"Its a boy"

Two wonderful crew mates went for an ultrasound yesterday and found out that their new crew member will be a boy.
I'm very excited for the two of them, mind you, if their new crew mate was going to be a girl, I'd be just as excited.

Finding out the gender of your newest crew member is an interesting thing - I wonder why we want to know so badly. Is it a way to "get closer" to the baby? Is it so that we can create a life plan for this new little one?

There is something romantic about finding out about the gender of the baby the day that he/she is born, but maybe its just because I'm to impatient to wait 9 months to find out as much as I can about the little person who is coming into the world that I couldn't wait.

If I have the chance to go though this all again, I think I'll want to find out the gender before the baby is born. Its exciting to be able to say "hey the little person I am making is going to be a _______".

I love babies. They hold such promise and such a wonderful sense of the world. I love seeing the world in a new way through my little first mate's eyes. I can't wait for all of the memories we will make in the future, but even just the day to day events - it really is a gift to have a child.

Busy weekend

argh mates, there is nothing like a busy weekend which makes you wish that you had more time. Time is a funny thing. In our heads we think that we have "lots of time left to live", yet in day to day life things feel so busy, like we have no time.

As my first mate and I are coming to the end of our mat leave, I am realizing how quickly time is going. The hard part is that the little first mate has become so much fun lately (not that he wasn't fun before, he's just able to do more therefore we can play in new ways). In the past week and a half the little first mate has learned to crawl, climb the stairs, use a sippy cup, pull himself up to standing and pick things up with his thumb and first finger. We play "tag" around the coffee table.

I feel that going back to work I'll miss out on so much. Its hard to imagine "co-parenting" with someone that I am not married to, and who I am paying to care for my child. I know everything will be fine and when I get back to work I will be fine too, and the little first mate will be fine in daycare, but its a huge change.

I'm sorry Madonna, "Time does not go by so slowly".

Fortune telling - Pirate Style!

I love my magic 8 ball - it is so positive.
Me: Will it be a nice day today?
Magic 8 Ball: Outlook Good.
Me: Will I be happy in my life?
Magic 8 Ball: All signs point to yes.
Me: Will the little first mate have a good life?
Magic 8 Ball: It is decidedly so.
Me: Should I eat a huge bowl of Oreo Cookie Icecream?
Magic 8 Ball: Ask again later.

Oh well, it can't be perfect.

I think it would be a lot of fun to go back to school and have the magic 8 ball make all the decisions for me. Like if a kid asks "Can I go to the bathroom" - I'd ask the magic 8 ball. Or "can I have an extension"...and I'd shake the magic 8 ball and it would say "don't count on it".

Ah - good times.

Shout out to all the lost crewmates

Okay, I was just kidding - of course there are somethings in my past that I have to think about from time to time - especially when I get good news. A dear friend of mine got engaged and is buying a house with his fiance.
This person is very special to me because I always felt at peace with him - like my soul found a "soft place to land". I was going though some troubled waters, and his island was a wonderful vacation spot, which unfortunately was only a vacation and I had to move on.
I wish him well and all the best.

Sailing into the big 3-0

Its funny - I wanted to make this huge "realization" entry about turning 30, but in reality, its not a big deal. I look at my past, and mostly I am glad to have had the experiences I have had, but I look more to the future now. Maybe its because of my fantastic little first mate, or maybe its just that I have lived in the past long enough and am ready to look forward, but the big 3-0 wasn't that big of a deal.

A friend of mine said that the 30's are the best years of your life because you are more at ease with you are. Maybe that's true. Maybe I'm just more content with my life. I am ready to say good bye to last year's events, and at some point you just have to dive in with both feet and say "that was then, this is now, and I'm happy with what I've got".

So I guess I'm off to a good start with my 30's - I'm happy with what I've got.

Protecting these waters

Ahoy maties. On Friday night meself and one of my best mates went to see David Suzuki speak about his latest book which is an autobiography. This man has had an amazing life. He comes from a point of view which is "why not" rather than "I can't".
I think for a lot of people saving our environment is too big of a task for one person to take on, so they do nothing. Suzuki has made it easy to do your part in a small way.
Please go to: http://www.davidsuzuki.org/ and take a look at the Nature Challenge and Sustainability in a Generation.