the crazy week before we left for Christmas

A crazy week full of getting organised to drive to Edmonton. Yikes.  We didn't do all that much this week, so there isn't much to report.  Sarah fell off her little perch today and onto her farm. Apparently it hurt. She was trying to get up onto the plastic tote with her megabloks in it without bothering to take the stuffed animals off...I wonder if the lesson was learned or whether it will take a few more falls?

Sarah figured out that she can put plastic cups on her hands - I call her Edward scissorcups... 

   

Sarah and her Daddy and Manni the bear who is really a favourite right now. Thanks Johnnie and Mary for such a lovely gift!

Sarah and her big morning hair. She's oohing and ahhing about the airplanes flying above our house. She's mad about them. 

Mommy's birthday week

Sarah's new thing is she likes to climb up on little perches, like the box with her mega blocks in it, and play. She hasn't fallen off yet - I'm sure it's only a matter of time. She also likes to crawl into little places and hang out. I have a feeling that the tent we got her for Christmas is going to be a big hit.

     

She discovered this week that pot lids make great music and she's been having a great time wandering around the kitchen while I'm making supper banging away on them.  Fine with me - whatever it takes to keep her from latching on to my legs which makes it impossible to cook.

I had a great birthday. It was a beautifully sunny and relatively warm day (-9). We unwrapped some presents before we got out of bed (Sarah was a big help with the tissue paper), and then we went down to the market at the Forks for a bit of a brunch. Sarah had a great time wandering around looking at everything in all the shop windows. In the afternoon I went for a run while Dale made my cake and Sarah had a nap.  We had Pad Thai for dinner and I was supposed to go and get a DVD...but I was too tired from the run so we just watched some TV and went to bed.  A quiet birthday, but fun.

  

On Sunday it was another nice day, so we took Sarah tobogganing at the lake near our house. She's definitely a thrill seeker (with a Dad who parachutes and a mom who loves to bungy jump I guess it's not too surprising) - she loves being spun around in the toboggan.  Dale took her down the little hill to the lake and out onto the ice.  There was a hockey ring set up nearby, so we thought we were ok...and then Dale put his foot through the ice and that was the end of that.

   

December

It was still cold this week. Now I know what -40 c with windchill feels like. Yuck. Needless to say, Sarah and I spent the week indoors. 

Sarah's been doing a lot of riding around on her puppy car in the kitchen and loving it.  She can make it go backwards by herself, but she's still struggling to get it to go forward - it takes a lot of concentration, as you can see from the picture. 

Sarah and I did some self portraits with the Santa Claus hat as well. 

 

She's also working on her Canadian Idol songs - hairbrushes make great microphones, don't they?

 

I worked at Chippawa on Saturday, so Dale got to be #1 for the day. Sarah refused her milk at afternoon snack, and dinner. Apparently she only wanted milk from me. They both came to visit me after dinner and she went home a happy kid. That's the first time I haven't been there for the night time routine. She was confused, but she did just fine.

Today (Sunday), we went to the Conservatory at Assiniboine Park. It's such a great tropical place to get out of the cold. Sarah did some very loud oohs and aahs at the Christmas tree lights, and the tropical plants. She loves to touch everything and she's getting much better at being gentle when asked. So far she hasn't tried to take a whole leaf home. :o)

Fort Whyte

It  has continued to be quite cold this week. Cold enough that I had to stop running because I can't take Sarah outside for 45 minutes in the stroller. So, needless to say it was a long week. Sarah's working hard on 4 molars (one's starting to pop through) so there was a lot of whining and crying going on, which makes the days longer. Dale didn't end up doing his check ride on Monday because the aircraft broke, so he's supposed to do it this Wednesday. Hopefully it will happen.

This week Sarah started to use the sign for 'more' a lot - mostly whenever you dangle her upside down. It's hilarious.

 

Dale bundled Sarah up on Saturday when I went to get my haircut and they went for a short walk around the block.  He got his first taste of trying to dress her in her snow suit. It's not a lot of fun for anyone.  Dale and Sarah had a bit of a lesson in finances this weekend as well. She thought the pink pig was something that sat on a shelf in her room...oh no - it's so much more. It's a piggy bank!

 

We went to Fort Whyte this Sunday to have our picture taken with Father Christmas outside by the winter bird feeding station. We saw a horse drawn cart and the sod house was open as well - and very warm inside because they had the wood stove going. It was a beautiful sunny day - and cold, definitely cold. :o) Sarah isn't very happy with her neck sock, especially when it's pulled up over her nose.  It's funny how her perspective changes. Last week she hated the snow suit and this week, she realises that the snowsuit keeps her nice and warm and she hates the neck sock.  She was very happy to have the mitts on because she got some snow down her glove on Saturday and she sure shrieked at that.   

snowsuit time

This week it snowed and it's stayed on the ground. Sarah and I went to buy her a second hand snowsuit (and got a great deal) and we've had it on her a couple of times.  She certainly doesn't like getting dressed up in, but once she's in it, she's fairly happy. I took her for a run on Friday for 45 minutes and she was nice and warm.

Sarah is doing a lot more walking and she trying running this week as well.  Running isn't really working for her yet, though...she is falling on her face a lot.  She's also tall enough now that she often bangs her head on the edge of the kitchen table. She gets such a confused look on her face when it happens. Poor thing. I think we're in a for a lot of head banging before she either grows more or learns not to do it anymore.  

Sarah has been trying to pull the duck that Dale and I gave her for her birthday. She's got the hang of it generally, but she doesn't know what to do when it falls over...so she shrieks until we fix it.

 

We had some friends over for dinner on Saturday.  Todd and Karen and their little guy, Tyler came over, as well as Yves and Amanda and Eric.  Sarah and Tyler had a bit of a playdate before everyone else arrived. Sarah wasn't so sure about sharing her house and her toys and first, but she warmed up to the idea pretty quickly.  Yves and Amanda came with gifts for Sarah - a white dog whom we've named Gimli and a book.  Lucky girl!

 

On Sunday it snowed for a good deal of the day. I went for a run in the snow during Sarah's afternoon nap (and Dale studied for his trip tomorrow).  Dale passed both of his exams last week and after he's done with his trip tomorrow he'll be finished with his instructor course! Yeah Dale! Sarah watched a bit of the Grey Cup with her Daddy. Ok, a very little bit - she lasted on the couch for less than a minute. She did a lot of walking and running instead.

 

I love my monkey

Sarah's pretty much mastered stairs this week - both up and down. She can also say her name - or an approximation of it. She calls herself Sah Sah.

Her tastes for different types of food has also changed. She continues to like eggs and she tried oysters this week and liked them and she also likes dahl and poppadoms.  Yeah.  Pretty soon she'll be eating the same things as us.  I haven't tried tomatoes yet, though. She always gets a puzzled look on her face when we offer her something new, she pauses and then she reaches for more. 

Speaking of more, I've been working really hard on the sign for more this week and tonight, when I was offering her poppadoms, I asked her if she wanted more, and then she did the sign for more! Yeah. It's only taken 7 months to get to that one. She's also saying 'all done' and making an approximation for the sign too. 

She continues to love her monkey very much and she likes to practice kissing and hugging both monkey and Fundy dog.  She's very much into kisses and hugs now. She'll give a hug and a kiss if you ask - and not with a hugely wet open mouth either (we went through that phase) but with the proper peck. It's very cute.

We went to the zoo on Saturday morning. It was a beautiful, sunny day. The cougars were full of beans and Sarah got a kick out of watching them pace back and forth. The yearling cougar did some hissing at her and started stalking as well.  Good thing there was a fence in between us. When we got back from the zoo, Sarah tried on her Daddy's gloves.  I think she may have a career in goal ahead of her. :o)

Remembrance Day

This week Dale began putting Sarah on his back for a ride every day when he gets back from work. She wasn't so sure about it at first, but now she really enjoys it.

We set up Sarah's little table and chair in the living room this week. She needs help to get up on the chair, but she's now mastered how to get off of it by herself. She has a smug self-satisfied look on her face when she's on the chair - such a big girl. We play some games while she's up there (mostly with her favourite toy right now - an empty Kleenex box with balls and little people and animals in it) and read some books.

Sarah now points at everything we're eating and drinking and shrieks - she wants some too. I've been letting her eat a bit of my apple every now and then. She loves them and I expect they feel good on her gums because, as usual, she's teething (she got another one this week - so that means she has 4 on top and still only 2 on the bottom). Dale did one better than me with the apple trick - he just gave her the whole thing to munch on. She was so thrilled.

We had some snow on Thursday night and along with that system came thundersnow. Look it up - it's a real phenomenon - rare, but real. It's like a summer thunderstorm, but it snows instead of raining. The lightning and thunder happened at 1145 pm. I was changing out of my uniform (I'd just arrived home from work) and I saw the lightning and then the thunder happened immediately afterwards - the storm was right over us and it made the house shake. Sarah screamed - the sonic boom from the thunder woke her up. I wonder if she's going to react that way next summer? She's very afraid of loud noises these days. I'm hoping it's just a phase - the mixer, coffee grinder, vacuum cleaner - everything loud, whether she's used to it or not, makes her shake with fear and cry.

We went shopping downtown on Saturday and then went for a walk in the wind in the afternoon. On Sunday we went to HMCS CHIPPAWA, where I work, for Remembrance Day. Sarah did very well, all things considered. We stayed near the door and ducked out whenever she started to make a noise. It was a very mild day, so ducking outside was easy to do. I think my bos'ns got a kick out of watching me doing 'ring around the rosie' with Sarah in my uniform. Did I tell you that she's very good at it now? She crouches down at the end right on cue. It's so cute.

Today we had a high of 13 degrees. We went to the zoo in the morning to see the monkeys, Australian birds, cheetahs and the Siberian tiger. This afternoon we went for a walk to Home Depot. Sarah's been getting faster on her feet these days - usually her feet go so fast that the rest of her body can't keep up, so she ends up falling. Today, on the cement floor of Home Depot, she landed face first and hit so hard it made her lip bleed. Poor thing. That didn't make her more cautious though...but she does have a fat lip.

A walk through the conservatory at Assiniboine Park

We're now into flurries and freezing rain this weekend. Not exactly snow yet, but we're probably not far off. Dale got the winter survival kits ready and into both cars, along with shovels. I still need to find a snowsuit for Sarah at the second hand store. I must get to that this week.
Sarah's been facinated with noses this week. She likes to grab her own or anyone's who gets near enough - she loves the nasally sound of someone talking with a plugged nose. Sometimes we do it together, which she finds hilarious. She's also perfected the art of grabbing one of my fingers (or Dale's), twirling around and walking off. Of course, our fingers are all twisted around so it's not very comfortable for us...
Sarah's favourite toy this week is the little piano that we borrowed from the toy lending library at the base. What a great idea - just as she's getting bored with a toy, we take it back and get another one.


We went for a walk at Assiniboine Park this morning - early. Due to the time change, we were up at 6 am. Whoever says that you get an extra hour of rest on the time change weekend doesn't have kids. We went into the conservatory at the park. Sarah loved it in there - it was warm, so she could take off her jacket and there was so much to see and touch. There were lots of ohhhs. She and Dale went for a walk along the path. She had to touch all the ferns as she went. Touching the banana flower while on Daddy's shoulders was the highlight of the morning, however. I though she was going to pull the whole banana tree down on top of them!

In the afternoon Sarah and Daddy had a bath in the jaccuzi tub in our bedroom. She learned to float on her back and all about buoyancy, thanks to her yellow duckie. Daddy would hold it under the water and then let go so that it pops up to the surface. Very exciting.
A small snack break - a princess, her mommy, and her pea.

Halloween

Well, Sarah didn't think much of her costume to start with.

There was a lot of general complaining, but as soon as she got in the John Deere wagon and got outside in the crisp night air (0 degrees), all was ok.

We even got a few oohs and aahs. We took her around to a few of the neighbours that we know and got her to bed. She seems to have yet another cold, but she's been sleeping like crazy since Sunday. It could be a reaction to her 1 year needles, I suppose.

Pilot Mound and Swan Lake

Today we went for a drive down to the South West of Winnipeg. Pilot Mound and Swan Lake are where my mom's grandparents were from, so we went to check the place out. Sundays are VERY quiet in small towns around here, so there wasn't a lot to see, but it was a beautiful, sunny day and the scenery was nice. Just to the West of Morden the prairie started to be less flat - it's called the Pembina Valley and it's beautiful even without any leaves on the trees. Sarah desperately needed sleep because we went out to dinner last night and she stayed up way past her bedtime so she got plenty of that today.

We went to see the mound at Pilot Mound (originally left from the glacier that went through here, and then a First Nations sacred site and burial ground) and then we went on to Swan Lake for a bit of a walk around town.

A few Sarah pictures

This week the sun shone for most of the time and it's starting to freeze every night. Sarah and I get out for a walk pretty much every day and during the walk we get to the swings. Got to get some swinging in while we still can! She's loves to read in the tub (notice the two bandaids on her arms from her 1 year shots) and bang on the glass at the back door when I got out to the garbage or compost bin.

She has developed quite an impish sense of humour (where on earth did she get that from? It must have skipped a generation.) Sarah also had her first babysitter experience on Thursday night. Dale was working late and I had to get to work, so I called on the Lindenwoods Babysitting Coop, which I recently joined. What a brilliant idea! We babysit each other's kids for points - no money changes hands. Sarah's first babysitter's name is Christine. Sarah woke up while I was at work, and instead of screaming bloody murder because she didn't know who Christine was, she let her walk her back to sleep. It took about a half hour, but it wasn't tramatic. Either she wasn't fully wake or she isn't as picky about who looks after her as I expected. Either way, it was a great experience. Christine is coming back this Thursday because Dale has a mess dinner to attend.

Before and After

While my (Anne's) parents were here visiting, my Dad (Bill), who doesn't like to sit around, got to work. First, he and Dale built the fence on one side of the yard and the gates at the side of the house, then he worked on the backyard (with Dale helping when he could). We built some raised beds and Bill moved 6 yards of dirt from the front to the raised beds in the back of the house in one day. Next, we bought a little shed, and some pavers and set them up. So, all that's left is to do all the planting in the spring, which is the fun part!

A quiet week after all the visitors

This weekend was very quiet. Dale was in the States on an instructor trip and the grandparents had all left. Sarah and I went to the zoo on Sunday morning. The zoo is all set up for their big Hallowe'en extravaganza so Sarah was ooing and ahing over all the extra stuff. We went to see the monkeys, as usual, and we went into the Australian exhibit to see the loorikeets and wallabies, which Sarah was very interested in.

Sarah has been doing quite a bit of walking during the past couple of days. She walked for her daddy when he got home last night, which made his day. She's also enjoying talking on the phone. She had a chat with her Grammie the other day and instead of pushing the phone away as she usually does, she stopped to listen and smiled.

Today was Sarah's visit with the pediatrician. She got her 1 year shots which she wasn't too pleased with but she survived and promptly went to sleep in the truck on the way to Costco.

Sarah's first birthday

We had Sarah's birthday party on Sunday so we could have it in the middle of the day. Supper time isn't Sarah's best time of the day...
She unwrapped gifts to start and did a great job of pulling the tissue paper out of bags. Aunty Kelly and Uncle Simon gave her a 50 dollar bill...which she didn't want to give up. Bummpa Arndt gave her a John Deere wagon which she thought was a lot of fun! Grammy and Grandaddy Gardam gave her things gradually over a few weeks - a sleeper (handmade), a whale, a duck that quacks... Mom and Dad went looking for a toboggan but it was too early in the season, even in Winnipeg, so she was given Mega Bloks, a zoo tractor with a trailer full of animals that it pulls behind, and an outfit.

When it came time to blow out the candle on her carrot cake with cream cheese icing cupcake, Daddy first put on a cat in the hat hat...not Sarah's idea of a good time. It may have had something to do with the fact that Daddy snapped the elastic a bit. Oops. After she recovered from that, Sarah really enjoyed looking at the lit candle and the singing. She didn't realise that she was supposed to eat the cupcake and the little bits that Mommy gave her she wasn't so sure about... Eventually when we all left her alone, she played around with it, got her fingers into it, a bit of icing on her lip and eventually the whole thing ended up on the floor. Fair enough. And that was the end of Sarah's party.

On her real birthday day, Sarah took 3 steps for mommy and a couple more for Nana and Bummpa. She hasn't taken many more since then, though.