A Wicked Shred!

Today Grandma Lou took the girls to the pool while Chris and I ripped up the trails. It feels sooooo good to get out there riding, rather than running! (Look closely at the one of Chris just owning it on the killer climb on VFR).

Hiking with Grandma Lou

 Grandma Lou came into town on Thursday night and is here for 12 days! As usual, the girls get lots of hang time with Grandma Lou and Mom and Dad get some time together! Last night my Mom and Nana took the girls out for Chinese food while Chris and I played in a volleyball tournament which was lots of fun! This afternoon, we went for a nice hike right outside our house.

A Secret Gem

 
 We biked up to a local nursery yesterday which is a secret gem hidden in the woods. It's such a nice place to visit and just sit down and take it all in for a bit.
 

My two favorite gems!

Unicorn!

 Every time Nana asked Aja what she wanted for her birthday, she said "a Unicorn." Her wish came true and here she was riding it around the house yesterday morning!

I Love Living in a Small Community!

Some people may beg to differ, but I love living in a small town. I love the fact that every time I go to the grocery store, I see people I know. I love having neighbors who know our children intimately. We had an incident today that added to my cause: a neighbor who lives a block away rang the doorbell and surprised us with these skates. He brought a load up to the dump and took a peek at the Share Shed (a place where people drop off items that are still in good shape). He found these girls' figure skates that will be just the right size for Sedona next year! The fact that she made the switch at the end of this season from hockey skates to figure skates (of her own free will) just made her the happiest girl alive. Bob left and she said "that was so nice of him. That was really awesome!"

Children's Wish Foundation

 In lieu of gifts, Aja collected 2 toonies from each party attendee: one for her and one for the Children's Wish Foundation. 

Birthday Celebrations

As some of you are aware, Aja and I have our birthdays 3 days apart. So this weekend is a weekend full of celebration. Last night the four of us went out for a birthday dinner. This morning we opened gifts (Aja was mesmerized by her jewelry box and I was spoiled by Chris and the girls). Then Chris took Aja to her swimming lesson (she just started last week by herself and looooves it) while Sedona and I got the house ready to host 18 kiddies for Aja's birthday party (a lot of kids but lots of siblings so there was no way around it- we love them all)! Sedona is my number one helper these days and she was honestly such a big help. Then we went to the Farmer's Market (we got some huge radishes today, tomatoes and cucumbers- all hothouse) and our weekly dose of Bannock (yummy deep fried bread- traditional First Nations food) and special rocks that the girls love giving away to friends when they come to play. After lunch and a nap for Aja, the house became very full and busy! The night was finished off with a delicious meal prepared by Chris, and a slice of my favorite Chocolate Ganache from Wheatberries, compliments of my friend Christina. To top it off, Chris and I have a babysitter tomorrow so we can go for a birthday mountain bike ride! Birthdays- you gotta love them!

Happy Birthday to Aja!

Aja's cake reflected our treasure hunt today (Jewel Lake, Dinosaur Hill, Chocolate Tree).

 
 
 Aja giving the pinata a good whack!

Aja had her party figured out a while ago. 2 months ago, she declared she wanted Sedona to be Swiper the Fox at her party. This was before we decided on the Dora theme. Then we picked the the Dora theme and she wanted me to be Dora (thanks for the wig and backpack Lesley)! So we went on a little adventure, Dora style. We had some Dora music, the backpack filled with items and the map to guide us. We had to find the pinata: first we went to Jewel Lake, Dinosaur Hill and the Chocolate tree.

Starting to get the Hang of it

 

Clever Grandmas!

 Nana bought this dress for Sedona from Hawaii a couple of months ago and then she received some shoes from Grandma Lou yesterday, and they just happened to be the exact same colors! Well done ladies!

Half Marathon #3

I completed my 3rd half marathon (21.1 kms) this morning. It was a beautiful day today and it felt good to be out there running. It was great to run the first 20 kms with my good friend Jeanette before she snuck ahead of me. My goal was to do the run faster than last year, even if it was only by 30 seconds, and I did beat my time by about 2 minutes (I originally thought 1, but my time was 1 minute faster when they posted the results because of the race chips). I don't think I could have that goal though again as I really don't feel I could run that much faster, with the exception of the last km where I had to slow down because I had a cramp. Chris has told me I look like a "wild woman" before when I've come home from a looong run, and I'd have to agree, especially the last picture at the finish line! The best part is now I have my weekends back again with my family (thank you Chris for your support!!!!!) without having to plan long runs. And a big thanks to my training partners Jeanette and Maude- those long runs were way more manageable and enjoyable with you!

Thanks Nan and P.K.

Elliott and Charlotte Visit

 Grandma Lou- these pictures are for you so you can see Charlotte and Elliott. Good friends visited from Vancouver today and the kids had lots of fun. And I always love catching up with my long time (32 year friendship) friend Erin and her family!

April Snow in the Mountains

Easter Morning

 

More of our Saturday Morning Ride

 
 
 Chris and Sedona getting some practice on the hills on the tandem bike.

Sedona's been riding her own bike quite a bit lately, but for longer rides, the tandem bike is great!

Aja brought her twins along for the ride.

Coast Guard Helicopter

This helicopter was doing loops along the coastline when were down at Wakefield Beach. I took this pic from our deck as it was cruising right over West Sechelt, into Sechelt and the looping back out over the the Strait again. Amazing to watch the copter in the crazy wind and rain. Earlier that day Lisa spotted a sailboat battling through the waves. We couldn't believe that anyone would be out in those conditions. Later on that day we heard on the news that there was a sailing race from West Vancouver to Nanaimo. I can only suspect the boat we saw had blown off-course from this race.

 

Blaze and Kokanee

Easter Saturday found us going for a bike ride to feed the horses. Blaze and Kokanee are their names and they are always appreciative of apples and carrots.

Fresh snow on the background mountains.

Good Friday Windstorm

Happily Ever After?

 I have to be careful and not jinx things here!!!! I have found myself saying to Chris a lot lately how lucky we are. The girls are at a great stage and play so well together. In the mornings, they always have a little bit of T.V. time. Sedona sits in her favorite chair and the day can start one of three ways: 1) Sedona asks Aja if she wants to sit with her and she says yes, 2) Aja asks if Sedona wants her to sit with her and she says yes, or 3) Aja asks if Sedona wants her to sit with her and she replies "no thanks, I want to sit alone" ( the odd time it won't come out sounding quite as polite though). This morning went like this: Aja asked "Sedona, do you want me to sit with you?" and Sedona replied "yes, my darling sister." So here they are in their Christmas jammies from Nana making Mom and Dad feel an extra pang of love for our little darlings!