Happy first birthday Jeanne!
All dressed up for her special day!
A phone...
a mirror for in the car...
and a baby from Grandma!
And now for the cake!
Yummm!
All gone!
Eatin' squid and Sarah and Tyler's
Chillin' with Uncle Tyler
Sittin' in the big chair with Mummy on Centre Island
Hangin' out with Uncle Brian at the pub - what a great day!
Sittin' in Grandma's back yard
I don't know about this, Aunty Sarah
Yumm, corn on the cob!
Helping Daddy on the computer.
Being a baby is just exhausting!
Happy!
Out on the front lawn.
Block-head.
Hangin' out with Grandma Marie.
Who can that little girl be on the floor?
I think I remember her somewhere before.
Two round eyes and a little snub nose,
Two dimpled cheeks so fat and so red,
And a big paper cap on the top of her head;
Two curly earls like shells on each side,
A round little chin and mouth open wide;
Four little teeth just able to bite,
Two rosy lips one could kiss day and night;
Two sturdy legs just beginning to walk,
A sweet saucy tongue just beginning to talk.
Oh! who could she be? I wish I could tell;
She looks as though she knew me very well.
No greater rascal you’ll find anywhere.
Come, kiss me, my baby, and let me kiss you,
That’s the best thing for a baby to do.
Adapted from "Our Baby-Boy," in Happy Child Life: In Pictures, by Mrs Charles Heaton (1875).
I found this great book, and many other old children's books, in the Internet Archive's Children's Library: and incredible resource.
From Engrish.com, one of my favourite websites
Hey, I'm not laundry!
"There's a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza..." 
"Cha cha cha!" at Parent 'n Tot
"What a cute little boy you have!" (I get this all the time)
If she looks crazy here, you should have seen it before I removed the red eye
"No, Mommy, I don't know how I got under here either"
My beach bum is often a little smelly
I promised Sarah some pics of the magnolia tree out in front of the building. I am so going to miss this tree; it's beautiful in bloom or in leaf, and it smells so lovely right now.
More magnolia blossoms. The weather here in Halifax has been just beautiful this past week or so.
Pure 'cattitude' (he's going to miss the tree too)
Finally, here's Wendy doing her best meerkat impression, sitting up on her hind legs. I just wish the pics showed it more clearly. She doesn't just pop up like this for a second, she'll hold this pose for long periods of time while she takes a look around or washes her face. She'll even do it up on the arm of the couch, never losing her balance. She's done it ever since we got her at the humane society in Toronto years ago and it never ceases to amaze and impress me.
Wendy has been very sick lately, so please keep her in your hearts. She's got an overactive thyroid which is causing her to lose a lot of weight (though the medication has her stabilized at the moment), plus she's got a tumour in her mouth which is growing (though slowly, thankfully). They can't operate because of her frailty. She's 14 years old, thereabouts , which is aprox. 72 years old, and though she's going through some rough times she's still very happy and active - hopefully she'll keep on like that for a long time yet.By Pete Vere
SooToday.com
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Navy tells its story on
Visit the ship starting today
By John Burman
The Hamilton Spectator
(May 4, 2007)
It's about who sailors are, what they do and what they do it with.
By the time HMCS Halifax glided through the ship canal and beneath the Burlington Bay Skyway into Hamilton, everyone aboard had a good idea what she and her people are capable of.
An action-packed cruise from
The Great Lakes tour is a chance for the navy to connect with the majority of Canadians who never get to see much of ships or sailors because they are primarily based in Halifax and Esquimalt, says Rear Admiral Tyrone Pile, Canada's chief of military personnel, who was aboard for the trip.
"Its about visibility," says Pile, adding it is also a chance to "tell the navy's story" and promote the life and careers for recruiting.
Commander Scott Bishop,
For Bishop, the trip to
"Haida is to
"It is a national treasure."
Along the way, some 120 guests on this leg of the navy's
The trip into
Miller, 27, grew up in
"The opportunities for travel, responsibility and education have been unbelievable," he says.
Paul Suchy, 16, Petty Officer Second Class with 31 "Lion" Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps in Hamilton, is interested in what Miller -- a "Lion" veteran himself -- says.
Suchy and Leading Cadet Michael Sweika, 16, are both interested in attending RMC, getting an education and serving in the navy.
But education takes a back seat to plain old fun when
"This is the best part, totally awesome," Suchy yells above the shrieks of the happy cadets, a troop of Royal Canadian Navy League cadets from
"We want to get the message out to the public," said Commodore Roger MacIsaac, the director of general recruiting and military careers. "Tell them what it's all about, what it has to offer and what the lifestyle is like." Offering more than a hundred different jobs and a subsidized education program, the military can be a great opportunity to start a career, he said. As an example, he cited the Navy, which has highly advanced, state-of-the-art technology that is an added bonus to those who are looking to work in a high-tech environment. Since many of the jobs within the military are highly specialized, young and trainable recruits are vital to sustain a proper force. "We can't just put out an advertisement for, say, a tank driver," Cmdre MacIsaac said with a chuckle. "We have to grow our own." But in addition to the specialized training that can take years, the military is also facing similar recruiting challenges to many big corporations: a baby boomer generation that is set to retire and a shortage of technically-skilled workers in Canada. To combat the shrinking workforce, the military has stepped up its recruitment drive with a new national advertising campaign and a revamped website (www.forces.ca) that includes a "cool stuff" category and shows video footage to help dispel some of the myths surrounding military careers. One of the biggest misconceptions, says Cmdre MacIsaac, is that a career in the military has to last a lifetime. "We have many different options available," he said, adding that a lot of people who join the Reserves have careers outside of the military. "Most likely, we have an option that will suit you." And since many of the skills taught in the military -- ethics, leadership, management, problem-solving -- are easily transferable, those who choose to leave will be able to find jobs in other places, he said. For Captain Holly-Anne Brown, who joined the military after graduating from university, a career with the military has meant the ability to experiment with different jobs. After 17 years in the Canadian Forces, Cpt. Brown has changed careers three times. She served in the artillery for five years, then switched to a training position and is now happily working as a public affairs officer. "It has been a fantastic experience," she said. "If I can do this, anyone can."
Master Seaman Bailey keeping lookout as the Halifax approaches St John's, Newfoundland
Plowing through the waves during one of February's massive stormsA Canadian naval frigate that enforced United Nations sanctions off the coast of Yugoslavia and hunted for Al-Qa'ida operatives in the Persian Gulf after 9/11 is in Montreal on a public relations offensive this weekend.
Just under 11/2 football fields long, with an engine large enough to power a city of 5,000, and armed with Sea Sparrow missiles, torpedoes and .50-calibre heavy machine guns, HMCS Halifax will be open to the public this weekend in the Old Port.
Its 209 crew members, 19 of them women, will be on hand to greet visitors - if they're not on shore leave enjoying Montreal.
With most Canadian naval bases located abroad, it's difficult for most Canadians to see what the navy does, Bishop said.
"This ship can do up to 30 knots (about 55 kilometres an hour), but the fuel mileage is lousy," he deadpanned.
The first of 12 such helicopter-carrying frigates built in Canada in the 1990s, the Halifax is known as the workhorse of the Canadian navy, a multi-role patrol frigate equipped with anti-submarine technology as well as defence against surface and air threats.
In addition to combat, training and diplomacy, the ship is used to patrol Canadian waters and enforce fishing zones.
The Montreal stop is the first of several for HMCS Halifax along the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes over the next month. The visit here has been highly anticipated by crew members eager to take in the city, and some eager to come home.
Ordinary Seaman Alexandre Lebrun, 27, of Laval's Ste. Dorothee district enlisted about two years ago to see a bit more of the world. Despite the fact he discovered on his first naval voyage that he gets seasick easily - "The first few days of every trip are bad" - he is loving the life of cramped quarters and high seas.
"Before this, I hadn't left Quebec," he said. "Now, I've seen a lot of Canada, and I'll see the world."
Rough waters shouldn't be a problem this weekend. If they are, the Halifax is known to withstand seas in excess of 10 metres high, and is designed to right itself if it capsizes - or at least remain afloat if it doesn't.
HMCS Halifax is docked at Alexandra Pier in the heart of the Old Port. Visiting hours are 1 to 4 p.m. today, tomorrow and Monday.
The sailor's memorial, downtown Halifax
Jeanne and I, hanging out in Friday's beautiful weather, down on the waterfront
Look: teeth!
Jeanne in her Easter bonnet
Yes, this is from the Easter weekend, not Christmas.
Pretty dress. Oh, and in case you didn't hear, Jeanne got her first two teeth over the Easter weekend.
Jeanne is so obsessed with playing with the TV remote (I guess it's because she sees us 'playing' with it all the time), that we took the batteries out of an old one we weren't using and gave it to her. I think she's a little disappointed that it doesn't actually do anything.
Jeanne isn't actually crawling yet, but somehow managed to get under this chair the other day, all by herself.
