Good evening friends..

Was it humid enough out there for you today? Was for me!! I let the dogs swim today..the pool needs to be vaccummed and it isn't heated high enough yet for people to go in, tomorrow I will heat it so the kids can swim. Nothing new today, was very tired from the weekend adventures. Took Kailey to dryland tonight and I got a massage. Feeling really chilled right now! I have some pictures to share from my last batch of cake balls...i will share them with you tomorrow. I'm outta here..tired once again! Good night and god bless~

Guess where i am right now?....

Sitting outside having a cup of tea, listening to my wonderful 80's music (those who know me...know how I feel about 80's music)! Paul and I bought a new table and chair set last week for our small but useful deck. Cutest little set EVER! We absolutely LOVE it! My puppies are outside with me, Paul is BBQ'ing dinner and the kids are having time to themselves as both of them had fun nights with friends last night. Today hubby and I went to the movies to see Hangover 2, definately wasn't as funny as the first one. SOme parts were good, I was hoping for more...but I wasn't really too disappointed. I mean just watching Bradley Cooper for 2 hours was enough to keep me enchanted! Of course Paul found it more funny than I did, but he did agree it wasn't as good as the first one!

So last nights girl time was fun! We drank. ate and laughed until early morning hours. Candy did a great job hosting...I think she should do this more often! Within 3 days we had 2 girls nights..its been busy but fun! Kailey had a tryout tonight, it went really well. Rumour had it that the team the played which happened to Guelph was a stacked team taking players from Waterloo, Elora-Fergus and Guelph.
After the first period Guelph was winning 1-0..but second period we switched our goalie and she didn't have as good of game and she let in 3 more goals. Sooo we lost 4-0. Honestly though, it was a good game! We were missing two of our strongest players as well...and our goalie isn't on ice yet due to injury. So going into this season might not be as bad as what we had envisioned. The younger girls coming up to play had actually been taught alot of the same things our girls were taught because their coached helped on our bench a few time's last season. Kail said it's so nice that they know our breakout and they understand some of the moves...they gel well together. Nice to see Kailey getting shots on net...I am sure this season she will have better opportunities to shoot. She has made a commitment to practice her shot on net through the summer. Last season her job was to get the ring to the net and pass it to one of our shooters. This season...Kailey might just be one those shooters! Well i'm outta here...its been a great weekend!
~Good nights friends and god bless~

I'm losing views...

Ok so maybe I should go back to blogging daily?? I seem to have ALOT less views and its probably due to the lack of posts. I think maybe I will TRY to post something everyday?? Even if its a quick blurp about my day or some of the things that is on my mind {god help you}.



Tonight I am heading out to a girlfriends house for a get together. Its a big one too..lots of girlie's to chat with tonight. There is a small group of us getting dropped off and picked up so that we can have a good time and not worry about how much we are drinking! Shall be a good night!!
Today Paul and I headed to Brantford to look at patio furniture....we purchased! We have been looking a pricing for sometime, so when we came across this stuff today...I was anxious to buy! I love it!!



For our budget...its perfect! Exactly what I wanted structure wise...colour wise however..wouldn't have been my first choice but I do like it! It will be delivered on Tuesday *fingers crossed* so thats awesome. We will be ready to host our first BBQ of the season!!! Hoping everyone is having a fabulous weekend~

Brag post...ya you knew it was comin!!

There is just so much to get caught up on! I bet you may even wondered if I was still planning to post. Honestly, lately by the end of the day...i'm pooched! Its either due to getting older, or i'm just busier??
There's been some exciting things happening here in the Martz 's residence, just when I think we will no longer see an ice rink...tryouts start up again. I will admit, after this season I was pretty well finished with ringette. Honestly...I was ready to move on and encourage Kail to try something different this winter..maybe skiing or dancing? She was pretty ready to walk from wintery weekends spent on ice every Saturday morning at 7am, right up until about a week ago. I think once the reality set in of not playing anymore..was a bit more hard to deal with, as of now I think she's playing. I'm not sure how I feel, I really miss weekends as a family. I miss taking off to Toronto for mini holidays, or Niagra Falls for hotel stays..nights away with my hubby! I don't get the chance to spend as much time with Braden either...we go seperate ways in the winter, I am tired of it! However with that said, I do love my daughter and care very much about her happiness...so I will support whatever she decides to do. I might not make it to every game or practice, but as long as she loves lacing those skates...I'll keep supporting her!
My other child managed to prove his excellence once again and was nominated and won an award here in the city of Cambridge. So just bear with me here...yes this is a brag post as I feel the need to share how thrilled we are as parents with our son's wonderful accomplishments. He joined the Youth City Council about a year ago, he absolutely loves it and he brings ALOT to the table. He is definatly at times one of the most mature 17 year old teenager you will EVER meet. It amazes me how confident and how sure of himself he can be at times. He has always had the ability to talk in situations that would make you or I squirm...and he has always been able to grab the attention of others. When he talks...for what ever reason people listen, he has a natural gift..he is lovable and captivating! As we were sitting at our table in the city hall, looking at all the decorations..enjoying the music provided and settling into the atmosphere I was overwhelmed with the "overachiever's" sitting at our table. Honestly they were all great kids, not at all snotty, rude or ignorant to the others at the table. They were all very chatty, sharing in laughs and stories...but I couldn't help and wonder what did their parents do differently to shape the adults these young people were becoming? Talk about high achieving individuals...they had so many goals, they had their paths all laid out. The sad part to me though was...what happens to these young programmed teens when something happens in their lives that wasn't part of the plan? What can mommy and daddy do to fix it? How will they cope with uncertainty? What if they fall off their life path? Will they have the ability and knowledge to get back up? My concern as a parent is just that! I love that my children have hopes and dreams...I love that they like to push themselves...but will they be ok when they fail? You see...we can teach them to strive...teach them to reach for the stars, but we also have to teach them how to cope when those stars are so far out of reach. We need to give them the tools to find away to keep going, to keep reaching...even if our arms aren't quite long enough. The feeling of failure is inevidable, its going to happen...my children are aware of that and hopefully when they fall...they will have enough knowledge to get back up! Try a new path...sometimes the best thing to happen in your life path is coming up to fork in the road and taking a chance going in a different direction.
Anyways..the reason for this post (which by the way has literally taken me 2 weeks to write) was to brag about how proud I am of Braden and how thrilled we are with Kailey's marks. I am however going to end this shortly as I no longer have any desire to finish this. I will say though that Kailey has managed to keep her grades above 80% this semester.

We are so proud of her as with playing in the National games for ringette she had missed a large amount of school. I was concerned that her teachers would become frustrated with her absences so I did give each teacher a copy of her schedule back in March. I explained that Kail will be responsible for her own work, however we would appreciate their support especially if some assignements are late. ALL of her teachers were wonderful, some even showed up to watch some games. Each teacher commended Kail on her efforts at school, and gave her credit for managing great grades while training for the National games. Way to go Kail!!

Family Love and all things different...

There has been a major shift in our household. It has not been an easy thing to get use too...not that its been difficult, its just new! It's change!*Sigh*
The boy has a girlfriend! She is probably the most serious one that he has had, she is around..ALOT, which is fine with us because it makes B happy. So weird.
He really likes her, and he has been a wonderful, respectful boyfriend. He bought tickets for Prom and their names were put in for Prom King and Queen, thats exciting!
This young lady is very sweet, she is kind, respectful and very appreciative. I love how she does NOT see the wheelchair, she likes him for who he is and his obstacles don't even seem to phase her. So far she seems to understand his health issues, I don't think there is an understanding just yet of the severity of some of his medical challenges. Thats ok though, she is too young to have that on her plate and I don't expect a woman to become induldged in that part of his life until he is much older.
Unfortunately its all I think of...for the most part. I mean it doesn't stop me from seeing all the other parts of him, but his health does weigh heavy in my mind. There was a new kind of conversation going on in my home on the weekend between Braden and I. I had mentioned to him that we "as a family" were going to Brampton to Dave & Busters and we wanted him to join us. He said that he had plans with his girlfriend that night. So I hid my sadness from him and said that he'd be missed and I really wish he'd come. I even invited the girlfriend! Shortly after that conversation he comes back out of his room and says that L(the girlfriend) wants to go so.."I guess we'll go, because she wants too" he said. WOW...really did this happen? When did my son become a "we"?? That was hard to swallow...I was thrilled, but WOW...not use to that!
Another strange thing that came to my realization through this experience was eventually his medical issues will be monitored by someone else. On our way home in the van I let Ms.L sit in the front seat so that she and B could talk. I had Kail, Emily and Ethan in the back of the van so I didn't mind being back there as we sang songs, laughed and ate treats!
As I was back there I glanced at Braden (as I have for years inorder to assess his current status) as a parent of a child (young adult) who is medically fragile you constantly glimpse at them to check their coloring, breathing and comfort level. B had been very tired for most of the day so when I looked over at him I wasn't surprised to see him looking exhausted, struggling to breath and working hard to keep his energy up.
What I was surprised to see was the two of them holding hands in the van. It hit me hard, how fast this was all happening...how in a couple years from now, things are going to be so damn different and I can't do anything to stop it!
My baby boy( Young man) was tired and working hard to stay awake on a ride that normally would have had his head tilted to the right,eyes closed and passed out unaware of his surroundings . He was now responsible for the happiness of a young lady, who he was thrilled to be spending time with.
My moment did not last long...its all going to be ok. These are great experiences for B. Its what we all strive for when it comes to our children. We want them to be happy, grow up and be independant. There will come a day when B will be taking care of all his own needs...I was reminded of that last weekend, its not a bad thing my friends and I am definately coming to terms with all the changes. Its a nice place to be!
(This post was written along time ago...sorry for the late post)

Making Teens Listen without Yelling...

Boy I try hard....NOT to scream! For the most part I think I do pretty good, and so does my husband. I think the key to NOT having to yell and scream at your teenagers is prevention! Thats right!! I pretty much have things figured out before events even happen in this house, so for that reason...it prevents all the screaming, yelling and temper tantrums, from both parties involved. *Smiles*
I DO have two active teenagers who at times can cause me some worry...they are teenagers, that's their job! I think the reason why they cause me to worry is because I am involved and pay attention to what's going on in thier lives. We do give them privacy and space to make their own decisions and even to make mistakes. But, before there is even a chance to make mistakes...I make sure they understand the circumstances. Braden had a few friends over Friday night, and Paul,Kailey and I were out. Without knowledge one of B's friends brought a different young man over with her. Braden did not know him, which thankfully made B keep an eye on him. Deep down Braden knew we wouldn't have approved of this. This guy had been drinking and was stumbling all over the place, banging into things and eventually puked in my house. Braden knew enough to get him out! Braden started telling his friend to get him out, I could sense Braden was worried about his consquences because he know's how we feel about drunk teens in our home...especially ones we don't know. I guess this drunk young man gave Braden a bit of a hard time, he continued walking around in our house, thankfully Braden knew to have him followed and NOT left unattended. Eventually they did get him to leave, the one girl walked him to the bus stop...Paul and I were literally around the corner when we saw him leaving. Its a good thing too...because I may not have handled the situation very well.
Nothing had happened, the house was fine, the puke was cleaned up....BUT, we had alot to say to B and his friends. They all did the right thing by getting him out, but I told them all...no one is to come into this house EVER again if we are not home and we do not know them!!
We did not over react, I was happy that my son had the smarts to get him out...just wish he would have phoned us as the kid was refusing to leave initially. I chalked this event up as a learning curve, and an opportunity to go over rules and the possible outcomes of that situation!
There was NO yelling or screaming going on...just alot of "Thank god's."
In my opinion whether you are trying to discipline or you're just having a heated debate, when a parent begins to yell they've lost credibility. It does not matter who is right and who is wrong, the conversation/debate/argument is over the minute your voice is raised. This makes whatever goal you were trying to achieve with your teen that much further away. Therefore you are better off to get involved with your teen's life, hear what they are saying and definatly ask questions...and WAIT for a response, encourage a response. Communication is key...vitally important for both parties!

Another important point when dealing with teenagers is to be responsive, not reactive. Take your emotional responses out of the equation while you are having a conversation with your teen. There have been times when I have had to say to both of my teens, "thank you for telling me, I need to think about it and we will talk later." When you are able to do that, you can respond to what your teen is saying without reacting to how it makes you feel. That's the key point, react to what the teen has done, NOT how it makes YOU feel. Remember they are individuals too..the choices they make are based on their own experiences and outcomes.Yes, it is easier said than done. Use your active listening skills and if you need to, you can always react by yourself later.
Let your teen own the problem. The more you fret over a problem that your teen owns, the less he will take ownership of it and the more likely the problem will get bigger. Then, you’ll really feel like yelling. Two words my friends, "natural consequences".
Keep your frustration in check – or take a time out. This is one that I am not very good at! My son actually is the best at this, he always say's "I don't want to talk about it right now, we can talk later. He is right, we always get more accomplished when we've cooled down. I unfortuately like to resolve things ASAP, i'm too impatient!
I know life can get crazy, and even though I have a teenage son who is physically challenge...it doesn't exempt me from the problems you may have with your "able bodied" teen. We still go through the same issues, he makes the same mistakes and we still have to teach him and let him learn on his own.
We are now coming into having another teenager who is stumbling her way through the teenage years.

Unlike our son, Kailey is a 14 year old young lady with a HUGE social life. Thank god most of it is through a sport that she loves. Her time through the winter is packed and there is no time for parties, boys or drinking. Come the summer months...things may just be different. You see with Kailey its a bit more difficult because she is the child that leaves the house to spend time with friends. That means I don't have as much supervision or control...and that is what worries me! Braden uses our home as a "social centre" mostly due to him not being able to access his friends homes due to being in a wheelchair. As much as I hate having a house full of teens most weekends...it still leaves Paul and I with some control. Unlike Kail who always manages to have sleepovers. Thankfully so far we have been lucky, not to many issues. The issues we did have last summer, we learned from and will be sure to implement strategies and tools to keep our daughter safe while enjoying her teenage years.
I guess my point being, get involved! I can't say that enough...I don't mean hang out with your teens, or spy on them or even demand questions answered. Unitl proven wrong..I give my kids their privacy and space. It is one of the hardest things to do, especially since I am a completely insane controlling person! My goal has been and will continue to be to COMMUNICATE consistantly with both of my teens. I am not naive to believe that my daughter will be attending parties with alcohol and drugs, but if I educate her, remind her of what happens when you make a wrong decision, if I continue to teach her about the effects of drugs and alcohol and then feircly scare her about her "natural consequences", then all I can do is pray to god she makes the right choices for her! There comes a point where we need to let go alittle...I am slowly working on that! If she proves me wrong, or looses my trust...then she will learn, and she will have to work very hard at getting our faith in her back.
This may all sound so harsh, but lets remember back to when we were in highschool and what were we doing the summer before we were going into grade 10? Yep...I know exactly what you were doing! I am not blind to the possibilities that my son's age group is having sex, drinking and trying drugs....my job as a mother is to LOUDLY talk so that he INTENTLY listens to the things we as parents need to preach. Hopefully they hear....and hopefully they will respect us.
Again, the same goes for my girl...the other issue we face with a teenage girl is just her general saftey. I am forever "drilling" into her head the importance of knowing her surroundings...know who she is with. See the red flags...listen to your own instinct, that my friends is something I will NEVER stop doing.
So if by chance you are a yeller/screamer and you have children coming into the teenage years...think about the things I have said. Its more effective to listen to your teenager than to react, sometimes you need to take a time out to evaluate your own response. I am working on that, so far its been great! Its certainly NOT perfect, my children are no exception to mistakes. But I will say both my kids are pretty high achiever's and both work very hard to get what they want. I am fortunate that they so far have not caused any major concerns, well anything thats not age appropriate...nothing we can't handle! So far, they have both been repectful to our approach they seem to enjoy our conversations and they participate in our "family time" with love. Thats something else I stress these years coming...I want more family time even if that means a Tuesday night we have a nice dinner and rent a movie!
They need that, home me needs to be a safe place to fall and its our job to provide that~

I have an addiction...

Thats right folks, I am truly and whole-heartedly addicted to making cake balls and cake pops...I know you've seen it coming!
Its hard to believe...but its true! I absolutely LOVE making cake pops/balls! I spend more time lately in my kitchen dipping cake balls in melted chocolate. I'm so proud of what I have done so far! Check out a few picture's!
Rooster's...
Baby..WHich still needs some fine tuning!Sheep...which I love but need to find a better head for the sheep! Katie suggested Junior Mints so I am off to buy them tomorrow and will make another batch tomorrow!

Orange Kitty Cats..actually my second batch with these, it was easier to make them this time!

Just some fun spring pastel cake balls that the kids loved!

Obviously I have some practicing to do...but overall I think I have done a great job and everyone who has tasted them seem to LOVE them! I will keep trying and I will keep posting!
Well my friends, I have alot to share and show. It has been a fantastic weekend that I will share with you tomorrow!

Good night and God Bless~