Taming a Toddler ...

Lately we have been having bedtime wars with Matthew. Basically, Matthew has decided that 8pm is not a good bedtime. In his books 10 pm is more like it. There are a couple of problems with this.
The first is that the later he stays up the crankier he is in the morning. (obviously) And, as much as I get annoyed with him at night when he refuses to sleep or when he hops out of bed a zillion times, I feel horrible having to get him up in the morning. He's so sleepy. And, I don't think he really understands when we try to tell him that he's tired because he didn't go to bed when we told him to.
The second problem is that I really need some sort of a break in the evening. Last night, for instance, he actually fell asleep later than I did. I can kind of blame the cold/sinus pills for that, but still. But, it's exhausting. Between work, commuting and coming home to a toddler I'm exhausted. And I really enjoy the time I have - even if it's just an hour of tv - before I go to bed and then start the cycle all over again.
Ideas anyone?
Part of me thinks that we're not entertaining him enough when he gets home. It's so easy to turn on Treehouse and let him watch while we chill a bit/make dinner, relax.
Plus, to be fair, I think I do need to play with him more.
So when we got him Mike put on dinner and I went and played toys with him. And then at bathtime we played with his toys and did make believe stuff (I was Kyla, he was Becky ALL NIGHT - funniest line ever "Becky needs a bath now. She's very dirty. Her hair is sticky" funny.)

But, I found myself laughing and having fun, and believe it or not destressing a little bit.
And, wonder of wonders, just before 8pm we tucked him in. And he didn't get up once - at least until 2 am when he climbed into our bed. But, when I got him up this morning he was a totally happy fun child.
I think we need to change our routines.
And, now for Kyla, a picture of your cousin in his new towel from Erin and Gracie.

Does this look like a sleepy child?

I'm Sick

For the last month I've been whining about being under the weather. My throat hurts. My nose hurts. I don't feel well.
I'm not a sick person in general, and having this cold stick around for a month has been driving me insane. I've spent a fortune on throat lozenges and nasal products all to no avail. Honestly, it's driving me mad.
But when my sinuses started to hurt I threw in the towel and went to a Walk-In clinic, as did apparently half of Burlington. There was a line-up just to register and then the very ample waiting room chairs were all full. It was daunting, but it turned out that many of the people there came as full families, so it wasn't as bad as I thought.
An hour later (not bad) I saw a doctor.
I felt like a total dork "ummmm ... I have a cold and it won't go away."
He kind of laughed, and then he said "you don't get sick that often do you?"
Anyway, he started doing this weird tapping thing to my face and when tears came to my eyes he quickly diagnosed me with sinusitis. And, then for good measure looked at my throat and exclaimed, honestly exclaimed "you have laryngitis! You are a trooper."
Well, trooper that I am I left with a couple of prescriptions. And, at least the knowledge that I am not crazy. I'm just sick.
Don't worry friends at work. I checked. I'm not contagious. Apparently the contagious stuff would have happened like a month ago. Now it's just lingering.
Oh, and ... I went to Shoppers to get my prescription. And, they gave me a pager, like at restaurants, so I could wander the store and then come back when the pager went off. This, I tell you, was fantastic for entertaining not only me but Matthew. He was pretty excited. And, it was cool.
And, on the Shoppers note I took my blood pressure - 140 over 72. It said it is high. Weird. But maybe it's cause Matt was sitting on my lap while I did this and then started to imitate the machine which was hilarious and I started to laugh.

New Year's Resolution Continued

So today at my parents' home (they live 5 minutes away) I discovered my grandmother's jewelry box! Yay! My mom said I could have it. (Becky, if you want this though we can discuss ... don't worry)



It came filled with costume jewellry. Mostly clip on earrings. Actually, it kind of made me miss Nana. It was cool. There were some name tags that said "Dotty Rimes" which made me laugh. And then my little munchkin made me laugh harder.


Matt discovered a love of jewelry. How many two year old boys would voluntarily wear clip on earrings? I don't know.

But seriously. How adorable does it get???

Oh wait - it does get funnier!







I do hold full responsibility if my son grows up and decides to wear women's clothing and jewelry.

My New Year's Resolution

So I love New Year's Resolutions. I don't really keep them, but I always make them. Because that's the point of New Year's.
Honestly, I can't think of one serious resolution I have ever kept. I tried cutting out pop and chocolate and working out every day and eating healthy. Those are hard.
But, the one I kept really well was that I would make a concerted effort to always keep my eyebrows groomed. And, guess what? I'm still doing this 4 years later. I also one year made the resolution to keep my nails looking good. That was a few years ago. It lasted until I had my son, and then I gave up. But, I've still stuck to never having scratchy old nailpolish on my nails.
So this year I decided to come up with another AMAZING resolution.
Know what it is???
My resolution is to wear more jewelry.
Don't worry. I'm not about to rob Tiffany's. But, I am going to wear more "sugah"* (right, Beck?) I don't have as much jewelry as I would like to, but I can collect this year. And my sister, niece and mom gave me some pretty cool stuff for Christmas. So I'm set.
One of my friends at work wears jewelry all the time. She totally mixes and matches stuff that I would never even think to. And it looks awesome. So, now I will start.
The inspiration comes also from my grandmother who passed away a couple of years ago. No matter what she always wore jewelry. She had rings and broaches and necklaces and bracelets for every single occasion. She would keep all of her jewelry in this huge fishing tackle box. And when my sister and I got older we were allowed to play with it and try it all on.
So, this year I'm going to make an effort to wear jewelry. Maybe not every day. But often.
And ... now I'm off. I have the day off, and the boys are at their respective office/daycare. What am I going to do with all my time???
Well, clean, shop and maybe even nap.
I know. Jealous!!!

* when we went on a road trip to Buffalo, my friend Ketly and I were laughing at some super snazzy boots with "bling" on the stilleto heels. Becky (my sister) for some reason thought we were calling bling "sugah" - and so for the rest of the trip any time we saw anything with bling (of which there is lots in Buffalo) one of us would say "look, Becky, Sugah". Funny.

2006 - Not a Bad Year

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

2006 ends tonight. I was trying to write down my various New Year's Resolutions. I only came up with one. And it's sort of silly. So I decided to look back on this past year and what we've been up to.
First things first - we moved ... a lot! Since March we've lived in 3 different places: A rental apartment in Oakville, our condo in Toronto and finally our townhouse in Burlington.

(Matt at our apartment)

(This picture was taken the day we moved out of the condo for the 2nd and last time)

In between moving houses, we also had a bunch of other stuff going on. Like it or not, we entered into the wonderful world of toddlerhood with Matthew. I have to admit, I was terrified at the prospect of the terrible twos, but it hasn't been all that bad. We've definitely had our share of temper tantrums, meltdowns, etc., but this has been an amazing year. We went from having a little baby to having a kid who is fun. At 32 months he never stops talking (and singing). We know what he wants, what he likes, etc. And, the spontaneous stuff like hims saying "mommy is beautiful" (so true!) and "I love you" is so worth the temper tantrums.

Matt did a whole lot of growing this year and he had tons of new experiences. I now totally understand why parents spoil their kids. It's just so cool when you see them developing new interests and fun ideas. I'm so guilty of this. Like, when I discovered that Matthew liked rides, I felt compelled to take him both to the CNE and Canada's Wonderland.
For the record, though this was taken at the CNE, we far preferred Canada's Wonderland. It turns out to be way cheaper, it seems much safer, and the stuff for kids is a million times better.
The CNE, though cool, paled in comparison. I really think Matt's favourite thing of the day was the streetcar ride to and from the CNE.
Matthew loved taking the TTC not only to the CNE but also to his daycare at Yonge and Davisville. He was so proud that he could tell everyone we went to Eglinton Station and Davisville Station.
It amazes me what this kid has learned this year. For instance, the other day he was washing his hands and kept saying he wanted some "Agua". Thank goodness this happened at my parents' home where my dad was able to explain that he was asking for water. It's scary when your toddler can speak in a language you don't understand.
Personally, it's been a pretty big year for me too. Just before Mother's Day this year I went to my doctor who told me that I was in a crappy place physically. She was pretty understanding. I'd had a crappy first year with Matt, went back to work, moved twice (at this point) and was just generally stressed. But, when she weighed me and tested my blood pressure we decided that I should probably lose some weight.
And lose weight I have. I've lost a little over 30 pounds (pre-Christmas, that is) and feel better about myself. I have a ways to go - like 20 pounds or so - but that's coming. And, I plan to push harder in the New Year.


You can see the difference a few pounds makes.
And, that's my friend and former neighbour Ginny blowing bubbles.




I also went on an amazing trip for work. In July I went with the Board and Senior Staff to Alberta. It was the longest I'd been away from Matthew. It was a learning experience for me. It was fun and hard and rewarding - everything that you are looking for in a good experience. I missed my boys more than I had expected too. Someone told me that it's a pretty amazing experience coming home and seeing your child after you've been away for awhile. It's true. The minute I saw Matt I burst into tears (as did he).
I have to say - this is one of the most beautiful pictures ever. It was taken at a golf course. You can see the background of the mountains behind us. In case you were wondering, the woman next to me is my boss.
In addition to my excitement of the year, Mike's year was interesting too. He turned the big 3-0 in January. I had a surprise party with some of his friends which was pretty fun. He also switched jobs in December. So, pretty busy.
My nieces also did a whole lot of growing up. Miss Kyla is now a four-year old. We had a blast at her Princess Party in July where I made a special guest appearance as "Aunt Princess Laural". It was pretty adorable, and I still can't believe I led several preschoolers in a little dance routine in the middle of Jack Astors!!!
My other niece Paige - seriously. She was such a baby for so long and then suddenly she blossomed into a child. She no longer is content to watch Matty and Kyla play. She wants to get right in on the action. She is tiny but feisty. Matt often knocks her down in his excitement and she just bounces right up to keep playing.
I have a feeling that as the cousins get older Matt and Paige will be running around and playing tag while Kyla and I play Barbies and do our nails. (we can dream, right?)














Kyla (on the left of Princess Laural) Paige - hamming it up with uncle Mike

And, of course, the recap of our year would not be complete without some pictures of the best place in the world - Vermont!!!
















So, from my and my family - I hope you had a wonderful 2006 and I hope you have an even better 2007!
Thanks for reading and commenting and sharing in the excitement of my life.

Happy 2007!!!!

Let There Be Light!

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

The Christmas Holidays that Aren't

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

Cousins ... Friends

Great Grandad

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

Santa Came!!!

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

Christmas Traditions ... New and Old

This Christmas, now that Matthew understands a bit about the concept of Christmas, we have been thinking a lot about traditions. What is important to me, what is important to Mike and what we want to share with Matthew.
This is our fifth Christmas as a married couple. So, I'm not sure if that would be long enough to have that many traditions. We both come from traditions. Our combined traditions run the gammut from watching White Christmas (put on the music to "Sisters" and my sister and I will perform the routine flawlessly) to sipping rum flavoured egg nog (this is Mike's family's tradition).
But what do we have?
Well, we have our annual Christmas Eve McDonald's breakfast which Matt was thrilled to partake in this year. We have our annual trip to Starbucks arriving just after Strabucks closes. And we have established quite nicely that Christmas Day we spend at Mike's Family's home while Boxing Day is spent at my family's. These are things we do. And we love.
But there's one other thing that seems to happen to us.
Our annual Christmas Calamity.
One year I had the flu. I know we've all had it - but I am the Christmas person of the family. On Christmas Eve (with an 8 month old baby and very needy dog) I spent the morning puking and then while shopping for Mike's stocking threw up all over Shopper's Drug Mart (Thank God Mike was there, it was a store used to ill people, etc. etc. Mike ended up buying and wrapping his own stocking stuffers and still claims it was his best stocking ever!!)
Another year I had a serious feminine issue which I refuse to blog about.
Another year I was pregnant and just a little out of control due to the fact that nothing fit.
This year's Christmas calamity? We have lost power to half of our house. No. Not kidding. There are no lights in the bathrooms, hallway or dining room. Our kitchen appliances work, but we are forced to cook in the dark. We know a fuse has been blown, but ever time we replace the fuses they just blow again (yes, everything is turned off). My dad came over to help but couldn't fix it. Mike's dad has no idea. We're clueless. We're also not calling an emergency electrician ause it's just too pricey.
So, we are sitting in the candlelight and hoping that this is the only calamity that will befall us. It could be much worse. Our whole house could be out of power. We could have lights but no appliances. My very thoughtful relatives could have decided not to give us a gigantic apple 3-wick candle as a house warming gift.
Life is good. It's Christmas. But, if anyone knows a cheap electrician in Burlington, please let me know!!!

'Tis the Season

Today is my last day of work before Christmas.
And it's a half day so life really is quite good today. Last night we did our final shopping (cookies for Matt's daycare teachers and new shoes for him since his favourite ones are literally falling apart). Tonight I will finish up some of the wrapping I have to do - and the one craft project my sister and I doing. And, then it will be time to celebrate.
What I'm loving right now, though, is Matt's appreciation for the season. He's into it. And he's getting us into it. Like last night, we were walking through the parking lot at Walmart and he kept alternating between singing Rudolph and Jingle Bells. And then he started to sing the tune of Jingle Bells, but with different words. All at the top of his lungs. And despite the fact that everyone around us was stressed by the last minute shopping, tons of people turned to smile at us. It was pretty cute.
And, once we were done at Walmart we went on a light tour. This is one of my favourite Christmas events. There's a house in Burlington that is completely adorned with lights. It's pretty amazing. It has visiting hours and everything. So we took Matt to see that house. And then we drove around looking at other light displays. I sware, people in the suburbs go crazy with Christmas lights. We noticed that on some streets there is very clearly competition. It's rather bizarre. But, fun for us to look at.
So then we went home to our single pathetic light strand. It was kind of funny. First of all, Mike has made a point that he thinks all white lights should be banned in favour of colour lights. He thinks there should be a by-law. But, all we could unearth in our Christmas boxes was a single strand of white lights. So that is our decoration. But, to us it's Christmassy since we figure we're doing quite well by at least doing something having just moved.
But, the point is we went home. To this awesome house that we have been wanting for years - which nothing ever worked together for. So, we're kind of thrilled. And we arrived home to Christmas cards, and some stuff my sister left in our mailbox (since she's 5 minutes away and can do that!!!) and I realized just how lucky we are this year. Or perhaps the word is blessed.
But whatever it is. I'm grateful.
'Tis the season everyone. Let's celebrate.
And, soon to come (i.e. when I download the pictures) I will post the pictures of Matthew's Hanukkah celebration with the dreidel a friend of mine gave us. Soon. I promise!

Christmas Cookies

In honour of Jeff's Tuesday Newsday Jeff's site and he had some cool stuff to say." I too am posting a story. Not copying you or anything. (but check out the link - I finally figured that out!)
But ...
This weekend I baked about 10 dozen buttertart bars. TEN DOZEN! Actually, it's more like 12. I have not cut them all. This is all because on Thursday of this week I am taking part in a cookie exchange ... with my BFAW's.
And then later in the week (date not set) I'm exchanging cookies with my family. That way we will all have lots of fun and entertaining Christmas cookies.
But the stress, people. The stress!
It sounded so fun. Until Matt decided to help me. Ever tried to bake 144 bars with a two year old? The recipe (for all the batches) took 24 eggs. Matthew loves cracking eggs. Actually, he did quite well at cracking them. Better than I could have. But, the point is that it is no easy feat.
But I did it. And I was proud. I still need to cut them. But I was pretty darn proud.
And then yesterday I read this. (below). It's funny. I enjoyed it. I hope you do too.

---

Arts & Life
Recipe for disaster: What was once meant to be a time-saving tradition between friends has turned into snarky competition: The dark side of the cookie exchange
Anne Marie Owens
National Post
1173 words
18 December 2006
National Post
National
AL1
English
(c) 2006 National Post . All Rights Reserved.
It was the day before the annual cookie exchange party when Christine Metcalfe decided the cookies she'd made didn't exactly match the size or the pale pink patina of the ones in the Gourmet magazine recipe and she began to bake all over again.
"Everything looks so easy when you see it on the TV or when you see Martha, but then it comes out and it doesn't quite look the same," she said. "I’m not a baker, but you want them to be beautiful."
As a result of this imperfection, she brought to her friend's party an assortment of five dozen baked goods, each cellophane-wrapped seasonal plate containing a mixed dozen of the raspberry- chocolate sandwich cookies, Christmas-tree cutout cookies and a marshmallow-chocolate confection so perfectly formed it looked as if it had come from a high-end bakery.
This Sunday night cookie exchange in Burlington, Ont., is convened by a woman who calls herself a "cookie party bitch," because after years of bringing home dozens of shoddy baked goods and choking back cookies she knew she would never serve to guests, she now secretly invites a select few she is confident can bake up to the standard she requires for holiday entertaining.
Midway through the evening's small, hand-picked party, she brings out one of the cookies she received in the cookie exchange she attended with workmates a few days earlier and makes everybody take a nibble of a plain-looking, decidedly untasty confection.
This is the dark side of the cookie exchange: Gossip-fuelled tasting sessions; covert cookie exchanges; cookie party bitches.
Billed as an efficient way of meeting all holiday baking needs in one fell swoop by having people each bake several dozen of the same thing and then swapping with everyone attending the party, the cookie exchange has emerged as a holiday-season solution for the busy working woman trying to do it all.
But the cookie exchange is no panacea. Some have standards so high that participants stay up all night trying to find the perfect recipe and spend a fortune on what amounts to a high-stakes bake-off; at others, the playing field is so lopsided that ample-sized, home baked goods are swapped for burnt gingerbread or brownies the size of quarters; and in some, the unofficial competition to exceed extends beyond the quality of the baked goods to the way they are packaged, making the practical, plastic-wrapped dozen seem an inferior trade to a multi-ribboned offering.
"I remember walking into [my host's] beautifully decorated home and stopping dead in my tracks as I saw all the cellophaned, beribboned cookie plates," recalls one Mississauga, Ont., mother, who immediately burst into tears when she arrived at her first neighbourhood cookie exchange lugging a bag full of large Tupperware containers rather than individually wrapped gems such as those laid out in her neighbour's front room.
Until that moment, the 42-yearold was proud she'd been able to pull off such a domestic feat in between juggling the conflicting demands of her high-powered, full-time job and the hectic schedules of her two teenaged children -- even though it meant staying up for most of the night, finally packing the goodies into containers at 3 a.m. before the 9 a.m. exchange; even though it meant an earlier breakdown in her kitchen when the shortbread recipe -- "It was kitchen tested!" she insists -- produced much fewer than promised and ended up having to be cut into portions as small as quarters.
"I think I must have some internal need to prove that I am indeed a supermom. No matter how much I work, or how much money I make, I have to be a baker too," says the woman, who like the "cookie-party bitch," does not want her name used for fear it will forever cut her ties with her cookie-swapping set, no matter how fraught the annual obligation.
Rather than aid the busy, time-strapped mother, the cookie exchange actually explains everything about the conundrum of the modern mother who really does, despite the evidence, believe she can do it all -- working full time, whipping up unbelievably perfect confections and beaming broadly when greeting the season's guests with goodies that are home-baked, not bought.
Those caught up in such things blame Martha Stewart, Nigella Lawson and all the other domestic goddesses who have elevated the art of home entertaining to unbelievably high standards, but others say it is modern motherhood that is to blame.
Susan Douglas, who co-authored the book, The Mommy Myth: The Idealization of Motherhood and How It Has Undermined Women, has not had much experience with cookie exchanges, but says, "Whatever it is, it sure sounds like yet more work for mothers."
Her book, which blames the unrealistic celebrity version of domestic life for the modern climate of competitive mothering, describes it as "the Martha Stewartization of America, in which we are meant to sculpt the carrots we put into our kids' lunches into the shape of peonies." Her book is meant as a rallying cry for women to say, without feeling like bad mothers, "No, I'm not baking you 40 blueberry muffins at 10 o'clock at night so you can bring them in for snack tomorrow. We'll go to the store tomorrow to buy something."
In the case of the cookie exchange, food-related Web sites and magazines only perpetuate this image of domestic perfection and efficiency. On the Chefs Web site ( www.chefs.com ), Penny McConnell describes the cookie exchange or cookie swap as "a holiday ritual that's easy to organize, fun to host and handles my entire cookie needs in two or three short hours." According to the Kraft Web site, "Everyone goes home with a great assortment of home-baked cookies for the holiday season! And all they had to do is bake one kind! … The idea of 'many hands make light work' surely applies when it comes to a cookie exchange!"
Even the blogosphere, where one might expect to find the candid tell-alls dished out by veterans of the cookie exchange, raises the domestic standards bar ever higher, showing pictures of beautiful baked goods, adorned with hand-crafted recipe cards and wrapped, by the dozen, to perfection.
"You can't help but set your sights high," says Metcalfe, who admits that each year she spends a fortune on the cookies she bakes and all the various baking equipment required for her once-a-year contribution to this domestic art.
"I think that now, you have to be the mother, the wife, the cookie-baking lady."

A Week Away - Hooray!

The Christmas Spirit is hitting me! I'm so excited.
We're a week away from the big day and I couldn't be more excited. This year is pretty cool for us since we finally have a child who is understanding Christmas. He's loving the excitement and the presents and the stories of Santa. He gets really excited when we go to the mailbox and there are cards - especially ones for him.
I'm not really sure he understands that he will be getting presents. He knows Santa is cool, but he doesn't quite get the concept.
For instance, the other day I asked him how Santa was getting to our house. He told me that Santa would be on a snowboard and all his presents would be on the TTC. (with the reindeers going to Eglinton Station).
He just seems pretty excited about the fun stuff going on. And I'm loving that.
Of course, we are in gift shopping panic. I made a list and a budget and diligently followed it until I started wrapping and decided that we had not bought enough. So, sadly, I'm off shopping again. I finally sorted out my sister's gift. I think I'm done Mike's gift. I'm not sure that I've done enough for my in-laws. And I think my mom needs some more stuff.
I have to say, my mom and my sister are the hardest to buy for. I always want to get nice stuff, but it's hard to get the perfect things.
The other thing I'm totally looking forward to is Thursday night. Every year since I can remember my dad and I have gone "Christmas Eve Shopping". It's a tradition I love. My dad has always been a last minute guy when it comes to Christmas. And he is utterly convinced, or at least was, that the best deals are the 'flashing blue light specials' on Christmas Eve. No kidding. Kmart used to do this and we'd get some good stuff.
Kmart is no more, and I'm not convinced that there are still deep discounts in the days leading up to Christmas, but the tradition continues. We've moved it up by a few days, but we still do it.
We've had some momentous Christmas Eve shops. Probably the funniest was when we wandered around Dixie Outlet Mall when I was visibly pregnant. My dad is a super shopper, and can seriously power shop. He must have bought me 5 bottles of juice to keep me going. It was pretty funny. In the end we cut the day short and went to Jack Astors. Still it was fun.
This year I'm actually pretty good for gifts, so we will be covering a couple of key areas - stocking stuffers for the kids and stuff for my mom.
I'm the unofficial fashion guru when it comes to my mom's Christmas gifts. My mom prefers that stuff he buys meets my approval. That way we avoid fashion disasters on Christmas morning like the charming Santa Sweaters, baggy track pants, etc.
We usually start the evening off with dinner out. We are currently debating between Kelsey's and Swiss Chalet. My suggestion of the Zellers Diner (for efficiency) was quickly declined by my dad.
This year's shop should be extra exciting due to a new Winners in the mall will be going to. I can't wait. The evening is guaranteed to be fun-filled, coffee-filled and present filled. My dad will invariably suggest gifts that I would never in a million years come up with. We'll laugh, get good deals and in the end enjoy the one father-daughter outing that we have never ever cancelled.
Anyone else in the spirit???

Old Friends

I've lived in my old neighbourhood for 2 weeks now.
In that time I've bumped into several old friends. In particular friends I went to elementary school with.
Take this morning for example. Mike and I went out for breakfast. we had been to his Christmas party the night before, and my sister took Matthew overnight. So it was just the two of us. Anyway, there we were chatting over coffee when this guy came over.
He had actually been staring at me for a couple minutes, and it wasn't because I was looking particularly appealing or anything.
He just walked up to our table and said "excuse me, is your name Laural?"
So, of course I said yes. And he asked if I knew who he was. No, I didn't.
"I'm Billy."
Yep. Billy from sixth grade. Billy who annoyed the crap out of me, and made bizarre jokes, and thought farting in class was funny. Never, in a million years, would I have thought he would recognize me. Or, for that matter, if he did, did I think he would come say hi.
But he did, which was cool. And of course I introduced him to Mike. And showed him pictures of Matt, and then asked what he had been up to.
We chatted about our lives, who we still talk to, etc. etc. And we both agreed it was weird to see where everyone is at.
It's weird that at our late twenties some people are married with kids (like me), others are already divorcing, others are engaged, and still others feel marriage is a long way off. Hmmmm....
But, it's still weird to see so many familiar faces. We lived in Toronto for years, and I'd rarely see people over and over. But, here it has been like old home week.
I'm beginning to dress up to go to the grocery store. At the condo it was rare that I saw people I knew at the store (except my neighbours), but here it's everywhere.
Do I like it? Yep. I do

The Best Christmas Concert EVER!

Last night was Matthew's Christmas concert. It was a concert/potluck/craft evening. Very very cool.
First of all, thank you to EVERYONE who gave me ideas for our potluck item. We had totally settled on meatballs, but someone already signed up. Then Jeff gave me this awesome dinner idea, and when I went to sign up I discovered there were no desserts.
So, I went with an old standby - trifle. It was a total hit. Seriously, I was approached by a couple of people saying it was really yummy. So, yay for that. I'll post the recipe.
Anyway ...
So we got there around 6:30. We dropped the kids off in the classroom and headed down to the cafetorium for the concert. Matthew's daycare is in a highschool, hence the cafetorium. I was a little concerned because Matt was really confused about why we were leaving him again, but his super amazing teachers took care of it, brought him into the classroom and calmed him down in like 10 seconds.
We got seats, all the parents filed in, and waited a few minutes.
Pretty quickly, like within about 10 minutes, in filed the children. It was super adorable. They were all wearing reindeer ears, and they actually all filed in in a line and went right up on the stage. I, of course, was going crazy with the camera, as were most of the parents.
Serioulsy, the concert was the cutest thing in the world. They had all of the children come on the stage, and there are about 25 kids. And they led them in 4 songs - Jingle Bells, Rudolph, Up on the Housetop and finally We Wish You a Merry Christmas.
The kids all sang. Matthew was right into it. He knew all of the words, he was tapping his foot, he was standing in one spot.
I couldn't have been prouder or taken more pictures.
When they were done we all found tables and lined up for the potluck. In between lining up, eating and waiting for Santa they had tables of crafts for the parents to do with their children. We made a Rudolph ornament.
Santa arrived with, no kidding, a bagpiper, who led him around the room and played Christmas carols. Then he sat on a bench and all the kids got to sit on his lap and say hi.
The evening was over by 8pm, just in time to bring our kids home to bed.
If I wasn't happy with this daycare before, I am THRILLED with it now!
The teachers were great. The kids listened, they had fun. The parents chatted, the teachers chatted. They kept it under control, and most of all they had a lot of fun. When Santa came one of the teachers was there making sure that the kids took turns seeing Santa.
We just left feeling great. We felt like we'd made the right choice of daycare. We could see Matt is happy. We're happy.

Weird

Ever have a weird day?
Not bad. Not wonderful. Just weird.
That was my day today.
The weirdness started in the morning. When we had mini golf at work. I know. Crazy. I've never worked somewhere where you mini-putt at work.
And that - it was weird.
It was weird because I got kind of cornered into it at the last second and our little pathetic team came up with the idea of a golf hole with the general theme of Christmas.
The problem was that half of our team was sick.
None of our team was artistic.
We were all lacking in time.
And motivation.
And budget.
And we didn't have any idea people would take it so seriously.
So while we cobbled together a mini putt "hole" made out of dollar store Christmas Crap other teams created phenomenal mini putt holes. I mean phenomenal. If I get pictures I will post them. But they were awesome.
Like one team - they made this contraption out of (I hope) old computer parts. It had a proper ramp, it had a proper little green. You name it. And the guy who did it, who I happen to know is a golfer, took it very very seriously.
At one point he told me he was disappointed because it was a par 3 (I think) hole and he thought it should have been par something else.
I didn't even know that par 3 meant something.
The hole next to ours was run by the department that wins everything. They didn't exactly kick our butts. They pretty much steam rollered right over us. They, too, had a Christmas theme. Except they brought in a tree and also had some sort of contraption that they built that spit your ball out and went around a corner. They had a full size fireplace with stockings hung and this giant "Happy Holidays" sign. To clarify, they had stockings hung until I decided to take my turn and my over ambitious swing sent the stockings flying. Anyway ...
So our lovely hole. The name rocked. It was called "Ho Ho Hole in One." I know. Genius. But, it pretty much sucked.
And I was disappointed. Like almost crying disappointed. And my bronchitis inflicted friend tried to calm me down by telling me that it was just all in fun. That no one cared. That it was just a silly corporate event.
And then I kind of got upset at my friends, my BFAW's (sorry guys) becasue they didn't exactly help as much as I wanted. Nor did they help me clean up. So, up and down. Up and down. All day.
But then it was kind of nice because everyone was great in the end about it. Everyone was pretty positive. You know - at the end of the day I kind of realized I was being silly. It was just a stupid corporate event that I didn't need to be upset about.
So, you know, up down. up down.
Okay. needy toddler.

Tumble Tots!

Matthew and I start gymnastics in January.
I'm very excited. Thrilled, in fact.
I was a little worried because I'm not exactly what you would call coordinated. Wisely, my parents put me in sports like soccer because I had a tendency to injure myself a lot. In grade 9 gym (which I loved) we had a gymnastics unit. I was so bad at it that my teacher asked me not to try the uneven bars rotation. This is because I kept trying to use the vault and was so banged up that I had to have an ice pack after every class.
Yes. I was that bad.
Matthew, however, seems more coordinated than I am. And, I thought he would really like gymnastics. I discussed this with my four year old niece who assured me that he would LOVE gymnastics (cause John-Wes does) and it's really fun.
I started looking into classes. Since Matt is still 2 the only classes available are parent and tot classes. Uh-oh.
I've never been in a real gymnastics gym in my life.
Luckily one of my BFAW's was a gymnastics teacher (coach?). Seriously. So, I finally plucked up the courage to call her and beg her to teach me a cartwheel. She laughed. Okay. It is funny. She has high hopes for me. We are in discussions about where we will do this practice.
Anyway...
So I called to sign up.
I was pretty nervous. Guess what? The parent's role is just to make sure that the tots don't run away. That's it. NO CARTWHEELS REQUIRED!!
I did point out to the friendly lady that I did yoga, and I can do sommersaults. Just not cartwheels or backflips. She said that if I mention that to the teacher that perhaps she can have me demonstrate.
So, it appears that I am now booked every Saturday from January to May. 9am.I can't wait!!

Advice Needed!!!

Okay everyone out there.
I need your help.
Friday is a potluck at Matt's daycare. It's a Christmas party/potluck dinner/performance thing. And we have to bring something yummy. I need to sign up for something to bring.
HELP!
Does anyone have any ideas?
I need something that will make me seem cool. I have visions of being the cool mom who works full time, commutes, and still manages to whip up something nutricious and delicious. I want to be the person who returns home with an empty dish.
Last year we did mini cupcakes for the Christmas thing at the old daycare. These were a big hit. I will make these also (if my sister has a mini cupcake pan that I can borrow??? Beck??)
But I need to make something main coursey.
Something cool. That does not involve tofu. Something easy.
I live across the street from a grocery store. Groceries are not a concern.
HELP!!!
Oh and I will literally run in the house, pick it up, and leave again. So I need to make it Thursday.
And, for some fun a picture of Matty and Me.

Ahhhh Sunday

Things have been a little intense lately.
The house, the lawyers, the cold, work. I've had enough. So last night I did my Christmas cards, bought myself a grocery store chicken, put on the movie "Legally Blonde" and chilled. Forget the boxes that were crowded around me (we got a new load of stuff from both sets of parents - seriously, how much stuff do we own? My dad brought a sticker book from when I was 7! Can anyone say pack rat?). I was fully embracing the Christmas spirit.
And, how can you not be in a Christmassy mood when you address cards with your toddlers adorable face smiling back at you.
The more I wrote, the more I got into it.
I write a Christmas letter every year. But some people, the ones I rarely see, got a more fullsome note. Bill, my hairdresser, got congratulated on his new television commercials, old neighbours got a full update on Matthew. As the cards rolled on I realized how much life is changing. One of my friends just had her third baby and all their names didn't fit on one line. My cousins are all dating people or getting married and I'm struggling with how to address cards (since I keep forgetting boyfriend's name).
And it made me realize just how much I'm appreciating things lately.
Life is good. The more I addressed cards and talked a bit about Matt's progess the luckier I realized I was. Two years ago I was in a totally different place. Our Christmas letter was sad. We had this adorable child but we had no idea what our direction was in life. I remember sitting in the car with Mike on Christmas Day sobbing that I was terrified about going to work and leaving Matt in childcare. He just said to me that we'd figure it out.
And we did.
And two years later it's Sunday morning. I'm sitting in our living room. We have a Christmas tree outside that we'll decorate later today. My toddler is laying on the couch watching his favourite show. We've been chatting all morning - about Santa and Reindeers and telescopes and trains and a million other topics.
And I'm realizing that life is good. Not perfect. Nothing ever is. But, for now the holidays are in full swing, I have the cutest kid in the world, I'm surrounded by people who love me. That, my friends, is happiness.