bacon, no witticisms

you know why i blog less now? it isn't just because i'm a mother of a toddler. it's because when i think of clever things, i'm too tired to write them down, and when i go to blog, my kid drives all the clever things out of my brain.

like just now, i sat down, and then got distracted by the dumpling looking for plastic balls to put in her little cup. we found them in the bucket of current favourite toys, and she added two combs so we could both comb her hair. then i remembered i had yet to put deodorant on, and she wanted more food, and now here we are ten minutes later.

and i cannot remember what drove me to start this entry.

we had a little party on the saturday night of canadian thanksgiving. the usual lovely crew came out, and EVERYONE brought bacon. it was a little ridiculous, actually. not that that stopped me from enjoying said bacon, maple bacon curry, and BLTs. there was also a good fire, on the second night, which was unscheduled. we had just found out the newest grandchild on the queen's side of the family had been born (quite early but nice and healthy lungs, so all good and she just went home the other day) and her daddy came by to join our two late-comers. it was a good weekend, though too much driving. two families when we are also building our own can make holidays... well, you know. but this *pagan tree holiday* we are not going to make it up to my parents' on the day of. we will alternate years from this point, as far as dinners are concerned.

the week after thanksgiving, the mother of chaos and the river died. she had been ill for a while. the dumpling and i had only met her once, but the queen knew her since they moved over from ireland; their house was the place he went to when he didn't want to go home.

the service was beautiful, really well-attended. i learned things about this amazing woman; i knew she liked art and animals, but the extent of both of those pursuits... she collected strays, both animals and people. she was the kind of warrior that the world needs more of.

we invited people over to our house after. it's terrible how it takes such a large event for us to gather in the satellites, for everyone to come back and say nice things about each other. we finally met chaos' girlfriend, and it's shocking how perfectly matched they are. who knew there was a woman out there who is beautiful, knows farming, likes metal AND flamenco, and is a mean shot? yes. i know.

anyway, i've noticed that i've catalogued events, but not my mind.

it's winter; snow snow snow. didn't get the garden turned or the bulbs planted. that happens every year but this year i had solid plans for it.

i've noticed that things that used to piss me off and drive me to act are greeted with indifference now. i'm not sure if that makes me less neurotic or just... sinking down.

i want snowshoes. i need outdoor cardio. ugh. 

tidbits

listen to annette hanshaw!

or if you prefer radio, listen to ckua. sometimes it gets too folky for me, but we often listen to the classical show in the evenings, and it helps the dumpling wind down for bed. the other night though, they were playing tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, and she got riled up. there was banging, climbing, giggling and some serious dancing.

her dancing is mostly from a seated position and involves basic bum shuffle, a mean shoulder shimmy, some hand waves and a side-to-side twist. when she's standing and we tell her to "shake your booty" she sticks her bum out. so damn cute.

been perked up considerably with the actual fall weather. staying up late to clean and prep for winter. finished cleaning all the appliances and actually raised my arms over my head in a victory walk down the hall. i heard cheering.

crazy plans this weekend, as it's canadian thanksgiving. one quiet night for me, as the queen has a troupe of boys he drinks with every year, one party night, two family dinners. i feel like such a grump that i'm dreading it. i could do two social gatherings, but three in as many days? ugh. oh well, at least the one at our house is looking pretty awesome. and hey, better too much family than not enough! give thanks for the good things in our lives that are often also a bit of a pain in the ass :) where would we be without them?