April 30 - The Sun Shines On Those Gathered For A Two-Year-Old's Birthday, And Then We Clean That Big, Big House For Way Too Long

Birthday girl's tetchy
But she loves her fancy cake
We move. Again. Sigh.

April 29 - In Which We Mark Paul's 65th With What I Think Is The Right Number Of Family Gathered To Make Things Festive Without Irritating The Guest Of Honour, While Also Providing Nice Buildup For Him Getting His Formula 1 Tickets

Surprise guest for Paul
Lamb burgers, my splashy gift
It's party enough

April 28 - The First Night Of A New Housesit Goes From Typically Hectic To Pretty Damn Crazy When Daniel, Rachelle And Families Show Up

Too many people
What must the dogs think? Pack gone
Strangers on the stairs

April 27 - Esquimalt Lagoon On A Sunny Day, Not Yet Warm Enough But Still A Very Welcome Thing

The space between logs
is windless. We feed the gulls
Sand between our toes

April 26 - A Swapped Work Day, A Brief Lull Before The Next House Guests Arrive

Cycle in and out
My new routine, so calming
These are social days

April 25 - A Day Of Hanging Out Watching Wee Ones Hang Out

Such sweet little girls
A shout-out to Penny, too
Food-obsessed but kind

April 24 - The Willcocks Family Finds Itself In Fine Form As The Floridians And The Vancouverites Come Together To Recreate A Magdelin Experience

Sun shines on the gang
We ravage Chelle's lasagne
Paul rides in the hatch

April 23 - I'm Getting Better After This Cold But I Sound Much Worse, Which May Or May Not Have Anything To Do With My Active Outdoor Day After Paul And The Visitors Head Up-Island

Slow Francis/King drift
Then a cycle. Is that what
has taken my voice?

April 22 - A Pleasant Day Of Everybody Just Enjoying Each Other's Company In Relaxed Fashion

We sit on the floor
Kids sprawled, having a hangout
The girl cousins meet

April 21 - Very Late-Night Arrival Of The Floridians, Bringing The Always Cheery Cerys Up To Hang With Her Canadian Family

Day's plans go awry
But Becca and gang arrive
Weary but unscathed

April 20 - Darlene Steps Up For Evening Childminding So We Can Finally See Rachelle And Aaron Performing Their Fine "Songs Of Hope And Despair"

Sure, I'm the proud mom
Though even random strangers
would enjoy this band

April 19 - We Are Surprised By Eco-Goats Grazing On Ivy And Blackberry On Our Adventurous Walk Through Highrock Park, And R Pitches A Fit When Unable To Get Closer To Them

The rock-climbing's great
But then she spots the damn goats
No, you can't hold them

April 18 - Money In, Money Out As I Catch Up On All Those Costly Things I've Been Ignoring While Travelling

This is why we work:
There's a paycheque at my door
Covers the dentist

April 17 - Turkey Sandwiches With Craig And Vivian Lure Me Into My Longest Cycle In Quite Some Time

Two-way Sidney ride
taxes my legs but frees me
for Empire cookies

April 16 - In Which I Meet Schnitzel And A 'Potty-Mouthed' Jesus, But Avoid Being Selected By Ronnie Burkett For Audience Participation

Two blessed hours
reading in the warm sunshine
Night is for puppets

April 15 - The Downside Of The Gypsy Life Is That You Don't Necessarily Have A Place To Park Your Caravan

We look at trailers
But talk ourselves out of one
before we get home

April 14 - It's "Good" Friday In The Sense That I Have An Entire Day To Catch Up On All The Things That Need It

Can't take it easy
Bike ride and two meals to eat
Holes filled in with work

April 13 - The Easter Egg Hunt At The Lodge Reminds Me That For A Wee Observant One, This All Must Be Really Puzzling

People in wheelchairs
unnerve her. It's not judgment
She's just mystified

April 12 - Recommendation: Get To Beacon Hill Petting Zoo First Thing For Maximum Chance Of Touching Creatures

Early arrival
Means the tiny horse is close
R wants the newborns

April 11 - I Blame The Dental Hygienist For Talking To Me Too Much About My Tartar Buildup, But In The End It Seemed An Embarrassing Act To Risk Being Caught In

I'm not proud of this:
I almost stole a scratcher
To clean my back teeth

April 10 - The Thoughts That Go Through Your Head While Using A Stand-Up Desk

If I sit, no net
So I stand, though my toes hurt
But might I lose weight?

April 9 - We Cap Off A Six-Day Run Of Evening Outings With A Pre-Easter Turkey Dinner, In Which One Guest Becomes A Bit...Well, Let's Just Say "Centre Stage"

Cycle-legs return
We're sick of socializing
But there's one last meal

April 8 - Paul's Boss And Her Husband Are Staying Over

Young house guests, polite
I feel like a nervous mom
Setting out olives

April 7 - First Day At My New Part-time Job, Where Things Go So Smoothly That I'm All Done With The Tech Guy By Noon

Window. Stand-up desk.
Could be my best digs so far
Though I'll pack my lunch

April 6 - R Freaks Out When Denied The Right To Hold Teddy And Leaves Me Trying To Do A Modified Time-Out In The Oakland Washroom

Hello to Bobbi!
But why'd she bring that damn bear?
Night: Bacon pasta

April 5 - Once You've Experienced An Empty Museum, A Full One Is Unbearable. On The Bright Side, The Cafe Brio Evening Repast Is Yummy

I wanted to swim
Instead, we're here with thousands
R hates all these legs

April 4 - I Even Get A Bike Ride To UVic In Before A Full And Varied Day Gets Underway

By day, I work hard
By night, gin drinks and hors d'oeuvres
Hey, the bird guy's here!

April 3 - My Current Work Contracts Lead Me Deep Into The Issues And History Of Air And Sea Transport As I Clear My Sked For What's Coming Next

Real job is looming
I set to work on air space
and fixing big boats

April 2 - And The Clouds Part And The Tires Are Pumped And Suddenly I'm Cycling Again

What a joy to ride
Hills hurt, butt pinches, but still
I'm back on my bike

April 1 - I'm Pretty Sure I'm Going To Love This Funky Little Place

Moving day, but first
we sprawl on the deck, sunning
Bye, dogs. Hi, oak trees

March 31 - Atlas And I Take Our Final Mount Doug Walk And Make It A Good One By Climbing The North Face

This is a dog's dream
No leash, deer scent all over
Bounding up the rocks