed....YAY! We have a really nice guy who came and thankfully fixed our plumbing problems. (We actually had a few issues) You know, I just wait til' there's more than one reason for him to come to get my money's worth. What can I say? After a week of a plugged toilet let me just say it wasn't a happy time cleaning the front bathroom. I went in all suited up. Brought the bleach, lit some candles. The candlelight really makes me look pretty and puts me in a better mood. (JK) All better now though : )
This weekend was a rather low-key one. Saturday was a stay in your pj's, veg and watch t.v. and play on the computer kind of day. It was really nice! Sunday Larry lead worship at church, and the girls and I taught in Emma's Sunday school class. After church we usually go out to lunch, but this week we decided to just bring some lunch home. Yummy lunch, had a nap (I usually can't nap even if I try) Unfortunately after the nice nap I woke up feeling sick to my stomach (no I'm not pregnant) and the huge kink in my neck turned into a kink/migraine. I had to cancel jacuzzi night with my girlfriends : ( My oldest daughter was really incredible though and did a ton of laundry and was taking care of everybody. She's really incredible!
Luckily today I woke up feeling all better! I really needed to wake up that way to play "catch up" from the weekend and catch up I did. I'm of coarse not all caught up - I don't think I ever will FULLY catch up but atleast I'm not burried in laundry anymore.
Laundry, dishes, dropping kids off, picking kids up, having the plumber come, taking Chrish to baseball practice, grocery store, pharmacy, a couple of time-outs, a bit of refereeing......that's my day. Mix in a few hugs and kisses, smiles and tickles, and you have a pretty usual day for Cherie : )

Sadly Distracted

Well, today I've been trying to get caught up on some of the neglected things around here since having my parents stay with us for 2 weeks. I don't know about you but I'd MUCH rather hang out and spend time with loved ones then stay caught up on the laundry or scrubbing the bathroom tub. Housework will unfortunately always be here for me to do....my parents on the otherhand are over 3000 miles away.
I've always been very close with my mom - she's like a best friend to me-we've been through a lot together. My dad, is very special to me too! Though he's very quiet...I know he loves me.
We celebrated my moms birthday, went to Vegas for a weekend, to the beach of coarse, and shared some yummy meals all while taking many, many photos. It always pains me greatly to see them go, but at the same time I am SO very grateful to be able to see them at all!
Luckily I have four precious gems to (well five if you count Larry) to distract me and keep me busy. The kids have been on Spring break this week so we've been squeezing in all the fun that we can. After we dropped Oma and Opa off at the airport yesterday, Larry took his teary-eyed family to our favourite restaurant "the Pancake House". After breakfast I met some girlfriends and all their kids(16 of us total) at Boomers in Irvine. It's an amusement/recreation park. I wanted to take the kids minds and mine off of being sad and just have some fun. We did!

Hello

Hey there! This is my first post, just getting started : )