Happy 1st Birthday Daniel!

My sweet little man has turned one today!  Here is a picture of him eating his birthday cake

I am seriously in love with my children, but my love for little man is growing and growing as he is getting older and cuter.  He likes to give kisses with an open mouth, nice wet ones, and he likes to put his head on me to rest (any part of my body will do, as long as it is momma).

He is pulling himself to stand, and climbing up stairs.  He tries very hard to go down but has not yet figured out that he needs to turn around.  I would estimate that it will take him a few more months for that kind of discovery, based on what I remember with Emma.

On most days, I cannot believe my luck that I have these two small kids running around the house and driving us crazy.  I mean hello, I am supposed to be infertile hahaha.  In fact I really really am infertile now.  I did some spring cleaning and came across a packet of sanitary pads, which I happily gifted to my friend.  I feel very free without the stupid uterus.  Thank you Daniel for this unexpected bonus that your birth has brought me :)

I am not writing quite as much because I am incredibly busy with work and exercise.  I have become very fit, fitter than I have ever thought I would be in this lifetime.  I just ran 15.5 km (9 miles?) Saturday, and the fun thing is that I do it every Saturday, and have been doing it throughout winter, in the snow.  It is now a fair bit easier actually not to have to fight the snow with each step (we are just going through the melt, and the roads are clear).  If you told me I would be doing forested trail runs in deep winter at -35C I would have laughed, but I did, and I will continue to do them.  I swim twice a week, 2 km each time, and I run three times a week, for a total of about 30 km right now, but increasing steadily each week towards 40 km. I just got my bike out too, and will road bike soon.  I am preparing for a triathlon olympic size in July, and for a half marathon in the mountains in August.

I love being so active, but I would never have been able to do it without my husband's support.  He truly believes that I need time to myself, and has figured that if I exercise I am less anxious and worried, which is a double reason to do it.  MrH has been a wonderful support during this past year, and during my whole marriage to him.  Having two small kids is no small feat, even though we love them more than life itself.  He has done it before, and knows how to put it into perspective for me.

What a year this has been!  one year ago, little Daniel and myself were struggling for life, and now we are thriving and happy and surrounded by love and support.  Thank you God! that is all that I can say.   And hopefully many more of these wonderful years will come.

My son, may you grow to be a good man, an honest, kind, generous and loving man, the way that your father is, and the way that I try to be (minus the man part I mean).  It is a huge joy and honour to be your mother.  You were the last embryo, and honestly took me by such happy surprise when you implanted.  The fact that you are healthy and happy and smart and everything under the sun today is proof that amazing things happen in life.  I hope you will carry this thought with you wherever you go (and of course don't go too far from momma, my love).

simplicity

I have been attracted towards minimalism more and more since we have had children.  I made a few mistakes with over purchasing in my past life, and now I am trying to destash everything.  I have gotten rid of shoes today, clothes over the past two days, sheets when we moved two years ago, towels ditto, books in two stages, when we first moved here and also in the past week.  It is like spring cleaning but with the goal of halving all of my possessions.

I took an entire bin of toys out of Emma's room and I don't think it was even noticeable.  That being said, she has the least toys out of all the kids I know.  Most of her stuff is educational materials, like puzzles and blocks.  She has about four stuffed animals or so, and only one Barbie which I did my best to hide (it was a gift).

My kids have only four drawers of clothes (Emma) and one drawer (Daniel) total.  Emma's clothes are bigger so they take up more space.  That being said, I still have three strollers and one bike attachment.  Crazy, huh?  One stroller is a single jogger, one is a double jogger, and one is a high seated Stokke which I love for walks as Daniel can see much better and be closer to me.  I think that the Stokke will be the first one to go, but the joggers will have to stay, since I sometimes need both (like when I actually jog with the kids).  The single jogger I use when travelling, as it folds up very easily.

I also have a total of 25 pairs of shoes, and three runners (metal spikes, trail and flat).  We do have a lot of seasons here, and I need office boots, very warm boots, mud boots, elegant heels, the full gamut, because my life is pretty colourful like that.  And, despite culling my sweaters FOUR times, I still have 15 sweaters.  On the other hand, I have TWO t shirts (one white and one brown) and two short sleeved tops for work.  Summer is brief, what can I say.

Please tell me how you gals have reached simplicity, if you have.  It is a never ending struggle, but I am getting better as time goes on.  I think that with most of my possessions, it is a matter of thinking about each and every one to make sure that it really is pulling its weight.  So far, some things have not, but they are in great condition and classics, so I am waiting until something else hits the dust to put them into heavier use.  I know that it is not the way to destash, but on the other hand it makes me feel safe to have them as backup.

I suspect that this is the feeling that I need to work on, eh?