A Day in the City

We had to go into Toronto this weekend for a Dr.'s appointment (Sadie still has an ear infection) so we decided to stay for the day. Our first stop was Allan Gardens Conservatory which is a greenhouse near where we used to live. The Conservatory is gorgeous inside and tropically warm even in the winter. Sadie had a great time posing for pictures and running around.

Our next stop was the mall to see Santa unfortunately the mall didn't have Santa (strange, right?) so we left.  We decided to check out a kids festival that was happening outside the mall but were quickley scared away by the large crowds. That is one thing that we are no longer used to living in the burbs and I can't say that I miss it. In fact our day in the city helped us see how much we love not living there anymore. As you can see, we kept leaving and didn't really enjoy ourselves.

|Yong-Dundas Square

Our final stop was Nathan Phillips Square to pick up our car and escape back to the burbs. While walking through we stopped at the ice skating rink briefly and saw a mom with a toddler daughter who had been skating. We ended up chatting with her and she asked if Sadie would like to try her daughter's skates. At first I was hesitant (Sadie with blades on her feet!!) but we decided to try it out. Sadie had a blast!! The mom was so nice and super trusting as she left her daughter with D as we went around the rink together. This is how Sadie has ended up with ice skates and a helmet for Christmas! This was also the best part of our day..

Nathan Phillips Square

We did eventually find Santa - just not in Toronto. Sadie didn't cry this year but she wasn't entirely interested in getting her picture taken either. We have a couple of more shots while at work Christmas parties so we're hoping to get a good shot at some point.... fingers crossed..

Tis the season...

To go shopping...
I think we're done our Christmas and Birthday shopping and if not, we should be. Although I'm not really in the Christmas mood yet, I have had fun picking out Sadie's presents.
This year we've tried to scale back and not buy too much. Most of Sadie's presents fit in a single (not too large) re-usable shopping bag.
Her big presents from Santa include a FP Racin' Ramps
Garage (used from Once Upon a Child), a pair of ice skates (double blades) and a the cutest pink Hockey helmet. Sadie has already been skating and she LOVES it.
The rest of her presents are smaller items and stocking stuffers. Melissa and Doug crayons, a colouring book, lots of books, match box cars, colour changing cars, a couple of Thomas trains (Christmas themed), play-doh and a set of wooden building blocks.
For her birthday she is getting a Buzz Lightyear doll, tickets to Disney on Ice and more books.
She's getting lots and lots of books (which is a good thing because I'm sick of her current stash).
This leaves out her getting a kitchen and toy food. Originally that was going to be her big gift but then we bought her the Chuggington train table, used, for a fantastic price.
These are ALL of her presents from Momma, Mommy and Santa combined and yes, one is even used. I'm not ashamed to say it.
I'm curious to know what other people think about "big" gifts. Do you pick one BIG item or do you prefer smaller gifts? To be honest, I worry a bit about big gifts escalating out of hand and not being able to match the expectations from the previous year. Are you considering presents you recieved as a child when you buy for yours? Do you think the expectations for big gifts at Christmas are getting out of hand? My brother asked for $500 headphones, as an example. He's 12. Oy. Vey.


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2011 Holiday Craft Exchange - Sneak Peek

Sadie making our 2011 Holiday Craft Exchange Ornaments! Our busy little elf!

She had a little help (:

Sadie's BIG girl room

Yes, Sadie FINALLY has a "big girl room" with a "big girl bed"! It only took a year to finish

Closet doors are not on yet so you can see her messy closet!

Sadie LOVES trucks, trains, and cars. Dolls? Princesses? Not so much. I had been wondering if we were influencing her away from "girls toys" but then I saw the room we created. It's pink and girly with butterflys, flowers and fairies and likely *not* the room she'd choose for herself. So I guess we are *trying* to infuence her but are also letting her be exactly who she wants to be.

Bullet Updates

*We’ve booked Disney for next fall!! It will be the same time as this year but only a week and we will have free dining again (promotion ends December 17th which is why we’ve booked so early). We’ve always stayed at Pop Century but this time we decided to pay extra to move up a resort level and are staying at a moderate. I think I’m more excited about our resort than I am the parks! Yes, I know this all sounds excessive but THIS is our thing. We love Disney and Sadie does too!

*Sadie has been a champ when it comes to taking her amoxicillin. What a difference 6 months makes!! Last time she was on it we had to fight her so much. Now we fill the dispenser and hand it to her.

*We are now on the waitlist for part time daycare, 2 days a week. We’ll likely get a spot around June when Sadie is 2.5 since that is the official “start” age. Up until then, once she’s 2, there is a chance she’ll be accepted if she fits into a certain ratio of kids for her age. Honestly, this wasn’t my first choice. I wanted a preschool or Montessori school and NOT a daycare however her birth date is an issue. The absolute latest cut-off we’ve found was November 30th and that’s a month too early. By the next year she’ll no longer qualify for pre-school and will be accepted right into Junior Kindergarten. I guess the Ministry of Education sets the JK cut-off and the private schools set the pre-school cut-off. For Sadie this means her pre-school year is non-existent.

*TTC #2 in 2012 has been moved off the table now that we’ve booked Disney. I’m so sick of feeling the pressure to have a second that it’s a relief to have the decision made for another year. The reality is that we’re very comfortable as a family of 3 and having a second young child doesn’t sound like a lot of fun right now. When I see the future of our family I do want there to be a second but I also want Sadie to be older, maybe 4 or 5. I guess this comes from having IRL peers who have done the same.




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Sick

Last week was a hard week. Sadie was a beast (which I did complain about) and apparently, sick. Oops.
We ended up taking her to the doctor and found out she'd probably been sick for at least 7 days already. What we thought was exhaustion from terrible behaviour and her 5th molar coming in (or possibly a small cold) was likely the result of a virus. Ultimately it was when she stuck her finger in her ear, wiggled it and said "uh oh" that we decided to get her checked.
Ear infection.
The biggest parenting fail about this is that this isn't the first time she's done the ear wiggle thing. It was just the first time she's said something about it. The wiggling has always been in the same ear so I wonder if it's been recurring and untreaded due to dumb parents?
Double oops.
I guess it's good that Sadie is a little trooper when it comes to illness but it does make it hard for us to know she is unwell (or how sick she really is).
Other people have kids like this too, right? I mean, even when Sadie had the Chicken Pox it didn't phase her at ALL. I guess I'm going to have to be more careful with a runny nose!


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More than terrible twos

Last night Sadie was on a suicide mission at The Little Gym. It was horrible. Thankfully she came out with only a bloody, tooth bitten lip and nothing worse yet Momma, on the otherhand, is pretty exasperated.
The "theory" at The Little Gym and virtually all of the programs we've been in is to let your kid wander while you (the parent) participate in the activities. We're starting to wonder about this. While most (ALL - who are we kidding) of the other toddlers make their way back to their parents, Sadie NEVER will. She's let loose and goes WILD. Last night I sat with bells singing in a circle while my daughter was leaping off large mats, head first.
Music class is the exact same thing. The teacher promises me that "she's taking it all in" even if she is running in circles while the other kids sit calmly. I'm told "it's OK, let her". Help?
I was going to write all about Halloween and how wonderful it was but what sticks out most are the times when we were around other children, in large groups, and how Sadie stood out. During Halloween storytime at our Parent Child Centre she would not sit down. No, she ran in circles through the kids with us and the teacher asking her to sit. Then she was standing 1 foot in front of the teacher for her very own "private" story (forget about the 40 kids calmly sitting behind her).
I was complaining to my friend about this and she asked if it's a discipline issue.
Is this somehow our fault? I don't really know what to do. I hear about the terrible twos constantly but this seems more intense. We have the screaming fits but they seem like nothing compared to Sadie's hyperactivity.
Truthfully, you know I'm asking a question I likely know the answer to but being in the situation as a PARENT is awful. I don't want MY kid to be THAT kid. I'm already seeing the judgement that i cant control her. Or the looks of "what's what's wrong with that kid".
Could it be? I had ADHD as a child and it seems Sadie has it too. I don't want this for her at all. It's so hard and while I had good coping skills to overcome it, it still hurts when I think of what I went through. Kids won't want to be her friend. She'll be lonely. She'll not understand why because she'll want nothing more than to play with the other kids and won't understand why they don't like her.
God, this absolutely sucks.

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