So, I fully intended to write this blog a week or maybe 3 ago, but with school ending, house guests, a trip to Montreal as well as the usual out and about the last 6 weeks have flown by. I promise to try not to waffle :)
One exciting event was Miss 4's dance recital - her first. Now, having taught young children dancing for a number of years, I know from experience that you can never predict how they will go on the stage. Some kids who are great in class freeze, others who are shy and retiring, suddenly smile and flaunt their talent. Miss 4 was pretty excited, and even let me put her hair into a bun with no complaint (it had been a bone of contention in the days before). She was normally pretty good in class, and I'm proud to say that she was good on the stage too. Lots of waving at Dad, but did most of the steps at the right time. There was lots of positive feedback from all the parents which was great to hear. The only negative is that she has been singing the songs she danced to ever since and driving us crazy!
Hubby was lucky enough to have a weekend away to the Montreal Grand Prix. He thoroughly enjoyed it (being raised in Adelaide he kind of grew up with it) and from the photos he seemed to have a pretty good view of the action. They had ways to get the fans involved too, like a tyre changing experience (he and his friend were 5th fastest) and he also picked up some tips for our upcoming trip to Montreal.
The next week, and school ended for the summer - already?? Miss 4's teachers had fantastic folders made up for each member of the class, which had a selection of their artwork, as well as a certificate and photos of them in action in the classroom. She has enjoyed her year so much that it was a little sad to say goodbye to the teachers that she loves so much. A few days after that we made a trip to the Science Museum. It had lots of interesting displays (if only Miss 4 would stand still long enough for us to read any of them) and some big old steam trains to climb on. We even let the twins out to roam, and although they wandered off to the nearest set of steps every time, at least they stayed in view and followed us when we moved on and called them. A promising development.
And another week ticked over...and one of the playgroups we attended in the year finished. For the last one the coordinator arranged a visit from a fire truck. Great fun - the firemen were all very friendly and let the kids climb all over the truck and into the cab. They also all got a red plastic fire helmet (which the twins squashed within 5 minutes of getting home, oh well!) The rest of the week was a blur of organising as hubby's parents arrived for a visit, just making it late on the Friday night after getting stuck in Banff due to a landslide. It was great to see them, and although the twins took a little while to warm up to them (they usually do with new people) Miss 4 was super excited and had hugs and kisses from the moment she saw them. I think that's mainly because of Skype - it's a great way for kids to stay in touch with relatives who live far away.
Granny and Papa's first weekend with us was busy. Saturday morning was the annual Teddy Bear's Picnic at the Governor-General's. It was raining which took a little shine off the day, but we managed to enjoy a couple of activities (merry-go-round, pancakes) before hubby and Papa took the twins home. Granny and I stayed out with Miss 4 to do a few more activities, which was extra fun when she bumped into one of her school friends. Sunday was a much brighter day, and we headed into Byward market for a bowl of coffee at the boulangerie before wandering around the sights of Ottawa. It was also the weekend of RibFest. Yes, the smell of barbecued meat wherever you went so lunch was covered. It was delicious I have to say!
Monday saw all seven of us pile into the Odyssey and head to Montreal. The twins didn't get the memo about having a big sleep in the car, but we made it without too much complaining. Hubby had found a house to rent in a nice part of town, and while we found it pretty odd some of the personal stuff that the owners left behind (photos, personal bills and accounts, an iPod??) it fit the bill for our crowd. The kids had a run around at a local park in the afternoon before we started our sightseeing on Tuesday. We really just wandered around Montreal that day; from the old town with it's cobblestones and churches to the centre of town where they were setting up for the Jazz Festival. Miss 4 was a bit of a star and walked pretty much all day (we figure 7 or 8 kms?) with minimal complaining and only needed a piggyback at the end. (We couldn't fit our big pram with buggy board for her in the car so only had a lightweight twin umbrella stroller for the twins.) On Wednesday we went to the top of Mont Royal (a bit foggy unfortunately) before giving the kids a run at Westmount Park which was lovely. Hubby then dropped Granny, Papa, Miss 4 and myself at Schwatz's (a Montreal institution) for their famous smoked meat sandwiches and we did a museum in the afternoon (lots on the history of Montreal) before catching the Metro home. It was Miss 4's first time on an underground railway (or any railway to think of it) and she thought that part was exciting too. Thursday we went to the islands where hubby got to drive the Grand Prix track and we just hung out for a bit; the kids and I then had a quiet afternoon at home while hubby and his folks checked out a brewery. Friday was bucketing with rain, so we ended up driving home in the morning. Then of course I had farewell drinks for a friend who was headed to the UK for a few months so I tizzied up and out I went. Whew!
A major tourist attraction in these parts is the Museum of Civilisation - I know I've mentioned it before and I'm pretty sure that it's one of the places we'll often take visitors. Granny and Papa thought it was fantastic and it was particularly helpful to have extra hands on deck while in the Children's Museum. We also managed to get a look through some displays that we'd run out of time to look at on our first visit. There were more farewell drinks on the agenda that night - for a Canadian Navy friend and his wife who are posting to Washington. The grandparents came in very handy; there was no need to organise a babysitter for a change. We were lucky with a sunny Sunday and the twins were treated to a trip to the park while Miss 3 had a birthday party to attend.
Monday was Canada Day. We had talked it up a bit (remembering what great fun it was last year) and we all had our red and white t-shirts and were ready to go. The plan was to do some activities at Major's Hill Park in the city, before hubby would bring the kids home and the rest of us would check out the free lunchtime concert. It was mostly good, the biggest problem was that Miss 4 was a little partied out after a pretty busy week and was being a bit grumpy. She did manage to get on a mini train ride, but lost interest in the face painting by the time she was close to the front of the (very long) queue. Luckily we'd arranged to meet some friends and that did perk her up for a while. Of course, time snuck away from us, and by the time we'd had an early lunch and split forces, we were too late to get a good spot for the concert and were stuck outside the fence. Oh well, there was generally a good atmosphere and we could kind of see on the big TV screens. I treated the in-laws to a Beavertail afterwards which gave us energy for the walk home. Later that night hubby took his folks out to see the fireworks. Because we live close to the city, you don't have to go far to get a good view (apart from the trees you'd see them from our front yard) but you could certainly hear them - I was worried they'd wake the kids up! Pretty spectacular by all accounts.
Granny and Papa took off for a few days of sightseeing and we had a 'normal' week - lots of playdates. Their last weekend was just trying to squeeze in a couple of last experiences (pancakes, poutine) and spending time playing with the kids. They took off on Monday for the last leg of their adventure before heading home. Today I managed to take Miss 4 out for a special afternoon: lunch, shopping and a movie. Is it just me or was it good casting to have Nicholas Cage as a caveman in the The Croods??
We are looking forward to more visitors this weekend, as well as a day a week of summer camp for Miss 4, playdates and drinks with friends on weekends. I think the summer will be gone before we know it!
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