Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Only in BC...

The snow barely had time to melt before we took to the field. It was time for the guys to get dirty for our annual Mud Bowl. I dont' know how long we've been doing this, but it's safe to say that we began prior to developing our common sense.
Hume Park is the unrivaled leader in mud production every year. Every watershed on the planet drains into this field of dreams.
Playing in the Mud Bowl is a test of manhood... a rite of passage. If you're brave enough to withstand the cold and step out of your vehicle, you've still got to take that first squooshy-step onto the playing surface. As the icy venom attacks the most minute crevices in your feet and between your toes, you start to think ahead to the possibility of exposing more than just your toesies to the penetrating frost.
Naturally, we play full-contact. This is the next stage to testing one's manhood. Many a man has been brave enough to step onto the field of play, yet still come up short when measuring himself against other such men.
I vividly remember the day one Glenn Schulz took the field. His response was swift when we invited him to join us. He seemed unaffected by the prospect of getting cold. He didn't hesitate when we told him that we played tackle football, not "touch" or "flag". But could he make a catch, knowing that his body would take a pounding a split second after? Would he hold onto the ball when smitten with a crushing tackle? Indeed he did... and he won my sister in the deal.
To this day, boys are measured with this test. Some exit the field with their white shirts mostly white. Others, the brave... the few... exit as men.

This picture was taken on Sunday, January 28th. 2 days later, I played beach volleyball in shorts, Tshirt & barefeet at my school. Yes, my feet were numb... but where else in the world could you enjoy a snowfall, play football in the snow's muddy wake, play beach volleyball, all just days before the next expected snowfall?

...only in BC.

Monday, January 29, 2007

Kids Mud Bowl III


This was the third annual MudBowl for Kids. (Hence, the III in the title - duh.) We're still sorting out whether this is an event for the kids or the dads. You see, the success of the event is still measured in how few of the kids end up crying. The weather is inevitably cold and wet this time of year and the pool little duffers spend a lot of time in that slop. It's a bit of a sad sight watching your kids teeth chatter together as you're screaming at them, "RUN! RUN! Get HIM!!!"
Ah, we're helping them build character, right?

David's 7th Birthday

David's birthday

Whoduh thunk that my firstborn son could be seven already. I suppose it's not "already"... it's taken him the full seven years.
All sighing and tear-wiping aside, our "little" boy has turned seven and this video is the testimony (evidence) that we celebrated his big day.
Just to give you a little background... the events wents something like this:
- field goal kicking contest (this turned into "hitting-kid-with-football contest")
- catching contest (no photo footage of this one)
- QB challenge (kids had to hit a garbage can lid from varying distances)
- obstacle course (no footage)
- video replay search (no footage)
- touchdown celebration contest (this explains all the weird dancing)

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Snow Day!

Snow Day!

We did our best impression of people's stereotype of Canadian winters. We have had an unusual amount of snow for our area and - as such - I have had a couple of days off from work!
Nearby our house is a beautiful farm area called Jackson Farm. Named after the late Mr.Jackson, his farm has been a traditional haunt for sledders in the snow.
We braved the elements and got out several times during the snowy days. This video captures our adventures, AND a quirky little "you-owe-me-a-pop" moment.

Starbucks 1:13

I can only guess that it's an attempt to stay culturally relevant that has caused Starbucks to speak about Godly qualities on their coffee-wrappers. I can only assume that the astounding public acclaim following "The Passion of the Christ" & "The Nativity" are the motivation behind a message such as this one.
All kidding aside, I was pleasantly surprised by the note on the cup of my tasty caramel macchiato. The message is such a complete contradiction to the world's view of leadership. I suppose anything's more palatable - even God's word - when you're sucking back a coffee.

Friday, January 05, 2007

Schulz Layover!


It was a Christmas... er... New Year's miracle! Okay, that might be a little melodramatic, but we were pleasantly surprised to find that Tan, Glenn & Jules had a couple-hour layover at YVR yesterday! They had spent their Christmas break in Calgary/Edmonton and were on their way home.
It was so good to see them. Tanya and Glenn looked pretty much the same - despite the fact that Tanya's about 17 weeks pregnant - but I couldn't get over my little neice! Julia had her Californian-blonde locks in full flow. The first thing that took me off-guard is how Julia was much more outgoing than our Emily. This was especially surprising because Emmers had been chanting "We Want Julia!" over and over as we waited at the foot of the escalator for the Schulzes to arrive.


The next really-cute thing Jules was doing was to check out all the other patrons in the restaurant where we hung out. She would shuffle from table to table and just look at the people until they would turn their head and give her the smile she was hunting. It wasn't a real chore for the other patrons because she's dang cute. She even shared her chicken strips with Emily. Emily's ultimate evaluation of her cousin on the way home... "She cute."



Stinkin' Glenn took full advantage of his 2 hours with David J. He was a captive audience while David showed him his collection of Calgary Flames cards. Glenn contributed the appropriate minimal encouragers, then completed the coup-de-Flame when he brought out a game program from the Calgary/Vancouver tilt he saw at the Saddledome. (Canucks won.) David reacted with his usual awkwardness to the kind display, but showed his true feelings as he spent the next 30 hours immersed in the pages of the program. As an aside, Glenn also managed to slip me a copy of Third Day's new Christmas CD AND buy us all coffee at Starbuck's in the 2 hours he was here.

The kids all played together as though they were lifelong pals. Staci, Sadie & Taylor made the trek out as well and all six kids played Duck,Duck Goose, Hide-n-Seek and What time is it Mr.Wolf like old pros. Ever the cautious parent, I was a little concerned about playing Hide-n-Seek in Vancouver International Airport, (colour me cautious), but after establishing that the bathrooms and street outside were out-of-bounds, we managed to walk away with all six kids.

Seeing our family really completed our Christmas break. We're already looking forward to Tan & Jules' visit in February for Christ Goetz's wedding!


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