Fredericton puts on a annual Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival 2nd week of September.  Check the link for details,

.

Last year was our first and this year's festival has kicked off with some great weather and amazing performances. It there are any jazz and blues fans out there I would consider coming to Fredericton to soak in the atomosphere and the shows. There are lots of concerts with world reknown jazz / blues muscians and the downtown area is changed to a huge venue with many free stages. You can enjoy the music just walking around.

.

We have had a glorious few days with the temperatures up in the high 20's and even low 30's.  But on the weathernetwork (a whole channel devoted to weather reporting) they mentioned the S word for some parts of Northern Canada on Wednesday 12th Sept..... Time to clean off the shovels and get some practice in.

Gemma is back in high school (she will graduate next June) and Kathryn is studying Biology and Chemistry at UNB (still trying to get into the science degree program) and working part time at Sears. Anyway they are both busy and reasonably happy.... which makes for a reasonably happy Dad.

On Sunday afternoon we walked along a remote beach on the Mactaquac headpond (lake) and saw footprints from Moose, Deer, Coyote, Racoon and Otter. We found a baby snapping turtle too.

A very back to nature day for the whole family, I cannot imagine us all walking about together in the UK where my 20 and 17 year old daughters would have been doing something completely seperate from Julie and I.

Already some Maple trees are turning a beautiful red!	I will take some more later in September so you can see the beauty of Fall in NB

On sunday evening I noticed a tingling sensation in my lips as we ate dinner and on Monday morning when I woke up I got a real shock when looking in the mirror (no jokes please I know I am not Brad Pitt especially in the morning). The right side of my face had dropped and was paralysed. Immediately I thought of a stroke.

.

To cut a long story short after a visit to the ER (Casualty) at the local hospital I have been diagnosed of having Bells Palsy. A temporary paralysis of a facial nerve that can take up to a year to clear up.

The ER was very fast I was assessed and put straight on a bed for a doctor. He came and saw me before I had even sat back on the bed. Diagnosed, prescription and reassurance and out within 30 minutes!!!! Of course ER is not always like this I have heard colleagues complaining of hour delays, but still impressive. The prescription cost about $10 because I have insurance from my workplace.

Next a follow up trip to my family doctor and she booked me in for an MRI scan because of the Neuralgia (nerve pain I guess). The scan was scheduled for the following week! She has also told me to go for another blood test as the results from my last showed a high white cell count.

.

All in all I am quite impressed with the reaction, whether this is typical or not I am not sure, but

Ian and Barbara (Julie's brother and his new wife - our sister in law) came over for a visit and we thought a spell in PEI the gentle island would do them and us a power of good.

The island is gentle, it's scenery is almost like England except where England has hedgerows dividing fields on PEI they are mainly treelines. It has some beautiful scenery especially bays and beaches. See photos below.

Strolling along the famous red sands of PEI	I had to stop and snap this photo
A view across one of the many picturesque bays in PEI
The Confederation Bridge that links PEI to the Mainland of New Brunswick. 16 km long

.

  I nearly titled this "Fly home". Well I managed to get everyone back on the plane voluntarily. I was worried about how Julie and the Girls would feel about flying back to Canada. They have been the most effected by homesickness. But it wasnt too bad.

.

We arrived back in Halifax airport around 2:30pm and had a 4.5 hour drive to home. We had left a vibrant spring in the UK and returned to winter. In Nova Scotia all the snow had pretty much gone but what was left was a dead brown landscape with absolutely no sign of anything green.

.

Back in NB it was still winter and we had still had a sizeable snow drift in the back garden.  But funnily enough we all agreed it was good to be back home.

Well we arrived at Girton College Cambridge late yesterday afternoon and we had a great room / suite.  We all slept well and went to the Hall for a full English Breakfast around 9am. Marilyn Strathern (Barbara's mother) is the Mistress of Girton College and very kindly arranged us all accommodation and food for the wedding.

Ian and I spend the morning going over the plan for the day, timing was critical as people had to move across from the old Hall to the Fellows room - reception area. We ran though our speeches and got dressed in our suits and blue waistcoats.

Everyone looked lovely in their dresses and Julie as always looks impeccable wearing a lilac(ish) suit.

Barbara's brother Hugh sung two solo's while the register was being signed and witnessed. Very moving and I have to admit to having a couple of wet eyes!

.

Then began the late afternoon of meeting, greeting, photographing and drinking and drinking then reception where my Best Man speech went down pretty well and lasted 12minutes 25 seconds(the other guests had run a book, betting how long I would talk for).  Then back to the Fellows room for more drinking and dancing ... phew... no wonder we all looked very happy in this family portrait.

Back row left to right. Jay (Gemma's boyfriend), Gemma, David (me), Kathryn

Front row left to right: Ernie (Julie's Dad), Julie, Doreen(Julie's Mum), Barbara, Ian, Chris (Kathryn's boyfriend)

.

A great day was had by all and everyone seemed very happy the next morning at Breakfast. After breakfast we all packed up said goodbyes to Marilyn and Hugh and then off to Nottingham for a few of days before driving up to Edinburgh to continue the celebration of the newly married couple.

16c and Sunny.

We arrived at Heathrow 8:25am. It was an awful flight Bleah everyone is tired and excited at the same time.

.

Drive out onto the M25 (motorway from hell) and it seems quieter than I remember. Beautiful spring morning as we walk around Horsell Common (we left Horsell Nov 5th 2005). We took time out to visit Barney's (our old dog's) grave and think about him. We exchanged our Canadian $ for pounds at a rate of 2.47 ouch.

Everything seems so expensive, we had a pub lunch consisting of A beer, 1 bacardi and coke and 2 cokes with four baked potatoes with toppings. Cost 10 pounds for drinks and 10 pounds for baked potatoes. $50 for a lunch ! a taste of things to come on this trip I think.

6c  Rain

Spring seems to have started again. We spent most of the day rushing around finishing our packing. I have picked up a cold (last thing I need as the best man).

Completed my tax return (yes we have them here) looks like I'll be getting a good sized rebate. In NB you can split your income with your spouse and so reduce your overall tax, a great system especially as Julie isn't working.

.

6pm leave home for the 4 hour drive to Halifax airport we stop at Truro for gas and something to eat. Eventually checking in at 9:45pm. We had to juggle the cases to spread the weight about.

We eventually fly out at 23:55

Clocks went forward earlier this year because USA decided to switch theirs to help save energy.  Temperature +4c warming up, has spring started?

.

Everyone is getting ready for the trip back to the UK on the 14th March. Julie is busy working on the Bridesmaid dresses.

Another business opportunity: Wedding Dress fitter / adjuster: Julie had the dresses fitted, however  the work was pretty poor so she had to unpick it all and do it herself.

We listened to Six Nations Rugby online radio 5. England vs France and England won

Work has been very busy with me commutting to Saint John and back each day (3 hours commute... sounds like the UK) a 120km drive each way.  Julie looks at me and asks a pointed question one night when I am late "so why did we emigrate to Canada" ... touche  so I have arranged to work out of our local office Monday and Friday to reduce the travelling time.

Cloudy -2c

25cms of snow on Friday afternoon and Friday night.the last few weekends have been spent at home. We have mainly been riding out the winter, keeping the house cosy with the woodstove and watching TV, clearing snow and x-country skiing or snowshoeing, clearing snow, watching etc...

We have had solid fuel central heating in the UK burning coke/coal and I am amazed at how little ash we get from burning wood in a woodstove. Also even though the woodstove is in the family room area (extension of our kitchen diner) if we leave the doors open it keeps the whole house cosy. It never seems to matter how cold the temperature is outside the inside stays a regular 18-20c without the heating being constantly on.

.

Everything always looks nice in snow 

Lazy start to the day.

We had another 15cm of snow last night, so it was back to shovelling in the morning. I know it sounds like alot but apparently locals tell me that sometimes you get 100cms in one storm! It is a beautiful clear day and only -8c so everyone seems to be out clearing their drives.

.

We had purchased a power generator before the winter because some of the Autumn storms had cut power to the house. One of the drawbacks to living out of the city. But generally the power was back on within 8 hours. Well 100cm of snow sounds like power outages would be on the cards. I was glad we had the back up of a generator no matter how small.

We went snow shoeing around some trails in New Maryland good fun and a big snowball fight. The good think about snow this time of the year is that it is dry, you can roll around in it without the slush or getting wet. I love it.

.

Dinner with our extended family, Julie did a good old fashioned Roast Beef and yorkshire puddings and the trimmings. Our Canadian friends love her roasts and especially with Yorkshire puddings.

.

We had a visit from a little red squirrel this morning, the milder air must have woken it up. I couldnt convince the girls not to feed it.... so here are a couple of photos of the cute squirrel and a view from the deck.

View of the deck at the back of the house.

I am going to St John's Newfoundland next week on a business trip so I will let you know what's happening on the Rock.

We had 35cm of snow last wednesday in one snow fall. That is alot of shovelling and lucky for me my neighbour 'John' came over with his snow blower and gave me a helping hand.  We discussed investing in snowblowers and he gave me some sound advice. Go for highest horsepower you can afford, it can handle the deep heavy stuff better saving you time and effort.

.

Pub evening with our friends from the Newcomers club at the Lunar Rogue pub in downtown Fredericton. Great night, lots of chat and lots of fun. We have been invited for sunday dinner tomorrow.

.

5cm of snow forecasted for tonight , good job we are snow freaks (mind you it could be different after 5 or 6 years of these types of winters). I can feel a snowblower investment coming on.

February 11th Julie's Birthday.

Quite day really, it is probably the coldest part of winter all of last week was below -20c, with some days around -35c including windchill. Most people just shutdown and stay at home in this sort of weather. Not in NB.

Winterfest was yesterday, not a huge affair like in Ottawa, but equally as fun and interesting to be in a maze of snow (and cold too) where the walls are 2 - 3 metres tall.

I am working in Saint John at the moment and commute and stay during the week. Driving a nice big 4x4 Ford Explorer and here you really need it. The last week I have seen two moose walking along the side of the road browsing on twigs. They are huge and I have heard stories that if you hit them in a normal car, the car is generally a write off! Lets hope I dont hit one. Even in a big SUV you are still vulnerable.

.

Kippers for breakfast this morning a big surprise for Julie  and after she had unwrapped her presents we were off to the woods for some x-country skiing. All in all a good day after coming home tired and aching. Hot shower settle down to watch "Allo, Allo" on DVD.

.

Everyone is getting excited about going back to the UK for Ian and Barbara's wedding on March 17th.

We had 15-20 cm of snow last night to add to the 30cms we received last week. Shovelling snow is good for the soul and not to bad to help get rid of some of the christmas excesses.

The streets are cleared by the snow ploughs very quickly so driving isnt a bad as it sounds. Julie drives a Ford Focus 5 door hatchback admittedly with winter tyres on and she has no problems.

.

x-country skiing, snow showing, ice skating all great outdoor sports open to you even if the temperature is -32c with windchill. Stay out of the wind and it is wonderful.  Mind you I am built for the cold.:D

oh yes dont forget snowball fighting another great outdoor pursuit!	x-country skiing on the same trails as we walk in the summer. Beautiful.
Snow shoe hiking around the trails. Hard work
No grass to mow only snow to shovel!

 I love the Maritimes with its four seasons and plenty of snowfall. I must admit there is a couple of weeks in February where it is bloody cold.  One day last week I drove around to Halifax it was -30c with a wind chill -40c everything was fine until I stopped at a gas station to fill up. I put on my hat,gloves and coat and jumped out. I managed to open the petrol cap and then had to get back in, wrapped a scarf around my face, put some inner gloves on and got back out.... my trousers (chinos) froze while I was filling up and was I glad to get back in the car after paying.

Incidentally when I arrived at Halifax the sea was steaming because the air temperature was so much lower than the sea temperature.

Well I awoke without a traditional New Years Day hangover and even better my knees didnt ache after a night of bopping on the dance floor!

We stayed at the Delta until 1am after a great dinner and a fantastic party (great band and some friends with us too).  See below for some photos.

Julie, Gemma and Kathryn at the table	Melissa, Julie, Kathryn and Brenda
The Whelbourn's in the Delta with silly hats on  we had a great time

I drank plenty of tea at breakfast and updated my journal (a written version of this).

Well our first full calendar year in Canada is completed and our immigration project has been a success (in my view as the project manager). Bumpy in places and remember this blog reflects my views, I am sure if Julie and the girls had written one then you would have seen more downs than ups.

.

I know it has been challenging for them.

Julie with settling in and work, although now her new opportunity to create purses etc seems to making her happier and in the UK she would have probably been working in an office still because we needed the money to survive.

Kathryn has been challenged with running a long distance relationship and trying to settle into life and trying to get into university all at the same time. It has been hard for her, no doubt about that. Not in school so few friends.

Gemma bemoans leaving the UK with its shops and her many friends. For her the challenge has been going to high school where most of the people already know each other and making friends is difficult. She is making headway with a group of friends who are less bound by the cliques.