aux

well... we got our new car today, so that concludes THAT whole ordeal.

it's a kia sportage, so we're calling it the sportaj mahal, after this guy :)

shuffle

i had a really nice evening with eamon while brendan was at work. i tried to mitigate challenges – like how he always dumps the cat's food into the water bowl, by leaving the water bowl empty for a little while. i also got him to help me with supper – i cut the brussel sprouts and he put them in the (empty) pot. this seemed to work really well.

this weekend, we should install some cupboard hooks so he can't open the doors. i think that will help too.

aside from that, it was a beautiful day, i enjoyed two nice walks, i'm enjoying my current book, i had a yummy supper and watched one episode of the americans with brendan. not a bad evening.

dragons

well, i've been home with a headcold today. i'm definitely feeling better, so i think i'm on the mend. i'm glad, because i know i have time sensitive things to deal with at work.

since yesterday evening, when i started feeling under the weather, i've been super impatient with éamon. i don't have a lot to offer him, and he's been rather demanding, per his age.

i'm starting to think it might be time to rearrange our living arrangement, so that he has his own room. this is a major sacrifice for me since i use our den A LOT. it's largely my space, and i really value it. but i also know i'd value éamon sleeping through the night and not waking frequently to nurse. i'm of the belief that he'd nurse less at night if i wasn't in the room, but it's really just a theory.

i tried to get some expert advise on weaning a toddler – because all the online advise on weaning is for mothers of young babies. i can't find anything about nursing a toddler, and i think weaning at this stage has it's own distinct set of challenges. but he just said that his objective is to help people nurse, not help them stop. and questioned why i even wanted to start weaning. which super annoyed me. i don't feel i should have to make a case for myself to get some good advise.

that said, i mostly want to stop because it's starting to become a negative experience. he screams and yells at me, he grabs at my body and freaks out when i say no, he won't soothe himself back to sleep at night (even though he can), his tantrums at night disrupt ALL of our sleep. i really feel we'd all be better off if we started to wrap it up.

i'm going to bed...

abercrombie

*exhale*

well... things are brighter. we think we've found a suitable car that we'll be happy with and we can afford. we just want to think about it for a few days first. i'm pretty sure brendan's car is going to die in the next week as well, so i'm eager to get a car. that said, i also don't want to rush into anything.

this is my first time car shopping, but went along with my mom many times as a kid and teenager. i realized the things she cares about when considering a car are not things i care about. she considers the colour of the inside, the brightness, how big the windows are, etc etc. a lot of aesthetic things. while brendan and i care about the functionality (spacious, stick-shift, large trunk, power windows, etc) and if it's affordable. the aesthetics are less important because we'll get used to those things. in the past, it was always a 'take what you get' kind of thing.

once all this is wrapped up, i'll be able to think/write about our trip.

i really like the sound of the birds chirping outside :)

the worst

life is strange. one minute you're driving home, refreshed and renewed from a wonderful vacation. the next, your much loved, dependable and rugged car breaks down on the road and is declared dead by a mechanic.

i feel like all the freshness and energy of my trip has disappeared because of the loss of my car, which is really disappointing. sometimes i tell myself "at least it wasn't on the way to the airport", but if it had, at least we would've had time to process this major life change before having to do something about it.

since my office is so far away, i can't just go carless for the time being. i wish i could because i'd like the freedom to look around and buy something i'm really happy with.

this sucks.

i was telling brendan yesterday, if money wasn't an issue, i'd be happy to get a new car. the two rentals we had in the last week were really nice and the drive was smooth. but money is an issue, and we can't just buy whatever car we want. we're probably going to have to get a compact car – which has it's advantages for sure, but i really associate cars with freedom and a compact car will really limit what we can and can't haul around.

all of that said, things are pretty bad. we're stressed and emotional and jet-lagged and disappointed and argumentative and frustrated. i'm hoping this will blow over soon, but i might just have to lay low for a week.

enroute

we're at Washington Dulles airport, on our way back to Toronto. we'll arrive there and stay over in a hotel tonight than drive home tomorrow. with the five hour difference, I won't be surprised if eamon wakes at 1 am :S

much to say... we've had many adventures. but I'll wait til I'm home and have a proper computer.

that said, brendan and I agree that this was our most diverse trip - with the largest range of activities. it was really cool. we're pretty tried, but happy :)

Sent from my iPod

away we go

well, we leave this evening for london. i've been feeling really excited about it, but since this morning i've felt a little anxious. i think éamon might be starting to cut a molar, which is not pleasant. after his last teeth came through, i thought we'd be scott-free for a while, but he's had some teething symptoms, so i checked a baby dental chart this morning and these next ones come in between 20 and 31 months, and he'll be 21 months next week :S bad timing. we'll just have to put on our broad shoulders and take precautions.

we're well prepared. i only have a few final things to pack today, then we'll head out to toronto later in the afternoon. i've been remarkably surprised by how smooth packing for a family with a toddler has been. brendan and i have a big travel backpack each, and we have one large beach bag type of tote bag for our carry-on. we have some new small toys that eamon's never seen before, and i got two toddler-aged apps for my ipod. if nothing else, i'm sure it will be a memorable journey!

i think this will be fun:) the weather in london this week is around 15° C all week, and 18° C on friday!

over the pond

we've been spending the last few days getting ready for our trip to the UK. we leave on monday. our flight is not until 23:10, so we have a lot of time still. i'm actually going to work a half day that morning. i've been super intentional and methodical about packing for the three of us, and so far i've found success.

there's pros and cons to traveling with a toddler. here's a few i've thought of:

con: we'll have to go at a slower pace than we're used to
pro: we'll discover another side of our destination (parks, playgrounds, zoos)

con: we'll have to get up earlier in the morning

pro: we'll get up earlier and make the most of our day

con: we won't be able to watch as many movies on the plane

pro: we'll probably get more sleep

con: we'll have a toddler sitting on our lap

pro: he flys for free – which is basically like get getting a 2 for 1 rate

con: we might have to deal with a screaming/crying toddler (for various reasons)

pro: we'll get to board early

con: having a toddler on a flight sometimes brings out the worst in people

pro: having a toddler on a flight sometimes brings out the best in people

purple porridge

once again, i've fallen behind with my writing.

i've been reflecting lately on how i struggle to do things consistently. i wish i was able decide to do something and just do it. there's so many wonderful things i wish i had the self-discipline to make part of daily life. it might not even be a self-discipline thing. some personalities types are more prone to patterns and routines. i'm not one of them.

i gave my dad a drive to the train station today. without going into the long story involving his purple porridge, i realized how similar we are. how much effort we have to make to not overlook details, and how frustrated we get when we goof-up. because my dad was absent from my life for quite a long time, there's still a lot of things i'm still piecing together. sometimes i feel like an adopted person who is getting to know their birth parents and discovering a bunch of similar traits. i like it. it's nice – it helps me not be so hard on myself.