Special Day at School

About once a month, I have Duty Day in Arabella's class at school.  She refers to it as her Special Day as she gets to do the weather, calendar and be in charge of the question of the day.  She was so excited when the day finally got here!  I am so lucky that I am able to go to school with her and particpate in her routine.  We had a great day in school and we learned about Thanksgiving, the Indians and Pilgrams and did a fun turkey craft.  She even played on the Mayflower!  Thank you for sharing your special day with me Arabella, I can't wait until next time when I get to learn all about Halloween later this month!

Grandpa Dennis & Grandma Ricki Visit

In September, Grandpa Dennis and Grandma Ricki joined us for a visit.  Arabella was very excited to have them come to town, as were Jay and I.  It has been a visit almost 3 years in the making.  We didn't do too much as the weather was not too cooperative and Arabella had school.  But we were able to spend a very nice week with them which is all that matters.  Jay got some cooking lessons from his Dad...

Arabella spent time reading with Grandpa Dennis...

And on the nicest day of their visit, we took them to a great park on the Lakeshore in Pointe Claire.  It was sunny and windy, but it was still great to spend the morning outside enjoying the crisp fall weather.

The visit went by way too fast.  But that is what happens when you are having fun!  We enjoyed having Grandpa Dennis and Grandma Ricki for a visit and hope that they can come back soon!

Chef in the Making

Arabella has been into helping me cook and bake.  She helped make tomato sauce from scratch:

And we made delicious apple sauce from all the apples we picked!  It didn't last long and it was so good, that we need to make another batch!

September Birthday Parties

It seems like September just flew by.  We were very busy with school and getting into the swing of things.  Arabella was invited to two birthday parties - her friend Cristina and a new friend from school, Meredith. 

Cristina's 5th Birthday Party was at Quinn Farm.  It was an apple picking party and it was so much fun.  The party took place in the loft of a barn.  The kids enjoyed crafts and then a wagon ride to the orchard to pick a bag full of apples.  They loved it!  After the apple picking, we went back to the barn for some yummy food and cupcakes.  Before we left, we went to check out the animals and play a little bit outside.  Arabella had so much fun celebrating with Cristina and it was a great place to host a party!

Meredith's Birthday Party was Cat in the Hat themed and each child was given a t-shirt and Cat in the Hat hat to wear to the party.  It was at an indoor play gym and the kids had a great time running around and playing games!

Apple Picking Field Trip

It seems like forever ago that we went apple picking with Arabella's preschool class!  It was back towards the middle of September - over a month ago - and the apples we picked have long been eaten.  We had the perfect weather for picking the apples - sunny and warm.  Arabella loved the animals at the farm and had a fun time with her classmates learning about apples and how they grow.

Arabella was so excited to pick the apples and the trees were full of fruit.  We picked two large bags and ate a few apples right off the tree!  They were so good!

I am so glad I was able to join Arabella on this field trip.  We had so much fun! 

Happy Anniversary

It is hard to believe that 6 years ago was our wedding!  It was a beautiful late September day and everything turned out just perfect.  I am so lucky to have Jay and we have a pretty good life together.  Now, everything is not always perfect but we have managed through some pretty big ups and downs in our marriage - we have survived 2 moves, including one out of the United States to Canada (Yikes!!  That was a tough one!!), a few home renovation projects, job issues, and a NICU stay (totally not prepared for that one, but don't think I could have made it through that without Jay).  We have a beautiful little girl who brightens our life everyday and another little one on the way.  I am so thankful for the family and life that we continue to build together.  Thank you for everything you have done for me and our family Jay.  I love you. 

Lobster!!!

A while back, Jay was in Nova Scotia visiting the dealer and on the way back he decided to pick up a lobster in the airport.  Yes, they sell fresh lobsters in the airport for you to buy!  And they are pretty reasonable - they will even steam it for you if you want.  But Jay brought home a live one and ever since then, Arabella has been asking him to bring home a lobster every time he visits Nova Scotia.  A few weeks ago her went and she reminded him to bring one home...I'm not sure why she wants him too since she really won't try more than 1 bite and I don't eat it either.  But he did and she was so excited!  They opened the box and took him right out.  She even held him.  And for the next 24 hours he hung out in our fridge waiting to be boiled alive!  Arabella tried it at dinner and Jay ate most of it.  He enjoyed it!

And speaking of lobster, in February of this year, Jay had to travel to Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick for a site visit.  The site was a a lobster farm.  It was interesting to see how the lobsters are kept before going to market. 

And look how big this one is!  Can't imagine how much he would cost...I actually think they should let him go.

Needless to say, we miss Jay when he travels, but he gets to visit some pretty cool places!