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Conversations With Colum

DAILY SNACK

“You see this penny, Mom?”

“Yes.”

“Well, it has the queen on one side,

And then you turn it over,

And there’s poison ivy.”

“Those are actually maple leaves, Colum.”

“No, poison ivy.”

“No, I’m sorry sweetie, but those are maple leaves.”

“Well, maple leaves grow in poison ivy,

So we’ll just say it’s poison ivy.”

“Okay, fine.”

And then, half an hour later,

He thought he spotted dinosaur fossils in the driveway.

I showed him that the fossil was actually just some dried mud the car dragged in.

As I’m strapping him into his carseat, I say,

“You know Colum, you might want to be an archaeologist when you grow up.”

“Maa-om, I want to be a photographer.”

“Yes, I know that. But do you even know what an archaeologist does?”

“What?”

“He digs up dinosaur bones.”

“That’s a paleontologist.”

“Oh. I think you’re right. Never mind then.”

Colum will turn four in less than two months. Image courtesy of Coined For Money.

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Spring Almost Sprung

Post author By Rebecca Cuneo Keenan
Post date March 5, 2010

DAILY SNACK

Mud on brand new shiny running shoes,

Walking on ledges,

And running up and down side streets.

Coffee enjoyed outside.

Shopping at the further store because I feel like walking,

Children running.

Noses running and eyes watering, too.

A taste of Spring, for sure.

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Head Over Heels

Post author By Rebecca Cuneo Keenan
Post date March 4, 2010

DAILY SNACK

He’d been thrashing around on the bed for twenty minutes.

He was being silly,

Obstinate,

Unfocused.

I kept begging him to put his pajamas on.

“You can win another happy face sticker.”

Lame.

He was tired; I was tired.

I let go of Irene to pick out her pj’s,

Just as he reached over and grabbed her,

And she rolled over willingly,

Wrestling like they always do.

Except there was no bed on the other side of him,

And she went careening over him,

Head first.

I dove across the bed and caught her ankle,

Just as her head was hitting the floor.

And time froze for a couple beats,

As I dangled my daughter upside down off my bed.

Then I let her down gently and got up to comfort her.

She was hurt, but not badly.

Then,

I started screaming.

Thank goodness for doors that close and rooms to calm down in.

Thank goodness for teary-eyed hugs and I’m sorrys.

Because I know he didn’t mean to hurt her.

And he knows I didn’t mean to hurt him.

And I think we’re going to be alright.

Tags bedtime, Confessions

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New Shoes, Whose Shoes?

Post author By Rebecca Cuneo Keenan
Post date March 3, 2010

DAILY SNACK

A good children’s shoe store in the area is going out of business.

Which of course means,

Sale!

There was only one pair of running shoes left in Colum’s size,

By the time we made it there.

A very shiny black and red and gold pair of Reeboks,

That fit perfectly and seemed well-constructed.

A bit shiny for my taste,

But Colum liked them.

So, sold.

There was some confusion at the cash,

And the price seemed a bit higher than I thought it would be,

But doesn’t that always happen at sales?

Colum was tearing around the store,

And a well-meaning two-year old was all over Irene.

So I handed over my bank card and punched in my pin number.

I then took the small shoe box handed to me by the clerk,

And put it into the back of my stroller.

Fast forward an hour to when I suggest Colum try on his new shoes for my sister.

I open the box and find:

A size 7 pair of brown sandals?!

The sales woman gave me the wrong pair of shoes,

And nobody answered when I tried calling the store,

And who knows if they’ll still have the shoes that I thought I bought,

And they had better give me a full refund!

Poor Colum.

Poor me.

Tags shoes, shopping

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View From Here

DAILY SNACK

When we move to the new house,

In another two months,

I am really going to miss this view from my back deck.

It’s so cool, so urban, and it makes me think I could jump over rooftops if I needed to.

This next view, however,

I won’t miss so much.

Not that we will be missing out on raw, urban industry,

Nestled between Keele St. and two rail lines and silos and factories.

I promise there are parks nearby, too.

Tags moving

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Focus Groups For Creating Condominiums That Work For Housing For Families

Post author By Rebecca Cuneo Keenan
Post date February 25, 2010

Wednesday, March 3 from 12:00pm – 2:00pm at Spadina & Bremner, Toronto.

Why do all the families move to the suburbs? At least part of the problem is a serious lack of family-friendly housing in our downtown. Developers would rather build more teensy condo units that they can sell to singles or couples than fewer three or four bedroom units that can accomodate a family.

Tags family housing

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For the Love of Hockey

Post author By Rebecca Cuneo Keenan
Post date February 25, 2010

DAILY SNACK

A funny thing happened last night.

Canada kicked some Russian Olympic ass for the first time in 50 years,

But that wasn’t it.

The funny thing was that I watched that hockey game,

(At least the first period,)

With my family.

Not with my brothers and my dad like I’ve done a million times,

And not with my husband,

But with my husband and my children.

All four of us and only us.

Colum would really focus on the replays and jump and cheer when Canada scored.

And Irene.

You have never, NEVER seen a 16-month-old girl get so excited about a hockey face off.

She screams and shrieks and jumps up and down and claps her hand and grins when the camera closes in on a face off.

But the really funny thing is that it wasn’t us adults and them kids.

It was just us, our family, being together and getting worked up and excited about the same thing.

And that was really, really nice.

Tags hockey

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Going On Four

DAILY SNACK

My first-born baby woke up this morning,

And climbed up the furniture

To grab the Cars DVD.

He then opened it, put it into the DVD player, turned the TV to the right channel and pressed “play.”

Then, as I was just now putting Irene down for her nap,

He finished his lunch,

Put his plate in the dishwasher,

Got a clean cup for himself,

Poured some apple juice without spilling,

And sat down to watch the rest of his movie.

Clearly I’m not needed here anymore.

Sniffle, sniffle.

About time!

But still. Sniffle, sniffle.

And, for your viewing pleasure,

He also doubles as a huggable, furry Tigger that toddlers cannot resist:

Tags indepen

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Letterman For Little People: A Variety Act

Post author By Rebecca Cuneo Keenan
Post date February 23, 2010
1 Comment on Letterman For Little People: A Variety Act

Every Wednesday from 10:30 – 11:30am at Little Bird Fly. 2955 Dundas St. West. The Junction, Toronto. FREE

Finally a drop-in program geared toward the pre-school set. Junction Dave’s off-beat, regular guy charm is such a refreshing change from the well-meaning schoolmarm vibe you get in so many of these kiddie circles. Featuring classic kids songs accompanied by an accoustic guitar, a touch of music history, dancing, song-writing, multi-media animal lessons, magic and more, your 3 or 4 year old will have a blast. Bring your babies and toddlers too, though, because there’s something for everyone and I dare you to resist picking up one of the pre-loved steals Little Bird Fly offers on the way out.