October, 2008

I wish children’s television showed more things like this (I first found this through Faery Log‘s blog). I only get to show Franklin these types of things through places like YouTube. YouTube takes up much of our media now that we don’t have cable. Well, that and my recent ebay score of Prehistoric Park. Still, it seems Franklin (and us) end up navigating the troubling waters of light saber duels and kung fu, which is the most harmless weaponry we can settle on because trust me, there is some scary stuff out there for six year olds.

I’m raising my glass to Buffy and Big Bird while hoping my son joins the chess club and takes up the fine art of origami…

Come Slide with Me, Let’s Slide Let’s Slide Away, originally uploaded by john faherty photography.

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It’s easy to beat yourself up about things. It is especially easy once you become a parent. There are the expectations to do things perfect for society (breast-feeding, attachment parenting, non-violent communication) and then there are the expectations to do things the way your parents did (“I raised ____ kids, and they turned out just fine). However, this is nothing compared to the expectations that you set out for yourself. For me, this would be a culmination of all of the above as well as making sure that I am supreme hero in the eyes of my children.

Of course, I’ve relaxed this a bit during the 5 years of raising Franklin. I’m still a die-hard breast-feeding fanatic and immense believer in non-violent communication but because I’m not raising anyone’s kids but my own, everything gets shoved aside when the “important things” come to play.

Important things like?
Like, picking up my son from school on time, dammit.

Franklin is a bit sensitive. I was going to get specific about how he is a little nervous about being picked up on time but lets face it, he’s a sensitive boy. Last year he cried when he learned about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. From what I seem to gather, this is very similar to my father’s experience growing up. I’m determined not to react the way people had reacted in the past – “Boys don’t cry!”

It’s important for Franklin to know that yes, boys cry.
Boys also have panic attacks when their mothers aren’t there after the school bell rings. This is okay.

Well, it’s okay up to a point. I mean, I was coming. Of course, he couldn’t see the look of horror on my face as I turned and saw that at the exact moment I was looking at the clock, the bell was ringing. He couldn’t see me hand Eliza to my mother (crying – oh lordy) and scream out the door. He couldn’t see me hiking up my pants as I tried to run those 4 blocks to the school.

He did see me arrive at the school gasping for breath. I sat on the stone wall, holding on to his jacket, and hung my head between my knees because I thought I was going to pass out. There were at least three triathlon mothers around me as I struggled not to wrench up my salmon lunch.

4 bloody blocks of terror.

I think knowing that he was going to be so worried made the dash worse. My muscles were sore for 3 days afterwards – my legs, my stomach and my jaw. Tension. I wonder where my son gets his sensitivity from… hmmmm.

He was okay. He panicked but there was a mother of a friend there who saw his concern and stayed with him. I can’t say enough about this woman. She is amazing. I have written numerous sentences about just how amazing she is but I’ve deleted them in an effort not to gush. She reads this site so I’m trying to hold back but it’s enough to say that this woman is one of those people that welcomes every kind of freak flag with enthusiasm.

So… you-know-who-you-are, thanks for talking my son down from the 20 story building of future abandonment issues therapy appointments. Our RESPs will only go so far and I don’t think they cover that.

Franklin and I talked quite a bit about that day and what we could do to prevent that from happening again. I had to admit to him that I may not always be there right when the bell rings. He didn’t like this. He’ll be okay with meeting at the playground eventually though (this is the rule for most other kids and the grounds are supervised by teachers).

Little steps.

We also have a Family Code Word. Something that will remind him never to leave with anyone else. It will also remind him that his Mom and Dad will always be picking him up one way or another. Lastly, he knows what to do if we aren’t there and someone else (or no one!) is offering him a way home.

Short of getting him a cell phone, I think we are covered.
Yeah, I’m still considering the cell phone.

Golden monkey, originally uploaded by floridapfe.

Once upon a time, in a village, a man appeared and announced to the villagers that he would buy monkeys for $10 each.

The villagers, seeing that there were many monkeys around, went out to the forest and started catching them. The man bought thousands at $10 and, as supply started to diminish, the villagers stopped their effort.

He further announced that he would now buy at $20 for a monkey.

This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they started catching monkeys again. Soon the supply diminished even further and people started going back to their farms.

The offer increased to $25 each, and the supply of monkeys became so small that it was an effort to even find a monkey, let alone catch it!

The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at $50!

However, since he had to go to the city on some business, his assistant would now buy on behalf of him.

In the absence of the man, the assistant told the villagers. “Look at all these monkeys in the big cage that the man has collected. I will sell them to you at $35, and when the man returns from the city, you can sell them to him for $50 each.”

The villagers rounded up all their savings and bought all the monkeys.

They never saw the man nor his assistant again, only monkeys everywhere.

Now you have a better understanding of how Wall Street works.

Uncle Adam, the politician, originally uploaded by AdaSaab.

I’ve wanted to blog a post about my brother, Adam, running in the federal election for awhile but I wasn’t sure just how to go about it. Do I make it professional? Do I list his qualifications? Do I mention Green Party policies and talk about Elizabeth May?

In the end, with Election Day looming before us, (we vote tomorrow, October 14th) I have decided to write a personal post about Adam. This is a personal blog and although many people will be reading this that may not have come here for “the personal”, it’s what I know best about my brother. Other things you can get by reading his webpage or checking out the Green Party website – something you really need to do.

And by “really” I mean something I think is more important than figuring out who’s going to win “So You Think You Can Dance, Canada” or wondering if Britney and Kevin are going to get back together.

There are many things about my family that make me proud. Most of these things can be said about one person in particular – my youngest brother. Adam is an amazing person. He is calm and reflective. He thinks before he speaks so that when he does, he speaks well. Many of the debates he has participated in recently have brought people into the office, wanting to know more about the Green Party and Adam in particular. Adam is also a very passionate person. When he believes in something he acts on it with energy and diligence. He doesn’t move forward in life unless he thinks that what he is doing is going to move something or someone. He realizes that everyone’s actions can directly affect everyone else. This is important in a politician. Adam is not a stubborn man. He listens to people and considers their opinions.

What I’m trying to say is… my brother is a special person. And I know what you are thinking, “Yeah, yeah. Everyone says this about their baby brother”. No, not everyone. I can’t say the same things about many people in my family that I love very, very much. Adam has always been a very reflective and deliberate person for as long as I’ve known him and I’ve known him his entire life.I was nine years old when he was born. I studied him intensely like any doll loving, house playing big sister would. I learned how to fold and pin a diaper on his wiggly little bum. I held him as he fell asleep in my arms so that could proudly carry him to my mother for bed (I couldn’t reach over the crib) and I dressed him in my best doll clothes. He was patient with me through all of these things – even the doll clothes.

Speaking of being patient with me, I’ve never voted Green before. I had thought that the purpose of the Green Party was to promote green issues but not necessarily run. Here I was, being “green” all over the place and not really voting in that direction. I also worried about “splitting the vote” and therefore letting my voice wither and die in idealistic obscurity. I am passionate about the right to vote so I wanted to make it count. I listened to people talk about strategic voting and thought that by “holding my nose and voting” it would ultimately be the smartest move.

However, from what I’ve seen, the green issues brought up in other party platforms are not enough. The initiatives are never actually followed after the election – not to my satisfaction and not ever to the level promised.

Splitting the vote? Nope. Not once you see the Green platform, it’s not. The Green Party platform is impressive. In fact, it takes votes from all sides. Conservative, Liberal, NDP… If you want to learn more about strategic voting and the threat of splitting the vote read this post by Glen Hubbers. It’s a good read.

I have immense hope for the Green Party and Adam has showed me this. It’s not that he’s my brother. It’s not even that I know him and therefore am aware that he is a good person. I’ve been in the Green Party office for the last few weeks and I’ve seen him working. He makes decisions and sticks by them, he delegates tasks evenly and…. well, he measures twice and cuts once. He’s a good leader. I’d follow him to Ottawa. Well, I am following him. I’m voting Green in this election.

So, follow the links above if you want to know a bit more about the Green Party and look up your Green candidate in your riding. Whatever you decide, please vote.

My brother has worked incredibly hard for the last few weeks. He has worked incredibly hard for the Green Party for years. Volunteers for all the parties have. Canadians are incredibly lucky to be able to vote and it’s so difficult for me to understand how there are so many that don’t exercise this right. We have all the information that we need in front of us, we have the internet. All the parties have websites for you to read.

Think about what’s important for you and look up these issues for every candidate.

Vote.

(and while you’re at it, if you live in the Victoria riding, vote for Adam)

CIN 1 vs normal exocervix (1 of 3), originally uploaded by euthman.

Eliza’s not feeling well. She’s got a bit of a cold and a fever. It’s nothing too bad as she can still easily breastfeed but man, is she a grumpy baby. It’s very strange for us to see her so grumpy. She’s had this reputation of being the happiest baby, calmest baby, most easy-going baby. Now she’s non-sleeping baby.

More accurately, she is a very short napping baby and a “Man, last night sucked gopher balls” kind of baby. Tonight, she is sleeping propped up on an incline that resembles Blackcomb’s Blowhole. While I was bouncing her (I’ll explain this another time), I asked Dickson to set her mattress up a little bit, hoping to make her more comfortable (and let’s not kid, make me a little less tired). When I saw what he had set up, I had to laugh. I hope I’m not going to find her tomorrow morning crumpled at the bottom of the steep.

Funny Story:
(well, funny to me, anyway)

After I dropped Franklin off at school, I headed to the medical clinic to make sure she didn’t have an ear infection. My mother is visiting and if anything makes me freak out about my children, it is seeing someone else’s concern.

“You mean it’s not just me?”

And because we live pretty much on campus, we trucked over to the University Medical Clinic. Apparently, this is not the place for me. I do not live in family housing and they do not service the staff’s family members. Regardless, they took pity on Eliza’s long, sorrowful glances and saw us anyway.

I learned valuable information at this health clinic!

1) Wednesday is “Wart Wednesday” and they bring in a 3-foot high tank of liquid nitrogen to start off the festivities. They are busy on Wart Wednesday! And a little too excited about the whole thing, if you ask me.

2) Diversity is a BIG issue. They have an entire wall dedicated to the fact that people? They are diverse! Really! And not just physically! Wow.

3) Men need pamphlets about how it is okay to be a man – I didn’t get to read this one as my time was taken up with information point #4 below.

4) University kids need colour, font and size variety in their STD / safer sex / how to put on a female and male condom pamphlets. Man, I’ve never seen so much literature about the same thing shoved in a wall shelf. Eliza and I perused this section with much interest. Seems she prefers the red and black pamphlet that tells you “No Means No”. And by interested, I mean “tastes good”.

Anyway…

No ear infection. No throat infection. No nothing.

She has snot. That’s about it.
She has snot and she’s not happy about it.

Little wimp.

So Franklin is officially 6 years old. He was born at 12:45am and as it is 1:08am right now (guess who’s putting together thirteen goodie bags with a spy/scavenger hunt theme – on a major budget?) I am officially the mother of a 6 year old, grade one-er.

From this:

To this:

Six years old.
I was looking through some old flickr photos from a few years ago and damn he’s grown up fast!

I know, I know. Everyone says this but… well, this one actually happens. Kids grow up really fast.

He’s such an amazing kid.
Everyone says that about his or her child as well, I know. However, I have to let you in on a secret. Only our kid is really amazing. The rest of them are just so-so.

Evidence:

The patient way that he smiles as I take one more photo for the Internets:

The way he loves to entertain his sister:

The way he is always up for hanging out with his silly family:

Basically, how important he is in making our family so very special:

Happy Birthday, my Jedi Youngling.
You have taught me how to be a parent and an all around better human being.

Now, let’s hope your birthday doesn’t tear the house down.