A little late...but Happy Birthday Alex!!

We had the family over on Sunday to celebrate Alex's 7th birthday. I made him a LEGO Atlantis underwater birthday cake. He was happy with it! He was happy for two reasons, he told me. The first because now he was more than half way to being a teenager. (Made me kind of miss the birthday where he cried because he was getting older and never wanted to leave home, lol!)
The second because he got a raise on his allowance on his birthday. They get their age in dollars every two weeks - or half their age a week, depending on how you want to look at it. I just find it easier to pay them when Rob gets paid.

So, now I have a seven year old boy and I couldn't be prouder! I adore this kid, which I know every mom says, but he is just such a kind-hearted boy and a treat to be around. His aunt gave him two books for his birthday and he jumped up and down like he had just been told he was going to Disney. He is always so gracious and considering how spoiled he is, he takes little for granted.

I know I did a birth story for Izzy and would like to try and piece together the fragments of my memories from Alex's birth. I am in between computers right now and when I regain access to my photos I'll post one of the not so teeny, tiny boy as a newborn.

To say that finding out we were expecting Alex was a surprise would be an understatement. Eight years ago I sat in a doctor's office being told how difficult it would be for me to get pregnant and that I needed to go home and decide when we were going to start pursuing aggressive options. I was 27, so it wasn't a dire situation but there wasn't a lot of time to lose. My doctor didn't want me coming back at 35 feeling like I had really missed the boat.

I went home, had a good cry and Rob and I decided we would do what we needed to do when the time came. Some fertility treatments, perhaps look into adoption if that didn't work. At any rate, we were still going to wait another year or two before we proceeded with any plan.

Several weeks later I was talking to my pharmacist, talking about my PCOS and why the birth control wasn't regulating my period as it had done in the past. She told me to grab a pregnancy test so I could officially rule it out when I went back to the doctor. Sure thing!!

When I got home that night I told a distracted husband that I was taking a pregnancy test, hardy-har-har, and that if he heard a scream and a thud he should come check on me. Well, a few minutes later there was more of a yelp and a whole lot of "Oh My Gods" going on. Rob came running towards me having totally forgotten (or not even heard) what I had said to him and only registered what I was saying when I started waving the pee stick in his face. I totally freaked out. I couldn't have been less prepared for that possibility.

I was up all night googling possible reasons a pregnancy test would come back positive because I couldn't possibly be pregnant. As soon as the stores were open, I was at the front door with a full bladder to purchase another couple boxes of tests. All of which told me the same thing. I was pregnant!

It was a Friday morning in August, which I remember because I begged to see my doctor that afternoon and my blood work wouldn't come back quickly because it was the weekend. She did immediately book an ultrasound just to see what was going on. On my way to that Friday afternoon appointment I remember telling Rob that I would call if she heard a heartbeat, thinking what a great joke that was. If only I had known...

So I was pregnant and had no idea how far along I was. We had the ultrasound booked a week after discovery. Well, not only was there an audible heartbeat but the screen showed us a very well developed baby - around 18 weeks along. We were dumbfounded! Into the second trimester without even knowing I was pregnant. Heck, I was pregnant the day the doctor told me I may never even have kids!

He was the easiest pregnancy. Never gave me a problem until the end when he didn't want to come out. Since this post has gotten so long I will leave his birth day for another post. It is nice remembering. Feels like a million years ago though.

And on that note...

All that talk about ages and stages, lol, started because someone sent me a contest I could enter but the demographic for qualifying was 26-34. I realized that (at least marketing-wise) I was entering a new stage in my life. No more directed ads for strollers or diapers here. It is all about Tums and sensible footwear from here on out!

AND a Happy Birthday to my beloved Rob! I have nearly 4 years on him so he'll still get direct marketing for video games for at least a few more years, I'm sure!

Happy 31st Love! From me and the kidlets :-)

Happy Birthday Miss Iz!!!

I have been flooded with memories today, about Izzy's birth. She loves listening to stories about herself as a baby. So, for her future reading pleasure, I will write it all out for her now as I find that with each passing year, details begin to fade.

We had been sent to the hospital a few times for an induction but were always turned away because they were too busy. I had an overly cautious obstetrician (by everyone's standards) and slightly higher than normal blood pressure. On the morning of Thursday, November 3, 2005, I went in to see the doctor who had hoped I would have gone into labour since seeing him that Monday (when I refused to forgo trick or treating with Alex) and discovered he was quite eager for this baby to be born. Daddy was working from home so he could watch Alex and so I wouldn't have had to schlep my gigantic two year old on the subway to the appointment. Plus the last few appointments involved non-stress tests and more blood work - always a surprise and last minute addition to my quick check-up. Though Alex usually enjoyed accompanying me. If he was good, the doctor's visit also included a trip across the street to Tim Horton's for his sprinkle donut.

To my surprise the doctor asked one of the nurses to call St. Mike's hospital across the street and tell them to prep a room, he was sending me over. "Like, right now, right now?!", I asked. He said I had a little time. It might be okay if I was there within an hour.

Funny enough, I was calmer than I had been the last few times I was sent to triage for induction prep. I called daddy and told him I was checking into the hospital but would be stopping for a quick bite to eat before I went in. Then I called Heather and asked if she could leave work as soon as possible to relieve Daddy of Alex's care. Aunt Kelly would be heading to Toronto later in the day to take over the night duty. I felt completely at my leisure. I knew that it would take a while to check in and that even if they started the pic drip (and if Alex's induction labour was any indication) it would be a very long day ahead.

I made my calls, walked down the street to Pizza Pizza, had a slice of veggie and enjoyed my few minutes of solitude. It was a bit cool outside but very sunny. I told Rob to relax, not rush and bring all the stuff with him. I even told him to remember to grab a coffee on the way. No rush, I said!

When I got to the hospital the nurse at the front desk was surprised I was alone but was amused by how calm and relaxed I was. We even joked around a bit. I was taken immediately to a birthing suite and given my gown. Within the next half hour I was even hooked up to an IV. Your poor Daddy found me in the room all set to go, just waiting for labour to kick in. I think he felt bad for not being there the whole time.

The day and evening went by slowly. I don't remember much except the occasional trip out of bed to walk in circles around the room. It was pretty light labour through the night. I clearly remember laughing to myself as I watched as your father slept peacefully on the pull-out bed while I tried to help bring on labour. Luckily for your dad, I was always concerned about his well-being while I had the baby?!

By morning I still had not progressed very far and was getting tired and irritable. A nurse asked when I might want the epidural and by 8am we had decided to go ahead and call for one. Unfortunately for me, all the anesthesiologists had just convened for a meeting and I would have to wait.

I think my epidural arrived just after 10am. It didn't go well. Within seconds half of my body was completely numb, and only on the left side! I still had the pleasure of half feeling the labour pains, combined with overwhelming nausea thanks to the dramatic drop in blood pressure and feeling like I wanted to faint. I distinctly remember trying not to panic as my breathing felt more difficult and seeing the clearly concerned faces of your dad, the anesthesiologist and my nurse. All of whom, by the way, stayed right by my side for well over an hour.

The epidural was not pulled out but the drugs were basically stopped. A whole room full of people came in to check on me and see how far I was dilated. Turns out nothing else was really going on. You weren't progressing at all. The poor nurses were very concerned that I was going to get angry or upset by how slowly it was all going. I told them that after the length of Alex's labour, a day was nothing! In fact, I was relieved to have some time to relax and regroup after the scary incident with my epidural. Everyone left and I relaxed as best as a woman in labour could relax.

By noon the contractions were fairly regular but quite manageable. I told daddy to go get some lunch. To actually leave the building and get some real food. I was quite confident that I had all the time in the world. Not long after he left the contractions got stronger. My nurse would pop into the room to check on me but for the most part left me alone to concentrate. It was strangely relaxing and I started getting excited. I had not experienced labour in a conventional way with your brother (woke up in the middle of the night, still in a medically-induced fog, to a room full of people, alarms and a blinding white light) and it felt amazing the way I could sense you coming down the birth canal. There was pressure but no pain. I remember thinking how cool it was. By the time daddy got back I was getting a little concerned that you were coming quite quickly and started to wonder if this would be one of those cases of the baby being born as soon as the dad stepped out.

I asked your dad to call the nurse in to check your progression. I felt silly for some reason, thinking that I was so close to birth. I expected something different out of the experience. My nurse came in and saw that I had gone from 3cm to 9 1/2cm in less than 2 hours. This, after more than 20 hours to get from one centimetre (which I had been at for weeks) to two and a half. That is when all the excitement began. More nursed were called in. Someone paged the doctor on call. It was suggested that I start pushing - which I rejected. I said I had been taught the first time to let the baby come and push only at the very end, and that is what I was going to do! Just shortly before 1pm I started pushing to get you out. It was amazing. I had the great fortune of having a baby with a small head this time around. There was no excruciating pain or burning. I had all my faculties about me and was wide awake. I could feel every part of the process and it felt great!

Daddy likes to tell the story of how your umbilical cord shot out like silly string after your shoulder was dislodged. Even the staff remarked at the length, lol. You came out pink, tiny and perfect. With long, jet black hair! To say I was shocked would be an understatement. I think people were amused by my reaction and pointed out my non-blond-haired husband. I honestly pictured you to look like, well, like you do now!

You were perfection. Since there were no complications I asked for us to be discharged as soon as possible - which was at least 6 hours after birth. I had no intention of sharing a room with someone with tons of visitors and nurses who didn't help you out anyway. If I was going to have a sleepless nught with my baby, it was going to be at home. After some issues with a different ward nurse, a quick trip to the NICU (to the chagrin of the doctor in charge there who couldn't figure out why you needed to be taken from me to begin with), a quick shower and a visit from Alex, Kelly and Grandpa, we were on our way home.


It is hard to believe that 4 years have passed already. So Happy Birthday to my baby girl! Life with you has never been dull. You have been master of your own universe pretty much since conception. You came to us just when daddy and I decided to have only one child. Persistent, you are! You have never been a push-over. Just ask the nurses and doctors who laughed when you would shove them back during my pre-natal check-ups. They told me you were going to be a little spitfire. Alex called you spicy the moment he saw you. He was right. You are loving, stubborn, loyal, brave, fiercely independent and one of the joys of my life. Living with you challenges me to be a better person. Thank you for bringing such happiness to my life...most of the time ;-) We all love you very much.

Alex's Birthday, the Final Chapter!

We had some family over to celebrate Alex's birthday on Sunday. He had more cake and more presents. Thankfully, we are now done. We have been joking that he must be 8 years old now after having three celebrations.

Spoiled, these kids. Spoiled rotten. Good thing I like them so much.

Alex's Birthday, Part 2

Much less fanfare on the actual birthday. The day went a little like this:

Woke up and had Alex open his big present before daddy left for work. We all crowded on my bed while he opened his Batman Batcave LEGO set. Over 1000 pieces.

Said our good-byes to Rob and then went to make Alex his breakfast request. Chocolate chip and banana pancakes (minus the banana as Izzy ate the last one before we made it to the kitchen) in animal shapes. Mommy is so talented, lol.



Then we took turns reading, a few chapters each, of our new favourite book, the Phantom Tollbooth. How have I never read this one? It was a birthday gift from his best friend L and her little brother.



We spent a few hours playing with our latest addiction, er, addition to the Wii. I won't say how many hours have been logged on with this game. Let's just say that I've never played with the Wii this much and Alex has racked up more game time than he has in the last six months. To be fair, we actually don't play video games that often and for my own peace of mind the kids have spent as much or more time doing school work. We just haven't socialized a lot these last two days. As Rob would say, Meh.



Later in the afternoon we broke out the new LEGO. For a hard-core junkie like Alex, is was total bliss. I think his largest kit to date only had a few hundred pieces, so this is a big deal. I let him have at it on his own for the first little while. When he needed a break (read: mommy was concerned about his level of fixation), I sent him down to the computer and I sorted the pieces out for him by colour and size. We built a few of the vehicles and left the cave for another day.



I finally peeled him away to go to the grocery store. We came home, ate one of his favourite dishes (beef strauganoff) and then some brownies for dessert.

He crashed pretty quickly last night but when I went to the washroom around 5:30am I saw a light in his room and heard the sounds of hands rummaging through LEGO bits. Poor little obsessed kidlet. Apparently, he just hadn't had his fill.

Alex's Birthday, Part 1

I tell ya, these kids are spoiled rotten. It seems their birthdays always happen is parts. They seem to have several events each year.

Yesterday (aka, the first birthday party) was the LEGO Fiesta party with the home school crowd. Nine kids, tacos, lots of LEGO and a trip to Chuck E Cheese. A fun time was had by all. I got lazy with the cake. With the kitchen reno and your typical February from hell (sick family, moody mom and crappy weather), I was not inspired to spend 6+ hours on a cake. So we made cupcakes and I found those nifty candies shaped like LEGO bricks. Alex loved it and it took all of 10 minutes to decorate. Win-win. I might be inspired to do something with a little more finesse this weekend. We'll see. A good life lesson, I suppose. Sometimes you get pirate ships. Sometimes you get box mix cupcakes with bulk barn candies thrown on top.

The only down side to birthday parties is parting Alex from his gifts. He has been holed up in his room since we got back from gym class playing with this new Bionicle. Several hours of hard core playing going on up there. LEGO is very serious business in this house. Nice to see friends help feed the addiction.

Credit where credit is due!

It was my birthday on Sunday. Rob and the kids baked a cake. This is huge. Rob has never baked a cake before. I think, once, before we got married he made a cherry cheese cake for my birthday. Huh, that would have been exactly ten years ago. Back then one of his roommates promised to help him. Truthfully, I don't remember the cheesecake, or if it was even ever made, but I do remember the secret meeting and giggles with C over not leaving Rob alone in the kitchen with the cream cheese and a can of cherries.

So here is my cake and I loved it. I was especially fond of the upside down sugar roses, thanks to Iz. I guess the days of buying my cakes (or better yet, having me bake them the day before) are finally behind me. Thanks to my kidlets and their enthusiasm for baking. I'm sure Rob looks forward to baking with them again, lol.

Happy Birthday Rob!

This means two things. First, I can stop making the old cracks about him (like he does have as much grey hair at 30 as he thought he would and how most 30 year olds haven`t been married nearly a third of their lives) that never made much sense as I am nearly four years older than him. It was more a form of retribution for how he tried to make me feel old when I turned 30, but I didn`t and he did, lol. Secondly, it means I can put up the Christmas tree this weekend.

So happy birthday to my best friend in the world. I promise to get off the computer shortly and start on your birthday dinner - chicken cacciatore and cherry cheesecake. All our love from me and the kids.

Birthdays and Christmas

That felt like the longest birthday ever. Izzy turned 3 last Tuesday but her party was on Sunday. She kept the festive birthday spirit going all week long. We had only close family and friends over which included her cousins. Izzy was a thrilled little girl and spoiled rotten by all those gifts. They were all perfect too and she is very happy - thanks to everyone who came!

Rob had a four day weekend thanks to Remembrance Day (ahh...one of the many perks of being a bank employee) and I think we relaxed, a little. I coaxed Rob into taking the munchkins to the Science Centre on Monday while I did some big city shopping. I told him that week days were great because they would practically have the place to themselves. Not so, apparently. Every school and daycare group in the city also figured it was a good day to visit the OSC. Rob said he had never seen it so busy. They had fun anyway.

We didn't do much else. I convinced Rob to put up the Christmas lights and we wound up helping our neighbour with hers too. We won't be around the next couple of weekends and I didn't want him to use the excuse of it being too cold outside. Some of you may not know that I am married to the Grinch. This is pretty much the extent of all the Christmas chores that he will help me with - grudgingly. He isn't really a decorative holiday kind of guy. Phooey on him. I have to laugh, though, when the kids ask why daddy hates Christmas. The three of us have more than enough holiday spirit for him, lol! Next week is the official beginning to Xmas 08. We are attending our first family holiday party, and it's on Rob's side of the family - ha! We have at least one Christmas activity planned each weekend after that too. I do yield and hold off until after Rob's birthday (November 27th) to put up the tree. He needn't worry though because I only want it up by December 1st anyway. Every year he says the same thing, You're lucky you didn't grow up with my mom because we weren't allowed to put any Christmas stuff up until after her birthday - December 12th. I laugh and he knows that in this house it is a weak argument. I know he'd try to use the same rule if he had been born Christmas eve.

I have to wonder why people (specifically my spouse) has any reason to repine over the holiday season. After all, its not like he has to worry about putting out the decorations, baking all those goodies, mailing our Christmas cards, buying and wrapping presents...not to mention concern himself with the planning and implementation of the chaotic itinerary. Its a good thing I have so much fun doing it or our holidays would be very dull indeed.

Done!

Phew! This was one of the easiest cakes but very heavy. It has developed a little bulge around the middle. Oh well. No such thing as a perfect cake. Izzy saw it when it was half done and is very excited, which is all that matters.

I always take pictures before I move the cake to the garage (to keep cool overnight). I am convinced that if I don't something will trip me up and the cake will take a dive. It happened once when I was standing at my father-in-law's door with a cake I made him for his birthday. As soon as the door opened the cake carrier came loose and the whole thing fell face first into the foyer.

What you can't see, and what is completely irreplaceable to me, is the stunning crystal cake stand underneath. I'll take a better picture tomorrow. My mother-in-law gave me for my birthday - the last one she was around to celebrate. I thought of her this morning when I pulled it out of the closet and then looked over at Izzy, dressed head to toe in purple. That was grandma's favourite colour. She'd have a good chuckle over this grand-daughter of hers.

Now off to finish the other 50 things on my list...

Happy Birthday Izzy!!!

I call my Isabelle many things...Bella-Button, Peanut, Turkey, Stinkerbelle, Princess...but today I just call her baby. My baby is 3 and I get choked up just thinking about how fast she is growing up. This is the age Alex was when she came into our lives, and he seemed so big back then. My baby, my last baby, is growing up into a little girl. Gosh, who knew I was this sentimental?!

So, to my dearest one, who makes me laugh, cry and pull my hair out (sometimes all at the same time) I must say that I am so grateful for all of your hugs, kisses, giggles and silly faces. It is my honour to be your mommy and watch you grow into this wonderful little person. I am happy to celebrate this milestone with you and eagerly anticipate all the other ones to come. How lucky we are to have you!

What a beautiful day for a birthday, too. Sunny and 20 degrees meant an early afternoon jaunt to the zoo. While we missed the hippos that she desperately wanted to see - they weren't feeling social - the orangutans put on an entertaining floor show, so we sat and watched them for half an hour. Tonight we'll just celebrate quietly with Rob and Alex. The cupcakes are made and her requested meal will take little effort - nachos and chicken nuggets. Later, after everyone is tucked into bed, Rob and I will likely snuggle and reminisce about all these big moments with the kids. By then I won't be the only one with watery eyes.

I'm fretting...

Izzy's birthday party is in a week and while I have a theme, sort of, I still haven't come up with a real plan for the cake. I know it will be 3 tiers because I bought 3 round cake pans from Michael's. I know that there will be Sesame Street characters in it, with Abby Cadabby (the new Fairy Princess in training) featured prominently. I think. Ughhh.

These were the cakes I did last year for the kids:



The Princess cake was for Izzy's second birthday. I did a butterfly for her first. The pirate ship was for Alex's 5th and I did a transformers fight scene for my nephew, also 5. I have a lot of fun making them, though you wouldn't guess that during the whole process, lol. Good memories too. Like not being happy with the shape of the already iced pirate ship and hacking away at it with a chisel. Izzy sitting next to me reaping the rewards of discarded chocolate cake - begging for more. By now I usually have an idea in my head, some rough sketches of what I want but not this time. Completely blank.

In the grand scheme of things I know birthday cakes aren't that big of a deal. Still, as a non-crafty person who will likely never make a Halloween costume or knit them anything that remotely resembles clothing, it feels good to give them this. A special, one-of-a-kind cake made just because I love them. I think I'll be wandering through the cake decorating aisles and party stores (LCBO perhaps?) tonight for some inspiration.

Thankfully tomorrow, Izzy's actual birthday, we are just having some cupcakes with some sugary Elmo faces on it. I know she'll be happy with whatever I come up with. As usual, the hardest person to please is always myself.