~ Halloween 2009 ~

The Evolution of our Pumpkin!

I thought Lennah would enjoy carving her first pumpkin - I was mistaken. I thought she would love to stick her little mitts inside and pull out all those pumpkin seeds - wrong! After making sure her fairy wings were on, she proceeded to draw the faces she wanted me to carve. I think she was surprised at the "eau du pumpkin", that seemed to seal the deal. She was having none of this messy job! It was now all up to me. I think with Lennah's direction, our pumpkin turned out okay!

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Here are the kids in their respective costumes. Lennah as Rapunzel Fairy, Charley as our monarch butterfly, and my bad boy biker, Nathan

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We had a great Halloween weekend, full of many firsts for both the girls. Lennah attended her first Halloween party at figure skating. She carved her first pumpkin. Both the girls trick or treated for the first time, and saw their first fireworks show. I found myself (and I think Nathan too) getting right into the holiday and enjoyed myself immensely.

~ Toilet Paper ~

I know I've been deliquent to the nth degree when it comes to my blog. But, here are a couple of photos of the girls to tide everyone over. I still have my sister's visit and Jasper camping trip to post, as well as Lennah's hockey saga, which continues. Keep checking, I'll some more for everyone soon enough!

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Doesn't she look so innocent? NOT! We happened upon Charley after she'd disappeared for some time. This is the perfect example of why we've come to putting the toilet paper way, way up high where little "Corns" can't reach it. But she had fun, and we're almost finished using that brand new roll up!

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~ Mom's Visit to McBride ~

I finally got a chance to give Mom a tour of McBride on Monday. First stop, the Whistle Stop Gallery and Beanery coffee shop. As we walked out of the train station this is what we viewed. I have never seen an entire rainbow! We witnessed not just one end, but both. Sadly, we were unable to see the pot of gold!

Next stop, Dunster. This is Mom outside the train station.

Then we were off to the West Twin Old Growth Recreation Trail. It's a 1.5km trail through an old growth forest. It was amazing and so beautiful. Hard to believe it was just along the side of the highway.

Next on our tour was Horseshoe Lake, with it's birdwatching gazebo.

My Mom came for her first of many visits (hint, hint) to McBride this August. She made it up on the 22nd, just in time for Lennah's 3rd Birthday party, that post to follow. We had a very busy 4 day visit. After the birthday on Saturday, I hosted a very successful Undercover Wear party - you're welcome Mom! Then, as you can see from the photos, we kept ourselves busy touring around the immediate area. I didn't even mention that the whole household came down with a cold while Mom was here - sorry 'bout that! We're so glad you could make it up to visit us Grandma.

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~ White Rock ~

Grandma with the girls at the White Rock

This would have been a great photo of Charley without my behind as the backdrop!

Charley's first steps in the ocean. Dontcha just love those booties? Thank you to Nana.

Here we are in the actual ocean, not just the rivulet into the ocean.

Awww, squishy in the barefeet.

On my last visit to the coast this September, Mom and I took the girls to the ocean at White Rock beach. It wasn't Lennah's first visit to the ocean, she went to Crescent Beach when she was about 8 months old with Nana and Auntie Ju. But it was Charley's first time. We had a lot of fun. We walked the promenade all the way to the Rock, past it to the pier and back for fish and chips lunch. The kids played for about a half hour in the water and again, they went home sans pants and shoes in their panties and diaper!

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~ Library Card ~

This one is for Nana! I'm proud to report that Lennah has 'acquired' her first library card this week. We attended a Mother Goose program at the McBride Public Library on Tuesday which prompted Lennah and I to sign up for our memberships. Here's a photo of the first of many books Lennah will no doubt read and digest to their full literary potential!

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~ Puddle Jumping - Chapter 2 ~

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You can see in the background the temptation - PUDDLES!

It all started out innocently enough, or should I say tame?

I'm not sure who was having more fun - Nathan or the girls?

Pruney Feet! Both the girls rode home sans pants, socks and shoes!

We've finally ventured out to see some of the surrounding area here in McBride. The girls and I have been here since mid July and I haven't seen anything but the town itself. So, Nathan took us to Holmes River about 10 minutes out of town. The falls, while small, were very pretty. But, as you can see the girls and Nathan had a ton of fun in the mud puddles.

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~ Lennah's Room ~

After Lennah started discarding all the pillows onto the floor, Charley stopped to take a rest.

It's still a work in progress, but here's a sneak preview of Lennah's "big girl" room that I've been working on since she was still in her crib. I've had the bedding for about a year and a half, the drapes, bedskirt and mirrors a year, you get the picture? I still have to hang her mirror and ballet print that she got for her first birthday, but I think it's coming along quite nicely.

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