Enjoying the Treats.....

Halloween was a hit this year! It was chilly outside...so we headed inside to the mall to trick or treat! We brought Emma, Erica and Marissa with us and met Hallie, Ella & Nonna too! It was the perfect way to trick or treat! We stayed warm and we could wear our costumes! It was fun. The kids all looked so cute...and little Ella just tagged along having so much fun! Emily and Steff decided they would go brave the cold and get a few more treats. However, at the last moment, Steff decided she had enough treats and didnt care to go. Emily was not going to let that stop her and she headed out 'by herself'...but I was keeping a watchful eye from the porch. She was so cute walking down the driveways and back up in her big puffy hoop skirt. When Emily was done and showed Steff the goods (4 bags of chips), Steff decided that perhaps she did want to go out. So Emily headed back out with Steff to do our street! So now we have MORE MORE MORE than enough treats!! Paige loved passing out the treats at our door..she would carefully inspect each costume and report to me after she had divied out some treats! We missed having dad around..but Emily, Steffi and Paige each put away a few treats to share with dad when he is done his shift!! Hope everyone had a happy happy halloween!!

Happy Halloween!!!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! The girls are all off at their various Halloween activities! It is the day they all cant wait for. The other day we were driving and the girls said, 'Can you even imagine if you were sick on Halloween? That would be the worst thing ever!!' Then I explained that not all parts of the world celebrate Halloween...they thought about that for a moment and said, 'Those kids are so unlucky!!!' Halloween is soooo exciting! It is freezing here today so we are going to head to the mall after school to trick or treat! Then we will come home and pass out treats! I told Emily and Stephanie they could trick or treat up and down our street by themselves! They were SOOOOO excited! Independance and freedom!! They can hardly wait! It is cold tho...we will see if they make it!!! Happy Halloween!!!!

Blizzard Blues...

A car accident is an incident where an automobile either departs from regular pathway into a ditch, or collides with anything that causes damage to the automobile, including other automobiles, telephone poles, buildings, and trees.

So first blizzard of the season and I have a incident where the van departed from the regular pathway into a CURB and then spun and collided with the other curb! Hang on girls we are NOT going to make this corner....MOM you crashed the new van!!! Welcome back to winter. And

people wonder why I was hesitant to come back...because of the winter!!!!!

So that was our fun first day of winter, Im feeling the

BLIZZARD BLUES!!

Halloween Cookies

The girls decided to have friends (Emma & Erica) over to make Halloween cookies! They had a ball..and all worked together and co-operated. They all made some SCARY creations...and many did not last long (some nibbling was going on). We had a fun afternoon!
PS...if they offer to share, my advice....run away!! LOL

Paige gets a RASH (Erythema Multiforme)

Paige started breaking out into weird rash Friday night! It was so funny..because it bounced all over her body. It would flair up and then be fine..and then flair up again! She was very itchy!! Sunday she and I stayed home from church so as not to freak out the whole congregation. The rash is not contagious..but very weird looking!!! Dr. Dunham JR and Dr. Dunham SR. both concurred...Erythema Multiforme..classic case!! Paige did not like the Benadryl that we gave her to help control the itch...she would spit it right out at me...but we finally figured out a trick to get her to take it..and it seemed to help with the itch! She is over the worst of it now...just a few spots here and there...that come and go! Steff on Sunday morning woke up and said, 'Mom, I wish I had the rash instead of Paige!' Aww...I nearly burst into tears!! Sweet Steff!!!

BTW-This is not Paige's rash..thank goodness! Just a picture from a dermatology textbook...Im glad I didnt look at the pictures while she had her rash...it can look pretty scary!!!

The Season's First SNOW!!!

The First SNOWFALL!! We knew it would be coming...so we were ready! Luckily we went Friday to stock up on mitts, hats and scarves! The girls woke up and Paige screamed...MOM, ITS SNOWING EVERYWHERE!! They were so excited. They jumped into all their gear and headed out to test it out! They played for almost 1/2 hour before we headed off for school! Yes it was 730am and still quite dark out..but they didnt care. After over 2 years of no snow..they were excited!! Steff told me the other day...Mom, its gonna snow so get used to it! I laughed and laughed. So I guess we will get used to it...

A NEW ADDITION!!!

We are so excited because we had a new addition to the house today...PAIGE's NEW BED!! She had stopped sleeping in her bed altogether claiming it was too small! Okay it was a toddler bed.and she is a tall girl! So we finally went and got her a bed! She waited all day for the 'bed guy' to come and deliver her new bed!! We are hoping this will be the solution for getting her out of our bed and into her own...lets hope it works! Mike is hoping most of all..he doesnt seem to appreciate the constant kicking during the night and the fact that she has to sleep horizontal when most people sleep vertical! So here's hoping for a good nights sleep!!!!!!!!

The Great Pumpkin HUNT

We went to Butterfield Acres for a pumpkin hunt! The girls were so excited! It was a tad chilly with a brisk wind so we BUNDLED up! The girls each had success in finding a pumpkin and even did some crafty decorating! Then we stayed and watched the farm animals for awhile. Paige wanted to pet every animal..but her favorite was the chick house and watching the baby chicks!! Steffs favorite thing was the big old tractor sitting in the field..and Emily loved the pumkin hunt! It was a fun fall activity!!!

Family Beach Pictures at FLL Beach June 2006

Fun Summer Memories!!!

South Beach

Here are a few pictures from South Beach..one of our favorite beaches in south florida! The weather was perfect and ocean temperature was 88F. So perfect! It was fun to revisit the beaches and friends!! Peter and Amy are headed down soon..I hope they enjoy too!!!

Our Pile of MUD!!!

Here is our home! We took the girls to show them our new purchase...and they werent too impressed by the pile of mud we are going to call home! It will be fun to watch it go up! Last night we were exploring Fish Creek behind our lot...it was beautiful. The girls liked making their own paths through the 'forest'. Paige is enthralled by all the trees dropping all their leaves (she hasnt seen that before)! All was great until Mike gets a page...there is an incoming stabbing victim..ETA 30mins. So that ended our exploration and Mike zipped off to meet the patient. We thought it was a little early for the knives to be coming out!! Hows the patient Mike??

To Catch You UP!!!!!

SO I have started our blog! This is very exciting!

Let me catch you up on the past few months...

We made the big trek back across the continent to move from Florida back to Calgary! We still have no furniture, still have boxes to unpack, but we are slowly beginning to function normally again. The girls are now settled in school and Paige started Bee Happy School! Mike is up and running as a trauma surgeon/icu specialist and general surgeon (Yeah...finally!!!).

Mike & I took a short trip back to Florida so he could take an ICU board exam. It was great to sit on our favorite beach (South Beach) and catch up with friends! The weather was perfect! It was a fun getaway but we missed having the girls on the beach with us!

We are stocking up quickly on winter things....coats, snowpants, mitts, hats, scarves, boots and any other winter things we will need! I was reading in the school newsletter that the kids are kept outside unless the temp is -20C or below!! Wow ....Canadians are hard core!!! We will see how these little Florida girls do in those temperatures!! Any bets?? Sorry girls....

Well our most exciting news of late...is that we bought our FIRST HOUSE!!!! We are quite excited! We are just working on a design that will fit our family. There are lots of overwhelming decisions...but we are excited to finally have something to call home after 13 years!! Our estimated possession is Aug 2007..but Im guessing more Octoberish. We shall see. We are so excited!!

So that is all the news from the Dunham household!! Keep checking back...