Summer Vacation 2012

We spent the last two weeks in southern Ontario.  The first week we returned to the same cottage in Grand Bend that my family has rented for many years.  It was great to spend a relaxing week with my extended family.  The weather was hot, hot, hot, so it was nice to be in an air conditioned cottage so close to the beach.  I have a tonne of great pictures of the kids from that week but have whittled it down to a few for this blog.  Most of my pictures were taken at the beach, and I just realized looking at them now that I don’t have a single picture from our campfires.  Campfires are a highlight for the kids, and we had one every night of the week, so you’d think I’d have gotten at least one picture of that. 

The kids really enjoyed spending time with their older cousins, and we’re missing everyone now that we’re back to reality.

The second part of our vacation was spent in Toronto at Centreville (on Centre Island) and the Toronto Zoo.  The third day we were there we had planned to go the Science Centre, but we were just too tired and so spent our last day at the hotel taking advantage of the hotel pool and hot tub. 

Centreville:

Toronto Zoo:

During our holidays we all got into the habit of staying up late and sleeping in in the mornings.  So now, of course, we’re paying for it this week.  We’re all a bit tired and cranky and sorry that holidays are over - for now at least.  Tonight, when something wasn’t going A’s way, she announced that “today is the worst day ever”.  DoT and I got a kick out of that.  She was nonplussed.  

Happy 7th Birthday!

The girls turned 7 years old today.  Wow - 7.  It's hard to believe.

One of them looked in the mirror this morning and stated, in a disappointed tone, that she didn't look any different.  :-)  I, on the other hand, think I see changes every day.  They're growing up way too fast. 

When she went to bed tonight, A said that she wished when she wakes up tomorrow morning that she would be 8.  I want to hit the pause button and keep them all at this age for awhile. 

Helloooooo

Well. That was quite the long blogging break, wasn't it? Bet you thought I'd given up on this blog. Well, what started off as a bit of a break became a lot longer break when our computer died. But we have a new computer! So, it's time to try to get caught up. Here it is, (the highlights of) the last six months, in pictures...
Winter fun:

Our first (and hopefully last) visit by The Lice Squad:

A trip to the Maple Sugar Bush:

Easter:

Spring hiking:

We saw lots of great wildlife...

All the little critters were great fun until we came across this....

... after which point we ended up carrying the girls.  :-)

B's 5th birthday (5th!!!):

DoT and I have been doing a lot of gardening this spring.  This is how the kids "help":

Our annual trip to the Mennonite Relief Sale:

...which included a chance to visit extended family...

Finally, this weekend, the girls participated in the OMC "Fine Arts Night" by performing their piano recital pieces (a good warm up for their recital coming up in two weeks).  They had a blast:

 

That's it.  You're somewhat up-to-date.  Hopefully our computer and camera woes are done and I'll be able to update this blog more regularly in the coming months.

K....

2011 In Review

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Christmas 2011

For the first time ever we were in Ottawa on Christmas morning, and I must say it was really nice.  We had a quiet day at home enjoying good food (yes, I cooked!) and playing with new toys.  The kids were all very excited to see the gifts that Santa had left.

This is the first picture of the girls checking out their haul (B was still in bed at this point).

Santa really had it pretty easy this year, though.  A asked for “a three-ring binder with paper”, and B wanted a nutcracker.  They all three got a binder and paper, and the girls entertained themselves with these for a good little while until B finally joined us. 

B was equally as thrilled with his gifts from Santa…

After awhile, we opened the gifts under the Christmas tree (Santa’s gifts are never wrapped and are not under our tree).  From DoT and I, the kids got one gift each… a LeapPad Explorer.  This turned out to be a great gift for all of them.  We were a bit worried that B might be a bit young for it yet, but he loves his LeadPad as much as his sisters do.  And DoT and I love how quiet it kept them on the long drive to grandma and grandpa’s house on Boxing Day, and continues to keep them in the mornings.

 

We also got quite a bit of snow on Christmas eve and Christmas day, so DoT took the kids out to play in it a bit.  B got a bit tired of it quicker than the girls and came in to have hot chocolate with me.  But the girls stayed out a long time playing in the snow.

On Boxing Day we loaded up the van and headed to grandma and grandpa’s house.  Unfortunately, my uncle passed away on December 23rd (RIP Uncle Mike), so we had a funeral to go to on the 27th.  But that was followed by even more presents from my family’s gift exchange.  (The kids are still in their church/funeral clothes in these pictures, although the rest of us took the time to change into something more comfortable.)

 

We were still in southern Ontario on New Year’s Eve, and we celebrated the entry of the new year there.  The kids had a great time counting down (10, 9, 8, 7…) and yelling “happy new year” to ring in the new year at precisely 8:00 p.m.    Last year I let them stay up late, and I won’t make that mistake again.  They also got to drink out of special glasses (plastic wine glasses) and eat chips and cheezies, so it was a special night indeed.   I know I didn’t see midnight that night, and I’m pretty sure DoT didn’t either. 

Well, I think that pretty much brings you up-to-date.  I still plan to do my 2011 photo montage, as in past years, so watch for another blot post in the coming week.  (And if you didn’t notice the earlier one from today, check it out too, below.)

Happy New Year!

K….