WAY TO GO CANADA!!!

CANADA WINS!

Crazy game, almost had a heart attack, Nash should be MVP and Crosby came up huge when it counted! 14 Gold medals – MOST EVER BY ANY NATION EVER AT A WINTER OLYMPICS!!!

Canada not only owned the podium – we made sure that the 2010 Olympics will forever be remembered as the CANADIAN GAMES!

Super proud of all our athletes and to be CANADIAN!

GOOOOOOOOOO CANADAAAAAAAAA!

Move Complete! (and Happy Birthday Nardine and Amanda)

Six days, 4 truckloads, 1 piano and it’s all over! The kids have been spectacular, we couldn’t have pulled it off without the help of John and Cas but the bottom line is it is all over! Now comes the unpacking, renos and eventually, a glass of scotch in a finished house.

I’ll let Nard say thanks to everyone for her birthday wishes/gifts but we had a great time and an awesome dinner (thanks to Light of India!).

Amanda – hope you had a great birthday. Sorry we haven’t managed to connect on the phone yet but hopefully next weekend should be a lot more normal.

Moving Has Commenced

Picked up the 26′ Uhaul today at noon (Jack loved riding up front) and have been steadily loading boxes ever since. With a little luck will have 95% of it moved before John and Cas arrive – except the piano, we’re saving that one for you John!

Winterlude Ice Sculptures

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Here are some pictures of the ice sculptures that we visited on my birthday.  We all hopped the bus downtown (Jack’s first bus ride – very excited!) and checked out the artwork….pretty impressive!  Next stop is to check out the ice slides in Gatineau.

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Less than 24 hours before we take possession of our new house!

My New Ride

801 Sloped Landings

Here’s a picture of the first CH148 Cyclone, still undergoing flight testing in Florida. This is tail #801, which will eventually be the first in the new fleet of 28 helos.  Looks like the first one should officially be in Shearwater in October 2010.  Estimates at this time have the West Coast Sqn getting the Cyclone sometime in 2014 so guess what our new career plans are…

Skating on the Rideau Canal

This year the “World’s Largest Skating Rink” will celebrate its 40th year of skating on the canal. I am all in favor of the improvements in amenities and services the canal provides.  As we found out yesterday during our first skate, there are heated washrooms, change rooms, nice dry huts to put your skates on. Yummy Beaver Tails, Hot Chocolate, Hot Dogs and French Fries. Also, skate and children’s sled rentals.

We didn’t get on the ice until about 4pm (I needed to shop for snow pants) but enjoyed skating even when it got dark. Dylan is doing really well on her skates, especially since we got her a skate bar. It has boasted her confidence and  she will soon be skating without it. Jack prefers the sled. He has skates but can’t stand up on them yet. Soon he’ll start using the skate bar.

This was the first weekend the canal was open, so the ice beckoned  all skate enthusiasts experienced and novice. What quickly became apparent to me was to avoid the newbies.  Unlike an indoor rink which has boards to hold up new skaters, outdoors its whatevers closest.  If your not paying attention you will become someones breaks or crash pillow.

Many people bring their strollers on the ice and push the kids up and down the canal. Or use a sled like us. The only thing you can’t bring on are dogs and hockey sticks. Hockey sticks? Doesn’t seem very Canadian does it?

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Note: For our Aussie relatives, Beaver Tails are large flat doughnuts served warm with sugar and cinnamon. Very tasty.

The Rossi's

Last weekend we hooked up with Dario, Nicole and Elio (who is the happiest and most well behaved child). Before dinner we went sledding. The the kids, big and small had a fun.

Elio ready for the North Pole Expedition

Elio ready for the North Pole Expedition

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Elio is 17 months, Jack is 33 months.

Elio is 17 months, Jack is 33 months.

A New Look For The New Year

We decided it was time to update the look of thekwasnys.com so here it is!  New features include:

- new header photo

- new widget enabled theme (Atahualpa)

- RSS subscription to new posts

- pop up photos (thanks to Floatbox)

Dylan Skating at the outdoor rink by our new house

Dylan and Cory Spider Jack

Hope you like the new look!

Happy New Years 2010!

Dylan hosted the best Hawaiian New Years party for Nardine, Jack and myself.  It was hands down the best party that I’d been to in years!  Hope you all have a wonderful 2010 and please take a moment over the next few days to think of all the families who have sacrificed so much in 2009.

Merry Christmas 2009

First Time Sitting on Santa's Knee Together

Visiting Santa Prime Minister's House Parliment Buildings Drive By

Happy Holidays from Nardine, Dylan, Jack and myself!  We’ve had a great Christmas here in Ottawa and a big thanks goes out to everyone for the wonderful gifts you sent.  Dylan and Jack had an absolute blast Christmas morning opening the mountain of gifts that had accumulated under our tree.  Since then they have been going non-stop, forgoing food, water, sleep and sanity, in their quest to try out every new toy and craft!  Unfortunately our white Christmas has turned into an ice Christmas, with freezing rain over the last couple of days, meaning that the kids haven’t been able to get outside to play since Christmas Eve.  Thankfully, Nardine and I stocked up on lots of Christmas cheer before the start of the holidays and are managing to get by.

Santa Was Here - Come On Dylan!

Thanks Everyone! Baseball! Jack the Builder The Best Coffee Mug Ever! One of Jack's Many New Trucks A Christmas Gift Made By Jack at Preschool

Dylan and Frosty

Inside the Snow Fort Snow Fort Jack and Frosty Winter Wonderland Ice Winter

Hope you all are enjoying the holidays, next stop New Years!