Canada got the Gold - In which I boast.. just a little

Canada's Sidney Crosby skates with the Canadian flag as team-mates celebrate after winning gold in the ice hockey. Photograph: Gary Hershorn/Reuters

Woo Hoo!  Okay, okay.  For someone who has not been overly enthusiastic about the whole Olympics dealio, I cannot help but feel excited that Canada won not only the Women's Hockey but the Men's as well. I even had today's final game playing in the background while I worked.  As we approached the end of the 3rd period, with Canada in the lead by only one goal, even I got nervous.  When it went into over time... I was crushed.  That didn't remain long though as Canada didn't take their time in sewing up that final goal.  How proud are we?  Obviously amazing so!

Not to gloat too much for my American readers, but I cannot help but be proud of the Canadian athletes that worked so hard to bring home so many Gold medals.  Canada may not have the most medals, but they certainly have the most Gold.  I guess, to many, it makes all the money, time and effort going into the preparation for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Although I have to say I am pretty upset that the first death of an olympic athelete happened in Canada.  Not that I want one to happen anywhere.  When I look at the run and see how it was designed, it cannot help but make me just a little annoyed that something like this could even happened.  Even to my layman's eyes I couldn't help but see the flaws in it.  How the hell did this get passed?  I mean by the very nature of many of these sporting events, athletes do take a certain amount of risk in their hands.  Anything can happen really.  A bizarre fall, like Liam Neeson's wife, could easily result in death.  No matter how trivial it may have seemed at the time.  But when an accident like this happens, you really have to wonder.. was it the sport.. or the designers?   Tragic, very tragic.

I am looking forward to tonights closing ceremonies and it will be with a sigh of relief that I say goodbye to another Olympics.  It has been a real killer for our business. It's unbelievable how much things slowed down here.  I've had like five customers all day and most of them since hockey game ended.

 So long, farewell
Auf Wiedersehen, adieu
Adieu, adieu
To you and you and you

Romantic Movies Series - Mansfield Park

I wanted to share some of my favourite romantic movies with you.  Some of them you may have heard of or seen, some of them you may not.  If not, I hope by this post to inspire you to go out and rent the DVD.

Today's Pick - Mansfield Park


More specifically the 1999 adaption novel starring Francis O'Connor.  


Written by Jane Austen in the 1800s, this movie is about a young girl is taken from her family to go and live with her wealthy aunt and uncle thereby decreasing the burden on her poverty stricken parents.  Fanny is brought up among her 4 cousins; however, is taught that she is and always will be less than they are and certainly not their equal.  Despite the coldness of the family  Fanny grows to be a mature young woman and manages to claim a friend in one cousin at least, that of Edmund.  


The story is primarily about her life, love and struggles within the Bertram household.  While I may have to step down off my Purist rant soap box because this movie is not strictly true to form.  This Fanny Price is certainly a lot more active, healthy and attractive than Jane Austen's depiction of her but oh Patricia Rozema's script has made it so much livelier than any of the original versions.  It is for this, for the score, the costumes, the scenery alone that I have allowed it to become one of my favourite films despite my earlier misgivings and criticisms of it.  


So here are a few of my favourite quotes from the film.   Btw, the last quote is a bit of a spoiler if you are not familiar with the story so don't read that one if you're planning on watching the movie. 

Edmund:  Fanny, don't be foolish.  It is raining. 

Fanny:  I see more distinctly in the rain. 

Edmund:  It's just a silly ball. 

Fanny:  I'll not be sold off like one of your fathers slaves, Edmund. 

Edmund:  Aw, don't be an imbecile.

Fanny:  Oh but imbecility in women is a great enhancement to their personal charms. 

Edmund:  Fanny, you're being irrational. 

Fanny:  Yet another adornment, I must be ravishing.  

Edmund:   Fanny, you really must being to harden yourself to being worth looking at. 

Mr. Crawford:   Do you know I wish to rent the parsonage?  I wish to continue improving and perfecting my intimacy ... with you.  Fanny, you have created sensations which my heart has never know before. 

Fanny scoffs:  please. 

Crawford:  There is only one happiness in life:  to love and be loved. 

Fanny:  Mr. Crawford, do not speak nonsense. 

Crawford:  Nonsense? 

Fanny:  You are such a fine speaker that I'm afraid you may actually end in convincing yourself. 

Crawford:  Fanny! You are killing me. 

Fanny:  No man dies of love but on the stage, Mr. Crawford.  

 Edmund: Fanny, I must confess something. 

Fanny:  hmmm?

Edmund:  I've loved you all my life. 

Fanny:  I know, Edmund.

Edmund: No, Fanny.  As a man loves a woman,

                   as a hero loves a heroine,

                   as I have never loved anyone in my entire life. 

 I was so anxious to do what is right that I forgot to do what is right but if                                               you choose me after all my blundering and blindness well, that will be a happiness which no description could reach. 

Sigh.... 

Day 2 of Potty Training

What we're not done yet?  Have I not published post after post about the ups and downs and frustrations of potty training?  Yes and Yes. 

Quite literally, I gave up.  The elusive potty training dream gave way to the realities of packing and moving.  I was then struck with the grass is greener on the other side syndrome.  That is, potty training would be easier in the new house because there is no carpet on the main floor.  Yup.  I had grand plans. We've been here, what three and a half weeks?

Still there is always the just getting down and doing it.  As previously posted we tried about two weeks ago but after the disastrous results I put my foot down and told hubby that I was not trying to potty train O until the toilet on the main floor was fixed. 

So of course, my husband ran right out and got the necessary things to fix the toilet.  Yeah right.  If you believe that, you are not married.  

It wasn't until that water stain spot on the ceiling (discovered when we first moved in) actually started to turn in to a real leak and drip, dropped toilet water onto my kitchen floor.  Yum.  I promptly called hubby, was instructed to turn off the toilet and thus we were down to 1 toilet.  Hey, I'm just glad we had three to begin with.  Which was the spurs to get hubs in action and we had the downstairs toilet fixed that night.  The upstairs main bathroom toilet... well it's still turned off, well actually it's completely off lying on it's side waiting for a decision to be made because the floor is rotted.  

Which means I have to put up or shut up and start potty training O in earnest.  I have to admit I stalled just a little until I was able to make a quick trip to Wal-Mart and stock up in underpants.  My husband foolishly figured three would do it.  We went through 3 pairs of pants in the first hour.  

So now I have 9 pairs of underpants.  Good thing too since the first day we went through 6 pairs.  Today, we are on #2 and so far we're doing really good.  Hopefully, one more day of him running around half naked will do the trick and we will be officially potty trained.  Maybe we will celebrate by burning 

Can I just say you know you are a parent when you are struck by how freakishly adorable those little red car underpants are?  I have to say they are my favourite.  Although my husband pointed out that they say... Speed, I am speed.  Not exactly a good selling point for men.  ;)~

I am NOT Freaking Mary Poppins!

Do you hear me?

A spoonful of sugar does not make the medicine go down.  I'm going to need a whole lot of booze just to make it through the potty training years. Me.  Not you.

The house does not magically clean itself.  No amount of singing is going to do it.  You have to actually pick up a toy and put it away.  That's what you have arms and legs for.

I do not have a bottomless bag from which all sorts of wondrous things come.  You need to go and play with the toys we already bought you.  Why do you think we bought them in the first place, to look pretty on your shelf floor?

There are just only so many games and activities I can think up for you to do. I can't magically pull something out of my ass the air every time you are bored and want to do something "special".  Floam IS special.  Live it.  Like it. Love it.

I do not have a cook and a maid to take care of the meals and clean the house so I can play with you 24/7.  Someone actually has to do those things so we have food to eat and clothes to wear and oh so those icky bugs you see on "How Clean is Your House" don't take up residence in our home.  Oh and guess who that someone is... me!

All of life lessons are not going to be followed by a catchy song and fancy footwork.  The earlier you learn this, the better.

You may think your father is like Bert the Chimney Sweep but trust me kiddos, he's never swept a chimney, drawn a chalk painting or danced with penguins in his life.  He's more like the dad on Full House.  Oh, you've never seen that show?  How about Homer Simpson Billy Ray Cyrus on Hannah Montana without the guitar playing, the singing, the goatee....   Get the picture?

I am not persistently cheerful.  I do not smile and speak in calm soothing tones while asking you politely, yet firmly to stop spinning the chair like a top.  I'm going to yell, cry and shriek my way through an adult sized temper tantrum if you spin that chair just one more freakin time.

Let's just say I am more likely going to be compared to the wicked witch in Hansel and Gretel than Mary Poppins.  Just be grateful I am on a diet.

I Feel Stuck - Do you feel Stuck?

Sometimes I have a lot of these days. Where I look around at my home and my family and think:

*  how come the mess only bothers me

*  since when did putting the dishes in the dishwasher, putting the milk back in the fridge and twist tying the bread become the sole responsibility of me

* why does no one pick up the toy that's been sitting on the stairs for two days, they've walked past it at least 50 times and yet there it remains. 

* I am not the only one that enjoys eating, why am I the only one capable of meal planning

*  Just because I am at home during the day and work at night, does that still technically mean that I should be responsible for 99.9% of the cleaning going on?  I mean, it's not like I don't have another job.  

* how come men are great at carrying things but suck at unpacking

* which leads into the... because they didn't help unpack it they have no friggin clue were anything is or where it should go.

* why does wanting to sit down for a 1/2 hour without one child clinging to me after playing the mom "bob areobics" all morning, earn me the "she just wants attention" comment from daddy and thus makes me a bad mommy because I don't want to snuggle at that moment, which I saw as a manipulative ploy in getting out of what I asked her to do event anyways.   

*  why does the sound of my husband thereafter going and playing with them make me feel like a bad mommy, when I can't remember the last time he actually took that kind of time out to play like that

* how come my errands and priorities always seem to take a backseat to his 

Today, was one of those days. It all started from the fact that I'd been looking forward all week to getting out by myself on Saturday and it didn't happen.  While I can tell myself the reasons why it didn't happen were justifiable and all good, it still got me down.   

It makes me feel stuck.  I am to all extents and purposes, bound to these three kids who have deprived me of my freedom in ways I never would have imagined.  It's almost like being on house arrest with the only means of being sprung is when the jailer relieves you of your duty for a pitiful hour or two.  Only in jail they get a mandatory hour for exercise.  At least they do in the movies.  ;)

Sure I could take them with me and often do but it's just not the same.  

So I grumped my way through my chores while hubs organized the garage.  I know I'm being unreasonable and the whole time I'm arguing with myself because I know in my heart that me staying home with the kids is the right choice for our family.  I just didn't figure on how mundane the day-to-day home life would be.  

My husband does help but his help is inconsistent.  Which, makes it very difficult to talk to him about it.  He sees it as he does do these things to help and I see it as, yes, you do but only once every two or three weeks or so.  Would he recall the fact that he only made the bed once in the past three weeks?  No, he'd recall the one time he did.  Now this, in of itself, is a little thing but when you're husband no longer commutes and supposedly has more time would it hurt to expect him to make the bed once in a while?  Especially when you're downstairs making breakfasts for the kids, bagging lunches and basically nagging and organizing three children into getting dressed and ready for the day.  

I have to say it gets a little disheartening after a while.

The Daily Struggle

Are you a morning person:?  I like to think that I am not entirely opposed to the getting up of a morning.  I am opposed to getting up supremely early say like 9:00 a.m.  HAHA I wish.  Anything before 7:00 a.m. is to early.  With the advent of children I have come to the acceptance that sleeping in until 7 is a blessing and to not mourn those sleep in weekends (okay, mourn it less).

One habit, mental and physical, I cannot break is that morning cup of tea, bite of breakfast and a novel.  Some days, I have to confess that I actually will stall eating breakfast just so I can avoid hubby across the table. You see not only is it rude to read while someone else is at the table (my mother brought me up right) but even if decided to be rude, he continuously talks to me.

I can't help it I am a creature of habit.  When I used to work outside the home, I'd get up everyday and do the same morning routine.  When I first got married, hubs had a job that started later in the day so he slept in, I was able to continue my morning routine unchallenged until the kidlets started to arrive.

Now, however, I am finding it increasingly difficult to get that morning me time.  We get up, hubs jumps in the shower, while I proceed downstairs to make E's lunch and everyone else's breakfast.  Even if the little rugrats are distracted by play or the t.v., I know that I have to make their breakfast first or I won't have a moment's of peace eating mine.  Plus that's the good mom thing to do.   Isn't it supposed to be instinctive to make sure the young are fed?

So feeding them first usually meant they'd go off and play, get dressed, whatever and I'd have those 15 or 20 minutes free to myself.  Now it seems like the minute they are done, it's a free for all.  Mom can I do this, mom, I wan't to do crafts, mom, help me zip up my coat, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom.  Every single question results in me having to get up and do something for them.  Whether it's popping in a show to fetching them a tissue to refereeing the fights.

I find myself getting increasingly frustrated and annoyed with them at this time of the day.  You know how some people don't feel right until they've had like two cups of coffee by the time they can even fully open their eyes etc.  I never thought I was one of those.  I mean I like my tea but I consider to be more of a comforting habit than a necessity.  I think what I am addicted to; however, is quiet time and books.  I need it, I can barely get through a day without a quick read of something.  When I have nothing else, I am reduced to *gasp* reading the paper or even trolling online for free books.  I'm like a junkie needing a fix.

Chock one more reason up to why, if you're able, to have your kids young.  Not only do you have more energy but you have had less time to become ingrained into habits.  Habits which are hard to break.

I know I could get up earlier and have a quiet time before they get up but that's so not going to happen.  I like my sleep and we often don't get to bed early enough.  No like everything else a mom does, I'm going to have to suck it up and figure out how not to let it destroy my peace.  Well, you know that level of peace I'd actually like to achieve... one day.

*photo courtesy of www.illustratedstockyard.com

Wordless Wednesday - Ramblings

Desperate time call for desperate measures.  At the end of a long packing and moving day we seriously needed a good stiff drink only our measuring cups were packed.  No worries, the baby bottle cap worked just fine.  Course we could have just winged it. ;)

Don't you wish you could still play in a cardboard house?

Octopus or weird floam alien?

If you really look... it looks like a puppy.  Not bad for my almost 3  year old. 

He only ever seems to make puppies. ;)

For more photos or to join in check out Wordless Wednesday

Happy Valentines Day - A Special Treat

I have to say I am pleased with myself.  For once, I actually put a plan together and carried it out.  Okay, bear with me while I act all smug for awhile.  It doesn't occur often. ;)~

Since this was E's first big fun event at school, I thought I'd help her get things off to a good start with her new friends by making Valentine treats.  It has been hitting me lately that I've been a little reluctant to give up control and allow E to help.  I may just be a little bit of a perfectionist when it comes to pouring, mixing, measuring etc.  So I thought this project would be perfect for a little mother daughter bonding time with my oldest.

We made chocolate covered marshmallows and chocolate hearts.  Just do a search and you will find any number of blogs ready, willing and able to show you how it's done.

Basically you melt 12 ozs of chocolate, stick a craft or candy stick into a marshmallow, dip it into the chocolate and roll or cover with sprinkles.

My adjustments... I couldn't find on short notice candy sticks but I did find cocktail straws at the dollar store.  I got like a 100 for $1.00.  Sure they were a little on the weak side if you over coated the marshmallows, bent real easy like but they still worked and stood up just fine.

I also couldn't find any of that clear plastic covering so I used valentine candy bags instead and taped it around the middle.   You could still see what's inside.  Then we just wrapped the Valentine's cards around each little parcel.

I melted about 4 oz of chocolate first and let E spoon it into the chocolate heart mold.  While she was doing that I prepped the marshmallows and melted about 8 ozs of chocolate.  I melted it in a glass measuring cup because I figured it would be easier to immerse the entire marshmallow to coat it.  I was right. Also a drop or two of honey or corn syrup helps make the chocolate shiny.

Then I used small plates and poured red sugar and colored sprinkles in each one.  Basically I would dip the marshmallows (Hey I had to have fun too!)  and hand it to E to roll or dip in the sprinkles etc.

I found that if there was too much chocolate on the marshmallow and then we tried to roll it, the sprinkles would just be absorbed into the chocolate.  Lighter coating and small pat pats of the marshmallow into the dip worked better.  I also think next time I'd use a coarser sugar because the stuff you buy in the bakery aisle bsorbed real quick into the chocolate.

At first I tended to hover about the right way to do it but I backed off quickly because really what did it matter. This was for E and her friends after all.  With all that sugar and chocolate there was just no way we could mess it up.

 E loved doing it and was so proud of what she made.  She had a hard time going to sleep that night because she couldn't wait to deliver them to all her classmates.




Dig the cheesy smile on my girls




It was just too much fun and made me realize how big she is getting and how I should be trusting her to help more.  Babies.. they just grow up so fast.



















I am a bit of chocolate snob though and next time I think I will go for a higher quality chocolate.  I used Baker's chocolate. A mix of sweet and semi-sweet because I didn't have enough of one or the other and I'm definitely not a unsweetened or dark chocolate kinda gal.  Give me milky smooth and creamy every time!


Did you make any special treats for Valentine's Day?

Jump Rope for Heart - Can you Help?

What's a mom to do when her child comes home with a fundraising sheet.  Send her door to door?  In a neighbourhood where every other kid goes to school?  Good luck with that.

So being the good mom that I am and seeing that E can sign up her own online donation page at www.JumpRopeforHeart.ca,  I thought I'd put the fundraiser out there on the good old World Wide Web.

Now I realize that this is a Canadian fundraiser and so may not interest my American readers; however, if you feel so inclined please consider making a donation to Jump Rope for Heart.

" The Biggest threat to this generation of children is childhood obesity, with 26% of Canada's children being overweight or obese - over 1.6 million!  This puts our kids at risk of developing heart disease, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.  At the Heart & Stroke Foundation, we're working hard to stop this trend through programs like Jump Rope For Heart. When a child participates in Jump Rope for Heart, they learn the importance of physical activity, healthy eating and social responsibility.  Our success depends on everyone's fundraising efforts."   Heart and Stroke Foundation

Can you believe that we have 1.6 million overweight or obese children in Canada?  That's staggering.  We need to do everything we can to encourage our children's participation in a health conscious lifestyle and physical activity.  Have you heard that the study that shows that if the parents are either overweight or inactive, their children are prone to becoming overweight?  It's true.  So why not get off the couch and get out there and play with your kids.

To make a donation through my daughter's site, you may do so here.  Please note this is not me scamming for money.  All donations are made directly to the Heart & Stroke Foundation itself.  Donating through my page just helps my daughter's school achieve their fundraising goals.

Now for anyone that makes a donation over $5.00 I will feature their blog or site on my blog for one day.

For a donation over $25.00, I will provide free advertising space on my blog for one week.

For a donation over $50.00, I will provide free advertising space on my blog for one month.

For a donation over $100.00, I will provide free advertising space on my blog for six months.

The Fine Print:  


Any and all advertising has to be family friendly and non offensive in any way.  If you are uncertain about that, email me before donating to verify.  


Advertising buttons etc are to be provided by donor. 


Donations will be verified before advertising. 

Thank you so much for giving this matter any consideration.  I would very much appreciate it if you'd pass this fundraiser on or leave a comment of a particularly good site to link up on.

Let's Get Jumping!

Heart Fact:  This is the first generation of kids that may  not live as long as their parents. 

Photo Op Friday - Move Memories

Gearing up for the big move.  Literally only two spots were left open on the couch.  

The moving truck moving us in.  Like I said the guys were great but someone somewhere dropped the ball when they decided to send the wrong size truck. It took extra long for them to try and piece it all in the truck, they charged us a fuel surcharge for the second truck when it wasn't our fault they needed a second truck, then we ended up paying for their lunch break.   It should not have taken more than 4 hours each day and when we called and talked to the sales rep about it she said she'd get back to us but never did.   How's that for customer service?  You know every one always says they will do their best for you and in the end once they've got your money.. that's pretty much it.  

This is what we were greeted with when we got here.  This is the water stain on the ceiling.  We contacted the home inspector, he completely missed it so he said it's his responsibility.  He will be coming back to help us get it all fixed.  Hopefully, for free.  We still have to nail down the details. 

Still we are in our new home and we are loving it, warts and all.

Window Treatment Quandary?

The plans are that we are going to paint.  Of course that has to wait until the weather picks up as there is no way I am about to be stuck inside with paint fumes and three kids.  Oh my.  

However, in the meantime I've been trying to make curtains that I had in the other house work in this one. They left some curtains behind but I can't tell which looks better and quite frankly I really don't like either of them.  I feel that it looks a little dated, maybe.  But as I am not fashion designer, I thought maybe I'd ask for your opinions on them. 

These are the curtains that were in the house when we moved in.  They are dark green, puffy sort of valances. 

They were also covered in about 2 inches of dust so I had to take them down to clean them.  The counter has different greens in them so I guess that's why she picked them. 

This is what I threw up quickly to see if it worked.  Is it just me or do them seem to plain? 

Now I had bought these from the local thrift store and threw them up in the old place just to have something up for showing the house.  The jury is still out on whether or not I like them.  Keep in mind that this is a plain eating area which merges into the kitchen and family room.  

Any suggestions?  

This is what we have in our more "formal" living room.  Maybe I'm just leaning towards this style of window decor.  These curtains came with the house as well and a lovely burgundy, crushed satin kind of feel. 

This is just a side window.  The front room window is larger and has a lovely wooden centre piece to carry the fabric across the window.  Now I have watched those home decorating shows and some of them say shears are totally out of style.  Yet the window needs something.  When we have the blinds open this no privacy so I thought a lace curtain underneath would be just the thing.  Any suggestions? 

Thank God for techy friends!

I am officially back online.  I can now surf, blog, comment from any point in my home again.  I will not have to  lie on my bedroom floor to snag a quick trip online.  One which I wasn't really able to do without leaving the children completely unsupervised. While they are mostly good these days... they are still not all good.  If you have a boy under 3, you know what I mean.

Thanks to K and L for dropping by last night.  Our first real visit in the new home with our friends.  They had moved to the area the year prior to us so we had all been waiting for the past year for things to fall into place.  It will be so nice to visit with them on a regular basis again.  K is an IT and so he was able to figure out what was wrong with the settings etc.  I'm still not sure what all was the problem but I do know my husband said that it was what he thought was wrong with his computer.  Yeah. Right.   That's why it was fixed, right? 

Things are settling in well.  I have made good progress on getting the boxes unpacked and out of our bedroom and the kitchen as well as the toy boxes piled in the hall.  It's not done though.  I have a garage full of crap   stuff to sort through and decide what's going and what's staying.

E is so far enjoying school and is eager to go to a family movie night at school this Friday.  Hubs has volunteered me for that job as O is really too young to take.  Oh joy.  I'm not great meeting new people at the best of times never mind throw me in with an entire school full of strangers.  But.. I have to suck it up because after all we expected E to do it when she started her new school.

J is asking us daily about going to school.  I just don't know if we can afford it.  Money is so tight.

K is eager to finish potty training O so he decided while I was at work on Sunday to take away pullups.  Well that was all fine and dandy.  But the problem is the bathroom on this floor is out of service until K fixes it.  So that means my little peeing potty training boy has to run all the way upstairs to go when the urge hits him.  Still, he said it went fairly well with only small accidents so I thought okay I'd get on board and work with O on Monday. 

Things went well for most of the day. He only wet himself once and that just a little bit until..... dinner time of course.  I am trying to get supper ready, K is late and O has repeatedly refused my suggestions that he try to go potty.  I had just heard him upstairs and found out that he had wet himself a little but went the rest on the toilet.  So I'm thinking okay, I should be in the clear to not worry about it until after I've cooked dinner. 

Yeah right.  Do you have any idea how big a child's bladder can be?  No seriously, I want to know.  Because the next thing I know O's standing in a pool of pee on the floor that ran the length of my sofa to him turning and running his wet little foot steps over the rest of the non peed on floor and up the carpeted stairs.  Oh joy.  Did he not just go pee?  Did I not feel the evidence on his clothing and see it in the toilet?   When the water actually looks yellow, they've had a bladder evacuation of some significance.  I cannot help thinking of how dogs storing it up to mark their territory. 

So while I try not to be a nagging wife (don't laugh, it's true) I have tried to lay it down to my husband in the most least nagging way that the bathroom has to be a priority because I cannot potty train O until it's done.  For some reason my children all decide that dinner time is the perfect time to mortally wound themselves or put some sort of body fluids onto the floors and/or furniture.  That it's the perfect time to suddenly fight with each other when they had just spent the whole day peacefully playing together.. okay not peacefully how about semi peacefully with no hitting involved? ARRRGGGH  I cannot be cooking, refereeing the girls while keeping one ear open for O in the bathroom upstairs.  Cause you just never know... is he going potty, is he trying to see how much soap it takes to wash his hands or is he flushing something down the toilet.   That my friend's is my constant worry every since the stuck duck incident.  We had to lift the toilet. 

Back to the house.  I've decided that I am going to post a few photos of my decorating dilemnas in hopes of getting some of your advice.  We will be painting eventually but in the meantime  I'd like to have some curtains up.  I just can't decide whether or not I like the ones I have put up. 

So stay tuned for that. 

In Which I Explore What Will I Do Next

I just found out that the people who expressed interest in our video store last week would like to proceed with the purchase of the store.  Apparently they have sent us a letter of intent to purchase through the mail.  Why they didn't fax it, I don't know.  They did not mention in their email their offer price so I have no idea if it's good or bad.  Still, I'm excited.

I talked to my SIL tonight though and she sounds not very thrilled.  I think perhaps part of her had hoped that it would take a lot longer to sell.  I, on the other hand, am excited.  But then I am the one who most sees the need to get out of the business.  When we are looking at not being able to pay our bills or ourselves, I think it's time to quit.  We just don't have the time or the energy to put into this business.

That being said.  What will I do if the store sells?  K probably will use me as a cover person on a couple of night shifts at his store.  Other than that I just don't know.  It would be nice to be able to be a somewhat contributer to the family finances but I am not interested in going back to work full time and putting the kids in daycare.  I will have to wait another two years before O is in school fulltime.  And working 10 + years in an office with the procrastinating lawyer from hell does not exactly inspire me to go back to work in the legal field.  The only good news is that living in a new community most of the lawyers here probably barely heard of K.J. and if they did aren't aware of just how bad of a procrastinator the man was. There is only just so much a legal assistant can do to actually "assist" her boss.

So that leaves me with what?  I don't know.  I know I'd like to do some sort of home business but I'm not sure what, what would be feasible and what would sell.  I don't have a lot of money and so don't want to waste a lot going after ideas that will bomb.  I have, so far, two mom inventions in mind but haven't had the time to really pursue it other than basic design.  What I would like I think is create a variety of things so I don't get bored doing just one thing.

In the meantime, I just have to keep shrugging off the guilt I sometimes feel with the whole selling the business thing.  It is basically because of me that we have come to this point.  I just wish we could have come to this point two years ago before the recession hit.  My SIL is not an ambitious woman and would be content to sit here forever I think.  If it wasn't for the fact that neither of us is getting paid much she would probably be really digging in her heels right now.  Still, I know it must be hard for her because this is sort of a dream job for her.  So I feel bad but I can't take that on.  This business is not thriving and we need to be done and I need to do what's best for my family and I know she realizes that too.

I thought of maybe going back to school to become a notary but in reality I know it would be a hard thing to do with three kids.  I know a lot of people juggle school and family life but I also know I don't handle stress all that well these days.  Especially kid stress.  Poor things that they are, need me to be a happy mommy not a completely grumpy, yelling mommy.  I work hard at being the first kind of mom but still have a high fail rate.

The sad thing is that most of the money from the sale of the business will probably get sucked up in debt.  First the business debt then our debt.  Even though it's money from my business, I will still feel obligated to put it towards our debt.  When we bought the house, K and I had messed up the calculations and we ended up being like $4,000.00 short so we had to borrow it from the line of credit.  So that has to be paid back.  Plus we thought we would have enough money to pay K's parents back for the money they lent us to pay K's taxes.  We are disputing the taxes but the bank made us pay it up even though the government says we don't have to pay until the dispute is resolved.  So that's like 75% of what I think I might get out of the sale of the store.  I know it's all family debt and it all goes to benefit our family but it's hard to separate it out from being "my money". When you aren't bringing in a lot of money you tend to hold on to what you have.  Makes you feel a little independent you know.  Like how I held onto my RRSP's for the longest time because it was my funds but finally decided to cash them in to help K out with the debt load.  He didn't push me to do it but still he was relieved that I did.

Still there's all that not counting your chicken's before they've hatched.

I really shouldn't but I just can stay away

I really shouldn’t be online blogging when there is so much house to unpack and put away but the truth is I have missed blogging this week.  I’ve actually felt at a loss as to what to do with my hands and my time, when I wasn’t unpacking or fetching for the children that is.

We still don’t have the wireless working properly so I have to resort to piggy backing on some poor unsuspecting slub for now.  Of course the thought of being on an unsecured wireless network scares the crap out of me so I’m composing in Word and cut and pasting my post. 

The kids seem to be adjusting well to the changes.  My fears seem to have been unfounded.  Of course this is just the first week here.  The honeymoon phase if you will.  All in all though E seems to be enjoying school and is excited about participating in field trips, family movie nights and Valentine’s day.  J was a little worried about sleeping in her own room the first night.  Fears expressed in “if O get’s lonely I will just snuggle him okay mommy?”  She had expressed this concern for O so many times that it made me wonder if it was perhaps her that was worried about sleeping on her own.  Sure enough when I asked her that was the case. So the first night she was a little worried and after assuring her that she could see our bedroom door and leaving her door open and the hall light on that she was able to settle down.  It still took a couple of trips upstairs to reassure her that we can hear her etc before she would actually fall asleep though.  Second night, not a concern at all for her.    

J keeps asking when she is going to school.  I haven’t called yet for availability in preschools yet for two reasons:  1) we’re busy unpacking right now and 2) I just don’t know if we can afford to pay for her to go now.  My store is bringing in nothing right now and we just spent so much money it’s not even funny.  Every time I turn around it’s a trip to the grocery store for food or toiletries or other necessities. 

Funny enough the one who seems to be having the most difficulty with this move…. is me. 

I suspect that the overwhelming task of unpacking and sorting has gotten me down.  By 4:00 p.m. every night I’m bummed and grumpy and am yelling at the kids.  Of course, normally that is the most stressful part of the day anyways.  But K is usually home between 4 and 4:30 and I’m not rushing off to work so there is no pressure to have dinner cooked by 4:10.  Maybe that’s the problem.  I’ve lost sort of my focus on the day.  I think I’ve phoned my mom 4 out of 5 days when I usually only talk to her once a week.  I’m used to having my time sucked up by kids AND work and now… it’s just kids till the weekend. 

Add that to the fact that I don’t know where to put half of the stuff and presently 75% of my towels and linens are sitting on the floor  I am worried may have fleas.  Yes fleas.  They had a dog, it’s a good possibility.  K’s not home to unpack or even help me to decide what to do with some of this stuff. 

Men are funny.  They are pretty good at moving stuff and unpacking and setting up electronics (except my wireless internet) but they suck at organizing and putting shit away.  I should retract that, my husband CAN be organized he just chooses not to.  He used to tell me that he’s a compulsive organizer and I had to laugh at him.  Um compulsive people do things… compulsively….not just when they have the “time” to clean and organize.

So it would seem the bulk of the putting away and organizing the entire house falls on my shoulders.  I remind myself to be grateful that my hubby carries all the heavy stuff and will be the one raking the leaves and on poop detail this weekend. (the kids cannot so much as even step a foot in the backyard until the poop is gone.  It’s positively slick with wet leaves and wet poop. *Shudder*  He also is the one to flatten boxes and take them to the recycle depot.  I know I have it good as far as Husbands goes but still sometimes it’s hard not to complain once in a while. 

Some positive news is that we have a couple interested in buying my video store.  They have written us to tell us they wish to proceed just have not given us a formal offer in writing.  So we shall have to see if that is what they are going to do.  I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much because there are a lot of hoops to go through yet.  Still, it’s a good sign.  They don’t seem like they are even going to quibble about the price.  So… cross your fingers and say a little prayer for me. 

Quick Update from Work

Poor E was so sick all weekend.  At one point on Saturday evening she even freaked my mom out a little because her fever was so high.  I felt so bad because I wasn't there with her.  When my parents finally drove the girls up on Sunday I was so antsy to see them.  I've been away from my kids before but never when they were sick so I was surprised to find myself continuously looking out the window for them.  When they finally got there poor E's face was so swollen, not sure why, and she had developed a horrible sore under her nose from her cold.  She looked just awful. After another dose of advil she perked up and was more herself after that.  They were, of course, excited to be home and excited to see their own bedrooms. 

My parents whipped us into shape pretty quick and helped us get a head start on unpacking.  My mom's a whirlwind.  Before I knew it I had most of my kitchen unpacked.  I really appreciated it because sometimes everything is so overwhelming it's hard to focus on one task.  I am usually pretty task orientated myself but I also like to stop and chat with my visitors.  We had two neighbours stop by, one brought cake, the other brought flowers and we met the people across the street who also have kids. 

E ended up missing her first day at the new school but it was pretty obvious by Monday evening that she was definitely feeling better, her fever had been gone for over 24 hours and so she was ready to go back to school. 

Of course, being her first day at a new school we all got up early to walk with her to the new school.  I was a little surprised at how understated the school makes a new arrival.  Of course, her regular teacher was out sick so we only ended up meeting the substitute this morning.  But it was a here's your class, hang up your stuff and away you go.  That was it.  I thought she might have been a little nervous but she waved goodbye real quick and had no problems telling even the cross walk lady that we were "new".  *L*  She seemed to have a good first day and has already made a friend, the girl in the blue coat, who likes to pick up worms.  Ah, a girl after my E's heart.  I was a little disappointed to find that she is in a k-1 split class although the advantage is that when all the kindergarteners go home at 11:30, it's a smaller class with the afternoon teacher and she has two teachers.  One for the morning and one for the evening.  It will take a little getting used to.

We did have some people come look at the store on Friday.  They just loved it.  A little concerned about the drop in income in the last year, well, it's a recession people, but they really love the area etc.  So we shall see.  I am crossing fingers and toes. 

My first commute did not go all that badly but I can't imagine doing it for too long.  It may only be an hour drive but it's a real boring drive.  I am going to try and download an audio book for the drive home because otherwise I just might get sleepy.

As for the leak,  we don't know what we can do about it.  We've contacted the building inspector but I'm thinking that there is really nothing that can be done unless we have some kind of just cause to sue the previous owners, which would be more of a pain than it's worth to sue.  I am just hoping that it is a fixed leak and that all the issue is that we will eventually have to repair and repaint the ceiling.

I still cannot believe that these people left their house so dirty.  We've found socks, clothings, shoes, dental picks, pantiliners (not used thankfully), dog license, and even the info sheet on her birth control.  There is nothing that turns you off more than to open a drawer in the bathroom and find it filled with some else's hair.  yuck.  AND the carpets are much worse than we thought.  Still we have three small children, at least we won't have to stress about spills etc.  I think the biggest improvement we can make to the house is painting it.  Every where you turn it's either a dirty, scuffed wall or baseboards or it's a dented walls and scratches from their dog.    Still, we are in and it's out house.  Before we know it, it will feel like our home and as if we had always been there. 

The internet is still not working, mainly because we haven't had much time to figure it all out yet so it may be hit and miss for posting this week.

We Are In

This will be a first posting a blog from my phone. For once it will be a short post. :)

The movers arrived sat am and despite the fact that we told them to put the boxes in the garage and just the furniture in the house it still took them almost 4 hours to unload. Sigh. It was one big bill.

Despite the fact that the cable guy came right away sat, we can't seem to get the internet to work. Hopefully it will be set up in the next few days. In the meantime I can stay connected with my BB.

We had a few surprises with the house. One was a leak that wasn't disclosed. We had an inspection done so it should have been caught by the guy. Hopefully it's a fixed leak but fixing the ceiling will still be expensive.

Well tomorrow is my first night commute so hopefully it will go alright. I'm not keen on the drive but it's got to be done for now.

Still we are in and although it feels a little crowded already it's nice to know it's ours. It's also made me realize how much stuff we hold on to because we don't want to be wasteful. I really need to simplify and think twice about what we buy and why.

Anothe 2010 project!
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