More Torono FUN

Time again to set the alarm for early morning dance registration at the local community centre this coming Saturday.

Tiny Tot Jazz back in the Fall was a great success and Lauren is ready for another class. She skipped the winter session because I figured getting into the swing of me going back to work and picking up from daycare would be enough of a juggle during the week. On cold winter weekdays we all just want to get home, and the weekends commitment free.

Spring is near and it's time to dance! This time around Lauren has requested ballet. Now that she's 5 she'll be with the 5-7 year group which will likely mean a class that's a little more focused. The Tiny Tot group was fun, but the 3 and some of the younger 4 year olds in the class tended to run amok.

Getting a spot in the class may be tough. Ballet is already a popular class and there are very few classes to choose from. The best available for us is Saturday morning at 10:15am which I'm sure is prime time for every other family as well.

Ah well, the best I can do is be in the ready with mouse and phone in hand.  Wish me luck!

Renos 2013

While I was tidying the girls room this morning I pulled Lauren's bed away from the wall to tuck in a bed sheet and noticed water condensation on the floor. I ran my hand along the wall and felt that it was cold.

Zut alors!

The cold wall is a known issue, as is the cold floor. The room is at the front of the house and level to the roof overhang that's above the front porch. Because there's no insulation in that part of the roof, there's no barrier from the cold. We knew we'd have to get to fixing this sooner or later, but hoping for the later. Now that I see water in the bedroom, I think we need to bump this project up on the priority list.

2012 was a no reno year. Claire kept us busy enough, and after spending a good chunk of money and living through dust and noise and paint fumes while upgrading the living and dining room in 2011, we needed the break.

C wasted no time and sent out a message to G, our favourite contractor to chat about availability and cost. A few hours later we were sitting around the table chatting about the what, when and how much.

In addition to the bedroom project, we talked about the backyard. The space has been pretty much unused for the last 5 years, and it's time to take it back. It's postage stamp size as far as backyards go, but it's ours. And how wonderful would it be to eat breakfast out there on a nice weekend morning,  and dinner on a warm night.

G mentioned that he would sooner get a space heater for the cold wall and spend the money on the backyard first. This is exactly the kind of advice I wanted to hear from someone who knows better about what projects to do first.

So, all being well with finances, we'll tackle the backyard just as soon as the ground thaws and the temperature begins to rise. Once we're into the summer months we'll look into getting the room done and hopefully finished by the fall.

Phew. 2013, here we come!