BFAW's

So …
What is a BFAW?
It’s kind of like a BFF. Do you know what that means? If you don’t – stop reading. Because this is probably way too juvenile for you. Or maybe not.
BFF means Best Friends Forever. You know – like in grade 7 you buy necklaces and bracelets and various other trinkets to denote that the person you hang out with is your BFF.
To be honest, the person who was my best friend in grade 7 is not my best friend now, so the title does not hold up. No matter how many broken heart necklaces we had, no matter how often we split Popsicles, traded clothes, talked on the phone and shared our crushes, the best friendom did not last through the ninth grade division of popularity powers.
I’m okay with that.
I had many friends. I did find a really good best friend near the end of high school – and she still holds that spot. She was my maid of honour and helped deliver my baby. (she’s a midwife though she was not mine she was there).
Anyway, back the BFAW thing.
It struck me as really funny when someone at work called the group of us that e-mail back and forth and occasionally go for lunch her BFAW’s. Or …
Best Friends At Work.
I love it. It’s funny.
And, I think we all need BFAW’s. I totally struggle with whole issue of work friendships. I mean, you want to be social. I need to be social. But there are all sorts of boundaries you don’t want to cross.
Work is work. Social life is social life.
Should they cross.
I say yes. Not completely. Good Lord. The BFAW’s work in legal. I’m in a different department. There’s so much that we can’t talk about – that we’re forced to talk about things completely unrelated to work. I love that.
Besides, who wants to work all day and then talk about work at lunch. Who really cares how many files you sorted? Well, obviously it matters in the work context, but get me out of the office and I just don’t care.
I love that I can talk to people about kids and relationships and arguments and all of that. And part of the juiciness of it all is that they don’t know my family. Would I introduce them? Of course. But, most of the time it’s almost like an anonymous conversation.
And that’s cool.
And they are cool
That doesn’t mean that no one else at work could fall under this category. But, the truth is we’re not in grade 7. The more BFAW’s the BETTER!!!!

Cat Pee

We have a cat named Mojo (or Moj or Momo). She is usually well behaved. Though we call her poopy because she poops a lot. Matthew adores her. So do I. Mike tolerates her.

He also cleans out her litter box often. As do I. Matt is mostly responsible for feeding her. (we prompt him).

On Sunday I asked Mike to change her cat litter. I didn't pay that much attention. I was making dinner. He was dumping the cat litter. I vividly recall him bringing Matt to the garbage chute to dump the litter. Beyond that I wasn't paying much attention.

So this morning. As I am drinking my coffee at 5:30 Mojo starts scratching in the hallway. You know, that pre-pee scratch. Weird. I think to myself she must be affected by us moving. So ... I pick her up and relocate her just outside the litter box. She looks at me. Meows. Walks back to the hallway. Okay. Maybe she was chasing a shadow.

Scratch scratch scratch again. Hmmm.... I walk over. There she is - peeing on the nice tall black boots I was going to wear today. Lovely. Has our cat gone crazy???

So, I get annoyed, but pick her up and bring her to her litter box. I decide that this time I will put her in the litter box to ensure she clearly gets my message that cats go in the litter box.

I was actually concerned. My sister's cat had to go on kitty kat Prozac. She was depressed. I thought maybe my cat was going down the depression road. Which would be sad. But, she seems quite happy most of the time.

So as I am carrying her and trying not to let my anger show I was questionning her actions.

Why? Why did she not use the litter box?

Oh - well that is because Mike did not put more kitty litter in the box. It was just a big plastic box. With nothing in it!!! Not even, since we apparently ran out of cat litter, newspaper.

So, by this time it's 5:45. I wake up Mike. I'm not freaking out. Just calmly tell him that I need to decide on a whole new outfit since that cat peed on my boots. Since there was no kitty litter for her.

So annoyed today. So annoyed. I did fill the litter box with paper. Since I had to leave early. And I didn't know what else to do. I'm sure Mojo will survive. It's my clothing that I'm worried about!!!

PS - BFAW's (you know who you are) Blogging about you guys tomorrow. Because my cat pee story could not wait!

Matty and Mojo - in happier, not peeing on my boots days. And yes, she loves sleeping on my stuff.

On Haircuts, a Night Out and A Major lack of Sleep

Oh Yesterday.

It was fun.

First of all, the much anticipated date with Bill. Oh wait. I mean a haircut. For those of you who don’t know me that well, it’s hard to understand what exactly gets me so freaking excited about my hair cuts.

Okay, so perhaps it is because for the past (almost) 15 years I have known and loved Bill. No, get your minds out of the gutter. He’s gay. He has a partner. I’m married. It’s not like that. In fact, I think that is what makes it so special.

Anyway …

So, the Bill experience. It’s great. I always go in feeling good and leave feeling fantastic. It is about the hair, but it’s also about having someone spend an hour just telling you that you are fabulous, and letting you leave feeling like you really are. There’s no reason behind it. I figured out a long time ago that the money involved – well, I don’t go often enough for him to rely on the price I pay. So, it really is just about feeling good.

And, yesterday in particular was great. I told him I want to look like Stacey on What Not to Wear. I have some growing to do, but basically he said that was possible. And, then he made me like a poofy (in a good way) Stacey which was pretty cool. And then he told me that this was the first time we’d gone this mature with my hair.

Yes, I agreed. Stunning.

The funny part of the afternoon was when we got on the topic of one of my favourite writer who shall remain unnamed. I was like “I LOVE said writer.” Bill, was like “OH MY GOD! I HATE HER!”

It was hilarious.

We have never disagreed on something so vehemently. It was not brutal. I was just as gushing about my love for her writing as he was about his hate. Though I relented. He won when he said “I would pay someone to cut her columns out of my paper.”

To that I had no come back. And, he said “Is this the first chink in our relationship.”

Ummmm … yeah.

But let’s be honest.

Even my favourite writer could not compete with Bill.

So after the hair cut (which ended with Bill saying, “You’ve changed, you’re happy and whatever is going on you’re working it” – side note, Angela, that is such a Tyra line) I met up with some friends and went for drinks.

It was LOVELY. It was just a lot of fun. Laughing and joking. It was a couple of old friends me and I introduced them to a new friend. And, of course since one of the old friends there was Stef she got recognized from Mean Girls. And because I’d had a couple of drinks it was extra funny.
Too fun.

And, I actually got home at a decent hour. After a bizarre subway ride where the driver kept singing the subway stops. At one point the guy across from me looked up caught my eye and imitated her. It was so ridiculous that I started to giggle. Funny!

So anyway, I got home and went to bed. And man was I tired and ready to sleep. And since I felt a cold coming on I even took a couple of NyQuils.

And then 2:30 came. And Matt woke up shrieking. Poor little monkey’s diaper rash came back. But, we had no idea. So for an hour he cried intermittently while I tried cuddling, soothing, offering a bottle, soother and his hippo. Finally I thought about chaning his diaper. (He usually is dry all night). And, it was gross. And he had a really bad diaper rash. It was awful. I put the special cream on and thankfully he went back to sleep.

I did not.

I think I fell asleep at 4:30.

My alarm goes off at 5:21.

The good news is that Matt’s feeling way better.

The bad news is that I am one tired mommy. With good hair!!!

Green Beans anyone?

For reasons unknown to Mike and I, our child is in love with health food.
We try to be healthy in our house, but we do tend to enjoy the junk food. There's nothing Mike and I enjoy more than a night on the couch with chips and dip. (yum). I know we don't do this often anymore. But that's not by choice. It's because we were getting fat.
However, if you were to put, for instance, a potato and a brownie in front of either of us, the likely choice would be a brownie.
Like tonight. We made brownies yesterday and after dinner I pulled them out and gave one to each of us. Matt looked at the brownie (as Mike and I were filling our mouths) and decided to eat more potatoes followed by more corn.
we have tried buying Matt various kinds of cereal. We even bought Fruit loops cause we think they are yummy. He said no and asked for an apple.
And this weekend ... this was the clincher.
For 15 minutes Matthew kept walking around asking for green beans. I tried offering everything: cheese, apples, carrots, etc. Finally in frustration I said
"Matt we don't have green beans. Have some candy!!!"
Nice - I'm a great parent.
And then he went into our panty and pulled out a can of green bean. He looked up at me, gave me a huge smile and said
"Look, Mom, Green Beans!!!"
He was right.
What mother offers her child candy over vegetables. Me, I guess.

Bugs! - A Science Centre Adventure

So we went to the Science Centre today.
It's a good thing we are members because I was ready to kill someone today. It was Telus Family day. I'm sorry if anyone was there that is reading this - but all the Telus employees are idiots. Seriously.
We often go to the Science Centre on Sundays. It's usually nice and fairly quiet. At the KidSpark area Matt can run around, we wander, it's nice. Today it was crazy. We had to wait for an elevator and we didn't even bother with KidSpark because there was a huge Lineup. The people were rude. We got pushed when we were on the elevators. Even at the Sports Arcade (whch was unusually busy) people pushed, tried to get ahead. It was ridiculous.
Seriously. The people were such idiots that if I hadn't already cancelled my Telus phone I would go home and do so I was so annoyed.
So, to combat the crowds we decided to take Matt to Bugs! at the Imax Theatre. Someone suggested to me that Matt may be old enough for a movie. He did well for about half an hour. Then he got stir crazy and started to run up and down our row. No biggie cause it was relatively quiet, but when he started to climb the chairs we decided that it was time to go.
Honestly, the movie was boring. I mean, it was interesting, but by the time he lost interest so did I. Mike seemed a little more into it, but even he admitted that ti was a tad boring by the end.
So, all in all it was pretty good.
And, because we get a discount on the tickets it was a cheap movie.
I think next time we'll go to a good Disney movie and see how he does. Oh and candy would help, I think (the Imax doesn't allow it)

Sleepover!

Last night Mike went out with some friends, so Matthew and I had an evening to ourselves.
And, one of the highlights of putting Matt to bed on my own - and knowing Mike is coming home late is that I get to change up the bedroom routine.
Mike is pretty regimented when it comes to the bedtime routine.
It's always at a set time, we have a little routine and Matt is in bed by 8pm.
I'm fully supportive. The longer this routine has gone on the better the results have been. We have a child who actually goes to bed and we get a full night's sleep. I'm not complaining.
But last night was different.
Matt had expended all of his energy at McDonalds (and a totally cute aside, he was hanging out with an adorable group of five year olds who were amazing with him). We came home and watched an episode of Dora and then he was off to bed. I tucked him in and kissed him goodnight and then went to watch tv.
The only thing was, I was tired, my eyes were shutting, and I knew Matt was still awake.
So I went and asked if he would like to cuddle in mommy and daddy's bed.
"Oh yes!" he said, and went running. I set the ground rules.
He had to be quiet.
He was not allowed to play with his diaper (because he often ends up peeing all over his bed - and his mattress is plastic so no biggie - I didn't want to change sheets); and
This was a special treat!

I've gotta say, things went really well.
I'm not opposed to co-sleeping, but it doesn't work well for us on a regular basis. Matt is squirmy and Mike snores, so when I have them both in bed I don't sleep. Plus, it is too crowded. But, some nights a good cuddle is pretty fun. And, last night was just such a night.
To be honest, we didn't fall asleep right away. Matty wanted to hear stories, so I told him all sorts of stories about when I was a little girl.
Matt told me stories about daycare and even tried to teach me a song.
It was a good old fashioned sleepover. And I loved it!!!
I don't actually know what time Mike got home last night. But when I woke up this morning Matt was in his own bed, cuddling with his stuffed animals and really happy.

I know this won't happen a lot, but as life changes and Matty grows up, it's nice to relish just a few extra cuddles!

Matthew the Builder

It's Friday - and for some Friday fun some pics of my little construction worker.
And, oh the elephant costume. It a hit. Matt loves it. And, it's adorable on him albeit a little girly. But those pictures will not appear before Halloween!!!

Movin' On

Today we found out for sure that there's a spot in Matthew's old daycare.
There was some uncertainty because of the number of toddlers moving up to the preschool program. The problem that daycares encounter is that there always have to have a certain amount of children per teacher (or adult) in the classroom at all times. In this case they will either have to move one of the toddler teachers up to the preschool room or hire a new teacher.
It's not really our problem. But it kind of is because we need Matt to have a space. Which, as it turns out, he now does.
Thank God!
And, he's officially back at the old daycare as of the first Monday in December.
I've gotta say - I'm excited.
So, today I had to go into our current daycare and tell them that we are moving and Matthew will be leaving the daycare.
I was a little worried because I'm not good at this kind of stuff. I was a complete wreck when we left the old place. I cried when I told them, and on Matt's last day - well, I made my mom come with me because I didn't think I could handle saying goodbye.
But today I was totally totally fine.
In fact, I could hardly wipe the smile off my face. It was pathetic. The daycare supervisor was like "I can tell you are excited!" Ummm ... yeah.
The one sicky thing is that my favourite teacher at the old place is no longer there. I loved her, and she was the toddler teacher. But she went back to school. Part of me thinks this is good. I'm happy for her. And Matthew wouldn't be in her class anyway. So, that would be weird for him. I did like lots of the other teachers, so I'm still happy.
Plus, I love Cindy who runs the place. She's about my age and she's pretty cool. When we had initially switched Matt to a crappy daycare I called her in tears. She totally talked me through it, helped me make the decision to choose a different daycare and then had Matt and I come back for his birthday and threw him a party (there were streamers, toddlers saying happy birthday, etc - and of course I cried!!!)
So, I'm moving on. And ready to go back.
I'm now stressing - do I give them a goodbye gift? What do I do????
Help.
I'm thinking a big box of chocolate and a homemade card.

America's Next Top Model - the commentary

One of my friends, who wishes to remain anonymous, admitted to me that she is a big fan of America's Next Top Model.
So, we sit weekly and send e-mails to each other commenting on the show. (That's what blackberries are for, right?)
And, so, to make everyone's Thursday that much more exciting, I have pasted below our e-mail commentary. If you have taped the show - don't read this. We will spoil it for you.

----

Anchal vs. Melrose
--------------------------

Catfight! Catfight!
EVERYONE vs Melrose "the motor mouth" model

----- Original Message -----

They always encourage them to talk about themselves and each other, then they get slammed for it. So, weird!!! SHUT UP ANCHAL!!!

----
Subject: Must concentrate ...

Tyra is getting deep!!
--------------------------

Love AJ. Isn't that strange that Meg hasn't seen herself with a beard, I know I have....

--------------------------
Oh the drama
I love all y'all!!!
It is SO hard being beautiful
I looked at my stunning self in the mirror and sobbed - I'm just way too hot
--------------------------

They always encourage them to talk about themselves and each other, then they get slammed for it. So, weird!!! SHUT UP ANCHAL!!!

----------------------------------

Why does Melrose always act as if everyone is there to meet and see her?

----- Original Message -----

LOL!!!! You are killing me....and it's also very true. Who do you think is heading home?

----- Original Message -----

My money is on jaeda since melrose rocked the photo shoot Loving the twins Can't wait to see the pics My crush on mr.jay increases every week. He is so cute
--------------------------


Did you notice that even after makeup was removed meg still had a 5 o clock shadow?
--------------------------
Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld


Its bye bye Anchal (I hope)
--------------------------


Bye Jaeda

----- Original Message -----

Fee fi fo fum thank god???
--------------------------

I second that motion.... I feel bad for Jaeda I think she's too forcused on her lack of hair

----- Original Message -----

Let's kick off the 17 editor
--------------------------


You never know it might be Anchal as her photo wasn't that good

----- Original Message -----

I think u r right but I still want ugly anchal to go!!!
--------------------------


----- Original Message -----

I think that the bottom two will be Jaeda and Meg


----------
Poor Meg

I want to be ???? for Hallowe'en

Matthew has been talking about Halloween for awhile now.
I like Halloween; in fact I plan to take a vacation day to spend halloween with my monkey like I did last year (the year before I was on mat leave).
And, we have of course started to talk about.
Thanks to daycare, his cousin and Mike and I Matt totally understands that Halloween is all about dressing up.
So the other day I said to him "what do you want to be for Halloween?"
He said "I want to be an elephant for Halloween."
I had planned to make him a cowboy, but I'm discovering that 2 year olds have their own opinions on stuff, and he most certainly does not want to be a cowboy.
Ok.
So every day I have asked him what he wants to be. And every day he has said "I want to be an elephant."
I have looked all over the place for an elephant costume. I have looked everywhere - with no avail.
But tonight I FOUND IT!!!
When I ran into the Superstore for a few groceries and some diapers I found a toddler's elephant costume. So excited.
I ran through the store, hopped in the car and said to Matt: "So ... what do you want to be for Halloween?"
His response:
"I want to be a Monkey!!!!"

Thansgiving Already ...

As I write this it's Saturday morning. Our dinner with my in-laws is tonight, and I volunteered to make dinner.
I love making Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas dinner. I feel like the total domestic goddess that I am not most days of the year. I love the cooking and the baking and just gernally being in control of the kitchen.
Except ...
I left myself a little short this year.
This past week was - extremely busy. The good news is that there's lots for usto be grateful for after this past week. But, grateful or not, it left me little time to prepare.
So here we are at 8:30 on Saturday morning with a whole ton of stuff to do before dinner at 5 today.
We already made the pumpkin cheesecake. But it's a 45 minute recipe that has been baking for about an hour and 15 minutes. Matthew and I have, in the meantime, made 2 pumpkin pies - about ready to go in the oven and prepared the cranberries.
Once that stuff goes in the oven (who knew you could bake cranberry sauce? My mom taught me the stove top method) I will get the turkey going, make the stuffing, etc etc.
Thank goodness I thought to thaw the turkey!
Last year at Thanksgiving I also made dinner. Except Matthew was younger, and wasn't exactly that helpful. We were also living in a crappy apartment with a bad oven and very little counter space. The condo isn't huge - but there is a lot more counter space the oven works way better and we have a dishwasher. So, lots to be thankful for.


My turkey turned out beautifully - and bonus - I made delicious cranberry auce that my father in law couldn't get enough of - apparently this was the first time he ever enjoyed cranberry sauce


PS The pumpkin cheesecake was gross!!!

While I was cooking Matt decided to try on my glasses. I know it's really unsafe, but I had to take a picture. It was cute!!!

It's just a rash

Today, in the middle of a crazy day at work, I got a heart stopping phone call.
Matt's teacher called me to ask me to come pick up Matthew.
"Don't worry, Matthew's okay," were her first words. That was reassuring, until she added, "But you should come and pick him up because he's not well, he has a rash and asked me to call you."
I pretty much got up, walked across to my co-worker and told her I had to go.
Thankfully she said "Go. I can turn off your computer, just go."
I took a breath, went to tell my boss who had the same reaction, and left. I think I was out of there in about 4 minutes. En route to the bus I bumped into another work friend who managed to tell me that Matt was fine.
I made it all the way to the daycare without freaking out.
It turned out that the rash was actually a really bad diaper rash. I know diaper rash is normal in kids, but this was brutal. Kayla, his teacher, said he was hysterical whenever she had to change him. They actually had to bring in an extra staff member to help change him. It was not fun.
But, then he had some spots on his face too. They thought it may have been chicken pox.
So, Mike, who also left work early, and I took Matt to the doctor.
The diaper rash was bad. We got a prescription. He should be okay.
The chicken pox.
Well ... those would be mosquito bites. Yep. Mosquito bites.
You never know.

Mommy's a What ?!

Friday fun on the TTC.
We were on the 2nd leg of daily journey - the part where we cram on to the bus, hope for seats and pray that Matt behaves on the 20 minute bus ride.
We were doing well until the midway point. Since I'd forgotten a snack, I bought Matty a bag of chips which he ate happily much of the trip. He only talked to a few people. He was particularly friendly with the two guys behind us.
And then his nose started to run.
Good mommies keep little packs of kleenex in their purses. Mine is crammed with lipsticks, my book, my blackberry and my cell phone - there's usually no room.
So he wiped his nose on my jacket. Instead of just saying no, I decided to be funny and say "do you think Mommy is a Kleenex?"
Matt thought this was hilarious - probably because he misheard the word Kleenex. He heard Penis.
So, there, on the rush hour crowded he started yelling, yes yelling ...
"Mommy is a Penis! Mommy is a big strong Penis."
The more I blushed and asked him to stop the more he yelled, delighted in the fact that he had the entire back section of the bus laughing. I alternated between laughing and being horrified.
Parenting. So fun!

So much going on ... where to start?

It's been busy lately. You can probably tell from my lack of blogging activity. It's just been one of those weeks when you just don't seem to have the time ...

The big thing in Matt's life this week has been the transition to preschool. This is the first time he has transitioned to an older age group. I know that he changed daycares, but he's always been in a toddler room. So, it's pretty much the same. Preschool is a whole different ball game.

The big thing for him is that it is much more structured. My child is not terribly structured. Consistency is a good thing for him. He likes nap time at the same time, lunch and dinner at the same time, etc. But, being asked to sit in one place and all of that is kind of tough for him. So, the preschool teacher has noticied he's struggling to get into the routine of sitting still for circle time (it's longer than in the toddler room). I get that. And, I've seen him maturing and growing. So, I know he will adjust pretty quickly. But still.

And, in about 2 weeks he will start all out toilet training. They think he's ready for underwear (yay?) but because he's changing his routine they don't want to push it. Okay. But at the same time tonight we got him and I said it was time for a fresh diaper and Matt said "No Potty."

Sure. whatever. Works for me.

Another thing with this whole transition is what you do for the teachers. I bought cards. I know it's not the best thing. But, truthfullly we were going to get gifts, but these are women who are not easy to buy for. I'm debating buying them a box of chocolate, but I don't know. I just feel like I hardly know them anymore.

At the last daycare I agonized over the teacher gifts at Christmas and when we moved. But, his teachers were young and cool. And, they hadn't gotten all of the mugs and stuff. For the record, at Christmas I went a little overboard. I got nice gift certificates from the Gap, and then some teas and chocolate and stuff and put them in nice cellophane wrapped boxes. It was very Martha Stewart of me - and I am so not crafty. I even had Matt paint ornaments that had a place for his picture. It was impressive. When we moved, we were pretty upset. So, we had Matt paint a mug at the ceramics places (very cool if you've never done it). And we gave that to Christine. She cried. It was cute. But, she was young and hadn't gotten gifts like this before so it was meaningful.

Anyway, we're sticking with cards.

Bye Bye Toddler room. My big boy is moving on.

And, yay! His new teacher - so cool!

Cleanse ...

This weekend Mike and I decided to do a cleanse. The basic premise is that you drink a crappy drink (lemons, maple syrup and cayenne pepper) and cleanse your system. Beyonce did it and lost a ton of weight. So, I thought maybe it would work for Mike and I. Okay, really I thought it would work for me and dragged Mike along for moral support.
It sucked.
First of all - why spend a weekend cleansing? Why? Why not make your work week crappier and then enjoy the weekend. Hmmm....
Here's the thing. I keep going back to the same weight. And I hate that weight. I want to lose - and I'm stuck.
Yes, if I did the weightwatchers thing properly I would, but I lost incentive at the same time I had to lower my points and gained a little back.
I wanted to cleanse because I had a doctor's appointment today and I wanted to be at a very specific number.
The cleanse - it didn't work so well becasue we got hungry and ate salad (one a chicken caesar another a greek salad). And I don't think I drnak enough of the drink.
But still - it was a salad weekend.
And I GAINED A POUND!!!
Seriously.
Who gains weight when they cleanse? me!!!!
But I did have a doctor's appointment today (where, incidentally, I brought the wrong health card - oops) so among other things I asked her about this.
She laughed. Yep. Laughed.
Actually, first she told me that she was really proud of my weight loss. She told me to lose another 20 lbs and she will be happy. I am okay with that. I want to do that.
And, then she told me not to sweat it. This, she explained, is water weight. But, she also pointed out that my body may also be settling a bit, sticking at one weight but making adjustments. I think this is true because I feel like skirts and pants are fitting me better - even at the same weight. She said this may be from the exercise too. Who knows.
And speaking of exercise ...
Tonight our building had a fire alarm. It was pretty funny. Matt was soooo excited that he wanted to see the trucks. But, thanks to the lesson he learned from our neighbours he decided he should wear his fire hat. And then he took it to the next level and wanted to bring his fire truck.
So, off we went. Since we are on the 12th floor, and I wasn't sure if it actually was a fire (once there actually was a fire, so I am always cautious - not to mention I am a FIRE WARDEN at work) I insisted on the stairs. So, I had Matt in one arm and a ride on fire truck in the other arm, plus a plastic fire hat in my mouth and we ran down the stairs.
When we got downstairs Matt was thrilled. fzor some reason 3 fire trucks and the fire van showed up. Matt immediately went up to the firefighters (who by this time had determined it was a false alarm) and said "Hi firefighter man".
The firemen were so cute with him. They kept calling him chief and were having him show them the various different noises his truck made. Matt was totally in his element.
The funniest part was when the firefighters were in a little group talking. Matt wheeled right over and looked up at them, just like he was one of them.
It melted my heart.
Before we left the fire chief came up to me and said "That's one cute kid you've got there. Hang on to him."
I refrained from hugging the guy.
I just said thank you.
I refrained from mentioning that I am a fire warden (I've done the training people. I know about crossover floors and how to use a fire fighters phone).
Honestly, some days parenting is so rewarding.
And ... this is Matt's last week in the toddler room at daycare. I think he's spending half days in the preschool room. He talks about his new teacher constantly. I don't know who is more excited.

Buses, McDonald's and my Karate Skills

My comments on America’s Next Top Model are forthcoming – I promise. Because there was a ton of fun e-mailing back and forth throughout the show. But, my ANTM mindset has been somewhat put on the backburner. Because ...

The other day I got thinking about parenting. More precisely, someone challenged me on the topic of spending time with my child – what is important, how much time I spent, and what exactly constituted quality time.

Is it doing a child specific activity or is it just the actual time you spend together doing something, anything, together that really matters?

I didn’t quite have an answer. The question came from someone who, by circumstance, does not have an opportunity to spend as with their child as I do with mine. And it made me realize something – I need to start appreciating my time just a little more than I do.

Case in point – commuting.

I whine about it constantly. I whine on my blog. I whine to my husband. I whine to my friends. I whine to my family. Generally speaking, taking my toddler on the bus is not fun. Okay. I know you all get it.

But, I realized that it’s stuff like this that I should make fun or try to make fun.

Last night, since it’s been a busy week at work and Mike was working late, I decided to take Matty to McDonald’s. I told him that we were taking a special bus – the McDonald’s bus!

There was nothing special about this bus. Well, except my attitude; I decided that I would make commuting FUN. And, it was a blast! We looked out the window, we chatted, we discussed McDonald’s. And, surprise surprise the trip was enjoyable. In fact, I may even go so far as to say it was fun.

Shockingly, because it started off on the right foot, McDonald’s was fun too. Matthew listened to me. He waited in line with me when I ordered, he sat and ate his dinner and then when he was done he asked me if it was time to play. I was impressed. At the end of playtime, while still waiting for Daddy to pick us up, I asked Matt if he wanted ice cream.

Of course he said yes.

And, despite the fact that it was a kind of chilly evening we sat outside on the McDonald’s patio and had strawberry sundaes. The whole time we talked, and laughed and giggled and had fun. And I realized that part of it was because I was making the effort – not to be super mom. But, to just enjoy myself. Which I did.

So …

When we got home we were still in good moods. Mike wanted to walk down to see the Teluscape at the Science Centre. Which we did. It’s not quite ready yet, but it was a fun adventure.

And then it was bedtime. I don’t know what got into me, but Matt brought me an empty paper towel roll.

Perhaps it was the ice cream, or the fun of the evening. But, I decided to demonstrate my karate skills! (wait, have I taken karate. Nope. I did take Wen-Do where you learn to break a board, as well as numerous self defense/aerobics classes).

So, I made Mike hold the paper towel role while I yelled “Hi-YAH!” and broke the role. I know – impressive.

Matthew thought this was the most hilarious thing in the world. So, we spent the next 20 minutes laughing and screaming “Hi-Yah” while trying to break things. Eventually we discovered that karate chopping diapers was great fun.

Truthfully, I don’t know who enjoyed it more – me or Matt. At one point we were both on the floor giggling. It was pretty funny!

And at the end of the evening I figured out the answer to the question. It's not the activity you do with your child that is important - it's the quality of it.

A Break from the Mommy Posts because ...

Tonight is the first episode of my favourite reality show ... America's Next Top Model!!!
Some people think I'm crazy. I know it's a trashy show. In fact, I don't even like Tyra Banks. Really, I don't.
But, I love the show.
I don't know why. I just get so into it.
I love the cat fights and the anxiety. And I always end up cheering for one person to win. For instance, in the one where Nicole one - I picked her from the beginning. Seriously. But, last time I was not happy with the winner. Whatever.
It starts again tonight. Yippee!
----

And, in new from last night's Parent advisory committee. It was interesting. And weird. And fun in a way.
I think the goal of the committee is to have music classes for the kids and also yoga classes for the kids. I think Matt would LOVE the yoga. It means lots of fundraising. But, that's fine.
I also had a really nice chat with some people. His preschool teacher was there and I think she's amazing. She's fun and relaxed and we talked for awhile. I can't wait till I get to do pick ups in her room.
And then this other mom stopped me to tell me how much she loves Matt. She said that she was really nervous about putting her son in daycare, but that Matt was the first child who has ever just approached her son and played with him. This little boy's older sister is autistic, and so obviously the playing dynamic between her kids is a little unusual. So, this was a pretty big deal that he was welcomed into the class.

Is it possible that I am being considered as a good mom??
Is it?
Well,yes. Wanna know why? I've been officially asked to be on my son's daycare's parent advisory council.
Okay, I know that to some people this isn't the biggest deal in the world. I know that there will be many PTA's I can join, many Parent-teacher interviews to attend and manky school trips I can chaperone. But, for now, I am relishing in this.
I don't exactly know what this involves. Nor do I really know what I have committed to. I do know that lately I'm feeling a lot more confident in my parenting skills. Like, at drop off and pick up I've been chatting to parents. And, sometimes I'm asked for advice - things like how do I get Matt to cooperate at drop off and how am I encouraging his speech.
Huh?
A couple years ago people were acting like I was crazy because I didn't own all of the baby einstein dvd's.
And now this - the request to be on parent council.
I know one of my friends is on her parent council. But, this is Ginny. And, she's super mom. She can talk about all the parenting books. She's the person I ask when I don't know what something means. She's the person I will call when I need to know what the best toy on the market is.
So, this is a big deal to me.
And, I'm looking forward to it.
Tomorrow night I shall advise away.

And in other Matty news ...
Today was a pretty big day. First Matt used the daycare potty twice. He's started telling us when he needs to pee - and announcing when he's going to poop.
He also went to visit the preschool room for the afternoon. He loves his teacher Kayla. Actually, so do I. She's really friendly, and not as crazy as his current teacher. When I went to his classroom to pick him up today I looked around and realized that the new toddlers (18 months) just looked like babies compared to my preschool boy. And, the best part is, I'm happy about all of this.
I'm not mourning his growing up. I'm realizing that every day I fall more in love with this kid.

My Friend the Comedienne!

Last night Mike and I went to Seconnd City. It was a pretty big deal for us on several levels.
The first was that it was a night out. Matthew had a sleepover with his cousin (and yes, they did sleep). The second was that we'd never been to Second City (I know) and the third was that my friend Stef was on the Second City Mainstage. Even as someone who had never been before I knew this was a big deal. So we went.
I am so proud.
Let me tell you about Stef.
I've known her for about 5 years. I met her when I was working at a film company. She was a temp receptionist and I was an admin assistant. The very first thing I remember about her is that she brought this ridiculous fish lunch bag and walked in still wearing a bike helmet over her curly red hair.
I was kind of intrigued and kind of frightened.
Within a day I realized that she is one of the most amazing people I will ever meet.
Stef is an actor and a singer. And she's incredible.
And, despite the frustrations of being a struggling actor in Toronto she hasn't given up. She goes to auditions all the time. Sometimes she lands stuff, often she doesn't. But, the point is that she is working and trying and most of all acting.
And, last night was a pretty big deal - since her comedy troupe was at Second City.
And ... they were good. In fact - they were amazing!
Truthfully, the reason I haven't been to Second city before is because I don't really enjoy comedy. Most of the time I don't get it, and I really hate people who say funny things they know are funny in order to make people laugh.
I'm more of a person who is impressed by off the cuff funny. You know, like sometimes people just say things that are so hilarious you laugh all of the time. I digress here. My point is that, despite my feelings on comedy I LOVED THIS.
Because it was good.
In fact it was amazing. Stef even sang a song about terrorists. Seriously.
And, at the end of it all I am one proud friend.
Why? Because after forever she's still doing what she loves, and no matter the set backs, she keeps trying. And getting places and doing amazingly well. And, I'm so proud to say she's my friend. (did you know she was in Mean Girls too? She was - with Lo Lo - and when we go shopping people always recognize her - also very cool.)
But, aside from all of this, the thing that keeps me hanging out with her is that she's also an amazing person and friend.
She once told me that in life you have a friends pyramid. There are the ones at the top that are the most important and then the wealth is spread down. And, she said to me "you know you're at the top of my pyramid."
Is it true? I don't know. But I feel that way - as do all of her friends.
Because she cares. Despite the fact that she's the busiest person I know (really, I almost have to call her agent if I want to meet for lunch - and yes, she really does have 2 agents and I know all about them!) she always makes the time to know about the silly details of my life.
She's one of the only friends who is allowed to join me when I go to see my hairstylist, Bill (he loves her) because she gets the Bill experience. Yes, of course I must wear my best outfit, yes you must tell me that I look thin and rich before I go in, yes I will discuss every detail of everything he said to me.
She also just seems to get things. When I had Matt and just was fat and ugly for months she bought me clothes that flattered me. She always makes me feel like the fact that I'm a mom is the cooles thing ever. And, when you're 25 when you have a baby, not too many of your friends say that.
And, at the end of the day she makes me laugh. When we were working at a crappy admin job we got nicknamed Lucy and Ethel after flooding our office because we put dish soap in the dishwasher. If I'm pissed off at someone (we worked with a crazy accountant) she can get me giggling. I think all of this comedy and improv is perfect. Because she will rock it.
Like she rocks everything else.
I think she knows how much I think of her, but now you guys do too.Yes - we are wearing matching sweaters. We thought it was cool that was had the same item of clothing (different cut, same old Navy sales rack) so we decided to go out in matching outfits. We ordered the infamous Fat Plate at Pickle Barrel - also known as their appetizer sampler.

Hello to the Peeps!

The other day I got an instant message from Mike. He was very excited to tell me about someone who read my blog.
I tried guessing to no avail.
And finally he told me. His ex-girlfriend from highschool reads my blog - on a regular basis (Hi Melissa!)
First of all, yes, I'm totally okay with the fact that he is friends with her. We're talking high school romance, and I'm friends with a highschool boyfriend. This is not my point.
My point is, this is pretty cool.
I write my blog because I like to write. I really do. It's an outlet for me and it's a space for me to write about what is going on in my life. Motherhood has been a pretty frightening journey for me, and one that I'm only beginning to navigate. Combine that with the drama that is my every day life and I'm one explosively emotional being!
And it's super cool to know that people actually are reading about my life - and care.
The comments I love. I love them especially when the comments are from people I don't know outside of the "blogosphere". I can't even tell you how incredibly important and special and, well, let's be honest COOL I felt when one of my favourite writers (and bloggers) first commented on my blog. I think I told everyone I knew - and some people I barely knew were told to check out the comments because I was so excited.
And, it's also pretty neat to know friends are reading. I know this sounds corny and cheesy and everything else, but when someone tells me that they read something on my blog it's important to me. Or when they take the time to mention something I've said, or comment on something that has upset me or pissed me off or just generally got me thinking (i.e. whether I want another baby) it's appreciated. Because, honestly, at the end of the day sometimes it's easier to write out what you are thinking than to hunt down a friend to listen.
So to all of you out there - this is a great big thank you and a great big hug. Thanks for keeping me going, keeping me smiling and caring about my little corner of the universe.
And one more thing .... comment comment comment. Please!

Wide Awake

I don't know what it is about fall, but lately my sleep is totally off. Take today for instance. In the back of my mind I knew I had to get up early. I promised one of my colleagues I would help her set up for an event, which means being downtown for 7am. No biggie, usually. I set my alarm a few minutes early and went to bed.
The only problem was that at 3:30 I was wide awake and raring to go. I finally got out of bed at 4. It's ridiculous. I decided to tweeze my eyebrows because what else do you do at 4am? I also had an extra cup of coffee and watched all of the different news programs.
Who knew how much news is on before 5:30.
Interesting.
And, on the topic of being awake so early it makes me wonder what exactly consists of late and early. For instance, the early early show that I was watching ran from 4-5. But, what time does the late late show end? It's completely possible that people, friends even, were going to bed when I was waking up.
Hmmm ...
Okay - well, it's now almost 6 and I need to get ready. Because despite my early start I'm still not dressed and ready to go.
Oh - and on a completely different topic.
I GOT NEW JEANS!
I'm very excited about this. I've been a little obsessed about jeans lately. It seems that everywhere everyone keeps talking about skinny jeans. Trust me - they look awful on me. But, still needed new jeans.
So, we were at the mall last night and I went to the Gap. I found the coolest jeans. They are kind of low rise, but not too low rise. And, the waistband is embellished with studs (sounds tacky, but it's not). Anyway, I was looking for my size and they didn't have it. So, I thought that I'd get the size down and try them on. I figured that if they weren't too horribly tight I would buy them to shrink into.
Except, wonder of wonders, they fit. Perfectly.
They could have been the ugliest jeans ever, and I think I would have bought them because they fit me and I liked the size. And, I ran down the aisle of the fitting room and showed Mike who kind of knew there was no saying no to these jeans.
Is it possible to be in LOVE with jeans??? Cause I am. I debated saying screw the dress code at work and wearing them today, but really, no. Not such a good idea. But, I'm so wearing them on friday. Because we can wear jeans on Friday (ha ha my legal department friends who cannot wear jeans. Ha ha I say). And we are going to Second City in the evening and I can also wear jeans there. I think.
So excited.

Mommy cracked

I knew one day this would happen.
I finally cracked!
Okay, well maybe not exactly, but ...
Yesterday was a weird day. We didn't quite knw if it was rainy or sunny so we didn't quite know what to do with the day. We checked out the Cabbageton festival which was fun. And then we decided to go to McDonald's for lunch because Mike wanted a big mac and Matt wanted to go to a playground. Since it looked like rain we thought the indoor playground would be perfect.
Apparently so did 5 million other parents.
We had lunch and then Matt went to play. (I went with him).
He's only 2 - and the age range is 3-10. But, I figure he is fine because he's a pretty aggressive toddler and he can hold his own with 3 and 4 year olds.
Things were okay at first, but then some of the older kids got a little aggressive. Matty still held his own, climbing through the tunnels. Though I wanted to leave Mike said no, he was fine, let him play. And I did. For several minutes.
But, I started stressing when one of the kids (I'd say he was like 8 maybe) started to climb the play structure from the outside. I kind of wondered where his parents were. This is a pretty restrained McDonald's, and usually the parents are all over their kids.
Apparently this wasn't the case with destructo child.
All the kids were kind of avoiding him.
And then he found Matt who was climbing into the tunnel.
Matt wanted to take his time, this kid wanted to get in the tunnel.
Matt said no.
The kid tried to push him.
Matt pushed back - Hard - and knocked the kid over a bit.
So the kid says "move".
Matt said no and sat down.
So the kid stepped on his foot and when Matt started to cry he pushed him and went up the slide.
All this happened while I was en route from my seat to the base of the climbing structure. I freaked out, said "hey" grabbed Matt and left the room.
Truthfully, I almost lost it. Which is why I left (thank God Mike grabbed Matt's shoes and jacket). I was almost the mommy who freaked out and shouted at someone else's child. I mean he was pushing a little kid. seriously.
Mike thought it was kind of funny because I did turn into crazy mom there for a minute. And, I did carry my screaming toddler through McDonald's. It was a bit of a scene.
Oh well. Funny. At least I didn't scream at the other kid.
And, as Mike pointed out, thank goodness Matt can hold his own.

Back on the Wagon

So of course this week was Labour day, and with it came a sort of resolution.
I was reading something about how a lot of people actually make second resultions on Labour day. Like on New Year's except in the fall. I rarely make New Year's resolutions, and when I do I never keep them, so kind of dumb to find a second time in the year for me to make a resolution that I know I won't keep.
But, this feeling of fall, new beginnings, and reading about skinny jeans did get me back on the bandwagon when it came to my weight.
For the past month I've been avoiding all of my weight watchers stuff. I wasn't sticking to my weekly weigh ins, I wasn't journaling, I wasn't really even counting points. So, basically I was off track. I was still trying in the sense that I wasn't really gaining weight, I wasn't over eating, etc. In other words I was at a standstill.
But, I got back on track.
On Labour Day (after a week of trying) I weighed myself and guess what?! I finally hit 25 pounds. It's cool, but also a little sad since in July I was at 23.5 pounds. But, I guess for me it was that thing that pushed me towards realizing that I could soon hit 30 pounds. And after 30 pounds what's another 20 - y'know. And, so I started again.
Mid week my friend pointed out that if I really work I could hit my goal weight at Christmas. She's right. What a great Christmas gift to myself not to mention all the lovely Christmas gifts others could give me.
And then I weighed myself again today (I know it should be weekly, but I did go Monday to Saturday, so whatever) and again the WW magic is working because I'm dropping pounds. And with those pounds is coming confidence. Again. Finally.
I've promised myself that when I hit a certain magic number (45 pounds) I will by the Lululemon pants I really want.
When I hit 30 pounds (which I am close to) I get to see my beloved Bill the hairstylist. Hmmm ... I think I should book an appointment.
And, oh yeah, I'm down to the next level of points. This kind of sucks because it means I get to eat less calories in the day. But then it's also good becasue it means that I am losing weight. And how great is that???????
So, today I'm just being proud of myself. Because liking myself is always a good thing.

The Monsters ...

Matthew is afraid of monsters.
I don't know why. His fear seemed to come out of nowhere. Okay, so we did let him watch Monsters Inc., but really he was already afraid of monsters when we let him watch it, and we sort of figured that it would show him not to be afraid of monsters.
Apparently that didn't work because the kid is terrified.
Yesterday, for instance, we were watching the Simpsons. I know - maybe not the best show for a toddler, but we were tired and I couldn't watch Dora again. (God help me when Mike starts quoting lines from Dora and we both laugh).
And, it was a good one. Except right in the middle of the show they make a commercial with a monster climbing in an old woman's window.
Matthew started screaming and clinging to me "Ahhhh!!! Mommy. Monster!"
Oops.
And, given that it was not a kids show, and the purpose of the show was not to show that Monsters really are nice not mean, we kind of just had to go back to Dora and try not to dwell on that monster.
He didn't mention it again. He went to bed, all was fine. Till about 3:30 am when he ran down that hall shrieking "momma momma - monsters."
Oh dear.
Half an hour later he was back asleep, cuddled up with me (and later peeing on me - thanks Matt!).
Poor thing.

Baby # 2 ... hmmmm

NO. I'm not pregnant. There is no baby #2. You can breathe again!
But, it seems that since my child has hit the magical age of 2 everyone thinks that a second child is imminent. It started with my doctor who happens to be Matthew's doctor too.
"Now that your son is two ... have you started thinking about another?" Nope.
Then it just snowballed. We had an open house for his 2nd birthday and I sware people were looking to see if I had a bump. Nope.
The questions keep coming - parents in the park, people I work with, somewhat random strangers on the street and friends of friends and distant relatives.
For the record, I don't think that a mandatory age difference is 2 years. It's nice, I agree, but so is 3 years or 5 years.

But then today Mike and I were out at a mall shopping while Matty spent some time with his grandparents. We were on a mission to find fall clothes for Matt. We were in Walmart and ended up in the baby department. And Mike turned to me and said
"I hope our next one is a girl"
WHAT?????
What next one? Trust me - I am 100% sure I am not pregnant, and we are not trying to get pregnant. So the comment was pretty random.
So I calmly said "are you trying to tell me you're ready for another one?"
Yep. It turned out he was. It turns out he's been ready for awhile and just didn't tell me. Good call on that. Since I am nowhere near ready to even think about another one.
And it shocked me that Mike is.

So, herewith all the reasons that I am not ready for another.
1) I am finally beginning to get comfortable with my body after 3 long years. Today I weighed myself and I hit that magical 25 pound mark. I have a ways to go. But, I'm seeing the results and I'm liking them. And I want to lose more and like myself again before I have another baby.
2) I love the stage Matthew is at. We chat. We talk. He communicates. He sleeps through the night. He walks and doens't need a stroller all the time. When I am sad he actually tries to comfort me. It's taken 2 years and 3 months (plus 10 months of pregnancy) to get to this stage. I don't really want to start over.
3) Pregnancy. Yuck.
4) Labour. Ouch.
5) Post Partum Depression. Terrified.
6) I would be giving up the last 2 years of my twenties. The way I see it, I got pregnant 5 years before I was planning to. I wasn't quite ready to give up eveyrthing I did. I don't regret it, but I also know that I want to finish my twenties before I get pregnant again.
7) I want to give another child the same love and attention I gave to Matt and at this point I can't. At least I don't think I can.
8) I don't want to live in Toronto in a small condo with 2 kids. I don't want to take 2 kids home from daycare everyday on the TTC. One almost kills me somedays. I think If I attempted to put a double stroller on the Eglinton bus at rush hours someone really would kill me. Ditto for a regular stroller and a hyper toddler.
9) I'm already tired enough. Thinking about working, then picking Matt up at daycare and taking him home on the bus while pregnant - I may kill myself.
10) We don't have enough money. There is no way we can afford to have 2 kids in daycare right now. Nor can we afford all of the other stuff that comes along with 2 kids - clothes, shoes, diapers, food, formula.

I know I know. That list sounds really selfish. It is, in fact, really selfish. But I think in a decision like this you have to be a little selfish, because if you aren't than you will make all the wrong decisions, right?

I dunno. Feel free to comment - I'd love to hear what others think.
PS why is there a random pic of me here? I dunno. Just cause - really because Mike and I agreed it's a nice picture and I hate pictures of me :)

Matt's First Crush & a Shout Out to My Sis

Sometimes people tell you really cool things - that make you feel really special. Tonight over cake for my dad's birthday my sister told me that she goes online every night to read my blog.
Lately life has been overwhelming. And, knowing someone who loves you cares enough to tune into your life every day. Well, that's just cool. Period.
And, Beck, someday I'll teach you how to comment :)

Now on to Matt's first crush.

One of my closest friends lives down the hall from me. Yep. I'm lucky. I know. And, I've said a million times how if Ginny hadn't been here in Matt's first year, well ... I don't know. It would have sucked for sure. And, the reason I got to know Ginny is pretty much because her younger daughter, Lindsey, is 4 days older than Matt. Her older daughter, Mackenzie, will be 4 in October.

And Matt has a big crush on Mackenzie.

At first I thought he just said her name a lot because it was close to his. We call Matt Matty and they call Mackenzie Mackie. So, I just thought he was saying Mackie cause he liked it. Well, Mackie is now "Kenzie" in his world, and he is enamored.

At the tender age of 2 he is already knocking on her door and talking about her constantly. I have to say, it's the cutest thing. Like, on the bus on Friday he started to sing - at the top of his lungs. What was he singing "Kenzie. Kenzie. I LUV Kenzie." over and over and over.

And, every day we go to the garbage chute - which happens to be across the hall from their unit. He always tries to run over and open the door. I usually manage to stop him. And he always tells me "that's where Kenzie lives." Yep. I know! I really do.

How long will this last? I don't know. A little birdie has told me that Mackenzie does ask about Matt too. Too sweet. Sadly, Mac is going to jr. kindergarten this year. Will there be an older man in her future.

Hello! who cares. Matt is 2. He'll get over it. But, let's be serious here for a second. As in-laws go ... well, let's just say that he would have pretty cool ones!!!

The Park Mommies

I have discovered I have a love/hate relationship with other park mommies.

There are things I love. This includes the fact that they bring their children who happen to entertain my child. Since we go to the playground right outside the daycare, I know some of the parents and kids. This is nice. I like the camraderie. I like that the kids share their respective snacks (I am learning to bring candy or cereal not an apple which turns into the communal apple).

But then there are the things that I hate.

Like the bitchy moms - the ones that are too cool for their own good and who scoff at your child's outfit. Yes, I know that my son had on flourescent green girls' corderoy overalls in a size too small with a horrible blue and yellow striped hoody tank top on the other day. Do I look like someone who would dress her kid that way. NO! It's daycare clothes. He is toilet training. No comments needed.

I also hate the moms who bring 25 toys for their own child and then get mad when your toddler tries to play with them. Seriously, share toys or don't spread them out. That's stupid. And, cheap, and your kid needs to learn to share!!!

But despite the love/hate thing, I'm beginning to get into it just a little bit. The social thing is a pretty big deal. I like being friends with the other moms. I like that the cool, pink haired kind of renegade mom who is really up on her politics chooses me to chat with over the other moms who drool with envy at her coolness. I think it's because in addition to that "pshaw you wannabe popular moms out there" vibe that I send off (not) our kids get along.

I also have to admit that I am enjoying the gossip. I can't help it. I love gossip (I admit it I admit it) and mommy gossip can be infinitely more interesting than work gossip. I don't know why, but it is. I find it incredibly interesting and I feel that I further my son's social status by being in on the gossip. Sure he's only 2, but I do want him to get invited to the good birthday parties and have the fun friends. So really this is all for him.

So bring on the playgrounds ... I love them! (Thank god my child does too)

The Poo Post

I assume there comes a time in every mother's life when something happens that makes them physically sick.
I've been puked on, peed on, changed exploda-poo diapers. Yes they were gross, but I dealt with it.
But, now we have started that wonderful time in every toddler's life - TOILET TRAINING.
I have to admit, I'm not loving it. When our daycare administrator suggested that perhaps Matthew's fascination with the potty and his genitalia may be a sign that he is ready I told her that he may be ready, but I'm not.
And trust me. I'm not.
I watched my sister, queen of all moms, toilet train my niece. I saw the stress, the frustration and the grossness (and I got the phone calls - 'did you know that Kyla will only poop in the bath - is that weird?').
So, on the weekend we bought the pull ups, the underwear, everything, and we pulled out Matt's potty. Good times. He started peeing, and was pretty proud of himself. And every day I've been pulling the potty out, turning on treehouse and putting Matt on the potty as soon as he wakes up. This has gone quite well.
Till today - when he pooped!!!
Our potty (the Royal throne that plays music whenever the child pees/poos) started to sing, and Matt seemed done, so in I went to clean it up. But, Matt seemed over excited and was pointing. Perhaps it was a lot of pee.
Nope.
Our first ever poop in the potty!!!
I know this is a milestone. Fantastic. Way to go Matt.
But, it was unexpected, and quite honestly I gagged. I don't know why. I have no idea why this was so repulsive to me. But, it was gross.
Luckily Mike was home, and quickly disposed of it.
Oh the fun!

Our singing potty!

My Ever changing Toddler

Matthew has changed a lot lately.
I don't know what has happened, what we have done, or really the reason, but it seems like Matty has changed a lot lately.
The little being who I didn't quite comprehend has changed, and it seemed like this has happened overnight.
I always had a really hard time understanding my son. The love was automatic, but the comprehension not so much. Ever since he was tiny he was not a cuddler. He nursed around the clock, he liked to be held, but it was never about snuggling and cuddling and just being with me. I always found that frustrating because I love touch.
But lately this has changed. Matthew has started asking me for cuddles. I know the doubters out there will tell me that this is just his way of trying to extend his bedtime. Yes, sometimes it is. I agree. But he also just seems to want to be with us. Take for instance tv watching. It was always alone on his couch or a chair. But, now he wants to be with us, sitting on our laps, our arms wrapped around him holding him.
I don't understand this change. Part of me loves it. I feel reassured that he's growing into a child who thrives on touch and knows we are always here for him. Sometimes I wonder if it's something darker, if we aren't around him as much, if he feels he needs protection. I hope it's the former.
But, the other side of him that has developed is this change in attention span. Forgive me for being a bad parent but this is amazing.
On Sunday morning he watched Dora for 2 straight hours. I sat and read a book and he watched. Occassionally he would demand milk, toast, candy or an apple, but most of the time he was watching and singing and dancing and shouting "Swiper no swiping."
I finally understand the passionate love parents have for shows like Dora and Thomas.
Honestly, I feel like I had it rough when Matty was little and I got no sleep. There was no Baby Einstein that he actually was transfixed on - nothing. So here I am with a toddler who will watch Dora.
Thank God!!!
I'm so letting the tv be the babysitter. Just for the next few weekends :)

More pictures from the CNE

Matty asked me to take a picture of the tractor!


Some kids love the big animals - others hate them. Matt was fascinated and hugged them all.









I told Matthew he could go on one ride. All day he told me he wanted the Merry Go Round. He was so happy with his choice. He smiled the whole time







For some fun we went to the splash park at Ontario Place. It was pretty fun except that Matt wanted to run everywhere, so I had to chase him. Some aggressive 6 year olds thought it would be really fun to spray water at me every time I went past them. Geez. Okay - it was pretty funny - and I did dry off pretty quickly...




Ever since Matt was born we struggled with sleep issues. Surprisingly not one of the sleep books we read ever mentioned taking your toddler for a walk on the midway to help him drift off - maybe that's what they meant by "some sort of white noise." I don't think Ferber would approve!



The highlight of our day - both going and returning was the trip on the streetcar. Matt was such a big boy - walking up the steps on his own (while I lugged the stroller) and finding a seat. He was pretty excited and actually stayed in his seat.

At the end of the day I turned to him and said "so, did you have a good day?" He looked at me and said "it was perfect." My sentiments exactly!!

Duckie or Tuesday??

I've started to plan my son's halloween costume.
Okay - I know that sounds crazy, but Martha Stewart I am NOT. And, for some reason I always feel the need to sew Matt's halloween costume.
Seriously. I bought a sewing machine when he was just a couple of months old, and the sole purpose for this purchase was in order to make him a halloween costume. I've made little else since. I've attempted pj's for Matt and Kyla (this was before Paige) but other than that it's halloween costumes.
So ...
Yet again halloween is on the horizon and I thought that I should probably start thinking about what Matt will be - since it will take me forever to make a costume (my time line includes several on the brink of tears phone calls to my sister, handing over some of the sewing to a friend and then getting my mom to finish all the difficult parts). I estimate abut 6 weeks.
So, today I explained halloween to Matt and asked him what he would like to dress up as for halloween.
He said "A duckie - quack - or Tuesday."
So I said "Tuesday?"
And he said "Not friday - Tuesday."
So, I repeated to him "you want to dress up like Tuesday?"
Yep.
So I pulled up a website of halloween costumes. I thought maybe he would be inspired by some pictures - maybe a dragon or maybe a pirate. He was intrigued by the elephant (way above my skill level), but still wants to go with the Tuesday costume.
I have no idea what exactly that means. He clearly has something in his head. I don't know what it is. So I think we will go and look at some patterns - try to figure out if there is, in fact, a costume that meets his expections of Tuesday.
Or maybe I will go with the duck.
Quack.

More Government Fun!!!

So today I made my call to the government - CRA - to figure out what on earth the stupid letter was about.
I decided to call early, sip coffee while on hold, and not lose my cool when I had to talk to an agent. I actually was fairly successful in my calmness.
The conversation, though, was bizarre. First of all, I don't understand why on earth everyone at the CRA is Mr. Last Name or Ms. Last Name. Whatever. The phone call went better than I expected. After several failed attempts at logging into the system, and sitting on hold for only a couple of minutes I finally spoke to someone.
I pled my case - how on earth can I be expected to send you more information when you don't tell me what info you are looking for?
Well, silly me. Apparently all good Canadian citizens (along with all good EA's for that matter) are fully expected to have a well tuned sense of ESP and KNOW that they were simply waiting for something from our 2005 tax return in order to let us keep the money they mailed to me.
Duh.
I should have known that.
Now I do. Situation solved. So, that information will be sent this weekend. And, once they receive the missing information I can keep the full amount of money sent to me. They will, so I was promised by Mrs. Whatshername, clear my debt and I will receive the child tax universal whatever it's called benefit properly.
All in all, not a complete waste of time.
But, I did point out, after I was given all of this information, that had they simply sent a letter telling me what they needed I would have complied.
I also pointed out that it's not fair to send anyone a letter demanding money back - especially when said money was supposed to be applied to childcare. When she said "I don't understand" I explained that I couldn't ask the daycare to refund one day's fee because I would have to send it back to the government.
She suggested I ask.
Seriously.
And, she also suggested I send them the info ASAP so this wouldn't happen again.
Okay. I will.
Rant over.
On to better things. Like the weekend in a few short hours.

Let's go to the Ex!

Yesterday I took the day off and Matt played hooky from daycare and we went to the Ex!
It was soooo much fun. Really.
Part of the excitement was probably because it was a last minute decision. We filled up the stroller and went. And, in case you don't know, my whole parenting philosophy is basically throw caution to the wind and go for it.
So we did!

The highlight of the day for Matt - at least when we started out, was that he got to ride in the streetcar. He LOVES the streetcar.

I was really impressed - he was totally well behaved. I think I maybe shouldn't have told him ig he stuck his hand out the window it would get chopped off. But, it worked and his hands stayed in the streetcar.

Anyway .... so, now for the stories in pictures.

This is in the petting zoo. Matthew loved feeding all of the animals. I freaked out. I hated feeding them. And then there was this woman who Matt tried to feed. Oops. She was overweight (not throwing stones here!) and she honestly said to me "is he trying to feed me cause I look like a cow?" Ummm. No? What do you say? She didn't, but I guess she was self conscious. Seriously ... he's 2!

After the petting zoo I took Matt to see the horses. This picture is a pretend horse. It's an automatic ride and you can adjust the speed. Matty climbed on and loved it. The woman even turned the speed up because he was loving it so much! The funny part was when I said say "yee haw" he threw his hand up in the air, just like a cowboy. Calgary Stampede here we come!!!

There were lots more pictures, but blogger won't led me load them.

More tomorrow, I guess.

Let's go to the Ex!

Stupid Government

I don't usually complain about the government. I really don't. I vote. I volunteer. If I have a major opinion on something I do something about it. These days it may mean writing a letter. In unversity I went to a couple of protests.
And, I really hate it when people sit and watch the news and then whine, and never do anything about it.
But allow me this vent for one minute.
We've started getting this universal child care benefit.
I think it's stupid. I mean $100 per month sounds great, but ... it's not that much.
Mike and I aren't eligible for any subsidies, and we have been paying roughly $1350 per month for daycare.
We got our first $100 cheque at the same time that our daycare fees went up by $8 per day. Perfect, I thought, as I cashed the cheque and paid our fees. I was pretty impressed. I was also a little surprised because I got the exact same amount ($100) as my sister who is a Stay at home mom (well, she got it twice since she has 2 kids) and another friend who is a single mom with the father not paying child support.
But, great. A child is a child, and frankly I think we should all get the same amount of money.
And then on Friday I got a letter in the mail telling me that I now owe the government $66.47. Apparently they need more information before they can allow me to keep the whole cheque.
This is ridiculous.
First of all - I pay tax. Every 2 weeks when I get my paycheque close to half of it goes to taxes. In addition to that I've been paying $75 per month to the government for an outstanding amount I owed for a previous year. And, I file my taxes.
But, this stupid letter saying I owe this stupid amount says they need information that I didn't provide. Why would I have sent them more information? I got a cheque in the mail. They didn't ask for any info. I didn't apply for anything. I just got a cheque.
And now they want me to return 33% of the cheque they sent me (which I used to pay for child care) and also send more info. What this info could be eludes me. They did not specify in this letter demanding money. They just simply told me I hadn't sent it.
HELLO - YOU ARE THE GOVERNMENT - YOU HAVE ALL MY INFO.
Clearly, I'm still annoyed. I decided to cool off a couple of days before calling them.
And then today I check the mail.
I GOT ANOTHER $100 CHEQUE.
WTF.
Are they complete idiots? Yes. I do believe they are.

Tired

I'm tired.
I thought tonight I would get to go to bed early. We took Matthew out all day, and he slept for only a little while, in the car, while I went grocery shopping and Mike sat in the car with him.
Seriously.
Matt got up and started entertaining me at 6 am. We went to the Burlington kids' festival for the afternoon. We then spent the evening at my parents' house where he chased his cousin around and played with one of his favourite adults. He should be tired.
I am.
We kept him awake in the car because we knew that it is impossible to put him down after he's had an evening nap in the car.
And, then, I even allowed him to sleep in my bed. Why? Because I had the blissful idea that we would doze off together, snuggled up in the bed while Mike was out having a beer with some friends.
But, no.
No no no.
Nice thought though.
Instead, here we are. 10 pm has come and gone and Matt is still awake. We gave up on the idea of being in my bed and decided to snuggle on the couch and watch the teen choice awards. Poor child was traumatized by a) Jessica Simpson's horrendous eye make up b) Britney Spears in her bizarre pregnant and slutty state and c) Kevin Federline. And, at this point, if I have to turn on Treehouse, Barney, Wiggles or Veggie Tales I will literally lose it. And then it happens.
My child pees on me.
Yep - I'm tired, cranky, freaked out by Britney and I get peed on.
It was the weirdest feeling. He actually peed on my lap, so it was the strange sudden sensation that maybe I was suddenly experiencing incontence. I just had no idea. And then I realized, and Matt laughed and I laughed and then I showered.
Ick.
So, now my wide awake monkey and I are watching Nanny 911.
Why? Well, cause it's 10:15 and my toddler is wide awake. And, it's really reassuring to watch parents who have worse problems than me. Ahhh!

He's a Big Girl (I mean Boy)

Matty's favourite line lately is "I'm a big girl."
Okay, he's a boy. we know. He doens't quite get that, but whatever. The point is, he is ready to be a big kid, he's growing up.
On Friday our daycare administrator approached me. She told me that she think Matthew is ready for "toilet learning". I knew this day was coming. I know parents anticipate it for years, or at least months. But, I honestly admitted to her that I'm not ready. I'm not.
I have no interest in discussing potties, cleaning up accidents, etc. etc. But, he is ready. And so I will suck it up an start training him. All the signs are there. He wakes up with a dry diaper. He tells us when he needs a change and he is obsessed with the potty. The morning he told me he needed the potty, pulled off his diaper, sat down and peed.
Okay - it was impressive.
I'm beginning to think he may train himself.
According to the daycare admin, there has only ever been one boy go to the preschool class toilet trained. I think Matt is scheduled to move up in October. Is this a challenge???
My friend's daughter pretty much trained herself. Salina had been trying for weeks, and then one day her daughter refused to put on diapers, would only wear underwear, and wanted to use the potty. Okay, it was pretty funny because she decided to do this on a day when Salina, Ginny and I were going to a playgroup, and when this little girl makes up her mind, it's made up. But the point is when she was ready she was ready. As is Matt apparently.
And this morning he told me he wants Diego underwear (we only have Bob the Builder). Ummm .... okay. I shall buy those (does this come out of clothing budget or out of our grocery budget where the diapers come out of - see questions I am unprepared to answer).
But, there have been other signs of him growing up.
First of all, his speech has changed so much. He talks in complete sentences and thoughts. It's pretty amazing. For instance he says "Matty hurt his knee yesterday. I'm okay now" Wow.
I love this speech development. I have always talked to him constantly. (shocker) and finally he responds constantly. Sometimes it's almost a contest to see who can talk first.
He is also really quick witted. Like, yesterday he kept doing the same thing over and over. Frustrated, I turned to him and said "Matthew I already said no." And he said "Mommy, I already said yes".
What???
Kids - they're amazing.

Strength

This week has given me a lot to think about.
We're nearing the end of summer, and with the last few weeks on the horizon we've been making a concerted effort to be outside, to spend time with Matt (that does not involve spending money, buying stuff or any other commercial interests). It's meant a lot of picnics, a lot of time at playgrounds, and in the end a much happier child.
One of the changes we've made is that we leave early every morning to take Matthew to the payground in front of daycare. He loves running around. And, I'm not quite sure if it's because we are paying so much attention to him or because he's just having fun being a kid. But whatever it is we are seeing a happier child. And, what I've added to the end of his daily routine is that I let him play at the playground when I pick him up.
We don't always spend an hour. Sometimes we only spend 5 minutes. But the point is that we are doing it. I've begun to understand that postponing dinner by a few minutes to play with my child is worth it. And, I wish I'd done it earlier.
But I've had lots of stuff to think about this week too.
Follow me if you will - one of my favourite bloggers has been talking a lot about the physical aspect of children. It is beautifully written and I love to read what she says, and what people say in response (badladies.blogspot.com).
It's not fair for me to try to paraphrase her because her writing and her knowledge and just general wisdom is on a level WAY above mine. So go read it. But, the point I think she is making is that we should be comfortable celebrating our children however we can - including their physical selves. It's beautiful and eloquent and well thought out.
But, at the same time, in my e-mail this week I've been following a story of a girl I used to babysit. I have kept in touch with her mom through e-mail for years. This family is one of the most wholesome loving families I have ever met. They have raised their children well, and I have consciously or unconsciously taken some of her parenting techniques and applied them to my own life.
And, awhile ago she sent me an e-mail telling me about some issues her daughter is struggling with. At the moment she is hospitalized with a severe eating disorder and going through extensive counselling, etc. In the last year she's fought this eating disorder and depression. At the same time she finished her first year of university with phenomenal grades, and was planning to spend the summer in China.
What happened?
I don't think anyone really knows.
I have my own thoughts on depression. And I'm not for a second suggesting or implying that her parents have at all contributed to any of this.
But it all makes me wonder how all of this is all tied to together. Here we are as new, young moms trying to love our children as much as we can, do what's best for them and help them to succeed. We're admitting our failures and applauding our successes. And, our kids are pretty cool.
The other day my husband said that he sometimes thinks Matthew is a perfect kid - he has his faults, but he's just so pure and fresh and full of love.
And then something happens. What? And how do we protect them? How do we let them go out on their own and grow up while still keeping them close. I don't know. And how do we try to take care of them while letting them struggle with their own battles.
The mother I was talking about whose daugther is literally fighting for her life ... I think she would tell me that you love them and keep loving them and trust that all of these challenges make them stronger.
I really hope that's true.

A cute little picture

This is my son and my niece. Total summer fun!

Cuddles

One of the things that we have gone back and forth on is the topic of co-sleeping, or, in other words, letting Matty sleep in the bed with Mike and I.
Some of my friends who are parents are big on it. Their kids sleep in the bed every night. Other friends are adamently opposed, and never let their kids sleep in the bed. Ever.
Our feelings on this are kind of mixed. Matt slept with us for ages, but the day we quit breastfeeding we put him in his own crib and that was the end of him being in our bed. He was 19 months, and in our eyes it was time. He never complained. He seemed to like his own space and actually slept through the night and we were happy. And so we went from Sears to Ferber overnight. Or so it seemed.
But lately Matt has been crawling in bed with us.
It started pretty innocently. While on vacation he had his own bed, but he was scared and would climb into our nice big bed. Then when we got back he was out of routine and wanted us to climb into his bed to help him fall asleep. We pushed back because we didn't really want to have to sleep in his bed every night. And after a couple weeks he was over that.
But lately he's been coming into our bed. Like on the weekend at about 4 am he'll hop in and sleep for a couple hours. My thoughts on this - it's okay because otherwise we'd be up at 4am, so if it means more sleep that's fine.
Besides, I kind of like it. I love that he snuggles up with me and I get the hugs that are so lacking when he is running around being a typical 2 year old.
And then last night, it happened.
We had a late night. Mike and I were shooting our last challenge for the show and Eric (Matty's godfather) was babysitting. We got home around 9:30 and then had some birthday cake for Eric. And, then it was 10pm. And, Matty was wired. Mike was driving Eric home and I was exhausted. So, I told Matty he could cuddle with Mommy.
I know it's a slippery slope. But, I was tired, he was tired, and I didn't feel like getting up with him 15 times. In about 10 minutes we were both sound asleep. Mike got home and neither of us woke up. He dutifully picked Matthew up and brought him to bed, and he slept all night.
So will he be sleeping in our bed? I don't think so.
I like him being in his own bed. But, sometimes, just sometimes, I think I will let him in. Because last night's sleep was so great!

Hubba Hubba!

Matty often says things that are hilarious.
Sometimes on purpose, sometimes by mistake, sometimes he mispronounces something and it makes us laugh.
But by far the funniest of his sayings is "Hubba Hubba".
Lest you think my child is already eyeing women, I should explain. It's part of a song as in
"hubba hubba world so high - like a diamond in the sky"
Yep. The famous Twinkle Twinkle little star. The problem is that he doesn't get that far. He just loves singing over and over again
Hubba hubba world so high.
And it kills me, every time.
Yesterday we were at the playground and I was pushing Matt on the swing. He loves to sing and swing, and over and over he just kept singing the one line. The people playing tennis just kept looking at him. Eventually he moved on to his ABC's.
Lately Matty's been talking a ton. He's on to full sentences, and he is understanding concepts. Like, if you ask him how his dinner is "it's delicious".
Yesterday I asked how he was and he said "I'm wonderful".
Or, "the white moon in the blue sky is beautiful."
I don't know where this all comes from. But, I love the positivity, and the excitement.
Hubba hubba!

So Much Miscellaneous Stuff

It seems like so much has been going on lately that I've missed out on tons of stuff and also haven't really posted on tons of stuff.
Work has been pretty crazy lately. My closest colleague went on vacation and in those 2 weeks I really really missed her and realized just how much stuff she does behind the scenes. Another one of our colleagues, also and E.A. went on vacation for a month (seriously, a month!) and so we've been filling in for her, and between all of that, some crazy stuff going on in the office and, well, just general life I realized that I hadn't even seen people who work in the same building as me in, like, ages.
I sent an e-mail to someone who works a few floors above me - and he was like "are you even working here?" oops. Okay, but this was the same person who called me a Drama Queen - so whatever. He needed some isolation!!!
Anyway, here it goes.
So, first my brush with celebrity.
Guess who was filiming outside my office yesterday? Donnie Wahlberg. Yep. Cool. I know. Even if you weren't a big new kids fan chances are you liked Sixth Sense. Plus, who doesn't like celebrities.
I realized who it was when I was walking across the street with my shopping buddy. we had just stopped at timmies for a coffee (I had 2 - one for me, one for Beth). When I saw Donnie I promptly handed over my coffees to our new VP - and tried to get an autograph. I wasn't allowed, but whatever.
Note to self - before throwing cups of coffee at your new boss (well, arms length boss) make sure that he knows you well enough to respect that sometimes you just need to be silly. Luckily he has 3 kids, knows that this was a moment of craziness, and actually sent me a follow up e-mail laughing about the whole thing.
Whew.
And, speaking of celebrities, I watched Entertainment Tonight this week. No biggie, usually, except that I realized I was totally out of the celebrity gossip loop. Who knew Robin Williams was in rehab or that Carmen Electra and Dave Navarro had split up? I'm still back in the land of Pam Anderson getting married!!! What is happening? Have there been any Suri sightings? I need to watch more.
But, in other exciting me news ...
This morning I discovered that I have lost 25 pounds. Now, since I'm doing weight watchers and I am technically supposed to weigh myself once a week (not once every 3 hours) it won't count till Monday, but still! I'm pretty excited by that. Though I'm also really just hitting that point of not being so enthusiastic about counting points. Tomorrow I will start again. I have a ways to go still.

Simon Says ...

Last night we discovered that the geniuses in our lives (aka the daycare teachers) have taught Matty a very new and effective game.
SIMON SAYS!
Now we don't play it exactly as it is supposed to go. Matthew doesn't quite understand that if you say "Simon says touch your toes" that you touch your toes, but if you just say "Touch your toes" you don't do it cause Simon didn't say it. But, whatever.
Who cares?
We have found a new way to manipulate our child without the dreaded use of the word no which always sends him into a temper tantrum. (Note that we do say no frequently, but try to use other words when possible so No has a bigger impact).
Last night he hopped up on the coffee table, threw his hands out in front of him (a la 'jazz fingers' in the movie Bring it On, which by the way, I love) and shouted "Sirens".
Mike and I looked at each other perplexed and both said "Sirens??"
Then Matty says "Sirens - touch your head" and touched his head, delighted by his new game.
And then suddenly we got it. duh. Simon Says.
We looked at each other and wondered how much magic this new game would hold.
So we played along. We did things like:
"Simon says Dance" and he danced.
"Simon says Touch your nose" and he touched his nose.
And then Mike said "Simon says take your shoes off". Matthew jumped off the table and took off his shoes.
This worked for the entire bedtime routine.
It was amazing.
And, in 15 minutes he was in bed.

Pearl Jam or Amy Grant??

It turns out that Matty has an eclectic taste in music.
Truthfully, Mike and I have very differing tastes in music, so we both have tried to educate Matt in the music we like. I'm more of a top 40, sing along to the radio, easy listening kind of girl. Well, kind of. I'm all over the map. The very first mix cd I created included Britney, Ozzy, Pink, Spice Girls and Biff Naked.
Mike's tastes run from Pink Floyd to ABBA to Beethoven.
And, considering that we were both educated in classical music, you never know what taste Matt will develop.
Let's just say it's bizarre.
Here's the thing. Matthew has a tape player, and when I was cleaning up one day I discovered an Amy Grant tape (circa 1987). Since it was that or the Wiggles, and I thought I would scream if I heard the Wiggles one more time, I decided to put it on.
Well ...
Matthew cannot sleep without Amy Grant. I walk around all evening while Matt is drifting off singing a few of the Christian Rock classics. I think this is good. I like the message, and I really did love that tape when I was in grade 6. (I went to Christian school - Amy Grant was the coolest!) It could be worse.
The funny thing about this tape is that it is Amy Grant Unplugged. Yep. I know that's funny. I can see some people who are reading this rolling on the floor by now. But, anyway, all the people in the tape clap and cheer (the audience) and so Matt cheers right along with them.
It's really cute.
But, then this weekend Mike got the new Pink Floyd DVD. He was very excited about this and insisted that we watch it.
Wonderchild that Matthew is, he has decided that these "movies" are better than TV. He sits with Mike just watching the light show and asking about the singers. It is truly truly bizarre.
And now we are wondering what exactly he will listen to as he gets older.
Hmmmm ....
Does a child's musical taste develop at the age of 2? What will he rebel and listen to?
I don't know.

Long weekend fun!

This long weekend rocked!
I think we all were ready for a break - and we actually finally had one.
well, sort of.
We were taping for the show on Saturday. But, given that it was the Saturday of a long weekend that started a one-week hiatus for the production, everyone was really quick. There were no extra takes, we got our challenge quickly, and within a couple of hours we were done. In fact, we were done about an hour before Mike's parents were done babysitting, so we took a nap and enjoyed the bliss that comes from a child free condo on a Saturday afternoon.
And then yesterday we didn't do too much. Of course we worked on one of our challenges (it is a tough one), and then in the middle of the day Mike's friend Zac came for a visit. It was just an impromtu cup of coffee, but it was nice to catch up, to laugh and just have a nice visit. Honestly, it's really nice to have people just drop by unexpectedly. And, it was just such a visit.
And, then today we decided to take Matty to Sherwood Park.
We haven't been there since the days of being dog owners (our dog, Jack, now happily resides with my in-laws in Peterborough where he is happier, better behaved and has an acre of yard to run in).
Sherwood is a leash free dog park, but it also has a playground and a water park. Matt was totally in his element with all the kids and dogs and water. It was fantastic. We spent a couple of hours just being outside, having fun and relaxing. And, there were so many highlights.
It was pretty cool to watch Matt interacting with other kids. He is so social and happy and will talk to pretty much any kid. And, the other neat thing was watching him with the animals. Right now we are really not ready to have a dog. Our cat is fine, but having a dog was overwhelming for us. But, someday we will. And, I loved seeing how comfortable he was around the dogs. He knows to put his hand out and let the dogs come to him. He's learned not to pull the dogs' tails and all of that. So it was pretty cute just watching him being a kid, playing and having a full day of Mommy and Daddy before going to daycare tomorrow.
I LOVE LONG WEEKENDS!!!