Reunion in London..

We landed in London, bight and early. Our plane was a few minutes late, but that was okay because Dan had to take the train from his terminal to ours. We made it through customs with no problems, other than Katherine had to use the bathroom, and was not impressed she had to wait. The line was fairly long. I even heard one frequent flyer say it was the longest he'd ever seen, which did not bode well. Even though the line was long, we were in and out in 20 minutes. We then had to collect the luggage and find Dan. We got the luggage no problem, and did one walk around, and spotted him. It was so amazing to see him (I cried). The kids just kept hugging him, they were so excited. I did however manage to get in there finally and get a kiss and hug for myself.

We took the Heathrow Express train into London, and then a taxi from Piccadilly to our hotel. The only problem we had was I brought way to much luggage. I freely admit this. I don't know what I was thinking, I should have doubled up suitcases, but instead I brought one for each of us. Duh!! We ended up needing two taxis because all of our luggage wouldn't fit. And yes, I heard about it. I'm sure I'll still be hearing about it in 20 years. We did finally make it to our hotel ($218 later). We stayed at the Union Jack Club, a hotel for serving and ex military personal. It was in a great location, opposite Waterloo Station, and within walking distance of all the main tourist highlights.

After we checked into our hotel, we all ended up having a nap. All except Elizabeth that is. She was just too excited to sleep. She kept trying to wake us up, without much success I'm afraid. Eventually we got up, and went out and explored some of the sites. We walked to the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, and the London Eye. I've got to say the whole thing was amazing. I couldn't believe we were really there. After exploring for a bit, we took the kids to McDonald's for supper. As we were waiting in line, a gang fight erupted. It was a little scary. Luckily it ended quickly, and with no serious injuries. The kids didn't know what to think, nor did I. That kind of stuff just doesn't happen in Pet. So after a hasty meal, we went back to our hotel, and relaxed for a bit. It was so nice to be together again. And it was even nicer to watch Dan sorting the kids out for bed. I think I can get used to that.

“Nothing is certain in London but expense.”~~William Shenstone

Black Bear Beach...

We made our first trip to the beach today. It was a perfect day for it, not too humid, but still nice and warm for the kids to play in the water. The kids had a blast. It was a great way to break up our last weekend. They were a bit down this morning because it was Father's Day, and Daddy wasn't here, so I thought they could use a distraction. And I certainly needed the break. I spent the morning cleaning and doing laundry, getting ready to pack for vacation. Boy, were they ever helpful when I told them we would go to the beach. The three of them worked together to pack up. They even blew the floaties up all by themselves. Can you believe Katherine had a great day today?? She didn't utter the words stupid dumb once. Hard to believe I know. She would have happily stayed there all day, I think. While Connor and Libby were off exploring on the rocks, she played quietly in the sand. Quietly! Imagine it! And all three of them went in swimming several times, even Connor, the boy who is always reluctant to get wet. He certainly didn't have a problem with that today. We stayed at the beach for a few hours. I thought there might be some complaining when it was time to leave, but there was none at all. They even helped me pack up! Their helpfulness even carried on after we got home. They all tidied up their rooms, without any arguing or whining. Connor even cleaned out under his bed, and vacuumed! I'm still shocked. I'm not sure what is in the water at the beach, but I like it. If they are going to be like this every time we go to the beach, we'll be going everyday! I know, it won't last that long, but I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

"If you're lucky enough to be at the beach...then you're lucky enough! "~~Unknown

Stupid Dumb....

Katherine is driving me crazy. She is as moody as all get out. One minute, she's happy as Larry, the next, ready to claw somebodies eyes out (usually mine). I think that she needs anger management courses. Either that or a dose of lithium. Seriously, I have never seen a child change her mood on a drop of a dime like she does, with the possible exception of me when I was little. To say she has been a little temperamental this week would be an understatement. Stupid dumb skipping rope, stupid dumb bug bites, stupid dumb bedtime, stupid dumb bath, stupid dumb homework, stupid dumb library book, and so on and so on. I hear the words "stupid dumb" in my sleep. I even found myself referring to a slow driver as a "stupid dumb driver." My personal favourite was, "stupid dumb idiot." (that was directed at her sister) followed by, "stupid dumb booby," (her favourite blanket in the whole wide world). Of course, I was hard pressed to keep a straight face as the stupid dumb booby was followed by, "I'm so so sorry booby, I didn't mean it, you're not stupid and dumb, you're the best booby ever." As if any of us would ever get an apology from her like that. I wish. Last week, I was the stupidest and dumbest mommy ever, and she was going to go find a better one. My response to that? "Have a good trip, and don't forget to look for cars when you cross the road," which earned my quite the look if indignation. Obviously, I was not supposed to support this idea. Shortly after that, I was the best mommy ever, and she promised never to be angry at me again. Right. I'm sure she really means that. At least, until I piss her off again. I'm wondering how many times she will call something (or someone) stupid and dumb while we are on holidays. I'm guessing not once. She'll be daddy's little angel. And then, mark my words, we will get off the plane in Ottawa, and it will be "stupid dumb airport". Just you wait and see.

"Do not teach your children never to be angry; teach them how to be angry."~~Lyman Abbott

The Tilt A....

The Fair is in town this weekend, and the kids couldn't wait to go. Today was opening day, it was Loonie Twoonie Day, so all the rides were $1 or $2. It should have been just twoonie day, as almost everything cost $2, but never mind. We had supper with Arlene and the boys, and then off we went to beat the crowds. I can only say this Fair made the Bill Lynch Fair at Apple Blossom seem gargantuan. There wasn't even a Ferris Wheel. What the hell? What kind of Fair doesn't have a Ferris Wheel? The kids were pretty keen to go on it. Even Katty was disappointed there wasn't one, though I'm not so sure she wouldn't have wussed out if there had been one there. I'm wondering if we will manage to get them on the London Eye next weekend or not, they all think they want to go on it. There was a Zipper, but there was no way in hell they were getting on that one. They did manage to get on the Tea Cups, but Connor would not get on the Tilt a Whirl. Now as far as I'm concerned, the Tilt a Whirl is the only reason to go to the Fair, it's always been my favourite ride. Not so much for Dan, the last time we went on one together, he was green afterwards. Connor went off with Arlene and the boys, and the girls and I went for a ride. Wow, it was whirly alright. Libby absolutely loved it. Katty, like her Daddy, not so much. Part way through, her tummy got upset, and she started crying to get off. I was scared she was going to be sick all over me, but she managed to hold onto her stomach. As we were getting off, she informed me she was never ever going on that "Stupid Dumb ride ever again in her entire life." And of course, Libby was begging to go on it again. On the way home, Katty told me they should change the name of that stupid dumb ride to the Tilt A Hurl. Libby can't wait to go to the Fair with Daddy next year, so they can go on the Tilt A Hurl together. I'm thinking that's probably as likely to happen as getting him on the Ferris Wheel that they didn't have. Not likely.

"I see nothing in space as promising as the view from a Ferris wheel.”~~ E.B. White

Week 20...

Today we started week 20 of the deployment that never ends. I can't believe 19 weeks are over already, although, there are times it seems the end will never get here. We only have one more weekend to get through, thank God. The weekends are really starting to get to me. There are only so many things you can do in Petawawa on the weekends, and we've done both of them several times. It doesn't help that all of the other families are off doing family things, camping etc, and we are here alone, Nobby No Mates. I know the kids find the weekends lonely too. Oh well, enough whining. Like I said, we only have one more to get through. And this weekend, the kids have their final swimming lesson for the year, and we are going to see Shrek 3. They are all looking forward to that. And there is a Midway here this week as well, so we are going to that Thursday night. And the sun is supposed to be out all week. It was gorgeous here today, in the low 30s, and it's supposed to get hotter as the week goes on. I've got the sprinkler hooked up, the Popsicles in the freezer, and the AC on. Maybe this week won't be so bad after all.


“Life is all about timing... the unreachable becomes reachable, the unavailable become available, the unattainable... attainable. Have the patience, wait it out. It's all about timing.”~~Stacey Charter

Mowing the Lawn...

You know there is something wrong when the highlight of your Saturday is mowing the lawn. Seriously, I kid you not, it was the highlight of my day! How sad is that? I should probably point out, it was the first time I had to mow this year. Our lawn can only be described as pathetic, a fact we were sadly unaware of when we purchased the house. At the time, the lawn was covered in a few feet of snow, so we couldn't see the lawn. Needless to say, we were unpleasantly surprised last summer when we got here, and the lawn was a disaster. Our lawn is the worst on the street. All of the others are nice and green and lush, ours, not so lush really. More patchy, and well, brown. As I'm getting ready to go away, it will be woefully neglected again for most of this summer. It took a week of steady rain, but the weeds and clover actually grew enough a mowing was in order. I must say, I was apprehensive I would not get the mower started. Seems my beloved husband abandoned the poor thing in the fall, and it was still full of last years gas, and oil; a fact that made my father in law audibly cringe when I told him. Too give our mower credit, it's a tough little thing. After a few pumps of the primer, she started up with just a little puff of black smoke. My neighbour across the street was amazed. Evidently, he didn't think I'd get it started. Really. Well, I showed him. Not only did I start it, but I mowed the entire lawn, dirty gas and all. I even took out some plastic animals along the way. Obviously, my neighbour felt guilty because his lawn was far more in need of a mowing then ours. I wasn't in the house 5 minutes, and I heard him out trying to start his mower. It took him a good 10-15 minutes. I was on my way out to offer to start it for him, when he finally got it going. Next time, I'll show him how it's done.

“A good wife is one who can mow the lawn in the summer and put up the storm windows in the winter.”~~W.C Fields

Tornado Warning, Again.

Well, I had a lovely day today. Arlene had another appointment in Ottawa, so I just had to tag along. And as if that was not exciting enough, Dan called this morning right before we left. Twice in one week, unheard of! It was great, the kids all got to talk to him right before they went off to the bus stop with Stu and the boys. They all went to school happy after talking to Daddy. Arlene and I had enough time to squeeze in a trip to Chapters, and two real malls today. Sweet!!! I was happy to find some nice Canada t-shirts for our Canada Day in England with our dear friends the Armstrong's. We had a lovely day shopping, and then got home just before the storm hit, thank goodness. The kids and I walked home from Stu and Arlene's and the skies opened up about five minutes later. We had a supper date with Stu and Arlene at McDonald's and we were treated to a fantastic lightning show on the way there. And yes, Connor was thrilled. Of course, he was full of information about the various types of lightning. Apparently, we had seen forked lightning. Who knew? So as we speak, he is thrilled because there is a tornado warning. It occurs to me, that I should probably have the computer turned off, but I figure, if a tornado does hit Petawawa, whether or not the computer is on, is really the least of my worries. Connor, of course, can't help himself, he keeps getting up in the window to check it out, although he remains skeptical that a tornado will actually hit us. Let's hope he's right.

On a gloomy, rainy morning, it came little eight-year-old Tommy's turn to say the blessing at breakfast. "We thank Thee for this beautiful day," he prayed. His mother asked him why he said that when the day was anything but beautiful. "Mother," said he, with rare wisdom, "never judge a day by its weather."~~Unknown

I Saw The Signs...

Do any of you remember that bloody song? I've had it in my head for the last 3 days. That might have something to do with all of the signs spread out over my kitchen and dining room. I've been painting my new Canada sign collection for the store in Pembroke. I had a bunch of new signs and blocks to do. Of course, I've known about this order for months, but took a page out of Connor's book, and procrastinated a bit. Just a little bit. They were due this afternoon at 1 pm, and this morning when I got up, I still had to stencil the blocks, and antique and varnish them all. Piece of cake. Actually, it's amazing how much I can get down when I set my mind to it. Funny that. Well, anyway, I managed to get them all done. Luckily it's been raining all week, so I've been stuck in the house. I didn't even have to stop to go get a coffee this morning, my wonderful friend Arlene took pity on me. She went out in the pissing down rain, and drove to Timmie's to get me a coffee. And she doesn't even drink coffee! Now, that's a great friend for you. She even offered to help me out with the signs, but I wouldn't let her. She's been tired out lately (no wonder, taking care of me is exhausting work, I'm sure), and she needs to be rested up for our shopping trip, I mean her doctor's appointment, in Ottawa on Friday. Well, I did manage to get the signs down, and I was really happy with how they turned out. Even better, the girls at the store loved them. They are going to build a whole Canada display around them. They also placed a huge order of Fall signs, that they want delivered the third week of August. I'm sure I'll be much more organized for that order, really. Actually, there are a ton of new Fall and Halloween signs I wanted to add to my portfolio, and this order will pay for them, and new Christmas ones as well. Oh, and they offered me a job in their store again. They're really keen for me to come work with them in October, they even have an area set aside for me to paint my signs in their craft room. So, they would actually be paying me a salary, while I painted signs that they are going to pay me for. Sweet. I might have to seriously consider this one.

"I saw the sign and it opened up my eyes, I saw the sign. Life is demanding without understanding. I saw the sign and it opened up my eyes. I saw the sign."~~ Ace of Base

Loch Ness Connor....

I spent today making the final arrangements for our vacation. We are gradually getting closer, only two and half weeks to go. In case I haven't mentioned it (which I can't imagine), we are meeting Dan in London, and we are then going to Ireland and Scotland. We are so excited, we can't wait. Dan and I both have always wanted to see Ireland, and I can't believe we really are going to! It is definitely a very ambitious travel plan, but there was no way we could go to the United Kingdom without taking Connor to Scotland. You might not know this, but Connor tends to fixate on certain subjects, and once the fascination begins, it tends to last for quite some time. He is a great lover of the usual things little (though he's not so little anymore) boys love; dinosaurs, prehistoric mammals, and animals, just to name a few. When he was 9, we watched Walking With Prehistoric Beasts, and Raising the Mammoth more times than I can count. He spends many hours reading books on each subject, and he's usually the only kid in his class who prefers non fiction to fiction. So, it came as no shock to us when he became fascinated with the Loch Ness Monster. Of course, this entailed many trips to the library, many documentaries, and even multiple viewings of Scooby Doo and the Loch Ness Monster. All of this has just fueled his desire to go to Loch Ness. Hence our trip to Scotland. We are taking the lad to Loch Ness. He can hardly believe it. Hell, I can hardly believe it. And there is absolutely no doubt in my mind he will "see" the Loch Ness Monster. This is the boy who "saw" a Beluga Whale in the Saint John River, after all. And as luck would have it, there's been a Nessie sighting. An amateur scientist apparently caught Nessie on video. How fortuitous. We are spending an entire weekend in Inverness, the capital of the highlands. And even better, we are staying at the Loch Ness House Hotel. Of course, we are taking a boat cruise on the Loch, that is a must. We can actually take a cruise from Inverness to the ruins of Urquhart Castle, once under the control of Robert the Bruce. So, how long you think it will take Connor to see Nessie? I'd say, faster than Scooby Doo can say Drumnadrochit. But if all else fails, Katty can always act as a stand in. She is a wee monster after all.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/05/31/britain.lochness.ap/index.html

“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity.”~~Albert Einstein

A Wild And Crazy Saturday...

Wow, we had a wild and crazy day today. Not! Holy heck I'm bored! I swear it is the monotony wearing me down. Have I mentioned I need a vacation? Because, I really, really need a vacation! Actually, we all really need a vacation, Dan and the kids are just as done as I am. It's been a long haul for all of us. Luckily, we all got to talk to Daddy today, and the phone didn't get cut off this time. And you will all be happy to know, his voice sounded just like they remembered it! The kids were all so much happier (temporarily anyway) after talking to him. Good job Daddy, it made their day. After we talked to Daddy, we headed into Pembroke. Wahoo!! Pembroke on a Saturday is as much fun as getting your knee caps shot, but never mind. Connor got his Pokemon cards for his reward, and we had to get pencils and erasers for Elizabeth. She starts the Grade 3 Ontario Testing on Monday, and her teacher sent home a list of specific supplies she needed. Ask me how impressed I was to have to go buy school supplies on the second day of June. You guessed it, not so much. I'm thinking that if she needs these things for Provincial testing, than maybe the province ought to supply them, but that's just me. After we got the cards, and the school supplies, we did go to Home Depot. We really know how to pass a day, don't we?? Unfortunately, my boyfriend Elton wasn't there. Poor old gapher probably thinks I've dumped him, it's been so long. It was okay though, my other buddy Pat was there, so it didn't take very long to get my wood cut at all. After that, it was lunch, and home. All very exciting stuff. Oh, and holy crazy thunderstorms, there was another Severe Thunderstorm Warning tonight. This was the fourth night in a row. Unfortunately, this one didn't amount to anything, just a little rain. No thunder, no lightning, no hail, no nothing. How disappointing is that.


"Disappointments are to the soul what the thunder-storm is to the air.”~~Friedrich von Schiller

It's Finally June....

It's finally June! I never thought it would get here. I must say I am very happy to see the ass end of May. Without a doubt, May was the longest and worst month so far. It felt like it was never going to end. Four months done, three more to go. It didn't help that Dan was extremely busy, and we only got to talk to him twice this month (and the last time the phone got cut off so the girls didn't get to talk to him). The kids are scared they can't remember what Daddy's voice sounds like. How sad is that? Hopefully, he can call this weekend. Did you hear the Daddy?? Finally, today we can say we are going to see Dan this month!! It's about time. This deployment feels like it started in March 2006 when Dan got posted here. It's the deployment that never ends, but never mind. We only have three more weeks to get through until our vacation, which means three more long painful weekends. Oh God help me! The highlight of this weekend is going to Pembroke after swimming lessons tomorrow. Connor got an A on his math test, so we're off to Walmart for a reward, and than I'm going to take them out for lunch. And if we're really feeling adventurous, we'll go see my buddies at Home Depot afterward. How exciting is that?

By the way, today was Pinch and Punch day. Poor John, I got him fair and square this time. There was absolutely no question of the winner. Maybe you'll do better next month Poppa. You'd better write yourself a note in that book of yours, so you won't forget. So for those keeping score, so far this year, I'm ahead 4-2!! Oh, in case you are wondering, we did have more Severe Thunder Storm warnings tonight. No tornado warning, though. How disappointing! Crazy Kids! It did hail up on base, but not here though, which is less than five minutes from the Base. Told you the weather in Petawawa was crazy.

"The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of sixty minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is."~~C.S.Lewis