How Did this Happen?

Friday we register our son for kindergarten.

How is it that our little guy is at the age where he is going to school?

When I first realized our three-year-old will be getting on the school bus like the “big kids”, I was so sad. While I acknowledged he was likely ready to go mentally, there were a list of things he still isn’t able to do and a whole bunch of things I hadn’t yet taught him.

While he can get dressed himself, he can’t zip up his coat and he still puts his shoes on backwards. While he knows to stop at the edge of the road and look both ways before he crosses, we still need to work on letting other people talk despite having something important to say.

He still likes to nap. We leave the house at 6:10 a.m. This works out because he has at least a two-hour nap during the day. His kindergarten is all day every day. My poor guy is going to be tired.

And then there is school itself.

When my stepdaughter lived with us, it seemed like each week she was asking for money – school trips, fundraisers, pizza lunch.

My guy doesn’t get a lot of stuff. We don’t go to the grocery store and buy him a treat. On our recent Belleville trip, we went into many stores – toy, hobby, book – and he saw many things he wanted but he didn’t get anything.

But the school system seems to not only want your money, but makes you feel pressure to give your child everything because everyone else is doing it.

I suppose I will cross the money issue when it comes but I am feeling better about kindergarten readiness as two friends both told me the children don’t have to be completely self-sufficient, that there are parents in the classroom who help out.

So while I will be a little sad that my guy is starting a new chapter in his life, it will also be exciting to watch this little boy grow up to be an even bigger boy.

Rather Ridiculous

Smart Cars are ridiculous.

Each time one of these mini vehicles pass me, I wonder why people would buy one.

They must be one of the most inconvenient vehicles around. Who are they good for?

You couldn’t own one if you had children or a dog bigger than your lap.

If you scuba dived, biked or did any other sport that required equipment, this car wouldn’t be for you. And if you would like to pick up more than a couple groceries after work, where do you put them?

But most importantly, when everyone else around you is driving pickup trucks and SUVs, do you really want to be driving a smart Car?

I don’t care how much of Mercedes-Benz safety features are in this mini-car, if you are driving one and you get hit by a one-ton pickup, the pickup is going to win.

Thursday Thoughts

Yugh traffic
Traffic has been crazy these last few weeks.

Around the time college and university students were saying farewell to another school year, traffic was fantastic – I barely touched the brake the whole way down the highway.

Then a few weeks ago, traffic became worse then it has been since my return to the daily commute. It stops and rarely picks up again.

The great news is there is only one month until the summer travel season.

Great weather
Southern Ontario weather has been fantastic recently – hot and sunny. I spoke to someone from Greenpeace in Vancouver, British Columbia, and she said the west coast city’s weather has been horrific – rain, rain and then rain again.

But rain, I suppose, is better than snow, which is what relatives in Calgary woke up to last week. Hee, hee.

Saving the world
I am feeling the need to do more for the world, which of course can only help us as individuals. I am in the process of doing interviews for a couple of stories, which I am really proud of.

I don’t often link my personal blog to my work site, but I do think I will make an exception for these two stories, which I hope offers people ways they can also help this world.

Homeless pets
I think I want to start volunteering with my son. I think we are going to play with the cats and walk the dogs at our local animal shelter.

SickKids Hospital
I also really want to do something for the Hospital for Sick Children. Longtime blog readers will know this downtown Toronto facility, which is world-renowned, literally saved my son’s life when he was one month old.

I read a lot of blogs written by Americans and it always breaks my heart, and makes me so thankful to be Canadian, to read about sick children and their families, who, instead of only having to be concerned about getting the best treatment for their loved ones, have to worry about raising money to pay for treatment.

Everyone at SickKids do so much, not only for Canadian children, but children around the world.

Ideas anyone?

A Question for Horse Owners

Since I already picked on horse farm owners (see yesterday’s post), I thought I would pick on people who consider themselves horse lovers.

For the record, I have never been ONE of those girls. You know the type – the girls who had horse posters on their walls, hung out in stables and begged their parents for riding lessons.

In fact, it was my younger brother who spent his time mucking out stables, taking riding lessons and going to horse camps and winning ribbons.

However, I appreciate the beauty and strength of horses. I think they are magnificent looking creatures, with soft muzzles and understanding eyes.

What I don’t understand is the behaviour of people who own horses.

If you love horses and they are considered your pet, how come you are willing to sell them when you no longer have time for them?

I realize horses live a long time – on average between 25 to 30 years. It’s a huge commitment when you purchase a horse, however, it’s your pet, your child and, as you would tell a child, if you make a commitment, you have to stick it out.

So how come some people are so willing to sell their pets?

Now, I am not talking about the people who have to sell their horses because of financial hardship. That is a totally different situation. I have a friend who thinks about the horse she was forced to give up all the time.

However, it’s not uncommon to hear about people giving up a horse because they are tired of it, because they don’t want to be bothered looking after it any more or they don’t have time for it.

And that poor horse is sold to another person and then another until, hopefully, it finds a retirement home rather than being put down.

Could you imagine doing that to a dog or a cat?

So what’s the difference?

Sad day

It’s been a bad news day and it’s only 7:43 a.m.

I received a phone call from my husband this morning with the news that his cousin found his wife dead in their bathroom from an apparent brain aneurysm.

She was only 32. They have young children.

We aren’t close to this family but perhaps because of her age or perhaps because she has young children, my heart breaks for the husband and particularly for her children.

What do you say to a child who just wants his mom? I wish I was religious and could use the idea of a heaven or angels looking down. It seems an easy explanation and at least a nice idea.

Unfortunately, it’s hard to promote this idea when I don’t believe it.

My condolences to the Forbes family and to the children. My heart breaks for you all.


Tears were also shed for the three million people in Haiti who are expected to be impacted from last night’s ‘catastrophic’ earthquake.

My condolences to anyone who is has friends, family and loved ones on that Caribbean island.

I will be thinking of you.

Visit www.redcross.ca for ways you can help.

Studies Say ...

Studies say that children who go to daycare are more social and do better in school.

Quite frankly, I don’t care what the studies say.

And isn’t it insulting to the generation of children who were raised by their mothers? Were we social-inept, stupid children? I don’t think so.

So perhaps the study isn’t telling us all that we need to know or maybe it’s telling us this so we don’t feel bad about plunking our children in daycare for 10 hours a day while we get “me” time.

Happy First Birthday

Tomorrow is our son’s first birthday.

It doesn’t seem like a year ago when our son was laid against my face for the first time. It doesn’t seem like a year ago that I just sat there and watched this miracle boy sleep in my arms.

Other than those two weeks at Sick Kids, each of the 365 days that have passed has been an absolute joy.

People tell you that your life complete changes with a child. While shopping isn’t as easy as it once was, my life has only been enriched and if anything has changed it is that each day brings happiness and contentment.

Happy Birthday, my little one.

Fun At Home

Today was supposed to be the first day my son tried daycare.

My daycare provider, LC, phoned me last night to inform me her five-year-old has come down with the flu and suggested my son stay home.

Yippee. (Yippee to my son staying home, not a child caught the flu.)

While I am sure my son will be OK with playing all day, Mommy wasn’t ready to lose her little guy, not even for four hours.

While I had made lots of plans to occupy the time, I really wasn’t looking forward to not being constantly around my little guy.

So while a small part of me was sad that I couldn’t develop pictures, the rest of me was excited that I could instead read, play with blocks, cuddle and enjoy my son as he explores his world.