Uh oh

My daughter might be a little bit gangsta. Why would I say that you ask? She looks so sweet and innocent right? Well she is for the most part I think, but then yesterday she sang this to me.

Do you recognize it? It's the part that Holis sings in Macklemore's hit Cadillac. In and of itself, a little girl singing a snippet of a rap ballad does not a gangsta make, but something happened today to make me think twice.
She brought home this huge pink cardboard crown that she made at school.

She placed it on her head and proclaimed that her princess name is ....wait for it.....rebel. I I thought that perhaps I had misheard, so I asked her to repeat it. But no, I had not made a mistake, she is Princess Rebel! Do you think she actually knows what it means.... because right after she said she would make me a crown and I could be Queen Rebel if I wanted. Me a rebel? Never! (Don't ask my mom about my teenage years.)

Counting my blessings

It's after dinner, the dishes are  put away, homework is done and the only noise to break the silence is the radio.

My son is quietly piecing together his lego spaceships.

My daughter is gently swaddling her dolls in baby blankets.

This is what peace looks like at 37. Wildly different from what I used to dream about  in my wild teenage years.

A nice day overall.

Are overalls seasonal? Are they only worn in summer? My husband is oblivious of fashion rules when it comes to overalls. He put my daughter in a pair she recently inherited from her cousin. I'm so glad he did. I was treated to this cuteness when she came down the stairs:

I asked her to stand up and stay still so I could get nice picture. Apparently standing still is impossible for a four year old.



She was perfect to snuggle up with in her overalls!

Three good reasons I feel good in the middle of this dreary winter

Things I loved about this week:
1. My son volunteering to read my daughter her strawberry shortcake library book

2. My daughter patiently listening and encouraging my son whilst he read her the story

3. The electricity between my husband and I - literally got an electric shock kissing him goodbye this morning. It hurt but he had a sense of humor about it - he said we still have the spark!

A sea of pink

After much begging, we finally put my daughter in ballet class again. Last year she didn't really pay attention and did more running around than dancing. She started off this class with some promise, by exhibiting some great listening skills.

During the dancing segment of the class, she really came into her own. Check out the look on her face, eyes closed, shaking what her mama gave her with such abandon.

She was pooped after dance class so I thought she would want to go straight to bed after dinner.

Somehow she got her second wind and spent the post-family-playing-dominoes portion of the evening riding her daddy around the living room, calling him a good donkey. 

My husband was a little miffed at being called a donkey, especially since being called a donkey or a donkey's baby has a negative connotation in Bengali! My poor love!

Welcome to 2014

What a cold start to 2014, and especially in Montreal! How did you spend your New Years? We spent ours ensconced in my sister's warm home. She served three different types of pasta and feasted on a variety of desserts. We had the countdown and at midnight we welcomed 2014 with hugs and kisses. 

We gave the kiddies the animals made out of gloves. 

Post New Years my husband and I decided to go on a short trip to Montreal sans babies. (I miss them) We traveled by car, train, bus, boat and finally plane to arrive in Montreal in the coldest day of the season. It was so cold our noses hurt from being outside. We did some shopping, watched Anchorman 2 and had the worst sushi ever. It was too cold to do much else. Luckily our hotel, the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth, is super comfortable!!!!

On the way back to the hotel we learned that the stores were connected to the hotel by an underground path!!! We needn't have been cold =).