Sunday, April 3, 2011
feeling guilty...
... that it has been months since posting. A few things have fallen thru the cracks since September; I have not been to book club in forever, haven't gone to volleyball on monday nights, no prenatal group night (it was a volunteer gig) and no blogging. The past months I have been working, coaching, and studying while squeezing in all the other daily activities. In November I went to Germany with my bff LF and her little man Lucas, over Christmas season there were lots of dinner parties around town, I worked the whole month of January, February was crazy busy with basketball practices and March was the road trip over Spring Break to Penticton for the Jr All Native tourney. Now I have 2 finals left to write for my course, some practicum hours in Prince Rupert and then I will breath a sign of relief. I hope to be done my certification by the end of summer. Looking ahead, I have ACL surgery in 3 weeks, Bri and J are coming for a visit in May (SO EXCITED!) and we have summer holidays planned in July. That's it in a nutshell. Signing off again: we just got a bag of jumbo prawns I need to deal with.... yum!
Monday, November 1, 2010
You know it was a big blow when...
... there are more seagulls in town then the local birds
... the weatheroffice past 24 hour report says N/A
... the remaining few upright business front signs have finally come down (no more FIELDS roof top sign and the RCMP sign broke through the concrete footing)
... trees fell down on the lines (we have a rockstar Hydro crew and the power stays on through most storms), asphalt shingles on the neighbour's house were flapping (just like on the movie Monster House) and there are a few damaged businesses and houses in town and the village.
During our dog walk early yesterday evening, I learned that even though I wanted to put my head down and push into the wind it is very necessary to keep your eyes up for fence boards, garbage cans, and yard junk that has become airborne. When a house with tin roof started banging around I was ready to turn and cover. The poor geese/ducks at the field (the type of 'bird' is currently under debate. D informed me that they are still hanging around because there is one that can not fly very well) could not land. We walked by with the dogs, not close to them at all but it was close enough for them to take off. There was frantic honking and quacking around as they jostled around in the air, bumping into eachother. So we walked around the field and as we got farther away they wanted to land but the wind would not let them. Their feet were in landing mode, wings parachuting to drop down but they kept lifting higher. So we watched and waited for the wind to let up just a moment and they finally grounded. D gave me a pretty funny goose/duck stance suitable for such weather: feet together, knees bent, butt out, arms/wings bent into a well balanced position. It was very well executed. The wind did not move him at all :)
... the weatheroffice past 24 hour report says N/A
... the remaining few upright business front signs have finally come down (no more FIELDS roof top sign and the RCMP sign broke through the concrete footing)
... trees fell down on the lines (we have a rockstar Hydro crew and the power stays on through most storms), asphalt shingles on the neighbour's house were flapping (just like on the movie Monster House) and there are a few damaged businesses and houses in town and the village.
During our dog walk early yesterday evening, I learned that even though I wanted to put my head down and push into the wind it is very necessary to keep your eyes up for fence boards, garbage cans, and yard junk that has become airborne. When a house with tin roof started banging around I was ready to turn and cover. The poor geese/ducks at the field (the type of 'bird' is currently under debate. D informed me that they are still hanging around because there is one that can not fly very well) could not land. We walked by with the dogs, not close to them at all but it was close enough for them to take off. There was frantic honking and quacking around as they jostled around in the air, bumping into eachother. So we walked around the field and as we got farther away they wanted to land but the wind would not let them. Their feet were in landing mode, wings parachuting to drop down but they kept lifting higher. So we watched and waited for the wind to let up just a moment and they finally grounded. D gave me a pretty funny goose/duck stance suitable for such weather: feet together, knees bent, butt out, arms/wings bent into a well balanced position. It was very well executed. The wind did not move him at all :)
Monday, October 18, 2010
Jesus feeds 5000
There might be 5000 people on the island...not sure. But with bread and fish (and cookies) on the table, it reminded me of the story :)
I had a canning lesson yesterday with a fancy pressure cooker (got to check into getting one of those) so we will have jars of fish in the pantry this winter.
And it is a bread/buns day today. I took the dogs out for a walk in the SUN while the dough was rising.
Then B texts me and asks if I am baking cookies too... Vitamin C was added to the menu.
'C is for COOKIE'. Do you remember that song?
I had a canning lesson yesterday with a fancy pressure cooker (got to check into getting one of those) so we will have jars of fish in the pantry this winter.
And it is a bread/buns day today. I took the dogs out for a walk in the SUN while the dough was rising.
Then B texts me and asks if I am baking cookies too... Vitamin C was added to the menu.
'C is for COOKIE'. Do you remember that song?
Monday, October 4, 2010
House Pics
Unfortunately this is not what we see out the front window but it is the view about a 2 min walk down the road, not bad eh? Another rain-less day here on the island.
This is 'mine own red house'; to paraphrase Michelle when she had enough of her Hawaii holiday and wanted to go home :) I put a few plants in the ground infront of the window, little root balls from the PoCo house, see how they do up here. There is a great parking spot for the trailer on the side of the house so the driveway is clear to make room for the bball hoop.
This is the view from the kitchen sink window. The grass was about knee height up the hill when we moved in. Wrestler would bound like a deer to chase the ball through the meadow. It was kind of Princeton-esque till the boys went wild with the Husky mower and cut the whole yard. It was a good move since the ground was dry and it will stay cleaner out there once the weather turns. The plan is to fence the entire space up to the back bushes and tier the hill for vegetable gardening. Then we will build a deck off the back of the house for the BBQ and a covered area so the dogs can hang outside more. B loves it when I say 'WE' will do something. I really only do a small fraction of the outside work these days with our strong back boys.
Here is the entire main floor less the main side entrance area and the bathroom down past the wood panel wall. We no longer are squeezing past eachother and stepping over the dogs to get around the wall from the front room to the kitchen. It is so great. And with the wood stove, it feels just like the Princeton lodge. Sorry, I missed the wood stove in the pic. Wrestler is lying infront of it.
The kitchen is minimal but since we operate with minimal stuff up here, it works just fine. I got a new stove and my buns are turning out great. The fridge and pantry are around the corner by the 1/2 visible kitchen window. No TV on the main floor. Should have done that years ago!
Upstairs has 4 bedrooms and a full bath. The extra bedroom is the xbox gaming/guest room.
This is 'mine own red house'; to paraphrase Michelle when she had enough of her Hawaii holiday and wanted to go home :) I put a few plants in the ground infront of the window, little root balls from the PoCo house, see how they do up here. There is a great parking spot for the trailer on the side of the house so the driveway is clear to make room for the bball hoop.
This is the view from the kitchen sink window. The grass was about knee height up the hill when we moved in. Wrestler would bound like a deer to chase the ball through the meadow. It was kind of Princeton-esque till the boys went wild with the Husky mower and cut the whole yard. It was a good move since the ground was dry and it will stay cleaner out there once the weather turns. The plan is to fence the entire space up to the back bushes and tier the hill for vegetable gardening. Then we will build a deck off the back of the house for the BBQ and a covered area so the dogs can hang outside more. B loves it when I say 'WE' will do something. I really only do a small fraction of the outside work these days with our strong back boys.
Here is the entire main floor less the main side entrance area and the bathroom down past the wood panel wall. We no longer are squeezing past eachother and stepping over the dogs to get around the wall from the front room to the kitchen. It is so great. And with the wood stove, it feels just like the Princeton lodge. Sorry, I missed the wood stove in the pic. Wrestler is lying infront of it.
The kitchen is minimal but since we operate with minimal stuff up here, it works just fine. I got a new stove and my buns are turning out great. The fridge and pantry are around the corner by the 1/2 visible kitchen window. No TV on the main floor. Should have done that years ago!
Upstairs has 4 bedrooms and a full bath. The extra bedroom is the xbox gaming/guest room.
The basement has a 12x20 space of wrestling mat and punching bag, the washer/dryer/utility sink, all our camping gear/dance regalia/boots/jackets/Christmas decorations/stuff, 2 deep freezers and a cool storage room.
It is small but functional, very basic and practical :)
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Disclaimer
This post may not be suitable for all readers but Maria wanted to know the details :)
B had a successful hunting trip. He took two. That is the verb used by the locals; 'to take' rather than 'to shoot'. It is hanging in the rafters of the shed, right beside the bikes, yard tools and lawn mower. I was really brave and went to take a look this morning; it is hanging with a piece of wood between the hamstrings and knee joint, belly cut open and guts all removed, neck sliced and tongue hanging out. This afternoon I was summoned 'to get the skinning knife'. Since there is a plethora of fancy knives to choose from around the house, (B is a knife collector and has one for every day of the week and one suitable for all occasions) I was instructed to get the special one on the bookshelf used only for such a task. So now there is deer flesh hanging in the shed right beside the bikes, yard tools and lawn mower... ready to be butchered in a few days.
I thank the Creator for the deer that gave its life so that we may nourish our body, mind and soul. Burgers will be on the grill this weekend.
B had a successful hunting trip. He took two. That is the verb used by the locals; 'to take' rather than 'to shoot'. It is hanging in the rafters of the shed, right beside the bikes, yard tools and lawn mower. I was really brave and went to take a look this morning; it is hanging with a piece of wood between the hamstrings and knee joint, belly cut open and guts all removed, neck sliced and tongue hanging out. This afternoon I was summoned 'to get the skinning knife'. Since there is a plethora of fancy knives to choose from around the house, (B is a knife collector and has one for every day of the week and one suitable for all occasions) I was instructed to get the special one on the bookshelf used only for such a task. So now there is deer flesh hanging in the shed right beside the bikes, yard tools and lawn mower... ready to be butchered in a few days.
I thank the Creator for the deer that gave its life so that we may nourish our body, mind and soul. Burgers will be on the grill this weekend.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Buns in the oven
The whole wheat kind: some pizza pretzles and some pull apart bread/buns. So I got to be quick here. Since it has been months since posting I thought I should give a shout out that all is well.
B is off in the bush today with a buddy checking out the hunting situation. It is still a bit early I think to shoot anything, it needs to be cool for the meat to hang (apparently it will hang in the shed beside the bikes which I need to get at almost daily, nice). I think they are going to sight in their rifles and shoot targets. This morning the boys have competed their Saturady chores; bathrooms, sweeping upstairs, chop wood, laundry. After my buns are done I will walk to the store to get some fixings for burgers. Always thinking about the next feeding frenzy around here.
School is going great for the boys. J is right into the grade 8 high school routine with a crazy block rotation I can not figure out and D is doing the grade 7 thing. The kickboxing group has been a bit smaller the past few weeks (about 14 people) but that is good; more space to do new drills. I just finished a 3 week full time stint at work. And I am looking forward to my 2 weeks off in November when I go to Germany with LF and Lucas. So excited! I am refreshing my German from college days with a book from the library. Das ist goot, yah?
And we moved the end of August... that is big news! We bought a stand along PMQ with a huge yard and a great sunny location. This house is so warm compared to our old rental. And the wood stove is a fantastic too! It has been so dry/sunny all summer and now even into Fall. Just that one wild storm last weekend that teased us with what is to come over the winter months. My mom came for a quick visit 2 weekends ago and she filled the freezer with buns and helped me paint the boys bedrooms. Glad to have that done. The big project over winter is to get a fence built. Good thing we have some child labour to help.
got to check the buns!
later,
nicole
B is off in the bush today with a buddy checking out the hunting situation. It is still a bit early I think to shoot anything, it needs to be cool for the meat to hang (apparently it will hang in the shed beside the bikes which I need to get at almost daily, nice). I think they are going to sight in their rifles and shoot targets. This morning the boys have competed their Saturady chores; bathrooms, sweeping upstairs, chop wood, laundry. After my buns are done I will walk to the store to get some fixings for burgers. Always thinking about the next feeding frenzy around here.
School is going great for the boys. J is right into the grade 8 high school routine with a crazy block rotation I can not figure out and D is doing the grade 7 thing. The kickboxing group has been a bit smaller the past few weeks (about 14 people) but that is good; more space to do new drills. I just finished a 3 week full time stint at work. And I am looking forward to my 2 weeks off in November when I go to Germany with LF and Lucas. So excited! I am refreshing my German from college days with a book from the library. Das ist goot, yah?
And we moved the end of August... that is big news! We bought a stand along PMQ with a huge yard and a great sunny location. This house is so warm compared to our old rental. And the wood stove is a fantastic too! It has been so dry/sunny all summer and now even into Fall. Just that one wild storm last weekend that teased us with what is to come over the winter months. My mom came for a quick visit 2 weekends ago and she filled the freezer with buns and helped me paint the boys bedrooms. Glad to have that done. The big project over winter is to get a fence built. Good thing we have some child labour to help.
got to check the buns!
later,
nicole
Thursday, July 29, 2010
busy summer days
Been awhile since posting... we came south end of June to pack up the PoCo house and get B's knee surgery done. All went well. D's buddy Zus came back home with us so there was an extra boy around to take J's spot. J has been in Halifax exploring the east coast with B's parents. They are having a great time and I have been assured that he will come home in a few weeks.
A few pics to show a snapshot of what we have been up to the past month, in no particular order:
Pure Lake. where the wild boys swim.
sushi lesson.
cleaning fish under the eyes of watchful pros.
just need to get it to the boat this time.
a bear out there.
no crabs today, just jellyfish.
girls on quads.
boys on quads.
D is an allstar fisherman!
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