Tatiana's Wanderings

It's MARIO DAY today! After COFFEE TIME, I went out at 3:10 on a 401 to help with the kids. Surprisingly, I just managed to get the 3 despite the elevator buttons not responding to my commands. I got to the house at 4:10 despite an electric scooter not knowing how to maneuver smoothly on the bus (I had to move), but those things can be unwieldy! Thank GOODNESS it stayed on the bus AFTER 16th, so I wasn't delayed any more! Once I got in, Beckett wanted to play with me, but my washing hands coincided with his diaper change. After that, we played with blocks / magnets / balls ("boh-boh!") / Play-Doh. He ALMOST licked the Play-Doh lids, looking at me to see how I'd react. I said that was gross and not to do it. He said "come up / yeah / block / ma-net / open! close! / lid / pease / light / purple / Auntie" a lot. Later, he almost fell down, but I was there to catch him and put him on the couch, where we sat together and "talked" about the "funny" blanket and the happy / sad eggs.

When Ayler told me to guess what time he went to bed last night, I actually got the right time: 10 PM! Apparently, there was a choir concert last night at St. James (Jon's old orchestra hangout space), WITH a rehearsal before AND a mass choral recital afterwards, so nobody could leave early even if they wanted to! I realized that they had scheduled it for the day after Daylight Savings, which is NOT GOOD! Hiero spent his time making Superman signals and wanting Popsicle sticks and special paper. He also was less than polite when he laughed at people. Apparently, roasted broccoli is not his thing!

Beckett wanted me to look out the window at the alley because of the lights - good choice! Hiero wanted me to play a game, but I wasn't up for that. There was a felt book with multiple felt pieces, and Beckett identified an X for Tic-Tac-Toe correctly some of the time. He also knew what the moon was, so he's getting smarter! I told him what a flower was when he identified it as a boh-boh (hahaha), and he picked it up from me. When I took my phone out to take photos that were CLEARLY of the food and NOT THE KIDS, Beckett said "gung-gung"... hahaha, I thought he associated the phone with Uncle Joe last week!

Ayler said that their trip is after Tuesday next week, so I said that I know that they get to listen to TICKET TO RIDE on the ride over. "How do you know?" was easily answered since I saw Jon's Facebook status earlier about borrowing someone's copy. Hiero told us about MINECRAFT, but Harmony wondered where he learned about that. The school computers offer that as an option for ALL the kids, apparently, so Harmony says she'll talk to the teacher about that. I did not volunteer that there was Preschool MINECRAFT - she'd be horrified! I left at 7:30 and surprisingly got home at 8:35, despite the stroller at 16th! If you can't be ready when the bus stops, then don't be surprised if a passenger gets on before you maneuver your stuff off the bus! I know it's safer to wait till the bus stops, but come on now - be aware and at least make your way toward the door!


From Janet on LJ, aka Ghost_Light: Your birth month is your muppet. Ernie, Elmo, Big Bird, Abby, Slimey, Oscar the Grouch, Bert, Snuffleupagus, Rosita, the Count, Cookie Monster, and Grover!




Chili, beans, and cheese!




Red Jello and mango pudding made by Jon!

I showered today before going out briefly at 8:15 on a 407 to get bulk pads x2 at London Drugs, which is of course sold out of hand sanitizer. They seemed to have a decent supply of toilet paper and Wet ones and other Lysol / Clorox products, though. Got home just now at 8:40 on another 407. They also had pistachio Lindt truffles - ick! Canada also had its first death from coronavirus today, in a North Van care home.


Pistachio Lindt truffles!




From Julie and Anorak UK: Cari Lang Hairapist and Fuk Mi Sushi Seafood Buffet?!




From Julie M. and Make A Meme: The Grim Reaper says, "Two things that never get old are dark humor and unvaccinated children."

Leap Year Day issues! February 29!


After COFFEE TIME, I went out at 3:05 on a 407 to help with the kids... of course I just missed a 401! I still got to the station in enough time to kill time at both T&T (premium Shin Ramyun Black noodles, Palmolive Oxy Power Degreaser in an 887mL bottle - my limited Cantonese for "washing dishes" won again!) PLUS Tim Horton's where I got a cheese tea biscuit. Despite some shenanigans, I got to the apartment at about the usual time. Seemed like everyone had a cold and cough, especially Beckett, so I used his hoodie to wipe up his runny nose. Even I was getting one a bit later while reading stories to Hiero, so I used the frog blanket to wipe my own nose... it's probably not the worst thing, and I'm pretty sure they launder it anyway! When I got home, I had peppermint tea / Vitamin C / zinc / garlic.

Beckett just wanted me to get balls from his throwing them around most of the time, even when Barry called me at about 5:50 to try rescheduling a food shopping appointment AGAIN! That's fine - I just dealt with that the same way I dealt with Karen Choo calling me while I was talking to people in the car years ago, namely addressing the immediate situation while still being on the phone call. I didn't care what she thought then, and I didn't care what Barry thought if he heard "here's a boh-boh"! Later after a very early dinner of lotus soup / goji berries / kumquat / miso soup / noodles / vegetables / eggs, Beckett got a word book. I sat him in my lap and read to him, then spied a newer word book with textures. He seemed to like the OWL page at least. Showed Ayler and Hiero the contents of my wallet as I was looking for my scissors.

Later, I spied a Pokemon circle, and got some balls from way behind the couches, requiring me to move them! I got Beckett to say "please" a couple of times for that amount of effort, definitely. When he wouldn't just settle down and sleep, I was drafted in to help by just sitting by the crib to keep him company before he hopefully fell asleep. I told him that it was Auntie, got a fish cushion and the stuffed dragon from the floor to his crib, and also held his hand briefly. He didn't throw anything around - just moved them around and fell asleep within five minutes or so. Harmony thinks he just likes the company vs. being afraid of the dark - last night, she couldn't do anything much because he wanted her to sit around for two and a half hours! AIYA! I left at 7, which was SO EARLY that I got home at 8:05 on a 407. WOO!


Weird Owl Yankovic!




Shin Ramyun Black Pot-Au-Feu noodles!




Palmolive Oxy Power Degreaser dish detergent, 887 mL!




Cheese tea biscuit at Tim Horton's.




Lotus soup with goji berries. Miso soup with noodles, veggies, meat, and eggs.

Frances rescheduled on me very early this morning at 7:30 AM for tonight because her car got hit, which is actually fine. I need time for redrum to make its way OUT! I did go out way later at 3:30 to get some on-sale Webber Naturals 5 mg melatonin gummies at London Drugs. $5 off a bottle! Ended up buying NEW Kracks Chips x4 tubes (sour cream and onion / barbecue / original / wasabi), on-sale Webber Naturals 5 mg melatonin gummies, on-sale Dove lavender and rosemary Nourishing Secrets shampoo and conditioner, on-sale Webber Naturals Wild Alaskan and fish oil capsules, Lindt chocolate hazelnut spread in a small 200g jar, and El Sabroso Salsitas chips! Got home at 4:25 on a 407, which meant I used Shaw Open for 20 minutes at the bus stop.


Webber Naturals 5 mg melatonin gummies!




Kracks chips - Canadian! Original, Wasabi, Barbecue, plus Sour Cream and Onion!




( More chips, dragons, and shampoo! )

The Canucks played Chicago tonight at 7:30, and won 3-0. They even got an empty-netter! It was the Sedin jersey retirement game! The ceremony was awesome - John Shorthouse, Dave Nonis, Markus Naslund, Trevor Linden, Mike Gillis, Marc Crawford, Alex Burrows, Jannik Hansen, and so many others! The twins definitely sent their well-wishes to Jay Bouwmeester, who collapsed on the bench during last night's St. Louis-Anaheim game because of a cardiac issue! YAY FOR HENRIK SEDIN AND DANIEL SEDIN!


From Jim for Valentine's Day 2019: Roses and white wine! How nice! ♥




( Henrik and Daniel Sedin! )


From Rainbow Waffle Doge in the Fearsome Canucks Fans: A pixelated MINECRAFT Doge!




From Rainbow Waffle Doge in the Fearsome Canucks Fans: A basic Doge!




From my ex-friend Natalie and College Humor: Puritan Valentine's Day cards! Roses are red, violets are blue, and neither are useful or necessary at all. I need you to help raise livestock and crops or surely we will starve to death come winter. You almost make my heart dance, and dancing is forbidden. Being with you fills me with impure thoughts, and I am ashamed.

Jon said he'd be home this afternoon since Harmony would be going to a school meeting, but I could still come by if I wanted. The last time I was around when she went to a meeting, Beckett was quite upset! I went anyway, of course. After COFFEE TIME, I went out at 3:15 on a 407 to help with the kids. Since I'd just missed a 3 at Marine Drive, I went into Tim Horton's to see if they had those new Dream Doughnuts: no Strawberry Confetti, but yes to Dulce de Leche and Chocolate Truffle. They didn't look that great relative to the ads, but nothing ever does!

I had to wait for six rings before Harmony answered the buzzer, but that was fine. A few minutes later, I told Beckett that I would be right with him after I washed my hands... Wet Wipes only do so much against sticky doughnut crumbs! Harmony said "yes, please - thank you!" Hey, I've heard about the coronavirus too, and so has Ayler, apparently. He says he heard on the news today that the BC patient is in Burnaby ("so not here in Vancouver, but close"), while Hiero wondered what we'd do if Beckett died from it. You can get very sick and possibly die, we told them, but Harmony kept it simple and said that she'd keep them safe and we should all wash our hands.

Ayler and Hiero thought it was funny to encourage Beckett to go to the printer, and also to take Beckett's balls away from him, but he got way more upset over this than Harmony leaving for her meeting. ("MINE!" followed by lots of crying) I was there to give him hugs and a small kiss, telling them that it wasn't funny. Jon did come home a little earlier than 6, and took over dinner duties. Beckett called the Pho noodles "noo-noo," and called the treads on Grandma Joan's slipper socks "boh-boh" - very funny! Ayler asked about school, of course, and wanted me to listen to his piano. Beckett said "help" to me a lot (and wanted me to help put on the yellow "sunglasses" that were missing a lens - Hiero said they were pirate sunglasses), said "bye bye" to me a lot (maybe when I was walking to my bag and then to my coat so he could see the fur and buttons - but I didn't leave), and walked over to show Jon various things like his blocks.

Later, Beckett went to the window to see the "boh-boh" outside and point at all the lights. He also used the blue ruler to "hide" and wanted me to do the same with his toy balls - I just pretended to most of the time. Then he said "HIT YOUR BUTT!" in Cantonese - Uncle Joe taught him that one because it's funny to hear a little toddler say so! Hiero made a "lightsaber" out of a plastic sticker sheet, and a "gun" out of the magnetic rods and balls, and wanted me to say "gun" - I don't know about that one. He also 'teleported" into me, which was NOT fun!

Ayler took out his red-and-yellow stuffed dragon toy... he remembered that I'd given it to him! Beckett seemed to like it as per Hiero - he even said a very close approximation of "dragon" and grinned when he showed it to me! I should tell him that Auntie is a dragon, haha! He also said "monkey" for his stacking blocks, "dog" for his dog book, and "apple" for the Creation story with Adam and Eve in the children's Bible stories book. He's LEARNING VOCABULARY plus CONTEXT! I left at 7:40 (not at 7:30, thereby missing my window of time to get the 7:42 Marine Drive Station bus with the heavy bag of stuff from Mom and Dad) after waiting a few minutes for Jon to finish something while it was the bedtime routine, but not before Hiero called me a "blah blah person" - RUDE AND DISRESPECTFUL! I got home at 9:10 on a 407, having to finish a text message to Paulo first.


Random stuff from Mom and Dad: A thin brown Mondi sweater with yellow diamonds, a thin brown Mondi sweater VEST with yellow diamonds, a random white undershirt with an actual bra built in it in a clean produce bag, Ragu Tomato and Basil light pasta sauce which expires in October 2021, more Ontrue green tea roasted seaweed x3, and more toiletries inside a Ziploc bag...

Two plastic shower caps, Kandesn Spa shampoo by Sunrider, a white scrunchie only suitable for a toddler, a Paul Mitchell refreshing citrus facial bar, three Q-Tips inside some plastic, a useless LONDON DRUGS blue circle thing, 40 mL of Agraria San Francisco lemon verbena conditioner, blue Chateau de Chine shampoo, 24 mL of Crabtree and Evelyn lavender verbena shampoo, 24 mL of Crabtree and Evelyn lavender verbena conditioner, Princess Cruises Lotus Spa aloe vera moisturizing lip balm x2, a black toothbrush with a toothbrush cover, 22 mL of Ognnx Lacoupe argan oil complex shampoo x3, and 22 mL of Lacoupe argan oil complex conditioner x2.

A silver Gem hand ground nail clipper, another unbranded silver nail clipper with a nail file, Smart Shield serious sun protection aloe vera lip balm, four more Q-Tips and four makeup wipes inside some plastic (do people use Q-Tips to apply makeup?), a white hairbrush / comb in one, a blue microwavable eye mask with instructions inside plastic, a white Dr. Fresh Turbo Power battery-powered toothbrush with a free Duracell battery, and a small Princess Cruises Lotus Spa linen mist bottle.

50 mL of L'Occitane verbena shower gel, a LaRoche Posay Nutritic lip balm (47 mL), 22 mL of Be Better macadamia nut shampoo, three more Q-Tips and three cotton balls inside some plastic, sampler Oral-B floss from the dentist, a tiny yellow tube of Vichy SPF 45 sheer lotion with Bare Skin Feel, 2 grams of Super Dry Superior Dessicant with a warning on it (??), Chinese Glyso-Derm lip balm with Vitamin E, 50 mL of Crabtree and Evelyn iris bath and shower gel, a 5 mL Avène Canada soothing moisture mask in a tiny tube, 22 mL of Nourish Green Tea hydrating conditioner, and a white travel toothbrush inside a green plastic cover.


Hunt's Snack Pack: Banana Cream Pie pudding cups!




NEW from Tim Horton's: Dream Doughnuts! Chocolate Truffle, Strawberry Confetti, and Dulce de Leche!




Tim Horton's Dream Doughnuts: They didn't have Strawberry Confetti, so I ordered Chocolate Truffle and Dulce De Leche instead.




RIP, Don't Argue pizzeria...




Beef stew with carrots and Pho noodles!




Red and yellow dragon stuffed toy! I gave it to Ayler originally because he is also a BABY DRAGON, but now Beckett likes it too. He knows the word "dragon," and grinned when he told me what it was!




Tomato and Basil light Ragu pasta sauce!