Old friends....

Our dear friend Suzanne visited us today from Kansas City. I made a huge mistake in not getting a photo of and I’ve been kicking myself all day. A few moments ago I decided it was because the visit with Suzanne was as if she had just stopped by the house for an average neighborly lunch. It was as if years had not passed since we saw each other. That’s what I call an old friend – not that we’re old or anything – because we’re not. But with old friends you just pick up where you left off. When you’ve moved around a fair amount like we have, you leave people behind, which is always hard. We’re finding that good friendships always pass the test of time and distance. And this friendship has done just that.

We met Suzanne and Neale when we lived in Overland Park/Kansas City from 1996-1998. This nice couple and their two kids looked like a family of deer in headlights on a Kansas back road as they had just relocated to conservative Kansas from…Montreal.

Over the course of several meals, and several bottles of wine when I wasn't pregnant with Louis and before Suzanne got pregnant with her future American, I learned a lot about life in Canada, and in particular Quebec. Having been raised in a pro-NRA household, and very Republican at that, I learned about conservative issues from a Canadian point of view. I learned about socialized medicine, taxes, Quebec and the French language and more. I learned that women in Quebec don’t change their names when they get married like they do in the U.S. Now I’m one of them and am often confused when I’m called Madam Schmitz. We have always loved Canada, and Canadians, and little did we know that we would be living in Canada ten years later after meeting Suzanne and Neale.

We have another connection with this Montreal-now Kansas City family. Suzanne and Neale’s oldest daughter has special needs. I watched them in amazement as they dealt with the day-to-day issues of raising this special child…the first days of school, school politics, making friends, doctors and testing, communication and more. I learned about autism, PDD, NOS, IEP, MR, ASL, ESY, OT, PT, SLP, ABA and other acronyms any parent of a special needs child has heard on a daily basis. Suzanne knew she could always stop by our house and she didn’t need to be on guard. Little did I know that I would be going through many of the same things a year later after Louis was born.

When we found out about the Montreal job opportunity, Suzanne was one of the first people I contacted. What would she do? She had a child with special needs, why did she leave Canada? Are we crazy?

Suzanne was very honest and told me that it would be unlikely to find the same services we had in the U.S. school system. She was also very honest about the medical system and told me to be prepared for some red tape. But she also said it would be a good opportunity for the whole family. I appreciated her honesty and I think of her daily when I get through small things like trying to call the cable company AGAIN to ask them to please send the bills in English not French. Twice, after these neurotic calls with Bell Canada when the polite customer service person has assured me it’s taken care of, my email confirmation has arrived – in FRENCH. While she was here I had her translate an important document too. That was handy. Today she also shared with me some of the hurdles they went through when they moved to the U.S. Simple things that ten years ago probably didn't seem like big things to me. But today it makes so much sense! I was beginning to think Canada was full of paperwork for new residents -- and I was somewhat relieved to hear that it can be just as difficult to move the other way. 

At our lunch today one of the first things she told us is that if anyone was crazy enough to take this assignment, it was us. Some days I know she’s right. We are crazy. Moving to Montreal is not like moving just “to Canada.” Montreal, and Quebec, is very different from the rest of the country. It’s hard to explain in a blog entry – it just is. It was so nice to have Suzanne here, face to face, to confirm that once again. I also realized how wonderful Danielle’s education is here. It was so cool to listen to Danielle talk with Suzanne about the history of Quebec, the education system, the French people and its changes and more. She has learned so much in the six months we have been here.

This evening Paul said "it's really amazing when you think about how our paths have crossed." We're in their country and they are in ours. Although, the Lobo-Maheu family now has dual citizenship, U.S. passports and were more excited than anyone I know to vote in the last election as new citizens. 

So thanks for stopping by mon ami. Notre porte est toujours ouverte.

Thank God for Google Translate. 

It's beginning to look a lot like spring...

No, thankfully this is not our dog...but it could be. Thanks to John Schmitz (Kish's brother) for sending this hilarious Easter greeting. 

The nice spring weather (we're in the 40s F here)  is proving to test the reliability of Invisible Fence for our dog Duke. In the winter he was smart enough to know it's not worth hopping through snow for any length of time when he has a perfectly fine dog bed and/or couch available at home. As we have often said, while he enjoys the great outdoors, if he ever became a hunting dog he would require a heated duck blind. 

Spring in Montreal is not unlike spring in Chicago...it just arrives a few weeks later. Road construction signs are up, there's garbage where the snow once fell, tulips are beginning to come up and everyone keeps saying the weather is nice and all, but a good snowstorm could still drive us crazy. We're cautiously optimistic that spring is here and looking forward to it. Duke is too. The squirrels aren't too happy about it though.

Easter dinner anyone?

Thoughts about Kish's visit to the regular Canadian grocery store...

We’re all used to seeing the grocery stores stocked with ham this time of year. On a trip to the regular store yesterday, I ran across all sorts of interesting things. When I say “regular store” I mean regular. I’m talking your average Safeway, Albertson’s, Jewel, Vons or Ralphs-type of regular store. I found things you might find at a special butcher, but I’m thinking these things are more likely found at a taxidermist.

The price tag ($64.99) first caught my eye…but a closer look brings a whole new image to “leg of lamb.” This is a frickin’ CARCASS of lamb. A sixty-four Canadian dollar carcass of lamb.  I had to start taking photos with my iPhone.


The next section brings me to the RABBIT....

All I could think of was the Easter Bunny. Who serves rabbit at Easter? These frozen rabbits are conveniently packaged without heads as the label says. Good thing, I know I wouldn’t want to deal with the head issue. And the price? Right around $20. My brothers used to shoot rabbit in our back yard in the Arizona desert…wait until they realize this missed business opportunity.

Then there was this full container of SPRING LAMB....

I’m not sure of the difference really between this Spring lamb and just plain lamb -- is it because it’s supposed to be spring? This “Spring” lamb was nicely packaged though. I don’t have an issue with lamb, really. But, I typically stick to gyros and I have never thought to ask about the meat. After all, it doesn’t resemble Mary’s Little Lamb when it’s on that spiral thing. Plus a little sauce, onion and a good pita makes one forget all about the origins.

I stopped taking photos when I got to the very large selection of veal since the grocery store people started following me. Not that there’s anything wrong with veal, it’s just that there was so much in this meat display. I got busted at Home Depot for taking photos of light fixtures so I’m always on guard when a store employee is watching.

I’m still not sure why this grocery store visit freaked me out. Is it because it was so…commercially domestic? Seriously. It was not uncommon to find a frozen rattlesnake in my mom’s freezer when I was a kid. They were usually shot by one of my brothers and why they remained in the freezer for years is still a mystery to me. Perhaps it was served for dinner and I don’t remember. I’ve heard it tastes like chicken. Another time my dad was boiling a mountain lion scull in a large soup pot on the stove and we grossed out our friends. He was cleaning it up so he could put braces on the teeth and display it in his office (he was an orthodontist). And my friend Jenny Belk’s mom always had plastic pitchers of “Duck Broth” next the Popsicles in her freezer. Seriously, I can’t make this stuff up. But the canvas covered $64 lamb carcass at the typical grocery store in Montreal put me over the edge.

I think we’ll stick to a honey baked ham for Easter. Nice and pink and fake looking.

In other grocery store news…

I thought gas was expensive at .95/litre. What the? A can of maple syrup for over $9 Thankfully, our kids are used to Mrs. Butterworths.

Crazy sports weekend

March Madness is officially over for Louis as his six-month basketball season came to an end this past weekend. His team, coached by Paul, made it to the second round of the playoffs. If you asked us in January if we thought it was possible that they made it past the first game of the playoffs, we would have been doubtful. They were awesome and made drastic improvements. And Paul made it through the season without any technicals himself – although when you look at the photo below from a game earlier this season, you might think otherwise. We like to tell the kids he was trying to “instruct” the ref. (As Dan Pisani pointed out, he's wearing his "good jeans" too).


What you can’t see in the photo is the kids who followed him out on the court like little ducklings because they liked the conversations with the ref. What really surprised us was the parents. We thought Naperville parents were into the game – these parents were crazy! We’re assuming it’s because they’ve been attending hockey games their entire lives as players and parents. Let’s just say they are very vocal and lucky not to get fouls of their own. And Paul’s co-coach was known to drop the S-Bomb frequently. There’s nothing more entertaining than a French-Canadian yelling “Ssshhhhheeeetttttttttt.”And not getting a foul for it. 

Danielle had a busy weekend of her own with the Provincial water polo tournament. Her team will play in Nationals, fortunately in Montreal and not Vancouver this year, at the end of May. There are no photos of Danielle because she’s in that “Mom, don’t bring the camera” stage.

Bittersweet

Louis and Liam show off their signs before the game...

Just like old times...Liam sits on the bench with Louis' team as the unofficial second assistant coach...

You'll notice Flat Taylor in this photo -- Paul's cousin Pat's grandaughter has a Flat Stanley project -- we're guessing she's the only one who attended a Canadian hockey game...

Genevieve and Danielle at the top of the Olympic tower overlooking the city...


Like no time passed...

Having good friends come to visit is bittersweet. It's so much fun when they are arrive, yet so sad when they leave. We had a great time when the Kirstein family from Naperville decided to spend Spring Break in the Great White North, while others went south to warm up. It was as if six months had not passed since we saw them. Louis and Liam immediately began shooting hoops outside, Danielle and Genevieve had their teenage discussions which included lots of giggling, Kish and Jackie opened a bottle of wine (or two, or three, let's say a lot) and Paul and Mark talked about the White Sox, Blackhawks, politics (with humor), solved the economic crisis and stimulted the Canadian economy by consuming a lot of Molson.

Having our first out of town guests since Dan Pisani was here in December gave us the chance to be tourists again. It was fun to learn more about Montreal. It's especially nice since we can feel the end of winter, although, we're not putting away our winter boots just yet.

The real bittersweetness was when the boys went to the Blackhawks/Montreal Canadiens game. Mark says everyone should experience an NHL game in Canada. While it's not necessarily more rambunctious than a U.S. hockey game -- he pointed out that Canadians are extremely serious about their hockey and a stranger will gladly provide a brief history of hockey when asked. And he mentioned that there's no doubt the fans in Canada REALLY understand their hockey and they are very much into the game. The game was bittersweet because the Blackhawks lost by three. While the Pisani family is of course cheering for the Blackhawks and proudly display the flag through the winter, at any other game at the Bell Centre we would be cheering for the Canadians. Even Liam was cheering for the Canadiens by the end of the game anyway. It's hard not too. Most Canadien fans truly like the Blackhawks -- after all they are part of the original teams. We've been told by several service people who have come to our house for a repair or delievery, that as long as it's not a Toronto or Boston flag, we're okay. We still think of it as Sweet Home Chicago.

Thanks Kirstein family for spending your vacation at our Sweet Home Montreal...it's was just as much of a vacation for us!