Just a day at the Park!

Can you think of a better place to be?

For all you Stryker fans out there...

John here...

I am entering the BLOGOSPHERE(sp??) for the first time in the wake of my lovely wife Tanis to post this (you'll need to turn off our onsite music player before you watch this):

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Just appreciate that the excitement you might experience while watching this montage is nothing compared to what you might feel if you were flying this plane. The model featured here is my brother Jordan's F-27C Stryker. I currently am flying the precursor model, the F-27B, and I concur with the online bloggers regarding this plane in that it's durability, agility, and acrobatics ensure that this type of RC plane will be around for a long time. Enjoy!!!

Sincerely,

Wing Commander John W. Hardy, 2nd Airborne Division

First Week

It's been exactly one week since we left Calgary.
On Saturday I took the kids out to Waterton for the day. I wasn't sure how an outing with three kids and no help would go but it was such a nice time. The kids loved the "magic waterfall." It was close to impossible to keep Sam from sliding under the fence to get a little closer, and equally difficult to convince Abby that it wouln't be wise to try to capture the squirrels rummaging nearby. Kids will be kids I guess. We took a nice walk over to the Tuscany and had spaghetti on the patio. It was really relaxing to sit in the shade and watch all of the tourists. A quick stop by the Big Scoop for ice cream and then we topped off the day by playing at the playground. Sam climbed up here all by himself...infact I wasn't even aware of it. (oops) Daring little guy:)) Luckily I managed to snap a picture just before he slipped through one of the rungs and skinned his knee. What we won't do for a picture eh.



Speaking of pictures...I tried to take some photos of my kids laying on our giant parachute. I thought all of the bright colors would be a cute backdrop. Unfortunately nothing really turned out well. Between the kids who would NOT stay still and John who was equally uncooperative...this is all I have to show for that.




Down the street from John's parents is a small pasture with three horses, (minnie, gus and joker.) The kids LOVE feeding them, and I like to pretend that they are ours. I think our walks to the horses will become part of our daily routine:) It is so nice to sit outside each evening and hear the crickets and frogs.


On Tuesday we bought a house! It is small and we will definately outgrow it in a couple of years but we have lots of plans to fix it up and make it our home for awhile. What we love most about it is all the yard space and the large garden on the west side of it.
We are loving it down here and so glad we can stay at John's parents until our home is ready. The kids are really lucky to get to be around their AWESOME Grandma and Grandpa so much, and this small town living is kinda nice.

Well since my Baby left me.....

...I haven't been singing Elvis tunes, that's for sure! It's official. I am a single mom. I woke up this morning determined to make the best of things. When your handed a lemon...right?

Right after breakfast the kids and I got in the van and headed out for slurpies and a bit of shopping. So far so good. By noon though we were hurtin for things to do so we went to Wal Mart and bought a couple of kids sleeping bags and went "camping" with popcorn and a movie, of course. (We really rough it here) By 5:00 pm we were once again wondering how to pass the time. Normally at this time of day, we'd all be at the window waiting anxiously for Daddy to pull into the driveway. Not today. (For some reason knowing that John isn't coming home makes the time go by so much slower) So instead, we headed out to go kite shopping. Yes...our little pocket book took a small hit today, but it is one hour away from the kids bedtime and I actually still feel sane. All in all things went well. This whole "single parent" thing is tough. Lucky for me it's only because John is down south trying to line up a house for us. Pretty brave of me I think to leave the house hunting up to him. In only 36 hours and 45 minutes he'll be back. I know...poor me:) I can hardly wait!!
9:00 am

1:00 pm...

5:00pm...




As always Jessica is perfectly content though she no doubt misses Dad as much as the rest of us do!!!

Home

So John spent a couple of days in Southern Alberta this past week helping his Dad. While he was there, he managed to line up some work as a substitute teacher in that school division starting on Monday. MONDAY!!! This works out great for him as it will give him a chance to get to know the staff and students at the High School where he will be working full time (physics?) come September. Not only did he make arrangements to start subbing on Monday but he also came home with two keys to our new postal box so that I can start switching our mail over. Ahhh...my head is spinning. This is happening so fast!! It is hard to believe that it is already time to move...again. You'd think I'd be an expert at this by now but I'm a little bit nervous this time around. Why? Not sure. Maybe it is because we have to move in a month and have...no house? Maybe it is the fact that we are now finished with our transient, nomadic student lifestyle. For the first time ever we are moving somewhere knowing that it is most likely where our kids will grow up. I can see myself going to that same post office box when I'm 80 years old. Talking to me about our upcoming move can sound like a good thing or a sad thing depending on what time of day it is, what my mood is like etc. John being hired is SUCH a blessing. We really are so fortunate. But there is a lot that I will miss.

PROS:
-We will be much closer to Johns AMAZING parents. I really want my kids to know their two grandparents well as they are all my kids have.
-I will not have to worry about being pulled over by the flashing red and blue lights of my brothers cop car...for no reason at all:)
-can you say "income". Yeah that will be nice.
-No more long waits in emergency rooms
-Jogging in fresh air
-The sound of the wind. I LOVE to hear that wind blow.
-Waterton will be a very short drive away. Talk about a day at the park. It can't get better than that.
-Close to the temple.
-I love that my older sister and her husband will be moving down south soon as well.
-I love that we won't have to store empty boxes (for future moves) anymore.
-It is awesome that John will be able to go to work everyday in an awesome place and do something that he is terrific at.

CONS:
-I'll miss being pulled over by my brother (sort of), and I'll miss his afternoon visits
-I'll miss living above my younger sister and her family. They have been SOO good to us.
-I'll miss being able to move often and meet lots of people, live in different wards, and cities.
-I have found a lot of comfort in not having to reach out and invest a lot into other friendships because hey...we've never stayed in one place for very long. I'm a little bit nervous to move somewhere permanently. My "friend making" skills are definitely rusty.
-Abby will miss her little friends

I'll keep you "posted" (hee hee). We really are excited about this next opportunity and adventure for our little family. Besides it doesn't really matter where we are as long as we are as happy as we are now. "Home is where the food is." I mean "home is where the heart is....and where you hang your hat."

Jessica seems excited about the move!

Our little Boxer

At this very moment Sam looks like he just got in a fight...with a ten year old...and lost. Not so. Just an ordinary Sunday afternoon at our house:) It seems like there is an hour in our home, always between 5:00 and 6:00pm where chaos rules and bad things can happen. I'm usually preoccupied trying to think up what I'm going to cook for dinner. The kids are all hungry and delirious with low blood sugar and I usually get the bright idea to ease the chaos by letting the kids help. On a normal day their efforts to help in the kitchen would result in a spilled pitcher of juice, or a broken plate. Not today. At 5:15-right on cue...disaster hit. In a split second an innocent childhood fight over who "gets to stir" resulted in the first case of stitches I've ever had to deal with as a Mother. Now it was all an innocent accident. I'm sure Abby didn't mean to push Sam off that chair but she did. In a matter of seconds there was blood just dripping down his face. Abby frantically apologizing and telling him, "you can have the chair Sam...it's ok." Too late for that. Good bye peaceful Sunday afternoon...hello emergency room.

Needless to say, after 6 hours of waiting, and 5 minutes being restrained in a "mummy bag," while a doctor stiched him up, our little boy survived his first real injury. I am doing ok now. uh...I mean Sam is doing alright.

It is so hard to see your kids go through things like this. I kept wishing there was a way I could just take it all away for him. I think every parent feels like that, whether we are wanting to protect them from a bully, or a sickness...or from getting hurt. I think that is the part of parenting I will never be able to get used to. Watching your kids experience difficult things. What a trooper though. Despite my crying- he took it like a real little "man."

Hopefully this marks the one and only visit to the emerge this year! Hope you all have better luck this week:))

Circus Time

We had a lot of fun today with some friends of ours at the Shrine Circus. It reminded me of going as a kid. The only difference this time being that we actually had to pay and not our parents. Kids are so unaware of the fact that flashing swords and twinkling wands cost a lot of money. More then they are worth...but oh what memories. Abby rode on an elephant with her friend Jenna. Jessica slept peacefully in John's arms, and Sam played happily in a puddle just off the stage. I'm now fearing E-coli.:)) The kids were so tired after. I did feel a little bad as we entered the parking lot and drove through a small crowd of people protesting the circus. I kept my eye out thinking "Auntie Crystal" was perhaps one of them. That would have been awkward. Fun day.

I've posted some of my artwork (see the link) I've done over the years. Not fantastic but I'll blame it on poor scanning quality. :))

Top Ten

The Mayo Clinic recently released a list of the top ten foods that we all should be eating in order to be more healthy. I saw someone bake this cake on a cooking show today and it is actually pretty healthy (for a cake). The bonus part is it contains 4 of the 10 "healthy" ingredients. Add a little ground flax seed like I did and you've got 5 out of the 10. Hooray. Whoever said delicious can't be nutritious never had this cake. As I was baking I couldn't help but think of an old roomate I had in college who ate apple crisp everyday because of the nutritional benefit of apples.:) Perhaps I will have this "Apple, Almond and Blueberry Cake with Maple Cream" everyday too! Ok so maybe packing a lot of good for you things into a "cake" is not the ideal way to go but it is tastey. Enjoy!


Apple, Almond and Blueberry Cake with Maple Cream
Ingredients:
• 1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
• 5 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, diced, room temperature
• 4 medium Gala or Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, cut into
• 1/3-inch pieces
• 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (packed) golden brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ½ cup slivered almonds
• 2/3 cup dried blueberries
• coarse & powdered sugar, for sprinkling
• 2 cups chilled whipping cream
• 1/3 cup good quality maple syrup
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides. Sift first 5 ingredients into large bowl. Rub in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal.
2. Mix in apples and brown sugar. Whisk eggs and milk together; stir into apple mixture with almonds and blueberries (batter will be thick). Transfer to pan. Sprinkle top with coarse sugar.
3. Bake cake until golden and springy to touch, about 45 minutes. Cool slightly on rack. Cut around cake to loosen; remove pan sides and dust with powdered sugar.
4. Whip cream on medium speed to get some air into it. Add maple syrup and whip on high until soft, pillowy peaks form. Serve each slice of cake with a dollop of cream and a dusting of cinnamon.

Guess Who??

Bad Day for mail...

So we recieved this lovely picture of our new van in the mail today. It was soo nice of the city police to send it to us, along with a not so nice yellow peice of paper. AHHHHHHH!! Tsk Tsk... I'd like to blame this on John but I can clearly see it was taken on the way to a certain store for "Tall Girls"! Drat. Note to self: Yellow lights don't stay yellow for long. :(

John looked at the ticket... (and the price we have to pay) and all he said was, "Hmmm. That's about the same amount of money it will cost for my new 27C Stryker."

I wonder if I could fight this one...what do you think?

Tagged...

For those of you who have never been "tagged,"...today may be your lucky day. I was recently tagged by a friend, who is actually a very talented writer. For her this task was probably a peice of cake. For me...not so. Nevertheless, here's how it works. Thanks Nikki!!

People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. At the end of your blog, you need to choose 7 people to get tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog!

My list of Seven:
1. I love to fish. I started fishing when I was attending college in Edmonton. I've never caught a thing but I love having a "tackel box" of my very own. My favorite spot is along the North Sasketchewan.

2. Bad Habits? none. ok I am a bit of a worry wart. ...just a bit:)

3. Patience is not my strongest virtue. John always pronounces my maiden name as "Rush," which is not at all how it is pronounced...that's just his way of telling me to slow down.

4. My favorite thing to watch are old M*A*S*H re-runs. We own all 11 seasons on DVD. The perfect date night for me consists of John, a bowl of popcorn, and the good ol' 4077.

5. I love to paint and draw. A man was once interviewing Robert Batemen and asked him, "How are you so good? I'd give my right arm to be able to paint like you." To that Batemen responded, "Are you willing to give one hour a day"? Some say practice makes perfect...I'm still practicing.

6. I would love to travel. I say "would" because my experience consists of a quick trip to Salt Lake once and a week spent in BC. I would love to take the Via Rail across Canada one day.

7. I think I have the best family in the world. I happen to have a husband who is, (as Mary Poppins would say) "practically perfect in every way!"

"Tag" goes out to:

Chad
Jewel
Crystal
Lauhni
Jen
Michelle.L
Paula.K

This past week

My sister Jewel told us about a travelling reptile show, she'd attended with her kids on Friday. John and I then decided to take our kids to it on Saturday as part of our celebration of "Earth Day." It turned out to be a lot of fun.


Abby and Sam had fun seeing all of the reptiles and the presenters did a great job of helping the kids appreciate the animals around us. Except for the snakes. I don't think we have to appreciate them.



We also bought the movie Charlottes Web recently. It has become a favorite of Abby's which makes me happy. I have such fond memories of my mom reading it to my siblings and I when I was little. This is a picture of Abby fast asleep. If you look closely you'll see her new bedtime buddies...wilbur and charlotte as well:)

Earth Day

Sunday April 22nd is National Earth Day. First created by Senator Gaylord Nelson in the United States 37 years ago. I remember celebrating Earth Day in Elementary School. All grades would meet outside to pick up garbage in the schoolyard and along the nearby ditches. Afterwards we'd be rewarded with a popsicle. It's funny how picking up garbage seemed so fun... on that one day.
There is an older man in our neighborhood who walks his dog every day and I've noticed that in his hand he also carrys a big bag for...garbage. I've seen him all over my neighborhood cleaning up the schools, churches, parks etc. What a kind deed. That reminds me of another kind deed I once witnessed my brother do. I was driving home when I noticed a cop car a little ways ahead of me flip a U and drove up on the sidewalk right behind a young teenage boy. It only took a second to realize that the cop was my brother. Later I asked my brother what crime that teenager could possibly have done to invoke such a response from him. Turns out that kid was not a theif or a vandaliser...just your ordinary litterbug!! You can bet that young boy will think twice before littering again...the ticket was hefty:)) So hats off to that old man and his dog...and to the men in blue who make it a priority to keep our earth clean!

I'm looking forward to celebrating this day with my kids. (Unless it is still snowing and then forget it:))

Here is a list of ideas and activities I found on line. Go to this page and try a few yourself!

www.ecokidsonline.com/pub/eco_info/topics/environmental/earthday_events.cfm

John's Passion

...it's an F-27C. Johns brother has him hooked on flying airplanes. Don't ask me to explain it in any more detail then that. All I know is that we have a very big plane that takes up lots of space in our bedroom and John takes it everywhere we go. I wouldn't normally include something like this but when John looked at this blog he told me basically that I should make a GOOD post for once. :)) It is a video of his brother flying the plane. It is impressive I have to admit. Sorry girls.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Zoo Crew

On Saturday we decided to take advantage of the beautiful spring weather and make a trip to the zoo. We are so glad that we did. The animals were active and fun to watch. It was little Jessica's first real outing.

Abby loves getting as close to the peacocks as she can.

Sam got so tired but I didn't want him to fall asleep. In desperation I went and bought the kids an ice cream cone thinking that would help keep him awake. No luck. This is a picture I took after I noticed he kept dozing off...right into his ice cream.

Abby and a little boy she used to play with. We ran into him and his Dad while we were there. Those two kids held hands all morning. Uh oh!

Superstar!!!

Abby got a brand new pair of sunglasses this past weekend. They are sparkly pastel blue with a tiny Tinkerbell in the right corner of her eye. She loves wearing them around. They were meant for wearing in the van but she's been known to wear them in the tub with her as well:)) Today she came to me and said, "Mom...when I wear these I feel like a Superstar" I coldn't help but laugh out loud at that. (Maybe it had something to do with her undone hair and old play dress. To me...she looked like anything but)
Since then Abby has continued to refer to herself as a superstar. "Mom...your superstar needs a cuddle." "the superstar needs breakfast..." "Sam is bothering the Superstar." etc

I guess when she starts calling her bedroom her "dressing room" I'll know I'm in trouble.