memories of a sparkly green motorcycle helmet.

This morning I found out that my aunt and uncle's home in Boulder, Colorado is in the path of an out of control forest fire. They have been put on evacuation notice, and at this point, all anyone can do is pray the wind blows in their favour and the water bombers do their job. Besides praying for their safety, I am also praying that their wonderful home is spared. It is a place that I have always loved. Mostly for the people under its roof, but also for the times I spent there as a child.

When I was quite young, my Aunt Lynn's parents, Joe and Cecile lived there. My mom tells me that they built this home to live in for the rest of their lives. It was their dream home. I remember laying on their family room couch, my new head gear causing me much pain. Cecile fed me frozen m & m's to help my mouth feel better. I don't know if it worked, but I sure liked the m & m's.

The house is situated on a very steep hill, and when the infamous Colorado winds are blowing, it is hard to open and close  car doors. In quiet moments, you can look out the window and find at least one deer staring back at you. Back in the day, the garage was (and I imagine still is) filled with motorcycle parts and artist supplies and all sorts of fabulous things little kids have no business getting their mitts on. The ceilings are vaulted high with wood beams, and the windows stretch across every wall making it feel as if one was a part of the outside, while still being sheltered.

One of my favourite memories is my uncle Gunner taking me and my cousin Dana on a motorcycle ride. Dana had a sparkly red helmet, and the spare kid helmet was sparkly green. In recollection, he had no business putting two little girls on his motorcycle. But damn was it ever fun. My uncle Gunner also had a cockatoo named Lester, who was allowed to roam free. Lester, a female (this was discovered after she was named), was in love with my uncle Gunner. While he may have always had the soul of a grumpy old man, he is also an artist and has a dark, Danish sense of humour, so who could blame her? She would stalk anyone and everyone and pretend to play nice with my aunt Lynn so she could get close enough to bite her. When I heard Lester had passed, I shed no tears.

I always imagined that I would return to Boulder as an adult to visit my aunt and uncle and sit in their living room and enjoy a glass of wine (without the company of Lester). One of my favourite friends from college lives there as well and has a daughter Cammie's age. It has always been my intention to return, and I'm annoyed with myself that I have waited this long to make my way back. One of my uncle's etchings of a viking ship hangs in the entryway of my home. I think of him every time I see it, today especially.

visit from cousin zevi.

My brother David and his family are moving to Washington state at the end of this week. Since it will probably be a while before we get to see them again, and because Zevi and Cameron got along like a house afire the last time they visited, David brought Zevi up for one last visit.  It was awesome.  My kids totally ignored their cousin.  They were complete jerks.  Zevi was all "Hey cuz! What's up?! Long time no see - you're looking great! How's the fam?".  They turned their backs on him and played on the swings.  Oh yeah, and Cam decided to try on her new snow pants from Grandma.

They haven't played in their house in weeks, and have never tolerated being in there together.  Add cousin Zevi to the mix, and kablam! - they are best buds and it's Carefoot Crew United 4EVAH! Poor Zevi.  It really did take them a while to warm up to him.

Zevi finally gave up on my his mean ol' cousins and went off to play by himself (proud moment for his Aunt Katrina).  

Cam decided that since he was gone she could open up the windows and play peek-a-boo with me.  I suggested that she come out and play with Zevi and she promptly retreated into the house, slamming the shutters on me. 

Zevi tested out the back nine and got some nice momentum running down the slope from the fence to the swings.  Max and Cam had recommenced play on the swings and were still less than welcoming to their cousin.

Zevi was all "Fine, be like that, I'm going to test out all of your awesome equipment.  I don't need you anyway".  I cheered him on - to heck with my kids! 

I got Zevi to come and get his picture taken with me.  And yeah, I know I look like hell (result of partying hard all weekend at Cathy and Gordon's wedding).  

Cameron decided that she wasn't down with sharing her mommy with her cousin Zevi and she better get in on the action.  Score one for mommy!

Cam and Zevi quickly rekindled their deep bond and hopped into the sandbox together.  When I tried to interject they looked at me suspiciously (adults are not to be trusted).  

I finally managed to coax a smile out of them.  Turns out I'm not so bad after all.

Later on, the fellas watched the Cowboys-Texans game.  It became clear that Coach Phillips would live to see another game. 

Sadly, David and Zevi had to hit to road and head on home to get ready for the big move. David left Zevi's potty in our front hall to remember them by. I have a feeling Zevi will miss that potty...but it sure was a thoughtful parting gift!

family is where it's at.

I was chatting with a friend this weekend, my sister-in-law Haschmo, and she told me she doesn't know how Scott and I do it.  I responded that "we do what we have to do and we take each day as it comes".  In Scott and my 12 years together, we have dealt with many ups and many downs.  The downs have taught us much more than the ups.

Money really isn't everything.

A bigger house only means you have more room to accumulate "stuff".

Treasure the happy times.

The only thing of value we have is our time.

Even on the toughest days there are those who have it tougher.

Every morning you wake up with your health, be thankful.

When it's crunch time, you've got your family.  Family is where it's at.  Your family will be your rock and you'll be theirs.

Photo Essay: Cam's 1st Restaurant Experience.

As part of Familypalooza 2010, Grandma and Grandad hit town for a long weekend to see their grand kids (I think Scott and I are merely part of the deal at this point - we all know who are the favs here). On Saturday, while Max was in IBI therapy, Grandma, Grandad, Cam and I headed out to Chapters to do a little book shopping. Cam did her very best "little old lady in Florida" impression: Cam quickly discovered that Chapters not only sells books, but they also sell dolls! In this photo she is strategizing how to get Grandma to buy her ALL of the dollies in the store:She settled on the one with bright pink hair (to match my fleece zip-up top seen here). We had worked up an appetite with all that shopping so we decided it was time for lunch:The closest restaurant was Milestones which has been hit and miss in the past. In fairness, they do a pretty decent job on lunch (not so busy, good menu). Cam suddenly realized that Grandma was taking all sorts of pictures of her and she shook her finger, as if to say, "Grandma! No pictures at the table! It's rude, and I'm trying to colour!":
Grandma reminded Cam that she had just bought her a new dolly, (which we named "Miss Pink" a la Reservoir Dogs) and that she would take as many pictures as her heart desired. Fair enough:
When Cam's lunch came, she tried a french fry, but it had no ketchup. Bleh. Nothin' doin':
As you can see from Cam's face, the ketchup issue was quickly rectified, and Miss Pink got in on the lunch time action, which Cam thought was pretty silly:
Miss Pink got thirsty, so she had a sample of Cam's milk. Cam was kind of over it at this point:
This was my first experience eating in a restaurant with one of my kids since we took Max to Key West when he was just under 1 year old. Cam is a restaurant superstar, and I really enjoyed doing this with her and Grandma and Grandad. Next time I'll remember to bring her a bottle though, because around the time we were wrapping things up (and her nap time), she grew another head and they started spinning around in opposite directions. Kidding, but she did get a bit cranky, so we took a little walk while Grandma and Grandad got the cheque. Aces-Ten kiddo, Aces-Ten.

More Family Than You Can Shake a Stick At.

My little bro Dan is graduating from Queen's on Wednesday, so there was a little event for him in Toronto to celebrate his accomplishment. There were family members I've never met before, some of Dan's friends, some of my big brother David's friends, and of course, family I'm very familiar with. (If I'd known David was allowed to invite his friends for free beer I totally would have invited some of my friends - who by the way are much better looking than David's friends.)

Anyway...the minute we got to the pub I hoisted Cameron into Dan's arms so I could take a picture of them. He doesn't really know how to hold a kid, and Cameron (the squirmiest girl ever didn't help matters):Then I jumped in the frame, and whoever took this picture was not kind enough to tell me I was doing my best Miss Piggy impression, so, uh, thanks for that. Also, I think Dan and I must get our eyebrows waxed at the same place:
Blake, my favourite cousin (because he lent me money while I was in University) was there with his super cute kids - in this picture, Lauren and Suzanne (and Aunt Haschmo):
And last but not least, the event organizer, my dad Michael (the one who raised me and taught me how to tear shit up, install stuff, nail things down, and know when to call in an expert to fix what you messed up):
Since the party was smack-dab in the middle of Cam's nap she passed out on the way home. We got stuck in traffic for a bit so I snapped this pic of her catching zzz's in her H&M sunglasses. Tomorrow my mom hits town - I know, right? More family than you can shake a stick at!

The Good, The Bad, and The Family.

My brother David, his lovely wife Haschmo, and my nephew Zevi are in Toronto this weekend, and as you can see, Cameron was very excited to see them:She even let me take a picture with her Uncle David (action shot): Zevi wasted no time at all and quickly planted himself in the sandbox. He filled my watering can with sand. Super helpful:Cam really liked playing with Zevi, as he's a lot nicer to her than Max is (her bro is going through a bit of a meany stage lately):Max stuck to the sidelines, but definitely enjoyed the fact that everyone was outside:I tried to talk the kids into helping me with my big summer gardening project, but nothing doing, so I had to repot these flower baskets all by myself!: This would have been the perfect shot if only Cam would have looked at the camera...she seems to have discovered that not cooperating with my picture taking efforts is a lot of fun:
Max started scooting around the backyard on his butt (itchy I guess?) so I got him to play an oldy by goody, "duck duck goose". Worked like a charm and I got one of my best photos of the day as a result:Max and I are flying solo tonight as Scott and Cam have headed over to Nana & Bumpa's for a night off from the crazy house. Tomorrow - more family - A LOT MORE family. Oy.

Father's Day: Photo Essay.

Father's Day started out early with waffles and bacon for breakfast for Max and his Grandad. Max also had an apple, blue berries, 2 Nutrigrain bars, 2 pieces of peanut butter toast and milk. The kid can eat, that's for sure. If you're wondering where Scott is, he was still asleep at this point (sleeping in was part of his Father's Day present). Cameron got caught feeding herself a bottle (I'm laughing at her because she has always pretended that she didn't know how, but her daycare teachers told me otherwise).

We were heading out to Nana and Bumpa's for dinner, and as usual, taking a long time to get ourselves together. Max was ready to rock and roll, but did a pretty good job of keeping his cool.
Once we got to Nana and Bumpa's, Max got his exercise by doing laps around the backyard. Man that kid can run.

Scott was on Max-watching duty. He somehow managed to also look very relaxed and handsome while doing it. Ladies, it's hard to find handy and handsome - Scott can't hammer a nail to save his soul, but he sure looks good.

I got Cameron in her bathing suit, thinking we'd get her in the pool for a dip. Max hates the pool (something we are hoping to work on this summer), but I had high hopes for Cameron.

Nana put Cameron in her floaty tub and got her used to the pool (which felt like bath water) by pushing her around for a bit and singing to her.

Cameron looks a little skeptical about the whole thing. Little does she know she is going to get in that water, whether she likes it or not!

Grandad got in to cheer Cameron on, blowing bubbles and being the big kid that he is. She seemed to get a kick out of it. I think he was just looking for a reason to get back in the pool!

Bumpa also got in, but we didn't catch him on film. He did have a great afternoon though and enjoyed having everyone over on such a beautiful day.

Grandma was the photographer today, so we didn't get nearly enough pictures of her, but here is one of her and the Fickle Feline herself. All we are missing is Cameron for a 3 generation shot!

Scott cooked up steaks for dinner. He can be seen here consulting with Bumpa about...who knows what? He takes his steak prep very seriously.

Bumpa, Scott, and Grandad enjoying some "beverages" and catching some rays while the steaks are grilling.

While Scott was hard at work, I made a salad. That plate of veggies is for Max, who has turned into a veggie lover.

Cameron helped me get the salad dressing out of the refrigerator. I think she was also looking for her bottle, which was nowhere to be found (much to her chagrin).

In case you needed photographic evidence that Max eats veggies. He finished every last one on his plate (and that doesn't include all the ones he scarfed while I was making the salad).

Not only was it Father's Day, but it was also Grandad's Birthday! So, of course we had to have ice cream cake.

After dinner, Max was pooped, we decided to head home before he and Cameron expired.

But, we were a little late, and as you can see, Max passed out in the car. A sign of a good time had by all for sure.