"Bum Jump!"

Phoenix Gymnastics

On the 15th of November it was Seth's birthday. Violett was invited to go to the gymnasium to play with the other kids at the party. She had a blast, but mostly played by herself. She found a soccer ball and spent about a half hour just kicking it around the room.
There was a pit of foam blocks on one side of the room and Deb tossed her in it!










She wasn't too impressed until I jumped into the pit too!










Luckily we both got out of there with our socks on!




She really loved the parachute at the end. We all sat around the edge of it and some kids were in the middle running around while we shook it and shaked it all about. The kids were supposed to take turns, but Violett just stayed on it the whole time.

She enjoyed it when we made a tent out of it too, but got a little upset when it started to get hot in there. Boy, did she ever fall asleep instantly in the car on the way home!

Last Post but Not the Least Post

Ok, so I think this post will catch us up on this month's new business.

Without going too much into detail out of respect for his privacy, the day after V's accident my dad was admitted to the hospital. They said that there was a block in his heart and he would be having a stint put in the following week. When they checked out his heart they found "multiple blockages". He ended up having double by-pass this last Tuesday and is doing very well now. We go to see him every day at the hospital and he is looking better and better. He most likely will be allowed to go home this coming Tuesday. My mom, sister and I are very, very happy about him coming home. He's like an overcooked turkey: tough and tough! I've been bringing Violett to see him everyday too, and I really feel that it makes his day to see her. She's been well behaved while visiting at the hospital.

Violett is still sleeping right now so I'm going to go lay down on the couch and veg for a while. Love you, Daddy!

It's Your Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Deb!

These Didn't Quite Work Out As Planned...

Sometimes the iphone doesn't take a proper picture if the subject is moving. Here's a bunch of pictures that didn't quite turn out right.

The Accident

As you all know on November 11th Violett got her little foot caught in the dog chair. It was scary and traumatic, but I think more for us than for her to be truthful. I'm not going to post the pictures here of her foot and of the spring and the chair, but I'll tell a shortened version of the story.
She was playing in the chair with an older kid, L. Her foot slid down into the chair and we couldn't get it out. After ripping the chair apart, using industrial wire cutters we finally saw that a metal wire had gone through the top of her foot and had come out between the last two toes. We took an ambulance to the hospital where they removed it in a flash. She barely cried and was bandaged up and we were sent home. She had a nap and has been running around on it since. She's such a trooper and we are very proud to have her as our daughter. It's healed really well and we no longer have to worry about infections or band aids.

I can't quite remember which day it arrived, but we woke up to a knock on the door and I was handed a bag from Shaw Cable. Inside was a teddy bear, some lollipops, a balloon and a card. It had been sent from Scott's manager and co-workers. I am so glad I told him to get a better job! The people at Shaw are truly awesome for sending this to our little girl. It's a company that really cares about it's employees. Thanks, Shawn, for sending Violett the bear.

Goatee

When I first moved in with an old ex he had two cats. Toast and Goatee. The year was 1995 I believe and Goatee was a youngster. He was a Norwegian Forest Cat. Big and Beautiful! He loved to cuddle and purr and be rubbed and scrubbed. I remember one night he came up to me in bed, snuggled right up to me and put his arm around me and spooned me. Seems like a weird thing for a cat to do, but he did.


He was about two or three when I met him so that would put him at about fifteen when he passed. My dad told his doctor the symptoms and Goatee most likely had congestive heart failure. He really is missed by everyone.



Scott took this picture of the Goats when he was in the middle of a yawn. Too funny. For the last few years Toast and Goatee have lived with my parents, or what Scott referred to as the Retirement Home for Kitties. They were better off there without Cornbread torturing Toast and Goatee constantly trying to kill Ricky.

Ah, November...

So what happens in November? Usually it's a good month. Seth's and Deb's birthdays, American Thanksgiving at mom's house, getting closer to Christmas. Getting excited about perhaps some snow falling soon (please snow on Christmas, please snow on Christmas...)
This year didn't quite go as planned. The short version of it is: My cat Goatee passed away, Violett had her foot in chair accident and Dad ended up in the hospital. Phew! What a month! This is why there has been a big gap in my posts. Hopefully I'll be able to catch up on it today.

Einstein?

The Gingerbread Girl

Here's our little Gingerbread Girl. Deb kept on insisting that she use the costume. And so fine...I'm just happy that she kept the hat on all night long!








I went as a Samurai and to keep her happy I let her use one of my little swords. She was so sweet and cute in that costume. (Scott went as a daddy for halloween...)

Pumpkin Patch 2008

As is was Violett's first real Halloween, Scott and I decided to go to the pumpkin patch to get our pumpkins. I was in charge of the co-op's party for the kids and Chiu Lin Farms had the best prices per pound! $0.17 per pound! It was much better than going across the street to the grocery store for $0.25 per pound! So on a Saturday morning we put on some sweaters and our rubber boots and headed out the door.


The farm provided wheelbarrows for the adventurous pumpkin pickers. You could pick from the many beautiful pumpkins that they had near the little store they had or go out into the muddy field. We chose the field...Thankfully it hadn't rained the day before so it was dirty, but not really wet. We were wearing our boots so I wasn't too concerned about the mud.



While I walked around trying to find the best pumpkins, Vi decided she was just going to sit down and play with the vines and dirt.




I found a small pumpkin just for her! It was perfect. She was able to hold it and when she turned around it fell out of her hands and cracked! Oh well...I don't know if you can see very well in this picutre, but in the background you can see a row of green stalks. It took me a short while to figure out that it was broccoli! I had no idea that it grew so tall. They should sell the broccoli stems too in the grocery stores, they are so good for you and tasty too!


These were the pumpkins that we brought home with us. All these for under $20! My favourite was the green one. When he got carved up he ended up being the sick pumpkin with his innards coming out of his mouth. I wish I had gotten a picture of that!