Our Family & Our Life

Dear Diary, Colin and I went for a long weekend to Prague on 13 July 2007, a place we both wanted to visit for quite some time (click on the links for more information) I'll explain the trip through photos except sadly, I can't include some of the best photos as our memory card got corrupted and we as a result can't get them off the camera. If anyone has an idea how we can download them, please let us know!!!! Our hotel was a metro stop or two from the city centre so we took the metro system to get around and albeit really efficient I had a problem with the escaltors down to the train... it was so steep. The first time going down I thought I was going to go head first, it was scary!! From then on when we went down, Colin stood in front of me and when we up, he stood in behind me. The picture doesn't look so scarry, but they are, trust me: Prague architecture in the Old Square: There was also a statue of John Huss, the reformer, however it was under repairs and we coul...

Dear Diary, I just wanted to add a short entry today to let everyone know how the three of us are getting on. We arrived back from Prague on Monday but I'll put up another post about that trip a little later on this week. We had a great time and Prague comes highly recommended for future travels. Babs (or Bambino) is doing fine and not causing me too much grief. I'm tired 24/7 and don't have the motivation to do whole lot. The same goes for eating, I eat to survive but most foods I would pass on, even coffee and chocolate. Ah yuck, the thought of coffee turns my stomach! The other week I boiled a kettle of water for a cuppa and I couldn't do it, the smell of boiled water made me sick. HELP! I need some caffine! With a few gentle reminders, Colin is helping me out too. He has taken responsibility of cleaning out the cat litter box and if he thinks about it, feeding the two of them as well. I felt bad for him in Prague though, I was so tired by the end of the day,...

Dear Diary, Just a short entry to share our good news - we are going to have a baby in February! At seven weeks all is going well, just the odd wave of nausea now and again and 24/7 fatigue has set it as well. Food is a big turn off too but hopefully that won't be case in the next few months. My main concern right now is the trip to Prague, Czech Republic we have planned for this coming Friday. The last thing I want right now is to be sick and tired on our holiday! 'Til next time, Colin and Heather and junior Arsenal fan...

Dear Diary, We went to a Garden Show at Hillsborough Castle this past weekend. The world's largest rhododendrum plant is located at Hillsborough Castle (this isn't it). Colin, my navigator... There is not much new news although today we were in Manchester and to discuss the possibility of taking GPC to North America. Well, as it is now, Colin and I have been assigned to determine the scope of the market, if any. Before any commitments are made we are required to get at least 6 customers, or at least very interested customers, which would make the North American taxi market profitable. There is one in Chicago so we have five more to find before the end of next weekend. Hopefully, we won't have a problem but we'll start making more calls in earnest, tomorrow. As always, we'll keep you all informed. Hope all is well. With Christian greetings, Heather and Colin

Dear Diary, We enjoyed a lovely day off on Monday and these are the photos to prove it... Newcastle, County Down - about one hour south of Larne: We travelled along to a National Trust Site called Bloody Bridge: After we did a bit of hill walking at Bloody Bridge, we continued our coastal journey through a town called Annalong which had another spectacular view of the Mourne Mountains: As we drove we came across a site called the Silent Valley which were created to provide Belfast with water. As you can see, there was a massive slope just begging me to roll down, so I did but by the time I got to the bottom, the world wouldn't stop spinning... I recovered enough to watch the ducks and a ferret that was teasing them... Colin and I like to think we saved the ducklings from the ferret.. We had a great day together and it was nice break... If only we had another week... Til next time.. Enjoy the weather wherever you are... Heather

Dear Diary, You may or may not have heard but Colin and I have been presented, by Colin's boss, with the opportunity to take GPC Software to the USA. It has been agreed in principle to move us to Pennsylvania, more specficially, the greater Philadelphia area. This is an exciting venture, and we are really excited about it, as we would be starting the company, and our lives, from scratch (again!!!). Customers and clients are already lined up so all we have to do is let them know we're there and ready to do business. I don't have much else to say about it at the moment ie timing, but hopefully in the next week or so after we have had further discussions in Belfast, I'll be able to provide more information. Hope all is well with you all, We'll be enjoying a lovely N. Irish long weekend, Heather (and Colin)

Dear Diary, Click on the link to the right called "Canada, eh?" ... it's good fun... As for my score, I'm a little embarrassed,but at least I have a good excuse - how can I remember everything when I live 4,000 miles away from home?!!? Add a comment and let me know how you did... My score was 11! Have fun, Heather

Dear Diary, We've been busy painting and all that goes with it around the house but in the spare moments, Colin has been busy working in the backyard. These photos are about a month old: This photo was taken today and although Colin doesn't think much has been accomplished since the first photos, he's gotten a lot done! Hopefully the next photo will feature the finished product! Oh yeah, since Mother's Day is in March in this part of world, I didn't realize it was today in Canada and therefore, we didn't send a card, but Mom, Colin and I wanted to wish you a Happy Mother's Day today, we love you and we hope Dad did the lunch dishes today before his afternoon nap!!!! Speaking of Mom and Dad, they are coming to visit us in September for a couple of weeks and we are looking forward to their visit. With Christian Greetings, Heather and Colin

Dear Diary, Yes, we are still here, we haven't gone anywhere. The last 7 or 8 weeks have been too nice to spend the evenings and weekends in the house so we've been outstide working around the backyard. Would you believe that we hit the 27 degree mark and only one day of rain?!?!? We've been terracing a horrible slope in the rear of the backyard. We thought it would take us 3 or 4 weekends but it's been a lot longer than that and I'd say we still have another 4 or 5 to go. Poor Colin is getting discouraged 'cause he doesn't think he is getting anywhere but I see the difference. I have some photos on the camera and I will try to find some time this weekend to download them. Hope you are doing as well as we are, Love, Colin and Heather

Dear Diary, Here we meet again... Colin and I had a mini-weekend break on the west coast of Ireland in a city called Galway which is famed to be the most beautiful city in Ireland. It was a lovely city and surrounding area and it is nicer than Belfast and Dublin... A piece of real estate we fancied just outside of Galway The weather was lousy. It rained everyday and late Sunday afternoon there were gale force winds which continued until Monday morning. We were getting cabin fever just being in our hotel room so we decided to drive home a day early. Colin was especially happy as he could now have his own pillow! Between the wind pounding the windows and an uncomfortable pillow, the poor boy didn't sleep much... However, before we left Galway, we did enjoy a lovely Italian dinner in the heart of the city with a nice bottle of vino blanca followed by a stroll around the city on the cobblestone streets (it was dry at this point!!). The next day we walked along the beach and board walk...