Brothers!

I have such talented brothers! One is good with a camera, the other with tools... Check out their websites and see for yourself!

Rob is the photographer with an eye for great shots! Book him for weddings, special events or just for a great family photo! www.robwhelanphotography.com

Ed is the carpenter who can do anything your home needs! Experienced with century homes and complete renovations (and so many other things I have no clue about!). www.bayshorescarpentry.blogspot.com

And last but not least...if you need childcare...I guess that's me! Bilingual, experienced with special needs, a love for the outdoors and children of all shapes and sizes. I'm not planning on going back to work...so send your half-pints to me to play with Sophie!

Christmas - A Year in Review

Dear Family and Friends,

I am finally on Christmas holiday! I thought I’d send a note out to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year. It’s been a busy year and I have a few stories to share.

January brought me another maternity leave with the school board, steady, predictable work until June! I love working with the special needs children.

In April David, my boyfriend, moved to Orangeville to share a home with Oakley and I. It has made our home a warmer place and the dishes and laundry get done more often! David, for anyone who hasn’t yet met him, is a great guy. His family lives in Orangeville and Shelburne, he works in construction (special talents in drywall) and is applying to teachers college for September. Oakley just loves him. In July, the Durham’s (David’s family) had their big family BBQ and our parents finally met each other.

David and I joined Big Tyme Boxing gym in May. I have been learning how to work out, skip and run, while punching the heavy bags. I recently got headgear and bigger gloves to go into the ring and spar against other people. I thought I was in shape until I was trying to duck punches in the ring!

August finally brought my Girl Guide trip to Switzerland. We travelled for 2 weeks in the area of Adelboden. We stayed at the World Guiding center: Our Chalet. During this trip I learned the true meaning of hiking. Hours and hours every day we walked straight uphill or straight downhill to get to our activity! I came home with great memories of laughing and meeting new people, fabulous pictures and great legs!

During October David and I worked toward earning our motorcycle license. We took a course through Humber College and both passed the M2 test. It was so much fun riding those little bikes around the parking lot and weaving through the different obstacles. I can’t wait to buy a bike in the spring to ride around town! Speaking of vehicles, in November we replaced David’s aging truck (it was old enough to drive itself!) with a shiny red Dodge Dakota. That little truck is fun to drive in all our new snow!

So, now it’s time for me to sit back with a festive drink and wait for Santa to show up.

Merry Christmas!
Jacquie, David and Oakley

Orion

Oakley and I have found a new little guy to share our home. His name is Orion. A red-eared slider... Anyone who knows me at all shouldn't be surprised that I got a turtle! He is just so darn cute! Oakley keeps leaving nose prints on the glass. There is also a phenomenally fast snail in the tank, so we named it Mustang Sally.

New Tag

Oakley has a new tag. She passed all the tests and supervised visits at the Orangeville seniors residences. She is a great therapy dog. She brings smiles to all the seniors faces. They don't even have to bend over to reach her! She loves that they all play with her silky ears. Already several seniors have said "Oh, there's MY dog!".

Now that Oakley has her tag we can visit as often as we like, when it fits into our already busy schedule. She gets a lot of extra practise going to Girl Guide meetings and camps...the kids love her too!

Blogger Pain!

Okay...it's been a while...I couldn't log in to Blogger to get info out!

Christmas was wicked...girls, the pics are in my photo album...go get 'em!

Another Family Member!

Avery Charlotte has arrived in the Whelan family. She was born November 16, 2006 at 3:52 a.m. She weighed in at 8 lbs 4 oz! Jen (mom) and Ed (my brother, dad) are proud as can be...and Jaiden is excited too! I can't wait to meet her...and corrupt her!

New Family Members

Today saw the arrival of 3 new family members to add to Oakley and I! Fric, Frac and Frog are albino frogs who will live in the living room...happy to be clean and fed. They come to us from a friend who didn't want to clean their tank any longer...