Happy Birthday Joshua!

Happy Birthday Josh! You are a big boy now! 3 years old! YAH! You are so loved by our family. You bring joy, mischievousness, and laugher into our hearts. In your words,"You are one COOL dude!"

Thanks Jhane for the jacket! It is getting well used!

ENOUGH ALREADY!

As I look out my front door... this is what I am seeing... MORE SNOW! We are suppose to be into spring. Here in Peterborough we have had a record-breaking winter with 304 centimetres (9 feet 7 inches)! of snow falling.

Ok... Enough already!

I'm a BIG kid now!

Parenting comes with its ups and downs but usually the good out weighs the bad! One of the things I dread is potty training. Perhaps it has more to do with my ADHD personality but I have a hard time staying put. Waiting for poop to come is not on my favorites.

My mom is here visiting... its cold outside... what a better time to sit with Grandma and await the poop? Josh is officially potty trained! Praise God and I am still sane! Thanks Mom. Thanks Josh! He is truly a wonderful boy. He has a delightful personality and was SO tolerant with all the "Do you have to pee?"

Goodbye Babyhood!

They are BACK!

We had a good March Break overall. While we did not go for the "fun in the sun" we managed to get some pool time in as well as lot of winter fun. But today the 2 weeks are up and it is back to routine and all that good stuff. Boy was it hard to deal with a wake up call this morning!
Finally the last one is out the door and it is me at home (of course with the younger two) looking for some quiet time or a play date! Thank Goodness my mom is here! I am out of here! Well at least till pick up and it all begins again!

This is a movie that Sanj really wanted to see... so being the loving wife I watched with him. Yuck! Who thinks of these things? If I was the only person left on earth with creepy things would I really want to live?

Melting IceBerg!

Around town you may see the occasional sign..."Look out for falling snow (ice)." On our street we should post..."Look out for YELLOW snow!" Not too sure what this neighbour thought!

Zachary is a true boy... JUST DO IT!

Loved it!

Today Sanj and I went to see "Dirty Dancing" the play... I LOVED IT! The cast was amazing as was the stage effects etc. It was great. I saw it with a great audience who was right into it. "Nobody puts Baby in a corner" as well as the other well known lines were recited by audience members ...it was so well done!

If you get a chance ... GO SEE IT!!! I would love to go again! It would be a great 40th Birthday party! Anyone want to go... let me know! :)

By the way, " Thanks Sanj!"

The Remainder of the Break...

My Brother Kumar came up for a visit with his family this last week. It was great to spend time with his family. The cousins got reacquainted with each other. We did a bit of everything... bowling, playing in the snow, sharing toys, hitting the McD playland, eating and then more eating, watching movies, trading books...and so on.

Spring Break...

In Canada, I think the term Spring Break is a tease. So many call it March Break... unless you are lucky to go where there is sun and warmth. The boys hit the slopes with some friends and had a fabulous day!


Josh was getting restless in the chalet so I tried him and skis. HE LOVED IT! This picture says it all!

Moms of SONS work SUN UP TO SUN DOWN!

This weekend was endless. I can say that my favorite sound tonight will be my boys SOUND ASLEEP!
With the crazy snowfall yesterday, we were housebound. If you know me at all, I NEED to get out of my house! So adding the fact that Sanj is away too.. It has been a very long day!

The boys are enjoying the snow... and I am enjoying the fact that they are tiring themselves out!

Tommorrow we hit the ski slopes! Yah, Spring Break! It is all about loving them to bits while tiring them out before they tire me out! I think today they won!

Hey Mom ... Look What I Found!

My kids ALL love eating ice. I crunched on it during all pregnancies...don't know if that passed on this particular trait but people know that when we came... better turn off the ice machine if you are anal. THEY LOVE IT! We don't have a ice machine on our fridge but the backyard has taken care of that!

(If you double click on the picture, you can see the snow fall clearly)!

When Daddy's Away...

Sanj is off to sunny San Diego to a conference... back at the home front... there is more snow and a LOT OF IT!
The boys have stepped up to the plate or Surburban and taking care of busness. Just as Sammy finished digging the truck out, another 20-25 cm has descended upon us.

An Apple a Day...

My boy Josh eats 3-4 apples a day...the boy is never sick! I am thinking an apple a day really does keep the Doctor away!

Dirty Laundry

I am often asked how I handle life with a busy household... that I should share my tips. Well like most of you, I have my meltdowns (not pretty)! and am thankful for a family that loves me despite of my craziness.

Laundry is a HUGE factor that easily sends me over the edge. As you can imagine... there is NEVER a time that there isn't any laundry! IT IS ALWAYS THERE... waiting, teasing me, overtaking me!

These are some things I have found helpful to keep things somewhat under control...
Each of us has a towel...which I took to the engraving shop and they embordered each of our names on it. This cuts down on a million towels being washed. We wash them a few times a week and the boys have hooks with their names to hang them up.

We made our laundry room into a family closet, so to speak. Solutions ( an organizational store) sells these mesh metal crates which you can buy different sizes. Each boy has a tower with 4 pull out meshy drawers. Undies in one, PJ, tee-shirts, jeans, each in there own drawer. This keeps the baskets of laundry from leaving the laundry room. We have a huge basket of socks... and each fends for himself.

We also hung up rods on the wall as a closet... and all the hang up clothes are by size. XS, S, M, L, XL...so I don't have to keep switching clothes as they outgrow them. Mind you, the three older ones share a lot of stuff too, so this makes it handy.

Light at the end of the tunnel... Sammy and Tyler are on doing their own laundry for the most part..so there is light... I am seeing it... maybe it is just a mirage.

If you have any helpful ideas, I am always looking to ideas!

Tim Hortons can take a lesson from McD!

Tradition in our house is a quick stop at Tim Horton's (our Canadian coffee spot) for a bagel and hot chocolate on our way to hockey. (It takes the pain out of those 7 a.m. practices)! I was in the van with the boys ordering the usual, which of course is not a small order, but with 6 younger ones, I can't just leave them in the van in the cold and run in... and that is what a drive thru is for!

The guy at the window asked me that that next time would I come in and order as it slows down their line. I explained that no I couldn't as I have little ones in the car. He really did not care. I was SO annoyed. If you are worried about your timing, then make it your written policy to not serve the bagels thru the drive thru. But I knew that a family of 4 wouldn't get asked to come in for their bagels...so don't discriminate against a larger family.

McDonalds on the other hand, gave me a business card and told me that next time wanted a big order of say chicken nuggets, call five minutes before and they would have it ready, thus me avoiding to wait with the kids! Thanks McD for your thoughtfulness.

Where's Waldo?

While the hardworking guys were building muscles...




You may wonder where is Jordan?
He was busy being domesticated!

Josh and Shadow thought that the snow was just as great as a popsicle...

In like a Lion...

Apparently March is coming "in like a lion... and hopefully out like a lamb.
We had close to 30 cm of snow and due the to fact that our snowblower needs to be repaired...
the boys of the family were hard to work the old fashion way to save the rink!

Ewwww...

This was the dude's hairstyle right in front of us...a comb-over may have been better!
My brother, Kumar is always so bold with the pictures he takes of people... so he is the inspiration for the shot... but I was so scared that the man was going to turn around and bust me!

The Game!

We were able to get 4 tickets to see the Leafs... (Thanks East Side Marios!)
Hoping to get 4 more at another date, we had to pick who got the lotto... Tyler, Jordan and Max were the chosen this time around (not to mention Sammy generously giving his up so Max could go to his first Leaf game)... then Sanj was unable to go due the fact that his on-line class started that night... so here I find myself at yet another game...
Going to the Game is a coveted experience for most Ontario folks... and it was an experience!
The boys were delighted with the first goal the Leafs scored but then experienced severe dissappointment with the final score 4-1... for the Devils!

GO LEAFS GO! We still believe in you!

Oh did I mention the 3.5 hours it took to get home in a major snow storm?
I love hockey!