cave

The other day Nadia and Tim went to the city together and one of the things they brought back was these interlocking mats. They are intended for making the floor softer, but Nadia would rather build things with them. It was all her idea to build a cave. So we made this cube. Colin and her had so much fun in the cave together. I didn't think they would really play together this early, but Nadia was insistent that Colin come in the cave and play...that made my day! They also had a blast scratching the textured sides to make noises. And of course we had to close the cave! Anyone want to come check out the cave? It's tight, but 3 can fit inside!

My Hockey skate goat

So about hockey. Some of you know that I (Tim) have been playing hockey this year. Well it's really nothing to write about but Anna finally came out to watch (about 10 minutes) with the kids. This is my first year of hockey and I am still improving, but I really like it. The last couple of times I played, I was in goal and that was really fun, but I had let my skates go dull because it's better for playing in net. This time, I was playing forward against a rec team from the Muskoday reserve and I still had dull skates. The second shift I took, I fell into the end boards (A la Sidney Crosby for you hockey fans). I slammed pretty hard but I was OK. After all, I'm a hockey player. After that I was skating around but I felt very wobbly. It felt like I had a weak left ankle or something. Finally close to the end of the game I looked down and my skate was broken. The back half of my left skate had broken clean through. I'm fortunate that I didn't break an ankle. Well they are fixed now and I'm ready for the last game of the season this Saturday. I expect all of you there at the Birch Hills Arena at 8PM to watch. I'll be signing autographs after the game.

Date with my daughter? Thumbs up!

Tim Here again. This last Monday I had to go to the city for the morning to run some errands and I thought it would be nice if I took Nadia with me. We had a blast together going from store to store and then out for lunch. I love the Father daughter time we get. I don't even have to hold up the conversation anymore, she does it all. We went to Sportscentre to fix my skates (check the next blog) and Nadia sees pink. She yells out, "Oh Daddy, it's sooo cuuute! It's the cutest thing I never seen!" Strangely enough the bad grammar sentence actually makes sense. It was really cute and she had never seen one before. It was a pink and purple Rawlings baseball glove, just her size. With a soft Tee Ball baseball. I will have to get a picture of that one sorry. Anyway, how could I say no? We have already had fun playing catch. (which we really should video because one day she's going to put one off my noggin, or worse, Two's not a bad number). Anyway, it had snowed the night before and the highway was wet but it was still below zero. When I got home this is what the car looked like.

All that mess is all ice that froze in place. I thought it was pretty cool.

The other part of this post is about my poor wife. On Saturday she was getting out of the car and accidentally slammed her thumb in the car door. It instantly turned blue on the nail and on the other side. It was very VERY painful (so I'm told, and it's not a good idea to laugh or make thumb's up jokes in her presence, trust me). She couldn't sleep all night and had it on ice for about 48 hours after. The next morning we went to church and a couple of friends who are nurses helped her poke through the nail at church. They ended up using a paper clip and a BBQ lighter. It took 45 minutes because she has such thick nails. Poor girl. She is feeling much better now that the swelling has gone down (but she still hits at thumbs up jokes).

The Owl

Tim here, Yesterday the coolest thing happened. Well maybe not the coolest thing since that's relatively relative, but cool just the same. I was driving into the driveway with a friend and I saw a bird fly up into our eve and then back down to the ground. I couldn't figure out what it was until we got a little closer and I saw it fly up and land in the eve. It was an owl! I got out and my friend and I walked up to take a closer look. I thought it would fly away but it just sat there looking at us. We were only about 10 feet away. I ran inside and told Anna, she got me the camera but I thought it would have flown away by the time I got back. Nope, it flew down into the middle of our deck and just sat there. I started snapping pic's and walked closer. Again I got about 10 feet away and then it flew up into a tree. I got a few more pic's and we went inside. How many times do you get to see that? God definitely makes some cool creatures. Watching that little owl look at me and then turn it's head all the way around was pretty neat. Thanks God for this experience.

Tim

happy birthday dad

This one is for the Dad's. Tim's Dad and my Dad share the same birthday. It's really quite handy for remembering!

So what are the Dad's doing on their big day?

Well since Opa is the oldest, we'll start with him. Nadia and I have bugged Opa several time this morning. Nadia hardly said a word...I think Opa was telling Nadia about the bird feeder he's putting up just so we can see squirrels during our visit to their house in a few weeks. Opa found the perfect spot to put the feeder.

But what is on this Birthday boys agenda for today? Moving stuff. He's moving soil and gravel and whatnot around. No breaks for this hard working guy. Even though he's now officially a senior! Are you over the hill yet Dad? Hope you enjoy the dinosaur eggs Oma got you!

And what is Grandpa doing?

From the photo he sent this morning it looks like not too much. Grandpa said that Grandma keeps hauling him outside to see the progress on the new building project at the church. (You can check it out for yourself http://www.mbcevents.blogspot.com/) But, from what I know of Grandpa, it wouldn't take much convincing to get him out of his office. And this birthday guy is coming to our neck of the woods, just to see Colin crawl on his birthday! See you soon. Any guess about Grandpa's age?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOU 2!

peeping ....... Tom?

I am most excited to report that the snow is dribbling away at a rather quick pace. It makes me excited for summer and it also makes me think about a Dr. Seuss interpretation of the rain, "dibble dibble dopp, dibble dibble, dopp dopp dopp!"

So I had extra energy to clean my kitchen today and what did I see out my kitchen widow. This peeping...Tom! At least that's what I'm calling him. Apparently, our house came with a little gnome in the plant barrel. How sad. The previous owners must miss him! Or maybe not, and that's why he is always staring at me.

I am very perplexed by this figure. In some ways I just love him. He's little and has such a personality. But, I also hate him. He is rather peculiar. The same express on his little quirky face all day long, every time I look out the window. And the peeking out from behind the snow is a little unnerving. What's he hiding back there?

Maybe the CLR and hand cleaning the stains off the cutlery is really getting to me. Maybe I should go lay down.

long distance guests

Yesterday, Karen & Juanita came to visit and it was a great time. I thought they were a little more on my time...a little late for everything! But no, they got here while I was in the middle of cleaning the house. Dirty house aside, we had a really fun time hanging out and catching up. And hey girls, thanks for the paint colour suggestions! I can't wait to see the Langelaar house when it's done. Oh I hope you have a girl...they are just too much fun!

Colin and Kaleb playing.

Colin especially loved Owen because he crawls too. He tried to chase him all over. But Owen was way too fast.

Karen you're doing a fantastic job with Owen, he was such an obedient little man. And Juanita, way to go with Kaleb, I can't believe he napped so soundly in our spare room, noise and all! Thanks for sharing your little cuties with us.

mobility

Nadia crawled on her 8 month "birthday" and Colin is following suit. He took his first crawling adventure at 8 months and 1 day! Nadia was bathing and he was playing with toys on the floor. He really wanted to see the furnace vent on the floor so he crawled over there. Of course I pulled him away and made him try again just to see him crawl! I think babies crawling is so cute....especially those first steps when every move is so thought out.

The next day while getting our boots and jackets off in Tim's office, Colin started crawling toward the door to the hallway. Nadia ran over and held onto his arm. I told her she could let him crawl because he wasn't very fast yet, but she insisted that he would run away and get lost if she let go. What a thoughtful big sister.

But now it's been almost a week and he is getting faster and more sure about reaching up. Numerous times he's dumped Nadia basket of musical instruments on his head, and my books on the bottom shelf are no longer safe. Go, Colin Go!

Here he's practicing his 4x4ing...crawling on his hands and feet. (Lisa, see the new chair! :)

Colin is also making faces when he eats. Not because it's sour or sweet, just because! But I can never really capture it on camera. So here is the end of a funny, squinty face.

Always distracted when eating!

Crazy Daddy

Nadia just turned 3 and she has never had a bed. We've always just put her mattress on the floor...until we saw a cutie bed frame at JYSK. (PS. Do you say YSK or JYSK?) So Daddy went out to run errands and picked it up. Along with a matching dresser, or side table, AND a little chair. (Chair pictures to come.) Tim put them all together while Nadia slept, and when she woke up and saw them she was absolutely beside herself. "For me" she shrieked with joy!

As a bonus, she loves her bed so much that she no longer gets up in the middle of the night to crawl into bed with us! Oh, a full night sleep is sooo nice.
I plugged in her ladybug night light, and had to slide under the bed to get to the plug. Nadia thought that was the funniest thing and had to try it out. She can actually roll under from one edge to the other.
In the store, the bed frame we looked at had a Dora blanket, of course sold separately. And although I thought I had explained this she was a little sad when Dora wasn't part of her new bed. But then she found Bob and put him on top. Now we have 6 layers on her mattress. Do you know how long it takes to change the sheets?
Crazy Tim also bought me this amazing orchid. It is nearly 3 feet tall and bursting with blooms. They are suppose to last 8-10 months. I love it soooo much. God has such an imagination, it's breath taking.