March Break Bliss and the misadventures of David

It's a dreary Sunday afternoon in Ottawa, and the boys are chillin' on the couch playing some Mario. Cooper is curled up on his pillow on the floor, sleeping the day away. I just downed one enormous mug of coffee, and am enjoying this lazy feeling day.

The past week has been absolutely wonderful, with Dave being on March Break. He had to spend about 3 full days doing school prep and marking- but otherwise spent the remainder with Jesse and I. We've been going to the park, taking lots of walks, watching a ton of LOST episodes, and eating WAY too much Brie cheese. I feel like we really needed some time as a couple and family to regroup and connect, and it's been a great week for that. We were also lucky to have a week full of sunny days in 15 degree range, and that added to the March Break Bliss.

Jesse is such a little boy these days, and has decided his favourite activity this week is throwing things. We fill up this basket full of all his little toys- blocks, rattles, balls, teething rings, etc- and sit him on the floor with it. He pulls one thing out at a time and shakes it to death, then whips it across the room. Now... I'm wondering if I should be discouraging this sort of behavior? Thoughts, anyone? But, he has so much fun with it, and it entertains him by himself for a while, so I've just been letting him go at it. He also initiates peek-a-boo, which is the cutest thing ever. No progress on crawling...still. But, I'm ok with that. I know that he will be into EVERYTHING when he gets moving, so am enjoying not having to chase him, yet.

Dave has been a super wonderful help all week, and I just love him. Yesterday, while I was at work, Dave decided to take Jesse on an adventure. He's been wanting a more manly baby carrier that he could tote Jesse around on his back. Apparently, he doesn't feel very manly using my slings?? :) Anyways, he decided he would take Jesse on the half hour bus trip to babiesRus to pick one out. I told him he was very brave, and should take the stroller... so he didn't have to carry Jesse the whole time. He didn't want to take the stroller, and said he'd be fine just carrying him. I guess the bus ride on the way there was great... Jesse was smiling at everyone, and as happy as good be. But when Dave got to the store, there were a TON of couples looking at carriers in the exact same section, and trying them all on. He sort of just watched everyone, and picked one out that most people ended up going with.

Now, when Dave gets a new Toy or a new anything, he has to use it RIGHT AWAY. A few days ago at the mall, he bought new socks at Sears, and put them on right after he bought them before continuing to any other stores at the mall. I thought that was so funny. So, as with the socks, he decided he needed to try out the carrier right away. Outside of the store, he proceeded to TRY and open the box, figure out all the straps, get Jesse into the carrier, and onto his back. All of this with Jesse in his arms, as there was nowhere to put him. Not even a bench anywhere! He couldn't figure things out, and upon reading the instructions discovered you need 2 people to get the baby onto your back in a safe manner. Now, if that was me.. I would have just been on my merry way with my purchase in hand to try at a later date. But, not Dave. He found some sort of box to sit Jesse on, and try and get him into the carrier, and onto his back... I guess Jesse started crying and fussing, and all these other couples with their babies were looking at him strangely. Dave said he felt awful. Like... everyone was thinking he was this horrible father. Anyhoo... I guess some guy passed by and said one of Jesse's feet was stuck, and helped him out. Dave proceeded to catch the bus back home. However, in all his dismay went the wrong direction on a crowded bus, and couldn't get OFF for 15 minutes. Finally, he got off and turned around, and Jesse started fussing again the whole ride home. When he arrived at the bus stop near our place, Jesse was miserable in the carrier, and Dave went to try and take it off, but the clips were jammed and he couldn't get the thing off his back. He ended up lifting it over his head with Jesse in it, and asked some girl looking at him with concern to make sure Jesse didn't fall out while doing all of this. Anyways, I guess it was a bit of a nightmare. We returned the complicated carrier, and got a much better one today. Oh Dave. Tsk. Tsk. Should have listened to mama. The stress he would have saved himself if he would have just taken the stupid stroller. I must say, though, life is never dull with Daver.

THE MANLY and BETTER CARRIER!

Well, it's my turn to watch Baby Boo, so Dave can have some down time. THanks for reading. I'm out.

A fantastic week gone by...

Well, it's been over a week since I've posted anything, cause my mom in law, Sharon, was visiting for the week from Fredericton. Dave's parents, moved to Fredericton from PEI on March 1st after Rob was offered a position with an engineering company in New Brunswick. I'm sure it would have been nice to get settled before flying over to Ontario to visit, but Sharon had booked the flight before they knew they were moving, and so stuck with the plan.

I've just gotten back from dropping her off at the airport, and the apartment certainly feels kinda sad and quiet without her. We had a great week, and it was just really nice to have her around to chat with, and enjoy Jesse with. I also took advantage of several free babysitting offers, and got out by myself for a few afternoons. It felt very freeing to be able to get out by myself without a baby attached, and no plans or errands to get done. I actually spent one of the afternoons at a few different malls spending some gift cards I'd received for Christmas, but hadn't the chance to spend yet. It was JUST what I needed. A little retail therapy sans bebe. Dave and I also got out for a date night, and that was really good for us. Last night, Sharon and I got out to see the movie Valentine's Day. I loved it! It had such a long list of my favorite actor/tresses, and was just a feel good movie, ya know?? Dave and I feel so very lucky to get along fabulously with each others family, and we're already counting the days until our Summer vacation in Fredericton...where they both now currently reside.

Jesse was a VERY happy and good baby all week, aside from Sunday where he was MISERABLE from teething. He's just so full of life and smiles, and is getting so much more fun to play with. He likes to wiggle his whole upper body like a fish out of water, and when I smile and say "Wiggle," He breaks into the biggest grin, and goes nuts whipping himself around. He's also getting better at pulling himself back to a sitting position when he wobbles or topples, and I'm sure in a few weeks, he'll be a pro. Still NO progress on anything that resembles crawling, as he despises his stomach and rolls onto his back as soon as you put him on it... But I'm not too worried about it. He'll get there eventually.

I have about 6 loads of laundry I've let build up now... and think I should likely go tackle that while the babe naps. Jesse and I are going to go to the park after he wakes up. The weather has been so nice all week...... sunny and breezy... 8 degreesish.....and there isn't much snow left. So, I'm very excited about that. Spring is on it's way. Yay! Thanks for reading. I'm off :)

Back to it

So Tuesday has arrived, and things are back to normal here at the palace. Praise The Lord. The past few days have been less than ideal with trying to recuperate from the stomach flu, and dealing with a teething ANGRY baby and a sick husband who picked up whatever I had. Dave is back to work today after taking a sick day on Monday, and despite puking last night around 3:30am, headed off to work around 6 this morning to try and get himself back on top of things. The evidence on the counter indicates he skipped breakfast and downed 2 cans of gingerale instead. Poor guy.

I must say, being stuck at home for 4 days with a sick little family, was NOT fun, and I was going a little crazy by the end of it. Facebook kept me in the loop about the outside world, and for that I'm thankful for. I find that facebook is a super helpful for a stay at home mom. Having a very demanding and busy little boy, I don't have much solid uninterrupted time during the day. Naps are about it, and this is the time when I do things that I can't when Jesse is up...like shower, haul laundry down to the basement, update my blog, or make necessary phone calls. When Jesse is up, I only have a few minutes here and there when he is content doing his own thing. Jesse wants to move and be be EVERYWHERE all the time, and since he can't walk or crawl yet, he is in this perma-frustrated state lately.

I find that taking a few minutes a few times a day to check Facebook helps me feel connected, especially with other moms who do the same thing during the day. I never thought I would be one to be interested in things like teething and napping, but it's life now..and knowing that other people are dealing with the same things helps me get through some of the rougher days. It's also nice to be able to see pictures and get status updates from our family and friends back in the Maratimes. It's no substitute for calling them, or seeing them, but when you only have a few minutes, it's the next best thing. Facebook also keeps me in the loop about things.... like the gold medal game....which we weren't able to watch, unfortunately. On the same note, it lets me know what I'm apparently out of touch with. This morning, everyone was chatting about the Bachelor? Even my brother was irate about his choice. Too funny. As much as I appreciate FB now, I'm glad it wasn't around when I was in High School. I see the potential for how it could suck all your time away, and perpetuate the drama and jealousy issues that are bad enough in the day to day lives of teenies without the computer as an extra contribution. At A Gym Tale, I hear hear 7 year olds complaining about how they aren't allowed a Facebook account. Dave says our kids won't be having it until they're married :)


Well...those are my few thoughts for the day. Baby is napping away, and I need to cut Coopers hair, get some laundry in, and have a shower. I'm never fully with it until I have my shower in the morning. I hope everyone is enjoying the week so far, and for those of you who aren't. Just imagine your current week, then add on a 2 ended stomach flu, a screaming crying baby with a groaning emotional hubby in the background, and maybe you'll feel better :) Or...just remember that there is a season for everything and "this too shall pass" That got me through a lot of rough times. Thanks for reading. I'm out.

Good news and bad

Well... I'll start with the bad. MY LIFE THE PAST 36 HOURS! I was hit with some sort of stomach flu bug (both ends) Friday morning around 1 am... and haven't felt this horrible since child birth. actually... maybe child birth was better. I always tend to get sick when I have things I want to do, or places I want to be, and this time was no different. I was suppose to babysit on Friday, then go to an Alicia Keys concert in the evening, and then work Saturday. I had to let a variety of people down....and would much rather have been out and about, then stuck in the bathroom/bed for the past day. I have managed to keep lunch down today...and my stomach is feeling much more settled, so I'm hoping the worst is over. I still feel dizzy and gross and sore, but I'm hoping another day and some fluids and food staying in my system will solve that.
OK. My pity party is over.

The GOOD NEWS! Dave and I are moving into a little townhouse in 3 months!!! A few weeks ago we went to view the model home, then the actual available unit, and we were a little disappointed when we were told we had to "apply" for the unit. The company looks at credit ratings, and does reference checks, and former rental checks, and requires meeting with you, before they will accept a deposit or anything. Anyhoo, we went through the process and were approved on Thursday!

We are very excited to get out of our apartment for a few reasons. The first is the LOCATION! The townhouse is 15 minutes south of where we are now, in a MUCH more family friendly and safe neighborhood. There is a park down the road, and the sidewalks will feel safer than strolling Jesse down Carling, where buses come within inches of swiping you. Currently we live in a sketchy part of the WEST end, and have had several strange experiences living here. We've had our car broken into, a drugged up girl bust into our apartment and insist she lived here, and try and kick Dave out, Drug dealers down the hall the first year, and just yesterday a drunk old man in the elevator tried to get Jesse to smile, and when Jesse didn't, he said to him, "Be happy, F.U, be happy." On top of all the craziness, we live right by the bus station, and a fire station, and so it's very loud. I don't know how many times the sirens have woke Jesse up... I'm NOT going to miss that. Also, we were traveling 20-30 minutes a day to get to work, and it is only 10 minutes away from both Dave's work, AND mine. It'll be great to save gas, and time!

The second thing I'm excited about is the SPACE we'll have! Right now, we have basically a dining room, living room, office, and play room crammed into an L shaped living area here. The place we will be renting has the following features.

TOP FLOOR: 3 bedrooms and a spacious bathroom and closets! The third bedroom is probably the best part, because Aunt Katie is moving in!!!!!! Dave's sister, Katie, lived with us for a summer, and it was awesome. She is currently teaching in Korea, and when her contract finishes in July, is coming to Ottawa to find work. We're very excited to have family in the area! In our house! We're also pumped to have an "upstairs" for Jesse to nap in. Right now, he's on the same level as us, and we have to be pretty quiet. The dog wakes him up a lot, and my puking, for example, kept waking him up the other night, too.

MAIN LEVEL: Has a closet right when you walk in. NICE! A place for coats, and I think the stroller will fit too. There is also a convenient little 2 piece bathroom on the main level. The kitchen has a big bright window looking out into the backyard, and there is a whole separate living room, and dining room. The dining room has sliding glass doors outside into a little fenced in yard area with a pine tree and everything! This is a huge deal for us. Having a place to BBQ!! Maybe Dave will cook now. Also, we feel super duper that Cooper will be able to get outside more frequently, and we won't need the litter box. Right now, he is litter box trained, because as a puppy he could never hold it long enough for us to get him down the 10 flights, and out the door and onto some grass in time. Also, for Jesse to easily get some fresh air..and have some outside to explore will be so good for the little guy. I'm already planning in my head how I want to set up a little baby pool, and tiny slide in the back. Right now, it's a pain in the butt getting Jesse's stroller out of his room...down the apartment hall, down the floor hall, down the elevator 10 flights, out the lobby, and 2 more sets of doors. And then to where?? The bus stop? We have the same ordeal for getting groceries in , and it will be so nice to park the car in front of our house, and just have a few feet to walk, and ONE door to unlock :)

BASEMENT LEVEL: We have a finished basement downstairs! We're going to make this into sort of a secondary living area with our second TV, and Jesse's bulky toys. It will be nice to have another place to go, and some space for Jesse to zoom around in the winter. The basement also has a second room with storage- FANTASTIC! A place to put Dave's 12,000 books, and things like Christmas decorations, and Dave's bike. Probably the most exciting thing about the basement is the fact it has a washer and dryer! Right now, we have to take the elevator down to the basement, and share 6 washers and dryers with a building of over 100 units. It takes so much time going up and down, and is inconvenient having to time your day around switching your laundry from machine to machine. There are also a lot of cat and dog people in the building, and sometimes you get a washer or dryer with oodles of fur in it.. or ink.. or other unpleasant things. It will be SO great to have our own just one flight of stairs away.

Well...Jesse is up, and I should do get the little cutie.
Thanks for reading. I'm out.

Salad, Sleep and Beet Slime

Well, It's been a productive day so far. I've got 3 loads of laundry done, our bedroom clean, and cooked a massive pasta salad to work away at over the next few days. It's a new recipe, although I've made similar ones before. It's got rice pasta, cheese, green onion, grapes, peas and ham in it... and the dressing is a sour cream/mayo base with dijon, apple cider vinegar and dill weed thrown in with some other things. It sounds kind of disgusting as I sit here writing it, but I quite like it, and know Dave will too. One thing that I love about Dave is that he is NOT a meat and potatoes man. I mean...he loves meat and potatoes, because he really loves just about all food. But, he'd go for Indian or Mexican or Italian... or just plain KD.... over meat and potatoes. I'm the same way, and it makes cooking for the both of us more enjoyable and fun. I usually pull out meat and potatoes for company, and so we have our fair share.

Anyways... so the day has been productive, yes! Jesse, who goes to bed around 6pm, then gets up at 12 and 4ish, has been dropping that first feed quite regularly for the past few months. So, I've been getting to sleep from 10-4ish most nights , then will jump back in bed for another few hours before the real morning. So refreshing and rejuvenating...that 6 hour stretch... ahhhh... I thought it would never come.

Jesse was a very sad and distressed baby all last week. He failed to poo for about 3 days...then did nothing but poo for 2 days... so I think that had something to do with his mood. I indulged in gluten ALL last week, and suspect that was causing some tummy pains for the little tyke? So, I have recommitted myself to a Celiac diet for now... So, he's back to his loud and silly self, and it's made for a much more enjoyable week. Jesse has figured out how to take little wobbly steps forward when you are holding his arms, can finally now push his upper body up, has figured out the pincer method to finger feeding himself, AND bobs his body when he likes music. It's crazy how fast they learn and change. Jesse tried out beets last night, and what a mess! I told Dave to be extra careful not to let Jesse grab the spoon cause I'm sure "beet red" is a nightmare to wash off things... So, Dave carefully navigated Jesse's tricky little grabby fingers all the way to the last bite. At which point, Jesse let out a MASSIVE sneeze with a mouth full of beets and SPRAYED red beet juice all over Dave, the table, himself, the dog, and the floor. It was so funny. Even beet covered Dave laughed. Today, Jesse ate all the beets, then burped and puked them all up. Not sure if these are signs or something??? Either way, Beet red looks very good on Jesse...


Dave and I have started the LOST Series, and I am SUPER DUPER loving it. We are both sort of suspense wussies, and so there have been a few parts where we can't watch and end up just looking at each other. Then I worry I will miss something critical, and so I embrace the fear for a 5 second count(like Doctor Jack) then force myself to watch the rest.

Poor Dave, has so much school work to do, and he gets thinking about it through the night, and sometimes can't sleep. Last night was one of those nights. He tossed and turned until about 2 am, then went to sleep on the couch cause he thought he might be keeping me up. I'm a very light sleeper, unfortunately. Once Dave gets to sleep, though, he sleeps like a ROCK. He's head butted me in the middle of the night before, and NOT remembered it. No joke.

Well, just wanted to get in some randoms for the day! thanks for reading, I'm out.

Sleep and Shower

Dave and I are tired today. Very tired. Dave has been pretty tired all week actually. I knew that he needed some extra sleep and down time when he insisted that there were only 3 months of school left, after I informed him there were 4. He looked at me and counted with his fingers, while he emphasized "March, April, then June." Where May went, I'm not sure? The following evening, when discussing our favourite vegetables, he told me that Watermelon was the best vegetable of them all.

Friday I had a busy day with a cranky non-sleeping baby while I was trying to get some games and other things ready for a bridal shower. I left my boys around 5, hoping that work might be a little quieter that evening.

On Friday nights I do reception for the center, but also help with the Kids Night out Program we run. For 15 bucks, you can drop your child off at the center at 6 and go do whatever the heck you want, and come back at 9 to pick them up. We have free play time, games time, snack time, and then end with a movie. It's open to 3-10 year olds, and we get quite the mix each week. They younger ones are very cute and tend to listen well, but are much more demanding and time consuming. Sometimes they pee themselves, sometimes they miss their mommy, and they need more direction and assistance with tasks. The older ones can handle things on their own, but tend to act out more, cause more drama, and sometimes are too rough. You never know how many or what kind of kids you'll be working with until they arrive. We usually average about 16 kids per week, but this week we had 32 show up! My wish for a calm night didn't pan out, but only because of numbers. The group was very well behaved! We had all 32 of them sitting quietly listening to instructions, they participated in the obstacle course without going nuts, and enjoyed parachute games together. It was quite amazing really. Typically a group of 8 kids MIght behave that well on Good night.

Saturday was my dear and darling friend Grace's bridal shower. Grace and I have known each other for 8 years, and spent 4 years in university together. We were both the kind of girl who seemed to prefer hanging out with guys, and found ourselves in dramatic and complicated situations with boys all throughout university. I'm not sure if this common bond is what drew us together... but Grace is the sweetest, most honest and kind girl that exists. She is also one of the few girls who was friends with Dave, but did not have a crush on him :) Grace lives in KW, but her fiance grew up in Ottawa. Tavis is a super guy, and reminds me of a combination of my 3 brothers. It's crazy. Tavis mom and sister in law decided to have a shower here for her with Tavis' family and friends from the area. As a bridesmaid, I was drafted to take care of the program and games. It was a little tricky coming up with games for a group of ladies you knwo nothing about, and who ranged from 20-60. But- I went with some classic fun ones, and a few creative ones, and the shower was great!

Meanwhile, Dave was home with Jesse, and I guess he yelled all afternoon for some reason. Dave thinks that he should write a book on babies with all of his advice. He said the main idea would be, "Feed them incredible amounts of food." As an infant, Dave would feed him milk from a bottle until he puked, and when Dave gets Jesse's meals ready..... 2 Tablespoons of Fruit, turns into half a cup, 1 TBSP of meat turns into two, and 3 tablespoons of cereal usually turns into 6..... Sometimes Jesse doesn't seem to want any of it..and other times he conquers it all.

After the shower, we had Grace and Tavis, and another couple of their friends over for dinner and games. Jesse liked having all the extra people over. Usually he starts getting grumpy by 5...but he held on until 6:00 with all the extra people to watch and take in. I can't wait to see what sort of kid he turns out to be. He is so wiggly and loud and hyper, but is super quiet and still and observant when he is taking in new things and new people. It'll be interesting to see if he holds onto both of these as he grows up, of if he'll lean to one extreme.

Well...the day goes on, and so must I. Dave and I declared it Relax and Rejuvenate Day this morning...but really, I have a staff meeting in a few hours, Dave has to go into the school and do a ton of work, and so the bliss must come to a close. Thanks for reading. I'm off.

Queen for a day and Family Melt Down Hour

It's a new week, and I feel a little sad that the weekend is over. I had a different than the norm sort of weekend, that started with Babysitting a 5 and 7 year old Friday morning. Jesse tagged along, of course, and I loved having 3 kiddies to deal with. It affirmed my desire for 3 kids, although my mother always says, "3 sucks." She was a middle child of 3, and was no fan of it, apparently. I like how the kids have each other to play with, and yes, fight with too. The feeling of a big family warms my heart.

On Saturday I took a break from reception, and filled in running the play classes my work center offers on the weekend. I always feel a touch nervous before doing them, cause it's a dozen parents and their unpredictable 1-3 year olds just WATCHING your every move as you sing and talk during the circle time. But, I always end up loving it. It's like performing, and I have always loved that. After my second class, all the little kids came over one by one and gave me a big hug to say thank you. Priceless.

Sunday was especially fabulous, and my husband treated me like a total queen for Valentines Day. He took the baby first thing in the morning so I could sleep in, and made breakfast, and cleaned the house, and took care of me all day long! He even took Jesse during church, so I could listen to the sermon. Dave and I haven't had the guts to put Jesse in the nursery yet. It's not cause we're wussies and don't want to leave him, we just feel bad for the nursery staff!! He's usually rather fussy during the church hours as his morning nap has been cut short to make it to church, and then he's late for his afternoon nap. Dave and I go to what is called the 10:50 at our church. It is a service held in the gym instead of the sanctuary, and is geared towards young adults and young families I would say, although anyone can go. It's a more relaxed atmosphere, and the back half of the gym is set up with tables and lots of space so kids can color or have some room to move. We have a group of friends who we sit with who have babies the same age as Jesse, and I always marvel at how calm these kids are. Jesse is just so wiggly and loud and we have to take him out once things quiet down after the worship time. I keep telling myself that although he is a handful now, he will be a confident kid who knows what he wants and stands up for what he believes in. Right now that translates into yelling when he wants things and yelling when he falls diving for a toy, and yelling when he's happy, and yelling for more food.... oh my head..... :)

Monday was FAMILY DAY in Ontario, and it was nice to have Dave around again although he had lessons to prep and marking to do all day. I put on the Olympics, and took it easy for most of the day while I looked after the little man. Jesse gave me a near melt down yesterday afternoon when he became TOTALLY miserable and cranky, and NOTHING I did seemed to settle him. We went out for a walk, and that calmed him down for about 15 minutes. But... I don't know if the agony of putting him in his snowsuit and buckling him in the stroller was worth it. A bath calmed him down for about 10 minutes later in the afternoon, and then watching Dave play Super Mario Galaxy tied him over for another 10 minutes right before bed. But it was mostly 2 hours of yell crying. Dave was trying to get his school work done, and was even getting flustered just listening to him. I do not think I would deal well with Colic. And understand how important the concept of getting out and away would be!

This morning, Jesse is back to his good loud and wiggly spirits, and I think his morning nap is coming to a close, I should be on my way and get some things done while he sleeps! Thanks for reading, I'm off.