I swear she's mine

I don't know why people don't believe me.
That's not true, I know exactly why people don't believe me.
I look 15 (16 at best). And then I go and put my hair in braids and don't wear make-up. Hello middle school, here I come. Actually most middle schoolers these days wear make-up and have better hairstyles.
The point I'm trying to make is, ZOE IS MY KID. At least twice in the last month I've had people look right at me and go "Whose kid is this?". And when I say mine, they laugh and say, "No, seriously."
If I keep getting this, I'm going to start screwing with people. It would probably be easier.

Okay, now that I got that off my chest, I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.
Our Easter consisted of three meals, spread over three days. Got to see lots of family, and Zoe had all of the attention and snuggles. And she had multiple outfits for every occasion of course.

Zoe has been a bit of a rink rat lately. Followed me to a competition in Lethbridge to cheer on all the competitors. And not even a week later, came with me to a test day as moral support for the skaters. Nothing makes you feel as good as a Zoe snuggle. Competition went over pretty well, a good number of the skaters brought home medals, and a personal best for lots of the athletes.

I'm in the middle of short break before spring season starts, and it has been quite nice. I've even had days where I don't have to leave the house, and I've thoroughly enjoyed them. 

Jason did a happy dance the other day. Zoe's babbles are now including "dada's", and she looked right at him and said just that. I'm not convinced she knows what it means... but she does enjoy the reaction she gets out of him when it happens.

The wee one is getting close to being mobile. She assumes the position to scoot, but then lunges forward and falls, getting stuck on her stomach. She'll get her arms moving from there to try and pull herself forward, but her legs stay stuck in the air. 

She cut her first tooth just over a week ago. And I'm sure there is another one on the way shortly, because the amount of drool is insane. You'd swear I sat her in a puddle some days, but it's one she creates herself.

That's about all the news I have for now.

Peace&Love

Chow

All day every day, wash the laundry

Zoe is over 6 months old! Time is still flying by.
She now sits by herself, and quite enjoys feeding herself crackers.
She is also a lot messier. A lot. Crumbs every where, and sticky everything. Jackman tries to help with crumbs but even he can't find them all.

Om-nom-nom

The good news is, she has my independent streak. The bad news is, I'm not allowed to hand her the food she drops, she wants to pick it up herself. Life gets really frustrating when you are six months old and can't find the food you dropped because you're sitting on it.

Skating is almost over for the winter season, so yay, break time for me. Get to spend a lot more time at home having Zoe snuggles, which I am looking forward to. Though I'm sure Zoe will miss spending Wednesday's out at the farm with Grandma, Papa, and Uncle Austin.

Having some play time together.

Jason has finished round two of schooling for his electrician apprenticeship, and did very well. Quite proud of him, and he is happy to be back at work.

Grandma Cindy went to the store for dog food the other day, and left with a whole new wardrobe for Zoe. Starting to think she needs to be supervised when she goes out shopping.

But then again Zoe does look pretty rockin' in her new hat and sunglasses. Thanks Grandma!

Only the cool babies can pull off this look.

Peace&Love

Chow

The Daily Happenings

Foster dog (Hunter) got adopted.
Which is great, because now my ears aren't assaulted every time I walk in the house.
A great dog, but not for us.

Grandma kisses

Zoe had a great day shopping with Grandma and Papa today. I'm totally jealous of the lucky duck.
Wish I could have gone shopping. She came home with a brand new outfit, and sadly, nothing for mommy.

Documented Proof that Papa has held Zoe. 

Well she is over 5 months old now, growing just the right amount, and learning lots everyday.

She has survived her first cold, though Grandma was extremely concerned. But the Little Bean is pretty tough.

Other than that not much has changed recently. Jason is still in school for the next little bit, and doing quite well. I'm still playing for a living, with some pretty adorable kids. Though I did have one kid talk to me in car noises for an entire session the other day. The weirder part was I understood what he was asking. Maybe I should start hanging out with adults more...

Nope, I'm good.

When something truly exciting happens I'll write a longer post, but for now I'll keep it short and sweet. 

And oh ya, more Zoe pictures.

Ready to run errands with Mom. Must be excited about Starbucks to.

Very focused on her 'tea time' exersaucer. Learnin' lots!

Peace&Love

Chow

Coffee is a food group right?

Well the good news is that Zoe is still sleeping through the night most nights.
Except for last night.
It seems that every time I need to be up early the next morning, Zoe decides she needs a midnight (or 4 am) snack.
And here I was all excited that Zoe went down at like 10 pm and I got to go to bed early. Of course I then couldn't fall asleep until midnight. And then woke up at 2 to go pee anyway.
Never, ever, get excited to go to bed and fall asleep, because it won't happen.
And I'm going to blame my lack of sleep for me getting dates confused to. I totally thought Zoe's 4 month shots were today, and I've thought that all week. I even listened to the recording when they called to remind me that her shots were coming up.
Turns out her shots were supposed to be tomorrow. Thankfully I got lucky and someone had cancelled so we got them done anyway. I guess it's better to be a day early than a day late.
And I'm so glad the shots are all done for another two months. I know she needs them, and that in reality, it doesn't hurt her for that long, but I'm still not happy about holding her still while someone pokes her with sharp needles.
But she is a very brave little pumpkin, and calmed down pretty fast, and was totally fine after a little snack. Now she is enjoying a lovely afternoon nap. The lucky duck.

Telling Mom something very important.

Totally passed out while playing. It's hard work.

In other news, the dogs are getting along pretty well for the most part. Jackman is turning into a little bit of dick though. He enjoys taking Hunter's (our foster dog's) bones and toys and hiding them on him. Jackman doesn't even eat the bones, just makes sure Hunter can't get them, and then gets mad if Hunter tries to get them back. Jackman gets put in time out a lot.

Jason is back in school for another little bit, and I'm back on the ice, doing all of the coaching. So life is good!

Peace&Love

Chow

Happy Holidays!

I happen to have some free time, so I will tell you all about how our happy little family is doing.

We are doing wonderfully.

Zoe's first Christmas was magical and fantastic. Well maybe not magical, because she had no idea anything was different, except there were more twinkly lights for her to look at.
Christmas eve was spent with the Thomson clan as per usual. It was super duper loud and Zoe, who thrives in chaos (not surprising), still managed to get her nap in. She wore Christmas dress #1, which I managed to get green fabric paint on before we'd even left the house. (I made a beauty of an 'ugly' Christmas sweater... and forgot to let it dry.) But oh well, it's just a dress and it we did get pictures of her in it before the paint 'incident'.

Christmas dress #1 before the paint incident.

Christmas day started in Olds at Jason's grandparents, a nice quiet start to the morning where we made his aunt jealous of how awesome Zoe is at sleeping. I may need to start lying to people. But Zoe was once again adored and loved, and briefly wore Christmas dress #2. Briefly because of the long drive and I needed the dress to be wearable for the evening.

Zoe with Jason's Parents in Christmas dress #2.

Christmas evening was out to Grandma Edna's, to spend time with cousin Izzy. And most of the evening was spent just wearing diapers (both Zoe and Izzy) since it was so warm in the house. Not that they complained, I'm sure the freedom was well enjoyed.

Zoe being relaxed, hanging with Grandma and Papa. 

Boxing day was then spent at my parents for a bit, because hey, let's spread Christmas out as long as possible. Though this one was very casual, and Zoe got to spend lots of time with her Aunty Meg (and Uncle Austin just patted Zoe on the head because she's such a good girl).

Zoe's first Christmas was quite a big one and oh man did she get spoiled. But that of course is expected and very appreciated. She is one lucky little lady.

And so ends Zoe's first Christmas. But with many firsts right around the corner, the next year is bound to be full of excitement and joy, and I'm sure the next few holiday seasons will get better and better as Zoe figures out what is going on.

Right now our little family is enjoying some down time. We currently have a foster dog (5 year old chocolate lab) who is keeping Jackman entertained. Jason is going back to school in January for his second year electrical. And soon I will be back on the ice with all the little kids, doing a lot of playing and a little teaching.

I should make an album of the billion tries it took for us to get a picture this good. We are not picture people.

Happy Holidays and best wishes for the new year to all of our friends and family!

Peace&Love

Chow

My Baby is the Best

Little Zoe is spoiling me. 

Don't worry she still has moments where she spits up all over herself, while peeing all over the change table. But for the most part she is wonderful. 

Especially when we are out and about. I really don't care how fussy she is at home (I'm lying I do care, I like sleep), but when I need to go get groceries, or help Kiersty pick out skates, Zoe will sleep right through. Hallelujah.

Sorry to all those who look forward to these posts, I didn't realize until recently how long it had been. I do have a pretty good excuse though as to why I've been so busy. :)

Soon I will have good pictures to post. I finally found my camera charger, which I have been looking for since she was born. I do have a mass of pictures on my phone, but it's just not the same as 'real' camera pictures.

In case you're wondering Zoe, Jason and I are doing quite well. Jackman is also adjusting well. For the most part he sniffs her occasionally then goes and gets his toy. He really doesn't see any use for her so isn't to concerned. And Zoe is used to all of Jack's barking which she sleeps through. The only time she doesn't sleep is when it's quiet. 

Because of that we do have a fan going at night, that I now have pointed at the wall. It was nice during the last month, but now it's too cold to have a fan blowing I think. I will have to find a new source of background noise soon.

Zoe has been more than spoiled by everyone, which we are grateful for. She has many adorable outfits that she outgrowing as I write this.

She has already spent a good portion of her time at the rink with me, but apparently not enough time. I have gone to the rink twice without her, and her presence has been requested. Everyone needs their baby cuddles and I don't blame them.

So yes, I'm back to work. I guess it's work, I've never really considered coaching work. It can be exhausting, but it's also a lot of fun. I get to build towers out of blocks and then let kids knock them down. Sometimes kids chase me around with magic wands and turn me into a frog. And I get paid for it. Be jealous.

It was super weird being away from Zoe for the hour or two I was out of the house. I had that nagging feeling I'd forgotten something. And it was weird just being on the ice again. I was pregnant for most of last season, so being on the ice not pregnant felt oddly freeing. I could move around and not be ridiculously concerned about tripping over my own feet. And I almost did fall on my arse the first day back. I wasn't doing anything, just standing, and my skate decided to slip out from under me, and I had to use the boards to catch myself. Clearly I don't have my balance back yet.

Other than that there's not much to talk about. It's regular life, but with a baby. So that means it's not regular, and everything revolves around her and whether or not she feels like sleeping, eating, or making a 'pants monster' (my code name for a messy diaper... I don't know where it came from). She is learning how to be awake a little more each day and isn't really sure how she feels about it yet. Doesn't know what to do with herself. 

And speaking of herself, what you've all been waiting for... BABY PICTURES!

Helping Mommy unwrap a present.

Cuddles with Daddy... Awwwwwweeeee

Peace&Love

Chow

37 Weeks

37 Weeks. Am I allowed to panic? I feel like I need to panic a little bit.
Just kidding, it's all good.
I can't believe how fast this has gone by. I thought nine (ish) months would take it's sweet time, but apparently I was wrong.

On the prepared front, the nursery is kind of coming together. By that I mean we have a crib, some sleepers and onesies (all washed and sorted by size), a few diapers, and some wipes. Pretty much all new babies need right? I do plan on having it painted before the wee one gets here, and I have the paint and everything I need, now I just need to find some time to do it. Did I say time? I meant ambition, apparently the nesting instinct isn't as strong with me.

Look at the cute little baby booties I made!

We also have a stroller, car seat, and play pen thanks to my wonderful relatives. These items are all set up around the house, hopefully so Jackman will get used to them. So far he doesn't seem to care.

Today marks one week of my being temporarily unemployed. Last Friday was my last day at the paper. I figure once baby comes, coaching should keep me busy enough. And with that said, this will be the first time since I started coaching, about 6/7 years ago, that I will only have one job. I think my time will still be quite occupied though.

In the meantime I have the month of August off to get as ready as I can for the wee one. Today I found some motivation, and managed to make a couple casseroles to freeze. And by a couple I mean a whole sh*t tonne of Chicken Divan casserole. And one Ham & Scalloped potato casserole just to mix things up.

I'm not the best cook as it is (aka easily distracted), so I figured making some meals and freezing them beforehand would be a really good idea. I think I should have enough to get me by for a while now.



I'm looking out my window as I write this and it's really hard not to notice the grossly dark clouds once again rolling into town. Thankfully my neighbourhood was one of the lucky ones yesterday when the storms rolled through. No damage here, and hopefully the clouds coming in bring nothing more than rain. During the first storm yesterday the noise of hail in other parts of town was loud enough to make it sound like the highway was going through my backyard and that was a little unsettling. But I am also glad I didn't wash my car yesterday morning like I planned on, because that would have been a waste of my time.

Well that's about all the news to share for now. But I won't let this end without a few belly pics, since they are very requested.

Peace&Love

Chow

(PS - Hugs and thoughts goes out to everyone heavily affected by the hail, wishing you all a speedy recovery.)