WOW

  I can't believe it!! I just can't believe it!! 1000 views in the first month!! 

  I'm so grateful to everyone who has taken a moment out of their day to read my thoughts on my life, my rants, the kids and anything else I have rambled on about over the past month.

  I hope you've enjoyed it half as much as I have!

  Ang

Stranded...sort of

  I've spent the entire week without a car during the day. A "new world" problem I'm sure but still...an entire five days. My house is clean and the laundry is done but come on, enough already. I'm not sure I would have done anything but I like having the option.

  We have two cars...and have for years. I'm not sure we could go back. Too many after school activities and I'm much too disorganized to get everything done in the evenings. So when one isn't working I definitely feel it. 

  I'm not against the bus. But anyone who has schlepped their groceries home on public transit knows that isn't ideal. Plus timing is everything. And daytime scheduling doesn't always work for what I want to do.

  Curiously though, I've wanted to go to the mall all week. I'm not a big shopper and rarely go to the mall. Yet my brain has been saying, for five days now, that that's where I need to be. Strange. Tomorrow when I have access to my car again I wonder if I will want to go? I'm thinking probably not.

  But I did notice one huge positive to being car-less all week. My bank account has barely been touched all week! I guess I spend more money then I thought every time I leave the house. Maybe I need to stay home more often.

  Don't tell John though....he might take another week to fix the van!

  Ang

  

Where is the Bus??!!

  Today is cold, rainy and very windy. One of those autumn days where you finally realize that even "Indian summer" is officially over. And what was I doing on this fine afternoon you may ask. Why I was waiting for the school bus. For a very,very long time.

  Riley is a school "walker". We live too close to the school to have busing provided. You must reside farther than 1.8 km from the school in order to qualify for transportation...unless your child is in kindergarten. No one really knows how they came up with that distance. Or exactly how much extra it costs to bus the closer kids. If at all. But that's the rule so.....

  Once all the routes are up and running you can apply for one of the empty seats. If you are lucky enough to get one they tell you where and when your child's bus will show up. You cannot ask for any changes such as a closer stop. The bus company is very strict. Very strict.

  This particular bus also does another school. So the driver drops off an entire bus load of students before ever reaching Riley's school, where he loads up again. Now the other three buses show up between 3:00 and 3:05, load up and off they go. Not this bus. Sometimes it doesn't show til 3:15 or even 3:20! A full fifteen minutes after the bell rings. It's not the driver's fault. By law he cannot let a kindergarten student off the bus without an adult there to pick them up. So if the parent is late, he must wait. Also there is traffic to consider. Again nothing he can do about that.

  But today was ridiculous. I arrived at 3:25...the earliest the bus has ever arrived. I'm constantly moving my umbrella from side to side as the wind changes, trying to keep it from popping. The rain is coming down sideways so most of the time I'm still getting wet. The other parents are there too waiting....in their cars, warm and dry but I digress. A quick check of my phone, 3:30. Ok it's only been five minutes. Feels like longer but ok.

  Check again, 3:35. Well, it probably took longer to load the bus. Any second now. 3:40, nothing. 3:45, nothing. Twenty minutes. I've been waiting 20 minutes. In the cold rain. Trying to keep my umbrella in tact. Not happy. Not happy at all.

  3:48 the bus arrives. A full thirty three minutes after the "scheduled" arrival time. The driver is smiling telling the kids to have a good evening and to do their homework. He's as happy as can be. The parents are not so happy. We are tired of waiting. We have other things we could/should have been doing.

  Will I call the bus company tomorrow and complain? No I will not. Why? Because we are one of the lucky ones to get that coveted seat. Will any of the other parents voice their irritation? Nope, not a chance. They too are part of the chosen ones. We cannot afford to do anything to anger the bus gods and have our seat pulled out from underneath us...literally and figuratively.

  So this will be my only complaint. I will put on my big-girl-panties and move on. My only complaining will be done to anyone who reads this. And John. 

  Ang 

Is It Grey in Here?

  I'm not sure how or when it happened but my grey hair has come back with a vengeance! It seems like only eight short weeks ago, I spent a crazy-ass amount of money getting rid of the damn stuff. Now there is more than ever. Where did it all come from???

  We all deal with the signs of aging differently. Botox is a favorite of some, as are face lifts. The ever popular eyelid lift is known to give you that " I just woke up surprised" look. I'm not a fan of needles so while I like the idea of looking refreshed, I'm not sure it's in the cards for me. However....

  Hair is different. It grows back pretty quickly so you really only have to suffer through a few weeks of a bad haircut or a color gone wrong. You can hide it under your hat or wear a wig and no one would ever know what the fuss was about.  We've all realized too late that the beautiful cut or color in the magazine wasn't meant for us.

  Grey however is irritating. Those strands of hair think. They know which side you part on and grow thickest there. They are aware that you wear a pony tail and add a silvery tint to the sides. And they don't stay hidden for long. In fact they go out of their way to not hold any color at all. I mean it, they are super intelligent.

  I know many women who look amazing with grey, silver or white hair. I'm not one of them. I look old. Before my time old. It accentuates every fine line on my face and the not so fine too. They make me hunch over a bit too, adding to the impression of elderlyness....I know that's not a word but it seems to fit so I've made it up.

  My stylist appointments are getting closer and closer together. I'm sure I've paid for a year of private school for her child. Still there is one thing that makes this just a little bit easier....my best friend has just as much, or more, than me!

  Ang

Money

  No matter how much money I have it's never going to be enough. My kids will see to that. "Mommy can I have...?" "Mommy I need..." It never ends. Ever. I may have to get a paying job soon. Hugs just aren't buying the things we can't seem to live without.

  It's barely two o'clock on Saturday and already I've been bombarded by both boys to buy buy buy. A quick trip out to the farmer's market turned into...I need water, a crown, a new coloring book, stickers, a book and candy. I get home and then it's...I'm going bowling, then a sleep over, a birthday card, money for the card and treats at the alley. My head is pounding. So is my wallet.

  Kids are all the same. They want everything. Let me rephrase that, they need everything. Except what they really need. Like a winter jacket, boots and snow suit, which both need as we speak. Somehow I'm supposed to find the money for not only the necessities but the extras as well.

  We have done a relatively good job teaching the boys about money. We give them money to buy things, remind them of tax and let them decide what to spend our hard earned cash on. When the money is gone it's gone. They must decide the difference between a "want" and a "need". Riley decides he doesn't need much. Alex decides he needs everything. Either way they make their own choices and live with the consequences. Lots of buyers remorse in our house.

  Unlike some other parents, we say no to things more often than yes. They don't do without but they definitely aren't spoiled. Instead we try to spend time, not money, with them. It's all about balance...most of the time.

  Sometimes John and I sit back and reminisce about the good old days....when we used to have money. And wonder if those days will ever return. With only sixteen more years til they both finish university we now wonder if we will live to see our bank account increase....yeah probably not.

  Ang

  

Surprise update

  Big reveal time....my Mom made a surprise visit. The kids were speechless...and that's saying something! Riley looked shocked, stunned and dazed. Alex couldn't get the silly grin off his face. Priceless. Mom was grinning from ear to ear too....it's all sunshine and daisies here tonight.

  FYI..apparently I did tell John. He wasn't surprised at all....except that she hadn't cooked dinner!

  Ang 

Secrets and Surprises

  As a rule my family does not have "secrets". We have surprises or things we aren't able to talk about at the moment. I saw a show once that said pedophiles tell their victims that what is taking place is "a secret". So immediately I decided there was none of that in this house. I went so far as to tell the kids that if someone said to them "it's a secret" to come and tell us asap. Parental paranoia I know but....

  We have surprised the boys many times. Trips. Change of plans. Visitors. All wonderful. All well received. As they get older it is harder to do....they have excellent hearing, especially from the top of the stairs, when they are supposed to be asleep. I think they may have reached the age where they now see through us. I hope I'm wrong.

  Today we have a surprise for them....I won't say what it is because Alex thinks it's very funny that his mother has a blog and tends to read it when he should be studying. They both know something is up but haven't figured out exactly what. For the past three days I've been getting the strangest of questions. And giving the strangest of answers.

  Why are you cleaning? My favorite question by far. But it's true we clean different if someone is coming to stay or even for dinner. You all know what I'm talking about. Normal people don't clean out the medicine cabinet if there isn't a chance someone else might be peeking inside.

  How come there is no food? Honestly I get that a lot. Even when a surprise vacation isn't planned. No matter how much food I buy it disappears after forty eight hours. Always.

  Why is there an email from...? My email comes up on two phones, an iPad and the laptop. There is no privacy of information when it comes to email. Many sets of eyes might see it before I even know it's arrived. I'm ok with that...most of the time.

  If I was to guess, I would say Riley has asked me at least one hundred things the "surprise" could be. Poor kid wants to know badly. I told him it might be a puppy, a new car or a Disney cruise. FYI it's none of the above. Although they all sound nice.

  This afternoon is the big reveal. I know they will be so happy and excited. All the clues of the past week will come together. They won't mind all the little white lies I've told or the out right ones either. It will all be forgiven and forgotten.

  In all this I forgot about John. I'm not sure I told him!

  Ang