Love-fest, with cheese

Lately, twin A has taken to expressing his love for us SO much. All on his own volition, out of the blue, often with a mouth fill of rice krispies or while sitting on the toilet. It is the best of the best and can make my day. You should see my father melt when his little grandson says it to him, again, unsolicited. We played outside all afternoon, had a rough few moments as Daddy left for the airport (countdown at 9 sleeps till he returns) but some bike riding, a couple of freezies and a treasure hunt in the sandbox really helped. Hence, the best kid of dirty boys ever.

Fast forward to more mess from spagetti supper, butterscotch pudding with bananas and Girl Guide cookies (can you say comfort food?) = bathtime, pronto!

While toweling of a little boy, who had 20 minutes prior been one of those best kind of messiest/dirtiest ever I was reminded of one of my most favouritest ever of such conversations.

Twin A : I love you.

Moi : I love you too, sweetheart, thank you!

Twin A : I love you like a grilled cheese sammich and I will put more cheese on you and love you more.

Moi : Well then, I love you too like a grilled cheese sammich, and I don't even need to put ketchup or extra cheese cause I would eat you up cause I love you so much just the way you are.

Twin A : (pause) No! Don't eat me, just kiss me.

I more than happily obliged.

So Very Rotten

I stole this from Dani, who found it elsewhere...

Are you spoiled? BLOODY RIGHT!! Apparently you are if you can check of 40 of the following: I'll prove it!!

Do you have...

x your own cell phone (we have one for the family, but I don't have my own)
x a television in your bedroom
x an iPod (not an iPod, but an MP3 player)
x a photo printer (but it is CRAPPY and we don't use it, so this shouldn't count!)
 your own phone line
x TiVo or a generic digital video recorder
x high-speed internet access (i.e., not dialup)
 a surround sound system in bedroom
 DVD player in bedroom
 at least a hundred DVDs
 a childfree bathroom
x your own in-house office
 a pool (12' seasonal kiddie pool)
 a guest house
 a game room
x a queen-size bed
x a stocked bar
x a working dishwasher
x an icemaker
x a working washer and dryer
 more than 20 pairs of shoes
x at least ten things from a designer store
x expensive sunglasses
 framed original art (not lithographs or prints)
x Egyptian cotton sheets or towels
x a multi-speed bike
x a gym membership
 large exercise equipment at home
x your own set of golf clubs
 a pool table
 a tennis court
 local access to a lake, large pond, or the sea
 your own pair of skis
 enough camping gear for a weekend trip in an isolated area
 a boat
 a jet ski
 a neighborhood committee membership
 a beach house or a vacation house/cabin
x wealthy family members
x two or more family cars
 a walk-in closet or pantry (closets)
x a yard
 a hammock
 a personal trainer
x good credit
x expensive jewelry
 a designer bag that required being on a waiting list to get
 at least $100 cash in your possession right now
x more than two credit cards bearing your name
 a stock portfolio
x a passport (expired last year)
 a horse
 a trust fund
x private medical insurance (additional drug coverage through husband's work)
x a college degree, and no outstanding student loans

Do you:
 shop for non-needed items for yourself
 pay someone else to clean your house, do dishes, or launder your clothes (not counting dry-cleaning)
x go on weekend mini-vacations (once per year with girlfriends only)
 send dinners back with every flaw
 wear perfume or cologne (not body spray)
x regularly get your hair styled or nails done in a salon (cut every 6 weeks, hilites every 4 months)
 have a job but don't need the money OR
x stay at home with little financial sacrifice
 pay someone else to cook your meals (again, I wish!)
 pay someone else to watch your children or walk your dogs (neighbour teenage boy does help walk the dog when hubby is on extended trips)
 regularly pay someone else to drive you
 expect a gift after you fight with your partner

Are you:
 an only child
 married/partnered to a wealthy person
 baffled/surprised when you don't get your way

Have you:
x been on a cruise
x traveled out of the country
x met a celebrity
x been to the Caribbean (on cruise in 1995 for friend's wedding)
x been to Europe
 BEEN TO HONG KONG
 been to Hawaii
x been to New York
 eaten at the space needle in Seattle
 been to the Mall of America
x been on the Eiffel tower in Paris
 been on the Statue of Liberty in New York
 moved more than three times because you wanted to
 dined with local political figures
x been to both the Atlantic coast and the Pacific coast

Did you:
x go to another country for your honeymoon
 hire a professional photographer for your wedding or party
x take riding or swimming lessons as a child (swimming)
 attend private school
 have a Sweet 16 birthday party thrown for you

40. And I'll be 40 this year, so dammit, I deserve to be!! Can you believe I didn't even fudge it? One question, what the hell does having a passport have to do with being spoiled? We're soon gonna need it for a 2 hour lunch/shopping trip to Vermont. Oh shit, with these gas prices...wait, now I get it.

Lovingly yours,
Spoiled Bitch Nancy

more decor help needed

A while back, I tried to pull a fast one to see what happened, it kinda busted, but FYI, we will go with the concrete stone Formica countertop in the master bathroom. But now we are in a little deeper. This is a big decision. Big-ass decision.

The basement floor.

We have it narrowed down to carpet or woodlike laminate (floating floor) and use some area rugs.

Carpet - more cozy for basement; I much prefer to vacuum; not so welcome to stains a la paint, playdough, juice, etc.

Laminate - easier to clean stains; easier upon which to play planes, trains and automobiles; can get some fun, funky area rugs; may be very echo-ey (is that a word?); I am the worst floor sweeper, cleaner in the history of housecleaning;

There will be a play area, TV viewing area, and little hallway along stairs. All open area, connected.

What would you do?

Just wait till you get to help me pick paint colours!!

From tampons to a what??

Remember this post? The one where my 3 year old son asked what the feminie hygiene product dispenser thingy hanging on the wall in the aldies washroom at the public swimming pool was? Remember?

Yesterday, in that very same bathroom. They no longer need my answers, they have their own. The products are simply displayed / offered through small graphic pics of each, and perhaps a little outdated seeing as each respective item looks like, well, read on.

As I am washing my hands...

A : See this B? You put the money in there and then you turn this and ...








B (who loves to finish everyone's sentence and NEVER let anyone else say anything EVER : then you get a telescope!! Look Mommy! It's a telescope! Can we have some money?







Moi : (ignore, pretend not to hear)

A : No, B, it isn't a telescope, it's a map! See? Just like Dora has.







B : what is in that one?
A : that's nothing, it's just a box
B : oh, well then I would like to get the telescope
Moi : Come on troops, wanna go get some ice cream??


All was forgotten, once again. (insert larger than normal sigh of relief)

And I am sure we aren't done yet.

Anyone know how I can get the sidebar to come back up to it usual place? It's kinda gone a bit wayward since a couple of posts ago....help?

Playskool Laundry

The construction in the basement is going great. I have been sneaking in my laundry after hours, whenever I can since I can't very well do it with all the action going on during the day. It has been fun, the washer &/or dryer often being temporarily set up in a different location each day. They were both disconnected for the past 2 days. I did do a couple of loads next door at the Chez Papa laundromat, and was prepared to do the same this evening.

Good news! Laundry facilities available at home tonight!

I just went into the 4 inch layer think in dust basement to find my washer & dryer in their new home - the official laundry room. How exciting!! They are about 6 feet apart though, so still a wee bit of temporary going on. And now...no lights. Anywhere.

Laundry. Must. Get. Done.

I head upstairs to the bottom drawer of my night table where I keep a flashlight in case one is ever needed in middle of the night. Gone. Fuck. My D(using term loosely)H once laughed at me keeping on there. This means he is to blame. I have no idea where it is, nor can I find another one. Think. Think. Think.

Laundry. Must. Get. Done.

IDEA!!!

The boys have one of these!! I'll use it. Hurrah! One thing. Do you know how hard it is to load a dust covered washer, in the dust covered dark, with a toy flashlight that dims after 5 seconds to preserve battery life? Not as easy task. Now I gotta go try to transfer the wet clothes from washer to dryer. What the heck, they are boys, who played outside for 5 hours straight today. They're just gonna get dirty again. And again. And again....

Two babies. Oh, the timing.

I am getting a kick out of the timing of this and this. Do you think they will have playdates together? You know, to discuss the ups and 'downs' of managing life with a newborn? To compare coping strategies? I'm just saying...

Please say it isn't so. Why oh WHY does he insist on being such a freak ??

Poor Katie. Poor poor little Joey Potter.

The Way Late Weekend Report

We were away and now we are home. We had a wonderful weekend, full to the brim, actually overflowing with action. The quick & dirty...

Family. Friends. Laughter. Booze. Chips & dip. Chocolate. Easter Bunnies (yes, plural). Outdoor toys. Watching niece/cuzzin horseback riding. Riding bikes. More booze. Tons of great food, BBQ, more chocolate. Did I mention the chips & dip? Absolutely NO down time. An overtired, highly over-stimulated three year old child who flatly refused to go to sleep before 9:30 PM for 5 nights in a row, and counting. (the only negative thing all weekend). Lunch and extended play with other cuzzins on other side of town Monday. Trek home - he FINALLY slept.

I did get to hug (twice!) and have a quick personal chat with Dani on Saturday afternoon after I accosted her and honked her down when seeing her drive by. You see, my inlaws live around the corner from her. We always try to hook up. It rarely works cause we always seem to be so damn busy. (My bad - all my bad)

Home. Basement. Way ahead of schedule. Starting drywall today. TODAY. He wants the tiles for the bathroom/laundry room floors now. Last week he said it would be 2 weeks. Now he wants them now. Guess what I am buying today? The. Dust. Is. Incredible. But worth it, I know.

Apologies for lame update. I am swamped. Literally. (really!) May be another few days. Everything happening at once. Northern Mom listened to me vent (a.k.a. panic, lose control, freak out) during a midnite rant on the MSN Messenger last night. (Thanx so much!) She also encouraged me to eat more chocolate at 11:23 PM. I did. It most definitely helped.

The 'guys' are bring the drywall in and everytime one of them walks by, he peeks up at me sitting at the 'pute in my jammies and bedhead. I think he is laughing at me. AT me. No coffee for him.

Deep breath in. Deep breath out.

WTF does an egg have to do with Easter?

Ooooh....NOW I get it. Actually, some pretty interesting shit there, and it even made sense to me! That in itself is an astounding accomplishment these days. BUT, after our most recent obsession with every egg related, I found myself asking myself, or anyone who would listen (another uncharted task) what he hell does eggs shaped in chocolate, candied, coloured and decorated have to do with the Resurrection? I was too close to simply posing the question to you, the internet, but realized I would likely be mocked, teased, and/or sarcastically abused. So, I took matters into my own hands, in order to save (any egg on my) face. Did you know?

Easter egg
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Easter eggs, also known as Spring eggs in the United States, are specially decorated eggs given out to celebrate the Easter holiday or springtime. The oldest tradition is to use dyed and painted chicken eggs, but a modern custom is to substitute eggs made from chocolate, or plastic eggs filled with candy such as jelly beans.

Ukrainian Easter eggs, or pysanky. Chocolate Easter eggs. Candy Easter eggs can be any form of confectionery such as hollow chocolate eggs wrapped in brightly-colored foil. Some are delicately constructed of spun sugar and pastry decoration techniques. The ubiquitous jelly egg or jellybean is made from sugar-coated pectin candy. These are often hidden, supposedly by the Easter Bunny, for children to find on Easter morning. Decorated eggs are much older than Easter, and both eggs and rabbits are age-old fertility symbols. The Passover Seder service uses a hard-cooked egg flavored with salt water as a symbol both of new life and the Temple service in Jerusalem. The Jewish tradition may have come from earlier Roman Spring feasts.

Easter egg origin stories abound — one has an emperor claiming that the Resurrection was as likely as eggs turning red (see Mary Magdalene); more prosaically the Easter egg tradition may have celebrated the end of the privations of Lent. In the West, eggs were seen as "meat", which would have been forbidden during Lent. Likewise, in Eastern Christianity, both meat and dairy were prohibited during the fast, and eggs were seen as "dairy" (a foodstuff that could be taken from an animal without shedding its blood). One would have been forced to hard boil the eggs that the chickens produced so as not to waste food, and for this reason the Spanish dish hornazo (traditionally eaten on and around Easter) contains hard-boiled eggs as a primary ingredient.

Sorbian Easter eggs Easter eggs are a widely popular symbol of new life in Poland and other Slavic countries' folk traditions. A batik-like decorating process known as pisanka produces intricate, brilliantly-colored eggs. The celebrated Fabergé workshops created exquisite jewelled Easter eggs for the Russian Imperial Court. A 27-foot (9 m) sculpture of a pisanka stands in Vegreville, Alberta.

There are many other decoration techniques and numerous traditions of giving them as a token of friendship, love or good wishes. A tradition exists in some parts of Britain (such as Scotland) of rolling painted eggs down steep hills on Easter Sunday. In the U.S., such an Easter egg roll (unrelated to an eggroll) is often done on flat ground, pushed along with a spoon. The most well-known egg roll is done at the White House. An Easter egg hunt is a common festive activity, where eggs are hidden outdoors (or indoors if in bad weather) for children to run around and find. This may also be a contest to see who can collect the most eggs.

When boiling hard-cooked eggs for Easter, a nice tan colour can be achieved by boiling the eggs with onion skin.

Deep-fried chocolate Easter eggs are sold around Easter time in Scottish fish and chips shops. The idea was invented in a northeastern Scottish takeaway as a sequel to the extremely popular deep fried Mars Bar.

Have a great weekend...happy hunting, or boiling, or poaching (my fave), or scrambling, or frying, or whatever it is you choose to do with your 'Easter' eggs. We're off on a road trip to find ours.

Ova.

With Easter fast approaching, it has certainly been the Week of the Egg. We have had scrambled egg smashes for lunch, omelets for supper, a 'few' chocolate eggs from the bulk store, and well...when we made those haystack cookie thingies, they were most promptly re-named "Bird's Nests". Of course, it was then noticed that the bird's nests were (Oh. My. Gawd.) empty!! We had to add eggs.

AND THEN......

Before.

During.

After.

And then at the bar, after curfew.

Nil.

I got nothing. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zip. Zero.

I can't even say I've been going to appointments, like this:

I went to the doctor for my yearly physical.
The nurse starts with certain basics.

How much do you weigh?" she asks.
"115," I say.
The nurse puts me on the scale. It turns out my weight is 138.

The nurse asks, "Your height?" "5 foot 8," I say.
The nurse checks and sees that I only measure 5' 2".

She then takes my blood pressure and tells me it is very high.
"Of course it's high!" I scream,
"When I came in here I was tall and slender! Now I'm short and heavier!"

She put me on Prozac.

But I can say that I have most definitely already had more of my share of this:

(I had to delete his pic cause for some stoopid reason it wrecked my sidebar...)

The basement reno is in FULL swing, bloody noise and dust, so thankful to the beautiful weather, we have been spending just about every waking moment outdoors.

We also seem to have a lot of this flying around, which means quite a bit less of this.

Heck, I haven't even been able to watch last week's episode of ER that I had to tape, and it's Tuesday!! Idol on tonight - how the fuck does Mandisa get the boot while Bucky Cheese is still there? Who do you like? Me? Chris.

Anyway, just wanted to say hi, in fine form of course. Full of intellect and stimulating topics.

P.S. also been playing a little too much literati - oops?

Open letter...

To the two lanky 15 year old boys (men?) sitting on the bench eating your take-out poutine and drinking your cans of coke, of whom I had worried would steal the Corona out of my basket while the boys & I trucked the groceries out to the van and back because I REFUSE to leave them unattended even for 1 minute, even if I locked the van, (at this little strip mall carts are not permitted off the sidewalk)

Thank you.

Not 'thank you' for not stealing my beer.

Thank you.

Thank you for offering to help me (and me readily accepting) so I didn't have to do more than one trip. You practically brought tears to my eyes. After I thanked you profusely, and you said "Hi-5" and "See ya later dudes" to my dumbfounded little boys, who had NO clue who you were or why the hell you were helping me, I made a big point of saying to them, "I can only hope that you will grow up to be that kind and respectful of others and not be too cool not to help someone one day."

In fact you did bring tears to my eyes. Restoring a little bit of faith.

Thank you.

(and you were kinda cute too)

Four years, twenty bucks, 43 pounds and two blessings ago...

Four years ago today...hubby picked up our brand spanking new van, drove straight to the hospital, picked me up after a 5 day stay and the two (+ two in utero) of us went home.

The van cost $20 less to fill. I don't exactly recall the gas prices in Ottawa on that day, but today in Montreal it is $1.05.9 a litre, it just cost me $61.40 to fill the sucker. I am quite pleased I really only need to fill the thing about once/month, and now with nicer weather we are walking so much more.

I was 43 pounds heavier than I am today. I was 29 weeks pregnant. They'd tried to pull a fast one on me to arrive early. Thankfully, that didn't happen. My two little boopers stuck it out with me for another 7 weeks on bedrest, also adding another 7 pounds.

Now we are doubly blessed, with two healthy, active, curious boys. I remember every single little detail about those 5 days in April 2002, every emotion, every tear, every fear and every little (& big) concern we experienced. I try ever so hard to cherish, remember and store in the memory vault every moment of their lives since the day they arrived. It never fails to bring tears (of joy) to my eyes. I can certainly remember a lot of great moments in my life. Now, if I could only remember where I put my sunglasses.