casted

Avery's officially had her first break-up.  Our little miss took a fall from the slide ladder at the park on Friday and over the course of the week, several doctors appointments, and an x-ray it was decided we should go to Saskatoon to see the orthopaedic specialist at the hospital.  X-rays showed a pretty long, straight fracture in her tibia (lower leg).  We were hoping that the day wouldn't be an epic adventure in waiting, and it wasn't.  Two hours total and Avery was gradually more and more brave as each new experience was dished out.  She was released with a scratchy bracelet that she desperately wanted off, a blue mouth from her popsicle prize, and a heavy, white cast from toes to upper thigh.  It's a big one.

We're extremely relieved that she hasn't seemed to be bothered by too much pain since day one.  She'd complain here and there if her sore foot was bumped, and refused to put any weight on her foot and stand up (which was a good thing in the end), but her pain seemed so minimal that we honestly thought that her doctors would declare nothing wrong and that she might be more fearful than actually hurt.  She's a tough cookie!

In one week we'll have to go back to Saskatoon for assessment and they'll likely put on a shorter, lighter cast at that point.  We'd been hyping up the fact that she could have a cool pink cast, but white plaster was on the menu instead.  Now I'm hyping that we can color it with rainbows and butterflies and that sounds exciting, too.

While the pain doesn't seem too bad, we are sad that she'll get pretty frustrated with wearing this thing.  It's not going to be easy for her to get around.  We've already been carrying her everywhere, which is pretty highly discouraged as far as me and my 36 week baby bump are concerned, but reinforcements are on the way.  My dear Marmee has booked a flight and will be turning around (having just come home from 6 weeks of touring Eastern Canada with Dad) to come here and stay with us as long as help is needed.  The plan was already in mind that she'd come when the baby arrived, so we're extra grateful for her willingness to come early and help me with Avery while Levi's at work.

Poor little miss.

little things

The weather decided to destroy our garden with one night of below freezing temps.  So long potential cukes and zucchinis and tomatoes.  We picked what we could and left the rest to whither away.  And now we're back up to a sticky hot 30+ which everyone in town is super pumped about ... except me.

One positive to the burst of warm air is that we get to see the leaves changing color for more than a day!  No arctic wind is blowing them all away before we get a chance to enjoy them this year.  Fall might actually last more than a couple weeks, and that makes me happy ... from inside where my fan is blowing.  Miss A and I collaborated on a fall-loving painting today.  I'm pining for those first days of crisp air, the smell of wood smoke, apple crisps and pumpkin pies.

With fall comes the start of the regular semester and the beginning of a routine pace.  Last night we hosted our first games night at our house, open to any and all who wanted to come.  We never know how many students will come, or who they'll be, or whether they'll have any fun, but always hope it'll be a good time of getting to know them and providing a place to get away from the college.
Some stats from last night's ruckus:  25 students at one time in our living/dining room; 16 available seats; 6 games played (3 at a time); 2 big bowls of popcorn; 4 jugs of iced tea; 2 pans of homemade squares; indoor temp of probably +40; indoor humidity of the equivalent of Jamaica; 3 fans blowing ineffectively; 4 hours of game playing fun and raising the roof with the noise level ... and ...

... 1 child who slept through it all.

Happy first day of fall (as of yesterday)!

35 weeks +

Three and some years ago, I went into labour with Avery at exactly 35 weeks.  This time around I'll admit that I held my breath all day at the 35 week mark, feeling extra sensitive to each braxton hicks or regular discomfort, watching the clock and mentally plotting out our action plan.  This wasn't too unusual, being that I've been nervous about this baby coming early for weeks (months) now, and because everything just feels more than last time.  But now that I've made it this far I feel like it's time I settle into some normal anticipation ... if not confidence that Murphy's Law will strike and I'll be housing this baby for more than what's fair.

There's nothing we can do to predict the day or speed or level of surprise, and while that gave me a lot of anxiety in the previous weeks, I feel pretty cool about it now.  We live 2 hours away from the hospital of choice (45 minutes from the plan b hospital).  In fun, I had Levi read a page from a book about delivering a baby if one finds oneself with a woman in need of pushing and you're on the side of a canola field.  I didn't let him see very much since the idea freaked me out too much.  My mantras today are "we will make it" and "it'll be okay" and "I can do this".  We feel ready.  And yes, my hospital bag is packed ... mostly.  

running

:: going running with Dad ... in her tutu, naturally.

:: showing me her shoes - what's september without new running shoes? 

:: stretching.

:: getting excited.

:: ready to go!

:: distracted ... squashed ladybug.

:: my little tribute to the swiss alps.

brown time

Happy week spent with the Browns!  We sent them off on their flight back home to Oregon on Sunday and it's been a little quiet around here since.  It was so much fun having them in our home and experiencing our low-key life for a whole 10 days!  They were the best kind of company - took easily to the 'fend for yourself' environment and settled into our home as though no time had passed since we last spent time together in Van-city for "family tv night" or any of our do whatever kind of visits.

The girls in their matching 'Ducks Fan Club' t-shirts in support of the first game of the season for the Oregon college football team.  Katie brought the matching shirts for the girlies, which was the easy part.  Getting a picture of the two of them sitting side-by-side proved impossible, but they did look super cute being twinsies.

Avery latched on pretty quick to Derek (she's a big fan of the men) and also loved having Katie around to demand attention from all day long.  She proved to be a pretty bossy playmate for Evelyn, but to be fair she hasn't had any practice being the big sister just yet.

My Vancouver girlfriends surprised me with a baby-shower-by-suitcase!  We've typically done long distance showers by mail, but this time the surprise was that all these sweet gifts came to us along with the Browns.  Katie laid out the stack of gifts while Levi and I were out at a college event and we came home to this unexpected showering of little things to help us welcome Simplet #2.  Love my friends!

With the exception of the first day, the whole week ended up being screaming hot.  Any time outside was limited to short bursts.  We did our best to make ourselves feel better with lots of ice cream and cool drinks and fans.  Avery and Evelyn took any chance they could get to dip into their tiny pool outside.  After a day or two, they didn't even wait for bathing suits and sometimes hopped in before we could get a chance to get them out of their clothes.


Here we are, all in a row, baking away in the blazing heat.  The little girls only lasted so long in our attempts to get a decent group shot, but who can blame them.

It was such a gift having the Browns with us.  Our students benefited from a fresh, enthusiastic teacher for the week, Levi enjoyed having a friend around to talk "shop" and discuss biblical ideas, and I soaked up the blessing of having a best friend around to spend the days with.  When our days in Vancouver came to a close, we never could have guessed that we'd see the Browns again, 4 years later, in this humble little Eston town.  We're so thankful the opportunity arose and it worked out to get all three of them up here!  Miss you already, friends!

sweltering

We're spending our days just like this.  Ho man ... SO HOT OUTSIDE.  Loving having the Browns with us!  Us mamas have been especially happy for the company since Levi and Derek have been working around the clock - teaching through the days and prepping for the next class during the evenings.  Our biggest stress has been deciding which chick-flick to watch that night or whether we should save some of our freshly baked desserts for the guys or not.  (Usually not.)  Good lazy days.  We'll see the guys at the end of the week hopefully!

september

It's September!  This week has totally been satisfying my desire to quit summer with its cool, rainy days, thunder storms at night, apples falling off the wild tree across the street, and everything outside turning yellow and orange and starting to close up shop.  I told myself I should savour summer because it only lasts so long, but I'm preggo and too hot and just plain done.  I love that it's September 1st!

But, the biggest reason I'm loving September 1st is because our dear friends, the Browns, are coming today!  Tonight I'll drive out to Saskatoon to pick them up from the airport - they're currently sitting out 5 hours at a mid-way layover - and then we get to keep them for a good 10 days!  Derek is teaching a mini-semester course, so he and Levi will be kept quite busy at the college, but us girls have no plans but to visit and play.  So excited!  Hurry up, time!