Cam I Am

This past weekend, we adopted a new family member!

We adopted him from the Maple Ridge BC SPCA on Saturday.  He was a stray, so the name that the shelter gave him was Charlie.  We’d like to change his name, but the kids seem attached to his current name!

And that was my weekend!!

I haven’t written much recently, partially because of time, but mostly because I haven’t thought of anything to write about..

In the last month, my wife, kids and I and really gotten into geocaching.  With 13 finds now, we are enjoying the time out.  To me, it’s great to spend time out with the family exploring the area, and I get to play with an electronic toy..  It’s win-win!

We’ve booked our campsite for a camping trip this summer.  This year, we’ll be going up to Alice Lake near Squamish.  We have never really ventured up into Sea to Sky country, so it’ll be nice to get away!  Now, I just have to wait for July now..

That’s about it.. 

Last weekend, my wife and I took our kids on a mini-vacation.  Call it guilt or whatever you like, but we figured that if my wife and I could take a six day vacation with just ourselves, our kids deserved a little away time too.

With only having a couple days to go away, we decided to drive down to Seattle for the weekend.  It had been a few years since we had been there and we figured that we’d do the tourist thing for a couple days. 

Despite how close it is to Vancouver, I’ve been to Seattle twice and my wife once.  We haven’t done a lot of sightseeing there, so this time, we were really going to try. 

We stayed at the Springhill Suites by Marriott (I’ll leave our issues with them out of this!) which is in the downtown area.  After checking in, we had promised the kids that we would take them on a double decker bus tour.  My wife and I went on one in San Francisco back in March and found it interesting to see the city and some of the sights that we may want to check out.  But in Seattle, the 45 minute tour was lack-lustre.  Okay..  it was boring.  Their were a few interesting things, but I wasn’t “wowed” with Seattle.

Throughout the weekend, we briefly went to Pike Place Market, walked along the piers, took the kids to Woodland Park Zoo, and even went up the Space Needle.  The zoo was amazing as always and the Space Needle was expensive (as expected), but the rest of the city doesn’t seem to have a lot to offer.  And in the city where Starbucks started, try finding one open on a Sunday morning!   And one of our kids started getting a fever (and subsequently sick), what is with the drug store that was open, but with no children’s Tylenol.  YOU’RE A FREAKIN’ DRUG STORE!

All in all, the kids seemed to have fun, for the most part.  But Seattle left my wife and I with the same impression.

It’s just not a tourist-friendly place.

Recently, my family and I have started exploring the world of geocaching.  It all started with my wife talking to a friend who is an avid geocacher that asked if we ever did it.  My wife had never heard of it, but was interested.  She came home that night and asked me if I had heard of it.  I told her that I had, but never thought that she’d be interested in it.

We talked about it, did a little research about it, and talked to our kids.  With the kids, it was an easy sell. “Do you guys want to go treasure hunting?”  My three girls were excited about the idea of little treasures hidden all around the world..

So, we’ve gone a few times.  So far, in the last 3 weeks, we’ve found two caches in Maple Ridge, and two in Penticton, and enjoy spending some family time together, outside, and looking for treasure.  We plan to keep going, especially with the nice weather finally surfacing. 

It’s nice to find an inexpensive, fun activity that the whole family can enjoy; and I still get to play with an electronic toy!

After a long battle with WorkSafeBC/WCB, I have finally had my claim closed and received my lump sum payment for the payments I should have been receiving while I was off work..

So..  it’s time for a vacation! 

Tomorrow, my wife and I leave for a 6-day trip to San Francisco.  We booked our flight and hotel about a month ago, and have been working out our trip details..  And one of the great parts is that we are going to be leaving the kids with my mother-in-law! 

We’ll be checking out Alcatraz, Coit Tower, Lambard St, and Fisherman’s Wharf!  We booked a wine tour in the Napa Valley and even will be visiting the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose.

The last 3+ years have been hard for my wife and I..  So, we feel it’s well deserved! 

See you later!

Well, here it is..   the end of September..

The last couple of months have really gone by fast.  Tomorrow is my last day working in Abbotsford, then it’s back to Vancouver.  I’ve got mixed feelings about returning to my usual routine at VTOC..  I’ve enjoyed working out in the valley (not to mention the easier commute and the cheaper gas!)..  But all good things must come to an end..

A couple weeks ago, I hosted a “thank-you” BBQ for all our friends that helped us out over the last year or so..  I’m glad to say that everyone made it, and we all had a good time.   We made chicken and steak shish-kabobs, grilled salmon, and grilled caesar salad.

Grilled caesar salad?  Yup..  When I throw a BBQ, I throw everything on the grill..  even the lettuce for the salad! 

The Thanksgiving weekend is coming up in a couple weeks, and we’ll be making our annual trip up to the in-laws place for the weekend.   It’ll be nice to go away for a weekend with the kids and my wife, especially since we didn’t get a chance to this past summer.. 

That’s about all!  Well..  aside from the Sasquatch Research that is!   On my way home from work today, I passed by a green jeep in Mission, with a sign on the side that simply read “Sasquatch Research” and a local phone number..  I found this amusing (which I’m sure that Mark is the only other person who will also see the humour in me pointing it out!).  Unfortunately, I wasn’t quick enough with the camera to get a shot of it..  Oh well..  I’ll be on the lookout for it again..    It’s not as amusing as “Ho-mart”, but still funny.. 

…that keeps on calling me.
Down the road, that’s where I’ll always be.
Every stop I make, I make a new friend,
Can’t stay for long, just turn around and I’m gone again.

Maybe tomorrow, I’ll want to settle down,
Until tomorrow, I’ll just keep moving on.

Back in the early 80’s, I remember watching “The Littlest Hobo” on TV.  I would look forward to it every week, wondering what Hobo would do.  It was one of those shows that my brothers and I loved watching.

A few months ago, I was watching an episode of Corner Gas where Hank thinks that Hobo came to town (yes, apparently he beleived that a 30-year old dog could exist!).  After watching this episode, I did a search on the channel guide and found the “The Littlest Hobo” is still on TV.   That’s right!  If you are up at 3:30AM (PDT) on Monday mornings, it’s on CTV-Ontario!

I decided to start recording the episodes on the PVR for my kids to watch..

And they love it!   They ask to watch the same episode over and over all week until there is a “new” one to watch.  

I’m glad that I can share something with my kids that I enjoyed as a child myself..  

Hell..  I still like watching it now…

I’ve been unusually quiet here recently..

And not because I’ve had nothing to say.  I’ve just been..  quiet..

This past weekend, I took the girls up to the Okanagan to see grandma and papa..  We went to the beach, visited a couple friends, and of course, took the required trip to Tickleberry’s in Okanagan Falls.  It was nice to get away!   Even though I’ve been off for such a long time, it was nice to get away with the kids. 

Around the house, I’ve been painted our living room, organizing a few things, and just trying to keep busy. 

Yesterday, I went to see my doctor for a follow-up appointment from my surgery.  I asked him if I could go back to work..  and after a few questions, he said that I can, starting the 28th..     I’m going back for the first 2 weeks for just three days a week, but then full time.  I’ll be doing full duties from the start!

WOOHOO!

The last couple of weeks have been going well for me..

I’ve been feeling pretty good.  The physio sessions that I’ve been going to seem to be helping me improve on my flexibility.  I am very impressed with how much better I feel than before the surgery. With any luck, I’m hoping that I will return to work by the end of the month. 

My friends Mark and Christie and their two kids continued on with their RV trip, but not before having dinner at out place one evening.  It’s always nice to catch up with old friends, and this was no exception!  Mark and I went out for a little while so that I could show him around Maple Ridge, and we entertained the idea of checking out the campground that is directly across the river from our place (in Langley), but we didn’t like the wait for the Albion Ferry.  It seems that they may take another RV trip across the country again. 

Canada Day was low key..  All the kids got sick with the flu, but I did manage to go to a very small party at my friend Syd’s place.  BBQ salmon and “red and white” cake..  A very good dinner, and a really nice evening.  Since I am not working right now, getting out and having adult conversation is nice, and I’ll take it when I can get it!

That’s about it.   Just a bunch of little things to say; none of them worth a post of their own!  The kids are over their flu, but my wife has it now.  I haven’t caught it..  yet..

The last few days have been eventful!

First, Colleen went on a business trip to Chicago.  She had a great time!  She went to the House of Blues (twice!), a White Sox Game, and countless other attractions!  I got to see a good portion of her trip in the 276  pictures that she took! 

On Monday, my friends Mark and Christie finally arrived in town on their 30 day cross-country RV trip.  They’ll be staying in Vancouver for 6-7 days before going down through the states, so it will be a short visit with them.  We haven’t seen Mark since my wedding, but we talk frequently.  (Gotta love text messaging!).  We went to visit them at the campground that they are staying at in North Vancouver and had dinner and took the kids for a swim.  We’re planning to see them a couple times before they move on!

Yesterday I had my first follow-up appointment, since my surgery, with the neurosurgeon.  He tested my range of motion, checked the scar from the incision, and then said that I seemed to be healing well.  I asked him a few questions about some discomfort that I’ve felt in my back and leg and was relieved to hear that it is very normal to have that.

Today I started physio.  Just starting off with stretches and a some basic core muscle exercises, but I’m hoping to progress quickly..   Ideally, I should be able to return to work within 4-6 weeks! 

That’s about all for now..