A Week in Ontario

I am a little late getting these pictures up, but I did want to share some of the highlights of our time in Ontario. Steve had flown out from NZ to meet us, and it was a fun week full of visiting with friends and family. 

 Monate and her girls Helena and Anniek were down from Ottawa and we got to see them for an afternoon.

We spent the weekend at the cottage on Lake Huron, and Madeleine got lots of quality time with cousin Caleb.

She loved the lake, despite having a cold and not lasting as long as she might have if she had been healthy.

Steve's sister Julie and her boys, Brody (6 weeks here), and Caleb (almost 2!).

Madeleine and I got to see my friend Henrietta and her three girls.

A major highlight for Steve was the big rocket launch. He and his brother Chris built quite a few model rockets in their younger days. While visiting for the week, they dug out the box of rockets, found an unbuilt kit, built it, and then launched at least a dozen rockets altogether.  Their old fireman helmets completed their launch safety equipment.

We're back in NZ now, and settling back into our routines. It is still surprisingly cold most days, and we're back to wearing many layers. Madeleine keeps us constantly entertained with her endless conversation, where she is clearly talking to us with gestures and intonations, but no understandable words. She seems pretty bossy at this point, but since we don't know what she's saying, it's easy to laugh at.

A Bit of BC Fun

Madeleine and I flew to Vancouver at the start of August, and our time here has been wonderful. The weeks have flown by, and here are some pictures to show a bit of what we've been up to...

Our luggage did not arrive with us, so M wore her "winter" clothes in rather hot BC weather, but she didn't seem to mind. She loves putting things on her head, and here she was trying on a bandana.

We've had some great visits with my grandparents who live in Bellingham, just south of the US border. Here are Great-Grandpa and Madeleine playing pat-a-cake.

I got to meet up with four of my nursing school friends, which was a lot of fun, especially with three little ones added to the mix.

Madeleine loved playing in the wading pool made by Grandpa Mark.

She also loved sitting in the little chair that he made for her - in and out, in and out...

We spent some time one afternoon at Jericho Beach in Vancouver, which was beautiful, and fun for Madeleine to play in the sand.

Our whole family (minus Steve) enjoyed the wading pool (albeit slightly more clothed than Madeleine) on one particularly hot day.

My sister's dog Polly was a big hit with Madeleine. After a week of each being unsure of one another, they were great friends and M could not get enough of her.

Grandpa and M going for a walk on the trails near the Mission Abbey.

Mom, M, and me on the same trails - my baby belly is growing, and I'm almost 19 weeks along now. I've been feeling really good, and have been enjoying feeling the baby move for quite a few weeks already.

M sitting in front of some doors at the Abbey, looking so grown up!

We met up with my friend Monica and hiked up the Stawamus Chief, north of Vancouver. The hike was a bit steeper than anticipated, but the views were definitely worth it. I carried M on my back for the way up, and my dad carried her on the way down.

M had a great time exploring the rocks at the top.

The views from the top were beautiful, and in the background you can see another rocky summit, called the first of the three summits. We chose to do the second summit, which was new to us all, and it turned out to be higher and perhaps a bit trickier to reach.

After three weeks here, M and I fly to Ontario tomorrow to see the Gibsons. Steve is en route to Ontario right now, so we are looking forward to seeing him, and the rest of the family! 

A Little Addition...

Here is a picture of the newest member of our family...

... due to arrive January 16th!

And since this is still mainly a blog about Madeleine, here is a picture of her all dressed up in her Mexican poncho (a gift from one of Steve's work friends who travelled to Mexico) while she dances and twirls away to Steve playing the guitar.

Madeleine gazing at me (probably wondering why I put her on top of the coffee table), without a clue that her little brother or sister is right there too.

Tomorrow, Madeleine and I are off to Vancouver! Big adventure ahead!

Camping with Little M

I am well-known for my love of spontaneous adventures and last-minute trips, but Steve normally does not share my love of these things. So when, in the middle of our relaxing Saturday morning this past weekend, I threw out the idea of going camping that night, and Steve agreed, I was both surprised and thrilled! We drove to Cape Palliser, about 2.5 hours away, home of the lighthouse below, and of the Pinnacles - unique rock formations that made it into The Lord of the Rings movies. 

Although we arrived close to sunset, and set up and ate dinner in the dark, Madeleine loved every minute of it. She followed us around, watched us intently as we set up the tent, and had fun with the headlamps we were using.

She slept between us in our zipped-together sleeping bags, and thanks to her cozy fleece suit she stayed warm even when she squirmed her way out of the bag during the night. She woke at the pitch dark hour of 5:30am (remember that it is the middle of winter here!) and within seconds was saying "Da?" and pulling on Steve's toque and shirt. Thankfully, she fell back asleep after an hour or so of squirming and "Da"ing and we were able to get up in the daylight.

She loved these chairs, and was completely absorbed as Daddy told her all about how gas camping stoves work.

On Sunday we walked up the 200+ steps to the lighthouse and took in the views from the top. We had some chips for a snack, and Madeleine's treat was a yummy store-bought fruit yogurt sachet. As soon as she got it, she climbed onto Daddy's lap and leaned back to enjoy the moment and the treat. She doesn't often get that cuddly, or at least not for very long, so this was especially cute.

We did a short hike up the valley to see the Pinnacles, which were quite impressive up close.  We had been here in October of 2009, but hadn't been back since, and it was fun to share it all with Madeleine.

This is my last full week here before Madeleine and I fly to Canada for 5 weeks. We'll be spending 3 weeks in BC, and then flying to Ontario where Steve will meet us for a week, and then we'll all fly back to BC for another week before returning to New Zealand together. I'm really looking forward to the trip, and really hoping little M manages to sleep on the long flight!

Mini-Break in Nelson

This past weekend, Madeleine and I went to sunny Nelson with our friends Emily and Jac. Emily and her partner (who is a Kiwi) moved to NZ from Wales almost a year ago, and their little boy Jac is just a couple of months older than M. We've become good friends, and when I said I was thinking of going somewhere for the weekend, Emily suggested that we all go to Nelson for a little "mini-break"! Jac's grandparents live in Nelson, so we were able to stay with them. They were so welcoming and made Madeleine feel like another grandchild as she sat on their laps for stories and cuddles. 

Having lived in Nelson for five wonderful months, I was excited to go back and see the beach, visit the market, and soak up some sun.  It's hard to believe it was over three years ago that Steve and I lived there; it brought back some wonderful memories to be there again and it was fun to share it all with Madeleine.

Jac has about twice the energy and speed as Madeleine, so Emily spent a lot of time chasing him, and keeping him from falling into trouble (see below!). Madeleine tried to keep up with him, following him around, running away from him (he has a tendency to bowl her over), and constantly calling out "Jaaa!"

Of course a good picture of the two of them together was impossible to get, but here they are taking a quick snack break on a bench in Queen's Park.

It was such a lovely weekend away, and the ferry ride back was beautiful and calm. Part of the time Madeleine and I explored the boat with her in the backpack, and the rest of the time she walked around, exploring everything within reach, and occasionally toppling over with the rocking of the boat. Often while walking where people were reading, sleeping, or listening to music in chairs, she would stop next to them, and stare up at them with a big smile, just waiting for them to look at her. The people who were asleep seemed to intrigue her in particular, and I often had to pull her away before she tugged on their pant leg or called out to them. It's really cute to see her be so interactive with people. The trip away helped pass these last few days without Steve, and we get to pick him up from the airport tomorrow morning!

Walking Girl

Madeleine loves going for walks along the footpath by the water, but she is easily distracted and speed is not her top concern.

 Taking a break on a bench...

These cute little pink shoes from Grandma Georgia finally fit Madeleine, and she didn't want me to take them off, even after putting her pj's on.

Steve and Madeleine usually spend the mornings together while I have a little extra sleep, and this is what she often gets up to... if she can't quite reach the container she needs, she climbs right in! She'll be missing her daddy-filled mornings for the next little while though, since Steve left yesterday to go to a conference in Amsterdam until July 9th. We are holding down the fort here, but already missing him, and dreaming up some adventures of our own (that don't involve the tupperware drawer).

Catching Up

It feels like it's been awhile since the last post, but not too much has been going on here. Madeleine has had several colds, which means we've been going out less. But I couldn't resist a beautiful sunny day in Wellington last Friday - we dropped some neighbours off at the airport, and enjoyed the beautiful views from a nearby park.

Madeleine is walking all over the place now, but once we got outside, she was too busy picking up every little pebble to go very far by foot.

Another reason for going to Wellington that day was to see the Esmerelda - a Chilean navy ship that was in port for a few days, and open to the public for a few hours.

Madeleine loves putting things around her neck and over her head. Grammie Jean sent a package a few weeks ago and used a bunch of pieces of yarn to tie it - Madeleine has held onto those strands of yarn and drapes them around her neck, on and off, on and off.

She finds our hats that are within reach...

and our scarves...

and my stethoscope!

Steve was busy the last few weeks, building a new little telescope just in time for the transit of Venus last Wednesday. Unfortunately, that was the one really rainy and cloudy day in weeks and he didn't get to see the transit.

And here is a shot of M and me cuddling on the couch... she didn't stay there long though!