christmas with kids

Seizing Moments of Productivity

This post is brought to you by nap time for one baby and the fact that the toddler is completely engrossed in Astroblast’s smoothie station….. for the moment. It shall also be sponsored my momma’s oh so festive Caralan’s & coffee, but that is between you and I. The past weekend and start to this week has been non-stop, and we are only half way through it. I am wrapping up with craft fairs and focusing only on online orders for my baby business Deer Baby, and one last pop-up shop event next week. Hubby has been busy with work, and many of you other realtors know, the work doesn’t stop just because it’s Sunday. Then there’s the babies. Busy, busy babies. Hallie has been a mile a minute, from morning until night. For the most part, she is full of giggles, mischief and spilt apple sauce. Yesterday however was tantrum-Tuesday and boy did girlfriend live up to it. Conveniently, I discovered this on Facebook and found it extremely appropriate for my life these days.
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It’s on those days where your toddler is crying for the 78th time before 9am that you do one of two things. Wish for a reset button on the day to start things over, or pray the next ten hours flies by so that you can have a glass of wine in peace, call it a day and pray for a better one tomorrow. Funnily enough, I always find that when I am at the breaking point of patience, completely frustrated and sleep deprived, the next day my kids are absolute angels. They sleep, they eat well, and comply with all of my plans for the day. Little masterminds that they are have me in the palm of their hand. How can we play with mommy’s head today?! God help me when one is four and the other is two…. I am already feeling a little outnumbered and they don’t yet have the ability to plot against me together. Good times ahead my tiny tots!

As I write this, Hallie has decided it would be a fabulous idea to tape unused diapers to the living room window. I guess I deserve that for leaving a roll of tape out on what I thought was a very high countertop. Apparently her arms are those of Gumby and she can now reach everything. It’s a good thing diapers fall from the sky and we really do not go through that many at all on a daily basis….. She still grins at me while completing this artsy task and looks cute as pie. Good looks get you far!

So with all of the chaos and mischievous fun happening at the Hayward house, I managed to sneak out moments throughout the day to be productive and get some housework done! By housework of course I mean Christmas decorating. Today I wanted to share a few fun shots of our festive moments throughout the house. We do not have a large space to play with and I really wanted to avoid the feeling that Santa threw up in my living room. It was all about finding a nice balance and I am happy to say I didn’t go that overboard. We don’t have our Christmas tree yet so that could really push the envelope, but we will cross that bridge on December 10th. That is when we set out for the perfect tree. Henry always makes fun of me because I have no concept of ceiling height. In my mind we have ten foot ceilings when really they are probably 7 feet. The perfect tree for me would be about 20 feet tall and require a couple of ladders to decorate. Maybe in my next house! So far Hallie has managed to keep her sticky fingers off of most of our decorations, but I have a feeling it will be a different story once the tree goes up.

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And with that, one baby is awake and the little lady has emptied goldfish crackers all over the sofa. Time to find something to do that productive to them! Cookie baking time anyone?

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Welcoming Winter

I don’t know about you but I felt a huge sense of relief when I was packing up all of our Halloween decorations. October was exhausting! It was tons of fun with all of the festivities going on and even though it is one of my favourite times of the year, I was happy to see the end of it. I am ready for November. Ready for Winter! That is one thing I love about where we live now. You actually get to experience full seasons. In Vancouver, it was a lot of rain, or non-rainy days. I don’t want to sound like a negative nelly but it’s true! They are in for a soggy winter too unfortunately. In Kamloops we get a really pretty transition in-between seasons. Though I might freeze my ass off more so than my Coastal friends, at least my toes will be dry. I am however a total wimp when it comes to being cold. I am cold majority of the time! But as long as you dress appropriately, getting out in the cooler weather (not to mention the snow!) can be exactly what everyone needs- especially kids. So I am welcoming November with open, bundled up arms and am super excited to get planning some fun activities for the babies and I. It has been a couple years but it just might be time to bring back the ‘Holiday Bucket List‘ too. Nothing like a giant chalkboard in your kitchen to remind you of all of the things you want to get done! There are quite a few things happening in Kamloops this time of year too. Last year I was pregnant and violently ill (thanks again for that Jackson) so I wasn’t exactly a jolly sport when it came to doing things. I managed to get away with it too as Hallie was younger and perfectly okay with being lazy and snuggling with me all day long. Now, not so much! I know that cheeky little girl is going to want to get her hands into all of the fun that the season brings. We will not be able to hide from the great outdoors either – if that girl doesn’t spend at least a couple of hours outside each day, the crazy really comes out in her. This momma might need some Baileys in her coffee this time round to keep up! Jackson is too little to know what is going on but we will string that adorable little smile along for the ride. So what is on your holiday to-do list? I already have a couple of things in mind.

Spirit Holiday Train Ride – hot cocoa included of course!

CP Holiday Train with Dallas Smith performing – whoop whoop!

Santa Parade downtown – even though last year we could barely get through the entire parade it was so darn cold. This year we shall better prepare ourselves!

Adults only getaway to Sun Peaks for a night – get our Christmas drinks on!

Family getaway to Sun Peaks – alright alright, they get some fun too!

The search for the perfect Christmas Tree – and cutting it down ourselves of course. ‘It’s not going in our living room Russ’.

Taking both kids in matching pjs to visit Santa Clause.

Introducing Elf on the Shelf to Hallie. She won’t understand the concept of behaving for the elf yet, but I do think she will get a kick out of searching for it every morning.

Arts & crafts for Hallie of the Christmas nature. We love getting messy lately in the kitchen with paints.

Seasonal baking – this one is for me! I love baking and this is the perfect time of year to overindulged and try out some fun new recipes.

Play the Christmas Vacation Drinking Game – mandatory this time of year, multiple times if you can.

Well clearly I could go on, and on, and on here….. Better get that chalkboard done up! Happy Wednesday and happy winter planning friends!

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