Latest mommy challenge-Vegetarianism (sort of)

You might remember my interest in vegan eating last year. I tried and adopted a few recipes, which is more than I can say for other family members (namely the youngest, pickiest one), so I kind of let the whole idea slide somewhat even if I have continued to educate myself in the blogosphere. For the past couple months, biggirl has been leaving most if not all meat in her plate. It has been frustrating. To some extent, I understand. On the other hand, I am wondering just how much of all this is just about making a statement and showing that she is the boss of her... you know, mild teenage rebellion. Anyways, I have had it with wasting money to put meat on her plate. I have a love-hate relationship with meat. I can't see myself ever giving up filet mignon, but the last time I cooked a whole chicken, I thought taking it apart was pretty gross. Okay really, really gross. Soooo, I have promised to try and cook vegetarian meals 3-5 times a week, just to see if her plate will get emptied. So far, so good. The problem is that I have to serve up meat for hubby and babygirl and, most of the time, babygirl won't even try the vegetarian preparation. This week, we've had brie, spinach, and walnut bowtie pasta and a lentil mushroom gratin. They were both good, not great. A little dry to tell the truth. But both recipes have potential. Funny thing is that it's not that babygirl isn't into vegetables, she just likes plain, no-fuss, raw vegetables. She will devour those like most would eat up a bowl of chips. Bottom line, it's going to take some adjusting. However, I must say that I feel great after eating a vegetarian meal. Join us on this semi-vegetarian adventure and don't hesitate to provide any tricks, suggestions, or recipes you many have to keep us on track!

And then she was 9

A Friday night fondue supper, a kid-based shopping spree, and supper at my mother's completed b-day celebrations for our now 9-year old. Hopefully, the start of her 10th year of life will be smoother than the last couple days. The parties, excitement, and late nights have turned our normally intense babygirl into an impatient firecracker. Of course, it doesn't help that I am having her participate more in little, tiny tasks that can make a difference in our home... and for ME! I know it's my fault, I've always been the kind of mom to put the girls' dishes away for them, same goes for their coats when they get home, and putting their socks in their sock drawer and so many more small yet time-consuming things when you add it all up. Now that they are 9 and almost 13, I want to turn things around a little. We've been working on this for quite some time (we're talking years really...) with biggirl and I still have to tell her to do it or put up with her dirty dishes, boots, and coat lying around (among other things). So, I guess I feel I should get a head start with babygirl and if I'm lucky they'll both get it at the same time and it'll be a done deal. (ha!) The problem is that it's just so much quicker for me to do it for them and it really does require a lot less energy versus having to hassle them about it and then be on the receiving end of their pre-teen and teen attitude. Oh my the attitude! Now there is one thing I cannot stand. At. All. What's a mom to do? It's unacceptable, rude, horrible, frustrating, and insulting. It drives me absolutely crazy. I sooooo don't deserve it. One day, they'll get it. Right?

A spa in my kitchen

I went all out this year and purchased babygirl's bday party. What I got: 2 hours of nail painting, makeup, and hairstyling for eight, yes eight 9-10 year olds. It was great and I am so glad that my investment saved me 2 hours of entertaining, because the 90 minutes in which this task relied solely on me were l-o-n-g. To keep them busy, I had planned a juice bar, a sundae bar, and cake pops. What I hadn't planned on is how many glasses they would go through : one for juice, one for milk, and then one for water...that's 24 glasses in very little time, which equals a countertop full of glasses to wash at the end of the day. Thankfully, that was how hubby decided to participate. Bless him! I guess he felt guilty when he saw how tired I was when they all went home and he had spent the afternoon watching TV (being a dad is so easy sometimes!). Note to self to purchase disposable glasses next time I am inclined to host a party involving kiddos who can't for the life of them keep track of their glasses.

Babygirl was happy and probably just as tired as I was at the end of the day. Mission accomplished for phase 1 of her bday. More celebrating to come later in the week...

Sweet sixteen

Of course, I am twenty (almost twenty one) years past being sixteen, but last week I celebrated an even sweeter occasion. My man and I have been together for sixteen whole years. I don’t know many couples nowadays who met when they were twenty who are still together and going strong like us. Our secret: laughter. Not a day goes by without laughing together. Most of the time, we are laughing about our daily life, something the kids said or did, something we heard, watched, saw... It really doesn’t matter what it is, but in the past sixteen years there hasn’t been a day we didn’t laugh together, even if it has been over the phone a lot when he was away on business. Even when we disagree (because we don’t argue), it often ends in laughter. It’s how we get our point across, it’s how we keep things light and simple, it’s who we are... it’s what we are. We celebrated with our weekly Friday night date at home. Good food, good wine, and, of course, laughter. Earlier in the day, we went shopping. No, not the clothes and shoes kind, the toaster oven and lighting kind, the kind which can actually be done in a hardware store. When I couldn’t find what I was looking for, I asked hubby if he was willing to go to that other store that I love but that he cannot stand. You know, the one that starts with a W, ends with a T, and rolls back prices like crazy... His answer: “Okay”. Wow! When I stated that he must be in a very good mood to accept so willingly he told me that he’s been in a really good mood for sixteen years now. I know. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh... How sweet! Happy sweet sixteen to us!

Excited about veggies

I have been contemplating joining a family farmers network for a few years and this year, we've taken the plunge. I am sooooo excited! I truly cannot wait for June 20th to get our first look at how this goes down every week. For 18 weeks, we will meet with our family farmer at a local drop-off location situated just 5 minutes from our house every Wednesday afternoon. Apparently, they set up much like a mini market and we get our pick of the veggies available that week. The website even states that they provide recipes for vegetables which may be new to us. Yum! Best of all, it's all organically grown. Double yum!
Between this weekly catch and the tomatoes and herbs in our own garden, I'm betting my vegan wannabe crusade will be on the road to success, at least in the summer months. Although, I probaby will never be 100% vegan, I hope to integrate more and more vegan meals in my diet and there's nothing like fresh produce to give a girl a push in the right direction.
I'm hoping to get the girls excited about this too. So far, my enthusiasm hasn't rubbed off on them, they just don't get it. Like it or not, I plan on insisting they join me and get up close and personal with our family farmer. The way I see it, it's all about appreciation of good, natural food. Hopefully, our family farmer will become a strong ally in getting them interested in healthy eating. One day, I hope they will be as excited as I am in front of a colorful, vegetable-packed plate.

Mother Nature... quit playing around!

By now, you've probably understood the fact that I am a summer girl. Warm weather, sunny skies, and driving with the windows down all bring out the best in me. Yesterday, it was once again nearly 30 degrees (Celsius that is), today it was barely 15 degrees and by the weekend we will be back to a possibility of snowflakes.

You gotta love Quebec weather. Or not.

Can you guess where I stand on that one?

Of course you can, it's a no-brainer.

What's up with all the taunting Mother Nature? Make up your mind!

And I am warning you. Don't you dare send more snow our way than the girls' trampoline can handle. Bad enough you ruined our gazebo for the 3rd or 4th time last year, that trampoline is off limits! It's the only thing that can keep the girls outdoors and active for hours. It even has the power to keep them away from the Family Channel not to mention the fact it's an absolute magnet for friends. All they have to do is bounce up and down once and wham! the neighbourhood comes running (or bouncing) along providing plenty of conflict management opportunities (wow, aren't I in a very positive state of mind tonight...).

Seriously, a trampoline is really a constant block party which means tons of fresh air and a fun cardio workout for all with the added bonus of simplified bedtimes.

So hands off the trampoline! It is desperately needed... at least until pool season starts.

How I humiliated biggirl...

and made her proud all at the same time. You see, when she started grade 6, her backpack was still in pretty good shape. So, I convinced her to wait on purchasing a new one, knowing they would all be on sale just a few weeks after school started. Of course, I was right... but by then she had forgotten all about wanting a new backpack. In all my early Christmas planning due to our trip to Florida, my mother picked up the backpack and matching lunchbox she had yearned for in October and tucked them away, crossing one Xmas present off her list. We were so proud!

Then, when Christmas came along (beginning of December in our house), biggirl was thrilled to receive the perfectly high school worthy kit. Come January, we had to do a lot of convincing to get her to use it right away. She wanted to keep it looking brand new for high school... I finally got her to use it before her old one tore open. When I stated that arriving with brand smacking new gear on your first day of high school is uncool, I knew I could rest my case. Sometimes, parenting pushes you to provide extreme explanations I guess...

Just one month later, the inside pocket was completely torn, providing me with a new mission: to get this replaced, free of charge. Now, I am not normally one to return merchandise or cause trouble, but this was probably the most expensive backpack she had ever had and it really was supposed to carry her through at least her first year of high school too. Since, after just one month of use it was damaged, I went to the store, with the girls and the backpack (plus the lunchbox tucked inside), determined to get this business taken care of.

Having worked in retail myself, I know very well that it wasn't the poor manager's fault, but it all didn't go down very well. You see, she started by telling me that there was a 60-day guarantee. Do the math. It was purchased in October, received as a gift in December, and only used as of mid-January...way beyond the 60-day mark. But, I strongly expressed the fact that the bag had not been used for 60 days and that we should not be penalized for Xmas shopping early. I also voiced the fact that this was a pretty expensive kit and that I was very disappointed of the quality. The manager then inspected the bag as I looked on red-faced and exasperated. When she told me that the backpack had obviously been torn by books...I lost it! Of course there were books in it. I mean come on lady, it's a school bag. Then, as I explained that I needed the lunchbox exchanged too since we had paid for a matching kit to begin with because that is what we wanted, I really felt as if we were out of luck. She finally asked me for my phone number and promised to call after she had checked with her supervisor.

Throughout this scene, I could feel the girls' eyes on me, I could tell they were uncomfortable, and I even had time to think of what kind of example I was setting... talk about multi-tasking!

When we left the store, biggirl told me she was a little bit embarassed about how I insisted...but also very proud. As I said, when we pay a lot for things, we expect them to fulfill the purpose we spent money for. I also told them that if the bag were mine I probably would not have done anything, but when it comes to my girls, I will fight no matter what! I also insisted on the fact that I remained polite with the manager. There was no name-calling involved in all my attempts to prove my point.

I don't know how many times I replayed the scene in my head.

Can you guess the final outcome?

A few days later we walked out of the store with a new backpack.

And

A new lunchbox picked out by biggirl. She was happy. I was happy. The manager probably wasn't.

Hopefully the lesson learned is not : get angry and get what you want, but more along the lines of stand up for yourself and make a wrong right.

One thing is certain, the girls know their mom is not a pushover. And I am definitely proud of that!