Under the great big sky

Wednesday, 9 January 2013

One year!

one of our very first family pictures. A VERY fresh baby, tired mama and proud papa!

Our precious Bronwen Elaine is one year old today. It's hard to believe that a year ago at this time, I was in labour (to be very specific, I was probably in the bathtub of my hospital room working my way through each contraction as they got increasingly stronger!)

At 2:21 pm she came into this world... crying and pink and eyes wide open. "It's a girl!". Funny, I think that if they had said she was a boy I would have been surprised. By the end of my pregnancy I was mostly convinced that there was a girl in there.

a couple hours old.. cross eyed and pink and fresh!

On a child's first birthday, they don't really realize much about the fact, but I think that it is more of a milestone for the parents! The end of the first year of parenting. Of figuring out what to do with this little squishy lump you brought home from the hospital, gingerly strapping them into a car seat and having them be entirely your responsibility! Moving through sleep deprivation, hormonal roller coasters, figuring out breastfeeding and when the little human sleeps and eats and cries and poops. Going from only breastmilk to mushy fruits to whole pieces of beef! (a progression that happened pretty fast for our little gourmet, she even likes smoked oysters and pickled herring-- must be the Claus genes). Sneakily moving off her playmat to rolling over, sitting, crawling, standing, walking, almost-running!

It's been a wonderful year. Though I don't really get to sleep in anymore ever, though our house is often a mess, though we can't just go out spontaneously in an evening and everything just takes a lot longer... these things are so, so minor compared to the JOY that Bronwen brings to our lives. It is amazing to watch her grow and exhibit her unique little personality.. she is a little fireball sometimes! A little independent lady.

Bronwen, we are so blessed to be your mum and dad, and we are excited to keep going in this fun journey of raising you! Here's to your second year, and however many more God blesses us with you after that.

Tuesday, 8 January 2013

Home!

We arrived back in St. John's in the wee hours on Sunday morning, after a wonderful two week vacation in Ontario. It was really nice to see so many friends and family and catch up on their lives. I feel like we keep in pretty good touch with a lot of our loved ones who are far away, and have a basic idea of what is going on in their lives. But there's nothing like sitting down and having a real visit over coffee!

Christmas was extra special this year with it being Bronwen's very first Christmas... and since she was at the very end of her first year, she made the most of the experience I think! The gifts that she got were for the most part not terribly interesting from her point of view. Thankfully my family is very practical and she received two sweaters, a bib, two onesies, a book, and a wooden stacker toy... pretty useful items that she needed anyway, and a fun toy that fits in with our simple toy theme around here.

It is cold and snowy in St. John's, but since that it pretty standard for January I am okay with it. We are (fairly) cozy inside and when it's not too windy, it's still nice enough to get outside for a walk.

It is nice to be home though. Today I made cranberry lemon muffins, cleaned the bathroom, and have a batch of yogurt cooking. Doesn't sound like much I guess, but interspersed with all the usual toddler chasing/ picking up after/ feeding/ etc and the regular household stuff, it's a few more things off my to-do list to get settled in again.

This Saturday I am working my first shift! Thankfully I get to have an orientation, so I will be assigned with someone instead of having my own patients. I feel very rusty and like I don't remember what to do, so it'll be nice to be paired up with someone. Brian and Bronwen will have some good father-daughter bonding time in my 12 hr absence. We're not exactly sure yet how it's all going to happen with when and how much I work.. will have to see how things go.

Will post more pictures later! Here are a couple in the meantime..

Bronwen loving running around the airport!

in Toronto while waiting for our flight home

The Bergshoeff Family gathering on New Year's Day. These people have been through so much this year- especially Uncle Harold and Aunt Donna, Leah + Brandon, Corey, Elise and Mitch, Travis, Opa and Oma... and yet they still continue onward with honesty, joy and grace. And still many tears. We love you guys!

Saturday, 22 December 2012

Ready to go!

The bags are packed and waiting by the door. Dishes and diapers are washed. Christmas tree got the boot to the back yard, car seat is out of the car, thermostat turned down, laundry done. Library books returned and Christmas cards delivered. We are leaving for Ontario in the early morning... Woohoo! Looking forward to see lots of friends and family soon. Unfortunately, since we live so far away from both sides of our family, there are always people that we don't get to see over the holidays.. We will be thinking of the Claus family together in Northern BC! Safe holiday travels, everyone...

Tuesday, 11 December 2012

December days

Well, it's raining buckets outside and Bronwen is napping (probably not for much longer) so this is a good chance to get a little post in. I have to say, Newfoundland weather is just so.... unpredictable Yesterday we had clear blue skies and a biting, bitter 70 km wind that would "freeze da arse right off ya". (yup, that's what they say). Today it is raining and 11 degrees.

I can't believe that it is already December 11. It's been fun to do little Christmasy things here and there. My friend Kara made me a gingerbread house, or at least the pieces for it.. she was making a batch using a new mold she got from Lee Valley. I gladly accepted one as last year I was struggling with cutting out stencils out of cereal boxes. This was a lot easier. After a little trip to the Bulk Barn (I love the Bulk Barn!) I was ready to put it together. I tried to make icing for it... but was trying to ignore the fact that it was supposed to have "stiff peaks". I learned my lesson. If something calls for stiff peaks and you are using it as 'glue', less-than-stiff peaks will mean a house that collapses. Luckily, Brian saved the day. And made excellent stiffly-peaked icing for me. Here is the finished product.

Also, our friends Brianne and Robert had a beautiful baby girl on Saturday night! Her name is Zoey, and she is very cute. On Friday Brianne spent the rainy afternoon here with Bronwen and I and we drank tea and ate cookies. The next day, she went into labour! (must have been the cookies.. haha, just kidding). I was very excited to receive a phone call from Brianne on Sunday morning.

Bronwen is 11 months old now! Time really does fly. She is taking little steps here and there and is very proud of herself for doing so. She is a big eater and loves to spend a good half hour picking at little bits of food on her high chair tray... which is nice when mother is trying to make supper.

Also, we discovered another play group in the city and it`s great! For those of you unfamiliar with the world of little kids these days.. often towns and cities have drop-in `playgroups`, where there are all sorts of toys and moms can pop in with their kids aged 0-5. It`s a great way to get out of the house, meet other moms, and just have a change of scenery in general. We found one that is just about a 10 minute walk away. They also have free coffee, and a snack for the kiddies half way through (cheese, fishy crackers, and fruit.. and everyone gets a sippy cup!). It`s nice to have some adult conversation as well and meet other stay at home moms.

Bronwen and her buddy Lyla

Monday, 3 December 2012

Christmas is coming!

In keeping with all the other blog posts about Christmas lately-- I thought I would show you what things look like around here these days! This is the story of how 309 Empire Ave got decorated for Christmas...