Tonight, I finally broke down and gave the lils a bath.  I was going to wait until Willy returned tomorrow and let him bathe them, as is my usual when he is away.  Of course, this after leading him to believe that I had washed them at least once in the time that he was gone (swimming counts, right?).  Sadly, I was foiled by bath-preventing plans for the next three nights and I had to do it.

They were mid-splashfest when the phone rang.  Willy is travelling tonight, and the weather has been sketchy for his route home, so I answered it, expecting him to be calling with a delay.  It was a telemarketer calling about lawn care.  I had a vague recollection of last year telling this company that they could check back with me again this year, so I let him give his pitch, despite the fact that he could not get my name right.*

After his intro I let him know that I weed my grass by hand, and don’t plan on changing this. I don’t want to use chemicals, as I have lil people who roll around on the grass, and I actually enjoy weeding, it’s kinda therapeutic.  He kept insisting that this was bad, and trying to sell me on chemical and organic programs.  He was getting pushy so I started to ask to be put on their do not call list.  Then he told me that he needed to speak to my husband to do that.

At this point I clarified what I had heard, then I lost it a little, letting him know that it was bullsh*t, and exactly why it was.  He tried to give me an excuse as to why it was OK, but I shot that down too.  I am still kinda flabbergasted and saddened by his attitude, and incredulous reaction to my upset.  I did take his name, and will let the company know this new reason why they will not be getting my business.  But mostly I am sad that it got me so upset within earshot of the lils.  They were pretty oblivious in the tub, but I wish I had been more controlled.

*this is my test for determining whether I will give a company my money. Generally, if they cannot figure out that I am Mrs. Lilbunnyrabbitz, not Mrs. Little, Bunnyrabbitz, Rabbitz-Bunny-Lil, I am unlikely to trust the ability to deliver a good or service.

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*update at bottom*

It’s kindness week in Ottawa, and originally I was going to write about the things that we do with the lils to ensure that kindness becomes a way of life for them, and how to make kindness a habit that they don’t have to think about.  We really try to do this by example all the time, but this week offers a chance to renew those efforts and look for new and continuing acts of kindness.

Then a couple of weeks ago a friend, Lara, suggested that a group of people get together and give blood during kindness week.  I was intrigued and tempted, but didn’t commit.  Although I have always wanted to give blood, I am deathly afraid of needles.   I become the biggest baby in the world at the prospect of an injection, let alone a simple blood test.  The thought of giving blood that is measured in pints makes me feel ill. It’s irrational, but it is what it is.

A few days went by after the initial call, and I could not stop thinking about giving blood.  It hasn’t happened to date, but there is always the chance that someone in my family will need to use donated blood at some point in their life. I am not planning on this, I just know that it is a possibility.  Is it right that I don’t even try to give blood?  That I sit back and feel it’s OK to say no, just because I am scared?

This week Lara made a new call for donors.  She’d organized a time this evening for us to go, and promised that she would hold my hand through the process.  I said yes.  This is a monumental step for me, and I admit that I am very nervous and a little nauseous right now. The truth is that I won’t know how hard it is until I try.  It may be so built up in my mind and really not that big a deal.  If it’s not for me, at least I will have tried, and hopefully done it once.  I just hope that I don’t crush Lara’s hand in the process.

UPDATE: I was successful!  The entire process was nowhere near as bad as I had built it up to be.  When we arrived, I let them know that it was my first time and I was VERY scared.  They were very good to me, answering all of my questions, keeping me distracted through the process, and not laughing too much at the fact that I kept my eyes closed for almost the entire time, even though they had covered my arm.  This success despite the fact that there was no room for Lara to hold my hand!! We learned an added bonus trivia bit too – donating blood burns over 600 calories.  So thanks for all your kind words and support, especially to Lara and Ron.  I promise not to be such a baby next time!

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Goose’s move into her twin bed this week has been going really well. She’s always loved to sleep, and this apparently wins, over her sense of adventure.  If naps, of the lack there of, are any indication, this may change when it is still light enough to see in her room at bedtime.  Until that happens, I fully expect that she will dive right into bed at the end of the day.

Mornings have been a pleasant surprise.  She is sleeping better, and barely waking before we pop our head in her room.  We had installed a gate on her door to prevent nocturnal wanderings, but she hasn’t budged from the bed if she wakes in the night, and waits happily in the morning.

That all changed this morning.  Woo was up first, and I expected him to  come to our bed as he does every morning.  Instead, he stopped at Goose’s door to tell her that it was time for cuddles.  She jumped out of bed and asked him to let her out of the room*.  He took the time to show her how to open the gate and let herself out, and I prepared to have two monkeys climb into bed with us.

They didn’t come. I heard them wander away from us, and started to wonder what they could get into, and whether I had to get up. They went to Woo’s room, and I heard him ask her if she wanted to come into his bed and cuddle.  “Yes, I DO want to cuddle”, she said, and I heard the rustling of two lil peeps settling in to bed.  They stayed there happily until I could no longer stay away and crept to the room.  I was allowed to give them each a kiss, and then asked to leave, as this was their cuddle time.

*for some reason, Goose has had no interest in moving her gate, which leans against the frame.  She stands patiently on either side to be let in or out of the room*

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We had our family portraits done this weekend, for the first time since shortly after Goose was born.  I have a tonne of pictures of the lils, many with Willy, and even a couple with me, but only one of the four of us together.  It was time.

The entire process was very entertaining for the lils.  Sara, from Sara McConnell Photography, arrived early to set up.  They both peppered her with questions about everything that she was doing, and she patiently answered each one.  Having two lil people of her own must have prepared her for this.  They were fascinated by the lights, the stands, the hockey bag that she stows her gear in, the different noises that her camera made…  The newness of it all was SO INTERESTING.

Hands down the best part of the day (for them) was the square of the paper backdrop that she left behind taped to the floor. They have spent hours since she left happily drawing on the paper.  They’ve been allowed to leave the markers out and come and go as they please, which is a big step for all of us, especially me.  I mean leaving markers out for the lils to use when ever they wanted? In the livingroom?

It’s gone amazingly well.  We’ve only had one incident where they went off the paper, and had to be reminded of where to draw.  And where NOT to draw.

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I am that person. You know, the one who loves to cook and share what I make.  Friends sometimes even ask me to share recipes, I promise that I will, and rarely follow through.  I am sure that I have promised a recipe and failed to send it to most people that read this blog!  It’s not that I don’t want too share, or that the recipes are family secrets that must be kept in the vault, I’m just a wee bit forgetful, but keep resolving to get better.

A couple of months ago Rebecca S, who writes A Bit of Momsense, made a call for contributors to her new foodie blog, A Bit of Foodsense.  I thought about it for a while, and then let her know that I would love to contribute, if she’d have me. She said yes, and I saw it as an opportunity to share my recipes.

I am still not sure if my recipes fit with what she envisions for the site, or if they are good enough, but they keep getting posted.  That must be a good sign!  I have one up today, for our new family favourite banana blueberry bread!  So now is your chance, have I ever promised you a recipe and not followed through?  Let me know and I’ll get right on it…

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I wrote a review of the newest Starr Gymnastics on Kids in the Capital today.  We attended a party that they hosted for Kids in the Capital, and the whole family had a great time!

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From the time he was a wee baby, Woo has challenged us when getting dressed in the morning. We used to get him dressed as soon as he got up, but he started fighting that, so we would bring him downstairs and one of us would dress him while the other got breakfast ready, but that stop working too. These days, we pretty much have to cajole him into the clothes as we are putting on his outerwear and heading to daycare. He gets dressed, but barely.

This “works” for the days when we go to work. The rest of the time? There is no hope. He wakes on the days that we are home together, and the first thing out of his mouth is “today is a pajama day”. If we don’t have plans, he is very happy and carries on with the day. If I have dared to make plans for us, I need to assure him a half dozen times that he can return to his jammies the moment we return to the house, and only then will he get dressed, at the last possible moment.  He is back in them as soon as we return home, even if we are out several times a day!

It has gotten to the point where he is sneaking back into his jammies if I get him dressed too quickly before we go out. If there are a few free minutes, he’s back in the PJs. He even does it when we have company, regardless of whether it is his friends or ours. He just runs off to the “bathroom” and reappears in his loungewear.

Two weeks ago the lils came down with the plague, and Goose was so sad one day that I left her in her PJs so that she could be more comfortable. I think that a light went off in her head that day, and she realized that she doesn’t have to get dressed.  This week she started to tell me that she doesn’t want to get dressed before we go downstairs.  I know that it is just a matter of time…

Their dad, who my family has referred to a “Heff” for his love of wearing his robe all day, is very proud. If you are coming for a visit any time soon, don’t be surprised if I am the only one dressed. I’ll be in my yoga pants though. Those aren’t pajamas, right?

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Last night was my night to tuck Woo in. As we lay in the dark chatting, he told me he wanted to talk about sports. We spent pretty much the entire weekend outside doing vaguely sporty things, so I was pleased that he went there. I figured that we could talk about some new things to try, or some of the things that Willy and I like to play.

All he wanted to talk about was skating at first, but gradually we started to move to new winter sports, and I found out that he is not interested in skiing and does want to do some snowshoeing. He got to try it this weekend and had fun despite it being hard work. We moved on to summer sports, and I talked about soccer and T-Ball. He was lukewarm to soccer, but seemed interested in T-ball. I asked him if he wanted to try it this spring.

He was silent for a moment, and I thought that he was considering it. “Mommy”, he said very seriously, “will they pay me to play T-ball?”

After I laughed for a few minutes, I explained about recreational sports and how very few people get paid to play sports, but most like us, play for the fun and the exercise. At least I know that he’s thinking about his future, though the jury is still out on whether he’ll play T-ball for free this summer.

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