Christmas in Etobicoke...

This past week has been full of eating chocolate, rushing around doing last minute errands, eating chocolate, visiting friends, eating chocolate and visiting family! :) All that combined with my laziness means it's been over a week since I last blogged. Let's hope I can remember everything that happened!

Last Friday night, Teta Linda took Marvin, Maja, Bakica & I to Black Creek Pioneer village for "Christmas by Lamplight". You may remember that Teta treated us to this last year too. Just to show you how much Maja has grown since her last visit there, here's a picture of what she looked like then...
My how much difference one year makes! Here's a group shot of us this year...

The night was great! The weather wasn't too cold and Maja was interested in most of the houses we stopped in, although she wasn't one for sitting still for very long (why would that night be any different from any other day or night?!?). Thanks for a wonderful evening Teta!

Then on Saturday, we unfortunately got some bad news that my uncle Ron (Grandma's youngest brother) suffered a stroke that morning. After being rushed to the hospital, thanks to warm hearted actions of an unknown off-duty police officer, Ron is doing ok. The family has been to the hospital everyday to visit him and his spirits seem to be good. It could have been much worse. That police officer was Ron's guardian angel watching out for him that morning. Please keep Ron in your thoughts and prayers.

On Sunday, Maja's friend Emily came over with her parents, Doug & Anna, for a nice pre-Christmas get together. Gifts were exchanged, catching up was done and laughing was heard. It was a really nice visit. Although I had a good time throughout the evening I think my favourite part was watching Maja & Emily play together. Just before everyone was changed and put into their pjs (you should see the pjs Doug wears!), Maja & Emily were really having a great time together. They were running around playing peek-a-boo and laughing their little heads off. That's what Christmas is all about... listening to children play. Love it!!! Here's a shot of Maja & Emily sitting around Emily's Magna-Doodle together in their new matching sweaters (how cute are they?!?)...

Then on Monday night, Marvin, Maja & I headed over to Bakica's house where we had a nice Christmas Eve dinner with Teta & Bakica. As you can tell by the photo below, Maja was just thrilled with the puppets that Teta gave her for Christmas (six in total, but the Pig (now called "ah-poe" by Maja because Teta made him eat Maja's apple and it's stuck...) is definitely Maja's favourite)...
And similar to last year, Maja got to sit on Bakica's lap for dinner (thanks for feeding her and then eating your dinner cold Bakica). Here's a shot of Baka & Maja using a green bean as a Christmas Cracker...
And a close up of little Maja hamming it up for me...
And that brings us to Christmas morning. Here's a nice shot of Marvin bringing Maja downstairs to check out what Santa had left for everyone...

Apparently, in addition to Santa making a stop at our house the little mad princess also made a stop! :) Here's a shot of Maja modelling the ever-so-cute Princess outfit our friends V&G gave her (not a great shot of Maja but at least you can see the outfit ok)...
After Maja's morning nap, Bakica stopped by to watch Maja open her gifts. Maja was very excited about the Mega Bloks wagon and Raptors bear complete with sunglasses (among other many other gifts) that Bakica gave her. Especially since Bakica was willing to drag Maja around in it...
Then in the afternoon, it was off to Sandra & Mike's place for Christmas dinner. It was definitely a full house as almost all of my side of the family was there (Sandra, Mike, Will, Graham, Peter, Anna, Grandma, Grandpa, Marvin, Maja & me). Maja had just as much fun playing with her cousins (or at least watching them run around loaded with Christmas excitement) as she did with her new toys! Here's a cute shot of Maja & Anna hanging out by the fridge together...
Then Boxing Day was just a day for hanging out (and assembling various new toys of Maja's). Here's a shot of Maja and Raptors bear hanging out reading and talking on the phone yesterday sitting at her new table and chairs...

And that pretty much brings all of you up to date on what we've been up to! Hopefully everyone had a great Christmas too and has exciting plans for New Years!

Another Week Gone By...

On Sunday night (after shovelling the driveway a total of 5 times), Marvin & Maja had a little bit of together time. They were sitting together on the bed chatting away while Maja was "stamping" her cards (various blank gift cards that I've managed to accumulate over the past couple of months) with the potato masher. Apparently each card needed to be validated before going back into her wallet. Anyhow, here is a shot of them having a great time together...

Then on Monday, we had another hang around the house kind of day. Although our furnace was fully functioning (unlike some people I know...), Maja felt the need to put on a hat while we were playing downstairs...
On Tuesday, Maja & I had our buddies Stephanie, Christine & Dash come by for a visit. We (Steph & I) got to sit back and watch the three kids just sit around, somewhat playing with each other (ok so Dash was more on the side lines bouncing away in the exersaucer, but he was there nonetheless). Given the momentary freedom, Steph & I decided to bake (and eat of course) some very yummy chocolate caramel shortcake bars. After a bite to eat, it was nap time and everyone headed to their own beds (including me)!

Then last night, on there way to a dinner and a movie, Grandma & Grandpa stopped by for a quick visit. Maja shared her chocolate chip cookies with Grandpa, played peekaboo with Grandma and basically acted her cute little self for them. Here's a shot Grandma took just after she peeked around the corner at Maja...
And here's a shot of them playing peekaboo in the living room - they're both obviously having a great time...
Then after Grandma & Grandpa left, Sara & Nick stopped by. Although we always love to see them, we particularly loved to see them last night as they came bearing gifts! They generously got Maja a cool wooden block set in a cart and some neat (edible according to Maja) magnets. And more importantly, Marvin & I got the cool game Sequence! We have been wanting this game for a long time and are very excited about finally having it. Thanks a bunch guys!

And so far today, Maja has been a very busy gal (which is why she's now upstairs napping nicely). This morning we headed off to Loblaws to do some grocery shopping, then after a quick morning nap and some lunch, Maja and Bakica headed off to Woodbine Centre together to have some quality Baka & Maja time - which of course means that I got to have some quality me time! Thanks Baka! Anyhow, here's a picture of Miss Maja waiting patiently on the steps (with Twinkle Bear) for Baka to arrive...

What a Cozy Day...

Marvin & I (and Maja for the most part) have been up since 6:00am this morning - I can almost hear you groaning at how early that is Sara, but you better get used to it... your turn is coming! :) And since then, I swear it hasn't stopped snowing! I think in total we have almost a foot and a half of snow! Don't get me wrong, I love it... I'm just amazed at the sheer volume of it all. We've already shovelled our driveway twice, our neighbour generously came over and used his new snow blower on it once and now Marvin is about to go out and shovel it again (I'm sure it will need to be shovelled again before the day is over). Isn't it pretty?

Anyhow, what better time to sit down and update the blog! Let's see... last Wednesday I wasn't feeling well so Maja & I just hung out around the house together. And what did we do to entertain ourselves you ask? We played dress up! Maja went nosing around her closet and found a couple of new outfits to try on. Among some pants & sweaters that now fit her, Maja found a UV swim hat that one of our friends gave her way back when. Here's a shot (somewhat blurry) of her (and Pedro of course) checking herself out in the mirror with her new found hat on...

And then when I told Maja that Marvin & I were going to the basketball game that night, she thought it was most appropriate to dress up in her Air Jordan outfit (that Teta gave her last Christmas), oh yeah and the cool sandals that go with her UV hat (not the most stylish of outfits I must say)...
After all that dressing up, we worked up quite the appetite so we headed downstairs to have some grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch. Apparently, word on the street is that my grilled cheese sandwiches rock which led to Maja & I having an impromptu visit from one of the neighbourhood squirrels...
Yes, that is a squirrel sitting on the window ledge looking longing in at Maja's sandwich (and if you look carefully you can see Maja's offering him one of her yummy morsels in her right hand)! Later that day, Bakica stopped by to see Maja, although she did try to pretend she was stopping in to see how I was feeling and then just because she was there she thought she'd see Maja too... but I know the truth! :) Here Maja is poking through the mesh at Bakica hiding out in her fort...Thursday morning, Maja had a bit of naked time in her bedroom. I've always heard that it's good to let kids run around naked (so they "breathe"), but I just like to watch her little bum wander around the room - oh to be so free! After being naked for a while, Maja found the fleecy sweater that Bakica gave her and demanded (literally) that I put it on her. Well, I still wanted her to be naked, so we compromised. Here's a shot of Maja in her "compromised" outfit showing off her new talent of being able to open her bedroom door...

After finding a pair of pants, it was off to the mall to meet up with Stephanie, Christine & Dash (we had cancelled on them on Wednesday because I wasn't well so we had a lot of making up to do). We did a bit of Christmas shopping, a bit of lunch eating, a bit of Santa watching and of course, a bit of the ever-so-cute hand holding with Christine. Here's an adorable picture of the two of them strolling the mall together (which apparently Christine enjoyed so much that she's still talking about it days later)...
After our mall visit, it was time to head home and spend some quality time with Maja's buddy, Elmo. Here Maja is sitting on "her" step sharing her apple with Elmo...
Then unfortunately on Friday I again wasn't feeling well (and just to save you asking, no I'm not pregnant, I just have a bit of a bug), so Grandma came by to watch Maja (thanks for letting me call in sick that day Mom!). While hanging out with Grandma, 2:00pm rolled around which was apparently story time downstairs in the zoo for Pepe (the husky) and Caillou...
After the story was finished, it was time for some magic with Santa. Although during her shows Maja has strict rules of no flash photography, Grandma was swift enough to adjust the natural light in the kitchen and snapped a couple of shots without her flash. Here Maja is placing Santa into the magic disappearing box...
And then - poof - where'd he go?!? :)

After the show, Maja wanted to show Grandma her boots (no visit is complete without a boot viewing apparently). Anytime the hallway closet opens, Maja makes a bee-line to it and desperately tries to carry out all four of her boots at the same time...
Apparently during this viewing, Maja found my knee boots and thought she'd do a quick "Pretty Woman" impression for Grandma...Once Maja changed into her more appropriate attire, Grandma & Maja headed off to Starbucks for some "fresh air". Here, Maja found a new friend/toy, the yellow pylon. Apparently she had a great time with this...

Here's a shot of Maja looking longingly at Grandma's tall cappuccino...
Yesterday, the three of us headed out to visit Auntie, Uncle Mike & the gaggle of cousins for Graham's belated birthday party. The afternoon was full of presents, pizza, dinosaur cakes, and overall fun. Thanks again for the party guys! Then today, Marvin & Maja were playing together in the basement. Here's a great shot of the two of them hanging out in the fort together...
And finally, while changing Maja's diaper earlier Marvin noticed that Maja had a new tooth! We think it might be a molar on her upper left side. Needless to say, it was not easy to take a picture of it but we managed to, kind of...
Don't worry... no Majas were hurt during the taking of that photo! :) Ok, so it's hard to see, but if you click on the picture it should enlarge and you might be able to see a tiny little white speck of a tooth!

Meeting the Parents & Visiting the Dentist...

This past Saturday was a very big day for Marvin & I - we were formally introduced to Maja's boyfriend's (Liam's) parents, Casey & Greg! As Marvin pointed out earlier in the day to Maja, this is serious if we're meeting his parents! :) All six of us had a great evening - the guys chatted, the gals chatted and the kids played - what more could we ask for?!? Marvin & I have agreed that if Maja chooses the cutie-pie Liam, we approve! :) And of course, what would a visit with your boyfriend be without a good-night kiss?!? Here's the progression of the kiss... Liam checking out Maja and thinking to himself, "Great! She's distracted by whatever the tall people are doing - now's my chance"...
Liam going in with the ever trusty stretch move (according to Casey, this is how Greg won her over too - like father, like son)...
And then the ol' lean in only to be cut off by Maja, the aggressor...Early this morning I had a dentist appointment so as soon as Maja woke up, I shoved in as much breakfast I could, swiftly changed her into a cute outfit, then stuffed her into the car and headed off to Mississauga where Grandma was waiting for us. Grandma was nice enough to agree to watch Maja in the dentist's waiting room while I was getting scolded for not flossing enough. Aside from trying out colouring (in a colouring book, on the stools, on the vertical blinds...), Maja also munched on some Cheerios and thought she'd try some Marmite, which is Grandpa's favourite black goop in the world (Grandpa, be sure to check out the link - the "Hate" bubble in the top right corner in particular). Here's a shot of her testing it out - I'm not sure if she's thinking about having some more or if she's trying to gag herself from the taste of it... :)

Then it was time to head outside with Grandma. Here Maja is strolling down the sidewalk on a mission, complete with Pedro and Marmite in tow...
And then Maja thought that she should try to fit in a bit of dribbling practice in honour of Daddy. Here she is kicking a ball of ice along the sidewalk...

Cooking, Dunking & Playing Together...

Wednesday morning, Maja decided that she wanted to put on a cooking show in the kitchen. So we put on her apron, enlisted the help of her sous-chef (Pedro) and grabbed her potato masher and "bowl" (aka strainer). As you can see here, Maja is adding the final ingredients (sippy cup back wash) to her special Pig-Horse-Cow casserole - very tasty...
Later in the day, Grandma came by to watch Maja so that Marvin & I could go to the Raptors game (and watch them lose horribly to Phoenix). Maja, in spirit of us going to the basketball game, thought she'd show off her dunking skills to the crowd before we left (and for you basketball fans, I'd say this was definitely goal-tending, wouldn't you?!?)...
Then on Thursday, Maja & I had a nice visit with our buddies, Steph, Christine & Dash. The visit was full of the usual things (chit chatting, Dash in the jolly jumper, eating a yummy lunch and diaper changes) but this time there was a first! Thursday was the first time Maja & Christine really played together (instead of just standing near the other one playing by themselves). Maja was playing with Christine's Nemo-car when she and Christine disappeared around the corner. To be honest, I was expecting to hear some grumbling from the two of them as they "discussed" who was going to play with the car now. But to Steph's & my surprise, from around the corner appeared Maja sitting on the car with Christine pushing her around! How cute was that?!? Then, to be fair, Maja took her turn pushing Christine around. And this is how it went for about 10 minutes or so! Of course, both Steph & I had to take pictures... Steph has hers on her blog and below is a shot I took...
While the girls entertained themselves, Dash was being tickled by Molly Brown as she was searching for a long lost Baby Mum-Mum that apparently fell on Dash's lap...
Combine all of that fun with some yummy chocolate-chip shortbread cookies and some Hello Dollies made by Steph & her side kick Christine, and you have a great visit!

Our Little Bed-Head, Mall-Rat, Late Night Maja...

You know how sometimes you wake up in the morning and without really doing much to yourself, you look pretty good? Well, last Friday morning was not that kind of morning for Maja! :) In the early hours of Friday morning I had to change Maja out of her pjs because they were wet. And instead of turning on the bedroom light and burning both of our retinas, I just reached into her drawer and put on whatever clothes I touched. The result... hot pink pants and navy blue socks. Combine that with the fact that I washed Maja's hair the night before and apparently it wasn't completely dry before she went to bed so it "styled" itself over night, you get this first thing in the morning... I don't know if you can tell from the picture or not, but Maja's socks are almost completely off (her left heel was sticking out because the sock had come off so much) and her hair was very "flowy" and it basically swayed back and forth as she walked around! :)


Last Friday, Grandma came over for the whole day! The plan was to go to the One of a Kind Craft show in the morning with Steph, Christine & Dash but that didn't happen. Steph and the gang were still feeling under the weather and I had so many other things to do so we opted not to go. Anyhow, here's a shot of Maja playing with her Princess table & cozy chair in the "fort" creation I made for her (I'm doing anything these days to entertain her)...
Maja's latest thing is to run around the house holding photos. Almost every morning, Maja will walk into our bedroom and pull down the three picture frames from our dresser then parade around grinning. And if you try to take them away... watch out! Here's a shot Grandma took of Maja showing her that she cannot have the photo...
And what would a day be without me & Maja goofing around?!? Here's a great shot Grandma took of us in the living room together...

Then while I ran some errands, Maja & Grandma headed off to Sherway to window shop. Apparently, Grandma was unable to resist Maja's charm and gave in to her demands (aka she let her do things I usually don't let her do). Case in point - Maja hanging out under (yup, under) the stroller...
While Maja was at the mall, she discovered her new best friend - BENCHES!!! She loved to climb all over them, crawl underneath them, hide behind them, you name it. Here Maja is pulling herself up onto one of the many benches she saw...
Triumph!

A great shot of Grandma & Maja crawling around on the floor chasing after each other...
And what if other people sat down on her bench?!? Well, Maja would just peek her head out from underneath and welcome them, of course...I think one of the things Maja loves about going to the mall is that she can run around and be free (within reason, of course). Here's my new favourite picture of her as she runs out from under a bench over to me while I'm sitting against a store window. She's so happy...

Of course, now that Santa was safely trapped inside his little area in the centre of the mall, Maja was all casual about hanging out and watching him. I love the little pose she's doing here...
Then it was back home for some dinner. Grandma hung around to babysit Maja that night while Marvin & I headed out to his company Christmas party. As usual, I prepped Grandma on the nighttime routine - dinner, bath, a bit of "Go Diego Go", then in bed around 7:30pm or so. Maja obviously overheard me tell Grandma about the her bedtime and here was her reaction as to it being so early - yeah right mom...
That night, Maja gave Grandma a run for her money as she was up and running around (not showing a wink of being tired, thank you very much) until 9:45pm!!!! Oh my gosh! Let's hope that tomorrow night, Maja is a bit easier on Grandma when she watches Maja while Marvin & I are at the Raptors game! :)