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Explore: Life in Pictures, Vol. 3

March 24, 2013 by Farewell Stranger ·

I’m not sure if I can honestly say I’ve been cognizant of pursuing my one word this last month. I think it’s almost been ingrained in me though. Get out there. Do stuff. See what happens. Just try it.

It’s kind of nice.

I’ve been spending less time on the computer and more time on the floor with Connor (who is refusing to let me take his picture lately).

I decided it was time to stop being lazy and actually take both boys out one afternoon while Rich was working. We went to the zoo, and while it wasn’t the most successful trip ever (don’t ask) we did have fun and enjoyed some time in the sunshine. Plus, I really dig this dude’s hair.

We’ve still had snow here – a few big late-winter snowfalls and one near-blizzard. I’m a little sick of the snow-warm-melt-freeze-icy-sidewalk pattern we’ve got going on, but I definitely still appreciate the snow. It makes me want to go outside and really look at stuff. What can I say? I just like winter. Besides, it’s so photogenic.

We did some Ukrainian Easter eggs this weekend. I remember doing these as a kid, though evidently then I was less worried about how (not) artistic I am. Still, it was fun, and the colourful dye begs to be made into art.

Even the little guy has been getting in on the exploratory action. I suppose he’s inevitably going to be obsessed with LEGO.

We’ve just started him on solids too, but first we gave him some time in his high chair and let him play with a spoon. He definitely looked at the spoon like there was supposed to be something on it (and the next day when there was some cereal on it he was a big fan).

I’ve continued reading and am really enjoying it. (One thing, though – I’m reading a book right now and I think I’ve read it before but I’m not sure. Does this ever happen to you? I’m finding it odd, but I keep reading in hopes of remembering something other than a vague familiar feeling.)

I also read a book about writing for mothers and ohmygosh was it ever good. Presuming I can get over that whole is-it-good-enough thing I’ll share some of the writing I’ve done in response to the book’s exercises.

And finally, one of the things I did as part of choosing my word for the year was make a list of goals. And then I started exploring opportunities. Writing for Huffington Post was on that list. (I need to write over there again – ahem.) And so was blogging for a parenting site. And I can cross that one off now too!

I’ve just started as a blogger for Yummy Mummy Club. My YMC blog is called Meant to Be and I’d love it if you’d come and follow along over there too. (There’s also an RSS feed if you’d like to follow that way.)

How is your year going so far?

Linking this one word update with our monthly check-in on Just.Be.Enough as well as:

Filed Under: Happy things · Tagged With: favourite activities, One word, photos

A Million Moments of Joy

March 13, 2013 by Farewell Stranger ·

Head OVER heels.

OVERtired.

Won me OVER.

OVERachiever.

OVER the moon.

OVER my head.

OVERjoyed.

OVERwhelmed.

These are all things I have felt since becoming a mom. There were times when the OVERwhelmed outweighed the OVERjoyed feelings, and there were definitely times I was OVER it. But one of the things I’ve always tried to do here is talk about ALL the moments – the good, the bad, the ugly-cry moments. I just think it’s important that we talk about how it really is. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Motherhood, Stuff I like · Tagged With: gratitude, I was paid for this but it doesn't mean I'm not genuinely interested, moments, photos

Name that Kindergartner [Updated]

March 10, 2013 by Farewell Stranger ·

UPDATE: We have winners! Amy P. was our grand prize winner of a $300 Amazon gift card and Renee and Julie each got runner-up prizes.
Congrats to the winners and thanks to everyone who entered!

Wondering who was who? I’ve updated the collage below to include the answers.
I’m actually surprised at how many people couldn’t guess me. Here’s a side-by-side to help you out:

And here are the rest of the answers. (If you’d like to see then vs. now comparisons for the other participants, you can click on the links below to visit their updated posts.)

We went on a school tour on Friday for a school Connor might go to for Kindergarten. How are you supposed to choose a school for your kid at this level? (That sounds like a rhetorical question but I’d happily take any advice you have to offer.)

There’s a school in our community but we’re just outside the walk zone so we don’t automatically get a spot, and we happened not to get one through the lottery (which only had 11 spots, so that tells you a bit about the demographic in this area). That’s actually fine, as I’m not sold on that school and we’ve registered him at another school close by that we’ve heard really good things about. We’re outside the area for that one, though, so we have to wait and see if we get a spot. If not, he would go to the one we toured on Friday. And it seems fine. From a long-term perspective (it goes up to Grade 6) there are some things I’m not keen on, but does it matter at Kindergarten level? They have all the things I think are important, and there are some things about it that I think would be great for a kid like Connor.

So as we sit and think about this decision, I’m reminiscing a bit about my time in Kindergarten. Except I don’t remember much – just two particular friends and playing with blocks made of cardboard. The blocks were red and white – done up like bricks, essentially. And that’s it. That’s all I remember.

I do like my hair from that era, though.

It’s very simple – just look at the collage and match the Kindergarten photo (with the assigned letter of the alphabet) to the correct blogger. (All participating bloggers are listed further down.)

What’s in it for you? Some fun, naturally, and the possibility of a fantastic prize – a $300 Amazon gift card (or a runner-up prize). You can also get to know some of the bloggers listed here, if you don’t know them already. You can have a laugh at our expenses. (Don’t worry, we laughed at each other.)

To join in, enter your answers on the form.

Participating bloggers, in alphabetical order:

Angela of Angela Amman

Angie of Angie Kinghorn

Deborah of Ask Doctor G

Robin of Farewell Stranger

Poppy of Funny or Snot

Leigh Ann of Genie in a Blog

Greta of Gfunkified

Jennifer of Jennifer P. Williams

Tonya of Letters for Lucas

Kiran of Masala Chica

Laura of Mommy Miracles

Natalie of Mommy of a Monster (and Twins)

Brittany of Mommy Words

Jessica of My Time as Mom

Kimberly of Reflections of Now

Tracy of Sellabit Mum

Elaine of The Miss Elaine-ous Life

Sarah of The Sunday Spill

Galit of These Little Waves

Kristin of Two Cannoli

Arnebya of What Now and Why

Kristin of What She Said

Alison of Writing, Wishing

Terms and conditions apply:

You must be 18 years or older to enter.
This contest is only open to residents of USA and Canada.
This contest is open from March 11 – 15, 2013 (closes at 9pm Eastern).
Visit the link above where you will be able to enter your guess for each blogger pictured. (All information will be kept private.)
The person to correctly match all the faces with their blog will win a $300 Amazon gift card. The two other closest guesses will each win one $80 Amazon gift card.
If more than one person correctly matches all the faces with their blogs, we will randomly pick a winner via random.org.
If no one guesses all the faces correctly, the winner will be the person who made the most correct guesses.
This is not a sponsored post. Prizes are paid for out of the participating bloggers’ own pockets.
You CAN enter more than once!
Winners will be announced week of March 18.

(Name That Kindergartner was inspired by the Name That DIY Blogger contest at My Blessed Life.)

Sound good? Okay, then. Ready, set…name that kindergartner!

Filed Under: Randomness · Tagged With: blogging, community, photos

Explore: Life in Pictures, Vol. 2

February 14, 2013 by Farewell Stranger ·

In volume one of this series sharing pictures of stuff I’m doing in pursuit of my one word for this year, I gave you an update on the things we’d been doing and places I’ve explored just for the joy of it. This one is different. This is the Connor edition.

When I introduced my word I mentioned that it wasn’t just about going places, though certainly that’s part of why I chose the word “explore.” It was also about exploring other things, and one of those things is my relationship with Connor.

I’ve mentioned before that I struggle with him a bit, and I think it’s because in some ways we’re so alike while in others we’re so different. He pushes my buttons. Sometimes it’s because of who he is – he’s high energy, and he’s four. Frustration comes easily to me when I’m tired, which I am most of the time these days. And I tip into sensory overload really fast, and he seems to like to exploit that.

But a lot of the time it’s because he doesn’t get what he needs from me. So I’m trying to fix that.

I went to his preschool last week when he was special helper, and got to see him doing all the special-helper jobs and doing show-and-share with his class. He was so cute sitting in the special helper chair showing his LEGO dinosaur and answering his classmates’ questions, and in that space and time I was a mom with a preschooler talking about something he loves. It was a good reminder.

Connor still loves his baby brother. He loves to play with him and hold him and talk to him. His generous nature prevents him from lashing out because the baby gets more of my attention than he does these days. I’ve been encouraging him to help with Ethan and getting down on the floor with them and trying to remember that Connor was my baby at one time too.

I’ve been trying hard to join him when he plays LEGO, though it’s not my strong suit. But what I am really good at is appreciating the stuff he builds (because, seriously, he does amazing stuff) and taking pictures of him with his creations (even when he has a dopey smile and needs his hair cut).

And we’ve been doing things. Going to the library and then reading the books.

Today I was starting to do a Jillian Michaels’ yoga meltdown workout while he was supposed to be in quiet time. He quietly opened the door and came in with his LEGO, his drink and his snack, and said he was lonely in quiet time. Normally I would have shooed him out, but instead I thought, “Why not?” I asked him if he wanted to do yoga with me and he gamely joined in, standing in a small spot next to me. So I opened up my space and my heart and moved over to give him his own yoga mat right next to me. As I moved I saw him watching me and then copying my moves.

Like mother, like son.

It’s been good.

***
I’ve got a new post at Huffington Post that shares a little bit more about our move last year. Would love it if you would come and read!

Filed Under: Motherhood · Tagged With: family, moments, One word, photos

Explore 2013: The First Month

January 29, 2013 by Farewell Stranger ·

My one word for 2013 doesn’t require me to draw hard on my will power. It doesn’t ask me to break out of comfort zones (much) or give up anything. It just pushes me to get out there and to try new things. So that’s what I’m doing.

See

One of the things that drew me to my word for 2012 was that we had just moved to a new city (and a new province) and I wanted to see some of the amazing things this area offers. We did a little bit of it, but not as much because, as mentioned in my post reflecting on 2012, I was experiencing the “vibrancy” of morning sickness for the better part of the year, which didn’t make me feel like doing much of anything. That hankering has carried over into 2013 and I’m going to explore, even if I have to drag myself (and my family) out there.

We’ve done a few things already this year, including a favourite event that we did get to last year before I started feeling icky. The Ice Magic Festival in Lake Louise makes for a perfect day in the Canadian Rockies and Connor was much better behaved this year, so I thoroughly enjoyed it. The ice sculptures are incredible and the scenery is breathtaking. Many of the photos in this post are from our day out there on Saturday.

This one, however, isn’t.

Do you ever come across a view or a sight that makes you pause, except you don’t actually pause? I’m trying very hard not to make this a blog in which I spend all my time gushing about how beautiful it is here, but it is and I definitely appreciate it. Every once in a while I come across something that asks to be captured, but often I’m rushing around trying to take a kid somewhere or get some things done before the little one needs feeding again. On Saturday as I was going to pick up my dad before going to the festival I caught a glimpse of a stunning view. And despite the fact that we were leaving the house almost an hour later than planned, I pulled off the highway and took a side road, not knowing where it would lead. Well, it led here.

It’s a bit tough to tell (because this was taken with my phone and I used a filter that blurs it a little bit) but the mountains were crystal clear that day. I didn’t know this little barn was here, but it just looked so cool from where I was, so I stopped to take a picture before returning to the highway. Totally worth it.

Do

To me, “explore” isn’t just about physically going places. It’s also about doing things I might not otherwise have chosen to do – or have even known I want to.

One of those is my challenge to myself to exercise for 30 days straight. It was a weird, random thing that I put on my life list and when a friend suggested we do it I figured there was no reason not to. Today is day 29, thank goodness, and I’ll share some thoughts next week about how it’s been. (I have caught some incredible sunsets, for one thing.)

Another thing I’m doing is taking an online course called Create 2013, which is about trying to guide your intentions for the coming year. It has brought about some interesting insights, the most profound of which relates to doodling. (More on that later too.)