Proud to be the mom of a boy

As said to me tonight by Colby when I put him to bed:

"Mommy, you're the best. I love you so much. I love you better than the Nos* in my dinkies".

I don't care who you are. That's true love from a 5 year old.

Happy New Year's Everyone.

*Nos is Nitros Oxide that is found in street racing cars. Colby is convinced that all his dinkies have it.

Merry Christmas from our house to yours

Many more pictures to come over the next couple of days. I think Colby is finally coming down from his "Christmas high". This was definately the best Christmas yet.

Merry Ho Ho!

Joey had just woken up, that's the explanation for the "shell shocked" look! He was all smiles after the picture was taken!

Happy birthday (again)

Happy birthday to my second husband (yes, their birthdays are a day apart). He never fails to be there when we need him, and always remembers what I take in my coffee. We love you Adam!!!

Happy Birthday

Happy birthday to the most amazing man I have ever met. He's a great daddy and an amazing husband. We love you very much.

Colby's first christmas concert

I can't seem to get Google Video to upload the video to here. I'm tired of fighting with it so I'm going to cheat. You can see the video here. Colby is in the back row on the far right. Just look behind the antlers!

Escape from Alcatraz

Well, not really but that's what it reminded me of. When Rob got up this morning to go get Joey all I heard was: "Hon, you gotta get up and see this!" I stepped into the kitchen just as he was scooping up a baby hedgehog from the middle of the kitchen! The only thing we can figure is that he climbed on the roof of the house (Sunny had knocked the roof off), climbed through the bars, walked across the counter and cannon balled to the floor. The part we can't figure out is the turd that is stuck on the top of corner litter box we have. We quickly put him in the hamster ball and he took off again around the kitchen as we moved the house to the middle of the pen. Rob joked we're going to have to start doing headcounts when we get up in the morning! Oh, and we initially named this hedgehog Houdini, but after giving it more thought we are naming him John Mason, Sean Connery's character in "The Rock."

More pictures!

The babies are getting big! They're finally weaned and ready to go! Anyone want to buy a hedgehog??

I could just eat this face! Almost 7 months! Finally, the tooth broke through!

From the mouth of babes

I have this mug from Avon that I love. It's a Breast Cancer mug that I bought in memory of my Nan. I buy everything that I can that supports breast cancer research, but for some reason this mug is my favorite of all. Colby lately has been asking for hot chocolate, and when he asked for this the other night, he asked if he could have my "pink" mug. I told him that he could, and it was my favorite mug. Colby is a "kid of 1000 questions", and was quick to ask why it was my favorite. I told him that when I drink something warm from it, it feels like "a hug from my nanny". I then told him about Nan, as she passed away the year before I got married. I told him that she was a great lady, and would have been his "Great Nanny", and that she was "Poppy's mommy". The next morning Dad was with us in the truck when I drove Colby to school as we were going shopping. I asked Colby to "tell Poppy who we were talking about last night" and this is what he said:

"Poppy, mommy and I were talking about Great Nanny. She was your mommy and she's in heaven".

and then he followed this up in his very serious heartbreaking little boy voice with;

"Poppy, is your mommy your angel that takes care of you?"

I have never wanted to hug my little boy so tight as I did that morning.

Our Christmas tree

Let it snow!

Crazy changes

I have felt really bad about not being able to get back here and post. I have been reading everyone else's blogs, and will soon do the Christmas meme that was I tagged by Dawn. The last 2 weeks in this house have been insane, just too crazy and long to blog about. The long and short of it is, the Chrisco Order arrived and our pantry and freezer are jam packed with food. We spent the better part of an hour putting everything away. Such a great idea. I highly recommend it to everyone.

Joey's tooth has finally poked through. I'm still trying to get a picture of it. Colby has finally started eating the snacks at school. It has been such a battle with him to get him to try new things. He is gone to school today in his pjs as they are having PJ-Pizza-Movie day at school. They were suppose to pick one, but hell, you give these options to 5 year olds and they are going to want it all!

The biggest change in this house, and brace yourself to all who know me, we've adopted a little girl. She's 5 years old and due to a crazy situation she was not able to remain in her previous house. She was not abused, she was actually loved very much and is still visited every other day by her previous family. The boys love her, and I couldn't be happier to have another female in the house. How could you not love this face??

Meet Chili. Our 130lbs French Mastiff sookie baby.

Only in my family

Rob sent an email to Adam earlier this morning confirming that they were still going hunting tomorrow. I don't normally open Rob's email, it's just a respect thing, but I knew what this was about and if Adam was not going tomorrow Rob would want to know when he called me, as he always does when he's at work. The email from Adam confirmed that he was in fact going tomorrow morning. So, me being me, sent him this:

I'm sorry to tell you but I have had a change of heart and can no longer hunt. The thought of murdering those poor innocent animals has kept me awake with a heavy heart. I plan on spending every minute of my free time with my beautiful wife and amazing children. I hope you will join me in my new spiritual beliefs and stop murdering innocent deer families.

Yours in peace,Rob

to which Adam replied

lol

Hi Tina

You can come with us if you want. well strap you to the back of the atv like a deer... that way there wont be room for a deer and maybe we wont shoot one because we are thinking about that. your murdering husband the 2nd

to which I replied

You know this is going to end up on the blog, right?

to which he replied

dammit

no I didnt think about the blog... to early in the morning I guess there wont be any takers the next time you try and pawn my body off there either lol

I love my family. Some day I'll blog about how I ended up with 2 husbands.

The babies are growing so fast!

I'm in love with Emmitt Smith

I have been totally hooked on Dancing With the Stars this season, and have developed a "not so secret" crush on Emmitt Smith. I sit here, it's 9:56, and the final set of commercials are on. The suspense is KILLING ME! Here we go.. here it comes.. is he going to win the coveted trophy?.... and the winner is.......... (oh my heart is racing)........ YEAH!!!! HE WON!!!! I LOVE HIM !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG!!!!!!!!! I WANNA CRY!!!!! There's just something incredibly sexy about a big sexy guy with a big sexy smile. It's no wonder I married who I did!

Alan

He's growing so fast! This is a couple of the 300 pictures I took today. Thankfully I have a digital camera or this would cost me a small fortune in film!

I will call him Squishy and he will be mine

I am again temporarily boarding Kassie's hedgehogs while she figures stuff out. They were here for a while, went back for a while, and now they're back. And they have babies! The female hedgehog Sunny, well, really is a bitch. She's not friendly to take out, she hisses a lot, and was certainly not happy with me when I took her out of the pen so I could play with the babies. Oh well. I'm bigger than her. And she can't hurt me through ski gloves! These babies are about a week old. The bottom picture is Russell, or "daddy". He's been banished from the house since the babies were born. It's funny to see him try to get back in the house. She hisses and spits at him until he leaves and goes back under his blanket. You can see her in the window. From what I understand, they are two rare breeds of hedgehog. He's a salt and pepper something and she's, well, I don't remember what she is but she's pretty. And I think I want to keep one!

He'll hate me for this someday

I have a challenge when trying to take pictures of Joey. He's not a fat kid, but just a big kid. My sister in law nearly split her side when she saw this. It's a cute picture, but a really, REALLY bad angle. And of course, like the considerate, loving mother that I am, I had to post it here.

Bring on the food!

I received my confirmation letter in the mail last week about my Chrisco Christmas Hamper. This will be the 3rd time I have participated in this, and I'm really excited about it. I got the new 2007 catalogue in the mail yesterday, and during my spare moments I have flipped through the pages, dog-earring the ones that I am interested in for next year. This has become a big thing for Rob and I, deciding on what ones to get. I was initially very skeptical of this, ordering just a very small hamper the first year to see what would arrive. Even the small hampers are very big. I have 4 hampers coming this year, a freezer order(Great Grillers), a pantry order(Pantry Pack), a snack order (Savory Snacks) and an appetizer order (Awesome Appitizers). (You can see the catalogue here .) Even the on line catalogue is fun. I didn't even notice the 10.45 coming out of the bank account each week, and now on November 20th I will have almost 600.00 worth of groceries coming. Many people have asked me "Do you save any money by doing this?" Well, not really. BUT, the big advantage for me is, especially this time of year, I can spend more money on Christmas and less on groceries. It's a crapload of food, and the great thing about it is that it's all things that go together. Like spaghetti and spaghetti sauce. Everything, especially the pantry order, is food that you would use together to make a meal. I love it. I think it's a fabulous concept. I can't wait!

Just enough to break your heart

Conversation that happened earlier tonight when Colby was on the phone with Rob:

(me)"Colby, the phone is for you!"

Colby: "Hello?" (as he says with a smile, knowing it was Rob)

Colby: "DADDY! When are you coming home?"

Silence as Rob tells him he's working late and won't be home in time for bed.

Colby: "You should come home now. Tell your boss you have to go. Or escape. "

This conversation went on for a few minutes as Rob tried to explain to Colby that he had to work late, but would be off tomorrow and would see him in the morning. It continued as Colby asked him to come home and play "Dukes of Hazzard" (we bought him the game of the original series for the Playstation). When Colby passed the phone back to me, I had tears in my eyes and all Rob said was "That really sucked. Really really sucked". Rob has had some big demands on his time at work and it seems to keep him there longer and longer each night. I even joked with him one day that if I was a more insecure woman and he didn't call home so much with his work number on the display I would be concerned that he was having an affair. But hell, what am I worried about, I have 2 husbands! Though, if I had to choose one of them to lose, I would prefer to lose the one I'm NOT sleeping with. (Sorry for the mental image there Dad). Seriously, any takers there for my second husband? Ms. BehindzBeyond?? *grin*

My birthday boy

Feeling a bit down

We had Colby's party on the weekend and I will post about that and have pictures soon. I received some very disturbing news yesterday that a woman that I worked with had suddenly passed away on Saturday. She was only 32 and died from what I understand was a heart attack. She was not well on Thursday and Friday, stayed in hospital for those days, was released (again I believe) on Saturday, and while going out with her signficant other for supper on Saturday, collapsed. I'm still getting my head around the fact that this woman I worked with everyday, sat next to, is now gone. Just like that. Although she had no children, she had a nephew that she adored and talked about constantly. This, so soon after watching the Cameron family and their loss, has really "shook my foundation" so to speak. Death is not something that I spend a lot of time thinking about, but when 2 people you know are suddenly gone, you can't really help it. I feel I have been very fortunate in my life, to have met my soul mate very early in life and to have 2 amazing children. I look at other people I know, some I only know through blogs that I read, and some I know very closely, who are my age but are in different spots in their lives, still looking for that "someone special". I would love nothing more than to see everyone I know as happy as I am, to have someone to share their lives with. I even find myself thinking when I hear someone say " I'm so tired of being single, I just wish I could find the right guy", I really have to resist the urge to say "well, I have 2 husbands, would you like one?!" and have actually said this more times than I should. I just really want the people in my life to be happy, to enjoy being with someone and being married or together as much as I do, and if I can do that without being the person who says "Hea, I know someone who would be perfect for you, let me hook you up." I just can't help but think "what if there was no tomorrow?" What if someone close to me was suddenly just not there anymore? But, thinking about the "what ifs" will only drive you crazy. So, with all that being said, I can't help but sit here with my cup of coffee, smile and say to anyone interested "So, wanna hear about my other husband?"

My baby is 5 today - where did the time go?

3 days old

3 weeks old

(Will add a birthday picture here later today)

This cracked me up (thanks to Nicole for sending this)

In the 1400's a law was set forth in England that a man was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of thumb"

Many years ago in Scotland , a new game was invented. It was ruled "Gentlemen Only...Ladies Forbidden"...and thus the word GOLF entered into the English language.

The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV were Fred and Wilma Flintstone.

Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the U.S.Treasury.

Men can read smaller print than women can; women can hear better.

Coca-Cola was originally green.

It is impossible to lick your elbow.

The State with the highest percentage of people who walk to work: Alaska

The percentage of Africa that is wilderness: 28% (now get this...)

The percentage of North America that is wilderness: 38%

The cost of raising a medium-size dog to the age of eleven: $6,400

The average number of people airborne over the U.S. in any given hour: 61,000

Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.

The first novel ever written on a typewriter: Tom Sawyer.

The San Francisco Cable cars are the only mobile National Monuments.

Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history:

Spades - King David

Hearts - Charlemagne

Clubs -Alexander, the Great

Diamonds - Julius Caesar

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle. If the horse has one front leg in the air the person died as a result of wounds received in battle. If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.

Only two people signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4th, John Hancock and Charles Thomson. Most of the rest signed on August 2, but the last signature wasn't added until 5 years later.

Half of all Americans live within 50 miles of their birthplace.

Most boat owners name their boats. The most popular boat name requested is Obsession.

Q. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would you have to go until you would find the letter "A"?

A. One thousand

Q. What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers, and laser printers all have in common?

A. All were invented by women.

Q. What is the only food that doesn't spoil?

A. Honey

Q. Which day are there more collect calls than any other day of the year?

A. Father's Day

In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase......... "goodnight, sleep tight."

It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month, which we know today as the honeymoon.

In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... So in old England , when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them "Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down." It's where we get the phrase "mind your P's and Q's"

Many years ago in England , pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they used the whistle to get some service. "Wet your whistle" is the phrase inspired by this practice.

AND FINALLY

At least 75% of people who read this will try to lick their elbow!

YOU KNOW YOU ARE LIVING IN 2006 when...

1. You accidentally enter your PIN on the microwave.

2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.

3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of three.

4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.

5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have e-mail addresses.

6. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home to help you carry in the groceries. (I'm guilty of this!)

7. Every commercial on television has a web site at the bottom of the screen.

8. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn't even have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.

10. You get up in the morning and go on line before getting your coffee.

11. You start tilting your head sideways to smile. : )

12. You're reading this and nodding and laughing.

13. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.

14. You are too busy to notice there was no #9 on this list.

15. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn't a #9 on this list.

AND NOW U R LAUGHING at yourself.

Alan

I got this email from Kelly yesterday. For anyone who knows my brother, this is definately his son. It looks like he's says "WASSSSUPP?!" which is one of the first words he taught Colby.

Happy Halloween!

To hell with housework

I was attempting to clean up the kitchen today when I heard Joey squeal with delight. I turned around to see Colby playing with him, and Joey had great big "belly laughs". So I thought "To hell with housework" and quickly grabbed the camera.

Colby's favorite jammies right now are these camo ones. Rob had his hunting stuff out and Colby couldn't resist wearing this hat.

Colby has a real bad habit of running and sliding across the kitchen and livingroom floor. He has taken a few good spills, so out of frusteration I bought him "grippy" socks. I was feeling pretty smart about that, thinking I had just outsmarted him, until I looked at his feet tonight. I had to snap this picture while chuckling to myself. Only my kid would wear them upside down.

To the Cameron Family (warning: you will need tissues)

CAMERON, Alan Edward - 52, Mount Uniacke, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his family after a courageous battle with cancer. Born in Halifax, he was a son of the late Mary (Slaunwhite) and Wilfred Cameron. While studying, and later graduating from St. Mary's University, Alan worked as a manager for Wandlyn Inns in Halifax and Antigonish. Following this, he thoroughly enjoyed a career of over 20 years as a publisher's representative in the book industry. He was a referee with Volleyball Nova Scotia and an avid golfer. Alan is survived by his beloved wife and best friend of 29 years, Debra (Organ), as well as his daughters "the girls", who were a constant source of pride, Lindsay (Nick) Richards, Mount Uniacke; Kelly (Brian) Power, Amherst; and Jessica (Terry) Carew, Mount Uniacke; also by his adored grandchildren, Cameron and Cody Richards, Mount Uniacke; and Alan Power, Amherst; brother, Donald (Colleen) Cameron, Fort McMurray, Alta.; uncle, Scott Cameron, Wellington; parents-in-law, Ann-Marie and George Organ, Mount Uniacke; sister-in-law, Cynthia (Organ) Maxwell, Mount Uniacke; nieces and nephews, Andrew and Heather Cameron, Fort McMurray; Julia and Joey Maxwell, Mount Uniacke. Besides his parents, Alan was predeceased by his uncle, Ivan Cameron; aunts, Jean Howlett, Annie Lively; brother-in-law, Joseph Organ. Visitation will be held in Atlantic Funeral Home, Sackville Drive, on Friday from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. Funeral, with reception to follow, in St. John's United Church in Fall River on Saturday at 2 p.m. Donations may be made to Wellington United Church or Nova Scotia Hospice Palliative Care Association. Family flowers only. On-line condolences may be made by visiting: www.atlanticfuneralhomes.com

I resisted posting this prior to this for respect to the family. Al always treated us like family, even before BJ and Kelly married. He always remembered everything Colby said, and even when he was sick, remembered Colby's love of Nascar and ordered him a beautiful Nascar book that we received a few weeks ago. Kelly, her mom and sisters are just like family to us and our hearts and prayers are with them now. I know they read this blog and although I'm sure a few tears will be shed when they first see this (like mine now as I type this), but I wanted them to know that we love them very much.

Rob, Tina, Colby and Joey along with the entire Power family

Growing up too fast

The picture is a link to the rest of the pictures I took. They are growing up much to fast!

Joe Power's eyes

For anyone who was lucky enough to have known my grandfather, you'll recognize the same "twinking blues" here. Thanks to my son, I'll never forget those eyes.

Playing with the camera

I love this picture of Rob. We went for a drive back to where he hunts and I snapped this as he was walking back to the truck. Can you see why I'm still here after 12 years?? *grin*

I have always told Rob that I enjoy him walking away from me as much as I enjoy him walking towards me, now everyone knows why!

Colby is very proud of his bike, as you can tell.

Why is it that when men push a baby stroller they do it walking off to the side one handed?? Again, Mr. Proud on his chopper bike!