Hooliganting: Milestones

Hooliganting: Milestones: Everybody has milestones in their lives. These are rites of passage and they are those events that are special to individuals. These are eve...

Milestones

Everybody has milestones in their lives. These are rites of passage and they are those events that are special to individuals. These are events that are unique to individuals. It is that unique experience that stands out as a highlight of a birth, graduation, job placement, special day, special memory and so on.

Have you ever thought about the impact that these milestones have? Yes, they are an individual thing that if an individual chooses not to advertise, can easily be overlooked and/or most often forgotten. Some people, like me, like to celebrate birthdays and recognize these rights of passage. I just finished throwing a massive party for my soon to be 6 year old. To me, these are joyous occasions that are a time to get together people that matter for an event that matters.

However, I have just had the pleasure of celebrating a friends birthday as well. We had a wonderful visit and a great evening out. I admit, I like to give presents that celebrate the individual. But I have to confess that I relied on facebook to remind me. While facebook seemed to serve as the main point of reminder for many to wish her a happy birthday...it seems that those people that maybe should have remembered forgot.

Just because birthdays and anniversaries and special days might not matter to some personality types, it would be wise to remember that there are those that genuinely need the acknowledgement. Sometimes, it is the ones that don't say much about events that appreciate it the most. Flowers, a card, a phone call that comes on time can be the best gifts. Spending time with someone can be a real treat and not a chore.

Take the time to build positive memories with each other. Simple things that can make someone's day brighter. Remember the milestones...and don't think that it doesn't matter. I have a family that doesn't do well with the dates but note that I do the best I can with the tools I have to remember your milestones. It also helps to post the reminders if they matter. It is also Ok to be upset when someone important forgets. I appreciate those little things. So, thank you to those that made my birthday special. Thank you to those that made little tich's day great and thanks for those things that are yet to come. I can't wait to make more special memories with all of you!

The Art of Shuffling Children

September is the month where parents have to put the summer languid days behind them and relearn the art of shuffling children. Some have to move more children than others. Admittedly, I am down a couple of kids this year but I still have my own to shuffle from place to place. With September comes school, school buses and bus stop shuffles. With September, comes the ever popular extra curricular activities. Everything starts fresh in September...except maybe the parents.

Shuffling children is an art form in this house. I thought I would make everyone else feel better when they ponder the madness I have voluntarily created. Why? We have northern winters which means in about 3 weeks, I can no longer do the go outside and play thing for another 6 months. So, to keep the munchkins active and not bored, I add stuff to do...other than homework.

7:00 am rise 'n' shine
7:30 out the door for Bus 1
7:50 back in the house for piano practise with child 2
8:20 out the door for Bus 2
8:40 go to work
2:30 leave work

then you either have option A = pick up child 1 from school or B from the bus
3:35 pick up child 2 from bus.
Snack children with prepacked snack
Activity (fit in piano, pottery, dance class or homework) depending on child
Supper either at home or downtown at studio - again depending on the day of the week.

4 days a week.
Plus add in my own exercise activities
Now add in birthdays and weekend gymnastics
Now add in swimming (January)

This makes me appreciate the fact that I seem to be able to accomplish this with little problem...so far.
But what will happen when it snows? The city is under construction and you can't get anywhere on time as it is. And...could someone tell me how many days it is until summer vacation? I miss summer. . .

Hooliganting: Those hot summer nights

Hooliganting: Those hot summer nights: Ok. I know that it is September and that it is really the onset of Fall. The leaves are turning colors and you can start to swish your way t...

Those hot summer nights

Ok. I know that it is September and that it is really the onset of Fall. The leaves are turning colors and you can start to swish your way through the leaves that pile along the fence line. But tell that to the weather. It is wonderfully hot and a balmy 28 degrees outside at 11 at night. Fabulous. There is a breeze that washes over your face if you are clever enough to be sitting outside and enjoying the northern lights.

Oh they are dancing outside at the moment...if you happen to live in the north.The sky is clear and the constellations are illustrated in technicolor. The lights are green tonight. It is wonderful to have this heat along with a light show.

Today was a gorgeous day. Work and I parted company for the day so I was able to spend the afternoon playing at the waterparks with friends. The buckets soaked the playmates as they tore around in various configurations of friends. I definately need to make a note to pack more for lunch in the future. I had no idea children could consume that much in such a short space of time. And I have been dealing with them for 9 years almost and still manage to be surprised on occasion. We packed up and left after destroying a tent from the wind and once the cheeks were looking more red from sunburn than heat.

Of course, no hooliganting adventure is complete without navigating construction to Tim Hortons. Iced Cap...Yum. But in this heat...does every single route, every single intersection, every place in town have to be under construction? All the workers were loafing in the shade anyway. Honestly, I have no need to sit for long stretches of time and not enjoy the heat. It is not the same in my car.

So, we wound up at home eventually. But really, the only issue with summer in September is that a) you are expected to go to work. b) the kids are back in school and are expected to be there if they are not ill. c) the activities have started and because we plan for poor weather, they are all indoors and d) you are expected to get sufficient sleep. Just exactly how do you sleep in this heat? I have fans, windows open...curtains drawn...but the stickiness is awful. I could be in Mexico for that is how hot it is. 33 degrees in the shade today....and that is Celcius.

For living north, this is a heat wave. It is later than anticipated, but I am sure grateful to have it. Just somebody...tell me how to sleep....Lol. Meanwhile, I am going to snag a drink, sit on the deck, watch the lights dance and relax. Hello summer...its about time...

Hooliganting: Gardens: That was silly

Hooliganting: Gardens: That was silly: Every now and then, I do something ridiculous that seems like a good idea at the time, but in retrospect was rather silly. Yesterday was one...

Gardens: That was silly

Every now and then, I do something ridiculous that seems like a good idea at the time, but in retrospect was rather silly. Yesterday was one of those occasions. You see, I happen to have a garden in the back of my house. It has some of the usual features of a garden. There is the back deck. There is a fence that is open chain link at the back and wood down the sides. I have a garden along the back fence with shrubs, a large corner flower patch and various planters. There is a side patch with gravel and children's play material. Of course, there is grass. This would seem average, would it not?

The problem with having a garden is that maintenance is required. It is not optional. The lawn needs to be mowed or you have by law harassing you. There is the weed control of the dandelions or you have by laws bothering you about that. The solution would be to turn the lawn into a maintenance free garden but then you will violate the architectural controls of the neighborhood. Yes, if you have a house, they insist that you look after it.

So there it was...the garden. It had weeds and they needed to be dealt with. I had procrastinated the lawn care and garden care for long enough. I got out my tools and the large garbage bag. I started with weeding the back corner and pulled some clover and dandelions from the grass. Then I noticed them. Along the side of the deck were the stinging nettles. Now, with small children running in the back garden, you make the removal of nettles a priority as small fingers and feet shouldn't ever have to come in contact with those weeds. (BTW I don't count the pansies that are running amok under my deck as weeds...they are rogue flowers.) So, I began to pull them with my little tool made for the job. I pulled and pulled and finally finished for all but one. The last one was in a different section of the garden so I reached to grab the bag.

Next time, I am going to look as I do that. I grabbed the largest nettle full force and it told me in no uncertain terms as to how displeased it was about being yanked from the ground. I had lovely welts and blisters all across my left hand. Nor was I wearing those useful things called garden gloves, thinking that looking for the ones I lost would take too much time and would be too much effort. Never again!

All I have to say is that was awesomely silly and I never did pull that last nettle (not to mention the rest of the weeds). And did I mention "OUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!" Lol.