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.
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!
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…
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?
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!”
Hungry ducks.
Sprinkling seeds.
Headed home.
Sandwiches in the park with my little lady. How lucky am I?
Our first stop was the playground. Gracen was beyond excited to ride the tractor, play on the tire horses, and zoom down the slide. In fact, she was having such a blast that it was hard to pull her away in order to go and check out the rest of the orchard.
With the promise of seeing animals, our little animal lover followed us up the hill into the orchard. And she was very pleased she did. We saw rabbits, chickens, goats, sheep, and a donkey. Not only did she get to see the animals, but she also got to pet and feed some of them too. Her favourite part was retrieving the food from the dispenser, carefully placing it in the cup, and turning the wheel to send the treats up to the greedy goat waiting on the bridge above head. And although she was a little apprehensive, she even fed one of the goats by hand.
Next, we headed to the Kids Corral – a newer addition to the farm. It was awesome. Giant slides, a plasma car track, duck racing lanes, and a huge sandpit (complete with real tractors and an old truck) were just part of the fun. There was also a teepee to hide in, a corn maze to make your way through, a tree house perfect for enjoying the view, and a cow bell ringing station for those wanting to make some noise. The coolest part though? The biggest sensory bin I’ve ever seen (and you know I love me a good sensory bin). It was actually a shed filled with dried corn, shovels, and tractors… Amazing! 
The best part is that we’re hoping to do another visit next weekend when my brother, sister-in-law, and all of Miss G’s cousins arrive. Can’t wait. It’s sure to be quadruple the fun {and quadruple the craziness!}
♥
Bradley and the bubbas in the ball pit.
Gracen was in ball HEAVEN!
Gracen playing with the alphabet blocks on the side of the wooden school bus.
Bus driver Kins and climber Grae.
Papa built Gracen a little hideout in the toddler play area.
She was more than willing to test it out.
Where’s Grae?
There she is!
Here come Papa and Grae down the giant slide!
Wheeee!
Christmas dinner complete with homemade perogies!
Grae had a little help polishing off her desert.
Grandma Sure and her grand babies.
Notice how Miss G is the only one not loving the pre-present photo session? I blame it on a bedtime drawing near…
Gracen opening her very special (and very large) gift just from Uncle Gary.
I wonder what it could be… Keep unwrapping, Grae.
Wow! Her very own wooden art easel! I can already see many finger painting sessions in this little artist’s future. Spoiled girl.
After opening her easel (and many other gifts she was spoiled with), she moved on to helping Papa with his.
After a wonderful day spent with family celebrating Christmas, this little lady was ready for bed. We tucked her in, and once her cousins were all down for the night, Bradley, Gary, Roz, and I met up with some friends and went out for the evening to celebrate Roz’s birthday. Grandma Sue had generously offered to stay home with all 4 munchkins while we enjoyed a night on the town. It was the first time Bradley and I had been out together since having Gracen, so we were a little nervous about how the night would go, but everything went great. When we tiptoed into the house at midnight, everyone was sound asleep and Grandma Sue hadn’t heard a peep.
Gracen and Korbin are bundled up and ready to hit the slopes.
Grae and Kinslee in their twin sleds.
The crew.
“Skating” while cozied up in her stroller.
Dinner in the warmth of the cantina.
Well, the roads didn’t want to cooperate with us today… We checked the highway reports early this morning to find out that the Coquihala had been closed due to a huge accident and they weren’t expecting to open it for a long while.
Our options included heading home in the usual direction and taking the detour route (which seemed to be the longest, busiest option), or heading home on the slow and windy Crow’s Nest highway and hoping for the best. Of course, we picked the Crow’s Nest. The roads were snowy and slippery in some parts, but all in all, they weren’t terrible. By the time we made it to Princeton, we’d gone through the worst of it and decided to stop for a little break.
Saying that Gracen was ecstatic to be out of the vehicle is an understatement. Sadly, after letting her cruise around the snowy parking lot for a good long while, we had to strap her back into her seat for the rest of the trip. She was not a happy camper to say the least.
The rest of our trip consisted of clear roads and a couple side of the highway potty breaks. It took us well over 8.5 hours to get here, but at least we have no where we need to be for the next 7 days. Yay for that.
In preparation for tomorrow’s trip up to Vernon for Christmas: Part II, Grae and I dropped off the vehicle to have winter tires put on this morning. We walked home with Little G in her stroller, had some lunch and a nap, and now we’re backpacking back down to pick it up. Winter roads, here we come!