News Update

Another week has passed and we have wandered from the shore of Lake Superior to the shore of Lake Wascana to the shore of the North Saskatchewan River. Thus when I awoke on Boxing Day, I took note of the temperatures: Prince Albert -31; Regina -21; Thunder Bay -1. Hmm, as Haaken observed once, "I think we've made a mistake!" Today we began retracing our steps and are now in Regina with Dad & Dave. Bern, Alicia & Logan are here. Rich was here when we arrived, so the complete set of siblings was together for a nice moment! Christmas was wonderful—I have tried to teach my children that generosity is an expression of faith and an example of Godliness. So, it is heartening to note and experience their generosity to me, to each other and to their friends and neighbours! Thank you, my children! The markets were only open part time this week, but the US markets pushed dramatically forward to record levels, and the TSX made some gains, although it remains in the red for the month. I was able to make quota this week, so that's encouraging. Sport's brains are dedicated to hockey during the break as we focus on the World Junior Hockey Championships. Canada is always one of the favourites, but hasn't won the gold in about five years. Go Canada, Go! 

Eric/A and boys hosted us for Christmas dinner in Prince Albert. It was good to see the Bailey family all together in one place. It was good to be with them. The turkey dinner with all the fixings was delicious. Time over games, puzzles and other entertainment was precious. They still have some activities to undertake during the break, including a trip to BC. 

Erin, Kristian & Sadie were also up in Prince Albert for Christmas, so we enjoyed time with them. They rode back to Regina with us. Now we look forward to some time with them before we head west.

Christmas season started with Travis, Joanna, Gemma and Andrew in TBay. Given the mild weather it was easy to accommodate our standard steak barbecue for Christmas dinner. We also enjoyed gift exchange and the unusual generosity I've noted already. Now they remain in place to continue with their work and school and to care for the place while we're away over the next several months. 

And that's about enough for this week.

News Update

Another week of comfortable temperatures on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. It's reached above zero most days, and we've only had a little precipitation in the forms of rain and snow. I continue to cough; my latest theory is that I've suffered three separate cold infections. I was feeling quite well this week, and then I noticed I was sneezing—the harbinger of an oncoming cold for me. I vaguely recall this happening about two weeks ago as well, so I'm blaming my little ankle-biters on the school bus for infecting me multiple times! On the other hand, they came across with a nice haul of goodies and Tim's cards this week, so that counts for something! The markets have been volatile, and although I was ready to start buying on Wednesday, the rapid increases in value made it difficult for me to get in, so I only have a small amount in the market at this time, but I was at least able to make quota for the week. All indices remain red for the month despite the record recovery experienced this week. The Canadian Open ended on Sunday with Brad Gushue winning his second slam event of the season, and Eve Muirhead winning the women's side. I continue to watch Jayhawk college basketball—they're winning! I'm also paying a bit of attention to college football this year as they have a partial playoff system. Hockey, especially the Junior World Championship, will be a focus over the Christmas holidays. The NHL season is not really far enough along to capture much attention yet. 

Bus Driver Bill scores!

Erica has completed her work in Parksville; she and Haaken are flying to Saskatchewan today. Liam is out of school for the break, and has been hanging out with Kristian the last few days. We're looking forward to our reunion with them all, and checking out their new digs in Prince Albert. They have accepted an offer on the Kenora house, so we wait, thankfully, for that to be completed in due course. 

Erin and Kristian have been keeping a busy schedule with Christmas activities and various ailments. At the end of the week they are also hosting cousin Liam. Kristian is on his school break now; we hope he gets rested up and healthy over the break. We look forward to seeing them soon! 

Trav, Joanna and Gemma have been putting in extra hours getting orders filled and delivered this week. Now, that school's out, they've headed down to Minneapolis for the protest at Mall of America! They plan to get home on Tuesday, which coincides with when we plan to head west! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

We've enjoyed great weather this week on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. Above freezing temperatures for another week have surely taken a bite out of winter, and we're glad of that. My cough continues; I was to the doctor on Tuesday, but he noted as I suspected, "You've had a cold, now you need to get the collection of gunk coughed out." He prescribed a bronchial dilator to help with the airways, but otherwise the hacking continues! The markets have been terrible, no good, and bad. The TSX has now lost over 7% of its value this month, and barely lists into the green for the year. I was not able to avoid taking some losses this week, and have sold more holdings as well as they hit stops. I need this to turn around! Events are counting down at school as we have only one more week of classes, and there are many special events. Wendy has been waiting all week for a trip down to the border store to get her puzzle order, so we did that today. We tied in a trip to the casino for their seafood buffet, and enjoyed the outing. We managed to fuel up the vehicle at 73 cents a litre, so that was a bit of a treat! Curling continues this week with the Canadian Open in Yorkton. Sweeting and McEwen won the Canada Cup prizes last week. My man, Kevin Koe, made the playoffs this time, so I'm enjoying that. But he lost in the semi-final tonight to Brad Gushue. Gushue will play Saskatchewan's Steve Haycock in the final tomorrow. On the women's side, Andrea Muirhead of Scotland will play Canadian champ Rachel Homan. 

The Baileys are playing out the final days of the BC/Sask split! They are looking forward to that ending and the next chapter beginning. They has some good news of interest in the Kenora house, which has gone so far as to produce a favourable offer, so we certainly hope that will all play out successfully. 

Santa

Kristian continues to work through his eye issues and got some good news this week. The vision in his affected eye has improved, and a definite plan of action has been developed for further therapy and eventual surgery. So, while that's serious, it's also encouraging. He drew Santa-in-the-off-season as a rosy-cheeked golfer. I like that! 

Trav and Joanna continue to be swamped with work orders, but that's also a good thing. We're celebrating Andrew's 13th birthday this weekend—it's a multi-day affair. Trav's hockey team has had mixed results lately, but we're not hearing of any coaches getting fired! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been comfortable and we're enjoying daytime highs above zero. I've been fighting a cough all week, and now Wendy is diagnosing bronchitus! We'll see how it develops, but I may need to get the doctor to check it out. US markets have surged ahead on the back of their growing economy, but the TSX fell 2% this week as we suffered a loss of jobs for the past month. As a result, I have sold off some of my holdings but still ended up making quota for the week, while dropping my buy-in to about 25%. The Grey Cup game was quite competitive, but ended as feared—congrats to Calgary! The Canada Cup of curling is on this week, so I've been enjoying that. My favourite, Kevin Koe, did not make the playoffs. Mike McEwen will play Brad Jacobs in the men's final tomorrow, while Rachel Homan will play Val Sweeting in the women's final. 

Eric, Erica and Haaken are enjoying Vancouver this weekend. They took in the Corner Gas movie this evening. Erica has a couple more weeks of work in Parksville, but who's counting?! Haaken was shopping his art portfolio at Emily Carr University this weekend. 

Kristian is recovering from strep throat, and continuing to work on his eye infection—tough times for my little buddy! He had two field trips from school, one to the RCMP Barracks, the other to go skating. They visited a play centre today. Otherwise, Erin continues with work and home as usual. They put up their Christmas decorations this week. 

Trav & Joanna continue to be very busy producing against all the hockey orders they've been getting recently. They do very nice work! Gemma and Andrew are progressing well. We're glad to see them doing well in their new school. 

And that's about enough for this week.