Hard at work

The mornings are always frantic in our house. Papa is busy getting ready for work. Izzie is doing her best to play with the cats or any other toys that may be laying around. And Maman is also occupied with getting things in order, including responding to e-mail sent from her adoring fans. Once I finish my breakfast, I like to log onto the Internet with her so we can surf the web. So most mornings, I pull my stool up next to her and help her navigate the computer, she has troubles some times and she needs my help.

The Queen of the Castle

As soon as Elle leaves for the day, it's my turn to rule the house. The first place I head to with Maman is the playroom because when she's gone I get to play with all the toys that she dominates during the evening. Earlier this week, I asked Maman to let me play on the castle that my big sister seems to think is her's alone. It was so much fun. From there, I could see the cats coming and going, I spotted my succe that I misplaced a few minutes before and I could also locate each of my stuffed animals. Sadly, I wasn't allowed to go down the slide by myself but I think that is coming very soon.

Raindrops in the bathroom

I've come to learn in all my vast experience in exploring that wearing a rain jacket is very important. It doesn't matter if your adventure is taking you indoors or outdoors, you can never be too prepared for unexpected events. So the other day when I decided I was going to climb onto the sink and start playing with all the things on the counter, I knew I had to take it very seriously. So with my pink, polka-dotted rain jacket and my shoes, I scaled the side of the toilet and the lifted myself up on the side of the counter before securing my footing inside the sink. From that point, I had easy access to the hand lotion, the toothpaste and all the toothbrushes, as well combs, a telephone, hair dryer and gazillion other things.

If you can't beat'em, join'em

It seems sometimes that our pets get all the attention around the house. Every time Toulouse meows, Maman or Papa reacts -- although perhaps not in the way he would like. Gribouille gets pick up all the time because he utilizes his uncanny ability to sit down right where someone else wants to sit or lay down on the part of the newspaper someone is reading at that precise moment. And we're not even going to start listing all the ways that Belle gets acknowledged by people in the house. So I decided that it was about time that I try and divert some of that attention to me. I had a myriad of options open to me, but I thought the best way to get the attention of an animal was to look like one, so I put on my moose hat. And as soon as I started walking around with antlers, I had all the attention that I was looking for! Take that Belle, Gribouille and Toulouse. Now I just have to make sure Izzie doesn't catch on to my trick.

Sitting pretty

Look at me, I'm so incredibly adorable. I can sit up and smile and everything, what more could you want out of a seven month old? This new sitting thing is quite amazing. Seriously, if I knew how much more entertaining life is when you're seated like this I would have started doing it months ago. In this position, you are in a perfect situation to lunge at a cat, grab a book that is just out of reach or tug at Papa's pants.

But there is also a European soccer element that also comes into play now that I can sit. How does Euro football (as Papa calls it) have anything to do with sitting you may ask. That's a perfectly valid question. Now that I can sit Maman and Papa think they can start doing chores around the house and not have to worry about entertaining me 24/7. Well, when I started to get bored, all I have to do is wait until they are just out of sight and then: Ooops. I fall down and start screaming as if Elle just took my favourite toy. I'm not really hurt, not in the least but it's pretty funny to see your parents coming sprinting out of nowhere to pick you up. Sometimes they run so fast they almost collide into each other or step on a cat or better yet, Elle!

Working the phones with papa

Papa always makes it sound as if being a reporter is difficult. In order to prove him wrong and to see what he actually does when he leaves in the morning, I decided to follow him to work. In order to fit into the press gallery atmosphere and not draw any unwarranted attention to myself, it was of the utmost importance that I dress as all the other scribes. After considerable consultation, I dug into my closet and found a pink, Winnie the Pooh outfit with a hood featuring pink ears. I think I blended in quite well.
When I arrived in the gallery, I did what I think most reporters do at 8:15 a.m., I had a nap. And when I woke up, I learned what it is like to be spun by a public relations expert. I felt quite influential because I was given the scoop on the Commissioner of Official Languages annual report.
Bob Woodward I'm not, but I thought it was critical that I properly understand the implications of the commissioner's report. And when that was over, papa and I worked the phones to arrange the stories we were going to write and then speak with some highly influential sources. And then as he read his newspaper, I read my own book which was far more interesting because it was plastic and it could be put in my mouth.
Within about 30 minutes the most influential source of them all walked in the door. No, it wasn't the premier or the opposition leader, it was Maman! She came to pick me up because I was clearly intimidating all the other reporters with my long list of sources and pink ears. I have come to the conclusion after just 45 minutes as a journalist that being a reporter is pretty darn easy. Let's be honest, it's far simpler than being a seven-month-old.

Hey sis, it's my turn

Now that I can actually sit up by myself, I've discovered a brave new world of playing with Elle. Not only can I tug on her hair and steal her toys, we can actually play with the same things. We are both huge fans of our choo-choo train that makes animal noises and transports little plastic giraffes, elephants, monkeys and lions. We're actually a perfect pair because Elle likes to push around the train and put the animals into the carts, meanwhile I just like to hit the train so it makes noises and then put the animals in my mouth.

I'm not going to mislead you into believing that playing with Elle doesn't come with a heavy dose of potential pratfalls. For instance, she has a bit of a temper so heaven help anyone who decides to pull a bait-and-switch with a toy that she's playing with at the time. I'm a blood relation and I've been worried about my long-term survival more than once. Further she seems to have this mistaken idea that it's fun to poke her little sister with various objects. How many times do I have to say, I am not an animal please don't jab me. Big sisters!

Plunging into puddles

A certain joy swept into my life the other day. For the last several months I had become accustomed to piling on three pairs of pants, two shirts, a jacket, a toque and four pairs of gloves before I could go outside. It has been that cold. And I'm only mildly exaggerating, there were times that I pondered the possibility of shaving the dog so I could steal her winter coat. (Then I realized I could just pick up all the hair she leaves on the floors.) So when the skies opened up and we were soaked with a few days worth of rain, I was presented with an amazing opportunity to start puddle jumping. But that's not all, I also gained much needed experience in the events of puddle walking, puddle dancing, puddle splashing, puddle falling, puddle running and puddle swimming.

This is what we call the puddle wiggle wiggle. It's being trademarked so you can't steal my moves. For those who want to try and emulate this state-of-the-art dance form, it's quite simple. Get dressed in splash pants, rubber boots (preferably with a princess on the side) and a rain jacket (the pink toque is an added bonus), find yourself the deepest, muddiest puddle in the neighbourhood. Once you've located that perfect puddle, start swinging your arms and wiggling your bum as close to the water as possible. The artistry needed to perfect this dance is quite extraordinary, so don't be disappointed if it takes some time.

This is the face of a person well worn out from an afternoon of puddle jumping. It's important to reflect on your actions after such an exhilarating event. So with that in mind, I thought it was necessary to take one final stroll through the watery walkway in front of our house and just think about all the fun I had. It won't take long before the sun starts shining every day and the mercury starts rising. Sadly that means all the snow will start receding for another year and the green grass will begin growing in its place. Once spring is here, we'll find other ways to amuse ourself but it won't be nearly as wet and wonderful.

Who needs a birthday when you get a birthweek

Mmmm... Chocolate cake with colourful icing. It's Maman's birthweek this week, which means we get chocolate cake and Papa makes dinner. Don't tell Papa, but I could live without his cooking. He tries hard so I'm trying not to deflate his rather fragile ego. On Sunday, it was cake night and we even got to blow out the candles. Because I'm two years old, I did my best to help Maman blow out all her candles, she's ancient you know. Izzie, on the other hand, wanted to try and eat the burning candles. Little sisters, sometimes you have to explain everything to them.

It's dress up time

I love playing dress-up. And it's even better when I get to put on my heart-shaped shades. As you can plainly see, I'm adept on putting them on all by myself. Maman kept offering to help me but why would I need her assistance when I can do it just fine myself. And don't you just love my green headband and the frilly, pink shoulder straps to my dress? Sadly this picture doesn't properly portray my full elegance. What you can't see is the black socks I have on my arms. Very classy methinks.

It's my ball

Finally, it's my turn to play with the ball. Each time I go after it, Elle and Belle are always trying to steal it away from me or bounce it in a gazillion other directions. So now I get to do whatever I want with it. Unfortunately, I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do. Perhaps I'll just sit up and look at it and try and put it in my mouth. Yes, that's exactly what I'll do. Wait, it's too big for my mouth. Argh, thwarted again!

Kickin' back and relaxin'

Life is good when you're a baby. Your big sister takes care of you by offering you her toys, the dog lets you tug her hair, the cats clean your hands, your parents feed and bathe you and your grandparents give you lots of presents. That's why I have all the time in the world to sit back here in my little, inflatable chair and just watch the world unfold before my eyes. It is much easier than being an active participant in the events. I have a far more passive personality than my sister.

Dressing up

It's March Break this week and that means Kali is playing with Bella and I every day. We decided that it was time to play some serious dress-up, a game I've become very adept at at home with all my pearls, shoes, clothes and crowns. As you can see, today I decided that I wanted to dress up like a little bug. Buzz buzz buzz.