Hansen Headquarters: December 2006

Christmas Day on Cypress Mountain

Looking to burn a few calories before our traditional turkey dinner, we headed up the local ski-hill to try some sledding! While Kallum loved the sled, he seemed to love running, wrestling, and throwing himself into the snow banks just as much! It was a great time.

Christmas Day 2006

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Kallum REALLY started to understand the meaning of Christmas this year! (well....he at least understood that lots of fun toys were wrapped under the big, sparkly tree...). Below are few pictures of Xmas eve, where we took a ride on the holiday train through Stanley Park, and of Xmas morning, filled with plenty of gift opening. While sad that most of family couldn't be with us, we knew they were with us in our hearts and spirit! Enjoy the pics. SPH

Halloween 2006!

This Halloween post comes the day before Xmas - very belated. Still, I figure better late than never!

Halloween was quite special this year. Admittedly, Kallum got dressed up last year to make a few rounds with friends on the island, and he even got dressed-up at the age of 2 months in Chicago; however, we really viewed this year as his first real year of trick-or-treating!

It was a VERY chilly night out--thank goodness for the ultra-warm Lion costume--but we still managed to breave the weather to go in search of some tasty "uskers" as Kallum would say(more commonly known as suckers....).

Our first target was a small townhouse a few houses down from our place. After ringing the bell and waiting patiently (well sortof..), a kind lady of the house answered. Then, before we could encourage Kallum to recite the "trick-or-treat" slogan, he spotted a jackpot of toys inside the home's living room.....and made a bee-line right past the owner towards the toys! (not that I blame him, they looked pretty fun...grin). Needless to say, our first house wasn't too successful, but after we managed to corrall him and explain that he would get an usker for citing the traditional slogan, he was hooked! (Not surprisingly, though, he seemed very intent on opening each new usker he received, rather than finish the one he had just opened 5 minutes prior....it was very amusing)

All in all, it was a great evening. Check out a few pictures below.

Cheers, SPH

Im a Lion - hear me ROAR! How ferocious!!!

Day Care Halloween Party!

Brock the Pirate & Kallum the Lion

Daddy & Kallum after receiving a new "usker"

Kerri, Jenn & Kallum

Another successful score!

Chicago 2006

Greetings all --

After just over a year of living back in Vancouver, we felt it necessary to travel back to Chicago this winter to visit the city that we came to love so dearly. So many great friends, sites, and memories were forged during our 2 yr stay, that we wanted to return sooner-than-later in to keep our ties strong.

Of course, making a trip into O'hare mid-December is never an easy task. With Kerri and Kallum arrriving via Vancouver-Seattle, and me via Calgary (a work-related venture), it was just our luck to be headed off by a nasty snow storm that shut down the entire airport for a day - damn! To wait out mother nature, Kerri and Kallum shacked up in a Holiday Inn Express for the night, while I ventured back into Calgary for another chilly night. Needless to say, we finally arrived in Chicago within a few hours of each other, but not before we'd already lost a good day and half of only a 5 day vacation.....C'est la vie. That being said, after our tumultuous ordeal in getting there, we had a fabulous trip.

Below are a few pictures that recount parts of this great trip. Enjoy!

SPH

The Magnificent Mile -- What's a trip to Chicago without some shopping?