Just the 3 of us

The other day Jer had an interview over in Coeur d'Alene, so we decided to make the most of it and spend a little time together as a family at the lake. It was a beautiful day and a nice break from all the stress we have been under lately. Check out the fun we had!
Funny how the mama never ends up in the picture! Maybe one of these days someone else will be behind the camera!

Something Pink... and something brown!

Well, first of all, let's talk about the pink! Yup you guessed it- it's that little hat up there! You see, my adorable 8 year old niece, Natanya, has been up from Texas visiting our side of the family for the past two weeks and while she stayed at our house for a couple of days she wanted to do something crafty (the first thing out of her mouth every year when she sees me is, "Can we scrapbook?!). Well, we did do a little scrapbooking but mostly I tried to teach her how to knit. She lost interest pretty quickly but of course wanted me to finish the project- a hat for her 3 month old baby sister Sienna. I think it turned out pretty cute- fun easy pattern called a Baby Pip Hat. However, I am not so sure how much use Sienna will be getting our of it since they live in Texas! Oh well, it's cute anyway!


And then comes the brown! Well, while Natanya was over we stopped over at my parent's house so Jer could look at some work they want him to do in their house. While we were there the kiddos wanted to jump in the hot tub with Papa (my dad), who of course happily obliged. At one point Roman wanted to get out and, thinking he was done, we took off his shorts and wrapped him in a towel. Of course, after a few minutes he decided he wanted to get back in, but we figured it would only be for a few minutes so we just put him back in the hot tub with Natanya (Papa had already gotten out) without his shorts- big mistake!! Soon we heard poor Natanya screeming "POOP!!" The look on Roman's face said it all! I quickly snatched him out of the water and ran him to the bathroom as my dad fished for sinkers and Natanya jumped out of the hot tub and half way across the yard! Needless to say, baths for all quickly ensued and the hot tub was drained and cleaned. Luckily my dad had good humor about it and said, "He's just a little boy!" All in all, I am sure this is a trip that Natanya won't be quickly forgetting!

So excited- DONA training coming to town!!!

So, for those of you who don't know, I am in the process of training to become a birth & postpartum doula. I have been working on my requirements (such as reading, lactation training and birthing classes) for quite some time now, but I just wasn't sure how I was going to be able to finish one of the largest parts of my training- the workshops! You see, the closest location for me to attend a workshop is all the way across the state in Seattle. Combining the cost of travel & the workshop fee, along with having a toddler who is difficult to leave for a number of days, plus the fact that I would need to attend both the birth and postpartum workshops which would total out to 4 weekends in Seattle, it just wasn't an option. So, after much frustration and a little ingenuity, I decided to contact DONA (Doulas of North America- my certifying organization) and see if they would bring the workshops to Spokane. Well wouldn't you know it, I had a large handful of trainers ready to make the trip and was able to schedule both workshops right here in little old Spokane! Better yet, they are two weekends in a row, so as of the beginning of November I will be ready to accept clients for both birth and postpartum that can count towards my certification! Wooohooo!

I already have one client due in the beginning of December who is a good friend, pregnant with her second baby and anxious to have a different birth experience than she did the first time around. I have also been accepting clients in the mean time to gain experience, which has been a very learning experience! My very first postpartum client has twins! Oh the things I have to learn!!

By the way, if any of you are interested in attending the workshops they will be as follows:

Postpartum Workshop
October 31- November 2, 2008

Birth Workshop
November 8-9, 2008

Tuition fees vary depending on when you sign up and how many people you sign up with, but start for the most part around $350. Partial Scholarships are available for the Postpartum Workshop and payment plans are available for both. You can contact me directly at chic_kenz@yahoo.com for more information.

Also, if you happen to be pregnant, or know someone who is, and would like the services of a doula, don't hesitate to interview me! I am currently accepting postpartum clients for just the cost of gas to and from their home and will be accepting 3 postpartum and 3 birth clients due after November 9, 2008 completely free of charge!

Homeschool Music Video

This video by Christian Comedian Tim Hawkins is hilarious! A must watch! Enjoy!

At last... A yard!!!

Well, a front yard anyway! We officially finished it this last weekend and I couldn't be more excited! Okay, well, we do still have to put in some stone steps near the street and gravel the driveway, but other than that it is beautiful (in my opinion) and usable!


We have not had a yard in over 3 years! We tore it out to connect to the county sewer system but then were not able to afford to put the yard back in. We were supposed to get it finished at the end of last summer, but right after our landscaper convinced my husband to buy an obscene number of boulders, he decided to bail on us! So, for the past 9 months we have had a huge pile of boulders and a pallet of slate sitting in our front yard, along with weeds and nothingness- helpful as a landmark for people to find our house, but not so appealing otherwise!


Not any more though! For the first time in his life, Roman has a yard to play in! He has been so enjoying running through the sprinklers (we have to water a lot to get the sod to take root) and rubbing his bare feet through our lush, green grass! For the first time in my life, I got to go to a nursery and pick out flowers I like and plant them in my flower beds!

It was a lot of work but it was soooo worth it! To be quite honest it doesn't even seem real! Tune in tomorrow to see what I have been working on in the back yard!

A day at Mobius!

Yesterday a friend that we hadn't seen in a while offered to give us their guest pass to Mobius so that Roman and her daughter could play and we could catch up on the latest happenings in our lives. We hadn't visited Mobius since Roman much smaller so this was the first time that he actually got to play and enjoy the little museum. He had a wonderful time and was especially enthralled with the whole corner dedicated to transportation!Watch out- he's fast! I could hardly snap a shot as he whizzed by! Watch out for your ankles!

Gotta love those trains!

This Canoe seems to have a hole mom!

Hey mom, look at me! I can climb a tree!

Tot School!! I love it!

Okay- I really can't even begin to tell you how in love I am with this site! It is a homeschooling site devoted completely to tots! She has WONDERFUL ideas, especially for those really little ones! It is so nice to find other mamas who want to have more of a structured learning time for their tots! I must admit, I have been slacking lately in this department, feeling a little overwhelmed! But this site has lit a fire under my butt and I am going to get going with it again! I think we are going to start with the Cars lapbook (how appropriate, right?!) and go from their! I know that Roman will love it and it will be good for us to have other mamas to learn more Tot School Ideas from! Want to join us?!