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My 2012 Resolutions/Goals

2012-01-06T18:07:00.003-05:00

I've been plotting this post in my head for 2 weeks now, so I'd better get it written. I'd really like to record my goals for the year and put them up here to help make myself accountable. And I am going to try to group them into categories...that start with F. Because, why not?

This is driven by my fear (another f word) that I'm getting nothing done, that I'm just spinning my wheels. I'd like to do updates quarterly, if not monthly, to stay on track.

Family

Develop a more structured routine for the children, especially on days when Teddy doesn't have preschool. The child LOVES routine, and on the days where we don't have one, I spend much of the day with him begging to watch The Backyardigans or Thomas.
Reduce mindless screen time for all of us. I am so bad with this. It's just so easy to pop on an episode so that I can get laundry put away without two little kids crying for my attention. In the evenings, it's so easy for me to lose myself on Twitter or Google Reader. But I want my kids to be imaginative and this is the time to nurture their development.
Have a minimum of one family adventure per month. This can be to a museum, a local park, a movie, skating on the canal, sledding, a trip - anything along those lines. For the majority of them, I'd like for them to be cheap or free.
Have at least one 'Date Night” per month. These can be 'you pick the movie and I'll watch with no complaining or distractions', or dinners out (like the ones we have when we cruise), but I'd like to have at least 12 this year.

Friends

Visit/chat with one old friend per month. I feel that friends are drifting out of my life, even those who live nearby, so I want to devote time to replenishing these friendships.
Send Birthday Cards/Anniversary to all loved ones this year, and get back into sending “Thank You” cards. Card-making is my hobby, but I often feel that I don't have enough time to make nice ones. I need to get over myself and just do it.

Family Home

Better organize the toys. We need a better system, as the current one is killing me. We need better storage and a method of toy rotation. This will likely end up bleeding into the next task, too.
Tackle 6 organizing and 6 decorating or small renovation projects. They'll likely be inexpensive ones, as we're on the austerity plan for the next few years. But August will mark our 5^th anniversary in this house, a house in which we still haven't hung our art. A fact that is totally the fault of my perfectionism. Poor Dave. This will include: better organizing my card-making supplies, as well as getting blackout blinds for the bedrooms that don't have them.
Try making laundry detergent. I love my Nellie's (which is almost identical to the homemade stuff), but I am going to give this a try once this year.

Faith

Develop a routine for prayer. This year, I once again used Jen's 'Random Saint Generator' to help me find a patron/patroness for the year. Last year's was the lovely St. Anne (grandmother of Jesus). This year? St. Dorothy of Montau. People seek her intercession for such things as: 'Against Death In Children', 'Marital Problems'. She's also a patroness of 'Widows'. GULP. I have no idea what this year has in store for me, but I'd better get my prayer life sorted.
Go to confession at least 6 times. That'd be 4 more times than last year!
Be better organized with the Familia Group that I'm leading, as well as the one in which I am participating. I was really late with the follow-up email after our last meeting, and I do not want that to happen again.
Work on prayer with the kids. I also hope that this will keep me in the moment more; I've always struggled with that.
Pray the usual novenas, and perhaps add one more.

Food

Attempt 30 new recipes. That's more than 2 a month. Let's do this!
Have 12 new go-to recipes. I'll need to try a whole bunch before the year is out in order to pull this off (see #1), and they can be in any category, but I want 12 new ones mastered by year's end. Some I'd like to have: the blueberry scones Arwen served, escargot, quinoa salad, Crockpot black beans, Johnny cake, and my Nonna's pizza.
Better organize my meal-planning. I'll need to organize all the new recipes I'm trying, anyway, so this is just a logical extension. More lists!
Make one meal per week from the pantry or the freezer. I generally do this, but I want to ensure that I'm using up my stockpiles so I'm making this a goal.
Be vigilant at introducing new foods to Veronica. I was spoiled by Teddy, who was an incredibly adventurous eater. While she loves fruit, her current preferences lean towards fat and carbs. We need her to eat more protein and vegetables.
Join a CSA and plant a garden again. Full disclosure – I am currently reading “Raising Elijah” by Sandra Steingraber and it's terrifying me. Last year, I tried to garden in pots in our incredibly shady backyard. I got 1 bell pepper, 5 tomatoes, and maybe 30 cherry tomatoes. So – not so great. I did, however, grow delicious herbs that I am still using. So I'll try the cherry tomatoes again, and will definitely grow the herbs, but I want to support local farmers and have access to delicious, fresh produce. This will also help me accomplish #5 and #1 above!
Try my hand at preserving. It might be tomatoes, it might end up being freezer jam, but I'd like to give this a shot.

Finance

Transfer the money for our TFSAs and Veronica's RESP ASAP. I'd like to send this to Jim within the next 2 weeks.
Continue tweaking the austerity plan budget to ensure our savings goals are met. I'd love to have a month where we buy nothing that isn't essential. Maybe during Lent I'll go for it.
Make over $1000 by selling/consigning things. I must get off my butt and sell the double stroller we never use, and some of our old diapers now that Teddy is potty training. I also need to bring more of my things to the consignment store.
Add info to our financial tracking documents so that all our stuff would be easy to access in case of tragedy. This one is depressing as heck, but

Fitness

Start running again. We have a treadmill in the basement, so there's no need to run on the ice.
Run a 5k before the end of the year. It can be a fun one or a charity one, but do it.
Eat less junk and drink lots of water.
Go to bed every night by 11. I am TERRIBLE at this. I hope that the reduced screen time will help with this, too.

Future Planning

Set aside 5 hours per week (on average) to support Dave's big dream. Sorry to be so cryptic right now, but I have to keep it quiet. This will evolve as time goes on, but I need to set this goal.
Develop comprehensive tools (plans, budget) to support this, with professional help when needed. This, too, is a vital goal.

Formation

Read, watch or listen to something in French every day. Prayers count, too. I'll need to use French every day when I go back to work, so I need to flex these muscles again!
Read 75 books and recap them in a blog post. I managed to read 60 last year (recap post forthcoming), while abandoning another 20 or so because they were AWFUL, so I think this is doable. What? Reading keeps me sane.

Fun

Travel for pleasure at least 4 times this year. Details for 2 of these trips are already booked while another is in the works, but I think this is doable.
Watch at least 5 of the TV shows on DVD that we own. It's hilarious – we have a whole bunch of these that we keep meaning to watch, but don't. I'm thinking: FNL (I KNOW, OK! It breaks my heart to watch, though), Justified, Sports Night, The Vampire Diaries, and something on Netflix (maybe Bones).
Don't feel guilty about taking some time for me. That said, don't feel resentful that personal time is limited. I'm at the stage in my life where I need to view these activities as treats – things to savour and enjoy but not my full diet.

Finish What You've Started

Complete the album from our Australia/NZ trip (that was in Feb. 2008). Oy.
Write at least 12 blogs posts about the kids and what they're up to. My blog is serving as a de facto baby book right now, and I'm slacking. I should also document other stuff we're doing, too, but the stuff about the kids is both charming and fleeting.
Keep writing daily/weekly 'To Do' lists. I do stuff all day long, but I feel like I'm doing nothing. If I keep these lists, I'll stay on track AND feel like I'm accomplishing stuff.
Track these goals and do quarterly updates on the blog. At least it'll be blog fodder, and I can tweak the goals as needed.
Be ruthless about eliminating time wasters. Time ,while always at a premium, will be even more valuable this year. If the task doesn't tie to one of these goals, then DON'T DO IT!!

I think the very last one will be the hardest for me. But wish me luck, and I promise to keep you posted on my progress.

Seven Quick Takes - Christmas Edition

2011-12-30T13:14:00.003-05:00

--- 1 ---

I hope that all of you had a wonderful Christmas! I'm writing this from my father-in-law's laptop; we're in Georgetown until the 2nd of January. It's been hectic, and both the kids are sick, but this year's Advent and holiday season have been wonderful.

--- 2 ---

We had several Christmas parties scattered throughout the month of December. Dave's corporate party was once again at the Chateau Laurier on the 3rd, while the corporate children's party was at the NAC on the 17th. Veronica was mystified by Santa. Teddy? Was NOT a fan this year. He held it together for about 20 seconds, then started bawling. Through his tears, we was able to thank Santa for his gift, give him a high 5, and blow him a kiss. He's such a sweet boy!

We had a party at Mark and Tania's, and Teddy's preschool concert. It's been a busy, busy month but it has been lovely. And the tree went up on Gaudete Sunday! The cats have stayed out of it, for the most part. :)

The Christmas preparation has kicked our butts, but it has been so, so fun this year.

--- 3 ---

Christmas celebrations are always a whirlwind. It's complicated by the fact that the 25th is also my Nonna's birthday; though it's a wonderful thing to celebrate, it adds to the time demands. This year, though, we've hit on a formula we like.

On the 24th, my parents and Nonna came to our house. We had lunch, opened adult gifts during nap time, then let the kids open theirs after nap. We went evening mass (NIGHTMARE! If only there was a mass earlier than 10:30 on Christmas morning at our parish), where the bulk of the congregation were mystified by the new translation. Dave and I opened a present or two after the kids had gone to bed.

--- 4 ---

On the 25th, we did stockings, then jumped in the car and drove 2 hours to Kingston. We all converged on my Uncle Sergio and Sally's house for the Panetta get-together/Nonna's birthday. It was great to have all 16 of us together, my Aunt Pat and crew having come up from Brampton, my parents/Nonna having come from Almonte. We hung out there until the kids were sleepy, then had a crazily long drive back to Ottawa through a snowstorm. Dave and I opened the rest of our gifts, then crashed.

--- 5 ---

On the 26th, we had visits from a couple of friends, and we got organized. It was nice to have a day at home, and we were able to set up Teddy's big boy bed which we'd picked up at my uncle's house the day before. This frame was my Mom's, my Aunt Flo's, my Aunt Pat's, a guest bed, Sierra's, Jacob's, and now Teddy's. It's almost an heirloom...if something from the '60s can be considered one.

--- 6 ---

On the 27th, we headed out for the GTA. We stopped in at my Nonna's house (the kids were so excited to see Bisnonna again), then battled more snow to get to Georgetown. We've been here ever since. We'll be here until the 2nd, able to eat the annual New Year's Day dinner that my inlaws' host. We've missed it for years, so we're glad to be attending this year.

--- 7 ---

The poor kids are both sick. Both have terrible colds and croupy coughs. It sucks being away from home when they're sick, poor babies. They're in good spirits, though.

One great thing about this extended celebration is that the present opening has been spread out over almost a week, so they've appreciated them much more.

And despite the lack of sleep (due to preparation and illness), it has been a wonderful Christmas season. I hope that yours have been as great.

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

Wherein I admit several shameful secrets...

2011-12-10T13:00:00.003-05:00

All over the blogosphere, bloggers are talking about decorations for the Christmas/holiday season. Plans for parties, awesome Advent activities, tree traditions, AMAZING menu plans - it's wonderful. But I feel like such a total holiday slacker, you guys. This is the reason why I'm not on Pinterest. I'd either be consumed by envy or feel awful about myself.

Needless to say, I don't have it together like these ladies. We have a few small decorations, as well as our Advent wreath and our Christmas books, but that's it so far. And I need to confess something else: since our marriage, we've never put up a Christmas tree.

Now, I've decorated many a tree over the years. Our family tree -- the one that now lives in my crawlspace -- and the tree that Beth gave me before she moved to BC were both lovingly decorated by yours truly a number of times. But since we moved to Ottawa, I've been a tree slacker.

We really didn't have a spot to put the tree in our otherwise awesome apartment. We did have an adorable ceramic tree that we'd display, but for '04, '05, and '06, that's all we had. We spent Christmas with my parents, my Nonna, and Dave's parents, though, so we were surrounded by decorations, if not at our own home.

We intended to change this pattern once we moved to the house in 2007. My parents gave me our old tree, happy to be rid of it. What? Their cat cannot resist the temptation to climb it! We got so far as to put up the fake branches, intending to decorate it on Gaudete Sunday. Which happened to be the day I started to miscarry at 12 weeks. The bare tree stayed up until the New Year, as we just really weren't in the mood.

In 2008, I was 37 weeks pregnant with Teddy, and Ottawa was embroiled in the never-ending transit strike which sapped my will to live. I was spending upwards of 3 hours in a car, doing a commute that would normally take less than an hour. Just thinking about that Christmas makes me cringe. No tree for miserable me.

In 2009, I was due pregnant with Veronica and morning sickness had started. Plus, I was due to go back to work on January 2nd, and just didn't want to stress of having to take the tree DOWN as we were going through such a huge transition.

Last year, I had two kids under two and was so.darn.tired.

This year, though, what's my excuse? Frankly, the reason I'm writing this post is to shame me into action. This weekend, we have the time to do it - no holiday parties, no other commitments. No more excuses.

So while I'm admitting stuff, I should probably cop to the fact that I've never cooked my own turkey or roast. We always go to someone else's place for any and all holidays, so I've never needed to! Yes, I'm 34 years old.

Seven Quick Takes - Where We've Been Edition

2011-12-09T20:49:00.003-05:00

--- 1 ---

I am alive - I swear! It's just that on November 5th, we loaded into the car and headed south. We crossed at the Thousand Islands Bridge, drove through New York and into Pennsylvania, spending the night in the Poconos. On the 6th, we drove through the Delaware Water Gap and into New Jersey, headed to Cape Liberty. Once there, we embarked on the Celebrity Silhouette for a 12 night cruise to the Caribbean. It? Was a lot of fun.

The trip was to celebrate my Dad's 65th Birthday, and we'd been planning in since April 2010. On the reservation, Veronica was listed as "Baby McLean" as the deposit was made well before her birth. It had been on the calendar for so long, it was almost a shock to have it start.

--- 2 ---

We'd cruised out of NYC before, back in 2006 when we went to Bermuda. It was fun, but I'm not sure I'd do it again. It's great to be avoid worries about luggage restrictions as well as paying for flights. But the weather can get rough. In 2006, we hit the roughest seas I've ever seen when we sailed through a Nor'easter. This time, we hit the outer bands of Tropical Storm Sean. Like a fool, I thought "I'd better not take Bonine because I'm nursing." Not my best idea, let's just say. I got seasick for the first time ever. I caved and took the drugs, thank goodness, so I eventually felt better. But never again.

Also, we weren't big fans of the other cruisers. It was a brand new ship, and so the sailing was touted as a big deal, but the folks on board were GROUCHY. The less said about them, the better.

Silhouette is a lovely ship. We've cruised on one of her sisters, the Equinox, twice before. The Equinox is our favourite ship (possibly in the whole fleet) but we'd go back to Silhouette if the itinerary and the price were right.

--- 3 ---

One of the best parts of this trip was the 'Bonus Shannon Time'. I'm sure I've mentioned Shannon in other posts. She also grew up in Georgetown, practically around the corner from Dave and me, and she and I were close friends/student government nerds in University. She's married to an Australian and lives there now. But the two of them have worked on cruise ships for years, he in the casino and she running the Youth Program. We've had the good fortune to cruise with her twice before, down the West Coast and across the Atlantic. She's currently on a project where she travel to all the ships in the fleet to train Youth Program staff, and she was onboard Silhouette for 8 days along with us. We love you, Shan!

--- 4 ---

We visited some familiar ports (St. Thomas, St. Maarten), and some new ones (St. Kitts, St. Lucia, Antigua). We knew we'd hit beaches in a couple of ports, but we underestimated how much both kids would love the water. Teddy was able to both run towards the water (a no-no at pools) and throw sand/rocks in the water, as well as swim and get hit by waves. Veronica LOVED being in the water, too. We had brought their floaties along, and there made things so much easier. We ended up riding a train in St. Kitts, but in every other port we just went to the beach. After the last 3 beach days in a row, both kids were sun-kissed and exhausted.

--- 5 ---

On our way back, we stayed in Scranton for a couple of days. We celebrated my Dad's actual birthday at Steamtown National Historic Site, which is amazing. I'm not even all that into trains, and I enjoyed it. Teddy and my Dad, though, were in heaven. I highly recommend it.

We almost didn't get there, though. Our original hotel had no water, as the city had inadvertently cut off the supply to a whole section of Dickson City while doing roadwork. Thank goodness that there was room at another, older hotel nearby. Then, a Santa Claus parade that cut off every single access point to Steamtown. No word of a lie - we drove round for 25 minutes and had to illegally drive around barriers to get to the entrance, around which the parade was not running. We were the only people there for the first hour, so we did get the personal touch. But come on Scranton - get your act together! You and your confusing roads and your non-existent signage and your traffic.

--- 6 ---

We got back on the 20th and, well, re-entry has been a bit of a struggle. The kids are doing great; it's me who's struggling! It's such a busy time of year and I feel like I can't get my act together. Twitter is overwhelming me - there's so much going on! Blogging has obviously suffered, especially since I keep thinking: "I need to write something amazing! I've been away for ages." Clue in, Sarah - your writing isn't amazing. That's now why you do this. Stop procrastinating and start doing.

So I'm going to try to post frequently about little things. Stuff like Veronica's sleep improvements, or fun Christmas gifts I've purchased. All the awesome travel stuff I've booked on POINTS ALONE or Teddy's new favourite songs.

You've been warned.

--- 7 ---

One of the awesome trips booked on points? Is to New Orleans next November for The Blathering. I am so, so excited! I've never been to LA, and I'll probably try to take a quick drive to nearby MS so I can visit my 35th and 36th states. I'm flying in early and staying late. NOLA, I am coming for your turtle soup, your beignets, and your hurricanes. Blathering Organizers, I'm at your disposal.

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

Hallowe'en 2011

2011-11-01T20:42:00.003-04:00

I would be remiss if I didn't document this year's Hallowe'en costumes. Teddy was a bat who thought he was a cow, while Veronica was a jack-o-lantern (yep - the PJs she had on in the previous post featured heavily).

They enjoyed fruit snacks, and Teddy had his first Coffee Crisp (a hit). We did get both Canadian Smarties (mmm) and American ones, which we call Rockets. Dave visited homes of neighbours we know, while I handed out the candy.

Anyway - here are the photos. And Happy All Saints' Day!

The Blathering 2011 - Just as Amazing As You'd Imagine.

2011-10-24T20:42:00.005-04:00

The summer after my 3rd year at Guelph, I did a European Study Abroad that was run jointly with Michigan State University. I was the only Canadian. And back in the pre-Facebook days, there was no way to really connect with anyone pre-trip. So off I flew to Schipol, knowing no one.

It was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I not only met two incredibly dear friends as well as other friends with whom I'm still in contact, I also completely changed my study and career plans based on the course curriculum. But jumping into the unknown like that was such a learning experience.

I was sad to miss the first two years of the Blathering, I swore I'd go this year. And when it turned out that I'd be once again flying somewhere without having met anyone, I figured "Eh - you've done this before. It'll be fun."

But you guys? It was way better than I'd imagined.

These are the authors of blogs I've been reading for ages, sometimes for years. Following along with the triumphs and challenges of their lives, I feel like I've gotten to know them. So many of these folks feel like Kindred Spirits, people who just get it. And this weekend affirmed my suspicion - it's totally true. It's not often that you can plop into a room of over 40 women and immediately feel like you can just be you. But that's part of the magic of this gathering.

This weekend was an amazing blend of two things: discovering that the folks that I'd ho

ped were great were even greater, and finding a whole bunch of people who jumped immediately into the even greater camp. Sadly, there were a whole bunch of folks with whom I didn't get to spend much time. That's why I can't wait until next year's festivities. A'Dell - I'd be honoured to be deputized if you need another helping hand!

I do want to give some love to the people who made the weekend unforgettable:

- My phenomenal roomies - Lauren and Miriel. Best wing-women ever.

- The Organizers, for all their hard, hard work. Amazing food, drink, decor, setting and atmosphere. And NO DRAMA. You ROCK.

- A'Dell, Emily, and Manda, with whom I'd like to shop for vintage goods and cowboy boots, eat ice cream and mock hippies each and every weekend.

- Katie, Jen, Elizabeth, and Jessica for making me squeal with laughter all through dinner.

- Jennie, Kristie, Kate, Carissa, Jess, Christina, and Elsha for all the Sunday shopping and pizza eating shenanigans. Thanks, Christina & Elsha, for the airport shenanigans, too.

- Elizabeth, Jonna, Kelly, Natalie, Natalie, Jen, Tara, Elisabeth, Sarah, Regan, Andrea, Sarah Lena, Erica, Erica, Erica, Heather, Julie, Julie, Shelly Miranda, Hillary, Michelle, Becca, -R-, Linnea, and all the rest of you with whom I didn't get to hang out nearly as much as I wanted to.

I wanted to spend more time with every single person I met. I guess that's on the 'To Do' list for next year. Until then - let me know if any of you want to come on up and visit Canada's capital city.

I'm pretty lucky, though -- these guys were waiting for me when I got home along with their sainted father. They make waiting for 2012's gathering worth it.

They Came From the North Track Listing for The Blathering 2011

2011-10-22T22:24:00.000-04:00

If you're looking for the Track Listing for the "They Came From The North" CD that was in the swag collection at The Blathering in Austin, TX - you've come to the right place.

Below, you'll find more information on the artists and even additional recommendations for songs by these or similar artists.

In the Beginning, K'naan
Scar That Never Heals, Jeremy Fisher
Sure Can Start, Two Hours Traffic
The Beat Stuff, Hannah Georgas
Pendulums, Sarah Harmer
Dead Letter, Wintersleep
Juliet, Royal Wood
Buffalo, Kathleen Edwards
Ahead By A Century, The Tragically Hip
A Million Dollars, Joel Plaskett Emergency
Red Heart, Hey Rosetta!
Bridge to Nowhere, Sam Roberts
Jolly Roving Tar, Great Big Sea
Head Over Heels, Blue Rodeo
Tournament of Hearts, The Weakerthans
You Wouldn't Like Me, Tegan and Sara
Gimme Sympathy, Metric
Tall Trees, Matt Mays & El Torpedo
Sold, Dan Mangan

Now for the additional info:

This track is from K'naan's The Dusty Foot Philosopher. He's Somali and grew up in Toronto You've probably heard Wavin' Flag. If not - check it out.
The song is on Goodbye Blue Monday. I have to admit that I'm not familiar with his work, but really like this song.
With a name inspired by a line from Romeo and Juliet, this band hails from tiny PEI - just like Anne of Green Gables! I adore the entire album on which this track is found. It's called Little Jabs and it's a staple for our road trips.
The track is from an EP of the same name. I find it RIDICULOUSLY catchy. Another single of hers I enjoy is called Drive.
We first saw her sing backup at a concert featuring a bunch of the bands on this album. She's great. This track comes from her All Of Our Names album. I love a whole bunch of her other songs including Silver Road, I Am Aglow, and Basement Apartment.
This song hails from the Welcome To The Night Sky album. These guys are talented and we've seen them in concert but they are, as Dave aptly describes them, "unhandsome." Another fun song of theirs is Weighty Ghost.
Royal's from Guelph, Ontario - the city in which I went to University. The track is from his A Good Enough Day and he's married to Sarah Slean, another talented musician.
This is the opening track to the sublime Asking For Flowers. Kathleen is from Ottawa, and we love her. I'd recommend anything from this album, particularly The Cheapest Key and I Make the Dough... Other stuff I love includes Six O'Clock News, Hockey Skates, and Back To Me .
Oh, The Hip. Canada's most popular band during my high school and Uni years - multiple platinum albums, concerts sold out in seconds.. I find this hilarious as they went to high school with my aunt and uncle (who was their volleyball coach). My Aunt paid $1 to see them play in the cafeteria! They are the most famous dudes to come out of Kingston, Ontario. That's saying something; our first Prime Minister was from there. ANYWAY - this track is from Trouble At The Henhouse, but there's great stuff in their HUGE catalogue. My favourite albums include: Fully Completely, Day for Night, and Phantom Power.
We are big Plaskett fans; he's so lanky you'd think he played bass! This track is from his Make a Little Noise. Another great song is Nowhere With You.
I don't know too much about these guys, other than that they're from Newfoundland. The track is from Into Your Lungs.
Sam is great; he's an anglophone from Montreal. This song is from Chemical City. It and We Were Born In The Flame are solid albums.
One of Canada's most popular bands. They hail from Newfoundland, and play a mix of traditional music and stuff they've written themselves. I am a sucker for the traditional stuff, like this track. It's from Play, and the whole album is great, as is Up.
These are our most prolific country-rock band. The track is an unreleased one from my favourite of their albums, Five Days in July. I also enjoy albums like Lost Together and Tremolo.
These guys are Winnipeg's finest. This track is from the amazing Reunion Tour, and I adore Left and Leaving. From a literary perspective, they are arguably the best song writers in Canada. This is song paints a wonderful picture of the LAST person with whom you'd want to spend time, let alone curl. Check out Aside, Watermark or One Great City!
Tegan and Sara are twin sisters. Also lesbians. (Gareth from "The Office: UK" would approve.) This is my favourite of their songs, and the album from which it comes - So Jealous - is one I would take on a desert island. Not a bad track on it.
The song is from Fantasies, and I think this track got a bit of US airplay (we heard it while hanging in Santa Monica) but the band is solid.
The songs is from Terminal Romance. I love the song, but am not too familiar with the band.
This track, and the wonderful Robots come from Nice, Nice, Very Nice. He's one of the few artists here we haven't seen live. YET.

A HUGE thanks to Dave for helping me pull this together. And if you are wanting to check out some free Canadian music, feel free to check out CBC Radio 3, where they have a free radio stream, podcasts and tonnes of archived concerts.

One final thing is a bit of information on WHY we have such a funky, thriving music scene. Since the 1970s, there have been Canadian Content Regulations for media. This means that things like TV and Radio are required to consecrate a certain portion of their airtime to original Canadian content. It was put in place to 'preserve Canadian culture' as we do get inundated by stuff from the US. It's kind of a drag for TV but it's allowed for an amazing, thriving Canadian musical landscape.

My Accent Vlog

2011-10-18T00:04:00.002-04:00

I finally got off my butt and did the Accent Vlog. Here it is, insanely backlit. And accompanied by the worst screen capture ever. Enjoy!

Autumn Sunlight

2011-10-08T21:05:00.004-04:00

I love so many things about this time of year. I was born in October, so my love for this month started early. But it's harvest season, and the leaves begin their fiery change. The weather is warm and sunny. It is arguably the nicest time of year in Central Canada, and we celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving . The only sting is that it's finite, that winter is around the corner. That and all the 'scary' crap; Hallowe'en is not my favourite time and I HATE horror.

But possibly my favourite thing this time of year? Is the light.

The light in the afternoon is to me like a little taste of heaven. Warm, with orange and yellow hues, and soft, soft shadows. It makes me want to remember every single moment that we bask in this glorious light, mental pictures that will never fade.

In the past decade, I've missed this time of year many times. I've been elsewhere so often (or in a newborn stupor, as I was last year). I've been in Italy, in Maryland/DC, in rainy Vermont, in Bermuda, in Vegas, in LA. So rarely have I been here to frolic in this gorgeous light

But how lucky am I that one year, I was exactly where I wanted to be. And I was making the best decision of my life - joining my life to Dave's. Seven years ago, on Oct. 9, 2004, we were married. And our beautiful wedding photos are filled with this glorious light, a light that pales in comparison to the brightness his love brings me. I am so blessed.

Happy Anniversary, Dave.

Thirteen Things You Should Know About Me BEFORE "The Blathering"

2011-10-03T22:56:00.004-04:00

I am so very excited, you guys. The Blathering is in less than three weeks' time. A whole weekend of fun in Austin, Texas, which is a city I last visited at the ripe old age of 9. Bloggers! Hilarious, awesome bloggers! I cannot wait.

But before I go, I feel I should warn you about me. And I'm totally ripping off previous year's attendees as I write this post:

Thirteen Things You Should Know About Me BEFORE "The Blathering"

1. I have a great memory. A creepily good memory. Any of the other bloggers I've met IRL (Maggie, Arwen, Whitney) will tell you that this is one of the first things about which I warned them. I'm not a stalker, I swear. I just have an affinity for this sort of stuff. So if I've read your blog and remember your children's birthdays or the names/birth order of your siblings, just roll with it.

2. You want me on your trivia team. It's not just data about bloggers that I retain. History, science, sports stats - TOTAL NERD. I am one of those people who never lost the love of learning. And I will help you win at trivia.

3. The word I've most often used to describe me is enthusiastic. I am a grown woman who will jump up and down for joy when she hears your good news.

4. I am an extroverted fast-talker. I am sorry. I will try to slow down. If it's any consolation, I also speak this quickly in French, the other language in which I am required to work.

5. I studied Food Science in University. This is the study of Chemistry, Microbiology, and Engineering as it relates to food, with a bit of Nutrition thrown in. I studied Food Laws during studies abroad in both Europe and Asia, and did my Master's in Food Policy. And now, I do HR for the Canadian Government. ??? Well, right NOW I am on a year of unpaid leave because I have two young children - Teddy is 2.5 and Veronica is 13 months.

6. I have lived my entire life in Canada. I was born in suburban Montreal, grew up in suburban Toronto, and moved to Ottawa 7 years ago. But I have never lived more than 1 hour from the US border. While I love my country, I have such an enormous soft-spot for the US. I've been to 34 states; while I've liked each and every one, my favourites are VT, CA , and MI.

7. I am an only child. Both my parents are oldest children, so I got away with nothing while growing up. But I had a very happy childhood, and I've always been good at dealing with adults. It made for some tough times as an elementary school student, but it's wonderful now!

8. My Dad's family has been in Canada for generations. We are descended from Loyalists, from original habitants de la Nouvelle France. My Mom? Was born in Italy and moved here as a child. I am a big ole mutt.

9. I am Catholic. I was raised in the Church, fell away from it for years, and have returned. I am still a total work-in-progress, and I really struggle with some church teachings (gay marriage, I am looking at you). But I am a practicing, faithful Catholic. My faith has enriched my life so much.

9. I have known my husband since grade school. We both attended St. Francis of Assisi Elementary School in Georgetown. Dave is two years older than me, so we didn't become real friends until high school when he became one of my best friends. Next fall, we'll have known each other for THIRTY YEARS (I will be turning 35). Every once in a while, though, a previously unknown story will crop up. You'd think that would be impossible, but you'd be wrong.

10. Nothing I've ever done has been more transformative than becoming a parent. It sounds trite, but it's true. It's the hardest thing I've ever done, but nothing has brought me more joy. I am so blessed and lucky to be sharing this with Dave.

11. I am a HUGE fan of TV. It's the episodic nature, I think. I love seeing characters grow and change. My current faves include: Parks and Rec, The Office, and The Good Wife. My all-time faves: Veronica Mars, Arrested Development, and The Wire.

12. Be warned - I have been known to break into song. And I am hoping to share some awesome Canadian music with all of you.

13. I love to eat and drink, especially regional specialties. I also love to read, primarily non-fiction and chick-lit. I welcome recommendations for either category.

Seven Quick Takes - Template Edition

2011-09-30T14:51:00.003-04:00

Thanks so much to Jennifer for developing this template and to Ellen for highlighting it. As a result, I am devoting some of my precious coordinated nap time to updating my woefully neglected blog.

--- 1 ---

I've been neglecting the blog for a couple of reasons. First, I have been trying to nap during nap time, as Veronica has been having a terrible week, sleep-wise. Most nights this week, she's wanted to nurse and nurse and NURSE and/or she's had periods of wakefulness which last 2-4 hours. She spins and spins while she sleeps, thrashing and flailing, so I imagine that it's some sort of physical development milestone on which she's working. Also - she's just cut or is cutting 4 teeth. But oh! Am I ever pooped.

--- 2 ---

The other reason for the neglect? I've been sucked into "The Good Wife". I blew through Seasons 1 and 2 in less than a week. It's so good, you guys. If you're not watching it, do.

--- 3 ---

After my last angsty post, I am happy to report that things seem to be improving on the preschool drop-off front. This week was unusual, though. Monday was my day to help out at the school, so I stayed rather than dropping him off. On Wednesday, Dave was the helper; we'd agreed to fill in for friends of ours who are on vacation. I was worried about this morning's drop off, but Teddy was great. Let's hope it continues!

--- 4 ---

One downside to a great day in preschool? I think he saves up all his worries and frustrations, then loses his mind once he gets home. It was tantrum city once we got back to the house. He's likely just exhausted, but I am afraid that THREE is arriving a few months early.

--- 5 ---

Despite my complaints above, they are such sweet kids. Teddy's diction has improved immensely over the past month, and his sentence structure improves every day. He is narrating almost everything he does, and he's got great comic timing. Veronica just turned 13 months and is on the cusp of walking. She's a riot, too. She LOVES her brother, whom she calls "Tetty" and frequently applauds his exploits; she'll clap any time you ask. She is a fiend for climbing stairs, and has attitude, too. If she doesn't get her way, she'll sure let you know. We are in TROUBLE during her tween/teen years, I fear.

--- 6 ---

It was 7 years ago this week that I moved to Ottawa. I know this because I moved here 10 days before our wedding and 3 days before my 27th birthday. Which means that I turn 34 on Sunday (the 2nd) and we celebrate our 7th anniversary on Sunday the 9th. Yep - we got married on Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. No big plans, but that's ok. We are going away in just over a month and we'll have a blast then.

--- 7 ---

Where are we going? Well, my Dad turns 65 in November, and we're doing a cruise from NYC to the Caribbean on a ship that launched 2 months ago. We can't wait! And for good measure, I'm off to Austin in three weeks for The Blathering. I AM SO EXCITED. I haven't been to Austin since I was 9, nor Texas since I was 11. CANNOT WAIT.

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

The Dark Side of Preschool (and Other Moments of Parenting Doubt)

2011-09-19T13:34:00.004-04:00

I'm having a day full of parenting doubt. Don't get me wrong, I know that I'm a parenting work-in-progress. But I've just been hit with minor things relating to both kids that make me feel like a crummy parent.

Like the children of many other bloggers, Teddy started at our local co-op preschool last week. It's just lovely, and we're really excited about going into the classroom with him every 5 weeks. He will be going three days a week, but last week he only attended two days. Unlike the children of the other bloggers, though, we're run into a big hiccough. He has a lot of fun while he's there, the drop-offs are just awful. I am not surprised, but it just sucks. Today, he dragged his feet walking to school; he knew what was coming and was trying to delay it.

The all-out freakouts are unsurprising for several reasons:

1) He's done this before. He was not a fan of leaving my side all last year during my Familia sessions at our church, even though he was familiar with the setting and the kids. He warmed up as the year went on, but he was always reluctant to be left in the playroom. He was like this when Dave dropped him off at the home of his caregiver, too. He'd been going there for 1.5 years, and he would still get upset when Dave dropped him off. In fact, he started doing this well after he'd been there for a year. I imagine that there's a developmental component in all this.

2) He's no daredevil. Teddy is just a cautious kid and it takes him a while to warm up to new things. Yesterday, we were at the home of his friend Claire (and our friends Mark and Tania) and we started the movie "Rio". Teddy is no fan of birds. He tried to tough it out, but he just couldn't watch. Dave and I joke that this guy will not be in the Xgames. His sister, perhaps, but not him.

3) As much as it pains me, I was like this as a child. I'm pretty sure that Dave was, too. And all of our parents. (Full disclosure - writing about this is making me tear up.) For those of you who don't know me in real life, and even those of you who do, it may come as a surprise how much I struggle with trying new things. I have an innate desire to please people and a fear of letting people down, of embarrassing myself, of failing. And so any time I encounter something new or unknown, my very first thought is "I cannot do this." I'm often told that I am everyone's cheerleader. I am very, very good at encouraging people, and it stems from the massive amount of self-encouragement I've had to muster over the years.

Whenever I encounter new things, I convince myself that I can do it based on what I've done in the past. I'll say "Self, you may not have done this exact thing, but you've done x, y, and z - things which are similar and may have been harder". And in order to get to this point, I've had to push outside my comfort zone. And I see Teddy doing something similar. When he encounters something new, he'll try to talk himself down. "Don't worry,", he'll tell himself over and over, "It's ok. Don't worry." It breaks my heart a bit, but in a good way.

I know that he needs opportunities to stretch and grow, so that he, too, can gain self confidence. But it's hard, you guys. It's hard to see my tender-hearted, trusting little guy so upset. I mean - he's not upset for long. There are trucks and cars and slides there. But he's like his parents and grandparents - he feels things very deeply. I don't want him to become hard-hearted, to shut down because of the fear.

And it's causing a visceral reaction for me because it's the first time I'm seeing one of my less-desirable character traits in my children. Well - let me rephrase. It's not a less-desirable trait, per se. I think it makes me more empathetic. But it's a tendency with which I've always struggled and while I know that I can't blunt his struggles and suffering, I also know first hand how difficult it is to deal with this trait. I wish I could have given him all the confidence I've acquired over the years without all the work I've had to do to get it.

I can't do that. And truthfully, I'm not sure that I'd want to. Much of that confidence stems from actually having done the work, having overcome struggles. And it's so much more meaningful as a result. But I thought I'd have more than 2.5 years before I'd have to confront this part of parenthood. I guess not! I think this is a tiny sliver of what Mary felt at the foot of the cross. She'd have taken on all of his suffering, if she could. But suffering is necessary for something better, something stronger, something more beautiful and lasting. I need to keep that in perspective.

The situation with Veronica is less heart-wrenching. She's dropping on the growth charts - from 90th to 75th percentile. I know that it makes sense. We're not big people, and the last time she was weighed she hadn't yet started to move independently. She's constantly on the go now, so it makes sense that she's only gone from 21lbs, 8 oz to 22lbs, 10 oz in 3 months. She's grown 2.5 inches, too. But we went straight from preschool drop off to the doctor's office and it was just something else, you know?

But - it's a gorgeous fall day. After naps, we have a play date with one of Teddy's favourite buddies. And Veronica spent the first 3 minutes of her nap laughing in her sleep. Onward and upward, right?

Summer 2011 - kicking butt in so many ways

2011-08-23T21:44:00.003-04:00

I am alive! This summer has been so much fun, you guys. Amazing and exhausting and over-the-top awesome. I can't remember enjoying a summer this much since childhood!

But that's meant that I haven't been online all that much. I've even taken near weeks off from Twitter. I need to get back into the swing of things before The Blathering (and complete that survey! GAH!). I want to at least summarize all the amazing stuff we've done this summer. Visits from beloved friends and family. Trips to wonderful places. Meeting Whitney and her boys (highly recommend). And the kids! Veronica is crawling, pulling up, cruising and into EVERYTHING. Teddy is a riot; he sings and narrates what we're doing all day long.

But right now I'm baking cupcakes. Why? Because tomorrow, my baby turns ONE! AHHH!

More on that soon, complete with pictures. Right before our trip to Vermont (where we hung out with Whitney), her sticky-uppy hair finally started to fall. I miss it!

And Happy Birthday, Arwen! I hope that 29 is your best age yet.

Dispatch from Sudbury

2011-07-16T21:09:00.010-04:00

Veronica and I have come to visit my dear friend (and MOH) Leanne and her new baby, Morgan, in Sudbury. We arrived on Thursday afternoon and are here until tomorrow evening. Leanne and I are hanging out and watching "Dead Again" - a gem of a flick, if you haven't seen it. We may just watch "Tangled" again. We rented it last night, and it's darling.

We flew from Ottawa on Bearskin Airlines, the first time I'd flown them. Oh boy - are the planes small. It was a 17-seater, with one seat on either side of the aisle, and an open cockpit. As I was flying with an infant, I was able to preboard. We walked out on to the tarmac with the pilot and co-pilot; the pilot held Veronica while I collapsed the stoller (V just LOVED her). It was cool, but I'd never want to do it in the winter! The landing was a bit bumpy, and it was so odd to be seeing the pilot line up the runway through the windshield! But I have to admit - it was less than 3 hours from door to door, so that's AMAZING. If we'd driven, with our stops to nurse, etc., it would have taken 6-7 hours. And with gas prices being what they are, it wasn't that much more to fly.

But oh! I am tasting humble pie. I was all self-congratulatory prior to the trip. I was going to help my friend who just had a baby! While Daddy Derek was away on a fishing trip, no less! Um...not so much. Veronica is a laugh riot, but she's crawling and yakking and into everything. I've spent most of my time wrangling her. And Morgan? Is an angel baby. She sleeps all the time and is just a happy, teeny sweetheart. I had planned to make food for Leanne so she could freeze it. It's been over 30 deg C each day...and she's been doing food prep. All I've done? Is sweep after Veronica went to bed tonight, and help fold a load of laundry. Helper FAIL.

But we've had such fun hanging out! Leanne and I lived together for several years during University, but haven't lived close to each other since. It's such a treat. And the eating! What? We're feeding ravenous beasts (aka our respective daughters). It's such a trip to be hanging out with our children. It doesn't seem long ago that I moved her into residence for her frosh week, or that we were President and VP on hall council. It's been 14 and 13 years, respectively. NUTS!

She's an amazing friend, though. She hasn't ONCE made fun of me for not helping; she's cool like that. She's fed us and driven us all over, she's given feedback on bathing suits (postpartum bathing suit shopping SUCKS). She's been doing stuff like this for years. She's amazing. Morgan is such a lucky girl to have such an amazing Mom, and I am just so blessed to have her in my life.

The proposal

2011-06-13T23:23:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to blog about this for eons. The incomparable Hallie from Betty Beguiles is hosting a discussion on this very topic, so there's no time like the present. Thanks, Hallie, for giving me that nudge I needed!

Several pertinent pieces of information need to be explained up front:

- Dave and I have known each other since elementary school (St. Francis of Assisi); he was two grades ahead of me. We become close friends in high school, then started dating my last year. We broke up 2.5 years in to our relationship, when we were both in University. And we got back together almost 2 years to the day that we broke up. We've been together since January of 2000, on-and-off since August of 1995. Wowza!

- I am a traveller. I've been to 9 provinces, 34 states, over 30 countries on 5 continents. I've travelled with my parents since childhood. Dave's family are not travellers. And when we got back together, it's one thing that he expressed a huge desire to do.

- Back on St. Patrick's day of 2002, I was finishing up my MSc. and Dave was working. I had a great deal of flexibility to travel, being a grad student, while poor Dave had very little vacation time only a year or so into his career. I'd just returned from a trip to Belgium with my parents while Dave stayed at my childhood home and looked after our cat. I know. I'd hate me, too.

Over green beer - which, while yummy, was inferior to the delicious Belgian brews I'd been sampling for the previous 10 days - Dave and I rhapsodized about all the places we'd travel together. I nabbed a napkin and wrote down our list. And I kept this Boston Pizza napkin in my wallet. We'd look at it from time to time. By then, we knew that this was it for us. We were just waiting for my job situation to work itself out.

Just over a year later - in June of 2003, we found out that I'd be working in Toronto for just over a year, then would be moved to Ottawa. Dave's boss was supportive of his transfer to the Toronto office. And we joked that he could start ring shopping.

Now Dave is notoriously laid back. I expected that he'd pick up a ring sometime over the summer or something. But here's where I need to give an ENORMOUS shout out to Dave's friend Jorge. Jorge has the most amazing jeweller (we suspect that they might be associated with the Russian mob) who only acts on referral. And as soon as Jorge heard that Dave was looking, he leapt into action. Within days, Dave had that ring burning a hole in his pocket.

But then - I was in Ottawa for an extended work trip. Then Leanne - my eventual maid-of-honour - broke up with her long term boyfriend on the eve of her 25th b-day. A girls' weekend was in order. Then, Dave's grandmother DIED. She'd been ill with terminal cancer, so it was no surprise, but the traditional mourning rights did put a damper on his ability to pop the question. The poor man had to sit on the ring for an extra two weeks!

Nanny's funeral was on a Friday. We had another family thing on the Saturday. And on Sunday July 6th, after mass, Dave came over to my parents' house. It was super hot, and he was wearing jeans. My mom and I mocked him and he gritted his teeth, ring box in his pocket. He was forced to bide his time until he was alone with my purse, then he made his move.

Minutes later, Dave started asking me about our upcoming trip to Chicago do visit my friend Ben. "I can't wait to cross that off the list!"

"It's not on the list, hon." I told him, dismissively. Yes - I am a prize.

"I can't remember -- what's on the list?" he continued.

So I yanked out my wallet. I glanced and the now dog-eared list...and noticed his handwriting. "Did you add something to the list?" I inquired. Then I read it.

At the bottom of the list of all the places we hoped to visit together, he wrote: "I promise that I'll take you to all of these places. But there's one condition..." ------>

"WILL YOU MARRY ME?" was penned on the inside fold.

Needless to say, my answer was yes. :)

We were engaged for 15 months, but we had our church and hall booked before a week had passed. We were married in our parish church one week after my 27th birthday.

We knocked a few of those travel destinations off on our honeymoon. In the past 7-ish years, we've knocked off about 70% of them!

The list now resides in our fire-proof box, next to our marriage certificate, our birth certificates and those of our children. I am so blessed.

This pile of bricks...is ours alone.

2011-05-31T20:38:00.003-04:00

So we just paid off our mortgage. Today. In just under 4 years.

A little background info for my American readers - mortgage interest in Canada is not tax deductible. I mean, you have the option of borrowing against the equity in your home and investing that, then deducting the interest from your income tax, which is a complicated way of making your mortgage interest tax deductible. But while we pay $0 capital gains tax on the sale of our primary residence, we don't get the benefit of making our payments tax deductible in the interim.

In addition, one weird little thing that NO ONE TALKS ABOUT is that our mortgage rates effectively reset every 5 years. We have amortization periods of up to 35 years (where 25 is standard) but we negotiate our mortgages for 5 years at a time. So those teaser rates that so screwed many Americans? Yeah - most Canadians don't know what an awful ride they're in for. I am so scared for my compatriots. No joke. And we have no excuse; we see what's happened south of the border. Do not get me started. We have liar loans. We have sub-prime mortgages that are -- wait for it -- back-stopped by the Canadian taxpayer. It's a GONG SHOW, and it's about to get ugly.

ANYWAY, we bought our house in May of 2007 and took possession in August. We opted for a fixed rate mortgage because rates were inching up at the time. No one predicted the craziness of late '08/early '09, after all. Our mortgage had some cool provisions - we could increase our payments by 25% AND pay up to 25% of the original value of our mortgage ever year as a 'pre-payment'. We immediately upped our payments, and set about putting down extra money each year.

I must be honest - we didn't do it without some help. I was one of the beneficiaries of my late Aunt Floriana's life insurance and pension. The money I received was plunked down on the mortgage. My parents also gave me some money from my Grandma & Grandpa's estate, which we also plunked down. But we've been saving like fiends to pull this off.

We'd managed to reduce our remaining amortization to 1 year 5 months with our renewal due in 1 year 3 months. I knew we'd be hit with a penalty to pay it off, so I thought we'd just wait it out and pay our usual payments. I called in last week to see how much I would have to pay now so that I could reduce the amortization to 1 year and 3 months (i.e so we'd owe nothing at the end). But it was then I found out that the lender would be willing to waive the penalty! We owed less than our permitted annual prepayment (that 25%) so other than the required $250 discharge fee, all we had to pay was the remaining amount. I had more than that amount sitting in their bank, so today we arranged a transfer. We're saving over $1500 in interest over the next year and 3 months. Also - no more mortgage payments!

In 60 days, we'll receive our official documents showing only our names on the title. But as of tomorrow morning, my online account will show that my mortgage is CLOSED. We are pretty excited. We celebrated by busting open a bottle of wine we'd brought back with us from our trip to Australia.

In other news - Veronica is finally interested in table food. And she's on the cusp of crawling. Big day around these parts!

Something for Arwen and Bryan

2011-05-24T16:35:00.004-04:00

We interrupt this slowly evolving birth story with a request.

Most of you reading this either know or know of my friend Arwen. If you aren't reading her already, you really should be because she is amazing. As is her husband, Bryan. They are even more wonderful in person than online, a fact that Dave and I were lucky enough to discover last summer.

A few months ago, I talked a bit about how they were about to add TWINS to their family. And on May 12th, the identical twin boys arrived. Let me tell you - that night, awaiting their birth and trying to get the #moshertwins hashtag to trend was one of my favourite ever moments on Twitter! Linus Michael and Ambrose John were born a wee bit too early and are still in the NICU. Arwen and Bryan are total stars and are doing amazingly well with all this juggling. And since we can't all be there to help in person, we thought we'd do the next best thing - put together a Spiritual Bouquet for the Mosher Famil y.

I would love it if you'd head on over to this blog and contribute to the spiritual bouquet. I'd also love it if you could spread the word. The more prayers and wishes, the better.

We love you, Arwen and Bryan. Enjoy!

Veronica's Birth Story - Part 2

2011-04-17T10:12:00.003-04:00

I am writing this as quickly as possible so that A'Dell can read it before she goes through HER second labour.

Part 1

Once I finally wrapped my head around the fact I was in labour -- and I' m usually not that dense, I swear! -- we settled in to the L&D room. I was delivering at a different hospital than the one at which I delivered Teddy, as the midwives had gained privileges at more hospitals around the city. The L&D rooms at Montfort, the primarily francophone hospital where I had Teddy - were very nice, but the ones at the Civic Hospital were not bad either. The Civic has a Level 2 NICU and is used to seeing sicker infants. As such, the staff don't panic when there are complications. We will ultimately discover how important this tendency is.

I once again had a cheering section and I attribute my ability to have two pain-med free deliveries to this support. In the room this time were Dave, midwife Jackie, primary doula Zoia, second midwife Amanda, and doula student Mary. Most pregnant friends express surprise at the number of people in the room, wondering if I was embarrassed. I have no problem telling them that by this point, you don't care who sees you, especially if it's people you trust. And having that many people to give you ice, to smooth back your hair, to cheer you on through the rough parts...I am tearing up just thinking about the amazing support I have received both times.

When I delivered Teddy, I had some crazy bleeding near the end. It was likely due to my anterior placenta and my totally exhausted uterus -- I ended up having to push Teddy out AFTER my tired uterus had stopped contracting. I needed to have pitocin to deliver the placenta, and I had to get an IV placed while Teddy was crowning. NOT fun, let me tell you. This time, we decided that I'd probably need pitocin again to help with the placenta. We got the IV placed while I was between contractions.

With the IV in place, I lamented to fact that I couldn't labour in the tub. When Jackie overheard me, she quickly set me straight - I could totally use the tub and we'd just work around the IV. She made me promise that I'd have to get out of the tub if my water broke and/or I had the urge to push. And once again, the tub was amazing. I was only in it for about 15 minutes, but it just like last time it made that last bit of transition a bit easier to bear. But I kept getting the urge to push, so back to the bed I went. It was just after 8 a.m.

I started to push, but the fact that my water hadn't broken combined with an anterior cervical lip (again) made progress painful. This stage was just awful. With Teddy, pushing was great - I was finally able to DO something with the pain from the contractions. But this time, I couldn't stop shaking, I was overheating, I thought I would throw up - it was just wretched. It came on so quickly this time. I had a minute or so of "I can't do this!!" moaning and groaning, but the cheering section kept cool clothes on my head and neck and kept encouraging me. My water hadn't yet broken, though, and it was impeding my pushing. Finally and with my permission, Jackie used an amnio hook broke my water and started a bit of pitocin for the eventual delivery of placenta. And that's when things started going a bit pear-shaped.

There was meconium in the amniotic fluid, which the midwives told us immediately. That meant that I'd need to have continuous monitoring from the bed for the remainder of the delivery rather than the intermittent doppler monitoring I'd had up to that point. It also meant that once she was born, an on-call pediatrician and crew would have to take her over to the warming table and clear her airway to prevent meconium aspiration. Jackie put the call in to the team, and I was dimly aware of a few people coming in to the room.

I pushed through the anterior lip with Jackie's help - she had to hold it down, just like Ann did the last time - and harnessed the contractions to push, push, push the baby down the birth canal. It was painful, but I knew that the sooner I got her out, the sooner we'd be able to deal with the meconium issue.

I pushed for 10 or 15 minutes, and this time I could feel how close she was to being delivered. And then, she was crowning. Jackie coached me through, pushing and panting at appropriate points. And then her head was out. I could hear her making some noise, but the midwives couldn't encourage it because they were worried about her aspirating the meconium.

But just like last time, things stalled. Amanda had been monitoring the baby's position the entire time. She'd come in to my pelvis on the left, but had down a corkscrew through my pelvis and came out on the right. In doing the corkscrew, she'd opened up her shoulders and come untucked. And she was stuck. Shoulder dystocia one again; I must have some pelvic craziness. And the crazy corkscrewing took its toll. Poor Veronica's entire face was bruised, and all of the blood vessels in her eyes burst. The whites of her eyes were red for three weeks.

Once the baby's head is out, you have 4 minutes to get the body out before you have to do an emergency c-section; sometimes they'll break the baby's arm to prevent this. They call in an OB team in this sort of potential emergency situation. With Teddy, we got him out after just over a minute. With Veronica, it was closer to 2.5. I pushed, Amanda pressed down into my abdomen to force the baby's shoulder to tuck, and Jackie reached in was finally able to haul her out, all 8 lbs and 15 oz of her. It was 8:46 a.m.

Poor Dave had a front row seat to all of this, but the worst part was that she had an APGAR of 3. She came out totally gray; Dave was petrified that she wouldn't make it. She was immediately whisked away to the cart to be in the care of the pediatrician and his team. They had to intubate her 3 times and do chest compressions in order to get her breathing steadily. But her second Apgar was 7, so she rebounded right away. And to their immense credit, the midwives and doulas reassured him right away that everything was going to be fine.

The pitocin really worked, because I delivered the placenta less than 2 minutes later. That's right - LESS THAN SIX HOURS from first contraction to delivery of placenta.

A lot of this time was a blur, as it happened so fast. But a few moments stand out. These include:

- the fact that everyone was so focused on the baby's breathing that the didn't pay attention to sex. The team kept saying "he'll be fine. He's fine." Finally, I called out "HE?!?". But the doulas and Dave assured me that it was, in fact, a girl.

- Jackie's astonished tone of voice when she pronounced "Your perineum is intact!" Frankly, with such a big baby and so much yanking down there, it's a minor miracle.

- Jackie and Amanda saying in a kind but serious way: "Sarah, promise us that you'll never attempt a home birth!"

After her 2nd APGAR, they brought her over to me. Her breathing had a bit of a hitch to it, and she wasn't terribly interested in nursing, but I snuggled with her while they cleaned me up.

More on the aftermath - my blood pressure spike, her initial nursing trouble - in the next installment.

Veronica's Birth Story - Part 1

2011-04-13T22:13:00.005-04:00

This is only 8 months late {hangs head sheepishly}. Better late than never, right.

My irritable uterus had me leave work in the middle of July, and I spent the remainder of that month and all of August taking it easy to prevent contractions. And boy, by my midwife appointment on Monday the 23rd, I was tired of being pregnant. I was at 39 weeks, 3 days when I met with my secondary midwife Jackie. The first thing we discussed? Was our mutual belief that she'd be delivering the baby rather than my primary midwife, Claudia. But I'd really clicked with Jackie so that was no problem at all. In fact, Teddy had been delivered by my secondary midwife with whom I'd also clicked.

During the appointment, had a lengthy discussion about shoulder dystocia (when the baby's shoulder gets stuck during delivery) as I'd had it with Teddy. We reviewed all the techniques that midwives can do if it occurs. She measured the baby, who was measuring almost 41 cm. Though the baby was left occiput anterior, Jackie had trouble finding the head, so asked if she could do an internal to see if the baby's head was in my pelvis. I agreed, and asked her to check my cervix to see if anything was going in. Baby's head was as predicted, and my cervix showed no dilation. "You need a few good contractions to get things moving," Jackie told me.

I'd been suffering from pregnancy-related insomnia for much of the third trimester. Late that evening, I headed over to Isha's house to pick up some cloth diaper stuff, and I caught sight of myself in their mirrored closet. "UH!" I thought. "I look so bloated and awful." But I was convinced that it would be a while; I told Ish that much as I departed around 11. I came home, said goodnight to Dave (who'd been sleeping in the guest room to give me the whole bed) and was able to fall asleep around 2 am.

Imagine my surprise when I woke up at 3 am to very strong contractions.

I should give you some context. In the days before having Teddy, I'd have contractions overnight, but they'd fade in the morning. I was in passive, then active labour with Teddy for 28 hours, with three hours of pushing, and my contractions NEVER got closer than 6 minutes apart. NEVER. It was a labour that confounded my doulas (one of whom - Zoia - was coming along for the ride this time, too).

So, when intense contractions started, I thought "Ok. These will help my cervix ripen. No big deal." As with Teddy, the most comfortable position for me was standing and swaying through the contractions. I didn't want to wake Dave until I had to, in case this was a false alarm. So I breathed and swayed and glanced at the alarm clock. "Odd", I thought. "These contractions are less than 5 minutes apart. I wonder when they'll slow down?"

Just before five, the contractions became so intense that I had to moan through them. They woke Dave, and he joined me and began timing. He was totally taken aback as the contractions were between 2 and 3 minutes apart, lasting at least a minute. He suggested that we call the midwife and the doula, just to alert them. "It's too early - I don't want to disturb them," I implored him. "Let's wait until 6". We made it to 5:30.

We called Zoia first. "It might be nothing," Dave said, as I was breathing through another contraction and couldn't stop to talk. "We'll check back in within a half hour if things don't slow down". Zoia, no fool, grabbed her stuff and started loading the car. We paged the midwife. We called my parents, letting them know that they'd need to come in to look after Teddy. Jackie called back, and spoke to Dave as I was once again breathing through the contraction. She heard the story and listened to my protests that "it might be a false alarm."

"Sarah," she interrupted me, "If you water breaks, call an ambulance. Meet me at the hospital as soon as you can."

Dave called Zoia back. She was already en route to our house. She arrived just after 6, and for the second time in my life, witnessed me losing my sh*t in our ensuite bathroom. "Zoia, I am not handling this well. I am not sure I can do it!!" I kept saying. She helped me breathe through the worst of it, and when I was coping better, suggested that she head to the hospital. We'd meet her there as soon as my parents arrived.

My Mom and Dad got here at about 6:40. My Mom thought that Dave had said the contractions were 4 minutes apart. "Let's go to Tim Horton's", she suggested to my protesting Dad. They got here, I said a distracted goodbye to Teddy, and off to the hospital we went...right when traffic was picking up.

Mercifully, my contractions slowed down a bit while en route to the hospital. I had to breathe through a few, but they were bearable. This lead me to believe that it was a false alarm. Yeah - I'm super swift.

Zoia was waiting at the hospital entrance, so Dave dropped me off. We headed up to L&D around 7, as the new shift was starting. I stopped three or four times to get through contractions on my way up. Jackie was waiting for us. "It might still be a false alarm." I kept saying. "You are going to have this baby very soon," she told me. We skipped the exam room and headed right into a L&D room, where I changed. Jackie checked me and proclaimed: "You're 10 centimetres dilated and the amniotic sac is bulging."

"Um, ok. Not a false alarm, then," was my witty reply. I looked at the clock. It was 7:20 a.m.

Fair warning: off-colour humour ahead.

2011-04-07T21:33:00.005-04:00

As the title says - fair warning.

Last week, I gave Beth the gift that just keeps on giving. That's right. I gave my best friend herpes and gonorrhea. I got an email with the subject "YOU GAVE ME THE CLAP!".

Beth has a number of stuffed giant microbes from a company called Giant Microbes. When I discovered that they made these, I could not resist sending her some. Come on. The jokes just make themselves.

The MAIN reason I sent them, though, was because I wanted to support the store that sells them. Mortimer Snodgrass, an adorable and wonderful store in the heart of historic Old Montreal, is owned an operated by the lovely Virginia of Mortimer's Mom (a blog I miss!). In an INFURIATING turn of events, a CITY-OWNED building next to the store has collapsed and the municipal government (notoriously ineffective) seems uninterested in the damage it is inflicting on hardworking local small business owners. The repairs might take months to complete, right in the middle of peak a tourist season. It is totally safe to get to the store, but with the only signage in French, many shoppers are avoiding the area entirely.

It makes my blood boil that this charming little store is struggling because of the ineptitude of the city government, a government who'd been warned that this building was in danger of collapsing. I am a civil servant, and this sort of behaviour makes me ashamed. I can't do much to help, but I can do some shopping. Yes - Mortimer Snodgrass has an amazing online store with the BEST customer service I've ever encountered. With so many pregnant friends, I need lots of gifts! Plus, they ship worldwide.

Look at some of the great stuff they have, you guys! Check out the matching shirts that Teddy and Veronica will be sporting this summer. The staff recommended this storage caddy/tote and I love it so much that I'm buying more as gifts. These bibs are adorable and huge hits in our house. There are water bottles, ice molds, books, umbrellas, bags, toys...so many fun things.

If you are looking for something fun, I cannot recommend them enough. Don't let the dumb bureaucracy win, people. Shop Mortimer Snodgrass. You will be so glad that you did!

Ten Facts About Me and My Better Half

2011-03-30T20:18:00.004-04:00

The wonderful Hallie (aka Betty Beguiles) asked us to do similar posts, and here's mine!

ONE

I have known Dave since Kindergarten; he was in grade 2. We both went to St. Francis of Assisi elementary school in Georgetown, ON. Our childhood homes were 5 minutes apart ON FOOT. Two years is a huge deal at the age, though, so we weren't friends. But our school only had 200 or so students, so we knew each other and have a number of shared teachers and memories.

TWO

We became good friends during high school during which we were in musicals together. We really started hanging out because my friend Jen (hey Jen!) had a crush on him when they worked together at the same pizza place. She would take my bus home as it was also Dave's bus, and we all started hanging out. They never dated, but Dave did date 3 of my friends prior to me. None were terribly serious. I also dated a several guys, including three bests friends in sequence.

During this period of not dating, Dave slowly grew to be one of my closest friends.

THREE

We finally started dating in the summer of 1995, when I was 17 and about to enter my last year of high school. Dave had take some time off between high school and University, so we spent a tonne of time together to my Dad's initial chagrin. I didn't get distracted, though - I still graduated with the highest average and was the lead in the musical on top of other extra curricular activities. Nerd!

FOUR

Dave and I went to schools that were 4 hours apart. We broke up during our 2nd year of University, but we remained close friends. We both dated other people, but nothing lasted. This break up was vital, though. We - me especially - needed to be apart to realize just how much we were meant to be together. It was difficult for me, as we'd started dating when I was still unable to legally vote -- how was I to be SURE this was the right path?

FIVE

We got back together just after Christmas of our final year of undergrad. In retrospect, it's comical how many signals God sent me about Dave. The final straw was when I realized "I compare every man out there to Dave. If he's my benchmark, why am I not dating the benchmark?!?" And he was all for reuniting. That was over 11 years ago.

SIX

When we reunited, one thing he really wanted to do was to travel with me. One day at a pub, we sat down and discussed all the places we wanted to travel. I jotted the list down on a napkin, which I kept in my wallet. In July of 2003, he nabbed the list and added: "I'll make sure that we'll go to all of these places but there's one condition...Will You Marry Me?"

SEVEN

We got married on October 9, 2004 in our childhood parish, Holy Cross. The newly-ordained son of our high school Geography teacher married us. The week before we got married, I moved to Ottawa for work. He followed immediately after our honeymoon. As such, our entire married life has been here in Ottawa.

FYI - Our wedding song was "The Way You Look Tonight" sung by Frank Sinatra. We both agree, though, that we were to pick again, we'd pick "As Time Goes By" as we love Casablanca.

EIGHT

His middle name is Thomas, after his maternal grandfather. His paternal grandmother (the incomparable Nanny Bessie) used to call him "Doubting Thomas" and she was right. If he is skeptical, he requires oodles of convincing.

NINE

He is a loving son, a devoted son-in-law and a phenomenal father. He is also bearded. Teddy has his hands and feet while Veronica has his eyes.

TEN

He is incredibly kind. He is hilarious and witty. He is wonderful with children. There is no one with whom I'd rather spend time or grow old.

Veronica - January to March 2011

2011-03-17T13:01:00.000-04:00

As promised, here is Veronica's passport photo. It was taken in mid-December and does she ever look like a bruiser. It was a big hit during our trip.

I have had this post in my draft folder for over 2 months! I need to document all this stuff, though, as I search through my archives looking for Teddy-specific info all the time. I am going to add to it and have a big summary of what Veronica has been up to since the start of the year.

January

She had her 4 month check-up and shots on January 6th. They were a little late, but we couldn't get in over the holidays. I was a bit nervous as we met another little girl in the waiting room who was 2 weeks younger and looked like she was 9 months old! An elderly couple asked me: "Was she born early? Or was she small? She's so tiny!" But it turns out that the other baby (Victoria) was nearly 12 lbs at birth and it WAAY off the charts. And Veronica is weighing in at 16 lbs, 3 0z and 25.5 inches in length. That's the 90th percentile (for weight) and I'll take it.

She hit the 19 week developmental spurt, so her sleep was a bit off. She was nowhere near as sad as during the 12 week one, but she wasn't herself. That said, it is uncanny how many of the behaviours outlined in "The Wonder Weeks" that she displayed. My favourite? The blowing of spit bubbles. The endless raspberries are a riot.
Even during leaps, she is just such a happy, sweet little monkey. She rarely cries, and almost NEVER cries for more than 1 minute of so. She has this gooney little chuckle. She LOVES me and Dave and Teddy -- lots of grins when she spots us. She's chunky and totally edible.
She verbalizes almost constantly. Teddy was chatty, but she is off the charts. My parents say that I was like that as a baby, so she may just be a chatterbox like me!
The one thing that she hates, though, is to be in her bouncy seat while we're eating. Little Miss wants to be part of the action, thank you. She loves people -- I suspect that we've another extrovert on our hands. Poor Dave - three extroverts in the house. He keeps saying: "Eh - you guys can all talk to each other while I recharge by myself!"

February

Little Miss V continued to eat and grow. She hit the 27 week spurt, but once again wasn't terribly grumpy during it. Early in the month, the terminal drool started. Less than Teddy and later than Teddy, but she soaks clothes and bibs. And added benefit is the projectile gagging and the projectile puking. It seems to have subsided over time, but I got hit 3 or 4 days in a row mid-month.
Early in the month, Dave had to spend the week in Toronto for work. My Mom came to stay with us for the week, bless her. Veronica just loves my Mom, so she had a great time cooing and smiling at her. She recognizes my parents now and gets excited when they come to visit.
On the 13th, she FINALLY rolled over. She also sat up unaided for the first time that day. For a few seconds, but still. A big day!
Around the same time, her ability to articulate consonants really expanded. All of a sudden, she could say 'Dadadada' 'Bamp Bampa', etc. She gabs away all day long.
She continues to be incredibly happy in the morning. She just screeches with happiness. Dave, who gets up with Teddy, comes to see her when he hears her yells of joy. I suspect that she'll be a morning person like her brother. WOE for Dave and I, who are decidedly NOT morning folk.
At the end of the month, she flew for the first time and visited her first US state, Florida. She was a pro on the plane; no problems at all. She also hit her first outlet mall and swam for the first time. She was a fan!

March

On the last day of February, V embarked on her first cruise onboard Celebrity's Equinox. She had a great time. Lots to look at, and she enjoyed the warm weather (though she got a bit of a heat rash on the back of her neck). It was so unusual to see her in shorts and tshirts - so much soft and chunky skin! It was also wonderful to dress her in dresses every day. She visited 6 countries (she's seen 8) and another continent. People cooed over her and her crazy hair - it STILL stands straight up.
Boy - did I miss cloth diapers. Veronica had 16(!!!) blowouts during our 2 week trip. I spent a lot of time scrubbing clothes in the bathroom. Boo!
On the 2nd of March, she started sat up without support for nearly half an hour. And now, she sits up for over an hour at a time. She's a pro! She also reaches for an manipulates toys, turning them around, trying to put them in her mouth. She is so INTERESTED in everything - toys, people. Her personality is shining through and it's AWESOME!
I have to admit - my back was pretty sore after hauling her around all the time. Near the end of the cruise, I was looking at family photos we'd had taken and was FLOORED by how huge she was looking. So long, so chunky. She was barely fitting in to her 6-12 month warm weather clothes, and her 9 month pjs were getting tight.

So we had her (slightly late) 6 month appointment on March 15th. And she? Is tipping the scales at 19 lbs, 5 0z and is 28 inches long!!! She's doing so very well! I have been worried all along about her growth because of what happened with Teddy and latching (it scared and scarred me more than I realized). But I am so happy, amazed and blessed that Veronica is doing so well. Go baby girl!

She is so fun to take places, as she delights in everything, from the wind on her face to faces you make at her. We went to the grocery store the other day - she can sit up in the cart, and she can get away with just a jacket now as it's warming up - and oh! She was such a riot! She just chuckled at everything and charmed all the other shoppers. What a sweetheart.

She is just getting interested in food. She is watching and watching us put food into our mouths, but isn't yet reaching for it. I am reading her cues, and we'll start introducing table food when she's ready for it.

She is a joy and a delight. She has her Daddy's eyes and still looks like her Aunt Flo (for whom she's named). I am so blessed and lucky to be her Mom.

Lent 2011

2011-03-13T21:08:00.003-04:00

We're back from our trip and we had an amazing time. I cannot wait to blog about it, but first I want to delineate what I'd like to do this Lenten season.

I'm dividing it up into sections - omissions, addition, personal prayer, and family prayer.

Omission

- I will be giving up snacking/sweets for the season. It was getting out of control anyway, and this is a perfect opportunity to rein it in. I'll be fighting my inner glutton whom I've been indulging with the justification that "I'm breastfeeding". No more treats, no more desserts, no more snacking.

- Though it's not obligatory in Canada, we'll be going meatless on Fridays. Well, Dave packs his own lunch, but I have many meatless options for him those days, too.

Addition

- I will do one additional act of service for my family each day. These will be over and above the usual stuff I do (laundry, meal prep, etc.). They will include things like reducing clutter, deep cleaning, and the like. For example, today I scrubbed several fridge shelves. Things like that.

- I would like to do some greater acts of service over the course of lent. These will likely include almsgiving, but may include other things. No idea what they'll be yet.

Personal Prayer

- I need to get on track with this. I'm frazzled with the little guys, but I cannot keep using it as an excuse. As a result, I need to devote a chunk of time to prayer at least once a day. It can be a rosary, one of the hours of the divine office, scriptural reading, or something along those lines. Today, it was the Divine Mercy Chaplet.

Family Prayer

- We've resolved to do this once a day, too. It will vary, depending on who's involved. Today, it was all four of us and it involved singing some kid-friendly songs ("I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart") and praying in general for the people we love. On days it's the adults, we'll aim for a rosary or a bunch of intercessory prayer.

So - that's the scoop. If you guys have any thoughts for additions to ANY of the areas, I'd love to hear them!

Some strategizing for a Sunday night

2011-02-13T22:23:00.002-05:00

Salut!

I need to write this post to help me organize my thoughts re. blogging over the next little while. We're heading off on a winter getaway in less than 2 weeks, and there are so many things I'd like to do before I go. Hence my strategizing this evening.

I have several posts in my draft folder, and I need to finish them and get them up. I need to augment them - the kids have been doing cool stuff and I need to add that. Stuff like lengthy sentences and creative play (Teddy) or rolling and sitting up unassisted (Veronica). I also need to document Veronica's birth story before she turns 6 months old next week. I also want to talk a bit about our trip and some of the cool stuff we're doing.

So I want to get the ball rolling. This is a total placeholder post, but I'd like to post at least 5 times a week until we go. I certainly have enough to talk about.

I hope that you're all doing well!

Superbowls - Past and Present

2011-02-06T21:46:00.002-05:00

It's Superbowl Sunday, and two of my favourite teams are facing off. The benefit of being Canadian is that I can throw my weight behind pretty much any NFL team that catches my fancy; I don't feel obligated to root for my non-existent hometown team. So I've always liked the 49ers and the Packers in the NFC (hating the Cowboys and Giants ), and rooted for the Steelers and the Patriots in that AFC. Again - I'm not sure why. But no matter. Two teams I like are playing. And it's been a TIGHT game so far! (Edit: as I am finishing this up, Green Bay just won.)

I've been reflecting on what I've been doing for the last few Superbowls. I can probably go back over a decade. Let's see...

1999 (Superbowl XXXIII) - I was Hall President of Prairie Hall at U of G and we threw a Superbowl party (thanks Dave K-burg and Leanne!). I don't remember much of the game, but the Broncos won.

2000 (Superbowl XXXIV) - I missed the game as I was travelling back from visiting Dave in Windsor. We'd just gotten back together after a 2 year break, and we were both finishing up our undergrad degrees. I wasn't really into the Titans/Rams match up.

2001 (XXXV) - I don't think I paid too much attention to the game, as I didn't really care about the Ravens or the Giants. That said, I had gone back to Georgetown in order to watch the post-game TV show with Dave. It was the premiere of Survivor Outback!

2002 (XXXVI) - I did watch the Pats win this one, but I don't remember much about what I was up to. I am pretty sure that I watched in my apartment in Guelph as I was finishing up my Master's at that time.

2003 (XXXVII) - I know that the Buccs won. And I know this because we were in Orlando at Walt Disney World. Magic Kingdom was DEAD on Superbowl Sunday, and we had dinner at O'Hana in the Polynesian during the game. I kept sneaking out to check the score. Plus - ALIAS was the post-game show!

2004 (XXXVIII) - I was back living in Georgetown, engaged to Dave. We watched the game at my childhood home with Jen and Greg (will still miss you and love you, Gregger). The pats won. And then, we watched the premiere of Survivor: All Stars.

2005 (XXXIX) - I am sure that I watched the Pats beat the Eagles in our apartment in Ottawa, but I have NO RECOLLECTION of it.

2006 (XL) - This started a trend. We were on vacation! Onboard the Caribbean Princess, the game was broadcast on the HUGE movie screen by the pool. And the Steelers won!

2007 (XLI) - We were actually en route to a vacation in Vegas DURING the game. We were in the air for most of it (it was cheapest to fly Ottawa to Winnipeg (?!?) to Las Vegas) and I checked the score in the 'Peg airport, but the game was over by the time we got to Vegas. No matter, though. I HATE the Mannings, and Peyton won this one with the Colts.

2008 (XLII) - Was the weirdest. We saw this on a MONDAY -- we were in New Zealand. I was rooting for the Pats to have a perfect record, but one of the hated Mannings (a GIANT -boo) had other ideas.

2009 (WLIII) - Teddy was about 2 weeks old, but I watched the Steelers take this one from our house. Woo hoo!

2010 (WLIV) - I had just gone back to work, and was pregnant with Veronica. But I made my tired butt stay up for this one, as I desperately wanted the Saints to beat the Colts. And they did! A highlight was watching Drew Brees and his little boy (who's Teddy's age) celebrating, with the baby wearing head phones. So adorable.

And 2011. A fun pairing, with Green Bay winning. As the game unfolded, I realized that I was pulling for the Steelers, but I am not upset that Rodgers finally has his ring. He had to deal with the Favre back-and-forth for ages, and I am so happy for him.

And now - Glee!

Welcome Miss Hand!

2011-02-05T19:06:00.003-05:00

We're currently watching 3 kids -- Teddy's friend Claire is here with us while our friends Tania and Mark (her parents) are at the hospital. Tania just gave birth to Claire's little sister (nameless right now). We're SO excited for them.

The age difference between Veronica and the new addition will be about the same as between Teddy and Claire. They're great friends, so we hope it'll be the same way with the younger two.

But oh! I felt like I was KIDNAPPING Claire when I met her parents at the hospital. We couldn't all go -- Teddy was napping and I needed his car seat for Claire. So we did the swap outside the hospital (poor Tania was in transition) and Claire was SOBBING. She knows us and loves our house, but OI! Happily, she perked up right away, but it was a rough start. Let's hope that bed time goes well...

In other news - we're all doing well. I have posts drafted about Veronica and about Teddy's awesome vocabulary, so they should go up soon. It's been a crappy week, though. My friend Jen lost her father, and Dave is undergoing turmoil at work. He was away for 4 days this week, but my Mom came to stay with us. She injured herself while sitting in kiddy chairs with Teddy - THAT'S dedication. Thanks for your help, Mom, and sorry that we maimed you!

And how are you doing?

Teddy turns TWO

2011-01-20T22:17:00.000-05:00

Dear Teddy,

Today, you turn 2 years old. I cannot believe it; time seems to have both flown and crawled. I can account for all of it, but it's amazing how much you have changed in two short years. More amazing, in fact, is how much I feel I've changed by becoming your Mom. I cannot imagine a better gift than getting to be your mother.

You continue to be a sunny, loving little boy. You adore all vehicles, both toys and the real thing. Driving trips with you are a blast as you are content to look at the window and announce: "A bus!" "A truck!" "A car!". You are so enthusiastic about things you love. As one whose never lost that level of enthusiasm, it warms my heart to see how much joy things bring to you.

You are also an not too shabby in the looks department. We are often stopped by strangers who comment on how cute you are - especially your eyes. You have my brown eyes, with Daddy's long, dark lashes. They are OUT OF CONTROL cute. And you're usually so happy - you're a hit with strangers. And you have a knack for choosing random people with whom to speak. Last week, when you were at the mall getting your hair cut, you chose the following people to greet: an elderly woman, sullen teenagers, and the middle-aged man changing out the trash. All were charmed by you and thrilled that you'd spoken to them. You love people, all people. Such a sweet boy you are.

The biggest change this past year -- or the one we feared the most -- was the arrival of your little sister in August. Daphne (your beloved caregiver) told us that she wasn't at all worried, that you'd make an amazing big brother. She was 100% correct. You are so loving and kind with Veronica, whom you call "Baby" most of the time, when not calling her "Eeer-onica" (it's better than the original "Gonka!"). You have a routine whenever sitting (i.e. not being held). First, you announce your desire to "KEEEEESS" her, which you do accompanied with a 'mwah' sound. Kissing mostly involves putting your forehead to hers, but we'll take it. Then, you must cover her with a "BANKET". If you can't find one, then you'll give her your bear for short periods. Finally, you earnestly look at her and demand a "High Five!". You are so considerate of her - letting us know when she's crying, smiling at her. I have no siblings, but I'd have chosen a big brother for myself. Veronica is so blessed to have an amazing one in you. She loves you, too. She watches you, and she laughs and laughs when you do. Though I know you'll fight, I can't wait until you are bigger and you can play together and be friends.

You've always been a talker, but in the past few months your vocabulary has EXPLODED. Recently, you've started busting out three and four word sentences, like
"I kick the ball!" and "My Dada a(t) work.". You have your usual standbys of "I dance!", "I get", "I drop", "I fix", etc. and lots of other two word phrases like "That One", "This One", "'et Go!", "Leave it", and the ones you've been saying for nearly a year: "Don't throw", "Don't touch", and similar ones. It's so amazing that you can clearly communicate with us now. LOVE IT!

You still adore music, and you've starting to sing ON KEY! You love "Old MacDonald" and the "EIEIO" (how apt), though it's more like "EE-Yi-EE-Yi-Yo". You'll bust out the alphabet song and sing the Backyardigans theme song, too. That - and Glee - are your TV repetoire. It's SUCH a cute show! Speaking of Glee, you'll occasionally sing a few songs from Glee, like "Bad Romance" and "Don't Stop Believin'". You primarily like to dance to those songs, though. And you have your favourite songs from the Backyardigans, which you enjoy hearing over and over and over. You're like your Mom that way (your poor father).

You love your 'Bear Bear', and your grandparents (Grandpa is a special friend, as is Nonna). You are still a voracious eater. You hesitate a bit when trying new things, but you generally tough it out and try. You are scared of things that make unexpected moves towards you/move in an unusual way - remote control cars, for example. You like calling Glowworms your 'baby', and you'll try to nurse them when we tell you to 'feed your baby'. You are weirded out by moles, especially the one on my chest - you want me to 'cyup' (cover it up), but then want to see it again. You laugh easily. You dance like a fool after we've put you in your pjs but before Daddy puts you to bed. You love 'lift the flap' books, and can count to ten! You are obsessed with looking at candles, saying how you're going to 'bwow' them out.

Life with you is never boring, occasionally frustrating (dude - you know not to do these things. DON'T DO THEM!), and often sublime. I wouldn't change it for anything.

Happy birthday, my baby boy.

Love,
Your Mom

This is for any lurkers...

2011-01-14T16:26:00.002-05:00

It's National De-lurking Day! Let me know if you're out there, and I promise some content over the weekend. I have draft posts in the works already!

A new laptop! Maybe it'll make me post more...

2011-01-08T20:15:00.003-05:00

I am alive!

And I am posting this on my new-to-me laptop, about which I am super thrilled. It's a refurbished corporate model (an IBM Thinkpad T61 -- my Dad calls it the last, best IBM corporate model) from a great store called "The Trailing Edge" and it FLIES. I love, love, love it. It is such a contrast, because I DETESTED my previous laptop.

I haven't written about it before because I don't like dwelling on the negative. But oh! I have hated that netbook since the day it arrived. I bought it because it was little and it gave me something to do while trapped with the pump when Teddy was tiny. It sucked in so many ways. To wit:

- every time you snapped the computer closed, it disconnected from the internet/nearly shut down. Suck a frigging pain with a baby/toddler around.
- battery life was totally sucky. Even from early on, it would only hold charge for an hour or so. SO ANNOYING.
- the most egregious tied to the keyboard. It was about 90% of a full-sized one, which was annoying. But it had this insane tendency to move the cursor to unpredictable spots. Not only that, but it would randomly highlight text and unexpected delete it or navigate back a browser page. I cannot count the number of blog posts/tweets/FB messages I had to type three or four times because of that perk.

I am cheap, though, and I paid several hundred dollars for it, so I was going to tough it out for 2-3 years. Teddy turns 2 soon, though, and this computer was an AMAZING deal, so I used some Christmas money and got it. HOORAY!

Christmas was wonderful and will write about that soon. For now, I'm off to play with this new bad boy!

What we've been up to - December 2010 edition

2010-12-20T09:11:00.002-05:00

We're still here. We've just been really, really busy! Since last I posted, here's what we've been up to:

From December 7-9, the kids and I headed to Kingston with my Mom. We visited my Nonna for several days, which was lovely. I cemented my knowledge of a few of her amazing recipes (eggplant parmesan, lasagna, etc.) while my Mom watched Teddy. We also got to see Rachel in between her finals and my Uncle Sergio. It was a lovely time, despite the storm we had to drive through to get there. Her house devoid of any internet capacity, though, so I missed the internets!

The following weekend, we ran around a lot. We had Christmas parties (brunch at Mark and Tania's on the Saturday, Dave's corporate children's party on the Sunday), as well as things like shopping and mass. I will upload photos from the Christmas party soon - they're cute, but my computer is being finicky.

Last week, Beth came to visit us for several days. She's in Ontario for over 2 weeks, and since I am on mat leave, she came to visit during the week. We ate, we drank, we hung out. We also visited the Diefenbunker, arguably my favourite Ottawa-area museum. It's a decommissioned nuclear bunker from which the Canadian government was to have governed in case of attack. It's now a Cold War museum and it's SO awesome! Plus - I scored one of the library's museum passes, so we got to go for free. We also visited my parents in Almonte (the Diefenbunker is very close to their place) and saw Shelley. A fun and busy week all around. And we'll get to see Beth again when we're in the GTA, so yeah!

This weekend, we did some essential Christmas prep - assembling gifts, working on the Christmas cards, etc. It's a challenge to do with two little kids, so thank goodness for coordinated naps! We knocked a few things off the list, including passport photos for Veronica. That's another picture that I will be uploading soon.

This week, we have more Christmas prep in the evenings, then the holiday season begins!

Advent has been fun. Teddy loves looking at "Baby Jesus" in our crèche, and he ADORES the Advent wreath. When we broke it out, he promptly broke into "Happy Birthday" - his primary exposure to candles. He now sings "Happy Birthday" to Jesus and is a wee bit obsessed with blowing out the candles, which he calls "cackles". It's cute. And I cannot wait for future Christmases, when they're both old enough to be involved.

What have you guys been up to?

Rolled Sleeves

2010-12-04T16:26:00.002-05:00

If you lived in my head, you would know that I am not a very nice person. If I had to identify my 'root sin', it would be pride. I often have a running dialogue in my head, and I have to admit that as soon as something goes off course -- little stuff, not real emergencies -- I think "how could this be happening to ME??!?!?". Entitled, much? And since I live with him, these feelings turn to Dave on occasion.

One such occasion was earlier this afternoon. I was sorting dirty clothes, and I noticed once again that Dave had forgotten to unroll the sleeves of several of his dress shirts. "GAH!" I thought. "I managed to nag him into checking his pockets for Kleenex when we first got married. WHY can't he remember this?!?"

And then it hit me. The first thing Dave does when he arrives at home (after taking off his coat and boots; we do live in Canada) is roll up the sleeves of his dress shirt so that he can pitch in with the kids. It's more than a metaphor. He literally rolls up his sleeves. And when he changes, he hurriedly puts the shirt in the hamper so that he can put on something more conducive to playing with the kids.

Dave is such an amazing father and partner. I don't thank him for it enough. So thanks, baby. I will gladly unroll your sleeves if that means that I get to spend my life with you.

Endings and beginnings

2010-11-30T15:51:00.002-05:00

It's the 30th of November, the last official day of NaBloPoMo. It has been a challenge, but I have really enjoyed it! I mean, maybe 3 of my posts have had any real substance to them. Most have simply been stories about the kids. But it's been freeing to just write something rather than feeling pressured to write something significant. I need to channel this into writing in the future.

And speaking of endings (and beginnings):

November looks to be ending the way it began - with parents getting puked on. Dave got hit 2 nights in a row with Teddy at the start of the month. Last night, poor Veronica was congested and spit up all over herself and me at 3 a.m. Boo!
In happier news, Dave and I finished the series finale of "The Wire" last night. I am sure that this shocks no one to hear, but that series is so, so amazing. We started it when Veronica was tiny and we've been plowing through. I am sad it's over, though. We did watch S1 of Modern Family (also great) at the same time, and now we're caught up there, too. What to watch next? We're thinking "Friday Night Lights". Any other suggestions?

Thanks, folks for sticking it out with me. And have a wonderful feast of St. Andrew!

Veronica's Baptism...eventually.

2010-11-29T22:07:00.003-05:00

The plans for Veronica's baptism are finally in the works, save the ultimate ok from the parish. I know Doreen, the head of the Baptismal ministry, though, and I am pretty sure that we'll get the only date that works. Too bad that it's in June.

At our parish, in addition to the full immersion font, we have preset baptismal dates. We have our godparents - Dave's brother Barry and my Aunt Linda. But the upcoming dates are less than ideal. They are:

two dates in the dead of winter. Since the bulk of our families are from out of town (both godparents live a 4+ hour drive away and don't relish the highway drive required to get here), asking them to come to our snowy city at that time of year is just cruel.
March 6th - the 40th birthday of her future godfather and the day before her future godmother's 60th. Also not fair.
Nothing during Lent, obviously.
May 8th - aka Mother's Day.
June 19th - aka Father's Day.

We debated and debated, and consulted with family. We've settled on June 19th; we'll have a little something for all the fathers who'll be coming and sacrificing their special day. Plus, the weather will be great and it's near the end of the school year (for all my educator relatives and for the nieces/cousins who are still in school).

It's brutal, though - she'll be nearly 10 months old! Father Boyd has already started to ask: "When will I get to baptize this one?" and it'll still be another 6+ months.

No one can say that they don't have sufficient notice, though!

Teddy vignettes

2010-11-28T21:01:00.002-05:00

Teddy had a few awesome moments yesterday and today. I needed to share them.

This afternoon, Dave was on the phone with my MIL and I was feeding Veronica. Teddy headed over to the toy bins and fished out his gloworm, whom he calls 'his baby'. Then, he flopped down on his couch, saying "Oh, baby!" and attempted to breastfeed the toy. Hilarious!

We've borrowed my parents' Advent wreath. In one of those crazy twists of fate, I had planned to buy our own wreath, but before I could head out to buy it, my Mom called to offer the one we used as a kid. It's sitting on the table and we began lighting it last night.

Teddy was thrilled. The moment he spotted us about to light the candles, he broke into a spot on rendition of "Happy Birthday". I guess we should encourage that? I mean - we are counting down to Jesus' birthday, after all. And we'll be celebrating the 25th with birthday cake, although it will be for my Nonna. She's named Natalina (which basically means female baby born on Christmas) as that is her natal day.

He's a riot, our boy.

Sleep. The lack of it is catching up to me.

2010-11-27T20:31:00.002-05:00

I suspect that Veronica is going through her 3 month growth spurt because she is eating and eating and getting longer. She ate several times last night, too. And now, as we've passed the three month mark, I think that the hormones have worn off and the lack of sleep (though not awful, not by a long shot) is getting to me.

That's why I appreciated it so much this afternoon when Dave watched both kids so I could chill. I read and napped and it was great. Thanks, baby! You rock, and you're an amazing father. I wouldn't want to do this without you.

But Mom - we didn't make it to Costco this afternoon. We'll hit it tomorrow!

Three months

2010-11-26T13:12:00.000-05:00

Veronica turned 3 months old on Wednesday. She had a check-up yesterday. It involved no vaccinations and therefore no tears. :)

She is weighing in at 13lbs, 7oz (though she was not wearing a cloth diaper this time; last time's weigh in may have been slightly skewed by that) and she's 24.5 inches long. She passed the time in the waiting room cooing at all the other patients. She may end up being a talker like her Mom!

Her sunny, relaxed personality has returned following the 12 week developmental leap - she rarely cries and smiles and chatters all day long. She chuckled today for the first time. Her hair continues to stick straight up in the back. Her eyes remain a vibrant blue.

She is a little sweetheart. We'll keep her.

Craziest.afternoon.EVER

2010-11-25T22:25:00.004-05:00

Oh you guys. I was planning to write about Veronica's turning 3 months old. But this afternoon was insane and I need to share.

My parents came to visit today. I generally try to get a whole bunch more done with the extra hands around, and my Mom loves to clean. These points are salient in today's tale. Also important - the fact that we have an alarm system. And a house built in 1967.

Over the holidays, we've asked the youngest daughter of Teddy's babysitter to look after our cats. To make it easier on her, we wanted to add a special code to our alarm system. The system we have is the same as the one we had in my childhood home, so I figured that my Dad would know how to set it up.

So - my Dad and I begin trying to add the new alarm code. And somehow - we manage to screw up the master code and arm the alarm. As such - we are trapped in the house with the alarm on and we cannot turn it off.

We call our alarm guy, who happens to live around the corner AND is the son of them woman from whom we purchased the house. He attempts to fix the problem remotely, but to no avail. He realizes that he has to come over to fix it, and that the alarm siren will have to go until he deactivates it.

While I am on the phone with Ken (alarm guy), my Mom and Teddy are upstairs, swiffering. He poops, and my Mom gets ready to change him. But before she can, she turns her back after they exit the guest room, and Teddy closes the door, locking her out. And the door would not open. It's an original door from the house, and it stuck when Dave's mom was here. It has no screws so there is no way to remove it.

To recap:

- trapped in the house by the alarm, with a siren about to blare; and
- Teddy trapped in the guest room, with the door stuck shut.

We tried and tried to get the door open. We tried to get the 22 month old to open the door -- he kept trying to turn the knob, but it wouldn't turn. He would touch my fingers, which I'd slipped under the door, and say "Mama???", then would play with the door stop. He wasn't thrilled - he was in a poopy diaper, after all, and trapped. But he did ok.

Then - Ken arrived and the alarm went off. It scared the heck out of poor Veronica (not to mention the cats), who started bawling. Teddy started whimpering on the other side of the door. And I realized that I'd have to break the door down.

I started throwing myself against the door, to no avail. I kept telling Teddy to back away from the door, just so he wouldn't get hit. And, after about 8 tries, I managed to unstick it. Poor Teddy was struck as it opened, but not too hard. I detached the plate and cracked the door casing, but my toddler was free.

And Ken managed to fix the alarm; it took a few minutes, but we figured it out and reprogrammed it. The baby stopped crying and the diaper got changed.

But oh! What a few minutes!

Random musings while watching a rom com from the late 1990s.

2010-11-24T14:05:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, I ended up watching "Return to Me", a sweet little romantic comedy from about 10 years ago. It stars David Duchovny as a widower whose wife was the heart organ donor for Minnie Driver. The two meet years later and fall in love. In an eerie twist, Natasha Richardson plays the wife who dies too young.

I found myself reflecting on a whole bunch of things, watching this movie for the first time in years. To wit:

I was struck by how many nods to the Catholic church are found throughout the movie. Minnie Driver plays Grace, an Irish Catholic whose Grandfather (Carol O'Connor) runs an Irish Italian restaurant where Robert Loggia is the chef. Praying the rosary, priests coming for dinner, the works. It makes me want to watch "Going my Way" again!
I kept thinking: "What a fun blend - and Irish and Italian family". Until I realized that's what I have! D'oh. I mean, Newfoundlanders are as close to the Irish as you'll find outside Ireland.
But man - the beginning of that movie is SO SAD. I was maybe 22 the last time I watched this movie and I knew it to be sad. But this time, it was all that I could do to fight off tears. The husband and the dog missing the late wife - GAH! I guess at 22, I had far less to lose and so identified with it in a more abstract manner. No longer.

This movie is set in Chicago, just like "While You Were Sleeping", another fave. It seems to me that they aren't making these sweet, light-hearted movies any more. I miss them.

Cloth Diapering a Newborn - My Experience

2010-11-23T13:35:00.003-05:00

It's sunny and mild -- probably for the last time in 2010 - so my diapers are out sunning. I continue to be astounded at how well the sun bleaches out the stains caused by breast milk poop. Score one for nature! And I thought I would take this opportunity to write about my experiences with cloth diapering a newborn.

Miss Veronica will be 3 months old tomorrow (I cannot BELIEVE how fast it's going this time) and will officially become an infant. And how we've been diapering her has been changing over the past month or so (she's a porker!). But I wanted to share the stash that we used on her while she was tiny. Well - she was almost 9 lbs at birth, but you know what I mean.

First and foremost, a HUGE thank you to Isha. She let us borrow a whole bunch of her NB stuff that Rory had outgrown. In addition - thanks to my Mom for some cash to augment our stash, some of which was used here, some to buy stuff I will highlight in a later post.

Here's what our stash looked like:

12 Kissaluv fitted diapers in size 0 (bought used from Ottawa Kijiji)
12 infant prefolds (borrowed from Isha)
4 Thirsties covers, size small
4 Bummis covers, size small
3 Annie Marie Padorie (AMP) All-in-one diapers
4 Apple Cheeks size 1 diapers (borrowed from Isha)
3 Fuzzibunz OS pocket diapers
1 Happy Heiney's mini pocket
3 Jamtots bamboozle diapers (used at night)

The reason we chose a newborn stash was because most of the OS pockets don't fit newborns well around the legs. In addition - you change them so much over the first little while that it's just easier to have prefolds/fitted diapers and covers as you're using 12-15 diapers a day! We used disposables until the meconium poop had passed, then we dove in.

We used the Kissaluvs and the infant prefolds most of the time, especially when at home. We liked both - the prefolds were more absorbent, but Dave liked the Kissaluvs better since they had snaps and he didn't have to wrangle with a Snappi. We reached for the Thirsties covers first -- they have leg gussets - but the Bummis ones are great, too. Sadly, she outgrew the Kissaluvs a few weeks ago. She can still get into to the infant prefolds, but they are getting small. Soon, it'll be pockets all the time.

My favourite diapers on her were my AMP AIOs. Annie Marie Padorie is a Canadian company and their diapers are adorable. They are super trim, have great applix, and dry very quickly. She's outgrown them, but they were a great diaper when we went out. I love the diaper in Med and in Large, too, but I'll detail that in another post.

Another great option -- and one that'll fit for ages -- is the Fuzzibunz OS. The diapers are sized using buttonhole elastic in the legs, so you can get it really small. These actually fit smaller than the FB Small diapers, and the snaps are great, too.

The other diapers we used were ok. The Happy Heiny's fit her right away, but I am just not a fan of that diaper. Plus - she's too big for it now. The Apple Cheeks are another Canadian-made diaper, and it fit her fairly early on. The inserts of these diapers are supposed to agitate out in the wash, but the pocket is right in the middle of the diaper. It is GROSS fishing the insert out of a newborn poopy diaper. And the Bamboozles are ok. The diapers have been discontinued (I got them used) and I can see why. But they work well at night.

Any questions? Feel free to fire away!

A post written during daylight hours!

2010-11-22T09:37:00.003-05:00

It is cold and rainy, so I cannot say that this post is being written during daylight. But it's not even 10 am; in general, my NaBloPoMo posts have been written at 10 pm, so it's a nice change.

Veronica is currently taking a snooze and Teddy wanted to watch an episode of "The Backyardigans". Yes, we let him watch a small bit of TV - he likes the music in these episodes, and this show about imaginary play is adorable. He loves this episode - "High Tea" where they travel all over the world to get the components of the perfect cup of tea. There's a scene where they ride Mongolian ponies to the gushing geyser of the Gobi desert, and Teddy gets up and pretends to ride a horse along with them. It's hilarious.

Teddy continues to be very sweet to the baby. Ever day, he breaks out new worlds - this morning, he looked out the window and pronounced "Rainin'!". He had a growth spurt recently. He ate and ate, developed a belly, chubby cheeks, and a 2nd chin. Then he shot up at least an inch. He turned 22 months on the weekend, and though he can be exasperating at times, particularly when he does something he shouldn't -- like throwing - then smiles and says "Don't throw!" as if that will get him out of being punished. But he adds joy to our lives on a near-hourly basis.

We're also hopeful that Veronica has hit the 12 week spurt. Her sleep has improved and she has been less grumpy for the past day or so. And she's far more interested in everything going on around her.

Uh oh - she's waking up. I'd better run. I hope that you're all having a lovely Monday.

A quiet Sunday

2010-11-21T21:25:00.002-05:00

Today was a lovely, quiet day. I had promised to help out with the CWL Membership table after mass, so that was my big task this morning. Veronica, Teddy, and I all napped this afternoon. My Nonna sent us up some food, so we had stuffed eggplant for dinner. And now, we're watching the final episode of S4 of "The Wire", which we are still loving.

I came downstairs (truth be told, I'd been dropping off a cloth diaper in the pail liner) after dark, and I spotted the flickering light from a scented candle, burning in the kitchen. It struck me, then, how excited I am for Advent -- both this year and in future. It's no coincidence that the prospect of a family Christmas was one of the things to which Dave and I most looked forward when we dreamed of having a family. I've been lax in terms of Christmas decorations since we moved to this house, since Christmas has been in Almonte/Kingston/Georgetown and I was either 1 week post miscarriage, VERY pregnant or about to head back to work. But this year, I think that both kids will like the tree. The cats will love it as well, unfortunately, but what can you do?

Saturday night bullet points

2010-11-20T21:34:00.002-05:00

It's been a busy few days around here. To wit:

Yesterday morning, we headed to a Familia meeting at our church. It's still a struggle for me to get both kids out the door to an excursion in a timely manner. I was all set yesterday...until we needed two diaper changes as we were about to head out the door. I'll get better at this, right?
Last evening, I left the house ALONE for a couple of hours to take part in a focus group. It dealt with waste collection in the city; I'd had to keep a journal on garbage day for two weeks and participate. The honorarium? A sweet $125. I will take it!
Today, we headed out to Almonte to see my Dad for his birthday. In addition, Dave took the car in for service and to get the winter tires. Good times.

And finally:

I really, really hope that Veronica's strange, mercurial behaviour is related to the 12 week spurt. Because boy - is she all over the place. Clingy, tearful, grumpy...and far more alert. We're a wee bit nervous that her new behaviour is just how she's going to be, now that she's no longer a sleepy newborn. If so - pray for us!

"Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm...

2010-11-19T14:49:00.002-05:00

Sixty four years ago today, Kingston, Ontario welcomed one of the smartest, kindest, most wonderful men I've had the good fortune to know. How lucky that I get to call him my Dad.

Happy 64th birthday, Daddy/Ray/Bampa! We'll be out tomorrow, bearing gifts and improperly blown kisses.

Love,
S, D, T and V. xoxoxoxo

I despair of ever writing a blog post while the sun is still up

2010-11-18T22:55:00.002-05:00

Gah. I have such lofty goals each day -- particularly with respect to blogging - and they never come to fruition. Today, besides a medical appointment and hitting a couple errands in a part of town I HATE (Merivale Rd, you SUCK), I managed to unload the dishwasher and fold some laundry. And care for children. Both of whom were up multiple times last night.

I miss being in a groove, being able to get stuff done. I imagine that I will eventually competent again but for now - not so much. Days just go by and I feel like I am doing jack squat. And I really hate it.

Ah well. Let's hope that tomorrow will be better. It will be Friday, after all.

A hobby?

2010-11-17T23:11:00.003-05:00

Earlier this week, Lauren posted about wanting to develop a hobby that would be productive. She is considering knitting, sewing or scrapbooking. I completely understand that sentiment, and just spent the evening doing something I have really come to enjoy - cardmaking.

I've joined a 'stamping club' where we meet once a month to make several cards/learn techniques. I have to purchase about $30 of product each month, but that's no big deal. And the cards are REALLY nice. As in - you'd never know that I made them, they're so nice. And the women in the group are awesome, too. A night out! It's only a few hours, but still!

In related news - I left Veronica for 3 HOURS tonight. That's the longest we've ever been apart and she managed not to starve to death. Props to Dave -- always an amazing dad - for keeping her content while I was away. Thanks, baby!

November sun

2010-11-16T22:00:00.002-05:00

I am likely jinxing myself by saying this but it's the truth -- to date, November in Ontario has been mild and sunny. And I am LOVING it.

November, my father's birthday notwithstanding, is my least favourite month. Remembrance Day is a sad occasion. It's cold and the snow starts. And to quote The Mamas and the Papas: "All the leaves are brown and the sky is grey...". Canadian Thanksgiving is in October (thanks to the earlier harvest) so there's not much to brighten this month. Even the Church encourages us to pray for the dead during this gloomy, gloomy 30 days. February is also gloomy, but it's snowy and our city embraces the cold, having a 3 week long festival. Plus, it's a short month and warm weather is around the corner. With November - the warmth is AGES away.

But this year, we've been so fortunate. I have been basking in the sunny, mild(ish) days. Taking the opportunity to go outside and to sun my diapers. I imagine that this good fortune won't last but I really do appreciate it. I feel like I missed summer this year, what with the extreme heat and the modified bed rest at the end of my pregnancy. These fall days have been great. Let's hope that they last a bit longer!

The Week Twelve Leap (we hope)

2010-11-15T21:05:00.004-05:00

Poor Veronica. She's a bit of a mess today.

She's dealing with a bit of a cold, so that isn't helping the situation. But she'll be 12 weeks tomorrow, which is one of the 'stormy' periods prior to the third developmental leap outlined in "The Wonder Weeks". And boy oh boy - is she ever storming.

The poor kid slept poorly last night, wanting to nurse intermittently and thrash in between sessions. She's been fussy all day - crying jags, clinginess, diminished appetite, the works. It's particularly odd because she is svuch a placcid baby. She rarely cries and is generally jolly. The poor little muffin.

Teddy is also having a rough evening. The kid has been eating like a horse over the past few days. To wit: he ate an entire red pepper, half a green one, 8 cherry tomatoes, 2 pieces of roast beef and one of turkey, plus crackers and cheese yesterday at Rory's b-day party, and that was just lunch. This morning, he had FOUR sippy cups of milk (8-9 oz each) and then had a huge lunch (and dinner). His cheeks are chubbier, and he has 2 chins and a belly. Plus he is heavier (Dave agrees). And tonight - he's in tears with what we think are growing pains. He keeps rubbing his legs and his feet, asking "Shoes?" as if they're too tight. Poor kiddo.

That's what's happening over here. But why don't you mosey on over to Arwen's site and congratulate her. It turns out that she's carrying TWINS!

Sunday Night Strategizing

2010-11-14T15:19:00.003-05:00

I have been inspired by Jamie at Mostly Gladly (whom I aspire to be like in most aspects of my life, truth be told) and am going to detail what my To Do list for the next 7 days.

Time Sensitive:

Do Familia homework before Fridays' meeting
Enter data from waste journal before Friday night's focus group
Get Dad's b-day gift squared away by Friday
Determine what needs to be done for CWL membership volunteer slot

General:

Write and mail Thank You notes
Contact Deb re. card order
Organize V's clothes - store the outgrown, bring out new stuff
Take a pass through Teddy's clothes
Contact various friends (Cathy, Sarah) to set up play dates
Develop content for more content-heavy blog posts

Strategic:

Plan for Xmas card. Refine holiday shopping list.
Passport planning for Veronica.

The zits don't lie.

2010-11-13T21:51:00.002-05:00

It wasn't until recently that I finally clued in to a fundamental truth. It's nothing profound; it's simply that my skin is like a window into any sort of life event tied to a hormone change. Like pregnancy. Or if I am about to deliver. The cascade of fresh hormones makes my oily, Mediterranean skin go into overdrive.

Days before I could officially stick pee when pregnant with Veronica (and when I figured that I might be pregnant), my skin started going haywire. And yep - positive test.

I should have known that labour was imminent with Veronica because in the days before August 24th, my skin looked greasy and AWFUL. And full of blemishes.

And now...the breakouts have begun again. On Tuesday, I will be 12 weeks postpartum. And that means -- the dreaded postpartum hair loss. GAH!

Happy Birthday, Roro!!

2010-11-12T18:51:00.002-05:00

It's the 1st birthday of our friend Rory, and we'll be celebrating on Sunday. But when we told Teddy that it was Rory's birthday, he clapped and said "HAPPY!!" We credit Daphne for teaching him the famous tune.

We practiced for 15 minutes - Teddy would demand "HAPPY!" And we'd start singing. At the end of each line, he'd tack on "Roro!", his nickname for Rory. It was super cute.

Then, we called to sing to the birthday boy himself and Teddy, as usual, refused to do anything on the phone. We're all set for Sunday, though.

Happy 1st Birthday, buddy! We can't wait to celebrate with your whole family on Sunday.

Lest We Forget

2010-11-11T22:42:00.002-05:00

It's Remembrance Day here in Canada and elsewhere in the Commonwealth (and Veterans' Day in the US). We're wearing our poppies, and we paused for a moment of silence at 11 am. Sadly, with a toddler and a newborn, a visit to the Canadian War Memorial for the service was not feasible so we watched on TV. We're close enough, though, that the fighter planes which scramble for the fly-over could be heard from our house.

Teddy was not at all interested in the ceremony -- even the marching soldiers -- until the very end of the procession when he spotted the military vehicles. 'A TRUCK!" he exclaimed. "A truck, a car, a bup (bus)!!"

There is not one single Canadian WWI veteran still alive, and the youngest possible WWII veteran (18 in 1945) would now be 83. But the sacrifices that they made when they were little more than children will never be forgotten.

I look forward to taking the kids to battlefields one day (visiting Ypres was a harrowing and valuable moment for me) and to attending the 2018 ceremony in person to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the armistice.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning,

We will remember them.

"Ode of Remembrance", taken from "For the Fallen" by Lawrence Binyon.

A great big "Tank yoo"

2010-11-10T21:30:00.002-05:00

I should preface this post by saying that I will focus on more substantial posts later - maybe this weekend.

But today, I want to say a huge "thanks" to my parents. They came to visit today, bringing all sorts of goodies from their travels - foodstuffs, Bookers Bourbon for Dave, clothes for the kids...awesome! In addition, my Mom is coming back tomorrow to watch Teddy b/c I have a medical appointment to which I cannot bring both kids. Bampa and Nonna, you ROCK!

As an aside: we're catching up on Glee, and I am very happy to see that there are new music numbers which Teddy will like. Yeah!

The day got away from me...

2010-11-09T22:44:00.002-05:00

...so I am writing this post one-handed as I feed the baby. I had a meeting at the church tonight, so Veronica got to go to her first evening meeting. Lucky kid - at only 11 weeks old!

My MIL headed back to Georgetown on the train this afternoon after her firstsolo visit to Ottawa. We will miss her. I'm very lucky -- I have a wonderful MIL about who loves us and about whom I cannot complain. Thanks so much for the help Nanny!

And my parents are back from their trip -- I can't wait to hear all about it when they come by tomorrow.

I'm writing this as the baby chills in the swing...

2010-11-08T21:32:00.002-05:00

Dave has taken his Mom out to the casino, so I am chilling with Miss Veronica. I think she is getting ready for a developmental leap (there is one at 12 weeks and she'll be 11 weeks tomorrow) because she's acting 'stormy' as predicted in "The Wonder Weeks". A bit clingy, taking longer with feedings, the usual stuff. It makes finding time to blog tough!

I am catching up on the Amazing Race, and the past two episodes have been spent in one of my favourite cities - St. Petersburg, Russia. The most recent episode had them following more cryptic clues than usual as they raced around the city. I was so excited as they started to read the clues -- I knew the answers! Church on the Spilled Blood (the most GORGEOUS Russian Orthodox catherdal), Peter and Paul Fortress (where the Romanovs are buried) -- all sorts of amazing sites. I would LOVE to go back, though it's not in the cards for a while. Of all the places I have visited, the two I would most like to get back to are Russia and Australia. There are lots of other places I'd love to go, of course, but those are the two places I am desperate to explore in much more depth. [In terms of new places, I want to see all 7 continents (3 to go), all the countries in Europe (about 15 to go), all our provinces and territories (1 and 3 to go), all 50 US states (16 to go), and countries like Israel, China, India, Egypt and South Africa.]

What about you? To where are you desperate to go back? And where would you love to go?

We've created a Glee monster.

2010-11-07T22:59:00.002-05:00

I have posted in the past about Teddy's love for Glee. I should qualify - not ALL of Glee, just selected musical numbers. The awesome ones. Like the Journey medley in the season 1 finale, or "Empire State of Mind", or any of the big duet numbers ("Don't Go Breaking My Heart", "River Deep, Mountain High" or "Lucky" from 'Duets', my fave S2 episode to date). He has watched each more times than I can count, and loves to listen to the tracks, too.

Great, right? Except for the fact that he now thinks that any music is called "Glee". We've been trying to reinforce the word 'music', but it has not yet taken. It's also difficult to ascertain which song from Glee he'd like to hear, as he wants to hear "GYEE!", but if the wrong song is chosen, it's accompanied by a chorus of "Nononononono!"

The worst (though possibly the funniest) occurs during mass. When we arrive in church, he announces "GYEE", so excited is he for music. Any piece of music during the mass - even quick parts of the Doxology - are huge hits. And as soon as they end, he announces "AGAIN!!". I've never been so happy that music is interspersed throughout mass! Hey - anything for a toddler to look forward to during that time is a bonus.

The resemblance is uncanny.

2010-11-06T23:40:00.002-04:00

The baby was oddly fussy tonight (I think it's a developmental stage), so this will have to be quick.

This child looks NOTHING like me as a baby. She does look like her brother at times (which is odd, because Teddy looked like me), but not like me. Who does she resemble? Her eyes are blue and may stay that way (Teddy's -- like mine as a baby -- were slate grey until they went brown) and the look like those of my mother-in-law and her family. One of her sisters is named Veronica, though she goes by Vonnie; she is Dave's godmother. As for the rest of her face...

The moment my Dad saw her (at 8 hours old), he pronounced: "She looks like Flo", my aunt for whom she was named (Veronica Floriana). My Mom agrees, and ever member of my Mom's family -- in particular, my Uncle Sergio who was 17 months younger than Flo and with whom he was always super close - comments on how much she resembles Flo. I think it's wonderful that she looks like the woman for whom she was named and who would have adored her.

My favourite movie

2010-11-05T21:41:00.003-04:00

We're chilling out on the couches this evening, showing my Mother-in-law my favourite movie. Astoundingly, she's never seen Casablanca before so we're rectifying that.

I saw this movie for the first time right after Dave and I got married. I was under the impression that it was really dull (Dave had tried to watch it in high school with a former girlfriend and couldn't get past the first 10 minutes). But I think he'd watched it during University and had really liked it because he owned a copy. My parents came up for a visit (this was before they moved up here) and since neither my Mom nor I had seen it, we decided to watch.

And oh! Were we ever transfixed, mesmerized and heartbroken. Had I seen it a month or two prior, our wedding song would likely have been 'As Time Goes By' ('The Way You Look Tonight' is a solid pick, but still). It's so witty and one can sympathize with all the main characters. I adore Humphrey Bogart, and Claude Rains is hilarious. And it's so sad, but satisfying. When we were in Los Angeles last year, we saw the studio where it was filmed, Sam's piano and a bunch of costumes from the film; I was thrilled.

(Aside: The scene with Viktor Lazlo leading 'La Marseillaise" is on and it still makes me tear up. Vive la France!)

I recently read "Round Up the Usual Suspects" - a book on the making of this movie. It's funny -- it was another movie cranked out at Warner Brothers during the height of the studio system in Hollywood. A number of writers (all very talented) worked on the script and it was tweaked even after primary filming ceased. The cast were lukewarm on the project. The studio was focused on larger films. No one anticipated its success neither at the time nor over time. But it has become an enduring masterpiece and one of the most quoted movies in American cinema.

If you haven't seen it - do!

Apparently, in addition to daily posting, NaBloPoMo will involved my movie recommendations. :)

Still sick, but (hopefully) on the mend

2010-11-04T23:16:00.003-04:00

Not too much to report today. It's cool and rainy, and the kids are ideally on the mend. Poor Veronica is SUPER congested. But Teddy seems to be perking back up, so that's good. When they are feeling better, I hope to write posts with more substance. Until then - it's stream-of-consciousness city.

My parents spent the day in Key West, visiting with Hemingway's cats, buying Dave his favourite bourbon at some hole-in-the-wall liquor store, and basking in the 29 deg C weather. As Dave replied "Bookers, a sketchy liquor store, Hemingway, cats,...and 29 degree weather… I don’t care what happens for the rest of your trip, this is officially the day I missed being there the most.

You know things are quiet when I am writing about my parents' adventures!

But I watched "Rudy" for the first time tonight. I knew I'd like it -- I am a sucker for sports movies -- and I did. But I'd heard it likened to "Hoosiers" and people. It is no "Hoosiers". Just thinking about that movie gives me goosebumps. If you haven't seen it - run, don't walk.

House full of sickies..

2010-11-03T23:29:00.002-04:00

God bless my Mother-in-law. Her presence has been amazing since we are dealing with a house filled with sick inhabitants.

It's primarily the kids. Teddy appears to have Rotavirus (or some other form of gastroenteritis). There was puking and now there's...other stuff. Plus, he is battling a cold so is super snotty (he may also be teething. Awesome!) So far (knock wood) Veronica has avoided the gastro but has caught the cold. The poor little monkey is so very congested. Dave and I are feeling poopy and run down. Boo!

It's crazy -- Teddy didn't get a cold until he was 8 or 9 months. This is poor Veronica's 2nd cold. I guess those are the perils of having an older sibling who passes on illnesses.

Let's hope that we're all on the mend soon. More substantial posts will have to wait until then.

Early November Odds and Ends

2010-11-02T23:19:00.003-04:00

My MIL arrived today for a week-long visit. The timing was perfect, as Teddy is a bit under the weather so it's nice to have to have another set of hands to help out. Plus, she is a lovely lady, so a visit is always nice.

My own parents, the lucky ducks, are on vacation. It will surprise no one who knows them that they are on a cruise. This one is a round trip from Baltimore visiting US ports primarily (Charleston SC, Key West and Miami FL) as well as Nassau and Coco Cay (RCI private beach). We will cruise again, though, once Miss V is old enough and has a passport. Yep - American children can get into Canada and back home with just a Birth Certificate. Canadian kids, though, not so much. Now that V can hold her head up, perhaps we can get a photo!

Veronica is 10 whole weeks old today! We're getting a kick out of the verbalizing ("Ugoo!" "Yeeee!") and her neck strength is excellent. Her hair continues to stick straight up. Poor kid.

Day 2 and my posts are already all over the place. I should use this month to finally write about the birth (only 2 months later; with Teddy, it was 9). Yes - that is what I will resolve to do!

Strangest. Hallowe'en. Ever.

2010-11-01T21:43:00.005-04:00

Saturday night, driving home from a visit to family in Kingston, the temperature kept dropping as precipitation fell. As we neared Ottawa, it became clear that it was happening - we'd have snow for Hallowe'en.

The high for the day was a balmy 3 degrees C (the heck?!?), which may have accounted for the fact that we had a grand total of SEVEN trick-or-treaters. Our street is just sedate, I guess. Our friend Isobel (who lives behind us...well, across the park and behind us) had the happening street. We ended up doing an emergency candy run to her place as she was running out of candy. Oh well - less for us to eat.

We did, however, let a mystified Teddy wander around outside after dark. He was really good at saying "Dank u", less consistent at "Tick o t'eat". He prowled around as Tigger. He wasn't sure what to make of it at first, but he warmed up to it, as you can see from photo 2.

He was adorable with his loot, which he thought was "Cheese". He placed it in a toy school bus one piece at a time, then wheeled that around. Mmm...cheese bus. Or bus cheese. Both are totally adorable and totally unappetizing.

As for Miss V, she dressed up in a 'Little Princess' outfit. But since it was freezing, she went outside in a teddy bear bunting bag. Check her out in all her chubby glory.

Let's hope that next year is a tad warmer!

Two months

2010-10-24T22:16:00.005-04:00

Miss Veronica is 2 months old today, while her brother turned 21 months earlier this week. Life with them has been awesome, but juggling two under two has made me an even WORSE blogger than normal. Though I would like to write about many of these things in more detail (and will try to later), here is what I have been up to since I last posted:

Cloth diapering both children. I LOVE it. HUGE props to Isha, who has shared her wealth of CD knowledge and let us borrow a bunch of diapers that Rory has outgrown. Additional props to several Facebook friends and all the twitter peeps (like Arwen and Lauren) who answered all of my questions. I will blog about my stash and CDing experience soon.
Breastfeeding. Knock on wood, it is going MUCH better this time. Veronica has chubby cheeks, arm and leg fat rolls, and eats like a champ. When she was weighed 3 weeks ago, she was just over 11lbs 4 oz. She's headed to the doctor on Tuesday, so I'll be able to report on her 2 month weight, but she's outgrown all of her 0-3 clothes (and some of her 3 month stuff) so I think we're a-ok.
Watching a lot of TV. What? I spend a lot of evenings on the couch. We are FINALLY watching "The Wire" (brilliant) and "Modern Family (LOVE!). I am all caught up on lots of current shows, too, like "Glee" and "Mad Men" and "30 Rock".
Amusing Teddy (and/or being amused by him). His vocabulary is exploding, and he is mastering skills left and right. He is obsessed with the music of "Glee". And he is so funny. He is also so gentle with his sister, whom he calls "Gonka!" or "Baby". One highlight has been his use of both definite articles ("A 'quirrel" when he sees a squirrel or "A car!" "A ball!") as well as personal pronouns ("I danth!"). My favourite? He now alerts us "I poop". I mean, it isn't hard to tell, but today, we asked him "Teddy, what did you do?" "I poop," was his immediate response.
Snuggling with Veronica. She has been an amazingly laid back baby who rarely cries and sleeps for decently long stretches. She is cooing and smiling and snuggling. Mmm...little babies.
Taking our first road trip as a family of 4. We visited my inlaws in Georgetown (with a stop in Kingston) as we were headed to the wedding of my oldest friend, Tanya. She, Dave and I all went to the same grade school (St. Francis of Assisi) and she married a guy we knew in high school after they reconnected over a decade after graduation. At this wedding were THREE of my ex boyfriends. It was HILARIOUS to see them all, and we had a blast. Veronica was a total doll, too.
We also celebrated Dave's 35th birthday on Sept. 12th, my 33rd on Oct. 2nd and our 6th wedding anniversary on Oct. 9th.

I would be remiss if I didn't thank my parents and inlaws, as well as my amazing husband, for their support. My friends have been wonderful, too (I Tan, I am looking at you). We are so lucky to be surrounded by such wonderful folks.

So - that's the gist of the past month or so. FYI - the shot above was taken on Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. Not my best work, but there you go!

I am contemplating doing NaBloPoMo again, just to force me to write. We will see...

I hope that all is well with you!

Week One...

2010-08-31T13:18:00.002-04:00

This one will be a list, since I am running on very little sleep today.

Veronica looks like an angry bird when she is displeased -- maybe it's the tufts of hair that stick up? It's super cute, and i have started calling her 'Birdy". Yep, Birdy and Button.
The first week postpartum is a crazy roller coaster ride. It wasn't as fraught as with Teddy (tongue tie, dehydration, jaundice) but we did run in to some problems (which - thank goodness - appear to have been resolved.
What problems? Well:

V. had meconium-stained amniotic fluid, and had ingested some. She also had shoulder distocia (more on this when I do a post about the birth). So - it took a bit of time to get her out, and she was BLUE (Apgar of 3). She got rushed to the cart where they intubated 3 times and did a few chest compressions. As a result -- her ability to suck was a bit compromised for the first few days.
When Jackie the midwife checked on her on Day 3 (my least fave postpartum day EVER) she, like Teddy, had dropped 11% (from 8lb15oz to 7lb14oz). UNLIKE Teddy, she'd been getting something, and was not dehydrated nor lethargic. But oh - did I ever cry.
Jackie suggested that we finger feed so that we could correct her suck reflex. I had one lonely bag of breast milk left in the freezer, so we thawed it. She would nurse, then would take as much of the supplement as she wanted. She corrected her suck quickly, and reduced the amount of supplement she was taking.
By the next day, she'd gained 3 ounces! So we stopped giving her a supplement and focused on breastfeeding only.
This unfortunately coincided with 'my milk coming in' - wicked engorgement which was partially milk and partially tissue edema. I have had engorgement due to severe mastitis and this was WAAAY worse. Also - I had not idea what was milk supply and what was retained water, so had no idea if she was getting a sufficient amount. Also - I had a feeling that her latch was ok, but since Teddy never latched well (never effective, constant pain) I had nothing to compare it to.
Armed with a bra full of cabbage, we plodded on, nursing whenever there was interest.
Yesterday, Claudia the midwife came by...and discovered that with only breastfeeding, she'd gained 7 oz in two days!!
Last night, she fed (good, consistent gulps) for an hour every 2 or 2.5 hours. I feel like I've been hit by a truck, but she is getting wrist rolls of fat and is a happy girl.

4. I am doing ok. Some physical stuff going on (my blood pressure is way high, so I am on beta blockers. Yep - my blood pressure went wonky AFTER giving birth.), but in general I am doing well. As is Dave.

5. Teddy is still a laugh riot. He gets a kick out of the baby so far. To be fair, she hasn't disrupted his life too much yet - he is still in day care this week (we weren't sure when I'd deliver, so arranged to have him go full time until Labour Day). We are taking advantage of that to get stuff squared away with Veronica (Dave is off on his firm's amazing parental leave). But he is very sweet with her, tyring to pet her and give her kisses. He calls her "Baby!!" and is very excited to see her.

6. Teddy is OBSESSED with the Journey medley in the final episode of Glee. It is literally the only TV he's ever seen (select musical numbers from Glee) and he LOVES it. Numerous times a day, he requests the "Na na na na" song and wants to hear it 'Again!" as soon as its over. He dances along and grins. He's hilarious - he true loves are the music of Glee (especially anything sung by Rachel) and anything with wheels. And compared to Veronica, he looks like he's 12 years old!

Ok...I should nap while she's napping. I will try to get more pictures up soon, as well as the birth story.

Introducing Veronica

2010-08-25T19:26:00.005-04:00

There's a new face around these parts.

Veronica Floriana McLean was born at 8:46 a.m. on August 24th. She weighed in at a whopping 8 lb 15oz and measured 23 inches. Here she is being checked out by midwife Jackie.

Labour was...interesting. After my wacky labour with Teddy -- wherein contractions NEVER got closer together than 6 minutes -- I was a bit taken aback when I awoke to really intense contractions at 3 am. By 5 a.m., they were every 2 minutes. By the time my parents got here to watch Teddy and we got to the hospital at 7, I was 10 cm. It was crazy -- less than 6 hours from start to finish. And drug free once again!

We had some hiccups with delivery, and I will write about those in a bit. But we are all happy and healthy, and though we ended up having to stay in the hospital for 24 hours, we are home now!

But the important stuff -- the reason for her name! She is named for my Aunt Flo - my Mom's sister to whom I was very close and who died last year. Since childhood, I had dreamed of naming a daughter after Aunt Floriana and now I have! The name Veronica is a favourite and a family name on both sides (it's also the name of Dave's godmother). And it's a nod to her Aunt Beth, who is an amazing woman and whom we hope will one day literally have Veronica of her own (it's her favourite girls name, too).

My life - and how I'm shadowing Olive Esther Delmage Hawley

2010-08-12T21:22:00.002-04:00

My Dad is into genealogy. I like it, too, but he's retired and has more time to devote to it. He really got into it when Teddy was born and seems to be back into it now that his first granddaughter will arrive any day. He's been inputting all sorts of stuff into ancestry.ca (which allows all sorts of cool cross-referencing with other trees) and is all excited to be sharing this information, first documented by my great, great Aunt Helen (my namesake, as I'm Sarah Helen) in the 1950s.

Anyway, I was playing around on the family tree and I noticed something kind of interesting. My major life events appear to be taking place exactly one hundred years after those of my great grandmother (Aunt Helen's sister, my Grandma's Mom).

Olive Esther Delmage was born in May of 1878; I was born in October of 1977. She married my grandfather, George Elmer Hawley, in Feb. 1904, while Dave and I were married in October of 2004. She had her first child, my great uncle Howard in 1908; if I hadn't miscarried before I had Teddy, I'd have had a baby in 2008 (as it was, Teddy was born in early 2009). I am having my 2nd child much earlier than she had hers, but still - I think it's kind of cool.

Today is the 59th anniversary of her death. I hope to be longer-lived than she was, as she died of leukemia in her 74th year. I guess we will see. I can't help but feel close to her, though. We have her old rocking chair in Teddy's room and I love to think of her, rocking her little boy the same way, one century ago.

Saturday Night Leftovers - 37 Week Edition

2010-08-07T19:38:00.003-04:00

Before we get going, I must give credit to Jen for this idea.

1) I couldn't get my act in gear for a "7 Quick Takes" post on Friday, so I thought I would harness this unexpectedly quiet Saturday night for an update. I apologize in advance for the lack of a cohesive theme.

2) Why is it unexpectedly quiet? Because we are supposed to be eating dinner at my cousin Erin's wedding right now. :( Erin is my only cousin on my Dad's side of the family (she and I are both only children) and she is 6 years younger than me. Her wedding, however, is a four hour drive from here and I am just too uncomfortably pregnant to get there, celebrate, stay overnight, head to a brunch at my Aunt's house tomorrow (an hour in the other direction) while wrangling a toddler. I also didn't want to risk the situation that Arwen had with Camilla - heading out of town for a wedding and going into labour unexpectedly. I am sad to miss it, though. That said - her fiance Ashley is wonderful and they will soon be moving almost around the corner from my Nonna as Erin embarks on her PhD at the University that all our parents attended. We'll get to see them more often, so that's great.

So - Congratulations, Erin and Ashley! We cannot wait to see the photos and to hang out with you again in person. I hope that my parents and Nonna are behaving themselves!

3) Also about to start University at that same school (albeit her undergrad) is my next cousin on my Mom's side - Rachel. She just turned 18 and she got into one of the most competitive programs in the province (so proud of her). But man - she's going to University! I was 14 when she was born (Aunt Pat and Fred's first) and she was the first baby that I spent lots of time with. And now - she's 5 ft 11 and off to school. I FEEL OLD!

4) It is also my mother-in-law's birthday. Not a huge milestone, but a special day nonetheless. Happy Birthday, Nanny!

5) So - I am now officially at full term. HOORAY! I suspect that I won't be going into labour in the next day or two -- I am not yet in full on nesting mode. The baking soda, though in the bathroom, remains in the box and I have not yet stolen Dave's toothbrush to scrub grout. I do have insomnia and...other...issues, but that's just normal. And I really want to eat some ice cream! But baby is measuring exactly on for dates (just like her older brother). I wonder if she'll be on her due date like he was? Bets? It's Aug. 27th, for those of you keeping track at home.

6) Teddy is a riot. We are still contending with throwing - gah - but we remain consistent with consequences for actions. It has been a bit of a challenge lately -- his daycare provider has been away and we've had grandparents and others helping out (as I am still supposed to be resting). The lack of consistency has had him testing limits more and more, but the timeouts/putting the thrown toy in "toy jail" appear to be working.

7) His language skills have TAKEN OFF lately. His comprehension is awesome, and he's now able to modulate his wants by using "Yeah!", "Ok" or "Nah" when we give him options. He dances all the time, and spends much of the day giggling. He is particularly attached to Dave right now, which is not a bad thing (considering the imminent arrival of little sister).

8) Also hilarious of late - how easily he goes down to sleep. If we suspect that he is tired before nap time or bed time, we ask him "Are you ready for bed" and almost invariably get an "ok" or "yeah". He has, on occasion, walked up the stairs himself and waited by his crib for us to put him in. It's so nice to have a better sense of what he wants!

9) I should get some pics of him up here, huh? I am such a slacker. I will work on that this week. That and the post of lactation, since he is almost finished the final bag of frozen breastmilk in the freezer. Not too shabby for the kid who never could latch, as he is approaching 19 months.

10) I am nervous about breastfeeding with baby #2. I mean, I have no doubt that I can lactate after doing so for 14 months with Teddy. And I am very hopeful that we won't have to deal with tongue-tie again, though we have better strategies if it crops up. But I am nervous about getting the mechanics right. However, there is no sense borrowing trouble (especially since we have contingency plans in place). As I learned with Teddy, you just cannot predict how things will go until you have a real infant who is trying to get a meal at Restaurant Mom. But if you're praying folk - I'd appreciate any you can spare.

11) As I mentioned above, Teddy's beloved babysitter has been away for 2.5 weeks. My inlaws came to help, then my parents took him for a week at their place (we went out several evenings to see him). This week has been a blend of me, Dave and my Mom/Nonna helping out. My parents, grandmother and inlaws have been so awesome - we appreciate your help so much! He is a busy little guy, and tiring him out is a tiring prospect. You have been amazing - thank you so much.

12) My husband is a total and utter pro-star. He does a tonne around the house and is amazing with Teddy, but he has gone above and beyond lately. He has never made me feel guilty about resting and is just generally awesome. I am so very lucky to have him as my partner; there's no one else I can imagine doing this with. I love you, Dave! I hope that you are enjoying "Inception".

13) Speaking of "Inception", it was actually filming on the WB set when we toured in while in LA back in October. We saw Leo's hybrid on set, and saw a bunch of extras in fancy duds milling around on the backlot. It was very hush hush, but it's neat to have heard about the movie all those months ago.

14) We finally saw Toy Story 3 (thanks, Mom and Nonna, for letting us sneak out while you all slept on Thursday night). Toy Story 2 is possibly my fave Disney movie (that or the Lion King) and I liked #3 almost as much. But oh - did I cry. I am not surprised at all, but did I ever cry. What a delightful movie.

15) I think that is enough minutae for the moment. I hope that all is well with all of you. Anyone who read to the end of this deserves kudos -- you rock!

Ending the radio silence

2010-07-20T21:08:00.002-04:00

I am sitting here, drinking a cup of red raspberry leaf tea, reflecting on the fact that it has been 18 months since I last had a cup. Yes - Teddy is 18 months old today! It deserves an entry all to itself, this milestone, but I did want to note it. Another milestone is the fact that I am approaching 35 weeks in this pregnancy. CRAZY!

So - the radio silence. There was stuff going on and I didn't want to talk about it until it was officially sorted out. And now it has been, so I can share.

June was a busy month, as I channeled as much of the 'nesting' energy I had into getting stuff ready for Baby #2 - clothes washed and put away, etc. Plus - basic life stuff needed tending (working full time + toddler = lots to do!).

The Canada Day/Independence Day long weekend was awesome! We once again headed south to a wedding in Michigan - my dear friend Katie got married in Ann Arbor on the 4th (congratulations, Katie and Nathan!!), and it was a blast. We hung out with old friends, we shopped, we met Arwen and Bryan and Camilla and Blaise -- it was great. Arwen and Bryan are amazing hosts and the kids are delightful; we had such a wonderful visit with them! All in all - a magnificent time.

And then...things started to get a bit strange. The heat and humidity started really taking a toll on me - massive swelling, horrible nausea, headaches, terrible fatigue. My blood pressure had been fluctuating over the past month, and I am iron deficient, so my midwives were a bit concerned (I have pica - all I want to do is eat ice. I am not kidding). I spent several days just relaxing, but I was getting Braxton-Hicks contractions every single time I moved and I just felt terrible. My midwives suggested that I limit work, and I did. But every single time I went in I felt like I had been hit by a truck and I spent all day with faux contractions, serious pelvic pressure and brutal low back pain.

The worst came overnight on Sunday the 11th - barely any sleep due to contstant B-H contractions and what were starting to feel like actual, very light contractions (I was 33 weeks at this point). I paged the midwives and they told me to head to the hospital for monitoring. Happily - I was not in pre-term labour. But they were concerned because all this was happening after I'd spent the weekend taking it easy. Not wanting to risk it, they told me to discontinue work.

And so - I did. I went in last Thursday to hand in my pass and Blackberry (and the team threw me a shower that they pulled together in 1.5 days!). I am on sick leave until I officially start my maternity leave in August, and I continue to take it easy. I am not on bedrest, thankfully, but I have found that anything more that 1 outing per day (like a family trip to Costco, for example) really takes it out of me.

I am not really sure the reason for this -- summer pregnancy? Or maybe my body is just telling me to chill (I try to cram too much into my days, I think, and it was taking a toll). I am so grateful that I have the ability to take this time to rest and to keep this kid cooking as long as possible.

So - that is the big news from here. Since I am off -- maybe I will blog a bit more? Stranger things have been known to happen, right?

Seven Quick Takes – My Poor, Neglected Blog Addition

2010-06-04T08:29:00.002-04:00

1. I cannot believe that I didn’t post at all in May. Well – I can, actually. The trip, plus illness that we are just crawling out from under, has thrown us for a loop. I have been sick since EASTER. Yep – Easter Sunday I came down with a cold, and it has been one cold after another since then. Teddy and Dave have been sick for this same time period, too. BLAH! We are (fingers crossed) all on the mend, but it does make for early bedtimes and no time for blogging.

2. The trip was FANTASTIC. The ship itself was amazing – almost brand new – and we had a wonderful time. And one of my girlfriends works onboard! During our fall trip, we were gobsmacked to find out that my friend Shannon (from Georgetown, fellow Guelph student leader) happened to be running the youth program aboard. She and her husband have worked on ships on and off years, but I hadn’t heard that they’d gone back after a break as they live in Australia now. She, in turn, didn’t know we’d had a baby (she doesn’t check Facebook while working onboard). We showed up at the youth area open house and she nearly keeled over! And we quickly discovered that she’d also be running to program onboard THIS cruise. Anyway, we hung out with her (and her awesome husband) and her staff (who LOVED Teddy) and it was wonderful. Lots more on the trip to come, promise!

3. Work has been kicking my butt. My regular job has some tight, tight deadlines and we have a very small team (like 3 worker bees). In addition to that, I’ve been pulled onto a high-profile special project on a subject near and dear to my heart…with an every CRAZIER deadline. My manager agreed to let me participate (she really had no choice) but it is a struggle to carve out time for both. And it is exhausting. It is also hard to believe that I only have 10 weeks until I head off on maternity leave!

4. Speaking of maternity leave, pregnancy 2 keeps chugging along. I am at 28 weeks today! And has the 2nd trimester ever been a joy compared to #1. I am starting to get a bit more uncomfortable, and I am nervous about being pregnant during the summer heat, but I am still excited.

5. As of last Friday, we are the proud owners of a minivan. Yep – living the dream. Our beloved Protegé5 was approaching 7, and we knew that we couldn’t fit 2 carseats in the back and still have room for anyone to sit comfortably in the front. And before you say it (Jorge), crossovers, etc. were not for us. We wanted a car in which at least 6 people – adults included – could sit comfortably and one that could grow with our family over the next few years, as more kids come along (if we are so blessed). Also – for what you get in terms of power, options and sheer ability to transport people, minivans are a great value. We’d been researching the purchase for a while and had test driven pretty much every minivan on the market. We narrowed our choice down, and ultimately went with the Grand Caravan. We got an amazing deal – with research and negotiation we got it for 2% above their invoice cost. Plus – there are crazy rebates (like $7k worth) and 0% financing (we could have paid cash, but I’d rather have my money work for me, thanks). We got one with a swanky entertainment system and nice options, and we are very happy. Plus, the extended warranty Chrysler offers is a steal – it covers everything other than brakes, tires, wiper blades and headlights – for 5-7 years. Oil changes, filters, all other maintenance will be covered, and roadside assistance, too. I will take it!

6. Teddy continues to be a joy. He is a busy, busy kid – his toddler run is a treat to behold, and he just loves to tackle stairs. He is 16.5 months and he continues to love people – waving at everyone unprompted, making friends wherever he goes. His vocabulary isn’t terribly large, but I have no worries about his comprehension. He has no trouble following requests like: “Please bring Mommy your blue ball/green truck” or most others, for that matter. He is also a bit of a mimic. When my Mom tells him not to touch, she unconsciously waves her finger. Within minutes, he was waving his back saying “Don’ such!” as he avoided touching things. He has also referred to my Dad as both Bampa (preferred) and Granpoop, and my Mom as “Irma”. One of his first sentences was “Dat Bampa” when he spotted my Dad from afar.

7. I have so many posts that I want to write. Perhaps I should make a list here about the topics so I will have some sort of record? It will make me more accountable. Topics include:
- our trip
- a request for advice on being sibling/having siblings/parenting siblings
- a record of my lactation journey with Teddy (aka expressing breast milk for my non-latching, tongue-tied baby…for 14 months.) The milk stores in the freezer are almost gone, but he’s nearly 17 months now!
- other topics about which you might be curious?

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend!

Hello from rainy Fort Lauderdale!

2010-04-18T21:39:00.003-04:00

I am updating my woefully neglected blog from a hotel room in Fort Lauderdale. We flew in yesterday in anticipation of our next adventure -- a Transatlantic cruise. It's actually one of the few ways that ANYONE is getting to Europe right now! But we are super excited. Teddy is just old enough to do this one (you have to be over a year old, and they reposition east during April and May) and I am not quite TOO pregnant (you cannot cruise during your 24th week or beyond; I will be 23w4d when we disembark). I suspect that this will be our last trip to the EU for a while, what with a new little one en route. And this time? It appears to be a GIRL!

Teddy has been an absolute trooper so far. He was so happy and friendly during the travel here and through his encounters with people in restaurants and malls. He adores my parents (did I mention that we are travelling with them? Those of you who know me IRL are in no way surprised, I am sure!) and is so thrilled to be spending days and days with them. We are all fighting cold (boo) and the weather here has been really rainy, but that's no big deal. Vacation! Woot!

So, we flew down yesterday afternoon and got our minivan. We did VERY little last night. After a quick dinner, my Dad and Dave met up with some of my Dad's co-moderators (on a watch forum) for drinks. Today, we hit a local parish, puttered around Ft Lauderdale, then headed to a nearby outlet mall. We did some shopping, but I have been spoiled by the selection and prices of the stores in VT so I didn't get as much as I thought. We headed back to the hotel during a torrential downpour. We eventually headed out for dinner on Las Olas Blvd., then drove back here. BOTH times we puttered along the shore, we spotted no end of crazies. There was one dude who absolutely made Dave's day, but I will leave the story to him.

So - crossing the Atlantic starting tomorrow. Teddy has now seen 2 oceans and visited 7 states. He will hit countries 3, 4, 5 and 6 (Portugal, Spain, France and Italy) en route. We will be onboard a BRAND NEW SHIP (it is only a couple months old) for 14 nights, then we will spend a few days in Rome.

I will do my best to update from aboard the Equinox (one of the perks of the loyalty club level we've just achieved is a bunch of free internet minutes). We have six days at sea before we hit the Azores, so I may not have too much to say, but I will do my best!

An announcement - and an introduction.

2010-03-22T12:35:00.003-04:00

Internet, I'd like to introduce you to someone: Humpy 2. (If you're curious as to the nickname, you can check out the story behind Teddy's nickname in utero.)

This photo was taken almost 5 weeks ago, at 12 weeks. We waited to say anything to most people (other than family and close friends) until after that point, since I had a miscarriage at 12 weeks back in 2007. All seems to be going well this time around, and we've another ultrasound scheduled for the 29th. This one - the morphological one - is my favourite. Yes, we will hopefully find out the sex, but seeing the heart chambers working and all the organs is just so very cool!

But oh! internets! How I have wanted to share this with you. The first trimester exhaustion - coupled with my starting a brand new job and having a toddler - was deadly. But it was nothing to the brutal, brutal nausea and vomitting. In order to function, I had to go on Dicl*ctan. It helped, but I had to make sure that I ate something every couple of hours, and the snack had to contain protein or else! But with fears of listeriosis (another outbreak in Canada - that's one during each pregnancy for me), my 'quick and easy' protein options are limited. After one particularly bad day, I ended up crying and declaring to Dave "I am SO SICK OF CHEESE STRINGS!"

Since the start of the 2nd trimester - happily followed by warmer, sunnier weather - things have been looking up. I have much more energy and I am no longer taking any sort of meds. I do still need to eat frequently, but I can handle that! I love my midwife, and am very happy to be able to use their service again.

Most importantly - we are THRILLED! It's going to be a bit crazy, with a 19 month old and a newborn, but others have done it before - we'll suck it up! Due date is August 27th.

I will be sure to let you know if Teddy is expecting a little brother or a little sister -- as long as Humpy 2 cooperates next Monday!

40 Bags - an Lenten update

2010-03-21T14:03:00.000-04:00

There are only two weeks left of Lent, and while I had been making headway in some areas (meatless days, prayer), I was struggling with the 40 bag challenge. I started out strong:

Saturday, Feb. 20th
1. Food for foodbank (dropped at church)
2-4. Bag Sarah clothes - to Hub (note - this is a 2nd hand store where my Mom volunteers, and where the proceeds are used to support the needy in their community)
5. Bag of Real Simple Magazines - to Hub
6-7. Bag of clothes back to Isha (more on this in another post)

Then - due to illness...and more illness...we stalled out at 7. Until yesterday, that is. My wonderful parents came down for the day with the express purpose of watching Teddy while we tackled a whole bunch of purging projects in the basement.

Our basement is large, and we have an enormous crawlspace. We'd been taking advantage of this, piling things down there (neatly, but without any rhyme or reason). Also housed downstairs are the 8 bookshelves of books we inherited from my Aunt Flo. We'd gone through them last year, pulling all the duplicates and triplicates (I am not kidding - we had overlapping tastes) and all the books we'd never read (I don't need 35 vegetarian and/or low fat cookbooks). We had a whole bunch of old VHS tapes (that had stuff like Felicity taped from TV during the original series run) and some old movies. We also had a TONNE of cardboard boxes we'd been saving - ones for things like the TV, the jumperoo, etc. Out it all went.

The majority of it went out in boxes (that were then refilled) or on its own, so I am approximating in terms of shopping bags:

4 boxes of books to our local Ottawa Public Library branch (where the librarian was so pleased at the condition of the books) = 8 bags
2 more boxes of books for the library (these are the last things to go -- the librarian ran out of storage room, and we'll bring them this week) = 4 bags
2 boxes of less pristine books to the Hub = 4 bags
1 HUGE box of VHS movies to the Hub = 2 bags
2 boxes of books, tapes to my parents = 4 bags
4 bags of Dave/Teddy/Sarah clothes for the Hub = 4 bags
3 large piles of collapsed cardboard for recycling = 4 bags
1 overstuff garbage bag of old VHS tapes, drop sheets, and cassette tapes (sadly, cannot recycle these) = 3 bags
2 old scanners, 1 VCR with remote and 1 DVD with remote** to the Salvation Army (they do electronic recycling if they can't sell them, but all still work) = 2 bags
1 bag of non-perishable food for the food bank (dropped at church today

That's a total of 32 bags (+4 of books we'll soon bring to the library) for a total of 36 yesterday! And almost all are going charity or being recycled!

That brings our Lenten total to 43. I have surpassed the goal, but we've a few more things to do over the next two weeks. We have a whole bunch of empty bottles to return for the deposits, and I should shred some old paper documentation...that should buy us another 10 bags or so (I wish I were exaggerating!). Plus, I will be bringing more food to church to donate to the food bank (since I kept forgetting Sunday after Sunday!).

Speaking of things I will do over the next several weeks - I will be posting here. There are some announcements and stories coming, and I have waited long enough to post. Stay tuned!

Lent begins

2010-02-17T19:48:00.003-05:00

I've read a number of articulate, stirring posts on this Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. (Arwen's is amazing, as usual.) I cannot even pretend to have the ability to write like that, but I want to write something about my Lenten plans. If for no other reason, I will have an official record to keep me accountable for my Lenten sacrifice(s).

I am going to focus on areas of doing without and clearing the noise and getting closer to God.

Doing without

- I am going to go meatless on Fridays and at least one other day of the week. We eat a number of meatless meals, but I am going to do this far more consistently and with a purpose. Note - this is OPTIONAL here in Canada. Just like some of the HDO's in the US (we only have 2 non-Sunday ones - Christmas and January 1st).

- I am going to curb my judgmental thoughts - those towards others and the world in general. The silent rants at the "slowpokes" on the bus, the grumbling about the cold - when I catch myself doing this, I am going to focus on the blessings in my life - blessings that are more bountiful than I deserve.

Clearing the Noise and Getting Closer to God

- We are going to do the "40 Bags in 40 Days" Challenge wherein we will divest ourselves of a bag of stuff for every day of Lent. Due to the reality of our lives, we won't be able to do a bag a day (and by bag, I am aiming for shopping bag), but this will motivate us to be more organized and less distracted by STUFF. I will post updates as to what was in the bags - stuff for the foodbank? Books from our duplicate pile? Old clothes? Shredded paper? How thrilling, huh? But it will be a good exercise in humility, I think - how much we have and how lucky we are.

- I am going to pray at least one hour of the Liturgy of the Hours - either morning or evening, if not both. I did this during Advent and it really helped me focus, and I think it will help my resolve.

So - there you go. What are you doing for Lent?

Who wants to see birthday photos?

2010-02-16T21:05:00.007-05:00

Will cute pictures distract you from my lengthy absence?

Oh internets, I am so sorry. I am so, so tired, and trying to blog in the two hours between when Teddy goes to bed and I should has been fruitless. I am going to persevere tonight, though.

So - Teddy turned one on the 20th of January. My parents came down in the afternoon and GrandmaNonna made one of his favourite dinners - BisNonna's chicken and potatoes. He was thrilled.

She also made a traditional Italian cake, which is filled with lemon creme. He really didn't know what to make of it (see photgraphic evidence). Nor did he understand why he was getting presents. But he received a lot of phone calls (Nanny and Poppy, Uncle Barry, Aunt Wendy and the girls, BisNonna, Aunt Pat, Fred and the girls, and many more), received some wonderful gifts and had a great day.

They threw him a little party at Daphne's the following day, too.

The Sunday following his birthday, we threw a little party for some of his friends (aka our friends with children). Rory came with his parents (Aunt Isha and Uncle Joe, and Emma), Claire brought Uncle Mark and Aunt Tania, and Sarah and Dave brought Elliott and Adeleine and Isaac (their twins). Below, you can see an excited (and blurry) Teddy hanging with all the kids. We served ice cream cake, which Teddy did not understand. "Why is this so cold?" he seemed to ask. The adults, Emma and Elliott enjoyed it, though. And Teddy once again got some cool swag (Mommy still has to write the Thank you notes. This weekend - I swear!).

Are these (blurry) kids not super cute. Poor Claire didn't even make the shot.

The week after Teddy's birthday party was fun but uneventful. Then - the visitors descended! Daphne was away for over a week at the beginning of February. Her son and his wife who live in Korea had a baby and she wanted to meet her grandson. As a result, Teddy's grandparents looked after him. My Mom (and Dad, at various points) watched Teddy on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. My inlaws came up to Ottawa and watched Teddy on the Thursday and Friday. They stayed until Superbowl Sunday, when my parents came back and watched Teddy on the following Monday and Tuesday.

Then, four days later, our friends Blaine and Colleen came up for the weekend with Aidan, their son who's 4 months older than Teddy. It was a busy weekend -- Aidan is very active and climbs like a monkey - but we skated on the canal and watched the Olympics. I also attended a baby shower for our friend Cathy.

On the Teddy-specific front:

he's weighing in around 25 lbs and continues to be a great eater. He's down to two bottles of bmilk per day (and two of cow's milk) and that's going well. My supply has totally dropped, but with the frozen stash we will make it to at least 14 months. I am going to write a whole post about my lactating experience, so you squeamish readers - take note!
he is such a happy kid. He cried a couple times when my inlaws were here and my father-in-law exclaimed "That's the first time in 48 hours that he's shed a tear!"
he is walking like a total champ, and can easily pull himself up. He still crawls, but generally only to a place where he can either push or pull himself into the standing position.
he's trying to speak - he will say 'cat' and tries to say 'apple'. Lots of 'Dada!" and some "Mama!". He makes a crazy "Aieeeee-ooooo" sound when he follows the cats. On Sunday, he followed Aidan around making the same sounds, so ???

We are doing well - keeping very busy with work and home. I am indulging in lots of Olympic viewing - I LOVE the games. Dave and I get super excited watching events where Canadians can do well - you should have seen us with the Alexandre Bilodeau win. Alex's father works at Dave's firm, so we knew about him well before the games, but he's just so wonderful! Such a sweet kid! Inspired by his older brother with Cerebral Palsy! Fluently bilingual and so optimistic and gracious! He's doing the country proud.

I'd better get ready for bed, but don't worry. I have a bunch of stories to tell soon, so I won't be away for long, I promise!

Guess who's one today?

2010-01-20T08:30:00.005-05:00

I can't believe that we've already spent a year with this kid. It's been awesome.

I am alive, I swear!

2010-01-10T19:45:00.002-05:00

Sorry for the radio silence. Last week was my first week back at work - at a new job no less - and I am TIRED. I am in no way a morning person, but I am up at 6 and out the door before 7. This means that I can get home by 4:30 and nab Teddy from the babysitter. He's having a great time there, though, so that makes it easier. I'm doing lots of meal planning and getting organized during the evening, so that helps. My Mom just brought us dinner options for this week, too - she rocks. We are keeping our heads above water.

The new job (about which I am not going to say much, obvs) is going as well as can be expected. The team seems really nice, and the work is challenging, so that is great. And it's in the same building in which I've worked since January 2006, so other than heading to a different bank of elevators, it's very familiar.

Teddy, who is weeks away from turning one, is all sorts of hilarious. He's been walking for almost a month, but now he's figuring out how to crawl. It'll help him get to objects which he can use to pull himself up, so that's good. And he's still super sunny. When he gets excited to see someone he likes, he scrunches up his nose in a grin and waves with his whole arm. When you get close, he grasps your arm or hand with both hands and squeezes while exclaiming "EEE!". He's a sweetheart, and he is charming people at the sitter's house, too.

Dave has been amazing. He does all the morning stuff with Teddy, as well as the drop off. He still does the bedtime routine, too. Teddy's lucky to have such an awesome Dad, and I am pretty darn lucky too.

So that's what's new with us. I'll have to change my blog tagline, soon, though, since I am back at work. No more EI for me; back to contributing to it.

Decade in Review

2009-12-31T19:47:00.003-05:00

I am shamelessly stealing this idea from Beth.

2000 began at a random bar with Di in Markham (before she and Mike got together!), involved spending the day with Katie and her Michigan girls, then attending a Hip concert with Dave and the Georgetown boys. Dave and I were not together, but I'd just broken up with Josh and the Mac/Mc reunion took place just over 1 week later. That year, we both finished our undergrad degrees, graduating the same week that Leah was born. In May, I went to Thailand, Korea and Japan for my 2nd study abroad through Michigan State (this time for grad school credit). Dave moved back to Georgetown, Ben moved to Chicago, Beth to Vancouver. I visited East Lansing, MI several times and went to Cooperstown. Leanne (not my maid of honour, the other one) moved in with me and I started grad school, once again at Guelph. Dave started working for the company he still calls his employer.

In 2001, NYE was spent in Montreal with Sarah (before she was with Kevin), Dave and assorted Guelph friends. I was still in graduate school, working as a research assistant and TA and receiving some great scholarships. I was done classes, though, so my schedule was my own. As a result, I travelled A LOT! In February, Dan and I visited Ben in Chicago. In March, I went to Paris with my folks. In April, Dave, roommate Leanne and I went to DisneyWorld (my first time). And that summer, Katie and I embarked on an amazing road trip - NY, DC and Boston - visiting friends and playing tourist. We spent time at the WTC (in line at the TKTS booth) and a couple weeks later, I was a mess when I watched the towers fall. In November, Dan and I headed back to Chicago for Ben's birthday. And at Christmas, Beth and her then husband came back to Ontario. They were with us when we got the call that Dave's grandfather had died after a battle with Alzheimer's.

2002 did not have an auspicious start. Dave and I spend NYE on the couch in my parents' basement, suffering from strep throat and getting psyched up for his Poppy's funeral. The year improved, though. In March, I went to Belgium with my parents. Dave and I went to Michigan several times. I submitted my thesis in June, and immediately went to the DR with Di and Dawn. I successfully defended my thesis in early August, and Sierra was born a week later. I moved back to Georgetown. In September, Dave and I went to Ottawa (I chatted with a future boss at Health Canada), and Jorge got married. In October, I celebrated my 25th birthday with my Nonna in Italy. And I spent the fall doing occasional supply teaching and applying for jobs in the government.

2003 was rung in at the apartment of Jorge and his new wife; they hosted a party. Soon after, Dave and I went on a trip to DisneyWorld. Happily, I was offered a job with the CFIA in February. I worked part of the time in Guelph and part in Ottawa. In late March, I found out that I'd been accepted into the MTP with Health Canada, and waited on details. In June, I found out that I'd start language training in Toronto in the fall, and would move to Ottawa after I finished. With details FINALLY in place, Dave was given the ok to ring shop ;). His Nanny died at the very beginning of July, though, so the ring was burning a hole in his pocket until July 6th. We set the date for the following Thanksgiving of 2004. In August, Dave and I visited Ben and Erin in Chicago. In October, my parents took us on an engagement trip to Baltimore and DC on the -1 anniversary of our wedding. I also left the CFIA and started language training in downtown Toronto. That's where I met Tania (and eventually Mark). In December, Sarah and Kevin got married.

2004 began in Woodstock at the apartment of Sarah and Kevin, who'd just returned from their honeymoon. It was a stressful year, with language training (if I didn't demonstrate proficiency at a very high level, I would have no job - a fate that awaited several of my friends). Wedding planning took place throughout the year, and I took a week of unpaid leave in March to go to Paris with my parents. In May, Blaine and Colleen were married. In June, my bridal party converged in Vancouver for a bachorette weekend; it was amazing. It was also the weekend that my maid of honour - Leanne and bridesmaid Justin started dating. It didn't work out, but it was a riot to see! In early August, my parents and I went to Quebec City, and I went through a stress-related near breakdown as I prepared for my oral interaction exam (I'd breezed through the written ones). I did very well on the exam, though, and got my level on the 20th of August. Plans to move to Ottawa were set in motion. September was a blur of finalizing wedding details and moving and job plans. Di and Mike got married on the 25th. On the 27th, movers packed my stuff. On the 28th, I moved. I started my new job on the 30th and on the 6th of October, I flew back to the GTA to get married. Talk about a crazy week! Our wedding was on October 9th, one week after my 27th birthday. The next day, we flew off to Venice for our honeymoon, a Med cruise. We got back at the end of October, and headed back to Ottawa. Dave started to work in the Ottawa office on the 1st of November. And at the end of December, my father retired.

We rang in 2005 at Tania's apartment, dragging Jen and Greg along. By early in the year, it was becoming clear that the spot I was working at Health Canada - a place I thought I'd be doing my dream job - was more of a nightmare. I spent months trying to come up with ways to improve the situation, but I was thwarted at every turn. Happily, I was on a developmental program and was able to leave without too many problems, although I stuck it out (fighting depression) until August. I started a job in another policy shop, but soon realized that policy was not for me. I did some soul searching and realized that maybe, just maybe, I'd like Human Resources. And one of my acquaintances -- also on the program - called me out of the blue because she was in an HR assignment and thought I'd be a great fit to replace her. Dave and I did some travelling, too. In April, we went to Quebec City to vouch for Jen and Greg so they could get married in that province. In July, we had a big trip to Michigan for Ben and Erin's wedding and to visit Katie. In August, we celebrated Jen and Greg's wedding in Quebec. And over Labour Day, we went to Las Vegas to celebrate Dave's 30th. I expected to tolerate Vegas, but I LOVED it! We celebrated our anniversary in Vermont. In November, we went to Nova Scotia (I went to a conference and Dave tagged along) and Beth came to visit us. Oh, and in family news, my Mom retired in March, and my parents moved to Almonte, only 45 mintues away. They love it and we are so happy for them!

2006 began in our apartment, once again celebrating with Greg and Jen. And two days later, I began my new MTP assignment, one that would change to course of my career. It was baptism by fire - running recruitment campaigns and job fairs, then taking over as coordinator of an elite recruitment program all in 6 months! My director was amazing and I clicked with the team. I was exhausted, though -- from January to May, I worked 7.5 weeks of OVERTIME (you know, in addition to my normal work week). Dave and I managed to squeeze in a trip to the Caribbean in early February. Jacob was born at the very end of that month. And then, things started to go off the rails. My Aunt Flo had what we then thought was a stroke in early March. It turned into a series of brain bleeds that completely incapacitated her and forced her to live the rest of her life in nursing homes. Beth's marriage fell apart, and her long-awaited PhD defence was blocked by a vindictive external examiner. Dave and I had booked our trip to Vancouver already, though, so we headed out to distract her. In April, I went to a conference in St. John's and my parents came out to play tourist with me. And in June, Dave, my parents and I went England and embarked on a cruise of the Baltic Sea. Russia was amazing, and my parents fell in love with cruising. In August, I flew back to Vancouver for Beth's rescheduled defence. We celebrated my 29th birthday and our anniversary on a cruise to Bermuda. And we wound down the year with the decision that we wanted to start looking for a house - in Blackburn Hamlet.

2007 began quietly in our apartment. January was my busiest time of year at work, and the overtime was nuts. As usual, I had strep and/or a sinus infection for the better part of 2 months. At the beginning of February, we headed to Vegas for a week-long getaway, including a side trip to Utah and one to urgent care for my illness. And we started looking for houses with our amazing agent, viewing everything that came on the market in the area. In early March, we were outbid on the first house we'd liked. At the end of that month, I flew out to Vancouver to see Beth. Several days later, we flew to Calgary to meet up with Dave and hang out with Justin for a week. Calgary isn't my favourite, but the Rockies are amazing and we liked Drumheller too. In May, we found the house we ended up buying and made an offer right away. We celebrated with an already-planned trip to Vermont. We spent most of June trying to pack up the homes of my Aunt Flo and Nonna - both pack rats - after my Nonna sold her houses in what had become the Queen's student ghetto. We helped her move to a much nicer neighbourhood at the end of that month, inheriting a great deal of Flo's furniture and her amazing book collection. That all went into storage as we prepared for our move in August. And right in the middle of the move, I had to go on a mandatory MTP graduation course outside of town. It was an amazing week! In July, we visited Dave's family in Newfoundland and attended Tania and Mark's wedding while in September, we went to Edmonton for Deepa and David's big day. And we celebrated my 30th birthday in Vegas with Blaine and Colleen. In November, I flew to Chicago to see Katie and for Ben's 30th birthday. And in December, I suffered a miscarriage at 12 weeks. Happily, Beth came to visit us after Christmas!

2008 was another quiet night at home as I prepared for my busiest time at work. January was brutal and I was once again ill, but a treat was around the corner. On February 1st, Dave and I flew to Auckland for a cruise of New Zealand and Australia. It was AMAZING! We met awesome people, too, and we flew to Atlanta to meet up with them in July. By then, I was pregnant with Teddy! In August, I flew out to Vancouver to see Beth (poor Dave was out of vacation time) and my parents joined me for a cruise to Alaska. As the year wound down, it was clear that big changes were happening at my work, but I didn't feel right changing jobs with only a month or two left to work before my maternity leave. The horrible transit strike in Ottawa was the straw that broke the camel's back; I went off on leave at the very end of the year. And at Christmas I made a sad prediction - that neither Flo nor my Grandma would be with us at Christmas 2009.

2009 began quietly at home because I was VERY pregnant. I spent early January nesting and on the 20th, Teddy was born. After his tongue-tie became apparent - and the release didn't really work - I began my romance with the pump. The thrush and mastitis made that romance short-lived, but the expressing continues to this day (nearly a year!). By February, it was clear that Flo was fading; she died in early March. We brought Teddy to meet Great-Grandma Mary and Great-Grandpa Jack in April, and they weren't looking well. Grandpa died in August and Grandma in October. And our dear friend Greg - husband of Jen - fell ill in the Spring and took his own life in July. I hope that I attend far fewer funerals in 2010. In August, my job evaporated. The job functions moved elsewhere and 3 people (who make more $) are now doing the job - no wonder I was so stressed! In a positively providential turn of events, I found another interesting job - one for which I was their number one choice - 2 days later! At the end of August, Teddy was baptised. In September, we flew to Vancouver to visit Beth, Deepa and other friends. My parents joined us and the 5 of us embarked on a cruise down the coast to LA, visiting Maggie and Katie en route and celebrating my birthday and our 5th anniversary. We welcomed lots of new friends into the world. And we had a lovely Christmas.

2010 promises new challenges. I head back to work on Monday the 4th of January and Teddy will be off to Daphne's every day. We'll have several weddings - Katie and Nathan in July, my cousin Erin and Ashley in August. And we've a big trip planned in April/May. I am sure that there will be more surprises, too!

I wish all of you a Happy and Blessed New Year!

Teddy's first Christmas

2009-12-28T13:36:00.003-05:00

Teddy's first Christmas was a lot of fun. The action has dragged out over several days, so I am late in posting about it!

Our trek west began after Teddy's morning nap on the 24th. We loaded up the car and drove to my parents' place in Almonte, where we had lunch. Teddy had his afternoon nap, and we opened a few gifts. Once Teddy awoke, he opened several, too. He was mystified -- I do what with this paper? - but he generally enjoyed himself. He also spend hours toddling around holding on to Grandpa's hands and taking a few shaky steps.

My parents' parish in Almonte isn't huge, so they only have 2 masses on Christmas Eve (and one at the mission church some distance away) and one - late - on Christmas Day. The daytime mass was not an option (for reasons that will become clear later in the post) and the 11 o'clock (not midnight - lots of elderly folk), our usual haunt, would be too late for Teddy. As a result - Dave and I braved the 5 pm mass, complete with the pageant. We arrived half an hour early and had to stand in the vestry. If we'd had any other option, we'd have exercised it, but we didn't. The children were adorable (we couldn't see them acting, but we saw them processing in), and Father Lindsay was wonderful with them.

We couldn't see much or hear very well, so that was a bit of a bummer. In the entire liturgical year, though, this mass is the one that I know like the back of my hand. From the age of 4 until I was 26, I think that there was 1 year that I wasn't involved in the Christmas mass - singing in the choir for almost all those years, but I've read both the 1st and 2nd readings numerous times, have read petitions, and have proclaimed the gospel about 5 times. It started when I was 5 or so - I was one of the few children confident enough to read aloud. By the time I was 7, I was the only child who could reliably pronounce "...while Quirinius was governor of Syria". As a result, I can recite all three pieces by heart. Seeing the kids and hearing those readings, we got excited thinking that in the next few years, Teddy (and any future children) will likely be involved in the celebrations at our own parish. How fun!

Anyway, after mass we had all had dinner (pasta and meatballs), then let Teddy open a few more gifts. He headed off to bed, and we opened the rest of the gifts. My parents were incredibly generous, as usual. Thanks, guys! We headed to bed and my parents went off to the 11 pm mass.

On Christmas morning, Teddy got up around 7:45 (his 7th and 8th teeth are starting to come through, so he'd woken up in the night). We had breakfast (cinamon rolls!) and opened our stockings. Then we packed up the cars and headed to Kingston during Teddy's nap. The 25th is also my Nonna's birthday, and this year she turned 80!

We arrived in Kingston just after 11; we were the first to arrive. Within the hour, my Uncle Sergio, Sally and the kids arrived from north of Kingston, and my Aunt Pat, Fred and the girls arrived from Brampton. We had a HUGE feast - antipasto, lasagna, chicken, turkey, salads, other vegetables - the usual. Teddy ate like a champ, and we had a great time. It's not that often that all 15 of us are under the same roof, so it was wonderful. We exchanged gifts - everyone was so generous once again - and had cake. Then, we packed up and continued west.

Teddy slept for almost all of the drive to Georgetown, through the dark and rain. We arrived at 6 and headed straight to the home of Dave's Aunt Mar and Uncle Gerry, where the bulk of the family were gathered. We had some food, we waited until the end of an EPIC Texas Hold'em game, then moved over to Nanny and Poppy's house. Teddy and the nieces opened their stockings, then we all exchanged gifts. Once again, we were bowled over by the generosity displayed by the family. And my inlaws were thrilled by our surprise for them - a Wii. My mother-in-law LOVES it and has played for hours every day since Christmas. It's a hit!

We took it easy on Boxing Day, glad to be here since Ottawa was getting pounded with freezing rain. We went visiting with Nanny and Poppy, seeing other members of the family, and I popped out to pick up some essentials. That evening, some of the Aunts and Uncles came by to watch the Leafs' game (gag) and play with the Wii.

The 27th was a Sunday, so off to 8:30 mass we went for the Feast of the Holy Family. It will likely be the last Christmas in the old church (sob!) as the new one is due to open next fall, and it was lovely to see the church all decked out one last time. After mass, we came back to the house and puttered around. Barry, Wendy and the girls stopped by after lunch, and we they had a great time watching Teddy toddle around. Later in the afternoon, Dave and I headed to Toronto to visit Jorge, his lovely wife and their adorable daughter. They hosted us for dinner (thanks, guys) and cleaned up after we bailed -- we had tickets to Jersey Boys! It was a great show and we're thrilled to have seen it. Teddy was a superstar for his grandparents, too, so that as a relief.

Today is our last day in Georgetown. We'll be visiting my Aunt Pat and the crew in Brampton and seeing Blaine and Colleen. Teddy spent the morning walking from person to person - he's made amazing progress! His record was 14 steps and his balance is just so much more stable. Good work, button!

I hope that you and yours are having a wonderful Christmas season!

From our house to yours...

2009-12-24T10:21:00.004-05:00

...we wish you a happy and blessed Christmas and a magnificent 2010.

Teddy's Big Weekend

2009-12-16T14:31:00.005-05:00

Teddy had an action packed weekend!

On Friday, we spent the morning at his future caregiver's house, and we had a great time with Daphne and the other boys who'll be there.

On Saturday, I finally acquiesced and Teddy had his first haircut. We went to a place called 'Melonhead' at the local mall; it's a spot that specializes in haircuts for children. Chelsea, who cut his hair, has a 14 month old little guy, so is used to cutting the hairs of munchkins. Teddy sat in a Thomas the tank engine, played with a school bus during the cut and then rode a mechanical horsey as a reward. We also had an official photo taken and they gave us a certificate and his hair. Best of all - no tears. Here are the before, during and after shots. It should be noted that he HATED the cape.

Goodbye, comb over!

On Sunday, we had Dave's corporate Christmas party for kids, where Teddy held crayons for the first time (and didn't eat them) and saw Santa. Once again, no tears! Here's proof.

He said his first 'word' - Uh oh! - over and over on Sunday, too.

And why has it taken me so long to post this? Well - he got his first case of the Croup on Sunday. He woke up from his afternoon nap struggling to breathe, and with a barking cough. A stint in the steamy bathroom cleared up the stridor, but he's had a few snotty-nose and leaky-eye filled days. Poor kid. He's on the mend, though, and he had a great morning with Daphne again today -- without me this time. I spent that time running errands, which included procuring the least flattering passport photo of all time.

One final note -- it's been twenty years since I was in my one and only wedding party. Happy 20th Anniversary, Aunt Pat and Fred. I'm so glad that it's not as cold today as it was twenty years ago!

Holiday movie FAIL (sort of)

2009-12-05T21:36:00.003-05:00

Tonight, all I wanted to do (after mass, dinner and Teddy's bed time) was to have a rum and egg nog and to watch a holiday movie. I had hoped that one of the 'on demand' channels would feature one, but no dice. We cased our DVD collection (some of my movies still reside at my parents' place) and the only movie I have? Is 'White Christmas', which is great but needs to be watched further into Advent.

Aside: Gunther just knocked Dave's (now empty) glass off its coaster. It held rum and egg nog with a dusting of nutmeg. We'd forgotten that Gunther is NUTSO for nutmeg. His equivalent of kookoo for Cocopuffs, I guess.

We started watching 'Fan Boys' on demand (I am powerless to resist Veronica Mars aka Kristen Bell) but I realized that we have Die Hard on VHS. And I've never seen it. So I'm writing this as Dave is setting up the VCR. And boy - VHS on an HD TV is spectacle.

My parents, bless them, are bringing holiday movies with them when they visit tomorrow. Copies of 'You've Got Mail' and 'Love Actually'. I should probably break down and buy copies of 'Meet Me in St. Louis' and 'It's a Wonderful Life'.

Any other recommendations? What am I missing?

NaBloPoMo success!

2009-11-30T21:27:00.002-05:00

I am wheezing to the finish line, but I've done it - posted every day for 30 days. Hooray!

I had a great day with lots of family (mine and Dave's). This afternoon, I picked up my Nonna and we headed over to my Uncle Fred's school. Fred is the principal of an elementary school (he has been for years) but this is one he just opened last year and I hadn't yet seen it. It was great to get a tour and to learn all about St. Josephine Bakhita . Most of my family are teachers in the Catholic school system (well, Mom is retired), but she's an unusual saint. It's a school in Brampton, though, and it's ethnically diverse, so she's a great patroness.

After that, my Nonna came back here and hung out with my inlaws for several hours. I am really lucky - our families get along really well, and we had a great afternoon. At around 4, Nonna, Teddy and I headed to Aunt Pat's house for dinner. We hung out there until just after 7, when I piled a sleepy Teddy into the car for the quick trip back to Georgetown. It was great; I miss being able to just hang out at my Aunt's house.

And now - I am POOPED. Congratulations to all of you other NaBloPoMo-ers who finished out the month. I will post again soon, but BOY - I think a bit of a break is in order!

Advent prayer

2009-11-29T19:43:00.003-05:00

I've been praying the rosary daily for over month now. I have no idea why I didn't start sooner, but the night my grandmother was dying (the night of my Mom's birthday, actually) I felt compelled to pray it. I remember my 2nd grade teacher's admonishment that we never had any excuse to avoid praying it -- didn't we all have ten fingers with which to count the "Hail Mary"s of each decade? I cannot tell you how often my efforts (in all areas, not just prayer) have been self-sabotaged by my feeling that "it's too complicated" or "it's too much work", so Mrs. Woods's words were particularly relevant in this case. Each night, I have faithfully prayed the rosary. During various points (Isha's illness comes to mind) I have prayed more than one rosary per day, but I have prayed one at a minimum. And it's a good thing I have ten fingers - I had no rosary in my possession until two weeks into this little experiment! All of my rosaries were at my parents' house, so my Nonna gave me one of her spares until I could nab my old ones.

It's been great. Time for prayer has come more easily than I thought, and I have found difficult moments easier to bear as a result of the prayer. I am FAR from perfect, but I am trying. I plan to keep doing it!

We're into the season of Advent, though, and while one of the key reflections is preparation for the celebration of Christ's birth, the other is general preparation for His return in the fullness of time. Reconciliation and prayer are key, and so I began reflecting -- "Do I feel that I should try to spend more time in prayer?"

Last Christmas, I asked for a copy of Christian Prayer, the user-friendly version of the Liturgy of the Hours. I am only slightly ashamed to admit that I didn't delve into it -- it's confusing to start, and I was REALLY pregnant, then postpartum, then...I never really got into the habit of praying either the Morning or the Evening prayer. Advent marks the start of the new liturgical year, and this year is year C which focuses on my favourite synoptic gospel - Luke. I figured that this would be as good a time as any to start.

I began (erroneously, I might add) last night. Today, after a call to my parents (who've navigated it for years) I managed to figure out which psalms and canticles to follow in which order, and I think I am on the right track. But all along, I have wondered -- am I being called to do this?

But tonight's reading - the first one I read after doing all the prayers correctly - happened to be the NT passage that I have always found the most comforting, the one we chose for our wedding. It was Philippians 4: 4-7, which contains the following passage:

"Dismiss all anxiety from your minds. Present your needs to God in every form of prayer and in petitions full of gratitude. Then God's own peace, which is beyond all understanding, will stand guard over your hearts and minds, in Christ Jesus."

I figure that it is worth a shot! Even if I am not being called to do this exactly, additional time in prayer and reflection (as long as it doesn't take away from time I'd spend with my family) is in and of itself a good thing. I will let you know how it goes.

Another dispatch from Georgetown

2009-11-28T22:10:00.003-05:00

I am once again on my inlaws' computer, writing a post from my hometown. Woot!

We had a leisurely day getting here. I had to do some Xmas shopping in a non-traditional way...with reward points! One of our drug stores (SDM) has a reward program that is just wicked. I shop on days when I can get bonus points (like 20x the points) and I buy loss leaders (things on sale like pop, diapers, eggs, milk) and I just rack up points. Once you have 75,000, you can redeem for $150 worth of merchandise - and it isn't that tough to get to 75,000 if you shop strategically. But today -- it was bonus redemption day. For 75,000 points, you got $200 of merchandise; all you have to pay is the tax. I had over 200,000 points (and for every redemption, I get 10,000 points back), so I redeemed 3 times. Yep - $600 worth of stuff, and I had to pay was the GST and PST. They have electronics (stuff like the Wii or the DSi, digital cameras, etc.) so I got some GREAT stuff.

I ran to the stores for an hour or so, then gassed up. We'd packed almost everything last night, so we loaded up the car just as Teddy was getting sleepy and headed out. It takes just under 2 hours to get to Kingston to my Nonna's house, our half way point. We had lunch with Nonna -- Teddy inhaled eggplant parmesan, canneloni, chicken, peas and green beans along with us. We hung out there until he was sleepy again, then the four of us headed to the GTA. After all the food, Teddy slept for almost 2.5 hours!

Our first stop was at my Aunt Pat's house, where we saw my aunt, uncle and Leah (and Fred fed us). Nonna is staying there for a few days, and we'll be seeing them. Teddy had fun with them, but was getting tired so we headed to our last stop - my inlaws' house!

We got here about half an hour before Teddy's bed time, and we played. He headed to bed, and we have been visiting with Dave's parents ever since. We had a quick visit to see Dave's brother and his family, and we'll see them again tomorrow. Dave's parents are making Newfie dinner, and I am sure everyone will be impressed by Teddy's ability to cram turkey, potatoes, stuffing and other veggies into his mouth.

I hope that you are all having a lovely weekend.

Packing...

2009-11-27T19:07:00.003-05:00

I toyed with the idea of doing '7 quick takes' but decided against it. At this point in NaBloPoMo, every post is a quick take, and I need to finish packing. We're off to Georgetown (via Kingston, where we're picking up my Nonna to come with us) tomorrow morning. We're paying a quick visit to my inlaws and we'll be heading back on Wednesday.

We've become adept at packing with the baby, so once that last batch of baby laundry is done (he just had a bath; I hate leaving wet towels so I'm doing one last load) I will finish it up.

It's strange, though, not to have the cats around. We dropped them off at the cat 'bed and breakfast' today. We'd considered having someone come in and feed them, but Moe developed an eye infection. I swear - he is the sickliest little guy. Weird gastrointestinal issues as a kitten, chronic osteoinfection in his jaw, strange bouts of allopecia, and now this eye infection. He needs antibiotic ointment smeared in his eye every 12 hours, so innkeeper Melanie is on it. The cats are usually photographed constantly when they're at the b&b, but I doubt that Moe will be this time. Poor squinty baby.

Boy - I am running out of gas as this month rolls along. The last few November posts will be from Georgetown. See you on the flip side.

Teddy's first Storytime at OPL

2009-11-26T19:45:00.002-05:00

Today, we headed to our local library branch for Baby Storytime. Aimed at those 18 months and younger (and their caregivers), it was less 'Storytime' and more 'Sing songs in English and French' but it was fun.

It was great to see so many little ones from our neighbourhood. I chatted with a few other Moms and exchanged numbers with a mother/son pair who've just moved back to the area and up the street.

It doesn't look like there will be any more sessions until I am back at work, though, so Boo! Maybe I'll be able to take him when he's a little bit older (to an actual storytime where stories are read). We'll see how it shakes out once I am back in the office.

Wishing my American readers...

2009-11-25T22:01:00.003-05:00

...an amazing and blessed Thanksgiving tomorrow.

Up here in the frozen north, our Thanksgiving falls in October (our growing season is shorter!) and it's one of my favourite holidays. We got married on that weekend back in 2004.

I have always said, though, that US Thanksgiving is one of the two reasons I'd want to live in the US (the other being the sheer choice in terms of cities/places to live - you don't have to leave your country for a winter getaway!). For a proud Canuck, that's saying something. It's an amazing weekend, and families get together to celebrate and eat yummy food. How awesome is that?

Try not to slip into a tryptophan coma, party people!

Teddy + Cheese = True Love 4eva!

2009-11-24T21:34:00.003-05:00

I am running on fumes tonight, so I thought I'd post about Teddy's continuing love affair with cheese. It doesn't matter what type of cheese; he loves anything from chevre to friulano to ricotta to cheddar.

We were prepping dinner tonight (it was leftovers, so we were reheating) and we'd given Teddy some cheerios to tide him over. He enjoys them and was happily eating them until he spotted me walking over with cheese in my hand. He immediately spit out the Cheerio he was chewing (well, let it fall out of his mouth) so he'd have more room in his mouth for cheese. Which he then ate with abandon.

He happily ate chicken and corn, smiling all the while. But when fresh pieces of cheese were placed in front of him, he was ecstatic. He'd feed himself a piece, then fall backwards in his high chair because he was grinning so hard, so delicious was that mouthful. He'd utter things like "Ga-rinda", which we interpreted as "Man, that's a great piece of cheese."

This kid is just so awesome.

Holy crap! It's been 13 years since my first year!

2009-11-23T22:16:00.002-05:00

I have been thrown back to the days of applying for scholarships, of prepping for my first year (which I was doing 14 years ago. EEP!)

Rachel, my Aunt Pat's oldest daughter, is in her last year of high school and heading to University next year. She's been nominated for some very competitive scholarships, and she wanted some help reviewing her responses for the application. After spending 3 years coordinating one of the GoC's elite post secondary leadership development programs (yep. That's what I did pre-maternity leave), and having graduated from one of the other programs, I am GREAT at crafting an illustrative narrative for these sorts of questions.

But wow! When I look back, I can hardly believe that she's nearly ready to go off to school.

Rachel is the last of the "14 years apart" babies - there are 14 years between my Mom and Aunt Pat, my Aunt Pat and me, and between us. And she is the first baby I had any meaningful contact with, the first one I just LOVED. She was born during a particularly rough time - my Dad and Nonna had just had heart attacks, my Nonno had just died - and she was like a ray of sunshine. She would stop crying when I sang to her, so I spent hours walking with her, singing whatever came into my head. Who says that "Hotel California" can't be a lullabye?!? She was one of the chubbiest babies I have ever seen. You'd never know it now - she's a 5 ft 11 dancer, and she looks like a mannequin. No kidding - she can tell if something will look good on her by if it looks good on a mannequin. That has never/will never happen to me.

She's always loved Dave. She was 3 when we first started dating, and she's loved him since day one. When we had our break, my Aunt Pat could not tell Rachel about it for fear she'd be crushed. She finally found out, but was beyond thrilled when we reconciled and when we got engaged. She was one of my bridesmaids when Dave and I got married.

About 10 years ago, my Aunt and I had taken the girls to a part near my childhood home. The girls played and my Aunt and I were gabbing. Rachel looked at us and said "It's funny. You are family, but you talk like you're good friends."

"That's because we are," I told her. "But wait 5 or so years, Rach, and you and I will talk like this." We reflected on that this spring - we're there. We're friends now, too.

She is an amazing person. She's sweet and generous and lots of fun. Her favourite actor is Alan Rickman (!?!?) and she'd love to spend a semester in England. She wants to be a history teacher and I have no doubt she'll succeed. She's great with Teddy. It's a total trip seeing her holding Teddy, as it wasn't that long ago that I was holding her.

Good luck with the scholarships, Rachel. I cannot wait to watch your triumphant run through University!

A sloppy Sunday update.

2009-11-22T22:26:00.003-05:00

Boy - I am not feeling it today. It's the 22nd of the month and it's the first time I've felt this way, so I am happy about that. But I am tired and I doubt I can piece together something both weighty and coherent. As a result, you're getting an update of my day. Bated breath, I am sure you are waiting with.

Since we went to mass last night, we had little to do this morning. Sadly, Teddy got up at 6 (why? You used to be able to set a clock by his 7 am wake up. The past 3 days it has been 6. BLEARGH). Dave hauled himself out of bed to hang with the kiddo, and both Teddy and Dave went down for morning naps around 7:50. Teddy got up again at 9:30, so he and I played and got ready to go to Almonte.

At around 11, we headed over to my parents' house; our plan was to take my Dad out for part of his birthday gift. We arrived around noon and my Mom had made lunch - vegetable soup and grilled cheese. Mmm...

Then began the strangest part of the day. We were putting Teddy down for a nap after lunch, and Dave went to undo his bib. He started to cry for no real reason (undoing your bib, kid? We do that 25 times a day), and didn't really recover. He'd calm down, then end up bawling and screaming. It was so very strange. This child NEVER cries when he goes down for naps, let alone a screamy cry. It took about 30 minutes of trying to get him down before he fell asleep. Happily, he napped for almost 2 hours. It gave Mommy and Daddy enough time to have a drink.

Aside: This child was off yesterday, too - sombre, and stared into space for long periods. He's had periods of wakefulness in the night, too. According to The Wonder Weeks, week 44 is the stormiest week prior to the week 46 developmental week, and we're smack dab in the middle of week 44. Week 44 - end please!

After his nap, we tried my father's patience as the three of us tried to pose for a family shot to use in Christmas cards. He must have taken 50 shots, and it looks like we'll have something to use. When I have something to share, I will post it!

Next, we listened to music for a bit, then headed out to a local restaurant for dinner. It's one of those 'nice' places you find in small towns - broad menu, friendly staff, big portions, tasty food, and we had a nice time (though Teddy tired of the unfamiliar high chair after a while).

After dinner, we swung back to my parents' to pick up our stuff and change Teddy into PJs before we headed home. Once we got here, he handled the car seat to bed transfer well. We got organized - we always end up with stuff when we come home from my parents' house. This time it was more clothes (for all of us -- thank you, Hub) and some food from both my Mom and Nonna. Mmm...delicious food that I don't have to cook myself! Thanks, once again, for your amazing generosity, Mom and Dad!

Now, I am puttering around, banking and blogging. I am looking at books online, since I haven't burned my b-day gift from Dr. Beth (a gift card for books). I think I am going to pick up the news books from Will Ferguson and Malcolm Gladwell, as well as a Maurice Sendak collection containing Chicken Soup with Rice, our favourite book by him. Thanks, Dr. Beth!

Ok. Off to bed I go. You know, after I place my book order...

Gorgeous November Weather

2009-11-21T19:48:00.004-05:00

I am not sure what the weather has been like where you live, but here in central Canada the month of November has been gorgeous.

I am not usually a fan of this month - it's usually grey, grey, grey. All the leaves have fallen, it's cold and there's sleet and wind. And the promise of winter is just around the corner; at least with March, you know that you'll soon be seeing green shoots.

This year, however, has been unseasonably warm and sunny. Gorgeous, orange gold light has been streaming in every day and it's staying above freezing. There's barely been a hint of snow; it feels much more like late October than the 21st of November.

Winter will hit soon enough, but I'll take this extended fall. Perhaps it's mother nature making up for the fact that we had no real summer?

Ten months

2009-11-20T22:04:00.008-05:00

Dear Teddy,

Today, you turned 10 months old! Time is FLYING. Mommy will be heading back to work in just over a month, but we're not going to focus on that because she wants to enjoy every moment with you right now.

You are an absolute joy. You are the sunniest kid I've ever seen. You double over in laughter and joy when your father comes home from work, when your grandparents come to visit, or when I come into view when I've been out of your line of sight for a minute or two. You LOVE music -- the CDs Aunt Shelley brought us have been a huge hit - and you like to stand up and bounce (holding onto my hand for balance) or sit and sway to the music. You still love the Italian songs you've been hearing since you were born, but it doesn't take more than 3 seconds of singing to make you smile.

You have become so adept at feeding yourself. Mealtimes are such fun, since you are eating almost everything we do. Here you are eating chicken and potatoes (made with Bisnonna's recipe, of course). You couldn't get enough, nor of the sauteed pepper and mushroom and citrus blend. You still love corn and squash and you'll eat cereal, but you'd rather feed yourself. Especially cheese and avocado.

You still aren't crawling, but you want to spend most of the day on your feet. You try to use us to pull/push yourself upright, and you want to hold on the couch or other pieces of furniture. Your balance is excellent, kiddo, and you are starting to master the 'bum scoot'. Over the past day or two, you've been leaning over and getting into the crawling stance, and moving forward like you're in the starting blocks. We fear that our days of you staying put our over; Daddy intends to put the baby gates up tomorrow. I foresee him cursing the fact that we have so many stairs in this house!

Though you aren't yet moving, you are WAY ahead in the tooth department. You've already had 6 break through your gums (2 bottom, followed by 4 top) and I suspect the next 2 bottom will be coming along soon. How about a tiny break before the molars, ok?

Over the past little while, you have been trying to hard to imitate us when we speak to you. Trying to say 'cat' or 'Teddy'. I wonder what your first real word will be, and when you'll say it? I don't think we can count "Sha sha sha" or "gooozhe!", though you say them often.

It's been a busy month. You had to attend your third funeral (and lose a 4th loved one) when your Great Grandma Mary died at the end of October. Let's hope that this is the last you have to attend for a long time! In addition, you have a new little buddy - Rory. I am sure that he'll be your partner in crime in no time. Auntie Isha has been really sick lately, and you have been such a trooper while Mommy has been running around dropping things off and looking after Rory. You love Uncle Joe and Auntie Isha (your face just lights up when you see either of them) and you spent today's visit smiling at them and trying to hold Rory's hand and touch his face. Maybe all the requests to be 'gentle' when you're near the cats are paying off?

I am often completely overwhelmed by how incredibly blessed we are to have you in our lives. I suspected that I'd be bowled over by motherhood, but I never suspected I'd be so incredibly rewarded. These past ten months have been incredible and I cannot wait to watch you grow over the next 10,000+ months.

Love,

Mommy

Happy Birthday, Dad!

2009-11-19T16:00:00.002-05:00

Sixty-three years ago today, one of my favourite people was born in Kingston Ontario (a fact that still galls him). He was named for his father and his uncle; had he been a girl, he'd have been Linda Marie. She arrived 5 years later! He grew up in a town called Deseronto, and he attended University in Kingston...then met the girl he'd marry there. His mother-in-law still lives in Kingston, too -- he can't get away!

Over the years, he taught me many things among them:

what 'FAP' spells
how to score a baseball game
how to use a Bloom Gelometer (buckshot it vital)

He gladly suffered through concerts and plays, late night Calculus questions, and he transported countless carloads of stuff to and from University. He planned trips and showed me amazing places all over the world. I love that we can still travel together!

His faith has always been an inspiration to me. And his love and respect for me have helped me develop so many amazing friendships with guys and marry a wonderful man (who is similar to him in unexpected ways).

Happy birthday, Daddy! I love you very much. And Teddy is lucky to have such an amazing Grandpa.

P.S. Let Mom know that I am sorry I missed writing about her 60th because of Grandma's death -- let her know I'll make it up to her!

Glee, how I love you.

2009-11-18T21:42:00.002-05:00

I should start with an Isha update - she is still in the hospital, but the baby is with her now. YEAH!

I have a history of loving TV shows. My obsession with Veronica Mars is probably the most prominent, but over the years (and to this day) I have loved a whole bunch of shows. And since VM, I haven't rewatched nor gotten into a show as much as Glee.

It's no real surprise. I was a musical nerd in high school and I love Journey, so I was fighting back tears watching the pilot. Though I find some of the story lines annoying (the pregnancy ones need resolution ASAP) I can't get enough of the show. I just watch and rewatch the musical numbers. And Teddy likes them, too. We'll play the music and he'll bop and sway. His favourite numbers? "Single Ladies", "Somebody to Love" and "Don't Stop Believin'". I adore the latter, and the Kristin Chenoweth/Matthew Morrison version of "Alone".

Yesterday, I spent about 5 minutes all excited because I thought it was on in the evening. And then I realized that it was only Tuesday. :(

If you are not watching it, you should be. It's adorable, and it has so much heart.

Minutiae of my day

2009-11-17T21:08:00.002-05:00

I am not sure if I should start or end the post with another request for prayers/good thoughts. I guess 'START' is what I'll do:

Isha is still in the hospital; in addition to pneumonia, she has a non-H1N1 strain of influenza and she's back in isolation (as she was with Rory after he was born). HOPEFULLY, she will be out soon. In the interim, Rory is thriving on donated boob juice (thank you, oversupply) and everyone is holding it together. I ran errands for them today because I didn't know what else to do. I HATE that she's going through this. I remember how scared we were after Teddy was born and with his tongue-tie and subsequent scary dehydration, then the thrush and mastitis...and this is worse. I wouldn't wish this on anyone and I am so, so sad that Isha's first days as a Mom are being marred by this. Any prayers you could send her way would be greatly appreciated.

In other news - I went to the dentist today. I continue to love the dental practice that I visit in our neighbourhood. I deliberately switched to it because it seemed kid-friendly (it is), it's local and because I LOATHED the first practice I went to when we moved here. I had the same dentist from the age of 2 until 27, and I loved him, so I really wanted to find somewhere that my children (who were hypothetical at the time) would feel as comfortable. It's just such a great spot.

Teddy also had schwarma for the first time tonight. Lebanese food is ubiquitous here in Ottawa, so it was just a matter of time. He made his usual 'WHAT?!" face when he first tried the garlic sauce, but within 30 seconds he was shoving pieces of chicken and pita and vegetables into his mouth and laughing. Lebanese fast food FTW!

Double your pleasure...triple your fun?

2009-11-16T07:26:00.005-05:00

UPDATED TO ADD: Poor Isha has pneumonia. She'll be in the hospital for at least one day. Baby Rory is back with Daddy and his Nanny Saffr*k is en route. Get well soon, Ish!

So, I am about to experience (some) of the wonder of Irish twins. Today, I have both Teddy and Rory in my care.

Poor Isha (who's recovering from a C-section) is having horrible abdominal pain and her midwife recommended that she head to Emerg. post haste. Joe called at 5 am asking if I could watch the Rorster. I have enough boob juice to spare (Rory is doing finger feeding right now, along with nursing), after all! I headed over with Teddy's car seat at around 5:30 to retrieve that baby.

He's so tiny! Teddy was never this tiny (well, he was in utero). And he's still in that super sleepy stage. He's sleeping in the pack-n-play bassinet right now and Teddy's up in his crib. Dave hasn't left for the day, so this is probably the calmest moment I will have today.

For all of you pray-ers, any prayers you could spare for Isha would be wonderful. For the rest of you - any good thoughts that you could spare would be greatly appreciated. See you on the flip side.

Vignettes on a Sunday night

2009-11-15T22:09:00.004-05:00

Behold, my day as a series of vignettes:

It might be self-injurious, but it is age appropriate

I ended up flying solo at mass this morning -- Teddy's sleep schedule was thrown off (curse you, teething and developmental spurts) so he was OUT COLD during both our parish's masses. It happened to be a baptismal Sunday, though, so there were lots of visitors, including a families with small children.

One such child was sitting right across the aisle from me. She had horny-shaped pigtails on the top of her head and several teeth. During the apostles' creed, she tossed her bottle into the aisle and I picked it up; she spent the next 5 minutes grinning at me. I started watching her behaviour - she'd grasp a necklace with both hands and shove the pendant in her mouth, she'd flap her arms, slapping her torso while simultaneously bucking. She kept trying to pull herself up on the pew in front of her. She kept saying 'Sha-sha-sha' and 'ta-ta-ta'. So - pretty much the exact behaviour I was missing at home, sans pigtails. During the 'sign' of peace (we don't shake hands during flu season), I asked the parents her age' '10 months' was the reply. A-HA!

I had an inexplicable urge to pick her up and snuggle her. Man, I love kids!

The old adage is true. At list this is a laudable trait to emulate

Isha got 'milk fever' today. I remember how much it sucked and how much like mastitis it was. To help them out, Dave, Teddy and I went by t o make them dinner tonight. I had also made chilli and had extra food to freeze, so I brought that along with some b-milk, just in case.

The past two days, I have arrived at their house with boxes and bags of food and drinks and gifts and stuff like a breast pump and supplies. And treats. You know the two people in my life who do that, without fail. My Mom, and my Nonna. I have officially, simultaneously turned into my Mom and my Nonna. Eh, there are far worse things in the world!

Parenting like it's 1963

In our rush to get out of the house with dinner, we didn't bring any toys for Teddy. He is so easygoing, though, that we figured we could keep him busy with simple things. Like the box we brought dinner supplies in. Yes, we sat our child in a bankers' box in the kitchen while we made dinner. And Uncle Joe gave him a wooden spoon and a pot lid. How quaint!

I once again felt like I was channelling my Nonna. When my Aunt Pat was a baby, my Nonna had two older, very active children (plus my teenaged Mom). Aunt Pat was easygoing, too, and was born well before the advent of playpens and bouncy chairs. So my Nonna got a cardboard box and secured it with a very heavy meat tenderizer (so my Aunt couldn't tip backward). She'd sit my Aunt Pat in it and would let her play. The best part? When she was hungry, my Aunt would be given a hotdog and a banana, which she'd grasp in each hand and of which she'd alternate bites. BLEARGH!

My Mom and my Nonna are together in Kingston tonight; they roared when they heard these stories. I don't blame them. :)

Still loving the 'new baby' smell.

2009-11-14T23:14:00.002-05:00

Today was super busy. We visited my parents in Almonte, taking my Mom out for a belated birthday lunch and staying for most of the day. We got back to find out that Isha and Rory had been released from the hospital, so I was able to pop over and meet the little guy (they'd been quarantined with suspected H1N1, which they didn't have). HE'S SUPER CUTE. Teddy and Dave will get to meet him tomorrow. And I will write more later.

Seven Quick Takes - All About Teddy Edition 1

2009-11-13T13:33:00.004-05:00

More Seven Quick Takes can be found here.

ONE

Teddy has just gone down for his afternoon nap, so I thought I'd take a moment to crank out this post. His morning nap was surprisingly short (45 minutes, which is totally unusual for him) so I am hoping that this one last a bit longer. If not, bedtime will be SUPER early tonight.

TWO

I tweeted about this yesterday, but Teddy and I have been enjoying music as we play. Snacktime by the Barenaked Ladies is a favourite, as is the CD Shelley just gave us on the weekend. It's an ecclectic mix containing songs like 'Conjunction Junction', 'Little Girls' from Annie, theme songs from The Dukes of Hazzard, The Backyardigans, and Laverne and Shirley, and classics like 'Everybody Loves the Cha Cha Cha' by Sam Cooke. He loves to bounce and sway to the music. It's super cute.

THREE

Teddy's 5th and 6th teeth are arriving; the incisors on either side of his front teeth have broken through the gum (the right more that the left). His front teeth have a gap between them - he's got a bit of a goonie smile (and a goonie laugh, too) but we figure the gap will close as more teeth come in. He's been drooling a lot and shoving his fingers into his mouth, the poor kid. But he's ahead of the curve for teething so far. I am not looking forward to the dreaded 1st year molars, though.

FOUR

One area where Teddy isn't ahead of the curve is crawling. He is not terribly interested nor terribly proficient. At first, his upper body strength would cause him to crawl backwards, away from the object he was aiming for and causing him no end of frustration. He is JUST coming to the realization that his knees need to be involved in this process. We'll see that happens in the next few weeks.

FIVE

His inability to crawl does not mean that he's not interested in locomoting, though. He'll bum scoot a bit, and his big thing is reaching for us in order to pull himself up, then take steps towards the desired object/spot. The kid would spend all day upright if he could. His balance is improving, though far from perfect. Maybe he'll be like my Dad - he'll skip crawling all together.

SIX

I know that I blogged about this yesterday, but I am super excited to meet Rory and for Teddy to see him, too. Teddy has just begun to realize that children and babies aren't just 'other people' -- they're wonderful playmates. Until a couple weeks ago, his reaction towards adults and kids was identical: "Hey! It's a person!! I love people!!" But he's clued in that kids are at his eye level and interested in similar things. It should be fun. I am also excited to get pictures of the two of them together - Godzilla and a newborn.

SEVEN

We (and the cats) look forward to the day when Teddy has more control of his arm movements. When he's excited, he flaps and grabs. When the object of the excitement is your face (or that of a cat) well - it's less fun. We get fish-hooked a lot around these parts. I am petrified that he'll end up with a fistful of whisker one of these days; 'gentle' is one of the most used words around here. He'll figure it out soon enough, but I feel for the felines. They get close to him (Gunther especially; he'd love some affection from Teddy because he really likes kids) but it's tense. I am sure that they'll be friends soon enough!

I wish all of you an amazing Friday!

Welcome, Rory!

2009-11-12T13:57:00.002-05:00

I got the call about an hour ago - our dear friends Isha and Joe's baby has arrived!

I spoke to Isha yesterday; she was en route to a flu assessment clinic because she had a fever (3 days before her due date). I didn't hear back from her...because she went into labour!

Isha was hoping for a home birth (in their new house, only 5 minutes from us!), but the fever, coupled with meconium stained amniotic fluid, led the midwives to suggest a move to the hospital. It's a good thing - the baby's heart rate dipped preciptously with each contraction and raced in between. Ultimately, Isha had a c-section...

And baby Rory was born around 6 am.

We are beyond thrilled for them and for Teddy, too. All of our friends who've had babies this year have had girls, save one pair of boy/girl twins. I'm excited for Teddy to have another little boy to play with. And I cannot wait to meet the baby.

Isha and the baby are in an isolation room at the hospital (though they don't think it's H1N1 now) and will likely be there through the weeked. But I hope that we'll get to meet the little guy ASAP.

Congratulations, Isha and Joe. May you have a speedy recovery, and may Rory be a good sleeper!

Remembrance Day - 11/11

2009-11-11T10:17:00.000-05:00

Today at 11 am, we will be celebrating the 91st anniversary of the end of one of the deadliest conflicts in human history, the deadliest in Canadian history - the First World War. It's Remembrance Day here in Canada, the day we wear poppies, take a moment of silence and lay wreaths at cenotaphs all over the country in honour of those we've lost in conflicts.

This summer, I wrote about why the First World War affects me so much. The post, cataloging the heartbreak I felt at reading LM Montgomery's Rilla of Ingleside can be found here.

I am finding it difficult to write about this today; I'm missing my Nonno and my Grandpa, both of whom fought in WWII though for opposite sides. Instead, I am going to post some quotes.

In Flanders Fields - by John McRae (of Guelph, ON)

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

"They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them."
Laurence Binyon, The Fallen

Finally, I'm going to quote my entry (warning - SPOILER for RoI if you haven't read it):

"... Maud’s intention – to make the horrors and loss of war real to readers – sure resonated with me. The death of fictional Walter represented the all too real loss of tens of thousands of other young Canadians, full of potential and greatly loved. What a cruel, vicious waste. Reading about WWI is still terribly painful for me, but I feel compelled to do so in order to pay tribute to these kids. And kids they were – when I visited Ypres at the age of 24, NOT ONE person in the Ramparts cemetery was older than me when they died.

Other books have affected me, have made me sob (HPatDH, I’m looking at you for a recent example) but every time one does I think back to Rilla. And say a little prayer for all the Walters lost on both sides of conflicts."

Lest we forget.

E*I*E*I*O

My 2012 Resolutions/Goals

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Wherein I admit several shameful secrets...

Seven Quick Takes - Where We've Been Edition

Hallowe'en 2011

The Blathering 2011 - Just as Amazing As You'd Imagine.

They Came From the North Track Listing for The Blathering 2011

My Accent Vlog

Autumn Sunlight

Thirteen Things You Should Know About Me BEFORE "The Blathering"

Seven Quick Takes - Template Edition

The Dark Side of Preschool (and Other Moments of Parenting Doubt)

Summer 2011 - kicking butt in so many ways

Dispatch from Sudbury

The proposal

This pile of bricks...is ours alone.

Something for Arwen and Bryan

Veronica's Birth Story - Part 2

Veronica's Birth Story - Part 1

Fair warning: off-colour humour ahead.

Ten Facts About Me and My Better Half

Veronica - January to March 2011

Lent 2011

Some strategizing for a Sunday night

Superbowls - Past and Present

Welcome Miss Hand!

Teddy turns TWO

This is for any lurkers...

A new laptop! Maybe it'll make me post more...

What we've been up to - December 2010 edition

Rolled Sleeves

Endings and beginnings

Veronica's Baptism...eventually.

Teddy vignettes

Sleep. The lack of it is catching up to me.

Three months

Craziest.afternoon.EVER

Random musings while watching a rom com from the late 1990s.

Cloth Diapering a Newborn - My Experience

A post written during daylight hours!

A quiet Sunday

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"Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm...

I despair of ever writing a blog post while the sun is still up

A hobby?

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The Week Twelve Leap (we hope)

Sunday Night Strategizing

The zits don't lie.

Happy Birthday, Roro!!

Lest We Forget

A great big "Tank yoo"

The day got away from me...

I'm writing this as the baby chills in the swing...

We've created a Glee monster.

The resemblance is uncanny.

My favourite movie

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House full of sickies..

Early November Odds and Ends

Strangest. Hallowe'en. Ever.

Two months

Week One...

Introducing Veronica

My life - and how I'm shadowing Olive Esther Delmage Hawley

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Ending the radio silence

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An announcement - and an introduction.

40 Bags - an Lenten update

Lent begins

Who wants to see birthday photos?

Guess who's one today?

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Teddy's first Christmas

From our house to yours...

Teddy's Big Weekend

EIEIO