Thanksgiving – when the people who are the most thankful are the ones who didn’t have to cook.
Melanie White
It was a tough week. I woke up on Monday to the news about Las Vegas. The whole week continued under this heavy feeling of sadness, hopelessness, and fear. What is going on out there 😞?
My week continued under this gloomy cloud. HBear has been having a very hard time at school this year. This is the first time we have had any issues with her schooling. As long as she is doing well in class and enjoying it… I stay out of it. This year we have had nothing but problems. HBear suddenly dreads going to school and has had tummyache’s every night thinking about the next day. She is up multiple times throughout the night and has tried to stay home “sick” a few times. At first I thought it was friends but it turns out there’s a lot more to it. I went in and spoke to the Principal by week 2. However, the next week he was put on leave and announced his early retirement 😳.
So, I then went to the brand new Vice Principal. She was wonderful! She listened to my concerns and you could tell, she was also concerned by what I was telling her. When I left her office I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders!
Until I got home.
I told HBear what have I had done, how I had protected her interests and how I would always have her back. For the first time ever she looked at me like I was a terrible person. She said, “Mommy, how could you do that? You have 2 daughters that you love and get to live with. She doesn’t. We have to be more understanding. If you didn’t have custody of us you would be mean all the time too. You always tell me to treat people the way you want to be treated. Is that how you would want to be treated if you didn’t get to live with us? I’m very disappointed in you Mommy.”
😳😞
For the first time I felt like I had completely let her down. Granted, no 8-year-old should know about her teacher’s custody issues. I know that I am right to fight for her but she is also right. This woman has a lot of sadness in her life. She has a mental illness and I felt like instead of trying to get her help… I witch trialed her 😞.
The very next day I went into the office and talked to the Vice Principal again, I told her how I had let my daughter down, I told her that instead of being a superhero to my daughter I had come across as the villain. I explained to her that although something needs to be done about what is happening in the classroom, perhaps we needed to slow down and think about her as well.
**SIGH**
That kid of mine. She is ALWAYS teaching me something new! I am so thankful that I have such a kind daughter. Someone that despite her anger and misery in a situation, can still view the other side. We all need to start doing that. Viewing the other side and make decisions based on how we would want to be treated if we were in that same position.
I am Thankful.
During a sad week like the 1 that just passed it was good for my spirit to end it with a day of Thanksgiving. The Girls and I went to our favourite local flower vendor and bought Grandma and Nana Thanksgiving flowers. We took them up for Mom and then headed over to a Thanksgiving feast at my In-Law’s.
I am Thankful.
Ninja and Dad spent Saturday in Vancouver at the Canucks vs. Oilers game and met us for dinner on Sunday. They had a great time and got home safe and sound.
I am Thankful.
We had an abundance of great food and homemade pumpkin pie. We enjoyed good wine, spirited debates and laughed a lot.
I am Thankful.
I guess we have to look at the our day… our week… our month…our year…our life on a whole to realize just how lucky we are.
I have a beautiful family.
I have 2 daughters that mean the world to me. I have a husband who I love more than anything. I have a Dad that is not only a business partner, but 1 of our best friends too. I have In-Laws that I love and respect, I have a Sis and a Bro who are ALWAYS there for me when I need them. I have 4 extremely beautiful Nieces and a Nephew whom I adore. I have 2 BILs, a SIL and a KSIL that I would choose as friends if they hadn’t come into my life as family. I have amazing friends who push me, listen to me, make me laugh and have become my Village. I have a roof over my head and food in the fridge. I don’t have lots of money… but I have what I need. I live in my dream city and I have learned to love myself over the years.
I am SO grateful and SO thankful 💛.
This week we did a step challenge that pushed us to new levels! The competition “stepped” it up and I hit a new personal best!
This past week Ninja put out a new episode of Our Liner Notes Mix Tape #3. This is a very special episode because I was the guest and the questions are KILLER. He asked me 9 questions starting from “if your life was a movie, what song would play when we are introduced to you?” OMG 😳. He goes on to ask questions about my 1st musical memory, my wake up song, my sad song, my musical flag song and so on. It is VERY personal and I felt VERY vulnerable. Ninja did a great job and I am excited to have people hear it! So check it out!
We also talked about the Harvest Moon, the sad loss of Tom Petty, a Canadian’s perspective on gun control, the new Oliver jail, our FitBit Challenge, and our NHL Fantasy Leagues on the latest episode of HWYWH! Check out Episode 35: Compared to Nickleback!
I made these amazing muffins when my Sis came to visit last month but I didn’t have a chance to snap a picture of even 1 because they were gone so fast! We received another yellow zucchini the other day and thought we should make some more! These zucchini muffins are made in one bowl and NO mixer is needed! They also taste damn delicious and the kids LOVE them!
1 Bowl Spiced Zucchini Muffins
Makes: 2 dozen muffins
NUTRITION: 153 calories/muffin
2/3 cup unsalted margarine, melted
1 1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups zucchini, grated
3 cups flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
pinch ground cloves
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place liner cups in a muffin pan. Set aside.
To a large mixing bowl, add melted butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla and stir to combine thoroughly.
Stir in grated zucchini.
Add flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and cloves (if using). Stir until JUST combined, being careful not to over mix. Just stir until there are no streaks of flour remaining.
Scoop batter into prepared muffin pan, filling the cups almost to the top.
Bake about 20-23 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with only a few moist crumbs on it.
Let muffins cool in the pan a few minutes, then remove them to a wire rack to continue cooling.
We started our week introducing the Girls to 1 of my childhood favourite movies, The Sandlot! They loved it too. Which just goes to show you, kids don’t need computer graphics and high action to enjoy a good storyline 😊.
HBear received her new swimsuit and goggles for the swim team and she LOVES them!
Now that HBear is in gr.4, she is an intermediate student and is involved with many new activities. Last year they got to do 2 cross country runs to get used to it and now they do them more regularly. Her 1st one was this week and she was hoping to beat her last placing and come in 62 this time lol. She came in 66th but she tried and she finished with a smile so I call that a success!
SBean is LOVING kindergarten! The only thing she is missing is her 2 Besties from Preschool 😞. She wears her BFF necklace everyday to keep them close to her heart. Awwww 💕
I had to run by the school this week to drop off a jacket for SBean because apparently she doesn’t listen to me when I say it is getting cooler out there 😂. On my way out I noticed the whole school in the gym watching a circus clown perform amazing tricks! It was so good to see HBear laughing! It made my heart grow just a little bit more to see her laughing with her friends without the weight of the world on her shoulders. It was the lightest I had seen her in days 💛. After the performance they had recess so I stayed and watched SBean interact with all her new friends and again I felt so Thankful.
HBear got accepted into the Coding Club offered at the Library. She had her first 1 the other day and really enjoyed it!
On Friday Ninja and I took the Girls to Boston Pizza for dinner!
Like I mentioned before, Ninja and Dad went to Vancouver for the weekend so it was a Girls Weekend!
We started at SBean’s skating lesson.
Then we went to Cobs Bakery to buy some scones. Her old Preschool was doing a fundraiser so we went to support them!
Then we dropped HBear off at her GR3Besty’s birthday party!
Then the Bean and I stopped by the local hockey fundraiser to donate a few dollars to their cause!
We had planned a playdate with PSBesty at Time Flies but it was closed so we went to McDonalds for lunch and to enjoy the indoor playground.
Starbucks Stop!
At 3pm the party got moved to our house! In order for the Girls to attend the party and all the Mom’s to do all the other sibling things that day, they needed someone to watch them and as it was official Girls weekend LOL, I said no problem.
Birthday Girl’s Mom is the sweetest and gave me an wonderful appreciation gift for taking all the Girls after the party 💛.
After the Girls had their French Toast, whipped cream and berry dinners the last friend was picked up and we got into our cozies to watch Hocus Pocus in Mommy & Daddy’s bed!
At 9pm it was my turn for dinner and the hockey game 😜. Gross! By the time I got to my Kraft Dinner, it was so cold I could pick the whole thing up with 1 stab of my fork. Even coating it in ketchup didn’t make it better lol.
The next morning was a disaster and HBear’s goody bag was knocked over and the beautiful mason jar filled with jelly beans broke every where. There was also a ton of popcorn in my bed. So, I ended up cleaning and laundering everything the kids had touched 😂. When we got home from Thanksgiving dinner we found 2 new mason jars filled with jellybeans 💛!
We spent Thanksgiving Monday geocaching and hiking the Naramata Falls. It was stunning! The Kids did great and it was exactly the day I needed to be refreshed to start a new week.
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you all enjoyed your weekend and gave thanks for all that you/we have here in this amazing country we call home 💛.
