i've moved!

i forgot to post this earlier and meant to probably a handful of times...but i've moved my blog to http://themartynjourney.tumblr.com/ and i hope you'll all come follow me there!

thanks everyone :) happy blogging!

it was, like, totally rad!

there's something so fun about the 80's. the style, the wildness, the crazy colours...and who can forget the massive hair. that was our theme for my sister's crazy bachelorette party and we all had so much fun.

our suite at the river rock was out of this world. it was 2600 square feet, 2 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, huge wrap around deck, a living room, our own bar and buffet setup, and plenty of space for all of lisa's gymnastics skills. beautiful! the beds were amazing, the star-lit ceiling was gorgeous, and the view was second-to-none. i can't say all that happened....i mean, what happens in vegas richmond stays in vegas richmond right??

i think the best part about our suite was that we stole it from russell brand...sorry pal, we booked first...

the bride-to-be and russell brand...photo courtest of aly whittle!

we did enjoy some fantastic food! on our list was lamb meatballs, tandoori chicken sliders with guacamole, crusty breaded shrimp, spring rolls, fresh fruit, dungeness crab cakes and so many more great eats! the highlight of this big preggo's night.......the waterslide in the pool! oh man was that thing wild. it was amazing. i could have spent hours going down the slide!

my amazing calamari at the cactus club where we went for lunch

the super-crazy-fast waterslide from heaven!

living life and loving living!

we've had such a great few weeks the past few weeks. the weather has been lovely, kingston is thriving, baby number two is growing as well as can be and we're chugging along! we've been lucky to enjoy some really fun weather the last couple weeks.

we have had picnics in white rock and cultus lake, walked many evenings, enjoyed the playground, and really enjoying our back deck. it's been a fantastic august thus far and it's only the 5th!

i've spent a good portion of this week preparing for a weekend away with the girls tomorrow! we're headed off to celebrate my sister's bachelorette party. so much planning and thought has gone into this weekend and i'm so excited that it's finally here!!!! she's got some great surprises coming her way...mwah ha ha. a lot of this weekend will be a surprise to her, so i'll post more about our fun getaway next week!

this weekend also marks the first night i've ever been away from my sweet prince charming. it took over 13 months for me to get this far...and i'm sure everything will go well...it always does when he's home with daddy...but i'm going to miss him like crazy. he's turned into such a little mama's boy. sometimes it can be a little annoying to have little feet always on your feet and arms constantly grabbing at you...but honestly, it's one of the greatest little moments in life. how can you look down at a beautiful little boy and not pick him up?? that's his biggest trouble at the moment? wanting to be carried by mommy? sure! i'll soak up as much kingston time as i can this summer because come early january our world will durastically be changed.

baby number two is healthy as can be. i saw the doc yesterday and he gave me the two thumbs up. healthy heart rate of 144bpm, weight gain is on track, blood pressure is all good, and measurements are about on par. i measured 16cm instead of 17 but that's all minor. i still haven't gotten my "second wind" this round, but i wasn't chasing around a 13 month old when i was pregnant last time so this pregnancy has been a totally different world in comparison. either way...this could be the last time i'm pregnant so i need to soak up all this pregnancy time too!

work has been going really well. i've been picking up shifts fairly steadily. it's been a weird change being back at work, but i've been lucky to have the support of my family and cameron's family to help with my little man while i go to work. we're so lucky to have a baby that doesn't play strange. since he was born we made a huge effort to bring him into our lives. we wanted him to be socialized, be adaptable, and have a fairly flexible schedule. i like to think we've done a pretty good job at it. he never plays strange, he is fine when mommy and daddy aren't around, and he's just a charming little man for whoever watches him. i can't believe how well he's doing.

time to roll...dinner is cooking, laundry is washing, baby is sleeping, and my bags aren't packing themselves...TGIF! enjoy your weekend!

Welcome, Fall!

Anyone else feeling like we're being ripped off of our summer heat? I'm a heat lover. I could spend all day and all night out in the sun and booming heat...this year has been slightly disappointment. Sure makes me glad I took advantage of the 3 hot days we've had and spent them waterfront!

We should be enjoying this:

But instead, we're seeing this:

Yuck! Rain, rain...go away!

we've got time on our side...

AHHHhhhhh....

So here I sit; 14 weeks and 3 days pregnant with my second love child. For those of you that don't remember (don't worry, I don't expect you to...) here's my story on Kingston's labour and delivery:

Part One: Labour
Part Two: Kingston's Birth Story

To summarize, my labour was a total of 44, yes...44 long f@%king hours of labour. I did get all the way to 10cm on my own with no pitocin or "help" from the doctors. I took an epidural after 32 hours or so and relaxed slightly; although I had weird circles of pain that I still felt every ounce of. To make the really long story a bit shorter, I ended up with a c-section (thank the LORD after that many hours of contractions!).

SO....here's where I'm at...

I met with the surgeon yesterday who would perform my repeat c-section. He gave me a few things to think about and basically left me feeling like the decision would be totally up to me.

I know I can labour...hell, I survived 44 hours the first time around. I'm almost positive (although never certain obviously) that my body COULD deliver a baby. I don't remember clearly because I was so thankful to just be over and done with my delivery, but I do think that the reason for my c-section the first time around was solely because Kingston was coming through sideways...like 1/4 of a turn posterior (also helps explain the wicked back labour I was having).

After seeing a different doctor today, he really left me feeling so positive about attempting a VBAC...but only after I can see the delivery records from Kingston's delivery to confirm that he WAS indeed coming through sort of in a posterior position. The doctor today basically said that if I were his daughter or daughter-in-law, AND if Kingston was indeed in a semi-posterior (face up position for those that haven't been here before), then he would most definitely recommend a VBAC for me. IF, and that's a big IF, he was coming through face down and was having his heartrate drop due to distress, then he would without question say to just go with a repeat c-section.

I'm just so confused by it all. I really do want to keep an open mind about it all...but it's a scary and stressful situation to be placed in. And maybe you're wondering why I'm feeling such a dilemma?

My deliveries will be just over 18 months apart...for those that aren't aware, between 18 and 24 months there are increased risks involved. Having said that, I would be monitored in the hospital very closely and would almost be prepped for a c-section prior to delivery...just to be on the safe side.

Here's a great read on the guidelines for a VBAC: http://www.sogc.org/guidelines/public/155E-CPG-February2005.pdf

Okay...so thoughts???? Help me out...give me your opinions, your thoughts, your experiences...be honest!

Thanks everyone! I see the doctor and the surgeon again in August and will hopefully have more of a clear mindset on what I'm leaning towards....

Hello summer!

This week has been amazing for me! I have gotten so much one-on-one time with Kingston and have thuroughly enjoyed every second of it! We spent two afternoons up at Harrison Hot Springs and spent yesterday walking Tynehead Park and visiting with friends in Langley. Kingston has had such a fun time in the sun.

This week has made me really thankful that I was blessed with a child who loves the outdoors. He doesn't even need to be in the hustle bustle of everything, even playing on our deck is a great time for him. He can be fussy as all hell and then I open the door in the kitchen to the deck outside and he smiles and runs for it. I absolutely love the simple joy that a child sees in life.

Getting ready to enjoy the Canada Day parade!

Kingston is such a mover these days. He's walking everywhere. He hasn't quite learned to stand up on his own and still uses things to pull himself up...but he really only crawls when he's desperate for something to pull him up. Amazing how fast they learn these tricks!

He LOVED the parade. He waved his flag, showed off his tattoo, did plenty of clapping, and lots of dancing!

He's learning new words every day too! He now says cat, dog, car, carkeys (in his own verbiage), mama, daddy, dadda, and a few others I'm sure. I'm always amazed at how much he actually understands too. It's such a wonderful thing to get to watch a child grow up. They change daily!

I'm enjoying my last day with him today before I work tomorrow morning and Saturday night. I love being a mom to this sweet little man!!!

Have a great day!

this, that, and the other stuff...a big catchup blog

I don't even really know where to start. I've missed so many things in my blog lately. Life has been a bit chaotic and hectic at the Martyn household...so we might just need to start fresh after this one.

Mother's Day this year was my first ever! It was so special. My boys spoiled me with a trip to Whistler to stay one night at the Four Seasons. We had an amazing time. We ate great food, we sipped hot chocolate on our patio, Kingston slept in his very own room walk-in closet (hey, the kid is far too nosy to sleep in the same room as anyone!). It was just a fantastic night away to celebrate my first Mother's Day, and my last Mother's Day with just one baby...

sneak peak of our mother's day brunch decor

Yes, that's right...in case you missed my earlier Facebook post...baby Martyn #2 is on his/her way! We shared the news with our family by hosting Mother's Day brunch and Kingston rocked a cute little t-shirt to spread the good word. Our initial due date was December 19, 2011 (hence the shirt date); however, after ultrasound measurements were confirmed our due date was changed to January 8, 2012! We're so excited and ready to be a family of FOUR. It's amazing how fast life goes. In just over 18 months, our family size will have doubled. Amazing, really!

Following our amazing Mother's Day extravaganza, we've been just really pushing to complete projects around the house, get organized for summer, prepare for another c-section, gear up for my sister's wedding, etc. It's been a whirlwind of a few months but it's been mostly good!

I promise to be more diligent in my blogging this summer. I hope you find time to keep updated on our life. We hope to spend time with all of our friends and family this summer and feel blessed to have each and every one of you in our lives.

Today is my last day having my cousins during the week...I'm off to spend some fun quality time with them. Happy Thursday everyone...stat tomorrow!

believe

i am a huge fan of our vancouver canucks. i believe in them and i'm still a huge fan. watching game 7 turn into a loss was absolutely heart breaking. the boys in blue should be held up high for the tough season they put in. we, like other teams, suffered many injuries, took a lot of criticism, had good runs, and a few bad runs. what was most impressive about last night was watching the true hockey fans inside rogers arena standing waving their white towels to show their support to the canucks and congratulate the boston bruins on a well-deserved win.

what was not-so-impressive was watching the riots take place downtown vancouver. i watched the news in complete disbelief. we displayed such a great sense of community when the olympics were in vancouver, but when the canucks make it all the way to the stanley cup final and lose in game 7 the city exploded. it was embarrassing to know that this footage would be broadcasted around the world. our great reputation from hosting an amazing olympic games would now be destroyed.

this is not a true sense of who canadians are. this was meant to be a family event. somewhere to bring your family down in support of the canucks. instead it turned into a war zone where people defied the police, they ignored instructions to get out of the area, and they completely destroyed the beautiful city where i love to spend my time. what a joke! the poor businesses, banks, buildings, and innocent bystanders who suffered all of this destruction.

what really did show a good sense of community and support was the actions of the emergency response teams. surrey and abbotsford both deployed their extra forces to assist the vancouver police/rcmp with their efforts. the police worked their asses off trying to gain control. there was a lot of questioning regarding their loss of control, but what people forget to realize is there were well over 100,000 people downtown. and what....300 police officers?? good luck.

the groups on facebook have all started to pop up with photos of the losers who participated in these riots. i personally hope that each and every one of those hooligans gets what they deserve. i hope if anyone can identify someone in these photos that they report it to the vpd. they need a swift kick in the ass and should be held accountable for their participation in these horrendous riots. and those that felt it necessary to stay downtown and take pictures and videos, completely ignore police instruction to go home...i'm sorry, but if you were injured you asked for some of it.

i still believe in my team, i love watching hockey, i am so proud to be canadian. this is not the way we behave in this country and i hope that the reflection on our country has not been altered by this behaviour.

congratulations to the vancouver canucks on their fantastic season. we're already gearing up for 2011/2012 and look forward to another awesome playoff run next year!

i believe!

the days have definitely changed

Last night we had great plans to enjoy the hockey game with some of our bestest friends. While waiting for Cameron to get off work, I prepared my portion of our dinner and gathered our stuff to take over. Cameron got home right on time (hockey is really the only thing that really gets him to rush home), we watched the first period, then raced up the road to our friends place to cook dinner and watch the rest of the game.

Three years ago, this usually meant we'd make dinner, kick our feet up, enjoy a beer or two, and do nothing but laugh, talk, and relax. Last night, I would say it was anything but relaxing. It's amazing how life has changed for us 4 in the last few years. Gone are the days of doing what we want, we now spend our evenings catching a few minutes here and there of the hockey game. The rest of our time is spent chasing our children around...and they're busy, busy little bees! An almost two year old who is potty training, an almost one year old who is learning to walk, and a 5 month old who is a rolling machine ...that's a lot of chasing.

It's nice to know that we can all find humour in it all and still enjoy the great company but man alive do children change your life! I know none of us would change it for the world....so if you don't find a way to laugh about it all, you won't get to soak up all these moments and find some enjoyment.

Overall it was a great night. I love their two babies like they're my own and I always love seeing them. Oh, and I just went through my diaper bag and discovered that some 5-cent candies were snuck in there by my sweet friend! Jackpot! You're the best C!!

Today is a cloudy rainy day...which is a perfect day for catching up on some housework. On that note...the laundry is calling my name....

Enjoy your day everyone!

 

life is busy!

I can't believe I haven't posted since mother's day! Life has been so hectic and crazy for me that I've totally been sidetracked and have forgotten about my blog, my twitter, and half of my facebook. Actually, it's been quite nice in some ways.

I can say that we have enjoyed every ounce of sunshine that we've been blessed with. Those days are very limited so I took full advantage of them. We camped (in cabins), we played at the park, we took many walks, and we ticked our toes in the fresh cut grass....helllloooo allergies! Kingston absolutely loves being outside. He loves the sun, he loves the rain, he loves the fresh air. There's nothing about the outdoors he doesn't love...well, except the feeling of the grass on his head. Otherwise, he's in love with the outdoors. I'm so happy he is an outdoor lover because this means our summer ahead (should we get some decent weather) will be full of days outside!!

I've registered him for his first swimming lessons in July. I'm so excited. He loves to swim. He loves the pools so much!! I would love to get him a kiddie pool for the patio as I'm sure he will spend many days in it.

Kingston is finally learning how to walk. He doesn't do it regularly, but he has taken steps here and there and is getting super brave with reaching for the next walking-brace, whether that be furniture, electronics, walls, etc. He's becoming more daring every day. He's also fully embraced the REAL crawl. He did the army crawl for months and months and has now learned that his shirts won't pull his face down if he stays up on his knees. Such a monkey...

I could ramble on and on...but just know that life has been good lately. Work is picking up, Kingston is thriving, I'm so far behind on my housework, we're soaking up family time as much as possible, and we're such a happy little trio!

Kingston turns ONE in just 12 days. Yikes! Where has the year gone?? Seriously...it's disappeared!! I remember being pregnant with him like it was yesterday. And now I'm up to my eyeballs in birthday party planning and I am more in love with him every single day!

Okay, game time is on in 20 minutes so I better get things together here. Happy Monday everyone! I will post more about our adventures later...when it's rainy and no playoff hockey to be watched.

Happy birthday Morgan! Wish we were celebrating with you! Love and miss all of you Arn's!

i'm a mother's day virgin!

today is a very special day for me! it's my very first mother's day. cameron was so wonderful when i was pregnant with kingston...he bought me two beautiful hanging baskets last year and actually replanted them into our barrel planters in the front yard. it made me realize that not only is mother's day about my mom anymore, but it's about my baby and being a good mom to him.

we should always be thankful for our moms. we should always try to do nice things for them. today is no exception...but today is the perfect opportunity to do something that makes them feel special and something that makes them remember how much they are loved.

since having kingston i have grown extra close with my mom. i guess that's only natural. my mom is a pro and being a mom, so i've relied on her mom advice, her nurse advice, and her love. it's been such a great journey being a mom, and i hope my mom felt the same when i came along as her first born!

today we are having some family over for mother's day brunch. my mom & dad, my sisters, cameron's mom and dad, his grandma, and my oma. it's going to be amazing. i'm already excited for it! we're going to be enjoying some wonderful "mom food" which means, not just bacon! i have a delicious menu planned out and i hope everything turns out as planned. i've got my fingers crossed...

to my mom - thank you for everything you do for me, for my family, and especially for kingston. you've been such an integral part of our lives. i appreciate the love, the assistance, and the guidance. i am thankful to have you in my life, and i'm so thankful to be your daughter. i haven't always been an easy child (although...in comparison to my sisters i'm fantastic...bahaha, j/k girls), but i hope you feel the same as i do about the last few years...they've been such a great bonding time for us and i hope things only get better. love you lots mom! xo

to my mother-in-law louise - thank you for being so wonderful. i (and a handful of my friends) always say i was blessed with the world's greatest mother-in-law....she doesn't have a flaw! thank you for all you help us with (meals, babysitting, and house work). our lives would be difficult without you. thank you for making me feel special, thank you for making me feel loved, and thank you for making me feel like a real martyn. i love you! xo

and kingston...my sweet precious little boy. you absolutely light up my life. i never knew my purpose in life until you were born. you're the light of my life and without a doubt being your mom is the best part of my day. you're a blessing of a baby. your smiles, your giggles, your kisses, and your love...it's the best feeling in the world. thank you to your daddy for helping create such a lovely piece of perfection. i love you baby! xoxo

so for mother's day this year, not only am i thankful to have such a great mom, i'm even more thankful to be a mom!

i hope all of the mom's out there have a great day. enjoy it, milk it, relax, and take time to think about you. you deserve it!

dollar store - beware! on to round 2 baby!

to all my mama friends out there...you have to read this. i subscribe to today's parent magazine and read an article this morning regarding dollar stores and being very cautious about things you buy from there. here are a few snippits that i thought were too important not to share:

"Steer clear of metal objects including jewellery, key chains, trinkets, or small toys. There's no way to know whether these items contain high levels of lead or cadmium - heavy metals that are toxic when ingested, yet widely used in dollar store items because they're inexpensive."


"Lead is also commonly found in paints and glazes...so avoid painted goods - anything from toys to tableware. In 2008 Health Canada recalled 7,000 toy guns sold in dollar stores because the paint on them contained lead over the federal limit, and in 2007 issued an advisory on 140,000 packages of pencils with high lead levels in their coating"


"Some items may look like trusted name brands, but consumers need to be wary of counterfeit products that might not be safe. For example, in the past five years, dollar stores or other Canadian retailers have sold counterfeit products, including shampoo contaminated with disease-causing bacteria, toothpaste containing chemicals found in antifreeze, toothbrushes with improperly secured bristles posing a choking hazard, and household batteries that exploded and burned children. To minimize your risk of getting duped - and hurt - by counterfeits, avoid name brand products if the packaging looks flimsy, has an unfamiliar label or contains misspelled words."

any thoughts on all this??? it kind of shocked me. i'm not a huge dollar store shopper but it really opened my eyes up to realize that not everything we buy is what we think it is.

i'm sure some readers may think i'm a germaphobe or too cautious by reading this, but those who know me know that i let my kid chew on things he shouldn't, he crawls around everywhere, and i'm extremely relaxed as a mom. this kind of stuff is just too scary not to pass along. lead paint? antifreeze chemicals? i wouldn't want that for myself, let alone my children!

on another note, how about those canucks???? they seriously kicked ass last night. an unfortunate goal late in the 3rd period tied the game up and my heart actually stopped. i almost had a bit of doubt in my heart and was on the edge of my seat holding my breath...and then came burrows...oh burrows how all vancouverites love you right now. you never gave up, you worked your ass off all game, and it paid off! we're on to round two and i believe that this IS our year!

happy hump day everyone!

happy easter!

wow, what a weekend! our weekend was so crazy busy, but so super-amazing! friday was a holiday so we lazed around a little in the morning, had lunch with my family, took kingston to the park, and then left kingston behind with his grandparents so we could head out to vancouver and see stevie nicks & rod stewart!

the show started out with a few bumps...5 of the 8 of us were walking through the gates together. 3 of us got through no problem, and 2 of us had our tickets flagged as if we'd already entered the show. very weird. my mom didn't receive the tickets in the mail in time so they said they canceled our original seats and printed new tickets for us to pick up at the box office. we assumed that something went wrong and our new seats just weren't registering. and what really happened? my mom's neighbors yanked our tickets!!! and the morons stayed in the seats. okay, first of...opening mail not addressed to you is a federal offense you morons. and secondly, if you're ridiculous enough to even attempt to use someone else's tickets, don't sit in the same seats!!! did they really think that since our tickets didn't show up that we just wouldn't go to the show? anyways, we hid behind a little banner thing and watched who security pulled out of our seats...yup, it was them. losers is all i have to say.

saturday we had turkey dinner with my family and it was such a delicious dinner. best turkey we've ever had, super yummy ham, garlic mashed potatoes, vegetables cooked to perfection, caesar salad....so good! the night started out wonderful. the weather was absolutely lovely....19 and sunny! we had an easter egg hunt outside for the kids and they loved it. we had some minor blips in the road, but all in all it was a great night!

sunday we had brunch with cameron's parents and my parents out in yarrow. we went for a garden walk, talked about their property, enjoyed great food, and watched the hockey game.

we won't talk about the game too much....this house has their fingers crossed for game 7. they're crossed tightly and we haven't given up....

i will post some pictures later tonight when kingston naps...he's woken up now and i've gotta go rescue the jailbird from his cage....err, crib.

happy easter to you all! hope it was a fantastic weekend.

beautiful surroundings

most of my family and friends know that my inlaws have the most beautiful garden ever. it's so lush, colourful, full of life, and so incredibly well cared for. this week the flowers are really starting to bloom. some aren't quite out yet, some are half-way there, and some are out in full and are just absolutely lovely.

grandpa took baby k for the garden walk. lots for the little guy to learn! 

babies can always take time to smell the flowers. 

 this is looking back to the yard from where the house is.

one of cameron's favourite trees.

is this not one of the most beautiful places on earth??

looking back to the house. you can see the house in the distance.

showing kingston the little rainstick-sounding buds.

k loved looking at every flower. he's so interested in everything it just amazes me.

he got the fuzzy little covering off one of the flowers and was so proud of this thing. such a precious little man.

the sky was blue, the flowers were out. a lovely evening garden walk.

looking back from the house again. there's a big vegetable garden to the left too.

there are a few more pictures that i wanted to post, but for some reason stupid blogger won't let me post them properly and you'd have to twist your neck to see them. i'll post them on my facebook because i think they're beautiful.

this was the perfect end to a long, hellish day at work!

happy monday everyone! hope your week is great. it's a short week for all the workin' folks out there! yipeeeee!

the life of a working mom

wow. what a whirlwind the last 2 weeks have been! i thought i was busy before, but holy moly my life has been flipped upside down! i feel like i haven't stopped to smell the flowers in days...and i haven't!

i had one girl that i was training with say that she only got 2 shifts the whole summer when she started. i was feeling super discouraged hearing that. i assumed now that my training was over i would sit and wait, and wait, and wait some more for my phone to ring and hear that i could pick up a shift. today was my first day that i could be called and BOOM, i picked up 4 shifts over the next couple months. 2 this week, 1 in may, and 1 in june! sweetness....

right now i'm not so set on getting that many hours because i'm still on maternity leave. the more i work, the more gets deducted (dollar for dollar) from my mat-leave. in other words, i'm working for free. no thanks! i want to enjoy my baby thank you very much....come mid-may when my mat leave runs out i will start to panic, but until then i will enjoy my shifts, learn what i can, and enjoy my time with kingston...my precious little man!

juggling schedules is so tough. i want to see my friends, i want kingston to see his. i want to see my family, and cameron's family. it seems like the only time i get to see my inlaws is when they rush over here to babysit for me! the last few weeks have been great with my family. i've seen all of my siblings and my parents a handful of times...that was a rarity before so i (and kingston) have loved it.

speaking of schedules...the baby is sleeping, the laundry isn't done, toys are everywhere, and dinner hasn't been started. time to get cracking!

happy monday folks...it's a new week! i will try to write a more detailed update of my life later on...

play date!

today we had a playdate with our good buddies and the kids had a blast together. i had to share a few photos from their fun afternoon...

 avery loves her rain boots. she was having a difficult time putting them on...wonder why?

baby E is getting so big now. his blue eyes are captivating and he's such a sweetheart! 

kingston and avery playing nice together. they usually do, but she's the older one and sometimes reminds him of that....it's only fair, right? 

 baby E all snug as a bug. he snoozed here for a bit.

avery is such a pretty girl. her wispy blonde locks, her gorgeous blue eyes, and her precious smile. such a sweet girl.

it was such a great morning and afternoon. i cherish all the time i get with another adult, and having someone for kingston to play with is always a blessing. he loves other kids, and he loves to just play.

hope your tuesday was also filled with a few of your favourite people...