I have been negligent for the past while on this blog, but feel it is worthwhile sharing Fyn's first bike-ride.
Hayden also wanted to give filming a shot (and insisted I add it to the blog). So those of you who have taken your gravol pills can also watch this clip.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Friday, July 8, 2011
June 24, 2011 - Ancient Alberta Expedition
Just after I had been posting regularly things fell apart again. Anyways, We had a fun trip on the 24th and Hayden did a wonderful journal entry about it:
On my weekend I went to a plase where your opsto find 9 teepee rings. It was fun. We elso went to a madsin weel. It was on a hill. Up top of the hill ther was a lat of rocks.on the hill it was very windy it velt like.if you jump youl fly all down the hill.wen we wer looking for a nathr one.but we cadint find it. On the way back from looking for it ther wer some puddles. wen we went through the puddles the holle front window got covered with water.
I can't top that (especially if you could see the fancy formatting he had in Word) but we did have a good time.
Our objectives were 3 prehistoric archaeological sites in south central Alberta.
After driving South to Stavely we headed West along Township road 142 to Carmangay where we were able to find our first site - Carmangay Tipi rings. Located just west of highway 23 and North of the river there is a tiny campground where, buried in the grass, are stone rings for 9 tipi sites. Despite the incessant wind, the kids had a fun time roaming the field trying to find all of the sites.
Hayden and Fyn sitting on a find:
Next we continued our trip West on Township road 140 to try and find Sundial Butte. After turning South on an unmarked road then following a faint trail across a grassy field we arrive and the foot of a tall hill fenced off by barbed wire. The 5 of us disembark, wander past the info sign, and then scramble to the top of the hill.
If the wind was incessant in Carmagay, at the top of the hill (probably the tallest point for 100 miles around) it was gale force. I can't remember the last time I had to lean as hard into the wind to keep my footing. The scene was spectacular however. Blue skies and green fields in a 360-degree panorama. Howling wind while surrounding you at your feet were ruins likely over 1,000 years old.
To be continued...
On my weekend I went to a plase where your opsto find 9 teepee rings. It was fun. We elso went to a madsin weel. It was on a hill. Up top of the hill ther was a lat of rocks.on the hill it was very windy it velt like.if you jump youl fly all down the hill.wen we wer looking for a nathr one.but we cadint find it. On the way back from looking for it ther wer some puddles. wen we went through the puddles the holle front window got covered with water.
I can't top that (especially if you could see the fancy formatting he had in Word) but we did have a good time.
Our objectives were 3 prehistoric archaeological sites in south central Alberta.
After driving South to Stavely we headed West along Township road 142 to Carmangay where we were able to find our first site - Carmangay Tipi rings. Located just west of highway 23 and North of the river there is a tiny campground where, buried in the grass, are stone rings for 9 tipi sites. Despite the incessant wind, the kids had a fun time roaming the field trying to find all of the sites.
Hayden and Fyn sitting on a find:
Next we continued our trip West on Township road 140 to try and find Sundial Butte. After turning South on an unmarked road then following a faint trail across a grassy field we arrive and the foot of a tall hill fenced off by barbed wire. The 5 of us disembark, wander past the info sign, and then scramble to the top of the hill.
If the wind was incessant in Carmagay, at the top of the hill (probably the tallest point for 100 miles around) it was gale force. I can't remember the last time I had to lean as hard into the wind to keep my footing. The scene was spectacular however. Blue skies and green fields in a 360-degree panorama. Howling wind while surrounding you at your feet were ruins likely over 1,000 years old.
To be continued...
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
115 year old Whale Found
And killed.
MSNBC reports that Inuit, while butchering a Bowhead whale recently hunted off the alaskan coast, found embedded in the whales neck an explosive lance tip dated to the 1890's.
This provides an estimated age to the animal of at least 120years.
While the story is very cool and all, why are we still killing these animals?
Does tradition and cultural heritage justify it?
Since I am 1/4 Swedish do I get to plunder my neighbours like a viking 1 week of the month with the blessing of the courts?
MSNBC reports that Inuit, while butchering a Bowhead whale recently hunted off the alaskan coast, found embedded in the whales neck an explosive lance tip dated to the 1890's.
This provides an estimated age to the animal of at least 120years.
While the story is very cool and all, why are we still killing these animals?
Does tradition and cultural heritage justify it?
Since I am 1/4 Swedish do I get to plunder my neighbours like a viking 1 week of the month with the blessing of the courts?
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Recital Day - June 12, 2011
After all of the buildup here is the video from Fynlee's recital earlier today.
Now the rest of us can finally start to sleep easy!
Before you go however, we also took the opportunity to take some pictures of her and Zettie earlier today.
Hayden also tried his hand at making a video of his little sister (those who succumb to motion sickness easily should take precautions before watching this).
Now the rest of us can finally start to sleep easy!
Before you go however, we also took the opportunity to take some pictures of her and Zettie earlier today.
Hayden also tried his hand at making a video of his little sister (those who succumb to motion sickness easily should take precautions before watching this).
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Friday, June 10, 2011
June 4-5 Camping trip
While things are still fresh I should probably recount the camping trip we took last weekend.
Pat and Chick were kind enough to let us use some of their land so on Saturday morning Sean and I headed out with Hayden, Fynlee, Ethan and Caleb for some camping and exploring.
Despite the wet and grey weather the afternoon and evening ended up being sunny and warm. One of the first things we found out was that if youhave a 13 year old to flirt with are friendly with the staff at Dairy Queen they can provide a Blizzard in one of their 1L cups for only a couple of dollars more than the normal extra-large. Even with the 6 of us it was an effort, certainly a pleasurable one, to try and finish.
On the farm, Shayne and Kayley's daughter Sarah was also visiting and her and Fyn made fast friends. After spending some time getting our gear and tents set up we decided to head out into the Porcupine hills for some exploring in the truck.
The goal was to make a loop through Lyndon and onto East Trout Creek road before returning on Highway 520 but wet and muddy roads required us to turn around and take the easy route to the lookout. However, as can be seen in the pictures and video to follow, we still had a grand time.
Our route:
View Porcupine Hills, AB in a larger map
After safely returning we enjoyed some hot dogs and conversation with the Leeds families before riding on a recently ungoverned golf cart, building a campfire, roasting giant marshmallows to make smores and then retiring to our tents.
Morning saw Sean and I attempt to cook eggs, bacon and pancakes on a coleman stove before an early-afternoon soccer game required us to quickly pack up and head for home.
All in all, despite its brevity, a good time was had by all.
Pat and Chick were kind enough to let us use some of their land so on Saturday morning Sean and I headed out with Hayden, Fynlee, Ethan and Caleb for some camping and exploring.
Despite the wet and grey weather the afternoon and evening ended up being sunny and warm. One of the first things we found out was that if you
On the farm, Shayne and Kayley's daughter Sarah was also visiting and her and Fyn made fast friends. After spending some time getting our gear and tents set up we decided to head out into the Porcupine hills for some exploring in the truck.
The goal was to make a loop through Lyndon and onto East Trout Creek road before returning on Highway 520 but wet and muddy roads required us to turn around and take the easy route to the lookout. However, as can be seen in the pictures and video to follow, we still had a grand time.
Caleb also helped me to make a music video of our journey (fair warning - after finishing and uploading the video I realized there is some swearing in the song lyrics around the 3:19 mark):
Our route:
View Porcupine Hills, AB in a larger map
After safely returning we enjoyed some hot dogs and conversation with the Leeds families before riding on a recently ungoverned golf cart, building a campfire, roasting giant marshmallows to make smores and then retiring to our tents.
Morning saw Sean and I attempt to cook eggs, bacon and pancakes on a coleman stove before an early-afternoon soccer game required us to quickly pack up and head for home.
All in all, despite its brevity, a good time was had by all.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Friday, June 3, 2011
May long weekend 2011
Thought I should take the time to post some of the events from our adventures over the long weekend of this year.
Initially I had planned to have a fairly rigorous off road camping expedition (rigorous as you could get with a couple young kids at least) but a fireban combined with a forecast of consistent rain caused us to tone things down a bit.
We decided instead that we would take to opportunity to camp in grandma and grandpa's backyard in Lethbridge. Hayden and fyn were excited to join me out in the tent while Kirsty and Zettie were able to sleep comfortably in the house.
Surprisingly the kids did wonderfully and slept for three nights in the tent with me. The weather was mixed and it rained consistently for two of the nights but the tent was up to the task and kept us warm and dry inside.
On Friday night we also took advantage of the backyard's firepit and cooked hotdogs and roasted marshmallows to get the full camping experience. Mark and Jenn along with their girls were able to come up to help entertain us and the kids. Judging by the amount of melted marshmallows smeared onto faces and clothes by the end of the evening it seems that everyone had a great time.
On Saturday I was eager to get some off-road exploration in with the truck into the milkriver ridge area so we loaded up and then joined up with the Ehlert's in Mark's jeep to see what kind of trouble we could find. Our main attempt ended up being rebuffed by some private land that wasn't indicated on my copy of the backroads mapbook so we retreated and decided to have a picnic on the shore of the Milk River Ridge Reservoir.
I couldn't resist trying to get into a bit of trouble...
Later that evening Kirsty and I joined Mark and Jenn for some Indian food in Lethbridge while Jim and Sharon werefoolish kind enough to watch all the kids. The food and company were great.
Sunday gave us another attempt at exploring some backroads SW of Warner that were clearly marked as public land. This time the previous nights rain foiled us the gravel road eventually degraded into an inch and a half of greasy mud. It was thick and slippery enough that the truck dogtracked and wanted to slide into the ditch on the level sections and eventually the grade became steep enough that the truck would just sit there and spin all four tires without moving forward. Being without food, water and camping gear we decided that discretion was the better part of valour and decided to turn around rather than try any more creative attempts at going further.
Muddy roads:
We were treated to an enjoyable meal that evening at the Ehlert's home in Raymond along with Jim, Sharon and Nana Mossey.
On Monday after packing up the tent in the rain we embarked on andamn fine fine dam road trip guided by Jim & Sharon (who were accompanied by 4 of Mark and Jenn's girls) along westbound highway 505 and across the dams for St. Mary's and Waterton's reservoirs. We ended up with a KFC lunch at Lundbreck falls in the crowsnest pass before finally heading back home along the scenic highway 22.
(See here for the map of all the driving we did on the weekend)
Initially I had planned to have a fairly rigorous off road camping expedition (rigorous as you could get with a couple young kids at least) but a fireban combined with a forecast of consistent rain caused us to tone things down a bit.
We decided instead that we would take to opportunity to camp in grandma and grandpa's backyard in Lethbridge. Hayden and fyn were excited to join me out in the tent while Kirsty and Zettie were able to sleep comfortably in the house.
Surprisingly the kids did wonderfully and slept for three nights in the tent with me. The weather was mixed and it rained consistently for two of the nights but the tent was up to the task and kept us warm and dry inside.
On Friday night we also took advantage of the backyard's firepit and cooked hotdogs and roasted marshmallows to get the full camping experience. Mark and Jenn along with their girls were able to come up to help entertain us and the kids. Judging by the amount of melted marshmallows smeared onto faces and clothes by the end of the evening it seems that everyone had a great time.
On Saturday I was eager to get some off-road exploration in with the truck into the milkriver ridge area so we loaded up and then joined up with the Ehlert's in Mark's jeep to see what kind of trouble we could find. Our main attempt ended up being rebuffed by some private land that wasn't indicated on my copy of the backroads mapbook so we retreated and decided to have a picnic on the shore of the Milk River Ridge Reservoir.
I couldn't resist trying to get into a bit of trouble...
Later that evening Kirsty and I joined Mark and Jenn for some Indian food in Lethbridge while Jim and Sharon were
Sunday gave us another attempt at exploring some backroads SW of Warner that were clearly marked as public land. This time the previous nights rain foiled us the gravel road eventually degraded into an inch and a half of greasy mud. It was thick and slippery enough that the truck dogtracked and wanted to slide into the ditch on the level sections and eventually the grade became steep enough that the truck would just sit there and spin all four tires without moving forward. Being without food, water and camping gear we decided that discretion was the better part of valour and decided to turn around rather than try any more creative attempts at going further.
Muddy roads:
We were treated to an enjoyable meal that evening at the Ehlert's home in Raymond along with Jim, Sharon and Nana Mossey.
On Monday after packing up the tent in the rain we embarked on an
(See here for the map of all the driving we did on the weekend)
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Sunday, May 8, 2011
May 2nd to 8th, 2011
If you thought our regular weekly updates were pretty bland just wait to you see how uneventful this past week was.
Weather in town (you should dread any blog posting that begins with a description of the weather) this week was finally starting to be spring like so Hayden started riding his bike to school again for the first time since last fall - seems like a long time ago.
Hayden's soccer team had two more games this week (Monday and Wednesday) and they are developing their skills even quicker than I had hoped. On Friday he was pretty excited to bring his mother's day gift home from school - Lemon Balm potted in a custom painted tin can.
Friday morning Fynlee attended her dance class again. They are working on their recital routine based around a song from the 'Tangled' soundtrack. Her gallop skills seem to improve every week.
Zettie is continuing to grow each week while still being a pretty easy baby to keep happy. Here is a brief video where she provides some commentary on Dad's blogging skills.
On Saturday I spent the bulk of the afternoon at a visioning meeting for the McKenzie Towne Resident's Association (now to be called the McKenzie Towne Council) with several other members of the Board.
Upon my return home I felt so guilty for abandoning my family that I could only redeem myself by going shopping and spending a bunch of money on a remote controlled Rock Crawler for Hayden ;-). He seems to enjoy it.
Today he was supposed to attend his spring hockey session but bailed because his stomach was achy. The deal was that if we came home that he had to go back to bed, so for the first time ever in his life he had an afternoon nap. He was so tired that when I came back in his room after an hour he asked for, "thirty more minutes please." Fortunately all his stomach needed was some extra sleep so the balance of the day was uneventful.
This week Kirsty promised to record some of the funny and or touching comments that our kids come up with so stay tuned for next Sunday to see what she came up with.
Weather in town (you should dread any blog posting that begins with a description of the weather) this week was finally starting to be spring like so Hayden started riding his bike to school again for the first time since last fall - seems like a long time ago.
Hayden's soccer team had two more games this week (Monday and Wednesday) and they are developing their skills even quicker than I had hoped. On Friday he was pretty excited to bring his mother's day gift home from school - Lemon Balm potted in a custom painted tin can.
Friday morning Fynlee attended her dance class again. They are working on their recital routine based around a song from the 'Tangled' soundtrack. Her gallop skills seem to improve every week.
Zettie is continuing to grow each week while still being a pretty easy baby to keep happy. Here is a brief video where she provides some commentary on Dad's blogging skills.
On Saturday I spent the bulk of the afternoon at a visioning meeting for the McKenzie Towne Resident's Association (now to be called the McKenzie Towne Council) with several other members of the Board.
Upon my return home I felt so guilty for abandoning my family that I could only redeem myself by going shopping and spending a bunch of money on a remote controlled Rock Crawler for Hayden ;-). He seems to enjoy it.
Today he was supposed to attend his spring hockey session but bailed because his stomach was achy. The deal was that if we came home that he had to go back to bed, so for the first time ever in his life he had an afternoon nap. He was so tired that when I came back in his room after an hour he asked for, "thirty more minutes please." Fortunately all his stomach needed was some extra sleep so the balance of the day was uneventful.
This week Kirsty promised to record some of the funny and or touching comments that our kids come up with so stay tuned for next Sunday to see what she came up with.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
April 25 to May 1, 2011
Guess I might as well get fully caught up again on the blog.
Soccer started this week which is the first time we actually were able to get out on the 'pitch' when the schedule started. Hayden has 7 other players on his team this year and it will be fun to see how they all progress.
I was crazy enough to switch the tires on Monday night after soccer and put my new Continental all-season's onto the car. It is surprising how much of an impact a set of tires can make on the feeling of the car. Here's hoping that they will last longer than the factory Goodyears which needed to be replaced after less than 30,000 km.
After testing the car with the new boots on I felt that the brakes were mushier than I like so on Tuesday evening it was back out to the garage to flush the Mazda's brake system out. Dad wandered over and we took turns pumping the brake pedal and manipulating the bleed screw. Surprisingly it was an enjoyable time for what is supposed to be a chore.
Wednesday was game two of the soccer season - the boys would benefit from a coach more capable than i am ;-)
Thursday was time for a costco run where, besides some groceries, I splurged on a bunch of camping equipment. Earlier in the afternoon Hayden had him mom and sisters visit him at school with Nana and Papa to witness the Grade 1 assembly. All in attendance seemed to enjoy the songs and presentation that was prepared. The theme was endangered species and Mom was suprised to hear that Hayden's animals of choice to protect were sharks - hope aunt Mandy doesn't get too upset.
Friday was a big day as Kirsty's friend Amy organized a baby shower to celebrate Zettie's arrival. It was quite a production as over a dozen women headed out for dinner and some games at San Remo's. Judging by the amount of swag Kirst returned home with it was a very successful night.
While Mom and Zee were at the party the Hayden, Fynlee and I journeyed to Five Guy's with Sean, Ethan, Kiara and Papa. There we gorged ourselves on cheeseburgers and fresh fries with an extra helping of goofy kids. Our bellies full and our blood pressure soaring we returned back to the Green's house where we were able to watch the original Tron movie and giggle at the old special effects.
After such a eventful previous 7 days the weekend was rather subdued. We managed to do some shopping without spending any money and get caught up on chores that were becoming past due. Being able to spend some time with Nana and Papa also added to the enjoyability of Saturday and Sunday.
Soccer started this week which is the first time we actually were able to get out on the 'pitch' when the schedule started. Hayden has 7 other players on his team this year and it will be fun to see how they all progress.
I was crazy enough to switch the tires on Monday night after soccer and put my new Continental all-season's onto the car. It is surprising how much of an impact a set of tires can make on the feeling of the car. Here's hoping that they will last longer than the factory Goodyears which needed to be replaced after less than 30,000 km.
After testing the car with the new boots on I felt that the brakes were mushier than I like so on Tuesday evening it was back out to the garage to flush the Mazda's brake system out. Dad wandered over and we took turns pumping the brake pedal and manipulating the bleed screw. Surprisingly it was an enjoyable time for what is supposed to be a chore.
Wednesday was game two of the soccer season - the boys would benefit from a coach more capable than i am ;-)
Thursday was time for a costco run where, besides some groceries, I splurged on a bunch of camping equipment. Earlier in the afternoon Hayden had him mom and sisters visit him at school with Nana and Papa to witness the Grade 1 assembly. All in attendance seemed to enjoy the songs and presentation that was prepared. The theme was endangered species and Mom was suprised to hear that Hayden's animals of choice to protect were sharks - hope aunt Mandy doesn't get too upset.
Friday was a big day as Kirsty's friend Amy organized a baby shower to celebrate Zettie's arrival. It was quite a production as over a dozen women headed out for dinner and some games at San Remo's. Judging by the amount of swag Kirst returned home with it was a very successful night.
While Mom and Zee were at the party the Hayden, Fynlee and I journeyed to Five Guy's with Sean, Ethan, Kiara and Papa. There we gorged ourselves on cheeseburgers and fresh fries with an extra helping of goofy kids. Our bellies full and our blood pressure soaring we returned back to the Green's house where we were able to watch the original Tron movie and giggle at the old special effects.
After such a eventful previous 7 days the weekend was rather subdued. We managed to do some shopping without spending any money and get caught up on chores that were becoming past due. Being able to spend some time with Nana and Papa also added to the enjoyability of Saturday and Sunday.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Week of April 18 - 24, 2011
I'll bet you thought I would never get around to this eh.
Of course it is so long ago now that I will never remember all that happened.
We got a couple packages in the mail this week. The first was a game-worn Jason Weimer Flames jersey that I won in a sports collectibles auction. Originally I had bid on5 jerseys in the auction, including a game-worn Iginla Olympic jersey, game worn Tim Hunter and Reggie Lemelin jerseys as well as an Yzerman autographed jersey. All ended up selling for more than my offers other than the 'stink bid' I put in for the Weimer jersey. Despite all of that, it looks better than I expected it would so it is growing on me a bit. It is huge however (size 56) so it likely will never get more use than being hung on the wall.
The second package was far less interesting unless you consider new brake pads exciting.
The real news and events of the week comprised our annual trip to Edmonton to celebrate Haydens birthday. Each year we let people know we were going up and that they are welcome to join us and we have been able to have several family members spend some time with us there in the past. This year my entire family and most of Kirsty's made the trip - for a grand total of 43 of us if my math is correct. While I was able to entice everyone to come on the trip, somehow I was unskilled enough to not arrange a group picture of all who came (sorry Hayden).
It seems everyone had a good time since I have received no complaints. On Friday we spent some time at galaxyland and then in the evening had a pizza party at one of the hotels with the Gorham side of the Family. On Saturday morning the five of us visited the Royal Alberta Museum and then headed over to the Mall's waterpark where the balance of the group was located. Saturday evening we had an impromtu birthday party at Jim and Sharon's suite with doughnuts and Twizzlers.
Sunday we again visited galaxyland, with the Ehlerts and Walls this time, for a few hours before journeying back to Calgary and joining in on the tail end of Easter party at the Greens home.
Certainly easy to see why I wasn't able to get an update posted last weekend.
Of course it is so long ago now that I will never remember all that happened.
We got a couple packages in the mail this week. The first was a game-worn Jason Weimer Flames jersey that I won in a sports collectibles auction. Originally I had bid on5 jerseys in the auction, including a game-worn Iginla Olympic jersey, game worn Tim Hunter and Reggie Lemelin jerseys as well as an Yzerman autographed jersey. All ended up selling for more than my offers other than the 'stink bid' I put in for the Weimer jersey. Despite all of that, it looks better than I expected it would so it is growing on me a bit. It is huge however (size 56) so it likely will never get more use than being hung on the wall.
The second package was far less interesting unless you consider new brake pads exciting.
The real news and events of the week comprised our annual trip to Edmonton to celebrate Haydens birthday. Each year we let people know we were going up and that they are welcome to join us and we have been able to have several family members spend some time with us there in the past. This year my entire family and most of Kirsty's made the trip - for a grand total of 43 of us if my math is correct. While I was able to entice everyone to come on the trip, somehow I was unskilled enough to not arrange a group picture of all who came (sorry Hayden).
It seems everyone had a good time since I have received no complaints. On Friday we spent some time at galaxyland and then in the evening had a pizza party at one of the hotels with the Gorham side of the Family. On Saturday morning the five of us visited the Royal Alberta Museum and then headed over to the Mall's waterpark where the balance of the group was located. Saturday evening we had an impromtu birthday party at Jim and Sharon's suite with doughnuts and Twizzlers.
Sunday we again visited galaxyland, with the Ehlerts and Walls this time, for a few hours before journeying back to Calgary and joining in on the tail end of Easter party at the Greens home.
Certainly easy to see why I wasn't able to get an update posted last weekend.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Merry Easter! April 11 - 17, 2011
No don't check your calendar, it really isn't easter yet, but the bunny came early to our house this year.
Since next weekend we are going to be travelling to Edmonton Kirsty and I thought we should have the egg hunt and presents doled out this week.
Hayden and Fyn had a wonderful time searching for the eggs and then Hayden must have re-hid the eggs for Kirsty, Fynlee and myself 4 or 5 more times throughout the day.
As can be seen, the big items they got this spring are inline skates for Hayden and a glide bike for Fyn - Wonderful things to get when there is two inches of fresh snow outside (good thing for the basement). Of course there was some candy, bubble wands and smelly felts too.
As for the rest of the week, Hayden's school had an inline skating night on Thursday that dad and him were able to attend (dad didn't skate this year). Seeing 60 kids plus many parents maneuvering (not always successfully) in a modestly sized gym provided a great deal of entertainment for dad. How they didn't need a STARS evacuation throughout the night I'll never understand.
Friday, Fynlee had her dance class where she was measured up for her performance outfit. Between the cost of the class, her outfit and tickets for the event, her skipping/galloping had better be impressive.
Saturday was Hayden's wrap-up party for his Blackfoot hockey team. He had lots of fun at Southland leisure centre with his teammates and came home with an impressive amount of swag.
That evening Dad and the girls slipped out to Karma for dinner while Hayden was next door at Greens. The food and company was delightful - Karma's butter chicken is still tops in my books and even Fynlee thinks it's "liscious."
Besides the easter hunt today, Hayden also had to head out to his spring hockey ice-time in Fairview. After we got back and enjoyed our leftovers from Karma, Dad and Fyn were able to play several games of hide-and-seek throughout the house (good thing she giggles non stop or dad would never find her) and Hayden spent some quality time next door with his cousin.
Since next weekend we are going to be travelling to Edmonton Kirsty and I thought we should have the egg hunt and presents doled out this week.
Hayden and Fyn had a wonderful time searching for the eggs and then Hayden must have re-hid the eggs for Kirsty, Fynlee and myself 4 or 5 more times throughout the day.
As can be seen, the big items they got this spring are inline skates for Hayden and a glide bike for Fyn - Wonderful things to get when there is two inches of fresh snow outside (good thing for the basement). Of course there was some candy, bubble wands and smelly felts too.
As for the rest of the week, Hayden's school had an inline skating night on Thursday that dad and him were able to attend (dad didn't skate this year). Seeing 60 kids plus many parents maneuvering (not always successfully) in a modestly sized gym provided a great deal of entertainment for dad. How they didn't need a STARS evacuation throughout the night I'll never understand.
Friday, Fynlee had her dance class where she was measured up for her performance outfit. Between the cost of the class, her outfit and tickets for the event, her skipping/galloping had better be impressive.
Saturday was Hayden's wrap-up party for his Blackfoot hockey team. He had lots of fun at Southland leisure centre with his teammates and came home with an impressive amount of swag.
That evening Dad and the girls slipped out to Karma for dinner while Hayden was next door at Greens. The food and company was delightful - Karma's butter chicken is still tops in my books and even Fynlee thinks it's "liscious."
Besides the easter hunt today, Hayden also had to head out to his spring hockey ice-time in Fairview. After we got back and enjoyed our leftovers from Karma, Dad and Fyn were able to play several games of hide-and-seek throughout the house (good thing she giggles non stop or dad would never find her) and Hayden spent some quality time next door with his cousin.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Week of April 4-10, 2011
As you can see the family is starting to get settled in together. It has been two weeks already so I guess we are going to keep her.
Zettie, as you can well imagine, has overshadowed most of the events since I last wrote, however our little clan was still able to get up to a few adventures.
Hayden has been a wonderful big brother and will spend an hour or two everyday after school holding his newest little sister on his lap without compliant. The complaints all come whenever he doesn't get to hold her on his lap.
On Wednesday he had a school field trip to 'Aggie Days' at the Stampede grounds. He didn't come home wanting to ride a bucking horse or bull - enjoyed watching everyone else do though.
He starting his spring hockey program today - crazy that we are going to have to plan around hockey again for the next three months. He does enjoy it and seems to be able to keep up with the rest of the kids.
Fyn was back at dance class on Friday after missing a couple weeks due to illness and spring break respectively. They measured her up to get her recital outfit made up. It will be interesting to see what they have planned for these little ones.
Zettie continues to be a very easy baby - at least from the non-lactating members of the family's perspective. At her appointment on Friday she measured 7-4 which pleased the Dr's as she was up over her birth weight again.
She doesn't fuss at night except briefly to get mom's attention and then she will feed and fall back to sleep right away - that's how I imagine it ;-)
On Saturday I spent the day at an off-road driving seminar learning ways to safely take my new toy off of the beaten path. It was put together by the Canadian Toyota 4-Wheel Drive association (www.ct4wda.com) and was full of new (to me) information.
It probably doesn't look like much of an off-road machine but underneath that cladding and those running boards is a full-fledged Toyota Land Cruiser just waiting to be unleashed. Here's hoping this summer will give us the chance to put it and the family through some adventures.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Forgot about this, obviously - plus big, or rather little, news
While battling a night of insomnia I realized that once upon a time I kept a blog.
Sure enough it is still here - more impressive is the fact that I could figure out the password.
Should probably note that there have been a few developments and changes in the last few years since i posted. Most dramatically is the fact that we have recently added a new addition to the family.
That's right, I picked up an new (to us anyway) truck. Of course maybe more importantly the reason we needed another vehicle was that...
Zettie Liza joined us last Sunday (March 27, 2011) at 3:36 p.m. Her delivery was far more eventful than we would've liked but everything has been just dandy ever since. She was 3 weeks early but weighed in at a very respectable 7lbs - 1 oz and 19 inches long. She would've been a whopper had she gone to full term.
Kirst woke up Sunday morning and stated "I am going to have the baby today," needless to say I wasn't convinced but had her track her contractions (yes there is an 'app' for that). She was contracting about every 4 or so minutes by about 10:30 which was frequent enough to justify a trip to the hospital for a checkup, after lunch and running some errands.
Roshanne was available to take the kids so by around 1:30 p.m. we were able to make it to Rockyview's Unit 62. Dr. Van Essen from kirsty's Obs group happened to be there at the time and was able to confirm that our 'silent dilator' was indeed ready to have a baby (plus the delivery ward wasn't very busy).
By 2:30 Kirst was comfortable, checked-in and ready to have her water broken. At 3 she was clean and composed enough to be coerced by the nurses to wander the halls for a bit to help keep things moving along - plus it was shift change for the nurses.
At 10-after we were back at the room and Kirsty was noting that she 'was ready for the epidural' and I dutifully relayed the decision to the nurses at the desk. When a couple minutes (i.e. one contraction) later they hadn't yet arrived i popped out again to relay the news.
Our new nurse then hustled in to check on things and, as you can tell by how the time clock has been running, the next stages happened rather urgently. To spare you some of the details lets just say that no epidural arrived and shortly after Zettie did our nurse was finally able to introduce herself to Kirsty.
Sure enough it is still here - more impressive is the fact that I could figure out the password.
Should probably note that there have been a few developments and changes in the last few years since i posted. Most dramatically is the fact that we have recently added a new addition to the family.
That's right, I picked up an new (to us anyway) truck. Of course maybe more importantly the reason we needed another vehicle was that...
Zettie Liza joined us last Sunday (March 27, 2011) at 3:36 p.m. Her delivery was far more eventful than we would've liked but everything has been just dandy ever since. She was 3 weeks early but weighed in at a very respectable 7lbs - 1 oz and 19 inches long. She would've been a whopper had she gone to full term.
Kirst woke up Sunday morning and stated "I am going to have the baby today," needless to say I wasn't convinced but had her track her contractions (yes there is an 'app' for that). She was contracting about every 4 or so minutes by about 10:30 which was frequent enough to justify a trip to the hospital for a checkup, after lunch and running some errands.
Roshanne was available to take the kids so by around 1:30 p.m. we were able to make it to Rockyview's Unit 62. Dr. Van Essen from kirsty's Obs group happened to be there at the time and was able to confirm that our 'silent dilator' was indeed ready to have a baby (plus the delivery ward wasn't very busy).
By 2:30 Kirst was comfortable, checked-in and ready to have her water broken. At 3 she was clean and composed enough to be coerced by the nurses to wander the halls for a bit to help keep things moving along - plus it was shift change for the nurses.
At 10-after we were back at the room and Kirsty was noting that she 'was ready for the epidural' and I dutifully relayed the decision to the nurses at the desk. When a couple minutes (i.e. one contraction) later they hadn't yet arrived i popped out again to relay the news.
Our new nurse then hustled in to check on things and, as you can tell by how the time clock has been running, the next stages happened rather urgently. To spare you some of the details lets just say that no epidural arrived and shortly after Zettie did our nurse was finally able to introduce herself to Kirsty.
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