Lazy Days

Other than the couple of exciting events in early July, our summer has been filled with lazy days at home. Here are some things we get up to on a daily basis:

Gardening. Now that the garden is ready for harvesting, I'm typically out there every other morning, harvesting raspberries, beans, kale, chard, and zucchini. Coming soon: tomatoes! On days that I'm not harvesting, Steve is usually watering or weeding. Sadly bugs ate quite a few of our seedlings and lettuce in May/June, but otherwise it's been a good garden year.

Sunrise harvest ♥

Exercising. Whether it's the treadmill, yoga/pilates/stretching, kettlebells, calisthenics, or strengthening exercises, Steve and I are in the gym nearly every day. I love my daily workouts and really see the improvements in my strength and cardio abilities.

Playing Mario Kart. Ever since we got the Nintendo Switch in April, the game of choice for the whole family is Mario Kart! We like to play at least once a day and attempt to get triple star in all the cups (currently working on 200cc races). Entertainment for all!

Watching Survivor. Speaking of entertainment, watching an episode of Survivor every day is still a family favourite. We just finished watching the most recent season, 44, and are now checking out season 23 for fun.

Crocheting. Jessi's still going strong on her new crocheting hobby. She sits at our living room craft table randomly throughout the day to add a few stitches to her projects. She completed the jellyfish, then followed it up with a turtle, and now she's working on a collection of eggs. I also recently (finally!) finished the peach I started back in June.

Walking Lucy. We rarely miss our daily walks with Lucy! It's hard to believe we've been walking our neighbour's dog for over three years now. Lucy's age is definitely showing (she's 12!) as we used to walk 3 blocks, then lowered it to 2, and now only 1, especially on hot summer days.

Swimming. A few times a week we head over to our neighbour's pool for a refreshing swim. We are so grateful for this!

Playing. The girls often spend a couple hours a day playing with their neighbourhood friends. If their friends are not available, then they happily play their own games in the basement or upstairs. Their imagination is still strong!

Coding on Scratch. Scratch is a kid-friendly coding program that Emily and Jessi use to make their own games. They usually get 30 minutes a day on Scratch, and even though it's extra screen time, something feels wrong about saying no to coding/learning. 

Throwing Frisbees. I love my daily practices with Steve!

Eating. We are in the kitchen for three meals a day and snacks in between. It takes up a lot of our day, but I wouldn't have it any other way. 

Reading. Reading happens on a nightly basis for all of us. Emily is currently reading through The Heroes of Olympus book series, Jessi just started re-reading the Harry Potter series (for the 7th time!), I recently finished The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, and Steve loves helpful books like Deskbound, Outlive, and Do Hard Things.

August will definitely be more exciting with relatives visiting, our 15th wedding anniversary, a quick road trip, a skydiving adventure (for Steve), a wedding, tickets to a musical, Emily's birthday, and orientation days at the girls' schools. Then before we know it we'll be in back-to-school mode!

First Snow!

Well that was unexpected! There were the tiniest flakes of snow when we picked up the girls from school yesterday. And rather than disappearing as quickly as they came, the snowflakes grew bigger and fell faster as the hours went by. We all watched in amazement! It definitely added some excitement to our evening walk with Lucy.

Fall & winter all at once

What do you think, Lucy?

Hello, snow!

Thanksgiving Weekend (COVID Edition)

As expected, we had a very quiet Thanksgiving weekend. Steve and I cooked a turkey for two, we texted "Happy Thanksgiving" to our loved ones, and the girls stayed in their pyjamas most of the time. Our weekend also revolved a lot around animals: we piggy-sat Creamsicle for our friends, rescued an injured garter snake, and enjoyed our daily walks with Lucy. 

A sweet setup for 3 guinea pigs

Oh Creamy!

The three little pigs

While Jessi and I took a walk around the neighbourhood on Friday, we spotted a snake that at first appeared to be dead, but then he slowly started to move. He had a big crack on his head, so we aptly named him "Crackhead", and took him home to try to nurse him back to health (or at least give him a comfortable place to live his final days). Crackhead (or Crack/Cracky for short) has been living in Jessi's room for three days now and seems to be doing ok, though still moving quite slowly. Poor guy!

Our walks with Lucy continue to be a daily joy. Lucy is always thrilled to see us and likes to start her walks with a mad dash to the sidewalk.

All tired now Lucy?

Let's run some more!

Sometimes stopping to examine dead bugs

... and pick up poops

Our weekend also included watching David Attenborough's Documentary A Life on Our Planet and eating one of my favourite treats for dessert (Dark Chocolate Olive Oil Tart). We missed our families, but are incredibly thankful for all that we have!

 

Happy Thanksgiving from Nathalieland!