Christmas (and lead up to it)

Cooking up a storm!


Well we are a little behind in the blogging with the lead up to Christmas. It has been snowing here like crazy and that has changed some of our plans as we have had to go out to shovel instead of doing whatever it was that we had planned. It is most unusual that most people in Victoria do not own a snow shovel and do not have a scraper for their car. (I actually had to stop someone from pouring hot water on their windshield the other day! I thought everyone knew what would happen if you did that!) Our snow shovel is actually rented out at the moment. And Mark didn't want to move it...!

Shoveling snow


The dining room is not quite finished, as was hoped, due to the weather, but good enough to use for our first Christmas in the house. (Getting out to get supplies was a bit of a challenge with the snow and the fact that everything closes down when it snows.) This is the first white Christmas in Victoria since 1971.....we have been blamed for it by just about everyone now.

Sunrise outside our window


Kian and I baked cookies and then he went out with dad to chop down the tree. I think Jim and Shelagh next door thought we were kidding when we told them which tree we were going to use as a Christmas tree. (It did look a little better once Kian decorated it!) Santa did come to visit and Kian was thrilled with all the things he got. He loves his little horsey and the kitchen that he got from Renee and Darcy. He has been very busy lately. I think he knew Santa was coming!

Making cookies


Come on dad, lets go get our tree!


Will this fit on my sled?


And Cheryl thought their tree looked like a "Charlie Brown tree'....


Checking the decorations




Kian grew a centimeter in the last month and got two of his eye teeth. I think the other two are shortly on the way. He seems to be just shy of toilet training. He has started telling us now when he needs a new diaper and today he told us just before he needed one. I think we are making progress! He is also FINALLY sleeping the entire night in his own bed and going to bed on his own, although he has decided that his security blanket is my dressing gown!

Hope you are all well and got everything you asked for from Santa!

Santa brought me a horsey


Opening presents with dad


Opening presents with mom


Dinner at Auntie Renee's and Uncle Darcy's

Snow! ... and Santa!

Time continues to fly and Christmas is almost upon us. It was a big weekend here in Victoria. First we went to a breakfast with Santa at the Gordon Head Community Centre where there were lots of crafts. Santa was a bit late and when he arrived he was swarmed with kids (so we couldn't get a good photo). Then we ran into Santa again at Mayfair mall (and that Santa looked much more authentic...real beard and all).

Sunday we woke up to nearly 10 cm of snow! I know, I thought we were immune to that here but I guess someone thought those of us recently transplanted from Ontario needed a taste of home. Kian really enjoyed playing in the snow, and riding on his sled down the driveway. He got going so fast that he started to pass Mom and Dad (whoever was pulling him).

Doing crafts at the breakfast with Santa



Hi Santa...look Mom here's Santa.



I think that I know this story...



My snow suit still fits!



Faster Mommy faster!



Wheee!



Let's go again!



Down the hill with Daddy this time!

Santa Parade

Just reading in my favourite chair.


Ahhhh, this chair is just right......

Christmas is sneaking up on us faster than we are prepared for. As nice as the weather is here there isn't even the remotest hint of a snow storm to make you feel christmas-y. It's only the mall Santas that make you feel guilty about not shopping. Kian thinks it's halloween and he gets to dress up as a tree. The good news is that Kian doesn't seem to be scared of Santa so we have decided to have breakfast with him next weekend.


Christmas tree Kian

Last weekend we made a last-minute decision to see the Santa Claus parade (the Christmas parades here are all at night) in Sydney with about a million other people. For a tiny little parade, I mean half the size of Niagara's, there must have been about 40,000 people there. It was insane! After Santa went by everyone followed the parade down to the water to see the sail-past parade on the water. It was really nice to see all the boats lit up. Obviously something you wouldn't see in Ottawa in December! Kian had the most fun trying to stab a spider with the Christmas lights that were decorating Frosty the Snowman and running around like a mad-man in the mud (he got to have some hot chocolate......)!


Santa parade in Sydney with dad.


Sail past in Sydney.

Our dining room is just about finished. Down to the trim work..... The project that I thought I OVER-budgeted a month for has taken five. There is light at the end of the tunnel and maybe a glimmer of hope that it will be done for Christmas.....


Oops, I dumped the duck food!


Move ducks!

Salmon Run (and other stuff)

Trying on daddy's bike helmet.


Not much to tell you about the last couple weeks. The days seem to run into each other faster and faster! I can say, however, that while most of you are enjoying snow we are still raking leaves and enjoying the outdoors at about 10 degrees C. The golfers are still out and the weather has been beautiful. That may not last too much longer, but we will definitely enjoy it while we can!


Couldn't leave home without my popper.

Last week Mark had meetings in Nanaimo so I decided to tag along for the day and see something new. I must say that I was a little taken aback when the guy at the hotel, where Mark's meeting was, told me that I would have a difficult time wasting 5 hours in Nanaimo while I waited for Mark but he was absolutely right! I decided to walk along the water front, which I was informed would take 20 minutes and I stretched to 45, and that was about the most interesting part to Nanaimo. The rest of the time I spent in a used book shop and a kid's consignment store. I also spent an hour at the park with Kian. I guess next time Mark has meetings there I will opt to stay home since I could have done all of that here if I really wanted to!


Moss dripping from the trees at Goldstream Park.


Kian and the big tree at Goldstream Park.

On the way up island we drove by Goldstream Park and could see the salmon running up the river. We didn't have time to stop and on the way home it was dark so there was no point to. I dragged the family back to the park last Sunday so we could see (and smell) this spectacular feat of nature. I always thought the river would be larger or deeper but it was only about 20-30 feet across and about 2-3 feet deep, if that. The salmon are about 2-2 1/2 feet long and there were hundreds of them trying to swim up the river. The seagulls and eagles were having a feast watching all the fish. Apparently it gets worse at the end of the season with more birds showing up and of course the smell would get even better then as well.


Seagulls watching the salmon.


Salmon in the river.

Kian sang his first song this week "Hot Cross Buns" , actually "Ti Ta Bo" but it was to the tune of "Hot Cross Buns". It's really cute when he walks around the house singing his little song. He really likes his music class. Unfortunately it is over until January now. He still has his play group on Monday mornings but all the kids there are girls with the exception of him and they aren't very nice. He really does his own thing and the greatest thing about the group is the end when he gets a stamp on his hand which he proudly shows off the everyone he sees, until daddy washes it off in the bath, that is. Then for the next two days he points to his little hand and asks me where his stamp is. I always feel really bad about it but Monday is almost here and he will get another stamp soon.

This week we are looking forward to a couple play groups that we have organized and some hikes, too. And of course swimming on Friday morning. We can't forget swimming for my little fish!



Cooper's hawk in the tree at the end of our driveway.

Taco-man!

Our first real halloween where we actually went out trick-or-treating. We decided to go out trick-or-treating in Oak Bay because the stores do it for the little ones earlier and it still allowed us to go to see Auntie Renee and Uncle Darcy in our costume. We had a great time. Here are some photos to enjoy.

Punumikin Patch

Had our first trip to the local pumpkin patch today (with our friends Jacob and Shawna). Thought we'd share some of the photos...

Thanksgiving

I Love cooking with my oven mitts on!

Turkey time has come and gone but I thought I better post something before halloween comes!

October has already flown by and I can't say that I remember what has happened. Falls is here and there have been a few mornings where there has been frost on the ground and the trees are staring to loose their leaves now. We definitely have more to rake here than we did in Ottawa. Kian loves playing in the leaves and loves helping with the gardening.



Thanksgiving we spent at Renee and Darcy's place. Mark was in charge of the turkey which was cooked at our place and taken over to theirs. Unfortunately the power went out right when Renee was about to put all the trimmings into the oven and use the stove. So out came the BBQ and the camping stove. Everything was finally cooked and ready in time for the power to come back on.... Dinner was wonderful and it was really nice to spend it with family and new friends who we have met out here.

Kian, Mark and I went out apple picking at Renee and Darcy's last weekend. We have a ton of apples and they taste fantastic! I have started making apple sauce and tried to start making pie but is just isn't the same without Ang doing her share of the cutting and mixing! It also takes me about 6 times longer with Kian running around wanting to "help"!

Our big adventure this week was to the dentist.... It was the one night that I wanted to go out and I think that Kian knew it! He wasn't even in the bathtub and somehow managed to hit his mouth into the tub and chip a tooth. When you only have 8 it is noticeable. Anyway, he does have a loose tooth and hopefully it will tighten up (is that what teeth do?) and not die. The dentist had to grind down the chipped one a bit which took 4 people to hold him down. I guess he isn't going to like going to the dentist either with a traumatic experience like that to back it up!

Kian has become a little fish in the swimming pool! I have been taking him every Friday to go swimming and he won't get out of the water to go home. He is now doing the doggy paddle and blowing bubbles, he also jumps off the side and doesn't mind going under. Today we went to a new pool which had a whirlpool. It looked like fun so I decided to go in with him. Well, it was a lot faster in the pool than it looked like from land. I was so tired once we finally got out from trying to hold him up and trying not to drown myself that we both needed a nap this afternoon! Maybe dad can come next Friday and see how far the little fish has come!

Couldn't make it through lunch after my swim.