Tuesday, November 27, 2012

DEAF BABY HEARS

I am totally crying. are you crying?

SEVEN MONTHS

rosebud is seven months old! she can crawl all over the place and loves to explore. she can pull herself up to a standing position all by herself and she loves to be standing as much as possible. she still falls down lots, though. she loves following the doggy, the kitty, mommy or daddy from room to room. i love to watch her crawl toward something and then stop and sit up! the first time i saw her pull out that move i was just completely bewildered. she still puts everything in her mouth, especially paper. Her favourite foods are toast, banana, broccoli, avocado and all different types of soup. she talks all the time and calls her daddy 'dada.'
at first we thought, oh, she just talks by saying dadada (which she does), she's not REALLy saying dada. Until one day, about a week ago I was nursing on the couch. daddy came over to say hi, so she pulled off. she looked at him for a moment, placed her little hand on his cheek and then said 'dada', just like that. we both melted.
ps. we got a new camera!

Sunday, November 25, 2012

SEVEN INCH SUNDAYS - CHRISTMAS MUSIC THAT'S NOT CHRISTMAS MUSIC

I've taken a little accidental break. oops.

the last couple of weeks have been busy and draining. I'm still working on completing my degree and so I have been working on two online courses this semester! It never got too crazy, the worst part of it was just that little voice in the back of my head that is always there, reminding me i have other things that need to be down, especially when I'm doing something I enjoy, and stresses me out more the longer my list is. courses make my list longer. i still have two finals and a lot of cramming to do, but for the next week or so, i'm putting a muzzle on that voice and relaxing!

Now, though, I'm just tired.

I can't even think of a musical selection!

okay. in honour of comforting, low-needs, easy listening music, here is patsy cline. i love patsy. she is sorrowful, yet fun. her voice feels like warm flannel sheets. my love of singing along to patsy is almost unparalleled.

patsy cline is perfect for november for many reasons. the aforementioned comparison to warm flannel sheets is an important one, but another reason, for me at least, is christmas.

you know when it's late November or early December and it's really starting to feel christmas-y and you'd like to indulge in that feeling without overdoing it because every time you go anywhere, christmas and holiday music is playing? or you just don't want to jump the gun and already be tired of christmas music by the 15th by accident? this is what i do in those times of peril.

I listen to patsy cline. and frank sinatra. and nat king cole. louis armstrong and ella fitzgerald. and a little bit of elvis, but only the nostalgic, croon-y ones.

there are others, but those ones are the big ones. It's the velvety texture of the recordings and the tempo of the songs. it reminds me of polished wood and candlelight. it reminds me of my grandparent's house and the smell of captain black's tobacco. it reminds me of CHRISTMAS! without actually being about christmas, you know?

please, if anybody reads this, does this music have the same quality for you, or am i just one of the lucky ones? at any rate, here's to christmas music that's not christmas music.

*just a note* this post is not meant to be exclusionary in any way. I write about christmas because i was raised anglican and christmas is what i know. i write what i know! the next month is going to be about christmas non-stop, so you have officially been forewarned! love to all, though!

Sunday, November 18, 2012

SEVEN INCH SUNDAYS - BLUEGRASS LOVE STORY EDITION

okay y'all. this seven inch sunday is to commemorate last week's adventure.

Blake has been away on a mini-tour all weekend and rosebud and I are really missing him, so a little nostalgic bluegrass will be my perfect tonic. Here are the two songs b. sang for me last week. enjoy!

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

same, but different

she looks the same, but different. just look at all that dark hair!

ps. i miss my baby. to others, she's still a baby, but i see her as almost a toddler now!

Monday, November 12, 2012

a summer love story - with bluegrass

last night, Blake and I attended the 15th anniversary of bluegrass night at barfly.

Meanwhile, in an alternate universe somewhere, it is April 24th, 2005, and I have just arrived in the big, strange city of Montreal from my small-town coastal city nestled away safely in Vancouver Island. My room-mates are people i know from back home, and upon arrival at my new apartment in the heart of le plateau, they collectively decide to take me out on the town, even though it's Sunday night! because I'm eighteen and legally allowed to drink in real bars!

Barfly is a dive-y, hole in the wall joint on the main not for from my new digs. There is bluegrass music, smoke hanging in the air, conversations in at least two languages and lots and lots of beer. after being asked about whether or not i liked the music, my reply was 'I don't think I get it, but I'm pretty sure I like it.'

and there was that mysteriously handsome young man playing the cello? no silly, that's a bass! all night long.

I went back almost every single sunday night that summer.

my love for the music grew in leaps and bounds, and I always kept my eye on that man, whom i affectionately referred to as 'rockabilly boy.' eventually, he had his eye on me, too. that summer went on and became the summer dreams are made of, but was abruptly ended when i ran out of money and had to go back 'home' to Vancouver Island to go to college.

Now, in this universe, it is been about seven and a half years later. I am older, wiser, and have had a lot more pints of beer from those sordid barfly taps. not so many lately, however, because me and 'rockabilly boy' are married and have our own perfect little child, equal parts he and i. i don't know the ending to this story, yet, but here's hoping for 'and they lived happily ever after...'
then

now

PS. last night rockabilly boy played one of his old classics, and i closed my eyes and saw that girl, that boy, all those years ago. i saw rosebud. and i cried! Unabashed, right there in the middle of that crowded bar.

Sunday, November 11, 2012

SEVEN INCH SUNDAYS - REMEMBRANCE DAY EDITION

'i vow to thee, my scotland,' which is also referred to as 'i vow to thee my country' always reminds me of my dad, who is an ex-military man. and it reminds me of Band of Brothers, which is an amazing series (have you seen it? have you watched it four times? *raises hand*). and it just reminds me of war and relatives and it often makes me cry. in a bittersweet way.

oh, danny boy! could any song be more personally appropriate for this week's seven inch sunday? my answer is a resounding no. i hope y'all love johnny cash because he's sure to return.

BONUS TRACK:
okay, i love crying as much as the next gal (read: a lot), but there is a time and place and then you move on, no? this next one is a great faron young song from from 1955 and it has always kind of helped me feel more at ease about those who die young. who doesn't want to leave behind a beautiful memory? it's also A LOT more celebratory than those last two, so hopefully it will help you wipe your salty tears away. like I said yesterday, lest we forget!

Saturday, November 10, 2012

REMEMBRANCE DAY

this is important to me, guys.

my papa, Thomas Vernon, served in the army in the Second World War. He enlisted at just seventeen years old. After his service in the army, he went on to do a lot of work for his local Legions in both Alberta and British Columbia, and was even the founding member of two separate Legion locations. He continued with this service until he died on October 31st, 2002 when I was sixteen years old. Love you, Papa.

My great Uncle Russ, Russel Noel, was Papa's older brother, and he served in the Navy during World War II on a ship called 'The Athabascan.' On April 28th, 1944, The Athabascan was hit by enemy fire, causing a huge explosion, and the ship was evacuated. That night, my Uncle Russ was lucky enough to be rescued by those abord the sister ship, the Haida, but 85 members of the crew were taken as Prisoners of War and 128 men died when the ship sank

Lest we forget.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

OBAMA

I respect those bloggers who don't like to publish anything political on their blogs, but I am not one of those people.

let's put it this way: I am a canadian living in canada, but the US is a major global power and I have not only myself to look after but also a beautiful baby daughter for whom i wish the world. who do YOU think i was cheering for!

all sighs of relief and tears of joy, up in here!

moments.

every moment that passes is another moment gone for us. i just know when you'll get bigger i'll relish these photos.

being with you is like crawling into freshly changed sheets, the smell of clean laundry, hearing a familiar song from long ago, swinging as high as you can go! and christmas morning every morning. love you, little pearl.

Sunday, November 4, 2012

SEVEN INCH SUNDAYS - TEE AND ESSING

This seven inch sunday is brought to you by the number fifteen. as in fifteen years old. when i was fifteen i was the most emotional nostalgic person. i would cry just thinking about what it would be like to remember being fifteen. it was a pretty... weird year. I'm still king of like that, but it fifteen it was the worst. it was soul crushing.

anyway, there is a lot of music i really liked at fifteen, some more embarrassing than others, but one of my mainstays of high school music love was tegan and sara. young, female and quirky, they wrote catchy, pop-y songs with just the right amount of ani difranco's feminine vulnerability thrown in for good measure. I stopped following them after *so jealous*, but they will always always have a place in my heart.

this one is my favourite. always was!

this is everything

Friday, November 2, 2012