Holiday Weekend

We had an absolutely beautiful Easter weekend here in Ottawa. Temperatures reaching the upper 20s in the first few days of April. Sunscreen being deployed. Sunhats donned. Smiles and joy on the docket as the hustle and bustle of regular life took a back seat to just chilling out and enjoying each others company.

I find I have so little stress and anxiety on long holiday weekends, it makes me think that perhaps we should lobby to have a few more thrown in annually for good measure.

Since a couple of us were slightly under the weather this weekend, we decided to opt out of some of our bigger plans of heading downtown, fighting the line-ups at the Experimental Farm, or hitting one of the capital's national museums and just lay low around the 'hood.

It was the best decision we've made in a long time. Here's a quick glimpse.

If Thing 3 in her Easter dress can't plaster a smile on your face, I doubt anything will.

I plan on showing this photo of Things 1 and 2 together to anyone who gives me the stereotypical "what were you thinking having them 18 months apart?" third degree. And, yes, I get that a lot.

The three Things. United in their solidarity.

The beauty of a little sister who looks up to her oldest brother is unimaginable.

My three Things - filling my heart with a joy I never could have believed possible.

Steering His Own Path

A warm, spring-like breeze whipped across my face as I crooked my neck to turn around and see what all the commotion was about.

"DADDY'S COMIN' " Thing 3 screamed at the top of her very tiny, but surprisingly loud, two-year-old lungs. This was her regular 5:00 p.m. ritual. To ensure that everyone in a 500 yard radius knew that her father was returning home from work for the day.

I could see my husband's silhouette walking toward us in the western sunlight. (Western meaning he was coming from the west, not that we live in the west. Because we don't. We live in Eastern Ontario.)

I held my breath for a moment as I watched Thing 2 glance down the street and see his father walking toward him, halfway down the block. He looked at me, for encouragement, for direction, waiting for me to guide him and tell him what to do.

"You can do it," I said softly. I nodded, my non-verbal cue for him to give it a go.

He pushed several times with the tip of his left brown, velcroed, Geox sneaker and then ever-so-cautiously jerked that left foot onto the black, rectangular bike pedal. The bright green bike's handlebars wobbled like a Weeble for a brief second, and then my boy's strong, firm, four-year-old arms steadied them. His tiny legs began to pedal and he drifted down our crescent only looking up to meet his dad's face as it practically exploded with pride.

Things 1 and 3 sprinted down the street behind their two-wheelin' brother as fast as they could. My heart was melting, which somehow made their screams of "HE DID IT!!" and "WE LOVE YOU AND ARE SO PROUD OF YOU" somewhat inaudible.

His father's hug and approval and encouragement made the hours we had spent that afternoon, falling off the bike, getting back on the bike, kicking the bike, screaming at the bike . . . unequivocally and completely worth it.

You all know that I worry about Thing 2 because he is the middle child. And it's for that reason that I really revel in the little glories and successes my little man encounters. Like riding a two-wheeler bike, on his own, with no training wheels, at four-and-a-half years old. At an earlier age than his older brother had.

Yup, that's my boy.

WW - "Winter"

WW - Halloween Never Ends Around Here

Back in the Saddle

While it's been what seems like an eternity since I last blogged, I figure there's really no better way to get back into it than to dive in head first.

And dive in we have.

We are all settling into a very new fall routine. Thing 1 is in Senior Kindergarten this year, while Thing 2 has started his first year of public school and is in Junior Kindergarten. The brothers take the bus together each morning and attend school for half a day, returning home on the bus before lunch time.

Let me clarify. This "half day" connotation is a bit strong in my opinion. My kids get on the bus at 8:00 a.m. (which truly feels like dawn for a family who has not needed to get up and be anywhere at 8:00 a.m. for the past five years) and then come home and make their way down the steps of the big yellow school bus at 11:00 a.m. That is THREE hours . . . not a significantly long time for a busy mom to accomplish any number of items off her to-do list. With an extremely active 20-month-old little girl at her side.

But in all seriousness, it is an unquestionably easier schedule for me to handle than what I had to deal with last year. The boys go to school in the morning, I have some alone time with Thing 3 every day, they return home in plenty of time for us to all eat lunch together (and not so rushed each day, like it was last year), and we all have some down time in the afternoon while Thing 3 takes her nap. As she is a bit older now, she is flexible enough to nap a bit later in the day, so it's even possible for me to take the kids out for a couple hours after school before she needs to rest.

The boys seem to be doing very well - I couldn't ask for a better beginning to the school year. I was nervous with Thing 2 starting school so young - he is only three years old and does not turn four until later in October - but he has exceeded all my expectations and is adjusting to his new routine like a true champion.

That's not to say that we aren't tired. The boys are EXHAUSTED by the end of the day and after nearly a month of school are still not entirely used to getting up so early. I am continually nudging bedtime back a bit more each night, and they are out cold like wet noodles the minute I turn the light off in their room.

And after spewing on about my beliefs on the importance of not over-scheduling young children in extra-curricular activities, it seems as if the boys are this fall enrolled in swimming lessons on Monday nights and Thing 1 has started Beavers on Wednesdays. Am I hypocrite? Yeah, maybe. But so far, so good, and I have to admit to liking having a couple evening activities that really help pass the time a little faster as the colder weather approaches and the evenings get shorter and darker.

So, I introduce to you after a long summer hiatus, Thing 1 and Thing 2, on the first day of school on their way to the bus stop.

The perfect "first day of school" shot was interrupted by the Things complaining that the sun was in their eyes.

As things have worked out, we tend to walk to the bus stop as a family of five because Daddy catches his bus downtown at the exact same time that the school bus comes.

I'm sure this will get pretty old, pretty fast when the snow hits in January, but for now we quite enjoy our little morning excursions.

Easy Toddler Masks

As the end of the school year begins to close in on us, I can hardly believe ten months have passed during which Thing 1 has been in junior kindergarten every single afternoon. Over the course of the past year, I have grown to truly appreciate the one-on-one time I spend with Thing 2 each afternoon between 12:15 and 3:15.

He is very accommodating and always gives me about an hour to "get things done" - to work out, chop food for supper, tidy up, or spend time online. The rest of the time I try to devote to him. He goes in and out of craft phases, although lately he has been anxious for our time alone so we can create something new together.


I stumbled upon a site at which I found great templates to print out and create toddler masks.

I tried a variety of techniques, all of which totally failed before I finally tried this one from Enchanted Learning. The masks are easy to print out and fit on a little one's face perfectly. My printer was having a difficult time spitting out my card stock, so instead I printed the mask template out on regular paper and then traced it on card stock. Cut it out, fasten an elastic around the back and VOILA! Happiness in two seconds.

I was then required to make one for his brother - which was a lion's face - but it met an untimely demise at the fate of Thing 3's strong little fingers.

The mask Thing 2 is modeling is called "Robot". After I took the photos he decorated it and added some glitter to really make things funky.

PSF - The World Outside My Window

Why is it that the pictures that bring you the most joy often come from the most mundane of sources and inspiration? I took these yesterday as I gathered the kids up outside to go pick up Thing 1 at the bus stop after school.

The brothers have taught Thing 3 well. Yes, that is her delicate, girly finger shoved right up her nostril.

Pink and blossoms go together almost as well as chocolate and ice cream.

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

The 3 Things Tiptoe Through the Tulips

With the 3 Things totally rejuvenated and feeling more like themselves these days, we all headed downtown last weekend to check out the Ottawa Tulip Festival.

After walking around the Market for a little while, Thing 2 - a true carb man if there ever were one - demanded we stop and have a bagel. To avoid a tantrum, we obliged. (No, we are not *those* parents who give into every whim and desire of our children, but we all love bagels . . . what can I say? Some battles are not worth fighting.)

Uh, somebody has her daddy's eyes!!

And later we stopped for the long-promised and much anticipated Piccolo Grande Italian gelato. Notice how all of our outings revolve around food? I'm not sure how we all stay slim.

Thing 1 had the ever boring but tried-and-true favourite . . . chocolate.

But do you think he liked it???

Thing 2 opted for strawberry . . . and desperately wanted his in a bowl.

Much tidier if I do say so myself.

And, yes, we did see some tulips.

Checked out the back view of Parliament Hill from Major's Hill Park on a cloudy afternoon.

Thing 3 likes to really travel in style, and really, who the heck wouldn't want this bundle of joy on her back???

PSF - Life Outside

There is nothing particularly spectacular about this photo, but for some reason I was really drawn to it yesterday. Thing 2 is intently watching a rabbit scamper through the grass in our backyard. The sun was shining and a beautiful, vivid blue sky filled our kitchen window and outlined the gigantic hundred-year-old oak tree in the backyard behind us. Thing 2 and I have a brief quiet time together each day when the babies nap and when Thing 1 is off to kindergarten each afternoon. Yesterday we shared an Easter egg and pondered life in our backyard.

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

We Feelin' Better

I'd like to extend my apologies for the lack of interesting and thought-stimulating content on my blog the past few weeks. The never-ending sicknesses, unemployment woes, and general harsh winter climate in which we live have rendered my abilities just short of useless.

The end, however, may be in sight.

My three Things are on the mend and are looking and feeling much better.

A huge thanks go out to everyone who commented, e-mailed, and twittered me with well wishes and kind thoughts for Thing 3. Yes, she has indeed turned a corner and is looking like she has almost kicked her pneumonia for good. She snuck in a few smiles over the weekend, a sure sign that better days are upon us.

Back to exercising her climbing abilities . . .

And sticking stuff in her mouth . . .

Did you know Spiderman gets his super spidey abilities from eating a daily portion of blueberries???

I can't believe they're gonna make me eat this stinkin' puddin'.

A really long scarf keeps everyone's necks warm.

Middle Child Syndrome

It was a cold, icy, nearly-winter night in December of 2007 when we arrived at my good friend's annual Christmas bash. I was round and glowing and crippled with heartburn - all signs I was in my eighth month of pregnancy (with our now-walking-everywhere Thing 3). I gazed around the room at all my non-pregnant friends looking fabulous and glamorous and sipping wine or martinis or other fun drinks from beautiful cocktail glasses. Things 1 and 2 were home in bed, sleeping soundly while our babysitter watched cable galore on our TV and ate the snacks we left her. It was the perfect holiday evening.

Until.

Some of the people at this party I didn't see on a regular basis. I mean, let's face it. Many of us are parents now and are overly absorbed and immersed in our kids' lives, activities, and the whole mommy gig. I knew there would be people who didn't know I was pregnant. I was accustomed to the standard, "woah - you're pregnant *again*?" and didn't even flinch at "have you heard of condoms, sweetie?". I was armed with a retort for "how many more do you think you'll have?" and kept my emotionless face on hand for "I bet you hope they won't all go to college".

What I was not, in any shape or form, ready for was what was thrown my way by my friend M's husband.

He and his wife have two children. We chatted briefly about having two children versus having three children. I should mention at this point that it had literally been two nights prior to the party that I had stopped having debilitating panic attacks in the middle of the night and had assured myself that, yes, I could potentially handle being a parent to three children.

"I would never have a third child."

My eyes began to expand, in that way they do when panic seeps into them, and then kind of explodes inside my head. My jaw hit the floor like a Mack truck as I used my calm voice to ask him what his reasons were. Knowing intuitively that I didn't want to hear them.

"Because I wouldn't want to subject the second kid to middle child syndrome."

Being an utterly clueless sibling to only one, I thought to myself, "what the hell is this guy talking about?".

Fast forward to today. I am completely stricken with guilt for having had the nerve to have three children, one of which at some point in the distant future may require lengthy therapy sessions to deal with the repercussions and effects of middle child syndrome. I mean, seriously, this stuff is well documented out there. I had no idea. Until I started having some issues with Thing 2 and I found my fingers suddenly googling "middle child" and "middle child syndrome".

While not particularly comforting, I did find this article informative and frighteningly accurate. And as I stumbled upon references to the middle child "having the sense of not belonging", and "fighting to receive attention from parents because they feel they are being ignored", I wondered if I had sealed Thing 2's fate the day Thing 3 was conceived.

Before delving into my search for information, answers, and a shred of hope for the "middle child syndrome", I had suffered several stressful weeks trying to decide how to deal with Thing 2's horrendous behaviour. He has been beyond out of control lately. I found myself saying things like, "he seems lost . . . like he doesn't know where his place is", and "where is this attention-seeking behaviour coming from?", not knowing these were apparently catch phrases applicable to any middle child.

Obviously, I jest. I realize you can't dole out a cookie cutter label to your child because you read it on the Internet, but some of the similarities between what I have read and what is going on here, is uncanny.

In the short term, I am working hard to focus on Thing 2's strengths, like his fireball personality and his *passion* for life. And when the full-fledged screaming, kicking, defiant, out-of-control Thing 2 rears his ugly head, I find solace in this.

You may be driving me completely batty, oh middle child of mine, but I still love you forever.

Any words of wisdom for those who have experience with a middle child?