My Poor Back!

Shortly after Elise turned 6 months old, she started walking with the help of Mom or Dad.  We are all very excited to watch Elise run around, Sophie especially.  However, I forgot just how hard it is on our backs.  My chiropractor is going to love me.

More Summer Fun

Our third camping trip this year was at Mount Kidd again.  This time, we went with Mamie and Pepere.  The weather was great and good news, the pool was open!  Our first day there went well.  We spent some time at the pool, went for a bike ride (my first of the summer, finally!), played some frisbee and visited. 

 

However, having the world's worst teething child, we headed home a day early.  Sophie has been working on her two-year-old-molars (yes, they are still not out...I look in her mouth every night with a flashlight to see little to no progress) for months now and it can cause her to have trouble sleeping (no surprise there, she has never been a good sleeper).  She spent the second night tossing, turning, calling out and crying, and because we were in such close quarters, we were all up to hear it.  Unfortunately, this meant Mom, Dad and Sophie were tired and cranky the next day so we decided to just pack up and go. 

The following weekend we had some very special visitors.  My brother, Dan, his wife, Tina, and my niece, Madeleine, came to Calgary for a night.  It had been a very long time since we had all seen each other.  I was really excited to see Sophie and Madeleine together.  They got along famously.  Being so close in age, they seemed to understand each other and play on the same level.  Madeleine will be a big sister as well in November, which is wonderful news.  We hope that once all our kids are older and a bit easier to travel with, we will get to see them more often.

To see more pics of the month of July, click here.

Family Time

After Elise's baptism, Aunt Janae stayed with us for a couple days.  Sophie and Elise enjoyed some quality time with their very special aunt, putting puzzles together, playing games and balloons, going to the park and just hanging out.  We also spent an afternoon at the splash park in Airdrie with Aunt Ave, Ally and Grace.  Thanks for the visit Aunt Janae!

 

 

 

 

 Our second camping trip of the year was the Van Orman Reunion at Mount Kidd.  It was the first time in a few years that the whole family could come.  I think we had the nicest weather we have ever had but unfortunately, the pool was closed due to the recent floods.  We had a great time anyways.  It was wonderful seeing everyone and Sophie had lots of fun playing with all her cousins.

One of Sophie`s favorite camping activities - Painting rocks

A walk by the river

Sophie and Gus hunting for ground squirrels

 

Sophie and Dad

 

 

To see more pics, click here.

Elise's Baptism

On Saturday, July 6th, Elise was baptised at St. Peter's Church in Calgary by Father Jerome.  We hosted a BBQ afterwards to celebrate.  Thank you to everyone who came and shared this very important day with us.  And an extra big thank you to Uncle Julien and Aunt Janae who have agreed to play a special role in Elise's life by being her godparents.

 

 

To see more pictures of Elise's baptism, click here.

Celebrating Canada Day

The day before Canada Day, we hosted a Canada Day/Pool Party BBQ.  We invited some friends over, put out the kiddie pools and enjoyed the sun and some burgers.

 

The next day, we went to Olds to participate in their Canada Day festivities with Uncle Warren, Aunt Ave, Ally and Grace.  We got to do all sorts of fun activities that made me appreciate the perks of living in a small town.  We dug for treasure in a sandbox and then traded our gold for candy.  Sophie went fishing and caught some bubbles.  At another fishing station, she got stickers in exchange for her fish.  There were also many bouncy houses to jump in and free popcorn and cupcakes to snack on!  What a great day!

 

 

 

 

To see all our pictures for June, click here. 

 

First Camping Trip of the Year

Seven years ago, when I met Ryan, he had a tent trailer and I teased him about it, telling him he wasn't really "camping" with such luxuries as matresses, a table, and storage.  This year we have purchased our forth trailer, upgrading just a bit each time.  The trailer we are sporting this year is 31 feet, has two slides and two tvs.  There are three queen beds (one in a seperate bedroom) and a bunk, as well as a table and a couch.  Now that I have been spoiled with such comfort, I'm not sure why I thought tenting was so great in the first place. 

 

We took our fancy new trailer out a couple weeks ago.  Sophie did not remember camping from last year.  She had a blast and declared that she loved camping as soon as we arrived.  We went to Westward Ho for the weekend with Uncle Warren, Aunt Ave and cousins Ally and Grace.  Sophie loved spending the day outside in the fresh air and having her aunt, uncle and cousins right outside her door, ready to give her lots of attention.  I also really enjoyed our trip.  Sophie was so busy and Elise slept up a storm, so I actually got to relax a fair bit.  And when Elise wasn't sleeping, there was always someone willing to hold her.  Ally was usually the first in line.

To see more pictures of our camping trip, click here. To see some pictures of last month, click here.

We were supposed to go camping again this weekend but due to the non-stop rain and flooding in Calgary, our trip was cancelled.  We were all quite disappointed, Sophie most of all.  However, we are thankful to not have had any damage or flooding in our house, and not to have been one of the 25 communities to be evacuated yesterday.  Bridges are underwater and downtown is expected to be closed until mid-week.  Here are a few pictures of Calgary taken yesterday.

 

 

Our thoughts are with the many families that have lost their homes and/or have been displaced due to this tragedy.

Butterfield Acres

We got season passes to Butterfield Acres again this year so last week, Sophie, Elise and I met Aunt Ave, Ally and Grace there.  Sophie had a great time and is still talking about how the goats were eating the straps on my backpack.  Having her older and very helpful cousin, Ally, there made it easy for me.  She held Sophie's hand and helped her to see, pet and feed the animals.  It was windy and a bit chilly but the girls were troopers.  Thanks for the great morning Aunt Ave, Ally and Grace!

 

To see our pictures of Butterfield Acres and more, click here.