TwoBlog

We go up to Wiarton with Sonia’s parents, cousins, aunts/uncles every year to the same location from Friday to Monday. We arrive at about the same time each year in about the same order. We have the same dinners on the same nights: pizza making on Friday night hosted by Sam, potluck on Saturday. Homemade hamburgers and sausage on Sunday. Lots of food in between.

We used to go up to Doe lake (near Huntsville) from about 2002-2006. But since ‘07 it’s been this place in Wiarton. I’ve enjoyed both and it’s because the routine is predictable. Most of the guys go off fishing. The kids play on whatever equipment is available. I go golfing on Sat and catch some sports in the TV room. I hang out with Sam on the deck, drink beers and reminisce. We have a big bonfire each night where the fishtales are told. The skunks and foxes come out that we have to shoo.

This year had a slight twist. One cottages held strangers that were of the punk-ass early 20’s Mississauga type. Me being old and grumpy immediately knew they were going to be trouble. Towards us they were not except for loud arguments at night. But for the owner they were a headache as during one of the nights one of them bolted out of the place in his car but not before crashing into one of the decks and completely dislodging it from the cottage it was attached too. Good fun.

My golf course in Wiarton is getting an overhaul which makes me a little sad since it will be easier. But understandable. Just a little “It’s a small world” aside: The owner was once the groundskeeper for Walkerton GCC working for Ryan, who by coincidence we saw at Wicked Sticks on the way up to the cottage. I hadn’t seen him nor Heidi for going on 3 yrs now. Nice to see them again.

Well, back to reality. Today is Olivia’s 5th birthday and now I feel old. 1/2 a decade! To celebrate this Sat is the typical party of noisy crazy kids. But if the weather holds for Sat night, Olivia, myself, Chloe and Kevin will attempt to have a campout in the back yard. Wow.

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Yes, poor start to the season. I almost (repeat, almost) shot a 9 that was over 50. I had to birdie 9 at Conestoga to salvage a 49. The back was not much better resulting in a needed par on the back 9th to break 90.

I didn’t do it! This is the first round in the 90s that I’ve had in years. Wow. What is wrong with me?

Anyway, not much new in my life these days. The company I work for was bought be an uber-company out of Germany that is 10 times larger than us. And I thought I was grossly assimilated the first time we were bought out. Look out! 18 months and counting I’m guessing.

Home life is fine. The garden is in, and then out again as some groundhogs decimated the tomato plants before I could get the fence in. But now were back in business again with a replant. The lawn is way to lush for my tastes, and I see a million improvement projects from halving the shrubs to a major overhaul of the shed and the deck railings. With two crazy kids that are outdoor freaks, it’ll be tough to find the time this year.

Apparenly a team won the Stanley Cup last night. My how life changes. I used to know everything about the NHL about 10 yrs ago. Now I hardly even know when the Cup is won. Too much time spent on Fantasy Baseball I guess (I wonder if that is what’s also killing my golf game?).

Anyway, cottage weekend is coming up. Gives me a chance to put pencil to paper on figuring out if I want to pursue building this Archer video game.

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Tired. Christien, get those teeth in!

Thankfully, Christien is going to stay at Grandma’s tonight. So, I am taking Olivia out on a date to play mini-golf and then to Boston Pizza where we will hook up with Mommy. This should be fun.

I called her over lunch hour to ask her out on the date. She just loved it. Then, at the end of the conversation, she asked me how I can hear her voice over the phone. After giving her a hint about the poles she sees at the side of the roads, she proceeded to answer the question herself:

“Oh, those are telephone poles. Can we hear each other at the other end because our voices go over those wires?”. Man, oh, man. She’s light years ahead of me when I was that age. But I already figured that out when she started reading books that I wasn’t even opening until grade 1.

Last night was the opening night for the golf league. I played poorly. A 43 on a nine where I’m usually 38 or better. The good news was that I chipped in a couple of shots. One on the 9th to ’save’ a bogey and stop the bleeding. The other was on the 18th where I chipped in on the short par 5 for eagle, my first of the year. That saved me a 39 so things are looking up.

I think this is going to be a good year score-wise. I’ve relaxed my <60 yard wedge shots and am opening the club face on the backswing which is forcing me to make a body turn. It’s less ‘arm-wristy’ and more of a one-piece body movement. This has allowed for cleaner contact which has taken some getting used to. My same length of backswing is now resulting in about 10-15 yards of further distance. But I’m getting that figured out and I’ve already noticed my shots from 120 and in are starting to get very tight. This has been my glaring weakness for years and has prevented me from scoring rounds under par. I’m hoping this new-found swing will get me even lower in my handicap.

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Spring is in the air. This march break has been the warmest that I can remember since I was 15 and back in school when the break meant something.

Since Wonderboy, not much has happened at the homestead except for the wee fact that Christien is accelerating his growth like mad. Since Mexico, that kid can now run, climb (onto the kitchen table no less) and say one word sentences. If you have the privileges, check out his blog for more details.

Home life with milder weather has opened up the possibilities. It has been great having the clocks move forward so that the kids can be outside roaming and blowing off months of pent up energy. Being cooped up in the house with those 2 can be maddening…even with a basement to run around in.

After the Canadian gold domination in the Winter Games, along with the passing of Wonderboy, it’s time to focus on the upcoming baseball season. This year I’ll be participating in not only the auction, but a newly formed keeper league that we’ve finally been able to establish and get off the ground. It has been an effort but I think will be worth it. It’s key to know that this is not a dynasty league, but a keeper. This difference means more work and effort managing the team and it’s various levels of contracts.

So, with 2 leagues it will have it’s share of confusion with crossover of players to cheer/not cheer for depending on which ones you own in one, both or none of the leagues. I expect the auction to finally fade off into the distance if the majority is willing. Out of respect for the history of the auction however, I will continue to participate until the concensus is to dissolve. Besides, after Year 1 of the keeper, the effort in March is no longer overwhelming and I would have the approriate time to devote to research for the auction. More to come on the success/failures of this new venture.

Next up is golf. Alas, I wasn’t able to commit to the training regimen that Sean and I were hoping to accomplish before the season. So it’s back to a quick ramp-up before the season starts. Sean, are you ready to hit the driving range?

Sonia is back on the golf wagon and has joined a league of her own with her pals. Summer is going to be busy, but summer is going to be fun. I must remember to steal that magnificent golf cart of hers for my league from time to time to make life easier.

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I am here at Wonderboy on Sat. morning, the traditional time of rest before the outdoor portion of the events. The results so far have been a little disappointing. Greg and I partnered up for the Darts this year and unfortunately drew a tough set of matches. We lost in a tie-break Around The World (new to this year’s format) that has ousted me from my traditionally strong event. On the positive side, With Doaner I have managed a first round bye in Ping-Pong, assuring me of at least one Wonderboy pt for 2010. The draw has us in tough to go further but we will give it our best shot.

The log and tug go soon. I’ve bowed out of both with a sore shoulder yet could win two pts if my tug team can win it. That would put me at 3pts min with Euchre and Poker still to come. The cards will dictate my success yet again.

You can follow the results at http://thewonderboy.org/standings/wb2010.htm
Later!

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We took a trip to the Mayan Riviera last week. Yep, the 4 of us. We travelled to Mexico with a couple of other families, all with very small children.

Fortunately we stayed at a ‘family friendly’ resort called ‘Sandos Caracol’. I recommend going there if you have kids 5 and under. Along with the Kids Club (which was mediocre), there was a splash park with lots of slides and fountains that they kids spent most of their time in. As parents, it was nice as well because there was a bar there and LOTS of lounge space. The place was not busy since most non-parents were at the beach/main pool.

There was a lot of restaurant fare as well so there was always something to eat for everyone.

Although I recommend this place for young families, I don’t necessarily recommend travelling with 2 or more youngsters. It is certainly not a trip for everyone’s liking. I enjoyed the trip (mostly) and I know for the most part everyone else on the trip did as well, but to travel with young kids (especially one that is < 2yrs) is an exhausting effort. The getting to and going from flights can and usually are nerve-wracking.

Once there, be prepared to tailor your trip almost completely around the kids. This requires a significant resetting of expectations if you have been to resorts in the past without kids. Yet, fun can be had. Spending time with the kids alone is a great time, but you can also still have your fill of drinks and adult comraderie (we’re all in the same boat!). The real differences come down to the routine itself: you won’t unlimited or spontaneous moments to just lay down on the lounge chairs and relax. You’ll need to schedule any activity you want to do well in advance. And be prepared to be on your feet a LOT of the time.

As a whole, this vacation was well worth the effort and I won’t forget it for all it’s ups and downs. If we were to ever do this again while the kids are still very young, I would strongly consider a cruise. The amount of walking was SIGNIFICANT on the resort. Plus, a very good kid’s club (that cruises usually have) would go a LONG way to finding some free time for yourself.

See my kid’s blog sites for details on what they did during their exciting adventure!

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We took Olivia (sorry Christien!) to see Disney Playhouse Live last Saturday. She is a huge Mickey & Minnie fan as well as the Tigger and Pooh show. Fortunately the show featured both of these groups as well as the Little Einsteins (curse them!) and Handy Manny.

Olivia absolutely loved the show. She yelled and screamed when requested and danced and clapped throughout the show. One thing I thought was hilarious was that she would wave to the characters when they appeared on stage as if expecting them to notice and wave back. Very cute.

Afterwards in the car she pretended to be the host of the show and to organize the party that they were having in the play. That was before the classic meltdown that happened at Swiss Chalet.

Before the show, Olivia had her first skating lesson. She had only been on skates a couple of times before this so we started her off in the ‘never have skated’ group.

I could not believe how quickly she was able to stand up on her skates and start walking/gliding without any assistance. Soon enough she was even pushing off and getting some distance in her glides. The instructor noticed this and quickly promoted her to the next level where I think she is properly aligned. That is, she isn’t the worst skater in the group, but she isn’t the best….although I would say she’s in the top 3. Now that the groups are set she will start learning skills as they rotate around stations that will teach them how to skate backwards, hold a hockey stick, etc. etc. Before next class however, we have to upgrade her skates.

Back to the meltdown: after skating for 45 minutes, Olivia said “I exhausted myself”. Add that to attending the play for a couple of hours and it’s not hard to see why she had a meltdown. I forgot how taxing skating can be.

Yet, she loves it so I’m happy to take her….considering it’s at 1:45 in the afternoon, not some unholy early time.

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Evening life has settled in more nicely these days. Just recently I remember basically chasing Christien around as soon as I got home from work right through to bed. Sprinkled in with trying to find time for Olivia and keeping the peace between the two. Over the holidays there was a transition that took place. Now Christien is more involved in his play and is willing to sit with his toys or at the very least run around in the same room with his toys for an extended period of time. Or even watch a bit of TV. This has allowed me to either sit in the chair for a noticeable amount of time or better yet, sit on the floor and play with him. Yes, there is still the need to do damage control and chase him around the house, but it is not as constant and tiring.

Also, Olivia and Christien are playing more and more together….and better and better. All this leads to less ‘on alert’ behaviour for me and more enjoyment. As many can attest to, I am a little more apprehensive than the average bear and as such have often fallen into a mode where nighttime homelife was considered to be more of a ‘work’ thing than enjoying it as the everyday life that it is. I think this is something I am putting into the past and am settling into this life of watching my kids go psycho around me and loving it. Part of this change I’m sure is because we are sleeping more consistently now that Christien is older.

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Olivia gave me a good laugh on Saturday. We were listening to ‘Seaside Rendezvous’ by Queen. The unique thing about this song is that it features a lot of unusual instruments and sounds like kazoos and dampened trumpets. That 30’s sort of sound. During the instrumental ‘jam’ part of the song she said: “I like this part of the song. It reminds me of Mario game”. Nice.

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Our 4 year old Canon Digital camcorder went kaput. It uses the Mini digital tapes….the load mechanism on the camcorder failed and we can no longer load tapes for viewing or recording. Which leads to the problem that I have a bunch of used tapes that I need to somehow get the data off of and onto PC and DVD for archiving. But that’s another story.

I went and purchased a Sony XR200 HD AVCHD camera yesterday. In a rush since we needed it for Olivia’s school concert last night. Very slick piece of hardware. Do not purchase a camcorder unless it is HD!

After fiddling around with it, I’m still confused about a couple of things: 1) What does the ‘easy’ button actually do and if I use it, will it wipe out all my customized settings? 2) What is the technical difference between the HDSD (which is default) mode, HDHQ and HDFH? I’m assuming HDFH is highest quality as it takes up more storage. But when I view it on my TV it all looks the same to me. I wish I could find more about this stuff, including the benefits/disads of most of the features. Another example is the ability to change the sound capture from standard to this mode that reacts to the zoom in/out and the panning away and to subjects. Also, the face/smile recognition. The manual is horrendous in explaining anything and I haven’t yet found anything on the web that describes these features in more detail and provide guidelines for setting them in various situations.

Anyway, the concert was a very special experience for all of us. A benchmark in our lives: the first time one of the kids has performed onstage and in public. Olivia was part of her class in singing ‘Let There Be Peace On Earth’. I’m so glad we captured the moment in HD. When watching it on the TV last night, it really felt like being there again.

One thing I’ll always remember: the weater was atrocious. We live only 5 minutes away on a good day. 15 minutes last night. With the horrendous weather conditions, I was shocked to discover the parking lot was packed full and spilling onto the road 20 minutes before the concert began. It appears that parents are fanatical when it comes to their children. Go figure.

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