Clearwater and the World Championships - Part 2

Friday was another beach day, and it seemed that the area was getting more busier. The hotel was definitely buzzing with athletes. Everytime the elevator would open it would be a person with a bike, dressed in running gear, or in a wetsuit. ahhahahaha

When we woke up we walked to this diner that Martin loved last year. We had a great breakfast. Of course Martin trying to carb load, had 6 ginormous pancakes. 2 of which we had to pack and take back to the hotel. sigh. After breakfast, we went back to the beach for another restful day.

The only different thing this time was, I decided to take Olivia to the hotel for her afternoon nap. She was getting a lot of sun and sand. I needed to wash her off and give her a nice "clean" nap. By that time, Martin had returned from his training and decided to take a nap with Olivia. I decided to leave and head down towards the beach to relax and enjoy the sun.

By that time, the wind was getting cooler and it was getting darker. My parents were there in the cabana relaxing when I arrived. I took out my book and started to read. Then my parents decided to head out and walk back to their hotel for the night. We didn't end of having dinner together that night, which was probably a good thing.

THat night we decided to just eat at the hotel. Big mistake. It took more than an hour to get our food. Martin was fuming, Olivia was exhausted, and I was hungry. Not a good combination. WE finally gulpled down our food and headed off to bed. Tomorrow was the big day.

FOSTER GRANT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

Martin woke up to get ready. Olivia actually sat up and waved good bye to papa before he left at 5am. Then she slumped down back to bed. hahahaha. We woke up to Grandmaman and Grandpapa's knock on the door. They had driven that morning to Clearwater. WE made plans to met at the transistion site when Martin would come out of the water to the bike.

Lola and Lolo came over to the hotel, and we went over to the site to see Martin. Unfortunately we missed him out of the water, so we walked over the bridge where we would see him bike and run. By that time, Olivia was in her stroller. The snacks came out, the toys came out, and eventually the DVD player came out. I didn't want her out of the stroller because she would be running everywhere. After all those distractions, she still was not happy. I took her out and put her in the carrier. Sigh.

As I placed her in the carrier, I gave her a bottle and prayed she would eventually go to sleep. She drank but she didn't sleep. So I walked to the middle of the bridge and waited for Martin to show. Of course, I see this lemon-lime jersey coming up the the bridge. Yay! It was papa and he saw us too. It was perfect. I knew he was headed down to transition and then off for the run. We are almost done the race. hahahhaha.

I walked back to where we were and waited for him to run. He saw us and Olivia shouted for joy. It was a good motivator for Papa I'm sure. After all that excitement, Olivia ended falling asleep! hahahah I guess she just wanted to wait for Papa.

We walked over to the finish line trying to find some shade because it was super hot. She slept for about 45 minutes. When she woke up I knew we had to get her moving. We went over to the park where she could move around. We got some icecream and headed back to the finish line. Papa would be there soon. Within 15 minutes of waiting, we saw Papa race passed a few runners and sprinted to the finish line. YAY!

We finally met up with Grandmaman and Grandpapa at the end. We waited for Papa to come. Olivia was getting more ancy in this heat, that I decided to take her to the water and play. She was most happiest there. When Papa arrived we packed up and returned back to the hotel and finish packing. We checked out and headed for lunch at the same spot where we had dinner and lunch before. I'm telling you...there isn't much in Clearwater. hahahahha.

We had a celebratory lunch and left Clearwater. Olivia again fell asleep for most of the ride back to Orlando. We even got to stop at a Starbucks on our way home. Unfortunately, because of the events that day, we didn't get out pictures. There is one thing I regret. We didn't have any pictures from the race. Boo! Oh well, I'm sure there will be more opportunities to come. :0P

Clearwater and World Championships

Well we made it to Clearwater, and the beach was as white as can be. The weather couldn't be more perfect. Our hotel was on site of the race venue. Lola and Lolo's hotel was down the street, about a 15 minute walk on the beach boardwalk to our place.

We left Orlando at around lunchtime and drove for about an hour and 30 minutes to Clearwater (an hour of which Olivia took a nap...phew ). We checked in and unloaded our stuff in the hotel room. They we went straight to the site where Martin could register - which was across the hotel parking lot.

As soon as we got there, Olivia caught sight of the huge playground and of course the white powder the surrounded it. She quickly slumped down in the sand and let it run through her hands and fingers. She was in heaven. Yay! She literally did not move from that spot. Even though there were tons of children running around and playing on the giant play structures. She was surely going to enjoy the beach.

After our tour around the site, it was close to dinner time. We drove over to the other hotel where Lola and Lolo were staying. We checked them in and walked around their area. Interestingly enough, although Clearwater is a pretty popular place and beautiful, there is nothing but tacky touristy stores and pubs. It was kind of disappointing. But hey...we didn't come here to shop and dine, we came here to enjoy the beach. After dinner we decided to call it a night. It was a long day and tomorrow would be "beach" day.

The next day we all met up after breakfast and headed down to the beach. We rented a cabana and some beach chairs. We really had quite the set-up. We took out Olivia's sand toys and she was ready to go. She played quite contently with her toys and then realized there was a huge body of water before. That was it, she was gone. I have to say, Martin went swimming early that morning, with a wetsuit and said that the water was freezing. And it was! Nobody really was swimming in the ocean it was too cold. But there was Miss Olivia loving every moment in the water. hahahha. EVerytime a wave would come she would scream and still went back in. :0P





She spent most of the morning with Papa collecting sea shells and running back and forth to the water. We walked over to the beach canteen and had some lunch. Lola and Lolo decided to go for walk around the area and I decided to put Olivia down for a nap at the beach. She slept sooo well under the cabana it was too cute. When she woke up, of course, she wanted back in the water. sigh. It was getting late so it didn't last too long. We had an "athelete" banquet that night, so we called it a day.

Banquet





For dinner that night, the athletes had to go to this beach site for a buffet dinner. It was quite an experience. We had been to the one in Penticton for Ironman Canada, but that was in a convention centre. This buffet was entirely outside. It was windy and somewhat cold, but the atmosphere was pretty cool. As soon as you walk in, you go under a huge tent where you "collect" you food and then you find you seating in the outdoors. Tables and chairs were set on the sand right next to the water. They had a special flag ceremony which showcased all the countries that were represented in this championship race. Lola and Lola were quite suprised to learn that there was 1 Filipino athlete representing the Philippines. And yes we took a picture of the flag. :0)

Olivia seemed to enjoy it although it was hard feeding her in the dark. Wasn't sure how much or what she was eating. She sat on my lap which made it pretty difficult too. I think though she loved the entertainment but enjoyed running around the site more. In the end, I was soo tired running after I put her in the carrier. hahahaha. Haven't done that in awhile, and man...she was heavy. We decided it was a long day for her, and headed back to the hotel. Tomorrow would be another beach day.

Florida in November! Part 1 - The Plane Ride

Well our first trip going SOLO. Meaning Olivia and I. What was I thinking
We arrived 2 hours before our flight, and the stress already started as the lady at the checkout had this puzzled look when we handed her Olivia`s Korean passport. Oh oh. She had to call her supervisor for help. Finally, she issued both of us a boarding pass and we were on our way to Customs.

At Customs, Olivia was getting a bit ancy. The whole process of taking everything thing out and placing it on the screening belt is a pain in the butt. Down to our socks we walked through the detector. All good. Next...the customs officer. We got to the counter and the man was really nice. Thank goodness. We had an issue with the visa waiver, but it he just explained that it could be resolved by going on this website before we return back to Canada. All good. This left us about 45 minutes till boarding. Perfect. Time to run around. Up and down we went at the terminal. Finally we got the call to board the plane. She ran down the gateway to the plane and walked down the aisle to our seats. Yay! We made it.

She was great sitting on my lap during take off. Luckily the plane was full of kids excited about going to Orlando or should I say Disney World - like this was the name of the city or country they were going to visit. hahahha. The flight attendents were wearing their Mickey Ears. Sigh...things they do. Beside us was an empty seat and by the window there was a really nice man who Olivia continually bothered during the flight. He was really good about it.

Thirty minutes into the flight I took out the first toy. A toy computer that I didn`t know how to work. Note to self...read the instructions on how to use it before giving it to your kids. That was somewhat shortlived. Then on to the snacks. Then on to the playdoh - which she constantly tried to put it in her mouth. Argh. Finally...dinnertime.

An hour and a bit into the flight...Miss O gave me this look. A look that I seen before and recognized. I was not too happy. She gave her little look and wave. Sigh...damn...a caca. I raced her to the back into this tiny cubicle at the back of the plane. I was worried she would smell so we pretty much ran down that aisle. hahahha After that dramatic (traumatic for me) eventm, we came back to our seats and had dinner. While everyone had snacks from the airlines assortments of choices. Olivia had a great healthy dinner. Yay for mommy for bringing veggies and pasta.

That took a chunk of time which was great. Now...onto the DVD. Some Annie Broccoli. She sat in the empty seat, quiet as can be. Then the announcement over the speaker came Hello ladies and Gentlemen and kids, we are now starting out descent into Orlando. WOOHOOO

As I got Olivia ready and started packing off her things, the LOOK came again. No no no..this can`t be happening. Not again. Not 30 minutes before we land. Of course there was the hand on the chair, the red face, the wave. ARGH. When she was done her business, I scooped her up and raced back down to the bathroom to change her. Ugh. It was insane. As we got back to our seats, we strapped ourselves in and hoped that the bottle I gave her would make her fall asleep for at least 30 minutes. Ya, no such luck.

We landed 20 minutes early. Wohoo! It was a great plane ride. We got off the plane and pretty much made Olivia run down off the plane and all the way to the baggage claim. hahahhaha. Mind you I had to put her little Piglet backpack on. You know..the one with the leash. Sigh. I had too.

We got to the baggage claim and Olivia was exhausted. She waited in the stroller while we got our luggage. Then we waited for Grandmaman and Grandpapa to come pick us up. They had just missed us at the gate and they were waiting for us there. The showed up and I was soooo happy to see them. Olivia well...she was exhausted. Time change, travel, shortened nap, and running around in the airports. She was done. I was done. I did it though. It was quite the adventure. I hope and pray it goes well when we come back.

ORLANDO!


The next day it was beautiful. I couldn't believe we were here Florida in this heat. Olivia was definitely going through her mommy clingy stage. I couldn't leave the room without burst of tears and screams. Sigh...poor grandmaman and grandpapa. During the day we ran a few errands and I bought Olivia a lifejacket so we could go to the pool. We had a lovely lunch and headed to the pool.

I guess it just wasn't the same with Mama in the pool. Although she liked it she wasn't over excited like she usually is during her swimming lessons. Maybe it was the flotation device strapped around here. hahahha. Oh well too bad, we couldn't take the chance with her. After the swim, she took a nice nap and I ate a bag of chips with diet pepsi and it was terrific. I totally felt on vacation. hahahaha.

The next morning, Grandpapa surprised me with a STarbucks coffee. Woohoo. He made me write it down on a piece of paper and from that day on while we were staying at the condo, he made the trek to Starbucks. I'm thinking the baristas know him now. After breakfast we made it to the "mini" outlet by the condo and I was able to shop a bit while Olivia slept in the stroller. Surprising I know. Merci Grandpapa. He was working out a sweat walking all around making sure she wouldn't wake up. hahahahha

Shopping ended when she belted a scream and realized it was Grandpapa moving her and not me. sigh. So we decided to head home and get some lunch. :0) We had awesome Cici's pizza for lunch. Olivia ate a whole slice by herself. Then had another great nap in the afternoon. When she woke up, we dressed her up and get her ready again for the pool. Papa was coming today and he would meet us by the pool.

When he arrived another breathe of relief. Papa was here to help me out with this clingy girl. Although she was happy to see him, it was still all about Mama. Papa unpacked all his stuff from his Tahoe. From the on we waited for Lola and Lolo's place to arrive. Apparently it was delayed for a couple of hours. They finally arrived at the condo at around 8ish. We had a lovely dinner that night with lots of wine. More than my parents usually drink. hahaha. Then we all turned in for the night. Tomorrow would be another busy day.

Snow in October?

Ugh...wonderful for Olivia, but for the rest of us? I guess the kids can make spooky snowmen for Halloween. :0P

We woke up to a couple of centimetres of snow. Olivia's first snow fall. We didn't take her to play in the snow when we came home 8 months ago in February. She was too little. But now..she can walk and experiment with the snow.

We put on her snowsuit that I bought back in February. Size 18 months. It's a little snug...sigh. Now that she's walking/running like crazy she needs something with more room to move around in. Did she love the snow? Well...she didn't hate putting on the snowsuit..that's a bonus. We didn't make a snowman yet...there's still time for that. She was just enjoying touching the cold snow and watching her freezing hands turn red. Forgot to mention...she hates wearing mittens. I am told I am not the only one.

Halloween Weekend in Ottawa

What an exciting time for Miss Olivia. In the midst of trying to find daycare providers and going for interviews, we still managed to find ways to get into the Halloween spirit. Most people who know Martin and I, know that we "dislike" Halloween. For the last 10 years or so, we managed to turn off the lights of the house and go for a nice dinner. Risking our house getting egged because we refused to celebrate. :0P

As a primary teacher, I dreaded the Halloween week because the kids were sooo wired and excited that they couldn't focus. Their attentions were on what they were wearing and what goodies the might get. There I was dressed up as a pumpkin every year, reading Halloween stories, crafts, treats for the kids, carving pumpkins, and the riot act speech on bringing only healthy snacks to school. sigh. Sadly the last couple of years, I've managed to only decorate the classroom on Halloween day. Forget about the week leading up to it! Now here I am, with an 17 month old daughter who will be "celebrating" her first Halloween tradition. What do I do?

Well..heck...why do they make such adorable costumes for infants. They are just too cute. Olivia had 2 costumes thankfully because the chicken costume that Audrey wore when she was little...Olivia was terrified of it. I don't know what it is about the costume. It's warm, it's fuzzy, and it's sooo adorable. But everytime I come near her with it, she runs the other way. I even try singing the "La Poule" song from Annie Broccoli that she loves and she still runs away. Sooo we are left with the ladybuy costume that is size 18 months and doesn't fit her. Ugh. Although she is adorable in it...it doesn't fit her well but at least I can persuade her to put it on. :0)

"Halloween Party" - Saturday


So yes...we caved. How could we not? The big thing was we hosted a "Halloween " dinner on top of that. We invited some friends with their kids over and paraded them around the house, taking non-stop pictures of them until they melted down in their outfits because of overheating. Costumes nowadays are fantastic. Perfect for our cold nights. Warm, thick, and cozy. What ever happened to those plastic masks and plastic costumes we had back then!

The evening was lovely. Chaotic but great. No tantrums, no fighting, just laughing and eating. Yes...Ms. Ortiz (who was wearing her pumpkin shirt) even brought out some Halloween crafts for the 3 year olds to do. While the kids ate junk, the adults enjoyed a yummy fondue dinner by my husband. It was a perfect set up because we could take a few bites then get up and check on the kids, and then come back and eat so more. It wasn't a traditional sit-down meal so it worked for us busy families. Yummy. There's nothing like cheese, bread, and wine on a cold fall night. On top of that, we had Halloween cake and cupcakes for the kids and adults after. The kids were so cute in their outfits and they were happy in them. I guess that's the bottom line. Olivia enjoyed all the kids in the house. The great part was the clean up...with fondue it was pretty easy. The toys were all over the place, but at least it was contained in one room. Would we do it again next year? Sure!

Sunday

I didn't do a pumpkin this year (although we did go to the pumpkin patch). The outside of the house looked plain and ordinary...nothing Halloween about it. Plus...around dinner time we took off and we to Jack Astor's with the neighbour. :0) We were kind of hoping that we would miss the crowd. But as we were driving back from the restaurant, we still saw plenty of "kids" in the street. I say this with quotation marks because they were huge. These were the kids who would come back and egg your house or mess up your lawn because they didn't get their treat. So glad we came back for them. HAHAHHAHA.

We took Olivia out of the car and decided to let her walk to the neighbours. She didn't know what to do but she was happy just walking up and down people's driveways. I stayed back with my neighbour and opened up a bottle of wine and ate some left over cake while Martin took her around. :0)

He came back laughing and said Olivia had a great time! She loved it! Go figure. Apparently she would go up to the house and take the treats from the people. She even managed to use her manners and say "thank you!". I'm sure if it was earlier and it wasn't minus 1 degree out, Papa would made her walk more. hahahha. When they got back we relaxed while the kids watched TV. Fah thought it would be cute to put the "princess" costume on Olivia. I'm thinking Olivia is not the princess type. I don't foresee any frilly dresses and tiaras in the near future. :0) Cute...but ya..no.



All in all it was an exhausting day, but we managed to get 2 much needed naps in. Olivia didn't mind her ladybug costume. She got some treats for us to eat. I made the big "kids" happy with treats. I know the next coming years we'll have to play it bigger, but for now...this is enough. I'm sure there will be more Halloween activities in the future.

Our First Thanksgiving Weekend

For the last 5 years for Thanksgiving I would do this craft in the my class. We would read a story about what Thanksgiving meant, make a turkey craft, maybe some vegetable soup, and then a "I am thankful necklace". The kids would have to make a list of things that they would be thankful for and put it on a paper feather and tie it along a string to make a necklace. It was always amusing to see kids put down "my Nintendo DS, my Xbox, my dolls" along with "mom, dad, sister, brother etc". I always had to steer the kids away from the materialistic things they were thankful for and really look at what was important in their lives and most importantly...why they were important. This weekend was all about family and friends.

We drove up Friday night and had our usual dinner st East Side's in Kingston. Olivia went down for her bedtime in the car which was great for us because there was still 2 hours till we hit Brampton. Although everyone was up waiting for her arrival, she didn't get to see anyone when we got there because we just we straight upstairs to the bedroom to put her down.

Olivia woke up at 7:30 with Papa, because Mama thought there was no room for her in the bed so she slept with Tita Melissa on the futon in the other room. She busily got up and went straight to our room and woke us up. Then after fighting the exhaustion, I took her to see Lola and Lolo in their room. She wasn't quite sure where she was and there was this lady who was coming at her in the dark. hahahhaah. When she went downstairs she quickly remembered Lola's house and went straight to the goldfish in the den. It was amazing that she remembered! After breakfast we got changed and asked the family to watch Olivia while Maman and Papa went on a lunch date. YAY!

Papa had big plans for lunch. He wanted to go downtown...but I swayed him to just stay in the Mississauga area. So we went to SPRINGROLLS and had the best lunch ever. We came home and Olivia and Papa went down for a nap. After the nap, we went to visit Zoey and Xan. Her 2 cousins that love her lots. Martin and Suny were able to catch up and we had a lovely dinner.

The next day, we planned an outing with Bella and Jake. The plans were for the kids to go apple picking. But as it turned out, the apples were all gone at the orchard and we were left with pumpkin picking. Olivia had a blast in the pumpkin patch, while Bella and Jake were totally amused by the farm animals. We tried for some photo ops but the kids were so busy playing with their small pumpkins that we couldn't get them together to sit. hahahhaha. After the pumpkin patch, we went for lunch and then the parents wanted a little treat so we brought them to Chapters to play for a bit so we could have a coffee. hahahahha. It was a beautiful day and I loved spending it with my best friend and her kids. Needless to say, Olivia went down for a great nap in the afternoon.

We had a nice dinner Sunday night with our family with all the usual food - turkey, ham, potatoes, corn, pancit, and rice. It was our tradition and my parents slaved away all day to prepare this wonderful meal. Here I am at 11pm at night, full and sleepy. I wanted to take this moment and reflect on things I am thankful for and why.

My husband - my soulmate - who knows everything about me and still loves me for it. He's my very best friend in the world whom I love so much to put into words. My parents - who are the rock that raised me to who I am now. Every success I've had in my life I owe to their strength, love, and support. My sister - my confidant, my best friend - who has been through all my ups and downs - always supportive, always loving and understanding. My "in-law" family - who are such wonderful people I can't believe how lucky I am to have them in my life. Their kindness, passion, support, and love shows how strong the family is. My daughter - my little miracle - my joy and happiness. To all the family members, friends, and people who have touched our lives - thank you.

I'm Running For...

Today marked the kick-off run for Breast Cancer Awareness. Thousands of women, men, children walked the 5k to show solidarity and hope that one day there will be cure for breast cancer. Sadly, we are all affected by someone who has been diagnosed with breast cancer and it's scary. Now, I have a family of my own and a daughter who I hope will never have to face that reality. Praying that a cure will be found sooner than later.

I usually do the walk with my co-workers and friends, but the couple of years people got busy, were out of town, or something just came up. This year was special. I got to walk it with my daughter and mother-in-law. Pretty in pink. It was amazing to see, just in Ottawa a sea of people with flags, balloons, boas, and clappers all running for a cause. Everytime I do this run/walk, I read other people's bibs - for a mother, a sister, a daughter, an aunt, a friend. The one I read today that got me was "I run for those who can't".

Today 3 generations walking for a cause. Yes, eventually Olivia managed to get out of the stroller to walk the last 100 meters with everyone. I think this will be something that as a family we will do every year. Today...I ran for my family and their future.

Off to the Lawyers!

Today we had an appointment to the meet the lawyers and sign some papers. Yikes! We're thinking this is the last visit we have with this office. The papers are signed and will be couriered to the Court. We've paid off the remaining lawyer fees. Now what? Well...I guess we wait. We wait for this piece of paper with a red or gold seal on it to say we are officially Olivia's parents in the eyes of the Canadian government. Yes, we'll get the paper and it will be done, but more importantly it'll be easier for us to travel. She'll have her Canadian passport soon enough, and we won't have to carry CB/lawyers documents with us. It'll be under all 1 name. THE SAVARDS.

PS. Doesn't she look great in a lawyer's chair? No pressure though. :0)

7 months!

Today marked the 7th month of Olivia's arrival. She is as busy as ever. People are starting to nickname her the "energizer bunny", she keeps going and going. :0)
We've started swimming lessons, we have organized play classes on Tuesdays (Waldorf) and Thursdays (Tiny Hoppers). Then somewhere in between I have playgroups with some friends. I'm exhausted...but soooo happy.

As it turns out as well, on Wednesday we meet with our lawyer to sign papers for Olivia's adoption finalization. We sign, then it gets sent to some judge for "the stamp" and she will be finally ours "legally". Then we can file for Canadian citizenship. I mean she was ours since we got our referral back in November, but this makes it official I guess. We had the option of going to court and having the judge "officially declare" it out loud, but we would have had to wait a bit longer because we had to wait for a court date. The option we took was for our papers to be mailed to us once it is approved. Sort of anti-climatic that way, but we'll celebrate no matter what. It'll be a race to the post box every day to see when it comes in. hahahah Still can't believe that she's been home 7 months and it'll be almost a year since we got the referral.

Now, 7 months later, I am faced with trying to find daycare for Miss O. Who would be suitable? Who would be a good match for Olivia? Will she be loving, kind, and most of all patient with Olivia? Can she run? hahahhaha It'll be a weird feeling when I go back to work but I know it'll be good for me and Olivia. We just have to find the right placement.

The funny thing is, the other day I got an email from an agency telling me that I have a spot at one of their home daycare centres. I put my name on this centralized waiting list (yes, it's that bad) just as our dossier was sent to Korea. I didn't know what our timeline was, what gender our child would be, no birthdate, nothing.
I had to put a make believe name, birthdate, and daycare start date. I really didn't want to do it till I knew more, but my friends encouraged me to get on the list as soon as possible because daycare spots were impossible to find. Sooo I think way back in September I entered the "make-believe" information on the computer.

I thought for sure we would get a boy, so I named our baby "Olivier". I put down February 14th, 2009 as his birthdate (our anniversary). The date that I needed to start daycare was January 2011. I guess everything was wrong except my date to return back to work. hahahhaha. It was such a surprise to see an email for this agency (1 year later), and the subject line was "Daycare spot for Olivier". I thought the email was junk mail because they got Olivia's name wrong. :0P But then thought it could have been the daycare provider that I had emailed earlier who got her name wrong. I totally forgot about the centralized waiting list. It was weird how things came about. Almost a year after I entered that information, we have a baby girl Olivia not Olivier. The "birthdate" that I put down was going to be the date when we left to pick her up, but we moved our departure date to the 18th. What a turn of events! Can't imagine our lives without our baby girl Olivia.

An Ironman finish at 6 months!

Olivia is finally tucked away in her own bed tonight (for now). We are still getting used to Ottawa time. We arrived at 12:30 this morning...and it's been a day of adjustments. Which is funny because a week ago, marked our 6th month with Miss O. 6 months ago last week on the 25th, she arrived to Ottawa in the wee hours of the morning from a flight that went from Seoul to Toronto, Toronto to Korea. We just came back from our first family vacation from Penticton, British Columbia. It just so happened that Olivia's 6th month anniversary fell on Papa's Ironman week. It was a tiring week for all.

Olivia was great on the plane (when I say great...I mean it wasn't like the Korea flight home). She got bored at times but we were prepared with DVD's and snacks. Not to mention she was able to walk up and down the aisle for a few minutes. The only "negative" part was Olivia's screeches of excitement. It didn't bother Martin and
I, but I'm sure there were a few on the plane that were plugging their ears. :0)

We arrived to Penticton fully loaded - 3 luggages, a car seat, a stroller, a bike box, bag of toys, diaper bag, computer bag, and a backpack. It was insane. Someone at Budget Car Rental knew we came in with such a load and offered us an extended YUKON. It was massive, but we all fitted in comfortably with lots of room. Ohhh...forgot to mention...the best part was meeting Melissa at the airport. Yes, she was the on-call nanny for the week. Thank goodness.



We packed up the car and drove the hour to Penticton. Beautiful drive along the lakes. Seemed so surreal. But of course it was Martin and I who enjoyed the views. Tita Melissa and Olivia passed out in the back.

We arrived at the hotel and was pleasantly surprised at the accommodations we had. The room Martin booked was perfect for Olivia. She had plenty of room to go back and forth and play. Well..more than the standard hotel room. We quickly unloaded and got ourselves acquainted with the town. We went grocery and had a nice dinner in our hotel room.

The next day Martin had to register so we went with him to the site. It was packed full of athletes. Martin was in heaven. People who loved the sport and could talk about it as much as he could. hahahah. The ladies...well, we hung around and let Olivia walk waving to everyone. She was her usual charming self. She followed a couple of dogs here and there, yelling "doggie!".

After the registration, we walked over to the beach and Martin got ready to go swimming. Olivia had her plans to go in the frigid waters. We quickly changed her, put her life jacket on (because we don't' trust her at all in the waters), and she marched right into the lake. The water was freezing. Martin said it was cold and he was wearing his wetsuit. hahahah. But she loved every minute of it. She would walk and start to lose her balance and fall in the water, and jump up because it was sooo cold. But she would still stay in there. Ugh. When Martin finished his training swim he brought Olivia a little deeper and she loved it but she was shivering and I swear she was turning blue. ahhahah. We'd back another day.




The rest of the week seems like a blur with events and meeting Martin's TRI friends (who are awesome). We walked around the town and found some great restaurants. Burger 55 to mention one. We also attended the pasta dinner banquet the night before the race with Martin's friends and Olivia had a great time running around the convention centre halls while all the athletes were listening to the rules and regulations of the race. Needless to say, every night Olivia had opportunities to run around and be her free spirited self. Us on the other hand, had the job of watching her and following her every move. hahahah.

RACE DAY:

Martin left early of course. We agreed that it wouldn't make sense to drag Olivia to the race site early the morning. So, Olivia, Tita Melissa, and Mama all slept in and enjoyed our continental breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast we decided to try out the pool and maybe squeeze a morning nap in there somewhere. After her short nap, we packed up and took a taxi to the race site. Martin had left the truck at the hotel of his friends that was located right at the race start. It was the perfect location, but it was the scuzziest motel ever. Nicola and Tina graciously gave us a key to their room for us to room if the day was too long for Olivia. By the time we got there, the stands were only 1/2 full. We walked across to the beach side and planted the stroller in what was the best seat ever. Olivia had a chance to go back to the beach and play while we watched the race. Melissa and I took turns watching Olivia, but eventually all the running around exhausted her and I carried her while she slept in the BECO.

Unfortunately, Olivia missed Papa as he ran by us. But was able to see him at the last leg of the run which made all the difference in the world. In between the run though, Tita Melissa had to bring Olivia to the hotel room because the wind gusts and the sand storm. The weather was insane. That didn't last long because the hotel room was too small for Olivia to move around in. So in desperation, I went to the truck and pulled out the portable DVD and gave it to Olivia in her stroller. Sad I know, but I had to occupy her for another 2 hours, and it was too windy to play at the beach.

Luckily, we did that because Papa finished in record time. We were able to see him cross the finish line in all his glory. It was a crazy day, but all worth it for this proud moment. So happy that Olivia (although she doesn't remember it) was part of this special day. When we went through this process, Martin kept saying how wonderful it would be to see his family at finish line waving him on. Then when we found out about Olivia, I know all Martin could think about was how his little girl would be waiting at the finish line. She really is Daddy's Number 1 fan!

Thinking Out Loud

Today we went to a 100th day celebration. I've had 100th day celebrations in the classroom before, but this was not at school. This was to celebrate the 100th day of life in Korean culture. Tradition says that Koreans celebrate the 100th day of birth because many years ago babies didn't survive the first few months of life due to poverty, famine, or war. Culture says that if the child survives till the 100th day there is a good chance of a good quality of life.

At this party were family members, and traditional korean food, balloons, and presents. All typical things of a birthday party. It was great! We even had cake with candles.

As the presents were opened and the children dispersed around playing, I looked at baby Jacob who was sitting quietly in his vibrating chair. He had no clue what was going on but just sat there happily bouncing away. I looked at him and thought about Olivia's 100th day celebration. Where was she at that time? Was she able to celebrate it with her foster family. Did she have a cake and presents too?

I looked at Jacob and thought how wonderful it would have been to be there for Olivia's 100th day to see her as a quiet bouncing baby in a chair. hahahaha. As I smiled and played with Jacob, Olivia came and sat beside me and started saying "Baby!". We played with Jacob together, and I taught her to kiss Jacob's feet only. She laughed and thought it was a game. Jacob giggled every time.

Hmmm...Olivia would make a great older sister I thought in my head. She continued to play with him and then quickly got bored as the other kids were taking some cool toys out to play with. She stood up and walked (ran) away. It was a nice moment. I wish I captured it on video. Oh well. I'm sure there will be lots of babies for Olivia to play with. hahaha

It was a great evening. Now Olivia is down for the night. I just finished emailing our social worker about a date and time to meet for our 6 month follow-up report. The last visit from the social worker. Then the report gets sent to the government and we wait for that court date to finalize the adoption. I can't believe it's been 6 months already. I may have missed the 100th day, but I know I have many celebrations to come with Olivia. Yes, the 100th day is/was special. But everyday is special, and she's coming to her 182 days with us. Now that's something to celebrate too.

We tried a TRI!

This weekend, was the first triathlon that Olivia saw her Papa in. She was great for the most part. She saw him before his swim. She was more interested with the sand in between her toes and the water from the Bay. hahhaah. She did well watching her Papa make his turn around on his bike. But, she more interested in the babies and children cheering on the side. Then finally it was 11am and still no nap. I put her in the stroller and she wasn't happy. There was at least another hour before she would see her Papa at the finish line. Surely she was exhausted from waking up early and then walking all around the site. But no, she wasn't the least interested in taking a nap. After almost 20 minutes of off and on crying in the stroller, we decided to walk to the finish line and wait for Papa.

Of course you know what happened. As we got up the hill...silence. Olivia was fast asleep. SO much for seeing Papa cross the finish line. Next race I guess.

5 months and a Day - "Oh the Places You'll Go!"

Today marked the 5th month of Olivia's homecoming. It was 5 months and a day since the SWS placed her in our arms and we introduced ourselves as mom and dad, and we walked away a forever family. Now, months later Olivia is walking and calling us "Mama" and "Papa". In the past few months she went from rolling over, to crawling, to cruising, and now walking. She is determined as ever to get to know the world around her. She has picked up sped in the last couple of days and it has us very nervous. I recently bought a first-aid kit and Polysporin for the diaper bag. hahaha

Not only is she walking, but is definitely babbling more. She has been a "copy-cat" for the last couple of weeks and sometimes we have to be careful what we say now. hahaha. Some of her vocabulary include "Elmo!" - that was a given, "thank-you", "peekaboo", "hi!" "bye!", "bebe!" "oh-oh!" "na-na" (banana). I'm sure there are others we just can't make out what they are. :0P

With her language development and being 1years old (which she can show with her finger), her curiosity and need to explore has us constantly on our toes. Olivia has been and I think will continue to test us. We are still not use to her ignoring us when we tell her "No!". We laugh (even though we shouldn't) at the times when we tell her "no!" and she looks at us first and then proceeds to go and do it anyways. She knows she's not supposed to be there and yet she checks to see if you are looking and only when you check on her she goes ahead and does it. Ugh. We figured out though that if both Martin and I say "no!" in unison, it has a better outcome. Damn, parenting is hard. :0P

She's beginning to show preference now for food, which was different a couple of months ago. A few months ago, we could give Olivia anything and she would eat with no complaints. Now, we definitely know she loves chicken and pasta, greens bean and peas but not broccoli. She loves mostly all fruit especially berries, but not melons.

The summer is off to a great start. The weather has allowed us to go to a splashpad and play in the water (which she loves). We haven't had a chance to go swimming fully but I think it's just a matter of time. I know for sure that I wouldn't be comfortable to go swimming with Miss O by myself, as she is the daring one. hahahah. She would just leap out of my arms into the water if she could. I don't think I would be fast enough to catch this little dolphin. hahahah.

August will be another busy month for us, with more playgroups and trips. Time flies when you are having fun I guess. It'll definitely fly more faster now that Olivia is running, I mean walking.

Niagara on the Lake weekend

A Baptism to Remember

Finally, the last big event happened this past weekend. Only after a couple of weeks after the big birthday party, the family had to get ready for a baptism of the century. hahaha. Planning the event brought so much memories as it took place in the same church where Martin and I got married. This year marks our 10 year anniversary. I got goosebumps as we drove into Niagara-on-the-lake this weekend. I love this place. Last year we came back the same weekend (my birthday weekend) and had a wonderful time visiting vineyards and eating at our favourite restaurant (STONE ROAD GRILL). Had to do the plug in because its worth every penny and will recommend it to everyone. hahahah.

This time last year, our file was sent to the Ministry and we were waiting for the Ministry approval. I remember talking about how our life would change in the year to come. We talked about our dreams for our family and what it would be like to come back to NOTL with a little one. And here we are...a year later...celebrating our daughter's baptism. A prayer answered, a blessing from above.

We arrived to Brampton Thursday night for some Lola-Lolo time, and then left for NOTL the next day. Martin's parents left Friday morning and did the 8 hour trek down. We pretty much met up at the same time at our bed and breakfast. This B and B was great because it was a 2-bedroom with a living room and kitchen that Olivia could use. We made good use of the space. That night we walked over to our favourite restaurant which was around the corner from the B and B. Thankfully, the owner was fabulous and welcomed the 5 of us without a reservation. Stuffed with amazing food, we walked back to the house and settled in for the night.

The next day, we took advantage of the gorgeous weather and walked around NOTL. Did I mention how much I love this place? There was an craft exhibition by the lake by local artists. It was a perfect day. Olivia settled down for an afternoon nap, and the grownups went to visit some wineries. When she woke up, we thought about going over the border. Her first trip to Target. BUT THIS IS ANOTHER STORY.

Baptism Day - A blessing on my birthday

The day started with a wonderful breakfast at the bed and breakfast. A gorgeous humid day. I thought... just like our wedding day. We started getting ready and of course, Olivia didn't get a chance to go down for the nap. I was hoping she would fall asleep at the church. Well..most people know Olivia doesn't go down easily. Especially with all the excitement going around her.

We arrived at the church early just to make sure we sit in the front. More so because I wasn't sure if the priest would remember there was a baptism going on that day. It was hard planning for this baptism being so far away. Finally the church was getting packed...our side of course was the most. And because filipinos are not used to the hot humid weather...most of them sat in the back where the fan was blowing. ahhahaha.

It started with a regular mass. Olivia was a real trooper. Of course there were many snacks involved, but finally a bottle did the trick. The only problem was...I couldn't find the "plug" I mean soother that replaced the bottle when she was finished. So of course she woke up immediately and that was that. After all that, she was in a fantastic mood. It was finally the baptism part. There were 2 other children that were being baptised.

We took our place at the front with the godparents, and the priest started. We went through the prayers and sacraments, and I couldn't help feeling that this was so surreal. I was up there holding my baby girl. God's blessing to our family. I know that I'm not highly religious but at that moment, I felt His presence among everyone's love at the church.

Olivia was great taking in all the sights. At one point, I had to put her down because she was getting heavy and there she was crawling around in her long gown on the steps of the alter. Classic because she can't sit still. Then it came to the water blessing. I knew she would love this because she was a water lover. She was so calm as the priest poured the holy water over her head. It must have been refreshing as well as the room was sweltering hot. Then the final blessing was done. We got our certificate and then pictures with the priest. Then we were off to the Pillar and Post for lunch. The same place where we had our wedding reception. Of course the food was awesome. And luckily it was a buffet because we were all starving. hahaha. We couldn't have planned it more perfectly.

Our daughter's baptism - a blessing from above. Memories of our marriage sacrament (which is 10 years going strong :0P ). A birthday wish coming true. It was a perfect weekend.