road trip tips?

Parents, Aunts and Uncles, friends and even friends of friends. I want to hear all your tips on traveling with the wee ones. What are your must haves - food, games, gear- I want to hear it all. Share your best kept secrets with all of us, pretty please!

DIY green apple centerpiece

Are you hosting a party or just want to spruce up your house with a beautiful centerpiece? It only takes a few minutes to put together this green and white creation. You may remember this post on my girlfriends rustic backyard wedding reception after which I had several people contact me asking where she ordered her centerpieces from - I was happy to report that my girlfriend purchased a couple of bouquets of flowers (white and lime green carnations, and green spider mums) at Costco, picked up a few bags of granny smith apples, and borrowed the glass bowls from this momma (which I purchased at the Dollar Store a few years back.)

We tossed in the granny smith apples, cut the flowers to our liking, placed them in the bowl, topped it up with some water and volia, a beautiful centerpiece. I love love love this rustic and earthy centerpiece but the best part is that you can DIY!

sometimes i need a reminder

My children are so much alike in so many ways but in some ways, they couldn't be further apart. As we headed off the park the other day, I was reminded again my children are their own person. I know they will each have their own likes and dislikes growing up but often times I need to remind myself not to compare them.

As we hit up the park, both kids had a huge smile on their face. Little Miss L. couldn't stop talking about how excited she was to play in the water. We were there for mere minutes when her attitude quickly changed. As much as the water tempted her, she stood watching as all the other children frolicked through the water in front of her. She watched them zip by as they climbed up the rocks to go zooming down the water-slide. You could see how desperately she wanted to join them. After several attempts of walking Little Miss L. up to the slide, standing in line with her, and even once had her sitting on her bottom ready to go, she decided no way was she going to attempt the slide. She figured there was no issue just walking back down the hill and watching as all the other children came flying out the other end. We were there a good hour and all she wanted to do was stick her foot into the squirts of water happening all around her.

On the other hand, there was baby D. He had a huge smile on his face the minute he noticed the water before him. He quickly had no problem jumping into the shooting water, grabbing it with his little hands. He didn't care the water was cold, he didn't care if it was smashing him in the face... instead he continued to crawl in and out of the bursts of water. At one point, he was even able to get his sister to jump up and down into the water for a short period of time.

A simple trip to the park reminds me that my children will approach things in life differently. Whether one does it one way and other does it the opposite way, I will be there to love them both with all my heart.

She climbed these rocks steps a hundred times.

And a hundred times she came back down them.

Carefully planning out her plan of action.

Watching all the action around her.

Baby D takes on the water.

and he's off...

The good ol' one foot touch.

Look, baby D, I am jumping just for you!

Little Miss L. had no issue tackling the playground though.

birthday shout out!

Sending a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY shout out to my awesome little brother! We hope you have a fabulous day uncle Brady :) Baby D even decided to have a crazy hair day in your honour.

edible paint

Looking to get a little messy with your little ones this summer but don't want to worry about what they may be putting in their mouth? It's time to make your own edible paint! It literally takes two minutes max and you only need three ingredients. I used four Ikea bowls and filled each with 1/4 cup of white flour, 1/2 of cold water, and a drop of food colouring. Stir it all up and away you go! It's fast, easy, and safe for the kiddos. The kids had a blast painting each other and the paper.

If you are looking for another edible finger paint option, check out this post I wrote a while back.

HAPPY PAINTING EVERYONE!

summer lovin'

Summer lovin', had me a blast

Summer lovin', happened so fast

Met a girl crazy for me

Met a boy cute as can be

Summer days drifting away

To, uh oh, those summer nights

I just can't seem to get that song out of my head these days and I bet you after reading this you will be humming away this tune for the remainder of the day. This past weekend we decided to stay put at home. No traveling... no parties... no plans. We enjoyed putting around the house fixing/cleaning up a few things on our to-do-list, and just lounging about. It was nice to take a few moments where we didn't feel like we had to rush off. It was a wonderful summer weekend at home...

Summer means dinner on the patio.

Summer means eating in our bathing suits.

Summer means working on all of our DIY projects.

Summer means spending our evenings outdoors around the fire.

Summer means roasting marshmallows for dessert.

Summer means s'mores!

Summer means no socks.

Summer means barbecuing our dinner.

Summer means afternoons spent playing hopscotch.

Summer means chilling on the swing.

Summer means the warm breeze blowing through your hair.

Summer means putting your feet up and just relaxing.

Summer means passing out after a good meal.

it's the weekend!

Happy Friday! Hope everyone enjoyed their short work week. Have a wonderful weekend :)

canada day

Oh Canada! We celebrated your birthday the good ol' Canadian way - an outdoor barbecue with family and friends. The weather was warm, the beer was cold, the barbecue was fired up, the kids giggled about as they splashed in the water and we ended off the perfect day with the boom of wonderful colours lighting the sky. We sure do live in a beautiful country and I am so thankful each and every day.

Daddy trying to teach the kids how to use the slip-n-slide.

BBQ time!

Nothing says summer like a hot dog :)

My beautiful girlfriend with Baby C in her belly. Can't wait to meet him.

Baby E and daddy soaking up the sunshine. I think it tired Baby E out.

Baby D playing with his Aunties.

Mr. J and dad relaxing.

Best friends :)

Time to attempt a group photo...

Take one...

Take two...

the final shot!

Baby D all smiles when Auntie Meg is holding him.

First time roasting marshmallows this summer .

It didn't take long for Little Miss L. to figure it out.

Enjoying the gooey goodness.

Time for the fireworks.

What's better than sitting in your own backyard enjoying these?! Hope everyone had a fabulous Canada Day weekend!