Speaking French

Alex has said a few French words (I think) since she started her French daycare, it's the cutest thing to hear. She was saying something last night while she was pointing at the monkey on her shirt. So I went online to find the French translation for the word monkey. Sure enough, she was saying monkey in French.
I'm finding it slightly difficult to keep up with the French since I don't speak or read the language. All of the communications from the daycare are in French, even her daily log is written in French. They are nice enough to translate it for me but I'm still having a hard time.
She also says Bonjour, that word I DO know. I know a few words, but I'd like to know the language to keep up with and help my daughter along. The only French course for adults in this area is not convenient for Alex and me.
I want my daughter to know as many languages as possible, my grandfather spoke five languages. But how will I keep up?

Fifteen hands to remove a sliver?

We went to visit family in Nova Scotia last week and Alex got a sliver in her ring finger. Both my uncle and I tried desperately to get it out but Alex would NOT let us. We tried periodically for two days. My uncle suggested that I take her to the local hospital but I thought that was absolutely crazy, I could never do that! What mother can't get a sliver out of her child's finger? I tried to call Telehealth in Ontario but the number was not available from NS. There is no such thing in NS, so I called the local hospital to get their advice.

The woman who answered the phone was very nice but, as usual, said she couldn't advise me what to do. She did say, however, that if it was her daughter she would bring her in to the emergency department. She said that a triage nurse may even try to get the sliver out for me.

I brought her to the hospital, the triage nurse called us in and Alex screamed even before the nurse looked at her hand. You can imagine the noise when she did look at her hand. The triage nurse asked if I wanted her to try to remove it and I said, "please."

After a few pricks with a needle, she didn't even come close to the sliver. Alex screamed her head off! The doctors heard her from the rear of the department and suggested that Alex may have to be sedated for them to remove it. NO WAY! The triage nurse asked another nurse for her help and the three of us battled my poor little girl and got the sliver out. There was no way I was going to agree to sedate my daughter just to remove a sliver!

I felt useless and horrible for using our healthcare system for a sliver but the nurses said (after seeing it first hand) that I would have needed 15 hands to remove it myself. They made me feel a lot better. Thank goodness for kind, skilled nurses.

Daycare

Well it's been a while but I think I can find time to blog again! I missed it, but I had my hands full! My little angel has grown in leaps and bounds. Where shall I begin?

Lets talk about daycare. Alex has been in daycare for a while now, I was grateful to find a "spot" for her. Infant spots are difficult to find and I took what I could get. At the time the daycare didn't seem too bad, I wasn't even bothered by the fact that it's inside a church. She started June 1st when she was almost 14 months.

I had to go back to work when she was 12 months and her dad (who works evenings) stayed home with her. I had to leave work early every day to relieve him. He found it difficult most days. He happened to meet a woman who's son is at this "church" daycare and she said she would ask if there's a spot available. We were both relieved that there was a spot.

When I first signed up at the daycare they gave me a welcome package. Included in that package was a letter from the Ontario ministry regarding a recent licensing inspection. According to the letter, the daycare had met most of its requirements to 100%, except for "health and medical." That had always concerned me and I wondered what it meant. I never got around to asking but I can now assume what it meant.

I understand that once children venture off into the public they are going to get sick. Whether it's to the park, grocery store or school. But Alex was sick practically the entire time she was at this daycare. I asked what their procedure is for sick children and the woman told me that as long as they can participate in the day-to-day activities it was O.K. to bring them!

Thankfully, I have enrolled Alex in another daycare, a French one. She starts tomorrow.