Photostory and a Father's Friday

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek


So I was tagged by my friend Cid to participate in a photo meme, and I thought it was so fun, that I would share it on my very first Photostory Friday as well. I had to look up my very first file of photos on this computer and find the 10th photo.

And this is what was there, I kid you not, just in time for Father's Day:

See how fuzzy that photo is? We were having problems with our first digital camera, the flash timing was off. But this photo says it all. It was taken during a staycation in the spring break of 2004, before I got pregnant with the girlie. We've always loved to take the kids downtown Toronto, and this time we stayed at the Royal York hotel, brought the boy with us to a fab dinner at Biff's (where he slept the whole time). He wasn't yet four years old. If they were to sit in the same position now, hubs back would be broken, or severely dented. That boy now goes up to my ear and weighs 72 lbs.

And look at the man, with his beer. What more could a guy want, a great pint of brew, and his little boy on his lap. Turned out that Remy's in Yorkville, the place where we'd occasionally go as singletons, was growing up a bit too. Quite family friendly.

For this photo meme I tag the following blog buddies...

Tooj
Kami
Tara
Louann
Heidi

*****

I wish I weren't so organized sometimes:

I found this card last year for the kids to give to Dad this year. I had two cards, because this one was so perfect I had to get it as well. He would have loved it.

Mom is going on a trip up north for the weekend with friends. I am very happy for her. The little brother and wife are going to a wedding tomorrow so we've got my cutie niece for a sleepover. My sister and her family are off to their weekend retreat.

How I wish we were all together again like we were last year. And not scattered, as we try to avoid yet another family gathering, where the grief and sorrow of missing him is just too much for us to bear.

How I wish.

Boy oh boy

I found this meme on Facebook. I've noticed a rather symbiotic relationship between blogging and Facebook in the last little while. I've kept my "real" life fairly separate from my blogging world up until now, but the line between the two is getting further fragmented. The world is indeed getting a bit smaller.

Let's see how much I remember about my firstborn's arrival ...

1. WAS YOUR FIRST PREGNANCY PLANNED? Extremely planned, as outlined in my infertility saga (part 1).

2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME? Yes.

3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS? Disbelief that it had finally happened. Fear, that it wouldn't last.

4. WAS ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU? Never.

5. HOW OLD WERE YOU? 33 when I got pregnant and 34 when he was born.

6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT? Telephone call a few days after visiting the clinic for bloodwork.

7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST? The hubby.

8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX? No, not really. But Ian had a burning need to know, and if he was to know there was no WAY I wasn't going to know too.

9. DUE DATE? May 18.

10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS? Not at all.

11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE? Sweet. I was never much of a dessert person, but while pregnant, I just loaded up. Could be why I ballooned over 45 pounds.

12. WHO/WHAT IRRITATED YOU THE MOST? The fact that I could rarely get into a comfortable position to sleep. And then those darn excruciating leg cramps... ackkkkkk!!!

13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CHILD’S SEX? Boy.

14. DID YOU WISH YOU HAD THE OPPOSITE SEX OF WHAT YOU WERE GETTING? Not at all. I was just ecstatic to be having a baby.

15. HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY? As per above, close to 50. I was huge.

16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER? Almost one. I went into labour the day that the office was throwing me one. I had him one month early, so there was no way of knowing I would go into labour so soon! I called them on the way to the hospital...they collected the prezzies and delivered them home a few weeks later.

17. WAS IT A SURPRISE OR DID YOU KNOW? Total surprise.

18. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY? No, it was smooth ... I was very lucky.

19. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH? Toronto.

20. HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR? 12 hours.

21. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL? The hubby Ian. We had to stop for gas ... he got a coffee ("Hey, do you want one?"-- " No hon, I'm gyrating mid-contraction, you may want to hurry it up...,") and we were in the middle of morning rush hour. Looking back, I`m surprised I didn`t kill him.

22. WHO WATCHED YOU GIVE BIRTH? Ian. My mom didn`t even offer to come downtown. She`s a smart lady. As a labour and delivery nurse and trained midwife, I suspect that the last thing she wanted to see was her firstborn going through childbirth. I can totally relate to that. The nurses told me my mom would be appalled with how casual things are today (no gowns, no masks, heck, I even had Diana Krall playing in the background on our portable stereo!).

23. WAS IT NATURAL OR C-SECTION? Natural.

24. DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN? Eventually yes. I wanted to try without the epidural, but visualizing the beach stopped being effective at about the 6 hour mark.

"The beach is FADING FAST!!!"... And then it was `GET ME THE DRUGS!!!`

25. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH? 6lbs, 6oz.

26. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN? April 25.

27. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM? Well, it starts with L, that much I`ll give you. Although if you`ve been reading a while, you`ll already know.

28. HOW OLD IS YOUR FIRST BORN TODAY? 8 years, 10 months.

Where does the time go?

The Music of my life

We are in the final stretch of NaBloPoMo here, and no one reads on Saturdays anyway, right? So I am grabbing this from Just Miss, who borrowed it from Hockeyman. Here is my life as a movie, as in soundtrack.

Here are the rules:
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)2. Put it on shuffle3. Press play4. When you go to a new question, press the next button5. For every question, type the song that’s playing6. Don’t lie and try to pretend you’re cool. (because face it, you ain’t that cool)

Opening Credits:
Pictures of You - The Cure
Love this song. The Cure figure pretty largely in the music of my life especially after I met the Man. And it's a pretty song.


Waking Up:
Come Together - Primal Scream
Wake up psychedelic dancing, I guess.

First Day at School:
Everything's not lost - Coldplay

How melancholy. This is me, though. I was a very melancholy little thing, very shy, softspoken in school. Didn't like to speak, even when spoken too. Cry at the drop of a hat. Boy, where did that girl go?? This does have some hope to it doesn't it? I guess I turned out all right.

Falling In Love:
Weekend - Kenny Lattimore

This was from a CD we bought from the W Hotel Chicago, where we went for our 10th wedding anniversary. Perfect for this scene, clubby even in the lobby. It was the first time we had been away together alone since becoming parents. It was a couple defining moment, when we realized that we DID have more to talk about than just our kid.

Fight Song:
Neon - John Mayer
Well, sorta weird. But check the guitar work ... awesome.


Breaking Up:
Goodbye Yesterday- Nick Heyward
Remember Haircut 100? Yeah, I'm that old. I loved them, especially their lead, Nick. I guess this might be symbolic of the almost break-up, and then final make-up ie. engagement process that we went through.

Prom:
Sing it again - Beck
Sad song, what imagery in the lyrics. Don't know what it had to do with my prom though...maybe the fact that my hair was a wreck. Yeah, that's the connection.

Life:
Bury Her - Crash Vegas
This CD Red Earth, is timeless. Rather obscure, though, I can't figure out how to link a snippet of this song.

Mental Breakdown:
November Spawned a Monster - Morrissey
...called NaBloPoMo, and I'm killing it, aren't it? Gahhhhh!!!!Great song, though. Uh, the video, I don't know about that...

Driving:
Karma Police - Radiohead
One of my fave songs of all time. Funny that the video features driving.

Flashback:
Tomorrow People - Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers
Oh, lovely memories of vacationing in the Caribbean, great beaches, sand, Jamaican rum, lean, mean, tanned bodies. Before we had to find beaches with water parks, and kid-friendly was the furthest from our minds ...ironic though, our kids ARE tomorrow people, aren't they?

Getting Back Together:
Blitzkrieg Pop - Ramones
Hah, what a hilarious song for getting back together. I guess we could have been bopping, but I highly doubt it.

Wedding
Reach up for the Sunrise - Duran Duran
What an optimistic song, and a comeback of sorts for these guys. Well, sorta. We saw them live on their reunion tour and they were AWESOME. It was the first concert I went after having the girlie, so after a lovely dinner, wine, and beer I was more than a little tipsy (I even had to pump and dump). But even to inebriated eyes, Simon LeBon doesn't always look like a 50 year old woman, at least not when he's on stage. In all honesty, he's likely the most well-preserved of the group. My fave, John Taylor, is looking a little skeletor-ish lately.

Birth of a Child:
Eyes of a Stranger - the Payolas
This is interesting. I remember the first night alone with the baby boy after he was born, he was all swaddled and facing me in the hospital room. Looking at me and almost saying with those piercing dark eyes, "Hey, are you my mommy, and do you think you're gonna know what to do with me? You'll take good care of me, won't you?".

And my previously terrified heart swelled with such love that I knew indeed, I would do everything in my power to take good care of him. I've never forgotten that moment.

Final Battle:
Soul Mining - The The
Hmmm, no words for this one.

Death Scene:
Choose Life - PF Project featuring Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting soundtrack)
Intense is the only word I can come up with. Amazing what things Ewan has done since this early film. I loved him since then and Shallow Grave. Hard to believe he's Obi Wan and was singing his heart out in Moulin Rouge.

Funeral Song:
Tom Sawyer - Rush
Does not compute at all, but another excuse to listen to a classic. And it's Canadian and all. BTW, Rush in Rio, best concert DVD EVAH!!!! Those Brazilians know every single word and go NUTs over these guys.

End Credits:
Stay Away - Nirvana
No video for this, but man, this song rocks. I forget sometimes what a great drummer Dave Grohl is...

Thanks for listening.

Tagged on a Tuesday

Thank goodness! Seriously running out of blog fodder. I even thought about vlogging myself bodyjamming every new release since the last one ... the latest even has Marilyn Manson, kills me, people...and then I thought better of it. Are you freakin' kidding me? I can't even believe I did it the first time.

I was tagged by lovely Colleen at Mommy Always Wins for this one word challenge. One word? I'm so longwinded. Here's a go at it:

Where is your cell phone? Purse
Where is your significant other? work
Your hair color? brown
Your mother? busy
Your father? TV
Your favorite thing? bodyjam
Your dream last night? sleep
Your dream/goal? balance
The room you’re in? office
Your hobby? blogging
Your fear? sickness
Where do you want to be in 6 years? here
Where were you last night? here
What you’re not? perfect
One of your wish-list items? spa
Where you grew up? Toronto
Last thing you did? type
What are you wearing? tartan
Your TV? big
Your pet? peeve
Your computer? Vaio
Your mood? okay
Missing someone? hubby
Your car? tank
Something you’re not wearing? perfume
Favorite store? Lululemon
Your summer? hot
Love someone? totally
Your favorite color? purple
When is the last time you laughed? Yesterday
Last time you cried? Yesterday

Now I hope I'm not gonna make you cry like my daughter did at a banquet on Saturday ( when no one tagged her to be "it"). But you go ahead and do this one if you'd like. It's quick, easy, and it fills. Have fun.

Desperado...

Thirteen Things ...times three and then some.

I know, this is cheating. But I'm desperate. And I completed this on Tuesday.

It's just past the middle of NaBloPoMo and I've got nothing. So a meme it will have to be. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

I borrowed this meme from my bloggy pal Melissa (just in time, I must say). Well, at least most of it. I left the last question off because I'm a tad superstitious.

So here we go...

1. Do you like blue cheese? LOVE it.

2. Have you ever smoked? Yes, but not tobacco. Oh wait, maybe a couple puffs of cigar. But not even mary-jo-wanna. I did light up and inhale some weird herbal cigarettes that stunk; just to prove to myself that I could smoke if I wanted to. So now I know that I definitely don't want to.

3. Do you own a gun? No.

4. What flavor of Kool Aid was your favorite? Strawberry or cherry ... whatever the red is.

5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? No.

6. What do you think of hot dogs? Like them. Helped my kids polish off 54 of them, don't you know...

7. Favorite Christmas movie? A Christmas "You'll shoot your eye out" Story.

8. Favorite thing to drink in the morning? Coffee.

9. Can you do push ups? Some, but the lazy-ass lady kind.

10. What’s your favorite piece of jewelry? The ring that hubs bought me for the birth of my boy. Silver with encrusted diamonds and garnet stone, engraved with the boy's name and birthdate.

11. Favorite hobby? Blogging, how'd you guess?

12. Do you have A.D.D? Don't think so, but that would explain a few things.

13. What’s one trait you hate about yourself? I can be very impatient, often with my kids.

14. Middle name? Mary

15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment.
1) I drank too much coffee.
2) I have nothing to post tomorrow.
3) I need to get the invitations out for the girl's party

16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? Coffee, tea, water

17. Current worry? Getting my work project out without breaking my back.

18. Current hate right now? That hubby's working more weekends than he's not, at least it seems that way.

19. Favorite place to be? With my family.

20. How did you bring in the new year? We were in Mont Tremblant, in a ski condo, watching Shrek 3 with the kids. I think we slept through midnight.

21. Where would you like to go? Manhattan. Lurve NYC. Someplace I've never been? Ireland maybe Russia.

22. Name three people who might complete this: Go for it if you need it!

23. Do you own slippers? Yes.

24. What shirt are you wearing? Wine coloured sweater hoodie.

25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? No. Too slippery ... okay, stop there.

26. Can you whistle? Not really. I can yell, though.

27. Favorite color? Purple.

28. Would you be a pirate? No. I get seasick.

29. What songs do you sing in the AM?: Top 40 stuff that the girl wishes I wouldn't. Like Pink, Katy Perry, Akon, Neo, Lady Gaga, Madonna ...

30. Favorite Girl’s Name: Quinn

31. Favorite boy’s name: Aidan (stop laughing, if we'd had a twins for the last pregnancy, it was definitely a possibility ;0)

32. What’s in your pocket right now? Grocery list.

33. Last thing that made you laugh? My husband's hair (a constant state of amusement for me... I need help).

34. What vehicle do you drive? Honda Odyssey. In universal bland tan. Wasn't my first choice but you can't beat the convenience when you've got kids and crap. Don't hold it against me.

35. Worst injury you’ve ever had? Probably happened when I was a kid, at about 3 years of age. I was being chased by my cousin Batman and fell into a wooden baby toilet seat ... my two front teeth were slammed back up into my gums. I don't remember it, thank gawd...just writing this made me cringe.

36. Do you love where you live? Pretty much.

37. How many TVs do you have in your house? 4

38. Who is your loudest friend? Probably my oldest friend, but she's at least a tie with me. It's an Asian thing... we yell.

39. Do you have any pets? Goldie the goldfish.

40. Does someone have a crush on you? I think so. My little girl is going through an "I love mommy" thing 24/7.

41. Your favorite book(s): Books, what are they again? I'm partial to the "Walter the Farting Dog" and "Knuffle Bunny" series, but I'll have to check my Goodreads. Maybe I need to jump on the Twilight wagon?

42. Do you collect anything? Everything. I'm a packrat. Magazines are my biggest thing (I think I've got almost every issue of Canadian House & Home since 1995, hidden in the walls ... don't tell my husband).

43. Favorite Sports Team? You know, I'm pretty lame. I don't follow any. Other than the hometown teams I don't know of many.

So are you still awake? Sorry it was so long.

Hope you have an awesome Thursday!

A Six-Pack sorta meme

I was tagged for a meme by my Island pal C, and I thought I would do it as I haven't done one in ages. And I don't think I've done this one before.

The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.Each player answers the questions about themselves.At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

What was I doing 10 years ago?

1) enjoying married life
2) living in our first purchased home in the city
3) trying to get pregnant
4) finishing up my first term of my MBA and killing myself for a country project worth a measly 5% of my mark
5) working in an office that had an actual door
6) shopping (I'm bad)

What are 6 things on my to-do list for today (yesterday - i-net troubles):

1) go to the gym for a much needed Bodyjam class;
2) pick up teachers' gifts
3) figure out what to do for our anniversary this year
4) pick up the boy from a playdate at a friend's house. (edited: they delivered. Great friends!)
5) blog, plurk, twitter, buzz
6) laundry and then order dinner in (hopefully!)

Snacks I enjoy?

1) ice cream
2) potato chips
3) pistachios
4) pie
5) Godiva chocolates
6) Edemame

Things I would do if I were a billionaire?

1) retire the husband; from his job, I mean. I think I'd keep him.
2) help out the siblings and parents - cruises for the folks coming out of their ears!
3) set aside for the kids education
4) invest some
5) give to charity (health charities, and probably sponsor some more kids through Plan Canada
6) travel and buy vacation property(ies)
7) oh, and of course SHOP!!!

Places I have lived?

-Montreal
-Toronto area (snooze ...)

How did you name your blog?


I thought I would start a blog, one sunny day while at home breastfeeding the girl (she was about 5 months old) and enjoying being with her and the boy at home. It was meant to be more of an online journal, because I know as I age I WILL forget all the cute and memorable moments unless I capture them somewhere. And at first I told NOBODY about it. When I told my brother he laughed, and said it was meant to be shared. I'm just such a shy-pie. Now I'm a total comment whore.

So that's how "A Day in the Life" started. I added "one glass at a time" after I joined the esteemed Weekend Bloghoppers earlier in the year. Wanted to spice up my blog personality a bit. But I doubt if I've fooled anyone.

Who am I tagging and do I want to know more about ?

So many to tag, so little time ... if you're not meme type people, or you've already done this, please ignore the tag...

1/ Karen at Rocking Pony
2/ Mah-meeee at Raising A & C
3/ Laskigal From the Cheap Seats
4/ Caffeine Court
5/ Zoe's Dad Ed
6/ I'm Being Held Hostage - In the Gutter

And anyone else, if you haven't done this already, please feel free to do it. Or tuck it away for a rainy "what to blog about" day!

Thursday Thirteen : I confess

I was tagged by Melinda Zook (7 random confessions) and Real World Mom (7 random things), so as I'm such a multi-tasker, I thought I'd combine my efforts here on a Thursday Thirteen morning...

Six Synonyms for the Word "Confession"

1. Admission
2. Affirmation
3. Concession
4. Declaration
5. Disclosure
6. Revelation

Seven Random Confessions

1. I have major potty mouth while I’m driving.

2. I have never tried any drugs other than prescription or Over-the-counter variety. Goody-goody I know. I certainly had the opportunity, but after a while it was just “what’s the point, if I haven’t done it so far, why bother?”

3. I have, however, smoked cigarettes, a cigar and even an herbal cigarette (eeww). All without coughing up a lung.

4. I tried to do the ultimatum thing to get an engagement ring. Silly, silly girl. Bad advice from a gorgeous friend whose own strategy did work. Now she’s rich.

Didn’t work for me. But in the end I still got the guy.

5. I am a terrible liar. If you hooked me up to a lie detector machine, I’d probably set it on fire.

6. I was a really mean big sister while growing up. At least to my sister who is only 20 months younger than me. My brother is the baby, so I spoiled him more than anything else.

I used to tell my sister that she was adopted (she didn’t have a strong resemblance to anyone in the family). And also that when you flush the toilet, the water comes back up through the tap.

I’m sure she still thinks I’m a bitch the odd time nowadays. But just won’t tell me to my face.

7. I let my kids have way too much screen time. My daughter learned what the Statue of Liberty was from TV.


My son plays Runescape too much (I bought him an upgraded account to vanquish the whining). To remedy that, I asked him if he wanted a blog (you know, at least he’d be doing some creative writing). Hubs reaction: “Uh, we are so NOT going there … are you NUTS?!”

So there's thirteen for ya. Thanks to my second cup of java, I can add this morning.

This one has been around for a bit, so if you haven’t yet done it and feel so inclined … gotcha!

For more thirteen go here.

Favourite Posts Meme

A newer blog pal, the multi-talented BusyDad (writer, singer, kickboxing originator of the Bloghopping Weekend phenomenon) has tagged me for this meme. And I really like this one because it doesn't require a lot of new material, and I can revisit some of the stuff I wrote way back when. A bonus for me today as I've picked up another stinking cold. Just when I thought it was safe to wheeze again...

So here's how it goes.

Rules: Go back through your archives and post the links to your five favorite blog posts that you’ve written.

Link one must be about family
Link two must be about friends
Link three must be about yourself
Link four must be about something you love
Link five can be about anything you choose

Post your five links and then tag five other people. At least two of the people you tag must be newer acquaintances so that you get to know each other better.

1. I've posted a lot about my family, and pretty much daily about my kiddos. So for this first link I'll pop back over to Chinese New Year of last year, where I waxed poetic about the fun challenges of being in the here and now, while dealing with centuries-old superstitions that just can't go away...

2. Once you become a parent, do you find you have very little time for your "own" friends? Unless they came complete as a package as parents of your kids' friends? That seems to have been the pattern since I started this blog!! Turns out all my posts about friends have been about my kids' pals! With the exception of this one, which is a happy tale of old B.K. friends of ours (i.e. B.K. = before kids ) who struggled a bit before being blessed with a very busy family of their own now. They are now parents to two beautiful baby girls.

3. Hmmm, something about myself. Maybe somewhere in these gazillion memes I've done I can find something interesting. Oh here's one, where I'm being not so nice.

4. Something I love. Well since it's a thing, I won't link about my kids, my husband; and shopping you've heard enough about. My fave class at the gym; well, if you've been following for a while you know it's my obsession. You should try it.

5. Anything I choose - this one is one of my faves because I somehow figured out how to include my own video on this blog, and my little G was just starting to tell stories.

New bloggers to tag because I am ultra nosy:

1. Kami's Khlopchyk
2. Debbie of Etc. Etc. Etc.
3. Lizzy in the Burbs
4. LunaNik
5. Beth at a Mom's Life

Apologies if you've already done this one, but if not, have fun re-living those special posts!

Monday Me Stuff

I was tagged by Lizzy for a cute 6 quirky things meme. As if you don't already know enough of my weirdnesses, let's just add a few more:

1/ I don't eat pizza crust.

2/ I devour pie crust.

3/ I take direction and instruction really well. I attribute that to all the lessons I took as a child. Only problem is, you have to stay with me.

For example, I do not golf. But if you demonstrate to me how to hold the club, steer me in the right direction, I'll hit it exactly where you want it to go. The next hole, you've got to tell me again. And curling. I've only curled once, but we were lucky to have an experienced curler on our team. During a company fun tournament, as a totally inexperienced skip, I tossed the last stone as directed, and we beat the pants off the opposing team who had Mr. Professional Skip, complete with fancy curling outfit. You should have seen his face. You should have seen my purple and blue knees for the next couple of weeks.

4/ Owls creep me out even more than clowns do.

5/ I love sausages. Especially on vacation as part of a big breakfast. That to me spells vacation.

6/ I am a clumsy walker. I will trip on the sidewalk over nothing. In flats.

I'm still bearing a scar on my knee from when I dropped little G at 4 months of age in her carrier while walking in the school parking lot to pick up her big brother. The carrier went flying, I skidded my jeaned knee raw. She didn't wake up from her nap. To this day I don't even know why I went down, I think I tripped over my own foot. Sheesh.


Now, according to Kami, I've been caught being good!! Another blingy thingy from a new blog friend. I am so honoured by this, I've been visiting her blog regularly since I "found" her and I really enjoy her often hilarious descriptions of life with her two boys. She's a gem.



Here are the rules that come with this sticker:
1. Choose 3 people you want to reward for their good bloggy behavior. (I say if you don’t have three that’s ok. Pick one person.)
2. Link them in a post along with the “Caught Being Good” sticker.
3. Let them know they’ve been “Caught Being Good” and encourage them to pay it forward (if they feel like it). That’s it!

So I'll have to pass this along to a few bloggers whose spaces I've been reading lately and who have been so fantastic at commenting back here so regularly. All amazing bloggers:

Huckdoll
Immoral Matriarch
Kat

Go spread some linky love if you want to.

Now I'm off to enjoy the rest of the new statutory holiday *Family Day* with my family. What an amazing concept!

Thursday Thirteen - edition #1

Well NaBlo is coming down to the wire, and I am stressed to the gills... about other things, so this does offer some modicum of relief, if not just to vent, or perhaps to somehow try to stay on top of things. By recording for the blogosphere what I should be doing. Permanent record. Accountability.

So, thirteen reasons that December is going to be a crazy ride:

1. Project deadline loomed, and still looming. Mucho work to do, dwindling time to do it.

2. Hubby's birthday next week. Have a dinner planned, know who with, just don't know where yet.

3. Christmas shopping; haven't started, panic is starting to slowly rumble in the pit of my stomach.

4. Christmas decorating; need to get the tree up and house in order. Kids make it mandatory -- dropping the ball a dangerous thing.

5. Christmas photos with Santa. G already knows that Santa lives at the mall. She can't wait to sit on the old man's lap. L will need convincing, big time. Will the Wii be enough?

6. Christmas photos and cards. Need to pay our annual fee to Canada post.

7. Hosting a holiday dinner on weekend before Christmas.

8. Little G's birthday is 3 days before Christmas. Hosting a small family birthday party for her.

9. Oh yes, birthday present required. Will likely consist of "Hippopotamus, Hippo Hungry" (aka Hungry, Hungry, Hippo -choking hazard extravaganza), which she has been chanting everytime she has a successful potty moment.

10. Three other birthdays of very important family members in December. Spring has been a very, uh-hum, busy time in this family.

11. Two days later, hosting Christmas Eve dinner for Hubby's side of family. Everyone staying over. Super-excited. House will be full and fun.

12. Christmas day at my parents' place for more Christmas festivities. And pigging out. And fun times with new babies et al.

13. Menuplanning for all of the above. Did I mention Christmas?

Have you noticed that most of the above involves shopping in one form or another? Something I have absolutely no time for anymore, much to someone's delight and my utter dismay.

However, NaBloPoMo will be over. I've been having a great time checking out great blogs, making great new blog friends. But the daily rush has been pure panic at times. So while I'll still be blogging actively, it will likely at a more manageable pace.

Today is a head shearing day...for yours truly and her little man. Hope no tears are involved.

Wish us luck.

Enough about me... a meme about the Man

I can dress him up...


He puts the kids to bed...



He takes them drinking...

How can I not love him?

I borrowed this meme from Danigirl at Postcards from the Mothership, who in turn I think borrowed it from Slouching Mom. Both uber bloggers of the highest degree. I worked on this a while ago, saving it for a rainy NaBloPoMo day. So it's a windy NaBlo day, the perfect opportunity...

1. Who is your man?
Ian, the hubster, a.k.a. Dad, Dadster, Daddy.

2. How long have you been together?
It’s been over 20 years – whew! And despite my tendency to do so, I am not exaggerating.

3. How long did you date?
We dated almost 6 years before we got engaged. We did quite a bit of couple stuff before taking the plunge. A bit of a weird period at the end there, some contentious stuff, but all worked out in the end.

4. How old is your man?
A three years older than me, so mid-30-10s.

5. Who eats more?
Gotta be me. I have a huge appetite and can barely restrain myself. He has some restraint. Maybe that’s the difference.

6. Who said “I love you” first?
I think it was him actually. And me probably in the next split second.

7. Who is taller?
He is, about 5 inches or so.

8. Who sings better?
Me; I’m not the best but I can even harmonize if I’m intoxicated. He’s worse. He tries and can hit some but not most notes.

9. Who is smarter?
Hmm… tough one. I think he is ultimately. I perhaps am more book smart, and I pick things up pretty quickly, but I keep it in the brain only when I need it. Other than that, I throw it out of my mind. Does that make me more operationally efficient, being “Just In Time” with my knowledge? I have a mind for stupid, trivial facts, but that lowers my smart quotient in my opinion.

Ian actually absorbs the information, retains it and is able to use it later, sometimes eons later. And he can relay the information and frame it so others understand it easily. He should have been a teacher.

10. Whose temper is worse?
Mine, hands down.

11. Who does the laundry?
I’d say 60/40 with him being 60.

12. Who takes out the garbage?
I take it to the garage; he takes it to the curb. I do all the recycling because "smart" me proved that I could package things better. Who’s the smart one again?

13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed?
Which way are you looking? If you’re looking at the head, him; if at the foot, me.

14. Who pays the bills?
Me, because I’m in front of the computer all day.

15. Who is better with the computer?
Probably him, but I’m a faster at keying.

16. Who mows the lawn?
We have a lawn service. Spoiled, I know. But it beats having him spend most weekends mowing. Because I don’t do anything green or that needs watering. You can call me Black Thumb.

17. Who cooks dinner?
Me, if you can call it that. It’s always been that way, even when I worked out of the home and before kids. I was always home first, and I do the groceries, so it makes sense.

18. Who drives when you are together?
Him. Although ironically it was my driving skills that first turned him on about me.

On the night he asked me out, we were meeting a bunch of other students from work. I had a car so I gave him a lift. While we were on the highway, a huge roll of fiberglass fell off this truck in front of us. I swerved quickly to the right without hitting any traffic, then moved right back into the original lane. All within a blink of an eye. I didn't even stop the conversation. Like that sort of thing happens to me everyday. He was more than impressed.

He HAD to ask me out at the end of the evening.

19. Who pays when you go out?
Well, he does ultimately as he’s the one bringing home the major bacon right now. But I’ll sometimes take out the joint credit card.

20. Who is most stubborn?
Uh, that would be moi.

21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong?
Uh, that would not be moi. Never. Are you feeling sorry for Ian yet?

22. Whose parents do you see the most?
Mine, as Ian’s are unfortunatey deceased.

23. Who kissed who first?
That has to be a joint one. The kiss that was to last a lifetime. Sealed the deal from day one. The topic of a separate post all on its own.

24. Who asked who out?
He asked me. See number 18 above.

25. Who proposed?
He did. More deets at a later time.

26. Who is more sensitive?
Well, if you mean sensitive about myself and to criticism, that would be me. Although I have grown a thicker shell as I get older, and certainly once I became a parent.

As far as sensitive to others, Ian is definitely more tenderhearted. He has a natural affinity towards people; he loves children and babies (I do as well, but he's a natural with them, always the first to pick them up and babies NEVER cry when he's holding them!).

And I'm the bad guy with the kids. I'm the one who yells. When Daddy's mad, things have got to be REALLY bad. He's definitely the softie around them.

27. Who has more friends?
Probably him, although it may be close nowadays as I've met more people since staying at home. After joining a gazillion mothers groups and meeting up with parents at the playground. He's always been much better at the social thing than me. I'm the type of person who finds it painful sometimes to pick up the phone. It's probably leftover behaviour from my first job out of school in customer service. I think after averaging about 500 calls a week, I never got past dreading a phone call.

28. Who has more siblings?
He does, he's got 2 brothers, one sister. I've got two siblings, one of each.

29. Who wears the pants in the family?
Although it's a pretty equal partnership, bottom line it would be him. I'm the louder one, but I'm all bark, not so much bite.

I always defer major decisions to him; everything requires his input. Not so much because he demands it, as he's fully confident in my decisions. But because I trust his instincts and his decisions. His opinion on most things can make or break me. Thank goodness he's my greatest supporter. He really is my rock.

However, my pants are definitely nicer. Now that he's thrown out most of his Dockers, we're in the market for more slimming, more "now" pants for him. Gotta get back to work as his personal shopper.

Well that was fun! Only three more days, so NaBlow Me .... whoot!!!!

Another Day, another Meme

Thanks for the comments on yesterday's post - my little guy does indeed have an ear infection. That stuff happens when you are too busy to BLOW YOUR NOSE; when you suck it all back it has to go somewhere right? Yuck! A nasty lesson for him; the good news is that the antibiotics are working already.

I got out of bed this morning and looked in the mirror, and the hair of Jon Bon Jovi stared right back at me. Which, if I were a guy in my 40s wouldn’t be such a bad thing. But I'm not, not even a guy. So I need a haircut. I don’t know what it is about my hair that ends up looking like male celebrity – the last likeness I had was Keith Urban.

Seven Weird/random things about Me, Myself and Moi:

So on that note, what other things do you just have to know about me? I’ve done the 8 random things memes once; twice,THREE times now, so you know I'm a lady. So seven's got to be easier right? I was tagged by my new blog buddy Sandy at momisodes and there is some even more trivial stuff that you just NEED to know...

1. I can’t stand seeing holes in socks. Especially at the toe. Makes me shudder.

2. I’m very finicky about my bedsheets. If they aren’t tucked in the proper way, or the blanket is flipped upside-down, I get freaky. I’ve been known to wake up my husband if he’s already nestled in, fast asleep. Terrible, I know. I can’t sleep unless the sheets are just so. Sort of like Monica on Friends. Except she’s a fictional character.

3. I have very eclectic musical taste. I just bought Rihanna’s new album and am really enjoying Kanye West’s new single “Stronger”. But my collection ranges from Glenn Gould’s Goldberg Variations, Debussy; to the jazz of Sarah Vaughan, Oscar Peterson, Diana Krall, Norah Jones; to the grunge of Soundgarden, Pearl Jam and Nirvana; rock classics like Rush, David Bowie and Iggy Pop, U2, REM, , Lenny Kravitz; ambient music such as Air; British invasion from the Beatles, Duran Duran, the Cure, the Cranberries, Suede, Verve, Coldplay; pseudo punk Green Day ; country rock of Blue Rodeo, Jim Cuddy; pop such as John Mayer, Beck, modern indie acts like Emily Haines of Metric, Feist. I haven’t even touched on Raffi yet. Gawd, I like music. With the exception of really explicit hip hop and pure country, it’s a free for all.

4. I love, love, love junk food as in potato chips and ice cream. But I think most of you already knew that from my foodie posts.

5. I love to write. I actually represented my school in a regional creative writing contest when I was in Grade 6. Unfortunately it was all downhill after that. I also learned in business school that you should keep your sentences short. Ten words is the ideal length. Hah, good luck keeping me to that rule! But thanks for being here to indulge my writing hobby.

6. I am a very impatient driver. I used to tailgate all the time. Bad me. I've gotten a lot better with that now especially since I had kids (always at least two car lengths in between... breathe...). But unfortunately my kids have learned a few choice words from the backseat of the van. Bad mommy.

7. I love coffee. A bit too much. But I have to have a couple cups in the morning, and at least one in the afternoon. And my latest guilty pleasure to go with it… Hazelnut flavoured Coffee Mate Creamer. I just bought a 1 litre bottle of the stuff – that’s right, a whole milk carton’s worth!

And that’s it! Tagging is tough, I think this one's been around a while too. But I’ll start with the following new blog buddies, as I'm so, so nosy… Badness Jones; Melissa; Gina , Anna, Rimarama, Jocelyn, GMcountrymama. And anyone else who wants to play. If you've already done it no worries. But it's great blogging filler for NaBloMe.

Be sure to let me know as I love to know more about y’all too!

Crazy 8’s

I've been tagged by Don Mills Diva, and it’s a more organized meme of random things. So let’s hop to it!

Eight Things I am Passionate About
1. My husband
2. My son
3. My daughter
4. My parents and extended family
5.Blogging (how’d ya guess?)
6. Music. Listening to it; hopefully after I practice more, playing again.
7. Shopping. Which is why I should be working. Like, right now.
8. My Fitness classes (BJ with the TJ)

Eight Things I Say Often
1. Do you have to go pee pee?
2. Let’s get on the potty now.
3. Hurry up!
4. Did you pack the drinks?
5. Brush your teeth.
6. Are the dishes in the dishwasher clean?
7. Let’s go to Tim Horton’s.
8. It’s in the laundry basket.

Eight Books I've Read Recently
1. Brick Lane – Monica Ali
2. The Girls - Lori Lansens
3. Brown Bear, Brown Bear -Eric Carle
4. Moo Baa La La La - Sandra Boynton
5. Shopaholic and Sister - Sophie Kinsella (not her best)
6. The Five People You Meet in Heaven – Mitch Bloom
7. The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown
8. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress - Dai Sijie

Eight Things I Want To Do Before I Die
1. Go on a cycling tour of Provence with Hubby.
2. See my kids get happily married.
3. Know my grandkids.
4. Go on a speedboat ride in New Zealand.
5. Go to Hong Kong and China with hubby and the kids.
6. Go shopping in Milan and be able to afford to buy something.
7. Go vacationing on the Greek Islands.
8. Visit Russia.

Eight Songs I Can Listen To Over and Over
(– only 8? Hmmm, I must confess I’ve been listening to the 80’s station on Sirius lately)
1. Strange Love – Depeche Mode
2. Dance Away – Roxy Music
3. Inside and Out – Feist
4. Lust for Life – Iggy Pop
5. Wishful Thinking – China Crisis
6. Somewhere Only We Know- Keane
7. Karma Police - Radiohead
8.In Between Days – the Cure

Eight Things That Attract Me To My Friends
1. They think I’m funny.
2. They like me.
3. Their openness
4. Good conversation
5. Loyalty
6. Good basic hygiene.
7. Their sense of fashion. A girl can always learn
8. If they’re laid back, it’s great. I can be hyper. A ying-yang thing.

Eight Things I Learned In The Past Year
1. A marriage can survive a major renovation. Intact.
2. My kids are growing up way too quickly.
3. Exercise gets even more important as you get older.
4. I actually kinda like the stay at home mom gig. Apparently I’m more laid back now and less scary.
5. I think I may like the work at home gig better.
6. I never knew one could care so much about a kitchen sink.
7. I like my hair longer.
8. My parents are the best. Beyond the best. I already knew that, but as they hit a big milestone birthday this past year, I’ve seen how busy they are with all their children and grandchildren, and their business, their travel, and their socializing and am in constant wonder. I only hope that I have their energy, fortitude and generosity when I’m their age.

I'm always forgetting to TAG! This is a long one, maybe tuck it away for when you need it. If you've survived this and haven't done it already, you are SO IT!

Eight things - la deuxieme fois ... and an award!

I’m having such a good time meeting new friends recently on the blogosphere. So although I did this meme a little while ago, I recently was tagged at “Airing Dirty Laundry” and will oblige with another eight totally trivial random things about myself:

1/ When I was in my 20s I dressed like I was in my 40s (Katie Holmes of my day, perhaps). Now that I’m in my 40s, I dress like I’m in my 20s.

2/ I have my Grade 10 Royal Conservatory of Music Certificate in piano and used to teach while I was in high school and university. It was quite lucrative and helped to pay my clothing and entertainment bills. I’m so rusty now, I haven’t played in about 20 years, so I can barely show Liam where middle C is on the keyboard.

3/ I also played clarinet, alto clarinet actually, in high school. Apparently one year I was the best high school alto clarinet player in all of Scarborough, Ontario, at least according to a teacher at Music camp. Too bad I attended before the Bare Naked Ladies met up there, or I could have re-written musical history.

I did better at the alto because I had a tight embouchure. Let’s leave it at that.

3/ I have a very understanding mate. I woke up the other morning and said to him “I dreamt that I was back in university and that my boyfriend was Bill Rancic (you know, the first winner of Donald Trump’s reality series “The Apprentice”). Ian said to me “Hey, that’s pretty good!”.

I know, it was just a weird dream and it’s not like it was hot Brad Pitt or anything, but still, I thought that was an interesting response.

4/ I have a minor degree in French. I used to be almost bilingual. On my first trip to Paris I had so much fun getting around the city, being able to converse and actually be understood.

But don’t ask me to speak now, as although it is better than my Chinese, it’s pretty shaky. L is finding it neat though, that I can help him now that he’s started French lessons three times a week at school.

5/ I thought I wanted to be a deejay when I was young. But that was before I realized that I’d actually have to be creative on the fly and speak. I have a pipsqueaky voice, so the broadcast world was spared.

6/ My husband is very sentimental when it comes to gifts for me. One of the first things he ever gave me was a pin with a picture of Robert Smith from the Cure on it. Yes, he PINNED me! And alas, that’s how long we’ve been together!

He’s given me jewelry to celebrate the birth of each of our kids. For L, I have a beautiful silver ring with a garnet and 6 diamonds (one for each year of marriage at the time he was born), engraved with our boy's name and his birthdate. For G, I received a gorgeous pair of diamond earrings.

7/ I have a real fear of vomiting (emetophobia). I thought I was the only one, but I didn't feel so weird after I saw a post on “Thinking about”. I remember being about seven years old and having a very bad bout of stomach flu. After which I decided I would never, ever throw up again in my life.

And true to my word, I never did, that is until 10 years ago. While I was at a New Year’s party I was bragging to my friend’s boyfriend about the fact that I hadn’t thrown up since I was seven, and then I suddenly had to excuse myself to go upstairs and yack, because, yes, I had had more than a few too many. But I was at least polite about it – I waited until the hostess came out from her worship of the porcelain goddess before I took my turn.

Yes, I know, TMI.

8/ I can type really fast. I once represented my high school in a regional typing contest. Liam’s career goal last year was to be the fastest typist in the world, like his Mom. I hope he aims a bit higher this year.

I think this one’s been around for a while in various forms, so if you want to play, just go for it. And let me know in the comments, because my inquiring mind wants to know!

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I got an award! A really sweet, thoughtful award, from my friend Kellan over at “On the Upside”. She’s one of my newer blog friends, but has become a daily addiction.

I wish I could pass this along to all my blog friends, as each is so deserving, but I think for this I’ll narrow it down to some of my very first regular commenters, Keep on Truckin', C at Random Musings from the Island, Thoughts and Stuff, Curiosity Killer, Fancy Pantsy, Pinks and Blues, Beachmama and Cherry Extract. All these ladies truly inspired me (and continue to do so) to keep up with this unique and fun activity, hobby, obsession, whatever ... known as blogging.

A gorgeous summery-fall day...

so why am I doing this more-than-mammoth "Everyone's Weird' meme?

Because I so love my friends and I was tagged by my pal C; and it's Sunday, brainless Sunday, so I needed something easy.

This is indeed mammoth and then some, so perhaps you'd like to grab a carafe of coffee before you enjoy the following long-winded blast of weirdness known as me:

1. What kind of SOAP is in your bathtub right now? Some kind of apricot thing from the Body shop.

2. Do you have any watermelon in your refrigerator? No. My mom hasn’t been by in the last week, so no watermelons. That’s the only time we ever have any – I always tell her not to bring anything when they come for dinner. And she always brings a watermelon.

3. What would you change about your living room? Finally pick low, modern entertainment unit to house hubby’s stereo, speakers and the gazillion CD’s we have.

4. Are the dishes in your dishwasher clean or dirty? They are clean.

5. What is in your fridge? About 6 bags of milk, 3 boxes of strawberries (on sale at Loblaws today), 2 cucumbers, coffee mate, huge jar of Vlasic pickles, blue cheese, cheddar cheese, cream cheese, feta cheese, leftover steak, 3 oranges, bag oF organic carrots. Oh, and about 3 bottles of Pomtini that I’ve been hoarding for my alone time [chuckle].

6. White or wheat bread? Flax or 12 grain – does that count?

7. What is on top of your refrigerator? Actually on TOP of my fridge – nothing. Above my fridge – a cupboard with a platter organizer. Can’t believe how excited I was about that feature.

8. What color or design is on your shower curtain? Well, I don’t have a shower curtain, it’s a door with a really dated fading horizontal stripe design on it. Our bathroom is the next stop for the renovation train. My kids’ shower curtain is from Ikea, with weird unidentifiable animals and birds in various primary colours on it. Not the best tool for teaching your toddler about wild kingdom.

9. How many plants are in your home? Dead or alive? Alive, probably one, a cactus. The other two are barely hanging on, and are actually in the laundry room ready to be tossed with our garden waste. I’m horrible with plants.

10. Is your bed made right now? Believe it or not, it is!

11. Comet or Soft Scrub? Neither.

12. Is your closet organized? Sort of. I like Ikea’s boxes, and I just sorted through the summer/fall/winter stuff. But why is my closet even more cluttered now? I am a major packrat, and I collect shoes, shoes, more shoes; hats and bags.

13. Can you describe your flashlight? Well, I used to have a small red metallic Maglite, which Ian bought me to match his small blue metallic one (awwwww – that was when we were first married). They have since been dismembered, disemboweled and are now scattered throughout the house. Courtesy of two curious kids. Now we’ve got a couple of $0.99 Ikea ones, that the girl likes to take apart.

14. Do you drink out of glass or plastic most of the time at home? Glass.

15. Do you have iced tea made in a pitcher right now? No.

16. If you have a garage, is it cluttered? Does this answer your question?

17. Curtains or blinds? Both, but we need new blinds for the family room. Badly.

18. How many pillows do you sleep with? Two. One for my head. The other to support the extra jowls that are threatening as I advance further into my 40s.

19. Do you sleep with any lights on at night? We keep one of the under cabinet lights on in the kitchen downstairs, and the girlie’s night light. She comes into our room every night, so I want to be sure she can see.

20. How often do you vacuum? Much less than needed. About once a week. I sweep a lot though.

21. Standard toothbrush or electric? Standard, although I do own an electric.

22. What color is your toothbrush? White and purple I think?

23. Do you have a welcome mat on your front porch? Yes, I thought it was quite funky and spent a ridiculous amount on it. Wanna see it:
Yeah, as Ian said when I brought it home, it is a little "orange".

24. What is in your oven right now? Nothing. Except dried up sticky pineapple rib sauce that can only be removed during a self-cleaning cycle. Which I’m afraid to attempt. With all new kitchen appliances, the owner’s manual pile is about two feet thick – hurts me to look at it.

25. Is there anything under your bed? A shower radio in the shape of a dog. Never opened. Never intend to open it. Was a gift from one of my parents’ friends to Liam when he was about one. We’re still wondering why.

26. Chore you hate doing the most? Picking toys up after the kids. It is neverending.

27. What retro items are in your home? We have some cool ashtrays left over from the 60’s from my parents (Dad used to smoke). We just use them to decorate, or as candy trays. I also have an old suede jacket and one of my dad’s old leather coats that I love. And then tons of retro CD’s and LPs.

28. Do you have a separate room that you use as an office? Yes.

29. How many mirrors are in your home? 7

30. Do you have any hidden emergency money around your home? I’ve separated our loose change into several zip lock bags that sit in our side table drawers. With our dollar above par to the US, may come in handy.

31. What color are your walls? Most of main and upper floor – taupe/gray; kitchen – brownish/taupe; our office – deep cranberry. Boy’s room blue; girl’s room yellow.

32. Do you keep any kind of protection weapons in your home? Scary question. No.

33. What does your home smell like right now? Neutral, which is a good thing.

34. Favorite candle scent? Vanilla

35. What kind of pickles (if any) are in your refrigerator right now? Vlasic, garlic dill.

36. What color is your favorite Bible? I have a small red one.

37. Ever been on your roof? No!

38. Do you own a stereo? Yes.

39. How many TVs do you have? Three.

40. How many house phones? Four.

41. Do you have a housekeeper? Well, we do have a cleaning lady who comes in every 2 weeks.

42. What style do you decorate in? Let’s see, I think the term is “Trad-emporary”. Or is it “Transitional” Whatever! We lean toward contemporary lines, with some older pieces thrown in the mix.

43. Do you like solid colors in furniture or prints? Solids for sure.

44. Is there a smoke detector in your home. Yes, one per floor.

45. In case of fire, what are the items in your house which you’d grab if you only could make one quick trip? Husband and Kids, if they’re considered items. If we’re talking inanimate objects, my glasses, watch and sentimental jewellry (creature of habit),important docs (passports etc) purse, family photos … what’s the definition of “quick”?

OOPS, forgot to tag someone. If you want to do this meme, TAG, you're IT!

The Great Eight Meme

I was tagged by lovely Chrissy from Life on Manitoulin . This is easy because it's all about ME!

The rules:
1. Let others know who tagged you.
2. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.
3. Those who are tagged should post these rules and write their 8 random facts. 4. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them that they have been tagged.



Here's my Crazy Eight:

1. I met my husband while working at a brewery as a student. I was dating 3 other guys at the brewery at the time (hussy, hussy, I know, but the ratio is pretty good for women in the brewing industry).

2. I like to drink. Alcohol. We're not talking boozing-before-noon-desperate-housewife drinking, but I love a nice glass of wine (red or white) with dinner or at a party; am partial to martinis, every and all (vodka, fruitie concoctions, chocolate; pomtinis are my latest obsession.). Oh, and beer, especially on a really hot day, or with oysters. So you guessed it…everyone knew almost to the day when I was pregnant!

3. I have a Bachelor’s degree in Nutritional Sciences and I’m a junk food junkie. I also got my MBA thirteen years later and swear by the “Grandmother’s cash in the mattress” school of investment. Well, I’m not that bad, but my husband does call me the reluctant MBA. If I spent my blogging time as an online trader instead, we’d be filthy rich… or dirt poor. Actually, I made some fantastic lifelong friends in my program – we still get together a few times a year. Most other groups don’t speak to each other anymore.

4. I love to dance, and have done since I was little. First ballet (I studied at the National Ballet School from 5 – 6 years of age) through elementary school; then in high school and university enjoyed jazz dance. Nowadays I get my musical fix through hip-hop cardio class, but I’m thinking of taking up ballet again … maybe as I get closer to 50.

5. I snowmobiled for the first time in my life last August on a glacier in Iceland. Although I thought I would lose my leg when I leaned over too far during one particular turn, I would do it again in a heartbeat. What a rush!

6. I’m pretty quiet and reserved in person. When I was younger people thought I was just a total snooty bee-atch. But I’m not… really, I’m not. As I get older, I suppose (or hope) it comes across as more "wise", which is probably a good thing.

7. Like Chrissy, I can cry at the drop of a hat, usually to some really sentimental song or commercial on TV. I used to bawl during every episode of “Little House on the Prairie”; once on an overseas flight for work I was crying my eyes out during “Moulin Rouge”. And then I’d be laughing hysterically the next minute. My associate was really worried about me. Always nice to see your manager acting manic!

8. Rock/pop music concerts are now officially my husband and my “couple thing”. We used to go to quite a few when we were dating, but not so much once we got married. But we’ve seen some great ones since we’ve become parents of two; Duran Duran, Feist, John Mayer … now we’ve got tickets to see Rush in September, and are thinking about seeing the Cure. It’s so important to connect on that level as a couple. Actually, our taste in music was one of the first connections we really had. However, we’ve yet to be “Dora’d” or “Wiggle’d” in concert for the kids’ sake. Really don’t want to go there unless we absolutely have to!

So, I don't know 8 others who haven't ALREADY been tagged. So if you haven't been and want to play, consider yourself "IT"!

Needy Me

I copied this one from my Canadian Island friend Chrissy. I googled my name and "needs" to see what would pop up, and listed the first 13 items that made sense (or at least, came close). With a common name, I wasn't too surprised to see that this meme/list had done before by other Karens, but it was still a funny exercise. Here we go, with my commentary:

Karen needs to grow up – do I have to?

Karen needs a new job – probably, with my spending habits.

Karen needs to have full carbohydrate and be well hydrated – constantly. That's why I'm always going to Tim's for my coffee and Timbit. Should start picking up some of those Crystal light mixes to put in my water bottle. Always thought they were a crazy idea until I tried one.

Karen needs more CS training – to go back and confront all the bad salespeople I’ve been dealing with lately, no doubt.

Karen needs to stay – sane? Normal? Cool? Or maybe just stay.

Karen needs a man – I’ve got one already, but thanks for the offer.

Karen needs to find a cave to live in –good idea – need somewhere to hide a few times a day!

Karen needs to get herself a new blog – I’ve been thinking about it, but can barely keep up with this one.

Karen needs to finish her thesis – been there, done that, thank you very much!

Karen needs to learn the basics of spending and budgeting –amen to that! Google knows me well LOL!

Karen needs to learn how to cue and she also needs to give some consideration to her audience in terms of setup time – 5 minute warnings don't really work well in our household. I probably do need more help in this department!

Karen needs a facial – spaaaaaaah, that sounds lovely.

Karen needs to wear her school uniform when she attacks … ummmm, I could go places with this one, but I don't think I will!

MORE ABOUT ME - A meme from overseas

Here's some more gory details about yours truly, courtesy of my blogpal Curiosity Killer:

INSTRUCTIONS: Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot, like so.

1) So a Blonde Walks into a Blog
2) Pointless Drivel
3) Shelli's Sentiments
4) Curiosity Killer
5) A Day in the Life (aka gliks)

Next select five people to tag: (if you haven’t done it already)
1) Dina
2) Danielle
3) beachmama
4) Jill
5) Trudy - take a break from the construction!


What were you doing 10 years ago?

Trying to get pregnant; applying to an MBA programme; looking for a new job.

What were you doing 1 year ago?

Enjoying being at home with my kids; getting ready for a family vacation to Vancouver.

Five snacks you enjoy:
1) Popcorn
2) Chips
3) Cheese and crackers
4) Chocolate cake,
5) Apple crumble

Five songs to which you know all the lyrics:(just off the top of my head)

1) Itsy Bitsy Spider
2) Save a Prayer (Duran Duran)
3) Dancing Queen (Abba)
4) Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen)
5) If Everyone Cared (Nickelback)

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire:
1) Set up trusts and educational funds for my kids
2) Buy vacation home abroad (multi-millionaire, right?)
3) Help out my parents and siblings
4) Travel
5) Take writing courses at university

Five bad habits:
1) I can be impatient
2) Not letting people finish their sentences
3) Worry wart
4) Talk loudly when excited
5) Procrastinate

Five things you like doing:
1) Play with my kids
2) Shop
3) Blog
4) Work out/dance
5) Drink alcohol

Five things you would never wear again:
1) Leggings (although tempted)
2) Mid-riff baring tops- tummy rolls meant for my eyes only
3) Satin track suit
4) Jodpur-like pants
5) Pom pom socks

Five favorite toys:
1) My cellphone
2) My computer
3) Digital camera,
4) Portable DVD player (keeps the kids busy)
5) TV

Mammoth Meme

...tagged from the Mothership - thanks!

FOODOLOGY

Q. What is your salad dressing of choice?
A. Renee's Gourmet Parmesan Caesar

Q. What is your favorite fast food restaurant?
A. Pizza Pizza

Q. What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?
A. Terra without kids; Unionville Arms with kids.

Q. On average, what size tip do you leave at a restaurant?
A. Usually around 15% but 20% if service is excellent, sort of proportional to the amount of wine we've had.

Q. What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick of?
A. Lasagna

Q. What is your favorite type of gum?
A. Excel Peppermint

TECHNOLOGY

Q. What is your wallpaper on your computer?
A. Don't know how to paste it, but a branch with raindrops. Don't know how it got there.


Q. How many televisions are in your house?
A. Four, but only three being used.

BIOLOGY

Q. What’s your best feature?
A. Probably my eyes. All four of them.

Q. Have you ever had anything removed from your body?
A. Other than teeth and babies, no. Oh, a couple of moles. Too much information?

Q. Which of your five senses do you think is keenest?
A. Smell. I won't elaborate.

Q. When was the last time you had a cavity?
A. Probably in high school. I don't have much of a sweet tooth, so it helps.

Q. What is the heaviest item you lifted last?
A. Probably 28 lb Giselle. I do that about a thousand times a day.

Q. Have you ever been knocked unconscious?
A. No, but passed out and ended up looking up at the plumbing under the sink in my hospital washroom just after Liam was born. Nurse didn't stay with me when she should have. Ian was unimpressed.

BULLSHITOLOGY

Q. If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?
A. No.

Q. Is love for real?
A. Very real.

Q. If you could change your first name, what would you change it to?
A. You'd think I would have one picked out after growing up with a name so popular there were always at least 2 others in every class. I've always liked the name Sydney.

Q. What color do you think looks best on you?
A. Fuschia.

Q. Have you ever swallowed a non-food item by mistake?
A. Probably, but I likely chose to forget it.

Q. Have you ever saved someone’s life?
A. Not yet, but I'm related to someone who has. Does that count?

Q. Has someone ever saved yours?
A. No.

DAREOLOGY

Q. Would you walk naked for a half mile down a public street for $100,000?
A. Possibly, but I'd have to have a few martinis just before.

Q. Would you kiss a member of the same sex for $100?
A. Yeah, with a few less martinis required.

Q. Would you allow one of your little fingers to be cut off for $200,000?
A. NO.

Q. Would you never blog again for $50,000?
A. That's a toughie.

Q. Would you pose nude in a magazine for $250,000?
A. Don't think so.

Q. Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1,000?
A. Would try, but probably wouldn't make it through.

Q. Would you, without fear of punishment, take a human life for $1,000,000?
A. Never.

Q. Would you give up watching television for a year for $25,000?
A. A year might be tough. If Grey's Anatomy were cancelled, maybe.

Q. Give up MySpace forever for $30,000?
A. Yes. Never been on it.

DUMBOLOGY

Q: What is in your left pocket?
A. Grocery shopping list, spare change, tissue.

Q: Is Napoleon Dynamite actually a good movie?
A. Loved it! Don't hold it against me.

Q: Do you have hardwood or carpet in your house?
A. Both. We're ripping out the carpet once the kids are older.

Q: Do you sit or stand in the shower?
A. Still young enough to stand thank goodness.

Q: Could you live with roommates?
A. I guess I already do.

Q: How many pairs of flip-flops do you own?
A. About 9 pairs; 2 really cheap ones for the gym, the rest varying degrees of dressiness (jewelled, leather etc.) Always in search of the perfect flip flop.

Q: Last time you had a run-in with the cops?
A. About 10 years ago got a speeding ticket in a 40 zone going about 60 on the way to work. Note that it was a school zone, but I've never seen students there. Went to city hall to plead no contest and have fine reduced. Cop gave me instructions as I was so green.

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
A. Do I have to grow up?

LASTOLOGY

Q: Friend you talked to?
A. Met a blog buddy for the first time today and had a blast.

Q: Last person you called?
A. My mom. Spoke to her 5 times today.

RANDOMOLOGY

Q: First place you went this morning?
A. Kitchen.

Q: What can you not wait to do?
A. Have another spa day.

Q: What’s the last movie you saw?
A. The Holiday.

Q: Are you a friendly person?
A. Yup.

I tag Dina, Chrissy and Jill. Have fun!

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 :)