Hello!! It feels good to be writing again. It also felt good to go offline and just…be.
I spent the last few weeks trying to focus on rest (to the degree it was within my control). Going to bed as early as possible and aiming for ~8 hours of sleep each night which I think is the bare minimum my body needs.
It still feels like I’m hobbling through many of my days – it’s just that sort of season – but since I’m showing up on a Friday, that means I have Happy Things to discuss.
Let’s catch up!
MOTHER’S DAY
I set low expectations for Mother’s Day. Maybe because my first one was so tough? A was less than two months old and colicky and I was still recovering from mastitis. I spent the entirety of the Mother’s Day church service alone in the nursery trying to feed a sickly, wailing infant. I hadn’t slept properly in what felt like approximately forever. People were, of course, fawning over my crying infant – who had the uncanny ability to stop crying when other people were around so they thought I was exaggerating about just how much she cried – and making assumptions over how excited I must be celebrating my first Mother’s Day as a mother. Friends, I wanted to punch every single one of them in the face. (Not really. Well…kinda.)
When we finally got home and got said colicky infant settled for a nap, John tried to very sweetly prepare me a special meal but set off two smoke detectors in the process.
I’m glad memories of those early celebrations have dulled and softened over time. Mother’s Day 2024 was much more relaxing than Mother’s Day 2011!
I woke up to breakfast in bed! John had to leave on a work trip early Sunday morning, but he made me a delicious smoothie and peanut butter + banana on toast (my favourite). What an unexpected, delightful surprise.
After dropping him off at the airport, we headed to church. We arrived just in time for the annual Mother’s Day “competition!” Every year they ask questions related to Mother’s Day. This year the first question happened to be: Which mother has most recently taken her child to the emergency room? We shot L’s casted arm into the air so fast it looked like we were launching the Lombardi Trophy after a hard-fought Superbowl win. I snagged a free haircut out of “winning” and L was quite proud to have contributed, in his own way, to this victory.
A joined me in small group which was nice. She was engaged but quite content to sit quietly near me. I know I’ve listed it as a favourite before but our Sunday small group is…the best. It’s a safe, loving space with an eclectic mix of people who would otherwise never cross paths. I’d missed two weeks and it felt like going home. What a gift!
I had no idea what to prep for lunch and settled on asking myself: What would this look like if it were easy? The immediate answer – oatmeal. It’s filling. It’s fast. We all love it. We almost never have it for lunch. And it kinda felt like the perfect Mother’s Day gift to myself. (Oatmeal with all the fixings is comfort food for me.) Then I enforced an hour of reading which the kids adhered to with relative compliance.
This was followed by a walk to a local farm market where ice cream was FREE for mothers. I always order a baby cone, but in honour of Mother’s Day they were handing out smalls. Alas, my beloved Peanut Butter Fudge Crunch wasn’t in stock, but my second favourite – Mariner’s Sea Salt Caramel – did the trick.
Supper was takeout pizza which we ate while watching TV (we’re going through the 1990’s Road to Avonlea series which is set on Prince Edward Island and based on L.M. Montgomery’s Storygirl characters).
FOOD
I am on a rice-cake-topped-with-tuna-filling kick. So delicious! Bonus points if I get to eat outside.
Chicken Mango Curry. (Though, for the second time in a row, I skipped the mango…so I guess it’s just Chicken Curry?). I’ve been making this for years and it never ceases to impress me. Delicious comfort food at it’s best.
IT’S MY BIRTHDAY MONTH
I got my first birthday card! Let’s unpack the happiness here:
- Look at that dog.
- It’s from Nicole who might as well be crowned the Queen of Happiness (she’s also being considered for the Countess of Kallettes position).
- There is something extra special about the first card, right?
THE PINK COAT IS OUT OF STORAGE
It is pink coat season!
I felt pretty glum yesterday. For no particular reason* which is, in some ways, the worst feeling when you’re glum. On a whim, before I headed out the door, I grabbed this coat from the closet. It didn’t magically give me a Mary Poppins mood, but it did make a subtle difference. I’ll count it a success.
*I think I was just broadly weary of adulting.
BONUS HAPPY THINGS
- The Lazy Genius podcast.
- Sunshine.
- Tulips!
- Walking outside with family or friends. Solo walks are great, too. Especially if the sun is shining.
- Going to bed early.
- Eating lunch on the deck.
- Looking out the window while I was typing this post and seeing one bluejay. No, two. NO, THREE! Three bluejays right outside my window? How happy is that?
- Reading a book your teen wants you to read. Reading a book your teen wants you to read and appreciating you’re at a stage in parenting where your child is the one recommending books. Bonus Happy Points for using an old Mother’s Day bookmark made by said teen many, many moons ago – long before they were reading chapter books of this ilk.
- Knowing I have about a week of pretty intense home responsibilities ahead (and coming off a ROUGH week of PMS) – I took a low-key day on Wednesday. I didn’t exercise at all. No walk. No yoga. I did my work slowwwlllly. I took an extra long “lunch break” and ate in the sunshine. Taking it easy meant I had the bandwidth to help at L’s youth group. This week happened to involve a wood-working project at a local high school. Picture thirty Grade 1-3 students in a shop class with very sharp things! But everyone walked away with all 20 appendages and had a great time. Many of the kids, under normal circumstances, have a hard time paying attention and settling down. There is something so grounding about working with our hands and I think we’ve lost a lot of that magic with our emphasis on butts-in-chairs academics. It was touching to see kids who are normally – literally – bouncing off walls, concentrating so hard on sanding their little blocks of wood. And being so proud of their efforts!
- The last few minutes of a yoga video – knowing I’m almost finished and it’s time to relax.
Your turn. What’s new? I missed you! Favourite food(s) lately? Happy Things from your week?
Melissa
Welcome back. I love that pink puffer. Such fun. My first Mother’s Day was not great either. G organised for his family to come to our place, which meant I missed my family’s Mother’s Day out at a restaurant and then, three days prior, G had to do an unscheduled work trip, so I ended up hosting his family on my first Mother’s Day by myself… GRRR! At least H was almost 1.
I think we both like similar icecream flavours. Recent favourite foods? I cooked a broccoli salad out of the Tenderheart cookbook this week and that was pretty good. I ended up making it again the following night to eat with steak because I had enough dressing leftover.
Elisabeth
I couldn’t resist that pink coat – at a thrift shop of course – a few years ago. It just makes everything feel a bit lighter and happier.
I can’t believe you had to host people – solo! – on your first Mother’s Day. That is rough. I would not have been a happy cooker/camper.
Broccoli is so delicious…and versatile!
sarah
Happy bday month– love the pink coat and the whole vibe of this post.
Jan Coates
Hi, Elisabeth: First, do you make your curry with coconut milk? It looks soooo good! And I thought of you yesterday as I started my volunteer gig in the sorting room at a Haliburton thrift store – truly amazing the “quality” of clothing people will donate. Lots of good stuff, but also lots of stuff that would’ve made good rags:) I was on my feet for the entire 5-hour shift, and my feet were complaining loudly! I’ll send a pic of the bunkie – the Mennonite truck driver used a “Mule” tractor to place it in a tricky place. It smells so piney!
Elisabeth
I do use coconut milk. The recipe doesn’t call for it, but coconut milk makes every curry better in my opinion.
What a perfect volunteer gig for you. Thrifting is all about finding diamonds in the rough. You and I both enjoy the hunt.
Loved seeing the bunkie – it looks highly functional and adorable. Those lake views are pretty incredible, too.
Stephany
Yay! Glad to see you back and happy that your time away was refreshing. 🙂 As it should be!
And hey, great job, L, at helping you win a Mother’s Day prize at church. HA.
I had a lovely week filled with social time with friends and family, and it really filled up my cup. I am going to need next week to be a lot more low-key to balance out all the people-ing I’ve been doing, but it was a nice week!
Elisabeth
L was quite proud of his role in the win! (I have a go-to hair place, so it might actually end up being a haircut for he or A in the end!)
Lindsay
Happy birthday month! That pink coat is just a burst of joy, right? We’ve been so on the go (and all the time) that my favorite recent eat has been anything I make in my own house: a cup of my tea in my mug with fun biscuits, a cooked dinner on our plates at our table, coffee on the deck in the chilly morning air – just the best! PS: I love the Lazy Genius podcast! Here’s to breaks AND coming back; glad to see your words this am!
Elisabeth
I do love that pink coat. A few weeks ago I ran into a friend on a trail and she said she didn’t recognize me from a distance because I wasn’t in the pink coat. It’s highly visible/hard to get lost in a crowd – ha.
I am generally not a podcast person, but the Lazy Genius – at least for my current “season”, as she would say – just speaks deep into my soul.
Coffee on the deck in crisp morning air is just about the best thing ever.
Colleen Martin
Happy Friday! I always love seeing a post of yours pop up. I have to say that I would be hard-pressed to find happy things if I was solo parenting, so good for you 🙂 I’ve been eating way too much ice cream lately, you know, for professional reasons so then I try to compensate by having a protein shake for breakfast and a veggie loaded soup for lunch. It’s all balance!
Elisabeth
Can I admit I am so over solo-parenting right now. Things kinda spiralled downhill the rest of the week, culminating in a huge sibling fight yesterday after which I declared we were skipping their much-beloved Thursday evening activity. There were tears from all three of us and it was just awful, but I took a stand and they need to see their are consequences for not treating siblings kindly. Anyhoo. John gets home today and I am READY FOR SUPPORT!!!
Ice cream is basically one of the major food groups necessary for life, right?
Jenny
Hooray! I’m so glad you’re back, and Happy Things Friday always makes me happy. Your Mother’s Day sounds really nice- much better than that first one! When you said you wanted to punch people in the face, it reminded me of when my son was little- I told my husband that the next time someone told me their baby slept through the night, I was going to kick them.
That card from Nicole- yes, how could you look at it and not be immediately happy. I’m excited for your birthday! Are there Twizzlers and a cherry cheesecake coming up?
On the subject of food, you just reminded me that I used to make a tofu mango curry very similar to your chicken one. My son is coming home this weekend (!) and I’ve been trying to think of dinners. I think I’ll make that!
Elisabeth
Sleep is about the most dangerous topic you can bring up to someone with a baby/toddler. You shouldn’t broach it if you don’t want to risk physical injury!
Twizzlers (maybe), and cherry cheesecake (there had better be). I didn’t get a Cherry Cheesecake last year because we were in South Carolina over my birthday (my sister made a delicious PB cheesecake instead). This year I told John I want a full-body massage and Unbaked Cherry Cheesecake. That is all I want or need, but I NEED that Cherry Cheesecake.
Enjoy the reunion with Paul. I’m so excited for you. I know it’s an absolute delight for you to have him come home <3
Kyria @ Travel Spot
Welcome back and what a great way to reemerge! Happy Friday! You have so many good things on your list today. I love your pink coat and also the pink dress you are wearing in the Mother’s Day photo. It brings out the pink in your cheeks and the sparkle in your eyes! I wear a lot of black, which does me no favors, but I find it easier to mix and match. However, I aspire to be like you with your fun bright colors and patterns!
My happy thing this week was a great birthday in all regards, lots of love and some great weather. It is starting to rain again and is supposed to rain for the next week or so, on and off (and even snow in Canmore/Banff!), but I have been loving the weather over the last week.
Elisabeth
I hope you get a break on the rain. Ugh. But I’m glad your time in Canada has been good so far.
Thanks for such kind comments about the dress; thrifted, of course! I’ve definitely become more “colourful” the older I get. Life’s too short for me to just wear black (though it is my preferred!). I’m not very adventurous in other ways (ie. Biking across a continent!!!)
Birchie
Welcome back to the internets! See, I told you we’d all still be here.
Yep, tired of adulting just about sums it up. I can’t remember the last time that I put effort into a meal. Oh well. I do like the look of the tuna salad though, so maybe I’ll copy you.
Elisabeth
Tuna salad is a very comforting food to me. Odd? I know it’s a love/hate meal for many people, but I’ve only really started eating it as an adult – we rarely had tuna when I was growing up – and we make it extra delicious. Some pickle relish, mayo, a healthy glug of mustard AND nutritional yeast, salt, pepper and, if I’m really adventurous, a dollop of maple syrup. YUM!
Michelle G.
I’m glad you had a nice blogging break, Elisabeth. This post has so many happy things! Oatmeal for lunch, a card from Nicole, winning a prize, a pink jacket, Blue Jays, tulips….everything! I feel happy after reading your post. Welcome back!
Elisabeth
Well I’m so happy this post made other people happy! It’s great to be “back” after a little break <3
Ally Bean
The pink coat is cute, I like any outer wear that while I’m out walking suggests don’t run over me. Favorite food of late? Strawberries, they’re fresh and local now. Yum.
Elisabeth
It would be hard to find anything brighter on the streets of my town than this giant wad of bubble gum.
Strawberries. A few more weeks and they’ll be fresh and local here, too! I hope it’s a good season. Last year the weather was awful around the strawberry harvest 🙁
Lisa's Yarns
Yay! You are back! I have really missed your posts! I feel so out of touch with your life when you aren’t posting even though I can easily message you through Whatsapp.
Can you send me your curry recipe? I think we’d like it without the mango (I like mango but am not a big fan of fruits in savory meals). I could use another recipe for our rotation!
Nicole is the mail queen! I got a sympathy card from her and today I came home to a post card from their trip to the eastern provinces. How amazing is that? She had also texted me to tell me I would absolutely love Montreal. I hope to get there in the next 5 years or so! It’s not too long of a flight from Minneapolis and would give me my Paris fix!
What’s new with me… hmmm… It’s been another hectic week with work travel then jumping straight into parenting since I ubered to the ballpark to help with Taco so Phil could focus on T-Ball/Paul. And then last night was an art event at school which I suggested maybe only one of us attends so the other could stay home with taco. Phil was like – nah, it’s a family event, it will be fine. Reader, it was NOT fine. Taco would not cooperate and there were so many people so once we saw one of Paul’s pieces of art, we high-tailed it out of there and by high-tail I mean I carried a kicking screaming toddler while Phil was pulling Paul by the arm because of course Paul did not want to leave and neither did Taco but his behavior was, um, comment-worthy potentially so we cut our losses and bailed. It was really a “you can’t make this up” kind of parenting experience and I think both my and Phil’s hearts were racing when we were leaving since it was just so unpleasant! But now we know to not bring Taco next year… It seemed like a cool event so I am bummed we didn’t get to really experience but so it goes. This weekend the weather will be gorgeous so I intend to spend lots of time outside. Plus Phil and I have a date night! So I am very excited for some one-on-one time away from the kids. Some of our friends are hosting a big Paella dinner for families but we will just stop by on the way home SANS KIDS which will make it far more enjoyable.
Elisabeth
Oof. Those moments are just so hard as a parent. Not only are you missing something you want to participate in, you have the exhausting and embarrassing task of leaving with a screaming toddler. There really is no silver lining to evening like this; it’s kinda just a matter of dusting off your hands and moving forward knowing, eventually, the tantrums will stop.
Yay for date nights and evenings out WITHOUT KIDS. You two need that and I’m proud of you for scheduling it in (the effort of setting up childcare can seem like one step too much, sometimes).
I have made a note to e-mail you the curry recipe!
Maria
Welcome back! One of my happy things for today was seeing your post!
Your Mother’s Day this year sounds fabulous! Mine was middling. A lot of good and a lot of less than good. But that’s life.
What’s new is that we have been re-exploring the US healthcare system while on a trip to see my parents – all three kids and my husband got strep. The two year old just went on a different antibiotic for an infected finger and we’ve passed strep onto my dad and one year old niece. 🫠 BUT it’s been a great trip despite all that and I’m grateful for antibiotics and for travel health insurance. So I guess my happy things are family time, antibiotics, and travel health insurance
Elisabeth
Oh Maria! What an…adventure. I’m so sorry your trip has involved so much involvement with the healthcare system, but praise the Lord for travel insurance indeed!
And, of course, it makes me happy to know this post was a happy thing in your day <3
Nicole MacPherson
Yay you’re back!!! I have missed your voice in this space. It feels like forever!
Your Mother’s Day sounds really nice! I spent mine in the car driving home, but I got home to M making dinner and J giving me a gardening tool that he had used at the golf course and loved. Which is good, because WEEDING.
Lots of happy things around here, mostly garden and gnome related. I’m so glad you liked your card! xoxo
Elisabeth
I know weeding is having a moment in your life – sounds like a perfect gift! And can’t wait to see lots of pictures of the garden AND gnomes!!!
Daria
Hi Elisabeth!!!! So great to see a post from you. I am weary of adulting, too lol Mother’s day was quiet and I was brooding about my relationship with my mom and jealous of all the people who HAVE a relationship with their moms.
Wee was tough… A faculty meeting, final exam prep work, putting stuff away in my class. But summer is almost here and I will make sure I have some time to do things slowly, like you mentioned above.
I admit, I get the urge to stay screw the laundry, the floors, the activities, I’m spending today in bed. But Karen, my anxiety, will not let me do that lol
Elisabeth
Mother’s Day (or any special celebration) is extra hard when we’re grieving something associated with that day. It weighs heavy and then I think we sometime feel guilt for not accomplishing that “light and breezy” attitude that is portrayed in the media. The truth is, we all have baggage, right? And it can feel extra heavy on certain days.
NGS
Today was officially HOT here and I got to live my dream – walking the dog in sandals, a sundress, and a sunhat. That was it. No layers, no tying shoelaces, no clothing for the dog. What a treat. I think I’m going to suggest my husband and I go on a walk to our local ice cream place where I will probably order a sundae. SUMMER!!
Elisabeth
Who has time to deal with shoelaces? Not Engie!! That sounds delightful (and I bet Hannah enjoys fewer barriers to getting out for a walk).
I hope the sundae was delicious <3
San
Hello, hello. So happy to read from you… and with a happy things update 🙂
I am so glad you had a lovely Mother’s Day (I can imagine that first one with A was tough and I am glad you can look at it through more rose-colored glasses now that it’s in the rearview mirror!).
And speaking of rose-colored (or pink), that pink coat and your pink flowery dress look lovely on you. You can really pull off color in your wardrobe!
P.S. I also love your sparkly nails 🙂
Elisabeth
Adding a swipe of sparkly top coat is…fun. I sometimes feel like I look ridiculous being a mom and my age and wearing sparkles on her nails. Oh well. It’s fun, so I do it!
Colour is having a moment in my life right now <3
Rachel
Oh welcome back! Yay!
I so relate on the Mothers Day. I remember saying to my husband on my first Mothers day (with a 5 month old who never slept) that I wanted to spend Mothers day pretending I wasn’t a mom.
Now if I get a coffee and a some sort of person sport (run/walk/bike ride) on Mothers day then it’s perfect.
Your bonus happy things are my happy things too
That maroon dress is gorgeous and especially gorgeous on you!
Elisabeth
YES! It is a bit ironic (but most mother’s would agree) the one thing we want to avoid on Mother’s Day is…mothering!!
Thanks for such kind words. I was thrilled to find that dress (thrifted, of course). It’s also floor length, so I can wear it in the fall, winter, and spring and it always seems to “fit” the season?
Kate
Happy Mother’s Day! I think the first few mother’s days are hard when the baby/toddler themselves has no concept of it. Although I have consistently received some pretty cute handprint/footprint art from daycare over the years 😉 I’m glad this one was much more relaxing for you!
Love all your happy things and the quiet joys they represent — and major kudos to you for rationing your energy wisely to be able to participate in L’s youth group! The concept of kids that age working around sharp tools initially is a bit frightening but I think often kids rise to the challenge when they are confronted with appropriate risks and then they are rightfully proud of themselves. And I’m so glad you have that small group in your life. It sounds like a haven in both a spiritual and an emotional sense.
Anne
Welcome back. We’ve missed your voice here. I’m glad you had a restorative time away, and equally as glad that you prioritized REST above all else. I hope that you have not been solo-parenting more than dual-parenting, and that the end of the school year (well, kind of sort of) is going well. Love the color and brightness in this post. <3