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Post by curmudgeon on Jun 17, 2021 6:38:05 GMT -6
H has to travel about 3 hours away for work and asked me to go with him, so I am even though I don’t want to. My mom will be staying at our house with the kids and dogs so I’ll have to do a thorough house clean sometime today while trying to work.
I also fell down the stairs yesterday 🤦🏻♀️ Thank goodness I kept them carpeted. I have a medium-ish bruise just below my elbow but otherwise not hurt.
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danvers
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Post by danvers on Jun 17, 2021 8:09:54 GMT -6
August Blooms I hope you can figure something out for you work wise! I really want to get my masters in something education related here but unless I go the administration route it would cost a lot for little to no bump on a teaching paycheck. curmudgeon I always feel like such a little kid when I walk around with bruises. Glad the fall wasn’t more major!
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danvers
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Post by danvers on Jun 17, 2021 8:25:23 GMT -6
I’m pretty sure DD1s tball coach thinks I’m an idiot 😂
1. Gotten the weekly practice time wrong twice
2. forgotten a tball game entirely
3. Forgotten her mitt for practice
The best one yet?
DD1 picked up the wrong glove at the game on Sunday (same color as hers). I didn’t notice, brought her to practice Tuesday, picked up my book, started to read and then the coach came up and said the glove DD1 was using was someone else’s left hand mitt but DD1 was still trying to jam it onto her right hand so she could continue to throw left handed like always.
I obviously had zero clue 😂😂😂 I’m doing so well at this baseball mom thing 😂😂😂
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 19, 2021 22:54:31 GMT -6
duskymonkey I have lived in the Midwest my whole life and never seen one. Such a cool picture but of course the boys were “meh” and thought Thomas was more interesting. right after Thomas was over, they ran outside and was like where is the Tornado, where is it!! hubs took a video and they got to watch it after dinner and lil fella keeps asking to watch it againr and again now. Definitley update us on your reno. Will you and H be doing some yourself or outsourcing all of it? You tube is actually really helpful for lots of DIY stuff. Bless the people who take the time to upload videos! We've troubleshoot so many appliance failures with much success. Hubs and I are always laughing that if he had videos, they will be banned with all his expletives and pissy temper whilst troubleshooting. Hubs actually is a pretty good electrician and worked with our landscaper and did the electrical/lghting portion himself. |
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 19, 2021 23:46:08 GMT -6
August Blooms big hugs to that feeling. I know it isn't work related, but caring for the demanding kids is a huge accomplishment. The last time I felt really really stuck, I bought myself a house lol! and yes, going to graduate school was also one of those times. *buries head in hands* which I knew going into wouldn't advance my career but I still did it anyway because it made me feel accomplished, happy and personally benefited and enhanced the work I do. Does your job provide/support tuition benefits you could utilize? Also I thought of you ( for being up north ) when heard news about Kamploops. So devastating and all this time, I was so naive to have thought that CN treated the First Nations with more respect.
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 19, 2021 23:55:40 GMT -6
We had DS1’s party yesterday and I am still exhausted. 6+ hours spent outside in 94 degrees and 89% humidity. But we survived! The kids had a blast. And I got to meet H’s BFFs “new” girlfriend. They’ve been dating for awhile but he lives kinda far so we don’t get together too often. But she’s the best. I love her and we exchanged numbers to hopefully get together again. I told H we 10000% need a pool after this. So when we have pool parties we can enjoy the ac inside while others swim, instead of having no relief. (We always have his party at H’s aunt’s house and they usually leave so we can have the back to ourselves. But they are picky about inside guests and I don’t blame them) I didn’t take any pictures either. I’m kind of sad but also was too busy visiting with people I haven’t seen in forever. It's so great when you genuinely like your H's friend's partner. Most of hubs friends wives I genuinely love to hang out with and we get along really well. I hate it when you have to force a friendship. I do not do those situations well at all. Do not have a poker face for sure. So glad your fall wasn't bad. Ouch! Happy to hear the party went well and gosh! the epic heat you guys are having. Ugh! It was baking hot here last week too and cooled a little today just in time for DS' party too and like you, I forgot to take photos. I was just happy to greet, hug and talk to other people other than hubs lol! |
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 20, 2021 0:09:23 GMT -6
We finally had DS' party today! I've been busy baking and making all week. Of course it actually Tstormed ( very rare ) today just as people were supposed to arrive lol! It did drop the temp by 10 degrees after though so it was very pleasant outside. Anyways everyone arrived after the Tstorm ( very short and typical ) and I told everyone to come whenever they want/can after 230. We filled the kiddie pool and had the water table but couldn't run the splash pad ( our water supplier asked to conserve water usage due to some issues ) The kids had a great time and ran around and played and splashed. Anyways after the lemurs I shared, I made another one and a couple of chameleons - one didn't turn out as I envisioned oops!  So I decided to just make this other guy with a bit of luster dust  and this is the massive cake lol!  |
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danvers
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Post by danvers on Jun 20, 2021 6:28:08 GMT -6
duskymonkey I have lived in the Midwest my whole life and never seen one. Such a cool picture but of course the boys were “meh” and thought Thomas was more interesting. right after Thomas was over, they ran outside and was like where is the Tornado, where is it!! hubs took a video and they got to watch it after dinner and lil fella keeps asking to watch it againr and again now. Definitley update us on your reno. Will you and H be doing some yourself or outsourcing all of it? You tube is actually really helpful for lots of DIY stuff. Bless the people who take the time to upload videos! We've troubleshoot so many appliance failures with much success. Hubs and I are always laughing that if he had videos, they will be banned with all his expletives and pissy temper whilst troubleshooting. Hubs actually is a pretty good electrician and worked with our landscaper and did the electrical/lghting portion himself. Contractor. H is pretty handy but we’re using a contractor. We’re adding a family room onto the back of our house with a basement underneath and that’s more than H can do alone (and H fully said bathrooms and plumbing are beyond him). We start back to school the first week of August so I’m comfortable letting someone else just do it so we can focus on everything else. |
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Post by curmudgeon on Jun 21, 2021 7:17:10 GMT -6
It's so great when you genuinely like your H's friend's partner. Most of hubs friends wives I genuinely love to hang out with and we get along really well. I hate it when you have to force a friendship. I do not do those situations well at all. Do not have a poker face for sure. So glad your fall wasn't bad. Ouch! Happy to hear the party went well and gosh! the epic heat you guys are having. Ugh! It was baking hot here last week too and cooled a little today just in time for DS' party too and like you, I forgot to take photos. I was just happy to greet, hug and talk to other people other than hubs lol! yesss 💯 the friend was married and we had a hard time with the (ex)wife. It always felt forced when we hung out. But then she cheated with her boss and he found out. And I am 100% sad this happened to him because he is a great guy and even if she was flat out rude to us, I’d never wish them to split. But now that it’s happened, I am a little happy we don’t have to see her anymore. Also, your cakes are always amazing. I wish I could decorate half as well. All of the details and all the little critters is so adorable! |
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Post by Taitai on Jun 21, 2021 18:29:55 GMT -6
duskymonkey Another amazing cake!! I absolutely love the lemurs and the chameleon. You are so friggin talented. Great to hear that the party was a success! curmudgeon I totally biffed it the other day while chasing after DS2 and skinned/banged my knee on a concrete planter. I totally felt like a kid limping around with a skinned and purple knee! I also forgot that feeling when your jeans stick to a skinned knee…I was like, this fucking hurts. No wonder my kids complain so much when it happens to them! Hope you heal up soon. danvers Your story about the tball stuff had me laughing. You’re just getting all the glitches out early! It’ll be smooth sailing from now on! August Blooms I missed your post (or tapa is being weird and I can’t see it), but just want to say I hope things improve and wish you luck with whatever decision you have to make!
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Post by Taitai on Jun 21, 2021 18:32:47 GMT -6
We made it to the USA! After 2 years away, it feels really great to be back. H and I got our first Pfizer shots within 2 hours of landing, and now we are doing the self isolation thing for the first 10 days of our trip here. Once that is done, we will be seeing a lot of (vaccinated) family members and friends. I can’t wait!
The boys actually did really well on the flights - it’s so much easier to travel as they get older. No more strollers, diapers, baby food, etc. to manage while doing long haul travel. I think it will continue to get easier year after year.
Now, time to get over the jetlag!!! Excited to start our American summer!
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Post by curmudgeon on Jun 21, 2021 19:17:06 GMT -6
Welcome back, Taitai! Glad you made it safely and the trip was easier than last time! Also, imagining jeans sticking to a skinned knee made me flinch. There’s a memory I forgot I had. H got me roller skates for my birthday and they are not as easy as they were at age 11. The knee pads he got me don’t look so silly now. Lol |
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Post by Taitai on Jun 22, 2021 12:15:41 GMT -6
August Blooms Okay - I can see you post now. Sorry about the blahs and for your ILs coming to visit. Hopefully things will get better once the summer weather picks up and the girls can get into more activities like soccer. Hope the cases continue to stay low by where you are too!
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Post by August Blooms on Jun 23, 2021 9:39:28 GMT -6
August Blooms big hugs to that feeling. I know it isn't work related, but caring for the demanding kids is a huge accomplishment. The last time I felt really really stuck, I bought myself a house lol! and yes, going to graduate school was also one of those times. *buries head in hands* which I knew going into wouldn't advance my career but I still did it anyway because it made me feel accomplished, happy and personally benefited and enhanced the work I do. Does your job provide/support tuition benefits you could utilize? Also I thought of you ( for being up north ) when heard news about Kamploops. So devastating and all this time, I was so naive to have thought that CN treated the First Nations with more respect. That’s exactly where I’m at, I feel like I would personally enjoy it even if it doesn’t benefit my career. I already have a house, another baby is not an option lol I’m not sure what else there is since I’ve already decided to try a triathlon lol My work does offer some tuition reimbursement but you have to apply in January and so I would be paying out of pocket for the first semester and unsure of funding for the rest. Unfortunately Canada does not have a good history in the treatment of Indigenous people. It’s something that has been kept hidden but in the open and even someone like me who has taken history classes at the university level had no idea the extent of exactly how horrific it was. They have now included land acknowledgments and content about indigenous people including the residential school system in schools now so the younger generation will have the knowledge. Unfortunately this is only the beginning, there are probably many more children buried across this country in unmarked graves. |
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Post by August Blooms on Jun 23, 2021 9:41:41 GMT -6
We made it to the USA! After 2 years away, it feels really great to be back. H and I got our first Pfizer shots within 2 hours of landing, and now we are doing the self isolation thing for the first 10 days of our trip here. Once that is done, we will be seeing a lot of (vaccinated) family members and friends. I can’t wait! The boys actually did really well on the flights - it’s so much easier to travel as they get older. No more strollers, diapers, baby food, etc. to manage while doing long haul travel. I think it will continue to get easier year after year. Now, time to get over the jetlag!!! Excited to start our American summer! Glad you survived the flights, and vaccines two hours after landing, that’s amazing! |
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danvers
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Post by danvers on Jun 23, 2021 12:24:41 GMT -6
Taitai Yay!!!!! I so hear you on traveling with less “stuff” - it’s only the amount of bedtime lovies I have to limit now for the girls. I bet you all really felt the lack of stuff since the last time you traveled back two years ago with basically a preschooler and a young toddler. So nice that boys travel well too. I hope the 10 days goes quick and you all are hugging family members soon!
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 23, 2021 23:12:31 GMT -6
danvers I Am certain your experience with your girls coach is a common occurrence with all parents. I wouldn't have a single clue what is involved in TBall to begin with. It's basically kids version of baseball? I am good with soccer lol! Nice to hear you're getting a little bit of time with a book during practice. Do you have a basement currently or it's essentially an addition. Good luck, sounds like a big project and I read at least the price of lumber is falling so that will help your budget. It will be exciting to pick out materials and such for it. We've been slacking on getting anything started or really completed. We're just so tired at the end of the day to plan for big things. In due time i suppose.
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 23, 2021 23:21:17 GMT -6
Taitai Welcome back! Glad to hear your travels back went smoothly and Wow! no kidding around with your vax! It's just insane how easy it is to walk in to get one yet....I shall stop myself.... Were there many people on the flight? Were you on a Cathay flight? I am so so so hoping we can take the boys home next year and it will be an improved scenario with Covid by next year. I worry most about the mutations occurring. Rest up for the next 10 days.
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 24, 2021 0:23:46 GMT -6
August Blooms that's impressive about your Tri. Is it happening sometime this summer? Between work, kids and training for that would be enough on my plate lol! I am actually on w5 of a workout program and I can barely find time to do that lol. I just needed something to work toward so I understand about being restless. So much history has been buried and suppressed for all the wrong reasons and for far too long and I hope all that is coming to light will pave the way for the indigenous community to gain rights and provide them the proper opportunities and support needed for them and their people to thrive. My history of this part of the world is limited at best and I always wondered why the native culture isn't being celebrated more if any at all. I've been a long time fan of Roy Henry Vickers ( you may have heard of him ) and his work has been inspirational throughout my career.
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Taitai
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Post by Taitai on Jun 24, 2021 20:31:15 GMT -6
Taitai Welcome back! Glad to hear your travels back went smoothly and Wow! no kidding around with your vax! It's just insane how easy it is to walk in to get one yet....I shall stop myself.... Were there many people on the flight? Were you on a Cathay flight? I am so so so hoping we can take the boys home next year and it will be an improved scenario with Covid by next year. I worry most about the mutations occurring. Rest up for the next 10 days. Our flights were actually pretty full - like 80-90%, which surprised me. It think this is because we flew right after school let out, however, so th day/week we flew, basically all of the expats with kids were also heading out to their home countries for the summer. I am also so glad we got out when we did. They totally locked down our city yesterday, and the COVID numbers continue to soar with not nearly enough vaccines available. Everyone is saying that school will start online in August, which just KILLS me, because we’ve been doing online school on and off for so long already. Sigh. |
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 25, 2021 23:22:48 GMT -6
Taitai that's like a typical capacity for long flights and that would make sense that most families are returning to their home countries after school term is over. Ugh! Yes my folks were telling me they are under strict control movement orders as cases are rising at an alarming rate and are back to police checkpoints between towns and districts especially in areas with outbreaks. I am glad you got out and in a twisted way, it's become slightly safer here due to vaccinations but it depends on which pockets of the country you're in though. Eventhough they've dropped mask mandates per CDC guidelines, I still wear mine whenever I go out and so do the kids. I am not willing to gamble with the kids safety. Here's a fun treat we've been doing last summer and we just went today; that's if you all like ice-cream. If you have a Culver's close by, see if they have a Happy Hour promo going on. Here it's M-F from 2-4 and it's BOGO for any treat. I discovered that their pints qualify and it's a pretty decent deal; $5 for 2 pints of frozen custard. Now that DS can read all the flavors, he loves to choose when we drive through. We sure love our ice cream!
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Post by duskymonkey on Jun 25, 2021 23:31:28 GMT -6
751 I am so beyond heartbroken and so furious and so angry. I just can't  |
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Post by Taitai on Jun 26, 2021 18:15:03 GMT -6
duskymonkey We do have a Culver’s near us! I love that place….hmmmm butter burgers and frozen custard. I will check and see if they have a happy hour - would totally do the pints! I’ve also been learning about the residential schools in Canada, and it is truly horrifying and heartbreaking. Those poor children; it’s enraging. It’s good that the Canadian government is providing federal funding to investigate and search for more unmarked graves. I’m sure they’re going to find more, and it’s just awful.
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danvers
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Post by danvers on Jun 27, 2021 15:17:41 GMT -6
Taitai is your ten days quarantine up yet?!?! Have you been able to see family yet? Will the lockdown effect you all getting home at all?
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danvers
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Post by danvers on Jun 27, 2021 15:24:46 GMT -6
I have been enjoying every minute of summer vacation this year. I don’t normally take this much time for just me and this school year didn’t really feel super stressful compared to others despite Covid stuff (I honestly had the best class this past year!) but it has been so nice to just nap, read books, cook, take long solo walks, and relax.
I had so many more grand plans for DD1 to practice her handwriting and reading but she and DD2 have been playing for hours and hours each day with Barbies, magnatiles, and toy horses so I’m telling myself all this free play is important too.
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Taitai
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Post by Taitai on Jun 28, 2021 10:22:44 GMT -6
danvers Yep, the 10 days are over. And we’ve seen all our our immediate family already, which has been great! We have an awesome vacation rental within walking distance of 3 really nice parks/playgrounds, and our kids are absolutely soaking it up. We don’t have sidewalks or many parks where we live in Asia (nor do we have libraries or parks and rec departments), and it’s amazing to realize what a high standard of living many Americans have. We kind of forgot how nice it is in the USA! The kids are also insanely excited to walk around the neighborhood and be able to see cars and trucks….where we live, the lack of sidewalks and congested traffic make that too dangerous to do. I am positive this next month will be a great time for us!
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Post by curmudgeon on Jun 30, 2021 6:25:49 GMT -6
Guys. I think it’s happening. My kid is finally potty training. We are having to push it and force him because of daycare and he fought it hard day 1. But then had no accidents at daycare and this morning has is also off to a strong start. It seems too good to be true finally.
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