Buried

So, I think in my last post, I mentioned to you that K was staying home because of the L.I.C.E situation at her daycare. Yep. She's still home.
And I think she's bored with me. Which is fine, because she's 3. And because the weather has been ATROCIOUS since she has been here. First we got 30cm of snow over two days. Then the temperature dropped to -38C (with the windchill). Then it warmed up for 1 day. And snowed again. And then freezing rain. And then more snow. And then just regular rain. And then the temperature dropped to -29C.
So, we've mostly been hanging out at home.
Yesterday, I decided that we needed to get out. So we went to the Solutions store. I bought some containers for various things - flour, sugar, powdered milk, coconut. All things that I have had all along, but usually stay in bags. It must be that I am going a bit stir crazy, but I can't seem to just close the cupboard and not worry about the chaos that is behind it.
So, yesterday, I completely organized (alphabetically, no less) my spice cupboard. And I composted tons of old nuts, seeds, and spices that had been lost at the back of the cupboard.
I added labels to everything from Mabel's Labels, who I love for labelling anything and everything.
The other thing I did this week, inspired completely by the 40 loaves challenge that Elise Blaha is doing, I borrowed my dad's bread maker, and made lemon poppy seed loaf. It was ok. Not as good as starbucks, but something that can be improved. I'm not even sure that I like the texture of the bread maker bread. I might try the same recipe in the oven.
Today's objective....get K to learn to spell her name. All 8 letters.

Catching Sun

After New Years Day, my children have been at home with me quite a bit. The first week of January, E was home because the school was closed.  It was nice to have some one-on-one time with her - something we haven't had a chance to do since she was small. To be honest, we didn't do much. We watched a couple of movies, we coloured and went for big girl coffee at Starbucks. The other thing we did was we painted Sun Catchers.

I remember being her age (or maybe a bit older) and painting mine. The pack rat that I am, I probably still have it somewhere....

When the week was over, I found myself feeling a little bit guilty that K didn't have the same chance. And when I got to the daycare to pick her up on friday, her teacher told me that...THEY FOUND 3 CASES OF LICE!!!! Ew. Luckily K wasn't one of the 3. So I decided over the weekend, that I would keep her home. Monday was a slow day. We went for big girl coffee at starbucks and watched a movie. Tuesday, I kept her home, because she had her 3 year old check up at the doctor. Nothing special, but it seemed to take all morning. And then I got a call from the daycare. 3 more cases, and 2 teachers. So, I decided that she won't go for the rest of the week.
I just can't do the whole LICE thing. It just grosses me out. I mean, vomit, blood, snot - I don't mind, but lice....just the thought of it makes me itch.
In my spare time (when K and I are napping), I am working on improving my blog. I am also working on knitting a hat for my niece. And redoing the basement like I said.
Sunday night, J and I watched "I don't know how she does it". What a great premise for a movie. The movie itself was a bit....over the top, but at the end of the movie, J turned to me and said. Yep. She's you. I didn't agree with him (purely to not agree with him). But, I try. :)

Resolution Resolve

E & I are in bed napping. K is at daycare. J is at work.
The whole house is quiet.
And I really should be doing something productive. But I'm not. I'm here. Chatting with whoever will read this. Someday.
January 5th seems so close to new years - and somehow, I feel like it has been an eternity. And I still haven't decided on any resolutions. I've been reading a lot on other blogs about having a "year" word. Since I have resolved to NOT have any resolutions this year, a year word seems appropriate. And it's kind of a strange one.

Safe.

Yep. I want to be safe. I mean, I know I can't be protected, or protect my kids from EVERYTHING, but I think it's reasonable to be protected against the things you can. So this year, I will work on the safety of myself and my family. This includes having an emergency kit (with a fire extinguisher) in the car. This means having those safety ladders to get out of the second floor should there ever be a fire. This means having our fireplace redone so that we don't have this useless hunk of brick in our living room for fear of being gassed to death. This means creating a safe place for my kids to play in the basement where all their toys are easily accessible, and away from all the big people toys (like drills, and saws and stuff). This means having our water assessed. And the air in our house. And maybe even the walls. This also means having a rockin' garden again this year without any chemicals. And sticking as much as possible to a 100 mile diet, so we KNOW where our food comes from and what is in it.

Does anyone else have a year word they want to share?

Christmas Cards

Good Afternoon!!!

As this christmas season comes to a close, I thought I would share a few of the christmas cards that I have done. Each one is from the Martha Stewart website (www.marthastewart.com) - because I love all the creative things she does. And the nice thing is, that you can slightly improvise - and make them your own.

Goodbye 2011

So, 2011 is over. As a sit here and write this, my 3 daughters are napping peacefully. What a great day. 2011 brought a lot with it. I changed jobs (again), and found a place to work where I am appreciated for the strengths I have, and encouraged to continue building on those I'm still working on.
I spent most of this year pregnant - little I arrived in September of this year...a few weeks early. And then she got sick with meningitis, but she recovered quickly.
My two babies turned 4 and 3. E started school (a major milestone!!!). We had a chance to go to the zoo in toronto, visit my grandfather in Sudbury, and do lots of exciting new things in Ottawa.
My husband and I celebrated 6 years married, and 10 years together. I doesn't seem like that long!!!
I had a terrific summer garden this year - with lots of vegetables to feed ourselves and our friends and families.
I think the coming year will be good to us. E will be 5 shortly. K will start school in the fall. I will start daycare around the same time. And I will head back to work. I hope this summer will bring camping and bonfires and maybe a bit of travel....

I can't wait. After all, the year is what you make it, isn't it?