Kathy and Sean's Wedding

We have been keeping this under wraps for a long time as my family is not the post-everything-on the-internet family so it was not my place to advertise this special occasion...but here are a few photos from Saturday. Unfortunately, we hardly got any photographs and Grace was not very receptive to posing for photos that night.

Congrats Kathy and Sean - we are so happy for you and wish you a long and wonderful life together!

Fall Walks

Grace loves to take walks with her stroller.

Fall Family Days

A few weeks ago we went to Brantford for the weekend for a wedding and Great Grandma and Great Grandpa's 60th wedding anniversary. The kids enjoyed seeing their relatives. We got some great pictures on town square in Brantford as well as Grace with her Great Grandmother Beth.

Pears

Well that was a first - I tried to hot pack pears this afternoon with mixed results. I'll wait to see how they last. Maybe I could pack the jars tighter if I cut the pears into smaller pieces. I also had my first lid failure of the year.

Wellington S.P.A.

Brasserie Dieu du Ciel! - Corne du diable

Salsa

I just finished my fourth batch of salsa for this year. This is my 4th year of making this salsa with pretty consistent results using a recipe from Canadian Living Cooks at Home. I'll have to see how spicy this batch is - I used jalapenos from the East Lynn Farmer's Market.
The shelves in the basement are beginning to get full with my other preserves form this year including: strawberry jam, peach jam, plum jam, tomato puree (from a bushel of San Marzano tomatoes), oven dried tomatoes, and peach chutney. I'd like to do something with beets, make some applesauce and perhaps do some pears.

Back From the Cottage

We got back from the cottage this week and we certainly enjoyed the continued hot weather after missing it for most of July when we were out west. Grace enjoyed sliding down a small plastic slide into the water and the boys enjoyed exploring, swimming, fishing, watching wildlife and lazing around. One quiet Sunday afternoon we even had a bear come sniffing around looking for berries.
We had good visits with our cousins on Papa's side of the family with many big dinners with all the leaves in the table. This week we got our classrooms ready and Grace adjusted to her new caregiver, "Nanny Maria!"

Wisconsin

We had a beautiful drive through Minnesota and Wisconsin yesterday. When we pulled up at our hotel there were plug-ins, which makes me think that it must get really cold here in the winter. Frank Lloyd Wright's Talesin is only 35 miles away, but the kids aren't allowed on the tour. I guess that's another item for a later trip.

I'm a big kid now

For some time now Liam has resented ordering off the children's menu in restaurants. So it was with an air of vindication that he pointed out he was too old for the kids menu at Paradiso ( a North Dakota chain of Mexican restaurants) and ordered the chicken caesar salad. He even told the waiter it was really good and he ate the tomatoes. (Usually he remains mute when he's questioned by strangers.) Luke had an after dinner mint for the first time and Grace worked on her straw technique, which she mastered yesterday. That's it from Fargo. No sign of Marg Gunderson.

Regina

Well we're on our way home and our stop for the first night was Regina. This town is football crazy. Everywhere we went people were wearing the Roughrider colours, flying the flag or talking about it. While waiting for coffee this morning, I overheard people discussing the previous night's Montreal Hamilton game. I've never heard people talking about the CFL at a Starbucks in Toronto!

Snow - falling this time

We made it to Banff today. I wouldn't be surprised if it snowed tonight. We drove through snow at Highwood Pass (2200 m - open June 15 to December 1) and took highway 40 through Kananaskis Country. When we stopped for groceries in Canmore, you could see the line on the mountains above which the rain was falling as snow.

Snow

We hiked to Forum Lake today (10 km round trip and 350m vertical.) We crossed into BC, endured lots of mosquitoes and crossed a big section of snow on the trail. Our destination was a pretty alpine lake surrounded by a curved ridge. We looked up at the snow covered Akamina Ridge, one of Waterton's premier hikes. Thunder echoing in the mountains chased us down. Grace slept for most of the descent.
Since we were in the area we stopped for a quick look at Cameron Lake. On the drive back to town we saw two bears feeding really close to town. It was really windy today. We could hear the wind whipping around. It would probably have been a rough boat ride over to the Crypt Lake hike which awaits our return another summer.

Bear's Hump

We hiked the Bear's Hump yesterday. It was surprisingly steep (200m vertical over 1.2 km) but afforded a beautiful vista of Waterton town and lake. Grace had a short nap on the way down.

Back in Canada

After some more majestic Montana scenery we arrived back in Canada and have stopped for a few days in Waterton Lakes. The kids were pretty excited to see their grandparents and finally the scenery made an impact on them. Deer are freely roaming around. Two fawns and a doe grazed as I unloaded the car (which has a nasty expanding windshield crack from a stone chip.) We'll have to return to Montana. It seems such a shame to rush past all the nickel and quarter casinos that are on every corner as well as the historical sites such as the Custer battlefield and the many Lewis and Clark sites.

Great Falls, Montana

We drove 800 km today through three states (started in South Dakota, spent 30 minutes driving through a corner of Wyoming , and ended up in Montana.) We took secondary highways and it was incredible to see the big skies and the endless ranges and of course the cattle grazing. As we got closer to Great Falls we saw our first snow capped mountains of the trip!

We should have stretched this part of the trip out to see more of the Rushmore attractions and some of the western towns like Deadwood. It would also have been nice to see Yellowstone and Glacier Parks. We've done 3400 km so far and I don't think we're even up for the Going to the Sun road in Glacier. Next stop is Waterton Lakes. All those other sights will have to wait for the next trip.

It's unbelievably built up around Rushmore. The actual monument is well done, and your 10$ parking fee gives you access for the year. Outside in Keystone and Rapid City there's an air of a western flavoured Niagara Falls. It's what I imagine Anaheim is like around Disneyland.

Oh and I should mention he generous speed limits - 75 on the interstate and 70 on the secondary highways! What a pleasant contrast to the 2000 km we've done in the past at 90 km/h just to get out of Ontario.

South Dakota

Hundreds of kilometres across flat, then rolling, then hilly plains. Saw some cool grasshoppers at one of the rest stops. We made it to Mt. Rushmore. It was not as big as I thought it was going to be - impressive nonetheless. Dinner at the Olive Garden. Grace ate everything offered to her.
Craft beer from New Belgium brewing in Colorado - Fat Tire Amber Ale.
After last nights debacle, decided to pay a bit more and stay in a so-so Ho-Jo (looks clean and smells clean.)

Beware the $39 special

We stayed at a clean but decrepit 39$ motel in Sioux City last night. Lots of unsavoury types about. Police cruisers at the bar across the street. Smoky smells around and an unappetizing breakfast.

Chicago

We were only in Chicago to see U2 (now postponed!) Since the hotel was paid for (89$ on hotwire) we went anyway. We were at the Hyatt by the convention centre - walking distance to Soldier Field and not much else. We'll definitely return to spend some more time here - the city looked great and there seemed to be lots to do. Dinner wasn't Chicago style pizza, but rather California Pizza Kitchen. We had the roasted vegetable salad which I had been dreaming about since Naples (FL) in March. Local craft beer from Goose Island.

Kalamazoo

After one long day that involved my longest ever border crossing we arrived in Kalamazoo. Dinner was at the Cracker Barrel. Lodging was at a $45 hotwire special. You get what you pay for I guess. At least the internet was free and breakfast was included.

We're packed and ready to go!

Monday morning - the car is packed, Luke is wedged in the back and we're off.

Summer!

School ended this week and now the whole family is ready for summer. Tomorrow we begin our bi-annual road trip out west. Too bad we're packing this weekend as the weather is perfect for relaxing at the cottage.

News Update!

So, it is the middle of May. I won't even check when my last post was but I know it was before Grace could officially walk. She started walking - as a mode of getting around (rather than here and there) about a week after Easter. Just after she turned 14 months and now, she never stops!! I think her feet have finally grown or maybe they've just spread out from the walking. She has delicate, small feet like her Grandma. She can still fit into a size 3 which is about 6-9 month size...though she is almost a 4 now (6-12 month size). When I was shopping for Liam's pioneer outfit at Value Village the other day I came across some size 3 hot pink Mickey Crocs for Grace. She will often take off her runners and bring me her CROCS to put on. Very cute! (And no, I didn't actually find anything for Liam that day...but Grace also got a nice GAP raincoat for the fall - $4.99)

Other stuff...Luke's 7th birthday. Yes, SEVEN!! We had another Webkinz party because Luke wanted what Liam had. Luke's friends were not as into the "Webkinz" part of the party but they still had a great time. Despite a dismal weather forecast and many tears (from Luke) every time he saw the weather report it turned out to be a sunny and hot day! Go figure! Even up until the night before they were forecasting solid rain for the day.

(Great) Grandpa turned 85 on Saturday so we went out to Ancaster for a nice get together with everyone. Dan says that Grandpa appears to have the same energy and life as when he met him almost 21 years ago. It would've been Mema's birthday on that same day so we had some memories of her while we drove home. And today is (Great) Grandma's birthday!

Dan is taking another course - twice a week - and then he is done his Masters of Education which is great. I don't love being a single parent two nights a week but I'm sure this is preferable to him taking a fall course once I'm back at work (I just don't know that I prefer this yet...) One upside is that I've finally learned and remember how to use the latte machine so I can make my lattes when Dan has class...they still taste better when Dan makes them for me ; )

And...Liam is finished choir for the year. He had his big final concert on May 1st. It really was truly wonderful and then his choir did a fun family concert on the 3rd. Luke has also auditioned for the choir. We may be very busy next year! We haven't decided about hockey yet. It really is nice having those weekends free again but the boys need the exercise and it is only for about six months of the year. I know for sure that I am playing hockey again!

That's about it. I am still in perpetual sleep-deprivation mode. Grace wakes normally 2-3 times a night. Plus, I have been staying up way too late working on my ETSY shop, Princess Grace Bowtique.

So far I've had 68 sales in 6 weeks. At first, most of my customers were American but in the last couple of weeks I've had lots of Canadian orders. There is a niche for this in Canada as there aren't as many people selling this kind of quality product at these prices. However, I've had some shocks at the post office when I go to mail an $11 order of bows to Vancouver and it costs over $12...However, people would be pretty scared off at a $12 shipping fee! (this exact same box ships anywhere to the US for $6.94 - sigh). I need to use a box if someone orders lots of bows or they get squished...though now I have been sneaking one or two small bows into an envelope...and hoping they arrive in one piece! ($1.22 versus $10+ in Canada!)

Finally, here are some photos: Liam's pioneer day, Luke's party... and some of our adorable princess. I'll have to get my new FLIP video footage uploaded so you can see her run!

Ciabatta

I baked this ciabatta last week using the recipe in Homebaking: The Artful Mix of Flour and Tradition Around the World By Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid. There was lots of waiting for the various risings, but the end result was worth it: 4 of these loaves.

Wearing blue at the zoo!

We went to teacher day at the zoo last Sunday. Lots of teachers and a beautiful sunny day added up to a busy place - we had to park in the overflow lot. This was Grace's first out-of-uterus visit. She really like the polar bbears. They looked like the fluffy dogs she's been admiring around the neighbourhood.

A new bike finally!

Last week I picked up my new Trek 7.5FX. It's truly a pleasure to ride to work these days (the beautiful spring weather helps too.) I've added a rack for my panniers and fenders for rainy days, but it's still much lighter than my old Bianchi. My old bike has served me well since 1992. It will now be relegated to winter service.

New Etsy Store - Princess Grace Bowtique

Just because I didn't have anything else to do...or maybe because I had/have so many things to get done and I am procrastinating...

Happy Easter!

Okay, it's been a month. We've been really busy and sick...right now there's not much time to catch up...but here's a collage of Grace's easter egg hunt.

The boys were already at church and had found their eggs as they woke at 7am...Grace was up a lot last night so she slept until 10 am.

Luke's Perfect Pancakes

Today is a P.A. day so I have the kids home. Dan has interviews.

Early this morning Luke was begging to do some more cooking from his cookbook so we made Perfect Pancakes for breakfast. This was all done and eaten by 9 a.m. and before I had finished my cup of coffee!

We have a busy day. This morning I am taking the 3 kids to Dr. E (our chiropractor), I have a haircut later this afternoon then Luke and I have hockey practice and then Liam and I are going to see a TCC main choir concert at 8 pm. I wonder if there's time for me to shower?

I'd better go - Grace hasn't even had her morning diaper change yet! I'm not sure if she was impressed with the pancakes. I think she was waiting for her regular morning egg with spinach to arrive...

Liam's Birthday Party

Liam had his much anticipated Webkinz party last weekend. He invited three kids from school that were also serious Webkinz fanatics like Luke and himself. We set out the afternoon just like how it would be on Webkinz except there were activities every 15 minutes instead of every hour. We made real-life versions of the online games and the kids had to win games to get Kinzcash to spend at the "W-shop." They were pretty serious about the whole thing!

For the cake, I did my best interpretation of the "Wheel of Wow". I am quite happy to be done with the February birthday month. We celebrated Liam and Grace's birthdays several times each! Now onto the other boys of the family for March: Big Peter (Dad) - today!, Little Peter (19th) and Tim (11th).