A Young Man Turns 15!

I have to say this right away. I need to get this off my chest. Are you ready?

I AM NOT OLD ENOUGH TO HAVE A 15 YEAR OLD!! Zach would disagree with you. He just pats me on my head (which he can as he is a full head taller than me) and says "little mommy, yes you are!"

My first baby, my sweet little boy is celebrating a birthday today. He is 15, sigh. How can it be? In the blink of an eye, he is so grown up. As Noah says, "You're half way to 30!" Okay Noah, don't push it. We won't even discuss that if Zach is half way to 30, what I am half way to.

But I digress. Happy Birthday Sweet Zachary. We are so proud of the young man you have become. I see such kindness and caring in you. Minus the tormenting of your sister and brother. But that's just part of being an older brother, right?! You are smart and you amaze me with what you know! You're just like Daddy. How you can hear something and remember it later. You have a great sense of humour, that you love to share with the rest of us. You're sensitive. You will stand up to injustice. If someone should insult a friend, you are quick to defend them.

Make a wish Zach and know how much we want all your wishes to come true!

Monkey girl turns 12!

It's so hard to believe that my little peanut, my monkey girl turned twelve today. We celebrated today with a special breakfast (challah french toast, hash browns and strawberries) cards and presents, a house filled with decorations, our second annual mom and daughter birthday pedicures and dinner out of her choosing.

Although there are days where I swear we are never going to survive the teenage years,(and we still have another year until we get there!) to know my sweet Dahlia is to love her.

She is a smart, funny, gorgeous and sensitive young lady. She is always thinking about how she can help others. I see her in the school yard with her friends and with the younger students, my heart fills with pride and joy at the kind of person she has become. She is a mensch.

She couldn't wait to turn 12 so she could sit in the front seat. I have to admit that I have been ooking forward to it. It will be nice to have company in the car. She was beaming as we drove to get our pedicures. Although Noah asked here if she would sometimes sit in the back on the way to school because he'll miss her. (Definitely, a glad you are their mother moment!)

I always tell her that she is the best birthday present I ever got. She was born the day before mine!

Dahlia, my sweet, I wish you only good things. May all the birthday wishes you made today come true for you. You deserve it! We love you very much!

Do you have any birthday traditions?

Back to School!

I can hardly believe it's already time to go back to school. Where did the summer go? I always joke that I need just one week with the kids in school where I am still off. (Kind of hard when you're the teacher!) But by the time I get to this time of year, I am ready for us to go back. I like the order and routine that comes with being in school.

Today was a day filled with rituals. For the third year in a row we spent the last day before school at the beach. We left early and got an amazing parking spot. It was glorious frolicking in the freezing Lake Huron. The sun shone (until we were on the drive home). The kids had a great time.

When we got home, everyone had a turn in the shower to wash off the buckets of sand that was stuck to them. We ordered pizza (with enough leftover for lunches) and then everyone sat around in the living room as I passed out the school supplies.

Now everyone is quietly relaxing and anticipating the day ahead. I'm sure there is more than one butterfly bouncing around in their tummies. I know that there are a few in mine.

I always get nervous the first day of school. Even though I know the kids and have had them before. It's a brand new year and I just want the very best for every child I teach.

Whether you're going back to school (as a student or teacher) or you're sending some little or not so little ones back to school, I wish you a wonderful year filled with learning, health, happiness and of course FUN!

YOUR TURN: Do you do anything special to get ready for back to school?

Happy Birthday Noah!

A certain little man turned 9 today. I can hardly believe that my little baby is now in his last year before double digits. We have been on the daily countdown to this day for months. I love his enthusiasm and happiness at turning one year older.

I decorated the house with balloons, streamers, posters and such. He woke me up at 6:40 am to thank me. He thought the house looked marvelous. He was literally floating around the house as he got ready for camp.

To my sweet little Lovebug, I hope that everything that you wish for comes true for you. May you always have good health and be surrounded by those who love you. Don't change my sweet. You are a funny, sweet, smart and caring child and I hope (I know) you will carry this through with you to adulthood.

I love you!

Your turn: What are your wishes for Noah this coming year?

Laundry is my nemesis!

Laundry and I just don't get along. It likes to pile up and pile up and just likes to hang around. I don't think in all my married life, (17 years!) I have ever been caught up.

Carmi's followers know that we visited the local laundromat last week. Our old dryer bit the dust and the already high laundry pile was just getting higher. Last Friday the new pair were delivered. Nothing was funnier than watching the kids watch the clothes spin around in the washer and dryer. That's how they spent their Friday night. They literally watched the clothes go around and around rather than watch TV. Of course being married to Carmi, I had him take pictures of the kids watching the machines.

Well I have become laundry machine. I have lost count of how many loads I have washed and dried in the last six days. Never mind how many I have folded! We have discovered we have tons of towels. There are towels in the linen closet, there are towels in the cupboards of every bathroom, there are towels in the kitchen. We don't have room for all the towels.

I am pleased to let all of you know that it is true...I Morahmommy, am enjoying doing the laundry. Not only that, I am just 5 loads away from being totally caught up and then I just have regular every day stuff. The other benefit is that fresh laundry smell that permeates the house. Love it!

Oops, there's the buzzer for the dryer. Off to do another load!

Happy Canada Day!

I am very proud to be Canadian. We live in a beautiful and great country. The younger ones were in camp today (one of the few camps that are running on July 1) and I hung out with Zach.

We will have our traditional BBQ and hope the rain will hold out or Carmi will be soaked :D

Enjoy your day and wave you flag proud!

Happy Summer

I can hardly believe summer vacation is here again. Yesterday, Carmi and I spent a lovely afternoon sitting on the deck, under the new red umbrella, sipping iced coffee (my new obsession, Tim Horton's iced coffee with milk).We chatted, I read, he worked on his laptop, ahh summer is here.

Did I neglect to tell you that I was also dying of heat? Yes, there was a lovely breeze, yes the umbrella provided adequate shade. Why do you ask yourself, was she dying of heat? I was covered in a fur blanket! Okay, relax it wasn't a real fur blanket, it was a 20 pound baby/puppy. Apparently, Frasier, doesn't like the feel of the deck under him. He wants to sit on Mommy. He was also very considerate. When I would take a sip of my coffee he would lick the condensation of the sides and bottom of the glass, before it dripped on me. We sat like that for about an hour. Eventually I sent him into the house. It was one of those idyllic days. The kind of day that I hope will be repeated all summer long.

Tomorrow I start back with my trainer, uggg! The two younger Levys start day camp. Yeah!! Now I just have to figure something out for the teenager. H e's too old for daycamp and too young to get a job. He will certainly drive me insane, if he is home all summer.

Your turn: What suggestions do you have to keep Zach occupied over the summer?

What are your summer plans? I hope whatever you do this summer you have a safe and wonderful time.