January 12, 2010 by Barbara.

Ken’s oral interaction test is scheduled for January 19th. He is working even harder to prepare for it than he did for the grammar and comprehension tests. Or, at least, it seems that way to me. Reid’s and my job is mostly to give him time to study. We speak French to him sometimes but we discuss “home” topics and don’t use the same vocabulary as he will in his test and so its not as helpful as might be. I thought of going away for a weekend or two but its nice to see him for breakfast and supper at least. Our plans have morphed into staycations instead.

On Saturday, we went to that Home Depot Kids’ Workshop and then straight to Kindermusik. We ate our lunch in the recreation centre, where Reid discovered that the lentil couscous I’ve been trying to get her to try for years is actually yummy. Too bad I didn’t feel the same about Reid’s bagel with cream cheese. After class, we had planned on going to Play It Again Sports but Reid fell asleep but I’ve extended the “don’t wake a sleeping baby” rule to prohibit waking Reid, regardless of her age. We slowly made our way home via a circuitous route to prolong Reid’s nap.

Once home, Reid applied the stickers to her calendar and then it was time for a power skating session that was offered in place of hockey. I wish the power skating happened more often. Reid enjoyed the drills - and going to the other end of the ice for the first time - and she needs the skills development. Ken came along to watch. He and I have some of our best conversations sitting in the stands, me trying to absorb all of his extra body heat and both of us thinking of what we want to tell the other. We try for a good conversation at swimming lessons, too, but the heat saps the ideas out of our brains and there is no touching.

On Sunday morning, Reid and I went to the Canada Agriculture Museum for our first visit since the fall. It was sooo cold! I remembered why I don’t usually go to The Farm in the winter. Our arrival put us too late for the rabbit and cow care sessions and before the afternoon sessions started but we were able to say farewell to the ram, about whose departure I had read on Twitter, and visit the pigs, sheep, bull and donkey in the main barn and the cows and calves in the dairy barn. The cows are suffering from ringworm - which they said doesn’t actually involve worms - and we weren’t able to touch them. The calves were behind a door. They’re so cute it’s nearly impossible not to touch them, or rather, they would find it impossible not to touch the people. They are lickers and nuzzlers to a one, those calves.

We ate our lunch sitting in the parking lot and then went to visit my friend, Carol, and her husband in the rural part of Ottawa. We took our snowshoes with us and were out for about an hour, walking along the Jock River and then through a field of pine trees. It was a sunny day and the landscape was quintessentially “winter in Canada”. Carol’s two dogs - one of which is nearly as big as the pony Reid rode when we were at Deerhurst and the other is smaller but still large - accompanied us. They rolled in the snow, ran away and came bounding back, occasionally sniffing at Reid. She was the tiniest bit hesitant at first but only for a short time. She has come a long way from her fear of Zoëy, the smallest (and cutest) Yorkshire terrier I’ve ever met. I thought that the big walk might have worn Reid out but she stayed awake for the whole trip back. Carol and Michael live near one edge of Ottawa and we’re close to another. The city might not be densely populated but it is widely spread out.

I made Madras chicken curry for Ken’s half-birthday, which we were celebrating belatedly. He’d requested a cherry pie, too, but I’d spent too much time away from the house to deliver it. I substituted three store-bought cupcakes that each had a plastic hockey jersey on the top. Reid and I got Senators jerseys (Go, Sens! Go!) and Ken got a Canadiens jersey (Boo! Hiss!).

And all of a sudden, our weekend was over and it was time for bed.

Speaking of the Montreal Canadiens, do you know what the “H” on their jersey signifies?

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July 13, 2009 by Barbara.

Whenever we’ve travelled with Dylan, he has put on whatever clothes we’ve given him. Reid is an entirely different kind of kid. This morning, for instance, I chose a pair of capris and a t-shirt for Reid for her first day of Kinderfarm camp at the Canada Agriculture Museum. She refused the outfit and went to her closet to choose a dress. I had to exclude “princess dresses” (meaning the ones with tulle, etc.) and said she needed a play dress. Reid’s first choice was an ankle-length dress, complete with wiffle, and I said “no” and redirected her to the cotton dresses. She chose one and added a wine-coloured shoulder-length cape that has white faux fur around the hood. She added the capris that I’d originally proposed - they were made of the same material as the dress.

When Reid came downstairs from dressing, everyone was awestruck, or maybe dumbfounded. I suggested that she’d need a jacket but she was sure the cape would suffice. Melissa came to my defence and said Dylan would have to wear a jacket. I left before they worked it out. Melissa may have talked Reid out of the cape before they left for Kinderfarm camp. If not, I bet she’ll have been the only one in faux fur ;+)

Updated to add Melissa’s comments:

Reid wore the cape to register and then we saw a sign that said the kids need hats…so I asked if she was just going to use her cape or Hoody ORRRR if she wanted to wear my hat that I had packed (a girly version of a baseball cap) and she chose my hat.  For those of you who haven’t been around the Reid/Dylan combination lately, they have to one-up eachother occasionally, sooooo this morning Dylan begged me to wear my hat to Kinderfarm camp!!!  Again. Very girly….but we talked him into Spiderman instead…… 

The kids got their Kinderfarm camp shirts today so we’ll have to get a good photo of them in those to share! 

Also, being a mom of 2 boys, it’s nice to see a girl who wants to express her femininity.  Reid really likes to prance and dance (vs. running full tilt like our boys) and a dress like the one she wore the first day of camp ACCENTUATES the dance moves very well!  Perhaps she is aware of this and that is why she chose it…..to show off her MOVES!! Roy called her Paula Abdul, which is a bit out of date, but I suppose is FARRRR better than calling her Britney (EUCH!!)  LOL! 

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June 28, 2009 by Barbara.

Dylan spent the night with us on Thursday so that we’d increase our chances of getting out the door on time. I’d worried a bit about the kids not going to sleep because of the anticipation of our trip. My worry was doubly misplaced. Dylan is the most determined and business-like kid when it comes to going to sleep and Reid was tired enough to settle once I laid with her. On the other hand, I woke up at 2:30 am and couldn’t get back to sleep. I finally got out of bed at 3:30 and snuck out to do some last minute surfing. I was calculating the amount of money we were going to save by visiting museums and using my membership card from the science and technology museums in Ottawa, when I stumbled on the site for the Adler Planetarium, which I’d dismissed as too old for the kids, and discovered they have a Sesame-street themed exhibit. There was a good reason for me being awake, I guess. Needless to say, I got everything into the car, even the kids, by 5:00 and we were pulling out of the driveway as the clock on the dashboard changed to 5:00 am. I’d have left early but poor Uncle Chris didn’t deserve to suffer from my inability to manage my excitement.

Reid and Dylan were drowsy when I put them into their seats but wide-awake by the time we hit the main road. As I drove to Leamington, they were exchanging “guess what …” statements about school and soccer and life in general. We added Uncle Chris to our merry band and headed for Windsor. After a quick pit stop, which made me wonder how many of these we’d need on the trip, we went through the Windsor-Detroit tunnel and spoke to the US Customs Official. For a long time. He didn’t ask about why we were driving someone else’s vehicle, as we’d expected but there were many other questions about where we were going, who the kids were, who they were to each other and us, etc. Uncle Chris said - and was absolutely correct - that the level of scrutiny would be appreciated if your child were missing. It was worth it for us, too, then. The kids fell asleep just outside of Detroit and that boded well for our day.

We got to the Lincoln Park Zoo about noon, or maybe 11:00, I have trouble with time changes.  Since the zoo doesn’t charge admission, there are many entrances and we were lucky enough to get a parking spot just opposite one. We got the kids into their umbroller-style strollers, added CamelBak water backpacks. The about-to-enter the zoo photos show Dylan and Reid sucking on them, just like the ones from the Toronto Zoo last year. There were a number of hands-on discovery carts throughout the zoo. A guide explained to the kids about herbivores, carnivores and omnivores using a series of animal skulls and a human skull. Another let them hold a few different horns and antlers and showed them pictures of the animal that matched the horn/antler. They have all of the usual animals, except elephants. The enclosures aren’t as big as at newer zoos but the animals seem well-cared for. The small size makes for a more manageable walk. Dylan and Reid rode on the 4-car train that runs in a circle and loved it. Dylan is train obsessed and wanted to go again but we didn’t. On our way to the car, we stopped and rode the endangered animal carousel. We were lucky to get on the last ride of the day - they were quitting early because of a concert being held at the zoo but I hadn’t realized that. The kids had asked about riding the carousel several times and each time I’d said that we’d go at the end since it was close where we parked (and because I didn’t want any objections at leaving). I was just about hoisted my own petard!

We drove along Lake Shore Drive to the Sheraton Hotel and Towers. The traffic was heavy but it gave us time to gawk at the boats and beaches. I checked in while Uncle Chris and the kids got our bags and things out of the van. The hotel is one of those that only the bell staff are allowed to drive the luggage carts. Riding on luggage carts is one of the highlights of staying in a hotel, in Reid’s mind. We got settled and then went to Buca di Beppo for supper. The fellow who seated us at Buca di Beppo walked us through the kitchens so that we could see the places where they baked the bread, prepared the entrees and salads and dessert. The kids got chicken cacciatorre and spaghetti and Uncle Chris and I split an order of lasagna. The entrees on the regular menu were set up for 2-3 to split or 3-4 to split. I don’t know what happens if you’re dining solo or with someone whose tastes are widely different. We dragged our tired selves back to the hotel and I wasn’t at all sad that we’d decided against the Art Institute of Chicago’s free Friday evening. It’s still on my list of things to do on another visit but I don’t know if I could’ve gotten to the hotel under my own steam.

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June 9, 2009 by Barbara.

We went to the Museum of Civilization right after breakfast at Eddie’s on Sunday. I was determined to get there right at 9:00 to avoid any crowds. We made it at 9:15, only to discover that the museum doesn’t open until 9:30. I always try to get there at 9:00 but obviously I’ve never made it. There was a nervous-looking security guard that seemed to think that Uncle Roger and I were going to load Reid onto Grandma Joyce’s wheel chair and make a break for the Canada Hall before the museum opened. We went outside to admire the view of the back of Parliament Hill and the Library of Parliament while we waited. Once the museum was opened, we went straight to the Mythic Beasts: Dragons, Unicorns and Mermaids exhibit. Reid was a bit like a bee in a flower garden - spending lots of time here and there but moving along quite quickly. We watched 3 videos, each of which focused on beasts of the air, sea or water. Reid liked the video with a mer-bunny in it but said the others were boring. Reid liked the representations of mermaids and also the unicorn and Pegasus. She found the dragon and sea monster near the entrance to be intimidating. I was struck by the description of the Japanese myth of the Kappa. One of the panels explained that the Kappa sometimes takes the form of child and encourages children to pull its finger as a game and then pulls the child underwater and eats them. The old “pull my finger” joke takes on a whole new meaning.

We spent some time decorating dragon scales but Reid wasn’t willing to leave her artwork behind on the community dragon. Uncle Roger and Reid each designed a dragon or three on the computer and watched them fly across the overhead screens. Reid surprised me a bit in that she started by trying to find the “right” body part in each instance. Rather than trying for a silly or colourful dragon, she wanted it to be a coherent whole. It made me think of a quote from Pablo Picasso that we saw in the children’s room at the Art Gallery of Ontario back in March:

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.

Seeking the “right” piece seems more adult than artistic.

Reid led us next to the Canadian Children’s Museum. She was eager to perform on the stage in the theatre with Uncle Roger. I’m not sure if he was as eager for that to happen but he went backstage and put on a costume when asked. I managed to steer Reid past the main studio because how many tissue paper-on-bamboo crafts does one family need? We visited the Building Brainstorm travelling exhibit and Reid spent quite awhile on the computer designing her dream bedroom. Perhaps she’ll be an interior designer when she grows up. Uncle Roger, Grandma Joyce and I all looked at Look-Alikes: The more you look, the more you see!  by Joan Steiner and I’m going to try to find it at the library to read to Reid. We didn’t spend time at the dollhouse, blocks or layout planning and spent only little time building a tent. A repeat visit will be required.

Reid and I planted seeds in our garden on Sunday afternoon. I’d forgotten how tiny carrot seeds are and how many come in a package. Reid wanted to plant them all but we didn’t have enough room. Am I the only one who is surprised that carrots grow from seeds? We also planted wax beans and zucchini, which grow from nice big seeds. We planted all of the seeds in the packages. We might have way too much of both, especially once the beans need staking. I was worried that my seed drill, aka Reid, wasn’t planting the seeds deeply enough. Plus, we’re not the world’s greatest weeders. We also have lots of critters who dine in our garden and grass and we don’t discourage them since they make for good viewing from our dining room table.

I know Reid had fun with Grandma Joyce and Uncle Roger while Ken and were out for supper and a movie but the details are vague. I know they ate supper on the front porch. Reid is obsessed with picnics, which she defines as meals eaten away from the dining room table, especially those that take place outdoors. Uncle Roger and Reid went to the park near our house and she rode her bike. As long as Reid tired at the end of the day, it’s a good day.

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June 9, 2009 by Barbara.

We went to the Museum of Civilization right after breakfast at Eddie’s on Sunday. I was determined to get there right at 9:00 to avoid any crowds. We made it at 9:15, only to discover that the museum doesn’t open until 9:30. I always try to get there at 9:00 but obviously I’ve never made it. There was a nervous-looking security guard that seemed to think that Uncle Roger and I were going to load Reid onto Grandma Joyce’s wheel chair and make a break for the Canada Hall before the museum opened. We went outside to admire the view of the back of Parliament Hill and the Library of Parliament while we waited. Once the museum was opened, we went straight to the Mythic Beasts exhibit. Reid was a bit like a bee in a flower garden - spending lots of time here and there but moving along quite quickly. We watched 3 videos, each of which focused on beasts of the air, sea or water. Reid liked the video with a mer-bunny in it but said the others were boring. Reid liked the representations of mermaids and also the unicorn and Pegasus. She found the dragon and sea monster near the entrance to be intimidating. I was struck by the description of the Japanese myth of the Kappa. One of the panels explained that the Kappa sometimes takes the form of child and encourages children to pull its finger as a game and then pulls the child underwater and eats them. The old “pull my finger” joke takes on a whole new meaning.

We spent some time decorating dragon scales but Reid wasn’t willing to leave her artwork behind on the community dragon. Uncle Roger and Reid each designed a dragon or three on the computer and watched them fly across the overhead screens. Reid surprised me a bit in that she started by trying to find the “right” body part in each instance. Rather than trying for a silly or colourful dragon, she wanted it to be a coherent whole. It made me think of a quote from Pablo Picasso that we saw in the children’s room at the Art Gallery of Ontario back in March:

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.

Seeking the “right” piece seems more adult than artistic.

Reid led us next to the Canadian Children’s Museum. She was eager to perform on the stage in the theatre with Uncle Roger. I’m not sure if he was as eager for that to happen but he went backstage and put on a costume when asked. I managed to steer Reid past the main studio because how many tissue paper-on-bamboo crafts does one family need? We visited the Building Brainstorm special exhibit and Reid spent quite awhile on the computer designing her dream bedroom. Perhaps she’ll be an interior designer when she grows up. Uncle Roger, Grandma Joyce and I all looked at Look-Alikes: The more you look, the more you see!  by Joan Steiner and I’m going to try to find it at the library to read to Reid. We didn’t spend time at the dollhouse, blocks or layout planning and spent only little time building a tent. A repeat visit will be required.

Reid and I planted seeds in our garden on Sunday afternoon. I’d forgotten how tiny carrot seeds are and how many come in a package. Reid wanted to plant them all but we didn’t have enough room. Am I the only one who is surprised that carrots grow from seeds? We also planted wax beans and zucchini, which grow from nice big seeds. We planted all of the seeds in the packages. We might have way too much of both, especially once the beans need staking. I was worried that my seed drill, aka Reid, wasn’t planting the seeds deeply enough. Plus, we’re not the world’s greatest weeders. We also have lots of critters who dine in our garden and grass and we don’t discourage them since they make for good viewing from our dining room table.

I know Reid had fun with Grandma Joyce and Uncle Roger while Ken and were out for supper and a movie but the details are vague. I know they ate supper on the front porch. Reid is obsessed with picnics, which she defines as meals eaten away from the dining room table, especially those that take place outdoors. Uncle Roger and Reid went to the park near our house and she rode her bike. As long as Reid tired at the end of the day, it’s a good day.

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June 8, 2009 by Barbara.

We tried to let Uncle Roger sleep in on Saturday morning, we really did, but I tread as lightly as an elephant and Reid drags her stool across the floor so that she can see whatever it is I’m doing. Neither of are particularly good with our “indoor voices”, either. Uncle Roger is familiar with our deficiencies but forgot to insert the ear plugs that he brought. He was up by 6:30 and assisting in the creation of a menu. I’d given Reid the choice of pancakes, waffles or French toast and she decided that we should play restaurant and she would be the menu creator/waitress while I would be the cook. I said that people could choose the sort of fruit they wanted but that I was only making pancakes. Reid disagreed and I had to resort to parental subterfuge to ensure that the restaurant’s patrons only chose pancakes. We filled our bellies with fruit and pancakes and then headed out to soccer. Reid scored a couple of goals but for the most part wandered casually around the field. I’m not sure why she was distracted - we’ll have to chalk it up to being 4.

After soccer we started our treasure hunt. Uncle Roger had read that there were a few geocaching activities as part of Doors Open Ottawa and wanted to try one. I sold the idea to Reid as a “treasure hunt”. She was the captain (of course). Uncle Roger was driving and running the GPS and so he was the pirate-navigator. Since I have to buckle and unbuckle Reid from her car seat and schlepp her stuff around, etc. I declared myself to the captain’s assistant. It sounded nicer that go-fer. Our first “waypoint” was the Vanier Muséopark (a good place for a ramble around with local history exhibits, mainly in French) and the next was a little church in Vanier. The church had been Anglican (St Margaret’s) but now serves also a francophone parish, and a Mennonite one as well as offering a service in Innuktituk once a month. We went home for lunch and then Reid, Uncle Roger and I went to the Billing Estate National Historic Site and finally to the Cumberland Heritage Village. Reid was most interested in the bridal party at the Billings Estate but Uncle Roger and I especially enjoyed their special exhibit on 19th century medicines and treatments, “Drink this, Drink that”. At the Cumberland Heritage Village we saw another bridal party but they were up staged in Reid’s estimation by the playground attached to the historic school. She played on the wooden swings with ropes that creaked as she swung and also on the teeter. We had a near-miss on the may pole-like apparatus, though. It’s a pole with ropes that attach at the top. The kids are supposed to run around and then, once they’ve built up some momentum, they jump and their bodies swing out as they continue spinning. I didn’t think Reid could run fast enough and so told her to sit on one rope’s know while I ran her around the pole. I let go and she swung out in a wide arc. And then the rope started wrapping itself around the pole. Reid had a terrified look on her face - and I imagine Uncle Roger and I looked more than a little worried - as we rushed to catch Reid before the rope wrapped far enough around the pole to throw Reid into it. I rescued her just in the nick of time.

At each way point, Reid helped us to identify the number for which we were hunting and the numbers helped us complete the GPS coordinates for the cache, or treasure, as we were calling it. Hard core geocachers must use GPS devices that are more precise than the ones you use in a car. We tried and tried but couldn’t find the exact position with Uncle Roger’s GPS. We even resorted to searching around major features of landscape without success. I swallowed my pride and asked one of the people who work at the village if he knew where the cache was hidden. He hadn’t even known there was a cache on the site. After a couple of “that’s it, we’re leaving” moments that were followed by “oh, let’s look just a little more,” we left. I’d worried that Reid might be upset but she was bored enough with the searching and hungry enough not to make a fuss. Or maybe girls who are 4 and 11/12 years old are big enough to manage their emotions. Reid just commented that whoever had hidden the treasure had done a really good job. Uncle Roger and I had to agree.

When we got home, I saw that someone had reported finding the cache and so I emailed to ask them to tell me where it had been. Since I’d already swallowed my pride earlier that afternoon it was quite easy. The friendly stranger told me where to look and what to look for. We almost went back on Sunday but didn’t. I asked Uncle Roger if he was thinking of taking up geocaching as a hobby and he answered, “Not anymore.”

It was a good way to choose which sites to visit among the dozens participating in Doors Open Ottawa. I’d planned to visit some embassies and the OC Transpo train garage. Maybe we’ll do that next year instead. But being pirates *was* fun while it lasted.

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April 27, 2009 by Barbara.

Reid didn’t have school on Friday and I was super-excited that her day off coincided with a program for preschoolers at the National Gallery of Canada. I like the Gallery but since I don’t have any background in art, I’m a bit intimidated. In any case, the theme of the activity was “big and small” and I thought we could manage it.

We arrived just a bit before the program started at 10:30. The activity leaders started off with a bit of exercise where the kids made themselves very small and then they slowly got very big. They talked about big and little things and one of the kids named a spider as a small thing but Reid immediately squirmed and started whispering about “Maman”, the giant spider sculpture in front of the museum. The leaders had us all look at her/it. The kids were asked to supply the 3 rules for being in the galleries:
1. No touching the artwork;
2. No running in the galleries; and
3. No talking in loud voices;
plus a couple of others like “no hitting” and “no biting” that were supplied by the kids and deemed to be good rules for life in general.

We all trooped up the stairs to the contemporary art galleries - a place I usually move through quickly. I don’t understand most of the works and can’t explain them to Reid. The first artwork we stopped at was a mobile, twice as big as an adult and made of metal, several of the kids said it made them think of a tree. I thought it looked more like a maple key or a feather but I kept my opinions to myself since only the kids were asked to contribute. I was glad I had since it turned out that the artwork was named “Jacarinda“, after a tree that grows in hot, dry places. Next, after a series of reminders not to touch the artwork, we stopped at a piece that was made up of 137 off-white bricks, lined up one beside the next and extending out from the wall. The kids wanted confirmation that they were, in fact, looking at a work of art. They talked about how many small things could make up a large thing and then moved onto a sculpture that was made up of a series of tin boxes in a sort of ladder effect. The final piece of art looked to me, and many of the kids, to be a pile of strips of carpet. The kids grudgingly agreed that it might look like fire but said that they were pretty sure that it looked as though something might be hidden underneath. The leaders passed around tiny pom-poms and the kids each made their own little sculpture and then piled them all together to make a big sculpture - big makes small plus sharing in one fell swoop.

We went back to the Grand Hall and the kids made sculptures from Crayola Model Magic clay. We’ve never used that before. It is way cool! It’s light, like foam, but smooth and the colours don’t blend together as fast as Playdough does. When it dried, it was hard but still light. Reid made a three-scoop ice cream cone with eyes on the cone and a feather sticking out of the top ice cream ball. I was more-than-ready to eat a real ice cream by the time the activity wrapped up at 11:30 but we ate our sandwiches - the new normal is a rolled up ancient grain tortilla with luncheon meat - and started our trek to North Bay.

I’m not sure if Reid has anymore PA days this year but if she does, I hope they coincide with the National Gallery’s preschool programs.

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February 23, 2009 by Barbara.

Today, February 23rd, is the centennial of powered flight in Canada. Reid and I didn’t have a chance to fly in the Silver Dart (or even a replica) but we did see a flypast of heritage airplanes when we were at the Sun Life Snowflake Kingdom enjoying Winterlude and took time to pose at the displays from the Canada Aviation Museum.

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February 10, 2009 by Barbara.

Ken and Reid had a busy weekend while I was in Toronto. They started out with a visit to the library after school to choose some books and a video. Reid sees this as a perfect start to her weekend, or any evening, for that matter. They were at Canadian Children’s Museum when it opened at 9:00 on Saturday morning and stayed for 2.5 hours. I’m not sure where they spent their time exactly but I bet Ken had to suggest that they leave in the end. Reid’s frequent visits don’t diminish her desire to spend lots of time at the cargo ship, bus, theatre and so on. They ate their lunch in the Café du Musée before heading to the Canada Aviation Museum. The “airplane museum” is Ken’s favourite museum in Ottawa, I think. I tend not to go unless the Canada Science and Technology Museum Corporation member’s winter party is held there. Reid used to like to go but the last couple of visits haven’t gone so well. Where once Reid like to find family groupings - the helicopter family, for example, with its big (Daddy), middle-sized (Mama) and small (Reid) ‘copters. I don’t think that Ken will be taking Reid with him any time soon.

Reid started a new swimming class on Sunday morning and the highlights seems to have been jumping into water that was over her head. It hasn’t been that long since Reid wouldn’t jump into shoulder-deep water unless the teacher was holding her hands. Reid also told me about finding a diving ring. On the first try! She explained that sometimes she doesn’t get them at all. I suggested that she would have increased success if she opened her eyes when she was under water. Reid gave me a skeptical look and said, “I don’t do that.” The “silly mama!” part of the sentence was only implied.

I signed Reid and me up for a parent-child pottery class at the Gloucester Pottery School a few weeks ago and the first class was Sunday afternoon. Since I was away, Ken eagerly filled in. Or, at least, he agreed to go in my place. I’d left telling him about this obligation to the last minute since I was pretty sure he wouldn’t want to dwell on it much in advance. In the end, I think it wasn’t as bad as anticipated. Reid’s eyes sparkled when she told me “what we made”. When I asked Ken what he had made, I learned that Reid had been speaking with the royal “we” in her description of what had been made. Ken said that Reid kept taking over his creations. I’m not how well I’ll like it if/when she does that to me. I’m not as magnanimous as Ken - it’s birth order, eh, I’m the “baby” in my heart.

I’d picked up the fixings for some kid-friendly meals - spaghetti and meat sauce, fish and chips, stirfry chicken and veggies - and they seemed to enjoy them. If it’d been me, I might have been tempted to hit the mall’s food court but Ken isn’t as keen on dining out of the house as me. Ken told me that Reid is much better behaved when I’m not around and also that she went to sleep without any trouble. I don’t think either of them me missed me overly much but they both were glad to see me. I’m glad to have had the weekend but was happy for the welcome back hugs as well.

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December 4, 2008 by Barbara.

We’ve had a couple periods of heavy snow and a few days worth of light snow and flurries here in Ottawa but these aren’t the only signs that Christmas is just around the corner. Reid and took part in our first Christmas activity last Tuesday when she got her picture taken with Santa and then on Saturday we attended Santa’s Parade of Lights in the Orleans part of Ottawa. I’d heard that the Help Santa Toy Parade (held downtown) was disappointing because of the low number of floats compared to minivans with signs on them and was a bit worried what Reid would think of her first-ever parade. (I don’t think we should count our experience 2 years when we waited in the bitterly cold weather for 45 minutes before abandonning the parade route without having seen a single float or having heard even a note from a marching band.

The temperature on Saturday seemed a good omen, though, hovering around freezing with no rain or snow. We went to Melissa and Peter’s for supper and then headed to the parade route to stand with friends of theirs who went earlier to save us a spot. It’s good to have friends who have friends like that. There was a bit of a scramble to find a place to park since we were later than we’d planned to be but we found a school parking lot. Since I’d decided to bring a stroller for Reid even though she is getting big for it, we were able to travel as fast as Ben’s 7 year old legs could carry him rather being limited by Reid’s speed - or my top speed while carrying her - over the 2 plus kilometres between the van and the meeting spot. We arrived with about 10 minutes to spare. There was a mat on the ground for the bigger kids and Reid sat in her stroller.

There were many floats and contingents from local schools, sports and arts organizations as well as politicians and other folks. There were some bands who marched and a couple who rode on flat bed trailers. There were quite a few fire trucks, historic and new, and there were fire fighters collecting money and toys for charity. I didn’t think to bring a toy but had some change for Reid to dole out. My favourite entrants were the high school volleyball players who played while their net rolled along and the OC Transpo bus that was “dressed up” as Santa Claus. Since the bus is red and white to begin with, the addition of the beard, eyes and hat made for a convincing St. Nick. If you could ignore the size, squareness and the people riding inside, that is. Throughout the parade, people were passing out candy canes and round hard candies. I remember scrambling in the gutter for candies thrown toward the crowd but people handed the treats directly to the kids. Reid must not have looked needy enough or worthy enough because she ended up with only 3 mini candy canes and 1 hard candy (that I wouldn’t let her eat for fear she’d choke, like I did on a cherry candy when I was her age and Roger had to do the Heimlich Manoeuvre to dislodge it). Ben, on the other hand, got enough candies to fill his toque and also a pencil. I was glad that Reid didn’t get more since it means that I don’t have to decide when she can have the treats. I’m lazy, I guess.

On Sunday afternoon, Reid and I joined Melissa, Sarah and Ben for a play called “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”. The script followed the same story line of the tv show except Herbie the elf who wanted to be a dentist wasn’t in it, the abominable snowman wasn’t particularly menacing (for which I was glad) and Rudolph’s parents were entirely absent and so I didn’t  have to be angry at them for their failure to nurture his uniqueness. The cast consisted of 3 men and 1 woman from London’s Duffle Bag Theatre, plus 2 boys chosen from the audience to play Santa and Rudolph and a girl who played Vixen. There was a lot of audience participation - we all said “eee” when the smiles of the Christmastown residents (that was us) were mentioned and said, “hohoho” when the actors said, “Santa” and that sort of thing. Reid wasn’t scared at all (unlike at Goldilocks and the Three Canadian Bears) but watched with a bemused but happy expression. The staging of the play was minimalist - just a screen, a chest (the “duffle bag” I suppose) and the imaginations that each of us brought with us. The absence of elaborate scenery, coupled with the super-simple costumes, mainly hats and a red foam nose for Rudolph, wasn’t as overwhelming as the tv show is. Okay, confession time. I find the television version of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer to be more than a little creepy and I think Rudolph has mange or some other skin condition. Not that I could handle a repeat of trying to watch a Christmas special with commercials in it - the trauma caused by Reid’s incessant questioning on the existence, meaning and role of commercials is still to fresh in my mind. She is such a Treehouse and TV Ontario kid!

After the play, we went into the Canadian Children’s Museum and heard a couple of members of a klesmer band play some songs before going to do the craft for which I had registered everyone. We made lanterns out of balsa wood stars covered with tissue paper that held a small baby food jar and a votive candle. As we left carrying the kids’ works of art, I told Melissa that I was pretty sure that Ken would never allow Reid to light her lantern. Melissa grinned and agreed that Peter would hold similar views. Ken’s reaction didn’t cause me to doubt myself. When he saw the lantern he said, “That looks flammable,” in the sort of tone that made me think maybe I could light the candle in the lantern if I were far from him, Reid and our house but Reid wouldn’t see it. She hasn’t asked about it since Sunday but perhaps it should disappear anyway, eh?

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