Monopoly

Unbelievable as it sounds, the kids are into their 4th hour of a Monopoly game -- and there hasn't been any fighting since hour 1! While passing through the room, I heard Patrick tell Aidan, who was on the brink of losing everything, that he was going to be needing a Federal bailout! How timely... Also overheard, Patrick telling Annie that he was about to send her "spiralling into the deep, dark abyss of bankruptcy." I'm glad that all the time we've spent encouraging his vocabulary has not gone to waste. Perhaps if the tank commander thing doesn't work out, he can become a commentator for CNN.

Wow - January 23rd?

Is that really when I last posted -- January 23rd? I can't even remember January anymore. If you've read my blog for very long at all, you'll see that this is a familiar refrain. I am terrible at this. I've never been able to keep a diary. Every time I tried, I would leave it for months at a time, come back to it, and be so embarassed by what I read there that I trashed the thing. Except once. I managed to faithfully keep a journal starting when I met Ryan until the day we got married. It is sappy, and sometimes strange, and incredibly embarassing, but lovely to have. Of course, there's the awkwardness of the whole "pros and cons" list - trying to decide if I really wanted to marry this person. It seems utterly moronic now, but was all part of trying to discern the will of God. But I digress...
What's happening in the Land of O'Dowd that is at all noteworthy you ask? Well:
1. (Trying hard to think back to the end of January...)
2. We weathered our first Ontario winter, which, I have to say, PALES in comparison to a Sasktachewan one. In fact, when we would awake to the hometown DJ (and I do mean hometown DJ in every sense of the word "hometown") talking about the "brutal" week we were in for, Ryan and I would give each other a high five and laugh ourselves silly. The poor man had no idea what he was talking about.
3. Stacy and Jeff paid us a visit. Yay for family! When I'm with my family, I often wonder what life is like for people who live near their parents and siblings and get to spend time with them all the time. I'm envious of those people - most of the time! (just kidding family!) Anyway, we took in Niagara Falls, a Toronto Raptors game, and St. Patrick's Day at the pub.
4. All five of us ran in the "Around the Bay" road race - the oldest road race in North America. (Older Than Boston!) is what all the shirts say. Ryan had been training for the 30K, but months of slipping around on ice took their toll on his knee and he had to bow out at the last minute and take in the 5K. This was amusing, as it was too late to change his race bib -- you should have seen the double-takes after he finished and everyone we passed was trying to figure out if Ryan had actually beaten all the Kenyans! We did not, in fact, beat ANY Kenyans. Ryan took 3rd in his age group and I was beaten by him and both of the boys. Annie might have beaten me too if she hadn't hurt her foot and had to walk for half the race. But, I didn't stop running, which, besides not being hit by anyone's jog stroller, was my only goal for the day. Did I mention it was raining the whole time? Normally, I am strongly opposed to getting wet unless I am swimming or in the shower. I despise water gun fights, water balloons, sitting in the splash zone at Sea World, and singing in the rain. All the way to the race I kept thinking that any minute, Ryan was going to say "Let's forget the race and go to breakfast." But, alas, he has a more disciplined spirit and we braved the rain with 9,000 other people. A fun day was had by all. But my socks were wet.
5. The end of another school year at Redeemer has arrived. Ryan has taught his last class for the year and we're in the thick of final exams. For me, and the rest of the Academic Advisors, this means exam monitoring time. Tonight was my first go. My job is to catch cheaters. I have to walk around, examine water bottles for crib notes written on labels, check underneath hats for hidden formulas, and try my best to keep a straight face while doing it. We have to check the bathrooms - even the little feminine hygiene receptacles because you never know where someone might try to hide the answers. We have a hall monitor who we refer to as being on "Pee" duty - they have to ensure that only one person at a time enters the bathroom and doesn't stay for too long. We don't want to encourage unneccessary collaboration in the stalls. It's a very important job and I take it very seriously. (Last note written for the benefit of my boss who may read this blog...)
6. Spring is here and summer is just around the corner. Plans include dance recitals, birthdays, camp, trips, and the like. We'll be visiting Westpoint, mostly for the sake of Patrick, who, after watching (and reading) "Band of Brothers" has solidified his plans to go to West Point to pursue a career in the armored calvary. This is less than comforting to me. It's good that he's beginning to think more practically than "Professional Football Player" but a tank commander?
7. The kids still have a couple of months of school left. We're contemplating putting Annie in a private school next year. She is less confident in herself than the boys and apt to be more of a follower and this concerns us, considering the people that offer themselves up to be followed. This is a huge decision for us with many financial, social, and spiritual implications. Much wisdom is needed. Patrick will be in his last year of elementary school (which, in Canada, goes to 8th grade) and then high school. If you have little ones, pay attention when people tells you it goes by quickly. You have no idea.
8. Finally, I heard one of the DJ's on the radio (not the hometown one, this time) say "Dr. Suess" only he pronounced it "Dr. Zues". This isn't the first time I've heard this in Canada. It makes me laugh.

That last one was hardly newsworthy, but I hope it made you smile.