This week's updates
No, the bathroom is not finished. I've got a fair bit of work to, which I'll do on my next day off, then we paint and put in the cabinets. Yay!
Yes, I've actually had work this week! I know, I'm shocked. I even worked on two days in a row. French immersion middle school. Because I know how to teach Socials in French, although it was also English, Math and French. It went well, so that was good as I was a little worried about middle school ages, let alone teaching in French. And yesterday's job was a half day of Science. The teacher was so impressed when he returned mid-class and found everybody working that he said I could be their Science TOC from now on. Woohoo! And, I have a call for tomorrow. Yay!
Jade has a new tooth (5 now), can stand on her own, and walks on her knees. Yesterday, something that parents of little little ones might understand what it means developmentally, she pretended! And thought she was funny. She bit me, something we want to discourage as soon as it starts so she doesn't start biting people at daycare. So I told her not to bite me. So she sat their and pretended to bite me over and over (without putting her mouth on me). It was funny! Of course, I couldn't encourage even that because her brother was watching, and he doesn't always get when other people are pretending.
Quentin is smart and funny and wonderful.
I'm needed. Take care all.
Fancy Quentin
As promised, Quentin proudly displaying how adorable he is in his fancy new suit. And a picture of Daddy and Jade, just because she looks so cute. Yes, Daddy looks cute too.
My little flower girl
Okay, she's not a flower girl quite yet, but we have a dress and that's what it's all about, isn't it? My dear friend Taira is getting married this upcoming Thanksgiving weekend and Jade's going to be making her way down the aisle for it. She likes the dress, as does her brother. Quentin decided he wanted to get a fancy dress too and be a flower girl like Jade. You know, anything for attention. So, we broke down and got him a fancy boy's outfit so he can feel special too. Pants, a shirt, an elastic tie, and a vest. Tried it on in the store and he likes it so much he wanted to wear it home. Don't have a picture of him in his outfit yet, but you can be sure I'll post one. Or five. Taira, let me know what you think... :)
Happy Birthday Grampa!
It's my Daddy's birthday today. Happy Birthday Grampa! Lots of love from all of us, and here's a toothy picture like you asked for the other day.
Daycare
These pictures are Jade's first pear last week. (The first piece of fruit that wasn't cut up for her.) She was playing with our box of apples, and found a pear that we had put in there. She started chewing on the stem, so I turned the pear so she could bite the side. She went back to the stem. I turned it again for her. Well, that time she broke through the skin and realized that it was something rather tasty. I had to put her in the high chair as she started making quite the mess.
Jade is now at daycare for her third full day in a row. She is doing quite well there. Tuesday when I was dropping the children off, I passed her over to Naheed to hold while I helped Quentin with his shoes. Jade refused to come back to me for a good-bye hug and kiss. Nothing but smiles at Naheed, even when she got put in the high chair for breakfast. Barely looked at me. It's a good thing, of course, that she enjoys being there so much but I miss having her home with me. And yes, she does show that she's missed me when I pick them up.
The children are going to bed earlier these days, which is kind of nice. Even Jade is going to sleep before 9. Of course, when they get up around 7, they need the sleep. And we're going to bed before 2 or 3 in the morning, which is nice too. Two nights in a row now we've been in bed before 1. An amazing thing. We're hoping to get it back to midnight before too long. It does help that I can do things around the house during the day, but doing things earlier at night definitely helps.
Take care all.
Daycare
Jade is now at daycare for her third full day in a row. She is doing quite well there. Tuesday when I was dropping the children off, I passed her over to Naheed to hold while I helped Quentin with his shoes. Jade refused to come back to me for a good-bye hug and kiss. Nothing but smiles at Naheed, even when she got put in the high chair for breakfast. Barely looked at me. It's a good thing, of course, that she enjoys being there so much but I miss having her home with me. And yes, she does show that she's missed me when I pick them up.
The children are going to bed earlier these days, which is kind of nice. Even Jade is going to sleep before 9. Of course, when they get up around 7, they need the sleep. And we're going to bed before 2 or 3 in the morning, which is nice too. Two nights in a row now we've been in bed before 1. An amazing thing. We're hoping to get it back to midnight before too long. It does help that I can do things around the house during the day, but doing things earlier at night definitely helps.
Take care all.
Film got taken in - Pre-Christmas pictures
I have five rolls of film running pretty much the last year that I'll give you snippets of over the next few days. And maybe, I'll even throw in a recent picture or two of Jade so you can see how she's grown. Jade couldn't have been much more than a month, if that, in these pics.
Bathroom progress
Aha, the blog lords are pleased! I can upload pictures again. (Deleted big old pics and reduced the size of these ones.)
Order of pictures are....Tub at the moment, tub on August 22nd, the day that the walls of the tub were ripped out, etc., main bathroom area now, main area as it was Aug 22. The floor had been a boring off-white with some marblish streaks linoleum self-stick tiles (that some genius thought to put down using tar). All tiles are grouted and sealed, and the tub got caulked today. I did the caulking, and I do a fairly good job of it, if I say so myself. The problem? I've developed a latex allergy over the years. Caulking is latex. I use my fingers to smooth it out. I have very itchy, almost numb feeling, almost painful, very sensitive fingers right now, and we've even been swimming that's how clean my fingers are.
Don't you wish your bathroom was this spacious? Who needs bathroom amenities like sinks, faucets, toilets? Seriously, it's looking fine and we are really appreciative of the work that has gone into making the bathroom purty thus far.
Stupid Squirrel
Let's see...I guess it was the Friday before last that I was backing out of my carport and, well, ran into a clay plant pot with my passenger front wheel. In my defense, I've got much less room in my carport than I should due to construction stuff, a bathtub, a stove and various other odds and ends that normally aren't there. Anyways, that wheel starts making odd noises while I'm driving. My thoughts? "Crap, what did I do?" It's mostly making the sound when I'm braking, and especially when I'm braking and turning the wheel. I decide it must be the brakes, not what I did, because they haven't been replaced in six or seven years. I did get them checked two years ago and was told then they were fine, so I wasn't being reckless, but the noise, the grinding and the weird stiff pulling sort of feeling the car was giving made me take the car in by Monday morning.
They take my wheels apart, and show me that my brakes are only 60% wear and at this rate are good for probably another four years. They do the maintenance stuff, and $30 is it. (Apollo on St John's in Port Moody. If you have any problems with your car or any regular maintenance stuff, go there. Really great service and very cost efficient.) So, they put my wheels back together, and as they do, the mechanic has a nut fall out from behind the rotor. No, not a metal nut like you'd expect, a tree nut.
You might know I already dislike the squirrels in my neighbourhood, the big black ones that aren't native to the area, because they cost me a ton of money last year to get them out of my attic. They were going up the outside of my house, middle of the back wall, not climbing fences and bouncing over, but climbing the wall. So now I've got a squirrel that has planted a nut in my wheel for winter storage. Bothersome. But, I know my brakes are fine, and I go on my merry way.
The next day, the driver side wheel is making the same noise. And it's hidden so well, I can't see it. Tyler can't see it when I take it into his work and he puts it up on the jack. They have to take the wheel apart at the mechanic's and dig it out (it wouldn't come out in one piece it was so well in there). They did it for free.
The one on the left is whole, and was the first nut. The second one on the right is only half a nut, as it broke coming out.
Did I tell you I don't like squirrels?
My first morning alone in a very long time
I get to post a little update because Jade is with Quentin at daycare. Just for a few hours today, but that doesn't mean I'm not very lonely. She was happy to be there, smiling away in the high chair as I was leaving. Quentin, who has been attending daycare for two years now with few problems over the years, was bawling his eyes out at me leaving. He's pretty tired, but still.
Yesterday we went to the PNE with Granny, Daddy joined us after work and Granny went home around dinner time. Quentin loved running around the hay maze, Jade loved the animals. We didn't really like the crowds too much. Quentin played a fishing for frogs game and won himself a frog that he just adored. (He also played a different game to win Jade a cute bird that she likes rather a lot.) He was hugging it tightly, or having it hop on everything around us, that sort of thing. Then at the end of the night between Jade's diaper change and Quentin and I going on one more thing (giant inflatable slide), it disappeared off the stroller. Lost and found was already closed for the night, and it wasn't turned in in the inflatables lost and found. We're hoping for a phone call today to say they found it (yeah right.) He didn't forget about it though, so we might have Granny go fishing for frogs this weekend when she visits the fair again.
Our "oh yes, it'll be no problem to get everything done in two days" bathroom renovation is nowhere near completion. It's looking good, and we're very grateful for everybody's help. But, right now we have a tub (no fixtures so it can't be used yet), wall tiles that still need to be sealed and caulked, and floor tiles that need to be sealed. Note that I didn't say toilet, sink, counters... It's fine because I knew it was going to take longer than two days, regardless of what anybody said, but I'm not sure when the completion date is now. Especially when we don't even have a counter to put in the bathroom.
I'm officially on four schools' and a school district's TOC (Teacher-On-Call) lists. One in North Van, one in Vancouver (Arbutus and 10th), one in Surrey, one in Burnaby and the Coquitlam school district. Let the random phone calls begin! Okay, okay, I know, they won't start for a couple of weeks, and that's if I'm lucky, but I'd still like to know that I'm going to get some work.
Okay, I'm going to go clean off the last bits of extra grout from my bathroom floor and call to see if I'm bringing my car in to get a nut removed from the wheel (yes, a tree nut) today or next week. I'll explain later.
Take care all.
