A virtual tour of the girls' room

Well, we never did get around to putting in the chair rail, and we probably never will. But we straightened the paint line, got the books out of the closet and out into the open where they belong, unpacked the last of the kids' knick-knacks, and painted flowers over their bed. And it's done. Finally.



And their closet door, which didn't quite make it into the video.

Momma's news

For those of you who have spent more than five minutes talking to me about work and how I found my job, and for those of you who work for the federal public service, you will understand that the following statement is no small (or quick!) feat:

I got a promotion.

I found out yesterday that as of Monday, I will be officially cemented into my job. No longer "acting", I am the real deal.

The process was a relatively short one. I began my current responsibilities in August of last year. In January (I believe) a poster for my job, and others at the same level, went up. I sent my CV and waited. Then I was told I was screened in, and I waited. The Thursday before Easter, I wrote the exam, and waited. And in late May, I did the interview. Then waited again. I figured after all that waiting that getting the results would be rather anticlimactic.

But then I got my letter of offer yesterday. And I was elated. So now I am (starting Monday), officially the Senior Advisor to the Director General of Communications. Whatever that means.

While the kids are away the parents will play...?

The kids have been at Nana and Grampa's for nearly a week now. We dropped them off last Sunday, and we'll be going to pick them up tomorrow. It's been a rather quiet week without them here. I wake up regularly at 7:15 (instead of 6:00) to get ready for work. I stay a little later, without feeling guilty. I get home, and on the nights Derek is teaching, it's quiet, and even a little lonely.

Derek and I have had some great conversations and some good "hang out" time, which we almost never get. Even on date nights, which are rare enough, we feel pressed to "enjoy" ourselves and stare into each others' eyes, that we don't really just hang out.

And, like the kids' stay at Nana and Grampa's last year, I got some time to do some decorating in their room. Last year I painted the lower half of their walls purple (in the hopes of putting up the chair rail within weeks). I also painted flowers on their closet doors. This year, I painted some more of the same flowers over their beds, as per their request over the past year. The chair rail still isn't up, but the hope is to get it up within a few weeks (!). The new flowers are a surprise for them, so I'm looking forward to their reaction.

I miss those girls. I've talked to them nearly every day, and I love their little voices and their excitement, and even their independence. Solanne frequently ends the conversation before I ever would, letting me know she has other things to do. She even told Derek one evening she didn't need to talk to me when she was done talking to him.

It's good being in a position to be able to miss them, to look forward to seeing them again. It's nice to realise that I really like those little people. I love them, of course, but I like them and think they're really cool. I guess the time and distance lets me see some of those things a little more clearly.