Haley's Blog

Wow I am 4

2009-03-10T08:20:00.001-07:00

Soon she can write these blogs herself. She is 4 years old. Wow. And she is having 3 parties. One party with friends, one with mommy's side of the family and the other with daddy's side of the family. Still to come. Here are the highlights. Thank-you to everyone for making this a wonderful birthday to remember.

Winter Pictures Ontario

2009-02-15T07:08:00.000-08:00

Just a mishmash of Pictures

2008-12-14T05:30:00.000-08:00

I have been taking pictures but not blogging. Our usual Christmas picture is done. It is hardly the same quality of our usual. But sigh we are no longer close to our friend the professional photographer. It is only me. I really have to learn to edit or at the least apply the fuzzy "martha stewart" finish to my photographs.

Our new house

2008-12-14T05:26:00.000-08:00

Now these pictures are a little silly because they are the old owners decor. My pictures are too large and take forever to upload and well most of our rooms are still empty but it gives you a sense of what we have. They have a bit different taste and well they had years to decorate and I have only had a few months. It is definitely an old farm house.

I'm back

2008-12-03T18:27:00.001-08:00

So I've been gone for awhile......but I am back! And well the biggest reason has been absolute turmoil. We have moved from Alberta to Ontario. We are close to family and dear old friends. I amy be writing this just for me but that is okay. I have dabbled in facebook don't even want to try my space quite frankly I like blogging. This is our new home, Haley sleeping and Haley outside in our yard. I love our house. Originally built in 1840...this means nothing to Europeans but it has character and well we are happy. Talk to you soon

Birthday Pictures Continue

2008-03-10T08:36:00.000-07:00

I love cupcakes and video games!

Haley is 3 years old!

2008-03-03T12:45:00.000-08:00

It was a weekend extravaganza. Have a look. Auntie Susy came on Thursday and the festivities did not stop until she left this morning on Monday. We had a bowling party on Friday. Waterslides on Saturday and more swimming on Sunday. What a weekend.

Wei Ling's Birthday

2008-02-24T14:52:00.000-08:00

Our second day skiing!

2008-02-18T13:20:00.001-08:00

It looks like we might need to buy skiis. The Thomas family is hitting the slopes with much delight. (I have only uploaded a few of the 89 pictures that were taken on these glorious two days.)

Skiing!

2008-02-18T13:10:00.000-08:00

Our very first day of skiing with expert Aunt Sheri. We are lucky to have a skiing instructor friend.

We love tobogganing!

2008-02-01T12:50:00.000-08:00

Haley and the Sink

2008-01-28T19:27:00.000-08:00

So the little tinker decided that dishes was boring. What she really wanted to do was stick her head under the tap. This is so great I feel like I have been missing. I am glad blogger is working again.

Daddy and Haley

2008-01-28T19:25:00.000-08:00

Christmas

2008-01-28T19:11:00.000-08:00

Wow, I can't believe this is working. I am going to just post pictures. Okay so I have to talk a little while I wait. Haley loves all her presents but guess which one has come back in full force. Aunt Marlene you will never believe me, but Haley's train is still terribly popular. She now fills it with all sorts of crazy things and it has to move. She loves her train all over again.

Grandma's Soup

2008-01-28T19:09:00.000-08:00

It is a personal favorite of Haley's. She eats soup at Grandma's like she has been starving for months. I guess we had better plan another flight home. Guess what. We are coming Grandma and Poppa in April.

Christmas Still

2008-01-27T17:53:00.000-08:00

So Blogger has been giving me a very hard time. No idea why. Here are some updates from Christmas. I really am beginning to doubt this will work. I promise to post soon and figure this out.

New Camera

2007-12-29T11:57:00.000-08:00

The Last Few Weeks

2007-12-05T10:00:00.000-08:00

Getting Ready for Outside

Doing Dishes

Bowling with the Girls

Two Years Later....Our beautiful Girls, Lilly, Wei Ling, Kendra, Haley and Megan

Some family pictures

2007-11-12T08:27:00.000-08:00

Here we are again. Our family photos. There are lots more but we will have to choose a favorite for our Christmas Cards.

Halloween with Max and William

2007-11-07T13:58:00.000-08:00

Sometimes a girl has to mow the lawn

With Max and

2007-11-07T13:57:00.000-08:00

Just a sword carrying Bunny

2007-11-07T13:52:00.000-08:00

Halloween at Grandma's and Poppa's

2007-11-07T13:50:00.001-08:00

Halloween

2007-11-07T13:50:00.000-08:00

Our best Heroine

2007-11-07T13:47:00.000-08:00

Haley now wants braces just like Courtney....in fact she has been adament. She absolutely adores her big cousins Courtney and Kenzie.

Run!

2007-10-16T13:41:00.000-07:00

Pictures?

2007-10-16T13:07:00.000-07:00

Hmmm I am having the same girl in motion problem lately. Probably because I want to capture her smile. If I say "smile"...I get her cheesy smile....which is good but not nearly as beautiful as just a pure smile.

This is my solution to Halloween. But this is what Haley said....mommy...this hat is just silly. What 2 1/2 year old doesn't need a little silliness? And when did she hit puberty and decide she needed to be cool? Hmmm blogger is having issues....see you all soon!

SNOW?

2007-09-30T13:26:00.001-07:00

So you thought the last entry was a little hostile. Now we have snow. That is 9? 10? months of snow? Oh my....But wait Haley loves the snow...she is so excited about toboganning, skating, skiing ....she can barely contain herself. Who would have thought? My southern girl is a snow angel. Oh well. Here we go Yipee Snow! She crushed her first snowman under the heel of her boot! and thought it was hilarious. She is also quite fond of toilet humour...anything related to her bum.....can you guess.....we are are narrowing in on this toilet training business. She does agree that big girls use the toilet....but looks confused after that. She can do a good job in the house..if she no bottoms on...ie no diaper...no underwear just a bare bottom....The minute I put underpants on her....it is all over....peep in the pants. Oh well. We are getting close.

Hmmmm Halloween

2007-09-23T10:10:00.000-07:00

So guess what......it was snowing this morning when we woke up. Yep. Anyone considering moving here should really get out more. See the country...see the world. I am very convinced that this is not the place. But alas, here we are. And we have an outdoor birthday party today! What on earth are we going to wear!

Since it has been pretty awful outside...I have decided to clean out Haley's closet. Get rid of the stuff that will never fit again...sigh. Then we found Halloween. Tada. A ladybug. Well the outfit lasted 2 min. I think we are going to have a repeat of last year....No to Halloween. We were shopping the other day and Haley has also decided the scary guys...are no good. She kept her head down and her eyes closed until we left the store. I have a funny feeling she may reconsider....when?.....when someone drops the first "smartie" box into her bag! Until then we will keep the costume hidden and no more scary guys.

Just one more

2007-09-09T18:28:00.000-07:00

Ladybug

2007-09-09T12:27:00.001-07:00

Believe it or not.....this is what we wore before we went swimming. The day cleared up nicely...but it was only +7 when we left for swimming. Thus the next few pictures are dreamy.

Water Girl

2007-09-09T12:12:00.001-07:00

So we are settling in back at home. And our worst fears came true. We landed to ohhh +10 degrees and rain. It has gotten better but really summer ended for us the day we got home. Since then we have not had on one summer dress. I know...why? oh why? sometimes.....I wonder too. But look we have solved mommy's problem...slightly. We have a lovely new membership at a brilliant new place. We have four different pools to choose from every time we go. We have the lovely large indoor pool, the small indoor wading pool, the hot tub surrounded by a waterfall or we have the spectacular outdoor heated year round pool (don't tell the environmentalists) I am sure there is something completely decadent about swimming in the great outdoors in a heated pool all year round. But you know....when you live in a place where you only get one month of summer....I just do not want to think about it. And when you get this much joy out of swimming...why even give it a second thought. Mommy thinks it is absolutely lovely and we are going to go all the time.

Yippeeeee

Could Everyone Stand Together?

2007-08-18T11:17:00.000-07:00

Our last day. What a sad day. Playing on the swingset one more time with Max, William and Lily. The things we have learned. We have moves for gymnastics this fall....the moves of a five year old because Haley was determined that anything Max and William could do...she could do too. She did acknowledge that Lily was bigger and could things she was unable to do....but oh no not the twins....Their skills were her skills to master. We can still source most of her "interesting" language and motor skills to Max and William. Some of our favourite things are preceded with a "Max/William does that". We sure miss everyone. See you soon again.

Basketball with Oma

2007-08-18T11:14:00.000-07:00

Riding Bikes with Opa

2007-08-18T11:01:00.000-07:00

Opa and his electric bike. Some special rides for Haley and Opa.

The farmers

2007-08-18T10:54:00.000-07:00

So one of the highlights of our stay in Ontario was the fresh food. Oma and Opa have an absolutely magical backyard. When we first arrived we were outside every morning to pick strawberries and asparagus. Then we moved on to raspberries, currents, gooseberries. peas and zucchinis. The pictures are of our potato harvest. Haley loved helping every step of the way.

Vacation

2007-07-17T10:53:00.001-07:00

So this will be a funny kinda post. Some good, some bad and mostly just real. As most of you know my mom is pretty sick and well now she has had an absolutely horrible reaction to the drugs she is currently taking. We will just get through this one hour and one day at a time.

And the photos are the complete opposite. My mom had the reaction in my absence while we were enjoying a wonderful little family holiday at the beach. I could not have asked for a more wonderful time. Thank goodness Haley is in love with the beach and sand. I am also in love with the beach and sand....This is going to make vacation planning very easy.

Haley and I are going to continue to stay here and help my mom in any way we can...mostly we hope to make her smile. I think my beautiful little Haley can do that! Don't you!

Watering the plants

2007-06-02T08:40:00.001-07:00

So this is hours of entertainment. I attached the spray nozzle to the hose. Pressing this button is fantastic. As you can clearly see...the steps needed watering....ohhhh and a few flowers...ohh and then the bear. She also watered our house and the neighbour's house. She declared that she did not like the tulips and wanted to rip all the flowers off....Hmmm the concept of the garden has clearly been lost somewhere.....Ohhh well.

Where is the Sand?

2007-06-02T08:37:00.000-07:00

I always thought you could only squeeze so much into a sandbox....I am wrong. I tried making some room for her but that was all wrong. Everything has to be "IN".

On the Back Porch

2007-06-02T08:36:00.000-07:00

My big girl bed

2007-05-30T12:19:00.000-07:00

Haley does sleep very well in her bed.

In fact better than she ever did in her crib. She still wakes up around 6:30, but so far she sleeps the whole night in her bed. Phew...let's hope it stays this way.

Heritage Park is Open Yippeee

2007-05-30T12:12:00.001-07:00

We have our annual pass. Another summer of farm animals,

horse rides, train rides, ice cream, picnics and rides. This is just good clean fun. The girls are posing in front of the pig pen. Katie, Emma, Jenna and Haley. Haley loves the animals, loves the picnic and the carousel, She was big enough for the mini ferris wheel but was not a huge fan. Thank goodness for Emma...who held her hand the whole way and kept saying it's okay.

Trampolineeeeee!

2007-05-12T14:24:00.000-07:00

She loves the trampoline....the joy is endless. She can jump for hours.

Are We Really Watering the Flowers?

2007-05-12T14:12:00.000-07:00

Look carefully. Haley loves water...loves watering anything. Just give her a hose and I have some time on my hands, she will be busy watering plants, bugs, concrete, shoes, fingers, pants, chairs....the list is endless

Say Cheese!

2007-05-12T14:09:00.000-07:00

Cooking with Haley

2007-05-12T13:53:00.000-07:00

These segments will be new. I am calling them "Cooking with Haley". She really wants to be a

chef. She takes this very seriously. This is probably only true because mommy tries so hard to get dinner made quickly...that I am probably pretty serious. I decided to make shepherd's pie...something I am horrible at...I have no idea how it is supposed to taste...because we never had it. And well now Haley is helping so it involves adding ingredients that Haley can chop up, mash, spoon or simply something that I want her to snack on because she can never wait....interesting list of ingredients.....so it really has become quite a meal. Look how professional she is!

Another Week or Two?

2007-05-12T13:17:00.000-07:00

Has it been a week or maybe two or three? Time is flying. We have gone from perpetual winter to summer within a night. The last week has been gorgeous. We are now outside from 8:30 am - 7:30pm. I could complain but on the other hand she does not want to sit inside and watch TV. This is great.

And I still do

2007-04-30T13:40:00.000-07:00

I love my Dada

2007-04-30T13:17:00.000-07:00

I can never resist a few pics of Dada

2007-04-28T16:31:00.000-07:00

Biking is serious business Moma....Hmmm there are lots of fancy blogs out there...Ahh we'll stay basic. I know this one makes it all the way to Germany....why mess with it. Haley is not in a good mood. She just woke up....Really I can understand. And when I say she woke up....I really mean...Dada woke her up. Yeah no wonder she is a little sad. Moma should be sad too...I can no longer tell you about the state of my tulips....a deer ate them this morning in our absence.

Friends

2007-04-26T12:16:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I get pictures from friends and I simply run out of time to post and then the moment is gone. On the otherhand we painted these Easter eggs about 3 weeks after Easter and so the whole thing is so out of order with life; it seems like I can post them. We are at, our friend, Shannon's house with our friend Kenzie, painting eggs. Haley had three eggs. She did get them painted and then well........She completely squished one egg and then could simply not resist and ended up peeling/squishing/eating/stepping on...etc..the last two eggs. Ahhh life with a two year old. I can usually keep a better handle on things....but sometimes you just run out of energy and then you let them just destroy. While the older two actually painted their eggs and then saved them for later?!?!?!? Yeah we are not like that. We live for the moment even if it only lasts a second! Save it for later? What does that mean....later?!?!?

A mishmash of pictures

2007-04-20T18:40:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you just the week at a glance. Hmmm, one picture of Haley modelling her big girl underwear and undershirt from Germany. Thank-you so much Manuela she absolutely loves them. Ohhhh an important note: Haley is potty training herself. If she had a mother the least bit interested in completing the procedure..I am sure we could. I just wasn't and am still not ready. I have not read a thing....I have no idea how to go about this.....Really at this point...I think she will be done before I find a book or really think about it. She is the driving force. She loves to "do it" and I mean all of it...in her potty. She has no problem with telling me when. Mama I peep. Yep I've also turned into Mama? I don't know where she gets these things. So bottom line...Mama and Dada are still trying to figure out what to do...and Haley well...she is done and knows exactly what has to be done. Ahhhh the blessings of a brilliant child.....By the way she knows all the letters of the alphabet...and I mean random letter picking and identifying...Yep...brilliant...I tell ya.

The rest of the pictures...Ahhh her "cheese" smile....Silly hairdos by Mama....Walking in the woods...probably the day she caught her current cold. We had an apple for the horses. And last but not least....her trike and her truck. Loves em both.

In the playground with the Elk

2007-04-09T16:32:00.000-07:00

Yep, Elk in the playground, and we are back to cold weather. We kept our distance and admired the elk. I use the word admired loosely because as anyone who lives with wild animals knows....they can also be terribly annoying.

Matching Easter Dresses

2007-04-09T16:26:00.000-07:00

They were both thrilled to be wearing the same dress with the same bracelet. It was a gorgeous day of +18. We went to the Easter Egg hunt and Lily had a great time. Haley had a nap. Two girls in the park.

Lily and Oma

2007-04-08T09:35:00.000-07:00

Easter with Lily and Oma. We have had a whirlwind trip. Lily and Oma arrived on Thursday. Friday morning Lily proved to us that she was a natural skiier. First time on skiis and by the end of the morning she didn't want Auntie Sue's help any more and was riding the magic carpet and coming down all by herself. Haley also rode the magic carpet like an amusement ride at Canada's wonderland. Up and down and all over again....no skis though. We have walked downtown a number of times, been to the waterslides and visited the Banff Springs Hotel. The Banff Springs Hotel was a highlight because it was just like a castle. But don't think for a moment that these girls have not been working. We have them sweeping the garage on Easter morning in their new matching Easter dresses.

Fun in the Sun

2007-04-03T08:05:00.000-07:00

So last week, March 29 and 30th were absolutely gorgeous...sigh....we have snow on the ground again....hopefully it will be gone soon. But last week was gorgeous and we had such fun outside. I really could not snap pictures fast enough. The tulips were out about 1 inch, we were raking up the old grass and dreaming about going to the beach! Thanks to Grandma and Poppa for the wonderful pictures, we love looking at them. She especially wanted to see Ethan and baby Sophie again! It is curious how their little minds work. We have everybody on the fridge. I suspect that the only reason she did not want to see everyone else is because we did not have a great picture of them. If anyone would like to send us new pictures, we love to put them up on the fridge and talk about everybody. Haley loves them.

Kendra is the Birthday Girl

2007-03-18T09:27:00.000-07:00

It is Kendra's turn. The last of our girls

has turned two. A few party pictures. It was +16

today and the party outside was great. I will try to post a clear picture of all the girls. I think that people might be able to recognize all the faces shortly. Haley is attempting a hug and a kiss for the birthday girl. A rare and great picture of the elusive Megan (in blue). Wei Ling is being the nosiy one and the wagon scenes are the last three standing at the party. Everyone else has left for a nap. It was decided that Kendra could sit on Haley's lap. This worked out, but suddenly foot room was an issue. The girls are trying to get their feet sorted out. Wei Ling has Joshua's boots on....so this is clearly part of the problem.

So not that anyone has asked...but what do people say to Haley and I when we are roaming about town? Most local people know us from our newspaper exclusive and Haley is always warmly greeted...sometimes simply because she flashes one of her fantastic smiles. Other than that....complete strangers often assume I am a caregiver or nanny...others simply ask if she is mine? To which I respond...with a big huge smile.....all mine:). I do not ask what they think beyond that but they always just smile back. We will have to wait and see what happens when I have two of them....

Birthday Girl Pictures

2007-03-05T14:12:00.000-08:00

What is it that they say....about the best laid plans?.....The night before the big party was su

pposed to go like clock work....the usual bedtime....the usual wakeup and Haley would have been good until 2 pm.....So where did it all go wrong? Right from the beginning. We went to bed late, we woke up much to early and alas...the birthday girl was sleeping at party time. So we let her sleep for the first 45 min. Then we had a really groggy birthday girl for the next 45 min. and she perked up right around present opening time near the very end when the guests were all leaving. he he he The party? Complete chaos. Everything a two year old party should be. We had too much food...but now I don't have to cook for the next few days. So maybe it was good. There was little skating....and playing afterwards out in the snow with our friends from Calgary was probably the highlight. I think she still thinks that we have to give back all the presents. I kept mentioning who they were from and she thinks they belong to them....funny how their little minds work. All of the gifts were wonderful....she honestly plays with them all. It really is wonderful to have new toys but our poor little house is going to explode.....I really have to organize...again! A big huge thanks to all of our friends. It was a perfect party. I have included some fun pictures of our friends.

Tap Shoes Tap Shoes

2007-03-03T12:38:00.000-08:00

It is important to know that Haley absolutely adores Katy, Emma and Sarah. It also important to know that they all like tap shoes and dancing and it is equally important to know that Haley watches the old VCR videos that have been passed down to us from Katy, Emma and Sarah. One of our current favorite videos is Dancing with the Teletubbies...since we have recently taken up dance lessons. Having prefaced all of this...this will probably be her favorite gift. They are hand me downs from Katy...tied with a bright new red ribbon. They are now Haley's "Tap Shoes" and she practically threw herself on top of them with joy when she opened these. We watched that dance scene with the little girl in her tap shoes about 10 times...while Haley danced away. In fact I think she has now fallen asleep with them clutched in her hands. Now these shoes came with a gorgeous new outfit......which we tried to put on....but clearly the tap shoes have won. Thank-you Auntie Sharon.

My Turn

2007-03-01T12:11:00.000-08:00

Haley has been saying "my turn" at the last few birthday parties. Well tomorrow is Haley's turn. So what crazy scheme have we organized for a two year old party? Mommy has decided to invite everyone we know to a party at the cabin. Yep almost everyone...seems foolish now that the day is almost upon us. I have been making lasagna and cake and freezing them for weeks now. I think we will be ready. We will face painting, balloons, skating (running and falling on ice), tobaganning and well lasagna and cake! Tada. I am sure the entire event will be completely overwhelming and I will never do this again. Some things just have to be done once. They are predicting a +5 for Sunday...our party day, so at the very least it will not be too cold and hopefully the great outdoors will be our playground. Wish us luck! Happy #2 Haley!

Our New Year 2007

2007-02-26T14:56:00.000-08:00

Snow and Water and a new hat from Oma

2007-02-26T13:20:00.000-08:00

We've luckily had some warmer weather lately and we are enjoying ourselves. The driveway has puddles (maybe not so good for the driveway) but fantastic for us. We can mix snow with water, jump in puddles, sweep puddles, shovel puddles. We basically just love water. Don't be confused we still have lots and lots of snow, but Haley and I love to play outside.

Go Leafs Go

2007-02-11T18:55:00.000-08:00

Daddy does not think she dresses appropriately....most of the time...humph

This stuff is really squishy

2007-02-06T12:41:00.000-08:00

So as I was cleaning the table, I was marvelling about how clean Haley was getting at the dinner table. By the time I had turned around and made it back to the table......tada. This is vegetable cream cheese and Haley loves the way it squishes. I could barely get her to look up she was so busy mushing. So we has a bath mid-day.

Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!

2007-02-06T12:39:00.000-08:00

After all is said and done

.....these two are inseperable

I can dress myself mommy

2007-02-06T12:38:00.000-08:00

Lilly's Birthday

2007-02-05T12:59:00.000-08:00

Lilly turned Two. All the girls are turning two. They are not babies any more. We have Wei

Ling's birthday next week, Haley at the beginning of March and Kendra in the middle of March. So much cake.....so little time.

Haley is currently very much a "daddy's girl". Haley's big phrase..."Daddy do it"....he he he the fun part is that she prefers Daddy to change her diaper as well.....he he he

Katy's Birthday

2007-01-24T13:18:00.000-08:00

Our best friend Katy turned three. Spot the birthday girl. There was face painting and what a fabulous party. It is certainly a tough act to follow since Haley's birthday is next! My great friend Sharon invited me to be part of her mommy's group. Needless to say most of the girl's are 5 since Sharon's oldest is now 5. Katy the youngest was always the baby until Haley and I now party with them. Haley and Katy get along great.

When you come home with your adopted daughter all the mommy groups already exist. In fact they have existed since they were all in Lamaze class together...and by the time you join them...they are all planning how to go back to work....luckily I always had Sharon and Haley just adores the big girls.

So Where is that Smile?

2007-01-20T15:19:00.000-08:00

Well it is still there. It is a smile that lights up a room. She has become a little shy and we often don't see it when we are out and about. But when people do...it is electric. Sometimes it surprises people and they can not believe it. It is truly a smile that melts hearts.

So she has a new love. It is called swimming. In fact she always wants to go. It is better than gymnastics. It is probably in a tie with horses and smarties. The horses are gone with the winter and so she often asks about them but they are simply not around to adore. Swimming on the other hand is just up the hill and wow I could not have predicted this. Smarties are a carefully controlled substance so she asks about them but they are a little fleeting. She dreams about swimming and every time we get into the car she thinks we are going, or thinks we should go. The most challenging thing about swimming...is getting her out of the pool and keeping her out. Even after we have changed into our clothes...if I turn around too slowly, she is skittering down the hall towards the pool....she is ready to go again.

Just Say Cheese

2007-01-18T12:59:00.000-08:00

She talks too much these days....even just "cheese" required about 5 words....she is probably saying "just say cheese haley"

Our new snow suit

2007-01-10T18:44:00.000-08:00

It works well for lying down and following daddy. We have had about another foot since these photos! We shoveled snow twice today.

Tea Time

2007-01-06T19:12:00.000-08:00

Haley just loves pouring "hot tea" for anyone....Hot is an important word....since she hates things

hot...but tea is always hot....

I am Canadian

2007-01-06T19:04:00.000-08:00

One note to add. Haley is a Canadian Citizen as of November 24th. Yipee. We finally received her card days prior to leaving on holidays. I probably need to mention that we applied at the beginning of April. It took our government 8 months to process an extremely simple case of citizenship. This is shameful to say the least. In the US and England....citizenship is granted to adoptive children from abroad; upon arrival in their new country. It is immediate. Just a little frustrating, but we are very happy. Happy New Canadian.

Happy New Year

2007-01-05T12:56:00.000-08:00

We had the most fabulous time visiting family. It really makes us wish we lived much closer. We have the most caring loving family we could ever wish for, thank-you to everyone who made this holiday so special. Haley was overwhelmed with gifts but I can honestly say that she likes them all. She plays with everything and they were all so incredibly thoughtful. She loves to make tea, cut up her vegetables, Thomas, James and Lady are always in need of new batteries (she even runs them up and down the hallways), the giraffe from the train is constantly at her side, she sleeps with Poh, the Ponies get new beads, and well our new snow suit is the best....we can even sit down outside, it is really perfect.

So each and every flight we take is a little different. I can honestly say that a two year old....really needs their own seat. Even a 1 3/4 person needs their own seat. Thank goodness we had one! It was definitely our most challenging flight to date. The first hour she slept (take off is really too much for her to take), we played for the second hour, and we screamed for the third hour and when she was too exhausted to scream any longer she slept again. So that third hour....well she wanted to go outside...and mommy said "no". We writhered and tossed and thew ourselves at the chairs in front of us and finally we stood up on our chair and howled "away mommy, no mommy" at the top of our lungs for all to hear.....and then we collapsed....I was pretty sure she had had a poop in those last 10 minutes..but no way was I standing up to check and I am pretty sure all those around me were willing to take the smell instead of the screaming. And well she was nothing but sugar and spice for daddy the rest of the evening....she really didn't talk to me.

What can I say.....except get a seat! he he he he

Lots of love to everyone especially grandma (mama), poppa, oma and opa. I know she misses you all.

Christmas Pictures

2006-12-05T11:31:00.000-08:00

We have had some Christmas pictures taken....tada. Not to worry...everyone will receive their own personal photos with their Christmas cards so no need for downloading. I, of course, am completely partial to the ones with just Haley. Now photographing a 1 1/2 year old is challenging at the best of times. And from these photos you can clearly see that Haley is absolutely happy when she is moving and confused when she is asked to sit still....So we had the photographer for the national ski team take our photos! ...... well it looks like you will have to wait for the family photos.....blogger will not accept the picture files....too big....so all you get is a glimpse. Is she not completely beautiful! and what a smile!

Born in Our Hearts

2006-11-29T09:20:00.000-08:00

Today is the day we officially signed Haley's Adoption papers.....An important day technically but she was part of our family so long ago already, even in terms of being physically with us. By now we could not imagine life without her. and it had only been one day. We woke up this morning one year ago to Haley's smile and a "bah".

Oh yeah...smile....Happy Birthday Daddy! It is also a special day for another reason. I don't think I can top last year's gift! It is the gift that keeps on giving!

(This new blogger has so many options...I keep pressing buttons to see what will happen, sorry about my blogging technique....I was going to hang on to the old version just for comfort sake but really it is fun to move along with the times....besides I would be out of the blogging loop....there are still more buttons.....maybe I will post before I mess around some more)

I'm having fun blogging...on this sunny but cold day. A very special day for my family.

Today is the day

2006-11-28T14:48:00.000-08:00

Happy Forever Family Day! It is hard not to feel sentimental on this day...okay for me...maybe the whole month. My daughter has changed my life in the most beautiful and best way ever. I just have the best family and I love them so much. It really is difficult not to get too mushy about them.

Blogger Challenged

2006-11-28T14:46:00.000-08:00

So blogging is not really that difficult...time consuming....but not difficult. Being a fancy blogger...now that takes some effort....I continue to learn....I think my font is going to change? Is this good or bad....I have no idea what all these new buttons are for....let's just keep trying....Bear with me everyone....

2006-11-27T14:26:00.000-08:00

Haley, Wei Ling and Megan 1 year earlier.

Trying to post some more...blogger is not cooperating...

So it really depends on your time zone

2006-11-27T13:29:00.000-08:00

So my last post was 20 days ago? Hmmmmm Time is flying. Yes it truly is -26...and has been for the past few days...and will continue for a few more....sigh....better by the weekend. Who can think that far in advance..it is freezing cold...and yes...we do wonder why anyone lives here...really... we question ourselves at times like this. It does seem insane....I think it is warmer in Yellowknife...we could move north and be warmer...True Albertans are tough...they have to be...but the purpose of this post....One year ago.......

One year ago today, we were definitely in China. Were we about to see Haley for the first time? Did we have her in our arms already? Does it really matter? These were life altering days, so exciting, so beautiful and so completely overwhelming. She was meant to grow up with us but we had no idea how to change her diaper...Ahhhh we have come a long way. I could do it now with my eyes shut. We didn't sleep, we were so excited, we were far away in a country that was about to let us adopt one of their own and raise her as ours. Quite a gift. Thank you to Wei Ping's mother and father for their precious gift, we love her completely. She is beautiful. She has an incredible smile, a gentleness of spirit, a mind of her own and a family that truly loves her.

We celebrated our "together day" with our friends. We had a play date at the Southland leisure centre and then went out to dinner. Can you really make these girls sit together for a picture? We tried. Wei Ling, Emily, Megan, Haley, Kendra and Lily...It is the gang. A few highlights..Wei Ling has finally refused a meal...he he he.... we all knew it was coming. Megan has a scratch from older sister Emily. This was also coming. Haley can not sit still....too busy, Kendra lets her mother put bows in her hair...no one knows how... and Lily has an older sister that we are all a little jealous of. Sarah makes such a perfect babysitter.

The first of many more to come......Happy Forever Family Day!

Our Day at the Zoo

2006-11-06T13:23:00.000-08:00

I don't really like the zoo. I love animals and think they should be where they belong. Hence, I don't think a giraffe belongs in North America. But, when your child loves animals..off to the zoo. Now Haley didn't really find it all that much fun either. However, I think her frustration and eventual boredom was the result of not being able to throw her arms around any of them. She wanted to kiss and hug every animal she saw. She was not even allowed to touch the turtles that were just walking about...too much for her....she fell in love with the ice cream guy wearing shoes....at the very least she could touch his feet and his shoes!

New Friends

2006-11-04T12:18:00.000-08:00

We are still into giving people rides. Makes for some good friends. This is Haley and Meredith.

Halloween?

2006-11-04T12:02:00.001-08:00

Okay, so what happened to Halloween? Well for starters, Haley has a terrible cold. Secondly, it was -17? Thirdly Haley is terribly unimpressed with her Tiger outfit. It was one of those great full body, warm as can be costumes...but no way did she want to be in that outfit...and certainly not with a snowsuit on already. She spends most of her time trying to undress and this includes when she is outdoors...and sooooo we stayed in. She wasn't that impressed with the other kids coming over and making moves on her "smarties" either. She knew where they were and kept a close eye on the box and well the other candy bars...she doesn't recognize anyways. That smartie company....they really should never change....add new colours......if they must....but certainly not on Haley's account. The box is great...she can spot that box from a mile away. And well "love" is not really an adequate word for how she feels about them. So for Halloween dinner we had smarties and her other favorite broccoli. Don't ask. We also frequently have peas for breakfast along with hard boiled eggs...but only the white...no yellow. She even turned down waffles this morning...for peas? Who can figure this out?

So she still has a runny nose...I will try to get a picture of the "Tiger" this weekend...but I am pretty sure it will look like a torture scene. As you can see from the picture we also have snow....and we are pulling out our Christmas decorations this week-end....Haley really likes stars! So out with Halloween and stupid costumes and in with the stars!

Smile

2006-10-31T14:41:00.000-08:00

So this is Haley at the table being told "smile". Hmmm it is a different kinda smile. I'm not saying that I don't like it..it is just a little less the spontanteous grin. However, maybe we will have to use this more often, because as you can see...she is sitting still. Hmmmm
Okay and about the bad haircut...this is cutting Haley's hair in the bathtub...very difficult...People tell me to give her a lollipop and she would sit still for the haircut...others tell me to see a professional....I'm not convinced about the lollipop and I don't want to pay a professional yet....so I am left with a lopsided haircut....hmmmm....maybe for Christmas...we will get a professional?...maybe sooner...hmmmmm

Mommy & Daddy Love Haley So Much

2006-10-30T11:53:00.000-08:00

So it has almost been a year...what a year. If the slideshow ever works you will see the most beatuiful, loving, little girl. Our Haley has brought us the most fantastic year. She is the centre of our world and we would not wish it any other way. Our family is closer than ever and we could not be happier.

What a perfect year

2006-10-30T11:48:00.000-08:00

Create Your Own!

Daddy

2006-10-12T11:37:00.000-07:00

These are for Daddy. Geez I am a single working mom and he wants more pictures....So this is the time I can take pictures...Bathtime..which is a good time!
We can brush our own teeth and spit! Can you guess whose toothbrush this is? It is not Winnie the Pooh....

So you all hear alot about Haley and mommy through this blog....but what about daddy? Now daddy has been away for a about a week and a half....he is working far away. I think daddy can be summed up in a little story...Here is is. So every year Andy goes away for about 3 weeks. Every year we decide that it is pointless for me to go as well...but for completely different reasons. Andy thinks that he will not be able to spend enough time with me and I might be bored and lonely. okay true...I decide not to go...because given these conditions...I will be tempted to go shopping and I can think of nothing more fun than to spend a week shopping!...and well I probably should not go shopping for a week, sit in cafes and read...entirely too decadent..best I stay home...work and pay off my current visa bill....very practical but you have never seen me really get into shopping. I really would love to go along. Okay so this year we had the same debate but with Haley. I said it was too much of a trip with a 1 1/2 year old....true enough. Andy agreed. But this is the fun part...Now about a week and 1/2 into his trip away...he has declared that next year we are both coming no matter what! He misses us terribly. And from the way he declared this...the tone in his voice...Next year we are really going along. Now I am not confused about whom he really misses the most...since he has survived this trip for many years without me...he really misses Haley...There you go. That is how Daddy feels. I think this is a great story and says everything. Smiles from mommy.

Haley's Words

2006-10-12T10:35:00.000-07:00

So what are Haley's words these days? As we know "horse" was and continues to be one of her favorite words...these days "blue", "orange" and "purple" can come out...don't really know if these are tied to anything real. I think most parents love to exaggerate their children's vocabulary and what sounds like "dah" can be translated by the best meaning parent..into anything they wish. I can respect this..since I have been known to do it myself...However, I really wish to let you all know that these are really good words...understood by others...not just myself. Some others...let's say thanks to the three year olds in Haley's life "mine", and then "bubble", "poop" "more poop", "mommy", "mum", "ma", "daddy", "duck". Okay, she still prefers some of our sounds or symbols to real words...so some words are missing...though Haley and myself can communicate...."flower" is a sniffing sound, "dog" is unh unh unh...I really think this is Haley's interpretation of the sound they make....Then there are the confusing words...context is needed...box, books, rock, big rock, more rock, you can see the problem...then there is spoon, moon, ahh the list grows every day....I love this age.

My smiling girl

2006-10-11T08:54:00.000-07:00

So this photography and motion thing still has me stumped. You have to take about zillion pictures before you get a good one....thank goodness for digital...I have been trying to get Haley grinning....this usually involves running or jumping these days...As we clearly saw....bribery and food only gets you eating pictures...so this is my best picture...so far...still practicing

Remember this one!

2006-10-09T12:09:00.000-07:00

Almost one year ago...we saw our first pictures..Oct 13th to be exact...What a year!
Hi to Daddy so far away!

Eating

2006-10-09T12:01:00.000-07:00

Not good times to take a picture....First..the breakfast of champions....this is Haley licking the butter off her bread...with one hand in the raisins....yep...sometimes this is what it comes down to. Next...trying to get her to pose with her moon cake...I had to strap it to a button and bribe her with a jelly bean...She is savouring the jelly bean with all her might. Our lovely friend Christine brought us these from the big city....kid's moon cakes in a little flower bag...they were so cute. Thanks so much Christine...next year we will drive to Chinatown ourselves to celebrate the occassion...Mommy will get better at these holidays.

Breakfast Time

2006-10-02T14:26:00.000-07:00

So Haley has very little time to eat these days....and being strapped into a high chair or booster is almost ridiculous. She is a grown up and deserves her own chair. A chair she can climb on and off, and on and off, as often as she wishes during the course of a meal. This is her pose....and she is currently staring at the food she has spilled and I can hear the oh oh as I look at the picture! Going out to dinner?!?! hmmmmm very interesting....luckily she is very cute!

Sheri's wedding

2006-10-02T14:09:00.000-07:00

There is always time for a park...even at Aunt Sheri's wedding. And there is certainly always time to make a new friend. So my darling little social butterfly was apparently the "one with the idea". Haley grabbed Dominique's hand on the way in and only later did we discover that they are only 6 days apart in age...with Haley being the older. Needless to say this was a true meeting of kindred spirits....when one threw something...the other usually thought it was brilliant. When one stood on a chair the other thought it was brilliant and so on. Even their dinner etiquette was so similar...neither one had time to sit still and both thought that crayons tasted quite good. It's great to meet friends!

Horse

2006-10-02T14:06:00.000-07:00

Haley's new favorite place to sit...on her horse!

Gymnastics

2006-09-11T16:18:00.000-07:00

Yes, here in Banff we have a program for 1 1/2 year olds. So we thought she might roll around a little and be done with it. Boy oh boy what fun. She is a wiz at the balance beam. All that walking on curbs has paid off. She was so exhausted afterwards she fell asleep on the way home. Hard to get a good picture she just never stopped moving.

Horse coat

2006-09-11T16:11:00.000-07:00

Yep, we crumble at the mention of a favorite thing. So Haley's obsession with real horses....has led to the purchase of a coat and hat covered in horses. What can I say.....she loves to wear this coat. I think this is success. I now have to find socks with horses.....because she hates wearing socks!

Please stand still

2006-09-01T12:54:00.000-07:00

So I've been a little lazy with pictures. I'll probably regret this later or maybe not. Haley is still always in motion. It rained all day, a few days ago and all we did was practice doing stairs. You know...laundry, vacuuming, dusting....it went on and on. Well, Haley thinks she is now a stair expert and actually shoves my hand away! Now the books tell you not to try this until they are 2! Oh well. We were eager to show off for Daddy when he came home....but Daddy also would not pose for Mommy. So what is a girl supposed to do? You post the pictures anyway. You can see how much she has grown if you look back at the other pictures with the filing cabinet..and she looks so skinny...sigh.

Heritage Park

2006-08-18T14:47:00.000-07:00

Out and about with our dear friends Sarah, Emma and Katy. What a day! So Haley's new favorite word is horse. She loves horses. We see horses everywhere around here and Haley loves them. Actually everything is classified as a horse or a duck. Now you would think that stuffed horses and play horses might be fun as well, but oh no...my little girl is transfixed only with reality....moving, breathing, snorting, living horses only please! Well, where do you find horses everywhere...Heritage Park of course....they also have moving rides with horses, and when you get a whole ice cream cone to yourself! You have gone to heaven. Then to top off the whole event you add a steam train and a horse and buggy ride...It is over the top. Haley fell asleep, on the way home, before we even left the parking lot. Now that is good clean fun.

Driving

2006-07-31T12:53:00.000-07:00

It is a rental. Kennedy has kindly lent us her car, while she is away on vacation. Now cars are dangerous and this one has proven so as well. But, boy is it fun to pretend.

Cutting my fingernails

2006-07-31T12:45:00.000-07:00