Mama-luia

Oh what a truly pun-ny title, given that we are in the midst of getting ready for All Saints Day here in Craine Corner. Yet what actually inspired me to write that title wasn't so much the theme of tomorrow's party but rather the amazing help I received today. Since Patrick is away this weekend , and won't be arriving home until about 45 minutes before our little All Saints party begins, I am left with doing all the prep work. I must have expressed my terror at the thought quite vividly to my family, because my in-laws offered to baby-sit Noah for the morning while I got some preparations done. As well, my father offered to come during this toddler-free time to lend a hand. If that wasn't enough, and really, it is more than enough, my in-laws returned with Noah in time for his nap, but stayed until close to supper hour to help out! My father, likewise! My house is almost immaculate right now! Something I haven't enjoyed since... well... the last time Pat...

There have been so many times that I wanted to sit down at the computer and vent -- how long my days seem, how hard morning sickness is, how much I am finding it all a little much. I knew, though, that I shouldn't. This has all become so much clearer to me in the past two weeks. In the past while, I have been hearing about friends of mine suffering terrible crosses within their family -- very sick babies, miscarriages, and a whole host of other sufferings. To complain about my vocation, particularly the "crosses" of my life (and I intentionally put that in quotations; I know I am extremely blessed) only reflects how narrowly I see life, and how ungrateful I have been. I wept this morning when I thought of all this. How blessed I am! Two beautiful gifts from God! I cuddled Noah on my lap after I dried my tears, and we talked about Baby. (He knows Baby Apple Seed hides in people's tummies, but he hasn't figured out that he or she only hides in Mommy's tumm...

It's an unusual morning at the Craine household. Patrick and his father took Noah and Patrick's younger brother out to the Valley to look at the pumpkin people. I'm home alone in the day for the first time I think since before Noah was born. Sure, I've had opportunities to do things with friends and extended family members withou t Patrick and Noah on many occasions, but I really don't think I've been home in the day without the male members of our family for a long time. I am welcoming the quiet. We are having the most delightful Thanksgiving weekend. I feel so blessed to have enjoyed a wonderful meal yesterday with my family and friends. It was a fabulous occasion. I also had a blast on Saturday with Noah and Patrick the Maritime Fall Fair. It was so delightful watching Noah in the petting zoo with the animals. I was mildly put off by the goats (I declare, they have a slightly demonic look, and they kept trying to chew my purse, forcing them up onto t...

I have never been known to keep a secret. That is, my own secret. Anytime there is anything happening in my life, I have to tell someone! Often, everyone! And as you have probably already heard, we're having another baby. I don't think I can express how grateful I feel. When we first took the test only last week, Patrick was in charge of looking at it after the allotted time; I was too nervous/excited to look! So I hid my head under a pillow. When I heard him say "Well whaddaya know?" with a distinct warmth and a noticeable smile, I got the nerve to take a peek. I saw the little plus sign and I smiled at Patrick. Then I promptly sobbed. I mean sobbed -- because I was so overwhelmed and grateful and relieved and amazed all in one moment and so crying seemed the only reasonable response! We made the decision quickly after that to share our news with everyone, beginning with family of course. I know it is customary for many women to wait until they're 12 ...

On Friday I finally "cashed in" the makeover I won for the Mother's Day contest, and suffice to say, it was a truly enjoyable afternoon of pampering. Because some of you have asked (and some of you nagged) here are some photos of my new haircut (yes, yes, I know, this is a rather inane post, but I must appease my adoring fans).

The longest Noah and I have been separated from Patrick is about 10 hours. Walking to the beach in Miscouche, PEI, during a holiday earlier this summer We just survived a four-day long stretch without him, and we lived to tell about it. It did involve, of course visits with my parents (I crave adult conversation!) 'editing' the bedtime routine out of a bath on more than one night eating cookies at various intervals to keep both of us sane (these cookies also happen to be sweetened without sugar, so I feel somehow justified in eating them) looking at photos of Patrick -- a lot -- just to hear Noah's excited voice as he would point and exclaim "Daddy!" and my personal favourite -- when a strange sound of someone moving around our front porch was heard, it involved me wielding an empty bottle of Rickard's Red. I was thoroughly prepared to smash it on whomever was walking around my property late at night, only to discover it was just a raccoon. As we...

I somehow thought that being married, having a family, a house, a car and a university degree to boot would have changed me from The Girl I Was. You know, The Girl I Was in High School . So I am surprised that I see her creeping up into my thinking patterns, into my ways of living out my vocation, on a fairly regular basis. The most startling way in which I am still The Girl I Was is in how I compare myself to every other woman. In high school, I'd see The Other Girls and think how perfec t their lives looked. I would then look at my own life and see the was the grades I was getting or not. The boys I was dating or not. The university scholarships I was being offered or not. The parties I was being invited to or not. The jeans I could afford or not. And I. would. feel. worthless. So now I am a grownup woman, thankyouverymuch; I don't give a fig about the jeans. The boys (they're all probably married by now, too!). The grades. The scholarships. The parties. High s...