quick pix from last week

Gpa& Dk taking a walk

Sunday Brunch in his new Peacoat (thanks Lisa)

Men at work. laying the new floors.

Grandpa Neaman and Dakota in matching overalls!

Still in love....

Before our house exploded, there was Niagara

My mother-in-law, Deb came to visit a week before the sawdust began and a week before Keith's poor little vacation of manual labor.
So, we decided to go on a little road trip to Toronto to visit some cousins.
Leaving the country wasn't so bad but on the way back in we went through the wrong lane and had to be searched! we spent ages outside in a line with a bunch of foreigners before i marched up to the front, plopped a baby on the counter top and informed the officials that I was going to change a diaper right there and then if they didn't stop all this nonsense and let us through now! It worked well and off we went.

Canada, oh Canada!


While looking at the map it suddenly accured to me that the infamous Niagara Falls couldn't be too far. So I called my darling for a quick map quest directions and we agreed it would definitely be worth the hour and a half detour.
Here are all the cousins looking at old family photos and reminiscing.
While there Dakota's 3rd cousin came to visit! She's only a few months older so they had fun pushing each other over



This was baby's first trip out of the country!

What a beautiful day it was for us too!

Then we thought, heck, we've come this far- why not visit the town of "Niagara-on-the-Lake". I had never heard of it before but it was the most darling little town I've ever seen! (and I've seen a few)

We stopped for lunch and looked at quaint shops but the highlight was definitely all the candy stores. Mmmm, exotic Canadian candy.....

Pastries, cookies, fudge and caramel
irresistible!

Disaster strikes

I am in the middle of a HUGE mess! some of you are waiting to get messages from me but just know I have no time for the computer now but will contact you soon.
got stuff everywhere. the kitchen is in the living room. In-laws are half here. we just painted the kitchen cabinets and realized what a mistake it was and that we dont know what the heck we are doing! Mistakes are going to cost us thousands of dollars of debt that we cant handle right now.
Baby crying. dust from sanding coats everything. Paint splaters on good clothes. food not being put away! people yelling at eachother. calling credit card company. another home depot run. who's watching the baby. head hurts. cant find my keys. calls to return. Attorney wants me to dig up pictures of my murdered grandmother. What time is it? out of my way!

Day one of Keith's week vacation.

Unstopable!

It's getting harder and harder to put him in a safe place while I do stuff.

How horrible am I?

Okay, I've had this cat of mine ("Monkey") since she was a kitten.
It's been over two years now and we are the only family she knows.
I've snuggled, groomed, punished, spayed, swam and even moved with her.
The things is, once I became pregnant, I found myself strangely overly upset with her for everything and anything. I figured it must be hormones and I'll try to be nice to her today.
But almost year after giving birth and I still can't stand her sometimes. Yet, sometimes I love her.
My biggest problem with this cat is that even though she is litter trained, every now and then for no apparent reason she poops in a sink! This happens randomly but about once or twice a month. If she is stressed or confused it is mush worse. for a week recently she had a stressed induced bladder problem that made her have to pee so frequetly that she jumped into every sink in the house (and left blood too). Now I have always been mad at her for this but found myself reluctently able to forgive only because it was in the sink and not the carpet. (execpt once I found sick cat diarrea and vomit but fogaave because it was to be removed soon anyway)
I would just freak if I found a single mishap on the downstairs carpet where Dakota plays.
My other major problem with her are the fleas.
I have managed to ignore this for quite a while but NO MORE.
I hadnt treated her for a long time because I didnt want any toxic chemicals to hurt the baby of course.
But here is the most dreadful part and I am embarresed to say,
I found a flea running through Dakota's head!!!!!!!
Now that was a last straw for me. I immediately posted an add for "FREE CAT" on craigslist and have recieved 2 replies.
I am going back and forth with this.
How cruel is this?
To give away a grown cat just cause you're sick of it.
Even though she loves and adores me and is already stressed from this big move.
What should I do? What if the new home is not good?
What if she poops in the play area?
I need your opinion.

this could go on for ages sometimes

It is the middle of the night. I have been up for 2 hours with Dakota.
He is still screeeeaming his head off. drank bottle. rocked and rocked. music.
I am so tiered. Oh, and now daddy is up too. his first night of real sleep is destroyed.
i am very upset.
Parenthood is not all fun and games people.

My monkeys in a tree

Another reason to lower the toilet seat

I finally found a moment to sit down with my usual breakfast of egg whites & sugar-free maple surup when 30 seconds into it I noticed it was quiet. I jumped up to see where Dakota had crawled off to and found him past a sleeping daddy in the bathroom with arms elbow deep splashing in the toilet!!!! I gasped and quickly threw his arms under the sink while I fervently rubbed one hand with anti-bacterial soap as his other was grabbing the head of my toothbrush!
Strangely, I don't seem to have an appettite for breakfast anymore...

one two three four, I declare a thumb war!

Friday night I babysat a friend's 3 kids at my place while they had a grown-up night out.
It was a perfect time since Keith would be away at the hospital all night anyway.
We ate lasagna on the floor, decorated sugar cookies, watched a disney super hero movie, bumped heads, finished off all the goldfishies, pushed and shoved our way through the tube, and toped it all off with ice cream sudays as if things weren't hiped-up enough.
As much awesome crazy fun as it was, maybe just one kid isnt so bad after all....






This moment was followed by horrendous screaming. Keith laughs at this clip especially when he moves it in slow motion (at the end). I still cringe.

Our family walk inbetween two 30hr shifts

maybe we should just have people over tonight

more pix from EmilyP's visit

It was so wonderful to have my dear EmilyP stay with me. For those of you who also know her, you'll understand when I say that she truely carries magic with her. She can make a skeptic believe, even if only when she's around. This amazing friend of mine came and cheered me up. She helped me out. She listened to me vent, laugh and cry. My life is rich with her in it.

We had a lot of fun together and it started like this.....
~She flew on a standby flight so when I found out on Sunday that she didnt get on it I figured it wouldnt happen. I found this out just after hearing other bad news and it stimulated a flood of tears. I finally got the message 2 hours before she arrived on Tuesday that she was coming!
Keith was home so we were able to all meet here together.




We took her straight to our little Panera for some dinner and at home the conversation lasted hours past my normal bedtime....







The next morning we went to a local farm and bought fresh apples, cider, muling spices, a pie for home, and a sandwich lunch to enjoy outside by the giant apple.

We hit a couple garage sales (this is my new thing by the way and last weekend I went to over a dozen) where I found a perfect little sled for Dakota for $2 bucks.



We also went to the Meijer Garden where I have a membership and a buddy pass. It's a beautiful place with indoor & outdoor gardens, kid play stuff, sculptures - and it's open year round. In winter I'll check out the xmas light exibit!

Once we visited Keith at work when he called with a hankering for mangos. Nothing's too much to ask for my baby.

One night Emily watched the Kama Sutra (beautiful movie- not what you think) We also did a little Ice Cream splurge. What else am I forgetting Em?
All too soon came Friday when I drove her to Ann Arbor to stay with her cousins. The drive was lovely and I got to hear all sorts of good stories from her time in India. We stopped at a stand for raspberries on the way and said our finale good-byes with a walk in the woods by a green sludge river.

The road home seemed more than twice as long without my sweet company. My wonderful Em.

Emily Potter is visiting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is so wonderful having my Em here with me. We've been busy running around town having fun, fun , fun. (in-between nap time)

Here we are in front of a big apple in case you can't tell (she thinks it's not that obvious)

At the Meijer Gardens

Dinner lovn'

dinosaur snuggle

Surprise visit at work for Keith

Taking a little time for herself.... ahhhh

Jungle Girl
(Meijer Gardens)

Lady's day out

Roderick & Saskia sitn' in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g!!!!!

My awesome brother Roderick has proposed to his beautiful darling Saskia

...and she said YES!!!!!!!!!!!
***HORRAAYY ***
She is wonderful! She is Dutch. She's 3 inches taller than him.
And oh! They just graduated from Oxford together!
(I totally meant to post a big ol' congratulations for that ages ago, so um here it is)
They are now living in Greece together for the next year and Im hoping the wedding happens soon (less time for her to change her mind and all that)
I'm soooooo super duper ultra happy for my big brother!
Yay! a Sister-in-law with a cool accent.
Saskia, welome to the family!!!!!!
Wait, Saskia Saxey? oh no......
What to do......


(best part: He started a blog per my long standing request. click picture)

Daddy & the big three-Oh!

Yesterday was Keith's 3 decade birthday!
We celebrated with a morning balloon surprise and a day with a babysitter!
We saw Bourne Ultimatum and shopped for work clothes all by our grown-up selves. Such freedom.

In the evening we had a little homemade pizza party with another family Complete with organic chocolate cake but unfortunately we were having so much fun that there are no pics of that.

Happy Birthday Darling!

Teeth

This was taken before the four-tooth agony began.
Oh the wonderful days of pleasant two-teeth life, when all went orally unnoticed.


Now there are random bouts of screaming day and night.
The four uppers are swollen white, and taking their sweet ol' time coming in.
This week's milestone: first toothbrush

Oh deer!

Well I finally caught a picture of our backyard deer family. Aren't they wonderful?
If you look closely you'll see four of them. Those are our trees they're eating!

Oh, and of course the bunnies are bouncing around everyday.
They act like they own the place really. But I'm good to them, I chuck them celery and carrots now and then and they love me for it - wouldnt you?

Fun with a cup