Promises, part two

So, my Dad and Step-Mom came to visit?!

I am honestly surprised. After last summer, I thought we might be in for another blow up... but he came out without a fight and stayed three nights, leaving this morning.

We had a nice time and I think he enjoyed spending time with the boys... they enjoyed spending time with him.

He also brought a big box of my school work and photos from when I was younger. I have been wanting these things so much... I cried when I looked at some of it.

It turned out to be a nice visit.

The other thing that is going on is that we have a leak somewhere and it is leaking through the kitchen ceiling. It happens at odd times. the cut holes in the ceiling this morning and pulled down a bunch of drywall and there was mold growing on it. Then they clean up (poorly) tell me they fixed the leak and leave. I call the onsite manager and he comes over and turns on the water...it still leaks.

I start to cry.

The last time they opened the ceiling, Parker get very sick and was diagnosed with Kawasaki Disease. They don't what causes Kawasaki Disease but believe it is caused by a microbe. I am petrified of him becoming sick again...:(

Busy few weeks.

So, it has been awhile since I posted. You know what summer is like... a blur of weekend trips, BBQ's and family visits.

Alan had 11 days off and we purged our little home, reorganised and streamlined the organisation...it is much better. We had a little impromptu visit with my Mum and Doug up at their home on Pigeon Lake, followed by a full day at the new (ish) Castaway Bay Kid's water park area at West Edmonton Mall Waterpark. It was LOVELY! It is perfect for kids aged 3+. The boys, always attended, did not even need to wear lifejackets! Liam ran up to the top and came down the waterslides all on his own and Parker went down most of the adult waterslides...with a few exceptions.

Saturday we drove out to Drumheller and spend several hours at the Dinosaur museum...the boys LOVED everythng...it is really an interesting educational experience. We spent most of the evening hanging out with some c-moms friends at their annual campout. We did not stay the night, but we did enjoy the visit and introduced some nice people from Austraila and New Zealand to the wonders of smores, Jones style.

Yesterday saw us prepping the soil and laying sod in 1/2 of our yard. It is a 10x10 foot patch of grass that we don't use much because the grass had been poorly maintained for decades. Now it is lush and green, perfect for bare feet and picnics!

The opposite side of our lawn is approximately 13x11 feet and will be done in the next few weeks when the grass is ready to be enjoyed. The entire yard will only cost us $100 worth of sod and fertilizer (with a whole lot of elbow grease).

Alan is back to work today and the boys and I spent the day with friends at Arbour Lake. We dug in the sand, enjoyed some sun and paddled around the lake in a paddle boat.

It has been a busy but lovely summer so far!

Feeling groovy...

So, I am feeling better.

We ran around the science centre for a few hours, watched a presentation on Galileo and had a slurpie.

Then we went to Edworthy park for a couple of hours and the boys met some new friends and played under the big spruce trees while I read a book.

When we left, after 4pm, they were FILTHY, but happy and I was much more relaxed.

We ended the day with a trip to Dairy Queen where Parker ate an entire banana-split, getting strawberries all over the front of his shirt.

Normally, this would send me over the edge, but I just turned his shirt around backwards and pretended it never happened...:D

I tossed them in the shower and they rinsed away the dirt, ice cream, pine needles and other lovely things they had stuck in their hair.

We are home, clean and tired.

It was a good day!

Promises, Promises...

My Dad is not a "my word is my bond" kind of guy.

My entire life he has made me promises... from promising to teach me to drive (he didn't, he said it was because I was a girl), to promising to show up for parent teacher interviews(he didn't... something at work came up and my teacher had to drive me home) to promising to come visit us out here in Calgary(a multitude of things have come up to prevent this). When I mention it to him he becomes angry and defensive and demanding.

For the past two summers he has been promising to come out and spend time with us out here. Inevitably "plans change" and he calls asking us to come out there instead. We suggest meeting in the middle (it is a 9 hour drive) and he makes a million excuses as to why that will not work for him. Last year they drove all over the West Coast in a motorhome and drove home through Red Deer and didn't bother to stop and see us.

I feel like I am digging in my heels, but I am so tired of his false promises and of being the person who is the peace-maker and tries to make everyone happy. I sent him a message telling him that we already had plans for next week and, if all else fails and he doesn't manage to visit us here this summer, like he has been promising, we will see him in September at my cousin's wedding.

I am feeling so angry right now...I think I need to go wreck my journal.