Maddison

This post is a little over a week overdue, but better late than never right?

If you've been following along, you'll know that my brother and sister-in-law were expecting their third child, and that it was a long-awaited girl. Well, last Thursday, June 6th, at 4:43 am, Maddison Grace was born, weighing 9 pounds 12 1/4 ounces.

We got to see her when she was just 9 hours old. Apparently the umbilical chord was wrapped around her neck four times when she was born, so she had some trouble breathing at first, and her blood sugar was low (which is apparently common in ginormous babies). She was in an oxygen-regulated bassinet in the nursery until shortly after my mum and I got there for a visit. 

It was love at first sight the moment I saw her crazy-ass hair and her fat little arms and cheeks. 

The pediatrician came to check her out and then we were allowed to take her back to Amanda's room. 
 

Amanda fed her and then I got to hold her while Amanda went to shower. It felt like such a special time because her eyes were open part of the time and she was staring at me. Auntie loved her bonding time!

My brother left to go get something to eat and awhile later Amanda's parents came with the boys. They were so excited to see their new baby sister. Logan held her with help from Amanda and then Noah sat and held her for awhile. It was so sweet. Noah said really quietly to her, "Hi Maddison Grace I****, I'm your big brother." My heart melted!

So, that's it. I finally have a niece! I'm sure you'll be hearing a lot more about Maddy in the weeks and months to come. ;-) 

 

Gilmore Girls Mondays: Week 1

Starting this month, along with my two online besties Molli and Jessica, I'm doing a Gilmore Girls rewatch-along. Every Monday I'll be talking about the episodes I watched each week, sharing my thoughts plus favourite quotes, scenes, etc. If you want to join in, you can tweet with us using the hashtag #GilmoreGirls, and if you want to join in the discussions, feel free to grab my graphic and create posts of your own, or just comment with your thoughts.

*Note: I'm not actually going to share my thoughts on the episodes I watched this week. Even though I got a few episodes in, I want to give my partners in crime some time to catch up and watch the first few episodes, plus if anyone else sees this and decides to join in, you'll have a week to get started!

I was a couple months shy of turning 17 when Gilmore Girls started airing in 2000. It became an instant favourite - I loved Lorelai and Rory and their crazy, fun, slightly dysfunctional, but oh-so-special relationship. I loved Star’s Hollow and its eccentric inhabitants. I related to Rory in that I was shy and bookish and didn’t have many friends.

It was one of those shows that really spoke to me and had special significance along with a treasured place in my heart. I grew up alongside Rory, and I shared in her triumphs and failures the way you would a real life friend. I related to her and to the show in so many ways, and I consider it one of the defining shows of my youth.

Another great thing about the show: it brought my mum and me closer. She didn’t watch with me from the beginning, but when the TV in my bedroom died and we had to start sharing the main TV in the living room, I convinced her to watch it with me. She had mixed feelings at first - she liked it but found it exhausting because of all the chatter and banter and references she didn’t get. After awhile, she got used to it and started to love the show as much as I did. It became our thing, and to this day we still have Gilmore Girls related inside jokes.

The last time I rewatched the show, I watched from seasons 1-5, but I didn't own 6 and 7 yet. I didn't mind because they were my least favourite seasons - I didn't like the direction the show took, and I was really unhappy with the ending. I finally picked up seasons 6 and 7 on sale last year and I'd been wanting to do a rewatch for awhile but kept watching other shows instead. After I reviewed Lauren's Graham debut novel, Someday, Someday, Maybe, Molli suggested we should rewatch the show together, and it seemed like the perfect excuse to finally watch it again. Then Jess decided to join us, and I spent what felt like forever excitedly counting down the days until June 1st so I could be reunited with the Gilmores!

 

Do you remember how you felt when you first started watching Gilmore Girls? How old were you? How many times have you watched the series?

A Mother's Day Tribute

Today I wanted to pay tribute to the two women who made me who I am today: my mum and my Grama. 

I'm going to be honest: growing up, I was a total Daddy's girl. I was his little buddy and I spent a lot more time with him than I did with my mum. When I was eight and my dad got sick, things started to change. He was away a lot in the hospital, and I had to become strong and brave and good for my mum. I tried not to make things more difficult for her because I knew how stressful it was for her working full-time, dealing with my dad's business, and taking care of me and my brother. When I was ten, my dad died, and then it was just me and my mum (my brother was 20 at the time and he sort of came and went). Slowly, my mum and I grew closer. At first it was out of necessity - we had to stick together during those dark days, but then I realized she was more than just a mother. She was a friend. By the time I hit my mid-teens, she was my best friend. We did things together, went places together, and I wasn't embarrassed to be seen with her the way a lot of my friends were with their mothers. 

My mum has gone above and beyond for my brother and me. She is the epitome of the selfless mother.

My mum is the strongest person I know. She's also the kindest, most thoughtful person I know. She's been there for me no matter what and has always supported me, encouraged me, and shown unconditional love. She's funny and smart and beautiful, and I don't know what I'd do without her.

My Grama was another of my best friends. She and I were kindred spirits. She was always interested in what I was doing, and I loved hearing about her life. I asked her a million questions and she never got tired of answering them. She was always involved in something - she learned how to use a computer when she was 88, and learned how to paint when she was in her 90s. She did knitting and tatting, loved crossword puzzles and sudoku, and loved to read. She also participated in all the activities at her nursing home. She was a lifelong learner and loved to figure out how things worked. She was fascinated with my cell phone and computer, and was always asking questions (guess I come by that curiosity naturally!). When I was 17 and emailed her from France, she couldn't get over the fact that I could send her a message from halfway across the world. She was my biggest fan, and like my mum, always showed support and encouragement. When she died, a little part of me died with her, and I don't think anything will ever fill the hole she left in my heart. Not a day goes by that I don't miss her, but I know she lived a long, happy life, and I know she'd be proud of what I'm doing with my own life.   

  

Both my mum and Grama are the type of people that everyone loves instantly. They have this inner light that shines through and people are attracted to that. They both make friends everywhere they go, and make people feel good about themselves. I hope someday to be that type of person. I hope people will see me as good and kind with an inner beauty that radiates like the sun, and I'll tell them I got that from my mum and my Grama. I hope to be as good a mother to my own children as my Grama was to my mum and as my mum is to me. If I can manage that, my kids will be pretty damn lucky.

   

The two women who made me the person I am today

 

Saturday Smiles #4

 
This is the first time in over three months that I can genuinely say I had a good week. A really good week. After 13 weeks with a back injury and other various health issues, I finally got out and had some fun this week. I'm able to move around better and I was hardly in pain all week, which feels like an absolute miracle to me. It's surreal...I've been walking around waiting for the pain to come, while at the same time praying it never returns. I've been so used to hurting whenever I do the least little thing that it's strange...but wonderful!

On Tuesday, a couple of my mum's friends (who I've known my whole life, so they're my friends too) asked us to go out for lunch. We went to Lonestar, which is pretty much like a Texas grill. I'd been to the one an hour away when I was in college, and when they suggested we go there Tuesday I was kind of meh about it, but it ended up being great. I had a chicken quesadilla (my first time ever) and fries and it was SO GOOD and the price was great. Afterwards, we stopped to do a little bit of shopping, which was also fun since I haven't been able to do much shopping other than for groceries. 

On Wednesday I had to go have some tests done on my heart, which wasn't exactly fun, but then afterward Amanda (my sister-in-law) took us back to her place and we got to visit with my brother (Jamie) and play with Logan (my three-year-old nephew). Logan got his very first bike and he's so excited about it. He can't figure out how to peddle so he just propels himself along yelling "I'm doing it! I'm doing it!" It's SO cute.

Look at this little face! Couldn't you just eat him up?

He has a tiny wheelbarrow to be like Daddy...Jamie is doing a bunch of landscaping and gardening at their house, and Logan has to do everything Jamie does. The puppy is Moe - he's the cutest damn thing, but they're not keeping him...their dogs had puppies and Moe's the last one to be sold. I want him!

More smiles: spring has finally arrived! The weather this week has been gorgeous, and everything is starting to bloom. The grass is really green and flowers are popping up everywhere. That's definitely helped with my outlook on life. Also, we've been able to have the windows and balcony doors open all day and night, which is wonderful. I've been cooped up in the apartment for three months and it's so nice to finally get fresh air in here...and to be able to go OUT in the fresh air!

Buds on the trees!

After we played with Logan and chatted with Jamie, we went to Amanda's latest doctor's appointment. She was 35 weeks pregnant on Thursday so she'll be going every week from now on. I got to go in with her and see the baby on a sonogram. The doctor predicts she's about six pounds already and Amanda just wants her to come out because she's afraid she'll end up being a 9 or 10 pounder, haha.

Last night, Amanda messaged me just before six and asked if we'd eaten yet and if we wanted to go out for ice cream. We don't normally eat until seven but that didn't stop me...that's one of the great things about being an adult: you can decide if you want dessert before dinner! Plus it's been a LONG time since I did anything spontaneous. She and the boys picked up Mum and me and we went to Reid's Dairy (a locally owned dairy with the best ice cream ever). We sat inside to eat and then went out to the playground and farm. The animals aren't out yet but we saw some fish (which Logan pronounces 'bitch'...I just about died...'Mimi, I wanna go see the bitch...where the bitch Mimi?') and some Canadian geese. 

Since the playground there is a death trap (it's like 8 feet high), we finally left and went for a drive. We ended up down by the bay and went to take some of Amanda's maternity pictures. We were taking pictures and 4 ducks came over and were swimming really close. We've all been to that park a million times and the ducks rarely come that close. Then a swan came over and was swimming a couple feet away and they never come close. It was so amazing! The swans usually stay way out in the bay, so it felt like all these birds were coming over just for us. 

This is just a sneak peek of Amanda's maternity pics...I'll post more later!

And finally almost three hours later when the sun started to set, we figured we should head home. All in all, it was an amazing week with lots to smile about, and I hope it's the beginning of a wonderful spring and summer! 

 

 What made you smile this week? How's the weather where you are?

Wordless Wednesday #6 - Mum's Birthday

I've seen different versions of Wordless Wednesday around the blogosphere for years and since I'm always saying I'll post more of my photography on this blog but then never do, I thought doing my own version of Wordless Wednesday would be good incentive.

    

Saturday Smiles #3

Well, this hasn't been the greatest week ever, guys. If you've been following along, you'll know that I've been suffering from a bulging disc in my back for the last 8+ weeks. While my actual back is much better, I'm still having trouble with my right leg and I don't have full feeling in my toes. It's been a nightmarish two months. Luckily my amazing mother has been taking care of me...but on Tuesday we were out grocery shopping with my sister-in-law and nephew, and Mum lifted something heavy and hurt her back. So now we're a pair of cripples attempting to take care of each other. As you can imagine, it's been a rough week. 

Anyway...I did find some reasons to smile this week. Lucky for me (and everyone around me), I have a good sense of humour and while I do get frustrated with how limiting this injury is, I've been trying to find the bright side as often as I can.

Logan always sits in the cart to keep me company while we're shopping. On Tuesday he sprawled out in the top part of the two-tier cart and he was chattering away the entire time. He's so sweet and funny, my heart just bursts every time I'm with him, or even just thinking about him.

I'm usually the cook in my house but since I hurt myself, my mum has had to do most of the cooking. I help when I can, but I can't stand for long without being in agony. A few nights ago, I stood for about half an hour and made meatballs from scratch to have with spaghetti. It was pretty exciting for me! I've never enjoyed spaghetti as much as I did that night.

When I was getting Easter eggs (or Spring eggs as I call them, since I don't technically celebrate Easter) to hide for my nephews this weekend, I got myself a little treat too. These are soooo good - plus they're fun to eat!

VistaPrint had another big sale this week (they're always having some sale or other), and I decided to order more WAITING FOR THE STORM swag. The notebooks I got a few weeks ago were so beautiful, I ordered more, along with three tote bags and two sheets of stickers. The official launch date for the book is April 9th and I'll be having lots of giveaways! Another reason to smile: I ordered this stuff Monday, the estimated delivery was the first week of April, but it came on Wednesday - win!

So, those are some of the things that made me smile this week. What made you smile?

Saturday Smiles #2

Saturday Smile is a new weekly feature I’ll be doing where I talk about moments during the week that made me smile for one reason or another.

Mum and me

Last weekend Mum, Amanda, Logan and I went on our first road trip of the year. It was a lot of fun!

Logan and Amanda

When we were in the mall, we sat in the food court and Mum and Amanda went to go get lunch. Logan was playing on Amanda's phone (kid's more tech savvy than I am, I swear) and all of a sudden, he set the phone down, stood on his seat, leaned across the table and kissed me. It was the sweetest thing ever and I've been thinking about it all week. 

I haven't been able to drink since I hurt my back and had to go on strong painkillers but last weekend I decided to have a Guinness for St. Patrick's Day. It was such a nice treat.

Mmmm, Guinness

I've hardly had any mail in the last couple months but this week I got mail almost every day. I had several gift certificates and coupons to use, so I bought a ton of books plus I won one on Twitter!

Boooks *drools*

I had Logan on Friday while Mum went with Amanda to a doctor's appointment and Logan wanted to watch Disney's Robin Hood, which is one of my favourite movies ever. He kept a running commentary going the entire time and he was absolutely hilarious. He's hands-down the smartest, funniest kid I know.

When Amanda dropped off Logan on Friday, she brought me some goodies she'd picked up for St. Patrick's Day since she knows I love all things Irish.

They're so pretty I almost don't want to eat them!

 I finished the final revisions of my third novel, WAITING FOR THE STORM, which comes out April 9th!

This week on my book blog I got to interview Maddy Hunter, one of my favourite authors ever. It was a thrilling and surreal experience!
 

What made you smile this week?