Mid summer check in

Things I'm up to:

- I am so loving the BBC show Killing Eve.  Not only is the story about a sociopathic assassin addicting, but the clothing (i.e. Burberry, Mui Mui) serious eye candy.

- Vic and I are thinking about our summer vacation 2019.  Right now we are seriously contemplating going back to France (maybe the Loire Valley) or doing another Uniworld River Cruise.  The kids are itching to go back on a cruise.

- I bought these  from the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale.  A bit pricey but the sale made it more affordable.

- Work is intense.  Our company just purchased a small insurance agency so the HR matters that pertain to the deal are keeping me and my small team busy in August.

- A photo from Paris close to the Eiffel Tower.

Back to School

The summer has been a great one!  We had an amazing trip to France, Fynn took a two night back country camping trip with Wild Wonders, Sophie went to Winnipeg for two great weeks at RWB and we capped it off with a long weekend in Osoyoos at Walnut Beach.  I truly think it was one of the best summers we have had as a family.

This week we get back into our routines.  Sophie is in Grade 8 and Fynn is in Grade 5.

Here they are for that obligatory back to school photo.

life

August has been somewhat low for me.  Not sure why -- the month only started, but again I am feeling overwhelmed (prepping for our two weeks in Winnipeg that are coming up) with much to do and never enough time to do it in.  My neck started really acting up again and as much as I tried to self treat it, nothing was working so I headed over to my chiropractor.  She has been working it out and it seems to be getting better, but it didn't help when I left my amazing pillow at my parent's place over the August long weekend.  Thankfully mom shipped it up to me on the bus, so tomorrow night I get to sleep on it again!  Ah, the little things in life.

The kids have been immersed in summer camps the past few weeks: Epic Sports Camp, Shuswap Wild Wonders and Science

Camp (for both of them).  It has kept them busy, but also kept me busy with ensuring they are ready to go in the morning.  Ugh.

Here are a couple of my favourite pics from the August long weekend.

summer wrap up

Okay, it's not officially over, but we were doing a little post mortem on summer with the kids. What were the highlights, we asked them.

In no official order:

1. Taylor Swift concert - Sophie
2. Sunnybrae Camp -Sophie
3. White Caps Soccer Camp - Fynn
4. Diving and Trampoline Camp - Sophie
5. Math tutoring for Sophie (she will say it was not a highlight, but I beg to differ)
6. Cannon Beach/Oregon Coast - family
7. Multiple dips in our pool - family
8. Grandma/Grandpa/Sue/Travis visit - family
9. Katrina babysitting - Sophie and Fynn
10. Sky Trek - Sophie and Fynn
11. Go carts - Fynn and Vic
12. Running clinic - Sheri and Vic
13. Armstrong IPE - family
14. Sophie breaking her arm (not a highlight, but certainly memorable)
15. Gardening! (massive marigolds, hedge replanting, bumper tomato crop)

relaxing

It's important to relax a bit everyday.

Today it was nice to sleep in on a Saturday and not have to go anywhere in particular.

We spent some time in the pool, read books, and generally hanging out. Tonight Vic and I start Season 2 of Downton Abbey. I can't wait!

summer vacation: a list

Elizabeth Dillow who's blog and scrapbooking style I adore, had a great post about her summer vacation in list fashion.

I looked at Vic tonight after dinner and said "I'm a bit blue that it is Labour Day." How the heck did summer pass so quickly, but when I think about all the stuff we did, it is no wonder it flew by. Gone are the days when I used to spend my summers hanging out and generally being idle.

Here is the list of why our summer flew by:

meals on the covered deck (A LOT)
overnight camp for Sophie
20 or so dips in our pool (I counted)
2 sets of swimming lessons for Sophie
1 set of swimming lessons for Fynn
3 trips down to Oliver (July for the family BBQ, early August on the way back from Vancouver, early Sept)
1 trip to Vancouver (Aquarium)
1 visit from our friend Jim
2 sleepovers for Sophie
summer piano lessons
1 hour of French tutoring per week x about 7 weeks or so
bike riding in the cul-de-sacc
pumpkin patch and raspberry tending
running after work
lots of photos
a trip to Greenwood/Kettle River
a trip to the IPE (Fair)
a trip to the O'Keefe Ranch
a trip to the Osoyoos waterslides
shopping for back to school clothes (Sophie)
Fynn's incessant toilet training "poo" issues

An that is just what I can remember off the top of my head.

Onwards to fall :)

wrapping up our summer vacation

This year we kept things simple (and less expensive) and decided to not go to Vancouver Island this summer. We did 2 nights in Vancouver staying here, with the highlight being the Vancouver Aquarium and also a short visit with Vic's cousin Tiffany one evening. Then we headed to Oliver for 4 nights. Highlights were the water slides, public swimming in Oliver and warm days in the sunny south Okanagan.

thankful

Today I’m thankful for the fact that Vic talked me into installing our pool when we built our house.

He grew up with a pool as a kid and had nice memories of it.

I grew up spending summers going to Haynes Point beach on occasional Sundays or going to the town pool.

With our own pool steps from our door we have been in it 4 days this week. Sophie and Maggie were in it for over 3 hours this afternoon. I couldn't believe they weren't getting bored but not a chance. Maggie's mom came over to get her at 3pm but she wanted to stay -- so she did.

I look at Sophie and Fynn splashing around - Sophie diving for toys and Fynn riding his "Sharky" and it makes me happy.

We had lunch and dinner on our deck under the gazebo and that topped off a lovely day.

I'm thankful to give my kids the chance to create their own summer routines and memories right in our backyard.

Obama Cookies

Our friends Bryan and Patti arrived back from their Canada Day weekend visit to Ottawa. They brought Sophie and Fynn back some Obama cookies.

In other news, the kids started their swimming lessons today: Sophie is in Level 4 and Fynn is in Sea Turtles. The weather has been much better these last few days so we also used our pool after work today.

Summer is here.

summer camp

This quote is making me chuckle today: A lot of parents pack up their troubles and send them off to summer camp. Raymond Duncan

That's because on June 29 - 30 Sophie will be attending her first away from home camp trip up at Gardom Lake. My coworker Angie suggested it to me today since her daughter is attending it and her and Sophie are good little buddies.

I popped up to Sophie's school at noon and chatted with her about it and she was pretty excited. The idea of going away to camp with her friend is exciting. Gardom Lake looks pretty fun. Tonight she asked me if she could stay longer than one night but I explained to her she was still too young for that. Let's get through this summer first.

i want to remember....

All the amazing things we saw on this trip and how grateful I am to see so much of our province on our summer holidays. I am also especially grateful to return home.

R & R

Art Camp - painting and drawing

Sophie's 4 day Art Camp wrapped up today. She had a great time -- her teacher was wonderful. They had a little gallery "show" today so the parents stopped by.

She had so much fun that I enrolled her in next week's class which is sculpture and collage.

Sophie' teacher Michelle Atkins was trained at UBC, BCIT and the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design, so the kids were in good hands!

Here she is with Michelle.

the best I could get

It's blurry and out of focus. Shutter speed too slow.

Anyway, it is the two of them posing with their newly minted Summer Reading Club book charts. Sophie is offically old enough to be in the program and Fynn gets his own special little chart. We'll keep track of what we read this summer.

I remember the library summer reading club well :)

sights of summer

Summertime is the quintessential season for being a kid. Bare feet, water play, flip flops...the stuff of memories. We are trying to get out into the pool as much as possible. I walked home from work today and I was hot. I said to Vic, "let's take the kids into the pool." So, we put dinner on hold and all went to take a dip. Later we had dinner on the deck.

I think so many of our childhood memories are made in summertime...in our backyards, at grandma's house, on vacation.

the end of summer

Summer isn't officially over, but all the signs are pointing in that direction.

The town pool in Oliver is now closed. We went to visit my mom and dad this weekend, and were hoping for a swim but found out the season was over.

The sunflowers are out. And there are lots of Halloween directions at Michael's! Speaking of Halloween, my mom and I made good progress on Fynn's costume this weekend.

Here are some photos of Fynn, Sophie and their little cousin Jackson.

tonight: a guest blogger

I'm handing the reigns over to Vic so he can write about his bike trip.

But, first a photo of Sophie and her buddy Mikayla at tonight's final Wednesday on the Wharf concert series.

Tour de Kootenay. Myself and three friends have had a yearly cycling trip in mind for few years now. While Doc A and Paulo have gone before, this is the first time that all four of us have managed time off at the same time. This is no small feat as Rob, Roger, and myself all have young families. The four compadres consist of myself (aka Vincenzo), Rob A (aka Roberto or Lance), Roger P(Contador), and Paul S (aka Paulo). We headed out early on Sunday morning for Hylcon Hot Springs in the West Kootaneys.

The trip took just over 2.5 hours and includes a 30 minute ferry ride across Arrow Lake. This part of the Kootaneys is amazing. A huge, crystal clear lake, towering mountain ranges on either side of the lake (Monashee and Selkirks), and hundreds of kilometers of well paved VERY lightly traveled roads.

It took us mere minutes upon arriving to check-in, throw our gear in the cabin, and saddle up. Thanks to Paulo and Rob (the two stronger riders - Paul is a freak of nature. An amazing cycling talent and he's the old guy at 59) we were off like a shot back to the ferry then north towards Revelstoke. The highway towards Revy is challenging. At apx. 50k out I decide to turn back and head for home. Roger joined me and the two seasoned vets continued on for another 10kms or so. That night was...interesting as my body settled into the affects of a hard ride. The accomodation was very good for an isolated back-water and the hot pools were outstanding and much appreciated.

Monday we decided to take it easier and headed for Nakusp, 35k due south. There were a couple of interesting decents, a waterfall were we stopped for a look around and converse with some of the local colour. Nakusp is a tranquil little town. After a coffee break it was off to Needles. Roger and I once again made an early turn and came home with about 80kms. Our final day of cycling took us from Nakusp to Fauquier and back. It was a good ride of varied terrain(120kms.).

The great part about the trip was the ability to completely unwind. No schedule, no kids, no demands, no cell phone coverage!!! (yippee) It's nice to come home, though. Fynn came right over, sat in my lap, and showed me his latest toy car he borrowed from day care. Sophie had to get in on the Dad action and promptly piled herself on top of both of us. Off to the salt mines tomorrow.

summer shearing

It was smoking hot today -- almost too hot, if you ask me.
I took off work a little bit early and took the kids to the mall for haircuts.
They were getting a little shaggy and with the heat, they needed to be a little bit shorter. Vic got in on the act too and got a trim today also. I get mine on Monday (plus some summer highlights).