Mothers Day 2015

I was treated to a wonderful Mothers Day Tea at Nathalie's preschool.  We planted flowers, painted nails, made bead bracelets, and enjoyed snacks and tea.  A very special morning feeling celebrated by my little gal who loves me because I "snuggle with her".  Couldn't help but smile at the comment one little guy made that "mom loves me because she says I'm the cutest boy ever".  Spoken like a true 5 year old.  :)

 

On Mothers Day Sunday, we woke up to a bit of a surprise...snow!  Although, to be honest, I guess I'm not really surprised by this at all anymore, so it just made us laugh!  Before we headed off to church, I got some great new books from my special people.  I love school season, but I'm also looking forward to some relaxing summer time together where we can read outside and soak up the sunshine.  Right now with the snow, that summer sun feels like a long ways off.  :)  Thank you Greg, Ben, and Nathalie for making my day so lovely, and thanks to all those ladies in my life who mother me and walk through this motherhood journey alongside me.  I am so very blessed by you!

 

Our Brave Gal

Nathalie and I reported to Alberta Children's Hospital bright and early on May 8th for her surgery.  I was ridiculously proud of my little lady; she did awesome!  She was so calm and patient during the prep time.  Of course, it helped that Doggie got to come with, and we had a few minutes pre-surgery to settle in with Mary Poppins on the ipad, a real treat.  She was a bit nervous and scared as they wheeled her into anesthesia, which broke my heart.  But, the surgery went well, and she was a trooper in recovery.  She definitely deserved her post-surgery loot...a new stuffie and Frozen balloon.  No serious side effects; in fact I think she had 4 pieces of pizza that night for dinner!  A little something like surgery doesn't slow this gal down...we love you, brave Nathalie!

 

Zoo School

Ben's class was in for a real treat the week of May 4th.  His teacher had applied for "Zoo School" years ago, and Ben and his classmates were now the lucky recipients of her hard work!  They got to spend the entire week at the zoo:  learning about all the animals, studying and observing a chosen animal each day, feeding the animals, going "behind the scenes" of the zoo.  I was lucky enough to have a friend offer to watch Nathalie for the day so I could volunteer on Monday the 4th.  Here is a photo of Ben and his class getting ready to start their amazing adventure! 

 

Here is Ben hard at work observing a markhor...drawing the animal and writing some facts.

 

These were "my boys" for the day.  Three "wild and crazy" guys!

More free time to explore and make notes in their journal.  Visited the rhino and also saw the komodo dragon.  Super cool!

 

 

In the afternoon, the students that chose to study Red Pandas for the week headed for the enclosure.  Both male and female were sleeping at first, and then the female started to wander around.  The kids asked such great questions and made really thoughtful observations.  Can't wait to read Ben's journal at the end of the week! 

And of course, we couldn't let the day go by without wishing you..."May the 4th be with you!" 



April in a Nutshell

April was busy, busy!  Here's our highlight reel...

It's somewhat known that I like to play board games, and my gentle nature takes a back seat to my competitive side on these occasions.  So, when Ben wanted to learn how to play Monopoly, I was super excited!  The trouble is...those board game skills must run in the family.  I was really trying to win, and he absolutely creamed me!  I see many more (fiercely competitive) games in our future...

Since January, Ben's school has had a storyteller "in residence" named Jeff Stockton.  For months, the kids have learned the art of storytelling from Jeff and now it was their turn to show off their new talents.  Ben chose to tell the story of Stellaluna.  He did a fantastic job, and I was so impressed at all the stories we heard.  These kids have developed really useful skills in terms of memorization and public speaking.  A fun night full of great stories!

Nathalie's class went on a field trip to the Sunnyside Garden Center.  This garden center has a lot more than flowers to impress the kids, including a talking parrot and koi pond.  The kids had a great time and got some nice ideas for Mother's Day...  :)

Ben and Nathalie both got new bikes last year for Easter.  So, when this Easter rolled around, she kept telling me she wanted a new bike.  I had to explain that a bike is not a gift you get every year...it is intended to last for many years before you need a new one.  Over this last year, Nathalie has been riding this new bike well, but it seemed like maybe we had gone a little too big and that it would be hard for her to balance once the training wheels come off.  One Sunday, we went into Canadian Tire for a new bike helmet and came out with a new (a bit smaller) bike!  I guess Nathalie was right after all!  :)  She adores her new wheels...wonder why?  Can anyone guess her favorite color?  Oh my...

One of Nathalie's preschool friends, Reid, invited us to join him and his mom to see Raffi!  If it's possible, I think the moms enjoyed the show even more than the kiddos.  :)  What a cool guy and he put on a great show of old favorites and a few new tunes as well!

And last, but certainly not least, we enjoyed a date night out with friends, Rene and Christina, at Model Milk, declared one of Calgary's best restaurants.  It was delicious, and we loved spending time with new friends.

Ski Season Saved!

Poor Greg, it's been such a wacky ski season this year with warmer temps and the lack of snow.  So, who would have expected that April would swoop in and provide Greg some skiing joy?!  Greg and his buddy, Eric, made it to Sunshine twice in one week for some pretty amazing days.  Greg even skied his first black diamond run.  A great way to wrap up the season, way to go Greg!

 

Big News!

This news deserves a post all it's own...Target has officially closed it's doors in Canada as of April 2015.  We only had about 18 months together, and then she was gone too soon.  There were many tears and much sadness in the Zabikow home, but alas, we will meet again.  Until then, my love... 

 

Happy Easter!

The kids weren't back to school very long from spring break before it was time for a long Easter weekend.  On Good Friday, we went skiing in the morning.  It's so easy for me to connect with God in the great outdoors...and the mountain was absolutely gorgeous that morning.  That evening, we went to church to remember...

Some Easter celebrating.  Nathalie made this cute foam bunny to stick on the window, and we colored a few dozen eggs. 

Of course, Sunday was our time to get all dolled up and celebrate that Jesus is alive!  After church, we enjoyed baskets and Easter dinner.  Our egg hunt was inside this year, as the kids weren't very interested in hunting in the snow.  :) 

 

Wishing you all a happy Easter...we do!  (To be read in Yoda voice)