Bribery in Parenting.

I have a plan.....

It is sneaky and underhanded... and hopefully will work.

My boys have TONNES of toys that they rarely play with anymore. Sure they were loved for a long time and they remember the flush of joy at receiving them. BUT thy are taking up a large amount of space, not leaving room for new experiences (or new toys).

Steve, in particular, is on the cusp of not playing with toys too much anymore. Nerf Guns, Lego and the ocassional playtime with his brother with the hotwheels or micromachines is about it.

Meawhile there are at least THREE BINS of his toys that he still likes but never touches. I am fed up with the mess of it all, so now I have a plan.

That little tank picture at the head of this post is an RC SPY TANK! It has live video feed and microphone to the headset of the person working the tank! Or as they put it...."The Spy Video Vehicle is the first remote-controlled Spy Gear video car to offer audio transmission, full-circle spin control, and tank tracks...". Steve has begged for one since he heard they existed. Today I saw one a the electronics store for about 70% off, which made it still pricey, but manageable.

This is my currency for the bride. I will give him the tank in exchange for the 3 bins of toys.... whatcha think? Is it crazy? Or mean?

(It thought it was nicer than the way my parent's did it. Wait until I was at a sleepover and "clean" my room! Oh the tears! Oh the heartache, I didn't even get to say goodbye! LOL.

************* PS ************

• Mission Successful! Cam unloaded a large quantity right away. Steve was a tougher nut to crack and almost broke down in tears when I told him about the bargain. But after a good night's sleep and closer inspection of his room, he found a LARGE box of stuff to let go of. Not the ones I was thinking he would let go, but the quantity was right.
• Spider- there are some that may go well to your cause, but unless you are still flea marketing, most are a little too well used for much.

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All on Track

Good news! The computer is resuscitated with a new hard drive and they were able to extract all the files off the old one! I am back to work! And the bill wasn't nearly as bad as I was expecting either!

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And better news, I don't think it was really H1N1 for Cami. He has loads of snot and a tickle cough, but he hasn't had a fever or nausea or any of the other symptoms that are part of it. In fact, he is as rambunctious as ever and eating and sleeping very well. AND Cam's teacher just called, she missed some school last week with a cold that was just a cold... and she was calling to ask if it had been CONFIRMED that Cam had the H1N1(which it wasn't). Her symptoms are EXACTLY what Cami has, so I am 100% positive he got a COLD from his teacher now. STILL, I called the nurse hotline and they told me to keep him home until he is clear of the mucus, so no school yet.

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My mom is in town! I met her for lunch yesterday with my sister, and that was nice. She can't risk coming to see Cam because her husband just had major surgery on his intestines and a flu may cause complications (even the act of coughing could tear something).... of course the germs are all over this city, so I really wish her luck avoiding taking anything home!


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My office is dust free right now. The result of being FORCED to pull out my PC tower. I have been down in this office for 8+ years, and have gone through a few desk moves and a few computer changes, but looking at the shear VOLUME of cat hair, cobwebs and dust back there you would think it hadn't been cleaned since the turn of the century!





It feels good to have that slopped out.





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I have decided to cut down on the number of socks I have. Did you know I had 2 LARGE drawers dedicated just to socks?!


I LOVE socks, they are an easy way to express yourself cheap and cheerfully. But I read something on UNCLUTTERER that made me think that this may be a bit much. There was a list of questions for determining the perfect amount of something.....

How much space can I commit to storing this type of good?
How much space do I want to commit to storing this type of good?
Will I use all of it before it expires and/or becomes outdated and/or my brand loyalty changes?
Do I have enough (or too much) to get me through to my preferred cleaning schedule? (For example: Do I have enough pairs of socks to last me between laundry days? Am I putting off laundry until it gets out of control because I have too many pairs?)
Do I need or want this item at all?
How much time, money, and energy will I save in the future if I have more than one of these in my space?
What will I do if I run out?
Would having more or less of these items improve my quality of life?

Good questions! And I can honestly say I have committed too much valuable space to SOCKS!

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Another picture challenge:
How many 4-leaf clovers can you see?

Hard Drives and Hard Cases

Two terrible bits of news....

1) My hard drive has some MASTER DISK error and is not starting. I took it to the computer hospital and they were able to recover my documents and photo files (potentially saving my $1000s in contracts!) But the computer itself is messed up. I am at the mercy of the techs and whatever they charge me to get my business running ASAP again!

2) And this is the yucky one; For a couple days Cami's glands have been painfully swollen, but I thought he was getting better. Then Cameron woke with a terrible rattly cough this morning. I took him to the walk-in clinic and (1.5 hours of waiting later) the doctor says it's H1N1!!!! So we are ALL confined to home until the symptoms clear up. My throat is sore so I get to take something called Tamiflu (the side effects sound nasty). Cami doesn't get any medicine because he is too far into it. The best possible news she could give was she said because we don't have any underlying health issues it will likely just be a terribly uncomfortable flu and nothing worse.... what rotten timing! I was planning on going to Victoria with Spider to see my darling Tai tonight!!!! We were going to cruise the garden city in my convertible, and just be girls catching up and being friends.

What I have learned in the last 2 days:
Back up everything important OFTEN!
AND
Wash your hands and avoid germy little children!!!!!

Trying to stay on track

Oh the woes of a sentimental heart!

I am having so much trouble letting go of these too-many things! Especially the sentimental stuff... really, do I NEED the "furskin" that I got for Christmas in 1985? Sure I still think Bubba is adorable, but does he have FUNCTION in my life? Really?

Or the WADE Red Rose Tea Figurines? I have had them since grade 4 or 5 and finally got a shelf thing that I like to display them in my china cabinet. I do like them.... but they are an odd thing to be attached to.

Unclutterer blog gave me another fine question to help me with my ordeal: "Does this make my life better?" Present tense. No reference to how cute I think it is, or how much life is left in it, or who gave it to me.

It seems that toys are my biggest hurdle. I still love my toys.

Star Wars, Playmobil, The OLD Fisherprice Littlepeople (made of wood), Barbies, Little Ponies, my Cabbage patch doll. The rag doll my mom MADE me (she sewed me something, that in itself is unique and cherished). Sure the boys play with some of it (and I gave some other stuff to my niece and little Z) but there is still too much, I know there is too much.

I still have drawings that I was proud of in highschool, I think I will scan them and let go of the originals. I am no DiVinci, there won't be anthropologists reviewing my technique years from now. If it's not good enough to display, why do I still have it?! I have moved these things several times, and I see them and oogle that I used to draw so well, then they get stored till we move again.

I know what needs to be done. I just need to find the strength to loosen my death-grip on the past.

And on a similar topic..... all of my cupboards are so full that they are booby-traps! Open a door at your own risk, because the odds are very good that some plastic bowl or box of dry goods is liable to attack you (I make sure cans and jars are low to minimize injuries). It is ridiculous, and I purged fairly recently too. Got rid of all sorts of odd containers, unused cooking impliments and canned foods that I had to admit we'll never try, even towels and blankets that weren't in rotation anymore -- all to the local charity.

Purged some books too. Now they ALMOST all fit in my bookshelf/wall! LOL.

It is a battle I feel I am losing most days, mostly because I don't feel I have the time to tackle it. Between the household chores, cooking, banking, parenting, and WORKING (still too many projects to do in a short time).... when do I do the "spare time" stuff like mending things, creating things and decluttering?!

“You’ll accomplish more if you start now.”

Even more heartbreaking, I desperately want to visit my friends more... in person... at their homes! Making time for things always means neglecting other things. I haven't even watched a whole TV show in weeks. Bah.

Anyone want to come over and help?

This & That

Anniversary recap:

We had a lovely evening. We dropped the kids off at my sister's and went out for dinner at a decent restaurant. We had a gift certificate that my mom had sent MONTHS ago, and it was a great excuse to use it. Does anyone know how to get the photos off a cellphone? I took a sweet one of me and my hubby together.

School recap:

FINALLY the classes have been settled. Steve is in a 6/7 split with a new teacher (male), he is happy with the placement so far (but they have only had one day). Cami said he would have been happy with either of the Grade 3 teachers, so he is settled contentedly too -- the good news is there seems to be a better mix of boys and girls this year (last year there were only 3 girls in his whole class -- no wonder we went through FIVE teachers last year!).

Health recap:

No setbacks with T's gallbladder! He is cautious about eating fat and limitting his portions effectively. He is feeling fine.

Work recap:

Lots of projects on the go right now! Some very satisfying from a creative perspective. Like my first TV show logo! WooHoo!

Housework recap:

eww. not my favourite topic. NEXT!

Garden:

My little plot is still prvoiding veggies galore! The raspberries are done, peas are totally done, but the zucchini, the beets, the spinach and especially the green beans are giving, giving, giving and I still love it. It's miraculous to me that those tiny dry seeds can give me so many POUNDS of tasty crisp vegetables.

1994

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO, TODAY these pictures were taken.... what a great day.

We look like kids!

All my friends and family were there to see me marry the best man I have ever met. And his friends and family were there to witness the event of T getting hitched, the first of his generation.... It was amazing how many people came, and amazing how many more people sent cards and gifts even if they couldn't attend. Our budget was tiny (we were kids after all) and thankfully it never occurred to me to put any of it on credit. So we started with a clean slate. But even though I was disappointed during the planning process that it wasn't going to be "fairytale", during the actual event it was all SO full of love and generosity that the venue and decorations didn't matter a peep. I could have been in a stinky school gym and it would have been wonderful because of all the people that came to support our decision.

T was suffering with newly stitched broken ribs and a host of other aches and pains from his recent motorcycle accident, but he barely flinched despite all the pats on the back and bear hugs from well-wishers. My cheeks hurt from the huge smile I wore ALL DAY LONG, and I felt exhausted from shuttling to all the tight scheduling.... there were some tense moments..... (Where is the marriage commissioner? Why is there no head table? How come there is no food left when the wedding party hasn't even arrived yet? Why didn't my mom show up for the photography?!) But I was too exhilarated to care for long.....

The point was to wed the man I loved so we could carry on as a united couple.

Mission accomplished.

15 years later we are still finding ways to get along and even genuinely enjoy each others company! I am happy to say, that even though we don't always see eye to eye on everything, we find ways to make each other happy and trust each other and care for each other's wellbeing in a real way... and after 15 years, I would still happily say YES if he offered to marry me again.

XXXOOOXXOXOXOXOX!

Retirement

What a concept.... to just stop working and attempt leisure activities until we are unable to. It is an idea that is both alluring and alien to me. It seems that it is a mostly Western concept, and the idea of retiring at a tender 55 is really new.

I found an interesting article on life expectancy on Wiki.

Humans by Era: Average lifespan at birth(years)
Upper Paleolithic: 33
Neolithic: 20
Bronze Age: 18
Bronze age in Sweden: 40-60
Classical Greece: 20-30
Classical Rome: 20-30
Pre-Columbian North America: 25-30
Medieval Islamic Caliphate: 35+ (wealthy were 59–84.3 years)
Medieval Britain: 20-30
Early 20th Century: 30-40
Current world average: 65

Of course you need to keep in mind that the infant mortality rate has been 74% or MORE up until very recently even in England, and a lot of women died in child-birth related complications. So if you could get your baby to survive until it was five, chances were better that adulthood could be quite long.... there may have been a few really old foggies around.

Check out this chart:

There are some countries in this modern age where the average lifespan is still under 40!

Meanwhile, I am trying to figure out what we are supposed to be putting away in our young(ish) productive years so that we can live comfortably as elderly Canadians... or at least survive if our health isn't great. (According to Stats Can, as a woman in B.C., odds are that I can expect to be 71 before my health starts to fail and then live to almost 83!)

There are calculators out there for doing the math of retirement: this is the best set I have found, very thorough and lots of options. But is always comes down to only so much money is at our disposal every month and only so much life-time to save it. Do I want to have a life NOW? OF COURSE!!! I want to play and travel and enjoy time with my kids as much as I can while I am young enough to enjoy it... but after that... do I really want to risk having an impoverished old-age so that I can play now? NO!!!!!!!

It would be MUCH easier if there was a pension I was working towards.... no such luck. Neither mine, not my husband's career paths have had this option.

It may also be easier if I didn't want to travel $$$, or ride dirt bikes $$$ !

The good news is that if we stay here, in this house, we will be mortgage free in 7 years. That is a signifigant monthly amount to be freed up for savings! (Oh but it is a compromise again to STAY here instead of look for the bigger property in the sticks with a shop and a family-friendly yard... great restraint is always needed).

It's torture to think about the "golden years", it is no wonder so many people leave it up to fate.

Only Three More Sleeps

Since we are not up in Fort St. john right now as planned, we are instead getting the kids to school on time for the first day of school.


I of course finished buying and labelling the supplies a while back in preparation for the trip, so the backpacks are stocked-up and waiting for the big day by the door.

Yesterday we all went for "back-to-school" haircuts, Steve needed one especially since he got pitch in his hair camping and I had to remove it with the camping kitchen scissors (he looked like our friendly squirrel had come out of the tree and attacked his head)!

And after we looked all freshly trimmed, we went out in search of the elusive indoor shoes.... in case you aren't familiar with this, nowadays students must have a clean, new pair of non-marking runners to wear during school hours (something to do with fire safety rules or some such excuse). To compound this extra expense, my children also had thoroughly worn out their outside shoes too (holes in the toe, no tread left).... so TWO new pairs EACH!!!! Cam has special needs in his footwear because he has "excessive pronation" and needs firm sides, contoured sole and room for his orthotics. Steve is just a picky pre-teen so it was all about style (not IN-style, but HIS-style which is MUCH harder to find, believe me!). Amazingly we found all these shoes that fit (with room to grow) in the clearance section of just 2 stores! WOW!!!!

So three sleeps from now, my little treasures are going to truck themselves up the hill for a whopping ONE HOUR at school on Tuesday. ooooooh-aaaaah.

Did I accomplish all that I wanted this summer with these little monkeys?


Not even close.

Their brains probably shrunk considerably in those 2 months.

In my defense, it went so FAST! I had the best intentions, but other than a couple journal entries, a math sheet or 2 and a bit of reading, they vegetated the summer away. At least we got to do some fun Summer activities though..... I don't dread the summer holidays anymore, it was nice to have them around all day....


.... on the other hand..... the quiet WOULD be nice.

We got away!

Great news..... T was feeling fine so we slipped away to the north end of the Island for a mini-camping trip. And it was GREAT! The weather was IDEAL and the campsite was better than we could have anticipated! What a great place! Even the pit-toilet was clean and bright!

It felt like we had the whole place to ourselves as we were at the very end of the site with a short path to the reedy end of the lake (good enough for grabbing lake water to boil for doing the dishes). The kids were free to ride bikes everywhere and be crazy, woodsy kids. Our days were spent at that great sandy beach and enjoying the long bike-friendly walking trails (we visited 3 lakeshores that way). Even Max had a great time with all the walks and swims and endless supply of sticks.... lucky dog.

In the evening we were lucky enough to get to have campfires, so flame-cooked meals were in the plan (low-fat for T's tender gallbladder) and there weren't even any mosquitoes to put a damper on the evenings! It was blissfully quiet day and night, the only noise coming from the gentle wind in the trees or "Bristles" the squirrel chattering at us and dropping pinecone bits on our tent trailer. Mind centering calm throughout the forest and on the water.... and warm enough to leave the tent trailer windows open so we slept bathed in the almost-full moon light reflected off the lake..... so nice.

Here is our 3 days in pictures...

Home sweet home as seen from the lake trail:

And from the road access, looking towards the lake:T is the master of the flame, as he grilled every meal to mouth-watering perfection:One of the many trails we explored:A fantastic beach at one end of the lake where the families hang out and play:Boys being boys:

The boat launch beach allowed dogs and Max enjoyed every second:Calm waters and clear skies every evening made moon-gazing very enjoyable from our site!