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Muscle memory
It’s what happens when you strap on the water skis after years of letting them gather dust in the boat house. It’s how you always remember how ride a bike. It’s what Olympic athletes rely on to nail performances and win races. And it’s what happened to me a couple of weeks ago when muscle memory took over and I started singing the alto part in an anthem I knew well, instead of the soprano part I’d just learned. Muscle memory. Through repetition, our muscles can be trained to encode, retain and repeat movements and eventually make those movements without… Read more…
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I can do it – really!
I was born of practical people. If we could do it ourselves, we did. And my parents could – and still can – do just about everything! I guess I’ve inherited that sense of independence, and dare I suggest it, passed it on to a certain extent. My Dad sent me off to university with the basics of a tool kit. Hammer, a variety of screw drivers (even the trusty Canadian Robertson!), pliers, socket wrenches and more. It meant I could – and did – fix simple things without needing assistance. In fact, when I married, I was the one…
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A second son starts his second season
I thought it might be easier the second time around. But just as each child is different, the experience of seeing a second son off to university was different. Different, not easier. This week has been a whirlwind. The boys came back from their summer camp jobs on Wednesday brown and exhausted from a summer of sun. The washing machine has been on continuously since then trying to get laundry clean. Son number one headed back to school on Friday – it’s become quite routine, unlike the first time three years ago, and he is anxious now to get back to… Read more…
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Losing number two
Two years ago, I wrote about getting ready for my first-born to leave the nest. Now it’s time to start thinking about the same mix of pride, sadness, excitement and melancholy again. Son number two has always been his own person. He’s never cared what other people thought and has forged his own way – right from the get go. There were many times in his early years when I muttered this mantra over and over again: “Strong-willed toddlers become strong adults” just to stay sane. It’s no secret in our family that he and I have had our share of… Read more…
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Some things I didn’t know before I became a (single) Mum
For Mother’s Day, and in no particular order, some of the things I’ve learned in the last decade or so: Crispy brownish two-day-old roses from a teenager are really, really pretty. Telling a 10 year old you like chocolate means a chocolate bar from the corner store for your birthday. If you tell a 5 year old it’s not going to rain today and then it does, you’ve “lied”. It really is possible to be in more than one place at the same time – as long as you have good friends and neighbours. Teenage boys don’t understand that not… Read more…
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Recapturing Christmas
It gets harder every year. With every season that passes, life gets busier. There’s more to do, more to deal with, more chores that need to be done, more activities that kids need to be shuttled to and from, more stress at work. It gets harder every year. Gifts and gadgets on Christmas wish lists are more techy and more expensive. With family becoming more spread out, it’s harder to stay close and to know what is the right present for the right person. Commercial Christmas songs ring out and decorations appear in the stores earlier and earlier, starting the… Read more…
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Random thoughts from a self-enforced moment of quiet
Are you strapped in? This week begins the “OMG, it’s less than a month before Christmas” panic that seems to afflict people – and especially mothers – throughout the land. The perfect joyous season our friendly advertisers bring us also results in a lot of stress and anxiety. There’s so much to do, so many places to be and so many events to attend that it can all feel a little overwhelming. This year, it seems particularly stressful. December is a whirlwind of Christmas concerts – between my daughter and I, our performances number close to 10 over three weekends.…
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How many innings in a hockey game?
Okay, I’ll admit it. I have failed my children. None of the three know much about – or have any interest in – team sports. It seems almost sacrilegious to say this, but I will have no trouble deciding what to watch on Monday night. National election results will be on my TV; the baseball game will hardly cross our minds. The kids come by their sportslessess not only by virtue of lack of exposure, but by genetics. Neither their father nor I had the gene either. I’d much rather compete against myself than be part of a sports team.… Read more…
