Lego Car Races

Today at 10am we all went downtown for the Lego Racer's competition Isaac signed up for. Isaac had to build a little Lego race car, that he would then have to race in competition with whomever else had signed up for the event. I think there were somewhere between 24 and 30 kids that had signed up to race.

The kids were split up into groups of two, and then proceeded to race in a single-elimination style tournament. Isaac won his first two heats, but eventually lost in the quarter finals. I was proud of how he didn't get upset when he didn't win. I remember him saying to Bonnie and me, "I can't believe I won two races!"

Here's some shots of before and during the event.


pre-race "track testing"


enjoying some practice races


a group shot before the races began of all the participants


that's Isaac's car out in front

Another Milestone for Isaac

click to enlarge

This past Thursday afternoon, we gathered in Isaac's kindergarten classroom with the other parents and kids for a little graduation ceremony. It was a fun hour or so of songs, stories and ceremonies (with snacks and fellowship to follow). But more than that, it gave me pause to reflect on all that's happened in the past year and what Isaac and Bonnie and I have experienced together. Perhaps Bonnie will write more later, but I wanted to take some time tonight to remember a few of the highlights.

One of the most enjoyable things was for Isaac and me to ride our bikes together to school in the morning (weather permitting of course). It was fun to spend a few minutes together pretending to be any number of rockets, speeders, lego racers etc. as we made our way along Alfred Avenue and up Queen Street to the school. We progressed from his smaller-sized bike at the beginning of the year, to a more full-sized child bike at the end. I enjoyed watching the joy Isaac exuded as he pedaled along the roads. There were only a few scary times on the bike, usually when Isaac would forget to look both ways when we crossed a main road. But thankfully both he and his father survived all the scares. It was also a lot of fun to every once and a while to catch the smiling faces of people in cars and trucks as they watched the two of us ride alongside them. For whatever reason, these times were characterized by a strong sense of pride and joy on my part.

I found myself as the year went along spending less and less time "hovering" once we got to the school. We usually got there about 10 minutes or so before the bell rang for kids to come inside. I wanted to get there early for his sake, so Isaac would have some social, fun time with other kids (apart from his kindergarten classmates). At the beginning of the year I was a bit more protective, but I slowly felt it was appropriate to let him develop on his own, and let his own personality guide him as he interacted with older kids. As the year went on, I also gradually let him to do more of the "getting ready inside the classroom" on his own as well; things like hanging up his coat, changing shoes, emptying his backpack etc. which I figured he was old enough to do anyways.

I took advantage as often as I was able of Isaac's school days to spend some focused time on developing my business. The 6 1/2 hours on Tuesday's and Thursday's were a previously unopened window of opportunity to spend on the necessary things needed to grow my photographic endeavors here in Smithers.

When Isaac got home, it was usually off to his Lego room to play.As the year progressed and we slowly accumulated a new set here and there, Isaac's skills in developing new and amazing creations really progressed. I can't tell you how many times, quite literally my jaw would drop at what he'd come up with. His imagination is astounding. I tried my best to photograph each new creation he came up with. Someday I'm going to make a book of these images.

All the hard work Isaac's teacher put into developing the classes' reading skills has really paid off. From the beginning of the year, to today when Isaac is reading books on his own (either out loud to himself or to Bonnie or me), it's quite a miracle to witness this transformation. Just the other night as Isaac finished reading a Bible story to me, he told me that he wanted to read the Bible stories in the mornings when "mommy is asleep" so that he can keep quiet for her.

That's about it for now, as I'm sure I'll have more to say down the road. But I'll leave you with a few photos from Isaac's Graduation Day to put a neat bookmark at the end of this chapter in his life.


Isaac standing up during the "Hallelu-Hallelu-Hallelu-Hallelujah-Praise-Ye-The Lord" song.


This time Isaac was one of the loudest boys singing the songs. I remember from the Christmas program they did last year that Isaac didn't sing very much or loud for that matter. What a difference a few months make.


Isaac receiving his certificate with the Elementary Principal, Mr. Klaas Kort.


Isaac and a few of his classmates inspecting their expensive pieces of paper!


Isaac and his teacher, Mrs. E.


Isaac with Farmor and Papa and me looking at a scrapbook that Isaac's teacher made for him of some of the memories from this past year (she made one such book for each of Isaac's classmates). I realized what a treasure this is, and will be for all of Isaac's life. I can think 30 years into the future when Isaac hopefully is a daddy himself, showing this to his kids.

Kindergarten Field Trip

Today Isaac and I went with his class, as well as some parents and siblings, on the school bus to Hazelton, BC. After a couple of stops to play at parks, and a lunch break, we returned to Smithers on the train! It was a beautiful day, weather wise, and I believe everyone had a fun time. Here are just a few of the many photos I took to commemorate the day.


Here is Isaac on the school bus. It took about an hour to drive to Hazelton from Smithers. We also stopped en route so that most of us could walk across a very high bridge over a river.


Here Isaac was 'monkeying around' with his friend Josh at the K'san Campground in Old Hazelton.


The train was arriving, and someone commented that I was setting a bad example being too close to the tracks, so the photo ended up a bit blurry as I started to move away.


Here we are on the train. Isaac was sooo excited! He especially liked going through the tunnels, as did some of the other kids.


A few of the kids took turns playing "Go Fish".


Here is the whole class, with their teacher in the middle, and including one of the younger siblings and a Mom. From this point we were free to walk home or back to the school, as the school bus wasn't scheduled to pick us up for another half an hour. Curtis had come to the station and met us, so he walked back to the school with us so Isaac and I could collect our bikes (as he and I rode together to school this morning). As we walked up Main Street, the local deli was barbecuing burgers outside their store, so Isaac and I shared one, as well as a bottle of root beer. Nice ending to our afternoon! That, and the nap I had when I got home.

Fun in the sun and other places

It's been a warm couple of weeks, and we're changing colour on various body parts, like arms, legs, backs and necks. Tonight we had a bit of a thunder storm (unfortunately preventing Curtis from taking some of the photos he was supposed to do tonight), followed by a double rainbow. How beautiful! We needed the rain, too, but it would have been nice if it had been delayed about half an hour.

Last Tuesday, I had the pleasure of spending some one on one time with my oldest Cunningham niece, Abigail. For Christmas we had given each of the kids a certificate for some one on one time with their aunt (or uncle, in Josiah's case), and amazingly, this was the first one to be redeemed. Life sure does have a way of slipping by, amongst all of the busyness. Anyways, we had a lovely time reading books, having lunch,then riding bikes to the library, followed by an ice cream cone before picking Isaac up from school. Isaac wanted to show her one of the nearby parks, so we rode over there before her Mom came to pick her up. Isaac was sure sorry to see her go. He would have liked more time to play with her.

On Saturday ( I think), when I came home from work, Isaac informed me that he wanted to go to the pool. I had just got out my gardening gloves and was ready to do some weeding and enjoy the outdoors for awhile, so I said I'd think about it, which I did. After about an hour, I went in and told him we could go, and he was so excited! He could hardly contain his excitement, and it made us smile at his exuberance. I felt a bit sorry then that I'd kept him waiting. We had a good time at the pool, and as we left, Isaac was already wondering when we could go back. I guess we should go more often, and/or sign him up for some lessons.

The other day Curtis and Isaac biked to the Lodge to escort me home (I usually ride mine in the morning these days), and I suggested to Isaac that he might be ready to ride the bigger bike that Curtis had bought him last year. Then it was too big for him, but he's grown a few inches since then. He told me he was too scared, and we talked about it for a bit, and then I enticed him with a treat if he would at least try to ride it. Well, it was all the incentive he needed! He came home and got out the bike, and we were all amazed at how much more easily he could touch the ground on it now. It didn't take long before he was riding it out on the road, and was proud to tell my parents on the phone that night (even asking if we could take that bike when we go camping with them this summer) .When we went to Curtis' parents' place for supper on Sunday, he wanted to take it along to show them, too. He keeps telling me that he's glad he overcame his fear, and even thanked God during one of his prayers that he can ride his big bike now.

Speaking of big bikes, have any of you ever seen the "Big Bike" that the Heart and Stroke Foundation uses for fundraising events? It's quite a sight! My local Curves had decided to participate, and was looking for 29 ladies to agree to fundraise and get a chance to ride this 30 seat bike, so I said I would. (The 30th seat is for the trained "driver"). The ride itself didn't take very long - less than half an hour - but was a fun way to get some exercise and surprise a lot of people along the way. Apparently the group of us raised $3,912 for the foundation. I rode because both of my grandfathers died of heart related illnesses, my Dad had heart surgery last year, and my brother's oldest daughter had surgery on a hole in her heart a few years ago. My sister's husband also has a heart murmer, which apparently isn't serious, but still, it's not as it should be. The name of our group was "Curves Has Heart".