Two more days!

So after our vacation last year was so rudely interrupted by a hussy hurricane named Irene, we're heading back down to the Jersey Shore to have a ball once more and enjoy those wild, wild Wildwood days. As of Saturday we're on our way. I will still blog from down there maybe share a pic or two ... but after a really busy August (couldn't you tell?) and of course we then had to get hopelessly ill this past week, I can honestly pat ourselves on the back and say this vacation is well deserved.

All systems go ...

Two more ... Harry Potter Series done!

Over my last 10-day absence I also managed to finish the last two Harry Potter books - "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows".

1. Deadlocked - Charlaine Harris 
2. The Last Week - Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan
3. Speaking Christian - Why Christian Words Have Lost their Meaning - Marcus J. Borg
4. The Spiral Staircase - Karen Armstrong
5. A History of God - Karen Armstrong
6. jPod - Douglas Coupland
7. Beloved - Toni Morrison
8. 'Tis - Frank McCourt
9. We Need to Talk about Kevin - Lionel Shriver
10. The Constant Princess - Phillipa Gregory
11. Wicked - Gregory Maguire
12. The Six Wives of Henry the 8th - Alison Weir
13. Eleanor of Aquitaine - Alison Weir
14. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J.K. Rowling
15. The Fellowship of the Ring - J.R.R. Tolkien
16. The Two Towers - J.R.R. Tolkien
17. The Return of the King - J.R.R. Tolkien
18. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K. Rowling
19. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J.K. Rowling
20. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling
21. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling
22. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
23. Dracula - Bram Stoker
24. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling
25. The Inferno - Dante
26. Towelhead - Alicia Erian
27. Ready Player One - Ernest Cline
28. The Way the Crow Flies - Ann-Marie MacDonald
29. The Robber Bride - Margaret Atwood
30. 1066 and All That; A Memorable History of England - W.C. Sellar and R.J. Yeatman
31. Have a Little Faith - Mitch Albom
32. Anansi Boys - Neil Gaiman
33. American Gods - Neil Gaiman
34. Stardust - Neil Gaiman
35. Tess of the d'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
36. The Holy Bible - Various
37. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
38. Little Women - Louisa May Alcott
39. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
40. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
41. Deception Point - Dan Brown
42. Digital Fortress - Dan Brown
43. The Five Love Languages - Gary Chapman
44. Lolita - Vladimir Nobokov
45. Atonement - Ian McEwan
46. All the King's Men - Robert Penn Warren
47. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
48. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins
49. The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
50. Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe
51. A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
52. Scarlett - Alexandra Ripley
53. White Noise - Don De Litto
54. Their Eyes were Watching God - Zora Neale Hurston
55. Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins
56. The Help - Kathryn Stockett
57. Ragtime - E.L. Doctorow
58. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
59. The Trial - Franz Kafka
60. Fast Food Nation - Eric Schlasser
61. The Man Who Made Us - Richard Gwyn
62. Memoirs - Pierre Trudeau
63. Shake Hands with the Devil - Romeo d'Allaire
64. Team of Rivals - Doris Kearns Goodwin
65. Nation Maker - Richard Gwyn
66. The United Church of Canada: A History - Don Schweitzer (ed.)
67. Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
68. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
69. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe - Douglas Adams
70. Life, the Universe and Everything - Douglas Adams
71. So Long and Thanks for All the Fish - Douglas Adams
72. Mostly Harmless - Douglas Adams
73. Committed - Elizabeth Gilbert
74. The Manticore - Robertson Davies
75. World of Wonders - Robertson Davies
76. The Donnellys - James Reaney
77. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
78. Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
79. Farenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
80. Not Wanted on the Voyage - Timothy Findlay
81. A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
82. Coraline - Neil Gaiman
83. The Crucible - Arthur Miller
84. Mirror Mirror - Gregory Maguire
85. Eats, Shoots & Leaves - Lynne Truss
86. Sorbonne Confidential - Laurel Zuckerman
87. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson
88. The Silver Linings Playbook - Matthew Quick
89. Hey Nostradamus! - Douglas Coupland
90. The Girl who Played with Fire - Stieg Larsson
91. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
92. The 5 People You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom
93. The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver
94. Interview with the Vampire - Ann Rice
95. The Diary of a Young Girl - Anne Frank
96. The Bonfire of the Vanities - Tom Wolfe
97. Guys and Dolls - Damon Runyon
98. The Girl who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson
99. He's Just Not that Into You - Greg Behrendt, Liz Tuccillo, Lauren Monchik
100. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Jonathan Safran Foer
101. Jesus for the Non-Religious - John Shelby Spong

The ending of this series is quite bittersweet as it was really appropriate and satisfying, but man do I want more! :) By now, the Harry Potter books are decidedly young adult/adult fare as opposed to out-and-out children's fare - indeed, these last two books could frighten and disturb your seven- and eight-year-old crowd as much as entertain them, and the characters even indulge in a bit of ... ahem ... cursing (linguistically, not magically) as they get older (which is only realistic). But that's the beauty of this series ... to the extent a book about a wizarding school can be called 'realistic', at its core this is a coming of age story about a young boy (man) and his friends, love interests, etc. 

The ultimate climax of this series is of course the inevitable war between evil Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters, and the resistance, including Hogwarts teachers and students, the Order of the Phoenix, and of course, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger themselves. These books will not leave a dry eye as beloved and long-standing characters meet their end, friendships are tested, and yes - spoiler alert - good ultimately triumphs (albeit not without pain). This series has been a fun read, difficult to put down, even for a 30-year-old woman (not exactly its target audience), and I would highly recommend it to the few of us living under rocks who have yet to read it. :) Enjoy!

Happy Birthday Little J

So only a month or two after promising to blog more regularly, sure enough I go ten days without doing so ... my apologies. It has been a busy couple of weeks as we went back to our hometown, then a weekend away thanks to my mom watching the boys, and then this past weekend ... well ...

Yes. You see the title. Our youngest baby turned 2 yesterday. It was a great celebration with my parents (all four of them), my in-laws, and my grandmother, lots of fun gifts, food, drink, gifts ... and lots of fun. :) I wish my not-so-little boy a great year ahead, and can't wait to see the growing and adventures he finds himself getting into.

Mommy loves you, Little J, very, very much.

Amazing video of her Majesty the Queen ...

This year marks Elizabeth II's 60th year on the British (and Canadian) throne. This video beautifully captures her growing up from the cute-as-a-button daughter of a Duke and Duchess who were never meant to become monarchs, to the present day as she celebrates her own Diamond Jubilee. Amazing - with thanks to my stepmother Monique for sharing.

The Order off the Phoenix - Cross it off the list.

Another week, another Harry Potter book off my list - this time #5, the Order of the Phoenix.

1. Deadlocked - Charlaine Harris2. The Last Week - Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan
3. Speaking Christian - Why Christian Words Have Lost their Meaning - Marcus J. Borg
4. The Spiral Staircase - Karen Armstrong
5. A History of God - Karen Armstrong
6. jPod - Douglas Coupland
7. Beloved - Toni Morrison
8. 'Tis - Frank McCourt
9. We Need to Talk about Kevin - Lionel Shriver
10. The Constant Princess - Phillipa Gregory
11. Wicked - Gregory Maguire
12. The Six Wives of Henry the 8th - Alison Weir
13. Eleanor of Aquitaine - Alison Weir
14. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J.K. Rowling
15. The Fellowship of the Ring - J.R.R. Tolkien
16. The Two Towers - J.R.R. Tolkien
17. The Return of the King - J.R.R. Tolkien
18. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K. Rowling
19. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J.K. Rowling
20. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling
21. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling
22. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
23. Dracula - Bram Stoker
24. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling
25. The Inferno - Dante
26. Towelhead - Alicia Erian
27. Ready Player One - Ernest Cline
28. The Way the Crow Flies - Ann-Marie MacDonald
29. The Robber Bride - Margaret Atwood
30. 1066 and All That; A Memorable History of England - W.C. Sellar and R.J. Yeatman
31. Have a Little Faith - Mitch Albom
32. Anansi Boys - Neil Gaiman
33. American Gods - Neil Gaiman
34. Stardust - Neil Gaiman
35. Tess of the d'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
36. The Holy Bible - Various
37. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
38. Little Women - Louisa May Alcott
39. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
40. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
41. Deception Point - Dan Brown
42. Digital Fortress - Dan Brown
43. The Five Love Languages - Gary Chapman
44. Lolita - Vladimir Nobokov
45. Atonement - Ian McEwan
46. All the King's Men - Robert Penn Warren
47. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
48. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins
49. The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
50. Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe
51. A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
52. Scarlett - Alexandra Ripley
53. White Noise - Don De Litto
54. Their Eyes were Watching God - Zora Neale Hurston
55. Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins
56. The Help - Kathryn Stockett
57. Ragtime - E.L. Doctorow
58. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
59. The Trial - Franz Kafka
60. Fast Food Nation - Eric Schlasser
61. The Man Who Made Us - Richard Gwyn
62. Memoirs - Pierre Trudeau
63. Shake Hands with the Devil - Romeo d'Allaire
64. Team of Rivals - Doris Kearns Goodwin
65. Nation Maker - Richard Gwyn
66. The United Church of Canada: A History - Don Schweitzer (ed.)
67. Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
68. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
69. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe - Douglas Adams
70. Life, the Universe and Everything - Douglas Adams
71. So Long and Thanks for All the Fish - Douglas Adams
72. Mostly Harmless - Douglas Adams
73. Committed - Elizabeth Gilbert
74. The Manticore - Robertson Davies
75. World of Wonders - Robertson Davies
76. The Donnellys - James Reaney
77. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
78. Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
79. Farenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
80. Not Wanted on the Voyage - Timothy Findlay
81. A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
82. Coraline - Neil Gaiman
83. The Crucible - Arthur Miller
84. Mirror Mirror - Gregory Maguire
85. Eats, Shoots & Leaves - Lynne Truss
86. Sorbonne Confidential - Laurel Zuckerman
87. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson
88. The Silver Linings Playbook - Matthew Quick
89. Hey Nostradamus! - Douglas Coupland
90. The Girl who Played with Fire - Stieg Larsson
91. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
92. The 5 People You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom
93. The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver
94. Interview with the Vampire - Ann Rice
95. The Diary of a Young Girl - Anne Frank
96. The Bonfire of the Vanities - Tom Wolfe
97. Guys and Dolls - Damon Runyon
98. The Girl who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson
99. He's Just Not that Into You - Greg Behrendt, Liz Tuccillo, Lauren Monchik
100. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Jonathan Safran Foer
101. Jesus for the Non-Religious - John Shelby Spong

This book continues the more grown-up, serious tone set up by "Goblet of Fire". The longest of the Potter series, this book sees the death of Harry's Godfather Sirius Black, introduces the amazingly love-to-hate-her character of Dolores Umbridge (Undersecretary for the Minister of Magic and eventually High Inquisitor for Hogwarts). It introduces us to the Ministry of Magic building and allows for some major character development, particularly for Harry himself, and Severus Snape - or at least more insight into Snape's character! A strong read that continue's the series' march from children's literature to solidly young adult fare.

Who Says You Can't Go Home?

Quoting Jon Bon Jovi ...


I was pretty ill this past week, only getting healthy in time to head back to Kitchener Waterloo (where Ari and I grew up) for the long weekend here in Ontario. It was lovely spending Saturday with Ari's parents, and seeing a couple of really good friends (hi Liz and Shari!) Saturday night ... it was tremendous seeing so many good friends and their growing children and families (ranging from 8 years old on down to 6 weeks old and even, 'a few days away from being born' on Sunday afternoon at Chuck E. Cheese in nearby Cambridge. We had originally been planning to meet said friends out at a splash pad, but weather made this not so possible.

Last night was awesome as my dad and step-mom babysat the boys and gave us a night out ... a FULL night out as they provided money for dinner, and a hotel room, etc. - the whole nine. It was a phenomenal experience to visit with them before and after that evening, and to have a date night (we've been spoiled in that regard of late though, off to see Wicked last weekend, despite being ill, and my mom will be watching the boys overnight NEXT weekend - getting our energy back for the Jersey Shore in 3 weeks lol).

Definitely nice being 'home' ... we miss everyone back there and were so glad to have an  extended weekend to make up for a really lousy trip (in terms of being able to see everyone and give them our full time and attention) this past Christmas. Hope to do it again soon, all, and thanks everyone for making it an amazing time.

It's all right, it's all right ...