Dinner for two

My husband's new job has required a lot of travel, which means Jake and I often find ourselves spending a whole lot of time together alone, and while I feel entirely blessed and grateful to be able to stay home with him at my own choice, I have to humbly admit that some nights by the time dinner rolls round and I realize this is my third meal of the day making conversation and sharing food with a three year old I start to crave a bit of adult ambiance. True, that most times I don't even notice - but this last time husband was away I noticed.

While I set the table for two in preparation for a delicious meal of frozen pizza and veggie sticks I stood for a moment and considered if there was any way I could infuse maturity into this meal. After a few seconds of pondering I lit a candle at the centre of the table, turned on my Musette de Paris cd, and buttoned the bib around my date's neck. We enjoyed our Italian cuisine together over candle light and french music, discussing the unique differences between freight trains and passenger trains. It was very adult-like all round.

The next evening it was butter chicken and naan, with a little white wine, the same candle, the same three year old, and our much missed daddy.  And we still discussed freight trains.

Sitting back now to enjoy and nice Saturday evening alone with husband.
Happy weekend everyone!

Bike Parade

Jake started a local preschool a few weeks ago. It's just two afternoons a week, but for some reason I was really nervous about him starting since he's just only turned three years old and was thinking about the many reasons he may not have been ready. Of course, it has been totally fine.

One lesson I have been learning throughout this parenting journey is that sometimes our children are ready for things before we are. Typically I am the one not ready to let go and move on into the next phase of life, but instead of admitting that to myself I pretend like he's the one who is not ready, and sometimes I think my inability to let go probably holds him back a little. So I am very glad that I bit the bullet and let him start preschool so early because he loves it, and it has unraveled pieces of him that have really allowed him to come into his own personality more fully.

And while he looks forward to preschool every time now, this morning he was hopping out of bed particularly excited because today was bike parade day. The children were instructed on Tuesday to bring in their bikes, trikes and scooters decorated and ready to parade around the neighborhood. I spent the morning with my boy digging through gift wrap boxes pulling out ribbon, tape, cardboard, and bows. Together we transformed his tricycle into something akin to a badly wrapped birthday present. It was ribbony, slightly tacky, and very hodge podge but he loved it and proudly road his trike around his Preschool block like it was the best day of his life.... and I can imagine it just might have been.

Decorating

On your mark....

 

Get set.....

GO!!!

The Eternal Spring

I know this is going to sound ridiculous to some of you but I just have to say it: "Winter where are you? I miss you. Please come visit."



Yes, it's true. We've basically had no winter here. No snow, barely any frost, mild temperatures, rain, sun, wind, but no snow. It's like we moved from a brilliant Fall clear through to Spring as though this little season called Winter didn't even exist.

I held out hope right up until this last week, but then I threw in the towel. If Winter hasn't showed his face by the end of March he ain't gonna. Is it wrong to feel like I've been stood up by a hot date?

It's no secret that I love snow. I got married in the winter just on the off chance we might get snow (it did by the way, in beautiful abundance).

I understand that living on the "Wet Coast" pretty much ensures mild temperatures that leans heavy on the rainfall. Snow isn't really a huge part of our lives, when it does it typically lasts a couple of days before it gets washed away, but you can usually count on its brief appearance at least once a winter. But not this winter.

It's fine, really. I may have bought Jake a snow suit back in October in the anticipation of taking him out for winter wonderland walks through our snowy neighborhood, but I see now it's not all that bad. After all what is there to complain about? I have had flowers blooming in my back yard since January, we've been playing outside most days, digging up worms, tossing a frizbee. Spring is good. But for lack of anything else to complain about in my life at the moment I just had to say - "Winter, how I have missed thee."

Our backyard deer, enjoying an early spring.

 Hoping that all you other West Coasters are enjoying this eternal spring with me.

Birthday Boy

Today my boy turned 3 years old. I thought I would be nostalgic and sentimental, but the truth is today was fine, fun and 100% happy. It was last night as I was tucking him in that I had my sentimental meltdown. I went back three years to the night before Jake was born. I remembered my huge swollen belly weighing me down and the delicious anticipation of knowing new life was soon to come, that I was going to be a mama. My friend came over to watch The Commitments, and I sat on the couch barely paying attention, savoring the sweet kicks against my belly knowing they would soon end. I wrote one last journal entry to my baby and tried to come to terms with that strange feeling of desperately wanting to meet my new baby and never wanting my pregnancy to end. Sounds crazy, right? I was about 600 pounds, my back ached, and I had all kinds of other discomforts that come with being gigantically pregnant and yet, I loved being pregnant and I loved knowing my baby was safe and so close to me. I wanted it to last forever.

Then he was born and oh, that was infinitely better then being pregnant.

Then three years passed.

And it's better still.

Happy birthday Jake!