Category Archives: Life

Life

Wonderful Wednesdays – April 8th 2009

A few random photos from a Wednesday with my boys. For the past three and a half years (since Thomas was born) I have worked four 10 hour days. That one day off a week was for spending time with my babies – playing at home, going to the zoo or the park or even just doing the grocery shopping together.

I have really enjoyed my Wednesdays but sadly they are coming to an end. It’s just become too difficult to work the long days and look after my boys on a Wednesday that was becoming less and less of a day off, and more about checking email every hour or so just to keep things moving at work.

So in June I will be reverting to a regular 5 day schedule. The upside is that I will be home in time to eat dinner and give my children a bath without having to squeeze everything into a 30 minute window.

Here are just a few photos of a regular, hanging out at home, taking a walk to Starbucks, Wednesday.

On a Leash – April 7th 2009

I swear that I have no idea where he got the idea to “walk” his brother. We don’t even have a dog!

P.S. I was lucky to catch this on camera. Samuel strongly objected just a few minutes later in the form of loud screaming and writhing.

Apple – April 6th 2009

I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering why I am holding an apple? I only have four teeth and a tiny mouth so there’s no way I could possibly eat this thing.

You underestimate me.

See those bite marks? All mine.

There is no mountain… ahh food… that I can not conquer.

And I just dare you to try and take it away from me.

Digging Holes – April 5th 2009

Kei is digging a great big hole in the backyard to grow a veggie garden. And of course Thomas is more than willing to help. He even has his own metal shovel.

This is quite the spectacle for the neighbour kids who can see through the beautiful chain link fence. Our neighbour and I were talking about how we really need a gate through that fence.

While Thomas dug the hole, Samuel prowled the backyard looking for fresh dirt to eat. It’s times like this when I reflect on how glad I am that we don’t have a dog.

It was all fun until Thomas dug up a pile of dirt and then proceeded to dump it on his brother’s head. Not that Samuel seemed to mind.

It was about the principle – so it was off to a three minute time out where Thomas reflected on his bad behaviour and then vowed never to do it again during a conversation with his daddy.

P.S. Like the paint job on the house? I swear we are planning to get it painted soon. Colour suggestions welcome.

And time out is just not a time out without an apology. Not that Samuel seemed to notice, but it was about the principle.

Long Days – April 4th 2009

Daylight Saving Time has begun in Portland.

Which means I can take photos of Kei and Samuel chasing Thomas down the street at 7pm and it’s still light outside.

We’re all pretty happy about it.

Classic – April 2nd 2009

We have a claw foot tub that doubles as a shower. Our house was built in 1923 and the claw foot tub fits the style of the house and I love its size and depth. It also doubles as a shower and, until we completed renovations last year, this was the only shower in the house. As someone who loves her shower, I can honestly say that using this shower was one of the least pleasant experiences in my day. It had a shower curtain – actually three shower curtains – that wrapped around the entire bath. The curtains had to hang inside to stop the water from dripping on the floor and when the heat came on, the air pressure would force the curtains to move in and stick against my body. It was claustrophobic and uncomfortable and only became more and more of a problem as I grew more and more pregnant.

Now we have a beautiful shower upstairs, fully tiled with a single pane of glass acting as a shower screen and no shower door. It’s like heaven.

The only question in my mind right now is where should our guests shower? My brother and his fiancee are visiting in a few weeks and I am trying to work out the living arrangements. Do I give them the entire bathroom downstairs so they have their own space, shower curtains and all? Or should they use our shower which is directly off our bedroom and a little less private but a much more pleasant showering experience?

These are the questions that are keeping me up at night. Not the economy or the war in Iraq – it’s all about bathroom usage.

A Connection – March 31st 2009

It is so cute watching them together now that Samuel is a little more aware of Thomas. And now that Thomas is not always trying to get Samuel away from his toys. Every now and again I see a small preview of what I hope will be a wonderful relationship between these two boys.

Watching and Waiting – March 29th, 2009

This is Samuel’s favourite place to be now that the sun has finally come out. It buys me at least 10 minutes while he keeps himself occupied watching whatever is happening out in the front yard. Of course if that something happens to be his Daddy and brother playing, contentedness soon turns to frustration and then anger until we let him out to play. Samuel sure knows how to get his point across.

Rainy Days – March 28th, 2009

What do you do on a very rainy Saturday in Portland? Why head to Powells of course – where, inevitably, you end up buying a bunch of new kids books (all on sale) and spend a lot of time following your baby around so you can replace books as he pulls them off the shelves.

I remember browsing the children’s section at Powells when I was pregnant with Thomas. I stocked up on Aussie children’s books like this one and this one in the hope that I would share at least a small part of my culture with my American children.

Fast forward nearly four years and I find myself listening to another Aussie mother talking to her two pre-teenage children while they respond with thick American accents and I realize that this is my future. But then I get home and Thomas says “bath” with a soft “a” like a true Aussie. It’s just one word but it gives me a smidgen of hope.