Rain, rain

Oooo... it's nasty out there today. Lots of rain. Cold. Wet. Which means....

..... PAJAMA DAY for me and Anna!!! Woo! We ain't getting dressed all day and you can't make us. (If only I had a pair of onesie jammies with feet... man - I would NEVER wear regular clothes again.)

I'm definitely going to miss these days if I start working again. I say "if" because I'm still not sure what to do, really. I want to give freelance a go... but I'm starting to get the jitters a bit.

Maybe it's because I'm coming closer to the end of my maternity leave and those helpful payments will be stopping before I know it. Maybe it's because I have nothing lined up yet. (It's hard to line it up for February. I kind of have to wait last minute to line up a job if I go the freelance route). Maybe it's because I've only done one freelance job so far and haven't had lots of people knocking on my door. Of course, I can't really do lots of work right now because of you-know-who... (she's listening) and because then it would affect my mat leave payments.

So very complicated.

All I know is that working in your pjs all day sounds awesome... but spending more time with the little ankle biter is probably the best thing I could ever imagine. For me. And for her.

So, I guess we'll see. I guess I have to let things just... happen.

Until then, I'm going to soak up every minute of my pajama day with just me and my babe.

All about you

Hello, Anna.

Right now, you're on the floor, in your jammies, getting into anything and everything (you seem to prefer the dangerous things by far. Naturally.) You're yelling happily, only pausing to stare at Arwen now and again.

You're going to be 10 months old on Saturday. I still can't believe it. I know people always go on about how time flies and how "quickly they grow up" and yadda yadda... but it's true. My little wee, 5 pound-15 ounce baby is now almost 10 months old and has a real, true, strong personality.

For example... you love making noises with your mouth. Whether it's a whistle, or a little half laugh, or even just yelling - you absolutely love to make noise. And you always have, ever since you were tiny and would make appreciative noises while nursing.

You love crawling around and being independent. And now that you can get around by yourself (crawling and pulling yourself up and cruising on the furniture), you have even less time for Mommy to snuggle you or smother you in kisses. You don't want to be held all that often, you're busy, darn it!

You would live on blueberries, cheese and cheerios if I let you. Raspberries and avocado are a close second. But, you're not quite ready for anything too different. (Last night, we tried pureeing up some of our Greek chili that Daddy made and it was a bit much for you.)

You're very social and love visiting at Grandma and Grandpa's or Nanny and Grandpa's house. But we better not try to make you sleep there. Unless you're in your room, with your crib and your Mommy close by... you're having none of it.

You have no desire to sleep through the night yet, thank you very much. You're still getting up to nurse once. I've pretty much gotten used to the lack of sleep... but I'm sort of eager for you to start sleeping better one of these days. (Mind you, you're a great day time sleeper. You take hour and a half long naps in the morning and afternoon. Bliss!)

You think your Daddy is just the funniest thing that ever existed. When he comes home from work, all he has to do is flick a plastic bag or a tea towel around and you could pretty much keel right over from laughter.

Basically, what your Mommy is trying to tell you is that you're pretty much amazing. And you have been for the past 10 months.

Keep it up, baby.

Little Miss Go-Go-Go

Anna's entertaining herself with my running shoes right now, so I have a spare minute to sip my morning coffee and chat. I feel like a real, live adult. Wow.

**Side story** Yesterday I texted Andrew at work to tell him that Anna had discovered the front hall closet and was in heaven because there were SHOES EVERYWHERE (and Anna loves shoes for some strange reason). Andrew texted back to say "Aww... how cute. A shoe queen, just like her Mommy." Silly, Andrew. If he only knew what a real shoe queen was. A real shoe queen doesn't basically wear only one pair of shoes all fall, one pair of shoes/boots all winter and one pair of flip flops all summer. It may seem like I have lots of shoes since I have casual and dressy options... but I'm so not a crazy shoe lady. Andrew's lucky he married me. A "typical" woman in love with shoes would drive Andrew absolutely insane. **End of side story**

Anyway. So, Anna is fully crawling and even starting to cruise around on furniture now. She's a very advanced 9 and a half month old, if I do say so myself. The downside to her being so active is that she's developed bruises all down her shins and has had a shiner or two on her head already.

This is all very par for the course when it comes to little kids, I realize. But my neurotic side can't help but feel like a BAD MOMMY when I see her cute, soft, white little body covered with yucky bruises.

The plus side to her being so active is that she loves entertaining herself now. Why, right now she's attempting to pull the curtains down in the living room and is yelling quite happily about the whole process.

(Oh - she just saw the diaper bag and is crawling in super speed to get to it. Hmmm... in love with shoes and bags. Perhaps she will be a fashionista? She has the skinny jeans already.)

Anyway. The other side to Anna crawling around is that I really have to watch her like a hawk since we haven't baby-proofed our home much yet. Mind you, I don't know what we're going to do about certain things. (I've had to fish cat food and dead leaves out of her mouth 3 times already. But I can't starve the cat. And I'm certainly not going to start cleaning the front hall every single time the door opens and yet another leaf gets tracked in.)

What's a Mama to do??

I know. How about I just sit back (metaphorically speaking) and enjoy the whole, entire, crazy ride that is life with Anna.

Yes. That's what I'll do.

Anna goes out and about

Hi there.

Remember me?

I'm the lady getting very little sleep. But my baby is cute, so it sort of makes up for it.

Anyway. I want Anna to know about all the things we did together when she was a wee little buttertart... so I've popped back on today to update y'all (and Future Anna) with the following List O' Fun.

Things We've Done in the Past Few Weeks:

• Went to Tiny Tots on Parade for Halloween. Think: a whole bunch of little babies and kids dressed up in adorable Halloween costumes parading around downtown while a bunch of stores hand out candy. O.M.G. I almost couldn't handle the cuteness of it all.

• Made cupcakes for Daddy's birthday. And put peanut M&Ms on top. Mmmmm...

• Went to the Royal Winter Fair. And saw horses and piglets and Super Dogs... oh my! Andrew and I had some back bacon on a bun (sorry piglets!) and sampled some delicious cheeses and buffalo meat. I also bought Anna some natural, organic baby soap (hippy soap, as Andrew likes to call it). 'Twas a cute day. And a fun, family outing was had by all.

• Checked out the Fantasy Fair at Woodbine. Anna and I rode the carousel once, then just walked around and shopped and lunched with other Moms and babies. She's a bit too young for the rides and play area - but when she's older, we're definitely going back. (Side story: When my brother and I were quite young, my Dad took us there. I don't remember much about being there other than thinking that this was THE MOST magical place ever. There were rides. And it was all "fantasy" like. It was super exciting... and I have such a good memory of my Dad taking me there. Hopefully, I can do that for Anna, too.)

• Looked around at The Baby Time Show. Lots of vendors. Lots of babies. Lots of strollers. A few free samples. But the thing that made it all worthwhile? While Anna sat in her stroller and passed by a little boy sitting in a wagon, she yelled happily at him as she went. He turned around and, I kid you not, without a second of hesitation... yelled back in the same happy way. Freakin' hilarious.

Today, we're having a quiet day at home.

Zzzzzz....

...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

That is all.

Nothing is safe anymore

Anna has discovered the joy of magazines.

She's currently sitting on the kitchen floor, by the microwave stand where we store most of our old magazines that we want to keep for one reason or another.

She's pulling them off the rack, one by one, ripping a few pages and then discarding the magazine, in search of another issue that's more exciting.

I think it's safe to say that our stuff is no longer safe.

(Pause for a moment, as Anna bumps her noggin on the floor and needs a little cuddle from Mama).

Anna crawls like a champ now and pulls herself up onto everything. There's no stopping her. And there's no more sitting and watching for me.

In the kitchen, she likes to take all the magnets off the lower part of the fridge and she loves pulling the tea towels off the oven handle. Once Anna's been in a room, you know it by the clear signs: the wake of discarded "stuff" all over the floor.

I can't tell you how many times I've stepped on cheerios or other pieces of fallen food. In the basement, we have to delicately step around Anna's maze of toys in order to ensure we don't fall and break something. In the bathroom, you'll find her nasal aspirator, wash cloths and numerous bath toys. Random items of Anna's clothes can often be found in the living room, in her car seat or at the front door by her diaper bag.

Anna has clearly taken over.

But, when you get to stare at a face like this day in and day out, how can you mind, really?

Your beloved floor-to-ceiling bookshelves are next on my list, Mom.

Seriously?

I'm just now recovering from my third illness in the past 3-4 months. (Can I get a hallelujah for antibiotics???)

But still. What the what? With the sickness. 3 times now. In 3 months. And stuff. And junk.

At least I'm feeling better today. Yesterday was a different story. (And the day before yesterday). I was done. Exhausted. Achy. Not hungry. Sore throat. Head throbbing. (I've got strep. Yahoo!) And yet, I still had a job to do.

Let me just tell you, folks... taking care of a baby when you're sick is: Near. Frickin'. Impossible. I don't know how anybody does it.

It takes a village to raise a child, and thankfully I know some very, very fantastic villagers. Andrew took over on Sunday and my Mom took the day off work and came to my rescue on Monday.

I am so thankful. So very thankful.

It meant that I actually had a chance to lie in bed, get sleep, rest up and try to recover. And - voila! Here I am today, feeling much, much better. Almost completely back to my regular Hez-self. Woo!

Just in time, too. Today is Andrew's birthday... so thankfully I was well enough to sit in front of the TV with the hubster and celebrate his D.O.B with chicken wings and carrot cake.

The perfect end to a very tiring few days.