a hippie with a minivan

A few more pics…

I would have liked to have a few pics of Xavier up but he has been steering clear of the camera… lol

We are leaving next week and I am getting more and more nervous…I get a queasy feeling each time I think about it… and with all that I need to prepare I have been feeling really queasy lately… especially now that Xavier’s party has past and now it is the only thing I need to think about…

There is just something nerve wracking about leaving our home for about 5-6 weeks… leaving our comforts, our routine, our beds etc…

I am nervous about staying at my mom and her bf’s house… they are not used to kids… let alone 3 energetic boys…

We don’t go on many trips… though I love to travel… and I know that everything will be great and that I am going to love the time that I spend there… it is just weird… leaving with three kids is no where like leaving alone….

but though I am nervous… I really am looking forward to being in BC, seeing old friends, having them meet my kids… meeting theirs… I can’t wait to meet Annie who I talk to almost everyday on the phone and is pretty my best friend even though we have never met in person…

I think that one thing that makes me nervous also is that I love BC so much I really have trouble leaving each time I go back…

Really though… to be honest with myself…

I think that I am a bit nervous that I will get back here and be even more unhappy about living here… and I really don’t want that…

Xavier is turning 6!!

In two days Xavier is going to be 6…

I remember thinking about him turning 6 when he was small… Thinking 5 years ahead when he was still a small little one… when we were still living in Montreal… when he was our only child….

6 years is not that long but it is hard at times to remember life before him…

We had his party yesterday and though it rained… and poured… it turned out to be a great day… with great friends and lots of laughter and sharing…

The kids all had a great time and the food was good…’

The boys made decorations the day before…

the kids playing in the playroom…. the were spies….

eating outside… just before the rain came… and boy did it come!!

bbq in the rain… we brought the picnic table into the living room…

Birthday Cake…

double layer homemade chocolate cake with chocolate cheesecake frosting topped with fresh local strawberries and carob chips (as requested by the birthday boy)…

and gifts…

and Nintendo DS for the trip!!!

Book meme…

I got tagged by Kris? at Paradise Found

I would have done it before but I just noticed a few minutes ago….

so… here it goes…

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you.

In fact, it matters very little if your children stiffen when you walk in the room. In a purely practical sense, misbehaviour is easier to address-and problems are easier to solve-when children feel safe enough with us to explain the reasons they did something wrong. Kids are more likely to come to us when they are in trouble, to look to us for advice, and want to spend more time with us when they can trust us, they’re more likely to so what we ask if we tell them it’s really important.

-Unconditional Parenting by Alfie Kohn

I tag

new pics…

I kind of forgot how different shooting with an SLR is… So I have been reading and trying to remember what I had learned in College… and that wasn’t working… so I am just trying to learn it all over again… lol…

I think that my camera manual is going to be my best friend for a while along with some ebooks that I found…

and though I don’t regret my purchase because I know the potential….I am also realizing that my P&S G9 is a pretty good camera…

Here are a few pics…