the best life ever

The Other Side of The Bed

2012-02-16T20:07:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

About that bickering I mentioned was going on last week,

there was one morning,

when I was half done through making the bed...

and I got distracted by some clothes that needed tending to.

It was at that same moment when Kev walked in the bedroom.

"What's up with that?!?" he questions,

"Are you really that angry with me?"

I wasn't and actually had no clue what he was talking about until I turned to look at what he was indignantly gesturing at.

I had only made my half of the bed.

Len, Cashius & Neita

2012-02-14T13:08:00.004-05:00

make me happy.

Last week was a Put Your Head Down & Go kind of week.

It was busy.

And I like busy. I love my job. I love the direction and passion of Kevyn's new job. I love our opportunities to drive and grow the household finances.

But what I love even more is balance. Because, while last week was all necessary and profitable, it came at a cost. There was some bickering, there was another flu bug, there was general exhaustion, there ~~was~~ is an unkempt house. I'm sure I could go on but let me not bore you with the slipshod details.

My point is... what's the point?

A week here and there of that - no problem but, I've heard of people that can string together, not only weeks but months, even years of working at a frantic pace and I wonder, "At what cost?"

Your health? Your relationship? Your inner peace?

All 3 of these photos from our wedding contain images of souls who are no longer here with us.

And looking at them I think...

Improve your life situation by working hard? For certain!

Love what you already have even harder? Abso-frickin-lutely!

Happy Valentines Day.

7 Years

2012-02-13T22:10:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Kev and I got married 7 years ago today.

I was trying to upload a TON of wedding photos as I know many of the people that celebrated our love with us that night still follow our little love story today by visiting us on this here blog.

Which in of itself is an AWESOME thing.

And I thought they might get a kick out of seeing themselves at our wedding.

But the upload was slooooooow.

And Firefox kept crashing.

And I'm really, really tired.

So here are 5.

Maybe I'll continue to post more this week.

And most importantly...

we're still writing this love story 7 years later and it just keeps getting better and better.

Xo

To Infinity and Beyond

2012-02-09T20:31:00.005-05:00

makes me happy.

Days around here are busy, awesome, non-stop, rewarding and exhausting.

By the time Byrd goes down to sleep the tank is next to empty.

Next to. I'm still managing to find enough in the reserves for some beautiful, awkward, quick, but-still-nice-to-be-close-to-you love making.

While showering and putting on sexy lingerie beforehand clearly is not happening these days there has been some other odd happenings as a result. The random appearance of Toy Story stickers on various body parts.

Two nights ago it was Buzz Lightyear on my back. Tonight it was Rex the dinosaur on Kevyn's lower pelvis.

Perhaps not sexy but certainly a little kinky, yes? Or as sheriff Woody might say...

That's not flying! That's was... falling with style!

A Big Beautiful Moon Belly

2012-02-07T19:28:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Did I tell you Kev got Apple TV for Christmas?

Love. It.

So we play music through his computer on it all the time and he usually runs a slide show of our photos from some random file.

Fun.

Tonight he was running photos from our Flickr account.

Many of which were before kids.

In a way I felt so far removed from that couple in the photos and simultaneously close and connected to them.

Pregnancy, for me, is a bit of a weird thing. While I'm completely and utterly grateful to be pregnant, I'm not the woman that is in love with being pregnant.

So today I will enjoy the tickles and the kicks of the wee munchkin in my belly and know that it is virtual tomorrow when I will feel like the girl in the photos again.

Lyrics That Speak of Me

2012-02-06T14:16:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

When I heard this line in Wilco's song Whole Love I thought, 'Me too!'...

I'm as simple as a matter of fact.

Anyone else?

Knowing The Kleenx Is Overrated

2012-02-02T19:08:00.002-05:00

makes me happy.

Every night when it's my turn to put Byrdie down to sleep I usually read to her for about 30 minutes, then get her into bed by singing a few songs, and wrap up our ritual by recapping our day and expressing my gratitude for all the wonderful moments we enjoyed.

Quite often the conversation will lead into me telling her about all thoughtful things I saw her doing that day, like... sharing. This is her favourite part of the conversation.

"More tells about sharing mommy," she begs.

Which I find so interesting because it is clearly one of the most challenging things for children to grasp at this age but, I'm guessing by her desire to hear about it in a positive way, over, and over, and over again, it is something she desperately wants to grasp.

So, on, and on, and on I go, trying whole heartedly to remember every single time she shared something with someone.

Clearly I know I'm reaching when, by the 25th tell about sharing, I say something to the effect...

"Well Byrdie, I wanted to tell you I thought it was very kind when you picked your nose and offered to share it with Evan but, really, no one wants to share your boogers so you should just wiped them on..."

She cuts me off, "Your shirt!"

"You got it Byrd - my shirt. Good night."

The Perfect Pickle

2012-02-01T14:03:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

On evenings I'm working I tell Byrdie before her afternoon nap that I'll be gone when she gets up but, Daddy will be here to play with her. Which, for the most part, she's totally fine with (I'm pretty sure they always have an awesome time together).

It's the days when I've worked a few shifts back to back or, as I learned last night, right before she closes her eyes for sleep that she vocalizes any disappointment in my absence.

As told by my husband, when he was saying his final I love yous and heading for her bedroom door last night, the Byrd murmured, "I want mommy."

His response, "Me too."

Lovely and heartbreaking at the same time.

Calling It An Adventure

2012-01-30T19:24:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

We took Byrdie on a shopping adventure yesterday!

While we really only had 1 thing on our list of things to buy, and could have picked it up in 20 minutes if we just drove up to the mall 3km away, we decided to take the subway downtown and call it an adventure.

She loved it. And I looked pregnant!

The sun poked out...

and the fountains were impressive...

and we found what we were looking for.

Definitely 3 hours well spent.

Frog Fart Jokes

2012-01-26T15:20:00.004-05:00

make me happy.

In the morning, when Byrdie wakes and calls me to come get her, which I still think is totally awesome as she could easily get out of her bed and open the door herself, I walk in and she usually says something to the effect of,

"All done sleeping mommy! I'm big and strong now!" and she'll flex her bicep for me to feel.

We've told her that her body does all it's growing while she's sleeping and that's why important she gets lots of sleep. Someone is thinking over here, eh?!?

But this morning it was something new...

"Mommy, that frog was farting ALL NIGHT LONG!" she declared while pointing in disgust to her frog humidifier (which glugs each time the reservoir fills).

"How RUDE!" was all I could spit out over a good morning laugh.

Painting

2012-01-24T19:15:00.006-05:00

makes me happy.

I was talking with a self described Professional Over Analyzer the other day, an individual is able to ascertain the hidden message in any...

tone of voice, slightest of body gestures, choice in vocabulary, and tempo of delivery.

Which made us both giggle and lead me to do some over analyzing of my own...

If one spends all one's time over analyzing life when does one live it?

The Companion of Wisdom

2012-01-23T14:07:00.004-05:00

makes we happy.

Sunday morning we headed down to the Dakota Tavern for a little bluegrass brunch. As you can tell from the photo... it was a kind of busy.

And while I'm attentively teaching Byrdie the virtues of patience, at this point in time, hunger and waiting is not a combination she's quite got a handle on.

We'll get there. In the meantime there's always The Lakeview (with only a 10 minute wait - Toronto is brunch crazy!).

That Smile

2012-01-20T14:11:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Ever notice how some people tend to focus more on what's with wrong with others rather then what's right with others?

And do you ever notice how much simpler life is for those who do the exact the opposite?

True that what we focus on we attract, yes?

Drywall

2012-01-18T21:23:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Drywall!?!

Can you handle it? I hardly can. Kelly and Sandy's house is getting closer to being livable.

Kitchens cabinets...

are also being built...

and I can't stop busting Kelly's balls about moving out!

Which I probably should stop, I really don't want to make her feel bad. I've loved having them here. And like I was talking about the other day, time hasn't been without it's ups and downs, but certainly there were more ups then downs.

I'm guessing Evan enjoyed his time here as he did invited us to come move in with them when they go. He also said clothing was optional.

I'm totally going to take him up on that.

Those Magic Moments

2012-01-16T18:46:00.005-05:00

makes me happy.

Two year old

birthday parties,

not sure I ever thought...

they would be something I would enjoy so much!

While young children certainly do not come

without their challenges,

the magic they exude...

unequivocally outweighs them.

But that's daily life too right?

Not without it's challenges but full of magic.

Living In My Own Small Coastal Village

2012-01-13T13:56:00.006-05:00

makes me happy.

I read this in Timothy Ferriss' book The 4-Hour Workweek the other day and just had to share...

An American businessman took a vacation to a small coastal Mexican village on doctor’s orders. Unable to sleep after an urgent phone call from the office the first morning, he walked out to the pier to clear his head. A small boat with just one fisherman had docked, and inside the boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish.

“How long did it take you to catch them?” the American asked.

“Only a little while,” the Mexican replied in surprisingly good English.

“Why don’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?” the American then asked.

“I have enough to support my family and give a few to friends,” the Mexican said as he unloaded them into a basket.

“But… What do you do with the rest of your time?”

The Mexican looked up and smiled. “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Julia, and stroll into the village each evening, where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life, senor.”

The American laughed and stood tall. “Sir, I’m a Harvard M.B.A. and can help you. You should spend more time fishing, and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. In no time, you could buy several boats with the increased haul. Eventually, you would have a fleet of fishing boats.”

He continued, “Instead of selling your catch to a middleman, you would sell directly to the consumers, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing, and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village, of course, and move to Mexico City, then to Los Angeles, and eventually to New York City, where you could run your expanded enterprise with proper management.

The Mexican fisherman asked, “But, senor, how long will all this take?”

To which the American replied, “15-20 years, 25 tops.”

“But what then, senor?”

The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right, you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You would make millions.”

“Millions senor? Then what?”

“Then you would retire and move to a small coastal fishing village, where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, and stroll in to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”

Something to think about on this most glorious Friday!

Lessons of a Two Year Old

2012-01-11T14:14:00.005-05:00

makes me happy.

I was having a conversation with my sister this morning about times when someone is talking to you and you begin to feel like they are putting you, or your lifestyle, or choices, or general being down, and playing off it off as unintentional. Which in of it's self is weird - if you really want to tell me how absurd I am then just come out with it but don't further negate my intelligence with your silly nilly games.

And all I really had to say about it is, "I don't get it. For me, knowing my comments or conversation may have made someone else feel better in some small way is a most awesome feeling. I want to lift people up not bring them down."

She agreed.

And then it got me thinking how I'm already teaching my 2 year old that lesson. Now if you've ever spent anytime around 2 year olds at all, you know one of their most very favourite words is MINE (drives me batty!). To which you'll very often hear thoughtful parents responding SHARE! But to me simply saying the word share isn't going to do the trick. In my mind the trick is to explain why we share.

And why I tell Byrdie we share is because it makes other people feel good.

And making other people feel good in turn makes you feel SUPER-GOOD!

Making The Most of These Last 15

2012-01-10T13:48:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

I think I'm 6 months pregnant now. It's funny how the second time around you don't seem to pay as close attention to how far along you are. What I do think about quite a bit is the due date.

As I had to have a c-section the first time I've elected to go ahead and have another one this time. Although I know the recovery time from a c-section is longer I simply feel like it's the right decision for me.

So this due date, or planned c-section, is currently scheduled for April 27th. I asked for it to be on May 1st way back during my 1st obstetricians appointment but it seemed the date was already booked. Hmmmm, popular day?

Any which way, April 27th or May 1st, we've got a lot to get done between now and then. Like moving my sister and her family out! Which is totally becoming a reality and getting very exciting for everyone involved.

Then there's ripping up flooring, laying new flooring, tearing down walls, building new walls, moving around the kitchen, adding counter tops, and maybe somewhere in there we'll even get a coat of paint on the nursery.

Yeah, so how far along I am is seeming a little irrelevant to what we can get done in the time we have left!

Rockin' The Sandwich

2012-01-09T13:08:00.002-05:00

makes me happy.

Happy to report everyone is feeling 100% awesome again!

And appetites are back too! And you know what I love when I've got an appetite? I loves me a good sandwich (it was actually the only thing I can remember craving the last time I was pregnant).

This is my current favourite, but I'm actually pretty thrilled to eat any kind of sandwich that is made with whole foods and quality ingredients.

What do I mean by quality ingredients? I mean products that have as few preservatives and un-pronounceable things on the label as possible.

So this here bit of heaven is made up of Stonemill's sprouted grains and oatmeal bread, a slice of Maple Leaf's Natural Selections oven roasted turkey breast (which they preserve with sea salt, vinegar and lemon juice - goodbye nitrates!), a slice of emmental cheese, tomatoes, avocado, Dijon mustard and Nutrimax mayo.

Try it - thank me later!

The Dream Installation Team

2012-01-05T13:52:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Now old tiger blood is now down for the count. What a week!

You know, I'm not one for new year's resolutions as I'm generally trying to better myself on a daily basis but of course, after a couple weeks of over eating the typical holiday foods and desserts I always find the beginning of January a good time to increase my levels of exercise. I few more push-ups here, a bit more skipping there.

Yeah so, that hasn't happened at all this week.

Firstly exhausted from the sickness myself, then tired from being up all night with the Byrd, having the busiest work week I've had in months, and now the husband's a wreck in bed.

So how am I to feel about this miserable week with no exercise?

Fine. I accept it, there is no other option. Is the ol' bod going to fall apart without a week of exercise? No. Will I never have the opportunity to exercise again? No.

So here's to a week of getting by and looking forward to many more productive ones in the near future.

My Snow Bunnies

2012-01-03T14:38:00.003-05:00

make me happy.

The Byrd got it last night. Booooo. Though I have to admit she was super cute learning how to barf into the toilet. She kept looking back at me asking me if I really wanted her to stick her head in here?!? Yes dear in there. Not too far, but in there.

Then she wanted to sleep with mommy. Correct that, she wanted to sleep on mommy. As the belly is a little tricky to balance on she settled for beside me with her head on top of mine.

Whatever makes her feel better is fine by me.

That leaves one man standing. My iron clad, tiger blooded husband. Here's hoping he gets out of this mess unscathed and that the looming threat of the mayhem doesn't kill him in the mean time.

2012

2012-01-02T17:13:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

Get your mind out of the gutter, this is not an image of me recuperating from New Year's Eve - remember I am 5 and a 1/2 months pregnant meaning I was in bed at 10:30pm on Saturday night.

And no, this is not a result of the pregnancy. Lucky that feeling went away at the 3 month mark.

No, this is an an image of me as I was all last night, riding the Porcelain Express, while my body tried to expel every last bit (over & over & over again) hoping to rid it's self of some stomach virus that has now been haunting these hallowed walls!

Good bye never ending cold! Hello brutally uncomfortable stomach virus!

She entered our home sometime right around Christmas as boxing day saw little Edison heaving her guts out. We thought it was possible food poisoning until Evan and Kelly and Sandy all started last Wednesday.

Needless to say I've been a little concerned about if, or when, my turn was going to come. I was even relegating myself to bowls of rice at night in hopes of easing the pain should the virus hit.

And nothing.

And just when I thought my super strong immune system and positive attitude had me in the clear I made nachos for dinner.

Nachos people! Sharp, crunchy tortilla chips with spicy chicken and salsa. Yeah that wasn't painful at all.

And every time I ran back to the toilet there sat Diego with his silly little 'ha, ha! you ate nachos' grin starring back at me. Man, his was close to getting smacked up side the head!

But truly, I'm all good. I've stopped puking and Kevyn has taken care of the Byrd all day so I can rest.

Oh the Byrd...

such a sweet, concerned soul. Every time she asks me if I'm feeling better I say yes because I know it breaks her hear to hear 'no.'

Now let's just hope she's got that rock solid immune system I thought I had and hope this thing passes her by because... it's 2012! And going to be a very special year! And I'm pretty sure daddy is tired of cleaning out the toilet of other people's nacho remains!

She's Got Legs

2011-12-30T15:26:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Firstly let me start with - check out those legs! I knew there was a reason I married Kevyn, ~~thoughtful~~, ~~funny~~, ~~caring~~, ~~positive~~, ~~great in bed~~ long-lean legs!

He and Byrdie have this fun little game they play together after her bath where he lifts her up on top of the vanity and they practice making different facial expressions into the mirror.

Right before heading out the door together the other day for one last Christmas party they practiced a few for me.

Above - Who's There?

So Sad I've Got To Pout.

Surprise!

How about I add great dad to that list above.

Have a most safe and excellent end to 2011 and may all your days be filled with light, love and happiness in 2012.

Some Holiday Randomness

2011-12-28T21:17:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

Clearly it would be a correct assumption to suggest I enjoy taking photos.

I do.

Yet there seem to be times when I realize I haven't picked up my camera nearly as much as I would have liked to.

Seeing these few shots leaves me wanting more.

Which is also a good thing as memories are just as wonderful as photos, yes?

Christmas Morning

2011-12-27T14:29:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

This is what Christmas morning looked like at our house.

Need a better look?

Keep in mind that was for three children, but... still, little excessive I'm sure. As we generally don't spend much time shopping or obsessing over material things we can spoil them ever now and then, yes?

Watching their big eyes...

curious expressions was the best part.

As were the moments when Santa hit the nail right on the head and...

left them exactly what they had hoped for!

It was also kind of rewarding when, half way through opening the presents, Byrdie tucked herself between daddy's legs and told us she needed a time out. A little overwhelmed and not quite sure about it all we were happy she could find the most comfort in people and not things.

A Few Full Days Off Together

2011-12-23T18:30:00.002-05:00

makes me happy.

Wrap, wrap, wrap.

Merry, merry, merry.

Health & happiness friends.

xoxo

F*&$ing Hot Cast Iron Pans

2011-12-21T21:11:00.004-05:00

make me happy.

Today, on my favourite day of the year, I offered to make my sister dinner for her birthday.

I picked up some beauty scallops, crab claw meat, parm and fettuccine. I was using a recipe I had never tired before but felt confident in my skills that I could work it out.

My biggest concern was cooking the scallops properly. Nicely seared yet not over cooked and rubbery. Thinking a cast iron pan would give me the heat I needed I asked Kelly to borrow if I may borrow hers and then warmed her up to a proper medium-high.

I should have stopped when the first pat of butter hit the pan and evaporated in an instant puff of black smoke.

I. Did. Not.

And dude! It got smokey in here!

But no one got mad. No one freaked out.

They laughed, opened windows, fetched me new fry pan, kept the noodles moist, and basically gave me the confidence to pull this effort back together.

Which we did. And it rocked. And we were in our pajamas the whole time.

Another reason why... this is my favourite day of the year.

Happy birthday sis.

Adding A Santa Hat

2011-12-20T20:55:00.002-05:00

makes me happy.

As does watching Survivor.

Cheesy but true.

Laura's Pork Tenderloin

2011-12-19T14:20:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Last night after putting the Byrd down to bed, Kev and I popped out to enjoy my very favourite kind of Christmas party... the At Home Christmas Party.

It actually could have been a whole weekend of At Home Christmas Parties but as timing would have it, both Kev and I had to work on Saturday and were only able to attend Sunday's shindig.

I don't think it's just because I work in a restaurant and am constantly surrounded by crowds of people the I enjoy celebrating in people's homes, rather I believe it's the intimacy of the venue and the chance to really get acquainted with my friend's friends.

Not to mention you can hear one another, which allows entertaining conversation to flow, the music that is being played always rocks, and nothing beats a homemade meal crafted with care and love.

All 3 Endings

2011-12-16T18:37:00.007-05:00

makes me happy.

Sing Byrd sing... Ouch!

The Froth

2011-12-15T20:34:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

Kevyn and I are lucky in that we share all the same friends, meaning we usually enjoy them together as a couple.

But every now and then...

every once and a while,

Kev sends me on my way to enjoy a night out with...

just the girls.

It's really just like other fun night with him.

Lots of jokes, some sex talk, and the general analysis of the nothingness of our lives.

Which of course, is the everythingness of our lives, and wonderful to share with the people you love.

Feeding The Birds

2011-12-14T16:06:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

The Christies hosted their first annual...

Feed The Birds Christmas party this past weekend and we were thrilled to be invited.

The basic idea was to string up some pine cones, lather them in lard, and roll them in bird seed. Everyone then hiked out to the ravine behind their house and hung the winter bird treats in trees big and small.

Of course there were lots of Christmas treats, tasty beverages and Marla and Aaron's easy, breezy hosting approach (as I believe is a must when 25 kids or so are running around your house covered in lard and bird seed) to make it a day to remember and one to look forward to next year.

Dreams of Neo Citron

2011-12-12T19:27:00.003-05:00

make me happy.

This is the thing about the cold I've had for weeks now, I don't think I'm getting better because I'm coughing so much at night I can't sleep. And when you don't sleep you don't heal. And I can't take anything to suppress the cough or help me sleep because, well... I'm almost 20 weeks pregnant.

So while that sucks, the great news is I'm half baked! Well I guess I'm not half baked but the baby is. And it's all totally awesome and we're very, very grateful and happy.

And...

it looks like it's going to be another GURL!

Oh how we love little girls. Xoxo

A Contagious Attitudes

2011-12-08T19:59:00.004-05:00

make me happy.

Sometimes I wish our house was wired like a Big Brother house with cameras everywhere.

Although not-so-fun in the moment, I'm sure it would have been fun to rewind last night's tapes to watch all the comings and goings in retrospect.

We've been passing around coughs and colds in this here household for probably 2 months now. And just when we begin to think it's over, nights like last night happen and it feels like we're back at square one. Without exaggeration, not an hour went by last night when someone wasn't tending to a cry, coughing their brains out, or pouring saline solution up their nasal cavities.

That last one was me. I'm so dry and stuffed up that I got up to Neti pot twice last night.

It also of made me think one of my all time favourite Christmas movies The Ref, in which Denis Leary plays a cat burglar who takes a bickering family hostage on Christmas eve.

So on the bright side, I highly doubt any burglars would dare take more then a few steps inside this house once they heard all the phlegm dislodging and snot shedding going on.

Positive thinking over here friends. Positive thinking.

Curious Critters

2011-12-07T20:59:00.002-05:00

make me happy.

Don't let that smile fool you - little Edison did not want to lie in that position for long.

Stand still and silently watch the world go by - and it will.

- Authour Unknown

Sweeping The Room With A Glance

2011-12-05T20:55:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

I've been sick. Which really, when you're a mom, means nothing except your house may begin to look like this.

Especially if your child is sick too. Which she has been. Which sucks so much. And which has also meant hours spent traveling to, waiting for, and visiting the doctor. With no solid naps, of course.

All more reasons why the house begins to look like this.

Am I worried about it? No.

Will the mess still be there tomorrow? Maybe.

Does my husband still want to get with me? Absolutely.

As Joan Rivers so eloquently put it...

No man will ever make love to a woman because she waxed the linoleum - "My God, the floor's immaculate. Lie down, you hot bitch."

By The Skin of My Teeth

2011-12-01T20:15:00.006-05:00

makes me happy.

You know I'm a big believer in the Law of Attraction right?

Well I'm not sure what was attracting what on my subway ride home last night, but... there was something going on.

So I'm riding the train home with my good friend Vixen when all of a sudden Uh-Oh! My ~~stomach~~ bowels did the kind of flip you only hope they do when you are within two feet of a toilet.

Clearly I was not.

"Ahhhh Vix, I don't feel so well." I inform her.

Just.

In.

Case.

And Vixen, who is by far one of the the sweetest people I know, acknowledges my distress and expresses her concern.

I assure her, through clinched teeth, that "I'll be fine, I'll make."

Not only a sweet, but also one full of fun stories, Vixen then proceeds to lighten my burden by telling me kooky stories about her mom knowing where washrooms are all over the city.

Which immediately gets me thinking about how my mother knew every single pit stop on our annual road trip down to Florida, "Bill! There's a Bob Evan's at the next exit!"

My empathetic bowels tighten. I'm barley holding on when I'm snapped out of it with Vixen's final words. In a hushed voice before she steps off the train...

"She's kind of loose."

Oh no! Laughing is not helping!

Okay Stacy. You're alone now. Just a couple more stops. Just get your mind off it. Think about something else.

What about Seinfeld last night. Ohhh, it was a good one. About casting their NBC pilot. The Kramer actor was hilarious. And then Kramer came in and auditioned to play himself. Funny. And then... And then... his bowels tighten and he had to make a mad dash for the washroom. Which was occupied. As were the next three he tried. There he goes, running through New York city, desperately looking for somewhere to...

Not good! Not good.

Just clear your mind. Think of nothing. Look at the ground.

A MCLATTE CUP!?! AHHHHHHH! McDonalds turns my stomach at the best of times let alone the idea of a McProcessed coffee.

Beads of sweat form on my brow. One stop to go. I begin unbuttoning my winter coat.

Please Kevyn. Please be waiting for me.

The doors open and I start running.

Nope. No running. To much bouncing.

Walking. Walking. Walking very quickly.

Up. Up. Up the stairs.

He's there! He's there! He's there!

I swing the door open. Kev leans in for a kiss. "I've got to poop so bad!" I yell.

"Oh baby! That sucks. Hold on!" I hear as my hero of the moment somehow manages to turn our 3 minute drive into a 1 minute one.

The car pulls into the driveway, I leap from it as it slows, leave my keys in the door and a trail of clothing all the way to the facility.

Because you know when you're in that kind of misery there's a good chance your lower half won't be able to discern the difference seeing the toilet and being on it.

Dudes.

I.

JUST.

MADE.

IT.

I sit there curled over in agony and relief wondering, "What would I have attracted if I had had the fish?!?"

Damn you heirloom carrots and green and white asparagus.

Putting Some Elbow Grease Into It

2011-11-29T15:53:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

Have you ever...

chopped and chopped and chopped...

onions and garlic on your cutting board for dinner preparations,

washed it, and then immediately chopped a kiwi and plum on it to make yourself an afternoon fruit salad,

only to realize you hadn't exactly washed the cutting board as best you could have?

Ewwwww, is right Byrdie.

Livin' It Out Anyway You Feel

2011-11-28T14:40:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

So I've been slightly obsessed with My Morning Jacket's Circuital album ever since attending their Toronto show back in July (probably my most favourite concert ever).

I knew we were nearing the end of Cashius' life when we went out that night and my heart was open. The music filled it.

The whole album is awesome but at different times, different songs have resonated with me more clearly. I'm not sure why, but I'm currently totally digging Outta My System...

They're playing Madison Square Garden in New York City on December 14th. One of my most favourite bands in one of my most favourite cities. A close girlfriend of ours is going and of course she invited Kevyn and I to join her but it's just not currently in the cards. Do me a favour though, if there's any chance it's in your hand of cards... DO IT!

But don't be surprised if you then can't get them outta your system.

My Silly Cents

2011-11-25T20:15:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

And if I were to give my 2¢ advice about romantic relationships,

as I'm sure that's all it's worth, it would go something like this...

Get plenty of sleep because you can be sure the silliest, smallest, most trivial misunderstandings will turn into the ugliest, most ridiculous blowouts when any given party of said relationship is exhausted, and practice, practice, practice...

making munchkins.

Warning - don't actually make many, many, many munchkins as you'll then never be able to follow the first cent of advice, but do practice - it makes perfection all around.

The Back Step

2011-11-23T15:30:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Carrying on with my thoughts from yesterday... at the end of the day, if I can't seem to change my behaviour enough to allow the positivity to flow within any given relationship, I feel no way about taking a step away from it.

I have no desire to spend my precious time around negativity and totally understand that not everyone is going to be jiving on the same vibe as me, so with love in my heart, for them and our relationship, I take a break.

I have to tell you this has worked out swimmingly every time I've tried it. Either, over time, the person has turned into a friendly acquaintance or, together we've been able to build a connection with a much better understanding and appreciation for one another.

Big Hearts All Around

2011-11-22T21:10:00.003-05:00

make me happy.

The other thing I think always helps me in my relationships is assuming the best.

Assuming that no matter how self centered, angry, or mean someone might be coming across, I always try to assume that that is not their intention. For whatever reason, I believe they are sharing their message this way because they think it's the only way to be heard and not because they are purposefully trying to be negative.

It often causes me to wonder - what is it I'm doing to enable this negativity? Why doesn't this person feel comfortable just being chill around me? And how can I change that?

Easy Like Sunday Morning

2011-11-21T20:00:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

I'm re-reading Brain Rules for Baby by John Medina and it just so happens to have some pretty great advice on how to maintain those happiness giving relationships I mentioned on Friday.

Firstly - Emotional Regulation

We are most likely to maintain deep, long-term relationships with people who are nice. Individuals who are thoughtful, kind, sensitive, outward focused, accommodating, and forgiving have deeper, more lasting friendships -and lower divorce rates- then people who are moody, impulsive, rude, self-centered, inflexible, and vindictive.

Secondly - Empathy

To have empathy, your child must cultivate the ability to peer inside the psychological interiors of someone else, accurately comprehend that person's behavioral reward and punishment systems, then respond with kindness and understanding. These behaviors are so powerful, they can keep not only parents and children together but husbands and wives together. If your marriage has a 3-to-1 ratio of active-constructive versus toxic-conflict interactions, your relationship is nearly divorce proof.

May I add to that list...

Thirdly - Channel Sunday Mornings

How about we treat each relationship as if we were breaking bread together over a cup of java and some eggs benny on a Sunday morning? I mean seriously - whose ever a jack a#$ at Sunday brunch. No one. Ever.

The Grant Study

2011-11-18T20:15:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

Here, another point of happiness I believe I may have mentioned before, but not sure if I then knew the source of the information.

It is The Grant Study that has extensively collected information since 1937 trying to answer the question: What makes people happy?

After decades of research they came up with this...

The only thing that really matters in life are your relationships to other people.

Something to chew on this weekend.

Two Minutes of Evening Fall

2011-11-17T13:43:00.004-05:00

make me happy.

I must have told you before how much I love when the street lights come on while the sun is still setting, yes?

See the lamp post in the forefront of the photo? Under the pine tree?

On!

The thing about the evening in the fall is that it's just so darn short. For a couple moments around 4:30pm the sun is a giant glowing ball of orange in the sky and the then poof! it's gone. It's those 2 minutes, from 4:30pm til 4:32pm, when the street lights come on, people start turning on their house lamps and the whole block seems warm and aglow that I go bonkers over.

Anyone else picking up what I'm laying down?

Getting Cozy

2011-11-15T14:21:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

This afternoon Byrdie asked me if she could watch Monsters in my bed.

"Of course sweet heart. Jump in."

I put the DVD in and walked over to the bed and covered her up with my duvet and then started to walk away.

"Mommy! Come get cozy with me."

Add that to the list of questions I could never say no to.

Elvis Claus

2011-11-14T20:55:00.004-05:00

makes me happy.

We did a little Christmas decorating yesterday.

Yes, I love Christmas decorations. I also love Christmas music. And I LOVE Christmas movies. I even recently proposed the name Sparky to Kevyn if we were to ever have a baby boy.

It's totally awesome having all those little white Christmas lights brightening up the place. And the kids had a ball going through all the bins of decor.

It got me very excited for the day we actually begin finishing and decorating our space. Truth be told, I've been getting excited about this for a while and have become a Pin Interest addict - have you tried it?

But the plan has always been, and will remain, to begin finishing our space in the new year after Kelly, Sandy and the kids move into their new home. And even then I know the process won't be an over night one. But our limited time and money for home projects have brought more value to my life then any counter top or flooring ever could... as a teacher of patience.

Time to enjoy the twinkling white lights, let ideas brew, and pin away!

11/11/11

2011-11-11T20:34:00.005-05:00

makes me happy.

We were at the Royal Winter Fair today.

I liked it. Not sure I loved it.

One of the nicest parts for me, and not something that was planned, was being a part of a large group of people for the 11am moment of silence in honour of our veterans.

I could feel the love and gratitude.

The kid's reactions to the animals always cracks me up. From joy and amazement...

to complete terror and horror.

Thank goodness for friends who make it all better.

And then there were the Super Dogs, which were pretty cool and got the kids dancing and clapping to the loud music.

Personally they got me think about my Cashius and how super, awesome she was. My lord she would have loved to be down on that stage!

More feelings of love and gratitude.

Ten Foot Poles

2011-11-10T21:25:00.003-05:00

make me happy.

And while we're on the topic of beds... remember the other night when I was so tired I went to bed at 8:26pm?

Just me and the three monitors, each with one deeply sleeping babe on the other end.

Or so I thought.

Kelly and Sandy hadn't been out the door for more then 20 minutes when Edison started up.

I had clear instructions to let her be. "She might cry a bit but, she'll stop. We usually don't go down there before 5am."

And sure enough she stopped. Perfect, let's get our sleep on.

Hold on! What's that? I sit up and look across the room at the monitors and now Evan's is lit up like a disco party. So I'm thinking, 'They really didn't tell me what to do about Evan if he gets up. Probably because he usually doesn't.'

Well if he doesn't usually get up, and he is, there must be something wrong.

Up, out of bed, and off I go to Evan's room.

"Hey buddy you okay?" I think he mumbled something about his music box being off. Okay, I can fix this, even though it was dark and I not well versed with his funky equipment, I fumbled around trying to solve the problem as best I could. As I was unsure if Evan realized it was me and not his mom I refused to turn on the light and ruin the dream. And although I didn't solve the problem the little guy got so bored waiting for me to that he fell back asleep.

Damn I'm good.

Okay sleep, here I come.

Twenty minutes later, disco show! Evan again.

"Where's my mommy?!? Where's my mommy!?!"

Shit! He knew it was me. Well I can't let him carry on and on in desperation for his mommy.

Up, out and off I go.

Probably a half dozen move times until Kelly and Sandy come home around midnight.

At which point Kelly walks into my room, kind of tip toeing, kind of wobbling, headed right toward me in my bed.

"The monitors are over there by the door where you came in." I remind her, slightly frightened as to why she's coming so close to me.

But my words don't stop her. She's still coming!

I yell whisper now, dreadfully concerned she wants to kiss me, or something equally as mushy, to thank me for watching the kids, "Over there! By the door! Look behind you!"

"What?!? Oh yeah. Why are you yelling at me?" she asks.

Because I thought you were going to get drunk sappy on me.

"I'm not! Just tired okay!"

"Okay. Thanks."

Music to my ears. A verbal thanks. The most perfect way for an intoxicated person could express gratitude toward me.

You remember I'm a bartender right? I have the right to be concerned!

Back To Our Wanton Ways

2011-11-09T19:49:00.003-05:00

makes me happy.

Speaking of king size bed frames.

When the opportunity for Kev and I to obtain a new bed frame presented it's self I think my sister almost fell to her knees in gratitude and probably would have personally drove out to Stevensville to pick it up all by her lonesome had we not been able to do it ourselves.

You see, in our current tight living quarters, our bedroom is directly over Kelly's living room. Which would probably be a good thing if Kev and I liked to make love in the evening. Alas, we do not.

No, in fact our favourite time to make love is right after we get the Byrd down for her nap, around 1:30pm. Unfortunately, Evan doesn't usually hit the hay till closer to 2pm and likes to spend that last have hour relaxing. Watching Max & Ruby. With his mother. In the living room.

The cherry on the cake? Our old bed squeaked like a mother f#%$er.

"Mommy what's that?!?"

"Oh just Kevyn drilling."

"Wanna see it!"

"No Evan, it's like thunder. You can only hear it but never see it."

And have I ever told how important I believe it is for couples to make love often?

Very.

Needless to say that bed was creating a hot and heavy situation. And not the good kind.

But the new bed - she's solid! Like a rock.

Solutions people. It's all about the solutions.

Birthdays & Beds

2011-11-07T20:00:00.005-05:00

make me happy.

Sunday morning Kev, Byrdie and I drove up to Stevensville to give Adel a birthday kiss and squeeze.

In truth the trip came about because Adel offered us a king size bed frame that she no longer wanted and that Kevyn was in love with, but...

I was super stoked that we were able to arrange the trip on her birthday to get in said kiss and squeeze.

I think we were all also unbelievably stoked about the weather on Sunday!

Sixteen and sunny. Brilliant.

There was also fresh bagels, yummy sandwiches, and cupcakes involved.

It was one of those days that wasn't really planned out but just came together in the most awesome way.

I like to call that, living in the moment.

Those Smiles

2011-11-04T20:25:00.003-04:00

make me happy.

It's 8:26pm, on a Friday night, and I'm writing this blog from my bed.

Everyone has gone out, it's me and three monitors, I've even passed on making myself dinner because... I'm so excited to go to sleep.

I can't EVER remember being tired like this before I had the Byrd. I mean why would I be so tired before? If I needed to get more sleep I just would. Sure there was always work, but there was also always the weekend, or mornings that I could sleep in and catch up.

It's really no matter because the second I see that smiley face of hers I light up and am ready to go! And really, I suppose there still is time to catch up on my sleep, like when she's sleeping.

So on that note... good night.

Hope your Friday night is as enjoyable as mine.

Those Books Without Pictures

2011-11-02T20:24:00.003-04:00

make me happy.

The other day Byrd picked up a book of mine, which sadly did not have any pictures in it, and asked me if she could read it to me.

"Absolutely!" I replied.

She carefully opened it, flipped a few pages and said...

"Once upon a time,

letters, letters, letters,

the end."

And then slammed it shut.

Then we both cracked up laughing.

A Wonderful Brother In-Law

2011-11-01T20:41:00.010-04:00

makes me happy.

What do you think about...

eating some chocolate,

tasting some wine,

joking around,

with good friends

about old times,

all while tasting wine? (Oooops did I already say that?)

Okay then

How about,

enjoying some brunch,

eating some cheese,

and tasting even more wine,

all while

enjoying a perfectly

Ontario fall day to ring in your 40th year?

You tell me Sandy - good?

Happy Birthday brother! Here's to another 40 more!

Robots With Emotions

2011-10-31T20:22:00.005-04:00

make me happy.

Byrdie and Evan seemed to have a better grasp on what exactly Halloween is this year.

And with that better understanding came more celebrations!

In the morning their pre-schcool was having a Halloween party and encouraged the kids to come in costume.

As the costumes we had picked up back in September were all warm and padded, clearly designed for them to walk around in the cool evening,

and would lead to certain over heating after running around indoors for 2 hours with 12 other toddlers, it was decided a costume change was in order.

I picked up the mummy outfit and cowboy get-up last minute at Winners for 75% off- both for $13!

Unfortunately when it came time for the robot costume, which I had been pumping up about for 2 months now, someone wasn't too into it.

And someone else doesn't look too impressed.

But of course things turned around,

and then around again.

Ahhhh, two year olds, got to love 'em!

Happy, happy Halloween.

Red Hot Deals

2011-10-28T20:45:00.003-04:00

make me happy.

The other day Sandy came home from work and jumped right in to Dadding.

Getting dinner into them, rushing to the potty, whipping pants off, chasing them around to get the pants back on, mediating toy time, teaching sharing and co-operation, and that was just the first twenty minutes.

With bedtime still a good hour and a half away I hear Sandy call over to Evan,

"Hey Ev! I'll give you $100 if you go to bed right now."

Evan stares blankly back at him. Kelly and Kevyn break up laughing. I immediately declare,

"I'll take that deal!"

Happy Friday!

My Playa's Ball Champ

2011-10-26T21:00:00.003-04:00

makes me happy.

As the 2011 Major League Baseball season could very well come to a close tonight, I thought it best I get this post up now, about how proud I am of my husband, the Playa's Ball Fantasy Baseball Champion!

Other Fantasy widows out there may be shaking their heads saying 'Proud, what?!? This Fantasy baseball is making me crazy!'

True, it is a long season ladies. And yes, there are times during the summer that EVERY SINGLE CONVERSATION parlay's it's self into one about Teixeira, Pence, Putz, or Phillips. But, it makes him happy. So very, very happy. And when he's happy, I'm happy.

My only beef, the one thing that gets me fired up, is when Kev thinks I'm getting annoyed with his endless stat tracking and trade dealings and he looks over at me and smugly suggests that he is doing this for the money.

"Stacy, I could win a lot of money from this."

Babe, don't EVER do it for the money. Do it for the love of it. Because even though you did bring home the grand prize, which was lovely, if I divided it by the total numbers of hours you put in... I'm sad to say it's not worth the 35¢/hr.

Congratulations my sweetheart.

Fred

2011-10-25T14:13:00.002-04:00

makes me happy.

Look who's been hopping around our house for the past couple weeks.

And by around, I mean around the outside of our house.

Until the other day when we just couldn't resist him and longer finally bent over and picked him up. And kind of gave him a name. And maybe some food. And then even let him hop around inside our house.

We keep letting him out, to run free and do his thing, and he keeps coming back.

Now were not sure what to do. The kids like him enough but don't seem to be old enough to want him.

And us? About the same as the kids. And if we're going to invest anymore time in cleaning up poop we're thinking it needs be the poop of another dog.

So I'll keep you posted as to how this plays out. Unless of course you live in Toronto and are in the market for a super cute dwarf bunny... call me.

Rule Breakers

2011-10-24T20:49:00.005-04:00

make me happy.

Back to the apple orchard this past Saturday.

This time to celebrate Edison's 1st birthday!

It's shocking to me that she's already one year old. And I'm not even the mom who put in the endless amount of love and devotion that makes that first year feel like one long blur of joy and sleeplessness.

But here we all are,

gathered on tractors,

wearing our toques,

smiling in daddy's arms,

picking apples,

eating apples,

and celebrating Edison.

Kelly read somewhere that,

as a rule of thumb,

a child should have the same number of children at their birthday party as the number of years old they are.

Though just like her mommy, I don't think Edison is going to be one for rules.

Happy Birthday you sweet, sweet munchkin.

Ellen Scissor Hands

2011-10-20T19:43:00.003-04:00

makes me happy.

So my mom stuck her head in the door this afternoon to say hello & good-bye, her and my dad were going out for the evening. She also let me know she's been cutting these stuck-together-lumps of fur out of the cat's coat that we haven't been able to brush out. I'm sure she wanted to let me know in case I saw the cat and all of a sudden thought the cat had gone ballistic and started ripping her fur out (as had happened with one of my mother's other cats).

About an hour later Kelly was going up to my parents place and came back as was all, "Shushee's got a something wrong with her!"

And I was all, "No. No. My just cut out those lumps of fur."

And she was all, "Stacy! The cat's got a giant cut on her side."

So I'm thinking, 'Oh, maybe there was a rash under those lumps. Or, maybe the cat got into a little tiff outside.' I mean, in all honesty, Kelly does like to speak in dramatics and put on a bit of a show sometimes.

So I slowly get up and go look at the cat.

"HOLY SHIT! THERE IS A HOLE IN THE SIDE OF THE CAT!"

Now Kelly and I are both standing there, hands covering mouths, thinking 'What the f%#*?!?'

"Kelly."

"Yeah?"

"Mom cut the cat's skin off when she was cutting out those lumps."

Barfing motion.

"KEVYN! You've got to take the cat to the vet!"

Then I text my father to let him know what mom has done.

He's all apologetic, sorry for the hassle, and says he'll cover the cost.

I'm all like, "No worries, just never let mom near any living object with scissors in her hand again."

Now don't get me wrong, if anyone or anything I ever cared about was suffering from some aliment that needed any sort of treatment other then needs to be cut out I would point them in mom's direction. She is such a whiz with home remedies and care that I'm surprised didn't choose to become a nurse or doctor when growing up, but... and there's a big BUT...

Have I ever told you she once snipped the end of my childhood dog's tail off while trying to cut burrs out it?

Like I said, if she ever approaches you with scissors in her hand... RUN.

At Home Exercising

2011-10-19T13:52:00.004-04:00

makes me happy.

I'm sitting here trying to think of something insightful to write,

you know, like maybe something about how my life has a really nice flow to it these days.

How I feel like I have time to get the things down that I need to get done, time to enjoy my job,

time to get out and about with Byrdie and friends,

and time to think creatively. Creative thinking is one of my most favourite things to do. It's right up there behind creative execution.

But the whole time I'm thinking about all this my husband is doing his exercise routine in front of me in the living room, so really, all I end up thinking is...

'Man, is he ever hot.'

Being Generous With Time

2011-10-17T13:57:00.005-04:00

makes me happy.

I have this dream that Byrdie will want, and value, time with Kevyn and myself more then she will things.

I know thinking back on my own childhood that the memories I cherish the most are those of the experiences I shared with my family.

I would actually be hard pressed to remember anything physical I received that greatly altered my long term happiness.

Maybe a bike, or running spikes, or a baseball glove. But all those things are then based around the experiences you have with them, right?

I read an interesting point in Jesse Dylan's The Good Life about time.

It was something Yossi Ghinsberg said...

"We have an illusion, and the illusion is that we don't have any time. Constantly we are under stress and pressure. The only thing that we have is time, and we have to celebrate and cherish that."

The First Ever Toronto Sandwich Rally

2011-10-13T21:29:00.009-04:00

makes me happy.

Our buddy Rob has pitched and shot as many, if not more, television pilots then Kev and I have, and is over it. So he started thinking outside the box. What is the next stage in entertainment? Is network television a dying medium? And he began brainstorming. Coming up with a ton of cool ideas, pondering them, discussing them, and now has decided it's time to simply go ahead and execute them. Execution with no attachment to the outcome. Basically, here's the raw idea, here's some rough guidelines, and who wants to give it a shot?

We do. We do.

First up... a Toronto Sandwich Rally!

The idea - in teams of two or more we met at a common location in our vehicles, we're were all given the same list of two delis, two bakeries, and two cheese shops, we had to visit one location of each to pick up our fixin's, in any order, and meet back at the Steam Whistle Brewery in 90minutes or less.

The goal... layered and multi faceted. Certainly there was the element of the race, who knows the city the best, who knows which roads rock at which time of day, who can get from A to B to C and across the finish line the fastest.

Of course there's the sandwiches too. With unknown options ahead which team can put together the best sandwich on their feet.

Then there was also the more ambiguous goal of sharing. In today's mentality of here and now, how about we share the race happenings live as we go. Fun with Facebook and Twitter on the go, hoping friends or followers chime in with quips or tips.

Got it?

We're off!

Of our two deli options Kev, Byrdie and I choose Sanagan's in Kensington Market.

Only to find out they only sold RAW meat. A slight oversight on our fearless leader's part - I'm looking at you Rob.

Don't get down Byrd we'll find a solution,

and a ginger bread man while we're looking for it.

There we go, a couple blocks over we stumble upon Easton's. While not one of the options on the list we figure a viable option everything considered.

Viable option indeed! The awesome dude behind the counter sliced me up some paper thin smoked duck and we were off.

All smiles,

checking out the fresh produce,

and picking up empanadas on the way.

Next we headed north, found and paid for parking (we're totally rule following parents),

and popped in Thobors French Bakery for a poppy seed baguette... and a pain au chocolate.

South, south, east now, down to the Leslieville Cheese Market.

Where this guy rocked my socks. I told him what I was working with (smoked duck, poppy seed baguette) he asked me about ten more questions and then served up this...

a soft creamy cow's milk cheese from Quebec. A hint of mushrooms, buttery, melt in the mouth kind of cheese.

Then, in the backseat of the car, with my knife, cutting board and dijon mustard (hey! I'm a mom - I come prepared), I put this little bit of heaven together.

And while we were last to arrive, our sandwich was first on the taste buds and the event... a certain success.

How My Mom Used To Greet The Day

2011-10-12T20:24:00.006-04:00

makes me happy.

I'm currently reading The Good Life by Jesse Dylan. I can read these books about happiness and joy all day long - they're really my thing.

Anyhoo - here's the first excerpt I'd like to share...

One of Bernie's (Dr Bernie Siegel) favorites is pretending that he has just arrived on Planet Earth for the first time when he wakes up in the morning.

"I try to see everything as if it's the first time," says Bernie. "Every morning when I get up, I say to myself, 'This is your first day on the planet.' And wow, things get interesting.

Which reminded me of how my mom used to greet the morning when I was little...

"Good morning World, this is Ellen!"

Then she would make a really low voice and say...

"Good morning Ellen, this is World!"

It always made me laugh.

Turkey & Long Walks

2011-10-11T13:53:00.004-04:00

makes me happy.

While rarely read horoscopes I happened upon mine yesterday. It said 'Something, something, blah, blah, meaningful communication.'

Meaningful communication.

How awesome do those two words fit together?

Perhaps they seemed particularly fitting after spending Thanksgiving all together with the family. A time when relationships are exposed, observable, and palpable.

Now I'm not saying meaningful communication is the only way to developing and maintaining successful relationships, but I am suggesting it's one really, totally, wicked, awesome way.

A Full Framing Crew

2011-10-07T21:27:00.002-04:00

makes me happy.

This is what the house looked liked around 7:30am this morning.

It's actually looked like this for about a week now as the framing foreman broke his foot at another project early week and everything got put on hold.

Truth be told, I believe a full framing crew - makes Kelly and Sandy even happier then I.

Because by 5:30pm, there was progress.

Serious progress.

Apple Orchards

2011-10-04T20:13:00.006-04:00

make me happy.

While our winters are harsh and our summers are short, one thing you just can't complain about up here in Canada is the glorious autumn season.

And no better way to get this party started then apple picking!

My girlfriend Marla found a very charming and quaint spot in the Carl Laidlaw orchard and invited us to join her and her clan for some merriment in the sun yesterday.

There were so many fun things to do!

The grain table

was a hit.

Then we rocked some aprons

while we

made our

very own

apple pies!

While Edison played in the hay,

Byrdie scouted out the next big adventure.

"Right here!" said Charlotte.

Come play in the corn.

And, of course,

we also did

some apple picking.

Deeee-lish!

Thanks Marla,

that was awesome.

Two Eggs Please

2011-10-03T20:05:00.008-04:00

makes me happy.

Saturday, early afternoon, after getting the Byrd down for her nap, Kev and jumped in the car and started our hour and a half drive north to Patti and Paul's wedding.

The first half hour of the drive was kind of quite. We were both tired from the night before, Byrdie had us up from 2am til 5am, and honestly, I think we were just enjoy the quiet. You know, a few precious moments without someone asking you the hows, whys, and whats of EVERYTHING they see or hear.

But then we started playing dueling DJs with the ipod and Kev put on this song...

and I started to get excited!

We were going to a wedding,

on a lake,

the sun was shining,

there were lots of fun people we knew, and most importantly...

Paul and Patti were getting married!

Don't you just love weddings?

Especially when the love and chemistry is just busting out of the happy couple.

As is the case with these two.

There is no doubt in my mind they will create a long and magical life together.

Rumour has it the celebrations went long...

into the next morning.

Ours was a different kind of partying.

We managed to pack all our wedding fun into 10 hours. Home by midnight and at the Ontario Science Centre bright and early Sunday for a morning full of baffling bewilderment, boisterous bellows, and endless beguilement with balls.

Different... but the same.

The post title.

Slightly Dehydrating Myself

2011-09-30T20:20:00.004-04:00

makes me happy.

While Byrdie has been completely out of diapers for 2 months now there has been recent whisperings around here about bringing them back.

But... not for her.

This is the thing. In the middle of the night, when I'm lying in bed, with a bead of sweat pulsing on my brow because my bladder feels like it's about to explode, the LAST thing I want to do is go to the washroom.

We've got three sleeping children in this house!

All it's going to take is one squeak of a hinge, one creak of a floor board, one flush of a toilet and BOOM! someone's awake. And once someone is awake there's a good chance of that everyone will be awake.

So what's a girl to do?

Hey, I only got came to the adult diaper solution after I lied in bed paining last night, running through all the pros and cons of putting a potty next to me in our room.

Many cons.

Okay, okay. No potty, no diapers. Maybe a little WD40 and a simple hover board would do the trick. I'm looking at you Michael J Fox.

That Together We Tried

2011-09-29T21:12:00.004-04:00

makes me happy.

When I handed Kev the camera today and asked him to take a couple shots, I suddenly felt very out of practice being on this side of the lens.

At least I wasn't alone.

Squeezing The Produce With Blondie

2011-09-28T20:11:00.003-04:00

makes me happy.

Sometimes I think, 'I should really make an effort to take more photos of Kevyn and myself like I used to.'

As a blog reader and social media enjoy-er I personally always dig seeing photos of the actual author. Children, pets, homes, dinners, vacations and sunsets are all well and good. Certainly they give me a sense of the perspective on the author's life, but it's the photos of them, the photos of the person doing the posting, that really speak to me.

So if you're anything like me, and would like to see more photo of the authors of this here old blog posted here, you might have been a little disappointed that this post was not one such post.

Until of course you took a real close look at the cutest above that is Edison.

Look who's getting ALLLL the attention when those other two are off at preschool.

Make Shift Pools

2011-09-27T20:06:00.004-04:00

make me happy.

Dad and Kev closed down the pool for the winter on Sunday.

Can you guess what that made the kids want to do all day Sunday?

"Want to swim! Want to swim!"

So what's a mom to do?

Clearly she should fill up a storage bin with warm water and...

set

them

loose.

No problems. Just solutions.

Having Someone Like Evan

2011-09-26T20:44:00.004-04:00

makes me happy.

Byrdie and Evan had their first couple hours of preschool this morning.

Needless to say, a few of us were a little sensitive about this new adventure.

Not Evan. Cool as a cucumber.

And although Byrdie was lying in the plank position in the middle of the rug by herself when I returned 15 minutes early to peek in the window, and found out she had been in that position for most of the two hours she was there (except during song time - which she loved), I'm sure having Evan around was still a great comfort to her.

I mean, planking is better then screaming right?

Yeah, the screaming didn't happen until she saw Kelly through the window, ran up to the glass, splayed her hands on it and shouted...

"Get me out of here!"

Mini Stacy

2011-09-23T15:05:00.002-04:00

makes me happy.

Just like her mom... Beautiful.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Girlfriends & French Fries

2011-09-22T20:30:00.005-04:00

make me happy.

It is probably because Kevyn has worked in the bar and restaurant industry for so long that caused him to develop his theory about safe restaurants.

Places where anyone could go, know they could find something comfortable on the menu, and Bon Jovi would surely play once during their dining experience.

You could doubtlessly ascertain that they are not his haunts of choice.

Hope he's okay with plastic trays and table numbers cause that's about the kind of safety I'm still enjoying these days when dining out with our little Byrd.

Jarring Tomatoes

2011-09-21T21:05:00.008-04:00

makes me happy.

We jarred our own tomato sauce this weekend!

This is something I've wanted to do FOREVER. In my world forever started way back when, say 15 years ago, my mom's dear friend Nina gave me a jar of her homemade sauce. Since that day both Kelly and I have intermittently picked Nina's brain about her saucy techniques and secrets, thinking maybe one day we'd get around to giving it a try.

Well my desire to jar was set a fire when Sandy entered the picture a few years later, bringing with him jars of his mother's homemade sauce.

Deeeeee-lish!

Well, this past weekend, Sandy's parents kindly loaned us their equipments and expertise and we finally decided to give it a go.

While there are a million variations on jarring tomatoes I'll share with you how it went down around here.

Firstly, get the water to boil. As getting a pot that large to boil can take a while...

busy yourself by chopping up your onions, garlic and hot peppers.

Once the water boils toss in the tomatoes and leave them...

until the water comes back up to a boil.

Then scoop them out and

run them through a groovy machine like this,

that separates the skin and the seeds from the gold.

Next we added those chopped onions, garlic, and hot peppers,

along with a jar of olive oil and lots of fresh basil.

For the next hour and a half we took turns stirring. We had clear instructions that the sauce must be stirred constantly as one burnt bit would ruin the batch.

Time to get the sauce in the jars.

Ensure the lip of each jar is clean and dry before placing on the lid and ring.

Place your jars back in the pot on a blankets to prevent rattles and cracks. Cover with water. Bring back up to a rolling boil for 10 minutes and then remove, place in a cool, dark home overnight and check for tight seals in the morning.

Anything that didn't fit in the jars (do yourself a favour and make sure that's a hearty portion)...

serve al fresco with a fresh, lightly toasted baguette, some olive oil, and buffalo mozzarella.

Success! Huge success!

Wilco Groupies

2011-09-19T14:35:00.003-04:00

make me happy.

Kev and I managed to stay up past my normal 9:30pm bedtime on Saturday night and made our way down to Massey Hall to catch...

Wilco.

As always they put on a great show. Much more mellow then I remember them but that could be because I still am feeling the My Morning Jacket vibes from back in July.

My favourite part had to be when our girlfriend Laura rushed the stag and landed front and center, helping lead man Jeff Tweedy rock out the remainder of the show.

You see her there? Green shirt, fist a pumping!

Go Laura!

A Man of Many Talents

2011-09-16T20:42:00.004-04:00

makes me happy.

This morning when Kelly and I got back from the park with the kids everything was a disaster from the breakfast and morning routine and Kevyn was out. As he's working crazy hours lately, both day and night, I know I can't always count on him to help around the house. But, I knew he wasn't working until 4pm this afternoon and was surprised he would go out without tidying up first. I was so surprised that I actually became a little worried.

After a little hunting and gathering of the details I discovered he had actually popped out with my dad to meet with clients about another job.

Upon returning he did tidy the house, get the laundry in, and give me the business (too much information?).

Lucky me.

Polar Bears & Peacocks

2011-09-15T18:10:00.006-04:00

make me happy.

So Kelly & Sandy, and Evan & Edison have been living with us for just over a month now.

One down...

five(ish) to go.

Really, it's all good and there's no counting down the days.

We're all having fun, getting our groove, laying down routines, and most importantly finding the balance needed in time and space.

It is always front of mind that all humans are equal and connected but I feel there is no better way to put that theory into practice then with my family.

Shorts & Tees

2011-09-14T20:57:00.003-04:00

make me happy.

I read this the other day over on A Cup of Jo...

There's even an awesome Scandinavian expression that says, "There's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes."

I love it and will certainly keep it in mind as we move forward into the fall and winter seasons but today... I'm loving this late, warm summer weather.

Rare Steaks

2011-09-13T20:23:00.003-04:00

make me happy.

We barbecued and ate out back tonight.

Sandy actually did the grilling and the rest of us just sat there with cozy blankets wrapped around our laps as that's the kind of season we're embarking on up here in Toronto. But you've got to stretch the patio season as long as possible, right?

So Sandy grills, we sit. Steaks arrive, some get sent back. Sandy blames the lack of light, twice. Reminds me that he broke one of my favourite lamps the other night when he took a pair of pliers to it when he couldn't get the switch to turn off. It's off now... for good.

It all makes me smile.

My Morning Jacket played and I thought, 'I can't believe it's been eight years since we stood in this backyard as Kelly and Sandy exchanged their wedding vows.'

Laughing and smiling more then ever, someone choose wisely.

Little Smiley Faces

2011-09-09T21:58:00.007-04:00

make me happy.

I've been watching a little bit of the 9/11 10th anniversary coverage.

It breaks my heart and I don't understand it.

As far back as I can remember I know I've always struggled to understand violence and aggression. I can also remember my parents trying to explain why the atrocities of the world occur as sensitively as possible to me. Certainly hoping to protect my nativity and innocence as best they could.

Clearly they did a fine job as, to this day, I prefer to view the world through rose coloured glasses and still can't never wrap my head around hostility.

But here's to hoping one day there won't be a need to explain hostility and destructiveness to our children. Here's to hoping one day our naive and innocent children grow into naive and innocent adults with hearts full of joy, love, and empathy.

Here's to hoping.

A Husband Who Sings My Songs

2011-09-08T21:54:00.003-04:00

makes me happy.

Kevyn shared this Winston Churchill quote with me today...

"I'm am an optimist. It does not seem too much use being anything else."

Here here.

The Byrd Exchange

2011-09-07T21:51:00.002-04:00

makes me happy.

Kev was working the day shift at his bar today and I had to go into my bar for a couple hours tonight.

And since our bars are only a couple blocks apart from each other I decided to head downtown to Kev's bar a little early and bring the Byrd with me.

We rode the subway down, she told me at every stop we were 'all done now,' ate some poutine together, made shy and then super friends with EVERYONE in the bar, and then headed home with daddy.

It was such a nothing little thing yet such a trip.

Celebrating Patti's Love

2011-09-05T20:46:00.006-04:00

makes me happy.

This pass weekend I was invited up north to celebrate my girlfriend Patti and the love she shares with her soon-to-be husband Paul.

As Patti and I developed a friendship shorty before I became pregnant with Byrdie, I can't say I've had the chance to hang socially with her and her crew all that often, so I knew this would be a great opportunity to meet some new lady folk... sort of.

Some of the lady folk were actually very mutual buddies, like Miss Laura, who you've probably seen on this here blog, say... 100 or so times.

And Jodi, whom we both had the joy of working with for the past 3 years.

Then there was JR, whom I actually went to high school with.

And Lu, whom I did gymnastics with when we were young and spry, and then worked a bar together about a dozen years ago.

Lastly there was the lovely Liz, whom I had had the chance to meet only once before BUT shared a laugh over the fact that I had dated her current boyfriend briefly in another lifetime.

So not exactly new ladies but definitely awesome ones that I was happy to get to know again.

Now back to Patti...

and the fact that's she's madly in love,

and about to marry someone who makes her smile,

and laugh.

Which, in turn,

will make the world...

smile and laugh along with them.

Does it get any better?

Maybe only if you're eating TimTams while smiling and laughing and loving.

Seriously?!? Have you tried these things?

A Walk in the Park

2011-09-02T17:40:00.011-04:00

makes me happy.

Stacy 's at a cottage this weekend for a stagette and I was up for some full time dad in'. I hope she knows that the Byrd is in great hands. Our day started out...

...hangin' from tall buildings...

jumpin on a strangers nose with her partner in crime...

gettin' eaten by a large monster mosquito (she almost saved Evan)...

and playing with large metal objects.

Like I said she's in great hands.

Have a great long weekend!

We miss ya mommy!

Animal Petting, Curb Jumping, Carousel Riding & Ice Cream Eating

2011-08-31T21:02:00.011-04:00

make me happy.

We made our annual trip to the CNE yesterday evening.

As we decided to go after the kid's naps we knew there was no way we were going to make the usual bedtime,

but as we have those kids in bed at the same time of day 99% of the time,

it was kind of fun having them out and about...

without worrying about what time of day it was and

rushing to get home for bath and bed.

Living in the moment and joy... intrinsically linked, yes?

I can honesty tell you,

the time of day

did not cross

my mind

until,
we were making our way back to the car and Kev stopped...

to snap this picture.

Eight pm, August 30th 2011. Awesome.

Also my mom's birthday. Perfection.

One Of Us Sleeping Through It

2011-08-30T22:17:00.004-04:00

makes me happy.

The renovations next door started with the excavator rockin' it out at 7am this morning.

The goods news? Byrdie can sleep through it!

Sleeping With The MVP

2011-08-29T20:25:00.003-04:00

makes me happy.

We lost in the semi-finals.

And you know what sucks? We just weren't on.

But, we did all support each other, pick each other up when we were down and, of course, had fun playing softball together.

I took hardly any photos as I think I was more focused on enjoying my friends of summer with my fullest attention.

Both Kev...

and I were nominated for league male and female MVP respectively.

Kevyn won.

He was shocked. I was over the moon for him.

It was the perfect end to a most amazing season.

Catching Before Throwing

2011-08-26T20:35:00.005-04:00

makes me happy

We finished our regular season of softball in 2nd place this year.

It's our best finish yet.

Playoffs are on Sunday and I'm totally stoked. I'm sure it's very silly to be this pumped for a few games of softball but... I am.

It's had me thinking about this conversation between Oprah and Eckhart Tolle...

ECKHART TOLLE: There was a Zen master, he was watching somebody in a competition, archery, and a man was trying hard to win this competition, but he couldn't make it and then somebody asked the Zen master, "What's he doing wrong?" And the Zen master said, "His need to win drains him of power."

OPRAH WINFREY: Wow.

ECKHART TOLLE: And so his need to win in some future, he wants to have some future moment where he's going to be fulfilled.

OPRAH WINFREY: Wow.

ECKHART TOLLE: So his attention is not totally in the now. So the now, where all power resides…

OPRAH WINFREY: Wow.

ECKHART TOLLE: …this power that resides in the now cannot flow then into what you are doing. The openness isn't there. Because to have mastery in any endeavor, whatever it is, you need to be total in what you do.

OPRAH WINFREY: That's what athletes know, the great ones.

ECKHART TOLLE: Yes. They, and then they, when they enter it they call it "the zone."

So basically on Sunday, I'm planning on catching the ball, throwing the ball, hitting the ball and running the bases to the best of my ability and just see where that lands me.

My Heavy Eye Lids

2011-08-25T21:31:00.004-04:00

make me happy.

The renovations are happening at a fast and furious rate next door.

And here's some proof that I am documenting it and looking forward to sharing more soon.

It's just - I'm just completely spent at the end of each and everyday.

Which I'm sure, on some level, is a really good thing, yes?

How My Mind Wanders

2011-08-24T21:05:00.002-04:00

makes me happy.

On the drive up north we passed a car that was being driven by, say, a 65 year old woman with, say, an 85 year old female passenger, both of whom looked like they were working really hard at not speaking to one another.

Also, I immediately guessed they were mother & daughter.

My train of thought didn't really continue on to presuppose why they weren't talking but rather on to how to not ever work that hard at not talking to someone.

It looked exhausting.

And silly.

But then I thought, why am I jumping to such negative conclusions, maybe that's just the way their faces looked.

To which I thought, man, that is no more of a positive thought the last one, which lead my wandering mind to this quote...

"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles."

- Audrey Hepburn

Enjoying Every August Moment

2011-08-23T15:27:00.008-04:00

makes me happy.

Sunday we brought Byrdie to softball with us, parts of which she seemed to very much enjoy. These include; when mommy's not batting, when mommy's not fielding, when the game's over and looking at Kurt's booboo from sliding into third.

A lady who knows what she likes.

Following softball Kev and I had this magical plan in place to drive home, put Byrd down for her nap, jump back into the car and head up north to our buddy Deb's cottage for the night, leaving Byrdie in the care of Kelly and my mom.

Well, Miss Byrd did not want to go for her nap.

Of course, I always love when the Byrd enjoys a good afternoon nap, but I'm also always very patient when she wants to play silly willy and needs many books and much singing before she goes down. I'm lucky in that 97% of my time in the summer is devoted to Byrdie and patience is an easy thing to have when time is not an issue.

But that other 3% of the time, when you're hoping one run through of The Gruffalo and two quick itsy bitsies will do, and they don't... well in that moment, it got me running a little hot.

So I sent in Kevyn feeling confident he'd get the job done.

And then as I'm looking out the back window and watching the biggest, blackest clouds roll in with my mouth slightly agape, I hear Byrdie telling daddy which movie she wants to watch as he leads her to our bed!?!

Now I'm just like, really?!? This kid is not going to sleep, I'm leaving Kelly and my mom with a over-tired 2 year old and there is some sort of tornado about touch down in the backyard.

Kev comes out of the bedroom and I roll my eyes at his solution (which I hate! I hate seeing or doing the eyeroll!), apologize to Sandy who was the one that would in fact be in charge of Byrdie for the next hour or so if she didn't go down, pick up my bag, grab my pillow, and turn to walk out the front door when the sky explodes!

There is SO much rain.

I consider emptying my hands and walking back into the house.

I don't...

I'm glad.

Oh look! The sun came out again. Imagine that?

And rumour has it that Byrdie napped for 2 hours in our bed, heard as I roll my eyes forward in my head.

A Sister-In-Law Who Also Takes Photos

2011-08-22T21:05:00.004-04:00

makes me happy.

We had a small party for Byrdie on Saturday afternoon, the 20th, which also happens to be my dad's birthday.

I managed to snap a few photos but,

I've noticed there are some events in life that I really just want to enjoy live in the moment and not necessarily behind my camera.

On a side note - that very feeling has had me thinking for a while that I'd love to offer a service wherein people hire me to come and photograph their children's birthday parties. You know, nothing to serious and structured, just capturing the love in the moments.

Anyhoo, while my camera wasn't exactly full of birthday moments the next day my inbox was! My sister-in-law Joy had snapped many awesome shots and mailed then right over. Awesome.

Also, Byrdie taught my dad how to smile, picked a out a chocolate cake for him and a vanilla cake for herself and...

then changed her mind and ate the chocolate one.

Atta girl!

My 2 Year Old Byrd

2011-08-19T21:08:00.002-04:00

makes me happy.

The Byrd turned 2 today!

This about sums up how awesome 2 is around here... huge smiles and big schnoobies.

Does it get any better folks?

The Isty Bitsies

2011-08-17T20:29:00.006-04:00

make me happy.

This is what happens these days when we ask Byrdie to smile.

Like, I seriously think she thinks she's smiling and not channeling Teen Wolf (awesome movie) like I would have guessed the first time I saw it.

I cut Evan's hair today.

It was a simple act that brought us all a lot of joy.

Kind of like how...

water fountains that are endless amounts of fun these days,

and white t-shirts look better dirty,

and sidewalk chalk rocks.

Simplicity is my path.

August Evenings

2011-08-16T21:32:00.001-04:00

make me happy.

The after dinner...

trip to the park...

is my new...

most favourite thing.

Double Mint Fun

2011-08-15T21:45:00.004-04:00

make me happy.

I met this guy,

and this guy,

for a late lunch this afternoon.

It was lovely.

We talked pyschosomatic allergies and Grinder.

Dating in the world of texting and crushing tail bones in the Elora Gorge.

Then mostly we discussed the human connection, questioned whether technology helps or hampers it, and wonder will we reach that elusive next level of consciousness by December 21st 2012.

Like I said, lovely.

Then these guys met me at the subway to walk me home.

Awesome.

We made a pit stop at the park and...

Byrdie pointed out to us a "RAINBOW!"

That was a double rainbow afternoon for me Byrd.

Our Pseudo Twins

2011-08-12T21:00:00.005-04:00

make me happy.

Kelly and Sandy are moving in with us tomorrow as they are about to begin their home renovation.

We're guesstimating they'll be with us for 4 to 6 months.

As Kelly was preparing for the move and Sandy has been working and hobbling around a broken foot (from last Sunday's softball game - can you believe it?!?) Kev and I have been taking Evan off her hands a lot this week and taking him out and about with us and the Byrd.

At some point in time Kev mentioned how awesome it would have been to have had twins our first go around.

And while trucking around with two 2 year olds certainly does have it's awesome moments it can also have some very trying moments and A LOT of potty breaks.

But it did get me wondering,

does anyone have twins...

and then have a third child?

If such creatures exist...

I need to meet these superheros.

Because at 3pm this afternoon Byrdie was nodding off on the ferry home, Evan fell asleep 2 minutes into the drive home, and I'm about to shut this computer down and say hello to my pillows.

Twins? Ha!

Eye On The Ball

2011-08-11T22:12:00.002-04:00

makes me happy.

The game...

changes...

when you keep...

your eye on the ball.