Le Petite Gym "Graduation"

Today was Arabella's "graduation" from Le Petite Gym. It amazes me at how much her skill level has improved and how strong she is. She loves going to the Gym and playing with the other kids. She likes to learn new "tricks" and is obsessed with the bars, she loves to hang on them and pull herself up. We had a make-up class yesterday so Jay came with us to see how well she is doing in the class. I think he was also impressed by her skills. At the end of class they held a medal ceremony for all of the kids. It was too cute seeing her go up when called and getting her medal from her teacher. She loved it! Mommy is so proud of you Arabella, you are such a dynamic and amazing little girl! Keep up the great work!

I know I am looking forward to her fall sessions and to see just how much more she is able to to. And I am sure that Arabella will look forward to the classes as well!

Thursday's Thoughts

Hearing: Katy Perry's new song "California Gurls" play over and over in my head.

Tasting: My new favorite lunch - organic sprouted whole grain wrap with hummus, lettuce, red onion, cucumbers and sprouts.



Seeing: The sunshine...it has been absent lately so it is a very welcome sight!

Smelling: Cupcakes that I baked earlier for the Pool Club...I need to get them out of the house or they are going to wreck my diet!

Feeling: Pain, that good pain that you feel after working out when your muscles are tight and sore, from the Yoga Groove class that I went to with Victoria last night. Maybe it is just me, but I like that feeling.

Pool Time

Arabella has been anxiously awaiting the for the day we could go to the pool and today was the day! We played at the park for a while this morning and saw the older kids at diving practice and she wanted to go and dive too. She was not happy when we had to leave so she could go take a nap, but I promised her when she got up we would go to the pool. When she got up, she was excited to put on her new bathing suit and pick out her towel, she even carried it in her backpack all by herself. We are very lucky that the pool is within walking distance from out house, so we packed up the stroller and make the trip over. It was the perfect evening for swimming. She had a lot of fun in the baby pool which was perfect for her to play in and explore. I then took her into the second pool and we we splashed and swam around for a little while before her lips turned blue and her teeth started chattering. She had a lot of fun and I know we will be spending a lot of time at the pool this summer!

Train Ride

For some adventure, we decided to take the train into Montreal. The only train experience I have is with Metro North, NYC subways and the T in Boston. Jay has experience from living outside Chicago we figured that it could be too hard to figure out. One of the nice things about living here is the easy access to public transportation. We have two train stations in very close proximity to our house, as well as, bus stops. And much of downtown is connected by the Metro or subway.

Arabella was very excited to take the train and this was her very first train ride. She had a lot of fun. One of the nice things about trying to figure the system out on the weekend was that the trains were fairly open. She helped Jay buy the tickets at the station and while we were waiting a noisy and very long freight train came by the tracks. Arabella didn't know what to think of being so close to the train, at first she was scared but then I think she liked watching it go by.

We had a fun time riding the train. Arabella enjoyed watching the world go by outside her window. And it was nice to be able to relax on the way to Montreal and not have to worry about where you are going to park or how much it is going to cost you. We have had to pay $16 to park downtown on a few occasions and if you don't want to pay that, you have to pay the parking meters that are everywhere!

We also took the subway. One major difference from New York is the cleanliness of the subway. We even saw a worker cleaning while we were waiting for our subway car to arrive. In all of my time working in New York and visiting, I don't think I ever saw someone cleaning the subway!

When was the last time you saw subway tracks this clean??



Once downtown, we walked around and had some lunch. It was a beautiful day to be outside and since this weekend was the Grand Prix in Montreal, there were streets closed so cars could be on display.






Jay enjoyed checking out the different cars and I enjoyed walking along St. Catherine's and window shopping. Although the streets were pretty busy so it was a little hard to take in all the stores. Jay did let me stop in Lululemon, which is my new favorite workout clothing. I was good and didn't buy a thing! St. Catherine's has any and every store imaginable, restaurants and churches. But it still amazes me that interspersed between the stores, churches and restaurants there are strip clubs. And not just one or two but a lot!

All in all, we had a fun day and were wiped out last night but it was a nice change of pace. And I think based on our experience yesterday, we will be using the train again in the future.

Kitchen Helper

Arabella loves to help me make my green smoothies in the morning. Yesterday she wanted to help me make my dinner. For dinner I made zucchini spaghetti with pesto and nutritional yeast (a yeast that is yellow in color and has a nutty cheesy flavor. It is an inactive yeast that is a favorite amongst many vegans because of its unique flavor and similarity to cheese when added to foods.) It was a great meal and hit the spot with me. Jay tried it and he said it was really good. Maybe I will be able to get him to eat raw food after all.








I know some of you may still think I am crazy for doing this raw food "diet" but I have to tell you that I feel great. I am working out twice a day and in less than a month, I have lost over 10 pounds. For me it is about incorporating small changes in my diet (as well as Jay and Arabella's). We have started to cut out many processed foods. All of the meat that Jay and Arabella (sometimes I will eat meat, but it is not that often) eat is organic. I am on my third book about raw food and when I am done, I will have a separate post on them. It is so interesting to read about how small changes can have such an impact on your overall health and well being.

Sleeping Beauty

This morning Arabella had Le Petite Gym and it must have really worn her out. When I went up to get her room ready for her nap, she wasn't ready to go so I left her downstairs for a few minutes. When I went to get her, this is what I found on the couch. She is my sleeping beauty!

Going for a Ride

This is for Grammie and Uncle Mike - Arabella enjoys taking a spin on her new tricycle with Teddy in the trunk! Can you believe how good she has gotten since she started riding it in Florida? And I know, she should have shoes on....