Trick or Treat!

Hallowe'en finally arrived, much to the delight of kids across the country, and you can definitely include Isabelle in that group. She had a busy day at school as her Mom accompanied on a field trip to the farm (more on that in a future entry), but after her nap it was all about Hallowe'en. A short trip to get her face professionally painted and she was ready to become the lion personified. Count Logan arrived and after a quick dinner, Hallowe'en was on! We visited all the houses on the street and after some initial tentativeness, they both got the hang of it, especially once they realized that these people would be giving them treats?!?!? Two tired trick-or-treaters got home and dug into a couple of items before bathtime and bedtime arrived. That girl loves getting her face painted, but has never once been upset when it's time to wash her face off, such a trooper! Happy Hallowe'en everyone, won't tomorrow seem so boring by comparison?

Belle be lion, mommy and daddy! Roar!



Fueling up for the treat-filled walk



Arrrrrrr! Mom rocks at carving pumpkins!



Welcome, trick-or-treaters!



Treats! Can we do this again tomorrow?

Are You Ready for Hallowe'en?

Isabelle is so ready that she got a head start one day early. Today was her Hallowe'en party at school so she woke up ready to have some fun and was beyond excited to finally wear her costume. She couldn't wait to become a ghost and say "Boo" to all her classmates, especially Logan (she's been practicing for weeks!). She had a great time and was every bit the perfect little ghost, friendly but not afraid to try and scare you!

Creating the ghostly visage



Isabelle the Friendly Ghost



On the homefront, pumpkin decorations are everywhere, the cobwebs and spiders are covering the windows, the treat bags are packed with Hershey's kisses, the luminaries are prepped with sand, and four big pumpkins have been gutted and carved for display (ghost, pirate, bird and a semi-traditional face). Clearly Isabelle (with help from her parents!) has been busy. She was more than happy to kick back and relax with a pumpkin treat, admire her handiwork and wait for tomorrow when her and Logan hit the streets!

Carving cutie



Belle have it? Ok!

Let in Snow...in October?

Mom and Dad aren't too excited to be posting about the first snow of the season, especially since we haven't even reached Hallowe'en yet. Isabelle, on the other hand, is over the moon about the snow's arrival. She shrieked with delight this morning when she saw the snow-covered streets, and had ample opportunity to play in the white stuff today. Two hours outside at school, christening her snow pants for the year and riding around in a sled with Logan, then some fun time in the front yard with her Mom and Dad at the end of the day. Her Mom showed her how to make her first snowball, let's hope tomorrow's day at school doesn't involve Isabelle passing on this information to the rowdier kids in the class! She has her own pronunciation of the word though, she can say "SSSSS" and she can say "No", but ask her to say snow and she says "toe". Given how last year went in Ottawa, we assume she will have plenty of practice with the word in the coming months and will get it nailed down soon enough!

Where did this stuff come from?



Look Mommy, look Daddy, Toe!



One small step for Isabelle...



Snowball fight!



It's not as much fun when you fall down.

Hallowe'en is Around the Corner!

Sunday, Isabelle visited the Agricultural Museum for their Hallowe'en festivities. We all had a great time on a beautiful sunny day, plus the whole family got to experience a number of new smells in each of the barns! Our little angel got the chance to see some of her favourite animals, including horses, sheep, goats, and a whole bunch of cows, including one named Isabelle! We also got to see a number of newborn calves and pregnant moms, including one whose water had just broken, but we couldn't wait the potential 12 hours until delivery. We wrapped up our visit by decorating a mini-pumpkin that Isabelle has now prominently displayed in our main room. Soon it will be Hallowe'en, we are all very excited!

Look at the big cows, Daddy!



Isabelle visits the week old calf



Can I pet the horsey?



Mommy-daughter decorating team



I'll finish it up, Mommy!

The Harper Handshake

We learned today what our PM's kids feel like when dropped off at school every morning. Yes, the Constants got to shake Stephen Harper's hand!

We were driving in New Edinburgh and spotted an open house of a nice red brick house, so we stopped in out of curiosity. Turns out our friend Trystan was running the open house so we checked out the place and were chatting with him as we spotted the PM walking right in front of the house, easy to spot with his Conservative Party jacket?! Out with his son and some security folk, he then stops and starts walking up the sidewalk. Since we were about to leave, all three of us were right at the door to open it and there he was saying hi to Isabelle and shaking all of our hands. Turns out he was just curious as to what the house was selling for, this was not a ploy for more votes as his minority mandate has already been determined.

Even though we aren't in his fan club, it was still a neat experience to meet our country's current leader when we least expected it. A fun story to tell others and to tell Isabelle several years from now when she takes the Parliamentary system in her Social Studies class!

Happy Birthday, Dillon!

A hearty happy birthday to Isabelle's cousin Dillon in Mississauga! He's well into his teen years now, a time that we are happy to keep well into the future for Isabelle. We don't want her growing up too fast but I'm sure she will end up being a good kid like her cousin. Have a great birthday, buddy, and we hope the hockey season is going well!

One Two Three Four

Or just keep counting to 13, which is what Isabelle surprised us with last night. We have never forgetten the night several months ago when she just decided to count all the way up to 10 out of the blue, now she has moved past and into the teens!

The title is more of a reference to our night out at the National Arts Centre to see Feist in concert. It was the perfect idea many months ago when we bought the tickets, a Saturday night of great music sandwiched between our two birthdays. Now the night had finally arrived and we were excited yet somewhat anxious. As many of you know, we spend little time away from our little girl, so we actually had to surrender her bedtime routine to the capable hands of Aunties Renee and Shelley. We had no doubt she would cope easily, but we still headed off to have some fun without the princess in tow. And we did have lots of fun, of course with the obligatory intermission call to see how things were transpiring at home. Needless to say, no worries. Isabelle happily fell asleep shortly after checking "Mommy and Daddy come home soon?". So we headed back to our 2nd row seats (!) and saw a great show in a packed house, Feist showed off her great voice and her creative live show and we were happy to hear our favourite tunes in person, including 1-2-3-4, which we no longer remember the real words to, only the Sesame Street version!

We returned home to a quiet house and our little angel snoozing away...

Happy Birthday to a Great Mommy!

After a whispered reminder from her Dad this morning, Isabelle spent the rest of the time getting ready for school by singing "Happy Birthday to Mommy" many times over. What a great way to start the day, who could ask for a better birthday gift than this little one singing her heart out. This was followed by an extended diatribe on what type of cake Mom was going to get to commemorate her special day. She suggested several options, including Cinderella, Dora and even Bob the Builder, but finally decided that pink flowers would be the best choice of all. We'll have to wait see if her prediction came true! More to report tomorrow on the birthday celebration!

Ah, Montreal!

One of the best places to visit in Canada and only a short drive from us in Ottawa, so we go as often as we can. It possesses such great qualities as unique architecture, an eclectic population, and a European look and feel. We can't go to Paris in 2 hours and less than a tank of gas, so we go for the next best thing! It also has great food like our favourite gourmet take-out place, Premiere Moisson, and the best smoked meat of all (not to mention pickles and fries), Schwartz's! Isabelle, of course, would never allow us to visit Montreal without checking out the Biodome, where the penguins, monkeys and sealife never fail to disappoint her. We also found some great stores in Laval for both her Mom and her to add to their wardrobes (mostly Isabelle though!). Without question, we will be back again soon to visit the monkeys, eat some fabulous food, and Xmas shop!

Stade Olympique



That one's my favourite! No, that one! No, that one!



Hanging out



Yes, I will have FRIES with that!



It's cold in this mall...or, I really like my new toque!

Fall Frolic!

Such a fun weekend blessed with sunny and crisp weather, perfect for a road trip to Montreal for the Biodome (and shopping of course!), but still allowing plenty of time to hit Saunders Farm for some Hallowe'en fun and frolic with Logan. For those who don't know, Saunders is this huge property west of Ottawa that has corn mazes all year but really gears up for annual Hallowe'en festivities with lots of cool stuff, including a toddler-friendly haunted hayride, puppet shows, live music and best for Isabelle and Logan, lots of open space to just roam and be kids. Isabelle and Logan were clearly not disappointed with this choice of destination, reveling in making each other laugh the whole time. Isabelle also remained attached to her newest acquisition, the H&M Hello Kitty toque, which if she had her way would never leave her head!

Pumpkin Princess



You crack me up, buddy!



Saunders Sightseers



This hayride is awesome!



See you on the runway!

Happy Birthday to Olan!

Isabelle has been singing this all day and can't wait to share her musical talents with the birthday boy himself. A hearty happy birthday from all of us here in the nation's capital to Olan! Hard to believe it's already been 2 years since this adorable guy has come into our lives. It's cliche, but it really does seem like only yesterday we were welcoming the strapping young lad into the family, in awe of the size of his hands and feet compared to Isabelle's. These two have shared so many fun times in so many locations over their first two years, it's been amazing to see them build this strong bond from scratch. There's nothing quite like watching these two wreak havoc as a team. We love you and hope you have a wicked party tomorrow in Halifax, with loads of fun opening presents and playing with family and friends to your heart's content. Isabelle says save some cake for her!

Giving Thanks in the GTA

Thanksgiving weekend was a fun one, as we took a trip down the 401 to see the oh-so-cute new arrivals, Carys and Peter Ganas! Jessica and Chris are proud and impressive new parents, not only for taking on two infants at once, but also for having a house full of relatives for pizza dinner in the midst of all the action. In addition to seeing the darling newbies, we also got a chance to catch up with Aunties Les and Janice, and Isabelle was beyond excited to reunite with her Florida beach and family picnic pals Liam and Sarah. Lots of new toys to explore, plus a park right next door so no shortage of fun to be had. Isabelle played her heart out, then conked out quite quickly on the way to Grandpa's!

The weekend also allowed Isabelle to visit another favourite friend, Alli and Sean's puppy Kobe! Its amazing how comfy she is around a relatively big dog, but she loves him and is still asking about him 3 days later. Another nice visit and a great meal with the engaged couple and we hope to see them a few more time before the big event in May. As usual, Isabelle was a trouble-free traveller, how that girl can spend 4+ hours in a car with little fuss continues to amaze us. Needless to say, a very happy thanksgiving was had by all.

Park Pals





Let's hug it out



Meeting her new cousin Carys

Itsy-Bitsy Spider?

Not the case here in Ottawa, where Isabelle visited the giant spider outside the National Gallery and had a great time. She loved the open space most of all, room to run around at full speed, yet still stop and grab onto one of the legs or just look up at the spider and her eggs. She has had her share of bug encounters over the past few months! Once finally coaxed into leaving, she waved and said "Bye bye, Spider, coming back soon!".

Madame Butterfly

Isabelle made another venture into the bug world today. On the heels of holding a tarantula a few weeks ago, today she was back checking out insects with her dad at Carleton's Live Butterfly exhibit! They had two greenhouses with hundreds of colourful butterflies fluttering around and Isabelle really enjoyed checking them out. We were able to attract a big one onto our orange slice so Isabelle could see it up close, watch it flap its wings, and even touch it! She kept holding that orange hoping to lure another one (even during the car ride home), but no such luck. I'm sure next time she reads The Very Hungry Caterpillar, she will have a new appreciation for how it ends!

Memories of Paris...

Alas, it was a year ago today that all three of us and Auntie Meredith were arriving in Paris, full of excitement and energy and set to shop and sightsee to our hearts content. Needless to say, we did not disappoint in either category! Such a wonderful vacation, great to share in Meredith's first Paris experience and Isabelle was a dream travel companion as always, especially since we spent hours upon hours walking the streets, on the metro, and at all the Paris attractions (and just a few stores!). How long would it take her to scale the steps at Sacre Coeur "by self" this year? And I can only imagine how hard it would to be to keep her from sprinting all the way down the Champs Elysees, but something tells me that these would be small prices to pay to be back in a place we love and miss dearly. We hope to return sooner rather than later, and we also look forward to purchasing our apartment in the 6th arrondissement, just as soon as the lottery deigns to select us as its winner one week. A bientot, Paris!

Vacation, all we ever wanted...

Ahhhhh.....as evidenced in the photo, Isabelle enjoyed kicking back and relaxing on our recent vacation in Quebec. Back in early September, we rented a cottage on a small lake in the Laurentians, about 15 minutes south of Mont Trembant, and had a fabulous time getting away from the bustle of the city. Cottage life agreed with all of us, but especially the little mermaid herself, who spent countless hours wading in and out of the shallow lake with her shovel and pail at the ready. She got her first taste of roasted marshmallows, and loved cozying up by the roaring fire. With Renee and Shawn joining us, Isabelle also had Logan as a playmate to tear around the cottage and play countless games of hide and seek with Gilles. We had a great time on day trips to St. Sauveur and especially adored the village at Tremblant, where we rocked the luge go-carts down the mountain and shopped til we dropped.   All in all, a great week away blessed with some of the best weather of the summer. Only one rainy day but luckily we discovered a kid's indoor playground that featured face-painting! Who could ask for more, except for maybe a few more weeks of holidays each year?

Hanging around the deck after lunch



Testing out the water


I decided I like it!



Cleaning off the canoe for Mommy



Where are you going?



Mid-swimming raspberry snack



The not-so Cowardly Lion



Start your engines!



The next Danica Patrick



Shopping superstars



A cozy spot for a drink at Roots



Isabelle's newest friend



Can we do this all the time?