Half a Loaf of Oastler

Someone loves Christmas!

2011-12-27T23:36:00.001-05:00

Yeah it's official! Despite a less than stellar experience with Santa, Stanley loves Christmas. He sort of enjoys unwrapping gifts, hates shopping, and loves Christmas carolers! At Rideau Centre while Christmas shopping the carolers had no audience until Stanley forced us to stop, he ended up capturing their attention and getting a lovely private show. It was really a wonderful little time for us, the boy and I assume the carolers as well!

He hates hats and mitts and hasn't really had a first SNOW experience yet, but it's coming soon. We have a nice sled and a cozy snow suit all ready to go.

It's been so good having the holidays off, spending some quality time with Cara and the little man as well as our wonderful families! We love how Stanley bounces between family so well, he's a very friendly little guy with a nice smile for the ones who care for him.

He's really accelerated the words! Suddenly there are new words showing up almost daily, he has a wonderful little voice.

In the best I can remember order: Mama, Dada, Duck, Baby, Bark, Moo, maybe Bye, maybe Please, Mommy was a new one tonight, so fun!!

He's fast now

2011-12-07T09:03:00.002-05:00

I see you Daddy!

Coming to get you Daddy!

Ahhhhhggggg!!!! He got me.

Mobility

2011-11-20T22:38:00.001-05:00

So yeah, the little guy is now VERY mobile! Not a full crawl but a very stable scoot!! Favorite new game is "I'm gonna get you!" which I win all the time, cause I rule.

He's pretty slow on the solid food uptake honestly, he's got the chompers but little interest so far, we'll see how that goes over the next few weeks. Hopefully the teething will slow down now that the majors are mostly in and he can focus on food instead of pain.

Cara and I had a wonderful night out to a Tapas place recently and a Sushi dinner planned! Love the willing babysitters, thank you!!

Suppose I need to mention Halloween, he went as Yoda, looked quite dashing....

Slacker!

2011-10-17T20:13:00.001-04:00

Ah geez! Like many thing in life it doesn't take much to get in the habit of not doing things....

Lots of time has past and life is just ticking on by at a rapid pace. Things are great though and we're having a lot of fun!

As the pic above shows our little man is practically mobile, this is scary!! Time to baby proof the house...

He has also started to develop an appreciation for my favorite hobby which is fantastic! No, the machine wasn't on.... But I think he appreciates that I'm starting with the basics, besides I think Ikaruga is not the best starting point for his gaming adventure.

In other news (woohoo! Other news!!) we have been very fortunate on the babysitting front! People have been willing to help out and we've tried to take them up on this. One great event was a Scrabble tournament that Kim set up.... we even did pretty well, despite some stiff competition.

Lots of updates!

2011-09-12T21:26:00.001-04:00

Well, I really waited too long for this update, there has been lots of great moments and events and I fear I won't give them their proper coverage... But I will try : ) for you, my loyal reader.

First up is the very recent above, the man didn't want to nap..... at all.... and decided to play instead. This is the very cute result.

Next up is the reason why having a kid is dangerous, they seem to be marketing baby clothes directly to me.... The Batstan, Superstan, Green Stantern, Spider-stan.... Yeah.... SWEET!! Oops! Just noticed I already posted the Batstan pic, others to come soon!

We recently went to the Experimental Farm, he was quite overwhelmed I think!!

Finally we have the man's first haircut!!! I guess it went ...... well. Cute!!!! He looks like he just signed up for the army in Stripes and is getting a brush cut.

Teeth are for biting

2011-08-23T12:58:00.001-04:00

Since the last post our brave little soldier has been toughing out the teething... Not ideal!!

But he met with success and has 2 little chompers now. He also has a cool Batman outfit.

Sitting rules!

2011-08-08T10:05:00.001-04:00

Just look at the new options it opens up! This is Stanley in Costco helping with some BBQ shopping. So cool to have him like this, he's growing up fast! Holy smokes...

He also got to spend a bunch of time with his Great Gramma, Grampa, Gramma, Uncles, Aunts and cousins this weekend. Very fun time, but it took it's toll.... His sleep pattern is wrecked cause he's been having too much fun.

Sitting!

2011-08-02T10:15:00.001-04:00

Cause lying down is for suckers!!

Yeah, in addition to the sound if the letter D and now B, Stanley is sitting! In the last week he went from falling a little bit to barely falling. Of course as nervous parents he is usually in a padded environment for this stuff.

He also had his first lake experience! The little guy did great, kicking, splashing and of course smiling and relaxing with his cousins.

So much!

2011-07-14T23:46:00.001-04:00

Well, the days keep trucking by and we're certainly in a pattern just like the little man. Must apologize for the lack of updates, it seems the pattern doesn't include them.....

Summer is here and we've gone to a cottage, had a little BBQ and had some great time outside. We're also managing a few home improvements, but the progress is VERY slow.

Hmmm, what else is new... He's laughing more, is starting to like some lite horse play, and has outgrown his infant car seat... Might even be starting teething, though no teeth yet!

2011-06-13T12:58:00.001-04:00

Best bib ever! Makes me laugh each time I see it, thankfully he can't read or I'd be worried about his ego....

Not a lot of new stuff going on but he's doing well, smiling lots and being less stingy with the laughter, which is great. Seems the key is that it needs to be a mild surprise, if the surprise is too big you get big tears. I am not allowed to sneeze any more for example.

Had a great dinner out this past weekend to celebrate a special birthday, went to the Urban Element where you and your group of friends work with the chefs to create a gourmet meal that you then eat. Fantastic night!!

The big man!

2011-05-23T11:58:00.001-04:00

Well Stanley just keeps on keeping on, he hasn't stopped growing, it may be that he just has one big growth spurt since birth, not sure.

A few huge steps recently, he can now roll over and has done so 3 times! AND he now laughs, which is just amazingly cute.

Recently I took Stanley on a long walk on Elgin while Cara was busy. Of course he fell asleep quickly, the real excitement was when he woke up.... Thankfully I quickly won him over again. I notice I have a lot of his 'angry look' pictures posted, please know that he is rarely angry, though it's SO CUTE when he is!

Sick.....

2011-05-02T10:25:00.001-04:00

Tougher days than usual lately! The poor little guy has a stomach bug that is causing him some grief for the past week or so.

Thankfully he's getting better and is not miserable all the time, but still.... Not a fun time for the little guy.

Here is a pic of him being tough and smiley in the face of being sick.... then a coupe pre-sick boy pics that are cute.

In other news we had a baby raccoon visit! Tough to see in the pic, but he's there... Hopefully just passing through!

The Good, the Bad and the Sleepy

2011-04-11T09:19:00.001-04:00

Getting Bigger!

2011-04-05T17:04:00.001-04:00

So, the little man is closing in on 3 months and is doing really well! He has doubled his weight already, outgrown most of the clothes we have for him and is mastering the art of the well timed smile.

This week he's not sleeping as well as usual, but his usual was insanely good so hopefully this set back it just temporary. He also finally met Damon and Michelle this past weekend, had a great time with all the family of course.

In other news..... there really isnt much other news! Cara and I are attempting to cook more meals at home, that is a very tough thing to do! I have to say that I am really the bad influence there.

Quite pleased about summer being here soon! Looking forward to more time outside in the sunshine and probably re-doing part of the pond as a fun (fun?) backyard project!

Tough Choices

2011-03-15T22:01:00.001-04:00

So, it seems that parenthood has a lot of tough choices. The latest one is a biggie.... do I, as a loving father support the boy through the many embarrassing moments that life will throw his way? Or should I do my best to catalogue these moments so I can hold them over him and solidify my position as a ridiculous and often difficult to have around Dad.....

I wish I knew what to do....

Oh My God

2011-02-28T10:07:00.001-05:00

Growing and crying

2011-02-23T00:14:00.001-05:00

So it seems our little man is going to be a big man! Or at least he's starting off that way. He's already over 4 pounds above his birth weight and while he is more pudgy, he is quite long or I guess tall. His hair is growing in nicely and appears more blond than brown and his eyes seem to bounce between green, blue and brown.... I'm hoping for green, it's cool.

As the pic clearly shows he is a Jedi in training, he is also super cool and already has a handsome grin (I'm so proud!)

I apologize for the lack of updates, my blogging time has been replaced by work... I also apologize for there being only one subject here lately, in my defense he is big news!

We've managed to get out of the house often, so far his favorite place is the Pump! What a surprise.... We've also taken to ordering African food in, well pick up anyway. We love African so having this again makes me quite happy!

I'll also post a picture as a warning to all my readers, DO NOT get on this boys bad side! He will tell you if you are on thin ice!

Big Trip Out!

2011-02-09T13:20:00.001-05:00

So, we took our first mall trip this week and little man did great! The rumors are true, car rides put baby to sleep... Love it!!

Big Day!

2011-02-04T23:41:00.001-05:00

So, I have no new pics for it, sorry. But, today was the first time that Stanley smiled at me, with eye contact, while he was awake. There have been smiles, some full face huge ones, but never with eye contact.... SO SWEET!!

Also, the little fella was amazing tonight as we stepped out for Brandy's going away party, had a great time and the man slept very well for the whole time we were there. Yeehaw!

Sleepy!

2011-02-03T04:05:00.001-05:00

Fun pic I was told I needed to share. This is our little man mid-yawn. We still have to get a pic of his now famous Mr. Magoo face.

He's doing well seems to be largely out of the growth/tears spurt, though he likes to remind us that he is still able to cry and mess with us.

2011-01-31T04:26:00.001-05:00

No, no no... He's not sleeping in this picture, he's faking it to build up some sort of a false sense of accomplishment in his father. I can't begin to imagine what for, he and I already made plans to buy a PS4 and a 720.... I'm worried that he is already smarter than us..... : )

Ah well, I suppose he may really be asleep there, just hard to be optimistic, he's having a growth spurt which means that he's feeding ALL the TIME, how big will he get?? Pretty big is my guess.

Ok, one more pic!

To sleep or not to sleep

2011-01-27T12:55:00.001-05:00

Well the little man has developed a pattern of having no real pattern, sleeping for between 10 minutes and 5 hours at a time. He has had some really good days and some days of tears, but overall he's doing great an appears to be hungry all the time and wants to be held all the time. Very cute!

Big trip out!

2011-01-21T17:40:00.001-05:00

So yesterday was a big day for the family. It was Stanley's first visit to the family Dr. and his first trip out since coming back from the hospital.

Of course this was all being done on very little sleep, so please keep that in mind as you read the story....

Fortunately the appointment wasn't until later in the day, so Cara and took advantage and got some little naps in. Upon rising it was my job to pack the diaper bag. (I should mention it is actually the worlds coolest diaper bag, thx JF!). I pack all the diaper bag essentials: diapers, wipes, cream and off we go!!

The man travelled very well in the warmed up car and the snug car seat, quite pleased at that! We get to the Dr office and when it's Stanleys turn we have to strip him down cause he's going to be weighed. Of course he had a dirty diaper so thank goodness I had the diaper bag! But I actually left it in the car, so off I went. When I got back I began the process again and sure enough he starts to poop when there was no diaper on so now his little outfit is a mess. Recall what I said I brought with me? No extra outfit!! Rookie mistake.... So off I go back home to get another outfit and bring it back...

While gone it seems that the adventure continued as the little man, mostly naked continued to poop and then even sprung a leak... So Cara and the good Dr. had some clean up to do and it was not pretty. Poor family.....

Quite a little adventure and a lesson learned about what to put in the diaper bag, it's more than just diapers, it needs to be like a portable boyscout, it needs to be prepared!!

Hmm what else... Ah yes, Doc. She is managing ok, better than expected actually, she finally got her wish and we're in bed all day, but at what price!?!?

Ok, one last cute pic....

4am?

2011-01-19T00:06:00.001-05:00

Hmmm so there is a 4am still? I thought it stopped happening shortly after university.

Seems it is still around and now it can have way more tears. Oh yeah, way more.

The man's first night transitioning home was pretty crazy, little guy couldn't settle down and was up for way too many hours in a row.

The picture below was NOT taken at 4am.

Stanley!

2011-01-14T20:42:00.001-05:00

Too tired to write much, here are some pics!

The waiting

2011-01-07T00:40:00.001-05:00

As we wait for the arrival of the little bundle of joy.... Due date Jan 18, but I'm thinking things will move along sooner... Please enjoy some pics!

On the baby front, we are mostly all prepared now, well as much as anyone can be I suppose. Big thanks to all friends and family, please keep thinking good thoughts!

2010-11-30T12:58:00.001-05:00

Last night the crib was assembled. It was a bit surreal and I really enjoyed doing it. I think Cara left me to work on it alone cause she knew I was looking forward to it so much, she's so sweet! Plus the unveiling to my beautiful wife was really fun.

Slow down!!

2010-11-29T10:26:00.001-05:00

Time is really moving far too quickly lately, it seems that every night is booked with something and the list of jobs to do before baby grows and grows even though they are being completed. So yeah, life is busy and shows no signs of slowing down and despite the total lack of blog updates I am confident that I someday make it a habit to post these more regularly and more frequently.

So yeah.... Some recent good pics... Fringe benefits of Cara being preggo... And Dad got a new puppy!

It's about time!

2010-10-08T22:44:00.002-04:00

Look at this a new post! This one is being typed on the iPad which I am loving... AND I convinced Cara that she wants one too. Ok, actually the iPad convinced her, but still.

Not sure where to get started, I suppose with the most fun story I have... Baby had hiccups the other night! Oh man was it ever funny.... After 5 or 6 hiccups the baby was clearly unhappy and unleashed a fury of kicks. Sadly this didn't solve the problems cause the hiccups continued. Just like mom!

Lots of other stuff has happened since summer started, Jamie and Mel got married, same with Alexis and Dan, then Ross and Liz, Montreal trips, cottage trips and a visit from Japan!

Also I went to Toronto for work, took some memory lane pics...those will have their own post.

OMG

2010-08-20T22:54:00.001-04:00

Well we heard the babies heartbeat today for the first time! That is an amazing experience.

In other news I am WAY behind on posting and I actually have lots to post about.... Very soon, promise!

Two Arms and Two Legs

2010-07-13T22:59:00.004-04:00

Well holy smokes!! What a week it's been.... I'm not sure what I expected from the ultrasound, but I gotta say that seeing the little one moving around, giving us a wave and sucking his/her thumb was beyond expectations.

My favorite quote was the technician commenting on how there are two arms and two legs... that was very funny.... I'm literally at a loss for words and not just being lazy with my post.

The whole thing is suddenly quite a lot more real. =)

thanks for all the congrats and keep up those positive thoughts people!!

2010-07-06T22:48:00.000-04:00

Stuff and things

2010-06-03T23:53:00.001-04:00

Things have been busy this last little while dear reader. There has been no shortage of emotions. I won't get into the details cause it's the public Internet and all but holy smokes. Looking back on the last while the one thing I can say I truly appreciate is how lucky we are to have such a wonderful group of friends and family to share the ups and downs with.

Onto other stuff... The picture above is from this past weekend when we were visiting family (you know who you are!). We had a great time with everyone and really enjoyed the boat races! Turns out we have quite the group of aquanautical design experts in the family.

Ultimate season has started again, love the fris-bee or flatball as a friend calls it, great to get out there and run around, seems in my old age I have a tendency to gain weight due to my lifestyle..... Weird, didn't see that coming at all.

My last story before I sign off tonight is one of serious heartbreak. We finally bought a very nice ceiling fan not long ago and being he amazingly handy man I am I installed it....succesfully.

The only issue was a nice buzzing from the dimmer light switch, so I swapped it out for a normal one and just like that..... Nothing works. Dammit.

Ok, one more update... The jerk squirrels are back and I continue to struggle with them. I want them gone from the face of the earth, but will settle for just rebuilding the front porch like we planned any way. Boo!

Oh yeah, congrats and good luck on the upcoming move and baby Ben and MC! Yeehaw

Summer?

2010-04-26T23:28:00.001-04:00

What a strange spring we've been having! The picture for this post was taking in MARCH if I remember correctly..... and it's on a patio in Ottawa. That just shouldn't be possible, but I sure love that it was.

I've been taking pictures of cool stuff so I can post about it, here is another cool one, this is the tie and card my old team got me when I changed positions, SO COOL!! I'm going to get it framed soon actually, is gonna look awesome as all Boba Fett stuff does. Speaking of Boba, I heard that Empire is 30 years old now. Holy crap.

2010-03-01T19:47:00.002-05:00

ok, it's been some time since I updated the blog last.... I haven't even achieved my very attainable 1 post per month target.

Sad.

At least I update more often than Chris Mantil, the Chris Mantil blog never gets updated at all!

In my defense, what can really compare to the Cuba vacation? It's tough to come back to reality after vacation. I think if we do another one it needs to be for a month, begin in January and end in late April.... hmm, not sure how to make that a reality.

Seems many people are unaware that I also run a "Nerd Blog" it's the Dragon Punch link to the right.

So, the olympics have come and gone.... and holy moly Canada did GREAT!! Go Canada!!

Other small notes, I'm loving the regular family dinners that have been happening lately, I hope it continues, it's so easy to loose touch and get caught up in the day to day. There is never a shortage of things to take up time it seems!!

Last but not least we're seeing more of the foljs in the pic above.... so that is nice!!

CUBA!!

2010-01-19T22:16:00.004-05:00

Well our Cuba trip has come and gone and it was fantastic!! Congrats to Julie and Garry on their very fun wedding of course (the reason for going in the first place).

The hotel was very nice, the food was better than expected (this is a country with limited resources of course) and the company was top notch. =)

Highlights of the trip were the excellent staff, the Mexican Restaurant, the fresh butter, fris-bee on the beach, the nightly (very cheesy) shows and the simple fact that there was no snow. I can really see myself becoming someone who tries to get away yearly to a place like this. It's a great reward for another good year and what a way to start 2010!!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-23T12:30:00.001-05:00

Please enjoy some pics of the best gingerbread men ever.

Onviously this should get you in the mood for the holidays, I do love this time of year, turkey, family, and presents.....sweet!

The Star Wars

2009-12-01T23:37:00.002-05:00

Well since Ben won't blog about it I guess I will.... a group of us went to the Star Wars concert and it was good!

Hearing and seeing and actual orchestra play all the Star Wars themes was awesome! Huge surprise (to us any way) was that Anthony Daniels was MCing the thing! Very cool and actually quite cheesy.

Please enjoy some pics of nerds/fans

Movie stars?

2009-11-23T23:42:00.001-05:00

This is what we came home to tonight ..... Lights, cameras, and ACTION! We couldn't figure out what exactly this was for or which high powered celebrity was there, but clearly it was "something", more news when we get it.

Oh yeah, the last time this happened it was for a Tori Spelling tv movie, so you know, our hopes are high.

New stuff!

2009-11-22T23:18:00.001-05:00

So, still using the phone for updates, so far so good though I don't kid myself into thinking this will be a daily update or anything....

New stuff! We went to Montreal for an out of town date and to visit Nate, Christine and the kids, so sad that sickness got in the way of the visit (we really missed you guys!) the rest of the trip went well though, we got a great deal on the hotel by booking through PriceLine. Gotta give Cara credit for that one.... We stayed at the Intercontinental and had a great time. Montreal is such a beautiful city too, food, drink, sites ....... All wonderful.

Scrabble

2009-11-09T23:16:00.001-05:00

The other night Cara and I played a game of Scrabble, because she's Cara she made it theme Scrabble and the theme was Cuba..... SWEET!

Thriugh the game she was winning, in my defense she does tend to read thousands more books than I do and it seems I was drinking a bit faster than her. In the later part of the game there was a certain truth that was revealed to me. I'm posting a pic of it so you can analyze the scene for yourself CSI style..... the pic reveals why I love playing games with her and why I always loose.

The Magic Ticket

2009-11-04T23:01:00.001-05:00

So last week was a bit stressful. I fall very neatly into one of the high risk groups for H1N1 and according to the 24/7 media coverage was going to burst into flames if I didn't get the vaccine.

So I bought into the hype and made my way to a clinic to get the shot and put my mind at ease. The thing opened at 2:30 and I got there at noon..... Should have been safe right? Well there were hundreds of people ahead of me and I heard the line started at 6am.

So we all waited for them to pass out the numbered tickets..... I overheard they were handing out 350 of them.

As the folks slowly made there way down the line I'd hear updates about how they handed out 200 already and bow they started at 850 on the tickets and were almost at 100 so they clearly rolled the numbers and were almost out.

They got closer and closer and then at 3:15 they got to me. I made it and was 209, the LAST person to get a number and the 150 people behind me were very unhappy. Along with my number I was told to come back at 8pm for the shot.

When I got there at 8 I found they were at 120 and that every ten people were taking about twenty minutes, it was going to be a long night. I confirmed with a nurse that it was cool to go get some groceries and come back in an hour or two and was told "yep!" so off I went.

I got back at 9 as luck would have cause when I got there I was told it was now closed (!!!!) cause piles of people from 120 and up never showed. Thankfully I am wicked charming and got in but man o man...... Why did so many skip it? Those poor folks behind me!

And that is my story

iPhone blog post part 2

2009-11-02T18:09:00.001-05:00

Ok, that first one went ok, I have less control over formatting but there is a strong chance I'll post more often... tough call.

Do you know what these pics are? These are pics of the times, and they are changing. To be more accurate and specific, this is where the Sam the Record Man big spinning records sign was. Yep, it's gone, torn down, never to be seen again. I was actually pretty unhappy about this, it was one of my favorite landmarks and should have been declared a national heritage site or something, first the arcade goes and now this.

Been a long time!

2009-11-01T22:56:00.001-05:00

Alright, I'm trying out using the iPhone for blog updates.... Will it work, can I
upload pictures? These questions will be answered soon. For some reason the browser in this thing doesn't recognize the text part of the blog admin, so I'm using an app to try and get this to work. Once it works I even have a couple things to write about!!

Summer time!

2009-09-15T22:49:00.004-04:00

After a full summer of rain rain and rain... we finally got some great weather! Lucky for me it actually came at a time when we went to the cottage and did some camping.

In a yearly tradition there was a sweet mustache/beard competition. As you can see from the pic I was the clear front runner despite excellent late finishes by Paul and Chris (pictures pending). Obviously the beard competition was the highlight of the trip, though I guess some would point out that there was a rib cooking competition that Paul won... not sure if that was rigged or not.

The locals and other cottagers didn't seem to hate the lightening bolts, but I think it's fair to say it did concern them.

Can't really say too much about the Atari trio here... I love my family. This wasn't even planned.

Camping at Frontenac was FANTASTIC too! To go swimming in a Prov. Park lake this late in the year was totally unexpected and very nice. Great to see the family of course and we had a lot of fun and of course great outdoor food. We also got to enjoy the wildlife saw a bunch of deer, heard wolves, owls and of course frogs and fish... oh yeah! even a water snake... cool.

the things you learn

2009-08-17T22:57:00.002-04:00

I just discovered a really handy use for GPS on my cell that I didn't really think of before. Buses. If you are taking a bus to a place you aren't familiar with you can use the GPS to keep an eye open for the upcoming target intersection. Very cool.... and it saves you from actually talking to and depending on strangers. I suppose this is both good and bad actually. You won't meet new people this way, but it is nice to feel in control.

In other news I had a wicked dinner today!! A long time ago there was a place at Bayshore called the Great Steak and Potatoe Company, it was awesome. Well I found the same place again (basically) it's called Charley's Grilled Subs or something... different name, exact same place which makes me wonder who ripped off who here (if anyone). Either way, a Chicken Philly sandwich fried up right in front of me along with some fries with seasoning salt. PERFECT. I am avoiding fried these days but if you add seasoning salt I can't resist.

No pics this time please enjoy the words at least though.

HILLSIDE 09!!

2009-08-03T17:14:00.005-04:00

Hillside has come and gone once again. This summer was another great one but it sure had the potential to be HORRIBLE. They called for a lot of rain... like loads and loads of it.

Cara and I got there in good shape and well rested (thanks Chris!! more on the visit below!) and for the first time we had LOADS of time to spare! What a shock that was!! So, we get to the camp site and start to set up the tents when we find out we have no fly for the tent. FRIG. So off we go to Canadian Tire, Wal Mart any where to find a fly or a new tent! We found a decent tent actually so that was cool, but it ate up some cash and loads of time. We also got a pic nic table enclosure which turned out to be invaluable to the weekend, breakfast and Scott's happiness and general mood.

The music and food was awesome as always, the biggest surprise was that through all the rain storms we never got soaked. It was the most well times rain storm I have ever been a part of! The only casualties were Brandy and Steph who decided to relive Woodstock with a nice mud fight. =)

Check out this video, it was one of the scariest things ever. Watch the whole video with the thought that we were about 20 meters from the "incident".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQE_JbE2zRU

Here is a list of the bands that we really enjoyed, I'm sure I missed some but these ones are all ones I would keep an eye open for. Dehli 2 Dublin in particular really impressed, so fun for a festival crowd!!

The Grates
Dehli 2 Dublin
Fred
Winter Gloves
Clues
Witchies
USS
Kae Sec
Library Voices

The other big happening at Hillside was the overcrowded tent site beside us caught on fire while no one was there. One of their tarps blew into the fire and went up like a wall of fire!! It was INSANE. We lived to tell the tale though and put out the fire. I even got to pretend to be the hero. (glad I am not a fireman though)

One the way to Guelph we stopped off for a visit with Chris! He showed us the sights, his campus, local pub and even let me win at pool. An excellent host! thanks Chris!!

Also went to a birthday party today!! Wicked cake and a very nice time!!

2009-07-12T21:22:00.003-04:00

Look at me, posting an update before the month is up. My goal is to always post at least once a month, I often miss that goal.... but sometimes I actually make it!!

Decent amount of stuff to post about this time, first is a big congrats to Elissa on her Grad, way to go!! Cara and I need to get a better camera so this nice blurry pic is the best one I have. =)

I've also come to really enjoy the glory of living downtown, check this out, first up is the coolest poster ever. Cara and I saw this while we were walking around our neighborhood and REALLY wanted to steal it cause it is just so cool. Sadly a week later someone else stole it and now it will never be ours.

The next one really had to be captured in video. I have a video of it.... it's glorious. Sadly the blog site won't let me upload it... weird. We saw this right outside the window at the Pump, just some dude waiting for a bus. So the guy was listening to music we think.... but he was totally rockin, full swing head bangin. Beautiful.

Upates galore!! New things and stuff and pics!!

2009-06-14T12:09:00.005-04:00

Are you ready for this? An actual update about what's been going on??

First up is this GREAT pics of the boys, can you tell which one tends to have more energy and which one watches and marvels at the whirlwind that is his brother? I love this picture cause it really captures the insanity and the glory.

As usual the food, conversation and fun were all in great supply! These family get-togethers are something we always look forward to. If only we could get Damon to move closer... or if scientists could finally get moving on teleporters.

Next up we have Brandy's birthday and Drink's gig extravaganza! What a fun night.... As usual the crowds came out and the Rainbow had more friends than new faces. Drink and Joe's band put on a great show and I can't wait to see these guys again!!

Also spent some time at Dad and Lynnie's cabin, it's coming along REALLY well, looks fantastic!! Even helped them move a nice big cast iron stove. SHOCKED that moving it was actually not difficult, we had lots of people to help with the work and that was essential.

In the pic you can see Lynnie showing where the kitchen counter will be. =)

Last but not least we have race day!! So proud of my girl here... she ran FAST! We saw her off from the starting line and she even though we have a short cut she almost beat up to the finish line! Awesome day!!

stuff and things!

2009-04-30T23:00:00.003-04:00

well, I actually don't have a lot to write about. (surprise!)

Got some cute pics from Easter though, we had a VERY fun time with the family and even though I was way better at finding the eggs than the kids I decided to let them have most of the fun. I am an awesome Uncle.

Been seeing quite a few movies lately, saw Observe and Report, Adventureland and Monsters vs Aliens. Not a bad pile of movies! I thought Adventureland was the best of the bunch, but I really wish the previews made it look like it was a drama with funny moments rather than a comedy. Cause man, this is not Superbad. Great drama though... =)

Observe and Report was also pitched as a movie other than what it was. The film is dark. Best I can do is compare it more to Cable Guy I guess. Some parts are SO MESSED UP!! Holy smokes.

The only one that delivered what it was advertising was Monsters vs Aliens... no surprises there, fun movie.

I guess I'm no Ebert... but I hope you have enjoyed the in depth movie reviews.

2009-03-30T18:32:00.007-04:00

OK, I finally have a lot of pics and stuff to write about!! Lucky you!! I'll try and make it worth the wait... first the bad news. I set my phone camera to take pics in lower res so the pics are tiny. Not good. Worst part is that one of my favorite pics is now harder to really see and appreciate, it's the one of Cara actually playing a game in the basement AND LIKING IT.

So St. Patrick's Day has come and gone and like a person much much younger than I actually am, I took the day off and headed out with Cara and friends for some beverages, food, live music, and good times! It was a great day, change of venue from the Heart and Crown to Patty's Pub this year was a good one since the food was better, but the crowd didn't quite match up. In fact at one point there were as many babies on the dance floor as there were ladies.
Fortunately the beer was just as good (despite plastic cups!!) and the friends were in good supply!

In other news we got the back yard sorted out this past weekend, finally had some great weather and we made the most of it. VERY happy to report that all the fish are alive and well, they actually look like they gained weight over the winter, though that makes no sense at all. Best new addition for summer 2009... the rabbit face beer bottle opener. SWEET.

2009-03-12T21:08:00.002-04:00

I have no news. It's sad but true... life has somehow been really busy but without photos.

I did see the Watchmen recently, does that count? Probably not....

Updates!

2009-02-08T21:51:00.004-05:00

I suck at the updates lately.

In recent news we finally went skating on the canal! It was a great day, my feet totally hurt and I am no good at skating at all.

Also went to a new restaurant with Dad and Lynnie called the Mongolian Hot Pot. Wicked tastely meal, you get to cook the food yourself in this broth. I will be back there.... oh yes I will be.

There has been further battle with the squirrels. They moved into the roof of our front porch AGAIN. I took a look at the problem and decided a clear cut approach was better than this piece by piece approach and I finished ripping out their floor, which is also the entire first layer of roof on the porch. The little jerks.

No news in the ongoing Dig Dug battle, my wicked score stands still, but the heated competition seems to have died down and Jeremy hasn't been on the machine as much as before.... calm before the storm? maybe.

Happy Holidays and other stuff

2009-01-05T20:43:00.003-05:00

Yeehaw!! Well, the holidays are over and I didn't post at all. Also took very few pictures which is not ideal as I work to earn my rep as "one of the hottest blogs out there" (Chris Mantil)

Christmas and New Years was full of friends and family, good times, good food and then more good food. I had a great time thanks to everyone!! It was great to see Chris Mantil again, he is one of my blogs biggest fans and he maintains his own blog as well. On it he adds all the art work he creates while in school in Toronto. http://mantilminute.blogspot.com/

New Years this year was spent with the Scales clan, it was a full house and I have NO IDEA how Ken and Darleen do it. What a wonderful time.

The only thing my holidays were missing was a big Chinese food meal, gotta get to that soon!! I have a craving.

2008-12-13T11:57:00.003-05:00

Woohoo!! 71 months.

Yep, public affection warning here folks Cara and I have been dating for 71 months! Time is going crazy fast but it's been fantastic!! First friends, then dating, living together, engaged, married, house, lots of great friends and a cat. Life is good.

2008-11-19T21:26:00.003-05:00

I guess the last post wasn't REALLY an update for the family or anything at all... so I'll ramble a bit. Winter Ultimate has started and Cara is sitting this winter out and strengthening her knee some more for next summer (go Cara go!!). One thing I totally forgot about with winter is the potential for really late games. Seems that time in the indoor fields is much cheaper the closer you get to midnight, and I am sort of dreading these late games.

Did some work to close the pond tonight too, so sad. The poor little fish are in water that would kill me very quickly, yet the just slow down and relax for the winter. Hopefully I won't loose any fish this winter, just like last one, but you never know.

Looking forward to seeing the new James Bond soon, I like how they have handled the new movies, less gadgets, tough Bond. Suits me fine for now. After a bit of this I am sure we'll get a Bond that requires gadgets cause he'll be all slim and unable to beat up everyone on earth.

hmmm, what else.... well, I'll be hitting 3 years with diabetes soon and thankfully there have been no serious complications yet. Still hoping for a cure or better way to handle this, that would be so cool for the pancreatically challenged.

Oh yeah!! Last weekend we had a Scales-a-thon belated Thanksgiving with turkey and all, what a great weekend too. Got to see all the family from Ashton, Toronto and Montreal. They all need to move closer to Cara and I.

Writing is hard. Pics are way easier.

2008-11-13T21:05:00.001-05:00

no real reason for posting this, I just find it very funny.

2008-10-24T21:02:00.002-04:00

Well, the TV is in and it is full of glory and eye bleeding resolution.

Gotta love it.

Not a heck of a lot else going on right now though, our camera has an "issue" so the pics have not been coming in too quickly, gotta look up how to fix it and get that sorted out! Love the camera and we have a get together at Dad's land soon, would be fun to get some pics of the family happening!

We're expecting!!

2008-10-06T22:49:00.002-04:00

Isn't she beautiful? Learning nothing from the example to the south, Cara and I have decided that no money down and equal payments at no interest is a good thing... a very good thing.

Not a heck of a lot new other than that though. Can't believe that they are advertising and selling snow blowers already, that sucks!! Also I have decided that I need to make curry again, it has been too long. Ideally I'll do that tomorrow night.

Cottage!!

2008-09-04T20:23:00.003-04:00

Love the cottage. I guess I don't have a lot to say about it, it was a very relaxing week though. I got to work on my test beard. It went through many phases, first the full beard, then the Men's Hair Dye beard, then the cool biker dude, finally the 'stache and then the sweet "thin stash".

Should have taken lots of pics of all the cool variations, but at least I took one or two.

Other than wicked beard stuff, there was lots of swimming, throwing people off docks and being thrown off docks.

Also, I gotta say that Cara made a sweet Darth Mault Dessert. It was awesome, even though it sadly lost the dessert competition to a superior cookie.

the squirrel

2008-08-04T12:17:00.003-04:00

Well... we got the little jerks out of the roof at the back and then, they decided to eat into our front porch and make a little home there.

Not good.

I should have taken a video cause this little guy was actually screaming at us at the time. I had just finished smacking the beam below his new house to get him out of there so I could seal it up.

Currently he has been evicted. I am sure he will be back of course. =(

HILLSIDE 2008!!

2008-07-29T12:41:00.004-04:00

Well, it's officially summer, Hillside has come and gone and it was AWESOME. More of us took the trip this year which is certainly fun, sadly the Lucks couldn't make it since they were very, very far away.

Highlights for me were Plants and Animals, Broken Social Scene, Born Ruffians, Spiral Beach, We Are Wolves, Islands, The Luyas, Miracle Fortress, The Speakeasies, and a jam with Akron Family along with The Burning Hell.... all fantastic!

The food and people were, as usual, awesome and varied. Enjoy the pics!!

3 Years!

2008-07-13T13:09:00.002-04:00

Time sure flies, this past week we celebrated our anniversary in style by heading up to Bear Brook farms and going to the revolving restaurant. What a fantastic time. Bear Brook was a bit surreal and REALLY fun since they had a massive cancellation which meant we were the only 2 guests there! What are the chances of that! We're going to arrange another visit there in the future, ideally with more than just us there!

The revolving restaurant was AWESOME, great food, not cheap, and a perfect view of the city.

2008-06-21T22:21:00.003-04:00

ok, been too long between posts I know, I've been slacking. Lots of good pics here though and that makes up for it right?

Check out the pond, so sweet... and a frog moved in!! You can see the little dude in the pic on the right hand side on the bricks, just chillin' out. The unofficial name for the frog is C3PO, I'm hoping it catches on.

Also a sweet pic of me in some boots and of course the MONSTER TRUCK SHOW! Had a great time there with some of the family, nice loud, car crushing fun.

2008-06-01T19:33:00.002-04:00

I love garage sales. All week I had been planning on saving my money to go to the Riverside South garage sale and finding amazing crap for cheap cheap prices. BUT that all fell through when it rained like crazy all weekend. ah well.... better luck next week end!!

Day Off!!

2008-05-20T20:54:00.004-04:00

So, I had today off and took full advantage of it! Here is a pic of where 2 trees were...

Here are the remnants of the two trees... they were probably planted for privacy from the two windows of the neighbour's house, but there's now no leaves in front of the windows, so they suck. Now they are gone. AND I didn't hurt myself, others, or the property while taking them down. I am awesome.

Here is the new waterfall thing, I tore down the old one cause there were some issues there that just couldn't be fixed, this is much nicer, trust me.

Finally here is a pic of the extra crap I need to figure out a use for or get rid of.... no clue what to do here.

2008-04-20T21:30:00.002-04:00

Summer is here!! Spring was skipped I guess.... I expect we'll have a few months of seasonal weather, but this nice hot weather has been awesome after the long crazy winter.

The pond is fully operational and the fish are swimming around and wintered well, only 1 floater out of the whole bunch, not too bad.

Friday brought the first patio beers!! and Saturday brought the first BBQ steaks!!

Happy belated birthday to Don as well.... awesome beer cake.

Life continues trend of being good...

2008-04-06T21:46:00.002-04:00

Last night was a good night! Had some great caribbean food at Caribbean Flavours, love the JERK ROTI, seriously hot and so good.
http://www.caribbeanflavours.net/

Then it was on to the Pump for beverages with friends and family, great turn out!! Don and Ann stepped up and made a pile of stickers for everyone there with pictures of me, mostly it was me looking like a very cool fool. AWESOME night, thanks to everyone who came out... I am a lucky guy to have so many friends. Plus a free shawarma at 3am fron Mustafa at Maroush Int'l Shawarma (with full service) yes, life is good.

Today was a brunch at our house with Cara and family, got all the fixin's from Dirienzo's totally amazing feast!! PLUS I wasn't totally hung over. AWESOME WEEKEND!!

Life is good!

2008-03-26T23:08:00.001-04:00

Toronto Trip!!

2008-03-02T21:00:00.003-05:00

Fun weekend... headed off to Toronto to visit Damon and Michele with Ken and Darleen. As usual the food and hospitality was awesome!

The weather on the way down was insanely bad, but the rest of the weekend was well worth the constant near-death experiences.

Thanks for the weekend guys, hope to see you again soon!!

pictures!

2008-02-24T14:35:00.003-05:00

Here are some recent pics from the first (and potentially only canal skate of the year) as well as one from a great dinner at Beckta for Ben and Kylie's birthdays (great food too!)...

Finally a couple pics from the work event I was at in Toronto, all in all life has been a lot of fun!

Canal is Open!

2008-02-03T17:48:00.000-05:00

Today Cara and I walked along the canal to the market to meet some good friends for a WICKED dim sum brunch. We went to the Imperial Palace and the food was amazing. Going back there soon for sure!

Any way, the cool thing is that the canal is open now and looking good, though the coming warm weather will probably mess that up very soon.

Merrickville!

2008-01-27T16:50:00.000-05:00

So, Cara and I headed out to Merrickville this weekend for a little vacation, had an awesome time! Stayed at the Sam Jakes Inn and spa with a package that included a massage... AWESOME! It's the first massage that both Cara and I ever had and it was totally relaxing, great way to kill an hour between lunch and drinks and dinner and drinks.

That evening we saw Bob's band playing at a local pub there, great to see Bob again, those guys are great!!

Great weekend!

Neo Geo

2008-01-19T16:54:00.000-05:00

Today Dad and I drove to Petawawa to pick up an arcade machine!! Usually this would only go in the nerd site but it's big news so I'm putting it here as well....

Huge thanks to Dad, Paul and Chris for the help moving it, the thing is HEAVY and it would have been impossible without your help.

Also thanks go out to Cara cause she's a very supportive wife....

oops! forgot the beard pics

2008-01-12T15:06:00.001-05:00

ok, they aren't great, I know that.... and I forgot to get pics taken of the other stages of the vacation beard... along with the beard are some other pics from recent life...

Happy New Year!

2008-01-12T14:46:00.000-05:00

Well, looks like I was right, it was too busy over the holidays for another update... but they were great holidays!! Lots of family, lots of running around, what an excellent time, gotta admit that I love how well Cara's and my families get along and how we all work together to ensure we can take advantage of as many family events as possible.

Cara and I have started to clean up the kitchen, repainting the cabinets and stuff, and the basement has been cleaned up to try and make room for a new game....

Enjoy some pics... check out the sweet holiday beard too!!

The year in review.....

2007-12-19T21:55:00.000-05:00

2007 is almost over and it has been quite the year, ideally I'll add more to this but since the holiday season is generally very busy I might not get a chance.. so here it goes... highlights of 2007!

new nephew
tracked down Dave duChemin
married Chris and Jenn (my first, and likely last wedding ceremony)
best man for Jamie
wife keeps getting more and more awesome!
bumped into Lee Veary from Saudi on the ultimate field
lots of back yard work
Cara kickin butt after her ACL surgery
lots of goofy video games
Hillside!

Oh yeah!! PLUS if you google my name this site comes up first... love that!!

Happy Holidays to my reader, who ever you are!

Christmas Parties!!

2007-12-09T20:58:00.000-05:00

Well we are officially knee deep in Christmas!

I've had 2 work parties and now a couple of parties with friends (thanks Nat and Jay, last nights festivities were awesome!!) Like a fool I took no new pictures...

In other non-Christmas news, we're re-doing the kitchen... first the cupboards then hopefully the counters and ugly walls... then we should be well on our way!

The tree isn't up yet.... that's not good... at this rate we might be in trouble, especially since the living room is currently full of drying cupboards....

2007-11-25T16:31:00.000-05:00

Look at this, 2 posts in quick succession!! I rule!!

Last night was my work Christmas/year end party, good time!! There were awesome door prizes, but I didn't win this year.... sadly I forgot to take any pics of the event.

Also had some African food at the Horn of Africa on Friday, LOVE that place!! Great and exotic food and cheap wine and beer... you can't go wrong!!

Please enjoy some unrelated pictures... =)

2007-11-21T22:16:00.001-05:00

How on earth does time go so quickly!?!?!!?

I think to update this regularly I need a laptop, then I can maybe get into more of a habit to update this like a goofy public diary.... although that might be overkill for my 1 blog fan.

Christmas is coming and quickly too... it snowed today, that was a surprise.

I saw Beowulf yesterday, love the Tuesday movie deals, $10 for a movie, popcorn and a drink?? SCORE!! Beowulf was pretty good, certainly a popcorn movie for people who like special effects and don't mind some light gore.... awesome Tuesday movie!!

After the movie we went to Montana's, very please that they had Creemore on tap... great beer! and unpasturized, though I don't why that would make a difference.

Probably put some more pics in soon....

PICS!!

2007-10-22T20:35:00.000-04:00

If a picture is worth a 1000 words then I've been a good blogger.... congrats to Jamie and Barb, your wedding was a great time!! Congrats to Bry and Bev cause the little man sure is a charmer!! Plus a nice shot of my 1950's Eastern European friend.

2007-10-16T21:55:00.001-04:00

ok, almost a month and no posts.... I will get on this, got some good pics coming soon!!

2007-09-17T21:27:00.000-04:00

I didn't know you could post videos!!! Please enjoy some sideways karaoke from the end of year Ron Burgundies BBQ, thanks for hosting Matt!!!

2007-09-17T21:20:00.000-04:00

Ahhh life, always a bit of an adventure... recently went to one of the last Ottawa Lynx games, sad that they are gone, but if people wanted them in the city they'd have actually gone to games (myself included of course)... Summer is winding down and life is actually getting a bit less busy (knock on wood!!) hopefully will get in a few more BBQ's and a bit of time to finish the waterfall.

2007-08-27T22:52:00.000-04:00

Happy Birthday!!

2007-08-12T22:38:00.000-04:00

Some fun pics....

Congrats Drink and Jenn!!

2007-07-31T22:01:00.000-04:00

Fountain!!

2007-07-31T21:43:00.000-04:00

The mighty pond/fountain/fish tank has made some progress, sure there has been less time and money to work on this, but that's life I guess.... the final version will not show the black liner...

Hillside!!

2007-07-31T21:32:00.000-04:00

Yeehaw!! Is it that time again???

Camping and piles of great bands, great food and beer tents... oh yeah, and hippies, lots of hippies.

Highlights this year from The Besnard Lakes, Dragonette, Immaculate Machine, The Slip, Dya Singh, Los Campesinos, Birds of Wales and Born Ruffians. If none of these guys become famous I will be SHOCKED!! Such good bands!!

Had a great time guys!! Missing in the pics is Ingrid and her little lady, as well as G-Cracker, his old man and old lady.... wicked weekend!! (except for the many, many car issues)

FIFA!

2007-07-10T22:02:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Jesse and K-Bu Cara and I saw our first live soccer game, it was USA vs Brazil, sadly USA won 2-1, but the game itself was AWESOME, the crowds were totally into it, it was a sell out and a great time!!

Oh yeah, check out the pics, can you tell where the team from Argentina sat to watch some of the game? oh yeah, the team from Argentina seem to be composed of rock stars.

Sibling Canoe Trip 2007

2007-07-03T22:50:00.000-04:00

Yes, there was a lot of rain and pretty much all our stuff got at least a bit damp, but check out the pics!! Totally worth it!!

Just noticed I didn't post any pics of Michelle... I will post more pics soon!!

POND

2007-06-24T19:08:00.000-04:00

Well, Saturday was a productive day. Dug the pond, added the liner, filled it and added the plants, sweet!! Not pictured are the fish and the pump I added on Sunday.... soon there shall be a waterfall... oh yes.

2007-06-11T00:15:00.001-04:00

Well, the back yard is coming along... the main part is pretty much done now, just need to get a patio table really.. and some more raking I guess, then it's on to the raised garden/pond!! Will post more pics as soon as possible!!

The Back Yard

2007-05-27T22:25:00.000-04:00

Well, we're almost there!! 6 tones of stone dust has been moved in and tamped down, plus we've built the start of the small retaining wall... soon we'll get the river rock delivered and finish off the wall.. then the BBQ season will officially begin!!

choose wisely

2007-05-22T22:24:00.000-04:00

Check it out!! These glasses are an amazing flea market find... but you know what is most amazing? They were chosen, on purpose, by my wife.

Choose wisely out there folks, it makes all the difference!!

=)

2007-05-13T22:15:00.000-04:00

ok, it's been a very long time since my last post, and that is my fault, not yours, please don't blame yourselves.

Here we have some pics!! The new pergola, and hair dye party, Paul sleeping through the Wii demonstration, and some nephew pics!!

New post!!

2007-04-09T17:01:00.000-04:00

OK, it has been a while, I admit it. I would like to pass blame onto Ross who had my phone cable. =)

I have two sets of pics here, couple of Dave enjoying his farewell party a little too much... and a couple of the Wii in action!! Note the raw power of the Wii....

Some recent pics from life....

2007-03-15T20:44:00.000-04:00

Barenaked!

2007-02-27T20:35:00.000-05:00

Saw the Barenaked Ladies at the "ScotiaBank Place for Concerts and Sporting Events" recently, got box seats with a bunch of friends too.... Very fun night... very fun show.... but this isn't a review of the concerts or anything like that I just wanted to point out two things, firstly; the whole 3rd level was closed off.. weird, guess they don't sell out any more... secondably; check out the food prices in the box!!! They say that each dish will serve 12 people.... BUT the $35 pizza is simply a large Pizza Pizza brand pizza.... not exactly a meal for 12. =)

2007-02-22T22:35:00.001-05:00

Got a Wii!! Yeehaw!! So far it's a very cool, played the Sports game and Wario.... looking forward to playing it some more!! Will post some embarassing pics of family and friends as soon as I can!!