Final blog post! 12 month milestones

When I started this blog I committed to doing it for at least one year and I've decided this is a good time for it to come to a close. Thank you to those who have read the posts and followed our family adventures.

12 month milestones

-began walking!
-babbles the sound "doo" frequently and repeats syllables we make
-loves to press xbox buttons and play with joystick
-claps her hands
-waves goodbye
-likes to splash in the pool and play at the park

 

Hairs are different + Victoria Day + Voyageur park

Admittedly, now that the weather is nice I have little interest in spending Evelyn's naptimes on the laptop. I'd rather be gardening or (soon) lounging by the pool. But for the sake of continuity and letting friends and family know what we've been up to: here we go!

Hairs are different!

Liana and I went to get our hair done by Dom, who just recently returned to Lucas Nault. Liana wanted to dye her hair from like ages 9-11 but I had set 13 as the minimum age required and specified it I could overrule crazy colours. 13 came and went and the hippy part of Liana appreciated her natural hair colour. A few months ago she hit me with "I want purple highlights" which I mulled over for a bit. In the end I caved, as long as they were done by my friend Dom, with her natural colour products, and without the use of bleach. It looks surprisingly subtle for purple! Mostly noticeable in the light.

I redid my colour and just got a trim. Caleb got his summer buzz cut recently, too (pics n/a!).

Foil space creature!

In the light

Not too punk rock

Liana thinks this picture is HILARIOUS (because it's mom taking a selfie)

Victoria Day

A Monday off with Darcy and all of the children was golden. Beautiful day mostly spent outdoors.

 

Voyageur Park

There's this park about a 15min walk from our place to which the neighbourhood has donated outdoor toys their kids have outgrown and some lawn chairs. Evelyn and I checked it out.

Miscellaneous

Caleb's been practicing riding his two wheel bike! Learning how to keep your balance is no small feat.


Evelyn has two more teeth! Last Friday we visited daddy at work as well as a lot of co-workers. We hosted an epicure party and had a visit from grandma and aunt Casey.

Liana's passport arrived in the mail. That trip to Paris is right around the corner!

Caught slobbering on the wall

Pulled over during an adventurous jog with mommy

This is what happens when the ponytail is removed

Sometimes this is what I find when I climb the stairs

Scouts advancement ceremony (Caleb is in year 2 of 3 so he advances next year)

Evelyn loved the burgers

Month 11 Milestones

* more mobile, can crawl quickly between rooms and even zoom up the stairs!

* more stable - can stand for a few seconds on her own, take one step forward, and can move around the bathtub by herself without falling down

* more vocal - babbles more, yells at the bathtub when her water is running

* pays a little more attention to the TV at times (she's been ignoring the sesame streets for a while now! likes dancing to Yo Gabba Gabba)

* likes sleepovers at both sets of grandparents

* top front teeth have grown in so the four are now clearly visible

* plays on the swing in the park

* more aware of when she's doing troubles (stops and looks when we say "ah ah ah")

* eats everything - only cream of corn remains on the bad list

* occasionally bites while nursing (ouch!)
* loves to play piano and dance 

* hair long enough for the tiniest of ponytails

Comic Con with Liana + Mother's Day + Starring Evelyn

Comic Con with Liana

I actually wrote a long review of this (here) and covered the Q&A for Summer Glau for Capital Geek Girls which should be published sometime soon so I don't have much to add. Liana and I had a long 12 hours of fun. We bought some treasures, including Totoro jewelry, t-shirts (of Sunnydale High, Sailor Moon, and gloomy art variety), buffy and saga comics, an airbender print, and a new boardgame. We stopped ourselves from buying many more things. Here are a few photos, including scans of the two autographs we got.

Waiting for the Q&A session

Candy apples are vegan, yay!

 

Mother's Day

Our annual mothers day picnic at the park was mega enjoyable! This year Liana prepared all of the food so it was fancier than my usual salsa and cream cheese tortilla rolls.

Every day moments with Evelyn (videos)

Video of some of our favourite Evelyn moments: getting her from her crib when she wakes from a nap, playing piano and signing, feeding her cereal even though she insists on wiping her mouth after every bite, and today she just started out the window in wonder at a downpour of rain.

 

Miscellaneous

Caleb had an annual doctor appointment. He weighs 50 pounds, is 120cm tall, and appears to be perfectly healthy.

Evelyn and I went to Caleb's lunchtime recess one day this week and the children were like vultures! Poor Evelyn. Dozens of kids all over her, touching her face and poking at her. They asked a million questions (what's her name? how old is she? are you married? what's your husband's name? how many months is she? when is her birthday? does she know how to smile? can she walk yet?). For 40 minutes they asked questions and hovered in her personal space. I think Evelyn prefers seven year olds one at a time...

We had a nice birthday lunch for Caleb at my parents' but unfortunately all of the pictures taken of Caleb and his cousins are in my parents' camera.

Liana, Caleb and I went to the Last Unicorn showing with Q&A by author Peter Beagle.

Evelyn's been enjoying dancing, babbling, and visiting the park.

Morning visit from my mom

Caleb making his lemon clock, a science experiment he received for his birthday

 

Stroller nap

My dad tearing down the old wood structures in our backyard

Evelyn supervising

Caleb's first time at Kiwi Craze - he's requested we go every day

The amount of play things it takes Evelyn to let me make muffins (which I've started doing several times a week to save Darcy from unwanted raisin surprises)

Fresh strawberry muffins (also did jam and banana nut flavours so far)

Shopping for a sprinkler

No hands!