• Weird, A's elementary school doesn't appear in the Fraser Institute's ranking list. The local english language school's at the bottom :( #
• MT @bgrier: Shiny! Woot! New Canon Rebel T3 & T3i cameras – http://bit.ly/ftjC0p [Seriously? Our new T2i is already obsolete?] #
• Another mousepad from a software company. Does anyone still use mousepads? #trackballFTW #
• There was a film camera in a geocache that we found on Saturday. I had a tough time explaining to my 5 yr old what it was #DigitalGeneration #
• He kept asking where the picture was and when we could see it. #
• The importance of breast-pockets currently On The Coast. Who knew? Hello!? My eyes are *up here* @shiral @jj_lee #
• RT @gcpodcast How the FCC plans to Destroy GPS – a simple explanation http://ow.ly/3S7X6 #geocaching (via @findchico) #
• Just spent several hours updating our #floydsgobad itinerary. Moved some stuff around, set some priorities, still 7100 km of driving. Yikes. #
• Anyone characterizing dedicated bike lanes as "extremist" is not putting forward the most rational of arguments. Just sayin'. #NIMBYVR #
• .@danudey Frankly, I don't see the value in the CRTC anymore. Whose interests are they representing? #
• Listening to an ad analyst talking about the death of irony in advertizing b/c Gen-X doesn't get irony anymore. O RLY? #
• Nearby-ish geocache published this morning while I was at work. Still not found by lunchtime. 4 km bike ride, cache in hand, 4th to find. #
• In the day and age of always connected, everywhere, I forget not everyone is. Particularly those who can geocache at 10am :) #
• Tandoori chicken kabobs from Granville Island FTW! #YesYouNeededToKnow #
• You'd think that having bricks dropping that far on to your head would pop it, but nooooooo. #angryatangrybirds #
• .@LeftCoastMama Just described @jonathancoulton as a "nerd singer". She meant it tenderly, but *ouch*. #GeekFolkRocker #
• On the other hand, she *is* excited about next week's #joco concert at the Rio. #
• Finished the Angry Birds Valentine levels. Wheeeee! #
• UBC talking about the demand for student housing on campus. No guff. Good thing they put in all those million-dollar condos, huh? #
• Who broke Twitter *this time*? #
• There's a big orange blimp flying over Wreck Beach. Huh? #
• Cape Horn Interchange // Like lemmings heading for cliffs // Nightmarish traffic cc: @CBCStephenQuinn #
• Bicycle commute // Without separated lanes // Is endless thrill ride cc: @CBCStephenQuinn @IanAMartin #cbc #otc #donefornow #
• Got my off-site backup working again; 1.7 GB of compressed data rsync'd upstream. Whew. I'll sleep better tonight. #
• “I was in a cult for 34 years. Everyone else could see it. I don’t know why I couldn’t.” – Paul Haggis on Scientology http://nyr.kr/hv2UxT #
• A long and devastating look at the cult that is Scientology http://nyr.kr/hv2UxT #
• "qipiedploosg" – Currently spelled on my fridge, presumably by the 2 yr old. Anyone here speak toddler? #
• I'm fairly certain it translates to "Sleep with one eye open" #toddlerfridgemessages #
• Crap, thought it was Friday. One more sleep until the Bieber movie. In 3D!!!111! #
• This morning's coding playlist: Back in Black (h/t @SlvrLambStudios) #
• So, what #
• So, what's the over/under on military coup vs Mubarak resigning? #egypt #
• That doesn't make sense. #
• What are the Vegas odds of military coup vs resignation of Mubarak? #egypt #
• Listening to Al Jazeera's Egypt coverage. 1) Talking heads sound the same everywhere, 2) This is historic 4 AJ's Western exposure/acceptance #
• The contrast between Egyptian State TV + Al Jazeera right now is fascinating. The fact I'm witnessing this half a world away is too. #egypt #
• Egypian President Hosni Mubarak speaking now on Al Jazeera http://bit.ly/fdvUBf #
• This doesn't sound like a resignation. #
• Uh oh. #
• This is a "Shut up. I'll leave at a time of my own damn choosing" speech. #
• Given the reported military occupation of Egypt's infrastructure & utilities, things are looking like a government crackdown in Egypt. #
• So, this Mubarak fellow, he's been listening to a lot of Cee Lo Green, huh? #
• No wonder Mubarak was late. He was still writing the speech. Ugh. #
• RT @WickedMari: WOW Crowd in #tahrir yelling IRHAL IRHAL IRHAL (LEAVE LEAVE LEAVE) #
• RT @Hermida: Does #Mubarak know what is actually happening? Speech borders on the delusional; overwhelming narrative of self-importance #
• RT @warrenellis: Mubarak: "I will not leave Egypt until I die." Egypt: "WE CAN TOTALLY HELP YOU WITH THAT." #
• Both Suleiman and Mubarak chasten Egyptians for listening to "outside interests", in particular the satellite TV stations. For shame! #egypt #
• Oh my. This Quinn's Quiz virgin seems a tad overwhelmed by the experience. #otc #
• The speaker on Aidan's @LeapFrog Tag Reader speaks no more, but the headphone jack still works. I don't really see the downside here. #
• Someday, while sitting at the family laptop, I'll learn to not tweet from my wife's account. Today is not that day. #
• Up too early. #
• Damn you XKCD! ( http://xkcd.com/859/ #
• Speaking of winter caching, I see we're only 10 behind my father again. I wonder if the boys will be up for caching in the rain this wknd? #
• Congrats, #Egypt way to #expressyourself Pick up your #nokia and ask #Mubarak if he was #bornthisway #hashtagmashup #
• According to @kady, the official Gov't of Canada resp to #egypt will not come from the PM, or the Minister of Foreign Affairs, but the PSFA #
• That's the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. I see we're taking a real hands-off approach here. #cdnpoli #
• Local asshat calls for parents who use "kid leashes" to be charged with child abuse. http://bit.ly/fkM41E #
• I don't like using "leashes" on kids, but I will admit that they are useful, even necessary, under certain circumstances. #
• Wow. Someone bought @TweetDeck tonight http://tcrn.ch/gvqliD #
• ) #
• Good god. Now people are complaining that cyclists are using the dedicated bike lanes to inflate the traffic counter #s #cantwin #
• Sidney Crosby talking up my hometown of Cole Harbour, NS, right now on "Hockey Day in Canada". #hdic #
• Family day at the mall!!! Woo-hoo. #
• Riding the rails at Metrotown http://instagr.am/p/BjqgE/ #
• Today I was put on a "Victoria social media peeps" Twitter list and a "startup entrepreneurs" list. They know me so well. #
• The Legend of … the 80s http://youtu.be/WF-7jPXvPEA [Warning, awesome 80s music. movie references, teen angst] #
• Oh my. For all the physics geeks out there, I present to you this time-waster: http://bit.ly/gDvdOj (via @acourtroom) #
• In that last link, if you give it a negative damping factor, things get really exciting :) #physicsmakestheworldgoround #
• How did Cyndi Lauper reincarnate as Xtina? #grammys #
• I mean, don't you have to die before reincarnating? Wait. Has anybody seen Cyndi Lauper recently? #xtinaIScyndi #grammys #
• Wow, Madonna's playing the Grammys #BornThisWay #
• Sorry Gaga, Cee Lo wins this round. Wow. Channeling Elton John but like you've never seen before. #grammys #
• Had to put the kids to bed, now watching the #grammys on the PVR. How did the Eminem f-bomb make it by the CBS censors? #
• Oh Arcade Fire. I just don't _get_ you. #

• Fiery sunrise reflects off the buildings in downtown Vancouver cc: @cbcearlyedition http://campl.us/wIy #
• The 2 yr old has now, officially, had a bigger breakfast than the other 3 family members. Combined. #growthspurt #
• That reminds me, I haven't heard from @News1130radio about the Bon Jovi tix yet. #arenarock #otc #
• Got it covered. RT @Blackcloudwine: Pro-Tip: Every earthquake/disaster survival kit should include one (1) bottle of wine per adult #safety #
• Aidan has discovered Animal Crossing on his DS. I suspect that this is the beginning of the end. #
• On the one hand, it's a video game and that's bad, right? On the other hand, he's been reading through the RPG narrative for a few hours now #
• And he's 5. And hasn't asked what any of the words mean. And he's understanding it all. I'm ok with this. #AnimalCrossing #
• Finally upgraded the blogs to WP3 and MySQL5. 1and1 sure didn't make that easy. phpmyadmin kept timing out, had to do it by hand! :<( #
• Like salmon in the sky http://instagr.am/p/BVNQ3/ #
• According to the Vancouver Police Dept, 5200 distracted driving tix were issued in 2010. That's less than 14% of BC total. #
• I guess the feeling that traffic enforcement in Vancouver is largely absent is borne pretty clearly by the numbers. #
• MT: @ShawInfo: Now everyone can view their Internet usage! The graph available http://bit.ly/ghK7mF cc @theresalalone @stephen_rees @lisasj #
• Someone in power for almost 30 years didn't want power or prestige? How strange. #unlikely #egypt #
• There's got to be a term for when your boss comes by your cube and asks "What's up?" thereby knocking your focus for the next half-hour. #
• I just can't think of it. Maybe I should spend some time on teh Google to find out. #CompletelyDerailedNow #
• Added another OS to those on my workstation. This one has a spinning beachball. Spinning, spinning, spinning. #
• Phone it in? Perhaps @cbcfoxman could Skype it in? #otc #weheardthat @CBCStephenQuinn #
• Via @stv: RT @secretsquirrel: I came here to kick ass and assign IPv4 addresses.

  And I'm all out of IPv4 addresses. #

• Looks like all the North American Lonely Planet Guide apps are free today (usually $6). Grab 'em while they're hot! #
• I've got you, babe. #
• The best way to keep peace in the Middle East always seems to be to clean up the piles of rocks that seem to be conveniently lying around. #
• I got you, babe. #dejavu #
• Argh. RT @mathewi: RT @nealunger Multiple reports that the Egyptian Museum has caught fire. #egypt #jan25 #
• Anti-intellectual Cons now heckling MP Marc Garneau for being… a former astronaut. Keep it classy guys. #cdnpoli #cpc http://bit.ly/fcaesn #
• Oh joy. This guy must have somehow found his way to teh Twitter from the depths of the CBC comments. http://bit.ly/ecG18y #
• Wait, Gordon Campbell is still our premier? #rudderless #bcpoli #
• Dear telemarketers: If you have an "important message" for me, then your caller ID won't be 000-000-0000. #ThanksButNoThanks #
• Participating in social media more effective than print advertizing? One anecdote from VanIsle: http://bit.ly/i5Ja1s #
• Previous link was tweeted by someone this morning, but sadly, I've lost track of who. #
• A-ha! Previous link tweeted by the incomparable @LimelitePR. You should follow her. Even if it's not Friday. #
• Call it flip-flopping, call it fair-weather politicking, but I don't mind when politicians change their minds. #christyclark #bcpoli #
• I mean, why stick with a bad position? If you can learn or be shown that you're wrong, and admit it, isn't that a *good* thing? #
• Elsewhere in the NHL, former Canuck Matt Cooke is causing trouble: Goalie fight(?) http://aol.it/efCLpa #
• Your splash of mashup for the day: Roxette and EMF — The Unbelievable Look http://bit.ly/hHX1GG #
• Time for some parental behaviour adjustment. Turns out A has a hearing problem and isn't just ignoring us. Yay? #
• Great. The CRTC chair is making internet policy based on figures from 2009, and clearly doesn't understand the tech. #UBB #Dinosaur #
• Someone remind me, please, what useful purpose the CRTC serves today? It seems to be constantly undermined/overruled lately @TonyClement_MP #
• Good thing StatsCan will have extra time due to loss of the mandatory long-form census. It can get the CRTC some up-to-date internet figures #
• RT @aprilmains: “@mgeist: Q. Why IPTV exempt from caps? CRTC: Because IPTV is not an Internet service.” huh? #ubb #
• RT @seanmhair: Has it occurred to the committee & KvF that many of us are watching this hearing streaming online? #irony #CRTC #UBB #
• Yay! @TheresaLalonde's CBC News bit on the #UBB kerfuffle gets it right about what it actually was about vs what the "perception" was. #
• RT @mgeist: CRTC's Faulty UBB Foundation: Why We Should Doubt the Review- my take on procedural & substantive concerns http://bit.ly/i91TMj #
• Boss was in on Wednesday. "I'm as sick as a dog." Today, 1/3rd of the office is out sick. #CauseAndEffect #
• Via @sproudfoot: If you're not going to pay your web designer, then you better disable their access. http://bit.ly/fw9Pgl #
• Re: last link. Strikes me as awfully unprofessional of the web designer too. #
• "RED" was, in our estimation, more entertaining than The Social Network. And Iron Man 2 for that matter. #MostMoviesSuckNow #
• Wonderful. Another overnight shooting on Oak St. Seriously? It's such a boring street. The appeal must be that it's an easy getaway route. #
• The boy just got up, got himself dressed too. I don't know what's with the tie either. http://instagr.am/p/BaWeg/ #
• Geocaching in Kits http://instagr.am/p/BaiWt/ #
• More urban "geocaching" http://instagr.am/p/BakyO/ #
• "I'm sorry but he's harmless" says the ignorant dog owner whose 40 lb bundle of harmlessness just charged my 2 yr old at a playground. #
• I really hate many dog owners in this city. #
• RT @peterlouwe: @AnthonyFloyd I reported on many dog attacks. Last words the owner says prior to bite are "don't worry, he's harmless." #
• .@pawspix I should not need to protect my kids at a playground from off-leash dogs. Period. #
• Anyone know a geocacher in Colorado who hasn't found http://coord.info/GCWFX7 ? We need a partner. #
• Crap. Dumped half a glass of _milk_ on the laptop. #
• Gratifying I suppose, but heading the list of "Similar to @AnthonyFloyd" is @LeftCoastMama. The other entries are also somewhat unsurprising #
• That was an … unpleasant … end to our Sunday coffee ritual. Turns out Q isn't feeling that well. Sorry about that @stv!! #
• Unsurprisingly BEP isn't playing anything from their most recent album. #PileOfSteamingManure #halftime #
• I dunno what you guys are complaining about. They sang popular songs, live, and put on a spectacle. What more did you expect? #bep #halftime #
• Wait, @strombo's playing in the Super Bowl? Oh, nope, that's Zombo. #
• Huh, this Super Bowl game is being played like a Grey Cup. Lots of scoring action in the 4th quarter! #
• RT @BreakingNews: Huffington Post to be acquired by AOL – Huffington Post http://huff.to/gxv4BS #
• From readwriteweb http://rww.to/fA8cRe "more bugged by absurdity .[.] that fish curry is part of the cuisine of a land-locked […] country" #

It’s been a while, I know. Perhaps you’ve been following along at LeftCoastMama. Perhaps you’d given up on ever seeing anything new here and are surprised to see this pop up in your feed reader. At any rate, sorry about that. I’m going to dust off the cobwebs and start posting more to this blog again.

But first, a bit of a photo essay showing what we’ve been up to over the past umpteen months.

We had some professional photos taken. This photo was taken by Bopomo Pictures:

The LeftCoastFloyds

After getting back from my mother’s funeral, Gwen left for the East Coast again to attend the BlogHer conference in New York City!

Gwen and Tracey in NYC, August 2010

Times Square, NYC, August 2010

Radio City Music Hall, NYC, August 2010

Later in August my grandmother Muriel Forwood passed and I returned to Nova Scotia for another funeral. My grandmother lived with us from 1986 until she moved into a long term care facility in the early 2000s.

Remembering Muriel, August 2010

Back in Vancouver, Aidan went on longer and longer bike rides with me on the Trail-A-Bike. This was taken down near the Olympic Oval, halfway through a 50km ride.

Public art in Richmond, August 2010

We don’t get out for as many hikes as we used to, but I did manage to get up to Joffre Lakes again this year. This time, I went with a bunch of people I met on Twitter!

Joffre Lakes, August 2010

Aidan started school this year! He’s in a half-day French-immersion kindergarten at Lord Tennyson Elementary.

Aidan on the first day of school, September 2010

Aidan got a bigger bike for his birthday, but was having trouble with it. One of the best things I’ve done was to remove the pedals from his old Tigger bike so that it became a push bike. We lowered the seat and let him push it around. This was a great way for him to learn to balance the bike. Training wheels were too much of a crutch. By February 2011 he was riding his two wheeler, no problems at all.

Aidan freewheeling, October 2010

Aidan pedalling on two wheels, February 2011

Of course, at the end of October Quinlan turned 2! We went to a pumpkin patch with some friends for his birthday “party”.

Picking the perfect pumpkin. Or two. October 2010

Chilly birthday cupcakes. October 2010

Happy Birthday Quinlan! October 2010

Hallowe’en was fun this year. Quinlan wore a monkey costume, and Aidan had a great fire fighter’s costume (with an authentic Delta Fire Services patch given to him by an authentic fireman.)

Quinlan is a monkey, October 2010

Aidan in his fireman costume, October 2010

All set for Hallowe'en, October 2010

We had quite an early snowfall in November, and the boys had a great time playing in it.

Aidan catching snowflakes, November 2010

Quinlan enjoying some early snow with some friends, November 2010

Yes, it was that cold. November 2010

Aidan looks sharp, and loves wearing his hat and tie.

Aidan, November 2010

We did lots of Christmassy things this year.

Gwen and the boys had the very special opportunity to join other kids and Air Transat on the Flight in Search of Santa.

Flight in Search of Santa, November 2010

The Flight in Search of Santa, November 2010

Gwen took the kids to Oakridge Centre for their annual photo with the best Santa in Vancouver:

Santa Claus, November 2010

Bright Nights in Stanley Park is an annual fundraiser in which the Vancouver Fire and Rescue Service decorates a portion of Stanley Park. The kids love it.

Quinlan at Bright Nights in Stanley Park, December 2010

Aidan at Bright Nights in Stanley Park, December 2010

And then there was the Santa Claus parade.

Vancouver Santa Claus parade, 2010

Aidan and Gwen took skiing lessons this year at Mount Seymour. I don’t have any action shots of them, but while they were learning to ski, Quinlan and I played on the toboggan hill.

Quinlan on the toboggan hill at Mount Seymour, December 2010

In the midst of all this, we discovered that Aidan needed glasses. He looks pretty sharp in them and doesn’t mind them in the least.

Aidan and his new glasses, December 2010

Grandpa came to join us for Christmas. This was wonderful, and we did lots of things.

Gwen, the boys, and Grandpa went to the VanDusen Festival of Lights on the first day he was here.

Grandpa, Quinlan, and Aidan at the Festival of Lights in VanDusen Gardens, December 2010

Christmas Day and the days that followed were awesome.

Grandpa and Aidan put together some Lego, December 2010

More Lego Airport assembly, December 2010

On New Year’s Eve Day, we all went snowshoeing at Mount Seymour.

Grandpa and Quinlan snowshoeing at Mount Seymour, December 2010

Grandpa and Quinlan snowshoeing at Mount Seymour, December 2010

Aidan snowshoeing at My Seymour, December 2010

Snowshoeing at Mount Seymour, December 2010

Since the Olympics, the plaza in front of UBC Robson Square has been turned into an “outdoor” skating rink, open to the public. We took the kids there in January. The zamboni was as exciting as the skating, I suspect.

Skating at Robson Square, January 2011

Even in the depths of winter, we keep up with the geocaching. :) 2010 was our best year yet in terms of our number of finds, and we hope to eclipse it this year!

We did some geocaching with grandpa while he was here.

Geocaching in Pacific Spirit Park, January 2011

And we continue to do some winter geocaching.

Geocaching at Kits Beach, February 2011

So that’s been our past 6 months in a nutshell. It won’t been 6 months until the next update.

• RT @CityCaucus: CKNW reports that Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan being asked to consider run for BC NDP leadership #bcpoli [Derek who?] #
• Also, Burnaby has a mayor? #
• Without a star leadership candidate, the BCLibs are in serious trouble. If not Diane Watts, then who? #WhoWillLead #
• Steve Buscemi is the antithesis to the idea that you have to be pretty to make it in Hollywood. #HisMamaLovesHim #
• Because The Amazing Race is the best place to cement your relationship #SheSaidYes #