Butterfly and rainy day

As promised here is a picture of Rylan with the butterfly he made in class. He was very proud of it!

Carsten got dressed up this Sunday in an outfit that used to be Rylan's! So cute!

The rain was pouring down the other day so Jeff took Rylan outside to run around in it. This was the face he gave me when he was done. Did he enjoy it?? You be the judge!

Week two under way

Week two is under way and going well. Rylan is having a great week so far! His behavior at home has been fabulous and he has been getting good reports from class as well. He made a butterfly today in class and was very proud of it. I will post a picture of it tomorrow! Carsten is still having a rough time. He is just fussy all day long. We are at our wits end with him because we just don't know what to do for him.

This week we have been in class with just our own classmates. Last week it was all the students combined (first year and second year). There are only 12 of us in the first year class. It has been good to start to get to know them all better. We are still in orientation so we are looking forward to getting past that and into some new stuff!

We started P90x tonight and wow...that is a tough workout. I am sweating bullets and my arms are about to fall off! Hopefully we will see some good results in the near future. It feels good to be getting back into shape and eating healthy!!

First week

Our first week of school has ended well. Rylan had a great day in class- I believe only once or twice in time out- big improvement! No potty accidents- another big improvement! Yeah. Carsten did not have a great day, but he was not too fussy either.

So we are getting into the swing of things and a new routine for our family. I am feeling just a bit lonely as I have not really connected yet with anyone. I know it will just take some time, but I am anxious to have some new friends! Missing my friends from CA, my other friends scattered about the US and of course my family. Yet at the same time I love where we are at and the things we are already learning.

Better :)

Yesterday and today went better for both of the boys. They put Rylan into the preschool class and he seemed to not only enjoy it, but he had no behavior issues while he was in there. During the second half of the morning, the toddlers and preschoolers combine, so he had a few issues but they said just right before the day was over. We were relieved! Today the phone rang during class and we both shook our heads- turned out he had an accident that required new clothing and they only had pants for him not a shirt. I can handle those kind of phone calls!

Carsten has done better also. I started sending him with some fruit to eat about midway through class and they say he is loving it! Today he had bananas and pears, yum:) I still think he is getting his 2 top teeth, so hopefully they will come in soon. He is also working on crawling. He gets up on his knees and rocks, but has yet to figure out how to actually move. (I am in no hurry!)

From sitting

To tummy

To rocking on his knees

Rylan playing in our "backyard." He insisted on wearing his helmet to ride his bike- after he went swimming in our neighbors kiddy pool!

Day two...even worse

So did day two go any better??

The simple answer...no, worse actually :(

The long version: Rylan had another very rough morning. He had some issues bullying the younger children, so we were called out of class a few times to deal with the situation. Needless to say we were rather frustrated but we are trying to be patient with him as he is adjusting. It is a hard balance to find because the behavior is unacceptable regardless of what is going on in his little world, but you want to be understanding of his feelings as well.

Tomorrow they are moving him to the preschool which I think will really help. There are only 2 other kids in there and it is much more structured. He is in the toddler room with 4 other kids who are all 17 or 18 months old. He does better with older children and he loves doing crafts and having story time, etc. He is in class for 4 hours which is a long time for him. The last few years, I was only in class for 2 1/2 hours so that is a big difference. Hopefully day 3 will be much better.

Carsten did a little better, but was still fussy and wanting to be held a lot. Thankfully there are only 2 other babies who are 1 month and 2 months old, so he is the only hands on baby at this point.

I don't know who is having a harder time, them or me! It is so hard as a mom to hear that your kids are the "problem" kids. (No one has said that or even remotely indicated that, but it is sort of how I feel) I just hope it gets better soon!

Jeff and I had a great time in our class however which is the note I will leave the blog on. It was not all doom and gloom today!

First day of class

Today was our first day of class. We were anxious and excited to start the training. For some reason, even though I woke up 2 hours before we had to be to class, we ended up walking in about 5 minutes late. I hate being late and this was awful because they had already begun and the room was full with not enough chairs, so people had to do some shifting, find an extra chair, etc. I know my face was the shade of a fire engine! Once we got past that, it was a good morning. We enjoyed the speakers who shared their vision for our two years here.

Rylan was very excited to go to class today. He was all ready to go this morning. He even put his shoes on without being asked telling me, "they not on backwards mommy!" When we picked him up I flipped through the notebook to see if there were any notes on his day. I passed by the other 4 children whose note all said, "had a great first day." Then I got to Rylan's and it said a lot more than that! Things like, "had a hard time sharing, had a hard time remembering to be nice, etc." Needless to say I was rather disappointed. Please think of him this week as he is still adjusting to all these changes.

Carsten was not excited to go to class. He just wanted his morning nap! He did not have a great morning either, although discipline was not the problem. They said he was sad most of the morning, just wanting to be held. I think he is getting in more teeth because he has not been himself this past week. Think of him as well as he also is adjusting!

Settling in

Now that we have been in Canada for a week, things are settling down and we are getting into a routine. Here are some pictures from our first week in our new home!

We were so excited when we heard that we were getting a four-bedroom house. We honestly felt overwhelmed by it. Wow does Dad know how to take care of us or what?? This is the nicest place we have lived in yet and who would have thought in a little place called Durham, Ontario??




Unpacking was quite a chore since we had to do it all by ourselves and take care of two babies at the same time. It was a great opportunity for us to work together as a couple and we did great. We both came together with ideas and collaborated well to put together a place we can now call home.