So built we the wall...

... and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof, for the people had a mind to work.

Nehemiah 4:6

The new wall, with a local model mugging for the camera...



Perhaps it's not a fair comparison, but the wall reno project at times seemed to take on epic proportions, and this old memory verse from my days with Teen Missions International has been coming to mind a lot. At last, the wall is officially done, as of last weekend. Our tenant now can actually use about 30 square feet of her living room that up until now has sat empty.

The wall was not without its trials and tribulations (like its biblical counterpart): most significantly was when Elijah decided to "fix" a newly wired outlet when daddy had his back turned. He bridged the screw contacts on either side of the outlet with a pair of pliers - and knocked himself on his butt with the shock. The pliers partially melted as a result. I felt absolutely sick, but there were no lasting effects, aside from the fact that Elijah now listens when daddy says not to play with electrical outlets. The technical term for this is "single trial learning."

The wall wasn't complete when they came, but we had a lovely visit with Jan and Cindy. Soon the guest room will be completely in order, so we expect the rest of you to put in an appearance!

In the swing of things

We are continuing to settle in out here in suburbia. The wall is officially done (cheers in the background from Val), meaning we can move on to other projects (moans in the background from Dennis). Next up is installing a washer/dryer in the suite, and assembling a wardrobe for clothes storage... and unpacking boxes of books, now that our bookcases have found their final resting places (one goes along the new wall, so it has hereto been in limbo).

Some recent pics for your enjoyment (the last download from the camera seemed to have a "swinging" theme:

Our wee jumper, who also happens to be jolly...



We had a family outing a while back - complete with swings, a merry-go-round, and ice cream at the 7-11. Elijah had a great time.



Quite the pair of cuties!

A Day for Davin

It may just be second-child empathy, but it seems to me that Davin has been getting somewhat short shrift with the photos on our blog. So, here's a selection of recent pics of our darling girl!

It's so easy to get a big smile from her, especially when I've just come home from work!



Every now and then I try to get a photo of her where she's not smiling. We've started to put her up in a high chair, and I think she's enjoying being at Elijah's level during mealtimes.



Tonight was Davin's first experience of solid food - some rice cereal. It was so much fun to watch her reaction to the sensation of a new taste & texture. Davin warmed up to the idea pretty quickly - trying to jam a cereal-laden spoon into her mouth on her own - with only partial accuracy! I'm hoping this is a sign that we will have two good eaters...

Fun & games at the new house

We are settled in a bit more out here now, although there is still a ways to go. I have been busy building a wall for our suite (we have a tenant already), and Val has her hands full with the kids. Some added fun this week was that the old washing machine that came with the house gave up the ghost. Our new set came today - swanky front loaders that look like they should control the space shuttle as well as wash & dry clothes. We decided a higher quality set was worth the $$ because we have years of baby/toddler laundry ahead...

Some recent pictures for your enjoyment:

Val and the kids



Our "wee controller" playing with his new Thomas wooden train set, with an engineer-in-waiting watching intently



Tub time



Jumping on mommy & daddy's bed - a new favourite pastime, and a good way to tire him out before bed...



Coming home from our (almost) daily bicycle trailer ride. Tonight we went to a new play park not far from our house. There is a nice paved trail down by a river close by where we can go feed ducks, go over bridges, and "go fast, Daddy, go fast." It seems that cycle commuting is only the beginning of my daily exercise regimen - but Daddy likes it as much as Elijah.



My reno project. It seems we can never buy a house that needs nothing! (At least this house needs LESS than the old one). This is the new wall that separates our new downstairs den/guest room from the suite. Our first guests Jan & Cindy are coming soon, and I'm hoping to have the drywall completely done by then.