A big day in this household. Giselle stripped naked, ran around the house a few times, came to pound on the keyboard a bit, asked for a bath, then said she had to go "poop".
I plunked her on the toilet and Voila - she had the longest pee imaginable! Whoo-hoo, go Giselle, go Giselle! She's a big girl now.
I'm trying not to get too excited, but this is one small step for potty-training, one giant step for Mommykind.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Friday, March 23, 2007
Yeah, my hair was like that...
Who are these kids?!! At least we've still got our hair.
Here's to oldies but goodies :)
Bang on...
I did it. Went in for my hair appointment and not only got it coloured but threw caution to the wind and had her cut me some BANGS! Wow, I haven't had bangs like this since I was, oh, about 16? Now I almost match Giselle. I think it looks not half bad though - I especially like the colour. Like a very deep eggplant ... sort of the "blue-black" effect I tried to get while I was in university but nobody noticed. I'm really digging this deep purple hue.
When I got home, I walked through the door and Liam came bounding into the laundry room. His reaction? "Hey, you look like a teenager!" then he bounced out. Desired effect? I don't know...
I entered the kitchen and Ian looked up - "looks good, colour's much better!". I said to him - "Didn't I sort of have this hair when we first met?" To which he replied, "Yeah, I think so". Desired effect? Yeah, I think so too :)
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Testing the Nation : IQ
I'm really looking forward to this TV show tonight. Apparently this test has been taken by several countries around the world, and they've split up celebrity test-takers, as well as done cross-sections of the general population to see who the "smartest" sub-population is. It's not supposed to matter how much education you've had. In the UK I think the vegetarian sub-group scored the highest. There's a scorecard so I intend to play along, and of course Ian will have to as well.
I've always loved puzzles, tests, quizzes of all sorts (of course as they didn't relate to school). My last obsession was Sodoku, and I still succumb to the occasional crossword or wordsearch puzzle. Jigsaw puzzles and Lego (especially Star Wars ships these days) are a big hit with me. But in particular I really like Q & A. If ever I run across a Cosmo mag I always do the love test. Cracks me up.
I don't know what it is. Perhaps it's now that I'm a mom and I find it necessary to justify that I do indeed have a brain. After staying at home for a while I find I need some sense of mental confirmation, that perhaps this IQ test will provide to me. Or it may prove that indeed my brain has turned to mush.
So tune into CBC tonight. I know I will be. I also plan to watch "America's Funniest Home Videos" just before to take my brain through those difficult cerebral gymnastics warmups, just in case.
I've always loved puzzles, tests, quizzes of all sorts (of course as they didn't relate to school). My last obsession was Sodoku, and I still succumb to the occasional crossword or wordsearch puzzle. Jigsaw puzzles and Lego (especially Star Wars ships these days) are a big hit with me. But in particular I really like Q & A. If ever I run across a Cosmo mag I always do the love test. Cracks me up.
I don't know what it is. Perhaps it's now that I'm a mom and I find it necessary to justify that I do indeed have a brain. After staying at home for a while I find I need some sense of mental confirmation, that perhaps this IQ test will provide to me. Or it may prove that indeed my brain has turned to mush.
So tune into CBC tonight. I know I will be. I also plan to watch "America's Funniest Home Videos" just before to take my brain through those difficult cerebral gymnastics warmups, just in case.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
It's all about the hair.
We've been having hair issues in this household. Liam had decided that he doesn't like to get his hair wet by showering and that he wanted to let it grow long. In February I thought I had finally convinced him to get his hair "trimmed" by his longtime hairstylist (he's been going to her since he was about 2). I guess I wore him down and mentioned that Giselle would have her locks done first. When we got to the salon, he had a meltdown, crying and running away. So I made him promise he would get it cut next time. His little sister quite happily took his place. I can't believe how she loves the salon experience. She sits there quietly, watching the mirror, then closes her eyes when asked. She loves getting her hair blow dried and styled. I think we're in for major salon bills in future.
We finally convinced Liam to get his hair cut last week. It was getting ridiculous - between you and me I love the "surfer" look of his hair. He does look pretty cool amongst his other 6 year old friends (maybe a bit more of the sullen teenager look than I would like). But his head of hair is so thick, and once it's past a certain length it gets hard to manage and was moving toward a mullet. His dad already wore a Euro-mullet in the past - didn't think we had to hand that mantle to the next generation. Ian brought him to his appointment and they made an event of it. When they got home, Liam looked so cute! I had my little boy back! His hair is not super-shorn, but it's manageable. He even likes it.
Now to me. I've finally found a stylist up here who doesn't want to give me the traditional "North of 7, poofy suburban" hair. She's managed to give me a cut that can actually be grown out past my shoulders. I'm really quite loving it - when I have a chance to flat-iron I get pretty ecstatic. I personally think it makes me look younger. But Ian thinks I should cut it back up to above my shoulder. He doesn't think I have the right texture to wear it too long. Thinks it's getting the horse-hair look again (he's pretty romantic, don't you think?). I have to do something with it. So I'm talking aloud in the car, mentioning my dilemma to Liam, everyday conversation. He's listening to me and then he says: "Well, see Mommy, it's hard when other people want you to get your haircut and you don't want to, isn't it? It doesn't feel so good does it?" WOW, I was blown away. He didn't say this maliciously at all, just very matter-of-factly. This kid's got my number!
I was on the spot. I responded that he had a very good point, but that it was still important to get a haircut when it was starting to get messy and hard to take care of. He seemed content with my explanation and then we moved on.
Amazing what kids can come up with. Not only do I have to watch my curse words, now I've got to keep in mind the direction of my everyday conversations. That's a lot for my mommy brain to handle these days.
We finally convinced Liam to get his hair cut last week. It was getting ridiculous - between you and me I love the "surfer" look of his hair. He does look pretty cool amongst his other 6 year old friends (maybe a bit more of the sullen teenager look than I would like). But his head of hair is so thick, and once it's past a certain length it gets hard to manage and was moving toward a mullet. His dad already wore a Euro-mullet in the past - didn't think we had to hand that mantle to the next generation. Ian brought him to his appointment and they made an event of it. When they got home, Liam looked so cute! I had my little boy back! His hair is not super-shorn, but it's manageable. He even likes it.
Now to me. I've finally found a stylist up here who doesn't want to give me the traditional "North of 7, poofy suburban" hair. She's managed to give me a cut that can actually be grown out past my shoulders. I'm really quite loving it - when I have a chance to flat-iron I get pretty ecstatic. I personally think it makes me look younger. But Ian thinks I should cut it back up to above my shoulder. He doesn't think I have the right texture to wear it too long. Thinks it's getting the horse-hair look again (he's pretty romantic, don't you think?). I have to do something with it. So I'm talking aloud in the car, mentioning my dilemma to Liam, everyday conversation. He's listening to me and then he says: "Well, see Mommy, it's hard when other people want you to get your haircut and you don't want to, isn't it? It doesn't feel so good does it?" WOW, I was blown away. He didn't say this maliciously at all, just very matter-of-factly. This kid's got my number!
I was on the spot. I responded that he had a very good point, but that it was still important to get a haircut when it was starting to get messy and hard to take care of. He seemed content with my explanation and then we moved on.
Amazing what kids can come up with. Not only do I have to watch my curse words, now I've got to keep in mind the direction of my everyday conversations. That's a lot for my mommy brain to handle these days.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
The Salad Spinner
The other day I said to Ian "Why do I feel like I'm always washing the dishes" to which he replied, "Maybe because you are." And I realized that yes, I do spend a lot of my day washing dishes. We do, of course, have a dishwasher, but I always feel the need to do a pre-wash before anything goes in, and of course, pots and pans always take up so much room and leave very little space for efficient dish stacking. And no, I cannot put that precious Zyliss Salad spinner in there either. Afraid of it melting. For some reason I hate washing that thing the most of all. Maybe it's all the nooks and crannies, and how it just never seems to dry...
There's a story to that Salad Spinner. It made its way into our household all the way from Barcelona, Spain. Yes, that's right, my husband found that lovely kitchen item during a business trip there over a year ago, bought it for the amazing deal of about 35 Euros (gasp!). Couldn't pack it so of course took it through customs, had to declare it ... his work buddies thought it was quite amusing, to say the least. I suppose I should be proud of my husband that he's so confident in his own skin (he may have been the first metrosexual in his day, but you'd never know it) that he could take all the barbs and the teasing about this kitchen gadget without a second thought. And that spinner does do wonders with our greens. Who would have thought Spain should be famous for their spinners?
Oh well, at least he got me a beautiful silk pashmina the last time he was in Italy. I guess there are some fringe benefits to his work travel, if not just to keep our kitchen well- equipped.
There's a story to that Salad Spinner. It made its way into our household all the way from Barcelona, Spain. Yes, that's right, my husband found that lovely kitchen item during a business trip there over a year ago, bought it for the amazing deal of about 35 Euros (gasp!). Couldn't pack it so of course took it through customs, had to declare it ... his work buddies thought it was quite amusing, to say the least. I suppose I should be proud of my husband that he's so confident in his own skin (he may have been the first metrosexual in his day, but you'd never know it) that he could take all the barbs and the teasing about this kitchen gadget without a second thought. And that spinner does do wonders with our greens. Who would have thought Spain should be famous for their spinners?
Oh well, at least he got me a beautiful silk pashmina the last time he was in Italy. I guess there are some fringe benefits to his work travel, if not just to keep our kitchen well- equipped.
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
The Devil Wears Prada
I watched the movie on the weekend - thought it was really quite good. Brought back memories though, long deeply buried memories ...
I had my own boss from hell about 10 years ago. Wasn't much older than me, quite attractive, very smart (Ph D, MBA) and she knew it. But I think the main problem was more cultural. She came from a moneyed background, raised in Latin America and boarding school in Europe. A lot of her attitude I assumed came from growing up very class-conscious.
I wasn't her whipping girl, though, unlike the movie. I was a manager, had been working in the field for a number of years and knew what I was doing. She was new to the Canadian environment so she needed me. As I said, she was smart. In actual fact, she was quite good to me, but her behaviour made working conditions really quite terrible for the whole department. She talked down to many of the administrative staff, was addicted to her cell phone (ie. she took off mid-negotiation with important government representatives to take a personal call), would only want "the best" at all restaurants (eg. always sent something back, insisted on cloth rather than paper napkins).
I travelled with her quite a bit. And like the Meryl Streep character, she was not a one-dimensional caricature. She was struggling through a divorce, setting up a new apartment, I guess trying to get herself on her own feet and so her priorities were likely all messed up. So I got more of an inside look into her life; not that I'm making any excuses, but I'm sure that had a lot to do with some of her actions.
The worst incident for me was when she had a hissy fit at the airport coming home after an overnight trip to Ottawa. She had an enormous carry-on which somehow got through the first time. But Ottawa to Toronto they wanted her to check her bag. So she made a big stink, hauled in a couple of attendants, then the head attendant, then the customer service manager etc.. etc.. We ended up missing our flight home, had to take the next one. I called into the office and they could tell from my voice that they were luckier being where they were than with me. I wished that the floor would swallow me up!
I looked for and was actually offered another job at another company. But I didn't take it - they wouldn't pay for my MBA, and the entire compensation was less than what I was making. The problem was that I loved the company, but working conditions in our department were the pits. But why should I have to take less just to move away from an intolerable person? So I stuck it out.
It turned out that I didn't have to wait long. In the end her antics actually adversely affected her performance and she "left". And I got promoted. Which was a good thing on one hand, not so good on the other. But we'll get into that some other time.
Looking back it's easy to gloss over the bad parts. I think ultimately I did benefit from the experience. She did encourage me to pursue my MBA, and she authorized the departmental budget to provide for it. Although I think in some way it was more to make her look good, it still worked for me. And it proved to me that I could work under difficult circumstances and still perform well under that pressure.
I was given a tip recently about a job at the company where she presently works. I was curious about it and asked whether it would report into her. It didn't, but I'm not in a hurry to go back to full time work anyway. And certainly not with her ... sorry, but Been There, Done That and More Than Bought the T-Shirt!!!
I had my own boss from hell about 10 years ago. Wasn't much older than me, quite attractive, very smart (Ph D, MBA) and she knew it. But I think the main problem was more cultural. She came from a moneyed background, raised in Latin America and boarding school in Europe. A lot of her attitude I assumed came from growing up very class-conscious.
I wasn't her whipping girl, though, unlike the movie. I was a manager, had been working in the field for a number of years and knew what I was doing. She was new to the Canadian environment so she needed me. As I said, she was smart. In actual fact, she was quite good to me, but her behaviour made working conditions really quite terrible for the whole department. She talked down to many of the administrative staff, was addicted to her cell phone (ie. she took off mid-negotiation with important government representatives to take a personal call), would only want "the best" at all restaurants (eg. always sent something back, insisted on cloth rather than paper napkins).
I travelled with her quite a bit. And like the Meryl Streep character, she was not a one-dimensional caricature. She was struggling through a divorce, setting up a new apartment, I guess trying to get herself on her own feet and so her priorities were likely all messed up. So I got more of an inside look into her life; not that I'm making any excuses, but I'm sure that had a lot to do with some of her actions.
The worst incident for me was when she had a hissy fit at the airport coming home after an overnight trip to Ottawa. She had an enormous carry-on which somehow got through the first time. But Ottawa to Toronto they wanted her to check her bag. So she made a big stink, hauled in a couple of attendants, then the head attendant, then the customer service manager etc.. etc.. We ended up missing our flight home, had to take the next one. I called into the office and they could tell from my voice that they were luckier being where they were than with me. I wished that the floor would swallow me up!
I looked for and was actually offered another job at another company. But I didn't take it - they wouldn't pay for my MBA, and the entire compensation was less than what I was making. The problem was that I loved the company, but working conditions in our department were the pits. But why should I have to take less just to move away from an intolerable person? So I stuck it out.
It turned out that I didn't have to wait long. In the end her antics actually adversely affected her performance and she "left". And I got promoted. Which was a good thing on one hand, not so good on the other. But we'll get into that some other time.
Looking back it's easy to gloss over the bad parts. I think ultimately I did benefit from the experience. She did encourage me to pursue my MBA, and she authorized the departmental budget to provide for it. Although I think in some way it was more to make her look good, it still worked for me. And it proved to me that I could work under difficult circumstances and still perform well under that pressure.
I was given a tip recently about a job at the company where she presently works. I was curious about it and asked whether it would report into her. It didn't, but I'm not in a hurry to go back to full time work anyway. And certainly not with her ... sorry, but Been There, Done That and More Than Bought the T-Shirt!!!
Friday, March 02, 2007
Foodie meme
1. What's your #1 comfort food? Stew, glorious stew!
2. If you were on a deserted island, what one food would you want to have with you? Grapes are good - and if I knew how I would make wine with them too!
3. What is/are your signature dishes? (What dishes are you 'known' for?) So I'm not the best cook, but I've made this Meditterean Shrimp Casserole which is quite good, and I'm pretty good at lasagne. Pre-kids I liked making baked lemon pudding and molten chocolate cakes but now that's too much work.
4. It's Friday night, you don't know what to cook. You opt for...chicken in soy sauce marinade. But if I'm really bad I'll call Pizza Pizza.
5. What's your biggest weakness when it comes to food? I love it plain and simple. I probably over eat.
6. What food can you absolutely not eat? Tripe - yuck
7. You need a drink. You grab a- water
8. What's the most decadent dish you've had? Stuff from the tasting menu at Susur. You know, the food that looks like "art".
9. What's your favorite type of food? Right now, Thai
10. Favorite dish? Pad Thai
11. If your partner could take you to any restaurant you wanted, which one would it be? In Toronto, probably Bymark, just because we love the Foodnetwork show "Heat".
12. Are you a soup or salad person? Both, but lean toward soup these days.
13. Buffet, take-out or sit-down restaurant? Sit-down hands down :)
14. What's the most impressive dinner you've ever made? Probably one of those casseroles with either the molten chocolate minicakes, or warm sherried fruit salad over icecream.
15. Do you consider yourself a good cook? Not great, but can if I have the proper time.
16. Do you know what vichyssoise is? yup, love it.
17. Who's your favorite TV cook? Mark Mcewan (sp?) - from North 44/Bymark and "Heat"
18. Can you name at least three TV cooking personalities? Jamie Oliver, Kylie Kwong, Christine Cushing.
19. Homemade or homemade from a box? Homemade from a box unfortunately these days.
20. Name 3 or more other foodies you are going to tag. Need to meet more bloggers to play more tag :)
2. If you were on a deserted island, what one food would you want to have with you? Grapes are good - and if I knew how I would make wine with them too!
3. What is/are your signature dishes? (What dishes are you 'known' for?) So I'm not the best cook, but I've made this Meditterean Shrimp Casserole which is quite good, and I'm pretty good at lasagne. Pre-kids I liked making baked lemon pudding and molten chocolate cakes but now that's too much work.
4. It's Friday night, you don't know what to cook. You opt for...chicken in soy sauce marinade. But if I'm really bad I'll call Pizza Pizza.
5. What's your biggest weakness when it comes to food? I love it plain and simple. I probably over eat.
6. What food can you absolutely not eat? Tripe - yuck
7. You need a drink. You grab a- water
8. What's the most decadent dish you've had? Stuff from the tasting menu at Susur. You know, the food that looks like "art".
9. What's your favorite type of food? Right now, Thai
10. Favorite dish? Pad Thai
11. If your partner could take you to any restaurant you wanted, which one would it be? In Toronto, probably Bymark, just because we love the Foodnetwork show "Heat".
12. Are you a soup or salad person? Both, but lean toward soup these days.
13. Buffet, take-out or sit-down restaurant? Sit-down hands down :)
14. What's the most impressive dinner you've ever made? Probably one of those casseroles with either the molten chocolate minicakes, or warm sherried fruit salad over icecream.
15. Do you consider yourself a good cook? Not great, but can if I have the proper time.
16. Do you know what vichyssoise is? yup, love it.
17. Who's your favorite TV cook? Mark Mcewan (sp?) - from North 44/Bymark and "Heat"
18. Can you name at least three TV cooking personalities? Jamie Oliver, Kylie Kwong, Christine Cushing.
19. Homemade or homemade from a box? Homemade from a box unfortunately these days.
20. Name 3 or more other foodies you are going to tag. Need to meet more bloggers to play more tag :)
Let it snow, let it snow....
What a major dump of snow we're having! It's causing havoc with the roads and driving, but when it's all said and done, it looks just beautiful out there.
So I couldn't believe how totally oblivious I was to this impending storm. I'm always checking the weather, night and day, a day doesn't feel right unless I've had my "weather fix". This one totally threw me for a loop.
Ian had a $20 voucher for Sporting Life (courtesy of the recent purchase of mega-ski equipment) that he didn't have time to spend, so it landed in my lucky hands. I chose yesterday of all days to head down to use it (mind you I only had until today, so that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!) On the way down, I heard about the storm but figured I'd have plenty of time to get there and back in time to pick Liam up from school. So Giselle and I are merrily checking out the winter clearance section, Giselle getting a bit freaked every time she heard/felt the rumbling of the underground subway train (monsters, mama, they're getting me!). But overall just taking our time, when the nice older sales lady says to me "I thought you should know there's quite a snowstorm going on outside, you won't believe it unless you see it." I wonder if I had some sort of weird radar that indicated I had another child to pick up. Anyway, we scooted out of there and yes, it was a total whiteout! We left at 2:30, it took 30 minutes to get from Lawrence to York Mills and I knew we were not going to make it to get Liam. Bad mommy, shopaholic, caught red-handed!
Thank goodness for the cell phone. I was able to call the school, and arranged for another mom to take Liam home for me. So guess how long it took me to get home? Two and a half hours!!! It was a 20 minute drive down there in the first place. Giselle was snoozing quite happily in the back after she gave herself a mini-makeover with my lipstick. Liam was pretty calm about the whole thing - didn't feel neglected or anything, so I didn't feel the sting of guilt that I was anticipating.
So where was my beloved husband in all this you ask? The lucky sod managed to get the last seat on probably the last plane out of Pearson before they shut the airport down. He's in lovely Tremblant as we speak, enjoying the fantastic snowfall that is making his boys' ski weekend away a total blast. But I'm glad - he works so hard and he deserves it. I'm really going to have to take skiing up - by all indications, Liam is a total natural and Giselle will likely follow suit. Can't let them leave the old lady behind!
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