111 Hours

BlogHer '07 has come and gone like a flash of lightning and a squeal of delight. While I did have the most awesome time, there were moments that required some liquid courage. I met some spectacular women and stood back and admired many others from afar.

This could easily turn into an ode to the lovelies at BlogHer '07 with plenty of inside jokes slipped in but that's not what the weekend was about. It was a time for bonding with women that felt like old friends. There were meaningful hugs that spoke for thousands of previously typed words. I held in my heart these writer's stories and matched their stunning beauty to their lives. It was completely overwhelming but I'd jump through hoops of fire to spend more time in their presence. Even if you were not there, we carried your words into the mix.

For now I am going away. I'll be slathering myself up in sunscreen and chasing after my girls at the lake. While I won't have access to the internet, I will be compiling video footage for your viewing pleasure.

Debauchery

It was a night of sinful fun.

The Pirates: Kyla, Metro, Jenny, Motherbumper and Sandra

More photos are on Flickr.

Chocolate & Drinks

This is in response to my sweet husband. I'm sorry. I've left you for Motherbumper. I know that the reason you're crying is that you are not here to watch.

We've been devouring truffles.

We are pounding back the drinks.

I'm also busy chasing Metro into the back of liquor store stock rooms.

More to follow... (I promise!)

One Mommy Blogger MIA

So it’s a Friday afternoon. You are off work and you pop online to check what’s new. Your wife is in Chicago at the BlogHer Convention and you would expect to be reading all the fun things her and the MBT team are up to. You check her blog and she hasn’t posted yet. She’s got the hot rod laptop. Nabbed your iPod and is at the biggest Blogger Chick event there is. She was jonesing to go last year and couldn’t wait for the tiniest update from her favourite blogs. Check again… nothing! I know this dino-desktop is slow but it can’t be that slow. I can still geek out on Facebook when I have the patience to wait for each page to load. You know she’s probably running around meeting everyone, networking, stealing swag, making videos, drinking coffee and taking in everything Chicago has to offer. I know for a fact that she is having the time of her life with five of the best girls out there. But does this allow her to neglect her blogging duties?

The only way to find out is to write a post as a little direct competition on her own blog and find out.

My original intention was to email this to her and pin her initial reaction to the bottom but my self preservation instinct has kicked in. Are you too drunk to blog?

Coffee Please

It wouldn't be a trip if I didn't wait for the very last minute to pack. This is my personality and I've come to accept this about me. I'm too excited to sleep anyway.

Come on over and visit our collective effort to bring you BlogHer '07! It all starts now...

Where Men Fear To Go

I thought it was about time to clean out my purse. I just got it four months ago. How bad could it be? Yah, right! It appears that purse = transportable garbage bag.

Current contents included:
Too many icky scrunched up Kleenex tissues
One package of Arby's Sauce
One loose Corn Pop
Two washable Crayola markers - Yellow and Black
One sheet of Circus stickers
Three half melted Mott's Fruitsations Snack packs
Hair band - (mine)
Hair clip and ponytail holder - (the girls)
Toddler sized pink sunglasses
Eight hard candies in assorted colours
Sticky note reminder about a work event
SickKids confirmation appointment letter
A makeshift shopping list on an empty Tim Horton's bag
Almay Whipped lip gloss
Receipt for the White Stripes CD
Wallet
Seven escaped pennies and a dime
Keys

Missing in action - Cell phone

Messin me up with your voodoo

Hi! I'm Jana. ~insert smile~ Why is it so hard to come up with a 10 second description about myself?

"I have no knowledge of myself as I am, but merely as I appear to myself." - Immanuel Kant

So I asked my husband and he quickly rattled off that I'm generous, honest and caring. However I think that I'm just another slightly neurotic, caffeine-addicted blogger.

The rest of this is not really a ten second introduction unless, of course, you are a speed reader.

Mrs. Chicky asked that I share some details about myself in anticipation of a certain Chicago get away. Let's see. Hmmm… I was conceived in Nova Scotia, (too much information - thanks Mom!) born in Manitoba, raised in Saskatchewan and I live in Ontario. That makes me Canadian. However my ancestors came from Ireland, Scotland, the Ukraine, Poland and England.

I'm married to a guy that I picked up in a bar. We have two fiercely independent, sweet little girls that make me smile everyday. I have an office job that I'm passionate about but it's also a great way to escape the endless housework.

I like to think of myself as a freethinking individual. I'm open to most ideas. I'm interested in people and I love listening to other people's stories. I usually don't do very well with large groups of strangers. I get the sudden urge to run off with a good book. Luckily I've convinced myself that everyone I read is my long lost friend. There are so many of you that I cannot wait to meet that I am having a hard time containing myself!!! There are also many others that I'll have to keep waiting on but I have patience.

I'm crazy sensitive. This means that I'll be able to relate to all your stories. But it also means that I'll be crying in the bathroom because my friend brought back everyone a round of drinks but forgot about me. Man. Sometimes it sucks to be a girl.

I feel the most creative when I'm in the shower and when I'm driving but I'm not good at conversation during either activity.

After a few adult beverages, I may lose my focus on conversations and start dancing on tables. I come by that honestly. (Thanks again Mom!) I love staying up to dawn and sleeping in but I rarely get to do that anymore.

But enough about me! I'll stop rambling and tell you a little about the awe-inspiring ladies that I'm hitting the road with. They are genuine and easy to talk to. They are captivating and charming. You may find that you want to tell them all your secrets because they are totally best friend material. And I'm not just saying that so that I get first dibs on the Brad Pitt-esque hitchhiker that we'll be hunting down.

Blue goes Green

Have you ever wondered if the environment is making you sick? If the water you drink is safe? If the air you breathe is toxic? Do you listen to the weather reports to find out if today is a good day to go outside? Do you feel guilty about driving your car and throwing out garbage? Maybe you don't think about it. I often block out these thoughts because it makes it easier to live.

But what if by making a few different choices about the things we buy, the resources that we use and the amount that we consume can make people healthier. Could children have fewer allergies? Can we decrease the odds of getting a life threatening disease?

Some of the websites that I've been checking out are a bit shocking and scary. I wouldn't have bought that sweet smelling children's shampoo if I knew that it contains an ingredient that is linked to cancer. If we are more informed and make better, responsible choices, it will force big businesses to do the same.

I don't want the world to read about mythical snow every Christmas. I know that's a hard thing to get worked up about in July.

But gah, I don't want this blog to turn into a preachy, make you feel bad place to be. So yes, I am jumping on the green bandwagon but I plan to make it fun. It's all starting with Eco Trippin'! We need advice. Do you have some great tips to help us make better choices? We could use your input.

Hey, if you have 30 seconds, you can tell BlogHers Act Canada what you feel is the most important thing that Canadians should be working on. With just a couple clicks you can have your say. You don't even have to get dressed. Now you know that I'm picturing you naked. I have to say you're super hot!

Oh and if you just come here for the dancing, I finally edited the video footage from our trip out west.

The Invitation

Ask Strawberry who her best friends are and she will always say the same three names. Madeline, Nyla and Molly. I think it’s kind of cute that she has a posse. Often her bedtime routine will involve a cuddle and chat about her day. We will lie in her big girl bed and have a bonding heart to heart. Then I change the discussion into fun things to look forward to. I tell her that when she gets older she can have her girlfriends sleep over and we’ll have a pajama party. She asks if she can take them away with her on trips. The girl already dreams big!

I worry about all the friendship heartbreak that my girls will have to endure. I recently discovered that I don’t have it in me to be the strong, protective mom. The first clue happened when I dropped the girls off at daycare and saw little envelopes in a few of the cubbies. The detective in me observed that they suspiciously looked like they could be birthday party invitations but Strawberry’s locker was empty. The first thing I asked Colin when I saw him was if he had picked up an invitation the day before. He hadn’t.

A couple days later, I overheard Molly’s mom tell a caregiver that Madeline was only person that had not RSVP’d for Molly’s birthday party. All the hurt from my own friendship rejection came flooding back. The only saving grace is that Strawberry doesn’t seem to be aware of the party. Oh how I hope that she doesn’t find out. It’s likely that she was overlooked as a guest for this event has more to do with me than her friendship. I don’t know the other parents and I haven’t arranged playdates.

Just minutes after my heart was ripped out of my chest, Molly and Strawberry gave each other a gigantic, giggly hug goodbye.

Momma bear goes off to weep in the corner.

Field Trip

They change into a bright T-shirt.
Twenty four excited matching senior preschoolers.
Buzzing!
Backpacks, water bottles, sunscreen, hats,
Away they go.
They are ready for an adventure.
Beaming!
The anticipation has been building for days.

A Climate in Crisis

The environment is a hot button issue and it seems that everyone is talking about it yet I don't feel educated enough on the topic. Why do I feel like I know so little? Does turning off the lights when I leave a room do enough to reverse all the damage that has been done to the Earth?

It's become cool to be green. Celebrities are getting in on the action. Just this past weekend Live Earth helped raise awareness. These concerts encouraged us to do little things in our daily life to help our environment. I learned that I should be unplugging my cell phone charger when I am not using it. Previously I thought that it only was using energy when I plugged my phone into it.

The Industrial Revolution changed the way we live. Daily life from a hundred years ago has changed drastically. The population grew. Culture changed. The Me generation felt a sense of entitlement. Society consumed and everyone seemed to be in on a materialistic race with the pursuit of leisure. We have joined the fast lane, in search of convenience and too often our society goes the disposable route.

What we didn't realize is that we've been at war with Mother Nature. We are poisoning her. Sure she retaliates by unleashing bigger storms but we are killing her. With us winning this unknowing war, we all lose.

How is this going to affect us? What's going to happen to the earth because of how we have been living? What is it going to take to reverse the damage? Is this even a reality? Do we have a one way ticket for destruction? I want real answers. I decided to rent An Inconvenient Truth to try to educate myself with some facts.

* 10 of the hottest years on record have all been within the last 14 years, with 2005 being the hottest.

* The world has been inflicted with 30 new diseases in the last quarter century.

* Stronger and more Hurricanes, Cyclones and Typhoons have been reported within the last thirty years.

* With the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, global sea levels could rise by 20 feet causing 100 million people along coastlines to be displaced.

* More than a million species could be driven to extinction by 2050.

What things should I be doing? Can we educate ourselves to live better to effect real change? What kind of legacy are we leaving if the gradual changes do not get us to react?

There are more questions than answers here and that is why I propose that this be the issue that we band together and try to make real change. We need to now before the consequences of our actions are worse. Every day more carbon dioxide is added to our environment. This is the world we share. Let's hope. Let's act.

The Bad and The Good

We fired up the barbeque. We took pride in our national flag. However I discovered that being Canadian makes me a bad parent.

I plan to make up for it by joining in on BlogHers Act Canada. I am putting together my thoughts on how to make Canada an even better place to be and I'll be sharing those this weekend. I hope that you are considering doing the same. If you are south of the border or even on the other side of the world, we can think globally. This place called Earth is our only paradise.