Together on the Ferry Jorbes Show

Last week Kristin received a surprise baby shower from people at her work. It was a very nice surprise. And like the prophetic comments said, we received a lot of stuff on the list, including baby lotion, diapers, a diaper bag, nail clipper set, assorted blankets and even a nice bassinet.
This past weekend was eventful. I traveled to Edmonton and back to help Corey and Wendy move. The move went pretty well, despite 6 hours of driving. We even had a chance to walk around Downtown Edmonton a little. They have their LRT line underground! Pretty smart way to deal with the freezing cold of winter. Why didn't Calgary think of that?
I was pretty exhausted Saturday night and feel asleep early and slept in on Sunday, but I felt pretty recovered. I worked a half-day on Monday so I'll have a half day off Friday when we head out to Duchess. It's been a while since both Kris and I were there so it should be nice. The Great Pumpkin Harvest is happening so I'll get to exercise my shrinking muscles. I'm also looking forward to seeing my niece again.

Baby Stuff

So the other day Kris was figuring out all the baby stuff we need.

• receiving blankets
• other blankets
• crib sheets
• facecloths
• diaper genie
• nail clipper set
• baby monitor
• sleepers
• undershirts
• hats
• socks
• diaper bag
• glider rocking chair
  
• many other misc things

That is quite a list. It's like there's a whole person coming to live with us. Weird.
Oh yes. We can't forget the prambulator.

A thought

So usually I read other people's blogs about as often as I update mine. That usually leaves me a few posts behind. But I will often make a comment on one of the older posts anyways. Today I wondered if people even read comments on old posts. Perhaps my witticisms are being lost to the ether.

Apparently this is the best gravy ever.

A good day for geekery

This past weekend was pretty nice and relaxing. I am enjoying it while I can, for soon I will be experiencing some sleepless nights; or so I have been led to believe. Ma and Pa and Kelsey and Wes came up on Sunday evening so we had a nice visit and supper. If you want good Thai food in Calgary, Thai Boat on 32nd is usually quite excellent.
Tonight I worked with Corey on installing more memory in his laptop. It came off without a hitch. I am always happy when accomplishing computer feats. Now we sit and surf the internet on individual laptops. Pretty cool.

Wak Attack

I don't have any writing skills tonight, so here's the news in bullet form:
-Jason and Mel came to visit on their way to a wedding. We went for coffee. Yay!
-Kris keeps dropping her cookies in her milk. She's getting a little clumsy.
-We now have cheap cable for six months. Probably means more wasted time on bad TV. But its cheap as free. (almost)
-I finally set up our wireless router. This post was wireless!
-I'm trying to convince myself to start running or working out in the evenings, but I'm too lazy.

A title

So you all know that my brothers baby was born last week. Corey, Wendy and I took a quick trip home on Wednesday night to see her. Kris wanted to come, but August is when her allergies attack, and they are much worse in Duchess than in Calgary. Plus being pregnant she can not take antihistamines. So rather than being miserable she'll have to wait.
Kaetrianne is a beautiful baby. I think something changed inside me when I saw her. Becoming a father has become so much more real for me now. I am very excited for my baby to be born. I was pretty nervous before, worried about if I would love my child enough. When I saw my niece I found that I loved her, even though I just saw her. I am supposing it will be the same with my child. People said that would be the case, but its something you have to experience.

Recently I have become a great fan of Canadian Indie music. I have been listening to CBC Radio 3 and have found that there are a lot of really good Canadian musicians that aren't in the mainstream. Therefore I am supporting the drive to bring CBC Radio 3 to CBC television.

Is This a Dream?

Last night Kris had a dream that my brother and his wife's baby was born and they named him Ted.
Prophetic?
She also dreamed I was holding the baby and it was flopping all over the place and I said "I don't know, I don't know if I can be a father." She responded indignantly, "This baby looks like every other baby, of course you will be a good father."
So apparently my fathering skills are dependent on how the baby looks.

Saturday Night

So it is Saturday Night and as I wait for my parents to come home from their rock concert I thought I would make a post.
So as many of you have noticed it has been extremely hot lately. I have good air conditioning at work so I haven't been suffering too much, but Kris is affected a little more. Also, being pregnant has dialed up her internal temperature so she is not enjoying the heat. At least we have our basement. It's not overly attractive, but its cool.
I am feeling somewhat anxious about my relatives having babies any moment now. It's a little strange. I can see myself being a nervous wreck in a couple of months. To tweak your memories the due date is Oct 16. Its still a little ways away, but somehow it is getting closer all the time.
This weekend we briefly went out to Duchess as Kristin's Mom's extended family was having a reunion of sorts. It was the first large gathering of them that I had been too and it was nice. It had been a while since I was at Lake Newell, where the festivities occurred. It's a nice enough place, but it kind of feels like you are camping out in the open, without much tree cover. Once Kris and I camped out be Nelson in the BC rainforest. That had a lot of cover. It was really nice. We should do that again some time. Yeah! I'm thinking a Ramer family camping trip.
This picture appears to have little to do with Saturday night.

Heat

It has been so hot. Kris and I weren't sleeping at night until we pulled our mattress into the basement. It is so nice and cool down there. Don't spend much time with the internets though. I think I will move the office down there.
Kris found this image and I think it is pretty hilarious.

Haberdashery

"A haberdasher is a person who sells small items via retail, commonly items used in clothing, such as ribbons and buttons, or completed accessories, such as hats or gloves. A haberdasher's shop or the items sold therein are called haberdashery."
Now I, and you, know what I am referring to when I shout "Haberdashery!" I may have to stop taking the haberdashers name in vain.
Did you know Harry Truman was a haberdasher?

A History of Residency

Today we take a trip down memory lane with an examination of the various places Kris and I have lived.
The starter apartment. It was a little small and was a sweatlodge in the summer, but it was good.
After 3 years it was time to move on.We get a little stressed when moving.
Our new apartment was in downtown Calgary. It had a great view. We could hardly believe our luck.

Unfortunately the owners sold it and we had to move, after only 8 months. It was sad.
Hijinks ensued.
No, we really don't like the stress of moving.
Our sadness at leaving soon passed as we found a very nice townhouse, with tons of space.



You'll notice that there are only pictures of the main floor. That's cause upstairs is still not unpacked properly. More pictures when it's all ready.

Special Sauce

So lately I have been feeling very tired after work so haven't been up to spending time with the internet. Here are some things that have been happening:
1. A couple days ago Waldred started kicking hard enough to be felt on the outside. That was pretty cool, if a little weird. It seems there is something alive in Kristin's belly!
2. My soccer team came in 3rd place after winning a shootout! Yay Bronze! Though we don't actually get anything. But Corey played too and that was fun, though he injured himself.
3. One of the podcasts I listen to, CBC Radio 3 R3-30, mentioned me by name on the podcast! I had written a letter and they read it on the air. It's kind of like having your name mentioned on the radio, only more geeky.
4. I was able to see my whole immediate family on Saturday for Kelsey's grad, if only briefly. That was nice. I like my family.

The moment you've been waiting for

I finally have ultrasound pictures and videos ready. The best are posted here.



More photos available here:
http://photoshare.shaw.ca/view/8390472919-1181181543-84447/83904
More videos at:
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-4261728265659048262
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-6273228419004950431
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-2653639881296775869

Abracadabra

Kris and I are busily packing for the move on Thursday evening. It's amazing how much stuff there is to pack. We had an ultrasound last week but couldn't find out if the baby was a boy or a girl because it's leg was in the way. I guess it will be a surprise. We did get a 3d movie of the ultrasound. I promise to get some images put up soon. Here's a cute kitten to keep you occupied.

New house for thee

So we found a new place to live. It's in the suburbs which is sad, but it is twice the size of our current place, which is very nice. It's a townhouse with 3 bedrooms and an unfurnished basement so we finally have some storage area. Yay! And it's not too much more than what we are paying now. It certainly is a load off having somewhere to live next month.
Why is it whenever I have a lot of work to do the next day and want to get up early I cannot sleep at night?

Crazy Time

Well the search for a new home begins in earnest now. This weekend we saw one crappy place and two decent places. The difficult thing is not jumping to take a place that is only okay after seeing a place that is horrible. I am pretty sure we will find the right place, but it is stressful still. I feel like all my free time needs to be used searching for a home.
Go Senators!

The day has come

Oh Google Images, you are too much!
Well as avid followers of my sidebar may already know I finally found an 081 on a license plate! Joy! Come and celebrate with me!
Another thing to celebrate is the fantastic luck I had garage saling on Saturday. Corey was looking for some cheap bicycles so I joined him as Navigator through the maze of Calgary Garage Sales. I always look for books and board games. One game in particular is called Full House. We played it growing up. In the game you are a hotel owner and the point of the game is to have guests stay at your house and make the most money the quickest. It's really straightforward and easy which for some reason adds to the game rather than detracts from it. Parker Brothers stopped making it so it can only be found second hand. I have been hoping to find it at a Garage Sale, but honestly never really expected to. Well, on Saturday I found it! It was in excellent condition too, with a working people-popper and everything! I got it for 2 dollars! The lady was a little miffed when she realized she could have charged a lot more for a rare game. We played the inaugural game at Corey and Wendy's house with Mal and Gin.
Saturday morning also involved going to the driving range for the first time this season. I am looking forward to golfing this year. Maybe I can finally correct my slice.

Final Summation

Well, it was do or die this weekend for the Flames. Unfortunately they chose the latter option. Considering how I felt last year when they lost out, it doesn't bother me too much. I think that the better team won. Detroit out-played Calgary in almost every aspect of the series. The fact that Calgary did as well as they did at home was impressive. Let's not discuss their road play though.
I am somewhat disappointed that the playoff season is over already. (I know, I know, it's not over but when the Flames are out I lose some interest.) It's my favorite time of year, except maybe Christmas. I really enjoy going out with friends to watch the game at a pub, like Corey and I and our friend Lakin did Thursday. It also is a little disappointing that the Flames are not as good on the ice as they should be on paper.
Well, that's probably it for hockey posts. Back to real life.

Anxious Again

Well, game 2 was a stinker. But they redeemed themselves in game 3! I am excited for tomorrow.
So, what is happening in my life other than hockey-watching.... Not too much. Kris and I are thinking of baby names. It seems to me it is harder than you would think. A name is a powerful thing. Not to mention you don't want to give you child a name that will induce teasing.
Things are a little more relaxed at work now. That's good cause the amount of things I need to do at home keeps going up. They include finishing my APEGGA application, looking for a new place to live, remembering that I should be exercising regularly, eating healthy, going through that stack of mail to file/pay bills.... In all honesty it's not like I am that busy, especially compared to how busy I expect to be later, but I am definitely in procrastinating mode.

Pre-game show

Much to my wife's chagrin I think that a good deal of the upcoming posts may be about hockey. I am nervously anticipating Game 2 of Flames vs Red Wings. I think the whole series will hinge on this game. Go Flames!