Roasted Cauliflower Risotto

Who knew that posting recipes at dinner time would cause so many people to ask for recipes? :)

Here is the recipe for the Roasted Cauliflower Risotto from Canadian Living - the Vegetarian Collection.

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 head cauliflower (about 2lb/1kg)
• 3 (or more) cloves of garlic
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 cup vegetable broth
• 1 3/4 cup water
• 1/2 onion (or 1 large shallot)
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 1/4 cup dry white wine (as son #1 was eating it, I substituted broth)
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese plus extra for "garnish" (if desired)
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Trim cauliflower and cut into florets.  Toss together with garlic, 2 tbsp of oil and 1/4 tsp of the salt.  Roast on baking sheet (with parchment paper on top) in oven until golden and tender, about 35 minutes.  Mash garlic with a fork.
2. While the cauliflower/garlic are in the oven, bring broth and water to boil; reduce heat to low and keep warm.
3. In a large saucepan, heat the remaining oil (1 tbsp) over medium-high heat; fry onion and remaining salt, stirring occasionally, until softened but not coloured, about 3 minutes.
4. Add rice, stirring to coat and toast grains.  Add wine; cook, stirring, until almost no liquid remains, about 1 minute.
5. Add broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time and stirring after each addition until most of the liquid is absorbed before adding more, 18-20 minutes total.  The rice should be loose, creamy but not mushy, and still slightly firm.
6. Stir in cauliflower, garlic, cheese and parsley.   Garnish with extra Parmesan cheese (if desired).

Testing Twitter feed

OC Transpo Strike: Online Petition and Feedback to the Industrial Relations Board

With the threat of a winter storm tomorrow and traffic being horrific, it may be time to do our part to end the OC Transpo strike that has been on for the past 28 days. I received the petition from a friend and found the information regarding the feedback to the industrial relations board after hearing a news article on the cbc.

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There is a petition for transit being declared an "essential service" (and ordering the workers back to work). Here's the link if you are interested - it's simple and takes 30 seconds:
http://www.petitiononline.com/transpo/petition.html

NOTE - there is a typo in the petition as written though, so to correct it, when you are typing in your name and address for your signature, you can simply cut and paste the following note in the Comment field (or write your own explanation): * With a correction to the third last word in the fourth sentence of the petition changing the "and" to "an".

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If you can find a reason that the strike provides an immediate and serious danger to the safety or health of the public, please read the following and email/fax/write to the Industrial Relations Board.

http://www.cirb-ccri.gc.ca/octranspo_eng.asp


Notice To The Public

In the matter of the Canada Labour Code (Part I - Industrial Relations) and a referral by the Minister of Labour to the Canada Industrial Relations Board pursuant to section 87.4(7) involving the City of Ottawa (OC Transpo) and the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 279.
The Minister of Labour, the Honourable Rona Ambrose, has requested that the Canada Industrial Relations Board determine the action, if any, that is required in order for the employer, the union and the employees in the bargaining unit to comply with section 87.4(1) during a work stoppage.

Section 87.4(1) of the Canada Labour Code provides that: "During a strike or lockout not prohibited by this Part, the employer, the trade union and the employees in the bargaining unit must continue the supply of services, operation of facilities or production of goods to the extent necessary to prevent an immediate and serious danger to the safety or health of the public."
Keeping this criterion in mind, members of the public have an opportunity to provide a written explanation as to why they think this obligation is or is not being met during the current work stoppage involving the City of Ottawa (OC Transpo) and the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 279.

Submissions must provide specific details in support of the statements being made and must be limited to the issue raised in this notice. They must also include the name and contact information of the person making the submission. Please note that all submissions received will be transmitted to the employer and the trade union for their review and comment.

Submissions may be sent to the Canada Industrial Relations Board as follows:
by email at octranspo-atu@cirb-ccri.gc.ca
by fax at 613-941-4461
by regular mail or by hand at the following address:
Canada Industrial Relations Board, Regional Director
C.D. Howe Building, 4th Floor West, 240 Sparks Street
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0X8

Please note that all written submissions must be received at the Canada Industrial Relations Board no later than 5:00 p.m. on January 9, 2009.

Ginette Brazeau
Executive Director and Senior Registrar

Bonk

Connor being silly before bed...

Expanding the family tree

Things have been quite hectic for the Seaborn family this summer. Even though only one of us was playing competitive ultimate, the summer just flew by. It's hard to remember how we spent Connor's first summer.

We took an early vacation to coincide with Geofford's regionals tournament in Waterloo and we spent the week at Cawaja beach on Georgian Bay. It was quite the relaxing week and it was nice to have doting grandparents caring for Connor. Geofford and I were able to spend a day together at Wonderland with Damian and Michelle. We started the day on Behemouth, which made me nauseous for the rest of the day, but it was worth it ;) Connor loved his week at the beach and he is definitely a water baby. Although the water was a little chilly, he still had a fabulous time splashing in the water and sitting in his floaty raft. This was my first trip to Cawaja for the beach and I can't wait to do it again next summer.

The rest of July was a little bit of a blur for me as I was organizing things for Mixed Up, which took up most of my free time. Fortunately Geofford was still off with Connor so he could take care of dinner and house things.

August was also a blur with practically every weekend spent at UPI for ultimate tournaments and playoffs. Geofford also went to Calgary for just under a week for Nationals. Although the team did not finish as strong as last year, Geofford had a great time and was happy not to have to drive back to Ottawa to spend the weekend at the hospital like he did last year :)

Connor celebrated his first birthday party with a small party with friends and family. He decided to stand unassisted for the first time that day to the delight of everyone. He still prefers to move around by crawling as it is faster than cruising so he hasn't taken his first steps yet. We are expecting it anyday now.

With Connor's first birthday also comes the end of Geofford's parental leave. He took an extra week off of vacation to go to Calgary, but Connor and I couldn't attend because we were doing the transition from being at home to spending time at daycare. Connor's transition was amazing, it took at lot less time than anticipated and he seems to love his daycare and daycare provider Lynne. Although, it is nice when I go to pick him up and he is still happy to see me.

I guess the biggest news for the Seaborn family is that this summer we found out that Connor will be a big brother sometime in February-March 2009. The official due date is March 2nd, but due to the closeness in ages and the fact that I had a c-section first time around, the obstetrician doesn't want to take any chances, so the second Seaborn baby will have to be a planned c-section. I am a little disappointed, but I hear that planned c-sections are easier than emergency c-sections and hope my recovery will be easier especially since Connor will be 18-months :)

Here are a the first few pictures of new Baby Seaborn.

Hopefully I will publish updates more often now.

Lapse

So I have been negligent with my posts in the past little while, but with good reason. I recently got a job (in April) with Valcom where I am working a contract with the Canadian Coast Guard. Geofford is now at home taking care of Connor. We have started a new flickr photostream where you can find a ton of fun pictures of Connor, as well as pictures of us.

I will post more sooner than later to detail what we have been up to for the past few months, but here is a video of Connor and his cousin Norah who was born on January 26, 2008.

Winter Storm Warning

I have never seen a winter storm warning like the one they currently have posted on Environment Canada's weather warnings. Here is the text from it. I am thinking that we will be housebound today as I do not want to get stuck in the storm with a 4-month old. Not a good idea...

Ottawa North - Kanata - Orléans
5:47 AM EST Sunday 16 December 2007
Winter storm warning for
Ottawa North - Kanata - Orléans continued

A crippling Major winter storm with heavy snow and blowing snow as well as some ice pellets is moving in right on schedule this morning.

This is a warning that dangerous winter weather conditions are imminent or occurring in these regions. Monitor weather conditions..Listen for updated statements.



A massive winter storm has begun over southern Ontario and the stage is set for this dangerous storm to kick into high gear over the entire forecast district today with near record snowfall amounts.

Latest analyses show a rapidly deepening low pressure centre now over northern Ohio just southwest of Cleveland this morning. This low is preceeded by an expanding area of heavy snow with some freezing rain and ice pellets having mixed in at times as far north as the Windsor London Kitchener and Toronto areas.

There have been several reports from the OPP of freezing rain and low to almost nil visibility in heavy snow over southern Ontario earlier this morning.

This intensifying winter storm centre will move towards Lake Erie then northeast across western and then northern New York state to New England by this evening. This storm track is placing southern and eastern Ontario directly under the brunt of heavy snow. A few claps of thunder along with bursts of very heavy snow are also likely and have already been reported over southeastern Michigan and possibly southwestern Ontario early this morning.

The main snow event has moved into southwestern Ontario now and will rapidly expand and envelop all regions east to Ottawa this morning. Copious amounts of snow as well as strong winds causing blowing snow are expected. The snow will be mixed at times with ice pellets and freezing rain along and south of a line from grand through the greater Toronto area to Kingston and then along the St Lawrence river Valley to Cornwall.

Widespread snowfall accumulations of 20 to 30 cm are expected in most areas by this evening. Some local amounts of 40 to 50 cm or more are quite likely in a few areas..Especially from the west end of Lake Ontario and eastwards into far eastern Ontario. Snowfall rates of 2 to 4 cm an hour are expected with low to nil visibility in sustained bursts of heavy snow likely.

Significant blowing snow is expected to accompany the heavy snow due to strong northeast winds gusting to 70 km/h whipping up the freshly fallen snow and causing whiteout conditions.

This is a dangerous winter storm. It is strongly recommended to avoid unnecessary travel during this storm. This massive snow storm has the potential to cause paralyzing conditions as road travel on any unplowed streets becomes next to impossible today. All motorists who must travel are urgently advised to use extreme caution and plan for much extra time to reach their destination.

There remains a high degree of certainty with this storm as the the latest computer model and observed trends continue to forecast this potential record setting winter storm.

The storm is expected to move out over southern Ontario by this evening with the heavy snow moving out of eastern Ontario by Monday morning as the storm centre moves away over New England into the Maritimes. However snowsqualls may form tonight to the Lee of Lake Huron resulting in a continuation of locally dangerous winter travelling conditions throughout the night.

Connor's 4th Month

Time does fly when you are having fun, or is it because I am so tired? This month seems to have gone by in such a blur. I blame it all on ultimate and the late nights that are associated with playing indoor. I think that I have to stop scheduling things for Thursday mornings because it is tough getting out of bed after playing late on Wednesday night (which is not always the case, but I always seem to get to bed later on Wednesdays). It is great fun playing ultimate again even though I feel completely out of shape. My team is now 0-4 and we are just hoping that next week will mark our first win. When I play in the earlier timeslots, Geofford and Connor try and make it out to watch, although they seem to be more interested in chatting with people than with watching me :) Connor and I try and make it out to watch Geofford play on Thursdays, but sometimes it is just nice to stay home when I am still tired from playing on Wednesday. We hope to make it out more in the new year though.

Connor had a busy month as usual. We went to Mike Laporte's 30th birthday party and celebrated his birthday and we were able to congratulate him on the newest addition to the Laporte family who will be making his/her debut in Spring 2008. I guess we are coming to that age when people are getting married and starting families. It's so exciting :)

Connor also got to visit with his paternal grandparents when they came to visit for his Baptism. Connor's Baptism was on November 17th at Good Shepherd Parish. It was an exciting event as Good Shepherd has full immersion baptisms. Connor got dunked three times in the baptismal font and he did not enjoy it one bit. As he was the third baby to get baptised, I think he knew something was up because he started crying even before he got dunked in the water. Poor dude.

After the baptism, we had a small gathering with family to celebrate his baptism. I think that it is funny that everyone is looking at the camera except Connor who is fascinated by the dining room chandelier.


Geofford and I also got a few evenings out without Connor when we went to a couple Sens games. Unfortunately the Sens lost both games that we attended, but I think my parents had a fun time babysitting Connor while we were out.

Connor also had the opportunity to meet another new friend who was also born on Damian's birthday - Lucas Frederick Lai. Lucas and his family were here in Ottawa for a short visit from Halifax. It was nice seeing Fred and Liz and meeting Lucas. Unfortunately we didn't bring our camera to the meeting, but I know that Fred (Lucas' father) did take many pictures. We will add a link to those pictures once we receive it.

The holiday season started with a bang for us. Starting on the 1st of December we were busy with many activities. We celebrated Shay Thibert's 2nd birthday at a party at his house. He was a wonderful host and although he was really good at ripping the paper off his gifts, I think he was a little upset that he couldn't play with all of his new toys right away because there were more gifts to open. I wonder how he is going to handle this Christmas?

We also attended a few cookie exchanges, so now I only a have a bit more Christmas baking to do thanks to the exchanges. Although, we ate most of the cookies from the 1st exchange because I was less organized and didn't freeze them all right away. I learned for the next two though :)

Connor is currently coping through his first cold. He caught it from me, who caught it from someone at ultimate last week when I mistakenly took a drink out of someone else's bottle thinking it was mine. He is quite stuffed up, but we have found the humidifier has been a great help during the night. On top of that, Connor had to endure his second round of immunizations today. I think that he did quite well, but he is definitely getting pampered by me today. At his appointment, he weighed 6.69 kg (14 lbs 12 oz) and measured 64 cm (25.2 in). He is in the 50th percentile for weight and just over 50th percentile in height, so he is one super cute average baby :)

We tried to do a holiday photo shoot for Connor at home so we could have a great holiday picture of him. Anyone who is ever tried to take pictures of babies can attest how difficult this could be. Below is one of the pictures where Connor was more interested in the tree and lights than he was posing for the camera. If you click on the picture, you can see more pictures from the shoot on my flickr site.


We would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and for those who don't celebrate Christmas - Happy Holidays!

Connor Smiling

Connor has been smiling for a while now, but I finally managed to capture it on video. Enjoy!

Connor's 3rd Month

Wow, it is hard to believe that Connor is already three months. I finally got him weighed today and he weighs 6.1 kg (13 lbs 7 oz), so he has gained just under 3 kg! The last time we measured him, he was approximately 60 cm (approximately because he wouldn't stay still for us to measure him).

This month has been fairly busy with many visits with new friends. John Francis Rootham's christening was this month, so we were able to celebrate with him at his open house. Although John slept for most of the visit, Connor was actually alert and was interacting with people at the open house. Connor also met some of our ultimate friends when we attended Emily Chen's Open House for her m chen wears collection. Geofford and I both bought one of her limited edition first printing t-shirts. We are hoping that Emily will soon put out a baby or kids line so that Connor can also sport some m chen wears.

Connor and I finally got to meet Tristan Xavier Hodgson who was born the same day as Damian. Geofford has yet to meet Tristan, but we are hoping that this will happen soon. This is a picture that Maria (Tristan's mom) took when we went over to their house for a visit.


We also got to meet Kahlea when she and Rachel came to Ottawa for a visit. It was so nice seeing Rachel and it was fun meeting Kahlea. Now we just have to convince them to move back to Ottawa so that we can seem them more often. If you click on the picture of the two of them, you can see the rest of the pictures that I posted on flickr.


Connor also had the opportunity to visit with his grandfather one afternoon when I wrote a test for a competition for a Human Factors Specialist with the government. Hopefully I did well enough on the test to get to the next phase of the competition. This job would be ideal as it matches my skill set to my interests. If I do get a job, Connor and Geofford will get to spend the rest of Connor's 1st year together. I know that Geofford is quite excited about this prospect.

Halloween

Connor was Winnie the Pooh this year. I think that he was pretty cute. We only went to three neighbours homes this year and he managed to get mom and dad some twix bars :)

Connor's 2nd Month

Connor's 2nd month has been a busy one, so it is hard to believe that our little man is already two months old! We are starting to develop a schedule, which is great because now I have a little bit of time to work on chores and also the thank you notes. For those of you who have given Connor gifts over the past two months, thank you! The thank you notes are on their way :) Hopefully I'll have them done before I have to start on our Christmas cards...

Connor attended his first ultimate tournament on September 15th. Although it was a cool day, we went out to Hornet's Nest to watch Geofford, Uncle Damian and the rest of the Bytown Flatball Club compete at Spirit. Although Connor couldn't stay to cheer on the team in the final at the fields, BFC was in the final which was televised on Rogers, so Connor was able to watch BFC win from the comfort of his own bouncer a few weeks later.

Connor also had his first weekend away from home. When Geofford went to Ithaca with the rest of BFC for UPA Mixed NorthEast Upstate NY Sectionals, Connor and I went to stay with his grandparents (my parents) for the weekend. BFC ended up winning the tournament putting them one step closer to competing at the UPA Championships in Sarasota, FL at the end of October. The next step would be to place top 3 at Regionals in Devens, MA Thanksgiving weekend. Geofford would be unable to attend this tournament as he was busy with more important plans - he was a groomsman at Drew and Otia's wedding, but more on that later.

On September 29th, we opened up our house for a Meet Connor Open House. It was nice to visit with people we haven't seen in a while and I think that Connor had a good time as well because that night he didn't have any problems falling back asleep after feedings, which was great for me.

Connor attended his first wedding on October 6th. Our friends Drew and Otia got married at the Rockliffe Pavillion. Geofford was one of the groomsmen, but fortunately for me Torch and Michèle were around, so they could help me out. As it was cold and raining, they took Connor for the outdoor ceremony and then he joined us at e18thteen for the reception. It was a beautiful wedding and a great reception. Click on the picture below to see the pictures that we took during the wedding.


As this was Thanksgiving weekend, we had three dinners to attend. Drew and Otia's wedding was on Saturday morning/early afternoon, so we were able to fit in three dinners. On Saturday evening, we went to Brooke Valley (just outside of Perth) to have dinner with Geofford's extended family. It was a great opportunity for them to meet Connor as most of them haven't met him yet. It was a great dinner, but Geofford was a little tired due to the wedding festivities so he disappeared for most of the evening. The next day, we went to the Smith's house for our annual Thanksgiving dinner with the friends. Amy, Ewan and Ella were fantastic hosts and we tried something a little new this year (this is the first year that I didn't have to cook the dinner!) and Ewan had roasted the turkey on the BBQ. It was delicious and I think I may have to try this out for Christmas dinner. Stephan took the group picture on the right, but you can see the rest of our pictures by clicking on the picture. Our final Thanksgiving dinner was with my family at my parents house. Again, a yummy meal and we were exhausted following this weekend of eating and visiting with friends and family. Good thing we have a month before Connor's baptism so that we can recover ;)

As Geofford was busy here in Ottawa, he couldn't participate in the NorthEast Regionals tournament with the rest of BFC. The results from this tournament would determine who would represent the NorthEast at the UPA Championships. Unfortunately, the team failed to qualify, which put an end to Geofford's outdoor ultimate season for 2007. Now we are going to start training hard so that he will be in tip-top condition for 2008.

Although we had such a wonderful weekend, Thanksgiving weekend also had its low points. Const. Christopher John Worden was killed in the line of duty in Hay River, NWT on October 6th. Chris was a wonderful person and a great RCMP officer. Although I never knew him as a mountie, I did know him in high school where he was a great football player, actor and friend. He always had a smile on his face and could light up a room just by being there. I got to know him a lot better the summer after Gr 12 when we started playing ultimate together on Strange Brew. I also knew his wife, Jodie, as I played powderpuff football with her during the winters at Waterloo. Our deepest condolences to Jodie, her 8-month old daughter Alexis and the rest of the Worden and Lamers families. Geofford, Connor and I attended Chris' funeral on October 15th at Notre Dame Cathedral here in Ottawa to pay our respects and to say good-bye to a wonderful person.

We have also had the opportunity to welcome a new addition to the Thibert family this month. Marin Angèle Thibert was born October 18th at 1:11am to Lisa and Stephan. She weighed 7lbs 7oz and has a ton of hair. I had the opportunity to visit her on her birth day at the hospital, but Geofford and Connor have yet to meet the little girl.

At Connor's two-month check-up on October 18th, we found out that he is still a healthy little boy and growing steadily. He now weighs 11lbs15oz (5.414kg), measures 57.5cm (22.64 inches) long and his head circumference is still 36.0cm. He also had his first immunizations: Pentacel which immunizes against Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Polio and Heamophilus Influenza, and Prevnar which immunizes against pneumococcal disease. As usual, we do update Geofford's flickr site with many pictures, but I will post one here and you can click on the picture for the rest of the shots of Connor.

Connor's 1st Month

It is hard to believe that Connor has been in our lives for 5 weeks. Although it is tough waking up every three hours during the night to feed him, it is definitely worth it to see him open up his eyes and smile (or is it just gas?).

This past month has its ups and downs. The downs were mostly caused by his feedings and his weight. For the first couple of weeks we were constantly at the doctor's office for weighings as he was not gaining as much weight as the doctor would have liked. One of the weighings turned out to be a lot more stressful than it should have because the nurse miscalculated the conversion from lbs to kg. With this miscalculation, it looked like Connor was less than his birth weight after he was gaining steadily. Fortunately, it was just a miscalculation and he was actually gaining weight. Phew... It's hard to believe how much he has grown. At his one-month checkup Connor weighed in at 9lbs 1oz (4.11kg) and measured 22.1 inches (56.2cm). He is also starting to grow into most of his clothes. That is also quite reassuring as he only fit into a couple of outfits when he first came home.

To celebrate his 1-month birthday, his Aunt Jaclyn and I took him to get a passport picture taken. As you can see below, he is one serious little dude. He cooperated nicely and we got a great mugshot of him. Hopefully the passport people will accept the photo as I don't know if he can sit still like that for another sitting :)


Another major milestone is that Connor drank out of his first bottle yesterday, which is great for me! This means that I can get Geofford to do the first feeding of the night, which means that I will hopefully get a little more sleep. We are still waiting for the little guy to start sleeping 4-5 hours, but I hear that takes time. Right now, I am still able to cope with 1-2 hour sleeps throughout the night. Lately, Connor has been doing really well with only waking every 3-4 hours, but he is not always so good at going back to sleep following the feed. We are down to one fussy feeding like that, so it's definitely getting there.

I am starting to feel a lot better now. I am definitely walking much better. We have been walking around the block (which is about 1km) and last week it took me 45min (and I was exhausted) and this week it only took me 30min. So I am definitely improving. I'm not sure if I can run yet, but I guess baby steps. Hopefully I will be ready for the winter ultimate season which starts at the end of November. As I missed out on the summer season, Geofford has decided to sit out the winter season so that I can play. :)

Anywho, now that he is getting a little older, hopefully I will have a little more time to post. As usual, Geofford is continually posting pictures on the flickr account, so keep checking back for more pictures.

Introducing Connor Seaborn!

Connor (middle name pending) Seaborn was born at the Civic Hospital on August 11, 2007 at 14:31. He weighed 7lbs4oz and measured 19.7in.

As Connor's father was competing at the Canadian Ultimate Championships from Aug 9-12th in Toronto, we had to call him back early Friday morning (~2am) when my water broke. Labour was induced after a few consults with cardiology/family medecine and obstetrics at about 7pm on August 10th. After a long night of labour, it was determined that a C-section would be necessary to bring Baby Seaborn into the world. It was a long journey, but definitely worth it as Connor is super cute and a welcome addition to our family. Unfortunately for Geofford, his team lost in the finals on Aug 12th, but he was definitely there in spirit.

Connor and I were discharged from the hospital on August 14th and now we begin the next phase of growing :)

Geofford has posted photos on his Flickr account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/insidoubt/sets/72157601392913057/

Five and Half Weeks Left...

I can't believe that we are only 5.5 weeks away from the baby's due date. For Geofford and my parents' sake, I hope the baby arrives after August 14th ;) For my sanity, I hope the baby arrives in August because we are getting carpet put in July 24/25th, and I figure I can put together the baby's room in a week if I need to, but it would be nice to have more time.

As the due date comes closer, I am getting my labour bag and the baby's bag ready. We were trying to figure out what size clothes to pack to bring to the hospital. Do you think that this onesie will fit?


I have also been feeling some weird heartbeats and when I spoke with Doctor about it, he suggested that I should get this checked out by doing a Holter Monitor Test. I went to the Heart Institute this morning and now I have seven electrodes strapped to my chest and a little fancy machine that monitors my heart rate. Hopefully everything is okay and this is just a precautionary measure, but I guess we will find out in a couple weeks!


I feel the baby kicking all the time, which is a very good indication that he/she is doing okay. I can't wait to meet him/her...

It is hot outside and inside.

I didn't think that heat would be such an issue during the pregnancy as I have been generally quite cold so far. As the temperature has been gradually increasing, I have been becoming increasingly uncomfortable. Unfortunately we have not been able to install an air conditioner in our room yet, so getting to sleep is quite difficult. I'm not sure how much I will enjoy having an air conditioner in our room because I find I get a little too cold with a/c. Even now, with the window open and the fan on, I find I am searching for the duvet at about 4am because I am a little bit chilly but I know that won't happen on humid nights.

I think it might also be smart to install an air conditioner in one of the other rooms so that I can deal with the heat during the day, which is probably more of a problem. I find I can't even move because I am so hot. I have discovered that the library in Manotick is air conditioned so I will probably be spending the super humid days there. If anyone else has any suggestions (besides going to the mall - as I will be super tempted to buy baby clothes - but I will probably go as a last resort), please let me know.

Getting bigger!

It's hard to believe that I am into my third trimester. It just seems like yesterday I just found out that I was pregnant. My belly is definitely getting bigger, but I do have a lot more energy nowadays, so that's good. August 23rd is coming quickly and hopefully Geofford and I will be able to get everything ready before the baby arrives.

Sad

People have been wondering why I have been sad for the past few days and I really haven't known what to say. Monday, Geofford and I found out that one of our friends Nick Hamilton passed away last week in Japan. Although I only met him a few times, I know what he meant to Geofford and his friends. He was a great guy and it was always exciting to read about his adventures on the other side of the world. Whenever Geofford and I talked about our big plans to travel to Asia (which we keep putting off...) we always planned on stopping in on Nick wherever he was. Although we aren't sure when we will make it to the other side of the world, we will definitely have to visit some of the sights in Japan.

Spring is here!

Spring is finally here! We had a brief glimpse of spring earlier this April, but then it got cold again here in Ottawa. I had planned a trip to Thunder Bay to visit Rachel and Clayton and spring was definitely in full force there. It was really nice to be outside and take walks with Rachel. It was a really nice visit as I haven't seen Rachel since my wedding last September and I haven't seen Clayton since their wedding in Mexico. Below is a picture of Rachel and I at the Terry Fox lookout. There are other pictures from the trip if you click on the photo.


With spring comes many things including tryouts for ultimate. Unfortunately (or is it fortunately), I have been unable to participate in ultimate tryouts this year, but I did go out and watch the last two tryouts. They were on beautiful sunny days, so I got quite the interesting tan. I can't believe that I already have tan lines and it is not even the middle of May yet. Here is my favourite picture from tryouts. To see some other pictures, you can click on the picture.


Geofford and Damian have both made the Coed A team, which is super exciting. It looks to be quite the good team, so hopefully they will do well this summer :)

Week 22

After a couple of ultrasounds and many doctor's visits, we now have an updated due date of August 23, 2007. This puts me at week 22, which is a little over half way. This is pretty scary and exciting because it means that we are that much closer to meeting Baby Seaborn. :)

My pregnancy is so much better now. As mentioned before I was quite nauseous during the first part of the pregnancy and I didn't really have that nice transition into the 2nd trimester because I caught a bad cold. I have been fighting this cold for about a month and I think that I am finally winning. I was able to recover slightly when I passed the cold to Geofford, but then I got it back during Easter weekend. Due to my sickness, I wasn't able to fully enjoy our weekend at Cawaja beach. We were finally able to meet Ellis Seaborn Allard, but I wasn't able to hold him because I didn't want to pass on my nasty cold. Hopefully during the Victoria Day weekend, I will feel a lot better and be able to hold him. I think that we scared Geofford a little bit as we tried to get him to change one of Ellis' diapers. I am a little worried that Geofford will not want to get close to another diaper, but he's going to have to deal.

The next big milestone that I am waiting for is to feel the baby kicking. I think it will be a weird feeling having someone inside of you moving around, but I will feel alot better about knowing that the baby is alive if s/he is kicking.

Here is a picture of the 2nd ultrasound. The baby was quite uncooperative and refused to pose for us. We were also told that the baby was quite active and we were able to watch him/her try to squirm/kick/punch the ultrasound paddle thing. It was quite amusing.