From Our Home to Yours

Peace, Love, Joy. 

Merry Christmas.

Love The Boyds. 

A Boyd Winter Wonderland

Guess what time it is...? It's Advent time, and for us that kicks off Christmas Preparation Mode full throttle. Today we got seriously into CPM. Boxes were dragged out, emptied, pretty shiny Christmas things were hung from top to bottom, the wreath found it's favourite place on the front door and you know the best part.... it snowed! Well, technically it snowed yesterday but for once the white flakes weren't washed away by cold rain hours later. It snowed, then the clouds cleared and the sun came out, and we've been enjoying it/freezing ever since.

Clearly we westerners are not used to -5 temperatures, so we are caught somewhere between winter bliss and not coping well due to being totally ill equipped for cold weather, snow and everything that comes with it. It's completely foreign to us on some level, but here is where having kids comes in handy - they don't care. They just enjoy. It's all very simple to them: it snowed so put on your coat and go outside and play until your nose is red and your hands feel like they want to fall off, then come in for hot cocoa, warm up, get your coat back on, go out side and repeat. And don't complain, because we all know it ain't lasting very long. Just enjoy it while you have it, and deal with tomorrow tomorrow. Kids are very in the moment. They teach me a lot about that.

Anyhow, here we are in our winter bliss:

See the sun peeking out in the distance. This was taken around 7:30 am - oh yes, the childhood excitement for snow waits for nothing. The coffee hadn't even finished brewing yet and we were already outside.

So clearly when I say it "snowed" I mean we got 1 cm or less. Nevertheless, she loved it as far as firsts go.

And here is Jake "shoveling" the snow dust with a garden shovel.  As I said, we westerners aren't used to snow, and are thus rarely equipped. At least I speak for us four Boyds when I say this. Other Vancouver Islanders may well have been ready with snow tires and street salt. We were not among them. 

Moving on to decorations. My Christmas Village is up and running folks. Ain't she a beauty.

I love Christmas Villages. They are almost as good as snow globes. It's a perfect picture of a perfect life in a perfect wintery world. In a world where life just isn't perfect no matter how hard you try, it's nice to have a little escape into a winter wonderland, don't you agree?  If not leave me alone to my romantic delusions - they make me happy.

This reminds me, did I ever tell you about how my husband proposed to me one September evening by setting up a life size winter wonderland. How could I say no? 

Happy winter wonderlanding everyone. 

Knitting with Oma

Here's hoping she can learn from my mother the one thing I never could: sock knitting

Halloween 2014

Happy Halloween!

I've been doing Halloween posts three years running now, and I don't see any reason to stop. Halloween is one of those dress me up, give me way too much candy, and let me have a lot of nighttime fun kind of holidays. I have many happy memories of choosing a costume, working hard to create it just like it was in my imagination, and then showing it off to all my neighbours while collecting a bag full of candy I probably didn't need. And it's fun to see my boy now getting to the age where he really gets lost in the anticipation, imagination, and excitement of the holiday.

This year, he was a train man (again, surprise surprise) and his dad escorted him as Captain Smith from the Titanic itself. And Amelia was a lady bug, though she only made it until 6:30 before she crashed in her crib. And I, well, I was in my usual costume - a whitch of course :) cackle, cackle.

A few photos of the evening coming up. But first Amelia's first birthday halloween party:

I made caramel apples, surprisingly easy, and festive I'd say.

 She was a ladybug, so I made ladybug cupcakes. Seemed appropriate.

And tonight: Captain Smith and his train engineer.

Matt wore Jake's captain hat from 2012. FIt like a glove.

Our not so sleepy looking, sleepy ladybug.

Our spooktacular house: 

And Jake's loot (this is only our neighbourhood. After this he went to Nana's neighbourhood and brought home double!)

I mean, check out all the coffee crisp alone... that can't be good for his teeth. In fact, I think I'll take him to go brush them now.

Have a spooky night!

The Boyds

Playground Photo Dump

Okay, so here's the truth: my laptop died. It was a long time coming, and it's probably my own fault for not treating it with the care and dignity it deserved, but it's too late for all that now because it's a goner. The problem is I haven't replaced it, and all the things I once loved to do on my laptop now have to be done on my husband's computer, which is all the way in the corner of the living room basically a million miles away, and the chair is uncomfortable, and the desktop is unfamiliar, and that is why I haven't blogged in ages.

At least that is what I am telling everyone who has been asking me why I haven't posted anything in eons, and am I okay? Yes, I am okay. We are all wonderfully, happily okay - all but one. The laptop.

Anyway, long post over due because a great many things have been going on here at the Boyd residence, namely little girl turning ONE! So long catch up post is coming soon - promise.

For now, a few snapshots from a recent visit to the park:

Ask her "Amelia, where's your tongue?" and this is what you'll get.

Sister loves when daddy does this.

Okay, not a picture from the park but I'm putting it in anyway:

September in pictures

September, I love you. You know I love you. I've loved your scents, flavours and colours for eons. You signal to me that cooler, darker, cozier days are coming. And so I love you, we haven't forgotten you - we've been living you, and it's been fun and busy. it's been fun-sy.

September, this is what you've looked like for us Boyds:

We kicked you off by going to the fair:

I love the fair because it offers the same joys year after year. It's the stuff childhood is made of. Half the people go their because they are kids, and the rest of us go there because it makes us feel like one again.

Daisy the cow. She never gets old. Literally.

Pumpkin of the year.

Remember this?

And this? This year we had our vanilla.

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Next on the list of Septembers goings on is Amelia learning how do to this:

And she's been doing it over and over and over, ever since. Crawl, crawl, crawl, reach up, grab, pull, stand, grope stuff and toss it on the floor. Sit down. Repeat.  

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We played outside a lot. 

And then later in September someone we love madly deeply had quite a milestone birthday. 

Great Gramps turned 90. In case the ginormous button didn't make it obvious. And that's Jill beside him. One of his BFF's. 

And speaking of BFF's. Mine got married this September as well. So between the two major parties my heart was in celebration overload.

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And as September slowed down, cooled down and darkened we started up our Fall chores. Among Jake's favourites - raking.

But the tell tale sign that September has arrived is when you look out the window and see these guys. And have they ever arrived. You could hear them clicking their antlers together from behind the closed windows.

Amelia was awestruck. She pulled her self right up and stared out the window while Jake explained where these guys come from (the north pole), and how they come this time every year to fatten up and eat all the grass before winter. The extra calories help them pull Santa's sleigh a little faster.

I think she bought it.

So yeah, that's what we Boyd's have been up to this September. That plus I have started working again. And Jake has started school again. And, and, and, we've been busy. But as you can see, we haven't forgotten September. We've been lovin' it.

10 months

Trains Forever

Remember that toy, or game or stuffed animal you had as a kid that you played with for years and years and years. When all other kids had moved on to different interests, or asked Santa for something new each year all you wanted was the same thing over and over and over. For me it was Barbies. I would search the piles of gifts at Christmas trying to pick out the one that was shaped in that tell tale rectangular shape and dive for it not caring in the least what the other boxes held. I probably played with them several years longer than any of my friends did, and still have my coveted collection of dolls in my parents' basement sealed up tight and waiting for the next Barbie lover to come along. 

Well, one little girl's Barbie is another little boy's train. Our boy has been playing with this set since he was just over one, and as the set has grown over the years so has his interest and his imagination. I love watching him pull out his over flowing bin of wooden tracks and create a new system and story to go with it nearly every day.

I usually build the village around it, that's my job. Sister sits in her excersaucer and watches, that's her's. Although I think she might be quitting her job soon, she's doesn't seem very content with it since she's started crawling... we'll see if Jake will hire her onto the railroad committee.

Somehow I doubt it.

Here's to childhood toy obsessions, and the many years of joy they bring. 

Bowen Bliss

We've been indulging in some quintessential summer traditions around here lately including, but not limited too, visits to local beaches, backyard bbq's, baking under a cloudless sky in the afternoon sun at playgrounds, shirts sticking to skin and licking the drips off creamsicles on the front porch at the end of another hot and sticky amazing day.  But summer would not be complete for any Boyd I know without a few days spent on Bowen Island. We go every summer, and this one was no exception. 

Behold the beauty of Bowen bliss 2014:

 

Swimming in the sun warmed ocean waters. And when I say warm I mean it. Even I went in, heck even Nana went in! so you know it's gotta be pretty warm when mama and mama-in-law suit up and hit the water. Jake pretty much never came out unless it was to eat or sleep or roast marshmallows.

My view:

This was Amelia's first trip up to Bowen since her birth some nine months ago. I don't know, she seemed like she enjoyed it, but you can never be sure - she's so hard to read. 

Did I already mention the marshmallows? 

Matt's view - when his eyes were open.

Ice cream - lots and lots of ice cream.



The only thing better than ice cream on a hot day.

Oh, and then there was that night when we had a super moon.....

And this is where I wish we had one of those several thousand dollar cameras, but you'll get the idea:

Our view of the super moon rising. 

It's always sad packing up and leaving our Bowen summer holiday, the only reason I go with any willingness at all is because I know we get to do it again next year. And because we are leaving one paradise for another, but we're lucky enough to be able to call the other paradise our home. Island living. You just can't beat it. 

Happy summering!