Meet David-Louis Burns Châtel

Mother: Shannon Burns

Father: Normand Châtel

Born: October 8, 1996

In full adolescence.

Interests include: spending time with friends, spending time with friends on X-Box live, spending time with friends at school, spending time with friends at basketball (either on the court or on the bench), spending time with friends on Facebook, spending time with friends at the mall, spending time with friends in our basement eating us out of house and home, spending time text messaging the friends that are not currently with him, spending time with his big brother but not admitting that he loves every minute of it, spending time with his big brother's friends, and spending time with his parents if all of his friends are otherwise occupied.

Pet peeve: not being allowed to spend ANY time with his friends, not enough food in the house, having to earn his keep, and lastly, a pet peeve he doesn't know about yet, when his mother writes about him on a blog post.

Photo courtesy of his Aunt Lindsay who was playing with her new iPhone and he happened to be in the way.

Back to school!

Hello cousins and other followers,

School resumed this week in our household - "back to school" means so much more now than it did when I was the student heading back, and even as a young, childless beginning teacher I did not appreciate the behind the scenes shake-up that it brings about; the sorting through last year's supplies, the trip to the store for the missing items, replacing the jeans that are now two inches too short (I know, they do have to grow), the centuries-old lunch imbroglio - what to pack, who will make, enough not enough, forgotten, etc...; the soon-to-be Olympic event that is "running-for-the-bus-while-eating- breakfast" and the inevitable "what do we do now that we've missed it?". I was oblivious to ALL of this (and perhaps, dare I admit, even a bit insensitive)until I had children of my own. Throw in a return to full-time teaching, and I consider myself truly enlightened. After only two days with my new group of students, I am optimistic that the year will be a rewarding one for all of us. Stay tuned, we'll see how long the honeymoon lasts.

Aunt Dawn, Aunt Sharon, Mom (Dilly)and Lindsay, are cruising along the Rhine, landing in various ports, and testing beer in every single one of them. Perhaps the locals will write a sea shanty about them.

I don't get many details, but Lindsay does send the occasional photo. Here's one of the most recent (it might help explain any loopy behaviour that rears its goofy head in either you or your offspring - genetics).

Dawn and Dilly "eating" giant pretzels in a tavern.

I wish they would lighten up and have some fun!

That's it for today's post.

Your photos are ALWAYS WELCOME!!!

Cousin,

Shannon

William George Burns

August 25, 1932 - February 26, 2010

"Seventy-eight years young" That is what Dad would have said when receiving birthday wishes today. I miss you every single day Dad, especially when life throws us curve balls. That's when the warmth and strength of your hugs would quell whatever was causing the preoccupation. We all miss you. Happy birthday Dad, there were far too few in my mind.

Mid-summer check in.

Hello cousins and friends,

Please forgive the prolonged absence... I wish I could offer up some brilliant reason justifying the inactivity, but unfortunately, it's really just laziness. Furthermore, I must make this entry brief as we are expecting hired help this morning and there is still preparation to do for his arrival.

So, in the interest of brevity, here's what has been going on under my nose, and I hasten to throw out an invitation to one and all to add newsy bits from their corner of the world.

• Alex Wright has moved from The 'Peg to the nation's capital to once again live with Peter, her husband after a two-year long distance marriage. It is our loss and the Eastern cousins' gain. I will miss Alex and Peter and Fraser, but especially Alex. It's kind of like watching my little sister move away AGAIN.
• Dad's ashes were interred at Brookside cemetary, right alongside David, on Friday, July 16th. Tears were shed, and rose petals strewn, but in the end, the family assembled for a pic-nic and the second generation cousins were able to spend sometime together, maybe enough to remember each other's name for the next time. As is often the case, we all agreed that the person for whom we were meeting - Dad, would have enjoyed the gathering more than any of us.
• Scoot Rees, Kelly Mckeag's eldest son, celebrated his marriage at the idyllic Granite Lake. Quite a few Winnipeg cousins were present. It was a gorgeous day!
• Sandy Burns is now stationed in Rankin Inlet and appears to be ding well. He works 12 hour days with one day off a week.
• Sonya Burns and her family spent two weeks in and around The 'Peg, but was happy to return home to Georgetown so that construction on their backyard pool might begin. HOW EXCITING!
• Lindsay and Dilly have spent COUNTLESS HOURS in the garden and are preparing for their European cruise. They will be accompanied by Aunt Dawn, Aunt Sharon and Aunt Pat.

• Lindsay is continuing her studies in the area of English as an Additional Language by taking a course on benchmarking.
• In previous posts I spoke of my job search and pretty much left you all hanging (I'm absolutely sure no one was losing ANY sleep over the unanswered question!) with regards to the outcome of the interview process. I was offered a PERMANENT contract with the Louis Riel School Division. I secured the job I held from October 2009 to June 2010, which means I will be teaching a 5/6 split. Few permanent contracts are offered in this economic climate, and so I consider myself very fortunate. I will be working with a wonderful team at an elementary school in my neighbourhood.
• Because of my new job security, Norm has been able to do many home improvements that have been piling up over the past ten years. He built an impressive patio in the backyard (with the help of Liam), is currently laying cork flooring in all three bedrooms, and built a couple of backyard sheds. Some days his walking is slightly tortured!
• Lastly, the Burns-Châtel summer has been dedicated to my post-ACL reconstruction surgery. We have not travelled at all because I am still on crutches and my exercise routine requires about two hours a day to complete. I'm keeping my eye on the prize: a "crutch-free" return to the classroom.

That's it for the update. Pretty mundane, i know, but sometimes a person needs a little bit of ordinariness in order to get ready for the next wave of activity.

Take care one and all.

Love,

Shannon Burns

Good morning everybody!

I am making an exceptional post (a weeday morning when I should be on my way to school!) because I saw this wonderful video on Canada AM. I am curious as to how people make their blogs so diverse, so here's my attempt to embed the You Tube video that captured my fancy. It appears as though Toyota is reaching out to consumers by tickling their sense of humour... have a look. (Once you've watched this, don't forget to read yesterday's post. There is VERY IMPORTANT info included in that one too.)

The job quest continues...

A few weeks ago I blogged/vented about my unsuccessful application as a high school Basic French teacher. Well, yesterday I interviewed for a position as a Middle Years French Immersion teacher with the Louis Riel School Division where I am currently employed. The Division is trying a new hiring strategy for the first time, and that meant that all teachers presently holding a term contract were invited to throw their CV into the ring and the successful candidates would be placed following the interview process. My turn was yesterday at 3 pm, and for the first time in my life, adult or otherwise, I prepared for it. I had notes, a mnemonic device to help me remember everything I had to say about the climat in my classroom, I consulted colleagues and practiced my delivery while riding my bike home. In other words, I managed to get myself in quite a lather! AND, it was thirty degrees yesterday afternoon, which made putting on form fitting underpinnings a real honest to goodness struggle and during which I may have pulled a muscle. I'll do anything to look good in a suit. I was in and out of the interview in thirty minutes, and managed not to commit any blunders, serious or otherwise. I've done my part, and it is now my turn to practice what I preach to my students, the art of being patient.

In the spirit of hockey playoffs (Go Habs !) I am posting a photo of Scott Rees who is Kelly McKeag's eldest son. Scott is assisstant manager at Winnipeg's brand-new Apple store. When Norm and I were in there, the place was hopping; Scott was deeply entrenched in an intense tutorial session with a kid who had brought his laptop in for a look-see. It was pretty cool to see Scott take such good care of this little customer. Here he is, long past the (NHL) drafting age, but in his beer-league prime. THANKS FOR THE PHOTO SCOTT! (That means one more post without a photo of the Châtel boys or my dog.)

Charaty's (Scott's finacée) brother Derrick, Scott & Charaty's other-brother Darren

celebrating the Buzzard's league championship victory.

Before concluding this post, I must correct some of the info I posted about our cousin Dean Campbell. He and his partners are accountants, not lawyers; but Dean, were you ever a lawyer? Our cousin Doug Campbell in Calgary once was a lawyer and he switched teams and became an architect, so you can understand why a person might slip up periodically... This is how Dean so diplomatically let me off the hook when I mistakenly identified him as lawyer

"...although after Enron and Worldcom in the mind of the general public that may be a distinction without a difference".

Who said accountants don't have a sense of humour? I posted a photo of Angelica, who would have been Grandma and Grandpa's first great-great grandchild. I haven't asked Dean his permission to post this next part, but it is a perfect illustration of how when some place is truly home one tends to overlook its shortcomings...

Regarding May in Winnipeg (my last post was mostly about Winnipeg weather), the last time I was there was May 1st 2002(?), I was at a large family gathering at the former home of Uncle Scott and Aunt Sonya on Wellington Crescent, and it was snowing in the afternoon! Roy Drewitt asked me just how hot it could get in El Paso in the summer, and I replied the highs could exceed 100 degrees F. Roy exclaimed that a person would have to be crazy to live there. I mumbled something or other in response and glanced out the window as the snow flakes fell ever faster, all the while wondering how many El Pasoans would regard living in Winnipeg as crazy. To each his own, but I prefer hot and dry to cold and damp. Dean Campbell, El Paso Texas

Happy long weekend everybody,
wherever you may be,
I hope the sun shines brightly.

Good Sunday Morning !

This is the exact moment in time when 'Peggers are lulled into a false sense of meteorological comfort. It is mid-May (even better than midway) and yesterday Mother Nature granted us a beautiful day. We've had a lot of rain & grey skies of late. I know, I know, the rain was badly needed, and the explosion of green is refreshing and desperately needed after weeks of the dust and grime that melting snow leaves behind, but rain to a teacher means indoor recess and mobs of children who's delicate sensors react STRONGLY to changes in barometric pressure (I am nothing if not adept in euphemistic prose). BUT 'Peggers should know better...Mother Nature has duped us before. THEREFORE I have vowed not to gather up the winter gear for the spring-wash-and-store process until July 1. And to those who will goadingly say, "sure sure, it is just procrastination dressed up in scepticism", I say "You try and sit through 3 hours of baseball on a chilly May-June evening." I will not be snookered and the fleece blanket, toques and gloves will remain close at hand.

This weeks photos are courtesy of the eldest Campbell cousin, Dean Campbell, number one son of Uncle Craig (#3 son of Gladys and Douglas) and Aunt Enid. When I was a little girl I thought Dean was extremely tall and, like his brothers, exotic because they were American. Our meetings were years apart, and at some point I realized that maybe he wasn't so tall after all (sorry Dean, but the Campbells aren't really towering giants!) but he does remain exotic because he is still and American, his wife is Mexican, they both have two degrees each and they have the first great-grand-children.

Thanks for the photos Dean. Stay in touch.

Eleven year old Angelica Campbell in a field of East Texas wildflowers

Our cousin, Dean Campbell in his office, looking respectable.

Dean and his partners, looking rather informal.

(I'm sure if you need a lawyer in Texas they would serve you well)

Dean with his wife Maria and friends.

PHOTOS WANTED!

Don't be shy or modest,

send me photos of your vacations,

children, pets, home renos,

I will happily post them for our

collective viewing pleasure.