Watch them GROW

This hyacinth is to help me get through the last of winter, while those of you in California are enjoying almond blossoms, muggy rain in Bolivia, and I am feeling sorry for myself. These pictures were taken over 24 hours. My house smells like flowers.

This boy eats like I did when I was a kid. Ate right down the middle of the muffin. Muffin everywhere!

helping with laundry

This morning we ate "Punky butt!" for breakfast, also known as pumpkin bread. That's my last pumpkin from my garden. Now I can officially clean out the pantry!

A person is a success if they get up in the morning and gets to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do.

- Bob Dylan

Spring Cleaning

I am going all out this week with Spring cleaning. I know it's not actually Spring yet, but I want it to be so badly that I am cleaning the house in the hopes that Spring will catch on to the idea. While Luke and I cleaned windows this morning I told him that we needed clean windows to see the flowers out of...it may be a while before that becomes a reality. The work doesn't go as fast as I imagined when I have a toddler running around behind me making messes while I clean. As I cleaned under the kitchen sink this morning, Luke was busy dumping all the cat food out of the bag onto the freshly mopped floor. Then while I was shoving couches away from the wall to sweep, vacuum and mop beneath them, Luke pulled up a chair and dug into the plate of danishes on the kitchen counter. Aye aye aye.

When Monkeys Run Out of Bananas

Luke came into my bedroom the other day while I was editing photos and he climbed up on the bed, began jumping and shouting. After a while I realized that he was shouting, "No more monkeys jumpin' on the bed!" He picks up on the funniest things. Lately, whenever we pull onto our street he will say, "Home jig-a-jig-a", which is his version of my phrase (taken from my own mother), "Home jiggity-jig". This torch has safely been passed on to the next generation.

The Great Outdoors

I went cross-country skiing for the first time on Friday evening with Adeline, who attends our book discussion group. She's amazingly athletic for someone her age; I envied her powerful legs Friday afternoon as mine began to feel like lead. Saturday was not a fun day of recovery for me. I could hardly move! But it was worth it, and I'm hoping to do more of it in the future. The woods were just beautiful, and I haven't had such a good exercise since last summer. I can definitely see the benefits of an outdoor Winter hobby.

Coloring Fanatic

I've taken Amanda's good advice and put a plastic table cloth on our dining room table so that Luke's scrawls don't become permanent. He's such a handsome little artist...and looking like a left-y I think.

On display

Here are my photos on display in the Pembina Hills Art Centre in Morden(see black arrows). I would love if you would swing by to look at them (if you're in the neighborhood). There's also lots of cool pottery, jewelry, hand made furniture, etc. (not made by me). It appears that I'm really into parentheses today so don't mind my side notes (unless they're important - in which case, please mind the side notes).

And since it's a lazy dozy day here I'm going to post a cute video of Luke saying "Ge' down cat!" that I took last week instead of a brand new picture (forgive me).

You can't hide those tired eyes

This little boy has been very lethargic. He's got a cold. This afternoon he lay down in the laundry basket, covered himself with a towel, closed his eyes and said, "Ni-night".

The other end of the lens

Go look at this week from Melissa's perspective.

"I wanna take a pitcher"

The new sentence starter around here is, "I wanna". "I wanna take a picture", "I wanna wash hands", and the funniest was when Luke was leaving a message for Grandpa and we were trying to get him to say "Backhoe" (because he says it so cute "buck-OE"), and Grandma and Grandpa heard Luke shouted at us, "No! I wanna say tractor!"

Enchilada Birthday

Guess who's 27?

An-tee Yessa!
Thanks for spending
your special day with us.


Luke's list of 27:

On Auntie Lissa's 27th birthday she
1. woke up before 9am
2. ate oatmeal for breakfast in her pajamas
3. received oatmeal kisses from Luke
4. put the ocean animal puzzle together for the 4,000th time
5. wore a blue and silver scarf in her hair
6. played in the snow, in -20 degrees Celsius
7. remembered to say Celsius because she was in CANADA
8. taught Luke to say "Nutritious Delicious"
9. taught Luke about the delightful-ness of champagne (sans the actual experience, of course)
10. saw Laura's photographs on display at Pembina Hills Art Centre
11. saved Luke from smashing up a pottery display in Pembina Hills Art Centre
12. got the grand tour of Morden, MB, Canada
13. ate leftover vegetable vindaloo and naan bread (and liked it!)
14. took a nap under a blanket made by Grandma Ada
15. helped make her birthday Grasshopper Pie by melting marshmallows
16. stirred up the filling for enchiladas
17. grated cheese
18. grated some more cheese
19. played with a boy named Jack
20. heard the Happy Birthday song by my Mom
21. discussed recipes with her sister Laura while reading through Simply in Season
22. decided her kitchen was too small to make most of those recipes
23. nearly convinced herself to buy a house so that she could cook more of said recipes
24. wished she hadn't promised to not check her email all week
25. delighted in Canadian refrigeration techniques (ie: putting the pie outside to chill it when there was no room in the fridge)
26. stepped up to the plate to blow out 27 years worth of birthday candles
27. displayed great bravery and determination in consuming only one piece of delicious birthday pie
(don't worry - there's leftovers!)

Grand Forks Weekend

Luke was pretty good at floating on his own by the end of the weekend.

This weekend we were with the Thiessens in Grand Forks. We stayed at a hotel that had a water park, and Luke had the best time! Until we had to get out of the pool, that is. Then we saw a temper you'd never know existed on this sweet little guy. He ended up sleeping pretty well, once he smelled his pillow and recognized his blanket. Spending time with cousins in the pool was a real treat in February.

At the end of the weekend we picked up Auntie Lissa from the airport and brought her (and a bag of goodies-thanks everyone!) home to Winkler through a minor blizzard. Content to be home, and on a somewhat normal routine.

I think these socks were for me, but Luke loves them so much I may never get them on my feet.

Puzzles are a big hit!

I recognize this box!

My baby parrot

enter, if you dare

sudsing up

realizing that the car wash won't chew us up and spit us out.

blowing off.

Luke and I went through the car wash this morning and had a pretty great time. He was sort of nervous at first (we've had crying fits in the car wash before), but before long he was repeating, "Cooooool!" after me. When we drove out I said, "That wasn't so bad, was it?" and Luke said, "Waz-it so bad."

This morning I caught the cat on the kitchen counter and after smacking her and shouting, "Psssshhht!" I said, "If Derek had seen you up there cat, he would have sent you packing!" and Luke said, "Sent you packing!" and waved his hand threateningly at the cat before turning and grinning at me.

He likes to read

Sometimes I read the story to Luke. Sometimes Luke reads the story to me.

Numma Nine

oh mischief makers.

You can imagine how much work it was to get up on the tractor holding the cat. Maybe we should have named her Mother Teresa. What a patient cat!

Pembina Hills Art Centre - now housing five Laura Ann Thiessen photographs (until you buy them and take them home!), and Farrago (fa-rey-go) baby shoes, handmade by yours truly.

This little fella pointed at the clock the other morning and said, "Numma Nine!" When I held him up to the clock and asked, "Which one's the number nine?" He pointed at the nine! Then he pointed at the six and said, "Numma Nine!" He was right again! The six and the nine are identical, just flip-flopped. What a smart boy.

And then to astound his Mama even more, he finished her song. She was singing "A, B, C"s, but got distracted when she got to "T,U,V"....Luke waited for a moment for her to finish and then shouted, "Dubba-you!" and clapped his hands.

Up on a Chair in the Kitchen

Luke's favorite new spot is up on a chair in the kitchen, "helping" with dinner, dishes, or mayhem (which is always on the menu with Luke around!).

Business Brainstorming

Alright everyone. I need your help. And this is not like the time I asked for your help picking a cat name - this will require using real brain power, wit, and business sense. So put on your thinking caps.

Here's the deal. I want to change my business name to reflect the fact that I have many skills/interests/sell-able artistic products (ie: photography, baby shoes, designed cards/etc, notecards). So instead of Laura Ann Thiessen Photography (which is just SO long anyway), I'd like to go with something more along the lines of LT Art and Design....well, maybe not that plain jane. But you get my point. I'd really like something creative, but when it comes to my own business for some reason I'm drawing a blank. Just to give you an idea what I mean by "creative": My friend wants to have her own bakery and she's already chosen a name, but my great name idea is that she name her bakery, "It Is Risen Indeed". Now why can't I want to open a bakery - I'm all prepared!
Suggestions?

Why My Life Looks Disheveled

I have a helper.
His helpfulness is sometimes questionable.
And never refused.

Mirage, Miracle, Munchkin or Menagerie?

Mirage

Miracle

Munchkin

Luke points at John's Deere and says, "Horsey!"

Menagerie

On Friday Derek told Luke that the oven was "HOT! Don't touch!" and Luke leaned close to the oven door and started blowing on it.