Happy Canada Day {Weekend}!!!

It's been a fun-filled one for us and the weather here has actually decided to cooperate. I think I actually got a little tan this weekend.

We also discovered this weekend that Maddie can officially swim on her own! She did really well in her last swimming class session but still used a floating aid for the majority of her swims.

But this weekend we headed out to the cottage. She started playing with a couple of other girls, a few years older than her, and they were all swimming together. Maddie had her life jacket on, but decided to take it off and just use a noodle. Well, the next step for her was to try to see if she could swim without the noodle. And she let it go. I did not witness this firsthand, but Ken says she was initially shocked and then started doggy paddling to save her life! All he could see was her little head sticking out of the water as she bobbed up and down for a few seconds! One of the other little girls gave her back her noodle and she grabbed on again. She said she was a bit scared, but now she knows she can actually stay afloat on her own!!! I am so excited! Now we can work on strengthening her swim and the length of time she can stay afloat. Today we went swimming at our friends' pool and she was able to swim alone again...back and forth between Ken and the ladder. I can't help but feels so proud of her! It's also weird though, it seems like just yesterday she was a little one year old in a parent n' tot class...now she's swimming on her own...

 {Discovering and working with clay}

 {Looking for fish}

 {Trying to keep up with the kiddos!}

 {Found a fish! It was actually a stick, but you know...}

 {Extremely pregnant...and I still have a few weeks to go!}

 {Maddie caught some tadpoles! Don't worry they were eventually returned :-) }

 {Looking for more tadpoles together}

{With Daddy and Auntie}

{Mr. Smiley Cloud face...at the end of a beautiful day!}

Ole!

Can you guess what I'm doing?

I've got lots of sunscreen, hats and sunglasses and hot weather clothes!

We are going on vacation!

Mexico here we come!

It's going to be 3 adults and 4 kids...can you say a bit outnumbered? Our friend and her 2 kiddos are coming with us. We're going to have a blast!

I am so looking forward to lounging by the pool, eating lots of yummy food, laying on the sand, building sandcastles and plain old beach bumming without a care in the world.

What a way to end the summer!

A Sunny Saturday

Another whirlwind weekend. Today is a bit calmer, which is good because I need it. Yesterday we spent most of the outdoors. I got a "nice" zebra tan on my feet from my sandals. It looks pretty funny. We went to the market, then spent the early afternoon on the waterfront perusing the Busker festival with our friend and his little boy. Maddie and him had fun in a bouncy castle. Then we saw one show: a body contortionist who fit herself into a tiny Plexiglas box. I later saw Maddie trying to stretch and do the weird poses she could do. We did make it home for a nice nap, but then it was back up to my friend Andrea's wedding party (the eloped in March). It was so nice to see her again, it's been a really long time since I have. The garden of her parents' house was beautifully set up. The kiddos enjoyed playing around in the grass and hiding under the food tables. We closed up the day by inviting ourselves over (kind of!) to our good friends' house and Ken and the kiddos went in their pool to cool off.

All in all it was a great day. But (yes, there's a but), I feel like I end up way more exhausted on weekend days than I do on weekdays. There's something about having Ken home that gets the kiddos (and I have to admit me as well) all worked up and wanting to do exciting, not-regular-day things! It's lots of fun and I wouldn't trade it for the world, but I am glad that at least some Sundays are relaxing and I have time to think.

Climb that tree

Maddie's been growing like a weed this summer. A pair of pants that in the Spring fit to her ankles are now more like capris, up past her ankles, on her calves. I've noticed that she now walks with so much confidence (no longer the bubbly spurts of pure toddler energy), she even sways her hips. Oh my.

She wants to learn how to climb trees. She asked me if I knew how and when I said I did, she asked me to teach her. But first with small trees, she said. So smart she is.

I let her climb a tree the other day at our friends house. A group of kids and their moms were out too and one of the boys said to her, "That's dangerous." I could also feel the other mom's eyes of judgement on me. I just smiled and kept encouraging her and telling her how to climb down carefully and safely.

To me, climbing a tree is a good metaphor and prep for life out in the world. You are not going to be able to protect your children from it forever, so why not prepare them and show them how to enjoy it and navigate it safely and smartly.

And here's a somewhat unrelated picture.

My two kiddos, spaghetti faces and all, sitting inside a storage ottoman into which they got in on their own accord (Isaac helped by Maddie I'm assuming).

Cottage Frolic

A little late, but here are the pictures I promised of our Cottage adventure last weekend.

Seaport Market, Chester and Finally Walking!

Even though we didn't sleep all too well last night, we were up and ready to go early in the morn. Today was the grand opening of the new Seaport Farmer's Market and we were excited to see what it was like. Ken was hoping to get our shopping done quick because we wanted to go to Chester and enjoy the beach and the sun.

The market was packed. We lucked out with a parking spot. When we got in we realized pretty quickly that all our regulars were all in the same section, so despite the throngs of people we were able to get our stuff in record time. We had a few memorable moments. I was offered a free peach (delicious) by our fishmonger Mike. I was also offered (well more like gently forced) to eat a raw scallop by him too. It was actually delicious. After I got over the fact that I ate a raw scallop I actually enjoyed it and next week I may opt to buy some fresh scallops and eat a few raw, I may. We also bought, for the first time, a beef heart for the dogs, which according to our butcher, they will just love. Maddie was pretty interested in seeing the heart and asking what all the parts where.

Overall, I was very pleased with the new Market. All the vendors were excited and there was a fresh, vibrant energy all around. I just know there are people out there complaining and pointing out all the negatives about the new location, but in all honesty, I think the new market is great. And I am not an easy critic. Yes there were a lot of people, but it's not going to be like that all the time. It was just today, because it was new; the first day. I am actually looking forward to having some of my favorite foodstuffs accessible more often and to seeing how the market's vibe evolves over the next few weeks.

So after our market adventure we headed home to put the stuff in the fridge and then headed right back out to Chester. Isaac napped on the way there (thankfully). It was a sunny, but windy day. When we first arrived I was actually cold. We flew the kite around for a bit and then found a quaint little beach where the wind wasn't too annoying.

Ken and I ventured out in search of fish and chips while my parents and my grandma who is visiting from B.C. (oh yeah, I forgot to mention they came along) stayed and played with the kiddos. I love those little, short getaways with Ken. We found a classic Nova Scotia pub type restaurant and ordered. While they got it ready we walked around. Chester had an art show happening so we got to see the artists' works. I honestly can't wait until I can afford to spend money on art. I fell in love with a painting, but it was $300. We just don't have that kind of mula to spend on that right now!

I digress. When the food was ready we headed back and had a picnic on the beach. After lunch there was some time to spare so the kiddos played in the sand and water and got themselves nice and dirty and tired out. When Isaac started to get whiny and Maddie started to say "No" to everything we knew it was time to head home for a nap. Isaac managed to stay awake on the way home by playing "throw-Maddie's-hat-back-and-forth" with Maddie and by an ABBA sing along performed my Maddie and me; it was the only CD left in the car that wasn't kid songs (which we were sick of!). Nap was great and then we had a delish supper of fresh haddock and sweet corn.

After supper Isaac surprised us by walking around more than he had ever done before! The little stinker finally decided it was time to try out his sea legs. So far he'd been pretty keen on just scooting around; he did amazingly well! You could tell he was so proud of himself and we are so excited!

All in all today was a superb day. Let's hope tonight is a better night. I think he might be getting a tooth, or maybe it's the walking milestone, but something's got Isaac worked up and not sleeping well. Oh well, it's always something with these little ones.

On that note, I am off. Better get some sleep while I can.

Success!

Last night went amazingly well. I was actually very pleasantly surprised. Ken gave the kiddos a bath and I nursed Isaac and left him asleep. We waited for a few minutes to make sure he wasn't going to wake up right away...and when he didn't, we left. I tried not to think about it too much so when I looked at the clock and it was almost 9pm I started to get curious! And then I remembered that I didn't write down our cell number down for Vanessa. I knew she must have it in her phone, but just to make sure she had it handy I called home. She said Maddie fell asleep no problem and that Isaac was still fast asleep. Phew! I insisted that she shouldn't worry if she had to call us to come home at any time. With that, I was more relaxed to enjoy the evening. We were at the Grad Gala for this year's graduating residents and it was lots of fun. Ken and his co-resident did the roast for the grads and it was hilarious! I'm so glad I got to see that! It was nice to spend time with Ken, chat with people I haven't seen in a long time and just get out to enjoy the beautiful summer evening. When we got home at 11pm I was sure Isaac would either already be awake or wake up shortly after, but nope. He didn't even wake up at 11:30pm when I got in bed. In fact I didn't hear from him until 5:30am when he got up for the day. I guess asking him to sleep in a little was too much to ask after he'd been so good!

Today it's another lovely, sunny, warm day. After Isaac had a little nap after breakfast (which we actually had to wake him up from!), we went to the market and then swimming with our friend and his little boy. Maddie and him got along so great, it was fun to be outside on such a gorgeous day. Now it's time for burgers on the barbee!

What a great Father's Day Weekend!

P.S. Just a shout out to my bro...it's his birthday today and I want to wish him all the best for the coming year! Love you dude!