Said at dinner last night:
Mom: "Rachel, do you want to go to Kabbalat Shabbat services with Dad tonight?"
Rachel: "Sure, I want to go to a couple of Shabbat services!"
*************************************************************************************
Whenever we discuss hiding, blending in, or chameleons:
Rachel: "It's camel-flage!"
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Sleep update
At some point on our trip home, we stopped feeding Anna when she wakes up in the middle of the night. Although this road to sleeping through the night seems to be a very long one, we can currently see progress. When I stopped nursing her at 8 months, she was still getting up at least 3-5 times/night. By the start of 2009 she was down to two feeds/night (and yes, she really did need a little something. Trust me, we tried not giving it to her!!), and a few weeks before her birthday she was down to one feed/night.
We still have to go in usually 1-3 times/night to help her find Sucky. Trust me, I realize that it would be better to let her find it on her own, but at 4 a.m. it's a lot easier to go give it to her so she goes back to sleep instead of ramping it up until she's fully awake and rarin' to go!
Last night Anna slept from 8-11:30, 11:30-4 and 4-6:10. Two Sucky replacements in 10 hours is a vast improvement from where we were a few months ago!
I keep expecting that one day I will go to bed and not wake up until 6:30 or 7. I suspect that I'll be wondering where Anna escaped to if I don't hear her until that time...
Ah, sleep. I remember the "good old days" where Ben would be in bed by 11:30 or midnight and I'd come to bed usually by 1 a.m. We'd get up sometime between 8:30-9:30 a.m. and be grumpy when students' parents called before 10! Lunch was usually around 1 or 2 p.m. and we ate dinner by 8 most nights.
Our current schedule is more like this:
5:30 a.m. - If Anna isn't up yet, I poke Ben and hiss at him to turn his alarm off.
6:30 a.m. - Ben leaves for work. Anna is usually eating breakfast and I'm trying to wake up and pretend it's 9 a.m. or some other civilized hour.
6:30-7:15 a.m. - Rachel wakes up and comes rushing downstairs with her hair in her face like a wild thing.
7:15-8:45 a.m. - "Crowd control" - The girls play, eat, get dressed, hair brushed, teeth brushed, potty/diaper, etc.
8:45-9:15 a.m. - Get ready for preschool drop-off
9:40-11:50 a.m. - Random errands with Anna or sometimes home for a nap
12 p.m. - Pick up Rachel
12:20-5 p.m. - "Survival mode" - lunch, naps, snacks, sometimes something fun if it works with Anna's nap
5-5:30 p.m. - Dinner
5:30-6:30 p.m. - Bath (They love bath. So do I, because Ben does it!)
6:30-8 p.m. - Bedtime snack, stories, etc. Rachel is usually in bed between 7:30-8 and Anna is usually in bed by 8 p.m.
8:30 p.m. - IT'S QUIET!
We still have to go in usually 1-3 times/night to help her find Sucky. Trust me, I realize that it would be better to let her find it on her own, but at 4 a.m. it's a lot easier to go give it to her so she goes back to sleep instead of ramping it up until she's fully awake and rarin' to go!
Last night Anna slept from 8-11:30, 11:30-4 and 4-6:10. Two Sucky replacements in 10 hours is a vast improvement from where we were a few months ago!
I keep expecting that one day I will go to bed and not wake up until 6:30 or 7. I suspect that I'll be wondering where Anna escaped to if I don't hear her until that time...
Ah, sleep. I remember the "good old days" where Ben would be in bed by 11:30 or midnight and I'd come to bed usually by 1 a.m. We'd get up sometime between 8:30-9:30 a.m. and be grumpy when students' parents called before 10! Lunch was usually around 1 or 2 p.m. and we ate dinner by 8 most nights.
Our current schedule is more like this:
5:30 a.m. - If Anna isn't up yet, I poke Ben and hiss at him to turn his alarm off.
6:30 a.m. - Ben leaves for work. Anna is usually eating breakfast and I'm trying to wake up and pretend it's 9 a.m. or some other civilized hour.
6:30-7:15 a.m. - Rachel wakes up and comes rushing downstairs with her hair in her face like a wild thing.
7:15-8:45 a.m. - "Crowd control" - The girls play, eat, get dressed, hair brushed, teeth brushed, potty/diaper, etc.
8:45-9:15 a.m. - Get ready for preschool drop-off
9:40-11:50 a.m. - Random errands with Anna or sometimes home for a nap
12 p.m. - Pick up Rachel
12:20-5 p.m. - "Survival mode" - lunch, naps, snacks, sometimes something fun if it works with Anna's nap
5-5:30 p.m. - Dinner
5:30-6:30 p.m. - Bath (They love bath. So do I, because Ben does it!)
6:30-8 p.m. - Bedtime snack, stories, etc. Rachel is usually in bed between 7:30-8 and Anna is usually in bed by 8 p.m.
8:30 p.m. - IT'S QUIET!
Monday, March 23, 2009
Anna's powers of observation
Yesterday Ben took Anna with him to return something to the grocery store. They did that, then walked back to the car. Ben buckled Anna in. She looked over at Rachel's seat, back at Ben, and said "Uh-oh!" Clearly she thought he had forgotten Rachel in the store!
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Small things
I'm unreasonably excited that all four of us will eat pizza and now we can order the occasional pizza without making adjustments for the kids! Anna loves pizza and Rachel has finally reached the point where she'll eat most of a slice without complaint. Works for me. Guess what I just ordered online for Ben to pick up on his way home from his gig...
Kids in the car
People are often amazed when I tell them that we (somewhat) regularly do road trips that are 15 hours each way with the kids and we don't have a DVD player in the car. Rachel has always been good at occupying herself. Although I suspect that she would enjoy watching videos, I don't want to start that if I can help it! I could just see her lobbying for a video every time we left the house:
Me: "Rachel, it only takes 5 minutes to get to the grocery store."
Rachel: "But I could watch the beginning of the video!"
(Please note that the above is a hypothetical conversation. I'm not silly enough to test this theory out by actually buying a portable DVD player!)
On our recent trip home, I had a few new books for Rachel. We also got lucky, and her Scholastic book order came in the week that we were leaving, so she was well supplied with reading material.
The first time that I passed her back a "My Little Pony" activity book that I'd bought for the trip, she said, "Wow, you're sure keeping me busy!" She was even more thrilled on the way back after being presented with another My Little Pony book - this time it was a sticker book with reusable stickers. (Yay for shopping at Costco with a friend!)
Anna was less compliant on the road but usually said, "Wow! Wow!" over and over again when presented with her favourite board books. She also engaged in a good round of Olly-chucking and Sucky-throwing. Fortunately, on the last leg of our trip last night, Anna discovered that she could reach the strap on her carseat that tightens the harness straps. She knows that this is a forbidden toy, so she took great delight in holding it and talking to it for a good hour! Works for me...
Me: "Rachel, it only takes 5 minutes to get to the grocery store."
Rachel: "But I could watch the beginning of the video!"
(Please note that the above is a hypothetical conversation. I'm not silly enough to test this theory out by actually buying a portable DVD player!)
On our recent trip home, I had a few new books for Rachel. We also got lucky, and her Scholastic book order came in the week that we were leaving, so she was well supplied with reading material.
The first time that I passed her back a "My Little Pony" activity book that I'd bought for the trip, she said, "Wow, you're sure keeping me busy!" She was even more thrilled on the way back after being presented with another My Little Pony book - this time it was a sticker book with reusable stickers. (Yay for shopping at Costco with a friend!)
Anna was less compliant on the road but usually said, "Wow! Wow!" over and over again when presented with her favourite board books. She also engaged in a good round of Olly-chucking and Sucky-throwing. Fortunately, on the last leg of our trip last night, Anna discovered that she could reach the strap on her carseat that tightens the harness straps. She knows that this is a forbidden toy, so she took great delight in holding it and talking to it for a good hour! Works for me...
How NOT to cross the border
1. Get out of your car while waiting in line.
2. Walk up to booth waving your passport and gesticulating wildly.
3. Yell at guy in booth.
No, we did not do any of the above, but a lady in the next lane over from us sure did! We couldn't believe it. The line-ups weren't even that long. I think we might have waited for 20 minutes or so.
When it was our turn, we waited to see if we'd be chosen for yet another "random" examination. The guy commented on the other lady's craziness, asked us a few questions, looked over our IDs and then said, "You're all set."
"Thanks," Ben and I said.
"(Th)ank-(y)ou!" said Anna from the backseat.
The border guy thought it was as funny as we did. I guess Anna's still a little young for my "You don't talk at the border unless they ask you questions" speech!
2. Walk up to booth waving your passport and gesticulating wildly.
3. Yell at guy in booth.
No, we did not do any of the above, but a lady in the next lane over from us sure did! We couldn't believe it. The line-ups weren't even that long. I think we might have waited for 20 minutes or so.
When it was our turn, we waited to see if we'd be chosen for yet another "random" examination. The guy commented on the other lady's craziness, asked us a few questions, looked over our IDs and then said, "You're all set."
"Thanks," Ben and I said.
"(Th)ank-(y)ou!" said Anna from the backseat.
The border guy thought it was as funny as we did. I guess Anna's still a little young for my "You don't talk at the border unless they ask you questions" speech!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Bye-bye!
Anna has taken to crawling or walking out of a room while yelling enthusiastically, "Bye-bye! Bye-bye!" She also cheerfully tells Ben "Bye-bye" every morning as he leaves for work. And she waved her hand crazily at our front door just a few minutes ago on her way up for nap where she has indeed gone bye-bye.
More vocabulary
Go
Yay
Dis
Dat
This age cracks me up. While I don't remember Rachel getting into too much stuff, I also have to remember that we had no other kids so there was less stuff to get into! We also had been in our house for a few years and everything really did have a place, unlike this house where I can't seem to find anywhere decent to file and store paperwork.
Anna's latest "trick" is to silently sneak somewhere that she knows she shouldn't be, and then giggle like a maniac until I come get her. She also knows perfectly well which toy bins are Rachel's and heads straight for them.
Yay
Dis
Dat
This age cracks me up. While I don't remember Rachel getting into too much stuff, I also have to remember that we had no other kids so there was less stuff to get into! We also had been in our house for a few years and everything really did have a place, unlike this house where I can't seem to find anywhere decent to file and store paperwork.
Anna's latest "trick" is to silently sneak somewhere that she knows she shouldn't be, and then giggle like a maniac until I come get her. She also knows perfectly well which toy bins are Rachel's and heads straight for them.
Monday, March 09, 2009
How is it possible...
...that in just over 4 weeks we will have a 5-year-old!??! The video in the post below was Rachel's "debut" of the four questions during the Passover seder last year. I brought up the subject today and she informed me that she didn't remember how to do it. I suspect that they will work on this in preschool. I told her that she has to help Anna to learn how to do it now!
Speaking of Passover, the first seder falls on Rachel's fifth birthday. Luckily, her party will be before Passover starts, so no yucky pretend cakes this year. (Hey, who are we kidding? A cake made with primarily potato flour is NOT tasty, no matter how much kosher-l'Pesach icing you slather on it!)
Rachel has a very specific idea of how her birthday will be celebrated. On the first day of pre-K, I took her to Build-A-Bear and she stuffed an elephant, her beloved Diana. In a fit of either stupidity, insanity, or both, when she asked about the next time she'd get to come, I told her that we could do it again on her birthday. For over 6 months now, we have had to hear about Ben the unstuffed elephant who has been waiting at Build-A-Bear for 100 years. It'll be interesting to see if she follows through with stuffing a boy elephant this time!
Speaking of Passover, the first seder falls on Rachel's fifth birthday. Luckily, her party will be before Passover starts, so no yucky pretend cakes this year. (Hey, who are we kidding? A cake made with primarily potato flour is NOT tasty, no matter how much kosher-l'Pesach icing you slather on it!)
Rachel has a very specific idea of how her birthday will be celebrated. On the first day of pre-K, I took her to Build-A-Bear and she stuffed an elephant, her beloved Diana. In a fit of either stupidity, insanity, or both, when she asked about the next time she'd get to come, I told her that we could do it again on her birthday. For over 6 months now, we have had to hear about Ben the unstuffed elephant who has been waiting at Build-A-Bear for 100 years. It'll be interesting to see if she follows through with stuffing a boy elephant this time!
Passover last year
Oops, video wasn't working. Not sure why. I'll edit tonight when someone else can hold the non-sleeping 1 year old!
Sunday, March 08, 2009
The week in review
*Monday - We miss Rachel's cooking class in a mad dash out to the Saturn dealership to approve the bright blue VUE instead of the green one that turned out to be a smoking car. Note to self: Some people's spouses have no sense of smell. (I didn't go with him to test drive the green VUE because we didn't want to deal with carseats, etc.) Yes, we paid a bit more. It was still a great deal and we now have a few more features and a better engine. Not to mention my mother's impending jealousy when she sees how bright blue the car really is!
*Tuesday - Ben takes girls back out to dealership with correct cheque to pay and then on to Paradise Park for playtime fun. Meanwhile, I run around and manage to hit Costco, Whole Foods and the regular grocery store in under 2 hours. Amazing how much easier that is without kids in tow...
*Wednesday - Our usual Kindermusik insanity (both girls have their classes on Wednesdays) followed by a quick dinner and teaching
*Thursday - After preschool, we all head up to the Montessori school so Rachel and Ben can see it (Anna and I toured on Tuesday). We leave them enrollment forms and a deposit cheque since they (unlike certain other institutions) are not trying to refuse my daughter admission and claim that she needs a full time assistant in the classroom. Au contraire - the director of this school has assured me that Rachel can work at her own pace and at her level. She won me over with this quote: "I don't see why all kids should have to learn the same thing at the same time." Rachel will start in mid-August. Although most of the 5-year-olds attend 8:45-2:30, because she is new to Montessori she will start out going 8:45-11:45. As the teacher sees that she is ready, Rachel will be invited to stay for lunch one day at a time. Hmm... a gradual approach to an extended day rather than, "See you in 6 hours, kid!" What's not to like? And yes, I am aware of (and have likely made) most of the traditional criticisms of a Montessori education. That said, my child is not going to thrive in a public school setting and we are currently not discussing a previous option other than to express extreme disappointment and anger that a bright child is not a desirable student and must be labelled with special needs that are being blown way out of proportion. I am NOT a parent with my head in the sand about this either. I said that I would homeschool unless I could find a school that would meet my child's social, emotional and academic needs. I believe that this particular Montessori school can do that.
*Friday - After Rachel wakes up for the day at 3:25 a.m., a surprisingly pleasant morning is spent shopping for boutique children's clothes at extraordinarily cheap prices since the store is closing. (You cannot beat $6 for a 3 piece set of pjs!) After this, a picnic at the park with friends is just as much fun. Less fun is my meeting (or as I call it, the gang-up) at the institution that shall currently not be named. Later that afternoon, a quick dinner is eaten, and Rachel and Ben head off to Tot Shabbat for a pre-Purim bash.
*Saturday - Rachel wakes up kind of crusty-eyed but we figure it's just allergies/colds as all of us are a bit under the weather. We decide to stay home. I beg a friend for a Panera date in the afternoon since both of us are facing stresses and *stuff* that is just annoying. Panera is good. We get a free pumpkin muffin - what's not to like!? Ben takes the girls to a birthday party and I meet them there. At this point, we both notice that Rachel's eyes are really goopy and we both arrive at the conclusion that she probably has pinkeye and we've just infected an entire birthday party. Oops. Rachel eats her cake, we apologize and make our hasty escape. $110 later at the after(lack-of)-care clinic, a prescription for eye drops is obtained. We eat a nice dinner and get the girls to bed.
*Sunday - Anna refuses to sleep. After all, yesterday she decided to drop the pretense that she can't walk. She has been walking everywhere. It's all she wants to do. We'd forgotten how babies like to not sleep as well when they are working on developmental things. She's been up more or less since the new 3:30 a.m. and it is now 9:30. Ouch.
*Tuesday - Ben takes girls back out to dealership with correct cheque to pay and then on to Paradise Park for playtime fun. Meanwhile, I run around and manage to hit Costco, Whole Foods and the regular grocery store in under 2 hours. Amazing how much easier that is without kids in tow...
*Wednesday - Our usual Kindermusik insanity (both girls have their classes on Wednesdays) followed by a quick dinner and teaching
*Thursday - After preschool, we all head up to the Montessori school so Rachel and Ben can see it (Anna and I toured on Tuesday). We leave them enrollment forms and a deposit cheque since they (unlike certain other institutions) are not trying to refuse my daughter admission and claim that she needs a full time assistant in the classroom. Au contraire - the director of this school has assured me that Rachel can work at her own pace and at her level. She won me over with this quote: "I don't see why all kids should have to learn the same thing at the same time." Rachel will start in mid-August. Although most of the 5-year-olds attend 8:45-2:30, because she is new to Montessori she will start out going 8:45-11:45. As the teacher sees that she is ready, Rachel will be invited to stay for lunch one day at a time. Hmm... a gradual approach to an extended day rather than, "See you in 6 hours, kid!" What's not to like? And yes, I am aware of (and have likely made) most of the traditional criticisms of a Montessori education. That said, my child is not going to thrive in a public school setting and we are currently not discussing a previous option other than to express extreme disappointment and anger that a bright child is not a desirable student and must be labelled with special needs that are being blown way out of proportion. I am NOT a parent with my head in the sand about this either. I said that I would homeschool unless I could find a school that would meet my child's social, emotional and academic needs. I believe that this particular Montessori school can do that.
*Friday - After Rachel wakes up for the day at 3:25 a.m., a surprisingly pleasant morning is spent shopping for boutique children's clothes at extraordinarily cheap prices since the store is closing. (You cannot beat $6 for a 3 piece set of pjs!) After this, a picnic at the park with friends is just as much fun. Less fun is my meeting (or as I call it, the gang-up) at the institution that shall currently not be named. Later that afternoon, a quick dinner is eaten, and Rachel and Ben head off to Tot Shabbat for a pre-Purim bash.
*Saturday - Rachel wakes up kind of crusty-eyed but we figure it's just allergies/colds as all of us are a bit under the weather. We decide to stay home. I beg a friend for a Panera date in the afternoon since both of us are facing stresses and *stuff* that is just annoying. Panera is good. We get a free pumpkin muffin - what's not to like!? Ben takes the girls to a birthday party and I meet them there. At this point, we both notice that Rachel's eyes are really goopy and we both arrive at the conclusion that she probably has pinkeye and we've just infected an entire birthday party. Oops. Rachel eats her cake, we apologize and make our hasty escape. $110 later at the after(lack-of)-care clinic, a prescription for eye drops is obtained. We eat a nice dinner and get the girls to bed.
*Sunday - Anna refuses to sleep. After all, yesterday she decided to drop the pretense that she can't walk. She has been walking everywhere. It's all she wants to do. We'd forgotten how babies like to not sleep as well when they are working on developmental things. She's been up more or less since the new 3:30 a.m. and it is now 9:30. Ouch.
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
Braving the snow!
On Saturday we apparently braved the snow to make it to rehearsal. Since I clearly beg to differ, you'll have to indulge my penchant for snow tales.
Let's travel back in time to Sunday, December 16, 2007. I was 7 months pregnant with Anna, and contracted to play a Messiah concert at 3:30 that afternoon at the Chapel on the Mount in London, which is clearly ON the mount, ie. a drive up a steep hill. On the same day, Ben and H were on their way to Brantford (~1 hour drive) for a rehearsal and concert. Since H didn't have her snow tires on her car yet and we had just gotten them on the van, we decided that it would make more sense for them to take the van, and me to take H's little 2-door Civic.
It was snowing heavily that morning. By that, I mean that it was difficult to get into H's condo complex, and even more difficult for me to get back into my neighbourhood! Ben and H were on the road early in the morning. By about 10 a.m., I suggested to my inlaws that perhaps I'd better leave then since our street was not yet assumed by the city (meaning that likely no-one would care about plowing it on a Sunday morning!). There was probably a good foot or more of snow on the driveway and road at that point.
I asked my father-in-law to "drive me out" by going ahead in their Volvo wagon. Bad idea! He promptly got stuck on our street and the neighbours were kind enough to come along and help him get back on the driveway. I felt guilty gunning H's car out and around him, but figured it was really a now or never kind of situation! I fishtailed all the way around the corner, almost got stuck a few times, but eventually made it to the main roads that were partially cleared.
I should admit that I very much enjoyed sitting down to read in Chapters for a few hours, and taking myself out for lunch at Swiss Chalet! (WHY don't they have Swiss Chalet here? They really should.) I headed to the concert at around 2 p.m., thinking that even though I was only 5 minutes away, it was still snowing and I might as well leave lots of time to get parked, in, changed, etc.
As I drove up the (not-very-well-cleared) Mount, I just about fishtailed off the road at one point. Oops. I got parked and came up to the chapel entrance to find the (not-so-young!) conductor shovelling the steps. Ordinarily, I would have offered to help, but clearly I was in no shape to do so! (Remember the 7 months pregnant thing?)
Now you might be reading this, thinking "Why wouldn't they just cancel the concert? Did anyone even come?" But remember - this is London. We don't cancel for snow! Several of the choir members had hiked through their subdivisions to the main streets because they knew there was no way they'd get their cars through but they were determined to come anyway. And believe me, walking up the Mount is no small task!
The hall was about 1/3 to 1/2 full, which was pretty good considering that we got a couple feet of snow that day! H and Ben were rather disgusted that many of the (wussy) Toronto people cancelled on the Brantford gig, but that's the way it goes sometimes. I'm not one to "one-up" snow stories, but really, Londoners "do" snow. We have no choice!
After the concert, I went back to H's to wait for them to get home from Brantford. While I waited, I shovelled H's driveway since it was a disaster and I couldn't get her car up the driveway let alone in the garage! A couple of her neighbours came out to help, so that was good.
When Ben and I finally drove home that night, we were able to get down our street and into our driveway, but it still wasn't pretty.
Fast forward to this past Saturday. There was a whopping 3-6 inches that had fallen overnight. Ooh, aah. I am so scared. Yes, there was still a bit of snow falling. Yes, ice can be a concern here. But to repeatedly talk about "braving the snow" to get to rehearsal? I confess that I burst out laughing when the conductor said that. All I could picture was that crazy day in December 2007! 7 months pregnant and fishtailing up the Mount - now that was braving the snow.
Let's travel back in time to Sunday, December 16, 2007. I was 7 months pregnant with Anna, and contracted to play a Messiah concert at 3:30 that afternoon at the Chapel on the Mount in London, which is clearly ON the mount, ie. a drive up a steep hill. On the same day, Ben and H were on their way to Brantford (~1 hour drive) for a rehearsal and concert. Since H didn't have her snow tires on her car yet and we had just gotten them on the van, we decided that it would make more sense for them to take the van, and me to take H's little 2-door Civic.
It was snowing heavily that morning. By that, I mean that it was difficult to get into H's condo complex, and even more difficult for me to get back into my neighbourhood! Ben and H were on the road early in the morning. By about 10 a.m., I suggested to my inlaws that perhaps I'd better leave then since our street was not yet assumed by the city (meaning that likely no-one would care about plowing it on a Sunday morning!). There was probably a good foot or more of snow on the driveway and road at that point.
I asked my father-in-law to "drive me out" by going ahead in their Volvo wagon. Bad idea! He promptly got stuck on our street and the neighbours were kind enough to come along and help him get back on the driveway. I felt guilty gunning H's car out and around him, but figured it was really a now or never kind of situation! I fishtailed all the way around the corner, almost got stuck a few times, but eventually made it to the main roads that were partially cleared.
I should admit that I very much enjoyed sitting down to read in Chapters for a few hours, and taking myself out for lunch at Swiss Chalet! (WHY don't they have Swiss Chalet here? They really should.) I headed to the concert at around 2 p.m., thinking that even though I was only 5 minutes away, it was still snowing and I might as well leave lots of time to get parked, in, changed, etc.
As I drove up the (not-very-well-cleared) Mount, I just about fishtailed off the road at one point. Oops. I got parked and came up to the chapel entrance to find the (not-so-young!) conductor shovelling the steps. Ordinarily, I would have offered to help, but clearly I was in no shape to do so! (Remember the 7 months pregnant thing?)
Now you might be reading this, thinking "Why wouldn't they just cancel the concert? Did anyone even come?" But remember - this is London. We don't cancel for snow! Several of the choir members had hiked through their subdivisions to the main streets because they knew there was no way they'd get their cars through but they were determined to come anyway. And believe me, walking up the Mount is no small task!
The hall was about 1/3 to 1/2 full, which was pretty good considering that we got a couple feet of snow that day! H and Ben were rather disgusted that many of the (wussy) Toronto people cancelled on the Brantford gig, but that's the way it goes sometimes. I'm not one to "one-up" snow stories, but really, Londoners "do" snow. We have no choice!
After the concert, I went back to H's to wait for them to get home from Brantford. While I waited, I shovelled H's driveway since it was a disaster and I couldn't get her car up the driveway let alone in the garage! A couple of her neighbours came out to help, so that was good.
When Ben and I finally drove home that night, we were able to get down our street and into our driveway, but it still wasn't pretty.
Fast forward to this past Saturday. There was a whopping 3-6 inches that had fallen overnight. Ooh, aah. I am so scared. Yes, there was still a bit of snow falling. Yes, ice can be a concern here. But to repeatedly talk about "braving the snow" to get to rehearsal? I confess that I burst out laughing when the conductor said that. All I could picture was that crazy day in December 2007! 7 months pregnant and fishtailing up the Mount - now that was braving the snow.
Square peg in a round hole
Rachel has just finished doing more "B" cutouts to bring to school since B is the letter of the week. I was helping her put them into a ziploc bag when I noticed that a few of the pieces didn't seem to actually fit the B theme.
"Rachel, what is this?" I asked, pointing to several zigzag pieces of what looked like various animal parts.
"Those are puzzle pieces of the sandhill crane which is a bird," she answered.
Bird does indeed start with B. Apparently cutting out the beak or the whole bird was not interesting enough, hence the zigzag puzzle cutouts.
A moment later, I asked Rachel to print her name on a piece of paper to be taped to the ziploc. I went into the kitchen and came back to find that Rachel had written a fairly large capital R and A, and in between them was a tiny backwards C. "What's this?" I asked. "I noticed I was running out of room, so to save space for the H-E-L, I just put the C between the R and the A."
She is pragmatic, I'll give her that.
"Rachel, what is this?" I asked, pointing to several zigzag pieces of what looked like various animal parts.
"Those are puzzle pieces of the sandhill crane which is a bird," she answered.
Bird does indeed start with B. Apparently cutting out the beak or the whole bird was not interesting enough, hence the zigzag puzzle cutouts.
A moment later, I asked Rachel to print her name on a piece of paper to be taped to the ziploc. I went into the kitchen and came back to find that Rachel had written a fairly large capital R and A, and in between them was a tiny backwards C. "What's this?" I asked. "I noticed I was running out of room, so to save space for the H-E-L, I just put the C between the R and the A."
She is pragmatic, I'll give her that.
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