July 17, 2014

Just finished updating my blog - haven't done that for an unconscionably long time! Am currently recovering from a vicious little virus that laid me low - in bed even - for four days!  I'm still taking it easy, sore throat, coughing, lack of energy - BLAH!!

July 1, 2014

The different faces of Kara Wagland, as she reports on Wimbledon for TSN. Let's hope the anchor position becomes permanent some day soon - she's sooo good at it!

June 25, 2014

Oved's Grade 8 Graduation!!  I can't believe he is actually going to be in high school in September! His course choices have been a source of some controversy between me and his mother on one side, his teachers on the other. So far, Sherry and I are winning . . .
Sherry, Gloria and I gave Oved a laptop as a grad gift.Should be useful for Grade 9. . .

Henry Munro Middle School

The Principal of the school hugging Oved. Note - he's the only kid in the entire school that she hugged. Tells you a bit about Oved.

Oved and his two closest friend, Aden and Parker

Oved, Mom, and sister

OMG - I have shrunk!!!

The sibs

After grad, we all went out for dinner at - you guessed it - a Chinese buffet!  Careth came, too

Parker and his brother and mom

Oved and Parker

Of course Gabby was there!

June 21st, 2014

Sherry, Oved, Gabby and I went to Little Ray's Reptile House. This something I've wanted to do for ages - Little Ray's comes to the science classe at Woodroffe High School every year, at Issy Bragg's invitation - but I've never gotten to see them - and I got a Groupon coupon, so we went!  It was great fun -holding a tarantula, observing a snake eat a mouse, petting a baby alligator, getting up close and personal with a lynx - it was soo much fun!

Monkeys at the front of the house

Who knew frogs could be so interesting?  Especially the catching insects part!

This boa was so cool

Starting to swallow and digest a mouse. They freeze the mice, then warm up their heads so that the snake will think they're alive. First the snake constricts quickly around the mouse, thinking that it's killing its prey - then it finds the head amongst its coils and starts to swallow.  This snake, however, couldn't find the head once it had "killed" the mouse - the the worker gave him another one, right in the mouth. Afterwards, she fished the first mouse out of its coils and put it back in a jar for later . . . 

Oved feeding the turtle - he would loooove Humphrey and his family!

Actual American Bald Eagles!  

Oved and I held the tarantula - Sherry and Gabby sat behind us and leaned backwards . . .

Another cool snake

We touched that one, too

What a cutie!  Not as bad as it looks - this lynx was someone's pet, but they got rid of him as soon as he started to grow. No zoo would take him and he was tamed, so Ray's Reptiles rescued him from oblivion.He used to have the run of the place, just like a kitten, but as he got bigger, his playfulness got dangerous - or at least scary to little kids - so they have him in a cage now, although he's obviously well loved!

June 13, 2014

Gabby's music concert!  She goes to La Phare, which is one of our French Immersion elementary schools.  For this concert, she sang "Amazing Grace" and I was truly amazed at her voice:  at 9 years of age, she's not polished or anything, but she really has the raw material for a good singing voice!  Lots of natural volume, excellent pitch, good enunciation - she wants to take voice lessons in the future, and I can see her going far in the vocal world!

June 7, 2014

I took Sherry and the kids to Waupoos Farm for their weekly open house and potluc dinner - we stayed in a cabin for a week last summer and plan to do that again in August.Waupoos is run by the Roman Catholic Church and provides holidays for low-income families at a very low cost.  We had a great time - renewed some old acquaintances from last year, swam in the pool, at bbq and potluck fare.

Gabby, Sherry, Oved in front of the rec hall

And all of us!

June 6, 2014

Our - what is becoming annual - combined birthday dinner. Sherry and her kids and my friend Careth and I go out to a Chinese buffet for dinner and presents, celebrating Careth's bd in January, Sherry's bd in March, and my bd in April. Since I'm in Texas for all of our  bds, we celebrate when I'm in Ottawa.  Always overwhelming, as Sherry and the kids always give me way, way too many gifts!

Oved, me, Gabby

Careth, Oved, Sherry

Careth standing, Oved, me, Gabby

Sherry and I

One of Sherry's "friends" has told her that our friendship is unhealthy and that we have no boundaries - so this is a great source of entertainment for us!

Always the clown - and we wonder where Oved gets it?

The tissue paper conserver . . .  there's one in every crowd!

June 5th, 2014

Oved's band concert - a good time was had by all.  Oved plays the clarinet, and is fairly short compared to the people around him - and the music stand right in front of his face.  The little rascal (can't use the word I'd like to use in a public blog . . . ) ran off right after the concert, so I have no posed pics, just the ones I snuck.

Gabby and Sherry - we got there early, as you can see by the empty chairs

You can just see Oved's bespectacled face in the middle of the picture

Oved and his best friend Parker

Gabby & Sherry