Team T-Lo Reads! #4

Team T-Lo was very serious in their reading selections this time around. We were busy studying up on a few exciting events that should be happening in the next year - potty training and house buying. I also added a book that I've read several times, the first time being when I was 11 years old - Anne is turning 100! Celebrate with me by reading it again. And Logan has selected a book that he's had in his library for awhile now - an oldie, but goodie.

Let's get to it!

1)

Canadian Home Buying Made Easy: The Streetsmart Guide for First-Time Home Buyers (Paperback)

Author: Douglas Gray
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Ryerson Trade; 2 edition (Jul 8 1997)

Tawny and Terry Review:

3 out of 5 Stars

This book said that it would help first time home buyers like we will be in a few months. That is why we chose it off the shelf. And it did help explain a lot of the details that go into buying a home. It also made clear the people involved and had some really helpful charts and things to fill out regarding expenses and choosing the home that is perfect for you.

At the beginning of the book, it said that home buying was also an emotional/psychological experience. After all, you are buying the place where you intend to live your life. But I think the author forgot all about that for the rest of the book. He was focused so much on making money out of your purchase. He didn't cater to a couple who want to buy a house to live in and raise their kids. Instead he treated it like it was an investment that you could just sell when the market was just right. Which is fine for some people, but not for us.

2)

No Cry Potty Training Solution (Paperback)

Author: Elizabeth Pantley
Publisher: Mcgraw Hill Professional (Nov 1 2006)

Tawny and Terry Review:

4 out of 5 Stars

Well it looks like once again our child is telling us how to raise him. He sure thinks he's ready for potty training. And now Terry and I have both read this book, so we're a bit more prepared.
This book is helpful in the way that it takes you through the whole process - from thinking and preparing for potty training to actually going through with it. It also has lots of handy suggestions to try when your plan doesn't work out, or your child decides that potty training isn't for him.

We gave it 4 stars because it was easy to read and understand and provided lots of tips and ideas. We will rate it one more star if it actually helps us when the time comes to potty train our little one.

3)

Anne Of Green Gables (Mass Market Paperback)

Author: L.M. Montgomery
Publisher: Seal Books; 1 edition (Aug 1 1983)

Tawny Review:

5 out of 5 Stars

In honour of Anne's 100 years in print, I read this book again. I must have read it 3 or 4 times when I was a young girl and I still remember half of the crazy things Anne gets herself into. This book is a classic and it will always have a special place in my heart.

I received the whole Anne series from my parents one year for Christmas and read all of them by summer (quite a feat for an 11 year old!) I love everything about this book. I love the writing, the storytelling, the imagery, the feeling it gives me when I read even a little bit. I even like the movie they made out of it! If any of you have a young girl in your life, Anne of Green Gables makes as perfect a gift at 100 years old as it did in 1908.

4)

John Willy and Freddy McGee (Board book)

Author: Holly Meade
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish; 1 edition (Sep 30 2007)

Logan Review:

3 out of 5 Stars

My grandma gave me this book. When I was little, I didn't have the attention span to sit still for all those words in this book. But now I'm older and wiser and I can sit still for .... half of this book.

I like the part when the hamsters get stuck in the pool table. There are lots of noisy words like "bonk!" and "tap!" that wake me up and get me going. My mommy sometimes doesn't like to read this book to me because I know what the word "bonk" means and I like to bonk her on the head as she reads hehehhee.

Someday I will be able to sit still and listen to the whole book. Until then, the first half is pretty good. And I like to look at the pictures.

Team T-Lo at Tinkertown

There has been a bit of a heat wave in Winnipeg this past week. Last weekend it was so hot that we took Logan to Tinkertown and the beach. Since you're already seen pictures of Logan at the beach, here are some of the highlights from Tinkertown.




We'll start with Logan's favourite first. The jump pillow! We thought when looking at it that Logan would be too small and would get knocked around too much. Terry decided that he would go with him to even the odds.

I watched from the sidelines and when Terry started jumping Logan's head kept snapping around. I thought for sure that he would start crying and that would be the end of that. But I was totally wrong. When those two came out after about 15 minutes of jumping Logan was still saying, "jump, jump, jump." He wanted to go back in. Unfortunately, all that jumping and holding Logan was too much for daddy. Terry had to sit down and catch his breath. The jump pillow is quite a workout!


Next we come to the Merry-Go-Round. Logan wasn't so sure about this ride. He wasn't old enough to go on it at the Red River Ex, so this was his first time. For starters, Terry took him to sit on the still chair that went round and round. He liked that enough, so they braved a zebra horse the second time around. In the picture above Logan is trying to wave at mommy when he comes whizzing by.


And of course, what is a trip to Tinkertown without a ride on the famous train? The whole of Team T-Lo enjoyed a ride around the park.

This was Team T-Lo's first trip to Tinkertown (although Terry has probably visited the old location when he was a kid). We found it to be fantastic! Entrance was free and the tickets for all those rides we went on were only $14.00. We also got Logan's favourite snack - cotton candy for $3.50. And we played a few games totalling a whopping $2. Our trip ended up costing $20. And we had so much fun. That's the kind of entertainment we like!

In true Team T-Lo, we were unsure of where the park was located. So we put the address into Google Maps. Well that proved to be an adventure. It directed us to a dirt road! We ended up getting there, but realized as we got close that it was just off Fermor, which as most of the readers know is a road that Team T-Lo travels everyday. Sheesh... Knowledge for next time I guess. Because we certainly will be going to Tinkertown a lot!

Grizzly Adams, Boo Boo McGee and Senior Fussypants

Team T-Lo has been on holidays for one week!

Terry refuses to shave which makes him into Frizzly Adams.

Tawny has a big new pacemaker gash across her chest and is now known as Boo Boo McGee.

Logan has decided to stop napping because both his parents are around to entertain him instead and has morphed into Senior Fussypants.

We're quite the team! But don't get us wrong, we ARE enjoying our holidays!

_______



On another, yet related note - here is a typical scene in the Team T-Lo household recently:

Terry: "Be careful Logan, mommy has a boo boo. You have to be gentle."

Logan walks over to mommy and points at the boo boo.

Logan: "Boo boo?"

Logan then leans over to where mommy is laying on the couch and gives her a big kiss!

Awwwwww! What a sweetums!

Team T-Lo Go Camping

Before all the hoopla with my pacemaker, we decided to take Logan camping for the first time. He loves the beach, so introducing him to the whole camping experience was a lot of fun.

The campground at St. Malo was booked through the August long weekend, but we didn't mind. Terry had some time off, and we didn't want Logan's first camping experience to involve a lot of rowdy party-ers. We booked for the Monday and Tuesday night after the long weekend. We chose a campsite right next to the washroom. Because if you know anything about me, you know that I can't hold it a whole night and have had to stumble through the darkness with a flashlight in a desperate search for a washroom. This campsite even had it's own little trail that led there! Nice.

When we got there, it was raining. We checked in early because our campsite was vacant. Actually it rained all weekend, so I have a feeling a lot of people left early. Terry put the tent up in the rain so that we would have some place to keep dry until it rained itself out. Just as the tent was finished, it started pouring. We spent an hour investigating our new 5-person tent. Logan thought it was pretty cool, but was aching to go outside when the rain finally stopped.




Here is Logan chillaxin' with his juice while daddy got our dinner cooked on the bar-b-que. Nummy. We had chicken the first night. Everything tastes better when cooked in the great outdoors.

Logan did really well at staying away from the fire and helping daddy by handing him the kindling paper we brought with us. Bedtime was a little bit strange. How are you supposed to sleep when you're outside and enjoying yourself? Logan was obviously tired and we gave him "binkie" his blanket. But he wasn't going to sleep for anything.

Our friend Rej came to visit for awhile since he lives in St. Malo. Terry and him hung out and caught up while I tried to lay in the tent on the blow up mattress with Logan. But Logan wasn't having any of that. He kept getting up and checking everything out through the tent windows. He finally fell asleep on Terry's lap at 9:30! We brought his trusty playpen with us for him to sleep in.

Then Terry and I roasted a few marshmallows. I, of course, started all of mine on fire and lost most of them in the fire. I'm a terrible marshmallow cook!

Logan woke up at 6:00 and there was no stopping him. His parents were extremely tired. We even tried to get him back to sleep by taking a little drive. That only lasted about 20 minutes and then he was up again and ready to go. The above picture is Logan helping daddy prepare our lunch.

Then we spent the afternoon at the beach. Logan loves the beach, but it was a little windy and he was getting cranky due to lack of sleep. We also went for icecream which perked us all up.

Here is Terry and Logan enjoying a nice view of the lake.

Logan had a short nap in the stroller in the afternoon. When he woke up, he kept going over to the car and pointing inside like he wanted to sit in his carseat. We think he just wanted to be someplace familiar. Camping was a strange experience and he wanted something normal. We decided that we didn't have the energy for another night, especially when I had surgery coming up, so we packed everything up that day and drove home. As soon as Logan got home, he laid on the floor with Binkie and fell fast asleep while we ordered Chinese Food.

I guess it's good to be back to civilization.

We'll try again with the whole camping thing once we can muster up a spare reserve of energy!

Sensia!

I don't know when the pacemaker companies will come up with a good name for their devices, but the Sensia ain't so bad.

That is the name of my new pacemaker. And so far, it's working just fine.

Team T-Lo went to the hospital yesterday morning and after an hour and a half delay I finally got my new implant. Or as Terry likes to say, I got a new rebuild, complete with new hardware and new OS hahaha. Yes, 'Borg Tawny is in tip-top shape and ready to lead her minions! Resistance is futile!

Anyway, for you nerdy types out there, here are some stats:

- Sensia is made by Medtronic (the same company that made my last one, which I loved)
- All the settings are the same - 60 beats per minute lower rate, 180 bpm upper rate etc. It took years to perfect those settings. I wasn't about to let anyone mess with them.
- The leads weren't replaced and they are still working in top form.

Some medical jargon straight from the Medtronic site:

Pacing Redefined, The New Standard

The new standard of care in pacing is to reduce unnecessary right ventricular pacing to as close to zero as possible. Mounting evidence suggests that right ventricular pacing is associated with a variety of detrimental effects, including risk of heart failure hospitalization and atrial fibrillation.

______

In English that means that the right side of my heart will not be so stressed. This is a very good thing because it's on the right side of my heart that gives me the most trouble. My pulmonary valve needs all the stress reducers it can get!

To look at some fancy graphs and read more about the lovely Sensia, just click the Medtronic site link above.

As for recovery, I'll have a sore arm and chest for awhile. I won't be able to lift Logan with my left arm for awhile. I'll have to take it easy and not wiggle around too much. The doctor was super fabulous. She cut out my old scar that was stretched after being pregnant with Logan and made a nice new thin one. If I'm careful not to aggravate it too much, I should have a nicer looking one. I'm all hopped up on Tylenol 3s right now, so I'm feeling pretty good.

Here is a nice little picture of the new device:

Terry's Viewing Suggestions I: The IT Crowd

Welcome to Terry's first "viewing suggestions" (ghostwritten by Tawny).

Today's choice comes from jolly ole' England. It's a comedy called The IT Crowd. Basically it's about a big company Reynholm industries and their IT department. This is a large, fancy company. But of course, they put their IT dept. in the deep, dark basement and leave the people working in this disaster area to their own devices. Hilarity ensues!

It's probably best to show you with clips... because the writers on this show are way better than I.

This first clip is the standard "IT guy answering a service call":




Hahaha to Terry this is most hilarious since it's about 90% of his day at the Agriculture Canada Helpdesk.

The next clip is when the two IT guys are introduced to their new boss. A woman who knows nothing about computers! *gasp*




Hehehe. I love Jen. She's always coming up with crazy schemes. Moss though is my very favourite. If you decide to give this show a try, watch for the scene when Moss "hacks" Roy's cellphone. I almost peed (this is Tawny speaking, not Terry hehehe. The verdict is still out as to whether Terry almost peed during the watching of this series).

The show can be found in Canada on G4TechTV or by nefarious means over the interweb hehehe.

Here is a clip of what will happen to you if you break those copyright laws according to The IT Crowd:



Enjoy!