Fall pictures of the kids.

Just a quick little picture update.  A friend of ours runs the photography club in town and was in need of children for their September project (kids portraits).  We volunteered our kids and in exchange we will be given any pictures of the kids that were taken.  Here are two of the pictures that were taken by our friend, Gaylene - a sneak peek into some of the other pictures to come.

Where has the summer gone?

Now it has taken forever and a day for me to get a new update on here, and for that I apologize.  It seems as though the summer was here and gone so quickly (we are already using the furnace in the mornings) that I didn't even have time to register how long it had been since my last update. 

A lot has happened since William got his cast removed at the beginning of July.  He cut 8 new teeth, started walking, and got his first hair cut.  Actually, to be honest, all of that happened in the last month!  We had a wonderful visit with my cousin Kayla, who I hadn't seen since (I think) 1994, and enjoyed some much appreciated time with Daddy.  So let's begin...

Aaron lost his job in June, and spent all of July waiting for his new job to begin.  He is currently working for Central Pest Control - mouse detail for the local Husky and Encana well/operator sites.  It is a job that sees him home more often, working regular hours and having weekends off.  For the time being, we are all very happy with his decision. 

My cousin graced us with a visit at the beginning of July.  She moved to Virginia when she was just 5 (don't quote me on that...it's a guess).  She is on her way to St. Andrews in Scotland to study for her masters degree and decided to make a trip up this way to see some family before she moved.  It was great to catch up and the kids had a wonderful time getting to know their cousin.  I took that week off and with Aaron still being unemployed we took the opportunity to take in a few sites with the kids as well.

Maria spends nearly all her waking moments pretending to be either Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty.  She will eagerly tell you the appropriate story from start to finish as well...if you are interested.  She is becoming increasingly creative and I am loving this stage of development.  I am also loving the fact that I have a little girl and can experience and enjoy the world of dolls, house, princesses and make-believe a second time around.  Aaron, on the other hand, is already stressing about the wedding she must already be planning in that little brain of hers.

William, as I said earlier, had a busy summer.  He cut 8 teeth (the molars were up before I even realized he was teething) with no complaints (I am BLESSED!)  He also began walking and has become very fast, very quickly.  Maria seems to be really enjoying her brother's new found mobility.  The dog...well that's another story.  William is a much bigger annoyance when he is at eye-level.  (That said, Lucky has proven to be the most tolerant and accepting dog a family could have asked for).  I also finally bit the bullet and cut William's hair.  I was enjoying his mass of curls (or "hockey hair" as Uncle DJ called it), but when he was mistaken for a little girl at the grocery store I figured it was time for a trim.  Now my "baby" has truly been replaced by a little boy (and a future ladies man - the post hair cut picture says it all). 

Maria and William also spent as much time as they could (weather permitting) outside this year.  Thankfully, there were a few "hot" days that allowed them use of their pool, trips to the spray park and otherwise enjoyable time spent outdoors.  As you can see our two kids absloutely love spending time in the great outdoors.  I am also blessed to have two great children who love spending time with each other.  This is a bond that I hope to further promote and nurture. 

Finally, to end things, I thought I would post some of the video highlights of William's lastest accomplishments.  Enjoy!

People were curious about William's mobility in a cast...here it is.

Standing on his own


Walking

The continuing adventure of "Stool" boy - The Fourth and Final Chapter

Wondering about the title?  Apparently when you visit the ER department of your local hospital as much as we did in the past 6 weeks you acquire a nickname.  Shortly after my last post (1 day to be precise) William decided to "play" in the mud and so required a third cast.  When we arrived at the ER to have this cast replaced (and waited a nice 1 1/2 hours for a new cast once the old one was off - this town needs a cast clinic, but I'll get to that in a bit) the nurses took one look at us and said, "Is that stool boy?  What happened to his cast this time".  Thus the nickname was born. 

This adventure to the ER, and the long wait - which I completely understand as we were not an "emergency" - left me feeling extremely frustrated with the care we were getting locally.  There had to be a better way to deal with cast changes and follow-up.  This led to a trip to our family doc to discuss my frustrations with the increasing timeline and casting issues.  Here's where I make a plug for my family doctor though.  Understanding my frustrations with having no option but to wait in the ER with a 1 year old for follow-up x-rays and cast changes we came to an arrangement - my family physician offered to meet me at the hospital at an arranged time for x-rays and, if needed, cast changes so that I could bypass the emergency department.  This made our final 4 weeks much less painful.  Plus he did a ton of research - calling other doctors and reading material to determine a more realistic timeline and came up with a range of 4 to 8 weeks.  Yipee!  So last Thursday (I know, he even met us on a holiday to make sure he could check William's leg before he went on vacation, LOVE IT!), we went in for our 6 week x-ray and we walked out of the hospital cast free!  I don't know who was happier, William or me.  At least the little man will get to enjoy his summer a bit more, and if we ever get some hot days, some time in the pool with his sister. 

So, I suppose the question many of you have is..."Is he walking yet?".  The answer is "no".  He is starting to alternate between his "cast" crawl (which has one leg sticking out to the side) and a normal crawl (1 week post cast), but when he stands he still stands as though his leg is in a cast and is showing no interest in walking solo or parent assisted.  He is still "cruising" as well as he has been for the past 5 months or so, and right now the longer he takes to "walk" the more recovery time he continues to give his leg.  He is starting to get a bit frustrated with how slow crawling is when he wants to catch his sister, so we're hoping that might motivate him to try walking in the near future, and will be sure to post video of the event once it occurs. 

Thus ends the first adventure of "Stool Boy" - let's hope he gives us a bit of a breather before his next adventure (he still has no fear).