Belated Happy Mother's Day

When Chris and I chose our wedding date, the last thing on our minds was the fact that our anniversary would forever coincide with the weekend of Mother's Day. For that reason, the second weekend in May is always a pretty busy one at our house, with Chris taking the kids out to shop for me and then spending all day Sunday pampering me... It's a rough life! Meanwhile, we always try to fit in some kind of anniversary celebration. This year is was lunch out, and a play at the Grand Theatre on Friday evening -- and for the first time, we didn't have to get a babysitter! The kids were fine at home alone for the evening. What a milestone!

This morning I realized that I had neglected to post anything on my blog for Mother's Day, so I'm making up for it today. I have the world's best mom to celebrate! And she is my most devoted reader, so I know she'll see this today. Sorry it's a few days late, Mom. For over 40 years you have been absolutely the best mother I could have asked for. You gave Tracy, Brad and I beautiful childhoods, and you have given us all unwavering support during our adulthoods. My children are blessed to have you for a grandmother, and even more blessed that you are the example I have to follow of motherhood. I love you, Mom! I'm so glad I got to give you your Mother's Day gift (a little early) in person this year. I hope you had a wonderful day!

Sweet Sixteen

May 11, 1996 dawned cold and rainy in Rothesay, New Brunswick — and for some crazy reason I didn't care one bit! I laid in bed for a few minutes just to savour the uniqueness of the day, took a call from a friend in (who knew?) London, Ontario, and then got up, showered and got ready to go to the beauty parlour. In just a few hours I would marry the man I had waited twenty-six years to meet at the front of a church. I could not have been happier.

May 11, 2012 dawned sunny and warm in London, Ontario — and I woke up with a smile on my face. I lingered in bed long enough for Chris to ask me if the kids didn't have school today. They did, so I pulled myself out of bed and began the morning routine of making coffee, breakfasts and lunches and coaxing kids out the door. Connor wanted to ride his Ripstick to school; Janelle caught a ride with our neighbours. After I shooed them out the door I carried coffee upstairs to my husband of sixteen years and asked if he wanted me to make him a sandwich or take him out to lunch. He chose the latter. I picked him up at noon and we went to Blackfriars Bistro, a restaurant not far from Chris's office, but far enough to offer free parking (a true bonus in this city!). He had been there before; I had not. The food was delicious, the service was friendly but slow (and I came home with a second sandwich when they brought me the wrong one the first time), and the company was my favourite. Our lunch conversations have changed over the past sixteen years, but we would still rather be with each other than with anyone else.

I planned to scan a wedding pic to add here (can you
believe I don't have even one digital picture of our wedding?),
but my scanner was being tempermental so this will have to
do for now.

After lunch, Chris needed to drop something off at City Hall, so I waited for him as he ran inside. When we pulled up I noticed a wedding party standing on the front steps, waiting, I assumed, for the bride and groom to emerge from the building. Sure enough, before Chris returned to the van, the lovely couple appeared, stopped for a few photos, and disappeared into a waiting decorated car. Chris hopped in with me just before they drove past us. It was almost like looking back in time. I wanted to tell them they picked the perfect day to get married. They are enjoying a sunny wedding day. Mine was raining and cold, although I barely noticed (my bridesmaids did in their off-the-shoulder dresses!), and we were stranded by a snowstorm on the first day of our honeymoon. But May 11 is the perfect day to get married. I only hope the newlyweds are still as happy together in sixteen years as my groom and I are today.

Two Month Update

The fact that I have not added a blog post in two months is certainly not because I have had nothing to say. It has been an absolutely jam-packed couple of months! For that reason I'm going to give a brief overview, and in future posts I'll elaborate.

First of all, I found out the day before we left for our Florida vacation that I was added to the Thames Valley District School Board Elementary Occassional Teachers List. Hallelujah! So far I have worked two days in a JK/SK class at Connor and Janelle's school. I love it! It is wonderful to be back in the classroom!

The only character Janelle cared about
meeting was Minnie.

On March 9 we embarked on a fabulous, long-awaited, two week vacation to Florida. It is so hard to believe that was nearly two months ago. We had a wonderful time, and I can't wait to do it again, perhaps this time with a little less emphasis on theme parks. Don't misunderstand me — We loved Disney! But that portion of the trip was truly exhausting! We did, however, have few days at the beginning and the end with Chris's father and stepmother in Zephyrhills, and a day off in the middle of our Orlando blitz to spend at the pool and visit with our friends Eric and Charlene Currie and their three awesome kids. It was so great to finally meet the children and hear their amazing stories of adoption from Ethiopia. We had beautiful weather the entire trip, and a perfect place to stay in our rented townhome in Orlando. And Janelle met Minnie Mouse. The perfect vacation!

After the final game.

Five days after we returned home from Florida we were off again, this time to Niagara Falls for the Ontario Basketball Association U12 Finals. Sadly, our boys won only one out of three games, so there were some tears shed on Saturday night, but overall Connor has had a wonderful experience being part of a competitive team for the first time.

Five more days and the van was packed again, this time for a trip to Indiana to spend Easter with Peter, Ellen, Mallory, Julia and Shorey. One of our favourite things about living in Southern Ontario is being so (relatively) close to the Moore family. It is still about a seven hour drive, but it is so much closer than it used to be. We have had a number of great visits with them since we moved here, but we hadn't seen them in nearly a year, so we were anxious to get together for a few days. We arrived late Thursday evening, and Ellen and I shopped on Friday, then went to see The Hunger Games Friday night while Chris, Connor, Peter and Julia went to an Indiana Pacers game and Mallory babysat Janelle and Shorey. Saturday consisted of more shopping, some great food, and some hard fought ping-pong matches. On Sunday we had an Easter egg hunt, went to church, had a wonderful Easter dinner, and hit the road around 3 p.m. We're hoping we won't have to wait nearly as long for another visit with our dear friends.

Connor and Julia at the Pacers Game.

A couple of days after we arrived home from Indy, we celebrated Chris's birthday along with Bliss and Doreen, who arrived that day on their way home from Florida. We had a great visit, including a couple of games of Wizard (I won once! Woohoo!), despite the flu that had struck me down on Easter Monday. They left our house on Friday to head to Kate and Pierre's, and we went to Oakville on Saturday afternoon to share a meal with the rest of the family. I got a prescription for an ear infection that morning, so I was officially on the mend.

The following day we attended our own church for the first time in six weeks, and then joined Connor's basketball team and their families for an end of year party. There was a "parents vs. kids" basketball game (Chris played, I kept score), swimming time, and a potluck dinner. It was a bit sad to say goodbye to such a great team, but there is a chance Connor will be on the same team next year in the U13 division.

Nurnie with Connor and Janelle, Summer 2010.

Early in April I found out that Nurnie, who has been fighting ovarian cancer since just before Christmas, would be having surgery on May 2, which would be my sister's 40th birthday. For those of you who do not know who Nurnie is, she is actually Lillian Constantine, and is a bit like an aunt to me, but really much closer than an aunt. She is my second cousin on my dad's side, and my mother's best friend since they taught together in their early twenties. She has been part of our family for my entire life. I believe her brother, Larry, christened her "Nurnie" as a toddler, and I have never been able to call her anything else. She never married or had her own children, so my sister and brother and I have been her kids, and she has been another grandparent to our children. Living so far away while Nurnie has been fighting this evil disease has been very frustrating. I knew that I wanted to make a trip home on my own at some point, and since Nurnie's surgery date landed on Tracy's birthday, I thought I needed to be there. I flew to Moncton on the evening of April 29, and Mom, Dad and Nurn picked me up at the airport and we all spent the night at Nurnie's. The next day we visited in the morning, Nurn took us all out to lunch, and then Mom and Dad and I headed to Rothesay. We had decided to try to surprise Tracy, but I knew that would be easier said than done. I hid in the bedroom when she arrived that night for her birthday supper, and the biggest surprise to her was that I didn't seem to be there! When I came out and said "Happy Birthday" she told me that she had already made plans for us to see a movie the next night! All in all, it was a great week. I spent time with my family without the distraction of being on "Mom-duty". I had lots of time to just hang out with Mom in my jammies, or to play Wizard with Mom and Dad. And I was there to meet the doctor after Nurnie's surgery, which went very well, although the fight is not over yet. Saturday Mom, Tracy, Jillian, Brad, Jody, Hailey and I went to Moncton again to see how Nurnie was doing, and after a couple of really good days she had had a rough night. I was glad to see her again, but it was hard to leave knowing she had experienced a bit of a setback. Because I was flying out at 7:00 on Sunday morning, I stayed with Larry and Pat at Nurnie's house, and Larry graciously got up in the middle of the night to take me to the airport. I was ready to go home to Chris and the kids, but I am so thankful I was able to make the trip home.

And that brings us to today, which I have spent quite lazily alone in my house. Tomorrow I'll be teaching the same JK/SK class at Connor and Janelle's school, and I have no plans to leave town again before summer. I'm ready for life to slow down and fall into routine. And part of that routine will be adding to my blog. I promise.

Roller Coaster

Next week I'll be trying out some new roller coasters on our trip to Florida. Our family loves thrill rides. My kids have always loved the rides that other kids their age would be too timid to try. When Janelle was four we went to Story Land in New Hampshire and her favourite rides were the roller coasters and the water flume rides. My kids can be daredevils, and I wonder if Space Mountain will give them a run for their money. I do love roller coasters, and I think (and so does my husband) that I am more excited about Disney than anyone else in the family! I love roller coasters. But not so much the one I've been on for the past couple of weeks.

On February 22 I got an email inviting me to participate in the written component of the interview process for the occassional teachers list of our local school board on February 29. This is what I've been waiting for for two years. I actually had to read the email through two or three times before I understood that this was actually what it was. You know that feeling when the cars start to make the slow ascent up that first big rise on the roller coaster? When you know something exciting is coming, but you're not sure how it's going to turn out? That's how I felt that day. Really excited, and really nervous. I mean, when was the last time I wrote an exam? Do I even remember how? And what exactly should I be studying? How detailed do I need to be? Are there things I need to memorize? If so, what? Terrifying, but I did feel that I was finally getting my chance. So exciting.

The next day I experienced the first big drop on the rollercoaster. I received another strongly worded, very curt email, saying that following the written component, interviews would be conducted on March 5-8, and an orientation for all those hired would be held on March 14. Attendance is mandatory, and no other dates will be accomodated. DROP! I'm supposed to be in Orlando on March 14! That is our first day at Disney! How can I miss my kids first day at Disney? Do we delay the trip? Do I fly home for a day? Can I even get a reasonably priced flight at this short notice? And how do I book a flight when I don't even know if I'll be hired and need to fly home? Chris and I talked through all the options, and I shed many tears and lost plenty of sleep, and we finally came to the conclusion that I would fly home on March 13, leave Chris and the kids to hang out with Grampie and Grammie, fly back early on the 15th, and spend the next five days celebrating Mickey-style! And that car starts to go up the next big rise.

Chris was feeling confident enough in my chances of getting hired that he was ready to book a plane ticket for me, but we decided to wait and see how I felt after the written component. I studied like crazy. I knew the name of one specific document on assessment and evaluation that would almost certainly be referenced on the exam, and was told to do some thinking about inclusive education and differentiated instruction as well. When the time finally came I felt well prepared, if a bit rusty in the area of exam writing. Before given the go ahead to look at the exam, the canditates were given some further information about the whole process. Apparently, the school board is in desperate need of supply teachers, as a number of jobs are going unfilled every day now. This explains the urgency in hiring and orienting teachers and getting them into classrooms. There were 120 teachers randomly chosen from those who applied to take the test. We were then told that we would all be contacted one way or the other the following week, and interviews would be held Tuesday to Thursday at various schools with principals. Then "hopefully" we'll have an orientation on March 14. That left me a bit stunned. Hopefully? How do I buy a plane ticket based on "hopefully"? DROP!!! I completed the exam, which was considerably simpler than I had expected, only throwing me for one loop with a question on how I use technology in the classroom to meet curriculum expectations (since my last classroom had one computer with a few CD games, and I have no clue what is on the Ontario elementary technology curriculum). Still, I think I was able to come up with an answer that sounded reasonably intelligent.

Chris and I discussed that night whether or not we should buy a plane ticket, and decided to write an email together asking for clarification of the orientation date, and explaining that I was planning to fly home from a family vacation in Florida to attend. I sent the email on Thursday. I have not heard back. I was supposed to hear about an interview either Friday or today. I have not heard back yet. I feel like this rickety old car is climbing another steep incline, and I have no idea which way it is going to fall. I'm trying to distract myself with Disney plans, since, either way, I'm going on vacation next week. But I do check my email about three times an hour.

I think the roller coasters at Disney will have nothing on this one. What a ride! But I'm more than ready to get off...

Update: I got an email this afternoon telling me an interview had been arranged for Thursday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. I responded to the email asking again for clarification of the March 14 orientation date, explaining that if hired I would be flying home from vacation to attend. Not ten minutes later I received an email telling me that, if hired while on vacation, I would not be expected to fly home to attend the orientation, but that I could simply call to arrange a time to complete the paperwork after I get back. Phew! Hallelujah! Of course, having ridden this roller coaster for over a week now, I can't seem to get my stomach to stop rolling. Friday can't get here soon enough! I need a vacation!

Marriage

I asked you to indulge me yesterday as I posted the findings of a very scientific poll asking elementary aged children the question "What is Love?" Well, this is still Valentines Day Week (I have a habit of stretching all special days out as long as possible — Ask my husband about "Mother's Day Weekend" or "Birthday Week"), so I decided to post another similar poll, this time on the subject of marriage. I thought it was just too cute to pass up, and far more entertaining than my own thoughts on the subject.

‎1. HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHOM TO MARRY?

You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming.
— Alan, age 10

No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with.
— Kristen, age 10


2. WHAT IS THE RIGHT AGE TO GET MARRIED?

Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then.
— Camille, age 10


3. HOW CAN A STRANGER TELL IF TWO PEOPLE ARE MARRIED?

You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids.
— Derrick, age 8


4. WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR MOM AND DAD HAVE IN COMMON?

Both don't want any more kids.
— Lori, age 8


5. WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE DO ON A DATE?

Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough.
— Lynnette, age 8 (isn't she a treasure)

On the first date, they just tell each other lies and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date.
—Martin, age 10


6. WHEN IS IT OKAY TO KISS SOMEONE?

When they're rich.
—Pam, age 7

The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that.
—Curt, age 7

The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them. It's the right thing to do.
— Howard, age 8


7. IS IT BETTER TO BE SINGLE OR MARRIED?

It's better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them.
—Anita, age 9 (bless you child)


8. HOW WOULD THE WORLD BE DIFFERENT IF PEOPLE DIDN'T GET MARRIED?

There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn't there?
—Kelvin, age 8


And the #1 Favorite is ........

9. HOW WOULD YOU MAKE A MARRIAGE WORK?

Tell your wife that she looks pretty, even if she looks like a dump truck. —Ricki, age 10

Something to think about! Saturday night our community group put on a dinner at our church and showed the Date Night Challenge from Focus on the Family. It stressed the importance of dating your spouse, and challenged married couples to go on two more dates over the next two weeks. Yesterday Chris took me out to lunch to celebrate Valentine's Day at a great restaurant in downtown London I'd never tried before. It was nice to spend some alone time together, and Saturday night we have a date planned for dinner and a movie, so I guess if all goes well we've met the challenge. I think it is important to make the time to share special time alone with each other. Often our dates consist of take-out Chinese food and a movie at home. That's not bad — sometimes it's just what I need! But getting out together is important, too, and we both enjoy those times, however rare they may be. At lunch Chris suggested that we go out for lunch together once a month, and I wholeheartedly agreed. I'm so glad my husband is the one I chose to journey through life with. They don't come any better than him! Marriage isn't so hard when you're doing it with your best friend.

As a postscript, I want to wish a very happy birthday to my friend and fellow blogger Denise! May you be spoiled rotten today, my friend!

What Does Love Mean?

My friend Denise recently composed a very amusing post about all those chain letters we get, primarily on Facebook these days, that really detract from the great experience that Facebook really is. I also love Facebook. It saved me our first year in London. For a while my only friends were Facebook friends. But I have to say, I'm not a big fan of all those chain letters.

However, I have to admit, this one got to me. Perhaps it is the teacher in me. I just love the hilarious and often adorable things that come out of the mouths of kids! I actually used to take polls like this one in my preschool and kindergarten classes, for special occasions like Mothers Day and Fathers Day. The answers were always precious, and so when this email turned up in my inbox, in honour of Valentine's Day, I just had to "share the love".

But don't worry, you don't have to forward it to five people in order for all your Valentine's Day wishes to come true!

A group of professionals posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds ,

'What does love mean?'

The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined

See what you think:

'When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis, too. That's love.'
— Rebecca- age 8

'When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.'
— Billy - age 4

'Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.'
 — Karl - age 5

'Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.'
 — Chrissy - age 6

'Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.'
 — Terri - age 4

'Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.'
 — Danny - age 7

'Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss.'
 — Emily - age 8

'Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents. And listen.'
 — Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)

'If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate , '
 — Nikka - age 6
(we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)

'Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it every day.'
 — Noelle - age 7

'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.'
 — Tommy - age 6

'During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.'
 — Cindy - age 8

'My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.'
 — Clare - age 6

'Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.'
 — Elaine - age 5

'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford .'
 — Chris - age 7

'Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.'
 — Mary Ann - age 4

'I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.'
 — Lauren - age 4

'When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.' (What an image!)
 — Karen - age 7

'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross.'
 — Mark - age 6

'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.'
 — Jessica - age 8

 And the final one:

The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard , climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said , 'Nothing, I just helped him cry'.
See? Precious.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Twelve Today

Today he is over 5'5" tall. He weighs 100 lbs. He can sink a shot from behind the three point line. He can Ripstick all the way to school and back. Most of his pant hems hover around his ankles. He loves tacos, and Phineas and Ferb, and the colour green. He is kind to his sister, and wonderful with all little kids. He'd be a great babysitter, but he still gets nervous when Mom and Dad leave him too late in the evening. He has (somewhat) patiently waited for years to go to Disney, and can hardly contain his excitement about finally going next month. He's my baby boy.

And today he is twelve years old.

Every year I say the same thing. Why are these the years that have to fly by so fast? My childhood seemed to go on forever, but my little boy has grown as tall as me in the blink of an eye. Still, I have been determined to enjoy it all. Every stage has been more fun than the one before. I loved every minute of the "floppy baby" stage, although Connor stayed there for about ten minutes. Toddlerhood was a hilarious time of riding his tricycle, feeding ducks, VeggieTales, Daddy back in school and special time just him and me. Then came the big brother days, and he was off to preschool and then kindergarten, and suddenly he was riding a two wheeler down a busy street and playing basketball and heading to the community pool with his buddies. And then it was time to move to London and make all new friends, and he was a trooper.  All through it he has been a tenderhearted boy, sensitive and caring and full of love. I couldn't ask for a sweeter boy. He still loves watching Spiderman movies with Dad and reading Harry Potter with me. He sits beside me in the front seat when we drive together now. I can still make him laugh with just a look. He is every bit the big brother I always wished I had; his little sister is a lucky girl. He still loves playing basketball, and he goes to Junior Youth with good friends, and he is too old for birthday parties.

Connor is twelve.

How did we get here? I am sure time speeds up. Because in four years, the time it takes to turn around, he'll be begging for a driver's license. And only two years beyond that I'll be picking out a dress for his graduation. And maybe not so long after that I'll be standing in the doorway of his empty bedroom. I'm not ready, and I'm afraid it is all going to sneak up on me. These days are precious. I need to hold them close.

So I'll take more pictures at the basketball games, spend a few extra minutes each night reading Harry Potter, and make the time for making special memories. Only one more year until we are celebrating the new teenager in our house! Will he want me to read bedtime stories to him then?

Happy 12th birthday, Connor! Your mom loves you so much!