Scrooge Lives Here
November 14, 2009 at 9:55 pm | In All Things Doodle, Caityisms, Family Ties | Leave a CommentTags: kids, Baby, Toddler, Grandkids, grumpy toddler, Toddler meltdown, Christmas
My work cancelled our Kids’ Christmas party. We had 23 kids signed up at a local bouncy castle place. Santa was coming. There was going to be pizza, pop and a small gift for each child. The kids could have had their pictures taken with Santa. It would have cost us a grand total of $600. A $77 Billion company has to cancel a Kids party over $600 measly bucks. That’s really sad. Morale around the office is pretty bad right now, but this makes it worse. They had cancelled our adult party and everyone was ok with that because no one wanted to go. The boss wanted a sit down dinner dance. There’s maybe 90 of us. In previous years, we’ve always had a cocktail party where you could wander around to talk to different people, snarf down delicious appetizers and get snackered. Sit down dinner dances, which are only good if you have numbers in the hundreds, went out in the 90’s – but then our boss still refers to us women as Secretaries, so go figure. He’s stuck in a time warp.
I told Lexy yesterday that the party had been cancelled. She immediately began to cry. “No Santa??” she tearfully asked me. I felt like Scrooge.
Ok Mr. Boss man. You tell this little face she won’t get to see “Ho-Ho” this year. The above picture was Caity at Hallowe’en by the way, dressed up as a Faerie, she was so cute hugging her Magic Wand.
The kids had a great time last year, except Caity was terrified of Santa. “Noooooo Ho-Ho Momma!” she kept yelling at me, trying to crawl up my shoulder. Lexy, however, being the more materialistic of the two, tried to become his best friend.
Nooooo Ho-Ho Mommy
Well I suppose there’s always next year. They’ll still be little, right?
Makeover
November 11, 2009 at 3:00 pm | In Caityisms, Miscellaneous Crap, Product Testing | 2 CommentsTags: kids, Voting, website, blog, makeover, InDesign, Illustrator
Do you notice anything different? Do I look fabulous or what? Slimmer you say? Why thank you!
I hadn’t been happy with my Banner Header whatchamacallitthingy at the top of my blog. I had an idea of what I wanted it to look like, I just couldn’t get there. With my Desktop Publishing background, I think you can appreciate how frustrating that was for me. It’s in my head, just not in cyberspace. I can do just about anything in InDesign, but Illustrator, forget it. I love working with InDesign by the way. I’m learning new stuff every day.
I follow a couple of blogs daily. The first one (Durham Region Baby) introduced me to the second one (My Tornado Alley). Carly had her headermathingy redesigned and I thought it looked fabulous. Her BiFFy Jen O. designed it for her and I always admired it. A little while ago Jen O. redesigned her own headermathingy and I commented on it being a keeper and asked if she could help me with mine.
Well what’dyouknowaboutthat? Two rounds of comments later and we have this:
Isn’t it beautiful?
Aren’t those the most nomable toes you’ve ever seen? Believe me, there have been many a time that I’ve nibbled on those cute little tootsies - poor Caity. She was 9 weeks old in that picture. She was in the middle of a fit, hence the splayed toeses.
Now back to my rave. Jen is very talented (and hillarious to boot – read her blog) and is thinking about creating banners etc. as a side business. I certainly recommend her if anyone is interested in having something created for their website – or just a logo in general (i.e., for Letterhead, Business Cards) – you know, between the two of us Jen, we’d make a killing. We should talk 
Drop Jen a line if you’re interested. You can reach Jen at mytornadoalley@gmail.com
Fabulous job, Jen. Thanks again 
You Want Some Coffee With That?
November 6, 2009 at 9:24 pm | In Caityisms, Family Ties | 2 CommentsTags: Baby, kids, Toddler Talk
Caity has very fine hair. Any time she lies down for a nap/bed time/cuddle on the couch/whatever, her hair sticks out in one big matted mess at the back of her head. Every. Single. Time.
Without fail.
It looks like she’s never seen a hair brush in her life.
She’s now almost three, which is something I both love and hate at the same time. She is my baby and my last baby, yet she’s quickly becoming a big girl (potty training notwithstanding).
She’s usually the most easy-going person I’ve ever met. The house could be burning down and Cait would simply shrug her shoulders. Must be the Aquarian in her.
One thing I absolutely love about her is when she gets into a groove, she never gets out. For example, the other morning I was brushing the rat’s nest formerly known as her hair, or trying to anyway. She had something sticky in her hair, presumably from daycare (or last night’s dinner).
Caity: “Owwww Mummy!”
Me: “Sorry Caity, but you’re the one who got the knots in your hair.”
Tugging, trying to untangle, getting stuck on something in her hair….
Me: “Cait.” I stop brushing and look at her. “What did you get in your hair?”
Caity: “Donuts.”
She says that straight-faced. Every. Single. Morning.
No matter how many days in a row, I ask her what she got in her hair, she says the same thing … “Donuts”.
Doesn’t matter that she hasn’t had a donut in ages. Somehow, magically, donuts keep winding up in her tangled, matted hair.
I’m sure tomorrow morning, when I attempt to detangle her hair again, if I ask her what’s in her hair, she’ll simply say “Donuts”.
You’re cute kid. You make me laugh. Thank you.
Crazy Week
November 3, 2009 at 12:06 pm | In All Things Doodle, CKD, Caityisms, Daddy-O, Family Ties, Kidney Disease, Miscellaneous Crap, Sisters | Leave a CommentTags: Baby, CKD, facebook, Grandkids, IgA, kids, nephrophy, PD Catheter
We’re off to the hospital in a few minutes. Alex is having his PD Catheter removed because the silly thing never worked and it got infected. They want him healed before he has the transplant.
Tomorrow I’m taking the kids to the Doctor’s office to get their H1N1 shots. My doctor is holding a ‘clinic’ for his patients only on Wednesday (for high risk) and Saturday for the rest of us. I’ll go on Saturday. I’ll likely have to bring the kids too because Alex has Dialysis on Saturdays and Lord knows how long we’ll be at the office.
My Sitter’s daughter is really sick, fever, sore neck – don’t think it’s H1N1 but I’m kind of worried about her being there with the wee ones running around … She even has one of the babies sleeping in the sick girl’s room … eek.
Other than that it’s been three days I think since I’ve last visited Facebook. Apparently that’s the right amount of time to get over an addiction. I no longer think about having to check it all the time. Finally some peace.
Caity’s sleeping in her big girl bed now, has been for the past two nights. On Sunday night, we couldn’t wipe the smile off her face, she was so proud and happy to be in the bed. It was very cute, seeing her all snuggled, clutching her blankets to her face, smiling. She looked so little in the single bed, like a little baby in a crib. My baby’s growing up – she’ll be three in February. Eeek!
Lexy has decided that since Caity has a new bed, she wants one too. She tried to tell me that she’s nearly outgrown her current single bed (not likely). She said “look Mommy, my feet almost touch the bottom” … yeah almost touch the bottom in another two feet … nice try kid. You’re keeping that bed for a bit. At least until we get enough money to buy you a proper bedroom set.
A Frightening Thought
October 8, 2009 at 9:32 pm | In All Things Doodle, Caityisms, Daddy-O, Family Ties, Miscellaneous Crap, Sisters | Leave a CommentTags: birthday, kids, Things that kids say, Toddler speak
Alex and I had dinner tonight later than the girls. We made Spaghetti and the girls had grilled cheese sammies. Naturally they were still hungry and wanted to mooch some of what we had.
I made a small plate up for Lexy and I shared my dinner with Caity.
We were chatting, the four of us, while we ate. Lexy was trying to teach Caity the “proper” way to sing the “A-B-Cs”, Caity mooched most of my dinner like she’s never eaten before.
I said to Caity that when she’s a teenager, she was going to eat me out of house and home.
Lexy said, “Who Mom?”
“Both of you.” I said.
“I’m older.” Said Lexy. “When Caity’s a teenager, I’m going to be a parent!”
As the math calculation was quickly formulating in my head, I realized that when Caity turns 13, Lexy will only be 16. Her Dad and I looked at each other and eyes wide I said, “NO YOU’RE NOT!”. Obviously not realizing what she had just said, Lexy looked confused.
“Lex, you’re not even allowed to start dating until you’re 30!”
I know her comment was innocent. I know 6 is the new 15, but really why are kids in such a hurry to grow up? Slow down please my darling girl. Your sister is almost 3 and you’re both growing too fast as it is. Earlier in the evening when Lexy and I went to the store, she asked how old she had to be to sit in the front seat. I said 12. To her, the front seat is the power seat. It means you’re an adult because only big people get to sit in the front. Even at 6 years old, she understands the concept.
She’s desperate to sit up front, and I’m desperate to keep her in the back. I wonder where the time’s gone.
Tomorrow is my Parent’s 50th Wedding Anniversary. If I make that milestone with Alex, I’ll be 89 years old. My Mom tells me all the time stories about when I was Lexy’s age. I know she wonders where the time’s gone.
Next week is Alex’s 30th birthday. I bet his Mom wonders where the time has gone too…
Vocabulary Lesson
October 6, 2009 at 10:01 pm | In Caityisms, Miscellaneous Crap | Leave a CommentTags: Baby, kids, Toddler, Toddler speak, Toddler Talk
broc-co-li [brok-uh-lee, brok-lee] –noun: a form of a cultivated cruciferous plant, Brassica oleracea botrytis, whose leafy stalks and clusters of usually green buds are eaten as a vegetable.
From the time Caity was very little, any time we referred to food for her to eat, we’ve called it “Num”. This one little word has become a Noun, an Adjective and sometimes a Verb, sometimes in the same sentence. She knows exactly what we mean when we say “Caity, eat your Num”. We make compound words with it. “Caity, do you want some Broccoli-Num?”, she’ll reply excitedly “Broccoli-Num!?!”. If you want her to eat something she’s not sure of, just add -Num to the end of the word and she’ll eat. “Oooh Caity, Turkey-Num!”
Forever, her just-before-bed-bottle has been “bubbie-Num”. She’ll fight you for that one.
Then there are nights like tonight when she is very decided in her opinion and she. doesn’t. want. to. eat. anything.
“No I like it meat Mommy!” (translation: I don’t want to eat this meatloaf Mommy).
“But Caity, it’s meat-Num!”.
“Meat-Num?” she tries a piece, “I like it meat-Num Mommy!”. Uh-huh.
I hope it will always be this easy to communicate with her. She’s rounding the corner on three. I’m sure 13 will be very different. I can’t wait.
Viral, Bacterial or Allergy …?
October 4, 2009 at 11:18 am | In Caityisms, Family Ties | 2 CommentsTags: kids, Toddler Sick, Asthma
Caity came home with a cough on Friday, we didn’t think much of it because Lexy currently has that deep barrel-chested-phlegmy cough that everyone at her school currently has. We figured it was just the start of that. I gave her some cough medicine and put her to bed around the normal time she goes down. I could hear her on the monitor, moaning about an hour after I put her down. I know what this means, a fever. I know my kid very well. All week she was sleeping badly, waking several times a night with a moan or a groan and she was very tired and grumpy as well. I took her temperature and it was at 101.7 so I woke her to give her some Tylenol. That helped with the fever but in the middle of the night, Alex woke me and told me she was breathing funny. Her breathing was shallow and rapid, like she couldn’t catch her breath or was jogging – not like she had been sleeping for hours already. I had the vaporizer in her room going and I suggested letting her get some sleep. At least her fever was down. I told Alex that if she wasn’t better in the morning I’d take her to the clinic. I took her downstairs and sat on the couch with her for a couple of hours until she fell back asleep, then brought her back to bed.
In the morning I could hear her breathing from my room. It was a raspy wheeze. She still wanted to get up and play though. The fever was back.
I took her to the clinic and hoped it wouldn’t be busy – it was. When we were signing in I heard the receptionist say to someone “there’s 12 people ahead of you” – oh boy. Caity wanted me to pick her up. I put her on the counter while I handed in her health card and told the receptionist that she was having trouble breathing. She looked alarmed and said she would get the nurse to see her right now. We barely made it to the reception chairs when they called her name. I could tell the other people sitting there were a little miffed that we budded in line, but they take breathing problems seriously.
The nurse came in and did the initial triage and asked if she had Asthma. I told her not that I know of but it’s in the family, including me. They took her blood oxygen and heart rate through that little finger clip. Her oxygen was down to 91 (100 is normal) at first count and her pulse was at 161. Her little heart was working overtime trying to get enough oxygen pumping through her system. They said it was low, not good but not horrible. The doctor flew in, asked me a bunch of questions and ordered a Ventolin mask. She sat like a very good girl with the mask on for about 15 minutes and they tested her stats again – the oxygen level was up to 93 a slight improvement and her heart rate was around the same.
The doctor said she her fever and wheezing could have caused by a virus, a bacterial infection or an allergic reaction to something. Since there was no way to know for sure, he prescribed an antibiotic. He said ignoring it would be the fastest way to get to the hospital. Her other prescriptions include steroids – both liquid and an inhalant (Flovent). She also has a rescue inhaler too (Salbutamol, a.k.a. Ventolin). I had to buy an air chamber too because its impossible to get a toddler to inhale the medication properly otherwise. The doctor ordered that she stay away from other kids for a couple of days.
It was pretty friggin’ scary yesterday. She was so good at the doctors. She wanted to play but was ordered to keep still. It was hard for her.
All the medication she had yesterday knocked her out and she slept for four hours in the afternoon. Her fever broke, had some more medicine and was wired for sound. One of the effects of the Salbutamol is hyperactivity – hard to keep her quiet when she wants to run around.
I remember there were times earlier when she’d be running around and she’d start coughing. That’s the same way I was as a kid, I had “exercise induced Asthma“. I had to be excused from gym class. I rarely had a spontaneous Asthma attack, but when I did, it was horrible – my lungs felt like they were on fire and I couldn’t breathe. I know how my poor kid feels, it’s awful.
She had a better night, but she’s still a bit wheezy.
Busy Day
September 8, 2009 at 9:17 pm | In All Things Doodle, Caityisms, Daddy-O, Family Ties, Miscellaneous Crap, Sisters, TV Season, Toeses and Noses | 1 CommentTags: Baby, birthday, Blake McGrath, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, kids, Natalie Dormer, So You Think You Can Dance Canada, The Tudors, Toddler, Voting
Today’s my 42nd Birthday. I feel old. I look at my hands and I see that they no longer have the youthful appearance they did in my 20’s and 30’s. They’re starting to look almost ‘alligator-skin-like’ in appearance.
My bones creak and ache, especially in the morning when I first get out of bed. It hurts to walk. It usually takes a few steps (like 20 or so) before I can walk properly.
The crows feet are creeping in, despite my best eye cream. I have laugh lines, although I haven’t laughed much lately.
I weigh the most I have ever in my life, a good 70 pounds or so above my high-school weight when I used to prance around in size 5 jeans and had a boyfriend who told me I was fat and should lose weight. That was the year I lost a few pounds before my high-school Hallowe’en Dance in Grade 11. I went as a french maid. A certain DB who was the cool guy in high school started looking me over from the tip of my very high heels, all the way up my fishnet stocking covered legs and up to a very revealing bust line. His only comment was … “nice…”. Believe me, a compliment like that from DB was like having James Dean check you out.
I said to my parents yesterday that I wish I had what I have now, but ten years ago. Lexy told me today that she’s very proud of me because I’m 42. Very sweet, I think.
Lexy started Grade One today and was so very proud. She was nervous, but we found her class and her new teacher and off she went. When she got home, she told Terri that she LOVED Grade One! It wasn’t hard, they didn’t do anything! She can’t wait until tomorrow. We didn’t want to burst her bubble and tell her that the real work will start tomorrow. At least she’s not scared of going now.
I took some pictures of Lexy pre-going to school this morning. Well, I tried to anyway ….
Caity insisted on being in the picture too
I wanted just a picture of Lexy, on her first day of school, like I had taken the previous two years. Not to be undermined, Caity insisted on smiling pretty for the camera.
Caity smiling "pretty" for the camera, Lexy patient as ever.
When I told Cait that I’d stop taking pictures if she didn’t smile nicely, we got this one:
... she was trying anyway
This is about as close as we were going to get. I gave up after this one:
The trials of being a big sister
This is Lexy on her first day last year. I think Cait must have been sleeping. Lexy really didn’t have a shiner, she got bit by a mosquito the day before and she was scratching so hard, she bruised her eyelid.
My sweet girl
Can you see how much she’s grown? Yes, she was a bit closer to the door in this last picture, but she stands just about as tall as the upper lock. In the pictures above, she’s a bit further away from the door, and is definitely higher than the upper lock. I just checked the wall markings where I have the girls’ height recorded. Last year, this time Lexy was a good three inches shorter. It’s crazy how much she’s grown … !
Blake McGrath is hot. Sorry, just thought I’d throw that one in. Must be a mid life fantasy or something. He reminds me of Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (Henry VIII, the Tudors on CBC), who is so very hot. Yep, I’d hurt him.
The Tudors start up in 22 days on CBC . This season is amazing. I watched it earlier this year on the internet, can’t wait to watch it on the big screen.
We need new windows. We have those old, antiquated single paned glass kind that slide back and forth and keep absolutely nothing in or out. It will be nice to actually be warm in the winter and not feel any drafts when you walk past a window.
My husband brought me a beautiful bouquet of 12, count-em 12 long stem red roses to work. Gorgeous. It’s reasons like this that I keep him.
’nuff said.
A Toy Possessed .. ?
September 4, 2009 at 11:50 am | In All Things Doodle, Caityisms, Daddy-O, Miscellaneous Crap, Sisters, Toeses and Noses | Leave a CommentTags: kids, Baby, Toddler, Toys
It was late last night when Alex and I went to bed. Well, late when you consider he had to get up at 4:00 in the morning to go to work today. We were just shutting things down (turning the TV off, grabbing a glass of water, turning off the lights) and about to head upstairs when I heard one of the kids’ toys “talking” nearby.
In my family room, we have Caity’s playpen set up in the corner, in front of the unused fireplace. It currently serves as a toy box - one of a thousand we seem to have placed strategically around the house. I noticed earlier in the day the toy “talking” too but figured one of the kids had set it off.
At this point, the kids are asleep.
I hear the words “bye-bye” coming from the toy box.
I think I’m in a “Chuckie” movie.
Alex and I start searching the toy box for this errant toy. We. Can’t. Find. It. Anywhere. It’s still saying “bye-bye” every few minutes and then plays a ring tune.
It’s been about ten minutes since we started searching and by now it’s driving us crazy. We are on a mission to find this damn toy. Alex has the flashlight and I’m digging deep into the massive mound of stuff.
The sounds of “bye-bye” echo in the room. When we hear it, we stop, listen and move towards the sound. We still can’t find it.
We’ve pulled everything that’s big out of the toybox and put it on the coffee table, the chair and the couch (yes, it’s that full). We stop to listen, and hear nothing. We star putting the toys back, figuring it’s safe to go upstairs finally.
Nope.
“Bye-bye” and then “ring-ring”. GOOD LORD MAKE IT STOP! Now it’s mocking me ….
ARRRRRGGGH..g….hhh!!!
OK where is this bloody thing??
We had a baby monitor once (when Lexy was a baby) and it used to set off some of her toys containing batteries when the batteries were getting low. I figured maybe it was happening again or we were in a possessed household, one or the other.
Yet again we hear “bye-bye” and we take everything out of the toybox. Again. We have an idea of which toy it is that’s making the noise, we just can’t find the damn thing. We’ve looked under the toybox, beside the toybox and obviously inside the toybox. Finally I figured it out.
On a hunch, I reached down and lifted the mat that lies on the floor of the playpen.
There it was. A toy phone that was left on, and as the contents of the toybox shifted, the weight pushed against the mat which pushed the buttons which made the toy ring and then say “bye-bye”.
Alex happily switched the button to off, threw the toy phone back into the pile of toys and we went to bed. That’s half an hour of our lives we’ll never get back…
Time for a garage sale I think.
Chuckie's holding on line two...
Arrrgggh
September 3, 2009 at 9:51 am | In All Things Doodle, Caityisms, Daddy-O, Family Ties, Kidney Disease, Miscellaneous Crap, Toeses and Noses | Leave a CommentTags: kids, Baby, Toddler, birthday, Toddler Talk, Toddler speak, Toddler Sick, CKD, IgA, nephrophy, Dialysis, PD, PD Catheter
Why is it every. single. time. I take vacation days, someone ends up sick? I’m so frigging frustrated that I can’t get any time off to myself I think I’ll scream.
Last holiday weekend I took two days off and Alex ended up back in Emerg.
This holiday weekend Caity’s sick. She’s got a really bad cough that kept her awake most of the night. I know what you’re thinking, but I can’t blame this one on Grandma. Caity’s all stuffed up too and really whiny – a winning combination! She moaned and groaned her way through her sleep last night. I put the vapouriser on but it didn’t do much except make her sweat. Her room was quite sauna-like from the vapours. She woke up at one point and pointed to her chest, she then said her tummy hurt.
On the ride to the sitters, she said “I tider Mommy”, a.k.a. tired. Poor kid. Hopefully Lexy won’t get it before she goes to school on Tuesday.
I went and found her class and teacher yesterday. I found out what we’re supposed to do with the kids the first day. I can’t believe she’ll be a “Grade One-er” this year. I’m going to be a wreck on Tuesday, I know it. Lexy told me she wants the same thing she had last year for lunch. All she would eat was those crackers and cheese from Schneider’s. I told her that she was going to school every day now so I suggested a sandwich one day, crackers and cheese the next, then a sandwich, crackers and finally a sandwich.
“Oh Mommy, a pattern!”. She loves patterns. She thought this lunch pattern was a great idea. We’ll see how successful we are.
I’m getting an oil change and then an emissions test on my car today. I’ll have to get a vehicle sticker tomorrow as it expires on Tuesday, my birthday. Another year older, not necessarily wiser. I’ll admit I know more now than I did ten years ago, but I wish I had those ten years back – age wise that is.
My husband and I are finally going out on Saturday. We’re using that gift certificate that Colin gave us about two months ago. Thank you again Colin, it was such a sweet thing to do. We haven’t been able to use it before now because Alex hasn’t been well enough to go out to eat. Everything was making him sick – I guess his levels were off and he needed to get that under control. He’s feeling a bit better now and we have a babysitter booked so ‘hallelujah’ we’re going out! I haven’t been out on a date with my husband in months. I think we both deserve it.
Next month is a big month for us. October 9th is my parents’ 50th Wedding Anniversary. Holy crap! 50 years! I’d like to take them out to dinner, us three kids as this is a helluva milestone. I’ll need a sitter for this though so I’m not optimistic.
October 15th is Alex’s 30th birthday. Honey, I hope your 3oth is better than your 29th was. I’m planning an outing on the 17th with his friends (if they ever get back to me that is). We need a sitter for this one too. I might be able to get one.
October 24th is Alex and mine 10 year anniversary of the day we met. This is the day we used to celebrate before we got married. He told me that once we were married, I wasn’t allowed to have two anniversaries. I don’t see the logic in that … it means more presents! I’d like to get out for dinner with him then but again, the sitter thing is a problem. I can’t believe we’ve been together that long. In that time we’ve had two beautiful children, bought a house and got married. It’s been a fun ride (except this past year)… can’t wait for the next ten.
Blog at WordPress.com. | Theme: Pool by Borja Fernandez.
Entries and comments feeds.
