You are currently browsing the archives for the Family category.

Vacation Redux

Posted 2 years, 3 months ago at 21:06. 0 comments

The Good:

  • Parents that get up before you and make coffee.
  • Queen Anne Inn: a great B&B we stayed at in Annapolis Royal. While in town, we recommend dining at the Garrison House Inn.
  • Japanese Art Gallery: Driving along the highway between Digby and Yarmouth, we came across this tiny gallery full of original wood block prints. I never expected to find such a thing in rural Nova Scotia…but here we are.
  • Mmmm…seafood.

The Bad:

  • Cat Ferry: we took the ferry from Portland, ME to Yarmouth, NS to cut down on driving time with a new baby. Unfortunately, queuing up to get on and off the ferry and clear customs can take up to 1.5 hours on each end, and this is time spent sucking exhaust in bumper-to-bumper traffic on a hot (or at least it was for us, ~35°C) blacktop. The ferry ride itself is fine, provided you dress warmly to compensate for the over-air conditioned interior and don’t have a penchant for seasickness.
  • Hours of operation: don’t bother showing up in Annapolis Royal before 10am or after 5pm, because nothing will be open. This is pretty much standard across non-Halifax Nova Scotia. Many restaurants close at 8pm (or earlier) which sucks doubly if your stomach is still on Eastern time.

The Ugly:

  • Our car: the Protege made it 2980 of 3000 planned km, which sadly is less than 100% of the required distance. We had all kinds of engine trouble over the course of the trip, including some things that had previously been fixed. Luckily, the car died within spitting distance of the in-laws, so Don was able to come rescue Kris and Will while I waited for CAA. Hopefully Don can work his magic on the car once again, but if not, anybody want to buy a large automotive paperweight?

Current Tunes: The Instance podcast | Filed under Family, Travel

Four and counting

Posted 2 years, 4 months ago at 22:16. 0 comments

I’m in California this week for the Mozilla All Hands meeting. The timing is somewhat less than ideal, given that I am missing both my son’s hernia surgery and my fourth wedding anniversary. I do, in fact, have the most understanding wife in the world, although perhaps that goes without saying.

To begin making it up to Kristina, I made a little trip out to Montara State Beach where we got engaged 5 years ago and took some photos. We were both a little too spaced when it was actually happening to properly take in the surroundings, so it was nice to revisit the spot and have a proper look around.

Current Tunes: Boards of Canada - Music is Math | Filed under Family, Travel

Can you hear me now?

Posted 2 years, 4 months ago at 02:33. 0 comments

I finally stepped into the 1990s last week when I broke down and bought a mobile phone. The impetus — and the payoff — came today when Kristina was able to call me in California as soon as Will was safely home from his hernia surgery. Both mother and son are doing well.

Current Tunes: The Prodigy - Poison | Filed under Family, Travel

Month #2

Posted 2 years, 6 months ago at 22:30. 1 comment

Our second month with Will is chronicled in the Gallery.

Current Tunes: Aimee Mann - Pavlov's Bell | Filed under Family, Parenthood

One Month With Will

Posted 2 years, 7 months ago at 00:30. 1 comment

I get to bask in his cuteness everyday, so please excuse my delay in making more photos available on-line.

Current Tunes: Morcheeba - Aqualung (Instrumental) | Filed under Family, Parenthood

Best of 2005

Posted 2 years, 10 months ago at 17:27. 0 comments

In vaguely chronological order:

Best wishes to everyone in 2006!

Current Tunes: Zero 7 - Somersault (Dangermouse Remix) | Filed under Family, Friends, Frisbee, Gaming, Movies, Mozilla, Parenthood, Travel

Nursery

Posted 3 years ago at 13:45. 1 comment

The nursery is almost finished. We are so far ahead of the game, it’s scary.

…

Kev came by for dinner on Saturday and helped me get my “new” Series 1 Tivo talking to the world over it’s network card. The Tivo is now doing its thing, and has even begun suggesting things for me to watch. Desperate Housewives == Thumbs Down!

…

The engine of our car is now in many pieces on the floor of my in-laws’ garage. All I can say is that I’m thankful to have an engineer for a father-in-law. We would have paid for the car many times over in repair costs were it not for Don, and I’m pretty sure this most recent engine failure would have precipitated buying an entirely new vehicle were it not for his mechanical intercession. Thanks, Don.

Current Tunes: Innersphere - Out Of Body | Filed under Family, Hardware, House, Parenthood, TV

I love it when you call me Big Poppa…

Posted 3 years, 1 month ago at 22:02. 4 comments

Kristina has given me the green light to tell the interweb that we are pregnant. By this point, everyone we know within a reasonable geographical radius has been told in person (or whatever passes for “in person” in this day and age) , so the only people left to tell were the RSS aggregators and random stalkers anyway.

Current Tunes: Nothing | Filed under Family

35

Posted 3 years, 1 month ago at 12:56. 0 comments

Kudos today to my wife, Kristina. Since June, she has been planning what amounted to a small second wedding in honor of her parents’ 35th wedding anniversary. What’s more, she managed to keep the whole thing a secret from her parents until they walked through the door at the Cedarhill Golf Club last night, 35 years (plus a few weeks) to the day after they walked through the same door for their wedding in 1970.

The food was surprisingly good, and the staff were excellent. Much of the original wedding party was able to attend, and their ranks were bolstered by lots of family, work, and neighborhood friends, both old and new.

The Wandering Minstrels were able to cater to the wide breadth of ages, and didn’t seem to mind transitioning from ceilidh to waltz when we all (frequently) got tuckered out. Even Vic Harrison, 82, needed a rest from time to time.

Congratulations to Sharon and Don for 35 years, and cheers to Kristina and Karen for pulling off a great surprise party!

Current Tunes: Nothing | Filed under Family

Birthday Redux

Posted 3 years, 2 months ago at 08:41. 1 comment

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Clocktower to celebrate my belated birthday on Saturday. There were so many of you!

Thanks also for not breaking me so badly that I was unable to play two games of ultimate the next day. Well, I was on the field at any rate. I will blame my performance on the late-night poutine encounter rather than any turning-30-related decrepitude.

Current Tunes: GrooveSalad, courtesy of somafm | Filed under Family, Friends, Frisbee

« Older Entries
Recent Entries »