Happy new year, everyone! Welcome to 2010.
I don't do new year's resolutions, I don't wear stupid hats or bang on pots and pans at midnight... but I do stop and reflect on the year that's gone by.
Highlights from 2009:
January ~ my dad turned 70. Seventy! Happy birthday, you spry septagenarian!
February ~ the end of maternity leave. The return of my caffeine addiction, and punching the clock at the airport. I rolled out the polyester, dried my mommy tears, and headed back to the workforce.
March ~ Noah's adoption is finalized. Three cheers for our forever family!
April ~ the evil economy strikes again! My job is downsized, our new dog dies, and I start the hunt for a new job.
May ~ Noah's birth certificate arrives, and we finally see his new name in print! I apply with AFABC, and it's a perfect fit! :)
June ~ I work my last day at the airport on a Friday, and start at AFABC the next Monday.
July ~ first official family vacation. Noah meets all his second cousins and extended family.
August ~ we meet Noah's big brother!! A wonderful day at the beach with the boys and our respective families. :)
September ~ first international family vacation. My husband, his teenage brothers, Noah & I go to DISNEYLAND!! It was a whirlwind bit of insanity, and we loved every minute of it! I can't wait to go again. :) Next time, pack the straight jackets....
October ~ lots to be thankful for this year. Oh, and Daddy gets his new truck!!! No more transit rides with our two year olds!
November ~ a quiet month in our household!! A couple of birthdays, planning for Christmas. On the work side, I added the position of Education Coordinator and am loving the challenge!
December ~ happy holidays, everyone!!! We did Christmas with my side of the family this year, and were blessed to meet Noah's twin cousins, and have time to spend with ALL my millions (okay, ELEVEN) siblings and their families.
We couldn't ask for a better end to 2009! Wishing you and YOUR families health, happiness, and as much joy as you can bear in 2010.
Happy new year!
Friday, January 1, 2010
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Don't Let Him See Your Fear!
Hubby & I went on a date last month -- which meant we needed a sitter for Noah.
Since we're neurotic parents, not just any sitter will do. We trust Kevin's mom to provide day care, and will permit close relatives to watch him while he's out of our immediate care.
But that's about it.
So that night, we asked a close relative to baby-sit. We prepared Noah by telling him that both Mommy & Daddy would be going out, but we would see him in the morning when he woke up. He seemed fine with that; he knows his aunty very well & she is one of his favourite people. He didn't even cry when we put our coats on and walked out the door.
Kevin joked with his little sister as she waved goodbye. "Don't let him see your fear, sis!"
But she brushed us off and said "We'll be fine, won't we Noah?" to which our pint-sized toddler cackled in agreement. "We be naughty!"
(That should have tipped us off. He was already plotting his baby-sitter's demise.)
We left four pages of instructions to help aunty get through the night. I've included a few of our bedtime directions here:
~ place four ice cubes and water in his purple sippy cup at bedtime, and place the cup on the floor next to the bottom left bedpost.
~read his two favourite books "Love You Forever" and "Just One Goal" twice each in that order in a Swedish accent.
~for pajama time, put his undershirt on inside out so the tag doesn't scratch his neck. Place his left leg in the sleeper first to avoid a meltdown.
~Sing him "Teddy Bear's Picnic" but change it slightly to "Dinosaur's Picnic" and amend the following verse:
Picnic time for dinosaurs
They love to scream and roar
They never have any cares....
At 6 o'clock when mommy and daddy
Have finally had some sleep
Then you can wake up,
Please don't make a peep...
****
So those were the instructions. Not too much to ask, was it???
Aunty, I'm sorry.
I'm sorry we've catered to him and that bedtime is such a battle for you. (And us!)
We're not perfect parents.... but we had no idea.
We had our phones on vibrate in case she needed anything.
Despite checking our phones every ten minutes to see if there were messages, she held out.....possibly because she was hanging on for dear life!!!
Noah's normal bedtime used to be 9pm. (I know, I know, we're terrible!!!)
That snuck up to 10:00, which is still manageable for us.... but when you throw in the baby-sitter factor, that number climbs closer and closer to midnight.
So when our late movie got out at 11:15, and we rushed straight home with the hope of seeing our sleeping babe tucked into his toddler bed, guess what we found instead?
A frizzy haired sister-in-law looking exhausted, standing at the front door holding a sippy cup in one hand and the remains of a toilet paper roll in the other.
"Don't ask!" she commanded as we snuck in the door.
As if on cue, Noah poked his head up from behind his baby gate. "I awake, momma! Gonna get big time out!"
In other words, "Welcome Home, Mommy."
Saturday, December 26, 2009
A Special Christmas Eve Visit
Christmas Eve is packed with magic - the glitter of the holiday, the anticipation of the big man in red, and for those that celebrate, the anniversary of Christ's birth.
Our Christmas Eve was a little more magical than usual. We went 'home' to visit my side of the family, and spent a sunny day hiking with a few of my sibs, my mom, my husband and of course, Noah.
My sister in law commented that it didn't *feel* like Christmas Eve. The ice on the pond and the chill in the air proved it was winter, but there was something missing... something not quite Christmasy about the afternoon.
All that changed on the way back when someone suggested stopping by the MCFD office. "Who knows, Noah's guardianship worker might be in today."
I suppose I should clarify that suggestion with a general warning: most people (social workers included, but people in general) do not appreciate walk-in visitors. But it was Christmas Eve, and we were in the neighbourhood, and we thought, Why not? He's either working or he's at home with his family, and seeing ours won't affect his workload too much. (We hoped.)
We were delightfully surprised.... not only was he in, he had a few minutes to come on out to see us!!! We were so excited. Noah's adoption was a bit serendipitous, and we remain grateful to this day for all the people who helped bring him home to us.
We feel especially grateful to Noah's guardianship worker, who was behind our application 100%. He was absolutely delighted to see how far Noah had come since that pivotal moment over a year and a half ago when we sat around the dining room table drafting Noah's adoption plan together.
Noah was his charming self. Rosy-cheeked and close to exhausting from our hike, he still had enough energy to wish the office "MERRY CHRISTMAS!" as he munched on a little candy cane.
On our way out the door, Noah's worker stopped us and pulled out the thank-you card and photograph we'd mailed him more than a year ago. He'd kept that little thank you all this time, and we were so touched to know that maybe in some way, Noah had made an impact on HIS life, too.
We had a very Merry Christmas after that meeting.
When we woke up on Christmas morning, and Noah scampered up the stairs, Kevin and I had to stop and look at each other in wonder.... every day with Noah is its own miracle, and we were glad to have that moment to remind us that his presence in our family is a gift to be celebrated every day.
Our Christmas Eve was a little more magical than usual. We went 'home' to visit my side of the family, and spent a sunny day hiking with a few of my sibs, my mom, my husband and of course, Noah.
My sister in law commented that it didn't *feel* like Christmas Eve. The ice on the pond and the chill in the air proved it was winter, but there was something missing... something not quite Christmasy about the afternoon.
All that changed on the way back when someone suggested stopping by the MCFD office. "Who knows, Noah's guardianship worker might be in today."
I suppose I should clarify that suggestion with a general warning: most people (social workers included, but people in general) do not appreciate walk-in visitors. But it was Christmas Eve, and we were in the neighbourhood, and we thought, Why not? He's either working or he's at home with his family, and seeing ours won't affect his workload too much. (We hoped.)
We were delightfully surprised.... not only was he in, he had a few minutes to come on out to see us!!! We were so excited. Noah's adoption was a bit serendipitous, and we remain grateful to this day for all the people who helped bring him home to us.
We feel especially grateful to Noah's guardianship worker, who was behind our application 100%. He was absolutely delighted to see how far Noah had come since that pivotal moment over a year and a half ago when we sat around the dining room table drafting Noah's adoption plan together.
Noah was his charming self. Rosy-cheeked and close to exhausting from our hike, he still had enough energy to wish the office "MERRY CHRISTMAS!" as he munched on a little candy cane.
On our way out the door, Noah's worker stopped us and pulled out the thank-you card and photograph we'd mailed him more than a year ago. He'd kept that little thank you all this time, and we were so touched to know that maybe in some way, Noah had made an impact on HIS life, too.
We had a very Merry Christmas after that meeting.
When we woke up on Christmas morning, and Noah scampered up the stairs, Kevin and I had to stop and look at each other in wonder.... every day with Noah is its own miracle, and we were glad to have that moment to remind us that his presence in our family is a gift to be celebrated every day.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Noah vs. Santa
I'm not sure what possessed me to take my two year old to visit Santa today.
My husband had to work, and I'm currently sporting a wrist brace that leaves me fairly incapable of doing anything useful with my dominant hand.
But I decided today would be a good day to visit Santa. St. Nick found time in his busy schedule to visit our local mall, though I'm not sure why. This shopping area is typically a ghost town, but it does transform into shopping central on the last Saturday before Christmas.
We walked, which was wise - not as wise as the three magi, but well, smarter than driving. It meant I could strap young Noah into his stroller and have a chance at shopping while we waited for Santa to arrive.
You see, timing was my first mistake. Normally Noah goes down for his nap around 12:30pm, a nap he desperately needs considering his fall-asleep-for-the-night time has been around 11pm lately. So rather than check Santa's schedule, I just assumed he would be there waiting for us when we arrived at 12:15.
No way, Momma. Of COURSE Santa's only working limited hours. It's practically Christmas, after all.... so we shopped around locally for 45 minutes until the big man in red finally arrived at 1pm.
In the meantime we got a few last minute gifts, and Noah practiced his four-limbed attack on all things shiny and breakable. We were only banned from one store this time around, which is a 300% improvement from last year's holiday banishment score.
At 12:55 Noah spotted Santa taking his seat in his tinsel-covered throne.
"SANTAAAAAAAAA!" Noah screamed across the mall. "DON'T HIT SANTA!"
Oh for the love of St. Nicholas.
I'm glad that we taught Noah the "don't hit" rule. It was perfectly effective in training him to keep his hands to himself in regards to other children, friends' babies, and small dogs with big teeth.
But it makes people stare when he uses it indiscriminantly (even though it's still a correct self-affirmation).
In the last two weeks alone, he's publicly declared:
Don't hit Jesus!
Don't hit baby Jesus!
Don't hit the doctor!
Don't hit old lady!
Don't hit Grandma!
Don't hit the candy!
Don't hit Mickey Mouse!
Don't hit Oprah!
Don't hit Nemo!
and finally..
DON'T HIT SANTA!
Santa actually HEARD that decree, and looked up across the crowded mall to raise a white-gloved hand and share a hearty "ho ho ho!" with my hit-obsessed son.
That sent him over the edge. "I SEE SANTA! I SEE HIM! NO HIT HIM! I SEE SAAAAAAAAAAAAAANTA!"
Thank God the line was short. Noah leaped from my arms and waddled like a hurried penguin over to the big man. Santa scooped him up and placed him expertly on his knee.
It was like watching a horror movie. Noah's excitement drained from his face, his lower lip quivered for a moment, and he looked at me with puppy dog eyes.
"SANTA ALL DONE!" he announced in desperation.
Sigh. Another year, another photo with Santa.
Oh well. At least Noah didn't hit him!
My husband had to work, and I'm currently sporting a wrist brace that leaves me fairly incapable of doing anything useful with my dominant hand.
But I decided today would be a good day to visit Santa. St. Nick found time in his busy schedule to visit our local mall, though I'm not sure why. This shopping area is typically a ghost town, but it does transform into shopping central on the last Saturday before Christmas.
We walked, which was wise - not as wise as the three magi, but well, smarter than driving. It meant I could strap young Noah into his stroller and have a chance at shopping while we waited for Santa to arrive.
You see, timing was my first mistake. Normally Noah goes down for his nap around 12:30pm, a nap he desperately needs considering his fall-asleep-for-the-night time has been around 11pm lately. So rather than check Santa's schedule, I just assumed he would be there waiting for us when we arrived at 12:15.
No way, Momma. Of COURSE Santa's only working limited hours. It's practically Christmas, after all.... so we shopped around locally for 45 minutes until the big man in red finally arrived at 1pm.
In the meantime we got a few last minute gifts, and Noah practiced his four-limbed attack on all things shiny and breakable. We were only banned from one store this time around, which is a 300% improvement from last year's holiday banishment score.
At 12:55 Noah spotted Santa taking his seat in his tinsel-covered throne.
"SANTAAAAAAAAA!" Noah screamed across the mall. "DON'T HIT SANTA!"
Oh for the love of St. Nicholas.
I'm glad that we taught Noah the "don't hit" rule. It was perfectly effective in training him to keep his hands to himself in regards to other children, friends' babies, and small dogs with big teeth.
But it makes people stare when he uses it indiscriminantly (even though it's still a correct self-affirmation).
In the last two weeks alone, he's publicly declared:
Don't hit Jesus!
Don't hit baby Jesus!
Don't hit the doctor!
Don't hit old lady!
Don't hit Grandma!
Don't hit the candy!
Don't hit Mickey Mouse!
Don't hit Oprah!
Don't hit Nemo!
and finally..
DON'T HIT SANTA!
Santa actually HEARD that decree, and looked up across the crowded mall to raise a white-gloved hand and share a hearty "ho ho ho!" with my hit-obsessed son.
That sent him over the edge. "I SEE SANTA! I SEE HIM! NO HIT HIM! I SEE SAAAAAAAAAAAAAANTA!"
Thank God the line was short. Noah leaped from my arms and waddled like a hurried penguin over to the big man. Santa scooped him up and placed him expertly on his knee.
It was like watching a horror movie. Noah's excitement drained from his face, his lower lip quivered for a moment, and he looked at me with puppy dog eyes.
"SANTA ALL DONE!" he announced in desperation.
Sigh. Another year, another photo with Santa.
Oh well. At least Noah didn't hit him!
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