Ahh.. it's Wednesday. The heat's leveled off a bit, and so far, the week is turning out to be good ;) I met up with Erin, Dakota and Tula today at Ikea for breakfast. We ate our $1 meals, checked Fiona into Smäland, then we went shopping. Kieran was a handful, as usual.
He hates being contained (imagine that!), so he struggled to escape his stroller a few times... Five point harnesses really are great-- too bad
ours doesn't have one!! Grrr.... All in all, it was a good outing. Fiona had a good time, and was well behaved. She was sad that the Clyde's couldn't come visit after shopping, but got it together.
Once I got back to my van... 2 other mini vans had BLOCKED me w/ next to NO room to open my doors and load the kids in!! I was fuming! We only have 1 sliding door, so I had no other way to get them in! Of course, both of the vans who were parked over the yellow line beside me, had 2 sliding doors. So, no problem for them!! I fantasized about keying their van, and had to watch all my "out loud thoughts", as Fiona was picking up on my every word!! So, I left a nice note:
"Please be more mindful of the (lack of) space you leave other vehicles when parking! I had no room to load my 2 kids into my van, AND I'm PREGNANT! Had I loaded my stroller in, the way I normally do (at the side door), I would have scratched YOUR vehicle."
I won't bother typing what I really WANTED to write on that note!!
Deep Breaths... YouTube
So, the other day, I'm uploading a video to YouTube, and notice I have a message from someone... It was from a lady who works for the
Rachael Ray Show. She saw the video of Kieran eating yogourt and making a mess, and asked if I would be interested in having it aired on one of their segments! Crazy! So I phoned the number she left... They will be having a segment called "Mess of the Week". I have to sign some consent forms, and send the original video in. We'll see how it goes, as the original video is 42MB in size, and I can't email it! It would be nice if I could get paid for it... but I don't plan on it costing me money to send it.
The Kite Runner
This is the newest book I'm reading. Apparenlty, it's going to be made into a movie! I'm just over half way through, and so far, it's a very captivating story! It's extremely sad in many parts, and I've been in tears on more than one occassion. It's based in Afghanistan and America. Honestly, this has been an eye-opener for me. I think for most of us, way out here in N. America, it's hard to see Afghanistan as more than a country of dust, despair and war. It hasn't always been this way, though... Once upon a time, Afghanistan flourished... People drove nice cars, had big houses, successful jobs... even women. I think it's good that a book like this, is getting international exposure and acclaim. Especially, at a time like this. I won't start about the war in Afghanistan, and the Canadian involvement. I truly believe the people there deserve a better life, and that life is not going to happen with the Taliban in control. As the author mentions in the book, Afghanistan was forgotten about in 1989 when things became tumultuous... The Berlin Wall came down, TianAnMen Square was site to a massacre...
I have
one Afghani friend, and I must say, that having her as my personal ambassador for this country, has kept me from seeing the people and the country in the judgemental and prejudice way that many do. My friend, Hangama, is one of the most compassionate people I know.. and what I wouldn't give to be a fraction of the person she is. So, I think of her often when I'm reading this book. I wonder what it was like when she fled her homeland... how people treat her and her family-- both for being Afghani and for being Muslim. How much did they have to give up and sacrafice? I get very angry and defensive when I hear people speak so ignorantly about what should be done to 'remedy' the
problem of Afghanistan. It's no different than than all of America being hated by people around the world, b/c of the decisions George W. Bush has made. We take far too much for granted here. Whether that's in the US, Canada or Britain.
Enough of my political rant. This isn't even a sliver of the thoughts that run through my mind everytime I watch the news.... But, for today, here it will end.
These pictures were taken sometime last week... Jason took the kids out Geocaching and the scenery was beautiful! I'll attach some more pictures below of their little adventure!
Taking a break...
The North Saskatchewan River, here in Edmonton... The fall colours are nice; better than Manitoba but not quite as rich as Ontario and the east coast! Miss those reds!!
Anyway, Jason took Fiona out fo
r a looong hike out near Cooking Lake & Elk Island conservation areas. They had a great time, and took some pictures. They saw a Moose and her calves, and even a buffalo! Fiona got to ride in the MEC backpack carrier (an essential baby/child item), even though her legs dangle way down... she is still within the weight limits to ride! They were both tuckered right out after they got home, but Fiona mustered up enough energy to make her presence known at the party. She was her usual charming self- 
making funny comments and performing for our guests! lol Here are some pics from Jason and Fiona's adventure... And I'll add some of the kids (including Dakota), from when the Clyde's visited last weekend!
He hates being contained (imagine that!), so he struggled to escape his stroller a few times... Five point harnesses really are great-- too bad ours doesn't have one!! Grrr.... All in all, it was a good outing. Fiona had a good time, and was well behaved. She was sad that the Clyde's couldn't come visit after shopping, but got it together.
This is the newest book I'm reading. Apparenlty, it's going to be made into a movie! I'm just over half way through, and so far, it's a very captivating story! It's extremely sad in many parts, and I've been in tears on more than one occassion. It's based in Afghanistan and America. Honestly, this has been an eye-opener for me. I think for most of us, way out here in N. America, it's hard to see Afghanistan as more than a country of dust, despair and war. It hasn't always been this way, though... Once upon a time, Afghanistan flourished... People drove nice cars, had big houses, successful jobs... even women. I think it's good that a book like this, is getting international exposure and acclaim. Especially, at a time like this. I won't start about the war in Afghanistan, and the Canadian involvement. I truly believe the people there deserve a better life, and that life is not going to happen with the Taliban in control. As the author mentions in the book, Afghanistan was forgotten about in 1989 when things became tumultuous... The Berlin Wall came down, TianAnMen Square was site to a massacre...
night off yesterday, so they came up in the afternoon. We went to see "You, Me & Dupree" last night, once the kid
s were ready to settle into night routines. Fiona wanted to take James and Shaun geocaching, so we did an urban micro cache, near the Fringe Theatre. Here are some pics from today!
