Joining the 21st Century

Well I thought it would be about time that we joined everyone on this blogging journey and share with you what's been going on in our lives! We've been in the USA now for just over 6 months and have been enjoying it quit a bit. Being only 4 hours from Vegas and 4 hours from Reno, we've made quit a few trips to the big cities. We prefer Reno for shopping and doctor appointments and Vegas for when we want to "do something fun!!" It's pretty crazy and a little stressful with kids but we are going there for spring break!

I'm staying busy at home. I've been hard at losing weight finally too. I've hit about the 30 lb loss mark and it feels great but still have a long way to go. I can't believe I've stayed this dedicated but once you see the results, you wanna keep going! I've been involved with the church quite a bit too. I play piano every Sunday, go to a ladies bible study once a week, ladies luncheon once a month, craft group twice a month and joined the ladies ministry team and we're planning to go to Lake Tahoe in April for a ladies retreat. I'm really looking forward to that. It's nice to get away from the hectic life of a mother and wife and bond with other women in Christ! It's so nice to be in a church that's not struggling and has a strong ladies ministry. The girls love going to Sunday School and Kids Club once a week too!

Alyssa is doing awesome in "first grade" (it's not grade one down here!!). She loves being the helper and frequently gets rewards for her good behaviour (obviously taking after her mother!!) She has started tumbling 2 days a week for six weeks and goes to Girl Scouts once a week. She starts Little League (t-ball) soon and is looking forward to that. She's following in her grandma and mom's footsteps and has picked up card making and scrap booking. She's getting quite good at the cards and puts her mom to shame. She's a bit of a perfectionist and gets frustrated when something doesn't happen "just right!!" We've made an appointment for her too with a podiatrist in Reno. Her ankles/arches are falling quite a bit inward and has worried me for the past few years so I figured it was about time we do something about it before it gets worse. Other than that, she's doing great!! Here she is enjoying her afghan made for her by grandma Mary!!

Brooklyn is doing great too! She has started going to daycare twice a week for preschool and craft day. Preschool is 3 days a week but I'm not ready for her to be gone that long! She is just as happy staying at home with me. She plays so well by herself that I sometimes forget she's home!! She has a little group of friends and LOVES her Sunday School teacher "Jennifa" (Jennifer-the pastors wife). We had a little scare with her health wise. There was a horrible cold and virus, RSV, going around and we thought she might have it so she had chest xrays and nasal swabs done but luckily they came back negative. It was just a really bad cold. It was so bad that the first night she was up all night wheezing and freaking me out. But now we're all healthy and doing fine. Here's Brooklyn also enjoying her afghan!

And oh yeah, there's Chris!! He's doing good. He's liking work more and has already received 2 raises in the six months he's been there so he's really been enjoying the pay checks!! It's so nice to not be living pay check to pay check anymore. He's been itching to get on the golf course here. It's only closed for one month out of the year but hasn't found a golf buddy yet and golfing with me isn't much fun for him!! He's gone to Vegas this weekend with my parents and Norm Ladoucuer to see the Nascar races.

We're heading back up north for the July 1st hoopla and we're all looking forward to that. We haven't been home since we left in August so we're all anxious to see friends and family!! Well I think this is a big enough update. I'll try and keep the information current on us so you can have a peek into our lives!!