Friday August 8th, 2008

It's a TOOTH!!! Robbie's first tooth has finally broken through. I noticed it today during the wrestling match that I like to call "Getting Robbie Dressed". Unlike most little ones Robbie's first tooth is his top left, and I think the right is not too far behind. If they both come through before his bottom ones I won't be able to help myself and I'll have to start calling him Bucky :-) At least temporarily. I am attempting to get a photo of his first tooth, but this seems like an impossible feat. However I must say that Charlotte is more than willing to help pin him down and pry his mouth open. Amazing how I can flip from Wrestler Mom to Body Guard Mom in 1.2 seconds.

I know it has been a week since my last post. I've had every intention to post sooner, especially about the golf tournament, but the time just seemed to slip away. I've had another (last one for the summer) full week on my own, but that never seems to slow us down. Mike left Satruday morning, so on Friday we had the James Hudson Memorial Golf Tournament. It went wonderful as usual, everyone who golfed and had a great time, but the big story was Mike's hole in one! That is right, and not only did he get a hole in one, he did it in bare feet! Perhaps that is the trick, too golf in bare feet! This tournament raises funds for SUDC as well as a scholarship fund. This years scholarship recipients were Melissa Currie and John McNeil, both are soccer players at Saint Mary's University. The other story of the tournament was the streaker that went running down one of the fairways. She loves to be naked and can get undressed all on her own now!

The golf tournament has two rounds one for the corporate teams, which is followed by an amazing steak BBQ and that is where the scholarships are awarded. The second is a friends and family round and after the golf Trevor and Kelly Chisholm invite everyone to their home for some after golf fun. Trevor and Kelly have a pool and anyone who read The Adventures of Charlotte last year may recall a trip down the water slide that Charlotte DID NOT enjoy in the least. Well this year she decided to give it another try and thought is was pretty great! She went down a second time and thought it was again great! As she was heading up for the 3rd time, she noticed the itsy bitsy spider was also heading up the ladder and that was it. No more sliding for her. Maybe next year she'll make it down 3 times. Here are a few other photos from the tournament.

Last Monday I took the kids to the Natal Day Parade. I'm not sure what is so magical about Parades, but they just grab kids attention. The cars, the horses, the drums, the mascots... I've never seen my kids sit or stand in one spot for so long. Robbie was especially taken by the police cars and fire trucks, Charlotte loved the mascots, and I LOVE this picture... Charlotte was making sure Robbie didn't miss anything, she was being such a wonderful sister saying "Robbie Look"

Now I mentioned that Charlotte loved the mascots, that is an understatement. On July 1st we went to the local legion for a small Canada Day gathering. It was very small, a bouncy castle, a fire truck and a person dressed up in a scruffy lion costume. While we were there Charlotte kept going up and standing near the lion, for some reason she was very taken by this lion. I tried to get a photo, but she would never look at the camera. I would have tried harder to get a photo if I had any idea this lion would have had such a big impact. Well, everyday for over a month Charlotte has constantly talked about "Big Lion". It is nearly an obsession! I was hoping that when I took her to Curious George, that the Big Lion may loose some of his appeal. Athough Curious George is pretty good, he does not have the charm of the Big Lion. Of course I do not want to pop her bubble, so I've down loaded a song about a lion, we read books about the Tawny Scrawy Lion and I even called the legion to see if I could rent the costume (that was a No). Now back to the Natal Day Parade. I was pretty sure that the Lions Club would have an entry into the Parade and sure enough they did. So I crossed my fingers and told Charlotte that the Big Lion may be at the Parade... sure enough he was. It was a different lion, but he was big and despite resembling a bear I was able to convince her that she once again saw The Big Lion. She was over the moon!

That is all for now. We have a weekend full of birthday parties and Mike gets back late Saturday night, which means we will actually be together for our 6th wedding anniversary on Sunday. Yeah!

Thursday July 31, 2008

Not much is going on here in Nova Scotia. It does seem strange to not be travelling at all, but it is really nice to just enjoy all that we have so close to our home. I wonder if kids often think their "home" is boring, because people always seem to go away to have fun. Well there is so much fun right here, literally in our back yard. We go for hikes along the ocean, we go blueberry picking only feet from our house, the beach is a 5 minute drive, and not to mention we have fabulous neighbours and friends. And to a 2 year old and a 8 month old the repetition is probably comforting... not boring as I'm sure it will be in a few years.

Here are some recent photos...

At the sprinkler park...




We dug Robbie a hole at the beach and poured water in it.
He was so happy.
Until Charlotte attempted to crush his fingers.
Quite a funny thing happened at the beach when Charlotte needed to pee. I didn't have a potty so I told her it was okay to pee in the ocean. She was not too sure about it, but I assured her that Nature Is as Nature Does. As if she knew what that meant. Anyway in the mind of a 2 year old, she split the process into 3 steps.

Step 1... Remove the pants, panties, or bathing suit bottom.
Step 2... Throw them into the water.
Step 3... I did not take a photo of step 3. However next time I think I'll tell her to wade back into deeper water so no one knows what is happening.

And once again... the lovely Siena gave me a helping hand at the beach. What an amazing help she is!

The final photos are of the playground today. Charlotte loves to climb up to the top of the monkey bars all by herself, and she is pretty quick at it too. I did step back for a couple seconds to take this picture but I stick pretty close to her as it does makes me nervous.

She also loves to swing from the bar at the top of the slide. Again making me nervous. Sometimes she puts her feet up near her hands and swings. She says "Just Hang There".

I don't really know what this new move is called.

Of course we can't forget Robbie who is officially 8 months old, and getting busier everyday. He has no teeth yet, but given a few bites I've recieved (moms you know what I'm talking about) I'd say the teeth aren't far away. I am also not joking when I say that he is trying to walk. Of course he is no where near ready, and I'm surprised he even slows down enough to think about it. However if you hold him by the hands he'll take off putting one foot infront of the other. And he is pretty darn good for 8 months. We'll see if he breaks Charlotte's record of 10 months... me I'm hoping he walks some where around 12 months, less bumps and bruises that way.

But one thing you can count on Robbie for, is a smile.

Sunday June 27, 2008

Before I start this post I need to share a little video.




Yes I have a warped sense of humour sometimes, but it was all innocent fun. Right now we have what seems like a million bees flying around (thank goodness no one has been stung). One day this week we sat on the grass and watched the bees hard a work, and I simply explained that bees make honey. Later in the day we were reading a book to Robbie and to make it more intersting for Charlotte I explained that cows make milk, chickens make eggs and then she pointed to the pigs and asked what they made. Ummm... (think fast Cordele) Ummm... Bacon! Strange she can remember that pigs make bacon, but can't seem to remember that we shouldn't wash the table with the left over yogurt.

Charlotte has a new best friend. Jessie if you are reading this I am sad to say that you have been demoted. Janelle is now Queen in Charlotte's eyes, and why not Janelle is our neighbour who is nearly 8. These two have always played well together but since school has been out for summer break Janelle has spent a lot of time with us. I quite like having Janelle around, she can carry on a semi adult converstion but at the same time chase Charlotte around in circles. Here are some photo's of what the 4 of us get up to during the week...

Hop Scotch

Bike riding... You see right! Charlotte isn't even 2 and a half and riding a bike.
Washing Billy's truck. What is so cute is they are both still in their pj's and that they somehow match!
We were out blueberry picking.
Ahhh, MUDDDD!!!

On to Robbie, well he is a maniac!!! A maniac I say!!! He isn't even 8 months old and he has had a tiny black eye, two bloody noses, and a bleeding lip, and I can't even begin to count the number of falls and head bangs. He has finally learned to pull himself up, so this will mean either more or less falls and tumbles, only time will tell.

Wanting to do everything his sister does.
He's awake!!

I do remember at this age that James was also a bit of a crazy guy. One occasion comes straight to my mind. He used to stand next to my bed and slam his head onto the side of my matress. This gave him some type of thrill as he always laughed and smiled. When we went to England (James was 8 months) he pulled himself up to the bed and before I could get around to him SLAM! into the side of the matress. The only problem was that this bed had a solid wood frame that the matress sat in. OUCH!!! So in summary Mike and I are 3 for 3 for maniacs!!! Yes I said 3 for 3, that includes Charlotte. Although I think she is the most tentative of them all she can still climb to the top of the monkey bars while some of her peers are trying to figure out how a ladder works. Then today was a perfect example. We went to a concert, Curious George to be exact with some friends. Before the concert all the kids were playing with books, blocks, dress up... what was my daughter doing. She was climbing up the center hand rail of the stairs and swinging with both her hands and feet hanging on the rail. Such a dainty little thing!

As for the concert we had a nice time, she was a bit overwhelmed, and I wasn't sure if she was actually having fun. But when we got into the car and for the rest of the afternoon all she talked about was Curious George and Bo (another character). It was also nice that I was able to be focused on Charlotte. One of our neighbours volunteered to watch Robbie for me, so I could take Charlotte. It was so nice of her, we were both however SHOCKED that Robbie was not happy with this arrangement and cried nearly the entire time. Poor Robbie! He is so easy going I didn't think he would react that way.

Curious George!

Amy and Aleadian.
Kelly and John.
Charlotte and Mommy.

Tuesday July 22nd (I think?!)

I am back being a single parent. I applaud all those (my mom included) who were full time single parents. There are some things that are unquestionably easier with only 1 adult in the house, but honestly it gets pretty lonely sometimes. Anyway enough of my sob story, Mike has been travelling, he was in Cape Breton last week and has been in Edmonton since Sunday and doesn't get back until next Monday. I wish we had also gone to Edmonton as I have many friends and family there, but Mike wasn't too keen on it, so I didn't pursue it. Oh well, too late now, but I've certainly learned my lesson.

Things aren't too bad here, we are just doing the regular things. Mainly I just try to keep the kids happy and entertained. We've just finished the tail end of a tropical storm so it has been raining like cats and dogs, which makes entertainment a bit harder. Luckily we got our time in at the beach and park last week and weekend. Last week we went to the beach, thankfully Siena came with us as I just didn't' feel comfortable with 2 kids alone at the beach. We all had a great time. Even though I seem to take a lot of photos I do make a point of putting my camera down and just playing with the kids. Well at the beach I did just that of course we had a great time getting wet, splashing, and playing in the sand. As the afternoon wore on we eventually went home, and I FORGOT my camera at the beach. Shhhh don't tell my mom, she bought it for me. Well when reality set in that I forgot the camera I was SICK, SICK, SICK. I rushed back to the beach, and it wasn't there. I was so upset. A lady had her kids with goggles looking in the water and everything. Like a defeated dog, I went home with a long face thinking that I don't even deserve to replace it. Just as a 6 year old who's kitten had run away I made a sign and posted it up at the beach, fingers crossed that a good samaritan had found my camera. Now hear this! anyone who knocks me for being a paparazzi... this time it paid off. We had left the beach only 30 minutes before the life guard was off duty. She noticed the camera, and noticed that the crazy woman who was taking all the photo's was no longer there and packed the camera away. She said that she knew who's camera it was right away. YEAH!!! I was so happy I nearly cried. Of course I missed some photo ops in the mean time but am so happy to have my camera back. The photos that I wished I had were of Charlotte and my friend Andrea's daughter Sophie. They were in Halifax from Regina for a couple days on their way to PEI. The girls played as well as two, 2 year olds can play. Even if sharing and turn taking is in the works they were both fascinated with each other and did like having a new friend.

Also Robbie is just a machine these days. He crawls every where and can't even sit still to eat. Anyone who met James would be able to see a very familiar arm sway, wrist twisting motion as the food is approaching Robbie's mouth. They are so alike it is amazing. Arms and legs constantly going, making diaper changes look like an Olympic wrestling match... I'd say Robbie could win Gold the way he can squirm out of every pin maneuver I have. The one difference between Robbie and his siblings is that he is a string bean, long and skinny... I've got nothing to grab onto. James and Charlotte were both chunky enough that I could grab and pin them down, not Robbie. He gives a wriggle and a shake and he is off onto bigger and better things, leaving me usually holding two diapers, one clean, and one not so clean. And we aren't even going to get into the ordeal it is to dress the young man. Here are recent photo's of Robbie with his favorite things... cars and fire trucks, anything with wheels and if it has a siren even better. Well here are some other photo's from the last little while. The soccer camp was about 2 weeks ago, and I just never posted the photos.

Finally, Mike was home for a couple days between Cape Breton and Edmonton. Near our house is a place we call Secret Cove, it is where we get mussels from and Charlotte and Colonel could spend all day there. This day we were musseling because we had our friend Leigh over for supper... Leigh is a Newfie who now lives in Saskatchewan. Once again he stopped by our place for a quick visit as he was in the Maritimes for work.

Thursday July 10, 2008

The weather has been hot and sunny, but unfortunately it wasn't the same in the Hudson house. Colds have once again struck us, and this one was a doozy! Oh the poor kids, puffy eyes, stuffy nose, and I'm sure pressure in their little sinuses. Of course this had Mike and I running day and night trying to sush them back to sleep and wiping their noses. You know Charlotte isn't feeling well when she doesn't even want to go outside. I did drag her out at least once a day for a distraction from being in the house. Today the rain has started, which is nice from the heat we've had, and Charlotte has really perked up and Robbie is coming around. Once again I must thank our helpful antibiotics, I had them at the doctor yesterday and Charlotte was brewing an ear infection and she also gave me some drops for Robbie’s eyes as they too were infected.

Now onto the happier part of week, which seems so far away now. Last weekend Mike was off and we packed the kids into the car and headed to the Valley to visit with friends. What a wonderful time we had!!! Linda and Mike have a pool and a mini field turf in their back yard, we spent a good couple hours playing there. Once Robbie was up from a nap we headed to Linda's parents farm where Charlotte got to could feed the horses, play in the hay loft and pick strawberries in the garden. It made me home sick for my grandma's old house to be on a farm and especially walking through her wonderful and very large garden. After the trip to the farm we took a quick detour to the beach for more fun and finally home where Mike cooked and curry feast for everyone. Here is a quick snapshot of our time in the Valley...
Oh did she love being thrown up in the air. "Again!! Again!!"

Kiss from daddy in the shade. Robbie's turn in the pool.
Charlotte LOVED their dog Lily.
Colonel trying to come for a swim.

Feeding the horses at the farm.
The Strawberry Jackpot
Robbie looking for strawberries.
Robbie not liking his first taste of strawberry. No worries he now loves them.
Climbing trees
The tire swing at the farm.
Charlotte wading at the beach.
Much better beach wear.
Robbie was there too, just hanging out in the shade again.

I think I've mentioned in a previous post that this blog sort of doubles as a journal. I really don't have time to maintain both and I will deal with the guilt that most blogs are about Charlotte while Robbie seems to be just a side kick a lot of the time. However that is quickly changing as Robbie is now a master at crawling and is getting into his own mischief. Yesterday he attempted a move he is not quite ready for and ended up with a bloody nose. (yes guilt setting in again) How terrible that must have felt on top of his head cold. I do have a funny (and a bit frustrating) story about Charlotte that I want to add to my 'journal' as I don't want to forget it. Early last week, just as I thought potty training was going great, no major accidents for days, we were even able to make short trips without a diaper, and on occasion she was waking up from her nap dry. One day as we were about to go to the park we had the following conversation.
"Charlotte do you need to pee?"
"No, I've pee-ed enough"
"Awww, could you just try before we go to the park"
"No, I've pee-ed enough"
I thought that perhaps she didn't have to pee, so we went to the park (with a change of clothes). Surprisingly we made it home nice and dry, once again I asked if she had to pee. Of course by now she must have to go! Again she refused. I tried the hard road... (which I should know is not the road to take with her, after all she is a mini me when it comes to temper and stubbornness). "Okay fine!" I said and walked away for a quick breather. Turned around to get a diaper, thinking that if I put on the diaper then she could go and be more comfortable... then we could reason. Well, as I turned up the hall I saw a RIVER coming down, and take a guess as to the what the new super crawler was making a bee-line for!?! Whoa!!! I was able to divert one disaster but not the trauma for Charlotte about peeing in the hall. I felt horrible, parenting is a beautiful experience but it is not always pretty and certainly not always easy. After that day, when I asked Charlotte if she needed to pee she always responded the same way "I've pee-ed enough". Who knows what caused this turn of events, maybe the novelty wore off, maybe the hallway river was just too upsetting or maybe we ran out of Smarties!! Yes Smarites, I choose to not get into the debate about Bribery vs Reward... this time Smarties were once again to be my secret weapon. Mike brought home more Smarties and guess who is now peeing and pooing on the potty. Oh but Charlotte is a smart one, the ante has been upped and she now gets 2 Smarties! Whatever works!