October 8, 2012

After a fabulous breakfast at Aunt Nellie and Uncle Gerry's, we headed into Ottawa to show the girls the parliament buildings.  We have a book called, "Canada 123" and the last page is a picture of the parliament buildings, counting 10 tulips in front.  I had it with me and let the girls read in on the drive in.  I told them that we were going to see that building and they chatted about it on the drive.  When we turned the corner and parliament hill came into view, the looks on their faces were priceless!  You would have thought they had just seen the disney castle!  So fun!  We walked around the buildings and went up the Peace Tower before heading back to Brian and Julie's.

October 7, 2012

Today marks the one year anniversary of one of the darkest days in my life.  One year ago today, I crumpled into my Dad's chest, tears streaming down my face as he lay in a hospital bed, the doctor had just told us that there was nothing left to try.  He stroked my hair, thanking me for being so strong through all of this.  I wasn't the strong one, it was him.  He lay there, his head pounding, a tumor pushing his right eye out of the socket, and still he had words of comfort for me.  I still clearly remember that day, sitting outside the cancer clinic as firetrucks screamed by and the air ambulance was landing, on the phone with Wes, trying to make sense of what we were just told, and asking him how soon he could get a flight here. 

Today, we were able to spend time at Aunt Nellie's and Uncle Gerry's house in Carleton Place.  They have this great treehouse, that Claire especially loved to play in.  I was thankful to be able to spend today here, as it was a particularly tough day, with all the memories floating back.  We were able to reminisce from that time, one year ago, and I felt comfort being in the company of my Dad's sister, a female version of him.  When I look into her eyes, I see the same love and grace that I saw in my Dad's eyes.  And that makes me feel good.

October 6, 2012

It's Thanksgiving weekend and we are spending it in Ottawa!  Mike's mom and dad have made the trip from New Brunswick, so the whole family will be together.  It's been awile since that has happened.  Today we drove to Brian and Julie's house and we had veggie's and dip waiting for us when we got there.  Gerry had even brought, turkey, ham and all the fixings for thanksgiving dinner!  So tasty!

October 5, 2012

Our neighbours tree is shedding it's leaves right now and our patio is covered in them!!  The girls love to play in them and I have found at least one rubber boot filled with these leaves. 

October 4, 2012

I've been noticing on our drives to and from Forest on standby that the fall colours are really pretty this year.  They are so vibrant compared to other years.  This is a view out of garage at our ambulance base, not the pretty reds along some of the roads, but still pretty, even for Thedford. 

October 3, 2012

It's been a slow day shift and I had uploaded some photos earlier while at home in hopes of having a few spare moments to catch up.  So I spent a good part of the afternoon today catching up on some blogging.  It's been way overdue and lately, I've been struggling to find time to fit everything in.

October 2, 2012

I have been wanting a picture of the four of us in a silouette at sunset all summer.  Now that the days are shorter, the sun sets earlier and we didn't really have to compromise bedtime to get a picture, so we climbed into the bike trailer and rode off to the beach.  Both girls were tired and grumpy, and were fighting with each other all the way here.  But the best part about a silouette is that you can't see your face and you would never have guessed that we weren't the picture of family bliss. 

October 1, 2012

Originally we thought that Mike was going to be in Caledonia all week for protests, but he was sent home last night as they were not needed!  Hurray!!  So today, we took advantage of the nice weather and the four of us being together, and headed to the Pinery for a family hike!   Claire was singing along the trail with her bucket full of acorns that she had picked.

And we found a couple of caterpillers along the way.

The trail that we were on led to a lookout at the beach and Maverick had lots of fun chasing sticks in the water!



Even Ava was picking acorns along the way.



September 30, 2012

Mmmmm, candy....Big Foot in particular are my favourite!  It's been a slooooow day at work, but we managed to get out on a standby to Forest long enough to do a Macs run and get some Big Feet to get me through the day!  And they were 2 for $2, even better!!

September 29, 2012

This summer a couple of people from our station attended a VBS camp in Thedford to show off and explain the ambulance.  The kids were impressed and made us banners to hang up at our station!  This is a picture from one of the banners and it makes me laugh every time I see it.  The innocence of young kids... It also made me think of one of the calls we heard over the air today, as one of the public defibrillators saved a man's life.  He was conscious as another crew brought him into the hospital.  It just wasn't his time.

September 28, 2012

And it's back to work I go...inventory to be done today.

September 27, 2012

This week is such a long week for me, because of my recerts, I am working 6 out of the 7 days.  Today is my one day off and we have lots of things that need to get done today.  Grocery shopping being the first order of business.  Claire is in school today, so it's just Ava and I singing as we shop.

Septembe 26, 2012

Once a year we have to attend an 8 hour training day to recertify our protocols for work, and today is the day.  What this entails is going through a bunch of skill stations, lectures and writing a test.  It's usually pretty boring and I would much rather spend my day off at home with my girls, however, it's one day, and must be done. 

September 25, 2012

When I work day shifts, I will often set my alarm for a hour earlier so that I can ride my bike on the trainer or go for a run before work.  This morning my alarm was set, and when it went off, it was promptly turned off and I enjoyed that extra hour of sleep!

September 24, 2012

Today is my birthday and I turn "firdy six" (36) as Claire would say.  Unfortunately I spent my birthday working a day shift, but came home to a Dairy Queen ice cream cake!  Apparently two little girls couldn't wait until I got home to dive in, but at least the letters are still there and we all had a piece before Claire and Ava went to bed.

September 23, 2012

Laundry.....I think what I dislike about folding the girls laundry is all the little underwear.  I usually leave them to the end and it seems to take me just as long to fold them as it does the rest of the laundry.  However, I am thankful that I am folding little underwear and not changing diapers anymore!

September 22, 2012

It's time for the Forest Fall Fair!  We started the day by watching the parade.

Then it was off to find the carnival rides!!  The first words out of Claire's mouth when we arrived were, look they have a dragon rollercoaster!!  One of her favourites!

They had so much fun, and now Ava is old enough to go on most of them by herself too!  Great day.

September 21, 2012

Daddy's home today from his week away at training!!  The girls were happy to see him and snuggled right in as he read them bedtime stories.

September 20, 2012

I got these new running shoes in August and after the first run in them, I developed huge painful blisters.  They have been in the closet ever since.  Until today.  It was the perfect day for a run, so armed with moleskin, I put them on again.  This time with no problems, except for a few sore muscles since I haven't run in well over a month....

September 18, 2012

Mike is gone this week to Meaford for training, Claire is in school today and Ava and I are both feeling a little under the weather.  Perfect time for some snuggles with Mummy.  I finally got a new battery for my Dad's wireless remote trigger for the camera, and with the help of a tripod, I get a picture with myself in it! 

September 17, 2012

Today I took the girls to Rondeau Park for a "hike".  I haven't been on the hiking trails there in years and couldn't really remember what each trail was like.  I remember Dad talking about the Marsh Trail so we decided on that one.  I thought there might be some boardwalks or bridges to cross and the girls always find that exciting.  We didn't find any bridges or boardwalks, just a flat, wide, gravel path...  And after hiking in Killarney, perhaps this terrain just wasn't challenging enough for them....  The rocks and the flowers were much more interesting....

September 16, 2012

I have the day to myself today.  Well sort of, I worked last night and work again tonight, so the girls are having a sleepover at Oma's and Mike is in Caledonia.  After getting some much needed sleep, I headed outside with my macro lens to find some flowers.  Something I haven't done much of lately...I've missed most of the blooms on our bushes and plants this summer, but found these hydrangea's in the backyard.  They used to be a vibrant pink colour and are now fading to the pink/brown of fall.  Makes me think of how fast summer has gone by and also to this time, last year.  These were the last few "good" days that my dad had and the last days that Claire and Ava got to run around outside with him on the farm as he puttered away, still trying to fix things.  I think his last project was to fix the hitch on the trailer so that it would have something to support itself on, when it wasn't attached to a vehicle.  That project was never finished....

September 15, 2012

Today we celebrated the wedding of Andrew and Colleen, who were married Labor Day weekend in Thunder Bay.  A pig roast was held at Uncle John and Aunt Eileen's complete with a hay ride!  Unfortunately, I didn't even get a picture of the happy couple or the huge congratulatory banner as you entered the farm.  I am blaming it on lack of sleep from last nights night shift and a developing cold....  It was a great day and it was nice to catch up with Aunts, Uncles and cousins again!  Here are Zach and Janelle pretending to drive the old tractor which would take all the kids on hayrides.

 

 And here are Mike, Claire and Ava returning from the never ending hayride that almost made me late for work.  At least they had fun!!

September 14, 2012

Claire has been really interested in taking photos these days.  We had gotten her this Fisher Price digital camera for christmas last year, it actually takes a picture and you can download them to the computer if you like.  Here she is taking a picture of Ava.

September 13, 2012

Today, Claire is at school, so Ava and I took Maverick for a nice long walk, taking advantage of these last summer-like days.  It's been a long time, since I've been able to go for a walk with just one child.  I remember when Claire was this age, she was still content to sit in the stroller while we walked.  Now, Ava, she likes to be able to walk and actually ran most of the way down this trail.  I had told her she could walk herself along the trail, but along the road, she had to been in the stroller.  Thankfully that was a good compromise for her and Maverick was good and tired by the time we returned home.

September 12, 2012

Claire has been asking for awhile to go swimming.  Unfortunately our friends with pools, have been unavailable lately and when I offer to take Claire to the beach, she doesn't want to go there either.  She wants to go somewhere that she can jump in.  So today, her friend Kenean invited us over.  And this is Claire jumping in!!  This is such a big deal, because at the start of the summer, she still had a hard time getting her face wet, definately would not jump in without holding your hand and couldn't swim on her own.  Now look at her!  I am so proud of the confidence that she has gained!!  Way to go Claire!!

September 11, 2012

Claire took the bus to school today for the first time, and yes, I was "that" mom who lurked in the shadows, making sure she got there ok.  Of course she did and was already safely at school by the time I got there, running around in the playground.  You can see Claire in this picture, but the bell had just rung and they were lining up ready to go inside.

September 10, 2012

This summer, yogurt tubes have been a big hit at our house.  I put them in the freezer, so they are just like a popsicle only healthier.  Most days, I have a little hand tugging on my shorts asking "I have a tube, Mummy?"

September 8, 2012

I love, love, love, Ava's curls that appear in the humid weather!

September 7, 2012

It's cleaning day at our house and Claire was a big help, wiping down the baseboards.  She also loves cleaning toilets and usually asks if I can save the bathrooms so that she can help me.  Love it!  I hope that she never tires of helping me!

September 6, 2012

Mmmmmm, moose tracks ice cream!  They are selling it at store by our base and the girls that work there just load the ice cream into the cups.  When I first started, we could get a cup like this for $1.25 for the good ice cream.  Now it's $3.00.  Doesn't matter to me, still tastes delicious on a hot day!

September 5, 2012

I think I have posted before about this creepy old warehouse across from our ambulance base.  It has this old door that is being overgrown by weeds and bushes, some with these pretty pink flowers...There has been this letter attached to the door for quite some time now and I'm dying to know what it says...However, I will contain myself and leave it there, as it really is none of my business.