He faught the bar and the bar won!

before


















after








Poor Nathaniel. He took a face dive into a metal bar. Broke his two front teeth. Managed to get a pretty banged up and bloodied lip in the process.

So my first reaction (after he started to cry and I knew he would be okay) was to get angry. Really angry. I hate to see my kids hurt and I cannot count the number of times he has been told NOT to climb, swing or otherwise fool around on those particular bars. Not that my anger helped either of us. I felt like a monster and he felt even worse for disobeying mom.

Thankfully I had good friends right there with us at the time of the incident and they jumped right in with hugs and ice and first aid. And also consoling Hannah who was crying because her brother was hurting. And letting me know that anger is a normal reaction for parents - and its probably really fear and not anger after all.

After we got home and talked things over with the advise nurse on the phone, cuddles and calm reigned instead of anger and fear. And it looks like reconstructive dentistry is something to look forward to this week!

Oh, and one more thing to add to this rambling post:

Did you know the tooth fairy collects teeth shards? One little boy I know got a $5 bill under his pillow for a few bits of broken teeth. He looked at it and said - "oh good! I am going to give ALL of this to the kids with blood cancer" And promptly put it in his wallet.

True Friends

Love you even when your house is messy
Laugh with you at your mistakes
Listen to your issues even when they are busy with their own

Useless Amazing Facts

Just for fun 25 useless and random facts. . . this may become a regular addition!


Honey is the only food that does not spoil. Honey found in the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs has been tasted by archaeologists and found edible.

Months that begin on a Sunday will always have a "Friday the 13th."

Coca-Cola would be green if colouring weren’t added to it.

The average lead pencil will draw a line 35 miles long or write approximately 50,000 English words.

More people are allergic to cow's milk than any other food.

The placement of a donkey's eyes in its' heads enables it to see all four feet at all times!

Earth is the only planet not named after a god.

You're born with 300 bones, but by the time you become an adult, you only have 206.

The longest recorded flight of a chicken is 13 seconds

Queen Elizabeth I regarded herself as a paragon of cleanliness. She declared that she bathed once every three months, whether she needed it or not

Slugs have 4 noses.

Owls are the only birds who can see the colour blue.

The average person laughs 10 times a day!

The word "queue" is the only word in the English language that is still pronounced the same way when the last four letters are removed.

What is called a "French kiss" in the English speaking world is known as an "English kiss" in France.

"Rhythm" is the longest English word without a vowel.

Human thigh bones are stronger than concrete.

You can't kill yourself by holding your breath

There is a city called Rome on every continent.

Your heart beats over 100,000 times a day!

Right handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people

The elephant is the only mammal that can't jump!

Like fingerprints, everyone's tongue print is different!

The first known transfusion of blood was performed as early as 1667, when Jean-Baptiste, transfused two pints of blood from a sheep to a young man

Women blink nearly twice as much as men.

Taking pictures

can I just say i totally SUCK at this???

i just realized that despite having plenty of opportunity (two big parties at our house and being snow bound for a few days) over the holidays I managed to forget to take any pictures.

i wish i had something to post - a lovely living room scene with fire a-blazing and tree a-glow. nothing. i'dve loved one with the kids unwrapping their gifts on Christmas morning - nope. but mostly i'm sad that i didn't get a family picture - one with the four of us marking another year.

darn.

well here is one i did manage to snap of the kids playing in the snow - enjoy! (cause we all know its the only one you are going to get!)

Body Image and the Beast

First I must make two statements:
Women struggle with body image
I am a woman

Sigh.

I am a person who has been very fat. And a person who has been relatively thin. Here's what I have learnt from my experience:
- I have felt fat and ugly at both a size 6 and at a size 16
- I feel strong & powerful & sexy when I exercise regularly no matter what the scale says
- I know the difference between healthy, wholesome foods and junk
- I often choose to ignore what I know

A while ago (after taking a piece of chocolate) I confessed to a friend that I knew I would be much happier if I just lost these last (nagging, persistent, resistant, frustrating, infuriating, want to crawl under the covers and cry) ten pounds. Did I mention that I was eating chocolate at the time? This friend looked at me like I had suddenly taken all leave of my senses - he looked at me like I was completely crazy. He sighed, paused and then said very carefully (being married and therefore having some experience with female sensibilities) "If you will pardon me saying so - you are perfect. I mean lose weight if it makes you happy . . . but to me, and probably to a lot of people - you are just perfect." Now it was my turn to look at him as if he had completely lost his senses.

Now here's the thing. This is a good friend that does not lie and does not say things to make people 'feel better'. I believed him. Kinda. For about three minutes I actually believed that I was better than okay, better than fine. But one good look in a full length mirror later was all it took for the ugly beast of insecurity to rear its head again.

I know so many women like this! I know so many beautiful women who think of themselves as average, so-so or even ugly! A good friend that is one of the most beautiful women I've ever known who hates her own thighs; another beautiful woman who despises the size of her hips; another that feels if she could just 'fix' a certain facial facial feature she might just be pretty. What the heck?!? These are all gorgeous women - what is wrong with us?

I wish that all women would turn that focus into living positive lives.

Eating to sustain and nourish instead of eating our emotions. Exercising to build muscles and strong hearts rather than to burn more calories. Loving and taking care of ourselves a little bit more instead of harping on our flaws and taking care of everyone else.

Boy that sounds good. I just hope I can take my own advise to heart!

Drinking Champangne for no reason

the "almond champagne' we bought for New Years was AWFUL!!! So bad that after a good laugh we ended up dumping it down the drain. Today at Winco my DH bought me a nice, simple, yummy brut that is not gross at all . . . happy New Years!

new year, same old me

We all have goals we want to accomplish. As I stated in a previous blog I am constantly making and revising resolutions for myself. This is my newest list. These are goals I am setting for myself for 2009. (followed by action statements - 'cause supposedly that helps you achieve them!) Be forewarned this blog may be very, very boring unless you are me!

I should mention that I think success is measured in by degrees. No-one is perfect - no one is infallible. I will not beat myself up if I do not fully achieve these. If I accomplish my goals 90% of the time I am sucessful!! (and gosh darn it people like me~!)

1) I will not let food and drink control me. I will control my food and drink. By:
- losing 12% of my body weight
- limiting alcohol
- exercising a minimum of 4 days/week
- building muscle definition
- achieving a 12 min mile

2) I will create a home environment that is pleasant and functional that does not contribute to my haze but alleviates it. By:
- consistently coming up with a healthy weekly menu
- freezing meals ahead of time
- eating out not more than once/week
- tackling organization projects like the tupperware black hole and my closet of nightmares

3) I will leave gossip and sour grapes behind. By:
- focusing on Philippians 2 as a 'health attitude' guideline:
- not contributing to gossip and slander no matter how much I may feel justified (if cant say anything nice . . . )
- remembering that we are none of us perfect, righteous or holy - so who am I to criticize?
- learning to just walk away . . . . !