So Maddy has her Picture Day at school coming up in a few weeks. And I was surprised to find an order form in her cubby this morning when I dropped her off. Apparently you have to order your pictures BEFORE they actually get their photos done.
From a parent perspective, I think this is really dumb because what if you don't like the pictures? From a company perspective, I think they are trying to take advantage of those parents whose kids take bad photos. They are stuck ordering whatever they picked. But maybe that's just me?
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Saturday, September 24, 2011
A New Addition
Friday, September 23, 2011
Catching Up Again
So now it is the end of September and I am finally posting up pictures from my June and July trips! It's amazing how fast time flies when you're having fun!!!!!
We did spend two weeks in August driving through Germany, Czech, Austria and Switzerland, but Andrew is still sorting out those pictures. Plus we had Alex come visit us from Canada the first week of September and we had an amazing trip up north to Lapland and the Arctic Circle. Pics to follow soon.
Hard to believe Charlie is almost one year old and Maddy will be turning 4. Now that the travelling is done for the remainder of the year, it will be nice to settle down a bit. Maddy has missed so much school this summer and is finally spending an entire week there this week! We signed her up for gymnastics again this fall/winter and she is already enjoying that a lot.
Feels good to be back.
We did spend two weeks in August driving through Germany, Czech, Austria and Switzerland, but Andrew is still sorting out those pictures. Plus we had Alex come visit us from Canada the first week of September and we had an amazing trip up north to Lapland and the Arctic Circle. Pics to follow soon.
Hard to believe Charlie is almost one year old and Maddy will be turning 4. Now that the travelling is done for the remainder of the year, it will be nice to settle down a bit. Maddy has missed so much school this summer and is finally spending an entire week there this week! We signed her up for gymnastics again this fall/winter and she is already enjoying that a lot.
Feels good to be back.
Trip to Canada!!!!
In July, I took the kids to Canada with me for three weeks. Yes, I'm crazy to think that it was a good idea to travel with one adult and two little ones, but the kids actually did really great. I spent almost two weeks at the Conleys and the Myderwyks, in the pool, at the spa, going shopping, going on the sailboat, relaxing at the cottage, etc. It was wonderful to see our family again, especially all my little nieces and nephews who are not so little anymore!
And I also got to spend one week in Calgary/Banff for Alison's wedding. It was very weird for me to be away from the kids, particularly Charlie who had never been away from me for more than 4 hours. Luckily I FINALLY managed to get him on a bottle before the Canada trip!!! At the Toronto airport waiting for my plane, I kept looking around thinking "I should be doing something. Taking someone to the potty or warming a bottle or changing a diaper". It is actually quite easy to go through security and get on a plane without lugging little ones and backpacks and diaper bags. Who knew?
It was a remarkable week in Banff. We hiked up to Lake Louise for the pre-wedding day, we went up the Banff Gondola the day after the wedding, and the actual wedding day was perfect. I was so happy to be together with Rach and Peen and Al, and the bride made such an effort to spend as much time with us as possible. Let's just hope we don't have to wait another 4 years for all of us to be together again. Thanks for the memories! And congratulations to the beautiful couple!
And I also got to spend one week in Calgary/Banff for Alison's wedding. It was very weird for me to be away from the kids, particularly Charlie who had never been away from me for more than 4 hours. Luckily I FINALLY managed to get him on a bottle before the Canada trip!!! At the Toronto airport waiting for my plane, I kept looking around thinking "I should be doing something. Taking someone to the potty or warming a bottle or changing a diaper". It is actually quite easy to go through security and get on a plane without lugging little ones and backpacks and diaper bags. Who knew?
It was a remarkable week in Banff. We hiked up to Lake Louise for the pre-wedding day, we went up the Banff Gondola the day after the wedding, and the actual wedding day was perfect. I was so happy to be together with Rach and Peen and Al, and the bride made such an effort to spend as much time with us as possible. Let's just hope we don't have to wait another 4 years for all of us to be together again. Thanks for the memories! And congratulations to the beautiful couple!
Give the Girl a Camera...
During our June trip , we let Maddy have our old camera and she was super excited to take pictures. Although it only lasted a few days before it broke, it was fun to come back and scroll through her photos to see what she considers "photo worthy". Aside from your typical staircase, floor, hotel room, somebody's shoes, a tree, etc., she actually managed to get a few good shots.
Since then, we've purchased an Olympus Tough for her, which is supposed to handle falls, water, etc. We'll see if it can handle our Maddy!!
Since then, we've purchased an Olympus Tough for her, which is supposed to handle falls, water, etc. We'll see if it can handle our Maddy!!
Struthers' Visit To Finland
The day that Rose and Adam left, we were lucky enough to have Andrew's Aunt Nora and Uncle Calvin come and visit us! They ended up being here for three weekends, and they went off during the weeks to go travel around Estonia and Latvia and Russia. They were super lucky with the weather, it was gorgeous weather the entire time they were in Finland. And it rained the day we dropped them off at the airport, ha ha.
They were here during my birthday, so it was especially nice because they watched the kids while Andrew and I went out for dinner and a movie! We took them to the parks, we went to Helsinki, and we also spent one day at Fiskars Village (www.fiskarsvillage.fi/en/), where we wandered the village, watched a glassblowing session, and hiked through the woods looking at trees.
They were here during my birthday, so it was especially nice because they watched the kids while Andrew and I went out for dinner and a movie! We took them to the parks, we went to Helsinki, and we also spent one day at Fiskars Village (www.fiskarsvillage.fi/en/), where we wandered the village, watched a glassblowing session, and hiked through the woods looking at trees.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Ritchies' Visit to Finland
While we were in Western Sweden and Norway, Rose and Adam went to Stockholm and St Petersburg. They returned to Helsinki to spend a few days with us before they headed back to Canada. Although we travelled together for a couple weeks, it was really nice to relax at our place and show them our neck of the woods. Plus there were so many toys, Jack and Maddy didn't fight nearly as much as they usually did!
The weather was a bit chilly but that didn't stop us from going to the beach, the park, and taking the kids biking. It was really nice to have them here!
The weather was a bit chilly but that didn't stop us from going to the beach, the park, and taking the kids biking. It was really nice to have them here!
Last Stop - Oslo!
We dropped off the rental car in Trollhattan and took the train to Oslo. Luckily we were not there when the mass murder took place, but only missed it by a week or two. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all who were affected by this horrible event.
We really enjoyed Oslo, it was a great way to end our trip. We visited the Opera House, where you could climb the side of the building and walk along the roof to get nice panoramic views of the city. We walked along Karl Johan's Gate, which is their main shopping street, and visited Holmenkollen Ski Jump. We walked through Vigeland Sculpture Park, the Viking Ship Museum, Akershus Fortress, City Hall, and visited the Royal Palace. Beautiful city! But expensive!!!!
It was a wonderful trip and we were so happy to spend it with each other and with my sister's family!
We really enjoyed Oslo, it was a great way to end our trip. We visited the Opera House, where you could climb the side of the building and walk along the roof to get nice panoramic views of the city. We walked along Karl Johan's Gate, which is their main shopping street, and visited Holmenkollen Ski Jump. We walked through Vigeland Sculpture Park, the Viking Ship Museum, Akershus Fortress, City Hall, and visited the Royal Palace. Beautiful city! But expensive!!!!
It was a wonderful trip and we were so happy to spend it with each other and with my sister's family!
Driving through the Swedish Countryside
From Copenhagen, we said goodbye to the Ritchies and headed to Sweden, where we picked up our rental car and drove along the western coast of Sweden. It was really beautiful. The beaches, the valleys, and the lakes were really nice, and the little fishing villages were super cute. We drove through Laholm, Varberg, Lysekil, Smogen, Uddevalla and Trollhattan. We also stopped overnight in Gothenberg, where we went to the Science Center, did a river boat cruise and rode a sightseeing train. We also took the kids to the beach, where Charlie had his first experience with sand (and by experience, I mean mouthful).
One thing we really liked about Sweden was that the one beach we went to, you could drive your car along the beach and park it right there. No lugging all your beach stuff all over the place, it was perfect!
One thing we really liked about Sweden was that the one beach we went to, you could drive your car along the beach and park it right there. No lugging all your beach stuff all over the place, it was perfect!
Monday, September 19, 2011
Copenhagen, Denmark
Our next stop was Copenhagen. It was neat to travel there because the train actually went onto a ferry boat!
Copenhagen was a beautiful city full of things to do. One entire day was spent at Tivoli Amusement Park, which was likely Maddy's favourite day of the entire trip. We saw the Round Tower, city hall, the Citadel and the Little Mermaid statue, representing Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale. There were three beautiful castles to visit, Rosenborg, Christiansborg and Amalienborg that were all located in the city centre. We cruised along the river and also spent some time at Christiania, which is a self-running social experiment of nonconformists. My favourite area of the city was Nyhavn (New Harbour) which is a street lined with brightly-coloured buildings and spectacular old wooden ships. There were 102 painted elephants around the city (painted by local artists to be auctioned to raise money for charity) and Maddy enjoyed finding them all over the place.
Copenhagen was a beautiful city full of things to do. One entire day was spent at Tivoli Amusement Park, which was likely Maddy's favourite day of the entire trip. We saw the Round Tower, city hall, the Citadel and the Little Mermaid statue, representing Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale. There were three beautiful castles to visit, Rosenborg, Christiansborg and Amalienborg that were all located in the city centre. We cruised along the river and also spent some time at Christiania, which is a self-running social experiment of nonconformists. My favourite area of the city was Nyhavn (New Harbour) which is a street lined with brightly-coloured buildings and spectacular old wooden ships. There were 102 painted elephants around the city (painted by local artists to be auctioned to raise money for charity) and Maddy enjoyed finding them all over the place.
Bremen, Germany
One of our days in Germany, we took a train ride to Bremen and it ended up being one of our favourite days of the trip. Bremen is small but beautiful!!! Their Marktplatz (Market Square) is still one of the best town squares I have ever seen, with the town hall, guild hall, St Peters Cathedral and the Roland statue. We also walked along the Schnoor Quarter, which is a collection of tiny streets lined with 15th and 16th century houses, which are now converted into galleries, shops, cafes and workshops. It was a wonderful day!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)