week recap

Well my week went anything but planned...up until the last moment on Sunday I still wasn't sure what I was up to this week. I was contemplating going up to visit my cousin for a few days but due to a bunch of things, those plans were put on hold for a few weeks. Instead my SW called and asked if I'd do a respite for 30 hours this week with a 14 month old. I agreed. By this point I had already told K and CO that we'd go to the cottage. The SW was fine with me taking the baby with us, and I arranged with his fp to pick him up from there. So I went and picked up baby G from his visit with his mother at the cas office, I spent the morning packing to get us ready for the cottage and the plan was that as soon as CO woke up from his nap, we'd head out. Thankfully my aunt was around to help, as she held baby G while I loaded up the truck and packed up the food. CO was VERY excited and he was concerned that my aunt would keep holding the baby and forget to put him in the truck to go with us :) Overall, a great experience. I very much enjoyed my first respite. He was an easy child to look after (despite the list of food allergies he had and it took a bit to figure out his food). He really seemed to enjoy the freedom and peacefulness of the cottage. We spent lots of time at the park. CO played in the sand and baby G just tottled around laughing at this and that. Bedtime was a struggle as it is hard to put a 14 month old and a 35 month old to bed at the same time on two different floors. But in the end, they both were settled and in bed (an hour later than planned). I took LOTS of photos of the boys. They are still on my camera so hopefully I'll remember to come back and add them to this post at a later date. I am also going to try to get copies of the ones of just baby G for his bm. After baby G was picked up, CO and I spent some time foraging through the woods picking berries for Grandma. There is some debate as to the name of these berries. They are what I grew up calling thimbleberries,  but they didn't quite taste the same as the ones we pick up at my uncle's. We headed home on Thursday (after stopping for supper at K's request) and I really need to remember to make sure I get home either past CO's bedtime so he can be just slipped into bed, or early enough so he has lots of time to check out all the things around the house and get some playing in with Fred. The next door neighbour gave him a new (used) toy. He loved it so much that he took it into the bath with him, and had a hard time not taking it to bed with him. (I said no because it was wet and on the large side).
Friday was a day to spend some 1:1 time with CO (he was wired into crazy mode so not much quality time happened) and for packing as we leave early Monday morning to catch the train.
My weekend at work is going well. I just finished Take Four by Karen Kingsbury and I am extra tired from all the crying. At the cottage this week I finished Beluga Cafe. I found this book quite interesting. It is about 3 artists journey in Northern Canada that set out to play music with beluga whales. I would recommend them both.
Well, it is getting late, and I am at work and need to try to catch some sleep. I have LOTS to do tomorrow. After work I need to finish packing us three and the plan is to have everything loaded into the car so all we have to do is get up and get dressed in the am, pack the cooler and head to the trainstation. Feel free to pray for our journey. I am a little nervous about the 1.5 hours that we will have at the station in the city to change trains. I will have to transfer all the luggage (wasn't the option to check baggage) and at the same time not loose the toddler or my sister....
take care and goodnight!

Last Weeks Reads...

rip LAPTOP

My laptop is gone...well I still have it but I can't do squat all with it...which is kinda sad...but on a positive note...a new one is on the way and should be delivered next week. Crossing Fingers! As the following week we leave for our two week vacation!! We are getting on a train. CO is VERY excited that he is going on the train to visit Nana & Papa. He calls it Papa's train. I figure this will be the easiest way for us to travel there (we shall see if I still feel that way after we have experienced this adventure). My biggest worry is the fact that I am taking my sister along and that there isn't a way to check luggage. So we are restricted in the size of our luggage (considered to be carry on) and the fact that I have to look after it, CO & my sister when we have to wait at the train station for over an hour in the BIG city to switch trains. Here's to hoping a Train Employee with be of some help and find me a luggage cart.

weekend

I surprisingly had a good and peaceful weekend at work. A rare event. Usually I come home SO exhausted due to Sundays being stressful for one of the fellows. For some reason he was totally at peace today...so in the future if you are looking for something to add to your prayer list on Sundays....add for me to have peaceful Sundays at work....it was so nice to be able to come home and have energy to interact with my son. He on the other hand was his usual Sunday evening emotional wreck (I have decided it is his way of punishing me for abandoning him for the last 40hours). This evening we were able to spend a BIG chunk of time just reading, singing and praying together before I put him to bed.
He is really liking the books we borrowed from the library Chicka Chicka ABC, A Boy A Dog and a Frog, Titch, From Head to Toe and The Freight Train. I will read them to him and he will often chime in  as he remembers parts from when we read them on Friday. Also he has begun to read the story to me right after I read it to him. We have just started doing this and he does fairly well to remember the story.
I finished reading 'I Will Carry You' by Angie Smith....this book is definitely a book that requires you to have a box of kleenex close by.
My kitchen floor is sticky even though it has been washed twice already this evening. My lovely niece somehow dropped and shattered a large dish half full of sweet and sour rib sauce and a rib all over my kitchen. It was even on the ceiling and some of it went through the kitchen window and landed on the stairwell to the basement! I see much floor washing in my immediate future....it will probably take a few more washes (maybe just one if I do it on my hands and knees with HOT HOT water)
Depending on the weather I may just take the kids to the park in the morning so they can run and play and be tired so I can get a LONG nap out of CO and maybe get some housework done. I still have troubles doing it when he is awake as he is constantly wanting his turn with the vacuum, mop, etc. Some days I just give him his own bucket of water and a rag so I can get some scrubbing done with my rag and bucket of cleaner.
My Uncle and Aunt are arriving tomorrow for a few days. They are bringing supper (which is great as nobody in my family seems to enjoy cooking on Mondays).
Once again it is late and I am heading off to bed...maybe I'll get a couple of pages read before I just fall asleep.