Library list

(puzzles at the library last week)

I've been reading. And I've been trying to shop my library, which is generally pretty painful since the librarian herself complained to me that they only get DVDs now, and almost no books.

There's more to life than this by Theresa Caputo. I am not a ghost/spirit/woo-woo person, but I love the Long Island Medium. I got the book because, um, my library sucks, but I kinda liked the book. One of her big messages in the book is to follow your instincts and your gut. And feel your feelings, which I think some people don't do well since we are so attached to our phones and suck.

This is happy by Camilla Gibbs. I liked this one a lot. I finished it in two days and wanted more.

Stolen lives: 20 years in a desert jail by Malika Oufkir. Oh man. This one is crazy. I can't believe this actually happened. And so recently too. This world is crazy.

Dolly: My life and other unfinished business by Dolly Parton. So this one was hard to get through. I was most interested in her marriage (spoiler: it's a weird one, but they have been together since Dolly was practically a teenager and they are never splitting up), and her surgeries (spoiler: lots, all the time. no shame). The book was hard to read and yet it made me love Dolly a little more and want to visit Dollywood so bad.

The Bling Ring by Nancy Jo Sales. This one started as an article for a magazine. Then it became a movie. Then a book. I think the magazine article would have been plenty. This book feels like the author is just trying to achieve a higher word count. I would chop entire chapters that are so boring.

A girl's weekend in town

This past weekend I went to town (St. John's, 2 hour drive away) with some friends, and the only pics are these sad polaroids. We drove in on the Saturday and went straight to the spa, where I got a facial and manicure. The facial was cool, but I like having proof of my spa time with a manicure or pedicure. Then we went out for supper, then drinks, then dancing on George Street. And wow, did we feel out-of-place. The clubs were filled with young twenty-year-olds. We had breakfast the next morning in the hotel restaurant with an amazing view of Signal Hill, then on to Costco before heading home. I loved that our trip was only 24 hours, so I didn't feel bad to leave the little dude, and I loved talking to a group of strong, intelligent women. I arrived home feeling refreshed and maybe a little hungover.

I have said it before, but it's hard to meet new friends as an adult. We have lived here for 2.5 years, and I am only new starting to feel those connections. You can't force that kinda thing. For me, having a few local girl friends is just such a huge bonus, and makes me feel a little more balanced out.

A few Christmas holiday pictures...

I can't believe it's already mid-January!! Anyways, I decided to bring my big camera to my parents for the holiday, and we probably took 150 pics. My siblings and their spouses and kids were all home for five days, which equalled 8 adults and two toddlers. We spent a ton of time eating and hanging around the kitchen. Also puzzles, sliding, gift exchanging, etc. It was the best. 

(Cohen walking my parent's little dog, Lucy)

(getting ready for some baking)

(he made gluten-free brownies with my mom. he loved it)

(loved playing hockey in the driveway)

(cousins playing hockey)

(reading stories on Christmas Eve)

(Cohen and my bro)

(grandparents. the best)

(cooking in the kitchen)

We used to be a resort-vacation-for-Christmas kinda family (I think we spent 7 Christmases on resorts or in airports), but ever since my sister and I became mothers, we have been doing the holiday in small-town NB, and we love it. It means a lot more work for my parents, but they claim to enjoy getting the house ready and baking and cooking and buying lots of toys for the kids to play with. 

Notes. So many notes:

- Cohen has been sleeping in my mother's walk-in closet since he was a babe, but this year, it felt a little tight. He can't fully stretch out in his travel crib, and he just wanted to sleep either between my parents or between Jon and I. We had a few rough nights. By we, I mean my parents, who got up at 4 am with him a few mornings. 

-  We discovered Cohen's obsession with puzzles. 24-piece puzzles are a joke for him. We were impressed. 

- Jon and I took a day for ourselves, where we went out for lunch, went shopping, and walked around downtown. So nice. Daytime dates are ideal for this thirty-something-year-old. 

- We were all in bed by 10:30 pm on NYE. No regrets.
- I was able to catch up with two different groups of friends from high school, which I consider a big success. My best friend from elementary/middle/high school came to pick me up one morning. While I was getting ready, I heard her laughing with my family in the living room. Brought me right back to my childhood! So good. The hardest part about getting coffee/drinks with old friends is you need more time. We totally skip small talk and end up talking about the most interesting things. Also gossip.
- Cohen and his cousin Grayce. So cute together. Grayce is super outgoing and Cohen is shy, so they took a few days to warm up to each other. G kept copying everything C did. And C kept telling G to be careful. I wonder what it will be like when they are teens.
- My sister dyed my hair, thank goodness. She did it late-ish one night, and was feeling pretty 8-months-pregnant tired, so I am pretty grateful. She gets my hair better than anyone.

Cohen's 37th flight

(above the clouds over Halifax) 

(watching Mickey) 

(fast asleep)

I may have missed a few flights, but Cohen has been on at least 37. He has never been out of the country, and only to Toronto three times. Most of those flights are from NL to NB or NS. He is seriously good at traveling. He absolutely loves going to the airport and getting on flights, so he is always in the best mood when we are there. 

Our travel routine:

- We live two hours from the airport, so we either try to drive when he will have a nap or when he is fresh and awake and happy. He gets to watch shows in the back and we always get coffee and fries on our way out of town. 

- In airports, there is usually a kids area and always a water fountain and a huge window to watch airplanes, so basically the best entertainment ever. We let him run around a lot in airports to try to get him a little tired. We slacked on hand sanitizer and hand washing this last trip, so Cohen ended up getting sick when we got home. Those airport play areas are probably so dirty!

- For the past 6 months or so we have let him bring his own backpack, which he/we pack with his beloved teddy bear, his Mickey mouse, the iPad, his headphones, and a dinky or two. My bag is always stocked with as many snacks as I can. Gluten-free pretzels, yogurt-covered raisins, clementines, apples, dried banana slices, etc. Due to allergies, we are a little limited with airport food. Jon brings the "dad pack" filled with jackets, sweatshirts, etc. And we always bring a few stainless steel water bottles to fill up after security. 

- On the flight he has to wait until the seatbelt sign goes off before he can wear headphones. This has been hard in the past, but at 2.5 years old, he seems to get it. He usually falls asleep on at least one flight in the day, so we always have a sweater or scarf to cover him up. 

The past few trips have been actually relaxing for Jon and I. I couldn't say that a year ago. We get magazines and actually read them. We even had a beer on the plane while Cohen was asleep on Christmas Eve. So awesome. We have a few trips planned so his flight count will definitely hit 40 before he is three. And we are hoping to do an international trip in 2016. Maybe Ireland? 

Iphone pics....

(mailing a letter to Grandma)

(reading at the library)

(watching Christmas songs on youtube)

(enjoying a two hour flight delay)

(this was as close to a bath we got over the holiday)

(flights, lots of them)

(my cool guys)

It's been such a busy and awesome three weeks. Cohen was so into the lead-up to Christmas this year.  We flew to NB to stay with my parents on Christmas eve, and stayed until new years day. Cohen is such an excellent traveler. I think it's mostly because he rarely gets to watch tv at home, so he is just so thrilled to watch Mickey on flights. I have lots more pics and lots more to say about our holiday once I have a little more time and sleep. Cohen slept between Jon and I last night because he was coughing and sneezing so much, so we are all a little exhausted. Kids get sick so much!!