time flies!

Happy holidays all!! Yep I'm still here... just got distracted :)

So much to write but am currently typing one handed with baby snoozing in the other. Just wanted to post a quick somethin' before the year ends. Because, gee... what a year. Okay I've re-situated to give me another hand to type, temporarily.

Our little man arrived on the morning of Nov 24th! He's beautiful and awesome. We hang out all day. Details soon: I want to type up his "birth story", note the ups and downs of our first month of learning how to do this mama/baby thang, and generally just blab on about how great he is and how much life has changed for the better since his arrival. Soon. Baby's stirring.

The above pic is A in a Christmas sleeper my brother B wore as a baby. Mom got a charge outta that.

land and coast

Our feet were in the beautiful Massachusetts ocean Tuesday morning, but how easy it is to settle in back at home. Back to the grind of dogs, dishes, phone calls, laundry, etc. Was nice to get away. Thought the long car rides would be tough while pregnant but they zoomed by. I gave D a tour of New Hampshire for his 36th birthday, and mom gave him the tour of Vermont. Montreal's labyrinth of highways was easily navigated, Ottawa slow but steady. A few moments book-ended at the cottage with dad, enjoying the quiet there.

The ocean is a really special, salty, soothing thing. I thought baby would kick more when I swam in it but all was still, enjoying the surf. We took the train to Boston for a day to have lunch with my cousins and explore the Fine Art Museum. Then back to the cape for more family time with lots and lots of lovely relatives. To think we'll have a baby with us next reunion is a real charge. How will we travel then? To be determined, but rooms booked for August 2012.

I thought time would feel slower on return (the prep for the trip and getting the house ready for our farm sitter was busy) but we're back and there's more ahead. Good things tho - a baby shower BBQ for the little one on Sunday in the city, and a cottage weekend after that. I think the nesting thing is starting to kick in more - there's a building urgency to prepare, make lists, read books. A desire to strip out all distractions and focus on baby. Soon time to start planning it all out: the laundering of sleepers and prefolds, making food for the freezer, car seats and stroller and crib, finishing up at work... Enjoying it tho. It's really awesome to make space and get excited about our new arrival.

1.1.11

Sitting on the couch in 2011 with my love, coffee, bathrobe. We had a fun new year's eve night of pizza, wine, and relaxation by the fire. It's pouring rain which is crazy - the snow is melting quickly and the grass is reappearing in the fields. It will be back tho as there's still a good 2 or 3 months of winter left.

After a week of visiting family, we made it home yesterday just as the sky darkened, both dogs surviving the hours and hours of travel. First, 4 hours west and back to see D's fam, then another 2.5 hours north and back to visit mine. We spent a couple extra days in Owen Sound to support family in supporting D's grandma "mama" - a fractured hip. But at 97, she's still one tough lady and should pull through fine. Will have to do a post about her apartment another time as it's a special place (an indoor collage garden).

Always nice to visit my hometown too. Family are well tho we're all still worried for my bro. Need to brainstorm solutions (always do but this time with urgency). Nonetheless, seasonal cheer prevailed and we arrived home with full bellies, prezzies, good memories, and a regained sense of connection and richness in all that makes up our family relations.
D and my 2010 "top 5" are: 1) getting married, 2) opening our business Mixed Greens, 3) our puppy Luna, 4) chickens, 5) Iceland honeymoon. Pretty great year for us! 2011 will probably include making MG more awesome, swimming regularly, a kick ass garden, visiting NYC, making music, and fingers-crossed, even more :)

countdown

A bit paused: weeds - "after the wedding", chickens - "after the wedding", music making - "after the wedding", home improvements - "after the wedding", budgeting properly - "after the wedding", hosting dinner parties - "after the wedding", calling D my husband to townsfolk, but it actually being real - "after the wedding", etc.

The days are normal, it's just a pause on larger things... because a wedding is a large thing. Even tho all is sorted, it takes up mental space. Getting married makes me feel lucky, calm, excited, ready for the future, happy, solid. Now that there are less than a few weeks left, I'm just really amazed by it all. The realness of how great this is. What a gift.

On the weekend my amazing mama hosted a bridal shower for me back home. Surrounded by the women that have watched me grow up, coming full circle to join the ranks of ladies who enjoy kitchen stuffs and gardening and food made with love and a nice glass of wine on the porch on a Saturday afternoon. It's good to feel comfortable in that world, and to be welcomed by so many.

Whisk found a groundhog the other day. Cute thing:

may may be great

Bloggies, apologies. I have not written in awhile but that time is over - the store is open and we have our free-time back!

Here is the beautiful green beast:
You can see more at our site, mixedgreens.ca. We're having a mother's day sale on bar soaps this weekend... hehe. And after the wedding, an online store! Our first week of sales bode well for a successful summer... such a relief, so satisfying, and cheering.

Wedding planning going well too. We are a solid team, D and I. It feels good to do things and make things happen together. D's a happy man. And I've accepted a new job at OCAD for August 1st - it will actually be my current job, just moved to a new university. So good changes all 'round.

Woke up to SNOW this morning. Really. It hasn't melted yet - still a very cold, grey, blustery day. I'll spend time in the basement repotting seedlings and starting some more seeds - the extras I can sell at the store, which is so cool. Other than that tho, another slow year for gardening. Too busy again, and that's okay. It'll still be good, but not the canning and freezing wheel-barrows full that I hope to someday achieve. Someday.

A girlfriend of mine is due to have a baby today... mother's day! So excited for her. Speaking of mothers, I love mine.

here and there

It is great to live someplace beautiful. Every day I sit at my desk and look out at a beautiful scene. Today, a winter wonderland: peeping birds, a patrolling dog, snow-filled fields, trees, clouds. Yesterday I looked out the office window and saw 15-20 wild turkeys eating seed off the ground, under the feeders. Surreal! They spooked too soon before I could get a picture. Hope they'll be back - what a quirky bunch.

We're at the tail-end of a snowstorm - D's home from work due to the weather. He brought me coffee in bed and read aloud Wikipedia info about Myanmar/Burma, Ango-Burmans, Aung San, and so on. D's folks are from Burma (hi Char!) and it's interesting to hear about the changes that were happening there/then. We're off to Owen Sound this weekend to visit them and cousins... looking forward. We'll also be meeting with our wedding caterer on Sunday. Mmmm.

I'm having another geriatric day - my back went out yesterday. Hobbling around.

fall feelin'

Brr it is chilly! The cold landed in so quickly. Last night we had our first fire. What a difference aged wood and a clean chimney make, it was roaring in no time (last year, a late wood delivery made for painful fire starting and a mucked up flue).

Getting to see family more often now that we live closer. So nice. When in Toronto, I'd take the Greyhound to the valley, about a 6.5hr trip, and only on limited days. Now that we live further North with cars, it's a 2.5hr drive through country-side.

My folks and both brothers live in the town I grew up in. B was showing us his amazing pumpkin haul this year. M has been doing road-construction all summer out west but is home this weekend. We'll be 5 for thanksgiving... nice when that happens. Thanksgiving already! And just last month we (er, D) helped dad take out the dock.

We've started making fall to-do lists before the real winter hits. This weekend we'll pile wood on the porch, clean up the gardens, put the lawnmowers away, buy a freezer. Country lyfe!

spring take two

Another snow fall, another big melt. But this time I think we're in the clear - temperatures for the week are calling for above 10C every day which means... actual SPRING. YES.

This long Easter weekend, some family came to see me! Mom arrived Friday and bro came for a bit on Saturday. Scrabble, wine, grilled-cheeses, and lots of yardwork. Old gardens remade, and other old gardens dismantled. A little effort to make the place look cared for. There's still a lot to do, but it's a good start. Also, Mom brought me a chocolate bunny and I've almost demolished the entire thing. Wheeeee!

We also did a little trip to Bobcaygeon. With Bigley's store being the big destination for many, we dropped in so mom could check it out. And we bought shoes. Boy, did I ever buy shoes:
Shiny!

In other news, Mo is really into the blanket mom crocheted me.
I guess she likes being able to hide but still see through the holes? She falls asleep like this, buried. It's adorable.

One more thing - work is sending me to San Francisco for a week! I leave Apr 25th and get to stay in a nice hotel and work on a cool project at Berkeley. Pinch me.

new addition

It's been awhile - hope you're all well.

Kawarthas are just gorgeous this time of year, my favorite time, autumn. Leaves just starting to fade, but were in top form over this past Thanksgiving weekend. Whisk and I drove up to visit my folks in Killaloe... beautiful drive and amazing weather. Always nice to see family. My dad's building a house for my brother, and my uncle's building a house too. Exciting things going on.

We've also adopted a new little muffin. Our neighbour came over the other night with news that someone had dumped a cat (drove up, opened car door, closed car door, drove away, then meowing...) at the bottom of his driveway, and since we just lost Raja, would we like this one? He wasn't able to take it in. Can't just leave a cat meowing outside so of course we did. Monday night we brought over a cat carrier, a bowl of food, and a couple bottles of beer and kept watch, eventually trapping the skittish little dude. We're wondering if it was abused - seems healthy physically but quite afraid of getting close. Settling in now, warming to us. So - introducing... nameless, gender-unknown cat!

Ain't she/he cute? Will take it to the vet soon and get all the details.

Whiskey's outside gnawing on a soup bone - dad's suggestion, genius idea. Asked the meat counter at the grocery store for any dog bones and now he'll be happily busy for awhile (just read that I should take it away after a half hour or so).

Oh man, am becoming a woman who talks about pretty leaves, nice weather, and pets. Maybe not a bad thing.

brain-storming

a campfire, a swim, a paddle-boat ride, a sunburn, a magazine or two, a visit with family, a big meal = a restoring, relaxing weekend in killaloe, staying at the cottage. benny's sale yielded a cheap, great pair of sorels (winter-prep in back of mind). returned with farm eggs, garden cucumbers, and a new bunch of ideas on how to pursue the upcoming year of our new farm-life. dreams so far. we shall see what happens.

despite heaping debt, can't help but ogle all of the beautiful bulb choices this fall, especially with the idea of a naturalized drift of mixed daffodils... or forced paperwhite narcissus. wonder how one finds deals on bulbs. might have to wait as we'll be spending a little extra dough on garlic seed!

tons of house flies getting in these past few days. ick.

long weekend

a five hour journey highlighted yellow in the map book, spanning 9 pages of shapely roads, taking thursday afternoon till evening. successfully avoiding highways to enjoy the country roads on a sunny spring day. east of orillia, along 45, is particularly beautiful, with seriously scenic ups and downs. i giggle passing norland (officially kawartha lakes) as the tragically hip song "bobcaygeon" plays on the radio. near kinmount, d calls and we talk about nice things as i cruise forward. after a brief lost cell signal, a stop in irondale for a bathroom break and heck, a snickers bar (this week is celebratory after all), the signal fades back and cousin b calls to arrange a catch-up brunch for monday. ring mom and dad to tell them it'll be another hour and a half as bancroft is still about 40km away. all in all, a good trip, and here i am.

after several sun salutations and simultaneous daydreams about yoga teacher training (in lindsay?) and a private practice studio (on the new farm?), i get up to make a salad in preparation for dins with the family. it's been early nights, early mornings, breakfast with eggs from the neighbour's hens, the ottawa citizen, coffee, checking out dad's garden, collecting perennials from a local plant sale & gerber's nursery with mom, and chats with the brothers when they swing by. bought dad two blueberry plants for his birthday (shhh, it's tomorrow. they're hidden behind the maple beside the driveway). apparently, in order to get berries, you need two different kinds for pollination. learn something horticulturally new every day.

these two paragraphs refer to thursday and today respectively. i am skipping friday because friday was insaneeeee! major stress and fright surrounding the big deal but by the end of the day, after a few bottles of beer with pops on the screen porch, i could take a big breath and know all was well. emails, faxes, phone calls, appointments... all such stuff now in order. PHEW!

moving away

had a wave of mutil... hesitation wash over me a few days ago. it happened while i was standing on the 4th floor of the four seasons centre for the performing arts (like in this image from their site), watching a ballet performance be workshopped. the beautiful dancers, the building, the strangers... looking out over a busy queen st. i felt really in love with the city. all of its possibilities, all the potentials of myself i could find here if i chose to explore them, the people i could meet and know and love, the importance and excitement of it all... and how i'm leaving it. it shook me and i let myself feel doubt for the first time in awhile. what am i doing? my life here is perfectly set up and great here - why am i going? there are still classes i could take, places to see, people to meet, things to explore... i smoothed myself over with the assurance that this was a temporary feeling, and reminded myself of the frustrations that coincide with living here. besides, perhaps i'll find similar inspirations out of the city too?

--

today was a slotted gym night but got distracted by my wicked stir-fry (2 plates) and a bottle of chardonnay. for 30 seconds i think, "i'll go tomorrow before work!" before acknowledging the very low probability of this. tomorrow after work then. i'm hoping i can find yoga or pick up volleyball or a highschool weight room in meaford and also in future new hometown. tho i will have the outdoors.

dad called with great news about my car situation. i find it amusing and kind of awesome how my family can make plans for me and i'm the last to know. fine by me. dad figures i have too many balls in the air at once so he's offered to lend me his car till the fall. he uses his truck in the spring/summer so it'd be mostly parked anyway. thoughtful papa. i'll have to put new tires on it but since my bro's got garage connections, i'll get a deal and he can put them on for me. team (surname)! come fall i'll buy something of my own, possibly mom's car, but will deal with that when the time comes.

two more weeks till the big move. need more boxes.

on the town

mother & daughter drank, tapped feet to live jazz, laughed at somewhat dirty stand up comedy ("what's a camel toe?"), enjoyed a quiet breakfast out, watched free ballet at the four seasons centre (the walls are glass), explored the "wilds" of allan gardens, wound down with lunch and coffee at a vegetarian cafe in kensington market, watched a movie... we know how to do. enjoyed the visit and now am enjoying being solo again.

saturday was a day from the storm, in a studio. record is mastered now and it's time we press and print.

need to figure out how to post songs to this blog - the little songs i make and will make while alone in the country.

back to work. more in a bit.

feet

befriended the running machine again - "it's been awhile little buddy" and off i went. did my routine in slow motion, going through the motions slowly but surely, lifting weights to old heights. i thought a couple of weeks away might've weakened me but was happy to see it was not so... just felt more rigid and sluggish. maybe i'll try to learn my legs to do the splits, said my revived motivation. have always admired dancer-like flexibility. when i got home and made a phone call, my mouth and thoughts were lazy... the body had won.

i wonder how commuting will be, if the road will tire me. it will hopefully be once a week at most, perhaps less. tho that's just toronto. there will be another commute to the east where my house-hunting will happen. tho i picture it being similar to a fun and exciting road trip instead of like a frantic day in the city, keeping office and band commitments. still, driving. i have my full licence thankfully but i've probably only used it a handfull of times in the past 10yrs. kind of freaked out and kind of totally into it... simultaneously. gotta get my road confidence and pedal feet back.

speaking of feet, i'm debating taking mom to the spa for pedicures. i bet there are many women who type such things into their blogs like "that's how i roll" but i've never had one. infact i've only ever been to a spa a few times (my benefits cover massages!) and i got my first bikini wax just last summer (jeeeeeesus). anyway... i bet moms has never had her feet did either so it might be fun. we can roll our eyes together.

warming the chill

blizzard outside. coffee and warm socks inside.

i've been spending a little time exploring other people's blogs and my new love for google reader has kept me organised and up-to-date with the ones i've found. it's strange to decide to sort of make friends with someone without their knowing. maybe i'll come out of hiding someday and sprinkle some comments. till then... sorta fun to see the fruits of another human also pausing a moment to take notes. so far mostly gardeners; somehow the plants forge a universal kinship amongst us.

got a great real estate agent for the kawartha lake area. she sounded energetic and down to earth on the phone. "the people are so friendly here and it's beautiful!" looking forward to finding a home with her. i think it will work out. the muskoka agent has basically disappeared and i'm unimpressed. if i choose to get cosmic about it, it could be some sort of sign... that and there's a lot more to choose from in my price range in kawartha.

mom's coming to visit next sunday/monday. would like to help pack (aw) and get a dose of the city before her daughtaire ditches the place. my bro m was here earlier this week and i took tuesday off work to hang out with him. went out for a delicious breakfast, tried to find me a winter coat (found one at MEC but in too-small a size so just ordered a larger one online), and went skating at nathan phillips square. (who's nathan phillips?... wikipedia tells me a toronto mayor). we both rented skates that turned out to be super dull but it made for a hilario clownish time.

d arrived wednesday, on his reading week, and is staying till the weekend. so nice. as much as i'll miss living solo, i feel like i've done a good stint (a few years) and having company is/will be a nice change.

back to work.

best bro

m: went test driving cars today sis
h: right owwwwnnnnn - anything good?
m: 2002 corolla 110,000kms saftied e-tested taxes in $8300
h: did you drive 'er?
m: yep i like a little more power in a car but its not too bad at all
m: its from a toyota dealership so i want to look around some more
h: is that a corolla thing or something to do with the engine of this particular car
m: engine 4 cyclinder good on gas but moms car is a 6 cylinder and has more power
h: so when you go to pass a guy you can zip by quicker?
m: ya but someone like you probably wouldn't notice lol
m: i still want to see if we can get you a good car for like 6 grand
h: ha ha
h: okay right on - there's no rush i guess so why not keep lookin eh
m: you got it
m: anyways chat with ya later sis love ya