Steve turns 30!

Ha Ha, I'm not older then Steve anymore (well technically yes I will always be but he can't hold it over my head that he is 29 and I am super old at 30)! We celebrated Steve's 30th birthday on July 14, the girls had been so excited!
My sister Dana and her family visited last week too, which was good because together we made PIES! Steve's favourtie dessert is apple pie so that is what we made. But we also felt ambitious so we made 8 Pies (some for the freezer). So we did that on Wednesday night, it took soooo long but I am really glad that we did.
On Steve's day I was able to take him out for lunch, just the 2 of us, to Moxies. So nice! The kids helped me blow up balloons to decorate and I made a nice dinner for Steve. I did Roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, potatoes and veg. I thought it turned out pretty good and Steve enjoyed it. He opened some gifts and we sang Happy Birthday and enjoyed Birthday Pie. It was a good day and I'm glad we could celebrate my Steve turning 30!

helping Mommy blow up balloons

Yummy Roast Beef Dinner

My OLD man!

Steve and his girls on his birthday

Steve still being 5 and making faces every time I want to take a picture

they love Daddy!

Birthday Pie

Happy Birthday Steve, I love you!

Second Chances - Day 30

I made a goal to write everyday for 30 days. I have accomplished and failed in my goal at the same time. My purpose was to be more grateful and to count my blessings. I did in fact take 30 opportunities to do that they just weren't in consecutive days. Oh well. I still counted my blessings (I have alot) and gave thanks every day even if I didn't blog it.
I am so grateful for second chances to try things again. We are not perfect beings. We make mistakes. We can try again. This life is to learn, to grow and be refined. I want to be better and I have another day to make that happen. On Anne of Green Gables it says "Tomorrow is always fresh with no mistakes". I love that because it means everyday I can try again to correct wrongs and make things alittle better then they were the day before.
I want to be the best version of myself. That is not going to happen over night, I just have to keep going and it will happen (hopefully).

My kids make me laugh - Day 29

I am so grateful for my kids. They make me laugh (and sometimes cry) everyday. All of them have a great sense of humor and I am so grateful to be able to laugh with them!
Renae is so cheeky cute and loves to tease. Lindy is getting into telling jokes, making little songs and just has such a great laugh. Nicole is my delicious challenge, the things that come out of her mouth sometimes....... today she asked what was on my neck and I told her they were FRECKLES and she said "like FRICKIN FRICKLES Mom?", she is totally into sticking "frickin" into her vocab which I am NOT into but still is kinda funny (I try not to let her see me smile) It took some convincing but she believed me that they were called freckles and not frickles. She is also an amazing story teller. She's so animated and uses her hands when she talks it is awesome!
Renae loves to play peek a boo, chase and get into things. I don't know how many times I've found her in the garbage, trying to splash in the toilet, pulling my diaper bag apart, into the cupboards, pulling ALL the Kleenex out of the box, etc.. and every time I have to smile because she is just curious about EVERYTHING!
Lindy loves to tease, give wet willy's (mostly to Steve), play games, sing great made up songs and play with her sisters. We were at the waterpark yesterday and she took such delight in trying to get me and her dad wet. It was so much fun to play with her.
I am so grateful to laugh and have fun with my kids!

Renae reading a magazine at the Doctors

Lindy teasing Daddy at the dinner table (of course wearing her K grad cap)

Nicole caught in the act of playing in the dirt, she was soooo dirty afterwards

Mommy/Daughter date - Day 28

I took Lindy and Nicole to see Cars 2 in the theatre. I've never taken them both before so it was kind of an adventure. Lindy and I saw Tangled in Dec 2010 and Steve took both of them to see Toy Story 3 last July. Both the girls were so excited to go! Nicole lasted as long as the popcorn did and then wanted to leave. So that part was kinda lame but otherwise it was fun to have a date out with my girls. Next time I would just take Lindy but for my first movie date we had a great day!

I sure love my girls!

Ready to go on our date, Nicole had just been crying because she thought I left without her

Westwood Lake - Day 27

On July 2 Steve and I took the girls around Westwood Lake. It is a 6km hike around and we did it! Steve had never done the hike before so that was an added bonus for us too. We had Renae in the backpack, Nicole and Lindy walked/had piggy back rides all the way. We had fun!. It was such a beautiful walk too. I loved all the trees, the water, we saw lots of birds and bugs, it was great! The girls were tired at the end but we rewarded them with a swim which they enjoyed. I am so grateful to live somewhere like Vancouver Island. There is so much to do here and it is SO BEAUTIFUL!!!

I carried Renae for 2 1/2 km before she was done :)

Daddy helping with shoulder rides

this was at the start of the walk when they had loads of energy

the lake was so nice!

Renae even managed a little nap while we walked

Service with a Smile - Day 26

Steve and I had the opportunity to clean our church this morning. I'm going to be honest, I kinda forgot until I was getting out of the shower, thinking about not having anything to do this morning and then it hit me. But I'm so glad it did because I had the opportunity to serve by cleaning some of our church building. Even if it is something like cleaning, service always makes me feel better. "When ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God" I thought about that today and it made me realize that I need to make more of an effort to serve those around me. It was also fun to do it with my family, the girls had their own cloths to help and they enjoyed wiping down all the pews with me. I also got to visit with a Brother that I don't always get to talk to on Sundays (due to craziness that is Sunday). He is so sweet and a little lonely so it was nice to spend time with him, he loves the kids so that was nice too!
I am grateful for the opportunity I had to clean this morning because it was a reminder of things that need to be done. I share this video as more of a reminder to me that Unselfish Service is such a marvelous thing!

Being Canadian - Day 25

On this July 1st Canada Day, it is only fitting that I once again express my gratitude for living in such a beautiful and free country! I love living in Nanaimo, British Columbia, CANADA! Vancouver Island is soooooo beautiful with so many different things to do. Steve and I have made a list of things we've never done, haven't done together or haven't been to in a long time. This summer we are going to try and accomplish visiting all of the places on our list. I am really excited because I think it will be a fun adventure for all of us!
We went down to the waterfront after lunch to take in some of the festivities, we all enjoyed that. It was nice to see so many people come out with Canada clothes, hats, flags, stickers, balloons, etc. I think we are all proud to be Canadian! (some pics to follow when my camera battery is recharged)

waiting in line for a balloon animal

Hobbs girls on Canada Day

checking out the Morrell Sanctuary booth