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Westward ho: does taxi service for kids ever end?!
I’m just back from a mini-vacation with my middle child. In the past, I’ve taken his siblings on one-to-one trips, but his, like so many holidays, was scuttled by COVID. This year, when he decided to tackle a huge hike through the Rocky Mountains (you can learn more about the Great Divide Trail here), he realized he needed a ride about three hours south of Calgary to where he wanted to begin. When we realized it coincided with Calgary Stampede, a mother-son trip was born. The trip did not start well. As we were clearing security, my phone dinged. The flight… Read more…
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It’s quiet at my house
It’s quiet at my house. I have the windows open and the sounds of birds and children drift in, but it’s quiet inside. Eerily quiet and I’m not sure why. My daughter left two weeks ago for her final summer working at a residential summer camp. She’s worked there for the past six years and I’m used to her being gone. And I’m used to her being away for months at a time when she’s at university, half way across the country. But this time it feels different. I sent her off last week, in her brand new car, with the… Read more…
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Happy Mother’s Day: looking at births of a different kind
It’s Mother’s Day today, so Happy Mother’s Day to everyone out there who is a mother, or has mothered children at one point or another. I have been properly feted by my children today starting with breakfast and flowers. Mother Nature also celebrated and gave me sunshine and perfect gardening weather. I’m feeling very blessed. I spent some time thinking today about each of the times I became a mother – the births of my three amazing grownup kids. Coincidentally, Halton Health Care posted a piece on LinkedIn (and possibly other social media platforms) yesterday, celebrating the 89th birthday of the OB… Read more…
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Three little words: Ruminating on June’s Pride Week
Three little words. Three little words have the power to change lives. Almost thirty years ago, three little words changed two lives as “I love you” was spoken and a life together was born. Fast forward fifteen years and three children later and three different words changed five lives forever. It’s the leadup to the annual Pride Parade in Toronto, and just like past years, I approach this time with a real mix of feelings. During this time each year, we read stories from around the world in the papers and heard others on TV about men (and women) who come… Read more…
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Three for three – the last one spreads her wings
Cup of steaming tea in hand, I glanced in her bedroom this morning and for the first time since June, I saw her sound asleep, with her hair streaming behind her on her pillow and her long lithe legs sticking out from the covers, while the cool breeze moved the blinds on her windows. Fall is coming and I have my daughter home for two nights before she starts her new university life half way across the country.The sight made me smile, but it also made my breath catch in my throat. I’ve written about Son number one and Son number two going off… Read more…
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Luck, lemonade and a bit of siding
There but for the grace of God go I. Those words echoed through my mind all afternoon a few Saturdays ago, as I took part in a Habitat for Humanity build project.It was a good day. My colleagues and friends had stepped up to help me meet – and exceed – my fundraising goals and I spent the day exercising my construction muscles by putting siding on a house that would eventually become the home of an underprivileged family. It felt good to be doing something purposeful and constructive, and to be giving back. We had stopped for lunch, and former recipients… Read more…
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Birds, blossoms and cages: A sad spring study in contrasts
There’s a clutch of baby grackles being given flying lessons across the road from my house. They noisily greet their parents as they hover nervously close at hand. One of the little one managed to get up to the hanger for a plant basket yesterday. And got stuck. Or scared, I suppose as he didn’t move for the good hour that I watched, but mom – or dad – kept coming back, encouraging the little one to flap his wings. A sibling in a nearby shrub is a little less boisterous. And up above me, in my own tree, I’ve discovered… Read more…
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And the last one starts to leave…
Friday was my daughter’s senior prom. She looked so grown up in her simple, yet elegant floor-length black dress, with hair piled atop her head. Like her friends, she traded in her sneakers for the the highest heels imaginable, as they attended the formal event. It was a strange combination of pride and sadness I felt, watching these almost unrecognizable young women go off together. Earlier this month, she had her final choral performance with an amazing group she’s sung with for the past ten years. She’s landed a summer job away from home and exams are right around the… Read more…
