Wednesday, August 31, 2011

What I Love Wednesday

Hey...its Wednesday. What do I love? Hmm....... I've got it! I love when Ed tosses Buzz in the air (and catches him of course). Buzz giggles, Ed smiles, and for a moment a tiny piece of the world becomes a better place.


Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Places to Go :a visit to rose beach with wings

We're down to the last days of August and so we hit the beach this weekend to enjoy the slightly cooler weather and the wonderful sunshine. I love when the cooler weather hits but the sky is still full of sunshine. Buzz has a true red head complexion and cooler weather means that he can spend more time in long sleeves and pants, reducing the need for copious amounts of sunscreen.


We were down to Chatham this past weekend for a visit to see my parents and on Sunday we went out for a drive so that we could all dip our feet in the water of Lake Erie. Buzz was a little nervous at first, but he got the hang of the waves and was soon throwing stones into the water and retrieving them once the water retreated. 



I had picked up a pair of blue butterfly wings for him at Wal-Mart earlier in the weekend and he seemed to enjoy wearing them wherever we went. Most people were very receptive to my little boy wearing his blue wings, I think we only heard one comment about how he's going to not like us later in life for putting him in them. The truth of it though is that there really isn't any way we could force him to wear anything. He's old enough now that if he doesn't want to wear something, he takes it off, and that is perfectly fine with us. 


With Halloween coming up (eee!!! I love Halloween) it is a great time to stock up on dress up clothes. If you're trying to build a dress up collection on a budget look for accessories; wings, wands, and hats, as opposed to entire outfits.
I hope that you're enjoying the last few days of summer. Luckily our summers tend to extend well into September. Without the deadline of back to school we are free to enjoy the empty playgrounds and cool breezes.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Food and Animals


I've been crocheting quite a bit this week, I made some baby hats and sold the very first one that I listed on Etsy. I'm hoping to list some more as soon as I can get them made. If you're interested in placing an order for a hat send me a quick message through my Etsy shop.I think my favourite is the fox hat, I find it delightful.


 


Near the end of the week Buzz and I took a trip on a bus and went over to the Eglinton - Yonge neighbourhood to spend some time with friends. We went to the apple tree farmers' market with  my friend D and her beautiful baby. This is a great farmers' market, lots of fresh fruit and veggies, some honey, the chocolate guy, and ready to eat food. Buzz and I had lunch, bought some Kale, and then said goodbye to D and baby boy beautiful. We then walked up the street and met up with Alexis, we did a little more shopping and then went over to her apartment where I made some Kale chips. The Kale chips were simple, rip the leaves into chip sized pieces, toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and bake in the oven at 350 or so for about 10 to 15 minutes. These were a delicious snack, I must find more Kale and snack again.


Yesterday we went to yet another birthday party (our 5th since Buzz's own in April). At this point in the year Buzz has the whole birthday party routine down pat and is quick to chat about cake when we tell him where we're going. Buzz loved the party and was exhausted afterward. As usual he was also a huge fan of the birthday cake.


Today we kept it low key with just a little trip over to drop off our baby swing for Little K to use. It was set up in a hurry and he seemed to like it. We also brought lunch and cherries - a treat for everyone!



On our way home we saw a coyote just off the side of the 401. We were slowed down enough that I was able to get a picture. He blends in pretty well but look close, he's right in the middle. 


I'm excited to see what this week brings, hopefully a few more meetups with friends and a trip or two to a farmer's market. August is almost over and while I'm looking forward to cooler weather, I'm definitely feeling the need to squeeze the last little bit of warmth and fun from the summer.

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Places to Go : The David Dunlap Observatory

In an attempt to catch sight of the meteor shower this past weekend we drove up to our local observatory to see what we could see. Unfortunately they had cancelled the event (the meteor shower was still happening I'm sure, we simply didn't have the clear skies or telescopes with which to see it) but they were more than welcoming and invited us onto their creepily dark grounds to get a little tour of the place. The telescope was huge, their building was majestic in the light of the full moon, and it was dark enough to take some pretty awesome flashlight pictures. 




I set the exposure time for 15 or so seconds and Ed wrote my name with a flashlight. I had to flip the image so that my name wasn't backwards, the end result is pretty cool. I want to do another with sparklers.
 

We're hoping to head on up to the observatory again later this summer to catch sight of some stars and dance in the dark.

Friday, August 12, 2011

With the autumn fast approaching I've been busy crocheting some warm hats to sell in my Etsy shop. I've put two lamb hats up already, and although one has sold, there is still one available and I'll be making more just as quickly as I can. Take a peek at my shop and don't forget to check back often!


Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Rain Day

We have a whole lot of rain in the neighbourhood today and Buzz is loving it. We spent part of the morning watching mighty machines and playing before going for a little walk. Buzz kept mostly dry by wearing his blue raincoat and pink rain boots, I used an umbrella and gave up on the idea of dry feet by opting to wear garden clogs, Buzz's baby Ernie doll didn't even bother with the pretense of clothing.We all went out in the rain and Buzz found just about every puddle out there, at one point he was ankle deep in muddy water, Buzz loves puddles.

At the end of our walk in the rain Buzz was soaking wet from his head to his toes (literally, his socks were soaking wet) and very happy.

Puddle jumping is a sweet part of childhood that can easily be lost, its much easier to stay home on a rainy day, to keep everyone warm and dry in the house, to rush past the puddles while on your way to the bus stop. I think that puddle jumping is too dear an experience to lose to practicality. If its raining where you are then consider putting a hold on your indoor activities, put on some rainboots (or go barefoot in your own driveway), and head outside. Stash a couple of towels by the door so that you can dry off when you get back inside, and go jump in some puddles.



Saturday, August 6, 2011

Nature in the City : A Trip to Evergreen Brickworks

If you live in Toronto (or even just nearish) and you haven't been to Evergreen Brickworks I would suggest you thow away all your plans for tomorrow and get there quick. We've been visiting the Brickworks every once in a while for the past year or so and I'm amazed at everything that has changed. When we started going down for their farmer's markets there were more unfinished areas then finished areas and while it was all good and lovely, it has definitely become better.

Today when we went down to the Brickworks we had a few goals; eat some food, pick up some onions, capture at least one decent family picture. Done, done, and done. We had wonderful french fries tossed in herbs and salt, as well as some tasty corn tortillas which were pressed and cooked up right in front of us. Everything we ate was incredibly tasty.





After buying our onions, some peaches and garlic Ed took our produce back to the car, picked up our tripod and we did some exploring and picture taking.




  Evergreen Brickworks is a wonderful example of nature in the city,  you can get to the Brickworks by bus, car, or bike (if you go by car be prepared to pay for parking, if you go by transit you can catch a free shuttle from Broadview Station, and if you go by bike you should stop by the bike works for a tune up). Once you are at the Brickworks you can check out the ponds, see a blue heron or snapping turtle (we saw both and a whole bunch of fish), and hike up to the ridge and take in a view of the city. I can't say enough good things about the Brickworks, they've even added a cafe and an area for the kids where they can learn about nature, water some plants, and play play play.







There are often events at the Brickworks, and of course the farmer's market on Saturday mornings, just check out their website for more information.