Chillax is a commonly-used phrase around our house. This past week I set out to do just that. One day, I actually set aside all the household chores just to do fun stuff with the kids all day. We played Cars Bingo, and Princess Dominoes. Then we played "Hunting and Camping", a favorite that involves alot of sleeping, waking up, campfires, and bear attacks (all imaginary, chillax). Then we did something shocking... I let the kids PAINT. Yep, I decided to be "Nice Mom" and not worry about the mess. And you should see the "log cabin" I fashioned out of popsicle sticks and a hot glue gun. We crafted the day away and they loved it.
We took the kids skating today at the rec center. First time for the Little Miss, and she did awesome.
I really needed a week like this. And I'm pretty proud that I didn't get swayed either; the hubby wanted to spontaneously drive somewhere, get a hotel with a waterslide, do some shopping, etc (a normal conversation that comes up, oh, every weekend at our house), but I stuck to the plan. Chillax. It's been nice, even though he might not admit it :)
Chillax
If a stranger offers you candy, make sure it's Reeses Pieces
Last week, a note came home with all the elementary school kids asking parents to make sure our kids are "Stranger Aware". So I decided I needed to have "the talk" with my kids about strangers and how we practice safety with people we don't know. It went something like this:
Me: "So you guys know what to do when a stranger approaches, right?"
The Boy: "What's a stranger?"
Me: "A stranger is someone we don't know. Lots of times we see strangers at the store and if they ask us 'How are you', we can say 'fine', etc. But if a stranger ever asks you to come with them, what do you think we should say to them?"
The Girl: "Please and Thank you?"
Me: "Well actually we should say, 'No, I don't talk to strangers" and then walk away or find Mommy or Daddy.
The Boy: "But we aren't allowed to be away from you, so why can't you just tell the stranger that yourself?"
Me: "When you're older there might be times when you are allowed to walk home from school by yourself, or play outside alone... ANYWAYS, never go anywhere with a stranger, okay?
The Boy and The Girl: .... mumbling in agreement...
Me: So what would you say if a stranger offered you some candy?
The Boy: "I would say 'No!... but what kind of candy?'..."
At this rate, they won't be allowed to walk home alone until they're in college.
Halloween
For Halloween we had our friends come over and the hubbies took the kids trick-or-treating. Hayley was a Pirate, Brock was Bumblebee, and Carter was Darth Vader. (Baby Felicia was a skunk, but she's not in the picture).
Us adults had fun with dress-up clothes and face paint too.
Once we got the sugar-crazy kids to bed, we played Rock Band and Wii Sports.
Earlier that afternoon, my kids were so excited to go Trick-or-Treating, they were practicing on every door in our house. We told them they had to say "Thank you!" just as loud as they said "Trick-or-Treat!". They did this for hours:
Snow Day
It snowed here this week. Like, alot. We all bundled up and headed outside to play. I started out just watching and taking pictures...
And then saw this and decided to jump in and help.
Ta da! The whole Whidden Snowman Family!
Busy Busy
I spent the past week in Sherwood Park with my family. Carter got sick the first 2 days and we couldn't go anywhere or do anything. However it was nice to spend alot of quality time with my family instead of rushing off everywhere to go visit old friends, which is what usually ends up happening. We made cookies...
and funny faces
Went to a Halloween Party at my parents church. Hayley and I were pirates.
Carter was a hunter
My little sister had the best costume ever! I may have to copy her for my real Halloween costume this weekend.
Tim and Ashton came to the Halloween party and it was so fun to hang out with them.
I also attended the funeral of a guy a grew up with. It was extremely sad, but nice to see some familiar faces and reunite with old friends. It's amazing how you can just go about your normal life and then all of a sudden realize how much time has past.
We also got to visit our friends Trena and Andy in the hospital where they just welcomed their brand new baby girl, Brady. She was so sweet and tiny and perfect, and I'm glad the timing worked out so we could see her while we were in town. No pictures of Brady though, I am a dummy.
Jared was in Vancouver for work and got to sit in the box at the Canucks game again, just like last year. He met Brian Burke and had a lengthy conversation with Dave Nonis, so he's a pretty happy camper right now.
Funniest toy ever.
I filmed this a month ago after Hayley's birthday. Some very humorous people gave her this gift for her birthday and we just can't stop giggling about it.
On a completely unrelated note, we changed our minds about getting a puppy.
Fairmont
Last weekend, we spent 2 days in Fairmont with our friends the Stevensons. You know those kind of friends that you don't see for a long time and when you do get together, you can just pick right up where you left off? That's the Stevensons. We love hanging out with them.
It snowed the first morning and the kids wanted to go play in the snow as soon as they woke up.
These bear tracks were outside the condo - yikes!
We did lots of swimming
Me holding River (aka the happiest baby ever!)
On a walk...
Photo shoot in the leaves...
Playing at the park (which is for KIDS - I think Jared and I missed that memo)
Carter in the tunnel
Pretty Skye
Hiking up to the waterfall...
So much fun - thanks for inviting us Brad and Kirsti!
We headed home and had 2 more days relaxing with Thanksgiving dinner and a painting project. More updates to come...
Can everyday be the weekend?
Highlights of the past little while (...since I am bad at the updating thing these days) :
Family walk
In Lethbridge at the Jarmans... with fireworks!
And shopping with funny glasses.
Hockey season is back in full swing. In the words of my hilarious sister-in-law, "Good thing hockey season started, I was just thinking I don't need a husband...Go Flames!" Haha. But my family all look pretty cute in their jerseys, don't ya think? Go 'Nucks! (for you honey)
Carter and Hayley got new pets! They each got a little Beta fish. Appropriately named Dori and Oscar, after the fish off "Finding Nemo" and "Shark Tale". I'm 99% sure Dori's seen her last days, but we just won't tell Hayley that.
Breakfast Conversation
Carter: "Hayley, who's someone that you love alot?"
Hayley: "Um...MOMMY!"
Carter: "No you have to pick someone who's in your family, but not Mommy or Daddy."
Hayley: "um...."
Carter: "Is it me?"
Hayley: "Yep, it's you Carter!"
Carter: "Really? Me? Aw thanks."
Our Little Princess
Today was Hayley's 3rd birthday and even that is an understatement. Today was ALL. ABOUT. HER and she knew it. We had a Princess Party with some neighborhood friends and this little miss was star of the show. Here she is jumping on the trampoline waiting for the party guests to arrive:
Yummy food,
Princess (and Prince) Crown decorating,
The Castle Cake,
Even the adults dressed like Princesses,
Presents,
Hayley on her new Little Mermaid Bike from Daddy and Mommy. It even blows bubbles when she rides. Clearly, she's thrilled.
I can't believe my baby is three years old! Maybe I should stop calling her my baby, since she's really not a baby anymore. My kids birthdays always make me reminisce about the day they were born and what amazing changes they brought to our lives. I know I have gushed about my kids every year on their birthdays so today - instead of blabbering on - I'll just sum it up with : This kid? LOVE HER!
But who couldn't love a face like this?
Poor guy.
So Jared broke his elbow a few days ago. It's actually a pretty common break that comes from falling onto an outstretched arm. Poor guy, I feel so bad for him.
I think the official story is that it's a "golf injury". Ya know, because that sounds way better than saying it's a "jumping-from-a-moving-golf-cart injury."
Oh how I love him :)
Choppers, Mustangs, Boats - I feel like Bond
So this past long weekend, we went to Lake Koocanusa with some friends. We started out the weekend with a ride in a helicopter - it's no big deal....
K, totally kidding, it was a HUGE deal and completely awesome! We went to check out this new Lakeside resort, and as part of their promotions they had a barbeque, cabin tours, and helicopter rides - all for FREE. They even let the kids go up and it was so awesome. And the views were incredible.
The boys all drove there in Jason's parents' Mustang convertible. Again, felt like high rollers.
Then back to the Lake for some boating. Carter and his friend Brock were having fun.
Jumping off for a swim:
Brock and Carter whipped their shirts off and "beat up" their dads. I was privileged enough to be invited to the Gun Show:
There was a wrap-up dance at the campsite to end off the summer season. BBQ, ice cream, parking lot dance, and face painting - the kids had a blast.
My kids got their hands painted because, paint on your face??? That's just too crazy :)
Wanna hear something even more exciting? Tomorrow is my baby's FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN. He was so excited today, he couldn't stop smiling. We labeled all his school supplies, packed them in his Spiderman backpack, and laid out his "first day" outfit. I hope he can fall asleep tonight. Heck, I hope I can fall asleep tonight!
Surveyors Lake
Surveyors Lake is definitely one of our favorite beaches to go to. We try and go every opportunity we get. We went again a few days ago and I remembered to take my camera and snap a few pics.
Warm water and sandy beaches - oh Surveyors, how I will miss you this winter!
Lynx Creek
This past weekend we had our annual camping trip with our friends the Jarmans. We went to Lynx Creek, which is south of Crowsnest Pass. It was a great location, with lots of fun stuff to do. The kids had fun together, as always. Bobbi got them all these foam swords and they kept sticking them down the back of their shirts, like a ninja sheath or something.
There were lots of big rocks to climb,
And a deep swimming hole that was perfect for cliff jumping,
Jared jumping
...while the mommies and kids chilled on the beach.
Oh and tons of quadding and dirt biking.
Probably the last camping trip of the year. Sad, but true. This summer went by so stinkin' fast!
Mendenhall Madness
Last week the kids and I headed up to the Mendenhall Family Reunion in beautiful Nordegg, Alberta.
The best part was the rock climbing, I think everyone had a really fun time climbing.
We left the reunion a day early so we could head back to Edmonton to meet my brothers at the airport. They came home from Russia after being missionaries there for 2 years. It was awesome seeing them again. They came home alot more mature, and a whole lot skinnier :)
Our original family of seven was all together, which hasn't happened in awhile. *and yes, that is my child crying in the forefront of the picture. As per usual.*
the grandkids: Taylor, Josh, Hayley and Carter
We had most of our extended family up to see Dallin and Joel, attend their homecoming talks given in church, and a huge family dinner. Jared came up after work on Friday and was able to stay the weekend, too. It was fun to have everyone all together.And what fun would this post be without a picture of us in our Russian Shapkas?
The After Party
*a continuation of our Oregon vacation. For Part 1, read the previous post*
First of all, meet The Boler:
This little beauty belongs to Jared's boss, who was kind enough to let it accompany us on the vacation. It surprisingly sleeps all four of us and I was so glad we weren't in a tent for 2 weeks straight. We also discovered people love Bolers and were approached many times to talk about our "cute little Boler". Especially by all the hippies in Nelson, BC. More on that later.
After the Reunion in Florence, we headed inland to Cottage Grove, where Jared's sister, Gina, and her family lives. It was nice to finally see their home and community and hang out with them there.
Cottage Grove Lake:
Riley
Avery
We had a fireworks show, courtesy of Nana and Papa:
After staying with the Hutchins, Jared, the kids, and I headed back out to the coast. This time we went up to Lincoln City and stayed at the awesome RV resort right on the ocean. This was our view:
We spent alot of time playing on the beach:
Whale watching at Depoe Bay:
I was down on a ledge taking some pictures, and this rogue wave came up and about knocked me off my feet. Jared thought it was hilarious. 
Hayley hanging out in the trailer
Next we headed back up through Portland, and stopped at Multnomah Falls. The Falls were gorgeous and the hike up was fun too.
Next we went to Lake Chelan, Washington. No pictures from there, but it's a massive lake, with tons of gorgeous houses and vineyards all around. And HOT weather.We then traveled up to Osoyoos for a couple days. Again, the weather was hot and we enjoyed some lake days.
The next stop was Kelowna, where we stayed with Gary and Allie. We swam in the lake, visited the Sloans, Allie and I went to a movie together, and did some shopping. This is the only picture I have from Kelowna - trying on ridiculous glasses while shopping.
After Kelowna, we headed home with a short stop in Nelson, BC. Beautiful place - definitely lived up to the hype - but the people there... well... let's just say we fit in well with the 1974 Boler.The morning after we got home, the kids both slept in until 11 am, so I guess it really was time to come home. Jared is back at work now and the summer is winding down. Except for the Mendenhall Family Reunion this week, my brothers coming home this weekend, and camping with friends next weekend. Oops, I guess I can't wind down quite yet :)
Whidden Reunion - Oregon Coast
We headed down to Florence, Oregon for the Whidden Family Reunion. Out of all 29 family members, we had 28 in attendance (we missed you Jonny!), so it was definitely a party. We stayed in a beach house on the ocean and did lots of fun activities. Prepare yourself for alot of pictures...
Oregon Coast Aquarium:
Cooper and Carter
touching suprisingly soft fish 
the Hutchins 
us 
all 13 grandkids 
Avery and Carter Playing on the beach:
Deegan, Dryden, Ryker, Cooper and Carter sliding on sand hills 
Riley, Alivia, Gina, and Kaysa 
Mom, Gary, Allie, Kaysa, Gina, and Easton 
Byron, Jared, Dad, Ben, and Seth playing baseball 
my studly husband 
Heceta Head Lighthouse:
Gary and Allie 
Carter and Hayley 
The Newlyweds (Tim and Ashton) in their matching hoodiesHiking:
The Silver Family
the gals 
Hobbit Beach:
Ryker and Hayley 
Alivia 
Hayley wasn't too impressed that I stuck a starfish on her lap, haha 
Avery 
Carter 
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