new blog site

we have switched over our blog to a new site...here's the link:

http://bradandjenn.wordpress.com/

:O)

Eamonn's first bath

a very new experience - i don't think he knew quite what to think of it.

our first family outing

our first family outing around town on a gorgeous fall day


Eamonn taking in one of his favorite pastimes...


our day out was a refreshing welcome as i had been under house arrest for a week under my midwife's orders - a standard policy of hers with all first time mothers. brad was home all week which was fabulous - we soaked in our family bonding time.

Eamonn, pronounced AY-mun as it is an Irish name, is doing well - weighing in for his first week 4 oz. more than his birthweight. He is a content wee one - at least for the past several days he has been - once the initial shock of entering the world wore off. we're settling into the nice baby routine of eating, sleeping, and changing diapers - although day-b- day he is more and more awake and alert for longer periods. one of our favorite things thus far is his momentary passing-gas-smiles, a shadow of what is soon to come more intentionally - the smiles that is.

the birth went swimmingly well. though i had a wee bit of a long labour - starting Thursday morning and ending with his birth on Saturday afternoon - none-the-less it went really well -with only a half an hour of pushing and no complications. We had him at home which worked out beautifully. my parent's were able to extend their stay so as to at least spend some time with their little newest grandson. Thanks Mom and Dad! It was quite fitting that their last day here was Canadian Thanksgiving. Our thanks overflows the many blessings God has graced us!

Tiny Toes

ZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzz.........

Introducing...

Eamonn William
Born October 6th
10 lbs 6 oz
22 inches

Mom & Baby are doing wonderfully!

serenely waiting

2 weeks left ???

our trek to saskatchewan was great. the wedding went swimmingly well and we were able to have a great visit with family and friends for the week. we then took our time meandering our way through the Canadian rockies and southern BC on the way home over the long weekend.
now here we've been for the last two weeks back at work. we just finished what I think we could call our official "childbirth ducational week". today and last saturday were spent in all day childbirth prep workshops, monday night we went on the hospital tour, wednesday night we went to a breastfeeding clinic, and thursday night i started the another prenatal fitness class.
and today we officially have 14 days till our due date. i am feeling great - i have been swimming during my lunch break on the weekdays and i am still biking or walking to work. i have no complaints and am still enjoy being prego - although, of course I am feeling ready to meet this little one and wouldn't be too sad if it decided to greet the world any day now.
we are pretty much prepared (especially after this week) - well as prepared as one can be for never having gone through the experience. but I am actaully looking forward to going through the experience - a bit nervous too but I do anticipate it. and then when it comes i will probably anticipate its ending too. :O)
here's a few pics from the wedding and our stop by Lake Louise.

boys camp 2007

brad's boys


we just arrived home from boys' camp at pioneer pacific camp on thetis island. what a fun week we both had - brad was a cabin leader and i helped coordinate the day activities scheduling. it was great to be a part of the community and connect with the kids. being able to serve them and manifest God's love to them - and pray that seeds were planted that God will grow as they enter back into their 'normal' lives. brad especially enjoyed connecting with the boys during the bible study times - they really seemed to be thinking about the stories and talks they had been hearing in club and the studies. He also enjoyed spending time with the kids while leading various activities such as canoeing, kayaking and archery (his free icecream, pop and chocolate bar targets seemed to vastly improve the boys' archery skills and the sharpshooters had fun reminding him of the sweet debts that he owed them). The group games were a good time as well for that interaction with the kids in his cabin.
i had the adventure of stepping in a wasp nest during one of these group games. thankfully none of the kids got stung badly and i fled quickly with only about 5 stings. that part of the activity was obviously closed quickly. i did enjoy helping out lead some activities like canoeing, basketball and hangin out at the pool.
it was great to be a part of the week. and now upon arriving home, we are busily preparing for our trek to saskatchewan for jef and bre's wedding and a visit with family and friends. so fun!

more life events

last week was full of running around and buying baby gear...brad had the week off to recover from putting out his back at work. it wasn't a super terrible injury but enough to spend the week resting and not making it worse at work. it was quite Providential in ways - he was able to scan the internet and find a whole lot for good baby stuff for us on the local used website! he also surprised me with a delectable gingered salmon dinner with homemade peach cobbler for dessert to celebrate our four year anniversary. he also surprised me with our first sailing tour out here on high seas off the island last saturday. it was a fun venture and made it very tempting to find ways to do a bit more sailing.
and now it is saturday again...wow. the week flew by with us both at work and trying to get bits of stuff done before our holidays. we also had dinner with friends just returning from their 3 week kayaking adventure up in the Queen Charlottes! what a fabulous time they had - it was fun to here all about it.
it is a long weekend and we are hoping to escape and go camping but there are some errands calling us. we have four days of work and then we are heading out next weekend to Pioneer Pacific camp where we are volunteering a boys camp. brad will be a boys' cabin counselor and i am coordinating the day activities program.
i have officially resigned from work as of sept 28th. it is quite exciting - however with only this next week - and then the few weeks in september - i have a lot to wrap up! somehow in the last few months i have been given a bunch of responsibilities - all-in-all it's been good experience and great for me..but makes it tricky to wind up!
must go - cheers!

campfire marvel & baby stuff

so we went camping last weekend...and it was amazing...we had 3 campfires over the weekend -one of which was several hours long...the air was so still the smoke went straight up and we....well, i didn't smell at all like campfire the whole weekend?!?!?!! i think that is a first ever, and i think that I never knew that could happen. brad was a little more involved with the pyro-techniques of the fire and did have a bit of the campfire stink - campfires are a good stink though at least for a time, but it does get old especially if you walk in somewhere that is clean and pristine and the air around you reeks and accentuates the aroma of old campfire...that's when it's time to move on to other pleasures in life.
but we had a relaxed weekend on pender island. we played frisbee golf or disc golf as some call it, and we went swimming, which i had been craving, and went to the saturday market which was terrific and shared the best wild salmon burger ever, and browsed the local bookstore / art gallery, and we sat in the garden area enjoying a muffin at the island bakery.
then this last week was weird rainy and foggy weather, so we took advantage with looking into and buying some baby get-up. we got lots of goods between finding some deals on the internet and some offerings from some colleagues. now we are tasked with rearranging our living space. how can such a wee lil' one require so much stuff?
but it is fun collecting it already and getting more ready for his/her grand debut.
the baby has been bouncing around in my belly like crazy lately - i think he/she either has some pretty good dance moves down by now or she/he has takin' up swimming like i have. i started swiming three times a week at the Y - it has been great to get exercising so weightlessly. i have been loving being pregnant and am feeling great. it will be fun to meet this little wiggly one though - only 9 1/2 weeks more!

the oregon coast and more

Last weekend...well, july long weekend, which I guess was 2 weekends ago already, we spent down on the oregon coast. it was fabulous weather and beautiful surroundings. we made the full weekend of it - getting on the ferry over to washington right after work, friday, and then returning monday by midnight. we camped out, strolled the amazing beaches, hiked the coast abit, explored the little sea side towns, and enjoyed it all.
but it seems unreal that that was already over a week ago. right after getting home shawn and his band, the details, and aly and her mom came for an evening. it was a short visit but we were VERY glad to see them and hang out for even the little bit.
thanks for hopping over to the island all!! :O)
victoria has heated up and it is really feeling very summery - yay! although - heat here is relative. the sun is super warm/hot but the ocean breeze is always cool it seems.
this last weekend we laid low - getting some things done around here. i got some new work pants since i was about to pop the buttons on the two remaining pair of 'regular' pants i've been wearing. we also got out for a hike in goldstream park which was nice. this summer is going quickly and i know that the next month is going to fly. brad is done with classes for the summer and we are working on project "prepare-for-baby" - what all that entails...i still don't know but we are jumping in! and that has to be done now, i think, cuz august is already chock full of events.
and then it will be september...
well for now i am off to make some yummy chipotle black bean burritos for dinner.

my belly at 27 weeks

so at last here is a promised pic.

B is for ....

well, of course, brad...and that is how i think of it. but as i was sitting here i realized b is for...baby!!!
as many of you that read our blog (assuming you haven't given up on us with our lack of blogging) already know that b also stands for our baby which is presently dancing around in my belly.
i really don't know why i haven't blogged anything thus far about our expecting, or about pregnancy etc. but i just didn't. we are super excited though and here the pic is from our ultrasound at 19 weeks. she/he is giving us the thumbs up- a fully optimistic child! hee, hee!
so there -our news is officially blogged. i am now almost 6 months along and my belly is bulging beautifully. i have had an easy-going pregnancy thus far. maybe i will post the bulging belly pics...maybe...

I LOVE B

so here in victoria, it was a most lovely day...almost a perfect summer day I would go so far as to say. this morning as i was walking to work, i took a couple pics of things along my way of which I am always fond.
but particularly on days like today, the morning sunshine through the trees along government street makes my walk more inspirational. although, certain rainy or cloudy days can be just as inspirational.....is this actually my mood that is reacting to my environment or my environment effecting my mood???? hmmmm...that would make a good study - but not by me.
...back to the things i enjoy while on way...i have little to expound upon...i think that these two examples of the day are pretty much self-explanatory. i hope that you can appreciate them too...or atleast one of them. :O)

a recap of our spring... or atleast the last month

a weekend visit from walter and aunt lottie - a highlight being the Butchart Gardens...a dream come true for lottie - yay!




a weekend in vancouver to see shawn's band, the details, play at the backstagelounge - and a great weekend with jef & bre, shawn and friends - derrick and marie.












and then a fabulous hiking/camping adventure with tim & michelle! we venture along the juan de fuca about 7km and camped out. :O)

finally a new entry!

sooooo maybe it's time to get back on the blogging bandwagon...yes, we are still alive! it's been a bit of a sabbatical from spending much time on the computer - mostly cuz i spend enuf time on one at work.
but here - it's about june -the weather is gorgeous, a million flowers blooming, the sky blue the ocean breeze blowing gently. we just ventured on a fabulous hike this past monday which was our Victoria Day holiday. we decided to avoid camping due to most of the weekend being grey and a bit rainy. But monday was gorgeous and the East sooke coast trail, being our favorite was amazing!!
the water was so calm and clear. we saw lots of creatures - two sun basking seals (they were making the most amazing noises...i had no idea!), a bald eagle, a hawk or osprey, a squirrel, a raccoon, an otter, a dead sea lion (sad, gross, and stinky). it was a good 10 -12 km hike and it was wonderful!

the battle of the curtains

we put up some old curtains when we moved in here...and i dyed them because they were tan and our wall is toupey tan.
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so yes, i dyed them a red orange and they looked lovely for a whole....2 weeks i think. when i realized the sun began a fierce battle with our poor curtains and sad to say - the curtains were overpowered quickly - without a chance really.
and by the time we returned from guatemala...well...it wasn't very pretty - they looked like the pale belly of a fish- eewww!
-with renewed energies this last month- we found material at the thrift store - a couple sheets actually - and now have engaged with battling the sun again...but this time, i sewed over the old fishy ones- so hopefully they will continue to take the brunt of the uv rays while the pretty red threads will keep their brilliance.

February...come and gone...

yeah, wow february is already history. we had a fabulous visit with brad's parents for a weekend. the weather was gorgeous (which hasn't been such the case most of the month) - i think it was special gift for them! in this pic we ventured up mt. work with a a couple beautiful vistas as our reward. thanks for coming walter and elaine - it was a great visit with you both!
as for the rest of the month...well i am not too sad it is over. i am ready for warmer weather -i know i am spoiled since i have only had two months of cold this year- but still....i am ready, that's all i will say.
i did sew some curtains and get some other projects done - yay! and b. has been intensely working away at his classes - only five weeks left already! he has been working a few days here and there in between and found time over reading break to build a nightstand for himself - it's fabulous- particularly since it was created out of scrap wood we have had sitting around our place.
so that's my february news.
march is here...the cherry blossoms are budding and the snowdrops and crocusses blooming - blessed promises of spring and sunshine...