The Core

September long weekend we were very excited to celebrate with Steven and Camille as they got married in Saskatoon. Camille and I grew up going to the same church, same high school, youth group...and she was a bridesmaid at our wedding. She is a wonderful friend. Someone that you just want to be around. She's fun, bubbly, sincerely cares for others, has an amazing ability to do more than you think is possible in a 24 hour period, loves her Saviour with a passion...the list could go on. We are very excited that she found such a great guy. A guy who is now officially a part of "The Core". This is a name that we started using the year that a College & Career group started up at DDCC (the year that Lindsay and I were living in Saskatoon between years at NBC). There were some nights when it was just the Glens, Andersons and Camille. That didn't stop us from having fun and digging into Ezekiel. Yep, it was tough slugging at times but interesting and different (way to be courageous Craig!) We dearly love this group of people and very much miss seeing them on a weekly basis.

The Stuffy Nose

I hope that Liam sleeps well tonight and doesn't cry out every time he tries to breathe through his stuffy nose. This happened last night. I think God might be trying to prepare me for life with a newborn again. Yikes. I could not for the life of me get him to just relax, open his mouth and breathe that way. God forbid I try to put some Vicks Vapour Rub under his nose. He's fine with that during the day (when he doesn't need it) but is extremely freaked about the whole thing at 3:00 in the morning.

Actually come to think of it...maybe it's not the vapour rub that he's freaked out about...maybe it's me. :) I can't look all that attractive and motherly at 3 am...hair matted, big pregnant bulge gutt pushing out of my PJs, bags under my eyes, a pasted on "I love you but really wish you would sleep...forever" look on my face that probably looks like it could quickly turn to the "stop crying or I will give you something to cry about" look. Oh never mind, he couldn't possibly be scared of that! :) It must be the strong vapour rub smell. That's what I will tell myself anyway. Ahh...being a mother. Why do I get the feeling that I will never completely understand how to do this.

Camping Adventures

A couple weeks ago we decided to borrow a bigger tent and head to Nipawin Regional Park for a Friday night of camping. When it's just been the two of us we've gone farther and for longer, but with Liam we thought we would start with baby steps just in case. As you can see he was a great helper and enjoyed cooking his supper, eating it outside and sleeping in the tent. That last one I mentioned was a little fun. I wasn't scared but with all the excitement it took him a while to go to sleep. Lindsay and I had had plans to relax by the fire and read but that didn't happen quite as planned. Once he was finally asleep we joined him and had a pretty good night. Something I would suggest to other pregnant women out there considering going camping and sleeping on the ground...bring a foamy. It wasn't terrible but I was definitely happy to sleep in our bed the next night. All in all it was a great time.

Friends and Summer

A couple weeks ago we helped our friend, Doug Kroeker celebrate his 30th birthday. We did this on a house boat from the regional park in Nipawin. We had a beautiful evening and lots of fun.

Swimming Lessons

Liam went into swimming lessons again this summer. He did a great job but we could tell that he is a year older and more aware of the "risks" of such activities. Last year he didn't think twice about sliding down the slide or jumping off the edge. Although the water didn't seem to scare him, this year he was a bit more timid. Unlike last year though, he did a great job with his floats. This whole experience made me very thankful that we decided to hold him back and do the same class he did last year. That means I got to be in the water with him. That was a nice bonus. He passed "Duck" again and will go onto "Seaturtle" next summer.

The little man in the raspberry patch

The other day Lindsay and I were moving things out of the spare room and into the garage in preparation for him and Dad painting the baby's room this weekend. Liam had been helping us move the little stuff but then disappeared for a while. I went around the garage and into the yard and quickly saw a little head poking out from behind the raspberry patch. I ran back inside and grabbed the camera and got two of these shots while he was still unaware of my presence. This kid could eat raspberries until he turned into one. We often just come outside, walk through the garden and have a snack. Gardening has been a lot of fun with Liam this year. He helped plant all 27 potato plants and is a lot more excited to eat potatoes because he's got a sense of ownership. Obviously in his mind he also owns the raspberry patch. :)

Good Spirit Bible Camp - our adventures

We had a great time at camp. With neither of us having experienced tons of camp as kids we were a little unsure as to what to expect. The staff did a great job with the kids and making us feel welcome and a part of the team. Liam, of course was a hit and Lindsay did a great job of speaking and connecting with the young teens (ages 13-15).

Belly Shots...for those of you brave enough to request this.

Here is Kidlet and I at 24 weeks. Sorry that it has taken me a while to get some belly pictures on here. My mom took these pictures while they were here this weekend. Hope you enjoy!

We're heading to camp

The three (four) of us are heading to Good Spirit Bible Camp tomorrow as Lindsay will be speaking to the teens there for their Young Teen camp (ages 13-15). This is the first time that Lindsay has done this so I'm sure that he would appreciate your prayers. It's a different age group than he is used to, now that he is working at NBC with the college and career age. We are really excited about the opportunity and hope the teens have a great week. If you're interested in checking out the camp, the website is http://www.gsbcamp.ca.

Bay Beach, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Bay Beach, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Bay Beach, Green Bay, Wisconsin

For those of you from Saskatoon, Bay Beach is like Kinsmen Park on steroids. :) It's a great park in Green Bay that's been around for years. I remember going when I was a little girl. The original owners sold it on the condition that the ticket prices must always stay low. So for 25 cents a ticket (most rides just take one ticket) there are hours of fun to be had. They have about 10 kiddie rides. This is the first time Liam has ever been on a ride by himself. He was into the idea but once the gate closed and the airplane started to move I could tell from the look on his face that this might not have been what he expected. As the plane circle and then started to move up a bit Liam's expression went from "what is this" to "get me out of here". Thankfully the crying soon subsided when he noticed that the little boy behind him was having a blast. After this first ride there was no turning back. I was so proud of him. I almost cried as he ran up to each ride, gave the ticket to the worker and excitedly found the car or boat he wanted to ride in. Our little man is growing up. It was so much fun watching him.

Butterfly Kisses

Carrying on a tradition from my family, Liam and I occasionally stop for a few butterfly kisses. I love this little man!

Hanging out with family

While in Wisconsin we were able to visit with our Uncle Tom & Aunt Becky (who we stayed with), our Opa & Oma (my mom's parents) and our Great Aunt Hilda (my Opa's sister).

Who needs a public pool when there's this?

We bought Liam a blow up pool while in WI and he had a blast keeping cool in Tom & Bec's backyard. Their dog, Riley joined in the fun and as you can see Liam and Daddy enjoyed some father/son time. My favorite shot here is Liam and Riley drinking from the sprinkler.

Madison, Wisconsin

After our trip to the zoo we drove to the University of Wisconsin, Madison campus. That's where our cousin Logan will be starting out this year as a freshmen. We checked out his dorm but as you can see with all the excitement of the zoo, Liam crashed on the way to the campus and napped while Daddy and Uncle Tom carried him from point A to point B around parts of the campus. It's an amazing campus. Madison is just one location of the U of W and it has approximately 60,000 students. We walked from Logan's dorm down by the lake and to the Union, a central meeting place for students and just anyone who wants to be there. We stopped into a really neat building there that is decorated in an old german style. From there we walked down state street and stopped in at State Street Brats (the sausage on a bun...not teenagers with attitude :) for supper. State street is where I took the picture of the capital building.

The Madison Zoo

While we were in Wisconsin we drove down to Madison (the capital) to go check out the zoo and see where our cousin Logan will be going to college. The zoo was great. The best part...besides being with family and seeing the cool animals...was that it was free! It was a really fun day. Liam's favorites were the giraffes, bears and a really friendly pelican.

Ice cream with friends

Here is Liam with some of his friends that live on campus. This was the night before we left for Wisconsin.

Kidlet #2

Here's the picture from the Ultrasound at approximately 19 weeks. We decided not to find out the gender of kidlet because we like surprises. Now at 21 weeks we are both healthy and doing well.

Family Vacation

Bright and early tomorrow (Wednesday) morning we will be taking off for a three day road trip to Wisconsin. We will be staying there around 10 days. If I can get to a computer we'll see about posting while we're gone. Hope you have a great couple weeks. Enjoy the sun!

He volunteered...really.

The vacuum cleaner used to scare Liam when he was younger but now he likes to "vacuum" and help mommy.

The look of excitement

This picture was taken back on Easter Sunday this year. We hid eggs for Liam and this year he was much more into it. I love that he captured the excitement on Liam's face when this picture was taken. He had just spotted the egg by the TV.