I Love You So...

I bought this book from a friend of mine and as soon as I read it to James I knew I loved it. In the beginning I think it was too long for him, but I knew if I kept at it one day he would fall in love with it like I did...and boy did he ever! I think at the peak of his love we read this book every day for 2 months! This was one the first books I realized he memorized and could finish the lines of every page. He used to look at the last picture of the book and say that it was Mommy and James sitting on a blanket...melted my heart for sure. 

About 6 or 7 months ago we moved on to new books and this one got tossed aside as a favorite as all books eventually do, but every once in awhile I pull it out and read it to him. He no longer remembers the lines like he used but still sits quietly through it. He really just loves being read to, doesn't matter what the book is. 

Last night I pulled it out to read and realized again just how much I love it and can't wait to read it to the new baby too when he or she gets here. I also decided to do what I had been meaning to do for months, photograph the pages and post it here for my memories sake.

Maybe years down the roads my kids will be reading this blog and will remember loving this book too.

This is truly a book from my children's lives that I know I want to remember forever, long after none of them likes it or want me to read it to them, and long after its gone on to some other family to enjoy. I will always remember many many many nights in a row reading it to James, lovingly snuggling with him while I was making precious memories of those times, even if he will never remember.

6/52 - A Portrait a Week

Had a different picture chosen for this week and then tonight at bedtime I took this picture and I just love it!

James reading one of his all-time favorite books (The Very Hungry Caterpillar)
to our real cat Coal and his own stuffed cat Kitty

"A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2013."

Such relief...in more ways than one

I woke up this morning in about half as much pain as I was in when I went to bed last night and was relieved to be able to walk down the stairs comfortably.

The pain is certainly not gone, but considerably better than it was! I would say that the acupressure/reflexology combo appointment I went to yesterday definitely helped and if the awful pain returns I know exactly what I will be doing to ease it. Also having a wonderful hubby to rub my feet definitely helped with the relief effort!

I am so glad it's Friday and am so looking forward to enjoying the long weekend with my two boys. Hoping to spend some time with friends, and of course Sunday family dinner here at our house this week. Some cleaning, organizing, laundry and puttering should round out the weekend just great. Not to mention my sleeping in plans for at least 2 of the mornings we are home! I love sleeping in!

Wish me luck that all goes well and the pain stays away and doesn't come back as Baby gets bigger and bigger.

Have a great weekend everyone :o)

Oh no...it's not good in my world today :o(

So I woke up today in more pain than I went to bed in. When I got up off the couch at 8:45pm last night to go to bed I was actually in tears from the pain shooting down my leg. I luckily had a great sleep though and when I woke up this morning was sad to discover that I could barely walk down the stairs. Thankfully Jim was still home and was able to help James go to the potty as bending over right now is next to impossible without that shooting pain happening.

I slowly and surely got ready for work, with a wonderful little man that was very helpful with both pulling me off the couch and getting his breakfast together. My Mom was again a wonderful help and offered to come here at 8 to pick up James and take him to the sitter's house for me. I went in to work a bit early to get stuff done knowing I wouldn't make it through the whole day.

My sister suggested I try accupressure/reflexology as lots of time massage can't help with sciatic nerve pain as it's not muscle related. I thought I would give it a shot so I called the lady she recommended and luckily she could get me in right away at 1:30 when I was done work for the day. I went for the appointment and although it did feel good, it in no way cured the problem. Within a few hours the pain was definitely still there and tonight I am feeling just as sore as I was last night. My hot water bottle and I are best friends and tonight I will have Jim rub my feet in the reflex spot she told me about that will hopefully relieve some of the pain. The only other hope at this point is that the baby decides to move off the spot that it is clearly sitting on that is causing the discomfort.

I have my doctor's appointment tomorrow and we'll see what he says and/or recommends that could help with the pain.

I really hope the pain subsides soon or as I said on FB this morning...the next 3.5 months is gonna be HELL!

Ouch ouch ouch

I'm talking about the sciatic pain I'm experiencing the past few days. It got considerably worse today and I think coupled with lack of sleep last night made for a miserable Mommy today. A positive spin on the day was that James again slept until almost 7 which was nice for me to get some extra rest time in bed before starting the painful day that was ahead of me. From the time I swung my legs over the side of the bed to get up I could feel a kind of pinching pain running down one side of my hip area.

I am so fortunate to have great coworkers who went out of their way to be helpful today so I could come home early and just relax. And also fortunate to my wonderful Mama who picked up James at the sitters so I didn't have to get back up again. And of course my amazing hubby who was both Mommy and Daddy tonight with taking care of dinner, bath, teeth and stories. I was able to play a game of Toopy & Binoo and read him a story while not leaving the couch so I feel like I at least got a bit of quality time today with little man.

I am really hoping that perhaps by resting today I will wake up tomorrow feeling much better. If not I think I may have to phone around and hope for the best that I can get in for a massage sometime soon.

Until next time..wish me good sleep vibes and wake up not in pain vibes. This pregnancy stuff, as amazing as it, does definitely have its negatives too! But in the end I have a handsome little boy upstairs in bed that reminds me every day that this amount of pain is so totally worth it all!

Meh...it's been a blah couple of days

Sunday started off great with some awesome family time and then my computer fritzed out a bit and went fuzzy and I was sad and worried, and it kind of ruined the rest of my weekend.

Then Monday hit and I was tired and crabby and just feeling really down. The day at work was busy though and luckily went by quickly. I even got to give James a big hug at lunchtime which made my day considerably better.

Then after lunch Ang sent me this adorable photo of James in his new 'Canucks' hat. He is often really strange when it comes to new things, like coats, boots and hats. He likes his favorites and will sometimes fight new things. But he loved this hat from Auntie Ra...as you can tell from his adorable smile below.

Monday night was fun with a great Bachelor visit with my friend Ashleigh. We say we are going to watch the show but usually end up gabbing much more instead. Home to bed early and into bed by 9:30, and couldn't believe it this morning when James slept STRAIGHT THROUGH THE NIGHT until 7am! It was an awesome start to the day and everything today just got better as the day went on.

Our computer was fixed by the coworker who sold it to us and thankfully she was able to solve the problem that we were having. Tonight consisted of watching my shows while re-uploading all sorts of programs and accounts to the computer. Let's hope that this error is one that was just a fluke and won't happen again!

Anyways, boring post tonight but at least it's something :)

3 years ago today...Torch Relay Memories

3 years ago today I was experiencing one of the best days of my entire life.

The Vancouver 2010 Olympics Torch Relay was coming to Powell River and I had been one of the lead organizers of the days events. For the two years before the Olympics I had been the Coordinator of the local PR Spirit of BC Committee. These committees were formed in BC communities in preparation for the leadup and excitement of the Olympics. About 1 year before the start of the Torch Relay in October 2008 the route was announced and Powell River was honoured to not only be part of it, but to have a coveted evening performance spot as well. The City of Powell River formed a task force that was comprised of the Spirit Committee, and many other local people including RCMP officers, performers, choreographers, and just generally great volunteers. My boss and Spirit Committee chair Joyce, coworker and friend Michele and my mom were just 3 of those that stood with me on this amazing team.

We worked together meeting monthly, weekly then finally daily, for a whole 14 months before the torch would arrive in Powell River. I was fortunate enough to also travel to Victoria when the Torch started in October 2009 and see the major celebration there, as well as performances in Duncan and Nanaimo. Watching those first few days of celebrations made me even more excited for the show I knew we were going to be putting on just a few short months later.

In the months leading up to our day we accomplished so many things as a task force. In getting the word out there about the days events, I was a weekly voice on the radio and face on Shaw TV and many people here in town knew who I was based on the huge publicity our torch relay celebration received. We applied for and were granted thousands of dollars towards our celebration, we chose and surprised our amazing torch bearer (the wonderful judo phenomenon Abby Lloyd) with the news she would carry our torch, and made huge decisions about fireworks, merchandise sales, bleachers, staffing, volunteers, traffic and parking logistics, etc.  Not a single thing wasn't discussed and I swear sometimes I felt like it was all in my head at one time. I was the busiest I had ever been in my work and also the happiest too. I was doing what I absolutely loved, planning events, and my time to pull it all off was almost here.

The morning of the torch's arrival in PR started early and with one last meeting with our traveling torch relay coordinator. The day was extremely exciting and I felt already proud of all that we had accomplished and couldn't wait to see how it all came together. When the torch arrived on the noon ferry a bunch of us were there waiting and honking horns, then as it started its route through our towns streets back to the Complex site we went to ensure set up was on track and on time. From the fireworks displays, to the travelling stage, to the food truck and volunteer tents, everything was coming together and it was only a matter of time before young Abby and her very excited parents arrived at the Complex to await the torch bearer bus that would take Abby to where she would take the final torch and run onto the stage to light the cauldron. I still often see Abby's proud Dad Jeff around town and he still to this day is happy and friendly and I know those days are ones he will never forget either.

Fast forward now to the start of the show. Nothing had prepared me for how awesome it would be. The hundreds of kids and adults singing our special song, the thousands of people in the crowds, the just barely holding off February weather and me, being surrounded by those I loved best in the world, watching a show that I had literally poured my heart and soul into for over a year. I was emotional at the thought of what we had all accomplished and knowing the huge part I had in that made me feel more proud of myself than I had ever been in my entire life to that point. Then the big moment came where Abby ran through the crowd and up to the cauldron to light the torch. I got so choked up emotionally and knew I was going to cry, but let myself be part of that moment and the tears flowed freely. Moments later our huge rooftop fireworks display began and people stood in absolute awe. When it was all over and the crowd cheered I remember thinking....I can't believe it's over...and wow, do my feet and hips ever hurt! Remember now, I was almost 30 weeks pregnant and my very active baby had been kicking his feet and loving every minute of the celebration like I had.

That night I fell into bed completely exhausted at around midnight with one more full day ahead of exciting torch relay celebrations. Joyce, Michele, Jim and I had decided to follow the torch along the peninsula and catch 3 more celebrations (Sechelt, Langdale Ferry Terminal and aboard a special torch relay ferry sailing). Five hours after I fell into bed I was awoken to my alarm and up I got to witness a part of the actual torch relay route, right outside my front door where one of my own neighbours and friends Jared ran the torch. Then we rushed to beat the torch onto the highway to ensure we would make the Saltery Bay ferry. We did in fact drive all the way to Vancouver and back in one day but it was so worth it to say I had witnessed 8 different torch relay celebrations.

It truly was one of the most special times and events in my whole life and definitely one that I know I will never forget. Below are a bunch of photos of those special days.

Me, Joyce and Michele in Victoria for the Torch Relay Start

Nanaimo Celebration

The Torch arrives in Powell River

Me and one of the mascots

Abby and I after the celebration

The rooftop fireworks

Michele and I with Joyce and her torch after her turn at running it. Wish I could have seen it but was at the celebration site watching the beginning of the show.

Early the next morning

Jared with the torch

At the Saltery Bay Ferry Terminal

VANOC crew on the ferry

Sechelt Celebration

Langdale Ferry Terminal

Waiting for the ferry to make the long trek home

24 Weeks - 6 Months

24 weeks

Due Date: May 22, 2013
Total weight loss/gain: + 8-10 pounds
Maternity clothes? Heck yes, went into them really early to be more comfortable, but just as last time, I wear a lot of my regular sweaters and tops because I clearly wear clothes way too big for me!
Stretch marks? Yes of course, but not sure how many are new or existing
Sleep? Still happening but definitely waking up more at night these days, but not because I have to pee, just because I'm awake
Best moment of this week: Teaching James that when baby comes we will be a family of 4. He lists us off on his fingers now...Mommy, Daddy, James, and baby!!
Miss anything? Easily getting up off the couch, lifting and carrying James (Jim gets upset when I do it now as he's almost 35 lbs), being able to go an hour without peeing (baby uses my bladder as a trampoline).
Movement? Not a lot, some days more than others but certainly not many big kicks or rolls yet
Food cravings? Pringles...and I was in to mini donuts but have decided it's time to stop eating them or I will gain a ton of weight! 
Anything making you queasy or sick? After breakfast most days I feel a bit queasy and if I eat too much at any one sitting I feel yucky too. Also if I wait too long between meals I feel sick too.
Have you started to show yet? Oh yes for sure, the belly is definitely growing daily
Gender: No idea...and hoping to keep it that way. Hopefully won't need anymore ultrasounds so I won't have to resist the urge to find out.
Baby's name: Nothing set in stone yet. Girls names pretty narrowed down but open to boy name suggestions.
Labor signs: No, and hoping to have no signs of any labor (or pain for that matter)
Belly button in or out: Still there but definitely getting shallower by the week
Wedding ring on or off: It's on during the day but off at home. It's been too big for many years so I'm careful with where I wear it.
Happy or moody most of the time: Generally pretty happy but I definitely have my crabby moods too.
Any mishaps due to pregnancy brain: Nothing that I can think of in the past month.
Similarities/Differences between pregnancies: I was way more sick last time and ate way worse foods last time. I can't really tell if I am bigger this time than last (maybe a comparison photo?) but I think this time I am way more tired! Could be the toddler running around or just the fact that my body is doing this for a second time! The best part so far though is that the heartburn is completely minimal and about a million times less than last time. Maybe this kid will come out completely bald and the old wives tale will be true. Guess we'll have to wait and see.
Looking forward to: being done work, enjoying the last few months with James...and meeting baby for the first time too of course!
Next doctor's appointment: Friday, February 8

5/52 - A Portrait a Week

As soon as I took this photo, I knew it would be my portrait of the week.

Even though I can't see either of their faces, to me this photo shows such a sense of love, pride and joy between a Daddy and his little man. Although I was far away in the sitting area I still managed to catch this awesome 'high five' moment. 

 

For Auntie Melony

Here is our handsome little man in his new Captain Heartbreaker PJ's!  

They are absolutely adorable and for some reason he was in a picture taking mood tonight so we got some cute ones. Thank you so much for your wonderful clothes for him. Will take a picture of the coat too as he's worn it every day this week and really likes it. Will get lots of use too before he out grows it. Love you!