Christmas Gifts

I have been thinking about Christmas gifts for our family and saw this blog post shared on Facebook. I want to keep it so I can reread it... It has some really good ideas for homes like ours that want less toys and more meaningful presents. 

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/6108036?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000037

Vancouver with Friends... and a baby!

I am writing this blog post with a full heart.

Kelly, Trisha and I have been friends for... oh about 18 years to be exact.  Holy smokes I just did that math and it doesn't seem right - that is a long time!  I met these two in the fall of my first year of university and right from the start we became fast buddies.  Kelly and Trish were best friends from high school and they just scooped me into their friendship and away we went.  Those university years were fun, fuzzy and adventurous... we had many crazy times... too many to count.  All I can say is that a girl couldn't have better friends during those university years!

Kelly, myself, Trish - our first selfie!

After we graduated, we all went our separate ways.  Kelly got married (Trish and I were in her wedding party) soon after we graduated and settled in southern Ontario, Trish went to Teachers' College and then traveled the world ending up in Vancouver and I went to Teacher's College and then moved to the Ottawa Valley with my university sweetheart.  Needless to say, we live very far from each other now but over the years we have tried to meet up periodically.

Trish and her husband, Randy, had their first baby last June so it became the perfect opportunity for Kelly and I to take a trip to Vancouver to see them all... and provide Trish with out parental wisdom of course.
I am just home and had a fantastic time.

Helen is 5 months old now and such a sweet little baby.  Motherhood had come so naturally to Trish... I am so happy for her.  Helen is the apple of her daddy's eye.  They are such a happy little family and I loved being able to spend time with all of them.

Trish and Helen were our official tour guides for Vancouver and area.  Helen loves taking public transit and being in her carrier.  She does not like driving in vehicles for very long.  We took it all in stride and saw as much as we possibly could!  Trish knows the transit system really well so we got to really see most of Vancouver.

The day after I arrived in Vancouver, I met up with some family that we don't see very often.  Melissa (Ian's cousin) lives in Vancouver with her partner, Bill, and they are expecting their first baby very soon.  Her nieces, Montana and Paisley, were visiting her for the weekend so I got to spend some time with them all for a nice morning having brunch.

I arrived a day before Kelly so Trish and I walked around downtown, had gelato and I saw some of the Olympic Village.
After Kelly arrived we went to Stanley Park (by train and bus) and walked around the park and sea wall.  It was a beautiful day - perfect for walking.  We saw a coyote really close, the Vancouver Aquarium, walked along the sea wall and saw totem poles.  Once we returned to their home, Randy made us a delicious supper.  It was a great start to our trip.

On the second day we drove to Squamish (1 hour drive) to meet up with a cousin of ours to tour herbeautiful store.  She sells many locally produced items along with really nice gift ware, an indoor pumpkin patch, and other small stores including a coffee shop.  It has been open 2 1/2 years and Natalie has done very well with her dream for this store.

On our way back to Vancouver we stopped at Shannon Falls and went for a small walk.   I was in awe with how beautiful the BC forest is - so different than here in Ontario.  The trees are very very tall and there is so much moss covering everything.  The forests are magical... or they seem that way!

No trip is complete for me without finding a farmers' market.  I was really excited about going to Granville Island!  We took the train and a bus to this part of Vancouver.  It was a rainy day so our first stop was the Umbrella Shop.  Only in Vancouver!  This was actually quite comical - the store clerk was very knowledgeable about umbrellas and I realized that I didn't know there was so much to know about these useful tools!

We had lunch in the indoor market (fish and chips - so good!) and then wandered around.  The produce was amazing!

Amidst the market, boutiques and Emily Carr University (all part of Granville Island) there is a cement plant but even it was creatively decorated.

We left Granville Island with treats, presents for our children and SALMON.  Both Kelly and I bought a whole salmon to take back home with us!

Our last day of touring Vancouver started with a trip to the Dutch Wooden Shoe Cafe... it was like taking a trip back to my childhood.  The food was delicious!

After our huge meal we toured the Cambie Road area, where Trish and Randy used to live.  Then we headed to Trish's favourite gelato shop, which has 218 flavours of which some we could sample.  Not only did we see many sights in Vancouver but we had many types of food as well - it was like we were on a foodie vacation!  I loved it.

We then drove to a suspension bridge in North Vancouver and went for a much-needed hike, especially after all that amazing food!  I am not a fan of heights or suspension bridges but I made it across...twice.  Again, the scenery was beautiful.

By that evening we were tired.  We stayed at home for supper and had greek food delivered.  It was really good and then went to bed early to be up early for our flight back to Ontario.

My trip to Vancouver was perfect!  I am so happy I went and coming home was really wonderful.  I got many hugs and kisses when I saw my children and husband.  I hope Trisha, Kelly and I can plan another vacation together in the next few years again.

Halloween 2014

Despite snow in our forecast, it was a beautiful evening; cold but quite nice for trick or treating.
Every year I try to encourage the kids to be creative when putting their costumes together but Grace is the only one to takes me up on that!

Jean knew she wanted to be Mini Mouse since last Halloween.  All year long she asked me for black high heels just like Mini so I broke down by the end of the summer and found her some (on sale) and then Grandma Mary Ellen gave her the Mini dress for her birthday as an early present.  I thought it was a nice change from the usual Disney Princess that she wants to be!

Grace decided on this costume in late September - she is always so good to be creative when coming up with what she will wear.  We researched SuperWoman on Pinterest and the boots were a must!  We made duct tape boots (there are quite a few websites with instructions) and found the rest at Value Village and Walmart.  She had fun putting this costume together.

Alex decided on being a Ninja very recently.  We were at Value Village and he was unsure of what he wanted to dress up as until he found this costume.  He really liked the sword!

We are off on our trick or treating adventure... all through the countryside we drive to Renfrew and back.  We like to visit family including great-aunts and uncles, Granny, Grandparents and a few houses in between.  Its always a fun evening!

Just a Little Bit Crafty

I don't know what's gotten I to us lately (the girls in our house) but we are in crafty-mode!

Inspiration seems to be everywhere we turn... 

In any spare moment we can find, Grace, Jean and I are making something!  It's so much fun!

This is our craft cupboard. A few years ago I decided we needed a craft corner in our playroom. It turns out we are covering a few corners of the house but this is the main area for kids craft items. 

Last Christmas Grace got a set of looms from Uncle Ben and Marieve. Both Grace and I love to loom with yarn and very recently have picked it up again and we are going loom-crazy!  It turns out not only can we make scarves but Pinterest is loaded with ideas and instructions. We went to Michaels the other day and bought a set of round looms so we have almost every shape and size now. Shopping for yarn is almost as much fun as shopping for fabric and much less expensive!  Ha!  The other thing I love about looming is it is portable and easy.  I can bring it everywhere with us... such as waiting at dance class, watching hockey, in the van...anywhere we are just sitting around. I don't like to just sit with nothing to do and it turns out my daughters are the same!

My greatest passion is quilting. It may not be a home decorators good idea but my sewing area is set up in our livingroom. The reason is that the best room in the house for sewing is over-run with toys and is also our laundry room so the next best space is where we gather to relax. I usually sew in the evening so at least I can be where Ian is - watching tv. If my sewing machine and cutting table were elsewhere, I wouldn't be able to work at it so easily. Maybe someday I will have a quilting studio but that will most likely be when the kids are grown up.  

Right now I am working on a quilt for Jean's birthday. She turns 6 in a few weeks and this will be a sweet butterfly quilt to go with a redecorated room for her. This quilt is pushing me out of my comfort zone but I have two goals for myself this year 1) to learn some new quilting techniques and 2) to work on my quilting projects for at least 30 minutes a day (unless I am not at home). Hopefully my skills will become greater and I have more completed projects!  Wish me luck!

So it turns out this girl is a chip off the old block but she has more talents than I can imagine a 10 year old kid could have!  She is a great student, great dancer and very crafty. She isn't afraid to learn new things and just goes for it!  She lives in the age of information at her fingertips and knows how to use it. Like many girls her age, she rainbow loomed for hours with YouTube guiding her and now she is learning techniques for yarn looming the same way. She whipped up that hat in just a couple days...between school, dance classes and sleeping!  That blanket beside her is made by her as well. She likes to sew and even though it takes more time and guidance, she works away making up patterns or just practicing her sewing techniques. She learned a bit about mosaic recently and that's another craft she plans on taking up. She loves to paint and colour...the list goes on and on. 

Jean is learning to loom as well and I notice that she is able to do more fine motor skill work. She is interested in the rainbow loom as well.  We have so many craft supplies that she can do what she wants but roll-playing is still her favourite activity. That's perfectly fine with me. 

As for Grace and I, I can just see a craft supply shop in our future...hmmmm or just a place for inspiring others to create. It's so much fun!

Janie's Collage

I just wanted to share this...it's a beautiful collage made for us. I would call it a treasure. 

Ian and I are very proud to be living in a home with so much history meanwhile bringing it into the time when we can fully enjoy our own moments. Hockey nets outside, massive amounts of toys inside overtaking a whole room (aka the playroom), red wine bottles on a long counter, loud voices and photos taken in every room!  I love sharing our home. 

That being said, it seemed like we had a dishes crew on for at least an hour and after everyone left we still had a lot of clean-up. We went to bed and tackled it the next day. Until next time!

Feeling Thankful Today

I took some time this morning to read two blog posts I wrote about Thanksgiving.  Each year I take this holiday in stride as we are most likely harvesting and still selling our products at farmers' markets.  In other words, we don't always spend Thanksgiving together.  I have made a point in doing my best to somehow celebrate around the dinner table with whomever can make it within our family and I am taking on the challenge of cooking a turkey with all the trimmings.

I am still so very thankful for what I have mentioned in the past... none of that has changed but this year I feel especially thankful for the life we get to live.  I love being able to provide opportunities for our children and seeing them thrive within those opportunities.  Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would see our children part of a competitive dance team or on a competitive hockey team or being able to watch them at cross country meets.  I didn't know they would love being part of activities that push them to their potential... we get to watch them become pretty awesome human beings that love to participate, love to help others and have so many friends.  The experiences that Ian and I get to give our kids leaves me in awe... I was not overly athletic and I lacked the confidence to be part of teams and competitive activities.  Money and time was always an issue growing up. It wasn't that I didn't have some of those opportunities but it wasn't as easy for me to "put myself out there".  I look at Grace, Alex and Jean and feel such pride that they can do just that and as a result, they have opportunities that are amazing.  That being said, it does take finances and time from us as parents but we are more than happy to do just that - I know we will NEVER regret it.  This year I am thankful for all of that!

Now back to getting my house ready for 22 + visitors...

Leaf Piles

We have a huge maple tree beside our house. Every fall it sheds huge amounts of leaves and inevitably becomes the place of choice for making piles of leaves and jumping into them. Within minutes this pile was taller than Alex. 

All I hope is that they don't jump into each other or leave the rakes and shovels hidden in the pile. 

They give it all when they jump!