We love Chuggington.

Every once in a while as i visit some of the blogs I have come to enjoy reading, I come upon a giveaway that I decide to enter.  I was lucky enough to win a couple of times last year.  A couple of weeks ago I was informed that I had been lucky again :)

I had entered a giveaway at Callista's Ramblings for a new DVD called Chuggington: Let's Ride the Rails.  Since we don't have cable, my boys are lovers of movies.  We enjoy lots of Disney movies, Veggie Tales, Backyardigans, Handy Manny, Magic School Bus, etc.  They love all things automotive.  Planes, cars, trucks, trains and anything else they can get their hands on.  When I saw this DVD I knew that they would be very interested to check it out.

When it arrived it didn't take us long to get it put into the DVD player.  The boys had seen an episode of Chuggington at their Gramma and Grampa's house while visiting there and were excited to tell me who the different characters were.

The colours are bright and the CGI animation is great.  The stories center around three trainees, Wilson, Brewster, and Koko as they learn about life on the rails and becoming productive chuggers.  All three of my boys enjoyed this video and I'm sure we will be checking out some of the other Chuggington titles.

If you have a child that likes trains, check out this fun series. It's cheerful and works in some life lessons into the episodes as well.

A big thankyou to Callista's Ramblings for this great giveaway.  We are certainly enjoying it. 

General Grievous + The Emperor = Cool Mom

...well, atleast for today :)

I love my boys.  They are bundles full of energy, attitude and dirt.  They drive me crazy.  They make me laugh.  On one hand I yell at them too much, but on the other I give them extra chances too.  There are days when I am sure they don't like me very much, but there are other days when I KNOW how much they love me!

As a parent there is always a desire to give your kids the things that they want.  Obviously giving them EVERYTHING they want is not wise, but some times it bums me out when one of them asks for something they REALLY want and we just can't afford to get it.  Finding things that don't cost anything but make the boys feel like they have been given something awesome can be a challenge.

Today I had the pleasure of finding one of those things :)

My older two boys LOVE playing Star Wars Lego on the Wii.  It is actually fun to watch them play sometimes.  This game can be played just sitting on the couch, but not for my boys.  They hop around and jump and swing.  They get their very own little workouts. 

One of their favourite parts of the game is opening new characters.  They do their best to earn points to be able to do this.  They try hard, but they die.....alot.  Every time you die you lose coins.  Over the last few weeks they have talked alot about wanting to open General Grievous and the Emperor.  General Grievous was 70 000 coins, and the Emperor was 250 000!!!!  Those numbers are HUGE when they get to numbers like 25 000 and want to spend them. LOL 

Well last night I decided that I would try and help them earn some coins to get these two characters opened.  Now, i must admit that I enjoy video games.  I don't play alot, but when I do, I can lose track of time....easily.  Last night was no different.  I started to play about 8pm and at 10pm I finally shut it off.  Wow, just like that 2 hours were gone!

But, it was 2 hours well spent.  I happened upon a level where it was pretty easy to add up the points.  I just kept playing the same level over and over.  I was successful enough to open both the General and the Emperor as well as several others.  But the best part for me was opening a x2 multiplier and invincibility.  Now the boys will have a better chance of earning the coins and keeping them.

Fast forward to this morning. 

Normally I don't let the boys play video games before school, but I was so excited for them to find out what I had opened that we turned the game on.  They were so happy and Mommy was totally cool! It was awesome fun.

Sometimes its the simple things :)

LIFE.....

As you take your first breath, only God knows how long it will be before you take your last.  From your first sunrise to your last sunset, will it be a mere moment, or many many years?  Will it be a good life?  Will it be full of joy, laughter, and love?  Will you look back on your life with amazement at how far you've come, or with regret of all the things you didn't do? 

Life....

Much of it is lived by the choices we make.  What courses to take? What career path to follow?  Where to live? Who to love? We make so many choices each and everyday. What to wear, what to eat, what to do? Some little, some HUGE.

But what about the choices we didn't make?  The times when life deals you a hand that you don't want to play? The times when we question what God is thinking and how, if He truly cared, could He let this happen?

Today I am thinking about and praying for a friend who is dealing with just that.  A few days ago her Mom went to the doctor because she didn't feel well.  The next day they figured it was something to do with her gall bladder.  Not fun, but handleable.  Today its a very aggressive form of cancer with possibly only weeks to live.

In an instant she went from believing she had years left to share with her mom to not knowing if today is the last day that they will get to share a conversation, a laugh, a hug, or anything at all.

It hurts me to imagine what she is going through.

I think about my own mom who was ill for several months during the winter, and of my mother-in-law who has battled a myriad of health problems and disease for years and years.  I love them both with all of my heart and will be devastated when God finally calls them home.  But my friend's situation has me wondering...if one of my moms died today, would I look back with regret or would I be confident that they knew how very much I loved and appreciated them? 

How often do we get sucked in by the routine of our lives and forget about those we love.  When was the last time you called your Dad, your sister, your Aunt, or a friend just to say I love you and you are important to me.  Do your kids know how much they mean to you?  How proud you are of them and how blessed you are that God gave them to you?  Does your husband know that you are so very grateful to have stuck it out together through all the rough spots and treasure the strength of your marriage and love today?

I don't want to live life always wondering if today is the day I will lose someone I truly care about.  That is no way to live.  I do want to make sure that I take the opportunities that I am given to have those I love KNOW that I love them, that they are special to me and that I am truly thankful that God brought them into my life.

Life is short. 

The end comes without warning. 

Choose to make the most of every second you have. 

Be a blessing to those around you. 

Take the time to write a note, send an email, make that phone call.

Cherish the moments we've been given, and enjoy all of those amazing people in your life.

Tales of Three

I am proud to say that I am Mom to three awesome little boys. 

They have changed my world, changed my priorities, changed my life.

They are full of energy, creativity, imagination, laughter and an abundance of love.

They make me laugh, cry, sing, shout, scream, dance, play, and snuggle.

They are loud.

They get dirty.

They are ours:)

One of the things I love the most about my boys is their love for each other. 

They are proud to be big brothers.

They CAN share.

They encourage and celebrate each other's accomplishments.

They make each other laugh.

 There are fights...... of course. 

There are Star Wars battles

and then there are battles over Star Wars. 

There are Lego Wars and there are wars over Lego.

There are arguments about who gets what plate, who sits where, who goes first, who didn't put their toys away and so on, and so on, and so on.

But, if push comes to shove....

I know they have each other's backs:)

Blink and you miss it!!

I find it remarkable how fast time flies!  When you are a kid everything seems to take an impossibly long time...unless you are having fun.  Now as an adult with 3 young boys, I feel like I blink and a week has flown by.  Heaven forbid I take a nap, there goes a month!!!  Time just seems to disappear right before my eyes.

Back in the end of November I had decided that I would take some time away from my blogs.  That would allow me to get through my oldest son's birthday parties, Christmas and New Year's.  Then, I would start back fresh in January.  What happened?  Where did the time go?

Today is February 28th, 2011.  Holy camoly!!! More than 3 months have gone by since my last post, and 2 whole months past when I had planned on being back!!  CRAZY!!  Apparently my New Year's resolution of being more organized with my time has not proven easy.  However....

Here I sit.  Eager to return.

So, I hope you had a great Christmas, lots of parties and wonderful family time, an awesome New Year's, hopefully not too too much to drink, a January full of fresh beginnings, a happy Valentine's Day and a fabulous Family Day too!!.  I hope that 2011 is treating you well so far and that you are looking forward to how the remainder of the year unfolds for you and yours.

I hope that you might find me again and continue this journey here with me, as well as checking out my Gratitude Blog  here (which has also been sadly neglected).  As always, your comments are most welcome and I look forward to visiting with you again soon.

Today's truth

Yesterday was weigh in day.

Bummer.

When I woke up in the morning I didn't want to go.

I knew that I was up, and up ALOT.

I got into the shower.

As I stood there having the hot water wash over me I realized something.

There was NO reason not to go.

Yes I knew I had gained,

but I was okay with that.

My hubby and I had finally had a weekend to spend with each other without our 3 kids, and I THOROUGHLY enjoyed it!

I wouldn't change it.

So, to my meeting I went.

I weighed in.

I gained.

ALOT.

But I'm fine with that.

Today is a new day.

Bring on next weeks weigh in.

Want to join in on the blogging fun?

Join Diminishing Lucy's Fat to Fit Thursday Blog Hop.

Makeover Week

Yes, I am a fan of the Biggest Loser.

I haven't seen every season, but I have enjoyed the ones that I have.

This season is no different.

Sure there are always contestants that I don't like so much...(Brendan), and others that seem to grow on me.....(Ada).

But ultimately I just enjoy seeing the amazing transformations these people go through.

This week is
Makeover week.

Always a fun episode to watch.

They revealed their transformations with a fashion show.

Watching each of them strut their stuff on the catwalk you could see how thrilled each of them was with the progress they have made so far.

Watching some of their families/friends reactions when they got to see them was so touching.

Seeing the faces of Frado's children brought me to tears.  These kids are in their teens, and have never in their lives seen their Dad at the weight he currently is.  He had always been much heavier.

It made me think.

My kids have only know this version of me.

That makes me sad.

I want to show them a Mom that can be active with them.

A Mom that cares enough for them, AND for herself, to do what it takes to get healthy and strong.

To prove to them that anything is possible if you want it bad enough.

Makeover week.

Eventually I'm going to have my own Makeover week.

I think that needs to be a reward for reaching one of my goals.
Not sure which goal yet, but I'll think on that.

I have so work to do.