Sunday, November 24, 2013

John's Burning Log

This morning I woke up slowly with Rob and Alina. Rob left the room for a minute and returned with purpose. He just looked at me quite seriously and pointed the remote at the t.v. to turn it on. On the t.v. was the Shaw Holiday Burning Log. Now, this burning log has been a part of all of our Christmas' together. Our t.v. provider; Shaw Cable always features a Christmas fire 24/7 until the holiday season is over.
 There is a story behind the burning log. The burning log is a twenty minute clip of a fire crackling in a fire place and from time to time an arm will stoke the fire or put fresh logs on. We always wondered who the arm belonged to.. Well, the arm belongs to a man named John that worked for Shaw Cable in 1999. He decided to film a fire for Shaw to show on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to avoid himself or any of the Shaw staff to have to work during the holidays. Shaw Cable would just play the fireplace on a loop all day. When the burning log failed to return the following Christmas, a group of university students in Victoria petitioned for its return. They won and the burning log has been on the air ever since.
 Like I mentioned, we are big fans of the burning log. We include it in all of our Christmas pictures throughout the holiday season. We have a 46 inch television and so it seems like there is this big fireplace in the center of our living room. Plus, the sound effect is the best part. It crackles and pops and it feels like you are sitting in front of a warm, cozy fire.


 The collage is just a sample of all of the times we posed with the burning log throughout the years. Rob with his cotton Santa beard at my sister and brother in law's apartment in down town Victoria, in 2007. I posed with Rob on my lap, with a similar Santa beard in 2009. Before my Christmas party all dulled up, in 2010. There are two pictures of me pregnant with Alina last Christmas, decorating and then on Christmas morning. This year, Alina was introduced to the burning log while we were in bed. She must be related to us because her attention was all over the holiday fire. (Don't mind her crazy morning hair.)



  Christmas is in the air! Once the burning log was reintroduced to our lives, we couldn't help but hum Christmas tunes and discuss what weekend we want to put the tree up. Rob ho hummed if he was going to put the outside lights up or not.. By noon the decision was made; and he was outside trying to remember what lights went where. I tried to write this post earlier but Rob wanted my help and Alina woke from her nap, so I dressed her up warm and Christmas-y and we kept him company while he did all of the work.

  I leave you with the Shaw Burning Log.. please enjoy the next thirty seconds and just imagine having this on in your living room while you sip hot chocolate and read a good book, or blog... Ahh, bliss. (Unless, of course you have an actual fireplace and then you can just call me deprived.)























9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh, how I love the Shaw burning log! It is one of favourite parts of the holiday season. I am acutally curled up in a chair in the living room with it one while I read blogs. So cozy!. You are totally right about the sounds. They just make it perfect. Our tv is actually mounted over our fireplace. We have been known to have them both going at the same time. yep, we are crazy like that. :)

Sarah said...

Okay first of all, those pictures of Alina are adorable of course, but also are really fantastic shots! Very professional looking! I love te idea of the burning log. That would easily mesmerize me. I would LOVE to have a real fireplace, but I bet I would also be really nervous about starting a fire. As it is, I worry about whether i left a burner on or if I forgot to turn off my curling iron when I leave the house. That's also a reason why we don't do a real Christmas tree.

ANYWAY, why the heck am I talking about burning houses when Christmas is on the way? I love this time of year!

Jade Wright said...

Ahhh this is such a sweet tradition - I really do admire and look up to you Haley.. how you are with your little family that you've created is exactly what I hope to have one day and I hope at that stage, we are still pen-pals and I can come running to you for advice and all learn about all the awesome tricks that you have up your sleeve ;)

www.bohemianmuses.blogspot.com

Amanda said...

I love the collage of Christmas through the years with the burning log in every one. But the photo I like best is Alina eating the lights. I'd love to have a fireplace (well right now, I'd love to have somewhere to live- staying on the sofas of friends and family is getting really old). But having a fireplace is one of the things I miss about my mom's house in New Mexico. x

Anonymous said...

I love that something so simple has been a tradition through your relationship. Love the photo collage and Alina with the lights!! So cute!

Haley said...

Megan-
Yes it was really fun dressing Alina up all warm and taking her outside to join her dad. He was really excited that we 'helped' him. She was really going to town on those lights so I finally thought it would be best to take them away.. LOL. Mother of the year! ;)

Noor Unnahar said...

This is so sweet tradition . I have never experienced such thing in Pakistani Christmas , but it's too festive . Happy to be learning so much new things about Canada and your traditions!
Alina's looking SO cute . Looks like she's going to to eat those light? I am hoping NOT! LOL

Stephanie Leigh said...

I think this is the cutest thing ever! YOur daughter all in lights. So great. I would totally do something like that!

Deidre said...

I like how it is part of all your Christmases! That's pretty awesome.