June 12, 2009 by Dad.

So we finally finished Cezanne’s Big Girl Room and she moved in with out any problems. We talked to her about the move and made it as exciting as we could involving her along the way to ensure that we did all that we could so as to avoid any push back. She loves the room and took to it instantly. We made a clear distinction that the old room is now for the baby and that she is now a big girl with her own big girl room.

She got a set of funny glasses as a parting gift from a party some time back and found them again and now actually got them on her face. Trying to get them off her again was a challenge !

Silly Face	…and again !
As is the glasses are not silly enough, just have to add the tongue	I love this one !
Tada - Big Girl Room	My Books & Chair

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May 16, 2009 by Dad.

Breaking news!

We can finally share with you all that a baby boy is on the way and we now know that he is doing well inside the Mommy.

We had an amniocentesis done and this confirmed for us that it will be a baby boy and we have now started getting Cezanne used to the idea that she will be getting a baby brother and that she will be the big sister.

Below you can see the ultrasounds from April 15 and then again May 14.

As is tradition in this house, we went on a bit of a shopping spree to buy a bunch of boy clothes in celebration of the good news…

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September 8, 2008 by Dad.

Cezanne is now officially a “big girl” and completed her first day at school with out too many tears. Lanelle dropped her off and walked her in and then left with some resistance, but since we had been to “meet the teacher” on Friday it was at least a familiar environment. We both went to fetch her again and were early and ended up waiting in the car for a few minutes before meeting the class at the door. One of her teachers said she did really well and when asked she did admit that she had fun and wanted to go again… Lets hope this is a good sign and that she settles into the new routine.

We are told that “day 2″ is really when things get more interesting so we will see how she is on Wednesday…

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August 12, 2008 by Dad.

Today Lanelle took Cezanne out into the yard for some outdoor play since she had been inside for too many days and she got to watering the plants and playing on the patio.

In late breaking news the “lucky” penny passed today and has been saved for the memory box. See the offesive penny below !

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June 19, 2008 by Dad.

Here I sit, the night before Cezanne turns 2 and I feel like a train has run over me.

Why ? Well the past couple of weekends and the last few evenings we have been out in the garden trying to get it ready for the backyard bonanza that is to be Cezanne’s 2nd Birthday Party.

19 kids, with parents, siblings and extras brings us to a total of 45 guests.

Last year we had helpers ( Thanks Mom & Dad ) but this year we are on our own.

We do have a mini party for Cezanne tomorrow - her South African playgroup is coming to play again and we will have some of the fun activities setup for them to enjoy.

All we can do now is hope for good weather and enough time to finish everything that still needs to be done !

I am sure it will all be worth it in the end…

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May 21, 2008 by Dad.

Here I sit, 12:10am, exhausted but determined to get a posting in to mark the last time I guess we will measure Cezanne’s age in months… From here on she will be ‘almost 2′ or just TWO !

This last week has been a busy one, but let me just recap from the weekend…

Saturday we went swimming. As you may know, Cezanne loves swimming, but recently has not been enjoying it as much and has done a fair bit of crying and screaming during both the Saturday and Monday classes that she goes to. Lanelle and I have pushed her through and comforted her but I think we reached breaking point on Saturday. We arrived early so Cezanne and I could warm up and get comfortable before the class started. We sat on the edge and got our toes wet and then Cezanne informed me that she had to “poopeepayay” so off we went and of course it was a false alarm. This took up all the warm up time and class had started by the time we got back to the pool. As soon as we got into the pool Cezanne had a nuclear meltdown ! I have never seen her scream like this - it was hysterical ( not funny ) and frantic - as if I were pouring boiling hot lava over her. I tried my best to calm her down but she just dug her claws in and refused to let go. I could see that I was not going to get this cat to swim so we left. We are officially “Aw Dun” with the swimming on Saturdays.

Saturday did get better, we offered to babysit for Daleen & Werner ( Chloe’s parents ) so they could go to a work function which started early. Chloe arrived just before dinner time so we got to play one of Cezanne’s new favorites - playdough ! Then we spent some time in the basement before the competitive eating  event started. Chloe is 6 months younger than Cezanne but put her to shame although Cezanne did eat well it was nothing like the eating machine that is Chloe !

We took a few photos and some video clips of the girls in the basement and will post them soon. After the two finished dinner it was bath time where Cezanne decided she had to sit on Chloe in the bath. Lanelle took Chloe while I took Cezanne and we washed and rinsed and went through the motions. Normally we put Cezanne in the bath and she plays and we have to ask really nicely if we can wash her and if we can rinse her and if she will stand so we can get in under her… Chloe kept looking at Lanelle and eventually picked up the wash cloth and handed it to her with a look on her face as if to say ‘Hey, lady, are you gonna bath me or what ?’ So Lanelle washed and rinsed and then let Chloe play, but by this time Chloe was all ready to get out. We have to let all the water run out of the bath and then get in if we want to stand any chance of getting Cezanne out of the bath… I guess each kid is different

Sunday was church again and Cezanne is now at home with the childcare - we are so proud of her. She walks herself in and settles down quickly.

…and so the party planning starts. Don’t ask me about it, I am staying as far away from it as possible ! Where are all the helpers we had last year ??

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April 27, 2008 by Dad.

This post is all about Sunday - the day started like any other, the stirring and chatting from the crib which then slowly increases in volume and tempo until we hear the call for “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Aw Dun, Aw Dun, Aw Dun”. But Sunday was a little different in that rather than a call for Daddy, it was a call for Mommy - strange but being loving father that I am I figured I would just go and make sure Cezanne was “ok” and remind her again that I am “Daddy”… When I got to her room and opened the door, she seemed relieved to see me and started jumping up and down saying something I could not make out - being half asleep still it took a while, but then it clicked and I grabbed her and made a dash for it - the potty - she had been saying “Poopie on a Potty”. In our house we turn everything into a little song and so even for this there is a song - No I will not sing it for you…

Well we made it, PJs down, diaper off, seated and “Ta Da !!” - I was really very impressed and very proud. This was moment number 1 !

Next we all got up and made our way down to breakfast and the on to church where we arrived a few minutes early. We had been away so missed church 2 weeks in a row, for a moment Cezanne seemed to have forgotten what happens at church ( in the past she had already started crying and waving and saying bye bye as soon as we turned into the parking area ) but then we got a little whimper and a moan which we comforted quickly and reminder her of all the fun things that happen at church. We made our way inside, Cezanne told us again she needed the potty but this was a false alarm and probably a distraction tactic. I took her hand and she walked down the hall to the under 2 group where I then opened the door and let her in, she let go, and went in all by herself, not a tear or a moan. We both stood there, jaws on the ground ! What a brave little girl ! This was moment number 2 !

In church we  met another South African family who have a little girl who was also born on June 20, 2006 ! We went to lunch with them at the home of another South African family that live next to the church.  The kids played and when one of the older kids suggested ring-around-the-rosies ( Cezanne’s favorite ) we laughed because once you start that with Cezanne it is almost impossible to end the game. Well Cezanne took Hailey’s ( her twin ) hand and showed her what to do. Then Cezanne sang the song ( not so that you could understand it - but she did sing to the tune and made many of the sounds of many of the words at the right time in the song ). Normally she is a little shy with so many spectators, but got over this and really enjoyed the game, falling down with a big smile on her face each time… This was moment number 3 !

Cezanne really has come a long way with the talking and singing from even just a few weeks ago. I suspect now that when it really starts we will not be able to get it to stop - much like ring-around-the-rosies…

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March 20, 2008 by Dad.

…and so another month passes and Cezanne is now only 3 months from completing her second year on planet earth, although somedays I really have to wonder if she is a full time resident… We often find her off in her own little world or far away on another planet all together

The little darling is now singing more and more and we have tried to capture this on video but being the performer that she is she wants to see her performances and so it is a constant stuggle to get her to perform for the camera and show her what she looks like.

Lets hope this is “just a phase”

Spring has not been seen yet, we hope she comes soon. Cezanne can not wait to play outside again !

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February 24, 2008 by Dad.

Cezanne has mastered puzzles for kids 3+ years in age. We got a set of beautiful wood puzzles from Gillian & Regan for her first birthday and wondered why they gave us a gift that was clearly too advanced for her at the time. Gillian then mentioned that Rhiannon started solving these around the same age and sure enough, Cezanne is now able to solve / build all the puzzles - it was more a case of overcoming the lack of patience to turn the pieces so they fit in the spot than what it was identifying the correct piece for the appropriate spot… She may be smart but certainly is without any patience… Wonder why ???

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February 20, 2008 by Dad.

Yet another milestone today as we reach the 20 month mark. It is really hard to imagine life without Cezanne, no wait, is it really all that hard ? What did we do with all our free time ? Oh how we miss “the good life” as a couple, just a couple, but then we think of all the joy / pain we would be missing out on - hard to really say which one wins

We love our little girl and we are oh so grateful for all the love and joy she brings us.

Thanks you Cezanne for 20 wonderfully colorful months. You make our lives something special !

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