My Birth Day dinner

Hi !

Sorry for the lack of Blogs!

It was my Birth Day last Friday! Chrissy took me for a romantic pick nick Friday night. Then on Saturday we had a party with family and friends. It was fun. I drank too much on Saturday. The next morning at 6:30 am I played golf. My last few games have been not very good. 87's! and a game before that 95. I am disappointed in my play lately! I have worked hard to improve this summer. My Dad and brother got me lessons. I think I will try that this week.

Cabinet installing has been very busy lately. Long Hours. I am very happy to be busy though. Better than no work.

Bye for now.

Doug

hello

Hi guys,

It was a relaxing weekend for me here. Chrissy and Makaiya went to Vancouver for a wedding party. I played golf. And had to work. I shot a 86. Not very good for what my goals are. I a hitting the ball good. I just need better choices on the course. Sometimes I am too aggressive.

I have been very busy with my work. I am working on a very expensive development. The most expensive 2 million Can..

It is still hot hot here but cool at night. Very nice time of year.


Bye for now

Doug

Hello

Good morning everyone,

Well finally it is a cloudy cool day. It has been so hot here. The forest fires are still burning but the smoke is not as bad. Many areas on the west side of Okanagan lake are still evacuated from there homes. There are a lot of dead pine trees in the forest from the the Pine bark beetle. I can see that forest fires will be a problem in the future for us here.

I have been very busy with cabinet installs. Lots of renewals though. Not as much new construction.

We are going camping for a few days this week. It will be nice break. There are golf courses close to the camping area so yes, I am taking my clubs.

Chrissy had her birthday. All of our family members came over for a party.

Have a great day.

Doug

Hi !

Hello Everyone,

Finally got my PC and internet fixed up. We had a few problems.

Some news about Makaiya. She has wanted a dog for years. Finally we got one. The dogs name is Izzy. More details later and pictures.

Bye for now.

Doug

Hi !

Hi Everyone,

Sorry it has been a while since my last blog. It has been crazy here in Kelowna. It has been very hot here for many days.

The Forest fires around Kelowna are some what controlled. There is not as much smoke around. There had been very bad air quality because of it.

I have been very steady with my Cabinet work here, More house renewals though.

Some exciting news. We bought a dog for Makaiya. I will include pictures next time.

Bye for now.

Doug

Fires in Kelowna

It has been a scary weekend here in Kelowna. There have been 3 separate forest fires. One was controlled easily in a park within the city. The others are out of control still in the eastern side of the Okanagan valley. In West Kelowna. During the night water bombers are not allowed to work. Tonight the wind is not as strong so that will help.

More soon !

Doug

West Kelowna Fire!

Hi Everyone,

It has been very dry and hot in B.C. and the Forests are dry! Today 2 Fires have started close to Kelowna. Many homes have burnt already and the wind has been strong so fighting the fire is very difficult. My house is on the opposite side of the lake to where the fire is. So we are safe. I do have friends who have homes over there though. I hope there homes make it.

Bye for now

Doug

P.S. The wind was so strong it made waves bid enough to body surf on tonight. the kids and I had fun in them!

Family Time

Hi again,

We also played many games with the kids. Soccer in the back yard, and a game called twister bin side. I won many times! Ha!

Bye for now.

Doug

Golf with family

Hi All!

This past weekend was a family weekend . Spent lots of time at my bothers house. We golfed today. My cousin Cathy, my dad and myself played. Taya and Makaiya just came for the ride. We played 9 holes. Shot 4 over par.

I hope you all had a great weekend.

Doug

Makaiya and Taya at Energy PLex

Kelowna has a great place for kids to play and practice different movements. It is called Energy Plex. While I was at work Chrissy took them. They went in the gymnastics section and the wall climbing area.

Bye for now.

Doug

Our back yard

Good Saturday morning!!!

It has been so nice here in Kelowna. Sunny and dry days. Around 30 degrees C. No Humidity of course.

Our family wanted to try our hand at growing a vegetable garden this summer. I made the growing box and Chrissy and Makaiya planted the seeds and the plants. I used
2x12s for the box. Screwing them together. Lined the box and filled it with top soil. The girls planted White onions, green onions, lettuce, carrots, all kinds of peppers and tomatoes. It has been fun seeing them grow.

The area in our yard where we extended the sun deck, spread gravel and planted grass looks great too.

Bye for now.

Doug

Golf at Black Mountain in Kelowna

Hi!

On Fathers Day I bought my dad 9 holes and a golf cart at a new course in Kelowna. Black Mountain. Some of the holes are very narrow, but very beautiful! We both had a great time. I shot 41 for 9 holes. I am hitting the ball solid. I just need a little more control.

Bye for now.

Doug

Happy Canada Day!

July 1 is Canada Day! I was off work so My brothers family, my dad and I went to a beach for the day. It was very relaxing and hot. Although the lake water is still cold from all of the melting snow pack in the mountains. Slightly warmer than the ocean was when I went surfing in Japan in April. I am back to work today. Helping Chrissy's dad make some new counter tops.

Bye for now.

Doug

Drive in

Hi Guys,

This past Saturday night we went to a drive in Theater. It is around 1 hr from our house. We took 2 friends of Makaiya's. The movie we saw was "Night at the museum 2". The other movie was "The Hang Over". We only watched the kids one. it by the time we got home it was Mid night. The kids did have fun though.

Bye for now!

Doug

Picture

Oh,

The picture is of My 2 Aunts, Cousin, brother and Dad. Yes, All born in Canada!

Bye for now!

Happy Fathers Day!!

Hello Every One!

And Happy fathers day to all of you Dads out there! In Canada yes, today is the Day to Celebrate being a dad. We usually get a fathers day card saying how we are appreciated and so on. Also a gift! Maybe breakfast in bed! A day of papering for us. I gave my dad a gift certificate for a round of golf at a new golf course in town. I received new shorts and a shirt from Chrissy and a paper weight and pictures from Makaiya. I feel very loved! Luckiest Dad in the World. I hope that is how all other Dad feel out there. Like we are all the Luckiest in the World!

Happy Fathers Day!

Doug

Happy Fathers Day@!

Body Strength

Hello Everyone,

I hope all of you are well!

We are doing well here in Kelowna as I have said before.

I actually feel great! As I said before Chrissy started exercising and has motivated me to take care of my body more too. Since I have started working out I have experienced the the following. Of course I had soar, stiff muscles at first. But, I have increased overall energy, more self confidence, and I have noticed my long time adult back pain is no more!!!! The work outs are total body. They focus on all parts of the body. I believe in all of you! Not only will strengthening your body help your ski racing goals , but your overall life. I hope you all can invest time into staying healthy and strong! You can do it!

Parade!

Good morning,

It was a good weekend here. Sunny and hot! Our family also had a great experience. One of Makaiya's friends , dads is a Fire man. And this past weekend he volunteered to be in a parade for a festival called the "Fat Cat Festival" It is all about kids playing and having fun. Actually the Kelowna Fire department always has a Fire truck in all Kelowna Parades. He asked Makiaya to be in it with her daughter. The morning of the parade he then asked if we wanted to be on the truck. Oh, Yeah! We waved and smiled at the people watching. It was so fun! Enjoy the pictures!

Bye for now.

Doug

Working out for better results in the winter

Good morning,

I hope all of you are doing well. We are good here in Canada.

Tajanna is also well in Oslo, Norway. She is a Nanny now for a family with 2 children.
She said she will return in September. She very, very happy and building confidence.

Makaiya is doing good. She is back in her normal school of course. She goes to Gymnastics on Tuesdays and will start junior golf lessons on Sunday. She too gained confidence from spending time in Japan. She is more confident in her self too.

Chrissy and I are still exercising everyday but the weekend. We do the work out either before work or after. Depending on the day. Working out at home is convenient that for sure. P90X from Beach body.com looks very good too. The workouts are done at home and do not take too long to do. Like I said before I feel great and have much more energy. Of course when I first started my muscles were very soar and stiff. Normal if you want muscle gains!! I hope you all push your self this off season to improve if the physical training area. It will help you mentally as well because you know you are stronger! Come on! You can do it!

My last golf score was 85. Not my best score but I hit the ball great! I have been working on swinging my body and arms together and smoothly. Also pinching the ball to the grass at contact.

Bye for now

Doug

10th year Anniversery

Hello,

it was Chrissy and My 10th Anniversary this past May 1st. To celebrate we went with another 2 couples to stay at a winery called burrowing Owl. it is located close to Oliver. An hour and a half south of Kelowna. We had dinner in its 5 star restaurant and stayed the night in a suite. We had a fun and relaxing night there. The wine is the best in the Okanagan.

I have had 4 games of golf this spring. i have my handi cap at 9. Best score is 80. My goal is to shot regularly in the 70's.

I bought a new putter from Ebay. It is called Rife. They are very popular on the Senior tour in the US. I love it!

Bye for now.

Doug

Golf Games

Good Morning,

It is a Sunny Sunday here in Kelowna! Finally! It has been a cool spring here. Lots of cloudy cool days. Today we are going bike riding with Makaiya and her cousin Taya. Also our house guests David and Melisa.

We are going to Chrissy's Parents for BBQ hamburgers, and some games of lawn bowling.

I have had 3 games of golf this spring. I have shot 80 ,82,and a 83. Not bad but I plan to be shooting in the 70's this summer. I will let you know how it goes.

Bye for now.

Doug

Work projects

Hi Everyone,

I hope all of you are doing well! It was a long ski season. It is very important at the end of the season to look back at it! What were your strong points? What points could you improve on? Did you have the strength to finish strong at the end of the race? Be honest. Now if you feel you need more power more strength. This is the season to improve that. We want to be strong and flexible. "Well, working out is inconvenient." I know that! Of course it is. But those who prepare the most have a better chance to win! Or to move to a new personal best.

Ok, I have to be truthful. I have not been working out as much as I use to. When I was racing. Too busy with work. But I have been doing much more so far this spring. I feel great! And I am building more muscle. I have actually been doing work outs with Chrissy. She bought this DVD set Called "Chalean extreme". http://www.beachbody.com This site is where she ordered it.
Chrissy used it when she was in Japan and lost 5 inches off her waist. She wants to lose much more. All the work outs are done at home. They are 35 minutes to 1 hour in length. There are many different works out so you do many different movements. The only thing you have to do is buy weights. Of course you must make time to do it. I do it early in the morning before work. Please check the site.

I have been very busy. I rebuilt my work trailer. It looks much better. Maybe I will attach some pictures tomorrow.

Bye for now.

Doug

Mothers Day brunch

Happy Mothers Day !!

It was this past Sunday for all mothers in Canada. We celebrate Mothers and all that they do for us! Great Job to all of you moms out there.

Chrissy invited all the mothers in our family and some friends. She made it very fancy and the food was yummy! I was the helper and dish washer. All had fun and ended up staying for dinner too. I

Bye for now

Doug

Coaching Summit in Calgary

Hi all!

I am in Calgary now. This is day 2 of the coaching Summit. The Summit is where All head coaches and Nation team coaches come together. We have different speakers on all sorts of topics. I am very excited to use them next year. I will share more next time. It is very cold here. It actually snowed today.

It has been very busy here in Canada. It always is. Catching up with friends and Family, Paying bills, house work in side and out, getting ready for my summer work , cabinetry installing.

Bye For now.

Doug

More pictures

Hi again!

Disney land and Disney sea were also stops for us. Along with a fun Cherry Blossom festival stop. It was fun to see all that participated! Chrissy and Makaiya loved the whole experience.

Bye for now.

Doug

Trip to Soryo , Hiroshima

Hi Every one,

First, to all of you thanks for a great season. It was exciting to see good race results and many personal bests! We are committed to continue our move ahead and see more success in the future!

Second, before we left Japan this year we visited different areas. Hiroshima, Kamakura, Onjuku. Thank you to all that welcomed me and my family!!

Soryo in Hiroshima is where my Grand parents are from. I saw the house they lived in the grave site for the Ito Family and met many family members.

In Kamakura we stayed with the Fukashima family and saw old temples and beautiful sites.

In Onjuku westayed with Ono and Mika and had a greatparty at Uematsu Sans new house. Also surfed and actually stood up for the first time. It was a blast. Chrissy and Makaiya loved it too.

Enjoy the pictures.

Bye for now.

Doug

Accel Party

Hi!

It was a fun party! I wish everyone could come! Here are a few pictures from it.

The conditions for skiing are very good right now. It is cold and the snow is hard!

Thank you all for a great season! I appreciate all of you! I commit myself to helping all of you move towards excellence in ski racing! Muteki!

Bye for now.

Doug

Hot spring day in Sugadaira

Hello Every one!!

What a hot day today. Great Spring weather for GS training. We were on #5 today. It was soft snow on the top, but icy underneath it.

Kasumi Ito raced in the Japan Cup this past weekend. She was 7 th in GS and 11 th in the combi race. The best boys and girls in Japan were there trying to qualify to go to Canada for the Whistler Cup. A world wide race. One of the top 10 racers in her age in Japan. Great Job!!!!! I watched her do her personal best skiing at a camp before her race. We will just keep building from there! As I have seen with many of you this season. We will just keep reaching for new personal bests continually!!

I love coaching here because so many of you are motivated to push yourselves for Excellence!

I hope to see you soon and finish the season strong!

Bye for now.

Doug

Picture is of a future racer?

Rossi Race

Hello!

This past weekend was a fun one! Different from our normal schedule. I enjoyed watching some compete in the Rossignol race. We had some winners, but I believe I saw many ski new personal bests! Great Job! Thanks to Matsura San and Iwaya San for putting on a great event! And of course all of the support staff.

Chrissy and Natsumi were gate keepers for a race today. A first time experience for Chrissy. She did great! Had to write down a few DQ's. She burnt her face in the process. She looks cute. Kind of like a raccoon! Hee Hee! I hope she does not read my blog!!!

By for now.

Still great snow here in Sugadaira! Come join us!

Sunny Monday!

Looks good out there today! Sunny and clear. Icy too!

We have close to 10 racers today training. The Tea Clipper guys and season members. We are training GS /SL. Should be a good day.

Makaiya is going to join us today. First time out without Chrissy.

The past weekend was good. Some new guests came which is great to see! Focused on Line, timing, and a smooth balance change. Hmmmmmmm.... pretty much every thing! That is the key for fast skiing, they all go together.

The pictures were from the other days girls day party.

Bye for now

Doug

March weather

Hello every one!

What a day it was here today! Very wet! I was surprised that 3 people wanted to ski SL in such conditions. We were all soaked after but it was a great experience. I love winning over challenging situation. It helps toughen us up! All 3 skiers really focused and were able to reach their goal for the day! Nice job!

Some news from the family side. Chrissy , Makaiya, and myself went to one of Makaiya's friends house. It was to celebrate girls day on March 3rd. That was a first time experience for me. It was fun! We had sushi for dinner and cake for desert ! Happy Girls day to all of you beautiful girls out there!

Pictures later!

Bye for now.

Doug

Winter is back!

Hi every one!

Yes, it is true. Winter is back1 It was a little scary 2 week ends ago. Rain and melting snow. But since then it has been cloudy, and snowy. Heavy snow, but that makes a great base.

Chrissy and Makaiya are happy to be here! I am too! They are enjoying meeting all of you!

Ono and I are very excited to see many of you focusing intensely on you training! Many of you skiing at new personal bests! It is our goal to do exactly that! Keep up the great work! See you soon.

Doug

Feb, 5 Update

Hello!!

I hope you are all doing well and are feeling confident with your skiing!

We have been working on line alot lately. The biggest point is that we have enough room to carve the turn above the gate. And pressuring the ski down the fall line. We need a round shape before the gate. Of course we are not just looking gate to gate. We must be looking the fall line looking at the terrain ahead of us and the up coming gates .

I hope to see you soon!

Doug

Feb, 3 Update

Hi Everyone!

Well, I must say Hisashiburi!! Sorry for the long span between Blogs.

It has been a good season so far. I am very impressed with results that I have heard about. Great Job! I do have high expectations for us and I will continue to strive for excellence!

Chrissy and Makaiya are here and we are all very happy to be together again. They both love Japan.

Tonight we took part in Setsu Bun ! I was the Oni! I hid in the corner and surprised everyone! Then they got me with pea nuts!

Snow has been good this week. It is very icy now and is smooth again1 Much Better than the weekend. The weather has been nice too! Not like the week end.

Bye for now.

Doug

Jan, 15 Update

Good morning!

Finally we are getting some natural snow here in Sugadaira! It really looks like winter. I am very grateful that Tsubaburo and Omatsu yama are so good at making snow. We have been able to good training on hard snow. There has been no sign any rocks or dirt for quite awhile.

There has been some good race results from some of our guests. Great job! I always expect good results and you all should too. That is the secret for success! Set a high standard or expectation for your self.

Bye for now!

Doug

Jan, 7 Update

Hi Racers!

So we are in full swing now. Finally we are getting better snow conditions. All man made snow. Great for us. Nice and hard!

So now that races are just around the corner just a little reminder for you all to keep focused on your own pre race plan and do not worry about anyone else you may think is better than you. Infact it is vital you feel you have every chance to win! Why not choose to win?! Your destiny comes from your choice to see and believe what you want to happen !

Ok from there comes your preparation. From the snow up. Skis tuned properly, bases waxed every day after use, edges sharp and smooth. Side walls smooth. When tuning always positive imagery. Picture your skis running fast on the snow, and cutting into the ice!

Make sure you have a good warm up and stretch before skiing and before your race. Drink lots of water. Breath properly. In through the nose out through the mouth. If you are nervous focus only on your breathing, 4 seconds in 4 out! repeat until you feel grounded. Also you can focus on some one that inspires you, or someone you respect, or love!

Well enough for this message. I will share more next time!

Doug