Tuesday, July 5, 2011
I hope they call me on a mission.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Foster Update
Eloise and I have been on lots of adventures! Its fun to see things through a childs eyes. We occasionally let Dayton join us. We have done the zoo, Eloise was captivated with the butterflies.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Mummy and Daddy and Eloise makes three
My biggest news! I finally became a Mum. Dayton and I had tried for sooooo long. I was so frustrated thinking this could be the month only to discover it was not the month. I tried to be really excited as everyone around me seemed to announce their happy news. I began to understand why the Bible covers strong woman with a desire to have a family struggling to conceive. It helped to remind me that every child is a gift from God and that I had to learn to be like these woman and be happy with the blessings that God has given me. So Dayton and I went on holiday and we decided that we would concentrate on our blessings. So we made the decision that we would be fantastic at being an aunt and uncle. We would go on great holidays and I would start going to the gym so that I would look great on all the beaches we were going to visit.
So after a month of the gym I started feeling tired! What happened to all those happy endorphins? I asked Dayton to give me a blessing and as he was given me it we both felt impressed that I was pregnant but we were to scared from being disappointed in the past. I had decided to go and visit my Mum. On the way I said to Heavenly Father, I need a sign before I do any tests. I sat down on my Mum's couch ready for a good gossip, when she looked at me and said, "You look tired. Are you pregnant?" My sign! I phoned Dayton and told him to get the tests. Left my Mum's early and rushed home. Couldn't wait till the morning to do the test so without Dayton knowing did the test right away. Shouted him in and we both looked at the positive result - in shock! We climbed into bed that night speechless, think we prayed and I cried the whole way through it. Next morning I phoned my Mum and before I could even tell her she told me. :)
I had a wonderful pregnancy, apart from the swollen ankles! I didn't get any cravings, apart from the convenient one's when I wanted Dayton to get me stuff. On the Friday before my baby was born, after work, I went for a check up. The doctor told me that unless I did something crazy like have my waters break I would be back next week for an appointment! Well I did something crazy. I had an awful cough. At 4am I woke up ready to cough and the waters broke. I'll be honest I didn't find labour hard! Dayton and I watched movies in the hospital. I decided to go for the epidural just because the nurse kept offering me it. After three attempts we all decided I was one of those people that epidurals don't work on. Until Sunday morning when a lovely English doctor came in and asked if he could try another epidural. I said OK! After that I didn't feel a thing. Got to the pushing point. Pushed for two hours and then was told that my baby was not dropping and her heart beat was going up. So c-section was mentioned. :(
Dayton scrubbed up, I was wheeled in. Suddenly my English doctor was pulling the sheets down and lifting my head up and I could see my baby coming out of me! Instant love! She didn't cry at first as she was in distress so she kept Dayton and I waiting but when we heard that joyous sound, I think that was when I cried. They made sure I was the first to hold her. Dayton and I had decided from early on to call her Eloise. We both loved the name. Elliott came from Dayton's family. Its his Mom's maiden name and its also his middle name. So Eloise Elliott English joined our family January 23rd, 2011.
Monday, September 7, 2009
The boys have landed.

Kolby is the chicken, Austin the cow, me the sheep and Dayton is the bull. Fun times! One of my favourite things about the summer was seeing my family. Camellia, JP, Olivia, Jack and bump came to play with us all for three weeks. 

We had the kids come and have a sleep over at the house, we went to the beach, we went to the corn maze, we watched a movie outside under the stars, we fed ducks and we laughed!


Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Time Out for Graduating and Moving.
So after years of studying, stressing, debt, essays, exams and trying to balance work and school, Dayton finally graduated! Yay! The bagpipers led him in for the ceremony and his Mom, Dad and I sat and clapped when his name was called out. So happy and proud of him. His parents took us out for lunch to celebrate which was really nice as well. Dayton's Dad has a very dry sense of humour which always makes me laugh so I always enjoy hanging out with him. It's all over, at least I thought it was, but the studying, stressing, debt, essays, exams and trying to combine work and school start again in October as Dayton got accepted into a Masters program in Communication at Royal Roads in Victoria, BC.


Thursday, April 2, 2009
Alison in Wonderland
So Dayton and I decided that we needed to get a little more cultured. So I found a great deal on tickets for Alice in Wonderland, the ballet. Neither of us has seen a ballet before so it was going to be a new experience for us both. Although I discovered that Dayton is going to get an experience that he had not quite counted on.
On chatting with a couple of my friends, I mentioned the ballet and how I had picked one that we knew the story too so that we could follow along, when Dayton commented, "We can follow along with the words." We all looked at him to see if he was kidding but alas, he was not. Dayton was not impressed that he would have to watch people speak to us through movement. :)
I made up for the ballet experience when I got us free tickets to see the Flames in a play-off game. Dayton is as crazy about hockey as my brother Graham was about football (soccer). So I was shocked that this was the first time that he had ever gone to see a play off game. I wish I could have gotten him tickets to see his team, the Canucks play, maybe one day........ the Flames won the game.

Dayton and I were best friends before we were married and so its hard sometimes not to include him on nights out. Girls nights ban him from coming out though. When you leave a country behind you not only lose some of the familiar sights and sounds that you are used to but you leave behind friendships that mean the world to you. Facebook helps you keep up to date with their lifes but things do change. I seem to have lucked out and found friends like I had in England only with accents. :0) Good food, good friends and good times!
Well we did it! We have passed the year mark of being married! I felt like a Princess with my Prince on the day that I got married and Dayton has managed to make me feel that way ever since. Dayton is romantic, caring, funny, selfless and very lovable. We decided not to do gifts for each other as we both really wanted to go and see the Lion King and so that was going to be our gift to 'us'. So we got up VERY early and lined up at the theatre for tickets. What a way to start an anniversary, we got front row tickets, saw some great friends at the theatre, got free breakfast and a free Lion King CD. The rest of the day we relaxed before going out for dinner. Now adding anniversaries as another of my favourite celebrating days.

Happy birthday to me! I love Birthdays! Dayton always gets nervous about getting me gifts but he won me over! Got me tickets to go and see Snow Patrol and Coldplay. On the countdown to the concert now. So I had a lot of birthday wishes and cards and gifts and appreciated each one! Thank you!

April is always the month that I seem to reflect on what is important to me and how I can improve, maybe because its Easter and its the month that I realise that I have been given so much. Dayton and I have been looking after Amanda's foster children on occasional weekends. In April we got the chance to have them for a full week. We survived. They are two very sweet boys who bring us a lot of noise, chaos, laughter and teaching moments. Colby and Austin always make me appreciate parents who are fantastic. I count my parents as my best friends. I know I did and still can rely on them. Families are great! I love my family so much that I moved all the way to Canada to be near them and got the blessing of meeting Dayton and adding to my family. Home to me is where family is. Dayton has a great family as well. Some have made me feel like I am a sister to them and for that I am very grateful. Got to go and celebrate Easter with the English's decorating eggs. Fun!
It was a busy week with the boys. The boys were in day camp and so were slightly tired when they came home but I think one late night and a trip to the zoo managed to exhaust them and us. We took the boys out to my parents for Easter and as always my Mum did a fantastic dinner, yorkshire puddings and all and then we feasted on chocolate. Hmm. I think my favourite moment with the boys was Austin making me a bracelet. I had to wear it everywhere. He was very proud of his efforts
Anyway I had better end my epic tales right now as I have more to write but will need to do it later. Going to encourage my sister to get the blog going now! Surely you must have come up with a title. Fay, my beautiful sis-in-law, we need more Jakob news! Its been a while.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Rankin Valentine
lol! So we wrote this post a while ago and forgot to post it! Whoops! What a great week we have just enjoyed! Alison had a friend who gave us free tickets to go and see the Rankin Family. Alison had never heard of them but accepted the tickets. It was a concert that was being filmed for a DVD so you never know, we may appear on the DVD. It was a fun night with great singing and Irish dancing.
Dayton's sister Amanda gave us a chance to go to Canmore for the romantic weekend for free. Our hotel was fantastic! With us both still suffering from bad backs from the accident it was brilliant to relax in the outdoor hot tub with the snow falling around us. Dayton had sent Alison Cookies by George to Alison's work as a surprise Valentine treat so we had lots of goodies to eat on our weekend. For Valentine's evening, we went out to an English style pub. Made Alison a little homesick but we both enjoyed the fish and chips supper!




