Merry Christmas!

Winter Solstice is under our belts (My favourite day of the year because it means that Summer is on it's way!!) and Christmas day is drawing to a close...the hustle and bustle of the season is not quite done but a definite sense of doneness fills me. It's a happy feeling though, time has been well spent with the kids and DH.

Our house has been a near war zone these last few weeks (hence the lack of blogging). My mom has started Chemo treatments, went well but it keeps me well occupied traveling to and from the hospital for appointments. I am not able to stay with her as nursing mothers and babies are not allowed in the unit and quite honestly it's not fair to baby boo or I to sit for a couple of hours in space where he can't move around. The boy has been plagued with cold after cold these past weeks, pretty much since Thanksgiving. This week his fever peaked at 103.9 but came back down the next day. He's still pretty sick though. None of this is good, in so many ways. It's been too long that he's been sick. Mom can't really afford to be exposed to it, but there really isn't anywhere else she can go and it's extremely taxing on us parents. Definite trip to the Dr. required in the near future!

Other than that, I've been enjoying a new indulgence: Ravelry. I've been knitting again, making a pair of leg warmers for baby boo and some chemo caps for mom in case she loses her hair. I'll be posting some pics later, and hopefully be adding some more info about the crafts I am up to...of course it's all about time, time to do the crafts and time to post about them...time is precious when you have precious children to watch after!

I hope you all have had a wonder Christmas, Winter Solstice or whatever winter holiday you celebrate!

Day 13 - A Fictional Book

Nope haven't really written one yet...not fully anyway! I've got a lot poetry and short stories, does that count? LOL...Oh you want me to comment on a Fictional book? Well you already know that I like to read. I like to read crap, I like to read classics and I like to read everything in between so commenting on a single book is at times tricky because there are so many on my brain.

I can tell you about the one I just read, and am actually reading again. Sometimes I get so into a book that I just kind of race through it to find out how it ends but because I am dyslexic that means I miss parts. I have to sometimes read and reread to make it really stick or to have it make sense (I skip over words and sentences sometimes). Anyway, I enjoyed it so much that I have decided to start reading it again.

Amy Tan's The Bonesetter's Daughter is an intricate story of the lives of three generations of women and how they struggle to understand each other and care for each other. The plot mostly revolves around an adult daughter - Ruth, who is caring for her aging mother and concerns regarding her mother's mental health (dementia). Ruth learns about her self and her relationships while working on her relationship with her mother but also learns some family secrets which help her better understand her mother. She finds out about her mother's past through a story that her mother wrote down for her detailing her childhood and own family secrets, tragedies and triumphs.

I found it poignant as a mother and daughter both, knowing that my children (like I did) think that my life only began when they were born. They don't realize there was 30 or so years that I lived before they came along. Now that I live with my mother as an adult and equal I find that I know and understand my own mother better too. It is easy to harbour grudges towards our parents

Day 12 - Something I am OCD about

Okay, this is really an odd one. But I am definitely OCD about it, I can't help myself, every time and everywhere I go, I do it. When I am returning a tray from a food court or fast food restaurant or cafeteria I have to straighten the pile of trays that others have left behind so that when mine is on top it is on top of a nice neat pile. Pretty weird eh?

I don't know if it stems from my days of working in a fast food restaurant or what but I just can't walk away with out fixing it. DH shakes his head every time he thinks I am a little kooky and he's probably right!

Today we extended our Black Friday Shopping Extravaganza!! When we were there last week, Mom and I both spent enough money at Ko.hl's to get $10 Ko.hl's cash. It said that it could be used in their online store but guess what? They don't ship to the Great White North! :( Well who can let $10 go to waste?? So we dropped the boy off at school at 9:10, hit the road and crossed the border at 11:20, shopped until 12:30, grabbed a bite to eat (fed baby boo) and hit the road crossing back into Canada for 1:30 to make it back for school pick up at 3:30!! What fun!! I got a great outfit for Christmas gatherings and interviewing and another pair of pants.

I've been desperate for new clothes for the new body!! I've gone from a size 20 to a size 14 over the last 4 yrs. Fantastic for a PCOS girl...I'm so proud and pleased, I'm hoping for another 20 - 30 lbs but honestly I'm really happy where I am, it's a great achievement.

Well that's it for tonight, thanks for hanging out with me!

Day 11 - A Photo of Me Recently

Really tired tonight...Baby boo is cutting more teeth and had me up a lot last night and well, this whole week generally and I haven't had a chance to re-energize.

One of the advantages of infertility is you spend a long time on the baby boards getting to know others that are also trying to conceive. During the time I was trying for baby boo, I met a special group of ladies on ba.by cen.ter Canada who split off and formed our own forum. For three years we created a very close knit group of women supporting one another during the ups and downs of infertility and life in general. I don't know how I would have gotten through the months of my dad's illness and subsequent death let along the bfn's that were plaguing us. All in all, these are very special women.

When one of them decided to make a life change and start a photography business I was there to support her. They were looking for volunteers to help them fill their portfolio so we happily agreed. Of course with the addition of baby boo to the family it was the appropriate time to get some new family photos. :) So here we are, the happy, if not a little crazy, cat loving family!

Day 10 - A Photo of Me, Taken Over 10 Years Ago

I could post a Wedding photo, DH and I have been happily married 14 yrs (well most of them happily!) I can see that the Wedding post is coming up soon enough so I will save it for that. I thought of posting some from our trip to Costa Rica, that was our honeymoon, but it is only 9 yrs ago. There are childhood photos, some that I love dearly but I'm not feeling that side out tonight, perhaps I'll share them in another blog. The photo that came to mind immediately is one of DH and I on his graduation from College...I think it is because in 8 months from now he will be again graduating from College. Funny how life can go full circle sometimes.


Man we were young and skinny! We were engaged at this point, and filled with bright hopes and dreams of the future. Life has taken us on a different path than the one we saw being fulfilled on this day but we are happy where we are now and that is what counts.

I look forward to standing next to him in 8 months, and am sure the same pride and happiness will be on my face. With any luck I'll be nearly that thin again! But this time, I hope the picture has our two boys by our side so that they can forever see the success their father has reached.