Adventure to Nunavut

Getting home. Northern style.

2011-05-04T21:19:00.000-04:00

The boys and I flew out on March 13, Craig joined up with us April 2, then he flew back April 27, and we finally made it back yesterday.

It's just tooooo long for the kids to be away from their "stuff".

While we were in Florida, Canadian North so that on the weekends it was no longer a direct flight from Iqaluit to Clyde River, but an overnight stop in Pond Inlet. So we would be staying in a community with no food (no restaurants, cabs), where the hotel charges $250 per person. $750 for the 3 of us. Craig changed his flight so he was back a day earlier, and the boys and I changed ours to come back Monday.

Now, when we left Saskatchewan for Florida, we had my dad FedEx all of our winter clothes, etc to Ottawa. Unfortunately, I gave him the address for the express centre, but asked him to send it ground. So it arrived Friday, was refused at the express centre and taken to the ground centre to be returned to shipper. And the ground place was closed on weekends.

So, Monday morning, the kids and I are driving 1/2 an hour to pick up this package at 8 am. Our flight leaves at 10 am (so boarding at 9:30, plus check-in, plus all our luggage has to go to oversize. And we haven't really eaten). Package is there, plus the FedEx call centre actually communicated, and this lady knows exactly which package! Off we go.

With rush hour in both directions, we make it to the airport, drop off the rental car, struggle two kids and three 55+ lb cases inside, up the elevator, checking in at 9:10. The airline we're flying with is the only one of the three that has a 50 lb limit instead of 70 lb. I've completely forgotten this. Overweight bags are $100 each and I have 3. Extra bags are only $20. Run to travel store, buy largest bag they have. Lady at check-in counter is impressed that everything is either food that is packaged, or clothing that is packed in those vacuum bags. Easy to move stuff. Move stuff to new bag. Take it as carry-on. A really heavy awkward carry-on. My sweet babies have been so good, they haven't complained, questioned, or whined once.

Through security, where they inform me (like I should be upset) that our flight has been delayed by 15 minutes. I tell him that's the best news I've had all day. Through security without a single hitch. The guy there even tells my kids to leave their sweaters on. Bless his heart. With this 15 minute flight delay, we stop at Tim Hortons (NO LINE UP!!!) for breakfast sandwiches, which they give us even though they've just switched to the lunch menu.

Then we get to the gate as they call pre-boarding and walk right on. Hot, sweaty, and really tired from hauling stuff around all morning. Best part? The extra bag actually fits under the seat - with the kids' winter jackets inside! Of course there's someone sitting beside me, so I really hope I don't stink.

I'm not even concerned that our plane is leaving late (we're supposed to land at 1:10 and our connection leaves at 1:40) because the connections are always late because they wait for everyone. We land early, like 12:30, and go line up at the check-in counter to check in this extra bag that won't fit on the next little plane (we're allowed 2 bags each on the next flight). Get to the front of the line. And find out all flights have been cancelled due to weather. Our flight was the only one that went in or out all day.

So, having been through this once before (see last year's trip home), I ask if a room has been booked at the hotel. Which somehow gets me vouchers to pay for hotel and food because nobody told us in Ottawa (as I said, "I would have just stayed there!"). Go to pick up our luggage (can't wait to haul all that to a hotel in a cab - not sure it will even fit) and find out that ours, along with about 10 other people's, didn't make it. Hooray! I am, however, the only person in the lost baggage claim line that is actually happy about this.

We wait to fill out our forms, then go to catch a cab. There are none left by now. However, as I go back up to call one, a co-worker of Craig's that stayed with us a couple of weeks last fall walks around the corner. He offers us a ride to the hotel, and takes my incredibly overweight carry-on up to our room for me and makes sure everything is okay. Gives me his numbers in case we need anything.

Now, we're stuck in a hotel room until noon tomorrow, because it's not really safe for us to wander around. We don't have our winter boots or mitts, anyway. We venture down to the restaurant (thank goodness there is one here!) for lunch, but we've missed it. The kids want a drink from the vending machine but I refuse to spend $2 on a mini juice box. Water and the fruit bars I shoved into the carry-on it is! I wash the glasses in our room (call me crazy), and we snack away while the kids tear around and I let them (totally against all my hotel room rules!). Oh, I also have a much needed shower with a cup of tea, and a nap. At five we go down for supper and share a Brie appetizer and a main course of steak and baked potato and cheesecake for dessert. Which uses up our entire $69 meal voucher.

There are no blackout curtains in the room (just regular ones) but we're all so exhausted that we sleep right through (despite very little complete darkness outside). Let the kids watch tv, play DS, be loud, then pack and go down for breakfast. We share 3 pancakes, 4 sausages, 2 eggs and 2 toast, plus two juices, and use up our entire $27 voucher. The pancakes were big though. We grab our stuff in the room and head to the airport, check-in, and hang around for a couple of hours. The flight takes off, hitch-free, great flight, then about 1/2 an hour from home, I overhear the flight attendant telling the people in front of me that there was cloud cover earlier, and if it got any lower we would be flying straight on to stay overnight at Pond Inlet - the community we were trying to avoid in the first place!

Fortunately, it was a beautiful day here by then (Craig had been worried when he saw the clouds, too), Craig picked us up with lots of hugs and kisses and excitement.... And when the pick up truck came around with our luggage, it was all there - perfect!

The boys are so happy to be home, playing with their toys. Lots of Nerf gun wars today, and they played with their Lego (instead of just making a mess).

I know it's been a long time since I posted anything... Hopefully I'll be back with pictures sooner, rather than later!

Disney November 2010

2010-12-01T21:39:00.126-05:00

These pictures have been sitting here for ages, ready to go. The captions, however, are brief so they actually get posted before our April 2011 trip.

On stage at the Children's Museum in Ottawa

Using the crane to load and unload on the boat

Tired boys

Autumn in Saskatchewan

Helping Mom

More help - we got warmer and warmer!

Lunch at the Berry Farm in Saskataoon

Grandma's retirement lunch

Hallowe'en - Clone Wars Storm Trooper and Optimus Prime

Disney World! Brunch with Grandma and Grandpa

On our fourth trip, Logan finally smiles!

Twice!

Mickey ravioli on a Mickey plate

Relaxing by the pool

Artist of the Day at Olivia's

We all took turns "wearing" the Mickey hat at Hollywood Studios

The Osborne Light Show

In chronological order: Cutie #1

Cutie #2

Cutie #3

Our second time at Chef Mickey's

Remembered the ears!

Two Goofys - Oh, wait, that's Donald!

Say it with me... Awwww.....

Electrical parade at Magic Kingdom, right on Main Street

The kids really wanted to see the fireworks, so we stayed and had a great view!

Playing at the pool at the hotel

Smile, it's ice cream! With Mickey ears.

Giraffes at our resort

Our rental house

The kids' room

The pool

The car

Little fishies

They really wanted to try a real coconut. After finally getting it open, it was rather anticlimatic.

Liam wanted to ride a horse, so I found a place that would take him at his age. The owner rode behind him

It wasn't hard to convince me to go!

A day trip to St. Augustine

Sunset on the way home

Orlando traffic

Craig got to go to an NHL game

A quick stop with a random Santa at Wal-Mart. First smiling picture with Santa. You will notice there's no Logan....

Universal Studios for a day

Here we go!

This was fun, but really quick!

Dad and his boys

Used speech bubbles

Popeye!

Liam and Tim and I

Looks wet.

Very wet.

Hogsmeade in Harry Potter Land (insert real name of the HP area here!)

The Hogsmeade Post Office

A butterbeer stand

Rides for the kids!

Dr. Seuss ready for Christmas

Some X-men (X-women?)

We're so important, this was our escort to the airport. Just kidding!

Putting away the groceries

2010-09-14T11:09:00.084-04:00

Let's see.... I started this post in September... It's February now, so I guess it's safe to put it up?

Sealift 2010

Before... When the cupboards were getting bare

During....

After...

Summer 2010 - Part I

2010-08-23T23:56:00.016-04:00

Fresh char

Northernmost Rider fans?

Clouds

Footprints in the sand

Rushing water

Boys - being boys

Fog rolling in

Hot Dog lunch - Nunavut Day

A picnic table on top of a very tall hill

Town inuksuk

Inuksuk and boys

Using sticks to test the ice before hopping across

Fishing at midnight

Fishing and ice

Town

Fishing on the edge

Logan fell asleep on the quad ride

It might have been a little muddy

Happy boy

Boys relaxing on a sunny day. Then I remembered that polar bears walk around here. So we headed back to the house.

Mmmmmm...

Going fishing with Dad

Making sand castles

The smallest ugly fish ever!

June 2010

2010-08-23T21:57:00.004-04:00

So, apparently I have some catching up to do... Let's start in June, shall we?

Soon after we got back from Disney World, the preschool called to invite us to graduation. On June 8, Liam graduated from preschool.

No celebration is complete without cake. I never did get a picture of it finished. At least Liam's name is on there!

Just happy to be there!

They all look so cute.

Guess which one's mine?

So proud!

Delightful Disney Dining - Diary

2010-05-24T16:20:00.026-04:00

I have put together a list of our meals (that I can remember!) and what the cost would have been if we had paid out of pocket instead of using the dining plan. I also put down how many table service (TS) credits we used, how many counter service (CS) credits we used, and how much we paid out of pocket for tips and alcohol. If we were paying out of pocket, there would be an additional 6.5% tax, which I didn't count.

Lunch at the T-Rex Restaurant.

May 2
T-Rex - DD
Kid Jurassic Chicken	$6.99	Kid Cosmo's Cheesy Mac	$6.99
Chicken Fried Steak	$18.99	Mammoth Mushroom Raviolis	$17.99
Caveman Punch 21oz	$12.99	Sam Summer Ale 21oz	$7.75
Discovery Blast (2 @ 4.99)	$9.98			O/P-alc&tip	TS
			$81.68	$98.02	0

Puck Express - DD
Bistro Sandwich	$13.00	Bacon-wrapped Meatloat	$14.00
Side fruit	$4.00	Brownie	$3.00
Orange Juice (2 @ 3.25)	$6.50			O/P	CS
			$40.50	$0.00	2

Kids' meal at the Plaza Restaurant

Turkey sandwich and strawberry shake

Veggie sandwich and cookies 'n cream shake

Milk and cookies

Cheesecake

May 3
Plaza Restaurant - MK
Turkey Sandwich w/ Brocolli Slaw	$11.49	Veggie Sandwich w/ Brocolli Slaw	$10.49
Kids PB&J Meal (2@8.59)	$17.18	Cookies and Cream Shake	$4.69
Strawberry Shake	$4.69	Cheesecake	$5.49	O/P-tip	TS
			$66.03	$12.00	4

Main Street Bakery - MK
Cinnamon Roll (4@approx $4)	$12.00	Choc. Croissant (2@approx$4)	$8.00	O/P	SNK
			$20.00	$0.00	6

Puck Express - DD
Pesto Chicken	$10.00	Bacon Meatloaf	$14.00
Mac & Cheese	$11.00	Spaghetti & Meatballs	$16.00
Kid Cheese Pizza	$7.00	Chocolate Cookie (5@2.00)	$10.00
Kids Milk (2@1.00)	$2.00	Orange Juice (2@3.25)	$6.50	O/P	CS
			$76.50	$0.00	5

Kouzzina by Cat Cora

Slow-cooked lamb shank

Meaty Macaroni

Oak-fired pork T-bone

Loukoumades

Kids' Sundae

Chocolate Budino cake

May 4
Artist's Palette - Saratoga
Ckn Spnch & Artichoke Flatbrd	$8.29	Turkey & Brie Sandwich	$8.89
PB&J Meals (2 @ 4.99)	$9.98	Juice (2 @ 2.39)	$4.78
Kids milk (2 @ 1.99)	$3.98			O/P	CS
			$35.92	$0.00	4

Kouzzina by Cat Cora - BW
Lemonade	$2.69	Mega-Berry Smoothie	$4.69
Slow-cooked Lamb Shank	$26.99	Oak-fired Pork T-bone	$26.99
Chocolate Budino Cake	$8.49	Loukoumades	$6.99
Kids Meaty Macaroni Meal	$8.99			O/P-tip	TS
			$111.15	$25.32	3

Sanaa Restaurant - looks like we forgot to take pictures of everything except dessert!

Sampler dessert

Rice pudding

Wolfgang Puck's - Key lime pie & cheesecake

May 5
Sanaa - AKV-Kidani
Bread Service	$8.99	Mega-Berry Smoothie	$4.69
Tusker Beer	$6.75	Kids Meaty Macaroni Meal	$7.59
Beef Short Ribs & Ckn w/ red curry sauce	$18.99	Sampler Dessert (2@6.99)	$13.98
Kids Cheeseburger Meal	$7.59	Chicken Tandoori	$14.99
				O/P	TS
			$127.52	$43.95	4

Wolfgang Puck's Café - DD
Asian Hoisin BBQ Ribs	$19.95	Florida Key Lime Pie	$7.95
Meatloaf	$19.95	Creme Brulee Cheesecake	$7.95
2 kids meals (?) 2@8.99	$17.98			O/P	TS
			$73.78	?	4

May 6
Tusker House - AK
Adult Buffet (2@21.99)	$43.98	Kids Buffet (2@11.99)	$23.98	O/P	TS
			$67.96	$10.00	4
Mara - AKV-Jambo
Garden Flatbread	$7.99	Turkey Ciabatta	$7.99
Juice (2@2.39)	$4.78	Mara Cakes	$3.59
Grapes	$3.29			O/P	CS
			$27.64	$0.00	2

May 7
Wolfgang Puck Café Express
Egg Salad Sandwich	Soda (2@
Kids Grilled Cheese Meal	Cookies (2@		O/P	CS
		$22.54	$0.00	2

Teppan Edo

Snacks at Norway

San Angel Inn

Corvina

Kids' Quesadilla

Camarones

May 8
Tangierine Café - EP
Shawarma Ckn & Lamb Platter	$13.99	Kids Ckn Tender Meal	$7.99
				O/P	CS
			$21.98	$0.00	2

Teppan Edo - EP
Kids Meal - Tori (2@12.00)	$24.00	Filet Mingon	$29.95
Kids Milk (2@2.50)	$5.00	Hotate (scallops)	$23.95
Kids Ice Cream (2@2.25)	$4.50	Ginger Cake	$5.95
Hot Green Tea	$2.95			O/P tip	TS
			$96.30	$20.00	4

San Angel Inn - EP
Kids Quesadilla Meal (2@8.50)	$17.00	Corvina	$26.00
Soft Drinks (2@2.39)	$4.78	Camarones (shrimp)	$26.00
Vanilla Flan	$6.50	Mixed Fruit	$8.00	O/P tip	TS
			$88.28	$10.00	4

May 9
Crystal Palace - MK
Adult Buffet (2@18.99)	$37.98	Child Buffet (2@10.99)	$21.98		TS
			$59.96		4

Mara - AKV-Jambo
Garden Flatbread	$7.99	Turkey Ciabatta	$7.99
Juice (2@2.39)	$4.78	Mara Cakes	$3.59
Grapes	$3.29			O/P	CS
			$27.64	$0.00	2

cap

May 10
Sanaa - AKV-Kidani
Painted Lemur	$8.25	Tusker	$6.75
Kids Meaty Macaroni	$5.09	Kids Fruit Salad	$1.75
Lamb Tandori	$20.99	Slow Cooked Entrée	$18.99
Kids Cheeseburger Meal	$5.09	Kids Soup	$1.75
Appetizer for Two	$14.99	Mango Pudding	$4.49
Rice Pudding	$5.49	Chocolate Cake	$5.99	O/P alc,app	TS
			$99.62	$29.99	4

May 11
Cosmic Ray's - MK
Chili Cheese Dog (2@7.89)	$15.78	Kids PB&J Meal (2@4.99)	$9.98
Soft Drink (2@2.49)	$4.98	Carrot Cake	$3.59
Chocolate Cake	$3.59	Cookies (2@1.19)	$2.38	O/P	CS
			$40.30	$0.00	4

El Pirata y el Perico - MK
Taco Salad	$7.69	Beef Tacos	$5.99
Drink	$2.49	Orange Juice	$2.59
Chocolate Cake (2@3.59)	$7.18			O/P	CS
			$25.94	$0.00	2

The total dollar value for the meals that I can remember is $1129.56. We also had 44 snacks, and if they have an average value of $3.00, that's $132.00. Plus there are 14 counter service meals that we ate (but I can't remember where! But we used some for breakfasts and multiple snacks that make up a meal) and if they averaged even $10 each, that's another $140. Bringing the total to $1401.56. We paid $1187.56 for the plan. However, there is added value in knowing that you have already paid for the meal, and knowing that you don't have to suffer sticker shock every day and try to pick the least expensive thing on the menu.

Spring Vacation - Part III

2010-05-24T14:57:00.023-04:00

Map of Kidani Village

May 5, 2010

This is the day that we moved from Saratoga Springs to Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village. As with most things Disney, the move was easy as pie. We called Bell Services, they picked up our bags, groceries and all, tagged them, and took them downstairs. You just have to tell them which ones are fridge or freezer, and they keep them cold until they deliver it all to your new room. We had planned this as a rest day, too, because we didn't know what would be involved with moving. So we drove pretty much straight over to AKV and checked in, then ate lunch at Sanaa, the table service restaurant in the resort.


The Kidani Village lobby at night	The Jambo House lobby

Our villa - living room, with sofa bed	Kitchen

Bedroom - The bed faces the dresser with TV, and desk.	Master bath with toilet, shower, jet tub, closet. Another bath with toilet, tub, and sink was off the entry.

The restaurant sign	Inside the restaurant - lunch time

How to keep the kids occupied at the table?	Giraffes...

Ankole Cattle...	even the occasional Deere.

And yes, Logan almost fell asleep at this meal, too, even though it was only lunch time. For supper, we went to Wolfgang Puck's Cafe. We love the express place on Downtown Disney's east side, so thought we would try out the table service. Surprisingly, we prefer the express. And only the one at the east side Marketplace, as we tried the west side express and it was disappointing, too. The desserts were wonderful, though! And we were so mean to Logan, we kept him up until bedtime, despite his best attempts. It was hard work.

May 6, 2010

Park day! Animal Kingdom - only fitting, since we were staying so close! The first time we went to Animal Kingdom park was in March of last year. It was the hottest day ever, and we were all miserable. Plus, if you remember, we went to Rafiki's Island, to the Affection Section - the single biggest waste of time at Disney World - and that ate up the enjoyable park of the day, and contributed greatly to our grumpiness. We had such a great time that we skipped it entirely in October.

But, upon reviewing the map at home before we went and realizing how much of the park we missed, we decided to give it another try. We had breakfast, then left for the park. Another reason to go was that the boys were tall enough for the Kali River Rapids ride this time. And we ran into the age-old equation: Logan with no nap the day before + getting up in time to go to the park = a very contrary, obstinate boy.

One of the first things upon entering the park was getting Fast Passes for Kali River. Then we had time to wander, do bathroom breaks, find frozen treats, drink lots of water. Back to the ride and the Fast Pass line. Because Logan is so close to the 40" restriction, he has to be measured. And that day he was having nothing to do with standing on those two footprints and holding his head up and standing up straight. And it seems that his Daddy had had about enough for one day - and one month. So, while Liam and I went on the ride, Logan sat in the stroller. And Logan continued to sit in the stroller. Liam and I had a great time on the ride and we got soaked. Totally dripping wet. Not a bad thing in such a hot place.

The downside was that I had made reservations at the Tusker House restaurant for lunch, which was air conditioned, so we got a bit chilly! With the reservations, though, we got reserved seating for the Finding Nemo show in the afternoon. I remember the endless lines in 2009, and how I swore no show was worth that. And although the show was quite good, I still don't think I would have lined up that long! Having had seats set aside, and entry through the exit (thus avoiding the people in line), I will say the show was great for the kids. It's a giant puppet show, and the puppeteers are the voices and acting, all at the same time. And the theatre is air conditioned; so important when Animal Kingdom is unbearably hot on a scattered-clouds kind of day. After a couple more rides, it was time to head home. The closing hours at the park are quite early, so we had a good excuse to head back to the room on time and I popped over to the quick-service restaurant at Jambo House to bring us back supper.

May 7, 2010

The opening day of Iron Man 2. We, of course, were at the 1:15PM show. We went to Downtown Disney for lunch and Wolfgang Puck's Cafe Express, then to the theatre, then wandered around Downtown Disney for a while, until we went off and did some shopping in Orlando. We stopped at the huge McDonald's, where I had ravioli (?!) and Craig had a double Filet of Fish and we discovered that there was no playland; it was all money-required games like a bowling lane (that is sooooo awesome to eat near), air hockey, and arcade games. Very disappointing!

May 8, 2010

Epcot. When we were planning our trip, Liam said that this time he only wanted to do fun stuff. I asked him what that would be, and he said "Rides. No Epcot!" Since our last stop at Epcot, we found some more kid-oriented things to do, and going during the Flower Festival meant a couple more.

When we got to Epcot we got fast passes for Soarin' then went explorin'. We were hungry, so we stopped at the Moroccan quick-service restaurant for a snack that ended up looking more like a meal. Then we headed over to the Japanese restaurant, as we had 2:00 reservations for Teppan Edo and wanted to see if we could move them up. And we ended up going right in. Needless to say, the kids were a little full for lunch, but at least they had the patience to watch the presentation of the food being cooked, etc.

We took a boat ride across the lake to go on Soarin'. We also went to a couple more rides during the day, had some treats, played, then went to supper at the San Angel Inn at Mexico. After supper we stuck around for the fireworks. And even though we weren't in the best viewing spot (we were strategically located near the exit and the bathrooms and a bench), it was still great - the kids loved it, even if it was a bit loud. A late night, but an excellent day at Epcot. Even Liam wants to go back. As long as we go on the same rides. And not to the Hawaiian [Japanese] restaurant where they cook on the grill. Just to the place where Mickey cooks.


Scene from Captain Cook.	Giant tea cups growing different kinds of tea.

The French Pavilion.	Logan loves all fountains and water falls!

And the Oscar goes to..... the boy who had to leave the fountain!	So I remember what I want my backyard to look like someday ;)

Our chef at Teppan Edo.	Watching the chef put on a show.

Both boys decided to eat with chopsticks, and did quite well!	One of the play areas they set up during the Flower Festival. The ground is covered with recycled rubber pieces. They have to disassemble the area before the rubber starts melting in the summer.

Waiting for Dad to get snacks at Norway.

The San Angel Inn restaurant at Mexico. 7:30 PM reservations.	Going....

Going....	Gone.

May 9, 2010

Mother's Day! We went to the Magic Kingdom, where we had reservations for Crystal Palace, with Winnie the Pooh and friends. At the park gate, all the mothers got a carnation. So I DID get flowers for Mother's Day!


Liam holding my carnation. Apparently Tigger is also bouncing on his head!	Piglet!

Logan with characters.	Logan without characters.

At some point at Epcot the day before we lost Logan's hat. So after breakfast we spent some time looking for another. You would think this would be easy, like Disney would have them all over, just DYING to sell you one. They had really cute ones for girls.... Not so much for boys.

We could not find a boy's hat with a brim. And then the kids found these. And they looked so cute. And they rarely ask for souvenir-type stuff. So we bought them, and Liam proceeded to lead us on a parade down Main St, all the way to Tomorrow Land. And they looked cute all day!

It was a pretty short day at the park. We left in good time and headed back to the resort for a swim.


Written on the wall on the way into the pool area: "It's a bad child who does not take advice" -Asante.	The boys, after asking them to stand nicely for a picture after swimming. See previous picture.

The pool at Animal Kingdom-Kidani Village.

May 10, 2010

We took this day to go shopping and driving, as it was our second-last day in Florida. We were back in time for supper at Sanaa, at the resort.

May 11, 2010

Sniff. Our last day. Off to the Magic Kingdom again! We drove so we could drop the rental car off on the way there. We hit the favourite rides and explored some new areas. We had never gone over to Tom Sawyer's Island before, so we took the raft over for some quiet play time while the parade was on.


On the way to drop off the car.	Where did I put my Hawaiian shirt?

Pineapple floats.	Splash Mountain!

Playing on Tom Sawyer's Island.	Teacups!

How old is that kid that just got off Thunder Mountain?!

That evening, Liam and I headed down to the story telling around the campfire. Although it wasn't exactly what I expected, Liam enjoyed it; he still talks about the story he heard.

Once the campfire story was over, we put the kids to bed and finished packing. We got ready for the trip back to Ottawa, where we spent a couple of days stocking up on wants and needs, and visited some friends again.

We took this final Florida picture at the Orlando airport:

Now he decides to smile!

Spring Vacation - Part II

2010-05-23T16:01:00.020-04:00

May 2, 2010

3733 km

On May 1, we travelled from Regina to Toronto, went through customs, then flew to Orlando. We arrived at 11PM, caught the Magic Express, and travelled to our Disney resort - Saratoga Springs. I didn't take any pictures of the inside because by the time we got to sleep it was at least 1AM, and then our stuff was all over, the sofa bed was made up, and there was really no point.


Our room at Saratoga Springs was in the Congress Park area (across the lake from Downtown Disney) - 1 of over 5100 rooms at that resort. Mind boggling.

Our villa building at Saratoga Springs

The boys on the balcony our first morning. They were so happy to be out in the warmth!

After the previous day of travelling, and not getting to sleep until so late, we all slept in until 11:30AM. We sent Craig off to get our rental car while I got the boys up and dressed. It was perfect timing - he pulled up just as we got downstairs because I couldn't stall to keep them holed up in the room any longer!

We were off to Downtown Disney for our first meal. I had made reservations at the T-Rex Restaurant - fortunately, for 2PM - which we just barely made! I thought this was a perfect surprise, given the kids' interest in dinosaurs. Turns out it was "kinda loud and scary". There were gigantic dinosaurs all around the restaurant that moved and roared. In the middle was the ice cave, which changed colours - we were in a sort of rainforest section. Every 15 minutes or so, a meteor shower went off, which meant flashing lights, booming sounds like thunder, and all the dinosaurs roaring at the same time. Yeah, it was kinda loud and scary for lunch!

After lunch we drove to Craig's favourite store in all of Florida, Bass Pro Shops. His pretence for going is to buy clothes - particularly silk Hawaiian shirts. What will he say next time, since they don't carry them anymore? He had a quick look around at other things, but admittedly not a lot of time was spent there.



He couldn't even stay awake for 9 hours.

May 3, 2010

The Magic Kingdom! A relatively short day at the park, followed by running out for snacks for the room, juice, adult drinks, and breakfast supplies. This is the day we realized what a bad cycle Logan was falling into, with falling asleep at around 5, not being able to sleep in bed until after midnight, and being incredibly grumpy in the morning.


Ahhhh.... Back in the Magic Kingdom!	Awesome rented stroller - plus a family ready for a holiday

Restaurant fun	Mickey peanut butter & jelly sandwich

It's a Small World	My Grandma and Grandpa and I went on this ride when they took me to Disneyworld. We went on, um, a couple of times.

A picture of the inside, for Grandma	Standing in the castle, looking back down Main Street

Looking up at the castle	Coming back from grocery shopping

May 4, 2010

This was a rest day. We hoped to get Logan back on a regular sleep schedule. It was also our last day at Saratoga Springs, and we hadn't even been in the pool yet. So we got up, ate and got changed.

Our previous attempts at swimming at Disney have run up against a (gasp!) stubborn Logan, who always says no, and so Liam and Craig go swimming. Amazingly, this time Logan worked in one of his new, favourite, phrases. "I will never go swimming. I will never put on my swimming trunks." You can imagine how shocked we were. So we told him that he didn't have to go in the pool, but that we were all putting our swimsuits on, and he would be much more comfortable and cool if he did, too. We were shocked when this worked.

So we walked over to the main pool - about 5-10 minutes. Logan and Liam started off in the Donald Duck spray area, while Mom and Dad cooled off with some Mommy and Daddy drinks. Hey, I even got the kids a smoothie! Then Liam couldn't wait anymore. He had seen the slide when we arrived. We actually had to cross the bridge over it to get to our table. While I took Logan to the bathroom, he saw the zero-entry into the pool. Maybe because Liam's favourite pool activity used to be jumping off the edge and Craig catching him, Logan thought that was the only way to get in? After seeing that he could just walk in, though, he couldn't wait either.

We got them some lifejackets and in we went. Liam is paddling completely on his own now, although we haven't tried him without the life jacket. After a couple of trips, he was going up and down the slide alone, too, with a parent to catch him at the bottom. It took Logan about 15 minutes of clinging to me like a baby monkey before he let me hold him in front. Then he let me carry him through the water. Then he started paddling while I held him. Then he didn't want to be touched anymore. After a couple of hours at the pool, the boy who would "never get in the pool" was "never going to get out of the pool." And neither was his big brother. But it was time, and we were hungry, so we popped into the cafeteria-style restaurant and grabbed a bite. Then back to the room to get showered up and ready for supper.

Supper was at Kouzzina by Cat Cora, located at the Boardwalk. Once we were ready and in the car - nearly running late again - we realized that we had no idea where to go. I assumed that the Boardwalk was someplace like Downtown Disney - an entity separate from a resort or park. But all we could find was the Boardwalk resort. I remembered reading about a fancy restaurant on the Boardwalk, so we punched that into the GPS, it showed up and we followed it. Turns out you have to go into the resort, then out the other side. And how fortunate that the Flying Fish is two doors down from Kouzzina.

We had a couple of minutes to spare, so we waited in the candy store next door for our pager to go off. It went off and we went to park the stroller to go in. Then we realized Logan had done it again. Sound asleep. Sigh. So much for that plan. They took away a chair at the table and we wheeled him up. After an excellent meal, we went out through the candy shop, and I waited outside while Craig and the boys in the stroller browsed. Out they came, with Logan wide awake. He woke up inside and asked Craig for a drink, oblivious to the fact that he slept through supper. He woke up exactly where he fell asleep, and he was a little thirsty! So Craig bought him a drink and we went on our way. Yes, we fed him later, back in the room....


Having fun splashing. No pictures of swimming, as we were actually all in the pool!	Supper at Kouzzina

The Boardwalk	As we were leaving, a juggler came out to do a show, but we couldn't stay.

Mmmmm.... supper.	Sleeping through yet another supper. Are you keeping count?

Pretending to eat the chocolate from my dessert. Camera went click. And... chomp, chocolate gone.	"How come I'm so hungry?" "Not me, I just finished a sundae!"

Spring Vacation - Part I

2010-05-06T21:02:00.008-04:00

April 17 & 18

5222km

On the morning of April 17, we took off from Clyde River on our month-long trip.

We landed in Ottawa, then the next day we took the boys for a surprise trip to the Museum of Nature to see real dinosaur fossils.

The boys' favourite snack:

April 19 - 30

While in Saskatchewan, we visited lots of family and friends, shared many good meals, and even took Logan to his first movie in a theatre (How to Train a Dragon).

It was so warm when we arrived, it felt like short weather! And it stayed warm almost until we left. It was so nice to go to parks and play in backyards. Even our road trips reminded us how nice a long drive can be. The boys got to go in Grandpa's "big truck," which they were amazed by. The Easter Bunny had even dropped off a few treats!

Then, on May 1, we flew to Florida...

We're off!

2010-04-16T22:11:00.001-04:00

One more sleep until we take off.... Three more sleeps until Saskatchewan.... Fifteen more sleeps until Florida.... See you all soon!

Quick Pics

2010-04-07T19:41:00.009-04:00

This afternoon the boys and I went outside for a while. It was a balmy -17 degrees with practically no windchill and lots of sunshine. We were so confident in the warmth that we went out with just hats - no hoods or scarves. Heck, I didn't even take a hat, and didn't put up my hood except for a couple of minutes near the end. And I only wore the outer shell of my snowpants. Practically beach weather! As a matter of fact, we walked out into the bay (where there will be water and beach in a couple of months), which gave us a whole new perspective of town. The boys, of course, had fun playing in the snow, and they're not picky about where they do that. But I enjoyed the change of scenery!

And as a bonus, a picture our friend next door took at the store.

Happy Easter!

2010-04-04T08:42:00.006-04:00

Happy Easter

Well, the Easter Bunny (Easter Hare?) stopped by last night and left a nice little trail and a couple of baskets. Liam patiently (not really) waited for 2 hours for his brother to wake up.


Logan wishes he had paid more attention to how to read his name.	Liam quickly assesses the situation, issues orders, and is off!

Logan lives in the moment, more concerned with what's in the first egg than following the trail	How to hold all those eggs?

Experience.	He'll be an expert next year, too.

The chocolate makes him dance!

It's soooo gooooood!

Happy Birthday

A letter to my youngest son.

2010-04-03T21:05:00.004-04:00

Dear Logan;

In the future could you please tell me the truth when:

a) I use my loud, firm, mommy voice to ask you and your brother why there are red marks all over the wood floor, leading into our bedroom, and you know that red chair

leaves marks, and what were you doing with that red chair in our bedroom anyway?

b) Ten minutes later I ask what all the red smeared all over the bathroom floor is,

and did you get into my lipstick again, because I still have the evidence from last time

and if it's not lipstick, WHAT is it?

Because instead of my it's-the-end-of-the-day and you-know-better and you've-GOT-to-be-kidding-me-this-paint-is-NEVER-going-to-come-off voice, I would use my oh-baby-are-you-okay voice. If you would have just told me you somehow sliced a couple of layers of skin off two toes, and that is actually BLOOD all over the place.

However, my sympathy does go down a bit when you then decide "it hurts, and I'm going to milk it for all it's worth." But nice try....

Learnin' those kids somethin'

2010-03-16T21:42:00.005-04:00

Lately we've been doing some teaching and learning at home. And by "lately" I mean we have done 3 lessons, including 2 letters. And the second letter we started today. But I plan to keep it up. It's more of an activity for when we don't go to school for longer periods, than a scheduled class plan.

**I just remembered that we also did a Valentine's theme. So that's 4.

So, we started with the short "a" sound, combining English and Inuktitut.

The activities that we did with this included the prerequisite apple picture, with printing practice:

and the most all-encompassing activity I may ever come across - well, actually do, anyway.

These are, of course, paper chains with an Anchor at the end. First they decided on what pattern they were going to make by colouring lines on paper. The green links on Logan's chain and the yellow links on Liam's chain are the days of the week (in both languages). So, while they were following their pattern, and manipulating the strips of paper to make the chain, we were reviewing the days. They had previously coloured and cut out the anchors. Then they printed the word "anchor" to accompany the chain. Is that anything short of awesome?!

As a bonus, now that we have anchors on the wall, we can build on that with boats, octopus, water.... and fish. Which brings us to our new letter.

Luck of the 1/4 Irish

2010-03-16T21:26:00.004-04:00

Last week we went to school twice: Tuesday and Friday. Tuesday the teacher's announced that we would be having game day then, instead of Friday. The adults and kids each played a game of Inuktitut Snakes & Ladders. I didn't win the adult game. Logan decided he would rather just play with his game piece, instead of putting it down, rolling, and moving. In the end, every player on the kids' side was within 1 or 2 of winning; it was just a matter of who would roll the magic number first. The die went around the group about 3 times. Finally, Liam rolled the 1 that he needed for the win. And what a win it was!

That's 4 juice boxes, a box of yogurt tubes, a bunch of bananas, watermelon slices, a doodle pad, a mini stapler and plastic hand clapper things. While you are looking, you may as well click to make the image larger so you can check out the prices on the watermelon and the stapler.

Now that you have recovered....

We went back to school Friday, and lo and behold, it was game day again. And of the 3 games, Liam and his partner (not me! but the lady he has adopted as his partner - they win more often than not) won one game. A smaller prize this time, but who's complaining.... Whose mom feels a bit of guilt every time we take one of these prizes home, because there are certainly people there who need them more than we do!

I'm pretty sure his motivation for picking this prize was the picture of a pie on the tub of lard. He lives in constant hope that his mother will make an apple pie with him. Better order some extra apples....

I beg to differ.

2010-03-08T21:50:00.010-05:00

I read today that some climbers are coming to the Clyde River area to scale some rocks. It's going to take the three climbers 20 days to climb the rock face. This means that at least some of the time they will be sleeping hanging on the wall of granite. This climbing website states that "the main feature of Great Sail Peak is its NW face, which is a sheer 1150m wall," and that it looks like this:

Courtesy of Google Earth, I can see that Stewart Valley is about 100 km from Clyde River:

The red dot is Stewart Valley; the blue dot is Clyde River.

As awesome as sleeping in one of these

sounds, the part I love the most is that the article also states: "They hope not to encounter snow storms, which are unlikely in such a cold environment."

Really? Have they done their research? Can weather patterns differ that much within 100km in the Arctic? Because this was our front porch last week during a storm that lasted from Saturday night to Monday evening, that blew winds at least 100 km/h. At 8:30 PM we cleared the area of accumulated snow to start fresh.


9:54 PM	1:43 AM

Preparing to shovel at 1:47 AM.

Opening the door to put the snow outside would have been just plain dumb, not to mention futile.	9:28 AM

Knowing that our house, that is built on pilings drilled far into rock, really shakes when the winds get up that high, it doesn't seem like a brilliant idea to be sleeping hanging from a rock face while the wind howls and the snow blows.

Recent scenes of Clyde River

2010-03-08T19:23:00.007-05:00

These are recent pictures of Clyde River, mostly from inside the house. It seems like whenever we go out for a truck ride, I either forget the camera or the battery. Therefore, they are a bit repetitive, but that's why you can scroll.




The snow drift up the back of the house.	It makes a very good wind/snow block now.


Sled dogs.	Sun dogs.



These pictures were taken a week apart.	There was a 2-day blizzard in between.

'Cause we like it.

2010-02-06T12:07:00.004-05:00

A couple of months ago, we started planning our next vacation. We were tossing around lots of ideas (most of which were incredibly expensive) and started thinking about what kind of holidays we would take as a family when we got back to the south.

We figured we would be less of a jet-setting family and more of a camping family. I, however, am not a go-into-the-wilderness-and-set-up-a-tent kind of girl. I look at the people who pull up in their RVs with beds, heat, stoves, fridges, showers, toilets, and (now that I have kids) locks on the door, and I think that's more my style.

This led us to thinking that maybe we should rent something like this and see how we like it. Now, eventually we wouldn't be getting a full-sized RV, just a trailer, but you can't rent those quite as easily when you don't have a truck. Then we started throwing around ideas about where to go RVing - when you're renting, you can start from anywhere! Finally we decided on driving to Calgary, renting there, then driving up and out to Vancouver Island and back. Great; we picked the RV we wanted to rent and started planning where we would stay each night.

If you've ever seen me plan a trip, you know that I now know everything there is to know about RV sites in BC. We even found out that there were "dinosaur" related stops to make along the way. Then we started to see a pattern. Some campgrounds were open all-year, more opened May 1, and the majority were May 15-ish. The tours we wanted to do of dino-stuff started the end of May. One campground that I emailed would open earlier than May 1 if enough snow was gone. Next we started planning what kind of clothes/jackets we would need to take.

Then it got really, really cold here in Clyde River. And we started to wonder if, after a winter of extreme cold, blizzards, and 110 km/h wind storms, we were looking forward to a chilly, rainy vacation. The answer became "Not so much." So where could we easily take the kids (so it would still be a vacation for us, not a marathon of survival) where it was warm and they would have fun and we would have fun? The skies opened up and the answer was clear:

We know the area, we know what to expect. Then, there was more planning. We wanted to go for longer; try to achieve that balance of the Disney experience without feeling rushed. So we're going from May 1-12. And to stay that long, in one room.... well, let's just say that our favourite part of travelling is not putting the kids to bed and then sitting in the dark, with me on the iPod and Craig on the laptop. Sometimes we watch a movie on the laptop; Craig gets the left earbud and I get the right. I know, it sounds awesome and you can't understand why we don't enjoy this.

So this time we are going to stay here:

In a room like this:

See over on the right? Through that door? That's our own room. That couch folds out into a queen-sized bed. Oh, and that's right... that's a fridge and stove - not that we have any crazy ideas about using them too much, as we always have food left over on the dining plan.

We're staying there for half the trip. The other half will be here:

Same deal, with a separate bedroom. This place has a pool with a water slide and we can take the boat launch to Downtown Disney.

Someday we will go somewhere new and different. But for now we're going back to Disney World. 'Cause we like it.

More sunrise/sunset

2010-01-23T15:31:00.004-05:00

Here is a time lapse video from today. The first picture was taken at 11:13 a.m. and the last at 1:31 p.m.

It's up, It's up!!!

2010-01-21T11:33:00.002-05:00

2010-01-20T21:57:00.008-05:00

Liam had a pretty good 5th birthday. Today was a bit busy, making and decorating cupcakes for school that isn't apparently until tomorrow... making and decorating birthday cake... going to (and coming back from) school that isn't apparently until tomorrow... supper with neighbours... presents... and playing!


Mail!	Happy Birthday 5-year-old boy!

Helping make the birthday cake.

Finally...	I'm not about to open my brother's present!

What's in here?

Blowing those candles out like a pro!

A pteranodon cake.	Mmmm.... chocolate with creamy orange filling.

Two cuties.

What's been happening...

2010-01-20T21:31:00.005-05:00

Some random pictures.


The bunk beds we ordered in July finally arrived! The boys are no longer "camping!"	Liam drew a picture of a planet - with a heart island. If you look closely you can see (at the top) a sun, moon, and comet, and at the bottom there is a red planet, a blue planet, and a purple planet (showing what happened when red and blue collided).

Story time.	Miniature bananas! How cute!

The sun was supposed to come up on the 18th, but it was too foggy to tell. This was taken today. I think the sun is still below those mountains over there. It is definitely getting lighter out. Today I didn't even turn on any lights downstairs until after lunch! And it was light out when we went to school and when we came back. Oh, wait - I had the wrong day and there's no school until tomorrow, so I suppose that doesn't count. We'll check tomorrow and see if it's dark out. If we have time. It's -52 with the wind chill, so we're not exactly hanging around out there!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-04T21:52:00.008-05:00

We celebrated the New Year by NOT going to bed before midnight! In fact, we had a storm with really big wind gusts. And we managed to stay up late enough to see the fireworks and snowmobile parade that were supposed to be at midnight, but took place when the storm died down, around 1:15.


Today was such a nice day that we went outside to explore the snow dunes.

Christmas and other news.

2009-12-29T21:06:00.002-05:00

We hope that all our family and friends had a Merry Christmas. We had a quiet day - as quiet as it can be with two excited kids around - and spent it opening presents and playing with the toys. We had supper with our neighbours, put the kids to bed, and played Wii. It was perfect. The boys started the day by checking to see if Santa had come. He finished the hot chocolate, the "beer," and almost all the cookies. Liam left him a note the night before, which he apparently read. Next came the stockings: Santa brought them each a toy, as well as some chocolate and an orange. Once the sugar high from the chocolate kicked in, the present opening began. It was all surprisingly quite civilized; the boys sort of took turns picking a present and watching each other open them, then played for a bit with each one. This year, Liam really "gets" Christmas - the commercial kind, anyway; leaving cookies for Santa, expecting a present from him (a good thing?), going straight to sleep so Santa can come. Logan knows who Santa is and this year he understood about the presents and the songs and the cookie making and the tree decorating. I wonder if Liam believes in Santa, or if he knows. When getting out a "beer" (pop) for Santa, he asked Craig what kind to get. Then, he put the cookies on the plate in the shape of a "D." It could all be a big coincidence, and he may be shocked some day to find out, but I wouldn't be surprised if at some point he claims to have known all along. It remains to be seen who exactly is putting on the show for whom!


Making cookies for Santa - he only likes chocolate chip.	After Craig pointed them out at noon on the 24th, they finally found where we'd put the presents the night before.

After they found the presents, they moved them all under the tree, checking each name as they went.	For every present he held up, Logan said "It says me!"

Santa found his treats.	Everything ready under the tree.

The stockings were too heavy to stay hanging up.	They were emptied pretty quickly in the morning!

It was so much fun to watch the boys open their presents!	They thoroughly enjoyed each package.

A real kid oven!	His very own "lego."

In other news....

This was what noon on December 21st looked like - not as pretty as the day before! What a difference the clouds make. Unfortunately, it has been cloudy most days, making it actually seem like less light than before the solstice.


The boys have been helping me get supper ready. They enjoy using "their" knives (that they manage very well) to help cut veggies like mushrooms and zucchini.

There was, of course, another very important birthday. This time, the request was for a B fifty two cake, so we did it cheesecake style.

So far the boys have made chocolate donuts, a waffle, and a pancake in the real kid oven - the pancakes made with our own batter turned our especially well. Realistically, we can only make one for each boy in the oven, and the rest need to be made in the pan. Twelve minutes to bake, at least 5 to cool.... it would take a long time to make brunch! However, they were very happy to be eating their own creations!

(Almost) the shortest day of the year.

2009-12-20T15:03:00.003-05:00

I thought I might forget to take a picture at noon tomorrow, so I had better do it today!

First, a picture of the sunrise/sunset:

Then facing north:

Finally, we were sitting at the table and happened to notice this at a little after 2PM:

What does it mean when the weather symbol is a question mark?

2009-12-20T14:48:00.005-05:00

This was our weather last weekend; one of the many storms I'm sure we will see this winter.

It looked a bit like this:

Then ended like this:

The wind came back with a vengeance a couple of days later:

Birthday Boy! Logan's third birthday.

2009-12-20T14:10:00.006-05:00

Logan has changed so much in the last year (to be expected!). When we moved north a year and a bit ago, before his second birthday, he wasn't even speaking in sentences yet. He still had naps. And, sigh, he still listened. Now, it's hard to tell who talks more, he and Liam have conversations and make up games together, he absolutely does not have a nap, and his doing-what-he's-told skills have taken a serious nosedive. However, he's been feeding himself for ages, can tell you when he's not feeling well or something's wrong, and we haven't changed a diaper in almost 4 months. A pretty good trade-off, I guess!

His day started with the traditional balloons on his chair and a pancake brunch, then presents, supper with the neighbours (lasagna, in case you were wondering), and of course, cake. His request was: "A chocolate cake with chocolate icing with orange fruit, in a circle." In lieu of orange fruit, the middle layer was orange flavoured.

We appreciated the Happy Birthday phone calls, even if Logan wasn't participating very well (see above), and the presents, too!


Logan was very excited to get a birthday card in the mail	Especially when he saw it had a puppy on it!

Pancakes	Presents

Yummy cake, if I may say so myself	I don't want to blow out candles!

I do want to blow out candles! I wanna, I wanna!	One more time, for both.

Birthday boy with his cake	Birthday boy enjoying his cake

Models

2009-12-20T13:49:00.003-05:00

Here are a couple of pictures of the boys modelling:


The dream is still alive. Liam in his Rider pants.	The boys in front of our decorated tree, which they were finally both old enough to help with.

Logan modelling his new shirt.	Trying to see the #3 on the back. Amusing game all day!

Where is the Sun?

2009-12-06T22:19:00.004-05:00

The sun set while we were gone. I think it will be back some time around Liam's birthday. When I was imagining what it would be like when we got home, I had this impression that it would be like night all the time. In fact, most of the morning and until about two o'clock is like twilight. I think the best word is gloaming. The above picture was taken at noon; other than this brightest time, the world is a blue-grey colour.

People, places, and things

2009-12-06T16:09:00.013-05:00

We are back after almost 2 months away from home. I have to admit, as much as we enjoyed our trip and all the visiting, it's nice to be back home with our own stuff. Here are some memories from October and November:

People

We saw lots of family and friends on this trip. We started out with Grandma and Grandpa K., whom we met in Disney World. Then, of course we saw lots of characters at WDW! Back in Saskatchewan we stayed with Grandma and Grandpa N., and had lunches, coffees, suppers, and overnighters with everyone else!

Places
The first place we stopped was Ottawa - just me and the boys for a couple of days until Craig caught up. Due to Ottawa being shut down in October (our impression, anyway!), we went to the Museum of Science & Technology and the Aviation Museum. While in Florida we took a day trip to Daytona Beach. We didn't stop, except for bathrooms and snacks, but we drove past the home of the Daytona 500, lots of biker hangouts, and some very big waves. Back in Saskatchewan, Liam and I went to the RSM to see some dinosaurs - including Megamunch - after the last of three (!!!) dental appointments. In Saskatoon we took a drive through the Christmas light display with Grandma K.

Things
The boys were so excited to see fresh fruit, grass, flowers, and leaves that they spent a lot of time gathering treasures. Our meals for the first couple of days were all the goodies we picked out at the grocery store - the most perfect apple ever, fresh buns, grapes without mold. In WDW there were, of course, many rides. Liam has grown so much since March that he can go on the grownup rides now, like Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Railroad. He took advantage of that by going as often as possible! Logan remembered "his" rollercoaster - the Barnstormer - and we went on that quite a few times, too. While trying to get tired kids to eat we discovered that chopsticks are the way to go. They're pretty good with them, too! And of course we celebrated Hallowe'en in Regina with a clown pumpkin, a Bumblebee Transformer and an Optimus Prime Transformer. There were even a couple of early Christmas presents to open.

We're still here....

2009-10-29T19:49:00.002-04:00

Just a quick update - no pictures.

Here we are in Saskatchewan. We had a wonderful time in Disney World. The kids enjoyed it and we were much more relaxed than last time, as we knew what we wanted to make sure we did. After a fast 10 days, we flew to Saskatchewan. We have had a busy week catching up with friends, family, and routine things like haircuts and dentist appointments. In fact, tomorrow morning the boys have their first real dental checkups. We'll see how that goes. My expectations are fairly low; anything involving an open mouth will be a success.

Liam is getting excited about Hallowe'en. He has tried his costume on a couple of times and makes a fantastic Transformer Bumblebee! Logan is a great Optimist Prime, but we'll see if he actually "performs" on the big night! We took pictures on the practice run, just in case.

More visiting in the coming weeks....

2009-09-18T19:55:00.004-04:00

The past week saw the kids gain much more confidence at school. Logan will agree to wanting a song now, and he will nod when Ullu Ullu Ulluriia (Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star) is suggested. And he happily participates in all the songs, singing quite loudly and loving all the actions that go with them! Liam has been answering Inuktitut questions ("How are you?" "What did you do yesterday?") in English, which is a start. They are both getting good at the days of the week, and I'm not doing so poorly either.

Yesterday, while the kids were playing with dress up clothes, the ladies came and got me to go play dice games with them. Hooray for me! I didn't win (that's okay, really!) but had lots of fun and laughs. And they were kind enough to let me name body parts in English, lol!

Today was the Terry Fox Run in town. The school, daycare, and preschool all participated, and it seemed like most of the town must have been out. Logan saw "My friend teacher," so he was happy. That would be the teacher that he relents to allow her to wash his hands, go get a library book, line up. The things that he just loves to say "No" to me about because he is... well... 2. It's just so much less tedious if he goes with her! And a good sign for January, when he can be in class by himself.

The walk was from the school, in the middle of town, down to our place, back up the road along the beach and all the way out to the giant rock on the way to the airport, then back to the school. We took the stroller for Logan, but Liam walked the whole way. I was planning on taking his bike, but at the last minute I had visions of me trying to get a stroller, a bike, and a boy all the way home. He was pretty tired by the time we got out to the rock, but he had lots of company to keep him motivated.

I wish I would have taken the camera. You could have seen him sitting on a smaller rock beside the giant one, holding court. He was able to break away long enough to have some of the juice the firefighters had set out. Then it was back to town. Liam played tag.... okay, it was more like chasing whichever kid was wanting to be chased... but it kept him moving and limited the number of "I'm tired" and "Where is our house?" complaints. Logan got pushed by 4 or 5 people at a time, and eventually fell asleep with all the gentle bumping along the road in the stroller. I kept count, and the most people in our entourage at one time was 14. Two little kids walked back the whole way, each with a hand on the stroller, "helping" me. And their mothers tried to take them away and they screamed. I didn't mind, and really, the faster Liam ran, the faster the whole crowd went. So the moms should have been happy!

It was a good walk. The kids did very well. I find it exhausting, though, having so many people... around us the whole time. The whole time is answering questions, keeping an eye on the kids, whether they are being "handled" too much (the local kids love to touch their hair, pick them up, hug them, etc. and sometimes the line has to be drawn), rescuing them, keeping them going. Once we got back to the school, all three of us were definitely ready to go home and have some hot chocolate!

Our newest addition

2009-09-18T17:39:00.008-04:00

This is the latest carving that we have added to the collection. It is caribou antler, and it is a man with a club. If you look closely, you will see the following:

A fish (char, I presume)

A bird (loon)

A beluga

A seal

An iglu

Northern lights

Frosty's visit

2009-09-10T13:43:00.017-04:00

	Sunrise	Sunset	Day Length
Thu SEP 10	5:25	7:34	14:09
Wed SEP 09	5:21	7:39	14:18
Wed SEP 02	4:51	8:13	15:22
Wed AUG 05	2:21	10:53	20:32

The weather started to really change yesterday, when the wind picked up and the rain just kept drizzling. The waves were rolling in and crashing against the shore.
This morning began with cries of: "Look, snow!" "Where are the polar bears" "The boats are all covered is snow!"

The boys were up, fed, and dressed fast - maybe faster than ever before! Liam had his own snowpants on befure I could even find hats and mitts for everybody. That's when I realized how much they have grown since March. Liam needed the straps on his snowpants let out because he couldn't even get them over his arms. Logan's mitts that were so annoying last year because they kept falling off now fit perfectly. And he's ready to move up to the next size of boot - and he can, now that I've found them!
Once we were out the door, the excitement kept going! We had a snowball fight - age appropriate, of course! I took some action shots, then discovered that I had left the focus on manual. Oops.
Of course, we had to build a snowman!
The blanket of snow before we went outside	And... After

Learning

2009-08-30T10:57:00.004-04:00

For the past two weeks we have been going to Parents & Tots / Preschool. It was very nerve-wracking the first day. I didn't know whether we would be welcomed or not, and didn't want to put my kids into a bad situation. On the other hand I didn't really want to stay in the house for 2 years. So off we went. And it was okay. But still stressful. There is nobody there for whom English is a first language, and although they know what they learned in school, they definitely don't use it on a daily basis. Everybody was very helpful, and I do feel that we are welcomed there. The parents and tots part is more for babies, while preschool is for 3 and up. Therefore, Logan doesn't fit into either group. However, we seem to have found a compromise, so that we stay in the same room while the big kids do writing projects and he can either sit at the table and write, or we sit on the floor and look at a book.

It is a very structured program, way more so than I expected. Before school starts, the kids brush their teeth, get a sticker on their calendar, and trace out their name.

Every day "circle time" starts at exactly 1:30. Everybody (moms, babies, toddlers, preschoolers, elders, whoever is there) sits in a circle and we start with a prayer. Then a teacher goes around the room, address each child by name, and asks how they are, the child responds, then they ask what they did yesterday. Once everybody has had a turn, the kids get to pick a song or rhyme to sing. Some are English, most are not! We have learned Twinkle Star in Inuktitut, and I'm sure the kids will know more soon. Once songs are done, they go over the calendar and say (I think) what day yesterday was, what day today is, and what day tomorrow will be, along with the month and the date. Somewhere in there we also count how many people are present.

After all that, the kids go get their library books from the day before, line up, and take them back to the library where they pick a new one (unless it's Friday, when they pick 2). They check them out, then find the sticker with their name on it (in Inuktitut, of course) to label their book. Then they line up and go back into the classroom.

When they are back in the room they do something different depending on what day it is. Now, we've only been going for 2 weeks, and not everyday, so I'm not exactly sure yet. But it seems that Mondays are "journaling" where they concentrate on colouring in the lines, numbers and shapes, and well as writing out the names for the numbers. Only been there for one Monday so far; we'll see next week. I think we've missed both Tuesdays so far. Wednesdays are cooking day. They all went into the kitchen, washed their hands and made pizza. They all took turns kneading the dough, spreading it out, covering with sauce, putting the toppings on, etc. Thursday they did those developmental things I read about in books!! Continuing a pattern ( X O X O __ __ __ __), cutting shapes, matching and gluing them. Friday is game day. Last week we played dice games, then the kids played picture bingo while the moms played their own dice game. This week we played different dice games and we all played picture bingo together, as well as a round of a musical chair kind of game. This may be the most important learning day for our household, as the adults play too, and they certainly don't let the kids win! Not that we do, but the competition is fierce, and when you are out of musical chairs, you are out! I will admit, there were some tears, but lesson learned, I think. After the games on Friday, the kids play with toys or blocks. Every day ends with a healthy snack. All of that takes an hour and a half. We all come home exhausted!

It is difficult to be completely immersed in a new language and culture. I try to stay out of helping Liam and just keep Logan busy. I'm glad that this Friday the teacher pretty much stopped speaking English to Liam during circle time, as he has stopped paying attention until he hears English. I'm sure he would learn faster if I weren't there, but Logan just isn't old enough to participate fully, and he's too old to just sit on my lap while the other moms have coffee and sew. There was another kid his age there on Friday, but unfortunately he seemed to have spent the whole time crying, poor kid. Maybe next week.

Liam can recognize and write his name in Inuktitut now, and Logan is about 50/50. Now if only Mom was 100% sure! Like I said, we've learned Twinkle Star, how to count to 10, and they just gave me a copy of the prayer that we start off with. Everybody is very kind, which is a huge relief. There is a big language barrier, but hopefully that will come down with time. We'll see what next week holds for us!

Random pictures from the past month

2009-08-30T10:26:00.004-04:00


Logan with his friend bulldozer (and Liam, too)	Pointing at a ship in the harbour

Liam wrote a letter	Our house

Deep in thought. Oh wait, watching TV!	Another picture of the bay

A rainbow over Clyde River. That should mislead some Google searchers.	Another picture of the bay.

Twilight	Snuggles with a sleeping baby.

Ships in the harbour

2009-08-30T09:44:00.005-04:00

In the past couple of weeks we have had quite a few ships in the harbour.

They have brought building supplies for the new school, sealifts (including ours), supplies for the town, and even a shiny new bulldozer!

As you can see our sealift arrived.... We spent that evening and part of the next morning unpacking and putting it all away. At some point, some containers of orange juice had holes poked in them. This resulted in half a crate of mold, 40 pounds of spoiled flour, and lots of bleach to get the mold of about 50 litres of juice. Oh, and it seems there were some maggots for good measure. Gross. Other than that everything arrived in one piece. There were the usual surprises of things I had ordered and things I thought I had ordered, but in fact, had not. And the substitutions.... You get the feeling that they just replace what you ordered with the things they can't sell. If I had wanted marshmallows in my hot chocolate, I would have ordered them!

Visitors

2009-08-17T11:30:00.008-04:00

Grandma and Grandpa came to visit for 2 weeks. When they made these plans we lived in Iqaluit and hadn't even thought of moving. At least they were flexible! Their stay consisted of walks, trips to the beach and the playground.... yeah, that's about it!




(Most northern Rider fans?!)

There was an impromptu football game....

Delicious char....

Lots of contemplating what the weather would bring....

As it turned out, we said goodbye a day earlier to make sure they didn't miss their connecting flight from Iqaluit to Ottawa. By that time, we knew that once the fog came, it wasn't likely to leave quickly! We had a good visit - thanks for making the trip, Grandma and Grandpa!

Fogged in a good thing?

2009-08-17T10:54:00.003-04:00

At the beginning of the month we had a ship in the harbour unloading building supplies for the new school.


Accompanying Coast Guard	Ship in harbour

Because the ship stopped in Greenland on its way here, it had to be inspected by Customs before it could unload. To do this, they flew in 3 Customs guys for the day. They subsequently got fogged in for the entire weekend. So we had visitors for a couple of meals, and Craig went out quadding with them for a bit. Here are some pictures from that trip. Keep in mind it was still 24-hour light, so this was at around 9 PM.

They went out to Cape Christian, which is an old US radar station that is currently being dismantled. They passesd by the sled dogs, out to the ocean where the ice was breaking up and there were lots of icebergs to seen. They also met a very stuck front end loader. How did it get stuck? Pulling out a truck. What is it waiting for? The bulldozer.

Around Town

2009-08-17T10:39:00.003-04:00

Here are some pictures taken while we were walking around. I suppose it doesn't look like much, but it is quiet, peaceful, and pretty clean. Most of the houses are well taken care of. They all kind of look the same, but I don't think there is much variety anywhere in government housing!



Down the street from our house towards the school

A short tour of Clyde River

2009-08-17T09:55:00.006-04:00

Welcome to Clyde River

2009-07-26T21:55:00.009-04:00

July 21

We got on the plane with all 12 pieces of luggage on board (phew!) plus our, ahem, 5 carry on pieces. Here are some pictures as we approached Clyde River. The window on one side of the plane was noticeably cleaner, but we did our best. And Logan was just waking up from his flight-long nap, so that was a bit distracting while I was trying to take them out my side (the sunny side).

The Clyde River airport.

Midnight our first night here. The bay is the view out our living room window, with the town to the side and up the hill on the other side.

July 22

In the morning the boys and I unpacked the stuff we'd brought on the plane while Craig was off to his first day at work. Then we went for a walk to the playground before lunch, with a stop at the beach.

In the afternoon we went for another walk to the grocery store. In total I would say we met about 15 people, mostly kids. They come right up and say hi (it's not hard to tell we're new here!) and ask the boys their names and how old they are. They love their blue eyes! Very friendly people so far, smiles all around. It's hard to relax and just be friendly back immediately - amazing how you just get used to not inviting conversation and feeling suspicious of people.

That night 82 pieces of our stuff arrived on the plane. A nice mixture of food, clothing, bedding, kitchen items, toys. It seems the kids have at least 16 cubic feet of toys. Perhaps more. We spent that night unpacking the majority of the downstairs boxes.

July 23

The next morning I unpacked and cleaned some more while the boys busied themselves with their usual unpacking pastimes - playing with boxes and paper.

This was someone snowmobiling across the bay at 2:00 AM. He made it all the way across, doing turns and fancy stuff. Couldn't get up the speed (and the snowmobile wasn't doing very well) to get back, though.

I'll leave you with some more pictures. Time: approx. 1:30 AM

Packing - check!

2009-07-19T21:33:00.002-04:00

So far so good.

The packers showed up at a little after 9 AM on Friday. Quite a respectable time for these parts. One of them even stayed all day to pack. The other didn't come back after getting paid. Hopefully somebody shows up Monday to pack the rest and move the boxes. I have got all the unbreakable stuff packed (sounds backwards, but insurance doesn't cover it if we pack it), so there's not a lot left for Monday.

We also have plane tickets, which is pretty cool. We should be in Clyde River shortly after 7 PM on Tuesday. Our email address won't exist after Wednesday, so if you want to send one you can use lastname @ yahoo . com.

Hopefully it won't be too long until another update!

It'll all work out.

2009-07-16T00:00:00.003-04:00

By the time Craig retires, we'll be really good at this moving thing. Except we won't be doing it every year or so, which means we'll be out of practice and not very good at all!

So.... I've been panicking all week because it looked as though the movers would be packing Monday and loading Tuesday. In and of itself, not bad. But Craig will be at work all Tuesday morning and then we are supposed to fly out at approximately 5:00 p.m. Tuesday night. Which means Tuesday would look like this: Movers loading in the afternoon (and probably finishing packing in the morning); checking in at the airport ~4:00, luggage out there ~1:00 (to make sure as much of it as possible gets on the plane), inspection of the house before that, house clean before that. I just couldn't see how this was possibly going to work.

I was also panicking because all of this might not have been my biggest problem: Until this afternoon, the movers hadn't contacted us. At all. No estimate, no confirmation of dates, no confirmation of our booking. And it only took 26 hours between my initial phone call yesterday and the movers calling today. However, he was quite okay with them packing all day Friday and Monday morning, then loading Monday afternoon. Which means our stuff is in transit a day earlier, since it could take a week or so (oh, how the words "or so" in the North send shivers down your back) to get to Clyde River. Keep smiling Mom (she's flying to Clyde River on the 28th), it'll all work out - "it's the North, everything always works out in the North." That's what I was told on the phone when I was freaking out (mostly inside) yesterday. I'd like to add that the chances of everything working out are directly proportional to how many phone calls you make.

Loading the truck Monday also gives us extra time in case nobody shows up to pack on one of/either of those days (could happen!). And then, theoretically, I have the weekend with most of our stuff in boxes to get the rest of the house cleaned up and our stuff packed for the plane. And time for the inspection on Tuesday.

I'm making great headway in the area of packing our stuff, though. I learned a lot last time! I've already got some meals planned, with items required to make them, packed for when we get there. Most of the bedding is washed and ready to be packed. Tomorrow I'll be ready to start packing clothes. Then the weekend is just a matter of packing towels/sheets and a final load of laundry. At least that's how I'm envisioning it in a glass-half-full kind of way.

See, already it's looking more like everything will work out!

Exploring in the FJ

2009-07-11T22:00:00.007-04:00

Over the last couple of days we have gone for drives and taken a camera (gasp - both at the same time!), even though it's just the little one I keep in my purse for exciting times at playgroup. Except the day that Liam and Leetia built an awesome robot out of blocks. But I digress.

Here is a Google Earth map of where we've been. You'll have to double-click to make it bigger.

1. Sylvia Grinnell Territorial Park

We drove to the end of the road in the park and were going to turn around but instead decided to get out and throw rocks into the river.

We were very close to the airport!

2. The Road to Nowhere

Street Sign	Nowhere

Everyone has to have a picture of the street sign for Road to Nowhere! Then we drove all the way to the end. Do you see a theme developing? More pictures of nowhere:

3. Upper Base

Upper Base was once a sprawling complex about 3.5 kilometres northwest of Iqaluit. The military base was built during the 1950s as part of the North American radar surveillance system, but with advances in satellite communications, it was abandoned in 1974. Over time, the site gradually deteriorated. -A quote from somewhere on the internet. I've closed the tab and I'm not going to go delving into my history to find it.

Iqaluit from Upper Base	Why snowmobiling here is bumpy:

Looking up to where we drove next: somewhere beyond Upper Base

4. Beyond Upper Base

Where do the words "Are those tracks over there?" lead you?

Getting there	Another view of Iqaluit


Logan looks pretty small next to that erratic rock!	Do you think we could sell this one to Toyota?

There are no pictures of the rest of the adventure (continuing with the words "How did we get up here?") because we were holding on and watching the handy dandy altimeter in the car and giving distances for the rocks on either side.

And that's what we did today!

Gone Fishin'

2009-07-09T00:07:00.006-04:00

In the past couple of days we have had the chance to go fishing. I am so glad we got to go, as I think it's the first relaxing family thing we've done here, since we got here.

Day 1

Iqaluit in summer

A ship in the bay

Two ships in the bay

Day 2

You'll probably have to make it bigger to see the people fishing.

A snack in the sun. The jackets were to keep

mosquitos at bay - it was way too hot to wear them!

Back from the Prairies

2009-07-08T23:29:00.007-04:00

We're back! Okay, we've been back for some time now, but I just got the pictures onto the computer, pared them down, and selected a few for the blog.

We rented a car in Regina (hooray for a double bump up to the size of vehicle we really needed!), then drove to Edmonton with friends for some fun at the West Edmonton Mall. First stop, the water park. I think we went in the wave pool first. Then we all played in the kids' water structure area for a while (bridges, dumping water and such), then Logan was just too cold and it was just too loud and he just didn't like water being dumped on him. So we went to the dolphin pool, where it was shallow and warm. I couldn't complain. The others went back into the wave pool for quite a while, but Logan was just too cold. He was quite content to watch all the action wrapped up in a nice warm towel. And I got to dry off and take some pictures!

The next day it was time for some rides for the kids. This ride was Liam's favourite 2 years ago. Interestingly, back then (oh, so long ago!) his favourite vehicle on this ride was the yellow bulldozer, and this time, it was Logan's.

This was the view from our hotel room.

The boys saying goodbye.

After the boys said goodbye, we drove to Waskesiu. There was golfing, ice cream, walks.... The highlight for Liam and Logan? Fishing with Grandma and Grandpa! And the boys had so much patience; they just kept fishing!

Back to Regina, for walks to playgrounds with Grandad and Grandpa, feeding ducks with Grandad and Marilyn, visiting relatives, watching movies and going to the Science Centre with Grandma.

A bonus day in Ottawa on the way back, since our flights got changed to the scenic tour and we'd rather not spend that much time taking off and landing and waiting.

All in all, a good trip. We got to visit lots of people and missed a few. Then, back to the reality of planning a move and, gasp, our trip out in October. But the move first. Unless something comes along that we just can't pass up!

To see more pictures: Click here

What's new?

2009-06-08T02:00:00.002-04:00

So, it's been a long time since I've posted... You know how people throw around the idea of having been "too busy" to do something, or "life is just too crazy," and you think, "Come on, you must have had a couple of minutes...." Well, I haven't. Or I would have spent them sleeping! Like I should be now, but I'm not cause I'm keeping you up to date!

Back to the original question: What's new?

First of all, we leave tomorrow for Saskatchewan. Lots of family and friends to visit, and fun to be had with family and friends. So I've been packing for that.

Then, somewhere around July 20th we'll be moving to Clyde River, NU. Ah, didn't see that one coming, did you?! If you're looking at a map, find, say, Ottawa, go up until you get to Iqaluit, then keep on going until you're almost at the top of Baffin Island and go a little to the right. About 750 km from here. So I've been getting ready for that, too.

Craig's been crazy busy at work, I've been working on my course. Have I mentioned that we have two little kiddies that need looking after, too?!! I'd post a picture, but I don't seem to have any. Yikes!

So that's the update! I don't know if I will post while we're gone, so it might be just as long again between updates.... Sorry!

I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll....

2009-05-15T20:52:00.005-04:00

Remember the weather warning yesterday? The wind howled all night. It was loud enough to wake the kids. Who in turn woke me. Mean wind!

Here are a couple of pictures from today:

2:00 p.m.:

8:50 p.m.:

It is still huffing and puffing outside. Our front door appears to have a gap in the seal, as snow is actually blowing in about 1.5', then melting. I'm glad Craig discovered this, because I was beginning to wonder who's boots were melting snow all over the floor!

You think you have snow back home?

2009-05-14T22:53:00.004-04:00

We took a drive around town today. Yesterday was beautiful, and today was very warm (it was -3, but with all the sunshine it was really hot in the car!) but the wind really picked up this afternoon. It's still howling out there. This report just in from Environment Canada:

Awesome. We put the kids in rubber boots today, but it may be back to winter boots tomorrow!

To see some new (and old) pictures around Iqaluit, click here

You have been warned!

2009-05-14T22:30:00.004-04:00

Not Quite... Land of the Midnight Sun

2009-05-10T01:23:00.001-04:00

Iqaluit, 1:30 a.m.