Thinking my aching bum and back wouldn’t allow me to sit on the hard wooden benches at church, we opted out of the service this morning and instead headed to spend the day with my mom. We arrived in the late morning and really had the perfect day. Lots of toys, playing, eating, visiting, and while the kids napped, card playing. It was the perfect day. I did get slaughtered five games in a row, but it was worth it for some good company and easy conversation. And the great pictures we got of the kids! So this might just be a relaxed/brag post about the littles and how awesome they are. All photo credit goes to my mom, the taker of all pictures. Her camera has been on the fritz/in the shop/in the hands of idiots all summer, so she had learned to work her magic on my lame but still functional point and shoot camera. Love her.

And them. LOVE them!

I’m also happy to say we finally got our act together and grabbed all the photos from Dekkers birthday party from my mom, so I’ll do a photo post about that really soon. I know, Deks has already been three for ten whole days, but better late than never, right? Maybe tomorrow 🙂

Oh oh oh! ONE MORE THING I have to talk about because I’ll forget later, and I’m TOTALLY excited! Recently, we got our water cooler/Keurig thing and it is fully set up, fully working, and fully awesome. Seriously, I am so excited to have that working in our house. Also, we are currently waiting on three parcels that I’m really excited for! Some cute fall clothes for Laela in the next size up, since she’s growing like a weed, will be here early next week. PLUS, coming in the next who knows when, we just recently ordered a whole five piece set from carseatcanopy.com for the new baby! I loved having the inside of Laela’s carseat so soft, and I’m excited Jim will know the same minky softness 🙂 AND a new nursing pillow!!! Ours has been soaked in vomit from who children, its wearing in the middle, and just needs to be replaced. So I used the coupon code from purchasing the carseat cover and got the nursing pillow for just the cost of shipping! Both adorable patterns and I just can’t wait! I’ll post it all on here when it finally comes 🙂 Sorry, but I can’t be the only person who gets excited about mail. I can’t be, right??!!

Here’s the skinny on the ever-expanding body of mine. After my biff yesterday, I expected today to be my worst day for soreness. So in preparation for that, I had a warm-ish soak last night, to soak my aches but not swell them up any extra. I took Tylenol and my regular Diclectin before bed, and Brady said he’d give me the morning off to sleep in.

I slept like a log, minus my 3:30am pee break. I put my hand on my back when I got up out of bed, and my skin was tight! So I guess I was pretty swelled up. The next time I woke was at 10:45am!!! Insane, hey? But it was amazing. And all the swelling was down. I headed downstairs and spent time with the fam for the rest of the day. I found ways to sit that were fairly comfortable, but made a point to get up here and there. I tried really hard to keep snacking and drinking but had virtually no appetite. Also, while I know I’m not further injured or anything, my neck is sooo sore today! Just the general soreness that comes from tension and stress, but a sore neck is still a sore neck.  But I tried to roll with the day, and even found it in me (somewhere) to lift my kids up and get some cuddles. I found it really hard to lift them yesterday, or get down on the ground with them, but I’ve noticed already that they’re needing some solid physical touch. Of course, Brady is filling that need beautifully, but I miss it too. We played and watched musicals and I crocheted and we had a generally good day! Waaay better than I thought. I’ve had a bit of a dull headache throughout most of the day, but I gave up on being a hero and decided Tylenol would help me be a better mom and wife, and it did.

Now, the kids are in bed (thanks to Brady, again) and we’re getting ready for a soak. Tomorrow, we’ll actually get out of the house and go see my parents for the day. Still low to no big responsibilities, but new scenery is always refreshing. This has not been the ideal long weekend, but hey! We’re self employed, Brady works when he can, therefore we never know when its a long weekend, haha! So the extra day off was a fun surprise 🙂 I hope you are all having at least slightly more exciting holidays than we are!

I bet everyone is bored with hearing about my faint the other day. Honestly, it shook me up and I’m chatty, so thats just what happens with me. I promise, I’m done talking fainting and onto another fun thing. I bailed down the stairs today. No, I didn’t black out or anything scary like that. We have beautiful, plushy, carpeted stairs, and I slipped right at the top, landing on my tailbone, and rode them down to the bottom on my back. With Laela in my arms. It really wasn’t my finest hour. I lay Laela down on the floor at the bottom while I screeched my woes to her, successfully terrifying both her and Dekker. We all had a big cry before I asked Dekker to bring me my phone so I could weep and wail to Brady at work. Because that wouldn’t add stress to his day. I kind of knelt at the bottom of the stairs and freaked out for a bit before life had to move on. I carefully walked back up the stairs and got Laela some milk and cheerios, came back down, and began the battle of figuring out how to sit. I did a lot of back and forth sideways sitting, and what I learned from that was that I could find a remotely comfy position, but moving over to the other side was super painful. Really, really not great. I was so happy when it was finally naptime! I put the kids down and went to bed. Finding a comfy spot in bed was a challenge too, but luckily we have a super puffy bed so I found a way to lie, and promptly took a nap. I am officially wiped out. And a bit whiny. BUT!!!, I feel like we are all annoyed with my ailments that aren’t really that important but feel all encompassing to me, so let’s go with some silver linings, shall we?

If there is a day to fall down the stairs, its the friday before a long weekend! No, we won’t get to do anything riveting, but Brady will be home to take most of the weight and responsibility for three whole days while I rest my sore bum and back! Also, if there is a flight of stairs to fall down, ours are the ones! They are so puffy and and while it all still hurt a lot, I think I’d be in way worse shape if they were bare wooden stairs, or laminate. I was really in the best spot. Also, Laela was very still after we fell, and I was a bit scared, but I think thats exactly why she was so still. Within minutes, she had rolled away and was playing happily, so I think she came out of the whole thing completely unharmed!

Onto another super exciting thing about today! Brady and I made this absurdly irresponsible purchase the other day, and it finally arrived, hahaha! Of course, I didn’t hear the UPS guy come and he just left it on my deck, so I had to muscle the thing inside myself. Luckily it was pre-stair fall so it wasn’t so bad. Anyway, as I’ve mentioned in the past, our water cooler is on the fritz, so we were looking to order another one. And then I accidentally found one that was waaay cooler than just your basic water cooler! Its a bottom loader, which looks waaay nicer, in my opinion. BUT its also a single serve coffee dispenser!!!! Yes. Its a water cooler and a Keurig in one! Our Keurig has had a few temperamental days where it gurgles and heats and does its thing, but doesn’t brew. I can’t have those days. While they’re few and far between, we know its on its way out. So this is the answer to everything! No more refilling the little Keurig water tank that holds like three cups of water. Onto bigger, better, and waaay pricier things! But its beautiful, is functional, and frees up counter space. I’m sooo excited its here, and can’t wait for Brady to unpack it and set it up. Oh oh oh! The last thing I’ll say about it is that it heats the water hotter than the Keurig does, and all the reviews say that it brews a stronger cup of joe 😀 Yaaaaay!!! Goodbye, weak coffee!

So there you have it! A BIG positive in my sore, grumpy day. When I sat down lay down flat on my back to write this post, I was going to write about the water cooler first and then say that my excitement and basically the day was ruined when I fell down the stairs. But it wasn’t. Its still a good day. I can’t complain about lounging in my bed for the evening. An epsom salts soak in the tub will probably feel wonderful tonight. As long as I can find a way to sit in the tub…

Since the last time I got out, I got all sick and ruined everything, going out today was a bit nerve wracking. I could not have driven myself to the city yesterday, so luckily, I was in better shape for it today. I got the kids fed and dressed, loaded my purse with snacks, and was on my way.

I brought Dekker to spend a couple hours with my mom, and was met in the driveway with toast and honey 🙂 My mom is adorable, and ever-sustaining. Love her. I ate the toast and listened to really good music as Laela and I drove to the doctors office.

We met Brady there and got into our room right on time. We waited maybe fifteen minutes before Dr. Guselle surfaced and we recounted the whole mess from the other day. My first big faint. She took down all the info, asked a few questions, and gave the tips and suggestions that I should have already figured out. Then she did a routine prenatal appointment. Brady finally could hear the heartbeat, and I could hear it loud and clear. And you can too!!

Cool hey? I like it, anyway. My blood pressure was fine (low as usual) and my uterus is actually high enough to be measured! Just for fun, of course, since its all still pretty low down there. But its nice that things are moving right along! It felt pretty awesome to have that confirmed.

We hit up a couple of drive-thrus afterwards. Brady got himself a burger for lunch and I had an iced tea and a danish. Yum. Afterwards, Laela and I went to Walmart and Michaels for some yarn shopping. Since she still fits in a bucket seat, I always lug that in, but today she sat in the cart for the very first time! And she rocked it. She never tipped over once, and she seemed to get a real kick out of feeling the vibrations in her hands as she held on through the parking lot.

We purchased way too much yarn, and forgot a couple of colors that I actually needed to pick up for orders!! Thanks for nothing, pregnancy brain. I guess that gives me another excuse to go out again! Some of the colors have a very specific purpose or plan, but some were just pretty and I wanted them.

Laela slept on the drive to my parents, and Dekker slept on the way home, so neither kids were particularly sleepy upon arriving at home. However, neither had slept enough either. So I put them both down in their beds and figured I’d see what happened. They never got sad, but wow, did they play! Dekker did belly flops and Laela clapped and clapped for him. They would stand face to face and laugh at each other. They did great together. Definitely not sleeping, but still having some “quiet” aka away from mom time. It was awesome.

When Brady arrived home, I realized just what he was walking into. I was laying on the bed wearing only an ill-fitting bra and high waisted stretch pants. I know, a dazzling vision, isn’t it? Poor Brady. I am “that wife.” But he just laughed at me and happily got the kids.

We had leftovers for supper. They weren’t very yummy, but at least now they’re gone. Hopefully something yummier happens tomorrow. Oooooh! Maybe I should be a grown up and make something! We haven’t had honey chicken in a while…

I’m going to start waaay far back! I saw a post on Facebook a few months back, requesting models for the Saskatoon Camera Club to take photos of. One particular couple requested was a bride and groom. I jokingly offered up myself and Brady, since we both still fit our wedding stuff, and while we’re not models at all, we’re comfortable in front of a camera. A few weeks later, I got a response asking if I was serious, because she would like to use us! Having just found out we were pregnant, I did quick math and told her in TOTAL SECRECY (please don’t be bummed, those of you who didn’t know that early) that I’d be 13 weeks pregnant at that point and didn’t know if I’d still fit my stuff. She agreed to take the risk and said she’d like to use us as models whether in wedding garb or not. So we signed up!

I tried my dress on a week or two ago and was sad to see that it already was almost impossible to zip up. I wrote my friend and confessed to her that somehow, I had already become too big for my dress. She assured me it was fine and we should just wear whatever, but to still come. I was sooo ripped. I know, I’m pregnant, and have every right to not fit in my dress anymore. But I found it really hard feeling sooo ugly in something sooo pretty! So the day before model day, I got Brady to help me into my dress again. We fussed with all the fun inside stuff and got me all packed in there, and it closed pretty seamlessly! As long as I watched my posture, I could pull that thing off! I was sooo proud!

So yesterday, Jerilee came for the day, and watched the kids in the evening while Brady and I went off on our date night. I felt completely gorgeous in my twisted funky hair and my fully made up face. I felt sooo beautiful! We made it to the university in time to run into my friend and a couple of other people. One of the photographers came and helped get me into my dress. I told her I was pregnant, and she agreed that it was pretty tight, but a very beautiful dress, and it was cool that I could still fit in it.

Lots of models had congregated by the time we all got ready, and lots of photographers had gathered as well. We were all sort of paired up and sent off to start the process, and everyone would sort of filter through each other. The goal was for each photographer to get to take pictures of each model. We were paired with the lovely photographer Anna who had helped me into my dress. I loved her.

She probably took five pictures of us before I got dizzy. As soon as I mentioned it, she rushed me over into the shade. Brady grabbed onto my waist and asked how he could help. Anna suggested opening up the back of my dress to give me some breathing room. I leaned into Brady.

Then, I had a dream. I don’t remember it, but I had a dream.

I woke up to people talking to me. What? I heard them mumble. What? I asked louder. Something about water? Oh. I had a water bottle in my hand. I drank from it. My dress was open. I missed it all. Whose water was I drinking. Annas. Thanks Anna. Someone clearly came more prepared than we did!

So, apparently, this is what had happened. When I leaned into Brady, I was still holding myself up. Anna started undoing the back of my dress. My head had started to wobble back and Brady saw that my eyes were only half open. I was mumbling but not saying any real words. I never actually responded to any questions or said anything that I thought I did. I hear I was gone for about fifteen seconds. So yes, I woke up to someone taking off my clothes while I drank a strangers beverage. It was quite a debacle but Brady had lowered me down when I stopped holding myself up, and Anna was sooo sensitive and helpful! When I finally cleared up a bit, they told me I had fainted and explained the details. Within a couple of minutes, my friend Jamie who had arranged the whole event walked past and came to check on what had happened. She filled up the water bottle I was drinking from and joined the crowd of us cool kids on the ground. She offered to take me just a block or two over to the hospital, but I declined saying I knew I just needed to drink and eat something. Another woman who was there modelling her beautiful pregnant belly came by, gave me her iced tea, and scolded me for not packing snacks. On my third kid, I really had no excuse. I’m not sure how we forgot to pack snacks!!! Looking back, it was all my fault. I didn’t take good enough care of myself that day. What a bust 🙁

So I was helped to the bathroom and Jamie stood guard outside the washroom while Brady helped me out of my dress. From there, I felt a little better. I apologized all over the place and laughed my way out of the university at the mess I had caused. Such a silly avoidable mess.

It got considerably less silly the moment the van started to move. I was really to puke. Like, everywhere. It was awful. We drove to the nearest Tims and grabbed another iced tea. Sugar, right? I also ordered just a plain buttered bagel, but couldn’t stomach it. It tasted awful in my mouth and I really had to psych myself up to swallow the bites. We thought we’d be responsible from there, and headed to the walk in clinic.

Brady ran in ahead of me and saw the sign that promised a one hour wait. He asked at the front desk if my situation would put me at all near the top of the list or what we should do. The receptionist went to ask the doctor, and he instructed her to send us to the hospital. He said there was little he could do, and I’d get through emergency faster.

Apparently emerg didn’t feel that our situation warranted much attention. I don’t want to get too terribly worked up about it, but there was a waiting room packed full of people, and we were the absolute last people to be called. After three hours of waiting. When we were finally called, the man came and said he didn’t actually have a room, but when he did, he would just hook me up to a saline drip. I was pretty straight up with him and said I didn’t really have another couple of hours to wait for a room and sit attached to an iv. And he said that honestly, I didn’t need treatment. I just needed to drink water. I’ve had a hard time not kicking myself for waiting that whole time. I’ve been so angry that they didn’t say that when I first arrived. Why make me sit for three hours with NO food or drink before telling me to go home and eat and drink. BUT I’m choosing instead to take from that experience thankfulness for never once having to wait in the waiting room, and always being put in front of the other people. It was my turn to wait, and thats ok.

Of course, leaving wasn’t so easy. We drove down the little ramp thing from the parkade and our ticket kept glitching in the machine. We couldn’t exactly back up the whole way, so we were completely trapped. Brady ran back into the hospital and rooted around until he found a prepay machine, and THEN we could leave. Oh, and while he was trying to find that, the engine light dinged on. Because why wouldn’t it. It was SUCH a bust. 

And then the whole drive home, I was nauseous. Again. It was a big challenge. I’ve been so very blessed to have not suffered too much with nausea this pregnancy. I have a bit, and I’ve had a very unsettled stomach, but rarely have I felt the urge to vomit, and never once have I actually vomited in a pregnancy! It was an unbelievable hour ride home. I hate that feeling.

After keeping Jerilee stranded at our house until 1am, she finally got to go home. I kept Brady up for at least the next hour, trying to figure out how to help me feel a little better. I took my regular tummy pill before bed, and I drank some Gatorade, but it felt so strong on my tummy, even watered down. We tried crackers, but they tasted like dust. He made me toast but that just wouldn’t sit. It was sooo bad. Finally we just fell asleep.

So. Date night was a bust. My mom came out today and entertained the kids while they were up so I could rest. She did my dishes and checked my garden and took care of my food and drink needs. It was wonderful to be cared for, as I still feel like garbage. Not as bad as yesterday, obviously, but not great either. I called my doctors office to just follow up and leave a message, but the receptionist said there was a cancellation with my doctor tomorrow, so I’ll look forward to that. I’m anxious to hear my babys heart beating away, all strong and healthy. I’m pretty sure that alone will help me feel much, much better.

So, the end. That was our date night. Definitely not how I thought it would turn out, but I learned a lot. I think we all (pregnant or not) want to be invincible. Limitations suck! But we all have them. I would never look down on a pregnant woman who can’t stand out in the sun in a tight dress without having adequate food and water, so there is not reasonable way I should expect it of myself. Right? I’m pretty sure I’m right. But I wish I could do those things. 

I think my action plan is to start making record of what I eat and drink. I’ve never wanted to do that kind of thing, as I’m a little worried it would become obsessive. However, I think I often think I eat and especially drink enough, but when I really think about it, I don’t think I do! I think I need to be more diligent and come up with a plan. Good plan? Thoughts? 

Oh, and yes. Always pack snacks. NEVER leaves snacks at home, no matter how tight the dress is! Snacks, aka HEALTH come first!

Guys, I have this insane story to tell you about this evening, but am currently sooo sick that there is no way I can lay here and stare at this screen for a long period of time. For a quick layout of events, it went from a nice drive to our date night out, to roughly ten minutes of date night, to a walk in, to the hospital for three hours, to being locked in the parkade, to vehicle trouble, to being home after midnight. So it was somewhat eventful, yet not at all. There’s lots to tell, but I’m pretty finished and gonna call it a day. I’ll extrapolate on all of this tomorrow, probably in the day, since I cancelled all of tomorrows plans. Might be a little sleepy…

I hope you all had a non-hospital day!

Today, my emotions seemed to think it was a good day for crying. You know how its so easy to worry about things that are 1. completely out of your control, and 2. are waaay off in the distant future? I have spent chunks of my life wishing time away, or dreading the future, and since having my kids, I make a very conscious effort NOT to think those ways. Because its a huge waste of time and just puts me in a bad spot, in turn putting my family in a bad spot. But today, my brain went crazy and I went somewhere that I’m dreading.

Don’t laugh ok?

Next February, the 11th, to be exact, is the one year anniversary of Dekker’s eye surgery. In a sick twist of fate, that is also the day we will find out if Laela needs glasses. I know that we’ve done glasses before, and I know that its certainly not a death sentence, and I KNOW that little kids in glasses are sooo cute! But I don’t want that to happen 🙁 I know Laela’s eye are still developing, and they still have lots of time to do so before that appointment, but I know that at her first appointment, they weren’t where they should have been, and if they’re not where they should be in February, she will have to wear glasses. Not only that, but that day will be a big memory of Dekker’s surgery. Yes, it was a very successful surgery, and I’m completely happy we went through with it. But if I can be honest, in my mind and heart, the fear and anxiety that went on inside of me the day of Dekker’s surgery is on the same level as that of Laela’s delivery. They were both incredibly difficult and uncertain and flat out SCARY days for me. It breaks my heart to say it, but I HATED both of those days. I still wrestle with them. 

I know I sound crazy. Maybe I am. But I found myself really dwelling on that bloody date today. I tried to bring myself out of it, and focus on positives instead. I’m pregnant! I couldn’t be happier about that!! I adore my kids, and the world definitely needs more of them 🙂 And then of course, that threw me into fits of tears over how blessed I feel to be able to deliver and care for these children, and how undeserving we are to have them. Its really true. Through thick and thin, they are the very best kids. (Its ok, parents. We are all allowed to feel that way about our kids 🙂 ) 

So, as if it needs saying, today was incredibly emotionally charged. I was so happy to have a sane presence in the house when Brady got home. I felt bad texting him as he drove home, saying I was feeling emotional and needed company. It certainly isn’t the first time I’ve sent a text like that. Luckily, that usually means I’m grumpy, but today, it just meant I needed someone else at home to make things feel a bit more normal. Challenge accepted! He normalized our house right up, and even put the kids to bed while I made a quick trip to my parents to pick something up for tomorrow. 

And guess what. I didn’t even cry in my car!!!!! I’m not sure that qualifies as making today successful, but it counts for a little something anyway. I hope you all felt less crazy than I did today!

I heard from a few different people on Facebook that it was snowing today!!! Not specifically in my town, but in the city less than an hour away. Its August. Yes, I know I live in Canada, in the prairies, but snow in August just doesn’t seem fair. Its ok though. I found a way to celebrate the cold day.

Crocheting!!!

I really haven’t done too much crocheting in the last little while, but I’ve had a couple of inquiries about certain things and when I started looking around online, I got excited and so began the day of crocheting. This is what I made!!

Well, I made the baby girl and the cowl thing, but I’m talking about the cowl/toque. Sooo cute, right?? Truth be told, its supposed to be a bit bigger, but I still think its adorable. I was supposed to use a much bigger hook. I just opted for the smaller one because I usually like a tighter stitch for warmth. Anyway, I just thought it was completely adorable, and I already have tons of ideas on how to tweak it and make it just a little bit more customizable. All things considered, it felt like a win.

My only hold up now is that most of my yarn is the wrong weight. I need bulkier yarn for more of these, and I have a lot of worsted weight or finer. That stuff is great for little boots and baby toques and slouchy hats and lots of things that you don’t want too heavy, but I can’t wait to get out shopping for some nice bulky stuff!

So I spent a nice chunk of the afternoon in my bed, crocheting and watching YouTube videos while the kids napped and Brady mowed the grass. It was the exact kind of day that we all needed. I’m so glad to be back at crocheting, and making hats for the family. I didn’t make the boys hats last winter so they’re both due for something new. I can’t wait to make Dekkers!!!! It’ll have to be super cool. It’ll probably have a brim… Yay!

Firstly, I know I mentioned I was going to put up a photo post of Dekker’s birthday, but I forgot to steal the pictures from my mom today (oops!) so its gonna have to wait until another day. Instead, pictures of pickling will have to do.

My parents hit up the farmers market first thing in the morning and bought three 20 lbs bags of pickling cucumbers. They also picked up some extra dill, and hit up a grocery store for pickling salt. We met them at their place around 10:00am and started getting prepped. My mom and I had both sterilized our jars the night before, so that was one less thing to fuss over. Once lunch had come, we had only filled eight jars. It felt like we hadn’t accomplished anything, and I was a bit discouraged.

Until it was pointed out that the jars had their dill, garlic, and bay leaves already stuffed, and 2/3 bags of pickles were washed and ready. All the prep work was done! We just needed to fill the jars with the cucumbers, make the brine, and put it all together! So I gave up on being bummed out and destroyed our lunch of corn on the cob, mashed potatoes from our garden, and chicken fingers. Sooo good! No one else was thrilled with the corn so the rest came home with me. Yum!

The boys cleaned up lunch so mom and I could get going on the rest of the pickling. We stuffed jars and washed the last bag of cucumbers, and put two batched of brine on the stove. As soon as one batch was ready, we’d pour its contents into 7-10 jars, depending on the batch, and go again. It was a really good system. My mom said it so well the other day. She and I don’t like to fuss with complicated things, so we use an easy recipe and easy method. And lucky for us, it produces delicious pickles! I can’t wait!

All together, we came out with 56 jars!!! I can’t believe we have to wait six weeks to try them, but I’m willing. Sooo delicious, and I just can’t wait. Dekker loves pickles too, and I have no doubt Laela will enjoy the taste, or at least the novelty of them. We used them for teething with Dekker when he was a baby. He’s not a baby anymore. Yikes. When did that happen??

My parents had evening plans so we piled out around 5:00 and headed home. Dekker was very sad to leave and showed us that opinion for the rest of the night. It was sad, but I don’t blame him. It was a really fun last few days. Brady gifted me the evening and took care of the kids, as he had been doing all day already, so I could rest and not have to deal with the fatigue and attitudes. It was great. By the end of the evening, the whole family was cuddled in bed with me, Laela having her milk and Dekker in my arms, watching some YouTube videos. Yes, we were watching “movies” but it was comfy and quiet and non-confrontational. It was perfect.

Now, Brady is out picking up the supper we ordered to carry out. Sadly, our one town restaurant stopped serving my favorite thing on the menu 🙁 So I am sucking it up and having a BLT instead. Definitely a healthier option, but with considerably less cheese and sauce involved. Sad. The tub is running and the kids are sleeping on their way out relatively quiet gonna quiet down eventually. It was a great, full, tiring day. I can’t wait to not surface once tomorrow and to just take a load off from the fun and crazy. I plan to spend a lot of time watching Dekker play basketball. And thats it.

Picture show!

 

On that note, I think my food is close to being home and I am done waiting. Time to eat! Sleep tight, all!

How incredible was today?!?! Our today was awesome 😀 If you’ve somehow missed it, Dekker turned three whole years old yesterday, so we celebrated with my parents this evening. But first, I’ll do a quick recap of the rest of the day, and slightly before.

Last night, I got a call from the town inspector who we spoke to two years about building our deck. The guy was pretty unreasonable and just not our favorite person. Anyway, he called last night to ask if we ended up building our deck. I told him yes, to which he responded with a “Hmmm, I didn’t get a call to come inspect it…” He then informed me that he was going to drop by the next day to inspect it. I told him I wouldn’t be home, and he said that was fine. Unfortunately, I had no plans to be gone. So I called my mom and asked if I could come be at her place in order to totally avoid the inspector. She said yes. Yay!

So first thing in the morning, I fed the kids and packed the diaper bag, and took them over to my moms in their sweats/jammies. It was a bit cool today, so that was perfect. We had a great morning playing with grandma, and she even made Dekker a lunch of his favorite things: grilled cheese sandwiches and french fries. After we ate, we all headed back to my house, as we had planned a family birthday party in the evening.

The kids napped at a relatively normal time, and mom and I did the dishes and tidied up the dining room. Then we went outside and played in the garden a bit. We dug up the first carrots of the summer, which were still a big small but completely delicious! We brought in a bunch for supper. We saved the rest of the harvesting for the evening when the boys would be around.

Once everyone had arrived home for the evening, we cracked out the food and began the painfully easy process of preparing a supper that we knew Dekker would absolutely love. Mac and cheese. I’m not even kidding. With Deks not really wanting to sit at the table through meals, I knew he’d sit for macaroni. So we made that, as well as some yummy battered fish, and the garden carrots. Right before everything was ready, I remembered that weeks ago, Dekker had made one simple request for his birthday dinner. “Detter wants juice, please.” So juice he should have! I made a pitcher of powdered iced tea, since I had forgotten about it and hadn’t planned anything fancier. But I can assure you all, my Dekker Thomas LOVED his supper! He had two helpings of macaroni, ate most of his fish, and probably ate more carrots before supper than during, but it still counts. Two or three cups of juice down, too. He was so happy 🙂 It made me happy.

He loved his cake too, and did a great job of blowing out his candles too. He ate most of his piece of cake (all the parts with icing) and then was off to play toys. We gave him his gifts next. The big hit was the basketball hoop from Grandma and Grandpa. We set it up and he played and played and played for a solid 45 minutes. And guys, he is surprisingly good! He got a lot of practice in at Caity and Stef’s in Winnipeg, and it shows. He got lots of baskets, and we all celebrated each one. Literally, we all sat and watched him play the entire time. I’ll do a photo post tomorrow when I’m more organized 🙂 But seriously, he was sooo happy! In the years past, he would cry if too much attention was on him, but he had an absolute riot today.

Bedtime was really, really sad. Poor Dekker didn’t want today to end. But we did our best to have tons of tickles and laughing and running and bouncing along the way. When it was finally time, he prayed with Brady, and went down well. Us adults went outside to check the rest of the garden afterwards and were met with beautiful results. We dug up one potato plant and found 17 potatoes!!!!! The corn is still a week or two away, but its about 8′ tall, so its looking incredible. Also, tomorrow, my mom and I are pickling, and we found 7 really tall shoots (chutes?) of volunteer dill, so at least something in our pickles will come from our garden, even if its not the cucumbers. We pulled out the bean plants that are finished for the year, and made some plans to weed out the carrots to give them a bit more space to get a bit bigger. The garden looks pretty awesome. We’re excited for it to keep doing its thing and then to be able to eat from it!

My parents left after the garden dig, and we went back inside to check on the kids. That was a while ago. They’ve been down for over an hour, and it would appear neither is tired enough for bed. Laela is shuffling all around her crib, wreaking havoc and tearing the ties off of her bumper pads (thanks, girly) and Dekker will not stop talking!!! Basketball, puppies, cake, trucks, grandma and grandpa, and the list keeps going. I keep thinking “We should go in there and shut that down.” and maybe we will try again soon. But I LOVE that they’re both still so revved up on the day that they can’t sleep! Its adorable. They are adorable.

What an incredible day today has been 🙂 I hope all birthdays are like this one. Happy birthday party, Dekker.