Dog days of Summer.

This weekend is labour day and summer is slowly coming to the end. Though you wouldn't know it today when we were about to set record temperatures in Toronto. The ex is on, the air show is this weekend and the kids go back next week. Our summer of fun is almost over and it's been a blast. Long long walks along the boardwalk and through the park. Early morning jogs by the lake, picnics on the beach or in the backyard. Park dates and afternoon meet ups. Our first summer together has been amazing and it's so nice to look forward to upcoming ones. Stella will be tearing around the splash pad and all over the park.

Just some photos from the weekend...

Peachy Keen Jelly Bean

This weekend while Jeff was out of town for my future brother in law's Bradchelor party, Stella and I headed to Guelph to visit Nanna and Poppy. Nanny and Poppy's next door neighbours were having a 50th birthday party for the dad of the family. They were nice enough to invite Stella and I along as well. There was delicious food and of course big massive pieces of cake! In their backyard, which you can see from my mom's kitchen window, is a peach tree with beautiful ripe peaches this weekend. The next morning their son was nice enough to bring us a peach from their tree for Stella. As you can tell, Stella loved it!

The simple things....

There's not much out there that makes me happier than this....



Ok, maybe this...



I love mail. I think I order things online just to get packages at my door. Even when you know what's inside, it's a little unexpected present that makes your day better. And what kind of special treat was inside this one?




84 squares of quilting fabric goodness from www.fatquartershop.com. They have Charm boxes of precut 5x5 squares, every square is different. I liked the idea so much I bought two. I even have a project in mind so stay tuned.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Auntie Alicia!

It's actually Happy Birtday... Iphone cameras are not faster than babies.

On the move, kind of.

Stella is not a mover and a shaker. We've come to accept that. We've saved a fortune on baby gates so far. She's slowly starting to explore her world, most of the time from her bum. This girl can make surprising movements just scooting around on her bum. Last night we were playing on the bed and she almost almost got up on her knees. It was the () close. This morning this was her preferred means of motion:



I probably didn't help the situation by covering up her toes.... kid needs some traction.

Pipe Dream

What would you do if you could? If you could make a perfect little world for yourself? Do you think of it often, or tuck it away for a special daydream?

My pipe dream? I'd take the things we like to do best and find a way to make a living out of it. Somewhere warm. I can picture a cozy house with lots of bedrooms with puffy duvets on four poster beds. We would run a bed and breakfast where Jeff cooked breakfast in the mornings and I would bake delicious treats for afternoon tea and hang clean white sheets on clothes lines in the morning.





There would be a big garden where we grow raspberries and rows and rows of tomatos. I would have time to do all the ridiculous crafty things I love, quilting, making jam and knitting socks for everyone I know.

Now if we could do all this on an island in Greece that would be even better. Can't you picture Stella chilling on the beach and riding on the back of my moped?

(ps. She didn't get into this position herself... she's been able to prop herself up on her knees this week, but if she's lying down, we're pretty safe that she'll still be there when we get back).

Daddy Daughter Day.

This Saturday I had the absolutely pleasure of being invited to my friend Lisa's wedding in Niagara-on-the-lake. It was absolutely amazing, Lisa was stunning, the food was delish and the wine... well we were in wine country. Enough said. It was absolutely fantastic to spend a day with the girls, chatting and catching up. And having adult conversation. Sort of, I talk way too much about Stella.

While I was out having a party day, Jeff was having Daddy Daughter Day. They took a picnic to the park, and visited the High Park zoo. She loved the ducks and swans, but apparently was a bit freaked out by the peacock when he puffed up and tried to fly.

This will be the first of many, as I'll be working every other weekend when I start back to work. I can see his influence on her, she's currently sitting in her jumperoo, listening to Arcade Fire and laughing at herself.

Here's a couple pictures Jeff sent me during the day, taken on his black berry.

Test test 123

My blog seems to have disappeared this morning....

Just another day at the beach

On a beautiful friday afternoon Stella and I took a stroll down to the beach when she got up from her afternoon nap. All our chores were done, and we were ready for our friends who were coming to visit. It was one of those days where we had checked all the check boxes. Elderberry cobbler made, flank steak marinading in the fridge for dinner and everything clean and tidy.

It was such a good afternoon that I decided to take her back again today. They were filming a movie at Sunnyside Pavilion (a place near and dear to our hearts), so we decided to see if we could score a bit part. The Pavilion was set up like a middle eastern market, it was pretty fantastic, but no celebrity sightings.

We found some shade and threw down our blanket for a wee picnic. This summer the city did an espcially good job cleaning up Sunnyside Beach and installed a UV filter system to keep the water clean. Miss Stella hasn't been that into swimming in lakes this summer, but we sat and put our toes in for a little bit. Then we did some people watching and ate Cheerios (or generic organic Breakfast O's).

I forget sometimes that we live so close to the lake, it's so amazing the work and effort that Toronto has put into the waterfront in the last couple years. I feel so lucky that we live close enough to pack a picnic and go down any day of the week. There's play grounds and splash pads and lot's of delicious food.

Walk back home, we stopped on the front porch to brush the sand off our feet and it felt like coming home from a mini vacation.

Mommy moment # 726

On Monday afternoon Stella and I went for a walk and got caught in the rain. Like torrential downpour rain. Luckily we had an umbrella and Stella was curled up snug as a bug in the kangaroo pouch. The thunder was booming and the rain was pounding, but none of it bothered Stella. She was content to peek out and watch people running past from the doorway we camped out in. Not only did I learn she has no fear of thunder, but also that her hair makes the cutest little curls when it's super humid.

(This was the little face peeking out at me, could she look more like Alicia right now?)

It was amazing to see her so calm and zen while we were walking along. Her little personality comes out more and more lately, she is such a peaceful person sometimes. (And sometimes not, like at bedtime, or when she's laughing her face off cause she figured out how to hold blankets up to play peekaboo).

Our National Lampoon's Vacation

It should have been an omen. "National Lampoon's European vacation" was on tv the first night of our vacation, however our chaos started the day before.

Our vacation started on the evening of Jeff's birthday, Darryl and Lindsay were so lovely to come over and listen out for Stella while Jeff and I went out for dinner. The Harbord room is long standing quaint restaurant in Toronto, which some how we have never managed to get to. We had a table for their 8:30 seating and started our week of gluttony. (And D&L called ahead to treat us to surprise Maple Bourban cocktails). Lobster ceviche and roasted rabbit... delicious. And Beignets for dessert. I don't even remember what Jeff had cause I was so engrossed in my own food. Have I mentioned my obsession with beignets, they are the one and only reason I would buy a deep fryer (which Jeff has been begging for).

After our night out, we left Friday morning via St. Lawrence market to head to the cottage we had rented on South Lake. But not before Jeff got stung by a bee. A big fat bumble bee. That evening his foot started swelling, and getting hot, and itching. My triage skills can only take me so far so there were numerous calls to Dr. Dad over the week. By Sunday the foot was better.... but poor little Stella wasn't. Our munchkin wanted nothing to do with swimming in the lake, nothing to do with lunch and everything with cuddling and sleeping. With a temperature of almost 40 degrees, we knew something wasn't right. The fever crept back every 8 hours for the next 3 days.



(Our little lady hasn't let us cuddle like this in months)

So we took a little trip into the Minden Health Centre and saw the amazing doctor and nurses there. Turns out our little munchkin had a urinary tract infection, so we started a course of antibiotics. Our last fever was wednesday afternoon and Stella was finally on the mend!

Our last Lampoon's incident was friday afternoon. We decided to take a little trek into town to get ice cream, pick up Stella's culture results and visit a look out. Those plans were immediately put on hold when a threatening little lightening bolt started flashing on the dashboard. Grabbing the manual, we saw that it indicated our "Electronic Throttle" was malfunctioning. And then the car started bucking like a bull when ever Jeff touched the gas pedal. Jeff and I might have 4 degrees and 13 years of university between the two of us, but we don't know cars. So we drove. And googled mechanics in the Kawarthas'. We had no idea if we could turn the car off, or if we could make it home.

One of the downfalls of society may be that we decided to put computers in cars. No one knows how to fix them. Anywhere.

After driving around for an hour, we thought we should stop and get gas. Turn the car off and see what happens. And what happened? The car started. And Mr. Lightening Bolt was no where to be found. Phew.

All in all, we ate and drank like royalty, played backgammon (final score Jeff - 7, Kirsten-3), watched Arrested Development and just about nothing else. So just like the movie we had a happy, if somewhat comical ending.....

Roll 'em up.

Ain't Love grand?

The love of my life is starting on a new adventure this week and if he could buzz, he would. There's lots of nervous energy going around this house this weekend. Luckily we escaped the city for the week so he was able to keep himself distracted during his week of unemployment (first in many many years). He's taking a big step for our family, leaving behind what's comfortable, but taking on a new challenge and a fresh start.

Is amazing how you can spend so much time with some one and they only have to do something simple to make you fall more and more in love. On our way home, we stopped for a washroom/nursing break. Jeff parked, I jumped out of the car to do the former and when I came back he was changing a super stinky diaper on the front seat. And I love that he just does it. Sigh.

So, good luck to my love as you become THE lawyer, instead of A lawyer!