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Fine weather today! It was 11 C at 6:00 am this morning--18 degrees higher than 24 hours earlier, and this afternoon, it was sunny and about 20 C. It's great that Neil was home today because he was able to deal with all the leaves on the front lawn. The girls had fun riding their bikes on the front sidewalk when we got home, and I didn't mind watching them while Neil made supper!
Sophia is pointing out some bird tracks in the sidewalk.
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Neil and his Dad finished combining last evening! That was so good to hear. Now if only the harvest would produce some much-needed cash. We'll see.The harvest took seven and a half weeks this year. It's unusual for the harvest to be so steady with no real breaks. There are often breaks while waiting for certain crops to ripen, but not this year. They may even have finished a week or so earlier if not for a few equipment breakdowns and the odd little rain. I'm so happy it's done now (and it is convenient timing for me), but I think a few longer breaks would have been nice. We're all very tired.
The city strike ended on the weekend and the leisure centres will open again soon. The one where I had registered the girls for swimming lessons will open early next week, so I think the girls' lessons may begin as early as next Tuesday (Madeline on Tuesdays and Sophia on Thursdays). The city website says dates for registered programs will be adjusted. I'm so glad Neil will be more available to help with this. I couldn't have handled it on my own this month.
The temperature dipped to minus seven last night. I hope that doesn't mark the end of this nice weather we've been having! After work yesterday, I picked all of the tomatoes that were at least starting to turn colour, about 30. I probably left twice as many green ones out there, but I don't have time to process a bunch of tomatoes. Neil picked all of the jalepeno peppers on Sunday, so they're in the fridge, and there's nothing else edible (except basil) in the garden that would be hurt by the frost. I made some of our favourite fresh salsa on Sunday with our own tomatoes, peppers, and red onions. We'll certainly make a few more batches with our bounty.
I have to attend the Annual General Meeting for the Preschool Fine Arts tonight. It is my last duty as a board member for that preschool. If you recall any of the trials and tribulations I went through with my position last year (for example, see Lessons learned), you'll know I'm positively ecstatic about this coming to an end! I have already purged 918 preschool email messages from my computer. Yes, 918, including both sent and received. It was craziness. Way too much work. It will be nice to see the other board members tonight (they are nice people), but otherwise, I wish I didn't have to go. Oh well. The nice thing is that Neil is coming home today, so I don't have to take the girls with me or over to Laurel's. It will also be great to have a break from putting the girls to bed! I find that to be the most difficult part of the day--when I'm very tired and they're not very cooperative.
P.S. For a good laugh, see What have I done? in which I speculate that I may have made the wrong decision in volunteering to be the preschool volunteer coordinator.
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I couldn't resist sending that photo of Sophia to my coffee group (coworkers) today. One person wrote back, "Looking at that made me forget about all the kicking & screaming. Nice one." I replied, "Thanks. It's hard to imagine sometimes, but these good moments do make up for the bad ones--and then some." and I thought that was worth repeating here because it's so true. Of course I wish I would see Sophia's bright, smiling, happy face more often and her angry face less often (much less often), but I sure appreciate the good times! Perhaps that's why I felt compelled to take a picture of her yesterday. And that leads me to another coworker's comment, "Sometimes those candid shots are the best ones." I couldn't agree more, which is why I keep my camera in my purse. I love my little digital Elph.
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Truly. This was Sophia after preschool today...
She was practically beaming all the way from preschool to Sharon's as she told me about her class. Not only that, when I took her to school, she let me go without complaint after only 10 minutes, and when I picked her up, the first thing she said was "How did you get here so fast?!" When I asked what she meant, she said "You usually take so much longer than that!" So I guess she had a good time in class today! She also behaved very well at dance class--so much better than last week.
I'm proud of Sophia, and I'm so relieved and happy that today went well. Marathon Mondays are tough enough without any extra challenges.
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I'm 35 now and that amazes me for some reason. Sure, it's not one of the really big milestone birthdays, but still, it kind of amazes me that I've been around this long. I guess it's an age where you still feel pretty young, but yet you have a little extra experience, I guess. Sometimes I know I'm still young--or young enough anyway--like when I think about the fact that I'm going to have another baby and my family is really just beginning. And then there are other reminders of just how old I am, like today when a couple of coworkers of mine were looking at my First 10 Years scrapbook (which spans from 1970 to 1980, as I'm sure you know), and I realized they weren't even born until after 1980! This doesn't make me feel "old" per se, but it puts things into perspective.
When I got up this morning and remembered it was my birthday, I thought (a bit sadly, perhaps) that this day would be incredibly routine and unremarkable, and certainly not my favourite kind of day. Neil's at the farm, I have to work, and the kids have to go to the babysitter... same as usual. No plans for anything (sigh). And then the girls were very uncooperative this morning, each of them fussing way too much about wanting to wear clothes that were in the wash. Not a great way to start the day.
Well I'm happy to say that my birthday got much better and it wasn't so unremarkable after all. When I arrived at work I was greeted with several "Happy Birthdays!" which was really nice because I didn't know if anyone knew it was my birthday. Also, one of my coworkers actually made a cake for my birthday! What a nice surprise! It was chocolate/chocolate chip with orange-flavoured icing and it was heavenly!!! My coffee group ate it this morning during our break, and there was just enough left for the girls and I to share after supper. Another friend/coworker gave me a card and a little gift of really cute bug scrapbook embellishments. I also received some phone calls, email messages, and a note in the mail today. All of this made me feel great and special! Thanks to everyone! I had a good day at work too, so that was a bonus.
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Although yesterday's events put me in a bad mood that carried over to this morning, there were several things that made me happy today (and I feel much better now!):
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I do not understand my child. She was fine when I left her at preschool (but I had rearranged my lunch hour so I could stay with her for awhile and I was there for 30 minutes), and she was happy when I picked her up from preschool (in fact, she recited the numbers one to eight in French all the way to Sharon's house and I was so proud of her!), but then after I hugged her and said I'll be back in a couple of hours to take her to dance class, Sophia would not go into Sharon's house. She ran as far as she could from the door, about 40 feet, and refused to go into the house. She said she wanted to go with me, and of course, nothing I said made her budge. I ended up half lifting half dragging her into Sharon's house and then Sharon had to hold her to stop her from coming after me. I learned later that she screamed for an hour after I left. I feel so sorry for Sharon at times like this.
After work, I took her to dance class and while she was happy the whole time, she was behaving pretty poorly; not listening to me mainly. Then this evening when it was time for her bath, she refused to cooperate, but she had to have one. So I caught her in the living room, took her to the tub and washed her from head to toe, all against her will. And if you know my daughter--practically 50 pounds of solid muscle--you know that was no easy feat. It drives me nuts that I should have to overpower her to get things done, but honestly, I don't know what else to do sometimes. Not only do I dislike doing it on principle, it's physically very difficult. My back ached during that bathing episode, and I just hope I didn't injure it.
I can't stand being the only one dealing with this. I need Neil to finish harvest soon and be here to help with this crap. They'll be done in about a week. This week of harvest, week seven, may be the longest *#&!#$* week of my life.
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Five months today! Wish I could say I feel great, but this cold is kicking my butt. I've felt pretty crumby all weekend. Thank goodness Neil was here for both birthday parties we attended yesterday, and today, Laurel made supper for the girls and me while Neil was at the Rider game. It was lovely! She gave me a bunch of leftovers too, so I'm set for several days. Sweet!
Here are my four-month and five-month bump pictures:
I know, pretty small for five months. Everyone seems to think so anyway. It has been the same with all three pregnancies. I just don't get really big; not early on anyway. We'll see how I look three or four months from now.
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Neil came in from the farm yesterday afternoon because it was too damp to combine and my splurge club was meeting at 6:00 p.m. As always, I enjoyed getting together with my friends (the cheesecake was great too!). We're not going to have our clothing or splurge club this year (where we put money into a draw each month), but we are going to get together on the third Friday of every month. That's mainly what it's all about for the core group of us anyway.
I managed to make it through half of this pregnancy without getting sick at all, but now I've come down with a cold. Grrrr! I had a terrible sleep last night for various reasons and my cold got much worse overnight. That really sucks because I have so many things to do today. Mainly, I'm going to get groceries this morning before Neil goes back to the farm (he's not going now!), then the girls and I we have two birthday parties to attend this afternoon. (Oh yes, I want them to finish harvest ASAP as much as anyone, but my immediate desire to have Neil at home with us is always more overwhelming--especially now that I'm sickly and unrested. What a life saver!)
For anyone wondering how Sophia did at preschool yesterday... she was fine, but Madeline and I had to stay for over 45 minutes. It did take some coaxing to get her into the classroom in the first place but she didn't cry at all, both when we went in and when Madeline and I said goodbye. When we picked Sophia up the teacher said she was happy all the time we weren't there; it's just that transition time she's having difficulty with. Also, I must say, this teacher is wonderful!!! I've seen a bit of her teaching now and it's awesome. She's great with the kids and she's so organized. I love it and I'm learning more French too!
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Last weekend was nice--largely due to a well-timed rain. It rained Saturday morning at the farm so Neil spent Saturday and Sunday with us. On Saturday we went to Yellow Grass to visit my family and my Aunt Chris and Uncle Tim who were there for part of a day on their way home to Idaho. It was great to see them! It had been three or four years since we last saw them. We also went out to my parents' farm to see the bison. I took these pictures of Madeline while we were there. I asked Madeline how old she is and the last two pictures were her answer.
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The kids are driving me crazy! They're not going to bed well at all and it makes every evening so difficult. One major problem is that they both want me to lay with them, but not together in the same bed, and they can't stand it when I'm with the other child. I'd be happy to lay down with them both in Sophia's bed, but neither of them want that. This tug-of-war over me is keeping them awake much longer than they should be. I absolutely must get them to go to sleep without me, but it's so hard. This evening, both of them did finally go to sleep without me in their room, but it was 9:30 p.m. already and they were very tired. I need this to happen an hour earlier so they get enough sleep at night--and to preserve my sanity.
This afternoon was a doozy too. Sophia would not stay at the preschool when I tried to leave. In fact, she wouldn't even go into the classroom at all. She totally freaked out and had a tantrum in the school hallway while other classes were in session. It was terrible. Neither the teacher nor I could get Sophia into the classroom. I ended up taking her back to Sharon's house, being late for my important meeting downtown, and getting a parking ticket because I didn't have time to park in a parkade and I didn't have enough change for the meter. I was pretty rattled by the time I got into the meeting too. I realize now that the biggest mistake I made was telling Sophia in advance that I would not be able to stay with her in class because I had to go to work. I should have just agreed to stay with her for a few minutes and then said goodbye only after she was engaged in something fun. I probably would not have been any later for my meeting. Lesson learned.
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Here's the instant replay: Home > Sharon's > Work > Home > Sharon's > Preschool > Work > Preschool > Sharon's > Work > Sharon's > Dance > Laurel's > Doctor > Laurel's > Home
(and every Monday will be like this, minus going to Laurel's and the doctor)
Sophia enjoyed her third preschool class yesterday. I convinced her to let me leave after just 15 minutes which was good (it was 30 minutes on Friday and an hour on Wednesday for Laurel). I hope this Wednesday will be 5 minutes or less because I have a meeting downtown at 1:15, the same time her class begins. Unfortunately, I'll also have to leave in the middle of that same meeting to go and pick up Sophia from preschool and take her back to Sharon's. I can't wait until Neil is available to help me out with this taxi business.
Sophia and Bronwyn had their first Irish dance class yesterday and they really enjoyed it! Madeline liked watching too. I think she did very well to watch quietly. There's a used shoe sale this evening, so I should really try to get there to find a pair for Sophia. New ones aren't cheap.
I had a routine prenatal checkup last evening. Everything is fine. Baby's heartbeat was 150. My doctor doesn't know what's causing my rash* though. She doesn't think it's pregnancy related, but said it doesn't look like anything in particular. I just have to wait and see if it goes away or if anyone else gets it (hope not!). Here's what I think it sounds like (from http://www.babycenter.com/refcap/pregnancy/prenatalhealth/9450.html):
Even less often, women get a skin condition called prurigo of pregnancy (or prurigo gestationis), which is characterized by many tiny bumps that may look like bug bites. These eruptions can occur anywhere on your body, but you're most likely to get them on your hands, feet, arms, and legs. Although they can be itchy and annoying, they pose no risk to your baby. You can develop prurigo of pregnancy in any trimester, but it's more common in the second half of pregnancy.
Bedtime was kind of funny last evening. We got home from Laurel's pretty late (the girls stayed there while I went to the doctor), so I didn't get them into bed until much later than usual. After reading books together, Sophia looked at a book by herself while I went to lay with Madeline for awhile. As usual, I had to go back and forth a few times because Sophia kept calling me. Finally, after all was quiet for little while but Madeline wasn't yet asleep, I snuck out and found Sophia sleeping with her face down on the book she'd been looking at! I just slipped the book out and tucked her in for the night. Then I went back to lay down with Madeline, fell asleep, and didn't wake up until after midnight. It's just as well because I really needed some extra sleep after such a hectic day.
*Background: For the past week, I've had an itchy rash that started on the upper part of my chest, then moved to the upper outside of both arms, then to the inside of both forearms, and is now on the top of both forearms. I've had nothing like this before. Fortunately, it's not itchy all of the time; it comes and goes. It hasn't been itchy at all very much today.
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Page 62--the last page of "My First 10 Years"! There I am at age 10. Twenty-five years ago. Wow.
I started this album two years ago, but there were long periods of time where I didn't work on it. I did 90% of it in the last six months--mostly on weekday mornings before work. I didn't realize how long it would take to complete! The stamping (almost all of the words in this album) was very time consuming and I don't think I'll attempt to do that much stamping in a scrapbook again. I'm really glad I made this album though. I'm pleased with it.
I still have to do the family tree page, but that'll be a bit different and I will finish it soon! I can't wait to start scrapbooking pictures of my kids!
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Only one page left! Well, two actually--I still have to make the family tree page that's going in the middle of the album, but there will only be one more page with photos after this. I wanted to complete it by tomorrow, but I don't think it's possible. I need to go pick up the girls in 15 minutes. I had the afternoon off, but only a few minutes for scrapbooking.
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I think this was my best day of work ever! This morning I was busy doing work that I love, and this afternoon my work was selected and validated by a web design team. It was great! And the best part is... I get to keep working on this project for awhile.
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So, about yesterday's ultrasound... As far as I know, everything looks good. Ten fingers and ten toes! The baby's weight (367 grams or 12.9 oz) and measurements were right in line with our due date (yesterday was 20 weeks 2 days and the baby measured 20 weeks 3 days), so I know she's growing fine. Yes, it looks like we're having a girl! I'm quite fine with that too; in fact, I feel a little relieved because it seems simpler to have three girls. And Neil? He actually took the news pretty well. There's no doubt he wanted a boy, but I think I had him prepared for the very real possibility that this baby would be a girl. The only bit of disappointment I have is that Neil won't have the son he wants and that I can't use our chosen boy name--Leighton James--because I love that name! C'est la vie.
Here's how it went... I said to the ultrasound tech (not sure what else to call her) that we'd like to find out the baby's gender if she could tell. Neil chimed in immediately, "I already know what it is." and she asked, "What do you think it is?" He answered, "A girl." Her reply: "That's what it looks like." It seems to me that she had only seen that area for a split second and I didn't even see what she was looking at, but she is a very experienced ultrasound tech, so I think we have to trust her judgement on this. We had an excellent view of everything else--limbs, hands, feet, spine, heart, brain, etc. And this is the first time we got a really good side profile picture. Sophia and Madeline just wouldn't cooperate for that! (I bet they won't cooperate to get into the tub right now either!)
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It sounds like Sophia was just fine at preschool yesterday. Neil came into the city to go to the ultrasound with me, so he and I and Laurel were all at the school to see Sophia into her first class. I think that was encouraging for her. Sophia was very proud of her new pink Scooby Doo backpack, Barbie shoes, and snack bag (filled with the snack she requested), all purchased especially for preschool.
Neil and I had to go to our ultrasound appointment right away, but Laurel stayed with Sophia for a whole hour--thank you Laurel! I know that made a big difference. Laurel reported that Sophia clung to her for the first 10 minutes or so, then would go and participate in things but still wanted her right beside her for the next half hour, and then became comfortable enough to do things on her own. She also said Sophia was very happy because she got to ring the tambourine for something. When I picked Sophia up, the teacher said everything was fine now, and Sophia had even started talking to her. (On Thursday evening when we were there for the annual meeting, Sophia wouldn't even look at the teacher.) I asked Sophia what they did at school and she listed all kinds of fun things--painting, playdoh, dress-up... She was happy! I don't think she'll say she doesn't want to go again.
(I didn't want Sophia to wear navy tights with this outfit, but it certainly wasn't worth arguing over!)
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Sophia's first day of preschool went well and our ultrasound was great! What a crazy day though. Details on both preschool and the ultrasound to follow. (Just can't write 'em now, because I have to go to bed!)
Here's a sneak peek at the baby:
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Sophia continued to be adamant today that she's not going to preschool tomorrow, and it made no difference what Sharon or I said about it. Then finally on the way home from Sharon's, I established that she would go if someone she knew was there with her. That seemed to be her biggest fear today--that she wouldn't know anyone there. Unfortunately, this still was not easily solved as neither Neil nor I can stay with her tomorrow. I didn't want to give up on tomorrow as Sophia's first day though because I don't want her to think that she can get out of something just by complaining enough. So, in desperation (because I knew she'd be working tomorrow), I called Laurel to see if she could help.
As luck would have it, Laurel had promised Bronwyn that she'll be at the school tomorrow when Bronwyn gets off the bus. It will be Bronwyn's first bus ride to kindergarten and she's a little nervous about it. The kindergarten class starts 30 minutes earlier than the preschool class, but Laurel agreed to stay for awhile and spend a few minutes with Sophia in the preschool classroom before going back to work. How lucky that both girls are going to the same school and both in the afternoon!
I told Sophia that Auntie Laurel will stay with her for a few minutes in her class tomorrow, and since then, Sophia has not said that she won't go. What a relief! This works well too because Bronwyn went to the same preschool last year, so Laurel knows the teacher and all about the program. Sophia trusts Laurel and I think if anyone can make Sophia feel more comfortable there, Laurel can.
This evening, I asked Sophia what she wants for her snack tomorrow (as we're required to send a snack and water to class with her) and she was happy to declare that she wants pretzels, marshmallows, and string cheese. I was equally happy that we have all of those items on hand and they're all on the "safe snacks" list. I also asked Sophia to choose what she wants to wear to preschool tomorrow and she selected her favourite red dress and tights. This is definitely progress because any mention of preschool before would have resulted in a stern, "I'm not going!"
So, it looks like I'll be taking Sophia to preschool tomorrow afternoon. Fingers crossed that she doesn't change her mind!
(I'm sure she's going to love preschool this year. This is the same kid who, last year, asked me almost every day if it was a preschool day--and she only went once a week!)
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Twenty weeks today! (Only 140 days to go according to my baby ticker.)
I like this milestone and I really look forward to the second half of pregnancy. One thing I like about it is looking obviously pregnant and not just frumpy because nothing fits quite right (there are so many weeks where neither regular nor maternity clothes fit well).
The very best thing though is being able to feel the baby move--clearly and regularly. I have actually felt many tickles over the past five weeks, but this morning was the clincher. While I was still laying in bed, I just happened to put my hand on my abdomen and immediately felt the baby move! No doubt about it. I love that. This is my favourite part of pregnancy, and I will certainly cherish every movement I feel over the coming weeks because I'm not planning to do this again!
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