Most Photogenic Animal

The winner of most photogenic animal at the Toronto Zoo, Boxing Day, 2006 goes to...
(drum roll)...

This Baby Mountain Goat!!!

Runners up: other mountain goats, a camel, turtles, foxes, a hippo's foot. Rather than bore you with endless zoo shots, I thought I'd just post the best. As you probably guessed, I got a new camera for Christmas. It's got a wicked zoom, so you no longer have to use a magnifying glass, or any "Where's Waldo" skills to find the animals in my snapshots. So now I'm on my way to becoming a professional goatographer.

Super Happy Nativity Scene

Hey, I got around to making a new X-mas flash afterall! I'm not usually this traditional but what's X-mas without a nativity scene?




Merry Christmas Everyone!

12 Days of Christmas...OR LESS!

I know it's hard to believe, at least for the snowless citizens of B-town, Ontario, that Christmas is coming THIS WEEKEND. So I thought I'd get everyone in the spirit by posting this flash I made last year. No, I'm not just lazily rehashing old cartoons, I'm creating my own Christmas tradition. Every year, me and my blogger peeps can gather around our computers for a showing of this, admittedly shoddily made, yet somewhat amusing, flashterpiece. Then get yea to the mall, there's not much time left!

Merry Christmas Everyone! (even if you're not Christian. Hey, I'm not Christian either).

Prenatal Horror Theatre

Lately I've been having some feelings of apprehension regarding my appending delivery. Okay, okay, more like terror. Some things that have contributed to my fears:

• Being that I have lead a very sheltered life, I haven't really experienced any real pain. I don't even have cramps when I get my period, so I can't even fathom what labour will be like.
• Our most recent prenatal class talked all about labour and delivery. We watched videos in which women gave birth. Even though they did all the breathing and pain management BS that people talk about, it still looked like a horror show. Was this supposed to make me feel better about going through labour? It didn't.
• I'm of the philosophy that no pain is better than pain, so I plan to have an epidural. But then I saw this episode of Bringing Home Baby where the mom had super big headaches from her epidural, when she stood up or sat up. They were so bad that she couldn't even get up to go to the washroom and her husband had to bedpan her! This seemed to defeat the whole purpose of an epidural. A browse of the internet told me this was rare, and that it happens when the needle goes too deep and some spinal fluid leaks out. It can also cause double vision and hearing problems, because basically your brain doesn't have enough fluid to float in. They can try to patch the hole by sucking blood our of your arm and injecting it in your spine, but then you might get meningitus. I hate needles enough without having to read all this!

The Dream

So last night I had this dream that I was in the hospital. I hadn't even had any contractions yet but for some reason I knew that I was about to go into labour (I don't think I was being induced, I just knew somehow). I thought that I would wait until I was farther along in labour before they would give me an epidural. That's usually how they do things in real life.

Instead, they came in right away, a nurse and a black guy in OR scrubs that I knew was the anesthesiologist. They didn't even ask if I wanted an epidural, they just said it was time, and that was that. I leaned over while sitting on the bed to receive the needle. The anesthesiologist was about to put the needle in, but the bed was so bouncy that I couldn't sit still enough. I remember asking him if he'd had any patients who'd had an epidural headache. He said he hadn't done that many, but I didn't know if he meant that he hadn't given that many epidurals, or if not that many of his patients had had the headache. I was scared that the bouncy bed would make him slip and make the needle go too deep. Eventually we just had to take the mattress off the bed so I had a flat place to sit.

The epidural seemed to work okay after that. So maybe it'll be okay.

The Good Symptoms

Today my arm hurts, especially when I move it. It feels like the tendons and muscles have to stretch beyond capacity just to move my elbow properly. This is similar to what happens to my calves sometimes when I get a leg cramp. I don't even have to look it up to know that this is yet another bizarre symptom of pregnancy. Honestly, what do my limbs have to do with growing a baby?

At this point I could grow a third arm (something that would be pretty useful right about now) and I would just be like "ho hum, yet another pregnancy symptom nobody told me about".

Even before I knew about all the weirdness, I was never one of those women who wanted to be pregnant. I wanted kids, and pregnancy was just something I had to go through so I could be a mommy. Now that I'm going through the experience, I do have to say that there are some enjoyable bits, such as:

• Baby kicks. This is hands down the best part of being pregnant. It starts at about 4 months with something that could actually be gas and increases it intensity until you have this other-worldly creature manipulating your belly from the inside. Honestly I could be the star of the next Aliens movie. When he really goes to town you can see these kicks from the outside. He moves fast too, rolling across my belly like he's dodging bullets. The novelty never really wears off either because the kid gets stronger and stronger. At this point I can kind of see the shape of him when he comes to the surface. Though I'm still not sure what part is his head.
• Not having my period. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I love not having my period. This is probably the reason why some people have 17 kids, and why some mothers continue breastfeeding until their kid is in college (breastfeeding can sometimes keep you from getting your period too). Of course, I know I'm not really avoiding my period, just banking it so I can get all the weeks at once after I deliver. Better to get it all over with in one shot, says I.
• Being the centre of attention. The pregnant bump is a great conversation piece and it means everyone around me talks to me about babies. This is fabulous because I get SO bored with small talk about the weather, what people do for a living, celebrity gossip, relationships, politics, and the weather. Did I mention the weather? Who cares! Babies is a topic I can get interested in. In fact, it's all I think about. That, and what I'm going to eat next.
• My super appetite. I can eat as much now as my 6'2" husband (usually), and when I get exactly what I want, the food tastes more delicious than ever. Sure, I'm gaining weight, but it's all going towards my boobs and baby (in that order).

That's all I can think of right now. I should also mention that I got a phone interview to be on the show "Birth Days" a Life Network show that I gather is the Canadian equivalent of TLC's Bringing Home Baby. Even if they choose us, we might not do it. Adam's shy about being on camera (I find most guys who are into photography are). Anyway the lady who talked to me seemed to want Adam and I to have conflict, but unfortunately for her we're the perfect couple.

Wicked!

I'm a big Wizard of Oz fan, so Wicked the musical wasn't a very hard sell for me. Turns out the Wicked Witch of the West wasn't that evil after all. She was just misunderstood, 'cause she was green. The big mystery of the show for me was how Elphaba (the witch's name in the musical) was able to touch the other characters without getting green make-up all over them. I'm thinking they just made the actor eat nothing but spinach and green jello for 3 months.

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed the play. I was so into the character that, knowing she was to be melted, I felt all tense and sad and scared for her.

Some highlights:

• Finding out how the lion, the tinman, and the scarecrow came to be
• The big mechanical wizard head
• The flying monkeys (they were neat-looking, much more so than in the flick)

I'm going to have to watch the Wizard of Oz again now to see if I can answer all my "now wait a second, if she isn't really wicked then in the movie why did she..." questions.

If it's good enough for Bon Jovi's kid

For the past few months (basically since we found out I was pregnant) Adam has been trolling the internet, looking for the most new, innovative, and expensive stroller technology. Daily, the husband shows me videos and quotes reviews about these stylish yet over-priced items. A stroller is like baby's first car, and should our little bundle have the sportiest model?

We talked seriously about getting the bugaboo, the trendiest and most high-priced of the lot. These things are everywhere, which is surprising since it costs $1000, and that's if we smuggled it across the US border illegally, avoiding taxes and duty by calling on my father-in-law's Polish mafia connections in New York.

My reason for going along with the plan to spend a sizable portion of baby's college fund on a stylish pram, is that many of these expensive models have reversible seats. Meaning baby can have the traditional outward facing position, or he can face Mommy. Now I read somewhere (likely when I was interning at Today's Parent) that if a child faces his his mommy (or daddy) while in his baby carriage there will be more bonding between parent and child, mommy will talk to baby and baby will observe how words are formed by watching her lips, baby will therefore learn to talk quicker, he will develop a stronger vocabulary than babies in front-facing strollers, he will learn to read faster, he will do better in school, and he'll grow up to be a genius.

So we got a stroller with the reversible option. We didn't have to go to another country, and we didn't have to pay a thou (close, but not quite). We settled on the Rockstar (pictured above) which comes with a bassinet so you can make it a pram, or a regular stroller seat that you can recline at all different angles and face any way you like. Bon Jovi endorces this carriage, so you know it's cool.

Plus, it comes in red.

What's up with this dream?

I dreamt that Bele was still alive. Someone had found him outside and brought him to me. Adam and I were visiting someone with the pigs and I wanted to clean the cage before I put Bele back in so that he wouldn't catch whatever had killed him before. We were looking for garbage bags and (for some reason) rubber maid containers. When I put Bele back in the cage, Lokai was happy to see him. I think they were actually having sex at some point (yes, I know, but this is as X-rated as my dreams get).

As I mentioned, we were visiting someone. There were lots of people, a party I guess. The pigs' cage was on the floor and some woman was walking her dog around the living room. It was a big dog, like a bull terrier. When the dog got near the cage he swallowed Bele whole!

The woman said she was sorry and reached her arm down her dog's throat in an attempt to retrieve Bele. We thought that the dog might have thrown up Bele into the garbage chute, so everyone at the party was searching through a basement full of garbage looking for him. There was a little girl there who wanted to leave. I gather she had somewhere to be and her Mom was making her stay to look for Bele. She kept saying "I want to go to _____ now." (The blank of course referring to wherever she needed to be, but I don't remember where that was.) I kept saying to everyone "You have to find him, he's my miracle pig."

I think someone did find Bele, but he wasn't as whole as we at first thought.

A Jolly Happy Soul

Even though I'm not that big for a woman entering her third trimester, I feel like a snowman with legs. You know, three big snow balls on top of each other: belly, boobs, head. The problem is the boobs. I have a smallish preggers belly with humongous breasts. GAH! My back is also protesting the change in my body. I bought myself a super expensive back massage chair with my birthday money, and I also got one of those pregnant belly cozies. All these things help, but don't cure what ails me.

On Wednesday, Adam and I took a tour of the hospital where my son will be born. It kind of freaked me out. Phrases like "labouring" and "pain management" were tossed around frequently. Of course I checked out the other pregnant women's breasts. They were just as small as ever! Honestly I bet they still wear a C-cup, so their belly looks larger and rounder, which makes them look all glowing and pregnant, instead of like a frumpy snowwoman. It is so unfair. Oh well. I bet all those women have hideous stretchmarks. And hemorrhoids.

Anyway, I'm sure it will all be worth it. I mean, look how cute this kid is:




Now I'm off to Becca and Drew's baby shower! (Their unborn son is cute too)

Jen's Fantabulous B-day Weekend

I know you are all anxious to find out what I did for my birthday on Friday. Here's the lowdown:

Friday November 10th (my birthday)

After work my husband and I went to my Mommy and Daddy's house. Mom made a super delicious, and highly labour intensive, meal of rouladen and spaetchle (with cream spinach!) It was a wonder to behold (and to eat, of course). Afterwards we had chocolate cake and ice cream.

Prezzies:
-Tickets to the musical "Wicked" (from Mom and Dad)
-DVD of season one of "The Tick" (cartoon) and "Wonder Woman Season II" (from my brother, Craig).

Next we watched a couple Tick episodes with my nephew, Hunter). Then we hung out until it was late enough to head to Karaoke night at the bar down the street. Craig, Rob (my sister), and my Adam all came and we sang and sang. Well, Adam didn't sing, but the rest of us were all up in there. Don't worry, I only drank ice tea and water.

Saturday November 11th (Rememberance Day/ 3D ultrasound day)

Adam's prezzie to me was a 3D ultrasound so I've been keeping myself all hydrated. Me, My Adam, Mom and Dad, Robin, Hunter, Craig, my mother-in-law Eva, my father-in-law Chris, my sister-in-law Julie, my best friend Eireann, and my best friend Becca and Drew, all crowded into the Ultrasound room to see my bare belly. If you were to compare Saturday's pics of my unborn son, to the one taken at the baby show demo (I'll post some pics soon so you can do that), you might think it was a completely different baby. His face has filled out a lot more and he actually looks even cuter! The ultrasound tech was cooing about how accomodating my baby was. He showed us both ears! What a good baby. We also got yet another confirmation that yes, he is a boy along with a clear snapshot of his, um, bits (to show future girlfriends).

Afterwards my Mom served everyone lunch, which was basically a late Thanksgiving, or early Christmas dinner. We had turkey and yorkshire pudding and stuffing and all kinds of yumminess. My Mom's a fabulous cook. Later the whole gang (minus the inlaws) went to see my nephew's choice of movie: Flushed Away. It was good, great slug bits, but I liked the movie with my son in it better.

Prezzies:

The ultrasound (from Adam)
A highly useful weird alien robot thing that sings different beats and can plug into a radio or mp3 player (from Becca and Drew)

According to Adam, I have another present on the way in the mail. He wouldn't tell me what it is, but assures me I'll like it.

27 weeks for baby, 27 years for me

Today is my 27th birthday and I'm 27 weeks pregnant. It's almost as if that were planned (it wasn't). 27 is actually quite a milestone (for baby, not for me) because this is the time when his lungs develop. That means that if something were to happen and I had to deliver right now, my son would have a good chance of surviving outside the womb. Apparently, being able to breathe is the secret to making it in this world.

Not that he's expected any time soon. Not until at least February 5th (my due date), and judging by the tardy, womb-loving kids in my family, likely not for a week or so after that.

Because I really can't wait that long to see him, tommorrow morning baby and I will be enjoying one of my b-day presents: a 3D ultrasound! (By 3D, I of course mean you can actually tell it's a baby and not, put on goofy red and blue glasses and it looks like the kid is floating in front of your face). I'm supposed to be well hydrated so that my ambiotic fluid isn't all murky, so today I'm drinking lots and peeing lots.

Some people don't like birthdays but I love 'em. I've feeling kind of hormonal today (my zits are back) and so I'm extra looking forward to an evening of cake and prezzies and all-about-me.

The difference between a baby show and a baby shower is the cake

So last night Adam and I went to the Welcome Wagon "Baby Shower" which is actually identical to the Welcome Wagon "Bridal Shower" that I attended last year. There are only about 10 booths to advertising their wares, and many of those aren't even baby related. That's right, Mary Kay, I'm talking about you.

So we sat through this rather hillarious maternity clothing fashion show. The models were obviously not pregnant, and compensated for their lack of bulge by wearing somewhat square pillows. The host of the show was a guy with a suit and a fake laugh whose jokes about being pregnant would've gone over a heck of a lot better had he been a woman. There was also some woman who talked for a few minutes about a parenting humour book she had written.

Smattered throughout the farce, the suit with the fake laugh would give out door prizes. Normally I don't win anything, not even free scratch tickets, but last year at the "Bridal Shower" I won a pair of earrings so I was optomistic. The odds are actually pretty good. There are about a dozen prizes for a hundred fifty people (half of whom are not preggers, and therefore not eligible). The suit had given away all the prizes and felt that downer feeling you get from not winning when you thought you might. Then, suddenly, the suit realized he had one more prize to give away. A fifty-dollar gift certificate for maternity clothes. And guess whose name they called? Mine! (Or rather a reasonable facsimile of my name, because nobody can prenounce Filipowicz correctly on the first try).

For those who love forwards

This is one of those get-to-know-your-friends forwards that we all spend our lives filling out for no reason. My friend Becky sent me this one. Being that it's Sunday, the day of nothing better to do. I'm filling it out. So there!

1. What time did you get up this morning? 8:30ish, maybe 9?

2. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds. I don't wear a lot of jewelery 'cept my wedding and engagement ring, and who ever heard of a pearl engagement ring?

3. What was the last film you saw at the movies? Man of the Year. The one where Robin Williams is a comedian who runs for president. It was okay.

4. What is your favourite TV show? Always has been and forever will be Star Trek: the Next Generation.

5. What do you have for breakfast? Today? I had cream of wheat. Normally I'm a cereal girl ("I said I'd taste it, I'd give it a whirl, and now I am a cereal girl!")

6. What is your middle name(S)? Meghan. I was also going to keep my maiden name as a middle name. It's not official, but in my heart of hearts my other middle name is McNicoll.

7. What is your favourite cuisine? I like food.

8. What foods do you dislike? Brocolli, cabbage, any other foods that smell like fart.

9. What is your favourite crisp flavour? Crisp? What are we British now? I like pringles, or Miss Vickie's Sea Salt and Malt Vinegar.

10. What is your favourite CD at the moment? Maybe Caroline Whiles' new CD, I dunno.

11. What type of car do you drive? A 1999 silver Subaru Forester. Oh, who am I kidding, Adam drives it, I just listen to the radio.

12. What characteristics do you despise? Um, warts?

13. Favourite item of clothing? I like my flannel PJs and any pants that still fit me.

14. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation? To Europe! (see previous post).

15. Favourite brand of clothing? Dunno. Whatever's the cheapest and the most colourful.

16. Where would you like to retire to? My mansion on Lakeshore Rd, of course. (see previous post).

17. Favourite time of the day? This is a tough one. All times of day are pretty well the same when you're inside in front of a computer. I guess any time where Adam and I are both not at work, and we can hang out together. Oh I know! That time just before bed where the baby's kicking and Adam's lying beside me with his hand on my preggers belly.

18. What was your most memorable birthday? One birthday Adam got my book published (print run of one). That was cool. I can't really say it was memorable though because I don't remember which birthday it was.

19. Where were you born? Montreal

20. Favourite sport to watch? ZzzzzzzzzZZzzzzzz! Huh? What was the question? Someone said the word "sport" and it put me right to sleep.

21. Who do you least expect to send this back to you? Since, I'm not sending it to anyone, I doubt anyone will send it back.

22. Who do you expect to send it back first? See previous answer.

23. What fabric detergent do you use? Tide.

24. Coke or Pepsi? I don't like either. They're all fizzy and taste like sugar water.

25. Are you a morning person or a night owl? I'm a daytime kinda gal.

26. What is your shoe size? 8 1/2 or 9

27. Do you have any pets? Lokai the guinea pig. Which reminds me, it's time to clean his cage.

28. What did you want to be when you were little? An artist, a stewardess, or a bus driver.

29. When is your birthday? November 10th. Not much time left to plan that surprise party!

**********FAVOURITES****************
Shampoo? Honestly, who has a favourite shampoo?

Soap? The kind that cleans.

Summer/Winter? Depends on the weather. I do like the snow.

Favourite Advertisement? That Vanilla Miniwheats commercial is pretty catchy. You know, the one where Mr. Miniwheat sings about faling in love with vanilla flavour.

Book? I like my mommy's books. Her new one, Beauty Returns, is especially excellent.

****RIGHT NOW*****************

Wearing? My flannel PJs. Hey, it's only 10:30!

Eating? Nothing at the moment. I'm thinking about having an apple.

Drinking? Can't drink. I'm pregnant.

Thinking about? Babies.

Listening to? Barenaked Ladies, off my husband's iTunes.

**********THE LAST 24 HOURS**************
Cried? I'm not sure, maybe, could have been 25 hours ago.

Met someone new? Noone memorable.

Cleaned your room? Ha! That's a good one.

Drove a car? Nope.

How many hours sleep? Probably 8, but who knows?

*************DO YOU BELIEVE IN* *************

God? No.

Yourself? I believe in myself, it's those other turkeys that are holding me back.

Santa Claus? I consider myself a Santa Claus agnostic.

Destiny/Fate? Not really.

Ghosts? Oh come on now.

**********FRIENDS AND LIFE**********

Who have you known the longest of your friends? Probably Becca and Drew. I don't remember who else was in my kindergarten class and who I didn't meet until grade one.

Who do you go to for advice? Depends on what I need advice on. If I need to learn to cook something, there's Mom. If I have computer trouble, there's Adam. Becca's pretty good for general advice. And there's always my good friend the internet.

When do you cry the most? When the preggers hormones kick in.

Okay, that's it. I should probably warn you that if you don't fill this out for yourself and send it to all your aquaintances, you'll be attacked by some kind of rabid snake or have your tongue cut out or something.

If I had a Crazy Amount of Money

I was browsing my husband's blog (which hardly gets updated). His post of September 23rd was all about what he would buy if he were super rich. It basically listed a bunch of boy toys: cars, motorcycles, computers, and camera stuff (though if he re-did the list now I'm sure he would include a Bugaboo stroller). In response to his post, I decided to make my own list. Hey, my birthday is coming up after all (Friday, November 10th, I reach the ripe old age of 27).


A mansion on Lakeshore Rd. For those of you who know Burlington, you know that the lakefront is lined with these overly-extravagant palatial properties. This one's only a million eight, so it's reasonable. And yes, it really is for sale. Check out the mls listing below:
http://www.mls.ca/PropertyDetails.aspx?vd=&SearchURL=%3fPage%3d2%26Mode%3d0%26vs%3d1%26rlt%3d%26cp%3d%26pt%3d0%26mp%3d700000-0-0%26mrt%3d-1-0-0%26Beds%3d0-0%26Baths%3d0-0%26f%3d%26ft%3dall%26o%3dD%26of%3d1%26ps%3d10%26ptgid%3d1%26aid%3d895%26MapURL%3d%253fAreaID%253d888&Mode=0&PropertyID=4271748



I'll have one of the rooms in my mansion done up to look like the Enterprise D bridge. Of course the view screen will actually be a widescreen TV. I'll also put all my Star Trek DVD's into a massive DVD changer so I can access any episode on demand from that little remote in the Captain's chair.


A porsche 911 convertible. A red one. I did a project on porsches in high school German class. Hitler had a 911. I'm surprised porsche doesn't use that fact much in their advertising. I spent a bunch of time on www.porsche.com customizing my car. Red leather interior, the works. The car starts at 136, 000. Mine ended up at 215, 855.


A smart roadster. This car is only available in the UK, but I'm sure I could fly one over. The problem with my car choices is that these are all two-seaters, with no room for baby! So I'll also need a nice family car, for driving baby around and long trips.


This is a porsche Cayenne. Don't know much about it, but porshe is a brand I trust. And look, it has room for baby in the back. Hey! Somebody stole my hubcaps!

Enough with the cars (the garage in my mansion isn't big enough!) Vacation time!

I want not one, but several European vacations. This castle is in Germany, but I'll of course want to see every country. I have to visit every museum mentioned in my art history classes, see the Sistine chapel, attend real German Octoberfest, get my picture taken leaning against the leaning tower of Pisa, ride in one of those Venice gondolas, climb the Eiffel Tower (again), and stop for periogies at Adam's Babcia's house.

With all the leftover money I have (and they'll be lots), I get my son a really great university education (or college, whatever he's into). Maybe he can get a few degrees. You can never have too many.

Baby goes to the doctor/ Baby goes to school

This morning I had another prenatal appointment where they took my blood. This time they made me drink a bottle of orange pop (special prescription orange pop of course) and then wait an hour. The vampires wanted the blood to have a little flavouring I guess. This is the test that is supposed to tell if I've turned into a diabetic.

Anyhoo. Tonight we went to our first prenatal class (we being me, my husband, Adam, and my unborn son). The teacher was this nurse who looks about thirty but says she has a twenty-year-old daughter. She talked a bit about nutrition and exercise and other pregnancy stuff. Like any first class, we just glossed over a little of everything and didn't really learn anything new. Some highlights:

At one point, the guys left the room and the women were asked to make a list of all the changes we noticed during the pregnancy (the guys made their own list). The woman who was jotting stuff down kept censoring what I said. For example, I'd say "my boobs are humongous!" and she's write "fuller breasts", and I'd say "I'm getting stupid" and she'd write "forgetfulness." This was kind of fun. Of course, being that we all had Mom Brain, we forgot about all the positive pregnancy stuff, like baby kicks, and not having a period. I cannot stress enough how much I love not having my period.

Near the end the teacher walked us through a relaxation exercise so that we'll have something to take our mind off the pain when we're in labour (she said this was necessary even if we plan to have an epidural because you don't always get juiced up right away). I got sort of lost when she asked us to visualize stuff, running through a meadow, etc. I pretty much gave up when she told us to picture a box and put our concerns in it. I'm sitting there thinking: "Okay I got the box open now how do I put my concerns in it? What does a concern look like? How do I visualize it? Have I pictured a big enough box?" and by this time the rest of the class is down the garden path, playing in a stream or something. So I just kept breathing in and out, which I admit is pretty relaxing, though by the end I was getting bored. Can we get out of this meadow and get on with the class, thought I. Adam thinks this is due to an undiagnosed attention deficit disorder and that only I would get bored of relaxation.

Happy Halloween

Just call me Clifford the Big Red Dog. I'm wearing red Clifford ears, I drew a doggie nose on my face with make-up, and I even found a black choker that could pass for a collar. I wore my costume to work today despite the wemblings of my conservative husband. As far as I've seen, only one other person dressed up today; she came as a bloody surgeon. My theory is that people refrain from dressing up because they're afraid they won't be taken seriously. I don't worry about that: nobody takes me seriously anyway.

Anyway I'm having a great time. Everywhere I go people smile at me and tell me how cute I look, sometimes they even give me candy. People should behave this way every day! I just love Halloween.

Tonight I have class so I won't be able to see all the Trick-or-Treaters. Can you believe this is the second year in a row that my class has fallen on Halloween? I have a presentation today too, so I couldn't be "sick". Just as well, my group will probably get an A+. I mean, how could anyone give a bad mark to a big red puppy?

Baby Show!

Today Adam and I went with my parents and my nephew to the Today's Parent Baby and Toddler Show in Toronto. We got all kinds of free baby stuff (wipes, formula, rash cream, etc.) and entered our name in a million draws for a million baby gift baskets. We also got lots of pamphlets teaching us new and exciting ways to blow all our money on things like freezer space for our kid's umbilical cord blood and videos to teach him how to read when he's 3 months old.

More importantly, we got a five minute demo of one of them newfangled 3D ultrasounds. Here is the souvenir pic:



For some reason this scan makes children look all gold and lumpy, but I think our son was the most adorable one there. Now the big question: who does he look like?

Adam:


or me:



You can vote on the poll on the sidebar there ----->

The twilight zone canning

For about a month I've been doing menial work for a financial company (in this case the word "financial" is code for "a place for rich people to dump their money"). When I say menial, I mean requiring fewer brains and less skill than a data-entry clerk. My job was to pull some stuff out of a file, fax to the next room, put the file back, then repeat the process for 50 files a day. Despite the rotting braincells, I enjoyed myself. Most of the people I worked with were friendly and easy to talk to.

Fast-forward to Monday: the twilight zone events. I finished my work day, and said "see you tommorrow" to my coworkers. That evening I got a call from my temp agency lady. She said they didn't want me anymore! "Huh?" said I. I wasn't near done my extra-important monkey work.

"You're work was great, but you were a bit too chatty" was my boss's opinion of me, relayed third person via the British accent of my temp agency lady.

Okay, I freely admit I'm chatty. But wouldn't it be prudent to tell me that? I'm obedient to the point of self-deprivation and would gladly work in silence if asked. But nobody asked. In fact, the last time the supreme commander (VP with the authority to can me) talked to me at all it was my second week, to ask if I could stay until mid November! I rarely saw the woman, except the odd time when she came to use the photocopier.

Having said that, if she wanted me gone that's her call. It's the way it was done that has me baffled. I suppose it is the nature of temp work that supervisors can avoid unpleasant confrontations by simply asking the middleman to send in the next monkey. I couldn't believe anyone could be so cowardly and uncourteous. I'm not even saying that in a way that means: "That &$#@%! How dare she do this to me!" I'm thinking more along the lines of: "Huh? Do people in the real world really behave this way?" The whole thing was straight out of dreamland.

Luckily the folks at my temp agency were just as flabbergasted, and immediately got me set up with a new gig. Now I'm working in Oakville, in a warehouse full of Lego and porn, for these two supervisors who don't have time to do all their daily data-entry. Most of the time I'm alone in their office (no opportunity to be "chatty") but every once in a while one of them will come in and squeal with delight because I've finished all his boring work. It's nice to be appreciated.

Guess who came for dinner...

So my inlaws came over for dinner yesterday, which of course requires a whole day of cleaning and cooking. (I handled the cooking. Adam's better at cleaning, he's his mother's son). I made pierogi lasagna and spinach and salad. For dessert: store-bought chocolate pudding cake and ice cream.

Then for the evening's entertainment, we played Rummikub.
This is a game I used to play with my grandmother, a common activity for the McNicoll Clan. The Filipowicz's, however, never play board games as a family. They can be a pretty rowdy bunch when asked to compete.

In any case, a good time was had by all.

Best Hat Ever

My father-in-law went to Vulcan and brought me back this supercool hat. It's hillarious that he would even go to Vulcan (which is in Alberta, what were you thinking?) because he thinks everything to do with science fiction or fantasy is "for kids."

So I have this cold and on Tuesday I was in night class, blowing my nose and feeling miserable. I left class early because my brain was all clogged with snot. Some women smoke crack all through their pregnancies, all I want is a Neo Citran. Anyway, I got home just before ten, all bummed out and stuffy.

It turned out my hubby had been over at his parents house and had brought back this hat. It made me happy. (No easy task). Next time I see my father-in-law I'm going to give him a great big hug.

BTW: Here's my most recent preggers belly shot: