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  • Christmas Day 2024

    Christmas Day started out quite well.  The kids definitely let us sleep in past 7am.  Unfortunately (to the kids dismay), they did NOT manage to trick Santa.  They had a string across the front of fireplace with some noise making devices on it.  No one heard a thing.  Ezra also had a paper stocking up on the fireplace and he was hoping Santa would put things in it thinking it was real and they would fall to the floor.  But Santa managed to find his real stocking.

    My favourite trick they played on Santa was setting up a camera to videotape him in action.  But the next morning they reviewed the dark footage and didn’t see anything at all!  We told them that Santa can only be caught on video if he wants to be caught.  That’s the magic of Santa Claus.

    Here is a very sweet gift from Ezra.  He blew up a balloon and placed a marble inside it.

    Here we are trying out the new nutcracker.

    Some lovely Star Wars masks that Sierra got me.

    Santa brought Sierra a marker maker set.  It was very fun to watch her make markers.  You fill up a tube with whatever colours you want and put in a foam insert and voila!  You have a custom marker.

    This year Vero mentioned how she wanted to have fires in the fireplace again.  Typically we have a bunch of things blocking the cold air coming in.  What better day to have a fire than Christmas day?

    Vero got me a cool new instrument called a Kalimba.  I was soon plucking away at some common tunes like Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer and Sweet Child of Mine.

    Fast forward to the afternoon…we are about to prepare the turkey.  Vero says “I don’t feel good.  I’m going to lie down.”  Now, this shouldn’t usually be a huge issue but a few days before Ezra had gastro an entire evening.  I emerged unscathed from the effects of gastro so I assumed everyone would be fine.

    But I assumed wrong!  Vero was down and out the entire afternoon.  The photo above was taken when she emerged from her slumber and I figured I should snap a photo before she returned to bed!

    Handling turkey supper on my own wasn’t the end of the world but trying to handle a turkey on my own was a bit tricky.  I had to recruit Sierra to help me put it in the turkey bag which produced squirms and her saying “Ewwwwww!” a lot!  Hahah.

    But the supper came out on time and Vero sat in a chair near us while we feasted on roast beast.

    Around 8PM Sierra started saying she didn’t feel good.  Oh no!  Two people down and out due to gastro.  Christmas evening was spent watching a movie in the living room and Vero and Sierra running to the bathroom every twenty minutes.  Vero was a champ helping out with Sierra during the evening but at one point she couldn’t do it anymore (understandable!) and retired to bed and I stayed with Sierra until 4am when her symptoms died down.  Quite the wild Christmas evening!

    Before I end this entry I have to talk about one of the greatest gifts I received this year.  Years ago Vero worked on a tv series called Moitié Moitié.  Mike and I were extras on the show one day but we never saw our footage.  Vero managed to find a dvd set from one of the actors on the show.  The dvd set was never in stores and was made for the cast when the show was wrapped.  I was ecstatic!  I’ll compile a video of our appearances in the future but we definitely show up a few times and it’s great to see ourselves on a tv show!

  • Dancing after a movie

    Typically after a movie ends and the credits roll, the kids like to dance around.  Sometimes Sierra goes one step further and wants to attempt some wild dance routine.

  • Christmas kickoff with some eggnog

    Marty and Vero invited us over for some eggnog to kick off the Christmas season.  It was fun to spend a few hours in the morning with them.

    I love this photo because of me laughing in the background

  • Sick kid + fun party

    We had a jam packed day on the 22nd already with visiting Marty and Vero in the morning but we also had a neighbourhood party to attend to!

    Unfortunately Ezra vomited before we head over.  We weren’t sure if that was a ‘one and done’ but shortly after he did it again so I stayed home with him while Sierra and Vero went and had some fun.

    Ezra being sick was the kickoff to a round of gastro throughout the house for the next week.  Yeeeha!  I somehow avoided it the second round (that was for Vero and Sierra a few days later) but somehow it snuck up on me a few days after them.

    Ezra and I got into a good routine of vomiting, cleaning out the bowl and watching Bluey for twenty minutes before it all started again.  About eight hours later he seemed to perk up and wanted some food.  Amazing what the body is capable of once it gets rid of whatever it wants to get rid of.

    I’m going to post some photos from the party but I have zero idea of what was going on at this party.  I heard there weree games and a hot tub.

     

  • Review: Karkwa at Minotaure Hull QC

    I’ve never been to Minotaure before and if there was one band that was worthy of being the first band I saw there, Karkwa was it.

    I never knew about Karkwa until their reunion a few years back when JF got me their new album on vinyl.  It was great!

    We also went to Montreal to see them in all their glory and they gained an instant fan.  For the past two years I’ve listened to all their albums and have a fairly good understanding of what they meant to their fans back in the 2000s.  I believe they broke up around 2012.

    Most of the photos in this post are not mine.  I found them on Facebook.

    Etienne had been wanting to see Karkwa because there were rumours that they were calling it quits again.  We did catch wind of a show at Minotaure in Hull but tickets sold out instantly.  I kept my ear to the ground and it paid off!  They announced an additional concert at 3PM the day after!  Total score.  This would be the final date on their tour.

    We couldn’t have asked for a better concert.  An afternoon show is great for this old man who quite likes returning home around supper time!  The crowd was super into it the band.  The band was a bit melancholy seeing that it was their final show of the tour.  I wasn’t just witnessing a concert, I was at an EVENT.

    Our view from the side stage where we had a bit more room to breathe.

    Etienne and I – concert buds for life.

    Of note: a woman got tripped into a PA speaker and there was five minutes of figuring out if she was ok.  This was hilariously timed when the band was coming back through the crowd for the encore and they had to stop and make sure she was alright.  I’m not sure if they tripped her or if somehow she was shoved into a PA speaker.  All I know is that it deflated the moment a bit when the house lights came on and they had to get security in to make sure she was ok.  Turns out she was ok and the show went on for a few last tunes!

    Sidenote: Francois Lafontaine is a beast on the keys.  I’m always in awe of what he pulls off.

    After the show Etienne picked up their vinyl and he was in the mood to see if we could meet the band and get it signed.  I’m not sure how the fates aligned but we went upstairs and sure enough there were a few fans hanging outside the green room and the manager opened the door and said something like “Any items to sign?” at the exact moment we showed up.

    I had instant regret of not picking up A SECOND VINYL for my collection so I could get it signed!  But hey…I didn’t foresee my future of this possibility.  Why would I want a second vinyl in my collection?  Etienne managed to get the bands signature on this vinyl and he was super pumped.

    A great concert with a great friend right as the Christmas break started.  What more could I ask for?

  • Ezra with the violin

    Véro has been teaching Ezra the violin over the past year.  The public library offers a great service to borrow instruments.  He borrowed a violin for a few months and when we realized he was interested in continuing Matante Chantal lent us an old violin that their son wasn’t using anymore.

  • Kids in the laundry basket

    I like to think I’m young at heart but even I can’t see the fun in watching Christmas specials like this!

  • Ezra’s Christmas recital

    I was bummed to miss out on the kids Christmas recital in person because Sierra was too nervous to take part in it, but at least Vero got a good video of Ezra on stage with his violin!  He was the one who wanted to bring it on stage and he also said he wanted to dress up for the performance.  We were very impressed that he wanted to do this!

  • Lego Santa’s Post Office

    November 14, 2024

    Sierra and Ezra are really great at following Lego instructions.  This Christmas I bought a Santa’s Post Office set and I believe Ezra was sick one day so we let him crack that open to keep him occupied.  PLUS it was a month before Christmas so it was best to start this thing around mid-November!

    I would say that he built 90% of it all by himself.  We were proud of him accomplishing that all on his own considering this set is rated 18 years and over!  I wonder if they just do that to jack up the price?

    November 14, 2024

    November 17, 2024

    November 20, 2024

    December 4, 2024

    December 17, 2024 – the final product