being out

It's been a dark clouds, puddles and raincoats kind of week here, but the days before that were perfect.  We got out for walks to the creek and the playground, we sat out on the deck, we ate our meals al fresco, and we played around the backyard while real work was underway getting everything tidy and planted for summer.  Bare feet, dirty feet, new freckles, water-splashed clothes, dusty hands ... and sleepy girls at the end of the day.

By the waterfront downtown, a boardwalk takes you around a little creek and we were lucky to spy on a deer the other day.  Poor thing seemed a little out of place, but it was neat to watch for a while.

Can you tell we got ourselves a new lens for our camera?  Not from the dramatic change in photo quality, I'm sure, but because I'm back in photo-memory.  The girls do have a mom!  Suddenly Levi's interested in being behind the camera again.  It was the perfect gift for Mama's Day/B'day - something to hobby with again and to remind me to look for loveliness.

Avery's been on watering can duty and is proud to have a couple pots to tend - one of which is strawberries that are already showing fruit.  Nothing beats a garden fresh strawberry!

It's such a good thing, being out.

33

Upon turning 33.  What a cute little number that is.  

A couple weeks ago we sat with Levi's Oma over lunch one Sunday afternoon.  Now in her nineties, she's still sharp and wise and enjoys a good laugh, her memories are full and rich with the kind of stories I often find in a good wartime novel, and she thinks the younger generations don't celebrate birthdays enough.  Not in the sense of elaborate parties or plans, but in being joyful and thankful for another year of life!  I had to agree.  How many birthdays go by without a little (or a lot) of complaint about aging, woe and sadness that we're creeping further away from our youth, frowns over new wrinkles or grey hairs, or what we've expected but haven't received.  Forget that!  First b'day in a long time where I was just happy to be me and have a great day, and it really was!

It's good to be here, where I am, with who I am, and with what I have.  I'm thankful for my 33 years!

stateside

It's been a while since we had a little getaway with the girls, and this past weekend was the perfect chance to drive down to Bellingham to hang with the Browns and take our families on a daytrip to the Seattle Zoo.  

Half price for mother's that day!  Woot!  There is a perk to the job!  Of course the job comes with the reality that I coudn't shake that Raffi song "mom's takin' us to the zoo tomorrow, zoo tomorrow, zoo-oo-oo tomorrow" and now I've done it to myself again just thinking about it.

The next day, Katie and I were treated to a delicious breakfast on our lazy Mother's Day morning and otherwise our day was relaxing and chill, but let's face it - the real excitement was yet to come with a Survivor finale party that evening.  A couple more friends joined in for bbq supper and ice cream sundaes (deluxe!!) while we cheered and bantered over the final episode.  The secret's out - we're still completely devoted fans!

Thanks for a happy weekend together and another FTN, friends!

morning

I sent Levi off with the van this morning - an act of goodwill when I noticed how much we'd both slept in - and started to mentally prepare for another day at home with no plans.  Call it a miracle, or whatever you want, but these girls have been playing together for the entire morning.  Making a huge mess, but making it together and happily too!

 It's been a great start to a good day to turn 33!  Happy Birthday to me!

sunday

We discovered a perfect little park up on the edge of a cliff on Sunday.  It overlooks a part of Kelowna we often drive around, but have never stopped to look down on and admire from above.  It's been hot and sunny here and great motivation for sorting out what summery clothes do or don't fit, for picking out new hats for the girls, stocking up on sunscreen, and getting outside!

Such a pretty city we live in!  It's been neat to explore this place we both grew up in.  We took for granted quite a lot of it when we lived here before we had kids, or maybe it's just that after being in such a small town for a few years we're still feeling awed by how much there is to do and how many corners are still unseen.  I'm realizing how much I operate by route, by choosing the familiar, by following the same paths.  Stop it, self!

The mountain meadow is filled with okanagan sunflowers right now.  I did my best to prod the girls into a photo shoot (perfect setting!), but they weren't the most willing models.  Avery was happy enough, but catching her acting natural is nearly impossible.  Ella was just plain pouty.

There's a little playground, too, and Avery was pretty proud of herself for going down the twisty slide - over and over again - which is a first and a milestone we've been coaxing her to try for years.  Such a cautious girl (so much like me!).  I think what won her over was that we described the slide as a big dragon tongue, oddly enough, and then her discovery that it's actually as slow as molasses.

The little one seems to have no trouble taking on new challenges or stepping off ledges.  We'll see how that pans out.

eighteenth mo.

Just in this past month Ella's really been doing some good growing.  She's saying more beginner words and understanding so much of what we say to her.  She loves to laugh and is kind of a big ham around home.  Her besties are her two baby dolls and her pink raggy bunny, and her big sissy of course.  She's a snuggler and a hugger and will always come for a kiss.  I find it pretty easy to proclaim that this is my favorite stage, at eighteen months, where it's all bumbling and round bellied cuteness and she can do no wrong (even in the midst of a tantrum), so I'm soaking it up.

Happy 18th month, little beetle!

easter

We had a great weekend celebrating Easter and the risen Jesus!  It's such a beautiful and joyful holiday and it was a lot of fun and we had the sunniest weather.  On Good Friday, my side of the fam joined up for a potluck lunch, complete with my mom's delish homemade paska buns and salads and sandwiches.

After the kids enjoyed a little egg hunt in the backyard, we all went out to a nearby park to play.  So great to get outside together, play a little frisbee, watch the kids run around the tennis courts and playground, and bask in the sun (it was actually hot!).  Perfect day.

We left some simple gifts for the girls to open up on Easter Sunday morning before church.  

(It looks like she was happy for new goodies, but she actually wasn't interested in any of it.)

After church, which was SO full of life, we joined Levi's Oma, uncle and aunt for Easter brunch at the retirement resort Oma lives at.  The girls love going there, despite all the attention they get from adoring old grannies.  Ella was completely tuckered out when we finally took her home for a nap.  Later that day we welcomed Levi's mom (Nana!) back from her three-week holiday to S.Korea, Thailand, and Cambodia and enjoyed the first supper on the back patio to kick off the season.

These girls have spent almost all day outside for the past few days.  They've gone to bed blissfully happy, dirty and tired.  Feels like a taste of summer to come, and I am so excited!  We're going to soak it up before the spring rains come.

Today, on our bonus Easter Monday, we enjoyed the best morning out at a friends' home for a Easter Egg Hunt party.  Lots of children running around, new friends to visit with, baby chicks to peek in at, a brand new baby goat to pet and snuggle (even I held that amazing little goat, and that says something!), trampoline and playhouse and (again) that delicious sunshine.  All great.

And this baby got a little candy, even though it looks like she's been denied.  Chubby little bunny.  

Hope you had a lovely Easter weekend!