Has it really been a week since I last posted?

I’m marveling how I thought I’d have waaaaay more time to myself once the kids were back in school. And I guess I would if I hadn’t taken on more freelance assignments, more travel and well, just more everything.

I spent a few days last week in glorious Coronado Island paddle boarding, biking, touring and lots and lots of gourmet eating. I’ll be posting about it all in the coming weeks but for now, I’m slammed with deadlines and stress with the pumpkin party and weigh-off looming this week.

I mean, I haven’t even had time to publicly tease The Pumpkin Man about his pumpkin obsession. How sad is that?!

So, stay tuned. I’ll have many updates in the pipes when life calms down a bit. In the interim, enjoy this picture of the magnificent Hotel del Coronado.

I know I did!

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog

Dear Hadley,

You’re turning 8 today (gulp). This is one of those big milestones for Mormon folk because this means you can now be baptized. At 12 you graduate from Primary (the children’s organization) into Young Women’s, and at 16 you can start dating. Who am I kidding? Twenty-two sounds like a ripe ol’ age to hit the dating pool, particularly after Cam tried to plant a few wet ones on you on the bus.

Fortunately you were quicker and all he scored was a kiss on your elbow.

With Casanova Cam on the first day of second grade

People say, “watch out…it all goes so quickly” and I can’t say I agree. Bringing you home from the hospital seems like a lifetime ago and I feel like I’ve been your mom forever. It has been a privilege to watch you blossom from a chubby curmudgeon into a beautiful, talented, fun, adventurous soon-to-be tween.

Tween. Are we really going there?

Second grade has been kind to you. Many of your besties (including Alex and Kasey) are in your class and your teacher, Ms. Rollings, has been amazing. You’ve continued to excel in the arts, are caught up in reading, write whimsical tales like the “Story of Color” and also struggle in math.

Biking Lake Pend Oreille, ID

Blame your father’s genetic failings for that last one.

Many of your friends are really over-scheduled and though you’ll hopefully be starting swim team and piano in the fall, I’ve been careful not to overload you with activities. You are happiest when you have large blocks of time to lock yourself in your room and create–everything from drawings to Popsicle stick birdhouses to the most out-of-the-box, unique contraptions that cause me to sometimes doubt you are mine.

Let’s just say crafting isn’t Mommy’s strong-suit. But you already knew that.

You’ve never been a snuggly kid who verbalizes her affections but one of my most treasured memories this year was when we started writing secret messages to each other on the easel in your room. Every day, I’d eagerly look forward to your love notes and beautiful drawings and was remiss to erase them and replace them with my own stick figures.

Though it was nice to see myself so skinny.

Hiking Lookout Mountain

We love spending girl time in the outdoors and you are an excellent skier who tackled her first advanced run at Park City Mountain Resort. Last summer, you did an adventure race in Vail where you mountain biked, rock climbed, tubed, ziplined and did a ropes course through mud. You are also an intrepid hiker. While the boys are at Bode’s soccer games, we’ve been going to the Junior Naturalist program at Lookout Mountain and you love studying animal habitats.

When we attended the documentary, “To the Arctic” at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, I later commented I could see you doing something like that for your career–going into the Wild and photographing animals. You were game.

Sledding the gully, Calgary Canada

Minus the freezing-your-butt-off-in-sub-zero-temperatures part. (Or as you refer to it: “C.C,” which means “Canadian Cold.”)

Fat Kitty is still your favorite thing alive and your favorite toys are all your stuffed animals. You and Bode love throwing birthday parties for each and every one of them, which means it’s always a party at our house.

When we were in Park City for Spring Break, I took you into a popular tween store to buy some new socks. I held my breath as we wove through the displays of trendy tween clothes and accessories and exhaled when you raced to a display at the back of the store: full of stuffed animals.

I’m in no rush for you to grow up and I’m glad you aren’t either. Age 7 has been your best year yet and I can’t wait to follow you along the zany adventures of your future.

So long as they don’t involve boys and elbow-kissing.

Love,
Mommy

Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs

Skating Evergreen Lake, CO

Bow River with Grandpa & the dogs, Canada

Vail KEEN Kids Adventure Race with partner Sydney

Hot tubbing in Park City with the cousins

Pier-jumping in Sandpoint, ID

Tubing, Gorgoza Park, UT

Hiking Bear’s Hump, Waterton International Peace Park, Canada

First solo flight to see Grandma in Utah

P.S. For a stroll down memory lane, read letters for your 7,  6, 5, 4, 3, or 2 birthdays and the day you were born.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog

We’re going through a really funny phase with Bode. He’s always been a black-and-white kid and certainly loves playing his Wii a couple of times a week. I don’t work for Nintendo but every few months, a big box arrives with some new game for Bode to try out. I say “Bode” because Hadley has lost interest in the Wii (though she recently tried Just Dance at a friend’s and said she loved it).

There may be hope for her to gain the rhythm I never had.

But really, Bode is the sole proprietor of the Wii. One night after he went to bed, we had some people over and fired it up. When Bode heard those magical melodies, he shouted downstairs:

“I HEARD DAT.”

He takes his job very seriously.

Last month, a box was delivered for us to try out Mario Party 9–a party game for multiple players. Accompanying the game were various plush Mario toys and some Mario wall-hangings (guess where those are going). We surprised him with everything during his Easter egg hunt.

His opinion of the Easter bunny increased exponentially.

So, in keeping with Mario Party, we threw our own party for Family Home Evening. Hadley was a reluctant whiner but Jamie was insistent that we dedicate a night doing something Bode loves for once

And lo did he ever love playing his new game with us.

And to be honest, so did I. I’m not one to sit down and play Donkey Kong or Super Mario Bros., for the sole reason Bode leaves me in his dust. But Mario Party 9  has 80 minigames with Mario and his Mushroom Kingdom buddies. Games I could actually compete with Mushroom King Bode.

In the end, he still ended up beating us all and Hadley was still a store loser.

Me: “Why are you so mad?”
Hadley: “Because Bode is BRAGGING!”
Jamie: “That’s the entire point of playing it!”

Bode: 1, Hadley: 0.


Note: That’s Bode’s old obsession. Tune in next week for his new obsession.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog

I’ve been thinking a lot about Mother’s Day lately and an epiphany came during a recent bike ride: Why not have women write in and share their stories of how they became mothers?

I issued the challenge at Mile High Mamas and was thrilled with the response–everything from a teen pregnancy (and how it saved her life) to surrogacy to open adoption to more traditional tales.

To kick everything off, the story of my soon-to-be 8-year-old daughter, Hurricane Hadley. On May 25, she graced the world with her presence. Her birth and subsequent life have been one WILD ride.

Not to mention the car we now owe her for her 16th birthday because of it. Read her story here.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog

Urgency.

A new gal gave a talk at church and shared this is her favorite word. She framed it in a gospel setting but it struck me this is how I’ve always felt. I have a sense of urgency about living life to the fullest and am frustrated by those who sit back and wait for things to happen.

I’ve never known if this meant I was going to die young or that I would be a darn content 90-year-old without any regrets. Either way, my attitude is the same: get out and live while you still can. I’m reminded of this by people close to me who, due to physical or mental limitations, no longer have that liberty.

When I was 11 years old, I remember the sense of urgency I felt to be the very strongest in soccer and long jump so I would train my jumping/kicking leg for hours on my trampoline and would repeatedly run up and down the steep hills of the nearby gully.

What kind of a warped kid does that?

When I was a single gal living in Salt Lake City, I had a sense of urgency to explore every trail and travel as much as humanly possible because I figured when I finally got married and had kids, that wanderlust would be extinguished forever (how wrong I was).

Now, I’m on the cusp of another milestone: Bode will finally be in school full-time next year and I will have six hours to myself. Through this glorious thing called the Internet, I’ve been fortunate to grow my brand while still being at home with my family.

Recent developments have included my monthly column in the Denver Post and, as of last week, I’ll be a contributor for 9News for family-related stories. I have another project in the works with a friend that could potentially lead to great things but it has created even more urgency to accomplish my bucket list.

 Like my days in Salt Lake City, I’ve had the goal to explore every trail along Denver’s Front Range. I’ve put a good dent in the majority of them but I’m always on the lookout for any random, unmarked trail I can sink my bike or hiking boots into.

On Monday, Bode had a playdate after school so I had five glorious hours to myself. I asked Jamie which of two trails I should hit.

“Do the one that leads up to Idaho Springs (a city 20 miles from Denver),” he suggested. “I’m tired of hearing you whine about it.”

True dat. Every time we go to the mountains, I see segments of a bike trail weaving through the forest and have long resolved to do it. The challenges were it was several miles out of town (time commitment) and I couldn’t figure out where the trail started (a wee problem).

But gosh darn it, I did it. I slowly drove up Clear Creek Canyon watching for the start of the trail and found it just before the intersection with I-70. I ditched my car and grabbed my bike. A few miles into my ride, a funny thing happened: the trail turned into a frontage road and it was closed for construction.

What’re the odds?  Don’t answer that.

I’d been waiting seven years to bike this trail and I wasn’t turning back. I drove past the road closed sign and a mile later, encountered a construction worker standing guard. I sweetly approached him and asked if I could go through. He radioed his dudes, gave me the go-ahead, and I was soon on my way– weaving around pot holes and road work.

My route alternated between that road and dilapidated trails. Though less-than optimal, I was excited when I arrived at my destination: a ramshackle alley in Idaho Springs.

Not exactly the gleaming summit I’m used to.

Though I have no desire to ever do it again, I’m glad I did it. The worker told me they’re burying power lines and are prepping that road to become part of I-70 to deal with mammoth congestion problems.

That may have been my very last chance and I’m relieved I was able to fit it in before moving onto my next Bucket List item.

Nepal, anyone? 🙂

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog

I fall asleep every night as my husband watches the History Channel. To say history isn’t exactly my thing is an understatement.

So it was a complete shock to me that I fell in love with the new $110 million, high-tech History Colorado Center that will open its doors in a grand celebration on Saturday, April 28, 2012.

Last weekend, the kids and I got a preview and did we ever have a blast! From my obsession with outhouses (disturbing at best) to collecting chicken eggs to blowing things up, what’s not to love?

Read more about our many adventures at MileHighMamas.com.

Outhouse exposé included.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog

I just found out I won this coveted award from the Colorado Associated Press Editors and Reporters Assocation….(wait for it)….over TWO YEARS after the fact.

This is thanks to my boss’s boss who forgot about it in his office.

Is there where I give my belated thanks to the Academy?

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog

I am officially in the market for a new vehicle.

Actually, I didn’t even know I was looking until I was asked by Nissan to be a part of their #HolidayQuest campaign to test-drive their 2012 Nissan Quest. As my kids eagerly explored the minivan and I inhaled that glorious new-car smell while fiddling with the iPod connectivity, I knew it was out with the old (my 2003 Honda Pilot) and onto the new (vehicle TBD).

I was originally supposed to test-drive the Quest over the winter break and we planned a road-trip to Utah. But when a house fire caused tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage to my parent’s home in Canada

CLICK HERE TO READ AT MILEHIGHMAMAS.COM

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog

Is one of your New Year’s resolutions to declutter?

If so, you definitely need to check out this calendar that gives tips for decluttering your life, one easy day at a time.

P.S. And no, that’s not a picture in my house. But I sure wish it was!

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog