The Best of 2014

Here's the best of 2014:



For full screen slideshow, click this link: The Best of 2014

Christmas Day

The kids woke up a little past 7am, it's really all we could ask for. Malcolm actually waited another 40 minutes for Melody to wake up to open their stockings. I have to say the kids were both really good this year. They savored the moment and seemed thankful for the gifts they received. Santa was very generous this year, despite Tracey and Roger's move to more of a scaled back Christmas. Here are some pictures:

Christmas et al...

It has been a great Christmas holiday so far. The kids have been very good and everyone has been in good spirits. We've had a few outings and parties to celebrate the holiday season.

 Here are some pictures: Auntie Jen's 40th. Burnaby Village Museum Htan family Christmas Eve

Christmas activities...

The family had a very nice time at the Stanley Park Train, it is certainly a well-established Christmas tradition now. They went with Auntie Shannon, Uncle Calvin, Jalyn, Jada, Wes, Claire, Noah, Candace and Mike. It's probably been the busiest they've ever seen, by the time they got there after dinner at White Spot, the line was already forming. They had a bit of a scare once they got to the trains too. I guess that Melody's cold was affecting her tummy and lucky that they got to a bathroom in time. In fact, she had to go again just before they boarded, so Roger ran her to the toilet in a hurry. Poor little thing, as you can see from the pictures she wasn't feeling all that great, but she toughed it out. The kids also had their Christmas concert last night. They both did very well. Lots of cute songs to put you in the Christmas spirit. Anyway here are some pics:

Happy Birthday Carol.

Wow, Carol turned 21 last week... where has the time gone. We went out for dinner at Fatburger and came back to the house to have cake. Carol is all grown up. She's living on her own, she's fending for herself and even for a short while worked at a job. It's all part of growing up. From the bottom of our hearts we'd like to wish her a very happy birthday.

Happy Birthday Melody.

"The years go by fast, but the days are long". This is something that Roger firmly believes in. Sometimes everyday can be a struggle when you're dealing with raising kids. These days the kids push each-other to the limit. Roger and Tracey often think about instituting the 'get-along' shirt. It's funny cause when they do get along, they're the best of friends, but other times we're not so sure. Roger and Tracey would probably say that sibling rivalry is the single most stressful and volatile issue in the house. If they could eliminate that, most days would be stress-free and peaceful. Let's hope for the sake of their parent's sanity, they grow out of it soon.

So preparations are in place for setting up for the big birthday party tonight. Melody is having a 'Frozen' party. The decorations are set, food is being prepared, and the guests will start arriving this evening for a fun filled night of yummy food and a screening of the movie.

Stay tuned for more pics from the party.

Happy Birthday Malcolm.

Yes, Malcolm turned 8 last week. We commemorated the event by going out to dinner with the family to his favourite restaurant, White Spot. For his friends, we had the party at Crash Crawleys. As evidenced by the smiles, laughter and sweat the kids had a great time at the party. Here's a little slideshow that Roger put together. Happy Birthday Malcolm... we love you.

Malcolm's 8th Birthday from Obiwanhavanese on Vimeo.

Goodbye Halloween!

Whew, now with Halloween over it's full speed on to the kid's birthdays. Before we know it, it will be Christmas! Sheesh, time sure does fly by. So many activities during the last week. At the beginning of the week, Roger had an opportunity to help out at Melody's kindergarten class for pumpkin carving. It isn't easy helping supervise 22 kids with knives and other sharp instruments. He's happy to report there were no casualties and all fingers came out unscathed, just some gooey, sticky fun. Malcolm even came in as part of the big buddy program to help carve jack-o-lanterns for Melody's class. It's kind of cool they can do things together at school.

The weather was looking pretty bleak at the beginning of the week, they were forecasting for showers and rain for the trick or treaters. When Friday rolled around the skies parted and the kids were treated to yet another dry Halloween. Malcolm dressed up like a pizza and Melody "Let it Go" and went as Queen Elsa, with braided wig and all. Joseph even came by to trick or treat with them, he went as Bat-nana, like the song goes, nana, nana, nana, nana, nana, nana, nana, Batman!

To round out the festivities, the family even went down to the Stanley Park Ghost train for a ride. They even saved a few bucks by going for the matinee. They'll be there again soon enough for the Christmas train in a months time.

So suffice to say Halloween and all the related festivities were again a big hit this year. As always, here are some pictures from the past week.