In a mad rush before leaving SF for a two week sprint through Killarney and Ontario - i promised my daughter that her video would be up before she was done summer camp, so with ten days to spare:
arrrgh blocked due to music ....
Prince seems to protect his stuff which is fine (although I had given him credit) ... oh well, take two. The White Stripes Edit ....
It makes some of the cuts a little rougher than I would like but ... i likely wasn't going to get the Oscar nod anyway.
Thursday, April 09, 2015
So I used my recent flight home from New Orleans to get some footage from Ollie's ninth birthday together. We celebrated in style on the big day by heading down to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk to hang out with Landon, Craig, & Gretchen - always an amazing time.
We then had some amigos over for a sleepover which was highlighted with Air Hockey Tournaments, Star Wars viewing ... and of course MineCraft. We had a breakfast piñata before sending everyone on their way. It was a ton of fun!
Here's what I got:
And we can't forget the annual trip down memory lane:
Just learned the term: YanksGiving, and I have to admit I really like it. We used the holiday this year to travel up to British Columbia. There Ian has a new job, Ian, Liz, Anna, & Benjamin also have a new home .... oh yeah and they've multiplied - we got to meet Elsie, it was absolutely love at first site. As usual I haven't had any time to edit these, but here are some photos from the trip:
Thank you Liz, Ian, Anna, Benjamin, and Elsie for letting us invade your space and showing us an amazingly wonderful time and place.
Friday, November 14, 2014
This was our 8th annual pumpkin cutting party ... and it was a blast! There was a time when I had the time to edit these images down into something a little more polished .... this is not that time. Enjoy:
Thanks for those of you who made it, and if you couldn't - we hope to get you on the next trip around the sun.
Interestingly factoid (to me anyway): this was the 6th different location for this fiesta - Anacaona, Marina Vallarta, el Centro, Skylark, Piper Park, and now the cabin. The spot was a hit and we hope to be back there again!
so there is nothing quite like going a full six months without posting anything and then posting twice or actually kind of three times in a week ... but as we head to Canada for our annual tour I knew if i didn't get the birthday videos done - there would be no birthday videos. Ollie and Ella spend many a weekend morning watching their old videos and I just don't want to give that up ... not yet.
So it was Karli's that was the big one this year (if you missed it go here), but the rest of us celebrated another year around the sun as well:
Ollie turned eight, he continues to be a voracious reader who loves Lego, swimming, biking, and Pokemon. We took some of his amigos to see the Lego Movie when it opened. Of course, we aren't really the type to shy away from a reason to celebrate - and the family hit the bowling alley on the sixteenth and our man's celebration(s) lasted throughout our trip to Mexico.
Ella somehow is already six. Having her birthday over SpringBreak meant a family trip to SixFlags which has entered a new chapter with our kids able to ride the BigTime rides. She like many other Kinder students can sing every word to Frozen and did so as she hosted her very own sleepover!
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Ok, I'd start out apologizing for being so far behind, but even that is getting old.
I am hoping to get some birthday videos edited down in these first days of summer. The second (but first edited) was a big one for Karli, one that took us to Mexico to reconnect with amigos from here, there, and everywhere.
To say it was special would be an understatement. With great thanks to wonderful friends and especially hosts at Davanna Yoga, at Litibu, and culminating in an incredible night at Real del Mar (catered by arguably the best street tacos in Vallarta). It was a night that was incredibly fun, and a wonderful way to celebrate the most amazing person ever.
all this fun was had over reading week in February of 2014, we all love & miss Mexico very much and are very thankful for the wonderful time we had in such an amazing place.
Happy Birthday Karli
Sunday, December 22, 2013
All Karli wanted for Christmas was some of our summer pictures cleaned up and shared ... shows pretty clearly how on top of keeping up to date I have been.
Oh well, I am hoping 2014 will be a year with a little less stress and that I have the time to reflect and share stuff a little more regularly.
Well here it is, Summer 2013 - just in time for 2014.
A great deal of the summer was spent exploring my new zip code,kitesurfing, camping, hiking, and just enjoying the space. People have been very welcoming to us here in California and we continue to have more to be thankful for then we are deserved. If you're the kind of person who gets a little twitchy when the wind hits twelve knots - you can watch this video (which I had nothing to do with) of a summer and the choice spots in, on, and around the Bay.
As for the kids, I'm workin on them:
the kids enjoying America's Cup race @ Crissy Field
Ollie's First Windsurf Lesson @ Sherman
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Take me out to the ball game...
Going to a Giants game is an amazing experience from Marin ... especially your first time. Ella and Ollie took the boat into the game, watched the middle school choir sing the anthem, then enjoyed all there was to enjoy while the hometown team beat up on the visitors - an amazing time. Can't wait for the next one!
i guess i can't easily pop in a slideshow here anymore?? so for that click:
We continue to enjoy and choose our own adventure in la vida americana...
Friday, April 26, 2013
Life continues to zip by without relent, times are very good - and very busy as well.
We've recently celebrated Ella's fifth with a trip to Cabo, a visit from Granny and Boppy, and more laughs then could be fairly ours, but don't take my word for it:
So, in the event we haven't updated you ... we live in California these days, and have enjoyed some truly amazing times, Northern California is filled with countless wonders - natural, human, and manmade - for us to explore. We're enjoying our new playground.
It sure has done a good job at keeping us busy - as evidenced by the complete lack of information I have shared here. Last Saturday we did sit in bed and watch videos of Ollie's previous birthdays; to celebrate our ... gulp ... seven year old - and celebrate we did.
We celebrated with his amigos at the bowling alley, then with Aba & Karl over Mexican food, before heading south to celebrate with Craig, Gretchen, & Landon around Santa Cruz and its boardwalk before wandering through the incredible beauty that surrounds the infamous highway one, enjoy:
Thanks to everyone who came to one of the celebrations, and to those that celebrated with us from afar, and of course to Craig, Gretchen & Landon for such a fun time in Santa Cruz - we continue to be very blessed with amazing friends the world over.
the pile of footage in the "to do" pile - is incredibly large ... and growing - but know we are having fun and we hope you are too. Here's the dynamic duo exploring the bunkers around the Marin headlands just north of the GoldenGate:
2.9.2013
Monday, November 05, 2012
And now for the extended Halloween video - which still isn't great ... but life's a little busy!
Ok so this is very close to a re-post but I really wasn't happy with the video from last week and never did actually share it out, so I added some more images of Halloween fun and am posting it here. First though these shots are from a fun little lesson that Karli and i led with Ollie's class in California learning about Dia de los Muertos from his class in Puerto Vallarta. It was a fun day and getting the class together was a great experience on both ends that we hope to continue a couple more times this year. Here are some shots:
We have really been enjoying the change of seasons for the first time in a very long time and being treated to a successful pennant run by los gigantes was an absolute blast.
Monday, October 22, 2012
So the world has turned and shaken our family pretty well since my last post. As the dust settles (a little) we find ourselves living in California and continuing to enjoy life, smiling through all the new experiences and challenges that come our way. There continues to be much that we are thankful for and we acknowledge that we are truly blessed.
How's that for an undersell?
Regardless, one of the wonderful things that we bring with us is our family traditions, we continue to get outside together whenever we can and are loving the new adventures that the Californian countryside afford us. Another tradition we have brought is our annual pumpkin cutting party, which has been an event that started many moons ago in Brantford, and one we've enjoyed hosting since Oliver entered our lives.
(i removed the video as its just the first 90 seconds of the one here)
Now in its 7th year and third country the day was a great success. There are lots of new faces in this video; we miss our friends from the DR and Mexico, while we are looking forward to many more good times with the new friends we are meeting here.
So spring has sprung here in Vallarta, the mercury begins its ascent and the wind picks up. Of course it also means that another year has flown by with Ella, we are so lucky she lets us hang out with her. We were graced with a visit from Granny and Boppy and of course did it up right, enjoy:
note: Karli and i have a lot of guilt over the animal show at the waterpark we don't believe in this kind of treatment of animals, to be clear we went for the slides not the show and it is hard to say no to a four year old. They are amazing and beautiful creatures - to say the show wasn't enjoyable would be a lie, they are incredible creatures. We have taken the chance since to talk to the kids about the animals, their treatment, and debate around these types of shows. If you're an adult watch the Cove (warning the images will haunt you forever), and consider the facts of dolphin captivity (story) when you make this call. Everyone needs to make their own decisions (this postscript is about our guilt not about judging anyone); for us we can't do the dolphin experience ... although so much of us want the opportunity to interact more closely with these amazing creatures.
Sunday, March 04, 2012
Givelod Manis
For three years now the pre-school at ASPV has sponsored Givelod through the Children of Haiti Project. The biggest fund raiser is the annual Trike-A-Thon. The day is a lot of fun for everyone and we appreciate all the work that the pre-school staff does to promote service learning in our youngest students. Ollie and Ella raised a lot of money thanks to some generous donators, thank you all very much.
Dad had fun with his new GoPro too:
video from last year (about the 4:30 mark in the video)
from two years ago
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Ollie changed his restaurant of choice at the last minute from a taco stand to Lukumbe becuase: "they do a really good job of celebrating birthdays." He's right.
Well its official ... Ollie's six.
As I spent today playing with his new Star Wars and Hot Wheels toys (he was there too) i realized...perhaps i should still be six. Goodtimes.
There's a marked change for sure. He does the putting together now, I have been relegated to couch coach (and a proud one). He loves lego and has amazed us with what he has made. He tries hard, is a great brother, a happy guy, and cool dude.
We are very blessed.
We celebrated the big day with our family and then Friday had the real fiesta at PeterPiperPizza (gringoes think Chucky Cheese) where games, pizza, piñata, and great friends made for lots of laughs and had us sleeping soundly last night.
Here is 6-tastic*:
The holiday season is always a busy one, and we made the most out of it this year! It included Posadas, Fiestas, concerts, gingerbread, countless piñatas, and lots of skype time with loved family and friends around the globe.
Some highlights of our time:
the editing on this one leaves much to be desired - my apologies. hey but at least it isn't months and months after the fact!
our vacation also included a trip to Guanjuato which was previously posted.
Sunday, January 01, 2012
We spent the first part of our December holiday doing a little exploring in Mexico. Despite living here for three years we have seen very little outside of Bahia Banderas (Karli travelled extensively in Mexico some moons ago). We decided to go to Guanajuato (as well as nearby Dolores Hidalgo and San Miguel de Allende) which had received rave reviews from our friends - it did not disappoint.
Guanajuato is a gorgeous city nestled in a valley with colorful houses that cascade down the hillsides. It is extremely old and the mines that surround the city continue to pull out rich deposits of silver, which was the main reason the UNESCO world heritage site was settled. Many of the streets are not wide enough to allow for car traffic and instead wind in and around the homes and up the hillsides; those that do allow cars, are one lane and there is a complex network of tunnels that keep much of the traffic underground. With a thriving university campus there is a youthful pulse to the city and an abundance of art (Diego Rivera was born here), music, and great things to see, do, and of course eat. The family survived its first two overnight bus rides and i am thankful that the kids coped so well ... as i know it will lead to continued adventures (its in their blood).
In short, Guanajuato was a fantastic and rich trip that we highly recommend. (lonely planet)
Some of our adventures:
Our holiday was great and there is more great stuff to come (more traditionally Christmas) so stay tooned...
Much of this video could use some further explanation, we'd love to sit and share it with you: (some explanations/memories)
(3:50) While walking into the main plaza in Dolores Hidalgo (the birth place of Mexican Independence) a funeral past with the mariachi's playing behind. It was truly beautiful. Karli made me promise to get a mariachi band for her funeral, so if I check out first .... you know.
The doors and the street art in Guanajuato were absolutely amazing (photo gallery)
(6:14) This long "poster" is a chronological history of the world...from Adam and Eve. It was absolutely fascinating and unlike anything I have ever heard of or seen before. It was tucked away in a room we easily could have missed at the mine and was a true surprise highlight of the trip.
(0:48) 2007 Scorpions world tour ticket ... nuff said.
Friday, December 09, 2011
From December 1st through 12th our neighborhood gets pretty loud; we truly don't mind, indeed we feel thankful to live so close to such a beautiful and culturally rich celebration. Fiestas de Guadalupe:
This past weekend we did a swap with friends of ours who live just north of Vallarta. It was incredible, Karli and I have long been proponents of trading rather than getting new stuff when it comes to the kids...it seems the same invigorating energy that accompanies a new* toy works with adults too.
We had an amazing time; and spent hours chasing roosters, playing in the waves, on the beach, and in the hammocks.
(click images to see them larger)
Thank you thank you thank you ROEL for sharing your life with us for the weekend, we look forward to playing together soon...
So its American Thanksgiving*. I have much to be thankful for. More than I could ever state. First and foremost, for Karli.
November is quite the month for Karli and I. We "met" in November, we were married in November thus we have lots to celebrate and have been doing so.
i am thankful that on our anniversary weekend away my wife wanted to cancel our dinner reservations at the "nice place" to go back to the incredible fish taco joint we happened upon the night before ... con champagne - que fancy.
* AKA thanksgiving to my American friends and family.
