Connor's puzzle piece!

Connor's puzzle piece!
Connor is a "Racing for Autism" hero!

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Lest we forget...

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Shorts days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Dec 8 1915 John McCrae
(1872-1918)

Sunday is Remembrance Day in Canada, a day to remember our brave men and women who fought for our freedom in World War I, World War II and the Korean War. My paternal Grandfather survived the second world war, he was a signaller on the Lancaster bombers as a serving member of the Royal Air Force. My grandfather, Fred Berry, would never talk about the war though we tried to get him to tell us his stories. You could see that the horror of what he had witnessed haunted him and it was a subject he would never speak of. We lost Grandpa in 1994 and with him went moments of history that we can never recover. I wish I could say that we have learned lessons from what he and so many others lived through and died for, but as we watch the modern world still in turmoil and people still killing others it makes my heart heavy to know that it may have been in vain. This Sunday please pause at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month to remember those who gave so that we can enjoy the freedoms we take so much for granted.

I would like to share some precious photos my Mom loaned to me recently. I didn't know these photos existed as my Grandparents' home burned to the ground when my Dad was a young boy and they literally lost everything. These few precious photos were found by family and friends and are such a gift. I adored my Grandpa and he adored me right back. I miss him so.

My Grandma and Grandpa (centre couple) on their
wedding day December 27, 1941
Warrant Officer Frederick Noel Berry, Signaller
(back row, far right)
Grandpa (back row far left) with his Lancaster bomber crew
Winter, 1944
The crew's signatures on the back of the photograph
(my grandpa is bottom row, far left)

My Grandparents with my Grandma's (Pat (Stanley) Berry) family
at the end of WWII, England, Summer 1945
Grandpa is back row 3rd from left and Grandma is
front row second from left
The cycle continues, my Dad with Grandpa
May 1964 as Dad joins the RCAF
My Dad as a shiny new pilot! :o)
Me and my Grandpa August 1991
I love you and miss you.


Wednesday, November 7, 2007

13-1-0 baby, how sweet it is!


What's the best thing about living in the GTA? When the Sens CRUSH the Leafs 5-1...mwah ha ha ha ha ha ha...wonder if I dare put my Sens flag on my car? Nah, don't really want to have to make a claim so early in the hockey season! There will be plenty of time for that when the playoffs come around. WOO HOO! 13-1-0, that is music to my ears!

Laura :o)

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Let's step back in time, shall we? **shudder**

I had to blog this link as it's making the rounds today, Sandz sent it to me and it's been posted on my Mommy board too. If you're of a certain, um, vintage you will pee you pants when you see this! As if the 80's didn't leave enough emotional scars on us GenX-ers!

Laura :o)

15 Minute Lunch: Strap in, shut up and hold on. We're going back.

Sleep deprived from Seattle

Ange's hubby just emailed me this fantastic pic!
Bree, Julie, Heidi, Moi, Becky, Loren, Linda & Angela
Baby Hudson and the gorgeous Miss Sarah in front
My trip to Seattle is but a memory, but what a great memory! My trip home ended up being a bit of a nightmare with long delays due to winds in Chicago (imagine that??) but I did make it home albeit at 3:00 A.M. So I feel like I've been beaten up today but it was worth it! I spent the weekend with a group of the most amazing women....my internet friends. No, really! Not everyone you meet on the 'web is a creepy stalker type! I know Tim, and some of the other husbands, think we are completely insane traveling to meet up when we can arrange it but like we care what they think!!!! These are my "Mommy friends" as I call them when describing them to my I(n) R(eal) L(ife) friends/family. Funny thing is that now that I've actually met them (some I've met more than once) they are now IRL friends too. How cool is that? We met through an online message board for expectant Moms due in September 2002 (and many have had more kiddos since!) and a core group of us (36) stuck together and now have our own private message board where we interact on a regular, if not daily, basis. They mean so much to me and these women and the board we post on have been a support system, a shoulder to cry on, a place to vent, a place to hysterically laugh, an source of information, and so much more. It is a place where we share our lives as Moms and women working our way through life and all it's inherent stress! We are different ages, races, religions, political leanings, etc. etc. but it just doesn't seem to matter because we blend together in the most wonderful way. We have been through incredible highs and devastating lows and how wonderful it has been to have them there no matter what was going on in our lives. Meeting these women IRL just feels perfectly comfortable and normal, it's as if we have known each other our whole lives. And for that I am so grateful, they have been a consistent presence in my life for the past 6 years and I adore each and every one of them. This weekend there were eight of us (plus one gorgeous baby!) meeting up in Seattle, three of the girls are from WA, one came in from OR, one from CA, one from NH and two crazy Canucks as well, one from B.C. and yours truly! Can you believe we have TWENTY kids between us? We stayed in a condo near Microsoft in Redmond WA and had a weekend of friendship and laughter, something we all desperately needed! Even though we don't "see" each other regularly, these women are truly kindred spirits and I'm so glad I was able to spend some time with them. Thanks for the laughs ladies, I swear my stomach muscles must have had one hell of a workout this weekend! Let's do this again sooner rather than later. So far I've met 17 of these ladies and I'm hoping to meet the rest some day!

Love you all bunches, miss you already. Until next time,
Laura XOXO

Ladies who lunch!
Heidi, me, Linda, Julie, Angela, Bree(with baby Hudson), Loren & Becky
Are we babes or what????
We split up on Saturday to do different activities,
this would be the "lush" group...mwah ha ha
Angela, Heidi, Julie & me

Thursday, November 1, 2007

Happy Halloween, Hello November!

November. Already? Sheesh. So Halloween is done and dusted for another year and the kids really enjoyed this one, the first "real" Halloween for them in a loooooong time! Our neighbourhood did a great job of decorating and the kids came back with bags bursting with loot! It was a balmy evening with a strong wind, perfect weather and no coats required! Connor decided trick or treating was not for him so he stayed home to help Tim with answering the door. We had 93 kids...WOW! Yes, Tim counted....haha! Delsin was very excited and couldn't wait to go out trick or treating. At school they had a "Unicef Carnival" so he got to wear his costume to school and do some activities. Mae enjoyed the carnival with her buddy Antonia and then Antonia returned later to go out door to door with us. Connor and Cameron, being the older kids in the school, enjoyed a school dance in the gym. Con did well and visited the dance for a while and then his TA, Mrs. George, took him for a stroll around the school to check out the carnival. Cam enjoyed the dance although was a bit heart broken when he spotted the girl he has a crush on "slow dancing" with another boy. Harlot. Mwah ha ha. It's hard to be 12 sometimes. :o) Here's some pics of our celebrations and a few from our neighbours who outdid themselves by transforming their garage into a "house of horrors", fantastic!

Carving the pumpkins!
Tim being classy as usual!
The princess
Connor thinking of places for me to shove my camera...hehe
Cam being...Cam
Del and Cam dressed at home before heading to school, check out their costumes!
A gorgeous grey cat, puuuuurrrrrr
A smiley cat!
I did Cam's makeup, he looked creepy as the "Grim Reaper"!
Del posing with a cool owl pumpkin we found walking home from school
Heading out!
Antonia, Delsin & Mae
Cam decided the mask was scarier and then went back to makeup later when he was roasting!
A tired puddy-tat with a bag 'o loot!
Let the scarfing begin **belly ache**
Cam checks out his loot!
Halloween schnugging!
I have to post some pics from our neighbours' display, it was mind boggling!
The exterior during the day, complete with skeleton crawling out of the ground!
Spooky!
The garage transformed!
The "witch" hostess!
And her "mad scientist" assistant!
So many things to look at and hear!!!!
Creepy skeletons in caskets!
Mummies and skeletons!
A fridge full of scary treats!
A table of gruesome delights!

I hope you all had a wonderful Halloween this year! Mom and Dad celebrated in Thailand and have now arrived at their long-stay condo in Hua Hin. Their trip sounds blissful so far **jealous**. I'm off to Seattle this weekend for a much needed break with some wonderful girlfriends! Tim gets to play "single Dad" for a few days but I know he'll be just fine. :o) Must get moving and finish my packing and preparing.

Love to all from the Taverner clan,
Laura XO