Boo!

Hello again! Wow, it's been a little while! I guess we've been busy. Busier than usual? Not sure. But we did lose the use of the computer for a couple of days in there.

It was all plasticked off and hidden behind some large pieces of furniture as our contractor Ken cut two giant holes in our wall.

We finally put in our windows! We bought the windows ages ago with some gift certificates, and then they sat in our front hall for over a year, taking up space and gathering dust. Finally, we said 'it's time!' There are, of course, a million other things that we could have used the money for (hello...water bill) BUT we're not thinking about that. Instead we are enjoying the sunshine while sitting on our living room couch.

And Griffin put two windows in, too - into his new cardboard box house. This has been a big hit, and it is so fun to watch him drag his bear in there, and then peek out through the windows and shout "Boo!"

It's awfully cute, and hard to resist. I took way too many pictures.

And instead of doing all the computer things that I really needed to do, I sat down and read through "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day," which I had borrowed from the library. It sounded do-able, so I did it! In the last five days I've made two loaves of bread, and two pizza crusts. And it is so fun and easy! Who knew!?!!?

So the upside is new windows, and home-made bread, but the downside is that now I am scrambling to catch up with all the computer work that I didn't do. It's always something! Back soon (I hope) with some updates from Fall Clean-up!

Playspace Grand Opening and Other Ciderfest Activities

Yesterday was our Grand Opening for the Natural Playground. I admit I was a little worried that there wouldn't be any kids, and we'd just be standing there. Luckily, I needn't have worried! Kids were everywhere! There were kids on the sandbox boat, there were kids on the teeter-totter logs, there were kids all over the hill slide, and there were kids climbing and jumping, balancing, and running all over the place!









It was a big hit. We've even had a few people around town tell us that we should go down and check out "our newest playground." The town has really embraced it as their own, and I couldn't be happier! Of course, there are still a few details to finish - the slide is just sitting on top of the hill at the moment, and needs to be buried into it still, and the steps still need to be put in. So I'm not quite finished with it yet, but soon... soon there will be a day when I can just sit back and enjoy. (Not that we haven't been getting tons of enjoyment out of it already!)


It was also Ciderfest weekend, so we had a great time enjoying some of those activities as well. Griffin dressed up as a tiger to go in the kids parade. It happened right at nap time, though, so he ended up walking the parade, sound asleep in his stroller. He slept through all the amazing tractors, the cars honking their horns, the bagpipers, and even the parade of fire trucks. It made me wonder why I'm always trying to be quiet!


And of course we enjoyed the cardboard boat race again this year.


There were a few paddlers, but everyone had a good time, and we all cheer the loudest for the ones who end up in the river, I think!

Stopping to Smell the Flowers

Hello! Wow, we've been so busy around here, I haven't even had time to tell you our biggest news of all - our little boy is now walking! The day after he turned 16 months old, he finally found something worth walking for: The Duck Song.

We watched in amazement as he slowly but steadily walked across the living room to get closer to the computer. And then, just to be sure, we made him do it again. Since then, he has steadily been increasing his daily amounts of walking. If he holds my hand, he can walk all the way to the post office and back (with some stopping to admire a neighbour's truck, and smell another neighbour's flowers.) No wiggling or wobbling for our little boy - he definitely waited until he was good and sure! Speaking of sniffing flowers...

We've been trying to get outside as much as possible, when we have these nice, end-of-summer days to enjoy. Today, of course, is rainy and cool, but that's ok, because tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and warm, and tomorrow is the Grand Opening Celebration for the Natural Playground!!!! It's part of our annual Ciderfest celebrations, which have been well-documented in previous Septembers, and will no doubt be documented here again. Hooray for our little town, and the best time of the year!

It's been nice to feel like we can get into a little bit of a routine again. Our Family Matters group is back together on Wednesday mornings, and my yoga classes are happening again on Thursday nights. Garbage Week is back, and I already picked up some treasures this year, in the form of apothecary bottles, and fruit crates, and a great little wire basket. Fun times!

I'll leave you with some photos from a recent trip to Ross Farm Museum, where Griffin and Ella had some great conversations with the resident sheep (and, of course, stopped to smell the flowers):

Natural Playground, Part Four - The Community Build

Yesterday we had our Community Work Party for the Playground, to try and get as many of the finishing touches done as we could before the Grand Opening next weekend. It was a great success! There were ten kids, and eight adults.

The kids mostly entertained themselves, playing in the sandpit, and helping out.

We got our fern circle planted,

Our chainsaw log benches built,

Which inspired some amazing little teeter-totters.

We added some more log paths, and rock paths, and some stump chairs for our spool table.

We dug a trench and added another vertical log stepping path.

We added a rock spiral.

Still to go - putting in our granite slabs for stepping stones, installing the slide, and making and installing the sign. Hopefully now it is the town's turn to step up and help us out with some of that work. Next stop - the Grand Opening!

September Days are Here

Hello again! Just sneaking in a moment of nap time while the washing machine and the dishwasher hum quietly in the background. Thank goodness for modern conveniences! We've been busy as usual, but I wanted to take a moment to praise the month of September, and all the goodness that comes with it. Griffin and I were out walking early this morning, after we ran out of milk for our breakfast cereal. The air smelled so good - rotting leaves, woodsmoke, and ripe apples - it reminded me just how much I love this time of year.

We went from sweltering, unbearable heat, to digging through our closets to find sweaters and jackets. I have picked up my knitting again. And I feel this need to start planning out and preparing for the winter ahead. But summer isn't over just yet. We have been enjoying incredible bounty from our garden, and those of gardens around us. Our tomatoes have been extra prolific, and I've been falling behind on drying them in the dehydrator. Home-made sun-dried tomatoes, though - YUM! Literally buckets of tomatoes!

And I was not on top of the gardening scene this year at all, so other than tomatoes, there isn't too much out there that I planted this year. But we did eat the one giant watermelon that grew (bigger than a basketball!) and it was delicious, and perfect for sharing with friends. And we are still enjoying all the excellent fruit, of the perennial variety.

Jai, Griffin, and I shared the one peach that our little tree produced this year, and it was full of super sweet peachy goodness. Our apples are coming along very nicely. And our grapes are covered in fruit for the first time ever this year. We've all been hanging out under the grape arbor an awful lot this past week, pigging out on the grapiest-tasting grapes ever.

“The Sun, with all the planets revolving around it, and depending on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as though it had nothing else in the Universe to do.” ~Galileo Galilei

I just love the idea of being able to hang out in the yard, and pick food off the branches and vines that are scattered throughout. It sounds like heaven, and it is heavenly indeed. Last night we went to our local farmer's market, then dined on a princely supper of local peaches, blueberries, strawberries, and plums, with home-made bread, sun-dried tomato pesto, and feta cheese. And knowing that winter is stirring, around the corner, makes it all just that much sweeter. Hooray for September!

"By all these lovely tokens

September days are here,

With summer’s best of weather

And autumn’s best of cheer."

- Helen Hunt Jackson, September, 1830-1885

An Evening at Jubilee Park

What a beautiful long weekend we just enjoyed! I mean, there was a small hurricane in there, but it's still a major improvement in weather. That last week was just stifling. And Hurricane Earl ended up being just a little bit of rain for us here in the Valley - though other parts of the Maritimes didn't get off so easily. Most importantly, it wiped out some of that horrible humidity, and left behind some perfect end-of-summer days. Jai and Griffin and I had some "look where we live" moments down at the park behind our house, so I just had to post them here :) Warning: this is a LOT of pictures of Griffin...

We looked at the horses on the other side of the river, and made horse-y noises at them...

In-between the snuggles, of course...

The River looked so beautiful (and inviting)...

Jai and Griffin couldn't resist getting their toes wet...

Griffin thought about walking...

We had fun in the tree...

Playing hide and seek...

And laughing...

We played in the sand...

And sat at the picnic table...

And played on the logs...

And played...

And played...

Until it was time to move on...

Into the great wide open...

Luckily Daddy retrieved him before he got tooooo far...

What a great Daddy!!!

And that was our night. Nice, huh?

Not too sure what happened with the fonts there - Griffin pressed some buttons, and I can't figure out how to undo it. Good thing he's so cute!