What's going on with us you ask????

How much time do you have?? We've got things goin' on!

Firstly, Ivy is doing fabulously. I have some sweet pics to parade before y'all. She is fantastic. Sleeps, likes to just hang out on my shoulder, digs going for runs in the jogging stroller (more on that later). So first, her mugshots . . .



I LOVE this picture!11 This is the face she makes (and Leif and Hannah did it too) when she sees something or thinks of something 'curious'. She's saying "ooohhh! ooohh!!! what's up with that?" It's so cool.




Who couldn't enjoy this scrunched up face, mashed into the futon?




Yes, that is a smile. She doles them out very rarely, and only to Kit thus far, which is so sugary sweet of her.




And what is Kit up to you ask? Well, about 5 feet of mud and clay. He's making his own unstable mountain out in the alley. Some broad (psst, me!) convinced him that our tiny yard would better serve us as a courtyard, and he's on board with a no-grass look. So for the past 3 weekends Kit and his dad Brian have been digging up all the mud in our yard, having already ripped out all the grass, and eventually (like April) there'll be a fantastic Japanese-ish courtyard out there, complete with huge walls of bamboo, trees to climb, and a comfy swing with cushions. Perfect for this mama and her kids to lounge about in all summer. Then he'll start on the front yard, which is currently a mudpit already. Right now when the kids want to play outside they take their toys out to the sidewalk; nowhere else on our property is free of mud.


Leif and Hannah? Well, they're focused these days on lego. Building monsters and time machines and flying ships and robots . . . the kitchen table is covered in bits and no feet are safe from the possibility of stepping on a hard little cube of plastic in the darkness of nighttime. ouch.

And me . . . I'm doing well. I've run a few nights with a friend, and today have discovered a painful knee. This is not good. I got this same 'injury' the last time I tried running, so I want to address it asap and not have it develop and keep me rom running (today just walking in the house is painful). I'm excited because I can actually jog for a bit without passing out or developing a major headache. woohoo!!!! Kit's parents are trying out picking the kids up after class on mondays and keeping them for the afternoon. That means it's just me and Ivy all day Mondays. Can you feel how great that is?? It's great. And my mom very kindly loaned me her high-backed rocking chair, which is a life-saver for my spine, as Ivy, just like her siblings, only likes to rock to sleep between 7 and 9. Why, damned if I know. Knowing I can now actually rock her, not just propel myself back and forth on the sofa, destroying my back and shoulders nightly, is a blessing you cannot imagine. Now if I could just get downloads of my fave CBC radio shows, I'll be truly and utterly satisfied.


And many of you will be happy to hear we've finally, finally programmed our answering machine. no more fax tones. Nancy that was very creative of you to fax us a note after no one ever answered the phone! Now you'll hear my lovely voice. I can't guarantee we'll answer the phone, but at least now you can leave a message.


oh, Ivy calls . . . .

As promised . . .

. . . pictures!!!

First we have darling Ivy, asleep . . .
















Then we have the dearie awake!

















Here's how the kids spent Ivy's first week. Doing experiments in the kitchen. Kit gave them a bowl, a cup, the baking soda and some vinegar. Hey, at least the table got quite clean!






















And finally, Kit has expanded his alter-ego personalities, and the latest addition is "David", as in David Attenborough (famous wildlife . . er . . documentarist ?). (Previous list personas include "Francis" as in Ford Copolla and "Mario" as in Andretti). Here is his daring close-up of the evil heron that tried to get our fish. Our garden is a wildlife wonderland.


















gotta' go make dinner . . . .

C

Oh crap!!

I've just screwed myself. How?? Oh wait'll you read this . . . I agreed to join a local team of moms for the Times Colonist 10K Run in April. Crap crap crap!!! I am such a slacker, and while I can walk or cycle for ever, I can run like a block max. I printed out the training schedule (which starts tomorrow) and talked a friend (okay bullied her) into doing it with me. So this is it. I will either amaze us all, myself included, and become a 'runner' (a week after having a baby . . . stupid stupid stupid) or prove once again to be she who begins something with gusto, and then quietly drops out. Time will indeed tell.


More pics of Ivy soon. Kit filled our camera with shot of this heron who was hunting in our pond for our baby koi . . . but I'll get our true baby on here again soon, promise.


Big Mama

Ready to ramble?????

Fasten your seatbelts, I'm feeling chatty . . .

I've been told not to upload photos or anything, as Kit is currently in the throes of an online ass-kicking with Mike, I think they're playing Half Life?? I cannot risk slowing down our internet connection, horrors! I'm at a loss for giving a poop about these online death games. If it gives the man a chance to let his brain run loose, fine by me. I know he'll kick butt too, and that's always sexy. His handle is Mr. Snuggles.

Ivy is presently passed out in what is possibly the world's biggest stroller. Okay it's a pram from the UK, wicker no less. Hey, if it's my last baby, I can buy whatever I darn well want okay?!!! This thing is a monster though. Add to it the antique crib I found at the side of the road, and the $10 change table I picked up, and our house is suddenly cluttered. The me of 6 years ago, who'd not let having a child change our lives or decor, well, she'd shudder. But she'd also be jealous. A wicker pram, come on! It is too cool! If only there was no snow I could actually use the dang thing. Oh right, I'm not supposed to be walking.


That brings me to THE BIG DAY! Yes, tomorrow, Wednesday, is the big day. The day I take myself for a wee walk, to test the body and train it up to a regular level of activity. Up until I've been berthed up on our sofa, not getting up to do anything other than eat, pee and toss in a load of laundry. (Okay truth be told I took Leif to a movie on his birthday yesterday, and it was a hugely bad idea. But I felt so crappy about his birthday (more on this later), I wanted to do SOMETHING. It was not the right something, and I hustled my body home to return to my sofa perch. If you have a chance to see Happy Feet, save your money and bu a CD instead, or a coffee and muffin. That movie stank. But don't tell my midwife I went anywhere, she'd flip!). So I'm planning to walk the 6 blocks to my pal Erin's house, have a visit and then walk home. It is the training for the next BIG DAY, which is friday when I aim to walk to Family Storytime at the library, a distance of possibly 15 blocks one way. I hope one day of rest in between is enough. I cannot take much more 'bedrest'. My body is lighter and free-of-cumbersome-belly, I want to get out and take long strides. BUt I will bide my time, just take baby steps for now.


Speaking of birthdays, I seem to have lost all ability to remember anyone's. I used to be the type who had it all figured out a month ahead, had a hand-made gift all ready, always remembered to call and sing . . . now I am pathetic. I sent a friend a little gift thing, just for fun, in October, and she remarked 'is this for my birthday?". Her birthday was in July. Another friend wondered if I'd possibly died or taken gravely ill, as she'd turned 30, a big year, and not heard from me for A MONTH! And there's a huge list of people whom I've shunned in this way, even my brother! None of it is intentional, and I can't seem to fix it. I write it down, I tell myself to remember . . . and I can manage it until about a week before the event, and then Poof! The entire idea just leaves my head and I never remember until at least a month later. A woman I know has the right idea I think. She has a big party each January, for all her friends, and treats it as a big group party for all their birthdays. Cause she knows she'll forget them during the year. This holds appeal for me. I'm thinking an annual backyard martini picnic is in order, to cover all my bases throughout the year. I've forgotten too many too often to be forgiven anymore.


Ivy is not yet a week old, but I feel my old self returning, in the form of She Who Makes Lists To Cope. Faced with a body in need of fitness, 3 kids needing transport to various classes with varied gear, a new year of homeschooling starting up, to be juggled with running the house as usual, I'm finding myself composing lists in my head to write down later. Lists like 'healthy snacks' and 'minimal chores, and how to do them while teaching Leif about space: Sub-titled don't forget Hannah is showing phonics-readiness signs, must address this!' and the ever-popular 'places we can walk to, which means less messing with car seats'. My friend Sarah thinks we moms find some solace in these lists, as though if we just organise our time, we will find inner peace amidst the chaos. Kit recommends self-medication instead.


On that note, I shall drag myself to bed. Ivy's expressing a liking for waking up to party and kvetch at 3am and dragging it out until 4:30. I'm not going to let her get too cozy with that idea, so must rally my strength ahead of time and be rested enough to cajole her back to sleep in the wee hours. Wish me luck.

kisses
Big Mama

Did you feel the earth move today?????

We did! Our first born monkey turned SIX today!!!!! Can you believe it????? Look at how he has already perfected that teenage-male relaxed in bed in the morning thing . . . sheesh!

We're most pleased to introduce . .

. . . little Miss Ivy Kate St. Bright. She is so delicious . . .

Ta Da!!!!!!! We are magic . . . . . .

. . . for we have created a people!

I figure I cannot make you wait until we name her, because at the rate we're going it'll be a month from now before she gets an identity. For now she is babygirl two.

She made her debut Thursday afternoon at 2:05. I had spent the morning shoveling our walkway and those of our 2 elderly neighbours. Then I took our van in to the shop, and because of the snow I could not get a free cab to bring me home, so I walked. I think the walk and the shoveling had an effect; she was born a few hours later. It seems, unlike with Hannah's birth, that the amnesia is not kicking in fast enough to make me forget the pain and want to do it again. It's all very vivid, and we already have many recommendations for a great vasectomy doc.

Oh right, she weighed 8 pounds 11 ounces. A tiny one this time!

Here are some pics . . . . I hope these work . . ..



Our fabulous midwife Michelle with little blondie . .



















Dressed for the first time . . . only 24 hours after birth this time!













Hannah tends to the bare feet . . .



















Leifer learns the art of the diaper . . .

















Leif and Hannah are the coolest and sweetest siblings. Too bad I'm such a crank right now! They want so badly to help. She wakes up at night and Hannah comes over to pat her back while I cajole her into nursing. They race each other to grab diapers and one will inevitably cry when the other beats them to it (now what can I bring you?????? sob!). It is great, and I'm sure in a few days I'll be more open to all this great help. As long as the snow keeps falling Kit is stuck at home so I'm looking forward to a week in bed before I need to face getting 3 kids out the door in time for classes.

That's all for now. As soon as a name is chosen I'll let you know. Promise!


kisses
Big Mama

Aha!!!! I finally got it to work. Here he is, bloody gums and all. :)

We are so jazzed to announce . . .

LEIF HAS LOST HIS TOOTH!!!!!!!!! Yowza! It is so cool. Yes the pic is kinda gruesome, but it's not as gross as it looks. He was most excited to try some 'pig-meat' (yes our vegan past-selves are dealing with things) so I'd ventured out to our local butcher who only sells island-grown goods, and got a few slices of a nice freshly-dead mr. pig from Qualicum Beach. I think picturing me doing this would be tough for many of you who can remember me, 10 years past, saying "do you know what's IN that?" as you quietly ate your sub or pot pie. Well, you'll do almost anything for your kids, and if he wants to try 'pig-meat', then I'll find him the best source. (So when he's older and wants to try smoking pot I'll . . . .???? go find a dealer??? Nevermind, for another discussion).



Anyhoo, he was watching Kit prepare him a pig-meat sandwhich, and got most concerned that his tooth could fall out with his food and he'd swallow it. We cajoled him into giving it a good yank, and voila! Blood issues forth and he freaks out. :) But he mellowed at the sight of his tooth in his hand. You should see the one coming in behind it, it's MASSIVE! Kids with new teeth are like kids with bed-head. So cute in that kinda' dorky, kinda' gamey way. Like a stumbling colt, you know? He keeps his little bit of enamel in his little treasure box, amidst special drawings and bracelets, a chestnut and a lego dinosaur head.

Now when we see friends and Leif points out his missing tooth, Hannah is right behind him shreiking "and see I have a cavity!!!!!!!". oh lordy, the pride is overwhelming.

Allow me a moment here: He's about to turn SIX, has mastered cycling with no training wheels (off-curbs no less!), can whip around on his scooter without fear, spells like a demon, rattles off all the planets faster than I can and now he's lost his first tooth. How much more can a woman take??? He's huge! I can still remember walking around our old neighbourhood with him in the sling, with Kit, both of us so shell-shocked from the first few weeks post-partum, and shakily confessing to each other that we hate this, and we will never ever do it again. That one is totally fine with us both.

For those curious readers, child #3 is lying low for now, waiting for just the right moment to make their entrance. Feel free to place your bets.

Hannah's first show . . . .

Hannah is tapping into a new hobby, photography. She stands poised with the camera and says 'okay guys, make a funny face!' and SNAPS a pic. Here are some pics of her recent subjects, titled Daddy! Mama! and Shona!!!

EXTRA! EXTRA! This just in!!!!

"Committed non-violent Victoria mother gives swords to her children for Christmas. Friends are shocked. Children are ecstatic."

Okay, they're not real swords. They're made of styro-foam. They're silver. They're cool. And they're not guns. Okay by me.

The kids have been having sword fights since they got these things. Daughter will so nonchalantly walk up to brother, toss him his sword and say "en garde!" and smack him in the head with her sword. So he'll chop off her hand. So she'll try to stab him in the gut. If she fails, she'll stick the sword between her legs and say "Look at my huge stinky penis!". Oh man is it funny.

Family has gone home, and we are back to life as a foursome. kit and I are dividing our evenings between playing Blokus (so great!) and debating designs for our yard. Kit has a glint in his eye at the prospect of renting a Bobcat and digging up our entire yard in January. We're just negotiating on the logistics of putting cobblestone all over the yard, including under the climbing tree. I'm thinking if we bought the kids some cool skater helmets and forced them wear them at all times in the yard, it could be safe. Plans are still in the air, pics to follow.

Yes I'm still pregnant. ARGH!!!!!!!!! It's silly to even care or think about it, I've been later with each kid, so this one should be no different. But how to pass the time?? It's just not in me to sit and read, though I have now a stack of interesting books I'd like to know back to front. Yet I'm wasting time folding laundry and surfing eBay. Yeah it's kind of relaxing, but not really. And so any time I feel slightly sick, or have aches and pains, I think Ohhhhh, is THIS labour? When I know exactly how labour is, and it involves only insomina and a huge craving for pancakes. No nausea, no aches, no pains. Not in the beginning anyway. I need some distraction. You'd think 2 kids and a man off work would be enough, but they're regulars, I see them all the time. I could make a quilt, but I'm still short 3 squares. I won't name names. Let's just say I'm related to all the men in question, by blood or un-legal marriage. All the squares I've received are, as usual, so fantastic. Thank you!!!

Okay, I've procrastinated enough with you guys, I need to go 'relax'. maybe relax means watch home reno shows all day, or 90210 re-runs on TV Tropolis???? I bet it means go for a long walk, but I doubt that'll happen.

This entire post has been written to the background sounds of 2 kids screeching through the house, cries of "I cut off your leg!" and "I got you!" being flund left and right. Oh, and now the eldest of the tribe has requested some chocolate. Well, it's after 10 am, so why not?


C

For this, I have no witty introduction . . .

Hannah has broken her nose. There, I've said it. oh gosh it looks bad, but she's amazing, happy, calm, says it doesn't hurt anymore. We were coming in from the park yesterday, and she was indulging in her new passion, which is running. Very well, and very fast. She turned the corner on our front path and fell straight into the CONCRETE steps, no hands. Hit the bridge of her nose on the CONCRETE step. Screamed like you'd expect of such a nasty injury, none of this skinned-knee blubbering, this kid was hurting. Within an hour it was fat, and got fatter as the night wore on. A trip to emerg before bed confirmed that she was indeed safe to go to sleep and that there is nothing to be done but wait for the swelling to go down and then hope it healed straight. For now, she has the exact nose of the boy Rocky in that Cher movie Mask. And it's all purple and grey. It's hard to look at her sweet face, but she is her same old self. I just want it to heal and shrink. Now!

We had a lovely Christmas, and now have a great choice in games to play. The children got great games and I gave Kit a couple new ones, so between the 4 of us we're playing at the kitchen table alot. Both kit's parents and my Mom and Al were able to come to our house, and in a rare show of letting go of all control, I let Susan and Cheryl make everything for dinner. I bought ice cream for dessert. It felt pretty good, and I think I'm quickly going to get the hang of this whole 'letting go' thing. I made quick work of my remaining To Do list items, by simply crossing them off and deciding they weren't that important anyway. Yes!

But like all lessons, they aren't learned in a vacuum. Now I need to learn to NOT do things. As in relax, lie about, read for pleasure. So far it's not going well. The urge to go shopping is strong. I can only stop myself by remembering that I do not need anything, and that if I go look, I will go buy. So I'm staying put. Mom and Al are sticking around for a few days, and I hope to take advantage of Al's shared inability to relax/need to do things, and give him a few simple projects to work on for me. See how I can take my life learning and use it to help others? Gives me that warm fuzzy feeling.

I am listening to some great music these days. The new Be Good Tanyas, an Alberta band called Nathan and the newest Decemberists cd are all getting lots of play in our home. Kit is trying to devote more time to his own music playing. He has acquired a banjo and wants to get into some great banjo stylings, so he often plays along with the banjo parts in those cd's I've ben playing. Seems banjos are the new thing to play. I'm thinking I could try getting into the piano again. My Dad sent us an electric piano for Christmas, and I think if I can find the music for some artists I like online I could be motivated to plunk away at it a bit. We shall see if either of us actually stick to these whimsical ideas.

I have no pictures of Hannah's sadly inflated face, so don't ask.

Now that Christmas has somewhat 'passed', I feel I can no longer ignore or deny the fact that I'm due to have a baby in a few weeks. Whole thing is still just too 'far off', and I know it won't be real until I'm actually in pain. Then I'll click in and freak out. For now, I'm just staying in my bubble of denial. And still really want to eat snow or ice chips.


Sorry to end on a sad note, but I have some news. My friend Rachel passed away yesterday, after a nice Christmas dinner with her children and close family. She was at home in bed, with everyone there. She defied all odds by hanging on until Christmas, which was her goal. She'd been unable to digest any food after a tumour appeared in her stomach a few weeks ago, blocking her digestive tract entirely. She was a fantastic, loving woman who will be missed by many. If you'd like to see some gorgeous pictures of her you can visit the website her brother created for her: www.rachelslight.novatone.net/index.html I hope I can remember her each day, but I also know that as time passes, my own life will take over and she'll not come up as often. That is sad, and yet it is how life is. She leaves behind her dear husband Aaron, and two lovely children; Sumiko is 18 months and Cesar is 4.

I hope you've all had a lovely Christmas, wherever you are and whomever you're with. I hope to see each of you soon.

kisses
C

I have a few minutes free, thought I'd stay in touch. What can i say about our lives lately? Kit has finished work as of today, won't be back at it until end of January most likely. Yay!! The kids have been counting down the days until there were 'no more work days' for Dad. Now they can focus on counting down to Christmas. Oh man their stocking stuff is SO great! I love it! And their grandparents have gotten them great things they'll really like and use. Can you tell I'm excited for them to open their gifts? Kit has his usual challenge, I provide him with little to no suggestions of what I could use, or would like. It seems I've gotten so into de-cluttering and concluding that so much stuff just isn't worth the money to pay for it, that the result is a gal who has no ideas for basic stocking stuffers. What I want (peace, a healthy bod, a calm brain . . ) cannot be bought, so might as well fill my stocking with chocolate and martini fixings. My goal, upon the birth of this last critter, is to take up martini drinking, in a big way. Kit has long suggested self-medication as the only solution to coping with being home with kids all day (a job he is firm that he will never ever do) and I think 2007 is the year to try it out. Don't worry, it'll just be a fashionable pre-dinner cocktail. And pre-bed one.

We just returned from a short trip to Vancouver last week. Took fuul advantage of the holidas and the fact that my mom and Al still live in Vancouver = childcare. We went to hear The Decemberists at The Commodore, and it was great. I really really like this band. And I haven't been to The Commodore since a DOA concert in '92????? So that was a nice change. Kit and I so often do not go to shows together. I can't justify the cost of the ticket, we usually don't have childcare, and I'm happy to listen to music turned up loud at home. I'm glad we went, you should check them out. We visited with friends at went to a wee Christmas party (more childcare used there too!) ate at our fave family spot (The Naam on 4th) and just generally lived it up while we could. Took Leif to the Body World 3 show at Science World, he thought it was okay, liked the rest of the place more than the dead people. He found them 'not very interesting'. The wicked thing is now that we're back in Victoria, we have childcare here too, as Kit's parents have recently moved here. Not that grandparents in general are simply seen by us as childcare. but boy is it nice, having not really had any before. tomorrow we're off to see Casino Royale, something Kit has been wanting to see for awhile now. And yes, childcare has made that posible too. Is it clear how much I am all over the in-town grandparents? Woohoo!!

Big developments on the loose tooth scene. While the main loose tooth is still in fact in his mouth, there is now this huge, wide 'new' tooth poking up through his gums behind the current loose tooth. I know this is so not a big deal for you, but I think it's so cool. Little dude's losing a tooth!!!! And is typical Leif style, it is taking it's own sweet time to fall out. Did I mention his labour was 2 days? See my point?

Hannah, oh Hannah. She is hilarious. I don't know where she picks up her coy grin, her eye-rolling (okay that's from me) and her sashaying hips. She's 3 for heaven's sake!!!!! She is a sassy and firm gal, tossing out all her big words like 'certainly' and 'surely' and 'I didn't ask you I asked him!'. Between helping me out at every chance possible, and then telling me off and ignoring me like a pro, she's a keeper.

Me, I'm fine. On the whole I feel great. Honestly, I'm stiff as an arthritic old woman and tired to the core. But that's just how it goes, you know? Whether I manage a good night's sleep or not, my bones ache and my joints crack. But at least if I've slept I'm less of a bitch, so there's a bright side to it all. But I'm good; happy, healthy, moving along fine in my off-balanced bod. All I really want to do is eat snow. Wierd huh? it's constant lately, a desire for the cold chewiness (sp?) of a nice fresh scoop of snow. I'd settle for chips of ice to gnaw on, but my sad sad cracked and crowned teeth are evidence of my weakened dental strength, and I'm not willing to risk it. But I could eat snow all day, if only it was still snowing here. Tonight we got chinese takeout instead, which put me off snow for just a little while.

Okay, it's late now, I'm off to bed. (That's code for eat mandarins and surf for CSI re-runs. Tomorrow I'll be cranky and stiff, but tonight . . tonight the kids are asleep, Kit's out, and I'm in the mood to vegetate a bit. )


If my father or brother are reading this, listen up! I need your quilt squares dudes!!!! (If you happen to run into Kit's brother, give him shit too).


kisses
C

Back in October we had our 2nd Annual Giant Pumpkin Contest. We began with 5 teams, as usual, but 3 of them met with various problems that hindered any growth. That left us and Shona and Ryan to duke it out. Last year we ruled all with our 69 pound miracle. But this year they crushed us, with 82 pounds of pale orange flesh. Their daughter Isla brought her own wee triumph to add to the pile.

Next year we shall prevail . . . .

Master Leif and she who rules all . . ..

Mystery revealed . .

. . for many people, Kit is an enigma. Hardly anyone's ever met him, and more than once I've been accused of making him up. So here's a pic, taken by Leif, of my partner in the manufacturing of genius beings. He's a good guy. Anyone who lets his children play with his wife's prized camera while she's at work must be fairly relaxed, right?