What a weekend!

Hello all,

so much has been going on around here, it has been hard to keep up! I though I'd take a quick moment to share the adventures we had this past weekend. For my birthday gift, my mom took Nola overnight and Doug and I were able to get away. Although I missed my little girl, it was AMAZING! I felt like a teenager again :) We went for dinner and then walked around downtown. We held hands and laughed and Dougie even gave me a piggy-back ride - it was perfect. We did a house swap with my mom - she came and stayed in Coalhurst with Nola and we went out to her house with the Dogs. It was so wonderful!!

On Saturday, Dougie helped his buddy roof his house and my mom and I did some serious shopping! We spent the day downtown looking in neat shops. I love my mom so much!! Saturday evening, Dougies sister, Dori, came down and we went river rafting! It was soooooo cool! We did a run called Moonlight Madness and it was just that. We started in the River around 11:30pm and finished around 2:45am. It was so beautiful - it was a full moon and the sky was so clear! I want to do that over and over again!

On Sunday, we spend a quiet day at home. It was scorching hot, so we set up Nola's pool and we had a pool party, just the three of us! Nola was so sweet splashing in the water - she makes my heart grow. It was so great to have a family day :)

Here are some photos of Nola in the pool. She so sweet!!

The attack of Mr. Bear.

For some reason, every animal toy we have is named 'Mr. ____' There is Mr. Duck, Mr. Lion and Mr. Bear. Anywho, Mr. Bear is the perfect size for Nola. She can pick him up, give him a hug and his arms, legs and nose are the perfect fit for Nola's little mouth.

This video is hilarious to me. Doug and I were sitting down, eating some breakfast and she was just attacking the crap out of Mr. Bear. She was diving into him, growling and sucking the little stuffed life out of him. Although the video is only a minute or so long, she did this over and over for probably 15 minutes. Needless to say, he was soaked by the end.

DISCLAIMER: No animals were harmed in the making of this video.

I love to suck

I can't get enough of this little girl.

She is teething, so she loves to suck, gnaw and chew on anything she can. Grandma Sedrovic bought her this new teething toy and she was going to town on it. But by the end, she was done. Haha, she's too stinkin' cute.

Get that soother!!!

Nola is at that age where she is starting to firgure things out - like how to get her soother back into her mouth after pulling it out. To be perfectly honest, when she masters this skill, it will be a bitter-sweet day for me. I am not a huge fan of the 'I pull out my soother, Mommy puts it back' game, however with each milestone she reaches I realize that she is growing up and will only continue to. I guess she can't stay my swaddled little baby forever, right?

All in all, I am so proud of her and every little bit of growth I see. I love my Nola Mae.

Nola's first camping trip.

Dougie took some extra holidays over the Canada Day long weekend, so we packed up and headed out to the family cabin at Moyie Lake, BC. I must clarify, our cabin really is just a cabin - not a house on the lake. It's basically an insulated box with a wood stove, a bed, some couches and a coleman stove for cookin meals. No running water, however thanks to a long extension cord, we do get electricity from our neighbors :)

We got out to the cabin on Wednesday, June 30. It was a relatively decent day, so we walked Nola down to the beach (unfortunately we forgot our camera, so I'll do my best to describe her reaction). Moyie is a super cold lake - even on the hottest of days, it still takes your breath away to jump in! Last year, Doug went wake-boarding and after only being in and out of the water for about 20 minutes, his lips were blue! Anywho, I walked into the water up to my shins and I would dunk Nola's feet in the water. With every dunk, she tucked her legs up into herself like a turtle and would let out a pathetic like whelp! Haha, it was pretty funny. Needless to say, we are cruel parents, and we dunked her in about half a dozen times. Finally, she really started to cry, so we decided we'd better stop. Unfortunately, the weather was crummy the rest of our trip, so we didn't make it back to the beach.

While at the cabin, we spent most of our time just chillin'. Nola was GREAT!! She spent lots o her time hanging out on the deck in her

<--- pop-a-tot. That thing is a work of art!! Oh my, I'm in love with it! It's kind of like a camping exersaucer. Anywho, Nola loved it too and she spent tons of time in there, chatting with Mr. Duck and eating her hands.

On Canada Day, Dougie, Nola and I went into Cranbrook to spend the day with my cousin Jodi and her husband and son, Gabe. Poor Jodi, she was in her 10th month of her pregnancy (she was due on June28th) and we spent the day out in the sun at the spray park. She was having contractions all day long and at 9:30am the next day, July 2, she gave birth to a beautiful baby boy, Isaac! We were so happy to be around for the special arrival! Now Jodi deserves mother of the year, because Isaac is one BIG boy. He tipped the scales at 10 lbs 1 oz!! Holy Moses!! And she did it without drugs! Kudos to you Jodes, you're a better woman than I.

I love this picture because you can really see how big Isaac is! Him and Nola are 4 months apart!! I actually just weighed Nola and she's now a whopping 11 lbs 11 oz! She starting to get chunky!! So here they are, Nola and Isaac, 4 months apart and 1 lbs 10 oz difference.

Jodes, bless your soul.

On Saturday morning, our friends Clint and Nickie come out for the weekend. It was great to see them! Unfortunately, the weather was pretty crummy, so we didn't do much of anything. On Saturday night, we cooked up a butt-load of meat and stuffed ourselves stupid. Even Nola was trying to sneak a piece of Uncle Clint's steak.

Nola did great sleep-wise for all but Saturday night. I'm not too sure what her issue was, but she freakin' screamed and it really sucked. BUT, other than that, our camping trip was a complete success!!

Yay for family holidays!

Friends

Three hole punch Jac and smurfette Jess.

My beautiful Jodes on her beautiful day.

Ali, my dear, sweet, Ali.

Beautiful Renee.

Me, Simone and the babes!

Beautiful soul = LeahRose

I have been contemplating what I should blog about. Should I blog about the actual events of my life, or how I have been feeling? Lately, I guess the two go hand in hand, so I'll just go for it.

This weekend I had the blessing of having one of my bestest buddies fly into to stay with us for a couple days. Renee has been my partner in crime for many years and it was so wonderful to spend some time with her again. She got to meet Nola for the first time, which was so wonderful to watch. Renee loves children and it warmed my heart so much to see her interact with my darling child. We spent a wonderful day at the Calgary Zoo, hit up the mall for some serious shopping and had plenty of down-time to chat about everything from love to money and belt it out to Bloc Party while cruisin' in Southern Alberta.

On the 19th, my dear friends, Jacquie and Eric, had their first baby - a sweet little boy named Oliver. Her and her husband live in Ontario, which is just too far away...

My dear cousin, Jodi, called me for some much needed love and support as she is moments away from bringing her second child into the world.

My beautiful LeahRose e-mailed me to make sure I was doing well when I posted on FaceBook that I was feeling low.

All of these events have have brought me to contemplate and reflect on the friendships and relationships in my life. Over the years, friends have come and gone. Friendships have blossomed and wilted, shone on and faded away, yet there have been a few who have stuck by, and like fine wine, grew sweeter, stronger and worth more than rubies.

I am forever grateful for real friends - for those I can count on and believe in. Jodes, LeahRose, Ray, Al, Simone, Jac, you girls mean more to me than you will ever know.

Thanks gals. I love ya.

PS. I wanted to post the pics at the bottom, but I didn't know how...so just imagine it.

First time alone!

Nola is now 3 months, 1 week and 3 days old, and tonight is my first time alone. I truly is amazing how much being a mother changes your life. Doug and I have been so fortunate to have family close by who are willing to take Nola for an hour or two, here and there, so we can have a date night, but tonight is the first time without Doug or Nola...and to be completely honest, it has been wonderful! I had a long, luxurious bubble bath, played my guitar and vegged on the couch - things that I defiantly took for granted before having a baby.
I was actually talking to a friend of mine who is expecting, and she asked if having a baby really is such a drastic and life changing experience. As I sat and pondered this question, I think the answer is both yes and no. I know for myself, my life didn't drastically change once Nola came into the world. Doug, Nola and I slowly learned the swing of things and transitioned quite beautifully into our now day-to-day routine, but it is in the day-to-day that you realize the changes. The dishes that don't get done, the calls that don't get made, the meager meals you eat straight from the fridge with a baby on your hip. The lack of 'you' time, to work on your talents, to enjoy a movie without interruption, to have a good nights sleep.
I have heard over and over again the 'sacrifices' of being a mother, and I truly believe it is in the small and simple things. I am sure it is quite easy for women to 'lose' themselves in the day-to-day of being a mom.
I am so very grateful for a loving family and a wonderful husband who grants me the time I need for me. We are a team.
Well, that's how I'm feeling right now. Thanks for listening.
Jess :)