Ups and Downs....a normal week.

I’ve been meaning to post all week but it’s been so busy!  So I’m squeezing some time out right now to keep y’all informed.

I know you’re dying to know how Mother’s day went and I will not disappoint you – it was amazing.  Aven did not disappoint me at all – in fact it was the best Mother’s Day I’ve ever had.

It was a full Mother’s Day weekend really.  Friday night me and the girl packed up and headed out to the Mother/Daughter Spa Sleepover with her Brownies group where we made spa stuff and worked on badges together.  It was some good bonding time and the girls worked so hard to serve us breakfast and lunch on Saturday.  Very sweet.

And when we got home, I found Aven had fixed our bikes!  They had flat tires and needed some grease after a long winter in the garage. And I got a new iphone!  He said that wasn’t a Mother’s Day gift, it just happened to coincide with Mother’s Day but still, Awesome!  

I had actually weaseled it out of my little boy when I was tucking him in for nap…I said “you had fun with daddy today?”  and he said “We went to the mall!”  is his super cute little boy voice.  My ears perked up….”Oh?  Did you get something for Mommy at the mall?”  I asked.  I really am shameless.  “It’s a surprise” he answered.  “Surprise.”  He whispers this all secretly.  He loves having a secret.  Although I don’t have to wait long before he says “Surprise phone!”   Phone, eh?!  Sweet!

So I go downstairs and toy with Aven…letting him know I was on to his little secret.  That was the fun part!

Then on Sunday….the magic happened.  It all started with a sleep in.  Then after a long and relaxing shower, Aven made me a breakfast of eggs, a banana, and coffee and served it to me outside on the back patio because it was so lovely outside.   Then came the lovely card from him and homemade cards from both kids and the gift – a set of my favourite skin care line (Estee Lauder). 

I was on nursery duty at church, so off the kids and I went and then came home a lunch of bbq hotdogs and chips. 

After nap time we loaded up the bikes and headed off to Fort Langley where we biked along the Fort Trail by the river and ended up at the park where we played with the kids until dinner.  Then it was a picnic of KFC in our backyard.  Perfection.

And then it was back to work and reality on Monday.  Blech.

On Tuesday I was walking out the backdoor to go to our garage and saw something on our backyard that didn’t look familiar.  It was just starting to get light so I couldn’t see very well.  I leaned over this thing to get a closer look and then I saw what it was.

EwwwEwwwwEwwwww…..it was  a RAT with it’s lower half, ummm, open.   I could see everything, intestines, stomach…..YECH.  And the worst part was that Aven leaves through the front door so that meant I had to clean it up so the kids wouldn’t see it.  I grabbed a shovel and carefully shoveled the thing into a garbage bag.  Then I had to use the shovel to pick up the smaller chunks of rat that were strewn around the yard. 

The cats were all prancing around, so proud of themselves.  I know Lola is the hunter, but Georgie was probably in the vicinity so he was taking credit, too. 

I through the Rat corpse bag into the garbage, got in the car, and then dry heaved the whole way into work. 

That was a spectacular way to start the day.  I kept trying to console myself with the fact that the rat was at least dead and in the garbage and not running around inside my house.  But still…… EEEEEEWWWWWWWWW.

Wednesday passed slowly.  I was in a bad mood, tired of everything and everyone and snapped at the kids a lot.  Not a great day.  Luckily Aven shooed me up to the bathtub and I managed to get through the evening without injuring anyone.

Thursday Miss H had her dance class.  She’s tired of dance class.  I don’t understand why – she loves to dance, she loves the costumes, she loves performing.  She just doesn’t like going to classes.  But off we went and she had fun and then it was back into the Brownie outfit and off to the Bike Parade in Cloverdale.  Unfortunately it started early so we missed the parade but got there just in time for the prize draw.  And Miss H won a Horse Webkinz.  She promptly named him BullsEye but after 15 minutes changed it to Mr. Fluffyfeet.  Who knows what it is now. 

Today was Western Day in tribute to the Cloverdale Rodeo this weekend.  The girl wore a jean vest, a white shirt and jean shorts with her purple belt that has the horse belt buckle and cowboy hat.  The kids were encouraged to bring their hobby horses to ride in races at school and they were serving a pancake breakfast for lunch.  Super fun! 

So that was my week in a nutshell – fairly typical with its ups and downs.  I’m looking forward to the long weekend and am keeping my fingers crossed for lots of sun!     

Mother's Day Expectations

Yesterday, my dear dear Husband asked me what I would like to do for Mother’s Day.  I replied with the usual “Oh well, you know, just to spend time with my lovely family”. 

And you moms KNOW that’s code for “I shouldn’t have to spell it out for you, honey, but it better be frickin’ AMAZING!” 

And then I ran across this article at SavvyMom that actually really did describe the perfect Mother’s Day:

“9:00 am – Wake to the delicious smell of Kick Ass Kicking Horse coffee, fully rested after 11 straight hours of uninterrupted sleep.

9:10 am – Receive butterfly kisses and handmade cards from children with sweet-smelling breath. My darling angels offer up a tray of low-carb breakfast goodies, steaming coffee and a posy of tulips plucked fresh from the garden. 

9:30 am – Have a long luxurious bath, scented with Tom Ford’s Neroli Portofino Body Oil, while the kids clean up the bomb that went off in the kitchen during production of breakfast. 

11:00 am – Put on a new outfit from lululemon (thank you, kids!) and the whole family ecstatically agrees to go for a 10K bike ride around Stanley Park.

12:30 pm – Stop for a water break at Third Beach, where set between some driftwood, is a gourmet picnic spread atop a vintage wool blanket. Dive into a huge assortment of sandwiches from Whole Foods, farm-fresh organic strawberries and a chilled glass of Joie’s Noble Blend wine.

2:30 pm – After the children make me a tiara of mini-daisies and recite original poems about how much they love their mother, a handsome man on a pedicab whisks me away to the Vida Spa at the Sutton Place Hotel, where my muscles are oiled, pummeled and stretched to oblivion. 

5:00 pm – I am escorted home to a candlelight dinner (no take-out boxes in sight), after which I am presented with a beautiful charm necklace from Luxe Design, adorned with the names and birthstones of each of our children. 

9:00 pm – After the kids are tucked into bed, we watch Modern Family on the PVR and laugh hysterically at our favourite neurotic mom, Claire Dunphy.

They say a happy wife is a happy life, and remember, Father’s Day is just around the corner.”  Tested by Nancy C., Vancouver

You know I emailed this article straight off to my husband.  Got to give him a little heads up that expectations are high, hey?! 

Anatomy of a Perfect Weekend

Includes:

A great time with the kids and a dear friend with her kids at a local playplace followed by the requisite McDonalds lunch

A nine hour date with my husband which included a full browse in every store up and down South Granville, a lovely dinner in Yaletown, and finished off with a movie.

A sunny Sunday spent doing a little gardening, a little reading, a little trip to the park, and eating our barbecued dinner outside.

Hanging laundry on the line outside to smell Summer-fresh.

Those are the things that feed my soul.

And.  You know what I did?  I bought a Christmas present.  Yes I did.  I confess I am not one of those people that buy gifts all year long, although I envy them and their lack of stress around December.  I have always thought November was early, let alone MAY!   I guess I always think when it’s that early that I don’t really want to commit to anything because I may see something even better.  And I hate regretting a purchase.  And so I wait until mid–December when I’m sure that I have seen all there is to see.  But I’m going to try to do it different this year.  So while we were in Pottery Barn kids I picked up a few stocking stuffers for Miss H.   I reminded Aven that Christmas was only 7 months away.  He said I wasn’t allowed to use the word “only” when we were still closer to the previous Christmas than the next one.  He might have a point.

But you know what?  I like it.  Preparedness – it’s a good thing.  And I will continue to do this so by the time we get to December all we have to do is worry about decorating!  Ha!  I’ll let you know if that actually plays out the way I’m imagining.

And while I’m thinking of it….what did y’all think of The Hunger Games?  I admit to being really disturbed by it.  I know its not real life – just fiction, but gah, the whole premise of it really disgusted me and I’m not entirely sure I’m glad I watched it. 

I’m more of a “Secretariat” movie kinda gal.  If you haven’t watched it, you should.  Definitely. 

And now its Monday.  Although the weekend was fabulous, I didn’t get much prep done for the week which means today I’m baking muffins, and biscuits with farmer sausage, and cutting up veggies.   …after a full day of work, of course. 

In the Aftermath

Now that the awful incident at work has sort of died down, the fall out has begun.   I never saw it coming.  I should have but I didn't.

I've had three conversations now with three different guys about amazing diets that have worked for them - South Beach, Atkins, etc. 

Super well meaning, super friendly..... I just keep this smile plastered on my face. 

Oh Lord, let this madness end.

Amen.

My Hot Air Balloon Girl

I was wondering what she was so busy doing with all her construction paper that she was taping and weaving together. 

She had made what looks like a large mat, about 3 ft x 3 ft comprised of many layers of paper taped and woven together.  Along the edges she had stacked rolled up papers about two rolls high.  I thought perhaps she was making some amazing art project like she tends to do.  Turns out she intended it for so much more.

She had casually mentioned to me one day that she was going to build a hot air balloon.  Hot air balloons had caught her attention lately.  Aven commended her on her big idea and then told her that when she had completed her engineering degree and researched exactly what goes into building a hot air balloon she should certainly go for it. 

Seems she didn’t want to wait that long.

This paper mat was actually the basket to her hot air balloon.  The rolled up paper edges were the sides of the basket.

She says to me that she is planning a trip and will be gone probably about two nights.  I shouldn’t worry, though, she’ll be just fine in her hot air balloon. 

I ask her if she’s sure that the basket she made will hold her.  Oh, she is definitely sure.

“Well, what will you make the balloon part out of?” I ask her.  She thinks a large sheet will work. 

“How will your hot air balloon get off the ground?” I persist.  She thinks the wind will do a fine job, just like it lifts a kite, why wouldn’t it lift her sheet?! 

I mention to her that a hot air balloon actually rises off ground through the use of heat to warm the air inside the balloon causing it to rise. 

“I guess I’ll need a lighter, then.” She says, bless her heart.

“I don’t know if the lighter will be enough”, I respond.  “A hot air balloon usually uses a huge fire.”  I make an awesome hot air balloon fire sound.  I’m all about sound effects.

“I’m worried a fire like that will catch your sheet on fire” I say.

So our intrepid hot air balloon traveler is grounded for now but I know she’ll make something amazing one day.  I love that she doesn’t let a few details like having actually no idea what she’s doing and having no proper materials stop her from trying to get it started and off the ground.  This is an ideas girl.  She will go far, you mark my word.

Life is Messy

Have you ever noticed while reading blogs, especially “mom” blogs that it would seem that they lead perfect lives?  No one posts about the crap in life that happens.  And that makes sense.  Why would someone want to share with the whole world something that is painful to them?  There are of course the blogs that are basically dedicated to one large traumatic event – loss of a child, infertility, cancer, etc.  And those blogs are wonderful but not what I’m referring to.  I’m talking about the mess of life that happens to us.  Why does no one really blog about those things?  Don’t get me wrong – birthdays, renovations, funny things our kids did….those are good things but they don’t make up LIFE.  Life is messy and hurtful and ugly at times.  I would be greatly comforted if I could read about someone else’s horribly embarrassing situation that didn’t end in an amazing life lesson or blossoms flowering everywhere because that’s not always how bad situations end.  Sometimes life is just hard.  Period. 

And because I would like to “put it out there” I will start.  I had a horrible experience last week.   Hurtful and humiliating, actually.

Working with 70 men has had its challenges over the years and there have been some interesting situations but nothing like happened this time.

It was Friday after my lunch break and I was walking from the ladies locker room through the main lunch room to head back down the stairs to the office.  I was almost to the stairs when I hear a fellow call out “Hey, Angela!”  I turn and see one of the shippers named Imran walking up to me.  “How are you doing?” he asks – he always talks in a loud voice.  “Fine, thanks” I answer and then he says in his loud voice “You’re looking larger.  You getting bigger, eh?”  I look at him because I can’t assimilate the words that he’s saying with his friendly tone of voice.  I say “Pardon me?”  which was a stupid thing to say – like I want him to repeat that – maybe I was trying to give him a chance to retract.  Mostly I was probably in a complete state of shock.  I should also mention that he had his arms out wide and moving them up and down like “Holy shit you’re huge” and also the lunch room was not empty.  No, there were a few fellows in there watching this with interest.    And I mean, I know I could lose a few pounds.  It’s not like I don’t WANT to.  And its not like I need it pointed out to me in front of everyone by this yahoo.

Anyways, so I say “Pardon me?” and he says “you should exercise – don’t you like to exercise?”  …and he keeps repeating this as well as the fact that I’m looking larger.

At this point I realized the situation was not going to improve so I turned and left the lunch room, basically running down the stairs to the safety of my desk.  The guy is following me, he has obviously picked up on the fact that I’m upset and he keeps trying to say he didn’t mean anything by it…  Finally, three quarters of the way down the stairs I turn to him and say “I think you should just F**K OFF!”

Then I rushed to my desk in total disbelief at what had just happened and text Aven to get some love.  I sat there staring blankly at my desk for the next 45 minutes, tears slipping down my cheeks as I wait desperately for Aven to text me back some reassurance.   He doesn’t disappoint me and his anger and outrage at this guy helps me pull myself together. 

I hear one of the supervisors page this fellow on an unrelated matter and then after a pause I hear him exclaim “Well, you SHOULD feel bad!”  but he doesn’t say anything to me about it. 

The men that witnessed the unfortunate scene went out of their way for the rest of the day to compliment me and were extra friendly and nice which was almost comical in its obviousness, but I appreciated the intention and effort a lot. 

Thankfully it was the weekend and I put the incident out of my mind as best I could but returning to work on Monday I soon discovered that it was actually the hot topic of conversation around the plant.   Common thought is that women are the worst gossips, but I will tell you, that is not the truth.  Ladies, we got nothing on these men when it comes to gossip, I will tell you. 

So first, in comes a shop steward.  Apparently Imran had talked to him “all distraught” about what he had said.  Except that what Imran told the shop steward did not include anything about me needing to exercise.  He simply told the shop steward that he had told me I looked “larger” which was a compliment where he was from.  That this was simply a matter of cultural differences.   When I explained what had ACTUALLY transpired, the shop steward told me I could push this fellow down the stairs if I liked and he would witness that the guy slipped. ;o) 

And then it turns out that the shop steward was not the only guy he was telling his “revised” sob story to.   I guess in that case it was fortunate for me that there were some guys he chose to do this in front of because they were able to set the record straight.  Although a bunch of men discussing my largeness and needing to exercise is not really something I would ever choose to have happen. 

One of the girls I work with did tell me that when the talk had reached her ears it was all negatively directed towards Imran and that the men were all very protective of me and my feelings in the whole situation.  This was a small consolation for me. 

Today when I came in to work there was a pot of mini roses and a lovely card “from the men in the shop” wishing me a wonderful day. 

At the end of the day, though, I still feel rather hurt and still humiliated over the whole incident.  I go out of my way to avoid this guy now.  I feel insecure about what people are saying about me and my not-perfect body.

Now I struggle with what my response will be to this guy who did the hurting and humiliating.  I feel God encouraging me to forgive.  The more human part of me feels like giving this guy a public set-down and not forgiving. 

I hope that whatever crap you’re facing in your life today, that you can draw some comfort and consolation that you are not the only one facing a mess.  I’m with ya, sister!  Bad days, crummy situations, inappropriate behavior, you can find it all right here.  Welcome to the club of life.