Saturday, March 26, 2016

Winter Holiday at RW - 2016 - Part 1

Goodness life got busy, and this blog got a bit dusty didn't it?  Since I was last here, we squeezed in a short trip to RW to get in some snowshoeing before the snow melted, and then headed straight into a week of babysitting the kids during winter break week.  I have lots of pictures to sift through, so let's get started.
On our first afternoon at the farm we ventured down to the Playner Mill to see what was happening down there.  Lots of snow had drifted in, and the doors were snowed shut, but I did manage to get a picture from the outside looking in. 
I love this coat on AC.  He is easy to spot on the snowy trails if he happens to stop to take a picture and lags way behind us.
Time to stop for a sister-hug.  We sure had fun walking the wintry trails.

No swimming down at the old swimming hole today
Brian let us on a merry walk off the path and through the woods.
He got us back to the farmhouse safely though, and it was time for a hot drink and a cookie or two.
Elu looked cute in her blue booties, but this is the best picture I could get of her.  She seemed a bit camera shy.
One of Heather's journal pages in progress.  During a recent visit we went shopping together, and this is her journal page about that visit.  It is fascinating to watch her work on these pages. 
Brian caught up on his sleep after one of his many walks in the woods. 

Friday, February 26, 2016

Snow fort

After school the kids and friends gathered on the front lawn to dig our a snow fort.

Working hard

JJ taking a rest while Dani continue to dig tunnels and paths in the snow.
I finally had to call them in to warm up and get ready for dinner.  Once we found dry socks and pants for them, we sat them down in the living room with a photo album of baby pictures to look at.   I don't know if you can see it clearly in these photos, but their cheeks were flaming red from their cold frosty playtime outside. 

They both giggled and laughed at the pictures, but Dani soon wanted to move on to another activity.
JJ however, sat quietly with the album and enjoyed it to the last page.

He then moved on to his jigsaw puzzle. 

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Snowy walk after the storm

Once we dug out after the storm, we went for a walk through the neighbourhood to enjoy the beauty


The sidewalk plows had been out, so the walking was easy.
We soon came to this walkway down to the river.  The town hadn't cleared this path, but some kind neighbour had.
Such a treat to walk along beside the river
AC going in for a closer look and maybe a picture or two
Looks inviting doesn't it?
No ice on the rive
Enjoying himself
Caught my eye
Still pointing the way
No boating today.

Too cold for boating or swimming

Monday, February 22, 2016

Snowy day - February 2016

We have been enjoying a relatively snow-free winter, but that ended last week, when we had a record breaking one-day snowfall in the Ottawa Valley.  

View from the front door after three shovellings of the front walk. 

The snow finally stopped, and the walk is clear, but the pile of snow beside the walk is huge.

The backyard from the patio door.  The BBQ is almost lost beneath the snow.

Path has been dug to the fire hydrant.

Don't think these neighbours will be getting out their back door anytime soon.

Most neighbours pitch in and clean both sides of the driveway especially if they have a snowblower, but some make a line right down the middle of the drive, and don't take a speck from the other driveway.   This always boggles my mind.

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Fun with Buppa

 Sunshine in the morning
Yes these smiles do bring sunshine in the door in the morning

Morning hugs are the best.

Monday, February 15, 2016

JJ's birthday 2016

Time to open more BD presents
He decided to stand on a chair to make it easier to get at his big present.  He does love to climb
Very pleased with the card Buppa made for him
He took lots of time to study the inside of the card too.
A prized collection of real fossils
What is this tray for Amma?
It's to contain the mess from the dinosaur dig project.
Messy, but oh so much fun to dig dinosaur bones out of a piece of rock.  Scrape and brush, scrape and brush.  Ever so carefully, scrape and brush, and the bones will emerge.
Oh, I think I see something.
Later in the day when he took a break from his dinosaur dig, he came out of his room wearing this.   The fun just never stops with this creative little guy.

Friday, February 12, 2016

Pre-birthday celebrations

Wednesday was a PD day in our area, so we had the kids all day. They arrived at the house bright and early for a full day of fun.  We wouldn't be seeing JJ on Thursday, his actual BD, so we decided to have our celebrations a day early.   We started the celebrations with birthday cupcakes for mid-morning snack.  Just as we were putting the candles in the cupcakes we heard a knock at the front door.  A little playmate from up the street wanted to know if she could come in and play for a while.  JJ was more than pleased to have another friend added to the party.
Everyone is all smiles.
Blowing out the candles
JJ loves to colour, so he got two new boxes of crayons for his BD. Here he is giving them a trial run
MMMM good cupcakes.

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

JJ likes to help in the kitchen

I think one of JJ's favorite foods is mashed potatoes, so when he is at our house for supper, I try to put them on the menu.  After school one day I asked him if he would like to help make the mashed potatoes and he eagerly said yes.
Buppa is the official potato peeler in our house, so the boys set to the task together.
Hard at work
His hands are still to little to handle the peeler easily, so while Buppa did most of the peeling, JJ moved on to the next step in the process - chopping them up to make them ready for the pot.
Once Buppa had the potato peeled, JJ cut them up in little pieces. 
Another good team in the kitchen