kidd-iTunes

Yesterday I finally caught up with 2003 and downloaded my first album from iTunes: Rocket Ship Beach by Dan Zanes. It's a "hip" kiddie album designed to entertain Henry without driving me insane in the process. So far, so good. Not as catchy as Raffi (it's true--I actually like Raffi quite a bit), but not as grating as "No!" by They Might Be Giants. One spin of that disc means I'll have "Robot Parade" stuck in my head for a solid five days. So it must be played sparingly.

Next I'll download some stuff for myself, maybe. It's been so long since I bought new music I don't even know what I like anymore. I think it's time to lay off the 80's metal, though, so I'm open to suggestions.

Colour scheming

Since I'm home so much, I spend a lot of time coming up with grand schemes to fix up our little house. Most of my fantasies involve gutting the kitchen and knocking down some walls, but we can't get started on that quite yet. So that leaves painting. My dynamic work crew, a.k.a. Grandma Eileen and Grandpa Moe, arrive next week, so it's time to finalize the colour choices so we can paint while they're in town. I've been taping paint samples to the wall for weeks, and I've almost figured out what I want to do.

Living room:



This is a long, narrow room that doesn't get much natural light, so I can't go too deep with the paint colour--the place will look like a cave. My original idea was a spicy orange/ pumpkin-like colour, but all the samples I found ended up being too dark on the walls. So now I'm trying to choose between a much ligher, almost yellow orange (Ralph Lauren's "Chesapeake Sunset") and Plan B, a mid-tone, mossy green. I'm leaning heavily toward the orange because I want to add warmth and energy to the room. But some shade of green is always in play with me.

We have to remove the stupid wood stove and repair the wall before we paint. That should be fun.

Downstairs hallway:



We're going with an intense, cream-of-tomato-soup red. There's actually not much wall space involved, so I figure a splash of bold colour here will jazz up the first floor considerably without being overwhelming.

Upstairs hall: Cornmeal yellow, just like our old foyer. I loved that colour.

There are a couple other rooms to paint, but I don't think I'll get to them within the next few months. I'll post "after" pictures once the work is done.

Fashionista

While my fashion statements have been reduced to plain t-shirts and track pants, Henry is now expressing strong preferences when it comes to his wardrobe choices:

Henry's Hot List
1. Dump truck t-shirt: Yes, he's a little boy. And for little boys, it just doesn't get any better than dump trucks. A dump truck t-shirt? Gold. Pure gold.
2. KISS/ Gene Simmons t-shirt: Courtesy of Uncle Dave, this shirt shows Henry's street cred. I love the look I get from old ladies when they see that my angelic child is wearing a shirt depicting a man in full face makeup spitting up fake blood. Also, the shiny iron-on wipes up quick and easy after meals. So it's on my hot list, too.
3. Bucky Badger t-shirt: A distant third to the other ones, but Henry still likes to show his Badger pride.

When he's wearing a t-shirt he likes, Henry will complain vigorously and squirm away if we try to cover it up with a sweater or coat. I guess we better get him some cool sweatshirts for fall.

Photo: Henry rocks the KISS shirt with Jon and Joanne last week.

It lives!

Thanks to Tom, the Replay is up and running. Plus, we now have a wireless network set up in our home. Bonus!

"Ode to Joy" is looping through my brain. . .

Will I get my ReplayTV?

Embracing his inner geek, Tom has taken it upon himself to try hacking the ReplayTV. So far it's involved much Internet research, the purchase of a wireless router and video game adapter, a software download, and probably some other stuff I'm not aware of/ interested in. But, I'm praying it works--I really need to start recording back episodes of Trailer Park Boys.

The new routine

I'm getting deeper into the whole "stay at home mom" gig. Henry and I now go to playgroup at the local community center on Monday and Wednesday mornings. It's just like it sounds: 15-20 kids, newborns to 4-year-olds, let loose in a big room with lots of toys. Coffee for the parents and nannies. Not a lot of grownup socializing goes on, though, because having that many kids in the room means that things can get out of hand in a hurry if you're not paying attention. Still, it's fun. We also joined a Kindermusik class that's a lot more structured and involves a distressingly high level of participation from mom. I'm not sure what Henry will learn about music listening to my tuneless bleating, but he enjoyed playing with the percussion toys. So I'll go along with it.

I'm meeting lots of parents doing this stuff. One surprise is the number of dads I see out with their kids on weekdays. Men can take parental leave time in Canada, and it seems a good number of them are doing so. Another difference is the number of moms I've met who work part time. In Richmond, I found that working or staying at home was pretty much either/or. Up here, it seems possible to work out a more flexible arrangement. Not sure where that leaves me, but it is good to hear that alternatives exist.

Look who's (almost) talking

Over the past two weeks Henry's language comprehension skills have truly blossomed and it seems like he's crossed an important threshold. It's been remarkable to witness. He still doesn't say much beyond the simple words he's been using for the last couple months, but he clearly understands a lot of what we say to him and responds appropriately. For example, if you say "Henry, what sound does a sheep make?", he'll go "baaaa." He can point to different body parts (nose, toes, ears, eyes, etc.), and now he can even locate familiar objects in a picture when you ask him to point to them. He especially likes finding the birds scattered throughout "Peter Rabbit."

In other news, he's been sleeping a lot better and eating pretty well, too. He favours garlicy, pungent food like pesto, hummous and guacamole. Today I gave him a bite of my blue cheese, figuring he'd spit it out, but he ate it up and kept signing "more!" Ended up eating quite a bit of it. Funny kid. Naps still require a drive in the car or long walk in the stroller, which doesn't leave me much off time during the day. As long as he sleeps most of the night, I can deal.

Another new hobby: trying on dad and mom's shoes.

I want my ReplayTV!

One thing I've learned from first moving from Canada to the U.S., then back again after nine years, is that it's the little things you miss. Stupid things like Coffee Crisp bars when I'm in the U.S., and Red Vines up here. Most of it, you develop new tastes and habits and move on. I'm doing okay without the Red Vines. Yes, I miss Target, but I really needed to wean myself off big-box shopping, anyway. But there's one little thing you can't get in Canada that's quickly becoming a huge, gaping hole in our lives: ReplayTV!!!!!

Sadly, our ReplayTV doesn't work up here. For some completely inexplicable reason, ReplayTV "is not supported" in Canada. Or Mexico. What that means is the box can't download channel information from the cable company, so the sleek silver unit is nothing more than dust-collecting trash once it hits the Great White North. We knew this before we decided to move. We just didn't know how much we'd miss it. We were in deep, total denial. Oh man, watching TV is so lame without a DVR. I missed my favourite show tonight (Arrested Development) because I had to go out and couldn't just press a button to record it. You have to turn to the lame TV Guide channel to find out what's on, and you can't skip ahead to see what will be on later. And you can't pause or rewind the show, so if you're interested in what you're watching, you have to sit there and watch it WHILE IT'S ON. This is communism, straight up. We might as well cancel our cable, because we get so frustrated watching TV without the aid of the Best Invention Ever that it's hardly worth it to tune in.

I've done some research, and apparently you can "hack" the ReplayTV and get it to download content from a nearby U.S. city or something. Oh yeah--I'm all over that. Even the consumer electronics/ computer nerds in the forums we consulted say it's hard to do, so I doubt I could get it to work.

Oh well. I guess I'll have to go back to remembering when my shows are actually on if I want to see them. I guess that means I'll be reading a lot this winter.

The XM Satellite Radio works fine, though. So not all is lost.

Overheard at the corner store

Man: "I'm from the embassy. The Iranian Embassy"

Woman (unimpressed): "Yes, I know."

Man: I need a kilo and a half of Persian cookies and a kilo and a half of pastries. Quickly, please. It's for the embassy."

So there you have it--the government of Iran shops at our local convenience store. Don't tell Rummy.

Rainy day weekend with old friends

The weather turned crappy on Friday, so we've been stuck inside and feeling cooped up. Henry really likes to go outside, and usually it takes a walk in the stroller to get him to fall asleep for his nap, so the days have been a bit on the long side.

So we were very hapy to get invited for dinner yesterday afternoon at my friends Louise and Keith's house out in Nepean. Louise and I played ultimate together in Toronto way back in the mid-90s. They've lived in Ottawa for about five years, and it's great to have someone familiar to reconnect with as we settle in. They have three kids now, ages 5, 4 and 2, so dinner was quite a scene. The grownups were at even strength against the kids, so we were able to have some adult conversation in the midst of the din. Henry loved playing with all the toys, especially the many trucks, cars and busses Louise's boys have in their collection. Henry's becoming quite the little boy in that respect--fascinated with vehicles. Anytime he sees a school bus go by he points and squeals with delight. . .

We're just about to head out for brunch with Jon and Joanne from Vancouver. Jon and I have been good friends since high school. He hasn't met Henry yet. Hopefully he'll sit still for a bit while we eat and chat. It's overcast today but the rain finally stopped, so we'l probably do some exploring after we eat.

Shopping at the ByWard Market

Even by my Virginia-calibrated standards, it was very warm here today (but not "hot & humid". "Hot & humid", my Canadian friends, is when you leave your air-conditioned building at 5 p.m. and feel like you're being punched in the gut by the air you're trying to breathe. That's summer in Virginia). But still a great day to get out and take in the town. This morning Henry and I went shopping at the ByWard Market. I love this area. It's an open-air market and collection of specialty shops just east of Parliament and the American Embassy, and it's definitely one of Ottawa's best features. Farm-fresh seasonal produce, cheese shops, a great Italian market. . . mmmm. So far, our best discovery at ByWard has been Ontario wild blueberries. These berries are much smaller than the kind you get at the grocery store, and much more flavourful. They're perfect for making pie. So far, Tom and I have collaborated on two blueberry pies (he makes amazing pastry, and I do the filling). I think I'll have to propose at least one more before the season ends (we use the recipe from Regan Daley's In the Sweet Kitchen). The local raspberries look amazing, too. Maybe that will be the next pie.

I also dropped a relatively large sum of money (by supermarket standards) on some Tuscan olive oil (strictly for dipping and salads, not cooking). Delicious. Oh, and two kinds of stinky cheese from Quebec. So I've been pigging out on treats all day. One day very soon I will adjust my two-income spending habits to our new, one-income reality, but today was not that day.

Henry, on the other hand, refused to eat anything but grapes today. Until dinner, when he gobbled up the fresh ravioli I bought at the Italian market. The kid's fussy, but at least he has good taste.

The photo above is the aftermath of Henry's attempt to enjoy some of that blueberry pie last week.

Takin' care of business

We finally managed to get our car registered in Ontario. This may not seem like a newsworthy event, but we learned the hard way that there are lot of irritating bureaucratic hoops to jump through when you import a car to Canada (boring details here). We're very happy to have this headache behind us. Long story short: three government agencies, several repairs/ upgrades, one failed Ontario Air Care test, mucho paperwork, many hundreds of dollars, but finally, no more Virginia plates. Phew.

After all that, let's hope our car is good for a few more years' worth of driving.

Also, we got our Ontario driver's licences today. No hassles, but $75 a pop. What a FUN way to drop $150. I totally feel like a rock star.

Henry at 16 months

Here's what Henry is up to these days:

• He's getting really good at using baby sign language. He's been doing signs for things, especially animals (dog, duck, cat, frog, etc.) for a couple months, but now he's learning signs for more abstract concepts ("more," "all done") and actions (eat, drink).
• He finally has some hair. It's still very thin, but it's there. I call the colour "ginger." If you say something to him like "I like your hair, Henry", he will stroke his head proudly.
  
• His favourite hobbies include chasing ducks (he makes the hand sign for duck and quacks as he runs after them), dragging rakes and brooms down the sidewalk, and emptying drawers, especially the kitchen drawers. This has complicated our efforts to get everything put away.
• Any progress we'd made in getting him to sleep better collapsed after the move. He's been a bad sleeper from Day One, but in Richmond we had reached the point where he'd sleep 6 hours straight most nights, and some nights even longer. No more. Ugh. None of the techniques we read about make a difference. The kid just does not like to sleep or nap.
• He doesn't use many spoken words yet, and he calls both me and Tom "Mu-ma." We're working on that one. . .
• We've been exploring all the great playgrounds and parks in Ottawa. I took this picture today at Mooney's Bay, which is beside the Rideau River--about a seven minute drive from our house.
  

The House

Given what we've seen of the neighbours (young people with kids) and the amenities around here, I'd say we definitely made a good choice with our house purchase. The house itself is going to take some time to settle into. It's smaller than our Richmond house (which I miss quite a bit!), so it's been a challenge to arrange our furniture. So far we've painted our room and Henry's room, put new carpet in the office, replaced the dishwasher (the ancient one that conveyed with the house blew up and spewed water everywhere a couple weeks ago), and had some electrical work done so that we could have a full-size washer and dryer in the basement. For those of you keeping count, we've now purchased three dryers in the last 18 months (the first one perished in the Tropical Storm Gaston flood, the repalcement stayed in Richmond, and now we have a new one).

Next on the list is getting a closet organizer for our bedroom (since we can't fit a dresser in the room) and painting the downstairs (still thinking about colours). Once I get a job we're going to spring for a kitchen renovation, too. But that will be it for the major stuff (I hope).

The 'Hood

Our neighbourhood is full of families with young kids around Henry's age, and everyone is incredibly friendly. The weather has been beautiful almost every day since we arrived, so we're spending a lot of time outdoors, going for walks in the neighbourhood and hanging out at the park. Henry is a terrific social lubricant when it comes to meeting people. If someone is walking their dog, Henry will make a beeline for them. If their kid is playing with a toy he finds interesting, he'll go grab it (that one is a bit awkward). Or, people will just come over to us and introduce themselves. At any rate, it's been a warm welcome.

Here's a picture of Henry, Tom and his brother Jon on the Rideau Canal, which is two blocks from our house. On Sunday mornings the street that runs alongside it, Colonel By Drive, is shut down to cars. It's a great place to go for a stroll.

A week of firsts

The University of Ottawa fall term began on Thursday. Tom taught his first class, so his new job has finally started.

I played my first Ottawa ultimate game yesterday. Ottawa's fall league is smaller than its massive summer league (billed as "the largest ultimate league in the world"), but it's still huge compared to Richmond: four divisions, multiple tiers, large rosters. I got on a team called the Blade Runners by posting a message on the league discussion board. The team has a lot of "mature" players with kids, which makes me happy. My primary motivation for playing is social, not competitive, so I'm glad I ended up on a team with people I'm more likely to share things in common with than a bunch of college kids. I carpooled to the game with a woman who lives a few blocks away from us. Turns out she has a 17-month-old daughter (Henry is 16 months) and had lots of great info about daycare in Ottawa. Getting daycare organized is my next big project, so it was very helpful to talk to her.

As a result of the game, I'm sore today. I go running a couple times a week, but I've never truly gotten back in shape since having Henry. All the sprinting involved in an ultimate game is hard on me these days. . .

Like Altamont, but without the Hells Angels and random violence

I found out last week that the Rolling Stones still give free concerts, if inadvertently. See, our house in Ottawa is just across the Rideau Canal from Lansdowne Park, which is the old-school, open-air football stadium that hosts the local CFL team and, it turns out, all the crappy bands that play the Ottawa summer expo. We'd been hearing the muddy sound of second-rate live acts all weekend, so I figured we'd be able to hear the Stones a bit from our back yard when they played their much-hyped concert. Well. Henry was in bed and I was enjoying a beautiful evening on our deck when I heard a dull roar and the opening notes of "Start Me Up" ringing clearly through the air. I'm not a diehard Stones fan or anything, but I like their old stuff well enough so figured I'd get closer and listen to a few songs.

I headed down to Echo Drive, which is a residential street running alongside the Canal. As soon as I turned the corner I saw HUNDREDS of people hanging out on the street (it's blocked off to all but local traffic, so there are never cars on it), taking in the show like they had paid for tickets to the stadium. Not only could we hear the Stones pretty much perfectly, but the hi-def Jumbotron inside the stadium was positioned so that we has a clear view of the show, too. I guess the locals know that you can see inside the stadium from Echo, because they came prepared for an evening of Free Rock. It was quite a scene--there were lawnchairs, snacks, families with kids, burnouts, grandparents, dudes drinking beer, yuppies drinking wine from glasses, a couple cops not caring about any of it, and white people busting arythmic white moves everywhere. The strangest thing to me was that the crowd actually applauded after each number, like we were part of the paying audience inside. The funniest thing was when a guy near me shouted, "Dude! You're missing 'Sympathy for the Devil,' Muthaf**kaaa!" into his cell phone. I was like, "dude, basically so are you." But, really, we weren't. I saw the Stones in 1989 at BC Place, and I think my view of the stage and the sound were better this time (man, those were some crappy seats). They didn't play "Gimmie Shelter," which I always like to hear, but hey--who am I to complain? It was still a fun, unique experience, and a good introduction to the laid-back vibe here in Ottawa.

Please note that I resisted using the phrase, "you can't always get what you want" after my "Gimmie Shelter" comment.