Friday Favourites

 

Q had his last night of soccer this week and Dave and I were both able to go. 

I took E to two baseball tryouts this week.   One night was under the lights which is always fun.

The boys are participating in cross country at school and they had a training session on Wednesday.  They both ran hard.

Q's t-ball team won their playoff game on Thursday so they get to play again.  It was a nail biter!

As we are getting ready for our trip to New York, I got to thinking that when I'm visiting a different city I tend to look around more and enjoy the different perspectives.  So then I decided to look around my own city and enjoy the sites. 

Speaking of planning our trip, it almost seems like planning for Disney - coordinating what we do on each day, hitting all of the "must dos", making dining reservations, figuring out a "system" of some sort (this time it's the subway, not Genie Plus). And remembering there will be a lot of walking!

Craig's Cookies just opened a location in Union Station so I picked up a few cookies this week and then I noticed that they are opening another location in my neighbourhood!  These cookies are decadent!

Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend!

Linking up with Andrea and Erika

Three Things

Three things going on with us right now:

Q

1. Q got some new shoes and they have laces.  He has been working very hard on tying his own shoes and is doing really well.  Another skill unlocked!

2. As he begins Grade 3 we know he has a ways to go to catch up with his peers on his reading level.  We have engaged a private tutor, which a couple of his friends go to as well, so I'm sure that will help.  And with soccer and baseball wrapping up, we will have more free time in the evenings to do more reading together. 

3. Q has perhaps his last game of tball tonight. The playoffs are double elimination and they have already lost once.  He has a great season and is looking forward to next year!

E

1. E is in Grade 8 this year, the last year at his school.  
2. I applied for E's passport renewal through the mail in mid-July and I still haven't received it, so now I've got a reminder on my phone every day to check the status.  Last year we renewed the kids' Nexus cards and that was pretty painless.
3. E is trying out for various baseball teams for next year.  I am proud of how he shows up for each tryout and does his best, even when he doesn't know anyone else there.  It would be great if he could make one of these more competitive teams to be more challenged next year, but if not, then golf it is!!

Dave and me

1. We have booked a long weekend trip New York City in November.  We have our flights and hotels booked, and I've already made three restaurant reservations.  I have an itinerary and now just need to plot it in my Google Doc, which is how I plan a trip.
2. We have adopted our usual "reset" habits for the month of September.  Eating well, not drinking, and exercising.  Summer is a bit of a free for all so it's time to rein it in a bit. 
3. We bought a new couch. The one in our back room was not suitable anymore.  We picked out a simple grey one from Crate and Barrel and it is being delivered today. 

Let's Look - Quick Weeknight Dinners

 

Linking up with Shay and Erika for Let's Look. 

Today we are talking about  our quick weeknight dinners. 

We often need to avail ourselves of something quick on the weeknights, when practices/lessons start at 6:00 and go to 8:00, there isn't a big window between the end of work/school to get a meal into those stomachs before we are out the door.  

Here are a few easy meals we enjoy- 

Bagged coleslaw (I like the dill pickle or buffalo ranch varieties) topped with chicken fingers 

BBQ’d chicken thighs on a bun - I like mine with jerk seasoning (and more coleslaw) but it also goes well with just mayo and some lettuce and tomato

Steak strips cooked in Korean Bulgogi sauce, over rice

Shell Pasta with Peas, Pancetta and Mint

Lemon Parm Pasta

Sometimes I make these meals so quickly we are ready to eat earlier than we planned to. 

Can’t wait to get some more ideas from this link up!

Weekend Recap

We had a fairly quiet weekend, which is reflected in the amount of photos I took, and it was nice to not have many set plans.  After the first week of school it was good to have some downtime.

On Friday we had an easy dinner of chicken burgers and then watched Amazing Race. 

On Saturday morning E had an early baseball practice.  It was chilly and I actually needed a sweatshirt to start the day.  It was nice to be outside though.

Dave and Q went to the golf course and played around on the practice hole.  

It was such a nice day when we got back home that I decided to go for a run. The weather was perfect for it.  Dave and E had a tee time for 2:30 so after lunch Q and I dropped them off at the club and we went to do some errands.  First stop on any good errand run is always Starbucks!  Q got this fox cookie and wanted me to take various pictures of him eating it. 

We went to the toy store to look around, Staples for school supplies, and Home Sense for throw pillows.  We then went to the club to get E and Dave with plans to eat dinner there, but the pub area was booked for an event and it was too cold to sit on the patio.  So instead we went to the mall, where we were going to go anyway, and ate at Joey. 

I haven't really been to the mall in awhile and I was surprised by how many families were there on a Saturday night, just like us, I guess this is how people spend their time!  

E picked out a new pair of sneakers and suddenly looked way older.

I bought myself a few things for work, and I looked at sneakers too but didn't buy any yet. 

On Sunday we resumed our normal fall routine - Dave golfed, the boys and I went to church, the kids played with friends in the afternoon, Dave cleaned and I went to the grocery store and cooked supper.  I made this spinach lasagna.  

It was an early night for the boys, and Dave and I stayed up to watch The Perfect Couple (which I did not clue in was based on an Elin Hilderbrand novel instead we started it). 

That was probably the last uneventful weekend for us for a couple of weeks. 

Sharing Our Lives - Finding Peace in the Day

Happy Monday! Thank you for joining us today where we Share our Lives with you.  My co-hosts are: Adrienne, Dara, Jen, and Joanne.  We are here on the second Monday of each month.  If you have a blog and posted on this topic, please link up with us below.

Today we are sharing how we find peace in our day. 

Our lives are busy - Dave and I both have full time jobs and we have two busy kids.  We cook, clean, workout, and run errands. This is not the busiest time of our lives and I know that our busy days will gradually decrease as our kids get older. 

Currently, these are the peaceful parts of my day :

- Getting up before everyone else to tidy up the kitchen, make lunches, and coffee. 

- Walking to the subway, as I cross through the parking lot, I take a deep breath, look up at the trees, and listen for birds.

- Reading my book on the subway.

- Taking a few minutes break at lunchtime to go for a walk or browse through some blogs.

- On a weekend or day I'm working from home, I steal away a few minutes to do my crossword puzzle and Connections.

- And the last few minutes before going to sleep when I run through a few prayers, and then think about what I need to accomplish the next day.  It's not really a meditation, but it does always put me to sleep. 

I heard Oprah say something recently about how she sits in silence for a few minutes a day.  I don't feel like I ever really have silence, since I'm usually listening to a podcast or music, and we even have rain sounds as we fall asleep.  I'm sure there would be some benefit to being in silence so perhaps I will try that now. 

Thanks for joining us today!

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Click here to enter

Friday Favourites

 

Whew, what a week!  It was a short week but I'm glad Friday is here.

The kids went back to school on Tuesday, you can see all of the first day fun here.

Q had a playoff t-ball game on Thursday.  I had brought a blanket, thinking the air would be cool as we got into the evening, but instead we had the nice hot sun. 

It was a tough game, the team played well but had one inning that got away from them and that was the difference. 

E being silly after the game.

E is trying out for 2025 Select Baseball teams in the west end of Toronto.  The first tryout was last night.  If you can make him out, he's on the right in a green shirt and red hat.   

Q started piano lessons this week for the first time. 

When I did my grocery order, they didn't have the dill pickle salad I like, so they substituted with this buffalo ranch one. It was really good! I was skeptical that it was an appropriate substitution, but it was!

Have a great weekend!

Linking up with Andrea and Erika.

First Day of School

I love the first day of school! It's a time to try and instill some good habits all around, including making lunches the night before!  Like this one for Q. Pretty basic, but I did add a fancy school bus cookie, wrapped carefully in wax paper so it could make it to lunch in one piece.  

Photos on the front step.

He's almost my height.

The boys walk to school everyday, but on the first day Dave and I join them.  

We were a little early, but the school yard filled in quickly.  I always love seeing the other parents and how the kids have grown over the summer.

E was heading off to put his backpack down in his line.

Q and a couple of his buddies. The Messi jerseys are very popular!  (Luckily Q has a Messi kit I bought tucked away for his birthday at the end of this month, phew!)

The boys started their music lessons on this day too, so had the extra responsibility of leaving school together at dismissal time, walking to the music studio, and then walking home. They also treated themselves to an ice cream cone on the way home!! I can't say I don't approve.