Getting Lost On My Own Terms.

It's Easter weekend.

I haven't stopped moving.

I am pooped.

But it's been rich.

There's no denying that.

(Jenna and Mike. Love them. We always have our best meals with them.)

(Making sure the earplugs don't come out.)

(My Rockstar Hubby. So Sexy.)

(Loving my mother-in-law's amazing camera. Can you see how much fun I'm having?)

(We had planned on The Prince attending university but it appears that he has a natural talent for plumbing.)

(Talia and her BIG puppy Pat and little puppy Coco.)

We have flown kites and tackled the playground.

We've built sandcastles and lost buckets.

We've chatted with neighbours and planned out the garden.

We've gone to gigs and BBQ'd steaks for the first time this year.

We've worn flip flops and gone without sweaters.

We've been to farmland and bought fresh eggs.

We've run in fields and pretended to drive tractors.

We've held baby chicks and poked bunnies.

We've thought of Good Friday and Easter Monday and all it means to us.

We have sucked every bit of fun from every day for the last week and now every bit of my energy has been sucked dry.

xo

Rockstars And Jelly Beans.

Lately I had given up on making dinner when The Hubby was working the later shift or at a gig.

A hot stove or oven was like a magnet, The Kiddos inevitably wanted to play RIGHT IN THE KITCHEN the second it was on.

But after watching Jamie Oliver on Oprah the other day, I was inspired. (And who wouldn't be, that man is wo-n-derful!) So out came the butter knives and two potatoes and voila! Entertainment and a home cooked meal! The Princess lost interest after 5 minutes and then went off to find a new pair of socks (happens multiple times a day) but The Prince, Oh The Prince, he was completely absorbed in his cutting and dicing for 35 minutes!

Genius. Sheer and utter genius.

While I was on a roll being super mom out to conquer the world and all, I decided that it wasn't unfathomable that I could manage TWO children at a concert. Right?

Sunday night came and since The Hubby was doing setup and loaning gear, myself and the mini munchkins were VIP guests for the evening (along with all the other VIP guests).

My children are kind of known for their energy and vivaciousness, as well and their superb ability to out run any adult within a five mile radius, but you play music in front of them, especially at higher decibels, and they become the most well behaved youngsters on the planet!

Put on a sports game for them and their attention wains within seconds. Put on a rock show for them and they become students of ROCK. It's so intense that I definitely see rockstar camp in their futures.

I was thrilled that The Hubby does "all that jazz" because it meant that I had the joy, nay, the privilege of enjoying the warmth of indoor heating while all other spectators froze in the nasty MARCH rain.

Later though, I had the "joy" of smelling 1200 wet teenagers wafting through my nostrils. Life has a way of getting you, eh? (Yes, eh seemed appropriate here. Deal with it. I AM CANADIAN.)

And The Prince found the treats set out for the band and inhaled (literally) three red jellybeans...=...Jumping off the walls for the next few days. DAYS I TELL YOU.

The most lovely moment of the weekend though, beyond middle of the night coffee with friends and potato chopping with The Kiddos and a Starfield concert, was waking up this Monday morning to The Hubby making me bacon and eggs... Love him.

Chandeliers, Pearls And Ribbons, OH MY!

The Princess has picked out her own clothes lately.

She empties all her drawers into the middle of her bedroom floor, looks for her Mini Mouse night shirt and her Disney princess sweat pants.

Unless I hide that shirt and those hot pink pants.

Then she puts on dresses and tank tops and skirts and walks around like she's practicing her final entry onto the runway after her very own fashion show.

Okay, maybe she's simply being a 2.5 year old girl.

And maybe I'm projecting.

But I'm fine with that.

Cuz she'll have lots of practice walking out with me at the end of MY fashion shows.

Okay, maybe I'm being a 25 year old girl.

And maybe I'm dreaming.

But I'm fine with that.

Come on though...

See those boots.

Those fuzzy pink boots that are the most impractical thing to wear in a Canadian winter, yet are the most worn thing in her closet.

I went grocery shopping the other day and came home to find her in the studio with The Hubby and only in a pullup with her spring jacket and these fuzzy boots on.

It was crazy cute.

She also picked out these pink polka dot earrings all by herself. Keeps me laughing because she can't really see them as well as she'd like in the mirror so every time she passes her refection she contorts her body to admire her newest studs.

(Nothing like her mother of course. I couldn't possibly have shown her jewellery and told her that to be my daughter she must be borderline obsessed?! Me? Never.)

Whenever I read a beloved magazine I wish that someone was beside me to page-shop, critique and oogle all the fab finds I see...

Then I remembered my trusty iPhone and decided that YOU (yes, poor you) must be forced to be my companion through magazines 1-4 where I snapped pics of all the things I am lusting after this (soon to arrive) Spring.

Heidi Klum is just thrown in there because I have a massive crush on her and want to be her best friend and call Seal "Buddy".

It'll happen.

Unless she sees this...?

I would offer you a cup of white tea to go with the drool pouring out of your mouth, but I am here and you are there.

And to prove what a fashion love I have this is a glimpse at my jewellery collection.

Most pieces I snatched up on a dime (or two) and hoarded over the last 7 years.

This is only 1/8th of my options.

Still I only wear a couple of pieces a week.

I have small children.

I am planning to be the most adorned mother at school pickup time when the kids are a little older.

I will get my fix. Even if I'm at swimming lessons wearing it!

The love of all things sparkle and shine can't end simply with my ring collection.

It is on the walls of my house.

If I had my own way, we wouldn't even have a ceiling fan in the kitchen. We would have some obese chandelier and we would rest our plates on top of the light bulbs.

The Hubby says he draws the line there. (We don't have central air. He thinks that removing our only source of air flow during summer heat waves would be unwise.)

I think that the view would be worth some extra sweat.

I think I'll wear him down... Someday.

And this pic? Well it was just to damn cute not to share it.

Now after crawling in the front door at 4:00am after a ladies night out and getting up at 7am... I can't function.

Off to snuggle The Princess asleep beside me. Pink Polka dots included.

Warner Bros. Forever.

We have fought the springtime battle of the nasty cold/fever for over a week now. Today we emerged from the cocoon of the house and ventured into the world beyond.

Adding as much cheese as I can muster up on severe sleep deprivation, I felt like I became a little more of a butterfly just by association.

Not only did I get to laugh and gab with a group of women who amaze me every time I see them (MOPS) I also went to lunch at a friends home with them afterward.

I had been starting to feel like a deflated basketball... still in the game but losing the bounce-back.

They were air I needed today.

We run on empty so often as mothers, even more simply, as females. We give because it's the right thing to do. Because it's a pleasure to care for someone else, and because it's what's required.

But today we were all just a bunch of women sitting around a kitchen table giggling about vasectomies and pregnancy cravings and potty mouthed parents (my major downfall) and guilt over the daily F***ups we all have.

The group of us shaved off another layer of misconception that we like to imagine is truth. And it was amazing.

It's always amazing when you can be real with someone.

It's always amazing when you can be there for a friend. Heck, even for a person who isn't yet a friend but deserves tender loving care.

I find it to be one of the highest honours to be able to stand beside someone walking through the fire.

Especially considering in our little corner of the world we have collected the GREATEST women who exist.

For instance:

My neighbour who on top of raising her wonderful son, travels for a job she is passionate about and relentlessly will work to find a remedy for The kiddos when they're sick via thousands of text messages back and forth. No matter where she is in the world. She is the most dedicated neighbour and friend. (And I am super duper lucky that she's a great homeopath.)Texting her right now actually.

My Sis who dotes on her niece and nephew endlessly and who sent me a note about a quote that fit us perfectly... "You can kid the world but you can't fool your sister." The most true statement ever. Ever.

My Emma who overnight has gone from one job to top job not only because she is capable but because she is so lovely that she befriended her interviewer in a matter of minutes. Almost a decade later and she's still my rock.

My Tals who tonight made a hard but mature decision to trust her instincts in the face of heartbreak. She has more guts than she knows.

And though I would like to continue, I cannot capture the depth of what I am trying to say.

I will be a better woman tomorrow, for the love I had today.

And also if I get a good night's sleep.

But that's looking less likely.

After my last post I made a truce with my house. And the toy bins.

If I can get a couple of evenings a week to relax in a tidy home, I will give up on trying to maintain that high level of organization throughout the week.

It's a fair deal.

I had my lawyers approve it.

They decided my sanity got the best end of the bargain but the bins are satisfied too that their load is lightened for a few bonus hours.

In the meantime, while I wait for the papers to be drawn up regarding the peace treaty with the laundry, I am thinking that my brain is slowly unwinding like a spool of wool and I suck at knitting so it's time I stopped the spinning.

My Dad used to tell me that if I crossed my eyes long enough they would permanently stay that way.

As a mother I now know why he said that.

It was to stop us from looking like idiots in public.

I think I'm going to tell The Prince that if he doesn't stop screaming "MOMMY" his vocal cords are going to permanently stick on that word and he'll never be able to say "I want a cookie" again.

Mwahahahaha.

The evil genius also comes out with only 2-4 hours of sleep. And with the help of other conniving mothers.

Yes, on top of (cheesy) blossoming like flowers in each others company, we plot ways to torture our spawn and TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD NARF! (We're Pinky we're Pinky and the Brain Brain Brain Brain.)

On that note, my rational has taken a back seat and I should go brush my teeth.

Goodnight.

Or not.

Ugh.