OH MY FREAKING GOD!!!
Can you believe it? My baby, Veronica is officially ONE YEAR OLD!! That means, that not only have I been a MOM for an entire year...... but that my MATERNITY LEAVE PAY HAS RUN OUT! AAAAKK!!
Sooooo... Where does the time go exactly? 'Cuz I certainly don't feel like I'm good enough at this 'mom thing' yet that a full YEAR should have passed me by!! (Hmm... Maybe I need more practice! ;p)
But I digress. NOW, 52+ weeks after having my baby, I'm $1,600/month poorer than I was last month. I mean, up until the beginning of April, the government paid me a small percentage of my old salary to raise my child... (And on a side note-- how COOL is it that in 2011 they started to pay EI & Mat Leave to Self- Employed people!! Maybe the ONLY good thing I can say about the Harper Gov't-- and I actually have no educated idea if he had anything to do with it.) But alas, my paycheque is done. Kaput. Gone-zo...
And that's ok! I've embraced my new spending budget. I've STOPPED shopping for my baby out of sheer boredom every day. I've STOPPED eating out every single meal of the day at Bo Jangles & the Hurricane Grill. I've stopped going out for coffee & lunch with the other stroller moms & having a house cleaner & sending my dogs to the groomers... BAAHAHAHA ya RIGHT!! NO I haven't!
WHY?? Cuz I'm a committed yuppy downtown mom. Because there are certain things that we have at our fingertips here in Yaletown called-- "EVERYTHING"! And Brad & I have just made the choice to make it work financially.
If any of you have been following my previous blogs then you know that I'm a huge fan of being an 'Urban Mom'. My suburban friends are always trying to convince me that I NEED to move to the North Shore. Because Veronica NEEDS a YARD. And the dogs NEED a YARD. And if we have a second child they NEED more ROOM... but I'm sorry, did you happen to notice that my front yard is the SEAWALL?? And did you realize that I have a small movie theatre, a party room, a gym, a pool, a hot tub and a PLAYGROUND on my 2nd floor?? And did you see the off-leash dog park across the street from my place? In between the 2 outdoor playgrounds that is. (I know, it's super easy to miss ;p). And maybe you saw the daycare center next door to our condo? Or that the Roundhouse Community Center is just around the corner from us (next to the Elementary School of course) with a bazillion kids programs?
You're right. I should totally move out of my neighborhood.
Not to mention that within a block of us, there's a grocery store, liquor store, post office, dry cleaners, pet store, a dozen amazingly affordable & delicious restaurants... and now my most favorite place to shop... Saf & Benjamin's Modern Baby Store?! What more does a mom need?
Ohh excercise. Right. And oh. Maybe a paycheque? ;p Well that's a no-brainer. YES being a new mom makes it difficult to make time for the gym, but my past posts have made no secret that I am a devoted attendee and huge fan of the organization "Fit-4-Two"... SUCH a huge fan in fact, that I've recently decided to get certified to TEACH the mom & baby classes that I religiously attend every week! (This will prove to be especially rewarding considering I didn't know that classes like this existed when I was pregnant -- and as a result I got pretty depressed about being fat and tired during my pregnancy.)
Soo Yup. I've solved my lack of Mat Leave Pay problem.
I'm officially on my way to being one of "those Yaletown moms" that you see leading the other stereotypical Yaletown moms in doing dips & lunges along the seawall. I get to work out & get paid for it & hang out with my baby in my off-time.. and although some of you who are my dearest friends will make fun of me for it... I'm so ridiculously happy that I don't care! I only wish that each and every one of you gets to experience the same feeling of 'success' and 'belonging' that I have found recently (especially since giving birth) and that you embrace the wonderful thing that is to live this beautiful country.
Oh. And money. I wish you lots and lots of money.
