May 01
Happy House Day
Yesterday dawned, cold and dreary, but I didn’t care. I was getting my house today! I anxiously awaited the phone call that would send me to the lawyer’s to pick up the key. Naturally, it came while I was in the shower. I was so excited, I missed the turnoff and had to backtrack, but this was actually a good thing because I discovered a new route- very important when the downtown is like Oshawa’s (you have to go through it to get anywhere, and it is best to avoid at all costs!).
While I was waiting to go, I realized that Bronwyn was doing some new things. She has been in such a period of stagnation that I had stopped looking for subtle signs of advancing intelligence. Since she was being awfully cranky yesterday, I decided to sit her in the kitchen with me while I cleaned instead of in the living room like usual. I put in front of her a wooden spoon, a lid from a pot, a can of sardines, a plastic margerine tub, a ball with holes in it, and a large paper bag. She had the time of her life hitting everything in turn and hearing the sounds they made. She hit the lid over and over again, then switched to the bag and back to the lid etc. Cranky baby problem solved! After this I brought her upstairs to change her and put her down for her nap. Bronwyn is now 9 and a half months old and up to this point has yielded to my ministrations with minimal fuss. Lately however she has turned kind of squirmy. Yesterday, though, was a turning point. I remember watching Joan fighting with Anne to get her diaper on and wondered when and if that day would ocme for me. It did. April 30th. Mark it on your calendar. I couldn’t hold her! She flipped onto her belly and started squirming away combal style. Then she reached over and grabbed teh chair and pulled herself up so she was half off thh bed and half on the chair. I capitualted and put her diaper on from the back. Note, I had to put her diaper on standing up later that night!
Lastly, while I jumped in the shower, I placed Bronwyn in her crib with a handful of cheerios and some toys to occupy her so she wouldn’t get into trouble. When I got out, I peeked in to see what she was doing, and I found her fast asleep on her face (I have a picture that I will post later!). Bruce said that he finds her in that position over half the time now when he gets her up in the morning. I guess it had to happen eventually, I mean stomach sleeping really IS more comfortable.
But, back to the house. I love it. It was so exciting to unlock the back door and step inside. And Mrs. Kathy left us a bunch of stuff too. I found numerous new cleaning supplies, rags and brushes. She left a new looking paint roller with tray. She left the shower curtains (also cleanand in good repair) as well as all the curtains (we’ll have to change those though!!). And finally, the best of all, she left the beautiful, brushed chrome fireplace set. I really liked it when I saw it, and couldn’t believe it was just sitting there!
You’d think this was my first house, but maybe it always feels like this! Plus, with all the waiting…
When bruce arrived after work, we started working in earnest. bruce carrying boxes upstairs and me emptying them. When we exhausted that, we started in the bedrooms, stripping wallpaper. What a chore. But also a bonding experience. I would have to say that the overall feelign was that of commeraderie and accomplishment. We stripped 2 rooms, and to quote Bruce, “well, I wish it were easier, but it wasn’t as hard as I expected”.
More to follow as we prepare the house for habitation next week!
May 13
Where have we been?
Well, just because we are back from the black hole of no internet doesn’t mean I will be blogging more frequently it appears. I am finding it increasingly difficult to carve out time to sit and write my ramblings, let alone organize my thoughts at all. Read: I am so busy, I can’t even THINK! Anyway, enough pity for me, this is an exciting time in Bronwyn’s life, and I don’t regret the hours I spend with her to the detriment of the dishes, and my faithful few readers!
Bronwyn has reached 3 milestones simultaneously. She has decided that it is better to feed herself, and unless starving, refuses to eat off a spoon that I am holding. Naturally this would coincide with our decision to make Dude and Nevis permanent outdoor dogs. I could really use their help licking banana and spaghetti off the floor some days! Secondly, she has learned that things make noise. She likes to bang two blocks together and then bang one block on the floor, on my hand, or against another toy to hear the different sounds it makes. She knows that some toys make noise if manipulated the right way, and she is dextrous enough to push, pull and generally work most of her toys right now. Thirdly, and perhaps the most important because it directly impacts the other two, Bronwyn is now capable of staying awake when something interests her or is otherwise engaging. My dilemma of course is whether to cut out the morning nap completely, or start waking her up in order to protect both naps and bedtime. Of course, my sleep book is nowhere to be found in the disorganized jumble we call home. Go figure. Today for instance, Bronwyn woke up at 6:30am, napped from 8-10am then napped again from 2:30-3:45pm. She then went to bed at 7:30pm. If you do the math, that isn’t a lot of sleep for a growing girl! Or an increasingly exhausted pregnant mom. I find I am forgoing valuable unpacking time to sleep when Bronwyn sleeps, but growing a baby is hard work too, and I am kept awake at night by the increasing need to use the washroom at all hours!
On a funnier note, Bruce is suffering from less sleep than I am. No, not sympathy pregnancy symptoms…poison ivy! He is covered in an angry, red, blistery rash from the top of his bald head, to his belly button. It is easily the worst case of poison ivy I have ever seen. Happily neither Bronwyn nor myself was infected, and my dad and Tristan escaped scotch free as well. The men were crawling behind our hedge attempting to install the electric dog fence last weekend when supposedly the infection took place. It is a classic case of poison ivy, but it is strange only Bruce is affected. However, he is infected enough for everyone, and any home remedies will be taken under advisement. Luckily, HE can take antihistamines and I finally unpacked the bottle of prescription steroid cream from his last infestation, but it is just getting worse. So although I feel pity for his obvious discomfort, I am secretly killing myself at his fate. As Kelso from That 70s Show once poignantly stated “it’s funny when friends get hurt”. Too true Bruce, too true.
May 29
a-viking
Well, we didn’t actually go to plunder those less fortunate, but we did go and take advantage of our families’ hospitality. First, Bronwyn and I headed to Sudbury for 3 days where we visted and shopped and soaked up the sun. We saw the children’s play my mom directed at our church, and I went for my first ultrasound! I will try and get a picture soon. Bronwyn and I walked around the gorgeous hospital district every day. They recently refinished the floating section of the boardwalk and it smelled so great we had to return the next day with my mom! I forgot how beautiful it is at this time of the year, and everyone is so friendly, stopping to admire B in her cute little tank top and jean shorts! She, of course, is the most sociable baby I have ever met. While we were waiting at the hospital, she amused herself and everyone else by cooing and babbling at passersby. When they stopped, she rewarded them with a huge smile and more babbling. Everyone was enchanted. Especially me.
We returned to Pembroke on thursday only to turn around and head off to Newmarket. The next morning came too early after our late night driving, but Bruce needed to be downtown for a conference and I had a date with the Toronto Zoo. I met up with Joan and her two kids and Hannah (the new youth pastor at Calvary’s wife) and her 2.5 kids. With 5 kids, 2 pregnant ladies, 2 strollers and a wagon, we made a formidable group walking down the walkway. It was nice to see Joan again and get to know Hannah- I miss having friends nearby. We didn’t get to see much of the zoo. Between the kids not wanting to leave the children’s centre and having to stop at every bathroom we came across, it was slow going. Not to mention that of all the kids, B was the only one not mobile (although Anne has only been walking for a few weeks now), so a large portion of our time was just trying to round up wayward kids! It is too bad pets are not allowed at the zoo, I bet Dude would have come in handy with the herding!! All the kids seemed very interested in the animals (I have a great pic of Bronwyn and Anne standing at the bunny fence holding hands!) except Isaiah (Hannah’s oldest). He seemed kind of bored until I realized he’d been there recently and he was 5 and just being cool. His nonchalant demeanor was forgotten however with the arrival of the man on stilts. Elliot wouldn’t go near him, but Isaiah and Kya thought he was the funniest thing they’d seen all day. It was hilarious to watch them. This guy was very engaging. He would pretend to shake your hand and then swing you through his legs and pretend that he’d lost you. Then he started juggling and “accidently” dropping the balls so the kids had to run after them. He then had them throw the balls into his oversized hat. I am glad we saw him. Very memorable. Bronwyn slept through the whole performance!
The rest of the weekend occured without incident. Bruce taught Kar and I how to play cribbage, and Eric took Bronwyn on a nature walk. We saw countless rabbits and deer on the way home and stopped at Webber’s for hamburgers and milkshakes (my first time!). Just writing about it makes me want to strap B in the car and drive the 3 hours it takes to get there just for another bite!!
Now my house is in shambles, and laundry is piling up from my week away. Luckily our new dishwasher should be arriving this week! Now I must go and decide whether to mop the kitchen floor or read another few chapters in the novel I am engrossed in. Tough choice. Surprise surprise it is about barbarian danespeople (see title).
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