2012 Photo card and Christmas Letter!

(the first photo shoot of my family done my moi (thank you self timer)!  many more to come!)

We’ve had a happy, busy 2012 here in the Cameron household!

Blake turned 5 on May 5^th and started Kindergarten this fall at Ecole Bishop Savaryn elementary school.  He is in a French Immersion program and so far we are happy with our choice!  He is learning so much, it is amazing how his French vocabulary expands each week.  He is really enjoying Kindergarten and making many new friends (there seems to be a birthday party to attend nearly every weekend!).  As for extracurricular activities, Blake has been busy with hockey and swimming lessons.  He moved up to Initiation 2 in hockey this year, which means a practice on Saturday and a game on Sunday.  He loves it and has the biggest grin on his face, each time he is on the ice.  It is so sweet after each game he will say, “I touched the puck __ times today!”  Blake continues to love swimming lessons and is very excited about learning how to swim underwater!  He is still quite tall for his age, tallest in his class, which has us replacing his pants every few months!!  I can’t believe how fast he grows and I wonder if he’ll slow down soon or will he tower over Cal and I before we know it?!  Blake is even more LEGO crazed this year, his LEGO collection has increased and he spends hours building LEGO, and reading LEGO instructions and his LEGO magazines.  He is still our serious, thoughtful boy who thinks things over thoroughly!  I see a lot of Cal in him!

     

Emerson turned 3 on February 16^th and started preschool in September.  Last year she went to preschool at the YMCA with Blake for the last few months of the school year but this year she is at a new preschool and attends Tuesday and Thursday mornings.  She has such a great time; she absolutely adores her teachers and class.  We really enjoy seeing the excitement on her face as she runs out of class to greet us!  Emerson’s extracurricular activities are a dance class (combined ballet/jazz/tap) and swimming lessons.  She is sooo excited for each class and tells us many, many stories of her time in dance, swimming and preschool (not all are to be believed!!)!  Seeing her so excited and happy, warms our hearts.  Emerson is still very girly, we cannot get her to wear a pair of pants (unless we’re public skating but even then, she will often wear a tutu over her pants!!)!  She twirls around the house, dancing everywhere and saying, “Look at this!  Look at me!  Can you do this?”  She has the dance bug, that is for sure!  We’re excited for her dance recital at the end of the season (not until June).  Emerson can be a bit moody but is really very sweet and so kind.  She has this soft side that has really emerged since Reese was born.  She’s very nurturing and motherly :)

Our youngest peanut, Reese, turned 2 on November 19^th.  I truly felt as though it should have been her 1^st birthday, not her 2^nd!  Unbelievable how fast her first 2 years have gone by.  Reese enjoys the music/play/craft program we go to at the YMCA.  She loves singing and dancing and making crafts (the glue sticks are a big draw!)!  Reese loooooves her swimming lessons and has no problem being under water!!  She is certainly the baby of the family … she has us all, including Blake and Emerson, wrapped around her little finger!  When she speaks, you hear her!!  But just like Emerson, she has a very nurturing/soft side that is evident when either of her siblings is sad and she spends hours each day taking care of her babies (feeding, bathing, and cuddling), it is adorable :)

Cal is busy at work and at home.  He is in his 14^th year of employment with TELUS and has recently been designated as a mobile employee, which means he is at the downtown office once every few weeks and works out of home or at the wire centre closest to our house the remainder of the time.  He is loving this transition!  He gets so much more work done, away from the distractions of the typical office!!  He is quite busy right now, covering a few different positions but we are not complaining … the overtime makes it easier!!  Cal completed his 3^rd half marathon this summer, with a personal best finish.  It was a great weekend, with Blake participating in the kid’s event and good friends also running in the 10K and ½ marathon.  He is looking forward to running in his 2^nd Hypo-half marathon at the end of February.  Cal is an assistant coach for Blake’s hockey team and is really enjoying the jump up to Initiation 2.  He is often the on-ice coach during the games and has a great time with his team!      

I am enjoying our new fall routine.  Busy with driving kids to school and activities but very blessed that Cal can come home and run Blake or Em to school if need be.  I am glad Blake is in ½ day kindergarten and I still have quite a bit of time with him at home.  They grow up so fast, I want to savour every minute!  When kindergarten first started, the girls and I felt a bit lost without Blake but we have adjusted!  We still give him big hugs every afternoon when he gets off the bus (he takes the bus home from school) J  I took the plunge in January and joined a friend in a Russian kettlebell fitness class.  It has been the best thing I’ve done for myself in a long, long time!!  I feel great and really enjoy not only the exercise but the friendships that have formed.  I also attend a yoga class every now and then and have fallen in love with yoga!   I’ve tried other yoga classes and have not enjoyed them near as much!  I think it’s all in the instructor!  I wish I had more time for yoga but maybe one day!  I am still very busy with Cameron’s Closet, my online consignment business.  I now have two helpers, which has been a huge success!  I’m always on the lookout for other part time opportunities that still allow me to stay home with the kids but so far nothing has popped up! 

Our time away from home this year began with our annual May long weekend camping trip to Cross Lake.  We had a great time but realized our trailer was definitely too small for our family of 5!!  This lead to posting the trailer on Kijiji and eventually selling it.  We were sad to see it drive away, there are so many great memories that revolve around that trailer!  But we are excited to spend the upcoming camping season in our new trailer, making new memories!!  In July we rented a cabin on Lac la Biche.  We had a great time, spending most of our days on the beach and at the playground and our evenings around the fire pit!  Our other travels this year, included trips to Fort McMurray (one by myself in February to meet my new nephew and one for a girls weekend with my Mom, sister and kids while Cal and the guys went on a quadding/fishing trip), two trips to Grande Prairie (love visiting friends and family up north!), a trip to Calgary with one of my best friends for a girls weekend (sooo much fun!), a family trip to Calgary (we met Cal’s sister Carmen and family for a fun day at the Zoo) and Cal and I took a trip to Denver at the end of October (great time away, enjoyed the R&R and most especially finally saw Peyton Manning live at a Bronco’s game!!).

We are wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas and all the best in the New Year!  Hopefully our paths will cross in 2013 :)

xoxo Tracy, Cal, Blake, Emerson and Reese

Fun weekend!

Ready for our sleigh ride :)

Friday evening after swimming lessons, we rushed over the Candy Cane Lane for our 4th annual sleigh ride!!  It was a gorgeous night outside, not too cold and the perfect evening for a sleigh ride.  We had so much fun, singing carols and enjoying the lights.  Blake and Em love the sleigh ride but we weren't sure how Reese would react.  Well, turns out Reese LOVED the sleigh ride too!!!  She was pointing to lights and singing Jingle Bells over and over.  It was really cute and so heart warming :) 

Saturday afternoon was Blake and Cal's hockey Christmas party, which the whole family was invited to!  We had fun, the kids ran around and played mini sticks while we visited with other parents and got to know each other a bit more!  Although it is Blake's 'team', the entire family is enjoying meeting new people and making new friends :)  Reese and Em now spend games and practices playing dolls and Barbies with their friends while I chat with the ladies!  

Sunday morning, Blake and Em were in the Christmas pageant at Church, both dressed as Shepard's.  It was very cute and a great production, with the older kids playing 'acting' roles, primarily Mary, Joseph and Elizabeth.  They did a fabulous job, putting in a lot of rehearsal time and practice!  The Church school kids (ages 3, 4 and 5) sang "Go Tell it on the Mountain" complete with actions and the congregation joined in with them the 2nd time around, it was awesome!!!  Sunday afternoon Cal's Dad, a.k.a. Grandpa Bruce, came over and we went to Blake's hockey game.  It was fun to have Bruce there and hear stories of Cal's younger days in minor hockey!  Bruce thought all the boys were really good skaters for their age and enjoyed watching Blake!  Blake came so close to scoring his first goal, it was an intense moment!!!  We had Bruce over for supper after the game and the kids kept him busy ;)  It was great to see him!

We are all done our Christmas shopping, thanks to Cal and I spending the majority of a day at Dollarama, Superstore, Walmart and Kingsway Mall!!!  Thank you to Grandma D for holding the fort down and allowing us to do some power shopping :)  I am awaiting the arrival of a few gifts that I ordered from the States.  They were ordered in November and are still not here :(  I'm REALLY hoping they arrive soon!!!  Tonight, we hope to get the majority of our wrapping done!

The kids have all been under the weather this week.  Reese woke up from her nap on Tuesday afternoon and puked all over her crib :(  But other then that 1 incident she has been fine, so hopefully that was an extremely short-lived bug!!!  Blake has a terrible cough, very phlegmy and if he was a baby I think he'd have croup!  No fever or any other symptoms, so that is good.  I kept him home from school yesterday but today he went because it is 'Winter Fun Day' and they were going on a horse drawn sleigh ride and had many other fun events planned!  I emailed Mme. Emilie to let her know he has a bad cough but no fever, etc. so hopefully no one is upset I sent him?!  Poor Emerson was really sick yesterday evening/night/early this morning :(  As we arrived at dance class yesterday evening, she puked all over herself and the car seat.  She was so sad and so upset that she was missing her dance class :(  I ran Miss Jessica's present in to her and headed home with Em.  She was sick to her stomach all night but so far she has been good today!  Again, hoping this is a short-lived bug!!  And hoping no one else catches it.  We have not been sick for so long, it has been awesome but I guess every now and then everyone has a turn!  Here's hoping everyone is feeling 100% by Christmas Eve :)

Good luck with your last minute Christmas preparations.  I still have a lot of baking I want to get done and of course, wrapping!!!  

xo Tracy

   

Christmas Concert's!!

Blake, ready to go rock his Christmas concert!!

Blake performing, "Quand le pere Noel vient me visiter"

Blake decorating his tree!

Thursday, December 13th we attended both Emerson's and Blake's Christmas functions at their schools!  We had a great time at both!!  Emerson's preschool class wore Santa hats and beards while singing Jingle Bells, Santa Claus is Coming to Town and We Wish You a Merry Christmas, all with actions!!  So cute :)  Emerson did a fantastic job, we were so proud of her :)  After the concert, Santa visited the classroom and we had a pot luck snack.  It was nice that Blake didn't have school on Thursday and we were able to attend all together :)  

Blake's Christmas concert was Thursday evening.  Blake was extremely excited!!!  The French immersion KG class, the English KG class and the two 100 Voices preschool classes all performed on Friday night, finishing with a grande finale "We Wish You a Merry Christmas", all performed together (close to 100 students!)!  They did such a great job, very entertaining with their fun actions and singing their hearts out :)  Blake's class sang a song about Santa in French, which was very impressive and the English KG class sang a beautiful song about baby Jesus.  After all the music, there was snacks and a all the kids got to decorate a Christmas tree (waffle cone with green icing and candies!)!  It was a nice evening and we were so proud of Blake's performance :)  

Emerson's preschool class, ready to perform!  (Em is the last child on the far right)

Our family at Emerson's Christmas party!

Proud as punch :)

Blake received a 'Justice' award at school last week :)  Cal attended the assembly on Friday morning.  After receiving the award (a certificate), Blake and the other award recipients got to go to the teachers lounge with the principal and vice principal to decorate cupcakes!  The Justice award is based around the phrase, "Knowing when to talk and knowing when to listen."  Justice is defined as, just behavior and treatment of others and also the quality of being fair and reasonable.  Blake was very excited for this award and when I asked him why he was getting the award, he told me, "For being nice to others and helping out my friends and teacher."  So cute!!  He was also very excited that Maxx and Gavin were getting an award too and remarked, "That's so neat!  They are two of my best friends!"  We're so proud of him and the glowing reviews and feedback we hear from his teacher.  Way to go Blake!!

Emerson had her entire preschool class (teachers and classmates) believing that she was going to Disney World this week.  Seriously, this girl has an imagination and can tell a story like you wouldn't believe!!  After preschool on Tuesday, Mrs. Chong asked me when we were leaving for Disney World.  I told her we weren't.  She looked at me with a confused look on her face and said, "Oh?  Emerson told us she was going to Disney World this week."  I said, "No, we're not!!"  We had a good laugh, Mrs. Chong told me that the whole class was so excited and Emerson was just vibrating she was so excited ... OMG!!!!  I wonder if now the teachers will believe me when I say, she tells stories?!  What a gal!!!  

Reese has changed so much in the last month!  It is amazing how much she has 'grown up', unbelievable.  Her vocabulary, her behaviour, everything!  She is obsessed with her teddy that she sleeps with!  She calls it her baby and Baby has to do everything and be everywhere - eating at the table, having its clothes changed, its diaper changed, Baby is often hungry or thirsty or cold or sleeping.  It is really cute!!!  She takes very good care of Baby and what tugs at my heart strings the most is when I see her giving Baby a kiss and hug :)  Sweet, sweet, SWEET!!!  Almost makes me want to make Reese a big sister ;)  Almost ... but NOPE!!!  lol!  Reese is still very cuddly and lovey dovey, more so then Blake and Em.  She randomly says, "I love you Mommy.  And I love Daddy and Blakey and Emmy (this is what she calls Emerson!)."  I ADORE it!!!  Blake and Em are not so free with the "I love you's!"  I do feel sorry for Emerson at times, though.  Reese loves her sooooo much, she wants to be by her side and playing with her alllll the time!!  I've never seen it bother Emerson, she goes along with whatever Reese requests (ahem ... yells at her!) but I cant' help but think Reese is a pain in Em's side some days!!  She literally yells at Emerson, "EMMMMY!  Come upstairs Emmy!  In the bedroom Emmy!  Come play Emmy!"  LOL!!  And Emerson goes along with it!  She is so good with Reese, it is amazing!  I suppose she enjoys it, I don't know?!  I just know that sometimes when I'm observing these interactions, I can't help but wonder why Emerson hasn't told her off!  I'm sure it will come one day!  lol!!  And such is life with a sister ;)

We've been busy around here, getting ready for Christmas and getting in the spirit!  We hosted our Mom's group Christmas party this past weekend.  We had 11 kids and 9 adults over.  We had fun, making Reindeer food for Christmas Eve, opening gifts, enjoying a yummy dinner and playing and visiting!  Today, my Mom babysat the kids while Cal and I went Christmas shopping.  We are pretty much done, I think I have 1 more gift to pick up!  Tomorrow morning is Emerson's preschool Christmas concert and tomorrow evening is Blake's Christmas concert!  We're really looking forward to both concerts!!  Friday evening we are taking our annual Candy Cane Lane sleigh ride!  Can't wait for that!  The kids are very excited to see the horses and all the lights!  And then Saturday morning before Blake's hockey practice, we have a hockey Christmas party!  So many fun events happening!!  Love this time of year :)

Have a great weekend!

xo
Tracy 

Marvelous Monday!

We just had a great Monday!!  Love starting out the week with a great day :)

This morning we met my Mom at Servus Place, for a swim date (followed by Starbucks of course :))!  We haven't taken the kids swimming (other then swimming lessons) for such a long time, we were long over due!!  We had a great time, our kids are seriously little fish ... from Blake and Em swimming underwater (Em with her eyes WIDE open), back floating, front floating, splashing, jumping, Blake and Cal riding the waterslides, floating down the lazy river, Reese has no fear ... it's a lot of fun!  They could be in the water allllll day!  And we saw that this summer, especially at Eric and Christa's cabin.  They didn't want to get out of the lake ;)  Blake had a PD day, and I was wondering if we'd see anyone we knew and sure enough, we saw Evie from his class!!  They played together quite a bit, splashing around and having fun!  Blake also went to preschool with Evie, so he knows her quite well.  While we were swimming I kept thinking that I can't wait for camping trips this summer!  Our water babies will really appreciate a few more beach days this year :)

And speaking of camping ... we went to Coachworks R.V. after Reese's nap and saw our new trailer!!!!  EEK!  So exciting!  And so beautiful :)  It's very nice, we're super excited and very happy with our choice!  We did all our shopping on line so this is the first time we've actually seen it in person!  It's a great layout for us and we kept saying, "Wow!  Look at all this storage!"  Inside and out!  It's going to be so much nicer for our family of 5!  The kids thought the golf cart ride to and from the trailer was pretty cool and were especially interested in their bunk beds!  We're thinking we might just start Em and Reese off on the same bunk, first trip we take.  I'm sure Reese will goof around for awhile, maybe a few nights, but hopefully (fingers crossed!) she'll adjust quickly and sleep!!!  We are very excited we got to see the trailer, not so excited to sign the papers to pay, but hey, that's how it works ;)  lol!  We'll be bringing it home (actually to a storage lot!) in March or April.  Can't wait to get out camping!!!  We may have to go before May long weekend ...

Monday evening I had a consignment Christmas party at The Manor restaurant, downtown Edmonton.  It was a very nice restaurant, food was top notch, wine was the best I've had (thank goodness we shared a bottle, I would not have wanted that $50 charge!!) and the dessert was TO DIE FOR.  Best meal I've had in a long time, so delicious!  I highly recommend The Manor.  And fabulous company!!  Nice to see my consignment peers on a more social basis vs. FB chatting and crazy busy meet days!

This weekend was super, super busy with hockey practice an afternoon/evening with the Hrdlicka's, Church and a hockey game!  But again, a really great weekend.  We had an awesome visit with my bff and her family.  Our kids are so amazing together, they play so incredibly well it is the best!!  And Blake was extremely excited about Sunday school on Sunday morning because it was his turn to make a gingerbread house!  Last week the 3 yr old's made their houses and this week it was the 4 and 5 yr old's turn.  They love Sunday school, the teacher is AMAZING and so are all the helpers.  This Sunday concluded a 4 week lesson and so they performed their song in front of the congregation.  Actions and all!  It was adorable :)  This term's lesson was based on building your life and faith on a solid foundation.  It might take more time and it might take more work but you will weather the storm, was the essence of the message!  I'm not sure the young children totally got the message but Blake and Em definitely know that if they every build a house, they will be building it on solid land, possibly rock, but definitely not on sand!!!

We hope you had a great weekend and Monday :)

xo
The Cameron's

From Reese

~ For all of Reese's blog fans ;)

Hi everyone!

Today is my 2nd birthday! Mom thought I should write a little message to let everyone know what I'm up to these days!

A lot has changed since my last email 1 year ago. I've "grown up" so much over the past year! My memory is really good  and I have memorized a lot of songs. My favorite song to sing is "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."  And I can even count up to 16!! I also know a lot of the ABC song :) Some of the other things I enjoy doing are reading books, coloring, doing arts and crafts (especially using glue sticks!!), dancing, watching Dora the Explorer and Super Why, playing with my baby dolls and ponies and playing with Blake and Emerson (and sometimes fighting over toys :s)!! 

I love having Mom home with us every day and doing lots of activities with Mom and Dad! We have a ton of fun!! I enjoy my swimming lessons (I love the water and have fun doing bobs!!) and "Come Play With Me" class, but I also like to play at home.  I like to play with Blake and Em but sometimes get mad when they play with toy.  Mom often hears me saying, "MINE!"  I'm learning to share!  But it is hard because Blake and Em do usually give me whatever I want!!  Sometimes when Blake and Em are busy, I enjoy going to the playroom and playing all by myself, usually with my babies and/or our play kitchen!  Mom says she might register me in a gymnastics class in the New Year.  I love to run and jump!!  One of my favorite games is running around the house or outside and having someone chase me!  I run as fast as I can and say, "Can't catch me!"  It is a lot of fun!  I love playing outside, even in this snowy, cold season ;)  I am a great eater, Mom and Dad think I eat more then Blake and Em quite often!!  

On November 21st I had my 2 yr pediatrician appointment and I weighed 29 lbs (75 %tile) and my height was in the 45th %tile!

Well, I hope everyone is doing great. It was good talking to ya' and hopefully I'll see you soon!

Hugs and Kisses,

Reese

Happy 2nd Birthday, Reese :)

Today is Reese's 2nd birthday, although i you ask her how old she is she will tell you 3!!  We had such a great day!!  When we awoke this morning, Reese opened our gifts to her.  Then it was off to drop Blake off at Kindergarten!  After we dropped Blake off, Cal, Em, Reese and I made our usual stop at Timmies ;)  We all had breakfast and enjoyed chatting with some neighbouring Timmies customers!  We love visiting Tim Horton's in the mornings, everyone is so friendly and we're usually the youngest people in there!!  After breakfast, I took the girls to Come Play With Me.  We all had a great time, the girls absolutely love this program and Miss Christine :)  It's so much fun to see them singing and dancing and loving craft time!

After Reese's nap we all headed out side to play in the snow and sled down the 'hill' in our front yard!  Our neighbour used his quad and blade and enlisted the help of a city operated bobcat to create a huge snow pile in our front yard.  It's awesome and the kids love sledding down the hill!  Of course, playtime outside is often followed by hot chocolate and being Reese's birthday we added marshmallows to that hot chocolate ;)

Reese had a great day, enjoying a favorite dinner (chicken nuggets and yam fries) and enjoyed another round of "Happy Birthday" and cake!

It is hard to believe our Reesey is 2.  She is a smart little cookie and has learned soooo much from her big brother and sister.  It is amazing how a little person can pick so much up, just from being around a 3 and 5 year old!!  She has an extensive vocabulary and puts long sentences together!  Her words are not always easy to understand but she sure has a lot to say!!  Reese is very independent ... she does not want help with anything!  Dressing, taking off her diaper, feeding herself, climbing up and down stairs (no matter how steep), when we attempt to help her, we get a stern, "ME DO IT!"  We can not imagine our family with out her, it would feel incomplete.  She has brought so much joy to our family and has really brought out Emerson's kind, loving, motherly nature, which often amazes me!  She is so, so, so good with Reese, it is heartwarming.  Blake is also great with Reese and such a fantastic big bro!!  

Reese, we love you beyond words.  Your spunky personality, your goofiness (love your dance moves, I really need to capture them on video!), your love for your family, your infectious laugh, your gorgeous blue eyes and pinchable cheeks, from your head to your toes you are a perfect little package :)  You are such a cuddly little girl and I love how you gently pat my back sometimes when I hug you.  You are becoming more and more of a Daddies girl, 2 seems to be the age this happens in our house!  Thank you for being you Reese, letting your individuality shine through, keeping every moment interesting and fun and bringing much love and joy to our family!  We love you more then you will ever know and can't wait to enjoy this next year with you :)

xoxo Mom and Dad