....for the last couple of days that is LOL! We had surprise sleepovers the last two days. Hailee was having a friend sleepover last night so Hannah called on Wednesday afternoon to ask if she could have a sleepover here last night...alone...by herself....no brother...no sister LOL....with grandpa and I. Silly question, as if we'd say NO to her :)
So as she and I were making arrangements about time, pick up for Friday afternoon, I could hear Cade in the background having a fit saying he wanted to come here too....but remember, Hannah didn't want anyone else with her...she wanted to be here alone....by herself....hehehe! So she started crying and saying she didn't want Cade to come....it went on and on with the two of them LOL!
Mom came on the phone and I told her that we would take Cade on Saturday night...tonight....but he would have none of it. HE had to have his sleepover before Hannah....he had to be "first" in the sleepover department LOL! So I suggested that he stay on Thursday night, and that's how we had our first surprise sleepover with Cade.
Grandpa had to drive grandma into town for a bit of shopping on Thursday....yes, grandma's foot is still too sore and she can't drive anywhere by herself yet...sigh...it really is getting old :( I told mom that we would pick up Cade on our way home from shopping.
We got to all the stores we needed to and as grandpa ran into the grocery store for one last stop for a loaf of bread, I called mom to say we were 10 minutes from picking up Cade. She laughed and said it was a good thing because he'd been asking her all day when grandpa and grandma were coming to get him....hehehe!
Grandpa had to shovel the driveways so he told me to make sure mom packed Cade's snow suit, mitts and everything he needed to keep warm while outside. He was so excited to help grandpa shovel. He just loves being outside whether it's cold or not, and once they were done he had grandpa give him rides in the snow float!
Of course before they went outside he asked if I was going out too but I had to tell him I was getting supper ready....roast beef....Cade's absolute favorite food to eat when he's here. In fact it's all he ate when we were at the inlaw's Christmas dinner last week! All he wanted was grandma's roast beef LOL!
When grandpa and he came inside to eat Cade made sure I had his 'order' ready....roast beef cut up in a bowl with mashed potatoes, gravy and carrots....and it had to be all smashed up. That's just how he loved eating it when he was a baby :) In fact whenever we had roast beef when he was little I always made extra bowls just for Cade and froze them for his next visit. They always went down well :)
Mom didn't want him to have too much sugar after all the "stuff" they ate over the holidays, so we had Cool Whip with fresh berries. A bowl of that went down quite fast too....Cade was teasing grandpa that he would be finished before grandpa...and he was. No surprise to grandma because grandpa isn't much of a fruit man LOL!
It was quite a while since Cade has stayed overnight by himself, even though he does talk a big talk...hehehe! We tried a couple other times to have him alone, but he always ended up wanting to go home. So as much as we were looking forward to him sleeping over, we were quite prepared to have him say he wanted to go home after his bath. So far so good...there was no mention of going home.
Then daddy called to say goodnight. Cade wanted to talk to each and every one to say he loved them and good night....and once again we were sure he would start crying that he wanted to go home. But he didn't....yipeeeee! When it was time for bed he wanted grandpa and I to lay down with him and he was out in a matter of minutes.
I called to let mom and dad know that he was indeed sleeping over...and with no fuss. When mom answered the phone she said when they heard it ring their first thought was "I guess Cade wants to come home", but I fooled them LOL...they were shocked, and happy that he had gone to sleep with no problems and neither of his sisters here :) Hopefully it will be the first of many, many more "alone" sleepovers for Cade :)
Friday, yesterday, it was Hannah's turn to come over. I wasn't sure what she would want to do but it turned out she didn't want to do anything! She loves movies and playing on the laptop, so that's what we did. Oh, and she brought her doll and her doll clothes, which she had to change a few times...and also her ipod touch. She tried her hardest to get grandma to learn how to play a game, but to no avail LOL! She also loves to play the little air hockey game that grandpa bought a couple years ago for Cade...it's just a small table model, but we sure have fun when we play. And, the little stinker likes to "cheat"...I caught her a couple times with her fingers over the hole for her net....hehehe!
Her biggest excitement, and grandpa's too, was having hotdogs for supper....yeah!! They are both hotdogs lovers and don't get them very often, so Hannah really looked forward to supper. The best part...they were going to use the hotdog toaster that grandpa received as his secret santa gift (from mom) at Christmas. He didn't want to use it before this so he and Hannah could enjoy the treat...and enjoy it they did...especially when the weiners bounced right out the toaster as one point...hehehe!
So it was a quiet, relaxing evening with Hannah and us cuddling on the sofa...with the odd tickle here and there. When it was time for bed she took her ipod and I let her play games for a half hour. Then it was lights out and she followed suit a few minutes later, after a back scratch from grandma :)
Both mornings we had pancakes for breakfast....orange for Cade and green for Hannah. Grandpa is always happy to have pancakes when the kids come because grandma makes extra and he gets to snack on them throughout the day LOL!
Ahhhhh what fun and what special memories we can take with us until the next visit! Thanks for coming kids.
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
Saturday, 5 January 2013
Wednesday, 2 January 2013
Oh Where To Begin.....
I have to tell you that grandma is sitting here wondering where the heck that last two weeks have gone.....and to also tell you that it seems much longer than only two weeks since all the holiday craziness began :)
Santa was very good to everyone this year, and with loving family all around, what more could I ask for!
It started on December 23rd with Uncle Warren and Aunt Cindi coming up from southern Ontario, and lots and lots of prepping and cooking to get ready for Christmas Eve with family/friends that we have had year every year for decades.
The girls and Cade were quite excited for Santa to arrive and Cade was super wild while playing with Uncle Warren LOL! The kids don't get to see Uncle Warren very often, so it was nice that it didn't take a day or so for Cade to warm up to him this time.
Grandpa and I had bought them each school desks and chairs like the ones we have here for them. We were wondering who would be the first to ask why their desks/chairs were in the living room on Christmas morning. We finally had to tell them to go clean up their bedroom so they would notice that they still had desks/chairs at our place....so why were there extras in the LRoom? LOL! I think they were in shock to realize that they could take these extra ones home with them :)
Once all the gifts were unwrapped and oohed and ahhhhed over we grabbed some leftovers from the night before to fill our tummies and the gang went home with us following shortly after to see all their new gifts and have Christmas dinner.
I have to tell everyone that my favorite meal is turkey, dressing and all the trimmings. So to go over to the kids and have a delicious turkey dinner is the best gift I can get LOL! Thanks to our DIL's mom and dad for preparing such a great meal. We were almost too full to have any of the desserts that I made, but we managed and left stuffed just like the turkey had been LOL!
Home sweet home to decompress for the evening watching movies with Warren & Cindi, then up early the next day to start cooking a couple big roasts to bring to the Kirwan Christmas dinner that afternoon. I've been bringing sliced beef in gravy for years now and I think I will continue to bring it for years to come :)
It was great visiting with the family that could make it and the kids got to spend time with their little cousins who they don't see often. One little guy was quite taken with the girls and kept saying they were his girlfriends and trying to kiss them....hehehe!
Warren and Cindi left earlier that day for home as Brittney & Austin were coming back from their dad's. So when grandpa and I arrived home it was very quiet, but nice to finally let go and relax.
The next day it was time to clean up and start putting decorations away, not to mention catch up with laundry as I had to pack for the 29th as grandpa and I were heading down to Niagara Falls. Ryan, Angele, the girls and Cade were going to meet us there on the 30th and were were spending New Year's Eve at Great Wolf Lodge. They were coming from Kingston after visiting her brother and his family and dropping off her parents there for a few days.
Grandpa and I had a really nice hotel room at the Falls that night right across from the Casino...with a jacuzzi tub! Ahhhhh the calm before the storm LOL!
The kids had no idea they were going to GWL so it was a big surprise when they pulled up into the parking lot. They also had no idea that grandma and grandpa were going to be there. So when our DIL came into the lobby to find us and we walked out to the van to see everyone, there were looks of shock on their faces. I think it took them a couple hours before realizing where they were LOL!
Seeing as Hailee can read and loves to read street signs now, our DIL said she had to keep dropping things on the van floor whenever she saw a sign/bridge etc that would trigger Hailee's reading abilities and her knowledge of landmarks, so Hailee had to look down to find what mom dropped LOL!
When we first arrived at the Lodge and were waiting for our room to be ready, grandpa and daddy took the kids to explore. Mom and I hung around with the luggage cart enjoying the rest before all the craziness started. A while later the kids came running up to us with magic wands! Yes, grandpa's first foray into the gift shop with them and $169 later, they each had magic wands with lighted creatures to put on the end. All of this so they could go up and down the halls of the Lodge playing a game to open treasure chests and making books talk. it was too cute :)
After a break to have apples and Goldfish our room was finally ready. It didn't take long to sort out beds, luggage and change into our suits.
It was grandpa's first time at GWL so the kids were excited to show him all the things there were to see. Unfortunately, once we were changed into swim suits and down in the waterpark, no one thought to tell Grandpa about the water that people try to drop on you from above...hehehe...and he and Cade came walking up behind us completely drenched. We sure had a good laugh LOL!
Then it was every man/child for themselves. One wanted to go to this water feature, another to another feature, some to the slides...and Hannah and I to her favorite, the wave pool :) And yes, they even talked grandma and grandpa into walking flights of stairs to get to certain slides. My goodness, I never thought I'd go on some of those slides, but I did, and had a great time laughing all the way down.
I was even more surprised when I found out that grandpa went on a couple of slides what I never in a million years thought he would ride. But all it took was Hailee's pleading to make him break LOL!
The kids brought along games for us to enjoy and grandpa and I were initiated into the game of Fibber and one with a wiener dog that you stuff with yellow "poop" and try to pump out the other end after throwing the dice. You wouldn't believe the sound effects from that one LOL!
On the 31st GWL had lots of great activities for the kids to enjoy....balloon hats, bean bag games. painting pillow cases...and everyone won candy regardless of how they did in the games LOL! They handed out white top hats for all the guys to wear and feather tiaras for the ladies to look stylish. Our DIL had chosen a medieval themed banquet for us to attend and once again we left stuffed.
A little after 8:00 we got our winter coats/mitts on and went outside with the rest of the lodge to watch the fireworks the Lodge had prepared. It was wonderful watching the kids faces, even in the freezing temps, while they watched the exploding colors in the sky.
In the morning, New Years Day, we had a light breakfast then grandpa and I loaded up the car with everyone's luggage and started home. The weather was great and so were the roads. The kids decided to get a later check out so they could enjoy the waterpark one last time. Unfortunately they weren't as lucky with the weather/roads and didn't get home until 9:00 last night. What a long day for them.
Our widower neighbor watched Sparkles for us and she was sooooo happy to see me when I went to pick her up. It was the first time we left her with someone and she's been sticking to me like glue since last night LOL! She loves our neighbor, but there's no place like home.
What a great way to end one year and start the next. Oh I wonder what joys this coming year will bring to our little family. There's only one way to find out....get up each morning and enjoy what each day brings :)
xoxoxoxo
Santa was very good to everyone this year, and with loving family all around, what more could I ask for!
It started on December 23rd with Uncle Warren and Aunt Cindi coming up from southern Ontario, and lots and lots of prepping and cooking to get ready for Christmas Eve with family/friends that we have had year every year for decades.
The girls and Cade were quite excited for Santa to arrive and Cade was super wild while playing with Uncle Warren LOL! The kids don't get to see Uncle Warren very often, so it was nice that it didn't take a day or so for Cade to warm up to him this time.
Merry Christmas :)
Our little Hannah ended up spilling something on her outfit so mom put her in the tub, but Hannah couldn't wear her clothes home. So grandma went out to the storage shed to search through all the gifts to find the proverbial "new pjs" that every child gets at Christmas LOL! Of course I should have known that it would trigger a "that's not fair" retort from Hailee...hehehe....so mom and I went back to the shed to look for Hailee's wrapped pjs. We couldn't forget Cade either, so they all went home in new pjs LOL! Too cute!Grandpa and I had bought them each school desks and chairs like the ones we have here for them. We were wondering who would be the first to ask why their desks/chairs were in the living room on Christmas morning. We finally had to tell them to go clean up their bedroom so they would notice that they still had desks/chairs at our place....so why were there extras in the LRoom? LOL! I think they were in shock to realize that they could take these extra ones home with them :)
Once all the gifts were unwrapped and oohed and ahhhhed over we grabbed some leftovers from the night before to fill our tummies and the gang went home with us following shortly after to see all their new gifts and have Christmas dinner.
I have to tell everyone that my favorite meal is turkey, dressing and all the trimmings. So to go over to the kids and have a delicious turkey dinner is the best gift I can get LOL! Thanks to our DIL's mom and dad for preparing such a great meal. We were almost too full to have any of the desserts that I made, but we managed and left stuffed just like the turkey had been LOL!
Home sweet home to decompress for the evening watching movies with Warren & Cindi, then up early the next day to start cooking a couple big roasts to bring to the Kirwan Christmas dinner that afternoon. I've been bringing sliced beef in gravy for years now and I think I will continue to bring it for years to come :)
It was great visiting with the family that could make it and the kids got to spend time with their little cousins who they don't see often. One little guy was quite taken with the girls and kept saying they were his girlfriends and trying to kiss them....hehehe!
Warren and Cindi left earlier that day for home as Brittney & Austin were coming back from their dad's. So when grandpa and I arrived home it was very quiet, but nice to finally let go and relax.
The next day it was time to clean up and start putting decorations away, not to mention catch up with laundry as I had to pack for the 29th as grandpa and I were heading down to Niagara Falls. Ryan, Angele, the girls and Cade were going to meet us there on the 30th and were were spending New Year's Eve at Great Wolf Lodge. They were coming from Kingston after visiting her brother and his family and dropping off her parents there for a few days.
Grandpa and I had a really nice hotel room at the Falls that night right across from the Casino...with a jacuzzi tub! Ahhhhh the calm before the storm LOL!
And guess what's behind those shutter doors?
The jacuzzi tub of course!
Seeing as Hailee can read and loves to read street signs now, our DIL said she had to keep dropping things on the van floor whenever she saw a sign/bridge etc that would trigger Hailee's reading abilities and her knowledge of landmarks, so Hailee had to look down to find what mom dropped LOL!
Waiting for mom and dad to check in :)
After a break to have apples and Goldfish our room was finally ready. It didn't take long to sort out beds, luggage and change into our suits.
It was grandpa's first time at GWL so the kids were excited to show him all the things there were to see. Unfortunately, once we were changed into swim suits and down in the waterpark, no one thought to tell Grandpa about the water that people try to drop on you from above...hehehe...and he and Cade came walking up behind us completely drenched. We sure had a good laugh LOL!
Then it was every man/child for themselves. One wanted to go to this water feature, another to another feature, some to the slides...and Hannah and I to her favorite, the wave pool :) And yes, they even talked grandma and grandpa into walking flights of stairs to get to certain slides. My goodness, I never thought I'd go on some of those slides, but I did, and had a great time laughing all the way down.
Hailee, Mom and Grandpa coming down a ride!
The kids brought along games for us to enjoy and grandpa and I were initiated into the game of Fibber and one with a wiener dog that you stuff with yellow "poop" and try to pump out the other end after throwing the dice. You wouldn't believe the sound effects from that one LOL!
Hehehe...Hannah trying to see what the pup's problem
was. Poor thing was "constipated" and the yellow poop
wouldn't come out LOL!
Our DIL had booked a loft room for all of us....it sleeps 8 people! The word "loft" should tell you all you need to know LOL! It was ripe for throwing things to the beds down below. And who was on one of those beds? Hannah and grandma. Daddy started it with throwing a soap wrapper down to us....then the clothes continued as well as hand towels and even a pillow at one point LOL!
Grandma rolling up a hand towel for Hannah
to try throwing back up to the loft LOL!
Hannah and I were not going to be outdone. We got on the bed and started throwing everything back up to daddy. Mind you, it was harder to toss everything back up to the loft than it was for daddy to throw things down to us, but we sure had fun LOL!
Hailee and grandpa getting ready to play
Fibber!
Happy New Year Everyone!
Daddy and Cade watching the fireworks.
When we got back to the room the kids got their pjs on and we headed back down to the lobby for the NYE celebrations....balloon drop, music, singing, dancing, punch, noise makers, it was all there for the 10:00 ballon drop.
Get ready...here come the balloons.
Hannah was on my shoulders and you can see her left hand
trying to catch a balloon.
We managed to get a great spot under the balloons on the ceiling and when the count down was ready to start, the kids got on our shoulders to make sure they were able to grab a balloon or two :) Once all was said and done the kids were tired, cranky and we were all happy to get back to our room for the night. 
Having our own balloon drop
back in the room LOL!
Our widower neighbor watched Sparkles for us and she was sooooo happy to see me when I went to pick her up. It was the first time we left her with someone and she's been sticking to me like glue since last night LOL! She loves our neighbor, but there's no place like home.
What a great way to end one year and start the next. Oh I wonder what joys this coming year will bring to our little family. There's only one way to find out....get up each morning and enjoy what each day brings :)
The saddest and funniest thing of the evening was after
mom set the camera to take this pic of us all.
Cade wanted to take a picture with his ipod and tried to
set it up the same way mom did. We tried to explain
that his ipod touch doesn't work like mom's camera
does. We didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He
was so determined to do it :)
Grandma loves youxoxoxoxo
Tuesday, 18 December 2012
Is it Christmas yet?
Wow, this grandma doesn't know where the time has gone the last few weeks, but it's hard to believe that a week from today, Christmas Day will be coming to an end! On a brighter note at least we didn't miss it LOL!
I won't bore you with the details, but between this darn foot of mine (yes, it's still causing me grief...but I'm going for an MRI on Dec 23, 11pm), a bout of bronchitis, a couple days with the flu and numerous trips to Toronto, Niagara Falls etc, the big day has slowly been creeping up to me!
Thankfully all the gifts have been bought and wrapped, and I'm not worrying about doing any baking this year. We don't need it and don't want it hanging around the house. We have managed to keep up with some traditions however, and that's much more important :)
A couple weeks ago, as I was starting to recover from the bronchitis, grandpa and I took the kids after school for a few hours on a Friday and we delved into a new craft. Dough ornaments! Yup, we took the leap and with everyone's hands in the mix we came up with a few different colors....3 shades of red/pink green and Cade's favorite, orange....hehehe!
The following day it was Gingerbread House and Gingerbread Train day! They did such a great job that grandpa told them he was going to get each of them a house to decorate by themselves next Christmas! They sure were excited about that little tidbit....hehehe!
Unfortunately we couldn't keep them overnight either night because I was still trying to recover from all that coughing I had been doing, and by the time grandpa left to bring them home, I was ready to crawl into bed LOL!
This past weekend, on our way home from a conference in the Falls, we stopped at our middle son's home to celebrate an early Christmas with he, his wonderful wife and our two step grandkids. The kids are spending this Christmas with their dad, so they won't be here to celebrate with us.
Friday night we took them out to a favorite Japanese restaurant....can we say stuffed?? LOL! Oh my, that food is good....too good. Thankfully we don't have one of those restaurants near us....hehehe!
Over dinner we debated back and forth as to just when we should open gifts. Worse than a little kid, I was all for opening them as soon as we got back from supper. The other adults all voted for the following night...both kids wanted that night just like me. Sooooo we got our way LOL!
Brittney received her digital camera from us....she's in a student exchange program and will be heading to Germany in the spring, so needed a better camera for all that travelling. We bought Austin a new lense for his new hobby, photography. He has a really good camera but had been wanting this new lense. Along with a bunch of other goodies, they made out pretty good LOL! It sure will be a lot quieter this Christmas morning without them here though.
Grandpa and I received a GPS! Holy smokes. Now grandpa has two women in the car telling him where to go and how to go there LOL!
Yesterday the girls and Cade came over for a visit with mom and dad. I had been baking bacon to get it ready for the freezer for Christmas breakfast, but they all got into it and Grandpa had to go to the store to buy a few more pounds LOL! I must admit, it really was yummy :)
So, as we count down the final days leading up to the 25th, my list doesn't seem to be getting any shorter as I try to precook foods, or at least get them partially ready. But, as with every year, everything gets done, everyone has a great time and everyone leaves stuffed on Christmas Eve. What more can we ask for :)
So probably until next week, have a wonderful Christmas everyone and please realize just how blessed you are :)
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
I won't bore you with the details, but between this darn foot of mine (yes, it's still causing me grief...but I'm going for an MRI on Dec 23, 11pm), a bout of bronchitis, a couple days with the flu and numerous trips to Toronto, Niagara Falls etc, the big day has slowly been creeping up to me!
Thankfully all the gifts have been bought and wrapped, and I'm not worrying about doing any baking this year. We don't need it and don't want it hanging around the house. We have managed to keep up with some traditions however, and that's much more important :)
A couple weeks ago, as I was starting to recover from the bronchitis, grandpa and I took the kids after school for a few hours on a Friday and we delved into a new craft. Dough ornaments! Yup, we took the leap and with everyone's hands in the mix we came up with a few different colors....3 shades of red/pink green and Cade's favorite, orange....hehehe!
Getting the dough ready :)
Notice little brother is nowhere to be seen LOL!
He said he was not going to get his hands sticky...hehehe!
What fun we had...kneading, rolling, cutting with cookie cutters, coming up with different ideas as to how to decorate each ornament :) I must admit the recipe made a really great playdough...much better than the bought kind...and I think grandma is going to make a batch the next time the kids feel like playing with dough :)
Mixing in their colors!
Their little creative minds took hold and before long we had two cookie sheets covered with beautiful Christmas ornaments. They were a wee bit 'thicker' than they should have been by the time they added all the extra dough balls, ropes etc, and after baking for 4 hours in a low oven, it took an extra week to dry completely LOL! We still have to add some Mod Podge and sparkles to them, but that's what we have planned for this coming Friday when we have them again :)
Baking...baking....baking.....
The following day it was Gingerbread House and Gingerbread Train day! They did such a great job that grandpa told them he was going to get each of them a house to decorate by themselves next Christmas! They sure were excited about that little tidbit....hehehe!
Grandpa did a wonderful job with the icing. I think
he's been watching grandma doing all those cakes over the decades LOL!
This past weekend, on our way home from a conference in the Falls, we stopped at our middle son's home to celebrate an early Christmas with he, his wonderful wife and our two step grandkids. The kids are spending this Christmas with their dad, so they won't be here to celebrate with us.
Friday night we took them out to a favorite Japanese restaurant....can we say stuffed?? LOL! Oh my, that food is good....too good. Thankfully we don't have one of those restaurants near us....hehehe!
Over dinner we debated back and forth as to just when we should open gifts. Worse than a little kid, I was all for opening them as soon as we got back from supper. The other adults all voted for the following night...both kids wanted that night just like me. Sooooo we got our way LOL!
Grandpa and I received a GPS! Holy smokes. Now grandpa has two women in the car telling him where to go and how to go there LOL!
Yesterday the girls and Cade came over for a visit with mom and dad. I had been baking bacon to get it ready for the freezer for Christmas breakfast, but they all got into it and Grandpa had to go to the store to buy a few more pounds LOL! I must admit, it really was yummy :)
So, as we count down the final days leading up to the 25th, my list doesn't seem to be getting any shorter as I try to precook foods, or at least get them partially ready. But, as with every year, everything gets done, everyone has a great time and everyone leaves stuffed on Christmas Eve. What more can we ask for :)
So probably until next week, have a wonderful Christmas everyone and please realize just how blessed you are :)
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
Monday, 3 December 2012
Happy Tears :)
You know how some days are just your regular days with normal routines, see the same people, shop the same shops? Well, this past weekend was anything but regular.
Our youngest son, his wife and our two youngest grandkids came up for a visit. Their very first visit here. Long story...won't bore you with the details...but it's been a long time coming to this point.
They came here Friday evening for supper and we had a couple hours to enjoy the grandkids before they headed back to the hotel, then on Saturday we all went to grandpa's parents for another family supper. We were lucky enough that our oldest son, his wife, the girls and Cade were able to come for a couple hours too....as well as one of grandpa's sisters, Aunt Carole, and her GD Dakota.
Such a special time for great grandma and grandpa to see their great grandkids playing together and getting to know each other. Great grandpa has lung cancer....he's doing very well...but at 87 years of age, who knows if he will ever get the chance to see his great grandkids together again. So yes, it was a special time.
We had a great time and hope it can happen again...soon!
Not too many days before the big guy gets here. Hope everyone is as excited as this grandma and grandpa are LOL!
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
Our youngest son, his wife and our two youngest grandkids came up for a visit. Their very first visit here. Long story...won't bore you with the details...but it's been a long time coming to this point.
They came here Friday evening for supper and we had a couple hours to enjoy the grandkids before they headed back to the hotel, then on Saturday we all went to grandpa's parents for another family supper. We were lucky enough that our oldest son, his wife, the girls and Cade were able to come for a couple hours too....as well as one of grandpa's sisters, Aunt Carole, and her GD Dakota.
Four generations!
We had a great time and hope it can happen again...soon!
Not too many days before the big guy gets here. Hope everyone is as excited as this grandma and grandpa are LOL!
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
Monday, 26 November 2012
Where has it gone?
The last few weeks I mean. Where has it all gone? We're less than a month away from the BIG day, and panic is starting to set in.
I must admit that I've decided there are some things that just will not get done for this Christmas. Mainly, baking. Nope. Don't need it, no one else needs it or wants it and the last few months of being laid up with my darn foot, has made it impossible to stand and actually bake for more than a few minutes at a time. It's hard enough to keep my weight stable while not being able to walk, exercise, swim.
Sooooooo...we'll be much "lighter" come January 1st next year....hehehe. That's my story and I'm sticking to it :)
Grandpa and I have been away a lot the last few weeks also....3-4 days each week. So it takes me until the next business to gain some energy back....vicious cycle....but I do love to stay in hotels, even if I still have to keep my feet up :)
This past Saturday GD Hailee was going to the movies with a friend, mom and dad had been invited out for dinner, so Hannah and Cade were bugging mom to bring them here for a visit. We're not used to going for a week at a time without seeing any of the grandkids, so grandpa and I needed our fix as well :)
There are the usual 'things' that need doing when they come in....especially at this time of year with their Christmas decorations just waiting to be moved around and played with. Not to mention taking the photo ornaments off our Family Tree so they could be photocopied....who knows why, they just love doing it LOL!
Cade came out of the bedroom/playroom at one point and said "we going to Pizza Hut for supper Mama".....I guess he and Hannah had discussed this matter, and he was voted to come tell me LOL! When the time came to head out the door I used my grandmother's wisdom and told them they had to pee before we went or we wouldn't be able to go.
Cade was having none of it. He said he didn't have to go and if he did he could go at the restaurant. Well...here comes the wisdom part....I told him that he didn't want to do that because restaurant washrooms are dirty. Remember that :)
He did close the bathroom door and came back out a couple minutes later with his pants all crooked, so I'm assuming he did try. Hands washed, coats/hats/boots on we headed out to Pizza Hut.
In their discussions they must have decided that we would go to the local ice cream shop for dessert, but as luck had it at this time of year....brrrrrrrr.....the little shop was closed. The next best thing would be Dairy Queen which is right along the way home.
Sundaes ordered, lots of napkins on the table, everyone getting a taste of everyone else's sundaes and there was happiness :) About halfway through my Sundae I had to get up and headed to the little girl's room. About 15' from the table I could hear Cade yell out something, but I didn't quite catch what he said. I looked back and grandpa and Hannah were laughing their heads off.
Yup....remember what I wrote above about not using restaurant washrooms? Well.....when I got back to the table I asked what Cade had said to get them laughing and grandpa told me that after I said I was going to the washroom, Cade decided to yell at me "the washrooms here are dirty Mama" LOL!
Thank goodness the place wasn't busy and one of the girls that works there who was having something to eat just a couple tables from us, had her ipod earphones in, so I'm hoping she hadn't heard Cade....hehehe!
Yup....grandma's wisdom and out of the mouths of babes! Sometimes these two things do not go together :)
The gang is coming over on Thursday for supper....we had to make a date because everyone is so busy all the time. So this grandma is going back to gift wrapping. See you guys in a few days.
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
I must admit that I've decided there are some things that just will not get done for this Christmas. Mainly, baking. Nope. Don't need it, no one else needs it or wants it and the last few months of being laid up with my darn foot, has made it impossible to stand and actually bake for more than a few minutes at a time. It's hard enough to keep my weight stable while not being able to walk, exercise, swim.
Sooooooo...we'll be much "lighter" come January 1st next year....hehehe. That's my story and I'm sticking to it :)
Grandpa and I have been away a lot the last few weeks also....3-4 days each week. So it takes me until the next business to gain some energy back....vicious cycle....but I do love to stay in hotels, even if I still have to keep my feet up :)
This past Saturday GD Hailee was going to the movies with a friend, mom and dad had been invited out for dinner, so Hannah and Cade were bugging mom to bring them here for a visit. We're not used to going for a week at a time without seeing any of the grandkids, so grandpa and I needed our fix as well :)
There are the usual 'things' that need doing when they come in....especially at this time of year with their Christmas decorations just waiting to be moved around and played with. Not to mention taking the photo ornaments off our Family Tree so they could be photocopied....who knows why, they just love doing it LOL!
Cade came out of the bedroom/playroom at one point and said "we going to Pizza Hut for supper Mama".....I guess he and Hannah had discussed this matter, and he was voted to come tell me LOL! When the time came to head out the door I used my grandmother's wisdom and told them they had to pee before we went or we wouldn't be able to go.
Cade was having none of it. He said he didn't have to go and if he did he could go at the restaurant. Well...here comes the wisdom part....I told him that he didn't want to do that because restaurant washrooms are dirty. Remember that :)
He did close the bathroom door and came back out a couple minutes later with his pants all crooked, so I'm assuming he did try. Hands washed, coats/hats/boots on we headed out to Pizza Hut.
In their discussions they must have decided that we would go to the local ice cream shop for dessert, but as luck had it at this time of year....brrrrrrrr.....the little shop was closed. The next best thing would be Dairy Queen which is right along the way home.
Sundaes ordered, lots of napkins on the table, everyone getting a taste of everyone else's sundaes and there was happiness :) About halfway through my Sundae I had to get up and headed to the little girl's room. About 15' from the table I could hear Cade yell out something, but I didn't quite catch what he said. I looked back and grandpa and Hannah were laughing their heads off.
Yup....remember what I wrote above about not using restaurant washrooms? Well.....when I got back to the table I asked what Cade had said to get them laughing and grandpa told me that after I said I was going to the washroom, Cade decided to yell at me "the washrooms here are dirty Mama" LOL!
Thank goodness the place wasn't busy and one of the girls that works there who was having something to eat just a couple tables from us, had her ipod earphones in, so I'm hoping she hadn't heard Cade....hehehe!
Yup....grandma's wisdom and out of the mouths of babes! Sometimes these two things do not go together :)
The gang is coming over on Thursday for supper....we had to make a date because everyone is so busy all the time. So this grandma is going back to gift wrapping. See you guys in a few days.
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
Sunday, 4 November 2012
Ring, ring, ring.....
Yup...that was the ever familiar sound of the phone yesterday morning when our DIL called to see if we were busy :) Hailee has two dance classes on Saturday morning and the whole gang was going to go in and then do some shopping. Well, little sister Hannah and little brother Cade did not want to go....so what's the next best thing....hehehe...call grandma and grandpa to see if they could come over :)
They were dropped off around 10:30 and the fun began. I was wondering how to keep them busy when it dawned on me...they could help grandma decorate for Christmas!! And that's what we did. Two excited kids hurrying down the stairs, with grandma following, to the secret room under the stairs (sorry, no Harry Potter living under my stairs LOL).
The boxes kept coming and coming and coming....calling for grandpa to help carry the heavy ones upstairs to the living room....huffing and puffing as Cade would help grandpa by holding one end of each box as he backed up the stairs...hehehe....and Hannah proudly showing me how she could carry one all by herself because "it's not heavy grandma...I can do it by myself." And she did! Great job guys :)
Of course their little minds are like an elephants...they never forget LOL! So that means they knew exactly what they were looking for when it came to decorations. "Grandma, remember this....grandma remember that?" And so it began. Tops flew off the boxes and the search started for the Santa that climbs up the ladder. They had the ladder but where was that darn Santa grandma?? LOL
As another top flew off a box, and another, and another, all in search of that Santa, the living room began looking like a Christmas bomb exploded....hehehe! Grandma tried to 'control' the number of decorations that were being put here, there and everywhere....when their attention would focus on something else they saw in another box.
Then pay dirt! They found the box containing 'their' decorations. Yes, the box of all boxes....the holy grail. Their decorations....little nativity people, lots of musical decorations with those little people that "skate" on the mirrored surfaces, the two story Christmas house whose front opened to music, lights and little things turning in circles inside.....it was all there. But where can we put them? The little white cupboard that is home to these decorations at Christmas time was nowhere in sight. Grandpa came to the rescue...yipeeee! He knew exactly where it was. All was well with the world again :)
As soon as it was set up, Hannah started organizing...her favorite thing to do LOL...and they were all in place within a few minutes. Of course the 6 or so musical decorations that Cade had on the ottoman weren't enough and he let us know after seeing Hannah's set up...."I don't have any decorations" was his battle cry as he made a move to the white cupboard....hehehe! Luckily we stopped him in his tracks and the focus was back on Santa....remember? The Santa that climbs up that red ladder...hehehe!
Back downstairs for another box and sure enough, there he was. Santa, just laying on the top of the decorations when we took the top off. Hurry up grandma and get him on the ladder. Cade being a boy, knew all there was to know about hanging the lights up with Santa and turning the button on the attached sleigh to magically send Santa on his way up the ladder, and back down again.
So the fun continued and I told both kids that we wouldn't open any more boxes right then. We did have to leave some for big sister Hailee after all :) Plus, next Sunday will be tree decorating time when all 3 kids do our main tree...yeah!
What's that? The phone was ringing again. It was mom. She wanted to know if grandpa and I would like to go to the movies with all of you. Grandma's back has been bothering her the last week or so and there's no way I could sit for a couple hours in a movie theatre. So the next best thing, grandpa was going to drive Hannah and Cade to the edge of town to meet daddy while mom and Hailee finishe shopping at Costco.
Well...Cade decided he didn't want to go to the movie....no way was he going to be talked into it either. He was determined to stay here with grandma, and grandpa when he got back home from dropping off Hannah. So that's what he did. After a couple bowls of roast beef, mashed potatoes, gravy and carrots, we went to lay down on our big bed....grandma was hoping he would fall asleep as he'd been yawning a lot, but he didn't. We watched tv until grandpa came back.
They played for a bit and then Cade wanted more beef again...hehehe! Only difference being, after this bowl, he laid on the couch saying he was really tired, and within seconds he was out cold :) Mom and dad called after the movie saying daddy would drop the 'girls' at home then come here to get Cade.
Cade was not happy....hehehe...he wanted grandpa to drive him home, and he started pouting when we said that daddy was coming to pick him up. As normal, the grandkids rule the roost, and Cade got his way. Grandma called daddy to tell him to stay home....grandpa was on his way LOL!
So, another surprise visit, and a productive one as well. Thanks for helping with the decorations guys! There will be more to come next weekend.
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
They were dropped off around 10:30 and the fun began. I was wondering how to keep them busy when it dawned on me...they could help grandma decorate for Christmas!! And that's what we did. Two excited kids hurrying down the stairs, with grandma following, to the secret room under the stairs (sorry, no Harry Potter living under my stairs LOL).
The boxes kept coming and coming and coming....calling for grandpa to help carry the heavy ones upstairs to the living room....huffing and puffing as Cade would help grandpa by holding one end of each box as he backed up the stairs...hehehe....and Hannah proudly showing me how she could carry one all by herself because "it's not heavy grandma...I can do it by myself." And she did! Great job guys :)
Of course their little minds are like an elephants...they never forget LOL! So that means they knew exactly what they were looking for when it came to decorations. "Grandma, remember this....grandma remember that?" And so it began. Tops flew off the boxes and the search started for the Santa that climbs up the ladder. They had the ladder but where was that darn Santa grandma?? LOL
As another top flew off a box, and another, and another, all in search of that Santa, the living room began looking like a Christmas bomb exploded....hehehe! Grandma tried to 'control' the number of decorations that were being put here, there and everywhere....when their attention would focus on something else they saw in another box.
Then pay dirt! They found the box containing 'their' decorations. Yes, the box of all boxes....the holy grail. Their decorations....little nativity people, lots of musical decorations with those little people that "skate" on the mirrored surfaces, the two story Christmas house whose front opened to music, lights and little things turning in circles inside.....it was all there. But where can we put them? The little white cupboard that is home to these decorations at Christmas time was nowhere in sight. Grandpa came to the rescue...yipeeee! He knew exactly where it was. All was well with the world again :)
As soon as it was set up, Hannah started organizing...her favorite thing to do LOL...and they were all in place within a few minutes. Of course the 6 or so musical decorations that Cade had on the ottoman weren't enough and he let us know after seeing Hannah's set up...."I don't have any decorations" was his battle cry as he made a move to the white cupboard....hehehe! Luckily we stopped him in his tracks and the focus was back on Santa....remember? The Santa that climbs up that red ladder...hehehe!
Back downstairs for another box and sure enough, there he was. Santa, just laying on the top of the decorations when we took the top off. Hurry up grandma and get him on the ladder. Cade being a boy, knew all there was to know about hanging the lights up with Santa and turning the button on the attached sleigh to magically send Santa on his way up the ladder, and back down again.
So the fun continued and I told both kids that we wouldn't open any more boxes right then. We did have to leave some for big sister Hailee after all :) Plus, next Sunday will be tree decorating time when all 3 kids do our main tree...yeah!
What's that? The phone was ringing again. It was mom. She wanted to know if grandpa and I would like to go to the movies with all of you. Grandma's back has been bothering her the last week or so and there's no way I could sit for a couple hours in a movie theatre. So the next best thing, grandpa was going to drive Hannah and Cade to the edge of town to meet daddy while mom and Hailee finishe shopping at Costco.
Well...Cade decided he didn't want to go to the movie....no way was he going to be talked into it either. He was determined to stay here with grandma, and grandpa when he got back home from dropping off Hannah. So that's what he did. After a couple bowls of roast beef, mashed potatoes, gravy and carrots, we went to lay down on our big bed....grandma was hoping he would fall asleep as he'd been yawning a lot, but he didn't. We watched tv until grandpa came back.
They played for a bit and then Cade wanted more beef again...hehehe! Only difference being, after this bowl, he laid on the couch saying he was really tired, and within seconds he was out cold :) Mom and dad called after the movie saying daddy would drop the 'girls' at home then come here to get Cade.
Cade was not happy....hehehe...he wanted grandpa to drive him home, and he started pouting when we said that daddy was coming to pick him up. As normal, the grandkids rule the roost, and Cade got his way. Grandma called daddy to tell him to stay home....grandpa was on his way LOL!
So, another surprise visit, and a productive one as well. Thanks for helping with the decorations guys! There will be more to come next weekend.
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
Thursday, 1 November 2012
Booooooooo......
Yes, it's that time of year again where not only do the ghosts and goblins make an eerie appearance at our doors, but so do the frankensteins, princesses, clowns, firefighters and everything else that we can think of, follow in pursuit of the goodies which people hand out on all Hallow's Eve :)
I have to admit with the weather we've been having from the remnants of Hurricane Sandy, grandpa and I weren't sure if we should even put any effort into decorating the driveway this year. When the rain seemed to stop around 1:00 yesterday afternoon we decided to make a start to see if we'd get rained on. Surely once we started bringing everything out of the garage, if it were going to rain on us this Halloween, then that would be the time, right? LOL! Wrong!
Grandma can't say it was a nice day, but at least the rain, snow and very strong winds held off for a few hours. A couple hours later, grandpa and I were done with the driveway, and even though it didn't extend all the way down the driveway as I've been known to do...hehehe...it still looked great! Yes indeed, this grandma couldn't disappoint the neighborhood kids....this had to be done LOL!
The only thing we weren't too impressed with was the temperature. It was c-c-cold this year. In all my 61 years I can't remember it being that cold....brrrrrrr...on a Halloween night. Even the ever loved fog machine was having a hard time staying warm enough to spit out the fog. It's actually a good thing that there weren't as many kids as we had hoped for, because it gave the fog machine some time inbetween to get warmed up :) Grandma even wrapped it in a towel to help it warm up quicker LOL!
Having prepared for over 70+ treaters, and only getting 37, there is a lot of goodies left...all bagged up and nowhere to go. Well, nowhere to go except in a big trash bag and into the big freezer downstairs. Now I'm not saying it will all make it until next halloween....I mean that's a whole year away you know....and a girl (guy) sometimes need a little something sweet/salty to nible on, right? LOL! At least all those calories are not sitting on the kitchen table where access was way too easy for us, and there will have to be a really good excuse to walk downstairs to the freezer to open that trash bag and root around for what we want and risk breaking a tooth on the frozen treasures :)
Grandma came inside just before 7:30 to warm up, and the phone rang. Perfect timing :) It was Ryan....he was asking if we still planned on coming over to see the kids. I suggested we wait until today to head over as it was getting late and the kids were tired. When he asked the kids there was a unanimous 'noooooo'.....they wanted us there then...well, at least they wanted the goodies they know grandma always buys for halloween...hehehe!
I went outside to tell grandpa that we were heading over to see the kids, and we did something we have NEVER done before in our lives....we left all the decorations, lights, and two big bowls of goodies all set up! The question in both our minds was "will everything be okay, and will one kid come along and take all the goodies?" LOL!
We were pleasantly surprised when we pulled back into our driveway about an hour later. Everything was still where we left it, and the big bowls of goodies had a little less in them, but just a little. Whomever came along while we weren't home only took what they expected to be given, and left the rest for anyone coming behind.
With a sigh of relief I started to think why we had such distrust in the neighborhood kids. Is it because we only hear bad stories on the news about young people these days? Whatever the reason, we were very happy the our neighborhood seems to still be "okay" :)
We started taking the decorations down and a teen girl came up the driveway but was going to turn around and leave when she saw us dismantling everything. Grandpa told her to come back and gave her a bag of candies...and she was the one who was pleasantly surprised.
I do have to say that when we drove over to the kids we were quite surprised ourselves at just how few people even had pumpkins outside to welcome the wee ones to their door. Even on our own street there were very few lights on, and even those that were on had no decorations at their door. Maybe it's just the kid in me....hehehe....I love to see the reaction of the kids when they walk through the lights and fog. And even more surprising, there was only one young boy who was afraid to walk up the driveway this year. The poor kid didn't think he would get any candy and was surprised when grandpa told him to wait while he brought him a bag of candy and a bag of chips.
All in all it was an uneventful Halloween....thankfully....with the bright spot of the evening being spending a bit of time with the Girls and Cade :)
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
I have to admit with the weather we've been having from the remnants of Hurricane Sandy, grandpa and I weren't sure if we should even put any effort into decorating the driveway this year. When the rain seemed to stop around 1:00 yesterday afternoon we decided to make a start to see if we'd get rained on. Surely once we started bringing everything out of the garage, if it were going to rain on us this Halloween, then that would be the time, right? LOL! Wrong!
Grandma can't say it was a nice day, but at least the rain, snow and very strong winds held off for a few hours. A couple hours later, grandpa and I were done with the driveway, and even though it didn't extend all the way down the driveway as I've been known to do...hehehe...it still looked great! Yes indeed, this grandma couldn't disappoint the neighborhood kids....this had to be done LOL!
The only thing we weren't too impressed with was the temperature. It was c-c-cold this year. In all my 61 years I can't remember it being that cold....brrrrrrr...on a Halloween night. Even the ever loved fog machine was having a hard time staying warm enough to spit out the fog. It's actually a good thing that there weren't as many kids as we had hoped for, because it gave the fog machine some time inbetween to get warmed up :) Grandma even wrapped it in a towel to help it warm up quicker LOL!
Having prepared for over 70+ treaters, and only getting 37, there is a lot of goodies left...all bagged up and nowhere to go. Well, nowhere to go except in a big trash bag and into the big freezer downstairs. Now I'm not saying it will all make it until next halloween....I mean that's a whole year away you know....and a girl (guy) sometimes need a little something sweet/salty to nible on, right? LOL! At least all those calories are not sitting on the kitchen table where access was way too easy for us, and there will have to be a really good excuse to walk downstairs to the freezer to open that trash bag and root around for what we want and risk breaking a tooth on the frozen treasures :)
Grandma came inside just before 7:30 to warm up, and the phone rang. Perfect timing :) It was Ryan....he was asking if we still planned on coming over to see the kids. I suggested we wait until today to head over as it was getting late and the kids were tired. When he asked the kids there was a unanimous 'noooooo'.....they wanted us there then...well, at least they wanted the goodies they know grandma always buys for halloween...hehehe!
I went outside to tell grandpa that we were heading over to see the kids, and we did something we have NEVER done before in our lives....we left all the decorations, lights, and two big bowls of goodies all set up! The question in both our minds was "will everything be okay, and will one kid come along and take all the goodies?" LOL!
We were pleasantly surprised when we pulled back into our driveway about an hour later. Everything was still where we left it, and the big bowls of goodies had a little less in them, but just a little. Whomever came along while we weren't home only took what they expected to be given, and left the rest for anyone coming behind.
With a sigh of relief I started to think why we had such distrust in the neighborhood kids. Is it because we only hear bad stories on the news about young people these days? Whatever the reason, we were very happy the our neighborhood seems to still be "okay" :)
We started taking the decorations down and a teen girl came up the driveway but was going to turn around and leave when she saw us dismantling everything. Grandpa told her to come back and gave her a bag of candies...and she was the one who was pleasantly surprised.
I do have to say that when we drove over to the kids we were quite surprised ourselves at just how few people even had pumpkins outside to welcome the wee ones to their door. Even on our own street there were very few lights on, and even those that were on had no decorations at their door. Maybe it's just the kid in me....hehehe....I love to see the reaction of the kids when they walk through the lights and fog. And even more surprising, there was only one young boy who was afraid to walk up the driveway this year. The poor kid didn't think he would get any candy and was surprised when grandpa told him to wait while he brought him a bag of candy and a bag of chips.
All in all it was an uneventful Halloween....thankfully....with the bright spot of the evening being spending a bit of time with the Girls and Cade :)
Grandma loves you
xoxoxoxo
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)