Happy Birthday Melody!

It was a lot of preparation and hard work, but it all worked out extremely well. We officially have a one year old and a four year old. Melody's party was a lot of fun filled with friends, family and another round of cake pops. Bakerella has certainly made an impression on this family. The party was great, the birthday girl powered through even though she only had a 45 min nap all day. From what Roger and Tracey have said, she wasn't cranky, she didn't fuss, and she was a real trooper. The Doljabi went well, looks like she's got a future in the military using technology. She grabbed the sword then the iPhone, we'll have to wait and see if it really pans out. In fact, in the end she ended up grabbing all the items and passing them to Tracey. It was mentioned that she's got a future in philanthropy perhaps. So, she didn't walk by her first birthday, but we expect that it should be happening soon. Thank you to everyone who was in attendance, Melody thanks you as well. Here are some pictures from the event.

Melody's Birthday counting down...

Can't believe how much time flies. Our little Melody is growing up fast. This past week we got rid of her baby tub and now she's in there like a big girl. She's so much more easy going than Malcolm was at the same age. As you can see from the picture, she loves the water, her brother not so much. Even a little drop on his face can sometimes trigger a full-blown meltdown. It's interesting how a brother and sister can be oh so different.

Step by step, oh baby!

Day by day Melody's getting better and more confident about walking. She's really getting the hang of couch surfing. We're not sure if she'll be walking independently by her 1st birthday, but it might be close. Here's some video taken last night:

Melody Couch Surfing... from Obiwanhavanese on Vimeo.

Thinking of you...

All jokes aside, as most people know I initially started this blog (for fun) to chronicle our lives as seen through the eyes of our Havanese dog, Obi. Most of the posts are dedicated to documenting the growth of the kids and all the trials and tribulations of this journey that we're all on. I hope one day we can look back on all the past entries and laugh together.

The blog has allowed me to share not only our lives with friends and family, but to also act as a creative outlet for myself. Sometimes the posts are simply updates, sometimes they represent an official log for us to come back to, in recent times it's an opportunity to capture the beauty that I see through my lens, and in today's case it's perhaps a voice to give me peace of mind that somewhere out there my Mother can hear me. It is a voice that has called out to proclaim my contentment, the joy and fulfillment I feel of being a father and husband, a true statement of well being. Today marks the 5th anniversary of my Mother's passing. It was a life-changing event that will never have resolution. Sadly, I have to admit, I don't think of her as often as I used to, but the fact remains although her death was tragic, that tragedy is unparalleled to the loss I feel that she never had the chance to meet my two beautiful and fantastic children. She was an amazing lady, I miss her dearly and today more than any other day. So again, I send this message out into space in the hopes that she can hear me and to let her know that I'm ok. I love you Mom.

Here's a picture taken in June of 1973, just after I turned 1, she was 25. She was just a kid herself.

Here We Bowl Again!

Malcolm has been wanting to go bowling again for quite a few months. Roger and Tracey can't even drive past the bowling alley without him mentioning it. To celebrate that he has finally been staying at daycare for the whole day (including the afternoon rest), Roger took him bowling on Saturday. They had a great time and Malcolm really enjoyed his special outing with Daddy. Now we're gearing up for Melody's big birthday party in a couple of weeks and then the busy holiday season will be in full swing along with Tracey's return to work. Wow! It really is a busy time of year. I hope I still have time to fit all of my naps in. Woof!

Happy Birthday Auntie Suki!

To help celebrate Aunt Sue's birthday, Roger and the family have been working on a little photo assignment that was sent from Vienna. They have been provided with 10 different photographic themes to work with and to interpret those themes in any way they see fit. They haven't quite finished them all yet, but hope to do so by the submission deadline tomorrow. At Sue's birthday party they will share all the submissions from the groups and pick winners in each category. Here's one shot that Roger captured for one of the themes, "Something Radiant". Can't wait to see all the submissions. We asked Malcolm to check on his baby sister to make sure she was feeling ok.

Thank you to Pardeep Singh...

This past September, Roger got to second shoot for a pretty great photographer friend of his. His name is Pardeep Singh and his work can be seen here. Pardeep is a wonderful wedding photographer with a great eye and fantastic sense of composition. For obvious reasons he's booked solid year round. It was an honour working with him. Here are a few shots from Zareen and Gurpreet's wedding that Roger managed to capture.

Happy Birthday Malcolm!

Malcolm turned four on November 5th. First he had a party at school with all of his daycare friends and teachers. Roger and Tracey made Happy Face cake pops to mark the occasion. Their cake pop technique is starting to get more streamlined and efficient. This was their third attempt; everyone always seems to enjoy the yummy little cake morsels. After school, Malcolm had a pizza party with the family and some close friends. Meena and Jayden were even in town from Toronto so they stopped by for a visit. Malcolm was spoiled with lots of new toys; everyone was very generous. Some of the new additions to his toy box include a Playdoh Dentist kit, an indoor trampoline, a recycling truck, a firetruck, a Chuggington train track with a loop de loop and a talking Toy Story Woody Figure. Lots of fun!  Malcolm is very lucky to have so many people in his life who care about him.
The rest of the weekend was quiet, but the weather on Sunday was beautiful so the family took a quick drive to Stanley Park for a walk and a visit to the playground.  Next time, they better take me!

In three short weeks, it's Miss Melody's first birthday. Where does the time go?