according.to.kim

A finished project

We finally finished our dining room chairs. Yay! It's only been nine years since we got them from the farm! These chairs, which match our dining room table (the set was originally owned by Neil's grandparents), were in terrible condition after being stored in a shed for many years. The seats were totally unsalvagable and we took them off right away. I wouldn't even allow them into the house. I just don't need hanta virus.

Let's see... We had the chair frames dip-stripped about six years ago and then Neil applied a coat of wax. About three years ago, I had a furniture restoration business make new seats (the wood part) based on some pieces I'd saved in the garage. Then when a fabric store had a big sale on upholstery supplies last year, we bought the foam, batting, and fabric. Finally, last week, when we decided it was time to clean out the garage (it's been over four years since we've been able to park a vehicle in there; that's another story), we brought the chair frames into the kitchen and started upholstering the seats. We finished three days later.

Talk about a long drawn-out project! Well, it's done now and I think they look pretty good. The "temporary" folding chairs have been put away. We still can't park in the garage, but I'm working on it. Does anyone want two treadle sewing machines? Bargain prices!

Sophia's preschool graduation

Sophia's last day of preschool was on Friday May 26. I can't believe her preschool days are over! (Apparently, Sophia can't either. On Sunday evening, she asked me when her next show 'n' tell day would be. I said, "Sophia, preschool is over; your last day was on Friday, remember?" She replied, "Oh yeah. So when's kindergarten?" Me: "Not for three months." Sophia, clearly disappointed: "Awwww!")

Sophia had a great last day at Mes Amis. I was really proud of how she got up on stage and sang all of the songs with a smile on her face. You just never know what she's going to do! She still managed to exhibit her individuality by not wearing a crown and cape like most of the other chidren. No problem; it was optional.

After the children sang their songs (en Francais, of course), the teacher presented each child with a package containing a scrapbook of things they learned over the year, a photo of the child on their first day, a photo of the child with the teacher near the end of the year, a certificate of achievement, and a report card. She wrote a lot of detailed information about Sophia's participation in preschool this year. I can't say enough about this teacher. She's awesome! I look forward to having Madeline attend the same preschool for the next two years.

It was really special for Sophia (and for me) that, in addition to her parents and sisters, she had a grandma, a great grandma, and three great aunts there for her preschool graduation party. That's pretty cool. Here's a picture of Sophia and Madeline at the party with their "Yellow Grass Grandma."

Canadian Antiques Roadshow

On Friday May 26, Neil and I went to the Canadian Antiques Roadshow. (We took Georgia along, while Mom stayed with Sophia and Madeline.) It was held at the Regina Armoury which was a great location. It's a neat building, full of history.

I'm glad we went. Over the years, Neil and I have watched quite a few episodes of the Antiques Roadshow (either American or British), so it was fun to be there in person. There was the same familiar din of people chatting while waiting in line for their turn with an appraisor.

We were allowed to take two items each. Neil took a WWII military compass (which he found inside a rifle case he had purchased at an auction a few years ago) and a needlepoint sampler made by his great great grandmother when she was 11 years old, circa 1863-73. I took a porcelain moustache tea cup and one of two oak armchairs that came from the Mantay farm (my maternal grandfather's side).

It was great to learn more about our "treasures". For example, I learned that the chairs are North American and date around 1900. They were probably ordered from an Eaton's or Sears-Roebuck catalog and delivered by train. They were affordable chairs (i.e., not high quality, which is evident from their construction of small pieces of wood glued together, rather than solid wood).

Neither of us were filmed for the television show which is fine with me. The second season of the Canadian Antiques Roadshow starts on Wednesday October 3 on CBC (or CBC Newsworld?). I didn't even know about the first season. Oh well. I'll try to catch it this fall, especially the Regina episode.

Here are a few photos I took at the show (that's a cardboard cutout of Valerie Pringle; we saw her several times as we waited in line but I didn't take a picture of her):

Farming and real estate

(I started drafting this a week ago, but we've been so busy, I just couldn't get back to it. Hope I can also find time soon to write about the Antiques Road Show, Sophia's preschool graduation, and more.)

Neil and his Dad seeded durum, lentils, peas, canola, and large and small Kabuli chickpeas this year. Seeding went fairly well except for a few equipment breakdowns. It's been raining off and on over the past week, so that's good news for the crops.

They started seeding on May 2 and finished on May 19 -- about half as long as their usual seeding time. I'm so glad it's done! I'm also glad it wasn't continuous; Neil was home four or five days during that period. The final stretch of five days straight was tough though. I'm so thankful for Laurel's help on Wednesday evening (she took Sophia shopping while I took the other two to Madeline's swimming lesson) and Mom's help on Friday (between Sophia's swimming lesson and preschool). It helped keep me sane.

I find solo parenting so exhausting and challenging (whine, whine, whine). Hats off to anyone who has to do it frequently. I think it's especially difficult for me right now because I still spend a lot of time nursing Georgia. It drives me crazy if I have to delay feeding Georgia while I tend to the other two, or if I don't know what the other two are doing while I'm busy feeding Georgia. Sophia and Madeline still need a lot of supervision! I also learned that, on my own, it takes no less than 90 minutes to dress and feed four people (the girls and me), do the girls' hair, and get us out the door in the morning.

As the farm business winds down, Neil is taking steps toward a new career in real estate. How'd this happen? Basically, the opportunity presented itself and Neil jumped on it (the truth is he needed a little push, but the point is, he's doing it!). Here's how it all went down.

A few days after we learned the farm business was ending, I started looking at job postings, both online and in the newspaper. We had also picked up calendars for SIAST and the U of R, and Neil went through some career quizzes online. It was a very confusing and stressful time.

I bounced many ideas off Neil but he was less than enthusiastic about them (quite understandably, I was a bit more keen on choosing a new career for Neil than he was). Then I saw a posting for Century 21 Dome Realty. When I mentioned it to Neil, he didn't dismiss the idea. I think he said, "I guess I could do that," which is about as much enthusiasm as Neil could muster for anything at the time. For a few more days, we continued to be confused about what path Neil should pursue (there were several on the table), but when all was said and done, this seemed like the right direction.

We prepared Neil's resume and a cover letter and sent them in. Neil then called the hiring manager and she scheduled an interview. She wasn't able to meet with him for almost three weeks, but when they finally met, she said she was interested in having Neil join their team. I think Neil's pretty lucky: one resume, one cover letter, one phone call, and one interview -- you can't beat that! It's not an instant job by any means, but that's fine. We have to pay for the training and it takes about three months, so it'll still be awhile before Neil starts working, but it worked out nicely that he was able to help with seeding.

Neil is now taking the real estate training courses. They're self-study courses, but he can also go for some classroom instruction on Tuesday mornings. He's attending his third class right now. In order to get his license, Neil will have to pass assignments and an exam with a minimum grade of 70%. I know he can do it! So, if anyone needs a Realtor in the Regina area (after a couple months), please keep Neil in mind!

My new hairdo

It feels great! Perfect for summer. My grey hairs sure stand out in these pictures and I'm not thrilled about that, but I'm not ready to start colouring my hair either.

Added, 3:00 p.m. I meant to write this earlier...
First reactions: Sophia stared at me in silence. When asked if she liked my hair, she replied, "No, it's too short."
Madeline immediately said, "I love your hair like that!"
Neil commented, "It's a little short, don't you think?"
As for me, I like it, but I wouldn't mind having it even shorter!

11 hours later

I'm really pleased. Sophia's hair still looked good (and a little more natural) after a full day of playing. It was worth the effort. Who knows, I may even curl Sophia's hair for other occasions or just for fun.

Sophia wants everyone to see her hair like this. We keep warning her that it won't stay this way for long--and she'll have to get her hair washed sometime this week, whether she likes it or not. I hope it looks okay in the morning. She really wants Sharon and Bronwyn to see it tomorrow.

Update, 8:00 a.m. May 23: Sophia is a little upset that her hair doesn't look as nice as it did yesterday. It looks okay though.

Success!

I'm truly amazed at how well Sophia's ringlets turned out in our trial run. She's going to be a very cute Irish dancer!

The girls' babysitter lent us these black foam and wire sticks and a set of Conair Curly Stix (hot rollers). Not long after Sophia's bath last night (her hair dries pretty quickly), I put mousse in her hair and then a total of 22 rollers. It only took me about 30 minutes. Sophia slept on them and I took them out this morning, about 12 hours later. That also took about 30 minutes. After removing each roller, I seperated the hair into two or three smaller sections and wrapped each section around my finger to form a ringlet. After making four or five ringlets, I sprayed them with a little hairspray, and then sprayed her whole head again when it was all done.

It's been well over an hour since I took these photos and her ringlets still look good. They are wonderfully bouncy too! It looks awesome when she practices her "one-two-threes". I actually thought the length of her hair would be a problem, but now I see that it's great for making these beautiful bouncy ringlets. Thanks for all of the advice everyone! I couldn't have done it without you.

(By the way, Sophia loves having her hair like this. I'm afraid she's going to want me to curl her hair every day. No way!)

All about Sophia

Last week, Sophia said to me in a very serious tone, "Mom, you should watch the Care Bears. It would teach you how to care for your children." (Gee, thanks!)

Lately (Neil says for six months now, but I disagree), Sophia has been in the habit of rolling her Rs when speaking. Not all day long, but several times throughout the day, she tries to roll the Rs in every word she says. It r-r-r-really bugs Neil. It doesn't bother me; I think it's kind of funny.

Each night at bedtime, Sophia selects books from a series called Secrets of the Animal World. Each book is about a certain group of animals such as birds, crocodilians, primates, etc., and every book has a diagram of the animal's anatomy. Sophia insists that we look at "the insides" in every book, and the first thing she looks for is the kidney. It's true. She can now find the kidney(s) in most animals.

Sophia's drawings are becoming more sophisticated. She really likes to draw flowers and houses now (it was rainbows and hearts for a very long time). She also incorporates a lot of stickers into her pictures. This morning, she whipped up this work of art to enter the Kids' CBC Curious George Canada Day Contest (the prize is a VIA Rail trip for four to Ottawa for Canada Day). Speaking of Kids' CBC, Sophia absolutely loves playing games on the website, especially The Art Machine.

How cool is that?!

Last night, Madeline left Sophia's room at some point and crawled into bed with me and Georgia (that's not the cool part). Later, Sophia called for me and asked if I would stay with her. I said no because I could not leave Georgia alone in the bed (and certainly not alone in bed with Madeline). Then I said, "How about if I bring Madeline back to your bed?" Sophia said okay, and so I did, and that was that. Not another word! See the cool part is that Sophia just wants someone -- anyone -- to stay with her. It doesn't have to be me!

Tonight, as the four of us lay in Sophia's bed (this is what we do when Neil isn't here), all three girls fell asleep within a five-minute span. I wasn't even feeding Georgia at the time! She just fell asleep in the crook of my arm, in the dark, as we lay there listening to the Shrek soundtrack. That is cool. To me, anyway.

Speaking of hair

1. Does anyone have any idea how I might attempt to transform Sophia's long straight hair (over 18 inches!) into bouncy ringlets for her Irish dance performances at Mosaic? Three days in a row, no less! I don't own hot rollers and if I still have a curling iron, I don't know where it is. I have no idea how to do the rag method. I don't even have hair spray at the moment. If Sophia sticks with Irish dancing, we'll buy her an Irish dance wig for sure -- a bargain at $30 USD. Most of the older girls are getting wigs for next year.
   
   Note: For anyone in the area who's interested, Sophia will be performing at the Irish pavillion at 5:30 p.m. on June 1, 5:50 p.m. on June 2, and 2:30 p.m. on June 3.
   
   
2. Neil and I were talking about my pending hair appointment over the phone last night. He asked if I was going to let the hair dresser decide how to cut my hair (I might!) and then he said, "as long as it doesn't turn out like the lady on that ad." I knew exactly what he was talking about: there's a woman sitting on a sofa and she's crying -- her hair is long on one side and short on the other. We both get a kick out of that commercial, but we can't remember what was being advertised. Was it tea or coffee? I could be totally wrong about that.
   
   
3. Parents of little boys might consider being thankful for short little-boy hair. I (or Neil) spend about five to ten minutes every day brushing and styling Sophia and Madeline's hair -- usually when we're in a rush to get out the door (that's 30 to 60 hours a year, my friends; hey, every minute counts in this crazy life). And while I do enjoy doing their hair in pony/pig tails and braids, I don't enjoy chasing them around the house with a brush and a bottle of detangling spray! And washing it... well, that's a bit of work too. I suppose the trade-off is that I don't have to get their hair cut very often. In fact, I've never taken them anywhere for a hair cut. Perhaps I should, and of course I'll have to eventually, but not yet. (OMG, how much is that going to cost every year?!)
   
   
4. This postpartum hair loss is driving me nuts. I absolutely hate it. Gobs of hair come out when I'm brushing it, washing it, or putting styling lotion in it. Poor Georgia gets hair in her mouth when she's trying to eat, and sometimes I find hair wrapped around her soother. My hair is everywhere. This is certainly a factor in deciding whether or not to get my hair cut short. I know it won't stop falling out, but the sheer volume of hair in my hands and on the floor would be greatly reduced.
   
   
5. I think Georgia's new hair is starting to come in. Those bald patches don't seem quite so bald anymore. You can barely see the new hair as it blends in with her skin, but if you look really closely and kind of angle her so the tiny hairs reflect the light...

Time for a haircut

I'm getting my hair cut next Wednesday. It has been seven months! The last time I was there I actually said, "Take lots off because I'm not sure when I'll be back." I had no idea it would be this long! Well, I've saved some money anyway.

Haircuts are a very impulsive thing for me. Once I have the urge to get it cut, I try to get in right away -- that day or the next, if possible. Unfortunately, the urge struck me just as seeding began, so Neil wasn't around to be with the kids. Plus, I've learned that my stylist is completely booked a full week in advance now, so impulsive haircuts may be a thing of the past for me.

So I have a full week to decide if I want to get my hair cut short or keep it longish. I'm leaning toward short, but with a whole week of waiting, I'll probably change my mind 50 times in the meantime! The problem is I like it both ways. It would be much easier if I liked it only long or only short. It's been five years since I went from long to short; I was on mat leave with Sophia.

2006 census

I've just finished our 2006 census questionnaire -- finally! We received a long form (I think one in five households did) and it took me a solid 90 minutes to complete. Thank goodness I already had some information compiled, such as our annual expenses for electricity, gas, and water. I'm also very glad I could do the census online.

I sure hope everyone answered YES to the question:

"Does this person agree to make his/her 2006 Census information available for public release in 2098 (92 years after the census)?"

If not, your great grandchildren (and beyond) won't be able to find you in the census when they're doing their genealogy research! I can appreciate this because I've searched census data and found key pieces of information about my ancestors.

Speaking of surveys, I have to somehow find the time this week to complete a long questionnaire from the NICU regarding Georgia's development at four months.

Odds 'n' ends

House hunting dreaming
I've been preoccupied lately with thinking about moving to a different house -- one that's larger and perhaps newer (maybe even brand new). I'm not in a huge rush though. I do think we're outgrowing our house, but it's still adequate in many ways. I fully expect to reach our 10th anniversary of living here which will be May 1, 2007. Besides, there's no way we could increase our mortgage by even one cent right now. That doesn't mean I can't dream about it though! It's good to start preparing anyway. There are many things we need to do in this house before we'd put it on the market and those things will take time (and money). There are many decisions to make too. Are we willing to move out to the 'burbs or should we stay in our more central and mature neighbourhood (which we love)? Should we buy a pre-owned home or should we build? How big of a house do we need? How much can we afford (a question we can't even answer right now)? Bungalow, split level, or two story? It's a good thing I kinda like thinking about this stuff! I have lots of research to do; right up my alley.
***
Too many ticks
There are too many ticks this year! Sophia and I have had two each since Wednesday. We've had several over the past few weeks too. So gross. I'm sure Sherlock brings some ticks into the house, but I think we also got some when we went for a walk in the park Thursday evening. It's kind of a waste of water, but we enjoy flushing them down the toilet. If you just throw them in the garbage, they'll get out again (I've seen them crawl out!).
***
Busy preschoolers
Sophia had a big day yesterday with a swimming lesson in the morning, preschool in the afternoon, and then a birthday party from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. It seemed all I did at home yesterday was feed Georgia and get everyone ready to go out several times. There's a boy in Sophia's preschool class who's in her swimming class and came to the birthday party too. His mom toted around an infant and a three-year old as well, so she had the same kind of day as me. We exchanged moral support.
***
Classic toys
Last evening after the birthday party, Georgia and I went to visit some friends as they were scrapbooking together. (Neil came in from the farm and took Sophia and Madeline home from the party.) We were talking about retro toys such as the hula hoops and lemon twister. I was reminded of another classic this morning: Spirograph. Sophia got one for Christmas and she also has another small Klutz version she got at Wendy's. She asked me to do some Spirograph drawings this morning and it brought back how much I loved doing that when I was a kid. I enjoy playing with her Lite-Brite too!
***
Antiques Road Show dilemma
Several weeks ago, I requested two free tickets for the Canadian Antiques Road Show which is coming to Regina May 26. There was a draw for tickets, so I wasn't sure we'd get them. Well, I just learned yesterday that we did! We have a bit of a dilemma though. The tickets are for the morning session, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Sophia also has a swimming lesson that morning and her preschool "graduation" party is that afternoon at 1:15 p.m. (I've also volunteered to supply crackers and cheese for the party.) Plus, though it doesn't coincide with the road show, Sophia has dance rehearsal for Mosaic at 6:00 p.m. (Hmmm, could we cram any more events into one day?!) We're not sure what to do. Neil and I would really like to go to the road show and we'd have to take Georgia along, of course. The only way we could go is if we find someone to babysit Sophia and Madeline in the morning (and ideally, take Sophia to her swimming lesson), and then we would leave the road show in plenty of time to take Sophia to her last day of preschool -- even if we haven't seen an appraiser by that time. Well, if we can't go, then we'll have two free tickets up for grabs.
***
End of the TV saga
After six weeks (minus two days) without our main floor TV, we finally got a brand new RCA TV/DVD combo from Visions on Monday, completely under warranty. I'm glad to have it. While I didn't miss the TV that much and I enjoyed the silence most of the time, I really do like having the option of turning on the TV, either for me or the kids.
***
Summer holidays coming soon
I can hardly believe Sophia has only two weeks of preschool left! She'll have three months off before kindergarten. The principal just called the other day to confirm that we want Sophia in the afternoon class (yes!). Sophia has only three weeks of Irish dance classes left too. Nine months of dance classes will end with a performance on each day of Mosaic, June 1, 2, and 3. They have two rehearsals at the venue before June 1 too. The first one is tomorrow. Both Sophia and Madeline have only three weeks of once-a-week swimming lessons left, then they're taking daily lessons the first two weeks of June. What else...? Only six more weeks of soccer. Wow, our family calendar looks pretty bare after June 20!

New photo album

I've posted a new album called April 30 - May 10, 2006. It's an assortment of photos I took over that period. We went to the farm the past two weekends. Shauna and Cole were visiting from Edmonton and Neil started seeding during this time. There are many pictures of Georgia (of course) and quite a few of the big girls as they went for tractor rides with Neil.

All in one day

Today, Georgia:

• found her toes while I changed her diaper,
• rolled from her back to her tummy several times, and
• laughed for the first time (I was kissing her neck).

May 11: I want to add that Georgia is trying to sit up as well. She hardly lays still in the bouncy chair anymore as she keeps excercising her abdominal muscles and lifting her shoulders off the back of the seat. Also, I put Georgia in the excer-saucer today for the first time and she really seemed to enjoy it.

Four-month checkup

Georgia had an appointment with her pediatrician this afternoon. Dr. Ruthnum said she's doing very well. She weighs 6.2 kg (13 lbs 10 oz).

I also had a couple of questions for the doctor:
(1) I asked if we can stop giving her iron (prescribed when she was born because her hemoglobin was low). He said there's no reason for her to need an iron supplement now (yay!); and
(2) I asked him to look at a little red bump on her lower left eyelid that appeared about a month ago and hasn't changed since. He looked inside her eyelid and it was very bright red at the spot where the bump is. He called it "hemangioma of infancy" and said that if it grows and begins to interfere with Georgia's vision, then they'll have to do something about it. He also told me to make sure he looks at it again during our next appointment in three months' time (unless we have other concerns in the meantime).

Now I've just been looking up "hemangioma of infancy" on the internet and there are some awfully frightening pictures. There are times when one should NOT look things up on the internet. This is one of those times. Trust me. Some of the pictures made me feel like crying for those babies and their families. Anyhow, I learned that hemangioma "birthmarks" typically grow very rapidly, so I'm encouraged by the fact that Georgia's little spot has not seemed to grow at all over the past month. I don't even want to think about it.

Four months old today

I simply adore this baby of mine! (okay time, slow down!)

Kidbits

On Easter weekend, I said to Madeline, "I can't believe you're wearing that dress again!" (a silly thing to say, really), and Sophia responded, "Well, she's a dress-loving girl, so she can't help it! And I'm a snake and dinosaur and frog-loving girl!"

When we were at the pool for Sophia's swimming lesson last Friday, Madeline got my attention and pointed to her flip flop floating in the middle of the pool. When I asked, "Why did you do that?!", she replied with a giggle and a huge smile, "Funny!"

When we're out in the van and Madeline sees a Canadian flag, she shouts very excitedly, "Canada!" and then, "I love Canada!" every single time. We can't help but smile, every single time.

A few days ago, Sophia decided she's not going to use sippy cups anymore. We agreed wholeheartedly.

Madeline had her entire swimming lesson this evening with the instructor (without a parent) and she was the only one in her class to do so. The instructor said she did very well.

Last night was the first time Sophia and Madeline slept in the same bed all night -- and they liked it! Around 5:00 a.m., Sophia started calling me and woke Madeline in the process. When I went to her room, Sophia asked me if I'd stay. I said I couldn't and then tucked them in. Without a word, Sophia started rubbing Madeline's back. I didn't hear from them again until it was time to get up!

Finally, this picture just makes me laugh:

Four-month immunizations

Georgia had two shots today: (1) Diphtheria, acellular Pertussis, Tetanus, Polio, Haemophilus Influenza Type b, and (2) Pneumococcal (the same shots are given at two months and six months; one in each thigh). She didn't cry at all for the first shot and then just a little with the second one. Sophia was very concerned that Georgia was going to cry a lot, so she was quite relieved. It's been over 12 hours now and Georgia seems to be doing fine so far -- no sign of fever or discomfort.

She weighs 6.03 kg or 13 lbs. 5 oz. (just over the 50th percentile) and is 24.75 inches long.

Speaking of Georgia... Within the past week, we've noticed that she:

• can hold onto things very well now,
• is trying to put everything in her mouth,
• has started drooling a little, and
• can move around quite a bit when laying on the floor. It doesn't take long for her to turn her body 90 degrees or to wiggle a few inches in the direction of her feet.

Also, Georgia has had three baths in a row with no crying! Not even for a second. What a nice change. She even smiled at me when she was in the tub today.

Letter from Dr. K

April 25, 2006

Dear Parents:

I did have a chance to go through Georgia's Holter which shows a satisfactory Holter tracing with heart rate varying from 48 during sleep time to 90 bpm. There was no evidence of any extra beats coming from the pumping chamber which is a good sign in this situation. Generally, I am happy with the Holter report and as planned, we will see her in the clinic in about four months' time.

Yours sincerely,

A. Kakadekar, M.D., M.R.C.P, F.R.C.P. (Ped.), F.R.C.P. (Car.)
Pediatric Cardiologist

[I'm a little surprised that her heart rate goes as low as 48 bpm, but not worried since Dr. K does not seem concerned -- and just look at all of those letters behind his name!]