Last day, looking forward to tomorrow…

Today is going to be an easy day at the center. Well… easier than usual. Sunday is usually an easy going day at the center, cause usually people have better things to do than call in, but that’s not the reason. I’m going to have a smooth easy going day and nothing is going to bug me cause today is my last day. After today I’m no longer working at the center. For those who are not my favorites, the reason why I am leaving is because I’m going on Paternal Leave. Leah is going back to work so I’m going to go home to take over and finish her maternity leave. She has 14 weeks left, so I’ll have three and half months to spend with my boys and hang out around the house. That means I won’t have to take any calls about the internet or phone services until December! How sweet is that?

It’s something the Canadian government offers to remain neutral with regards to who stays home with the little ones during maternity leave. Our system is trying to be as PC as possible, so they allow the women and men to swtich things up if it’s so wished for. That happens to be the case here cause I can tell that Leah is eager to get back out there and work. I can see she is determined and ready to kick some ass, so I’m confident that she’ll be all right and that I’ll have a nice long three month leave from my work. I can understand it must have been tough to be at the house all that time and not able to get out that much. Leah can’t take the boys out cause she had bad ankles so doing something as simple as take Ethan to the park is a problem for her. So being shaked up at the house all this time has likely given her that urge to get out and do anything, even work. It didn’t take much arm twisting to get me to accept what’s going on, but I like the fact that I’m taking a hit for the family and something for Leah. I hope she enjoys getting back out there and doing something productive for the family.

One thing that keeps a big smile on my face is the the fact that this could be my last day at the center… period! I mean sure there’s a good chance I’ll come back in November/December and resume working, but that’s over three months away. Anything could happen in three months. I could get offered a better job, I could win a lottery or an asteriod could hit the planet and end mankind. So you never know, this might be the last day I spend here in the center and I might never, ever have to take another call ever again. Having that to look forward to will make this day a million times easier to endure. I’m looking forward to spending more time at home with my boys, and I can’t wait to get things started. I have so many ideas and plans that I can’t wait to get started. There are a few things that need attending to:

1.) Ethan’s potty training:

So far Ethan has been a less than co-operative when it comes to peeing and pooping in the right spot. I swear the cat was easier to train than Ethan but I will make it a goal to get this over with and back on track. I’m gonna need to something extreme to get this taken care of whether it be bribery or what not… this is one goal that needs to be taken care of ASAP.

2. Getting out of the house…

One thing I plan to buy in the next few days is something that I can use to carry Jonathan around without having to use a stroller. That way I can keep track and hold of Ethan without having to worry about pushing Jonathan around. Having that will make going to the Park, going shopping or to the mall to hang around a lot easier.

3. A wave of birthdays coming…

Ethan celebrates # 3 on Sept 14th… and we plan to have a party this year. Leah and I have had some really bad luck trying to give Ethan a party but we are determined to make this happen this year. I’ve got cash stashed away to make sure that money isn’t an issue this year and that we need to make this happen. I feel bad that our first few tries to celebrate his birthday didn’t work out, so we’ll do better this time.

Leah on the other hand also reaches a milestone of her own. This year Leah hits the big three zero. I think it will be an interesting birthday, and I’m not sure what to do about it. Should I try to hold a party, or keep things low key cause she doesn’t like the idea of aging another decade? I’ll have to be careful with this one, but I should go out of my way to celebrate this one as well.

I have a birthday of my own coming in two months as well. I have plans already put in place for that one. There is a huge movie opening the night before my birthday, so to celebrate # 31 for yours truely, the guys and I are going to catch Saw 3 during it’s opening weekend. That will be super cool cause I didn’t get to see the first two in theatre so I’m eager to see this one on the big screen.

So those are our plans for everyone’s big day, expect for Jonathan. We’ll make his a small affair with just myself, Leah, Ethan and my parents who are coming over for the holidays again this year. Should be a nice small dinner to celebrate Jonathans first year.

4. Start writing again…

Being home with the kids will no doubt give me a lot of down time when they are asleep during day and night. After chores are done and things are settled down, i will have a chance to write and resume some projects that have been collecting a lot of dust. I have a few novels I would love to take another crack at, and some movie scripts that I would love to work on as well. That will give me something constructive to do with my time off… and finally get some work done that I’ve been trying for a while to finish or get off the ground.

5. Work in the kitchen a little more:

Over the last while, I’ve reallly enjoyed cooking and experimenting whenever I could. Now that I will have more time to play around, I’m going to try some new dishes, and new foods for the boys. I think Ethan will get a kick out of trying new stuff, and eventually I can’t wait to feed Jonathan more stuff when he gets a few more teeth. Leah doesn’t seem to like new stuff, but I’ll work to get something that even she will enjoy, but I think she’ll be the toughest to cook for, but I will consider it a great challenge!

So these are the plans I have set up for myself for the coming weeks. I am determined to do this for Leah cause I know this job is something that she really, really wants to do and I want to be there to support and help her out. I love my boys a lot so staying home with them and spending some quality time at home is not a hard thing to take, and I can’t wait to do some serious bonding with my kids. I’m going to make this work for everyone, and deep down inside, I know a break away from the center will make things easier for myself and might make me a better work for them when I get back… if I go back.

So that’s the plan, but in order to make that work… I have to get through today. I’m actually almost half done what could be my last shift at least for now. Hope everyone else is having a good day and this time tomorrow… if all goes right… you can all call me Mr. Mom.

Peter