Time out

Lately we have had to put Maetia in quite a few time outs. She has been very cranky and not listening. It could be that she is upset that we have been paying extra attention to Eli lately with all the ear infections, or that she misses her mama and daddy while she is at daycare. It could be that she really does have a sore stomach and eating wheat free is not the answer, or it might just be a phase. I am not too strict as a mom and I try not to freak out when there is a spill or straight up disobedience. Besides the whining giving me a headache, I actually find it amusing. Maetia told me yesterday that she had to mark on all her dolls faces and bodies because she didn't want anyone to feel left out. She also said that the markers told her that they didn't need the covers on them because they felt squished. She has also been teaching Eli how to get into the craft closet, find the markers and mark all over everything. She told me that it was okay that she marked on him because he likes it and "I think he must be feeling better now mamma!".


Here is how I found Maetia one day after having 'quiet time' instead of a nap that she didn't want.

Here is the evidence

More evidence. Maetia told me with a smile on her face that she painted Eli.

Here is Eli mad at me because Maetia is in time out and he can't get to her.

Here are my beautiful children on a good day (hour, minute, moment) playing outside in the lupins.

Operation

Eli had to have an operation on Friday and it was a bit of a surprise. He had to get tubes in his ears, and his Adenoids and Tonsils out. On Wednesday we went to the ENT clinic at the children's hospital and after hearing all of his symptoms, felt they needed to rush it and fit him in as soon as possible. Some of the more serious symptoms are that he has had many (many) ear infections and is becoming resistant to antibiotics and he has sleep apnea (not breathing at night for a few seconds at a time) which we thought was from his Acid Reflux. I was able to stay in the room with him and Michael came the next day with Maetia to pick us up. The hospital is 1 1/2 hours away but worth the drive, the staff was amazing. We are so thankful for a quick surgery and what seems to be a quick recovery already!


It was hard to see him so docile.

He hated the things in his feet.

The next day he was feeling quite a bit better already.

Maetia liked his bed a lot more than he did.

trying something

 
 
 
 

Video to enjoy

Here is one of a few (that are too big to load!!) of our life right now as we learn to live together, love each other more, and grow. As you can see, I am relaxing as a mom; no baby was hurt during the filming of these videos.

Getting topsoil the farmer's way

So we have been digging and digging up our backyard. We have a lot of water issues surrounding this house. Literally surrounding us. We live next to a wetland. One of the things I love about our backyard, has turned into a nightmare when dealing with money/septic/basement/water issues. We inherited 3 separate places that water exits the house so we are working on finding them and putting in proper piping and gravel to disperse the water (away from the house). In order to get our backyard looking a little better we thought we should get some topsoil and spread it around the trenches we dug and where the stumps had been dug out. Last year we tried to fill in the holes with plain fill but it was full of garbage and rocks. We aren't asking for a level lawn, just some grass for the kids to play on. I found out that a one ton load of topsoil was $300! When I told my dad he said that he had some topsoil in a pile way out in a field from previous working in the area and had stockpiled it there for 'later'. Now is later, so off we go. We forgot that we have had a lot of rain in the past few day and no sooner did we get the wagon full and the tractor bucket full, than we realized we were stuck in the mud. My dad suggest that I get in the smaller tractor pulling the wagon and he will use the loader tractor to PUSH me. Yikes. That is what I said, because although my dad is a great farmer and business man, this did not seem like a good idea. Well it worked until I couldn't keep the tractor straight (three times). The force of the mud and pushing was making me jackknife the wagon. I could see it ending badly. We of course had forgotten a chain so my dad then suggests that he push the front end of the tractor from the side to straighten it. This also worked and I was so glad to have Drake in the tractor with me as I just sat there looking at him, both of us cringing. Eventually, we got out of the field, my dad and I exchanged 'looks' and then went to my house to dump the topsoil. Now we can have a lawn!! Not only is he a good Opa, he is a good farmer too.


Chickens loving the open holes and worms

Eli climbing on our deck that Michael just go reattached to our house, now we need some railings!!

Maetia had her first sleepover, including cheese crackers and a movie

Maetia and Janna love each other so much they wanted to sleep in the same bed. This lasted a few hours until I had to take Maetia out because she was as she put it "squamshed".

more spring photos!!

Horray for Spring and all it brings! Even muddy dogs, lots of laundry and dirty floors. That can wait, I have sun and warmth to enjoy! After you check out our pictures, head to my farm website It is finally up and running. I have been handing out my 'business' card with as much confidence as possible and also putting up posters everywhere. I am not good at marketing but I am forcing myself to be, so that I can continue the farming part of a farm, which I do like. No customers, no farm.


Our chickens enjoying their freedom.

Our backyard, deck, trenches, laundry, toys, greenhouse and all.

Like father......

like son.

Maetia and her worm friends. She was so sweet and gentle with the worms!

Spring is here!

It is April and we are outside!! We love it so much. The last few days have been so amazing and so fun with the kids. Eli loves the dirt (to play in and eat) and Maetia is getting so good at playing and exploring. She recently discovered worms and thinks they are wonderful friends. Michael has been working for his old boss in the interim of being laid off from his regular work (due to the economic recession). We have been very thankful for this amount of work and having the opportunity to use his time for creating some art as well. One benefit to his current job is that they are renovating for some very wealthy people. I now fully understand and believe that 'one man's junk is another man's treasure'. We have been given: almost new kids hockey skates and helmet, mens winter coat, very nice kids toys and books, and cupboards to install in our house. We might even get the rest of the kitchen that they are renovating and not have to buy or build to renovate our own kitchen. This will save so much money!! The best 'treasure' was a new (to us) 8x10 deck. I have been wanting a deck so much but didn't want to ask Michael because we can't afford a luxury like this. We had just decided we would make a sitting area outside under some trees when along comes Michael home from work with a trailer loaded down with a deck. Not only are we going to stick this on the back of our house, but we are going to install a door so we can use the deck from inside the house and have a safe railing on it, for muddy days with the kids. I am so excited about all the great improvements on our home. We also borrowed a small backhoe/excavator from friends and dug 3 trenches to lay pipes so that the water will run more away from our house rather than inside our basement.
The very best thing about the nice weather besides letting my kids go crazy in the mud and grass, is that we let our chickens go free range in the backyard and they had a blast eating up the worms and bugs that we dug up when excavating. The kids had so much fun interacting with them and Drake was really good with them too. Here are some photos to enjoy (a few posts at a time) of our life in April.

Eli trying to get out when Michael is rototilling the garden.

Eli playing in the muddy garden, note large cheeks full of mud.

Maetia and Eli gardening

Michael, Maetia, Eli and Drake, balancing on our not yet stable deck.

This is Eli's latest feat, climbing the chair onto the stove!