Thursday Thirteen: 13 not so great things about winter

OK, the title is deceiving. I couldn't actually think of 13 things about winter I don't like....so the last four are things I DO like about winter. But with daylight savings time started and the dark taking over at 4pm, I'm already feeling the winter blues descending from the low lying cloud cover.

Here's 9 things I don't like about winter, and 4 things I do like. Let me know if I missed any of yours (favorite or not).

1. Dark nights - it's 4pm and already getting dark, how depressing. If only my kids would go to bed at 4pm some days.

2. Grey skies and rainy days - the month of November can be miserable here in small town Canada. No more blue skies of the prairies.

3. Cold house. I think I've mentioned the heat war in our house. I'm always cold and my husband is always warm, so the house usually feels cold to me.

4 . Cold feet. It's nearly impossible to feel warm when your feet are cold - and hard to warm up when your husband won't let you warm your feet up against him.

5. Head colds - early November and I'm already hit. I really suffered last year with a stuffed head and am hoping this year won't be a repeat performance. Runny noses on your kids goes along with this one.

6. Bundling your kids - snowsuits, mittens, jackets, layers - going out takes forever just to get out the door.

7. Lack of fruit - back to apples, bananas and oranges unless you're prepared to pay a small fortune.

8. Less things to keep kids busy. The park just isn't any fun when it's raining and the winds are blowing off the lake. Plus with the early nights, I can't send them running out into the backyard after supper.

9. Hibernating friends. You see people less because they're bundled up in their houses and not out and about.

OK, here's the good things.

1. Tons of snow - I grew up in a skiing family, so at the beginning of winter, it's always a pleasure to see the flakes fall. Especially where I live, where the snow isn't accompanied with bitter cold temperatures.

2. Skiing - hasn't happened much in the last few years, but when it has it sure has felt great when I have made it out to the hill and since it's only 1/2 hour away, I have no more excuses this year with the kids both in daycare on Fridays.

3. Sweaters...if I had lots of money, I'd buy new ones every year. I always enjoy digging through my sweaters and finding ones I forgot I had.

4. Movies. The race for Oscar brings out the good movies and the summer blockbusters come out on DVD, so coupled with the fall season of TV, the evenings had some entertainment.

Thursday Thirteen: 13 things in a perfect day

So last Friday I had pretty much a perfect day. It's been a long time since I've had a whole day to myself. My husband headed out of town for work for a few days so I was totally on my own, but with the kids in daycare all day, I had 8 hours of time to do just what I wanted.


There are many things that would make up a perfect day, but here's 13 things I did on my perfect day last Friday.

1. Changed the biggest poo EVER. I know a strange way to start a perfect day, but it had to be done.

2. Got to snuggle in Baby Girl's bed with her as she was waking up. Kids are so much cuddlier as they're waking up than when they're already awake.

3. Helped a friend by taking her kids to daycare.

4. Hiked up the local lookout in the glorious fall sunshine and ran back down.

5. Felt good about spending 90 minutes in a meeting. My brain got a workout today too!

6. Saw a friend at the store and could spend a few minutes chatting about non-stressful things, for once.

7. Spent an hour in the library, just browsing!

8 & 9. Ate in a cafe by myself, reading my new book from the library and staring out the window watching the world go by.

10. Meandered the main street in our little town, shopping for new baby gifts.

11. Talked to my friend on the phone for the full "new baby" update. Her third child was born two days earlier.

12. Spent the evening painting note cards on the couch while watching videos.

13. Snuggled into my flannel sheets with Baby Girl who was keeping my husband's side of the bed warm.

Thursday Thirteen - 13 random questions lingering in my brain

It's been a painful week. Our dog was attacked by another dog while I had her out for a walk. I've experienced many public displays of hysteria with my children. And our little family enjoyed the craziness of a live Max and Ruby stage show in a nearby town.

In my travels this week, here's 13 random questions I've had floating through my brain.

1. Why is it that no matter how many kids you already have, people always ask whether you're going to have more?

2. Why do grandparents always take their grand kids out for fast food lunches? One of my clearest memories of my grandparents is our outings to McDonalds....back when the now medium drink was a large and a whole family could eat for under $10.

3. Why, when on uphill hikes, the mother will always carry the baby in the backpack instead of the father?

4. Why do kids hate having their hair washed?

5. How can kids (and dogs for that matter) run around all day and not seem tired, especially when by 3pm I'm usually ready for a nap? I'm always amazed that my kids are still running around screaming at 5pm when I pick them up from daycare on Fridays.

6. At what age to women suddenly decide they have to have short haircuts? You know the haircut I mean...short, grey, permed.

7. Why do children seem to find the most unreasonable thing to meltdown over...like how many french fries you're taking from them to share, or not letting them put ice in their own cup.

8. Why does dog hair only gather in certain parts of the house - like behind couches or under dinner tables? And why is it always in places where the afternoon sun likes to shine, just drawing attention to it?

9. Why are kids always raring to go at 6am whereas parents would love to sleep in until 10am? OK, maybe it's just me.

10. Why, if your dog bit another dog, would you give a false name? I'm bitter and hostile.

11. Why can I always fall asleep in the afternoon for a nap (even with the loudest outside noise), but at night the slightest sound drives me batty?

12. Why is it so difficult to stop eating chocolate and drinking caffeinated beverages? Ok - I know these items contained addictive qualities....it's more rhetorical.

13. What would my life be like if I hadn't gotten on a bus to Noosa Australia, 11 years ago? This is a "Sliding Doors" question....you know, how one instant in time could change your entire life. I'm sure glad I got on that bus.

Any crazy questions floating around in your brain?

(Belated) Thursday Thirteen: 13 ways I feel like a good mother

Two little kids sure can challenge you and there's lots of days I wonder how my "good mother" report card would measure up. Here's a list of 13 ways I actually feel like a good mother.

1. When Baby Girl wants to snuggle into my bed and sleep with me when my husband is away for work.

2. When I whisper I love you to Baby Girl when she's asleep and she says I love you back.

3. When my kids say please or thank you without prompting.

4. When my kids ask for more vegetables or express their preference for broccoli or red pepper.

5. When my kids ask for another story to be read to them or spend tons of time just sitting looking at their books.

6. When my kids say "I missed you Mama" after their day at daycare.

7. When my kids come up to me and just say "I wanna snuggle you Mama" - even when I know they're just playing me for something.

8. When I can turn their frown into a smile, or even better a laugh.

9. When we dance around the kitchen, laughing.

10. When my kids share with other kids, without being asked.

11. When my kids help me make fresh banana muffins.

12. When I find a new activity to do with my kids that they enjoy, like painting or riding their bikes.

13. When my kids seem really grateful for something I've done for them - even if it's gotten them a new movie to watch or a new toy.

Thursday Thirteen - 13 things that drive me crazy

This 13 was inspired yesterday by my children who were definitely driving me crazy. Here's 13 things that drive me crazy (there are a few more, but they're best left to the confines of my own mind).

1. my dog - her pacing when the wind comes up, her whining, her barking outside at anything and nothing

2. my son's high pitched scream that has suddenly appeared

3. the small dog sized dust bunnies that gather daily under my kitchen table, highlighted by the sun through the window, despite regular vacuuming

4. my son's eating habits - he gets up and down from the table, not eating, but having a fit every time you say you're taking his food away

5. my husband's snoring - no further comment necessary

6. my daughter's messy room - I know, it's only going to get worse (this is when I wish I had a digital camera to show you what it looks like)

7. when the top rack of the dishwasher doesn't clean - kind of defeats the purpose, when you have to hand wash all those dishes anyways

8. early mornings, in general - however life has gotten better now that both children will happily watch kids CBC for an hour

9. TV reruns - I know the season has just started, but I know that in another couple of weeks, there will be a few weeks of reruns, grrrr. On a side note here, how mad was I last night when I snuggled down on the couch at 7:59pm for an evening of Pushing Daisies and Private Practice, only to have the cable quit for the rest of the night.

10. my neighbour - nothing better than a 20-something, bike-riding single guy living next door that likes to throw very loud parties....my best friend and my mom can both attest to the sound level.

11. the local movie theatre - this one screen theatre always manages to play the worst current movie selection. My teenage babysitter would be rich if there was a good movie playing every week. Saying that we're going to see Heartbreak Kid on Friday...a last, a reason for date night.

12. my cravings for Coke and chocolate - my inner tube would be so much smaller if I could just kick these habits - and that's Coca-Cola, just to be clear

13. the heat and window war - my husband wants the windows open, I want them closed. I want the heat on, my husband wants it off....no matter the season, the battle continues.

What things drive you crazy? Any good ideas for a Thursday 13?

Thursday Thirteen - 13 countries I've visited

Well, next week I'll be on holiday....from life. My husband and I are packing up and thanks to my mother will be going away for 5 nights down to Las Vegas to bask in the heat and enjoy some solo time. On top of that, this weekend I am going to a Buddha Mom retreat with my Mom and sister to a nearby backcountry lodge. I'm hoping to center myself for the couple of days of parenthood between the weekend retreat and the high road to Vegas. More than anything, I'm actually really excited to get away from my computer. I'm addicted and overworked so the best thing is to get me right away from the bloody thing to relax and get rid of the stupid cough I've picked up.

In preparation for our travels, here's a list of 13 countries I've visited....

1. Canada - I've only made it as far as Quebec City, but hope to see the East coast one day.

2. United States - mostly the Western States, but did enjoy an expense paid trip to Florida with Mark's work one year.

3. Mexico - travel before and after kids on this one.

4. Fiji - first stop on my world adventures.

5. Cook Islands - glorious honeymoon

6. Australia - touched every coast except the Northern one.

7. England - this one will keep drawing us back to visit friends and family.

8. Germany - dear to my heart after my exchange student experience.

9. France - Paris - one of my favorite places and many other great stops.

10. Switzerland - a stop to visit friends on our European adventure

11. Austria - beautiful mountains, kind of remind of home now

12. Ireland - will definitely go back to enjoy the winding roads and friendly people

13. Spain - loved Barcelona, hated Madrid

Thursday Thirteen - 13 cool trips I've been on

I've been reading some blogs of friends who are not leading a mommy life and include exciting travels around the globe. So I felt inspired to remind myself of the travels I've enjoyed....here's 13 of the best trips I've been on.....

1. Family bike trip from Frank's Slide, AB to Cranbrook up to Golden and back to Calgary. Three kids (16, 14, 13), two parents, one tent trailer and 5 bikes. The kids got to ride the Canadian Tire 10 speeds, while Mom and Dad got the new mountain bikes. My brother and I rode almost the whole way. We still have stupid little songs from that trip that we sing to each other...."come on little sister" and "du bist ein verlorner". Family bonding 101.

2. Berlin Germany 1989, before the wall fell. It's pretty cool to think that I have a picture of myself against the Brandenburger Gate when it still divided West and East Berlin. I was 16, on an exchange program to Germany. Pretty eerie to walk the wall and see armed guards. Even crazier when the wall fell only a couple of months later. The whole exchange program trip was pretty cool too.

3. Vancouver road trip 1992. Four girls in a station wagon on a road trip from Calgary to Vancouver. The highlight being one night at "The Roxy" (how cliche) in Vancouver - lots for drinks and a late night down at Kits beach.

4. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - New Year's Eve 1995. Three girls on a holiday to Mexico. Roaming the streets, drinking margaritas in a bar owned by Calgarians. Lots of really silly pictures.

5. Mount St. Helen's Volcano on the 15th anniversary of its eruption - 1995. A fluke really, but what great timing. A last minute pit stop on a 7000km road trip with a guy friend through Montana, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Vancouver/Whistler and back to Calgary. I think we spent more time driving in the car than we did actually seeing anything. Good times though - a great way to celebrating graduating university.

6. Some remote bay on the island of Vanau Levu, Fiji. This one has lots of crazy stories. My girl friend and I were trying to find a friend of my uncle's where we were going to stay for a few days. We ended up having to take a ferry from one island to another, where we had to stay overnight in a local family's home because there was no accommodation, so we could take another smaller ferry BACK to a remote bay on the first island where there were two houses and no sign of people when the boat dropped us off and left again. Talk about naive travellers. But what a great couple of days we had once the people showed up!

7. Fraser Island, Australia - July 1996. The moon rose up over the Pacific Ocean. A dingo watched two backpackers' first kiss. It was love and still is.

8. Sydney, Australia - New Years Eve 1996. Nothing beats the fireworks over the Harbour Bridge in Sydney. My first NYE with my hubby.

9. Paris, middle of a heat wave, summer 1997. I fell in love with Paris on this visit. A romantic jaunt through the Chunnel while living in England. We walked and walked and walked. We did not go to the Louvre, but we did climb the steps of the Eiffel Tower. The heat did us in though. My husband suffered temporary insanity while waiting in line for his Big Mac and melted down when he got the wrong ice cream at the foot of the Sacre Coure.

10. London, England. A few different experiences here. A night of too many cocktails at the Long Island Ice Tea Bar (perhaps an early indicator of my soon to be life without alcohol) with my sister who came to visit for reading week. Another visit with two girl friends included a very expensive cab ride to get us from the bus station to our executive apartment and to the theatre district to see Jesus Christ Superstar in time. My husband had to fend off a thug one time when he was taking my picture in Piccadilly Circus - the guy came up to him and said "give me a quid or I'll punch you in the face". Needless to say, he gave him a pound.

11. Amsterdam on Queen's Day - April 30, 1998. My husband and I booked our European adventure and randomly picked the busiest day of the year - the Queen's Day holiday - to arrive in Amsterdam. The day is celebrated with everyone selling their household junk on the streets and anything left over is just left for the city to clean up. Talk about a dirty introduction to a dirty (wink, wink) city. Thankfully we had Dutch hosts who secured a hotel for us to stay in and gave us the city tour.

12. Cook Islands, 2000. What a fantastic honeymoon. A long way from home. Sunshine. White sandy beaches. Newlyweds.

13. Las Vegas, 2005. Girls trip to Vegas. 4 days away from the responsibilities of motherhood and life. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, right?

Thursday Thirteen - 13 Things I wish I could do today

I've caught on to this fun practice done by many bloggers. I've done a couple of trial runs through notes with my friends on Facebook. Here's my 13 for today....13 things I wish I could do today.

1. sleep in.....remember the days of 10am wake ups?

2. go for breakfast (mmmm, eggs benedict) and not have to share any of my food

3. go to the movies - a movie I want to see, not just whatever is playing at the one screen movie theatre here in town

4. have a conversation with any of my friends I haven't talked to in a long, long while.....several friends come immediately all come to mind - uninterrupted

5. find a way to make my son happy more than 10% of the time - you've seen the picture of his current mood

6. think of something new and exciting for me to do with my kids - I love summer, but already the beach is wearing a bit thin

7. step on the scale and see my weight 10 lbs lighter - a girl can dream, can't she?

8. open my mail and find a big unexpected cheque - spending money for our upcoming trip to Vegas

9. tell my mother off for how she hurt my feelings yesterday (and many times before that)...this one is just for my blog, since she's one of my friends on Facebook

10. find the time and motivation to tidy up some stuff that is just lying around - yes, there are still boxes from moving in April sitting in my bedroom

11. get paid for all the extra curricular work I've been going lately

12. sit at a cafe in Paris having a leisurely meal, then stroll around the city holding hands without a care in the world - ok, my dreams are getting more ambitious

13. lie down to go to bed at night and be able to fall asleep instantly - not process every thing that happened that day and is going to happen tomorrow

What do you wish you could be doing today?