Halloween started off this year with the kids deciding they wanted to dress up in costumes I could not buy (well at least not for less then $50!!). That meant I needed to make them! When I say 'make' I mean go to the thrift store and buy stuff to put together to make the proper ensemble and then add a few little things here and there and sew a few pieces together. That being said, it didn't seem like too much work except this last week leading up to Halloween has been a bit of a crazy week. That is even a little bit of an understatement!! Nicky was home last week from school because he was sick. Claire was home on Monday and Tuesday because she was sick. We were in Vancouver on Wednesday and Thursday rocking out to U2 and then Eddie flew in on Friday. Somewhere in there I worked my shift with Weight Watchers, did 2 closing shifts at The Buzz and managed to sew the kids costumes. So, I was feeling a little "Ba-Halloween" today and thinking it is a pretty dumb holiday. It really is a day for the young, except when all the candy comes home then it is a day for mom and dad to raid the candy bowl!!!!
I managed to get the costumes done and the kids were decked out for their school halloween parade! Claire was the scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz and Nicky was Luke Skywalker from Star Wars.
Here they are just before they headed to school on Friday morning. Ryan thinks this is their best year for costumes yet. I think they look pretty good, if I do say so myself!!!
Later this morning (Saturday) after I dragged my very tired self out of bed at 10:00AM(!!!) we hauled the pumpkins in to carve them up. I should just clarify that I was up before 6:00am to say "Good bye" to Eddie this morning so I went back to bed and then woke up at 10:00! Ryan is so nice to let me sleep! I love sleeping!! Okay, back to Halloween....
The kids drew the faces on the pumpkins and then Ryan carved!!
Here they are just as they are heading out. (Just take notice of Nicky's pumpkin - it is barfing it's insides out. Such a boy thing!!) Tonight the kids headed over to some friends to go trick-or-treating in their neighbourhood. I think it was a better idea considering we only had 2 kids at our door and there weren't many lights on around our neighbourhood. It might have something to do with the fact the Olympic Torch was at the Harbour Front tonight and they were doing Olympic stuff and then having fire works later so I think a lot of people were there instead of handing out candy.

Well, another Halloween has come and gone and now I am sure the stores can go full gear into Christmas. It is less than two months away....

Last night our good, good friend Eddie flew over in a Sea Plane to come have dinner with us! Eddie lives in Germany but has been in Canada for the last 10 days or so on business and he made a very brief stop over in Nanaimo to come see us!! He basically flew in at 5:45pm yesterday and was heading back to the airport at 6:00am this morning. We were so glad he made the stop! It was so nice to visit and catch up a little and laugh together again. There is this sad realization that happens when we spend time with friends we don't see very much, we realize just how much we miss then. But, we are thankful for the times we do get to spend together and now have more memories!!!
I think Eddie was a little surprised how tall Nicky was. I snapped this picture so Petra could see how tall our little boy has gotten!! Time sure flies from the days of sitting in the Regers house letting our little babies roll around on the floor together!!
Man, I wish I lived in Kempten so I could shop at Wertvoll for my kids (Petra's kids clothing store) because the stuff she picks is SO cute. These shirts came all the way from Germany and the kids look great in them. Nicky had his on first thing this morning already!!!

After Eddie left this morning I realized I didn't have any pictures of the three of us together (Ryan and I with Eddie). When you only have 6 hours together while you are awake sometimes the pictures do get forgotten!!!

Thanks for the visit Eddie!

Naomi caught "Where the Streets Have No Name" on the camera Wednesday night. The sound isn't great, but it gives you an idea of what the show was like.

(Yes, I'm still in U2-phoria mode!)

Well, I (Ryan) had last night marked on my calendar for quite some time! After 15 or so long years of waiting, I finally got the chance to see U2 in concert!! The last show on their 360 Tour was at BC Place in Vancouver, and my good friend Dave Chow managed to get us tickets! So yesterday, Naomi and I dropped the kids off at school and made a beeline for the ferry!
On the skytrain to BC Place around 6:00 pm...
Dave and I looking like a couple of dumb teenagers with the precious tickets! Dave is a certifiable U2 freak (he locked the tickets in a safety deposit box, and ordered a U2 hat and T-shirt online so that he could have them for the concert!!), but we're grateful for his obsession!ADDED PICTURE.......
This is Naomi now! I had to include this picture because just after we walked in the gates these two men I was with both needed to go to find the bathroom. I don't know if it was nerves or excitement or just the thought they might miss out on something if they had to go later, but this was our first stop of the evening (even before checking out what the stage looked like!!!).
A picture of the enormous stage. It really is a mind-boggling production. Apparently they had over a hundred semi-trailers on the road at any given point of the tour with three separate stages being set up, used, or taken down in various cities. There was a 360 degree screen above the stage with a bunch of movable bridge/catwalk thingy's bridging the stage and the outer ring.
Here's Bono, belting it out... The size of his image on the screen probably just about matches the size of his ego, but the guy is a flat-out amazing performer.
One of the few times the band were in roughly the same area code on that monster stage...
In the second half of the show the screen began to descend (or unfold?). It was a pretty incredible image/video/light show that accompanied the music. A U2 concert certainly is multi-sensory experience—sight, sound, smell (let's just say as soon as the lights went down some interesting scents made their obligatory appearance...), and an omnipresent rumbling/vibrating in your chest. Quite the experience, I have to say!
A final shot from near the end of the show. All in all, it was a fantastic night! I think Naomi even enjoyed it more than she might have thought (except for when a drunk concert-goer toppled into her from a few stairs above!). Before the show Naomi said she was more interested in the opening act—the Black Eyed Peas—than U2, but I think even she was caught up in the moment(s)!

A truly memorable night—well worth the wait!!

Well, 5:30 am (!!) certainly came fairly early this morning, but Nicky gleefully bounced out of bed, ready to roll for his first real hockey game this morning. Thus far in their season, his team had only had practices with the odd scrimmage at the end. Today, the Nanaimo Major A Flames donned their red jerseys for the first time in a spirited early morning encounter with the Nanaimo Canucks.
The opening face off. I had to get a picture of this momentous occasion (those interested in reading a bit about my obsessive tendencies as a hockey dad living vicariously through his son can see here).
And here's a picture of Nicky just before taking the ice. He is, of course, quite pleased to be on a team called the "Flames" and looks pretty good in red, if you ask me (although if he had his way, he would be wearing another red jersey - his heart lies with Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals; he even tucks his shirt in like Ovie...). It was a good game, although the Flames ultimately lost 8-7 to the Canucks. The highlight for Nicky (and his dad!) was a second period breakaway goal! He was so excited when he scored! It was cool to see. He's playing with kids who have been playing for 3 years so he isn't always as quick as some of the other kids. But he sure works hard, and he sure has fun!

All things considered, not a bad way to spend a few hours before dawn on a Sunday morning! Next weekend it's off to Victoria for the Flames first road trip. Luckily, that's an afternoon game :)