Mother May I Musings

Sounds of a Saturday Night

2012-02-04T22:05:00.000-08:00

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2012-02-04T13:15:00.000-08:00

"I know what sexy means. It means beautiful. Like a giraffe."

~Lukas

Thoughts on Michael Jackson

2012-02-02T17:44:00.000-08:00

We've been listening to an old Michael Jackson tape A LOT in the van lately. Alek found my old cassette tape of Bad in an old 'high school junk trunk' awhile ago and somehow it made it's way into the cassette player in the van. The boys insist on blasting Bad over and over again every time we have to go anywhere. So, if you happen to be walking, or even driving along, and you think you can hear Bad and you start to worry that maybe you are having a stroke - because really, who plays that anymore - don't worry, it just means that the kids are I are close by.

Hmm, evil thought... next time they are being uber-obnoxious, maybe Michael should take a trip out the window! I wouldn't have to listen to the song again!!! Although with my luck I'd toss it out the window and hit a cop car. So, maybe not.

Anywho... Mikah has been asking a lot of questions about "this Michael Jackson guy" lately, and being the awesomely cool mom that I am, I offered to play them a video on YouTube. We just watched the Bad video and these were Mikah's observations...

Um, who is this girl?
Michael Jackson is a girl?
Oh, she's a boy.
Why is the song called Bad? I thought it was because she was dangerous. But she sure doesn't look dangerous - she's wearing a sparkly suit!
Why are they dancing like that? Those guys behind her are acrobats right?
Whens the bad guy going to come?
Let's shut it off and watch Shark Boy and Lava Girl.

I'm thinking (and hoping) that the spell has been broken for Mikah. Hopefully I've converted one of them to my side...

And, just because I like to share the joy (I'm sweet like that)....

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2012-01-24T17:20:00.001-08:00

"I farted, and that means you're it!" ~ Lukas

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2012-01-19T15:00:00.000-08:00

"Police and cops are like sisters." ~Lukas

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2012-01-18T19:12:00.000-08:00

We had mucho driving to do tonight thanks to the DH's car being temporarily out of commission. And if you know kids, or have spent any amount of time trapped in a vehicle with them right before mealtime - you can imagine what an awesome experience it was. The kids were bickering about anything and everything, and Senior Instigator (please pronounce in a Spanish accent) was busy telling Lukas how adorable he was. As you can imagine, this did not go over well. Apparently Lukas has decided that he is no longer cute, adorable or funny, and being called any of those atrocious names makes him unleash an obscene amount of wailing. After slamming on the brakes and threatening to throw them all out in a snowbank to cool off (and it would have since it's -49C or -56F for my American friends), wonderful silence finally filled the van.

After about 2 minutes of calm Lukas pipes up in the most irritated and aggravated tone of voice I've ever heard and says...

"Seriously, I am NOT adorabubble!"

Hell hath no fury compared to Lukas after we laughed at how truly "adordabubble" we think he is!

Too Fricken Cute :)

2011-11-23T16:41:00.000-08:00

The Mr: Lukas how did you get so adorable?

Lukas (after pausing to think for a minute): Well, first I was weally cute, and then I just gotted so adordabable.

This kid is going to cause us some serious trrouble in about 10-12 years.

Tonight's Quoteable Quotes

2011-10-27T17:23:00.000-07:00

Lukas: "Dad were you still in the army before me, an Mikah, an mom, an Alek were even alive?"

Mikah: "I have super vision you know. That means my eyes are blue, but when I want to see through something like hills they turn green. Sometimes they are black. Remember, super vision."

Lukas (while MC Hammer's Can't Touch This was playing): " I'm not dancing; I'm just wiping my bum on your leg."

Attack of the Concertina

2011-10-21T10:55:00.000-07:00

You never know when safety might be an issue.

Vintage Score

2011-10-15T19:18:00.000-07:00

Check out the sweet score that I scooped up today (for free).

A vintage rug in perfect condition! I'm hoping to bind it and use it for an area rug in the living room. The man I got it from said that it came from his parents house and he played on it as a boy. He was just hoping for someone to come along and appreciate it as much as he does; and boy do I! I can't wait to try it out tomorrow.

This Mammma Sure is Blessed

2011-10-11T16:50:00.000-07:00

So, tonight while we are driving to the store for pizza, which the boys wanted and I decided to grant them, Mikah was talking about the truck that he is planning on buying when he grows up. Alek asked him why he wants a truck and Mikah said that he wants to have one just like his dad bought 60 years ago. Alek laughed, and said... "DAD isn't 60! He's way younger than 60. Mom might be 60 though."

Awesome. Thanks son #1 for bringing joy and sweet, sweet feelings to your mom's heart.

While they are enjoying their pizza, I may-or-may-not be hiding in the laundry room having a medicinal drink.

Andy Brown

2011-10-02T22:13:00.000-07:00

I was lucky enough to happen across this amazing musician playing a set in the lounge of the hotel that I was staying at in Charlottetown PEI this last weekend. His voice was Amazing and his music drew a lot of us in immediately. Check him out and buy his CD (or his songs on iTunes), help support fantastic homegrown Canadian artists like Andy Brown.

The Santa Situation

2011-09-21T23:25:00.000-07:00

I've been dreading the "conversation" for a couple of years now. Luckily my boys are still young enough that I'm not talking about the s.e.x. convo, but the s.a.n.t.a. one.

Last year we managed to hold Alek off with the brilliant comeback of, "Santa only brings gifts to those who believe. So we'll leave that decision up to you."

I've felt bad about that flippant response ever since. Why can't we be the types of parents that have their act together and have rehearsed these types of question and answer sessions well ahead of time? And why haven't I been able to come up with a better answer for my maturing boy in the last year???

Today I found out the reason why. I think that I had been waiting for this woman to figure it out for me. Hey, I'm not too proud to appreciate (and borrow) someone else's brilliance and eloquence. You have to check out the beautiful letter that she wrote to her daughter about the existence of Santa.

Yep. I cried. I don't even want to deny it because the letter is that good.

Go to Cozi and read Martha Brockenbrough's letter, The Truth About Santa.

All for the Love of a Bag

2011-08-31T13:48:00.000-07:00

I've been on the hunt for a new purse/bag for quite awhile now. I think I've been unable to find one because my favorite is a cloth one theat I bought in Hong Kong, and it's hard to find an awesome cloth bag here that is not 1.fugly 2.a tote bag or 3.boring, boring, boring.

So, what else can I do except attempt to sew my own. I've been browsing online and have found quite a few bags that I like and now all that's left is to decide which one I should start with. Which one, which one, which one???

Novita's Reversible Bag

Laural's Pleated Tote

Alison's Wasp Bag

Elizabeth's Diana Hobo Bag

I have a stack of vintage material that has been waiting patiently to be repurposed and I'm hoping that some of it will do any of these bags justice.

Pillow Talk

2011-08-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

Lukas: Dada, you love to lay down with me. But not Zombies too much. Right Daddy?

For Heather

2011-06-20T22:54:00.000-07:00

You said to keep 'em coming...

Overheard from the Back of the Van

2011-06-06T19:29:00.000-07:00

Mikah was basically talking to himself (I was the audience who's participation was minimal) in the van tonight on the way home from the Doctor.

Mikah: You know that when you're really old you DIE. And then they stick you in the ground. When I die I will be in the ground until they dig me up. And use one of those bringing-people-back-to-life guns on me. I don't know. That might not be so good. Cause then I'll just be a zombie. But don't worry mom, I won't eat you. I'll try not to, OK.

O.M.Gee

2011-06-01T18:13:00.000-07:00

Well I know it's time to change what I complain about when I hear my 3 year old running around the backyard yelling:

"Oh my Gawd, I think I have heartburn!"

sigh.

Melodious Music

2011-05-17T19:17:00.000-07:00

Here's a sampling of some music that has helped me get through the last few days.

Meaghan Smith - Here Comes Your Man

Angus & Julia Stone - Big Jet Plane
I wanted to post the music video, but YouTube wouldn't let me...
so, you're just going to have to watch it here. I think the girl is
channelling my soul http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFTvbcNhEgc&feature=list_related&playnext=1&list=AV4oVf-d_DwKAslvJyjclszx6VD_gc7Y_2

The Weepies - Be My Honeypie

Olin & the Moon - Not in Love

Lunch Prep

2011-05-17T09:08:00.000-07:00

As many of you know we have been trying out a meal planning service called Make 5 Dinners in ONE Hour. I will admit that I have fallen off the meal prep wagon in the last couple of weeks. We have all been sick, our weekends haven't gone as planned, blah, blah, blah. But... I still believe in the plan and am reminded daily at supper time just how nice it was to have my meals waiting in the fridge for me. I've passed the word on about the plan and have a few other people loving it too.

Lunches are still a bone of contention though. I was just thinking the other day about how much I hate packing lunches and I only have 1 to pack. In a couple of years I will have to pack 3 lunches! Yikes!!! I know that there has to be a better easier way than how I do it right now, but I have seriously lacked the ambition to try and figure it out. Then today, TA-DA! I was checking out Michelle's blog, Make 5 Dinners in ONE Hour, and she had a couple of posts dedicated to lunch making. Thank you, thank you, thank you! She has some awesome ideas posted that will hopefully encourage me to do something similar.

Now, if only there was a trick for making your child actually eat his lunch and not stash it in his locker instead...

Aero Bubbles

2011-05-07T11:52:00.000-07:00

Oh, Aero Peppermint Bubbles, I love you so much that I hate you.

Lex Land

2011-05-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

I love music that is off the beaten path. Thanks to a new reader, Lilolu (Jackie), for leaving both a comment and the advise to check out Lex Land. I'm so glad that I did! Her voice is sultry and smooth and she makes me wish that I was enjoying her in a hot, smoky club somewhere.

I grabbed the link to her music player off of her website for you. I recommend that you give Could've Had Me a listen.

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2011-05-03T17:46:00.000-07:00

The Mr. told me the funniest story about driving the boys home today.

They were driving along behind a truck and there was a burning oil smell...

Mikah: Ew! what's that smell??? Is our van making that smell?
Mr: I hope not
Mikah: Did our van fart?
Lukas: Our van doesn't even have a bum!
Mikah: Yeah, but it has a gas hole!

This stuff can't even be made up.

Weekend To-Do List

2011-04-16T11:15:00.000-07:00

I love to-do lists. Honestly don't know how I would have mede it through life without them. In the past few months though I think I've been so busy teaching my clients how to make them that I have fallen off the wagon myself. No wonder I never feel like I'm getting anything accomplished. I also tell them to share their to-do list, or post it somewhere visible around the house or office because this helps incerease acccountability. So, with that in mind, here is my weekend to-do list.

Need to sew some of these toy bags for the little boy's toy room. Maybe this will help them keep their toys cleaned up. Doubt it, but a mother can dream right?

inspired by
http://www.made-by-rae.com/2011/02/guest-tutorial-toni-of-make-it-perfect.html

Need to do a major toy sort after I get the bags made and a hanging bar installed
Buy new toilets for the house
Install new toilets??? Not too concerned with this right now. As long as we have them they can be installed whenever.
Do some baking. Bake these things...

Easter bunny cupcakes
http://sweetsugarbelle.blogspot.com/2011/03/bunny-ear-cupcake-toppers.html

Inside-out carrot cake muffins
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/blog/2011/04/06/inside-out-carrot-cake-%e2%80%93-carrot-cake-muffins/

Easter sourcream sugar cookies

I have to get these things done because they have been on my 'mental list' for weeks now and have yet to be accomplished (except for the laundry, that is a never ending job)

BabyComfyNose

2011-04-12T22:33:00.000-07:00

Ok, this post just may gross you out, and if it does then I'm sorry. But not sorry enough not to post this video. I came across this online tonight and I think that I MUST get one!

Lukas is sick again with a snotty congested nose. It is like clockwork for this poor little guy. For the last 3 years his cycle goes like this... get a runny nose, whine and cry for about 2 weeks because he isn't able to sleep (and neither are we BTW), start getting better for about a week, have 1-2 weeks of great health (yay! runny-nose-sleepless-nights-forgotten), get a runny nose again, whine and cry for about 2 weeks because he isn't able to sleep (and neither are we BTW), start getting better for about a week, have 1-2 weeks of great health (yay! runny-nose-sleepless-nights-forgotten)... and repeat, and repeat, and repeat.

How can you tell that we are currently in one of the sleepless night segments. Yep, and we're going on day 3 so we have a few more to go. And nothing helps him. Nothing. Believe me, we've tried it all. Oh yes, and most of the time he refuses to blow his nose. Yes, that's right Lukas, we are so trying to trick you. Such a smart boy to not give into our crazy ideas!

Anyway, here's the video, and if it works well for us (when I manage to get one that is) and you are expecting a baby you had better just deal with the fact that there will beno cute sleepers for you, but instead a snot sucking contraption. Oh yes. A snot sucking contraption.

Mini Rant

2011-04-08T21:18:00.000-07:00

Ok, here is a mini rant, but it bothers me everyday on my drive to and from work...

Why do city bus drivers think that the posted 30km/hr signs in school zones does not apply to them? This pisses me off every. single. day.

It's bad enough that my drive takes me over the sight where a child was killed this year by a bus, but being passed by city buses while I'm doing the requisite 30km (or slower) in the school zone is really just too much!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-04-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

Sharpie Free Zone

2011-04-05T08:43:00.000-07:00

Here are my two youngest angels

Was your eye drawn to the "artwork" on the door behind them?

The calm part of our conversation went like this:

Me: Mikah, why did you do this???

Mikah: I was just trying to write signs on the doors.

Me: Why??? What do they say?

Mikah: (looks at me like I'm crazy) I don't know! I can't really read yet you know.

I really hate that my kids are so funny. It was hard to still be mad after that reasoning.

Noshing on Gnocchi

2011-04-04T22:51:00.000-07:00

Have you ever heard of Donal Skehan? If you have, then you are well ahead of me you lucky bugger! I just found him and his delicious website Bringing Cooking Back Home the other day. Here are the important things that you need to know...

His food looks and sounds Amazing (notice the capital A)
He's Irish (yum)
He has two cookbooks out that I must buy (this should tell you something because the Web has helped me give up my cookbook addiction)
I made his recipe for Mozzarella, tomato and gnocchi bake Saturday night, and it was seriously worthy of an Italian Pasta Restaurant.

You can see why I needed to bake this right?
(This is Donal's version BTW)

And... here's my version. Once again let me just say that
I am no photographer, but it still looks yummy right???
And it was. So good!

If you even enjoy food a little bit, you have to check Donal out. And, just to temp you more... here's what I am already planning to make this weekend

Mussels in Irish Cider

p.s. you may have noticed that I have my camera back, and you may have also noticed that I should maybe look into learning how to use it. Don't worry, I've noticed that too ;)

You know it's gonna be alright...

2011-04-01T08:32:00.000-07:00

when you leave the house in the morning and the sun is shining, the snow is already melting, the kids climb in the van by themselves with no fighting, yelling or pushing, and when you start the van (yes, I said van) this man's beautiful voice greets you. Have a super Friday!

I'd Tell You But...

2011-03-30T09:00:00.000-07:00

So last night at supper we were sitting around discussing Zombies (obviously, right) and how some good friends of ours were laughing because they realized that they had a Zombie contingency plan, but not a fire escape plan. At first Alek thought that the two plans would be similar, until the Mr pointed out that one plan involved nailing the door of the house shut - with you inside, so maybe a different plan would be better in case of a fire. Ah, yes.

Alek was VERY into this conversation (of course) and was wondering what kinds of other things were in their plan. We we told him that we didn't know for sure but it probably involved stockpiling various supplies in a hidden room. So, we were busy discussing the kinds of supplies that would be needed, but Alek was still stuck on the "secret room" idea. "Do they really have a secret room," "where is the secret room," what's in the secret room," etc. Then being the awesome mom that I am said, "well, I would tell you truth, but then I would have to kill you."

Oh Lord, the look on that poor child's face! I swear that he almost started to cry. How was I to know that he had never come across the saying "well, I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you," before? Seriously, the kid seems to know everything else that there is to know.

Looking back though, it probably didn't help that the Mr and I started laughing like crazy people at the horrified look on his face. I guess that's our motto - laugh first and then comfort and reassure.

Yep, we're super parent material for sure.

Barenaked Ladies

2011-03-29T20:37:00.000-07:00

If you have been unlucky so far and have never heard of the Barenaked Ladies - your luck is about to change! They are an amazing Canadian group that has been around since, well, a long time. But, I'm not going to wax poetic about their more popular works (feel free to check those out yourselves), I'm going to give you a little preview of the children's album that they put out awhile ago. I've been meaning to post about it forever, but you know how things are.

The boys (and I) lurve these songs! They are inventive, and catchy, and just downright fun to listen to. Yes, I sing them in the car, even when I'm by myself.

Enjoy!

Fabulous Fotos

2011-03-29T09:30:00.000-07:00

OMG! Check out the amazing work by photographer Irina Werning. I lurve this idea of taking a childhood photo and then re-creating it as an adult. The pictures are both hilarious and super sweet.

Here are a couple of her photos to tease you, but please go and check out the others on her site... http://www.irinawerning.com/

Make 5 Dinners in 1 Hour

2011-03-28T14:13:00.000-07:00

My name is Barb, and I can not put together a meal plan to save my life.

I have tried so many times and it never lasts. If I could manage to make it through one week that would be a miracle! I would always get sidetracked looking for fabulous recipes, because really, who wants to eat the same thing over and over again. Blech!

I've tried the whole Freezer Cooking idea, but who has time to get all of that ready? Not me.

Then the other day, out in Blogland, this sign appeared before me

and before I knew it I had signed up to have 3 months of meal plans emailed to me! Hey, 3 months of meals plans for $15; hard to go wrong. On top of that, the premise is that you should be able to assemble a weeks worth of meals (5 suppers) and have them packaged and waiting in the fridge in under an hour. Sounds great, right? Sounds almost too good to be true? Well, after completing my second week of meals - I can say that it's not too good to be true - it's fabulous! The first weeks meal assembly took me 35 minutes to assemble! This weeks meals took 47 minutes and the meals are all happily marinating in the fridge waiting for their day to be cooked.

Yay me! I would have taken a picture, but you know me, the camera is not working :)

The meals have been great so far; even the little ones approve and they don't seem to like anything right now except for veggies and dip. This week we are having... Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches; Oven Roasted Chicken & Veggies; Sausage and Perogies; Slow Cooked Sweet & Sour Meatballs; and Slow Cooked Tex-Mex Roast. Now, I did make a few changes but they were quick and easy, substituting perogies for potatoes and a roast for pork chops. Hopefully Michelle won't mind ;)

And maybe the best thing of all - last week I only went to the grocery store one time during the week and that was just to pick up milk and diapers! It usually feels as though we are there everyday normally. Let's just say our bank account is certainly thankful for Make 5 Dinners in 1 Hour!

You should check out Michelle's Make Five Dinners in One Hour. Hopefully you'll be just as happy that you did as I am.

2011-03-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

I have a new love in my life. A much needed inspirational love. Have you checked out Pinterest yet? I signed up about a month ago and have been loving every second! If you are like me, and your favorites list goes on and on and on, Pinterest may be just what you were looking for.

Basically, Pinterest allows you to quickly and effortlessly add a visual bookmark onto a virtual bulletin board so that you can quickly find just the thing that you were looking for. I was able to create pinboards for the categories that are my go-to inspiration....

food

craft inspiration

home decorating ideas

diy projects

objects I would love to have

printables

and with the ease of snapping my fingers, quickly link visual images from the internet onto the correct inspiration board using the Pinterest tool on my toolbar.

Genius I say!

Now I just have to go back through my favorites and either change them to Pinterest and/or delete them. Why would I want to guess about what is listed in my favorites when I could simply see that things that I have found???

Check me out on Pinterest!

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2011-03-27T09:00:00.000-07:00

Today, while waiting for the Mr to leave the happiness that is OTV (computer store), I heard this gem...

Mikah: Ya know, Lukas was just telling me how much he misses the old days.

Spring Road Trip

2011-03-26T15:34:00.000-07:00

While blog hopping today I came across an amazing idea that I just have to steal.

Find a destination; make a list of thrift stores between your starting point and your destination;

add some fab music to your iPod; grab some great gals; don some hip glasses; jump into a cleansed-of-all-children car; and hit the road!

Imagine the treasures to be found, and the simple joy of an open road treasure hunt with your besties!

This idea has given me something to cling to while waiting the spring thaw.

Whose in????

Straight Lines

2011-02-23T12:56:00.000-08:00

So, I'm busy trying to rip straight lines of material for a lampshade refashion and am listening to this beautiful song while I do it.

I think I'm in love with my new lampshades and Dawn Landes.

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2011-02-22T12:30:00.000-08:00

While driving Alek's friend home this morning...

Alek: Which would you rather have when you get older, a mustache or 6 o'clock shadow?

Zak: 6 o'clock shadow. Definately.

Alek: No doubt. I mean, you never know what's in a mustache.

Word.

Gah!

2011-02-02T19:33:00.000-08:00

I have so many projects to brag about on here, but am once again down a camera. And it's pretty darn hard to brag myself up without the photographic evidence you know.

For once I haven't lost my camera, but my battery charger. I haven't been able to find it since we moved in August. Yikes. To be fair though, it wasn't until the end of November that I managed to accomplish anything even remotely blog worthy in the house. Heck, there are still some rooms full of boxes. Sad, sad, sad.

Even sadder is the fact that I'm too darn cheap to run out and buy a new charger. History has taught me that the missing one will reappear the day after I drop big bucks on a new one.

I take being camera challenged to a whole new level. Seriously. This is likely my fifth post full of missing camera woes - and I'm too embarrassed to post every time.

Conversations with a Future Cop

2011-02-01T19:57:00.000-08:00

Lukas : I'm going to be a policeman when I grow up.
Me: Really?
Lukas: Yes, and I'm going to throw you in jail.
Me: Why? That's so mean!
Lukas (says comfortingly to me): Don't worry, I'll take all the bears out before I put you in there.

Yep, it's comforting to know that my boys will always have my best interests at heart.

Ah, Anthropologie

2010-12-29T21:31:00.000-08:00

While browsing the web tonight looking for bridesmaid dress inspiration I happened upon the Anthropologie website - which I had been neglecting. Now, I can't say that I found bridesmaid dresses, but I did find these wonderful things that I must try to replicate for my house...

Christmas Movies

2010-12-19T16:11:00.000-08:00

Here are the movies that I'm looking forward to watching while snuggled under a blanket this holiday season:

My Kind of Christmas Tree

2010-12-14T16:24:00.000-08:00

I came across this tree on Curbly tonight - and I love it. Especially after dealing with what the cats have done to our tree this year. It's called the Tannenboing Tree and I wish that one of these trees would just jump itself all the way here and attach itself to my ceiling.

Man, would I love to see the cats try to climb this tree! Bwahaha!!!

Of course, I think the kids would quickly try to turn it into a tree fort. Of course, one could decorate the tree to discourage blanket draping, but I think I prefer it au-natural.

Overheard While the Kids Were Playing

2010-12-12T08:41:00.000-08:00

Mikah:    Alek, did you just fart in my face?
Alek:       No
Mikah:    Well then why does my face smell like a fart???

Prepare for Takeoff

2010-10-05T21:34:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow afternoon I am leaving on one of these

to spend a few days here at a work conference

The Mr is on parent duty while I'm on leave.

Sucker.

I'm Back with my Sanity Mostly Intact

2010-09-27T22:46:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile but hopefully you will understand. It feels like it's been such a long time since I've been on here, and I'm a little worried that I may have lost my "voice" so to speak. I guess I should just dive in, so here goes...

We decided that we needed to move to a bigger house; we found the perfect house; closed on the house and moved - all within 3 weeks! It has been a CRAZY time I tell ya. We just finished with our old house this weekend and now can concentrate on fully moving in to our new home. Which means I may be able to stop living out of the suitcase someday soon.

We moved from one side of the city to the other which has been a huge change for all of us. Alek started at a new school and it's been a hard adjustment. The new school is about triple the population of his old school and is freaking me out too, so I can understand where he's coming from. He's having a hard time making friends and the boys in his class aren't being overly welcoming, which is very hard for this mammma to handle. So please, cross your fingers for me that they will soon see what an awesome kid he is.

Lukas is now in a big-boy bed and the transition has been surprisingly easy. Although I find him curled up on the floor almost every morning. He told me this morning that, "me not fall out of bed, me just like it here." Ok, whatever floats your boat Lukas.

Mikah is almost four. We are having boundary issues daily. I can't wait until he is old enough to be mostly reasonable. Seriously; I can't wait.

School has started back up for me as well and I have a full plate of math and language arts students. I've got a nice mix of new students and returning ones which keeps me on my toes; but I wouldn't trade it.

There you go. A short and sweet post. How did I do?

Changes

2010-08-06T00:25:00.001-07:00

Big changes are happening for my family. Big.

Telling It Like It Is

2010-07-23T08:03:00.000-07:00

Parenting is a hard and mostly thankless job. Yes, of course your kids love you and of course you love them back but even that amount of love doesn't make the job any easier. Especially on the days when you don't actually like your children very much.

I've been so happy to see the recent acknowledgement of the fact that parenting really isn't the rose colored dream that you picture when you are planning a family. In my dream we were all dressed in white and happily skipping hand-in-hand through a meadow. In actuality the meadow is the back yard, because I haven't had the time to cut the grass, and the children are busy trying to outrun one another so that they don't get whacked with a stick or a toy. You would find me collapsed on a lawn chair praying that no one gets hurt so that I could have even a few minutes to myself. Now that's an honest day in parenting.

This morning while my children were screaming at me like possessed banshees demanding pop, yeah right, I found this post on From the Cheap Seats. I thought the post was fantastic and she did a great job describing parenting/mothering.

Read it. You'll enjoy it.

Readers, how do you find parenting?

Murphy Was Definately Not a Mother!

2010-07-22T17:57:00.000-07:00

I know all about Murphy's Law, but I'm wondering if there is such a thing out there that just applies to the laws of mothering. A Mother's Law if you will. Maybe I should start one...

Mother's Law

When you are busy rushing around trying to get way too many things done in way too little time, one or more of your children will sabotage you. Yes, sabotage you. The most common form is the "innocent sabotage." Someone will need an emergency trip to the doctor; a mess of unimaginable proportions will be made; someone will get an earache; the list goes on. You know what I'm talking about. Quit while you're ahead. Seriously.

I just took a job making 300 dainties for a wedding this Saturday. They are being picked up tomorrow and I started today. I've been busy rushing about the kitchen in a well ordered chaos. My plan was perfect and it's all about timing. Nothing should go wrong. This should be easy. Bake one pan and prepare another batch while the first one is in the oven. Repeat this process about 10 times. My plan was being executed perfectly and I even had time to sit down and grab a quick bite of supper with my little guys. We are finishing about 2 minutes before the timer goes off when I hear the sound of running water. Wait a minute, running water falling onto the floor. What the??? It sounds close. Really close. Like sitting across the table close. I glance down at the floor and see that my would-be-potty-trainer is in the process of emptying his King Kong sized bladder all over his chair! Ding Ding that would be my oven timer! Shit, shit, shit!!! If only mom's could freeze time. I would have been able to at least save the pile of books that I had placed on the floor. But no. I had squares to save and a lake of pee to clean. Then I had to wash the floor, wash the chair, wash Mikah and wash myself. And as I'm wont to do when the going gets tough, take a few minutes to blog about it. My timing is off and my schedule is down the crapper.

Speaking of crappers, just as I'm about to get back to work Lukas decides to make me a present. Sweet.

Friendly Friday Follow

2010-07-22T17:32:00.000-07:00

Here I am! I'm so happy that you stopped by to check out my musings on life, motherhood and food from the Canadian Prairies! I'm looking forward to checking out other blogs and hopefully getting to know some more fabulous people!

May my blog make you smile :)

Boogers, Burgers and Babies

2010-07-19T13:44:00.000-07:00

We have had 3 nice days in a row here in Saskatoon. Yes, I said it. 3 sunny days in a row. Frankly, this is amazing blog worthy weather for this summer. Mostly it's amazing because I'm cheap. What does being cheap have to do with nice sunny warm weather you're wondering? It's important, because in the early spring I bought a big pool for the backyard. I had visions of lazily floating around the pool in the afternoon; watching Alek and his friends happily splashing away for hours; and introducing the two little ones to the magic that is a pool.

Well, here we are in the middle of July and I have managed to climb into the pool a grand total of 4 times. Alek maybe 6 times. And my babies have been in twice. There have been rain and storms here almost everyday this summer. On the plus side, the rain has kept the pool filled but it has ruined my dream of lazy-sunny-floating afternoons. Or has it? Maybe we are just off to a slow start.

As I type this I am currently blogging beside the pool while watching Alek and his BFF snort, splash and swim. So far so good. The truly exciting part? This is the third day in a row that we have been able to use the pool!!! Alek loves it, his friends love it, I love it, Mikah tolerates it and Lukas strongly dislikes it.

Are you wondering about the booger part? Well, Mikah and Lukas both have head colds. Let's just say that a healthy dose of salt water and a head cold does not a pleasant swimming experience make. I'm sure that the swimming pool is just a glorified Nettie Pot to them. And Alek's friend. ~sorry, I just gagged a bit at the thought of all that snot.~

A quick recap... I'm loving the pool, when I get a chance to use it; pool water + babies = boogers; and sitting outside in the warn sunny weather really makes me want to BBQ some burgers. Too bad we ran out of propane.

Potty Training Setback

2010-07-19T13:07:00.000-07:00

Mikah has been doing really well at the "going on the potty" business. His grandpa took him for a little over a week about a month ago and they worked hard at getting the consistency down. I find it's really hard to be consistent when we both work and the kids are at a babysitters for the day. Anyway, in the last month he has had maybe a handful of accidents. Pretty darn good!

Then there was yesterday.

Yes, Mikah peed in the potty.
He also peed on the couch. Twice.
At the bottom of the stairs. Once.
In his shorts. Well, everytime.
In an empty box on the living room floor. Once.
On a big weed outside. Twice.

My poor carpet cleaner got a workout. The funny thing was that since Mikah's been in-training, lukas has decided that he should be too. Lukas is also our resident streaker so I naturally assumed that all of the potty accidents were due to his diaperless bum. But no, his bare bum was dry and Mikah's clothed one was always wet.

Poor, poor Mikah. Hopefully today will be better.

Little Kisses

2010-07-12T17:34:00.000-07:00

Mikah just came upstairs with a sweet mischievious grin on his face and a story to share with me about his daycare friend.

M: "Mommy, today Bailey and me had lots of kisses."

Me: "You and Bailey had lots of kisses?"

M: "Yes. We had lots of kisses in her room. Then we wiped our mouths and said, yucky, yucky and went back to play."

Ahhh, sweet little kids.

I Know, I Know

2010-06-22T22:38:00.000-07:00

I'm a terrible, terrible blogger.

I haven't been able to manage life and a blog (or 3) at the same time. Yep, I suck.

In my defence though, life around here as been even more hectic than normal in the last few weeks. Let's see...

I got the flu. Seriously thought I would die.
Then Alek got the flu the next day. Not good.
All of this happened while I was supposed to be getting reports finished for the end of the school year.
Speaking if the end of the year, I needed to finish up all kinds of stuff with my students. It just crept up on me this year. Must have been the crappy weather; it made me forget that it's now summer.
Oh yeah, and I lost my camera which has really bummed me out. There have been so many good photo opportunities that I wanted to post but was too depressed by the once-again-disappearance-of-my-camera to do so. maybe this would be a good time to do a shout out to Canon. "Hey Canon, I lurve your cameras and would do an amazing review in exchange for a new camera! Come on, please???? You don't want a mommy and blogger to be without a Canon camera do you??? Please help a sad, sad mommy out. I know you want to..."
We are in the midst of potty training 2 boys. 2 boys and 1 bathroom. Enough said.
And the rain. The rain has been downright depressing. Living in Saskatchewan we get enough dark, dreary hours during the winter thank you very much. I did not need grey days all spring as well! Let's just say that I have not been in a tolerant mood the last few weeks. Ok, I'll say it; bitch on wheels.
Oh, and then the Mr got the flu. Thankfully the little ones didn't get it. I'm not sure how, but I'm grateful. Nothing is worse then everyone having the flu at the same time. With 1 bathroom. That is family bonding time that I never need to experience again. Ever.
I did manage to go paint balling with the students. I got shot in the head. Twice. The kids thought it was hilarious. I think that I need to buy a paintball gun, or 6. I forgot how much fun it was, aside from the shot twice in the head thing.

Ok, once I typed it out it doesn't seem that bad. But add it to the usual working, cleaning, cooking, mowing, refereeing, laundry, driving, cleaning, cleaning, cleaning... I've been busy.

Summer session starts soon and I'm hoping for a smooth summer. With most of it spent floating in the pool. If the rain ever stops that is. Maybe I should just build a raft to float along on...

Mood Music

2010-05-26T17:39:00.000-07:00

Literally.

I just found THE BEST SITE. Pick your mood and it selects the music for you. Amazing!

The playlists are filled with songs that we already know and love as well as an excellent mix of music that we will be loving to discover.

Check-check-check it out.... Stereomood.com

~edited to add... OMG, it even has a play list for cleaning!!!~

Make Mine Cosa Verde

2010-05-24T18:46:00.000-07:00

I was blog hopping today (One Pretty Thing...to...Indie Fixx...to...) and I came across the most fabulous, amazing, beautiful site ... Cosa Verde! It's similar to Etsy but is dedicated to selling sustainably handmade goods direct from independent artists. I'm talking about re-purposing baby! I lurve people who manage to find new uses from older items. And I'll admit, browsing through the site got my creative juices flowing, and those waters have been stagnant for awhile now.

Sing along with me now, "Here are a few of my favourite things..."

Oh, To Be a Man

2010-04-24T23:39:00.000-07:00

(and no, this isn't a disparaging post)

I saw this party write-up on Hostess with the Mostess today. I lurve this idea; it makes me wish that I was a man so that I could have a Grumpy Old Man Party.

A Grumpy Old Woman Party just wouldn't be the same. Let's compare possible itineraries...

Grumpy Old Men (this was the original party-goers itinerary)

get up really early
put on awesome old men clothes
go to a donut shop and read the newspaper
go longboarding
work on the car
breakfast at the local diner
18 holes of golf
lunch at the clubhouse; plus whiskey and pipe smoking
shenanigans in the parking lot (likely thanks to the whiskey)
jacuzzi time
swim racing (even grumpy old men need to compete)
BBQ for an early supper
drinks at the local dive bar

OK, what could a Grumpy Old Woman Party include

wake up early
get dressed in old woman clothes
grab huge purse and head to the beauty salon for a "set"
gossip while getting hair did
go out to a pancake house for breakfast and coffee
gossip while having breakfast
head to a watercolor class (which could actually be fun. Anyone heard of watercolor nudes???)
light lunch and complaining contest (mostly cocktails LOL)
bargain shopping (everyone would have to pull a metal cart behind them and would only have a certain amount of money to spend; who could do it the best)
relaxation time (pedicures at the spa; let's get those corns looked after)
supper at a swanky restaurant where we laugh uproariously and have no verbal filter
drinks at a blue collar pub; where we can harass all the men for a change

Well, I've changed my mind. An Old Woman's party just might be simply delightful!

What ideas do you have for activities??? I just might have to throw one of these parties, so throw the ideas my way!

Funny Boy

2010-04-20T23:08:00.000-07:00

The weather here has been really nice. I mean, REALLY NICE. The temps have been way above normal; we're talking shorts and tanks people! It seems like everyone has been wearing sandles for weeks now, but I am slow to catch on. Yesterday I realized that my kids were still wearing their rubber boots. There have been no puddles for least a week. Their poor little feet must have been sweltering in those boots. Yes, I'm Mommy of the year material for sure.

So, off to the shoe store we go to get their little piggies outfitted in some swanky new Dawgs. Hey, they may be ugly, but they can put them on themselves and every little bit of help helps me. Lukas picked out his own pair, while Mikah layed on the bench feigning indifference to the whole process. In fact, every time I turned around the little bugger had put his rubber boots back on. I figured that he would embrace his new shoes tomorrow.

Tomorrow came (this morning) and he in fact did embrace his shoes. Or would have, if he was wearing socks in them. There was a fit of epic proportions when he realized that his very mean Mommy, whom he hates by the way, was in fact going to make him wear the shoes sans socks. I wouldn't normally be so heartless, but I was too lazy to do the laundry last night or hunt around for matching or even semi-matching socks this morning. I was sure I would be on easy street with one less thing to get ready in the morning thanks to the new sandles. Mikah was not having it.

It turned out that his aversion to the sockless sandles was not the feel of the shoes, it was not the cooler air upon his feet, it was not the shoes themselves, it was not the color of the shoes, it was not the fact that he hadn't picked them out himself. It turned out that he needed to wear socks so that no one saw his "bare-naked-toes." All the screaming, thrashing, yelling, and yes swearing was over bare-naked-toes. I told him that no one would care and that all the other kids would have bare toes as well. But no, he was convinced that the babysitters would look at his "bare naked toes."

His mean mommy, whom he hates, threw him in the van sockless. He would have to chance it.

He wore his shoes all day.

Now I've Gone and Done It

2010-04-20T22:49:00.000-07:00

I have a new quasi-blog.

http://hipmammma.tumblr.com/

I came across Tumblr. tonight and thought, "now, what is this?"

The next thing I knew, I had another blog. My Tumblr account will be dedicated to all of the amazing things that I stumble across online. Many of the things that people make/do are too awesome not to share.

Check it out, and if you suddenly, magically have a Tumblr. account, follow me so that I may in turn follow you.

Night all.

Love.

2010-04-14T12:26:00.000-07:00

Last night was the first time that I heard this out of my baby's mouth;

"Wub You"

Aww, I wub you too Lukas!

Welcome to Holland

2010-04-12T22:42:00.000-07:00

WELCOME TO HOLLAND

by Emily Perl Kingsley.

I am often asked

to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability -

to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience

to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......

When you're going to have a baby,

it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy.

You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans.

The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice.

You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives.

You pack your bags and off you go.

Several hours later, the plane lands.

The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!?" you say.

"What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy!

I'm supposed to be in Italy.

All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in the flight plan.

They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing

is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease.

It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books.

And you must learn a whole new language.

And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place.

It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy.

But after you've been there for a while

and you catch your breath, you look around....

and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....

and Holland has tulips.

Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy...

and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there.

And for the rest of your life,

you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go.

That's what I had planned."

And the pain of that

will never, ever, ever, ever go away...

because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.

But... if you spend your life mourning

the fact that you didn't get to Italy,

you may never be free to enjoy the very special,

the very lovely things ... about Holland.

~This poem sums up how I am feeling at the moment; it's amazing how I can feel blessed and emotionally devestated at the same time. I love my life in Holland, but I do wonder what life in Italy would have been like.~

How Old Are We

2010-04-10T16:34:00.000-07:00

Mikah: Mom, you're going downstairs?
Me: Yes
Mikah: We can't come. I'm not old enough yet, me only 3.
Me: Yay! Yes, that's right, you're 3!
Mikah: Yeah, and Lukas is 2.
Me: That's right!
Mikah: And you are 6. Right Mom?
Me: Awww, of course I'm 6. How old is Alek?
Mikah: What is dad's name?
Me: What is dad's name?
Mikah: Yeah, that guy is old. He's older than 6.
Me: What about Alek?
Mikah: Oh, Alek is 3. He's the same as me. We're old as each other. Can I come downstairs with you?

This conversation marks the first time that Mikah has told me how old he is. He has refused to admit that he is now 3. What a milestone! And for those of you not in the know, Lukas is 2, Mikah is 3, Alek is 9, and we are older than 6. And yes, the Mr is older than me.

~As I type this Mikah and Lukas are in the living room playing Time Out. Funny how nicely they can sit in time out when it's only a game.~

My Week Off

2010-04-09T21:57:00.000-07:00

In the words of my love Mika; Relax, Take it Easy...

New Look

2010-04-09T20:42:00.000-07:00

What do you think?

Glamping

2010-03-31T10:18:00.000-07:00

And just what is glamping you ask? Glamping is glamorous + camping of course! And it sounds like my idea of roughing it for sure!

Glamping Girl breaks it down for us, "Glamping truly originated in the early 1900’s, with the popularization of the safari, The word safari is an Arabic verb meaning “to make a journey” and an entire industry was created to cater to the needs of the demanding European and American travelers, looking to bag a trophy and experience adventure in the wilds of Africa. Naturally, the wealthy travelers weren’t eager to part with the creature comforts of home, and instead stayed in luxurious canvas tent lodgings. These tents were fully furnished with beds, luxurious bedding, Persian rugs, antiques and fully staffed with chefs, guides, porters and butlers. A new trend of glamping has emerged with luxury camping resorts, safari camps, eco-resorts and campgrounds offering every amenity imaginable, from 5 star dining to spas. Manufacturers are catching on, offering designer gadgets and gear to bring style to the wilderness. Regardless of budget, you can enjoy the great outdoors without sacrificing luxury."

I have been dreaming of rehauling an Airsteam trailer for quite awhile now and making it a cozy camping oasis on wheels. One of my favorite sites, One Pretty Thing, dedicated a roundup today all about Glamping. Check it out, you'll likely decide that glamping is for you too. I love tenting and camping, but there is no reason to be uncomfortable while doing it! Who's up for a Glamping adventure???

More importantly, does anyone have an Airstream trailer that they no longer want???

Wow.

2010-03-31T10:05:00.000-07:00

Last night I had a dream about shopping. It was so strange. I was in a place that reminded me of Macau, with little shops open to the street and people with a party attitude everywhere. Ok, that's not so wierd, but the stores were. Here's a few that I remember...

The Sock store. Ok, maybe not so strange except that all of the socks had the toes missing. Like leg warmer socks. Oh, and the socks were all brown.
The Organic Clothing store. You customized your own clothes. Sound good? Well, you customized them by picking out the clothing item that you wanted AND an essential oil fragrance. The clothing was then permanently infused with that scent. The store was packed with people and the scents were crazy. I don't really remember them, but I do remember being awed by the whole concept.
The diaper store. All the diapers had animal tails on them. Disposable diapers with animal tails. WTF???
The Liquor store, where you could just open up a bottle and take a swig to test it out. If you didn't like it you just put it back on the shelf. Then the next person would come along and take a swig out of the same bottle. And yes Lev, this even grossed me out.

There were more but I can't quite put my finger on what ecactly they were anymore. Maybe it'll come back to me. I do remember that the stores became too overwhelming for me at some point and I went and sat in a random alley for a long time while my shopping partners carried on. Until the cops came that is...

I wonder what I had to eat or drink last night before bed???

Cupcake Courier

2010-03-30T20:52:00.000-07:00

My cupcakes can now travel in style! Up until tonight my cupcakes have had to brave pampers boxes, cupcake pans, paper box lids, shoe boxes and more to get to their destination in one piece. I never bought one of the Wilton carriers because, seriously, who ever just takes a dozen cupcakes? Not me, that's for sure!
Tonight at HomeSense I found this... The Cupcake Courier.

It holds 36 iced cupcakes! Three dozen cupcakes is definately how I roll.

In case you are wondering; yes, I do have something special planned for it's virgin voyage in the next couple of days.

Their Baack...

2010-03-29T20:42:00.000-07:00

Disgusting moths! In case I haven't shared this yet, all it takes is a moth sighting to send my body into convulsions, my feet running in the opposite direction and my arms over my head as if to protect myself from an incoming missile. Oh, and I scream. I can't help it. Everything about their disgusting furry bodies and lifeless-grey wings makes me feel faint. I literally break out into a sweat if I am the only adult at home, and therefore must attempt to kill the creatures myself.

Ugh. They crunch when you hit them with a rolled up newspaper; or a broom (I can't get too close, they might touch me).

We're having a pretty good wind here tonight and it caught the screen door and was swinging it wildly around. I raced down the stairs to shut it before the sound woke my sleeping angels (whom I don't want to have to see until morning). I grabbed the door and pulled it shut only to see about 6 moths hanging onto the window. They were smiling demonic smiles at me. I'm sure of it. Sleeping kids be darned, I slammed that door and raced back up the stairs. Hey, I didn't scream though; that's pretty amazing for me. Just ask my Mr. if you don't believe me. Or any member of my family. It's really quite pathetic to witness. The snow hasn't even all melted yet. Gross, gross, gross.

Toys x 2

2010-03-29T18:57:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to get the boys Doodle Boards for quite awhile, but at $30 a pop x 2... I wasn't sure if they wouold like them or if it would once again be money wasted. Just by chance I actually looked at the Toys R Us website last week, and wouldn't you know, they had them on sale for 10 bucks! Now that's my kind of deal. Were the doodle boards a hit? We're on day 3 and they are still playing with them! Amazing! the only things in the past that have held their attention for so long are dollar store toys and cardboard boxes. Two identical Doodle Boards means less fighting. Aren't they cute...

On another note, those of you with twins or kids really close in age, how do you handle the toy buying/sharing issue? I've pretty much been buying two of most things that are exactly identical. This cuts down on all of the squabbling over whose toy it is. That said, we still have plently "single" toys in the house that the boys LOVE to fight over and occassionally manage to work out some way of sharing.

What do you do?

Cupcakes Help Save the Day

2010-03-29T13:59:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, on my blogging hiatus, Alek's school had a fun night to help and raise money for the new playground. When I heard there was going to be a bake sale table... my imagination went into overload! It's nice to have a creative project with a deadline; this ensures that I will actually make the time for some fun in the kitchen. I ended up making 7 doz cupcakes and 12 bags of carmel corn. The popcorn was a last minute addition, mostly beacuse I had the ingredients on hand and time to kill between batches of cupcakes. I'm pretty happy with the way that the cupcakes turned out, and they were a huge hit, even at $2 a cupcake.

Bubblicious

Triple
Chocolate

Death

Orange You Glad

It's Spring

Up & Away

Mint Explosion

Under the

Rainbow

Original

Oreo

Caramel

Corn

Mikah Swears

2010-03-28T23:22:00.000-07:00

Mikah is just like the parrot that has an unbelievable vocabulary of inappropriate words that are expressed loudly at inappropriate times. Honestly, this kids vocabulary would make a trucker proud. Alek really never swore so this is a new one for us to deal with. And, as the parent who is most guilty of helping him increase his vocabulary, I get the job of trying to explain why he can't use bad words. As you can imagine, reasoning with a know-it-all 3 year old never goes over very successfully. For instance, and please try not to judge me too harshly, in the yard today Mikah and Lukas were fighting over who got to sit in the car when I heard this come out of my darling's mouth, "get off you stupid asshole." I reprimanded him right away and he looked up at me with his deep blue eyes and said, "it's ok Mommy, I was only talking to Lukas, not you." Somehow he is smart enough to grasp the concept that certain language can be appropriate within your own peer set, but how to convince him that "asshole" is not the type of word one would use when your peers are 3 years old???

Yes, my own love of "bad" words is coming back to haunt me. In spades.

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2010-03-28T23:10:00.000-07:00

Here's another soon-to-be-classic...

Today while Lev and Alek were out-and-about all was quiet in the car. When the car is quiet you know that Alek is in deep reflection about something. Sure enough after about 15 minutes of silence Lev hears this come from the backseat

"Dad, why don't you ever tell the Government about my ideas?"

Our dear son considers himself an inventor extraordinaire, as well as a military strategist who would love nothing more than to share his wisdom with the people in high places. I have no doubt that he is going to accomplish amazing things in his life, but I pity the people who unexpectedly experience his 9 year old onslaught of "knowledge." His ideas of how things work (or should work) is such a mishmash of arcane facts and fantastical imaginings, yet he is so sure of himself that at times you actually doubt what you know to be true.

Hmm, on second thought, maybe we should try to find him a direct line to the Prime Minister - it might not hurt!

2010-03-27T23:34:00.000-07:00

I just spent an evening belly down on the couch watching Motherhood. I had no idea what it was about, besides the fact that Uma Thurman was in it. Once her character started Blogging, I was hooked. Blogging about motherhood and life no less! Would she be honest or would she be one of the closet-drinker-mom's, as I refer to them. You know, the ones who are all rainbows, cotton candy and perfectly accessorized lives. How can that level of perfection actually exist??? But... I digress; another post for another day.

My Mr. and I watched it together; ok, he watched with one eye on the screen and another buried in a book, but as he did offer up the occasional comment or question I am choosing to believe that he was way more attuned to the movie than the book. One thing that really struck him was how women respond to other women out in public. Yes, we really can be nasty, unsupportive bitches to one another. Why is it so hard to offer support one aspiring super-mom to another? Would it kill us? I choose to believe that it would make us stronger, individually and as a group. Imagine getting home after a day of errands with kids in tow with your head held high and a smile on your face because another mom offered a verbal commendation to you instead of a snide aside. Wow, wouldn't that be amazing? Everyone would be in a happier mood. You might even be happy to see your other half walk in the door after work instead of resenting the fact that he does not have to deal with this BS on a daily basis. I know that such an event would help me appreciate the gifts that I have in my life instead feeling constantly pressured and stressed that I am failing my job evaluations as mommy, wife, homemaker and employee.

Motherhood, left me feeling both validated and yearning for my moment of clarity.

Oh, and the soundtrack is killer.

This aspiring super-mom recommends that you watch it.

Tough Guys

2010-03-25T18:25:00.000-07:00

I've been super busy lately and without much sleep or time, it has been hard to get on here and post anything coherent. Please be gentle as I attempt to climb back on the horse.

Hmm, maybe a funny story is the way to ease myself back into the saddle; good thing there is no shortage of those around here.

Alek's best-bud Steven was over awhile ago and they set themselves up on the couch in front of the Wii playing some military game that they love. You know, the kind with lots of shooting and bravado. It was Alek's turn at the controller and the conversation went like this:

     Steven: Why did he just call you Bulldog? You're guy's name
                 isn't Bulldog.
     Alek (in full out lecturer mode): Well, he called me Bulldog
                 because my guy is a Commando. Commando's are tough
                and so they need tough guy nicknames. You know, like
                Bulldog, or Sarge, or Ice Cream.
     Steven: Oh.

A classic Alek and Steven conversation. Those boys just make me laugh and laugh.

Dearest Readers

2010-03-17T22:55:00.000-07:00

Thank you for not abandoning me; even if it appears that I have abandoned you. I'll be back shortly with hilarity, stories, recipes, pictures, ideas and crafts. Be patient with me please...

xoxo ~ Barb

Dora, Dora, Dora

2010-02-19T09:41:00.000-08:00

Ok, Mikah is obsessed with Dora the Explorer right now. So obsessed that I have this song running constanty through my head this week.

Could it be that I am a grumpy old Troll who wishes she had a bridge to hide under lately?

Is it in your head now too???

Ground Beef... Blah.

2010-02-17T16:02:00.000-08:00

After the baking this afternoon, followed by lots of cuddling of Lukas, it was almost supper time. Gah!!! Where did the time go? What was I going to make for supper considering that I hadn't taken anything out of the freezer. Ground beef was going to save the day, but the thought made me kind of sick. I really don't like ground beef and needed to do something other than spaghetti sauce, meatballs or hamburgers. Hmm, what else did I have? Rice and cauliflower. I just might be able to do something with this.

Curried Cauliflower Casserole
2 cups cooked rice
1 lb. ground beef
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp corriander
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 med. diced onion
1 small head cauliflower
1/2 pt. sour cream
Salt & pepper to taste

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cook rice so that you have 2 cups of cooked rice.
- Saute beef and onion . Salt and pepper lightly. Add curry powder, corriander and turmeric.
- Steam cauliflower until tender, but not over cooked.
- Take a casserole dich and mix beef, rice and cauliflower. Layer sour cream over top.
-Bake for 25 minutes.

~I think it would be even better if topped with plain yogurt instead of sour cream but it was still pretty darn good. Alek didn't even complain about the cauliflower, and they all loved the spice.~

Barb's Boy's Banana Bread

2010-02-17T15:42:00.000-08:00

We're in the middle of our February Break here, which means that 3 boys and I are rambling around the house. Well, we should be if the littlest boy wasn't very very sick. Since Friday the house has been filled with horrible smells, crying, wimpering and bad behaviour from the older two from being cooped up and not having enough parental attention.

Today would be the end of all that, I decided! Enough is enough. But how to turn our blues around??? Baking, of course! We were in need of some serious comfort food baking and what comforts better than banana bread? So, we came up with this recipe, which is fantastic if I do say so myself. The only thing that would have made it better would be if I actually had the chopped walnuts that I was imagining were in the freezer. Oh well, I'll eat it any way. This recipe makes a lot, but you will be wanting a lot. Enjoy!

Barb's Boy's Banana Bread
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
4 or 5 ripe bananas
4 cups of flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup chopped walnuts

- Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Mix the butter and white sugar until creamy. Add the eggs and mix until well blended. Mix in the banana's. Pour in the flour, baking soda, salt. Stir to incorporate it into the wet mixture. Add in the sour cream and brown sugar; mix until well blended. Stir in the walnuts.
- Pour mixture into 2 or 3 well greased loaf pans (depending on their size). Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes depending on your oven.

Try to contain yourself until the banana bread cools enough so that you can eat it without burning your mouth. Oh, and make sure that you slather your piece with butter before you eat it.

Celebrate The Boy!

2010-02-14T07:44:00.000-08:00

I love crafty projects. When I have the time (and my sewing room is clean), I could spend hours whipping up some wonderful things for my kids. The only problem, aside from my room never being clean and never having enough time, I have 3 boys. It's hard to find and think of wonderful projects to do for them. I try, really I do but I think I've made more things for my 2 neices lately than for my boys. Sad but true.

Then, after blog-hopping late last night, TA-DA, I discovered that Dana over at MADE has dedicated the whole month of February to projects for boys. Yay! Click on the button on the side and you will be able to see all the wonderful projects for yourself. The projects are boy-worthy and the tutorials are fantastic.

New Canadian Indy Music

2010-02-09T14:02:00.000-08:00

If you know me, you'll know just how much I lurve the Canadian Indy music scene. I've been sadly neglecting my musical needs lately, so here are my new favorite tracks. Check out my playlist; pay special attention to The New Lightweights, Hawksley Workman, and Kathleen Edwards.

http://radio3.cbc.ca/#/playlists/playlist.aspx

Who do you love???

Work Inappropriateness

2010-02-09T11:53:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty sure that someone at work has a crush on me.

Does, "I was just going to turn you on," sound appropriate for the work place?

I think not.

I'm feeling harrassed.

DIY Sweater Boots

2010-02-03T12:49:00.000-08:00

O.M.G! Look at what I just found! Urban Threads has the most amazing and in-depth tutorial for making your own sweater boots out of recycled materials. I have been wanting a pair of these, but haven't been able to part with the cash to actually buy some. This sounds better, and we all know how much I lurrve a DIY project. Grab the tutorial for yourself here. I'm thinking vintage buttons instead of embroidery though...

p.s. Heather be prepared for this project when you come to visit this weekend :)

Vehicular Woes

2010-02-01T21:41:00.000-08:00

The past few weeks have not been great for our poor vehicles. Let's see...

first the car was involved in a middle of the night hit and run where the front end was smashed in. We figure it must have happened while the kids were up, because who could hear anything outside over their racket;
then about a week later, the van was broken into and someone made off with my purse that I had stupidly forgotten stashed between the seats. Thank god for the wonderful lady down the street who not only found my purse in the morning, but also scoured the street and picked up all my id and miscellaneous purse contents. She saved me the biggest hassel trying to get all of that replaced! Honestly, I had no idea that such wonderful people still existed out there.
and then today, the Mr and Alek were involved in an accident where no one was hurt, thank god, but our car did not survive. Now begins the arduous and stressful task of dealing with the insurance and all the other junk. I'm really not sure how we are going to manage with only 1 vehicle.

Ok, do those count as things-that-happen-in-3's? Please say yes. We could really use a good break right about now.

Overheard While Tobogganing

2010-01-30T14:19:00.000-08:00

I took Alek, two of his friends and Mikah sledding today. While we were standing around waiting for the two boys to get down the hill I guess Mikah found a cigarette butt on the ground that he really wanted.

          Girl:   Barb, I told him not to touch it because it is gross
                     and he could die.
          Me:    That's right, smoking is disgusting.

Girl: It is! That's why I'm never going to smoke.
I'm just going to drink.

Oh, kids! They are so hilarious without even trying.

Missing

2010-01-29T20:31:00.000-08:00

Missing: 1 camera. Last seen: Christmas 2009.

If you have seen said camera, please tell it to come home.
It is missing valuable photo opportunities.

This Weekend In Saskatoon

2010-01-29T20:27:00.000-08:00

Please pray for me dear readers.

Pray that Alek stays away from the radio this weekend.

Pray that no one tells him
that the RV show is happening.

If he hears,

I will have to take him.

If I have to take him,

I will never hear the end of it.

Seriously.

I'll never hear the end of it.

Remember the Haggis incident?

Please pray for me.

Fighting the Call of the Carbs

2010-01-28T20:21:00.000-08:00

It's almost 10:00 and the carbs are calling my name. They are SO LOUD! I've been doing a good job of avoiding the olive bread and olive oil/balsamic vinegar that my body is sure that it needs. It really wants it BAD, so I've been avoiding the kitchen and surfing instead.

Then I found this. The Pioneer Woman is amazing, but I think that she has just doomed me. Twice. I'm pretty sure that the olive bread is going to win, and I just know that supper tomorrow night is going to center around these Crash Hot Potatoes. How have I never thought of this???

Can anyone look at this picture and not want this; desperately want this???

I'm in Need ...

2010-01-13T19:40:00.000-08:00

of some inspiration and introspection. Hence, K.D. Lang.

Quick Lentil Salad

2010-01-11T20:54:00.000-08:00

This salad is super quick, thanks to canned lentils, and really yummy! It's quick, healthy and tasty; you won't be disappointed.

Quick Lentil Salad
Ingredients
- 1 large can of lentils; rinsed and drained
- half of an english cucumber; cut into small cubes
- 2 or 3 roma tomatoes; cubed
- 1/2 cup of sliced black olives; or to your taste
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
- Extra virgin olive oil
- lemon juice
-salt and pepper
- greek spice (optional)
(you could add cubed red pepper and red onion if you wish)

Directions
- Add all ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle with approx. 1 tbsp of olive oil and 2 Tbsp lemon juice. Season with salt, pepper and greek spice.
-This salad can be eaten right away or it will keep in the refrigerator for several days.

I made a bowl of this a few weeks ago and took it to work where it fed me for several days worth of lunch. I made another one tonight and Mikah LURVED it! Try it, you'll thank me!

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2010-01-08T09:07:00.000-08:00

Mikah: (laughing hysterically) Something just came out of my
bum... It was a fart

Hysterical laughter follows from all 3 boys.

My life is seriously awesome.

Overheard From the Back of the Van

2010-01-05T14:58:00.000-08:00

Alek and his friend Steven ambushed me when I picked Alek up from school today. Steven was coming to play and it was already Ok with his dad. Alrighty then boys, hop in the van.

As we were driving to pick up the other two from the babysitters, I could hear bits and pieces from the conversation that was happening in the backseat. It started as a fun discussion about comic clubs and video game clubs at school that was escalating into indignant 9 year-old voice tones. Of course, my child was getting carried away with himself and his version of reality. Steven was accusing him of lying and Alek was saying that he wasn't.

Steven: You're lying! There isn't a Star Wars club!
Alek: No I'm not!
Steven: Well, I don't believe you cause you're lying!
Alek (says with exasperation in his voice): Well, I'm not lying. Did Columbus lie about finding America? Is the great Wall of China a lie? Is the war in Afganistan a lie? Those aren't lies and I'm not lying about the Star Wars club either!

Who is this child of mine and how is he related to me??? I'm lucky that those things register on my radar even now let alone when I was 9 years old. Of course, the whole conversation was ridiculous and, of course, he was lying.

Lhasa de Sela

2010-01-04T20:32:00.000-08:00

Lhasa de Sela

September 27, 1972 – January 1, 2010

Soar, and cover us with your melody.

First Book

2010-01-04T19:04:00.000-08:00

Ok, Twilight is done. I finished it last night and thought it was good, but I wonder what I would have thought if I hadn't seen the movie first??? Honestly, I was more riveted by the movie than the book, but we'll see if that changes as I move on to the next few.

For some reason the story seems to take a lot out of me. I've been unable to start the second book for some reason tonight. The story has made me too nostalgic; thinking about simpler times without diapers, and dishes, and bills LOL! On that note, here's a blast from my 18 year old past...

Spiritual Journeys in Emerging Adulthood: A Narrative Study

2009-12-31T21:46:00.000-08:00

My sister's Master's Thesis is online! Check it out, if for no other reason than to acknowledge and honor the blood, sweat and tears that went into completeing it. I'm still amazed at the amount of work, time and dedication that it took to complete. Well done!

Heather, your acknowledgement even made me tear up a little bit, and not because I'm not mentioned :)

Spiritual Journeys in Emerging Adulthood: A Narrative Study

New Reading Material

2009-12-31T21:37:00.000-08:00

My sister finally lent me the first 3 books in the Twilight series. I've seen the first 2 movies, but had had no desire to read the books before hand. I couldn't understand what the thrill was. Now that I know, everyone has successfully convinced me that the books are a MUST READ. And, as we all know that the book is always much better than the movie it's been made into... I'm looking forward to my reading time!

See you in a few days LOL!

Awesome Coloring Book Idea

2009-12-31T21:33:00.000-08:00

Both Mikah and my neice Clover are very interested in coloring. Clover, being 4 and a girl, is an advanced colorer. Mikah, who is almost 3 and a little boy, simply loves to fill a page with various colors. I wanted to get him some coloring books for Christmas to help him with his artiscic endeavours, but nothing really seemed appropriate. Every coloring book is either full of cartoon characters, to which he has little or no attachment to, or pictures full of tiny details which would be impossible for him to color. I think I eventually found a Christmas coloring book, but I wish that I had seen this idea instead.

Kathy, from Merriment Design, shares an awesome tutorial for making a family themed coloring book. I haven't attempted it yet because we are still at my parents farm, but when I get home... look out! With any luck I'll be cranking these babies out left and right!

Come back soon to check out my attempt, and check out Kathy's tutorial now.

Anti-Viral Tea and a Little Christmas

2009-12-28T19:27:00.000-08:00

The kids and I have been have been fighting off a cold since the beginning of October. It never seems to fully go away, and I am so tired of snotty noses and night time coughs that I could just scream. I'm always willing to try something natural, so my sister-in-law told me about some horrid sounding tea made with ginger, cayene pepper, garlic, lemon juice... need I go on?

I did manage to buy the supplies but never got around to actually making the tea. I honestly don't think that I could have managed to drink it. So I went on the hunt for something similar and I found this... (here)

Strong Anti-Viral Tea

Step One

One cup of peeled, chopped and minced fresh ginger

10 cups of water

Step Two

Apple cider (1/2 cup per serving)

Lemon juice

Directions

Peel and mince the ginger (a food processor makes little work of this job).

Simmer the minced ginger in 10 cups of water for an hour or so. Strain.

When ready to have a serving place 1/2 cup of the strained ginger water in a pan with 1/2

cup of apple cider and a squirt or two of lemon juice. Heat and serve.

Ginger is fantastic and treats so many things. Fortunately this tea tastes great, which will definately encourage me to drink it for a ginger lover I am not.

Random Thoughts From A Tired Mammma

2009-12-22T15:06:00.000-08:00

Mikah woke me up at 5:30 this morning and Lukas at 6:00; such an awesome start to the second day of holidays. Mikah is quite sick with another cold though so I can't be too mad at him. He looks sick too, so that makes it alittle easier to deal with his super bad behaviour as well. Well, maybe only a bit easier.

Of course this is the pre-Christmas rush as well, so I have tons to do around here and not much time to get it all finished. I'm stressed and that makes me a less than stellar mommy. Does a good mommy lock her kids out of the kitchen, then crank the music to drown out their fighting and whinning while she tries to get some Christmas baking done? Somehow I managed to drown them out enough to have these random thoughts while rolling cookies:

Drinking alone shouldn't be such a bad thing; it would be amuch better idea than encouraging your kids to drink with you.
I wonder where the cat is living. I wonder why I care.
What ever happened to Uncle Kracker? I should download some of his music.
I wish foam wreath forms weren't so darned expensive.
Maybe I should watch The Sound of Music sometime. I can't believe that I've never seen it. I wonder if I'm the only one?
Crap, I forgot about the van full of stuff that I have to take to second hand!
I wonder if Alek will recognize Santa's wrapping paper after he saw it in the back of the van?
God I need a drink.
I really have to stop saying "shut up" all the time. And I have to stop smiling when Lukas says it. Not good parenting behaviour.
I should download Love Actually to watch tonight while I'm wrapping presents.
I hate wrapping presents!
What was I going to use my glue gun for? Why did I take it out?
When I make our Chrismas Eve Clam Chowder I should laddle some aside for Laura before I add the clams. Why have I never thought of this?
I'm not sure I can manage spin class. I might really die.
Why won't they shut up and play nice together? Will it ever happen while they are still living under my roof?

Christmas Miracle

2009-12-20T13:58:00.000-08:00

Today the unthinkable; the unimaginable happened.

Alek and I cleaned his room. And I mean, cleaned his room. But the true miracle was that I managed to convince him to throw away and give away more stuff than he actually kept. He is a packrat to the extreme so this was no easy feat, but today he did it happily.

Somewhere the angels are singing.