Let There Be Light!

The power in our house has been restored.
It is no easy feat finding an electrician. Over the Christmas holidays that is.
The ones that are working are charging a lot - double to triple their regular fees.
So, we stuck it out with the candles for quite awhile. In fact, it was kind of cool having a bath with candle light. Actually, I didn't. I showered to candle light.
It wasn't that the lack of light was bugging me. It's just that I kept burning myself when I would light the candles.Ouch!
And I was getting worried that Matt would touch a candle or set a fire. The possibilities were endless. Not to mention how annoying it is to get up at 5:22 am with no light and try to find a lighter to light a candle.
So, I called around. And, after exhausting an internet search of possible electricians, and finally securing an appointment for next Wednesday (which would have required me to take a day off) I turned the the newspaper.
And I found Steve.
he had a teeny tiny add in the paper, and I hoped that meant a good rate. I called, he offered me a free quote. He was hired.
So he came over today.
He had a small tool kit, and said very little. But he was nice and friendly and seriously fixed the problem in about 15 minutes. I think he felt badly when he charged me $50. It was that quick. But, hey, I was expecting it to be about $250 - and we had no idea how to fix it. So, then I was about to give him a cheque, but I decided that no, perhaps he would prefer cash.
So there we were. Him delighted with the cash and the quick job. Me delighted with how cheap it all was. We were both grinning. I almost hugged him. Almost.
Instead I wished him a happy New Year, offered him some cookies (he said no - I think I scared him) and then he left.

The Christmas Holidays that Aren't

Don't worry.
I'm not feeling sorry for myself. Really. I'm not.
It's just that I'm wishing I'd taken a little more Christmas Vacation. Actually, that's not completely true. I think I'm jealous of my son.
See ...
My dad is a principal and so he is on vacation. And he and my mom have been taking Matthew out of daycare (not for the full day) to do fun things.
Like yesterday they picked him up early and went to the playgroud.
Today they are taking him skating.
Which is awesome. I love that I have parents who will do this. And, I love that I have a daycare that is cool with Matt's grandparents picking him up.
But, I'm kind of jealous. I want to be skating today. And leaving early to watch Oprah. And going shopping. Fun stuff.
But, it's been not so bad at work. I've made a concerted effort to take lunch - and today I'm going with some friends who I never get to go for lunch with. And we're going to the snazzy salad restaurant (okay, one BFAW and I are going, the other is getting her usual Teriyaki - but we will sit together). So it's not all bad.
I just feel like Christmas this year was way too short.
Maybe next year we'll go on a Disney Cruise. That sounds super fun!!!!

Cousins ... Friends

Great Grandad

My maternal grandfather is 96. You'd never guess if you saw him. But it's true. He's in pretty good health (considering)and still lives on his own.
We don't see him that often. He doesn't live too far. It's just that his place is set up for an elderly gentleman, and I have a very active toddler. And I had a very active baby. Whenever I've brought Matt to visit his Great Grandad he's torn the place apart in a matter of minutes. He would throw the knick knacks, eat the cords, shuffle the papers.
It made it hard to have a visit of more than 5 minutes. So, it's been awhile.
But then yesterday happened. My active toddler was a loving little boy. I'm not sure if he'd been mellowed by all the morning's excitement or if he is just calming down a bit, but yesterday's visit with his great grandad was fantastic. They chatted. They played. Grandad showed Matt a camera and Matt was thrilled. Grandad also showed Matt his collection of elastics. And we were there for an hour.
(Note: If you want to entertain a toddler, elastics are an incredibly effective method)
Really, we could have stayed longer, but we had to get to Mike's parents' place.
To me, this was a pretty huge deal. My grandad is a cool guy with a ton of life history (you accomplish a lot in 96 years) and I really want Matt to know him. And, finally I see that maybe they will find something in common.

Santa Came!!!

Just a few pictures before we're off to see Mike's family and my grandad.
Since I was up nice and early (5:30) and had 2 hours before I finally woke the boys up I decided to celebrate with my cat. Seriously. I dressed her up in a Santa jacket. And took pictures. She wasn't too keen on the look. She just sat there. I think she was too scared to move.
Thank goodness Matt got up so that I could go Christmas crazy with him and the cat was off the hook.
Merry Christmas Everyone!!