I think you should know...

...that I'm not 100% comfortable with wearing a two piece bathing suit given a few key changes that have happened to my body in the last few months (thank you pregnancy for giving me more than just a bump!).  I'm also not 100% happy about spending my Thursday afternoon - the start of the weekend! - in a "cold" pool.  Alas, Nory's a fish and when Phil went to workout after school, I was IT.  THE SUBSTITUTE SWIMMING BUDDY. And at this point in parenthood, I know better than to mess with routine too drastically.  If the girl swims everyday after school.....well....the girl swims everyday after school.  Capiche!

So...we put on our suits and headed to the pool! Gasp!!! To get my point VERY MUCH ACROSS HERE, the other families in the pool (the "regulars" I suppose) immediately inquired about Phil's whereabouts upon our arrival.  Yep, they were as floored as I was to see me bringing Nory downstairs for a swim!  Anyways, we got into the pool quickly (because Nory isn't exactly patient in this situation) and played a whole 15 minutes before she decided that what she REALLY wanted to do was walk a massive blown up shark around the pool.  JUST MY LUCK.  So there I was, walking SUPER UNCOMFORTABLY alongside with her....doing the exact thing I didn't want to do in my two piece bathing suit!!! AHHHHH!  Part of me could only laugh. 

The good news is, like all embarrassing tales of motherhood, I survived.  We are back in the flat now. Running around, of course, because there's no rest for this embarrassed Mama!!!  Or for Kumari - who said to me when we got home from school today, "Not too much stay, Madam.  Always going!!!"  Turns out we've all reached a common understanding about "The NORNADO"!!!!!!!

HOORAY FOR THE WEEKEND!!!!!!

IF YOU WERE HERE FOR (DECAF) TEA.

*  Summer is officially OVER (sigh).  We had our first day of work today (which we were looking forward to!), but saying goodbye to Nory this morning was just heartbreaking.  We've spend the last two months with her EVERY SINGLE DAY, so being away from her all day was tough.  We'll get used to it, I know.  And we will easily get used to the warm welcome home she gave us at 3 p.m.!!!  IT WAS THE BEST. 

*  Nory slept through the night for the first time since being back in Kuwait LAST NIGHT!  YAY!!!!!!  Now we just need to adjust her bedtime back a little earlier and we should (inshallah!) be good to go :) 

*  I've gone swimming twice now.  TWICE!  Do they give badges for these sorts of achievements?  If so, sign me up!

*  Tomorrow I am 19 weeks pregnant and in the last few days the baby has REALLY started to move.  I have felt little flutters for a couple of weeks now, but she's getting stronger every day and I believe Phil will be able to feel her jabs any day now :)  Also....did I tell you how much I am excited about this baby?!  Because.....it's unreal, people.  I AM SO FREAKING EXCITED!

*  Phil worked hard to put up pictures in the apartment over the last two days.  They really make a difference!  Something about pictures on the walls makes a place much more homey.  Thank you PHIL! xo

*  Nory's new favourite word is "NOISE".  Seeing as construction is happening outside of our flat, you can imagine how much we hear it.  And it's not just the odd "noise", "noise".  It's "NOISE! NOISE! NOISE! NOISE! NOISE! NOISE!!!"  She obsesses and won't let it go until the term has been passionately voiced by her at least 20 times.

*  Phil met new friends that like Survivor.  They might be friends for life.  That's HOW MUCH the show means to him.

*  I met friends that like reality television AND elephants.  We also might be friends for life.  

*  Our visit with Cathy and Shahid was wonderful.  They brought Nory some elephant puzzles from Sri Lanka and showed us pictures of Shani's family who they worked long and hard to find while they were there.  Shani's family gave Cathy the keys from Shani's purse, which held all of our apartment keys.  It felt like such an honour to hold them....like they were some sort of treasure.  Oh, I miss Shani so much.

*  Emily leaves Canada tomorrow and I SO KNOW the emotions she is going through right now.  Those sad, heartbreaking, upset-stomach-inducing goodbyes that make the airport a really un-fun place to be.  The good news is that after she survives all of that (AND SHE WILL!), she will be back in Kuwait with us!  SATURDAY NIGHT!  I can't wait to see her!!!!

*  Although we started work today, the weekend is HERE and we have two days off!  I believe the Avenues is on the agenda (obviously), as well as some more swimming and getting to know our new colleagues!  

Exciting Information (for us, maybe you too)!

1)  Nory has FINALLY started to call Phil "dada"!!!!!!!!  The confusion is officially gone!

2)  I do NOT have gestational diabetes according to this morning's call from the doctor's office!  YIPPEE!!!!!

3)  We all went swimming before dinner tonight.  ALL OF US.  ME, included!  I would provide photo evidence, however I'm the only person in the family who takes pictures and being in the pool - rather than beside it - was a serious barrier to that.

4)  We met Dana at the mall yesterday and she came back to our place for dinner.  Nory's long, spontaneous hugs reminded us all of just how AWESOME it is for her to be in Kuwait with us.  

5)  I'm 28 and 2/3's today!!!  (Although Phil says I'm not allowed to celebrate.  Apparently half birthdays are enough.)

6)  Taylor Swift released a new single and it is fabulous :)

7)  Tomorrow we meet all of the new staff at a welcome breakfast!   

8)  Cathy and Shahid are coming over for lunch tomorrow!  Eeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

An Evening Swim!

Last night Phil and Nory went swimming in the pool at our new building for the first time.  Maintenance had just emptied and refilled the thing and the rumour about how warm the water was went around quickly!  We got the text, threw on her suit, and off we went to enjoy a swim! 

Here she is right after saying "HIIIII!!!!!!" to the maintenance worker that walked by the pool.  Excellent - she was sort of not moving for one second!  SNAP!

Nory had a great time, minus a few key complaints:

1)  Where were Nana and Coco? (This complaint was initiated immediately after asking her, "do you want to go for a swim, Nory?")

2)  Where are all the rocks and hop-hops?  (Hop-hops are frogs, by the way.)

3)  How come she can't walk on the floor of the pool?  (Walking around in the lake was a big part of "swimming" this summer.)

These issues came up a few times during the outing (heartbreakingly so), but Phil managed to get her giggling by throwing her up and down and splashing around.  Saying hello to everyone who walked by was also a key smile-inducer!  We hope that after a little getting used to, the pool will be a happy place to visit this year :)

It's....................a............................

On Saturday we went to the doctor and found out the gender for Baby #2.  Alas, without my right-hand camera gal here yet (GEMILY!), I worked for TWO DAYS to capture the gender-reveal images I wanted and you know what?  I DID NOT GET THEM!  Phil isn't particularly gung-ho about taking pictures to begin with and Nory's so active that it's difficult to get a shot of her that's not blurry.  And so, at around 5:30 last night, I GAVE UP!  I scrolled through my camera roll, found a picture of a different sort and generated a caption that could go with it because I simply COULD NOT WAIT ANY LONGER to tell everyone what was in store for our little family...

It's Facebook official (will the kids even know what that means in 10 years?), but it is now time to make it blog official (let's hope they know what this means in 10 years!):

"One day this will all be HERS, my little sister's!!!" 

Yep!  It's a(nother!) GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Turns out me and many, many others were WRONG.  Very few people looked at my already-massive-for-4-months baby bump and said "GIRL".  But Phil did all along!  He said he was destined for girls and this time around (knowing full-well how much love a daddy gets from a daughter!), he genuinely hoped for a second one :)  Well My Darling, you got your wish!  And I got mine!  ARTS & CRAFTS SUNDAYS IT IS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our Flight.

Every time we go to fly somewhere with Nory, I hold my breath and PRAY that she continues her streak as a great little flyer.  Well, I'm happy to report that she made out like an all-star once again!  And this time it involved 37 hours of transit.  So, Nory, just in case I don't say it to you enough, YOU GO GIRL!  You may not do cars all that well, but you sure as heck do planes (which is what matters especially much in our current living situation!). 

Our journey was extra long this time due to a 15 hour layover in London.  Thankfully, we somehow came across the idea of getting a day room at a hotel and we spent our time at the Sofitel in our terminal - sleeping, playing, having a bath, and picnicking on the hotel room floor :)  It was just what we needed to refresh for flight number two.

Enjoying some Doc McStuffins (courtesy of YouTube) in the hotel room :)

The flight from London to Kuwait had a record number of 14 toddlers all around Nory's age.  The flight attendants were in disbelief!  FOURTEEN TODDLERS!  I think all passengers were freaking out at the gate, wondering just how much sleep they could possibly get with that many little ones on board.  And with the start of the flight being dominated by mothers fighting for the limited number of bassinets available, that fear of "WORST FLIGHT OF ALL" became a serious reality.  Thankfully, 13 of those babies remained shyly with their moms and fell asleep quickly after take-off.  Baby #14 was our baby. 

The Fisher Price iPad case worked out perfectly when containing these cute little figures she got for her half birthday.  P.S.  This half birthday idea is really starting to take off!!! ;)

Our baby - baby #14 - didn't play shy.  Or sleep immediately.  Or act like being on a red eye to Kuwait was an annoyance, as everyone else saw it.  I wondered how those nearby would respond to her constant hellos (and "woof woofs!!!"), but her charm won everyone over.  Before we knew it, we had Starburst candies, a Minnie Mouse pez dispenser, citrus flavoured Tic Tacs, play dates in Kuwait and more!  She made friends with an Indian family (because she loved the father's "hat") and won over the business card of a man who worked for the United Nations in Nairobi.  Need a place to stay in Kenya?  NO PROBLEM!  We're welcome to stay with the man and his family anytime.  Haha.  Our daughter.  Gotta love her. 

At this point in time I would also like to thank the stewardist who so kindly made me a cup of decaf tea just before landing in Kuwait.  Although Nory had a great time aboard the aircraft, the flight was long and uncomfortable in my opinion and that cup of tea was EXACTLY what I needed to turn the entire experience around.  Thank you, British Airways Man!  You're the greatest!

I should also give a shout-out to Terminal 5 at Heathrow for having a FREE children's play area near the first few A gates.  I'm sure that structure is a relief to so many parents!  And the staff are so kind and enthusiastic, when most parents at the airport have run out of both of those things!

You get a sticker when you're done playing!  It says "jet set ready to fly!!!" 

With all this being said, we can wait at least another month or so before hopping on another plane ;)

Good news on the jet lag front!

I THINK I was able to get to sleep by about midnight last night and I woke up to construction at 5:30 this morning (and got out of bed to ensure more progress tonight)!  Bad news on the stomach front - I caved and had a snack at 11:30 p.m., which means my glucose fasting test scheduled for today will have to be delayed until at least 8:30 a.m.  WHOOPS!!!!!!  I suppose I'll be drinking water - LOTS OF IT! - in response to my baby belly that is already growling.  You see, I'm a breakfast girl.  A breakfast - pregnant or not - girl.  A breakfast ASAP after waking up girl.  So, wish me luck as I do the thing I hate the most for the next few hours:  FAST!  If I cave again, I suppose the bloodwork will be delayed until....tomorrow?

As for Nory's jet lag, night one was a little rough (she crashed by 8:30 and then was wide awake from 1 to 4:30).  But, as I mentioned in yesterday's quick blurb, it would have been much more rough without a nanny living down the hall.  Kumari Poppins got up to play with her in the wee hours of the night and they had a blast until Nory's energy ran out and she was finally able to fall asleep.  Then she slept until 10:30!!!  Which is when ALL OF US WOKE UP IN SHOCK!  Ah!!!!  Get up!  And get that baby up too!!!  Last night, she didn't sleep until 10:30, but despite a few wake-up's, she's made it until 6:30 so far.  WOO HOO!  Fingers crossed the pattern continues towards a nicer bedtime schedule :) 

I can't leave out Phil!  Phil is one of those people that ROCKS jet lag.  Meaning, it doesn't so much happen to him and it isn't so much anything he ever talks about (unless he's talking about his wife who is the WORST AT DEALING WITH JET LAG, EVER).  Seems he moves country to country as if EST is a universal time zone and I simply cannot get it.  Dana is like that too.  I hope they realize just how lucky they are!!!  

On today's agenda (after I survive fasting, three sets of bloodwork, and celebrate with a massive breakfast buffet):  continue to rearrange/organize the flat (they painted over the summer and everything was moved), pick up some more groceries (ones that Kumari WILL EAT AND ENJOY!), and visit with a friend who has also decided to switch to our new school.  Not napping will continue to be on the agenda until jet lag is OLD NEWS :) 

Wishing you a great day wherever you might be!  If you're awake and reading this in the next few hours, please have a delicious snack in my honour.  But don't tell me about it until this afternoon.

XOXO

We are back in Kuwait and.....

.....it's really hard to get used to being called "Madam" again.

.....it's not so hard to get used to NOT doing the dishes.

.......it's HOT.  Like sweat after 30 seconds outside HOT.  And I love it.

......jet lag mixed with pregnancy insomnia is TOUGH BUSINESS, people!

.....Nory is thrilled to return to all of her Kuwait toys!  Remember that independent play I was telling you about?  Well it happened A LOT yesterday.  Which was a good thing.  Because Phil, Kumari and I were busy unpacking, rearranging furniture, and cleaning up DUST! 

Yesterday's Hello Kitty tea party - organized 100% by NORY!

.....I love having a live-in Nanny who graciously answers knocks on her door at 1:30 in the morning to take a turn playing with Nory (who is also jet-lagged). 

....we went to the Avenues today.  Ha!

.....our new internet company is the BEES KNEES!!!!  Super fast.  SUPER, SUPER, SUPER FAST!  Hallelujah!!!  Who's up for a FaceTime date?! 

....the first thing I got out of my suitcase was the jar of Kraft Peanut Butter.  Then I went to the kitchen to get a spoon.

.....can someone please express post a big cold glass of 2% milk to me?!  PLEASE!  

....it's 100% CLEAR that my favourite colour is still green.  Brown is just not as aesthetically pleasing.

....Phil's mind is already on the basketball season (I lie, it never left!).  The season starts in January by the way.  But it will likely start in a couple of weeks for Phil's new team....(Do they have what it takes?!!!)

......we miss our family and friends already.  If you heard Nory say "Papa" (repeatedly for the first time ever - starting in London!), your heart just might break too.  Your heart would then continue to break as she continued with "Nana", "Coco", "GG", etc.

....we can't wait to see our Kuwait family and friends.  Inshallah that is SOON! xo

Eleanor Douglas - ONE and A HALF YEARS OLD!!!!!!!!!

Say "CHEESE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Another half birthday is here, My Girl!  The last time I did a big blog post about you (and STRICTLY YOU!) was at the end of April, so I figure we're due for another one!  Here it is:  Nory at age 18 MONTHS!!!!   

What is she like?

*  FRIENDLY.  She says hello to everyone we pass while we're out and about!  She is quite well known around the small town of Lakefield - making even the grumpiest of people smile with her sweet and innocent "HI!!!!!!!!"  She also has this ability to make everyone around her feel loved - even those she doesn't see too often :)  I'm thankful that she warms up quickly to others! 

Visiting with Great Grandma, who came all the way from Thunder Bay to visit us!!!

 *  BUSY.  It's not too often we get to sit and relax, although she has reached a point (PRAISE THE LORD!) where she's able to entertain herself with her toys for a few moments which gives us time to have a hot drink.
*  TOUGH.  She must have got this trait from Phil.  I've seen her fall many times by now and she is very good at getting right back up and continuing to play.  
*  AWARE.  She knows where we go to visit "cats" at the pet store and where the watering can is at the movie store so she can "water" all of the movies.  She knows when we pull up to our house or if we drive into Nana and Grandpa's.
*  A PEOPLE PERSON.  Nory is beginning to entertain herself here and there, but she will only do so if she knows you're in the room with her.  If you leave her alone in ANY room by herself, she usually stops what she's doing to find out what you're up to.  She was like this from day one - getting upset if we so much as walked a few steps to the kitchen when she was in the exersaucer or swing!  The girl likes her people NEARBY!  (And so does her Mommy).

Words she says: 

*  It seems her vocabulary has just exploded out of nowhere!  First it was a couple words here and there, but now it seems like there are new words coming every single day.  It's so exciting!  Her current vocabulary includes:  ball, bike, rock, toes, shoes, hot, cold, cat, woof, hop, go, Nana, babies, bubbles, clothes, juice, milk, night-night, hi, bye, Coco, turtle, come, car, home, no, yes, bite, bug, bag, hat, cake, block, uh oh....(I am probably forgetting some!)
*  She also says "wawa" for water, "toto" for toad, "guys" for sky, "book-a-boo" for peekaboo and "bope" for boat.
*  This just in:  PLEASE!  She says PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!
  
Some of her favourite things:  

*  Bubbles - I just posted about how BUBBLES OBSESSED she is!

Bubbles in the rain.....

*  Dogs (or "woof-woof's" as she prefers to call them!) - We are lucky to live in a town with so many dogs and even luckier to meet dog owners who let us pet their dog and even hold the leash!
*  Babies  - she LOVES kids.  I blogged about how she calls all kids "babies" and it doesn't really seem to matter how big they are.  She finds joy with just about any age of "baby"!
*  Rearranging/organizing/hiding things under other things - something her Dad is thrilled about!
 *  Dancing - if the girl hears music, the girl starts dancing!  She has a few key moves including a bounce, hip shake (or "attitude" in her hips as we call it!), spinning in circles, and most recently, BREAK-DANCING!
*  Her favourite song right now is probably "Best Day Of My Life".  She likes to sing along with it and has been known to stop in public to dance and sing if she hears it (e.g. inside Old Navy at the mall!).
*  Swimming or anything else to do with "wawa".
*  Being outside and exploring the garden - picking up leaves, rocks, sticks and petals, smelling flowers, looking for toads....
*  COCO (Nana and Grandpa's dog).  This is often the first word she says when she wakes up in the morning!  It's also the person she blames when she does something she shouldn't!

Nory and Coco - BEST BUDDIES!!!!!!

Things she is NOT so fond of:  

*  Getting her nose wiped (but who is?!)
*  Putting on sunscreen (although she's getting better!)
*  Car rides (will this ever change?)
*  Dirt in her fingernails (we just recently bought her a nail brush for the tub!)

"Mom, can we just get back to the fun stuff PLEASE?!!!!!"

  
What Else? 

*  She's gotten much better when dealing with messy hands.  Nana and Grandpa taught her to "wipe it off" and she does this after falling.
*  She can point out all different body parts either on herself, someone else, on a toy or in a book:  eyes, nose, toes, tummy, belly button, ears, tail, mouth and hands. 
*  She can tell us which things are hot (the oven, mugs, candles, the steamer, the BBQ).
*  She's started to say YES more often than before.  (YESSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!)
*  For some reason, she's started to call both her Daddy and I "Mom".  Whatever! 
*  My ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE THING she does is when she grabs our hand and says "come".  She won't be doing this forever so I feel it's smart to enjoy it now :)
*  She has 12 teeth and her eye tooth and molar on the top right side are just about to come through too!
*  Speaking of teeth, it seems she hasn't really got the hang of using them quite yet.  She still prefers to mush up her food using her gums and is quite known for being a "chipmunk" (storing her mushy food in her cheeks)!  She's also like me in the sense that she is more of a grazer - nibbling here and there, never really having any sort of large meal.  

I can't believe she was ever this tiny.  Here she is 1.5 years ago today!!!!  Our little blessing. XOXO

I think that is just about everything I can think of at the moment!  Nory is growing and changing so much every day and I'm happy to have this space to keep a running record of it all.  Our plan is to enjoy every last moment of her days as "the only child", but we are looking forward to watching her become a big sister in January!

We love you, Eleanor!  You are the brightest part of our life together.  XOXO

PARKINSON OBSESSIONS.

Nory - BUBBLES.  OH MY GOODNESS.  We blow bubbles like it's going out of style.  She knows exactly where I keep them in the back hall closet and goes to the door regularly throughout the day to retrieve them.  It doesn't matter if it's cold outside.  Dark outside.  Raining outside.  The girl wants her BUBBLES!!!!  (Although sometimes the fascination is playing with the wand rather than blowing the bubbles themselves).

Phil -  Things that shouldn't exist.  Like Sharknado.  Like "Free Topping Pizza" that offers every kind of meat you can think of.  Like skeleton wars with the neighbours......

Two can play that game, NEIGHBOURS!!!!!!

Lindsay - My fitbit.  Have you heard of this little device?  Emily introduced it to me when she came to our place and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!  It's like a bracelet you wear that tracks your daily steps, mileage, sleep, calories burned, etc. (I only care about the steps!) and it connects to my iPhone so I can see how far I am to reaching my goal each day (10,000 steps).  Turns out it is pretty easy to reach this number of steps when you have a busy toddler and when you don't have a car.  Some days, I've seen 15,000+!  The real challenge will be in our return Kuwait when apartment living resumes :$

CAMP BUBBYLAND: PIRATES & PINEAPPLES!!!!!!

Last week we hosted "Camp Bubbyland" at our house in Lakefield.  It was an event planned by my Mom and Nan (GREAT JOB, LADIES!!!) that entailed crafts, dress-up, fun snacks, and plenty of quality cousin time in the backyard (or at the park!).  I took a bazillion photos (sound like me?!), but here are some of my favourites:

All the men (and the strongest WOMAN!) with the little ladies :)

It didn't even matter that she was always the farthest behind....Nory didn't stop chasing that ball A SINGLE TIME!

These girls take dress-up SERIOUSLY :)

Shenanigans in the tent!

Somebody small really looks up to somebody bigger.....

Ring around the rosy!!!!!

The best 5 year olds a 1 year old could ask for :)

Celebrating Nory's birthday (because they never get the chance to sing to her)!

Celebrating Nanny's birthday - her 79th!!!  WOO HOOO!!!!!!!

We were all left feeling a little blue when the families departed on the final day of Camp Bubbyland.  You can really only listen to Nory say "babies????" a few times before experiencing heartbreak with every single repeat of the word.  I think the move to the new school will be good for her.  There will be lots of "babies" to play with in the new housing arrangement.  Oh, and for the record, "babies" is defined by Nory as any person aged 0 months to..........18???  We're going with it because that JUST MIGHT make me a "teenager" still ;)

Thank you Mom and Nan for planning such a wonderful two days!  The cousins made some very special memories together :)  XOXO

NARRATING THE CAMERA ROLL.

I told you I transferred about 4000 photos from my iPhone to the computer the other day.  Well, I suppose it's time to put those photos to good use!!!  Here it goes!

A new addition in the front hallway!

This garage used to be a MESS.  Phil did a great job cleaning it up!  Thank you HUN! xo

A boating trip to Juniper Island with Nana and Grandpa.  Nory LOVED climbing all the rocks!!!

Sibling reunion at the lake.  Can you believe it had been about a decade since we were all together?!

Watering flowers for the neighbours!  Nory has her own little watering can now thanks to Nanny!!!

Sporting some Scandinavian-inspired clothing from Auntie Gem!  This colour looks great on her.  Thank you GEM!! xo

Kisses for me.  Kisses for the rocks.  Kisses for the grass.  Kisses for the table.....

We've done A LOT of walking around town.  It's a beautiful stroll each and every time :)

Blowing bubbles is a daily occurrence.  Even if it's raining...

Our front porch!  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the bursts of colour!!!!

Nory has been fighting a cold this week.  Here she is on one of the worst days - passed out in her bean bag chair, hands loaded with Kleenex, staring at the ceiling fan.

I am really happy to report that if you get out random odds and sods from the kitchen, an entire HOT TEA can be consumed in the morning!

Doing crafts in the backyard.  Here we are making coffee filter flowers for a special anniversary!

CONFESSIONS.

1)  I have a floater in my eye (ah-hem, a black string-like thing that appears to move around) and today it is extra........."floaty".  I wonder if that happens when you're tired. 

2)  Right now I am reading books of two VERY different varieties (it's my summer and I'll read what I want to!): 

Really interesting - learning lots!

Really interesting - not learning a single thing (and I'm okay with it!).

3)  The lady that cut my hair yesterday had purple hair.  And lots of piercings in places that I didn't even know could have piercings.  And visible tattoos.  Mostly because lots of skin was visible.  I was nervous at first (especially being in the "dirty Schwa"), but she was the sweetest, most wonderful little thing!  Turns out stereotypes are EXACTLY that.  Don't fall for them! 

4)  When Nory needs Tylenol, she gets it on a spoon with ice cream.  And when she was sick this week....the ice cream was one of the only things she ate the whole day.  But guess what?!  SHE IS ALIVE!  And happy :)

5)  I have to cut Nory's nails.  A WEEK AGO.  I can't wait until we're back in Kuwait where Kumari Poppins can do it in two magical, how-is-she-doing-it-while-Nory-is-wide-awake-and-moving moments.  Maybe I should film that.  Yep, maybe I should.     

The bright side of the dark?

I know I had insomnia with the first pregnancy but I really don't remember it being THIS BAD.  I remember getting up to pee a lot, rolling around due to discomfort, and rolling around due to excitement/worry/nerves.  But I never remember lying eyes wide open, bladder empty, brain blank, exhausted as ever, yet unable to sleep a wink.  I keep telling the baby that I have already gone through intense lack-of-sleep training in the past and that I will pull that out of my mama toolbox come January.  Even December if the baby wants.  But there really is no need to go through this excessively long "re-certification course" that the wee thing seems to have planned.  And by 16 weeks (I'm almost 17!), the baby is supposed to have everything needed to actually HEAR THIS DAILY EXCHANGE OF WORDS.  I wonder if he or she is still getting used to the sound of my voice.  I wonder if..........YES!  I'm going to be an optimist and say that within days, it will click in that "mama is talking" and baby and I will be getting more Zzzzzz's in no time at all :)

To continue down the road of optimism (that really is the ONLY road, isn't it?!), this here makes me so very happy.  THIS and the perfectly-steeped decaf tea that I'm drinking:

Haha.  Ohhhhh I love Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Perhaps I should use these extra nighttime hours to work on this year's family advent calendar.....

Yesterday we went on a date.

And an ALL-DAY one at that!  Nana and Grandpa were kind enough to look after Nory for us AND let us borrow their car (THANK YOU!!!!) so that we could drive to Oshawa for MATERNITY CLOTHES!  Fun date, huh?  But really (sarcasm aside), IT WAS!

There's something to doing normal things together and it feeling like an absolute delight.  I know we do normal things as a family all the time (and we really enjoy doing these normal things too!), but every time Phil and I do something normal as a COUPLE, there is just a certain luster that goes along with it.  It doesn't matter what normal thing it is.  Going for a walk.  Getting a Timmy's.  Picking up some groceries.  Dropping off dry-cleaning.  Going to the bank (this only applies for Canadian banks, by the way).  Whatever it might be, it has this little extra sparkle to it that I obviously didn't appreciate or recognize pre-parenthood.  Perhaps it doesn't exist pre-parenthood?  I don't know.  But I'm telling you - all you people without children - it is an honest-to-goodness BLESSING to find such JOY in "dates" like these ones if you ever do have babies.  When you find romance in a trip to the dry-cleaners, well, THAT IS LOVE (and your guy has it MADE)! 

Anyways, back to our date.  Good music.  Tim Hortons.  No fussy baby in the car seat / me sitting in the front seat relaxing (these things are related).  Conversation about the previous evening's viewing of a really horrible film that I am almost too embarrassed to type but I will because I love all of you:  Sharknado.  One and a half hours in the maternity store - me working up a sweat in the changing room / Phil reading sports magazines as happy as can be.  A spontaneous trip to the mall for some lunch (Thyme Maternity and Thai food seem to be a "thing", happening both times I ever shopped for such clothing).  I got a haircut / Phil went to Casey's for chicken strips and drinks (again, as happy as can be).  A luxurious shop through Chapters (where Phil surprised me with two gifts)!  Finding another Tim Hortons for the drive home (somehow we missed three different locations but caught the 4th one).  Continue good music.  Continue fuss-free driving.  Continue conversations about the really horrible film that I am super embarrassed I actually typed about earlier in this post.

Romantic, RIGHT?!  Well it was!  And the best part about having a day-long "romantic" date with your husband is picking up your daughter and in an intense state of MISSING HER DEEPLY, professing our eternal love for her (rather than each other) all evening long.  All the while, of course, doing the normal things we do altogether.  Bath time.  Story time.  An evening walk.  Hmmm.....perhaps there's a certain luster that goes along with doing normal things as a family too.  Yesterday we had the BEST OF BOTH WORLDS :)

Thank you for having a fun day with Nory, Nana and Grandpa!!!  (Rumour is Grandpa even went swimming in the lake!  That's code for:  NORY IS SPOILED.)  XOXO

P.S.  Obviously I didn't take a single picture the entire time we were on our "date".  It seems to me that Nory is my muse.....

Welcome AUGUST :)

Wowee!  We're one month closer to Christmas and those with a YEAR-ROUND holiday spirit (like me!) are probably bouncing off the walls and ignoring all eye rolls that come their way......

Throwing rocks into the water at the park.  For Nory, this activity IS like bouncing off the walls!

Here's what I'm looking forward to this month:

*  Another visit with the Parkinson family!  This time, Grandma is coming all the way from Thunder Bay and Stephen and Nicole will be here too!  We can't wait to see them!

*  Nory's half birthday!  (You might recall that we have chosen to celebrate these things!  A half cake will make an appearance twelve days from now!)

*  Seeing all of our Kuwait family and sharing stories of "home" as we return to "home".  (Weird, I know).  Also - I can't wait for everyone to see how much Nory has changed since June!  It's only been 7 weeks but MAN OH MAN, she's changed so much!  Showing off my baby bump will be exciting too :)

*  Watching the Nory/Kumari reunion.  Let's hope it entails happy tears rather than the sad ones we witnessed when we left.

*  Orientation with the new school.  We have a Hilton Beach Day, a pool party, dinner outings and more planned for the first few days!  Then it's back into the classroom where I am eager to embrace a new challenge with new curriculum, new colleagues, and new kids! 

*  Allow me to sound like a princess here:  I can't wait for the serious housework help we've become accustomed to (spoiled, I know).  But it's just SO, SO wonderful to come home to a clean house after work.  With zero laundry.  With zero dishes.  With nothing to do but play with Nory and enjoy the evening as a family.  (Maybe do a little schoolwork in there too......)  THANK YOU KUMARI!  WE LOVE YOU!

*  Allow me to continue to sound like a princess here:  I can't wait for wifi at home - with unlimited downloads, as well as satellite television.  We've got by this summer but I definitely couldn't make it year-round under these circumstances.  Sometimes, it's nice to just make a tea, watch Good Morning America (or anything on TLC), and browse the interweb until your little heart is content.  

*  Allow me to continue, ONCE AGAIN, to sound like a princess here:  I miss the Avenues.  Kuwait knows how to do malls.  Other places, questionable. 

*  Of course, welcoming Dana to Kuwait is also going to be a fun experience!  We'll complete the whole tour in about 30 minutes (or less?) and then.....go shopping?  Ha!!!!!      

AWESOME: Sisters that send you things like THIS....

Thanks for putting things in perspective, SISSY!  I love you!

XOXO