Month: January 2011

Heather and Katrine Dance Together

Chorus:
Oh! Campbeltown Loch, Ah wish ye were whisky!
Campbeltown Loch, Och Aye!
Campbeltown Loch, I wish ye were whisky!
Ah wid drink ye dry.

Now Campbeltown Loch is a beautiful place,
But the price of the whisky is grim.
How nice it would be if the whisky was free
And the Loch was filled up to the brim.

I’d buy a yacht with the money I’ve got
And I’d anchor it out in the bay.
If I wanted a nip I’d go in for a dip
I’d be swimmin’ by night and by day.

We’d have a gathering of the clans
They’d come from near and far
I can see them grin as they’re wading in
And shouting “Slàinte mhòr!”.

But what if the boat should overturn
And drowned in the Loch was I?
You’d hear me shout, you’d hear me call out
“What a wonderful way to die !”

But what’s this I see, ochone for me
It’s a vision to make your blood freeze.
It’s the police afloat in a dirty big boat
And they’re shouting: “Time, gentlemen, please!”

Robbie Burns Day

After skating class on Saturday, we headed up to my parents’ house in Victoria Harbour.  Even though my mom had just got home from Scotland on Thursday (more about that in a future post), all five of us were heading to the Midland legion for a Robbie Burns night celebration.  Ever since Katrine began to take dance lessons, she and I have provided the dancing portion of the entertainment for this event.  This year we did two dances together and she wowed the crowd with two solo dances.  She can be quite the show-woman when she sets her mind to it (wish that would translate into her not complaining about having to practise, sigh).  The highlight for me was when we did a dance that was coreographed by our dance teacher back when I was maybe 10 (no old lady jokes needed).  It is just a fun dance; both to watch and do.  Plus, you gotta love the choice of music.

I do have to say that the rest of the party was looking pretty sharp.  Dad had on his Drummond tartan tie which is about as Scottish as he gets (not bad for a Sassenach spouse).  Mom had brought home a Drummond plaid skirt from one of her earlier trips home and the evening gave her the perfect excuse to wear it.  I have to tell you that Glenn was looking good in his new black Stewart kilt.  He doesn’t quite have the full outfit yet but he worked with what he had.

Now that Robbie Burns is over, we have started to put up the Chinese New Year decorations.  Yes, it is almost that time of year again.  The year of the Rabbit dawns on February 3rd.  Guess what we will be having for dinner that night?

Skating adventures with a sick child…and a birthday

Let’s talk about the birthday first because I LOVE my birthday.  I turned 37 last week.  I didn’t get the skating party with friends that I had planned (see note in the title about the sick child) but it was still a lot of fun.  After picking Katrine up from school on my actual birthday the two of us went to the skate trail together.  She is  quite fun to skate with when she is well.  The Glenn surprised me with dinner out and some fabulous gifts.  I had to make my own cake this year thanks to my growing list of allergies but it tasted like cake to me so all was well.  After Katrine was in bed Glenn made me up a peppermint soy steamer with my new milk frother.  Just think of all the money I can save not having to buy one!  I also had the gift of snow.  Looking outside it is beautiful.  White clouds of snow.

Now about the skating.  Yesterday Katrine was registered to skate in two events at the Winter Glitters skating competition.  Well, on Friday night she came home from Chinese class with a fever and complaining of a headache.  Now your going to be thinking, just don’t go to the competition she’s obviously sick; and you’d be right except that one of the events was a team event where the team consisted of only two people.  So we doped her up on Tylenol and headed out to Ajax.  The Tylenol got her threw the day but by the time we headed home she was miserable (poor thing).  That said, she skated really well.  She got a 1st in both her individual event (if you are going for one event you might as well do both) and a 1st in the team event.  Plus, she got her first bouquet of skating flowers because the other family thought that the girls would get a kick out of having them.  They were right.  She was thrilled.

Today she has spent the morning laying on the couch or playing her computer games.  I don’t blame her.  It was a long day yesterday.  Hoping that she gets better before next weekend because we are suppose to be dancing at the Robbie Burns dinner at the Legion in Midland.  We are even going to do a Mother-Daughter dance which should be pretty cute.  Keeping my fingers crossed.

Happy January!

I could have started this post in a number or ways:  Happy new year! Happy Birthday to me!  Happy report card season!  Happy snowy weather!  But seeing as how it is the wonderful month of January, I settled on Happy January!  (Those of you who have known me for a long time, know how much I love winter…especially January -snow, cold, dead mold, no smog, skating, my birthday = simply awesome.).

We had a really nice Christmas with the exception that Glenn missed out on a lot of the celebrations as he was home sick.  Katrine and I escaped his germs by heading up to my parents to celebrate Christmas.  It was awesome seeing mom and dad plus my brother’s family.  The kids always have a great time when they are together.  The fact that my parents had an oodle of snow helped as much as their piles of new toys.  After each of our outings, my mom was there plying them with homemade cookies and hot chocolate (in Katrine and Charles’ case lukewarm chocolate).

We took them to the local ice rink one day.  Grandpa, Charles and Scott watched as we took to the ice.  Katrine had an audience cheering her on as she did tricks; which worked out well as it got her practising her salchow and kept her busy as I skated with Virginia.  This was Virginia’s first time out in hockey skates (having just recently out grown her figure skates, these were the only ones in the house which fit).  She was nervous to start with but did really well once she got going.  She was really proud of herself and rightfully so.  Once she had sat down to take a break, Katrine had me skating as part of a pair.  Nothing too fancy, stroking holding hands (not really in time with eachother but we tried), changing sides with a flourish, side by side spirals and then the big finish – one foot spins and a bow.  It was fun.

Then it was off to the sledding hill which is literally next door to the rink.  And what a hill!!  They whizzed down, spinning around on their crazy carpets…until Katrine took Charles out at the knees.  He was walking up the hill and failed to get out of the way, while her sled had spun her around backwards and she had no idea where she was headed.  No one was hurt and Grandma gave them an extra cookie so alls well that ends well.

On our last day there, I took Katrine cross-country skiing at the Wye Marsh.  She did really well for her first time on skis.  Lasted an hour and a quarter.  Plus, became somewhat of an expert at getting up after having fallen.  Most importantly, we had fun and I may finally have someone to go cross country skiing with.  Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Don’t feel to sorry for Glenn though.   We celebrated with his family before he got sick.  The whole crew of us went out for hot pot.  MMMMMMMM!  Then back to his sister’s house for dessert, gifts and a really great visit.  Plus, we came home bearing him gifts.  The best of which was his very own kilt.  It is the same tartan that he wore to our wedding.  I must say that he will look darn good in it once it is hemmed (Can you believe that it was too long on him?).  I can’t wait to see him in it on Robbie Burns Day later this month.

I will be making my birthday cake tomorrow.  I was suppose to order it but the bakery I bought from last year is closed while they move to a larger facility.  So, this year is self-serve I am afraid.  I am going to take my red velvet cake recipe, leave out the cocoa (allergic-big surprise) and turn it purple instead because purple is a happy colour.  Then  I will plop a nice, big pile of white frosting on top.  It should be delicious as well as pretty.

I wish all of you a fabulous 2011.  May it bring us all what we need and at least some of what we desire.

The snow was so soft.

This is Katrine’s new kilt.  Grandma T made her the socks.  She will be looking good for Robbie Burns this year if she can get past the fact the the socks itch and feel a bit wierd.

This was the present that Katrine made for Santa.  She wanted him to feel appreciated because he works so hard to give others stuff.

Here is the obligatory skating photo.  I had to put it in because she looks so pulled together in it…which is not always the case.

And this she learned from her cousin Dalia.  Yeah for babysitters!  Mommy can’t do this.  Couldn’t even as a child.

Isn’t the scenery beautiful?  I hadn’t been on skis since the winter before Katrine came home.