My Birth Bill

I was born at the Toronto East General Hospital and I have proof to confirm it. The above bill shows that my Mom and I were in the hospital for 14 days...apparently that was normal in those days....and, notice the total cost for a two week hospital maternity stay was a whopping $72.60 and, I had to pay $36.30 towards that before they let me go home! 

Iris the Wife

These beautiful flowers were always in our gardens when I was a young lad. I can remember my dad commenting on how beautiful they were. It wasn't till recently when I was doing some family genealogy that I discovered that my Dad's first wife was named " Iris". I guess these flowers were a small tribute to her. He must have had a thing for flowers....his second wife, my mother, was named "Violet". 

Identify Please!

Can you identify this flower and it's famous seed pod? These are growing in a flower box just outside our condo complex. (Perhaps for medicinal purposes) 

What a Big Bath!

Summer fun has started!!! 

Here...smell this!

Please feel free to suggest your own caption for this photo....just add it to the comments below.

First Mother's Day

Karen and Judy get to celebrate their first Mother's Day today. (I'm afraid it won't be a day of liesure.) They are both such good moms and the two little gaffs love their mommies dearly. What's with the finger in the mouth thing? 

"Rosie" (1910 - 2004)

"Rosie's" Birthday was 11 May 1910.

Tricia's mom was always smiling and ever ready for a party! When her birthday fell on Mother's Day,it was a very special day for her. Her motto was "Live, Laugh, and Love".....a motto that she has passed on to all of her family.

Eight more Wood Ducks

The Wood Duck is one of the most colourful birds you'll ever find. Of course it is the mature male who holds all the beauty. If you look deeper into my blog you will see a nice picture of a mature male Wood Duck. I wonder how many of these guys will become one of those beauties? 

Stand still Please!!

Cows are such good subjects for the camera. I don't hink I needed a 1/200th second shutter speed to capture this fast mover! Even her tail wasn't swaying. Two questions....Is this where chocolate milk comes from?....Is this momma possibly having a baby? 

Can You Smell the Lilac?

When I was a wee lad living in Toronto, we had a 'forest' of Lilacs at the back of our yard. There were trails and hiding places throughout the 'forest' and as kids we played there often. I have since always liked the beauty and smell of Lilac and always had fond memories of my "Lilac Forest". Until....a few years ago my sister suggested I revisit the old 'homestead'. Our home in Toronto was on a 25' postage size lot...the "Lilac Forest" couldn't have been much bigger than a few bushes. Oh well, I still have fond memories when ever I see a Lilac. How does one hide in a Lilac bush? 

Jacob's First Studio Picture

Looks like a born model. I'm sure he'll have more trips to the picture studio, just to supplement all the pictures his mom and dad and grandparents take!!! 

Too Damn Cute!!!

Teo just turned six months old on May 7th and he's just starting to sit up. Before we know it he'll be standing up and doing walkabouts. 

Yoko and the Kamikura's

Last night we attended a concert featuring the "Sakura Singers". Yoko, on the left, Weily's mom, had invited us to the concert at which she was a participant in the ladies chorus. Also in the chorus was Joyce Kamikura. Joyce and her husband Roger lived in the old neighbourhood where our kids and their kids first went to school....about 30 years ago. We were good friends in those early days but had drifted a little over the years. Last night was another one of those "small world" instances. The concert, all in Japanese, included mens and ladies mixed chorus, womens chorus, soprano soloists, piano solo,and a violin duet. It was quite enjoyable and as I said to Yoko and Joyce, it brought my cultural side up a little bit. 

Future Ball Player?

I could tell tell you Teo is sitting here on the players bench but you can probably see that he is in his stroller and just watching the goings on all around him. But he sure looks like he's ready to play! 

Ambidextrous?

This is one of Jacob's favourite toys.....nothing like a ball that you can get a grip on. Here he has it in his mouth while holding it with both hands and both feet. I guess that would be "penti-dextrous". 

The Soo is Sold

Off the Soo goes into the wild blue yonder. New owners set out to take their new boat home to Vancouver. They say that the two happiest days of a boat owner are the day you buy a boat and the day you sell a boat. Hopefully we have two happy boaters here today. (I'm on the dock taking pictures, not sure whether I'm happy or not.) Hope they remember to put the antennas up.