David goes to School, etc

It felt funny reading people’s facebook status the other day and seeing so many sending their first borns off to their first day of preschool. I, on the other hand, felt like I sent my dear husband off to his first day at the big new university.

On Wednesday David had his program orientation at Brock. They had a BBQ lunch, tour of the Oenology/ Viticulture building, the Inniskilan Hall, and then went to a couple of vineyards/ wineries to meet past Brock graduates that were now working as wine makers.
David came back excited and enthusiastic about what the future may hold for him. There are only about 20 people in the program, which includes masters and PhD students. It was interesting to hear him talk about all the different students, their stories and where they are from. The students are from all over the world. There are a few from Ontario, one from Kelowna, a couple from other provinces, as well as students from Israel, France, Switzerland, New Zealand, etc. Apparently it’s one of the only schools (worldwide) that offers masters/ Ph D programs in the field, drawing students from all over.

On Friday evening David went to one of the other student’s houses with a group of others to taste wine and learn more about the program through 3rd year and masters students. Once again, he felt encouraged and excited about his education and the new career path that he is on. The possibilities of travel, a guaranteed employment rate and becoming an expert on the field were all very encouraging. All the current and graduated students continue to say that it is an incredibly difficult bio/ chem degree, but have also said what an amazing program it is and to stick it out when times are hard. All of the students and graduates have had excellent experiences and love their jobs.

So far he has felt good about the classes, except for having to be able to tell apart 15 different grape varieties just by looking at the leaves. Hopefully the rest of his classes will be good. He will indeed be a busy man this fall.

As for me, I have picked up my paint brush and have been back to work. I finished the upstairs hall and entry way a few days ago, as well as the basement hallway and rec room. Yikes, that felt like a lot of work! I was feeling tired of painting for a while, but now feel ready to go again. Next, are the basement kitchen/ nook area, basement bedroom and lastly the kitchen. Our house is starting to feel more and more like home each day. Painting and getting set up has made all the difference. A couple of days ago we went to IKEA and bought a cheap shelf to store our DVD’s on. David was anxious for the rec room to be fully painted so that we could get everything set up. He enjoyed unpacking all the DVD’s and setting them up properly.

It’s been weird having David go to school this past week and being alone with Sarah. I know that I have been spoiled having him around so much for the past few months, and that it’s time for normal life to begin again, but I miss him already. On the plus side, I am looking forward to putting more routine back into the day, especially for Sarah and her naps. I have to admit that I’m already wondering how I will fill my days once the house is all painted and set up. I suppose I will just re expore my hobbies and enjoy my time with Sarah.

Sarah has started the joy of teething. We can see her front bottom 2 teeth through her gums and a little white on the top. She has become a little drooling machine this week, soaking through her shirts. Consequently, she’s been a little fussier some days and has had a harder time falling asleep for some of her naps. She continues to be a complete joy for us! I can’t imagine being here without her. It seems like she is always doing something cute or making some kind of cute sounds. We have found that just laying her flat in her stroller without the car seat has been a good thing. She is so much happier for longer periods of time and if she gets sleepy she can easily fall asleep flat.

I’m glad that we have already found a family doctor, just 5 doors down from our house. We met him last week already and had him do Sarah’s 4 month check up. She’s an average weight, still very long (95%) but has a smaller head (27%). Out here each family doctor does their patients own immunizations. So, it’s good to know that I can always just walk her down the street for that in the future and not got to the health clinic again, especially in the winter.

I suppose while I’m at it, I’ll report on Keisha too. She’s doing well and setting into a new home and neighborhood. Poor dog got fleas soon after we got here and has been on the itchy side. However, our landlords got an exterminator to spray a flea killer on the carpets the other week, so she’s been a happier dog ever since.

Other than that, life has been going well. We haven’t found a church yet. We’ve done some research and have a few picked out that we want to try this month. We’re really hoping to find a church where we can feel a part of soon. David is already meeting lots of new people at school but I don’t really have a place to meet people at the moment. I am hoping that I will be able to make some friends through church and find a place to get involved and serve.

I will post some other items separately before this posting gets too long to read (if it isn’t already). Some postings to come in the near future: a tour through our town (with pics) and a tour of our home (before and after), also with pics.

Lots of love,
Shari, David, Sarah and Keisha