Shaun_300

Well I mentioned in the check in thread that momma didn't think the baby was going to make it until the due date. She was right! Yesterday morning right at midnight she woke me up saying her water broke. No contractions though. We relaxed at home til 2am and headed into the hospital. The contractions didn't really start til after lunch yesterday. Then the big ones hit at around 3:30. At 4:23pm Patrick made his appearance into the world 18 days early. 7lbs 6oz. Mom and baby are going great. Emma is over the moon to finally have her "baby brother" here. Couldn't be more thrilled!

Just trying to stay cool. In the mid 90s with the heat index this weekend. Not as bad as the 116 last weekend but still warm for this canuck! Trying to get some stuff done in the house before the baby arrives. He is due August 15th but Momma doesn't think she is going to go that long. We'll see. Going to try and get the crib together tonight and all the baby stuff out of the attic. She already has her bag and the diaper bag packed for the hospital, and Emma's bag ready to go to Grandma and Pa's while we are at the hospital. She sure is excited to meet her little brother! Other than that, not much on this weekend. I was off a little early from work yesterday because I had to do something in the city. Got home at around 3pm and put a high performance camshaft in my truck. Had it running shortly before 10pm. Sounds good now and way more power. Just waiting for the PCM to come back from Idaho with the new tune in it for the cam and it will run even better. Not sure when this performance kick is going to end, probably never lol. Once that is in your blood it's there for good.

Aside from an expensive fiberglass lift up tonneau cover with a locking latch, not really sure what would give you 100% security. I really like the trifold ones because they are easy to get on and off if I want to put wood or the ATV in the back. I've seen a lot of people just put a locking tailgate latch on and use the trifold tonneau cover.

Mmm that looks delicious Ross! That's one thing I haven't done is used a smoker. My cousin did some moose in the smoker in the winter when we were ice fishing this past year though, it was amazing. I had 4 pieces of fried chicken and poutine for supper. Poutine is french fries topped with mozzarella cheese curds and gravy. I know you Americans don't do that dish down there.

Trying to stay cool this weekend. Supposed to be 110 degrees with the humidity this afternoon, we are already at 100. Was supposed to be putting a high performance camshaft in my truck today but it didn't show up yet from the US. Oh well, wouldn't have been very fun in this heat anyway lol. Supposed to be in the mid 70s this week so hopefully it will stick around for next weekend. Just sticking in the house for today in the AC, watching The Open. The fair is on in town this weekend, going to take my daughter tomorrow. Supposed to be a little cooler thankfully!

Whew, been hot up here the past few days! The truck said 95 on the way home. Supposed to be 109 with the heat index tomorrow.??

Happy 4th of July to all of you south of me as well. Not quite as close as Joe. I'm about 55 miles north of the US border. A little far to go watch fireworks. Enjoy!

Had a great weekend. Had to work til 4 on Saturday then borrowed a beautiful 20' Glastron bowrider from work for the weekend and headed to the lake til Monday night. Weather was great and had a great time with the boat!

Long weekend for us up here, Canada Day is in Monday. Not sure were June has gone! Flew by for me too. Really busy at work with the new job, sure makes the day go by fast. Have to work 9-5 tomorrow unfortunately, but at least it's time and a half. Going to borrow a boat from work and head up to the lake for the rest of the weekend with the family to enjoy some R and R. Really looking forward to it! Someone sure turned the heat on! Pushing 90 the past few days. Today we had a cold front roll in with some storms and downpours. Temp went from 86 to 68 in about 10 minutes, it was crazy! 3 houses in Ottawa went up in flames due to lightning.

Nice! I need to get my cam out. Saw my first buck last week out in the field. Wasn't quite as grown as that one yet, but the base looked to be a good size. Hope he sticks around!

Haven't done too much this weekend. Made two trips to Cabelas in Ottawa yesterday. Wanted to get lower scope rings for my new Savage Axis Stainless .223 Rem. Got mediums and the scope was hitting the rail, had to go back and get high ones. Remounted my Bushnell AR223 4.5-18×40 on it. Never did get around to shooting it today to readjust it. Also picked up a range finder, just a Simmons that was on for $129. Today we came to my parents here, having a BBQ for fathers day. Back to work tomorrow.

Good luck with the new job! I just finished my first week at my new job, couldn't be happier! It's so nice working on the water, get to test drive every boat I work on to ensure it is up to par. Staff and management are amazing people to work with. I really hit a gold mine with this one. I could easily see myself staying here til I retire! Worked 55 hours my first week and will probably do the same next week. Time and a half in Ontario after 44/week, so the overtime is pretty sweet!

Said goodbye to my last work place yesterday and rolled my 2000lbs toolbox out of there. Took it to the new job this morning. Was welcomed by everyone there and they made me feel at home and I haven't even started yet! Actually really looking forward to Monday. The boss told me today I'll be going on the road with one of the other guys to do some work on some bigger boats on the St Lawrence. 35-60 footers I'm assuming. Should be interesting! Wet day today, supposed to be around 70 with sun tomorrow so it will be a better day to be outside.

Glad you made your decision on your job! I did the same thing on Monday. Move my toolbox out on Friday after work. I'll bring it home and clean and organize it and take it to the new place Saturday morning. Looking forward to the change, and finally working on the water! Thinking about getting a little Jetta TDI to buzz back and forth to work in. Will be driving about 80 miles per day. Would be a lot better on fuel than the Silverado! We have a long weekend here in Canada this weekend. Got the lawn mowed today. Will try and finish Emma's new room tomorrow since it will be raining. Just have to paint the door and baseboards. We were going to go over to a park in Quebec this morning that has a 9 mile road with tame wild animals that come up to the window of the vehicle and eat out of your hand. Never made though. Guess it can wait for another weekend.

So far so good here. They aren't usually too bad in this area. Noticed the black flies starting tonight when we were out though.

Yup for sure! Not very pleasant getting up and not wanting to go to work in the morning. Notice went in yesterday morning. It's amazing how badly an employer shows that they want to keep you after you put a resignation notice in. Onto bigger and better things on the 27th!

Very sorry to hear Joe!! My condolences and prayers sent to you guys.

It cooled off severely here too late this week. It was 77 degrees on Monday and 72 on Tuesday. Opening up the gates at work Thursday morning, it was snowing. Then 2 days of cold rain. Nice this weekend so far. Mid to high 50s and sunny. Not doing much this weekend. Took Emma and our golden retriever Gus to my brothers house today and had a play date with his two new German shepherd puppies. Then went and visited my parents for a bit. Trying to prepare myself for Monday morning. Resignation notice is going into work. Not working out like I had hoped, found another marina with a really good reputation about 20 minutes south of Ottawa, right on the Rideau river. More money, better benefits and many other perks. Looking forward to the change! It will be a 45 minute commute instead of 25. But not worried about that. Being on the road doesn't bother me! Always hate leaving a place, but I know I have to look out for myself over them.

Sorry to hear about your mom, Joe. Prayers sent buddy. Actually a nice weekend here weather wise. Was about 63 degrees today and sunny, supposed to be closer to 70 tomorrow and 72 Monday! Got the lawn tractor out today and changed the oil in it, cleaned up the yard and the field a bit. Lawn is ready to mow for the first time this year so I'll probably do that tomorrow. Probably get the summer wheels and tires on the fiancee's Terrain and change the oil in it. Other than that, not a whole lot. Just going to enjoy the nice weather! Been a really cool and wet spring for us so far.

Too cool!! Way to go pickle!

Congrats Martin!!

I'm telling you Martin I never thought I would get so pumped up over shooting a turkey. I was shakier than the biggest deer I've killed LOL. I could hardly hold the phone still to get Emma's picture. It was a combination of the excitement of calling one in, and seeing my daughter so excited too at 3 years old over her dad getting a gobbler.

Thanks! Yeah it was like trying to hold a telephone pole up for her LOL! She sure was proud. Before I loaded it I held out the 3 shells and told her to pick the lucky one. She did and I guess it worked. I know what I'll be doing in deer season now. Unfortunately we have to use a minimum 20ga here in Ontario for turkeys. I bought my fiancee a Weatherby pump with the short barrel and stock. But it kicks like a mule with just 3" steel, a lot more than my SP-10. Can't imagine a Turkey load!

Opening day was today here. Last night while having my nightly snuggle with my 3 year old I asked her if she'd like to go turkey hunting with daddy. She was ecstatic and didn't stop talking about it the rest of the night. After work today I picked her up from daycare and the first thing she asked is if we could go turkey hunting when we got home. So by the time we made it to the blind it was about 5:15. I made some calls with no response. It didn't matter, we were having fun just spending quality time together in the woods. Emma played with the box call a bit too and actually it sounded really good. Well at around 6:00 a gobble echoed through the woods. The look on her face was priceless. It sounded less than 100 yards away. I told her she had to be quiet and still and daddy would try and coax the turkey in close. I was having a hard time pin pointing the direction it was coming in with the echo in the blind. It seemed like forever but about 10 minutes later I see the red head through the trees at about 70 yards. We called back and forth and he booked it towards the blind. I struggled to get down on my knee and quietly maneuver my cannon of a Remington SP-10 with thr 30" barrel out the window of the blind. At this time it was at 15 yards. I whispered to Emma to cover her ears and squeezed the trigger. Down he went like a ton of bricks!! Emma and I looked at each other and burst out into laughter and cheer. We were both beside ourselves to what just happened. I will never forget this hunt, I think she's hooked for life!! He had a 9 inch beard and 1 inch spurs. Didn't have my scale handy, but it was minimum 20 pounds!

That is awesome Ross. Glad you had a good time. Congrats on the buck, beautiful animal!