Then and Now

I am learning first hand about how you don't tend to realize how much children change when you see them every day. Since I was here in Toronto at this time last year I'm enjoying comparing pictures of then and now. Here are a few that I've managed to dig up.

Julia and Mark at Riverdale farm 2010(truth be told, this picture is from July):
Julia at Riverdale Farm, June 2010

Julia with Maymay's glasses on in the kitchen (June 2010):

Julia with Maymay's glasses on in the kitchen (June 2011):

Julia just hanging out in the kitchen (June 2010):

Julia hanging out in the kitchen, eating a Laura Secord chocolate from GG (June 2011):

Sitting in her little Captain chair (July 2010):

Sitting in the same chair today (June 2011):

Julia continues to charm and enthrall us one year later. She is particularly attached to Nanu - they are partners in crime. It's going to be tough packing up and leaving but we are going home to a Daddy who will be off for summer vacation!

Riverdale Farm

The weather in Toronto has been pristine. You couldn't ask for nicer, sunnier days. We took advantage of the loveliness and drove down the Don Valley to Riverdale Farm. It's a sweet little place, free to visit and perfect for Julia's age.

Riverdale Farm is acutally the site of the former Toronto Zoo (before it moved to its current location). You can see old cages from the animals. It's kind of eerie and sad because they're all overgrown and dark. I can't help but picture poor tigers pacing in them.

Julia loved looking at the animals. At one point she declared that another boy who was there wasn't allowed to look at the cows and sheep. We're not sure why but she didn't want him looking at them. She gave up when he wandered away with his family. What is up with kids? Are such declarations the roots of possessiveness? I wish I could get inside her head to know what is going on because she's otherwise a generous spirit She'll give you her last Dora gummy if you ask her.

Luka loved the fresh air but otherwise was clueless to the animals.

The highlight of the trip for Julia was the water fountain. She LOVED IT! She loved how she could straddle it drink away. It took no small amount of convincing to coax her away from it.

My mom and Julia down by the pond. They were enjoying a game where my Mom pretended to throw her in the water. I loved hearing Julia's giggles echo through the trees.

It's such a wonderful time of year. I love all of the greenery!!

We finished our day with an ice cream stop at the corner of the park. Luka was tired from all of the fresh air and sightseeing. Notice the green mustashoid Julia in the background.

Julia decided she wanted "green" ice cream. I love it how she decides by colour and not flavour yet. So we got her Mint Chocolate Chip. She got a kick out of the birdies who were licking up her drips.

And with that a wonderful afternoon was over and we headed back home. Until next time!

Morning Fun

What better way to start the day than playing Play Doh with Nanu?!

Toronto Travels

Julia, Luka and I have decided to give Mark a break for the final push of school. Mark's been suffering from a cold and our two kids are not all-night sleepers which makes it a little tricky to get the extra sleep needed to bounce back from a cold.

So yesterday I packed (all day!) the kiddies up and Mark drove us to the airport. Julia said "No like missing daddy". Sweet. She also wondered why Grandpa Dennis wasn't at the Fredericton airport to pick us up. Ha ha! She forgot about the plane ride - the best part!

Both Julia and Luka were angels on the plane. Not one tear from Luka. He didn't seem to mind the take-off or landing. He was awake for the first hour and an quarter and then fell asleep in my arms. Julia ate a ton of pretzels. The flight attendant kept giving them to her and she kept taking them! She also played with stickers and we read a few books. We didn't even need to resort to any DVDs to help pass the time. At one point she asked to hold my hand so she could look out the window. Then she told me that she didn't want to fall out the window so that's why she wanted my hand. I love the stuff that comes out of her mouth!

We had a lovely dinner waiting for us back at Maymay's house and Julia went around and got re-aquainted with all of her favourite thing: the doggies, the fishies, her car, the piano, the snack cupboard ("look Mommy, Maymay has Dora gummies!").

I wasn't too sure how our night would go without Mark, but the kids were great. Luka slept in a playpen and woke up twice (every 4 hours) and fed and went right back to sleep and Julia only woke up once when kd snuck in and licked her face. It freaked her out ("No like it Mommy, scary"). Here's hoping that the rest of the nights can be so good!

Tonight we are having dinner with Grandpa Dennis, Ariel and Aidan. I'm really looking forward to it, but for now I'm enjoying this coffee and the sound of the birds chirping outside.

Happy Two Months Old Luka!!

It's a beautiful day to be celebrating a beautiful little boy!
It was two months ago today that Mr. Luka decided to join us... a good 10 days early. He has been such a delight. He's a sweet boy who only protests when something is really bothering him.
These pictures were taken this morning. He absolutely LOVES it when someone leans in and talks to him.
He's sitting beside me right now as I type and has just started to hiccup. I'm going to sign off and go and "chat" with him.
How do you celebrate with a two month old? Lots of snuggling and attention is the best I can think of!

Oh yes, and here are a couple of pictures of Julia at the same age. She was much more delicate looking than our little bruiser! Tomorrow we go to the doctor and he's going to be weighed. Any guesses?! This green 'bouncy' chair (as Julia calls it) has been getting so much use! Julia loved it too:

Daily Life...

Good morning from Julia. Here she is waiting to walk to Sarah's house. She loves the walk (which is only about 2-3 minutes... well more like 10-15 minutes at Julia's pace). Our neighbourhood has exploded with greenery in the last 10 days. I am loving it!

Poor Luka had an upset belly yesterday. Was it the green onions I ate? The only position that soothed him was up on Mark's shoulder. Mark asked me if he was asleep so I took this picture to show him that Luka was awake but in a daze. You've got to love the Ovol drool that is dripping down Mark's back. Oh the glamour!!
Both Mark and Julia had a stomach bug on the weekend. Here you can see the two of them in the 'la-la chair'. Not long after this photo was taken they both crawled into bed and slept for an hour and a half. It's very rare for Mark to sleep that long on a gorgeous day. You'll notice that Julia's arm is in Mark's shirt. She likes to to this when she wants to cuddle. It's a little weird, but she just loves it. Lately I've noticed her putting her hand down Luka's shirt too. Sweet.
We had Andre and Janelle over for a visit on Saturday. Yaaaay! We miss having them live in Fredericton SO MUCH. We enjoyed hanging out and talking.
Luka sitting on Andre's lap. In this picture you can see how his hair is really starting to grow back in. Goodbye Friar Tuck hairdo!
Our little sleeping man. His looks are changing....
And finally we have Julia being Julia. She's so full of life and never stops chatting away. Two night ago she wanted to shave peanut butter off of her face. She likes to watch Mark shave, but her comment reminded me that she really doesn't understand why he shaves.
Julia likes to call herself "big sister" around Luka. If he's crying she'll run to him and say "don't cry baby Luka, big sister coming!" It warms my heart.

Guy Smiley!

I shot this video this morning. Luka was just hanging out in the green bouncy chair, content. But then Mark crouched down and started talking to him and Luka just started beaming. I didn't capture the early smiles but at least I got some of them. So sweet....

In two days Luka will be two months old. Here is a picture of Julia on the eve of turning two months old. Mark was making her smile at the cottage. It seems like yesterday!!!

Luka - Almost 8 weeks old & feeling chatty

A Few More Birthday Pics...

Jaime sent me some pictures she took on Friday and they were a lot better than the ones I got. Here they are:
What a great shot - three smiling kiddies!!

This picture is a bit of an optical illusion, but it sure makes Luka look tiny and/or Keeland look big!

If blowing out candles was a sport, Julia would be Olympic-bound... she just loves it!

Around the house

We've been loving the hot days. Julia has been re-united with her beloved sand box.
Luka has been hanging around outside. He loves the fresh air and it seems to calm him down whenever he's brought outside.
Ready for some outside action. Julia calls these her "Auntie Meghan sunglasses" because Meghan bought them for her at the art store down town. Julia has an amazing ability to remember who has bought/given her each item.
Cozy after a bath...
This picture was taken yesterday as we were on our way to Jenna and Keeland's to play.
This is going to be the best summer ever!!

Oh Happy Spring!

I think that this May is on record as being the least sunny ever. But finally the sun has broken through. This past Sunday we went hunting for blossoms and our travels took us to one of our favourite local joints: the Skinny Scoop!
Julia enjoyed the slide:
We went down several times and each time she'd say "one more time".
Julia had a Moon Mist ice cream cone.
She loved it but still hasn't figured out how to make it not drip by licking the sides...
As Julia would say "no ice cream for baby Luka because he has no teeth, only a tongue".
Julia loved the animals. There were baby goats and lambs.
Julia loves car rides and often tells us that she's not ready to go home yet. She'll protest when we pull in the drive way. Hopefully we're grooming her to be a good little road-tripper. Our minds are busy with possible plans for the summer.
Here's our big boy...
Some live action bouncing: