Teeth and a Growth Spurt

Deagan has been working on 4 teeth coming in at the same time. They have been popping through and then receding again which has made him grumpy. To top it off we are pretty sure he is going through a growth as he is eating a ton and his sleeping pattern has changed. We have had 4 nights now of sleeping only 2-3 hours at a time which he hasn't done since he was 6 weeks old. However we have it very lucky, even when he is being "miserable" he's a happier than normal baby. He barely ever cries and when he does it doesn't really sound like a cry and it last for a max of a couple of minutes. He is our very happy, easy going baby. 

Thanks for Reading :)

I swear I cleaned

Ever have one of those cleaning days were you get really stuck on details thinking it wont take much work. Next thing you know you have got that one little space cleaned up only to turn around to what looks like a bomb has gone off. Without even realizing it you have pulled out sooo much other stuff that even though that one little spot looks awesome the rest of the space looks awful. Today was one of those cleaning days in our house, I brought home a desk to finally organize my sewing area which I did but in order to bring the desk in I had to move a whole bunch of stuff around. Now in my living room there are boxes of pictures that still need to go on walls, boxes that should have never been in the house in the first place as they have camping gear in them, and stacks of Christmas stuff that need to be put in bins and put away....Ahhh but my sewing corner looks nice :D does that count? Not to mention I decided to do all of this with a pulled muscle in my back which is now telling where I can shove it; not the smartest idea I have ever had. Seriously, here I should be taking advantage of the fact that Brendan is home all day to help with the boys so I can take it easy on my back and instead I'm making more work for myself. Does anyone else do this? Does anyone else feel the need to do projects instead of relax and end up making more projects for themselves? It is a never ending cycle in my house. Anyways, until tomorrow folks :)

Thanks for reading :)

Leappad Explorer 2 Review

I was sure I hit publish on this one but apparently not.

   Kyler's main gift at Christmas was the Leapfrog Leappad 2. We purchased just the tablet and asked family to buy extras for it. Most people didn't in fear of getting him the same thing but that leaves us with multiple gift ideas for his birthday too. Anyways, we have been on a couple of longer road trips since Kyler got the leappad and has been used quite a bit so I thought I would do a review.
   We purchased the Leappad from Best Buy during Black Friday week sales for $89.99 CAD (it's usually $109.99 CAD). The tablet comes with a 4GB memory, an attached stylus,  5" screen, headphone jack, USB port, power adapter, and 5 apps Pet Pad, LeapFrog Learning Songs, Art Studio, one app of your choice and Cartoon Director app, which lets you create, direct and narrate your very own movies. It requires 4AA batteries which are not included or there is the option to buy a rechargeable battery pack for $39.99 CAD. Depending on how often you are using the tablet I would suggest getting the battery pack. We did a trip to our local ski hill (1 hour trip one way) and a trip to Vancouver (4 hour trip one way) and we had to change the batteries part of the way home so I would say it was used for a total of 10 hours (including use down in Vancouver) before the batteries died. The battery life is really my only complaint with this device my only other slight complaint is that I wish they had more games and more affordable games (most games are in the $25 range however there are some apps from $5-$30).

Rechargeable Battery Pack

   Other than battery life and the lack of affordable apps I have nothing bad to say about this product. It is designed grow with your child so is good for a child ages 3-9, starts up quickly, age appropriate apps, has 2 cameras for taking pictures, and is motion and sound sensitive.
   Kyler is 2.5 years old and knows how to navigate the tablet with very little help. Anytime we get a new app we have to teach him how it works otherwise he knows how to turn it on, sign into his profile, and select and play his apps. He loves the painting app, the pet shop game, the story book reader, taking picture, Hampster Music, and his Chuggington Videos. The apps that we have downloaded are geared for his age group but there are more challenging apps for older kids as well. As your child gets more involved in the games they can earn badges which tracks their progress. When plugged into a computer parents can then track this progress and see how well their children are doing.
   Speaking of apps I like that the recommended age for the apps is correct. I find a lot of times that when something give a suggested age group it is usually geared to the older age group than the younger age group. Most of the younger kid apps are geared for ages 3-5. Kyler is 2.5 and loves all of his apps and knows how to use them but his older cousin who is 4.5 also likes all the games that are on the Leappad. So the suggested age ranges are actually correct which is nice, you don't have to worry if the app is going to be appropriate for your child.
   Another one of my favorite things I like about the Leappad is that it starts up really quickly so Kyler doesn't grow impatient with it loading. We are still working on patients with Kyler to a timely start up is important to keep his attention.
   One of Kyler's favorite features is the cameras. It has a front and back camera which take both video and pictures. Kyler like that he doesn't have to ask us to use our camera, that he can just grab his "puter" and can take his on pictures. He loves running around the house and taking pictures of EVERYTHING. For being a toy the camera does take pretty good photos and Kyler loves showing off his pictures to grandparents.
   Lastly another neat feature to the Leappad 2 is that it is motion and sound sensitive. There are racing games that involve you moving the tablet in certain directions in order to steer the vehicle. They also have games like Pet Shop where you have to take care of your pet. One thing you have to do is wash your pet which includes drying your pet. To dry your pet you have to blow into the microphone in order to activate the hairdryer. Kyler loves washing his "pet."
   All in all we love our leappad 2 and so does Kyler. It kept us sane on our road trips because instead of having to bring multiple items Kyler was able to read stories, watch videos, play games, color, and take pictures all in one. We didn't have to constantly keep changing out DVD's in the portable dvd player or find all the dropped crayons when he was done coloring it was all packed into this one device. It captures Kyler's attention and gives him hours of entertainment. I would give this product a 9/10 only because of it's low battery life.

Not Much

Other than going sledding, and fort building with friends we didn't do much. While unloading the boys out of the van I pulled a muscle in my back and have been laying flat on my back. My dad came over while Brendan was at work to help me out with the boys. He helped me make dinner, get both boys bathed, and ready for bed which was really nice so I could rest. The boys also really enjoyed getting to spend so much one on one time with their Poohpa. With my parents separation last year and my dad working as a truck driver they don't get to see their Poohpa very often so it was some good quality time. Wish our day was more eventful but sadly no. Tomorrow should be a little more eventful :)

Flashback photo: My Dad and Kyler (2 weeks old) together when we lived with my parents.

Thanks for Reading :)

Homemade Corndogs :)

So every time I post a recipe it never seems to be a healthy one and this one isn't going to be any different. Brendan was craving corndogs today so he decided he would try and make his own and they turned out pretty good. We were using every basic ingredients which also makes this a nice recipe because you really don't need much in the way of ingredients. So here you go our version of homemade corndogs.

Ingredients:
4 Hotdogs
1 Cup Flour
1 Tbsp Sugar
1 Tsp Baking powder
1 Egg
Milk
1 1/2 Cup Oil


This recipe will make 4 corndogs
 


Directions:
1- In a large fry pan heat oil over med/high heat. We do the water test to check temp if you put 1 drop of water into oil and it rapidly bubbles the oil is hot enough. (if oil isn't hot enough dough will get soggy)
2- In a medium size bowl mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, and egg. If you have a stand mixer use it with your dough hook attachment
3- While dough mixes cook hotdogs either in the microwave or in water. You want to cook them till they are warm and no longer cold. (in microwave about 45 seconds)
4- once ingredients are mixed together slowly add milk. You want to add enough milk that dough forms without becoming sticky. Should make a nice ball.
5- Divide dough into 4 parts and roll out each section into a rectangle big enough to fit around the hotdog.
6- Once dough is rolled out wrap around hotdog and press together so dough completely covers hotdogs
7- Place corndogs in the heated oil and cook till golden brown. You will need to rotate them so as to cook all of the dough and cook all the way around.
8- Once Golden brown remove from oil and place on some paper towel (to absorb excess oil)
9- Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving
10- Serve with you choice of mustard or ketchup and enjoy!!!

Please let me know if you try this recipe and what you thought :D



Thank you for Reading :)

Soccer

We Love Soccer

During the winter months a local parent group puts together a soccer play date at our local indoor soccer field. We started going last winter and Kyler really enjoys it so we have been going almost every time they hold this event. It's at least once a month, if not more, and you grab a ball and go kick it around. There isn't an actual structure even but it's a full soccer field to run around on and get out of the house in the middle of winter. The event is for kids 0-5 years and it's perfect for these ages. We take Deagan with us and him and other babies will group together in one area of the field where the little ones can just sit and play on blankets while the older kids run around on the field. Kyler has enjoyed it so much I can't wait for him to turn three so that we can enroll him in Kick-and-Run which is little kid soccer. Both boys have a great time and Kyler looks forward to it every time.

Thanks for Reading :)

Look Back

I have been cleaning up space on my computer today and kept coming across pictures of Brendan and I and us with our boys for the last few years. I thought I would make a post with all the pictures so that they were all in one place and I could see how much life has changed in just a few short years. Let take a little trip down memory lane and I hope you enjoy as much as I do.

Brendan and I first met a year before we actually started dating. We were both working at a local auto parts store when we met. Our first interaction would be one to sure leave its mark.... We were hanging out in the back shipping area when Brendan decided he was going to be a bad @$$ and start wielding around a box knife as if it were a sword. I threw my hands up while asking him what he was doing and just as I was reaching my hand up Brendan cut my with the box cutter.  Completely by accident but he cut open my finger. Yup, isn't that romantic? Love at first blood :) Most girls would have probably run for the hills but I had a thing for him so I did flirt a little but Brendan was to shy to say that he liked me too. I quit working at Lordco and didn't really see much of him but kept him as a friend on Facebook. A year later we had both gotten out of relationships and started talking to each other about how stupid the opposite sex was. Well after venting to each other about how much the opposite sex had been driving us nuts we decided to hang out and after hanging out a couple time we started dating November of 2008.
This picture was taken on a camping trip our first summer together. We had only been dating for 10 months at this point and decided going camping with my sister and her girlfriend would be a good idea. We did have a lot of fun this trip but I also got burnt to a crisp which is why I look so tired in this picture.

A little over our one year anniversary we found out I was pregnant. This was one of the photos my friend took for me when I was 5 months pregnant.

Couple months later, at 39weeks, on June 13, 2010  Kyler Henry John was born and we started our happy little family.

Then we decided that we wanted to get married. We both knew we wanted to get married we just didn't know when. So, we decided that we wanted to do it while Kyler was still young so his memories would always be of his mommy and daddy together. These were some of our engagement photos. February 2011

 I graduated from university with my Bachelors of Education degree in June 2011.

We got married July 30, 2011

February 10, 2012 (6 months pregnant)

We knew after we were married we wanted to start expanding our family. Our very first cycle after we got married we got pregnant with Deagan. However we kept his gender a secret till the day he was born so we waited anxiously for his arrival.

These were some of my pregnancy photos which ended up being the day before Deagan was born.















Then on May 10, 2012 (37.5 weeks) our family of 3 became a family of 4 as Deagan James Levi joined our family.

We are enjoying every minute together and watching our boys grow. We have now been together for four years, married for one, have a 2 year old and a 8 month old, and we love every minute of it.

 Thanks for Reading :)