Update

Allrighty. Richard spoke with Emmett's principal. Wouldn't you know it? A helper for Emmett has fallen out of the sky. He can start school with everyone else.

This battle has been won.

I have a feeling we are just at the beginning of the war.

I sounds like my school division is run by a bunch of lazy bums. I spoke with a friend today who is in a similar situation. Our stories are virtually identical, just change the names of the school and the student.

I reserved a copy of The Well Trained Mind from our local library today.

And so it begins.......

......The battle to get Emmett what he needs.

I got a call from the Resource Teacher at Emmett's school yesterday. They want to delay his entry to school for at least two weeks. Reason? They haven't started looking for a helper for him yet.

WHAT? So, the forms I filled out, the meetings I went to, the conferences I had LAST WINTER were a big waste of time? I thought I did all of those things LAST WINTER so that there would be ample time to get Emmett's help lined up in time to start kindergarten with everyone else.

I shook my head, went to playgroup with a funny feeling in my gut. I talked about it with the other moms there. My instincts were right. This is not acceptable. Missing the first two weeks when all the social circles are formed is bad news. I phoned Richard I asked him to phone the school back using his Landlord Voice. (He is better at getting answers than I am when dealing with beurcrats) He got voicemail.

Later on in the day (after I found some second hand homeschooling curriculum to buy) I got a call from his teacher. She explained to me that they have been searching for someone who knows Sign Language and they are having a hard time with it. I told her with recent developments that probably won't be necessary. Emmett hardly signs anymore. We meet the teacher next week. Richard speaks with the Principal today.

Ugh. Is this just a taste of what having Emmett in public school is going to be? I am seriously doubting the wisdom of my decision to throw Emmett to the Public School System wolves now.

I still want those books, Wendy!!!!

(In happier news I am off to buy Char tap and ballet shoes right now. She is going to be soooooo cute in dance class!!!)

Emmett after his breakthrough.

Here is a link to the video I made of him before his breakthrough. You can really notice the huge leap he has made.

Changes.

It is the end of August. The past couple of mornings have had a real nip in the air. You can smell fall coming. I can feel a new surge of energy.

I love the fall. I love the smell of new school supplies. My fingers are itching to knit again now that my yarn won't stick to me.

Life is changing around here. Emmett had his last two therapy appointments this week. When school starts he will get his therapy there from now on. I have bought his school supplies and meet his teacher next week. Charlotte is going to preschool. We went to the store and she picked out new shoes and a backpack that she can hardly wait to use. Matthew turns one next week.

My life has been all about babies and toddlers for the past few years. It is time for me to switch gears. Some days I am excited about the changes and other days I am sad and wistful. I have loved snuggling my fresh new babies, looking into their eyes and seeing nothing but hope and promises. I wondered what they would be like, who they would be. The changes are coming faster now. They challenge me. The push me. They require more energy than ever. I am getting more sleep than I ever have, but it is not enough! I am exhausted by the end of the day!

How can they grow so fast??

Something amazing happened at Grandpa and Grandma's

So, guess who came home from two weeks with the grandparents speaking IN SENTENCES?????

I am seriously stunned. I am in awe every day that he has been home at what my guy has been saying to me. So many things have been on his mind. Today we went for a walk and he looked down at Matthew in the stroller and said "Matthew. Was in your tummy. Now he is out." I told Emm that he had been in my tummy once too and he said "Yes. Now I am grown up."

So many times a day I am fighting back happy tears.

Matthew's new room.

It is amazing what a little change in colour can do to a room.

Grandma is working nights.....

Everyone is home safe and sound. Taller, tanner and with gorgeous sunbleached highlights. Emmett's vocabulary has exploded since he left. It is astounding how much he can communicate now. I am stunned and in awe. Charlotte is her normal, hilarious self. She sang halfway home last night.
We visited my aunt's new house today. I shot this video in her backyard. Hopefully it won't be blocked at my mom's work, like Youtube is.

You Like Me, You Really Like Me!

Wendy, of Athena Academy has bestowed upon me this fun award. She thinks I am funny. I am very flattered and appreciate the blog-love. I will do my best to pass the love along.

But first, I must work for my award.....
A. attached or single? Attached.

B. best friend? In order of seniority. First: Robin. We have been friends since the fifth grade. She knows everything there is to know about me and she loves me anyway. Next? Richard. He has seen me grow up from the insecure little pinhead University student he first met in the school pub to the mostly grown up woman I am now. We make cute babies together.

C. cake or pie? Pie! Preferably apple with cheese, please.

D. day of choice? Hmmm....well, there is Monday when I get to spend time with my crafty mommy friends, or Thursday when our sainted respite worker comes over so Richard and I can have time together......I can't narrow it down.

E. essential item? My glasses. I am completely helpless without them.

F. favorite color? Today? Green. Bright leafy happy green.

G. gummy bears or worms? Well, if you twisted my arm, I would say gummy bears, but neither are very tempting to me.

H. hometown? A Prairie town in Manitoba.

I. favorite indulgence? Deep fried cheesecake with berry coulis.

J. January or July? January. Under a blanket with my knitting and a big cup of coffee.

K. kids? Yep. Three. Unless I suffer a Critical Birth Control Failure, then who knows???

L. life isn't complete without? Love.

M. marriage date? September 21. We celebrate 6 years of wedded bliss this year.

N. number of brothers & sisters? One younger brother.

O. oranges or apples? Apples

P. phobias? Ladders, snakes, tornadoes, small spaces. Not necessarily in that order. Ask me about the heart attack I had while I steadied a ladder over our open stairwell so Richard could tape the ceiling for painting.

Q. quotes? "Never let fear and common-sense stop you."

R. reasons to smile? The doctors said my boy wouldn't talk. He can now string together a simple sentence. In English.

S. season of choice? Autumn. I love watching the seasons change. To me the new year starts in September.

T. tag seven peeps! Do I have to tag seven? Really? What happens if I don't???

U. unknown fact about me? It wouldn't be unknown if I typed it here, now would it??

V. vegetable? Corn on the cob

W. worst habits? I am a terrible housekeeper.

X. x-ray or ultrasound? Neither one bother me.

Y. your favorite food?Beef. An awesome cheeseburger or a perfectly medium rare steak, or my mom's pot roast. I loves me some cow.

Z. zodiac sign? Sensitive, psychic Pisces. I am a gifted Tarot card reader and I blame my sign. I married an Ares to keep me grounded.

OK, I am tagging:

Tara because she keeps me giggling.

April because she has a big heart and she is so very sweet.

Mommy Jo because her boys are so cute and I love hearing about their adventures

Neo Hippy Housewife because she keeps me from selling my kids on Ebay several times a week.

Nifty Nadine because we have the most stimulating conversations and I am curious to see what her answers would be .

How bout if you want to do the meme just post a link to your blog in my comments. This was fun to do.

What? Still Painting??

Well, the kids will be back in two days. Richard is still painting up a storm. We settled on a colour for the stairwell, (warm taupe) and just because we are crazy we decided to paint Matthew's room too (lime freckle).

Matthew has not been missing his brother and sister at all. Since they have been gone he has decided to practice walking. He isn't there yet, but he will pull himself up to standing on anything he can and will cruise along. His little personality has blossomed and he is really turning into a funny little guy. When we were at the paint store this morning he tried to flirt with a little girl there. He grinned at her, shook my keys at her and made silly faces. All of his best moves. She remained stone-faced. It was funny to see him trying so hard to impress this girl. Her mother and I had a good laugh over it.

Matthew has also started helping us with the chores. He is very concerned about Lucy being well-fed and is frequently heading into the pantry to make sure her dish is full. He also enjoys helping me load and unload the dishwasher. It is never too early to start good habits, I think!
I am really starting to miss Emmett and Charlotte. I bought Emmett's school supplies today and got a little pang in my heart. I had a friend over yesterday and when her two children had a minor skirmish on my living room floor I wasn't annoyed by the noise, it just made me miss my crew a little more.

Two more sleeps.....must keep painting!!

I Need Your Help!

View of stairs from the front entry

View of stairwell from dining room

Kitchen yellow next to lilac powder room

Upstairs hallway (bonus question 1: where should we stop painting on the wall with the window?)

Yes, You. Loyal readers. We have one more weekend until the kids get home. We have one more place to paint to finish up. My problem? I don't know what colour to choose. This is where you come in. I need some advice, please!

I want to paint our stairwell. Here is the thing: once we start painting I think we need to continue it all the way down the upstairs hallway.

So far we have a chocolate milk colour on the living room and dining room walls, lilac in the powder room and front entry, and yellow in the kitchen.

Should I use one of the colours we already have? I think a purple stairwell and hallway would be too much. Do I use the yellow? Should I continue with the brown, or will that get too dark? What if we lightened the tone? I don't know what to do! Look at the pictures and tell me what you think, please!

Death of the Yardsale?

I did all the right things. Three ads. One in print and two online. I highlighted items of interest in the ad (maternity clothes! baby swing! dishes!). I sorted the clothes by size and gender, pinning sets together. I matched shoes and socks. I made sure everything was clean. I posted signs on my street and tied balloons to my trees.

I sold more stuff to friends the day before the sale than on the day of the sale and that isn't saying much. All told, for a week of sweat and toil I made 95 dollars. I won't break that down into an hourly wage because that would be too depressing. On the upside, my house is decluttered and my clothes are sorted so I can try to resell them. My maternity wear and key items are already online and selling. Donations have been made to the local women's shelter and second hand store. (Hint: women's shelters go nuts for baby carseats)

I am wondering two things: Do people wait for garage sales to pass because they know they can poach the leftovers on freecycle now? Has eBay killed the yard sale?

All I know is, I have learned my lesson. From now on all of my yardsales will be held on the internet.

Do you think that the fact that my baby gear didn't sell is a cosmic sign that we really should have another baby?

Everything you need to know.....

.....You can find out from a waiter.

What? What is that you say?

Richard taught me this early in our relationship. He treats waitstaff in restaurants like gold. He is kind, polite and tips well. When he jokes with female staff he never ever comes off creepy or skeevy. He told me early on in our relationship that waiters know everything.

I have seen the truth. When we visited Nova Scotia and PEI a couple of summers ago we befriended a great waiter at a sweet Irish-style pub across the street from our hotel. If we wanted to know where the best sights were, where to shop and where to eat, we asked him. The lovely lady at Cora's Breakfast and Lunch told us where to find the best lobster dinner on PEI. (New Glasgow Lobster Suppers, if you are curious)

Anyway, Richard proved himself right yet again.

Yesterday I went to the paint store to ponder my options. I had green on my mind. A bright, leafy sagey green for my living room and dining room. I picked up the paint chips and then moseyed down the block to my favourite coffee shop. I had left one of Matthew's bottles there the previous week and needed to pick it up. It wasn't busy so I chatted with the owner about our decorating plans. I showed her my colours and told her about the other colours in my house. She pointed out that lilac, yellow, and green would make my house look like and Easter egg. She then drew my attention to the fact that one of the greens I picked out looked kind of like a colour you would see in a hospital. I looked again. She was right. I picked out a colour usually only seen on surgical scrubs. I couldn't get that image out of my mind. I went back to the paint store. I bought a gallon of something called Pink Peppercorn. It is the colour of chocolate milk.

I tried a test patch on my dining room wall. You can see the lemony yellow next to it and it is lovely. It reminds me of sunflowers. My kitchen does evoke an Easter egg when you see the lilac and yellow together, but I can live with that.

So, if you ever need advice on anything, just ask the proprietor of a coffee shop or a waiter. Rest assured they will be right.

EDITED TO ADD: The lemony yellow I am talking about? It's in my kitchen. I realized that I didn't mention that. So. Kitchen: Yellow. Front Entranceway and Powder room: Lilac. Living Room and Dining Room: Chocolate Milk brown.

I told Richard that the coffee shop owner picked the brown and he didn't look surprised.

Freedom! (Sort of)

Well, I packed some bags, loaded up some kids and drove down the highway to a predetermined rendezvous point. We met Grandpa and Auntie. We ate some fast food. I gave Emmett and Charlotte to Grandpa and Auntie. They are off to have wild adventures for two weeks. I am now the parent of an only child. (For two weeks)

What have I done with my sort-of vacation so far?

• Made breakfast with minimal screaming and no refereeing of wrestling matches.
• Cleaned Emmett and Charlotte's room. It has been a full 20 minutes since I put all of the toys away and they are still on the shelves.
• I downloaded videos of the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra and geeked out uninterrupted.
  

What's next?

• Choosing a paint colour for the living room and dining room. Summer picnic? Topiary green??
• Choosing a sewing project to work on during nap times.
  
• Possibly planning a yard sale.
• Knitting. (Yes it is August. I can knit. My house is blessedly cool, even without air conditioning)

It is too quiet in here.