Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio?

Oops.

I said I was going to take more time for stuff like blogging, then fell off the face of the blogosphere. It's just been a little crazy around here. Kids were sick, then really sick, then I was sick, there was a SuperBowl (and a party that didn't happen because the wee one had what might have been chicken pox, and just about everyone who was going to come to the party couldn't be exposed to chicken pox), and I don't really remember what else. Many, many books :) I got lots for Christmas and have taken lots of my own time to read them. I am now officially one of Jennifer Weiner's biggest fans (I highly recommend Little Earthquakes). I received her first book, Good in Bed, for Christmas and it's the only one of my Christmas books I haven't read yet. I'm trying to put it off because the sequel is coming out in April, and I'd like to read them back to back. I've been inspired by Daph, so I'm hoping to hit the library today and pick up some of the books she's read lately.

Library, you say? But it's Monday. Shouldn't you be at school? For that matter, why are you posting at 9 am on a Monday? I was getting ready this morning, had already showered and put one contact lens in, when I thought I heard Ryan call me from the bedroom. I paused, but didn't hear him, and Sam, who was watching me, said she didn't hear him. Then I heard him again, went into the room and lo and behold, he's holding out the phone, saying, "Phone. School's cancelled." I was shocked. I checked the weather forecast last night and thought there might possibly be a snow day on Tuesday or Wednesday, but not today. I love snow days on Mondays because I don't have planning time on Mondays. Also, I had pretty much nothing ready for today because I was in Quebec City last week with the gr 8's, didn't get back until 9 pm Friday and had nothing at home with me to plan for today.

The trip, by the way, was fabulous. I'm a big fan of making your big trip in the middle of the year. This is something I learned in high school. A trip like this one is a bonding experience, for everyone who goes. There is a lot you can do with a group that has bonded like that, and it's a shame to not have that experience until May or June and be limited as to what you can do with it. In high school, our senior band always went on a big tour through the US in March. We'd come back a different group, and the band director learned way before I got there that if you could get the kids bonded earlier in the year, it made for a better band. So he had all of us out to his house out in the boonies for a weekend in October, where we did trust exercises and group-building stuff and it was amazing. I loved that weekend almost as much as I loved the tours.

So now I have this whole day in front of me, all to myself. Ryan is at work out of town (just for the day, not an overnight trip or anything) and since the schools in town are still open and buses in town are still running, I don't even have to go pick Sammie up and take her to school this afternoon. I have a huge list of things I want to accomplish today - library, groceries, some cleaning - but first, breakfast.

These five words I swear to you

It's the year of less.

Less weight, less clutter, less procrastination, less giving up what's important to me. I was really inspired by my friend Emily's blog and did some real thinking about what my resolutions should be this year. I'm about to sit down and make a plan, in writing and everything, but here's the gist of it.

First, less weight. I am not happy with my body and I don't think I'm all that healthy either, so I have a plan now to get more exercise and eat better.

Less clutter - Ryan and I were talking the other day and agreed that where we live doesn't feel like home, to either of us. So I am going to go through the house, methodically, and get rid of things we really don't want/need/use. I have always had a hard time with this, because I feel guilty giving things away that were gifts or were passed down to me. Now, I have decided that what I should feel guilty about is having all this stuff that I don't even use, when so many people have so much less. And maybe once I've cleared out what isn't us, I'll be able to bring in some little things that do reflect the family living here.

As for the last part, I am going to stop feeling guilty if I take time for things like reading, blogging, baking, sewing, scrapping...things I like that make me happy, but that are often purely selfish. For almost six years I've been putting other people first, mostly my kids. They will still be my priority, but not so much that I lose who I am along the way. I am a mother, I am proud and happy to be one, and wouldn't trade that title for any other. But it's not my entire identity, it's not all of who I am. At least, it shouldn't be.

So, that's a brief overview of my resolutions for 2008. More to follow, but for now, I'm going to go make my plans.

This must be just like living in Paradise

I asked my parents for three different books for Christmas. I received all three, plus two more I didn't ask for which look good, too. I'm currently working on Suite Francaise, by Irene Nemirovsky. It's set in German-occupied France in 1940. I'm not loving it, but I had just read a review of it a couple of months ago right before I went shopping in Port Huron, MI (I will only buy books in America until they stop charging $5 more here when the Canadian dollar is at par with the American) and it was on a table with The Kite Runner - buy one get one half price. I wanted The Kite Runner anyway, so I bought the two of them. I read The Kite Runner right away, then it got to be report card time, then I read something else, so I'm just getting around to Suite Francaise now. I also asked my in-laws for three different books, and we haven't done the gift exchange with them yet, so I'm hoping there are a couple more waiting for me. And to top it all off, I received three gift cards from students for a certain big-name chain bookstore, so I have $40 to spend there. Sigh. What more could a reader ask for? Well, maybe a book like The Thirteenth Tale, and unlimited amounts of time to read. With tea and chocolate. Or actually, at this point in the holidays, just tea.

So, dear readers (assuming I have more readers than just Daph, and Jodi), any suggestions on what to spend my $40 on? There is a chick-lit book I've been dying to read since I was pregnant with Rylee, and I've just learned it's on sale for $4.99 at the big-name chain store, but what else should I buy? (Daph - I already looked into the Twilight series, too, and will probably get the first one of those with the gift cards as well)

PS The sacks were a hit. The girls thought they were pretty cool. The elves have already taken them away for next year. The stockings were also finished just in time, with me running upstairs to my sewing machine during commercial breaks during It's A Wonderful Life, which Ryan and I had never seen and therefore watched late Christmas Eve.

I finally figured out...

(it really is a song lyric...We're All in This Together, from High School Musical, which I performed with the grade 7/8 choir at our Christmas assembly on Friday)

It's almost one o'clock in the morning, and I've been working on these stupid stockings for hours...well, quite a while, anyway. I was having serious trouble with my sewing machine, which my mechanically/technologically inclined husband was able to help me with, then I just couldn't figure out how to make them look the way I had imagined them. But third time's a charm...on the third attempt, I succeeded! I just ran downstairs with the completed stocking and a big grin to show Ryan, who's watching a movie. He was appropriately happy for me and proud of me, and I think a little surprised at how well it turned out. Anyway, one down, four to go! Hopefully now that I've figured it out, the rest will go more quickly.

Here and now, it's time for celebration
I finally figured out...

I am strong, I am invincible, I am woman!

One last update on the day before I crash. I ended up going with option 2 and shoveling the driveway. After a few shovelfuls I looked around and said, "This sucks!" But I persevered, and managed to clear the entire driveway, including the pile left by the plow. When I talked to Ryan as he was on his way home, he asked if the plow had been by. When I said yes, he said, "Oh, that'll be fun when I get home," at which point I had the pleasure of informing him that he has the best wife in the whole world. He was happy.

I took the girls to gymnastics tonight and used some of the time to read, which I haven't done much lately. And once all the kiddles were sound asleep, I managed, in collaboration with Ryan, to create the template for the stockings and cut out three of them. I decided that's enough for tonight. I'm now either going to bed, or going to have a bath and then go to bed. I doubt I'm getting my snow day tomorrow, so I should rest up, but I think my muscles would thank me for the bath. Not sure when I'll get to the stockings, since no more snow days seem likely this week - hopefully I can get some craft time in the evenings. I just won't assign any tests or projects this week :)

I rock!!

I have finished all three sacks for Santa to leave presents in for my girls! They don't know Santa is going to do this - Ryan heard the idea on the radio and, knowing I've been looking for simple sewing projects, suggested it to me. So, if you're someone who might possibly be talking to my kids, don't mention the sacks! And after Christmas, once they know they have the sacks, they still aren't supposed to know who made them. Anyway, they're all done, and I've taken pictures, but as I said, I don't know where the cord is to hook the camera up to the computer, so posting the photos will have to wait until my resident IT guy comes home. I guess I don't totally rock, but in almost every case, almost every time, I do, and that's good enough, right Daph?

I'm very pleased with myself, and am now going to tackle one of two projects:
1) Stockings - when I bought the stuff to make the Santa sacks, I also bought material to make stockings. However, i want to have a sort of template to cut the material, and I'm not sure I'm up to the task of drawing that. I did one on paper, and Ryan mocked me, so maybe I'll just let him do it for me (he's the artist anyway!)
2) The driveway - it really needs to be shoveled, especially the pile at the end left by the snowplow. However, I seem to have done something bad to my back when I first tackled the driveway this morning, so I'm not sure this is a good idea. And IT'S STILL FREAKIN' SNOWING!!!

My one consolation is that maybe the continuing snow will keep the plows busy in town, and they won't get to the rural areas, and the buses will be cancelled again tomorrow. A girl can dream, right?

Walkin in a winter wonderland

So, 25 cm and the snow is still falling (for Daph, Ismail and any other Americans reading this, that's about 2 ft) I know we hardly got anything compared to my friends in Ottawa (can you open your front door yet, Jodi?) but it's quite a bit. Enough that the buses in the rural areas aren't running, which means my rural school is closed for the third time this winter, but Sammie still has school and they're all at the sitter's right now. I walked them over there this morning, because it was pretty and not too cold and they like to walk, and anyway, I didn't want to drive on the driveway before I shoveled it and even if I wanted to, I don't think I could have gotten past the snowbank at the end of the driveway that the plow left there. SO, I walked them over, and then walked back on a completely snow covered path and through knee-deep snow in my backyard. It looked so inviting that I had to drop down into it, whereupon I laughed hysterically, then made a snow angel. And that was so much fun I jumped in it some more and threw it around a bit. Finally I headed back toward the house, making sure to walk through the deepest part of the drift between our house and the house next door. It was good for my soul, I think.

I decided to shovel the driveway next, which may not have been a good idea, as my back now hurts. We'll see if ibuprofen helps. Next up is my Christmas sewing, which may get put off as the sitter just called with Rylee screaming in the background. Poor little thing is, um backed up, to put it delicately, and the sitter wanted to know if I had some prunes or something. I don't. I may need to go get her to spare the sitter listening to the screams of pain. I think I have suppositories but I don't want to go that route :(

Okay, more to come later, I'm sure, hopefully with pictures of my craft space and crafts!

edited to add: The first sack is done! And the sitter called back and said the plumbing has been cleared, so to speak, and the wee one is no longer howling in pain. Unfortunately, I can't find the cord that attaches the camera to the computer, so I can't post the photos I've taken. Maybe later.