Pressure on myself

For the last 3 days I have been cleaning and decluttering on and off. I am expecting company today. My dad and his girlfriend are coming over and needless to say, their house is SPOTLESS. I would actually eat from their floor it is so clean. I put a lot of pressure on myself the past few days to make my place at least acceptable and make sure that it wouldn't make them turn around and drive the 4 hours back to their place in order not to sleep in this place. Don't get me wrong. Our house is not filthy, stinky (well depends on the rabbits cage I guess!) or mouldy. It is just.... BUSY. I am not a perfect homemaker... not even close.

I have washed the floors in the whole house, had Bill vacuum, had Maelie help out at her request (washing windows, mirrors, furniture... anything with the spray bottle!) I went through toys, I filled both garbage cans outside, filled 2 whole gigantic recycling bags, cleaned some kitchen cupboards, cleaned the closet, cleaned the desk, etc... All the while, as I was washing, I was making up comments in my head that could be made by people in general. For example, as I helped Maelie wash the inside windows in the living room, I kept thinking that the outside wasn't done. As I washed down the kitchen counters, I thought there was still a tiny bit of clutter on them. I kept judging myself and it was getting me down, thinking I would never be good enough, clean enough... there would always be a negative comment about how I was a messy person, how much clutter I have, how I have too much stuff, etc....

After reflecting on my attitude and thoughts, and wondering why I was thinking this way, I felt a shift. As I was emptying the dishwasher, and putting away the little plates in a cupboard behind bottles of vitamins and advil, I thought "Look at all these cute little plates. Seeing Maelie eat from them brings me joy." Then it started spreading... "see all those shelves of craft paper and markers and that spot where there are 4 missing rolls of scotch tape? They bring me joy. Seeing Maelie create things with her hands brings me joy. Playing with her on the kitchen table only at one end because there are cooking books and craft stuff at the other end brings me joy. It means I take the time to play with her. I also have those cooking books there because I care about her eating a variety of healthy things."

"That smell in the living room when I don't have the chance to clean up after the rabbit right away, it means there is an adorable little rabbit living here who loves us unconditionally and is always following us around. Those spots on the floor in the kitchen mean I have been busy making stuff for my family. Those toothpaste spots in the sink in the washroom mean that Maelie has healthy habits. That computer taking up a lot of space in the living room? It allows us to all be together even if one of us is having computer time. It may look cluttered, but it helps me keep my eye on what my daughter is doing on the computer. The sand at the door means we have played outside and we had a great time! The bathing suits hanging on a chair on the back porch? We had a great time swimming together. The sheets I had to change in the guest room? Had to do it before the company arrived because when Maelie had a fever, I wanted to sleep close to her but still wanted Bill to have a good nights sleep. So we slept in the guest room. Those pieces of clothing hanging out of Maelies dresser? It means we can afford to clothe her."

I am full of gratitude for being who I am, whether it be too messy for others or not... I am me. That's good enough.

Domino Rally

I remember a toy from when I was about 9 years old. I think I got it for Christmas from my grandmother. I found that same game at a yard sale last year and couldn't wait to play with Maelie! We tried it out a bit at that time, but as she was younger then, she didn't have as much patience.


Yesterday morning, I took it out once again to give it a try. She actually was really good at it. She got very angry at first if Bebe Lapin happened to hop by and make it fall. Even when I explained to her that she had to practice her patience, she still got angry. Remedy? My dominos fell many times as well, and I took it with a laugh. Somehow, that was the "role model" Maelie needed. The next time hers fell, she was more tolerant and patient.

Patience is a virtue! Especially when playing Domino Rally.

It peeked out long enough!

Sunday, the sun peeked out long enough for us to hop in the pool. and by us, I mean ME too! I don't usually believe in going in below 78 degrees. Yesterday though after a day of cleaning, I jumped right in.


There's nothing that warms Maelie's heart more than having her mama in the pool!

overheard as Maelie and rabbit were going upstairs

"Bebe Lapin, this is your last chance. If you come to my room and chew the wall, I will make a sign written 'Privacy - no Bebe Lapin's allowed!"

How's that for teaching a lesson to a rabbit who can't read?

Nothing like a sunny Saturday!

Today was a busy day once again. Maelie had a bday party to go to close by. Her classmate Gabrielle was turning 6. Another classmate who we had no idea lived so close by! They had a good time playing outisde and going to the water games.



Maelie spent the afternoon swimming and playing with friends. What a wonderful day! After supper, she even got the luxury of jumping on Koryne & Raphael's brand new trampoline! What a blast!




We couldn't ask for a better way to spend our Saturday.

Report card time

Maelie got her report card at school on Friday. She has exceeded end of kindergarten outcomes. Here is what the teachers comments were:

"Maelie has had a most successful year in kindergarten. She is an enthusiastic learner who grasps new concepts and ideas with little assistance. She regularly participates in class discussions and communicates her ideas well. She follows directions and completes tasks by beginning work promptly and using her time effectively. She is able to apply successful strategies to solving problems. Maelie comfortably engages in calendar activities, creates and extends patterns, measures using non standard measurement (linking cubes, paperclips) and adds single digit numbers. She is able to read familiar words with ease and has developed reading strategies to figure out unknown words (sounding out, looking at picture clues, and re-reading). She is comfortably reading at a DRA level 10 with adequate comprehension and fluency. She expresses her ideas in written form using conventional spelling of frequently used words, and demonstrates a good application of phonetic knowledge to spell unknown words. Maelie is encouraged to start her sentences with uppercase letters, and to end her sentences with periods. She enjoys a positive rapport with her peers and assumes responsibilities in groups and in the classroom. Maelie is well prepared for the challenges of cycle 1.1 and is encouraged to continue to seek out new challenges in the learning process. It has been a pleasure to teach such a motivated and hard working student."

It is not a surprise that I love this little girl so much! She did wonderful and I am so proud of her.

They can't be wrong with this

You see that little weather picture up there? Well, this is called protecting themselves. We are bound to get one of the following: rain, sun, thunderstorms, or clouds. So the weather people cannot go wrong with that picture. Unless it snows of course.

tasty present

This is what I brought to Maelie's teacher today:



My first edible bouquet! I absolutely love it. I hope she enjoys it :)

This website is where I got the idea from. They have AMAZING stuff.

Volunteer day

Today there was a volunteer celebration day at Maelie's school. All the teachers had brought in food for a pot luck for the people who had volunteered during the year. There was also a huge cake and nice decorations made by the children.



We then gathered in the gym where the kids recited a beautiful poem full of gratitude. Then the choir sang a sweet song for us.



They gave each volunteer a nice rose and a bag made of fabric with a quote: "Volunteers don't necessarily have the time, but they have the heart". Now isn;t that sweet! and so true. Volunteers are not only the people who have all the time in the world to help. Most of us work full-time and all of us have kids at home. So we do it because we want to be involved with the school and we know that every bit helps.

I find that knowing who teaches at your child's school, who is in other grades, who is in your child's grade and who all the other support staff is is a good thing. You get to know the good, the bad and the ugly. I personally find that it helps me make choices. i.e what teacher to request, what kid to hang out with or not, who the bullies are... etc.. School is not just a place to dump your child off for a learning experience. School is something you need to get involved in as a parent. This will show your child how you are interested in their life and they may end up making better choices later on.

Please note that I am speaking on a personal level and this is what is best for our family and our child.

A Bunny Story - based on real life.

Once there was a little rabbit called Bébé lapin. He wanted to play with his best friend Maelie, but she fell asleep on the couch after having a very very busy day. Bébé Lapin was very patient. He waited and waited and waited in the hopes that Maelie would wake up.



No success. "Perhaps if I get a bit closer she will want to play with me," he thought quietly as he hopped on the couch.



After sitting there for a while, he wondered what was wrong with this little girl! So he began to investigate.



Bébé Lapin came to the conclusion that little Maelie was just way too tired to even notice that he was even there. So he jumped off and hopped home...

The end.

Fun Day!

Today was Fun Day at school. The parent committee organized it for all the kids. Since I enjoy fun events at school, I took a day off to volunteer.



There were a variety of games ranging from an obstacle course to a dar game to a three-legged race. The highlight was probably the gigantic slide and the jumping structure.




I was with a group including a grade 2 kid, a few grade 3's, 4's, 5 and 6. I must say, I am TRULY blessed to have the daughter that I have. I had a group with a few rather difficult kids. They came around after I told them they could just leave if they didn't want to be there. I told them I chose to be there at the fun day to have just that... FUN so if they were gonna be annoying all day, they were welcome to just go away. That seemed to get a few of them to at least be more pleasant. I don't know how parents do it when they have a disrespectful child! I wouldn't be able to take that.

We ended up having a good day. I am exhausted! I hopped in a hot bath as soon as I got home. I made sure I thanked Maelie for being such a wonderful pleasant child!

School play night

Tonight we went to the school play. Since Maelie was not in the play, I didn't bring my camera. I had withdrawal symptoms all evening! I never go to events without my camera.

So this post is pictureless.

After the wonderful play "Wizard of Oz", there was a concession stand we could visit. They had TONS of baked goods that parents donated for the cause. I donated some cone cakes, cakes on a stick, and choclates.

We visited the multiple tables filled with breads, cookies, cakes, chocolates, fudge, etc... Maelie looked at all of her option. What did she choose to buy? One of the cakes that I made! ahhahha Not only did I donate the snacks, but I also paid to get one! :) At least I take it as a compliment!

Just chillin'

Happy Father's Day Daddy!

Early Sunday morning, Bill was greeted with lots of cards and hugs!



He even got a hand-made decoration. It is a beautiful rock with Maelie's picture on it. She made this at school for her daddy.

Cake decorating 101

This morning, 8:30 on the dot, we were at IGA for the Father's Day cake decorating. IGA in our neighborhood offers these workshops for kids for FREE on special occasions. Way to go IGA!! One more reason to grocery shop there. They are family friendly and generous.

Voila Maelie ready to get started.



The kids got started and worked hard! I was surprised that they didn't put too much icing in their mouths!



Now don't you want to eat these kids up they are so adorable? I guess then we wouldn't have anymore room for cake!

this and that

This week we visited the duck pond with Jacinthe, Koryne and Raphael. Maelie really enjoys how close they get. She would pick up a duck and put it in her pocket if she could! I just love how she loves nature and the animal world.



Actually Maelie loves little creatures SO much that the other day on the phone, my mom told me about her cat who just came on the porch with a snake, and Maelie was absolutely jealous. She said it was not fair that Bidute got to hold a snake and not her.



Here is our almost-ready pool! We had liner issues since we moved here over 2 years ago, so this year, as it was leaking some more, there were big debates on whether to keep it or not. We ended up buying a new liner. Not that we were trying to be in the spirit of fish... but that was the only one in stock.

Here's the pool being filled... Maelie ended up swimming in it anyway! I checked the temperature and it was 66 degrees for a while and then 68!! She loves her pool so much. I won't go in until it's 78 or 80. Yes I'm a wimp in my old age!!

Caution: too much fun at the beach causes ear infections

We went to the beach after work/school yesterday. Maelie enjoyed the water. I went in only up to my knees. I couldn't leave my camera all by its lonesome and risk having it stolen. So I stayed close to our stuff.



Maelie enjoyed the water a lot! I found a nice new bathing suit for her at Children's Place. She loved it!



We also saw a cute family of geese!



Maelie was running around with a butterfly. It rested for half a second and was off again.



We had a little pic nic supper and then headed home.

Now for the bad stuff.... Maelie hardly slept all night. She complained of sore ears and throat. She kicked and complained all night but didn't have a fever. She was very emotional this morning so I brought her to work with me to keep an eye on her. After a while, she started burning up. I took her to the clinic close by. Turns out she has a double ear infection. We got her medicine and went back to work for a bit. She threw up the kids advil i gave her. then she threw up a bit of the Zithromax. This calls for a nice 5 days of antibiotics!! She slept a bit in the car on the way home. She still seems hot but under control. Poor little baby girl! The price you pay to go to the beach!!

Happy Birthday to me!

Well, I am officially 33 years old now! Imagine that!

I don't feel 33 most of the time. Then again after not sleeping most of last night due to Maelie not feeling well... I feel about 90 today.

Here's to another 100 years!
Enjoy life, it goes by so fast!

feeling hot hot hot

Today Maelie and I spent time at my friend Jacinthe's house. She invited us over for an early bday lunch. Her pool is ready for action so we enjoyed it allllllll day.



Tonight, Maelie is absolutely pooped!

more than a weekend in one day

This weekend, grand-maman and Gilles came for a visit. They arrived last night pretty late. This morning, we got going pretty early for garage sales. I used to garage sale much more, however I have slowed down a lot mainly because we just have too much stuff. Also, I enjoy yard saling for kid clothes mainly, however once Maelie hit size 6X and more, there was less and less choice out there.

So anyway, we left early for garage sales. I am thinking that my mom is a bit compulsive....



The car was packed full of stuff! i did get great 1$ deal for clothes for my nephew Nathan.

This afternoon, it was pretty hot so we headed off to the park so Maelie could play in the water games.





Maelie was happy to be reunited with the water buckets at the top of her head!



After our time at the park, we went to Ikea to pick up a few things for Kath for her new house. I guess there is not a big enough population in Vald'Or to warrant an Ikea.

We then went out for dinner all together. Once back home, Maelie practised on her bike again and then my mom and Gilles headed off to the casino...

The weather went up to 30 today with a ton of humidity so it probably felt like almost 40 degrees out there. We have the air conditioning going to be able to sleep!

Tomorrow should be another fun & hot day.

Class trip

Today was the class trip to the Agriculture Museum... aka.. the farm.

Each parent was assigned 2 kids. Everything went very well. No kids got lost, no one got hurt. That's always a bonus!

Maelie enjoyed trying out the tractor.



She got the opportunity to pet the baby sheep.


Her friend Sebastien was very concerned about her getting too many germs, therefore he insisted that his mom give her Purel all the time.



I brought along our parachute and played a couple of games with the kids before lunch.



We had a nice picnic for lunch.


After lunch, we packed up and headed back to school....



Maelie enjoyed herself and so did I. Maelie and I are a bit pooped though! June is such a wonderful month for outdoor activities. Hopefully we will have time to do a few different things this summer!

to give and receive

lots of stuff came in Maelie's backpack from school today!

Maelie received a 25$ gift card for Walmart for having sold the most chocolate in the school for fund-raising! (7 boxes of 25 chocolates each). It pays to work in an office in the afternoon where all adults are looking for chocolate. Maelie did sell a lot herself as well.

Maelie also received a "Good Sportsmanship Award" for being a student who loves sports and believes in fair play. Two students in each class get an award each month.

She also received an invitation to a pizza lunch next Monday for being a dedicated volunteer! She was in student council.

Lastly, I also received an invitation to a volunteer luncheon! All the parent volunteers were invited. It's wonderful to be part of such a group of kind hearted people who give of their time. We all know how busy we are nowadays and that we don't have much time to spare... Helping out at Maelie's school has been a wonderful experience for me and I know that there ARE perks to it as well. You get to know the teachers more and get to take part in some ideas/decisions. And you know what the wonderful thing about being a volunteer and being involved is? If needed, it WILL give me the right to complain. :) Not that I am planning to... but if I didn't volunteer, I would have no right to complain if an activity was not as I pleased. hehe Good point eh?

Gazetel

When I was in Maelie's class today, one of the little girls, who introduces me as "her friend Jennifer", made a picture for me.


When I asked her what she wrote, she matter of factly told me "That's your name Jennifer! Is it spelled right?"

how could I lie? I said "Wow you worked really hard Angelina. It's pretty close"

"Does it start with G-a?"

"Close... J-E"

I kinda like Gazetel. Almost as much as I like "Jennifleur".