One unanticipated but welcome outcome of his new wheels is that he moves along so much more quickly and efficiently than with his trike. Of course it can move faster, but he is also far more likely to stay in a straight line and not get as distracted or tired out. Trips to our neighbourhood "red park" are done in half the time and we usually can't keep up our walking pace to his biking.
Just last week we began biking longer distances - in this case, the few blocks to our local library. It wasn't my idea, but Jonas asked if he could bike when I proposed an outing there and I thought we'd give it a try. I figured at worse, it would be a loooong trip back, or I'd even have to lock it up at some random spot on our way home and get it for him later if he was too worn out. I'd forgotten about the effeciency factor; the return trip was nothing for him. However, the challenge is now teaching him to keep to the sidewalk, watch out for pedestrians and be very, very careful crossing streets (including very busy ones!) with mom. We've done the trip a couple of times now and it's going well. He's thrilled at being able to lock up his bike at a bike rack, the real life equivalent to what he's been playing with all summer with his trike. (He came up with an elaborate way to 'lock up' his bike that included a rusted metal stem and flower garden decoration placed through a tiny hole in the back of the trike and then hooked carefully under the bike bell. He would cry if he couldn't get it to fit 'right'.)
Molly, on the other hand, is still keeping to her cart, which suits her (and me) quite well!
A couple of weeks ago, Chris's sister, April, and his mom, Dawn, were able to make a quick Saturday trip up from Vancouver to visit and we all got some good visiting time in with them.
Molly had great fun playing with the packaging from the birthday presents she and Jonas received from their aunt and uncle. She'd walk around mushing her face against it and making funny 'argh!' noises. She still does that with some things around the house now, come to think of it.
And then there was the fun of playing at the sink - some thing that only happens when Grandma comes over for these little ones. There mother generally doesn't have the patience when doing dishes!
We'll see you soon for Thanksgiving!
Shortly after Molly got to feeling better, Jonas came down with a fever and that was the beginning of a rough week for us. Jonas was lethargic and sleepy and his appetite was hit and miss. His weepy eye also began leaking again and that hadn't been the case for several months. Fortunately he responded to both the children's advil (which worked better) and tylenol, though of course it returned again in due course. I ended up taking him to the doctor, and fortunately there was nothing worrisome about it. The fever finally abated on the morning of day 6. However, by then, his weepy eye turned into pink eye, complete with eyes sealed shut in the morning, so we had to get some antibiotics going for that. Jonas wasn't keen on his eye getting wiped and dropped regularly though he was tolerable about it.
By the time he was mid-fever, I realized I was coming down with something - sore throat and aches indicated a cold for those are the usual tell-tale signs for me. However, by the end of Day 2, I was beginning to realize it might be a bad cold and by Day 3 realized it wasn't the cold at all - chills aren't usually a cold symptom! So over the next two days I struggled through the day with the kids and the flu, collapsing into bed when Chris came home and then finally asked him to take a day off for Wednesday. That day I barely left my bed, though frustratingly barely slept! - and Chris was super-dad. By then, I could tell I was on the mend, though still quite weak. I had never had the flu before - or at least not like that - and was quite taken aback by how much it really does a number on the body. Oh, and by recovery, I had pink eye! Despite my hands-raw-from-hand-washing. Fortunately, I had picked up some eye drops recommended by the doctor and had them on hand, just in case, so it never did turn 'angry' for me.
Fortunately, both Chris and Molly were fine through the whole thing - no fever, pink eye or flu. Thank you, Lord!
What got me the most was that I wasn't sure I would be able to make for a long-planned SOLO raod-trip down to Abbotsford for my sister's bridal shower. In the end I did go, though I slept a lot! And of course, I'm glad I did. I got to see my sisters, my nephew and brother-in-law and b-i-l-to-be and both my mom and grandma were able to be there as well. Chris, Molly and Jonas were just fine in my absence. Molly realized that dad is good for cuddling, too!
So, now you have the tale of why I wasn't up to posting for awhile! Or part of it at least. The other part is - I'm just lazy! :)
Last month, we had decided to go out for one last camp out on the weekend after Labour Day. However, earlier that week, I was beginning to feel a cold coming on, so we weren't sure. After all, we need all our wherewithal when we go camping with these two monkeys! But then Molly began to be acting less than cheerful herself:
So instead of camping by a lake, Chris set up the ten in the backyard and he and Jonas slept outside. Jonas was gidy with excitement - can you tell?
As promised, a post about our trip to the Calgary Zoo! Yes, yes, I know it's ridiculously late, but you'll live!
So one fine morning while we were in Calgary, the Cool Family Ens accompanied by my brother, JT, headed to the Zoo. Though it was a weekday, I was surprised at how busy the place was for first thing in the morning.
We took in most of the major exhibits, with the exception of the Canadian portion - we just ran out of time in the morning. Jonas took in a great deal and still remembers many of the animals we saw. I'll include pictures below, though there really aren't that many and the ones I did take we pretty poor; I attempted lots, but our camera isn't great and I'm not camera-savvy enough to adjust to the different shades of light and dark in the different sections.
Here in Kamloops, we have a Wildlife Park about 15 minutes down the road. After seeing Jonas's enthusiasm, it makes me wonder why we've never been to see our own enclosed animals right here. Guess we'll have to get a family pass next year!
Molly's first birthday party was a small, quiet affair while we were on our holidays. The morning before we had visited the Calgary Farmer's market and my brother picked up some fancy cup-cakes for treats which we later realized would work just as well as a cake he'd also intended to get for her. Using some pirate themed candles they had on hand (hers is a treasure chest!) we sang to her while Jonas helped blow out the candle. She at a bit of the sugary goodness in front of her, but for the most part didn't think a lot of the going ons. I think she just wanted to sleep.
Dramatic dropping temperatures at night and cucumber vines that no longer wilt by midday tell me that summer is wrapping up around here. I thought I'd better get to posting about our summer holidays before the season had actually passed!
In the middle of August we set out to visit friends and family in Alberta, or at least some of them. Our time was split between Calgary and Edmonton with a day on a farm near Markerville.
In Calgary we stayed with my brother, JT and his girlfriend Becky and were tolerated by their two roommates for a few days. (Our thanks to Danielle and JP for putting up with us!) While in town, we spent some time at the Eau Claire Market and happened to be there during the Taste of Calgary Festival so stuck around for lunch. We also hit Calgary's Farmer's Market and if we lived closer, I'd know what to buy Chris for his next birthday present: Simon's Pies! We also spent a morning at the zoo, but I think that will be a post on it's own.
We were able to spend some evenings out, dining with the Doles (friends of Chris's from Bodenseehof) and Chris's uncle and aunt, Dale and Cathy (Molly still really likes her sock monkey!). Oh, an interesting tale from that evening: We were enjoying dinner on the back deck when a neighbourhood cat who is welcome at a few homes in the vicinity popped by. This wouldn't be remarkable except that she was carrying a mouse in her mouth. It's not a common sight and we noted it for Jonas. To our surprise, he got quite upset and began crying for home! Chris had to explain how cats eating mice was not so terrible. Just the day before, Jonas got to help his Uncle JT feed Rigger, the bearded dragon, some worms (the live worms would begin to burrow into the sand and Jonas told us the worms were playing 'hide and seek'!). Chris was able to use that example to help calm him down and now he (Jonas) can talk about the incident with out getting too upset.
However, him being upset pointed to an element of the trip that marred things a bit: the kids missed home. Once or twice Jonas commented that he wanted to go home, and Molly's sleeps got progressively worse and worse so that she'd be waking every 2 hours and would be very difficult to put back down again. The day before we left for Kamloops, we were returning to Edmonton from our day at the beach when Molly woke up from her nap and fussed for a minute. Jonas said, "Molly is sad because she wants to go home." I replied that we'd be there soon - meaning our friends' house in Edmonton. "No," he said. "She's sad because we're not in Kamloops."
Ah, is she now?
The last two nights in Calgary we spent with my friend from the Fort, Andrea, and her husband Mark at their place. They were due to move house the day we left Calgary so we were very thankful for their hopsitality. We were treated to a fantastic sushi dinner and helped them pack up the kitchen. Knowing they had lots to do, we were thankful for the time they did spend just visiting with us. Oh, and to top it off, the place was kid-proofed - since everything was in boxes, there was very little for Molly to get at!
From Calgary, we headed north where we spend a few hours with my friend Wendy and her three kids on their farm, about 20 minutes from Red Deer. (Wendy and I had met when I was at Capernwray but had lost touch. Thankfully, there's facebook!) There we enjoyed a barbecue lunch and the kids got to run around and place with other kids and, more importantly, their toys. ;) On my part, it was wonderful to re-connect with a good friend and given that they have family in the lower mainland, we're hoping that won't be the last we see of them!
By dinner time that day we pulled into Edmonton, appreciating the grid and address system of that city far more than the far-too-similarly-named streets in Calgary (eg: Parkview Drive, Parkview Cresent, Parkview Ave, Street, Close, Link, etc. Gah!) and easily made our way to the home of Meg and Rob Stobbe, friends from UVic, who live there with their 2 little boys who are both just a couple of months younger than Jonas and Molly.
The kids enjoyed more playmates and more toys and a backyard to spread out in. Us parents enjoyed spending time with our own friends in a kid-proof house. I managed to fit in a quick visit to Jacquie, a family friend from the Fort, and her two grandsons and our friends who used to live in Kamloops, Aaron and Shelley were able to pop by one night, too. We originally intended to go camping, but we were too late with reservations. Though I was willing to make a go of it (Jonas really likes camping!) I was not too disappointed – I was worried that Molly's terrible sleeping habits at
night would only multiply when in a tent. Instead, we contented ourselves with camp-like activities: a campfire and s'mores in the backyard and a day trip to Gull Lake where we all enjoyed the sandy beach, shallow waters and playground right on the water's edge.
Another plan of ours was to spend Sunday taking in what was on offer at the Edmonton Fringe Festival but given the lack of sleep that was taking its toll, we decided to head home earlier than planned. The trip home took us over 11 hours, but went all right with Molly sleeping often and even Jonas dozing off at bit near the end of the day.
Chris still had a week's vacation left to him and we spent it close to home: playing in the back yard or venturing out to run errands or to Music in the Park. A lovely, and restful, way to wrap up August.
Jonas's birthday, almost three weeks ago now, was a simple affair. I had intended on having a little get together with cake in the park, but coming down with shingles a few days before, I had to cancel.
The day before his birthday, his grandma was able to make it town for the evening and was there to deliver a birthday present when he woke up in the morning, before Chris went off to work. There were just a couple of presents that day, others having been delivered through out the summer as family passed through town or sent early.
What made the rest of the day more memorable for me, was when Jonas threw up all over my bed. And then later spent about an hour in front of the toilet, feeling rotten and thinking he was going to throw up again. He wanted me to be with him, but I couldn't let Molly in the bathroom since she'd beeline for some good ol' toilet splashing. This left me sitting at the door, being with Jonas, who wimpered and whined and generally felt miserable on one side and Molly on the other, also whimpering and crying because I was barring her from the bathroom. Longest 45 minutes I'd had in a long time before Chris got home.
Later in the day, after he was feeling a bit better, Jonas had his birthday cake - a cupcake he'd noticed at the grocery store a few days previously, with matching ones for the parents, too. He enjoyed it, though only about 1/4 of it before he said he'd had enough and we put it away. It was an early bedtime for this new three year old.
Neighborhood
Explore friends, family, friends & family, or entire neighborhood.
Recent Comments
-
Cool Family Ens said:
I'm not even sure she knows much about dolls... the one you got her for Christmas I had to put... read more
on At Gull Lake I -
Angus and Brittany said:
That's right molly, just because you're wearing a dress doesn't mean you have play quietly with dolls.....of course that is... read more
on At Gull Lake I -
-
Angus and Brittany said:
awe, such cuties:) read more
on In Dale & Cathy's Backyard. (Posing Well, aren't they!)
Not sure why this isn't showing up - or at least it isn't for me, though it might be with... read more
on DSCF4674