Tuesday 29 January 2013

Good Daddy...Lazy Daddy





"Take us skating daddy!"

 It was a long day.  My head started pounding half-way through the morning and didn't stop until just before it was time to leave.  Same with yesterday except the headache lasted well into the evening.  I was looking forward to getting home, scarfing down some dinner, getting the kids into bed and crashing too.

My kids had other plans.  I walk in the door, glad to be in the shelter of my nice warm home, and my girls start talking about heading to the outdoor rink at the park not too far from our house. My wife tells me that they have agreed it would be a good idea to do some skating after supper, "do you feel like skating?"  Now, if you've ever been in such a situation you know that's not so much a question as it is a statement of what the evening's plans consist of.  These are the moments where you can picture Al Bundy in a devil costume hovering over one shoulder and Ward Cleaver with wings and a halo on the other shoulder. 

 



  AL:
C'mon!  You just got home.  Pour yourself a beer and plop your butt on the couch!!  Better yet, why don't you plop your butt on the couch and get your little woman to pour you a brewskie?!

Ward:  
Now listen here fella', you gotta make the most of the day!  A little quality time with the kids...that sure does sound swell.

Al: 
Relax!!  You've had a long day...put your feet up.  You deserve it.

Ward:  
Gee whiz, don't you go following that odd ball's advice.  Just you mind that still, small voice inside.  You know what you ought to do buddy ol' pal!

*POOF* Al and Ward vanish.  

 

"Yay skating!!  You know you want to!!"
 Do I "feel" like going?  No, not really.  But I know I probably should.  These beautiful winter days are fleeting - the rink is not going to last all winter and we shamefully haven't made it to the outdoor rink yet.  So do I go by feeling or by a reasonable conviction of my duty as a father...a Canadian father.  What kind of a Canadian-father would I be if I didn't make sure my kids got a chance to skate on a real outdoor rink?

Well I sucked it up and took the girls and let me tell you it was a great time.  Evie is so good out there now - she's come so far this season and Noli is a little go-getter working hard on her technique.  It truly was a perfect night for it too.  Temperature was great, hardly any wind and the ice conditions were the best I've seen on this rink.

The girls skated to their hearts' content and drifted off to dreamland mighty quickly tonight.  Now it's time for me to do the same...finally.




Monday 28 January 2013

A Birthday Sonnet for My Love

Ev'ryone stop and celebrate the day!!
For it marks the day love's journey began,
Bettering life for all those 'long her way.
Stop and celebrate, I say it again.

Celebrate not the day but the lady,
My lady, my Lexy, my love, for she
is wonderful, strong and full of beauty,
Captivating, wise and lovely. 

A cold winter's day warmed 'cause she was born;
As grateful hearts greet spring's glory and bloom,
My heart rejoices, no longer forlorn,
The longing once felt, her love does consume.

All beautiful is she, no flaw to see,
All beautiful is she, perfect to me.  

Happy Birthday!!






 

Friday 25 January 2013

The Family that Brews Together...



Two exciting milestones in home brewing took place this past weekend. First, my brother-in-law and I finally realized the dream of frat boys everywhere. We now have our very own kegs at home. That’s right. There we were watching the NFC Championship, sipping on beers dispensed from our very own keg. We’ve had the kegs since October – since my return to work from parental leave. Jason, fresh from the end of his own parental leave a year earlier, understood the mixed emotions that can be stirred up when reentering the labour force after nine of the best months you will ever have in your life. So he bought us a keg each to soothe the transition – what a brother, eh?!! After brewing a couple of batches back in October, we finally got around to kegging them this past weekend and subsequently tapped the keg to partake in the fruits of our labour.

The second milestone resides inside one of those kegs. We’ve been home brewing for a couple of years now. Home brewing is a lot like making spaghetti sauce. Most people start with a can or jar of store bought sauce and then add this and that to make it their own.  There’s also this thing you can do called "cooking from scratch." You know when you combine only raw ingredients and end up with sauce in the end. It’s the same with home brewing, there are numerous mixes you can get (like jars of spaghetti sauce) that you can use as a base and then you experiment with different types of ingredients to create really distinct beers. We’ve made some great beers using this method. An oatmeal stout, a cherry stout (one of my faves), an apple-bottomed cream ale and a crisp clear pilsner, to name a few.




Well this last batch included our first attempt at a beer made from scratch. We bought the grains, barley, hops and yeast...made the mash, brewed the wort and away we went. It was a pretty standard beer: golden and clear, smooth from the outset with a kick of citrus to finish due to the hops we used. Let me tell you, it was fantastic!!

Ahhhh…beer!! It’s a wonderful thing whether it be a cold, crisp, refreshing pilsner on a hot summer’s evening while BBQing or a tall-hearty stout on a cold winter’s night huddled by the hearth of the fire place (if we had a fire place).

However frat-like having a keg in your house may seem, make no mistake about it, my appreciation for beer has matured considerably from my days in university and very much so since the advent of our home brewing adventures. There will be no beer pong, no keg stands, nor any drunken debauchery. No – instead there will be a quiet satisfaction each time I pour a draft from my keg and a deep appreciation for the craftsmanship and effort that was invested in the creation of the beer. Be assured, the beer will be savoured slowly…although the Super Bowl is coming up so perhaps we should kick-off a couple new batches now to replace our supply that is sure to take a hit during our Super festivities.

On a side note...the last time the Ravens made the Super Bowl, I was in first year university, living in residence. I can’t remember who I picked to win…but I’m pretty sure I ended up in a kiddie pool filled with snow that we had brought into the common room. Don Benoit (our resident adviser responsible for keeping order in residence) even got in on the action and took a roll in the snow. Good times!!





In all seriousness and with a little sappiness, Jason has been a huge blessing to me and my family – beyond the keg and beer. It’s remarkable that we get along so well and lucky too since our families spend so much time together. Think about the scenario: two guys - from opposite sides of the bridge (I’m talking about the causeway in Kingston – he went to RMC and I went to Queen’s), one an engineer and the other an actor-turned-librarian/information scientist, one a hockey player the other a football enthusiast (who played a little in his teenage years) - marrying into the same family…well that could have been disastrous.

I was in a more advantageous position than Jason.  He married into the family first and was already well entrenched as part of the Preece family package by the time I arrived. I knew exactly what I was getting myself into (well at least on the surface). But for all he knew, Lex could have married some hipster doofus (please hold the comments suggesting that she did in fact marry such a man)!

Surprisingly we have a lot more in common beyond our love for the Preece women, beer and sports!! It’s one of those good things in life that are easy but not advisable to take for granted and overlook. So with that in mind, I hold aloft a tall blonde (a pint of our brew…not a woman) to toast family and friendship!!

Cheers!!

(cue the song, "You've Got a Friend in Me.")

Wednesday 23 January 2013

The Ring's the Thing

Noli did something really sweet for me today that brought a smile to my face each time I thought about it throughout the day.  I was on my way out the door this morning, heading to work.  As is the norm, I made sure to give each of my girls a great big hug and kiss and wish them a good day.

After hugging Noli I turned to leave but she said, "Wait daddy...wait!"  And off she went running to our credenza upon which rested her new ring.  Noli is crazy about rings and necklaces and all things pretty and princess-like.  She picked it up and came running to me with the ring held out and said, "Here Daddy!"  Well I reached down, took the ring and examined it.  I thought that perhaps it had broken and she was bringing it to be fixed.  But no - it was in fine shape so I said, "It's your ring...it's very pretty!"  She nodded and said, "You can wear it to work today!"  I was stunned...not because she wanted me to wear a princess-pretty ring (my girls have no qualms about trying to put me into pretty things) but because it was her new ring and as much as Lex and I go on about sharing, the girls are still learning the joy of sharing.  I was surprised that Noli would willingly part with it for the day but could tell that it meant a lot to her that she was giving me something special.


"You mean I can bring your ring to work with me?"  I wanted to clarify that she was okay with what was about to happen.  I envisioned me walking out of the house, hopping in the car and driving away all the while oblivious to the monumental meltdown Noli was having because I drove away with her ring.  "Uh-huh," she replied without hesitation, "Just make sure you bring it home after work."

Well I thought I was going to start blubbering like a baby.  I don't know why it made me feel all warm and fuzzy...but it did.  What a sweet thing for her to think of doing for me, out of the blue!  I bent down and gave her an extra big hug and kiss, sincerely thanked her and told her how nice it was for her to share her ring with me.  And I assured her that I would bring it home after work (which I did).


It's not that my girls have never given me anything.  They have, they've given me their colouring and artwork and different crafts...but I don't recall them randomly giving me one of their special things to have even for a short time.  And the way she gave it to me...you could see the pride, love and excitement on her face as she gave it to me and watched me look at the ring. 

I still don't know exactly why she decided to give me the ring today or what she was thinking - but it made my day and made me feel loved (I generally feel loved but I guess I felt an extra helping of love today).  I put it on top of my computer console at work where I could see it throughout the day.  It lifted my spirits each time I looked at it and reminded me of the reason I do what I do - it's for my ladies.

The first thing I did when I got home was to take the ring out of my pocket and hand it to Noli.  I thanked her again and reaffirmed how nice it was for her to share the ring with me.  She was very pleased and then she put the ring back on the credenza where it had been that morning.


Monday 21 January 2013

My Little Girl Likes Football!!



A wonderful thing has happened over the last couple of weeks...my girls have decided they like watching football with me!!  Particularly Evie, who has also stated that she wants to play football (flag football) in the summer time.  Talk about one happy Papa Bear!!

To be sure this didn't happen overnight, in fact I've slowly but surely allowed my love of the game to seep into their lives.  I started a couple of years ago in the playoffs, by asking Evie which teams she thought were going to win.  She went an amazing 9-2 picking the winners that year and thus a tradition was born.  We take time most weeks during the season to make our picks and each Tuesday or Wednesday review the games' scores to see who won (TIP:  It's a good way for her to review her numbers too...in a way that doesn't seem like homework).  She asks to do the picks now without any prompting.  I'm pretty proud that she can pretty much identify every NFL team by logo and even has a favorite team(s) and player (even though none of her favourite teams are my favourite - HTTR!!). 

Unfortunately a by-product of getting to know teams and players is that it skews your ability to make objective picks.  And so our record for picks is at a career low this year.  I chalk that up to Evie choosing not who she thinks will win, but who she wants to win.  Oh well, it's always more fun when you have a little vested interest in your picks. 

It seems silly but I am quite pleased about her developing interest in football and not solely from a selfish perspective because I get to watch more games now.  I'm not totally delusional - I'm pretty sure Evie likes the fact that she gets to stay up later and hang-out with her old man more than actually watching the game.  It has become a really nice time where she'll cuddle up to me and just kind of rest in my presence.  We already spend tons of time together doing stuff, but somehow this is different. 

Often we're so busy being parents - teaching, moralizing, monitoring, preparing, mediating, trying to get through supper or whatever activity is on the docket next...doing, doing, doing...that we don't take time to decompress and just be there for our kids and with our kids.  I think that's what this time is for us.  There's no pressure to go anywhere or do anything, there's no set agenda and no expectations on Evie either (except to maybe wait until the next break in action to ask for more water).  We're content  to just be together relaxing.  We chat about this and that, have some snacks and for a short amount of time set aside all the parent-child drama and are merely two football fans (and fans of each other) catching a game together.  Maybe that sounds like lazy parenting but I think it has been great for our relationship.  I call it smart parenting and making the most of every opportunity my child presents to strengthen our bond.  I think Evie has this sense that we're sharing something that for right now is just for us.  We're bonding over football and be it over football or ballet...finding a special bond, something to share with your kids is a wonderful thing.

Evie's favourite team and player.





Sunday 20 January 2013

Happy 1st Birthday Miriam!!

Where does the time go?  A year ago at this time, my wife and I were asleep (sort of) in a hospital room, recuperating from the exciting early morning arrival of Miriam Sirpa Bonnie Gideon - the newest addition to our ever expanding (ever expanding?  Well that's to be determined) family.  I remember it was a cold, clear morning when we drove to the hospital.  Forty minutes after arriving at the hospital, Mimi was in my arms.  Amazing!! 

Lex was superb through the labour - her poise and focus were unbelievable.  Jill, our doula, was incredible.  She pretty much did everything the doctor and nurses were supposed to be doing but did it with such care and gentleness as is possible in such times.  In fact, Mimi came so quickly our doctor missed the delivery.  So it was up to Jill and a resident...thank goodness for Jill.


While we normally would have placed Mimi immediately on Lex, it wasn't possible in this instance and so Mimi was swaddled and handed to me.  Filled with joy and love (and relief) I gazed down at my beautiful new daughter, cuddled her close and whispered sweet greetings to her.

It's hard to believe that was a whole year ago.  It has been a wonderful year for our family and it definitely would not have been complete without our little Mimi.











Happy Birthday Sweetie!!  

Friday 18 January 2013

A Little Weekend Inspiration

Today's blog is posted on behalf of my soon to be seven year old nephew Cole.

 
Cole is what I would describe as a sort of renaissance man (boy).  From innovative homemade science experiments and inventions to amateur entomology...from artwork that is beyond my skill level to fun creative Lego designs, this kid dabbles in it all with an equal amount of enthusiasm and intensity.  He takes his fun seriously!!  He's very proud of his Lego creations and is excited to see his work displayed.



It's great to see what kids can come up with when given the chance.  I remember when I was about Cole's age I took some scraps of wood, nails and a hammer (kid-sized) and made a helicopter and boat out of them.  In face I still have the helicopter kicking around my house.


I'm blessed to have four nephews, two nieces and of course my three girls who never seem to be lacking imagination.  Whether it be threw the arts (drama, dance, skating included), stories, jokes, building or through play, they're imagination is consistently on display and encouraged.


 
The imagination truly is a great gift.  As Einstein said,

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

So get out your Lego, paint brush or medium of choice and give your imagination the run of the place for a little while. Who knows where it'll take you this weekend?


Thanks for the pics Cole!!


Age of the Fallen Hero




The big news in the sporting world this week?  Championship Sunday in the NFL?  (No, not the Super Bowl, that's Feb. 3 - this week is the conference championships to see which teams will play in the Super Bowl).  Nope - not Championship Sunday.  How about the long awaited start to the NHL season?  Nope, not that either.

No, the big news is of course the admission by Lance Armstrong to years of doping.  Another year and yet another fallen hero.  The shame of it all is that Lance Armstrong truly had a remarkable story worth celebrating.  The guy sticks it to cancer then goes on to compete in the Tour de France.  That is amazing.  In retrospect, that in itself is an inspiring story.  That wasn't enough for Lance though...and maybe not enough for our insatiable appetite for heroes.  It wasn't enough to survive and thrive...he had to dominate...to be the best by far, by any means necessary.  Would we have bought into his story if he had not?

We throw around the term "hero" and "role model" far too easily these days.  It's like the standing ovation...we are far too ready to stand up and laud any ol' performance so much so that the truly great and remarkable performances are devalued. 

We're so wanting to believe in the impossible...believe in something that transcends the everyday monotony of our daily existence that we latch onto people who seem larger than life and make them even larger.   We fabricate a whole persona that trumps even their accomplishments.  We no longer think of so and so as just a great athlete, actor or whatever...now we want them to be great people worthy of being called a hero and role model.

We treat the terms "here," "role model" and "celebrity" as synonymous  when really they're quite distinct.  To be sure they're not mutually exclusive, but neither are they automatically inclusive.  Take Babe Ruth for example.  He was a great ball player and no doubt many wished they (or their sons) could grow-up to become as good a player as the Bambino.  However I don't think there were too many moms hoping their sons would emulate his off-the-field lifestyle.  Conversely Tim Tebow is by all accounts a great role model but not an outstanding professional QB (at least not yet).

Lance Armstrong transcended cycling and became a hero to many and a man beyond reproach.  The problem is that just because someone is a great cyclist or can throw the pig-skin better than most, doesn't automatically make them a great person.  Moreover, even though we may know what a celebrity eats for breakfast or what type of undies they wear, doesn't mean we know them at all.  And that is problematic when we bestow upon them title of "hero."  Since we heap all of these expectations on these stars without truly knowing their character, I fear we set them up for a fall (which we often weirdly relish) and ourselves and our kids are set-up for disappointment. 

We've outsourced our heroism like many other familial duties to the public sphere when what is needed is for us to shape up and do a better job in our homes of being the type of men and women that our children can look up to.  Rather than proclaiming someone a hero and role model because of something they can do, our kids should look up to us because of the type of people we are.  Integrity, honesty, courage and perseverance...these are the makings of a hero.  If we were more deliberate in building our own legacies instead of living vicariously through our stars, then we could reclaim our rightful place as role models in our families and communities.  That way athletes and stars could be athletes and stars and the term "hero" could be reserved for those who truly deserve it. 

Thursday 17 January 2013

Joke of the Day

Two nights ago Noli had a fitful, feverish sleep.  She woke-up frequently and subsequently awoke me frequently for one thing or another – she was too hot, she was too cold, she needed a drink of water, she needed to go to the bathroom.  Fun stuff.
She’s full of surprises though and has a quirky sense of humour even when sick and half asleep.  In the middle of that fitful sleep, she woke me up and I was trying to decipher what was wrong.  Then she stopped me and asked, “What do you get when you cross a butterfly with a bunk bed?”
“Huh?”  It took me a good ten seconds in my semi-conscious state to realize that she was telling me a joke.  “A flying bed…” I replied.  “No?  I don’t know. What do you get a when you cross a butterfly with a bunk bed?”
“A moose,” Noli stated matter-of-factly before rolling over and going back to sleep.
I laughed and said, “Good one!”  It was a genuine laugh about the whole situation.  What a cutie!!  I reminded Noli of the joke in the morning and she corrected me (herself) and said, “No…you get an elephant.”  Okay.
I was reminded of an article I read shortly after Evie was born.  The gist of which suggested that the majority of parenting is hard, tiring and pretty much not very pleasurable.  However the moments, and the article stressed that they are often short moments, of joy provide such a high, that they offset the general experience of parenting which again is difficult and tiring.  The premise is that because the degree of joy experienced from these brief, infrequent moments are beyond the norm and therefore all the hard times which are usually more frequent and sustained are deemed worthwhile, insignificant and bearable.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the article.  It was trying to answer the question of why people become parents and do the things they do as parents given how difficult it is and I think it glossed over or ignored love and a sense of responsibility as prime motivators for good parenting (life isn’t all about immediate pleasure you know! But that’s a topic for another posting I suppose).  Nevertheless the article has stuck with me.
Put in context of that fitful sleep, just once out of the six or seven times that Noli woke-up was she not discontented or wanting something.  And each time I tried to make her more comfortable or give her what she needed because, well, because I love her and that’s what I’m supposed to do.  But that one time when she didn’t need anything from me and instead wanted to share her joke with me was enough to bring a smile to my face, warm my heart and cause me to fondly remember that night.

Monday 14 January 2013

Idle Thoughts

I checked out the Idle No More protest on parliament hill the other day.  The movement and reactions to it have been on my mind quite a bit lately.  I find myself pretty much in the middle on a lot of issues...my thoughts and feelings rather scattered about the whole thing.

I've always sort of been in the middle when it comes to First Nation issues...at an early age I was very proud of my Cree ancestry.  I remember watching an old western at my Grampa's place (a member of the Missanbie Cree nation who was born up in the bush up around the James Bay area where he lived until he was sent to a residential school when he was around 9 years old).  In the particular scene that I recall, an "indian" was stalking a cowboy, knife drawn and ready for the kill.  I remember cheering for the "indian" only to be gently corrected.  I was asked why I was cheering for the bad guy...which led to some confusion on my part.  I didn't think he was the bad guy...he was one of us...no?

 As I've gotten older and perhaps less wise, I've waffled and wondered if I was "native enough" to claim it as my own.  You see by some twist of legislation and bureaucracy I've been denied my status.  Between the years that my Dad and my uncle were born, certain laws changed which changed the level of status that each of them had.  Therefore, while my cousins are no more native than I am, they have their status but I do not.

It's interesting growing up part-native.  Pretty much the first question anyone has when it's revealed that I'm part First Nations is, "yeah, but...how much?"  As if my claim needs to be validated by whoever I'm speaking to in order to be considered First Nations.  I've had people say to me, "Oh, only a quarter...well, you're not really native then" or, "Yeah, but are you status?" How often do you hear someone being challenged about their ancestral claims?  Irish?  How Irish are you?  Hmm....

I was rather pleased last week when the federal courts ruled in favour of Metis and Non-Status Indians being identified as "Indian" with all the right and entitlement to that name as a status Indian.  I felt somewhat validated to tell you the truth.  It's not about land or money for me...it's about identity.  Even in that moment of validation I felt shame because I felt dependent on some stupid bureaucratic and judicial ruling to bestow upon me an integral part of my identity.  I should have been free to claim that identity.

For me the Idle No More has great potential if the participants can use it as a catalyst to rise up and truly become self-determinant.  We shouldn't be dependent on the government for our identity, culture, strength or community health and prosperity. 

Have the First Nations been treated poorly in the past?  Yeah, for sure and in the not so distant past.  Does the government have a responsibility to the First Nations and if so, are they living up to it?  Yes, I believe it does and no I don't think they're doing their best in this regard.  However I don't think all of the First Nations have been good stewards of what has been allotted them either.  Moreover regardless of what our rights are and what we feel entitled to...if they are holding us back from becoming something greater, then we need to reassess our priorities.

There's been a lot of talk about rights and responsibilities.  The thing about rights is that they don't always have to be exercised.  In fact it is usually detrimental to stubbornly hold to a right regardless of the reality of the situation.  For example, I am constantly yielding my right of way as a pedestrian because I don't want to be hit by a vehicle.  When I see a car coming towards me that obviously is not going to stop, I will yield my right.  Simple self-preservation.  Would I like to hold everyone accountable to their responsibilities and make everyone grant me my right of way?  Sure (not really but for sake of argument I'll say, "sure").  And you know what, I do sometimes take my right of way.  I choose my battles wisely and I don't assume that any driver out there gives two hoots about my well-being.

I'm reminded of the wonderful kids book, "Where the Red Fern Grows."  In it the grandfather of the protagonist reveals a trick to catch a raccoon, the old brace and bit trick.  He says you need to drill a hole in a brace (or something like that) and place the bit (a shiny piece of metal)  inside of it.  The hole is to be just big enough so the raccoon can fit its unclenched fist through it, but too small to allow his clenched fist to pass back out.  Therefore when he grabs the bit, he won't be able to extract his hand and he will be too stubborn to let go of the bit to free himself, and thus the raccoon is trapped.

 How often do we stubbornly hang onto something we want or feel is our right to have even to our own detriment?

The government (and anyone else) is only going to do so much for any of us.  While it probably is a good thing to continue to hold them accountable to past agreements and fight for equal resources and opportunities (on and off reserve), we need to be upwardly mobile and work to improve our own stead.  We need to hold each other accountable and exhort one another to higher standards, accomplishments and dreams.  We need to work together and support one another (let us not forget there are many First Nations - not one).  There needs to be a vision.  And most importantly there needs to be ownership over that vision.

In grade 2 I learned something that has proven to be very useful in many phases of this life of mine and that is very apt in this discussion.  A simple little phrase:  If it is to be, it is up to me.




Friday 11 January 2013

Idle No More in Ottawa...A Photo Essay

Here's a little snippit of what I did on my lunch break.







A wee little video:

More to come shortly on the Idle No More movement...I'm still formulating my thoughts and opinions.

Wednesday 9 January 2013

New Years Rockin Eve









And that was it. I think we managed to stay awake until 10pm. Not too shabby.

Sunday 6 January 2013

New Year



Well it's a New Year!!  I know I'm a little behind and no it wasn't because of the New Year's celebrations.  We in fact had a great New Year's party in our house.  My wife, my three daughters and I turned out the lights and had a dance party that seemed to last a couple of hours and included gooey gums (Noli's term for Jube-Jubes), chips, chocolate milk and root beer!!  It was grand.  There's nothing like seeing the joy in your kids' faces at something so simple as spending an evening together, listening to some good tunes and busting a move.  We pulled out some classics (Jump-jump!!) and some real classics (Keep on Rockin' in the Free World and I Wanna Rock and Roll (all night)) before slowing it down with a little Oasis. 

And of course what comes with a New Year but new resolutions!!  Ah yes - I almost reached last year's resolution...always those last few pounds that get you!  Actually I've never been one to really make any resolutions - but last year, after stepping on a scale (which is something else I usually don't do either because I think being weight obsessed can be a dangerous thing - it's not always a true indicator of health) I realized that maybe being a little weight aware (not obsessed) was in order (my blood pressure was inching up too).  Regardless of the whole resolution business, it isn't a bad idea to pause from time to time and take stock of what you have done and consider the things you want to do or achieve.  If you don't have a destination in mind, you'll never know if you're getting to where you want to be.

Last year was pretty great - I mean how do you top the birth of your third kid (my wife gets the glory for that one though)?  On top of that I took 9 months off of work, took my two oldest girls on a ten day Daddy-Daughter road trip way up north, built a fence, knocked down two walls in my house, put up an eaves trough (which the ice has recently ripped off), used a chain saw to shred a few trees in the backyard, lost twenty pounds, wrote a book, started a blog,  and generally just really enjoyed life. 

So now it's time to think of what I want to accomplish this year...hmmm...ummm...well, I dunno.

How's that for an answer?  For the first time in quite awhile I feel like I'm standing on a precipice and looking beyond the next couple of years.  So it's still kind of fuzzy.  The last 7 years or so have been so filled with huge life events and we just sort of got swept up in the inertia of it all and only now are we starting to ask ourselves more specific questions about what we want in the future.  I think this will be the first year that my wife and I haven't moved, been pregnant, had a baby, started or ended a job, or gone back to school since we've been married. 

It has been a wild adventurous roller-coaster ride (I'm not sure my wife would describe it as such)!!  The past 7 years have been so full of the unexpected that I wouldn't rule anything out for 2013.  But back to the resolution...I think what I want to accomplish is to determine some very specific long term goals for our family and develop a strategy and plan on how to achieve them.  Yes - that sounds good to me. 

You know the one other thing that comes to mind...something a little more tangible...is this book I wrote this past year.  I want to get that thing published.  So there...I hereby resolve to:
  1. Establish, in consultation with my beautiful wife, well defined long term goals for our family;
  2. Develop a plan on how to accomplish the goals defined in resolution 1; and,
  3. Publish my book.
How about you?


Wednesday 2 January 2013

Back to the Grind

Well the holidays, or at least my holidays, are over and its back to work. I must say that this years Christmas was really special. Our youngest ones first Christmas. Our first Christmas at a new church where we got to sit in the candlelight and feel that we belong and are no longer visitors. Our first Christmas being a family of five. Very special indeed.

Alas it couldn't go on forever and we must get on with the routines of life, like work, school, cleaning showering, not eating candy for breakfast, you know all those annoying things we must do. This time of year often feels like there is nothing much coming up. Nothing really to look forward to. In fact there is a much higher death rate just after January 1st, maybe because all those lovely people just hanging on so they can have  one more Christmas have made it in the clear.

I have to remind myself that there is indeed good things to come. Despite the meter of snow outside, spring isn't thaaaat far off, there's the super bowl, snow forts, hot chocolate, skating, and a huge batch of beer in my basement waiting to be bottled and then ingested. I have another year to enjoy my life with all its blessings.

My resolutions are not that astounding this year, its mainly to maintain my life as it is now. I want to not gain 50 pounds, not lose 50. And I hope my family continues to grow in love and faith.