There is nothing like watching a child grow up to really show you how much time has passed by. When people talk about their personal 5 year plan I don't actually have one. However, I can say that I do have a newly minted 5 year old and that alone is quite something. It turns out my 5 year old too is a good example of a 5 year plan; he started out as my premature fussy high needs baby and 5 years later he is a lovely sweet smart considerate boy.
While doing some birthday party prep I asked Ben if he wanted his friends to give him presents or if he would be interested in having a $5 party. I had heard of this idea from my older sister and was quite into the theme. If you haven't heard of this before, basically, you give the birthday kid their age in money. However, there is a fantastic catch to it all! You give $5.00 to Ben, instead of a present, and another $5 for him to collect and donate to a special cause. Ben got really excited by this idea and chose to donate the collection to the Vancouver SPCA. In his words, 'I get to help some dogs who need extra help!'. He will take his personal collection and we'll go together and buy one awesome toy.
This kind of birthday party is a big win win situation for everyone involved. Parents of the invited children don't have to feel pinched or stressed about buying another elaborate birthday present. As apartment dwellers we don't have to heave a sigh of exasperation as more and more toys join the ranks. We also get to see our child really understand what it means to give and see how his help can benefit someone/something else.
It's A Me! Mario!
Even I got into the moustache fun. How do you like my Hulk Hogan stache?
I haven't been around the blogosphere as much as I'd like to these days, but that's only because I've really been soaking up these summer days away from the computer. I'm in total denial that summer is coming to an end and I get it that Fall is just around the corner. I know all this but I'm wearing blinders because I'm loving this time together with my kids before Ben goes off to full day kindergarten.
Right now we can have lazy mornings whenever we want to and have play dates at noon on a Wednesday. Right now the days are ours but at the same time I'm totally ready for this change to happen. It is these kinds of milestones that really make parenting fun for me. I know, so mushy.
Big boy Ben swimming laps
Besides being a sentimental fool I also have a top 5 happy list to share with you. Drum roll please.
1. I am happy that I had the foresight to book a massage for the afternoon following my night shift. Especially so after applying counter pressure on one of my labouring mamas hips for 3 hours last night.
2. Subsequently, I am very happy that I booked the nanny till 4 PM. A little sleep, a good massage and lots of water is where it's at. I am not a person who can run on no sleep after being up all day and working all night.
3. Very excited for the return of Breaking Bad and more excited to be watching it tonight all cozied up with my husband. Bring it on!
4. The other day my sis and baby came out for a visit. I loved being able to do some baby wearing with sweet Alice while we were outside. It gives me the baby fix I need to help curb my thoughts about a 3rd baby.
5. My parents came over last week and got busy doing household errands for me. My dad hung up a clock and some art in the kids room and every time Josie sees the clock she shouts out, "PAPA!!". Seriously, that makes me happy.
Little Josie hard at work
PS. I just switched my commenting system from Blogger to Intense Debate and am having problems getting my comments to update the count. Has anyone else troubleshooted this before?
PPS. I've been reading each lovely comment like I always do! I always appreciate hearing and interacting with my blog readers.
xxo
Today was one of those perfect summers day that fill you up and you know that down the road they'll give you those happy lovey feelings (remember the good ol' days! kind of feelings). Ben and my husband left early from a trek around Vancouver's Stanley Park and they returned several hours later with lots to tell and my husband was ready for a nap. Love that kind of adventure.
The day ticked on and we didn't do any of the stuff on our perpetual to do list or get much done but we did relax and enjoy what this city has to offer families, especially during the summertime. Ben and I played at the park and I finally let him frolic in the water feature next to us. The breaking point was when I saw this dude lounging around on a pool floaty reading his book. So, Ben put on his water shoes on and dipped his feet into the cool water.
My husband took the water taxi from our neighbourhood over to Granville Island and the unfortunate happened. Josie fell asleep at 4:30 PM and had a 30 minute nap while some grocery shopping went on. Her usual bedtime came and went and she was energized and happy and full of toddler giggles. Ben went off to bed and the 3 of us had a perfect summertime meal together.
Our weekend summer feast: pan roasted halibut paired with roasted zucchini with parmesan and pine nuts. More local goodness with corn on the cob and a micro green salad with a tomato basil vinaigrette. Things were so fresh that the zucchini had literally just been soaking up the morning rays hours before back at the farm. Little Jo feasted on all of the above and particularly enjoyed the corn on the cob with a lot of enthusiasm.
This weekend I worked both days in the maternity unit and left my husband to do all the child rearing, even over the grand occasion of Father's Day. This afternoon I looked around at all the mother's I was working with and we all remarked how our husbands were all celebrating Father's Day by taking care of the kids on their own. A few of the dads even dropped by to come and pay a visit. Side note, all of the coworker babies that dropped today were all born on our unit. I sort of think that has a totally cool city-in-the-family vibe.
My husband is totally not the type of guy to just stay at home when he's hanging with the kids all weekend long and always goes takes them off on an adventure. He takes them out to a restaurant for brunch and they water taxi trips over to Granville Island. Today was no exception and my 3 went off to the water park and played outside for many hours. It totally crushes me to miss out on these fun weekends but it's pretty awesome to see pictures like these. Photos of my babies just enjoying themselves is seriously awesome.
I purposefully work extra weekends to help cut down on our child care costs, so knowing about all the fun everyone has is a perk to me. Of course, I do still kind of a bit of hate over missing out. After working many weekends in a row I'm excited to have next weekend totally off. I am totally counting down the days till next Saturday when the nanny is booked to come and there is a major date that will take place with my husband.
What do you like to do on the weekend? Do you seek out some 'me time' or are you more likely to spend it with your family?
I'm away in Victoria with the kids right now and have done this trip many times over the years. Back in my single days I used to fly out of downtown on the float plane and jet from one harbour to the next in about 30 minutes. Usually I'd be coming off of a night shift and I'd catch a couple hours of sleep and then head to the island to see my family. Oh, times have changed. It is different now but it's still good and enjoyable.
Now with my two kids in tow (and sometimes even a dog!) I have the rhythm of this trip totally down. From the snacks and entertainment that I pack, to the group bathroom trips on the ferry boat (sometimes while wearing Josie!), I make it work. While it is not as luxurious or as simple as it was pre-kids, I still have fun at the same time.
Today, as we got to the ferry terminal both of my kids fell fast asleep in the car and I have a strong rule of not waking sleeping kids. So, out the window went my great aspirations of going to the little market and grabbing a good latte and getting the kids lunch while we waited for the ferry. C'est la vie.
Scooby Doo in the car/Lounging in grandma's backyard/Time for some slip n' slide fun
We are back in the city and I'm currently trying to re-moisturize my skin after I neglected it a little with all the dry desert heat and glorious sun that I soaked up. I knew I had to make it a priority when Ben proclaimed, 'Mum! You've got snake skin on your face!'. I do love the honesty of my 4 year old and he was actually sort of correct. So, right now I'm sitting and blogging with some serious hydration slathered all over my face and waiting for it to sink in and get rid of all those dry snake skin parts. Really thankful that the other week I treated myself to a refill of Hydradew mask from Skoah.
As soon as we got back I had great intentions of getting all of our holiday laundry unpacked and into the washing machine. I absolutely hate having suitcases laying around, especially living in an apartment where there is no place to hide them out of plain sight. There just isn't enough floor space to let things sit and wait. So, I tried my best to do the wash and put things away but then the tiredness of the early morning and flight caught up with me and I just couldn't finish the job. So, this morning while the baby naps and the boy is at preschool I will try my hardest to finish things off and put away all things related to travel, but only after I fix the snake skin on my face.
When you come back from traveling do you let your suitcases sit around or are you eager to unpack and put things away? I'm most certain that if I had a basement or a mud room that my suitcases would sit there until a week or more went by!
This Mother's Day I'll be with my family soaking up our last day in the hot desert sun in Scottsdale Arizona. We're excited to be staying at the Fairmont in Scottsdale and I'm already day dreaming about a little poolside lounging. I'm thinking that Mother's Day might be nice with a brunch together and then maybe a mojito in hand while we all lounge poolside and just relax with no rush to be anywhere. We've been to Arizona before and always enjoy visiting our family and also the change of scenery. Luckily the flight is short and sweet, which is always a bonus when you are traveling with a 'lap child' or just children in general.
We can't wait to be here!
The last time we had to fly our seats were not together and were on opposites ends of the aircraft. I tried to be all, 'it's no big deal!' but the truth was I was sweating a little when I took my seat with the baby and sat down in between two men. Of course, Josie just wanted to nurse nurse nurse her little heart out and I decided not to care at all about the two dudes on either side of my shoulders and just did my thing. I had one of those large soft Aden & Anais swaddling blankets that I used as a nursing scarf and also a blanket for the baby. She napped and nursed and I waited patiently for my husband to appear with a glass of wine or to take the baby out of my hands. He did appear, just before landing and he did whisk Josie away.
This time Josie is 6 months older but will still be a lap child on the plane. I'm expecting quite a few antics as the girl has just mastered walking and I'm going to prepare with lots of treats to get her to sit down with me. At nearly 16 months old she is quite a persistent little girl who enjoys a good loud shout if she doesn't get her way. I've decided to just take it all in stride and dream about Mother's Day poolside with my family instead of sweating over the potential plane antics.
Besides being excited to stay at the Fairmont I'm also looking forward to a double date night with my bother in law and his wife. We are going to leave the kids behind and go to and check out the iPic Theatre which sounds like a really fun time. Think dinner and a movie (and drinks!) all in one place at the same time. We don't have this in Vancouver and I'm excited to go and try it out.
Bring on the desert heat!
When I'm working during the week we have a really great nanny that takes care of the kids at our home. Every time she is with them she raves about how well Ben takes care of Josie and how much they play together. Apparently Ben really watches out for her and hearing that makes me very happy. I've always known that he dotes on her but it feels more heart warming to hear that from someone else, especially when I'm not around. He is most definitely her big brother and the relationship between them is pretty awesome.
January 2012. Makings of a brother. The first meeting.
I often get asked if Ben showed any jealousy when his baby sister came along and I can report that this big brother never showed any jealousy towards his little sister or even to me when I've had to do some 1:1 time with her as a little baby. Sure there have been times when Ben has a treat and I ask him to share it with Josie and he breaks off a piece as big as (.) and hands it to her. Overall I got lucky in the sibling department and so far this duo is tight. So much so that Ben actually requested to share a bedroom with Josie. For the first year she hung out next to us in our room but now the two share their bedroom together. How convenient for us as apartment living usually means siblings do end up sharing bedrooms, we just pretend it was Ben's idea.
A little iPhone love from November, 2012
I only grew up with sisters so I don't have any idea about the brother-sister rules for growing up. So far they admire each other immensely and we haven't had to deal with squabbles just yet. I think it is going to be pretty awesome to watch them grow up together. So often I hear the anecdote from people about, 'how lucky Josie has a big brother to watch out for her'. Very cliche when it comes to roles but it's sort of true for us.
August 2012. Bright and early.
March 2013. Snuggles on the water taxi.
Did you grow up with a brother? Do you have any special memories of him and you? I'm really glad to have a boy that is caring and loving like Ben
Over the last 6 days there has been sickness and a few growing pains in our home. Nothing major and more like just bad timing overall. Ben got sick right when we moved and thankfully when things heated up I remembered where I had packed the Advil despite still being surrounded by boxes. PSA Side note: Remember where you pack your kids meds, it will save you some stress!
Today was the first day in many days that I did not wear stretchy yoga pants or twisted my hair up bun. Instead it was freshly washed and nicely flat ironed, meaning I had 15 minutes of time that I could parent from the bathroom. Woohoo! This also means that things are on the upswing, which called for a short excursion out of the new place to check out the neighbourhood. We are seriously not very far from our old place but their is still a newness about being here. Despite the greyness that this January day brought, and the tiredness that has been felt by all, we had a momentary burst of joyful energetic happiness and danced around the park.
I'm hoping for more happy dances in the days ahead and also more chances at settling into our new home. It can be fun settling into a new home with your family, it feels like sort of like a treat to just hang out and make new memories together.
I've mostly been keeping it under wraps but last week we moved and are currently knee deep in boxes trying to find a new spots for all of our stuff. Despite the fact that the move was really only from one corner of the city to another corner I was still feeling all wonky and stressed out. I think that any move, near or far, would cause me to feel some uncomfortableness. I'm a creature of comfort and immediately get sweaty and upset when I think about having to uproot and move. So, a few months ago when we were starting to seek a bigger space for our growing family we only ended up moving a few blocks instead of testing out totally new waters (like maybe Hawaii!??).
If my husband had things his way we would live a lot more like nomads, uprooting frequently and living in new places. I'm sure we would move somewhere totally different with actual affordable housing with no friends or family nearby. I'm a sucker for staying in familiar areas because of friends and family, especially so now that I have two kids. He doesn't get all sweaty like me when it comes to change and did a lot of moving around in his 20's just for fun.
Loved renting Frog Boxes/Packed all the wine glasses/First morning in their new bedroom
While we were busy packing we were remarking about how Ben must taken after my dear husband as he was super chill about moving, but as the days went on it turns out that Ben takes after me. Moving is stressful when you are a kid, even if it is just down the block. Moving signifies change and change means leaving behind things that you know which can be a little bit uncomfortable when you are 4 (or 33!). Despite my own uncertainty about having to move, I had to suck it up for Ben and help him feel comfortable with what was going on even though my insides were a whirly mess of emotions. And. That. Is. Motherhood.
We've been in our new home for a couple of days and we are already filling up all of the extra space that we came for. Right now things don't feel so sweaty and uncomfortable and slowly everything is finding a new spot. Ben is getting used to the new place and keeps asking questions about all of our stuff. 'Is this the same bed as our last place? Is this the our old television?'. After a few days of upset he told me that he really loved our new condo and wants to stay here forever and ever. Don't worry little guy, your mama doesn't like to move. Time to make new memories in our new home!
Well, we just got back from more traveling in the sunshine! I know! I'm back in the city and finding my groove again amongst the raindrops. I've also already had sushi and done all of the holiday laundry, so that's a win win. We flew to Phoenix and then on to Tampa to meet up with my husbands l-a-r-g-e family for a much overdue family reunion. For the last week we have been hanging out at St. Pete beach in sunny Florida, which is a pretty decent place for a family meet up. I'm also pretty sure that this past week I ate Josie's weight in fried delights, including alligator that I tried for the first time.
When I was growing up I had no aunts or uncles, and subsequently no cousins. Which left our family meet ups to be small. So, it was a real treat to see Ben running around with the troop of his American cousins. They are quite a bit older than him so he'd call them all, 'the teenagers' and admired them insanely which never got old to watch. Luckily for us, they were so good to him and put up with his 4 year old antics.
It has been great to be able to do a couple of trips back to back like this and I give full thanks to my year long maternity leave for making that happen! I go back to work Feb. 9th and I'm starting to stare at the calendar. This has been a fantastic year off from work and I'm so glad of the time that we have been able to spend together and make use of Josie's passport that I got back when she was 8 weeks old.
I'm loving this photo so much and can't wait to get a print made. Josie is on the verge of walking and having Ben hold her hands in the water made her squeal.
I just got back from an extra long weekend away with my two littles and I'm happy to report that this solo parent gig of traveling with my 2 is getting much easier. I was thinking back to our first trip together when Josie was 8 weeks old and how much worry I had about not having my husband around for back up or reinforcements. Now that my baby is 8 months old things are much more finely tuned and I've gotten this specific trip to my parents down pat. Of course, the fact that the baby is teething her top two teeth through didn't make the nights easy for me, but it was fantastic not having to cook meals, worry about laundry or cleaning house.
Really the highlight of our weekend away was celebrating a couple of special birthdays (my mum and my nephew who are 1 day apart in the birthday department). Rainbow cupcakes, lemon mousse cake and more assorted cupcakes were added to the mix and are what powered Ben for the weekend. Hey, it's not a birthday unless there's lots of cake!
Even though the weekend was pretty low key for me I'm still feeling tired tonight. I'm ready for a long warm bath with a good book before I pop back into routine tomorrow morning. Long weekends like this one are something that will be harder for me to do once I go back to work this Winter, so I'm trying to make the most of my time off from the grind by heading out of the city and to my family over on Vancouver Island.
While Ben would be quite content to have stayed away for longer, my girl seemed quite happy to be back home and see her dad. When she saw him she shook with happiness and squealed all while fist pumping. Now, it's back to her playroom overlooking the water (AKA our living room).
Did you grow up with your grandparents as a part of your everyday life? Even though I didn't I still have tender memories of each set of grandparents. For the most part I really just had one grandma that I remember from my childhood and she lived in England. It was a special occasion when we saw her and the days together were filled with chocolate treats that she would bring over in her suitcase. She would allot one treat each day for each of us three girls. I remember counting out all of the treats on the first day of her month long stay. It looked like an amazing amount of Cadbury all piled together on the floor. There were always miniature Whispa bars, Flakes and fruit and nut bars alongside bags of Fox's Glacier Mints.
Ben and Josie have my parents, they call them grandma and papa, but they don't live right in town and we probably get to see each other every 4-6 weeks. My two kids also have my husbands mom, memere, who resides in sunny Florida and is always urging us to come and visit her. We only get to see her about twice a year but she is here for a visit right now!
Memere is staying in our apartment guest suite this week and is spending lots and lots of special time with Ben. While she hasn't hauled out any chocolates from her suitcase like my English grandma, she has bestowed Ben with a special present every single morning they are together. Today he was given a fork and knife set with Thomas the Tank Engine on it.
Reading books and sharing giggles
When I walk around my neighbourhood I see lots of grandparents helping to raise their grandchildren. Mums and dads go off to work and in lieu of daycare the grandparents are there helping to raise the babies. Most often the grandparents live in a nearby condo and a small community is built up that way. You have to be careful in Yaletown though, don't ever assume that an older woman taking care of 'little Jack' is his grandma. Trust me. It could very well be his mother and you will feel like a gigantic ass as soon as the words fall out of your mouth.
While I didn't see my own grandparents very regularly growing up I still feel that they left a positive impression on my life, especially my English grandma. I love looking at old photos of me with my grandparents and I'm really happy that both of my children will be able to have their own experiences with their grandma, papa and memere.
The other month a couple of girlfriends from college asked me to join them on a weekend getaway to BC's wine country. They promised fun times, wine tastings and a chance to get away without the kids. I knew right away that my answer was going to be no. Not because I didn't want to join in the fun but because I feel that right now Josie is too young for me to leave her for a couple of days and nights.
Which is funny because I left Ben over night when he was 10 months old. My husband had gifted me with an overnight solo stay at a nice hotel as a Mother's Day treat. It turns out that everything worked out just fine; I ordered room service, watched movies from bed and check out at 8 AM and proceeded to run home. A month later my husband took me by surprise again and booked another solo hotel trip for me (I know! But just a FYI: this has only happened those 2 times). Off I left once again feeling giddy and excited about the prospect of sleeping all night long. I totally did not think twice about accepting the offer and leaving my baby for the night.
This time around I just don't have the same need to have a get away like I did with my first. It could be because my husband gives me chances to nap or sleep in on the weekends, or it could be because I feel like I feel like this time is fleeting. Eventually my maternity leave will end and a new complexity will be added to our family. Every day my baby grows and one day she won't need me so intensely. One day soon both of my babies will be children and leaving them for a weekend get away will be in the cards for me.
While, I'm not doing any overnight getaways right now I'm still enjoying evening date nights with my girlfriends and have had some really fun evenings over the last few months. Sometimes we go out for a fancy dinner and dress up, other times I'll go and lounge at their single girl apartment sipping rum and cokes. I've only gone to see one movie since Josie was born nearly 8 months ago and it was Magic Mike, so I'm not sure what that says about me? It's important to me to still maintain my friendships and I really love looking forward to these evenings together. Oh, how I do!
Of course I have some criteria around planning these nights out. My husband appreciates if 1 of the 2 (or both) is asleep before I leave, this just makes it easier for him. So, that means most of my evenings out start happening around 7:30 or later. Since Josie is (and probably will always be) anti bottle, I top her up just before I jet out the door. Currently I have about a 3 hour window to live it up sans children. As the baby gets older my chance for longer excursions will happen, so I'm pretty content with a 2-3 hour night out. Of course, I end up planning lots of these excursions in my own neighbourhood as to make use out of all of my time away. I'm so lucky to have friends who oblige and meet me close to home.
Last night I met up with my girlfriend at a restaurant downtown and I had a great time. Ben was so tired from a fun pool party earlier that day that day, so he was down for the count at 7 PM. I nursed the baby and swiped on some lipstick and headed out to meet up. A glass of wine and some dinner later we had told each other some good catch up tales and a shared a few giggles and than I headed home. Love, love, love nights out like these.
When did you have your first overnight getaway from your baby?
The day before I was going into the third grade I was having a playing with my friend Elizabeth at her house and had a bicycle accident. I gashed open my chin and tore half of my front tooth off during a play date that went wrong. I'm sure that at the time my mum was enjoying me being out of her hair while she got our school supplies ready for the next day. She definitely didn't expect to get a call that I had been in a bike accident and was bleeding and hysterical and probably needed to go to the ER.
One moment I was cruising like a boss on a street in the suburbs and the next I was on my back in a gravel ditch. I'm pretty sure I blacked out and when I woke up I was bloody and in pain and scared. It was my memorable first traumatic event as a child and to this day I could relay every single detail that happened.
Like how freaked out the friends dad looked when he came to get me after she ran back to get him at their house, or how I insisted that he go back to the house to look for a towel that I had come with. I had been instructed by my mum to ensure that I bring that towel back home and not forget it outside by the sprinkler or something and I was a girl of my word. I remember how we spent some time in the emergency room being sutured and the doctor was trying to be patient with me but I was not a super cooperative patient.
I missed the first day of school that year and was terribly embarrassed by the blue stitches that held my bloody chin together. I was crazy about the snaggle tooth that was now one of my front adult teeth. To this day I still have the fake cap that they put on my tooth all those years ago. I remember going to meet the teacher and carrying one of my dad's handkerchiefs in front of my face so I could hide from my classmates.
On that note...what's going on for your long weekend plans? I'm getting Ben ready for a slow transition into Jr. Kindergarten and my husband actually has three days off in a row. We have a final pool party of the summer to get to tomorrow and I'm contemplating trying out Zumba for the first time sometime next week.
Long weekend lazing in the grass
For me there are two different official starts to the year. In one corner there's January as the traditional start to the year. January is filled with hope and expectations and the traditional New Year resolutions. In the other corner we've got September, which for me is another chance to kick start the year! September is my second New Year mostly due to all the years when it meant going back to school. There was always a certain freshness that came with brand new school supplies ready to be devoured by the upcoming year. Since we have obvious shifts in seasons in Vancouver September will always be my unofficial start to another new year.
October, 2010
As summer comes to a close I'm feeling a special excitement about Fall. I insisted on celebrating by going out and buying a new pair of lovely flats. Shoes that will soon enough take the place all my Summertime flip flops that I've been hanging out in. As the days get shorter I've even started to dream about baking apple crumbles and burning my favourite spice scented candles well into the evenings. I'm really a big fool over everything to do with Fall.
This September Ben is heading to a new Junior Kindergarten program and I've had a fun time picking out a back pack and buying him a few new school clothes. He will be going every morning for 3.5 hours and I know he will thrive and love it. So, once again September means back to school in our family. I'm looking forward to the crisp walks along the seawall each morning as we walk to school together. We've already spotted the leaves changing colour from that healthy green hue to the vibrant orange and golden colours of Fall. I can feel the extra nip in the air and I'm enjoying the warmth of the sunshine and the coziness of my light sweater. It's almost Fall and I'm loving it.
What is your favourite part of the upcoming Fall season? I'm sure there are a few of you who are excited for Pumpkin Spiced lattes....and maybe wearing socks?
Order has been restored in our family! A week of a sick baby threw our whole balance off as I focused all my energy on the baby and worried about her to no end too. I'm a natural worrier and I come by it honestly! It is like I can't even help myself from going 'there' and my brain starts to over think everything. Which is a good quality in a RN but an exhausting one as a mother.
Dishes piled up on the kitchen counters, teetering more than 10 plates deep. Laundry kept accumulating and I resorted to throwing it all into the bath tub (to either try and hide it or keep it all together in one place, I'm not sure). Poor little Ben had his feelings hurt a few different times when I insisted he watch one more TV show because, 'mama is busy with the baby Ben! She's been sick!'. This is life. Oh, this is life.
Phone calls have mostly been returned and emails that sat piled up are slowly being answered. It's amazing that when different facets of your every day life come to a sudden halt they can easily be picked right back up when given the chance.
I was tired and weary this past Saturday and felt the emotions of the previous week sitting high on my shoulders. I am definitely that person who internalizes stress and I feel it physically. But today was another day and it was a good day. We spent the entire time outside, playing in the grass and sipping coffee. We lunched on a patio and visited a toy shop. There was ice cream and laughter and 1,000 smooches for Josie, who is on the mend.
I am milking this maternity leave for all it that is worth, especially now that we are in the full swing of summer. There is no sitting around at home for us, we are making use of our gorgeous city and the carefree feeling that sunshine seems to bring.
This week we have had a few fun outings but our first staycation day was the beach and the museum. Our first stop was the playground at Vanier Park with the perfectly placed playground just off of the beach. Someone did a good job of planning this city park with the digging area for children complete with a water pump they can control to create little streams and build up dams. I'm sure that Ben could have spent 4 hours just digging in the sandy area just off of the playgournd. A total heaven for him.
Just a little siesta
Fun moments with auntie Glynis outside the MOV
Despite the rather sandy shorts, we trekked to the neighbouring Museum of Vancouver to be a tourist in our city. I was initially sort of leary about bringing Ben to the MOV as I wasn't sure how kid friendly the place was for his age group. The MOV was a great success! There were little stations set up through out their permanent exhibits for children to rifle through. He was so excited to come across a dress up box and a couple of boxes of toys that related to whichever decade of Vancouver history we were viewing. Who ever had the job of figuring out where to place these children friendly bins did an excellent job.
There were also a few interactive exhibits that gave Ben a chance to press buttons. At one point the boy was wearing a fringed vest from the 70's and dancing to rock and roll and controlling a light show. He was blissed out and moving too fast to capture any pics on my iPhone.
My tips for this staycation:
*Go to the beach early and during the week if you can. Especially if you are planning to drive. We have been on a sunny Saturday before and parking was no where to be found so we turned around and went home. There is a pay parking lot next to the playground and street parking is very limited.
*Don't expect to be thrifty at the beachside concession (a teeny hot dog is $6? What!). Bring your own snacks for sure or wander out of the beach area to hit up a coffee shop.
*The Planeterium is in the same building as the MOV, so if you want to make this a full day check out both.
If you are looking for a little staycation of your own this summer, this beach/mueseum combo was a great success for us.
I officially declared it to be 'summer holidays' in our home and this excited Ben to no end. Really, it doesn't change much of our usual every day to day routine but nonetheless it is summer holidays. I'm guessing once my babies are in school, summer holidays will have more of a distinction and maybe more meaning.
Right now we are:
*spending more time outside, playing more at nearby water parks, enjoying more ice cream, washing more dirty feet in the bath tub, going to more casual get togethers with friends, savouring more late lunches dining al fresco.
Even if it is just a mind set, I'm okay with that and it still sounds pretty awesome to me. So, let's bring on the summer holidays!
What does summer time mean for you? Do you have any big vacations planned or maybe some lazing on a sandy beach?
Early morning coffee shop dates with my family=summertime love
Endless hours spent on the playground=summertime love
Eating lunch on a Granville Island patio= summertime love
