Great job mama!

Tonight's dinner was a big success for all three family members. I made brown rice pasta with tomato sauce with ground turkey. John said "this is so good" and them Emma chimed in with "yeah mama, great job, this is really yummy. You did a good job so you get to sleep with my favourite puppy!" So cute. Maddie ate a huge bowl and wanted more but then decided she wanted some of John's birthday cake so she couldn't fit in any more. All this after both kids said they didn't want any dinner! Ha!

Great job mama!

Tonight's dinner went over very well with all three family members. It was brown rice pasta with ground turkey tomato sauce. John said "this is so good" and Emma chimed in with "yay mama, you did a great job. This is so good you get a treat. You can sleep with my favourite puppy!" Aw, how sweet! lol Maddie inhaled it too, and all this after both saying they didn't want dinner, just cake (John's birthday cake). So they only had a few bites of cake because they were full from mummy's yummy pasta!

Dad's Happy Birthday

It's John's birthday tomorrow and the girls are very excited. They know that with birthdays there is usually a cake. It's funny because even though they go on and on about cake, when they are actually served a piece, they never finish it and tend to just pick at it (and of course, mummy finishes it)! I told them we are getting dad golf shoes but that they can't tell dad it's a surprise (he already knew what we were getting him as he picked them out himself). So what do they do as soon as they see him today? "dad, we have a surprise for your happy birthday. We got you golf shoes." Good thing I wasn't really expecting them to keep it a secret. But to play along I said "Emma and Maddie, you ruined the surprise, we weren't supposed to tell dad until tomorrow". They looked a bit forlorn and Emma said "how about we pretend that dad's happy birthday is today." Well that works, but we don't have any cake!

The girls have taken to giving me one of their toys in the morning and I am to take it to my school. It's quite touching as a few times I have had the privilege of taking their favourite things. Today I got Emma's holiday barbie and yesterday I got the dog that Maddie sleeps with. If I forget to put it in my purse, they always remind me and get really upset if I've actually forgotten to bring the item into my work!

Outdoor Skating Rink

On one of my runs the other week I came across an outdoor week within a few blocks of our house. Of course John ran right over to check it out. The town of Aurora maintains it and there is even a hockey net on it. It is quite a large size. We haven't been able to go on it lately as it's been too cold, but yesterday with the mild weather we decided to try it out. It was great fun. The girls still use their skating trainer thingies but they are getting more adventurous and using it less and less each time. This rink was less slippery than the indoor rink, so that helped, but it was a lot bumpier so it made for a few spills. After a few minutes of skating they got John's hockey stick, and the stick of another child who wasn't using it and they started shooting it into the net. They would yell "he shoots he scores" and John would correct them with "she shoots she scores" (my dad would be proud)! They had a blast. After that wore thin they decided they wanted to put their boots on and roll down a nearby hill instead. They were laughing hysterically while doing that and had a great time. They came home with big smiles and rosy cheeks. I love when we do active things as a family. I hope they find something they love to do that keeps them healthy and fit. They already want to go running with me when they are bigger. I hope they do, I think that'd be great fun!

You are not my mummy!

Emma can be a bit of a bear when she wakes up in the morning. This morning she was not a happy camper when I asked her to go to the bathroom. For some reason she refused and I calmly explained we wouldn't be getting her dressed or leaving for Julie's until she has tried to go pee. She proceeded to flounce around on the bathroom floor and then she said "you are not my daughter, only Madison's daughter" and I said "actually Emma, I am yours and Maddie's mummy, you are my daughers now and always." She then said "no, you are not my mummy, only Madison's mummy." I asked her why she said that and she said "cause you are not a nice mum you are a mean mum." I said "I'm sorry you are feeling that way but I am not changing my mind, you need to try and pee. A few minutes later she was fine, went pee and we were on good terms! She is so flightly! lol

On the way to Julie's we started talking about how we would be able to clean the outside of the car together once it is warmer. I asked if they would like to help wash the outside with buckets of soapy water and then Maddie says "and a peach?" It took me a minute to put it together but I remembered she calls the sponge in my parents bathroom a peach. So I said "yes, you can scrub the outside of the van with a peach!" Ha! So funny!

Turtles and Frogs

Maddie was watching me brush my teeth this morning. She asked me to spit. When I was finished I cleared my throat and she said "mummy, you have a turtle in your throat!" I laughed as I knew she meant a frog in my throat. I have asked Maddie before when she has phlegm in her throat if she has a cough and she has said "no mama just a frog in my mouth!" So cute!

The girls are still in swimming and really enjoying the lessons. Maddie finally put her face in the water after 1.5 sessions! Her instructor even said that she has improved so much from the first day, so her confidence is definately improving.

Emma is so proud that she is ready for kindergarten, she reminds us everyday after she has zipped her own jacket or put on her boots by herself. We have put their names on masking tape on the floor of our mudroom so they line their boots up every day when we come home. I still have mixed feelings about them getting bigger. I am so very proud of who they are now and they are so much fun, but I love them at this age and want it to slow down a bit! When they go off to school in Sept I will definately be a wreck, but a proud wreck!

Bedtime Stories

The girls love when John and I tell them stories at bedtime. We always read them books but they ask for "a story from your mouth, no book" and so we spend a few minutes rattling off a story about Princesses Emma and Madison. Last night the girls were in hysterics because John named the Princesses Memma and Adison. It was hilarious how funny they thought it was. Throughout the story he would switch the first letter of each name, so I was "dom" and he was "mad". It was funny. I always include a crocodile, hairy beast or octopus in my stories (at the girls' request, of course) and in my story the girls fight over who will get rid of the villain and then they decide that it's better to share the slaying of the beast. Ha! After John's story last night (which was VERY funny) he ended with ...and they lived happily ever after the end. The girls were in an uproar because he forgot to include the part about the crocodile etc so he added that in and they were happy.

We've been watching the Olympics at every chance we get and the girls love the figure skating and the ski and snowboard races. They choose an athlete and decide that is Emma, Maddie, Mummy, Daddy or Auntie Julie. So in one of the races when someone fell they said "uh oh, mummy, you fell" (funny how their athletes never fell. Harumph)! It seems that if an athlete is all in yellow, then it becomes Auntie Julie. I am anyone with "yellow" hair and they are anyone with brown hair. Dad is an obvious male athlete (with some it's hard to tell). They get such a kick out of this game!