A Look Back at 2009: Hey, where'd the year go?!

Cam and Nenette have been described as anti-social hermits, so it should come as no surprise that we welcomed the new year not at a party, but on the couch in our pyjamas watching Futurama: Bender's Game and eating munchies with the kids. With family, food, and an animated "alcoholic, whore-mongering, chain-smoking" robot from the future, the scene was set for a rather bizarre yet fun 2009.

This year started pretty much as last year ended: Cam as the "instructor-whose-class-everyone-wants-to-be-in" in the Engineering Department at Red River College, Luc and Miranda as "the cute, brilliant Mayor kids" at Rockwood School, and Nenette as "chef, chauffeur, and general Keeper of Order" in the Mayor Household.

Like Canada Post, the US Postal Service, or is it Santa Claus?... anyway, like one of them, Cameron did not let the snow, wind, sleet, and -40C windchill of winter and early spring keep him from his twice-weekly runs through the neighbourhood. It's become a lifestyle thing, and his hard work is paying off. His back feels better, and he's become leaner. Unfortunately, Nenette can no longer deny the possibility that Cam may now have better looking legs than her.

In Feburary, Nenette accepted an invitation to write for the Canada Moms Blog, a new nationwide online magazine. Since joining the clever group of writers on the roster, two of her posts have been picked up for syndication!!!
As a result of her growing fame and fortune stalkability on the Canada Moms Blog and on Twitter, even the readership on her personal site, LifeCandy, has officially grown to more than just her cousins, aunts, and friends she's bribed and/or harassed to "read my blog!"

This summer, Luc turned 7, and like most 7-year-old boys, he's obsessed with Pokemon, Bakugan, Chaotic, his buddies Aidan C., Christopher B., and Ethan B., his Nintendo DS, and any video game he can get his grubby little hands on.
He loves school and has joined the Running Club, presented his Grade 1 Class Expert Project on How Potatoes Become Fries, stole the show as "The Herald" in their class's production of Robin Hood and the Golden Arrow, was on the Orange Grizzlies soccer team, and couldn't wait to start Grade 2 in September.
If you want to visit his blog, just go to Lucifer's Fun, where Luc posts his favourite things and videos he's made himself. There, you'll find his current fave music video MC Hammer's "u cant touch this". He was quite fascinated when he found out Hammer and Nenette were at one time following each other on Twitter. When Cam found out, he just did a lot of laughing... out loud... at his wife.

As for our girl, Miranda turned 5, started Kindergarten, joined ballet/tap/jazz dance class, and has become quite the social butterfly, often seen rushing off on playdates with her friends Abby M., Sydney and Chloe C., Lucy J., and August S.
She too has her own (pink) Nintendo DS and has been known to kick her brother's butt at the occasional video game, but her true interests lie in the realm of dance and Disney Princesses, namely Sleeping Beauty's Aurora.
Our pretty girl also has her own website at Mini's World, showcasing her fine works and creations. She's quite prolific.

Also, this year, our family increased by one. We adopted a kitten, which is probably not what Cam had in mind when he said, "Honey, let's have another baby." He should've specified human baby. Miranda named her 'Mittens' after the cat in the movie Bolt. (Luc got to name our previous cat 'Neo' -- he'd just watched The Matrix at the time.)
We got Mittens at our first stop, the Humane Society. Even though we had no intention of adopting the first kitten we found, Mittens climbed Cam, fell asleep in his arms, and claimed him as her very own -- to Miranda's absolute delight. Before we knew it, we were forking over the $120+ on adoption fees, and Cam was grumbling about filling out more paperwork than it took to bring our own babies home from the hospital.

The summer brought with it some awful rainy weather. But it also brought some AWESOME visits with family and friends: Cam's sister Connie and bil Don, my uncle Cesar, aunt Beth, super hottie-hot cousins Zandra and Chrystalle, Zan's beau Fran, my godsister Cyndi, her daughter Amara, and the whole brood, our friends the Franklin/Van Gorps, the Olynyks, the Dacks, and the Fernizes... so the rainy summer months weren't as sad and gloomy as they could've been.

Cam's backyard garden is pretty much a self-seeding feral tomato garden now. And it would've been *ALL TOMATO - ALL THE TIME!!!* this summer, if not for all the corn. You see, in the spring, Nenette gave Cam a container of expired popping corn (yeah, that stuff actually expires), and in his wisdom, he threw it all in his veggie garden because "the crazy birds will eat it". Well, they didn't, and we ended up with a corn forest. The overflow ended up in my front yard garden.
We didn't use any of the corn. We got 3 huge bags of grape tomatoes.

On the day before Halloween, Cam dressed as Zorro to all his lectures, much to the delight of his students. For Trick or Treating, our Wolverine and Robot Chicken ventured forth and brought back bags and bags of loot which they later traded with each other... and shared with their folks... whether they knew it or not. Hehehe.

The month of November was fun with Nenette turning 40, giving up coffee, and calling 911 for the first time EVER due to smoke in her basement, then doing something she never thought she'd ever do: cut her hair short. She liked it for about 2 weeks. Then she eventually got tired of looking like an electrified Dudley Moore every bad hair day. Not the look she was hoping for. So, she's decided to grow it all out. At the rate her hair grows at, she'll be back to long hair by March. Truth!
Cam however was very supportive and loves Nenette's new 'do. He thinks it makes her look like a whole new woman, who's still his wife. Like it's still Nenette, but looks a little not-Nenette. Like she's his twin sister. So, yeah, he likes.

Now it's Christmas, and we're ready. We've set up the tree and decorated the house inside and out. We've made gingerbread houses at school and at home. We enjoyed Cam's work brunch with Santa. We've finished all the shopping and have sent out the Holiday cards. Nenette looks forward to baking, and Cam and the kids are looking forward to the eating of said baking. The holiday parties are underway.

Miranda's been asking every "fat guy in a red suit" for all things Sleeping Beauty, and Luc -- our negotiator -- has been expounding to his parents all the reasons why having a Wii would be the best thing for EVERYONE in the family. Do you think they're trying to tell us something?

We wish you a wonderful holiday season and a happy, healthy and prosperous 2010.

Be sure to let us know what you're up to! We love getting email!

Nenette - nenette.am@gmail.com
Cam - cmayor@gmail.com
Luc - luc.mayor@gmail.com
Miranda - mir.mayor@gmail.com

Update 2009: Stay Tuned!

It's coming! It's coming! It'll be posted sometime on December 23rd.

The Girl Has a Green Thumb After All

I've attacked my garden much earlier than expected this year, thanks to the great weather we've been having. I've enjoyed seeing the campanula, lamb's ears, snow-in-summer, fern, jacob's ladder, archangel, hostas, peonies, and bleeding hearts come up. There are some other things in there that I don't remember the names of, but I know I put them there.
I've already added my favourite annuals (coleus and sun coleus), and I got a perennial daisy for Miranda and a couple of perennial thyme for me.
I decided not to expand the southeast garden bed yet (allowing the newspapers and mulch smother the grass for yet another year), opting to concentrate my efforts in the area under the livingroom window. I've already pushed back the garden bed with plans to secure the border with some tyndall stone (once I get my grubby hands on them!). I've filled in the area with mulch all the way to the border of the garden bed in preparation for a bench we plan to put there. It'll be nice.

There is nothing like getting your hands in the dirt and watching things grow. Seeing the colours, enjoying the changes, and being able to effect your environment ORGANICALLY is so much fun!

Okay, I'm obsessed. I admit it. I can be out there in the garden all day, planting and weeding. I have a very addictive personality, and gardening has become my crack.

Great Expectations or Delusions of Grandure

Okay, I really thought I was going to be able to post every week. Here it is May already, and when was my last post? MARCH?! Crazy!

I suppose the best I can hope for is a once-a-month update of what our crazy household is up to. And it helps if we had a camera. Yup. No digital camera yet. Cam says "soon". Ok.

Anyway, an update on our latest events...

Easter Dinner was a nice little gathering with both Cam's and my family. His two siblings and their families had previous engagements with their respective in-laws, but we happily entertained his mom, niece Jessica and her sweetie Valter. My sister Edna joined us too! We had ham, potatoes, veggie stir-fry, fried rice, and salad... oh, with fresh fruit or mint chocolate chips on Breyer's Natural Vanilla Ice Cream for dessert.

The weather's warmer, and we're all enjoying the sunshine. Luc's in mini-soccer every Monday and Wednesday, which he loves. His classmates (Genevieve, Andy, Adam, Liam, and Tiagh) and other buddies (Jack and Grace) are also on teams that he gets to play against. I also get to hang out with their moms who also happen to be my own buddies.
It's all really cute with these kids running around, with very little skill and not really knowing what they're supposed to be doing in the first place. Luc keeps getting distracted by the girls in his team, and when his coach shouts out his instructions or encouragement, Luc actually stops to listen. Not a good thing when you're the one with the ball! So much like his father...

After years of putting up with long hair, I decided to take the plunge and get a bob. For years, when I told Cam that I wanted a shorter cut, he'd say, "You'll regret it!", but this time around, he surprised me by saying, "It'll be a nice change." So before he could change his mind and talk me out of it, I went and did it. When he saw me, he said it was like having a whole new wife. At first, I thought I had a Nicole Richie thing happening, but my faithful girlfriends said that it was more like Renee Russo in the Thomas Crown Affair, so I was happy.
Miranda and I look even more alike now with our matching bobs. :)
But I'm thinking of growing it a little longer... man, am I ever fickle...

Last Thursday, my sister and I dumped our husbands for a night to watch a movie replete with half-naked, well-formed males gracefully clobbering each other with shields, spears and swords. Yup, we watched '300'. Definitely eye-candy! Not just for the naked males (although I was once again reminded why Gerry Butler is on the top of my Top 10 list), but also for the fabulous effects. The whole movie was filmed against green and blue screens, the fight scenes (although graphic) were very elegant and gracefully performed by the actors, and the storytellers were able to stretch a battle out to 2 hours without boring us to tears. There were some not-really-all-that-great bits, but on the whole, I'd recommend it.

Reading Week, Computers & Sly's Cheese Cake

Last week was Reading Week at the College, so Cam didn't have classes to teach, but he still had to mark labs, papers, and prepare the midterm exam. Despite all that, I managed to coax him out for an afternoon out with the kids and me.
When we got to the garage, the kids pulled out their summer folding chairs and sat down to wait. They looked so cute, Cam had to run in, and grab our Polaroid (yes, we have a Polaroid. Does that surprise you?). Wish we had our digital camera. The picture doesn't do justice to our kids adorability. :)
Anyway, we finally got our act together and drove off. We went to 7-11 for my Slurpee guy, then we drove to Starbucks for my soy latte and hot chocolate for the kids. We had plans to go to the Manitoba Museum, but that fell through when the kids fell asleep in the car! Cam and I bring books to read for just this occasion. We ended up going to St.Vital Mall (the kids' favourite place to hang), and read in the parking lot until the kids woke up. We all went in, had a snack, went to A Child's Place so the kids could play with the Thomas the Tank Engine display, and then we went to the Play Park so Miranda can slide and run around a bit (Luc just wanted to chat with is Dad). We ended a wonderful afternoon with take-out burgers, fries and zeros (Miranda's word for onion rings) from Daly Burger, our favourite local burger joint.

Can you really have *too many* computers?

Apparently, in this household, the answer is no. Last week, Cam had to use the computer upstairs to read his email because the *2* computers on the main floor were occupied. At the time, *I* was making dinner... you do the math.
Yup, as Luc quickly typed away on his computer (he's fast -- he'll be even faster when he learns QWERTY), his little 2.5 yo sis point-and-clicked her way through her own favourite websites. Miranda frequents the hottest sites such as noggin.com, cbc.ca/kidscbc, nickjr.com, and treehousetv.com. She laughs at the funny antics of Max and Ruby, and sings along with the Wonderpets. She's a clever girl, with a wicked sense of humor.
Nick Jr. has a radio webpage that plays all the theme songs on their shows. Miranda turns that on, puts on the green and yellow "dancing princess" dress, matching tiara and wand she got from her buddies Abbey and Genevieve, and starts to dance. This is also the same outfit she wears during her tea parties with Daddy and Lucai... can't wait for the day when she enforces the dress code with her party guests!

The weekend was very busy with Cam's old school buddy Brad's 40th birthday party and Luc's play buddy Jack's 4th birthday party. Cam and Luc went to Brad's on Saturday, while Miranda stayed home to take care of me (I wasn't feeling too well). On Sunday, I took both kids to Jack's while Cam finished some work at home. The kids had fun playing with the other kids and watching the show Jack's parents arranged for the little guests (Luc and Mim were too shy to take part). My buddy Sylvia (Jack's mommy) made a chocolate birthday cake which all the kids enjoyed immensely. She also made an INSANELY delicious cheese cake with fresh blueberries and strawberries on top for everyone else. Miranda snuck up and ate ALL the strawberries arranged artfully on the serving plate. I'm afraid to ask for the recipe -- I'd just make the cheese cake all the time and gain a hundred pounds.
We were the last ones to leave that evening. We definitely had a great time.

Playing Catchup - Part 4

February 10 marked our 12th year of the GOP (Girls Only Potluck). This is an annual event hosted by our fun and funky girlfriend Monique -- yes, she of the Fashionably Late NYE Bash -- and we always enjoy delicious food and lots of laughs. I brought Caldereta Rice, a vegetarian version of the beef caldereta my grandmother used to make.
This year, we had a lot of new faces attend the party, so Monique arranged a fun "get-to-know-you" game. She gave each of us a blank recipe card, and on it, we were to write 5 things about ourselves that no one else knew about. This was tough because many in attendance were my closest girlfriends to whom I'd already divulge many of my deepest darkest secrets. Wouldn't you know it... I found 5 more I hadn't told them! Mine were...
1. 1st ever celebrity crush: Donny Osmond
2. Wanted to be a singer when I grew up
3. Favourite song to dance to: "Shake your Groove Thing"
4. Dream Vacation Destinations: Greece and Italy
5. Used to practice martial arts called Sikaran
So, Monique gathered back all the cards and split us all up into 4 teams. For each team, she would read the clues from a note card depending on the number of clues the team requests -- the less clues, the more points. And from the clue(s) read, the team was to guess who this person was. From scandalous facts (dating one man only to end up marrying his brother) to verbal misunderstanding (Nucci's sounds like "new cheese" when out of context), we definitely learned a lot about each other. Well, I was in tears from laughing so hard!
Another good year, Monique! Kudos!

Hapunan is the filipino word for "supper", and on the evening of February 16, we treated a small group of our friends to an authentic filipino dinner. This hapunan is the first of several such dinner parties we intend to have... our house is small, so small groups are the ticket.
On the menu was Beef Caldereta, which is essentially beef stewed in coconut milk, served over garlic-fried rice, and tocino (seasoned pork). Yum.
It was nice having friends over. And we plan to do it more often.

End of an Era...

[Warning: if you don't want to read about breastfeeding, stop reading now! :)]

On January 25th just before we all went to sleep, I nursed Miranda for the last time. Am I sad? Yes, a little, because my little girl isn't my nursing toddler anymore. But she was ready to stop because she didn't really need it anymore. It was as if she was waiting for me to end it.

As for me, after nursing kids straight for 4.5 years, I was MORE THAN READY to stop. Now, my body is mine again. It's very liberating.

Playing Catchup - Part 3

The holiday season isn't officially over until the "Fashionably Late New Year's Eve" Bash. Our dear friends Don & Monique hold this event on the first Saturday after New Year's, and it's great because it allows people like us (who prefer to ring in the New Year at home in our pajamas) to get a second chance to celebrate NYE with friends.
We do the countdown, have champagne, and noise-makers. And they always have a theme. This year it was Pirates.

With the kids so young, and with us having no reliable over-night babysitting services available, hubby and I have to take turns going to the party every year. We go, have fun, ring in the new year, then return home quickly before we turn into pumpkins. This year, it was MY turn to go!

Anyway, as I said, the theme was Pirates, and I sadly did not dress according to theme. Or should I say according to the "Main Theme" of Pirates. Monique pointed out that there was a secondary theme of "People in Red", and I was wearing a red sweater.
I didn't have anything piratey to wear which is pretty pathetic. I'm hoping that their theme next year is "pajamas and slippers" because I would DEFINITELY have a costume for that.

Now, this event took place in the lull between illnesses. By Wednesday of the following week, Luc was feverish. I don't think I set foot out of the house for about 2 weeks after that until he was better.

Playing Catchup - Part 2

I got our greeting cards out early in 2006 -- and when I say "early", I mean not after the 25th. So, yay me!
In the past, I've really enjoyed preparing and sending out the cards complete with update letter, and you, our friends, have stated how much you enjoy reading them. But now that I have this blog, I'm having second thoughts about continuing that tradition. You all already get updates from me via this forum, complete with pictures! And we have so many friends we mail to each year, I'm positive that we're cutting down a couple of acres of forest.
So, in the interest of trees and my sanity during the holiday season, I will no longer send out update letters. You'll still get cards with a picture of my super-cute family though. But if you want to know what we're up to, just come to the blog... I plan to update at least once a week, even more, unless of course my husband and/or son bring home yet another illness to share.

Okay, back to my catch up from yesterday (see Playing Catchup - Part 1). As soon as my cards were in the mail, I started to feel that the season had started. We baked cookies and made rumballs. We also enjoyed the company of our friends during the various parties. The two parties of note were those of our very dear friends -- the annual Harms party on the 16th and the return of the Nuttall Christmas Party on the 23rd. I wish I had pictures of those events, but our camera was starting to act weird; besides, I went a little crazy on the nog at the Harms' and overate at the Nuttalls' -- not something I'd like captured for my great-grandkids to see... like many of the other activities with this particular group of friends. ;)

On Christmas Eve, the kids baked gingerbread cookies for Santa and set them out with half a glass of chocolate milk (Santa's cutting down on dairy). We also set out an apple for all the reindeer to share (yes, just one apple for all eight -- it's not good to run and fly on a full tummy!). They opened one present each (pajamas -- an idea I got from my girlfriends and their own traditions), and for their bedtime story, we read "Twas the Night Before Christmas".

Christmas Morning could've been better. Hubby was showing signs of being really sick. So, he parked his cute sick self on the couch and manned the remote control for the video camera to record his kids go nuts with their new loot. Santa was generous, to all of us. But the favourite presents were a big red robe (me), dvds of Odyssey5 (hubby), a Playmobil dollhouse (Miranda), and a video game called Animal Crossing (Luc). Actually, we all like Animal Crossing. We all visit the fictional town of "wETIM" almost every day. It got particularly exciting when our 2-year-old decided to chop down all the pear trees we planted. Luc wept. I replanted. Miranda will never have another axe again.
Since only one person can play at a time, the kids have learned how to take turns. And they've learned how to help each other, which is nice.

Anyway, I digress. The hubby managed to pull himself together enough to come with us to Christmas Dinner at his brother Les's house that evening. Our sis-in-law Carol's sister makes the turkey every year, and it's really good! We're the traditional bringers of green salad and the balsamic vinaigrette everyone seems to enjoy.


We always have so much fun at these family dinners. Luc and Miranda get to spend time with Gramma and cousins Aylen and Aaron. And we, alleged adults, get a chance to chat it up with hubby's family and Carol's family. We host the family Easter and Thanksgiving celebrations, so this is a nice little change of pace.

Well, that's it for our Christmas festivities. The next day, our camera wouldn't work. I'm just glad it gave us Christmas. So, until we get another camera (which will hopefully be soon), you'll just get my ramblings. I'll try not to be boring. I swear.

Playing Catchup - Part 1

It's been a crazy couple of months. And to those who usually visit my blog(s), I apologize for my lack of posts.

We've been a very sick family. Since Christmas, we've been knocked down by one form of illness or another. In order of appearance...
- Hubby gets a cold... almost misses Family Christmas Dinner at his brother's.
- Luc gets a fever... just days after starting school ... 8 other kids in his class got it too.
- Hubby brings home the flu (despite having the flu shot).
- Luc gets flu from hubby... misses more school.
- Miranda gets flu... becomes full blown bacterial pneumonia.
- Nen gets flu... and must take care of 2 sick kids at the same time... not fun.

We're now at near-healthy point, healthy enough to visit my mom-in-law on Sunday.

So, here I am playing catchup. I still have to update one of my websites, start getting traffic to my new website, and finish writing the latest Makana Aloha Hula newsletter.

And I need to get back to the rhythm of decluttering the house. I'd gotten a lot done just before New Year's. Since Miranda was born, we'd been sleeping on our futon on the floor, the frame dismantled and in the kids' playroom. On Boxing Day, tired of living like squatters, I assembled Luc's new bed and set up our futon frame, all the while sick hubby moaned and groaned as his kids ran circles around him downstairs. I then started in on the kids' room, boxing toys to ditch, bagging toys to go to goodwill, and separating yet other toys to donate to the Children's Hospital (Luc's very excited about this last option).

Anyway, gotta get back to doing that stuff. I have some great photos of our December activities to share.

We started the month off with my hula school's Hoike (show). It took place on December 3rd, and although it was a short show, it was a fun afternoon. We had a mini-luau, and everyone (students and parents of students) brought a finger-food to contribute to the potluck. Guests were encouraged to wear aloha-clothes. My family, of course, were in on the action.
In true Island Style, Miranda insisted on taking her shoes and socks off, and proceeded to run around the dance studio with the freedom and abandon only 2-year-olds seem to enjoy. She looked really cute in her little muu-muu.
Luc's aloha shirt is a staple of his wardrobe lexicon so it was like any other day, but he looked super-cute nonetheless!

I was so proud of my hula students! They all did so well, despite several cases of "first performance jitters". You wouldn't think they were nervous.
I've decided to take a bit of a break from teaching. I hadn't stopped since I opened the school in April 2005. So, for now, I'm just a stay-at-home, web-designing mom. Besides, it's nice to not have to leave the house when it's -36 outside on a Sunday when I'd rather be at home cuddling my family!

I'm considering starting up again when the weather gets warmer, and do a spring term. I love teaching the adult class. They are a lot of fun, and the workout is always great.

I look forward to teaching my kids though. Miranda's showing some interest already. She copies me when I dance sometimes, which is really cute. She's really into dancing of all forms. Luc seems to enjoy a more Elvis-esque rock theme.

With Luc in nursery school at Rockwood Elementary, we've found ourselves adopted into a whole new family. Having one's child in a neighbourhood school really gives your entire family a sense of community that I'm sure my parents never felt when I was in far-flung St.Mary's Academy. As part of the Holiday Season activities, Luc's school held a Family Winter Fun Night at our local community club. There was caroling, baked treats, hot cocoa, crafts and holiday movies. It was great fun seeing neighbours and friends, and having the chance to wish them all a Happy Holiday.

On December 17th, we decided to put up the Christmas tree. With the kids' help, hubby put up the tree and the lights. I then stepped in and, with the kids' help again, decorated. We need more ornaments. Better ones. Not these dinky little snoopy-out-of-a-box-of-cereal trinkets that we got during our starving student days. The best ornaments on our tree are the beautiful ones my sis-in-law Linda gave Luc when he was a baby and the candy canes Luc insisted we buy and hang on each branch.
Just seeing those cheap baubles when I put up that tree every December mentally transports me back to those starving student days -- not a good feeling to have during the Holidays -- very bad feng shui.

On December 20th, Luc's class had a Sharing Performance -- in lieu of the traditional Christmas pagent. It was just their class, so it was a small group of parents and grandparents enjoying the overwhelming cuteness of these little 4-6 year old kids. And boy, were they ever CUTE!
Luc's teacher, the fabulous Ms.G, is a wonderful teacher, and we're so fortunate to have our son in her class. She understands the kids and is very empowering. She also runs a tight ship, and has earned the respect of all the children. The class of 23 has only 5 girls, yet chaos would never reign. Look at this picture. Could YOU get 18 boys to sit still in a line like this? :)

Luc Makes a Cookie...

Luc uneats a cookie! Check it out...

Mommy's Birthday

Yes, it was my birthday on Sunday the 5th. And no, we didn't take any pictures, so I have none to post for you. As you can see from most of my entries in this blog, there are few pictures of me and this is mainly because I'm almost always the photographer. This doesn't bother me... I love capturing my family in their most beautiful moments.

Anyway, I digress. Where was I? Oh, yes, my birthday. I turn 37 this year. I guess getting older isn't such a big deal to me because I feel like I've earned my 37 years, I'm really happy where I am in my life, and I feel good in my own skin. It doesn't hurt that I still look young enough to get asked for ID once in a while! :)

We didn't make a big deal out of our birthdays this year; 39 and 37 aren't major milestone years, and hubby and I have always preferred to celebrate our special days at home in our pyjammies with our little family. Besides we were both sick!

I did have some "me" time in the form of my hula classes for the day. I quickly downed some Neo Citrin (the old formula, not the allegedly "new improved taste" that actually tastes polly wolly crappy to me), and had a great time with both the kids' and adults' classes. I came home afterward and crashed on the couch. Then I got up and posted some blog entries, then crashed again.

My family gave me 2 dvd collections for my birthday present. Seasons 3 and 4 of Newsradio, my absolute favourite tv show of all time! I could watch that show over and over. It was never the same after they lost Phil Hartman, so I'd say that my collection is complete.
We watch it at every dinner. Even Luc has come to expect Newsradio for dinner after watching Seasons 1 and 2 for the past few months. Often, it's just on in the background while we chat, but it's there giving us the occasional giggle. :)

As usual, my birthday cake was the 2nd half of hubby's birthday cake, which I enjoy because who needs the extra calories?! :)

Daddy's Birthday

Hubby celebrated his 39th birthday this year. In my totally unbiased opinion ;), I think he looks wonderful for his age. Unfortunately, he was still sick, and silly man that he is, he decided to go in to work anyway. He ended up making his illness worse... he lectured all day and ended up with no voice.
But when he got home, he got presents from his family, and we treated him to his requested dinner: burgers and fries.

After dinner, it was time for cake! For us, it was double chocolate Deep 'n Delicious Cake! Yummy! It was Luc's choice for his dad.

Miranda was a little uneasy about the candles and singing in the dark (would you blame her?), but she liked having chocolate cake with her chicken strips!

Halloween 2006

Halloween was another fun and fabulous time at our home. The days before the event, several inches of snow fell on our city, and gave our kids another challenge to overcome to get to their yummy candies (as if the cold weather wasn't enough!). In preparation, I shovelled the snow... hubby got terribly ill the day before Halloween, and didn't improve at all (it's been almost a week, and he's still sick!). The one positive of this is that I had the honour of bringing our kids out for their Trick-or-Treating this year. It was a very special time as this was also Miranda's first year going door-to-door. She was in for one fantastic surprise!

Luc always knew that he was going to be a black cat again. Miranda decided that she was going to be a princess, but when she saw the cat whiskers drawn on her brother's face, she wanted to be a cat too... actually, a pink princess cat.

We went for about a half an hour, starting early to avoid the cold chill that comes as the night progresses. We started on our block hitting Randy's house across the street, and going as far as the Harms' house a block away. When Luc said he was cold and Miranda complained of being tired, we headed home. The kids were satisfied with their loot.

We were very surprised that so few trick-or-treaters visited our house this year. We only got 13! I think that's an all time low. That's okay... more candies for us!

Anyway, the kids got to eat a few of their treats when they got back. That was cool. Miranda loved her suckers and freezies. Luc headed for the KitKats and Twix bars. They crashed very soon after... a combination of sugar low and very busy active day!

Miranda's Bob

Miranda's beautiful chestnut brown with golden brown highlights hair was getting long and stringy, but because I didn't want to chance another ear-cutting situation, I took her to Hairdo Zoo.

She of course cried through the whole thing as if she had nerve endings in her hair... so much like her brother at that age... but she said that she looks prettier now and that she was happy to get her hair cut... the yellow sucker afterward certainly didn't hurt. :)

Luc The Photo Artist

Luc's become quite the photo artist. He has a different perspective and isn't bound by rules of taking photos. Here's a small sample of his shots...

This is a picture of me coming up from the basement. I'd gone down there to pick up a couple of printouts. Our printer's in the basement. I think they were recipes. As I rounded the corner, I saw my cute little boy with our camera. He said, "Say 'cheese', Mommy!" I'm sporting my "Happy to see my son" smile.

This next picture is of hubby and me. Our son asked us to pose for him. Aren't we cute?

And here's one of Miranda's snake...

It's Definitely Fall!

Here are some pictures of us preparing for colder weather. Hubby's doing some weeding and cleaning of the veggie garden for the winter, while the kids look on and occasionally "help".

...and here's a cute shot of Miranda in her wet-weather gear.

And of course, it wouldn't be fall without the many change-of-weather colds and flus. Hubby's had a flu shot, but the kids and I have not. I'm still not convinced that flu shots are any good. Hubby's already had a couple of colds. Luc's had one, and I've had a couple also. My colds never seem to last as long as the ones my hubby gets... I wonder what that means...

Anyway, during my last bout, hubby took the kids to his mom's place for a while to give me a chance to rest and maybe catch some sleep. On the way back home, Mims fell asleep, so when they got home, he placed her on the other couch close to her sleeping mom.

Library Tuesdays

Hubby's Tuesday teaching schedule allows us to take our time and drive him to work that day. The kids love going in to see the college (it's a bunch of beautiful heritage buildings that have been restored and modernized in the heart of our downtown) and send Daddy off on his day. The fact that there's a Tim Horton's is probably a pretty big motivator as well.
Here, Miranda took advantage of Luc's busy donut-eating to have some exclusive Daddy-time. Daddy of course ate it all up. :)

Since we're already downtown, the kids and I make our way to the newly-remodeled Millenium Library to check out the books and dvds. Luc is also registered for the 10:30am story-time where he can hang out with other kids and enjoy stories read to him.

We then rush over to CityPlace (formerly Eaton's Place, when I was a teen) for apple muffins and chicken wings, before we bring Luc to school for 1pm. Here, the kids share an apple juice at the food court. Aren't they cute?!

Conversations with My Baby Girl

Here are some new Miranda words:
"decause" = because
"scayee" = scary
"lucai" = Kuya Luc

Miranda gets very upset with me when I tell her that I love her...

"Miranda, I love you."
"No! I wove you."
"But I love you."
"No! I wove you."
"Can we love each other?"
"No! I wove you."
"Okay."
"Yay!"

Thanksgiving 2006

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration this year. Hubby's brother Tom was in town and able to share in our menu of roasted ham, green salad, carrot salad (made by Linda), fried rice, steamed beans, pureed yams, and brownies with ice cream (made by Carol).

The clan was almost complete. The only family missing were Ed (who had already accepted a Thanksgiving invite at his brother's house), Melanie, Connie and Don (all in Ontario).

Uncle Tom is always a hit because he gets right in there with hugs and kisses. Luc loves being tickled a little, and rough-housing, and Uncle Tom is ready to play along. Miranda freaked out though. She's not used to so many people in her house. She ran into Daddy's arms and grabbed on to his neck, not letting go until she was fast asleep.

Meanwhile, Aaron made himself comfortable in the family room where we moved the GameCube. We have a very limited number of games, but he seemed to enjoy himself with the seletion we have.

Jessica brought along her sweetie, Valter, whose company we've come to really enjoy. He contributes to our many crazy stories and discussions with stories of his own. And Jessica's very happy with him, so we're all pleased.

Miranda woke up from her nap in time for ice cream and brownies. I think she has an ice cream radar. Okay, maybe all 2 to 5 year olds have ice cream radar. She didn't have any dinner, but I figured that it's a special occasion so I let her have her dessert before her dinner. She didn't have brownies though, and that's really weird because she loves chocolate. She had lots of ice cream... oh, and a little bit of garlic fried rice with soy sauce.

We then adjourned to the livingroom for some green tea and some wine that Tom brought with him. Miranda spent the rest of the evening in Daddy's arms beside Gramma, who she also adores. It was a fun evening with family. We all had a chance to talk, catch up, and really enjoy each other's company.