Exhausted

Today is my birthday and I'm wiped out, it seems like the longest day in the world to me. This whole finding proper child care is weighing heavy on me and it seems like I haven't seen my husband in a month. So we made an appointment to talk about all this on the weekend but I think I've already made up my mind.

The kids will go into a day care centre for the summer, it's seems to be a well run place but the diet stuff is a bit of an issue; come September though when Matt starts school it will just be too difficult to have two kids at different ends of the city, so I've found a women around the corner from us that does home care and her children are old enough to walk Matt to and from school everyday. So I don't have to worry about racing home to meet the bus or picking Cam up from day care and Matt up from school.

At first I thought Matt should just go to regular plain old public school, then I thought Catholic school was the way to go and once I started talking to other parents I was convinced that French immersion was the ONLY alternative. Working has changed everything, I'm right back to regular plain old public school so as of today Matt is registered to start three different schools come September. I feel like one of those whacky over protective, overly concerned parents that is stifled and can't make a decision for fear of making a wrong move. Truly this is not me, I think that for the most part the majority of children regardless of schooling end up at about the same level when it's all said and done baring any learning problems or those rare genius children. My kids are pretty run of the mill standard kids so it probably won't matter in the end and regular plain old public school should be just fine. The upside is there are no buses and we've find a good child care provider who lives in the neighbourhood.

Now that I have all that figured out I need a nap.

Dare I say it?

I'm back, probably not; but I thought I should update as some things are new and exciting around here. First I got a new Dell laptop yippeeee! This is probably the most exciting news; I'm no longer freezing in the basement but sitting at the kitchen table while the munchkins are eating their steel cut oats and I'm sipping my Jasmine Green tea yum.

Second I'm going back to work part-time as a special events coordinator for a long term healthcare centre, I'll be working in the fundraising department, I've great hours and I think I've found great child care so all is good.

Third life is good, I'm healthy for once and feeling good (this probably should be first); I've finally figured out why I wheezed and coughed all last summer - Grass, yup Grass and not the whacky kind either but the kind in the backyard. So at least I know that it's nothing too serious. Funny thing is all my health issues are what put me on the path to becoming a vegetarian and I probably would have gotten better anyway, but we are all healthy and feeling great, Al has lost 15 pounds I have gained 5 so needless to say that a vegan diet is no guarantee of weight loss. So I'm back to not drinking coffee and trying to figure out how I'm going to work, spend quality time with the monsters, spend time with my friends, husband and still go to the gym, oh and walk the dog.

And how is Indy Jones you ask? Well after a three thousand dollar surgery and a three month recovery she is happy, healthy and not limping, she's lost weight and looks great. Our wonderful kitty kat Isis went to the groomer and got a haircut, we had her shaved down to look like a lion but unfortunately she looks more like something out of Dr. Suess this however has not affected her wonderful disposition. I found my laser pointer the other day and she has been getting plenty of exercise every night after 8 p.m. while I laugh hysterically at the cat antics. Poor Indy can't quite figure out what is wrong with the crazy cat zipping around the living room.

The kids and I are off to British Columbia this summer for a week, my Grandmother has not seen Matt since he was six months and has never met Cam so I booked the flights and now I have to figure out how I'm going to pack everything I need for two kids and myself into one suitcase, check the car seats and deal with two children for a six hour flight, a three hour layover in Vancouver and another hour flight up north, unpack the car seats in the airport and install them at God only knows what time. Pray that we all survive.

So that's it, I'm not sure what this means for my blog, my plan was to blog all summer with my new laptop but work and working out just might get in the way. Hopefully my new computer will inspire me to update my blog on a more regular basis.

More Conversations With Three Year Olds

Mommy?

Yes Matt.

I three year old.

Yeah buddy but soon you are going to be four.

Nooooooo, I don't want to be four.

Why?

I like three, it's my favourite.

Why?

Because I like it, I DON'T WANT TO BE FOUR!

But buddy when you're four you get a party and a cake.

Really?

Yeah. What kind of cake do you want?

I want a kitty cat cake.

But you had a kitty cat cake last time, this time you could have something else like a bunny or a truck or a boat. What do you think?

I want a chocolate cake.

Sure you can have a chocoate cake no problem, but what shape do you want your cake?

I know! How about a steak!


Yeesh, I give up, this kid does not want to be a vegetarian.

I HATE falling down the stairs!

There must be something wrong with me; I have fallen down the stairs at least four times in the past five years. Yesterday afternoon I was on my way upstairs to take a shower and I realized half way up that I forgot something so I turned around and I guess my weight shifted and my heels came out from underneath me and I fell. I hit the stairs and bruised my spine, tail bone and my hands, I thought for a second I broke my back. Poor Al the Man I scared him half to death and he kept saying as I was rolling around on the floor "Don't move, don't MOVE".

Yeesh, the last time I fell down the stairs I was three months pregnant with Cam and I broke my foot. We had a back-split house which meant tons of stairs and Matt was not even walking yet. My Mother-in-law had to come and stay with us for two weeks; you'd think I would have learned my lesson. I did exactly the same thing last time, I was half way up and realized I forgot something and turned around. You should have seen the look on the x-ray technician's face when I told him I was pregnant.

The next time I forget something, I am going to walk all the way up the stairs go into another room and turn around and go back. ARGH! I HATE falling down the stairs.

Meat Retreat

Many of you who have come here regularly over the past year know that I have struggled with some health issues. Despite having the flu shot last year I contracted influenza which led to bronchitis and a few months later pneumonia. I haven’t stopped coughing since. All summer I had very little energy and I just felt sick all the time. I knew that it would take some time to recover from the pneumonia but when September came along and I was still coughing it was time to do something. So off to the doctor I went and they could find nothing. I decided as well to see a naturopathic doctor and she put me on a strict diet called the Brown Rice Diet, which meant I could eat chicken, fish, brown rice and fresh vegetables. I was to try and eliminate things like caffeine, sugar, wheat and alcohol. Slowly my health improved.

Just after Christmas we went to visit friends in another city, I was telling Dee about my strict diet and she looked at me and said in a peculiar tone “WHAT do you EAT!”, I asked her why she asked and she told me that they were now Vegan and she was struggling with trying to find the right foods to eat. I just about fell off my chair; these were full fledged meat eaters and I was so very surprised. Dee went on to tell me that she and Dave had read a book called “The China Study” by T. Colin Campbell, PhD. So of course I had to read the book; I finished it in two days and haven’t eaten meat or dairy since; Al the Man has embraced our new found Veganism and our children have fully transition onto soy products.

This is a startling book and I realized that we really needed to totally revamp our diet in order to have productive healthy lives. If you would like to read a few excerpts from the book you can go here. The underlying basis for the book is this:

“People who ate the most animal-based foods got the most chronic disease … People who ate the most plant-based foods were the healthiest and tended to avoid chronic disease. These results could not be ignored,” Dr. Campbell.

He goes on to talk about the Western diet and how fat we have become, how fat and too much animal protein in our diet causes disease like Cancer, Diabetes and Heart Disease.

So we have embarked upon a journey into a strict vegetarian lifestyle and I have learned more than I ever thought I would about food. We no longer eat meat, eggs or cheese, nor do we drink milk. This for us is not an ethical issue although the more I delve into this lifestyle the more environmental and animal rights issues come to light; this is for now an issue about health, a healthy life for Al, the children and myself.

I’m sure many of you have questions about our children and not drinking milk, questions about calcium and protein and I hope in the coming weeks to write a little bit more about how all of these elements are incorporated into a Vegan diet. I would like to share some great Vegan recipes and I would love to hear about your Healthy Living Resolutions.

This post was written for the February PBN Blog Blast on "Healthy Living: The Perennial Resolution" in association with Kroger.

Man Movies ~ A Female Perspective

A fellow Blogger wrote a series on Man Movies or movies made for men and I found this concept quite interesting and thought that I would do the same only from a female perspective.

Here is a bit of what my buddy Gunfighter over at The View From Here had to say about "Man Movies":

The kind of movies that I am talking about are full of fights, explosions, guns, explosions, high-speed car chases, sophomoric humor... and guns. Throw in some sports hard-hitting sports action, and perhaps a bit of gratuitous frontal nudity, and you've pretty much got it made.

Oh, I know that many of the people reading this are women, and that some women may like some of these movies, too, but that doesn't really matter. These movies were made for men, but if our wives, girlfriends, lifepartners or whatever want to enjoy them with us, so much the better!

The truth is, MAN MOVIES are not about love interests. They aren't romance movies with guns. They aren't romantic comedies. They aren't feel-good movies about connecting with children... or saving whales, or any of that stuff. MAN MOVIES are NOT about redemption.

He goes on to write about specific movies that he considers "Man Movies".

Here now are movies that I, as a women consider "Man Movies" my motivation for watching these movies are quite different than Gunfighters, these movies may or may not be about love, romance, guns and they may or may not be comedies; the element that links these movies together are in my opinion hot men.

Let's get started:

The Lord of the Rings

The Legend Comes to Life.

Aragorn was known as Strider, a Ranger who lived in the Wild protecting the peoples of Middle-earth. Aragorn was descended from an ancient line of kings and when he joined the quest of the Ring-bearer, the time came for him to fulfill his destiny.

This "Wild Man" can fulfill my destiny anytime.











Rob Roy
Honor made him a man. Courage made him a hero. History made him a Legend.

The thing that really made Liam Neeson a legend in my mind was the scene in the movie where we see the full length shot of Rob Roy's naked torso as he lies in bed next to Mary MacGregor.








A Time To Kill















A lawyer and his assistant fighting to save a father on trial for murder. A time to question what they believe. A time to doubt what they trust. And no time for mistakes.

Make no mistake about it there is no doubt in my mind and I truly believe that Matthew McConaughey is one of my all time favourite men, this guy is sweetheart.





Formula 51















Nice Wheels. Dirty Deals. And One Mean Mother In A Kilt.

Need I say more, I think the picture speaks for itself.



After embarking upon this self-imposed project I realized something about myself, I have thing for bad boys who carry swords and wear kilts and a soft spot for those wonderful sweet natured men.

Can I just grumble for a little while?

I've been having an ongoing battle with our local YMCA about their childcare program and finally just gave up and cancelled our adult memberships. We kept the children's memberships because it allows them access to the swimming lessons and a daily drop in play centre.

My biggest complaint with this group is that they allow children to leave the play room and go to the washroom unescorted, which would be fine for six year olds but in my opinion not three year olds. I took Matt to the "Wake up shake up" program one day and asked if I could observe and they gave me a hard time, they said that it was not encouraged so this sent up a red flag for me and I insisted. As I watched quietly in the corner a child of about four years old told one of the group leaders that he had to go to the washroom, she asked if he could go on his own, he said yes so off he went; out of the room down the hall and into a public washroom alone. He seemed to do okay and came back to the room but she seemed oblivious and I doubt she would have noticed if he had not returned. So knowing my child as I do, I knew full well that he would not have been able to go on his own and even if he did it would be very likely that he would just decide to go and play somewhere else and never return to the room.

So I decided that this program was not for my child and that he would go into the regular play centre that has it's own washroom and locked door. I went to drop him off one day and they insisted because he was three that he had to go to Wake up shake up and I insisted right back that he would not. I had many lengthy discussions with the program director and the only thing we could agree upon was if I was not comfortable with the situation and truly did not want my child to go into the other program they would make an exception for us. They wouldn't change their horrible policies but they would make an exception for my poor child who cannot at three years old wipe his own bottom. Lord knows every other three year old out there can of course just not my child. She actually said "Well most three year olds can go to the washroom by themselves"; I was so furious I thought "Would you send your three year old to the washroom alone at McDonalds?" Somehow I doubt it, but when I met her today I realized she is so young she probably doesn't have any children so really how could she know.

This battle has been ongoing for months and the children have not gone into childcare for some time, however today Cam had swimming lessons at 11:00 am so I had to put Matt into childcare. We walked in at 10:20 and they insisted that Matt go to Wake up shake up and I insisted he stay in the childcare room. So the program director approached me and asked if we could talk after swimming and I agreed. They have made some minor changes to the program with regard to the washroom situation but I'm just pissed and sick and tired of arguing so I listened and agreed with everything she said cause I'm just to agreeable. I told her that we were a bit early today, but most days we would probably arrive closer to 10:40 and asked if it was absolutely necessary that Matt go into the other program for 20 minutes and she said yes. So fine, next week we will show up at 11:00 drop Matt off in the childcare centre because the other program will be over and Cam and I will be late for swimming lessons. Ugh!

Our Dog Indy

Isn't she adorable? We think so, God I love that squishy face. Indy is the most gentle dog I have every met and she is for certain no pet; she is in fact a member of our family. We had a tough decision to make recently, you see Indy had been limping for quite some time and we were just not sure what the problem was although we had a suspicion. So Indy went off to another city to see a specialist, a surgeon and the surgeon confirmed our suspicion; Indy had Cruciate Ligament Disease which would require precision surgery the sooner the better. I was prepared, whatever it took to make our lovely friend happy and playful again.

Al the Man as it turns out was not so sure. He started mentioning to people that he worked with that our dog needed surgery and it would cost us three thousand dollars; not one person said we should do it. Our neighbour even said "Pah, she's just livestock, chattel, you could buy three dogs for that price". This coming from a man whose dogs sleeps in his bed. This is a tough decision to make when you are not actually faced with it, it's easy to say "I'd never spend that kind of money on a dog"; but we have a lot invested in Indy, besides the money we've spent on obedience training and yearly vet costs we have five years of love invested in this so called dog. So I said to Al the Man, "We have two choices, put her down or get her fixed, but if it's the first then you have to do it - waaaaaaawwwwwww, if it's the second then we have to be prepared not only to fix the first leg but the second." That money represented a lot of things to Al the Man but I just could not make the distinction, I couldn't put Indy on a balance scale and say "Furnace/Indy, Windows/Indy, Vacation/Indy" It was just Indy and the other stuff could wait. How could I go on vacation knowing that it cost Indy her life, everytime I looked out a new window I would think of the squishy face, everytime that furnace kicked in ... Indy.

So Indy is on the mend, she had her surgery on December 18 and is on bed rest until March. They actually cut her knee joint and reworked it so that the ligaments are no longer required. Poor puppy wants so badly to play in the snow with the boys but she'll have to wait until next year. I'm just happy that she'll have another year and so grateful that we did the right thing.

Coming Soon...

Me I hope, and get your mind out of the gutter that's not what I meant. I'm hoping to be back to blogging in the very near future; after a two month hiatus and well needed break I'm missing all my blogging buddies. I'm working on getting up to speed with a laptop and a wireless network so I don't have to freeze my butt off in the basement.

See you soon.

Otto Goes To Camp Daddy's Version

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Conversations With Three Year Olds

As I was getting ready to out this morning Matt wanted to be sure he didn't miss out on getting his make-up on.

Matt: "Mommy I want some of that on."

Me: "Some of what?"

Matt: "Make-up."

Me: "Does Daddy wear make-up?"

Matt: "No."

Me: "How come?"

Matt: "Daddy's a boy."

Me: "Boys don't wear make-up?"

Matt: "No, girls wear make-up."

Me: "Are you a girl?"

Matt: "Yup."

Me: "Are you sure you're a girl and not a boy?"

Matt: "Nope, I'm a girl."

Me: "So you're a girl like Mommy?"

Matt: "Yup, can I have some of that on please?"

This child is totally in touch with his feminine side and he still loves pink.

What Not To Wear

Parent Bloggers Network is at it again, yup another contest. They have teamed up with Beauty Confidential and are asking us to post our worst beauty blunders. I'm pulling this one out of the archives and I know some of you have read this before and even though it happened to me I still think it's hysterical.


A few years ago we went to Al’s cousin Sandra’s wedding. Sandra and Dave were married at a historic church called St. George's Anglican Church, this is the church that Queen Elizabeth attends when visiting Ottawa.

I had two outfits one for the church and another for the reception. At the church I noticed a woman who was well past her prime dressed in what looked like a leopard print night gown. She was sexy yes but in my opinion not dressed appropriately for a church service. I whispered to Al “Hey look at the Poupoune” which is a slang French Canadian expression for a “Slutty Chick”; he rolled his eyes and chuckled.

The reception was held at a beautiful hotel called Château Laurier where dignitaries and presidents might stay while visiting our nation’s capital. I went up to my room and changed into my evening attire, a beautiful black sequined top with shear shoulders and arms, my skirt was elegant and long and made of the most delicate, lightest chiffon. Look out Jackie O.

We met for drinks in the bar, laughed and talked about old times and headed up to the reception for more drinks. It was an enchanted evening and I was glowing in the lights of good company and good drinks. Halfway through the speeches I had to leave my table to toddle off to the ladies room. I walked through the anti chamber and down the hotel hallway to the washroom. As I walked back to the reception area I sensed someone behind me and graciously held the door open to allow the person behind me to enter, the bartender thanked me. “Merci Madame”.

“De rein” I replied.

I kept walking past the bar, into the main reception area, past two tables and the woman that I had previously referred to as “The Poupoune”. I hear her random words in French come fluttering through my hazy senses.

Oh non! Madame! Madame, votre jupe, votre jupe et ….” (your skirt, your skirt …)

I’m thinking “Great what does she want, why is she chasing me?”

Apparently the bottom of my skirt was tucked elegantly into the top of my sheer panty hose and everyone in the hotel hallway, half the wedding guests and the bartender had a lovely view of my black thong.

What’s that old expression?

“Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment.”

I am the Anti-Christ…

apparently. Why you ask? Well because I don’t like Jessica Seinfeld’s new book called Deceptively Delicious. I haven’t actually read or even seen a copy of the book but I did see the segment on Oprah, whom of course loved it. Oprah loves purées, of course she does, she has a full time chef who prepares them for her. The blogging world is also alight with this topic and the debates are raging. The Parent Bloggers Network is also hosting a Blog Blast on this very topic today go check it out.

Okay so if you know nothing about this book, it is a cookbook designed to help parents or I should say Moms cause after all we do the majority of the cooking; to get their children to eat vegetables. How is this done? Well you purée the beets, zucchini, squash etcetera and put these purées into brownies, muffins, cakes and other stuff. Sounds good right? But is it really? How on earth did we survive as children? How did our parents get us to eat our vegetables? I have a really hard time believing that in North American culture there are three year olds in middle income families that are suffering from malnourishment. Come on people, please! We are an over nourished society, we eat too much of everything and everything we eat is fortified with all kinds of wonderful things like extra fiber, vitamins, nutrients, etc. We are an obese society and it is in epidemic proportions. My guess and I’m no expert certainly, is that if a child is hungry long enough they will eat what is put in front of them. I know that this is a tough love approach and not overly popular these days but really how is catering to our children’s whims doing them any favours? How is teaching them to eat brownies with broccoli teaching them anything? Why do we spend so much time worrying about what they are not eating, God if we only worried that much about them not getting enough exercise or eating fast food because it’s convenient. My advice? Stop filling them up during the day on sugar and refined carbs just because they demand it and fix three healthy well balanced meals and offer two healthy snacks a day. But hey if you have time to purée then go ahead, it is however, no replacement for the fundamentals of good healthy eating practices that we should be teaching our children right from the start. What is the point of feeding them beet brownies for fifteen years and then trying to educate them on what healthy eating is all about? Yeesh.

Do I really have to go out and buy another book and a food processor, spend hours puréeing food just so I can feel like I’m doing a good job? Like I need more things to do. I try really hard not to leave negative comments on other people’s blogs but I went here and read this "Only In America Can You Get Sent to Hell For Sneaking Veggies in Your Kid's Food" and I said this…

“Okay so maybe this won't be the most popular comment but ... Only in America do parents have to bend over backwards, stand upside down on their heads and purée food to get their children to do what they want. I'm no expert on worldly food cultures but is everyone in the world having a hard time getting their children to eat? So what's next? What are you prepared to do to get your children to go to bed, do their homework, not sneak out the window, not do drugs etc? What's the next bandwagon you are prepared to jump on and how much money is it going to cost to buy the book and all the equipment required to practice the next big thing?

Why does this generation feel like they have to cater to their children and will do anything to get their children to comply? With every new book there is a rush to buy it because it's the next best thing. We are so overly concerned with stuff and rushed and worried about every thing. Anyway that's my rant, have fun with your food processor. Good luck with it and post an update I'd would really like to know if you are still making purée one year from now."

And this was posted in my comment from the blog owner ….

"Editor's Note: I don't purée. And probably never will. In this particular case, I don't think it's so much about complying. It's more about getting kids to eat veggies. It might not be the way to do it for everyone, but my point is that for some people, it's a viable option.
But to basically call parents "wimps" because they can't get their kids to eat their veggies is a bit far fetched. When you've got a doctor breathing down your neck to get your kid to eat more veggies, you'll do what you can to make it happen."

So my comments were not well received and now looking back I can see why, kind of snarky on my part but this book bugs me! The title bothers me and the marketing bothers me, I just don't like what it implies. And it bugs me when Moms get in a snit about this kind of stuff and of course I’m no better I just stepped right into the middle of it as well. One last note, if you have a doctor who is “breathing down your neck” get another one especially if he has bad breath and is not so great looking.

One last, last note and then I’ll shut up, this book is probably a good tool to use in combination with healthy eating practices, I guess if you’ve going to feed your kids brownies then hell why not add the squash.

Feel free to blast me in the comments, I can take it.

The Fountain

We just watched this movie, I don't even have the words to describe it; I'm not sure anyone could. It is the most visually stunning movie I have ever seen and if I could crawl inside it I would right this instant. I so wish I knew about this movie when it was in the theater I think I would have been sucked right into it and died on the spot.

This movie combines three life times with a story that blends seamlessly into one; it is incredibly sad and yet uplifting at the same time. For once I watched a tragically heart breaking movie and did not cry, the beauty of it all surpasses the sadness. This is one of those rare movies that stays with you forever.

When You Need A Good Cry

Does this song take you back or what? I loved this song as the a child and I adored the Irish Rovers. Puff is now a children's book and each night I hear Al upstairs first reading the story to the boys and then singing the song. A few nights ago Al was out and it was my turn; Matt wanted Puff. So okay no problem. I could not get through the book without bawling and I still can't. Why does Jackie have to grow up damn it? The book does imply a happier ending however; at the end you see Puff's head lift and his eyes light up as a little girl discovers his cave and behind a tower you see a grown man smiling, Jackie I presume watching his daughter stroking Puff's chin. So this story and song that I so adored as a child, can now be shared with my children and bring Puff back to life for another generation.

A New Day

It's a new day and I'm going to recommend a book, it's a book that will change your life. It's written for Canadians but it applies to everyone. The book? It's called Ecoholic by Adria Vasil, it's one of those books that you can't put down, it's a book that makes you sit up and take notice, it's a book about choices and once you've read this book and know the truth about your choices and how they impact your world and the lives of your children you can't go back.

Finally a resource that helps people who care about our children's future on this planet make sound healthy decisions. Sometimes the world's issues seem overwhelming and you think "Does it really matter?" Well it does, I heard Jane Goodall speak today and she said we are stealing from our children's children future, the very existence of their lives here on Earth are at stake. A sad testimony of how we just continue to take and take with no thought of how these actions impact our home and what the ultimate outcome will be for future generations.

So with recent news stories about Lead In Lipsticks and Lead In Toys it's time for consumers to take matters into their own hands and support those companies that not only protect the environment but our children's health and well being. With the Christmas buying season approaching you as consumers can make conscious choices about where and what you will spend your money on; it's time to rethink our choices and opt for items that protect our planet, our home. You have the power with your consumer dollars to change the world. Go out today and make a difference, get inspired it's not too late!


Here are two ways you can make a difference.

Did you know? ~

Slavery is part of chocolate's dark history, just as it is in the coffee and sugar biz. But it isn't just a blemish of the past. Media exposés a few years ago revealed that forced labour is still very much alive on the cocoa plantation of West Africa, where 70% of the world's chocolate comes from. According to Save the Children, roughly 200,000 of the 600,000 children working on Ivorian cocoa fields work in dangerous conditions with machetes and pesticides. Many work on family farms, but an estimated 15,000 have been kidnapped or sold into slavery. Ecoholic, Adria Vasil

Think about that the next time you buy a chocolate bar or when you tuck your little into bed tonight. There is something you can do however, buy Certified Fair-Trade Chocolate, farmers and workers paid a fair price; no child, slave or forced labour; workers are free to unionize go to the TransFair Canada page for more details.

Another Did you know? ~

Coffee: People say there's nothing quite as American as a cup of joe and some apple pie. Maybe they're right about the apple pie, but the red berry-covered coffee bush originated in Ethiopia, not New England. Leave it to 17th and 18-th century Europeans to turn coffee into a common colonial crop, complete with slave labour and low-paid workers. And the legacy lives on. Up to 25 million families in developing countries world wide spend long hours each day trimming, weeding and hand-picking coffee beans for about the price of a cup of Tim Horton's coffee. It would take them three days just to afford a Starbucks grande latte! It's no wonder Global Exchange calls coffee farms "sweatshops in the fields". Ecoholic, Adria Vasil

And don't even get me started on the pesticides used to produce this wonderful stimulate.

Want to kick some ass and make a difference? Then go here: Kicking Horse Coffee Company. I drink their naturally decaffeinated coffee every day, it's unbelievable.

It's time to rethink how we do things, how much money we spend and what we spend it on. Do we really need so much? Sure Fair Trade and Organic products cost more but if we spend a little more consciously and buy a little less perhaps one day we will have more meaning in our lives.

On The Farm

In spite of the cold and how crappy we've all been feeling I was determined to get out and do something meaningful or at the very least get some great photos and create a good memory. It was absolutely freezing and no one was dressed appropriately; red runny noses and messy hair were the fare of the day.

We started out at Strom's a local farm that produces 15,000 pumpkins a season! The corn you see in the photos is actually popcorn; the texture is quite hard not soft like the corn you see in the grocery stores. Did I mention it was cold? Only 8 degrees Celsius and a windy day translated into a shivering group of parents with kids. As soon as we arrived we hopped on a hay ride through the corn fields, I really didn't think the kids or Al for that matter were going to make it. We bumped our way through the pumpkin patch and into the tall stalks of popcorn and suddenly a hush and calm came upon us; no more wind and it was eerily quiet. The tractor stopped and we listened as the driver told us all about how they grow popcorn and how many pumpkins are harvested each year on the farm; it was like being in another world with large stocks of corn surrounding us.

At the end of the hay ride Al and the munchkins went in search of The Great Pumpkin as I snapped photos of the farm's fare. I so love the Fall, it's absolutely my most favourite time of the year; the colours of the season make my heart soar and gourds are just the most interesting things in the world to me. My boys found an awesome pumpkin and I found a fabulous gourd that hopefully one day will be a bird house in our backyard.

With warm apple ciders in hand we made our way to the van and as the children slept happily in the backseat I basked in the beauty of the season and a day well spent.

It Just Never Ends

Okay, excuse me while I whine and complain a bit. My ongoing health issues just continue. I was back in the hospital this past weekend with excruciating eye pain and sensitivity to light. The doctor thought that I had some sort of allergy to something so gave me antibiotics?????? So I'm not a medical doctor but since when do they prescribe antibiotics for allergies?

The pain and sensitivity continued but I held out until Wednesday because I had a scheduled appointment with an Optometrist. My sensitivity was so severe that he could not examine me so he sent me to an Ophthalmologist. The diagnosis, Iritis, which is basically inflammation of the interior of the eye. Causes, unknown but could be a whole host of things or nothing at all. It could be an indicator of rheumatoid arthritis which is an autoimmune disease and considering that I already have one autoimmune disease (Alopecia Areata) there is a chance that this is symptom of arthritis which by the way my father has along with the AA.

Funny thing is, everything that has happened to me has happened on the right side of my body, my lung, my right eye, my appendix and now I'm experiencing some joint pain in yup you guessed it my right hand and right leg. So I guess my ying isn't jiving with my yang or something weird like that. I was seeing a Naturopathic doctor but I seemed to know more about medical issues than she did so I'm off to see someone else. I'm also due for my annual physical and will try and convince my GP that there must be some relationship between all these inflammatory issues that I have going on and that I need to either see a rheumatologist or an immunologist, which of course could take months.

Through out this whole new episode Al threw out his back and has been hobbling around, he has a really bad cold and cough and every time he coughs he hurts his back more, Matt has been sick for four weeks and it finally struck me that maybe he should go to the doctor, poor kid has pink eye (without the pink) and a major ear infection, our poor dog Indy is limping around as she has a bum knee that she just keeps injuring. So all in all we are a mess, a complete and total mess and I don't want to say that I'm not sure how much more I can take because I know that things could be worse but Holy Crap could somebody cut me some slack?

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving has never meant so much to me, this year there have been so many ups and downs but the ups are the things that have kept me going, the things that I am so very thankful for. My health has been a huge challenge this year with two very serious respiratory infections that left me coughing for months and an emergency appendectomy which put life right into perspective. Through all these challenges I have found kindness, compassion and grace.

We moved one year ago this month from a very large city known locally as "The Centre of the Universe" to a small university town too far away to absorbed into the cosmos. People here smile more, say hello and hold the door open most of the time, I love it and it has been life altering. When we first arrived, I happened upon a women's group in a local church that met every Thursday morning. These wonderful women provide coffee, chocolate and childcare for two and a half hours of peace and commune with other women of like minds; complete and utter bliss for only five dollars a week. The friendships I have formed and continue to form are precious to me and my hope is that these people who have blessed my life will remain my friends forever.

As word spread of my recent illness, people reached out with well wishes, prayers and food. Each night for six nights, members of the congregation bring my family a fully prepared meal at dinner time, hot, delicious and ready to eat. On Monday my friend arrived with a warm meal, a welcome smile and said "So what are you guys doing for Thanksgiving?” I have never in all my life felt so blessed, so this Thanksgiving I give thanks to all the members of our new church and to the women of Upward Bound. Thank you.

Where did the music go?

Music used to be such a huge part of my life, there was always a soundtrack running around the inside of my head, I thought of myself as being fairly au currant when it came to music but somewhere along the way I've lost my passion. Hundreds of cds sit idol in their cases waiting for the day that they will taken out and played once again. I'm completely lost when it comes to new music and new artists, I've become one of those forty something people who are stuck in the past. Al is absolutely hopeless when it comes to music he is stuck in a completely different era; his car is filled with Air Supply, Crosby, Stills, & Nash and REO Speedwagon, stuff I never listened to.

I cried the day Pavarotti died and on the following Saturday as I drove around running errands I tuned into a local Italian radio station and listened as my heart once again swooned to the power of the voice of an incredible artist.

I love all types of music, well except maybe Country and Rap but there are songs within those genres that still I like. Music is so universal, it touches the soul and it reaches beyond borders and differences.

There is still a running soundtrack in my head and as I fall asleep each night I hear:

If you want to be an Action Hero you have to be fast
Quick arms, quick legs ...

Wonder Pet, Wonder Pets
We're on our way
To help a baby animal
And save the day
We're not too big
And we're not tough
But when we work together
We've got the right stuff
Yeah Wonder Pets!

Your backyard friends
We're the Backyardagains....

So is this the day the music died? Hopefully not, perhaps it's just sleeping for a little while and I'll get my groove back.

How I Get My Kids To Stop Crying

I get out my camera and threaten to take pictures of their cry cry faces. Works every time.

He's Back!

Our little friend Chippy is back! The Evil Wasps chased him out of his little burrow just below our living room window. What a pleasant surprise to see that he had returned and was sunning himself on a rock near his old home. It doesn't look like he has reclaimed his burrow but I'm happy to know that he is safe and still around. I've resisted the temptation to feed this little cutie because they can be so destructive but I do think he sleeps in our garage in the winter, sssshhh don't tell Al.

To Do List

Shelly from This Eclectic Life wrote a great post on being organized. She gives some really great tips on being organized one of which is making a list. I too used to be a very organized person as an Event Planner I lived and died by my lists. Like Shelly I had a master list and a smaller everyday to-do list that I completed at the end of each day so I knew where to start the next day. Another thing I stopped doing is cleaning up my desk at the end of the day. Here is what my desk looks like right now as I type this. As you can see there is just enough room for my mouse. The downfall of my desk is that is right between the kitchen and the family room in a little nook unto itself. I thought that this was an ideal place when we moved in so I could be with the kids and still have access to the outside world and while that's great my desk becomes the dumping ground for all those things that need to get put away. So not only do I need to clean up my desk I need a solution for keeping it clean. I have a large basket in the basement so I will dig it out, and use the basket as a place to put things that need to be put away and try to empty if not every night then at least every other day.

Shelly give another great tip about using your peak time to get things done; I tend to leave things until the afternoon when my kids are sleeping but this is not the time of day when I have the most energy so I'll have to rework that. My biggest problem is that most mornings we are out doing things so evenings after the kids are in bed is probably my most productive time and since I don't watch television I'm going to try and use my time in the evenings to get stuff done around here.

So here it is my Master To Do List:

Unpack the basement - we moved one year ago this month
Clean out upstairs linen closet
Paint Matthew's bedroom

I'm just waiting until pink is no longer his favourite colour.

Clean-up master bedroom
Prime and paint master bedroom
Prime and paint master bathroom
Prime and paint the children's bathroom
Organize bedroom closet
Clean-out all three bathrooms and organize cabinets
Paint kitchen cabinets
Prime and paint kitchen and family room
Prime and paint living room and dining room
Prime and paint the laundry room

Oh Hell paint the whole house!

Organize spare room in basement so I can do crafty stuff
Finish painting the floor clothe I started five years ago
Set up new printer
Print photos
Back up photos on cd
Clean up desk
Freecycle all unwanted items
Sell baby furniture
Lose thirty pounds
Steam clean the carpets
Buy mattress pads and pillow protectors for Matt and Cam's beds

Get Al drunk one night and convince him we need hardwood floors, get a large utility knife, cut a large whole in the carpet so there's no turning back and cross off getting carpets steam cleaned.

Buy a new furnace and have it installed
Buy a carbon monoxide detector for upstairs - one the kids can't tamper with!
Refinish antique bed in the garage
Bring in antique dresser in from the garage and decide which bedroom it's going in
Refinish dining room table - note never leave a bottle of nail polish romover upside down on your dining room table
Fix cabinet in the living room

Whew, overwhelming or what?! This is a master list though and will be broken down into smaller daily tasks but where to start? The really crappy part of this whole thing is that I can't start any of these projects until I've recovered from my surgery; not only that I have to figure out how to get all this done while making three meals a day, cleaning the house and doing fun stuff with my kids oh and having a life for myself. Wish me luck!

Want to be blown away?

Go here.

ap·pen·di·ci·tis

It's been a rough week, ~insert sigh~ to say the least. A week ago Friday I had an upset stomach and Al was away in Calgary on business and planned to stay for the day on Saturday to visit with his Father; after dinner I sat down at the computer to catch up on some reading but I just could not get comfortable. By nine o'clock my stomach was so sore and distended that I thought I might as well just go to bed.

By ten thirty Cam was up and crying and I'd spent the previous night in his bed so I said "Come, let's sleep in Mommy's bed tonight". A bleary-eyed Cam grabbed his special blanket and made sure he had his soother and followed me down the hallway. We both tossed and turned all night. At seven thirty our time (five thirty his time) I figured it was time to call Al and tell him to get on a plane and come home. Turns out it's three hundred dollars to change his flight and he's balking at the idea. I'm more than a little pissed but for some reason say nothing; ten minutes later he calls back says he got another agent the ticket is changed at no charge and he'll be home by three o'clock. My neighbours come by and take the kids until one o'clock and my other neigbhour comes over to put the kids down for their nap and stays until Al comes home. During all this time I'm thinking I'm having a Gallbladder attack and I barely notice the pain down in my lower right abdomen. It literally felt like someone had punched right in the diaphragm; after speaking with my Mother-in-law on the phone and realizing that if I'm having a Gallbladder attack it shouldn't hurt to pee; I call my friend who is a doctor and he advised that I go straight to the ER where his wife a triage nurse is working.

Off to the hospital we go one grand adventure; Al drops me off at the entrance to the Emergency and goes off to park the car. I check in and wait. So nice to have friends, once I'm on a gurney my pillows are fluffed and I'm brought a nice warm blanket. What service. I was actually feeling bad for being there as I didn't think I was sick enough to be in the ER. A doctor comes and examines me and says he's fairly certain it is appendicitis but said we'll wait for the blood work and have a surgeon come by and check me as well. So my white counts are up but the surgeon wants to be sure so he orders a CAT scan and a ~cough~ chest x-ray. Now I go from being mildly upset about having to have surgery to being really scared. What if it's not appendicitis? What if it's much worse? What if I get really bad news?

After my CAT scan a nurse comes by and says "I heard a roomer, you have appendicitis" I guess he could see just how scared I was; my friend pops by for a quick visit and is surprised by my hug, I can't help myself I'm so happy I'm not dying! I never thought I would be so relieved to have surgery, funny how quickly your perspective can change. The surgeon is sitting at the nurse’s station as I walk by and he says "So, you have appendicitis and we'll try to do it laparoscopicly through your belly button"; I say "Great, can you do a tummy tuck while you're in there?". The nurse chuckles the surgeon doesn't, I guess this is no laughing matter. Ooopps.

It's ten o'clock at night by this time and I'm rolled up to the operating room, I'm so relieved and happy I just want them to drug me up and put me to sleep and get this damn thing out of me; a stark contrast to the last time I had surgery. So one minute I feel myself drifting away and I'm gone; the next minute I see lights and three faces staring down at me and they're screaming my name and telling me to lift my head, there's a tube down my throat and I'm coughing and choking at the same time, it's takes all three of them to hold me down, finally they pull the tube out and I have no idea what the hell just happened. My mouth is so dry and I'm begging for water - no too soon. "Ice pleeeaaaaasseeee". No too soon. So I lay there smacking my lips like a fish out of water and tearing the oxygen mask off my face. "A wet clothe, anything", the nurse finally gets fed up with all the smacking and gets a wet sponge and swabs the inside of my mouth - heaven.

I spend two nights in the hospital with my roommate Mary a seventy something woman recovering from knee replacement surgery. Al has already called his Mom and she's there when I get home.

It's been quite a week and I'm on the mend, feeling much better, we did return and spend another night in the ER as my symptoms returned after a spicy meal so the whole gallbladder thing may be something we have to revisit but all in all I'm feeling better.