BLOG APRIL 2011

Tuesday April 30, 2011

Yoga Yoga Yoga! The girls have discovered yoga. Ok not really. They've always been interested in it but now they are bosy aware enough to see a pose and actually get into that pose. I borrowed a Yoga for Kids DVD from the library and they love it! They put on their samurai pyjamas and have done the DVD many times.

We attending Daddy's cousin Katies wedding and they got to dress up in some cute dresses borrowed from Sasha. They looked adorable.

This is the last post for this years site...onto the next year!

Storm brewing as seen from the backyard.



The girls dressed up for the wedding



The family plus Grandpa, Grandma, Aunt Heidi and Uncle Greg.



The family



The boy getting closer to crawling.



Tree pose.



Warrior pose.



Turtle pose.



Rain's "Om".

Tuesday April 26, 2011

Torren rubs his own head to go to sleep. It's really cute and funny. We see the usual signs (rubbing eyes, yawning etc) but then he starts to rub his own head with his hands. He doesn't like when I rub his head...I think he likes the feeling of his soft hair on his hands, not the rubbing of his head and hair. He's also getting closer to crawling. He can get to his knees but his legs tend to frog-leg out instead of stay underneath him. he is also starting to stand and hold onto things to keep himself upright. He's so happy.

Rain is still loving her mix CD's. She and Piper sat down and we went through itunes and mixed a CD for each of them which they play and dance to. Rain has all kinds of styles of music on hers (country, kids, rock, pop, dance). Piper's tends to be more rock music. Rain has certain dances that she does for some of the songs. "Eye of the Tiger" she calls her stomping song (she stomps one foot throughout the song). I showed her a video from "Rocky" cut to that song and she was blown away..."I didn't know it was a BOXING song!". The funniest song to watch them dance to is "Cotton Eye Joe". "Eye of the Tiger" is also Rain's Rock Band character which she designed. Piper's is the "Princess of Sound"

We had a Samuri Day a couple of days ago. The girls decided that they were Samuri and ressed up in their Oriental pajamas from their costume trunk. They then mocked up some karate and kungfu moves. We broke out the boxing mits, grappling gloves and focus mitts and had some good old family fun. Piper has quite the kick and Rain loves girlie fighting (waving both hands as fast as she can at her opponent). Piper got a bloody mouth when she accidentally had her own focus mitt hit her in the face. She was tough though and didn't cry...just taking it in stride.

The highlight of the week for the girls was definately Easter. They had 3 hunts (grandma's, home and nana's). They love candy and chocolate but it was all about the hunt. They loved it! Rain and Piper counted out how many foiled eggs they found at Grandma's house. We noticed as Rain took them out of her basket to count them she was also arranging them to spell out her name.

We finally moved the playset from the old house. Daddy and Opa and Grandpa got together, rounded up some help from neighbours and carried the main tower down the street, through our neighbours backyard and hoisted it over the fence into our yard. It fits great and the kids love it! It'll be great once we get around to adding the sod.















The things the girls brough back from our hike at Uncle Dougs cabin.



Licking icing off the candles at Opa and Auntie Manda's birthday party.



My cute boy.



My family totem pole.



Rain gets Daddy with a blow to the body.



Piper's got one heckuva kick.



The girls go at it.



Drop it down the the trunk and it comes out the hole at the bottom.

Saturday April 16, 2011

Cousin Jamie turns 1. Happy Birthday nephew/cousin.

Did you know that the dinosaurs were wiped out by a "rexident"? That's what happened according to Rain. She told me that a T-rex accidentally killed all the other dinosaurs. I guess that's how she invented the word...accident + T-rex = Rexident.

She also told me that Fraggle Rock is a show about big talking rats. Rats? Go figure. I guess they do look a bit rat-like.

With some nicer weather starting up we've been outside biking again. They girls are fearless and go racing around the block. I can't keep up anymore. I either have to jog or get a bike trailer to tow Torren in if we're going to keep it up. They love to race down the hill. Rain wiggles her handlebars back and forth making the bike wobble as she comes down the hill. Piper prefers to lift her feet up and stick them out the front of the bike.

Our neighbours got a new puppy...Rocky the bulldog cross. He's very cute...like a cute little white piggie. The girls love him because he is not hyper like most dogs.

The girls are in the next level of swimming...Salamander. They love swimming lessons and are working on front floats, back floats and swimming short distances with floaties. They improve a bit more each week and are way more confident in the water now.

Torren is doing great. he had a super happy day a few days ago but has had two less than happy days recently. I think he is teething perhaps? He's seem to be taken with Opa. After I get around to writing my childern's book "Rain Goes Bonk", I tihnk I'll have to write a book called "Opa Goes Bing". Opa was saying "Bing" and Torren was giggling every time he said it. It was really funny to watch. BING!

Torren is getting fed up with being fed. He wants to shove his own food in his mouth and is enjoying gnawing on orange slices and baby mum mums. He also like to have fruit in his net. He's been a bit more fussy with his veggies but loves bananas.

He is also desperately trying to co-ordinate getting up into crawling position. He pushed himself up on his hands and then lays down and brings his knees up underneath himself. Once he get those two co-ordinated with each other he'll no doubt figure out the rest pretty quick. So far his movements are mostly shoving himself backwards...and rolling sideways. Ha has pretty much mastered sitting up but we still pack pillow around him, just in case. He still topples once in a while.

The old house finally sold so we're prepping the backyard of the new house to move the playset over. Opa has been working like a machine, moving shrubs and plants, digging a french drain and revamping the pond. The backyard is quickly transforming.

Piper is happy to be back outside bug hunting once again. Her and Sasha can easily spend a couple of house rolling over rocks and collecting whatever they find beneath. Rain is out playing again with her animal friends and making stew in a big pot (a mixture of dirt, plants, leaves and whatever else she can find in the backyard.

We had our first outdoor fire down at Sasha's house last weekend. Rain fell asleep before the part and missed out but Piper come down with me and we rosated some marshmellows. Looking forward to having some more outdoor evening parties. I think we'll need to get a firepit for our backyard.

Rain still oves practicing her balancing. It's getting harder on my legs as the girls get heavier...but it's a good leg workout. There are several tricks she request to perform. I'll have to get them on video at some point. Ther eis "Flying forward", "Backwards Fly", "Balancing Forward" (with up/down, side to side and dips), "Balancing Backwards", "Rocking Chair", "Flips" (from flys), and "Standing on my Knees". I swear these kids need to join a circus school.

Salamander swim class.



Racing down the hill on their bikes.



First outdoor fire of the season.



Forward balancing.



Rain, Piper, Rebecca and Rocky.



Torren laughing as Opa goes BING.

Thursday April 7, 2011

Today Torren and I watched a robin taking a bath in our pond. I was doing some gardening and Torren was playing in his exersaucer when a robin hopped over to the pond. He watched me, I watched him. It was only when I went back to my gardening that he proceeded with his bath. I guess he was shy. Torren stopped and watched him with fascination.

I forgot to mention that when I was at the doctors with Torren I had forgotten the diaper bag and of course he had poo'd in the five minute between home and the office. I had no diaper and he pee'd all over the table in the examination room. He got to go home commando.

Rain told me she wanted to go to Africa when she was eighteen. I told her that it was expensive to go to Africa and she told me "That's okay. I'll have lots of money." I asked her how she'd have lots of money. (They think the change pot full of coins is a ton of money). She told me she would go to work. Simple as that.

I was changing Torren's diaper one day this past while and I didnt get the new diaper on fast enough. He pee'd on my leg. Piper asked me what the wet spot on my leg was and I started chasing her around the house with a my pee leg. She thought it was hysterical.

The girls went to see "Alice in Wonderland" over March break and Rain wanted me to draw out all the characters in the play. She described what they looked like and I tried to draw them. I confimed with Nana if my drawings were close to what she was describing and they were. It was the details that she gave me that were really interesting, the stripes on someone's pants of they colour of the bow in their hair.



Rebecca's family got a new dog. Torrne meets Rocky the Buldog.



Rain is our little hypochondriac. She is always complaining about hurts legs or arms. She loves to use the tensor bandage. In this case she has it on her hurt head.



We went bowling last month for a birthday party. They girls loves it. Piper even got a strike.



He's cute and he knows it.



Rain's new superhero persona is Super Cat Here is a picture of it she had me draw to her specs. She tells me that her and her friend Brooke (aka Super Coda) are going to be performing a play for us in the school gym as their super heros.



Since I drew one for Rain we had to make one for Piper. Note that Marvel Rabbit wears a tutu. Piper is keen on ballet



I traced Piper's hand and then she told me which super power she could shoot from each finger. Personally I think having a finger that shoost hotdogs is pretty original.



Rain's super powered hand.



"The moon cat" (the shape of it's tail looks like a moon says Rain) I like the many legs and the three kittens who ride on her back.