Future American Idol?

Homework assignment

Trent got his first homework assignment this week... well, when I say Trent, I really mean me. The assignment is to make a simple photographic family tree.

Brian said that one "over achiever parent" had already turned theirs in. And I found myself questioning what theirs looked like so I could ensure that ours is better!!! WTF? it's a 2 year old's homework project! When did I become competitive?

That's Brian rubbing off on me, that is!

So here's what "Trent" came up with ;-)

Kiss it better

Whenever Trent gets hurt, I always offer to kiss it better. Most of the time it works, too. I say "mummy kiss it better?" and he sobs "yeees". Then I say "is that better?" and he says "yeees - thankooomummy". Today, I opened the freezer to put something away and a frozen chicken breast attacked my by landing on my foot! Why is it that frozen stuff always lands right on your big toe? why does it hurt SOOOO bad??? And why does it make me swear so much???

As I stood there like a very pissed off flamingo on one foot, holding in all of the swear words that were rising to the surface like hot lava from a volcano, Trent came over and bent down and said "Trent kiss it better mummy!" and he kissed it. Then he got Bear to kiss it, too. And as I marvelled at how very sweet my little man is, do you know what happened? My toe stopped hurting. Moments like those are what makes it all seem worth it.

TrentTube!

Trent's got his own youtube channel now: http://www.youtube.com/user/keylimeypie

Check out his "wee daddy" video. It's pretty cute right up until he smacks his face on the drum set at the end.

How to call your grandparents, by Trent

Can barely contain the excitement!

Seriously, this xmas is going to be the xmas to beat all past and future xmases. Why? Because not only are my parents coming, which is, in itself, reason to celebrate, but also my BFF, Darryl, his awesome wife, Mel (like a sister to me) and his very cute daughter, Louise, are also coming!!

I can barely stand to wait until December!

The only down side is that they will eventually all have to go home. But let's not focus on that. Let's instead focus on how freaking awesome it's gonna be to have everyone together for xmas for the first time EVER since I moved to the USA. I usually hate xmas. I normally get the blues around xmas time because my family is so far away. Don't get me wrong - my Texas family are awesome and they really, really try hard to make me feel at home and go along with all the English traditions like the silly xmas crackers and party hats... and I love them dearly for this... but nothing --I MEAN NOTHING -- can compensate for having your own family around during the holidays.

We have a graduate in the family!

Trent graduated from the 2 year olds classroom today! They had a little graduation party, which the parents were allowed to attend, but which I decided not to because it would upset Trent for me to show up, then leave again. Instead I settled for watching him on the web cam. They had special treats to eat and it looked like they had fun.

On Monday, Trent will be in his new classroom, the "3 year olds" class. What does this mean?
Well, first off, this is where potty training begins! He's already using the toilet at home but it's quite intermittent and most of the time he poops then tells us he needs to use the potty. So that being said, the recommendation is that we do not use diapers anymore. They claim that 2 weeks is all they need to get them trained.

Brian and I both raised an eyebrow when this news was given to us. But I think we've concluded, after a little worrying that he's not ready, that if they say they can do it, we'll give it a shot, follow the recommendations, and look at this as a wonderful gift.

In this classroom, Trent will also work on communication. This is where his vocabulary will really take off. Many people have commented to us how great Trent's vocabulary already is. I cracked up the other day when Trent corrected me. He said "Actually 2 mummy" when I pointed something out to him and used the singular. The fact that he knows what "actually" means cracks me up. He uses the word all the time.

So, on to a new chapter in Trent's life. What adventures we will have.

Bathroom redo part 2

The bathroom is finished! Here's what I did:

1. Repaired and repainted the walls "Soothing Green Tea"
2. Installed a new light fixture
3. Installed decorative shelves
4. Installed the new sink and cabinet, which consisted of the following steps:

• Mount faucet to granite counter top
• Attach sink to counter top using provided hardware
• Call sink manufacturer for better instructions on how to connect the damn thing to the drain pipe. Sent them pictures via email. Waited for them to respond. No response.
  
• Figured out a way to connect it myself by using the parts from old sink and one new $2 piece from Home Depot.
  
• Tighten all the connections (Sink to counter, faucet hoses to water supply, drain to wall)
  
• Attach granite counter top to the cabinet using silicone
  

All done. We now have a fully functioning and beautiful sink:

Bathroom redo part 1

Well, the ugly sink is out! It was a multi-part task that Brian and I shared. I got it un-stuck from the wall and floor and shut off the water supply, then Brian disconnected the hoses (a nasty job) and did the heavy lifting. What a man! (all without me asking him to).
The floor tile under the sink is intact so no floor fixing to be done. YAY! The wall where the sink was connected needs a minor patch and some texturizing to match the rest of the wall. I think we've picked a colour. It's called "Soothing Green Tea". It's kinda light greenish yellow. I hope it won't overwhelm the bathroom. I thought it might lend itself well to the somewhat asian style cabinet that I'm installing.

Anyway, some before and in-progress pictures:


Before: Note the ugly light fixture, the hideous scalloped sink, and the fact that the sink isn't even the same colour as the toilet! Also notice the very ugly colour on the walls.



Sink has been removed and I made a unsuccessful attempt at texturizing over the spot where the sink was attached. It didn't look good and the stuff I was using didn't work properly so I wiped it off.








This is the colour I am thinking of painting the walls. Imagine it with black furniture/mirror and brushed nickel light and towel holder.

Potty in style

Well, I finally did it! Talked Brian into letting me buy a new bathroom sink! I've never liked the downstairs bathroom. The colour looks like poop and the scalloped sink is SOOO 1980's. It doesn't even match the toilet. The sink is off-white and the toilet is white. So for 2 years I've been whining about how I hate the sink. I found a great deal on Ebay and the exact one that I want. The image shown has a white marble top, but ours has black granite.

So a couple of things to do to prepare:

• Remove the current sink
• Repair any wall or floor issues - I'm not sure if the tile under the sink pedestal is a complete tile and I don't know how the sink is attached to the wall, so it might need a patch to the wall texture.
  
• paint the bathroom - as I mentioned, it's shit brown right now. Not a colour one should associate with a bathroom. Or is it?
  
• Install the new sink
• Install new light fixture - It currently has those ugly circus mirror globe bulbs. Whoever thought that was a good look for a bathroom should be shot!
  
• Finally, install a new TP and towel holder.

I imagine if Brian's reading this he's rolling his eyes and flapping his hands because when I asked for a new sink, I failed to mention all the other things that would go along with it. Apparently, Brian was under the impression that I'd just swap out the sinks and that'd be it!

I asked him if he even knew me at all!

fun with the little sicko

I'm always so amazed at Trent's ability to behave completely normally and go about his business like nothing's wrong when he's sick. I have this trait, as does my mother, and I had always assumed it was a learned trait. But Trent hasn't had the time to learn this. I now wonder if we're genetically coded to either be tough or be a hypochondriac (ok, fine, there might be a few stops in the middle).

Trent woke up on Saturday morning with a low-grade fever and a barking cough. It sounded and acted like croup. But he was his usual mischievous, energetic self. We did some normal weekend activities, such as a run on Saturday morning, followed by playing in the sand pit and splash park at Brushy Creek, and a trip to the grocery store. On Sunday we spent time at the pool, went to the book store where we got some ridiculously good deals on books for Trent, and picked up some big boy underpants for Trent and some other things at Wal-Mart on the way home (more details on the big-boy underpants later).

This morning, Trent's barking cough has turned into more of a hacking cough, and we took him to the doctor. It sounded like we thought - started off as a croup type cough, but turned into an infection and now he has a bunch of green stuff draining down his throat from his sinuses. Poor kid. We have some antibiotics and some breathing treatments to administer for the next couple of weeks. Of course, nebulizing a 2 year old is no small task. We tried it today and realized that we need to actually try to steath-administer while he's sleeping. Not an easy task since the nebulizer sounds like a mack truck idling.

We kept Trent home today since he still had a bit of a fever yesterday and we want to ensure he's not contagious before sending him back to daycare. We also want to make sure he's comfortable, too. It's easy to work with a sick kid when the kid actually behaves like he's sick. At least that's what I've been told by those who know. I wouldn't know since my kid has never acted sick a day in his life.

SO delicious!

I got inspired to make this by Andi, who made something similar for girl's night last week. I couldn't remember all that was in it, so I made up my own. It's FREAKING AWESOME.

Recipe:
1 large mango
cherry tomatoes
1/2 red onion
fresh basil leaves
2 avocados
2 tbsp olive oil
juice from 1 whole lime
garlic salt and pepper

Just chop all the fruit/veggies up into small cubes and throw it in a bowl. Rip up the basil leaves and throw those in. Gently stir it up to get it all mixed. Then drizzle in the olive oil, add garlic salt and pepper, add lime juice. Gently toss it around to get everything coated/mixed.
DONE!

I could see adding a can of some black beans to it and using it as a side with grilled chicken.

following through

Last night Trent learned the lesson that follow through is good for some things, like your golf swing, or your promises, but not good when farting!

Here's how that lesson went:
We were in the bathtub. Trent's recently been quite adamant that he wasn't taking a bath, and I'd resorted to bathing him in the kiddie pool in the back yard, redneck style. But we can't do this in the winter, so I needed to take steps to correct the problem.
I bought him some tub crayons. The kind that float and that you can draw on the tile and tub and it washes right off with water. He loves them, and this does get him into the tub now, but of course, he won't sit down, so I have to sit on the edge of the tub with my feet in the water, and wash him that way.
Anyway, we're drawing on the walls and Trent farted. Then he cracked up. Then I said "got anymore?" and he pushed one out and let out a HUGE belly laugh. We both fell about laughing. Then he kept doing it. Having just learned to fart on demand he wanted to test out his new found skill to the max.
One after another after another, and we laughed so hard. Then I saw his face turn red as he pushed another one out. And I asked "are you pooping??" to which he replied "no". Then all of a sudden we both hear this "SLOOSH!" and Trent goes "Uh oh. Poop". At which point we evacuated the tub.
Later that night when I was putting Trent to bed, he reminded me of the lesson he learned by warning me "Don't poop in the tub, mummy".

showboating in the pool

Yesterday, after all of our water fun in the back yard, Trent asked to go play in the pool. When we got there, there were 2 teenage girls in the water and Trent wanted to go over and see what they were doing. When we got there he started to laugh a lot and kept jumping off the side of the pool (into my arms) and checking to see if they were watching him. He was completely showing off for the ladies. They were cracking up and so was I.

Trent is really starting to love the pool and is starting to understand the concept of swimming, although he's not ready to actually try it yet. I need to get him a floaty bathing suit!

Backyard fun

Today Trent and I are spending the day together, just the two of us. It's been a great day so far... We slept late (10am) then Trent asked to talk to Nana and Grandad on the computer, so we chatted with them for a while and Trent drew a picture to show them. Then we played outside in the kiddie pool. I added a drop of baby shampoo as I was filling it up, and it produced a lot of bubbles, which Trent thought was the best thing ever. Just look at his smile!
I threw in all the balls that came with his play hut set and he was so thrilled. We spent a good couple of hours playing. Here are some of the highlights. You can, of course, see the rest on Trent's picasa photo album.

Dinner date

Tonight Trent and I had dinner without Brian (he had soccer). He helped me make quesadillas (or queasy dillos, as he called them) and we ate those, with beans and avocado. During dinner Trent told me about his day. He said he had a "good day" and I asked what he did, and he said "coloured", and I asked who he played with and he said "Evan and Jack". How cool is that? he can tell me how his day was!
After dinner he asked to watch Mickey Mouse and it was sooo cute. He goes "hot dog, hot dog... doggy dog... watch Mickey Mouse. yes!". Sadly I didn't have any Micky Mouse recorded, and he asked for several other of his shows by name (which I didn't have) but we finally settled on the encore American Idol Michael Jackson tribute show, and he danced with me to the songs.

What a great little boy he is!

Boat buddy

This Saturday we were lucky enough to spend the afternoon on the lake with Mike and Tara. We headed out after Trent's nap and he was so excited to get on the boat. In the car he kept saying "On a boat. Touch the lake. Touch the water!". When we got on the boat Trent just hung out on Daddy's lap as we motored up river to where the water was more calm. We hung out over by the Dell lake house and just relaxed why security kept a watchful eye on us. Trent ventured onto the swim platform at the back of the boat and laughed when the waves splashed over him. The water was very cold and after I had managed to talk myself into getting in, Trent agreed to join me and we hung onto the boat as he tried to acclimate to the cold water, and numerous times decided it was "toooo cold, mummy! - back on the boat!". But he at least made several attempts to submerge himself, so long as he could hang on tightly to Mummy.

We sat and cuddled and watched Uncle Mike wakeboard and Trent seemed very interested. Then I got to wakeboard. It's been almost a year since the last time I did it, but I'm happy to report that my body remembered how to do it and I even got about an inch of air as I crossed the wake.

We were out from about 2:45 to 7:30 and the whole time Trent was so perfectly behaved. On the way back to the dock he sat and cuddled with Aunt Tara. He sure does love his Aunt Tara and Uncle Mike, although he keeps calling Mike "Aunt Mike", which makes me laugh, but Brian always corrects him.

We stopped at Rudy's for dinner on the way home, and Trent went to bed like a very good boy. We expected Trent to be well behaved because he is a very sweet and considerate little boy, but he completely exceeded our expectations that day and we are just so proud of him.

My online life

Whatever did we do before the internet? I'm old enough to remember those days, yet I still find myself questioning how we lived before it. How far we have come just in the last 15 years amazes me. How much technology I rely on daily amazes me. It also scares me a little bit. Let's look at the technology I use on a typical day. I consider myself to be a relatively light technology user. I don't own a smart phone, Sat Nav device, kindle, or any other fancy gadgets, but my electronic footprint is quite large.

Blogging
I have blogged for several years. This blog alone dates back to 2005. A total of 463 blog posts so far. That averages about 115 a year or so, about 10 posts a month. Not only do I keep my own blog but I read other people's blogs.

Social Media
I have profiles on facebook, myspace, dailymile, twitter, in addition to the profiles I keep at work on Lotus Greenhouse, Lotus Live, Beehive, Fringe, Blue Twit... kinda makes your head spin, doesn't it?

Email
I have active accounts on yahoo, gmail, and my work email. I send and recieve almost 200 emails a day. Some are spam, most are not. Some are important, some can be ignored. Some I have to act on immediately, some I flag for action later. All require at least a cursory glance to see if it's relevant to me.

Instant messaging
I use Lotus Sametime in my job and spend hours at a time chatting to work colleagues about work related things via this medium. I use AIM to talk to my BFFs, I sometimes use Facebook messenger to talk to friends from back home and friends from just around the corner.

Text messaging
I use text messages daily to keep my BFFs in the loop and get the latest scoop on who's doing what.

Phone
This is a technology I have the biggest aversion to, and it's the oldest one. I'm on the phone an average of 6 hours a day on conference calls. It's not surprising that come 6pm I don't want to answer my phone.

Webcam
I use this to talk to my mum & dad on a very regular basis. My favourite piece of technology because it allows me to see them and bridge the very large distance between us. A couple of weeks ago mum took me into the kitchen with her while she checked on dinner. That was cool.

Online photo galleries
I have accounts on Picassa for both me and Trent. Hundreds of pictures instantly shared with anyone with a browser and the curiosity to look at them.

Web sites
I manage 2 music-related web sites for friends. I'm heavily involved with contributing content to web sites for my job, including wikis. On any given day I have used the phrase "I'll google it". I perform Google searches daily and consume massive amounts of information. You can find ANYTHING on the Web. I used Google to help me repair my digital camera, my toilet, my vehicle, my house. The web makes it possible for me to never leave my house and have everything I need come to me. The days of going to a shop and picking out a gift, packaging and taking it to the post office are long gone. Now I point, click, pay, and ship all from my office chair.

I have the electronic footprint of a giant! All of this has happened within the last 10 years. How amazing is that to think about? Did you ever think the future would be like this 10 years ago? can you imagine what we'll be doing 10 years from now?

This is an amazing time to be alive. Yet every now and then I long for the days when none of this existed, people were simpler, communication was in-person or via traditional mail, and nobody could reach me 24/7. Every now and then I want to not open my laptop and not answer my phone. This is why I am so excited about our upcoming holiday. No laptop. No phone. Just us.

storm chaser

Last week we had a really bad storm. Lightening, thunder, tornadoes, hail. Trent, Brian and I sat in the game room upstairs and set up some of Trent's chairs by the window so we could all watch the storm. Trent grabbed his bears and made sure they all had front row seating. When he heard thunder he would say "thunder! hear it. No touch!", and when lightening would strike he'd say "lightening. hot. burn you. no touch!". Brian and I were cracking up.

Yesterday when we were heading out to Mike and Tara's, Brian was wearing a new shirt and Trent said "Cool shirt, Daddy". When I asked him if he thought my shirt was cool he replied "no mummy. No cool shirt". My shirt was just a plain blue t-shirt and it was NOT cool. It's nice to know he won't lie to me to make me feel better!

Today we went to the pool and spent a good 2 hours playing in the water. By the end of our time there Trent had gotten all the way into the pool and was sitting on daddy as he did the back stroke. He thought it was so hilarious. We sat at the baby pool for a little while and chatted with a lady who had twin girls about 4 months younger than Trent. One of them wanted to sit on my lap and as soon as she did Trent got very upset because I am HIS mummy! A little possessive maybe?

Toilet training and a little trip on the Ecstasy

Trent's potty training is going very well. He actually used the toilet for its intended purpose twice this week at school. We still haven't seen him actually go at home, but he does like to sit on the toilet and grunt. It's very cute.
Today I woke up under a thundercloud it seems. I have very low patience and Trent knows all the right buttons to push. It didn't help that Brian chose this very day to finish the front door re-staining project, which means while he's working on that I'm dealing with the little button pusher on my own. Not a good combo. The door looks nice, though. We added one more coat of stain which is now drying and tomorrow we have the final step of the urethane top coat to seal the deal.
Can't wait for our cruise! We're going on a 4 day cruise on the Carnival Ecstasy. I'm especially excited about this because the Ecstasy has a lot of sentimental meaning for me. It was the first ship I ever set foot on in my short but fun career as a Casino Dealer for Carnival. I met the Ecstasy at the boat yard in Finland where it was built, and was one of a very lucky group of crew members who got to take its inaugural voyage from Finland to it's final home in Miami, stopping at Boston, NY, and Philadelphia along the way. What a fun trip that was. It was on this ship that I met one of my best friends ever, Marie (from Sweden *ya!). It's also the opening chapter of my life in America. So many great memories on that ship. My memory of the ships layout and details is fading, but I imagine it will all come flooding back. I just can't wait