A few days ago, I finally saw my name in print and I also got my first piece of fan mail from a total stranger! Just goes to show, you never know when your work, however humble, might have an impact on someone! My short story “Liftoff” spans pages 16 to 19 and you can even preview an excerpt on Amazon.com! Woohoo! That makes me feel like a REAL aspiring writer.

Here’s a few snippets from the story:

Ever since I was a little girl, I have dreamed about going into space.

Although on some deep level, I still wanted to be an astronaut, by the time I met Drex my freshman year of college, my career aspirations had become more down-to-earth.

Needless to say, I was very excited when I saw the yellow submarine. It was round with a large Plexiglass viewing bubble in the front, like a giant fishbowl eye where we would sit.

After about twenty minutes, we began our ascent to the surface. Karl turned off the submarine lights, and everything outside our bubble turned inky black. Then, all of a sudden, we were in a field of stars. We were crossing a bioluminescent layer of tiny fish and squid that live in the Cayman Trench. They glow in response to the light from the submarine.

… no matter how ridiculous, unlikely, or out-of-reach they might seem, Drex would always, to the best of his abilities, help make my dreams come true.

Perhaps I’m the most excited by the idea that the girls will be able to read our proposal story in this book some day.

Sonya is tall. She wears 4T clothes now and lots of people mistake her for a preschooler.  However, Leena is rapidly catching up to Big Sister. Each day, the two of them look more and more like each other.

It’s actually quite difficult for me to remember a time when I only had one daughter. They’ve both become such a huge part of my identity and my life and my soul and my aspirations. I don’t know who I’d be without them both.

At work, I now have something to touch with my fingers when I start to miss my girls for a moment, like for instance, when I go to the potty in a quiet stall all by myself. However, the five hours of each workday goes by really fast. I’m enjoying the project that I’ve been given. Before I know it, I’m back home to chat with Molly Ann, brewing her afternoon cup of orange pekoe tea.

As much as I enjoy my time in the office, homecomings are absolutely wonderful. So far, I’ve arrived to a quiet house because both the girls are still asleep for their afternoon naps. I get a little time to transition myself back to the home environment, and then I have groggy smiles and shouts and hugs and exclamations like “I been thinking about you, Mom!” or “I need some milk!” or ”I pooped in the potty all by myself!” A chubby finger will lead me to the kitchen for sippy cups of milk and a snack like juicy melon slices or fresh summer berries.

Later in the evening, when I’m mopping up a puddle of urine, cramming another clean load of laundry in the unfolded basket next to the bed, or picking up the perpetual clutter from the living room floor, I feel spurts of rage quickly dissipate as I remember to be grateful. It is a blessing to have the kind of joyful stress that surrounds a happy, busy, young family. Drex agrees (with the special brand of wit that he has).

Yesterday evening, in my hunt for a clean pair of underwear for Sonya after she wet her pants, I had a catastrophic and humiliating fall. I tripped over a massive watermelon that Sonya and Leena have been pushing around in a cart. My right foot got caught. My big toe nail got pulled back. My left wrist took the impact along with my jaw. Today, I feel sore and chagrined. And I’m taking it easy at home with my S and my L.

A package arrived from Sugar Land with some pretty amazing stuff. I’ll split up my discussion of the contents into three posts. First, we have a little walking Iron Man in Mark VI armor. He has glowing eyes and a button gold-titanium alloy Ark Reaktor. (Yes, we’re big fans of Tony Stark).

While Iron Man did a tour of the living room, Leena carefully studied the instructions for an Iron Man repulsor glove. I beta-tested it. My major discovery was that Iron Man’s armor might be able to withstand Thor’s hammer, but it sure couldn’t withstand Leena’s teeth. She bit down hard on my thumb. I almost dropped the camera. (By the way, check out Leena’s arm tat).

Drex got home and was super excited. He somehow crammed his massive Drex arm into the thing and started firing off foam bullets. That orange blur on the right is one of them veering off toward the space pod.

Molly Ann took the girls to Sonya’s art class today. Sonya is working on a landscape. Last week, she painted the entire canvas blue (as seen in the photo). Today, I didn’t get to see the progress she made on her painting, but I know she added mountains. I can’t wait to see her finished painting in a few weeks!

I arrived home by four o’clock to a quiet house. Both girls were still asleep for their afternoon nap. When they woke up, we went to the playground. Then we came home and ate sausages, then we went back to the playground after Drex got home, and then we came back and had bowls of alphabet soup for second dinner. Followed by cookies and milk and Candle Time.

Sonya made a “heart with sprinkles” and a stick twined with felt and little flowers at Miss Katya’s daycare. Unfortunately, the heart blew away from the stroller and some of the “sprinkles”, which are bits of colored Easter eggshells, came unglued. And then another parent came to my house and left with my stick, so I don’t have it anymore. But they were both lovely gifts!

This weekend, we had Sonya’s friend Ella come for a sleepover while her parents enjoyed a quick getaway. We took several trips to the playground, ate dinner outside, and passed the time enjoyably.

It still took a lot of energy keeping up with two potty-training toddlers. I don’t know how mothers of twins do it!

Over the past three years, I’ve really grown into my role as a mom, and I feel inspired, rewarded, and fulfilled— 90% of the time. The other 10% of the time, I want to bang my head against a wall.

I got breakfast this morning— just like I wanted. Scrambled eggs with cheese. Fresh-made scones. Raspberries. After that, it was a typical day. With an extra kid. I better get to sleep because tomorrow is a work-in-the-office day!

I am so grateful for my daughters’ grandmothers, aunts, caregivers, and my fellow moms who share this remarkable journey with me. I am humbled by my imperfection and stupidity— but I’m so grateful that I get a chance to be Sonya and Leena’s mom. They are my blessings and my treasures. Always. Forever.

We began a family ritual called Candle Time. Every night, we sit around the kitchen table and light a pair of candles, one for each of our girls to blow out. It’s our time to be together, enjoy a final snack before bedtime, and settle down for sleep. We share one thing we did today and one thing we look forward to doing tomorrow.

It’s become something that we all anticipate every evening. Sonya can say, “I want Candle Time.” Leena points at the beeswax tapers and razzes like she’s blowing out a candle.

It’s a nice coming-together at the end of each day. I hope Candle Time continues for years to come.

I am so glad that warmer weather is here at last! We still need light jackets, long sleeves, and pants, but the grass is green, the flowers are blooming, and summer is just a month away!

A couple weeks ago, I got a call from the McGill Faculty of Medicine HR office about a temporary project. I went to an interview last week, and got the impression I was hired, but I wanted to make sure, because it just seemed too good to be true. Today was my first day of work! Despite coordinated smoke bomb attacks on the Montreal subway (how crazy is that, by the way?), I finally made it to my downtown office.

I’ll be putting together a newsletter for the Rossy Cancer Network, a brand-new comprehensive cancer treatment network among all the McGill-affiliated hospitals. This opportunity combines my background in medicine with my new career direction as a writer. At the interview, I decided to be honest and mention my reservations about returning to work because of my two little girls. Family always comes first. (Will it ever not hurt my heart to be apart from them?)

My boss said that I could work Monday through Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. How sweet is that? I almost hugged the guy, but remembered to be professional. So that’s it. Until August, I’m going to bask in the glory of being a paid writer three days a week.

This could not have been a more perfect offer at a more perfect time. It’s just what I need— a little something to keep me spry in the work force. Not too much to make me feel torn about being away from home. More up my alley than research on Crohn’s disease.

Perhaps the best part is that Sonya is really excited for me, too! She’s looking forward to next week, because “Molly Ann is going to come over!” Now I have no worries at all. Molly Ann has been a steady presence for Leena’s entire life and nearly all of Sonya’s too. They love her. And she loves them. And she’s going to be with them while I go to work.

I went to get everything sorted out today— payroll, office, passwords. When I got back home around four-thirty in the afternoon, Sonya gave me a huge hug and told me she’d had a great day with Molly Ann. Leena was all grins. So I’m all set for next week. I’m so psyched. I feel ready for this. I hope that it opens the door for other opportunities, too. Who knows? After all, one good thing usually leads to another.

Starting work means that I’ll probably be absent from this space for awhile. I aim to produce the best newsletter EVER in the history of newsletters. Then come back home and really focus on Sonya and Leena with renewed appreciation for the role I play as their mom. And continue writing. And… learn even more about Crohn’s disease.

I am so grateful for this chance and for Molly Ann stepping up to watch the girls. I know my daughters will be in excellent, capable, loving, steady hands while I’m working away from home.