Weekend Recap

On Friday evening we drove to Woodstock to pass E along to Dave's parents who would be looking after him for the weekend in Sarnia.  He was excited to see them!

On Saturday morning Dave and I got up and did some errands and then met for breakfast at The Good Fork. 

Then we drove to Hamilton for a wedding.  It was at the Ancaster Mill which was such a lovely venue.  We had a great night with friends.

While we were at the wedding, E went strawberry picking!

On Sunday morning we drove to Sarnia and spent a couple of hours on the beach.  E is non-stop on the beach and found another kid to play with.  

When we got home, we "played" chess. 

Happy Father's Day to our Super Dad!!  This was earlier in the afternoon when we picked up some french fries from the chip truck under the bridge.

Then we set up our tent in their backyard so we could see how it worked before we went camping.  It was pretty easy to set up and we are looking forward to our trip to Algonquin in a couple of weeks. 

This mama bird was on guard the whole weekend on her nest by the deck. 

Dave's mom made his favourite pie for a Father's Day treat. 

We took Monday off work so we could spend an extra day in Sarnia.  On Monday morning we went for a sail before the wind got too strong.  E's favourite part was being the captain!

Before we left we enjoyed some yummy dad cookies from Bake Sale

Great weekend, busy, but we wouldn't have it any other way!

Show and Tell Tuesday (on Monday)

Linking up with Andrea for Show and Tell Tuesday (although I'm posting this on Monday since we are taking Monday off for a long weekend).

Today's topic is Pets. 

We don't have any pets.  We may get some in years to come but we aren't ready yet.  I would like a cat, I think Dave would like a dog.  If you ask E, he would probably first say he'd like a dog, but I think he could be easily swayed to a cat.  

I had a pet cat growing up, her name was G.G. and she was a lovely cat, about 5 pounds and fluffy grey and white.  

When I was in first year university, we got our second cat.  I named him Ashley (after Ashley Wilkes in Gone with the Wind).  He is also grey and white and lives with my parents in Nova Scotia.  He is getting old and is never that interested in cuddling with me when we visit, but he is tolerant of E.

Dave grew up with a dog, Pebbles, and cat, Bimbo, but I don't have any pictures of them.

If we ever decide to get a pet, I would definitely go to a shelter to pick one.  There are always so many lovely cats there.  My preference for a dog would be a standard poodle, although I know they need a lot of exercise.  I know several people with standard poodles and they seem lovely, and they don't shed.  The shedding doesn't seem to bother me with a cat for some reason, but it would with a dog.  

Friday Favourites

Linking up with Andrea, Erika and Narci for Friday Favourites.

This is my new favourite picture, and wallpaper on my phone. We took this on the plane on our way back from Halifax.  It is hard to get a good posed picture of E because he is always trying to make silly face.  This is a nice one!

We are going to a wedding this weekend, and I am going to wear this dress.   I'm sure I'll look just like the model, haha.

I made this yummy salad for supper earlier this week and then we got to enjoy the leftovers for lunch too.  I added a breast and a half of rotisserie chicken.  Here is the recipe I used. 

I walked E to school on Wednesday and got to see him playing with his friends.  This is him (on the left) actually sitting properly on the rocks waiting for the bell to ring. 

I played golf in a tournament this week and we all got a free pair of golf shoes.  There were a few choices, but I liked these green and purple ones.  

So many terrible stories this past week in the news, sometimes this is the only thing I can think is this:

Enjoy your weekend. 

Father's Day Menu

If you are celebrating Father's Day with someone special this weekend, try cooking up these yummy dishes!  I know they are all dad-approved in this house!

Who says that only mothers can have breakfast in bed?! (actually probably no one said that) Whip up a batch of pancakes for Dad this weekend. Our recipe is here.  Throw in some bacon or sausage (or both), and some whipped cream and berries for a real treat.

As a yummy snack before supper, or just to graze on throughout the afternoon, here is our recipe for guacamole. 

Most dads I know love ribs, and most moms too, but this is about the dads.  I love our recipe for ribs made with homemade BBQ sauce.  You could also just make the BBQ sauce and put it on some chicken, or bottle it for a gift.  I know it is easier to buy BBQ sauce, but seriously, try making your own and see if you're not hooked.  The smell of it cooking on the stove is worth it, and it really isn't that hard to do.

And to round out the meal, or to bring to a potluck if you're not hosting, here are some salads that everyone will love.

To finish off the meal, try these brownies!

Nursery

When we decorated E's room at our old house, we did a fancy paint job with horizontal stripes of all different widths and colours.  The colours came from the rug and quilt from Pottery Barn Kids.  As is typical, we will not be putting the same level of effort in for our second child's room.  We will be using the rug and bedding, but other than repairing the plaster, and adding a fresh coat of paint, there will be no elaborate design on the walls.

I don't think they sell the same quilt that we bought five years ago, but here it is:

And here is our rug (they don't sell this anymore either):

The chair we bought matches the rug and checked off a few of our requirements; I wanted a rocker, not a glider, I wanted something that was stylish but functional (the microfiber vacuums and wipes off very well), and something that didn't take up a lot of space.  This Joya Rocker from Monte  Design did the trick (we picked it up at Ella + Elliot).  Plus the ottoman held all of our receiving blankets.

We have lots of nice blankets and crib sheets that we can still use, but I will probably buy a few more things.  I'd also like to get a couple of table lamps and a clock.  I'll check at Homesense but these will be my inspiration:

A few things that worked for us last time and that I will duplicate are:

- Keep a double bed in the baby's room.  We will still need the extra space for guests (and the baby can sleep in our room when that happens), but it is also great for those nights when the baby isn't sleeping, then you don't need to keep walking back and forth from your own room, and the other parent can keep sleeping.

- Put the change pad on top of the dresser.  We didn't bother with a separate change table since we didn't have a lot of space.  I would just keep diapers in the bottom drawer of the dresser, and there was plenty of room for the creams and wipes on top.

- Buy lots of dresser drawer dividers.  We still use these with E's clothes now although they are getting more full, but they are great with baby clothes.  And on the opposite note, don't bother with baby hangers.  Maybe it was because we had a boy, but I got a few packages as shower gifts and ended up getting rid of most of them.  We used a few but mostly I folded the clothes.

- Get a laundry hamper that you can carry with one hand (at least when it isn't too full).

Weekend Recap

Our weekend really started on Thursday, which also happened to be my birthday.  We had enjoyed my cake earlier in the week, but I got my gifts to open on Thursday morning.  I got lots of nice things.

Then we all headed to the airport.  Dave was off to Prince Edward Island for his annual golf trip, and this year E and I were going to Halifax to visit my family, and some friends.  

Enjoying some lunch at the airport. 

Watching the planes

 Enjoying my birthday drink from Starbucks. 

Happy Birthday to me!!  Homemade cake by my mom and some more lovely gifts. 

The next morning, E got up to hang out with Nana, and the kitty came to snuggle with me in bed for a little bit :)

It was a chilly day in Halifax, so instead of the playground, we decided to visit the new library. (With  a quick stop at Starbucks and a free iced tea from David's tea). 

We started by writing down our favourite things about the ocean on a piece of paper shaped like a sea creature.  E asked how to spell "surfboarding" which I thought was an interesting but good choice. 

Reading in a tent set up on the children's floor.

Even a lego table (and video games, iPads, and toddler toys)

The view from the top floor

Happy Pride Month!

One of my friends from university, Katie, and her son, came to meet us for lunch.  I forgot to get a picture of us, but I did get E wearing his Mexican wrestling mask/children's menu from Mexicali Rosa's.

When we got back, we had a rest, and then it warmed up a bit, so we sat outside for a minute and then walked to the park. 

The next morning the weather had greatly improved.  We went down to the waterfront and found this fun playground. 

Then we walked over to the brewery market. When I lived in Halifax, this was the main Saturday morning market with lots of fresh produce, local treats, crafts, gifts, etc.  Now, most of the vendors have moved to the new Seaport Market and the Halifax Forum market.  A few are still left in the brewery, but nothing like it used to be.  

We found these fun donuts.  E had the chocolate sprinkle one, my mom had walnut crunch, and mine was lemon tarragon.  They were tasty. 

Then we met up with my friend and her son and climbed aboard the Harbour Hopper for a tour of Halifax.  I had never been on this tour but was quite familiar with it after working on the waterfront for several years while in university.  It is an old amphibious army vehicle that drives on the streets and then goes into the water.  

A pretty good restaurant in Halifax, McKelvies!

Citadel Hill.  This summer they are celebrating some 100 year anniversaries of World War I, and feature some real life trenches so you can experience what the soldiers did in WWI. 

Melissa and Charlie

St. Matthew's United Church, where Dave and I got married!

Into the water, hold on tight!

Happy to be in the water.

Salty's!! Where I spent many summers working on the patio.  We went back later for lunch.  The mussels were even better than I remember, and the spinach salad is still the best.  E enjoyed the fish and chips, and we got to sit outside and enjoy the view.

Theodore Tugboat!  E didn't know who the character was, since the show isn't on TV anymore, but any sort of boat with a face and hat is pretty neat!

Lunch on the patio

Silly boys!  We told them they could act as silly as they wanted to for the photo, which was more welcome than the "stand still and smile" instructions we gave above.

A beautiful day on the waterfront.  Next time we visit, we will go to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, and the Citadel.  I think E would enjoy both.

We enjoyed a lovely family meal that night with everyone.  My uncle cooks an amazing meal, and were spoiled all weekend.  I also had a cherry pie, made by my mom. 

On Sunday morning, we got up to a dreary day so we had a relaxing morning around the house before going to the airport.  We were delayed leaving Halifax because of some high winds in Toronto, but we eventually made it.  E kept himself busy with Angry Birds, and some shows on the airplane, and I read a book and had a little nap.

Waiting to take off. 

Poor E got sick when we were landing, the turbulence was a little too much for him, and then we had to sit on the tarmac and that didn't help matters.  I had a change of clothes for him, but my dress, scarf and sweater were a little worse for the wear.  Thankfully I had a pack of wet kleenex that we used to clean up.   As soon as we were off the plane, he was fine again.  

We were happy to get home, but loved spending some time in Halifax!