Claire Bear

Our little baby turned 6 on April 14th. It's been quite an unexpected journey. We've learned a lot and are so glad for her in our family.

We had a pretty cool adventure for her party and she was all smiles in anticipation of it.

We had the fun folks at Zoo 2 U come by our house with a bunch of neat animals. The kids were able to learn a bit about each one and spend time with them. We thought that Claire would enjoy the experience and I think she and her friends had a great time!

If you can believe it, there's an Angora rabbit named Ebony under all that fluff.

Madeline cuddling with a Lop Rabbit.

Claire looks only mildly amused, but she really did enjoy the turtle.

This green iguana was a tricky character. It had sharp claws, but apparently was very fond of climbing onto an adult's shoulder. We could only hold it a minute before it would attempt to climb.

The snake was pretty cool. The presenter mentioned that she trusts her snake more than her bunnies when it comes to being patient with the curious hands of children (and adults).

Claire really liked the snake.

This bearded dragon was a prickly fellow, but rather beautiful.

This was a Uromastyx lizard and it had a really funny, wrinkly back - kind of like what you'd imagine a turtle would look like without it's shell. He also had a really pokey tail. Claire liked having him walk around on her legs.

This panther chameleon had a beautiful colour and awesome eyes. We even got to see it eat a worm using its super long tongue.

This was a red-eyed tree frog. Claire had to get her hand wet first so that it wouldn't stick to her.

Ryan was a bit nervous about having a parrot on his shoulder since the last time it happened (in Mexico) he got pooped on. Luckily he escaped the same fate this time.

I was a bit nervous that the bird would take a snip at my earrings or glasses because apparently she has done that before, but all was well.

After the animals left, we surprised Claire with a little sparkler while we sang Happy Birthday.

We then had a picnic lunch on the floor while she opened her presents.

As you can see, everyone offered a helping hand.

Today was officially dubbed "Party Day" since after Claire's was over, we headed over to Luke and Brooklyn's house to visit with family, eat yummy food and bash in a pinata.

Since I was helping her on her turns, I don't have a picture of Claire hitting the pinata, but she loved the sounds of it all.

It was fun to watch how serious some of the kids were about landing an effective blow. I think Madeline represented our family very well with her efforts!

All in all, it was a busy, lovely day and we're so grateful for our Claire. :)

EXTRA EXTRA READ ALL ABOUT IT

I wrote my attention grabbing blog title in all caps to disguise the fact that I have again left blogging for too long and have many subjects to cover.

But now I have undermined my own genius with excessive explanation.

NEWS:

Ryan is now an Apple employee. A few hours a week he will providing expert service at the Apple Store in Southgate so if anyone needs advice on how to spend lots of money, he will be available to help you along the way.

I've had a few fun nights out with Emily. We've decided that instead of indulging in sweets, we will start walking and talking. I think it will be beautiful.

The deck is done! Please stay tuned for a blog post devoted to the wonderful work of TWP Carpentry.

Ryan attended an Eskimos game with his Dad, Rob, Broc and friends.

I ran my first Malmo Parents Meeting at my house and it was not as scary as I imagined it to be.

We worried a bit about Mom's health this past little while, but she has pulled through with nary a word of complaint.

I've been lucky to play the piano for Natalie a little bit, as she takes voice lessons. She has a great talent!

Ryan and I got to attend our first Oiler's game with our shared season's tickets.
We sat in the true fans section, a.k.a. the nosebleeds.
But it was a great time....despite the loss.
At least they gave us two goals to cheer about, yay!

The view from nearly as far away as you can get from the ice!

Every time I take Maddie to school, I drive by this "art," but have never gotten close
to it until we took the LRT home from the game. I remember watching them build it thinking, "What the heck is that going to be....?!"
So, now I have touched the giant disembodied feet. I have truly lived.

Maddie is getting quite good at the interwebs. It's a little scary actually.

While the boys were putting the finishing touches on the deck one Saturday, we braved the cool weather for a little while to show our support, then promptly headed inside.

Cold weather is very tough on a girl who likes to wear dresses for every occasion.
Tyler was so cute, trying to copy what Maddie was doing.

We still had fun inside though.

Claire loves to lay and scoot on the floor. :)

One morning I woke up to this and it made me happy.

I swear she is slowly winning this cat's affections.

Claire is doing so well at riding! I know I have posted a million pictures of her like this, but it's great to have something that she enjoys and that we can see measurable progress in!

After that first blast of snow, we've been enjoying lovely days this past week. I'm trying hard to forget that it is November and that weather can change very quickly!

Two random Madeline quotes:

Mom, does the sun have a mustache and wings?

Mom, I love your feelings.

It is lovely weather we are having. I certainly hope it stays zis mild.*

*I don't think I'll make it a habit to title all my blog posts using quotes from the media. But this one works. From The (ridiculous) Pink Panther

Since I'm not feeling very verbose, I think I'll let the picture speak for themselves on this post.

Claire's Birthday

The happy birthday girl!


Claire getting birthday bear hugs.


I can't believe she's 5 already!


Claire got a lovely new swing from the Laytons. We love it!


Ryan (a.k.a. Mr. Transitions Lenses) and I.


Claire blowing out her candle with the help of the wind.


Justin, Broc and Maddie on the trampoline while Natalie dutifully monitors the chaos.


Mom & Dad & the birthday girl.


Greg & Steph


Steph & Brandon


Val, Claire, Jacky & Angela chatting inside.


Dad, Rob and Mel enjoying the yummy food.


Maddie, Steph and Natalie


Three guys relaxing on the couch, in the style of Claire. For those of you who know her, she will often end up in this position. We call it her "laying on the beach" pose.



Little Bits

The only picture I could snap since Claire was in the middle of the pack for the whole ride. She looks a little uncomfortable here, but was doing quite well. Her and Babe make a good team.


Madeline and her friend Haldon at riding. They are so cute!



Miscellaneous

Claire likes to roll around on our big mat in the living room. I left her there for a few minutes and came back to find her stuck under the couch. So I had a good laugh, ran to grab the camera and then rescued her. I'm such a good parent.



Maddie got her first bike! Here's Daddy helping her get used to pushing the pedals.


Madeline's first ride!


This was Maddie at about 8am this morning. She couldn't wait to try out her bike again. She has been wearing her helmet nearly 24/7 since she got it.


Claire relaxing on the tramp while Maddie was on her bike.


In other non-picture-related news, Ryan and I had a fun date night, had yummy food, saw "Date Night" (hilarious by the way), and on the way home Ryan gave me a quick lesson on how to drive his motorbike. I drove it around the block, in first gear. I think I might be close to getting hooked. It was very, very fun and not as tippy as I had originally suspected it would be. However, he has now taken this to mean he has full license to purchase a new bike for himself, generously allowing me to use the white bike. We shall see.