Guy Fawkes Day

November 5th is Guy Fawkes Day, also known as Bonfire Night.  There are firework displays and basically just a fun time, all because of a man called Guy Fawkes and a number of other Catholics back in 1605.  When James I, a Protestant, became king in 1605, a small number of Catholics protested by planning on blowing up the Houses of Parliament.  Luckily an anonymous letter was sent, giving a bit of warning, and the plan was foiled.  Guy Fawkes is the famous protester, as he was found with the barrels of explosives, waiting to light the fuse, when the cellar was checked.

Nowadays it's referred to as Bonfire Night, when there are firework displays and basically just a fun time for all. Unfortunately the fireworks have been canceled in our village tonight due to bad weather, so we'll go to a different display this weekend.

Helena has been learning about fireworks and "Guy Forks" all week.  Here's her rendition of the story:

The Latest and Greatest

AND

The World's Toughest Job

Have you seen this yet?

It's a pretty great description of the job.  Usually it's not quite as hard as it sounds and there's a lot of joy found in the job, but it is a lot.  

My mom has done the job for 36 years and I don't ever remember hearing a complaint come out of her mouth.  Plus, out of the billions who do it in the world, she's the best one of them all.  

Thanks for being my mom, Mom.  I appreciate you so much. 

Shopping as a Fam

One thing I was amazed at when I became a mom was the amount of shopping suddenly required of me.  No longer was it just grocery shopping and occasional household item shopping, with the fun clothing expedition thrown into the mix.  It still included those things, and more often, but it also includes clothes, shoes, and miscellaneous items for the kids too.

I remember talking to my mom when Helena was 9 months old, and saying I felt like I was shopping every single week for Helena!  Her response: "Get used to it, Charlotte."

Helena asked to have her photo taken here with her friends.  Can you find her?

And I have.  But over the holiday break, I was treated to a very fun shopping expedition with my family.  When it's -20 outside in the city, where do you go to help your little girl get some energy out?  We - including John! - spent a day at the mall.

Surprisingly, we all had a lot of fun.  I've learned a trick for shopping with John & kids - have lots of snacks available :)  And it wasn't really meant to be a day of shopping, but we did get some shopping done too.

Benjamin Cooing and Smiling

Long, I know, but it's 4:30 in the morning and I did what I could...but really, he's a cutie so I don't mind!

The ABCs

For Helena's Cousins

Today we tried out one of the many kid activities on Pinterest, and this one was a real winner.

Here's what you need:
-a pan with lots of baking soda in it
-vinegar dyed with food coloring
-a dropper or pipette

Watch this for the rest of the instructions:

Enjoy the chemical reaction!

We're back - with a video!

This blog has been ignored quite a bit in the last couple months.  My first trimester with Baby was not easy, one difficulty being any time on the computer made me extremely nauseous.  With everything else that had to be done on the computer, the blog was easy to ignore.  And then we went back to MN and WI for three wonderful weeks with family and friends!

But now we're back, settling into our great life in Toronto and feeling more than ready to blog again!  What better way to restart than with a video of Helena talking about Christmas.

While this blog post is for everyone, it's especially for you, BBS.  We noticed you weren't at church on the 30th - sorry Helena wasn't there on the 6th for you to see!

A bit of fun for Canadian Thanksgiving

A fun video that shows many spots in Toronto.

I'm thankful to be living in this country.

Like Daddy, Like Daughter

A lot of people tell me they see John when Helena smiles.  In the last few days, Helena has been trying to be like her daddy in other ways too!

The Parents Rap

I can't figure out how to put this on the blog, but all you parents out there, you should watch this 3 minute video.  It'll provide you with a good laugh.

http://www.dump.com/parentsrap/

She's a Sweets.

I love this girl.

Sand & a Shovel

We found the camera!

Flowers

Flowers are currently Helena's all-encompassing focus.  She discovered dandelions in a park three weeks ago, and since then there is just nothing better!  Really - today she practically fell out of her stroller because her mother hadn't strapped her in, which meant she could reach out and try to pick flowers while we moved along.

We went and saw the cherry blossoms in High Park this year with friends, and lucky for us, there were a few limbs that were very low.  Helena & Nora had a ball.

John brought home a few beautiful Gerbera daisies for me.  I love them but Helena may actually enjoy them more, since she has asked to smell them at least two dozen times! 

So this past weekend we went to the Allan Gardens Conservatory and surrounded Helena with flowers.  The flowers being right at her height made it simply perfect for her.

Yet her attention still regularly went to the dandelion she was carrying. 

She's walking!

A Scarf & Sunglasses

Fotoshop by Adobe

Fun with my new computer

John & I gave ourselves a new computer for Christmas. I've been working on figuring out everything I can now do. Current project - video maker.




Wasn't the timing of the sample music on my computer perfect?

Laughing with Mommy

She's got the best laugh.

And we're in.

With only a few boxes and crates left to sift through, I think it can be said that we're moved into our new home.  And the verdict is...(drumroll please)

IT'S WONDERFUL! 

I am thankful that we experienced a year in a tiny apartment, as we learned a lot.  But at the moment, I feel like I'm high on our new place.  Here are some illustrations of how life has changed in the last six days:

1) We now make announcements of where we will be when leaving a room.  Unnecessary before.
2) Helena is scooting everywhere!  We're amazed at how fast she is and how often she's on the move.  Our old place didn't really allow for that much moving; plus there was nowhere to go.
3) Our refrigerator door opens completely; the old was partially blocked by the radiator.
4) The old apartment pushed us out, which was great as we were in the best neighborhood.  The new invites us to stay, kick back, and relax.
5) Helena has room to play.  We have room to play.
6) We have more time together as John walks 5 to 15 minutes instead of commuting for 30 to 45 minutes on public transportation.
7) We had HUGE windows in our last place, and it's hard to believe but our new windows are even bigger.
8) I have a real kitchen.
9) We can sit on the ground with Helena and not have to be contortionists.
10) John's books are unpacked and on our big bookshelf.  Most of the books and the bookshelf were formerly in storage.

There is more I could say about our amazing new home but instead I'm going to go spend some downtime with my hubby.  There hasn't been much of that lately - he's a busy yet wonderful man!

For those Helena fans out there, here's a fun video from when John was assembling the big bookshelf.