Samantics, History, and Nonsencery

Language.
The basic purpose of language is to communicate. But occasionally it falls short, due largely to the limited nature of language. In order to function, language must have some limits. If whenever we couldn't think of a word, we simply made up a new one, how could we possibly communicate with others? There would be no way of knowing what new words others had created or what they could mean. (This is why so many parents believe that their teens have stopped using English). However, while the growth of a language must be slowed, it cannot be stopped. For as long as a society is progressing beyond its previous state towards another, whether for better or worse, there will always be times when previous language simply will not suffice, and a new, bold addition to the language must be made.

This is one of those times.

I was talking to a youth from our church the other day (yes, I actually do that on occasion. At least I'm doing better at it now) and I was trying to express the newfound cultural importance of the name Colvin.

9 months before the wonderful Mrs. Rosa Parks made her historic stance against racism and started the mighty gears of the American Civil Rights Movement toward their inalienable goal, there was another. A younger woman, only 15 years of age at the time, also refused her seat to a white customer. She was subsequently arrested. Her story is the same as that of Mrs. Parks, yet it is only recently has this young woman gained recognition for her bravery. And that young woman's name was Claudette Colvin.

So there I was, trying to explain the significance of my namesake while trying to subdue my obvious and rather geeky enthusiasm for historical trivia, when I stopped.

What did I just say?

Colvin is my "Maiden" name?!

Suddenly my mind was filled with a very vivid and disturbing image. There I was, a young Colvin boy, dressed in a frilly pink dress and locked in the tallest tower of a castle, complete with dragon circling precariously.

"This is not right." I thought. "Maiden is NOT the right word".

(For those who do not quite understand, I was indeed born a Colvin, and my lovely bride was a Davidson. When we married, we decided to amalgamate our names into what it is today. Thus Colvin is strictly my pre-marriage name).

So I leave it to you, the blogger community, to enlist into the English language a bold, new word, a word that goes where no word has gone before! Specifically, it must be a word that describes a Man's name previous to his marriage, the same way "Maiden Name" refers to a woman's name prior to her wedding and assumed taking of her husband's name.

What should this new word be?
Me? My money's on "Maxibachlo!" "My Maxibachlo name is Colvin." It references both my previously unwedded state of Bachelorhood, and describes how cool and awesome my new marital state is: Maxi!

Now it's your turn! Comment! Do it now!
-Dave

One Month Old

Corrina has hit her first little landmark in the space- time- wrinkle continum: she is ONE MONTH OLD! Wowzas! Her little face is chubbier, and when weighed on the 16th she came in at a stunning 9 lbs 10 oz. Good eater! So she is healthy, we are mostly rested, and our house definately needs some deep cleaning. Any volunteers???
Here are some pictures to keep you ooohhhing and aaawwwing.
Here is Corrina yesterday enjoying her swing. She has been making some very "content" faces that are almost smiles! So fun!
Here is Corrina on Valentines day in her Valentines dress, courtesy of Pam! Thanks!

And here is Corrina enjoying the afternoon in her sling.. made lovingly by Auntie Heather S! She snuggles right down into it and falls asleep to the enjoable bounce of my walking.

Well well!

Well, Happy Valetine's Day, everyone!

And I truly hope it was. On this most festive occastion let us not forget the Saint who invented chocolate. Or something like that. Apparently.

Well, I'll admit at the beginning of the day things were looking a little grim. With Corrina's blessed arrival I haven't exactly had the spare time to prepare a fancy card or bake special goodies. And these days eating out/going on a romantic date isn't really possible with a brest-feeding baby (I appologise to all of you who may have been offended by the word "feeding"). And we don't exactly have a ton of cash lying around for a fancy gift (not like we're exactly into that... we all know how much Janie loves Diamonds)... so I can honestly say I was at a bit of a loss. But we talked about it and we decided that the best gift of all these days is time together, so I was able to go into work early in order to take the afternoon off.

It was great. We got to sit and talk, which is so nice. We had a nice sub for lunch and I was able to pick up a coconut steamer from the Fyxx for Janie on my way home, which smelled great. And, perhaps best of all, I got to spend some real quality time with my little girl, who was actually somewhat playful for what I beleive was the very first time. We cuddled on a fuzzy blanket, stared at the mobil, and had very meaningful conversation. It was lovely. And when she had a nap, Janie and I got to just be "us" for a few precious moments.

Oh, and for dinner we ordered pizza from Diana's Gourmet Pizza, which was awesome. Tell you what, if you live in Winnipeg and want some serisouly good (yet pricey) pizza, check it out! Winner of "Canada's best pizza 2005" by some random group of judges (who may or may not work for Diana)! Great pizza, try the whole-wheat crust with olive oil and herb sauce! Mention our add and get free bread sticks!

Lastly, I'd like to make a plug for Dave'd Rae's Third Wheel Convention:I was only able to drop by for a few minutes, but that doesn't mean it wasn't awesome and hilarious. Check out Dave's blog, now on Blogger!

Anyways, I have to go to bed. S'been a long day, but a really great one.

Hope you and your's are doing well, and God bless.
-Dave

Video Test!

Hello everyone out there in blogger land!
let me see if this works!

Birthday!

We're hanging out at the girls' house the right now. Where are you?

It's Allison's birthday party, we've just eaten a big meal and are feeling very satisfied, ansad i acan't satand typing of a freaking laptop comkputer keyboird!

Corrina is hanging out on the floor, enjoy the bliss of nudity while someone changes her diaper.

Here are some quotes from our concervastion so that you can feel like you're here too!
"Eggplant is hard to cut through"
"We're not cleaning up, we're just bringing out more food"
"Did you see the Valentine's day dress"
"You're snorting like a piggy again!"
"You're not allowed to go again, I just cleaned your bum!"
"Wahh!"
"I want to be naked, I tell you! Naked!
"That's true, you're mom is quite....pooey"
"Wow. What a hot little girl!"
"hehehehehe"
"She's like, a homey"
"Oh, it burns!"


-Dave

Hey Janie!

Hello Janie, my precious, my love!

I'm at work and I just wanted to stop by and say hello! and I love you! and stuff like that. I didn't want to phone because last time I did I woke you and the baby up, but I figured you'd probably check the blog at some point!

I hope you're having a fabolous day! I hope you are well, and rested, and get to eat something today! (and I hope that all the lovely people out there leave nice comments for you too because you love to read them!)

Anyway, keep your chin up! Hope Corinna is having a wonderful day too!
-Love, Dave

I found it!

For many a year now, I have been searching. Tirelessly searching. Tirelessly and endlessly and expeditiously searching.

And of course, when I say "tirelessly" and "endlessly", I mean that at the very least I never really actually and completely stopped, which is much easier to do when the going is only really half-hearted to begin with. And of course by "searching" I mean that I've been keeping a general eye out for, and occasionally asking the odd person, some of whom may or may not have been in a position to accurately respond.

At any rate, and at the very least, I've been curious. Perhaps one might say mildly curious. Yet out of that mild yet unquenchable curiosity has sprung forth a near Herculean effort (which, while fettered by the daily grind of other more innocuous pursuits such as social responsibility and personal hygiene, is nonetheless impressive) to track down and otherwise lay hold of a fleeting artifact, unbeknownst to the collective consciousness for eons, from the very depths of my origin.

It might be fair to clarify that “origins” could rightly describe any point previous to the current one. And perhaps it would be courteous to point out that what might be mere months or possibly only a few years to you or I could easily be considered eons to something of a lesser earthly duration. Say, perhaps, an earwig. And while the reference to the great Olympians of old may not represent an accurate gauge of my labors in the traditional sense, it cannot be said that my attempted efforts were not entirely without at least some degree of personal anguish and sacrifice.

Ahem.
The long and the short of it is this:

Back in High school Karla Ann Naus showed us a book created from although not entirely written by a Dr Suess. Ever since I’ve been trying to remember the title and track down the book. Today I managed to. Good for me.

-Dave.

2 Weeks Old!!

I'm 2 Weeks Old!!
Can you believe it?? I hardly can. It feels like we just brought her home from the hospital. Wow, i have survived 14 nights (and days) with this cutie pie. Actually, she is a rather good sleeper at night. She actualy does a 5-6 hour stretch every night. Last night she had an amazing night!! Usualy she won't sleep until 2pm (and then does her 5 hr stretch), but last night she went to sleep at 10, didn't wake up until 1:30, went back to sleep at 4, and didn't wake up until 9:30ish!! Isn't that splendid. It is a blessing to have a good sleeper, and to have energy during the day! She makes such cute noises all the time, and really doesn't cry unless she has a gassy, sore tummy! She loves motion; the most soothing movement to her is up and down, up and down, so we do biscept curls with her and get a good workout!! She still eats alot (she will eat for like 2 hours... i know she isn't eating that whole time, more like sleeping half the time!!). Her eyes seem to get bigger and wider and more beautiful with every day that passes. She has endless funny expressions that she shares with us. We has seen little smiles, mostly when she's falling asleep or gassy, but we can't wait until she smiles in response to us!!! Chris and Mary are visiting with us until sunday and have been very helpful: sweeping, dishes, cooking, entertaining, holding and burping!! Well, enjoy the pictures, and leave a comment if you've stopped by; I LOVE READING THEM!!!
Adios from the Colvinson Clan (Corrina is the first true blood Colvinson!!)

This little red shirt (dress on her) was knitted by Auntie Candace! Cute Cute Cute!

Corrina likes to fall asleep in her swing!

Dad and Corrina rocking the day away!

This picture is about a week old. It was taken at her first bath!

Rachel Dolynchuk - DO NOT READ!

If you're NOT Rachel Dolynchuk, please continue.
(If you are, Ninjas have been dispatched to your location to prevent you from reading further)


We just got this email from Carol, Rachel's mom:

Rach's birthday is january 30th. She wont be home...she has a long weekend and has gone camping so she wont be home till late Monday night.

So...if you can send her a quick e-mail over the weekend...that would be great.

She asked us to pass it along to various friends and family who know and love her, but since I'm terrible with email, I through I'd blog all about it. You can also check out her blog over there ---->

Keepin' it real,
Dave

PS> Corrina is amazingly sweet, awesomely coolish and rockin'!

Photos photos photos!

Okayokayokayokay.
People have been riotous in their demand for more baby pics. So here you go!


Here's the VERY FIRST PICTURE OF CORRINA EVER. (well, of her outsides, at any rate).














Here's Mom and Dad, in our first Family Photo!












Here's Corrina's Stuffy. Can you tell who he is? Dad got to pick him out and was very excited to have the privilage.







Here is a beautiful Hat! It was made by Auntie Heather to reminder Corrina that fitting in isn't so imporant and matching colours are overrated. It's her official Granola Crunching hat (she just needs some teeth. Right now it would be more like granola gumming and choking. Not so good).










Here's a pic of Corrina looking cute. It's only one of her many skills!








Here are a few shots from her first Photo Shoot (wow, I'm find that I'm really obsessed with "firsts" at the moment. I wonder how long that'll last.)










What a cutie!









And for some reason, lots of moms love pictures of their children screaming. I won't pretend to understand, but she still looks really cute.











And here's Mom and Daughter, cuddlin' at the lunch table. Both are healthy, both are well. Where is Dad? Well, Dad is behind the camera, isn't he!



Thanks for all the love! See you soon!

BABY!

Hello!

It is the afternoon of Friday, Jan 20th, and we JUST got home from the hospital with our BEAUTIFUL BABY GIRL!!! Her name is Corrina Jamie Joy Colvinson! She was born at 1:26 am on Wednesday Jan. 18. We started off in early labour on Sunday Evening, went to the hospital on Tuesday at 4:00 am, and went into Active/Hard Labour around 6:45pm. Then, after the long time of anticipation, we had a VERY short delivery (5 pushes/10 mins?!), our beautiful baby came into the world. And she is BEAUTIFUL!

Janie was INCREDIBLE. She wanted to go without drugs and she did it! She was so strong and worked so hard, and she was Amazing. It was so hard on her when she wasn’t dilating quickly at first, but the last two centimetres took all of 10 minutes! Now she’s up and walking, getting her colour back, and generally being a great mom.

I am so proud. I have the best wife ever. Way to go, Janie!

Special mention has to go to our friends Allison, Candace, Heather, Sarah and Trisha who were there from 5:00pm Tuesday and help out amazingly all the way through the delivery! Every time Janie felt a contraction coming on, someone was massaging her back, someone had a cold compress on her forehead, someone else was holding hands and everyone was helping with breathing! In the end they were Human Stirrups! We were both so thankful for their support and true friendship. You have earned the right to be Aunties! (The new name for their house is “The Aunt Farm”)

Little Corrina did end up a little Jaundice and had to stay in the hospital for a few days, but in the end it was good because it meant Janie and I got a lot of great advice about breast feeding and bathing and such. Now we are home and learning to settle into our environment. Corrina looks so tiny in her crib, even though she is quite sizeable. Grandma Judy is here to help us out now and has already proven to be a much needed support. She arrive on the 19th, and relieved Dave at the Hospital so he could get a full nights sleep. Of course Janie doesn’t get that luxury, but even after days without really sleeping at all she is still going strong! As for Dad, I’m told I was a great support and a very helpful partner, but I have to admit that I MAY have nodded off once or twice during everything (EDIT: the nurses were taking pictures of him “sawing logs” in the delivery bed!).

This picture is one of her JUST out of the womb, with vernix and all! After laying on Mum for a while and then having the chord cut, Corrina was passed on to Daddy who got to play with her while the doctors took care of mom a little.

Anyway, we’re busy around here so I’d better get back to work, but thank you! Thank you to all who offered support and prayers, and who left all the lovely messages on our machine to come home to! Thank you for being our friends and family.

Much love from Janie, Dave and Baby Corrina (who may just be the first 100% pure blood Colvinson EVER!)

It's all beginning

Well, as of last night at about 6:30 i started getting real contractions!!! They were nothing to worry about, hardly noticable, and i was a at a social event until 10:30! We got home and went to bed fairly quickly. I did manage to get a few hours of sleep in between contractions that were getting stronger and waking me up, but only occuring every half hour. Morning came and contractions were getting closer and more intense, but still not too bad. Then i took a shower and things slowed down. Then i feel asleep, and things slowed down... and haven't really picked back up again. It is now 11am and i am feeling very good, not too tired, but a little worried that things are going slow.
Outside there is beautiful snowfall so we are going to go for a short walk, and then i will relax in the rocking chair (which seemed to move things along a little!). I know i have alot of hard work ahead of me, but bring it on!!!!

So keep your eyes open for a post announcing a baby in the next few days!

Yippy!

Healthy Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Before you read this post.. have you looked at the others? Baby room pics down below!

I did some baking tonight and since i can't share the results with alot of you i had better share the recipe!

So I am going to share one of my beloved cookie recipes. These cookies taste so healthy and yummy that i call them breakfast cookies. I am very serious about breakfast; it needs to be healthy and balanced and these cookies make the cut!

Banana Cookies
3/4 c. margerine
1c. brown sugar (really could be reduced to 1/2 c, especially if you add choc chips... i know, i know.. choc chips are so not breakfast food... well, maybe sometimes!)
1/2 c. mashed ripe banana (i often use more. when i don't have enough banana i use apple sauce.. also wonderful and moist!)
1 tsp. canilla
1 c. flour (white or whole wheat)
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. b.soda
3 cups uncooked oats
1/2 c. chopped nuts and/or choc chips
***add any and/or all of the following: oatbran, wheat bran, wheat germ, flax seed (really yummy and makes them have a little crunch!), any other "healthy" things you have around, even extra oatmeal!

** the dough will be thick/clumpy and full of good things; the cookies don't spread out alot because of all the good hearty ingrediants. They pretty much stay in the blob you put them in.

OVEN: 375 for 10-15 minutes (bottoms browned)

1. beat margerine, brown sug, egg, banana and vanilla until creamy
2. mix flour, sal and b.soda together; blend into banana mixture with electric beater
3. using a wooden spoon mix in oatmeal, buts (ha ha, funny spelling mistake, i am leaving it!), choc chips, and healthy stuff
4. Drop by rounded TEASPOONS onto baking sheets (they are better little if you ask me, and they stay in the blob you put them in)

Happy Banana baking! I hope you enjoy them and make them your own... don't forget the healthy things!

Baby's Room

This is the room our beloved will soon live in!! Friends from church gave us a crib. Claire lovingly crocheted the blanket featured on the end! We painted our old dresser and added a change mat for the Baby's Bum! I have all the diapers, etc in the basket on the dresser (thanks girls) hidden behind some books in this picture! We have yet to put a shelf up above the dresser to put cute little things on display!
Here I am feeling rather sad that my baby has not come yet! But i was just being silly... i am not really as sad as i look!
Here is a clear view of the wonderful curtains i made for the baby. I found the fabric on sale.. what a wonderful thing! Oh, and our bathing centre!!
More lovely blanket made with care and tenderness... and you can see our turtle mobile thingy from ten thousand villages! They have awesome baby/children's toys and such there!
And here is just one more of my favortie things: leafy drawer pulls. If you know me (or have seen my engagement ring!) then you know i looooovvveeeee leaves and fall, etc... I was very pleased to find these drawer pulls and just love the way they look! Thanks Dave for understanding my need to buy leafy drawer pulls when simple ones would do! He loves me and likes my quirks!

So i am just passing the time until the baby comes to be with us in the outer world! Oh, i can't take credit for the pictures... dave took them... he is very good with the camera!
-the colvinson's

Happy Due date!

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all the encouragement and comments. While there is still no baby i had a pretty great day. I guess the baby knows best when he/she is due! Dave and i just got home from a nice long walk. I don't know if it will start labour, but while i was walking i sure could feel pressure and mild discomfort. Today was filled with many phone calls from people saying hang in there, a visit with friends, and 4 loads of laundry. I try to move about during the day as much as i can and then sit more in the evening when the ankles have gotten all swollen. Tomorrow i have an appointment with the doctor so we will find out if there is any progress going on inside.
That's about all i have to say at this point. Oh, one more thing: i like my cats lots and lots!!!

Janie

Supreme Chocolate Cheesecake

I made a delicious chocolate cheesecake last night! First cheesecake ever! I thought if i feed the baby yummy food it just wouldn't be able to resist coming into the world to eat more of the food for itself! Unfortunately the baby did not agree and is still enjoying the pleasure of nutrients through the umbilical cord.

So now i have a like 3/4 of a cake left, and only dave and i to eat it! Darn...

It is sunday night. One and a half days until the day date. Thanks for your prayers; i know God has the very best timing, has immense amounts of care and love for me, dave and the baby, and is watching over us all. I just need to find something to distract myself in the mean time, like making chocolate cheesecakes!

Happy waiting to you all!
Oh, i think you need more entertainment than just my ramblings, so i am going to put some funny pictures of Dave up... just one sec... there we go... he he he

































Oh, and these are some of our friends: Brad over by the Christmas tree, Tricia, Sarah, and KKKarl! This is on New Years Eve, before the party really got kicking and i forgot to take pictures!

ENGAGED....

...in the pelvis!!! That is, the baby! At my doctors apt. today she confirmed that the baby has moved down and the head is in the pelvis. I thought walking was a little harder than usual these days! I had fun being engaged the first time, and this time brings just as much excitement! tee hee

This of course does not guarentee the baby is coming within the next week, but it sure is on track for doing it's thing!

Today I had a wonderful visit with a friend from my second year in college! She lives and goes to school in Calgary, but is out to visit her parents in Winkler for the holidays. Because she needed to be back in Winkler (1 hr, outside the city) by 1pm we decided that we would have brunch together. She met me at my house and accompanied me to my 9 am doctors appointment, and then we went for breakfast/brunch. We had a wonderful time chatting and catching up! She also gave Dave, baby and I a beautiful present. Here is a picture of her and me, and the beautiful present! Thanks Heidi, you are very thoughtful. Oh, and the funniest thing: her and her boyfriend have a bet going on the gender, and the loser has to take the other out for dinner!!! Ha ha, i love it! Pictures:
Nice eh? It looks like it is a wood carving, but it feels and weighs more like some sort of stone. I am very grateful to be the recipient of such a lovely gift!

I am going to spend some time tonight working in dishes, and then i will put my feet up and watch some Friends on DVD, which will also give me some time to work on crocheting Dave's mitten!

We'll keep everyone posted!

39 Weeks

It is January 3, 2005 and our due date is ONE week away!!!! EEEEEEKKKKKK, can you believe that? I cannot, yet i wish the baby were working his/her way out this second!
Just to keep everyone updated on how pregnant i am looking, here are a few pictures! In these pictures you can see some of the Babino's room: Yellow walls, blue and green dresser, change pad, basket (for diapers, etc..)! We just bought a curtain rod,drawer pulls (pretty ones with leaves!), and a bulliten board for lots of shots of baby! We are also going to put a shelf on the wall above the dresser. I am having so much fun getting a room ready for the baby!
Have a Happy

Sewing and waiting

Firday, Dec. 30 was my last day of work. Now i am on maternity leave, which until the baby comes will be time to clean (nest, as some like to say), sew, visit with people, shop (not too much of this after christmas though!), and become mentaly and spiritualy prepared.
I am just doing my 'internet thing', drinking delicious Second Cup Vanilla Bean Hot Choc. (from our dear friends Jen and Jonathon) and waiting for a courier to arrive with my "record of employment" and vacation pay from 'the office' (i told them i could come get it, but they said they would courier it out.. just hope i am not the one who pays!). I was sewing baby room curtains until i ran out of white thread. My friend Candace is coming over with some in the next little while, and she is also going to help me figure out my sewing machine a little more. When i do a zig zag stitch the fabric gathers funny, so we are going to mess around a little with length, width, and tension!

I took a little break and finished the curtains! It is very nice to have them all done.
When the baby does come we plan on emailing most everyone (that we have an address for), and of course posting pictures on here, so keep your eyes open!

Happy days to you all

Martha nights!

I do not believe that we have blogged about our "Martha Nights." It may be a little embarrasing, but the fun is worth it! There are 5 of us involved in these nights, which sadly are now over because Dawna won the apprenticeship with Martha. Yes, you have it; we watched Martha the apprentice!! It was great fun to get together once a week (if we missed we would tape the show and watch it another night), to sit and enjoy fine, quality television and see the weirdo business side of Martha. What are we going to do now that the show is over? Will there be a Wednesday night of bliss in my weeks? Quick, someone start taping something we can all watch together!
In my stocking this year i received a particularily ridiculous present. Can you guess? Dave bought it for $2.00, it is a VHS, and it is an MTV special that i don't think people really watch anymore. Beavis and Butthead; these freaks are definately beyond sanity. But, i suppose he bought it for me because sometimes i talk about episodes that i saw in my highschool days. They are such a gross, immature, idiodic pair. Despite their rude and crude behavior, Dave and i just spent a half hour watching some epsodes off the video. It was funny, we laughed. We have no taste!

We had a wonderful New Years Eve. We spent the evening at "the girls" house. I brought my laundry along and washed quilts (hey, you can't pass up free laundry when you have big, beautiful homemade quilts to wash. Plus our machines in the basement don't have delicate cycles. Sucky!) We watched some hockey (can't go to the girl's house when there is a game on and expect the TV to be off!) ate lots of yummy finger foods (good job picking all that food girls!) had punch and pop, played scategories, and just hung out. Good times!
Dave is working on making a big batch of Chilli for dinner and then we head to the church to meet some of the Youth and walk down the road for a worship night in winnipeg. I spent the afternoon napping. It was actually rather wonderful. I usualy do not nap, and when i do i have such a hard time getting up and going again, and i can't sleep at night. However, we have both been feeling so tired that i doubt the few hours will interfere with my night sleeping! I am trying super duper hard to relax and rest, and dave has been a big help by sweeping up a little today, doing dishes, and now preparing dinner! Everyone needs a dave, perferably a different dave than mine.. i am not willing to share! Tee hee.
Happy New Year to everyone. Of course we are still awaiting our little babino.. 9 more days until the due date... ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, and YEAHHHHHHHH!