Category Archives: Life

Life

Feeling Poorly

We had all been doing so well and seemed to have avoided many of the illnesses that have been rampant over the past couple of months. Sadly, though, this new epidemic has hit three out of the four of us so Thomas, Samuel and I have been home today. Of course, given that I am sick I haven’t been the best caretaker. We went to the doctor this morning and have one confirmed ear infection. The rest of the day has been spent trying to track down our prescription (still don’t have it), napping and watching a lot of TV.

I am also behind in posting my P365 photos so I have quite a few to share from the past week.

Taking advantage of the warm weather with a walk to the park on the weekend.

And what’s a weekend without a visit to Ikea? This time we picked up a run and some cushions for a little reading area we have planned for our freshly painted landing upstairs.

And Kei is clearly happy about the purchases – or his cheap Ikea lunch.

My three (hilarious) children.

The kids have been taking showers while our downstairs bathroom is being painted a beautiful shade of chocolate brown. OK, it doesn’t sound beautiful but trust me, it is very spa-like and sophisticated – and much more attractive than the lavender walls and pale yellow ceiling than the previous tenants decided to bestow on us. It only took us four years to change it…

I’m not sure why I like this photo so much. It’s clearly out of focus and the framing is all wrong, but there’s something about the way Samuel is covering his face and Thomas’ smile in the background that I just love.

I’m not sure how many Star Wars figures Thomas now owns but it feels like they are taking over the house and he keeps asking for more. I guess he just needs enough to make a conga line.

I took the day off today to look after my sick children and my sick self – although every mother reading this will know how impossible that is. First thing in the morning we headed to a clinic for an ear infection diagnosis and a couple of prescriptions. That was the quick part. It then took us another couple of hours to find out that we couldn’t get the prescriptions – 30 minutes of which we spent hanging out in the toy section of Fred Meyer while Thomas picked out the things he MUST have for his birthday. Of course September means nothing to a four year old.

As for Samuel, he saw the ball aisle and it took everything in my power to prevent him from picking up every single one and announcing “ball!”.

Kei finally picked up the prescription at about 5:30pm after another 30 minute wait and about three more phone calls but, after Thomas asked for a second dose of ear drops, I realize that the wait was probably worth it to ensure a pain-free sleep for my babies.

Here’s hoping everyone is able to go back to daycare and school tomorrow and that we’re fully recovered by the weekend so we can really relax and enjoy it.

Giddy

Today’s I Heart Faces challenge is “Outtakes”. Pity I didn’t see it before I posted my project 365 post late last week because I’m pretty sure this would have qualified.

So I went back into the archives and discovered that I have many outtakes to choose from. That’s what comes from having two silly boys who love to make faces for the camera (or even not for the camera – who needs a reason?).


We had a great weekend, although it was busy which seems to be our normal state these days. Samuel and Thomas played well together and I can really see a bond forming between them. I love that they can now “talk” to each other and play games to make the other one laugh. Samuel has become Thomas’ little shadow and follows him around endlessly yelling “Toma!” (his way of saying Thomas) and then copies everything he does. The downside to this is that we have had to talk to Thomas about the fact that Samuel likes to do everything he does, but with less balance and control. It can be a recipe for disaster, especially given one of Thomas’ favourite activities is to walk along the top of retaining walls while we are out in the neighborhood.

I just love coming off a weekend when everyone was in a relatively good mood. In fact I don’t think we implemented even one time out the whole weekend. That must be a new record.

Oh, and my bathroom is getting painted today. Almost makes up for the fact that I was scrubbing down bathroom walls at 9pm last night. The end result will be worth it.

Looking forward to a week ahead that promises much productivity, a new episode of Lost, more early spring days and a few days closer to my girls weekend and an Aussie vacation. I think I may be sleep deprived – I feel almost giddy at the prospects.

Happy Monday!

Random Things I Love Right Now

It’s random Friday so I thought I’d share just a few of the things that I am enjoying on this sunny Portland day.

1. Painting

Excited that the inside of my house is finally being painted – almost two years after we finished our renovation. We bit the bullet and hired someone to do it for us. Of course I am in charge of choosing the paint colours which we all know is the hardest part. Deep red for the dining room and upstairs feature wall, neutral taupe for other walls and the hallway downstairs. I am stuck on the bathroom though. Right now it’s this hideous shade of lavendar with a yelow ceiling so anything will be an improvement. I am considering deep brown alongside the white wainscoating, trim and ceiling. Suggestions welcome.

2. I’m on a Horse

I don’t often watch the advertisements on TV (thanks TIVO) but this one grabbed my attention while I was watching Lost with the girls on Tuesday night. Of course the irony is that when I think of Old Spice, I am always reminded of the time when my grandmother sent me to the grocery store to pick some up for my grandfather’s birthday. I was about 16 years old and and my grandfather must have been in his 70s. A far cry from the man in this commercial.

4. Speaking of Lost…

It is officially my favourite television show – and made even better this year with our weekly girl get togethers. So much fun to be able to discuss events as they are happening – and with wine and chocolate.

3. Still the man

LOVE Robbie Wiliams. He’s celebrating his 20th year in music this year which makes me feel incredibly old. My teenage crush has grown into an adult one.

5. Spring

It feels like it is here already. 50 degree temperatures in Portland and we’re already seeing a few flowers blooming.

6. Online grocery shopping

Placed my order last night and will pick it up tomorrow morning. LOVE that!

7. Upcoming Adventures

This winter has been tough. It has felt long, dark and busy so I am looking forward to few fun advantures in the next couple of months. A girls weekend, a weekend at the coast and a trip to Australia are all on the horizon and they could not come soon enough.

8. The weekend

Just a few hours away. It will be a busy one, but hopefully productive with a little fun thrown into the mix. Hope yours is a good one.

Seeing the Light: P365

Portland has a bad wrap when it comes to winter. We see a lot of rain and experience grey skies for about four months. But this winter has been relatively kind and a few small signs of spring are already poking through the drabness.

If you’re snowed in on the East Coast of America right now then you might want to look away from some of my most recent P365 pics. I’m so sorry.

The first one is relatively safe – taken at our monthly excursion to see a local (family-friendly) band. It’s at a local pizza place and this shot jumped out at me from the many I took that night. It even beat out the disco ball.

Sunshine streaming in Samuel’s room on Saturday morning. BOTH children slept past 8am. It doesn’t happen oftenbut when it does it’s a beautiful surprise.

Kei had a couple of friends over for Superbowl Sunday. I am not really a football fan (actually not at all) but I have to say that I was glad when New Orleans won. I have no idea what the score was or who was named MVP (or even what MVP means), but everone was feeling so warm and fuzzy afterward that it felt…well…not like a football game.

I warned you East Coasters – don’t hate me. The cherry blossoms are already beginning to bloom at Thomas’ school.

And this one just he’s cute. And sneaky. Samuel called out my name about thirty minutes after I put him to bed tonight. I thought he may have lost his binky (as he does too often) but he just looked and me and said “head” meaning “I hit my head”. Then he put his binky in his mouth and laughed at me like we were both in on the joke when in actuality he was the only one who found it funny. I told him to lie down and go to sleep. He kept laughing. I left the room and haven’t heard a peep from him since. So I suppose we both win.

Kith!

I was having a very difficult time thinking of a photo to use for this week’s  i heart faces entry. You see the theme is Kiss. It’s not that there any shortage of kisses in our house, it’s just that I have been waiting for a moment to capture it on film.

Samuel LOVES to give kisses. Big, wet, sloppy kisses. And he gives them freely to pretty much anyone who asks which begs the question, exactly when do you start teaching your children about personal boundaries? 🙂

I’ll take them whenever I can get them, though, which is probably why I haven’t yet been able to capture it on film. I’m too busy enjoying this fleeting moment in my baby’s life.

So for the purposes of this challenge I’ll share one of my very favourite photos – one that I have in a frame on our mantle if only to remind me that my children do truly love each other even when the screaming and yelling sometimes suggests the opposite is true.

So from Samuel to you on this upcoming Valentine’s Day, a very big “‘UG! and “Kith!”

Catching Up – P365

This week has been crazy. It began with my blurry trip to San Francisco and then on Tuesday I hosted a Lost season premiere party (no photos – too busy watching the show) add snack duty at pre-school and a very busy day job and I’ve been a little under water.

Good thing I take photos every day. Sometimes I’m not sure there’s any other way I would remember our lives.

Thomas likes to set the chairs up like this, using one as a chair and one as a table. Samuel has become his little shadow lately and so of course he had to be set up with his own chair/table as well and Thomas was more than happy to oblige.

I tried for about 10 minutes (and risked my camera getting wet) to get this glimpse of Samuel’s reflection. He’s wasn’t in a very cooperative mood.

This kid is funny.

Old fixtures in an old house.

Making the most of some good window light during our visit to the Crystal Ballroom on Sunday. More photos of that fun family outing to come.

Pretty much all I saw of San Francisco on Monday during my quick visit. Oakland airport is probably the least inspiring place on earth so I’m pretty proud of myself for being able to take at least one decent photo while waiting for my flight.

OK – I forgot to take one photo this week. I blame it on Lost – I was so caught up in that show (and maybe a little wine) that I forgot to take my photo for the day. So it seemed appropriate that I took a photo of my coffee cup as I got ready for work in the bathroom the next morning.

Samuel playing in the curtain before dinner. It’s amazing how a piece of material can keep him occupied and entertained.

And finally, a photo of me (shocking!). I decided I needed a new facebook picture so I took a few quick photos in the mirror. Probably not the most inspired idea after a long day at work but I have since decided that high key black and white conversions are my best friend – over-exposure can make anyone look good.

Whirlwind

I am very proud of being an Aussie – one of only 20 million people in the world. But there is a downside. So few Australians (and so few living in the United States) means that there are only a couple of Consulates/Embassies to help with passports while you are living overseas. This isn’t usually a major hassle as most passport renewals are done by mail these days and visas are all electronic. The issue arises when you are arranging a first passport – in this case for Samuel – and you apparently need to attend in person to hand over the documents.

Problem. The closest consulate to Portland is in San Francisco. 1 hour 40 minutes flying time, 1 hour each way to the city. If you do the math, that adds up to around 6 hours of travel for a 10 minute meeting. Yes. 10 minutes.

I wasin a cab at 5am on about 4 hours of sleep because I was stressed wondering about the one thing I was likely to forget. Would the photos be the right size? Do I have all the documentation? Is everything signed and dated in Australian date format (harder to do than it sounds)?

Turns out I forgot my phone. Not the worst thing I could have forgotten in the grand scheme of things, but annoying just the same.

The good news is that all papers are submitted and I should have the passport (and Thomas’ renewed passport) next week. Which means we’re all set for a trip to Australia in the not too distant future.

I’ll need a holiday after this.

This photo (taken on my last trip to SF) pretty much sums up what I will see of the city today before I board my flight home.

Car Boot Diaper Changes, Old School Buses and a Grown Up Night Out

This week was busy – crazy busy. For 7 months I have been on the planning committee for the 2010 Portland Iron Bartender Event and our hard work all paid off on Thursday night. I will have more photos to share as soon as I have a moment or two to edit them.

But before the Iron Bartender, I had to get through the week… Here are my P365 photos.

On Sunday we made a pilgrimage to the Japanese grocery store to stock up on noodles, sake, saba (mackerel) and natto. I would have loved to take some photos of the rows of shelves stocked with my favourite foods but a little sign out front said no photo or video and I’m too chicken to break the rules.

Instead I resorted to a picture of Samuel waiting in the boot (trunk) of the car for his diaper to be changed while I was rained on. The trunk of the car seemed more practical than squeezing myself into a public bathroom that may (or may not) have had a changing table. Samuel didn’t seem to mind.

I spotted an old school bus after my impromptu playground photo session on Monday. It gave me the perfect opportunity to play around with a few vintage photo edits.

Have I mentioned how much I love Ikea? One of our latest purchases was a couple of ghost night lights – so cute!

I pick Thomas up from school every day and every day we make the same walk down this long corridor to the car. It’s where we begin our “tell me about your day” conversation that often continues in the car. My commute home each day takes a long time now that I make this extra stop – anywhere from 60 to 90 minutes – but I never get tired of the extra time that Thomas and I have together.  The way he talks sometimes is so grown up that I forget that he has only been on the planet for four years.

One of the Iron Bartender competitors from Thursday night. It took me a long time to choose one photo from the 300 or so that I took over the course of the evening, but this one captures the vibe. So much fun! I’ll post more photos from the event soon.

Samuel got an owie at school yesterday, right above his eye. He has been so clumsy lately that I suspect he is having a growth spurt. Samuel is taking it in stride but I am a nervous wreck.

P365 Days 11 through 16

I begin today’s P365 post with another plug for the Iron Bartender Charity event

The event is next Thursday, Jan 21st. It’s going to be a lot of fun and I have it on good authority that there are some fabulous raffle baskets up for grabs. You can buy tickets at the door if you attend. I’m talking about Sunriver vacations, a starter wine cellar, a kayaking trip and some swee-eeet Blazers tickets (my husband will definitely have his eyes on those).

You can purchase tickets here. Plug over. 🙂

I took this P365 photo at our last meeting at the Doug Fir bar in Portland. Very low light so my ISO was cranked way up and it resulted in a lot of camera noise, but I think it’s pretty nonetheless.

Avert your eyes if you’re uncomfortable with potty talk. Yes, we have begun potty training with number two (no pun intended). He said he wanted to pee and then went and sat down and…well…did. Two nights in a row. He was so proud of himself, although he hasn’t done it since. I have my fingers crossed that the second child really is more advanced with this particular skill.

Samuel enjoying an afternoon snack. This kid spends a lot of his time eating so you’ll likely see more of these types of photos during the year. I like how it looks like he was caught in the act.

A little naked playtime after bathtime. Boy, Samuel is really going to hate me for this post in a few years.

Happy year of the tiger. We enjoyed a little taiko drumming and traditional mochi pounding (pictured) at an event at Thomas’ school. I am embarrassed to admit that I did not know that mochi was made out of just rice and water until a couple of nights ago. I still don’t like it although, with the speed that Thomas swallowed the mochi sample, I predict a visit the Japanese grocery store in our future.

And then today. This was the calm before the storm when the boys enjoyed a rare moment of playing nicely together at Barnes and Noble before we took a trip to doctor’s office. I took them for their swine flu vaccination and let’s just say that the older and more aware they get, the harder it becomes to jab them with a needle. Thomas insisted that Samuel go first – and then he cried. Loudly. Then it was Thomas’ turn and who can blame him for not wanting to endure the same experience. Nevertheless, I held him down (yes, traumatic for mama) and he was jabbed. And then he cried too until the nurse gave them both a cookie to help ease the pain. After the tears had subsided a little, Thomas declared that he didn’t want to go back to the doctor ever again. Good thing his birthday and annual checkup is not for another 9 months.