wee life

Photo Friday #14

2009-07-02T22:03:00.000-07:00

TOFINO, BC | TRAVELS WITH KID

Raiding the recycle bin for castle building supplies before heading to the beach.

For other travel pics, check out my favourite family travel site Delicious Baby. Or go there to share your travel photos on Fridays too.

Heritage Village Museum

2009-07-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

ONE OF SPUD'S FAVOURITE MUSEUMS | NEAR VANCOUVER
Burnaby Village is a replica 1920s small town with a beautifully restored 1912 carousel, ice cream parlour, period costumes, artifacts, and toys. They have a working hand-operated, printing press. And serve freshly churned butter. The museum is very popular when it kicks it up a notch in December for the holidays and stays open later to accommodate the crowds. It also whoops it up on Canada Day, 20s style.

It's a Tie

2009-07-01T18:25:00.000-07:00

A little tic tac toe while waiting for our restaurant dinner to arrive. Or is it a little jelly fish and starfish?

Photo Friday #13

2009-06-26T15:10:00.000-07:00

TRAVELS WITH KID | VICTORIA, BC

Statues and fountains; historical monuments ... and playground.

For other travel pics, check out my favourite family travel site Delicious Baby. Or go there to share your travel photos on Fridays too.

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Victoria: History Tour

Wow. I Have an Etsy Shop!

2009-06-25T22:53:00.001-07:00

It's official. Finally. Don't be shy. Swing by and say hello.

Robot Fabric Arrived

2009-06-23T22:17:00.000-07:00

Oh, I'm so smitten with spoonflower. Look what arrived today! Four of my custom designs digitally printed on 100% cotton ... ready to sew!

Here's Robot Gear Garden

And with some coordinating stripes and Gear Constellations

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Bloomin' Magic

2009-06-23T06:15:00.000-07:00

I don't know what this is but whenever it blooms its waxy, heavenly-scented flowers I believe in magic for a moment. This is especially true because of the amount of neglect this plant gets from me.

Grouse Mountain Summer Season

2009-06-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

ONE OF SPUD'S FAVOURITE OUTDOOR THINGS TO DO | VANCOUVER

So when I decided to send hubs up the mountain for a zip line tour at Grouse Mountain, I debated whether Spud and I should come up with him or if we should just meet up with him after. The debate was partially fueled by the fact that taking the gondola up to the top of Grouse Mountain is a little pricey. But, as we found out, there IS loads of stuff to do there ... even in the summer ... and Spud and I had a great time while hubs was zipping through the forest.

First, there is the wildlife ...

Here's Bambi, not the least bit afraid of me taking this shot.

And the 2, large, somewhat intimidating Grizzly Bears behind an electrified fence.

Even some bear love? Hard to say.

A chairlift ride.

A parking lot for snow grooming equipment, which goes to show you that you never know what is going to fascinate the wee ones.

And a couple of free entertaining shows ... the lumberjack show and birds of prey demonstration.

For lunch we went to the Altitudes Bistro upstairs in the Chalet which really wasn't very family-friendly at all. We waited over an hour for our lunch and the food was not worth the wait ... or the price. Much of the lounge-type seating in the centre of the restaurant, where they sat us, is uncomfortable for eating, especially for the shorter ones in your family where their chins are at table height. After about 45 minutes of trying to entertain our bub in our awkward space we asked if we could move to one the 6 empty tables with normal sized furniture. They declined our request. A better bet would have been to grab a simple slice of pizza in the downstairs self serve restaurant. Or better yet, pack a picnic!

An Acquire Nothing Fathers Day

2009-06-21T15:27:00.000-07:00

So I took the challenge of giving hubs a special day, without having us acquire more stuff: an experiential gift from me and a crafty one from Spud.

First, Spud made him a wee masterpiece using a T-shirt I nicked from his dad's closet and some fabric paint we had around.

which he wore on the 2-hour zip line tour I bought for him.

Yay! We did it. Daddio had a great time going at speeds of 70 mph and flying over valleys and rivers. Spud was very intrigued by what he saw of the escapade and declared that he too wanted to do it. Thankfully he's not big enough yet ... perhaps next year we'll all do it ...? Oiks.

Marble Morning

2009-06-20T08:53:00.000-07:00

ONE OF SPUD'S FAVOURITE TOYS | QUADRILLA
Just spending a lazy rainy morning with some marbles.

OTHER THINGS WE DO WITH MARBLES
Marble Mayhem
More Marble Mayhem

Biciclettes for Dins

2009-06-19T21:11:00.001-07:00

Oh look at the adorable pasta I found at our Italian import store ... good enough to eat.

In 2 - 3 cups of chicken stock I cooked some chicken breast cut into small cubes, carrot slices and broccoli spears. Once done I scooped all the meat and veg out with a slotted spoon, brought the stock to a rolling boil and added a handful of the pasta to cook for 8 or 10 minutes. I served it all in a deep dish, leaving most of the stock behind for another use, and then sprinkled it all with grated parmesan. Simple, fast and good.

The Bento is Back

2009-06-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

The bento is coming back. My bento-making-fun has been on a hiatus since Spud's daycare offers a hot lunch program. In a couple of weeks, Spud will be leaving daycare for a pre-K summer day camp program and there ain't no hot lunch program there. Even though it does add a bit to my already fairly packed schedule, I've missed making the bentos and am kind of excited about making them again.

I found these shots of some bentos I've managed to squeeze in here and there. The boy asks for them regularly and so I sometimes put them together for weekend outings.

· Orange slices
· Kalamata olives, pitted
· Cherry tomatoes, halved
· Chicken fingers, cut up
· Carrots

· Cheese sticks
· Grapes
· Carrots
· Sandwich: avocado, bacon, shrimp
· Skewers: bacon, shrimp, grape

· Pita strips
· Turkey slices rolled and skewered
· Carrots
· Green olives
· Shrimp
· Raspberries

· Cherry tomatoes
· Pepperoni
· Cheese slices
· Flower molded egg
· Chocolate chips
· Mini clementine orange

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Pumpkin Apple Muffins

2009-06-14T16:49:00.000-07:00

So this seems more like a fall recipe but I couldn't resist the prospect of sneaking in some healthy orange veg into my little guy without him noticing. Even if it is smothered in brown sugar and butter. As far as he's concerned, these are called "Apple Cinnamon Muffins". Shhhhhh.

Now these are going in the freezer for future weekday breakfasts. So, does anyone have a yummy, sneaky way of getting dark green veg in?

1 1/2 C. whole wheat flour
1 C. all purpose flour
1 t. each allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon
1 1/4 t. baking powder
1 3/4 C. sugar
1 14 oz can of pumpkin puree
1/2 C. vegetable oil
2 eggs
2 C. apples, peeled, cored and chopped

TOPPING
1/2 C. packed brown sugar
1/2 T. ground cinnamon
1/4 C. butter, from the fridge

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 large muffin cups with muffin papers. In a medium bowl, sift in the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, combine pumpkin, oil and eggs. Mix in dry ingredients and gently fold in apples, careful not to over work the batter. Place into prepared cups.

TOPPING
Cut butter into the brown sugar and cinnamon with a pastry cutter until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over muffins.

Bake until muffins are golden brown, about 30 minutes. Makes 12 large.

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Painting Al Fresco

2009-06-13T23:50:00.000-07:00

Just a little weekend outdoor fun today.

Preggers Book

2009-06-07T11:14:00.001-07:00

OK. This is so embarrassing. I've been meaning to put together a 'scrapbook' of sorts documenting my pregnancy with Spud, since it was easily one of the highlights of my life and I'm not sure I'm ever going to have the opportunity to experience anything like it again.

Its 50 pages include pictures of our trip to Hawaii racing dragon boats [in between the times of me barfing and snoozing] and prenatal class shots and preggers-me doing photo shoots with NHL hockey players and mascots. It also includes a mini bio of all Spud's grandparents. Among other things. And I just sent it off today to Blurb ... um ... 5 years later.

This is what I wrote on the intro page ...
"Dearest ...
I put this book together for the both of us. I wanted to put some of these memories on paper so that I could look back and remember how special it was to be pregnant with you. It was a highlight of my life and an experience for which I am forever grateful. This book is also for you because I wanted you to know how loved you were from the very beginning. When you grow up, and you have those bad days where you doubt yourself, and you will because everyone does, I hope the power of love in these pages will help you get through it. Sometimes on bad days, that’s all you have. And all you need. Love, Mama."

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I Heart Blurb

Photo Friday #12

2009-06-04T21:35:00.000-07:00

CUBAN RAINBOW

Travelling from Trinidad to Cayo Coco we decided to take a little beverage break along the way and accidentally captured a rainbow.

For other travel pics, check out my favourite family travel site Delicious Baby. Or go there to share your travel photos on Fridays too.

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Urban Garden Time Begins

2009-05-31T09:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we took the our little city boy out to the country to buy some tomato plants from West Coast Seeds in Delta. They have a well-known seed mail order business but we decided to pay them a visit.

The kid didn't want to leave because he was having too much fun playing with the toys they put in a basket for such an occasion.

They were incredibly helpful and in the end we happily went home with these 3 babies to quickly plant on our deck.

These 3 varieties ...

[image source: westcoastseeds.com]

Robot Coordinating Fabric Designs

2009-05-30T07:13:00.000-07:00

This reminds me of a constellation made of gears ...

This is what it looks like in a repeat ...

And a stripe pattern to compliment the robot designs I did before.

And here I was playing with changing the scale of the robots and simplifying the background...

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Photo Friday #11

2009-05-29T09:26:00.000-07:00

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA | TRAVELS WITH KID
The climbing wall at the New Children's Museum.

For other travel pics, check out my favourite family travel site Delicious Baby. Or go there to share your travel photos on Fridays too.

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5 Disneyland Highlights

2009-05-25T19:59:00.000-07:00

Overall, with 2 five-year-olds, a two-year-old, and 4 adults, we had three days of magic; there were loads of highlights frankly. But here are just 5 notables:

1. Pirate Lair on Tom Sawyer's Island
TIP: Hit the dollar store before you leave home and smuggle some treasure of your own onto the island ... quietly ... for the wee ones to find.

First the river raft ride to the island ...

Hiding from the pirate ship ...

Hunting for treasure exploring caves, crossing crazy bridges, running trails and climbing into tree houses ...

... and finding it ...

... but it always getting away ...

So, we didn't think to bring treasure with us. But we somehow managed to talk our little booty-hunters into leaving the island so that we could, in a cloak-and-dagger kind of way, get to the nearby gift shop across from the Indiana Jones ride, to buy some polished rocks and jewels. Each adult quietly lined their own pockets and also found a way to sneak some into the children's pockets without them noticing! Not easy. But with great reward.

Watching their little jaws drop upon discovering that somehow treasure found its way into all our pockets was a definite highlight of our trip. Um ... maybe even my life!

Spud announced, "Now I know what the pirate meant when he said 'go get your own treasure'. He meant it was in our own pockets! But Mama, how did the treasure get in our pockets?"
"I don't know. Maybe it was magic?"
"But there is no such thing as magic. I know, maybe the pirate ghosts snuck it into our pockets when we weren't looking."
So darn cute.

2. Indiana Jones Adventure may be just too exciting for the wee ones. In our case, the kids were either too short or too nervous to do this ride but we didn't want that to stop the adult fun.

TIP: Get the Switching off Pass; the whole family waits in line, asks for a switch off pass from the first ride attendant, half the adults take the ride while the other half wait with the kids then, the first half come back to watch the kids while the second half go on the ride. All without waiting in line again!

3. Bengal Barbecue, across from the Indian Jones ride, serves good quality meat and veggie skewers which are reasonably priced.

TIP: Nearby seating was at a premium and shade an impossibility. We walked around the corner and asked a staff member if we could sit on the upper patio of a different restaurant. He assured us it was fine and we found a perfect table in the shade and away from the crowds.

4. With our Magic Morning pass [allowed to enter the park an hour before the general public] we took full advantage of line-less popular rides like Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters. So much fun! In fact we rode it 2 times in a row without waiting. It was a great way to kick off our 3 days.

TIP: consider picking up your passes the day before you plan on redeeming your Magic Morning so you don't have to waste any time picking them up once the park is open for business.

5. The after dark Remember ... Dreams Come True Fireworks Spectacular was such a hit with our wee ones that they each announced "I'm going to remember this for the rest of my life".

TIP: an afternoon nap back at the hotel and a packed picnic dinner for the park meant we all had the time and energy to stay up late for the spectacular event.

Tinker Bell's appearance was icing on the cake.

Ever think that maybe Disneyland has lost its shine for you? This is a good article to read: Magic of Disneyland Endures

And a must read for many more tips: The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland by Bob Sehlinger.

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San Diego Indoor / Outdoor Day

2009-05-22T22:51:00.000-07:00

SAN DIEGO WITH KID | DAY 2

1. Breakfast
2. The New Children's Museum
3. The Pier and Boardwalk
4. Dinner
____________________________

1. Kono's Cafe
704 Garnet Avenue (between Mission Blvd and Ocean Blvd)
San Diego, CA 92109
t 858 483 1669

First, a giant breakfast at Kono's that will last us until dinner time [we packed leftovers for midday snacks]. Don't let the long line ups fool you. This fast-paced-great-value-breakfast-all-day joint is a must do if you are in the area. There are two decks in the back with great views and people watching opportunities.

2. The New Children's Museum
200 West Island Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101
t 619 233 8792

"Think Play Create" in this bright building with airy, open spaces and exhibits that run inside and outside of the building seamlessly.

Highlights for Spud included a very cool climbing wall

A room lined in mattresses and filled with tire shaped pillows

Bubble making

And painting a VW Bug

Coming in the first part of the day means you can plan your visit around the many interesting scheduled workshops here and there.

3. We decided to take public transit to the museum which took an hour each way and added quite a bit to our day's adventure with bus loops and tram transfers. It was perfect to spend the rest of our day people watching while strolling along Chrystal Pier and the boardwalk.

4. Gringos Cantina
We ended our day with some great California-Mexican take out that we enjoyed on our terrace in our room.

Another successful day in San Diego.

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San Diego Zoo Day

2009-05-19T22:32:00.000-07:00

SAN DIEGO WITH KID | DAY 1

1. Breakfast
2. Zoo
3. Lunch
4. Pool
5. Dinner on the Boardwalk
__________________________________

1. We had breaky in our room, fruit and yogurt that we picked up the day before. This saved us time and money which helped us get an early start. The animals get pretty lazy at the middle of the day so we tried to arrive pretty early to see at least some of them a bit active.

Our room, is in Pacific Terrace which is a great find. It's very comfortable, right on the boardwalk, full of families, and has exceptional service. We found a screaming good deal online and then upgraded to a family suite upon arrival.

2. The Zoo opens at 9 and we arrived, on public transit, at 9:30. The entrance was mobbed with loads of school buses. To avoid the crowds, we hopped on the Skyfari to get to the polar bears on the other end of the park. But not before Spud's reason for coming here in the first place ... the Reptile House, where we saw a giant albino anaconda, loads of pythons, and a komodo dragon.

3. After the baby gorilla! we stopped at one of the many shaded picnic spots and laid out the spread we prepared in the morning. This saved loads of money, as food is pretty pricey here for what you get, and we also were able to avoid line ups.

Then we trundled down the hill some more. We stuck to our previous mapped out plan unless something on the way really caught someone's eye.

So in the end we were in the gift shop by 2:30 [5 hours] and it's a good thing because our little guy was pretty tired. "I'm done with this!" he declared after about 4 hours.

4. The perfect remedy for this, turned out to be some time in our hotel pool. After some races and other water play shenanigans, we showered and dressed and headed out on the boardwalk.

5. Six blocks of walking and we ended up on the patio of the family-friendly Green Flash, eating seafood and watching the sun go down. Spud declared that he had the best day ever, wanted to move to San Diego, live at the Green Flash, eating cheese burgers everyday. A successful day then.

Oh, and Hubs and I tried an oyster shooter each! Yum.

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San Diego Zoo Planning

2009-05-18T19:20:00.000-07:00

CALIFORNIA | TRAVELS WITH KID

We printed out this map to work out our game plan for tomorrow. I'd like Spud to get a little excited about seeing the zoo and he really loves maps. We also plan on only spending a half day there, so as to not tucker out the boy too much, so each of us chose our favourite 3 animals for us to map out.

Me: "Which animals do you want to see?"
Spud: "My favourite animals are snakes and wormies! So I want to see them".

So first stop is the reptile house. Well, I'm glad we're flying all the way to California to see what we could probably find in Grandma's yard.

Tips for taking in the zoo that we'll find useful here and here.

One More Sleep to California

2009-05-16T10:16:00.001-07:00

Today is a day of planning and packing for our one week adventure. Spud has already sorted out the money from his piggy. I counted it. He agreed to put 5% of it in his charity fund that he can give at holiday time [he's already decided he wants to give toys to kids in Africa]. And soon we are going to the bank to change his cash to American dollars.

He has his eye on this snake stuffy from the San Diego Zoo shop. We've been scoping out the online catalogue. It's 9 feet long. Yoikes.

Lynn Valley Canyon

2009-05-12T06:23:00.000-07:00

ONE OF SPUD'S FAVOURITE OUTDOOR THINGS TO DO | VANCOUVER
First, take a brave little stroll across the Lynn Valley Suspension Bridge [the free, little sister of the Capilano Suspension Bridge.]

... taking in a little view from 20 stories high ...

Next, an easy 20-minute hike [depending on how energetic your wee ones are] through the rainforest, passing by the Twin Falls. [There are many trails to choose from with various lengths and difficulties]

After a little beverage break at the cafe, we like to explore the Ecology Centre's [by donation] dioramas and various educational and interactive activities.

We look forward to getting in one of the kid-specific programs this summer too.