Zoom

There it went. Another week.

It was good. Work was busy. Looking forward to being able to take a few days off once the busyness of February dies down. (Just as a side note: You don't have to wait until the end of February to do your RRSP deposits. I'm just saying.)

I changed my template to remind me (and you) that spring and summer really do exist and are just around the corner. That will be the extent of my comments about the weather.

Yup. We're doing okay.

Looking for a bargain

You gotta start them young if you're going to get them looking for deals in flyers.

Homegirl and a Baker

Lillian has been putting things on her head a lot lately. She found Trevor's hat and wandered around the house with it on. I found it funny - a soother and backwards cap.
Elijah has been doing a lot of baking lately. And by baking I really mean taking a bunch of ingredients (such as flour, cocoa, corn meal and spices) and putting it in a bowl. Lillian has been enjoying it just as much as she watches him from the side of the counter.

My Little Snow Angel

Entertaining themselves

Someone asked me at work today if I go home and crash every night. They wondered how I "survive" as a working mom. I actually had to pause and consider this because I think I survive the same way any other mom survives. I get up in the morning, get my kids ready and go about my day.

One thing I have learnt lately is that you have to take each moment for what it is. Impatience does not motivate children to hurry. (It actually doesn't motivate adults for that matter either.)

I am so happy to say that my kids love their daycare. The care that they get there is genuine. I have no doubt that my children are sincerely celebrated. I am also happy that Elijah's phase of not wanting to get out of the car to go to daycare was also just that - a phase. His latest phase is hiding behind the door when we get in the house. Then I have to go "look" for him. It's a thirty second effort that brings him joy.

And as the kids get older they are more able to entertain themselves. Elijah's has been enjoying a lot of Wii lately. Here he is playing MarioKart.

It warms my heart every time I see one of my kids reading a book and so it was with pleasure that I took this picture of Lillian. (I also really enjoyed the intense concentration involved in pressing the button to make the noise come out of the book.)

Time

A wise person told me recently that we become impatient with our children when we are dictated by time. When we have time to allow them to be curious about the world and exert their attempts at independence, it is much easier to be patient.

And so I have been practicing.

Time to head to work. Do I spend 10 minutes fighting with Elijah about his desire to play MarioKart on the Wii (thank you E and H for introducing this latest obsession to him) or sit down and race with him for the same amount of time?

Time for bed. Do I fight with him for half an hour about the need to have him sleep in his own bed or let him sit beside me in my bed while he sits like me and "reads" his book like me. (You turning your page mom?)

I heard someone talk about spending too much time on trying to improve on who you'll be in the future. Spend your time doing the best that you can right now at what you're doing right now and your future will as a natural result be improved.

Happy new year friends. May the perspective of time help you to enjoy the moments in your life a little bit more.