An Extra Dose of Gran and Grandpa

We were very lucky to have our holiday continue with some special visitors in our first week of 2012. Gran and Grandpa were on their way back to Halifax and spent some extra time in Ottawa hanging out and enjoying an encore to all of our holiday festivities. We all enjoy having them here to visit, most notably Isabelle, who was beyond desperate to join them in their downstairs bed if she awoke in the middle of the night. Gran was fine with this idea, Grandpa a little less enthused, but Isabelle was relentless, asking for the privilege every night they were here. Gran and Grandpa got to take in Isabelle and Oliver's first skating lesson, enjoyed a pizza and movie night screening of Cars (Oliver's pick, naturally) and an awesome afternoon trip to the Museum of Nature. Mommy and Daddy were also lucky enough to get an evening out together, a real rarity! Despite the protests of two little kids that adore them, Gran and Grandpa eventually had to head home, the impact of which was only diminished by the promise that Gran would be back in time for Oliver's birthday next month. We had a great visit and thankfully we are already looking forward to the next one!

Morning coffee with the card sharks

Teach me something, Grandpa!

Polar princess

We'll miss you....come back soon!

Christmas Vacation Rocked!

All good things must come to an end. Too bad that Christmas vacation is one of those things. We had a great Christmas and a great holiday week in Toronto, filled with friends, family and festivities. Unfortunately today, like many others, we all headed back to work and to daycare. Boy it sure was hard to get up and go into the daily grind, especially knowing that the next holiday on our schedule isn't until April! On the flip side, however, that next holiday is likely to be spent in sunny Florida. Hard to think of that though with sub-zero temperatures outside and the whole months of January, February and March standing in the way. So all we can do is look back at what fun we had. One of the best times we had was with Great-Grandpa's remote control fireplace. Grandpa had him convinced that he was putting it out with his red firetruck. It was a hoot to watch, especially since Oliver was so ferocious with his truck, aiming it at the fireplace and then at Grandpa with so much vigour. It was a short part of the trip but something everyone enjoyed and we can look back on and laugh. It's the simple things that make holidays fun and this was a perfect example. Christmas 2011 is now in the books and it was awesome!

Oliver readies his fire truck...

Hosing down Grandpa!

Making sure he hits his mark!

The holidays are a time for libation...

...and to catch up on some sleep!

Making Our Way Around the GTA

When it's the holidays, it's time to make many visits to the ones you love. This past week was no exception as we had the chance to stop in and see baby Elliot on the Danforth, then stop by one of Isabelle's favourite spots, Aunt Martha's in Scarborough.

We woke up early on New Year's Eve and made our way south on the DVP to see Mommy's college roomie Allie and her husband Sean, proud parents of Elliot, who is growing quickly! They have all settled in nicely to family life, even Kobe the superdog doesn't seem to mind sharing the attention. Elliot is a real charmer and a great little guy, very well behaved and snappily dressed in a Ralph Lauren navy vest, the same one Oliver himself was wearing! It was nice to visit with such great friends who are doing an awesome job as young homeowners and young parents. Way to go, guys!

Man's best friend Kobe

Too bad we live in Ottawa, Isabelle is already ready to babysit him!

From there we headed east to Scarborough to see Aunt Martha, Great Grandma, Elizabeth and Petar for the afternoon. Isabelle is always very excited to make this stop on our trips to Toronto. She is a fan of Aunt Martha's hospitality, thoughtfulness and desserts! Above all else, she loves all the attention. Aunt Martha is a great host, especially for kids. Isabelle loves to help her out in the kitchen and the kids are always pleased with how thoughtful and appropriate her gifts are. We had a nice visit, catching up with everyone, a great way to end 2011. It's always special to spend so much time with family and to share the holiday season with people we love. Thanks, Aunt Martha, for always being so good to us and the little ones, we appreciate how special you make them feel.

GiGi, as we call her, supervises the dessert dispensing

Oliver and Mommy relaxing

Aunt Martha looks for some help from Isabelle

Yes, I will have a dessert, thank you!

Quick to read their newly-received books

Happy New Year!

It's always great to kick off a new year with an awesome first day. We were in Toronto for the big New Year's party so there was no doubt in our minds that day #1 of 366 would be extra special. This party has been going on for years but it seems to be taking a new shape as each new year arrives. It is amazing to see a party that was pretty much dominated by adults for years now being taken over by little ones, and it's only going to tip further in that direction with the arrivals of Ben and Matthew this past year. Sarah has progressed from the baby in the corner of the room to running the show with her mom and her Aunts. Isabelle is one of the wily veterans at the ripe old age of 5, showing her brother and her younger cousins the ropes of what this night is all about. We also had the added bonus of a trio of Haligonians in town to ring in the new year, reuniting the 3 sisters and making 2 grandkids very happy. It is a perfect way to start the new year, lots of love and laughter, with the bonus of draw prices. Isabelle hit the jackpot, winning everything she really wanted, it was amazing to see her eyes light up when her ticket was drawn. The party room has definitely the place to be and we hope to be right back next January 1, celebrating another awesome year with the people we love!

Mommy and Oliver deposit their draw tickets

Matthew, happy as can be!

Kayla holds court with her subjects

Carys stakes out the desserts

Baby Ben's first New Year's!

Oliver, Kayla's biggest fan

Early birthday greetings for Jay

January birthday girl Mer hangs with her Mom

Charades planning in full force

Isabelle totally raked in the draw prizes! Keep winning in 2012, girl!

Cousins All Around

It was so nice to be in Toronto where although things are busy, everywhere we go there are new friends and family to spend quality time with. After our snowy adventures on the hills, we retired to Stouffville for the evening and lots of fun with little ones running everywhere. We started off with just a few pizza party attendees, but more and more kept showing up!  First Uncle Chris, then Aunt Janice, then finally the road weary Haligonians, Gran and Grandpa and Auntie Mer! Oliver and Isabelle totally loved the wide open basement, especially the wide toy selection. Oliver latched onto Mack from Cars and you would have been hard-pressed to pry it from his hands!  Isabelle carted her doll around and chilled out with her younger cousins. It was a great spot for the kids to have fun while the adults caught up with each other upstairs. The visits just keep on coming, we still have the Danforth, Scarborough and the big new year's party on the agenda!

Isabelle the iPod expert provides some guidance to Carys

Good job, Matthew! Hockey, not soccer!

Oliver bewildered by the size and contents of the toy room

Isabelle, always with her American Girl doll close at hand

Daddy hangs out with little Matthew

Surprise! Gran arrived to cap off a great day!

Finally, Some Snow!

We waited forever for some snow to arrive and it finally came on Christmas Day, however we were a bit preoccupied that day to get out and enjoy it. Lucky for us that vacation was now in full swing and we had some playmates to meet up with and enjoy the white stuff, namely cousins Carys and Peter, as well as Liam and Sarah. We bundled up and travelled out to the east end of Toronto, where Auntie Jessica had discovered a perfect spot for some tubing, sledding and general merriment. The weather cooperated as well, just cold enough to make the snow nice and fresh, but with none of the bitter winds that can ruin the fun of a day like this. Isabelle was a bit leery at the beginning but she only needed to see her cousins zooming around and having a blast before she was truly hooked. In what was definitely not a shock to any of us, Oliver was less enthused. The boy is not overly hip to new activities as of late that's for sure. After many minutes of clinging and crying, he was finally convinced to do one slide down and then headed straight for the car, where he was asleep within minutes. The rest of the crew followed shortly, cheeks rosy from all their hard work, snow pants soaking wet and smiles from ear to ear. If only snow and Xmas vacation were on the agenda every day of the year!

Reunited with cousin Sarah

Peter the Snow Angel

Carys and Matthew take a break

Oliver's one and only trip down the hill

Oh what fun is is to ride...

Right Up Our Alley

Let's see you try bowling while attached to someone!

Christmas vacation is a nice time to get out as a group and do something fun. With little snow outside yet and a blustering wind coming into town, we stuck inside but still accomplished our goal. Isabelle and Oliver joined up with their cousins and aunts and uncles and went bowling for the first time! Isabelle took to it naturally. Even though the weight of the balls surprised her, she soon got the hang of it and with the help of the bumpers racked up a number of nice frames. Oliver took to it a bit more gingerly, clinging to his mom, being very protective of one specific ball, and preferring to employ his hockey stick as part of his delivery. It was a really fun time for everyone, getting our competitive juices flowing for a couple of hours before we headed off for a big group lunch. We are all looking forward to a rematch at future reunions, the adults only have a few more years left before the kids start beating us regularly!

Nice wingspan, Matthew!

Chilling with her cousins

So stylish that she matches the dress, the ball and the shoes!

Mommy (solo this time) after a well-earned spare

The bowling crew

Oliver decided to take the unconventional (and Canadian) route!