Samara's Christmas Concert

Here is a video clip of Samara and her classmates, performing at their Christmas concert.  It's difficult to see, but Samara is on the far left ("A B C" on her shirt).

She was FAR more animated when she was practicing the routine at home....something about the stage just sucks the life right out of her!  Still, hope you enjoy!

Halloween

Well this was Talia's first Halloween! Mer took both girls trick-or-treating along our street, while I sat on the porch and dished out candy. Talia was dressed as a turtle and Samara was dressed as "super sister fire fighter"... it was her idea to add the firefighter hat ;-)

Talia at the Art Gallery

Mer and Nona took Talia to the AGO one day and by the looks of it, Tali had a great time!

Pumpkin Picking with Friends

A couple of years ago, we went apple picking in the fall with our friends, John & Michelle, and their kids.  It turned into an annual tradition...okay, it's only been 2 years, so it's a very young tradition, but a tradition nonetheless!

This year, all the apples were picked, but there were lots of pumpkins begging to be picked, so that's what we did.

Looking forward to next year!

Samara's First Teeth Cleaning

Samara had her first 'real' dental appointment in October.  We got her a "Dora goes to the dentist" book some time ago to help her get an idea of what would happen. We also brought her with us on previous appointments so that she would become more familiar and comfortable with the dentist and cleanings. 

Even still, she was anxious on these previous visits - so much so that she wouldn't even sit on the chair!

Needless to say, I was not looking forward to taking her to first cleaning and was bracing myself for a tear filled morning.  Much to my surprise, Samara was a champ!  If she was anxious at all, she didn't show it.  In fact, she was sooo much better than I ever was as a kid.

When the hygienist asked her to open her mouth, she cranked her mouth open so wide that I thought she was going to unhinge her jaw!  She never cried, she never freaked out, she was just this calm little patient who was very happy to get a lollipop and toothbrush at the end of it.

Thanksgiving at Rattlesnake Point

This year we decided to take the girls to Rattlesnake Point at Thanksgiving - it was a beautifully sunny day and the fall foliage was spectacular.

Nona and John joined us and after an hour's drive outside the city, we had a great afternoon enjoying the outdoors, before heading to a nearby pub for our "thanksgiving dinner".  Definitely a break from the traditional thanksgiving activities of gorging, but hopefully something we continue to do with the girls for years to come!

Mer's Birthday Day

Mer had a milestone birthday this year (I shall not mention numbers, but she's still a young hottie to me!).

We had plans for adult birthday that evening, but in the morning, we packed everyone up and headed down to some of Toronto's revitalized waterfront.  It was VERY early, but armed with coffee we visited the Sherbourne Commons and Sugar Beach.  

It was amazing - there weren't many people out (did I mention it was REALLY early...on a Sunday?!), so it felt like we had the whole place to ourselves.

Afterwards, we met Michelle and her kids for brunch, before lingering around St. Lawrence market.  Great day!

Hanging Out with Hami & Habi

With such a warm fall, we managed to extend the "deck season" and had a great visit with Hami and Habi who dropped by for a visit.

It was a nice chance for the girls to hang out with the grandparents - no plans, no itinerary, just hanging out.

Guelph in the Fall

Whenever we visit Penny in London, we try to stop by Guelph to hang with our friends Dennis, Mary and their brood.

Samara and the kids made individual pies for dessert, when they weren't playing in the yard.  Dennis made a butter chicken for dinner from scratch, and we ended up sleeping over (fun)!

My Little Pony

We had the chance to visit Penny in London back in September.  We were looking forward to taking Penny to lunch and catching up.  What we didn't expect was "Farm Animal Day"!

Some kind folks in the area brought a goat, chicken and pony to Penny's long term care centre.  Well, you can imagine what Samara thought of that!

While I thought she'd have some reservation about riding a pony, she was not only game, but she wanted to ride the pony again and again!

I'm thinking of buying a pony for her...just need to figure out where to keep it ;-)