Alberta Bound

We celebrated an early Christmas with Brian's family last night, so fun! I will upload videos when I get back from vacation. Posting will be sparse over the next two weeks, as my folks only have dial up out in the country, so it's hard to upload pics etc. But I will have PLENTY to post when I get back, promise! I might check in a time or two, but likely no pics until my return.

Merry Christmas to all! We hope you have a wonderful time with family celebrating the birth of our Lord!

Random Funny

Brooks admiring the candles we lit for dinner time. He loves to get too close, after constant reminders that it's fire, and it burns, and it's dangerous etc. So here he's admiring, keeping a reasonable distance. I actually snapped this pic about 5 seconds before he decided to reach in and touch the flame, "burning" his hand. It was really only some black soot that rubbed right off...he didn't actually touch it, just got close. And now he understands what we're talking about and has quite the tearful story about how he got burned. And naturally believes that he requires all sorts of bandages, creams and sun-soothing lotion. (Which he doesn't get, or need:-)


Kenna made this potato head during her nap/rest time one day last week, and she was exceedingly proud of how cute it was. She asked for a picture, and approved of the picture on the viewfinder. "What a cute little ta-tato head!"...that is a tongue, acting as eyebrows on the nose-less potato...and I think one of his ears is a nose. He sat on display on the coffee table for a few hours of fun.

It Snowed

Of course I have to document this once a year occurrence each time it happens. If for no other reason than to provide a good laugh for all the northerners! So here goes...apparently we had quite the storm last night :-D It certainly did get cold, I could feel that part! The kids were so excited to see snow this morning, Kenna declared she was going to go out and make a snowball. Lol. I told her that really wouldn't work too well...but she could make one at Grandma's. Well she started going on and on about all the great things she's going to do in the snow at Grandma's house...we'll see! I tried to explain that it's not like here...there is lots of snow, but it's also very cold, so you need snowpants, hats, mittens, scarves, and the snow is very deep so it's a little hard to walk etc. Of course they have no concept of any of that, and for now, are we're going with the idea that they will love it. I have my suspicions that after 2 minutes of THAT kind of cold, they will be singing a different tune. (Haha! They are "freezing" here just walking to the car!) It's hard to imagine when you've never seen it (that you remember, they saw a blizzard in ON in 2008, but don't remember it)

Look, snow on the car!


Rushing out to play before church (while still in the process of getting ready actually, they just couldn't wait...Brooks ran out without shoes on until Brian saw and stopped him!)


They had to touch it




Around here, this equals snow "sticking" of course it was melted in no time, but it did stick while the sun was down, so I guess that counts:-)

Year in Review

This is a facebook application I ran, called Year in Status. It randomly generates this pretty collage of various random status updates made throughout the year. Funny! New Years Facebook resolution...stop posting about cleaning my house:-)...but then, what else would I talk about??
(click to enlarge and read)

Sushi Remembered

We had a very sad day this past week. Sushi (our beta fish) died. I noticed that he was likely dead, but being scared to death of such things, didn't inspect too closely. Later in the day, he was still there...head buried under the rocks like he usually does, but just in a different way than normal, since he hadn't moved, I made Brian check it out. I did not call the kids attention to it, as I wasn't really sure what to do about it. When they were in bed Brian flushed the poor fish (thought that might be a little traumatizing to introduce the kids to the "flushing" part...I would never hear the end of that conversation!). I think he might have gotten stuck while he slept under the rocks, which was his usual habit. Anyway, he was not floating, he was in his sleeping position, so that is why I think he may have gotten stuck and unable to get out? Anyway, we cleaned his vase and put fresh water in it to keep the plant alive, we just left it alone, and didn't say anything to the kids. We decided not to get another fish until we return from Christmas vacation in Canada, so we don't have to have someone babysit him while we are gone.

The next morning Kenna sees the empty vase and asks "Where's Sushi?" I said, "He's dead..." and immediately her little eyes fill up with tears and she says "but he was my special birthday fish" Just as I cut her off and said, "But we are getting another one! You can pick him out and we can call him Sushi and he will just the same". She smiled and got excited at that prospect.

A few times over the past few days she has mentioned how much she misses her fish and how much she can't wait to pick out a new one. Never has a boring fish been so loved!

Christmas Letter 2009

Dear Friends & Family,

Merry Christmas! It’s time once again for the Bolger family yearly update, I hope you enjoy hearing a little news about what’s been happening in our world! Again, God has proven Himself so real and so powerful this year. We have been blessed beyond measure with all we’ve been given, and are so grateful for our wonderful families and friends.

Brian: It’s been a busy year for Brian. He started it off it January with about 30 stitches in his forehead/eyebrow (Youth event mishap). From there it’s only gotten better:-) He continues to love his job with the Woodard Group (commercial construction company), as a superintendent, and this Dec/Jan has been promoted to Assistant Project Manager. This keeps him very busy! The new title brings more responsibility and “office work”, but he is really enjoying the challenge. He has also had side work, which is wonderful, but again, keeps him hopping on the weekends. He is no longer the Youth Pastor at our church, which he had been doing on a part time basis for 2 years. This summer they were looking to fill the position with a full time person, which he/we were just not able to do. It was very sad to see that go (in Aug), he loved it & the kids so much. Brian discovered CrossFit training this year, and loves doing that. When I take over the house with ladies and crafts, he busies himself with working out or shooting. He has been steadily working on our own household projects too, and everything is coming along nicely. I am the one lagging behind now, as I need to get painting trim! His project for the winter is to re-side the dormers on our house. There is never a lack for work to be done, that is for sure.

Darla: I have been having a blast this year as a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator. Rubber stamps and paper crafts take over the house on a regular basis, much to Brian’s dismay:-) I truly love the creative outlet it gives me, and really enjoy the fellowship I get out of it too, having classes for ladies to come and participate in. I have also been busy not only with our two little munchkins, but earlier in the year I watched two little girls, and currently we watch a little boy every day. As if that weren’t enough, I do the payroll and accounts payable for a construction company from my home (I used to work for them a few years ago in the office). Again, I enjoy that too, as it gives me a chance to exercise my brain a little bit. And sometimes I even do the laundry, haha! A major highlight this year was having almost half of my family visit VA for a week, and two of my sisters (Janessa & Jillaine) stay with us for 2 months! I had so much fun, and the kids loved every second too. We are looking forward to traveling to Alberta for a white Christmas this year with my family.

Kenna: What a doll. This girl has such a sweet heart. And a sweet tooth too! She has a knack for collecting candy every Sunday. She knows which people will dole it out, so she makes her rounds, collecting two of everything (“one for my Brooksie”). Kenna is 3 years old now, and she loves to do school, and loves to teach school as well. She’s generally very obedient and responsive…and quite the talker! Some of the things she comes up with are just hilarious. She has a very expansive vocabulary, and you really never know what might come out of her mouth. I am convinced she thinks she is also another Mom in the house. She confers with me over breakfast, “So, Mom, what’s the plan today?” and then sets out to implement it. She’s a great helper. She has a flare for clothes and shoes, but hates having her hair done. She is quite the little bargain/sale shopper. Basically anything she sees and likes “oh look, and it’s on sale!!” even though it’s not :-) She was thrilled to have 2 cousins born this year, and now simply cannot wait for her very own baby to “finish growing”. She is loving Cubbies, and school time each day working on her letters, numbers and writing skills…and she’s a lefty! Kenna & Brooks are both singers! They love music and sing constantly, and do remarkably well at holding a tune. We can’t wait to see what develops in them as they get older. It’s so fun to see the personalities emerge from babies to big kids!

Brooks: The only thing to be said about Brooks is that he is SPORTS. OBSESSED. That says it all. He talks about soccer, baseball, hockey, volleyball and football nonstop. He is also very into trains, motorcycles, and wrestling. He is a boy through and through. He has a big interest in reading, letters, numbers, shapes…anything school related. He loves to give his sister a hard time by purposely saying the wrong shape etc when doing flashcards. That is such a Brian thing to do, he’s definitely his fathers son! He seems like he will be a very academic little guy. He got to play soccer on a team this fall with his sister (he’s technically too young), but he did just fine in keeping up with the 3 & 4 year olds. He’s big for his age, and talks exceptionally well, so he fits right in with the older kids. He outweighs his sister now, and almost matches her height. It won’t be long before our little boy is bigger than big sister! He brings a smile to all he meets, with his cute little chubby cheeks.

Baby: Baby is due March 23^rd, and I’m hoping not a day later! Again, we didn’t find out the gender, so he or she will be a surprise! The ultrasound revealed a cute little face that looks just like Brooks, so we are tending to think “boy”, because of that connection. Kenna is dying to “have a baby, and a puppy, and a cat”. I have promised to made good on only one of those:-) The baby seems to be quite like the other two so far, just “normal” baby, not too hyperactive nor too lazy. The ultrasound revealed a “big” baby, so I am curious to see how that plays out! We can’t wait to meet the little one in a few months!

Keeping in Touch: Thanks for keeping up with us by checking out my blog, I have fun keeping pictures and stories posted for your viewing pleasure:-) And please stay tuned for the news of our little one due in March! We are also on facebook, please friend us! We love you all!

Brian, Darla, Kenna, Brooks & Baby

Christmas Pictures 2009

There are hundreds of great pictures! How can I narrow it down to my faves! Here are only a FEW of my favourites...I thought it might be a little ridiculous to post a hundred pictures, but they are all really good!




Pretty girl!




This is such a typical expression for him, cutie.


Gorgeous!


Little "Shauna-seed" - Brooks saying "Hi Baby!"








To see a few more Christmas pics I posted later, click here

To see our original Christmas picture photo attempt, click here

Baby's First Ornaments

Some photo records of the kids first ornaments! (And some older ones too...we don't have Brian's, his mom still has his)

The earliest ornament I can find for me, Christmas 1980...I know I have the '79 one somewhere, but I can't tell which one it is...


Our first Christmas together


Kenna's second ornament, a big kitty cuddling a baby kitty.


Brooks' first ornament, a little Winnie the Pooh scene. It says "How Delightful" said Pooh "to be so brand new" Christmas 2007


Kenna's first ornament, it says Baby's 1st Christmas 2006

O Christmas Tree

We started to decorate with Brooksie favourite ornament, "jingle bell rock". As you can see, they (Kenna, Brooks & Jack) hung about 20 jingle bells in a 1 foot cluster.


All done!


Only the white lights on...my favourite! The kids like all the lights on, and since it's controlled with a remote, it's so fun for them to set everything on and off a few times each before they decide on the way they like it.

Livingroom makeover

Saturday Brian went to estimate a new job, and came home with five gallons of paint for our livingroom, in our chosen colour, Behr's Baked Scone. We were in the midst of Christmas decorating, and my crafting up a storm for the Adoption Craft Sale next Saturday...soooo...it wasn't necessarily perfect timing for inpromtu painting of the main part of our house, but when is timing ever perfect? :-) We have been planning to paint since the summer, and just waiting on the money and the time...and now it's here! So since the plan is underway, here it is.

Our walls in the livingroom and kitchen, previously Pumpkin Butter (and white in the kitchen), will now be a light beige colour, Baked Scone. All the trim, previously a dark brown, will be Swiss Mocha (a shade of pure white). And that's it! The kitchen cabinets and the hallway are painted a creamy cafe au lait colour, called Toffee Crunch, and so were going really neutral compared to before! - and all the colours I chose sound so yummy too:-)

Since we had to move all the furniture to paint, we decided to put it all back in different places...for the first time in almost 5 years! DISCLAIMER. Excuse the mess, I am posting pics right away, but we haven't had a chance to get all set back up yet. It will be better by tomorrow. It's actually already much better since I took these:-)

Here is the entrance area. This foyer table used to be beside the front door. This mirror I got for Christmas a few years ago, and it's never been hung until now. The organ and a smaller mirror used to be on this wall. - you can see the paint, some carpet squares (going up in the apartment). The bookshelf in our bedroom doorway has since been moved to the wall with the tv.


The other new purchase, blinds! These are teak blinds, and I love them! The middle one had to be ordered specially, due to it's unique size, it should be here on Thursday! Can't wait. Still need to find some curtains or something also to hang...I have been on the lookout for a few months, but nothing has grabbed me yet (that I can afford anyway:-) Trim has only been primed, not painted yet.


Ladder bookshelf used to be where the organ is currently, now it's on the kitchen side of the wall around the corner from the couches. Decor a little smooshy, so we could fit our Willow Tree Nativity all on one shelf! The kids love it! The kitchen is still white, so we need to do that, and also the wall with the tv on it is not done. It's not a large wall, but it's the most complicated due to the tv and all the wires. Brian would like to install data plates (? or something) and bury the wires from the receiver & cable to the tv behind the wall. We (I) didn't want to do that tonight, so maybe tomorrow. I need just a little time to reassemble myself:-)


All done!


This is where the ladder bookshelf & wrought iron bookshelf used to be, we moved the organ here, and pushed the couch further back, making the livingroom a little larger, and the "wasted" foyer space a little smaller, so that is nice. (Still enough room for a pack and play for baby in a few months!)


It looks great here, aside from the mess. The shoe box is full of things I have made for the craft sale!


Covering the old colour, it's a lot lighter!


First coat done, still needing to prime the trim

All about Brooks

Here are some fun facts about our little boy at age 2

Brooks is very competitive and tough, yet at the same time cautious and snuggly. Trying new things (like climbing a big ladder or a curly slide at the park) make him very nervous, and he hates floors that you can "see-through" (solid mesh stuff, like at a park). He does not like jumping from thing to thing (coffee table to couch) like his sister does, it usually takes him forever to get his courage up to try it one time. He shrugs off his nerves by staying on solid ground with mom, and using the excuse "I unger" (younger) or "I just not ode enough" (old). He loves to punch and wrestle, and loves any and all sports. He throws a ball really well, and wants to "Catch it to me" with Mommy or Daddy constantly. He likes to do pre-k school with Kenna, and keeps up surprisingly well. He needs a nap everyday to maintain his mood...he gets whiny very quickly. He has an exceptional vocabulary for his age, and loves making crafts and drawing.

Here are some things he says about himself, they are direct quotes

"What is your favourite...?"

Colour: Purple (No, your favourite colour for boys) umm, Fomas de frain, boys wike dat. (Thomas the train, boys like that...his favourite colours are blue and red, on most days)

Movie: Spoy-ts (Sports)

Song: Marry me Duliette you neva hafta be alone (Juliette; = Love Story by Taylor Swift)

Thing to do in school: School spoy-ts (sports)

Animal: dee-bra (zebra)

Food: see-getti's (spaghetti)

Drink: water, we we can own-wee (only) have water

What kind of birthday cake do you want: Fomas de frain (Thomas the train)

Best Friend: Jack-Jack

All about Kenna

Here are some fun facts about our big girl at age 3.

Kenna is a very tough, daring and athletic little girl. She loves to talk about everything, constantly. She loves doing pre-k school work, and is left handed. She is very tender-hearted and thoughtful towards others. She has a memory like an elephant...she never forgets! She loves cute babies, playdates, soft things (blankets & stuffed animals) and hot chocolate!

Here are some things she says about herself, they are direct quotes

"What is your favourite...?"

Colour: Pink

Game: Cards

Movie: Monsters Inc. A-corporated

Song: Sweet Jesus (by Selah)

Thing to do: Playing baby dolls, cause I'm the big girl and I'm going to school

Thing about School: Reading letters

Stuffed animal: my tubby-tubbies (teletubbies)

Animal: giraffe

Food: de'sgetti's (spaghetti)

Drink: Chocolate milk

What do you want for your birthday: a "Darby" cake (Barbie cake)

Best Friend: I like Libby

More Fave Christmas Pics

After admiring the pictures once again, there are still a few more that I just have to post!

A Catchy Tune!

Kenna and Brooks are in love with the catchy tunes from Glee! We listen to them on youtube, and I have to set a limit (2 times), or else we would never stop. It's adorable to hear them sing along. This is Kenna's fave. She belts it out:-)



Brooks loves "some-bod-day"

Dessert Recipe

This holiday/party/any time dessert is a favourite! My mom came across the recipe somewhere, it's just sooo good!

Skor Bar Dessert (it's a trifle)

1 chocolate cake, cooled - I would suggest making one from a "box" (ie Duncan Hines), because you want it flavourful, and soft/moist. Homemade cakes often lack one of those things.
chocolate pudding - instant, make according to directions.
dream whip - make according to package directions
skor bars, crushed/broken

Layer cake in chunks in bottom of trifle bowl (or other large clear glass bowl). Cover with a layer of chocolate pudding, then a layer of dream whip, sprinkle with candy pieces. Repeating layering in this order until bowl is full (usually two times, maybe three) Make sure you end with dream whip on the top and sprinkle candy pcs over the top. Chill until ready to eat.

Super simple and delicious!

Quote Archive 2009

I've always loved quotes, and have quite a collection of them. I love to share one per month on my blog. 

"I have gathered a posie of other men's flowers, and nothing but the thread that binds them is mine own" John Bartlett
And it still takes a wise man, to bow before the King. To worship and adore him more than any other thing. We offer up our sacrifice of praise for you each day. And it still takes a wise man to pray. It Still Takes a Wise Man to Pray, Jeff & Sheri Easter

Character is the ability to carry out a worthy decision after the emotion of making that decision has passed. Hyrum W. Smith

The only way to learn strong faith is to endure great trials. George Muller

The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good. Ann Landers

God creates out of nothing. Therefore, until a man is nothing, God can make nothing out of him. Martin Luther

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
The Road Less Traveled, by Robert Frost. Read entire poem here

God is, and all is well. John Whittier

That man is a success who has lived well, laughed often, and loved much; who has gained the respect of intelligent men and the love of children; who has filled his niche and accomplished his task; who leaves the world better than he found it, whether by an improved poppy. a perfect poem or a rescued soul; who never lacked appreciation of earth's beauty or failed to express it; who looked for the best in others and gave the best he had. Robert Louis Stevenson

If you can dream and not make dreams your master, If you can think and not make thoughts your aim, If you can meet with triumph and disaster, And treat those two impostors just the same... Rudyard Kipling (Read entire poem)

We have always found the Irish a bit odd. They refuse to be English.
Winston Churchill


Piglet sidled up to Pooh.
"Pooh" he whispered.
"Yes, Piglet?"
"Nothing" said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw.
"I just wanted to be sure of you".
The House at Pooh Corner, A.A. Milne

Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. Paul, I Cor 9:24 (Read more)