on the road again

i went 33 years without a car, hard to believe i know, but it's true. i never wanted one either. i never said "if only", or "i wish" with it in mind. it just wasn't part of my consciousness. it doesn't help that i am afraid of them, or i thought i was, or that i didn't even learn how to use one until i was well into my twenties, and even then it was only because everyone told me that the longer i wait, the harder it will be.

all that ended a couple of weeks ago though when marko and i finally bought one. it wasn't something we had been thinking of really, or even something we thought we needed, although we will concede that it occurred to us that at some point in the not too distant future it might be handy, what with our imagined hockey and soccer practices, art classes and music lessons. mostly it just came about through circumstances, a conversation about cars with a co-worker that led to some investigating followed by driving many cars and then finally settling on the one, my first car, a 1995 volvo 850 turbo. i know, i know, how very family of me, but come on, aren't volvos the new macs?

things that my two weeks of driving have taught me so far:

1. life outside of my neighbourhood, although it is great, is better
2. we can be deep in the forest running down trails, or standing skipping rocks on the ocean in less than thirty minutes
3. no matter how loud i play the music it will never drown out the cries of a disgruntled baby that has had enough of the car seat
4. dance music sounds better when in motion (and preferably without anyone crying)
5. the superstore is like a drug, highly addictive and euphoria inducing. i hate shopping, but i love to just wander the aisles and bask in the sheer volume of it all, especially late at night when the kids are sleeping and no one is around. i have been going a couple of nights a week.
6. gas is expensive, no make that really REALLY expensive
7. anything you want is available to you 24 hours a day if you are willing to drive far enough to get it. this is bad, especially when it involves donuts.
8. having a car somehow makes one feel more free, more capable or something bigger, although i have no idea what that is
9. there was nothing to be afraid of after all
10. i shouldn't have waited so long

for those of you that are sheepishly wondering if i am now going to take back my recycling to the depot, the jury is still out, although i did hear a rumour that they were going to judge in favour of lazy. we'll see.

hi ho, hi ho it's off to...

so many things to write about. i am going to attempt to do one big summary, we'll see how it goes.


a few months ago i made reservations to rent a car one weekend every month throughout the summer. in april we went camping, but last weekend was our may weekend and we chose to not make plans but just to go out and do whatever we fancied. the weather ended up being underwhelming so some of the things we thought we would do, like a hike, didn't happen, but we managed to fill the long weekend with fun anyway.

cohen went to his second first birthday party this time in mission (about an hour drive). the birthday girl was beth who is the daughter of a woman i met online that had a due date close to mine. we had never met in person, despite being so close, so it was nice to finally meet. when we got there i overheard another mom telling a lady that she always worries that her daughter is going to be too aggressive with the other kids. as most of you know, cohen is the same and so my interest was piqued. after talking with her for a bit it became clear that we had to get the kids together and sure enough, they wrestled with each other most of the afternoon (she is the one in the picture). i think cohen was in heaven and he had that look of love in his eye.


on monday, our last day with the car the weather was pretty miserable so we stayed in and ate freshly baked croissants and drank coffee, that is until mid afternoon when the sky cleared up and the road beckoned us. we didn't know where we were going, but in the end our road led us to white rock for a long walk on the beach including standing close to the tracks as the train passed. we thought cohen would really dig the action, but it turns out he was more interested in my water bottle. maybe next time.


then last week cohen went and did some trial runs with his nanny to see how he would do. as expected, he did amazing and hardly cared at all that he was away from me, although the nanny, amy, did say that he kept looking at the door. i am glad she said that because it can be a little heartbreaking having such an independent baby, especially when i am being a needy mom! i know it is going to be a smooth transition for cohen (and hopefully for me) plus, the two boys seem to get along well (although the other boy dante did kick up a fuss every now and again when cohen played with his toys!).


i did end up getting my haircut. i know that many of you have already seen the cut on facebook, and if you haven't then why aren't you on there yet? actually i know why, and it was why i resisted for so long despite the polite prodding by friends. i have no idea why it is so compelling, drawing me back, sucking my time, but there it is. i am sure it is the real reason i haven't updated my blog in so long. so shameful. what was i talking about, oh yes! the haircut. i did end up finding a picture and going in with it and she actually did a pretty good job of getting it right. i also got it highlighted which isn't so obvious here so you may have to trust me on that.

the other big, no let's call it "the biggest" news of the day is that cohen is walking now! he has actually been walking for almost two weeks (first one step followed by a crash, then three, then six...), but i just haven't gotten around to documenting it yet. this is good for you as his skills have greatly improved making for a more entertaining video. in this one take note of the preaching motion with one finger pointed in the air and the serious tone of shouting. this kid has something very important to say, i just wish i could understand it!


so tomorrow is the big day. i am undecided about how i feel. right now i am ok with it though. i will have to report back and let you know how it went. i also want to tell you about this little get together i had today, but for now i am going to end this one here. wish me luck.