Nathalieland Update - Cherry/Running/Snake/School/Colds

Goodbye Cherry Tree. Our cherry tree did not have a good season, including half of its branches looking dead all summer, so we decided it was time to say goodbye. I'm glad we at least got one great year (2021) out of it, but the rest of the time it was more in the way of our other garden veggies, always growing suckers all over the garden bed, and not producing worthwhile fruit. With it gone, we'll have a lot more space to plant our three main crops: beans, chard, and kale. 

Treadmills & Frisbees. I've officially been a treadmill owner (and user) for one year now! I'm so glad I started this new hobby and still enjoy getting on it nearly every day. I definitely feel the benefits of daily cardio exercise, especially on my lungs, heart, legs, and sleep. The best part is: my new skills and endurance have allowed me to join Steve in playing Ultimate Frisbee! We are playing together for the first time this Fall (we are on the orange team). It's like a mini, sporty date night.

The One and Only. Surprisingly, we only caught one snake this summer! We really didn't see that many around, and didn't go on as many snake-hunting excursions as we had the previous two years. We finally found a little one in our front yard a couple of weeks ago. The girls named him Cluckser. We had him for a few days, fed him worms, and enjoyed his cuteness!

Welcome Pizza Picnic. I've been busy with the school's Parent Council, helping to organize a Welcome Pizza Picnic event. Pizza, music, face painting, games, popcorn and treats, all to welcome new families to the school and reconnect with old ones after 2 years of no socializing through a pandemic. Should be fun! 

Back-to-School Colds. Last weekend it was Jessi who was down with a cold, now it's Emily's turn. 'Tis the season!

First Catch of the Year

Jessi's enthusiasm for snakes has not waned, so the Snake Hotel is back up and running this spring. After a few weeks of searching, we finally caught our first snake on Thursday: a big garter snake named Killer Lemmep. The joy on Jessi's face says it all.

Killer Lemmep has been exploring, burrowing, and basking in his temporary home. Very interesting to watch! Jessi even showed him off for her remote-learning Show-And-Tell.

Hope you enjoy your stay, KL!

Weekend Visitors from Waterloo

This weekend we had a nice visit from Steve's University friend, Aaron, and his 3.5-year-old daughter, Andrea! The boys played tennis while the girls played at home, and then we all enjoyed animal-filled nature walks. Andrea even helped us release Crackhead back where we found him, now that he's feeling a bit better. Lots of yummy meals, chatting, rock climbing, and exploring all the different toys/games/books around the house rounded up our weekend nicely.

Checking out our favourite waterfall spot

Great for these rock-climbing enthusiasts!

Andrea loves critters just as much as our girls do

Happy playmates for a weekend

Until next time, faraway friends!

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!