Getting a Pet: Our Three-Month-Old Kitten

Introducing our three-month-old kitten, Kinley Cuddles Chapman aka Kinz. She is our first official pet other than a whole lot of fish that we have tried to keep alive over the years. Nya has begged us for years to get a kitten and we always said "no" because we travel a lot and I don't want to have to worry about would care for the kitten. 

However, once COVID hit, we knew we would be home for a long time and were craving any cuteness to add to our Quarantine Crew, so we considered the idea. Gary sort of said "okay" finally after making it clear that he was not going to take care of her in any way. It was more difficult than I thought to find a healthy little kitten and finally I found one through a friend of mine; she had one left...

Nya Turns Six

Our "baby" is now six years old. I am so thankful for her and the huge dose of sweetness she brings to our family. She can keep up with her brothers on almost any hike and is eager to do whatever the boys are (except riding without training wheels–we'll get there). She loves all things pink, purple and sparkly and dreams of wearing makeup one day. She doesn't want to get married and would like to live with us forever. She doesn't want to have children (due to the labour/delivery part) but I have a feeling that may change over the years. 

Flying in the Fraser Valley

Today was a special day for Nya as it was her first flight with my dad! It was very last minute so I wasn't sure how she would feel when I picked her up from school and told her we were going flying. She was so excited! It may have had something to do with the fact that I said we were going to a fancy restaurant and she asked if she could use her fancy voice. Yes, she could use her fancy voice.

We met my dad at the Langley airport and off we went!

Nya's Third Birthday Photos

Our beautiful Nya Bear is now three years old.  It's a very surreal feeling as she is our youngest and it seems like it was not that long ago that she was born.  She is sweet and cuddly yet fiesty and strong.  She loves to do whatever her brothers are doing, and if they bother her, you'll hear her scream.  She loves her tickle time with daddy and to be held by mommy.  We all think she is the cutest little thing at only 30 lbs and are so thankful to have her in our lives.  Miss Nya, we love you!

Every year we take photos of our kids around their birthdays.  Photographs of my family are very important to me and I don't think I've ever regretted putting in the effort to get some beautiful keepsakes.

Here are 5 tips for taking photos of your young child:

1.  Choose a location that they will enjoy!  Nya's favourite colour is purple.  Purple flowers and a purple pram to push around? Perfect.

2.  Take photos during the golden hour which is an hour before sunset.  You don't want bright sun in their eyes and as the sun sets it makes everything feel warmer.  Try to have the sun behind them for some back lighting.

3.  Have the child interacting with someone or something.  She stood in the field for about 3 minutes before getting bored.  Thankfully I was prepared to be in some photos with her.  She also loved pushing the pram down the path.

4. Make sure they are comfortable with what they are wearing.  I offered her several choices for what to wear in her hair so she felt some control over it.  She helped to choose her shoes too.  She wanted a different, more colourful, dress for her photos so I took some pictures of her in that dress at a different time.

5. Treats.  After the photos were taken, we went home and had ice cream to celebrate.

Isn't she the sweetest?

Nya Bear, we are all so thankful for you.  Your giggles warm our hearts and your dimples melt us.  We appreciate your enthusiasm and dramatic expressions.   Thank you for your cuddles and always making sure to hold my hand with our fingers intertwined.  We love you so much.

Love,
Mommy, Daddy, Kai & Koen.

My Sweet Daughter

One of the main purposes of this blog is to document my kid's lives.  I just wanted to share some sweet moments with Nya from over the past couple of days.  Being that my mom is no longer here on Earth, I savour my mother daughter moments with her that much more.

{Bedtime stories.  Each of us with our baby. Thankful when she picks the short Dora books.}

{I was braiding my nieces hair and thought `Why not try Nya's?'.  Yahoo! It worked.  First braid of many.  Growing up, I had 4 younger sisters and I was responsible for doing the hair of  #4 and #5 in the morning.  I was a french braiding/fish tailing queen.  I'm rusty but I'm sure I'll be back to it in no time.}

{The boys often like to play hockey in the alley and if Nya's in the right mood, she joins in.  I know I'm a bit biased, but for a two year old, she's pretty awesome.  Two hands on the stick,  keeps the stick down, and handles the ball decently.  There is something so heartwarming about seeing her in dress up clothes and being sporty.  Cute and athletic.  Awesome combo.}

{She plays with a separate ball and the boys are so good about watching out for her.}

{I scored!}

Oh Nya Bear. So thankful for you, monkey.

I hope you all have a wonderful and safe weekend.  Thank you for following along here, I totally appreciate it.

Love,
Louise

Disney on Ice Date

Nya loved the Max & Ruby Ballet that we went to a few weeks ago (I had won tickets!) so I decided to take Nya to Disney on Ice.  We went this afternoon as it was an 11:30 am show which would be way better than a 7 pm one for her!

{She LOVES the hand clasp.  When she sits on my lap, we do this with both hands.}

She was very excited to see Mickey and Minnie Mouse.  She doesn't know very many characters so if I were to go again, I'd wait until she knew all the princesses and more Disney characters.  Or, I'd just teach her the songs...she LOVES to dance along to the music.

Do you see her adorable purple pea coat? It's a MEXX one that I got second hand.  It's size 3-4T so it's too big for her but I had to put her in it.  Purple is her favourite colour.

It's a tad bit overwhelming with all of the merchandise.  I'm the super lame mom who bought the cheapest tickets ($15 for her + fees = $25 and mine came to about $40), brought a few of my own snacks, and didn't buy her toys/cups/dolls.  She didn't ask either.

It was good.  I don't love shows (GASP! I know.) but Nya loved it.  She watched the full two hours and didn't want to leave our seats during intermission because she wanted to see Mickey and Minnie again.  The one sequence I didn't love was the Halloween one and it was a bit scary too.  She was fine but it wasn't fun and beautiful which is what she loves.  I think we loved Minnie in her princess dress the best.

I think it's a one time thing for me but I'm glad we went!  She really enjoyed it and it's fun to do something different with her.  It's been a lot of football/cars/hockey around here for years so adding in some Cinderella and Minnie Mouse keeps things interesting.  She hasn't watched any of the Disney movies yet, I wonder what would be a good one to start with....any ideas?

Love,
Louise

The Three Monkeys

I love having stats about the kids documented so that is what this will be!  It's so interesting to me how different they are.  A lot of it I saw when they were just babies but now the differences are just....exaggerated.  They love being together, but wow, can they fight.  This has been alleviated a bit in the van because someone (KOEN!!) has been moved to the backseat by himself.

Kai (8 years old): 

-60lbs

-4'3"

-loves American Ninja Warrior (the tv show) and practicing to be one.

-would like to marry an American so he can try out 

-loves school and his new teacher and the fact that his very good friend is in his class

-competitive

-loves to play Wii

-great hiker

-very `even keeled' like Gary.  Tends to be more serious.

-started climbing lessons and is so happy about it!

-plays with Koen at home.  They love to play Wii, a made up game with the stuffies, Pokemon, or practicing their American Ninja Warrior skills.   

-eats and drinks everything but still doesn't love dairy

Koen (5.5 years old)

-48lbs 3'8"

-started part time kindergarten (full days on M, W, Fri)

-enjoys playing Wii

-can physically keep up with Kai in most outdoor activities.  They are both very determined but where Kai has endurance, Koen has strength.  

-is emotional

-can make me lose my mind.  For real. I have no control over myself when parenting him sometimes.  This usually happens when disciplining him.  He will either be goofy and throwing his body around laughing OR he will continously ask the same question over and over while I'm trying to talk to him and if I don't understand, he cannot rephrase which makes him angrier and angrier.  This is so frustrating when trying to discipline him that there have been several times that I have had to chase him and carry him up to his room.  I hate the feeling of losing my mind but it can happen so quickly with him (usually on days when he spends a lot of time making Nya scream).

-bugs Nya all day long BUT is very good with her at the same time.

-loves to be silly

Nya (2.5 years old)

-27lbs (wow, not sure when that happened!), 2'9"

-loves older kids and Koen is her best friend

-loves Dora. Too much.

-can climb well

-speaks quite clearly and in long sentences

-very affectionate with her family.  She will tell us daily that she loves us so much.

-loves to be held

-strong willed.  Wants to wear a dress every day with flip flops. And not wear a sweater.  Or a bib.

-was potty trained for at least 6 months and then struggled a bit over the past 2 weeks (I think due to final molars coming in and holidays?!) we are working hard to get her back on track. 

-loves music and singing and dancing

-is somehow more attached to Koen than Kai.  She doesn't like to hold Kai's hand which hurts his feelings.  She also doesn't love to give him hugs.  She really, really loves the one that pesters her the most.  

-a smaller eater than her brothers but eats most types of food

-no more bottles :)  

-sleeps through the night 7pm to 7am

-hasn't napped in about 6 months 

-has a scar on her forehead from when she fell down the front steps.  There may be a little rock imbedded in there.

{Kai's first day of grade 3}

{Koen's first day of part time kindergarten.  His thoughts on the first day were that the toys weren't that fun and that there are only 99 days left until the 100 day party.}

{Yay! Two kids in school!  Less fighting in the house!  Now we just have to see how Nya does at daycare when I work later on this week.}

I feel bad for those that are not back in school.  I'm sorry :(  It's such a bad situation for the teachers, parents and students here in B.C.  I don't know the numbers on how it's affected the private schools but I know in Kai's class of 25, 5 students are new to the school.

I hope you're able to enjoy some sunshine this week!

Love,
Louise

Five things

One of my favourite things about my blog is that I can document things about the kids.  I love looking back and seeing where we were years ago.  Those things that I thought I would never, ever forget actually do fade away until I read about them again.  

Today, just a short post which includes five things about each kid.

Nya

{I got this dress in a 3T lot yesterday and she insisted on wearing it today.  Cute right?  She loves wearing dresses and I won't complain for one second about that.}

1.  Wakes up with a smile.  Seriously, a very happy child.  Gary and I look at her and melt.  We listen to her voice and melt.  We cuddle with her and melt. We are all so in love with her.

2.  Refuses all things `baby' (bibs, highchairs, cribs, diapers, naps) but will not give up her bottle of milk.  I think that is telling of her personality.  Fiercly independent yet still clings to comfort.

3.  Very petite.  Just 24 lbs (her brothers were at least 10 lbs heavier at this age, as was I!).

4.  Affectionate.  Love cuddles and hugs and often says `Hold you, mommy'.  She loves to give Koen kisses and hold his hand (yes, Koen, the one who bugs her all the time).  She always wants to be wherever her brothers are.

5. Enjoys colouring and is pretty good at puzzles.  She can count to 11 and speak in long sentences. 

Koen

1.  Is over the car stage.  He was into cars for over 2 years straight.  It's a bit sad for me actually as it was such a big part of him but I guess it's good to move on to other things!

2.  Has started playing video games but is also passionate about imaginative games.  He often plays `Amazing Race' or `The Price Is Right' with his stuffies.  Oh yes, the stuffies now also play `American Ninja Warrior'.  He, like Kai, is very competitive.

3.  Has started being more emotional.  He's trying to figure out how to deal with all these different feelings and will suddenly burst into tears.  I think that is common for this age.  Although he is very social, he needs periods of time alone to recharge.  He plays so well on his own.

4.  Very focused.  He does not see the big picture or what's going on around him.  If he is focused on a topic, you can't change it.  If he sees something he wants, he might walk into a window or tree or person because he is looking at just one thing.

5.  Very excited for kindergarten.  He cannot wait to be a big boy.   He's very social and academically I think he'll be just fine.  We have a countdown going.

Kai

1. Enjoys spending free time playing sports with the neighbour boys or whoever else will play.  Any sport will do.  

2. Is really into `American Ninja Warrior'.  He knows the competitors and stages well and often dreams of competing.   Do not be surprised if he breaks out into push ups at any time.

3. His favourite subject is math.  He is very good at it.  We do school books every other day and he almost always chooses to do math. 

4. Kai doesn't love time alone.  He loves to be with others.  Always.

5.  He will be eight years old this weekend! We will be having his `Amazing Race' party in a few weeks.  It's hard having parties in the summer, so few people can come.  By the way, he's only lost two lower teeth so far!

I cannot believe the energy that goes into raising these monkeys.  They exhaust me mentally and physically but they also make me laugh daily. I like seeing the world through their eyes.  

I hope you are having a good week!  We have two Korean students in our home for the next two weeks which adds a whole new dimension of interesting.  Kai and Koen are currently having a nerf gun fight with them in the basement and there's a lot of giggling going on.  Kai is soooo excited to have them here.

Love,
Louise

Nya's Ambulance Ride

Saturday night around 9 pm we had just finished photographing a wedding and I was working in the office.  I heard some strange sounds coming from the monitor in Nya's room.  I asked Gary to go up and check as it sounded like a mix between coughing and choking.  Gary went up and within a minute, I could hear that she was getting worse.  I went up there and he had her lying on his arm and was trying to clear her airway by hitting her back.  It wasn't helping.  I can't even tell you the sound except she was struggling and panicky.  I asked Gary if I should call 911 as I felt that if it got this bad this quickly, it could get even worse.  Gary is usually my `Mr. Calm Pants And Everything Is Always Fine', but he agreed, so I did.  I have never considered calling 911 for anything so I think at the moment I just really felt something was wrong.  The alternative of me driving a toddler who couldn't breathe properly, in our van, was not something I wanted to do.

The ambulance came 5 minutes later and by then her breathing improved with just rattling.  It really sounded to me like something was lodged in there and I was especially concerned because she hadn't even being coughing previous to this. I felt a bit silly because she had calmed down but they assured me it was the right thing to do.  They checked her over and thought that based on her current state that I should go with them to the hospital in the ambulance.

They had a carseat buckle for her in the bed and she was strapped in. She hated it. Usually I can keep her calm but with what the last 10 minutes was like for her, the discomfort she was in,  and now being strapped into a strange vehicle, she was not happy.  `I scared! I scared! I hurt! I hurt!'.  I was able to calm her down a bit by looking at picture of the boys on my phone and singing `Happy Birthday' in her ear.

After waiting in a room in the ER and seeing several nurses,  we saw the doctor and he checked her over.  He said it sounded like stridor breathing and recommended a chest xray to rule out anything lodged in her respiratory system.  I agreed even though I hate the idea of radiating my baby girl.   

If you know what a chest xray is like for them, you know it's not fun.  They sit into a type of bike seat, you hold their arms straight above their head and then they wrap a clear encasement around their torso.  Nya kept saying `I stuck!'.  We counted to 10 and then they did it one more time.  Poor girl.  I thought she did so well.  I just kept saying that it was a silly machine in hopes that she wouldn't be traumatized.

Then we went back to the ER and the results showed no foreign objects (phew!) and that it was likely a viral infection.   He did a throat swab and then she was given two different meds to open up her airways and alleviate the pain and we were allowed to leave.  The doctor was very nice and understanding.  I don't know why I have such a fear of wasting people's time or overreacting but I do. 

Fortunately my friend Leah has a fun social life and was out late and could stop by our house to pick up our car (with carseat) to come get us.  So frustrating that my phone and internet did not work in the ER.  Thanks, Leah!

Never thought my first ambulance visit would be with Nya.  Thankfully she's okay and it wasn't too serious.  I wasn't too worried once the ambulance came because we were in safe hands and she never turned blue.  Last night we slept with the monitor in our bedroom just in case.

PS: I had a package of mini bubbles in my purse.  Totally recommend it.  What else can you do for hours in the ER in the middle of the night?  

PS again: Gary does the wedding receptions on his own and usually isn't home until at least 10 pm but Saturday it finished earlier so he was actually home when it happened. So glad. 

{Here she is at the end of our stay; happy Nya with the Telus bear she got in the ambulance.  The rest of the time there was not so happy, although, she was singing `Dora' on the way home at 1am.}

Hope your weekend was a healthier adrenaline filled one!

Love, Louise

Koen the Preschool Graduate

We had Koen's preschool graduation this week.  He has gone to the same preschool and had the same teachers for two years.   I'm very thankful for these lovely ladies and how they just `get' Koen.

Grandma and Grandpa (Gary's parents) came to the graduation which was really nice.  Nya loves her grandparents!

They asked each child what they would like to be when they grow up and Koen said `How can I know if I'm still little?  I'll be a dad, obviously, and then maybe a teacher.'.

We are veeeeery much looking forward to Koen going to kindergarten.   He is a January 2 baby so he has been ready for a while and so have we.  Academically I think that he is definitely ready for school as he's started reading and like his big brother, he is very interested in math.  We do our `school pages' at home but he definitely needs more.  

Nya is...independent.  Everything is `I do it' and `Go away mommy, I want pibacy (privacy)'.   I have definitely learned to pick my battles and although it may look like she's the boss at times, the only things I feel really need to be `battled out' right now are issues of safety and respect.  She is starting to use much larger sentences and it is pretty cool.  I love that she can communicate most of her thoughts to us.  Here are some cute pictures of her jumping around with Koen.

{Her eyes!!! Awesome, right?}

Oh man, these two test my patience daily.  Walking with them to the park can be excruciating.  Trying to encourage Koen to get dressed in the morning is a full time job (he get sooo distracted).  The steal each other's toys to make the other person scream.  But, there are many good things in there too and seriously, they're pretty adorable.

Love, Louise