We’ve been keeping things under wraps for a while, but its time to tell you guys where our heads and hearts have been for the last while. Our dream feels next to impossible, and it will only come to fruition if God wants it to. Its time for us to ask our people to put their heads together with us to brainstorm, pray, and also dream!

As I mentioned a while ago, we have begun talking seriously about moving. Having just about everything on one floor would make life SO much easier, and give him the independence that he is being held back from. We are not looking for our old normal back, but Brady is capable of so much, and he wants to do things, and right now the only thing standing between us and the normalcy we are seeking is this beautiful house and all the bloody stairs.

We did our research and found a beautiful, affordable lot. We researched floor plans and planned out the perfect accessible house that we could actually afford. We met with a realtor a handful of times, talked prices, and took those numbers to our mortgage broker. It was all looking so good. We have two years of tax returns that look great, and once Brady was done contracting the house (which is WELL within his grasp) he would find a job, and we could get on with our lives SO much more comfortably! We could even have this all done before summer, so we wouldn’t have to miss any lake time.

It all sounds great, hey?

Except the mortgage application process has changed, and because Brady’s work was owned outright by himself, they want proof of his last three months of income. And obviously, we don’t have that. Our mortgage broker is very well known and established, and she has made a case for us for weeks, but alas, we are too high risk for lenders. We cannot show any income from the last three months, so because of that, for anyone to even look at us, they need Brady or I to have PROOF of a FULL TIME permanent job, minimum 39 hours per week, making over 45K per year. Without this, we are out of luck.

As if thats not enough, here’s the kicker. If Brady were to be the one who went out to get a job, he could very easily lose his disability payments. Because he would be capable. Yet he will always have a disability. So in that case, if he went back to work and lost his disability payments, he’d need to make not only 45K, but closer to 80K. Which is a bigger ask.

Also, if either of us go back to work, contracting a home build would be next to impossible, being that we have children who stay home still, and the “home” parent would have to be on site much of the time.

So to recap, hypothetically. Brady goes back to work. Has to make twice as much money. And then has to pay more for his house because he can’t contract it. In which case we’d have to make yet MORE money.

*sigh*

We have calls in all over the place to see what actually happens when a person on disability goes back to work. If its true that he will lose his payments, the only way for us to move is for me to suddenly get full time work, which is possible but also a HUGE change in our life. I would need mad flexibility. And while Brady is an incredible dad and is actually quite happy being home more, he aches to be out, working, being productive, making money, supporting his family in that way. He can’t just jump back into being a contractor again, though, for obvious reasons.

If I go back to work, we will both be far less happy. There has to be another way.

Don’t get me wrong. I understand why we’re a risky choice for a lender. Who wants a new mortgage when they have basically no income? And who is stupid enough to give it to them?? I do see it. But we also didn’t choose this. Navigating this is completely new territory, and its not feeling hopeful at all.

Its not about how much money we have. Its not about affording to buy the house.
Its about income. Its about paying for the mortgage here on out.

I’m not asking for handouts. Please hear me. I am asking for brainstorming. I am asking for prayer. For wisdom. For help. What have we missed? What would you do? Surely we’re not the only people who have been in this boat before.

There you have it. All the secrets. All the worry. Its all out there now. Please pray with us.

Cher graced us with her presence this morning for java and chats. She hung out with the kids for a little so Brady and I could take a phone appointment together. As you probably know, Halloween is coming up, so the costumes are out in full force.

Terrifying, I know.

Once the kids were down for naps, the three of us gathered some good snacks and headed out to the garage for the crafternoon. We brought out with us fresh veggies and dill dip, pizza buns, crackers, cheese and meat, and cookies. Fun fact. Pizza buns dipped in dill dip is exquisite.

We worked for a couple solid hours. We each had our own little station.

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Cher carved. Brady sanded. I crocheted. Surprised? Nah.

We listened to Christmas music, ate snacks, and enjoyed each other’s company. It was a pretty chill time, for which I am so grateful 💜Thank you Lord for these people.

The quiet relaxation came to a roaring halt when the kids came home from school. A VERY exciting event had taken place today!

We haven’t had a lost tooth in a LONG time! This kid is overdue to lose some more teeth finally, and now that he has, I have my own personal jack-o-lantern.

Whew. I am so tired. Its going to be an early night tonight.

Goodnight, friends!

I mean, enjoy your supper…

My belated birthday present finally arrived!! I mulled between a yarn ball winder and new crochet hooks for a good long while, and I still would like both. I decided to go for the ball winder for now, and you’d better believe the hooks will go on my Christmas list!

I ordered the ball winder almost a month ago, and it FINALLY arrived this morning!

Needless to say, I was stoked. STOKED.

It’s called a Stanwood Needlecraft Yarn Winder, and it looks like this.

It rolls yarn into approximately 4 oz “cakes” which, in crochet terms, is a ball that is flat on the top and bottom, so it doesn’t roll away the way a ball does.

A quick overview of how it works for those of you who care about yarn, hahaha!

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The yarn is fed through the little eye on the end of the arm (there’s a mental picture for you) and slipped into this little slice at the top of the yarn holder. Then, you can hold the yarn winder or use the clamp under it to attach it to a table. And then you operate the crank by hand/ And it works!! There is no rule about putting the yarn ball itself in a container, but I guarantee it’ll make your life easier. Otherwise it sticks on stuff, picks up hair, etc. This little simple system works beautifully for me!

Its a little addictive, even…

I can confidently say these will take up more space than a tightly wound ball but they will stack so nicely, and they won’t roll away when I use them! They will look SO pretty on my shelf. WAY nicer than a rubbermaid tub.

All in all, I am SO happy with this ball winder!! I have zero regrets on my choice to purchase it.

Aaaaand for the next few days, if you need to find me, I will be holed up somewhere, playing with my new toy.

It was not our smoothest morning. Amidst the basic everyday busyness of getting the kids out the door to school, we had a couple of extras on top. Kids cut a few corners so they had to go back and redo a couple of things they don’t usually. Then Rowan was mad to need his toque and mini mitts, and got all huffy at me, and then it took foreverrrrruuuhhh to dig them out of his backpack. Then a mitt was lost, and then it wasn’t anymore. And then he forgot to repack the things he had emptied out. And THEN he wiped out on our ramp. We need to find a solution to that, lol! Aaaaanyway, it was a whole thing, and it took forever to get the kids out the door. Seriously. Forever.

When it finally happened, we took a little breather and invited Cher for a quick coffee before we had all had to run to our respective locations.

Getting out the door is not our strong suit, and we ended up running a bit behind to Brady’s blood appointment.

The van wasn’t even stopped when I whipped out the passengers side, unloaded Brady’s chair, and ran it to his side of the van. He went in so fast, I looked down for a second and didn’t even see him go into the building.

I was getting settled in to crochet for a little bit when Brady texted me that we had forgotten his blood requisition at home. *sigh* Of all things, where everything in the world is going paperless, we still need a hard copy of his blood form. Yes, it CAN be faxed, but it changes every month and the cancer centre just mails us one. So, its on us, and we dropped the ball.

Brady was already late for his appointment, and then didn’t even have what he needed. He ducked out of the lab and called the cancer centre. They told him they would send it immediately.

And they did! Aaaaand the lady at the front desk of the blood lab saved his spot in line, so he didn’t get bumped to a walk-in spot. Isn’t that nice? Usually, its very much a “you snooze you lose” scenario. This was very generous of them. It was such a relief not to lose that time.

We made it home in good time, as though we were never late at all. Brady got his bloodwork done, and I made two dish scrubbies. Its not a lot but it helps qualify our morning as productive. This afternoon holds lunch, more crocheting, and a phone appointment.

So. Many. Appointments.
So. Many. Doctors.

So. Much. To be grateful for.

I should not be telling you this. I will lose all credibility as a decent crocheter. But, here we are, talking about my BIGGEST crochet failure.

Let’s be clear. When someone is starting out, they make mistakes. A lot of them. They should make them! And I have made my share, don’t you worry! But my skills have advanced at least somewhat over the last year or two, and a loss like this is pretty much devastating. Had I messed up this badly when I was learning years ago, I would never pick up a hook again.

Luckily, thats not how we do things. 💪 But before we get too cocky, we put it on social media, to prove it happened. 🤦‍♀️ *sigh*

So. I’m making blankets, right? For the kids. Don’t tell them. Its a surprise. Anyway, Laela’s blanket was easily the longest process. The biggest blanket. The most labour intensive. It contained 240 squares. I worked on them constantly, for weeks, and then I attached them.

As soon as I attached them, I knew I didn’t like how I’d done it. It was seamless, but the seam was too tight and the blanket was uncomfortable. It sucked. But it was SUCH a huge job. I packed it up without any borders and decided I’d reevaluate over time. This was months ago already.

A couple of weeks ago, out came the blanket and the deconstruction began. It was a long process but it got done, and soon I was left with a big heap of squares.

I began reattaching them in a way I like WAY more! It leaves a little braid behind, which is a nice simple detail, but its completely flat. No ridges. WAY comfier to cuddle with.

Pretty, right? Right.

Once or twice, I came across a casualty, where it was clear something went wrong, whether in the original job or in the dismantling of the assembly.

It wasn’t a concern. Accidents happen. I kept plugging along, replacing a couple along the way.

Except, guys, suddenly they were everywhere 💔

The blanket basically disintegrated in my hands. I could’ve screamed. I did cry, no lie there. But goodness, I was SO upset.

Laela’s gift was beyond saving. And I can’t even fathom going near that pattern again. So I’ve picked an entirely new pattern to make for her. And by “pattern” I mean I made a graph and I’m just going for it. Its a bit of a free for all but I’m hopeful for it.

What a waste of time.

Not a waste of yarn, though.

I couldn’t imagine just throwing it in the trash. Yarn costs a decent amount. Even the cheap stuff is costly because you need a good amount to make a blanket. So, it is now all rolled up, and it will live in shoe boxes until I decide what to do with it. I like the colors a lot, and I imagine it will eventually be a blanket again. Just a different pattern.

No. More. Squares.

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Once I finish Laela’s blanket up, I’ll show you all of the kids blankets 🙂

Yesterday was a big day. Not only did Cher and I finally celebrate our friendaversary, but it was also her late brother, Scott’s, birthday. Lots to honour and acknowledge yesterday 💜

Cher came and joined us for oatmeal in the morning, and we exchanged gifts. She got me some hilarious cards based on a show we really loved watching together, as well as a pair of earrings I fell hard for the first time we shopped together, but ended up leaving behind and kicked myself over for the last couple of years. I crocheted her a throw pillow for her room. We were both SUPER happy with our gifts. We lingered a little before going out to the city, where we perused Value Village for a little, and then went for lunch.

What is it about food court asian that is just SO good?

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We Chered, as always.

We made our way back home and finally watched the first episode of the newest season of “You” together. Such a creepy show. We love it.

While the kids ate supper, I made a yummy dessert. I haven’t made this mess of deliciousness in a few years at least, so it was really nice to have it again. For those who are curious, its a layered dessert with a shallow cake base, cream cheese, cherries, and blobs of more batter on top. And drizzle. Its oozy and delicious.

Yes. It is as good as it looks.

And then once the kids went down for night, we made a delicious feed of blue cheese steak and crispy parm potatoes. I made it for Brady’s birthday, and it was to die for. We had enough blue cheese and teeny potatoes left for another round, so we went for it.

You’ll have to take my word for it. The potatoes look like nothing but they are deadly!

We watched Shanghai Noon while we ate our delicious meal, and laughed SO HARD. It was such a lovely wrap up to the day. There was quite a mishmash of emotions, and I can’t tell you exactly how good or bad it was, but I can tell you I’m happy it happened at all.

And that the food was really really good.

About a week ago, I briefly mentioned that we had a popcorn supper for the kids. It went over SO well – well enough that we wanted to do it again. Friday was the day, and it was well loved once again.

We all ate together. We ate two GIANT batches of popcorn – as big as our Schneider popper can make. We ate eight apples. Seven small bowls of melted peanut butter, with two handfuls of chocolate chips stirred in.

Twenty-one bowls later, we were done our meal and no one had fought! It was a win! And will probably become a regular thing around here 🙂

I wish bowls fit better in our dishwasher, haha!

This new dishwasher washes better but fits the dishes so much worse. Ah well. Better than no dishwasher, or a dishwasher that pours water all over the place and ruins our flooring.

Bottom line. The lack of fighting over supper is worth the ridiculous amount of dishes. We’ll take it.

Solly is the man with all the observations. Usually, they are the most obvious things, and we all just stare at him while he announces something simple with a look of surprise on his face in the LOUDEST voice.

Things like…

HEY MOM! I CAN SEE THROUGH BAGS!
Uh huh.

THATS DADDYS WHEELCHAIR!
Yup, we all live here, bud.

Stuff like that.

He’s five, so he also has some mispronunciations when he speaks, as you’d expect. Ls are Ws sometimes. Laela = Waywa. You get it. He’s a little guy, and he’s pretty easy to understand. It helps that his volume is cranked to eleven 25 hours a day. So there’s that. And that. And that.

The other day, we were driving through a residential section of the city with the two youngest, and Solly started talking loudly to Wavy.

IMAGINE THATS MY CROTCH!!!

I stared straight ahead. Where would he have even heard someone say crotch? As I was trying to decide if that was an ok word for him to use, he said it again.

THIS IS MY CROTCH, WAVY!!

I turned around and correct him, saying I didn’t like that word very much and I’d rather he used a different word.

BUT ITS A CROTCH!!

I asked him to stop, and told him he could find something else to imagine, lol! Quite an off colour game to play with his little sister, right??

I turned back around to face the front, but I still heard him talking about crotches! I was officially unimpressed. I turned around, and before I could speak, he pointed out the window and said,

MOM, SEE THAT DOOR?

There was a white garage door right next to our vehicle.

Garage.

Grodge.

Crotch.

*sigh*

So this one was on me…..

Yesterday, for a minute there, I thought the world had ended.

Thankfully, Cher was able to bring us enough to last us a few pots, and the world, in fact, continued to move forward. Everything looked SO much brighter in the basement! And CLEANER!

Take a good look, guys. It will never be this clean again! We still haven’t brought in the things we moved out to make room for the contractors, but we will soon enough. I worried the ceiling would make the room feel small, and low, but it brightens the place right up and it finally feels finished!!!

By the end of yesterday, all of our grocery woes were resolved, thanks to our neighbour across the street who took my last minute grocery request on and came home with a haul for us.

Order was restored, and we could all rest easy.

This morning, out of nowhere, heartburn hit like a ton of bricks, and I missed sending the kids off. It also happened to be a dress up day, and because I was upstairs, spitting out mouthfuls of saliva and rocking back and forth with a heating pad (great mental picture, hey?) not all of the kids were able to get dressed up for todays spirit day. But thats ok. Only Dekker was invested in it anyway, so behold, his career day getup!

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Pretty cute, hey? 😍He’s being a contractor here, I believe. But he’s been saying he wants to be a woodworker lately. Let’s be real. He wants to be his dad when he grows up. I love that.

Once everyone was off, and it was just Brady, Wavy, and I left at home, we decided to make a quick trip into the city for – you guessed it – yarn. I know, I know, I have so much already. But I needed specific colors for specific projects, and I didn’t have all that I needed. I sincerely hope I do now…

Also bought some soup…

It was on a REALLY good sale! Don’t judge me!

Also, Krista, do you like my jacket and shoes? Ya I know you do.

I’m grateful for a couple of smoother days. There is lots to be anxious about, and lots to be thankful for. God provides, always.

Thats all for today, folks! I have a LOT of crocheting to do! Or at least to organize!

Goodness. There was a lot going on yesterday. It was a gigantic day. I am wiped just thinking about it. So naturally, I’m going to write it out a little bit more here, just to reeeally make sure I sleep hard tonight 😆 Yikes.

As you may have noticed, I was quite rattled about Brady’s physio debacle. It feels like such an injustice, but its not over yet, and God provides absolutely ALL the time, so we know things will work out as they’re meant to. I know this, and I’m grateful that we found out all of these issues now rather than later. Still. Its a giant step backwards. Ha! Step. Walking joke.

It was very hard to shake Brady’s appointment off.

When we got home, our basement ceilings were still in the works, and looking SO good! We had yet another surprise, though, that really made the day exciting.

We had our basement ceiling done by a local contractor. Maybe you’ve heard of Kruger Construction. He has a really good name for himself around here, but also in a lot of other places. He has an immense following on Instagram, and Brady has been actively keeping tabs on his story videos of the job at our house. Yesterday, he shared a short reel, showing how our laundry closet doors operate. And he tagged Brady in it, because he’s a nice guy.

And Brady’s new woodworking insta account blew up!!!

It seemed immediate that he suddenly had 100 new followers. THAT is what we came home to.

The rest of the afternoon, we watched his account with excitement, and he told me about all the cool people that he has followed who are following him now. It was SO fun!

I’ll admit I still struggled to see past the events of the day that had me upset at Brady’s physio debacle, but when I did, there was so much GOOD to see! It was a bizarre, complex back and forth, but I came through it after a nice deep sleep.

So far, Brady’s Instagram viewership went from about 53 followers to 700 and counting!!! Isn’t that awesome?? If you’ve missed the memo, his new Instagram/Facebook is under the name “I Can’t Stand Woodworking.” And if you missed the play on words there, you don’t know us very well, and you should read back and get to know us.

Anyway. There you have it. Yesterday was a little extra. A little more than I can usually hack in one day. But we made it! Onto bigger and better things!

Or, as Cher and I say, forwardsies 💜