Crazy Days Ahead

December must be closing in on us. My calendar and my house are cluttered with things that need doing. Sports, school activities, outings, family gatherings, making wish lists and Christmas cards, running my dayhome, planning shopping parties with my once business and attending trade shows and craft fairs with another, and of course doing my best to keep up with the everyday management of the house.

I am thankful that most of the time these things all bring me joy. There certainly are days where they can be draining and that is when I need to remember why and for whom I am doing them.

One of these days, I hope to sit down and write something of substance to post but until then broken bits and pieces of life is what it will be.

Here is a picture of one of our highlights of the day:

Let it Snow!

We were blessed with a long and relatively mild fall until last night and then the snow started to fall and it still is. I have already shovelled twice today and seen buses stuck sideways on hills. Sure makes it feel like Christmas is closer though I'm not sure thats a good thing right now considering I am completely unprepared. Guess it is time to start thinking about writing Christmas cards and making wish lists. What a wonderful time of the year!

Something New

This past week sure had its ups and downs. It was full of activity an anticipation. The climax for me was taking Lady BugBug (the latest (ad)venture of me and my sister B) to our first Trade Fair. What a blast! We made some contacts, sold a few of the products made by our Little Bugs, and even took a few orders. It was great exposure and it was fun to spend the day with my sis sans kids :-). I have high hope for our next show as it is a Craft Fair geared toward Christmas gift sales. It will also be a good place to network and hopefully bring some of these crafty people on board to take to the next Trade Fair. The doors are opened and the possibilities are ahead of us.

As for life at home, I managed to get on top of everything except folding a few baskets of laundry before going to the show so, those are definitely on my must do list today as well as some ironing. Right now I am just finishing enjoing the peacefulness of sleeping children (my 2 girls plus 2 extras and yes they have all been sleeping for the past hour, sigh). I am sure it will be coming to an end soon so I suppose I better get going and get a few more things done before the silence is broken.

Hugs!!

Happy Halloween, BOO!

What an evening. The kids had so much fun. Kuya was a ninja whose job it was to protect Pixie who was Snow White and the littlest was a very cute Tinker Bell. They were all adorable and got right to business running up to the neighbours doors shouting "Trick-or-treat" (or as LO says "treat") and were very good about remembering their "Happy Halloween"s and "Thank you"s. We had a ladybug and a monkey join us in our rounds and that made the evening more exciting as it was monkey's first halloween.

The kids are all tucked snuggly in their beds now and I am on empty. It was a good and busy evening.

Life Happens

Ok so trying to get into this blogging thing again as I think it would be a very good thing for me. The progress today was changing my template and profile information. Hopefully, tomorrow will see the first of many regular entries.

Just BREATH!!

One of those days that you just want to hold your breath until it is over. So much like Dory from Nemo, I will say "just keep breathing, just keep breathing..." sigh...

Getting down to business

Life is begining to reorganize itself as I get accustom to having an extra girl a few mornings a week and working time for my business. I still find myself spending too much time infront of the computer but working on setting clear times and limits so that I am more effecient at getting those tasks completed. I hope to do some more research reading on parenting and teaching/learning through play so I feel like I can offer my clients relevant and useful information.
Kids are registered for swimming now and that will begin in a few weeks. I am still trying to get information about the Tae Kwon Do and dance classes and need to follow up again about spring hockey.
Thats about it for now. My alone time has been interupted and now I must put on my mommy hat and take care of the kids again.

What a game!

This morning I played in my first hockey game. My sons team had a moms vs kids skills competition and then game. They skated circles around us but we were out there and had fun. I am now exhausted and feeling muscles that I didn't realize I had used. I only fell once and will have a bruised knee from it but nothing to complain about. I am glad I did it but think the boys had a good laugh at our efforts. Once I was out there though, I have to admit it was kind of fun. Not sure how soon you will find me out there again but I wont say its not a possibility. Well, time to get a few more things done while the girls are still sleeping.

Its a Party!

Got my invites out for my Grand Opening Party now just waiting for responses. Going to open my box of toys that I just got while I wait!!

Another Day Gone

Do you ever wondering why some days last longer than others and conversly why others seem to slip away? Sometimes it is the good days that seem to go on forever and too often they are the ones that slip away too quickly. Today was an average day. It had its ups and downs. I got things done, although not as I had first planed, the kids went to bed happy the house got cleaned and laundry done. So was it a good day? Yes and although it is late, I still feel motivated to get a few more things done.

Discovering New Things

I am excited about the business opportunity I have. Selling quality toys to those who love them. Doing it from home on my schedule. It will give me the opportunity to meet and connect with other moms and enjoy a night out now and again. My start up kit should be here tomorrow and I cant wait to explore all the toys. I am already planning my grand opening and having fun doing it. I do hope my excitement is contagious as I want to get others charged up about this product also.

Gearing up for spring

I have spent the day re-organizing my workspace and calendar. Part of that was looking into spring program registrations for the kids. Swim lessons for all, trial lessons of Tae Kwon Do for the older two, dance for Pixie, and soccer and spring hockey for my boy. OH but first we need to finish up the winter hockey season with two tournaments. One this weekend and our host tournament mid-March.

The most exciting change for me is that I am now an offical Educational Consultant with Discovery Toys! My kit will come next week and then its down to business to see if I can make a business of it. I am very optimistic starting out (perhaps overly so but I am hoping that my optimisim drives me to excel).

Here is to all things new!

Its good to be busy with a purpose

I have begun my enterprising of finding alternate sources of income so that I may ultimately stay home with my children and not have to return to work come May. I currently have a 2 year old that I watch a few mornings a week and I am on a backup list for a lady in the community that does dayhome. Also, as of today I have signed up to be an Educational Consultant with a fabulous company called Discovery Toys. I am very excited about this opportunity and hope to make the most of it.
Life itself is busy righ t now also with the winding down of the hockey season and tournaments as well as various appointments, coffee dates, and an upcoming out of town wedding.
I am feeling ready for spring and revel in the hope the sunny days bring.

Let the Sun Shine in

Wow! What a glorious morning. The sun is beaming in my back windows and making my house glow. The warmth of the sun feels like being wrapped in love. THIS is the way to start a week with a sense of optimisim and renewed energy. I am actively researching oportunities that would allow me to stay home with the children and that makes me feel good.

Time Slips Away

Well, I thought I would be doing better about keeping up with this blogging thing but it seems that stopping to take a few minutes for myself is low on my priority list. I am recommitting to taking a few minutes daily to stop in here and jot a couple of words down.

A short yet busy month ahead

Just finishing putting all the important dates onto my calendar and taking a look at the month ahead. Although it is a short month we have a full schedule with hockey, appointments, a birthday party, our anniversary, valentines day and some other activites that we are looking forward to. I am excited about continuing to work on develping new habbits and making a conscious choice to make this a healthy year for all of us. I am starting to get into the enjoyment of home management and all its challenges. Most of the time I feel like I am just getting things done (and usually just as they need to be) but I have had a glimse of getting on top of things and being prepared ahead of time rather than rushing around last minute and hope to solidify this pattern over the coming weeks. I have my little office space set up and functional now and hope that assists me in being more consistent in journaling here as well as keeping up with the ever increasing flow of paper required to manage our growing family.

Alright, off to finish putting supper together and get everything together for a late hockey game.

Blessings

One thing that I am sure will become evident as this blog grows and you get to know me is that I love to organize things. On that note, today's blessing is especially significant to me. I have been wanting to reorganize my pantry and drygoods but have been lacking the means to do so. All those various shaped and sized bottles and bags drive me crazy. Today I received two armfuls of Tupperware for free! These are the real deal and did not cost me a penny. A family friend is in the process of clearing out her cabinets and storage and was looking to get rid of these along with more so I will be organizing my kitchen until my heart is content over the next little while. Thanks Deb.

On a side note, we have started the process of renovating our upstairs bath, or kids bath as it will soon be. I suppose I really should say re-started as this project first began just after we moved in here 7 months ago and got put on hold due to other priorities for those funds. Regardless, we are ready to go again and are looking for tile to complete the resources we need on hand to finish the project. I did some browsing today and got some ideas. Going to meet up with DH (Dear Husband) tomorrow over lunch and go check out another tile store and maybe even purchase :-) hehe that would make me happy! I can't wait to get the kids out of our master bath, I may even be able to keep it clean without them in there.

I did buy some things today but for the main floor bath. After I did my big cleaning on it this week I redecorated and am motivated to get it painted and updated. That would make two rooms done and many to go. Waiting for DH approval before I switch out the light fixture and faucet then all I need to do is paint and change the door handles. I am putting this on my projects to complete in January list and hope this helps make it come to fruition.

Thankful to be home

Today is one of those days that even though the kitchen counters are piled with dirty dishes and I have more dirty laundry than I can get washed in a day and the house is generally looking tired and worn out (much like I feel) I am glad to be home. I am blessed to be here with my two little girls knowing that I will be the one to greet my son when he comes home from school in a few short hours. The girls are angelic today and I am getting my fill of hugs and loves which makes my heart overflow with joy and peace. There has to be a way of working things out so that I can stay home with these beautiful children.

Just a short post again as I am being told it is lunch time.

Back to it

Today marked back to school for CJ and an attempt for the rest of us to jump back into a new schedule. It still needs working out as KK's routine has changed over the Christmas break and Pixie doesn't always nap in the afternoons. I also have some extra errands that need taking care of this week so need to fit them in somewhere. It is my goal to have a workable plan in place come Monday.

I have been doing alright with my resolutions the working out is easier than the avoiding sweets, lol. Consistently burning those extra calories seems to leave me munchy. Trying my best to make healthy choices but still giving into the sweets left over from the holidays.

I am going to keep making at attempt to jot something down here on a daily basis and hope that I get more consistent.

Happy New Year!

Alright, so consistency is not my strength but I am making a resolution to work on that trait and will be accountable for my progress by daily jotting something down here.

As we greeted the new year, my family sat down around the kitchen table and discussed what our New Year's Resolutions would be. I think that together we worked out some really good goals for the year including fitness, lifestyle, and personal.

It is my intention that this blog will serve as a daily journal for me to track my progress in certain areas and to relate the curiosities of life at home with my three children (CJ, Pixie, & KK).

Alright, at least I have something here for today and hopefully, I will have a few minutes later on to write an actual post.

Blessings!