Overwhelmed

I'm pretty sure I have a post or two with that title already...

So this has been a pretty stressful summer. How long until they are back in school? 3 3 1/2 weeks? It can't come soon enough. I am tired of the daily fights between Taylor and Liam, between Liam and Saoirse (why must he irritate her so? Now I see why Taylor used to get so upset with him- and there I was getting mad at her because she was the one always in tears!), between Taylor and/ or Liam and myself. I'm pretty close to the breaking point methinks.

This was supposed to be the summer that my kids grew up and took on some responsibility. I sat them down and we worked out a deal that they would do chores from Monday to Friday for $5 a day. Weekends they would have total freedom to do sweet fuck all and during the week they were to help with normal chores- cleaning their own bathroom, picking up the livingroom, dishes, etc. You know, the usual day to day stuff that normally only I do. $25 a week gave them the potential to earn $200 by the end of the summer for what should have been less than 30 minutes a day work.

And then there was babysitting. I had hoped to pick up and extra 3 shifts every 2 weeks. Taylor was babysit at $30 for a full day, $15 for a half. However, when you don't wake up until noon you can't really claim you are babysitting all day. (No need to call Social Services- Liam got up with the girls.) I ended up telling work I could only do evening shifts, which actually works out in my favour as I then get shift differential. More money, but no seeing Himself as I leave at 2.30 and he comes home at 5. Granted, that can also can work out in my favour, depending on one's mood.

Sophie is beating up on Saoirse. If you are not a regular reader of my blog, you may be unaware that Sophie is 21 months younger than Saoirse. If she wants something Saoirse has she will take it, hitting or pulling hair if she must. And hitting for fun. Not only Saoirse. Oh no, we have all had a Sophie smack across the arms, legs or face. We are not a family that spanks so I really have no idea where this is coming from. The kid spends half her day on the time out step. Or rather, she would if she listened to me and stayed in time out.

And yet sometimes? She is so freaking sweet. She is really affectionate and smart and oh, so funny. The other day she sort of slid of the chair and bumped her bum. She was naked of course, because why get dressed when you can spend the day running around without pesky clothing to get in your way? So she bumps her butt and says to me "Oh Mummy! I hurt my bum! You need to kiss (mwah, mwah) it better." And she turned around and stuck her bum in the air. She did make kissy noises too. How can you not laugh at that? So I kissed the top of a bum cheek and she said "Thank you Mummy! My owie's all better!" She speaks in exclamations, everything is so exciting to her. She also speaks in periods. "Give. Me. The. Phone. Right. Now." That's what I heard when I called home the other night and was talking to Saoirse. Bossy and not very nice on one hand, sweet and loving on the other.

It's her second birthday this coming Sunday. Being the fantastic mother I am, I have arranged nothing. No birthday party planned, I sort of mentioned to a few people that we may have a barbeque but have followed up with no one. We are going to see Sesame Street Live on the day at 1 pm so I am a bit worried that by 5 or so she will be an absolute bear as she won't have napped. And really? I know she's only turning two, she isn't going to care that no one is there. But I do, I care that there will be no family friends in the picture. I think part of the problem is that I have pushed so many people away and the ones that I haven't are all on freaking holiday and so there is really no one to invite.

And finally, (I could totally go on feeling sorry for myself but shall spare you) today we got a letter from Imm.igation Canada saying that William needs to have another full medical examination as it has been more that 12 months since the last one. Do you know why it has been more than 12 months? Because every freaking month CIC sends us yet another letter telling us they need one more thing. Last month it was yet another criminal record check from Australia, this one requiring finger prints. Well,f you fucking wanted fingerprints why did you not say that in the original bloody letter. We are on third Australian check. I bet the next one they send says they want one from Scotland for the brief time he lived there more than 10 years ago.

Another medical is going to cost us about $400. Not a great deal of money, but not money we have at the moment. It has been a really tight few months, and with over $700 in school fees coming up in September it is not money I see being available to us in the next few months. Then there's Christmas and in the new year William has to go back to Australia as the medical board has said they will close his case if he doesn't come back soon. And then there was the letter telling me I owe Revenue Canada almost $500 for overpayments on GST in 2006 because I had an unclaimed partner. Gov't of Canada agencies really must not communicate because if they did they would know that in 2006 William was not allowed to work in this bloody godforsaken country.

In good news, we had our first bloggers get together in ages, and this time a new blogger joined us. I loved meeting 'She' from The Screaming Pages, along with her husband Drew. I know a few other Edmonton bloggers and I hope they will join us in the future.