The Heagy House

This blog is turning into what I said it would not

2008-01-16T19:58:00.000-08:00

Hello all,

Well, its been almost 2 months since I have posted an entry so here goes. Since I last posted anything We went to Ottawa for Christmas and had the opportunity to go to Montreal and see the sights and enjoy some poutine and Montreal smoked meat sandwiches. (Sorry Matt and Joel, I didnt have time to get ahold of you). Anyways in Montreal we saw all of the major sights and were able to stop at a little hole in the wall pub where we enjoyed some cappuccinos. The pub carried an ambiance of what you would expect a pub in the 16th century, all stone with wooden beams holding up a shiplap roof. The whole time that we were there I half expected either the black knight or a group of hobbits to burst into the room at any second. We also has some time to check out a few art galleries, Notre Dame, St. Catherine's street and Olympic Stadium. Although we did get to see quite a bit, everything we saw, we saw quickly as we only got to stay for a few hours. The rest of our time over the nine days was spent playing games, visiting and eating at the Kahle household in Ottawa.

On our way home we were met with a pleasant surprise as well. We tried to get our boarding passes from the automated kiosk and the machine said that there was a problem. I thought that maybe it was just the machine and tried the kiosk right next to it. Same thing. So I went up to the "automatic check in help desk" (the line of which was easily 200 people shorter than the one where you actually give your luggage to the airline). The lady who was at the desk informed me that the belts that take the luggage down to the planes were broken and that we would not be able to make our connecting flight in Toronto. The ray of sunshine she offered us though was a flight that left at the exact same time that was direct to Calgary and we would be flying first class! For once an airline complication went our way!

Since then we hosted a four course dinner for New Years and we have been getting back into the daily grind of life.

Now here comes the part that my title for this entry pertains. Once upon a time I said that this blog was not going to be used as a vehicle to broadcast my child to the blogging nation. But seeing as she takes up a lot of time in my life, and she has changed a lot since my last entry here are a few pictures of her.

Ruth's Chris

2007-11-24T13:19:00.001-08:00

Hello All,

Over the past few months I have been working on a the recently opened "Ruth's Chris Steakhouse". It is now open in the +15 level of the Calgary tower and is serving some of the best steak in the city (also the most expensive steak in the city). I started in May doing color/sheen finish matching and getting our finish approved. From then up until a couple weeks ago I spent every day doing the staining and lacquering for the job. The end result is in the pictures that I will be posting on this entry. Both I and our shop are extremely pleased with the end result, as are the owners of the restaurant. So if you are ever in Calgary stop by and check out our work!

So here are some booths in the main dining area

Here's some of the ceiling louvers that can be found throughout the restaurant (the ceiling used to be glass)

Here is another view of the main dining area everything that is wood I did the finishing on

Here is the hallway at the main entrance

Here is one of the wine racks, there are several of these throughout the restaurant

Here is another wine rack

One of the bathrooms (the stall dividers are also mahogany)

One of the hallways, all of the private rooms and halls are clad with mahogany wainscotting like this

So that is Ruth's Chris steakhouse in a nutshell. Cheers!

2007-10-28T16:46:00.000-07:00

Well its been two months since my last post so I thought that since there seems to be a lull in activity I would update those who still have an interest in this blog and the Heagy family's lives. Our lives have been a buzz of activity for the past couple months. Since around the time Emma was born I have been working a minimum of 50 hours a week at my job trying to get the finishing done for the restaurant that we are working on. The restaurant is called Ruth's Chris. Some of you may have heard of it. It is a steakhouse chain that was started by a lady named Ruth (obviously) in the States and eating there has come to be a prime dining experience. The location where we are building the restaurant is on the +15 level of the Calgary tower. I have been staining and lacquering the mahogany for the restaurant since May and it will be opening with a VIP dinner on November 1st. It is now getting to the last couple days before we have to be out and we are busier than ever trying to get the last pieces into place. Stay tuned for pictures of the finished product.

This past Friday Jenn, Emma and I attended what is becoming an annual event. For the last two years we have been getting together with friends and carving pumpkins the weekend before Halloween. As you can see from the photos that are posted below some people have become quite creative with their pumpkin carving. There were some traditionalists in the crowd, but it seemed for the most part that we had some "non traditional" carvings.

A Happy non-threatening pumpkin

Another happy jack-o-lantern

A Scary jack-o-lantern.

An autobot jack-o-lantern. If you don't know what that is, chances are you are living under a rock.

Aloha the hula pumpkin creation courtesy of Ryan and Leighton Healey (not Heagy)

Rider Pride and Spiderman

Darth Vader, yeah thats right.

OoOOOOhHHHhhh A scary spider pumpkin

A cat and the moon

Ryan Healey with a dremel tool carving his Hula girl

Also back by incredibly popular demand. Emma Heagy. Sorry to the folks who have been requesting updated pics. I have been busy.

Busy

2007-08-27T20:25:00.001-07:00

Hello all,

First I would like to apologize for the lack of posts over the last while. Our house has been bustling with the business of a new baby and all the things that come with that. We have had lots of company coming by, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins and Friends to see baby Emma and of course to see Jenn and how she has been holding up. I would like to thank everyone who has lent a helping hand over the last three weeks.(You know who you are) Your time and generosity are appreciated more than you could imagine. Emma seems to be changing every day, her face is filling in more and she looks less and less like a newborn every time I come home from work. It may seem a bit cliche but is really is amazing to watch.

Another event that has taken me away from blogging was that Jenn and I had the privilege of attending Andrew and Amanda's wedding! It was a great wedding, very personal, warm, and of course there was lots of great food. The Riders also won while the reception was happening. It was actually kind of funny, Emma was acting up a bit so I took her out to the car to give her a bottle and as I was walking through the parking lot every few cars there were people out listening to the game on the radio. Ahh Rider fans.

In short, that is what we have been up to. I will post a few pictures of Emma at the end of this post to satisfy the demands that I have had lately for new pictures.

More pictures of Emma!

2007-08-10T23:00:00.000-07:00

Well here are a couple more pictures folks. Don't worry. This blog has not become a place to exploit the new addition to our family. Nor will it become the blog where all it is is pictures of Emma, even though she is the greatest baby ever. But until I have something different to write, here are the pictures.

August 5th 2007

2007-08-06T21:55:00.000-07:00

Well readers, the time has finally come where I can announce....drum roll please...................I said drum roll please......ITS A GIRL!!!!

At 1:06 on Sunday afternoon Emma Elizabeth Heagy made her debut onto the stage of planet earth. More specifically, into a room in Rockyview General Hospital. At birth she weighed 6lbs 3oz (2805 grams) and is absolutely beautiful. Not in just an "every baby is beautiful" or an "only a face a mother could love" kind of way either. She is genuinely beautiful and is a real treat to have as part of our newly developing family.

Jenn went through labor like a real trooper, refusing any narcotics she went through the entire process "au natural". No not naked, just with no use of painkillers. On Saturday night Amy, Jerry, and Liz were over to play some games and at around 11:30 we decided to call it a night and Jenn and I packed our hospital bag, you know, just in case seeing as Emma was due the next day. No sooner had we finished packing the bag and gone to bed had Jenn started feeling contractions. Falling asleep almost instantly I had no idea Jenn was in labor. I also had no idea for the next 3 hours or so. Jenn was gently trying to wake me up from 1 until 4 by rubbing my back. I thought that she was being kind and thoughtful towards me after a week of work. I was wrong. At around 4am Jenn was slightly more forceful with me and said "Ryan, wake up. I have been having contractions for 3 hours. I think we need to go to the hospital soon." So I got out of bed and we watched TV for about an hour while I timed her contractions. We left for the hospital at about 5am. At the hospital we went through emergency (as it was late and we had to) and they sent us up to the maternity ward. After going through maternity triage and then to a labor room, and some hard work and determination on Jenn's part Emma was born! On her due date no less. Only 1% of people actually are born on their due date! The hospital held Jenn for 24 hours but we are home now and are trying to figure out how to be parents. It is very exciting! Here are some pictures. The opening pic and the first pic following this are taken within 5 minutes or less of Emma's entrance into the world!

The Search is Over

2007-07-26T20:35:00.000-07:00

Hello readers,

The search is over to replace the old Sunfire. The idea of a new car remains bittersweet. Don't get me wrong, I am very excited to be driving a new car but there are things like paying for the car and trying to find it in a parking lot after years of looking for a different car. The car that has replaced my Sunfire is a 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer GTS. It looks exactly like the one in the picture (I think, I technically have not seen the car yet as it will be delivered sometime in August). We went and looked at a couple of different kinds of cars and the Lancer seemed to fit our budget as well as option preferences. The biggest thing that we were looking for was a car that was reliable and that had four doors. We did not want a red, black or white car, and we wanted a car with a decent warranty. So there it is. Our new car.

In other news, we have been graced with quite a few visitors over the past couple of weekends. Last weekend Ma and Pa Heagy along with Kyle came to visit ( I think they came more to see their unborn grandbaby than to see us, but that is fine), shortly after they left Matt Yeomans stopped in for a quick visit on his way to whitehorse, and then finally this week Anna-Lee (aka Lilo) came to see Jenn for a few days on her way to Vancouver. So we have been very busy visiting , catching up and laughing alot. I hope that when the baby actually comes (t-minus 10 days until the due date) people will not stop coming to see us.

BABY HEAGY (aka Fella Lou)

2007-07-18T21:28:00.001-07:00

Here is a 4D ultrasound of our baby taken a couple months ago. Just hit play if you want to watch. If you cannot discern the blob. That is our baby's face you jerk.

The old Sunfire

2007-07-18T20:40:00.000-07:00

Well Folks, here is another episode of the Heagy House. This week I am beginning to realize the startup costs of becoming a father. Thank heavens for happy grandparents who are willing to buy their unborn grandchild a couple of essentials (stroller, crib). But beyond the cost of nursery furniture there are things like getting rid of your beloved car. My car is getting on in years (it just turned 10) and has a few kilometers on it but it still runs great and is fun to drive. But there lies a problem with the structure of my car. You see, it only has 2 doors, apparently babies do not approve of black cars with two doors and a complete lack of mufflers. So alas the hunt for a new car is among us. I am excited about driving something different, and even more excited about the baby, but getting a new car is kind of saying goodbye to an old friend and knowing you will never see them again. With old friends come old memories, good and bad. I can remember driving my car home for the first time. It was so incredible to have new wheels. I remember many road trips all over Western Canada, movie and burger runs, and also the nights at CBC in Regina when we packed 10+ people in the car to go and cheer on our indoor soccer team. I remember going for long drives with friends just to talk. I remember sneaking out of the dorms (sorry Matt) and driving out into the middle of the prairies, turning off the car and laying on the hood and looking at the stars. I remember the drives back home to Saskatchewan, and knowing exactly where to fill up so I could make it with just one fill up, and getting within 2km of the yard and having my parents comment on how they could hear me coming. Finally I remember taking the car apart, fixing it, caring for it, waxing it and loving it. I will miss my old car. That to me is a cost of having a child, but the excitement (and I am sure the benefits) outweigh the costs. I think I will leave you with that.

Nathan Carrol Family band feat. Dave McG

2007-07-11T17:58:00.001-07:00

Hello my couple of readers,

This past weekend we had the pleasure of having the Davies, Dave, and Jeff stay with us for a couple of nights. Both the Davies and Dave arrived on Friday night and Jeff arrived on Saturday night. The reason that they had all decided to come down was because our rockstar friend Dave McG (or Strings as the call him in the biz) was playing rhythm guitar for Nathan Carrols band. On top of this Nathan also made time for Dave to play a couple of his own songs for the masses at the two pancake breakfasts they played at. We were only able to go and see him play once as we had our perinatal class all day Saturday (even after which I am no more prepared to be a father, I am just a little more comfortable with knowing what is to come for the labor part). But back to the point. We were able to go and see Dave play at the Sunday morning pancake breakfast and we were very impressed with the improvement in Dave's singing, songwriting and guitar playing. (For a sample of Dave's music click the small box at the bottom of this page) During both Nathan and Dave's songs the crowd seemed to be enjoying themselves whether it be by foot tapping, head bobbing on all out dancing. On top of getting to see Dave play we were blessed with the melodious sounds of Jeff's mandolin and Brock's excellent drumming. Between breakfasts and classes we were able to visit with the Davies, Dave and Jeff as well. It was nice to catch up, relive past events via drinks and storytelling. Every time I see old friends I wish that everyone still lived in the same city, although if they did it may not be as much of a treat to see them.

Egg Salad

2007-06-25T22:04:00.000-07:00

So yesterday morning I woke up for church and was groggily wandering towards the kitchen to put on a cup of coffee and noticed that I could not see out the window of our nursery. Upon a closer inspection I found that the reason I was unable to see out of the window was because there were several eggs smashed on the window and they had hardened there. I couldn't believe it. In fact I was in such disbelief I wasn't even mad. Who on earth would single out our house, of all the houses in our neighborhood to pummel with eggs? It was not Halloween, I didn't yell at any neighborhood kids for playing their music too loud or for riding their skateboards down the sidewalk. I don't think that I have made any enemies in the city, at least none that know where I live. Who knows. All I know is that I had to spend my Sunday afternoon powerwashing the front of our house. Those eggs harden on as hard as rocks! Hence, that is the first adventure of the Heagy house for this blog.

The First Blog Entry

2007-06-24T21:15:00.000-07:00

Well here I am, finally giving in to the trend of posting a blog. It seems better and more personal than a form letter that you send to everyone in your address book. At least with a blog only the people who really care....or the people who are bored and met you once. So here it is. The Heagy House Blog. Stay tuned for updates on the ridiculous things that seem to happen to us. And for updates on things that are just "the things of life"!