A Farewell Ticket

Arrrgghhh
What a send off. Yesterday when I was shopping for the one present (other than Little E) that I am required to buy this year (thanks to a present swap) I naively parked on West Fourth along with a row of other suckers and came out to an empty strip and a tow truck loading the last of us onto his lift.
One hundred and fifty dollars later (not including the gift money) I was right back where I started. The second most painful part of the scenario was the fact that I had arranged childcare for Little E in order for me to do some running around. At the end of the 2 hours the only thing I had managed to do was stop at a grocery store to pick up more boxes - ooo fun.

Today turned out to be more productive. I dropped Little E off at our friend Kate's house where she played with little Hannah. I packed 2 boxes, did 2 loads of laundry, vacuumed the house, unloaded and loaded the dishwasher and still had time to sit down and eat.

I wish I would have arranged some more play dates with Kate and our neighbour Sarah. Little E had so much fun with their little girls - once home, she said their names for the rest of the day.
I'm sure we'll meet some new friends in the Comox Valley too. Gulp.
Here's a cute little video (thanks to Parker's mom Donna) from Little E's play date last Friday.

Emotional Work

We are in the thick of packing right now. The only reason I have time to write this is because Daddy C has gone out to get more boxes.

I was doing ok emotionally, until we started taking all of the pictures off the walls. I think I am mostly worried about Little E. We visit the picture wall at least once a day, and already she has noticed that her favourite baby playing piano photo has disappeared. Her room is looking much more bare and there are boxes piled everywhere.

The only reconciliation is that soon we will be seeing a good number of the people in the photos in person. And I was thinking about it the other day, although I remember a number of the places we lived when I was little, I don't ever remember the actual move process. So hopefully this isn't as traumatizing for Little E as I'm imagining. It's probably harder for me.

p.s. Little E gave herself a porridge spa this morning. Perhaps a relaxing mechanism…

Bye Bye Parker

It was a bitter sweet day today.
We had to say goodbye to little miss Parker - it was the last day that I will be looking after her before the move.

Although they have their moments of feud and downright nastiness, Little E and Parker have become like sisters. Holding hands whenever we go for a walk, hugging and kissing and imitating each others emotions. Little E acts like the responsible older child (bossy? or perhaps leader is a nicer description) - reminds me of myself when I was little. She's always looking out to be sure that Parker gets a piece of whatever she has demanded, or retrieving Parker from the living room when I'm trying to suit them up and herd them out the door - "come on, come on Parker".

I wonder how long it will take to adjust.

Parker's mommy bought Parker and Little E matching leggings and tunics that they are sporting today.

At A Loss

I find it so much easier to write when I have some pictures to illustrate with. It's not like things haven't been happening, but the photos jog my memory.

Things are starting to feel pretty festive in the air. I have already delivered a Christmas present or two, and taking part in a bake exchange last night made me feel like someone out of Pollyanna (one of my favourite childhood movies) when I dropped off yummy treat parcels to my friends.

And probably my best news of all right now comes in pill form - 4 times a day. I have started taking Diclectin - a concentrated vitamin b and antihistamine - that seems to have seriously minimized my morning sickness. I am not one to jump quickly or lightly into taking medications, but this has dramatically improved life for me right now and I only wish I'd started sooner.

Other than that, Little E is as much fun as always and provides amazement every day. The latest is her willingness to scold herself when she does something we disapprove of. For instance, after ripping at Daddy's C's face with wild beast force he very sternly said "no scratching" she retaliated by biting at his hand. He quickly brought her up to his line of vision and said loudly "no biting". She instructed him to deliver her to her bed where he gave her a 1 minute time out. When he returned, Little E said "no scratching, no biting, sorry Daddy" and gave him a loud mwah - wet one on the cheek. Thanks for the discipline coaching Little E.

First Potty Pee

I forgot to mention in my last post how cute Little E and Parker were that day holding hands continuously.
Before we went to the mall for the missed photo experience, the girls were making their way round and round the house desperately latched on to each other and just carried it on to the mall. It was quite a relief actually because it was like monitoring one little unit instead of two opposite ions.
…photos to follow…

While GG was here we had a spontaneous invite to Shannon's house to hang out with her and Jude, our friend Kiki and her son Esa and our friend Liz and her little companion for the day Quincy. There was an ultra cute moment where the four babes were being read to on the couch cuddled in - obviously Little E needs to become better acquainted with Thomas the Train.
…photos to follow…

Ah yes, and the highlight of the post - Little E had her first pee in the potty last night. She got out of the bath proclaiming her nakedness and streaked off through the kitchen. Daddy C asked her if she had to pee and invited her to sit on the potty, she invited him right back and the two of them had a tinkle together. It was a triumph!!
…no photos of this, sorry…

p.s. Thanks to my book club mate Alexia we had a delicious salad using fresh Kale tonight. Hard for some to love fresh Kale, but I tell you this concoction with a tahini lemon dressing had us both wanting more…healthy and delicious.

Scary Claus

Thank goodness for GG. She has been making us dinner and helping with the girls, making me lie down and keeping me from breaking down. It will be hard to let her go tomorrow.

We had an interesting day today that turned out so much differently than I'd anticipated.
I had plotted a surprise gift for Parker and her parents for weeks and had finally worked up the gumption and secured the back up to execute. Unfortunately the girls did not behave as I'd hoped.

We made it all the way to Oakridge mall barf free (on my part). We walked past the kids play zone and numerous stores with fancy flashing windows; waited a good 15 long minutes in a line with other fidgety, dressed up little kids, only to have the prize at the end squandered from my grasp.
The girls hated Santa.
It was fine to watch the other kids move ahead and climb onto his lap smiling perfectly for their photos. But when it came to our turn, Little E and Parker cried and screamed and clawed at my neck. They didn't want to be anywhere near him. Even when I sat with him and GG sat with him and we talked to him and peeked in his toy bag, they would not be convinced.
Santa was scary.
So, no photos with Santa this year, though we did manage to get some of the girls with the festive backdrop.

The saving grace of the day was a double fire truck push car that we strapped the girls into to get them back to the car, oh, and frozen yoghurt.

Holy Cow.
I hope you'll forgive me while I have my head in the porcelain bowl these days, I have not been getting to my writing…

We had a very busy weekend, perhaps that's why I was feeling so sick again. There were some major highlights including GG (Grandma Gail) arriving for a visit, meeting baby Beatrice, Dress shopping for Auntie Soph and a special author conference call for our book club.

The excitement continued with Parker's first day back today after a weeks holiday in Ontario. The girls were really cute about seeing each other, hugging and holding hands. Little E "encouraging" Parker to follow her in a stroller derby and squeeze into the cardboard house that's barely holding together.

I'll elaborate on the weekend too. We got to meet Little E's little cousin Beatrice for the first time at 2 weeks old. She was so tiny and sweet, sleeping the whole time on a little satin pillow on her mommy's lap. It's amazing to think that Little E was ever that delicate! And to think we'll have another one soon. Yeesh.

The wedding dress shopping we did for Auntie Soph was fabulous despite my cracker crunching through the appointment. I was just lucky not to unload my snacks on any of the dresses. They were gorgeous. We only went to one shop called Frocks, but already there is a strong contender. I will say no more…

We had an amazing send off book club (my last official hurrah before the move) with a call in to the author (who just so happens to be my step-brother-in-law). We read Brian Payton's exciting, moving and inspiring Shadow of the Bear: Travels in Vanishing Wilderness. The discussion was excellent of course, but was made that much more meaningful with the opportunity to ask Brian some questions. Our meal topped it off and the whole experience got us talking about creating a book club cook book, listing the books that inspire the feasts.

Last but far from least, we have GG here for a few days. She is taking full advantage of the city, slotting in a pedicure around the corner and a performance of the German Requiem at the Orpheum with Auntie Soph. It is like old times having her here, cooking and cleaning; it's reminiscent of Little E's first few weeks.

Dill Pickle Chips

It's been way too long!! Again!

I do have some pretty exciting news to report though…Little E is getting a sibling!
I am nearing the 12 week mark and counting down the days. I have been so sick with this one, throwing up 1-3 times a day for the past few weeks, living on toasted bagels with cream cheese, cheerios and soda crackers. When I mentioned the "infliction" to my friend Julia (who just happens to be a midwife) she asked if there were twins in the family….thank goodness no! Well, not the immediate family anyway.

The babe is due at the end of June, just a couple of months after Little E's second birthday. I am just hoping we are all settled in to our new digs by then.

Here is a photo of Little E helping me season the chicken I made for dinner tonight. I had turned around for a moment only to turn back and see her elbow deep in my first food craving - dill pickle chips.

Sunshine Coast

We spent the weekend on the Sunshine Coast and it was as wonderful as always.
Other than today, the day of our departure, the weather did not hold up to the destination name. It was stormy and wet and very romantic.

It's fun having an American in our friend group because it means we get to celebrate another thanksgiving. We had a fabulous turkey dinner last night complete with 3 desserts. Little E got to meet another little baby called Naomi - 7 months old. Little E was thrilled! She walked around Naomi pushing out a funny little laugh that I haven't heard before and sat down to stroke her hair. Despite delaying her bedtime she was not thrilled to leave.

Jane treated me to a wreath making workshop and I made a beautiful wreath that I'm pretty sure will sell the house.
The only downside of the weekend was sleeping in the same room as Little E on Friday night. She woke up at 3:00am and would not go back to sleep. We were reminded of the very important lesson that we cannot sleep in the same room as her, she thinks it's playtime (or boob time). Saturday night we slept upstairs and got a glorious sleep in until 7:30am. Amen!

Here is one super lazy photo of the weekends affairs (taken upon our return no less)...

Thankful

After the past few days, I was so thankful for the girls attitude today!
Monday is always so hard, getting back in to the swing of being "sisters" for the week, Little E and Parker fight like crazy. But come Wednesday, they are the best of friends.
Today they brought each other their water, broke pieces of fruit bar in half and shared it, gave back toys that the other had first, it was a little piece of heaven with two angels in my living room.

I took some photos of them cuddled up with Jake today...

Also, I just want to make a plug for some English books we've been loving lately.
Each, Peach, Pear, Plum by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
Bathwater's Hot by Shirley Hughes
Both have delightful illustrations and great stories (we have a couple of other books by these authors and you can't go wrong!)

The Day in Photos

It was going to be a complainy kind of post tonight, but after looking at the photos from today I had to revamp my attitude. Really the only struggle was on our walk, with the girls strapped into the stroller. So although I had to endure some shrieking, I didn't really have to monitor too closely since they were harnessed side by side...

It was an indoor day for us since the weather was cold and wet. The girls pulled out all of the music supplies and I put on some Sharon, Lois and Bram. We danced the hokey pokey, shook our shakers and bashed the rest. It was getting close to nap time so it also involved a lot of floor time.

It's Official

We're moving to the Comox Valley!
The boss has been informed, the boxes have been collected, the packing...well that's going to be the scary part. Island life here we come!

Other than that news, today was pretty uneventful. Little E had a nice visit with her Auntie Soph while Daddy C and I ran around doing errands. And while waiting for her dinner Little E managed to push herself back off the table while strapped into her chair onto the floor. We heard a crash from the kitchen and set off running. Luckily it seemed she was more shocked than hurt and after a few tears asked to lie down in her bed for a minute for comfort - she's so cute.

Here are some Googled Valley shots...yup, it's paradise - maybe we'll see you there?

A Day at the Park

I'm having a bad mom feeling evening.
I couldn't face cooking tonight so I asked Daddy C to pick something up on his way home. Like the good husband he is, he got exactly what I mentioned I'd been wanting - pizza and chicken pot pie. Unfortunately they were not the healthiest things I could have fed my daughter. Little E really just scraped the cheese and sausage off the pizza and hardly managed to chew, and the pot pie was mostly pastry with goopy chunks of grisly chicken. Hmm we resorted to porridge.

On a lighter note we had a great park day yesterday before the rain hit.
Here are some photos illustrating our afternoon, from the stroller ride to the goodbye hug.

Doppa

Little E is obsessed with Daddy C's favourite new toy.
It's a remote control helicopter with fancy flashing lights and manoeuvrable double wing blades.

He bought it last weekend and while flying it shortly afterwards along with Little E operating "Evie's Button" managed to crash and break some of the delicate parts. It was out of commission for a few days, much to Little E's disappointment. We had to explain that no we couldn't fly the chopper because it's broken. "Doppa doppa, boke" she would chant, after the "up up doppa" request was gently turned down.

On a side note Little E's already short morning and evening nursing sessions have been changing, and I'm sure it's because I'm starting to run dry. The other night Little E was switching back and forth looking for a trickle and all of a sudden looked up at me, pointed at my nipple and said "booby boke".
Her comprehension never ceases to amaze me.

Here's one of my favourite old photos of Little E and Jake

Remembrance

It has been a long few days of feeling rough and rather creatively uninspired.
So, hence the long silence. The word is appropriate for today being Remembrance Day, although it was hard to exercise the moment of silence required by the traditional ceremony with a toddler burning around. I managed to have some reflective moments.

We turned on some of the television coverage in Ottawa and as I explained to Little E some of the activity and uniformed dress I found myself rather teary. I'm not sure if that's because I'm now a hormonal mother (my mom endearingly cries over some commercials) or because my grandfather fought in World War One. Yes, the first one! I missed knowing him well since he died at the ripe old age of 98 and I was the fresh young age of 12. But, the stories my mom tells of his life leave me curious and yearning for more.

Grandparents are so important.

On a lighter note the date today 11/11/11 was auspicious for many people: wedding plans, caesarean section plans and triplets turning 11. A fun article here.

Doggy Bed

What is the infatuation with Jake's bed?
Whenever I lock the poor doggy away in his "safe zone" free from Little E's harassment, she heads straight for his bed and jumps, squealing all over it. She lured Parker into her gleeful game today too.

Aside from this cuteness the day was a little rough. I guess this is the payback that everyone jokes about parents getting when their kids have babies of their own. Little E treats Parker like my sisters and I treated each other when we were little. Putting her hand or foot on Parkers side of the stroller evoking horror movie worthy screams from poor miss P. I think I've said before that I feel like a referee, but sometimes by the end of the end of the day I am so drained and sad that I've just been mad and disciplining my daughter all day. Have you heard the word counterwill?

Aquarium

What a fabulous morning!
We took Little E to the Aquarium in Stanley Park this morning and she loved it! So did we mind you. We arrived in time for the doors to open at 9:30 and it's a good thing we did. We caught the beluga show the dolphin show and had prime viewing access to all of the creatures.

I love the amazon section where you can walk through a little piece of jungle to the sound of bird cries and streaks of colour zooming past your head. I found the Scarlett Ibis the most striking (photo follows). Little E loved all of the fish and the jelly fish, the whales were impressive of course. It makes me feel good to know that the Aquarium is not for profit and all of the money spent within it's doors goes to research and conservation.

But I must admit one of the biggest rewards for me was getting Little E back into her car seat without a struggle. She was almost happy to be strapped in after such a stimulating event!

A fort

This is a really novice fort (or should I say lazy) but the girls loved it!
Perhaps because it was the first time we attempted such a variation on the living room landscape.
Anyway, a little imagination and a blanket and two chairs go a long way when you get caught in the rain.