My little date!!!

This little boy is such a sweetheart.



Last night Wayne went to play hockey and so I decided it would be a good night to go on a date with Nate. I told Nate that he was taking me on a date and as we were driving into the city I asked him if he was going to pay for supper. He said he couldn't because he didn't have money. I reminded him that he had a full piggy bank of money (obviously I was just teasing him). He said he couldn't use that money because he was saving it to buy some games. I asked him if he would ever take me out for supper and pay. He said "I will Mommy, I will buy some games with my money in my bank and then save up for 2 more games and a supper for you, is that okay mommy?" It was soooo sweet. I told him for now he didn't have to worry about paying and mommy would cover the cost (I did let him give the waiter the card and push the buttons for debit, he even gave the waiter a BIG tip).

It was nice going out with JUST Nathan and being able to spend time focused just on him. We had a VERY good conversation about Ninja Turtles, Bolt, Preschool, fries and everything that was important to him and I enjoyed every minute with my little stud. Nathan felt it was important that he sit beside me and he kept kissing and hugging me and telling me how much he loves me.... what a date hey?!?

After supper we went to Toy's R Us and were there for over an hour. Normally I just rush through the store and only let him look at a few things, this time I just waited while he looked and touched EVERYTHING. I enjoyed watching his excitement and played with a few things too.

I feel like day to day I get so caught up in getting the house clean, making meals, my job, rushing....rushing.... rushing that I forget to just slow down and enjoy this CRAZY fast changing time with my son. I want to stop and actually LISTEN to what he is saying to me, not just say "Uh huh" as I am running around doing things. He changes everyday and I feel like I am missing out on soooo much with him and I spend 24 hours a day with him. So it's become my personal goal to stop what I am doing and just listen, play or do what my son NEEDS because I don't want to look back in 20 years and only remember having a clean house and good food, and not able to remember what Nathan liked at 3, what his interests were, what a great kid he really is.

Last night was a WONDERFUL night and I think that Nathan and I are going to make Date night a regular thing.

PSA!!!

If you ever want to just kick up your normal day to day mashed potatoes you need to try THESE. They are SOOOOOO good. I have been waiting to try these for a VERY long time, but because of the amount of FAT (mmmm..... fat) in them and trying to lose weight I just didn't think it was a very smart idea. However, now that I am pregnant (yes, I am still eating REALLY healthy for most of the time) I feel that a little indulgence every once in a while is TOTALLY okay.

These potatoes are DEFINATELY an indulgence, but they are soooo worth it (BTW, the first time you make them I would recommend to not skimp on anything, you need to experience the yummyness, after that if you still want to skimp go for it) . We ate them with ham and sliced tomatoes and cucumbers, and gravy was not needed. They are creamy, flavorful, just totally yummy. I probably won't make them again for a while, again, once you read the recipe you will understand, but I'm thinking Mom and Dad can make some of their FABULOUS greek ribs and I will make these.... ohhhhh.....Dad I will totally bring an extra box of ribs down if I need to.... my mouth is WATERING!!!!

I just thought I would pass on this awesome find to all my wonderful friends out there in blog land. :) Yes grandma, you can probably make a smaller portion for a few meals for you and grandpa, or just invite over a bunch of grandkids and let them enjoy them as well. :)

Thanks Andy!!!

Writing a blog can be intimidating sometimes. There are lot's of different things that run through my head during the day and most times I can't think of the "perfect" way to write it so I don't. Andy really inspired me to just put it out there, so I will.

First off I want to say a HUGE thankyou for all the support and love that you have all shown me, but especially over the last week. It's amazing how so many people come out of the woodworks to show their support and show that they care and have been hoping for my happiness.

Also, Nathan and I have spent the last 3 years at home and he has never been to daycare, other than nursery and playdates he didn't get a lot of socialization with other kids. I think as a mom you always wonder if you are doing what is right for your child, and Wayne and I made the decision years ago that I would stay home with our kids if at all possible. However, I've wondered if sometimes it would be good for him to be in a daycare setting every once in a while to get used to dealing with other kids. I wasn't sure how Nate would do in Preschool since he can definately be bossy and stubborn. However, I talked with his teacher this week and she said that he is such a wonderful little boy (which I already knew), that he is very mature and smart (again, I totally knew this...hehe.). I asked her about how he acts with the other kids, is he bossy, aggressive... she said not at all. That he is the PERFECT combination of passive and aggressive...he doesn't let kids push him around, but he isn't mean. PHEW... that is EXACTLY what I wanted to hear. I am okay if Nate isn't the smartest person out there, I am okay if he wants to grow up to be a doctor or a hairdresser, I'm okay with him being ANYTHING but what I want is for Nathan to be a "strong" person. I don't want him to be mean or a bully, but I want him to stand up for himself and not put up with crap from people that are being bully's. I want him to know who HE is and be okay with that. Even though I know that Nathan is a GREAT kid it's nice to hear it from someone that is impartial. Plus, Nate was soooo proud of himself that his teacher said nice things about him, he kept telling me he is so smart...haha....ya, your smart buddy and cocky!! :)

I looked at a chinese gender prediction calendar today....okay, I actually looked at 4 different ones, and 3 out of the 4 said I am having a boy...but 1 out of 4 said I'm having a girl...hmmmm.... I wonder what it will be. I also tried the wedding ring swinging over your tummy thing. If it swings back and forth it's a girl, if it swings in circles it's a boy.....My ring would only swing back and forth even when I tried to swing it in a circle it would instantly go back to back and forth. Of course, I think it would be a LOT of fun if I had a girl, because hello, girl stuff is WAY cuter than boy stuff. But I will be happy with ANY gender of baby that I get... seriously, I just pray for a healthy baby, that's all that really matters right. Oh and just to let you know, I feel like it's a boy, in fact the other day I was talking to my mom and I said something about the boys going to daycare when I am working again. I caught myself and changed it to boy and girl but boys is what usually slips out of my mouth and what is in my mind. I KNEW that Nate was a boy (we could never see through ultrasound, I just always thought of him as a boy). We want to find out what this baby is, Wayne and I both don't really like surprises so why wait?If we can't find out, oh well, we will know in 6 months...hehe. Do you think it's lame that I already bought a few girl outfits though?!? I figure I can give them away as baby gifts if it's a boy again. :)

Hmmm... Oh man, I think there was more that I wanted to talk about but the mommy mush brain is coming back and I can't remember what it is. ;)

Oh well... I'll do more posts that I just put it out there... great idea Andy.

I DID IT!!!

Well I did it!!! I passed my Accuplacer!!! I am not sure if I wrote about the Accuplacer but if you don't know what it is, it is a test that allows me to challenge my Grade 12 Math class. I was told that my Alberta Math 33 class was not good enough for Saskatchewan standards. So instead of having to retake a Math class I challenged the Accuplacer. You have to pass 3 parts of the test (there is a minimum mark to pass but I don't know what it is) , Math (which can be anything from Grade 10 Math to Advanced Grade 12 Math), Sentence Structure, and Reading Comprehension. If you pass these 3 parts then you write an essay. If I pass all 4 parts then I won't have to retake the Math class.

I took the Accuplacer about a month ago. I passed the Math part with 94%!!!! I was sooooo excited because I was REALLY worried about the Math since I hadn't taken a Math course in 10.5 years...AGGGHHH, but I totally KICKED it's butt. I got 86% (or something, I don't really remember the EXACT mark) on the Sentence Structure part. I missed the stinking Reading Comprehension by 1 MARK!!!!AHHHH. I was pretty upset. I had 1 more chance to retake the Reading Comp. part and if I didn't pass I had to retake the Math class... I know passing the English part to not take the Math part doesn't make sense, but it's what I had to do.

Last night I was trying to study the reading comp. stuff but really wasn't doing too well and was getting a little stressed. My fabulous husband gave me a beautiful blessing and I felt instant peace... I didn't know if I was going to pass, but I knew that whatever was meant to be would be.

This morning I retook the test. I got 96% on the Reading Comp..... WOO HOOO!!!!! I then had 2 hours to write the essay. I LOVE writing essays... I am a fabulous BS'er, but I haven't written an English essay in a LONG time. The topic was what Technology has helped change our country or something like that. I wrote the essay, kicked it's BOOTY and got 100%!!!! YAY!!!!

I am sooooo stinkin pumped!!!! Having passed this exam means that there is NOTHING else that I have to do to get accepted into Practical Nursing!!!! So now I just have to wait to see when I am accepted.

I have NEVER felt so strong, smart, in control and powerful in my life. I feel like I am finally taking control of MY LIFE and I have done the hard work to get to this goal and I am seriously sooooo proud of myself. I have always wanted to have an education. I am a hairdresser, and I like hairdressing... it definately wasn't what I wanted to do for the REST of my life. I want to be a nurse. I want to be able to take care of my family if something were to happen to Wayne or his job. I want to be able to teach my children about furthering their education and being able to be an example of this. There is NOTHING in this world that would make me regret being a mom, or taking these last 3 years to be with Nathan, that is BY FAR THE BEST thing I have ever done.... but it feels amazing as a woman and as ME (not Mommy) to be doing this for ME!!!! Yes, there are definately those moments when I think about all the time that I am going to have to miss with my kids because I am in school or because I am working. But I KNOW that I am doing something that will make me feel better about myself, will help me grow and be ME and doing something for myself, and in return will WONDERFULLY affect my family. I am SERIOUSLY soooo excited!!!! Can you tell??!

Everything that I have worked SOOOOO hard for these last few years are finally happening. I am soooo excited to start this new part of my life with another beautiful baby, my wonderful husband and cute little man and the start of an education that I have ALWAYS wanted.

Nate got a new shirt!!!

Nathan LOVES his new shirt and I thought I would share it here:















Hahaha!!! Yes, all my devoted blog friends, I can FINALLY tell you all the VERY exciting news. After 3 long and trying years we are finally expecting baby #2 on May 30th 2009!!!! We are BEYOND excited and I've been waiting for 8 weeks to finally tell everyone. We wanted to wait for the first trimester to be done since I have had 2 miscarriages in the past and we had a little scare at 7 weeks with this baby. Today I am 12 weeks PREGNANT!!!! WOOHOO!!! It feels SOOOOO amazing to finally be able to say that.

I was starting to get worried that people were going to start asking me if I was pregnant or just getting fat since I am starting to get a good little ponch on me. ;)

This pregnancy has been totally different than Nate's. With Nathan I was nauseous ALL day long but would never puke. This time I've been fine and then the littlest smell or thought of food would keep me hugging the toilet for quite a long time. But it's all been worth it to know there is a tiny little baby growing inside me.

Like I said we had a scare at 7 weeks when I woke up and was bleeding. I did my bus run and then Wayne came and got me and we rushed into the doctor who checked me out and then had me get an ultrasound. I felt like I couldn't breathe the whole morning while we waited.... I couldn't go through this again, I couldn't have tried for soooo long to finally get this baby and to lose it just like that. I laid on the table and the Dr. found the little blob INSTANTLY, there in the blob was the most BEAUTIFUL thing I have EVER seen, a heartbeat. I started bawling, it was THE MOST beautiful blob I have ever seen. After I gained my composure I had the Dr. really check to make sure there was just the one heartbeat and that's all there was.... we are having 1 baby. :)

Anyways, Nathan really does love his shirt and that's how we told both sets of parents. We sent Nate upstairs to show my mom his new shirt, which she said was her "Most Favorite shirt EVER"!!! My dad said, "What does this mean?" hahaha. Nathan had the shirt on when we went out to Wayne's mom and dad's. He was hanging out with everyone for almost 30 minutes and NOONE noticed, so finally Wayne had Nathan show Grandma and Grandpa, they liked the shirt too.

Remembrance Day

Yesterday as I sat for the moment of silence I couldn't help but feel an amazing amount of gratitude for those that have risked their lives, and are risking their lives for us and our freedom.

When I lived in New York I worked for a family that was Jewish. I learned an incredible amount of things about their religion and I had some really neat experiences that I will remember for ALL my life. One of the amazing experiences I had was I got to spend time with this family's Zadie and Bubie (Grandpa and Grandma). They would come over quite often and then one day I noticed some numbers on Zadie's arm. I had NO idea what they were and I asked him about them. He told me that these were the numbers that were his identity as he was in the concentration camps. He wasn't a person, he was a number at that time and these numbers represented that. I don't know if all of the prisoners received one of these tatoos but I know many did and Bubie showed me hers as well. WOW!!! That one moment made me feel like all that history that I had been taught in school was REAL. That there REALLY were "those" people out there and that I now knew 2 of them.

I didn't know if it would be disrespectful to ask a lot of questions but over time I learned a bit of Zadie(Grandpa) and Bubie's(Grandma) stories. They were VERY young when their families were captured, they were taken to the camps and seperated from all of their siblings and parents. Zadie was put to work... I don't know what he did, but he was strong so he was "needed". I heard that they saw THE most HORRIBLE things. I heard stories of rape, of beatings, of torture, but also of hope, of belief, of determination, and of love.

They were finally let go, I assume after the war was over, but I don't know (or remember). They moved to the USA at an incredibly young age, Bubie was only 14. They instantly started working, and working INCREDIBLY hard and tried to make a better life for themselves. Bubie somehow found one of her sisters, whom she had thought she had lost forever, the rest of her family she never saw again. I don't remember if Zadie ever found anyone, but I don't think he did. They eventually met, fell in love, and started their family.

I wish that I would have respectfully asked more questions and actually taken the time to write down the details. However, some of the details I will always remember. The details of how grateful they were for those who fought SOOOO hard to help them, complete strangers, but people that deserved to live. The details of how Bubie's eyes glazed over as she told me of the conditions of the places she was kept, to say they were kept in places and treated like animals would be a HUGE understatement. The detail of the numbers that are forever printed on their arms as a constant reminder of where they came from and where they are now. The numbers that were hidden from the world under long sleeved shirts at all times to help these people to keep their secrets.

I will never forget those details.

I am Grateful and I will REMEMBER.