It was all the Extras.

Leave a comment September 10, 2013 drworobec

It was my birthday on Saturday.

I turned 34. Not a ‘milestone’ birthday, not a significant life-changing number, not a shift in decade, or even divisible by five. But a birthday nonetheless, and September 7th still makes me feel special every year. Perhaps it’s the nostalgia of childhood birthdays gone by, perhaps it’s the back-to-school rush, and perhaps it’s the changing of seasons, but whatever the reason, my birthday makes me appreciative. Grateful. Happy.

All that being said, I wasn’t particularly looking forward to my birthday this year. Not that I was dreading it, but rather that I was apathetic- I was in a ho-hum, take-it-or-leave-it, just-another-Saturday mood. Birthdays have changed for me over the years, as they do with age, and the most important birthdays in my life now happen on January 22nd and March 2nd. Those are the days on which memories are made, self-esteem is cultivated, and confidence is boosted. Those are the days that I vividly recall meeting the two blessings who came into my life and changed me forever. September 7th takes a backseat.

And so, when Saturday rolled around, the day’s plan included hot yoga, work, a family afternoon at the playground, and a date night with my husband. I love all of these things, so my ‘special day’ was shaping up to be pretty good. What I didn’t count on were the ‘extras’…..

The extra excitement of my four-year-old racing in to my bedroom and waking me with an unprompted ‘Happy Birthday’!
The extra help from my children’s hands tearing open my presents.
The extra phonecalls, voicemails, texts, emails, Tweets, and Facebook posts from friends and family.
The extra mail throughout the week, full of birthday cards from across Canada.
The extra hugs, gifts, and babysitting from my in-laws.
The extra-special friends who surprised me at our dinner out, orchestrated by my extra-thoughtful husband.
The extra work done by my wonderful friend and neighbour to make me a homemade, flour-less, to-die-for chocolate birthday cake.
The extra sleep I got on Sunday morning when my husband quietly took the kids downstairs for breakfast.

The extras made it special. The extras made it not ‘just another birthday’, not ‘just 34’, not ‘just September 7th’.

It was all the extras.

I’m an extra-lucky girl.

September 7th, 1979.

60 Adventures in 60 Days

2 Comments September 3, 2013 drworobec

With September upon us, and back-to-school in full swing, I took a look at the fun-filled Summer I had with my family. Because my husband is a teacher and I work part-time, we are lucky to have lots of family time in July and August. And this year we’ve been in ‘puppy training bootcamp’, so we stuck relatively close to home.

We managed to pack in 60 adventures in 60 days.

Here’s what we did, in random order:

1) The Canada Day celebrations at Spencer Smith Park.

2) Casey learned to walk!

Taking the GO Train to see the Toronto Blue Jays play!

3) The GO Train to a Toronto Blue Jays game.

4) Frequent trips to the driving range.

5) Hand-feeding giraffes at Safari Niagara.

6) Visiting the Pet Store to buy dog treats and say hello to the animals.

9. Cruising through the Burlington Mall in one of the mall's double strollers.

7) Cruising through the Burlington Mall in one of the mall’s double strollers.

8) We took my 4-yr-old to his first (and second) movie in the theatre.

9) Got a balloon animal from Halaloo the Clown at Tansley Woods Rec Centre- this was through a great program offered by the Burlington Public Library.

10) The Canadian Open golf tournament at Glen Abbey.

11) Mini-SNAP camp at Brant Hills two afternoons/week.

12) Exploring the creek that runs behind our house.

13) The ‘Biggest Little Night’ carnival, put on by the City of Burlington’s Parks & Rec Department.

14) Thursday night soccer with DASH Sports.

15) My half-marathon row.

16) Climbing trees.

17) Drew learned to ride his bike without training wheels.

18) Skating lessons at Centre Ice with Coach Tommy.

19) ‘Small Oneders’ library program at BPL’s Central Branch.

20) Raspberry picking at Hutchinson’s Farm.

21) Backyard BBQ’s with our neighbors.

22) ‘Creep, Crawl, and Toddle’ at the Ontario Early Year’s Centre.

23) Weekly Monday night dinners (minus myself, as I work Monday evenings!) with cousins and grandparents.

24) Valens Conservation Area.

25) Playing baseball at Emerson Park.

26) My friend Dale, whom I haven’t seen in 13 years, came to visit from Bristol, England.

27) We watched him play in a Burlington Centaur’s Rugby match.

28) Lil’ Monkeys indoor playground and Tansley Woods indoor Treehouse.

29) A family reunion with my mother-in-law’s extended family.

My cousin Lindsay (from Edmonton) came for a visit, and met Casey for the first time!

30) My cousin Lindsay (from Edmonton) came for a visit- we toured ‘Fielding Estates’ winery in Beamsville.

31) Mountainside outdoor pool and splashpad.

32) Nelson outdoor pool and splashpad.

33) Valleyridge splashpad in Oakville.

34) Bronte Park outdoor pool.

35) Bike rides with the double bike trailer attached.

36) The Bird Kingdom in Niagara Falls.

37) The Niagara Skywheel in Clifton Hill.

37) Walks through the Orchard trail system, ending up at the duck pond.

38) Walks through the Orchard trail system, ending up at the duck pond.

39) A Hamilton TigerCats game at the University of Guelph.

40) Wasaga Beach.

41) Blue Mountain Village.

42) Hosting friends for backyard lunchtime playdates.

43) August long weekend cottage time.

44) Regular swims in my sister-in-law’s and in-law’s backyard pools.

45) Neighborhood ice cream truck visits and snow-cone stands.

46) Centre Island.

47) LaSalle Park wading pool.

48) Burlington Children’s Festival at Beachway Park.

49) Fishing at my sister-in-law’s cottage.

50) The Burlington Farmer’s Market.

51) Going to my husband’s weekly Touch Football games to cheer him on.

52) Hand-feeding chipmunks at the LaSalle marina.

53. Paddleboarding at Burlington Beach.

54) Visiting the animals at Bronte Park.

55) Assumption Crusaders football camp.

56) Brantford Twin Valley Zoo.

57) Competing in the ‘Day/Night Challenge’ at Crossfit Altitude.

58) Ribfest.

59) An overnight getaway with friends in downtown Toronto.

60) Grandma and Grandpa visited from Sundre, Alberta.

“One must maintain a little bit of Summer, even in the middle of Winter.”

~Henry David Thoreau

‘HH’

4 Comments August 27, 2013 drworobec

I had to buy school uniforms last week. The navy blue and white, the school logo, all signal the passage of time. My four-year-old starts Kindergarten in just a few days.

My first baby, the child that changed everything about my life and my priorities is going to school. Thankfully, he will still be half-days only, as his school is one of the last Ontario schools to convert to full-day JK. And truth be told, we enrolled him in Nursery School three afternoons/week last year, so the step up to five afternoons/week is the next logical progression.

He is more than ready. The question is, am I?

As we carefully label his backpack and his water bottle, I remember the hours spent in his nursery, folding his clothes, unpacking his diapers, building his crib, all in the anticipation of his birth. And as we buy his running shoes and his snack containers, I remember the hours spent in the playroom, the backyard, the kitchen, teaching him to stack and unstack, open and close, count and sing.

My husband and I have a short-form via text message for ‘heading home’: because it’s a phrase we use often in our daily comings and goings, we simply text ‘HH’ and the partner at home knows that the other is on their way. And since I will be the one dropping our son off at school on his first official day while my husband is at work, I will text ‘HH’ on my walk back home with our 18-month-old daughter so he knows that the drop-off went well. I will be ‘HH’ back to a new reality, the next chapter, and the start of a new adventure for all of us. Bye-bye to my baby, my toddler, my Preschooler, and hello to my Kindergartener.

September 13th is his first official day. And as I drop off my not-so-little boy at school, I can promise you there will be tears, and lots of them. But my tears will be hidden from him by my smile and my hugs, mixed with nostalgia and excitement, disbelief and joy, amazement and hope.

I will be ‘HH’… proud and content.