Biking adventures

The track behind our house is the best way to learn to ride a bike when the training wheels come off. All the kids have learned there and now it was finally Tag's turn. He was totally into it and really wanted to go. He had no fear of us letting go of him and was all smiles. Of course there are always a few spills along the way but after a quick hug he was usually ready to go again.

Tony thought this particular sequence of action shots was particularly funny. I'm just glad that I was able to stop myself from landing on him, and I'm telling you, it was really close.

Way to go, buddy! We're proud of you.

Side note: Did anyone notice how high his socks were pulled up? I know that looks goofy and you know that looks goofy but that's the way he wanted them. I kept trying to squish them down and he just kept right on yanking them back up again. Thought I needed to clear that up. :)

Weekend in the life... Part II

Saturday, May 16th

7:30 Wake up to Taggart staring at me. Get in the shower right away. We have a day planned

8:00 Tony makes breakfast sandwiches (his specialty of egg, bacon, and cheese on an english muffin) for everyone while I make and pack a picnic lunch.

10:00 Everyone in the car and we head into Vancouver for the day.

11:00 Arrive at Lynn Valley Park in North Vancouver. Cross the suspension bridge. Do some exploring, hiking, crossing the rocks by the creek. Absolutely beautiful spot. I would have loved to just stop for a few minutes and enjoy, snap some photos of it all, but the kids kept moving so I followed.

12:00 Turned back around to where we started from. The kids were getting hungry and our picnic was in the truck. Taggart was a trooper the whole time and only asked to be carried a couple of times.

1:00 Waited for Tony to go get the picnic from the truck.1:10 Found a picnic table to settle in for lunch. We ate, the kids explored, climbed trees and just generally had a good time. Tony of course, tried to take a nap, but Reagan wouldn't have any of that. Here she's trying to tickle him while he tries to snooze.

2:00 We all pack back in the truck and head in to Vancouver, driving through Stanley Park.

2:15 We park right at the playground and spend some time there.Tony and Cooper throw a football while I sit and watch the other three play. All is well until Hudson tries pushing Tag and Reagan on this crazy swing and it comes back up and hits him squarely in the nose. There's blood and that's never good. So he comes and has a rest on the bench with me while Cooper runs back to the truck for napkins and water. Taggart hold his little hand over Hudson's eyes to provide him a little shade.3:00 We walk along the sea wall heading towards English Bay. Tony knows he wants to take Reagan (and maybe the boys) to Marble Slab Creamery for some ice cream. So the promise of that keeps them all walking.

3:30 We arrive at our destination and all order our cones. We walk out the front door to sit and enjoy our ice cream and the view when Tag's ice cream proceeds to fall right out of his cone. It lands on the sidewalk where everyone entering the place has to step over it. Tears are fast and furious, so him and I head back in to get his cone refilled. Which the kind girl did for us for no charge. All is well again.

4:00 Tony and Cooper decide to head back to the truck and drive back to meet us. The long walk back with no promise of ice cream at the end may prove too much for Taggart and Reagan.

4:15 The other three kids and I head across the street to the beach to hang out while we wait for our ride. We stop at a big grassy area where Reagan proceeds to do cartwheels and such. I didn't' see it happen but there was a collision between Hudson's knee and Reagan's head and more crying erupts. I'm thinking it was a bit of a rough day for Hudson.

4:30 We sit for a while and nurse our wounds. Then we head over a little further to the sand. Taggart immediately runs right over, sits down right in front of some guy sitting on a log and starts digging in the sand, loving it. Reagan and Hudson sit quietly and wait for the truck to arrive. They are not taking any chances of any more injuries.

4:45 Our chariot arrives and we all pile in to head further into downtown.

5:00 Tony parks right across from the Shangri-La Hotel - his major work project for the last couple of years. We walk around for a while and window shop along Robson Street. Hudson buys a rock necklace from a street vendor for $8.

6:30 Dinner at Red Robin on Robson Street.

7:30 Head for home. Everyone is tired but happy.

9:00 Kids are tucked in. Tony and I watch a Survivor episode we had taped.

10:00 Check emails and bed.

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Today my photo taking hit highs and lows as you can see. Once we headed downtown to Robson Street I completely petered out. This process can sometimes be hard to follow through on.

Weekend in the life...

I have seen the idea for documenting a whole week in our life and then scrap booking it, either on paper or through blogging. I have seen the idea many times and every time I see it I know it's something I really want to do. How fun and interesting it would be if we could look back to our parents or grandparents and know what went down in one particular normal week of their lives. But the enormity of the project and the thought of carrying my camera around everywhere I went for a week has always stopped me in the past. So last week when I saw, on a favorite blog of mine, to do this idea but on a smaller scale (a weekend) I thought 'I can do that'. So on Friday morning I started documenting all the things I did and taking photos of as much as I could. As you can imagine, trying to blog the details of our entire weekend in one post would be far too much for all of us to handle. So I am going to start with Friday and will post Saturday and Sunday in the folllowing two days.

Weekend in the life... Part I

Friday, May 15th

6:30 Wake up - shower

7:00 Wake kids - do morning stuff.

8:15 Walk kids to school. First Tag to preschool then the rest to SandyHill

9:00 Get home - tidy kitchen

9:15 Check emails

9:30 Scrapbook

10:45 Get Taggart from preschool

11:00 Drive to nursery to buy plants for front planter

11:15 Buy Taggart an ice cream from the nursery cafe so I am able to walk around and look at

plants and he is happy.

12:00 Return home to plant

12:30 Stop to have a popsicle

12:45 Finish planting, Tag plays with his ball

1:00 Clean up

1:15 Go in for lunch - crackers with cheese and cucumber

1:30 Tag watches Handy Manny. I scrapbook.

1:45 Stephanie (neighbor\friend) knock on the door with lilacs for me from her garden

2:00 I wash the dishes, Tag watches another Handy Manny

2:30 Walk to school to pick up the kids

3:00 Get back home for afterschool snacks. Tag finds a Dunkaroo left over from camping and Reagan cries because it is the last one. I improvise with a homemade version. Smiles.

3:15 I sort out all the papers that have been coming home in everyone's backpacks and piling up on the counters for the last few days.

3:25 Send all the kids outside to play with popsicles

3:30 Have my own version of a Dunkaroo - apples and PB. Sit down to watch last half of Rachel Ray

3:50 Get called outside to watch Reagan do a skipping trick.

4:45 Come back in - kids still outside

5:00 Tony calls - he's on his way home

5:15 Start cooking dinner - tacos.

6:00 Tony walks in.

6:15 Dinner

6:40 Hudson on dishes duty - help him clean up

7:00 Head out the door for a walk to the park

8:40 Come home. Littles in the bath, bigs watch a bit of a movie with Tony

9:00 Story with Tag and good night to him

9:15 Blowdry Reagan's hair

9:20 Tuck Reagan in.

9:25 Head downstairs to download the day's photos

9:45 Say goodnight to the boys and head upstairs - bath and bed.

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So that's it. As I typed that all up and added the photos I am sorry that I was not even more diligent in capturing everything in a photo. And I know the next two days I was even worse. But it is a start to a project that I will not give up on. Next time I will do better. For now, I am happy to have this glimpse into our everyday lives to pass on for years to come.

Mother's Day

A lovely day from start: (Tony and the kids went and got us all Starbucks for breakfast) this photo cracks me up - the sun was just sooo very bright

to middle: (Mom and Dad came for lunch and we enjoyed sitting in the sun, admiring all Tony's newly planted flowers)

to end: (all curled up together with popcorn to watch the Amazing Race finale)

It really doesn't take much to make me happy - all I really need is you and you and you and you and you to be happy with me. Love you guys.

It really is the little things isn't it? Hope all your Mother's Day's were happy too.

FPOTM - April

The honor of this month's fave goes to one that Tony took. There was a lot to choose from this month but I just kept coming back to this one.

The last time

We seem to take great care in remembering and documenting all the firsts in our kids lives. First steps, first words, first day of school, the list goes on. But the lasts are really just as special and just as worthy of documenting. The problem is that you don't always know it's the last time until the moments are passed. I don't remember the last time I rocked Reagan to sleep, the last time Cooper held my hand to cross the street, the last time I washed Hudson's hair. If I had known those times would be the last time, would I have taken a little more time? Maybe not rushed through that moment to move on to the next task? Probably. There is definitely something to be said for living in the moment and savouring where you are at.

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Today was one of the lasts that won't be forgotten. I've been to the preschool Mother's Day Tea 6 years in a row and I've never gotten tired of it. Each one has been special and has usually brought with it a tear or two. Taggart and I attended my very last one this morning. For the last six years, the format of the morning really hasn't changed much. A song or two by the preschoolers, the teacher reads out some things that the kids have said about their Moms (always cute and sometimes really funny), we are pampered with a massage and a pedicure, and then served a snack. Tag was really sweet the whole time and took the act of treating me special very seriously. I am definitely trying to store this one into my memory for a long time. The sweetness of his smile and the feeling of his warm little hands as he rubbed the lotion into my legs. A very special 'last', just as important as any 'first'.

A perfect shoulder massage

Finally "cheesing" me after I kept asking him to look at the camera. He was very intense as he painted my toes. This one cracks me up.Thanks buddy. Love you.

We love to create!

It all started with Reagan asking Cooper if he would build Lego with her. There isn't too many things that Cooper would rather do so they were off. They started with this

and that led to this

I actually just noticed now that Hudson is spelled wrong. That's funny since they have been sitting in the living room since Sunday.

And because playing is always better than working, today I played. I should have done laundry, or vacuumed but these were so much more fun.Tomorrow is Teacher Appreciation Day so these little beauties will get filled with a little bag of chocolate treats and off to school they will go.