You win some, you lose some

January 16, 2011 By

Our stake recently experienced some major boundary changes. For those not in the know, each LDS ward is part of a stake (which is usually comprised of about seven different congregations). Members are expected to attend their assigned ward that is based on geography.

We have been in one of the smallest wards in our stake, which poses its own kind of problems when it comes to filling positions (i.e. teachers, leaders, etc). But with the boundary realignment, we are now the third largest. Today was like a joyous reunion as many dear friends now fall within our boundaries.

The children’s Primary classes are divided by age group. Much to her chagrin, all of Hadley’s besties are in the 7-year-old class and she is with the 6-year-olds. We have been in this ward for several years and there has never been another girl her age. She was desperately hoping for a change so I was encouraged when she announced:

“I have some good news and some bad news!”
“Tell me!”
“Well, the good news is Ethan is no longer in our ward.”
“That’s the good news? What’s the bad news?”
“We got a new boy in his place.”

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Hadley, Humor

A cross-country skiing resolution

January 13, 2011 By

Just the other day I was whining about how homesick I am for cross-country skiing my golf course in Canada. Then, as I was driving Haddie to school yesterday, I surveyed the expansive soccer fields located just below my house.

For the first time ever, I noticed someone had carved a cross-country ski track around the perimeter. Elated, I resolved, “I AM GOING CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING TODAY.”

I took Bode to preschool, and raced home to find my skis. But here’s a little problem: I haven’t been cross-country skiing since I moved to Colorado. Though my beloved husband is an advanced alpine skier, he had “The Incident” when I took him cross-country skiing for the first time on my golf course several years ago.

“The Incident” being that he fell over sideways and claimed he got a concussion.

At 0.00005 mile per hour, I don’t think that is even possible.

After some digging in the garage, I found my cross-country skis and poles but my boots were MIA.

So, I had a glorious day snowshoeing instead.


But I now have a New Year’s resolution: Do more cross-country skiing.

And get organized so as to make that happen.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Colorado, Humor, skiing Tagged With:

Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

January 11, 2011 By

Confession: My absolutely favorite conditions are the day after we’ve had a big dump of snow and the morning dawns bright, glistening and beautiful.

Monday was that day.

My preference is indisputably attributed to my Canadian upbringing. I’m never more homesick than when it snows and I’m unable to go cross-country skiing on my golf course or ice skating on Lake Bonavista with my dad.

I recreated a little cut of home by making my mom’s famous oatmeal-coconut chocolate chip cookies and hot chocolate with fresh whipped cream. As luck would have it, Bode does not have preschool on Mondays and Hadley only had to go to school for a 15-minute reading assessment so we invited our besties Alex and Seanie over for a playdate.

My fun started by shoveling the driveway and sidewalk early that morning. And yes, this is my idea of a fun and enjoyable workout. I’d take fresh, crisp air over a germ-infested, sweaty gym any day.

It’s our tradition every winter to build and tunnel out a snow cave. This was the Hurricane in 2009.


My, what a difference a couple of years makes.


We recruited Sean and Alex to help us build.


And we even constructed a slide on it as well.


It was a much-needed day at play in balmy 25-degree F temps with our beloved friends whom we haven’t seen since before winter break.

Though after spending a few hours with Alex, I started to get worried when she made the suggestion:

“Why don’t we make snow angels face-first instead of on our backs?”

Call me a naysayer but that didn’t sound like one stitch of fun and I figured I’d let her learn that the hard way.

And she did after five seconds of her self-imposed Freezee-to-the-Face.

“OK, NEVER MIND, NEVER MIND!” she screamed as icicles formed on her eyebrows.


She would make a great Canuck.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Bode, Colorado, Hadley, Humor

So it begins (the ski season, that is)

January 10, 2011 By

We’re in the throes of ski season and are having a grand ol’ time. Last week, we hit Echo Mountain (details forthcoming), two weeks ago, it was Park City Mountain Resort and in a few weeks we’ll be skiing Telluride followed by Crested Butte Mountain Resort.

My torn meniscus is throbbing just thinking about it all.

When we were at Park City Mountain Resort, we enrolled the kids in their their Signature 3 and 5 ski school classes. Bode was delighted to meet THE “Frosty the Snowman” (he had the name tag to prove it) while Hadley was greeted by a fun-loving instructor:

“Hadley, I am going to be your butler today. Do you know what a butler is?”
She shook her head.
“I will do anything you want and will also bring you hot cocoa.”

He has hereby set the bar too high for all future suitors.

With the children happily in their classes, Jamie and I braced ourselves for the onslaught of holiday skiers but were shocked to practically have the mountain to ourselves for the first two hours.

Around 11 a.m., the lines started picking up but we didn’t care. We had found some great stashes of untracked powder that the resort had received in the last 24 hours and marveled at the unprecedented 84-inch base that early in the season.

For lunch, we had the best burger and nachos on this earth at Legends Bar & Grill (I exaggerate not. Jamie spends the entire year craving these bad boys). We skied a fun runs after that but we knew it was time to call it a day as we stood in the long line at the Silverlode lift. Some funky music was blasting and my husband muttered something to me.

Me: “What did you say? You want to sing the blues?”
Jamie “No, I said ‘I want to see the Boos!” (Our nickname for the children).

I blamed it on the helmet…and blond hair underneath it.

We retrieved two very jubilant children whose instructors had filled out a through progress report for us to track. Bode’s teacher said he had a great attitude and was working on stopping with a wedge (though he excelled at going straight). This was not a surprise.

We did, after all, name him after ski racing legend Bode Miller.

As for Hadley, she learned how to skate ski across flat terrain and mastered linking her wedge turns. She is apparently already plotting her escape from us.

“Mommy, how old do I have to be to ski without you and Daddy?”

And so it begins.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Bode, Family travel, Hadley, Humor, Utah

Snow Day!

January 9, 2011 By


It’s about time Colorado figured out it is winter.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Colorado, Hadley

My Carbon Copy

January 8, 2011 By

My mom is not a computer person so she rarely reads my blog. My Dad keeps her apprised of our happenings but evidently my previous post about my spirited, hilarious and head-strong daughter was a must-read because she called me to discuss.

Or rather, she called to gloat.

“HADLEY IS JUST LIKE YOU!!!!”

For a mother, it is called “Payback….”

(Photo: Adventure Girl’s first time snowshoeing at age 3 at Avalanche Ranch. Even then she was smack-talking me).

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Hadley, Humor

A force to be reckoned with

January 7, 2011 By

Hadley. She is a wonderful, wild girl.

Sometimes I see so much of myself in her that it frightens me. The good (fun), the bad (opinionated) –it’s all condensed in one six-year-old package that I hope will turn out so much better than I ever was.

While she loves dressing up and looking like a girl, she does not like girl things. When I shop for her toys, I go to the boy section for dinosaurs and animals.

But on a recent (and rare) shopping trip to a department store, she was delighted to follow me around trying on clothes. We spent about a half-hour smelling perfumes, after which she signed, “I just love being a girl.”

She should totally write a song about it.

Hadley is a terribly complicated little thing who has loads of friends but is not afraid to tell it like it is, occasionally stepping on toes.

Or knocking people over.

Case in point: recess.

“I usually just like to play with the boys at recess,” she professed to me the other day.
“Why is that?”
“The girls don’t like playing my games. The boys do. They’re fun.”

I knew what game she was talking about. She and Bode LOVE Super Mario and his dinosaur sidekick, Yoshi. Haddie invented a game, Yoshi, where she (or someone else) chases kids around the school grounds trying to tag them whilst yelling “YOSHI HUNGRY!”

Gotta recognize the creativity in that kid.

Problem is she has allegedly recruited so many kids to play that it grew rough and violent. Another confession:

“Our teacher banned our whole class from playing Yoshi.”

I didn’t know whether I should be upset or proud.

We recently introduced the kids to A Christmas Story, my all-time favorite holiday movie. I’ve wanted to watch it since I babysat two of my rambunctious neighborhood boys and they announced they asked Santa for a BB Gun for Christmas.

Here’s for hoping their Santa’s reaction is the same as the one on the movie.

Hadley’s favorite part of the movie was when poor Flick got his tongue stuck on the frozen pole.

“What was it they said to dare him, Mommy?”
“Double-dog dare.”

All night long, she kept quizzing me, trying to commit it to memory.


I pray for the playground kids now that The Hurricane has returned from Christmas break.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Hadley, Humor Tagged With:

Back to the grind and my forray into Indian cooking

January 6, 2011 By

After a wonderful winter break, the kiddos are back in school. I am amazed at how much work I can finally get done in the three hours Bode is in preschool.

I may just go into shock when he’s in school full-time.

To those mothers who feel lost when this milestone hits? Welp, ICan’tRelate.

Because these are treasured, fleeting days, I try my very darnedest to get my work done before they wake up in the mornings and while they’re in school. That way when they come home, we can delve into whatever activity we have planned.

This month, they’re doing swim lessons twice a week. My little fish Haddie is progressing toward joining the swim team next year. And Bode? Welp, he flunked the Minnows class last summer because he refused to put his face in the water.

And yep, he gets that from me.

We’ve also been spending time in the kitchen. Bode made chocolate chip cookies for the first time yesterday and I’ve been cooking up a storm from my new Indian cookbook Jamie gave me for Christmas.

Though I’m trying to figure out for whom that gift was really designated.

I remember once upon a time when I wanted frivolous presents. My, what a difference a few years make because this bureau was what Jamie and I gave each other.


Y’all can have your jewels and fancy electronics. This organizational system for our mail and miscellaneous items has given me a much needed gift: sanity.

I wish I could say my ethnic cooking is going as well. The last few years, Jamie and I have become moderately obsessed with Indian food. Every time I return home to Calgary (where there is a large East Indian and Pakistani population), I curse that I never capitalized on it in my youth. Not only are there some killer restaurants but our grocery stores are chock-full of glorious Garam Masala-esque products vs. the Mexican-heavy offerings in the U.S.

It seemed only natural to learn how to make our own so on Tuesday, I attempted Adraki Murgh Tikki (ginger chicken bites) and Naan Bread. Last night, I made our family’s favorite to celebrate back-to-school: Chicken Tikka Masala.

I pride myself on being a pretty good cook but Indian food calls for entirely different ingredients that will require me to track down a specialty market. And then there are the funky methods of cooking include cheese clothes (huh?), “Tadka” (tempering), “Dum” (steaming) and Tandoori. Normally Naan bread is made in a clay oven but knowing the book is targeted to Gringos, the author suggested broiling it on the top rack.

I don’t know if you’ve ever done this but here’s a little insight: Food gets done VERY quickly when using this method.

And yes, dinner was served when the smoke alarm went off.

Next stop: Our local Indian restaurant.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Bode, Hadley, Humor

Christmas in pictures

January 4, 2011 By

As chaotic as it is to travel for Christmas, our vacation was surprisingly low-key. We spent a few days with Grandma and Grandpa, which, of course, included Christmas morning.

The pillage of the stockings.

We opened most of our presents before flying to Utah but Santa was in charge of bringing the most desired presents. A Criss-cross Hot Wheels Track for the boy.


And Zhu-Zhu pets for the girl.

These battery-operated hamsters are about as close as I’ll ever get to allowing rodents in my home.

I am remiss I didn’t get more pictures of Jamie’s family, especially these darling cousins.


Though getting them to pose together was nearly impossibly because Berkley kept rubbing in the fact that she can crawl.

Of course, a trip to Salt Lake City over the holidays would not be complete without visiting Temple Square, arguably one of the most beautiful places on earth at Christmastime.


Our Christmas miracle is that not one of us got sick. However, we somehow still got blamed for infecting Jamie’s sister’s family when she came down with strep the day we left for Park City Mountain Resort. I mean, just look at this clan. Do you really think we’d be capable of such a thing?

Then again, don’t answer that.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: Family, holidays, Utah

How to realize your true potential in 2011 (just call me Oprah)

January 3, 2011 By

I’ve never been one to make New Year’s resolutions for the primary reason that I’m not good at keeping them. Don’t get me wrong: I’m a goal-making, ambitious gal but I’ve never met a New Year’s resolution I liked, primarily because there seems to be a healthy dose of guilt associated with not keeping it.

Well, with the exception of the year I resolved (and learned how) to use chopsticks.

Lesson learned: Aim low.

As I’ve been reflecting back upon 2010, I’ve been amazed at how incredibly blessed my family has been professionally and personally. The year kicked off when I was chosen as Microsoft Office’s accredited blogger at the 2010 Vancouver games. Our whirlwind has not stopped as we’ve traveled the world and have learned invaluable lessons at home.

In fact, so extraordinary were our experiences that I’ve been dreading 2011, thinking, “I can’t possibly top the year we’ve had,” or, for the first time in my life, I’ve been filled with worry,”This must mean the bottom will be falling out soon.”

Both sentiments are an anomaly for a glass-half-full kinda gal.

Then, I saw the light. I was deeply moved as I read Oprah’s January 2011 editorial in O magazine. She talked candidly about the end of her show’s 25-year run and the fear she initially had about launching a network of shows on OWN (which debuted January 1):

In July I read a Vanity Fair article about the making of Michael Jackson’s album Thriller. The piece quoted some of Michael’s friends saying that one of the his biggest mistakes was never realizing that Thriller’s becoming the number-one-selling album in history was a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon. And because he didn’t realize that, he spent the rest of his life chasing that success.

Reading that was a big aha for me. The reason I had wavered was fear: I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to duplicate what I’ve done. But as I thought about Michael Jackson, I began to see that not only can you not duplicate success, you’re not supposed to. Every new endeavor is created out of the quality of energy you bring to it and is meant to be its own thing.

I totally get it.

I spent my final semester of college on a study abroad in the Middle East. Our campus was on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem and we traveled frequently around the region. We floated in the Dead Sea and slept in cabanas by the Sea of Galilee. We roamed through Petra’s ancient wonders in Jordan and we climbed Mount Sinai to witness the sunrise. We marveled at the Great Pyramids and sailed the Nile at sunset.

Upon the completion of my studies, I stopped over in Europe with a few of my friends. We backpacked five countries in two weeks and had the time of our lives. One of our final destinations was Switzerland. We stayed at a hostel in Interlaken, the country’s outdoor Mecca. After a day of rafting the mighty Lütschine, we talked late into the night with some fellow travelers.

One of them was named Ralph. He was charming, athletic and drop-dead gorgeous. He was a mail carrier from Australia who had saved up his money for a year-long adventure abroad. He was going home the next morning. Feeling remorseful about the end of my own travels, I asked him how he thought he would adjust back to his humdrum life after being given a glimpse of the world. His answer still resonates today:

“Before this trip, I was always planning my next great adventure. It has taken this trip to help me realize there is so much close to home I have yet to experience. My next great adventures will be in my own backyard for many years to come.”

Whether you’ve had one of the worst or best years of your life, here’s to a New Year that is not dedicated to topping the “old” but ushering in whatever “new” lies in your path. And for expressing gratitude for what you already have.

© Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck–A Denver Mom’s Blog
Filed Under: travel
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