It was a successful season of skating! A great way to be safely social, accessibly active, and happily healthy! The back yard rink was a great recess option during school lockdown in January, Jimmie Simpson rink gave us a neighbourhood meet up spot, and lesser-known frozen ponds provided pick up hockey and social skating safely. We hit the skating jackpot this year!
MOMENTS: Skating on Thin Ice
You don't need much ice, or much space, to have a great skate!
Few things are better than exploring in the snow together...
MOMENTS:
Winter weather is short, but the fun is endless when there is a little snow! Keva fit the nordic skis and ski she did! Keva and Mommy hit the trails together and even managed one full family outing on our cross-country skis in the city! The kids hit the slopes on sleds and there was a snowshoe outing for Mommy and Keva. Oh, and we snapped a photo of Fred before he melted away!
Well, we may be in lockdown (again...? still...?), but you can't stop the celebration of family love!
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| Whole family loves to get in on cupcake making! |
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| Special decorations for each friend we deliver to |
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| Fondue Feast! |
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| With a side of silly |
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| YUM! |
MOMENTS: Sugar, Silliness, and Good Grub
We do love a good meal together around the table. We started love-day with a delicious brunch together, baked and decorated cupcakes to share the love with our friends, and enjoyed everything about our family fondue dinner. We had some games and challenges to play between courses where the winner scored hugs! Happy Valentine's Day from our family of love to yours!
2020 was quite the year! It started for us in the southern hemisphere while on our epic family trip, was altered in March with the arrival of covid, and ended with the new normal of masks and 'social distancing' which left just the 4 of us celebrating NYE together at home. It seems that everyone is ready to see the end of 2020 to see what 2021 brings. What better way to start it off with who matters most - our fierce foursome!
MOMENT: Don't let the door get you on the way out, 2020!
We showed 2020 the door with hospitality with an evening of fun and games. The kids were given 24 photos, two for each month of the past year that they worked to put into two timelines so we could take a trip down "memory lane". At the table, we played some games with the appetizer and dinner. We made a shopping list where we took turns adding something to it (alphabetical order and needed to remember each item in order!). We made as many words as we could from the letters in 'new years eve' and shared some ideas about what we'd like to work on for 2021. We moved out to the porch and nestled in for the rest of our evening where we enjoyed some treats after guessing what they were and a fun game of 5 Second Rule. My birthday was also brought in with a bang of great food, an outing, and some one-of-a-kind art work. Bring on 2021!
Covid cannot stop the Christmas spirit!
The restrictions have kept Grandma and Auntie Colleen in Canada but fortunately they are together in Fort Frances and able to spend holiday time with Kevin, Lise, and Logan. This marked my first Christmas ever without my Mom! We were happy to be able to find a way to spend part of the holiday safely with the Bedford family in Ottawa which involved a 2 week quarantine period with our kids pulled out of school and Mommy donning an N95 mask at work - but we made it happen!
MOMENT: Festive Fun and Family
We continued with the usual traditions ... Christmas trees, gift making, good food, and general holiday cheer! Santa found us in Kanata and a good time was had by all. It took a few moments to adjust to being inside the home of another person since it has been so long, but once we settled in, it was such a relief to be in the space of family for more than a fleeting outdoor visit! We even kept up our tradition of visiting with the Richardsons before leaving town and we were committed because it was cold, but worth it!
