Lions and Tigers and Zebras (?) oh my!

|We had the pleasure of celebrating Lucas' 2nd bday this past saturday! Thanks to everyone who joined us and helped out! Lucas loved the party and all the people who made him feel so special!!

 

He was a little scared of the candles...Good i guess..he knows they are hot!!

Wondering why I am bringing the burning fire closer to him!

Mr. Colby

The end result after hours of cake pop making! Well worth it! :)

Dark bathroom + glow bracelets= cheap entertainment for kids!

Good times with friends, family and cake pops of course! :)

Capturing a Monkey!

   A few days ago when it was beautifully sunny out we headed to a nearby park to let Lucas get some fresh air and of course Mommy (me) decided that I would try to get some 2 year old photos of the little man! Lesson learner...photographing a one year old was seemingly easier than a 2 year old that moves way faster and has more of a mind of his own..I'm surprised the pictures didn't just have blurs of blobs moving! I also decided that I need to take half year photos as well because his yearly pictures so far involve hats because of the cooler temps...and since I prefer using natural outdoor light..hats it is! At least this hat was cute!! 

Lucas turns 2!

     Its hard to believe that 2 short years ago Lucas entered our world! (I say short..but somedays it feels like an eternity!!) Life has never and will never be the same again! Good, the bad and the ugly! Lucas and I had a rough start to beginning our mommy/son relationship. I prefer to block out the memories of labour and the word "vacuum" out of my head! He scared daddy from the start...I think he thought his child was going to be headless! He came pre-tanned as well and decided that he preferred to sleep over eat..which does not bode well for a tiny little infant and his mother! Back to the hospital we went for a little light therapy and a night from hell (as my lovely husband likes to refer to it as! I however have experienced more of those...hush hush!).

We survived however and lived through the next few months of me teaching my child to nurse properly. (me being too stubborn to give up was an understatement!) Other than feeding problems and gas problems Lucas was a fairly content baby. From early on we could tell he was an observer and thinker. He never liked to cuddle facing in and always had to be looking around. He barely made any babbling noises for that matter but rather took it all in! He wanted to move early and started crawling (or bum scooting/propelling himself) around 7 months and took his first steps at 10 months. Thus he was into everything rather quickly! Once he could walk he started trying to climb and well...once he started to climb it was all downhill (literally) from there! Nothing was safe.

Lucas at 15 mos using his pushcar to climb onto the kitchen chairs.
 Rookie mistake? Having a stepstool with wheels!

         I now have shelves in my living room attached to the wall at an optimum height that contain everything from camera equipment, permanent markers, glue, batteries..etc! I do realize that one day he will grow and be able to reach these shelves but for the sake of my sanity I am hoping that we move before than! For the past year my kitchen table has not looked normal as I had to either a.) get rid of chairs or b.) box them in the corners so he couldnt move them. I chose 'b' as it was the easiest option. Sadly this only lasted so long as some phenomana happens where children gain more strength as they get older. So long mommy's mental sanity!! Surely one day soon I will catch him on top of my refrigerator!

          With age comes experience and confidence. I now hardly bat an eye when I find my child at the top of the cat tree, change table, kitchen table, couch, desk, ladder, tree (ok that one hasn't happen yet..not that he hasnt tried.) I really have to thank his older cousin Colby, though, for teaching Lucas the things that he hasn't quite figured out. Like how the couch is a great landing target off the coffee table, or the stairs a great slide, or pulling cushions off couches and jumping on them like trampolines,  or how his lungs are capable of making even louder noises than he thought possible! We really do love you Colby, your little cousin idolizes you!

     The funnest thing about watching Lucas grow is watching his personality shine through more and more. He is such a monkey. He loves to make people laugh and makes every possible face to get you to! His little cheesy smile is infectious, crooked teeth and all! It is amazing to watch him use his hands. He has always had great motor skills and is becoming more evident as he grows! He watches you like a hawk and can pick up on things rather quickly...which means we really need to mind our "p"s and "q"s!! We love you buddy and look forward to the rollercoaster of a ride you have planned for mommy and daddy!

CHEESE!!!









Thanksgiving!!

          There was a lot to be thankful for this year...however there is always a lot of things to be grateful for! This year was even more special because Reuben was home after being away working for 4 weeks. Needless to say both I and Lucas were very happy to see him! Lucas would giggle and yell Dadda everytime that Reuben had left the room and came back in if he was out of sight for quite a few minutes. It was too cute! I think he missed having attention from two parents instead of just one! We spent Thanksgiving in Three Hills again this year so that we could join both our families for meals and of course expand our waistlines a little more!! We like to call Three Hills foodcation because between my parents, Reuben's Oma & Opas, Reuben's parents and Reuben's sister and her husband the meals are endless and wonderful!! I swear they are trying to feed us so that we can't move and thus are not able to leave! Instead we are like any wild animal..keep feeding them and they keep coming back! Haha!

            We were able to convince my dad to snap a few shots of our family as this would be that last time for awhile that we would get the chance! Thanks Dad, it means a lot! This was not an easy task with a very grumpy toddler...and no amount of funny faces and Nana jumping about wildly was getting this kid to smile! But miracously we were able to get maybe two of him smiling and that was all we needed! I snapped a few more of him just playing around with his daddy and the leaves!

love this one! Love these two!

This is my son...a look of wonderment..analyzing and looking...figuring stuff out!

my lil family

we call this the "Lucas sandwich"... makes him laugh everytime!

Most definately a "framer"

Seriously??

My hubby, my best friend!!

GQ baby!

If u look really closely u will see a tear under his left eye...remanence of us
scarring him with photo taking!

These are the eyes I have to say "no" to all the time!

My neice Asha and her dadda!

Love this one! Such a typical sisters shot...the little sister wrecking
the big sister's shot! Amiyah and Asha!

Lucas traumatized by another picture. 4 generations!

LOVES papa time!

Tidbits

Oh its been awhile...I could list every excuse in the book but mainly I think my issue is or has been lack of motivation or inspiration for that matter! This summer has been a rollercoaster of emotions with Reuben leaving to work in Regina and than coming back and going on holidays and than him leaving again and not seeing him for a month and than going on holidays without him and than seeing him and him leaving once again and than seeing him shortly after him leaving because of a death in the family and than him leaving again and now we will not see him for another month! (sorry for all the "ands") Happy, sad, happy, sad..seems to be the rhythm. But we press on and adjust because life has to go on and I love my husband for working hard and providing for his family! I just wish somedays he could take on a small apprentice...one that is about 2 feet tall and screams a lot! But alas he remains with me and copies what mommy does...whether she likes it or not. I fear my child has hit the terrible twos about 4 months early. Terrible tends to now follow us outside and even to the stores. Joy!

I received this week in the mail Lucas' first teething necklace made of hazelwood. I basically ripped it out of the package, corraled the child, put it on him and stared at him with possible crazy eyes waiting for the miracle to unfold in front of me. He pulled at it and whined and sat down and pulled at it and looked at me with a look of  "a collar mum?? what is this thing??" Fortunately he lost interest ,as per usual when your attention span is about 5 seconds, and does not seem to notice it anymore! 2.5 days later and he seemed happier today, for the most part. Could it be because one of the 6 teeth trying to make it threw all at once popped threw or because this necklace is working?? Time will tell. I guess I have to give the kid sympathy..I know that when i am in pain i can be a rotter too! Now i just need a necklace that fixes attitude as well! I think my back is out from Lucas limp-noodling it when he doesnt get his way. Of course they always know the optimum time to perform this act of contortion...in the middle of the road when mommy is carrying multiple items and a vehicle is waiting for you to cross the road, sitting in the shopping cart and crossing legs and contortioning at the sametime makes for hours of fun, in the middle of the mall on the floor..you get the picture! Oh he is strong willed but so is his mommy, so he can try tricks all day but he aint getting nothing! God must have paired us up right!

When he isnt trying his very best to cause the house to fall down he can be a rather funny little clown! He loves to make faces and try to make you laugh..his expression are priceless and as he is learning to talk i'm beginning to believe aliens have taught him! He has quite a few words thrown in there with his gibberish that only I seem to be able to interpret half the times..i'm starting to believe i could survive on another planet! He prefers to "pound it" over "hi fives| and loves to kiss you on the lips making the mmm sound! When I take him shopping he says hi to absolutely everyone he sees till they turn around and talk to him and than he stares at them like they have two heads, so they walk away and than he says "buh bye" incessantly until he cant see them anymore! Funny little man! With Reuben being gone everytime he hears or sees a truck (tractor as he calls it) he says dadda..even though dadda doesnt drive a truck..he doesnt do it with a car, just with trucks! Must be telling us we need a truck! He has a new fun game of climbing ontop of the couch and falling/sliding off the other side and repeating..sometimes the feet dont land first..mommy is not too found of this game but likes to choose her battles. Unfortunately I keep saying that Lucas wants to see the inside of the Children's hospital..I on the otherhand really really dont! Why did God only give mothers two hands and two eyes??

My mother survived me and I will survive Lucas..but i dont just want to survive...i'm trying to soak in the moments when he sits quietly beside me and reads a book, or the look on his face when i have been away and he runs full boar into my arms with the biggest smile! Those are the moments when you realize your not just "surviving" but "living"! Living and breathing in the small things and trying not two sweat too much on the bigger ones!

Goof!!

The wedding of Mr. and Mrs. Chow

I would have to say that this wedding is one of the prettiest weddings that I have ever been to and of course had the opportunity to be a part of! Elaine did a lot of planning and her hard work paid off! The details were amazing and of course a photographers dream! (yes I am not professional but enjoyed the chance to snap a few shots!) The location was amazing. It was held at a little B&B just outside of Duncan on Vancouver Island. Very relaxing and intimate! The wedding party (the girl side) was able to stay at the B&B so getting ready in the morning was not rushed at all and when all was said and done we just had to walk down the stairs to get to the wedding! Loved that we didnt have to worry about driving and rushing around! Here are a few shots of us getting ready in the morning..unfortunately this is the only one I was able to get of us 4 bridesmaids. Elaine was glowing as she walked out the door for "first view" before the wedding was about to start.

I tried to capture as much of the details as possible..I'm sure that I missed a few here and there!

This was the sweetheart table where Elaine and Chris sat. The rest of the bridal party was spread about at different tables which was nice! I was able to help Reuben with Lucas and it was much more comfortable without everyone staring at us as well!

One of my favorite shots I think. They had three cakes on the table and this was the biggest one and of course the most tasty as well! (red velvet)

The banner above the table says "Love is sweet" and is the table where to cakes and eventually desserts where displayed!

Outside instead of a guestbook, guests took polaroid pics, signed and clothes pinned them to the twine which was wrapped around a wooden arbor.

Another of my favorite shots. This is another bridesmaid Caitlyn. Love how she looks like she is sittng down for a tea party!

A few attempts at family shots throughout the day. My child refuses to smile and likes to look like we drug him or something!

These two were so adorable to watch and so in love!! They radiated! So happy for them!

Hanging out at the reception.

First dance

Thank you Elaine and Chris for letting me be a part of your day! All the best in the years to come!! And of course adorable babies!! Lucas needs someone to marry when he gets older!!