Arabella's New Swing

While Grammie was here, she did an awesome job of spoiling Arabella. One of Arabella's favorite spoilings was her new swing! We had a challenge in finding a tree in our yard that we could hang it from but once we did, Arabella was swinging away! She loves it! Thanks Grammie!

Thanks Mom/Grammie

Thank you Mom/Grammie for spending your vacation visiting with us. We had so much fun and Arabella is still asking for you. We miss you already. I loved hearing you and Arabella playing and giggling, those are memories that I will not soon forget, and I don't think Arabella will either. You did what Grammies do best - you spoiled her - she looks so cute in her new bathing suit, she loves her books and flash cards, and she has so much fun swinging on her new swing!











Whether we were showing you the sights or hanging out on the patio and enjoying the fire pit, it was so nice to be able to spend time with you. I/we had more fun that you will know and we hope that you enjoyed your visit and come back soon!





Thank you Mom/Grammie, we love you!

Terrific Tuesday

Tuesday was another beautiful day so we decided to get out and enjoy the sunshine some more since we don't know how long it will last and it is way too hot in Florida for Grammie to enjoy the sunshine there! We headed to Mont Royal and Lac aux Castors so that Arabella could show Grammie a few more sights and so she could run off some energy!

Looking down on Montreal from Mont Royal is beautiful, no matter what the season. Each time I go, I am still amazed at the places you can see and just how big of a city it is.







We also took a walk around Lac aux Castors and Arabella had a fun time feeding the ducks and fish her crackers. She and Grammie then went for a little run around as well. It was wonderful to see her having so much fun and enjoying all the time she spent with Grammie.

Magnificent Monday

After a rainy and chilly weekend, Monday was a welcome sight. Sure it was little like Fall in the early morning and we need sweaters when we left the house, but it turned into a beautiful, sunny late Summer day! We took Grammie to Pointe Claire Village and took her to some of our favorite shops and Arabella's favorite place for macaroons. Our first stop was Babar Books, our favorite independent bookstore. It is a wonderful small bookstore that has a play area for Arabella to have fun in while I check out the books. She likes to check out the books too, but once she has had her fill it is nice for her to have another distraction so I don't feel rushed. Mom and I had fun looking at some great books and Grammie even spoiled Arabella with a new book and alphabet flash cards (there will be a separate post on them since both are Fabulous Finds!). Needless to say, Arabella loves both the book and her flash cards and has been having fun playing with them since Monday!



After Babar Books, we checked out a few other shops and then headed to Bilboquet to get some lunch and macaroons. As soon as we opened the door, Arabella beelined to the case so she could pick out her macaroons. It was too adorable. We had a very nice and low key lunch and it was yummy like always. Arabella ate 4 1/2 macaroons and didn't want to share them with Grammie, after some buttering up, she gave in and let Grammie have 1 of the 6 she picked out!



Since having lunch with Grammie is a treat for us, and Arabella was being so good and ate a really good lunch, she was treated to a very mini ice cream cone! She even shared it with us!





After lunch, we walked to the Lakeshore and enjoyed the afternoon sunshine and fresh air. It was the perfect day!

Rainy Sunday

Last Sunday, we went to Mass at Notre Dame Basilica and in one word it was: BEAUTIFUL! The whole Mass was in French which added a whole new dimension to your typical Mass experience, the choir and organ were wonderful and Arabella was a perfect little angel. She kept saying "Big church, quiet". We had not taken her to Mass in a very long time so we were not too sure what to expect. It was one thing to visit the Basilica as a "tourist" but it I am finding it hard to find the words to describe what it is like to participate in a Mass there. I wish that the Basilica was closer because if it was, Arabella and I would go to Church there weekly. We all enjoyed Mass and afterwards we walked to Old Montreal to get a late lunch. Even in the rain it was nice and it wasn't as crowded as it usually is. It made it easier to window shop, take in the architecture and walk on the sidewalks. Arabella had fun carrying her own umbrella and after getting a little too chilly, we headed back to the car and Jay gave Grammie a driving tour of the old port and some other parts of Montreal that we weren't able to see due to the weather. Even though it was a rainy day, we still had fun! Once we got home, Arabella, Grammie and I put on some warm clothes and took a late afternoon nap, which was the perfect way to end the day!

Finnegan's Market and IKEA

On Saturday, we decided to head off the island and go to Finnegan's Market in Hudson. Finnegan's is a antique flea market of sorts which also has fresh fruit, veggies, baked goods and crafts. It was an overcast and drizzly day, but it didn't stop us from poking around and checking out the wares. Arabella ate her way through the market, she and Jay shared hot dogs, brownies and she even wanted some of the berries that I bought. And I finally found an old wooden swivel desk chair that I have been wanting and I must say that it is more comfortable than our regular chair and I don't even have a pad for the seat yet! Best of all, we got it for $40! We will definitely be making another trip to Finnegan's!











While Arabella napped and since it was a rainy afternoon, I took Mom to IKEA. She had never been to IKEA before and this was certainly an experience for her. As soon as we got to the parking lot, we had to follow someone to their car so we could get their parking space. The store was mobbed, you would think that they were giving things away...but to our dismay, they were not! As we walked around and explored the store, it seemed as if the parking lot deceived us. It was busy, but no more busy than I had seen on other occasions. However, as soon as we turned the corner to get in line at the registers, we got an eye full! Every line was packed and it was just a sea of people. The lines moved along, maybe we waited 20 minutes, so not too bad. Mom had a good time for her first trip and It was fun to have some time just with Mom since we don't get to do that too often.

Showing Grammie The Sights

Arabella has become quite the tour guide since we moved here. The first place Arabella took Grammie was the Olympic Stadium and Botanical Gardens. We were planning on also going to the Biodome, but it has been closed since June due to a Labor dispute, which is not uncommon in Montreal. Arabella was very excited to go up to the top of the Montréal Tower Observatory. The Observatory is located in the highest inclined tower in the world, with its 175-metre elevation and 45-degree angle. The Tower of Pisa, by comparison, has a 5-degree angle. From the top of the Observatory, you can see the whole city of Montreal, the River, and up to 80 kilometers in each direction which would include the Laurentian Mountains. To get to the top of the Observatory, you have to take a funicular´s which is like a big elevator which travels up the outside of the Observatory. The cabin of the funicular has large windows that allow for a panorama of Montréal during the ascent and descent. The funicular-which travels 2.8 metres per second-makes approximately along its 266 metres of rail and each ascension takes less than 2 minutes. The views from the Observatory were beautiful and it is so different when you see the city from up high. It was also fun to pick out places where we have been.











After the Observatory, we walked to the Montreal Botanical Gardens. I was amazed by the size of the Gardens and it such a gem tucked away in a busy part of the City. It reminded me of the New York Botanical Gardens, a place for quiet and peace in a bustling urban area. The Gardens have a collection of 22,000 plant species and cultivars, 10 exhibition greenhouses, some thirty thematic gardens, and the Montréal Botanical Garden ranks as one of the world's largest botanical gardens. They even had a large playground for Arabella and she had fun playing there for a while. Arabella enjoyed running around and leading the way on the walking paths. She and Grammie had fun looking for fish in the Japanese Garden. She also had fun riding the train around the Gardens, we actually had to take 2 rides on it since she was having so much fun. We had perfect weather and it was nice to spend it outside, enjoying natures beauty with my 2 favorite people!