Giddy-up!

Moving in...

2008-06-18T23:20:00.002-04:00

After this point, our pictures are few and far between. I still have boxes in my dining, but a few less than pictured here.
My little sweeping buddy:

I found this guy in the closet, behind some Pax wardrobe units. After he had finished hammering in the backing, he climbed up from behind them and manage to wriggle his way over the top and down. WOW.

There is a time to install a wall bracket and a time to hang off of it:

The house is ready for our stuff

2008-06-18T23:09:00.003-04:00

The new carpet's installed and the MB is painted.

The crab tree outside the window begins to flower.

Nathan seems to think his room might feel like a prison sometimes. :-)

One hot day in Calgary

2008-06-18T23:00:00.002-04:00

We went exploring and found many people trying to cool off.
Nathan and Emily didn't stop to play in the water. They were taking their daddy to see Aslan.

Daddy was very glad to meet Aslan.
It turns out Aslan was feeling the heat, too!

Preparing the new digs - the paint job

2008-06-18T22:41:00.002-04:00

No chairs for the children, however...
...Bob the builder never looked so good!

Nathan's newly painted bedroom. The floor looks about the same as it does now...lego carpet.

Aaaaah, pepto-bismol pink. Perfect!

Paul - reflective and edgy.

While living in limbo....

2008-06-18T22:12:00.002-04:00

Nathan collected hail:

Emily indulged in a mani-pedi:

We explored Bowness Park. It has a funky looking pedestrian bridge, suspended from the main bridge.

The irony - smart, huh?:

Wonderful Mondays

2008-05-06T00:24:00.002-04:00

I used to dread Mondays.

Now, I long for them. They bring a calmer pace and relaxed atmosphere. Like today.

The kids played lazily, we practiced some printing, we hung out on the balcony while the burgers cooked. We watched some people parading around in a rally that called on the provincial government to subsidize midwifes. We played Sorry and Scrabble Junior and made jello.

We meandered down to the C-train, deciding to get off that the TD square shopping centre and wandered down Stephen Ave mall to the City Hall and then wandered back, through a book store, nipped into a Tim's for a snack, and walked unhurriedly back to the C-train. We got off one stop later (4 blocks) and made our way home, through the park and around the corner to our building. We found Paul was home already, emptied the fridge of leftovers for dinner, enjoyed our jello and went to bed. Ok. Obviously I haven't yet. I will soon. I just don't want it to end. It's Monday - the nicest day of my week.

It's just so calm right now. And to think that we take possession of our home in one week. On a Monday. Will I be as relaxed as today? Heh heh heh...sadly, it's not very likely. But I thank God for His Peace, today.

Hopefully, I will stay in this place of peace and won't wander off to find myself in the land of Busyness and Stressing over Nothing. We sign papers with our lawyer tomorrow. I guess that'll be a test.

My condo is clean and i had nothing to do with it!

2008-05-03T02:25:00.002-04:00

Yeah! Floors mopped, carpet vaccuumed, bathrooms are shiny and beds are made with fresh clean sheets. Aaaaah. Such a treat.
While housekeeping was doing their thing, we went to the Science Centre for a couple of hours and headed downtown for lunch. We were back by 3pm. I think we're getting the hang of this living in downtown and using public transit/walking everywhere thing. It will be sad to get back to the burbs in a just over a week.

It's 10 days away!!!!! I made the calls to set up our water, electricity and gas accounts today. I'm getting really excited.

Tonight, I had the opportunity to go out with a long-time friend from university. We dined at a wonderful Thai restaurant. Oh, so yummy!
We decided to head over to a local mall after we finished where she took me shoe shopping and found me some nice brown leather boots. Very lovely.
I think I'll start breaking them in tomorrow. And tomorrow I get the rare privilege of spending time with my husband sans kids. Thanks, Bea! My day will start with a massage and assuming I'll be able to walk without falling asleep, I'll hop in the car for 5 hours or so with Paul. Our plans? HDTV shopping.
I know.
We're waaaay too romantic.

It's gonna be a beautiful day...

2008-05-01T02:24:00.002-04:00

We were walking to pick up the car (the windshield needed replacing) and spotted this beautiful sight around the corner from our place.We found the car and headed to downtown shopping area. After we had finished the errands I had in mind, I took the kids to the bookstore so they could pick out some books. They each had been given a gift card and were very excited to use it. The only issue was that they had some beautiful puppets in the store and the kids were pretty keen on them. I knew that I wanted them to simply pick books they wanted, the fun and frivolous, not necessarily educational treats just for them books. After they very carefully considered they each chose something I knew was an honest choice.
And then, I brought an owl and a rat home anyway. Reepicheep, the rat, isn't pictured here, he's a little camera-shy.
Nathan was developing a stye in one of his eyelids. I put some opthalmic ointment in and told him to close his eyes and listen to his CD for a few minutes while so the "medicine could work", aka I needed a bit of a Nathan break. 10 minutes later, when he hadn't bounded out of his room asking if he could get up yet, I check on him and discovered this:
Maybe he was the one who needed a break!

Beaver Dam Flats

2008-04-30T13:27:00.002-04:00

One of the realities about Calgary that we find exciting is that in any given corner of the city you can find a wilderness jewel withing 5 or 10 minutes. We took a quick trip to Beaver Dam Flats, about 5 minutes away from Paul's office, just before we picked him up yesterday.In the background runs Deerfoot Trail, the only true highway in Calgary, which dissects the City. We were on the east side of it and Paul's office is located just west of it. We weren't sure but we thought we could see his office building from the top of this mini-escarpment.
The main reason we went though, was to check out the beaver lodges.
If we had more time, we would have walked down the hill and explored the paths. Since it is a Natural Area, we would stick to the paths, so the best view of the lodges is from this vantage point. I have to get more familiar with my camera to start getting better shots!

Once we left the Flats, we drove for a couple of minutes, picked up a rotisserie chicken dinner from Safeway, drove 5 minutes to Paul's office.

*sigh*

This is just what I need. A place where all the beautiful places aren't steamrollered by urban sprawl.

The new house. The latest visit.

2008-04-29T02:11:00.002-04:00

We went to the new house today!! The kids ran upstairs right to "their" rooms. They were pretty excited. Paul thinks that's an understatement. He would call them ecstatic. Still a beautiful home to us. They were pretty happy with the back yard, even the part I consider "the wasteland", the bottommost level of the yard. Dark, shadowy, kinda creepy to me. I guess it will be a fun bug haven for Nathan. I'm going to have to collect small containers. The bug collection should be larger this year. We'll have to work on the pine cone collection with our blue spruce out front - after spring...Nathan got completely sticky hands after trying to snag a conical souvenir. He just brought home the spruce gum residue.

We've got our car! It was delivered today so after we check out the house, we headed to the airport to drop it off. While there we check out the "SpacePort". A lot of the activities were closed but there was enough to keep the kids entertained for a while.

We finally made it to the mountains on Saturday. We explored the Cave and Basin National Historic site. Emily and I spent quite a bit of time at the marsh, spying on birds. Most of our pictures ended up with overexposed mountaintops. We have much to learn about photographing snowcapped peaks. We had such a wonderful day. We'll go back again, because we bought a pass...to all the National Parks, because Jasper and Lake Louise are also on our explorational to-do list.

On Sunday, we headed to Fish Creek Provincial Park. It's about a 5 minute drive from our future home. We all seemed to just relax there. I think that each of us found it comforting and familiar. We spent so much time at GTA conservation areas that heading to a park where you walk through the holey homes of prairie dogs on the way from the playground to the washrooms was a very settling experience for us all.

What we've been doing

2008-04-25T13:29:00.001-04:00

It been almost 2 weeks. The first week we were here, we spent a lot of time at home while Nathan recovered from his cold.
One of the first days here, Emily asked if she could listen to some music...
The second evening, Nathan got the Flames jersey he'd been asking for and put it on right away!:
The next evening, he decided to show off his exceptional skills at dressing himself for bed:
The happy play-doh-ers:
This week we got a handle on the LRT which runs through downtown. We went to the zoo, the downtown shopping mall, the indoor garden and the public library. We took some time today and explore a bit of the +15 walkway. We also noticed that the beautiful stone building across the street from our condo building is 101 years old. I also notice that the sidewalk marker at our corner is 1912. It's hard to see the history here, as it is masked by the modern elements so often.
Each day has been an adventure, even if we've spent it at home, like today. Nathan spent most of today playing with the plastic hockey stick and puck I bought for them yesterday. Emily spent most of today wrapping miscellaneous objects ( such as crayons) in scrap paper and giving them to Nathan to open as presents.
I am a little excited today because we got our cheque from the sale of our home. That means we have almost all of our downpayment ready. That makes me SMILE!
Tomorrow, we might go to the mountains... and Monday we will take the kids to see the house.

I'm looking forward to the day we get to go home.

Emily's first performance

2008-04-23T01:25:00.003-04:00

Sorry Nadine, but it was too precious...
another beautiful moment just before we said goodbye to Al and Nadine...

The Goodbyes

2008-04-22T23:13:00.003-04:00

We started saying goodbye by getting together with our longtime university friends who reside in or near the K-W area. It was an exciting time to catch up with each other's news and to be "sent off", so to speak.
The next weekend, we went to Belleville to be with my parents and visited my good friends Ginette and Jason Mack and their three girls.

Emily was very scared about one aspect of our move. The flight. So, when we left my parent house, we pretended they were going on a flight. Paul sent them through the garage as if it were the gate. I greeted them at the car and helped them to find their seat and put their carryon bags in the overhead compartment (the roof). Paul did the flight attendant spiel, we got in, closed the doors, Grandpa did the flight baton actions, we pretended we were being pushed back, taxied out to the main road and took off! Now, knowing that Emily loves the feeling of acceleration was a bonus for us. We explained that it felt exactly like it did in our car, but better. She grinned. For days after, she thanked us for showing her what the flight would be like. She even stated that she wasn't scared at all anymore. Whew!

One important goodbye for Nathan and Emily was their last night at Zone Out. Emily really likes her bud, Emma.
Nathan LOVED his Science group.
Emily wasn't so keen on pictures of her classmates, but was more interested in racing around the halls!

On Friday, April 11, we smushed 20 or so people into our living room to wish Paul happy birthday before we left on Monday. He was well celebrated. Oh yes, thank you everyone for the easily packable gift cards!

The next morning, I ushered the kids out to have breakfast at McD's with a few of their friends. The purpose was two-fold. I wanted to give them their own going away party. And I wanted them out of the house while the packing team came in. When we got back, we brought them some Tim's and were amazed to discover that the basement was all packed, the kitchen was 75% finished and a couple of them were just about to start packing up the bedrooms. By 1pm, the team had left. We were packed.

We spent that evening with Paul's parents, Ana and Caspian, but Mom Hills was soooooo sick. We hope that she still enjoyed the time together. We sure did!

Sunday was a bit calmer, with a goodbye moment in front of our church family and some time in the evening spent with three families who've become very dear to us over the past year.

My parents and brother spent Monday with us, as the movers waited on the closed 401. They got to our place eventually and worked at an incredible pace to get everything in the truck by around 3pm. We relaxed and spent time visiting our neighbours and saying goodbye to some very special friends.

Dean Kennedy arrived with his Sienna version of the airport limo and chauffered us to the airport. The kids went with the grandparents. He stuck with us, pushing the second luggage cart as we waited to get the cat kennel x-rayed, as we tried to change seats, and even waited while we went through security. Dean, if you're reading this, THANK YOU! It really meant a lot to Emily and I to see him still standing there just before we walked through the metal detector.

Those were the days of goodbyes. It was really a blur and I know I haven't captured much of the feelings of those last days in Ontario. I'm not sure we were feeling much. Our exit was fairly quick and there wasn't really much time to feel anything but excitement and anticipation of change intermixed with brief instances of grief.

One day in

2008-04-16T11:15:00.002-04:00

The madness is beginning to set in. Soon I will start climbing the walls.

I'm feeling stir crazy, hemmed in and frustrated. I want to get out and wander. Maybe this afternoon.

Moving Day

2008-04-15T03:40:00.002-04:00

We started the big day by folding up our linens and placing them into the boxes the packers left. We got breakfast. We waited.
After a while, say two hours, we were told they were stuck on the 401.
Well, they did show up and they worked like dogs...and we were out of the house by 2pm and out of the storage unit by 3pm.

My parents took Nathan and Emily out to lunch and then to see their great grandmother. They came back to an empty house. At this point we were simply waiting for our ride to the airport. We took some time, since our ride was arriving later than we'd thought, to go spend time with our neighbours. We will miss them greatly.

Once Dean arrived, we loaded up his van with the suitcases and cat, while the kids got in with Grandma and Grandpa. The check-in went smoothly as did the security check. Our flight was good. Emily fell asleep and slept right through the landing.

Once we passed through the doors into the main arrivals area, we spotted a couple with snazzy hats on. They didn't fit terribly well but they made a striking pair with straw cowboy hats and cardboard sign...: The Silly - Hills Billlies, Welcome Home.
We felt privileged to know them. They just loved on us so much, pushing the luggage cart, waiting for us, buying a cat litter pan plus litter for us.
It was all going so well, until we got to the apartment building and couldn't get in. We grabbed a sub/salad and waited for help. Once help arrived, we got into our suite and wandered around grumpily.

I'm rather disoriented tonight, but I hope to reorient in a couple of days.

Yikes. Calgary.

A move is imminent

2008-04-14T01:29:00.003-04:00

We're moving tomorrow!
Our house will be emptied of boxes.
Our car will be taken.
We'll get to the airport somehow.
We'll land in Calgary and find the place we're staying downtown.

It's time to go to sleep now.

Yee-haw!

I must be excited...

2008-04-09T02:14:00.002-04:00

...because I am up way too late! I think I do this when the stress is high but the reason is enjoyable.
I keep thinking I'll get a chance to sit down and really tell the story of what's happening each day. I see that I haven't. So, here's the short version.
We signed our offer on Easter Sunday. Later that week, the buyers wanted to change the closing date to April 14th. We agreed and went ahead with travel and move plans. We received another request to change the closing date and settled on the 18th. However, we stayed with the plans to move on the 14th.
Paul's company will provide us with accomodations until our house in Calgary closes on May 12th. They will also provide storage for our household goods. That means anything we'll need in the next month will need to go on the plane with us.

That means that what goes on the plane with us has to be set aside, away from the reach of the packers, who descend on our house this Saturday.

Ok. This just reminds me of all I have yet to get done. I'd better go, either to get some sleep or simply to pack some more things.

Three weeks to Cow-town?

2008-03-26T23:18:00.003-04:00

We're conditionally sold!!
On Sunday, in between church and spending Easter afternoon with Paul's family, we signed the offer. On Monday we saw the sunrise, as we drove Paul to the airport. The kids and I have spent the rest of the week recovering from that early-for-us morning! It's been such a relief to have the house to ourselves.

Now, the offer we signed stated that closing would be April 25th. But, the buyers would be ready to move in on the 14th and want to know if we would be ready by then!

Part of me is reeling with shock and part is overcome with joy -- there is a Divine element to this experience that I'm very moved by. This dream began 6 years ago as a small voice of expectant hope. It's been growing, and over the past few month, has risen as a roar of imminent reality, like the sound just before the waves crash over your head. I guess we'll get back to land eventually, normal life will return. But I've always loved lying back and letting the water carry me wherever it may, feeling the push and pull rhythm of the waves.

I like water. I like waves. I feel exhilarated by the movement of change in my life right now. It's really exhausting and challenging. But this rawness of knowing/feeling/experiencing connection to God throughout everything is what life is to me.

I can't get my head around all that needs to be done. I'm going to sleep on it...Paul is going to sleep on it. but I'm pretty sure I'm going to need to rename this blog in a few weeks....
"Cowtown Chronicles"?
"Amy the almost Albertan"?
"Deer Ridge Diva"?

Ok, none of those will likely make the short list, but it was worth a try. A sad, sad try, at that.

Pictures of the house in Calgary

2008-03-19T22:16:00.002-04:00

If you squint, I think you can see the mountains. This picture doesn't do justice to the view that we have, but it does prove that we do, indeed, have a mountain view.This is the back yard. It is terraced and the deck, from which the picture is taken, will need work. We'd like to level out the back, put in a garage down there in the alley, and fix the deck. Should've taken a picture of the deck. It's quite a piece of work!
Aaaahhh, my kitchen. I can't wait until it's mine! May 12th. And I KNOW where my KitchenAid goes. Oh, yes, that is a breakfast bar, with a full counter underneath on the other side. My mind is full of happy kitchen baking/canning/bbq prepping/cooking thoughts! Man, I'm missing cooking.

Fireplace in the living room. Gas assist, wood burning. YIPPEE!!!

There we have it...the main floor of the house. There is an ornamental crabapple tree out front, 3 bedrooms up, a partly finished basement...it's lovely, full of quirks (no light in the dining room) and it will be home.

Anybody wanna buy a home in Brampton? It's cheap and the owners are willing to go with a quick closing. No? Maybe? Just checking.

: )

We've bought a house

2008-03-17T21:22:00.002-04:00

We've bought a detached house in the beautiful area of Deer Ridge. It's nothing fancy but is in what I hope is a nice area. It also has a Mountain View. Pictures will come soon...
This house, here, has been re-priced $4000 lower....I still wonder if it will ever sell. I suppose that one day it will but I am not doing too well at looking at this situation in a glass half full way.

That's it for the update. My brain is fried.

2008-03-07T13:02:00.002-05:00

As I write this quickie note.....Emily is rolling on top of a sleeping bag....Nathan is singing an original composition as he washes his hands after lunch...Paul is trying think of what else to pack and I'm trying to get in an update before I have to pack up this computer.

Yesterday, I took the kids to an establishment called Melonheads. They cut kids' hair. On fancy chairs...like a motorcycle, airplane, race car... They left with glittery hair and pretty hair clip (emily) and a mohawk (Nathan). It was really fun and a relief...I didn't have to attempt the hair chopping this time!

Today...the kids are starting to climb the walls, as they are headed to some vacation time with their Aunt Ana. Paul and I are flying out of Kitchener to Calgary for our last chance, house hunting expotition.

Our house still is on the market, and will likely still be on the market when we get back,what with the snow storm and everything. Soon you won't be able to see the house for the snow!

I'm told it's time to pack up the computer bag.
I just made the mistake of asking Paul to put on my hood....I meant to attach it back to the jacket it belongs to, not to put it on his head!

And now, off to Cow-town....

a week apart

2008-02-27T23:55:00.002-05:00

The kids and I miss Paul. He's in Calgary and returns late on Fri. night. Hum.
We had a nice day, at IKEA for part of it and a fairly relaxed pace. I think next time I will bring a book and take a 1/2 hour of the hour the kids get to spend in Smalland to read and have tea. And then shop! To manage the crazy timing of the afternoon we had supper at 4pm, left Ikea at 5:30, got gas and then drove home. Emily fell asleep in the car and later accused me of not getting gas. We've hit the relaxed part of the week where we enjoy the freedom from the 5pm deadline of Paul's end of day. We end and begin whenever. It quite nice for a time. But the kids and I really miss the guy.

Tomorrow, we'll head to Kitchener to visit friends. And Fri....well it will be a long day. Perhaps I'll exhaust them at the ROM or toboganning. Or worse yet....clothes shopping!

I'd better get to sleep.

Long set of bones

2008-02-19T22:00:00.002-05:00

Here is a dinosaur... Paul couldn't figure out in the moment how to Photostitch...so he made a movie of it! The ROM's Barosaurus:

Our first (only?) Family Day weekend

2008-02-19T21:28:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, we watched Nathan's soccer game.

We watched our friend, Travis' hockey game but only got a picture of the Zamboni. Don't get me wrong, it was a really GREAT GAME and it's a shame we didn't get a picture of it!

On Sunday, we visited Gramma and Grampa H and played Sorry!
On Monday, we had a late brunch, watched Happy Feet and put the kids to bed a little late. We put ourselves to bed much too late, though.

Bummed out...

2008-02-19T21:05:00.002-05:00

Our neighbours put their house up for sale at the same time as we did. They have a conditional offer.
I was talking with a friend about a month ago. She suggested I was ashamed of this house. She's right.
I know it's ridiculous. I'm afraid we won't sell this house and I'm afraid we won't get to Calgary. But we will. Well, we have to. Paul already is working the job from here.
I keep seeing Gandalf...the scene....and I keep thinking, "The way is hidden from me."
There are people I know that I really admire. People who face difficulties and true hardships with determination and a will to survive. People who find a challenge in their path, size it up, figure a solution, move through it and keep going.
Really, is selling a house and move cross country so hard?
How come I'm bummed because my neighbour's house is one step closer to being sold than mine?

Man, I feel pathetic.

Our Snow Day

2008-02-08T10:01:00.000-05:00

Well, highly active weather means less active real estate market. There have been no showings this week. It's been wonderful. The kids have had a chance to play, I've had a chance to bum around the house doing not much. It's been really good, but it took me all week to stop panicking about the lack of showings! I've turned my attention to other things: to organizing the relocation, returning items that were borrowed from friends, figuring out things that need to be done or planned. Really, I'm just trying to keep busy, and just ahead of those nasty winter blues that are nipping at my heels.
So, yesterday, I took some pictures and YIPPPEEEEE for the new camera!

My two Lego maniacs.

O Snowy Day! I'm not getting to that barbeque any time soon.

I'm guessing that's almost 12 inches of snow on the fence. Wow.

Right now, I'm heading deep into Sir Arthur Conan Doyle territory. Maybe I'll go tickle a child later. Or now.

Now is good. Off to tickle...

2008-02-06T21:33:00.000-05:00

This evening, as the blustry snowstorm began, we purchased a new camera. A Powershot A570. It was on sale and will do us as a family camera over the next few years. We would like to head into digital SLR territory sometime...we dream.
So tonight, after the kids were in bed, we took a few shots:

Paul experimented with the macro setting...

I think he mastered it here:

On another front, the front lawn to be exact, we have a "for sale" sign. What a relief. It will be even more of a relief to be in a new to us home in Calgary, but that comes after we sell this one!

Superbowl exhaustion

2008-02-04T19:30:00.000-05:00

We kept Nathan up last night, to watch the Superbowl. It was all very exciting, until he got tired and didn't want to go to bed. We didn't want to put him to bed, either. We wanted to watch the game. But he hardly lasted. Poor kid. Tonight, he's a miserable, emotional basketcase. It's so tough to get him to sleep when he's tired like this...

No showings today, which means we can relax tonight. One day soon, I hope to be relaxing in Alberta.

*sigh*

The Bathroom - Before & After

2008-02-01T10:12:00.001-05:00

For some reason, these pictures will not rotate. Nonetheless, here is the bathroom I had to use the night before I went to Calgary.

My toilet,

My bathtub,

My sink.

This is the bathroom I came home to.

My toilet,

My bathtub,

My sink and light

Isn't it beautiful!?

Sigh of relief...

2008-01-30T23:04:00.000-05:00

Here it is: MLS# W1297288. No current pictures yet, but there it is. Tomorrow, we'll get a sign for our lawn.
It feels really good. I had some moments of rest today, partly because Paul stayed home. It was so nice. We still did a lot of work, but the pressure was off.

Paul and I looked for digital cameras tonight. Our current camera isn't compatible with Vista . We've been downloading (we've done it once) the pics to dad H's computer and transfering them via key to ours. His computer leaves on Fri. We need a new camera. Yeeesh.
But then, we can tell stories with pictures. And maybe even with videos.
I could take a picture of Emily's depiction of a pinata, complete with 50 strings to pull, at the bottom. It's beautiful. Or Nathan's bear, tied to the back of a dining room chair. Or the fighter jet/fort that Paul and Nathan made today, or Paul using the remote control as his microphone thingy while pretending to be the control tower guy for Nathan (call sign:flyboy). Emily (call sign: fighter girl) didn't like Paul's idea of a call sign: cupcakes.
Who could blame her?

"Shows to perfection"!

2008-01-29T21:27:00.000-05:00

Really! That's what the little descripto says...and that means we've just listed!! Yippee.
Paul is getting ready to steam vac the dining room. I'm in shock. Not because he's getting ready to vaccuum. No, that's normal. I'm just full of thoughts and devoid of energy.
Maybe I'll get a good sleep tonight.

That's a good idea.

2008-01-24T23:56:00.000-05:00

I'm so tired of this. Our house isn't even on the market yet. The houses we can afford in Calgary are, well..... ugh.
I suppose, though, I'm just worn out from a very busy couple of weeks. It was only two weeks ago that our reno people popped in to scope out our little project-in-the-making. It was only last week that the bathroom reno started, while Paul was in Calgary. And I took my first truly relaxing bath in this house, today, in the new tub! It was only last weekend that I was in Calgary, figuring out where we didn't want to live. So, progress is there. I'm just fixated on what I see as the finish line. Which it isn't.

"To all perfection, I see a limit." I love how that nugget of truth checks me. It's so true of me, that I set up an end, a goal as my idea of "after that, it will all be better." It never is, because life always goes on, circumstances always change and there is always something new to be done, to learn and to see. I, in my humanity, will always see perfection as a limit, something with a definite end.
There will be no definitive end to this journey. I must remember that the limits I see are but road markers, showing how far I've come and hinting at how far I've yet to go. *GASP* *PANT* *PANT*

The kids. Some days they show such resilience to this crazy process and to my distraction. Nathan even went to his soccer practice without a complaint. Emily stayed home without a complaint. It was all very strange. I wonder what will happen tomorrow? (Cue the forboding music.)

Oh great. Paul just read the bracketed comment above and started making noises of the suspence thriller sort. I tried not to roll my eyes. I doubt I succeeded.

There is a reason why I don't normally blog at night.

WAAAAAY too GRUMPY. And I make too many spellig mistakes. (No spelling mistake intended...but one was obviously made.)

Oh, I see it is the other side of midnight. Time for bed.

Ah, just remembered a happy moment. Nathan, as he tumbled in the door after his soccer practice, exclaimed, " Mommy, there are STARS out tonight!!!". His face was glowing and his eyes were full of those stars he had seen. It was beautiful. I've just finished reading a book, Seeker of Stars, in which the main character lived, breathed, ate and didn't sleep for his love of stars. I think I might read it to Nathan. I saw something in him tonight that makes me think this fascination with stars is more that a typical 6 year old interest.

That, my friends, is all, for now.

2008-01-19T01:54:00.000-05:00

My, oh my.
We took our first crack at house hunting today. I arrived in Cow-town around 2pm, drove down to the Mark's office, said "hello" to my hubby then went up to check out a few houses with our estate agent, Ed. Nothing fits yet. But we have a lot to look at tomorrow.
We're staying at a corporate apartment, it's very homey (with hi-speed interet) and relaxing (Paul just crashed on the living room rug).

I'm surprised at my excitement. I'm excited to see the brown grass everywhere. Perhaps it's because it's a novelty. I'm excited to be staying in the downtown. I'm excited to be searching for a new home. I'm excited to spend the weekend with Paul. I'm excited because I get to fly again. I love catching glimpses of the mountains.

Hopefully, there'll be more to report tomorrow.

quick update...gotta fly (heh heh)

2008-01-18T09:40:00.000-05:00

Bathroom's being worked on. It's empty. It will be full again.
Housing is being spec'ed out by Paul and Amy, in Calgary.
Kids are sleeping over at Grandma and Grandpa B's.

wow. I'm heading off to the airport right now. Gotta get to a bathroom...

And he's off!

2008-01-15T23:30:00.000-05:00

Paul has embarked on his first jaunt to Calgary. He flew out at 9:15 this evening, which means he'll arrive around 2am his time. Poor guy.

It hasn't hit the kids yet, but I think it will hit Nathan sooner. I think after I ship them off to Grandma's house on Fri, he'll really start missing everything.

I get to go to Calgary this weekend. I get Paul all to myself. Ahhhh. How nice. Until we go house hunting. I'm a little afraid of that...I shouldn't be.

Today...
...the basement got new carpet
...we found out Paul was going to Calgary
...Emily resorted to some nasty tactics when she got mad at Nathan
...the phone rang off the hook
...we scoped out our "scope of work" document from our reno guys
...I agreed to meet to sign reno contract for the bathroom, which may start on Thurs.
...Paul got on a plane bound for Calgary
...we watched the Discovery channel before bed
...I stayed up and enjoyed the quiet.

Until tomorrow.

Signed and delivered...

2008-01-09T20:21:00.000-05:00

We have cleared the first hurdle! The offer is accepted and Paul will be an employee of Mark's Work Wearhouse. The official date has not been set, but because it's taking the shape of an internal transfer, the official date is dependent on when Canadian Tire is willing to let him go! Ah, so nice to be wanted...
He is working so hard. He's digging into the testing he needs to get done at CT with a vengeance. He's been trying to get quotes on our small bathtub reno. He's constantly packing up extraneous bits and transporting them to storage, when he's at home. He also had a dental appointment today, so after supper he bravely ate a freezie in the hope of numbing his sore mouth.
As for me, I rearranged the living room.
I can't wait for this house to be clean again. I know it always looks the most awry just previous to the moment it begins to look civil again. I'm finding it hard to think past the mess.
Hmm. I'm finding it hard to think, period.
I don't suppose I could go to bed this early, could I?

Nah. That would just be weird. It's the wrong side of midnight.

Ah yes, the kids. The afternoon snack was grapes. Emily decided that she would be a fruit bat, as they eat grapes. Sometime later, when she flapped back upstairs, I asked if she, the fruit bat, had a name yet.
"No," she replied.
"Would you like one?" I asked. She nodded, completely in character.
"How about....," I thought for a while, ".....Juicy?" She nodded again, though this time a tiny bat-like smile curled onto her face.
Later on, I found her trying to sound out her name while trying to type it on their play computer. When Paul got home, she properly introduced herself to him, so there would be no mistaken identity.

On a mischeivous note, I hung a beaded candy cane on Butterscotch's collar tonight. I don't think he noticed but guaranteed when Paul does, he'll roll his eyes and say something like, "Oh Butterscotch, what will we do with her?"

Hee! Small things that entertain me.

2008-01-07T23:48:00.000-05:00

Oh man, will it ever end? I have totally lost motivation and perspective, I suppose.
Paul contacted Marks today with a question related to the offer. By the end of today, he still has not signed BUT! we have received a welcome package by courier, he is being scheduled to head out there next week and we are trying to plan a house hunting venture the following weekend.

Sometimes organizing a myriad of details into a cohesive plan can be an interesting and a fun challenge. This? This is monumentally aggravating.

Salad dressing.
I feel like someone is making salad dressing with my life and in order to get the end product EVERYTHING goes in at once and the whole thing is being whizzed around.
I feel dizzy.

The offer is on the table...

2008-01-07T00:47:00.000-05:00

The coffee table.
Waiting.
For tomorrow, when Paul will clarify a few things and then SIGN IT!!

Our house is emptier too. We need to move a few more things out of the basement and then I will start to try to make it look prettier. So someone will buy our house.
As I write this, my poor exhausted husband is dozing beside me. He`s staying up to be with me but he`s just pooped. He took two trips to the storage unit tonight. He`s been working so hard at trying to get this house market-ready.
I`m exhausted too. I guess I`ll take us to bed now.
I wish we could just take time and feel the joy and the excitement. To let it bubble over. We`re just too tired.

The Yearly Letter...a year too late

2008-01-06T23:07:00.000-05:00

Dec 2007

Dearest family and friends,
Our greetings to you come a little late this year. As I started to gather my thoughts for this letter around mid-November I realized I had to wait. There was something in the offing that just might need to be included in this letter. While waiting, I painted most of the house. It took a lot of work, much help from Paul, and a great deal of patience from the kids, which they were happy to give. For the most part!

Here are some highlights from our year:

Growing Up, Nathan and Emily Style
These two kids are incredibly imaginative. They spend much of their day pretending, attempting to be in costume and in character for as long as possible. Emily really enjoys dressing up and Nathan enjoys draping blankets and propping pillows anywhere he can in order to create his spaceship, ice breaker, castle or whatever. If it resembles a string, he’ll try to tie it to something. They both regarded the arrival of spring with glee, getting out on their bikes almost every day. Nathan’s sense of humour is very wordy, using puns and rhymes. Emily’s sense of humour is a little more physical. If you stare into her eyes for a while, they’ll turn up at the corners just before she scrunches up her face with her hands and sticks out her tongue. She can’t seem to help but to try make us laugh as often as she can. Even as they are filled with laughter, they are always inquisitive, asking questions ranging from the philosophical (Aren’t you glad Santa isn’t real?) to the physical (why do dogs’ tails have bones?) and back to the practical (can I have some of the gingerbread house now?).

Camping

the very cold waters of Georgian Bay at Indian Head Cove, Bruce National Park

The Bruce Peninsula. WOW. It is simply amazing. We kicked off our camping season with a 2day test trip to Laurel Creek Conservation Area, in the middle of Waterloo. That was informative. We noted all items which were forgotten and those which were unnecessary, bought a cartop carrier bag and took off on our 10day vacation, beginning at the Bruce. Oh, you should go! Really, it is a beautiful, unique place. There is truly nowhere else like it on this planet.

We then joined forces with the Beilby family at Awenda Provincial Park and took in the area’s historical sights. I didn’t mention that Nathan is a history buff, did I? One of his highlights of the year was our visit to Discovery Harbour and Ste. Marie-among-the-Hurons.

the only volunteer for this activity at Discovery Harbour, was Emily!

In late August, we shared some food and some splendid camping at the Pinery with the Naus family. Emily was in tears when she realized that this would be the last camping trip of the year. Paul and I felt the same. Nathan was happy to get back to his own bed.

on our way to the beach, Pinery Provincial Park

The Last Half was Harder
The last 5 months have brought some challenges to Paul and I. In early August, my aunt, whom I call Julie Mamie, passed away. I had the opportunity to see her and to say ``goodbye`` a few weeks before. My life was but one that she had touched deeply. The grief, though, was not something I had ever known before and I found it all-consuming for a while.
One day, in late September, we received a phone call from Paul`s mom. Paul`s dad, who lives and works in Southern Mexico, had been in an accident and his leg was broken. He was taken to hospital in Mexico City and Paul`s mom, and some good friends, spent many hours there with him. In early October, the doctors determined that the leg needed to be amputated. Soon after, Dad, and Mom were flown up to Ontario, to North York General, in Toronto. Dad`s recovery was longer and harder than we expected but through much prayerful and practical support from friends and family, he has come very far. He`s now at St. John`s , a rehab hospital in North York. Yahoo!!
On Dec. 23rd, we celebrated! For Dad`s first day pass, we had Christmas dinner together, at a home generously offered to us by a family who were away for the holidays. It was a very refreshing time, resting in the blessing of God`s provision and finding great joy in being together.

What are we waiting for?
We are waiting for a dream to come true!
About 4 years ago, we began talking and dreaming about moving out west. About 2 years ago, you may remember, Nathan and I went to a certain city, called Calgary, to visit friends. And to check it out.
Paul was attempting to transfer to Mark`s Work Wearhouse, a company owned by Canadian Tire, Paul`s current employer, just as the housing prices skyrocketed. Maybe it was a little premature.
About 2 months ago, Paul was contacted regarding a position with Mark`s new supply chain team, headed up by a former director from CT. Just as the housing prices dipped a little! We are in the later stages of negotiations, proceeding with the hope that we may be heading to Calgary in the New Year.
So, after our letters and cards are mailed out, we will continue a frenzied pace. Replacing the Christmas preparations, however, will be readying our house for listing and attempting to find housing in Calgary. If you want to keep up with what is happening, you`ll have to check out my blog http://curlsinmyhair.blogspot.com/ or find me on Facebook!

God Bless you, this Christmas, and into the New Year.
With love,
Paul, Amy, Nathan and Emily

Stop packing?!!?

2008-01-03T14:40:00.001-05:00

Is he crazy?
Paul called me this morning and told me to stop packing. He said that the company included packing us up and offsite storage in the relo package. STOP? Can they come tomorrow?
I can't stop! And I hope he was being slightly facetious because there's no way I can stop. We've got to get stuff out of this house and I've got wallpapering (yuck), painting, cleaning (yuck)and staging to get done before we can list. Somewhere in there, the basement carpet will be replaced.
So, I think that we need to keep going. But I do find the thought of someone else packing everything ELSE up extremely exciting! I'll keep my excitement inside, though. I'll let it out when it's time!

By this time tomorrow, we should have something official for Paul to sign. It's THAT CLOSE.
Wow.

Busting

2007-12-29T17:09:00.000-05:00

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh. I just can't stand it anymore! I've got to tell someone. I'm way too excited.
It's also way too much work.
It also might not happen.

But it might!

We might be moving to Cal-ga-ry! We might be moving to Cal-ga-ry!
Yahoo! I mean, YEE HAAAAA!
I wonder what I'll look like in a cowboy hat? I wonder what Paul will look like in a cowboy hat?

We're trying to pack most of our stuff up and get it to a storage unit. It's hard work with our two, who want to hang out with us, instead of watch us pack boxes. It's an exercise in faith, too, to pack up a house in hopes of putting it on the market, before all the paperwork is signed, simply because we both agree and feel strongly led by a sense of knowing that is bigger than ourselves.
I'm going to get back to the task at hand: sorting out the play kitchen toys so that they all fit in the bin, with the lid closed.

So excited!

Unpurpled

2007-11-28T10:43:00.000-05:00

YAHOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My vision has improved. It is no longer clouded by a purple haze caused by the prevalence of a purple hue on our walls. Pics should come soon!

Leify words

2007-10-01T15:24:00.001-04:00

We found it. the Word on the Street. We brought home some of those words and discovered Leif Erikson. We took a ride with Matt and Emily from the newly published Canadian Flyer series and have started hanging out with Vikings on the coast of Newfoundland. Oh what fun!
Oh what a relief!
I'm relieved because since I've made a change to how we homeschool, I've been wondering what Nathan would run after intellectually.
But first, a word of explanation. We now unschool. No curriculum and very little "Mommy says you have to learn this right now". It's so much more appropriate to us and so much harder to explain to people. It's based on the premise that children naturally are curious and want to learn. It allows Nathan to ask questions about the things he's really wanting to know and allows us the time to completely answer his questions to his satisfaction. Often, I've found, his quest for knowledge allows for a much more thorough understanding that is often offered at the grade level books. I'm learning to trust Nathan more. And he's beginning to thrive.
Emily and I are still finding our way. She just loves workbooks. I just love blank pieces of paper. We manage.

Watch out! It's an iceberg!

2007-07-19T16:14:00.000-04:00

Lovely, isn't it? This iceberg is being lassoed by the marine vessel named "the Breaker", because it breaks and moves and tows icebergs. I couldn't fit the vessel into the picture but it's off to the right.
Nathan has taken over the house. In his room is his play house (a blanket-fort from his bed to the floor and his bed is the attic, our main floor houses the iceberg and marine vessel ( pillows as seen, basket, stool and remote control handset and blankets for the vessel, and the treehouse (another blanket-fort) is in our basement. This reallocation of resources and square footage is occuring while I am trying to pack for camping.
I have recently been informed that he wishes we had more pillows so that he could make a big stack of them. Yikes!!

Nathan and Emily built a treehouse

2007-07-08T19:19:00.001-04:00

They shared it with their daddy.

Nathan and Emily really like going on trips and exploring new things. A few weeks ago, they decided to help daddy and Grandma hold up the Big Apple.

Another day, they took mommy and daddy to see the boats at the Welland Canal.
We all liked seeing the ducks and geese in Lake Ontario.
Now Nathan and Emily are staying at home for a few days. They want to learn how to swim better, so they are taking lessons every morning. They have just a few more to do. On Friday, their last day, daddy will come and watch them. That will be fun!

Previously, on the May 24 weekend....

2007-06-21T21:53:00.000-04:00

An attempt with the left hand.

They go up, tiddly up UP, they come down, tiddly down DOWN!

The daddy pictured above REALLY wanted to go on the Ferris Wheel and convinced the nervous, yet brave, child to accompany him. They're so cute!

I made a boy necklace for Nathan.

He REALLY likes playing in the sprinkler!

That's all I can do today. What's missing is the trip to the firestation with Nathan and Emily at the wheel. Now, I have to go sort out camping dishes.

Enjoy!

2007-06-21T21:42:00.000-04:00

I know, it been a while. But I've had so much fun. We spent so much time outside that Emily is looking brown! They've biked, I've walked. We've played, I've pulled a wagon.

This past Saturday night we spent in Grandma and Grandpa B's backyard, in our tent. Our tent is more spacious than many hotel rooms. It's FANTASTIC!!! So, this Sunday, we head out to do some preliminary camping, for two nights. We're thinking to go to Laurel Creek Conservation Area, right smack in the middle of Waterloo, but, it's beautiful and there'll be lots of bugs to check out!

Tomorrow, we're off to the Welland Canal, to see if we can catch sight of any container ships or other interesting boat making their way through the waterway and to have lunch with G'ma and G'pa B, who are spending a few vacationy days there.

The pictures. Well I keep taking them with every intention of posting them. Must figure out a better system.

Sighgh. I'm enjoying this moment. A rare moment of peace and tranquility.

2007-05-09T15:33:00.000-04:00

Oh, what a day. What a month.

I can't believe how full it's been - full of thoughts and growing relationships - and it's felt very restful and rewarding. So after all that, why do I feel so flustered today, like I'm hanging on to the back of a train for dear life as it goes whipping down the track. This train may be going at a leisurely pace but it feels out of control to me. Hmmm. If I follow that metaphor, maybe I should climb INTO the train, sit down and look out the window. Hope I can find a door or open window somewhere.

On with the post.

I made a Quillow

I decided to make a quilt which folds into a pillow as a present for my grandmother.

I'm not sure she'll figure out the intricacies of the transformation, but I'm hoping she's liked it. I took a pic of the p(u)ilt in progress.

Nathan, Ryan, Devin and Evan are great grandsons of my Nanee, who, as seen on her pink hat cake, is 90. Wow.

The lady hiding behind the kid's heads is Paul's mom. She had her hair all done up fancy in curlers, but we decided to take pictures anyway. This shot, though her eye is missing, showcases the Grinning Happy Trio of Silliness, which might have been their motto, if indeed they had thought to have one!

We put up our tent.....

It's really big.........

The rainfly is like a BIG kite if it gets caught in the wind just so........

Son's head meets Daddy's clippers

2007-05-02T14:36:00.000-04:00

just catching up....

2007-04-17T14:47:00.000-04:00

Back around Easter.....

She looks so smug!

This is the mint chocolate ice cream cake with peppermint brownie. And sprinkles, cuz in our house it's just not birthday cake unless there's sprinkles!

The cake maker: Ana. Notice how good she is, she's scraping the chocolate sauce on the knife back into the container. I, on the other hand, would have scraped it right into my mouth!
Nathan wanted a picture with his monkey. My lovely little boy.

The Caledon Trail

This past Saturday, we took a small jaunt along the Caledon Trail just off of Horseshoe Hill Rd (Dixie Rd, but further north). Of all that we saw, Nathan was most impressed with the moss!
Emily was impressed with her carrier. She wasn't very interested in going on a hike with us. Maybe when the moths, butterflies and leaves come out, she'll be more interested. And if the angle looks weird to you, just think of how much I miss out on, being this short!

We found what we think are raspberry canes. Nathan took this picture.
Emily wanted to take a picture too.

Spring

The lilac bush is budding. haha. The lilac bush is budding. heehee. The lilac bush is budding. Just needed to get this picture up here, to send to a friend on facebook. She's an Amy, she understands.

Good Friday

2007-04-06T20:44:00.000-04:00

What a festive day. We just spent some time celbrating Mom Hills and Paul's birthdays - with salmon for dinner and ice cream cake. Wow. Yum.

Hmmm....will have to take some pics....

This has been a wonderful day. One of the first I managed to maintain a Christ-aware mind throughout the whole day. Perhaps this is a sign of things to come, like spring, where my heart is blossoming in its awareness of it Creator and Saviour.

Happy Good Friday. And, thank you, Jesus.

Amy

Thought of the morning - a la Emily

2007-04-02T09:17:00.000-04:00

"My body likes sweet stuff....but not kiwi cuz that too sour!

Ha ha. I love her trains of thoughts. She is always thinking. At this point in her sweet musings I had to redirect her attention to finishing breakfast. Otherwise she would have kept on...and on...and on, crinkling her nose and lowering her voice dramatically at every conclusion she came up with.

Another little thinker. I love her.

sometime mid-march, it was Grandma's birthday

2007-04-01T16:49:00.000-04:00

First, we took a picture of my hairclip on Emily. She's starting to want to look like Mommy. It's really sweet.
Grandma and Grandpa brought dominoes...and a family tradition continues!

Grandma's cakes!
She really liked this card. It's so nice to make something homemade and have it appreciated. I sometimes feel self-conscious about making our cards, people call so much attention to it. I just have to stick with my little vendetta - inspiring others to choose to make things themselves, rather than relying on the big capitalistic machine to tell them what's worth giving.
Emily marches to a different drummer. We were trying so hard to get a nice snuggly picture of the three. *sigh*

We discovered that I am exactly half the age of my mother. That should make for some fun jokes this year!

This was a really fun day. We learned how simple it is to bless someone unexpectedly. We did a bit of decoration and little bit of cupcakes and a simple lunch, which all helped to make the atmosphere of birthday, but I think what made it such a blessing was the focus of Nathan and Emily as they unselfconsciously declared "Happy Birthday" and showered Mom with their sheer joy that it was her birthday and their excitement at being able to celebrate it with her. I'm learning that it's our reaction to each other that sets the tone. As celebrative as the stuff (decorations, food, planning, programming) may be, it's the outpouring of authentic, uninhibited love that touches meaningfully. All those polite, adult, socially acceptable walls are just that, walls and they hinder our ability to love each other deeply and meaningfully. I hope that I can really learn this lesson - to risk loving people with abandon. I know I have it in me. I see that I actually need to get it out of me.

The windows are open...

2007-03-27T10:19:00.000-04:00

wow.

It's so beautiful. The birds are so chatty, the kids are so happy. Folks, I think this is it. The start of spring!

Paul's mom will arrive later tonight. Emily is full of anticipation and confusion - she wanted Gramma to come yesterday, how sweet! Howver, i have a basement full of boxes and stuff that needs to be sorted and put back in the storage area - so I'm glad she wasn't here yesterday! Must go clean,
Amy

He takes it lying down...

2007-03-19T12:11:00.000-04:00

Whooooohoooo! Nathan is sick. Yes, I'm excited about that, but cautious at the same time - I don't want him dangerously sick.
But today he's so nice to deal with....in bed, sleepy, calmly speaking, no whining, bossing or demands. Ahhhhhhhhhh.
And Emily is happily playing on her own. I've even read a book already this morning. Now, I'd better tackle something useful - like cleaning out the storage area or reorganizing the computer area or redoing the play area. Or maybe I should do some sewing? Hmmm. I guess I could download the pics from the weekend and post.

Maybe.

*sigh*

It's so peaceful here.

We're always trying new things!

2007-03-07T16:49:00.000-05:00

She can put her own clips in her hair! And they look beautiful! Nathan looks quite handsome too.

Last day of swimming

My little fishie. Emily grins the entire time she is in the pool. She is full of pure, unadulterated joy. It's so special!

The back float - head is nicely resting in the water. Her instructor, Jade, was so much fun. She just loved Emily and she was fantastic with all the kids.

This was the only lesson in which they got to go down the slide. I guess it was a special thing for the last day. Hmmm, when to sign her up again?

My lamp avec tea striping

So, the top and bottom of the shade are the locations of the tea colouring exercise. I'm really pleased with the result. And the simple addition of a table lamp makes the whole room so much homier. Aaaah.

C O L D.

2007-03-07T08:54:00.000-05:00

Brrrr.

Grrr.

It's cold and I don't like it. When every inch of me is yearning for that breath of spring, arriving in the wind....to have my nostrils freeze together as a result of my inquiring sniff simply adds insult to injury!

Maybe I'll get all dressed up and burrow into the snow for a while.

On a much splashier note, Emily finished her first set of 'lessons' yesterday...she did well but will have to do salamander again...needs to work on her floats...I don't think she'll mind at all.

And I got a new lamp....I'll get a pic later....my first real, non student look lamp. Wow. God provides; I used my gift card from Christmas. I've even altered it already. It had a white shade and I pulled a tea bag around the top and bottom trim to make it a nice, well, tea colour!

Hee hee.

Amy

Pancake Tuesday!!!

2007-02-20T19:17:00.000-05:00

Aaaaaaah. The tradition is reborn. We just said goodbye to some lovely people who shared our Pancake supper with us. Farzad is a friend of Paul from work and Pushal and Fardin are his two sons. Farzad's wife didn't join us....she finished work late and I heard that she doesn't like pancakes?!!

I made big ones for the grown up, little ones for the little ones and letters for the little ones.
THe little ones wanted the big ones, the grown ups were stuck with the little ones and after the little ones were stuffed....they eyed the letters hopefully and asked for one. Each little one got a letter but no one got the ice cream. That would have been TOO MUCH!! Hee hee. It was an incredible sight...stuffed children.

Last night, Nathan, Uncle Rob and I went skating on the bit of ice just outside of our local library. Nathan was his usual freak out-ish self until he watched Rob and I go round a few times. He then started trying to race me (step, step, step....I'm beating mommy!) and tried to catch his uncle. It's so nice to share my love of sports and outdoors with my son and so nice to have someone to share it with. Just need to work on Paul's confidence and then we can have romantic dates at Gage Park *sigh*.

Spring will come soon!

2007-02-16T15:38:00.000-05:00

A little fashionista! What do you think? I think it's lovely but I haven't been able to find those clips since!

Swimming

THis winter we have entered the era of extracurricular activities. Nathan is learning to skate and Emily is learning to swim. Her instructor calls her "a little fishy". Yah, I knew that. We've always steered clear of water areas because she would make a determined beeline in that direction, with intent to enter - clothes and all! This is much better -the instructor is making an official invitation to enter by singing something about speckled frogs. Note the concentration...Emily is simply NOT going to miss her cue. I think she's scared Jade sometimes....she just flies off the deck when it is her turn to jump!

Now, I don't remember this when I was learning to swim. It looks like fun even now - a train!

Emily is the second one in from the left.

And then we have the farmer boy and hippie chick. Both self-attired. I just love the creativity they reveal when the dress themselves.

We're GREEN!

Ok. This next picture might look a little weird. And, it is. It is my tea bag in my new kitchen bin (thus dubbed by region of Peel). It landed there with ceremony - my hands waving in the air and I was "ah-haing" with vigour. And there were a few moments when I was jumping up and down. Paul told me to stop jumping. But I think he understands how excited I am.

I may not live in the country or have a big enough back yard for a composter but I CAN STILL COMPOST!!!!!! Yippee!! I cannot tell you how excited I am or even how much more relaxed I am living in this townhouse, since the day the green bin graced our doorstep. I'm so excited. I'm even going to splurge and get a beautiful stainless steel compost container for my countertop - gorgeous and convenient.

2007-02-04T14:51:00.000-05:00

My head hurts. My neck hurts. I can't think. I've spent the last two days sleeping. And today, I attempted to function. Now I have a head ache. Was it worth it? Yeah. It's hard now but I got up, went out the door with the family,sat in a chair at Dean's house and we did the second Story. The kids are the highlight of storying. They love to retell it and the love to discuss it. Aahhhh. Very Nice. THen we adults did some talk about it sans kids and talk about what each couple were looking at in terms of living missionally and how we could join and encourage each other in that. Lovely. Yes, now I have a headache...but it's a small price to pay for being in the company of passionate people who are challenging me to live a life of transformational change as Jesus did.

Remember Christmas?

2007-01-25T14:41:00.000-05:00

Look! Pictures!!! How exciting! Here are some from Christmas:

Nathan got Emily a stroller/highchair etc. combo thing for her dolls. Paul assembled it as his curious audience watched in eagerness.

The test drive went well. She scared the cat, got the dog to move and didn't open any other presents for about half and hour!

We travelled to my parent's house on Christmas day and stayed for the first part of the week. We then went to London to visit our university friends and their family.

Paul loves to read to kids. Jen and Ed were surpised to find their couch was a 6-seater!

So, I knew Paul liked crokinoe. But I didn't know he was a closet champion. It was New Year's Eve and we took a break from Carcassone. I gave Jen a massage and they played while we cheered on our men.

Emily and Julia became fast friends, with Nathan tagging along anytime he wanted to play "Home Home" with them. We all had a huge amount of fun and it tooks us a couple of weeks to recover!

All right, that it. Maybe one day I'll put together last year's outtakes. Maybe!

Ready for CAMPING!!!!

2007-01-18T20:00:00.000-05:00

I was just thinking I should throw in a reluctant acknowledgement of the New Year....and it slowly dawned on me that there has been so much we've done and seen this year already. I must get some pictures up. No promises, though.
What momentous things have we done in the past two weeks. Well, we've had our first family games night. Boy, were the kids wired! They took an hour longer than normal to settle for bed. Maybe it was the family night treat! It's so special to build these rhythms into our family. A regular games night with a "traditional" dessert that Paul's family enjoyed when they began their family night rhythm. I find it a powerful idea to follow in an established rhythm set by a previous generation that reinforces the ideas of choosing to behave as a community and taking time to play together.
What else? Oh yes, Paul came home one night with STUFF. Some assorted plumbing things, a new phone, batteries - all spoils from the Damaged Goods sale that Canadian Tire holds for its employees. The piece de resistance was the tent. My tent.
I mean, Paul got the very tent I fell in love with and prayed for in the summer! God is so extravagent, faithful and timely. Yes, I know it's winter. However, there are daily requests by Emily for a camping excursion. Now we can plan one or ten with her this summer. We are all very happy to have a tent. It's enormous (yup, we're stuck with car camping for a while), but perfect for us.

To be continued....as I have to go hug and kiss munchkins goodnight.

What a nice Saturday at home...

2006-12-23T19:26:00.000-05:00

Emily gave us another example of her ingenuity today. It's hard to see, but the string is threaded through the holes in the support post. Yippee, she's three!

We' ve had such a nice day today. The house is clean. Aunt Ana is here. Most of our clothes are packed for Christmas travelling. A gingerbread house was 'mantled' and dismantled (see picture below). We've had the most beautiful, restful, yet productive, day. Now there are just a few last presents to wrap. And an early start to tomorrow as I am producing.

Our first gingerbread house. Made from scratch, decorated by all. The only thing missing is the lovely smokestack that Paul created out of Ovation sticks. How fun. We had it for dessert. Not all of it! We've saved the rest for tomorrow.
That's the idea, anyway. I'm not sure why, because we still have butter cake to eat tomorrow. Oy! Christmas is so fun!

Well, must go light advent candles.
How amazing that He would come to us.

Emptying Groceries

2006-12-22T19:15:00.000-05:00

I asked her to take the groceries out of the bag and just put them on the floor. She is such a treasure. Here's her interpretation of "on the floor". If I left her long enough, she probably would have made a tower out of the cans, too!

What a treasure.

Overheard during supper last night...

2006-12-19T10:30:00.000-05:00

Emily : " I don't want to eat this. I don't like it."

Nathan : "If you don't eat it, then you won't grow big. Do you want to grow big?"

Emily : "Will I grow little?"

Bizarre

2006-12-11T21:46:00.000-05:00

It's just occuring to me how ridiculous it all was. Two newlyweds, already pregnant, some shephards rattling on about vast amounts of angels in the sky and some rich guys with presents worshipping a baby that was born and placed in a feeding trough. I've spent some time trying to find the right word. One that conveys the idea of supernatural invading the natural. And the idea of how perfectly confusing yet appropriate were the circumstances of His birth. And therefore, His Death.

Foolish things that confound the wise.

I like Christmas. It makes me think.

Retail Schooling

2006-11-27T15:23:00.000-05:00

Today we covered the subjects of math and science.
As we waited to check out at Michael's, Nathan worked on number recognition and sequence while observing the Soduku booklets (numbered 1 thru 8).
As we meandered through Home Depot, we observed the various plants which are transformed into Christmas greenery, such as rosemary trees. Nathan reviewed his Science lessons by naming the parts of an Amaryllis flower and describing what happens after a plant is pollinated (makes seeds) and how it protects it seeds (makes fruit).

This school day has been brought to you by the letter A and the numbers 1 thru 8.
We would like to thank our unwitting sponsors, Michael's and Home Depot.

Have a great day!

Remember Thanksgiving?

2006-11-18T17:40:00.000-05:00

Remember the trip to Sarnia?

2006-11-18T16:13:00.000-05:00

Brooding

2006-11-18T15:51:00.000-05:00

Oh how I wish I had more to say.
I frequently get frustrated with blogging. I have so much up in my head and
it's so much work to get it out into words.
I've just started to read a Kierkkegaard anthology and I'm struck how people
can just write down their thoughts. I read blogs, letter, journals and
emails and I'm struck how so many people write so coherently. I just flit
from thought to thought, never quite slowing down enough so others can see
what I'm thinking. It's also that it's terrifying to share. But K. was an
original thinker, shamed and ridiculed for his thoughts which are now
heralded as RIGHT THINKING. So, I'm considering being braver. We'll see.

Will there ever be pictures?

2006-11-05T22:12:00.000-05:00

Well, still so much to say! But pictures would be ever so much nicer. A
birthday cake, a tent, a few beautiful little girls and a very happy Emily.
Yup. She's three.
We had her party yesterday, but today was her big day. It was quite a
bummer for her compared to yesterday. Hopefully the trip to McDonald's for
supper helped!

Ah, so here's the truth: I'm trying to see if I can email to my blog.
Here goes!

Quite Cute Quotes

2006-10-26T14:36:00.000-04:00

I've been trying to get some pictures up, from our trip to Sarnia and Thanksgiving...not quite working out yet. Oh well. I'll try some Quite Cute Quotes instead.

Earlier this week...
Nathan: "Mommy, I heard on the news that the giants were going to meet the cowboys."
Eyes on Mommy with an inquiring gaze.
Mommy stifles guffaw.
Mommy: "Oh, really?"
Nathan gives up his unsuccessful attempt to read Mommy's expression.
Nathan: "Yes, isn't that silly?"

Oh the things that they put in the news these days! Ha ha ha ha ha ha haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa (breathe) ha ha ha ha!
I haven't explained it to him yet. I just handed him my cell phone and let him tell his daddy. Daddy didn't explain it either. It's just too precious.

Mommy: "How do you want me to decorate your birthday cake, Emily?"
Emily, with great frustration: "I don't want you to decorate my cake, Mommy. I want to EAT it."
Long pause while Mommy is laughing.
Emily, using a Mommy-you're-so-dull-I-guess-I-have-to-spell-it-out-for-you tone of voice:
"I want a BIRTHDAY cake, with SPRINKLES on it. And I want CANDLES. And I want people to sing happy birthday to ME."
Some time later: "And I want to EAT my birthday cake."

Hee hee, I'll guess I'll just enjoy the ride as we careen wildly towards the Age of 3.

And here's the latest from Nathan:
"Mommy, can you help me read this part?"

Yippee!Yippee!Yippee!Yippee!Yippee!Yippee!
We now have a Beginning Reader! WaHOO!

Paul and I are heading to Stratford on Saturday to make use of our Christmas gift certificate (Christmas '05). I don't know what we are going to see, I'm not trying to find out, but it shall be glorious! Wonderful Aunt Ana is hanging out with the kids.

That's it for now!

32 years, up in smoke

2006-10-12T13:18:00.000-04:00

I have embarked on the journey of a lifetime....no, a journey of a year. My 33rd year, to be exact. Not much to report so far, wandered in the woods, danced in the snow, yelled at some kids. I know there is a deeper thing going on in all these activities. I know that God is at work and right here with me. Sometimes the daily life I see with my eyes filters the reality of His Son's life in me. It really should be the other way round.

ReJoy!

2006-10-12T12:59:00.000-04:00

I have Rediscovered the Joy of being at home! I went from "grump, grump, ho hum, not-so-how" to "wheee, this IS fun!" in the space of, oh, about 1 second. I was in my kitchen. I was miming. I was holding a cucumber in my hand. Blue Man Group was playing on the stereo. You figure it out!

Yippee! Just gotta find those pearls.

Amy

Some pictures we DID take!

2006-09-12T15:13:00.000-04:00

See the excited groom? See the groomsman on the right? He's mine!

Al and Nadine cutting the cake - "Lebanese stye"

Aboard the ferry, approaching Centre Island. They still don't know Centreville exists...we just walked around the island!

Nathan's new friend. He lives at the lighthouse with his family. He didn't talk much.

Our trip to the Library

2006-09-01T21:14:00.000-04:00

I asked Nathan tonight if he wanted to go to the library. He suggested I could walk and he could ride his bike. He got a two-wheeler avec training wheels last week and there's been no stopping him. That is, until Paul put air in his tires yesterday! After a bit of clever and loud Mommy negotiating ("Nathan, GO! Yes it's more wobbly....GO! NOW!") followed by some logic (Nathan...you can do it), he got going and has gotten used to his now wobbly bike. So off we went to the library.

This involved crossing at two intersections with lights and one with a 4-way stop. He did super well and pedalled his little heart out. Once at the library, we discovered it was closed ( I didn't check before leaving as I thought it was a worthwhile excursion anyway). We figured out how to lock his bike to the bike rack, went pee and came back out. After a small but traumatic mishap on the ramp downhill, he pedalled his little heart out back home. Oh the proud mommy moment!

When we got home, we found that Paul had begun to give Emily a bath. How great that was! He got to ride to the library and is now clean to boot!

It was fabulous. He's really tired and his bum hurts, but he is so happy.

Bikes. Hee!

We go ALL OUT!

2006-08-26T20:25:00.000-04:00

Yup. Just couldn't stay home. Nope. Needed to get to higher ground. Ahem. Sky? Concrete?
Whatever.
We went to the CN tower today. Kids loved it. Nathan's fave: the Lego Racer simulator ride. ( I think he liked looking out from the SkyPod too).
It was quite all right, even the long line for the elevator up to the SkyPod.
Once we were finished, we exited the tower and walked in the direction of the old roundhouse just south of the tower. We were distracted by the OPP display of various cars and such and the bipedal furry dog and elephant. The kids got a couple of photo ops (not with our camera - which I left conveniently attached to the computer in an attempt to download pictures before we left this morning - HA!). And THEN, this cop lady asked if we got any treats. Then she got us the treats : hockey puck, tattoos, OPP badge AND a Junior OPP cap - in stylish black plastic! They were thrilled. The cops AND the kids.

When we finally made our way over to the round house we stopped to eat our lunch on a bench. We sat down with the CN Tower in the center of our view with the 'roger centre' off to the left. Emily's fave memory of the day was watching the elevators go up and down in the glass shaft. After lunch, Paul and Nathan disappeared into the tall grass in order to check out the roundhouse. Emily and I climbed some concrete thing while we waited for the boys to reappear.

While we were walking back to Union we saw a crew which was putting down some new track. Twenty minutes later, we finally got to Union, bought some candy and headed onto the subway.

It's so good to be back home. I've really enjoyed the extra special events but it was especially nice to get home, give them naps, do some errands and sit down to a nice dinner. Home is good.

Anniversary at the AGO.

2006-08-24T00:53:00.000-04:00

It was just like 9 years ago. A little rainy, a little sunny and just the right temperature. We drove down to the AGO, just the two of us and wandered around the downright limited selection of the AGO's holdings. But it meant that we did the gallery in an hour ( it was free from 6-9pm!) and got to wander in the gift shop. We bought a fun looking card game for the kids where they get to build snakes!
Then we drove around trying to find a new parking spot ( the garage we had originally parked in was being used for filming) and ended up right in front of the CHUM City building at Queen and John at the ONLY parking meter directly in front of the Breakfast television/CityLine studio. It was a little weird. AND we didn't even have to pay because it was after 9pm.
We wandered east on Queen and found ourselves at the Indian Palace which was a simple but welcoming restaurant with very yummy food. It was such a nice evening.
And, Paul, "Happy Anniversary! Thanks for wandering the gallery with me. I love you!"

Spontaneous adventure

2006-08-21T15:52:00.000-04:00

It was Sunday, around 11am. We had just come back from church. The children were playing happily but we, the parents, were unsettled. So we made a decision.
About an hour and a half later we found ourselves at Black Creek Pioneer Village.
What Fun!
Trouncing around on gravel paths ( much gentler on the feet), smelling spices, watching how to card and spin wool --oh so much fun! It amazed me how they just glowed as they ran around.
Nathan is just the right age to take in the information the village-people (non-YMCA types) shared. Emily enjoyedthe sheer energy of the excursion.
Paul and I found it wonderfully relaxing.
But, we didn't bring the camera.
Maybe next time!

"Mommy, look! They're playing coconut!"

2006-08-02T14:14:00.000-04:00

Coconut? Ahem. Cricket, it is.
Hee hee. That one should be written down. Oh look. I just did. Oh Emily.....one day maybe you'll play coconut too!

oooh, the backyard....

2006-07-05T15:17:00.000-04:00

We are having such fun this summer. Especially in our backyard. Emily really enjoys The Digging Spot.

Look! Look! There's grass!
Beautiful! Restful!
Aaaah. Feel the softness under your bare feet.

My friend Sue called to say her cherries were ready. So, we grabbed this bucket and two Narnia popcorn buckets and headed over.
Paul climbed the tree, Emily sat on a chair, terrified of the dogs, and Nathan and I fought for time on the ladder. We filled this bucket and one popcorn one. Lotsa cherries.
These lovely cherries have now been apportioned to share, consumed in a pie and transformed into jam. Yippee! What fun!

Once upon a time we went strawberry picking...

2006-07-05T15:00:00.000-04:00

Grumpy, here, didn't want to pick strawberries.
She wanted to see the goats. But, her brother was busily getting nice red fruit! Next time we'll try to find a farm without the goats.

Proud picker, Nathan. Proud straw twirler, Emily.

We picked this much!

Mr. Scarecrow.

Miss Scarecrow!

Antics

2006-07-03T20:50:00.000-04:00

"Mom, look!"
"Oh, you're playing a french horn!"

"Look!"
"And so are you."

Summer means sprinkler time! What fun we are having in our fabulously sodded back yard. Thanks, Paul!

Happy, wet munchkin. Lovely.

These are little Playmobile people, wise men actually, from Nathan's Nativity set. Emily enjoys playing with them too. On this day, they decided to take a jaunt out of the bedroom, aided by Emily. Do you suppose they were tired out and needed to sit down? I wonder....

Kids try new things every day!

2006-06-27T15:07:00.000-04:00

My fabulous 4 year old. He's grating cheese! I see a budding kitchen helper. Yippee!!

Oblivious to gender stereotyping, the little lad sets up a venue for serving tea.

Hee, hee! Lemon face! This initial taste did not deter him, however. He continued to 'eat' it!

She wanted to try it too. Missed getting the pucker, though. You'll just have to imagine it!

2006-06-08T11:25:00.000-04:00

So, I thought I would post a quick one. It's taken me 15 minutes to get to this point of typing my words, from the initial click to log on. GRrrrrrr. So, I have pictures I taken.....but loading them on to the computer takes a conscious time commitment. It's like working with a 486 again. Turn it on, go have a coffee. Click a program, go make a snack. Type a few words, make a phone call. See the words appear, try to correct the spelling mistake, take your empy coffee cup to the sink while the computer thinks.
BAH!
Maybe my computer is PMSing too!
Hee.
Ah, well, kids are cute, wish I could show you. We're having fun, lots of stories to tell.
But, alas, I have to go vaccuum.

Bye!

It takes a LONG time to post!

2006-05-08T09:19:00.000-04:00

So here I was thinking that I could just write a quick note to update you all. But NO, it took me far too long to even load up the login page. Aaaaagh.
Paul got a birthday present. A new hard drive. My computer has not been the same since....hence the lack of updates. Theoretically, the computer should be even faster.
Guess it's not well versed with the theory. I'm a little sad that it's not working quite as it should.

You really should have seen his face when he got his birthday money from his sister (and parents). "Oh, I know what this is for. A hard drive!" Kindof like Nathan's face last night when we told him he had to sleep in the same room as his sister. "Oh Thank you, Mommy. I've wanted to for....ummmm.......for a long time really! Oh thank you!".
THEY didn't get to sleep until 11pm. And my computer is SSSSSSSSSSSSLLLOW. Ah well.

The reason that Nathan slept in Emily's room was that his room is entering the final stages of transformation. The peeling paint has been scraped away. The ceiling and walls are all primed. And now, we'll see just how much painting a stay-at-home mom can accomplish, in a day, without sitting the kids in front of the tv for hours and hours. He might sleep in Emily's room yet again tonight. I'll have to be ok with that.

Yup, I have been working on his room, wall by wall, for 2 months. I'm a little impatient to finish, but still have to pace it.

Now, it is Nathan's turn:
lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllfrjyhytyy hy tf yhy yrt tufgerrewgwaevytvb4wetgvv r tg few fyerte fsgcdydf
nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnhhgjgfhfhgnbfgjfhgfgfdghyuiyuiunbhui5tiyhgfbnjhujghgyhujygh ut
b mnbhngfnytghjhutyyuuug
nathan

Ok we're done.
Bye

The tale of Sir Nathan, Princess Emily and King Mommy

2006-03-31T15:40:00.000-05:00

Look, they are pre-"reading" their naptime stories! Awwww. A quiet moment in our day.
This pic belies the energy of the day. I gave Nathan a new toy. Oooh, he was thrilled. It was a a breastplate, a shield, a helmet and a sheathed sword - all plastic. He put it all on and went to the front mirror to admire himself. He declared that he looked "wonderful!" I agree. Then we had to figure out what knights did....we decided that they weren't supposed to kill people. Just have sword fights and win. And they could kill animals for lunch and supper.
Emily discovered the dressup box at this time and came over all decked out in a pink sunhat, chunky bracelets and a purse. We decided she must be princess Emily.

That's it for today. Just have to get to sewing those Easter outfits.
me

Random thoughts

2006-03-13T11:18:00.000-05:00

When we were coming back from a weekend at my parents' house, we stopped by "The Country Store" to pet the chicks.

This weekend, Aunt Ana decided to french braid Emily's hair. She looked beautiful.

We've all been sick and today is my turn. Emily is on the second fever portion of this virus and Nathan is all better, but irritating. I'm just starting....I have both fevers to go through.
I've just finished two books - one on child-rearing (Romancing Your Child) and one on church (THe Passionate Church) . Yay! I'm reading again. Now I just have to finish At the Crossroads. And the complete Thomas collection.

Must go be ill.
me

From the mind of a 4 year old...

2006-02-25T16:06:00.000-05:00

...emerges Spider -Prince (the dog).

Scary or sweet? I'd vote for sweet.

toboggan!!

2006-02-25T15:52:00.000-05:00

It snowed! And we went to the park, found a hill and Nathan and Paul went down. And up and down. Emily couldn't be convinced to join in the fun. So I pulled her around in her toboggan while Nathan scooted down the hill on his own. The only downside (hee) for him was losing his mittens on the way.
Emily went down, once with Daddy. She was too scared. Maybe next year for her.
Then Nathan and I log rolled around for a bit, made snow angels and just plain goofed around. My loving husband's only comment was "You're really snowy. You'll need to brush off before you get in the car." Hmmm. Fun guy.
(Well, yes, I did see him earlier, emerging from the trees at the top of the hill in a full out run with arms outstretched over his head, yelling, "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh" as he galloped down the hill, toward Nathan who was at the bottom. I think it was a male victory whoop. But did look like he was having fun. )

It was a wonderful family time. No housework had been accomplished. There'll be another time for that.

A new one.

2006-02-13T10:31:00.000-05:00

Hiya!

I added a new post that I've been working on about our trip. Just a small tidbit, but it's something more!

Now we are trying to survive the winter. The actual winter with cold and wind chill and not quite enough snow to do anything with. I was surprised by the winter blues ( didn't see it coming, lovely mild winter and all) and spent much of last week trying to adjust. Opened curtains, sat in sunshine, and trekked the family out to Kortright conservation area.
The kids have been enjoying puzzles, colouring and play-doh.

Today, after I make some icing, we will decorate Valentine cookies.

Oh yes, and today is my spiritual birthday. That is, the 15th anniversary of a life-receiving decision to let Jesus do the leading and changing of me. Never would have made it this far without him.

Well, there is a small girl announcing a need for a diaper change. Does immediate biological need precede philosophy? Now, it just weaves together, and becomes part of an interesting day in the life of...me!

Amy

Travelling - just Nathan and me!

2006-02-07T15:19:00.000-05:00

Ahhhh, finally something exciting to report. It started very early on a Thursday morning. First I dragged myself out of bed. Then I dragged everyone else out of bed. We got ourselves into the car and on our way

to ...

the ....

airport!

Paul, though sad to miss the trip, was gracious enough to care for Emily while I took Nathan on a trip cross country.
OOOOOOOOOOH, it was FUN! We got to our gate, just in time to find out that it wasn't our gate and our flight (which was clear over on the other side of Terminal 3, of course) was delayed.
Undaunted, I hustled Nathan and our carry-on gear over there. Our plane was 2 hours delayed. "Oh. Now what do I do with a four year old in an airport for 2 hours. Oh, right, this is Nathan. We watch planes!" And we did. For 25 minutes. Then we went to the book store, had snacks, played with trucks, and read books until our plane arrived.
Just before we were called to board (yay for pre-boarding courtesies with small kids!), Nathan said, with a worried look on his face, "Mommy, I don't think I want to go on the plane. I don't want my ears to pop." "Too late now, honey. We're here and we have to go. It will be okay." They called us to board. Nathan asked if it was time to go to the gate. "Yes," I said. I didn't see his face until we got to the doorway of the gate. I looked and saw that face. You know, the face that thrills us all to the insides of our bones. Full of wonder and excitement. It filled me with wonder and excitement, too.
The actual flight was very pleasant. Nathan is a great traveller, and how could he not be, with a TV screen no more than a foot and a half from his face! I still managed to limit his viewing to an hour on the almost four hour flight. WHew! Besides, he needed time to open and enjoy his plane presents.
I really enjoyed the flight. I loved seeing the clouds from the other side and the fields of white cut through with dark lines that I assumed were roads. It was sunny, warm and very nice to get away.
Once we arrived, we were met by my friend Sarah. She and her husband Ryan were our hosts for our trip.
Oh, didn't I tell you where we were going?
Hee.

Calgary.

Brown. Very brown.

2006-02-07T14:46:00.000-05:00

Calgary was, well....brown. I was shocked by the large expanses of dormant grass. I wasn't quite aware that Calgary was still prairie-land. The mountains, the little mountains way off in the distance were quite pretty. But they were really far away. Not to far for driving, just far for seeing.
Anyway, after we met Sarah at the airport, she whizzed us back to her house and scooted back to work for a meeting. Nathan attempted to nap and I re-organized the items in our suitcases. We didn't do much that first night but Nathan really enjoyed getting to know Sarah and Ryan a little better.

On Friday, we headed downtown. We discovered Aslan lying outside of City Hall, said "Hello," and went up to see Ryan's office. After Nathan explored Ryan's office, we meandered over to the C-train stop and went to the Science Centre.

My lasting memory of the Centre will be the coat hooks. No lockers. No need to cart our stuff around. Free coat hooks. Safe coat hooks. It was thrilling!!
Nathan's best memory of the morning was working a 'crane' with sponge blocks to transport. It was a very fun morning.
We then grabbed some lunch and met my longtime friend Bea at the Calgary Tower. Though there were magnificent views of the mountains and the river, Nathan most exciting moment was watching the train pass by and stop at the train yard. Such a boy! We headed back home, with Bea in tow, and whiled away the time at the Fish Creek bus stop.

There were lots of firsts for Nathan on this trip. First time on a plane, on a train, in a bus and on a mountain. Yes he likes it, Sam I am!

On Saturday, we travelled to Canmore and Banff. Now I can say I've been to Banff. It was a nifty tourist spot but I'm still a little scared of mountains. They were cold and grey and mockingly inviting. Yet beautiful.

Here we are! At a small waterfall, amidst the mountains. This spot was beautiful.

I know this is just a taste of our trip. More later, as I get the chance.

Amy

just chattering

2006-01-16T13:55:00.000-05:00

Ahhh, winter. A little chilly today, but sunny. We had a nice Christmas but things got a little busy the first couple of weeks of this year. It might be calming down. I've started sewing again, working on a coat for Emily. After Boxing Week sales proved fruitless, I decided to try make make her a 'Sunday' coat myself. The only negative of this whole situation is that I am becoming more aware of the limitations of my sewing machine. It doesn't actually do a basting stitch. Agh!
Nathan starts gymnastics again tonight. I hope he listens well. He still is wiggly and struggles to follow the routines after a while. It's exciting, though, to have something that he takes so well to.
Today, we played with marbles. What fun. We found many different containers to plop marbles in. I think Nathan suspected it might have been related to 'school'. Don't tell him!!

That's it for the first post of '06. More exciting news next time!

me

2005-12-16T15:14:00.000-05:00

Ok, I'm done the letter. Let's see if it prints out now.
Oh, I've tried to get this all done in time. It's a little frustrating that I've been working on this since early Nov. Oh well. THings just take longer I guess. This weekend seems busy, but only because I'm planning a dessert exchange on Sun night. Oy!! Haven't gotten as much done. Oh yes, and kids are sick. It just never ends. But I remember those irritating but true words: 'this too shall pass'. It all will. Such assurance Jesus can bring to us. A wave of deep Peace just permeated my being. He is so real.

Hugs to you!
me

Cards.....done yet?

2005-12-15T14:55:00.000-05:00

Hey there!
Ok, snowstorm is here. So, I'm working on Christmas correspondence, in lieu of posting something of significance. Here's hoping it can be finished....
Amy

Pics, finally!

2005-12-12T15:23:00.000-05:00

This was yesterday's after nap hair atop a grumpy girl. She posed compliantly...all the while grumbling. Lovely!

Look, she smiled!

Bye, Amy

2005-12-06T14:49:00.000-05:00

Today, we went to the church for the Precious Jewels Christmas Concert rehearsal. When we came back home, Nathan decided he was going to hold his own rehearsal and I, of course, would be doing sound. Funny kid.
Not much to say today, too tired out.

Amy

Mondays are nice.

2005-12-05T16:02:00.000-05:00

It's been a quiet day today. Paul came home for lunch. Nathan and I discussed what animals we might find in the city, in the desert and in cold places. Then he spent some time looking through a picture encyclopedia. I think the part he enjoyed the most was looking at the diagrams of human organs.

We had finished his first workbook today!He wasn't terribly thrilled with doing school but I was pleased with his abilities.

Yes, it's been a nice quiet Monday, hope it continues that way...
Amy

Sorry!

2005-12-01T14:14:00.000-05:00

Ok, so some of you are wondering what happened. Well, Nathan happened. He has entered the year of the four but most days I consider it the year of the foul temper. So, with birthdays and other life stuff, I have been overwhelmed and grumpy. Though I have had some 'encouragement' from other parents that Nathan is doing a typical 4 year old thing. Great.

Anyway, it's Christmas and I am glad because it gives me something else to concentrate on and pour some creativity into. Like Christmas cards. Don't worry, you'll get yours one day. When they are done. Actually, it's the Christmas letter that has to get done. But I'm updating my blog instead.

The thing with getting creative is that I can't ever get things done well, that is, at once. I start, some child needs help, I go back, realize I have to make supper...and try again the next day. I totally lose the creative flow. But I do find myself thrilled with even the smallest accomplishment of creativity.
Currently I'm thoroughly pleased with our Christmas tree, metal,plastic and all. It our very first artificial Christmas tree and it looks good. I'm so excited by it, that I haven't bothered to decorate it. It has some coloured LEDs and white twinkle lights and it looks beautiful.

One day I'll post some more pictures. Right now I'm going to go convince Emily it is naptime and she shall be sleeping.

Stop laughing. She will sleep.

Grumpy mommy signing off.
Amy