off to Toronto!

This weekend I'm off to Toronto for my sister's baby shower and to visit with my BFF Morgan. Dancing girl emoji, do your thing!

I'm so so excited! My parents got me a train ticket for Christmas, so I'll be taking the train into Toronto, visiting with one of my oldest friends for lunch, then heading to Niagara for the baby shower. After the shower I'm spending the night with Morgan downtown and eating our hearts our all day Monday. It's going to be a festival of gourmet junk food. Basically my dream come true! Bradford will have the kids for the weekend, and I swear if I hear another person state in utter shock "how will he handle all three for the whole weekend!?" I might go nuts. He's their father, and a darn good one. He'll be aight ;)

While I'm on the train I'll be reading up a storm, BECAUSE I CAN. Glory. I'm finishing up All The Light We Cannot See and it's so heavy but intensely beautiful. I think I'll finish the book before my return trip home, so I just downloaded Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling, for something completely opposite and light! It looks like a witty, fun read. I'll let you know how it is!

I'll be sharing loads on Instagram this weekend, so if you're up for food pics, me kissing pregnant bellies, and the like, stay tuned ;)

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Here are some of my favourite reads from the week, to kick off your weekend right! My mom's arriving late tonight and staying through Sunday. I can't wait to have the extra help around the house and her company. What are your weekend plans? Hope it involves enjoying the weather! xo

• after the annoying guilt-ridden post pleading with Moms to never use their iPhone's in front of their children that recently circulated the Interwebs, this post defending and validating moms using technology and having an online presence was a JOY to read, and so realistic for our day.
• This week it seems mental illness and the Church has been a hot topic. Famously, megachurch pastor Rick Warren lost his son to depression, and locally our denomination lost the wife of a fellow church planter. After our tears are dried (which will take a very long time), it's important the church evaluates how we approach mental illness and depression. Ed Stetzer has some brilliant insights I support in the wake of these losses.
• Gender reveal parties, have you heard of 'em? It's 2013, of course you have. I've been to one and it was super fun, though the couple already knew the sex (only the guests didn't) so it wasn't as much a surprise as this party and these pictures, which have me enraptured. I can't get over their faces! Sidenote: I could never do it! I need time to process the gender, so I'd be most comfortable doing that quietly with Brad before telling the world. But it does look fun :)

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• Oli is in a bit of a whiny stage. Teething, probably, or his nagging cold. But either way, this blog almost made me pee my pants in laughter. And also that awesome feeling that someone else ACTUALLY GETS IT (everything you're experiencing).
• Make your own chips? I'm in! I already make my own tortilla chips (the best with guacamole!) but for every day chips, I love this idea of using root vegetables.
• Shrimp and grits cocktail!? Oh my. I need to make this, minus the cheese.

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• Why is Maggie Smith so fabulous? Let us count the ways. But I love this article's take on how she wasn't/isn't afraid to let herself age. I love that spicy Dowager Countess.
• This post got a ton of hits but not as many comments as I was hoping for. See, I don't just want you to know what my kids call our adults friends, I want to know what YOUR kids call other adults. Don't just read, let me know!
• I'm totally copying this entire project, from the chicken wire to the clothes pins to ordering my Instagram prints from Origrami. AshleyAnn, you never steer me wrong.

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What do your kids call other adults?

When my sister and I were young, we called adults we didn't know Mr (last name) and Mrs (last name) or by their first name if that's how we were introduced. Growing up it seemed like my parents had A LOT of friends. We were always doing something with their large group of friends and all of their kids on weekends and for holidays. It was so fun! With good friends of our parents it was Auntie ____ and Uncle ____ or by their first names. I don't really know why or how we decided which adults would go by first names and which would get Auntie and Uncle, but I never remember not knowing what to call someone. My parents probably taught us from a young age so we never had to think about it.

So I'm curious, what do your kids call adults? What did you call adults when you were young?

I've noticed the trend in Christian circles for kids to call adults Miss (first name) or Mr (first name), but I'm not the biggest fan. Maybe because it seems so foreign to me - I didn't grow up around that at all. Or maybe because we always called our ballet teachers Miss (first name), so that's where my mind always goes when I hear it, ha! But ultimately I think it's a bit too formal for me, especially with children of good friends, who I view in some ways as extended family. The first family I spent real time with as a young married girl was one we worked when we were in campus ministry. They're still dear friends and I love their kids something fierce. They call Brad and I, Brad and Emily, (or more precisely Ema-weee) and that's just the way I like it :)

So far, our kids call every friend of ours by their first name. I love hearing Lily's renditions of their actual names. Morgan is Morgie. Noémie is No-mee. I've called Jamie Auntie Jamie since before either of us had kids as a nick name because she is SO amazing with kids, and back then I knew next to nothing, but it's kind of stuck so she gets either Auntie Jamie or Jamie. And she's been calling our friend Phillippe, Foop as of late. But sometimes he gets Uncle Phil or Phil too (not sure why the Uncle got thrown in there, but it just sort of stuck. Maybe since they see him several times a week?)

Anyway, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

keeping memories for our children: family photos

One of many things the blogosphere has inspired me to do is take more pictures. I hear this phrase time and time again and it's always more and more true to my heart:

Mothers are the memory keepers for their children.

It's one of the reasons I blog. I'd never remember when Lily cut her first tooth if I didn't write it down, and in 2012, writing something on paper doesn't count for much - papers get lost (by me, often!), they can be ruined, pen can run and pencil can fade. Writing something online keeps it safe, I reason. And pictures are a great example of that. Brad and I have been terrible at printing photos. We just don't get around to it, and when we do, they sit in the envelope because finding the perfect frame and hanging it never seem to be at the top of the priority list. Ask us about our wedding photos. Sigh.

So, family year books have been our only collection of printed pictures to date. I just sent off an order for four identical Morrice Family 2012 year books (it was buy 1, get 1, free @ My Publisher and we make one for ourselves and each set of grandparents), but that only half solves my problem. The other half is actually taking family pictures. Right. We have oodles of pictures of Lily and Oli, some of the kids and I, and practically none of the four of us together.

One of my resolutions for 2013 (there's a post on those coming up!) is to take more FAMILY pictures. I don't need encouragement to take pictures of the kids - we have so many of them - but we are so lacking in pictures of the four of us. Mothers are the memory keepers for their children, and I doubt my kids will be satisfied with thousands of pictures of just them. I want to record our family's history, not just theirs.

My girl Morgan came over the other week to take some pictures of us four and I cherish the work she did. She is just beginning to take photography seriously and I think she did a fabulous job! You'd never know we were her second photo shoot ever!! Moogie, thank you a hundred thank-yous :)

I'm vowing to not wait a year before the four of us get in front of a camera again! I'd love to make this a monthly affair, but would be happy with every few months. I love that these pictures are in a safe place where they can't get lost or destroyed, and we also added them to our 2012 year book for good measure :) Maybe I'll even print a few on canvas?

/// How often do you take family photos?

merry merry merry eCard

Every year we get fewer and fewer holiday cards in the mail. I am certain we're not loosing friends (right? buddies? affirm?) which only means one thing: people aren't sending holiday cards by mail as much anymore. I do love receiving cards and family photos in the month of December though! Love it! Thanks to all the lovely people who took the time to send our family a card or photo to wish us a Happy Christmas. We proudly display your beautiful faces and think of you all the more because your family is visible to us thanks to your thoughtful card.

But to all of you who didn't - no big. I get it. We didn't send one either. We did a mass e-Card and added text (thanks, picmonkey.com) to a picture that my dear friend Morgan took of our family. A few days ago the weather in Montreal was nothing short of perfection. Big snowflakes were slowly fluttering down, there was a lovely dusting of white on all the city grime and heritage buildings on our street, and the air was mild enough for us to be on our balcony without our parkas. Morgan rushed over and took our first family photo in over 13 months.

Remember our last one? I love this years! Thanks Morgan! I'll be posting a few more from her shoot of our fam soon, but for now enjoy our eCard :) Happy Christmas! Joyeux Noel!

annual family year books

Quick holiday gift tip slash family tradition tip slash good idea coming your way! (and FYI, I'm not doing a Monday giveaway + review this week or until after Christmas since most of the shops are overwhelmed with holiday orders). Last year we started a great tradition. We also were able to backtrack and include the year before too, making it officially a tradition that our family has held every since we were a family. Since Lily was in my belly! A family year book.

though, this family is not mine :) source here.

 Like highschool, but wayyyyyyyyyy better! Because it's ALL people you love, all pictures you love, and all memories you actually *want* to remember. Ahem.

I really recommend My Publisher, it's the site I've used in the past and have only good things to say about them. Though it's a US company and shipping + duty can get pricey, I've scoured the web for other companies and none come close in price or quality. Some appear less expensive, but then you take into account the HUGE discounts My Publisher offers, and they're not. Some (Canadian companies) have less shipping fees and no duty, but their base price is more than double that of My Publisher). In the end, you can't beat it. And right now they have a BUY ONE GET ONE FREE sale on photo books. Making them ze BEST gift for family members. See, we make a family yearbook every year, then order 3 more for every set of grandparents the kids have been blessed with. Meaning, we pay for 2 photo books and get 4. Perfecto.

I'm having a blast looking through the pictures we've taken over 2012. It's SO hard to choose which ones to add and this year since we have an extra family member, it's even harder to fit them all into the pages. After 20 pages included in the base price you pay $1 per extra page, which really adds up when you're taking pictures as often as I am. But so worth it. In fact, these are the only printed pictures we have IN OUR HOME. Including wedding pics! It's a digital world, right? But every family needs photo albums when they're old and grey to look back on, I reason :)

Other than fitting in all of our pics it's been hard to make sure each family member gets equal representation. For example, there are way more pictures of me and the kids than of Brad and the kids since I'm with them all day. And my parents are a bit camera-happy so when they're with the kids they snap hundreds, so we have more of them than of the other grandparents (and we probably see them two or so more times per year than Brad's parents since they're a bit more mobile). And who else to add? We lived with Ellen and Neal and their son Everett for two weeks in Louisville and after that they felt like family, so we had to add a picture of them! Plus Morgan and Sam who are resident Auntie and Uncle to Lily and Oli. It's hard getting everyone in, but a worthy goal, for sure.

How do you capture memories? 

Do you do family year books/ photo albums? 

In such a digital age, do you still even print pictures? (we don't!)

asking a Mom on a date [meeting mom friends and organizing a mom's group]

I've always held the opinion that the guy should be the one to ask the girl out (and basically make the first moves in every regard). It may sound old fashioned (and that can be a post for another day), but common', what girl doesn't love being pursued? It's lovely! So colour me clueless when I started having to "make the first moves" in the world of  play dates. It literally felt and still feels like I'm asking each mother and her child that I meet ON A DATE. And I suppose I am, in a way. Most recently, I started a weekly group play date at my house made up entirely of women I didn't know AT ALL. Here's my experience on this very potentially awkward social situation.

I assumed (correctly) a few things before being so brash as to walk over to a mom at the park and start up a conversation.

• Most moms in my city have a full year off work (love maternity leave!), so if the baby they're with is under one year old, that mom is very available.
• Said available mom is probably used to a much more structured day (the work day), and staying at home with a baby all day may feel isolating and lonely.
• Most women (really, most people) in the city don't have a huge social network. I have talked to a lot of my neighbours about this, and my common experience is that most of them have a few close friends (and maybe family) in the city and that's it. 
• The majority of adult women in my city opt out of having children altogether, so if I see a mom with a child, chances are she doesn't have a hundred other friends in the same boat.
• People love meeting peers in the same life stage. It's natural. We gravitate to those we understand. Moms get moms. If you see a mom, you automatically have something in common with her.

So at parks, that's what I do. Based on those assumptions (which have never been wrong), I know walking up to a mom and saying "Hi" and going from there isn't as awkward as it feels. But it does feel oh so awkward. But just push past that. You need mom friends in your neighbourhood and your kids need kiddie friends in your neighbourhood. Press on!

It usually goes something like this:

Hi/ Salut! 

See what language she replies in and go from there. For the sake of everyone here, I'll pretend said park mama is Anglophone. 

Your child is adorable! How old is he/she?

And then the rest ... just ... happens! Like I said, moms have SO much in common! I met Marie, a francophone first time mom at a park nearby us the other week and even with the language barrier we had a lovely conversation. In my broken French we asked about one another's kids, fluttered in and out of conversation as my children ran away and returned (her child is an infant), discussed the glories of congé maternité (maternity leave) and city living, and made plans for her to join my Mom's Group.

Now, about my Mom's Group, because many of you have inquired about how to start your own. Tomorrow is the 2nd week I've hosted it and I LOVE IT. Since I'm the only mom with two children and my apartment is fairly settled (some of these moms are new in town), it's the location indefinitely, which is perfect for me. I love hosting people, and it's easier than bundling two kids in snowsuits and walking somewhere.

It's really casual. It's 8:30am-10:30am and ends right when most of our kids go down for a nap. SO perfect. The moms arrive, we guzzle coffee, and someone brings a treat to share. Last week one mom brought fresh croissants (oh, Montreal) and tomorrow I'm serving the cinnamon buns from today. We eat and drink and our children play and socialize and wander. We talk about anything, which is easy because by virtue of the fact that we're all city-dwelling mothers living within 10 city blocks of one another, chances are we all have a great deal in common.

So other than the park, how did I meet these women?

We all joked about how impossible it can be to meet other moms organically. Sure, the park scenario can work (as I've said), but oftentimes the park is empty depending on the time of day you go. On top of that, with winter coming, the parks are more vacant than ever and the swings are even gone (Lily would write the city a feisty letter if disapproval if she could). One afternoon I sat in Starbucks and watched several moms with strollers pass by through the window. I was literally PRAYING one would come in for a coffee, but none did. Just because there are moms out there, doesn't mean it's easy or organic to become friends.

But it's the 21st century and if adults can meet their spouses online, we can sure plan a play group there! The website meetup.com is an incredible resource to meet people when you share an affinity and live in the same city. I heard about a Montreal Parents Group from a local cloth diaper retailer and checked it out. I attended one mom's Meet Up that was near me and met 4 great women. Some have continued in my Mom's Group, while other's schedules have changes and they couldn't join. Check that website out and see if there is anything for your city. If there's not, start one!

From there I also learned about an online group called the Plateau Play Group (my neighbourhood!) where parents discuss in a forum but it's not actually a play group. From the Plateau Play Group someone (genius woman) suggested we make a Facebook group, which immediately had over 100 members. Now it was my turn to step out. I made an event for a weekly mom's group, and the rest is history! I had all the moms as Facebook friends before giving them my address and felt like I knew what I was getting into so it wasn't scary at all.

I hear a lot of women say they want community with other moms in their neighbourhood. I know a lot of women (myself included) who like to stay in their comfort zone. For me, it was church friends. I had so many and most of them had children, so why meet new people? Firstly, none of my other friends with kids lived within walking distance. I'm passionate about being a part of my community so driving 20 minutes several times a week to see friends for play dates isn't ideal. Once every 2 weeks or so, I love to because I love those friends, but local is so key. Secondly, I desire a diverse group of friends for myself and my children. Making friends in my community and not from a preexisting affinity group (such as faith) has given me both.

My suggestion is if you want to meet local moms and have play dates for your child, get out of your comfort zone and make it happen. It's awkward and hard and you might feel super forward at times, but asking a mom (and their child) on a date isn't as weird as it feels :) And don't be afraid to check out online resources. There may be things happening in your neighbourhood or at your local community centre that you don't even know about. Happy dating, friends!

ABCs ::: Alberta, Bread, Colour.

A is for Alberta. 

We're headed there (my first time!) on Monday for a 4 day conference with our church planting network. I love Canada and am excited to experience another province. The high is -5 out there so we're packing warm clothes :) I'm most eager to spend some quality time away from the kids, alone with Brad. The last time we did this was 6 months ago for three days. Needed.  Also I'm really looking forward to getting some solid training from other church planters and their wives. We are so new to all of this and their experience, advice, wisdom will be so valuable to us and our church.

But what about the littles? We asked both of our parents if they could watch the grand kids, but the thing with church conferences is that they tend to be during the week. Pastor's are kinda busy on Sundays as it were. Both sets of grandparents were willing to take the week off work without pay (love them!), but neither set could get the time off cleared by the powers above them. Frustrating. We almost missed the conference, which is obviously no kids allowed. Until our dear friends Morgan and Sam saved the day! These newlyweds are about to get a dose of future reality and we love them for it. They're moving to our house and watching the kids day and night until we return. Can you imagine? Best.

B is for bread. 

I've never made my own bread before, but like every other human being I LOVE bread. Montreal has basically an amazing bread scene with bakeries/ patisseries on most corners, but they're not cheap.A baguette is usually $2.99 and specialty breads (Olive, for example) are usually $3.99 or more. This isn't the end of the world, but if you are having people over, double that amount, and if you have bread often, it really leaves it's mark.

The same Morgan who is caring for our kids next week shared this perfect recipe on her blog and I tried it last night. Extremely exceptional, people. I halved the recipe because it was just Brad and I and baked mine for 25 minutes in a cast-iron dutch oven (without the lid). We only used olives (probably 7) and rosemary (and omitted the sage and thyme). It probably cost me 50 cents and took 35 minutes, total. AND TASTED LIKE HEAVEN. Try it, yesterday.

C is for colour. 

You American readers probably think I spelled that wrong. But we add a 'u' to a lot of words. Favour, Flavour, Favourite, etc. Anyway. Colour. My hubby has a huge bookshelf in his office which also happens to be our entryway. Kind of chaotic. I wanted to organize his books by colour to make it seem a little more organized (even though it is, indeed organized) so last night I did it. I love the result. He hates it. I think it's easy on the eyes, he thinks it's hard on the eyes. Woops. We'll see how long it lasts.

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We have house guests this week! So exciting because they are VERY dear to us and we have missed them so much. It's actually the family we lived with in Kentucky this summer. Which was basically the most ideal scenario when you're living out of a suitcase - staying with the best family ever in the most beautiful house ever. Anyway, he had a work thing in Boston so they drove up after and are staying with us for a few days.  G L O R I O U S .

In the meantime, I won't be blogging, so enjoy this mélange of posts I found instead :)

While our adoption journey is on hold right now, we still think about adoption often and still plan to adopt from the foster care system in Quebec. Meaning, most likely we will be a transracial family some day. This video makes me laugh and frustrated too. I've actually already heard some of these comments when simply telling people our plans!

• Leaving room for margin. We've upped our hospitality around here probably 10 fold since planting a church and this has become so key to us staying healthy.
• One family's story to meeting their son. Love the realness of her post. 
• Our house is probably 75% a HOME now but the walls are still greatly lacking. Making some copy-cat art soon to fix that, inspiration here and here.

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• I'm a big text-as-art fan and also a keep-it-simple fan so these handmade holiday garlands for Christmas and Thanksgiving basically had me at hello. 
• Can't wait to try this Olive Bread recipe!
• I'm absolutely doing these DIY silhouettes this week (probably when company leaves). They're too cute and seemingly simple to pass up.

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First, don't forget to enter the giveaway for a free pair of baby shoes by Parker & Posie and take advantage of the 10% off discount all readers get for the next 2 weeks!

Second, this week's mélange is less light than ones in the past. I hope that's alright with you all! Some weeks, the posts that grab my attention are adorable DIYs and yummy recipes, but this week they happened to be harder reads. Reads that challenged my thinking, convicted me, and lead me to action. Hope they'll the same for some of you (and ok, one DIY to keep us all from tears).

• One Mom's road to recovery after miscarriage really inspired me even if I haven't walked that path
• My blog-friend is on the long and hard road of International Adoption. Praise God and go, her! Encourage her by checking out her great website to fund their adoption. I bought two pillow cases last week and have a post on them coming up. Love the stuff. Love the cause.  

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• Also, these bags are all.so.cute.
• Winter Blues are a real thing. Check out my friend's proactive purchase against SAD. Also, learn more about SAD here.
• Not a seamstress but love handmade, especially for Halloween? Check out these no-sew masks.

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• Did you know adoptive mothers can breastfeed!? I DID NOT. But I say, go for it! After reading this inspirational post.
• before you buy that huge $5 bag of Halloween chocolate, read this. It's made me relieved we aren't in a neighbourhood where people hand out candy and think twice about what I'll buy if we ever do. On that note also, Camino is an amazing fair trade chocolate I recommend!

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the cottage!

For those who read about our pack-n-play mishaps yesterday, you'll laugh when you hear that there was indeed another mishap. The pack-n-play is perfect, don't get me wrong, but I didn't look closely enough at the pattern. Definitely not gender neutral! Oh well, Oli, and any future boys (if there are any!) can learn early that real men aren't defined by the colour they wear...or sleep in (cough pink cough)

And now onto something glorious.

A photo dump of our four day trip to our friend's cottage! We spent four days last week in Ontario with another family at a cottage. Pure.Sweet.Bliss.

We shared a room with these goofs. Which I thought would be horrible, but it wasn't. We used a sound machine so when we came to bed later we didn't wake them, they were both in pack-n-plays (read: trapped), and it was just 4 days. It was actually a blessing because on our last night Lily vomited SEVEN times (essentially all night long) and being near her helped us help her more immediately. And somehow Oli slept through it all.

There was an amazing lake and Lily loved the beach. We went tubing and enjoyed the dock too. So fun seeing Lily in the Great Outdoors. She is such a city kid and we are now too. Classic city slicker move: forgetting bug spray.

Did I mention we were with Brad's best friend from high school and his family, that we hadn't seen in years? And his wife that I only met at her and my weddings? But it was amazing! We shared cooking and took turns helping with one another's kids, and spent every night enjoying the hot tub or bonfire.
It seriously could not have been better, even though it was almost like a blind date for me :)

 

I can't wait to spend more time with this family! (they also have a little doll who is a year old, though I can't believe I don't have any pictures of her!) It was a fabulous treat for us to get an invite to their cottage this summer, and even more when we all decided it must become an annual tradition!

18 month speech delay

This post is hard to write.

As I write this, I've rewritten the title and introduction about 10 times. Very unlike my blogging style. Normally I just sit down and write. Normally I'm not writing about things that truly scare me. Guess that accounts for the discrepancy.

Our beautiful Lily is 18 months old and doesn't yet have a single word in her vocabulary. Not even Mama or Dada. She doesn't repeat words that we say. She doesn't address things or people with names. She just babbles her little heart out. She's not quiet by any stretch. She's not shy in the least. She is not timid. And she is very bright. I know, I'm her mom so it probably seems like I have to say that, but she really is. She learns quickly. She's inquisitive and interested and bold. Which is why we're beginning to be worried that she isn't talking.

The worrisome facts are that at 18 months, babies should have at least 20 words, and up to 50. They should be putting two words together, if not three.  At 15 months, it's recommended that if a baby does not have a single word, they are referred for a hearing test and/or to a speech pathologist. 50% of babies who are not talking at 15 months are simply "late talkers", while the other 50% often have hearing or speech issues or other medical reasons for the delay.

I want to be clear - we are champions for letting kids grow and learn at their own pace. We aim to not worry if our kids miss a milestone by a couple of weeks or even months. And we really try our hardest not to compare our kids with their peers. We didn't bat an eye when Lily wasn't walking at 12 months like some of her friends. She was scooting - getting around - and we assumed (correctly) that she's walk when she was ready. At 15 months she did and now she runs around the house. 

While some have suggested we take the same approach with Lily's speech, we see this issue differently. Many of the non-medical reasons for language delay don't apply to Lily, such as her demeanor and gender (shy kids and boys may speak later than bold kids and girls). She's also not exposed consistently to two languages (she'll learn French soon, but at home we only speak English right now), which can contribute to language delay. So with that and the encouragement from a speech pathologist and family doctor (both of whom we're so blessed to be friends with and have easy access to!), we had her hearing checked today.

I was skeptical because Lily listens to us and responds to noise all the time. We've never had reason to believe her hearing was problematic, but still, we were eager to have her tested. We could have the test done for free and wait two weeks for an appointment, or go with a private clinic, pay $110, and have the tests done the next day. We chose to go private this time, and Lily's test was done this afternoon. Her results show that she has either no hearing problems whatsoever, or a very mild hearing problem (that would have been undetected). We're doing a follow-up test in two months, but they were very positive that she has no hearing problems. So now what? 

On the one hand, we're very relieved. Praise God our daughter is not hard of hearing or deaf! That would be life altering for our whole family, and I would never wish that for my daughter. 

Could we survive it? Absolutely. 

Would God still be good if Lily was deaf? Absolutely. 

Am I glad she isn't? Absolutely. 

On the other hand though, we're still left with a lot of questions. Our next step is to meet with a speech pathologist who will observe Lily and give Brad and I some exercises to do with her. Signing is one thing I wasn't planning on doing with my kids, but it was recommended already by our speech path, so I've been surfing YouTube and teaching Lily a couple of signs. She learned them so quickly and already uses them consistently. I'm so proud of her.

What about you? Do you sign with your kids? Have you worried about speech delay in your own kids? Have you been in this situation? Any advice or stories from experience are more than welcome :)

Vancouver

Why do we have to live literally the farthest possible distance across Canada from some of the greatest people? Doesn't seem fair. We have a BIG country. And GOOD friends.

5 hour flight. Both kids slept like pros. Amazing.

Jet Lagged babies kept sleeping.... thus throwing them off big time. Painful couple of nights at first.

Exploring the beautiful city with friends.

The Olympic torch!!! Do you KNOW how much I love the Olympics? Big deal. Sorry you had to see that, Oli.

Playmates times two for Lily in twin-friends Soren and Marlow (Or, as I like to call them, So and Lo)

My baby daddy after a delicious lunch with the kids.

Oli started smiling!

What an amazing 10 days. Thankful for dear friends who were willing to have 4 adults and 4 babies under 15 months in their little condo for over a week! But we're a city family too, so we were very comfortable. I'd stay a month if they'd let me! It was an incredible time. Thanks John and Sarah, So and Lo! xo

First Pancake

When Matty and Dahlia came to stay with Brad an I for an overnight this week, I knew I wanted it to be special. Sleepovers are a big deal to kids and the hype is always huge, but I knew there would be a bit of let down when they actually got to our house - we don't have a lot of toys that would interest them, we don't have X Box, we don't have cable or any good tv shows (except CBC in the mornings for cartoons!), and we don't have a back yard for them to play in. I spent most of the day with them at their house, and we were only at our place for a few of their last awake hours, but I wanted them to have a good time, despite our home's lacking in 4-5 year-old pleasures. 

So at breakfast, I knew that meant pancakes. Seriously, I think they're easier to make for a bunch of kids than cereal - far less mess (spilled milk, anyone?), and minutes to make (thanks to our years-old Costco bag of mix that's still going strong!) M and D loved the thought of waking up to cartoons and pancakes so I was happy they were occupied and content, plus, hey, I like pancakes too. But another little one had never had them until Sunday morning... and guess who is also now a fan for life?

 first M and D enjoy their pancakes...

 then someone feels left out...

 so we make her a pancake... Matt thinks the size is HILARIOUS.

 but it still needs to be smaller for that tiny mouth and still-only-2-teeth!

 group shot of the kids. so cute. 

all that's missing is Olivia (Andy and Loni's youngest who is 8 months older than Lily and will be her classmate one day)