I managed to pack really well for the flight. I fit all that I need for two and a half months for myself and the two boys in one medium sized suitcase. I also had two car seats, but they don’t count as luggage. Then there was a stroller and, despite my original plan to have only one carry on bag, my husband managed to convince me to carry the laptop separate from the diaper bag. Trevor had his own backpack with toys that he kept referring to as his purse (I hope his father does not hear him saying that) but he was pretty good at taking care of it himself.

The stewardess on the overseas flight was fantastic, she held the baby while I got settled and moved the other passengers around so I can have the seat with the bassinet. The man sitting next to me was amazing help as well and he held Owen while I fed myself and Trevor.

The boys behaved really well. They were a bit rowdy at first but then they settled and were a great help. It also helped that it was theoretically “night” for most of the flight.

The Frankfurt airport was a mess, but, from what I hear from other people, we did really well with minimal wandering and none of our baggage was lost.

Last month marked ten years that I had graduated and moved to Ottawa.

The noughties were less turbulent and exciting than the nineties, for sure, but we still got a lot done. We learned to sail and be grad students. We got houses and cars, we got more gray hairs and travelled on three continents. We got married and most significantly of all, we had kids.

Would write more, but I must now grapple with the future.

We went to see the last opera of the past season last Wednesday and I had a great time. This production was different in that there was no stage set except for the lighting on the back of the stage and the entire orchestra was on the stage. The singers and the chorus were wearing evening dress and not period costumes. At first we were wondering if we’re getting our money’s worth, but, by the end I was convinced. The sets and costumes are usually ugly and add very little to the experience so no big loss there. With exception of the tenor, I really enjoyed the performers. Overall, fun was had.

Maria and Dan already blogged about today’s bike ride, so go read their blogs.

The bike ride today was gorgeous, I can’t wait for Owen to be old enough so we can bike like this every weekend or at least a few times each summer. Admittedly, it was Chris who was pulling the trailer, so the ride was super easy for me, but I was still a bit worried not having biked on my sports bike yet this year. My legs are going to hurt tomorrow, but during the ride, I was good.

We outdid our expectations by sending over $1000 in pledges and a ten-year-old gamin to CHEO (I think he was fine, at worst he broke his leg, but he did not look in too much pain). Never the less, we’re hoping to do the event again next year, hopefully without getting little boys stuck in our wheels. I blame helicopter parenting, but then again, I blame helicopter parenting for everything.

Back to happy stuff. The route went from the War Museum through Ottawa downtown, by the Canal to the Experimental Farm and back and then down the Ottawa River Parkway and back. I loved biking through Ottawa downtown. These are streets with traffic so messed up and confusing that I grind my teeth when I drive the car there. It was divine to just fly between the office buildings while the cops were waving the cars away. The sun poked out when we got to Dow’s Lake and the Experimental Farm reminding me just how pretty Ottawa can be when it wants to.

Because of the accident, the whole team did not make it back to the finish line, so here is a picture of Trev looking exhausted for all of us.

He also got to look at a fire engine and wave at firemen (are they still called that???) which made him happy.

A big thank-you again to all who donated money, next year we will try a strategy that is more fun and less spam. I was quite overwhelmed with response, I did not expect to collect half so much. I still have some brownies to bake so I better get on it.

Thanks to some very generous friends of mine, I reached my goal of $100 for CHEO. I am very happy. I promised some prizes to people who donate and my friends took me up on it. I will be baking and digging in the near future. As I have reached my goal, I will no longer harass people to donate, but if anyone is still interested in prizes (listed below), please do not be shy. If you don’t care for prizes, but would like to donate, consider donating to my team mates: Maria, Dan or Chris.

Now that I have got the pledges I am starting to get ready for the ride. It will be 35km. The route is our standard Sunday morning route along the river. it is a beautiful route and I hope the weather co-operates. Trevor has been asking to go biking in his trailer so he should be good for the ride. I hope riding on the front of the bike has not spoiled him. Owen, alas, will have to wait until next year to join us.

Here is the list of prizes:
To anyone who pledges $15 or more, I can prepare you a little prize to thank you. Here is a list of prizes:

– a pair of custom knitted gloves or fingerless mitts with 100% wool yarn from my stash. For pledges of $25 or more, I will get some fancy yarn from the store
– a plate of Mascarpone Brownies
– Wallnut Chocolate cake (for pledges of $50 or more)
– a set of potted perennials for your garden. Daylilies (I will give these away for $5 or more), Peonies, Bleeding Hearts (if they come up this year, I haven’t seen them yet), Violets, Forget-me-nots, different varieties of Hostas, etc…

So if you wish to pledge for me here and then e-mail me to let me know which prize you would like. Here is the link again: http://www.cgiottawa.com/ERDS/Donation.aspx?evt=9&i=550652

Trev, I and the rest of Team Awesome will be biking to raise funds in the annual “CN Cycle for CHEO” event. CHEO is local children’s hospital where Trevor had his hernia surgery two years ago.

Team Awesome is really excited. This is the first time we are cycling as a team. Chris and I did the race before we had kids, but never in an organised fashion.

If you feel like donating, please do so here. I would be much obliged. My goal is $100, so every $5 counts and you get a tax receipt if you donate $10 or more.

Edited to add: Team Awesome’s link is not working right now, I will fix it. In the interim Team Awesome consists of Dan, Maria, Chris, Tom and me so far.