300th Post!

Who knew I could write so much about my boring little life?


Tonight our church says good-bye to an amazing Pastor. It's going to be a sad day for me. I'm really happy for them, that they get to move down South and be with their kids, but a part of me is still selfish and wishes they could stay. I hugged him last night and cried like a baby. *sigh*

I'm also a little over-tired as my little one is cutting two bottom teeth at once. He hasn't been himself for the past 4 days. Poor little guy!

Vacation or Plot to lose the women for a week?

So a few months ago my Dad called me and asked me to arrange a vacation for my sisters, Mom, and all four babies. He recommended finding a rustic cabin in the Gulf Islands. Sounds fun! Well, we had a few logistic nightmares. We tried to arrange it around everyone's schedule... Nina works at White Spot, and my Mom works for her stamping friend. Megan and I were fairly wide open, and we tried to include sister-in-law Christa, but that woman is really busy getting ready for her little one and is booked! We had arranged to go Sept. 4-11 and just needed to find a place.. we had a facebook thread about 5 pages long talking in a circle about what kind of house we wanted to rent. Then my baby sister had a vacation plan fall apart that she had previously arranged. Plans were altered to make sure she could be included since she had already booked the time off. Megan found a really great looking place in Sooke. Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, ocean side, hot tub, beautiful fenced gardens, etc. We booked it and counted down the days.

Going on a vacation with 4 adults (one of whom couldn't stay the whole time and had to leave with Dad after 3 days - MOM!) and 4 babies isn't all relaxing and can be quite difficult at times. The boys were all VERY good and we had more laughter than tears, but there were some hard experiences. One involved a bad decision in letting the two older boys play in the cooled-down hot tub with life jackets with us. For some reason, we didn't take his diaper off and it fell apart. I know, it was silly... but you always lose brain cells on vacay right?

Turns out it was a big deal, next time we went to go in it was not appealing. We called the owner right away and she recommended we call the hot tub repair man. He was there within 3 hours. He never came to the door, but promptly went to work. He emptied the tub, cleaned the filter, and filled it back up. After about an hour and a half he came to the door with the news that the one bad decision we made would cost us about $200.

This is a sampling of how the conversation went from there:

Pool man: So I talked to the owner and she said I could go about getting payment one of two ways. Either you guys pay me cash now and we can settle it out or...

Me: What's option #2?

Pool man: Well...

Megan: I don't have cash. How about we just go through the owner and she can take it off our damage deposit?

Pool man: She told me I could ask you for the cash.

Me: Well, I have cash, but that's all the cash I have.. if I pay you now I won't have money left.

Pool man: Well, I have a family I need to take care of too.. I have to go buy the filter with money out of my own pocket.

(At this point I had conceded.. I hate conflict and this dude was getting on my nerves. I went downstairs to get money while my wise younger sister described to the Pool Man the proper way to run a business... etc.. give a quote, invoice.. She told him she was a plumber and many trades need to pay for supplies before doing the work. I was unaware of this conversation)

Me: Okay, well here's $200 (I'm in tears at this point)

Megan: Are you going to give us an invoice? We don't know you, we need proof that we actually paid you!!

Pool Man: Well, I don't have any paper.

Anyways, it was a mess and I screwed up by paying him. We called the owner and explained we felt mistreated and that he had used his MALE-ness to force us to pay. The next day the basement was flooded because he did something wrong when filling up the tub. The owner also made him come back and give back the cash and told him to apologize for how he treated us. He brought back my cash, but not once did the word "Sorry" come out of his mouth. Needless to say, the owner insists she will no longer be requiring his services.

That was the bad part.. the good parts were: rolling down the hill in the garden with the babies, video-taping Megan and Nina jumping into the ocean, going to the beach, having a crazy Nate and crazy Joe visit us, Visiting Beacon Hill Park and having the boys go nuts in the petting zoo, watching Jericho and Riley play, taking gorgeous pictures of the nature and the babies, having all in all a great time with my family.

I came home really tired, even though my babies were really good... I missed having Nate's help. Nina and Megan were great, but Megan has her own kids and Nina had a hard time getting used to being around babies all the time - even though she did a great job helping... and stayed up super late one night to cut up potatoes for hash browns, make a fruit salad, and put together stuff for an amazing omelette.

The pictures blew my mind, Jericho and Kai have never looked so cute! Hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

How did I get so lucky?

I get to hug and kiss these sweet boys anytime I want.

*sigh*

This isn't even all of them...

Malachi, Kai, Ty-Ty, His Royal Kai-ness...

This post is long overdue. It's one dedicated entirely to my baby, my Malachi. When we found out we were pregnant for the second time when Jericho was barely 6 months, it was a bit of a shock. It wasn't fun being pregnant (understatement of the century), but this little ball of happy energy has been a very welcome addition to our home and our family! I have never met a happier baby. He smiles and giggles all day, and eats up attention as if it was a lifeline.

This past Saturday night, we dedicated ourselves as parents to raise Malachi and to teach him about Jesus. We had Pastor Derrick pray for him and us as part of the church service and as I looked at him during that little 'ceremony' my most sincere hope was that he grows up to be a great man of God, and that he would have tremendous character and intergrity. That he would be well-respected, but also that he would show respect to everyone he meets.

Looking at him just brings me such joy... He's a very, very special little man and I'm glad God decided to surprise us with an awesome gift!

Just to let you all know what little things he does now - He loves his exersaucer, is still getting used to his Jolly Jumper, and this week he sat up!! Only for a few seconds, mind you... but he did it!

Here are some pics from the dedication - we did it the same time as Joe and Megan dedicated Deacon...

Mr. Sandman, don't bring me that dream....

Ever wonder why we dream certain things, and why certain people are in our dreams?? Last night I dreamt about the boy I had a crush on when I was 8. I haven't seen, spoken to, or thought of him in eons. Weird.

I would like to dream about sandy beaches and the sound of the ocean please.

UnFOURgettable....

For those who know my husband, the title will allow you to see that his sense of humour has actually rubbed off on my after four short years of marriage. Four years ago today was one of my FAVORITE days. I married Nate easily. What I mean is, I never had any qualms. Not once did I wonder if I had actually found the right guy. I practically bounced down the aisle and smiled like an idiot throughout the entire ceremony. It was a great day.. And now, four years later I can say I've had more good times than bad, more laughter than tears, more health than sickness.. and more understanding and compassion than I thought I was agreeing to.

I can't imagine my life without Nate, and I can't fathom it without my babies. I truly do love my life and am overjoyed that God picked me to be part of this little family.

Now enough with the mush...I have a naked baby in my lap who needs a diaper before a tiny calamity occurs to mar this day.

Another First!

Today my little man got his very first haircut. I was a little nervous how he would do, but overall he did pretty good. He was super curious about the scissors, but the stylist gave him some toys and he mostly just sat there. I took plenty of pictures... he looks like such a big boy!!










Afterwards, we had some dinner then headed over to my Mom and Dad's to pick some blueberries. My dad loves to Jericho's reaction to the overflowing bushes... he just goes at it and eats as many as he can get his hands on... even steals from everyone's buckets.

His favorite part was the tractor, which he kept trying to runaway to. It was a great way to end a day and now we have a tonne of berries.. I might try my hand at the blueberry pie to practice for the church picnic.

Searle Calamities

It seems when I married my husband, I married into a group of wonderful people who somehow have disaster following. It's almost comical how whenever we venture on some sort of Searle Family vacation - there's always at least one or two moments of sheer craziness. One case in point was the Hawaii 2007 excursion where we travelled in two separate vehicles to some touristy place and ended up losing each other for hours. There are many other instances I could mention, but it's too depressing.

This past weekend was no vacation. It was a trip made in an effort to say good-bye to a man I had only met twice, but loved instantly because of his hilarious sense of humour. It was not a great time, but not for the obvious reasons. The babies were mostly well-behaved safe for the moments of sheer exhaustion and the over-travel. We encountered some issues with our airline, where they would not allow us to sit altogether in one row because we had two infants. Something about safety, oxygen masks, etc. But it was a harrowing experience moving our entire lot of crap from row 3 to the back of the plane where we could spread out safely. It wasn't such a big deal we had to move, but the way we were treated by one stewardess in particular was fairly appalling. She basically told us not to get frustrated, but to just let our 4 month old sit somewhere else. I got this sinking feeling like maybe she wasn't a Mother?

When that lovely red-eye flight ended with all of us being fairly exhausted, we arrived to a very warm Ontario province (not used to the humidity according to my in-laws) to a rental car with no air conditioning. Let's just say it was nice and windy in the back for the babes.

Once we finally arrived at our destination (lots of traffic!!) we found that the hotel that had been lovingly selected by my SIL was gorgeous. She managed to finangle a great rate at a Sheraton and that was so great. We had a nap seeing as some of us had been up 30+ hours.

I could go on about the calamities, but I have to say once we saw Nate's uncle and we able to be together with family, it made all the difficulties fade away. Suddenly all the mini-disasters we had come across paled in comparison to this person we were able to be with. He asked to see Malachi at one point, and true to form the little guy smiled right at him.

I'm basically still so tired I could sleep from now until tomorrow afternoon, but it's not an option... but I would do it all over again just to be there for my family.

I just wish I could say I had met him a few more times and that maybe next time Murphy's Law will leave us alone on our next trip.

Emergency Trip

Our entire little family is leaving on a red eye flight this Thursday to say good-bye to a family member of Nate's. It's a very sad time, but we are glad to be able to all go together. Please pray for Nate's family at this time.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

That went by so fast! Just think, there were NO grandbabies yet on that day and now there's almost 5!

In other news, Malachi rolled over for the first time yesterday!!! I don't have my camera because Nate took it to Alaska, but I was quite proud. He's been trying for weeks, but could never quite roll over his arm.

36 hours til Nate comes home... Happy Canada Day all!

Heart Attack #42

This weekend was full of freak-out moments as Jericho decided he would choose to be clumsy. I know that sounds mean, but it's like he grew an invisible fifth limb that constantly got in the way. On Friday we went to see the steam train that was in town to celebrate B.C.'s 150th Anniversary. Nate LOVES trains and he was especially excited (and it was even MY idea - such a good wife!!), but we got there and it had already arrived. Soo sad! Watching it come in would have made Nate's YEAR. Anyways, we went around and took lots of pictures. We wanted to wait until it was going to leave, but it was so hot and babies were hungry. So we grabbed some free popcorn and were sitting on the grass eating it. But when I stood up with Jericho to get ready to go, he decided it would be a good idea to head in the OPPOSITE direction down the steep embankment, and head straight for the cement wall and sidewalk at the bottom. WHO IS THE KID!?! I freaked out and both my shoes went flying in an attempt to catch up with the runaway. Nate yelled at him to stop, and by either fear or providence - he fell to his knees inches away from the cement. I was shaking so bad. Why do kids do this to us?

The next freak out happened about a half hour after we dropped Nate off for his fishing trip. We arrived home and I explained to Jericho that he needed to be a good helper and listen to Mommy (surprisingly, this pep talk often works!). I took Malachi upstairs and had to go to the bathroom. Sometimes it takes awhile for Jer to make his way upstairs as well, due to all the fun shoes down there... but I asked him to please come up and I could hear his little sandals clumping on up. I went to stand on the landing and tell him he was being such a good boy for listening - when he looked up and promptly fell over backwards. I swore as I chased him down, feeling helpless as he tumbled down the last six laminate stairs. My poor boy. He cried, I cried, and we just cuddled together until he spotted his favorite book and he was fine. I was not. I felt so guilty for trying to encourage him, only for that look up at me to be his downfall. And so soon after Nate had left us.

And again, yesterday we were at my mom's just hanging out and cooling off when Jericho managed to injure himself at least three separate times. He has a scratch on his back from falling out of the wading pool.

If this is what toddlerhood is all about, I don't like it one bit. I hope my obituriary won't read, "Died of a heart attack after watching her son injure himself once again."

Argh.

PS- Happy 25th Birthday to my sister!! Megan has had a tiring few weeks, and it was nice she got to come out for lunch today with NO BABIES! Hope you had fun sweetie!!

PPS - I tried to upload pics, but blogger is being wonky... will try later.. remind me.

What is it with Drama?

Here's the part with the cute pictures:





Here's the part where I get something off my chest:

Drama. Why does it attract us so? I'm not talking about the kind of drama my youngest brother won the highest honours for at his high school - I'm talking about the kind that belongs in high school. You know - the she said, he said, can't believe they did that. Why is it like a car wreck or some other morbid fascination? I can't stand people being pitted against people. Argh.

Part of me just wants to smack people while the other part realizes it's far wiser to just stay out of it and hope it gets resolved. People need to talk to each other and deal with their issues. What bugs me the most is friendships being wrecked. Where is the love for goodness sakes?? Life is too short.

Whew, that felt better...

New Meaning to Monday Mornings

By 12:00 pm today I had the pleasure of being called by three separate telephone solicitors, as well as having a very nice JW ring my doorbell. What is WITH people!?!?

Things You Might Want to Know...

1. My second son is a great weight gainer. He's already 14 lbs, 2 oz and Jericho was stuck at 14 lbs, 4 oz when he was a month older. You can tell just by looking at Kai that he's bigger. He's got the chubby thighs with a few fat rolls - even his knees are fat. He's not nearly as big as Joanne's grandson, but he does fairly decent. I've transfered him into mostly 6 month clothing for now.

2. Jericho's height is about 32" and he towered over a 2 year old today.

3. Nate leaves next week for his Alaskan fishing trip and I still don't have plans.

4. I'm going to see Naturally 7 on Thursday with Lisa... Look them up on Youtube.

5. This morning we slept in until 9:30 and only woke up because my dad called and wanted to go on a picnic. He was supposed to go up to Pemberton and meet a newspaper reporter about the new land he bought up there for planting MORE cranberries. But he had a really sore back and didn't think he could sit in a car that long.. so instead he went for a walk with us. It was nice.

6. Yesterday morning we all slept in until 10 am and were almost late for an 11:00 am chiro appointment.

7. I'm 3 lbs away from being 40 lbs lighter than when I gave birth to Malachi. Not too shabby I say.

My son, the commercial

Second hand t-shirt from Value Village: $2
Borrowed glasses from Aunt Christa: at least $50
Gel required for tremendous mohawk: about $1 worth

Learning the meaning of "cool" - Priceless!

Will I Ever Be Mother of the Year?

I'd like to think my kids adore me, can't live without me, and will one day vote me Mother of the Year... but for now I guess I'll be content with playing with the obnoxious toys, reading the same books ad nauseaum, changing and cleaning poopy cloth diapers, feeding, etc. Maybe one day they'll look back and realize that it was in the little things that I showed them how much I enjoy being their Mother.

One of the only reality shows I can watch with my husband in the room is America's Got Talent. He hates everything else, mostly for the 'fake' drama and really wrecked lives most of them thrive on... anyways... We were watching some of the auditions last night and this guy came on and was so emotional. He was on to make his family, and especially his Mother, proud. He was amazing! He did opera, which is not usually my thing - but I got goosebumps when he hit some of those notes. I look forward to the day my sons want to make me proud. I'm proud already and they haven't even really started yet!

I don't know how many of my readers go to my church, but I think it's safe to assume a fair number of you do... I really enjoyed Pastor Derrick's Father's Day message. I think he's right when he said there are a number of selfish parents out there. Too many of us take out kids for granted. It won't be long before they're gone - it's so cliche, but he's right. I keep thinking I can't wait until Kai can play with Jericho and I can have more time to myself... Or I can't wait until Jericho can take care of Kai more and they can go outside together. But soon they won't want to cuddle with me as much or enjoy just sitting and reading. Soon they'll be on the go. I want to savour these moments, but it's hard not to be selfish sometimes.

Nate is currently at a funeral for a friend. We all wanted to go, but it just wasn't to be. It's one of those very sad stories of a girl who died before her time and who's life in the end didn't reflect the promise it had in years gone by. I'm sad for the whole situation, most of all - her parents. I don't think there is greater pain than that of a parent grieving a child. Any child. Doesn't matter what mistakes that child has made, a parent still grieves.

Anyways, my little sweetie is making his one hundredth request for the same book to be read once again... But just to let you all know that Deacon had his first sleep over at home last night (!) and Megan is at Childrens right now to see if he can stay home, or if he needs more monitoring. Thanks for all your prayers and to those who graciously provided meals, it was GREATLY appreciated!!

Praise God!

My nephew is breathing WITHOUT his ventilator!! He's been on it since Thursday. Doesn't this picture break your heart?

Baby Surgery

My beautiful nephew, Deacon, had surgery yesterday. He was only 11 days old, but he did well. He'll likely be in the hospital for another few weeks, but hopefully my sister can finally bring her baby home.

It's been difficult to blog about. Mostly because it's my sister's struggle and not my own. Also because I feel really lucky and I think I took my two healthy boys for granted. Deacon is going to be okay, but it's sad that Megan hasn't been able to hug and kiss him whenever she wanted. I feel helpless in that I can't go visit all the time nor can I help watch Riley as much as I want to. The one thing I have been able to do is organize meals. Quite a few people have volunteered and it's been fun delivering their dinners every night. I still wish I could do more...

My own boys are doing well and they finally seem to be over their colds. Kai's just over 13 lbs now and he's not even 3 months yet. Jericho was stuck at 14 lbs when he was 4 months.

Jericho makes me laugh all the time! He says and does the funniest things! He has this goofy smile where he squishes up his nose and it's adorable. Lately whenever I have to change Kai, Jericho will announce to whomever's listening that his little brother has "Poo!!". He also is big into collecting rocks and carrying them to bed, the toy box, recycling, etc. It's hilarious how many different places we'll randomly find rocks. He also likes "reading" his favorite book. It's this huge book with about 100 different animals. He can point out the camel, puppy, kitty, cheetah, platypus, raccoon, horse, sea horse, fly, elephant, tiger, butterfly, bear, deer, frog, hippo.... it goes on and on and on. It amazes me how quickly he memorizes them, and how his thirst for learning more continues every day.

My husband leaves for Alaska at the end of the month to go fishing with all my male relatives. Hopefully it will be fun and he'll catch me something yummy. I'll have the boys to myself from the Saturday to the Wednesday. Now I should think of something rocking awesome to do - like maybe a nice long walk on the dike?? Any fun ideas?

Malachi is crying quietly and I think he needs a cuddle!!

Baby Deacon

Isn't he CUTE!!!!