Daddy-O

Ready to Haunt

Vampired Ghost … captured on October 28, 2008

And so, we welcome the one day of the year where the kids prepare to go to work. The one day when they'd actually understand that conversation about how Mummy and Daddy need to go to work to make things happen; if only they could take a minute to listen. Alas, they're just too darned excited. Even Wee-Marina—who was up at 3:00 am because she dreamt a bear ate her—was up and perky with an animated "It's Halloween!!!"

The plan tonight is to head over to René and Danielle's so that the kids can make the circuit, with Chloe, in a different neighbourhood. I'm not sure what we'll do about home but I suppose we can just leave a bowl of candy with a note to help themselves. We should look into training Cato to give out candy. Or perhaps, I'll stay behind for an hour or so. Regardless, I hope everyone has a safe and fun Halloween.

Pushed Around

This, from the Lad this evening:

"Um, Daddy? Could you do some laundry? My laundry bag is getting pretty full."

It must be nice to know that everything is taken care for you. For the record, I told him it could wait until the weekend.

Getting Spooooky

Last Time In … captured on October 29, 2008

We've been so busy this year, we've hardly prepared for Halloween. It seems to me that in years past, we'd be ready on October first. Not so this year. In fact the kids, Jennifer and Tante Nathalie only decorated the front porch on the day she visited, last week. We only bought candy yesterday and should probably get more. Marina's outfit was snagged at VV Fashions (Value Village) a week ago Monday and Jennifer just "finished" Matthew's costume last night.

Ooo…squishy! … captured on October 29, 2008

It then occurred to us that we needed to carve the pumpkin…stat! We've had three pumpkins of varying sizes since our excursion to Puck's Farm but they've been sitting on our steps since then (with nary a squirrel bite!) So Jennifer braved the cold trip outside, brought in the biggest specimen and started to carve. Matthew enjoyed squeezing the "guts" which, in turn, disgusted his mother. And speaking of being grossed out, Marina tried once more to clean out a pumpkin but just couldn't do it. Still, I give her credit for trying again. She managed to help Matthew separate pumpkin seeds with a special Halloween spoon.

Christmas Travel

The Fence Climber … captured on October 26, 2008

As we sat at the dinner table, I was leafing through a request form from school. The daycare wanted to know when the kids would be off this holiday season. I asked Jennifer to check with work to see when she'd be off, then I'd do the same. It was then that Matthew piped in: "We should go to Hawaii."

"Hawaii? Why Hawaii?"

And without missing a beat, he offered: "Hula girls!"

Nor'East'r

Rolling Hill … captured on October 26, 2008

We saw much rain this weekend. So much, it put a damper on my ability to take pictures. I had hoped to capture many Fall scenes, but alas, much of the coloured foliage had already fallen in and around Westport. Not that the rain left much opportunity. The trip on Friday up was beautiful; I should have stopped on the way up to Westport and taken a few shots. Upon our arrival, we took it easy. The kids played piano, coloured and played with each other while the adults caught up with one another. Later on, Marina went to bed and Jennifer, Poppy and Matthew headed to the basement to play darts. When they returned some 40 minutes later Matthew announced that: "Mummy lost everything!"

A Line of Pumpkins … captured on October 26, 2008

Saturday, Jennifer and I drove up to Ottawa while Moppy and Poppy graciously watched the kids. Unfortunately, it rained heavily on their day together but they did manage to check out the 1st Annual Pumpkin Festival. Later on, the kids help Poppy plant some oat grass for the cats. Meanwhile, we stopped by to visit Grams and Gramps, who was recently home after his cancer surgery. He looked good and was speaking very well, which was a pleasant surprise. Grams looked good too; a little tired, but in good spirits. This did much to lift our own spirits. We didn't stay long, so as to not wear out Andy, so we took off for the Market to meet Grandpapa. We hadn't been in the Market probably 10 years, but we didn't get to enjoy it because of the rain. We did, however, enjoy Grandpapa's company over lunch at Oregano's. This too was short as we had to head back to Westport. But before doing so, we were lucky to meet Rob for 5 minutes to exchange some goods (thanks for the clothes!) but once again, we had to alter our plans for coffee because of the rain. And so, we drove back to Westport.

Sitting with Mr Binkley … captured on October 26, 2008

Sunday, the whole gang slept in until 8:30! We dressed and drove into town to have breakfast at the Country Kitchen. Breakfast Special, yum! We then drove on to Smiths Falls to find Moppy and Poppy a Wii. Unfortunately we had no luck, despite checking a Zellers, Canadian Tire, Wal-Mart and Shoppers Drug Mart (surprisingly, they carry them too when they're not sold out). We returned via Perth and checked there as well, but alas, we went home empty-handed. Poor Poppy. At least he's now on a waiting list. After lunch and a delicious nap, we called Auntie Pad who sounded like she was in great spirits despite her recent illness. We then drove to Norma and Dean's for a visit. As always, the kids were excited to see them and Mr Binkley, their dog. This morning, we woke up, packed the van and helped clear off Moppy and Poppy's porch before driving home through more sun and rain. It's been a relaxing—if not wet—weekend.

On Guard

Dave Standing In … captured on October 9, 2008

This is Dave. He's the new guy at our office. I typically use him as a stand-in while I set up for a shoot. He's been a great addition to our office, and not just as a stand-in. I figured he could stand guard over the blog while we're away this weekend. Now that Moppy and Poppy are back, we'll be making a trip to Westport; in addition, Jennifer and I have a special trip to make to Ottawa.

For tonight, I'm finishing the evening, having played Mr Mom while Jennifer is off galavanting at her pottery class. That's dinner, the dishes, the laundry and bathing the kids. Speaking of which, both of them have packed their own bags. It should please Suzy that Marina required two bags 'cause, you know, she's a girl. She reminds of the Ally Sheedy in The Breakfast Club, who carried "so much crap" in her bag because "you never know when you need to jam." I am looking forward to the trip East; we've taken Friday and Monday off so I expect some pleasant down time. And a few stiff drinks, which reminds me, I need to make a stop at the Westport LCBO. Have a good weekend everyone and we'll see you in a few days (or sooner, if I get the chance).

Diligent Student

Preparing to Climb … captured on October 19, 2008

I was surprised when Matthew rushed in from school and ran straight up to his room tonight. "Where did he go?" I asked Jennifer. She told me he wanted to get working on his homework. Because we're off to Ottawa and Westport for the weekend, the Lad needs to hand in his weekly homework one day early; actually, he would have had to do it anyway, given Friday is a PA day. 

So far, Matthew's been keeping on top of his school work. And he's been doing it willingly and with enthusiasm. In fact, I don't think he's yet complained. Could this be some realization that with grade two come bigger responsibilities? I'm not sure, but we'll take it as long as it lasts.

1-800-SANTA

Fallish Marina Looks On … captured on October 18, 2008

I noticed an ad for the upcoming Tinkerbell DVD this weekend. I know Marina will be all over this because she loves anything to do with Tinkerbell, so I asked if she would be interested in it.

"Oh, yes please! I love Tinkerbell." she replied.

"Should you ask Santa for it?"

"Yes! What's his number?"

Letting Go

Nestled in Yellow … captured on October 19, 2008

Today I enjoyed a great run. Finally. It's been a while since I've had one. I ran at a faster pace than usual, but it felt good and my body wasn't complaining. Although I was tiring as I got closer to home, I do believe my legs could have kept going for quite some time. They felt like fresh legs, as the soccer folk call them. Of course, the run almost didn't happen. I was supposed to run yesterday, but, I was delinquent and used Nathalie's visit as an excuse not to go out. Today I ran through the usual gamut of excuses not to run: it's too cold out; I'm too tired; I had a busy day. As it were, I did not have a busy day and it was not cold out so I did what I do most times I procrastinate: I went out for the run anyway. Good thing too as it lifted me out of the funk I'd been in all day.

As I approached the half way point of my route, I saw a couple of boys—probably 9 or 10—hopping along jagged boulders which lined a pathway leading into Grenadier Pond. They thought it a good idea to run as fast as they could toward the rocks, then jump up to see how far they could go. Immediately, I pictured Matthew doing the same thing with a friend, far from my parental and paranoid eye. Except in my mental movie, he'd miss a step and fall on the sharp rock, cutting his hand open or breaking his arm, or worse. It was at this point that I sorely missed the few sessions I had with a therapist some years back and wished I could speak with her just one more time to ask how I could let go. I know Matthew will do crazy things like this. I know he'll get hurt. Heck, I did. What I don't know is how to let it happen. In the end, I pushed it from my mind and just kept running; but this time with more vigour.

An Acadian in Toronto

Hanging with the Strawman … captured on October 18, 2008

Yet another lovely Fall weekend. I could certainly get used to weather like this. Saturday was the Fall Fête at the kids' school and both were very eager to go. They played a variety of games although Marina shied away from most. She did enjoy the "fish pond" where you throw your line over a wall and pull out a prize. Matthew was excited to go through the Haunted Forest but, I think, was disappointed by the lack of spookiness he had expected. He is rather cute though when he's put in an unsure situation. By mid-day, I sauntered off to The Revue for a shoot before meeting René for our last Toronto FC match of the season. The Reds won the match so everyone went home happy. There's still one away game left which will determine whether they have a chance to make the playoffs.

Matthew Explains … captured on October 19, 2008

Meanwhile, Jennifer and the kids were at the airport picking up Aunt Nathalie. She's in town on business for a few days and decided to stay with us overnight for a short visit. Matthew and Marina were both very excited. Today, we took Nathalie to High Park to enjoy the Fall foliage. We had planned to drive out to the Distillery District but traffic was snarled because of the Toronto Marathon. So, we picked up some baguettes from the Thin Blue Line on Roncesvalles and enjoyed lunch at home instead.

Cooling Down

Silo Cap … captured on October 12, 2008

(Almost) everything seems to be cooling down. The weather, for one. I finally added the last pane to our set of bedroom windows last night. Work has slowed down as well. It feels quite odd, after such a busy summer but, this will only last until December. Comment activity has dropped significantly since Moppy went to England but luckily, Grandpapa pipes in with his bit of daily wisdom and Suzy drops by every few days. 

About the only thing that's busy has been life with the kidlings. Matthew has been busy with homework and Marina has been coming home pretty tired and grumpy from school. Our day will usually end nicely, but dinnertime can become quite trying. Jennifer's started a pottery class with Danielle and I'm waiting to see if I'll help with coaching once Matthew's soccer starts up again. In between all this is trying to find the time to work the blog, edit some movies from 2 or 3 years ago, learn the piano and just relax. If only we worked half days so we could get to the important stuff. 

Dissent

Leading the Way Out … captured on October 12, 2008

Marina: Pretend I'm a puppy dog. No, wait! A penguin!

Matthew (sighs loudly): Marina! Why can't you just be yourself?

Marina starts to pout.

Jennifer: Matthew, Marina likes to pretend to be different animals. That's okay.

Matthew: But why? She's not an animal.

Jennifer: She's just using her imagination.

Matthew: But it's so annoying!

Marina: Squawk! Squawk!

Thanksgiving Weekend: Day I

Hazy Fall Colours … captured on October 12, 2008

Astute readers will have noticed that Day I has been missing from the most recent entries. That's because I had fallen behind a day and didn't want to interrupt the flow of the weekend. But, fear not, here's how our Saturday unfolded.

Jennifer had taken the Friday off and managed to get the groceries done, so Saturday was up for grabs. I made a quick trip to the Apple Store to replace our flaky Airport base station and went on my own; all the better for everyone concerned. I made a couple of more stops on the way home and by then, it was lunch time. Shortly thereafter, the phone rang and it was one of Matthew's friends (Samuel) asking for a play date. While Jennifer took the Lad off to play with his friend, Marina and I walked to the Revue to catch Wall-e. It was great to see it again and the Wee-One absolutely loved it.

Not long after the movie, Catherine stopped by to babysit. Matthew's play date had been extended 'til after dinner so Catherine and Marina got to spend some time together. Free for our date, Jennifer and I took the subway to little Korea. On a recommendation from Samuel's mother (another Catherine), we stopped at Il Bun Ji, a Korean/Japanese. We were ushered into a private room and ordered a bulgogi dinner for two. Service was blazingly fast. Shortly after we ordered, two servers brought our soup, salad and a variety of items for our bulgogi including a portable cast iron hot plate. We managed to eat most of our food before we were so full we had to get out and walk it off. We meandered along Bloor Street, from Bathurst to Spadina. Unfortunately, most of the shops we closed but a new bookstore was open and we spent at least an hour looking around. We managed to get out with only a few Christmas gifts. We then stopped by a coffee shop for some dessert and a couple of Italian sodas before heading back home. All in all, it was a lovely date and nice to get out at night, together.

Thanksgiving Weekend: Day III

Mounted Matthew … captured on October 12, 2008

We continued our Mina-Time this morning with a nice, leisurely cuddle in bed. In fact, we didn't get up until 8:20. By 10:00, we made our way over to René and Danielle's to pick up the Lad who, it turns out, hadn't gone to bed until 11:00 the night before. This would come back to haunt us later in the day. Matthew and Chloe had a good sleepover which included a spaghetti dinner, some Chaotic and Bakugan role playing games and some movies. We hung around, chatting with Danielle while the kids played upstairs.

 

Coy Ride … captured on October 12, 2008

After heading home I struck out for a run. The weather was fabulous and the park was filled to capacity. I followed this with a quick shower and some lunch before we all settled down for some much-needed relaxation. For Thanksgiving dinner we invited our friend Marc, whom we hadn't seen since before his trip to Beijing and India. He regaled us with accounts of his travels and kidded around with both Matthew and Marina before they had to go to bed. We finished the evening with a quick round of golf on the Wii and he headed home for bed.

Thanksgiving Weekend: Day II

Hay Kids … captured on October 12, 2008

Today started off slowly. I wasn't feeling too well so I opted to postpone my Sunday run 'til Monday; what with the holiday and all. Catherine hung around and tried to teach me musical terms like pentatonic and other such nonsense that I would have had difficulty with, regardless of my headache. By 10:30, la familia was swinging by Starbucks to pick myself and Danielle up a coffee before hitting the road.

Hanging On … captured on October 12, 2008

The trip up to Schomberg was lovely. Yet again, the weather was beautiful: sunny and warm, with a cool autumn nip in the air. Jennifer drove, with Danielle in the front while I sat next to Marina. Matthew and Chloe took up the rear, both huddled over a Nintendo DS and missing the Fall foliage as we forged up North. We probably pulled up to Puck's Farm close to 11:30. Already, the parking lot was pretty full. After paying admission, the kids were told to find as many plastic coloured eggs as possible because whatever they found, they'd be rewarded with Halloween chocolate.

Wheat-ed Pumpkins … captured on October 12, 2008

The farm itself looked a bit tired, having seen better days, I'm sure. Our first stop was the pony rides. Marina opted to miss out but Matthew headed for a full-fledged horse. Chloe decided to stick with a pony. The Lad seemed quite content in the saddle and I think his love affair with horses has deepened yet again. From here we headed into a maze which really wasn't a maze, but the kids had fun anyway. Other attractions included a carousel, a fun house and a barn full of animals. We had lunch, then walked around a bit more and revisited the pony rides. This time, Marina hopped on a pony called Apples and enjoyed her trip around the duck pond. Matthew once again decided on the horse and it struck me that her rode with such ease and confidence. On the way out, we picked our pumpkins and headed home. Matthew finished off the day with a sleepover at Chloe's while Jennifer and I spent more Mina-Time with the Wee-One.