I upgraded to Windows 8 the first moment I could, with the low upgrade cost and new UI it was a no brainier. I like where Microsoft is going with windows. Sure I have some concerns but I think Windows 8 provides a better experience even on a desktop, then windows 7. So today I’m starting a new series of posts with a focus on windows 8 and it’s new metro style apps. Each week I’ll write about a feature of windows or an application. I had planned on writing up about the simple upgrade process for windows out, but I didn’t get any screen shots while I upgraded my system, so instead I’ve decided to share my thoughts on Windows 8 and the direction Microsoft is taking with it’s monopolistic OS.
Continue reading “Windows Wednesday: A Bridge to the future”
Today Jacob lost his first tooth. He’s been waiting so long for this hes just so excited. So when stuck the tooth in his tooth fair pillow and off her went to bed.
Continue reading “POD: First Lost Tooth”
Tonight I headed out to GTA PHP User Group Meetup, there was a presentation about the Laravel framework. It was great to get out and be around programmers. I’m hoping to make it out to the meetups regularly. I’m sure if I will be able to make it work every month, but I’m going to try. No do I want to stick to the PHP meetups or perhaps see what other geeky meetups I could find and maybe alternate.
I’ve known about meetups for a long time, I attended a few years ago, but it’s been a long time. I got interested in this one because of the topic. I’ve started working on a personal programming project and have been looking at options for PHP frameworks. Currently I’m working with CodeIgnitor on a couple of project for clients and I was thinking this project would be a good chance to learn something new. So I searched the web and found the Laravel framework and it seemed like a good option, but I was having trouble getting started with it. So I thought hearing someone talking about it would be a good introduction. I’m happy to say it was, and I do think that I’ll give it a try for at least one project. Now if I can just choice a Java-Script framework for the front end I’ll be set.
Today our neighbors to the south held there Elections, where they re-elected their president. Considering I had no other pictures for today this seemed like a good one.
This evening with Melissa out seeing her doctor about her injury (Broken Tail Bone) the kids and I were left to fend for ourselves for dinner and evening entertainment. So after we ate we cleaned out the living room, complete with Jacob vacuuming the carpet, before the kids headed upstairs to play for a bit. Around 7 I went up to see how they were doing and we ended up sitting around the little table in Jacob’s room building a house with his Lego an hour before bed. Once it was time for bed, the kids tidied up their rooms and I tucked them in for the night. It was strange how both went right to sleep, no complaints at all from my little Diva as I tucked her into her big girl bed. Leaving me with a little quiet time before Melissa got home.
A couple of weeks ago I had a tragic accident with my phone. It slipped from my pocket at the pool and landed on the hard ceramic floor, cracking the screen. It was a tragic event, specially considering the phone is less than a year old and that kind of damage isn’t covered. I tried to go back to the borrowed nexus one, but it stopped charging shortly after I started using it. So I’m let with a phone with a broken screen. Some of you might be wondering why I didn’t subscribe to the device protection plan from my Carrier. Well that’s $7 a month and I would still have to pay $150 to replace my phone. Over the course of the 3 year contract that’s $252. I’ve been quoted around $170 to repair my phone from 2 different shops. So I have no regrets with my Choice, just a dilemma of what to do next.
Continue reading “Mobile Monday: Cracked up”
I don’t know if it was the change of seasons, or the kids new bedrooms, but over the last little while, we’ve started a fall cleaning. Going through closets getting rid of things we no longer use or need.It’s amazing how much stuff you can accumulate if you’re not careful, and the kids both help and hinder the cleaning. They seem to want to keep everything, so it’s hard to get ride of things that need to go. But they want to help with the cleaning, washing , putting things away, and fetching things from another room. But when it comes to the downsizing, we usually have to do that while they distracted.
Of course it started back on Thanksgiving with Jacob’s massive new bed. It meant we had to re-arrange his room and downsizing his Toys. After his room, we organized one of our storage closets, which was great help when it came time to move everything out of Violet’s room to make room for her new furniture. Of course on Friday we got Violet’s new furniture and her room looks great.
We’ll continue with the rest of the cleaning and organizing, getting rid of clothes that no longer fit and putting away the summer clothes that will still fit next year. It’s a big job for a family of four. Of course there is an Elephant in our house that we’ve ignored for a while. The Master bedroom, Melissa and My room, is always the last to see any attention. It got the most basic paint job, and has the oldest furniture. It’s time for us to get some new bedroom furniture, but of course the kids come first and I’m not sure when our needs will reach the top of the priority list, after all Winter swimming registration is coming up soon….
Today’s picture was taken at Jacob’s practice this morning. It was an early start, but considering how much Jacob has improved over the last few weeks of Hokey Games, Skills and Practices I think it’s worth going to the rink as often as we can.
Today after we got home from hockey while Violet had her unexpected afternoon nap, Jacob asked if we could pull out his Monopoly Junior. I was reluctant at first, there was a bunch of other things that I wanted to do this afternoon, but he was so excited by the prospect of playing that I couldn’t say no. So we played a game before dinner. Then after dinner Violet found the board game on the table where we had put it when we cleared the table for dinner and she wanted to play too. So after we ate I found myself sitting around the dinner table with my kids playing Monopoly . Junior. The most amazing thing about it was that Violet won.
Saturday mornings, once a time for relaxing and recovering from a night out are now one of my busiest days of the week. With Violet’s 9:30 Ballet class and Jacob’s Hockey, which this season can start any time between 10:45 am and 12:50 pm. Add to that any errand that we’ve left for our weekends and it seems that the idea of a relaxing Saturday morning is lost. At least until the kids can get themselves to their Saturday morning activities.
So Are Relaxing Sunday’s a possibility? On Sunday’s without an early morning hockey practice (It’s either 8 am or 9 am) when the kids head to church with their Nan, there is a chance. But most mornings that happens we’ve so many other things that are easier to do without the kids that we find ourselves rushing around getting them down instead of having a relaxing morning.
Of course I wouldn’t change it for the world, I love watching my kids at there various activities, seeing them improve and grow is worth the loss relaxing weekends where there is nothing to do but sleep. There was a Saturday in the beginning of summer this year, where the kids had gone camping with their Nana and Papa and Melissa had the weekend off that we found ourselves, alone in bed after 9 am. It’s the last real lazy day that I can think of, and it probably will happen again. So Lazy Saturday’s might be an endangered species around this house, they aren’t yet extinct.
