Five Alive

Bathroom Quest 2011

2011-06-25T13:43:00.000-07:00

Thanks Macbook for letting me take pictures despite lack of camera. We're getting close...sooooo close. Just wait for the pebble tile. Another bonehead move today by yours truly, attempted a 360 in a quarter pipe on my rollerblades and shredded my wrist...will I ever learn?

Margo is the queen of tiling and mudding.

Not the Sharpest Tool in the Shed

2011-06-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

So within the last month I lost several key items: Ipod, Swimming Trunks, Waterproof Jacket, Camera.

Considering this occurred all on separate occasions, I read in the DSM VI that I should be diagnosed with LSAT...a rare disorder called "Losing Sh*t All the Time". A less credible source suggested that I might have "preggo brain" which apparently means I may be pregnant. Whatever the case may be, it is quite unfortunate.

Therefore blog posts have been minimal. I deeply apologize to my loyal fan base of 2 and will attempt to get some sort of visual media creation device in the near future. I have re-posted the song belong because I feel it is fitting.

Olivia's First "Black Diamond"

2011-03-06T13:19:00.000-08:00

Ski Conditions at Loch Lomond...a little crusty but some big, beautiful flakes falling and enough soft stuff to turn with ease. With a little encouragement Olivia did a few laps on the Birch and also made an attempt at the Giant...which we renamed "Giant...Butt Slide" although she only slid for about 8 or 9 meters. Needless to say, Olivia rips and we need to buy some more passes!!! Hope you enjoy the moderately decent video of her ripping the Birch on her second go around....due to the cold the battery ran out at the bottom.

Not Done Yet

2011-02-20T17:41:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I posted something. But I wasn't done yet because I have another story.

So last night I went out to the Itai to have a Moosehead, sausage on a bun and read the "Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell...because I heard rave reviews. Anyways, there's this old school rock band playing and they are having a jolly good time. Especially the piano solos which involved stumbling through a jazz scale intermingled with randomly mashing several keys and hoping they sound like chord....yeah, it's harsh but everyone was dancing so it worked.

So, I'm enraptured with the book, at the part where Gladwell discusses how a computer scientist actually tested the theory behind "6 degrees to Kevin Bacon" and found that the average degree to Kevin Bacon from any Hollywood actor is only 2.98352 (or something). Then...I look up and the 90 year old woman who walks up and down my street every day and attempted to help me lift a 1000 pound block of concrete with a stick is totally shaking a leg with some mid-40's fellow..

I had to drop the book and step in on the chump who was dancing with her...and we ended up dancing until after midnight. She told me I had good rhythm, which was nice, and she also invited Margo, the kids and I to her church's party and rummage sale the following day...dancing and rummage sales.

Needless to say, all that dancing made me want to post more dancing music...so here's what's on my i-pod for dancing whilst doing the dishes lately!

2011-02-20T16:51:00.000-08:00

Oh man, we lost our camera, but then we found it...(read: Margo found it) under the couch. So now we actually can take and have pictures. Plenty of epic skiing photographs were never taken...such as Max's "backwards slide into a large ditch" and also Olivia cranking turns through a little "Snoopy" race course.

Even without a camera, things never stop, bathroom demolition has begun...and I'm going slowly but surely this time. We're mudding Max's new room, finally....and so on and so forth. For those folks who read this thing, we're still alive, we hope you are too!

Loch ski day coming up March 6th! Bring your children!

Spooky Smoochy

2010-11-13T08:03:00.000-08:00

Halloween has come and gone, the "31st" b-days are at their pinnacle (Margo's is tomorrow!!!!). Here's the cream of the cropped. As an aside, Margo will probably do excellent in Anatomy after sewing the bones on Max's costume.

Moonlight Madness

2010-10-26T17:35:00.000-07:00

After a weekend of fasting, solo hiking by moonlight, sleeping beneath massive cedar trees or rocky beaches and being surrounded by deer, wolves, massive eagles and some rather inquisitive grouse...I'd say I'm sort of relaxed. Thanks Sleeping Giant. The only unfortunate part of this trip was the fact that I had some earworm issues regarding one Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" combined with the children's story "Goodnight Moon".

So if you can imagine hiking to, "Goodnight room, goodnight moon, goodnight cow jumping over the...skintight jeans we are teenage dreams tonight...good night mush, good night old lady whispering hush...you make-me feel like I'm living a teen-age-dream...etc etc."

Upon returning home I decided to use my relaxed frame of reference to break up the kids fighting by giving them a whiteboard and a dry erase marker and sending them upstairs to work together in finding a solution to their issues. This is what they came up with (with no help from any parent). They were mildly dismayed when I read their presentation and burst out laughing. Hmmm, if I had to select between making a chart of what is annoying and the corresponding punishments or simply "play underwear" (which involves putting underwear on your head and looking out through the leg holes)...I'm not sure what I'd chose.

Fortunately, discussing what would actually occur if we did "Option 2-Never being in the same room together" allowed the children to see the hilarity in some of the more corporal-punishmentesque options. Note the attempted spelling of 'occasionally' from our little CEO.

Isobel Turns 2

2010-10-19T18:23:00.000-07:00

So our little munchkin is 2...she's just freakin' adorable in these pictures. Isobel and I were actually sitting in the living room looking over the pictures to pick her favorites for the blog, but then her little eyes started glistening when she saw Mom (because Mom is at choir right now) so I had to pull out my secret weapon:

"Super Snuggle combined with Ultra Back and Neck Rub while Rocking her gently with a view out of the Window to watch cars pass and Singing 'Hush Little Baby' in a Tenor/Baritone on Repeat in Rhythm with the Back Rub and Rocking"

Hi YAH! Baby Ninja. When I had her finally in bed, hacking coughs erupted from the next room, "Oh NO" *alarm klaxons go off*. I combated that with a subtle technique:

"Light, rhythmic running of fingers through hair and a hand on her side for comforting pressure" *insert Bruce Lee-esque scream*

Of course now that everyone is in bed I'm all lonely, it's a double edged sword I tell ya. Oh well, I'll just sit here in front of the computer and put up cute pictures

It's not a real horse but it'll do, Gammondale farms pulled off a LOVELY Halloween event complete with +25 Celsius temps and sunshine.

Rats, where'd they all go?

Rise to the Occasion!

These two lovely ladies are quite 'a MAZE ing' aside from walking directly into a wall of corn.

Professor of Ecology in the making...

Okay, so it's fall

2010-10-10T12:59:00.000-07:00

Yes, jump right in, I'm sure the water will be fine.

"Isobel made me do it, and the pedals were already broken...it's not my fault, really!"

Family fun with the Tamper

Sorry, more media

2010-09-06T20:49:00.000-07:00

Ah, while I'm charging my camera battery to do a family based blog I came across this video. So, I'd like to announce I am quitting my day job to what this guy is doing.

City of Lost Souls

2010-08-30T20:43:00.000-07:00

What a peculiar recipe to our adventure in the City of Lost Souls. Prepare for arbitrary layman philosophy.

Contrasting the search for meaning and happiness of those whose bodies and minds are declining with those who refuse to enjoy any of it or allow the next generation in on the excitement of friendship, freedom and play. Sometimes I wonder if I belong with the Lost Souls, because I can't see what I'm like from the outside....leeching from all around me in a search for my own soul.

A firm resolution that is renewed with each visit to the City is that there is no time to waste on wasting time. To me that doesn't mean a mad rush to pack in all the enjoyment possible but more to consider life as a "Trail" crab apple and suck the juice out of each bite....and if you get a worm in your mouth, spit it out or enjoy the protein but don't let it sit there and rot.

Soul Enriching Moments around the City: A frantic dash towards the diesel engine at the children's museum, toddlers gorging in strawberry and raspberry bushes, sharing a 4 generation meal, heaving massive carrots from the earth and lengthy discussions about synaptic pruning while boiling beans....maybe some souls aren't lost.

Also the only thing I have to read here is this freakin' romance novel, so maybe that's just throwing me for a twist. I wonder why the library is full of this stuff???? Complete Schlock...

Random Update

2010-08-05T12:16:00.000-07:00

Hey Folks, somebody whose name rhymes with "Flarobyne" was wondering where the family pics were at.....so I compiled a little slide show that includes a bit of our trip to Ottawa/Montreal (our camera ran out of batteries...oops), a bit of family fun in town and also our visit to the "HMS Bounty" a tall ship that visited Thunder Bay yesterday.

Hopefully this is entertaining and informative.

Dishwashing Tunes

2010-06-26T17:31:00.000-07:00

Been perusing DnB after a couple years of Dubstep. Excellent fodder for dishwashing, cleaning, nailing boards onto other boards. Whatever.

Anyways, I was thinking about a redo of song #2 in the playlist shown below "1 N 2" by Jonny L (who in my opinion is basically the Grandmaster Flash of Drum and Bass). Partially because there is a synth that seems out of key...also because it's a simple classic, I can imagine that hundreds of people at "Amnesia" in Ibiza are at this moment getting doused in floaty foam and bouncing around to this track. And it's always the same notes over and over...why fight it?

My proposition. Nancy (and Margo I was hoping but she refused) sings the 4 notes of the "strings type synth" using ooohhs and ahhhs. Accent at first, then drop to lower volume and crescendo for each note. Also sing some harmony notes for the background. Then we multiply her by...say...32, so there's 32 Nancys singing and add some reverb and delay so we have that "magic haze music aura thing" and have a slow rolling oscillation. We do the snappy baseline with the piano...staccato. Then that high pitched out of tune we turn into chords on the piano or we could do them as plucked violin/cello notes.

As for the vocals...well...it'd be fun to improvise. There's lots of things that rhyme with "2" and "too" (a classic combination)....as well as "you" and "do"

Problem with monotonous tasks and music is the brain gets going too fast. Enjoy...or don't!

Dance, Horse, Fish

2010-06-06T16:38:00.000-07:00

We danced, we rode, we ate.

Master Fence Theatre

2010-05-05T10:48:00.000-07:00

This scene of Master Fence Theatre takes place in my back yard.

Andrew: OH YEAH, that's awesome. Margo: What are you talking about? Andrew: This level is totally great, the fence boards are perfectly straight, you know it sure is nice to have a level. Margo: Yeah, it was nice of your Dad to get it for you. Andrew: In retrospect, it's quite astounding that I haven't had to re-do the entire fence considering how out of line these boards are Margo: So Herb was right? Andrew: Yeah, but we'll never tell him that. Andrew & Margo: Bwah ha ha ha ha ha.

Mackenzie River Adventure

2010-04-25T09:16:00.000-07:00

Look at that silly munchkin!

So we took a jaunt to the Mackenzie falls and what a productive day it was. Both Max and Olivia caught their first fish! (I wasn't quick enough with the camera to get Max's). I went for my first dip of the year to retrieve our one spinner from a rocky grave. All in all, I'd say it was blog-worthy if that is any measure.

Pre-class pump up music

2010-03-30T14:15:00.000-07:00

This keeps my muscles twitching while I sit at the computer entering marks.

Of Malt and Men

2009-12-13T11:25:00.000-08:00

Using a sabre saw (tiger saw - reciprocating saw - and whatever else you want to call it) feels manly under any circumstances. Max did a really great job trimming the window frame to make way for drywall. Later in the day Max got a small piece of dust in his eye while cutting a piece of drywall which required 3 separate but completely unnecessary doctors visits to extract it. Here is nearly the exact conversation that took place between Max and the hospital nurses as recounted by Margo.

Max: I have a black thing in my eye. I can't see it, unless I look in the mirror, then I can see it, right on my retina.
Nurse: (chuckles) How did you get that in your eye?
Max: Drywalling
Nurse: (laughing) When will you be finished drywalling?
Max: Oh, it'll never be finished

Yeah, even Max knows how good I am at finishing my renovations...har har. Big thanks to Patrick for helping me put up the ceiling and walls. Big thanks to "drywall lift" for being my mechanical friend.

Big thanks to Cranberry/Raspberry beer for having such a gorgeous amber color....you know you're beautiful....if only the Cranberry would relax a bit you'd taste beautiful too. Also I think I'm off on the gravity readings because this definitely hits you like an 8 or 9%....yeesh.

Brewquest 2009

2009-12-01T21:57:00.000-08:00

So the kids got their Lush "Bath Bar" which made a lot of bubbles and everyone was happy. Look at the pride on their faces, look at the classic Heppner nostrils flaring. Happiness is a good bath. Also, take note of the sleeveless sweater which Max decided to wear all day....hmmmm....YMCA anyone?

In terms of my own personal happiness, Brewquest 2009 required another chapter to be written today. For those not in the know, the time has come for brewing to rise to the next level (aka, I'm sick of kit beer). First up, after taking a gravity reading of the cranberry/raspberry ale it looks as though it has basically fermented out in 3 days. So I racked it to a secondary fermentor and found about an inch of the vileist trub (dead yeast cake on the bottom) that I have ever seen. Look below to scope it out, note that cranberries require the breaking of their skin to actually be eaten by the yeasties.

Thank goodness that the cranberries weren't pureed because this beer has a lot of hops which when combined with cranberries would completely overpower the old palate. After tasting the gravity sample I can sum this beer up in terms of the flavors in the order that they hit you: MALTY, RASPBERRY, HOOOOPS. Super malty start, then you taste raspberries and then the hops closes the show, this is by far the most complex beer that I have ever brewed (thanks for the help E!!!!!). Definitely not the sweet softdrink style I was imagining....it's got style and class. I'm going to let this beast sit until the final bits of raspberries settle and it finishes fermenting whatever was left....then bottle and let sit until New Years. Hopefully the hops, malt and berry will blend and mellow....it definitely needs some fizz. Should be sitting at around 6% alchohol after bottling.

My Strawberry Lager got bottled today, you can see my little yeast friends had their way with the strawberries. That's the last of the Belluz strawberries we picked....I had to make sure that they didn't find their way into a more productive recipe. Since the lager was originally going to be a simple kit beer, so I could have some easy drinkin' beer around, I didn't really plan ahead....but then I got bored so I decided to rack the beer onto some strawberries. Then I realized it lacked hops, so I added 2 tablespoons of Tettenanger hops tea in with my priming sugar for each 1 liter bottle in the hope that the aroma will permeate the beer.

Oh yeah, I also randomly poured honey into the fermenter throughout the primary fermentation...just to see what the yeast would do...so my readings and alchohol content may be off by a bit....but hopefully the yeast didn't eat all the honey so we'll get some of that sweetness. I think people are to yeast what Sequoia trees are to people....it's like the yeast love, they laugh and then they're dead...that's probably what we're like to big old trees just sitting there forever and sticking out their leaves.

As for the gravity sample....it definitely tastes like strawberries....subtle though (I added about 1.5 pounds whereas a super fruity recipe would call for 6-8 pounds). We're looking at around 4.5% alchohol on this one and it definitely needs bittering, without the hops it's like, Strawberry and blah....do we really need anymore blah? This whole "Coopers Pre-hopped Malt Extract" is not cool anymore. Now I have a fridge full of hops....do you think I can pull off another one before Christmas Time??????

Kids Update

2009-11-29T21:38:00.000-08:00

Obviously, this slideshow of somewhat blurry pictures isn't going to suffice in describing all the excitement that's been happening around here. But you get to look at the kids which is quite a bit more pleasant than looking at me or reading whatever random rumination is running through my brain.

What is missing in the update: Ongoing slow renovation - Finding a local brew store and brewing 2 batches of fruit beer - Choir concerts - Hide and Seek - Isobel's progress towards walking, eating a full course meal and fast track potty training - Dance training - Gingerbread house building - Children's growing obsession with Lush soaps and whatnot (Olivia reads the catalog every night) we finally gave in and both a bath bar today so tomorrow night the kids throw the baking soda/soap/essential oils combo in the tub and it fizzes and makes the bath bubbly and the air smell all nice and flowery.

Nah, this gets an extended rant. Here's the Lush Website. So we're in the mall (the kids and I) getting Mom her birthday present (sparkly silver shoes...that's what Max said she needed) and we walk by the Lush store. The kids want to go in it. I'm working on becoming a more relaxed, empathetic parent so I say sure.

The place is total sensory overload, you've got the hip dance music, colors of different soaps everywhere and 5 million different scents all assaulting your nasal passages every time you inhale. All the soaps look and smell like food. Some have honey combs on them and others look like bit hunks of chocolate. I can't really speak, I know I need to leave this crazy freakish mall world. I'm figuring my savior will be that the kids will annoy the staff by running around and touching everything, knock some things over and we'll leave.

Nope, no dice, the staff love kids. They encourage them to touch everything and then perform several different science experiments with them...Exploding a bath bomb, fizzing a bath bar, touching a gelatin strawberry Santa Claus who apparently also acts as a cleaning device. Now the kids are totally hooked on this and I was TOTALLY blindsided by the ingenious marketing. Everyday Olivia tells me the wonders of what she learned reading the Lush catalogue last night. When I put her to bed tonight I finally had to say, "I can not talk about Lush anymore."

Now that I think about it, this may be a good chance to make some soaps and stuff with the kids...that might be fun and capitalize on an interest....excuse me while I go google "homemade soaps with baking soda in them" (because if it fizzes...it's cool).

Sums it up

2009-11-16T10:01:00.000-08:00

So I turned 30. Lots of thought. I really thought this video, which one of my students showed me, sums it up.

Nude Modelling Crisis at Lakehead University

2009-10-27T18:31:00.000-07:00

I recently learned from a friendly visual arts student that the Visual Arts Dept at Lakehead University has had only had one model to draw all year...apparently many potential models drop out when faced with actually dropping their drawers and standing in a certain position for 1 to 3 hours.

At a rate of around $15 an hour, you'd think students would be flocking to stand naked in front of discerning artists....that's, like, a pitcher of beer an hour. And I know the value of beer at LU, many students use the substance before class to increase the entertainment value of their lectures.

Obviously, it is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT for the education of many that the residents of Thunder Bay learn to get naked and pose for money. Also, I heard from another kind student that people who are less attractive make for better art work....and soooooo I am considering it myself....the only question is.....in terms of trimming do we want "boreal forest", "prairie grass" or "desert landscape". Call (807) 343-8747 to sign up!

Taking a Bite out of Crime

2009-10-26T09:32:00.000-07:00

So, this week on my street. Neighbors smashing windows to steal their own family member's tools and also a young lady attacking a car parked in front of my house with a broken beer bottle, only to have someone jump inside it and back down the street with her laying across the hood. The guy pulls a quick 180 and flings her off the roof. I go over to do some first aid, she pops up, she's fine....the cops come by smiling and write some things in a little book.

So I had to turn to Giada for comfort....

Thanks to her cookbook and inspiration I made "Zucchini al Forno" - "Homemade Marinara Sauce" - "Mushroom Stuffed Pasta Shells" - "Steak and Feta Cheese Salad" over the course of 30 hours. Let's hope things keep happening, because golly gee I just had an amazing lunch with leftovers galore in the fridge!

Being a Man

2009-10-20T19:13:00.000-07:00

Heaven is two slices of Harry Bakery toast, Miracle Whip, salt, pepper and freshly sliced garden tomatoes (thanks Cindy). That's what I'm eating while I write this. Yum.

So, my 3rd and final child turned 1, a momentous occasion, a milestone...that little baby, born about 4 feet away from where she ate her first piece of cake is growing up. For some peculiar reason, this makes me question what being a man is....is it being a husband, father, worker, provider, example....am I really a man yet? Probably not. Is "man" simply a socially constructed phenomenon that we subscribe too? Probably not. Quite simply, as a man, what do I offer that is of use to this little girl: Snuggles, attention, walks in the baby backpack, back rubs, dancing sessions, crawling practice, voice mimicry. I don't know.

I recently completed Forrest Griffin's "man survey". Let me tell you, I didn't measure up. That's okay though. Still, though, look at that little sweetheart. What do I owe her? Does being a man mean confronting the all drug dealers in my neighbor because the cops won't do anything? Does being a man mean confrontation...fighting...does it mean taking risks and chances? There's just a tiredness...and a sadness building up. Why do people continually act this way? What do we do about it? I don't think I want to raise my children in a neighborhood like mine but then will anything change if we leave? Probably not.

I've been reading some books lately that include phrases such as "it's time to man up"....and I kinda thought that was somewhat sexist...or something...but there's truth in it. We run through our lives as though we are on a treadmill....a smooth gait, until we slip....and then we need to regain traction. I think that process of regaining traction in life is the essence of "manning up" or "womanning up".

Perhaps this seems somewhat dramatic.....but men love drama....c'mon now, WWE, UFC, landlord stories about tenants, MNR fishing regulation violations.....we love it, get used to it.

Heidegger

2009-09-22T18:17:00.000-07:00

Okay, I need some help here. Your interpretations of this phrase

"[Phenomenology] is concerned with allowing that which shows itself to seen from itself in the very way in which it shows itself from itself" (Heidegger, 1926)

I think it means, (using a person as an example) that if you can see someone the way that they see themselves, then you have found the true "them". So letting yourself view the truth of a particular phenomenon. You can see from an external perspective what the internal reality of the phenomenon is.....????

In Memorium

2009-09-19T18:38:00.000-07:00

Today our family lost a dear friend, a friend who transported various immediate and extended family over 430,000km. The little white car is currently awaiting the harvest of it's organs to support the life of another little white car...I see a gap in it's regular spot on the street...it was so tired that it literally would not start in the morning...only in the afternoon.

And also, MAX AND OLIVIA WENT TO SCHOOL ON DIFFERENT DAYS! And we move the mailbox daily just to keep the mail person entertained.

Back to the Grind

2009-09-14T18:42:00.000-07:00

Well, we're all going back to school. We're getting schooled. School....a breeding place for illness. A social jungle of intricate friendships. Look at the pictures of these children...teetering on the brink of a 12 year (not included post secondary) education venture. Godspeed.

Key to the Stone

2009-08-29T21:01:00.000-07:00

Man, you know how auto repair shops are shifty and peculiar and you always wonder what the hell goes on behind closed doors. WELL, the engine light went on in the "Baby Zoomer" and so I had to take it in....then I remembered...in Winterpeg there's a hard-ass climber who also has a garage and so I took my car in. TOTALLY AWESOME! Looked my car over, solved the problem immediately (stupid gas cap loose warning thingy was the problem), and then filled me in on what was up with the vehicle (FREE OF CHARGE!!!!!!).

I'm putting up their phone number and address (without them knowing or telling me to) because they rock and deserve more business than they can handle.

Keystone Auto Body - (204) 775-1985

View Larger Map

So, of course I got tuned up, with iridium sparkplugs (apparently there's no plutonium, but hey, maybe next time) and a tranny tune up (when your transmission fluid is dark brown, you know there's trouble to be had).

Now the Baby Zoomer is running smooth and ready to rock. I've had numerous bad experiences with "garage in my backyard" mechanics, crafty Mr. Lube salespeople (I just want an oil change and a chance to read my book....quit asking me questions) and also commercial garage wheeler and dealers (read: Midas, Factory Dealerships, etc.). Keystone had wicked, prompt service that was efficient, honest and to-the-point...so I say....Winnipegger's...if you need your car fixed...

KEYSTONE! 'nough said.

Ottawa

2009-08-22T20:17:00.000-07:00

Highlights from the Ottawa Car Retrieval Journey

1. 2 cheese platters at 30,000 feet

2. Seeing what life would be like if I was a yuppie

3. Driving fast, doing the duck and weave on one of the "Multi-lane Big City Ultra Fast" Highways

4. Listening to "Friendly Fires"

5. Driving from Sault Ste. Marie to Thunder Bay (GORGEOUS)

6. Drinking German beer, eating fire roasted Polish sausages, hearing a true story about an escape from a communist dictatorship with some random Romanians at Lake Superior Park campground.

6.5 Realizing I had no light and taking a half an hour to find my campsite in the pitch black after drinking German beer

7. Seeing Margo smile and drive away for her first ride in the "Baby Zoomer"

8. Remembering that we've been married for 6 years tomorrow and that this is our anniversary present (Cripes...I thought I'd forgot again)

8.5 Calling the car "Baby Zoomer"

Here's some Friendly Fires for you to listen to.

Cognitive Dissonance

2009-08-18T17:54:00.000-07:00

Look, it's our new car, barring a plane crash or severe "lying" on the part of the car dealership, it's ours. Now excuse me while I sit in the backyard and worry about all the various things that could go wrong. Just because I drive a slowly disintegrating 97 Corolla with 430,000 k's......that doesn't mean a newer car is any better.

Cognitive dissonance, it comes with alloy rims...

Concrete Jungle

2009-08-16T12:10:00.001-07:00

So...when you don't have enough money to finish your fence...what do you do? DEMOLISH OTHER THINGS. Margo has long awaited the removal of our concrete planters and so it began.

At first a sledge hammer was enough to break up the 4" slabs, Olivia assisted with the clean up.

However the massive 6-8" thick slabs in the planters required some serious strategy. Weird thing, I decided to split a bunch of wood and give it to the neighbors for their camping trip this weekend. When they returned all of a sudden one fellow jumps out of his van, hands me a survey bar and starts getting to work.....thank goodness because I was the laughing stock of the block with my minimal progress and maximal (sic?) struggles.

When I went to offer him a beer he says to me, "None of that homebrewed ****." Apparently my legacy precedes me and my most recent "Jalapeno Pilsner" was not well received. Hot peppers and beer do not mix unless the peppers are sliced and baked on top of some nachos.

Anyways, huge thanks to the relative of the neighbors...and don't let anybody tell you that you can't remove and split massive chunks of concrete with anything more than some scrap lumber, a survey bar (I call it a tamping bar) and a sledge hammer.

Rollin'

2009-08-15T19:20:00.001-07:00

To many pictures to post here nowadays so I'll begin with the latest and greatest. Not only did Olivia get to "trot" on her own for the first time, she also learned to ride a two-wheeler and so we went on our first family bike ride together....now both she and Eric are hassling me to go for a ride...apparently I'm the only one around this place that actively enjoys being lazy.

What's the difference between a trot and a canter? I'm not sure even though Olivia explained it to me. Something about how many legs are on the ground and ankle movement....it only took Olivia 7 years to eclipse me...

Family bike ride numero uno (sans M and I who were documenting) Max is very speedy on that tricycle...guess I've gotta get him some training wheels for his two-wheeler.

After months of persistence, falls, pain and drama...SUCCESS!

Beer Station

2009-08-01T14:28:00.001-07:00

And so the beer adventure begins....with the creation of the "Beer Station"...a housing place for brewing supplies made from recycling old renovation lumber and scraps. I think that most of the small containers in the picture contain expired acids and yeast starters...but they look cool on the shelf so they stay until I find an appropriate replacement. The "Beer Station" has a 6 x 5 gallon storage capacity (30 gallons of beer in various forms) however temperature control will require some creativity as it is rather cold in the basement.

Today I bottled 21 liters of beer, 6 liters of which I primed with local birch syrup...tasted pretty darn good at bottling so I can only imagine what age will do to this fine bitter. Thanks to Boreal Birch Syrup for making it. We'll see how it tastes. Also at the Farmers Market I talked with a local grain producer who has a batch of 2 row barley....so looks like Thunder Bay Local Beer Mission is on it's way...hee hee!

The picture below is a glass of my first attempt at homebrew (lager)....it tasted better as it got older but me and those interested were impatient and so we consumed the entire batch....I wondered why it wasn't fizzy....and found that it takes a week before the carbonation to meld with the beer....hmmmm, "Patience is a virtue"

Ride 'em, Cowgirl

2009-07-19T20:12:00.000-07:00

Olivia has a new love...horses. The progression started with My Little Pony moved to Barbie inspired equestrian antics. A birthday party that involved horse riding (Thanks Cindy) lead to Olivia searching out short novels related to horses such as, "Pony Pals" and also any of the "Boxcar Children" novels containing a horse.

So now she's taking lessons at Dreamfields...of course she couldn't hold her head towards the camera long enough to get her face in a picture...but that's alright. She really loves her lessons, apparently she did a ballet-esque move with each sweep of the grooming brush.

Like Temple Grandin says (I'm paraphrasing here) the reason the army used to good for young men is that they had to develop a relationship with a horse.

I suppose you could develop a relationship with a tank or a helicopter.....but it's not quite the same.

Beer update: Fermentation complete, beer is bottled, it actually looks like it might work out.

????

2009-07-16T18:59:00.000-07:00

Ah, okay, what's going on here....

The story begins a couple of months ago when Max decided to run into Olivia's room after brushing his teeth and start jumping on her bed. A routine was instantly established that repeated itself every night, again and again in EXACTLY the same way, EVERY TIME.

1. Max puts down his toothbrush, runs *thump thump thump*, and starts jumping.
2. Olivia yells, "I know what you're doing", walks to her door and yells, "Get outta my bed!"
3. Max yells, "NO"
4. Olivia promptly jumps into bed and starts wrestling with Max.
5. I attempt to break it up nicely and then finally tell Max I am going to his room to read his bed time story alone if he's not coming. That is enough to get him to run to his room.

Sibling rivalry, daily battles over attention, the knocking over of block towers, arguing over which Go Fish cards to use and the famous "Cross Races" where the children are on seperate sides of the house and run to see who can get to the other side first which involves the inevitable "bashing into each other" when they meet in the middle.

All of sudden, after 50+ nights of illicit "bed jumping" Olivia says, "Well, if he's going to jump in my bed every night he might as well just sleep in my room." ...hmmm. Max says, "SURE!" any sort of friendly gesture from his sister is like giving Margo a $3000 Winner's gift card. So now, tonight, after constructing the much anticipated bunk beds, the children are both happily sleeping together. Olivia offered to read Max a bed time story and take care of any troubles he might have, she also donates money to the Seeing Eye Dog foundation and returns people's "Teddy Bear Picnic" stickers to them in a Bouncy Castle....and so I say, "Wow, cool kid."

Beachin'

2009-07-13T20:53:00.000-07:00

Howdy ho, busy summer. Our yard has recently become the neighborhoods playground since we obtained a new swing-set courtesy of Margo "Bargain Hunter". We have many children, most of whom I have never seen, playing in the back yard. I'm learning to balance the "grouchy old man" part of my personality with the "they're kids, let them play" part which should emerge soon....

Had an excellent visit with the folks, here's some highlights from Wild Goose Bay!

Also, thanks to The Bulk Zone for helping me buy stuff, William Mares for writing "Making Beer" and also the "easy brew" videos from Craigtube .

Here's my first potential batch of home brewed beer undergoing some serious fermentation whilst dressed in a Marmot Precip Jacket....it's alchemy baby!

Father's Day Slideshow

2009-06-21T13:45:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is my "year in retrospect" father's day emotional slideshow set to Olivia's favorite Barbie music that she listens to constantly.

Crazy People

2009-06-19T12:53:00.001-07:00

We are crazy. Yep, that's right. I decided to ask the children what is crazy about each member of our family, and you know what, they couldn't think of anything which obviously means that everything is perfectly normal in our family. Seriously.

Lots of things have been happening but the children are too hyper to let me sit here and type. Apparently we will be graced with another Barbie movie for Friday night movie night......

Crazy Busy

2009-05-31T18:16:00.000-07:00

Wow. We just had a crazy busy weekend. I'm tired. Max recovered from his typical "I'm dying" cold, Olivia dealt with Max's behaviour and we somehow continue to exist. Fortunately we shared time with friends, ate steak, chicken and kebabs. I found a new love....Brie cheese, I stood in the kitchen and shoved delicious cheese down my throat while waiting for our dinner guests to arrive. Anyways, on to the pics.

Kite festival. Dismal weather as per usual (last year it was worse). I hate to be a downer but every Thunder Bay event has the same fare. Bouncy castle, face painting and waiting in line for 30 minutes for any one activity. Max had multiple meltdowns....but was redeemed by riding the roller coaster and flying the kite all by himself. Olivia waited in line for around an hour for her princess face paint. Looks good though. Almost as good as that hot mama I married.

SLEDGE HOCKEY! I had the luck to attend the last session for this year and it totally rocked. As you can see I bailed (often) but had a riot, hoping to play next year if we can swing it with the family schedule. When we get the league going I'll post contact and sign up information. Booyah.

Thesis Tracklisting

2009-05-28T08:21:00.000-07:00

I'm working on my thesis. It's almost done. Hurray.

This is my editing, creating Table of Contents, track changes, abstract writing musical accompaniment play list.

Old school techno, new school pop and the ever emotional M83!

Spooky Eye Mcgee

2009-05-26T19:38:00.000-07:00

So we got all of our eyes checked out at the optometrist...except for mine...and the doc said we were all good. But they gave Isobel these eye drops to dilate her pupils and it only worked in one so today she was, "Spooky Eye Mcgee" You can't really tell in the pictures because our house was rather dark amidst the rain and cloudy overcast sky and so her other pupil was pretty big. She had fun playing with the camera between shots though so it's all good.

In other breaking news, Justin is an amazing boulder climbing maniac whose fingers reached into the crack pictured below and cranked to the top with minimal effort while I fell multiple times and carved my hands all to heck. I like the little scabs, like slowly disappearing reminders.

Also, there's been daily de-railings and multi-car pile ups on the Max railway lately. It is advised that nobody ride on any trains which are commissioned on the Max railway as destruction is an inevitable component of every train ride. On a lighter note, the Max construction and dirt removal company has resumed back yard operations in full tilt. For all of your dirt moving needs consult Max construction. Max construction also provides worm cultivating services with daily product showings.

Well golly gee, it looks like Olivia is getting the short end of the blog stick again. Next time she'll get her own post.

Many Moons

2009-05-15T20:13:00.001-07:00

It's been many moons since I last posted some stuff. We're still busy! We had a lovely visitor from Vancouver, the soccer season has begun for the kids, school is slowly wrapping up and us parents our starting to think about our own personal recreation as well....less time for the internet means more time for the inter-world, the cyber-reality, whatever....the old train of thought is traveling a long lost track. Quick remedy for that is........PICTURES OF KIDS!

During his limited soccer career, Max so far has run off the field several times to pick dandelions, decided to fall over every 2 minutes and lay on the field and gone on strike.....however he showed up for every game so far. SUCCESS!!!!! HA HA! At one point when trying to convince Max to go on field someone suggested that Max was getting beaten by girls so he should go on the field....little did this person realize that Max was wearing purple nail polish and had recently approached the Hydro workers near our house wearing a Cinderella dress to inquire about the coloring of their trucks.......
Needless to say, we don't mind getting beaten by girls up in this joint (that could be interpreted in a variety of ways, choose the most PC one you can think of)

Here is little David Beckham himself

This little sweet heart is growing up fast.

Last but not least, we've got a 7 year old up this place....also this young lady is becoming an exceptional soccer player...she scored her first goal of the year this week however her soccer pics didn't turn out.....so we'll keep taking them until we get some good ones.

Springsproing

2009-04-26T12:21:00.000-07:00

Spring...it's a time to get busy. People get busy...in spring. We've got friends with new babies, new plans to get married, new racks of trad gear to place, new birch to carve.....we recently priced out new windows, a new fence....unfortunately, all these things are taking too long to get done, it's not quite time yet. It feels like it's time to GET BUSY but is it really time?

Is it Spring? We're acting like it's spring and so we sproing! We sproing up to new plans, new ideas, rushing to get a jumpstart on the season. Springsproing....when you get going a bit too early and the weather says, "Slow down, I'm in cahoots with the earth and I've been managing all the seasons for millions of years and you've only been around for 29 years so I can do whatever I want and you just deal with it."

Fortunately I'm too young and impetuous to listen to what nature is telling me so SPROING here's a collage of all we've been up to in the last week.

Kindermusik, Painting, climbing, playing, wood chopping, birth attending, high chair sitting, belaying, planting seeds, digging compost, garden planning, window shopping, tea drinking mania. Oh yeah.

Creative Toys

2009-04-23T20:06:00.000-07:00

Just when you thought that Montessori ideology was possibly the ultimate in "minimalist" toys, my children decide to create a new invention which rivals all others. Walmart, Loblaws and many others have put in bids to purchase this contraption, however OFH credit enterprises retains intellectual property rights.

Please place your orders for this wonder toy.

This next video was a failed marketing technique, since OFM has since decided to chose a more "reality tv" approach to marketing. Enjoy.

Post-Baby Brain Transmogrification

2009-04-20T17:32:00.000-07:00

Okay, it's time to get theoretically philosophical with very little evidence to back it up.

My theory on what happens to adults after they have a baby...as you can see, Isobel's not sure about this one.

The theory first popped into the old gray matter whilst walking in a Wolseley back alley (Winnipeg) on the way to the movie store. I thought that the stress of having a baby completely reconfigured your brain cells so that you could barely conceive what it was like not have a baby anymore. I couldn't remember...

As it has developed over the years, my theory is built on one overarching premise

1. Neurotypical adults (in this case meaning they don't have any sort of pervasive developmental disability) rely heavily on the frontal lobe of the brain to identify stimuli, process it and select the appropriate response. Then your frontal lobe generalizes everything and makes up rules for you to follow so that your brain doesn't have to process everything around it, it can just generalize and select a response for you unconsciously. So if you mistakenly identified a long haired, smooth skinned male wearing tight pants as a female, your frontal lobe relied on some general rules which are not applicable in all settings.

Of course, don't trust me. Watch this video and count the amount of times the basketball is passed between the people in the white t-shirts. Be sure to watch them carefully. Don't read any further until you do this.

Okay....how many passes did you count? If your answer is 13, then you're doing good.

Now go back and watch the video again without watching the passes. See if anything unusual happens. If you missed something important, than you are like quite a few people....hee hee!

Anyways, I don't know if that study (actually used for a real study) had anything to do with generalization. It just shows you that the almighty human brain has it's limits....although opposing digits and big frontal lobe are a deadly combination.

Back to the theory. Our brains develop these neural networks that cater to the stimuli we often experience. So we have a bunch of well worn trails in our brains.....the usual. Neurotransmitters get used to traveling the same old path and as we get older they get more entrenched. Essentially we get chemically addicted to our lifestyles so when a BABY comes along, you've got to do some major neural rerouting.

So long wine, cheese and a good novel all afternoon on Sunday. So long to the job (for those on mat leave) that defined your role in the world and how you made sense of it. So long sleep. So long free time. So long "quality time spent with your partner" and "relationship". Hello to crying, feeding, pooping. Hello to snuggles, laundry and projectile vomit. Hello to hating neighbors partying and cursing at sirens when they wake your kid up.

Now this is going to be controversial....that's okay. I don't judge people individually on their use of various services, their need to work, ya gotta have money, and so on. HOWEVER, there are a proliferation of options available for people who want to KEEP THEIR KIDLESS LIFESTYLE and have kids at the same time. Just because you choose to have children doesn't mean that you have to change what you doing.....right? WRONG!

The absolute difficulty of rerouting how your brain works, of being stuck awake at night, of cleaning up someone's poo for them, of having them entirely dependent on you, realizing that you have a new identity, of realizing that you aren't a bad person for not being exactly the same as you were before. Knowing that the well worn path in your brain is changing into something different. It's a thing of beauty and you aren't living life to the fullest if you don't accept it! If you chose to have kids....that's what you chose to do, that's what you wanted to do...so do it.

I think parents are afraid of their fear, frustration and resentment. It's all good, you're coming off a chemical addiction to your past life, and you'll get through it. You'll even get to do all that stuff again....possibly even with your kids. Recently Olivia astounded me with her trail walking endurance, she stayed way ahead of the rest of us pushing for us to continue, "C'MON GUYS, YOU'RE TOO SLOW!" That led into the fantasy of seeing if she could come scrambling with the Alpine Club this spring so I can train for mountaineering with her.....wouldn't that be wicked???

Now that my brain has been rewired (it takes no time for some, and years for others) I take a lot of pleasure in laying on the floor with Isobel and playing with toys. Listening to her little voice, my sensory system is addicted to baby sound and smell. I just walk around smelling her hair while I'm holding her and talking in a stupid annoying voice. It's complete chemical addiction again, I have a hard time going to work or leaving the house (I'm also lazy, so that contributes).

Of course, now that "baby" and "children" are hardwired into my brain what am I going to do when I have to rewire it as they grow up???????? Oh dear. Margo is already struggling with the pace at which Isobel is growing up.....

Artistica

2009-04-09T13:30:00.000-07:00

These are some suggestions from a "soon to be 7 year old" on things that superheros and spies should do, as well as some games that will keep them busy, "when they are not spying or anything like that."

1. Don't let the bad guys know that you are trying to get secrets from them

2. They always have to have a code name and a code number and a code color. My code name is Artistica because I'm really good at art and not many people know that. My code number right now is 567. When I turn 7 it will be 678. And my code color is pink and purple swirl.

3. You have to have really good hideouts

4. You have to have more than 4 people on your team. If you don't have 4 people that will make things a bit harder. If you only have yourself that's super hard and you have to be super fast.

Here's some games that spies and superheroes play when they're not busy, or "to keep them busy so that they won't start to squabble" -Pony games - Polly Games

Kids

2009-04-06T17:33:00.000-07:00

I really like this tune! My favorite line is "You pick the insects off plants, no time to think of consequences." Of note, our prematurely hatched Pieridae recently passed away which was quite devastating for Olivia. Max tried to comfort her, "I think I see it move....see Olivia, it's alive!" What a cute little guy. Sorry little butterfly.

I like that some students just made this video for a class and it got picked up by the band and they used it as an official video! It's neat to see people just putting on make up and singing their favorite song, for an international audience....of course there's the great keyboard solo at around 3:00 so seriously...we all need great keyboard solos in our lives.

The other thing I've noticed is that everyone is developing a penchant for slicing up old video and reusing it....like it's EVERYWHERE. I know I sound like I'm from the dark ages and there's probably already academic articles published on the constant recycling of old footage by youth.....but it's new to me so it's kinda neat!

4 on the floor!

2009-04-02T17:20:00.001-07:00

Happy BIRTHDAY MAX!

Hurricane Max

Apparently table manners develop at the age of 5....

The tooth fairy will also be delivering a little something to this serious young lady.....

Theme Song

2009-03-29T16:42:00.000-07:00

Our family has a new theme song, we sing it regularly! You can hear it too....just watch this video.

Blah

2009-03-24T18:04:00.000-07:00

After a week of runny noses and puking in Winnipeg....we survived. 2x700 kilometer drives with 3 kids in the back seat of a small Toyota and no audio system....we survived. We made it back to Tbay, avoiding the storm and impeding Manitoba flood situation and are persevering! The Five Alive Winnipeg Endurance crew would like to recognize Esther's raisin buns, Herb's fine sweet and sour meatballs, Margaret's Roasted Pepper and Sweet Potato Soup as well as Paul's famous BBQing as contributors in facilitating the Winnipeg Endurance Challenge.

We came, we saw, we threw up.....and blew our noses. Booyah. Here's some pictures.

Just imagine if dinosaurs prayed. What would creationists have to say about that?

Digging for fossils in the pit.....goggles required.

Who's a happy grandpa...

Uncle Ed.

Adventure Therapy

2009-03-12T19:45:00.000-07:00

The first Canadian Adventure Therapy Symposium went off with out a hitch! Still processing the injection of west coast mentality combined with fresh BBQ'd oysters and a campsite with a view of the sea (and mountains, and Washington).

Everyone in my family (except Olivia) got sick while I was gone, and I was totally wasted when I got home.....so we're all recuperating but here's some pics to keep the positive focus...

Hello little sailboat, where are you going when it's so windy?

Hello, delicious sashimi bento, you are sweet heaven

Hello Royal Roads University Castle building, you make the Lakehead U ATAC building seem like a bastardized version of higher learning.

Eclipsed

2009-03-02T22:04:00.001-08:00

Max went on one of his photographic bouts around the house (thank goodness our camera is shockproof) and somehow photographed his own eye.....which I thought was interesting, he is becoming introspective (for a 3 year old) to the point that the camera is not only his eye, but the camera also documents his eye.

As for my own introspection, soft white new hands on old wrinkled hands reminds me that the next generation will consume me like one wave passing over another....and that is a comforting thought.

Schlock

2009-02-27T17:50:00.001-08:00

You know when you have those times in life when you should just not talk for a while....this is one of those times, when I've been wagging my flapper to much and it needs a rest. Fortunately my children are all very vocal and so I can get by with relatively few words.....if I'm smart enough.

I can't wait for "Farmer's Market and Library" Saturday tomorrow. Now...if you will...more pictures of my kids....

Art de la Princess

2009-02-19T17:45:00.000-08:00

Our little lady is quite into art class, often making all sort of creations in her spare time as well. This post doesn't really do it justice but you gotta get a taste of the 6 year old mind....more of hers and her little brothers works to come in the future.

A "World" with a flying machine, turtle shell and something else

In this one you can see the "flying fish hook" coming out of the shell

I thought this was a rather peculiar fashion choice on her part, the horse decided to wear Barbie's shirt and thus she is covered by simply these suspenders. I believe that Barbie will be in for an interesting surprise when she begins riding her horse, as her apparel does not provide adequate support for such vigorous activity.

V is for...

2009-02-14T12:01:00.000-08:00

Lately there have been several events occurring which have all started with the letter V.....Valentines Day being one of them. Therefore I feel vicariously vindicated in putting up a volume of videographic images for viewing at high velocity. Pictures of good things, they're all kind of blurry, but they're good things.

Swinging Monkey

Jolly Jumper

Speedy Skiers

Tic Tac Towing Company

Delicious Delectables.....(Thanks Dad!)

2009-02-02T15:05:00.000-08:00

Long time, no post.....that's how she rolls nowadays. Fortunately, the fam and I got out for a ski session and Max got to try downhill skiing for the first time!

Here's the Quadruple threat, getting ready to ride the snoopy at Loch. Needless to say, we had no chairlift related incidents.....that's Mennonite efficiency, no doubt fueled by the days previous farmer sausage fest.

Olivia was skiing the Snoopy solo style, ripping it up. She said, "Let's go zipping" and also referred to herself as Lightning.

Max couldn't resist the opportunity to ham it up on the chair lift.

He rocked the slopes! More pics to come in the future!

"FEED ME" - TREVOR LOVEYS + SHAB RUFFCUT - VISUALS BY REBEL OVERLAY from REBELOVERLAY on Vimeo.

New Resolution

2009-01-01T19:29:00.000-08:00

It's neat to see the kids totally focused in these pictures. I thought I'd post something because the novelty of the Christmas presents is wearing off and despite having a rather rigorous entertainment schedule the last few days....well, the kids are getting rangy. So let us all take a moment of silence to remember Christmas.....and now let's plunge into the new year.

So, New Years Resolutions, the topic for today. I've found that people have generally stopped asking if I'm going to change anything in the new year. I recently read a postgraduate thesis on the experience of loneliness. This person found that loneliness is experienced when you find yourself at a place between who you are and who you want to be. A place where you are neither yourself nor the ideal you, you are no "one".

So I thought, my, that's peculiar that each year people would pledge to separate themselves from who they are in search of something better and according to the thesis, find themselves lonely for their own self......so I pledge to be myself and make sure my family knows that I love their "selves"...themselves....oh whatever, yet again I'm not an English Major.

Simple Christmas

2008-12-24T10:39:00.000-08:00

So this year we are not traveling to Manitoba for Christmas. Margo basically finished Christmas shopping in October. So we just get to hang out and eat and sleep and hang out some more.

It's pretty neat because you always think of the traditions your parents have when you were young and now that you're a parent you should have traditions too.....because you are the parents with traditions from your kids perspectives.....yeah. Ya know?

Olivia's Favorite Thing about Staying Home for Christmas: "I get to sleep in my own bed"
Olivia's Worst Part about Staying Home for Christmas: "We don't have good Christmas decorations for the tree"

Max couldn't answer the question he just kept saying silly........he does sing a very expressive version of "Little Toy Trains" since we got the Nana Mouskouri CD which I video recorded but Margo vetoed me posting it. However, here's some Christmas Pics!

You don't have to dream about a white Christmas in Tbay!

Borscht and Beer, Borscht and Beer,
Nothing goes together like borscht and beer
Hearty and delicious, with broth that's clear
So yummy, it brings to my eyes a tear
(I'm not an English Major....alright?)

Attending one of Olivia's many choir concerts

BABY Collage: Expressions of Isobel

Family Portraits

2008-12-17T00:21:00.000-08:00

Recently I've been waking up around 3:00am every few days. Since I have little control over this I figured it would be a good time to get some work done and put up some pictures. Recently, our good friend from the Fresh Aspect took some family pictures at the local.....oh no, the word fails me....the place where plants grow inside....oh man, that's what happens at this hour, you lose your vocabulary.

Anyways, this reeks of my style, we sent off all the Christmas card pictures without realizing that there was another folder of the "good" takes.....so I'm posting them. Here's us in all our glory.....man....hydrarium....biosphere....planetarium.....what is that place called again!!!!! AHHH!

Everyday Livin'

2008-11-24T19:00:00.000-08:00

As things slowly get back to the "usual".....it's nice to document the usual, because honestly, how unusual is it to be actually doing the usual.

Going to the farm

Friends

Having Naps

Having more naps

Baby Update

2008-11-07T18:38:00.000-08:00

Triple Threat

Chillin' in the Snuggly

C'est Halloween

Okay, so we've been busy and I haven't had the chance to upload pics....also the adapter that attaches the camera to the laptop is rather elusive....

Anyways, a brief summary of Halloween and my birthday.....awesome, the kids are engorging themselves with candy...thanks to my great friends we had a lovely wiener roast in my underused fire pit. Seems like we'll be able to do this "three children" thing as well as have a social life, sweet!

Isobel the Super BABY!!!!!

2008-10-15T18:47:00.000-07:00

BABY TIME!!!!!

Margo gave birth to this little sweetheart yesterday at 9:55pm! 7 pounds 14 ounces of pure baby. She's alert and totally poking around checking things out, eating plenty and making some great noises. Like "ACK!"

The home birth was totally awesome, thanks to Kat, Barb and Jessica for being totally great support during the labor. We are now truly Five Alive! I'll let the pics speak for themselves.

Super great big thanks to all our friends who have called or dropped by thus far, we're totally thankful for all of our awesome friends in Thunder Bay (and everywhere else)!

There's a Baby on the Way!

2008-10-05T17:17:00.000-07:00

Okay so it's getting close to baby time and things are exciting. While the belly is growing and Braxton Hicks are getting closer together, we're still trucking along as a family. Max still plays in the mud, Olivia still creates musicals with dance that revolve around love, fairies, sunshine and whatnot, I still go to school and Margo still goes to choir and manages things (and by things I mean almost everything)....so this post is dedicated to simple family life, enjoyable!

Ready to burst!

2 + 1 = Extra child fun!

Dirt, glorious dirt!

Who got what fortune????? I learned from Chinese takeout that I need to avoid tests, keep my ears closed and calm down.....oh yeah.

Triple Crown Climbing Day!

2008-09-13T15:39:00.000-07:00

So, my significant other says to me, "You know, you should go on a climbing trip." and so I says, "Okay". While I was unable to coordinate a multi-day crazy trip (nor did I want to because I end up missing my family after about 8 hours of being away), this Triple Crown Event exceeded all expectations and was totally great! Thanks to some realistic planning (with an initially unrealistic plan, courtesy of me) and some work schedule shifting by Justin, we ended up heading out of T-bay by 8:00 and arriving at Mt. Helen by around 9:15. And so it began.
After a rather sketchy, somewhat run out lead on wet rock, I set up the belay for Pitch 1 and Justin popped up it quite easily providing positive reinforcement for yours truly ("Oh wow, that was a crazy lead, oh good job Andrew, you've got balls....so on and so forth") so as not to embarrass me.

Here's a shot of the belay, nicely stacked rope hanging in a sling with the bolted anchor....it's not rocket science but it makes me proud to have neat belay.

Despite only having spent one day placing gear, Justin lead a textbook trad climb with excellent, well spaced placements on the second pitch, finishing the rock climb on and topping out. Then we scoped some excellent boulder problems located at the top of the cliff....barefoot (wet moss is quite lovely on the feet)

View of the lake from the hanging belay.

Justin did a CRAZY lead of a rain-soaked overhang (This is Indian Land) and after nearly bailing on it while I was seconding. I lead the mellow second pitch while Justin suffered the agony of painful feet due to belaying in technical, tight fitting bouldering shoes...the pic shows Justin rappelling of the climb.

After an absolutely amazing lunch of pickerel, roasted veges and rice (courtesy of Chef Allec) on the banks of the Nipigon River, we approached Dorion Tower and gazed on the awesome beauty of many bouldering problems which Justin could not scope last month because the falcons were attacking him relentlessly.

After a detour through boulder land and the Valley of Life (where Justin found a bird band, with no bird), we came upon Dorion Tower

Since we were kind of getting tired, I led the thing scared stupid (for a 5.6, it shouldn't be that bad) placing lots of gear while we listened to the chattering bats inside various flakes and cracks. Making a sound decision, Justin decided not to re-lead it due to the 'tired' factor and cleaned it, the pic is him rapping off the top.

A fox met us where the car was parked, probably smelling all the garbage that Justin cleaned up at the Nipigon River (stashed in the back of the car). I was kind of nice chillin' with the little guy for a bit before we left. Great day, solid climbing, good company. What more could you ask for? A cold beer, of course, so I ended up thinking we should try the Port Arthur Portside Bar and Grill, which NO ONE should ever try again.....bad service, terrible beer selection, decievingly small and not-tasty appetizer platter....BOOOOO. I'm sticking with Chef Allec next time and that's it.....

Hymer's Fall Fair

2008-09-01T17:47:00.000-07:00

I noticed that several folks dropped by the site for information so I've posted the link to the fall fair here for updates, location and all that! Click here!

The Murillo Fall Fair also rocks but the website link was dead the last time I checked.

Okay, so I fully documented the floor debacle and thought I'd put some more kid pictures up to refocus. Today we went to the Hymer's Fall Fair, which is close to South Gilles and features awesome food, animal shows and the wares of many local farmers......I'm not a pro at buying/eating local but golly gee I'm working on it. The kids had fun and I'm glad I didn't go to do work at school instead of coming along. Big props to Both Hands Bakery for their awesome pizza (that Margo and Max enjoyed greatly, while Olivia insisted on a hotdog...booo)

Max and the baby chicks (Olivia thought they were sooooo cute)

Making eyes at Thomas the Turkey....gobble gobble, when's Thanksgiving?

Olivia making a bead necklace and playing traditional games with a Fort William Historical Park counterpart

What fair is complete without a candy apple?

Let's just say.....he needed a thorough wash down after eating that

The Floor Epic

2008-09-01T16:56:00.000-07:00

So with some not so subtle encouragement from my significant other, I refinished my hardwood floors on which varathane is curing as I write. As a non-handy person, it was quite an adventure and so I much document the process. On Wednesday morning I dropped Margo and the children off at a friends cabin and ruefully glanced at the peaceful water and treed hills before returning to the task at hand.

Day 1 - Cleaning up the place

The initial state of the floor after furniture removal

The evil glue that hid under the laminate flooring

Where I removed a section of wall, plaster and whatnot

Absolutely vile little carpet nails....hiding in wait for a sheet of sandpaper to come by

So I get out the extremely toxic glue stripper and start spreading it out. The goop is going on but unfortunately I spread it too thin and it only takes off a small layer of glue.....in the process the handle rips off the glue stripper can and it splashes on my arm.....that is some crazy searing burning poison, ouch. Anyways after some trial and error it takes me a day to get the glue off all the sections of floor.

This is what the glue looks like after I take it off....toxic goo that probably led to the creation of some superhero....like Super (Glue) Stripper Man

Day 2 - Okay so the floors are stripped of surface crap and now it's time to fill in the holes, removal/punch down nails (4 hours worth of nails.....ahhhhhhh).....I went out and got some methyl-hydrate to clean and deactivate the glue stripper, borrowed a chop saw and found that a box of new 2 1/4 inch maple hardwood is $135!!!!!! Booo, so I went to the Re-store and got a huge box of maple pieces for $20, hurray for the Re-store. Spent the day preparing the floors for sanding.

The finally clean floor

My first patch job

My second patch job.....who woulda thunk it that there was a wall there before??

Day 3 - While I was supposed to work, I canceled my shift thanks to my very courteous manager and kept working.....I rented drum sander, an edger and lots of sand paper....if you rent equipment from the Home Depot be prepared for a HEFTY deposit. I took the stuff home all excited to actually start sanding and guess what happened?

My floor is like the ocean! It's got waves. The bloody drum sander wouldn't reach into the grooves. I went back to the Depot and got some 24 grit to grind down the high spots, but it was no use.

Sooooo, I used my good friend the edger to sand nearly half the floor. Needless to say, my Youtube sanding education, "Use an elliptical motion, work with the machine" did not prepare me for bending over and elliptically moving that thing until 3:30am over my whole floor.......but I got it done. I attempted to buff the floor with the finer grits but it didn't make a difference because the floors were still uneven....so I gave up....rough floors, it's rustic...I'm going for the rustic look really. So all I needed was one 24 grit, one 36 grit and one 60 grit on the drum sander.....for 370 square feet, that's not bad. The edger paper on the other hand.....I used a whole lot!

My final pic before I catch a few hours of sleep.

My sandpaper station that I tripped over while walking upstairs to go to sleep (it's a bad pic, I know)

Day 4 - Okay, so I woke up, cleaned, tack clothed, wiped and got rid of all the dust, started spreading varathane and then realized I hadn't done a good enough job so I cleaned again....doesn't help with there's accursed bits of plaster hiding underneath the walls that fall out at inopportune moments. Anyways I got a coat of varathane on (water based, satin gloss - dries fast and covers my numerous blemishes) and went to the cabin to enjoy a Steamwhistle and sit on the dock contemplating the universe and when I should put on the next coat.

I woke to this beautiful wood, and also to the realization that an edger cuts spin grooves in your floor if you're too aggressive. Oops.

There's my floors, I did it, I made it, and now I should probably move on. Special thanks to everyone who came by and laughed at me/brought coffee/drank beer/encouraged. Big thanks to the folks at Maier Hardware for so much advice and for selling me some great tools.....as well as discouraging me renting their pad sander which would have barely done anything to these floors.

2008-08-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

So, Olivia enjoyed cheer leading camp, I loved climbing with Eric and Nancy (as well as Justin and Chris today, although no pics) and Max loves playing in the dirt....Eric posted a nice pic of yours truly on his epic blog, The Fresh Aspect and I scoped out a trophy pike caught by my Uncle Pete in the lower left corner of Fly Pike. So I say a big cheers to the family and friends in my life! Hurray for you.

Eric throwing down on Zig Zag

Olivia throwing down a cheer at Miss Christine's cheerleading camp, Max throwing down a smile in the back yard (below)

2008-08-12T18:36:00.000-07:00

That's my boy! Max was keen to go paddle. He had a little paddle that he used to splash, cavort and generally make steering difficult, but after a while I did a brief demonstration and he paddled with surprisingly good form.......I guess it's called Surprise Lake for a reason.

Little Babies

2008-08-11T19:14:00.000-07:00

Olivia getting a taste of events to come

The only thing that would get Max to sit still is snuggling

We had a visit with Kai and Sage yesterday, those cute little twins, and it looks like our children are "baby friendly" at this point......good thing cause there's one on the way!

Visiting Cindy!

2008-08-09T20:01:00.000-07:00

The Two Snaily Princesses

Everyone should have a camper as a summer fort

Lovin' the Lizard

Shop at Max's Vege stand and Kyra's Herbs and you might see some of these plum eating, frog catching, cookie munching, chicken feeding egg hunters.........next time I need to get more pictures and rock out on the open concept piano!!!!!

2008-08-08T14:55:00.000-07:00

Cruising with the fam at Boulevard Lake
The first time I've subjected the entire family to a canoe ride with me!

Breakfast of Champions

2008-08-06T10:24:00.000-07:00

Our friendly back room spider was securing some Tipulidae for it's morning meal....although I felt that perhaps I should rescue the cranefly, I figure after working so hard our friend the spider should just enjoy the fruits of his/her labor!

Summer Entertainment

2008-07-31T07:45:00.000-07:00

Amidst the various slow moving house renovations we are engaged in as well as mild bouts of school and work, Max found the time to help me sort my climbing gear....Cranky the Crane Style. Getting used to my new camera, I find I take blurry pics....working on it though.

The laminate flooring Max is on is now stacked in the corner and replaced by some nasty looking hardwood.......