Sitting at 7

Annie-Roo is 7 months old today, and again for the seventh time I repeat "Wow, time flies!" She is such a happy, chilled-out, smiley baby who grins for anyone who will pay attention to her. I thought I would list 7 things about Annie to commemorate this momentous day (again, I am blog-stealing... thanks A.J for your creativity):

1. She drools just as much as Isla did, a similarity. This point makes me sort of sad. Well, sad for her. Some days, we are changing her shirt 3 or 4 times. She's wet to her belly button and that makes me think that she MUST be uncomfortable. Perhaps we just create children with excessive saliva glands... I have mega sweat problems and both the girls have mega drool problems... hmmm. Endearing, right?

(ok, this photo doesn't display the extreme wetness going on here... but it's there)

2. She's still a toothless wonder. For months now I have been saying "She's getting teeth". Alas, she has gotten none. Isla had 4 teeth by now... a difference between the 2.

3. She sits up!! It's amazing how this small thing brings such joy to parents faces. It's a tiny accomplishment but it alludes to the fact that she is growing up. Already. We're proud!

4. She has an interesting quirk... something Isla never did. Whenever she drinks a bottle, she must fidget! Her hands are always going... she wants to hold her soother, a washcloth, a dirty sock... ANYTHING. She just loves to have something in her hands as she drinks. Weird, right? But oh so cute. If she doesn't... it's just a painful experience for everyone involved. She cranks her head side to side, arches her back, rubs her eyes and quite frankly, won't drink.

5. If I had to describe Annie in 2 words, they would be: Happy and Content (*disclaimer: not ALL the time, she has her monster moments). She is so giggly, smiley and peaceful. We are definitely blessed to have a little lady with such a calm, laid back demeanor... SO FAR!

6. She does not suck her thumb. Something Isla does... all. the. time. She has found it a few times but is entirely disinterested in it. A good thing I think. I can take away a soother but I certainly cannot amputate a thumb (well, I COULD but I think that's a crime).

7. She is, once again, NOT sleeping through the night. Alas, I have kissed goodbye to uninterrupted sleep for now. I must just live with it I think. She is waking up at least once for a bottle, if not twice. And as teeth approach, I fear this number will multiply. As my sister-in-law said,"God's creations are beautiful and sometimes noisy, sleepless little critters" (easy for her to say, she doesn't have any kids. Haha :) ). But this is a great perspective to take. One day, my sleep shall return. For now, I get to stumble out of bed for some Annie-Roo snuggles. I'll take it!

So, there you have it! My summary of Annie Roo. She also decided to celebrate today with the most monstrous, repulsive dump I have ever seen. Up her back to her neck. I kid you not. So, a bath ensued. Here are some pics of my sweet little babe today! Enjoy her.

getting de-pooped.

all clean smiles!

more...

and some more...

dressed and ready to get back to the day.

Love my littlest!

Picnic in the Park

This weather has been unreal! Gosh! Despite the fact that Fall means Winter is gearing up to rear it's ugly head, it really is a beautiful time of year. I love the crisp morning air (even better with a little Starbucks in hand), the sounds of the leaves crunching beneath my feet, the colorful landscape the changing leaves provide... it's gorgeous. We decided to soak up the outdoors with a picnic and a river valley walk. We packed a delicious lunch, packed 2 delicious little girls and headed to Emily Murphy Park! We ate, we walked, we ran... it was a lovely Saturday morning/early afternoon! So nice to spend time as a family too! And guess what?? My camera has risen from the dead... it works! Hooray!!

Annie enjoying a Gala.

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Chipmunk cheeks!

Hey, check out our fancy ride!

Shoulder ride!

Daddy and his ladies (*note Isla's princess skirt... she insists on wearing this all the time, everywhere we go).

Satur-Date

This Wednesday, the 19th, is Cam's 29th Birthday. Old balls. Just kidding... but to put it in perspective a little bit; this is the eleventh birthday we are celebrating together. Hard to believe really. Dating for 3 years, engaged for one, married for 4 before having Isla... and now, a family of 4. A lot can happen in 11 years, evidently. Last year, I was pregnant with Annie so for his birthday, I surprised us with a night in a hotel for his gift... and kind of a last hurrah before she arrived! So this year, I thought we could kinda do the same thing. The original plan was to have Isla spend the WHOLE DAY and night with my parents and Annie spend the day with Cam's mom AND go for her very first sleepover. Well, after the most disastrous night in our entire parenting life (including 2 newborn stages), we decided that having to send Isla to ANYONE would be a cruel punishment. So, we cut our date short (and let's be honest here, we were entirely too exhausted to be out past 8:30 pm anyway) and hunkered down to what proved to be a MUCH more successful night than the 2 prior (we were still Annie-less!). Anyway, the date.

We dropped the kiddies off, breathed a HUGE sigh of relief (I mean, I LOVE my kids) and headed to Blue Plate Diner for a delicious brunch. I must say that going for brunch is one of my favorite things to do! We sat, ate, drank copious amounts of coffee, read the paper and simply relaxed. We then walked from there through the Leg grounds and to Whyte Ave. We spent the entire afternoon shopping, browsing, meandering and reveling in the fact that we had no naps to be home for, no coffee joint we had to find to heat up a bottle, no bathrooms to run to when Isla has to pinch her pee and no nasty diapers to attend to. After doing a little much-needed splurging, we went to Next Act Pub for dinner. Who knew a dinner at a pub could be 2 hours of glorious conversation, lots of laughs and the most amazing burger to ever touch my lips (a veggie patty with apples, brie and carmelized onions, mmmmm). It was so nice to have an uninterrupted meal... just focusing on each other and sharing our goals for the next year; both personal goals and financial goals. We then walked back to our car (such a beautiful walk) and made a stop at Vi's for dessert (and by that I mean Cam had a beer and I had dessert, or maybe 2...). We have never laughed so much and it was exactly what we needed. So care free and so lovely. Cam said to me that night, amongst snuggles, "I feel like we're dating again" and it truly did. It was a perfect day!

***Don't get me wrong, we obviously love our children beyond measure, but it really is divine to have an entire day to really focus in on one another. Sometimes, we can get lost in the business of the day and the chaos that is our residence but to come together and chat, HOLD HANDS (as we are always pushing strollers and never get to do this simple gesture) and spend quality time together is exactly what the doctor ordered. Already looking forward to next year!

Changing of Seasons... Metaphorically.

Well, my camera is broken. Which means no new pictures of the girls. Which means kinda boring blog posts. Sorry everyone. Perhaps it's time for us to purchase a new one.... hmmm, Cam's birthday is coming up, could be an idea :)

Anyway, life in the Schellenberg house is changing. I swear, Isla went to bed and woke up a whole new 2 and a half year old... and not in a good way. She no longer naps (which means I no longer have any 'me' time during the day... and I gotta admit, I'm struggling) and she doesn't 'do' quiet time in her room, so I've resorted to a movie time in the afternoon where she just chills. It works. Therefore, I'm doing it (yes, I do feel guilty for planting my child in front of the TV for 90 minutes, but hey, we BOTH need it).

Her favorite phrases as of late:
"No, I don't want to".
"I don't like that".
"That makes me mad" (complete with arms crossed across her chest).
"I wanna get out" (at 5:30 in the morning, in a voice that sounds as if she is being tortured, complete with screams and cries of epic proportions).

I love my child, of course, but I can't help feeling like a failure. And boy, does it suck. There are days where my patience has run out and it's merely 7:30 am. I am empty. My patience reserves are nill. So, what does this look like? Me treating Isla poorly and Isla responding to that with more whining and more resistance. It's a vicious cycle. Obviously, I want to be the perfect Mom... I want to show Isla unconditional love, support, enthusiasm, self-confidence and the list goes on, but I can't be. And the guilt this realization brings double sucks. However, one of my wise and amazing friends said to me that our kids wouldn't need God if we were perfect parents. And I want my daughters to know God, in some capacity, on their own choosing. So this brings me comfort. God is there to show Isla and Annie perfection; I am a mere vessel trying to stay afloat with the knowledge that I am doing my best and that above all else, my kids intimately know that they are loved. So, I will keep on trucking and do the best I can.

The Great Purge!

I have decided that I need to do a massive purge of my closet. I have things that I have been holding onto for ages just because and it's time to let them go. However, some of those items have been quite expensive so it's hard to garbage bag them and drop them off at Goodwill (does this make me a bad person?). If you are reading this, you are probably a friend (as I am sure strangers would have zero interest in my posts... heck, even my friends may get a little bored). If you are at all interested in taking a look, please let me know. I am more willing to get rid of the nice stuff if I know where it's going :) I have a couple fancier dresses too (both I wore to weddings). This may be a little hard for me as I have invested money into my wardrobe ... but it's time. I haven't actually gone through all my clothes, per say, but I know what I wear and what I don't. If you look through my closet and see something you like, I'll let you know if it's up for grabs or not. If no one replies, maybe I'll keep it all :)

What We've Been Up To...

So, we manage to keep busy on a day to day basis. Some days it's play dates, some days it's the gym and then coffee and a snack, some days it's errands and some days, we just play at home. Here are some photos of what we've been up to...

listening to some of Daddy's beats...

painting pictures for 2 special Aunties.

bundled up and ready to go!

hanging out... waiting to leave the house (again)!

a sunny, crisp Fall walk.

playing dress-up! (thanks to Auntie Coe-Coe) A witch, a princess and a ballerina in one?

learning about our Feelings from Todd Parr (one of our favorite authors).

A couple days in the Schellenberg life...

Blenting...

I have created a new term. Blenting. It is a blog post in which the sole intent behind it is to vent about something. There you have it, Blenting. Last night, as I was awake for the 4th or 5th time, it came to me.
Now, I realize there are FAR worse things in this world than a lack of sleep, but seriously, exhaustion sucks. After several weeks of Annie blissfully sleeping through the night, I feel as though she has rapidly regressed to being a newborn again. She is eating TWICE a night (like, really kid??) and is up other times due to teeth, a leaking diaper (she was soaked to her neck last night, which meant a diaper change, a blanket change, a sheet change and one grumpy baby). Now if that's not bad enough, Isla is also getting up (for what, I have no idea). She was up twice last night. TWICE. So, between Isla and Annie, we (Cam and I) are up like 6 or 7 times. It's exhausting. And those who know me well know that sleep is essential to my existence. I can already feel my spirit dipping, my energy levels decreasing, and my overall attitude changing into one of self-pity and annoyance. I know "this too shall pass" but I am hoping & praying it passes sooner than later. Seriously. It's taking it's toll.

(that was a depressing post... sorry everyone)