Mommy Day...cute video!

I don't usually watch the Family Guy and truly think it is the stupidest thing I've ever seen ("so childish" she says eating cheese and crackers!). However, during an early morning snow fall today, I hooked on to You Tube and surfed for funny stuff. I found the funniest thing, that, as a Mother I can relate to! Check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4l2UUueH5Q and watch to the end... it makes me laugh every time!

Hope you're all having a fun 'mommy' day!

Cheers

Quiz...Pony Club style!

Yesterday was a fun day! Grove Girls: Kaitlyn, Julia, Sarah

Sarah has been in Pony Club since she was 6 and every year she looks forward to quiz. It doesn't sound like anything with so much fun, but for our straight A student, she thrives on mental challenges! Quiz is where kids from around the BC Lower Mainland get together and test their book smarts (no ponies/horses required for this day!). I got to be in the marking room so I could be away from the screaming kids (they run around and play games once testing is done).

In her category there were 42 kids and she placed a very respectable 10th. Her team came in 1st overall in their category so she will have possession of a lovely trophy for a portion of the year to show off!


Getting her ribbon 1st Place team, Allissa, Hayley, Larrisa, Sarah

Julia came 5th in her category and her team also came in 1st! Jinnell, who is many levels up from our girls, came in 4th individually and will head to Northern Alberta for National Quiz (competing against all teams from Canada).

WELL DONE GROVE!!

Business in Vancouver winner!

An awards ceremony, a couple glasses of wine, a nice plaque and some time with friends and family!

Last night we attended the Business in Vancouver Top 40 under 40 (yeah, we're still under 40!). Dwayne was named to the growing list of entrepreneurs who are named each year. It is an honor to be chosen and be recognized for the hard work that is put in each day to succeed. Dwayne and I were joined by friends Dan and Jenn Lang, my parents John and Judy, and Dwayne's parents Gordie and Esther.

We started at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver with a winner reception and then onto the bigger awards type networking etc. The food at the event was fabulous with my fav....cheese! Following the reception and awards the group from EO Vancouver headed over to Joe Fortes for dinner. Jade Bourelle, who was also a winner, had chosen the menu and all there was left to do was eat! YUMMY! We thoroughly enjoyed chatting with everyone and reconnecting with other EO members.

It was a great evening to honour Dwayne and that he has accomplished with Pacific R.I.M. Services.

Check out Business in Vancouver Top 40 under 4o for the "Class of 2006". I will post pics later as they aren't off the camera yet or you can check out The Lang's site (link at side) for some pics.

PS I had great intentions of having this done days ago but here we are on the 25th of Feb and I'm finally finishing it!

A lovely horse is always an experience....

...It is an emotional experience of the kind that is spoiled by words.

~Beryl Markham

She knows when you're happy

She knows when you're comfortable

She knows when you're confident

And she always knows when you have carrots!

~Author Unknown

She has been with us since September 20, 2001. Doesn't hardly seem that long but she has listened to my thoughts, my fears and has always been a faithful companion. I remember the day she arrived at the farm, coming out of a trailer, I had never seen such a beautiful mare, I cried then as I do now. Never, did she ask for anything in return except for a good scratch behind the ear or a nibble on a yummy apple.

There is no secret so close as that between a rider and her horse.

~Robert Smith

Blondie will be laid to rest in the morning, Feb 20, 2007, and I have decided to share this heart wrenching moment with all of my blogger friends. I will not be present during her final moments as I have made the decision to not be there and remember my friend eating her grain or munching on an apple, and letting her long mane fly as she canters around the field. Our time with Blondie(also known as Blondes, Blondeeda, Deeda, Deeds, Mama, Blondie-girl) has been shorter than expected but full of fun time, galloping around the field or listening to her call as I step out of my truck. I will certainly miss the nickering, whinnying and nuzzling.

Blondie helped teach our kids tenderness and respect while they brushed her, climbed on her and snuck under her belly to get to the other side. She has always been a very kind animal with the kind of eyes that tell their own story. In a previous post, I explained about our time getting a final diagnosis on Feb 3rd. Her eyes now tell their story, and I believe that she is ready to go. She is scared and is constantly worried about what is going on around her. We would be taking a very selfish stand in not letting her go to a happier, safer and more peaceful place.

The wind of heaven is that which blows between a horse's ears

What a weekend for the Stewart kids!

Our weekend began as a somewhat quiet Friday Pro-D day and the kids enjoyed some extra time in jammies etc. Sarah danced all day Sat (see previous post), and today Cam took on the BMX racing at the Ag-Rec building.

It was the weekend of the Western Canada Championships and he raced his little heart out! The MC liked to use the word 'carnage' alot for crashes on the track. We were thankful that none of the 'carnage' happened to our boy!

Cam finished the day with a lovely trophy and picked up his bronze medal from the BC's held a couple of weeks ago. He was unfortunately bumped up from Novce 10 to Intermediate 11....so he got a great trophy for his amazing efforts!!

And the gold medal goes to....

Sarah danced all day today, and I the faithful mother stayed and watched everyone...and I mean every one! Sarah dances in 4 different kinds of dances each week and today did 8 performances for the Annual Dance Festival for her dance school.

Each week, Sarah mentors in the Gr 2 ballet class, so she has younger kids calling her Miss Sarah and following her around like little puppies. She even taught the class their 'blackberry' dance, one that she did herself just a few short years ago (it seems like yesterday!).

Her efforts were rewarded with 8 awards; 3 gold, 4 silver and 1 bronze. This year she and Evie did a choreography in Modern themselves. They were the gold winners on that one! I am so thrilled for her (still) everytime she gets to be on stage, after all, isn't she the Drama Queen?!!

The Babysitter!

Last night Sarah was looking after her cousins, Stephanie, Michael and Isaac. The kids were at our house for ease of travel (Auntie Jo and Uncle Jarrod were just down the road at Care Group). Sarah did so well, I didn't even lend a hand. They played and when it was time for bed, she read a book and tucked everyone in. We let her stay up until the parents came to fetch the kids and she made $15. Not bad for a 12 year old!!

(This is Isaac heading out to the car)

(This is Auntie Jo playing around!)

Did I think I was the only one?

Well, let me start with...my husband is wonderful (you know it's not good when one has to start with "no offence..."). For Valentine's Day I was very surprised the day before to get a call from my favorite Car Buff Center saying that my valentine wanted to have my truck detailed for me as a surprise. I was absolutely thrilled, even though I have been known to take my truck in and have it washed, I was glad to have someone else booking it for me. When the truck was returned to me, it even had a flower and chocolates on the seat. I also got a lovely bouquet of flowers delivered with a lovely message. Needless to say, I was feeling like I was truly thought of.

Today, as I was out at my parents doing my morning chores, my father said 'oh I hear you had all of your employee vehicles detailed yesterday'. Not wanting to show any emotions, I agreed and pretended, in fact, that it was partially my idea. Boy was I choked!! I know that that sounds selfish and self-centered, but come on...on the one day of the year ( alright, Valentine's, my birthday and our anniversary...I don't share well!)! I called Dan today and told him, he just laughed and said as an outsider, it was pretty funny! I DON'T see it! Thanks Dan for always trying to make me see the lighter side.

Uggg....I'm happy that I got flowers and am very happy to have a honey to share my life, tears, fears and most of all, my dreams with. I just wish I didn't have to share with the other women in his life.

What a good day!

You know I have no life as I am always writing about my kids...come on, is it really that bad? After all, they are the bestest ever!!

Today I was in Wal-Mart talking on the phone with my friend Jenn and I was telling her all about the fun and cool stuff that went on yesterday and today...she said "did you blog it?", no I said. "Well you better go and blog" was her response. So here's my fun and exciting news!!

As some of you know, Cam has struggled with school right from the get go. We discovered in Grade 1 that he couldn't see well and he got glasses(the eye doctor wanted to wait until his eyes got bad as one was worse than the other). By the time he got glasses, he was behind in reading and to top it off had a teacher that didn't care. Now, 3 years later, a PACE program and Hooked on Phonics everyday he is reading Treehouse and Charlie Bones. We are so proud of him!! He has been 'beaten down' by the system and didn't understand the need to try just for his own satisfaction. Well he FINALLY gets it! He is getting perfect scores on spelling 17/17 on Friday and in a 'bribe' type fashion I told him I'd take him to get something if he got a perfect score (hence the reason we were in Wally's world!). He also got 69/72 on him multiplication table test on Friday...wow, he's so excited and proud of himself.

Today...he was racing BMX once again and in one of his mottos (races) he came in first, the second he come in third and then a 2nd place on the third race. He is so happy! (and so are we!)

We've always known it was in him, but he is just figuring out now that he is worth the effort for himself and not for anyone else.

YEAH....GOOD DAY!!! We love you Cammy!

Friendships

As I was helping Cam do his Valentine cards today, I came across this very nice little poem about friends. I thought it was very appropriate for all of my friends, so here it is. I hope you remember to that you are treasured!

A FRIEND

© Breena C. Park

A friend is like a flower,

a rose to be exact,

Or maybe like a brand new gate

that never comes unlatched.

A friend is like an owl,

both beautiful and wise.

Or perhaps a friend is like a ghost,

whose spirit never dies.

A friend is like those blades of grass

you can never mow,

standing straight, tall, and proud

in a perfect little row.

A friend is like a heart that goes

strong until the end.

Where would we be in this world

if we didn't have a friend.

Here's our Cam

I have to even the score and do a post about Cam, who turned 9 at Christmas. It has taken Cam years to find something to call his own, in the way of sports or groups. Sarah has always been a dancer, but Cam has struggled with all sorts of things. He has tried baseball, rugby, karate, swimming and yes, even dance. We have always given him the opportunity to try new things in the hopes of finding him a 'passion'. Cam is a great younger brother, he supports Sarah in everything she does and attends all dance performances and horsing events. He usual does it without whining too!!

Cam now is in BMX racing and is loving it! Finally something that makes him do his homework and calls on his 'passion' side! He has been racing since December when we bought him a new bike for his birthday (apparently the wrong one, but I'll explain that later!!). He raced in the BC Cup a couple of weekends ago and placed 2nd and had two 3rd finishes. He practices 2 to 3 days per week and usually races on Friday evening and Sunday's around noon (if you're ever in the area!).

This is one of his favorite pics as he was going so fast it looks like there are flames coming off the back! Cam's race number is #222

So now about the bike. Dwayne and Cam went bike shopping as a birthday gift and having not attended any of the races (don't do it that way!) they bought a BMX bike, complete with rear pegs. We arrived at the first practice and found out that pegs weren't allowed and the boys had purchases a 'park bike'. We didn't know the difference and much like CA's and CGA's, they don't mix well! We will check out a second hand bike at the upcoming Nationals, being held at Abbotsford Indoor on Feb 17 and 18, as many people use their bikes for one year and move up. Given the enormous bill of $1000 for a starter race bike, we'll go 'new to us'!! The racing bikes are so light they can be lifted with an index finger, no kidding!

Enough about that! Our last pic is of Cam on Christmas morning with his new pair of racing pants from Sarah. He is well outfitted complete with a new jersey and body armor (that sounds so cool!).

Here's our Sarah

Here is our girl (for those of you that haven't seen her in awhile)in Whistler last summer. We had a fun time at her party and last night with family for cake. She appeared this morning with her mascara on and ready for school. I have decided to embrace the make-up and teach her early how not to look like a "chick on Davie St"!! I remember the racoon-eyes of Grade 8 and laugh out loud when I see people who haven't figured out that it's not the mid-eighties yet!!

Here are Sarah and Scout (the pony) getting ready for a dressage event. Scout was very good and Sarah and he even came in 8th out of 20 for her first event!!







This is Sarah and her bff Taleah (Sarah is in the light blue with the white purse). Sarah and Taleah were off to Jenna's birthday party dressed for an Oscar Event. Aren't they lovely!!
(BTW, I made both of these dresses!)

That's it for now, I will get some updated pics on as soon as I find the proper cord. Enjoy the pics today!! I will try to find something else to talk about tomorrow...maybe pics of Cam doing his BMX Racing!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY !

Today is the 12th birthday of our little peanut, SarahElizabeth!! Our beautiful girl is getting so big and is acting so mature (most of the time), when did that happen, where did the time go?? Sarah is a great person with amazing vision for what she wants in the future (and that includes getting Emma to dance!). She is caring, helpful, motivated, enthusiastic, understanding, polite (most of the time!), loving and generally wonderful. This is a very exciting time for our family as we celebrate this day!! Anyone up for cake?? Tomorrow night at 6:30...just let me know!

Ahh....family day!

Today is a great day. Yes, it's a rainy one but that allows us to hang out as a family too. Cam didn't have a race today so it allowed us to go for breakfast this morning after chores. Sarah and Cam are in the hot tub and I have taken a few minutes to sit quietly. We have an upcoming family airhockey tournament and then the boys will be playing a game of pool. Sarah, Cam and I are working on a puzzle. Now even at 12:51pm I am in a quiet house with happy kids. Only once in a while do we get to have a day at home to even become bored!! I like days that could possibly be jammie days. Can't wait to have an afternoon nap!!

Being a grown-up stinks sometimes!

Today, I actually had to make some serious decisions. I usually have decisions to make but not life altering ones. You see, my dear friend and horse (the same thing here), Blondie, has been diagnosed with cataracts. I found out about this about a month ago and at first decided that I would have to put her to sleep. With some contemplation, I decided to go through everything I could to save her life. Today, Dwayne and I loaded her up (she hasn't trailered for 5 years, since the day I got her) and travelled down to Lynden for her opthomology appointment. Sadly, after all of that, she is not a candidate for the surgery and will remain my friend and a companion for the others until she can no longer deal with the situations at her home. I am very happy that I went through everything to find this out, as I think I would have regretted not knowing, forever!
Bright note, she was so happy to get home and played and rolled with the other horses. She still has a great quality of life, and I will continue to do what we can to keep it that way. The vet says that her sudden condition is likely a result from the major trauma she suffered a year ago.

Soooo, take care of your pets, friends and 4 legged family members (unless they're of the rodent kind!). They will stay by you through thick and thin and trust you! Dwayne has been especially amazing through all of this. My tears, my fears...I guess that makes him the grown up right now! Dan listened to my fears and troubles and he and Kathy B. advised me to do what I needed to do get to the bottom of things. Thanks friends for listening to me blubber!!

I feel so much better now, thanks for listening. We are off to the Heart for Hospice fundraiser tonight, so I better go and put the cucumber on my eyes and even have a shower...novel idea!!

Quick blog today

The kids and I have been enjoying watching our favorite web cams of late. We have checked out Rome (as my parents are there), Hawaii (where the Langs were) and our absolute favorite, the Nkorho Pan web cam. It is a cam overlooking a natural watering hole in South Africa where we were on Safari. Last night we watched giraffes and elephants. Due to the time difference their daylight is in the evening or morning for us. Check out http://www.wavelit.com/ and click on the african web cam. You can also check out the bears on Grouse Mtn hibernating on the same site. ENJOY the trip to South Africa and Kruger National!!

Sunshine!

What an amazing day! The sun is bright, with not a cloud in the sky. We live in the most beautiful area. How lucky are we? The ocean to the west, mountains all around and lovely farm land just a quick drive away. Hmmmm...it's a good day!

Dwayne and I even got to meet for lunch today. Not a usual thing and it makes me smile all day when I get to see my sweetie in the middle of the day. Our days are so busy that we don't take time to do the small things.

As I sit typing this Sarah is at dance (again!) and Cam is playing with the mega amount of GI Joe's at Mom's house. He is just making all the little noises and is absorbed in his own world. No bickering, no whining, no demands....It's a good day!!