Chilling Out, Baby Style

Isla hanging inside on a rainy cold day

You'd think coming from Winnipeg I'd be tougher.

When I was a kid growing up in the 'peg (please not "Winterpeg", Torontonians - you always use this term with Winnipegers, like we've never heard it before  - fyi, we have and we still don't think it's particularly clever or funny), cold or wet weather would never phase us.

7AM Enfant Bunting Bag

For the most part, unless the cold would actually kill you (which actually could happen on a few particular days in winter), you'd never hesitate to bundle up and get outside to play, skate, toboggan, whatever....


But today in Toronto, it's a wee bit cold and it's definitely wet and I'm totally pouting.

Do all Vancouver mamas have one of these?

Isla and I had big plans. Today, we were going to go for a nice long walk in our neighbourhood. I finally got her a good outdoor cover-up - this awesome piece from 7AM Enfant from Planet Kid in Roncesvalles (is it a coat or bunting bag? both! - top snaps off to be her coat when she's a little older *and someone way smarter than me actually thought to put a little slot in the bunting part for a car seat - brilliant). And I had a mission - go find high dose DHA supplements for myself at the corner health food store so Isla has the potential of having the biggest healthiest brain ever...

Pudge can teach me a lot about chilling

But said brain is going to have to wait a day or two to expand because while the cold doesn't bother me, the wet does. I mean, what do you do with a stroller and a baby and cold pounding rain?

Well, the answer for me and Isla today is not too much. Days like today become unscheduled nothing days.

It's good for such days to have some projects ready to go at home. For me, today involved the beginnings of cleaning out and organizing my post-maternity closet - I didn't get very far but the plans are in the works. Other ideas for future days like today could include the following:

1. Learn how to bake. I don't know about you, but baking never figured prominently in my working (outside the home) life. It sort of stresses me out with all its requirement for precision and prettiness but the outcomes are rewarding so well worth learning how to do this.

2. Organize cupboards. Our babysitter, Brad and I all have different rules when it comes to putting things away in the kitchen. And none of those rules are the same. Well, I'm taking control. I'm home so, for now, they are officially my cupboards. There will be a system. It will be my system. So there.

3. Work on thank you cards. I'm surfing Etsy and some other sites for some more creative solutions to thank you cards. I kinda like this idea...but think I can do a wee bit better. So if you're wondering where your thank you card is, this is why. I'm aiming for perfection, people!

4. Figure out daytime television. I'll say it. I miss Oprah! And although I have OWN, there's not enough Oprah on OWN to make up for missing my 4pm Oprah.  And there are all these new and not so good shows - The Chew is one that is pretty awful and I can't believe The Doctors still exists. It's super annoying. But I think I may be in love with Anderson Cooper. I would like to tell CTV, however, that they need to move Anderson to 4pm. Archer gets home at 5pm and then it's all Treehouse all the time.

5. Learn how to be happy just chilling. Not surprising to those who know me, this is *really really hard for me. But having a baby in the middle of winter - and having a second baby so you're even more extra tired, makes learning to chill a necessity  - something a seasoned and smart mom of two reminded me of yesterday when I was complaining about being a little bored. It's rare in life when you're actually allowed to do nothing. And even rarer still when you are able to do nothing with someone you love so deeply. This definitely will be top of the list for our next unscheduled nothing day. I can't wait.