Wheeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!

You can't beat winter, so you might as well enjoy it on the warmer days!!!

Hola!! Where did all of this snow come from?!!!

So we have been back from Cuba now for a week. This is really the first time that I have had a quiet chance to post. The week has been busy, and frankly, I have just been exhausted! I seem to have experienced some serious post-holiday hangover!!

Cuba was fantastic! I wasn't really sure what to expect, but nearly everyone I have talked to said it was great. The morning we left (the 10th) was a long one. We had to leave home around 5:00am. Our flight left at 9:00am, so we wanted to leave ourselves lots of time. Everything went smoothly though. We were delayed slightly because we had to de-ice the plane, but that didn't really take all that long - bye bye snow, was the chant Erin was singing!! We were set to arrive in Varadero around 12:30, but the plane experienced some strong headwinds and so we had to land in the Bahamas to refuel. Some people thought that was a bit of a ploy to buy cheap jet fuel, but I guess I prefer to not chance having enough gas.... There were quite a few people just plain ticked off about that, but hey, we were on holidays! It could have been a lot worse. We ended up landing in Varadero around 2:45pm and I was pretty impressed at how efficient everything was. We sailed through customs, got our luggage and were on the bus to get to the resort in no time. The bus only stopped to let people off at two other resorts, so we got to ours at about 4:00pm. We stayed at a place called the Tryp Peninsula. It is a fairly new place - built in 2001 - that has a terrific kids area, which is obviously why we chose it. It is a beautiful resort and I think our only disappointment is that we were not in one of the villas nearest to the kids area. Instead we were at the centre of the resort, so we were right in between the beach and the kids area, so all in all it worked out well.

Erin had a great time, as you can see in the pictures!! We had great weather (sunny and HOT all but one day). I think we got into relax mode much more quickly this year. I think it took us maybe 2 days before the relaxation kicked in when we were in the Dominican last year, but this year I would say it was a matter of hours!! We mostly spent our mornings at the beach and our afternoons at the kids pool / area. Not to tough to take!! We would have liked to take an excursion to Havana, but thought it would be too tough on Erin. We said we will definitely go back to Cuba one day when Erin is older so we can take in Havana. We did do the trip into Varadero. There is a tourist double-decker bus that stops at the resorts along the Varadero strip and takes people in. That was great fun! Erin loved sitting at the top of the open-air bus! We took at horse and carriage ride around the town, visited the markets, and ate the most amazing lunch in town. Erin was wonderful and just plain had fun digging in the sand (the beach was amazing!!), jumping around in the ocean, and playing in the kids pool and on the big play structure they had. She even met and played with some other little girls from Kingston, from Birmingham England, and from Chile. It was fun just watching her love every minute of the day!!

The trip back was uneventful, except for our bus breaking down on the way to the airport. They were much more efficient that I expected because they had a new bus there for us in no time. We arrived at the airport a little later than expected, which meant no lines, so everything went quickly there too. The only thing that bothered us a bit is that they sat all 3 of us separately - imagine seating a 3-year old alone..... but the folks on the plane and a couple of passengers helped us out and we all sat together. I asked one of the flight attendants what the weather was like in Ottawa, and she said we had picked a great week to be away!! There certainly was much more snow when we got home than when we left!! Next year, the trip will be longer!!! But, we got home on time and got through customs quickly and were home just before 7:00pm.

Sigh... this week I longed for both the beach and my tan to stop fading!!

Erin went back to daycare on Monday without incident. In fact, I think she was happy to see her friends. Were Gord and I happy to be back to work? Well, I guess how I would answer that is, it is what it is!!! We were both swamped all week, and I actually have to go in to work today (Saturday). My boss was obviously busy in my absence and managed to schedule an interview for today!! I don't mind though. It will give me a chance to clean up some paperwork off my desk. You can no longer see any writing surfaces!! Gord is going to bring Erin to gymnastics - she hasn't been in 3 weeks now (sick, then we missed 2 Saturdays being in Cuba), and I'll be home mid-afternoon. Oh, and I forgot to mention that I have started the registration process for Miss Erin to attend Junior Kindergarten. Oh my, I can't even describe what that feels like to anyone, unless they have got through something similar. I am working on my proposal for flexible working hours at my job for the summer and the fall (yes my friends from my past career life, they are actually going to work this out with me!!!). I am planning on working 4 - 10 hour days during the summer, then a strange combination for the school year so that I can bring Erin to and from school. My new workplace is awesome for that!!!!

Anyway, I am going to put the pictures up now and get this update posted before jumping in the shower and heading to work.

Take care everyone and until next time.....

For the love of Crocs....

It seems to be quite the trend for me to let a few weeks go by without posting. Hmmm, I should really make more time for this, shouldn't I?!!

Anyway, all is well at our household. Minnie still proudly struts around (on the warm days anyway) ringing her bell and Erin continues to grow cuter and smarter with each passing day (remember I am biased!!). We have been quite busy, but as I reflect back on the events since I last posted on January 20th, I am at a loss to remember everything that went on. I'm sure it'll come back to me as I ramble on.

Erin continues to enjoy gymnastics more and more each week. We didn't go this past weekend though as Erin was running a bit rough. She came home last Friday with an eye infection, so we thought it best not to share it around a small gym full of kids. She was fine in a day or so, but we still decided to play it safe. We had a fun weekend last week. It was Aidan's 6th birthday (I can't believe he is 6 already), so that meant a trip into Kanata for the celebration. We went to the Ottawa Senators Skills Competition and Aidan even got to see his name in bright lights on the big scoreboard! We all thought this would be a great (and much more economical) way for the kids to see a 'hockey game'. Erin had a ball! Gord and I were amazed to see how many people were there. When we first started going a number of years ago, they were lucky to have 1600 people show up. Last weekend 16000+ showed up! It was like an actual hockey game day when we went to leave the parking lot!!! It was great fun though, and there were tons of kids just loving every minute of it. We then went to the Lone Star for dinner - Aidan's choice! Erin and Cole got to sit next to each other, so they were tickled!!

All is well with Gord. He is at a gun club meeting right now, and I managed to get Erin down early, so I am enjoying a few quiet moments to myself. Work continues to be fabulous. I was talking to a friend of mine the other day and they asked me how things were going. I found myself saying that I have been there for over 7 months now. I also couldn't believe that I was saying how I have not yet had those 'big regrets' that I have experienced in every other job I have gone into. You know, there is a nice honeymoon period of 3 or 4 months, then 'wham' it hits you in the head, and you begin to dream about the comfort of where you were. That has just not happened to me yet. I think it's a combination of the fact that things had just not been going well for me at my last career stop (yeah, I know, not going well is putting it lightly) and it's just been so many years since I have been learning new things. It is also very invigorating to be affecting an entire site. I simply love it.

So, our big news for this coming weekend is that we are headed to Cuba!! We did this on a complete whim less than 2 weeks ago!! We got a great last minute deal, so away we go. I can't believe how disenchanted we all are with winter. I think it's because it didn't actually come when we expected it and it's just been bloody cold the last few weeks!! We are staying in Varadero and Erin is beside herself excited to be going back to a beach!! She's actually the one who talked Gord and I into it (yes, we both have rubber arms)!!

Anyway, I am going to sign off. I'm sure I missed stuff, but I'll catch up when we come back from Cuba. Enjoy the pics and we'll have a drink (or many) for all of you!!! Hey, don't you love Erin's Crocs? She's been begging me for a pair for 3 months now! Of course, now she never takes them off!!

Until next time......