It's quite obvious I have a toddler at home!

Well, considering the length of time that has passed since my last post, it is quite evident that I have a busy toddler at home who occupies the majority of my time...but I am loving every minute of it!  She is the love of our lives!  She brings so much joy to every single day.  What a joy to have her in our family.  She is truly a blessing and a gift from God.

The summer was quite busy, but lots of fun moments too!  We've had Shaun's family here to visit, and mine as well.  We've enjoyed lots of weekend visits with Diana and Paul, and cousin Isabel :)  It's nice having them live so close in Burlington.  Makes it much easier to connect more regularly.

I just love fall.  Back to routines, schedules, consistency!  Ahhh!  Love it!  I love that it gets dark earlier!  I know, I'm sure you think I'm crazy for that!  But I do.  I love snuggling in at night, settling down earlier, and enjoying some quiet time in the evening. 

Braeya is just about 21 months old!  Her 2nd birthday is just around the corner!  Hard to believe.  She knows the majority of her ABC's.  She can point to just about every letter that we name, can say at least half of them quite well, and loves for us to print letters that she names.   You'll often hear her at her coloring desk saying "Mommmyyyyy, Blue A!  Yellow A!  Red A!  Daddddyyyyyy Green K!"  Haha, too cute!  She loves pointing out letters at stores, the doctor's office, the mall..anywhere she can spot a capital letter!  It's amazing at this age.  They are just like little sponges and absorb everything so quickly.  It's been exciting watching her learn and develop.

She's also learned about "time-outs"!  They are quite effective we are finding.  She sits down perfectly still, doesn't move, and quivers her little lip trying to hold back the tears :(  She's such a sensitive little soul, just like I was when I was little.  When I tell her what I need her to do, instead of the behaviour she was doing, she says "ok Mama, ok Mama"...with this pitiful little voice, crackling from the emotion within.  Breaks our heart, and we have to both look away...but we know that consistency will pay off, and that she certainly knows what yes and no means!  Kids are sooooo smart, so she can definitely understand time out!  haha  It's been working wonders!  But now I totally understand when my Mom used to say it was harder for her to discipline than it was for us!  Totally get it now!

Sorry I don't have any pictures for this post!  I take pictures now on my phone, and so I don't often get them to the computer as regularly as I used to.

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

Michelle

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from the Slauenwhite Family!

It is hard to believe that Christmas has come and gone already!! I know for our family, we pulled out the Christmas tree from our attic back on November 1st, and so the preparations began! All so that we could relax in December, and enjoy the wonderful season.....

Right..so that was the plan! But we all know that things rarely go according to plan!

Instead of December being filled with glorious relaxation and anticipation, it was draped in colds, flus and more! Despite all of that, we did enjoy several Christmas parties, and special times with friends - and of course we were very blessed to be able to spend Christmas with our families in Halifax! Family is a treasure! We were so very spoiled during our trip home. So much love was lavished on us. We are grateful for wonderful family and friends.

In the news department, Braeya will be turning ONE on January 23rd! Where has the time gone? Hard to believe that this time last year, I could hardly reach my toes, or put on my own boots! What a blessing she has been to our family. Each time we look at her, we are reminded of the faithfulness of God! Her eyes sparkle with life, and we are constantly reminded of what is truly important in life.

She is just about walking! She has taken random "one or two steps" on her own - so one of these days, she will be off and away!

She is a wonderful sleeper, but needs lots of work in the eating department! Baby food is not her love in life that's for sure!

When she wakes up in the morning, and we bring her out of her room, all she does is "ooohh, ooohhh, oooh, wowwww!" Everything around her excites her - whether it is the fan, a light fixture, or water running!

She moves from the moment she wakes up until the moment she is sleeping again - never a dull moment with this girl!

In other news, my sister and her family moved to Burlington yesterday! Sad for all the friends and family they had to leave in Halifax, but very exciting for us, as we will now be just about 3 hours away from each other! Can't wait for many visits, dinners, and excursions!

We trust that you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year! Drop us a note to let us know how you are!

With anticipation for the wonderful year ahead,

Shaun, Michelle & Braeya