Beautiful!!!

Wow! We have the most gorgeous view we've ever had camping!! We are at a campground, just outside of Salmon Arm, B.C. on the Shuswap Lake. The campground is very quiet, which is what we were hoping for!! We're 1 row back from the lake, with no one in front of us. The lake, mountains, hills, etc. surrounding us are so pretty. Absolutely gorgeous :) Only downfall is the train tracks behind the campground! Well, I should say only downfall for the adults, Blake is absolutely thrilled with all the choo-choo's he's seeing! Today he saw 5 engines!! We've had a nice time here in Salmon Arm. We arrived Tuesday morning, it was a short 1 hour drive from Kamloops. The weather has been nice overall, it rained off and on on Wednesday and it's been between +15 and +24 during the day. Nice for a group of people who don't really enjoy extreme heat! We visited an amazing indoor jungle gym on Wednesday and of course we had to hit up a fruit stand - SO yummy!! We checked out the local mall as well and spent lots of time digging in the sand! Blake loves playing on the beech and splashing on the shore. Today he had jeans and running shoes on and decided to go wading in the water! What a mess ... but he was having a blast! Emerson was feeling a lot better, but this evening I think she seems to be getting uncomfortable again. I hope tomorrow she'll have a big diaper full!!! Tomorrow morning we're leaving the Shuswaps for an overnight stay in Banff. From Banff we're heading to Candace and Brandon's house for Sunday and Monday night. We're visiting Lindsey, Andrew and baby Parker, going to the zoo and hopefully stopping at the new outlet mall north of Calgary! Home on Tuesday. It will be sad to be done our vacation, but nice to be home on the other hand. The kids have been awesome. Everyone seems to think I'm a bit hard on them, and I admit I am, but hey, what can I say?! I am, who I am!! Camping with just Blake was a piece of cake, camping with a 2 yr old and a 6 month old is not as easy, but they make it pretty darn good :) Thankfully Emerson is not waking up at 4 and 5 am, like she did in Saskatchewan! They're both sleeping in, phew! It has been so nice having my parents with us. I think Blake is going to go through Bampa and Bamma with drawl come Sunday when we go our separate ways!!! He enjoys riding in their truck with them and doing all sorts of fun things! We are so blessed to have such wonderful parents :)

We hope everyone is having a great week, have a good weekend and we'll "talk" to you when we're back home!

xoxo Cal, Tracy, Blake and Emerson

Interesting Beginning :)

Hi everyone!! I am writing to you from Kamloops, B.C.! We arrived here this afternoon. We began our holiday in Jasper. We left Friday morning around 9:30, stopped in Niton Junction for gas and Edson for lunch. We got to Whistlers Campground just outside of Jasper right in time to check in at 2 pm! Erica, Dion, Danielle, Mom, Dad and Jeremy and Lindsay were not far behind us. Unfortunately Emerson was not feeling very good. Ever since she started solids she has been a bit "backed up" and I think it finally caught up with her! She was very uncomfortable and straining quite hard, so we decided to take her into the E.R. We figured we might as well get the problem dealt with right away, rather than hoping it would resolve itself. I was kicking myself for not bringing her into her pediatrician before we left home. So we took her to the hospital and she was given a glycerin suppository and we went back to the trailer. The glycerin suppository didn't produce much and she continued to be out of sorts and not herself, so after a visit to the Miette Hot Springs, we put Blake to bed and took her back to the E.R. I felt this Dr. was a bit more attentive. She manually removed some of the blockage and used another glycerin suppository to try and extract more, but not much happened. At this point in time, Em was pretty upset! The Dr. also found fissures, which were causing Em to withhold everything. The Dr. wasn't sure what else to do, so she called a pediatrician at the Stollery to consult with him. He suggested an enema and a prescription laxative. So the Dr. administered the enema and wrote us a prescription. We have to give her the laxative (laculose) for at least 2 weeks, until the fissures have healed and she sees her pediatrician back home. The enema did not work, so we were back to the E.R. Sunday morning! But the Dr. who was on call this time said try the laculose and if that doesn't work then come back again! So we filled the prescription and it worked!!! Thank goodness! It didn't take long and she was back to her smiley self :) Now we hope her sleep routine will return ;)

So that was the interesting beginning to our vacation. Heidi headed back with Lindsay and Jeremy for a vacation in Fort Mac! We're leaving for Salmon Arm tomorrow morning. The weather looks like it will be in the 20's, which is great for digging in the sand!!! We'll be in touch! We have Wi-Fi there as well! Hope everyone is doing great!

Luv Tracy

Fantastic Weekend!

Thursday night my sister and Jeremy stayed over night and Friday morning my sister, the kids and I met my Mom at WEM Build a Bear. Blake built a ring bearing bear!! I thought he might be a bit young to really enjoy the whole experience, but he had a lot of fun! So he left the mall with a new friend, named Sam! Sam has two outfits, one casual, every day outfit and a tuxedo for the wedding (complete with big boy underwear, dress socks and dress shoes!!)!

And the weekend has been fabulous :) The weather was absolutely gorgeous! Saturday we went for a walk to the park. Cal and Blake visit the park quite often, but most times Emerson and I are at home making supper!! So Blake was excited to show Em and I all the exciting new things he can do!! I was very surprised at how well he could climb the climbing wall! A bit scary to see your 2 year old scale the climbing wall with no help, but he did it repeatedly!!! And of course, we had to see the BIIIIGGG hill! LOL! We came home for lunch and a nap, and then headed to the spray park. It was crazy busy, but lots of fun! And a perfect way to spend a few hours on a hot summer day! There's a dragon that "spits" water. Cal and Blake were playing around it, while Em and I were off somewhere else. Blake wanted me to come see it, so Cal took Em and I walked over there with Blake. When we were walking over I asked him if we were going to see the dragon and he said, "Dinosaur actually." Kinda like, "Duh Mom!?" It was so funny!! He's also using the work "kinda" a lot these days! "I kinda want to play trucks." "I kinda want Dad to sit there." etc, etc, etc! So funny! We lazed around the house this morning and then met my parents at Costco, went to Applebee's for supper and then they came over afterwards for a visit and to plan our groceries for our upcoming vacation! Cal and I cleaned the trailer this evening and started packing up! There's a lot to pack!!! But at least we've started ...

This week is going to go by fast. Monday Blake starts another semester of My First Preschool at the YMCA. Monday evening a lady who has a pet sitting service is coming over to meet us and Jazz - she will be visiting with Jazz while we're gone this time and while we're in Vegas! Tuesday we are going to the zoo with Lesley, Colby, Renee, Kaeden and Cohen. Cal is going to the farm Wednesday after work to help his Dad and brother with some things around there and at some point Blake and I need hair cuts!! And of course we need to finish shopping and packing for holidays! We're leaving for Jasper Friday morning. I can't wait!!!! I'm (we're) going to have a great time! So long as I can let go and relax and realize that some days the kids won't have their regular naps!!!! LOL!

Have a great week everyone! Stay cool, looks like it's going to be a HOT week!! And if you're looking forward to the kids going back to school - enjoy ;)

Luv Tracy

Fun times!

Thursday afternoon the kids and I drove to Stony for a visit. We stopped in at my Dad's office, before going to my parents house. Blake enjoyed his visit! He scored some good loot! LOL! I think the coolest thing he got, was a badge from the regional director of the commercial vehicle inspection department! But his favorite thing was a tin can!! It makes "noise" which is a big deal! He likes toys that make "noise!" Friday morning Blake went to work with my Mom and Emerson and I went to visit about an hour later. When we got there, Blake had taken over 1/2 of my Mom's desk, but they weren't at the desk, they were out visiting!! After our visit at Mom's office we headed over to Colby's house. We had a great visit and Emerson even had a little nap! We met my Mom for lunch and drove back home. I set my cruise control at 100 to drag the trip out a little bit and let Blake sleep longer!

Saturday was the Canadian Derby at Northland's park. Our friends Sam and Jen picked Cal up around lunch time and the kids and I joined them after their naps. Blake loved watching the water trucks and tractors drive around the track, as well as the horses! He had a great time! Em hung out in the stroller and kicked and smiled and seemed to enjoy herself :) It was so busy there. We've never seen it so busy! Apparently there was just over 10,000 people! But it was a gorgeous day to be outside! After the big race we took Blake over to the kiddie area, where he had fun checking out the petting zoo and playing in the bouncy castles! Then we went to Sam and Jen's for supper. Blake had fun playing with the dogs and cat!! Sam and Jen don't have kids, but do have nieces and nephews, so they also had some fun toys and coloring books for Blake to play with!!

This morning my parents came over for coffee and Cal had the NFL draft at Eric's. I took Blake to Sobey's this morning, which is always an exciting trip for Blake, thanks to the race car shopping cart!! Although driving anywhere is an adventure for Blake. He points out trucks, cars, dump trucks, cement trucks, water trucks, fire trucks, ambulances, choo-choo's, vehicles with hitches (that's his latest observation - hitches), the YMCA (which he calls the ICA), the grocery store, Tim Horton's (yes we visit Tim Horton's VERY frequently, hence he recognizes it!), Toys R Us (another frequent stop for us!)!! He also loves driving through an under pass, which he calls a tunnel!

Last week we finally got off our butt's and cleaned out our basement. We were pretty much using it as a storage room! It was finished before we moved in, and is a nice space, so it really needed to be put to better use! I put away all my scrap booking and card making supplies, which I rarely ever use and Cal packed up most of his sports memorabilia. We moved Blake's train table down there and plan to use the space a bit more in the winter when we won't be able to run around outside as much!! Blake's enjoying playing down there, which is great! We enjoy playing with him, but we are also glad he plays so well by himself. Today I overheard him saying that his toys were going on holidays!! It was hilarious!!! I went downstairs and asked him what he was doing. He said, "Playing with fire trucks and choo-choo's." I asked what they were doing and he said, "Fire truck go on holidays." I asked where it was going on holidays and he drove it across the room and said, "Over there!" He then went about driving his trains over there and saying, "Percy go on holidays too! Gordon go on holidays too!" etc, etc! It's so much fun to hear what he comes up with! Something new all the time. He has discovered another stalling technique ... the words "little bit!" For example, I will say after supper it's time for a bath and he'll say, "I go play downstairs a little bit." It's actually pretty funny!!!! (and it works for him most times!!) Today he started playing with Buddy again. He fed Buddy juice, wrapped him up in his blankie, layed him down for a nap, etc, etc. It's so cute! He also enjoys laying his choo-choo's down for a nap! He tips them on their sides!! I'm glad he got Buddy before Emerson was born, I think it has really helped him with Emerson. And she has definitely brought out the little "Daddy" in him!! He loves to give her hugs and kisses and is always asking about her when she's napping, making sure she has her blankie (although at this point in time she's not attached to her blankie like he is!), wiping up her spit, and trying to help with pretty much everything!! I know my parents said I was very motherly towards Lindsay, and I see that same characteristic in Blake. Emerson will always have her big brother watching over her! Which I'm sure she'll appreciate ... one day!!! Perhaps not in her teenage years :)

Emerson and I have our last Aquababies class tomorrow morning. We've had so much fun! Hopefully we'll take another swimming class soon!! We finally set up the Jolly Jumper this weekend. Emerson absolutely loves it! She's already doing more jumping then Blake ever did!! We started feeding Emerson 2 times a day. She's tried rice and oat cereal so far. I'm going to buys some barley and mixed cereal this week and try those. Today I was making carrots for her and forgot. The water boiled out of the pot - I was so mad at myself!! So tomorrow I'll try again!

I've noticed my blogs are quite long lately! I'd be surprised if anyone makes it to the end :) Have a great week everyone!

Luv Tracy

So Proud ...

So hard to believe that Emerson turned 6 months old on Sunday. She is such a treasure, it's hard to imagine life without her! I look back to February and feel like it was just yesterday that we brought her home from the hospital. Time just keeps flying by faster and faster the busier we get! We were just talking about how fast time passes as we get older and laughing about how busy we thought we were before we had kids, then we couldn't believe how busy we were when we had Blake and now we can't believe how busy we are with Blake and Emerson!! So yes, our baby girl is 6 months old. Wow! She's changing so fast now. I think her Bumbo days are limited. She's started trying to push out of it, so it might not be too safe for her anymore! She sits up for longer and longer periods of time each day and enjoys reaching for toys all around her. Her "talking" is absolutely precious! She's quite the chatterbox :)

Blake's doing great! He's still a little character! Keeps us laughing and smiling!! I have no idea how many words he knows, I've never kept track, but his vocabulary is pretty darn good!!! (I'm laughing to myself right now, because that sounds like such a redneck thing to say! Ha, ha, ha!) But anyways, he comes up with some long sentences and amazes us almost daily! Just the other day, I layed Emerson down on the couch beside me and he said, "Mom, be very careful. Be very careful Mom, so Em doesn't fall off!" I couldn't believe it!! First of all, it's amazing that he cares that much about his little sister, second of all that's quite the insight for a 2 year old and thirdly what a sentence!!!

Thursday morning we met Lesley and Colby at WEM for shopping and lunch! It was great to see them, we're loving seeing them more since Lesley and I are both off work! I got a kick out of Colby and Blake - they seemed to feed off each other's goofiness!!!

Friday morning we met my sister at Pure Bridal for her first wedding dress fitting. She was pretty nervous, but did not need to be - the dress fit like a glove!! It was so perfect! Jeremy is going to be knocked off his feet when he sees his bride walking down the aisle ;) After the dress fitting, we all went for lunch downtown and then Lindsay came over to hang out with me while the kids napped! Later that evening I went for a massage (heavenly!!) and then met Mom and Lindsay for a movie. What a great day!!

We took the kids to Walmart in St. Albert on Saturday morning for pictures. We got a really good one of the 2 of them together, an awesome one of Blake by himself and a pretty good one of Emerson by herself. She wouldn't sit up for some reason, so she'd kind of lean back and we had a hard time keeping her hands out of her mouth, but that's her, so we captured a "real moment!" LOL! We pick the pictures up on August 31.

Now back to the title of our blog ... So Proud ... Of our kids!! Of course every parent is, I know!!! But this morning they made me extra proud :) We had Emerson's 6 month immunizations and they were both SO good! Two separate people commented on how good Blake was behaving and how cute they both were :) And the secretary said she loved Emerson's name! Seems to be either people love it or hate it! LOL! The health nurse couldn't believe how good Blake was in the room when Em was getting immunized! Of course, we all know he's not an angel all the time, but he is generally very well behaved!! And Emerson did so good with her needles. Just a quick cry during the pokes and that was it. She now weighs 15 lbs 2 oz, is 24.6" long and her head circumference is 40.5 cm. She's in the 40th percentile for weight and length and 10th for head circumference! She's our "petite" little girl!! After the appointment we went to Toys R Us, so Blake could burn some energy and have some fun!! LOL! (He plays on the Jeeps, quads, Escalades, etc!!!!) Emerson cooed and talked in her car seat while we watched Blake hop from vehicle to vehicle! And an added bonus - Em napped for 3 hours this afternoon!

Thursday afternoon the kids and I are heading to Stony Plain for an overnight visit. We're going to visit my parent's offices and Lesley and Colby! It's too bad, but I haven't brought Emerson into either of my parent's offices yet. Like I say, time has just gotten away on us!

Saturday afternoon we hope to go to the Canadian Classic at Northlands. We hope Blake will enjoy all the horses!! We know he doesn't typically like riding them or on a wagon behind him, but he does enjoy watching them, so the races may be right up his alley :) Cal and I used to go to the races quite a bit when we were without children, so we're looking forward to it!!!

On Sunday Cal has one of his annual NFL live football drafts at his buddy Eric's house. So he's getting pumped for that!!!! And this year he can PVR the games and watch them at a more convenient time ;) Yeah right - we'll all have our Colts jerseys on!!! (Last line added by Mr. Cal Cameron! But it's true, hopefully we will have our Colts jerseys on, that is if Santa brings Mrs. Cameron one! Hee, hee, hee!!!)

Our weather had been a bit strange lately - hot and muggy one day, windy and cool the next. Fall is definitely right around the corner. Enjoy the remainder of your week!

Luv,

Cal, Tracy, Blake and Emerson

I am 6 months old today :)

Hi everyone! Today I am 6 months old. I've sure changed and grown a lot in 6 short months!

I sit up pretty good by myself! Mom and Dad put a pillow behind me though, because I fall back after awhile! Yesterday I didn't really feel like sitting up at all, which surprised my Mom and Dad! I was getting my 6 month pictures and they had to prop me up!! I had fun though and Mom says we got some good shots. Apparently, I'm quite the talker. Mom and Dad think it's because I have a big brother to compete with!! They love hearing me "talk" though! I have 2 teeth that are very close to breaking through. They're not giving me too much trouble yet! I tried rice cereal for the first time this week. I really liked it!! I get to try oat cereal next week. I don't understand why I can't eat everything - I always try to sneak a bite of Mom, Dad and Blake's food!! Blake's on my side though - he likes to help me try new things, just last week he tried to give me a goldfish cracker!!! I love Blake very much, he makes me laugh!! I like to sit in my Bumbo chair and play choo-choo's with him. He shares really well with me. Sometimes he tries to carry me though. It kinda scares Mom and Dad!! But they help him, and he seems to be quite proud of himself! I love it when he gives he a hug and kiss goodnight every night. He's a great big brother!

Mom and I are taking an Aquababies class right now. It's lots of fun and I LOVE the water! I kick and splash and have a great time! This fall, Blake, Mom and I are going to take a class at the library called, "Sing, Sign, Laugh and Learn!" Hopefully we'll take Salsa Tots too - Mom says it is lots of fun :)

We've done lots of camping this year and we have a big camping trip coming up. We're going to be away for almost 2 weeks! For me, camping isn't too much different from being at home. I just get a bit more tired from all the fresh air! Although for some reason I often wake up a bit earlier?! But I heard Mom say they're tinfoiling the windows next time if I get up early!! Hee, hee, hee! I'm usually a really good sleeper. Mom and Dad didn't think a baby could possibly sleep better than Blake did, but I got him beat in that department :)

I have my 6 month immunizations on Tuesday. We're not looking forward to that appointment - they hurt :( In July I was just over 14 lbs, but Mom and Dad think I'm probably around 16 lbs now! We'll find out at my appointment on Tuesday.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my little update! Enjoy the rest of the summer :) Love to you all!


XOXOX
Emerson (with the help of Mom!!!!!!)

Emerson's 1st taste of rice cereal!!!

Yesterday afternoon Cal and I gave Emerson her first taste of rice cereal. She did very well!! She got a few spoonfuls down. She was very happy during the whole process and kept sticking her tongue out (as usual these days!!)!!! She looked so tiny in the big high chair :) We'll try rice cereal for a week or so and keep moving on from there! I'll make some baby food within the next few weeks. I posted a cute video of the experience on Facebook!!

Talk to you later,

Tracy