Yesterday was a...

terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.

Well, okay, it wasn't too bad. But I am still upset over the whole soccer thing. I figure most people reading this would think--What is the big deal, seriously? Well, it actually is a big deal to us for a few reasons.
First-we just moved back to Texas and Nate is seriously having a rough time. He's bored most of the time, as all his friends live thirty minutes away. He hasn't made any friends at church yet (neither have I...but that is another post...only four weeks of attending church and barely anyone has talked to us...)
Second-Nate is not enrolled in preschool. We just can't afford it right now. I'm still looking for somewhere that might let him come for free, if they even have space available. He spends three days a week with me at the YMCA childcare which he says "is for babies because there are only babies there and they have baby toys." He hates it and I have to drag him there M-W-F.
Third-I was looking forward to the fact that I got to enroll him for less than half price because I'm an employee. It was going to be only $20 for him to play the season of soccer. Cheap fun.
Fourth-He's been talking about playing soccer for weeks. I kept reminding him that he had it to look forward to. It even became a bribe of sorts to get him outside to play..."Go practice kicking the soccer ball so you'll be really good at it when soccer season starts."

Oh well.

It also wasn't the best day because I had to do something really brave that I've been putting off for almost six years. I'm not kidding. And you thought YOU were a procrastinator! Let's just say, it's going to cost a lot of money and take a lot of effort and maybe even some self-introspection. Oh, dear.

But the day ended okay...I was able to go to dinner with some old friends. They were ladies I worked with at the YMCA when we lived in Dallas before. It was really nice to get together and just be an adult. Plus the food was yummy. And the vino flowed like wine (for them) so the conversation got funnier and funnier as the hours rolled on. I love my friends.

Update: The YMCA is not Christian

Um, so I was THAT mom today. I marched upstairs to the sports office and requested a team change. I was told that there was no way. I explained why I needed a team that practiced on Saturday, and was told (in more words than this, but generally speaking) "Too bad." The gal told me that she couldn't grant my request because they have too many kids in the league and if they gave everyone their change request, it would be a madhouse. I totally get that. But I couldn't let the fight stop there. Not with the lowest-on-the-totem-pole gal in the department. So then I became THAT mom and THAT employee when I talked to her boss. Unfortunately, that only got me a promise of a swift refund.

My husband (jokingly) says we should sue the Y for religious discrimination. I wonder, if we were Jewish and said we couldn't have practice on Saturdays because it's our Sabbath, would they grant that request? I'm sure they would. But we're not Jewish. We're Christian.

So much for the Young Mens Christian Association.

But I still work there. Mostly because I need the money :)

Almost A Soccer Mom

I got Nate's soccer team info today. The team coach emailed a bunch of information about the team...jersey ordering info, etc. She said our first game is next Monday. And our team practices will be Sunday afternoons at 4pm. Great. So I had to email her and tell her that we don't have our children play sports on Sunday because we use that day for worship and family time. I also asked her what our options are...could we switch to another team that doesn't practice on Sunday? Her response...

She let me know we could come and use the playground for family time during practice, as her family does.
There is a strict policy about children not playing in the game if they miss practice.
We could petition the YMCA for a team change, but it may be difficult to get one this late.

So what makes this all the worse is that all of the sudden I'm THAT mom. The one that (seemingly) wants everyone else to work around her. The one that is talked about by YMCA staff once she leaves the room: "She seriously thinks she's above the rules! Does she honestly believe the whole world revolves around her?"
And what else? This is the YMCA that I work for. Uh-huh, now I'm THAT mom and I'm THAT co-worker, too. Love it.
I'll let you know what happens...hopefully we'll end up getting to play with a team somehow. Nate will be absolutely devastated if he can't play soccer...he's been looking forward to it for weeks! Agh!

Nate's (Kinda) Birthday Party

Oh, how thankful we are for good friends!

We met Nate's good buddy Ethan and his mom and sisters for a birthday celebration at Chuck E Cheese. We have one very close to our house and every time we'd pass it, Nate would ask if he could have his birthday party there. So, naturally, when the time came, we just couldn't imagine his birthday party anywhere else!

I think the kids really had a great time. It was nice to be with our good friends, too. Ethan was our across-the-street neighbor when we lived in Dallas the first time. His parents are some of our best friends and we're so happy to be back in the same city as them!

Anyways, here are some pictures. If Jennette sends me the ones from her camera, I might post some of those, too.

The boys love the blue frosting!


The girls enjoying cake...yum!

Nate is a PRO at the basketball game! :)

My Sweetheart

I absolutely love this little boy (he'd say "I'm not a little boy! I'm a kid!") I still can't believe how fast time goes. What a blessing that he is healthy and happy--well, most of the time! Nate has been such a great addition to our family and he is such a fantastic big brother. I'm thankful for him. Here are five things about Nate at five years old:
*He is one of the smartest kids I've ever met. Right now he's very much into spelling and reading. He still loves numbers too, and is starting to figure out how to read them (like 1000 is one thousand, 142 is one hundred forty two). Smartie pants.
*He loves his Nintendo Wii. He's much better than his mom and can even hold his own against Dad in his favorite game, MarioKart.
*He spent five days in the NICU after he was born at a tiny five pounds, thirteen ounces. You'd hardly know it now, though...he's tall and healthy and full of energy.
*He cannot wait for school to start in the fall. Closer in the future is the start of his first soccer season. Now that is going to be fun!
*He still loves people and friends and being social. He's kind and thoughtful and has been every bit of the meaning of his name: "Blessing from God."

I am such a lucky momma.

I Absolutely, Positively LOVE Texas

So, we're here. We're in Dallas and our internet is finally hooked up. I think I went almost six weeks without checking everyone's blogs! Wow, talk about withdrawal.
The move was exciting. There was a good snowstorm the day we moved from Calgary. Of course. It reminded us of the blizzard that Kansas City dumped on us on our way outta town. Apparently it's just not a Murdock move without snow. Luckily the weather wasn't too bad most of the way down, but we did have a couple setbacks. I won't bore you with too much detail, but one event makes me laugh now, so I'll share it:
We were headed through a pretty good storm in Wyoming (I think....all those states really blended together for me). We passed through a decent-size city at about dinner-time and I told Adam that we should find a place to stay for the night. He told me that it would be crazy to stop so early and that there was another good-size city about two hours ahead. (Can you tell where this is going? Yup...it gets better) We headed onward (who am I to argue against efficiency?) and got stopped about thirty miles later by a road block. The highway was closed because four 18-wheelers had jack-knifed off the road and were blocking the passage. My response: "Let's turn around and go stay the night in town." Adam's man-response: Got out of the car and asked the highway patrolman where the little road we could see in the distance led. The patrol officer told him: "It goes through the mountain passes and gets you back onto the highway about 75 miles ahead. It will take you longer than the main highway would, but it'll get you where you're going." Hmmmm....sounds like a good idea, right? Except....did I mention that it is WINTER? Did I mention that there was a STORM? We spent the next two and a half hours going through the mountain pass where there was a foot of snow on the road (and continuing to fall), eight feet (easily) packed up on the side of the road, and my Canadian husband had this to say when it was all over: "Those were the worst driving conditions I've ever driven in. It was probably a mistake to go that way." Right.
But we did make it to Texas eventually. Nate did really well on the trip. Aidan did well, too. We were lucky enough to have Adam's brother Daniel as a third driver which helped immensely. We got to Dallas on a Saturday and we were supposed to go sign the lease on our home when we got to town. We called our realtor on Friday night and he said everything was good to go for the morning, but when we called him Saturday morning, he told us that the house had been leased to someone else! We were homeless. So we spent Saturday looking at homes and found nothing that we liked. Monday came and we looked again...and found a home that we really thought would work. It took almost a week, but we finally moved in and although we're still in boxes, we're happy to be here.
I took some pics of the boys. Are they darling or what?
PS--I used two different logo options (slight font difference) so.....which one do you like better?