Hey Mayouree...

loved seeing your comment but I can't publish it because the blog is a last name free zone (and a city province free zone as well).  Only shortened versions of our first names.  Comment again without the Hey Ms. *&%$#.  I love comments.

popping up for air

February is hard.  
Too many indoor lunch and recess breaks due to cold.
Too many cranky high-rise kids who never get out to just play or shovel or sled.
Too much dark in the morning dark at night.


But the sun is rising earlier and earlier
and setting later and later
and Ben and I are getting out.
Commute home,
get out of the car,
bundle up in the garage,
leash up the dog
and go go go...

Dude loves "my ome boomer ome mama ome" so much
that we can not enter the favourite place.
We must leave right out of the car for the walk or it will not happen.  
happily.
and if it ain't happening happily then what is the point?


Yesterday was bright and sunny.  And I was camera-less.


Today was lovely in it's own way.


Long walk.

Colourful dinner.

Long bath.

He said,

"I gibing mama a ride on my shoulder!"

How cute is that?

And some monkeying around...

And spring is just around the corner!

A gift...

Samantha and Woody of the Dragonflies blog have a friend.
Shana.  Of Starseedz.
She pops in for like an hour, during what should be naptime.
Eats some vietnamese.
Has some vietnamese dumped into her lap by a toddler
(or maybe a dog???).
Snaps some shots with her camera...
and comes up with these.

Love.  Them.  All.
And there are more but these I love the most.

The little manh is noticing that mama isn't in a lot of our shots...
Makes me sad.
He noticed right away that mama was in these.
And also he noticed right away that in two of them we were reading our favourite book.

I just asked him to sit down in the tub.


He growled at me.


Probably a bad bedtime omen...

February Joy- A picture post

My Sweet Valentine

I told him it was a mama ben night
and I asked him what he wanted to do.

"Eat dirst mama, eggs, boc-li and srawberries.
Next blanket cuddles, 'cloud gazing' books, sloppy kisses and tickles."

So that's what we did.

Here we are reading "It looked like spilt milk, cloud gazing book number 1.

Number 2 is Little Cloud by Eric Carle.

He actually told me one day he liked cloud gazing, 

I mentioned it to my friend Cathy 

and a new book obsession was born.

He's feeling better tonight so we added in
oranges and yogurt and chocolate and cheerios and a half dozen other snacks...
a visit with Tristan our neighbour...
a slip and slide about the driveway in the wind...
and a long, long snuggle and back rub in bed.

A great day!

oops! Where did the time go?

A bit of a recap of the past couple of weeks.


Ben was sick.


Ben was well.


I was sick.


I was well.


Ben was a bit off.


Then he wasn't off anymore.


I was sick again.


Got over it.


In there was a day of fabulous sledding.
A big Vietnamese festival in the city.
Fun times with friends at playdates.
A reportcard writing weekend with Auntie Kristen.
First crafts at preschool.
A new friend at daycare.
Another awesome day with the Auntie K on Friday
when Mama went to work and the Benster got to stay home. 
A really wonderful time yesterday
with Friends celebrating the new year
dragons, and red envelopes, and feasts, and so much never ending fun.
And then today another party for Auntie Rehanna and her soon to be wee baby girl 
(without dragons, trust me he asked before we headed out).


He was a little red cheeked at the shower.
A little snotty as the day went forward.
Snotty and cranky at Auntie Carol's.


And now, 
Ben is is bed gasping for air 
through his congestion 
with a 101.9 fever.


Again.


I am so done with the January February blahs.


And I can't find the camera cord.
And I'm simply not in the mood to look for it.
Use your imagination...

A celebration

We celebrated the eve of the Vietnamese New Year in style today
with a snow day
a together day
a pyjama day
all day.

We were also home Monday but it looked like this...

Today?
It was lovely.

It started at 5:30 am as I looked out the window dreading the drive.
I'm simply not a fan of driving a toddler around when I can't see a thing.

First I heard from auntie Carol who couldn't get out of her driveway.
Then I watched people who left at 5:40 come back at 6.
Then I called the Vice Principal to say I wouldn't be in.
Wrote my plans out.

And then?  For only the 3rd time in 20 years my board called a snow day.

So at the break of day we dressed in our winter layers
(over pj's of course)
Shovelled some snow in the early dawn light.
Trekked to visit Mr. Horton...
Shovelled more snow.
Rode around on a sled.
Climbed mountains.
Shovelled some snow.

See a pattern?

Break the pattern for the 3 hour nap.
Now repeat.

Wrapped it all up with yummy spring-rolls, noodles and teeny tiny oranges (Ben ate 7)
a frolic in the snow
(he is in fact standing up here
in snow as deep as his legs are long
trying to walk)

an evening trip to try out the new skates
(at a rink that didn't open for god knows why)
a delicious Tet gingerbread man

some late night shovelling
about 15 books
and bed.

Lovely.
And now there is only two days until we can do it all over again...
I think I may love snow days (and Tet of course).