Staff Appreciation Night

So last night at Dairy Queen, I told the kids that I had gotten an email about Staff Apppreciate Day at Green Acres. They asked us to consider writing a short note to the kids' councillors about how they make their day special.
I had my Blackberry and Colin had asked if, after we finished our ice cream, we could stay for a while and talk. I said we could, so I took the time to type in what the kids wanted to say about their councilors. Ayla typed in her own in the car on the way home, it took her the whole ride home. Here is what they said:
Colin choices
- Laura at Cedar Creek: Because she is the helper and she helps me get on and off the horses
- Katherine (young): Because sometimes she gives us snickle snackle
- Katherine (old): Because she guides us to the craft barn in the morning
- Laura At Green Arces: Because she lets us play
- J-bob: Because he plays with me. He plays soldier with me
- Janell: She lets us play
- Jessica: because she is our instructor and I like her because she tells us what to do and all that

Ayla's Choices
Laura. GA (Green Acres)
She takes care of us every morning and every afternoon.
Janell
She takes care of us every morning and every afternoon.
Jbob
He takes care of us every morning and every afternoon.
Cathrine (instructor)
She helps Inez teach us all the things we need to know.
Cathrine (manager of cedar creek)
Every morning she takes the time to come get us all the down at GA to bring us to cedar creek.
Inez
She teaches us all the things we need to know about ridding.
Chantal
She's always there when I need her. she'll always be my shoulder to sleep and cry on.
Barbra
Every day she takes the time to teach us every thing we need to now about horses and how to take care of them.
Diana
Every day she takes all her patience to teach us the next art activity.

The Bee Sting

Perhaps the reason I am not a full-time parent is because I really don't get all worked up about bee stings.
On Monday, Ayla got stung by a bee between two of her fingers. She said she was not chasing the bee, but there were no witnesses. We iced it and the area swelled a bit, but her toungwe wasn't swollen, her eyes did not swell shut, no trouble breathing, so off we go. Monday evening and the next morning, same or lesser amount of swelling, so again, off to camp we go Tuesday morning.
Well. I guess the swelling got worse throughout the day (likely because of scrathing, but again, no wtnesses), because the Camp Nurse called Uncle Ralph to get permission to administer Benadryl. I got a note from the Camp Nurse advising that I should continue to administer Benadryl every 4 hours in 25mg doses. That if that swelling was on her neck, it would be "a serious concern".
So off we go to Shopper's Drug Mart to buy Benadryl and a Hydracortizone cream to reduce the itching and swelling. I will skip the part about the debate with Ayla about my preference for liquid capsuls versus the nurse's recommendation of pills ("If I get stung on the nech and can't swallow, I can crush them... Well, while you are looking for two spoons to crush the pill between, I'll break this liquid capsul and put the liquid directly in your mouth...Oh).
So, off home we go, where she checked her email, talked on the phone for a bit, ate dinner, put away her clean clothes and then sat down, ready for her pedicure. We had picked up some pretty stickers for her toes, but she was exhausted, dying to go to bed. So at 9:30 she was tucked in and snoring. I bet she is excited about sleeping in this weekend!

The Buoy

On Thursday evening, Mom, Ralph, Ayla and I headed down to the Jazz Festival to enjoy the music, crowds, dogs and shopping. We walked almost to the end of the festival and then decided to walk back on the beach. Ayla asked if she could walk in the sand, which I said was fine after hesitating and explaining the reasons for my hesitation (sand between toes, no towel to wipe them off, sand in shoes, etc.) Along the way, Ayla says to me, "Auntie Tanya, look, I can see my shadow." She is pointing out at the lake, even though the shadow created by the street lamps was in front of her on the sand.
"Your shadow is right there, sweetie." I said, pointing to her shadow on the sand.
"No, the one out there." Ayla points out to a whitish glimmer on the lake.
I look out and, in the haze, realize she is pointing to one of the buoys that mark the swim/boat line in the water.
"No," I say, "that is a buoy."
Ayla then says, "There is a little boy out in the water?!?!"
I lean over a grab my knees to steady mayself I am laughing so hard. I explain that no, not a "BOY", but a "BUOY". The rest of the way home we looked for Little Buoys in the water.

About Those Pigs

On Elgin Mills there is a farm that we drive by every morning, and on these farm there are four pigs. E-I-E-I-O.
The pigs have a large enclosure that comes up to the road, and every morning and afternoon we look to see if the pigs are there. I had idly suggested that one day we should stop and meet the farmer. Well, I guess Colin really liked that idea. So as his "food consumption reward" today, he decided that he wanted to see the pigs. All four were out and near the road as I drove by to pick hem up, so I stopped the car on the should and the kids got out and pet the pigs. the big, pink pigs. One is for sure pregnant, and they were grunting and snorting and loving the attention they got from the kids. Colin was absolutely dying to meet the farmer, so I gave in, walked up he lawn and waited for the huge dog to come running at us. Well, no dog cam running, seems that Mrs. Frisby was holding him by the collar in the house, watching us walk up. She has been on that farm since 1960, her husband died in 1999, and now her daughter and grandson run the farm, or, as she puts it, it pretty well runs itself, they are well set up for it. the kids were fascinated that the farmer, who I think they envisioned to be a man in overalls, maybe with a hat on a tractor, was actually a lady in her mid to late 70's holding back a mix breed pug/boxer. I told her we would wave in the mornings on the way by, and thanked her for letting us introduce ourselves. You could see the kids were dying to be invited in. Perhaps next time, as I bet the Pig Visit will be a regular weekly occurrence.

The Lunch Deal - Pigs & All

To refresh every one's memory from last year, Colin has a lunch/food consumption issue. He ends up playing and then not eating his lunch. Of course, the cheese balls are gone, but the sandwich ends up coming home, somehow moist and definitely squished. Fruit bruised. Drinks full.
So, week 1 was Vanessa's week to do lunches. Maie (Colin's nanny)casually mentioned when I dropped off Colin that he was still not eating his lunches. After expending so much energy during the day riding, I am always amazed that he's not starving. But he is a boy, and he loves to play. I know eventually he will come to visit me in Mexico as a teenager and I will be sending Vanessa a food bill, but right now, eating is an issue. An interruption. An annoying life requirement.
Well, I have devised a little plan in my little brain. Being the strategy girl that I am, I decided to dust off my old Learning & Development theory and put it to work.
In order to train mice, rats or pigeons, we use food motivation. Put the pigeon in a small box. Turn the lights off. Turn the light on, if the bird turns in the desired direction, drop in a treat. Wrong direction, not treat, light goes off. And so on. For years the theory was used to train Carrier pigeons. Think Moses and his bird with the twig. Pretty old theory. But it works. So here's my Colin deal: He gets NO JUNK FOOD, no cookies, chips, candy, nothing, in the lunch. Even the darn juice is organic and sugar free. If he eats everything, he gets a treat of his choice for the drive home.
Day 1: Cream Soda. He just wanted a Cream Soda. Second choice was chips. Chips it was, as there was no single Cream Soda available at Longo's.
Day 2: I came through with the cream soda
Day 3: The Pig Visit
Tomorrow: McDonald's...

Family Night

So, V and I had decided to skip Family Night. Not a big deal, we figured, the kids are telling us how they are doing and they have been there for all of 2 days, so really, what would we talk to them about?
It would appear that the kids had other plans. The moment I got there, Ayla asked "Are we staying for family night? There is a carnival!", to which Colin quickly added, "And Pizza." So, I called Vanessa and told her that the kids wanted to stay, and that I would have them home for around 8:30, as they had to shower and get to bed, as early mornings are a bit tough. She said that yes, perhaps I could reinforce that it was SHOWER and BED as soon as they get home. And so the kids agreed to the deal. Of course I had no cash, so we drove "back to the city", as Colin calls it, to get cash and passed the pigs along the way. (More on the pigs at a later post.)
We parked at Cedar Creek, the riding camp, and it was immediately clear how comfortable the kids are there. They know the roads, the buildings, the staff. I spoke to both of their instructors. Jess said that Colin is a great calming influence on Patches, who tends to be an excitable horse. Ines said that the bond between Winston and Ayla is very strong, which is great as it helps them both to excel. The levels are a bit different from last year, but both teachers said that the kids were progressing very well. We then went to see Winston and Patches. Winston was by the fence, so we had a lot of time with him, and I also saw Patches and met Honey and Chocolate (who left horse snot on my white pants) and another horse whose name the kids did not know but who I particularly liked. It is obvious how much Colin loves the horses. He kept asking if we could go and pet them a bit more. He hugs them and calls them and said that "if I could, I would just jump on the horses back and ride him bareback right now!". We then went for pizza, saw the pools and water slides, and spent time in the jumpy castle, after I nixed waiting for the obstacle jumpy slidy thingy, as the line was slow. Very, very, slow.
The majority of the kids there were from the regular Green Acres camp, so Colin and Ayla did not run into anyone they knew, but that did not stop them from having fun. They play well together and seem so comfortable in each other's company, it's nice to see. Although Ayla still pulls the Older Sister routine sometimes, like asking if she should supervise Colin eating his lunch (yes, still dealing with lunch issues).
Overall I think the kids appreciated staying.

Ayla, you do not own the radio

Ayla sat in the back seat with Colin on Monday, but since then has sat in the front with me. I guess the Colin Novelty wore off quickly. Yesterday I survived listening through the Hannah Montana movie soundtrack, and although I can freely admit there are some tunes that are fun and catchy, the appeal of others quite simply escapes me completely. But more on this in a moment. Last night we had put the Pink Martini CD in from my collection, specifically Hang On Little Tomato. Great CD. We listened to maybe 4 songs on this CD before arriving back to Colin;s this morning. As soon as Colin was in the car, Ayla hits the eject button. So I look over and say "I don;t think so, chicken. You don't own the CD player." I then proceed to put Pink Martini back into the CD slot and sing away. She was in despair. Truly. I then got to thinking about music in my teenage years, and what boundaries existed then. For the most part, Mom and I liked the same music. But there were a few, Jimmy Hendrix being one, that Mom tolerated, under certain conditions. I guess I am thankful this morning that my own Mother had the good sense to like good music. This afternoon I will let Ayla play her dance music CD that is in the car.
So, back to Hannah Montana. What perplexes me is why the dual identity even on the CD. I mean, the girl is Miley Cyrus, and the character is Hannah Montana. So why on the CD are some songs performed by the character and others by the person? Is it a credits issue, like Disney gets a cut of the Hannah songs, but Miley keeps all proceeds from the Miley songs? Must research to truly understand how Disney is screwing up this poor girl. Perhaps she already had bipolar disorder and they are just leveraging this.Hmmmm....

Kids for a Month

Yesterday morning Ayla got out of bed with no encouragement, and although disappointed that her fancy riding pants were not dry enough to wear, we were dressed and out of the house in good time to get Colin and drop off both of them at camp. At 5:15 I hang up from a particularly annoying meeting and go on to read a few more notes. Suddenly I look at the time. 5:19. "Shit! I have to go and get the kids! By 5:30!" As I rip my laptop off the desk, shove it into my bag and race for the door, our Admin holds it open and wishes me luck and reminds me to drive safely.
The funny part is that earlier we were talking about growing up. One of my coworkers recently got a dog, and another is thinking about getting one. I was saying how I was barely grown up enough I was to have a glass patio table, never mind a dog, and here I am forgetting I need to go and get two kids from day camp. Their first day at camp!
As I raced up Leslie and pulled around into the gravel parking lot, the only car there, Ayla and Colin the only kids there, I felt no surge of guilt. I did feel a bit bad when Ayla asked what was for dinner, as if had I been on time she may not be standing there starving, wasting away to nothing more than a pair of beige boots and a pink Chihuahua carrier style lunch bag. Both kids asked if I got stuck in traffic. I could not lie. They then kindly reminded me that the pick up time was 5:30, not 6:00. I have now set reminders in my calendar.
I can only be thankful that I realized I had forgotten something before I had arrived home at 8:00 p.m.