Ma petite ballerine...

Well, it's over and done with...phew! Mae had her Grade 3 ballet exam today and came out feeling great and with a big smile on her face. Way to go Mae! She has worked really hard on this grade and was feeling confident and relaxed about it right up until this morning...and then the nerves kicked in! We had a nice chilled out morning at home, did a run through her syllabus and then headed off at 3:00. She was entered with two classmates, Emily and Dionne, and all three were nervous but came out with big grins! Many thanks to Miss Hill for preparing the girls so well, I'm sure they all did great. Now we wait about 3 weeks for the results...ugh. I'm just glad that a positive of all the house chaos is that Mae was able to do the exam here as in Canada the next set of exams is in December and that would have been a long time to wait! Fingers crossed for my beautiful ballerina!

Waiting to go into the exam...EEK!
The girls waiting with Miss Hill to be called in by the examiner!
Big smiles...it's all over...YAY!
(Mae, Emily & Dionne)

While chilling out at home this morning Mae managed to kill some nerves by playing with Delsin. At one point the door to my room burst open and a giggling Delsin appeared not looking exactly like himself...I can't turn my back for a minute in this place...LOL Check out what he and Mae were up to-------------------->

Spiked hair...glasses, coat, white shirt, & tie...hmmmmm.
Mae decided to transform Delsin into "Harry Potter"...LMAO
My kids are too cute sometimes...hehe

Happy Sunday everyone,
Laura :o)

Two out of three boxes ticked...sigh...

I've tried to have an "amnesty" week for stressing about the move and have had some success but it inevitably keeps coming up in conversation and it's constantly on my mind. I think the agents are getting twitchy and are now finally updating us more often because I keep popping into the office unannounced and asking what is going on...hey, whatever works, eh? We have heard today that "two out of three boxes are ticked". Great. At the bottom of the chain (where is the banging-head-on-wall icon??) the "homebuyers survey" has been done accepted by both parties, "local searches" have been done and accepted as well and now we just await the "mortgage valuation" which is scheduled for Wednesday of next week...please do not ask me why this wouldn't have been done immediately when the offer was accepted because it just causes my blood pressure to increase exponentially!!!! At least we can go into the weekend knowing that things are progressing in the right direction. However...until we actually have an "exchange of contracts", I'm still on tenter-hooks.

So much for my amnesty.

Mom is still here and is leaving on Tuesday...boo hoo. I can't believe how the weeks have flown by since she arrived. We have had a couple of nice days out, just the two of us, and that has really helped me to cope with all the stress. Today was a lovely walk into our local town for "market day" with a stop off for coffee and cake. Bliss. We are both trying to exercise more and have been walking everywhere. Too bad we keep sabotaging all that exercise with yummy treats....hey, they WERE skinny lattes! :o)

Tim is still here and is stressing about how long to stay, when he needs to be back "in person" for work, and when he will have to return for the actual move. Aarrgghh. Cisco has been unbelievably understanding through all of this and for that I'm thankful! It would have been so much worse if they were giving him a hard time. Thank you Cisco Canada!

Oscar is still enjoying "doggy summer camp" at the lake and I think my Dad is really enjoying having a dog around the place again. I WILL be taking my dog back Dad, so don't be getting any ideas...hehe. Dad has a habit of stealing the affections of canines. They have been having lots of great walks and I'm sure this is good for both of them, dog and human. Dad is on a bit of a health kick after his latest doctors visit revealed slightly elevated blood pressure, nothing serious but just a small warning. He made the decision to watch his diet and in the process lost 4lbs...men suck, how do they do that?? :o) Speaking of weight, Tim is down even more and is over 40lbs lighter than he was in January when he left for Canada...woo hoo Timmy! The felines are not faring as well in the Berry household and still hate each other...oh dear. There is still hissing and back arching when they meet in the house. Schat will still make no attempt to go outside even when the door is left open, poor thing, hope she can be convinced to venture out once we are settled into a new home!

The kids are doing really well and are just getting on with things. Connor is doing well at school and enjoyed a field trip to a museum this week for his Wednesday elective "Insect Club" where they got to enjoy all kinds of creepy crawlies! He enjoyed an outing for "laser tag" last weekend with his autism youth group and enjoyed the day. Tomorrow we will take in cake and celebrate his birthday with the group, slightly belated but better late than never. I'm sure there won't be any complaints once the cake appears!! Cam is preparing for his year 6 SAT's, we never imagined he would be here for them so now we are working hard to make sure he does as well as possible. It will be good to have the results to use when he transfers schools. I was a bit worried after some very stressful preparation homework sessions but he has brought home practice tests where he is scoring extremely well! Way to go Cam!! Del is loving "nursery" still and is going to his sitter Dawn's place on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. He loves her to bits and it's good to keep him in a familiar routine. Plus Mommy can use the quiet time for her mental health. :o) Mae is her usual busy self doing her activities and is just two days away from her Grade 3 ballet exam...EEK. She has one last class tomorrow and then the big exam arrives. She is going to be just fine, she knows everything cold and loves to dance! Guaranteed I'll be more nervous than she is on the day. I'm not letting her ride on Sunday or in a small jumping show at the stables today for obvious reasons! She is not exactly happy about it but understands Mom's position on this one! She'll be back in the saddle on Wednesday once the exam is done and dusted and will jump in another in-house show on Thursday next week where she will try to do "clear rounds" on Sparky, the pony she has chosen to ride.

I enjoyed a night out last night with all the ladies from the stables, we are all "mature" students who ride along with Fizz, who owns the stables, and Bez an instructor and "right hand". What a great group they are and it was nice to meet so many interesting ladies. The lady who organized the evening, for 18 of us, kept playing "musical chairs" so that we would sit next to new people, what a great idea! Great food, charming company and not a child in sight...woo hoo! It seems that I always start to meet lots of great people as I'm about to relocate, ahhh well.

I'll get some of my Isle of Wight pics up in a separate post, Mom the kids and I had a great trip there three weeks ago and I have lots of great pics and memories.

Hope all is well in your little part of the universe,
Laura :o)

Our Isle of Wight trip...

On 6th & 7th April, I took Mom and the kids away for an overnight trip to the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast of mainland England. The IOW is my Grandma's birthplace and with a bit of detective work at the local records office in the town of Newport I was able to locate my Grandma's house in the town of Freshwater...how cool is that?

The pink & white cottages are both called "Emberly", we know she lived here but we're not sure if they were both one house at one time or separate homes. You can see the church at the end of the street and this is where she was baptized on 29 August 1920. A little bit of my history!

We were on an overnight trip and I was a bit concerned how we would keep the kids occupied for two days but I needn't have worried! The island is full of things to do from Roman ruins, 11th century churches, historic homes, castles, to zoo's, amusement parks, horse riding, etc. etc. As it turns out they didn't want to do any of that stuff, all they wanted to do was be on the beach playing in the sand and sea. Fantastic! While Mom and I would have loved to explore some of the sights, we did see tons on our drives around the island and it was wonderful to watch the kids spending hours playing in the sun and fresh air! The weather was great, just a bit hazy, but it turned out for the best otherwise we would have been fried I think! Our hotel was, ummmm, tourist class, but it was clean, had very friendly staff, and was an absolute bargain! It was just us and a bus load of seniors, hehe. It didn't matter though as we only put our heads down to sleep for one night and we were on the go for the rest of the time. Mom loved the trip and is so happy she got to see the island before we head back to Canada for good.

Now I will bore you silly with a pile of pictures...I only took 300 on this trip so be happy I'm only posting this many...mwah ha ha.

Our first stop heading to Freshwater, the kids loved seeing the sea!
The view from our cliff-side hotel
Looking back up at our hotel (the larger 3rd building from the left on the cliff)
Having an early dinner on our first day
Grandma and Mae tuck into some yummy mussels!!
The kids building castles on the beach
Working together!
Connor
Cameron
Maeghan
Delsin
Going back up to the hotel after fun on the beach...**pant pant**

I have tons more great pics, between my camera and my Mom's, so I'll do up an album and post the link...someday...hehe.

Laura :o)

13 years ago today...

...my life changed forever in the most wonderful way! I became a Mom for the first time and what a magical experience it was and still is. Connor Frederick Taverner arrived, two weeks late, after much prompting from doctors, nurses, drugs, forceps and Mom's efforts!! It was the most thrilling moment of my life! I will never forget the amazement at seeing this little person that Tim and I had created, he was absolutely perfect. I look at him today and can hardly think of where 13 whole years has gone, ACK! I am so proud of the incredible young man he has become and even thought the journey to this special day wasn't without some tricky times, it has been worth every moment. Connor, your Dad and I love you so very much and you make our hearts soar with pride every day. Thank you for being you, for making me into a Mom, the best job in the whole world. A teenager at last, how the heck did that happen??

So glad you enjoyed your day Connor Fred, much love to you from me, Dad, Cammy, Maeghan, Delsin, Grandma and all your family in Canada.

Love, hugs and smooches,
Mom XO

Opening pressies!

Celebrating with the sibs!

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Connor,
Happy Birthday to you!
Cake is the best part!

YAY, my Mommy is here!

Amazing how my Mom arriving can lift my spirits. :o) It was great to have a good old adult gassing session yesterday at the breakfast room table. We talked about news from home, gossip and news from here (hehe), politics, religion, world affairs, and more! One of the things I admire most about my parents is that they are worldly, they read and want to learn and understand the world around us. I get such stimulation from having conversations with them! So my brain feels great this morning and my mood is improving. I have her here with me until May 1st and I can only hope that me and the kids will be following her soon after.

Things with the house sale are progressing...slowly...but still progressing. I discovered yesterday that my estate agents are STILL idiots, nothing new there then. I made the decision to correct misinformation given to the other parties involved in our sale chain directly rather than counting on the boobs I'm forced into dealing with. Everyone is now set straight, dates are given and understood, so now we wait to see how quickly we can get this show on the road. If I dare to say it out loud, I would like to say that we could have the moving van in our drive to start packing our belongings on May 7th....I hope saying that won't put the "whammy" on the whole thing!! A few more fingers crossed might just help, so please go for it!

The kids and I had a great outing on Tuesday to a quarry in Kirtlington, Oxfordshire. Jan has been telling me of this place for two years and I've never been before, urgh. Oscar would have loved it there and I'm kicking myself for never taking him, oh well. In any event, we had a great few hours out walking a LONG way, much longer than anyone anticipated because we really didn't know where we were going..hehe. The UK is a maze of footpaths/bridlepaths cutting through property, public and private, and you can literally walk forever! We ended up walking for over 2 hours and I was amazed at my kids' patience, especially Connor! Despite a mean blister on his left heel, he was a star and just got on with it! Delsin had to be carried for about 15 minutes on our trek back but he got his second wind and was off running again before long. The fresh air and exercise felt great and I was able to chat with some lovely friends and just forget about the stress in my life for a few hours. The countryside was beautiful and the weather was perfect! We adjourned to Jan's afterwards for tea and cake...how very British, love it! I actually didn't think Jan was serious about the tea part...I was wondering where the beer was, after all, it was past 5:00. :o)

A few pics from the day out------------>

Sophie, Cam, Mae & Delsin climbing in the quarry

Connor giving Mom the thumbs up! Delsin posing by the river along our walk

My three boys walking in OxfordshireMae and the "other Jan"
The walking gang! Check out the view and the weather!!

The Easter school holidays are winding down and the weather is still exceptional for this time of year so I'm thinking of a day trip to the coast on Saturday with Mom and the kids. Mae has been doing her usual riding days, the stables shut down for no holiday, and had two "pony days" this week where she spent 3 hours per day at the stables riding, cleaning tack, learning about caring for ponies, etc. She loved every moment. She apparently had a spectacular "10 out of 10" fall on her regular hack on Sunday and I'm happy to say I WASN'T there to witness it. It seems her speedy little pony was cantering into a large jump and then changed his mind...and direction...the laws of physics dictated that Mae kept going in the original direction! I have missed all of her dramatic falls and that is just fine with me. She gives me fits, I swear. Other than a couple of impressive bruises and a sore noodle she is just fine. She has a ballet exam in just over two weeks time and she has been warned to take it easy, yeah right...haha. So next week it's back to the normal routines and I'm so happy I have my Mom here now to make the morning rush and the after school activity runs so much easier. Have I ever mentioned how much my parents rock?? Well, maybe once or twice...

Hope you are all well and spring is sprung wherever you are. Mom commented on how gorgeous and green it is here and how I'm going to have to prepare myself for living in Canada again where spring is most definitely later arriving. A small price to pay if you ask me. :o)

Love to all,
Laura :o)

Another holiday done and dusted...

So Easter is over, the "furry rodent" arrived and the kids spent yesterday in a chocolate haze! It was a nice relaxing weekend, we took a couple of outings and just chilled out, something that was needed by all of us. Connor expressed that he had hoped to have Easter at the cottage...you and me both dude. Grandma will arrive on Wednesday and I know that will help to cheer the kids, and myself, up. I've done something to my back again, damn sciatica, so it will be great to have Mom here to help me sort through more boxes as the great purge continues! I'm on tenterhooks waiting for more news on the house sale, there is so much to do in a short time once we hear if things are a go or not. The car needs to be sold, the appliances as well, notifications need to be sent/called in, travel plans made. Aarrgghh. I spoke to the Mom of one of Mae's friends yesterday and I had assumed she was calling from their new home only to find out that her deal fell through as well. Doh. We had spoken about two weeks ago and I had told her of our ordeal, she offered condolences and wished us well only to have the same thing happen to her a few days later. Like me, she was told by her agents "these things happen"...but why????

Here's a few pics from the last few days-------->

The kids in Banbury watching the canal boats

Mae and Del having a bike ride at home
Look Ma, no hands!
Big bike-riding boy!
Easter sleepover at Mae's!Cam joins the sleepover gang!
Del shares sleeping space with his big sister
Con hangs out with Mom and does some exercise!
Hurry up Mom, the Easter Bunny was here....
Woo hooooooo, chocolate!!
Treats for Mae too
Cam tucks in to the choccies!
Delsin loves his big brother...

You may notice that there are no pics of Connor enjoying his bunny treats, I had to haul him out of bed to join us quite early because Mae had to leave for the stables at 8:45! He humoured me by sitting at the table but I took pity on him and told him he could go back to bed...hehe. He came down again a short time later because, of course, he couldn't get back to sleep. I looked into the living room and saw him and Delsin cuddled up together and caught a pic of the moment...awwwwwww. My kids have normal sibling scraps, but they really do love each other.

So it's "bank holiday" Monday and we are going to meet some of my local doggy walking friends along with Jan and the family for a walk in the quarry in Kidlington. Cue groaning from Connor and Cameron but they will be coming along. Mom's are soooooo mean sometimes! :o)

Hope you have had a nice restful weekend where you are. There are no calories in chocolate when it is given in conjunction with a holiday. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Very special HAPPY BIRTHDAY wishes to my best friend, my true blue, Sandz. I hope you have had a marvy birthday weekend. Miss you much and hope to see you again soon. Lots of love coming your way from all of us.

Me and Sandz in Whistler July 2004
Happy Birthday babes!

Cheers from sunny **gasp** England,
Laura :o)

"I love you the whole earth, Mum"

What a gorgeous thing to wake up to this morning. My littlest one crawled into bed with me, wrapped his arms around me and declared this to me. Delsin has been in a very affectionate mood lately and I would imagine this has a lot to do with Tim being away so much. He is constantly telling me he loves me and grabbing and kissing my hands if I'm standing up or wrapping his arms around me and giving me big smooches on my cheeks. I'm not complaining, that's for sure! I think all the kids are doing remarkably well considering how their family is segmented right now with Tim having to be in Canada and us trapped here until the house is sold. Kids are amazingly resilient and I suppose I was no different as a military kid moving around every few years. I must admit that I love moving to new places and I am really looking forward to the next chapter of our lives. Now if we could only turn the page to that new chapter sooner rather than later.

Off to Banbury with the kids today, the weather is gorgeous and we all need a day out. I'm afraid Connor will grow roots under his desk if I don't get him out of the house soon. :o) The sun is shining and it's supposed to be lovely and warm by the afternoon, so off we go!

Have a great Thursday everyone,
Laura :o)

Two days down...

Well, the first two week days of Easter holidays have gone by and so far so good! The kids have been really good, playing peacefully together for the most part and that is all I can ask for! Connor is in geek heaven with lots of PC gaming time and Cam has managed to keep himself occupied for the most part which has stopped him from his usual favourite past-time of tormenting his younger siblings. Delsin is his happy-go-lucky self as usual and Mae spent a good hour today practicing her ballet for her upcoming Grade 3 exam at the end of April. She looks great and I'm sure she will do really well. Tomorrow Delsin is off to his babysitter for a few hours so that Mae and I can saddle up for a hack out (please pray for my ass and thighs..hehe). The boys are staying here with my neighbour Jan keeping an eye on them, they are really good and I have no issues leaving them for short amounts of time now. Connor is "Mr. Responsible" and keeps Cam in line for sure...haha. I can hardly believe that Connor is going to be THIRTEEN in two weeks time...**this is not happening** **I am not ready for this** It is another milestone in his life that has crept up on me, it seems that parents always have this vision of their children as babies when these events happen! He is a constant joy in my life and I know he will be an amazing teenager. Tim will be home to celebrate his big day thanks to his very understanding boss and his very generous company, they have been very kind with us and extremely flexible to allow us as much family time as we need while we wait for the hell-that-is-our-house-sale to finish!! I know Connor will be very happy to have his Dad here. Grandma will also be making an appearance, how wonderful for him and his Mommy. :o) Oh and the Easter bunny has to make a panicked dash tomorrow to get sorted as the furry rodent managed to miss out on lots of opportunities while kids were at school to be prepared for Sunday. Doh.

Speaking of Grandma and Grandpa, they are enjoying life on the lake as usual. I received an email update today with some pictures of Oscar and Schat. As I expected, Schat has come out of hiding, I figured it would only be a matter of time before the need for affection overruled her fear of her new surroundings. Oscar settled in quickly and is enjoying his daily walks along the road. He is slowly learning the futility of chasing small creatures, we never said he was the "tallest tree in the forest". The resident pet, Bug, is still NOT amused at the new furry residents and is continuing to give the cold shoulder to my folks, oh dear. At least there are no fights breaking out and I'm sure she will eventually come around. I hope.

Things with our house sale may be progressing in a positive way. I'm not holding my breath but I'm cautiously optimistic. I'm so scared to say anything for fear of putting the **whammy** on the whole deal...urgh. People are spending money which is always a good sign. So for now we are back in "hurry up and wait" mode and are completely at the mercy of strangers and solicitors. Oh great. No wonder my stomach hurts most days. Sigh.

Okay, off to bed for me, it's late here and I'm making a concerted effort to get more sleep! I'm chronically tired so it's a personal project to give my brain the rest it needs and deserves. That and to maintain the nice, albeit short, set of nails I've been diligently working on with Mae! Won't my Mommy be proud when she gets here?

Nighty night all,
Laura :o)