Libeskind never had small children.

(alternate title) Our Visit to the ROM.

Could there be a museum addition with more places to bang your head/pinch your finger/fall down/get stuck/climb up walls? NO.

But Violet was fascinated by the lecture on the icthysaurus....not really. After about 10 minutes at the museum all she just wanted to do was eat in the cafeteria.
Nana was there though! She makes everything good.

A funny story: As we were leaving Jem pulled down some of those rope partitions that they use to mark where to line up. After the clatter died down he yelled "eye of the tiger!".
Stick it to the man, my son.

Oh, and if you say "I love you" to him, he says "I love you too". THE SWEETEST BOY.

Rain Boots!

Since the weather this weekend made us want to actually go outside and stay outside, we took the babes to the Experimental Farm. They both had their new rain boots on, so they splashed around in great big muddy puddles and were generally cute together.I managed to yet again dress myself completely in a monotone drab colour. I only notice this has happened once I'm out. Yay brown!


In other news: Jem is absolutely terrified of cows.

What you've been waiting for.

This is as pink as hair can get.

What I've been waiting for.

Violet and Jem sat and played for at least half an hour together on Friday. Quietly. Sharing. This is big news, and I credit the magical properties of Play-Doh...and I gave them both knives.
In other news:
Jesse, Captain of My Heart, did this to his hair in the name of charity. It's a prelude to being dyed bright pink tomorrow.

Excerpts

Violet, on why she came into our bed in the middle of the night:
"I woke up in the night and felt like I had to barf, but that would wreck my bed, so that's why I came into your bed".

Jem, stopping to chat during a nurse:
"Nurse....boobies....lub you.....lub you, boobies....doo dat....yesssss".
Yes, I think we're all agreed that I've nursed him long enough.

Jemmy Rolls

There is only a short window of time where it's funny to find your son playing princess video games naked in his sister's bed.

Welcome

I'm an Auntie! Jesse is an Uncle! Jesse's sister gave birth to an adorable little girl on Friday. Her name is Winter, she's baby perfection, and we plan to spoil her.

From Deep Within Princess Territory

It's still all about princesses.
Uncle Max came and spoiled us all rotten a couple of weekends ago. We hung out, ate out, and he set Violet free in a toy store, telling her to get anything she wanted. This dress was what she wanted VERY MUCH, and she's been wearing it every day since. Jem got something too....his very own vacuum! But, seriously, why can't they make these little replicas work? Our floors would have been immaculate by now.

My little scholar

"Mom, I don't want to to go pre-school today"
"Why not? You always have a good time"
(sighs heavily) "It's all the singing, and the learning, and the 'what day is it?'... I just don't feel like that anymore".

More cuts

A few days ago we all went for a walk to a neighbourhood hair salon. Jesse, Violet and Jem all got a hair cut. I only get my hair cut by Rick in Toronto. Jem's hair was growing into a mullet, so it was time. As UV and Jesse were sitting in the chairs, Jem wandered around the salon. He picked up a hand mirror, looked at himself and said "Jemmy!". He looks so adorable with his little boy hair - although I might still let it grow long like Celine Dion's son. Haven't decided yet. Even though I wasn't going to ask, the Lebanese hair dresser insisted on saving a lock of his baby hair for me, and I'm glad she did. Of course, I keep forgetting to take it out of my coat pocket, so I keep pulling out this little envelope of hair everywhere I go. After a most excellent Christmas, we happily took the tree down this past weekend. It was getting pretty tiring keeping Jem away from it. He was very happy to vacuum the needles up. My boy loves to vacuum.He even gets under the couch.
Losing focus a bit here...
Happy New Year!

Angel

"Violet, tomorrow you're going to be an angel in the Christmas pageant!"
"I don't want to be an angel, I want to be the God."
So, we're going to be pretty busy over the holidays...mainly because we now have
ROCKBAND II!! Yes, you can come over the play with us. Bring brandy beans.

Blues Man

Guess who can play the harmonica? Really feelin' it. I mean, you wouldn't understand, man. It's deep. This thing doesn't taste so good anymore.

Talking to My Children

_______
"Violet, what did you talk about in school today?"
"....umm...lava...and titans...."
"I think that's from the movie Hercules"
"Yeah...."
"So what did you learn in school today?"
"Nothing".
_______
"Hi Jem"
"HI! HI! Mmamma! NUHSE?" (pointing to the comfy chair were I usually nurse him).

Bilingual

"Mom, how old are you?"
"I'm thirty-two. How old are you?"
"I'm thirty-one"
"Hmm, I'm pretty sure you're three, Violet"
"Yes, but in French we say THIRTY-ONE".

Two Words!

Jem put his first little sentence together!
"Bye, Mama", and then made kissy noises as I was leaving for work a couple of days ago.
He's getting used to my leaving in the morning - and it's not hard when it's Oma I'm leaving him with.
He likes to sit in chairs. That sounds weird I guess, but it is quite the accomplishment for him to haul himself into a chair and get himself turned around. Of course, this has also meant a lot of falling off of chairs, but he's a sturdy guy, and he always tries again. Still a reader too...

Happy Hallowe'en!

The very talented sewing skills of Teta Peach brings you....
Alice in Wonderland and The White Rabbit!Violet wasn't in the mood to be photographed, and Jem was having issues with his ruffle, but they looked positively darling together. After we went to the first house Violet said "let's go home now", but as we turned to make our way back, she'd say "one more house, and then home". This is how an hour flew by. When it was really time to go, she asked "is it going to be Hallowe'en again?".
So cute it's scary...

Foot & Mouth

Jem is walking! He also seems to like wearing Violet's hair clips, obviously secure in his masculinity. Violet put this outfit together herself. Hat, vest, sunscreen accessories and varied footwear (both on the wrong feet). Jem looks intrigued.
Yesterday she told me "when I was a little baby, I used to sit in a nest and eat bacon!"
Jem wisely tries to make an exit...
In other news:
Well, I'm back to a 'real' job again (although part-time, since my design/photography business is doing fairly well).
You'll never guess what it is.
I'm the Parish Coordinator for St. Matthews church! Apparently they didn't mind that all the holy water started boiling when I entered the building. Yeah, I'm going to have to get all the blaspheming out of my system this weekend, because I start Monday.

Pinecone...pinecone...pinecone...

Dinner at Lauren's new apartment

"Hey, Violet, come see this cool thing, it's called a Chia pet. His name is Hippopatame."
"I WANT TO SEE THE CHEETAH HEAD!"

Firsts

There have been some big firsts around here lately.
First day of pre-school!When I asked her teacher how she was on her first day at pre-school she said
"Oh, she was fine! She asked a lot of questions."
THAT'S IT?! C'mon, lady, I need details!
When I asked Violet what happened at school she said
"I put stickers on things and played in Tigger water".
Any additional attempts to pump her for more information has been met with the rolling of eyes and "I already telled you!". So, now she has a bit of a life of her own, away from me. She loves school, as we all knew she would. When I pick her up from school she seems very happy, but I notice that her drawings and paintings looks like generic kid scratching. At home she's painting faces with hair, teeth and ears, and family scenes with sun and water. Also, since school started she now has a running commentary explaining things and teaching to her dolls. It's hilarious. She seems so grown up.

aaaand....

Jem's first birthday! My sweet baby boy is one!
We celebrated with a small family dinner (even though he really wanted to go to the casino). He seemed a little unsure of the cake and singing at first. Violet had picked out the candle and had put the sprinkles on.
Warming up to it quickly...
Cake for everyone!He's got quite a few words already, and can do a barnyard full of animal noises. He still loves to read, spending a lot of time sitting and flipping through a pile of books and laughing. Such a lovely boy!


In other news:
As you may have noticed, a year has passed and I still seem to be at home even though our beloved Oma has returned to look after the kids during the day. I'm giving my own freelance graphic design and photography business a shot, and it seems to be going well...even though most of my business has been family so far. Good thing I have a huge family.
It's a good life.