Highly Decorated Children

The kids are so proud of their most recent acheivements. Blaise won the award for the most sportsmanlike player on his team. I am so proud of him too, his team mates were the ones who voted for him. Joey's award was for the kilo-maitre club. He ran over 300 Km's at school this year. Gemma won her award as the only girl in the Km club. Owen and Lucia are showing off their walk for life trophies. I wanted Owen to show his report card as he received some really great marks.

Carnivore

Tonight, in a remarkable display of hunger and eating ability, Owen devoured about 8 to 9 ounces of fresh steak. We had served the kids their plates and got to eating dinner when we discovered that Owen had taken another steak. Under great determination and focus he carved through that steak and proceeded to sak for more.

It was quite the display, he ate more than Mer and I combined. He is quite the little guy with a huge appetite. That's my Owen!

School's out for summer

The kids begin their quickly fleeting break from school today. They came home at noon after a half day of cleanup and goodbyes to friends. Telephone numbers were exchanged and promises to keep in touch were made. Resolutions to make this a lasting and eventful summer have now been enacted.

I hope to post our family's summer resolutions so that they are public and you can all hold us to them. We are going to have a family meeting tonight to establish some guidelines for how to have the most successful summer possible.

Apart from our plans, the kids brought home their report cards and their travaille that they've kept over the past school year. They arrived home in good spirits.

It will indeed be a challenge to balance as many fun events as possible with the other responsibilities that we have namely, my school, work, and all of the organization that goes with keeping a household and family of this size in order.

Here's to a great summer everyone!

Popcorn...where have you gone?!

I am disheartened to announce that after some magical nights our popcorn popper has bit the dust. Yes, I was turning the popper on and off during a batch to try and not allow so many unpopped kernels to be sent out of the machine. However this caused a popcorn ball to form in the center workings of the machine. The ball grew in size and temperature until the machine overheated and stopped popping all together.

I didn't realize this ball was forming in the machine because popcorn continued to pop and fall into the bowl. I guess this was the stuff on the top.

A message for the safety of all popcorn machines, do not turn your machine on and off during popping, not a good idea. :)

Photo Fun

I have been playing around a little bit with photography lately. With so many viable subjects to take pictures of, my job is easy, just point and shoot.



I had to photo-shop some food off of Owen's face. Getting used to that program is kind of neat too, but definitely with zooming and changing the settings of your camera.



The kids were goofing around thinking that this was torture having to be my subjects. In the end, there were a few classic moments that I was fortunate enough to capture.



I just love this one of Lucia, the gray background really contrasted her features.

Tim Hortons Baby!

For all you coffee and doughnut lovers out there, I am pleased to announce Tim Hortons opened its doors this morning. There was a steady flow of workers going through the restaurant. The service was just as expected, confused. I was fully expecting and hoping for this. I love being apart of the mayhem, the doughnuts were fresh and the coffee was yummy. The kids were loving it!



At some points the lineup was out the door and people were walking in then walking straight back out. We were served pretty promtly though, after all you have to go there on their first day. This is a Powell River moment in history!





I got the garbage man to take this picture of us. He was excited that we were so excited.

My Little Gemma

I hope you're not getting tired of pictures of my kids! I couldn't resist posting this one of Gemma, she's just so beautiful! She even looks pretty when she has the flu!



Okay I better post one of Lucy too since we are on the topic of pretty:

From Shaun

I have to say that I am impressed with how many of you continue to visit my little blog here. After placing the visitor counter on the side, I have quickly had over 100 visits in the past few days. I love being able to share these little tid-bits of humour and inspiration as I go proceed through life.

Today was a great day to be alive. More and more I am realizing that the present situation that we are in is actually what our life mainly consists of. Most people accumulate vacation pay at a rate of 4% and 6% if you have seniority. 8% if you are my boss, sorry just kidding!

The point I am trying to make is that we so look forward to the 4 percent of our lives when we can finally do what we want. I think that we are missing out though. If we could only see what our lives would be like if we didn't keep our nose to the grindstone working.

I can remember when I broke my ankle and couldn't work or do the things I wanted for a specific period. I would lie there watching TV for days promising myself that as soon as I was healed up I would ride my bike, play sports and be active whenever I could. Of course when I healed up, I didn't do the things I promised myself I would. This is something that I regret.

I want to take a pledge with all of you who are willing to not let another moment slip by without acting on every opportunity available. When it is time to rest lets rest, but when its time to work let's work our fingers to the bone. (This is a big accomplishment for someone who types at a computer all day!)

Life simply can't be made up of that 4% vacation time we get a year. Lets live each day to the fullest. As Mother Theresa said, "I'll have plenty of time for rest when my days on earth are over."

Luckiest People

Okay, I consider myself a very fortunate and 'lucky' person, but I have never had a close call like any of these people. I especially like the last one, as I am sure those competent police officers were right on their heels. Watch and you will see what I mean:

Happy Father's Day

Well Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there! Hope you had a great day today. I have to say that I had a great day, and I must say that my wife is absolutely amazing. Despite dealing with and cleaning up after one sick child and another couple with some hives from a rogue caterpillar, Mer and the kids managed to treat me like a king. I am proud to say that I did nothing but lie around the house and relax most of the day.

Blaise, Joey and I went out for a little bike ride to check out some trails. Joey's brakes need a little work, but the riding was great. Check out this insane video:



Oh, and here's Dad having fun too!



It was such a great time to be out there on some trails. I was reminiscing about when my Dad would take Dean and I on the trails around Cranberry. It's amazing how many trails there are around here in Westview. Anyways, had a great day here's another cool shot that I got out the boys while poor Gemma was still sick at home.





To all you fathers out there, hope you had a great day. Remember God can help you through whatever situation you find yourself in. If you find yourself overwhelmed and lost, don't be afraid to ask Him for directions. Happy Father's Day!

Babies Eat Lemons

Some of these are pretty cute!



Enjoy!

Coffee Spill

Okay, you must watch the video below:

Some Trike Racing

What an extreme battle!

Blaise's Double Header

Blaise had a great day at the ball field today. His team had some make up some rained out games, so we all went to the field and made a picnic out the afternoon. Mom and Dad came over and we were all treated to some great baseball. I took a few shots of the day:

Complex Logging

You have probably all heard by now, but the city has decided to go ahead with placing the track at the complex. So they have begun to log the site. It is mostly alder trees there that they are logging, but there is still a significant portion of protesting going along with the process.



Much to delight of all those not in favour with the logging of the site were extremely relieved when the loggers discovered the nest of some Great Blue Herons. The site looks pretty bad right now with all of the fallen trees. But I thought you out of towners would appreciate a look at the future track in progress.

Lucy in a blanket

I came upstairs yesterday and Lucy was all alone and had wrapped herself up in a blanket. When I entered the room and asked her what she was doing, she emerged, covered in sweat and said, "I wapped myself up in a blanket."

Car Detailers

I have been weighing out the option of what is the best way to get the van spruced up for the summer time. There was some body work that needed to be done on the bumper and I was hoping that the guys at the autobody shop would give it a vacuum after they did the repair. I was mistaken as they apparently short of people that day and didn't have time to do the detailing.

So then I got to thinking that there are a few other options available. God forbid I could do it myself, but time is money here people. There is the carwash place that charges coins for minutes of usage with the powerwasher and the vacuum, but I don't have too many coins around and they are really heavy too. The other option would be to get Massullo to do the oil change because 4 times out of 5 they give the van a good vacuum along with the other services they provide. However I'm still looking at a good $50 to have all of this work done.

I determined yesterday evening to imitate the business model of the most successful companies I could think of. One stood out in particular, Nike. My decision was to employ child labour to assist in arriving at a cost effective decision. Plus they have small fingers to get into the crooks and crannies of the dirty parts of the car.

Well, it turned into quite the scene as most of our adventures normally do. I had the camera, but unfortunately it was too difficult to take any pictures while drinking beer and cracking the whip (just joking Mom). Joey had one vacuum in the back of the van, while Gemma had another one in the front. All of the doors and rear hatch of the van wide open while my miniature labour force was urgently working. Lucy was assisting me by wiping down the insides of the doors, while Owen took his Little League baseball bat to the floor mats.

I must say, we had the family sportster polished up in no time. All it cost me was a few meals and some cold beers. Oh, and I had to feed the kids too.

Coming Home from Work

On my way home from work Friday, I was treated to the hot sun and some blue sky. Before I made it home to my darlings, I had to stop for the opportunity to take some shots of the thing that makes this a coastal community. You guessed it, the ocean.



I wish that at the very moment that I was setting up to take this shot a majestic tall ship were coming into harbour. All I had to work with was our less than asthetically pleasing Queen of Burnaby.



As it sounded its horn and ventured out, I was reminded of how, for us Powell Riverites, the ferry marks the beginning and end of most of our great adventures. It also sees our visiting friends and family come and go. I sort of realized that the ferry has become the bookends of our life. For those who don't live here, just think about your experiences with Powell River, unless you fly in, your vacation here is marked by your ride in and out on the big rust bucket.

Camping with Red

The summer of 2005 marked several events, but one of the most memorable was captured in this picture. My Godfather Robin (Red) Lambert is a very passionate man. He taught me a great deal about my faith. In the mornings when I served daily mass, Red would always be the one to come and pick me up. We would drive together to mass and he would talk to me about the popes and saints of times gone by. He encouraged me to read about my faith and to be strong in my beliefs.

I hope that one day, maybe in Heaven, Red and I can relive those early morning drives to mass. It makes me so sad to think that Red isn't able to remember those moments now, as he slowly lives out his days at the care home he lives at. Even though Red doesn't have access to those memories now, I know that it gave Red great pleasure to see me grow up and start a family of my own. I remember specifically that every time I told Red that we were going to have another baby, he would stand up in pride and enthusiastically shake my hand.

Before I ramble on too much I would like to get back to the point of this post. This was one of the last summers that Red was fully 'with us.' I can remember him reciting some Robert Service, but most of all I remember him playing his violin for us boys. Blaise, my Dad and I all sat around the picnic bench not thinking much of the significance of this moment, but this moment means a great deal to me now.

God Bless you Red.

Blast from the Past

See if you can identify these little cuties! I can't believe how quickly the time goes by. This picture was taken soon after Owen arrived into our lives.

Oh, and this one is a classic:

Andrew's Animal Sounds

This is so cute. It's only a short video, but Andrew is so sweet in it. I hope you enjoy this one. It's hard to believe that we were all this age at one point.

Making Popcorn

When is the last time you broke out the old popcorn maker? I can remember as a child my parents had one of these machines right around the same time we bought our first microwave. Then the advent of microwave popcorn came around. This was an exciting event as well as the bag would pop away inside the microwave. However as is with most new technology, you make the switch to using the latest and greatest and forget about the benefits of the old way of doing things. The popcorn that comes from the machine is fluffier, lighter, and it never burns!

It might take a bit of getting used to as microwave popcorn is so heavily flavoured, but the popcorn is actually good for your and makes a great snack. I bought my popcorn maker for a whopping $4 at the second hand store. It has turned out to be a great investment. The kids are totally thrilled every time I bring it out.

So I implore you, if you have a popper somewhere in the dark corner of your pantry, wipe the dust off of it and fill it up with some fresh popcorn! You won't regret it; happy popping.

Bear Sighting

To all of you Wildwood residents, this bear was spotted at 5:00am in a coworker's neighborhood. The bear had no trouble smelling out and ripping through a locked sheet metal garbage enclosure. It then dragged it's snack across the street and privately dined on it's feast for an hour or so.

This whole tale reminds me of the kids. If they know that cookies are hidden somewhere in the kitchen, they will stop at nothing to locate them. I have had the most ingenious hiding spots cracked by these keen minded children.

Canada Wins!

Will we ever forget the day that Canada won? I'm talking about the now infamous game. The day that Canada's history changed. I can still remember how my stomach sank when the Americans tied it up. I can remember wondering if maybe it was all over. Why hadn't Crosby contributed like expected? Would Ryan Miller prove too difficult for Canada's offensive line?



Then as the overtime period began the nervousness kicked in like an overwhelming wave of uncontrolled emotion. I was utterly powerless in regards to the outcome of the situation, but entirely committed to the television. I could hear the blood rushing through the arteries in my neck. I remember feeling of the seemingly endless adrenalin that coursed through my veins.

Years of being a Canucks fan prepares one for utter disappointment in hope of a positive outcome. I was ready to once again yield my national pride to the accomplishments of my southern neighbors. The whole ordeal became physically unbearable. That is when it happened. The puck went into the corner boards and even before the camera man could square up the shot, Crosby had the puck. You all know what happens next, but all I can remember is the overwhelming feeling of disbelief.

As I jumped up and down screaming, "Crosby did it!" I had my eye on the screen making sure that the officials were not going to disallow the goal.

I don't know what else to say about that moment. I know that from then on my hope in my country was renewed. I am a little bit more proud to sing our national anthem. In a world of politics and moral struggle I was happy to be able to say that I am Canadian and that my country rocks!

Sushi Night

We were treated to another wonderful meal at Minato Sushi on Saturday night. It just so happened that with Grad, it was one of the only restaurants that we could get a reservation at. It was either Sushi or Captain Billy's Fish and Chips.

I must say in the world of restaurant reviews, I would give Minato Sushi a very high score. We were seated and given menus the moment we walked in the door. The service was very good, with the exception of the news that our waitress Tiffany would be leaving for a year on maternity leave. Best wishes to her on the quick delivery of baby, as she has certainly always delivered our food to us expediently.

Apart from the excellent service and ambiance with the bamboo and the cedar siding, the food was exceptional. Our appetizer of mixed tempura came quickly, and just as we were finished our boat of mixed rolls came soon after.

Although the presentation has become somewhat static with the whole boat concept, the ingredients and flavour combinations were exciting and vivid. The spicy rolls were spicy, the cruchy rolls were crunchy and the rolls with simple fresh tuna were fresh and melt-in-your-mouth delicious.

I would specifically like to mention the BC Roll that features BBQ Salmon Skin, and the Tsunami Roll that is full of flavour, fresh tuna, and fun.

It was so wonderful to go to a restaurant, where you get your own little booth, where you can talk relax, eat great food and enjoy the company of great friends. Sipping a cold Japanese beer while slowly feasting on an array of great food is well worth the meager price that Minato Sushi charges for their above average dishes. Mer and I have gone to several 'good' Sushi places in the city, many with the gimic of 'All you can eat' or floating sushi plates that bob by your table. However Minato offers a gimic free aproach to sushi where the ingredients and preparation are, to my relief, the focus of this popular Powell River restaurant.

An Afternoon at Mowat Bay

We had the most wonderful day at Mowat Bay on Sunday. The wind was blowing a little bit, but the bay was mostly protected and with the hot sun beating down on us, it was very pleasant. It was also our last day with Sara, Sylvain, Wayne and Hank. The perfect end to a perfect visit. Here are the four of them below (and yes, Hank is still in Sara's tummy):



We left for the beach equiped with sweaters, hats and other gear to protect us from the expected cold. To my great surprise the sun was so hot that all of those people who were optomistic enough to bring shorts were rewarded with a refreshing swim in the lake.

We were mostly prepared for playing at the park but luckily we also broght the beach toys:



When the time came to go in for a swim, we had to do the traditional run-in. First in were Gemma and Lucia, followed by Joey, Andrew and Owen. Blaise was busy at baseball practice and didn't join us until later in the day. Here is Gemma and Lucia's run-in, Lucy mostly tumbled her way in.

The Swagger Wagon

You will all want to ride with a Swagger Wagon after this.

Hugh's Baptism

On Saturday our little Hugh was Baptized. Against all doubt our family arrived at the church ahead of schedule. The weather couldn't have been better as the hot sun was shining brightly with a slight breeze blowing. It was a special day from the beginning as our friends (one being Mer's cousin) Sara and Sylvain from Okotoks Alberta said that they were actually going to attend the Baptism when we asked them to be the Godparents.

Mama Webb baked some incredible sweets and held a wonderful reception for us all to attend after the festivities at the church were over. Thanks John and Annemarie for such a wonderful get together. I cannot forget my Mom either, who sacrificed a very important event that she was really looking forward to in order to attend the day. Who says you stop giving to your kids once they move out of the house, eh Mom? It meant so much to us that you were able to make it Mom, thank you.



The other factor that made this event special was the fact that my brother Dean was able to come over from Campbell River to share the event with us. He is in the midst of studying for an exam, balancing work and teaching baby Jack how to burp the alphabet. Thanks for babysitting Melanie! His wife Rachelle, my little sis, was completing one of her courses and was committed to Vancouver Island on Saturday. Wow between all of us Clarks and Menzies we're going to have enough schooling to teach a small village! Thank you Student Loans! (AKA Dad)



Have to give a shout out to my other little sis and bro who just flew in from their honeymoon and weren't able to make the Baptism either. Thanks for posting on our blog Ali! Can't wait to see you guys again.

I'll leave you with a shot of the happy family surrounding our favorite pastor, Fr. Hamilton. He has baptized the majority of our kids, was the celebrant to marry Mer and I and also is the one who trained Blaise to altar serve. I think that he might have helped me serve as well, but I am fuzzy on that one.

After 12 or 13 years of serving us as pastor, Fr. Hamilton is being transferred this summer, an event that we are all extremely sad about. We will miss you a great deal Father, you have been God's instrument in our family's formation.

Joey Kilometre Medal

I couldn't resist posting this now famous picture of Joseph posing with his medal from the Km club. He was so proud and I wanted to get a quick picture of him with it. Little did I know that the ensuing chaos in the background of the picture would take something away from Joey's happiness.



I think that this picture is a good metaphor for life, we have to take time for ourselves amidst the chaos that can surround us at times.

Shaun

George Carlin Saving the Planet

Here's an interesting video from George Carlin. Hope you don't mind a few F-bombs, let me know what you think.

Details on Posting Comments

Here is the mystery to the Comments section solved: In order to leave a comment please select the "anonymous" profile as shown above in the picture. If there are any more issues please let me know. Happy posting!

Shaun

The Front Garden

In the front of our house, there are a couple of gardens that the previous owners put in and took care of in our yard. I am sorry to report that our family is not able to allocate the same amount of time to beautifying the exterior of the house.

However the fruits of their past labours still live on wonderfully, as this rose testifies to. The rose itself is quite nice, but the aroma is exceptional. One smell and it is like you have just taken a sip of the most refreshing fruit juice.

Our previous neighbors in Townsite had roses similar to this, and it was a person's good fortune when Don decided to give you a few samples from his garden. The aroma would fill the house with a full bodied citrus smell. I love it and I wish I could give you all smell through the Internet.

The Triumphant Garbage Man

So in my constant quest for efficiency I have always held fast to the rule that our family should only have one bag of garbage per week. Well, a small triumph for the city of Powell River occurred this garbage day as the garbage man was brave enough to affix an "overweight bag" sticker on my garbage. I laugh because my garbage bags have been overweight for years.

The picture really doesn't do this bag of garbage justice. If there was a hole in the bag, I could probably park the van inside of it. The thing weighs around 50 lbs! If I took this to the dump it would cost around $9 to dispose of on the scale, and I only placed one $2 sticker on.

So congratulations Mr. Garbage Man, you have won this battle, but be warned, this battle is far from over!

What an acrobat!

Daddy's boy, what a little darling! Hugh is doing well, but he is battling some pretty bad baby acne right now. His favorite things are nursing, being naked and staring at ceiling lights.

We love him so much!!!

What a proud bunch of siblings. Blaise and Gemma continue to be a huge help.