Look who's 4...

So today my sweet Gabrielle turned 4!! Seriously, where does the time go. I looked at the clock this morning at 7:37am and remember having her at about 7:50am. I remember it like it was yesterday.

Gabby is such a blessing to our family! She has so much personality and character. I love watching her be herself. She has such a great sense of humor and makes us laugh a lot:) We love you so much Gabby, you bring us so much joy!!!


We had a little kids birthday party for her on Friday morning. A bunch of her friends and their mommies came over and we snacks and visited and the kids played in the backyard. I could not believe when I opened the curtains that morning, that we had snow on the ground:( I was NOT impressed. I turned out to be a pretty warm morning and the snow melted quickly and the kids were happy to be outside.

The garden party...


Gabby wanted a flower cake(I was glad, because it was easy!). She was so excited to see it and of course, eat it! She got lots of new toys which she is loving. We are truly blessed to have so many amazing friends and family that love our Gabby!






Megan decided the morning of the party that she wanted to stay home from school and help with the party!!



Saturday morning, Jeff took Gabby on a birthday "date". It was so cute! They got some breakfast at McDonalds(her request!) and then went to Knox Mountain for a little hike/walk to the first lookout. Gabby walked the whole way and had so much fun with her daddy! Gabby thrives when she has one on one time with us. We are trying to make more of an effort to do that with our kids.



And today, her actual birthday we had all the grandparents over for dinner! She got a few more presents and then we had her favorite foods for dinner. She requested macaroni and sausages!! So, I made homemade mac 'n cheese and Jeff bbq'd some sausages. And we had Banana sour cream cake with cream cheese icing for dessert...so yummy!!


We got the girls new comforters for their beds for each of their birthdays. We gave Megan's her comforter today too...I like things to match! They were pretty excited to go to bed tonight.
I also found these cute little lanterns at the dollar store! I think I will go back and get one more because they match their room perfectly!
On Tuesday it is my brother's birthday and I know he reads this...so a BIG happy birthday to you Loren!! We love you so much. We can't wait to see you again!!

Our wonderful house guests...

We had some wonderful house guests come visit us last weekend! Auntie Kirsten and Uncle Malcolm came for the weekend. I always love having them come over, they are the easiest house guests and so much fun to have around.

They came into town on Thursday night, but visited with some other friends before coming over. We were in bed when they arrived at our place. We were all so excited to see them in the morning!! The kids were almost bursting with excitement and they were making tons of noise that I was sure they had woken them up.

We had a relaxing breakfast together that morning. Jeff was at work, so he didn't get to see them until the afternoon. We hung around the house and the backyard and then Malcolm and Kirsten took the girls to the park and I stayed home to put Marty down for his nap.

It had been close to a year since the kids had seen Malcolm(Kirsten came by herself in August) and they warmed up to him very quickly! They had him read books to them almost instantly...so cute!

We had dinner together that night and once the kids were in bed we played some games...although Jeff did go to bed early as he got up to go swimming at 7am the next morning.

On Saturday, Kirsten and I ventured out to Value Village and Homesense! A few of my favorite stores:) We had a great time just being together. I love that even though it had been 1/2 a year since we'd seen each other, it's like no time has passed. It's just so comfortable.

Our family had a birthday party to go to that evening, so Kirsten and Malcolm went to my parents place for dinner. But, I gave them a strict curfew to be home by 7pm...so we could still spend the evening together!! We played some more games and just visited.

Kirsten and I talk a lot about hair and hair products. We have similar hair, so we are always throwing out different techniques and ideas. Malcolm was sitting with us during one of those conversations and I'm sure he was thrilled to hear us talk about hair for probably 1/2 hour!! He is such a patient man:)

They headed home early Sunday morning and the time just went by so fast...as it always does. The kids and us were sad to see them go. Megan said can they stay for a week next time?? I guess we'll have to do some convincing and see what happens:)

Thank you Kirsten and Malcolm for making the trip out here to see us! We always love having you and you know you are welcome here anytime:)

Palm Springs Vacation

We had a fabulous holiday to Palm Springs this past week!! Jeff's parents took all us kids and grandkids to Palm Springs for the week. It was a great week of being together as a family, which doesn't happen very often because we don't all live close to each other.


We left home just before 6am last Saturday morning and our first flight left at 7am. We arrived in Palm Springs around 1pm. It was the first time in an airplane for Gabby and Marty and really the first time Megan could remember(we flew when she was 11 months old). The kids were really great travellers. The 3 hour flight from Calgary to Palm Springs got a little long with Marty because he doesn't like to sit still for that long!

We arrived in Palm Springs and it was warm and sunny!! We went to the rental house and checked it all out. It was a beautiful home and just perfect for our holiday. The house had 5 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms. The girls shared a room and Marty slept in our room with us.



Mom and I went out that afternoon to get some groceries and when we came home Eric and Traci had arrived. We pick up Curt and Anne from the airport later that evening. It was so great being together again. The kids had a blast all week from all the attention they got from their grandparents and aunties and uncles! Truly a blessing for us to have family that love our kids as much as we do.

The next day, Mom & Dad, Eric & Traci and Curt & Anne went to the tennis finals that were happening in Palm Springs and Jeff and I and the kids ventured out to the outlet mall. It was a cool and rainy day, so perfect for shopping! Jeff got lots of things and I got a few things for me and the kids. It's not quite as much fun or relaxing shopping with 3 kids!

On Monday, Mom, Traci, Anne and I went out to a spa and got pedicures and then went shopping at ROSS. I think we spent 3 hours in ROSS...so much fun:) We had a great time together.
Most afternoons, we spent lounging around the pool in the backyard. The first 2 days of the week were cool and rainy, but the rest of the week was beautiful, sunny and warm! It was so relaxing to sit around outside and so nice to see some sunshine.

The men went golfing one afternoon and had a great time together! We took walks around the area and around downtown Palm Springs. Jeff rented some bikes for 4 days and he managed to get out for lots of bike rides. I got to do lots of shopping...I can not get enough of shopping in the States, I just love ROSS, Target, and outlet malls. The deals are always SO much better there than here.

Jeff parents graciously watched our kids for us one night, so all us siblings could go out for dinner...it was such a blessing to us! We went to an area called The River and ate at a yummy restaurant there and then went to Cheesecake Factory and took dessert home to share with Mom and Dad...SO delicious!

On Thursday evenings in Palm Springs, they shut down the main street in downtown and have a market with vendors. There were TONS of people!

Jeff and his dad took the girls to a place called "Boomers" one afternoon. It's a mini golf/games place. The girls really enjoyed it.



Megan, Gabby and Marty loved the pool in the backyard and spent lots of time in it. The girls even went in on the cooler rainy days...they loved it! Marty wasn't scared of the water and he had a blast in there too. I think I need to put him in swimming lessons!


The kids slept great at the house! I didn't nap Gabby all week, so that she would go to sleep good at night and it worked great. They woke up a little earlier than at home every day, but they did really good.



We left Palm Springs on Saturday afternoon. We got to Calgary and after we were all in the plane and ready to fly home, they shut the Calgary airport due to a power outage on the runway:( We were SO disappointed. I just wanted to be home at that point because the kids didn't nap on the first flight and they were get restless. I also wasn't feeling good, I think I got a little motion sick on the first flight. After about 1/2 hour the power was back on and we were able to fly home. We arrived home around 10pm and didn't get home until almost 11pm. Marty did fall asleep on the flight to home, but only for about 45 minutes and he hadn't slept ALL day otherwise..he was a grumpy tired boy!




It was hard to say good-bye to everyone and one week didn't feel quite long enough. Especially, when we came home and woke up the next morning to SNOW! It was a fantastic holiday and we have great memories and pictures of our week together. Thank you SO much Mom and Dad for making this holiday possible!! We are forever grateful and have so many wonderful memories:)