Spring Update!

Well, we are all settled in at our new home, and couldn't be happier! We are loving our new routine here, and  are falling in love with every aspect about this change. The neighbourhood is great! So nice and quiet! Renne and I love seeing so many other kids and babies on our morning jogs/walks. It is so fun to see so many young families with kids the same age as Renne. I can't help but wonder how old they are, and maybe they will be at one of Renne's birthday parties in the future, or in one of your school classes! They are building a school just a block away from our house, which is a great plus for our location! Our church building is just down the street, so we love that we can walk to church if we want to! I am really enjoying our new ward already! Everyone has been so friendly and welcoming! It hasn't been a hard transition at all. We are so lucky to be part of church organizations that basically guarantee automatic friends!! It's pretty amazing to have support the second you move in. On moving day, 4 missionaries showed up on our door step ready to help move boxes! I was so thankful for that. Tim and I have moved all of our stuff alone before, so it is so nice to have help. We also had so much family and friends come to help us too!! It made it very easy. Wahoo!

Spring has finally arrived, even if the weather is hit and miss still, and Renne and I have loved getting out and enjoying the sunshine!! We love getting out of the house and our stroller is definitely getting used a bunch lately! We love the park just a few blocks away.  Renne really loves the slide and swing, but she is still learning rocks aren't candies. I am so thankful for the park, too! Renne is ultra-busy. She NEVER stops. She is so determined and focused, and she doesn't give up easily. The park is a wonderful break from the chase!  ;)

A quick Renne update: Renne hasn't been sick for a few weeks now, hooray!!! She is loving her new house, and has explored every inch of it! It took a few days for her to get adjusted, and she kept looking around for Grandma, Marin, and her favourite - Grandpa! Renne is obsessed with my Dad. It's actually ridiculous. She clings to him like crazy, and fake cries when he isn't paying attention to her!! Spoiled girl alert! She has quite the personality, and it shines through more and more everyday. She thinks everyone is chasing after her, and giggles constantly anytime someone walks towards her, haha. She is definitely not shy, but every so often she will still play strange. She is a thrill seeker!!! She tries to throw herself over the edge of things, because she thinks its the best time ever! Talk about supervision required. The other day she was climbing on top of the treadmill and sliding down the front (made a slide for herself). She's always looking for things to open, and throw and climb on. She's not walking yet, but we are encouraging her and she likes walking and holding our hand(s). She's so tall, and I think that makes it harder for her to balance on her own.  She is stubborn, and I already know things have to be her idea, so she will walk when she is ready. She is going to be 15 months old in just a few weeks!! I can't believe in 3 months she will be in nursery - I am actually already excited for her because I know she is going to love it, and I miss being able to listen in Relief Society! Church is "fun" to say the least. She is extremely vocal, and loves to squeal, I mean, she's clearly singing, but it's not appreciated by all present, so we have to take our party elsewhere.

Tim update: Tim is loving his job at AGI. The company has been really good to him, and we are so happy with it. He is quite relieved to have a shorter commute from the new house. Only 15 min now! He doesn't have to wake up at 5:30 anymore, only 6:00 so wahoo! We are still usually in bed by 10:00, such party animals! He is really excited for our up-coming projects we are planning this spring! We are going to build our deck, do the front landscaping, potentially build the fence, and many other furniture building/painting projects! We love doing projects together, and I so appreciate his willingness to try things and always help me. He loves keeping busy with things, and we are a great team. That's one of the things I love most about us. He is also enjoying the new house, and loves that no one is living with, above or below us! (Up until now, we have always lived under, below or with a member of my family) and we LOVE family, but we are enjoying the privacy and the quiet :)

Ashton update: I am loving spending days with my hilarious one-year-old! She definitely keeps me on my toes!! We have so much fun. Some days I find it really difficult to keep her "busy", and so we often escape to the park. I am so excited because we have 3 playdates this week!!! Haha. Its the little things. I am really enjoying subbing in Coaldale, Taber and Barnwell lately! I've been doing 1-2 days a week. It's been awesome to get out and be a teacher for a day! Renne doesn't seem to mind going to Grandmas, and I have a new friend in Copperwood ward who has a dayhome and has taken her a few times for me! What a blessing! Subbing is the best! I don't have the stress load of planning and marking, but I still get the reward of being with the kids. It's hardly even work. Kids are so awesome. We have so much to learn from them. I subbed in Kindergarten this week, and we were making a Lorax craft, and a little girl turns to me and says "I love gingerbread men!" haha. I said, "Actually sweetheart, this is a Lorax, you know, the story we just read?" haha I love how innocent and clueless they are! It's so sweet. They, also, keep me on my toes! I had a boy ask me yesterday "Mrs. Whidden, do people call you Mrs. Widow?" I don't really know what he meant, but it may have offended me just a little ;) Oh, and as a sub you always get asked, without fail, how old you are. My classic response is always, "how old do you think I am?" My favourite answers are, 33 and 16. Close guys, close. :)

Well, that's really all we have for now! It's been a really great month!! Oh, and my sister Jocelyn is getting hitched!!!! I am so so so happy for her and Eric they are an amazing couple and our family is so excited for another brother! Congrats guys!! I love weddings.

I don't any great pics to post, but I do have this hilarious video of Renne eating a cream puff for your viewing pleasure. :)

Tell Me Why

The last month has been rough on my poor little Renne. She's had 3 colds, several fevers, and caught a really awful virus that had us extremely worried. She was completely zoned out for a few solid days, moaning and crying, and if you any of you know Renne, she is always on the go, so we knew it was serious. Surprisingly, when we took her for an x-ray to see if she had pneumonia, the doctor told us that she had a broken collar bone!! You can imagine the horror, guilt, and heart break I was feeling at that moment. It was awful. It had been broken for an entire week, and we had no idea. It was bizarre, because she definitely showed no signs it was broken. When we poked around her arm, she wouldn't even flinch or react. She had had a small tumble down the stairs, but we saw her land, and she was completely fine after crying for just a few minutes. Sidenote: I have also broken several bones in the lamest ways as a young girl. I broke my collar bone 3 times, my arm once, fractured my tailbone and my ankle. Sorry Renne! Anyway, once I realized she wasn't in much pain, but probably just discomfort, I was able to accept the fact that she broke a bone, at the tender age of 1, while under my watch and care. It took a lot of convincing from Tim that I am not an awful mother. You mothers who have felt this guilt, know exactly what I am talking about. "Make sure you don't throw her down the stairs anymore, Ashton" said my Grandma. Haha, ok, I'll try not to next time. (sick empty feeling in my stomach). confessions of an unfit mother? Ok, enough with the pity party…

I know kids get hurt, and we can't control it always. However, the guilt we feel as mothers stems deeper than just this. It comes from every time they hit or throw a tantrum, and every time you have to say, "No, she's not walking yet" when people ask. You feel it after each time you tell yourself you need a break. How could you ever want to take a break from the most important thing in the world?? And it's not just guilt. It's an amazing, overwhelming love that aches inside when you look at your baby and think, She's mine. i am her guide. I am the one responsible for her entire life. Those are major, BIG thoughts. And they are wonderful, but also terrifying. I pray all the time to be the best mom for Renne. To love her exactly how she needs to be loved. He did send her to me, after all. He trusts me, and that helps me trust myself. Sometimes I have no idea what I am doing, and I really hate that feeling, but it is all part of the journey. Every time I tell her,"I'm trying to help you" "Just wait, this will be over soon" or "No, that will hurt you, stay away from there", I can hear Heavenly Father's voice. It's amazing what I learn about him through talking to her.

This reminds me of my favourite song I sing to Renne most nights. It's a Low family favourite called Tell Me Why. We always used to sing it around the campfire and at family reunions. It might not sound like a love song, but I love it so much I had some of my cousins sing it at our wedding. To me, the songs means we don't know all the answers to our questions, the whys to God's plan for us. But we know he created this world, he created each of us and so we need to trust him. The last verse always helps me know that no matter how many bones Renne may break, I can love her the best.

Tell me why the ivy twines

Tell me why the stars do shine

Tell my why the sky's so blue

And I will tell you just why I love you

Because God made the ivy twine

Because God made the stars to shine

Because God made the sky so blue

Because God made you, that's why I love you

I really think that dear God above

Created you just for me to love

He picked you out from all the rest

Because he knew that i'd love you the best. 

Our New House!

Well, our search for our home has finally come to a close! We found it - THE home -  and we are so very happy! We feel so blessed that things have worked out the way they have and can't wait for our next chapter! I've attached some pictures, but I'll give a quick summary of how this all happened…

So, back in October, Tim and I were driving around Copperwood (in West Lethbridge), getting a feel for the neighbourhood etc., and we came across a house that was just finished being built. I fell in love with it from the outside (curb appeal points), and so I looked it up when I got home. The asking price was in our budget, and it was about 250 sq ft bigger than some of the other comparable homes we had looked at. Since it was a new build, I was able to look up the floor plan, and I fell in love with it as well. I told Tim I really wanted to go look at it, and he agreed. At this point we weren't quite ready to buy, so he was worried I was going to get my heart set on it too soon, but he agreed the house was intriguing and he loved the idea of Copperwood (new area, close to work, lots of young families etc). We went to see the house, and it was very dreamy inside. My heart fluttered because when I walked in, there was the perfect room for me to put my piano in. There's a room at the front of the house (they call it a den) that is perfect for a piano and a couch. I had been looking for a house with enough space for a comfortable family room, with room for our couches, tables AND my piano, and it was hard for me to picture it working in most of the houses we looked at. Plus, for teaching voice lessons, I can have that extra room away from all the commotion, which will function so well for my young family. Tim calls that front room the Family Home Evening room, which I love. He is used to me and my songs by now i guess. :)

So a few months pass, and I keep looking up this dream house…and, it's still there! Still posted as being for sale. I kept waiting for the day (yeah, I probably checked everyday) when the posting would no longer be available, but that day never did come. So about three weeks ago, I just couldn't shake the idea that we should go look at it again, and that it was by far the house that stood out to both Tim and I for some many reasons. So we took my parents to see it, (I really wanted their opinion) and they agreed that it was pretty awesome. It had the most square footage for the price out of any "newish" home we looked at. We liked the idea and it felt more and more right the more we thought about it, so we decided to put in an offer! After some stressful nights and negotiations (my nails are non-existent) that's a story in itself, IT'S OFFICIALLY OURS!

So here it is…

So this is the Piano/Family Home Evening room. 

I love all the natural light from the big windows.

Half bath on main floor

Tim is pretty excited!

(Can't you tell from the huge smile on his face!) ;)

Kitchen

love that there is a breakfast bar

and i can't even express my excitement for a dishwasher!

Pantry

Dining Room

these pictures make it look more beige, but the walls are actually more of a grey

Living room

I greatly appreciate the massive windows

View from the living room into the kitchen

stub wall separating the living room and the dining room

Bedroom #1

I love the display shelving

Bedroom #2

Laundry room

i'm very glad it upstairs!

Main bathroom

Master Bedroom

Tim says i can have two whole racks in the closet to myself! Lucky me!

Lots of light :)

Can't wait to rediscover all of my belongings that have been hiding in storage for 7 months! 

So we take possession April 16! We are savouring these last few months with my parents and sisters. It's been such a blessing to be so close to them, and especially for Renne. She is very lucky to have so many people who love her.

Renne Turns One!

I can't believe it, but this little munchkin turned one yesterday!!

We had a super fun day, and a really great party! So many friends and family came to celebrate with us. I love birthdays almost as much as I love life. And growing up, our birthdays were always a big deal, so I loved planning this day and tried to make it perfect for my little Renne.

Pre-party pictures in her birthday outfit

yes, yes, i made her wear a skirt ok

Uh, is someone spotting me, cause my feet can't touch the ground…??

Not really loving mom and dad picture time

    

                                

Not surprisingly, this girl loved eating her cake icing

"Mom, why haven't you given me this stuff before?"

Too much Birthday? 

I think most likely, too much sugar...

Present time!

Not really sure about this whole present opening thing yet

Renne loves her auntie Jocy. She has been so lucky to spend so much time with her lately!

Thank you to everyone who made this day so much fun!