Anniversary and Wedding

Please forgive me, I have been on vacation and continue to be until Tuesday!

We will be spending the next 2 nights on a sail boat off Hornby Island enjoying the festivities of a wedding there and seeing old friends. I will have so many stories and photos for you when I get home, but for now I will leave you with the photo I had mentioned last post...

p.s. I removed some photos of Little E and her friends sans clothing just as a precaution. It made me sad to do it; if there were any photos you particularly liked let me know and I will send them to you.

The Burbs

Yesterday we made the trek out to Coquitlam to have a bbq with our music class friends.
The weather was glorious and we had a fine feast of burgers, corn and salads. Of course the company was even better and as soon as Parker's mommy sends me the photo I will show you how the moment moved Little E.

She had the party goers oooing and ahhhing at the strength of her sole. Yes, the soles of her feet are uber tough and she proved it by marching up and down the gravel path in her bare feet all afternoon. I told them that we've been training her on hot coals for a Guinness record, so really gravel is nothing.

Today I exchanged a dress - used my stellar negotiation skills to do this since it's actually "not their policy" - but The Barefoot Contessa has such pretty little numbers. And on the walk I fuelled up with an amazing muffin from Coco et Olive on Main street. I would say that was the best darn muffin I have ever had, and I like to think of myself of somewhat of a connoisseur in that department. Oh yeah, and the babies were there too.

Girls Night Out Again

More bed without boob practice led to a very fun evening with my girlfriends!

Daddy C took over with Little E at about 6:00pm last night in order to accommodate our nail splurge - a manicure/pedicure at the quirky little neighbourhood beauty salon, Orchid Beauty Centre. An hour and a half later, sporting coral fingers and toes Jo and I emerged in a cloud of chemical perfume ready to face the summer weather.

We headed to Jo's house for some drinks and very enlightening discussions on sexuality and lifestyles. (See Book Club list for a great book on this topic - Promiscuities). It wasn't long before the dancing itch took hold and we ventured downtown. But alas, we are not the young diehards we once were and the thought of a 20 minute wait in line with sassy little 20 year olds was less than appealing (especially in our state).
So instead we went for food.

If you have the chance to go to Six Acres in Gastown I would recommend it. The food was fantastic and the prices were right. Five of us shared 4 plates and 3 of us had drinks - grand total $14 each.

All in all a great night, and a decent morning too considering Daddy C stayed on duty until first nap...8:30 sleep in whoooopie!!!!

Back in the Saddle

Ever since I bought the iBert safe-T-seat bike seat for Little E, I have been craving a bike ride. Today, since it was just the two of us and the weather cooperated we left the house at 10am with our heads in helmets and our souls in the wind.

We had a play date with Shannon and Jude; ate mango, croissants and leftovers then biked home for a nap and some backyard fun...photos to follow.

But, before I forget, I want to give you the recipe for last nights dinner. It was super easy and yummy; grilled sweet and hot rack of lamb and a different take on potato salad thanks to Granny H.

Lamb:
Marinade the lamb rack (already separated) in 1/2 cup of dijon and 1/2 cup of red pepper jelly (I used red pepper jelly and mango chutney cause it was all I had) - simmer the mustard and jelly until fully melted and allow to cool, then marinade for as long as possible and grill.

Potato salad:
Boil some new potatoes.
Add: fresh peas, toasted pine nuts, fresh basil, feta cheese and sun-dried tomatoes

Playing Catch Up

Holy Moly - that was an indulgent hiatus from writing...!
The theme over the past few days was blooming social life.

The bachelorette party was a blast! So many amazing women hanging out in hats and 50's style dresses parading up Denman Street. And that was only the afternoon! The evening included a potluck at one of the homesteads and a Caribbean theme boat/booze cruise where we dance the night away.
Aunty Soph was the hero of the weekend, staying overnight and looking after Little E while I wallowed in my late night/early morning recovery.

Thank Goodness Daddy C arrived home in time for dinner on Sunday night and took Monday off. The four of us (including Parker) went swimming at Hillcrest Pool yesterday and tuckered the wee ones out. Regardless of all the activity though, Little E refused to sleep - Daddy and Parker all in one day??!! Forget it!

Then last night I had a sewing date with a new and fantastic friend across the street. We got together and drank wine, traded fabric and made super cute creations for our babes.
Today was another pool and watermelon extravaganza - this time with our fab friends Marilou and her son Felix!

Here are some photos of the past few days...

All the Single Mamas

The only regret I have about yesterday was not having the camera attached to my hip!

What a different day! It's amazing how quickly the baby tide can turn from rough to smooth overnight. We played outside in the rain then came in for a double baby bath. The only thing cuter than two little sprites chasing each other around the house are the same two sprites having a bath together and splashing up a tsunami.

Today was another successful nap, eat and play day. It resulted in clean floors, dinner by 5:15 and me in bed blogging by 8:30pm. Even without my beloved Daddy C, when good long naps are involved I forget what can be accomplished.

I am a single mom this weekend with Daddy C away on a stag trip, house boating on the Shuswap Lake with 13 other crazy (mostly single) men - yikes. I have some respite, being tagged off by my darling sister, Auntie Soph in order to get out tomorrow afternoon until 1:00am-ish on the staggette portion of the party. The upsetting part is that Little E wakes at 6:00am expecting a nurse RIGHT AWAY!
I'll let you know how it goes...

Here is a photo of the little sprites thrilled about being up in the adult chair...

One of Those Days

It was one of those days today. I better write this quick before I get too deep into the scotch.

Two different babies, two different schedules = one frazzled G
There were a couple of occasions where I felt close to tears myself with nary a nap gone by without at least one crying baby. It's too bad they like each other so much, they just won't sleep.

Here are some shots of the two little hellions tickling each others belly buttons in the matching outfits Little E was determined to wear...

Chatter

I am amazed at the development day by day of our Little E.
Hopefully this doesn't come across as bragging (although I am a little chuffed) and more as a tally for future reference...here are the words that Little E now uses (besides Mum and Daddy, hi and bye) along with a number of helpful signs:

Doggy - she has graduated to the G sound, and she uses doggy in the place of every other word she doesn't yet know.
Manna - banana
Minah - vagina
Dis and Dat
Dow - down
Up - self explanatory, and a favourite
Ba - bath
Bah - ball
Bee - bird (already time for "the talk" I suppose)
B B's - for blue berries and...
Beebee - for baby too
Eye - you can guess
Wahoo - water
Pees - please
Bahtah - Parker
Do - toe
No - nose or no depends on the context
Lolo - hello, only when holding a phone

These are the ones we can decipher. She has a whole other language that she seems to expect us to understand and tries to explain things to us regularly - she must think we're daft.

On a design note...we are preparing to paint our house and have narrowed it down to 2 samples: Wolf Grey and Anchor Grey. We both prefer the darker Anchor, but if you have some insight please share!

In the World of Women

I am back in the world of women, officially.
On Thursday when I went to the doctor (and since I'm about to share a lot here I won't go further with the description of my check up) I discovered that my period had made an appearance after about 2 years of absence. I was actually really excited at first, this means I am potentially physically back in the baby making game...

The other big news as of the past couple of days (besides my epic girls night last night) is both Little E and I have a new ride. Today, rather spontaneously, I bought a bike for me and a bike seat for her! We all went for a family ride tonight over to Benjamin Moore to pick up some paint samples for the outside of our house. It was a beautiful sunny evening and Little E had a blast! She pointed and chatted the whole time. I would highly recommend the iBert safe-T-seat.
Here is a photo of the two of us. It's not ideal because it doesn't show my styling bike so I'll get another one and post it soon.

The Chemistry of Raising a Baby

The perfect baby balance is a precise mix that when accomplished yields a happy, well rested angel. When the mix goes wrong, an explosion is inevitable!

I came to this realization yesterday when Little E's morning nap lasted 1.5 hours from 9:00am - 10:30 and that was it for the rest of the day. Seven hours of progressively turning sour until a final outburst and an utter pass out on my boob. It wasn't for lack of trying - I think I just missed the window or something.

When Little E gets incredibly tired she refuses to eat. Then of course the night sleep is disrupted or ends way to early. Last night proved this theory as she violently swept her chicken, rice, lentils, avocado, and anything else we tried desperately to entice her with off her tray and across the dining room.

And of course leading up to these two parenting obsessions was the teething. Screaming and crying in obvious discomfort and both Daddy C and I scrambling for Camilia, Ambesol, Tylenol and whatever else our friends recommended. Naively we thought we could avoid these "treatments", neither of us regular "medication" users, but when the nights crept back to newborn status we quickly relented.

Today the perfect baby solution was mixed. An hour nap in the morning, ample snacks and lunch, a 2 hour nap in the afternoon, more snacks and dinner, bath and bed by 7:00pm. I like to think it was my knowledge and engineering that concocted today's perfect baby, but I think it was just chemistry.
We'll see what time she gets up...

 

Pure Photos

Here are some of the best shots of Little E on the Sunshine Coast this weekend...

Oh Happy Day!!

I am having the most relaxing and therapeutic Canada day I think I have ever had.

Right now Jake and I are sitting on the porch of our dear friend's home in Halfmoon Bay on the Sunshine Coast. If the name is not romantic enough the landscape will clinch it.

The rest of our posse is down the street at a birthday/July 1st party while I am here reading gardening magazines and keeping a dutiful ear on my dear baby in the next room (will trade off soon ;).

While I am fantasizing about our next home and it's magnificent gardens my senses are being hijacked. First the sound of a hummingbird purring behind me caught my attention. When I started watching the little critter, I noticed at least 3 more frolicking up in the weeping tree beside me. Not sure if at one point they were engaging in combat over the discreet feeder behind me or in a courtship. On the grass in front a diligent little robin is collecting all manner of debris.

The scent of some sweet plant, the cedar deck, the ocean peeking through the crack of a trail and the general moistness of the forest around is intoxicating (cliche I know, but so true).

The only thing that I could add to this - no luck yet - would be a bear sighting. Apparently not far off though with a resident black making appearances every so often.

There are many pictures on record already, but no cord to share them with so immediately upon our return (hopefully not too many sailing waits later) I will post a photo montage.

With love for our Country...