according.to.kim

Ready, set, go!

Well, it's the last day of November--it went so fast!

December is upon us and so begins a season of celebrations. In my house, the celebrations extend well into January because Madeline and Sophia's birthdays are both in January. Neil's birthday is in December, so that also adds to the festivities.

In a way, it's kind of nice to just prepare for two straight months of exta activity and gift giving. (On the other hand, it would be nice if things were spread out a little more too!) I am somewhat prepared at this point, as I've already purchased all Christmas and birthday gifts, except for a couple of $10 items for our Watson gift exchange. It's nice that our families don't go overboard with Christmas gift-giving, so I don't have to get a whole lot of things. We don't exchange gifts among the adults on my side of the family, and we draw names among the adults on Neil's side. I have five nieces and nephews this year (wow!) and I enjoyed getting gifts for all of them! I think shopping for children is by far the most fun shopping of all.

On Sunday, we put up our Christmas tree and decorated it. It was so cute to see Madeline looking at the tree and saying, "WOW!!!" Sophia was a big help with the decorating ;-) She put ornaments on the tree at an unbelievable speed! I guess it just seemed really fast to me because I like to take my time with that particular activity.

Sunday evening, I made all of our gift tags while watching a movie (The Day After Tommorrow--you see I didn't have to be glued to it in order to keep up with the story). I like to make tags with my scrapbooking tools and scraps. So now I just need to wrap all of the gifts and I think I'll try to get that done as soon as possible.

Christmas celebrations officially kick-off for me on December 3 with a dinner party at a coworker's home, and the busy season will end with a birthday party for Sophia on January 29 (her birthday is the 28th). I think we have about 10 events to attend and/or host in the meantime, so I'll post again in February. Just kidding! I'll be back.

Updates

My eyes: I went to see a doctor at a walk-in clinic Tuesday morning. He prescribed Soframycin 0.5% / Framycetin Sulphate 0.5%, so I've been putting two drops in each eye four times daily. The infection is gone, but my eyes are itchy and aching. One thing I've learned from having so many eye infections is that it takes quite awhile after the infection is gone for your eyes to really recover--both from the infection and from the irritating eye drops. Basically, I feel like scratching my eyes out most of the time, or else I just want to close them really badly, especially toward the end of the day--but much earlier than I want to go to bed.

Gatherings: We went to Sophia's friend Brittany's 6th birthday party today at the Tot's Cafe. Wow, was that a busy place! The girls had a lot of fun. Sharon was there, as well as several kids from Sharon's and some of their parents. I left early to go to my clothing/splurge club party, while Neil stayed with the girls, including Bronwyn. He brought all three of them home after the party (Laurel was working). I was the lucky "winner" in my splurge club this month, so I now have $300 to spend during Boxing Week sales! I can't decide if I want to buy clothes or something else. Maybe I'll do a combination. I'm sure I'll think of a ton of things I'd like to buy.

Pull-ups: This evening at bedtime, Sophia insisted that she's a big girl, so she wouldn't wear a Pull-up to bed. I'm worried. She still wets them (and not just a little bit) several times a week. She has been getting better and actually woke up three or four nights this past week and went to the bathroom, but there's no guarantee she'll do that tonight. I think I'm going to go wake her up and make her go to the bathroom before I go to bed (right now). I tried that once before though and I could not wake her up. If that happens, I'm just going to put a Pull-up on her while she's sleeping. I don't want to have to wash her bedding tomorrow. Update: I did put a Pull-up on Sophia because she wouldn't wake up, but she didn't wet it that night; however, the next night she filled one. You just never know.

Awestruck

It is times like this when I wish my eyes were a video camera, so I could record certain special moments that you can't necessarily recreate.

I just bought some new Christmas lights yesterday and so while Neil was reading bedtime stories to Sophia, I decided to get them out of the packages and check them out. I had the two strings of lights plugged in and stretched out all the way around the living room.

Meanwhile, Sophia had to go to the bathroom and she wanted me to help, so she came out of her room and was asking me to help her in the bathroom when she saw the new Christmas lights for the first time. She stopped talking mid-sentence and the look on her face was priceless. That is the look I wish I could capture for posterity. Her eyes were full of that special wonderment that I think only a child can have, and then after a moment, she exclaimed, "It's so beautiful!"

I originally intended for the title of this post to describe Sophia's reaction to seeing the lights, but now, I think it describes just as well how I feel about my child.

Yes, I do scrapbook!

And, I'm trying to accept the fact that scrapbookers use the word "scrapbook" as a verb!

I've been a very busy bee lately working on a mini scrapbook for the girls' babysitter. I gave it to her today after work as a birthday gift from all of us parents and children--10 families, 13 children in all. I included a picture of each child and messages written by each family. Some of the messages almost made me cry! It all turned out so well, I think. Sharon was really surprised and touched.

I really enjoyed the process of making the scrapbook too. When we were in Edmonton, my brother-in-law asked me if I also do scrapbooking (his wife--Neil's sister, Shauna--makes gorgeous scrapbooks), and I said, "Actually, I just think about scrapbooking."

While I've done a few pages in the past, I definitely spend more time thinking and reading about it than actually doing it. Part of the problem is not having much spare time, but I think it's also my fear of commitment--a fear of actually committing photos to a page. I tend to be a perfectionist and so I think that's why it has seemed a bit daunting to me. Of course, I know it shouldn't be that way--it's supposed to be fun! Well, I really had fun making this little scrapbook and now I can say 'yes, I do scrapbook' because I have actually completed one! (I must say, having a deadline for this project certainly helped!)

So for anyone who's interested in scrapbooking, I recommend a wonderful book that I bought about a month ago: Clean & Simple Scrapbooking by Cathy Zielske. I love this book with all of its 'ideas for design, photography, journaling, and typography'. I actually read it cover to cover within a span of 26 hours (having to wait at a doctor's office for a full hour and a half one afternoon really helped). Another book I really like is A Simple Guide to Scrapbooking Celebrations.

Nooooooooooooooo!

You cannot imagine the anger, the annoyance, the complete and utter disbelief I felt this morning upon discovering I have pink eye (conjunctivitis) in my right eye. There are no words to describe how I feel right now... actually, there are many words I could use, but I don't want to use them here--my children may read this some day.

My eye was already crusty and almost blazing when I woke up. It doesn't feel like there are shards of glass in my eye yet, but I think it's well on its way if I don't get it treated soon.

I've been to the 24-hour drugstore already and spoke to the pharmacist. When I asked for drops for pink eye, she said there are some over-the-counter drops (which I knew because I've used them before), but they don't work so "don't waste your money" (yes, I knew that too, but I just wanted something NOW). So I have to go to a doctor to get a prescription for something stronger. Just great.

In case you're wondering why this is so incredibly aggravating to me, I had pink eye in the spring and then ongoing eye infections for three months. I blogged about it on April 7, April 22, May 10, June 3, June 28, June 30, July 8, and July 13.

Too much crying!

Someone has taken my happy-go-lucky toddler and replaced her with an almost constantly wailing lookalike. Madeline has had a fever the past couple of days, as well as cold symptoms, so I know that's mainly why she's been unhappy. We've been giving her ibuprofen and cold remedy which do seem to help for awhile. It seemed like she only had a few seconds of happiness on Friday and Saturday, and the rest of the time she would only stop crying if I held her. Unfortunately, Daddy just doesn't cut it when she's sick. She seems to be feeling better today, thank goodness.

Yesterday, Sophia was really grumpy too. In the afternoon, she kept getting into things that she's not supposed to get into, so I had to keep telling her 'stop touching this and don't do that...' At one point, she just lost it and cried for a long long time. She said I hurt her feelings. Nothing we could say or do would make her feel better. Neil and I were ready to put earplugs in, but finally after about an hour, we gave her potato chips and she stopped crying. You gotta do what you gotta do.

Another reason why there's been too much crying in this house is because the girls have been constantly asking for candy--and of course, we have to say NO more often than not. Even Madeline has been asking and asking and asking for candy. It's driving me nuts! The only cute part is when Madeline will take my hand, pull me into the kitchen while saying "c'mon, c'mon", and point to the top of the fridge where the bag of Halloween candy is. Then she says "candy, candy!"

More illness

Madeline was sick today, and I really thought we were finished with this bug! Stupid germs!

She threw up just once at Sharon's house. I left work mid-afternoon to pick her up because Neil was at the farm. For the rest of the day, she was tired and wanted to be held more than usual, but was in rather good spirits otherwise. It seems odd that she didn't throw up again. She drank a bunch of milk when I picked her up and I was really worried she'd throw up from it--but I didn't have the heart to take her cup away. Perhaps she will be similar to Sophia who went 12 hours between the first and second time last week. Even if she doesn't throw up again, she'll stay home with Neil tomorrow. Unfortunately, he won't get as many chores done as he could have, but at least he doesn't have to go anywhere tomorrow.

The Joy of Volunteering

So far today, I've received 13 16 email messages, sent 9 email messages, and made 4 phone calls in my capacity as volunteer coordinator for the preschool. Eeeek. That took *too much* time, and I'm not happy about it. Not one bit. Any preschool volunteer job I choose to do in the future is going to be a walk in the park compared to this one.

Firefox 1.0

I just downloaded a free web browser called Firefox thanks to this post on Attaboy.ca: Foxy Lady. Check it out! For PC users, Firefox is a great alternative to Internet Explorer, and for Mac users, it's especially great for people using Typepad--it supports all of Typepad's new WYSIWYG features and spell check, as well as other functionality that didn't work in Safari or Camino. Firefox does it all. Cool. You can get Firefox here.

Our trip to Edmonton

I can't believe it's been a week since I last posted.

Our little vacation to Edmonton was mostly great. I found it quite relaxing and so nice just to have a break from the usual. I think I slept for eight hours every night, so I was definitely much more rested than usual. I also learned that I can look at scrapbooking magazines for at least a couple of hours a day for five days straight and not tire of it.

Look at me!

I really should be packing right now, but...

I got my hair cut today and my hairdresser straightened it so she could see the layers better as she was cutting it. I like my curls, but it is kind of neat to experience straight hair--if only for a day or two.

Go Riders Go!

The Riders pulled it off today! They won the Western semi-final against Edmonton, 14-6. We watched the game at our friends' Derek and Lisa's place in Pilot Butte (well, for the most part, Neil watched the game and I watched the kids).

When we got home this evening, these adorable pictures of our nephew, Cole, were in our inboxes. He's wearing the Saskatchewan Roughriders outfit Neil bought for him a couple of months ago, and Neil was just as proud as can be when he saw this! In fact, he immediately forwarded the pictures to his Rider-game-watching group of friends.

 

Silver Side Up

It's Saturday night, and I just got home (10:15) from shopping for a few groceries and diapers, etc. I do lead an exciting life, I know.

Actually, I really don't care that I was shopping on a Saturday night because I was alone, and these days, shopping alone is always a good thing. Also, being alone in my van means I can listen to whatever I want. I like that. And there's something about driving alone at night that just makes me want to crank up the music. (Oh, and listening to loud music while driving at night also makes me want to drive fast, but I really try not to speed!)

I had ample opportunity to turn up the volume last night as well. I drove about 225 km round trip to Weyburn and back last evening to attend a Jocus Toy party at a friend's place. I think that's somewhat out of character for me as I don't really like driving that much, but I wanted to get out and see some friends I don't see very often. I bought some neat toys for the girls' birthdays and enjoyed visiting with my friends, but I almost think the best part was just being alone for a couple of hours and cranking the music.

I listened to Nickelback's Silver Side Up the whole time. I have to be alone to listen to that CD because Neil absolutely hates it (he pretty much hates anything that's somewhat popular--just on principle, I think), and I won't play it when the girls are in the van; Sophia listens too closely and I don't want her to hear some of the lyrics.

For those unfamiliar with Nickelback, I think they'd be described as hard rock. (I don't really pay that much attention to music genres, so I'm not sure.) I love Silver Side Up, especially track seven (Look What Your Money Bought) which is probably the hardest/heaviest song on the album, and I like it loud. I've always liked stronger, faster, louder music more than soft and slow music. Of course there are many exceptions, but that's my preference in general. I wonder what that says about me. What makes people drawn to certain kinds of music? I may have to look into that sometime.

A relaxing moment

Well, this is more like it. I've done most of the things I had to do yesterday and today, and now I'm just relaxing a bit while Madeline naps. Neil took Sophia to the farm today for the last day of combining. :-) She has been asking to ride the combine every other day for the past month, so I'm glad she had another chance. I'm really enjoying this quiet moment!

One of the more urgent things I had to do this weekend was to plan in more detail a birthday album I'm making for Sharon (the girls' babysitter) and get special paper distributed to the other families whose children attend/ed Sharon's Childcare. They are to write a message (thank you, happy birthday, whatever) on the paper and then give it back to me along with a photo of their child and some money for a gift. I'll compile everything into a mini scrapbook album before Sharon's 40th birthday which is on the 28th. I was able to give the paper and instructions to seven out of eight families yesterday and today, and I should see the eighth mom on Monday. Whew! I had to do this before our trip to Edmonton (Tuesday).

I also did my preschool volunteer work yesterday--about two hours worth--so that's out of the way too. For now.

Neil just called... they are finished harvest!!! (except for the seed cleaning, cleanup, etc.)

I'd better get back to my chores now. It never ends, of course, but at least I had a little break.

More good news

I called Neil's cousin today to see if he could babysit tonight (Laurel's suggestion--thank you!!!) and he was available. That was awesome for me! I just put Madeline into her own bed, Darren showed up, and I went to volleyball. SO simple. And Sophia loves Darren, so she was very happy too!

Volleyball was fun tonight; a real workout too! I play power almost exclusively, but tonight we were short a middle, so I volunteered and actually did pretty well. I blocked a hit on the first play of the game! That was fun. Plus, I didn't miss a serve--which was especially good because the rest of my team was having some difficulties in the serving department. Unfortunately, we didn't do so well as a team; we only won one out of four games. It's looking like we may get bumped down to the B-side because we're in the bottom three of the A-side right now. Okay, that bit should be filed in the not-so-good news category.

Good news

I gave Madeline cough medicine before bed last evening and she slept all night--no coughing at all. She coughed a bit this morning and was sneezing so I gave her another dose of a cough and cold remedy before taking her to Sharon's. I thought maybe Sharon wasn't too impressed with me taking Madeline today, but I called her later this morning and it sounded like everything was fine.

I was able to take care of that aggravating problem at work this morning, so that's done. I was worried it would take all day and I wouldn't have time to wrap up a bunch of other things before going on vacation. The last day is always much too hectic.

I learned this morning that two very sweet people are officially dating and I felt like doing a little happy dance when I heard the news. I really hope it works out! If it does, I think Neil can take some credit for introducing them.

I am grouchy

I feel like I'm stretched so thin right now, if one more thing gets added, I'm just going to snap.

Neil has been at the farm since Monday morning because they were finally able to harvest again (I'm happy they're getting it done, but so annoyed that it had to continue into November). I'm frustrated at work because I have to fix a problem created by someone else, and it has to be done before I go on vacation (Nov 5-14). I had to go to a preschool board meeting last evening (Laurel had the girls over) and now I have a bunch more 'volunteer' work to do that has to be done right away. Madeline's sick with a phlegmy cough, so she may not be able to go to Sharon's tomorrow which would be okay except that I really should go to work tomorrow. Sophia hasn't gone to sleep until late every night this week because she's been cranky at Sharon's and so had to have a nap every day. I committed awhile ago to play volleyball tomorrow night and they really need me to play, so I have to take the girls over to Laurel's. It's so much easier to leave them at home when Neil is here. I have a huge (i.e., impossible) list of things I need to get done on my vacation day (Friday) while the girls are at Sharon's (that is, if Madeline isn't too sick to go). Plus, a never-ending sinus headache and having my period this week are just the icing on the cake. And the cherry on top: Madeline sprayed germs directly into my eye this evening when she was playing with her lips. Yes, just in time for my vacation. Fabulous.

I'm going to bed.

Halloween album

I've posted a Halloween album with lots of pictures of our little ghoulies. They had a wonderful
time trick-or-treating!

<- This picture was taken last evening too. Madeline was imitating Sophia's reaction to a scene in a Harry Potter movie that Neil was watching.
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