I have no title; there's too much in here!

There's a plethora of things running through my brain that I want to blog about. Some are quick and dirty, others are definitely entire posts unto themselves. Hell, I'm sure one or two could be book ideas!

For now, I'll deal with the quick and dirty tidbits; items of importance in my life that have affected me, or are on the immediate horizon. To do that efficiently, I'm going to slap this into bulleted format. Forgive me my transgressions, please? There is more to come. I guarantee. I just need to find time to write it all down.

• My mom arrives on Saturday for a week-long visit. I'm really looking forward to seeing her. The last time I saw my mom was in January for the family vacation we all took together (thanks to my parents). She cannot wait to get her hands on Petite for some love and cuddles and kisses. Nana loves our little girl to bits! The reason she's visiting is that she's taking advantage of some time with us on her way down to the States. She's heading down to visit my sister. Why? Because...
  


• ... My sister is now 38 weeks pregnant with the first baby boy in the family in 28 years. I had the first grandchild, and Petite was the first baby in 26 years in our family. My sis is now on the verge of having my parents' second grandchild, and it's a boy this time. I'm so excited for her, and boy, do I wish I could go visit for a quick weekend after he arrives. As it stands, I expect we'll have to Skype for a few months and I'll hope to see both my sister and my new nephew in August at home. Anyway, Mom is heading down to stay with my sister for a month or so, hoping that her grandson arrives safe and sound, and she wants to give my sister a hand for a little while as they find some sort of routine.
  


• As miserable as I was with a cold and sinus infection last week, I wouldn't have missed the Royal Wedding of William and Kate for anything! I was 11 years old when Charles and Diana got married and I distinctly recall being up early that morning, with my mom and my sister, watching Diana walk down the aisle to become Charles' bride. It was quite romantic to watch. Later that year, Diana and Charles both came to Canada on a Royal Visit, and spent time in my hometown. At the time, I was a member of the Girl Guides of Canada and the Lieutenant Governor of our province was hosting a garden party. It was indicated that three members of each troop would be selected to attend the garden party (in uniform of course) and have the opportunity to meet Charles and Diana. I was one of the three chosen and I was so elated! I remember Diana being charming, sweet, and genuinely interested in conversation with the guests. Charles I recall as being quite stand-offish and snobby. It was a memorable day for me and I knew at that moment that Diana was someone quite special. I was honoured to have the opportunity to speak with her. Of course, I had no idea of the underlying issues and I was saddened to learn of the reality later on. Tears certainly flowed when Diana died and I was (and am) so sorry that Will and Harry lost their mom at such a young age. Diana would have loved to attend William's wedding and I know she would be so proud at the young men she raised. I look forward to Canada Day, July 1, this year. Will and Kate will be making their first formal visit to a foreign country and they will be coming to Canada, the capital where I live, to celebrate the day. I just might have to brave the throngs of celebrating Canucks to try to see them!
  


• Easter has come and gone. Petite's chocolate is now well hidden in our cupboard, that's for sure! Damn, but she just loves the stuff! She awoke on Easter morning saying, "egg?" and I gave her an Easter basket in which she could collect the eggs she found. We had a dozen eggs scattered in the house and she was as quick as a whip, finding them lickety-split and just as quickly, figuring out that chocolate was in most of them! Boy, was she a happy girl! She was given books, clothing, Play-Doh and of course, chocolates for Easter. Family members also contributed to a sandbox; I hope to pick one up later this week or next if they're on sale. Anyway, we're rationing her chocolate. Otherwise, she'd have it non-stop!
  


• At the end of the month, just after my birthday, Hubby, Petite and I are flying out West to attend my cousin's wedding. My cousin is an RCMP officer and his fiancée is an officer as well. They decided not to do the wedding in red serge though; protocols would dictate that if he dressed in red serge (and she in her wedding dress), that other attendees would also have to dress in red serge, that there would be an honour guard, etc. They'd like to dismiss with all that pomp and pageantry and just kick back and have fun. My cousin says he's wearing cowboy boots, jeans and a cowboy hat! And it's outdoors as well, assuming the weather holds. Sounds like my kind of wedding! The time change (three hours difference) will be hard on Petite, but we'll manage. We have four days before the wedding to help her adjust. And Petite is supposed to be carrying a basket of petals up the "aisle" as well. Let's hope she doesn't just sit down with the basket and tear all the petals apart!
  


• Another cousin's wife received some fantastic news. She recently underwent surgery to remove a portion of her kidney because they found a rather large growth on it and suspected cancer. She just got word that in fact, the growth wasn't cancerous. So this is wonderful to hear. She does have a similar growth that will require additional surgery in a couple of months. We have no news on that yet of course. So our fingers are still crossed but for now, we are smiling.
  


• One of my coworkers retires in about two and a half weeks' time. Lucky girl! I am sure she has plenty of things to keep her busy in her retirement. I, for one, will be envious of the time that she has to do these fun things, but then again, I wouldn't wish my years away either. However, I am ecstatically happy for her! Congratulations K! (I know she reads the blog.) Enjoy it honey. Well deserved! But do keep in touch, okay? You will definitely be missed!
  


• Our dishwasher is busted. Secretly, I think Petite's little fingers pushed a few too many buttons in rapid succession and messed up the control panel. It certainly seems that is the problem at least. I'm really quite handy and I've researched the problem left, right and centre, all over the place. No dice. I've done all the things that are 'suggested' to resolve the problem with absolutely no luck at all. So I expect we're looking at a boatload of cash to get it fixed. And it broke three months past warrantry. Nice huh? Ugh. God, I hate handwashing dishes... Just sayin'.
  


• Late last night, Hubby and I were watching the news, catching up on the latest polls for our federal election. I was also on the laptop, trolling a few sites, just making sure some things had been seen to. When lo and behold, I caught sight of a snippet. It stated that Osama Bin Laden was dead. No... really? I shook my head and read it twice. Then a third time. I don't think I processed it entirely. And I had barely looked up to speak those words to Hubby when CNN interrupted their programming with the special report and then later, President Obama's address. I stared, open-mouthed, at the TV. I almost couldn't believe it. Ten years. It's taken almost ten years since that fateful day in 2001 to find this man and bring him to justice. But sort of like Kakunaa, I wonder about the celebrations quickly commenced outside the White House last night. Don't misunderstand: I have no doubt that had he surrendered willingly and been given a trial (much as Saddam Hussein was), that he would be the ranting and raving extremist that we all know him to be, and pretty much sealed his own fate, resulting in his execution anyway. He would have been found guilty and that would have been that. However, that opportunity was taken from him -- much like it was for all those men and women on September 11th -- and I wish that were not the case. I don't deny that he deserved to die. Good Lord, if ever I wanted to reinstate Canada's Capital Punishment laws, Bin Laden would exemplify the reasons behind it all! But some part of me (the idealist, I suppose) wishes that things had gone differently. Alas... what's done is done. Hopefully it will result in more peace in our world. One must hope, right? I do bow my head in reverent silence and memory for all those who lost their lives that terrible day. For all those who have lost their lives in the War on Terror ever since. For all those families that have seen loved ones leave for foreign shores, never knowing if they would return. For the changes that our world has seen since. And for the fear that grips us... even when it may not need to. Our lives changed that day and we will forevermore be affected.
  


• Today, May 2, is election day here in Canada. A federal election was called a couple of months ago and today is the day to make your mark. As I said on FaceBook, sure, I have preferences for a particular party and for a number of candidates. However, the main point for me is that it's absolutely crucial that people get out there and VOTE. So many people in this world (take a look at the Middle East right now if you want current examples) are literally DYING because they want that freedom, they yearn for the possibility of having a democratic society. So regardless of your choice, JUST GO VOTE. Please. Besides, if you don't vote, you have absolutely no right to complain about the government after the election, now do you? :)

The following posts are yet to come:

• We are one month closer to starting our cycle; today is CD3, right on track with regular 30-day cycles. I need to fax the docs some results and get some info on dates. I hope we aren't delayed any further than I want to be!
  


• 30 Days of Blogging -- 30 topics in 30 days (some of these topics are really interesting!)
  


• Blogger award recently given to me by Marilyn (just had her transfer) and Kelly (p/g). Thank you ladies! I promise, I'll address this ASAP!
  


• What IF? -- This stems from last year's NIAW (jeez, this year's is just over! Where the heck did THAT go?!), and damn, but I still haven't had time/energy/composure enough to write it down! I think I can probably discuss my thoughts on this with the next point...
  


• Dollars and $ense of Family Building -- my thoughts and our personal experiences will be forthcoming on this topic. And yes, it certainly does touch on the What IF from last year's NIAW.

Have a great week everyone.