Family (Anna)

Having a wonderful visit with my parents, Emmy's Granny Heath and Grandad. And, only two more sleeps until Caroline gets home from Europe!

I am like a Mumma bird, with a strong desire to have all my chicks tucked up safely in the nest.

Other stuff (Anna)

Since I posted the 1/2 birthday photos yesterday, I've been thinking about all the things that Emma loves that aren't captured in the photos. Just a few in addition to the photos...dancing (together and by herself), doing somersaults, being swung upside down, swinging on the swings, singing, building towers, playing with her animals, baking cakes, arranging plastic tubs, hiding in small spaces like blanket forts under the dining table, playing with her friends, helping to cook and do housework, spinning in circles, jumping on the bed, walking and running in the forest, being carried in the carrier, her stroller, playing in the bath, going naked, having picnics, swimming and floating, talking to her grandparents on Skype, reading reading and more reading, playign with her magnetic letters, playing in the playhouse, riding ont he back of my bike wearing her helmet, playing with cars and construction toys, watching Thomas the Tank Engine and Caillou, raosting marshmallows over a campfire, playing music, paddling at the beach, and and and...

In fact, there is so much she loves and she just epitomizes joy and life. I love that about her.

Tonight, as we got ready for Granny Heath and Grandad's arrival tomorrow, Emma danced around the house singing "Ohhh, ohhh, the pokey pokey. Ohhh, ohhh, the pokey pokey..." It's very cute.

In other news, the fact that Emma's daycare teaches her Americanisms is driving me nuts. I have a daughter who says "garbage can" instead of "rubbish bin" and when she recites the alphabet, I have to correct her "zee"s to "zeds" so much that I've almost started referring to monkeys as "chimpanzeds." (Canadians, for the record, say "zed" no "zee" so this is a more legitimate complaint than most of the other things, which are actually Canadian and which I am simply going to have to get used to.)

Emma is 2 1/2

Tomorrow, Emma is 2 1/2. We thought we'd celebrate it in photos that capture some of Emma's favourite things, favourite toys, favourite activities, favourite expressions and favourite summer clothes. (apologies for the formatting issues - I've tried to fix them, but haven't managed it.)

For the camera...

Perpetual Motion...

Exploration...

At Play...

Snuggles...

Reenergizing...

Daughter of a writer (Anna)

Emma has decided that the word "art" is short for another word...tonight, after proudly finishing a painting, she said: "Look, Mumma! My article!"

Quote of the day (Anna)

"I want to learn to drive a aeroplane so I can go to the airport and fly all the way to pick Mummy up in Cop-e-gen [Copenhagen]."

Sleepless on Sunday (Anna)

Universe, why dost thou spite me?

On weekdays, when we have places to go and people to see, Emma wakes up slowly.Sometimes, we have to wake her up for breakfast. The alarm can go off, we can put some laundry in, wonder around and talk, go in and stroke her back and even pick her up and she will happily go back to sleep at the slightest opportunity. I've even see her come downstairs, climb on to the couch and go back to sleep. And it's not unusual for us, when she is up early, to tell her to go back to sleep and for her to say "OK" and curl up and do it.

And then on a Sunday, when we have a much later commitment and can take our time - and could easily have SLEPT IN and I'm craving more sleep - she gets up at 6.30 and no matter what I do I can't get her back to sleep.

How is that fair, I ask you?!!

Saturday (Anna)

Day 6 without a fridge/freezer. Ho hum. It lost its novelty around...oh, I don't know...6 days ago.

Day 1 without Caroline, who is off jaunting around Copenhagen and Germany for two weeks. All right for some ;)

And what did I spend my afternoon doing? Like any self-respecting parent, I spent the afternoon in the pool pretending to be a "seed" while Emma poured water all over me from a watering can to make me "grow" into a "huge, beautiful orange flower." I hope it's not a sign of what might be waiting for me in my next life; if all flowers feel as waterlogged as I felt, I think I'd like to skip that one.

Emma (Anna)

I'm all for inquisitiveness, what ifs and idle curiosity, but I must admit that Emma's latest question makes my heart stop a little: "Mumma. Is it safe to climb out the window?"

When I adamantly explained that no, it is not safe and she must never, never, etc, etc. she said "If I falled, I get a owie and I need a bandaid?"

Emma LOVES bandaids. So, the answer is categorically no. If you climb out the window and fall, you will not need a bandaid. Ever. Ever.

Labour Day weekend (Anna)

Well, we didn't get to go away for as long this weekend as we would have if our fridge hadn't broken (grrr), but we did have a fantastic getaway.

We spent the night at a little seaside resort about an hour from home. Company was great - just the three of us - and involved lots of talking and giggling. Highlights included watching live crabs being caught, sampling the local fish and chips and icecream, wandering along the street, swimming, and spending hours on a beautiful beach collecting rocks. Not a bad few days at all.

On the way home, Emma offered to drive. When she found herself stuck in the back seat despite her kind offers, she decided to be an active back-seat driver. Her commentary went something like this: "Red says 'stop'. Green says 'go'. Yellow says 'Slow down!' Mummy - go. Go Mummy, go. Where did the red light go? Green says stop. Nooo!!! Green says go. Red says stop. Too fast, Mummy. Slow down! That was a big bump, Mummy. I seed a truck. I drive the truck. Stooooop!!!! Mummy. Why we waiting? We waiting for the traffic? Is it a red light? When it go green? When it go green, Mummy? When it go green, Mummy? It green!! Go, Mummy, Mummy, go, go, go. Where we going? Slow down! Can we go 'weeee' down the hilll?"...

We have learnt....(Anna)

We have learnt that 24/7 emergency fridge repair technicians don't return calls on a sunny Sunday morning on a long weekend. No matter how much their websites claims to be available immediately, and no matter how many reassurances they offer on the messages that they call back within 1/2 hour.

But why would you be calling an emergency technician on a long weekend? I hear you cry.

Well, 'cos our fridge and freezer is broken. Because we've had water all over our floor, and because we've had to throw out hundreds of dollars worth of frozen and fresh food (frozen meals that keep us sane on a busy weekday, chicken and fish that we buy in bulk to save money and a whole variety of fresh vegetables and fruits, not to mention all of our refrigerated (sp?) condiments, salad dressing, and other miscellenaeous items). Not that I feel the need to itemize the loss or anything.

It's painful! But it's not as bad as the last time we lost a fridge. It was a different fridge in our old apartment. Emma was just a couple of months old, and when we were in danger of losing the freeze of our freezer, we were also going to lose pints of expressed breast milk (which, if you're ever in the situation, is way more precious than blood). I remember calling our landlord pretty much in tears and begging for a repairman so we wouldn't lose the precious milk. She found a spare freezer for us in an empty aparment, so it wasn't quite as bad as it could have been. But, boy!

But, the good news (and yes, I'm stretching to find some good news) is that we may have a budding repair technician on our hands. When Emma found out the fridge was broken, she went over to it, gave it a big hug and said "You feel better now?" Admittedly, the technique is unconventional and she may have difficulty gaining full accreditation, but, hell, at least she's trying something, which is more than can be said for the professionals!!

Quote of the day (Anna)

For one reason and another, Emma has been catching buses a lot recently. Today...

Emma: Where we going?
Mumma: We're going to the pool.
Emma: We going to walk there?
Mumma: No, we're going to drive there.
Emma: Why? Is the bus broken?