Monday, May 9, 2016

All By Myself


The person in the above creative commons photo looks very sad, sitting on that swing.  They clearly do not have small children living in their home.  As much as I love my kids, since I spend most of my time with them at the moment, I have come to really appreciate time by myself.  Especially if it is quiet, like a library should be.*

On Mother's Day, this past weekend, I went to the grocery store by myself.  While it was a grown-up chore that needed to get done, it was also amazing.  No one asked me for 18 different kind of fruit, candy, cookies or ice cream.  No one pulled on, drooled on, or otherwise messed with my clothing or hair.  No one chatted at me about random non-sequitor topics.  There was no commentary on any of the items that went into the basket.  I got myself a fancy cheese, and no one did dances of impatience while I sorted out the coupons before getting in line to pay.  I did not hear the phrase "I have to go pee!" once while shopping.
I had a lovely, and oh so quiet, walk home from the store when I was done.

It was great, despite all the usual annoyances of grocery shopping, with the bonus annoyance of getting rained on for part of the walk home.
Then, my lovely partner kept the kiddos entertained long enough for me to make a pie (lemon meringue, for the record).

So, if you have small children in your home, I hope you have another adult who regularly helps you get some quiet alone time.

In closing, here is Celine Dion singing "All By Myself".




* The library, contrary to expectations, is not quiet when you are accompanied by small children.  While they do use their inside voices, there is a constant refrain of "What is that book about? Will you read this to me right now? How many books can I take home today? What are you getting from the hold shelf?  Tell me about your grown-up book! What is that person over there looking at?  Is there story time today? I have to pee!" etc, etc, etc.

Thursday, April 14, 2016

I'm Outnumbered

It has officially been about 9 months since my last post.  Considering that I am currently spending my days trying to wrangle an infant and a preschooler, it's not that bad.  Trying to remember that you are a separate being with adult interests is both harder and easier with kid number two.

A good chunk of my days are spent at local, free drop-in programs, and big munchkin has afternoon classes twice a week at the community centre.  Pretty much everything is SO MUCH CHEAPER at the community centre.  The price difference for swimming is especially stark.  Subsequently, swimming is really, really hard to get into, and we managed to do it this current session purely by fluke.

I've been spending more time on social media - Pinterest has saved my butt at dinner time more than once since the baby has been born, and I'm actually not doing too badly on this year's Goodreads Challenge.

Speaking of my Goodreads Challenge for 2016, if you are at all interested in history, go find yourself a copy of Operation Paperclip to read.  It was a challenging book to get through, but it was well worth it.  It is all about the aftermath of WWII, and the American program developed to bring German scientists to the USA before the Soviets got to them.
At the lighter end of the spectrum, if you are a nerdy geeky person as I am, try Ready Player One.  There are many, many references to nerdy, geeky things hidden in its pages.

As for other, adult media, partner and I managed to see both Deadpool and Star Wars: The Force Awakens in theatres!  Deadpool was exactly what I hoped for and expected of that character, and I'm glad the studio didn't try to edit it down to a lower rating.  
Star Wars renewed my love of the franchise.  Partner and I spent days afterwards singing "Dududunaluh! I like Star Wars!" to each other.
The big munchkin has watched Episode 4 (and I quote "Mommy, Darth Vader was very mean to those people.  He shouldn't have been so mean to them"), and I am excited for when she watches The Force Awakens and sees her first female Jedi.
Of course, I may then have to find or make a Rey doll for her when that happens . . .

On that note, I shall leave you with the trailer for Star Wars: Rogue One.