It was a not-so-fun Christmas for our clan this year as everyone got sick. Austin came down with a really bad cold on Dec. 23, Ryan spiked a fever late Dec. 24, I came down with a bad cold on Dec. 25 and Alex spiked a fever late Dec. 25.
So, in honour of our not-so-joyous holiday season, I have written the 12-days of Christmas...Evans style.
On the first day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 1 supermom (because despite a miserable cold that settled into my lungs and messed with my asthma, I continued to care for everyone all day and night. Oh and because that's what Ryan kept calling me.)
On the second day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 2 double ear infections (that's right, 2 kids with an infection in each ear), and 1 supermom.
On the third day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 3 days of high fevers (39C+), 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
On the fourth day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
On the fifth day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 5 days lost to the flu. 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
On the sixth day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 6 disappointed family members (the ones we had to call in an IOU Christmas visit with), 5 days lost to the flu, 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
On the seventh day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 7 days of antibiotics, 6 disappointed family members, 5 days lost to the flu, 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supemom.
On the eighth day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 8 presents from mom and dad/Santa per kid (hey, there's got to be something fun in this song), 7 days of antibiotics, 6 disappointed family members, 5 days lost to the flu, 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
On the ninth day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 9 relatives we saw the day before the sickness started (I sure hope no one else caught this!), 8 presents per kid, 7 days of antibiotics, 6 disappointed family members, 5 days lost to the flu, 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
On the tenth day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 10 days off school, 9 relatives we saw for lunch the day before the sickness started, 8 presents per kid, 7 days of antibiotics, 6 disappointed family members, 5 days lost to the flu, 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
On the eleventh day of Christmas, this seaon gave to us: 11-hour nights that the kids couldn't sleep through (due to sickness), 10 days off school, 9 relatives we saw for lunch the day before the sickness started, 8 presents per kid, 7 days of antibiotics, 6 disappointed family members, 5 days lost to the flu, 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
On the twelfth day of Christmas, this season gave to us: 12 gifts passed around (because when the kids and I went to my parents house for Christmas dinner (of which we ended up not staying for long because that's when Alex started to get sick), believe it or not, I forgot a gift -- my dad's), 11-hour nights that the kids couldn't sleep through, 10 days off school, 9 relatives we saw for lunch the day before the sickness started, 8 presents per kid, 7 days of antibiotics, 6 disappointed family members, 5 days lost to the flu, 4 sick people, 3 days of high fevers, 2 double ear infections and 1 supermom.
Phew. And on that note, this supermom needs a vacation. Oh yeah, and a Christmas do-over.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
The house won't be that cold, right?
I'm sitting at our local McDonald's playground right now (using my Blackberry to pass the time) while the kids burn off some energy after lunch. Heading to McDonald's after school is a first for us but was a necessity today.
Today, I'm having all the windows replaced in my house (that's 9 for anyone that's counting). A day long project at best. Oh and did I mention that it's currently -7C outside right now?! And that's before the windchill makes it somewhere in the negative teens (which I guess is better than yesterday when it was in the negative 20s.) So yeah, sitting at home right now is not a top priority.
And on top of the cold, all the windows that are going to be installed are lying on the floor of the respective rooms - so not only do I not want to be in a cold house with two kids but I also would rather not be in a cold house with two kids and large plates of glass windows lying around everywhere.
This whole thing is ridiculous really. Because honestly who in their right mind replaces their windows in December? Why couldn't we have thought to do this in...oh I don't know....AUGUST!
Today, I'm having all the windows replaced in my house (that's 9 for anyone that's counting). A day long project at best. Oh and did I mention that it's currently -7C outside right now?! And that's before the windchill makes it somewhere in the negative teens (which I guess is better than yesterday when it was in the negative 20s.) So yeah, sitting at home right now is not a top priority.
And on top of the cold, all the windows that are going to be installed are lying on the floor of the respective rooms - so not only do I not want to be in a cold house with two kids but I also would rather not be in a cold house with two kids and large plates of glass windows lying around everywhere.
This whole thing is ridiculous really. Because honestly who in their right mind replaces their windows in December? Why couldn't we have thought to do this in...oh I don't know....AUGUST!
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Patting myself on the back
A year and a half ago, when I was trying to decide whether to go back to work (before the decision was handed to me on a silver platter), we played the numbers again.
That game where you take your salary, subtract the obligatory taxes and then subtract the cost of two kids in full-time daycare to see how much is left over. The game is useful to see if it's even worthwhile to go back to work or whether working is just a money-losing venture. (Now that game doesn't take into account the EI moeny you're receiving while on maternity leave versus the no income you receive as a stay-at-home mom, but it's still a worthwhile exercise. )
It would've been worthwhile for me to go back -- after taxes and daycare, we would've been left with a little less than a third of my salary. Then of course there would've been the added expenses of commuting and work clothes but you get the general idea.
When we decided I would stay home, it was a decision made on the assumption that I would be bringing in no income.
But soon after we decided I would stay home (or maybe it was at the same time) I decided to do some freelance writing. The decision was solely based on one thought "hey I can write, let's see if I can pick up a little bit of writing work".
In 2009 (or at least the second half of it, which is when I started writing), I did just that, pick up a little bit of work.
But I'm proud to pat myself on the back right now and tell you that as 2010 closes out, I will have worked enough "on the side" to make up that one-third of my salary that would've been leftover had I gone to work every day.
All while getting to do what I really wanted to do -- be a full-time stay-at-home mom.
I'll be honest, it hasn't always been easy. And some days, when I'm tired I think that I'm insane for wanting to be a full-time mom and a part-time writer. Because some weeks,
there isn't enough time to do it all. And there certainly isn't any time leftover for me.
There was a period from mid-May until the end of July where I was working almost constantly. Every afternoon and many evenings and weekends were filled with me sitting in front of my computer. Once or twice I found myself working until 1 a.m., only to get up with the kids at 7. In those months, it was a little too hectic. And I considered finding part-time daycare come September if that pace kept up.
But like the nature of all freelance work, it didn't. But work remained steady throughout the fall -- with many 'naptimes' filled with work, a few evenings a week and the occasional weekend afternoon. Enough to keep me busy. And enough to bring the money in.
The kids are used to it, even if they don't understand what 'work' is when I say mommy has to work. With my Blackberry closeby, I'm able to respond to work requests wherever I am -- I took a job this summer while at the splash pad with the kids and another one while wandering around Riverdale Farm. It might be a busy life, but I can do both my jobs at the same time while at the park. So life ain't all that bad.
As 2011 approaches, I'm going to do it all again. See if I can make that much money again, or as my contacts snowball with referrals and my client list continues to grow, maybe I'll even be able to make a little more. Goodness knows, having the extra money that we didn't expect to have when I left the working world has been helpful. And if all goes well, by the time the kids are both in school, I may have enough work on my hands to do this full-time and then maybe I'll never go back to an office again.
But now I'm getting ahead of myself. Because right now, if I take on much more work than I did this year, I may seriously need to look into daycare options.
That game where you take your salary, subtract the obligatory taxes and then subtract the cost of two kids in full-time daycare to see how much is left over. The game is useful to see if it's even worthwhile to go back to work or whether working is just a money-losing venture. (Now that game doesn't take into account the EI moeny you're receiving while on maternity leave versus the no income you receive as a stay-at-home mom, but it's still a worthwhile exercise. )
It would've been worthwhile for me to go back -- after taxes and daycare, we would've been left with a little less than a third of my salary. Then of course there would've been the added expenses of commuting and work clothes but you get the general idea.
When we decided I would stay home, it was a decision made on the assumption that I would be bringing in no income.
But soon after we decided I would stay home (or maybe it was at the same time) I decided to do some freelance writing. The decision was solely based on one thought "hey I can write, let's see if I can pick up a little bit of writing work".
In 2009 (or at least the second half of it, which is when I started writing), I did just that, pick up a little bit of work.
But I'm proud to pat myself on the back right now and tell you that as 2010 closes out, I will have worked enough "on the side" to make up that one-third of my salary that would've been leftover had I gone to work every day.
All while getting to do what I really wanted to do -- be a full-time stay-at-home mom.
I'll be honest, it hasn't always been easy. And some days, when I'm tired I think that I'm insane for wanting to be a full-time mom and a part-time writer. Because some weeks,
there isn't enough time to do it all. And there certainly isn't any time leftover for me.
There was a period from mid-May until the end of July where I was working almost constantly. Every afternoon and many evenings and weekends were filled with me sitting in front of my computer. Once or twice I found myself working until 1 a.m., only to get up with the kids at 7. In those months, it was a little too hectic. And I considered finding part-time daycare come September if that pace kept up.
But like the nature of all freelance work, it didn't. But work remained steady throughout the fall -- with many 'naptimes' filled with work, a few evenings a week and the occasional weekend afternoon. Enough to keep me busy. And enough to bring the money in.
The kids are used to it, even if they don't understand what 'work' is when I say mommy has to work. With my Blackberry closeby, I'm able to respond to work requests wherever I am -- I took a job this summer while at the splash pad with the kids and another one while wandering around Riverdale Farm. It might be a busy life, but I can do both my jobs at the same time while at the park. So life ain't all that bad.
As 2011 approaches, I'm going to do it all again. See if I can make that much money again, or as my contacts snowball with referrals and my client list continues to grow, maybe I'll even be able to make a little more. Goodness knows, having the extra money that we didn't expect to have when I left the working world has been helpful. And if all goes well, by the time the kids are both in school, I may have enough work on my hands to do this full-time and then maybe I'll never go back to an office again.
But now I'm getting ahead of myself. Because right now, if I take on much more work than I did this year, I may seriously need to look into daycare options.
Thursday, December 09, 2010
Who would want an old broken fridge?
Last Monday, our ancient basement fridge (and oh yes, it was ancient) finally died. It was our beer fridge, so really, it wasn't a huge loss. By that I mean, no contents of the fridge were lost. Not having a beer/drink fridge mere weeks before having people over for Christmas -- now that was a problem.
So, on Tuesday morning, I marched off to Sears, found one we liked that also happened to be on sale and bought it. It's an all-fridge (no freezer) and it's about twice the size of the old one -- meaning we can store more than just drinks in it.
So that was Tuesday. On Wednesday, we discovered that the old fridge that was now sitting dead in the corner had been leaking for two (or more) days all over the carpet. The carpet was now soaked. I got to spend a fair bit of time with the wet vac before marching off to Home Depot and renting a carpet blower to dry the carpet out.
On Tuesday of this week, the guys from Sears brought me my new fridge and carried my old one out. Well most of it. They left the door behind in my basement because we had forgotten to remove drinks from it. (Oh, because did I mention that when the old fridge died, it did so by slowly filling with ice over the course of a few weeks so that it finally pushed the door right off. Yup, that's right. The door fell off. And yup, that's right, it didn't occur to either of us that a fridge full of ice sitting on your carpet can only lead to a very wet carpet. This is where you get to say dumbass.)
So the fridge went out on the curb Tuesday afternoon for Thursday's garbage pickup. As late as 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon, it was lying sadly by the side of the road. At 8:30 p.m., I carried the door outside so it too would get picked up and low and behold, the dead fridge was gone.
I know the garbage truck didn't come by in that two hour period, so that leaves me with just one question.
Who would want a dead doorless fridge?
So, on Tuesday morning, I marched off to Sears, found one we liked that also happened to be on sale and bought it. It's an all-fridge (no freezer) and it's about twice the size of the old one -- meaning we can store more than just drinks in it.
So that was Tuesday. On Wednesday, we discovered that the old fridge that was now sitting dead in the corner had been leaking for two (or more) days all over the carpet. The carpet was now soaked. I got to spend a fair bit of time with the wet vac before marching off to Home Depot and renting a carpet blower to dry the carpet out.
On Tuesday of this week, the guys from Sears brought me my new fridge and carried my old one out. Well most of it. They left the door behind in my basement because we had forgotten to remove drinks from it. (Oh, because did I mention that when the old fridge died, it did so by slowly filling with ice over the course of a few weeks so that it finally pushed the door right off. Yup, that's right. The door fell off. And yup, that's right, it didn't occur to either of us that a fridge full of ice sitting on your carpet can only lead to a very wet carpet. This is where you get to say dumbass.)
So the fridge went out on the curb Tuesday afternoon for Thursday's garbage pickup. As late as 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon, it was lying sadly by the side of the road. At 8:30 p.m., I carried the door outside so it too would get picked up and low and behold, the dead fridge was gone.
I know the garbage truck didn't come by in that two hour period, so that leaves me with just one question.
Who would want a dead doorless fridge?
Friday, December 03, 2010
Santa's elves
In 1988, my youngest sister really, really, really wanted an Oopsie Daisy doll from Santa for Christmas. She was 3 years old and this crawling, talking baby was the big thing among toddlers that year. Sort of like Tickle Me Elmo was in the mid-199os.Not wanting to disappoint their youngest daughter, my parents searched high and low for this doll. We lived in Montreal at the time, and they couldn't find it anywhere. Finally, a few days before Christmas, they found out a store in Platsburg, NY (the shopping town just over the border) was getting a shipment. My dad made the hour and a bit drive the following Saturday to get it. The one small problem that day -- there was a blizzard, yet my dad drove through it (and home in it) to get his daughter an Oopsie Daisy doll.
Us girls were told this story years later and it's always been a good laugh in our family.
Last week, I sat my kids down to write their Santa letters. Austin, who at 4 years old, I discovered, still doesn't quite get the Santa thing. He gets that Santa will come and bring him presents, but he doesn't understand that this is his chance to ask for anything he wants. (Which maybe for me, is a good thing.)
So, as we're writing his letter, he's looking around the room at his toys trying to figure out what to ask for based on what he has. He asks for blocks (of which he has lots of) and then he hones in on his Lightning McQueen car and says "I want a Sally car". And I'm thinking, "what's a Sally car?" and then I realize, he wants the Sally character car from the Cars movie.
My first thoughts are along the lines of "oh crap, how am I going to find one of those."
I know that the Disney Store sells Cars Movie stuff, but usually the cars are in 10 packs, and I didn't want to spend $50 because Austin wanted one car.So I checked Amazon dot com and sure enough, I could buy a single Sally car (with Linticular eyes and all) for less than $9 -- oh and pay about $20 in shipping to Canada. At that price, I might as well pay a little bit more and get a 10-pack of cars.
And that's when I got the idea to enlist some elves to help me.
My sister lives in California and my other sister (the one who wanted the Oopsie Daisy doll all those years ago) lives here in Toronto but was heading to California for a visit.
So I called up my sister in California and we hatched a plan. The car was sent to her (at about a $3 shipping fee) and my other sister will bring it back with her to Toronto when she comes home. And then I'll just have to pick it up.
Sometimes Santa has to be a little creative. And years from now, I'm sure Austin will get a laugh out of the fact that it took two aunts to get one toy to him.
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