Two firsts occurred while visiting Gido up at Davison Orchards today – Gracen tried her first ever Appleanche (a delicious slushy drink made of Davison’s own fresh-pressed pure apple juice) and she sat on her first ever motorcycle (Gido’s). So much fun.
♥
The other day, while shopping for craft supplies, Miss G spotted a shelf of mini wooden bird houses and immediately got excited. Having painted her own bird house before, she knew exactly what these unfinished little bird homes meant – getting messy and having fun, painting-style. Knowing that her cousins would be arriving in a few days, we decided to pick up four. Gracen was very serious about selecting four different houses and was just as excited to choose paintbrushes, paint, and bird seed. Upon returning home {to Grandma’s house}, I quietly tucked the bag of goodies away until the cousins arrived and we were in need of an activity.
With an hour or so to spare this morning and a little drizzle falling from the sky, we decided it was a good time to bring out the supplies. We set up shop out on Grandma Sue’s patio and let the kiddos dive in.
Grae was an old pro. She very seriously collected paint on her brush and stroked it onto her house, trying to fill in all of the spaces.
Korbin had a plan. Each side would be a separate colour. And when he had finished that task, he brushed some white over top to “make it look cooler”.
Miss Kins had never painted before, and although she dived in eagerly, she wasn’t thrilled about getting paint on herself. She painted a little bit of the roof, and then called it quits.
Chay didn’t join us immediately, but once he saw what was going on, he was up at the table in no time and was all about painting the inside of his house.
Tonight, as we’re chatting while getting her ready for bed…
Mama: Grae, are you a big girl or a little girl?
Gracen: Grae Grae HAPPY girl!
♥
I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it or not, but my sister-in-law, Roz, is an amazingly talented photographer who has worked very hard throughout the last year to build her business (Roz Edge Photography) and personal photography style. Lucky for us, she snapped a few photos of Gracen over the weekend and was kind enough to send them our way. 
Aren’t these beautiful? I absolutely adore the soft, whimsical, almost dreamy feel of her photos.
She’s based out of the Calgary area and does it all – weddings, engagements, maternity, families, kids, newborns, and even boudoir. I highly recommend booking a session with her if you’re nearby. Her prices are ridiculously reasonable, and based on the demand she’s had this year alone, I doubt they’ll stay that way for much longer, so don’t wait.
You can check out her website here and her Facebook page here.
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After naps for the girls and some down time for the boys, we decided to pack up the kiddos and head to a beach / park this afternoon. We packed bathing suits just in case, but given the fact that the weather hasn’t been that warm, I figured that the water would be freezing and the kids wouldn’t want to go in. I was wrong. While the girls stayed on the safe side and stayed pretty dry, the boys went full on swimming. Brrrr! 
Our crew. Minus the mommies of course. Typical situation – mamas behind the cameras.
Splish splash!
Gracen “offering” almonds to Kinslee by shoving them in her mouth.
Papa and his little lady.
Missing feet {and hands}.
Castle building {and crushing}.
Teamwork.
A “Papa push”, as Miss G calls it.
Dry and ready for some playground time.
Strong girl!
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Okay, so when I mentioned that Gracen LOVES her cousins, I wasn’t exaggerating. Poor Kinslee has spent her morning receiving Grae’s endless hugs and kisses regardless of whether or not she wants them. She’s been exceptionally accepting so far, but I can’t see it lasting the whole weekend…
♥
This morning the 3 of us packed up our things and headed into Vernon to Grandma Sue’s house for the long weekend. My brother, sister-in-law, and their 3 munchkins arrived late last night from Alberta, so we’ve got the whole crew here (not to mention that my dad arrives from Alberta tomorrow too!) Gracen was so excited to see her cousins this morning that she went around handing out hugs and kisses to each one of them on repeat. After hanging out at the house for a little bit, Uncle Gary headed out dirt biking, and the rest of us decided to walk down to a nearby park for some outdoor fun. The kids pulled each other in the wagon, played on the playground, met new friends, and stared longingly at the {closed} peanut pool before it was time to head back for lunch and naps. Here’s our morning in photos…
Gracen and her cousin, Kinslee, just hanging out in the wagon together.
So happy to be hanging out with her cousins!
Chayton taking the little girls for a spin.
Korbin swinging with his new friends.
Loving the ring toss game Auntie Roz brought along.
A ride courtesy of her {6 weeks} younger cousin.
‘Oh, peanut pool, why aren’t you open?’
A heavy load for KJ.
Perhaps Korbin can sneak us in?
♥
At random times throughout the day (with a little punch of enthusiasm in her voice and the tiniest of smirks upon her face):
“Booyah, Papa!”
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These foam face shapes are meant to go on the bath tub walls, but Gracen thinks putting them on her face and having me take photos for her to look at is just as hilarious. I must say, I agree.
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I don’t know whether I’ve mentioned the awesome collection of old school toys Grae’s Grandma Charlotte has, but it’s pretty amazing. From Little People to Potato Heads to Nerfuls to Duplo, she’s saved it all since Miss G’s Papa and Uncle Brett were wee ones. In the last few days, Gracen has really gotten into Duplo. She and her Papa have sat in the living room building towers and pyramids one after the next. Today, a new creation came about and when it was done, Grae came to me, proud as a peacock, to show off this… A Duplo camera, complete with a view finder and a little shutter release button. Looks like we’ve got a petite paparazzi on our hands now.
♥
No matter how long our vacations in the Okanagan are, we still seem to have troubles making time to see all of our friends and family members during our stays. It just seems there are always too many plans and not enough time… Luckily, many of our family members make the trip out to see us, which is always very appreciated.
Today, Gracen’s Great Grandma Shirley was able to come out to the farm and spend the afternoon and evening visiting with Miss G (and us too of course). We played outside, went on a couple of walks, and had dinner, all whilst Grae showed her great grandma her best tricks.
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I’m very happy to report that our Okanagan weather is finally back to normal. Thank goodness. Perfect for lazy afternoons in the backyard just like today’s…
Snacks in the sunshine.
Testing the water.
Rides on Papa the pony.
Time to go in…
Chilly!
Our two ingredient ice cream turned 3 ingredient ice cream – a raspberry sorbet of sorts.
Deeeee-licious!
Doesn’t get much better.
♥
Because we didn’t really get to celebrate the real Father’s Day properly last week, we said we’d set aside a little time to do something special during our Okanagan vacation. So this morning, after Bradley had a chance to sleep in, we all got ready, packed up some things, and made our way to Polson Park. Once there, we played at the playground, explored the park, had a little picnic, opened the gift G and I made for Brad, and visited with the ducks. Despite the fact that much of the park was covered in a generous layer of water due to the recent rain, it was a gorgeous morning. The sun was shining, the temperature was perfect, and the park was as green as could be.
Here is our morning in photos…
Swinging with Papa.
Soooo happy.
Snuggles and sandwiches.
Checking out the water park.
Grae and Mama.
A little gift.
Checking out Papa’s 2nd annual Father’s Day photo book.
“High! More high!”
High fives while swinging. No big deal.
Hungry ducks.
Sprinkling seeds.
Headed home.
♥
This afternoon I attempted my first ever batch of ‘one ingredient ice cream’ (mine is actually 2 ingredient ice cream because I decided to add pure vanilla) while Gracen and Papa put together a new wagon that Manmaw and PopPop had tucked away in their garage…
The result was a wagon ride with a bowl of ‘ice cream’ and one very happy doodlebug.
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Sandwiches in the park with my little lady. How lucky am I?
♥