Wishing best wishes to an amazing woman today.

Happy Birthday nightdemons
You totally rock in so many ways and I'm blessed to call you my friend.

Also a big congratulations on your convocation day... You did it!
All that hard work and perseverance has paid off, I'm so proud.
I know how much blood, sweat and tears has gone into that degree and I've only seen less than half of what you put into it.

May you have a wonderful day and only the best in the coming year :)
Hope we get a chance to celebrate, you deserve it.

Considering the events of my night, it's definitely time to post this.

I modified this from a list that zenten had posted before his daughter was born.

For Everyone

Make less work, not more. If you're cooking, make sure to clean up what you cooked. If you want to have a chat for half an hour make sure you've done a half hour of chores that need doing around the house.

I won't play host. This basically falls under the make less work, not more rule, but it needs stating again. Feeling like I have to offer you a drink or ask you to sit or anything like that is going to be stressful.

Don't come over if you're sick. Doesn't matter if it's just a sniffle (unless you know for sure it's allergies). I don’t want my Bean to be sick before his immune system can handle it.

Wash your hands with soap when you get here, then wash your hands with soap after touching anything icky (like the litter box) before touching the baby.

Confirm that it is OK to come over at the date and time that you actually show up. I might be taking a nap. Oh, and don't be super late or super early. If you can't be sure that you'll be able to show up at a specific time confirm a range of time with me. I hate it when people show up either earlier or later than when expected.

Ignore the mess. I expect things will be messy. Don't mention anything about it. If it really bugs you go clean up the mess, and then still never mention it. I will also likely not be the best dressed or most coherent either. I don’t expect to be the best company for a little while.

For People That Want to See the Baby

Keep your visits brief, come over for an hour, tops, unless you are helping out.

Do a bit of helping while here. Watch/hold the baby while I shower or take care of a few things. Or bring a meal for me to eat or juice for me to drink. Or do a some dishes. Or tidy up somewhere. Or take out the garbage/recycling. Something along those lines. You don't need to do a huge amount, but if you do follow the Helping Out rules instead.

People That Want to Help Out

Make sure that you're helping. If you stop to ask where something is or how to do something every five minutes, or you leave a bigger mess doing what you were doing than was there before you got there, YOU'RE NOT HELPING!!!

My biggest concerns right now (or what I expect I’ll need help with most) are :

• Keeping my floors swept and mopped - I have 3 cats, cleaning the kitchen floor is a job in itself.
• Keeping my bathroom presentable and generally clean - It may only take me about 15 minutes normally to clean it but I expect I won’t have the energy for it for awhile after The Bean is born.
• Dishes being done (and put away) so I don’t have a huge pile in and near the sink.
• Garbage/recycling being brought out.
• Litter box being cleaned out.
• Running errands - groceries, bakery run, fruit store run - I’d rather not run out of milk, bread, eggs and juice! (Btw, bringing me any of things when visiting will make me a very happy camper!)
• Watering plants.

There are certain moments in a woman's life that she looks forward to and that are considered "milestones", for those that want children, I'd think that the baby shower is one of them.

Yesterday was my baby shower and today, the day after I'm still feeling so overwhelmed over the generosity of the women that were there.

I had two of my friends, The Bean's honourary aunties drive in from T.O. Auntie larah33 and Auntie thefrenchmaid came up on Friday after work and left today at lunch time, so it was a short visit, but totally awesome! Because they came up and I was hosting one and organising crash space for the other I knew when the shower was, but I was ok with it not being a surprise.

nightdemons went above and beyond as the hostess. It was her first ever baby shower that she was hosting and although I kept reminding her to keep it simple, she was so excited about getting it just right and I have to say, from when I walked in and saw her place I was just floored. I am so fortunate to have her as a friend and she made the day one I will never forget, like I said, she went above and beyond and did an absolutely wonderful job!

Although it was a "girly" shower, The Boys, as they are now referred to, pitched in and I will be having a pregnancy photo shoot courtesy of their generosity. I'm looking forward to having professional photos done so that I will always remember The Belly and the life inside. Once the Bean is born, I get to go back and have more photos done with him. A gift that will truly last. As you can see, there was much happiness when opening up the card. You guys rock!

Out of the numerous pics taken with my camera, and yes I brought it so I knew I'd have some, even though nightdemons also took many, I have a few faves. I was very fortunate to receive not just one, but TWO starter sets of gDiapers! The little gPants are just the cutest and I can't wait to show them off on the Bean. How often do you see orange diapers? or some of the other many colours they have available. And... they are an environmentally friendly choice as they either hold a cloth insert or a flushable/compostable insert.

Then there's the bear pic, he's cute and he's uber soft and he's just the right kind of bear for a little boy to carry around with. It was from Leah and her little boy Paddy and not surprisingly, it was her card that got me all teary. I guess it was "payback" as I got her teary at her shower in the summer!

My heartfelt thanks and gratitude go out to everyone that was able to make it to the shower. You made it a day to remember and cherish. I felt so very loved and had such a wonderful time seeing everyone's smiling faces. I am a very lucky woman to know you all. Thank you for making this "milestone" a very happy one. I can't wait to introduce you all to my little Bean.

I've actually been productive this morning.

Managed to get the bathroom cleaned (minus the floor - that will be done tomorrow).
Garbage from out back was cleaned up and brought out.
Litter box was cleaned out.

I know the weather network says it's only 1C but it feels so nice out.
I plan to wear sneakers today and my lighter jacket. I'm tired of feeling uber bundled in my heavier coat, I'm ready for nicer weather. Not that I'm not super grateful for the winter we've had, I am, I'm just ready for spring now.

Tomorrow I'll be gearing up for a fun weekend. I've got guests coming in from out of town, thefrenchmaid and larah33 so I'll want the place to be in decent shape. I won't go overboard since I know I won't have the energy but if the weather holds up and is like today I'll have the windows open to air out the place. If I were home today, that's what I'd be doing.

In the meantime, the Bean is rolling slowly, shifting and kicking, he's getting heavier and it's making things much more difficult at night. I wake up in the morning feeling dozy and achy which confounds me to no end. Shouldn't there be less achiness by the morning, after being OFF my feet?!? I've got about 7 more weeks left and I'm now at the point where I have moments of "I'm ready for this to be over now", usually in the middle of the night when I'm being woken up and uncomfortable. For the most part I'm still very much enjoying being pregnant, don't get me wrong. I've been fortunate to have a very uneventful 33 weeks. My next midwife appointment is Monday and pre-natal classes will be starting most likely the week after.

For now I"ll enjoy the sun streaming in through the window. I'm ready for my work day, just waiting for nightdemons and then we're off!

Wishing nightdemons littlest one a very happy 3rd birthday today.

I can't believe three years has gone by already. She is such a smart, funny little girl whom I adore.

I wish her nothing but happiness. Lots of hugs and kisses go out to her today, like she doesn't get enough when we see each other *lol*

Happy Birthday big girl :D Have an awesome party!

Today turned out to be totally awesome and productive, at least when it comes to shopping!

nightdemons had offered to help me with getting some of my groceries if I'd help her out with HappyBaby while she was doing her errands, win, win for both of us. I'm able to pick up more than I might normally because I'm getting a lift and she can get more errands done because there's an extra set of hands and eyes watching the toddler.

We made our lists of what was absolutely necessary and what could wait. We started with Super C which worked out well, we both got tons of the frozen Michelina's meals which were on sale for 99 cents! Now they're in the big freezer for when The Bean is born and I really don't want or have the energy to cook.

Then a trip to Costco, I only needed a few things there while nightdemons needed to pick up something for the store. Done quite quickly and then to sit for a lunch of fries and for myself a hot dog.

Next on to the plaza for pet supplies, but then I realised the big Babies R Us was right there. I had resigned myself to having to get an infant car seat that would only last me for the first 5 - 6 months and then get a new one after that which would last a number of years. The seat I did want I was told was last years model and discontinued and no one had it in stock. I was also told there were new models coming out, but they didn't have any dates as to when, but hopefully the next few months. I figured, we're here why not look and if I find one I like at a good price as I had my gift cards with me and the use of a car to bring it home.

Well... I looked around, found a Graco infant seat that was super marked down and then realised the one next to it was the one that's been on my wishlist, the one I wanted, the one I had been calling around for. The sign said, temporarily unavailable. If it's the last one, maybe they're willing to sell the floor model. Between the two of us, we found a staff member and I asked her about it. Sure they'd be willing to sell the floor model. I asked, knowing that a lot of baby gear is on sale right now, can I still get more of a discount since it IS a floor model? The woman replied with a very positive "of course, let me find out how much".

Now the seat I want is a "deluxe" infant seat, it will hold a child up to 32" and 32lbs, unlike most which only go up to 29" and 22lbs. It also costs more, regularly it's about $210 but I figured worth it, if it will last longer, she told me I could have it for $100! Without skipping a beat I said "I'll take it!" So it's missing the box, I would have recycled it anyways and it's missing the installation instructions, I can call Graco and have them send me some. I got it for a steal! And all people have done is picked it up or felt the fabric. I can easily wash the cover, no big deal. I have THE car seat! There was happiness, bouncing and excitement over this.

I was able to do the pet supplies run, but by the time we had dropped off stuff at nightdemons place I was out of steam. It was a busy day, a girls afternoon out which turned out to be fun and productive! Thank you so much, I'm expecting to be slightly embaressed by the pics taken at the store, but it was all in good fun.

Now to crash :p

So today has been busy, but good and also productive.

( mutterings about whether or not it will ever get all done )

It's less than a week till Polaris. I'm not sure where the time went but suddenly it's July and the con is days away!

I'm looking forward to seeing some great people that I don't see that often and having a chance to hang out with a few wonderful women that I wished I lived closer to.

I'll be introducing a friend of mine to his first con, so that will be tons of fun. I am slightly worried though as thefrenchmaid and him might cause a ruckus. I haven't forgotten the last time they saw each other and it was the first time they met and boy were they TROUBLE!

Oh yeah and the guest list is pretty darn amazing! I'm beside myself... Claudia Black AND Michelle Forbes, mmmm. Yeah it'll be a good con :D

I had heard that a friend of mine, mt_yvr and his husband were the subjects of a short documentary. It was filmed in Vancouver, BC where they live and it talks about their lives, living with HIV and AIDS and relationships both present and past. I am so glad that he was able to post this on his LJ for others to see as I wasn't sure if I'd ever have a chance. I was moved by their stories and seeing him on film. It's been ages since I've seen him in person and although contact is sporadic, through LJ and facebook, I do call him my friend. He's one of those people that you know when you meet them, either is or isn't a friend. *sigh* I wish I could give him the biggest hug right now.

Note, that it does reference mature subject matter. I expect though that no one on my LJ f-list would take offense to anything mentioned, but wanted to mention it just the same.

Enjoy!


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I've been sick and I've been cold and then I'm of course sick of being cold.

Lucie has decided to remedy this and took me shopping. Granted I was sick, tired and cold when we went so it wasn't as much fun as it could be for me, but the end result is I'm no longer cold!

I now have warm layers, thanks to the lovely Lucie and they work. I'm warm when I go outside, even when it's stupid cold.

I went snowshoeing for the first time ever on Saturday in Rigaud. It was fun because I wasn't cold. Then my snowshoe sunk in the snow, down to the marsh below, not as much fun being stuck, but I was still warm! I was laughing because I felt it was the universes way of saying, see this is why you shouldn't venture out into the snow and cold, remember this is why you don't like it. Some water did get into my boot, but because of the good socks I had, I've actually had colder feet when they WEREN'T wet! I was invited back and want to go snowshoeing again. (For those that know me this might be a bit of a shock!)

So yes... layers. A base layer to keep me warm, a top layer (shell) to keep wind and water away, new mitts to keep the fingers warm and socks to keep the toes toasty! Now to find activites that I might actually enjoy. Lucie is just the best! She really does rock!