July update

We spent most of July enjoying the hot, sunny weather and keeping busy. Here's what's been happening since my last update:

Strawberry picking

One weekend morning at the end of June, I took the kids strawberry picking. This year, we managed to pick more than we ate and once again Austin was meticulous about picking only the perfect strawberries, whereas Alex was more interested in picking as many as she could, as fast as she could and then declaring that she was 'all done'. We picked 8 or 9 pounds of strawberries and made a batch of jam and strawberry/rhubarb crumble from the fresh berries. The crumble was delicious, as is the jam -- although it turned out more like syrup than jam!

Canada Day
On Canada Day, we took the kids to the Tall Ships festival at the Harbourfront to check out the boats. We all had a lot of fun and it was a beautiful day to be down by the water. The boats were pretty cool and the kids enjoyed wandering through each one.

That afternoon, we met up with our friends' Rob and Vone and their kids to go to Woodbine Park in the Beaches for the Canada Day party and concert. We hung out just long enough to see Glass Tiger (yes, Glass Tiger) and then headed back to their house for dinner. Then around 9:30, we all headed out again for fireworks.

Needless to say, by the time we got home at about 11:30 p.m., the kids were both fast asleep in their car seats.

Swimming and Day camp

The first two weeks of July were swimming lessons time. The lessons were every morning. Austin ended up with a private lesson because no other kids were signed up for that class and Alex and I did the parent and tot swim during the same time.

The week after that, Austin went to all-day Kindercamp for one week. The camp was in the same place as his preschool. He loved it and came home every day completely exhausted. During the week, they visited the fire station, went to a splash pad and even went on a field trip to the Royal Ontario Museum.

While Austin was off at camp, Alex and I spent some girl time at the splash pad, the park, the zoo etc.

Everything else

That's really everything that's been going on over here lately. It's been so hot most days that the kids and have spent many days at wading pools and splash pads, just enjoying the warm weather. It sure is nice after the summer we had last year! Here are some other new pictures.

This past weekend, we were camping (separate post and pictures to follow soon) and next week we leave for the cottage.