Happy Canada Day!

Here's wishin' everyone a very Happy Canada Day!!

a visit

We were very lucky these past few days to have Grandpa and Grandma Snider out west for a visit. This was also their first time meeting Jenna and Bree, who were full of smiles and giggles. It was a busy few days full of some good visit time, some golf for the boys, a baseball game, and even a huge road trip that took Grandma and Grandpa down to Nanton, through Crowsnest Pass to Sparwood and Fernie, and then onto the picturesque Waterton Lakes. They were definitely very busy. We also can't forget about all the play time with Aidan and Maelle which involved bubble blowing, bocce ball, trains, and stories.

Here are a few pics of Bree and Jenna getting to know Grandma and Grandpa Snider!

Grandpa and Jenna getting in some good cuddle time.

Grandma Snider snugglin' up with both Bree and Jenna.

Still more snuggles....this time with Grandpa.

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Snider for a great visit! And a big thank you from the kids for the goodies that you brought for them!

growing up

How fast are these girls growing up?

Can you believe that these ladies are almost 4 months old? We are just starting to see their personalities shine (Jenna the socialite, Bree tending to be a bit more reserved) and everyday it seems that they are discovering something new. They have started to roll from back to side, and are grabbing at everything that comes within arms reach. It is so much fun to watch them learn about their fingers and how they work, and it was just yesterday that Jenna discovered her toes! An amazing fascination now as she watches how they curl and wriggle about.

It will be fun to see which one will crawl first, who will walk first, and who will be the pickiest eater. Speaking of eating....we have started on the rice cereal already, and so far Bree is winning for how fast she can eat. This girl can polish off her cereal in record time, while Jenna seems to savour every bite.

Speaking of growing up....check out the video below of Aidan helping Maelle ride her bike. Would you believe that Aidan and Brent have already gone on bike rides around the neighbourhood? It's true. They make frequent trips over to the playground on their bikes, and each time stretch the distance just a little bit further. Wow!

it's official!

Hip-hip-hooray!!!

After 2 weeks of showings every day, and 1 week of finalizing all of the details, our house is officially SOLD!!!!

Phew! What a run that was!

Now we are looking forward to moving into our new home (date to be determined) and getting things settled.

Still no takers on packing up our house? I haven't heard from any of you!!

Just kidding!

divide & conquer

And that's exactly what we did this weekend on our first camping trip of the season! We divided up the kids and conquered! All in all, Bree and Jenna did amazing for their first ever trip in the trailer. I think they liked all of the fresh air, and Jenna even got in on a little campfire action! We spent the days down at the lake throwing rocks with Aidan and Maelle, taking Bree and Jenna on numerous walks, hanging out with Auntie Kylie and Uncle Lindsay (who joined us on Saturday), playing hide and seek in the forest surrounding our site, and best of all just taking in all of that fresh mountain air! Although we were pretty busy with the kids, getting outside was our number one priority this weekend. The weather was hit and miss, but we made the most of it.

Bree getting excited about her first camping trip.

A little hide and seek action on the campsite.

Jenna and Upper Kananaskis Lake

Bree....not to sure about Upper Kananaskis Lake!

Aidan & Maelle soaking up those breathtaking mountain views.

The calm before the storm! Yes....this was the scene after Kylie and I made a hasty retreat back to our site to batten down the hatches. Our tea on the rocks was soon interrupted by an approaching storm, but before the rain set in we grabbed our cameras and ran back down to the lake to grab a few shots of these amazing mountain rainbows. We just made it back in time to take shelter from a good rainstorm that put an end to our campfire festivities for the evening.

Definitely worth it!

It was a busy camping trip for sure, but totally worth it. We are looking forward to our next adventure and where our travels will take us.

an adventure

Well....we're off on our first camping adventure of the season. Wish us luck! We've got a late start this year, but considering the twins are only 3 months old and we are in the middle of selling our house and moving, I don't think we're doing too bad! We'll be back on Monday (weather permitting of course....and if we are still sane by then) and I'll bet I'll have lots of pics and stories to share.
Have a great weekend!

a little game!

Ok....here's a game for everyone to have a go at!

Can you guess who's who?

Picture A

Picture B

Feel free to email me your answers!

Have fun!

exhausted

Just how exhausting is it when you have to show your house? Just check out the pic below and find out!

This is how we found Aidan after he went upstairs once we returned from one showing this morning. His quote on the way up "I'll go upstairs...but I am NOT tired!" He fell asleep with his sunnies on.

Oh, and in case you are wondering about our crazy weather day....this is what we woke up to this morning.

It's June right? Oh wait....we live in Calgary, anything's possible!

Don't worry...it all melted by lunchtime.

so it begins...

Our house has been listed to sell. It was a weird day today as we watched our "for sale" sign get put up on our front lawn. To make it even stranger, we have already had 5 showings and it went up early this morning. Our poor neighbours were quite sad to see the sign, but we have assured them that we will keep in touch. It's going to be a tough go for the next little while as we need to keep this house clean everyday (a feat on it's own!), and be prepared to just up and go when we need to. I'm not sure I like strange people walking through my house. Very different being on the other end of the process now!

Goodness....I still get a little lump in my throat when I look at the sign. I have tried to detach myself from this house, knowing that our next house is fantastic and we have practically doubled our living space. And boy are we going to need it! I am looking forward to moving and if anyone would like to pack up our house....just let me know!!

To pass the time this afternoon, we packed up everyone and headed out to one of our favourite spots for a dinner picnic....Elbow Falls in Kananaskis Country. Aidan and Maelle were entertained as usual throwing rocks while Bree and Jenna enjoyed a ride along the paths in their stroller. Thank goodness the weather was nice today....doesn't look good for this weekend though. Yikes!

Jenna's havin' a ball!

Just too cute not to post!

brother & sisterly love

Yes....there are days when I wonder why it is that Aidan and Maelle just can't seem to get along. Why do they always fight over the same toy when neither one had any interest in it other than just to make the other mad? Why when there are 20 trains both of them need the exact same one at the exact same time? Why they can blame each other for little pokes or "accidental" bumps that occur when walking by one another at close range? Is this what brothers and sisters just do naturally?

Aside from all of the why's, and who dun nit's, there are moments that just make me stop and smile. Smile because I know that these are my kids and although no day is ever perfect they are the best things in this world and are the only ones that can make my day go from bad to fantastic in a split second. I caught some of these split second moments over the last few days and I thought I would share them.

So if there is one thing that I have learned over the last few days it is no matter how much you think the kids aren't listening, no matter how many wars you break up in a day, and no matter how many tears are shed over that single toy...the love they share between each other is a bond that is so strong it will never be broken. And even though I don't see it every day, I realize that I should be thankful that these kids do play together and can help each other out. That has to be one of the most rewarding things about being a mom and for that I am very thankful.

tiptoe in the....daffodils?

I wish I could say tiptoeing in the tulips, but, like every year, the rabbits and deer get to my tulips before I can. Our lovely furry friends enjoy a feast on our front garden every season so this year we planted daffodils...in the fully fenced backyard. Our gardening will be limited this year as we are moving at the end of summer (yes, we bought a new house) so it looks like we will only have our lovely lilacs and hopefully a garden full of wildflowers. Nice and easy!

Maelle does her part in looking after these lovely blooms, including giving them each a kiss "to make them feel better!" So cute!

summer lovin'

Phew! What a fabulous weekend! The weather was fantastic! It actually felt a little bit like summer. Although we didn't do a whole lot of venturing out, sometimes just hanging around the house can be just as much fun. And that's exactly what we did.

Aidan spent some quality time snugglin' with Bree.

We spent Saturday morning at Aidan's soccer game. Even Auntie Kylie and Uncle Lindsay came out for the game!

Aidan cooled off in the sprinkler after helping Brent cut the grass. Yes....the water was freezing!

No warm weather day would be complete without a chocolaty fudgsicle.

Maelle started working on her own little wildflower garden. Hopefully we'll get some blooms happening before we move!

And my very favourite moment....

...a little boy standing on my front step grinning ear to ear with a "special secret" hiding behind his back. "I picked these for you mommy" he said proudly holding out his plentiful bouquet of freshly picked dandelions. I love that!

a family affair

There's nothing better than spending time with family on a sunny, warm, weekend afternoon at our beloved Fish Creek Park. We all made the trip on Sunday and soaked up those glorious rays of spring sunshine. Aidan and Maelle assumed their favourite spot creek side and threw as many rocks as they could, while Dakota chased stick after stick that was thrown for her into the water.
I managed to step out from behind the lense and finally got some pics with the two youngest Snider's. A big thank you to Kylie and Lindsay for capturing some extra special family moments.

Me and the gals...


My silly clan of kidlets....


Auntie Kylie jumping into the shot...

Grabbing a shot with Auntie Ky and Uncle Lindsay...

Fish Creek Park is definitely a family favourite and hopefully will continue to be for many years to come!

We capped off our long weekend with a great bbq and of course a fire complete with smore's made by none other than my little chef Aidan. There always seems to be extra marshmallows in the smore's Aidan makes making them super sticky and super delicious!

not so little

What happened?
What happened to my little baby girls that were born two and a half months ago? Why do they grow up so fast?
Thanks to some awesome weekend weather, Jenna and Bree were able to spend a great deal of time outside.

They were introduced to the way of summer living and seem to adapt quite nicely to a little r & r!


Aidan and Maelle showed Jenna how to get her feet dirty on her first trip into the sandbox.


Bree adapted well to lazing around on the deck!

Our girls at two and a half months old! Wow!

nothing better

On a rainy day (like today) there is sometimes nothing better than sitting down at a table full of art supplies and drawing. That is exactly what Aidan did this morning as the rain pelted our windows and I enjoyed a quiet cup of tea.

He is becoming quite the budding artist don't ya think?

This is his version of a camel and a lion! Happy ones at that!

Oh...and did I mention that Aidan is playing in the Timbits soccer league? Check out the pic below of my little timbit!

When did he grow up?

bubbles

Amazing how a small container of bubbles can keep kids entertained for hours! After a fun birthday party over the weekend, Aidan and Maelle came home with several coloured jars of bubbles. Aidan spent a good part of yesterday afternoon going through almost every jar. I loved watching his expression at the number of bubbles that he blew, or at the size of every bubble that came off of the wand. Maelle...well, she resorted to chasing the bubbles after several failed attempts at blowing. I have a feeling that she got a little to close to the wand and decided that bubble liquid doesn't taste so good.

I must admit...it's been a while since I have had a go at bubble blowing and I actually quite enjoyed it!

just for fun

We kicked off Thursday morning with a bit of whipped cream for some cafe mocha's that would soon be enjoyed at a morning play date.

As usual....one member of my clean-up crew is always available to lend a helping hand.

Bree has a go in the play set swing for the first time. We finally have some nicer weather that we can all get outside and enjoy!

And what is in these lovely little packages you ask??

Well....since you asked....the UPS man dropped these lovely little bundles off for me on Friday morning, and while holding a sleeping Jenna with one hand, I managed to tear open all of the outer packaging (with much desperate excitement of course) and find these inside...

Ahh.....fabric! Glorious fabric! Fabric from one of my most favourite designers Anna Maria Horner. I have wanted some fabric from her for a while now...and....here it is! It will find an empty spot on my sewing table no doubt and wait it's turn to be made into a patchwork quilt. Hmmmm....when I will get around to this, I have no idea! But...the fabric makes me happy just looking at it. So many ideas....

Hope your weekend is a fun one too!