Operation Tubetop

Well what a crazy crazy party that was! The House of Canada's very first Plaid and Poutine party was a raging success! Thanks to friends for sharing the details because the RSVP's got up to 143. The Beaver Brewing Company was kind enough to host the event and it was the perfect location for it. On Thursday afternoon, wearing my plaid shirt and pearls, I headed to the bar. I arrived around 5:30 and talked to the servers. They asked how many people were expected and when I said 143, it looked like they would pass out. They were all super lovely and when my friend L.P. showed up (the owner of the House of Canada) we were ready. She even had a Justin Trudeau cut out made for the event and well, there were selfies galore! The party was set to start at 7 but already by 6, people were showing up. By 7 it was PACKED! Mr. Beaver was like "I should have known. Canadians are polite." It was a full house and some people actually couldn't get in. I talked to friends and me...

Sup? Sup? Things are a little crazy right now and I can't complain because while scientists have their own calculations about chaos... mine kind of goes like this: Tova + life = CHAOS. It's not that complicated of a calculation but sometimes you need an addition of the variable "Wine" and it seems to accelerate particles and then we have a Lifetime film starring a chubby Leelee Sobieski. I like a little chaos and I am definitely responsible for 99% of it and yet, I wouldn't change anything. Last time I posted, I fan girled over the awesome article Vienna Würstelstand posted about autism and it had pictures of the Kid and me and he looked adorable and I looked like I like cake (and I do). I loved the article and I loved all the shares. What I didn't expect was to be stopped in the street and for some woman to exclaim "YOU ARE THE AUTISM LADY!!!" I'll take it because that beats "you are that woman who thinks she can sing Amy Winehouse after a ...

Happy Saturday everybody! It's grey and cold but that is a-ok. The Kid has a hacking cough again because of course he does. He is fine otherwise and today it seems to have improved. I ended up staying home with him yesterday and it was nice to just spend some one on one time, trying to bribe him to drink cough syrup and of course stopping him from crawling onto the kitchen counters to get cake. We are very similar. The last couple of days have been a bit of a whirlwind and here is a breakdown. Wednesday after work, I ran home, fixed my make up and put on a denim dress. I had to look good because a buddy from Vienna Würstelstand was coming over to take pictures of the Kid and me. I only found out the day before that we would be photographed and while I read the e-mail, I stress ate an Oreo cookie. I am not good in front of the camera. I prefer climate-controlled, dark lighting, sepia-toned selfies that I can filter so I end up looking like I have the skin of a 7 year old. This p...

Apologies for not posting sooner. It has been a bit of a whirlwind the past couple of days. We have all day training at work for 3 days for some software so I haven't been able to update Facebook every hour talking about something or other. Speaking of which... yesterday I was on the Ubahn and there were a bunch of teenagers chatting. For the most part, I think teenagers are a-ok. A lot of them are misunderstood and I think it must be a challenge to grow up with social media nowadays: the pressure, the comparisons, the Kardashians. Every adult I meet always says "Oh thank God I did not grow up with Facebook!" and I can only concur. I would have been grounded every weekend for something stupid I posted or bullied for quoting Fiona Apple all.the.time. I once read an article that talked about how bullying is worse for kids these days because back in our day, at the end of school, we could go home and be alone and not be taunted... but these days, with social media, it can ke...

Happy Friday! Huzzah! Friday! It has been a good week and a very busy week at work. Monday I visited Specialisterne and on Tuesday I met a friend for drinks and dinner. Wednesday was my night at home where I spent it watching Real Housewives of Melbourne and doing my nails. Yesterday after work I met a friend for a couple of drinks and then headed home to spend some time with the Kid and the Husband. Once the Kid was in bed, we put on Southern Charm and it was a perfect way to wind down the day. After work today, I will be heading to a friend's for a little bit to catch up and then will head home to make dinner and try and convince the Husband to watch another episode of Southern Charm. On Saturday I have a meeting with my fellow Vienna Wuerstelstanders and then on Sunday I am hosting a brunch for some ladies. I also have to switch my winter and summer wardrobe which will definitely keep me busy for a few hours. Yesterday was the big kindergarten field trip. I was a nervous...

Wow. Just wow. This afternoon after work I was lucky enough to visit Specialisterne based in Vienna. I had never heard of this organization until recently. The Kid's therapist works at this organization once a week. I asked if I could come by one day and she said "of course". My goal right now is to find out as much as possible about what is available in Vienna in terms of autism support. In one case I was not so heartily welcomed. However, not today. I arrived at 4 and walked up the steps. Specialisterne was founded by a Danish man whose son had been diagnosed with autism. Frustrated by the lack of employment opportunities for people with autism. The Kid's therapist greeted me and we walked through to the meeting room in the back. In between is the workspace and there were about 3 men working at computers. The room has a row of windows and is bright and calm. We walked into the meeting room and she told me about the organization. They are, for lack of better term, ...

Hello Sunday! Today was the Vienna City Marathon and I put on my sweat pants and sat on the sofa and watched it. A lot of my friends participated and I am incredibly inspired by them. So much so, I am actually considering taking a run this evening... maybe when it is darker so I can hide my shame. I am not doing the Frauenlauf this year but I think I will aim for the Night Run in September. I figure that gives me enough time to be back at my 5 K best. The good news is that my back is feeling a little better. I did yoga Friday and Saturday and that helped a lot. I told a friend that I was worried that I injured myself because of yoga and she was like "People turn to yoga to help injuries! How did you hurt yourself doing yoga?!?!" and I responded with "That's how I roll." I am not sure what caused the back pain but I am definitely relieved that I don't have to go to the doctor. Unless my doctor looked like this. Office Twin hurt his back a while back and m...

Well hello there Friday! I survived the work week with the Husband gone and a kind of busted back. Hats off to single parents everywhere! I bow down to you because it is not easy and I don't know how you guys do it! I know how lucky I was to have our wonderful nanny this week because without her... no...just no. The Husband got back about an hour ago and I thought he wouldn't be getting in until about 8. I realized that I hadn't warned him that I had changed up the bedroom while he was gone. I decided the best offensive move was to jump and down and say "surprise" when he walked in... without a bra. He was happy with the change but he also said "What did you do to your hair?" and I realized I didn't tell him about my at-home highlight session. And then he said "Why are you a different colour?" and I also didn't mention my ambitious self tanning, either. Oh well, new bedroom, new wife. The best thing is that the Kid, when he saw the Husb...

Happy Wednesday night! Another long day at work but I made it! My back still hurts but I am going to try to do a session of at home yoga tonight and see if that helps a little. It is driving me batty! Speaking of bats, my three favourite were back last night when my friend was over. I first saw one bat the Sunday before last flying outside my kitchen window. Then last Sunday he was joined by two more. I have named them. "That's Batsby. And that's Bathoven..." and she asked "Where's Darren?" and I replied with "Darren is over there because I don't think Darren's that bright. Darren's the bat I bet will hit our kitchen window sometime soon." Poor Darren. D.K. came over last night to keep me company since the Husband's away. We ordered Indian food and then I made her watch Gone Girl . I have read the book and have watched the film with the Husband but I so wanted to see her reaction to watching it and she did not disappoint. We h...

Hello Monday evening! This evening actually has turned out a lot better than I had expected. This morning the Husband left for a 5 night business trip (he is still in Austria so by North American distance standards, he's like around the corner) and I was dreading it. Usually I am a-ok with being on my own with the Kid. He usually is pretty easy going and he is my shadow so we chill and play and he follows me around the apartment as I do stuff. But this morning I was not in a good place. The Kid is sick AGAIN and it is getting all too Munchauseny-by-proxy every time I complain about it. I too have whatever the Kid has and I feel that the last 3 months have been filled non-stop with ailments. Not only was the Kid hacking up a lung, but I somehow have messed up my back. It started last week and I had hoped that a session of hot yoga would cure it but it did not. It has now moved into my hip and it seems like the sciatica pain I had throughout my pregnancy. And no, I am not pregnan...

Wow! I cannot believe March is over. It was kind of an OK month save for the WEEK that I have been sick. Last week I was out for the count on Wednesday and Thursday. I was convinced I was better until Monday when I felt my cold creeping up. I went to work on Tuesday, out for dinner in the evening and then BOOM! Wednesday morning I fainted, had a high fever and spent most of the day sleeping and feeling sorry for myself. Yesterday morning I was fever free and went to work and survived. I did have to postpone my finance coaching because I didn't have a chance to finish up my business plan I have been working on. But luckily my finance coach is super awesome and postponed our session until next week. I was determined to get through the day because in the evening, I was going to a networking event a friend had invited me to. It is a monthly event held at Le Meridien hotel and when I told Office Twin that I was going he was like "That sounds HORRIBLE!" and I responded with...