Happy 140th Birthday Canada! (Belated)

So this year Canada Day fell on a Sunday, so we get Monday off too. Sweet.

Yesterday, we celebrated the occassion by playing pass the baby at Amy's annual pool and sangria party. One of Amy's friends is a midwife and another is an ObGyn so there was much talk of babies, childbirth and other related topics. The air was on the cold side for a pool party, but luckily Amy's Dad keeps the pool a refreshing 32 degrees C (90 degrees F) and everyone including William had a dip. As the night went on and the sangrias flowed, some guests opted for a swim with their clothes on (by "opted" I of course mean they were thrown in). My small nuclear family stayed dry during this episode, as none of us had consumed as much alcohol as the other partygoers. Nevertheless we all enjoyed the entertainment (except for William who was asleep in his stroller).

We left the party at around nine thirty and considered going to the fireworks at the waterfront. In the end we just went home because I realised I am past the point in my life where vulturing a parking spot and a patch of grass just to watch loud lights exploding in the sky holds any excitement.

Congratulations Becky and Dave!

My kindergarten class is getting married off one by one. Today was Becky's turn. She and her husband Dave tied the knot in a medieval-style ceremony at Webster's Falls. It was a beautiful day for an outdoor wedding. Nothing but sunshine, and no sticky humidity.

Here's a shot of the happy couple with Becky's Mom:



And here's a shot of the whole wedding party:



And finally, here's a shot of Becky blowing out the candles on her wedding cake:


Okay, you got me. That last shot wasn't taken today. That was Becky's tenthish birthday party. (Guess who that is on the left?)

Every once in a while it hits me: Hey, I've known these people since kindergarten and now we're getting married and having babies! I didn't have a lot of friends in elementary school, but most of them are still my friends today. Craziness.

William's first trip to the library

Yesterday William sat up on his own. Adam and I were hanging out with him on the couch when we both suddenly realized that neither of us were holding him up and he wasn't falling over.

So now that he's all grown up, I figured it was time he got his own library card. Finally the weather is neither too hot, nor too rainy for a nice long walk. Long, but nice, we strolled through Central Park, past the Labyrinth, around a playground, and across a soccer field.

I've been going to this same library since I was six years old, long enough to know many of the librarians. Today we saw Marnie, who went gah gah over William. She complained that when people she'd known as kids came in with their babies it made her feel like she belonged in an old folks' home. I complained that since the library was renovated, I can't find anything. The children's department is now upstairs, and the elevator makes a scary noise.

William's BM schedule today allowed us to test the change tables in both the upstairs and downstairs washrooms. When that was done, we got William his own library card and he took out his first books. What an exhausting day!

Best friends

William and I went down to St. Catharines today to hang out with Aedan and his Mom, Becca. Look at them being all chummy. Totally not posed. Really they just climbed up on the couch and put their arms around each other.

Anyway, going to St. Cath meant I had to drive Adam to work all the way in Mississauga then drive back the way I came and past Burlington to the end of the world. Then miss my exit and get lost in the worst city to get lost in in the universe (the streets are laid out in a diamond grid pattern). Then drive through torrential downpour and rush hour traffic at the end of the day to pick Adam up again. I have no concept of time whatsoever, but I would estimate that I did roughly 350 years of driving today.

But I had fun. Becca: move to Burlington!

Rabbit Season

All of a sudden there are rabbits everywhere!

Here's a picture Adam took of the rabbits nest at my in-laws' yesterday:




And just now Adam and William and I went for a walk and we saw this baby rabbit in the mall parking lot:




And this huge Mommy rabbit nursing her babies by my building (honestly, this thing was larger than my parents' dog):




Back in the day, you only saw a rabbit around here once in a blue moon. Now they're multiplying like, well, like rabbits!

Father's Day

I bought Adam and William matching outfits for Father's Day, enhancing their cuteness for the Father's Day events at my in-law's house. My mom-in-law invited a whole bunch of cousins who have never met William over for barbecue and baby. Everyone praised William for being so ultra-cute and well-behaved.

After Babcia and Dziazio's it was off to Omi and Opa's (my parents) for some Father's Day lobster. William was a bit cranky by this point because it was evening and he was tired from all the baby-passing. Hunter, my six-year-old nephew, wheeled him around the living room in the stroller to keep him quiet enough for me to eat my dinner. Even cranky, William is better behaved than most other babies, seeing as he is (in my unbiased opinion) the greatest baby in the world.

As tired as he was, the bedtime ritual went painlessly tonight, freeing me up to write this entry and post photos on my international tag blog.

Sound of Music Day 1: Philosopher Kings

Woohoo, thought I, a band I've heard of is playing at the Sound of Music Festival. So I left William with my favourite babysitters (my Mom, Dad, and nephew) and headed out with my good friend Amy to enjoy the show (we met Dayna there). I do love a free concert, especially when I get close enough to take some decent photos. Yeah, and the music was okay too.

Some of my favourite points about the festival in general:

Every year musicians who are used to singing to adoring fans try to get the audience to sing their lyrics back to them, only to find that noone there knows the words. Tonight was no exception, but the Kings were unphased.

You always see people you haven't seen in a hundred years. It's like facebook live. In addition to Amy and Dayna, I saw a girl from my high school german class, one of my sister's old friends, and an old pal from high school.

It's Alive! To jest Żywe!

Every day, Adam calls from work to tell me he's on his way home. Yesterday the call came from the Canadian Tire across the street. Our '99 Subaru Forester was overheating (no kidding, so was I!) and he had taken it in to be checked out. An hour and a half later the boys (and girls) at Canuck T told us that our jalopy needed a new (insert name of engine part here). Apparently, this widget is buried so deeply in the engine that, while the part isn't too costly, the labour is super duper expensive. Might as well get a new engine, so says the Canucks.

Cost of an engine and labour at Canadian Tire: approximately $7000
Total cost of the car when we bought it: approximately $7000

So you can see why we don't find this scenario cost effective. Luckily there's the Filipowicz garage (my in-laws' house). We've already saved a tonne of money using Adam's Dad as slave labour. Now he might be able to use his Subaru Frankenstein tricks to resurrect our monster for a more reasonable price.

Despite our Polish mafia connections, we will still need a new car one day. Or at least another old one.

Baby news

Yesterday we switched William from the highly convenient, very portable infant carrier, to the big cushy, stays-in-the-car-forever, big boy seat. He reached the max height for the carrier. William is going to be tall like his Daddy. *tear* My baby is growing up.

In other highly fascinating baby news: this morning, rather than be woken up to crying, I awoke to an electronic version of Itsy Bitsy Spider, courtesy of William's Pooh Bear. When I went to investigate, William was playing on his tummy. He's been able to roll to his tummy for awhile ( since about June 2) but normally he just freaks himself out and screams for Mommy. This was a pleasant change.

Jen and Carol's International Photo Tag

I started a new blog with my Scottish friend Carol that everyone should check out. (www.internationaltag.blogspot.com) Here's the description:

"Canadian Jen posts a picture, then Scottish Carol posts a picture of the same thing (only Scottish). Then Carol posts a pic of something else, then Jen posts a pic of the same thing (only Canadian). And one day, with luck, we'll have a photo blog that compares Burlington, Ontario, Canada with Glasgow, Scotland in some interesting way."

Okay, so the description's lame. But I felt the best thing to do was to tell it like it is. If you go there right now you can compare Canadian and Scottish squirrels.

On a completely different topic: It's hot. And I got suckered into Morty-sitting again today. And Monday. And it's hot. Did I mention it's hot?

Morty the Jackapoo, Becca and Drew, Aedan, William and Hunter too.

I don't have much energy for brilliance (read the title). Here is a list of things we did (in no particular order):

• played Wii Sports
• played Wii Play
• played Donkey Kong
• built a two-headed alien monster car out of lego
• went to McDonald's
• watched Quantum Leap
• watched Terminator 3
• went to the park
• played tv tag
• played Star Wars Monopoly
• played the Nightmare Before Christmas Game
• played Simpson's Jeopardy
• went to the grocery store to buy a cake and pick out a birthday card for Omi
• visited Omi at the old folks' home (ate cake)
• attempted to put William to sleep (in progress)

Almost 9pm, and no dinner here yet. Adam's gone to pick something up.

Morty the Jackapoo, once again

It is now 11 o'clock. Morty has been here since 8:30 and he's already puked on the carpet. I was nursing my cranky teething baby and thus confined to a rocking chair when Morty trotted in and began heaving. For those of you who have seen a dog throw-up, you'll know they do it in slow motion.

First the heaving, like every muscle their body is working together to dislodge this hunk of ... whatever. And you're thinking: "He's about to puke! Oh no! I should do something. But what? I'll look for something to catch the puke in. Oh, too late." Or in my case: "If only I wasn't confined to this rocking chair."

Now, to a human, the sight and smell of ones own vomit is so repulsive, it has been known to make one vomit again. But a dog will eat anything. Anything. Most likely the reason Morty tossed his cookies in the first place. You'd think they'd learn. But then again, if hurling meant I got a tasty snack, instead of a gross puddle of disgusting barf, I might want to do it more often. Normally I would make some attempt to prevent the re-eating of previously evacuated stomach contents. However, as I was concentrating on my cranky teething baby, and thus confined to a rocking chair, I could only utter a half-hearted "No Morty" while the Jackapoo devoured a hunk of up-chuck about the size of his head.

Now both baby and puppy are asleep (baby in his crib and Morty at my feet) and the day is getting better already. Oh here's a fun quiz to see if you were paying attention: How many different words/phrases meaning "puke" did I use in this blog entry? List them all in the comments session if you are so inclined, and let me know if I missed any.

And if you're still looking to waste time, try this random movie quote generator:

Lions and tigers and Morty, oh my!

Morty "the Jackapoo" McNicoll vs. the Filipowicz Family

Yesterday William and I were dog-sitting. My parents are in BC and Morty the Jackapoo came over so he didn't have to stay in the crate all day while my brother was at work.

Morty (4lbs) vs. Lokai (2lbs)

About 3 seconds after my husband left for work, leaving me alone with baby and puppy, Morty found our smallest, often forgotten family member. Yes, that's right, Lokai the Guinea Pig. I yelled "down!" at him enough times that Morty understood that he wasn't supposed to look at the pig, bark at the pig, or jump on the pig's cage. So he only did those things when I was out of the room. Lokai was pretty laid back about the whole issue. He gave more squeaks of protest when I put the lid on his cage (something I haven't needed to do in about a year), than squeaks of fear at the attacking pooch. Of course even if Morty had been able to get in the cage, I think Lokai could probably take him in a fair fight. In any case, no family members were eaten.

Morty (4lbs) vs. William (16lbs)

But some were tasted. Everytime William got anywhere near the floor, Morty would run from wherever he was and lick the baby's face. William wasn't sure if he like this at first, but eventually decided he didn't and made pouty faces when Morty came near. William likes to stand on the floor while I hold his hands, and he didn't get to do a whole lot of that yesterday. Funny thing, next to William, Morty looks like a full-sized dog.

A Test of Baby Proofing.

One good part of having Morty here is that the little guy finds and chews on things that maybe William will find and chew on when he becomes more mobile. Most of our baby proofing will involve cleaning up and vacuuming more often.

Willam's Talents

I was going to post a video I took of William in his exersaucer, but I am having technical difficulties. Instead, here is a list of William's current abilities:

• Rolling over front to back
• Reaching for things, grabbing them, and putting them in his mouth. "Things" include (but aren't limited to) blankets, toys, t-shirts, hair, hands (his and those of others), stuffed animals, necklaces, nipples.
• Playing with the toys dangling from his crib gym. This skill is related to the grabbing skill. It's not unusual to see him with one toy in each hand, holding another with his feet, and trying to get all three in his mouth.
• Turning around in the exersaucer. He can now play with all the toys around the side properly too.
• Getting out of his carseat. Not while it's buckled though, thankfully.
• Cooing and gurgling and making a whole vocabulary of noises.
• Smiling.
• Laughing.
• Standing while someone holds his arms.
• Sitting while someone holds his arms.
• Turning around in his crib. Note, not rolling around. He simply manoevres his legs in such a way that he ends up with his feet pointed in a completely different direction.
• Sleeping all the way through the night.

Now he just has to learn to post a video on youtube so he can teach me!

My Baby's All Grown Up

I first noticed it two days ago. A little roughness on the bottom gum, and a possible explanation for his recent meltdowns. Now there's no doubt about it: William has a tooth.

Teething Worries:

1. My baby is in pain. He cries unconsolably. Wants to be held constantly. He hasn't had meltdowns like this since he was learning to breastfeed at a week old. The worst thing in the world is to watch your baby in pain with no power to make the pain go away. I tried teething rings, which work for three seconds and then not. This morning I finally gave him baby tylenol. He's calm, but now I'm one of those parents who medicates her children!

2. My baby will now be able to bite me. William is breastfed exclusively. I don't know if it's my imagination, but I swear I can feel that tooth when he feeds. Soon it will come in fully and he'll be able to draw blood!

3. My baby is all grown up. In addition to the new tooth, William can now stand if I hold onto his hands. Soon he'll be able to stand while holding onto stuff and then he'll be able to walk all by himself. And, with his new teeth, he'll be able to eat big people food. And if he can walk, and eat, he'll be able to take girls out to dinner. And if he can take girls out to dinner, he can get married and leave me!

I'm not ready to be the Mom of a grown-up.

The Mommy Cooking Show

William is screaming in the other room. Now I'm not a let a child cry it out type of Mom, but I figure it's better for him to be screaming in the other room than to be screaming in my arms. At least this way I can blog.

Update: William is quiet. Maybe he's asleep. I know he's tired but the reason it seems he's been cranky is (and this is really weird) that he missed the Mommy cooking show.

To explain: about a month ago I started putting William in his carseat in the kitchen so he could watch me make dinner. It was the only way I could get a meal on the table without screaming. I'd tell him what I was doing while I did it and count out all the ingredients for him.

Yesterday, Adam called to say he was going to be late and I decided to wait before starting to make anything. Around the time I usually start to cook William wailed inconsolably. I thought he was tired, but he wouldn't go down in his crib. I went through the baby checklist, fed him, changed him, burped him, put him in the exersaucer. Nothing. Finally, I noticed the time and put him in the carseat in the kitchen. He smiled as if to say: okay, I'm ready for the show.

Today Adam's going to be late again. This time I'm wise to the game and put William in the carseat at the appropriate time. But, problem, it was too early to make dinner. The dishwasher was full but not clean, so I couldn't make a show of emptying it for him. I decided to wash the the stove. It badly needed it because I HATE (note I'm using the word HATE in capital letters) cleaning, especially when it comes to the kitchen. William has similar feelings about cleaning, because he did not enjoy the Mommy cleaning show at all. I think this is because a) he sensed how thrilled I wasn't about the activity and b) I forgot to narrate.

So I tossed my screaming infant in his crib (by "tossed" I of course mean, lay him down gently with a kiss) and here we are. Yes, he's tired, but he was very disappointed not to be able to catch the Mommy cooking show before his evening nap.

Dances with Lobster and Kindergarten Reunion

I was reading Kill the Goat, a blog that puts my semi-regular posting to shame. Every time William falls asleep long enough for me to read it, there's at least two new incredibly long, yet humourous and well written entries. While I enjoy the posts, I can't see how she (she being Jay, the author of the aforementioned blog) has time to write them, and can't help but feel a twinge of guilt at not keeping my few faithful blog-readers similarly updated. So here's my weekend.

Saturday May 26th and Sunday May 27th were days that I've been looking forward to for a while.

Saturday, because of Lobster Fiesta, a night of all-you-can-eat lobster and dancing with my husband. I love lobster and I love my husband almost as much, maybe even more. Okay definitely more than lobster. My parents go just about every year, but this was my first Lobster Fiesta and also the first time Adam and I have danced since our wedding. I'm still madly in love with him (Adam, not the lobster).

Sunday, because of Becky's bridal shower. When you've known someone since kindergarten, friend seems too shallow a word. I mean, we know each other's Moms. We're family. I don't hang out with Becky all that much anymore, regretably, but I'm happy to be included in her wedding celebrations. Other kindergarten alumni in attendance: Alex, who I haven't seen since we were twelve years old. She and I were friends in grade six but didn't go to the same high school. Seeing her was like a page from the past. Becca, the friend I hang out with the most (husbands and other blood relatives accepted) mostly because our lives seem to be running parallel. We were married in the same year and her son, Aedan, was born only a few weeks before William. I hope William and Aedan will still be friends when they're getting married and having kids of their own. Forget high school reunions, we should have more kindergarten reunions!

Graco's Response

I got an e-mail today from "Allan" at the Consumer Service Department of Elfe Juvenile Products (aka Graco) in response to my exploding monitor story:

Thank you for taking the time to e-mail us with your concern. I am extremely surprised to hear that this incident has occurred and I can honestly say that we have not had any other reported cases regarding this.

Well Al, that's because I'm the only nerd that e-mails the company whenever stuff breaks (or a commercial is annoying).

Please forward your complete mailing address, telephone number and the name of the retailer this was purchased from. I will gladly have a prepaid postage label and a tracking number sent to you to have the defective item returned to us for inspection. I will then have a new monitor sent to you once we receive the new unit.

Best Regards,

Allan Blah blah blah

Um, er, I think you mean once you receive the old unit. In any case, if I mail my monitor to Graco, I can't also return it to the store (thereby thwarting my plan to get money PLUS a new monitor). Oh well. I diligently sent Big Al all my information, including my phone number (which I hate giving to corporations) and a sample of my blood in case he wants to clone me (ok that last part's not true). It's amazing how the simple promise of a free baby monitor can entice me to send all my personal information to a stranger.

I hope this doesn't take too long. I'm tired of straining my ears to hear William in the next room.

William's William Shirt Revisited

On March 11th, I posted this picture of William in the personalized onesie that Scottish Carol sent us:

At the time this photo was taken William was just under a month old (24 days to be exact). He was growing quickly and I remember thinking how big he was. Now I can't get over how tiny he looks.


Today William is wearing the same onesie. I'm amazed it still fits (though it is a bit snug). Here's my big boy now, at age 3 months (exactly 97 days old):

My monitor exploded.

The recent demise of my baby monitor prompted me to write the following e-mail to Graco:

Dear Graco Customer care,

I have an Imonitor Digital Baby Monitor (2791DIG) that I purchased just after my son was born (in February). It has been in almost constant operation since then. Recently I heard a 'pop' sound coming from the parent unit (it was in the charger at the time). When I went to investigate I found the parent unit was smoking and smelled like burnt plastic. The battery inside had somehow overloaded. After it cooled we opened the unit and found the battery casing had melted. (see attached photo)

All of the above is true. Except by "almost constant operation" I of course mean "totally and completely constant operation". At the time of the incident William was asleep, the monitor unit was behind me on my night table, and I was goofing off on my computer, trying to keep up to date on the latest wogger mini games. But I digress, the e-mail continues:

I no longer have the receipt or packaging for this product so I hold little hope of getting a refund. However, I believe that this is a safety issue and that your company should take some kind of action. I'm concerned that if this happens to someone else's monitor, it might cause a fire or something more serious.

Okay so I'm a pretty laid back gal and I'm not actually all that concerned that other people's monitors are going to burn their houses down. I do think that Graco should take some responsibility for its products though. Otherwise baby monitors would be exploding all over the place. Civilization as we know it could go up in flames!

In addition, I would like some advice on how I can get a replacement unit, along with assurances that it will not have the same defect.

Or just the replacement unit, without the assurances. As I said I'm a pretty laid back gal. I thought quite a long time (like a whole minute) about how best to ask for a new monitor when I'd already stated that this really isn't about getting a refund. Like heck it's not. I want my money back! I want a new monitor! I want free stuff!

Thank you for your efforts in resolving this matter.

Sincerely,
Jennifer Filipowicz

I will, of course, blog about any efforts Graco makes in resolving this matter. In other news, William's poo was slightly greenish today. According to the internet this could mean any one of several things:

1. nothing, baby poo comes in many colours.
2. I'm drinking too much milk and William has a sensitivity.
3. William has a virus.
4. William isn't getting enough hindmilk so he should drink longer on one boob instead of switching.
5. I've become one of those moms who talks about her baby's poop.