The last time we got a passport for Miss G, she was just a couple of weeks old and so sleepy that our biggest challenge was waking her up in order to get a photo with her eyes open. We literally tried waking her for 45 minutes before the photographer suggested the {somewhat cruel} method of gently wiping her face with a cool, wet cloth. It worked, and with some seriously stealthy propping and holding, we got the photo we needed.
This time around, I worried that we’d have the opposite problem. With all of the restrictions on Canadian passport photos (serious expression! closed mouth! centred face! no shine! no hair touching eyebrows!) and a little lady who very much prefers being on the go rather than staying still, I thought we could be in for a challenging visit.
But here’s the thing. By now, I should really know better than to ever doubt this little lady. We chatted about what we’d be doing and how it would work beforehand, arrived at the photography store, she stood perfectly still where the photographer asked, and kept a closed-mouth serious expression on her little face. He quickly snapped 3 photos, told us she had done better than most adults do, and sent us on our way 2 minutes after arriving.
The best part is that we submitted the passport application just before closing yesterday afternoon, and Gracen’s shiny new passport will be ready for pick-up come Monday. I love how easy things are in Canada!
♥
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Today we took our little fish to one of our very favourite summer spots in the city… Maple Grove Outdoor Pool. Gracen seriously loves this place. The pool’s fairly shallow, so there are lots of areas where she can easily wade around without assistance, there’s a little slide which she zooms down on repeat, and there’s a island in the middle of the deeper end for her to jump off of. We also love the fact that it’s surrounded by grassy areas and big trees and there’s a playground just outside of the gates. It’s the perfect spot to escape to when our house is 32 degrees and we need to cool down, asap. I’m guessing we’ll be visiting a lot during the month of July.
The upside to a very rainy June is that we’re crossing things off of our rainy day idea list that I thought we wouldn’t get to do before leaving Vancouver in July. Today, we headed out to UBC to do something we’ve been meaning to do for a long while – attend a drop-in gymnastics session! The class was held in Osborne Centre (where there is plenty of metred parking out front) and was a ton of fun. We walked into a gym filled covered in mats and soft, padded flooring with everything from balance beams to parallel bars, to trampolines, rings, and ropes and Miss G began exploring. Despite her very cautious nature, Grae had a wonderful time and actually asked if we could ‘flip the car around’ and go back to gymnastics while driving home. Sadly, today was the last day of the spring session, and starting July 4th when the summer session begins, drop-ins will be on Thursday nights from 7:15 to 8:15 p.m. only, which really doesn’t work with young kids. 
Enjoying a bread treat and the view.
A kid-operated water feature – a playground favourite!
“Mama, I’m following the water!”
Searching for fish.
One of our very favourite rainy day spots, the 
There’s no doubt that I’m a huge fan of kid-friendly cafés and restaurants. And though a great kid’s menu is a good start, in my opinion, a kid’s play corner of some sort sets a restaurant apart from the rest when it comes to family-friendliness. Needless to say, when I heard that 
The next thing I noticed was the kid’s menu. Grae and I normally share a dish when we’re out for a meal (partly because one dish is plenty of food for both of us, and partly because usual kid’s menus are filled with deep-fried junk and processed white carbs), but with a menu that includes meals made with wholewheat, organic, and locally-sourced ingredients, I was more than happy to let Miss G order something of her own. She picked the margarita pizza on a wholewheat honey rosemary crust, then was off to play. 
The play area, which is right in front of the big open window at the front of the restaurant, was well stocked with a play kitchen and pretend food, a workshop filled with plastic tools, wooden toys and puzzles, board books, mega blocks, and art supplies. The best part, however, is that it’s fully enclosed. No escaping kids here.
Gracen’s food arrived in no time at all, and she dove in immediately. After polishing off her third piece, she paused for a moment and I assumed she’d had her fill. When I went to wipe off her hands and face, she looked at me confused and said, “But Mama, I still have more!” The girl ate six pieces. SIX. 
My food was just as good. I ordered the red wine braised organic chicken panini and it was delish. And the green salad? It included dried blueberries, pine nuts, and wild rice. Yum.
After lunch, the kiddos got back to playing while us mamas finished our meals and got to visit a little bit (not easily done when out to lunch with a bunch of toddlers at a normal restaurant). 
Another day at the beach. Because it’s too gorgeous to be anywhere else. 
With days as gorgeous as today, there’s no choice but to soak it all in. It was a morning of sand and sunshine at Spanish Banks for us today.
Saturdays don’t come better than this.
This photo reminds me of so many of the things we adore about Vancouver. The outdoors, art, blossoms, mountains, Queen E Park… It’s a lovely combination.
Vancouver sunshine plus an impromptu dinner picnic at the beach and ocean-dipped toes makes for a very happy mama and babe.
Today Miss G and I trudged off the beaten path a little to check out somewhere that’s been on my mental list for a very long while now… Iona Beach. Nestled in a quiet area out beside the Vancouver Airport, Iona Beach is definitely unique. After you pass the farms lining the airport runway, you come to Iona Beach Regional Park, a piece of rural heaven just outside of the city.
Now I must admit that there were some very serious tears when we got out of the car and Miss G realized that this beach was not the awesome playground-having beach she’s used to visiting. Our saving grace, however, was this lookout tower that was cool enough to {at least semi} make up for the disappointment. 
While there were tons of swampy beach areas to explore, we opted to head out for a walk on the park’s jetty.
We were definitely the odd ones out in a community of bird watchers and dog walkers (every single person we passed had a dog or binoculars and/or a camera with a giant zoom), but what we really loved was the plane watching! They were amazingly close and basically came one after the next.
The other fascination during our jetty walk was with potato bugs. I’m not sure if Grae has seen these much in the past, but they were plentiful and she certainly loved them. 
What I didn’t realize when I suggested we check out the jetty was that it was 4.5 kms long! We made it a couple of kilometres out before Miss G called it quits and asked to turn around. On the way back, there were definitely a few bouts of carrying, several sitting breaks, and even an attempt to crawl ‘because it’s easier for tired legs’. (Note to self: bring the stroller next time!)
Being the uber generous, community-focused company that they are, RMFC invited Miss G and I, along with a pile of our blogger mama and munchkin friends, down to the restaurant for a toddler cooking class this morning. Now while this could be a challenge given our crunchy ‘
Our morning began with Suzanne, the restaurant’s co-founder and owner, fearlessly leading our kiddos through the process of making their own mango guacamole. What I loved most is that Suz allowed the kids to do the prep work themselves… No watching an adult cook around here! She gave them the tools, modelled the process, and set them free to be the capable little chefs that they are.
Some avocado, mango, lime juice, and fresh herbs later, Gracen and her little friends had a delicious dip for their carrot sticks.
Next up was a simple and much better for you version of lemonade… A bunch of freshly-squeezed lemons, a little pour of pure maple syrup, and a lot of icy cold water and we had a drink that will be perfect for hot summer days.
After that, we made my personal favourite… Suz’s apple pie popcorn (you can see our slightly modified version 
Together, Portia (one of the sweet little ladies belonging to Jessica of 
The magic of bubbles.
A giant microphone for a little performer.
“Hello Goose! How you doing today? You wanna see my flower???”
File all of these lovely things – cool sunshiny mornings, layers and boots, days with grandmas – under things we’ll miss once back in Kuwait.