Ode to Chester

This is Chester. He died in our home Thursday afternoon from kidney failure. I had had him for at least eight years. I stole him from some people who weren't looking after him and have loved him ever since. Everyone was fascinated with Chester because he was polydactyl - he had six toes on all of his paws instead of the usual four. He was such a lovey cat and has slept with me almost every night since he came to live with me. The house seems so empty now. I keep expecting to see him hiding in our bedroom closet or lying on the back of the couch or sitting on the end table looking out of the living room window. I still can't believe that he is gone. He was fine one day and the next he was deathly ill. That's the way it is with cats. They don't let you know that anything is wrong until it is too late. I miss him so much. Sweet dreams, dear friend.

No amount of time can erase the memory of a good cat, and no amount of masking tape can ever totally remove his fur from your couch.  

~Leo Dworken

Poll Results

Thanks to all of you who voted! Here are the results for how often you make your bed:

1 vote everyday

4 votes almost everyday

1 vote hardly ever (that was me)

I admit freely that I hardly ever make my bed. I don't know why. It looks so much nicer when the bed is all nice and neat and it only takes a minute to do. Mum always says that "no excuse is a good excuse" so I won't bother to list off my reasons why I don't always do it. 

Here is a little fact for you: Did you know that there are over a million dust mites in your bed that feed off your dead skin at night? They can cause asthma and allergies. They love the heat and darkness created when you snuggle under your covers at night. If you make your bed as soon as you get up in the morning you trap that heat and darkness in the sheets, keeping the dust mites happy. If you leave the covers unkempt the light and coolness will make the mites unhappy and they will leave. Something to think about!  

Easter Egg Hunt

We held our second annual Easter Egg Hunt in our backyard today. We invited some family friends, as well as cousins and grandparents to come join in the fun. I hid 88 eggs for the kids to find. I made it easier for the little kids and more challenging for the older ones. I think they all had a good time finding the eggs and then they all sat down to discover what was hiding inside them. 

I didn't plan it this way, it just happened that Kyla's eggs matched her dress and Moira's eggs matched her dress. Got to be colour coordinated!

The kids had fun playing together after the hunt and food. 

Sarah and Jamie stopped eating long enough to pose for me. 

Will, Kyla and Liam taking a break. 

Principal's Award

A couple of weeks ago we got a letter from one of Moira's teachers telling us that her class had been working on a project and when it was time for recess Moira was the only one who stayed behind to help clean up the mess they had made. Every time a student does something really good they get a drop in the principal's bucket. This month Moira was one of the kids to receive a special award for their good deed. There was a special parents ceremony before school so we could all see our children receive their award. We were so proud of Moira for getting this special recognition, although I have to admit that I was rather surprised. Moira isn't very helpful around the house and getting her to tidy her room is near impossible without severe bribery. While I am thankful that she is so wonderful in front of others, I really wish she would share some of her enthusiasm here at home. 

Poll Results

Thanks for voting. Here are the results for favourite sleeping position:

     1 vote right side

     1 vote left side

     3 votes tummy

Check out my new poll. 

Little Witch

Kyla found my witch's hat and was parading around with it on. I couldn't help but take a few pictures of her.

Luck O' the Irish

Kyla and I found this video this morning on Google Video and it was so funny I had to share it with all of you. 

Precious Little One

This afternoon I received an E-mail from my friend Amanda saying that she had lost her baby boy. She was 17 weeks along. Reading her words made me nauseous and it brought back all the memories and feelings of when I lost Skye. There was sadness and fear and confusion over how and why this happened. I can only imagine that this is how Amanda must feel too. She and her husband had been trying to have this baby and really wanted another boy. It makes you wonder how this could happen to people who wanted this child and would love unconditionally. Amanda was just here at my house a couple of days ago and I commented on how cute she looked with her little bump.  It doesn't seem right or fair.

So, tonight when you are putting your own precious little ones to bed, hug them a little longer and let the last words they hear before they drift off be "I love you."

The Traveling Trio Returns

Liam, Kyla and I just spent the last week in BC visiting friends and family. This was the first time any of them had seen Liam and I wanted to show off my boy. Moira stayed behind to go to school. She was sorely missed by everyone, but she was spoiled by Daddy and Grandma so I don't think she minded. 

It was a whirlwind tour. Will drove up with us as far as Seattle then flew back to Boise. The rest of us went on by ourselves and arrived at my mum's house Sunday night. On Monday we took the ferry over to Vancouver Island to visit my Nana and Papa. We had missed the ferry by 10 minutes so we had to wait 3 hours for the next one and the trip over is another 2 1/2 hours. By the time we arrived it was 7pm. We stayed for a brief visit and then were off again to Victoria to visit my friend Lise and her family. We stayed there for 2 days. It was a most relaxing visit. We had a chance to catch up and the kids got to play together. On Thursday we drove back up to Duncan to visit Nana and Papa again before catching the ferry back to the mainland. On the way back to my mum's there was a detour in the road with no signs to get back on to the highway so the kids and I drove around in the dark until I recognized another highway that I knew would take us back towards where we were headed. It was very scary to be lost in the dark with no phone to call for help. My heart was in my throat until we were within a half hour of Mum's house. After that adventure, we spent the next day with Mum. We spent a relaxing day hanging around. That evening we went over to Erica's to see her and my nieces and nephews. On Saturday the kids and I drove to see my dad. My stepmom was in the hospital and was supposed to come home that day, but because of a complication had to stay in longer. We didn't get a chance to see her. 

That brings us to Sunday again and we were on our way back to Boise. We picked Will up at the airport in Seattle again and drove back together. 

I spent my first day back in a complete fog. My brain and my body were so weary. I wandered around the house know that I had things to do, but not sure how to go about doing anything. I've had to jump on the bandwagon again, getting Moira ready for school in the morning, catching up on Avon stuff and working on my Etsy and blog sites. Easing back into these things just wasn't an option. 

Here are some highlights of our trip:

Kyla and Lily had a good time feeding the ducks. The ducks weren't shy about coming right up to us. 

Liam was happy in his stroller. 

Lise and Jason with Lane and Liam. The boys are exactly 6 months apart and Liam's birthday is the same day as Lise's.

Visiting with Nana and Papa. Seeing Nana was my whole reason for making this trip up. She had been in the hospital and I needed to be near her again to make sure she was OK. 

Liam with Mum and Al. Kyla didn't want her picture taken and was hiding under the dining room table. 

Liam and Kyla with my dad. 

Poll Results

I must be the worst mother ever. Out of the four votes, 3 of you voted that you played with your kids every day. I was the only one who said that I hardly ever play with my kids. So how do you mothers do it? 

It's not to say that I don't give my kids any attention because that's not true. We read together or watch cartoons together, but to actually sit on the floor and play My Little Pony or fairies doesn't happen too often. It's like I have forgotten how to play. I sit there and don't know what to do. My inner child is appalled with myself that I could lose such an important skill. And when I do sit down to play I keep thinking about the laundry that needs to be folded or the dirty dishes in the sink. Moira is old enough that she can play board games or cards and I enjoy that. It's the imagination games that I have trouble with. I feel awful that I don't do more with my kids. Trying to fit play into my daily list of chores is difficult. It's one more thing I have to fit in to my already short days. There must be a healthy balance between work and play. I just haven't found it yet.

Check out my new poll. I came up with it at 4 am this morning when I couldn't sleep.