On the last Sunday of January, the day after the call that started my emotional roller coaster for the week, we decided that our little family needed some positive excitement and an adventure. We called friends and packed Oz up and headed into Halifax. After running some errands (when the toddler falls asleep in the car take full advantage to get things done!) that included a stop to my bakery heaven, Bulk Barn.

We landed downtown Halifax at the Museum of Natural History and joined the long line of people and children eager to reach the inside of the building. The air was chilly but the excitement and anticipation in the air was electrifying. We were all there for the same thing, to see Sue. A T.Rex that had come to town. You may recognize Sue from the Night at the Museum movie. She's the dino from the Smithsonian. We got the replica but that didn't matter to the boys!

The boys were immediately in awe and taken with this real life sized dino: 

The dinodor is coming Mommy!

We needed two pictures to get her full profile.



After spending quite a bit of time looking at Sue and playing with displays, puzzles and bees, we moved on to the rest of the museum's exhibits. Oz and Gray played with the bones in the Mammals and Marine Animals display. Austin was fascinated with how the bones came apart and that he could control where they went.

"Wook Mommy! I fix him."

Attention spans being what they are in toddler boys, they quickly moved on to being fascinated with the "no-touch-touch-tank" Seriously, you have an open tank of water with sea creatures just begging for little hands to scoop up and examine the wonders in the water and you have said tank at touching level and you go and put a Do Not Touch sign on it? Obviously that person has never had a little boy......

We moved on to the wonders of birds, fishes and puffins before heading out. Austin and Gray ran off and for one brief second I was reminded that my heart walks around on the outside of my body. I couldn't find the boys anywhere! They were looking at the bird display just around the corner. It was a relief to find them, give them a quick scolding about running off without Mommy or Daddy, kiss their little heads and move on.

Our friends had to go on to a dinner so we parted ways and took Austin back to see Sue "Just one more time!". The crowd was thick so naturally Oz managed to wiggle out of my grasp. For 30 heart stopping seconds I could not find him. He wasn't answering my calls for his name. I'm starting to be a hormonal mess, when a little old lady says "Dear? I think he is right here." pointing at the visual display. Sure enough, there was Austin up in a total strangers arms looking through a view finder. Not sure how the stranger managed to lift him, she was a sweet little old lady too. I thanked them for finding him and informed G that it was time to go. But not before a visit to Gus.....because who can resist : "Just one more time?"

The Buzz: Robbie Shaw

Robbie Shaw has been an incredible influence in my life over the past 5 years. I am very grateful that our paths crossed and that I had the opportunity to work with him closely. Here are some pictures from a fantastic tribute event that I had the honour of attending last Monday evening.

The Buzz: Robbie Shaw: "It was a great evening for an even greater man. Robbie Shaw is leaving the IWK Foundation and his satff and friends put on an amazing tribut..."

22 weeks

I started this post last Saturday so bear with the use of verb tense.....

Today was one of those days. It started out fine. G had spent most of the night out with Austin. For some reason our child has refused to sleep through the night this whole past week. It's driving us crazy, but the upside was that I got a bed to myself last night. It was much needed because I haven't been sleeping well lately.  When I woke up, I went downstairs and enjoyed the quite. Half an hour later I heard the stomping of little feet.  Austin started out the morning whining like crazy but after a breakfast of Santa pancakes and fruit he was ready to go.

G had to go to a meeting so Austin was helping me clean upstairs. He was using the swiffer to "paint" the floor. Of course cleaning took much longer than normal because it was interrupted by a game of hide and seek, three or four stories, two trips to the potty and songs and who could refuse "Just one more time Mommy" from a jammied boy on a Saturday morning?

Then around 1:00pm my day started to fall apart. Austin refused to nap. I tried every trick I had before giving up and calling G up from the basement to take over. I was just out of a relaxing shower when the phone rang. My doctor called me...on a Saturday. My doc is going on sabbatical next month and called to  follow up on my ultrasound. There is a bright spot in the baby's heart. The good news is that the baby's heart is structurally sound. It's probably nothing, but it could be something and I'm nervous. The bad news is that is a soft marker for DS.

I spent all week agonizing about what was going to be. I wasn't concerned about having a child with down syndrome. That is something that if God so chose, G and I would take on willingly. I was more stressed about being prepared and making sure others in our village were prepared. I wanted to know if we were going to Holland or Italy. I don't like surprises.

I kept the news to a small circle who kept me sane all week. Friday finally came and G and I went to the IWK for the ultrasound with my incredible doctor. She took all the baby's measurements. She took her time and looked over every inch of our little peanut. I am so very happy to say that Peanut's heart looks fabulous and she didn't find any defects. (That is music to a mother's ears!) There is a calcium deposit in the heart but it's nothing to be concerned about. She also didn't find any other markers for DS. Of course there is still a chance that Peanut could be born with downs, but its 1 in 15,000. The icing on the cake was that we got to walk away with this:

Peanut Boutilier 22w5days

heading to a "fancy dancy" (22Weeks)

Snow!

Sometime between noon and over night yesterday, we got 45cm of snow. That equalled four trips outside to shovel for G, an early day home for me and a whole lot of snow fun for Austin! The snow was so beautiful, light and fluffy and it just put me in the mood to curl up with my favorite Christmas CD and a cup of tea and watch it fall...

Too bad that isn't what I did! A pot of soup, a clean kitchen and two loads of laundry later, my boys came home from work and Kelly's. After supper we all curled up and snuggled on the sofa and watched UP. Austin loved it. I have to say that I really enjoy it too. I love the beginning and, even if I wasn't pregnant, I cried at the montage of Carl and Ellie's life together.  Austin liked the balloons and the floating house...oh and the talking dog!

This is what 45cm looks like in our front yard....

The 3ft bush in our front yard

Somewhere under here is a lilac tree

Austin thinking the driveway was a skating rink

So tonight I'm sure we will shovel a little more. Tomorrow I am off and can't wait to spend it with my little man. Should be a lot of fun out in the backyard!

Change Bandits- Bring your little looters on down!

Don't let life pass you by...

http://www.theyearsareshort.com/

Great little video (not too long so take a minute to watch).

Yesterday we took Austin to see A T. Rex named Sue. He was absolutely fascinated. I can't wait to take him back. Those are the moments that need to be remembered and cherished. His exclaims of "OH MY GOD!!!! WOOK MOMMY WOOK!" His eyes were as wide as saucers and I swear his little head was spinning. I'll post pictures tomorrow. But what a great adventure to share with our little boy.

Dalhousie

I picked Austin up a few things to get him ready for University....what do you think?

"Cheese and Candy!"

Future Validictorian!

humm...he's a little too good at the drinking thing!

Yoga

I really enjoy yoga. I always feel so much better after a session. I feel taller, my head isn't swimming with a million thoughts and ideas or lists of things that need to get done. I love that for 1 hour I just get to be, to breath and think about very little other than calming myself and bringing myself back to center. I love it! I practice 3-4 times per week and I go to a prenatal class.

A certain monkey wanted in on the action and the results were so funny that I had to share!

Voila! Austin the Yoga Master!

Downward Dog Austin style!

Cat/ Cow

Mountain Pose

I can't wait to take him to the Parent and Tot class at Breathing Space. It's going to be a riot!

The Belly

Today I had my 21 week appointment. Everything went great and baby is doing really well. I can not believe that I am already half way to getting to hold this little munchkin in my arms! I do feel a bit badly that I haven't been documenting this pregnancy in pictures nearly as much as I did with Austin. There's an old wives tale that says that when you are pregnant with a boy your outer beauty is enhanced and when you are pregnant with a girl your outer beauty suffers....well if that is truly the case I must be having a girl! Maybe it's a combination of the winter blues but I do not feel pretty! But pretty or not here are the much requested belly shots!

17 weeks

20.5 weeks

Tonight I had to go shopping for a dress to wear to a dinner on Monday night. Selection is not what it should be for a city the size of Halifax. 5 stores to shop at, with mostly casual and business casual style clothes. Ladies with the bump need to dress up every now and again too! I wish I had had more time to find something because I would of had a chance to shop online. I did find a dress (two actually) and now all I need are shoes. Any ideas on where to find some funky wedges?

Adventures in the snow

Last weekend we got a lot of sticky white snow, so of course we took Oz out to enjoy it!

Daddy was clearing the driveway, so of course Austin had to get his own shovel and help.

After the driveway was all cleared we tried to build a snowman but we just couldn't get the snow to come together for us, so we moved to the backyard. Austin was up to his mid thigh in snow and kept getting stuck. He'd fall over on his side and yell "OH NO!!! HELP!'. (My child is a little over dramatic at times). We finally got to the patio and I had the great idea for G to make roads for Austin's dump trucks. He loved it!

 Pretty soon, his cheeks were rosy red and he had worked up quite the appetite. So inside we went for the perfect snowy day lunch....organic soba noodles with chicken and vegetables.

Ahh! nothing quite like adventures in the snow!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Mom!

I hope that you enjoy the flowers from Austin and Chubby Snowman (details next post). You are an inspiration and a wonderful woman. Take some time to relax and enjoy!

All our love,
The Boutmans

UNCLE!

I admit defeat.

I'm done and would really like whatever bacteria has invaded my house to move on. G caught the stomach flu on Thursday and we're just getting ready to take Austin to the walk in clinic because I'm pretty sure he needs antibiotics. Our sitter and her family all caught the bug and were sick on Friday (Kelly I am so sorry!). Seriously it's been a week of feeling like crap and I am done. The only upside to all of this is that my mother in law came over to watch Austin yesterday and while she was here she tidied our house up and did laundry. Thank god because this place was a disaster! I still need to scrub down the bathrooms and wash the floors but at least the clutter has been cleared away. I've got my fingers crossed for the 649 tonight. I need a housekeeper and a cook....that reminds me I need to go to the grocery store today...

Please bacteria, go away!

It's okay people

So if you read my previous post I had originally shared a picture of Ozzy that G and I thought was hilarious. I would never, ever put my child in harms way and I didn't think that it was over exposing anything. I do understand why some people might think so but I'm going to agree to disagree. I did take the picture down and replaced it with a couple of other adorable pictures because I do understand where you are coming from and I know that you only want the best for my family.

This blog is a place where I can keep in touch with my family and friends and I want to keep it that way so thank you for your feedback!

Good Lord?! Could the past four days have been ANY crazier?!



Arr!



The Pirate Potty was a big hit on Saturday. Mind you, we still went through 5 pairs of undies but Oz was getting the hang of it by the end of the day. He wore a pull up to bed, woke up dry as a bone and then he only went through 2 pairs of undies on Sunday!! He's very excited about peeing in the Pirate Potty..now we just need to work on the "other" end of the business.



I'm glad that Oz was doing so well on Sunday because I, on the other hand, was not. I just didn't feel right all day, I couldn't nap, I had no energy and wasn't hungry. I laid down with our little Monkey at 8:30 to put him to sleep for the night and was out like a light. I woke up at 10:30 and that is when it started....twice an hour until 7:15am. At 5:30am I called 811 (not to be confused with 911) because I couldn't even keep water down and I was crazy dizzy. The nurse told me to go to the ER right away.

G dropped me off and I started getting sick again. When they called my name I was so weak, I couldn't even walk and they had to wheel me in. I was quite the sight let me tell you! Hair all disheveled, yogurt and boogers on my yoga pants (I just threw on whatever clothes I could find) with my head down in a plastic lined paper bag. Oh yeah baby! That's why G thinks I'm hot enough to have his babies! (oh and just so you know he did come back after dropping Oz off at the sitter's only to have to leave to go pick him up again at 9am because he was throwing up too.)

Anywho! I was hooked up to an IV and 5 hours, 3 litres of fluid and one prescription later I was discharged and allowed to go home. I had G drop off the drug request and I went home and slept all afternoon.

Now here's a point that I think is pretty critical to the next part of the story. I'm pregnant. And it isn't like you can't tell. Sure, I had that whole "Wow, lay off the cheeseburgers lady" look happening for awhile, but I've definitely popped. And I told the doc and nurse that I was 19 weeks pregnant, if they couldn't figure that out on their own. They did an ultrasound to check the baby out (I didn't get to see anything though) and had to use a doppler to find a heartbeat because they couldn't get a good one on the u/s. So after all of that, the doc- who seemed like a very nice young man- prescribed a drug to treat a bacterial infection that I have that causes birth defects! Seriously!!!

My doc family doc was able to squeeze me in yesterday for a follow up and prescribed something else. She was going to follow up with the ER to let that crazy doc know he could have been sued! (or in her terms- advise the doc of his very serious error)

So it's Wednesday now. I'm still drinking G2 and eating crackers and noodles. Nothing else stays down or tastes good. Not that noodles taste great... Please let me be able to eat good food by this weekend! (on the plus side at my next appt I probably won't have gained too much weight!)

Pirate Potty Weekend

I want my monkey out of diapers. Don't get me wrong, I love his little Fuzzy Bunz booty that he gets in his overnight diaper but there comes a time when people just don't want to wash diapers anymore. We're there. I really want to give the diapers one last Rocking Green soak, air them out on the line and pack them up until I have to get diapers ready for the next little Monkey in June.

This weekend we are going to be pirates...because even pirates use the potty. I found this great book at Walmart:

Austin is loving it! He has asked to read it every night this week before bed time. It comes with a pirate hat and some reward stickers that he has been trying to get me to give him all week. I have been telling him that the stickers are for when he goes potty.  I'm going to make a couple of Jolly Roger flags and attach them to his potty to make it more like a pirate potty (the potty in the book is black with flags, cannons and, I love this element, an "X" marks the spot!). 

Keep your fingers crossed that our little pirate jumps on the wagon this weekend and that our efforts don't go down the drain (pardon the pun!)

A new blog header and a gold medal game

I was lucky enough to get Photoshop for Christmas (thanks Mark!) and tonight I made my first blog header. What do you think? I know the picture is from September but I was so excited that I was finally able to remove the booger from his nose from the picture (I finally figured out that cloning tool!), that I decided to use it as my trial header. I was going to change the background theme but couldn't really find one that suited my mood right now. I did manage to find a very cute Valentine's Day background that I will no doubt be apply in the coming weeks.

Tonight is a very exciting night in our house. Austin is sitting next to me on the sofa cheering on team Canada in the gold medal game. It's incredibly comical. The players are just skating around and he is throwing his hands up in the air and yelling "Oh COME ON!" and "Serious!" and my favorite "HE SHOOTS!...mommy he missed the net." and we're only 10 minutes in. I know it's past his bedtime and we'll regret this in the morning but come on...how can you miss out on this?!:

Although he has his Playstation remote in his hands and I think he thinks he is making the players move...

I burnt the soup

That pretty much sums up my day. We slept in until 8:30am, got up, had breakfast and started the de-Christmas-fication process. While I was waiting for G to dig out the Christmas boxes, I got started in the kitchen. I put the ham bone on to boil, added the split peas. I did the prep for my favorite chicken stir fry with green onions,  oranges and walnuts. I got that vacuum sealed and in the fridge all ready for dinner Thursday night. I made the chicken and broccoli pie, and checked the soup. All was good. I lowered the heat and went into the living room to start taking down Christmas.

I admit that I am not feeling great today. I don't know if it's pregnancy sick, a cold or what but I started to get a little dizzy after I finished packing away the ornaments. I laid down on the sofa and just closed my eyes for a minute. The next I know I hear "What's that smell?" G ran into the kitchen and turned off the soup pot. The pea soup had burnt to the bottom of the pot. Now pea soup is not something that you want to burn...it stinks to the high heavens! The soup had splattered all over the cook top. Poor G ended up cleaning the mess up because the smell was making me so nauseous. I went back to sleep, woke up at 2, took Ozzy upstairs to get him to have a nap and ended up sleeping the rest of the afternoon away.

Some times I just want to freeze time. Oz has been a handful today- in a good way. He has been so much fun and he wanted me to cuddle with him (hence the second nap). There is just something so sweet about those little hands reaching out to touch my face and the butterfly kisses that my baby gives before sleepy time. I just love it when he looks at me and says "You cuddle me mama? I wove you" Melt my heart!

Thanks for the great sweater Nanny

Finally a nice picture of me and my boy 

Tomorrow life returns to the work day routine. I have enjoyed every moment of spending my days with my family and our evenings with good friends. I can not wait to able able to do this full time. But for now, it's back to the daily grind, and I can't wait for Saturday!

New kitchen gadgets

I am in kitchen heaven today. I finally got a rice cooker ($10 at Superstore) and it is currently cooking me 6 perfect cups of organic long grain brown rice. For Christmas I got a Seal a Meal (vacuum food sealer) and I will be putting to use again tomorrow. My plan is to cook for the week tomorrow and then seal the meals and put them in the fridge or freezer depending on when I plan to serve them. My whole goal is to cook on Sundays and just heat and serve during the week. I need to find more time in my evening so that I can spend more quality time with Austin and G and getting my workouts in. I have 5 months until this baby comes and I want to make sure that I am fit enough to keep up with two kids!

Tonight we're having friends over for homemade Chinese food and tomorrow I'm serving up Pea Soup. The menu for the rest of the week includes ham and scalloped potatoes (using both white a sweet potatoes), chicken and broccoli pie and chicken stir fry with clementines and walnuts.

When I was pregnant with Austin, I met a lady named Jen. She was my labour buddy and her little girl was born just a few days after my little guy. Jen lives in the states and is a pretty remarkable lady. First, she's a military wife (I would never be able to do that), she's raising three kids AND she home school's the with. She is always sharing great sites with me and I wanted to pass along two of her recent shares with you:

http://www.superhealthykids.com/

http://www.anotherlunch.com/

These sites have been great at inspiring me to mix up Austin's weekend lunch and snack routine and giving me some new supper ideas. I hope you like them too!

Happy New Year!

We will open the book. It's pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and it's first chapter is New Years Day. ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

2010 was a pretty great year. Mind you it started out being stuck in Montreal and arriving home without luggage BUT things looked up from there. We had many adventures with our boy and watched our baby grow into a very energetic toddler. I turned 30 and was greeted with a surprise party that G managed to pull off without me knowing a single thing (thanks Gillian and Em!). I made a decision to change jobs and I left the IWK Foundation family with much hesitation and joined the Dalhousie Ancillary Services team. Thanksgiving was spent in Newfoundland and celebrated Austin's 2nd birthday while we were there and then had another party here for our NS family and friends. Christmas was great with family visiting from Nashville and New Brunswick. And we spent last night ringing in the New Year with great friends.

Resting up before the big night!

Lilah joins the fun!

Rudolph was a huge hit!

Handy Kelly! (She wanted Black and Decker tools for Christmas too!)

The boys setting off fireworks.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I am so very much looking forward to 2011. We have a new baby on the way and I can't wait to see what we make of the time we've been given.

Resolutions- everyone makes them, most people break them. I'm not resolving anything for 2011 but I am setting a few goals for myself:

Make more organic and green choices for me and my family.
Take better pictures and learn to use Photoshop
Blog 300 entries
Teach Austin to read ( yes I know he is only 2 but he's a pretty smart 2yr old!)
Spend more one on one time with G
Spend more time with my friends
Wear my rose coloured glasses as often as humanly possible!

Happy New Year Everyone!

Newfoundland culinary delights!

So we had the greatest Jigg's dinner on Tuesday night. After several calls home, I managed to cook the salt beef and vegetables to perfection. (Dad was a wee bit disappointed that I didn't make his stuffing but I have not yet gotten his recipe right.) The turkey was moist and delicious and the company was divine!

 

I went all out and set the table with the china and silver ware, lit the candles and dimmed the lights. The mood was set for overindulgence with great friends (who just happen to be family). We ate and laughed and ate and laughed some more. You just can't get any better than soaking up life in the warm glow of Christmas lights and candles. My bucket is getting past full and moving into over flowing this week!



One of the few pictures of G without a tissue up his nose!



  

Laura and Austin playing wih the cracker prizes

Naturally there were lots of leftovers (we Newfies' never know how to cook for a small crowd. If there isn't enough for 20 then we have failed in our job to be ready for everyone in the neighbourhood to drop by unexpectedly for dinner). This evening I made a favorite Jigg's after dish- Hash. It starts with a generous tbsp of butter in the bottom of a frying pan. When the butter melts and the pan is good and hot you add the left over vegetables and salt beef. If there happens to be any dressing you can throw that in there too. Mash it all together and voila! Hash. Serve with turkey and top with gravy. So very, very good!

Miss you guys...come back soon!

The most wonderful time of the year!

It's oddly quite in our house at the moment. There are no toy Black & Decker drills drilling, no cars crashing, no Santa on a motorcycle singing Born to be Wild. Austin and his daddy are having a nap while I sit here looking at the Christmas tree, listening to Kenny and Dolly. I just put the turkey in the oven and the salt beef is simmering away. Tonight Laura and Dan will be joining us for a visit and we'll sit down to a good ol' Newfie Christmas dinner. I even have the beets (but no mustard pickles). I cannot wait!

It's a very weird experience trying to establish your own traditions when I'm so used to the traditions that I have been entrenched in since I was a little kid. The pace of Christmas is very different here than it is back home. But I have to say that it has been nice. We' ve had a couple of stay in our jammies-watch Toy Story 2-eat Christmas brunch left over days. It's been nice to catch up on life with my boys.

Austin has been hilarious this year. He gets the whole Santa thing. Christmas Eve we made Santa rice krispie treats and when we put them on the table, Austin declared he was hungry and that Santa had to share!

Two cookies down and a phone call from the big man himself and Austin finally went to bed.

I was like an over excited kid Christmas morning. I woke up at 6am, can down to the living room and put cinnamon rolls in the oven, got the coffee/hot beverage station ready and took this picture to prove that Santa really came:

Austin was stirring at 7:30am of course I encouraged him to wake up. Next thing I know he is bouncing on his Dad declaring "Santa brought da pwesents daddy! get up! get up!" So we scurried downstairs where he met  Rudolph and then his new favorite toy....a Santa on a motorcycle just like his Poppy has.

Our house was soon full as G's parents arrived and RyLee, Clay and Oskar got out of bed. The day was hectic, brunch was served and then we all settled in for a nap.

Our adventures continue but right now I have to tidy up my very lived in home and check on my boys. I love Christmas break!

Only two more days!

Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?

-Mary Oliver

I don’t know about you, but I plan to squeeze every ounce of enjoyment out of life this holiday season. I will have 10.5 days of at home time with my boys and my ever expanding belly to just enjoy life and each other. Austin has been such a blessing for us and he is so excited for Santa’s visit tomorrow night. He walks around the house in his little bare feet (not sure why, but he hates socks this holiday season) “talking” to Santa on the phone, hangs up and says “Ho, Ho, Ho, Merwy Kissamas!” Gordon and I laugh and smile and just soak up the moment of happy bliss brought to us courtesy of our first born child. This will be our last Christmas as a family of three and I plan on capturing each and every moment…. (my slight photo addiction is the reason we require an external hard drive….Austin is just 2 I have taken over 2000 pictures so far….)

Oh?! You didn’t hear the news? Austin is going to be a big brother! Gordon and I are expecting our second child in June….Telethon weekend of all times! I’ve already been asked if the Foundation could schedule me in for a rover hit…..normally I wouldn’t want to go late but, in this case, fingers are crossed that the only thing I’m doing at the IWK on Telethon weekend is taking cash!

It’s been a tough fall and my positive attitude has taken a bit of a blow, hence why I haven’t been blogging as much as I would like. And I should have been. Blogging feeds my soul. It’s great to share the happiness that we have and to keep our family and friends informed, especially given that our village expands over several provinces and three American states. And while we aren’t able to spend our evenings personally calling each and every one of our family and friends to tell them our life adventures, this blog gives us a place to do that en mass. (Very helpful when your two year old is opening the fridge, taking out a juice box and sneaking the cake balls that were meant to be Christmas gifts into his cheeks as if he was a squirrel getting ready for winter…)

The Christmas lights are up, the tree is decorated and its warm glow is inviting and ready for company to come together to share in the Christmas spirit. The gifts are all wrapped, packages and cards sent and 90% of the baking has been done. I am ready for Christmas and anticipate the memories that we will be making this year.

I didn’t ask for much this year, I don’t really need anything. I have great family and friends, a wonderful husband, an extraordinary little boy and I’m growing another tiny human…life could not get any better than this and I am grateful for all of those blessings (and for the food saver I know is sitting under the tree waiting for me to rip the brightly coloured paper and ribbons away and start vacuum sealing leftover turkey!!!)

Soak up the day and live each day knowing that once that day is past you don’t have the chance to go back and change it. Cherish it, live it, love it!

Merry Christmas!

'tis the season!

We're all running around trying to get things done and rushing to get packages in the mail, baking in the oven and non breakable ornaments on the tree.  Weekend before last we took Austin to see Santa and he was so excited! It gave me a burst of energy and helped the spirit find me. He was upset that he couldn't just walk up and see Santa, but he was a trooper, peered over the "wall" and pointed "Mama, That Santa!!! that Santa!!!!"

Finally it was his turn. He ran up to Santa, stopped short right in front of him and said "Hi Santa. I want an airpane. Fank you." and just stood there. Santa laugh and asked him to have a seat. Austin happily went up with Santa, said "Cheeze" for the lady (hence the picture...but I couldn't get her to retake it...it's just so Austin) and then he and Santa had a conversation. It made me so happy to just watch him. Love, love, LOVE my boy!

Oh Jan! Congrats on your new baby!

My friend Jan had her baby in a rather unsual way! I hope this doesn't happen to anyone else I know expecting a baby!!! (You look amazing by the way!!!)

Baby's birth at gas station surprises parents

Baby Paige Bosch, seen with mom Jan McEachern, gave her parents no time to reach the hospital before her birth. (CBC)Paige Taylor Bosch entered the world Wednesday in an unusual way: she was born at a Halifax gas station.

Mother Jan McEachern, who was at full term of her pregnancy, started the day feeling cramps. She decided to go to the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, where she also works, just to be safe.

McEachern and her husband, Kenny Bosch, piled into their Subaru hatchback and got on the road. That's when things sped up.

"About two minutes into the drive, my water broke," McEachern said. "Then another two minutes, her head came out. So he pulled over and called 911."

Bosch pulled into an Esso gas station on Kearny Lake Road to make it easier for the paramedics to find them.

McEachern was sitting in the front seat, and with two child car seats and bags in the back, there was no space to manoeuvre.

As it turns out, there was also no time.

"I could see the baby's head crowning," Bosch said. "I'm talking to the 911 operator, and not 15 seconds later, Paige had jumped out into my arms, and that was it."

McEachern had assumed she'd have plenty of time to make it to the hospital.

"With my first daughter, I pushed for five hours, because she was facing the wrong way," she said. "I had a lot of back pain, and I thought it was going to be the same thing."

Bosch agreed.

"Thought we had hours and hours," he said. "Even when her water broke in the car, we still thought we had plenty of time to make it down here."

Bosch said the ambulance arrived within 10 minutes of his 911 call.

Mom and baby went to the hospital in the ambulance and Bosch followed in the family car as soon as he washed up in the Esso bathroom.

The bewildered couple spent the day telling family and friends about their new bundle of joy.

McEachern had only one piece of advice for pregnant women and their families: "Leave earlier."

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2010/12/02/ns-babys-birth-at-gas-station-surprises-parents.html#ixzz173SZks5p

Rest in Peace- John Delaney Coleman Sr.

The past two days have been emotionally draining. My heart broke to see how it all ended. While we may not have been close over the past decade, that doesn't take away that for 17 years he was a wonderful grandfather, giving when his family needed him and creating so many wonderful memories. He was a business leader in Corner Brook and gave much back to the community. If he had been home, it all would have been done so differently, it would have been done right. As I put my hand on his coffin and laid one rose for each of his grandchildren, my knees went weak, not with regret but from an overwhelming sadness that it all could have been so different and because a person's last moments before being laid to rest with God should have more dignity. There should be a program for Mass with a proper dedication, the coffin should have been level over his grave site, not tipped several degrees to one side. Some how I managed to keep my balance and turned away, thankfully Aunt Helen was right there to catch me. And she held me as I wept. I wept for all of the wonderful memories, I wept for the man who deserved to have more than just the past 12 years of his life honoured, I wept for all that he has missed and for him being buried so far away from his brothers and parents, for being buried so far away from home.

Good bye Pop. Thank you for the good years, thank you for my Dad, Aunts and Uncles. We love you and will miss you.

John Delaney Coleman (February 5, 1934 - November 30, 2010)


It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our dearly beloved Husband and Father, John Delaney Coleman Sr. on Saturday, November 27, 2010 at the age of 76 years at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital surrounded by his loving family.

John was born in Glace Bay, NS on February 5, 1934 and at a very young age he moved to Corner Brook, NL with his family. He spent many memorable years there before moving to Sydney River, NS. John was a member of Our Lady of Fatima Church in Sydney River. John had a gentle heart and was willing to give in all his capacity. He was a proud member of the Knights of Columbus, M.M Coady Council 9476 and was a forth degree member of the Knights of Columbus in Corner Brook, NL for numerous years.
John is survived by his wife Coreen, his nine children: Anne Marie (Tony), Paul (Helen), Gerard (Debbie), Barbara (Tony), Helen (Todd), Sheila (Eric), Mary (Arnie), John (Arlene), Christine (Gary), 18 grandchildren, 4 great grandchildren, his 2 brothers Gerald and Joe and his only sister Helen Nellie, stepdaughter Janine Carroll and 2 step-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his parents Arthur and Margaret, three brothers, Edward, Eugene and Harold.

A mass of Christina burial was held on Tuesday, November 30, 2010 at Our Lady of Fatima Church, Sydney River with Rev. Will MacPherson officiating. Interment was at the Holy Cross Cemetery, North Sydney, NS. Donations may be made to Loaves and Fishes, Charlotte Street, Sydney, NS or the Canadian Cancer Society. Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.chantfunderalhome,com Arrangements are under the direction of Chant’s Funeral Home, Sydney, NS.



Country Haven Funeral Home: Obituaries