Fall Goals

I see, since my absence, that I've lost all of my followers. Time to re-vamp my blog!

In a few days it will be officially be autumn. I spent my summer working a lot. It's going to change now. We've accomplished most of our immediate financial goals and it's time to slow down and enjoy life. Time to make time for regular workouts and healthy meals. Time for massages and trips to the city just for coffee. Time to sleep and take naps. And time to experiment with cooking and bone up on the cleaning.

This fall is going to be a great new start! It's September after all. Isn't that when most things start up again?

Fall on the Farm

The summer has passed in the blink of an eye. I took a break from blogging and the gym and spent time with the family and at work. We accomplished Potty Training (most of the time) and got the landscaping done. We spent many hours playing at Nana's farm and playing in the water with friends. We explored Tinkertown and a local town fair. We spent lots of time with old friends and forged new friendships.



Today the Boy, Nana, and myself went to the Mennonite Museum for Fall on the Farm. First stop was the Candy Store to sustain us on our journey. We watched the blacksmith heat and pound some metal. We climbed the windmill and watched them grind some wheat. The steam tractors were out and a kind Engineer invited the Boy up to see the fire and turn the steering wheel. We petted rabbits, goats, and donkeys. The Barrel Train was lots of fun! All this plus chicken butchering and fresh pickles!





Exploring all of these things with a toddler makes it all new and fun again. I just love re-discovering life with him!

Birthday Celebrations

I am so lucky to have both of my parents around. Last month both of them celebrated their birthdays. By being smart enough to carry the camera I got lots of awesome pictures without me being featured in any of them.

Check it out!

My sister was home for Mum's birthday. We invited her sister along as well. First we went for delicious Italian food. Too many choices on the menu!


But oh, so yummy!






This Gooseberry light on fire right after I took the picture. What better way to kick off 55 than with a fire?!


Then we went to my sister's condo for a rousing game of Scrabble. We let Mum win. Followed by Carol, and Jen. I brought up the tail end.



It was an awesome evening!

We celebrated Dad's 57th on June 26th at the neighborhood coffee shop - the Back Porch. My Grandparents came too. We dined on fruit, cheese, and baked goodies. The coffee was hot and strong. Bacon, sausages and eggs followed.

The Birthday Boy!


If there is a party, my Grandparents are sure to crash it!


The Boy "smiling" for the camera

(I love the facial expressions in this photo)

The whole crew. Grandma is in this photo somewhere....

Fun with Family

We got back from our road trip to Calgary a week ago already. Our time there was bittersweet. It was great to spend time with family and we really enjoyed meeting baby Rachel. She did well during the time we visited. Amazing considering that she's functioning on an essentially two chambered heart!

From a medical perspective, it's pretty cool the way her body has adapted around her defective heart. From a personal perspective it's just tragic.

The Flames House in Calgary is a pediatric palliative care center. I can't rave enough about the place. It sucks to have to be there but if you find yourself in a situation like this... what a blessing!

The Boy and I did find ourselves some fun. We went to the zoo, rode the C-train, and giggled past midnight on the mattress on the floor in a kind person's basement.

Here are some photos:

Air hockey with Auntie Jen. Also, it looks like he has big hips. This is an angle I've never seen of him....

The horses in Calgary are really tame. And odd looking. Giddy up!

The coolest swing of all time. Even Mummy wants to snuggle in and suck her thumb in this kind of cozy!

Extreme wheelchairing

Definitely cousins!

Rachel Amariah

For details visit www.rachelamariah.blogspot.com

Bittersweet

I'm almost ready to head out of the house. The Boy and I are taking our first road trip together. Nana and Papa are coming to. Our destination is Calgary. My brother lives there. With his beautiful wife and family. Literally, as soon as the Boy awakes from his Slumber we are outta here!

You may think we're heading on a vacation. The truth is that my niece is going to be born. Tomorrow. Her name is Rachel Amariah. At the routine 20 week ultrasound they discovered that things weren't quite right. Now, through extensive and detailed testing, we expect that she won't live long. Nobody knows how long or how short her life may be.

I've witnessed amazing strength as my family deals with this news. Her parents have wrapped her in love from the beginning. There are no rosy thoughts of miracles, etc. They are facing reality. Decisions have been made and plans are in place so that when Rachel comes they can just focus on her. Such anguish. Such love. Yet such peace.

It's bittersweet. Rachel has already taught us so much. We will love to to bits now and forever after. I was thinking today, God, why the bittersweet? Why not JUST bitter or JUST sweet. It feels like torture to love something/someone only to lose them.

But I realized something. If there was just bitter or sweet, the bitter would overwhelm the sweet. I'm afraid I would just see the ugliness. So we have to have the sweet with the bitter. Otherwise we'd have a world full of jaded or incredibly happy, sheltered (and this might be worse than jaded) people. It just keeps things in focus.

See you tomorrow, Rachel.

Balance

I have to admit that I sometimes feel like the odd Mama out, here in this town. This town which is slowly becoming "my" town again.

You see, I love my job. I find meaning and purpose in caring for people outside of my own family. My heart is caring. I like my patients and, usually, they like me. I work with a fabulous team. I get lots of positive feedback about my performance and enjoy being part of a team.

Most of the Mums here take great pride in staying home with their children. I'm not sure that I have met any that work outside of the home. I certainly believe there is no more important job than raising your own children. Sometimes I wish that would be all I want. To stay home and watch my Boy grow up.

But I don't. I want to work part time. Not full time, just part. The thing is, I'm happier when I get out of the house. I have more patience and more fun with my family. There is a fine line. At times I have picked up too many shifts and run myself near ragged. Then I become the Mama Monster and that isn't cool for anyone.

It's interesting to move back to my old hometown. I can't say that moving back has felt like coming home. It's starting to feel more comfortable. But sometimes I feel like I just don't fit in all that well. It's getting better with time and I assume it will continue to. I'm just gonna continue doing what makes me happy.