The Super Dad of the K4 Family

The K4 Family Daddy is awesome. 
There are so many reasons to love our Daddy and I think what I love the most is how much I've seen him grow into his role as a Dad.    

On our second date, Kevin and I talked about marriage and children etc (crazy to think that we got that far ahead on only our second date!).  I remember him being a bit iffy on the discussion about having kids.  Looking back, I know he didn't say, "yes, I want kids," but he didn't completely say "no" either.  I remember being nervous and continued to check in with him from time to time on the topic of having babies.  Of course, time brings on so many changes and eventually we dove into parenthood together with excitement! 

And from someone who initially started on the sidelines and unsure of his role, he has grown more and more confident in where his place is in our family.  He is our Super K4 Daddy.  

Kamille is defnitely his number one fan.  Hands down, she is 100% Daddy's Girl and I love it.  I love the way she giggle when we talk about him when he's not around, or when she is anticipating his arrival home after work she has an excitement like no other.  She positively adores him.  And he is crazy about her - his first born.  

                           Kevin and Kamille.    Both of my girls have been called "Mini Kev" as babies.  

When I was pregnant with Karis, Kevin was the first to say that he didn't care one way or another if we had another girl, or a boy.   I think deep down inside he might have liked to have a son to share all the boyish experiences with but when Karis came into our lives, Kevin beamed as a proud father of two gorgeous girls.  He called it karma!  ; )

 

kevin: "ok, I'm ready to go camping, when can we go"?

Its so hard to capture in words all of what Kevin does for his girls.   

And if you ask Kamille what Daddy does, she will reply, "Daddy pays the bills" and then ask her why, she will say "so that I go to Kindergarden and then (an) Ivey League school."  Hilarious!  He has her trained!  

But if you ask me what Daddy does, I will say that he loves us and that he is our rock.  He is the one thing that all us K Girls know will always be there - no matter what.  Despite his job that takes him away from us for a short time from week to week, we know that he has nothing but our best interests in mind all of the time.  Kevin works hard so that we can continue to enjoy the life that we created for our family.  

And when we have our Daddy home he is all about making family time fun and adventurous!  He comes up with great ideas for getting out as a family and trying new things ( like going camping!).  

       and going for a picnic on a logging road

 or days spent in Whistler, Tofino or Vancouver!

Our K4 Daddy is fun.  He makes us laugh by doing silly things.

And just like many other Daddies out there, our Daddy provides the best big body to snuggle up with and have a delicious sleep.  If there is one thing that Kevin has perfected as a Dad, its napping with his girls.  

within moment of us bringing karis home from the hospital, she is introduced to the daddy-daughter nap!

And Kamille has him wrapped so tightly around her pinky finger, that she can usually get him to fall alseep by her side every night that he tucks her in for bed.   Such a lucky girl.  

 father's day tuck in - both sound asleep!

Kevin, 

Thank you for being an incredible Daddy to our girls.  

We appreciate all that you do for us!

We love you so much!

Happy Father's Day

Love, Kristin, Kamille & Karis

Because Even A Bad Day Deserves A Post

And speaking of grace.  I tried.

Today was one of those no-good-very-bad-days.   It started early with whining and it just kept going full steam ahead.

It was one of those days when despite having a combined total of 27 skirts and dresses to choose from, its still a battle to find something appropriate to wear for today's weather.  A day when your new play date arrives in smiles but leaves unhappy and exhausted because it turned into boxing match because someone refused to share toys.

It was one of those days when falling asleep while eating lunch doesn't classify you as being tired enough for a nap and when a trip to the grocery store means that I should buy and feed you everything you want because you are hungry (because you didn't eat your lunch because you were too busy fighting sleep)!

And when my car key faub decides to not work in the middle of a parking lot, don't think that its a good time to dodging cars just because I am too busy slamming it on the ground trying to get it to open my car, all the while knowing that I am being watched by a man sitting in his car in the aisle across.

It was one of those days that if you're gonna be grumpy then heaven forbid that your sister keep on a decent schedule, so why not mess it up by sitting on her when she's trying to sleep in the stroller, or perhaps assuming that she'd like to be log rolled across the carpet when she's happily playing on her own.

And when you want to watch your beloved Dora on TV, please assume that yes, I will ask you to clean up the room before you begin to watch.  This is standard, no need to throw it down today, but go ahead.  Push me further.

It was one of those days when I call 'my Stacey' just to say, "Hello, I am having an awful day and I need to know that I am going to see you tomorrow just so I can get through it" and then Stacey shows up on my doorstep after her work day for a quick "tag off" and just in time for me to finish making dinner to put on the table.  Thank you Stacey!  Thank you for giving me the space to take a deep breath before I was thrown into the pit again.

Because shortly after Stacey leaves, my neighbour greets me on my front porch with a concerned look and asks, "Is everything ok?"  And I am caught off guard and confused.  Do you mean that you heard Kamille crying at the top of her lungs (when she was in a well deserved time out) and thought that she was hurt, or did you over hear me (because my windows were open) saying "I'm gonna f'in lose it" to myself as I try to regain my cool in the kitchen?  Damn!  I politely respond, "oh it was chaotic for a bit, but we're ok now, thanks!"  I have no idea what he's thinking.

I may have thought I was ok then, but once again Kamille was head bobbing at the dinner table and just when she hits the upstairs floor she magically gets a burst of energy and thinks that its absolutely hilarious that she put her dirty socks and undies in the trash can!  Not tonight Kamille - its not funny at all tonight.

And just when I think my day of parenting is coming to an end, its the wack, wack, thud, thud of her feet and heels pounding against the wall that has me spinning like a tornado into her room to declare that "I have had enough!  Get your feet into your bed and go to sleep."

But somewhere in this heat, we share a moment of "I love you's" and Kamille says, "Mom, I'm sorry for being nasty" and we part ways on good terms.   And I can feel this day shaking off of me as I head downstairs, step by step I am getting closer to a big cup of tea and .....

 well, would you look at that - a giant double rainbow arrives in the foreground of some gorgeous somewhat-still-snowcapped mountains.  And then a light bit of rain starts to come down, and just as I am picking out the best seat to watch from my front porch, the sky and the clouds just giv'er.  It pours down one of those summer night rains that are just amazing and cleansing.  And watching the three pre-teen boys who live across the street running up and down the street in nothing but shorts, getting absolutely soaked as they battle it out in the ultimate SuperSoaker fight was the first thing to break the frown on my face from this no-good-very-bad-day.

So grace eventually came to me.  It took a while, but I've got it now and I think I am ready to start a new day tomorrow.  Fingers crossed!

Remembering Grace

Anytime I was studying school or perhaps wanting to remember what I am learning or reading from a book, I usually write it down.  It helps me to absorb it and its jotted down somewhere so that I can revisit it.

I have talked about the book MOMfulness before and I am gonna do it again.  I picked it up again lastnight and reread a section titled Grace.
I love this chapter.  I feel it when I read it.  I need to remember it, share it and live it.

Grace

And then there's grace.

Grace is there when you bring the baby home and you don't know how to change a diaper and you think you're not the real mom.  No matter how inadequate you feel, grace is underneath, supporting you, holding you.  

Grace is there when you haven't got a clue, when you feel like the worst mother in the world, and when being a mom is so much harder than you ever thought it would be.  It applies the gentle push on your back that keeps you going. 

Grace is sometimes your only companion in the middle of the night when you're teetering on the edge of sleep deprivation and exhaustion, and the baby needs more.  Its what keeps you from going crazy when you are awake at one in the morning, waiting and worrying in every passing minute for your teenager to get home.  

Grace comes in laughter; it hides and then pops out, right after you've yelled at your toddler and then he says something so funny you can't help but smile, and the knot inside relaxes, and you realize you'll get through this OK.  It's there in forgiveness, of yourself and of your family.  

Grace catches you when you grieve, when your child gets the diagnosis you feared or you suffer unimaginable loss.  Its there in the darkness as you weep after the divorce, when your children are no longer with you every night to tuck in.  

Grace is there, even when you're not mindful or compassionate, when you're not present or forgiving; it waits patiently for you to let go into it.  Grace comes through the support of friends; it reassures you with their smiles, with their understanding nods of Yes, I understand, I know it is so hard!  

Grace holds you up when you feel completely unappreciated because no one sees all the thousands of little things you do in a day.  Grace sees.  

Grace winds through your life invisibly, though you often can't see it until you look back and recognize it in your children's growing bodies, in their quick wit, their caring comments, their embracing hugs.  

Grace reveals to you a great mothering love that you can step into, that's been there before you and will be here after you.  Grace will be with you as you open your arms, as you release your children and send them out into the world.  If you listen carefully, you can hear grace whispering its thanks to you for being a mother to these souls.  

taken from MOMfulness: Mothering with Mindfulness, Compassion, and Grace by Denise Roy. 

Oh, yummmmmmm!  I just love what this says!  

I just love this book.  

I want to remember how it inspires me to be the best Mama to these girls.  xo

Photobooth!

There are days when I am hangin' out with my girls and I might be on my laptop checking facebook or starting a post when all of a sudden I am bombarded with the sounds of Kamille begging to "press the buttons" of the letters that she knows or Karis's slapping hands because she has dragged herself across the floor to give my laptop a wack.

Apparently they want to be part of it, or they are telling me to pay attention to them. Fair enough.

And some days our compromise is PHOTOBOOTH!

One of the joys of being a MAC lover is this neat little bit of fun.  Kamille loves it and I am sure that Karis will one day start to understand it all!


I love Photobooth because I get to be in the photos with my girls!

And when I stumble upon my collection of Photobooth photos and videos its like finding long lost photos that don't sit in my regular collection.  They make me laugh!

look at how little she is!!

And speaking of little.  Check out this little bundle - inside me!

photobooth captured these rare photos of me, big sis to-be and my little unknown baby!

And its very rare that we get a family photo, but good ol' Photobooth has captured a few of those too!  

before karis

with karis!

Photobooth really is this fun!

The twirl effect is Kamille's all time favourite.  I love the way she bursts out laughing when she sees her face all twisted up!

Oh, and did I mention that we can create videos too?  

This is hilarious!

Days Of Sunshine

I mentioned before that we are waiting for our summer to arrive.  It seems that we had little bouts of sunny summer-ish days in May, but overall, it just ain't summer yet and we are all getting a little antsy to get our tank tops and short skirts on!

However, this past week and the weekend finally gave us a bit of a preview of what is to come and I think I even got a bit of colour on my arms while we were out enjoying our gorgeous surroundings in the sun!

I am most looking forward to this summer because I am on maternity leave and there will likely not be another summer like this, when I have nothing to do but be a mom and enjoy the days of summer with my girls.  And so when my girlfriend Jill calls up to say "How about a play date at the lake?,"we jump at the chance to get out and just enjoy it all without any other commitments.

Jill's little girl Liv is just 8 months older than Kamille and they've grown up knowing and playing with each other.  It makes it easy for us moms to get a good chat in.

and i am sure they had a lot to catch up on too!  

Both Jill and I had our new babes last summer.  Her gorgeous Beau made a dangerous entry into our world at 31 weeks along in Jill's pregnancy.

gorgeous beau danger - no joke. beau's daddy got his way and that really is his amazing name! 

A play date at the lake means hours of entertainment.  When the play equipment gets boring, we just move on to the campground amphitheatre where we were thoroughly entertained by an impromptu production by our girls.

And if either of the girls were able to grab my camera they would have captured Jill and I wowing them with our Mommy 'stick' clapping dance and a music-less version of the Macarena.  

And it was just warm enough for the girls to enjoy a wade in the lake before we all went home for lunch. 

this place is packed in the summer months...on this day we enjoyed it nearly all to ourselves. 

*********

The weekend came and continued bring some amazing sunshine.  

On Saturday, we were quick to hit the front yard and take in some fun on wheels.  Our neighbours let us try out their PlasmaCar.  This. thing. is. awesome!  Not only is it fun for kids, but its fun for adults too.  Somehow its completely self propelled at the wheel.  Sooooo much fun!

                                        there she goes...    

And while we played, our Daddy had planned to take his motorcycle to the city for some work, but he ended up having to turn around and so we had him all to ourselves...

....and we headed to the waterfront.  Ah, the windy waterfront.  Such a great place to lay around on a blanket and listen to the wind.  

kevin & kam walking on the beach

                                 check out my fresh pedicure!

And when you're little and the wind is blowing, the stroller becomes the best hammock in which to have a delicious sleep....

And while our Karis slept, we continued to play Get-the-rock-in-the-bucket. 

kam's got her mama's competitive spirit.  she won - of course!  

There was time for snuggling and chatting....

and snacking....

We love it here with our Daddy!

this is me leaving the beach.  and if you notice my huge smile, its because it am on my way to my 

HAIR APPOINTMENT!  

So if you know me, you know that I LOVE getting my hair done.  I finished this day off with a 4 hour 'hair today, gone tomorrow appointment'!  Some trashy magazines, a head and hand massage, great conversation with my stylist and leaving with new hair - a new look.  What a sweet day!  

According to the forecast, Sunday was supposed to be cloudy and rainy.  But if there is anything I've learned about living on the west coast, its to never expect the weather forecast to be right.   Thankfully, it worked in our favour and we headed on out for another day in the sun.

Our neighbours recently set up a huge trampoline and we hit it......

something about having shorter blonde hair had me feelin' light and airy!

Later in the day we were expecting our friends Mike, Dawn and their little Ben over for dinner.  We had  a few things to pick up at the grocery store so we hit the sun again and enjoyed a walk in the sun with our grocery getter!  

one side for karis, one side for groceries!

I'm feeling that the summer weather is almost here and when it comes we are really gonna rock it.  This was just the beginning.  

These are the days of sunshine.   Please can they stay!!???!!

The Dreaded Chore

What is one chore that you wish you never had to do?

One day I posed this question to Kevin.  He said something like emptying the dishwasher.   I was curious to know what Kevin thought that my response would be.  He guessed laundry, cleaning bathrooms, or perhaps vacuuming???  You know, all the usual chores.

But no, its not any of the above.  Hands down, the one chore that I would pay-a-million-dollars-to-never- have-to-do-again is making packed lunches.  I think more so than the question "what's for dinner?" do I despise the question in my mind "what the heck am I going to make for Kamille's lunch?"

You see, there is a bit of a history to this.  Back when I was a kid, my sister, brother and I were on a weekly rotation for regular, daily chores. One of these chores was to make every single family member a bagged lunch for school/work the next day.  

It was simple, a sandwich, a piece of fruit, a drink and a snack like cookies or a granola bar.  That's it, that's all.  Of course there were certain specifications like, Dad always had 2 sandwiches, mom didn't like any condiments on her sandwich, Jill didn't like mustard, I liked summer sausage over ham and peanut butter and jam was only allowed on Fridays, etc, etc.  But it was pretty much easy to remember these and follow through with the same ol', same ol' stuff.  

Everyone's lunch was made the night before and then placed in the fridge for pick up on the following morning.  As much as it was simple, it was also so time consuming and a dreaded chore for me.  

Fast-forward to the end of my maternity leave with Kamille and there I was, going back to work and Kamille going off to daycare, and both of us needing a packed lunch.  Argh!  

Here I was again, making lunches for only 2, and only for 3 days a week, and it quickly shot to #1 Chore I Dislike The MOST!  

But fair enough, gone are the days of 1 sandwich, 1 piece of fruit and 1 snack.  I am not sure how I survived a full day on just that small amount of food, and it bores me to think of giving that to Kamille everyday like we were used to.

Making a lunch does consist of thinking about Canada's Food Guide for balanced eating, what we have as leftovers, is it peanut or tree nut free, is it too much disposable packaging, what tupperware containers it will all fit into, what Kamille likes and dislikes, what stays cool, what gets warmed up, is it too much or is it too little?  Its exhausting just thinking about making lunches.

On a good day, there is leftover spaghetti or a rice stir-fry, some fresh cut up fruit,  a couple slices of cheese and some cut up veggies and dip.  On a bad day, she gets a container of Shreddies or Cheerios, peaches from a can, a hard boiled egg, a pickle, a peeled carrot, some black beans in a container and other random items to eat.   There is a sense of pride about sending a good lunch to daycare - for me, anyway.  And who doesn't like to face a meal with excitement over the good food you get to eat???

The other battle that I have with making lunches is when do I make them?  I have tried every strategy to lessen the blow of this all-consuming-time-suck-of-a-chore.  Do I make it while I make dinner, do it after dinner during clean up, wait till the morning to do it???  Sometimes I start at night and when my inspiration runs flat, I think that after a good night's sleep, I will think of something better.  Either way, it gets in the way with what I really want to be doing, which is anything other than making lunches.  Its a no win situation.

And I do have cheat sheet or two for making it easier.  I keep it posted inside my cupboard for those days that I absolutely cannot think on my own.  Its snip-its of tips and ideas I have collected from magazines etc.  It helps and I add my own ideas to the papers as I come up with new ideas.

Anyway....

Right now, I am only making Kamille a lunch for her two daycare days a week.  I am dreading the day I go back to work and will have to make myself, Kamille and Karis a lunch.

Seriously, I'm. dreading. it.