O'Canada: Lamentations On Life In London.

Don't be blue little Canuck, it'll get better, eh?

Even if 8 months of winter are upon us.

Okay.

I have made a deal with myself to find the beauty in our everyday, here, in London, Ontario.

The truth is--and any local who reads this may be more than a little upset at my admission of this--I don't like London. I haven't written much to this fact on this blog. I wanted to give spring and summer a chance before I aired my dirty laundry about the place. But the real truth of the matter is, I'm not a fan and I am not sure that I will ever be. What can I say, eight months of winter just doesn't tickle my fancy.

Honestly, any place following in the wake of a decade's living in Southern California and Malibu to boot, truly has tough competition--let's be fair. It's hard to move an inch without oozing with inspiration over everything in eye shot--turquoise seafoam, surf urchin, glistening sea rock, desert-flowered cliffs, sea lions and dolphins dancing with bronzed surfers, golden pacific sunsets, trannies on unicycles--eye candy is plentiful. It wasn't hard to find something unarguably beautiful everyday.

Aside from the aesthetics, London just hasn't opened up for me in the ways that L.A. and its closest shores had for me as a new arrival. And as every season passes too drastically here (summer too hot, spring too rainy, and fall too short) on to the one that lasts the longest--winter--more than half of the year long--I yearn for the hum drum melancholy of Southern California's perpetual spring--where the sun shines everyday and flowers are always in bloom. Not everyone may be a fan--I get that. But I was smitten with the place and it's memory in my fond heart only goldens as the distance and time between us widens. Will we go back? We are definitely planning on it. But in the meantime, to make the most of this Californian hiatus, I must stop longing for what was and embrace what is.

Therefore, going forward, I'll try as I might to make London not just a place of residence, but a place that I enjoy living. I must. For we will be homesteading here yet another few years, I fear. So, I vow at this moment to make a conscience, concerted effort to look only ahead--never back--and find the beauty in our everyday, even here, in London, Ontario. It will just take a little work and a sharp eye. But I am finally willing to put in the time. Let's see what I can find.

The Summer That Was: Babies, Roadtrips & Poutine.

Home Sweet Home.

One nervous meltdown, four toll booths, one rain-drenched car interior (don't ask), and 2,000+ miles of roadway later, w e a r e h o m e and I am woefully late blogging about it. We've been home for several weeks now, but getting back into the swing of things has taken longer than I anticipated.

For starters, we had our dear friend, Gabe (of the band, bikos--check them out here and here!), out for a visit from Los Angeles. Every time friends visit us from the sunny southwest, I ache for it's golden shores even more--I m i s s home. His visit passed with a blur (time flies when you're having fun!) and ended with heaps of potine--a Canadian, or should I say, a Montreal-ian delicacy, that Dean and I had been putting off trying until that perfect moment--and so, with Gabe, on a rainy and chilly Sunday evening it was to be tried for the first time. I hate to say it, but it was sinfully delicious. Who could resist fries topped with cheese curd, gravy and any other heart clogging topping one could dream of?

Gabe & Noah--boys, being boys.

But now that summer has halted abruptly into 50 and 60 degree temperatures this week, I must reflect back on the summer that was . . .

Summer 2011 brought with it sweltering heat, drenching humidity, a new baby girl and a three-week road trip from Canada to North Carolina and back. Are we crazy? Perhaps. Nuts even? I am sure of it. If not before this trip, than certainly after. Traveling with a nearly 3-year old toddler and a nearly 3-month old baby was harrowing, confusing, exhausting, hilarious and downright completely insane.

Here was our harrowing road trip route: Niagara Falls, Baltimore, Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, Raleigh, Greenville, Emerald Isle and Fayetteville in North Carolina, D.C., West Virginia, Pennsylvania, upstate New York--and a few more little stops in between. We went to pools, beaches, mountains, museums, a baseball game (which we sadly do not have any pictures of) and visited more family in more places than you can shake a stick at (pictures of the roadtrip warriors here).

All-in-all it was a fantastic trip--a vacation, not so much. But that kind of goes without saying when traveling with kids. The drive from Carolina to Canada was actually somewhat pleasurable. We had finally mastered the stop and go rhythm needed for naps, playtime and drive times to coincide happily. Therefore, you may have noticed that there are many more picture collages on the back side of the vacation travels for just that reason. On the front side there are very few--and the reason is simple--it was worth forgetting.

Since we've been back, I've been one crafting mama. Thanks to the incredible Lotta Jansdotter simple sewing book for babies and toddlers given as a gift from my sweet friend Cyndy, I've been one bib, drool kerchief and giraffe rattle making lady! And, so much so that I have been derelict on my task of getting to work on Halloween costumes.

Fernie Drool Kercheifs.

With our Parent & Child Program at Waldorf resuming and Dean returning to a teaching schedule this week, I hope to also gain a bit of normalcy in my routine with the kids. Since Dean has had only a partial schedule since the birth of Fern in May, this will be my first stint entirely on my own with the two maniacs. How I will fare is yet to be seen. Especially with winter just around the bend. Winter, in London, Ontario, uugghh, uugghh, uugghh.

In the meantime, we'll harvest our pole beans and frolic outdoors as long as Father Fall permits!

Summer Roadtrip 2011: From Canada To The Carolinas, A Pictorial Tour.

Niagara Falls, Canadian side & Baltimore, Maryland with the Neilson's

Afton, Virgina in the Shenandoah Valley with The Nelson's

Raleigh, North Carolina with Omie and Poppop

Kidscape Kid's Museum in Raleigh, North Carolina

Fernie x 3

Fayetteville, North Carolina with Grand Omie and Grand Papa Jim

Blue Fins

Fayetteville, North Carolina with Granny and Great Grandpa Surette

Museum of Natural History in Raleigh, North Carolina

Crowder Park, Apex, North Carolina with cousins

Emerald Isle, North Carolina with Grandma and Grandpa Nelson & cousins

Beachy Fern

Washington, D.C.--Smithsonian Museum & Washington Monument

Washington, D.C.--Smithsonian Museum & The Capital Building

Bedford, Pennsylvania

Allegany, New York

Allegany, New York

Allegany, New York

On the road

Canadian Cuties.

Love Squared.

Fern (9 weeks).

Play.

Summertime Splendor.

Sweet Like Sunshine.

House On (Two) Kids: Before And After.

Before

Before

After--note the sleeping baby on far left of couch with an unfolded shirt as a blanket

Though I have never seen one, I am guessing that a brain on crack must look an awful lot like a house on kids.

Nearly 8 weeks into parenting two spells disaster for our homestead. Our cloth diaper pail overflow'eth with delightful poos near the basement door, unfolded laundry creates soft crinkled mountains on all available surfaces that aren't the floor, the dining room table sits littered with the remnants of past meals (inhaled, mind you, not eaten)--I could continue room-by-room in this fashion--spelling out the chaos that has been created and housework that has been neglected over the last two months--but I won't. And I will certainly spare you both details and a pictorial tour of the bathrooms.

I'll simply admit that a maid, or a re-visit from Omie, would be much appreciated right about now. Mom, if you're reading this (and not running in the opposite direction) . . . hint, hint, hint.

There Was An Old Lady . . .

. . . who lived in a (Canadian) shoe.

She had so many children she didn't know what to do (okay, only two, but do two incredibly needy cats count?).
The pictures look cheery, but I feel oh-so-weary.
Oh, mothering two, both the hours and sanity are few.
My brain is mashed potatoes and the house is upside down so now I am deliriously bed-ward bound.

Seasons Of Change.

Peonies from the garden

Adjusting to the seasons here in Canada is not unlike adjusting to the birth of our new baby--sometimes it's simply pleasant, others it's darn right difficult. Coming from a place that had only one meteorological state of being--70 degrees and sunny--means that any season experienced here is more than we are used to. Throw in a super long, white and frigid winter, a delayed, humid and rainy spring and a super late summer (that of which from what I understand does not begin until July) and you throw us into a virtual seasonal tailspin.

We survived the heaps of snow, but I am not promising that we'll make it through the blooms of spring. Dean and I slather our peeling and chaffed noses in moisturizing cream nightly--seasonal allergies are driving us battier than our two and a half year old throwing himself on the ground in a fit of simultaneous devastation and rage for the fiftieth time of the hour. Trust me, I am talking real batty.

The question is, we survived winter with one child . . . will we survive the remainder of spring with two? While both spring and a new baby bring with them sweet and delicate little treats for the senses to indulge, it's the uncontrollable variables--like the pollen count and a toddler named big brother--that lead me to doubt my, our, ability to cope sanely.

What will the flowers of spring look like come summertime? Probably a lot like Dean and I will--withered, frail and a wee crispy around the edges. But, only time will tell. Only time will tell.

Happy Daddy Day--2011.

Our Father's Day weekend in pictures. Last year's Daddiness Day was spent in Malibu with only one wee tot. This year's in London, Ontario, with a real big boy and a real wee tot. Oh, how things can change in a single year.

Hope that yours was equally lovely. And a happy blog-belated Father's Day to my Dad, the most wonderful dad and Poppop anyone could ask for.

All In A Good Day's Play: Summertime Fun, Summertime Fern.

Summertime Fun.

Summertime Fern.

Welcome To The World, Fern Adele!

It's been almost a month since I last posted--but for good reason-- we've had the baby! Welcome to the world, Fern Adele!

So better late than never...here's the official post: Weighing in at 7 pounds, 7 ounces and 19 inches long, our beautiful baby girl, Fern, was born at 12:49 p.m. on May 19th at our home and in the water under the loving care of an amazing team of midwives, doula and husband. My mom and Fern's big brother, Noah, were also present for the amazing occasion.

In short, the birth story is as follows . . .

I awoke to the "popping" sensation of my water breaking at 6:30 a.m. I showered and made blueberry banana walnut pancakes for the family. After we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, the morning passed quickly as mom and Dean filled the birthing pool while I walked around the house breathing through light contractions and helping to prepare our home for the birth. My doula and midwife arrived at noon just as the contractions were beginning to grow uncomfortable. Active labor quickly began and after only a short time of working through increasingly strong contractions on my hands and knees, I felt Fern bearing down. Following a quick exam that determined I was 10 cm dilated, I entered the birthing pool. 20 minutes or so later, Fern was gently born in the water on her own terms without so much as a push! It was an amazingly peaceful and beautiful experience.

I have so many pictures to share but just no time to comb through them right now. All in good time, all in good time.