sickness and squirrels

So, we're sick. This entire past week I could feel myself fighting it off - so much more tired than usual, little energy, i felt as though I was dragging myself around all week. Took it easy and let Chris take over most of the household chores while I chugged tea and tried to keep it at bay. Alas, the threatening cold took over two nights ago with a sick baby who couldn't fall asleep and a wiped out mama trying to keep him happy.

We spent yesterday at home in pjs all day. Something strange about going to bed in the same outfit you wore the night before AND all day and are still not changing out of it. Jude at least got fresh pjs after bathtime but me... well, let's just say I probably didn't smell my freshest! It was a pretty miserable day for us - watched Sid the Science Kid on youtube while the olympics played out on tv, yelled at the squirrels and tried to keep bebe's mind off of being sick.

Oh, did I not mention the squirrels? They're back!!!! ARRRGGGG!!! Last spring we had squirrels that found their way into the walls of the house we (thankfully) rent. After weeks of telling my landlord, I finally got through to him by suggesting they were chewing the wiring (which they probably were) and could start a fire. He sent the exterminator down who sealed up the access points and pumped poison into my walls... Now, usually I would be upset about toxic substances in the house but these squirrels had me completely batty and we had to get rid of them. They would run back and forth between the floors, along the walls and through the crawlspace, chittering and even fighting in there! Oh my god they had me SO ANGRY!!!

Thankfully, one dose of poison and they were dead! We did a victory dead squirrel dance and moved on, hoping they wouldn't come back in the fall. They didn't. But yesterday they found a way in and have been back to their old antics. I spend the day yelling at them and pounding on the walls with various implements to get them to shut it. And I can hear babies.... DAMN IT!

So now I've been told that squirrels will come back to where they were born so unless we kill every single one this time we're in for the same deal every year. I cannot WAIT for the exterminator to get here and already called the landlord yesterday morning to get him making arrangements. They woke Jude from his nap with all their racket and I swear to god if I see one I will kill it with my bare hands. Squirrels outside = cute. Squirrels in the house = devil.

No, my squirrels don't look cute like this - but all I could find for pictures were either completely evil or cute.

At least Christel came over for a nice visit and didn't even mind that I was in pjs with uncombed hair. True friends are great :)

Today I hope to make it out to Food Fare for some chicken soup ingredients and Breads & Circuses for fresh crusty bread. Yum yum.

all about baby ;)

I've been in deep mourning this past week.... We visited with two moms (Melissa, who I know from high school and have recently reconnected with and Stephanie who I met off of kijiji, of all places) that each have a 4month old. I had quickly forgotten what 4 months means - sitting propped up, just started to pick up toys and mouth them, lots of staring and quiet(er) time. Meanwhile my busy busy little bee is just that - BUSY! He's all over his toy box, pulling everything out, crawling over the jungle gym of mom, chatting up a storm. Started the forward crawl this past week (although most days it more resembles a downward dog - up on toes and hands, just figuring out the forward motion) and the same day he grabbed my leg and pulled himself to standing! He's now closer to a toddler than a baby and I'm having to say goodbye to those sweet baby days....

Well, we are nearly at 8 months now. Still it seems to have come too fast! Before I know it he'll be walking and asserting himself. Trying hard not to think too far in advance (school! yikes!!) and just enjoy these moments everyday.

We dance! Almost everyday we dance around the living room- sometimes in mom's arms, sometimes the jolly jumper, sometimes standing alone... Lately we've been enjoying Ella Fitzgerald's 12 Nights in Hollywood, Billie Holiday's Ultimate Collection and some Phil Collins. Booboo loves being thrown high in the air (mom's building some hot pecs) and twirling/bouncing around the living room. I've taken to leaving the curtains open to take advantage of the sunshine although my neighbors now get to critique my lack of dance moves every day. Oh wells.

Jude and I have been fighting off a cold this last week... Other than some stuffiness and sneezing, nothing has come to pass, but we've been tired and cranky this entire week (sorry Chris!). Yesterday we napped together for 2.5 hours in the afternoon!!!! I could tell he was tired, getting quiet and sitting in Dad's lap just looking around. So we went to bed - minutes after he snuggled into my side we were both out. Woke to nurse after 1.5 hours, switched snuggle sides and conked out again. I tried to get out around 6pm since I had yoga at 7 - even wiggled out of my sweater since I didn't want to move him while he was lying on it. Was just about to head out the door when he lifted his head and looked around "Where are you??", saw me and laid down again.

I love sleeping with my baby!!! There's nothing better than a warm snugglebug cuddling you all night and waking to happy baby smiles! Lately he's a bundle of energy in the mornings, climbing over the both of us, kicking Dad if he tries to keep sleeping (hee hee) and squealing with glee. Impossible to be grumpy with that alarm clock!

Oh!! Almost forgot to mention HUGS! First hug for mom on Tuesday and yesterday he hugged Molly at mom's group. So sweet - been watching closely to make sure he doesn't grab her face or yank her around too hard when suddenly he opened his arms and leaned in close for a snuggle. TOOOO CUTE!

I've been deep into Olympic fever and Jude's helping me cheer on our amazing athletes. One of the mom's at the group I go to is Jon Montgomery's sister (he won Gold in skeleton on Friday) and she just got back from watching his run. Brought baby and the whole family to cheer him on. What an amazing experience! Wish I could be in Vancity now. I always forget just how much I love the Olympics but then find myself heavily invested in the outcome. Although mainly interested in the winter O's, not so much the summer ones. GO CANADA

clothing and chocolates and friends, oh my!

 (Harder and harder to get a good shot of my busy busy little bee)

Today was my (successful!) clothing swap! Had a diverse group of friends over with unwanted clothing and accessories. While visiting and munching on goodies, like these awesome chocolate pretzels, we traded stuff and had fun chatting. It was a small group but I think that's better - 5-8 people is plenty for variety of stuff as long as people have a similar body type. Many thanks to all the girls who came out and were involved!

(Had to include this GREAT smile even though it's blurry!)

A few things lately have got me thinking about friendships - mainly what to do when you value a friendship differently than your friend does. It's not a bad thing but sometimes you have a different level of commitment than they do or you expect the friendship do be something other than it is. What do you do?

It's been a few different people who have me pondering this. I have a certain expectation of spending time with my friends - if you don't spend time together, what the point? And I admit, I have some friends who I see rarely but the relationship is still there. My best friend growing up, old friends from my hometown and high schools, connections that were built strong and endure even though we may go months or even years without contact. Inevitably when you reconnect, the same bond that initially drew you together is there and you pick up like nothing changed.

But things are different with new friends. You don't have years of friendship or strong bonds formed. You may really like or feel drawn to the person and you think if they feel the same, maybe we'll spend time together and be friends. But what about the person who wants to be friends but doesn't make time to spend with you? I know people have all sorts of limits on their time but I also think it says something when platitudes of "oh, we should get together soon!" continue for months without contact.

I am as bad as the next person for saying "we should" instead of making concrete plans. Lately though, I've made efforts to visit and spend time with all people I'm interested in, inviting them to events and stopping by for tea. I really think we sometimes lose touch of the pleasure found connecting with others, so busy managing our daily lives (and who wants to live a life of management instead of enjoyment) that we don't take time for the important things.

So what to do.... accept things as they are, or stop putting energy into relationships that aren't equal?

better days

A couple days I was starting to feel a bit down, stressed out and feeling sad. I'm happy to say the mood is starting to lift! A combination of many things, among them a helping hand from hubby, a happier baby that is napping more consistently and warmer weather. Chris' efforts are the biggest thing though since without that the pall of resentment would hang over any other improvements. Our biggest issue lately has been sleep - he goes to bed much later than me and thus wants to sleep in much later as well. I rise between 7-8 am with the baby nearly every day and sometimes spend hours doing household stuff before he even starts to stir (usually after a wakeup call from yours truly). Once I start stewing in my resentment it colors everything else around me until I either blow up or start falling into depression.

Luckily for me, Chris recognized the change in my moods and started questioning me as to what was wrong, since I didn't have the energy to start the conversation with him. And he started trying to make changes as well! Yesterday I dropped him off at his mom's with baby while I went out to run errands. I knew Jude wouldn't fare well being shuttled around the city strapped into his car seat so this gave me the change to run around striking tons of things off my to-do list.

It was warm outside, I lowered the windows in the car and blasted Kick FM, got an Iced Cap at Tim's and drove around without a jacket! It felt great to be alone for a couple hours. A breath of air - when I picked up the boys (my darling Jude fast asleep) I felt a million times better. Today I've managed to hold onto that mood so I think it might last :)

 

My valentine's day snack - thanks honey!

My new haircut.... and no braces!!!

corydon cool?

Jude and I took a walk over to Celindy's this afternoon to feed her kitties. Such a beautiful day outside - snow melting, people walking the streets without toques or mittens and a quiet air. With bebe squiggling in the carrier, twisting his head to stare up at the trees, I took notice of the new "Corydon Cool" banners.

And really?? This is the best you could come up with? The point of these banners is to help the public form an opinion of the area. They may not always reflect the reality of the space but usually portray someone's "vision". Well, the most exciting "vision" the Corydon Biz has for this area is........ *drumroll please* ...............

A cartoon middle-aged woman surrounded by shopping bags. Really. She's holding bags with various items presumably all the great shopping you can do on the strip. The animated drawing isn't current or interesting - it looks like a really bad early 90s cartoon. In fact, it looks like ClipArt (remember that from your old school projects?). And she's not even fashionable or hip at all with her boxy shirt and slacks and "Corydon Cool" emblazoned across the banner.  

I was looking for a picture of them to include but can't locate anything online so you'll have to wait until I break out my camera... or take a stroll down Corydon yourself. What do you think of this lame effort from Corydon BIZ?

sad day

Sometimes the sad days just creep up on you. Had I been looking for it I'm sure I would've seen it lurking down the street, taking small pieces of my good days until there were enough angry, frustrated moments that I couldn't fight the sad off anymore. But I prefer to live in my happy days - not to think of the bad things, or to deal with them as singular events and not let it overwhelm me. So I continued on relishing the small things: pulling Jude's wood sled through the fresh snow, making eggs for dinner, getting footrubs from Chris... Today though, all the undesirable things from the past week seemed to hit me at once and I just feel overwhelmed and sad.

Here's hoping this will pass by tomorrow or Monday at the latest because I hate feeling like this. I continue doing household tasks but feel robotic, not taking pleasure in accomplishment but rather chalking up another mark of "stuff I did". I made spinach, avocado and tomato salad for dinner with a chicken pesto pasta. It looked good, it tasted good, but I only ate it because I needed to eat something and hardly enjoyed it at all. Blah! This is how it feels to slide into depression- I know what should make me happy, I try all the things I normally enjoy but can't find happiness in any of them.

I need something to break me out of this funk.

chop chop chop

Today I cut off (nearly) all my hair and I love it! I had been mulling over it the past few weeks and decided to go ahead. Although the final straw was baby hands in my hair constantly, it was something I'd wanted to try a long time ago but didn't have the guts. Now I had the perfect reason to go ahead and try it.

And here it is!

 

Love Love Love it!  Thanks to Nicole Pielou from Angles Hair Design (241 Lilac) for an awesome cut. Just another lovely lady I'm lucky enough to know.

Now I prepare for braces to come off tomorrow. Holy cow, what changes this week! I'll be unrecognizable :)

snow, tea and visiting

We've had another lovely week!! I find myself lucky to know so many great people who come to share their incredible lives with us. After my call out for visits, Jude and I ended up with a busy busy week :) Kate from Cherrystems came by to relax and chat with us on Monday. Such an inspiration with all of the sewing and homemaking she's been engaged with, as well as the relaunch of her website and schooling to boot! Despite a busy schedule she spent the afternoon playing with Jude and sharing news. I so badly want to buy a sewing machine so I can start on some very simple projects but don't have the funds right now... Combing kijiji to see if a decent machine is to be had. I used to have my grandma's old singer which is built into a table - took up WAY too much room so definitely need to find a tabletop model.

Tuesday and Wednesday we hit up the mom and baby groups we usually visit. It was great to see the babies again, getting so big since our last visit weeks ago. Chris was working a ton this week although most were same-day call-in shifts so it was impossible to plan for anything. It got warm near the end of this week so we've really taken advantage of that, walking outside in Jude's "new" used sled. Kijiji is my best friend!!

Thursday we went out with Christel to Fort Whyte. I couldn't believe it was my first time going and even the receptionist shamed me for not having visited before. I always had intentions on going but without a vehicle we couldn't travel far unless we begged off on friends. Either way, it was a great introduction with a quiet, snowy day walking trails. When Jude got tired of his sled, we retired inside to watch the birds (he was fascinated!!! We could've spent hours with him imitating swans and geese, intently watching the ducks and heron splashing in the water and fighting amongst themselves... so neat) and fishes, have a nurse in the reception hall and bundle up again in time to go back outside. Once he passed out it was time for hot chocolate and barbeque pulled turkey wraps in the cafe. Lucky me!

Erin and Sophia (2 years old) came to visit on Friday and even though it was hours past his last nap Jude struggled to stay awake until they left. When they did, he fell asleep within minutes and was out until 6 pm. VERY late for him but we managed to get him to bed by 8 anyways. Today my high school friend Crystal came by for a very welcome chat and playtime. It had been years since we'd connected but we fell back into easy conversation and caught up on news from the past years. So nice to go weeks, months and sometimes years without seeing old friends but find that the connection is still there. It also meant a lot to see friends willing to take the time to visit with us. We're all so busy nowadays but it's important to slow down at times and reconnect.

Tomorrow we visit at Grandma and Grandpa's - first visit since they returned from the Bahamas last week. And this week coming up I visit with two new moms who have reached out after I posted looking for parents with similar child-raising techniques to connect with. Can't wait to possibly make some new friends and give Jude new babies to play with!

 

I'm considering this cut for my next haircut.... Nervous to go so short but also excited about a new look!!

(no new pictures this week so these are some of my faves of the past couple months)