Mother’s Day, Just Me and My Girl

5 / 13 / 125 / 14 / 12

With Bradley at work again this Mother’s Day, my little lady and I got to have a special day, just the two of us. It started out with a low-key morning of puzzles, stories, and tickles at home while sipping tea and slowly getting ready for our day.

When we were good and ready, we ventured out to do something we rarely ever do – eat out, just the two of us. We went to Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company, a little restaurant on Main Street that is carbon neutral and offers an organic menu. Despite the fact that it was incredibly busy and they could have used another server, we loved it. The menu was filled with local, organic foods, their juices were fresh-squeezed, they gave Gracen crayons and a colouring page (which she was thrilled about), and there was a kids’ corner, complete with two wooden play kitchens, several tiny aprons, and an assortment of pots, pans, and felt food. We ordered an organic fresh-squeezed orange juice (Grae even got a few sips and loved it this time around) and a Bradner Farms flatbread pizza, topped with local organic free-range chicken, nut-free pesto, roasted red bell peppers, and red onions. It was a delish. And to top it off – all moms got a complimentary fudge brownie topped with fresh whipped cream, raspberry coulis, and mint leaves… Who could ask for more?

After lunch, we headed home for Gracen’s nap. She slumbered peacefully while I prepped and packed for day two at the beach. When she awoke a couple hours later, we climbed into the car and made our way to Spanish Banks for another beach adventure. The afternoon passed quickly as we frolicked in the sand, splashed in the water, and collected all sorts of drift wood, and before we knew it, it was time to head home for dinner, bath time, and bedtime.

Although I’ve already had the perfect day with my wee one, tomorrow we get to do it all over again, as Brad is off and we’ve officially marked the day as our family Mother’s Day. Bring on more beach time any day!

♥

Vitamin D

5 / 12 / 125 / 13 / 12

I am so, so lucky to have a wee one that loves being outdoors as much as I do. We spent our morning at Granville Island playing on playgrounds, watching birds and boats, strolling the seawall, and taking in live performances, then came home just long enough for a nap, and headed right back out the door. Our afternoon adventure took us down to Jericho Beach, where we played in the sand, dipped our toes in the ocean, and collected ocean treasures.

Captain Grae.

Water collection.

Cruisin’ around the water park (can’t wait ’til it opens!)

Running with the birds.

Paddle boarders passing by.

Unicycle excitement. (Grae was more interested in the rocks.)

Tuckered out.

First visit to Jericho Beach.

Sand scooping.

Collecting.

“Gifts” for Mama.

And at the end of the day, after a healthy dose of vitamin D, we reluctantly headed home, hoping for another sunshiny day outdoors again tomorrow.

♥

A Beach Morning

5 / 6 / 125 / 7 / 12

A few photos from our beautiful Sunday morning at the beach…

Low tide.

Log driving.

Monkey.

A Sunday morning treat.

Grae’s idea of beach footwear.

Giggles.

In search of treasure.

Treasure collection.

Stuck.

Vancouver girl.

It was one of those days where you just never want to go inside. I truly love where we live.

♥

Easter Saturday

4 / 7 / 124 / 8 / 12

We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful Easter Saturday. The weather was gorgeous and Grae and I took full advantage of it by spending the majority of the day outside. We spent the morning at a really fun Easter egg hunt and carnival, and the afternoon at our favourite outdoor spot – Kits Beach. Here’s our day in photos…

Getting ready for the ‘3 and under’ egg hunt.

Basket in hand and ready to search!

Waiting patiently…

Go!

Like an old pro…

Found another one!

Checking out the loot.

Grae’s first ever face painting experience.

Gracen, the bunny.

Ring “tossing”.

Bouncy castle!

Playground time.

Bunny-eared baby.

Admiring her findings once again after a nap.

Beach time!

Sand box fun.

Collecting.

Beach-loving baby.

‘Can we collect seaweed too, Mama?’

Telling me that she wants to kiss the dog passing by.

So lucky to live where we do.

On a side note, can you believe that the little dress Grae wore today is last year’s Easter dress?! When I originally found it, I thought KD 15 (nearly $60 at the time) was a little pricey, but I ended up going back to get it a few weeks later after not being able to stop thinking about how beautiful it was. I’m so glad I did because she’s been wearing it for a full year now and will probably be able to wear it several more times this spring. Also, you can check out Grae’s first ever Easter egg hunt at seven months old here.

♥ Happy Easter Saturday! ♥

A Kits Beach Afternoon

4 / 1 / 124 / 1 / 12

This afternoon was GORGEOUS, so as soon as Miss G woke up from her nap, we jumped in the car and headed down to the beach. We soaked up some vitamin D while puppy watching, and left with sand-filled shoes and daisy-filled pockets.
Doesn’t get much better than this. ♥

Shoping in the States

3 / 19 / 123 / 10 / 14

Today was Brad’s virtual Saturday, so we headed down to Bellingham for our monthly stock up and some fun. First, we hit up our two favourites, Trader Joe’s and Target for the essentials. Gracen was a champ about spending a couple of hours roaming up and down store isles and enjoyed riding around inside the shopping carts. Afterwards, she and Papa headed to the mall’s play area while I got in a full 45 minutes of clothes shopping by myself (a post-Grae first)! It was already past nap time, so we snuck in a quick lunch at the Chipotle knock-off, The Habenero Factory, and hit the road to do a few errands while G snoozed in her seat.

Gracen awoke from her nap to find that we were parked out front of this shop (hmmm…wonder whose stop this was…) and naturally, we had to get out of the car to investigate the big green guy. She wasn’t so sure of him at first, but she quickly warmed up to him and ended up giving him 5s, kissing his knees, and rubbing his rock hard abs. After all that, I’d say Miss G and The Hulk are good friends, wouldn’t you?

Tired and done with shopping, we headed back towards home when we decided to make an impromptu stop in White Rock. It was absolutely freezing by the ocean, but we layered up and headed towards the beach. Lucky for us, a train was making its way down the tracks as we got to the boardwalk. Grae watched closely as it nosily clunked on by, until it stopped. I mean, completely stopped, creating a barrier between us and the beach. We waited and watched until it finally started with a jolt, and continued along its path.

Gracen loved ‘Grizlee’, the bear statue and kissed his fur (she’s all about kissing things she likes right now) and rode on his back. We played on the grass, collected rocks, threw them in the ocean, and walked along the boardwalk until we were frozen solid and could no longer stand being out in the wind.

Once we got home, our little helper helped empty all of the grocery bags, we ate dinner, and it was bath time and bedtime for G after a long day.

Beach Afternoon

3 / 18 / 123 / 18 / 12

After a lazy morning at home, I knew we’d both enjoy getting out for the afternoon. So when Grae woke up from her nap and had had her quiet time, I asked her if she wanted to go to the beach. As soon as I said “beach”, she started signing ‘Rock! Rock!’ (we always collect rocks at the beach), then ‘Birdie!’ (we watch the crows and seagulls), followed by ‘Drink! Drink!’ (we often cross the street to get hot drinks at Starbucks). Smart little cookie. I took that as a yes.

To the Beach with Manmaw

3 / 4 / 123 / 4 / 12

Today we headed down to our favourite beach to enjoy our last couple of hours with Grandma Charlotte. We played on the playground for a little bit and then made our way to the walking path (towards Cornwall Ave and Starbucks), to which Gracen immediately exclaimed, “Drink! Drink!”, knowing that a steamed milk with cinnamon was in her near future… Smart little cookie! Puppy kisses, puddle jumping, sea glass collecting, and extreme swinging were also involved. Here’s the proof:

Mondern merry-go-rounding.

A dreary day treat.

Splish splash.

Searching for something special.

With Papa’s help.

Taking it all in.

“Catching Papa”.

Extreme swinging, courtesy of Gma Char.

‘Hello down there!’

‘Wheeeeeee!’

Our morning ended with a tuckered out little lady falling asleep on the drive home (an hour before her usual nap time), therefore missing out on saying goodbye to her “Manmaw”. Oopsies. Although she didn’t wake up desperately searching for Grandma like we thought she might, she did remind us about where Grandma sleeps and where she sits at the table several times throughout the remainder of the day. Not to worry my sweet girl, Grandma’s last words were, “Make sure that foamie doesn’t go too far – I’ll be back at the end of March!” Days spent in the backyard gardening with Grandma are coming very soon, Miss G.

Sunday

2 / 26 / 123 / 1 / 12

Oh, how I love Sundays… And today’s was just as they were meant to be. Bradley had the day off and we were able to spend the day together, just the three of us, for the first time in what felt like a long while. Our day was filled with a morning at the beach, a leisurely walk for tea lattes, a lazy lunch, produce shopping at our favourite market, and fresh vietnamese spring rolls for dinner. Of course, the beach was the highlight… I know it seems like we’ve been a little obsessed with Kits Beach lately {we have!}, but it’s just so beautiful down there. There’s a little bit of everything – a seawall to walk along, one of the best playgrounds we’ve visited in the city, and a giant beach to explore. Not to mention, there’s a Starbucks across the street (this makes Mama very happy) and you can’t walk 3 steps without seeing a dog or a bird (this makes Gracen very happy). Overall, it’s a win-win! Plus, it’s only 15 minutes from our house and Papa had not been since well before our overseas adventure… So basically, we HAD to go {and take 150 photos while we were at it}. Here are some of my favourites:

Little Miss Animal Lover on her way to offer the seagull her muffin.

Carefully selecting a few new items for our ocean discovery box.

Smitten with blankets.

Almond-filled pockets.

Sittin’ with the seagulls.

Deep in conversation.

“Papa, you’re sooooo funny!”

Showing off her shell.

Impromtu beach snuggles for Mama. ♥

Giggles.

Stealth snack style by Papa.

Little admirer.

Serious about boots.

Log walking.

Papa & his little lady.

Dismount.

The Crankiness Cure

2 / 22 / 123 / 4 / 12

This morning was a little rough. Gracen had a great sleep, woke up happy, and gobbled up her oatmeal with milk and berries as usual, but things quickly went downhill after that. Before long, she was an unhappy, whining, I-need-my-mama-to-carry-me-all-morning-long mess. (I think it must be this little bug we’re trying to fight off.) There’s only one fix for a morning like this. What is it, you ask? Getting outside and getting some fresh air, asap! I swear, it’s the cure for all Gracen issues. Teething? Get outside. Tired but not yet time for a nap? Get outside. Feeling yucky? Get outside. So that’s just what we did. We quickly got ready, packed some snacks and our gumboots, and headed down to Kits Beach.

Saucer swingin’.

Steamed milk with cinnamon along the seawall (she’s signing ‘drink’).

Seashell inspecting.

Wave watching.

Wet toes.

Newly collected ocean items.

Bumblebee boots on the beach.

Snacks on a log.

Puddle jumping.

Making friends with passersby.

The perfect perch.

Voila! Grumpiness gone. Fresh air is magic, I tell you. Pure magic.

We Heart Kits Beach

2 / 17 / 123 / 1 / 12

Although we’re perfectly content living in a little house {just barely} on the east side of the city, there is definitely something magical about Vancouver’s westside. There’s just a different energy about it. Maybe it’s just that before moving to the Middle East I had spent the better part of a decade living there and it feels more like home… I don’t know. Either way, I know that I want to spend some time showing Gracen some of my favourite places from times past.

With that in mind, this morning we geared up, pretended not to notice the spitting rain too much, and headed down to an old favourite, Kits Beach. We walked along the oceanfront, visited with puppies, played at the playground, put our {gumboot-protected} feet in the water, collected seashells, ate lunch on a giant log, bird watched, and jumped in puddles. Okay…and took a ridiculous amount of photos. :) It was the perfect Vancouver morning with my little lady. ♥