Birds, Bean And Broccoli

Kitchen Renovation

2010-05-23T19:19:00.000-07:00

Once again we're doing kitchen renovations...in Conrad's "studio apartment" ha-ha. On one of my Craigslist adventures I found this retro blue kitchen for $80, how adorable is it?? After some cleanup and a few tweaks, it's as good as new. Solid wood with turnable knobs, a sink, fridge and even a microwave!!

The next morning when Conrad woke up early to watch the sunrise (sigh!), he loved it!! especially the sink. Now to get him some pots, pans and stock up his cupboards with pretend food.

And so it begins...

2010-05-20T21:50:00.000-07:00

Conrad started crawling and pulling up to standing position exactly on his 10 month birthday!!

Short crawling video (hard to get them to perform when you want them to!!lol!):

Pulling up to stand:

a week later and it seems like he's been doing it forever, he can go from zero to 60 (seems like it anyways) in 2 seconds!! got to watch out for this kid now..yikes!

Magic Trick

2010-05-20T21:49:00.000-07:00

And now for my next trick...Conrad will make half a strawberry disappear in 1.5 seconds!!
Ta-daaaa!!

Conrad is 10 months old!

2010-05-12T21:46:00.000-07:00

What has he been up to, you say?
*Crawling and can pull up to standing position, also cruises around furniture
*Can say "Dada", "Mom", "All done!", "tat" (as he calls the cats)
*Can clap, cross fingers, open mouth kiss on your cheek and wave "bye-bye", though not when you actually want him to do it!
*He does a little dance while sitting, just casually bops up and down (I need to get a video of this!)
*Wears size 4 diapers
*Clothing size 12-18 months
*Has 2 bottom teeth and one of the top two just broke through (#2.1 for those of you in the dental field)
*Loves "lift-the-flap books"
*Got his first official haircut a week ago when we were back home in Ontario
*Enjoys his swim classes and does not seem to mind being underwater

Conrad is 9 Months Old!!

2010-04-12T22:18:00.000-07:00

His stats:
* Weight: 17 lbs 13 ozs, Height: 29.25", Head circumference: 17.75", Cute Factor: 100%
* In size 3 Target brand disposable diapers, still doing cloth diapers part-time (had to stop due to a recurrent yeast infection..grr!)
*Has 2 bottom "toofers"
* He's not yet crawling (though he does try to make feeble attempts at it), loves to be put in a standing position and sits up well. Yep, he's still an immobile lump <3!
*Still eats like a champ!
*Favourite fruit: grapes, blueberries and bananas
*Sleeping habits could use some improvement
*Laughs like an old man
*Loves to babble and shriek!
*Start Waterbabies "swim" class next Tuesday :)

Conrad's Rendition of "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" with Mommy Accompaniment and Beany as a Hair Piece.

2010-02-16T21:39:00.000-08:00

complete with "whine" down ;) [Disclaimer: please excuse my voice, had a stuffy nose that day].

He has also been saying "Da,da", but not "Ma,ma" yet :(

Just the other day I swore I heard him say "cat" and "all done" after his meal and did a double take, but it could have been sleep deprivation messing with my head.

My Funny Valentine

2010-02-14T21:55:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

Conrad currently has a few chicks that he hangs out with...as friends, of course ;) Let's see; there's Victoria, Genevieve, Katelyn and Zoi (whom he started seeing every week). So, he has been busy with playdates. Conrad's parents, on the other hand, haven't had a "playdate" in ages...maybe it's time we scheduled one soon.

Happy Chinese New Year!!

2010-02-14T10:46:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Conrad is 7 months old!

2010-02-12T22:01:00.000-08:00

Already? here are some "fun facts"...

At 7 months (subject to change without notice):

* He's in a size 3 diaper and 9 month clothing (more for the length than weight).

* He has had 3 plane trips, first one to Maui, Hawaii, second one to San Francisco, CA and third, to Ontario, Canada. Easy-peasy...but we probably won't be flying again anytime soon.

* He LOVES food!! haven't found anything he doesn't like...yet. So far, he has tried: apples, bananas, pears, peaches, mango, avocados, rice cereal, oatmeal, butternut squash, winter squash, carrots, green beans, peas, potatoes, sweet potatoes and chicken.

* Prefers to drink from a glass than a sippy cup.

* He doesn't really have a favourite toy or become attached to a lovey.

* He likes being in the doorway jumper where he does a little jig, and seems to like the exersaucer, a.k.a. the circle of neglect.

* He likes the cats and they seem to show him the same affection.

* He loves being held in a standing position, puts a BIG grin on his face.

* He can sit up pretty well.

* Has no teeth yet.

* Is currently enrolled in Nurturing pathways and Musikgarten at the community centre. And mommy keeps dragging him to playgroups, more for her own interests than his, Lol!

* His sleeping habits are a whole different post [sigh!] longest he's slept through the night is 7 hours, but goes to bed regularly and without a fuss at 7:30 p.m.

Season's Greetings!

2009-12-25T11:50:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox greeting

Our Maui, Hawaii Trip

2009-12-19T13:47:00.000-08:00

Our next trip brought us to Maui, Hawaii. We were there the beginning of November for 7 days. It was Conrad's first flight (5 hrs) and he did very well!!
We played it safe and stayed at a resort, rented a car and drove around. He didn't mind getting dipped in the pool or the Pacific ocean and he loved the aquarium!!

We'd like to go back again someday when he's older and can learn to surf.

I'll let the pics speak for themselves, here's the link: Maui

Paternity leave

2009-11-03T21:25:00.000-08:00

Seems like I haven't updated in awhile, but why does this always surprise me? anyhoo...
Kyle is currently on paternity leave, started the last week of October and he'll be back to work a couple of days before Christmas. So you'd think I would have more free time, but taking care of two babies is hard work! just kidding ;)

This was the perfect time for us to do a little travelling. We drove up to Vancouver, Canada to activate our renewed visas (Kyle's H1B work visa and my spousal H4 visa). Stayed overnight downtown but didn't get to see too much of the city, will have to make another trip back soon. The drive around Stanley Park was beautiful, unfortunately it was a very rainy day. We did managed to squeeze in a trip to the aquarium which Conrad really enjoyed.

Baby Beluga in the deep blue sea...or in an aquarium in this case.

Happy Belated Halloween!!

2009-10-31T17:40:00.000-07:00

We dressed up Conrad as a very scary spider for his first Halloween, as you can see from the expression on his face, he wasn't very amused.
Took his picture at the "pumpkin patch." Okay, no, we didn't make it to the pumpkin patch (he wouldn't have known the difference anyhow), it was in fact the produce section outside of QFC (the grocery store).

Conrad was also invited to his first birthday party. His buddy, Jake, turned one and they partied hard till it was naptime.

Cougar Sighting on Microsoft Campus!

2009-09-20T19:58:00.000-07:00

Haven't had anything really exciting to report recently...until now. YES! a real cougar of the feline variety spotted in the wooded trail between the buildings where Kyle works. A second sighting 2 days later confirmed it was in fact a cougar and not a coyote as previously suspected. Don't worry, Kyle is safe, I hear they only hunt for men younger than 20 years old, lol!!

Conrad is 2 Months Old!!

2009-09-12T20:21:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe this little guy came into our lives only 2 months ago. Some things about Conrad (subject to change without notice):

* He is a night owl, goes to bed when we do (around 11 or 12 midnight). Has not slept thru the night yet, longest he has slept is 4 hours straight.

* Cat naps during the daytime, usually half hour to 2 hour long.

* Loves to eat ;) Breastfeeds about every 2 to 2.5 hours.

* He loves it when we read to him and likes to look at our expressions and mouth.

* Loves to "talk", his favourite word is "GU!"

* Has past his "colicky stage" (fingerscrossed).

* Spits up a fair amount and produces loud burps.

* Only poops once a week, usually on a Saturday evening, around 7 p.m.

* Loves his baths but cries when we take him out and dress him.

* Loves being held to sleep, for comfort or to walk around.

* Blase about his pacifier, sling, swing or bouncy chair.

* Dislikes tummy time, sleeping in his crib or bassinet.

* Greets you each morning with a great big SMILE :)

What's In A Name?

2009-08-02T18:07:00.000-07:00

Before we knew what the sex of our baby was going to be, Kyle and I decided that if it was a girl that I would name her and if it was a boy, Kyle would name him. Fast forward to a few weeks before he was born, we decided on a name. Decided not to tell anyone...yeah, because we're smug that way ;)

Some of Kyle's possibilities were: Conan, Leroy??, Leo and a couple of famous mathematicians...Pascal, Descartes...yep, good thing I put the kabosh on that one!

Looking on the internet, we came across the name Conrad (meaning: bold counsel or wise advisor), Kyle liked it and so did I. His chinese name, admittedly, I looked up on the internet as well. I like the name Kai and it sounded like "Kyle." Kai in chinese means victory or triumphant and Li means powerful or strength.

Conrad Has Arrived!!

2009-07-12T17:20:00.000-07:00

You've all probably already heard that Conrad Kai Li Leckie arrived on July 12, 2009 at 12:40 a.m. He weighed 8 lbs 3 ozs and measured 21.3 inches long.

My water broke on Friday July 10 at 9 p.m. Was admitted into the hospital that night, but contractions weren't consistent until they gave me Pitocin on Saturday at noon. I asked for the epidural which was great :) I could still move my legs and feel the need to push. After 3 hours of pushing, Conrad's heart rate was getting tachycardic. OB suggested use of the vacuum and he was out with one push!!! The umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck twice really tight, NICU staff was there to check him and luckily he didn't need to be admitted. He is healthy and doing well, what more can a new mommy ask for?

Pregnant Women Are Smug

2009-07-06T16:05:00.000-07:00

So, "What are you going to name him?", "Oh we know, but we're not telling...mmmm...".
LOL!! lmao!

I Gots Da Baby Fever!!

2009-07-06T15:31:00.000-07:00

Check out the thighs on these cuties...

My Pretties...

2009-07-05T14:03:00.000-07:00

So the one question I keep getting alot is "Have your feet swelled up?". It didn't before this weekend. After some cleaning around the apartment and partly due to the hot weather we're having here lately, I think they finally did!

I now have "hobbit" feet and "cankles". Kyle has fun poking at and putting dents in them. Check it out!

Independence Day Parade

2009-07-04T23:30:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th of July!! We walked to the parade in downtown Kirkland today to witness the all American Independence Day parade. Here are some pics of the parade:

Starting with all the kids and parents walking/riding the route with their bikes, strollers and powerwheels :)

We didn't make it to the fireworks held at the Marina Park in Kirkland this year due to my swollen ankles but managed to watch bits of it from our balcony, darn tree was in the way.

Catwalk

2009-07-03T17:07:00.000-07:00

I got a cat leash for Frosty a couple weeks back since he's been having outdoor fever. Always trying to escape when the front door opens especially since it started getting nice out. I guess being cooped up in our apartment doesn't help coming from the Betzner mansion and all.

On the first try, indoors with some treats for distraction, he managed to keep it on for 3 minutes before biting at it. Every few days I'd put it on him for longer periods of time, with treats as a distraction and he'd drag the leash around before attacking it.

The last few times Kyle has taken him out for 5 to 10 minute stretches in the backyard and he did fine. All he'd do is sniff the plantings and walk on pavement, never on the grass. The goal is to get him used to it so he could accompany us on walks with the stroller...imagine him just prancing along the side, LOL!!. Yeah...I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon.

HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!...eh!

2009-07-01T16:43:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's a real holiday!! unfortunately not here in the US, it's business as usual. Kyle and I planned a lunch together at the Microsoft campus cafeteria in hopes that they would serve poutine, like last year. Alas! they did not :(, not in the two cafeterias we checked. My poutine craving goes unsatisfied. What I wouldn't give for a New York Fries Poutine or even better, a roadside stand Quebec poutine...sigh! oh! Canada...

Baby's Corner

2009-06-27T20:40:00.000-07:00

Yah, I know what you're thinking..."nobody puts Baby in a corner." I think we've finally got the lil critter's corner set up for his arrival soon. The crib arrived the last weekend in April, ETA earlier than expected..who knew? Kyle put it together, with the help of the cats, of course. Some before and after pics:

My side of the bed BEFORE.

My side of the bed, AFTER:

My favourite part of the nursery is this birds of a feather mobile :) I got this custom made from a talented woodworker on Etsy! Probably more for ME to look at than baby.

The owls and tree are vinyl decals, also from Etsy. Didn't bother painting the room since we're renting. Hope he likes it lol!!

Third Trimester

2009-06-24T22:32:00.000-07:00

Let's take a look back at my "skinnier" pics shall we? waaaay back in February when I was 7 weeks along:

And now...

"One of these pictures is not like the other..."
Okay, who's brave enough to post a comment??

Baby's New Ride

2009-06-24T08:53:00.000-07:00

I finally got my act together to post pics of the wonderful stroller that everyone chipped in to purchase for our baby shower. Here it is, the 2009 Quinny Buzz 3 Complete in Gold (that's yellow and brown).

Above is a pic of a stroller that I often see parents do, so I made my own "cover" to match :)

Quinny's Description:
The Quinny Buzz's signature feature is its revolutionary hands-free unfolding technology. Thanks to hydraulic gas springs, the Buzz unfolds itself with just a touch of the hand or foot. Be sure to check out the demo - you won't believe how easy it is to unfold this stroller! The Quinny Buzz's lightweight aluminum frame can quickly fold for compact storage or transport. The Buzz also features a distinctive three-wheel design that's both eye-catching and functional. The stroller's front- and-rear-wheel suspension and air-filled tires can navigate even rough terrain with ease.

The Quinny Buzz's soft foam Scotchgard-protected seat features a two-position recline and can face backward or forward to help your child feel relaxed and secure in any setting. The Quinny Buzz can safely support up to 50 lbs. and, with the use of the Quinny Dreami Bassinet accessory, is suitable for even the tiniest of newborns. If you prefer the convenience of a travel system, the Quinny Buzz is compatible with the Maxi-Cosi Mico Infant Car Seat. And unlike other pricier models, there's no need to purchase car seat adaptors - they come with the stroller!

Features:
•Now includes a second stain-resistant XL seat for use with toddlers
•Automatic "hands-free" unfolding mechanism
•Highly maneuverable lockable front swivel wheels
•5-position adjustable handle to accommodate parents of various heights
•Easy to operate parking brakes
•Height-adjustable sun canopy with mesh and plastic windows so baby stays cool and parents can keep an eye on him
•5-point padded harness and removable safety bar
•2-position foot and leg rest to keep baby well supported
•Includes shopping basket, raincover and windscreen netting

If you're so inclined to watch, this demo video is from the Baby Gizmo website (same stroller, except ours have 3 wheels) careful, it's 8 minutes long!:

We also got the Maxi-cosi infant carseat and accessory cup holder.

So, thank you so much everyone! I'm really going to enjoy this stroller...I mean, the baby definately will enjoy riding in style ;)

One Year Anniversary!!

2009-06-12T21:44:00.000-07:00

Last year on June 12, 2008, two Canadians (that's us!) officially arrived in Seattle, WA to begin their new and exciting life here in the states; along with their two furry cats. I can't believe we've been here over a year already! How time flies and so much have changed...sigh! Above is a pic taken of Mount Rainier on a clear day while crossing the west Seattle bridge.

Professional Maternity Photos

2009-05-19T14:45:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful weekend, weather wise, we just had!!! Blue skies, sunshine, warm weather, who could ask for anything more?

Well, I had a professional maternity photographer lined up to take some pics of mah belly, but it fell through. I found this person on Craigslist (I know, I know, should've learned my lesson, right?), she had a great looking blog, but her communication skills sucked! never returned my calls, uninformative emails, forgetting the date and time we set up since last month, so on Friday I dumped her.

Then, here comes Alecia Hoyt to save daaaay!! Right then, I looked up Craigslist again and found Alecia. I figured I'd give it a shot, called her right then, she answered right away, I told her I needed a photographer stat!! she called her assistant, we setup a time the next day...and voila!! let the pictures speak for themselves. Enjoy!

These were taken at Alki Beach in Seattle, WA close to sunset. If you squint in the first pic, you can see the space needle on the left ;)

I love this "vintage" dress I got for $5.99 at Goodwill..woo-hoo!!

Moral of the story, with Craigslist, you win some, you lose some. I've had some great winners and deals, but that's another post ;)

Kyle's Dad and Lucette's Visit To Seattle!!

2009-05-05T11:58:00.000-07:00

We were so happy to see Kyle's Dad, John and Lucette, on their visit to the West coast. Lucette had a convention in Vancouver, B.C. the last week of April, after which they rented a car and drove down to stay with us for a couple of days. Over the weekend we had a fun time catching up, visiting Pike's Marketplace, North Bend Outlet stores, Snoqualmie falls and of course, a must-see and do: lunch at Microsoft Redmond campus and tour of the visitor centre. Here are a few highlights of their trip:

They came at the right/wrong time, the end of cherry blossom season was near, notice all the petals littering the sidewalks. Right time because it was so beautiful, wrong time? their allergies were acting up :(

Pike's Marketplace, downtown Seattle. Lucette bought me a huge bouquet of tulips, I couldn't help but gush over them, they were gorgeous!!

Snoqualmie Falls, WA.

My "big" ending.. ;)

Our Baby Shower.

2009-04-09T11:19:00.000-07:00

Since this was our last trip back to Canada before baby arrives (in 14 more weeks!!), my BFF threw us a baby shower :) Thank you so much everyone for your generous contributions, I'll post pics of the stroller as soon as we get it.

It was a great seeing everyone, loved the food and beautiful decorations and adorable homemade blue cupcakes topped with a candy pacifier (that kept going missing...Kaleb!!). Here are a couple of pics, I should've taken more but was too busy mingling.

Our "fierce" pose, thanks, Tyra Banks for the tip ;)

Spring Has Sprung!!!

2009-04-08T21:18:00.001-07:00

It's the most wonderful time...of the year :) when the cherry trees are blooming!! Here are a couple of pics we took while out for an evening stroll:

Lovely, lovely, lovely...

We Were Googled!!!

2009-04-08T16:59:00.000-07:00

Apparently this past summer the Google cars came by our place (I know it was just recently because the Yuccas were in bloom). You might recognized our patio set, we're the apartment above the garage, right over the 555 sign with the grey, closed umbrella.

View Larger Map
Pretty cool huh! (note: use the arrow keys to view up and down the street).

Good In Bed

2009-03-26T11:22:00.000-07:00

At least I used to be...at sleeping that is ;)

Nowadays I haven't been sleeping well. I'm tired, I go to bed, toss and turn, then wake up early. And what's more, apparently I'm not the dainty sleeper I used to be....now I snore!...sometimes. Speaking of sleeping, here's a pretty cool video by Oren Lavie, it's different and beautiful (kinda like the OK GO video)...enjoy!

Who Said Parenting Was Hard??

2009-03-06T23:28:00.000-08:00

I got some great tips from the internet today, this parenting thing is going to be a piece of cake!

Some Ultrasound Pictures @ 20 Weeks

2009-03-04T12:48:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of ultrasound shots of the little critter that we thought were pretty neat.

PROFILE VIEW:

LEGS:

FACE: ("take me to your leader...")

RIGHT FOOT:

What Will They Come Up With??

2009-03-04T12:40:00.000-08:00

Many have been speculating what our baby boy would look like and I have to say I'm curious as well. So I went to this website called Routan Babymaker 3000 from the german engineers who make VWs and this is what they came up with:

I know, pretty scary stuff huh?

So, Whadaya Think??

2009-02-27T22:05:00.000-08:00

This is an ultrasound pic from today. Guess the gender? (note: bottom-up view or ventral view for you anatomists).

Body By Baby

2009-02-25T13:21:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of pics of mah big belly!!

And I don't want to hear how "so and so wasn't even that big at however many weeks", got it?? ;)

Abby & Kyle's Restaurant Reviews!

2009-02-04T21:05:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday while Kyle and I were out to lunch at George's here in Kirkland, we started reminiscing about the restaurants back home and how we miss the food. Yes, there actually is quite a difference, for example, the so called Thai food here in Washington is sweet?!?! and the portions in the regular restaurants are HUGE and not cheap either. So here are some restaurants that stand out in our minds for the best (as we know it) cuisine around. Subject to change without notice.

BEST SCHNITZEL:
Metro Restaurant, 164 Victoria Street North, Kitchener, ON.

BEST PHO NOODLES:
Ben Thanh, 10 Pinebush Road - Unit 3, Cambridge, ON.

BEST PAD THAI:
Pho Dau Bo, 301 King Street East, Kitchener, ON.

BEST SHAWARMA:
Montfort, 796 Brant Street, Burlington, ON.

BEST PIZZA:
Pepi's Pizza, 87 Water Street North, Kitchener, ON or
NY Pizza in Bridle Trails, 6501 132nd Avenue NE, Kirkland, WA.

BEST SMOKED MEAT:
Kardish's in downtown Ottawa (Closed down since early 90's, but Kyle still brings it up like a long lost love).

BEST CHICKEN WINGS:
The same friend who told me to try NY Pizza here in Washington (So I trust her judgement), said Moose Winooskis, 100 Sportsworld Drive, Kitchener.
Otherwise, frozen aisle of Costco.

BEST FRIES: (Difference of opinions here)
Kyle says Swiss Chalet
Abby says McD's

BEST POUTINE:
Roadside joint in Quebec (on the way to Kyle's Dad's cottage).
Otherwise, New York Fries.

BEST FISH & CHIPS:
Captain George Fish and Chips, 161 Queen Street, Port Perry, ON.

BEST RIBS:
Zeke's, 607 King Street West, Kitchener, ON. (Although Kyle mentioned that the last time he had ribs there, they weren't so good, so it's iffy)
Abby's prefers the Thunder loaf at Zeke's to ribs.

BEST SALAD:
East Side Marios or Olive Garden (they have one here in Kirkland!!), 11325 NE 124th Street, Kirkland, WA.

BEST COLESLAW:
St-Hubert, 1754, St-Laurent Boulevard, Ottawa, ON.

BEST CARRIBEAN CUISINE:
Rainbow, 29 King E, Kitchener, ON.

BEST CHINESE CUISINE: (Another difference of opinions here)
Kyle says Golden Palace (mainly for the egg rolls), 2195 Carling Avenue, Ottawa, ON.
Abby says Congee Wong in the Peachtree Center, 8390 Kennedy Road, Markham, ON.

BEST MALAYSIAN CUISINE: o.k, short of actually going to Malaysia.., I'd say
Chahaya Malaysia, 1690 Montreal Road, Gloucester, ON.
Malay Satay Hut, 15230, 24th Street NE, Redmond, WA.

BEST INDIAN CUISINE:
Hira Mahal, 336 Speedvale Avenue West, Guelph, ON. (I just looked it up and it was closed??)

BEST JAPANESE CUISINE, ie.SUSHI/SASHIMI:
Tsukiji Market in Japan, of course! again, short of actually going to that country, we couldn't actually come up with a restaurant.

BEST ITALIAN CUISINE:
Tulio Ristorante, 1100 5th Ave, Seattle, WA.

BEST MEDITERRANEAN CUISINE:
Three Kretans, 151 Frederick Street, Kitchener, ON.

BEST MEXICAN CUISINE:
Papagayo, 246 King Street West, Hamilton, ON (Yummy cactus soup!!)

BEST BREAKFAST:
Unhealty: Slices,300 King Street West, Kitchener, ON.
Somewhat healthy: Cora's, 1545 Merivale Road, Nepean, ON.

I'm probably forgetting some cuisine, like Korean (I guess anywhere that has Galbi ribs and Bulgolgi, it's hard to screw that up)

And finally, Kyle's "go to" restaurant:
Wimpy's Diner, 1470 Weber Street, Kitchener, ON.

Abby's "go to" restaurant:
My mom's cooking?? if that doesn't count, then roadside stalls in Malaysia, I can always find something good [sigh!]

Good News!!

2009-01-28T12:04:00.000-08:00

So most of you have already heard...if not, you're probably one of Kyle's friends that he didn't get around to telling yet ;) I'm pregnant!! currently in my 2nd trimester. Baby is due July 16th, 2009 and we're hoping to find out the gender by the end of February.

Guess I haven't been putting up pics of myself lately, so I thought I'd share this one:

Am I showing yet?

The Scenery Around Town

2009-01-27T17:25:00.001-08:00

This is an example of my drive home everyday. It just so happens to be a sunny day out today, 5 degrees celsius with nary a cloud in the clear blue sky. And on days like this, you can see the snow-tipped mountains and blue lake (if you squint at the picture). Could have been a better shot if I wasn't driving and had a better camera.

You Know Times Are Tough When...

2009-01-27T17:01:00.000-08:00

Abby takes it upon herself to give Kyle a haircut!! Actually, it was Kyle's idea. I brought it up a long time ago about letting me cut his hair, but he would always politely decline (trust issues, who knows?). So this past Sunday, we went to Target to purchase a haircutting kit complete with an electric clipper, 2 combs, a pair of scissors, blade attachments and a plastic drape, all for $24.99

Here are the results:

Front View, not bad right?

Side Views

Back View

I never said I was an expert, but I think it wasn't too bad for my first time :), some people just have "challenging" head shapes. Kyle has decided to rename himself "Patches".

Weffriddles

2009-01-11T12:20:00.000-08:00

Has anyone come across weffriddles and started this "puzzle adventure"? Just to warn you, you'd have to be really bored and in need of some frustration or annoyance in your life to start this. Kyle and I got past level 10 or so and decided we needed to get out more.

If you are familiar with this website, here's a riddle I made up for you to solve. I'd say it's a level 2 or 3 ;)

I am missing something

O.k, that's it, good luck! winner will get..um, my undying respect and complete and total recognition.

Christmas in Ontario!!

2009-01-11T11:28:00.000-08:00

We had a busy Christmas going home and visiting family and friends. The weather cooperated with us on the way there and back, narrowly missing snowstorms and bad road conditions [phew!]. I'm kinda jaded towards flying nowadays, it's not like it used to be where the service was good, you're not charged for every petty little thing, like a meal or regular baggage, and it's not all about just moving a whole bunch of people from one place to another with long delays in between. Sorry this turned out to be b*#ch session, don't even get me started on the other fees and surcharges.

Anyhoo, it was great seeing everyone again, I can't believe it's been 6 months already since we've moved to WA. We managed to meet up with *almost* everyone and was sad to leave at the end of the week. Here are some highlights from our trip back home:

Building a snowman with my adorable nephew and god daughter :)

What do you do in Ottawa when it's really cold out? you go curling where it's really cold in the arena!

Kyle curling, keep in mind he hasn't curled since highschool!! WHAT FORM...

SUCH GRACE...

Meeting up at Wasabi Japanese Buffet Restaurant in Richmond Hill

Linda's Visit November 2008!

2009-01-01T10:58:00.000-08:00

Linda getting coffee at Seattle's Best Coffee.

I missed posting this in November, but better late than never I guess, I'm so unorganized sheesh. Linda (Kyle's mom) came for over a week visit in early November and had a great time, I hope. We had fun showing her our new place and surroundings and doing some touristy stuff. Some highlights of her trip: Pike's Marketplace including the original Starbucks, shopping at Belleque Square and lunch at the Cheesecake Factory, Theo's Chocolate Factory tour in Freemont and visiting the troll, the mandatory lunch in building 34 of Microsoft, overnight stay at a bed-and-breakfast on Whidbey Island and more shopping :) Here are some pics:

THE original Starbucks at Pike's Marketplace
The troll under the bridge in FreemontPier at Seattle port
THEO's Chocolate Factory tour and all you can eat chocolate!!!

Saratoga Inn Bed&Breakfast in Langley, Whidbey Island, WA.

Happy New Year!!! Oh My! It's 2009!

2009-01-01T10:14:00.000-08:00

Well, Happy New Year everyone. No real celebration for us last night, we both had the flu :(. We had chinese take-out, watched "Step Brothers" and I was in bed by 11 p.m. Hope everyone elses New Year celebration was way more exciting!

New Year's Resolutions? none. O.k, maybe update my blog more often...

Doesn't Frosty kinda look like Jim from "The Office"?

DEEP FREEZE!! We're snowed in!

2008-12-18T12:12:00.000-08:00

The city of Seattle pretty much shut down today. Lots of cars abandoned on highways and littered the sides of roads. Schools were closed and school buses are not running. Any streets with even a slight slope, cars were skidding and sliding back down.

So did Kyle make it to work today, you ask? Of course! being the faithful Microsoft employee that he is, he took the bus (his bus had tire chains) because he had a meeting to go to this morning. No way was I driving him, and a good thing too, since it's just crazy out there!

It's not officially the first day of winter yet, but the forecast warned for this crazy weather yesterday and all we got was rain. Until early this a.m when we got dumped on by thundersnow!!. The current temp is -2 degrees celcius or 27 degrees fahrenheit. And here we thought we wouldn't see snow till we went back home for Christmas in Ontario, it's definately unusual weather and record breaking to say the least.

Watch this clip on the Komo news site, it's a little long, but parts of it is kinda funny. Cars with chains trying to make it up the hill, Bartell drugs having a "sale" on sleds for $20 bucks!!

Here's Frosty sleeping in front of the heater vent...pathetic!

Today, Walking in the Washington Arboretum

2008-11-02T22:19:00.000-08:00

I think I'm finally caught up! We had it all planned this Sunday, meet Ryan and Krista for lunch at Djan's while it rained pretty heavily. After lunch, rain stopped, Kyle and I headed over to the Washington Arboretum to check out the fall colours. Great timing as usual, no more rain and the sun came out. We had a nice long walk on the trails, over bridges, under the highway, over the water and into Marsh Island. Very pretty, but I'm missing the fall season in Canada :(

That is the University of Washington's Husky Stadium in the background behind Kyle.

Testing, testing....Caviar!!

2008-11-02T22:03:00.000-08:00

This weekend Astra and Brian invited us to Dim Sum, then we all headed over the bridge into Seattle for some caviar tasting. The tasting is free if you make a purchase after, or else it's 10 bucks per person. Definately worth it! as we had five samples each of caviar ranging from the American whitefish, Salmon Ikura and the piece de resistance! the Iranian Osetra at $212 for 1 ounce!! or $1,720 for 8 ounces. Anyhoo, thanks Astra for inviting us along on this delectable treat :)

Bark, bark, bark!!

2008-11-02T21:55:00.000-08:00

Some bark pics of the Big Leaf Maple tree and some other interesting ones at the arboretum.

Tilicum Village for the Salmon Bake!

2008-11-02T21:07:00.000-08:00

Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale,
A tale of a fateful trip
That started from this Seattle port
Aboard this tiny ship.

The mate was a mighty sailing man,
The skipper brave and sure.
Eight passengers set sail that day
For a four hour tour, a four hour tour.

We arrive at Blake Island to Tilicum village (yeah, the song's over!) where you're greeted with clam soup, then ushered into an Indian Longhouse where there's a salmon buffet waiting. After eating, the stage comes alive with a show about NW Indian culture and stories of a "wild beast" that got blamed for everything including eating children!! Then, we took a short walk around the island before catching the cruise back to port. The Chinook salmon was pretty good baked in traditional Indian style over an open flame. Another honorable mention is the warm whole grain bread. Not something we would do again, but it was fun to get together with some of Kyle's friends from work to an island away from the city with a great view of the Seattle skyline.

Soap Lake

2008-11-02T20:05:00.000-08:00

The last weekend in September, we decided to take a trip to Soap Lake, about a 2.5 hour drive SE from Seattle, WA. We tagged along with Astra, Brian and Eric who've been there before (o.k, it's Brian's first time too) and sang its praises. This lake is suppose to contain minerals that promote skin healing/mineralization. We stayed at the "Inn at Soap Lake", appropriately named since its back door sits pretty much right at the lake. The thing to do is wade out into the middle of the lake where it's much deeper until your feet feels like it's stepping in jelly. Collect the mud in buckets to bring back to shore, apply on skin and bake until dry. The black mud at the bottom of the lake feels creamy and cold, and smells like sulfur Phew!! So we slap the stuff on everywhere, even in my hair! and the after effects is smooth skin and shiny hair. It was a great experience and we would definately do it again! Here's the mud people:

Yikes! Where did October go???

2008-11-02T19:50:00.000-08:00

Don't know if anyone noticed (hmfph!) but I haven't written in over a month! I didn't even realize that until now. So what's new? we've been enjoying the really nice weather here, don't know what everyone is complaining about. When it rains, it just kinda sprinkles, then gets nice again..."Ohhh, just you wait till winter when it's cold and rainy ALL the time!" so they tell me. But I laugh in their face (no, I don't really), no shoveling snow for us this winter!! Woo-Hoo! So, here's a pic of the view from our condo.

Space Ice Cream!

2008-09-21T14:43:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. This is Kyle and I am writing a guest post on Abby’s blog. Yesterday we went to Fry’s electronics to pick up a few things. As usual I spent longer at Fry’s than I expected and picked up a few extra things. Fry’s is am amazing place. Kind of like a mixture of Futureshop and a local computer shop that does not suck.

So on the way out I picked up some Astronaut ice cream. This stuff feels like Styrofoam until you get it in your mouth and then it dissolves into ice cream!

If you want some leave a comment and I will mail you a package!

Well everything else here is going well. Abby, Astra and I went on a tour of the Theo’s chocolate factory last weekend and that was interesting but we don’t have any pictures :( we forgot the camera battery so we will have to go again (darn). Here is a link to the factory: http://www.theochocolate.com/

Well that is it for today. TTFN Kyle

Happy Anniversary To Us!!! Victoria, B.C Weekend

2008-09-13T16:07:00.001-07:00

Beautiful city of Victoria on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, I can't believe I've never been out west of Canada before!!! Looks like the sky is always blue with boats bobbing in the waters and tourists everywhere! We boarded the Victoria Clipper ferry from Pier 69 in Seattle as part of their overnight package. It took 2 and 1/2 hours from Puget Sound into the Strait of Juan de Fuca leading into Victoria's Inner Harbour. The trip was pleasant enough, the clipper is a catamaran that seats about 300 people and travels approximately 30 mph.

As soon as we arrived, a bus took us on a quick tour of the city before dropping us off at Butchart Gardens. We had lunch, then strolled through the Italian gardens, the Japanese gardens, Rose garden and sunken garden. The pictures speak for themselves.

We had a yummy seafood dinner and spent the next day walking around the city. We headed over to old chinatown and Fan Tan Alley, one of the narrowest alleys in Canada. Visited the underseas garden, which is like an underwater aquarium featuring sealife from around the harbour. The main attraction was the octopus and diver feeding the Wolf eel crabs. Barb's fish and chips was one of the best I've had in a long time at Fisherman's Wharf! So yeah, we had a good trip :)

Kyle, the roses pale in comparison with your beauty!

Washington Plates...The Evergreen State

2008-09-03T22:02:00.000-07:00

Finally, we received our car import papers and got to register our cars and in turn get new Washington plates. How ironic, my Ontario license plate renewal arrived the same day! It's time to let it go...

So, I think I need a shiny new car to go with my shiny new plates (sometimes Kyle reads my blog) ;)

Don't Be Fooled....Deception Pass & Chuckanut Trail

2008-09-03T20:58:00.000-07:00

This labour day we took a drive to Oak Harbor, an hour and a half trip north of Kirkland. We walked over and under Deception pass bridge to trails leading to a beautiful beach. This bridge is not for the faint of heart, look all the way down and you see fast moving, bluish-green waters swirling beneath. I love pebbly beaches and decided to um.."relocate" some rocks. After that we drove along Chuckanut trail/Highway 11 that took us past flat farmlands, winding up the mountain where the road seems to narrow on one side with rock faces and the other side, a steep drop into Padilla Bay. We looked out at beautiful views of the bay during low tide and stopped in Fairhaven for lunch.

Tune in next weekend, we'll be celebrating 15 years together!! Wowzer!! I've known Kyle for half my life!!

We Had Visitors!!!

2008-09-03T19:53:00.000-07:00

Wow, seems like I'm really behind on my blogging, only one post in August!! tsk, tsk. Anyhow, the weather was really nice in August, warm breeze, blue skies and puffy clouds. Then when my Bro, sister-in-law and kids showed up, it got really hot and humid for two days, then cooled down and started to rain :(

Kirkland kondos was booked for 1 week and what an exciting week it was....whining, crying, running and playing, who knew Kyle would act like that! Hah, no, the kids were really great and had lots of fun..I think. We miss them now, it's so quiet around here. We went to the Seattle aquarium, Duck tours, Pike's Marketplace and shopping at Bellevue Square, Seattle Premium and North Bend outlets. I was excited to play tourguide and tourist at the same time. Thanks for the great times and hopefully you guys are planning another trip to Seattle again sometime soon. Miss ya!

My Computer is Down and What I've Been Up To...

2008-08-11T20:26:00.000-07:00

So, my computer went to sleep and never woke up :( I loved my Mac, but now it's of no use to me..Bah! Kyle has ordered me a Lenovo Ideapad laptop, a cheapie but goodie. Until it gets here, there will be no pics on this blog...Boo.

Many have asked this question of me: "So, Abby, what do YOU do all day?"

Well, I seem to have something to take of everyday. I'm working on my housekeeping skills, doing things I rarely did back home like ironing!?!, trying out new recipes. We're eating a lot better now in terms of home cooking, I think, since we never really had time back home when both of us were working and we'd get home late. All the unpacking is pretty much done, the running around for errands has eased up, still waiting for our customs forms to register our cars and get Washington license plates.

I wake up with Kyle in the morning and chauffeur him to work. Then I'm pretty much free to do my own thing or laundry/clean. I make dinner, go pick up Kyle after work. Sometime soon we have start going to the gym again since Kyle has free membership at the Pro Club. I've met a couple of girls here whose husbands also work at Microsoft, but I'm hardly a Stepford Wife....yet ;)

Tune in next time, hopefully I'll have pics of our new place soon!

Our New House!!...no, no....just kidding...

2008-07-29T17:46:00.000-07:00

Just doing a search on Redfin (similar to MLS) and came across this northwest beauty. Just shy of 3 million! It's located in Bridle trails, a La-di-da neighbourhood across from Microsoft. I love the architecture of this house, all the big windows and the spaciousness of it all. It has 5 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms, sorry, restrooms if I "speak" American, in 5,375 sq feet! I would be happy with less than half of this house. Better put this on my x-mas list!

Abby and Kyle go to White Castle

2008-07-26T07:38:00.000-07:00

Well actually, Abby went to the grocery store and found these White Castle sliders (little hamburgers) in the frozen foods aisle. Knowing it has been a dream of Kyle's to go to White Castle one day, she bought a box to try. They were pretty good, we shared a box of 6 (Kyle -4, Abby - 2) and must admit we could've eaten the whole box ourselves, great for a snack :) Sorry, only available in the U.S of A.

Microsoft's Annual Picnic

2008-07-22T19:53:00.000-07:00

So besides unpacking since Thursday when all our stuff arrived, we actually got a chance to head out to Microsoft's annual picnic on Sunday. This "picnic" is HUGE! there's free food: ribs, burgers, hotdogs, fries, salad, corn on the cob, chinese food, ice cream, strawberry shortcake and the list goes on...There were lots of entertainment both for kids and adults. For the kids, they set up big bouncies, petting zoo, hay rides, amusement park rides. For the adults, there's rock climbing, mechanical bull riding, X-box zone, RC car racing and free massages!! We spent the day with Kyle's co-worker Phil, his girlfriend Krista and her sister Tori. A fun day had by all :>

Gimme an "M" !! what does that spell? MICROSOFT!!!

Donut Peaches!!

2008-07-13T18:13:00.000-07:00

Ever seen/tried one of these? They just showed up at the local QFC where we shop. I bought 2 to try and they sure don't taste like donuts, but they do taste good. Also called white peaches, I think. Fruits here are definately much better tasting than back home...sigh!

Happy 4th of July!

2008-07-13T08:53:00.000-07:00

We "celebrated" independence day by going out for lunch at T.G.I.F, missed the parade, watched WALL-E and later on at 10 p.m watched the fireworks down at the waterfront in Kirkland. It was 20 to 30 mins long and could see all the other fireworks display in the far off distance across Lake Washington. I know what you're thinking looking at the last pic...traitors!!

WHAZ...WE MOVZ AGAINZ?!?

2008-07-08T21:02:00.000-07:00

We've finally found a rental place to live after much looking around. I've pretty much scouted the whole eastside for apartments, houses and condos and we picked a condo right in downtown Kirkland. Our stuff will be moved next Thurs, then we'll probably move in with the cats around the beginning of August. Will put up pics soon!

What a treat.....We Have A Surprise Guest Blogger!!

2008-07-05T20:30:00.000-07:00

I'd like to welcome my guest blogger...KYLE!!! give it up!!

So, everybody wants to know how is and what is Kyle doing at work?

Kyle said:
Happy belated Canada Day!
Hello everyone, this is my first guest post on Abby's blog. If you
leave comments she will let me post again.
I had to work on Monday (July 1) but Microsoft had poutine in several
of the cafeterias to celebrate. They used up the last of the dark
poutine gravy making mine in the building 31 cafeteria. Yum!!
I have been trying to be useful at my new job. Since my 1.5 days of
NEO (new employee orientation ((..borg chip installed
successfully..))) I have been reading up on all the work in progress
and figuring out who is doing what. Microsoft is so big that no matter
what you think of there are at least of few people independently
working on it! I am in building 35 of the main campus.
The campus is very cool. There are many buildings and if a building is
too far to walk I can call a shuttle. The shuttle is often a Toyota
Prius with a driver. MS provides a bus pass so I can get to work in
about 25 minutes from Kirkland on the bus. I am usually at work from
about 8:30am to 6:10pm but the day flies by. I will be working on a
super secret project so keep watching this blog, I will make
announcements as I can in the future.
There are a lot of meetings here about everything. Strangely people
tend to show up about 5 minutes late for every meeting. I am not sure
why but I am usually the first person in any meeting! I am sure that I
will pick up the habit and start showing up fashionably late to all
future events.
Something very strange happened last week. I bought a ZUNE. I don't
know why. I just felt compelled to visit the employee store and
purchase a ZUNE and Vista ultimate edition. What is happening to me!

Well I hope to see you all soon.
Cheers,
Kyle

O CANADA!!!

2008-07-01T18:20:00.000-07:00

Happy Canada Day Everyone!!!

The Cats have settled in!

2008-06-26T12:32:00.000-07:00

The cats have finally adjusted to the 3 hour time difference, no more Frosty waking us up at 5 a.m in the morning!...sheesh. At temp housing, we also have temp furniture and the cats LOVE the microsuede sofa, tends to trap Beanie's fur, but it's not too bad. Frosty now sleeps under the duvet cover, something he never did back home...weird.

Oh! and we have a front loader washer! I remember we use to have one back in Malaysia. It was fun watching it wash for the first time, apparently Beanie was curious about this contraption as well. Kyle seems to think it washes better and our clothes come out cleaner. So yeah, we like it, too bad we can't take it with us.

Rainier Cherries!!!

2008-06-26T11:58:00.000-07:00

My parents warned me about how good these cherries are. They're pricey, between $5 to $6 per pound. Grown here in the northwest, Washington State, named after Mount Rainier? Usually available in June or July, they are yellow with a blush of red, yellow on the inside, sweet, but not too sweet. A very delicate flavour and crunchy!! delicious!! We finished it all in one sitting, it wasn't much :)

In and Around Kirkland, WA

2008-06-19T21:58:00.000-07:00

Couple of pics we took of the waterfront with its little pebbly beach. Everyone seems to have a boat and dog around here. There's also a Wednesday market from 2-7 p.m, lots of organic produce, head of broccoli $5!!!! and of course beautiful flowers.

So we've officially been here for 1 week, and nope, we haven't changed one bit. Maybe Kyle looks a little better looking (with a pay raise!! just kidding). Here we are at a Mexican restaurant "Jalisco", I had deep fried ice-cream for dessert YUM!

Temp Housing but not for long

2008-06-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

Microsoft has put us up in temp housing for about 2 months. It's a pretty nice place, pricey and great location. We're in a 1 bedroom and 1 bath 731 Sqft, but with the 2 cats, it's a little crowded. So my mission now is to find a bigger place, probably 2 bedroom and 2 bath, walking distance to stores and short commute for Kyle to the Microsoft Headquaters in Redmond.

Our view isn't great, we're looking at the "rock" face entrance to the garage. Too bad, cause Kirkland has a great waterfront, 3 min walk from our place, close to shops, library, community pool, QFC grocery and lots of restaurants. Here's some detailed info about Kirkland, WA if anyone is interested.

Here is our floor plan and link to the condo

When cats fly...Air Canada that is...

2008-06-15T19:51:00.000-07:00

So we've finally arrived in Seattle!!! Touch down on Thursday, June 12, 2008 at about 8 p.m (Pacific time zone). The packing and moving went better than expected. And the thing I was most worried about was the cats! My two cats Frosty and Beany survived the 5 hour flight and I was happy to say they were treated very well by the Air Canada personnel.

Prior to their travel, we were told they needed their vaccinations up to date and a health certificate dated 10 days before date of travel. Nobody asked us for any of these things! The main concern was the kennel they were travelling in: no wheels, has a moat and absorbent material, two dishes, metal doors and metal screws, but the requirements differ from airline to airline so be sure to check first!!

It cost $105 CDN for each pet in baggage hold as Air Canada does not accept pets in cabin anymore. Here is a pic of the cats arriving with all the baggage and being offered water before going onto the conveyer belt.

Our House...in the middle of the street

2008-05-31T12:45:00.000-07:00

Since we've both stopped working, Kyle's last day was May 9th and my last day was May 14th, we've been so busy trying to get the house ready for sale. Just things like putting in the last bit of trim in the study and guest room, some painting, organizing and cleaning. Kyle finally got his study all painted and organized, and now we have to move :(

Our house went up for sale on May 15th, sad seeing a "for sale" sign on

your frontyard. We decided to wait for offers till after the weekend. And on Monday we got two!! pretty exciting. We got the price we wanted and turned down the higher offer since one of the conditions of the closing date wasn't until the end of August. No sense in keeping the house empty for that long.

I'm going to miss this old house but I doubt we'd buy another place like this over 70 years old. It was 5.5 years of renovations, but I guess we learned a lot from it.

Busy in May

2008-05-31T10:41:00.000-07:00

We just got back from our 1 week all expenses paid :) scouting trip to Seattle to try and get some things organized. The flight from Toronto to Seattle is about a 5-6 hour trip not counting airport/traffic delays. The two main carriers that fly there are United Airways and Air Canada, the latter to which I prefer (more on that later). Driving there from Toronto will take approximately 1 day and 14 hours (4, 156 kms) see google maps: so I probably wouldn't recommend it...Dad!!!

We got a rental car from Avis, a yellow-2 door-ugly-as-hell-Chevy-Cobalt and stayed right downtown Seattle at the Hotel Vintage Park a Kimpton Hotel chain. Quite nice, great Italian restaurant attached and good location close to the interstate.

The next day we met with a relocation

representative who gave us some information about things like bank accounts, housing, driver's licensing, etc. and drove us around some different areas, namely Bellevue and Redmond. We managed to open a bank account at First Tech, a credit union formed specifically to serve those from out of town relocating to work with the big companies in Seattle like Boeing, Nintendo, Starbucks and Microsoft. Kyle applied for a Social Security number which takes 48 hours, which by then you could go pick up your number and in turn apply for a credit card with First Tech....voila!!

We also visited a Whole Foods Market, for those who've never heard of them, this grocery chain sells only natural and organic produce, meats and household items.

Everything is laid out just so and is very $$$. Other grocery stores in the area are Safeway, QFC, Larry's market, Fred Meyer's to name a few.

Also as part of this blog, I will be documenting my experience as a "canuck" entering the US as part of future reference for anyone else doing the same.

First things first, get my TD status or I-94 which allows me to accompany my spouse who's on a work visa in the US. We had to get this before we crossed the border at US immigration and it was not a problem. In addition to filling out the entry into the US form, I also had to fill out a "visa and visa holder" white form. Proof of marriage certificate is required and Kyle's TN visa which he acquired at the previous visit to the border. After immigration, we were sent to a mirrored room, which upon entering seemed just like any other waiting gate at the airport. We were asked to drop off our forms and have a seat as I needed to be fingerprinted. After about a 30 minute wait, I was called up, my form stamped with expiry date (1 year) and stapled to my passport.

Apparently I didn't need to be fingerprinted and was told I could not under any circumstances work in the US, yep, I knew that already. Then the officer informed me that I could try to apply for a I-688 with a letter of employment, but that I would probably be denied. No harm in trying I guess? will let you know how that goes once everything is settled. Overall, it took 45 minutes out of the regular check-in time, some people there were waiting longer and cutting it really close to their flight time.

As of now, I don't believe I can apply for a Social Security number, it takes 10 days before you're in the system, I need to have either an I-688 or Tax ID number, hence no credit card for me. BUT, I have held an American Express credit card here in Canada for some time, very rarely use it since it's not accepted at most places, and heard that I can convert it into a US credit card. Guess we'll see...

Here's a pic of me at the Athenian Inn, a restaurant at Pike Place market shown in the movie "Sleepless in Seattle" :) also notice my sleepless- in- Seattle- bags under my eyes...

Victoria Day/Moving Away Party!!

2008-05-26T02:13:00.000-07:00

The weekend before our house was sold, also known as the May 2-4 weekend, we had a casual "Victoria Day/Moving Away" party (May 19th). It was a cold day temperature wise, but we felt the warmth from our family, friends and neighbours, corny I know. Here's one for ya, "Friendship is like peeing your pants, everyone can see it, but only you can feel its warmth." from Wendy C's facebook profile.

We had burgers, hotdogs and beer with fireworks in the evening. Thanks to all that came, it was great seeing everyone and hope we get some visitors in Seattle soon!

We're Moving to the US of A!!!

2008-05-18T06:14:00.000-07:00

Well, it's official, we're moving to SEATTLE, WASHINGTON STATE!!!

As most of you already know, Kyle got a job at Microsoft and we've decided to make this BIG/HUGE change in our lives. What better time to do it! Our family and friends have been so supportive throughout it all, they've made the whole process a whole lot easier :)/:(

Kyle got his TN visa this past Wednesday, so we're good to go!! I will be getting my TD status when we go over to Seattle for a short visit before we make the big move.

A little timeline here, for my sake as well, so when I look back later I can see how fast things have moved along.

February 2008:

*Told close friends and family Kyle might be considering a position at Microsoft in Seattle, WA.

March 2008:

*Went to Japan for 2 weeks, came back on March 20th

*March 29th was Kyle's interview with Microsoft. I decided to tag along for the weekend, just in case. Good thing I did!! here are some pics:

April 2008: Kyle heard back from Microsoft pretty much right away on April fool's day. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Why the title?

2008-04-11T20:26:00.000-07:00

In case I get any Q's about this. WHY the title: Birds, Bean and Broccoli? There's no rhyme or reason to it really, well, maybe it rhymes a little.

BEAN, is short for Beany, one of my cats, here she is --->

Then, there's also Frosty, but we'll get to him later.

So there you have it. Clear as mud.

My first post!!

2008-04-11T20:06:00.000-07:00

What better time to start a blog than NOW? there's going to be big changes in our lives pretty soon, in a good way :), I think. But more of that news to come, will keep you posted.