mmmm lunch

We had an amazing afternoon visiting with our "old" friends (you had to be here to get that joke...hahaha) over a really nice meal if I can toot my own horn. I made shepherd's pie (at Mike's request), had a nummy salad and fresh veggies. For desert we had cookies that Evelyn made with her Nana and proudly shared with the table handing one to everyone and my favorite fro yo from Sobe's...mmmmm delish! We have really been involving Evelyn in our food choices lately. I read an article in Rachel Ray recently that really resounded with me. It essentially stated that a large reason why children are obese in today's society is because they have no relationship with their food. So many foods are prepackaged, everything is bought at a store. People do not go to markets or farms much any more. Children basically have no idea where the food they are eating comes from. We have always attempted to make/prepare most of our meals and we do love the farmer's market on a Saturday afternoon but I realize I have not really involved Evelyn in the choices of what we buy and what we eat. So for the last month or so we have been letting her decide on our fruits and veggies and fill them into the bags. Since we have a short season for markets we have been taking advantage of the locally grown produce section at our Sobe's as of late. The taste of the carrots especially is my favorite. I love the smell of the dirt and pulling the green plants (as Ev calls them) off the top. Evelyn really enjoys grocery shopping now and seems to take great pleasure in picking which colors of fruits and veggies we buy and loading everything into the cart. When cooking we let her stir and shake seasonings into the pot. She has even started using the beaters :) Today I realized as Evelyn was excitedly sharing her cookies with our company that our efforts to involve her in the meal process is really having an impact. She was so proud to tell us all the she made them. She is so proud to fill the cart and tell us about her favorite foods. We definitely have a little foodie on our hands. Maybe she will grow up to be a chef...

Fab Fridays!

Millarville Christmas Market....

I am so excited the Christmas Markets are upon us. I look forward to the Millarville Market every year. There is a woman there that make the most adorable knit caps. Every year we get one for Evelyn from her. I can hardly wait to pick one out again this year. The market features delicious baking, seasonal decoration and local farm products. Take a free hayride, check out Santa's workshop and try out the pony rides.

Admission is $5.00. Runs November 5 - 7

http://www.millarvilleracetrack.com/christmas/index.html

Fab Fridays!

I am in love with the new Zinnia print by Dwell Studios. I am actually considering having another child just so I could put this bedding in the nursery....well, maybe I won't go that far ;)

http://www.dwellstudio.com/designer-baby-boutique/nursery-bedding/zinnia-rose-crib-set.html

Haiti Update

If you haven't heard yet, Mike is going to Haiti in January. He will be there for just over a week with a construction and medical team from our church. Mike will be on the construction team. He will be putting the trusses and roof on a church. In countries like Haiti, churches are so much more than a place to worship. Mike will be putting the roof on a building that will sometimes give shelter, sometimes be a school, sometimes be a clinic and so on. I am so excited for him to have this experience.

How did we come to plan for this some of you may ask...well, to put it in short terms, God made it happen. To put it in longer terms, God told me in August when the team leaders asked Mike to come and he said "no thanks". This trip weighed on my heart for a few months when I went to one of the leaders and said that I believed Mike needed to go. They agreed so we set to work on Mike. Within a few days someone stepped forward with a $1000.00 donation for Mike to go. We were shocked since financially this trip was a big commitment and that was the main reason Mike was holding back. With $1000.00 it meant we only needed $500.00. That amount was manageable. Since that moment we have done a fair bit of fundraising to cover the remaining amount as well as contribute to other trip costs. The team as a whole needs to raise $19,000.00 beyond their $1500.00 to cover material costs, donations and medical supplies. We have been beyond blessed by donations and have raised well over $1000.00 at this point.

I truly believe that God wants Mike to be in Haiti. There is something special planned for Mike there and something special planned for the people of Haiti.

If you would like to make any donation or pass this info along please do not hesitate to contact me. I am incredibly thrilled at where we are at but there is still a lot to do.

anticipation...

It seems the defined changing of the season outside (snow) came with perfect timing today as it is also a day of political change for our city. Today is the day our new mayor, Naheed Nenshi, and several new alderman start their new jobs. I feel this joyous little sense of anticipation as I think about all the changes coming to our 'purple' city in the coming days. I hope our new mayor is supported, works hard and follows through on his promises. I truly believe he will continue to earn my vote.

Fab with an announcement...oooh!

My fab product of the week...

"Baby Guide to Calgary". I loved this book when I was pregnant and I loved it even more when I was in desperate search of child friendly places to check out. This book was chalk full of great tips on being a parent in our fair and beautiful city. This is a must have guide!

This fab product also comes with a bit of a fun announcement for me. I am going to be WAHMing it up with "Baby Guide to Calgary" I was just asked to be one of the researchers/writers for the third edition coming out summer 2011! I am really looking forward to expanding my skills in the wide world of Mom and being a part of something new and for me very fun. I will still be one of the smiling faces at bo bebe, I love working there so I will not be leaving anytime in the near or distant future. This is just another fun opportunity to throw onto the Mommy plate.

http://www.babyguidetocalgary.com/

Been there, dumped that!

I had a friend request on facebook recently from an old boyfriend. Out of curiosity and if I am being totally honest the need/want to show off my beautiful family, I accepted the request. After perusing some of his photos and seeing where he is at I am so thankful I dumped that. I actually dumped him as a friend almost right away realizing that I don't need to show off who I am or where I am at in life.

It is amazing to me how things can turn out. I am thankful I had that courage to wait for Mike. I am thankful God gave him to me when he did and I am thankful for the life we have together. While we have had some major ups and downs it seems that neither of us knows how to be without the other. We are deeply connected and seem to know how to crawl out of the bad times together.

I have debated sharing this but in the interest of being honest I am going to share with you all a bit of my story with Mike.

Mike and I met, married and got pregnant all before we had known each other a year. Just before our first anniversary we had our beautiful Evelyn. That first year of being a family of three was blissful. We had some hardships. We lost Mike's Dad suddenly to cancer and we had to navigate a life with baby while we were still in essence getting to know each other but we were happy and in love. Our second anniversary came with great celebration. We had a big year, it was worth celebrating. Our second year of marriage was a challenge. I was so deeply depressed and full of anxiety that I found myself losing all my bliss. Mike and I had horrible fights. The threat of divorce was openly made on more than one occassion. That time is still hard for me to think of. We went to Mexico last February and I actually considered suicide. Here we were on this amazing holiday and I was so lost that I didn't even want to live. Upon coming home Evelyn had her 18 month immunizations. The public health nurse was a close friend of ours. She asked me how I was doing and I broke down. I cried and cried in that little room. The nurse promptly sent me to the doctor where I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. I am now on medication and learning how to take care of myself better so I don't get back to that dark place. All the while, Mike stood by me. Through all the fights, all the drama and all the tears he was perpetually there. Mike is calm and even. He has rarely lost his cool in the years we have been together and through all of the struggle and heartbreak I went through this last year he has been there. He has taken care of me. Mike and I have developed such a strong faith in each other and God that it seems at this point we can overcome all the challenges life gives us. In September we celebrated our third anniversary. Now that was an anniversary worth celebrating! We went away for a whole weekend together and had a wonderful time. It was so nice to just hangout in bed reading, eating leisurely meals together and walking around the mountains without any concern. That weekend was truly a joy and treat for us. It was the perfect way to celebrate all that we had overcome. On the drive home we both agreed that a few more days would be nice...but only if Evelyn would have been there for them :)