living like a local

Saturday, June 9, 2018

a few injury firsts

stitches and a sling

It's been two and a half weeks since two of the three kids had their first big injuries - I'll explain Alana's first. Riding bikes to and from school has become routine, and there's always competition (/fights) about who gets to be in the lead. Hendrik usually gets going first but on the day of the accident (moments before the accident) Alana was ahead - so Hendrik did his best to catch up to her and they both started going faster and faster and according to Steve he could see the accident coming but there wasn't much he could do about it. Alana swerved to miss a pole and bit it pretty hard. Several neighbours came out to help, and Alana was being tended to by our neighbour Liz when I got home from work. She was a little scraped up and pretty teary and would only let Liz evaluate her arm and shoulder. The next morning when she was still uncomfortable, I took her in for x-rays... broken collarbone! She was tender and slow-moving for the first few days, so there was a lot of down time and ice and carrying her around (back = ouch). We went to Fabricland and bought some new sling material, and she missed a few days of school (initially she was very upset that people would see her sling / find out about her injury, but some of her friends and classmates have worn slings to school and to bed to be like Alana... sweet!). I also missed a few days of work, and got to don a sling myself on a Costco outing - it was the only way she'd agree to go out in public. The healing process is only 2-3 weeks, so we'll check in with her family doctor in another week or so. She's been very good at keeping her arm still, but despite our pleas to take it easy the rest of her body can't stay calm anymore and she's running around and jumping on the trampoline etc. She even made it back to t-ball this morning, but that's in large part because I'm the coach and Steve is out of town.

don't mess with me fly

in Liz's backyard

before baseball

after baseball - but before stitches

And so what happened to Hendrik? Two weeks ago today I was playing in the Ontario Women's Master's basketball tournament (happening here in London), when a few hours before our last game I noticed eight missed calls from Steve and then a text: "H got ball in eye. Needs stitches." I came home, but Hendrik and Steve were already en route to the hospital. Liz was over at the house with Alana and Jordan, and she said she'd stay while I went back to play in my game (there were only seven of us - I had to go back!). The guys were still at the hospital when I got home, but arrived just after dinner - tired of the hospital but not too bothered by a new eyebrow (four stitches). Apparently Hendrik was catching pop flies and sort of missed one / caught it with his face (oops). We've been on mega high alert with Jordan, and I'm thinking that his injury was Tuesday night's fall off a climber - he missed a metal stair by four inches and got a mouthful of sand instead.

alana's bestie in a sling too :)

Another blog is in the works, so more coming soon!

we finished the tourney in second place... so fun to get out and run!

Monday, May 28, 2018

happy birthday Jordan!!

Jordan is TWO! I can't believe that it's been two years since he arrived and made us a family of five. He has such a personality and wants to do the same things his big brother and sister do (always). He expresses his desire for independence often by saying "own" and - and then getting food out of the fridge or pouring himself (and the floor) a glass of milk all by himself. He'll get his own diapers out, and knows where to find his PJs and clothes and soothers. The soothers are one of his favourite things - he calls them "yummies" - and he'll hunt for them under his bed when he wakes up from naps and nighttime sleeps. He loves reading books, watching Shaun the Sheep and/or Totoro, and keeping track of baby (sometimes he sleeps with her and sometimes he wants me to keep her). He's a hefty little fellow but is quite particular when it comes to what he eats and what he eats it with (he'll only use certain little spoons); he survives on yogurt, cereal, toast, bagels, bacon, salami, fries, and fruit, and he won't eat much else. (What a diet!) He also likes visiting Liz and her faux ceramic backyard animals, and he'll talk about Sandra and Bruce when he sees their cars in the driveway. Here's a look back at all three of them on their first, second and third birthdays:

Hendrik's first and second birthdays...

Alana's first and second birthday...

Jordan's first birthday...

I LOVE looking back at photos and videos (we need to take more videos!) and am so so so thankful I have this record of our lives.

I know that this might be a bit of a mixed bag as far as answers go, but I thought we'd ask Jordan the usual birthday questions (plus a few more); here goes!

who is your best friend? No answer. He said "Yeah" to "Hendrik and Alana?"
what’s your favourite colour? Pink
what’s your favourite food? Daddy Yogi (Plain yogurt with maple syrup)
what do you want to be when you grow up? Gramma
what’s your favourite book? Cow. (I'd say it's The Gruffalo or a dinosaur book or The Boat Alphabet Book.)
what’s your favourite animal? Piggie
What's your favourite number? Two.
What do you like saying? Own.
What's your favourite word? "Gramma. Bumps"

Wednesday, May 9, 2018

May days :)

I spent a little while this afternoon looking back on the blog, and I am SO glad that I have this record of our lives and our many adventures. Jordan is turning two soon, and I wanted to see what Hendrik and Alana were like at the same age, but I'll save what I found for a post closer to Jordan's birthday (this means I have to post again soon). I think I might bullet post this one and get to some photos on the double; otherwise, it might not happen (the posting part). The kids aren't quiet until so late, and I normally don't want to do anything but blob on the couch after squeezing in a few last jobs every day.

This won't come as a surprise at all, but Jordan wants to be just like his older brother and sister, and has almost given up on his high chair to sit at the table (only sometimes on a stool) in a regular chair with the tabletop at his forehead. This makes for lots of spills... and even more insistence on staying put (after spills).
The kids had an art show at school a few weeks ago; all artwork was priced by the artists with proceeds going towards new Chromebooks. Hendrik's was priced at $5 and Alana's was $1... quite affordable! And now we finally have something up above fireplace!
Activities reboot this week, so life is about to get busy (busier). Alana is doing t-ball and soccer and Hendrik is doing baseball. We'll do lots of backyard sports (last night Hendrik and I played pepper and then we had a family baseball game - team Pink Power lost to the Blue Jays 12-11... it was close!) and we'll buy a membership to the city's outdoor pools again.
Work is going well and will soon be a bit less busy as the Forest of Reading program ends this Friday with a field trip to the Festival of Trees event here in London. I'm taking 96 students on two buses - field trip first! Fingers crossed that everything runs smoothly.
Steve has been busy busy in the backbackyard, building planters, filling planters, planting things, cutting things, pruning things etc. etc. I think most of this work is done while Jordan is asleep in the afternoons, during which time he also manages to get a start on dinner.
We are on the house hunt here in London (no imminent moves) but the market is so crazy right now homes list and sell in the same day for a price well over asking... so who knows what will happen. We have to decide where we want to be (if not in the same neighborhood) and then be prepared to pounce. This sounds way too energy consuming.
The weather has been incredible the last few weeks as it seems as though we went straight from winter to summer. The kids are wearing shorts and summer clothes, and it's been a challenge to get everyone inside and to bed at a decent hour because it's just so lovely out.

I'm sure there's more to write about - I'll remember something important as soon as I post, but I'll get this up before another day passes. Have a great week!!

box floor fort - not enough real estate for two!

kitchen barbershop!

spring cleaning!

more spring cleaning (and tracing on windows)

last night's family baseball

I've been riding my bike to work - and came home yesterday to this! love...

some favourite books from our last haul (the lunch lady series is great!!)

le art!

🌅

Tuesday, April 24, 2018

SPRING!

Spring is FINALLY here! And we couldn't be happier.. and by we I mean everyone living in Ontario. Give it a few weeks and I might change my mind just a little bit, but hopefully the allergy sufferers in our house find a way to stay positive because it's not cold anymore! I washed and put away most of the winter stuff this past weekend, but I didn't go so far as to put away the coats just yet - that might entice the coldness to return just because (it's happened before). We were outside ALL weekend, and the kids (and the parents) were t-i-r-e-d after non-stop outdoor activity. We biked and walked and ran and there was SO much time spent on the trampoline... on the BIG trampoline. One of our neighbors moved out west in the winter and we gave their 12 foot trampoline a new home. While Steve was setting it up the kids kept saying, "This is weird. It looks different... What is going on?!" And then we finally let the cat out of the bag. Several hours of jumping followed, as did a bloody nose and a bloody lip... gak! We thought they'd be right tired out but of course the endless font of energy continued to course through their veins and they stayed up late, and then did the same the next day.

I am sure there's much more to write about, but for now this will be short and sweet (I also have no other pictures). Other things I could write about are work (going well), kids (growing fast, tons of energy; Jordan is talking way more - and he's almost 2!), extracurriculars (Hendrik starts baseball soon, I'm hoping Alana gets on a soccer team, Jordan has a music class and loves it), and my husband (I love him, he's AMAZING. He's also so happy the Leafs are winning.).

Wednesday, April 11, 2018

Easter weekend amazing-ness

I started this blog on Sunday and here I am getting it done several days later, whoops. But better late than never, right? Things are just a little busy around here. Read on!

After a double batch of waffles this morning (three helpers!) and despite the chilly weather (-7 with wind chill - !) we decided to put on our warm clothes and head outside. After a nice round of Weldon Park we had to drag the kids away from the swings and then again from the half frozen pond (Steve and I were freezing); Jordan walked most of the way, and the older two collected the biggest sticks (branches) they could find for pond ice destruction... fun! And yesterday.... it was good times indeed at the Go Wild Grow Wild expo at Western Fair's Agriplex. This is an event to mark down on your calendars; kids 12 and under are free and adults are $5, and this includes a wide range of activities from holding snakes to rock climbing to making seed bombs (and so much more) - we had a blast! The kids were fearless with the snakes - I had to pass on holding them.

the eyes!

I've been wanting to write about last weekend ALL WEEK! I had the best time. It was definitely the most spectacular wedding I've ever been to, and just so so special to be a part of. The long and short of it is that my sister got married last Saturday, close to the Journeyman Lodge, a small backcountry ski place between Squamish and Whistler. I flew in on Thursday and after an ah-mazing lunch with a friend, I joined my family and my sister and her (now) husband's friends at Squamish's The Joinery (a great place for dinner and drinks - and breakfast the next day). Mid-morning on Friday we made our way up to the Alexander Falls Touring Centre where some of us donned cross-country skis and took to the hills for 14km. It was mostly uphill and all groomed - which is a good thing for me, since it's been oh about 25 years since I've been on cross-country skis. The weather was good and the views were absolutely beautiful; the three and a half trek actually went by fairly quickly! I'm so glad I did the ski - it was so nice to be outside and get some exercise. We met my mom and Karin up at the lodge where we got the run down on how things worked; the power is only on between 7am and 10am and between 4pm and 10pm, so if one needs to shower or flush toilets or use power, there's a timeline. Meals are included with the stay, and there are multiple communal gathering and sitting areas. The accommodations were perfect - I had my own little room with two sleeping nooks which, of course, made me think of the kids... they would have loved it! Sarah and Gabriel scouted a wedding ceremony site while the rest of us relaxed, unpacked, and got settled in.

site prep

On Saturday Karin and I tried out our cross-country skis but ended up on snowshoes to head downhill to the ceremony site to help with set-up. It wasn't until we were back at the lodge that Gabriel pointed out that they'd set up camp right next to Conflict Lake - ! Haaaa! Solitude Peak and Ring Peak were a few of the mountains surrounding the area, so it got us talking about whether it meant anything (no conclusions). The ceremony was just after lunch, and the sun came out and it was actually warm... so Sarah was able to be in her dress (without a sweater) for a good 20 minutes. She arrived on her skis in her dress looking absolutely beautiful and so so so so happy... it was just perfect. Post-ceremony, the bride and groom took some photos and then there was some champagne and toasts/speeches back at the lodge before most of us took to the wood-fired sauna (this also involved some dunking in the frigid creek). Sarah changed into my mom's wedding dress for dinner, and then there was cake, wine, and much merriment around some high-stakes pool. For the most part we were in bed by 10ish every night, and it was so lovely to have some longer sleeps. On Sunday Karin and I took the snowmobile down (I drove - SO fun!) and went for sushi and ran some errands in North Van before I took transit to Steve's cousin's place in Dunbar. (On a side note, transit in Vancouver is now super easy, and almost, dare I say, enjoyable? Or maybe it was just the Seabus that was nice.) I went for a walk with a friend before hunkering down (this is something my mom would say - don't you think mom?) with the cousins for a mutual recap of our and our families' lives, and it was so great to catch up. And then... and then and then 5:00 came pretty early on Monday morning for the long trip home BUT! My lovely family was there to meet me at the airport in London, and there's nothing like saying hi to happy kids after a few days apart. Easter was good to everyone here in Ontario too, and there was much talk of the Easter Bunny, Grandma and Gramps and Pam, and of course there was chocolate. So much love!