Heather's Birthday

Heather--the beautiful baby of the Condron family. This is the second book in the "I am so Loved" collection. This is a result of fantastic coordination and dedication with Kati.

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT

So, I guess once something is published on the blog, it is definitely true. Over the past few weeks, I've had the intuition that something big was coming. I know there are those out there who would like to hear that we are having more children--WE ARE NOT!

Bob graduated last summer and has been looking for a job in the "environmental/geographical" fields and hasn't been able to find one. We are taking our family and moving east to the London, Ontario area. This comes as a huge shock to everyone, including me. I never thought I would be leaving Calgary and more importantly, my family and friends. This is going to be a wonderful thing for our family and for Bob...but so hard to leave all those we have grown to love.

Bob will be leaving in a few weeks to secure employment and a home and the kids and I will be following during the summer. I want to emphasize that while we will be far from here (and coming back to visit often) we will be very close to the Great Lakes and only a day trip from New York City and Washington DC. When planning your vacations--please consider coming to see us.

This is going to be very difficult for me to leave my Mom and my sisters (in-laws included). I have been very close to them and rely on them so much. They are my very best friends and it breaks my heart to leave them. The greatest,most wonderful, fantastic consolation? We have family on Bob's side that will be moving out to the London area about the same time. (I'm not telling who it is but you can call 403-912-2333 for more clues...) It does bring me peace to know that we will still be close to them. Bob also has many aunts, uncles and cousins all around that area that we look forward to seeing.

Stay tuned to more updates...

Kailyn's Valentine's

Here's a peek at the Valentine's we made for Kailyn's class--they say, "Here's a couple of hugs for my friends!!" then we put two Hershey's Hugs in them. I thought they looked really cute.

We Go Together...

Zoe and the cat squish in for a cuddle.

Uncle James and Zoe spend some quality time together catching some "zzz's"--I can definitely see some family resemblance in this picture. (he he)

Play Date

We had a wonderful opportunity to have Kailyn & Lukas' cousin, Tia, come over for the weekend. Kailyn is only four months older than Tia. When I was pregnant with Kailyn and then Bob's sister, Kelly got pregnant--we were so excited that we would have kids the same age. At the time we were positive that Kelly was going to have another BOY (she already had 3 boys) but, we were delighted when the ultrasound tech said GIRL!! We've been really lucky because we have always lived close to Kelly, her hubby, Richard and their kids. The icing on this cake is that 5 months after Kelly had her last baby--a little boy named Reece--Lukas was born. I am so happy that both my children have family playmates the same age and that they close enough that we can see each other often.

Having Tia here and watching her with Kailyn made me reflect on how blessed we've been. It's funny how these little miracles make such an impact on everything.

A Little Hungarian

Here are some Hungarian messages for Kati!! The lighting isn't very good--but you get the idea! I don't speak Hungarian but Kati really liked these! Thanks to those who sent messages and for those who haven't--it's not too late--I'll keep making pages when they come. Special thanks to Zsuzsa for helping to collect these!

Kati's Birthday Surprise

Here is what is finished of Kati's Book--A big thanks to all those who helped!! You should be able to click on the pictures so they enlarge and you can read the letters. I also want to send a big thank you to my sister, Sarah, who stayed up really late with me to work on this. She is a scrapbook junkie and her ideas were wonderful.

Special Christmas Gift

In Bob's family this year, instead of exchanging names we exchanged families--so we bought for one family and one family bought for us. Our gift from Elizabeth, Don, Dani & Sydney was tickets for this magic show. We all went and Kailyn and Lukas loved it!! It was lots of fun!! This is the first time any of us has been to a magic show and we loved it. In Calgary, donations from the tickets go to support Muscular Dystrophy. There were dancers, a juggler/jester, a few magicians/illusionists and a comedian/magician. It was fun for all of us! Lukas loved Cody the Dog and his disappearing trick. Kailyn had a hard time picking a favorite. Bob and I enjoyed the whole show. To learn more about this wonderful group or for more shows and tickets click: Illusions

Thanks guys!! This was a great idea!

Getting So Big!!

Here is Lukas helping Auntie "Trissa" cut Bob's hair. It's a good thing she was there because Lukas' directions were, "Head up, Daddy--head down--head up--head down..." Thanks to Christa, Bob will be presentable for Christmas.

Lukas is getting so big--we tried on this pair of size 3 pjs just to see how they would fit--Sarah, Christa and I almost cried we were laughing so hard! These pjs reminded us of long johns. Lukas was so squished but he refused to take them off.

Sleeping Angels

Zoe & Kailyn take time for a little nap and a snuggle. Kailyn adores Zoe and loves having her around. She's a great little helper: she feeds Zoe her bottles, snuggles her & takes really good care of her.

Reindeer Kailyn's Christmas Concert

Kailyn and her classmates doing the "Reindeer Pokey"...this is very similar to the "Hokey Pokey" except they put their: antlers, hooves, nose, belly and tail "in". These kids were so adorable and loved to be on stage!

Seeing Santa

Here are Lukas, Liam & Kailyn with Santa at a local mall. Lukas wanted to go and ask for a Lightening McQueen and Mater for Christmas. In Kailyn's letter to Santa, she said she didn't know what to ask for because she already has everything! She did ask him for Lightening McQueen and Mater for Lukas and that everyone in the world would have a Merry Christmas. She's a very different little girl. I do have it on good authority that Santa will be bringing Lukas the "Cars" toys he's dreaming about.

Christmas Letter 2006

December 15, 2006
To our friends and family,

We hope this letter finds you all happy—our deepest apologies for being so terrible for keeping in touch. This season always makes me reflect on the family and friends we have spread through the world. There is something about Christmas that makes me redirect my focus on things that are most important…which is why Christmas cards and letters mean so much to me.

This year has been very eventful for our little family. This summer we had visits from Elizabeth, Dani and Sydney. It was wonderful to see them. We were able to get a family picture done with everyone!! It’s been several years since the last one. This fall we were visited by Bob’s Aunt Ann & Uncle Bob as well as Aunt Louise. Bob was also able to see Kerry and JD for a while on their lay-over in Calgary.

In June, Bob finally graduated from the University of Calgary with a degree in Biological Sciences and a degree in Geography…what can he do with that? (I know you must be thinking that because I was.) He is hoping to find a placement in an environment company doing anything from testing soil and water to planning and maintaining work sites. This summer we also celebrated Bob’s 30th birthday. We used Pedro (from Napoleon Dynamite) as inspiration for his party—partly because Bob looks Mexican in the summer and he’s a little strange like Pedro. We especially enjoyed watching him kick some “ass” as he tried to break open his burrow piñata. We also went to Winnipeg to celebrate some birthdays; Bob and is friends, Colin and Paul, all have birthdays at the same time and all turned 30. It was awesome to see so many friends: Colin & Alana, Paul & Bonnie, Sanjay & Candice, Aaron & Rachelle, Ryan and Tanya.

Kailyn started Grade 1 this year. She is a very bright and talented little girl. She is also extremely tenderhearted. One day, she was telling me that she befriended a little girl in her class that the other kids were making fun of. She said it wasn’t right and decided to not only be her friend but help her make friends with the other kids in class. She also has her signature curly hair but we have straightened a few times—Kailyn thinks she should have another name when her hair is straight because she looks so different.

Lukas is a bright little 3 year -old—he loves playing the computer and really good at it. He can log on to the computer, get on-line, find his favorite websites and maneuver through the games he likes to play. This spring, we had tubes put in Lukas’ ears and since then, he has been talking constantly. His favorite movie is “Cars” and he loves to play with any car, truck or train.

I have also been busy; I was working for a salon as the retail manager but this took me away from my family too much. While I enjoyed working I need to be home more. I am still debating about going back to school. I would really like to finish a degree in English with a creative writing major. I’ve kept myself busy helping my sister, Christa, with my new little niece, Zoe. Zoe’s not quite a month old. I’ve also been trying to keep our blog updated with pictures and news. We’ve had lots of babies born this year in our extended family, all their information is posted on the blog. If you have a chance, check it out: http://www.cbcondron.blogspot.com/ .

We wish you Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday!
Love: Cheryl, Bob, Kailyn & Lukas

Zoe's Party

Big thanks to everyone who was able to attend Christa and Zoe's party:

• Ashley, Kendra, Heather (C), Amber, Alicia, Jessie, Amanda, Tara, Brenda, Kati, Tanya, Wanda, Allyson, Heather (W), Steph, Desiree, Sarah, Claire and Mom

Zoe Elizabeth

Zoe Elizabeth was born November 22, 2006 at 12:23 am to Christa and her boyfriend Devon. She weighed in at 6 lbs 6 oz and was about 18 inches long. Christa had a long labor but a VERY quick delivery. Zoe was delivered by a Nurse Connie because the doctor couldn't make it...Christa pushed for 20 minutes before Zoe was born. Mom and Baby are both doing well and are expected to be home tomorrow.

Halloween

Lukas as Dash Incredible--although, with his snow suit, he looks more like Mr. Incredible!!

Kailyn as an indian princess--big thanks to Grandpa Fraser for making this outfit for her. He made her a dress, boots and poncho. With talent like Grandpa, Halloween will always be a huge success!!

End of an Era

Last week I resigned my position at Chatters to explore other options--before having Lukas, I was attending university to become an English major with a concentration in creative writing. I would love to go back and finish--school was an awesome experience for me. Things are also very busy for me at home. Both Kailyn and Lukas are very happy to see me. I am very excited to have a life and see all the friends and family I've been missing for the past year and a half. Thanks to all those who have been so supportive...