Happy Birthday and Picture Fest

Again, no poker content here. One of these days, I promise. Right now I am still kind of lost on the fact that my daugther turned 14 today. I was going through some old photos and (by the request of a few people) thought I'd post them up here. (Yes, you are allowed to make fun of my 80's hair.) This is a little trip down memory lane of Jess and I, so if you don't want to view, feel free to move on.

I thought I'd start with me at 16. I can't seem to find any photos of me when I was her age now, so this will have to do. Yes, I had bleach-blonde big hair. Didn't everyone? The picture quality is kinda crappy because this was a looooong time ago before we had high tech gadgets like digital cameras. I specifically remember buying this outfit at Au Coton which was my favorite store at the time. I don't think I have been in that store since. This probably marks the last time I wore pink of any kind.

Ok...moving on, shall we?

The picture to the right is when I was 18/19 and was living in British Columbia. Yes, the hair is still big - it was 1991 and we hadn't quite got out of that whole 80's mode yet.

The next pic was taken on Oct. 18, 1992, the day Jess was born - after 36.5 hours of labor I might add. To top it off I had bronchitis, so I was a bit of a mess. She was a tiny little thing, only 6lbs and under 19" in length. Miraculously, she was the quietest baby I have ever met in my entire life. For the first year all she did was smile and laugh. That only lasted until she hit the terrible twos though and it all went to hell from then on! (Just kidding... kinda.)


The next photo on the right was when she hit her first birthday. I'm also pretty sure that was the last time either of us wore anything floral. She had just learned to walk, and had long since spoken her first word - "shoes". I was kinda hoping it would be "Mom" but no such luck.




The next few pics are of when she was three (on the left) and five (on the right). It is really hard to associate that little person with the teenager she has now become. It's also really hard to remember her with long, blond hair, as you will see in the next few pics.



The nine years in between were a total blur. This is her now in all her jet-black hair glory. It's pretty much guaranteed the next four years are going to be the most interesting of the bunch, and also possibly the most challenging and frustrating, but honestly I wouldn't change a thing about her if I could. Though a part of me sits here and mourns the childhood that has past, I can't help but look forward to discovering the person she will eventually become.

Happy birthday, Jess!

Time keeps on ticking

Kid content. No poker here.

I was reading Nickerson's post about his 3-year old daughter and it really hit home just how fast time flies. Next week my daugther will turn 14. Fourteen. That is four years from adulthood. Less than four years to graduation.

Having children young really messes with your mind. I have a lot of friends, real life and IIF's (term borrowed from Gracie), that are around my age and also have children, but most of their kids are under the age of five. There is only a 20-year difference between myself and my daugther. I got to thinking, my Mom was 50 the year I turned 14. My Dad was 54. I look at them now and don't think of them as old, but I am sure I did then.

Jess likes to tease me that I am all old and stuff, but she knows the reality of how young I really am to have someone her age running around calling me Mom. She asked me this morning if it was strange to me that she would be an adult in 4 years and I answered truthfully no, it was just strange associating her as the fourteen year old she is with the baby/toddler/little girl she once was.

Due to recent events though, I am now kind of hoping these four years go by fairly quick. Don't know what I mean? Well for all of you that have young kids...here is what you have to look forward to in about a decade's time:

"Mom, my friend's Dad just got 8 tickets to the Guns N Roses concert. Can I go?"

What was once long, silky, naturally honey-blond hair is now short, chopped, cropped jet black hair resembling Billy Joe Armstrong from Green Day. But you know, female.

"Mom, for my birthday, will you sign so that I can get my eyebrow pierced?"

In response to my "No" on above question - "But you let me get my ears pierced six times"

"Mom, rather than the black hair I have now, I want to dye it lime green with blond streaks"

With the proceeds from her first real paycheque (paycheck for non-canucks) she went to the store and bought knee-high silver stilletto boots

She has four tattoos picked out. I believe this is where the term "over my dead body" comes into play.

That is just all in the past week. Can you imagine what I have in store for me over the next few months?

In Light of Recent Events...

If any of you are thinking of moving....

SWF, Canuck
Looking for neighbours (lots of 'em)

Benefits: Inexpensive rent, unlimited Internet access, legal online poker played right from your home

Must love to: Drink copious amounts of beer, eat a lot (hey, I'm a chef), watch football

Side benefits: Lottery here is not taxed, home poker games are encouraged, six-plus casinos right here in your new home city

Downside: Listen to us say "eh?" a lot, get used to your money being different colors. Snow.