We had an action-packed holiday weekend and Brian and I wanted to share the highlights. Photo editing is courtesy of him, some of the photos were taken by my friend Kelly, and I’ll take a sec and give you some written details.
The weekend got off with a bang (not fireworks, either!) with me getting stung by a bee in our yard and having a pretty significant reaction that required more than the usual Benadryl treatment. Brian had to jab me with my Epipen and I went to the ER for more antihistamine and to make sure things didn’t get out of control. This threw a wrench in a few of our plans but we still managed to have lots of fun once I was back on my (swollen) foot. Saturday we spent the afternoon/evening at my parents’ house (aka Gaga & Pa’s) for a barbecue.
Then on Sunday we headed North for an overnight in Montreal. Monday we met up with friends Kelly, Paul & Tess to visit the Botanical Garden there and hang out downtown a bit. It was a fun though exhausting weekend. Sophie was fascinated by all the people and loved watching the horse-drawn carriages everywhere. She was so over-stimulated that she was awake (cheerful, at least, but geez!) for our entire ride home from 8pm until 10:30 pm and didn’t get to sleep until after 11. We’re all still trying to get back onto a schedule. And Zachary had a blast, taking advantage of the fact that he can fall asleep almost anywhere as long as he’s strapped onto mommy or in a car seat or stroller. His favorite part of the trip was looking up at the seagulls which were all over the city. His eyes were drawn upward much of the time by these birds and by the tall buildings. He spent much of our two days pointing his one finger up in the air and shouting “GAH!!” All in all, we had a great time and an overnight in Montreal actually felt more like a long weekend or so. Something about being in another country has that effect. Well, and having 2 kids under three in tow!
Here are a few pics from the weekend…
Zach in his patriotic colors trying out the tricycle at his grandparents' house
Splashing in the rainwater on my parents' deck
More fun with water
Making a wish at the fountain in the gorgeous garden behind Chateau Ramezay
Posing with the fascinating Robot Man, a street performer at Place Jacques-Cartier
Zach having fun with the giant mirror in our hotel room
Two happy babies!
Pretend angry faces at our breakfast table
Snoozy Zach at the Botanical Garden
Close-up of the snoozer (photo by Kelly)
Sophie getting weary near the bridge in the Chinese Garden
Sophie & Tess investigating some carvings on a stone bench in the First Nations Garden
Zach had a blast crawling on the pedestrian-safe street at Place Jacques-Cartier. Here he was "running" toward some caricatures done by a street artist. (photo by Kelly)
Sophie doing her best Sumo impression. Brian taught her about Sumo wrestlers while we were in Chinatown (don't worry, he clarified that Sumo is Japanese!) and she did a lot of stomping around the city and the Botanical Garden. All 25 pounds of her! (photo by Kelly)