creativelykate

22 weeks   It's a GIRL!!!!   We're very excited to announce that we'll be welcoming another little girl into our family early this summer.  This will be our second daughter, making our family of six almost completely equal...2 boys, 2 girls and our male dog Cody (now we just need a female dog -ha!). I've never been so excited to know the gender.  For those of you wondering we've always found out what we were having (although with baby Jack it wasn't exactly planned).  I guess I'm one of those people who likes to be prepared, plus I can't stand not knowing!  The funny thing is, before I got pregnant with #4 my hubby and I had decided if we had another child he or she would be the big surprise...this was in part due to our experience with #3.  During my pregnancy with baby Jack, we actually managed to go 39 weeks without knowing whether we were having a boy or a girl, then in the final days I accidently opened the envelope the do...

  Two weeks ago we packed up the car on a Thursday evening and headed across Ontario...our destination was Ottawa.  The purpose of our trip was to introduce the kids to Winterlude , our Capital's celebration of winter.  It was also an opportunity to visit with two very good friends.  Thankfully they opened up their home to us and gave us a comfortable place to stay for 3 days.  Our mini vacay was the ultimate winter getaway, giving us the opportunity to spend quality time together with two wonderful hosts, and of course many opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors.  That being said, traveling with 3 young kids half way across the province is no easy task.  Regardless of how prepared you think you are there are always a few lessons to be learned... We set out for Ottawa around 7pm, just after stopping at McDonald's for dinner (a special treat the kiddies had been looking forward to for weeks).  At the l...

I think with any pregnancy, whether it be your first or your fourth, you'll have no problem finding something to worry about.  It definitely doesn't get easier, but rather each pregnancy is very different and often you're faced with a whole new set of worries and concerns.  I think it just comes with the territory...once I became a mom I started to worry about everything.  Over the past five years I've experienced a roller coaster of emotions as I've transitioned from being single without children to married with three kids and a fourth on the way.  It doesn't help that with pregnancy comes a multitude of hormonal changes, which ultimately affect your emotions and behaviour.  For me, trying to find a healthy balance between completely crazy and somewhat normal has totally come down to taking care of my whole self and of course having a wonderful support system made up of family, friends and yes, even medical professionals....

  With Valentine's Day just around the corner I decided to compile a list of some of my favourite ideas to make this holiday fun for the entire family.  Hopefully you'll find some inspiration...I know I sure did! Fun loving snacks and meals: I've tried very similar ideas in the past but the kiddies love it when I pull out the heart-shaped cookie cutters and get creative with their meals.  I'm especially excited to make the strawberry pancakes with sprinkles in them.  Those are going to be a sure hit in our household!             Valentine cards and gifts for school/day care friends This year I'm feeling relieved because my oldest son only has 6 students in his class (including himself), which means I can step it up a notch with the gifts we give to his classmates.  He's such a fan of LEGO so I think we'll be choosing that option, although I love the idea of homemade Valentine crackers ...