My son started hockey today.
Nothing particularly remarkable about that, right? You're right.
For us, it was remarkable only because his 4 and a half years with us have been very, very long. He's our fourth child, the one who made liars out of all those who told me, "You'll see! The 4th just follows along. He'll be super easygoing. I promise." LIARS.
His babyhood is a blur to me (my other kids were 6. 4 and 2 when he was born, so we were just starting to get 'busy' with homework, activities, sports, SCHEDULES) and he has been such a hellion that I am ashamed to admit I've wished away a fair amount of his toddlerhood.
Everything in our lives is marked 'before Ryan' and 'since Ryan'.
Before Ryan, I had a handle on everything. I kept up with laundry, my house was relatively organized, I cooked all my meals at naptime. We hosted lots of fun, adult parties because grandparents were only too happy to have the other 3 for sleepovers.
Since Ryan was born we feel as though we rarely come up for air. Everything is overwhelming, from the groceries to the laundry to the sense of anarchy he brings to the other three, who are, on their own, generally very well-behaved (if energetic) kids. Entertaining? Forget it. I can't cook AND clean on the same day when he's in the house.
Ryan starting hockey for me marks a turning point of sorts. There have been a lot of positive changes in my boy during the past little while. He's recently switched daycares to a place that's a bit more preschool-ish in its approach, and he's really bought into it. He plays like a big kid- actually, he always has, only when you are almost 5, it's cool. When you are 2, it's just a bit weird. It's almost as though he has ''grown into' his humongous personality. This is a kid who walks into a room full of people and says things like, "Let's get this party started!" Watching him start organized sports this year is another way we will mark the passage of time as we look back on his childhood- and I am blown away.
Blown away, as always, by how fast my kids are growing up, but blown away also by the fact that I am sad about how often I hoped time could move a little bit more quickly. When you are up to your eyeballs in chaos, sleep deprivation and what feels like terrorist activity in your own home, it's hard to treasure wee moments...but already I feel regret.
When you're trying to teach your children not to do things they'll regret, it smacks you right in the face when you've gone and done it yourself.
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Hi. Remember me?!
Can it be more than three years since I last posted on this blog? Yes. Yes, it has. Life got in the way, I suppose- went back to work half-time (more on that later!) and our kids are getting bigger and busier. I'll admit that I often compose blog posts in my head while in the car or in the shower, but have obviously not had the time/energy/impetus to post them. That is going to change! I have come to the realization I need to change how I do business.
Almost two years ago I turned 40 and my body has started to slowly betray me, making a mockery of me and the last 25 years of hard-core, no-unscheduled-days-off workouts and general looking-after-of-myself. As corny as it sounds, my reality has shifted and I am trying to take a closer look at the things that make me 'me'...and my gut tells me to WRITE!
I'm not going to get all philosophical (or at least, not all the time). There's no time for that:
Today is Saturday, September 15 (Happy Birthday, Prince Harry).
8am ringette in Beaconsfield
10am Ballet Development class in Pointe Claire
11am Hockey in Kirkland
2pm Hockey in Ste. Anne's
2:45pm Contemporary Dance class in Pointe Claire
3pm 10 9-year-old girls descend on my home for Carly's birthday party.
7pm Movie with friends!
Tomorrow:
8am ringette in Dorval
8am hockey in Kirkland
8:30am Nutcracker auditions in Pointe Claire (I am volunteering, so we'll be there til 3pm or so)
12pm Hockey in Kirkland
1pm Birthday party (go-karting in St. Zotique)
In between all this glorious nonsense I have about 3 hours of correcting to do and meal prep for the week to tackle. There are chicken breasts in the oven and veggies steaming as I type! (Oh, did I mention I am participating in a 30-days sugar free challenge? It sucks, but it was necessary and I am glad to have had the kick in the butt of the 'challenge' part of it).
I promise not to write my to-do lists on here too often. This weekend is ridiculous, though, and I had to share my misery.
SO: a promise to blog regularly has been made. I don't break promises, so here goes!
Almost two years ago I turned 40 and my body has started to slowly betray me, making a mockery of me and the last 25 years of hard-core, no-unscheduled-days-off workouts and general looking-after-of-myself. As corny as it sounds, my reality has shifted and I am trying to take a closer look at the things that make me 'me'...and my gut tells me to WRITE!
I'm not going to get all philosophical (or at least, not all the time). There's no time for that:
Today is Saturday, September 15 (Happy Birthday, Prince Harry).
8am ringette in Beaconsfield
10am Ballet Development class in Pointe Claire
11am Hockey in Kirkland
2pm Hockey in Ste. Anne's
2:45pm Contemporary Dance class in Pointe Claire
3pm 10 9-year-old girls descend on my home for Carly's birthday party.
7pm Movie with friends!
Tomorrow:
8am ringette in Dorval
8am hockey in Kirkland
8:30am Nutcracker auditions in Pointe Claire (I am volunteering, so we'll be there til 3pm or so)
12pm Hockey in Kirkland
1pm Birthday party (go-karting in St. Zotique)
In between all this glorious nonsense I have about 3 hours of correcting to do and meal prep for the week to tackle. There are chicken breasts in the oven and veggies steaming as I type! (Oh, did I mention I am participating in a 30-days sugar free challenge? It sucks, but it was necessary and I am glad to have had the kick in the butt of the 'challenge' part of it).
I promise not to write my to-do lists on here too often. This weekend is ridiculous, though, and I had to share my misery.
SO: a promise to blog regularly has been made. I don't break promises, so here goes!
Saturday, July 4, 2009
How Did That Happen?
This evening, the girls and I went to Old Montreal via Metro with my mother to see Cirque du Soleil's Ovo. We had a great time- the show was fabulous (is Cirque ever NOT?) and I enjoyed watching the girls' reactions. Carly (who is almost 6) spent the whole time trying to identify which bugs were which (the show is full of them!) and trying to decipher the 'story'- when you are five, there is always a story! Jamie was most impressed with the physical abilities of the performers. She definitely has some perspective on how much work has to go into such amazing performances- her own ballet training has taught her how much time it takes to get good at something, never mind to be 'the best', as surely a lot of Cirque performers are.
I realized, though, when we got on the Metro, just how sheltered our kids are. Jamie has travelled pretty regularly by public transport to and from various ballet shows, but Carly..now that's another story. She looked like a rube in the big city from the farm for the night. Once we got to Old Montreal, both girls were fascinated with the buildings, the buskers, the crowds, the sounds. They had a million questions which my mum and I answered...and I felt intense guilt (SHOCKER! A mother feeling guilty?) that they had never before been to this fabulous part of our own city. NEVER. We live about 30 minutes away, always have, and we have never taken our kids to the Vieux Port.
Granted, we had 4 children in 6 years, which means I was heavily pregnant or nursing a fussy newborn for many many months. Combine that with the fact that we are generally quite rigid with nap and sleep routines; combine THAT with the fact that we have incredibly busy lives on the West Island; it just hasn't happened. I am a bit shocked by this myself, to be honest. We have done tons of stuff with our kids. They have been exposed to much culture, sport, recreation, plain dumb fun...just never in the Old Port.
I am making a promise that this summer I will play tourist in my own city with my kids. I told the girls tonight; one afternoon we will put Ryan down for an eary nap and at 3pm we'll come downtown to the Old Port and have supper, see the sights, enjoy the crowds, get an ice cream...we will live it!
I realized, though, when we got on the Metro, just how sheltered our kids are. Jamie has travelled pretty regularly by public transport to and from various ballet shows, but Carly..now that's another story. She looked like a rube in the big city from the farm for the night. Once we got to Old Montreal, both girls were fascinated with the buildings, the buskers, the crowds, the sounds. They had a million questions which my mum and I answered...and I felt intense guilt (SHOCKER! A mother feeling guilty?) that they had never before been to this fabulous part of our own city. NEVER. We live about 30 minutes away, always have, and we have never taken our kids to the Vieux Port.
Granted, we had 4 children in 6 years, which means I was heavily pregnant or nursing a fussy newborn for many many months. Combine that with the fact that we are generally quite rigid with nap and sleep routines; combine THAT with the fact that we have incredibly busy lives on the West Island; it just hasn't happened. I am a bit shocked by this myself, to be honest. We have done tons of stuff with our kids. They have been exposed to much culture, sport, recreation, plain dumb fun...just never in the Old Port.
I am making a promise that this summer I will play tourist in my own city with my kids. I told the girls tonight; one afternoon we will put Ryan down for an eary nap and at 3pm we'll come downtown to the Old Port and have supper, see the sights, enjoy the crowds, get an ice cream...we will live it!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
A Digger Thief I Am NOT!!
Today Nolan's preschool had their annual picnic in the park. I am always grateful when my kids' teachers don't go overboard- I have a problem from both an educator's and a parent's perspective when kids have "graduated" 4 or 5 times by the time they finish high school...daycare, preschool, kindergarten, grade 6...My 4 year old wearing a cap and gown is not something I need to see to know that he has had a wonderful, enriching and FUN year with his teachers and his friends in the 6 hours a week he spends at school.
But I digress. Back to the picnic.
I brought a bag of sand toys with me, along with the sandwiches I contributed to the potluck, and at the last minute tossed two of the boys' diggers into the van as I left the house in the morning. Not the dollar store diggers...these were the big, die-cast metal TONKA diggers, the real deal! Upon arrival at the park I had just too many things to manage (and a less than ideal parking spot due to our late-ish arrival, due to my spinning class earlier...but I am digressing again!) ~ stroller, picnic blanket, tray of sandwiches, Ryan, mom-purse, and a fairly busy road to cross. So, I gave Nolan ONE of the diggers to carry, and left the other in the car.
We had a lovely time at the picnic; the boys played, we all ate, I was able to chat with some other parents there...very nice time indeed. When we packed up to leave, I gathered all our sand toys, along with the digger, and put them in the big "SAND TOY" bag. The digger was sticking out of the bag and as I made my way across the park toward my car, another mom ran after me- "Sheila! Sorry..I think you have Bobby's (not his real name, obviously) digger," as she wrangled it out of the bag, which was over my shoulder. I turned to face her and said,
"No, this is Nolan's digger. We brought it with us from home."
Other mom: "Well, I brought 5, and now I have 4. This one is the one I'm missing." (who the hell brings 5 diggers to a preschool picnic anyway??)
Me: "I brought ONE, and this is it."
Other mom: "I really think it's Bobby's."
Me: "I am positive it is ours. Really."
Other mom: "Mmmm...it's just funny that it looks exactly like the one I am missing."
Me: "Are you seriously doubting my word on this? A digger??"
Other mom: "Mmmmm...I suppose it might turn up." (Very skeptical tone)
Me: "I hope it does."
I have to say that even 2 years ago I would have perhaps not stood up for myself...believe it or not I might have helped her scour the park for her digger in an effort to prove I was not the digger thief. Whether I am getting wiser as I get older or just more tired of BS, I don't know, but even though there was barely a seed of doubt in my mind as to the accuracy of my memory of giving the digger to Nolan to carry into the park, I stood my ground.
If I WERE a digger thief, does anyone honestly think I would choose to steal a digger from my son's preschool classmate, at the preschool picnic, in front of all the parents and the teachers?? If I WERE a digger thief, I would surely have more brains than to do that, wouldn't I?
When I got to my car, that little seed of doubt reared its head- I was saying a very fervent yet silent prayer that I wouldn't slide the door open and see our digger sitting there!
Phewf. It wasn't!
But I digress. Back to the picnic.
I brought a bag of sand toys with me, along with the sandwiches I contributed to the potluck, and at the last minute tossed two of the boys' diggers into the van as I left the house in the morning. Not the dollar store diggers...these were the big, die-cast metal TONKA diggers, the real deal! Upon arrival at the park I had just too many things to manage (and a less than ideal parking spot due to our late-ish arrival, due to my spinning class earlier...but I am digressing again!) ~ stroller, picnic blanket, tray of sandwiches, Ryan, mom-purse, and a fairly busy road to cross. So, I gave Nolan ONE of the diggers to carry, and left the other in the car.
We had a lovely time at the picnic; the boys played, we all ate, I was able to chat with some other parents there...very nice time indeed. When we packed up to leave, I gathered all our sand toys, along with the digger, and put them in the big "SAND TOY" bag. The digger was sticking out of the bag and as I made my way across the park toward my car, another mom ran after me- "Sheila! Sorry..I think you have Bobby's (not his real name, obviously) digger," as she wrangled it out of the bag, which was over my shoulder. I turned to face her and said,
"No, this is Nolan's digger. We brought it with us from home."
Other mom: "Well, I brought 5, and now I have 4. This one is the one I'm missing." (who the hell brings 5 diggers to a preschool picnic anyway??)
Me: "I brought ONE, and this is it."
Other mom: "I really think it's Bobby's."
Me: "I am positive it is ours. Really."
Other mom: "Mmmm...it's just funny that it looks exactly like the one I am missing."
Me: "Are you seriously doubting my word on this? A digger??"
Other mom: "Mmmmm...I suppose it might turn up." (Very skeptical tone)
Me: "I hope it does."
I have to say that even 2 years ago I would have perhaps not stood up for myself...believe it or not I might have helped her scour the park for her digger in an effort to prove I was not the digger thief. Whether I am getting wiser as I get older or just more tired of BS, I don't know, but even though there was barely a seed of doubt in my mind as to the accuracy of my memory of giving the digger to Nolan to carry into the park, I stood my ground.
If I WERE a digger thief, does anyone honestly think I would choose to steal a digger from my son's preschool classmate, at the preschool picnic, in front of all the parents and the teachers?? If I WERE a digger thief, I would surely have more brains than to do that, wouldn't I?
When I got to my car, that little seed of doubt reared its head- I was saying a very fervent yet silent prayer that I wouldn't slide the door open and see our digger sitting there!
Phewf. It wasn't!
Friday, June 12, 2009
I can fondly remember when weekends were "downtime".
Now? Not so much. In an effort to keep our kids active, have some time together as a family, get some exercise ourselves and maintain the close contact we like to have with our families and friends, we've come to understand that leisure time no longer involves "vegging".
This coming weekend is always a soccer-free one for us due to a big tournament using lots of the fields, so we usually have a quieter one than usual.
Let's see what a quiet weekend looks like:
Friday
5pm Family picnic at school
6pm Soccer practice for Nolan
7pm Soccer practice for Jamie
7pm Softball game for Dave
Saturday
8am Do groceries, as Carly's home sick with a fever today, making this chore impossible at its scheduled time
12pm Kirkland Day festivities at a local park- we love this! Air bounces, face-painting, wall-climbing, etc, all outdoors within a very quick bike ride from home
2pm Carly & Nolan going with my mum to see "Up" and then to her house for a sleepover
4pm Opening Day bbq at the summer pool
6pm Synchro Team placement for Jamie
Sunday
9am Our niece's first communion, then a family lunch
10am Softball for Dave
(**I got a sub for my BodyPump class at 10am...**)
1pm Birthday party for Jamie, Carly & Nolan
Not so bad at all! This is the first weekend of spring/summer we haven't had to pay a babysitter to help us get everyone where they needed to be on time.
Must be the lack of soccer.
Now? Not so much. In an effort to keep our kids active, have some time together as a family, get some exercise ourselves and maintain the close contact we like to have with our families and friends, we've come to understand that leisure time no longer involves "vegging".
This coming weekend is always a soccer-free one for us due to a big tournament using lots of the fields, so we usually have a quieter one than usual.
Let's see what a quiet weekend looks like:
Friday
5pm Family picnic at school
6pm Soccer practice for Nolan
7pm Soccer practice for Jamie
7pm Softball game for Dave
Saturday
8am Do groceries, as Carly's home sick with a fever today, making this chore impossible at its scheduled time
12pm Kirkland Day festivities at a local park- we love this! Air bounces, face-painting, wall-climbing, etc, all outdoors within a very quick bike ride from home
2pm Carly & Nolan going with my mum to see "Up" and then to her house for a sleepover
4pm Opening Day bbq at the summer pool
6pm Synchro Team placement for Jamie
Sunday
9am Our niece's first communion, then a family lunch
10am Softball for Dave
(**I got a sub for my BodyPump class at 10am...**)
1pm Birthday party for Jamie, Carly & Nolan
Not so bad at all! This is the first weekend of spring/summer we haven't had to pay a babysitter to help us get everyone where they needed to be on time.
Must be the lack of soccer.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Aaccckkk.. a blog.
I have taken the leap! A blog....the frustrated writer in me is thrilled.
A good way for me to get out my yayas and keep a bit of a record of day to day life for our kids...
Onward!
A good way for me to get out my yayas and keep a bit of a record of day to day life for our kids...
Onward!
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