Finally, a day off!!

It's been a long stretch. I just did 7 days in a row. Granted, the first three days were a course, but follow that up with 4 work days of 10 hour shifts, and it is good to have a day off. And, it's the only day. I'm back at work again tomorrow and the next two nights after that!! So, it's been a busy stretch, to say the least!!

I've had to sacrifice tv lately. The good thing is, I don't really miss it. The only show I have been consistently watching is the Biggest Loser. Everything else is up for negotiation, and real life seems to step in and win most of the time, which is a good thing.

My son is almost two and I want to spend time with him. It is so much fun watching him change and grow. Much more fun that watching tv. So, when I do have a spare moment lately, it seems to be more pertinent that it is spent with him. But that's a good thing. We have fun together, even if it's doing housework. It's so neat watching him help me with stuff!! He'll get puppy's dish and help with feeding the puppy. He'll help gather up laundry. He'll sometimes put his toys away (with a lot of prompting). It's great though. OF course we do other stuff as well. We're busy with books and pictures and colouring and circus and most of all, building train tracks. When he wakes up from his nap, I think we'll do exactly that.

Birthday Eve...

So, I will finish up another year of my existence on this planet soon. It feels like time goes by much faster than it used to. I remember as a child when it seemed like Christmas took FOREVER to get here. I think it's all relative. When I was six, I had only been on the planet for six years. And one month was a relative long time. Now that I'm almost 34, a month is nothing!! The blink of an eye!! I'm guessing time seems to go faster the older you get. It's just a theory. I have a few of those theories. I will maybe share them in the next little while.

For now though, it's time to take stock and see what has happened in the last year. It has been a busy one, that is for sure. As far as my family life goes, I watched my son turn one. I watched him learn to crawl and walk and just in the last few weeks learn to speak some words. I watched my dog become a bit too aggressive at the dog park (and so we stopped going!!). We did a road trip out to Seattle, Vancouver and Victoria. We went hiking (only twice, must improve on that this year!!). We went camping (also twice, and that was adequate for last year!). I completed the Police Half Marathon in my best time ever. We did the Mother's Day 5km walk in support of Neonatal Intensive Care (and we'll be doing it again this year, same cause!!). I attended toddler time with Sebastian. I became a mentor with Team In Training. I ran Melissa's 10km. I ran the Ambulance Chasers 5km in my fastest time ever. I finished Goofy's race and a half challenge (running a half marathon on the first day and a full marathon the second day). We took Sebastian to Disney for the first time and watched him on rides and interacting with characters. We took Sebastian on his first ever cruise and he played in the ocean. I signed up to be a mentor again with Team In Training. Went and visited my parents a few times. Hmmm...I think that was most of the family fun stuff. 

I started working on decluttering our house a little. Have packed up all of Sebastian's clothes in the preemie, newborn, 6 month and 12 month sizes. Have packed up a bunch of Sebastian's toys. Trimmed down the dogs toys and treats. Went through our clothes closet and donated at least 3 bags to charity. Sorted through papers in the office (and did more tonight...does it ever end??). Fixed up our garden for the spring. Kept on top of the dog poop situation. Went through stuff in our basement that we're not using. Recycled a bunch of old computers and such. It's been a lot of stuff!!

Career wise, I went back to work after my maternity year was up (and lucky for Sebastian, he got a few months more at home with his dad!!). Became a critical incident dispatcher. Tried, with no luck to take a course I have been longing to take for 6 years. Renewed my first aid. Became an acting supervisor. So, work has been busy as well!!

All in all, it was a great year. I have lots of fond memories and look forward to making this year an even better one!! And maybe this year I'll actually get around to making that NICU scrapbook I have been longing to make for almost 2 years now!!

Accomplishments for today...

So, how did I fair? Not too bad actually!! Here is what I did...

• emptied, then refilled the dishwasher
• put on two loads of laundry
• played outside with Sebastian and Cronos
• sorted through the wire shelves
• cleared off most of the island (it's a big job, okay?)
• looked in the office closet, got scared and closed it again
• I cleared off the desk (and dusted it)
• I cleared off the top of the tv (and dusted it)
• cleaned the barbeque
• put away the unmatched socks
• went and got Edo for dinner since I never came up with anything
• cleaned up dog poop
• cleaned Sebastian's room
• started on the bathrooms
• and Jeremy cut down the plants in the flowerbed

So, all in all, it was a fairly accomplishing day. Sebastian even helped out by putting all the loose change into the piggy bank. I still have a ton of other things I could do, but only so much needs to be done in a day. Now, I will relax and have a nice evening with my husband, maybe even play some cards!! But, I finish the day knowing that I actually did get around to working on some of the pesky projects that never seem to get done, and getting some of the usual chores done. Of course, I still have to move over the laundry, and I really should get the bathrooms cleaned, and the vacuuming isn't going away either...hmmmm...so much for the cards!!

I need a list of things to do today. Things that I really want to get done, to try and declutter my life and be on the road to being organized. I know I am only supposed to pick three, but I'm just brainstorming right now and I'll check back later to see if anything actually got done:

• empty the dishwasher
• do some laundry
• clean the bathrooms
• read stories to Sebastian
• play outside with the dog and Sebastian
• come up with an idea for dinner
• go through the wire shelves in the office
• peek in the office closet and decide if that is something I want to deal with anytime soon
• clear off the island in the kitchen
• clear off the desk that I'm typing at
• wash the floor
• vacuum
• clear off the window ledges
• clear off all the stuff on top of the tv in the bedroom
• move the tv out of there (haven't ever used it anyways!!)
• make a new list for my ipod
• cut the plants down in our flowerbed
• watch a movie
• find a place for the unmatched socks
• figure out how those socks go unmatching in the first place!!
• clean up the dog poop (how fun!!)
• clean up Sebastian's room
• go for a run

Well, that's a lot of things. I know I am not going to get them all done, but hopefully I at least deal with some of them!! I'll let you know.

Working on my course...

I have started to put some serious effort into my course. I am taking anatomy and physiology. It has been slow. I had hoped to get lots of it done at work, but then I spent a lot of time coaching people and learning how to be a supervisor. But, now, I just want to do my course. I want to expand my mind. I want to get educated. I want to start finding opportunities away from where I work. I want to see what else is out there.

Today my work life was not so great. They are cracking down on how we use the internet at work. It's a pain. We spend such long shifts at work, that sometimes it's nice to be able to use the down time to get things done. Now, that seems to be an issue to everyone. 75% of the people I work with are not happy with their workplace. That is bad. That is really bad. Yet, it seems like that doesn't really matter to anyone. It sucks, because I love my job. I really do. Yet, with all the stuff that keeps happening, my desire to be there seems to shrink almost daily. I hate that I feel like that!!

So, now I will spend time trying to expand my mind. I mean, really focus on accomplishing things that make me happy. Like spending time with my son, and my husband and my puppy. Trying to fit in more runs. It's not always so easy to do, yet I really enjoy it when I get the chance. I want to spend time scrapbooking, really, I want to make an album from Sebastian's NICU days. He's almost two, I really should get on that!! I have the stuff, I just need to sit down and work at it. I want to write. I want to research what it would take to be a life coach. Maybe I want to see a life coach. Life is so much more than all the petty things that are dragging me down at work. It's time to skip over that and start doing what I love. I want to find enjoyment in every day. Always!! I'm a happy person and I won't let work drag me down!!

Super Man...aka Jeremy

I'm lucky to have my husband. Jeremy is great. I mean, there are things about him that drive me crazy, but craziness aside, I'm a lucky girl. Take for example dinner tonight. We both worked all day, yet he still managed to create this out of the park amazing dinner. We had all the food groups covered and it was fantastic. Had it been mean making dinner, it would have been simple and plain and boring. Jeremy is amazing in the kitchen. Really, he is gifted. Tonight, he made chicken with ham and mozza cheese, pasta, sauce, and a medley of mixed vegetables. It was fantastic. So, for that, I am truly grateful!!