Back in Action...and 30 weeks PREGNANT!

Okay so somebody tell me how it is already JUNE 2nd, 2012!  Time has flown by and I have not spent any time updating my blog!  Well here goes ~ so I have been working since the end of January.  New school, new students, daycare, oh and did I mention being PREGNANT again:)  Things have been going well ~ it is easy for me to admit that my career is for sure not as important as it once was.  All I want to do is get off work and spend time with Marley and Paul.  Luckily, Marley ADORES her daycare (as do I) so that has made this past 6 months way easier.  I struggled with leaving her for work ~ especially since the school district is still laying so many of us off.  Marley's daycare is so wonderful and it made all the difference.  Work was work and I am glad to be off sooner than later.  We have 3 more weeks of class than it will be MARLEY & ME time:)  We get a whole month and a couple weeks before the new baby is to arrive so I plan on doing something super fun every single day with Mars bar.  I was laid off again this past week (2nd to be cut so everyone below me is cut too ~ that is 419 all the way to 576!)  I am not worried as I will be the 2nd one to be recalled so I should know my "assignment" in a couple of weeks if not sooner.  They will then place someone in a long term TOC position to fill my spot as I am on Mat. leave as of September.

I know 2 kiddies will be crazy but I am so excited ~ family is really where my passion lies now.  The pregnancy has been more difficult than the first as I have a lot of hip and groin pain ~ I hurt my groin at the end of Marley pregnancy and that seemed to pop right back a couple months into this pregnancy.  We are 30 weeks right now and I am tired but surviving:)

Marley is growing like a weed and finally decided to walk about a month ago.  She is 16 months old!  She took her first steps about a month prior to walking full time.  It was getting to be very difficult to carry her around with the growing baby bump so I am so happy she is now up and at 'em!  Her words are coming along ~ mainly mama, dada, wawa, baba, pup pup, foee (for Flora our dog), and SHOES!  She already has a shoe obsession and loves changing shoes ~ she also likes to say 2 shoes!  Very adorable!  I don't know how much she understands about a new baby coming along but she sure likes to smack and kiss my growing belly.  We are going to wait to find out what the gender is and we have switched to a midwife who is amazing!  So yeah ~ that about sums up life right now...winding down work, summer break quickly approaching, playing with Marley, enjoying the pregnancy, and looking forward to August 17th (our due date)!  Paul is doing well too:D  I will try to write more often but we all know how that has been going!

It's Almost Christmas!

Well ~ here I am again ~ writing after a whole month has blown by again!  It's funny how you get into your routine and time does not stand still.  Everything is going wonderfully!  Marley is changing constantly and never fails to keep me smiling~even at the worst of times!  She is now a scooter (bum scooter) and she can fly.  She tucks one leg in and gives'er all around our place.  Finally child proofed!  She also experiments with the odd bit of crawling now and then but scooting is her main mode of transportation.  Marley is now completely off of breastfeeding (not my choice) and loves her similac.  She also just grew a couple more teeth so we are up to 6!  Her sign language is bare minimum but enough for us right now with milk and bath:)  It's a lot easier to figure some things out as she is a pretty cut and dry kid.  We hang out during the day ~ do errands, playmates, etc.  Then once daddy comes home I usually pop over to the gym for an hour and get some exercise in.  It has worked out great!  Dreading going back to work ~ I just don't want to leave her:(  Friends say it will be good to get out and do my own thing but I just want my thing to be with Marley:)  We did find a super family licensed daycare place for end of January when I head back so that is a relief.  Only 5 months then summer and Marley and I can hang out 24/7 again!  We will see what September holds with layoffs, etc. ~ Paul and I would like for me to do stay at home mom thing so I am thinking that is the route we are headed.  Luckily I can do 3-4 years of unpaid leave but keep my position in the seniority list for the school district.  So we will just wait and see!  


Today is my 29th birthday and I had a fabulous day with my girl, family and friends.  We went to the gym this morning then went and got a free smoothie from booster juice (go to Simplyfrugal.ca and click on the Canadian Birthday Freebie area!)  I have a bunch of other freebies we plan on using this week!  We then came home and she had a nap.  We got ready for birthday dinner and off we went.  It is so nice to have family and friends join us on my birthday.  Marley was awesome at the restaurant and provided many laughs!  

We are ready for Christmas and can not wait to give our presents.  It was so much fun buying little gifts for Marley!  She will be so excited to open paper and bags ~ I am sure that will provide the entertainment rather than the toys:) Things are good and now I must sign off as Paul and I are going to watch a movie:)  I will share my new passion for couponing next post! Tata for now! 

Holy Smokes! Where did the last month go?

Who knew balloons make such great friends?<3

I just saw the last time I posted and couldn't believe my eyes! October 15?  Wow ~ when you have a baby and the baby routine everything just flies by.  So what has happened lately?  Well I am happy to report that I have joined a fitness club ~ it's not your typical gym ~ it's all class based (which I LOVE).  I really need someone to push me, I need to have signed up for a class to make sure that I will be there.  It is just to easy to come up with excuses especially now.  Marley is doing great in the little childcare they run there.  She plays, discovers and barely notices me when I return to pick her up.  Little social butterfly!  So that's great and I am already feeling better...and sleeping better.  I find my clock is so messed up right now and because I am really exercising hard, I am tired enough to fall asleep at a decent hour:) 

Marley is changing day by day.  She was a cute kitty for Halloween!  Love that baby! I love how much interaction and communication is happening.  She now signs "milk" when she wants a bottle (we are completely weaned now ~ not my choice ~ but I am not the boss).  She is also waving ~ we like to wave to our puppy Flora when we wake up in the morning or get home from errands.  This baby girl is a crazy clapper too!  Everything is so wonderful and I dread returning to work in 3 months:( We'll see though ~ luckily my husband and I have decided to be open to me staying home.  So once February 1 hits ~ we will do what feels right for our family.  I feel really lucky to have that support.

My new latest obsession (other than Marley of course) is COUPONING!  I have a album started and I have everything categorized & organized!  Very excited to save money.  I also have been downsizing my closet to bring in a little extra cash which has been great (and now I can hang clothes up because there is room!).  It is just nuts how much STUFF we accumulate and I more than happy to get rid of things I do not use.  Someone else could use it and with the way the economy is, folks like to buy used in many cases because that is what works for their budget.  


Cloth diapering is still going great!  Rockin Green is sort of working for us but I think I will be switching to The Laundry Tarts or Nellies.  I have heard great things about Laundry Tarts ~ and it's Canadian!  So these are some things that are popular in my household right now:
1.  Buying local (or at least Canadian) as much as possible.  Did you know Oral B floss is made in IRELAND?!?!  What the?
2.  Cut down on plastics ~ we have a wooden highchair (Vancouver BC based company ~ Guzzie & Guss), reusable bags, we go for wooden toys, etc.
3.  Cloth diapers and using baby facecloths as wipes (just use some water folks)
4.  Coupons are great and so is free stuff ~ there are tons of sites where you can get free samples and coupons ~ save some money!
5.  Sell items you don't use, don't need!  Clutter ain't pretty and we consume way too much as a society!  Things are not important!
6.  Physical activity is the spice of life.  Get moving!  I also suggested to my gym to put on fitness classes for mom n tot ~ and they are going to do it!  So excited for that!
7.  Volunteer, trade etc. for goods ~ I am volunteering in the childcare at the gym 1 day a week (for 2 hours) and this will pay for my childcare unlimited while I attend the gym!  Or it could pay for my gym pass if I didn't need childcare.  We also traded some items we don't need for some fresh garden veggies from some friends!  Again save money and be creative!


Marley is taking her first flight on Thursday ~ we are going away for a wedding ~ just to Alberta but still it will be an adventure.  We also used our Royal Bank points to pay for our flights!  I will be sure to report on the travelling with a 9 month old experience as soon as we return!  

Testing...testing...1,2,3 ~ I WHHEEEIIINNN!

Whew!  I just completed my Live Performance Electrical Certificate (LPEC) exam and I passed!  Since having Marley, my brain has not ventured into the academic side of things and I studied for a couple weeks for this exam.  For folks that don't know what this is ~ it's through our Safety Authority ~ it's for people working in the theatre (and film) industry whether it's professional, community or education.  Since I teach drama (and therefore, teach students how to use lighting equipment) I am supposed to have this certification.  To even write the exam you have to put together a package showing your hours (which has to be a minimum of 800 hours working with lighting!) and then you get a login and a pass number to then write the exam online.  You have 75 minutes and 54 multiple choice questions ~ man was this exam hard!  Very specific and detailed ~ a lot of the content does not necessarily apply to what I do day and day and made me have to think back to my university training.  But I studied and got'er done!  So happy I passed and so happy I completed it!  Very handy thing to have on my resume!  Of course, I had to wait until Marley was sleeping to write it.  Which I did and I went through all of the questions and finished with literally a couple seconds to spare!  Then the computer tallies up your mark and tells you how you did ~ when it said Congratulations!  You passed on the screen I actually yelled out "I passed!" soon followed by a cry coming from the nursery ~ I accidentally woke Marley up:)  Sorry baby ~ Mommy was very excited!  She fell back to sleep after daddy went in and ssshhed her and now it's time to relax and watch a movie!  Hoping she will sleep another 13 and a half hours like she did last night!  Feeling super!