Assorted Photos

Some of these have appeared on Facebook, but not everyone here is there.

We had a great visit from Priya, David, Rowan and Leo last weekend. Nine days ago, when it was still wintery.

- Rowan and Molly walking around the island. Last day on the lake.

- And last day playing under the bridge

- Dressed up in costumes, including my old Cub Scout uniform. Check out all those badges.

- Another treasure trove of Erin and Sean's hand-me-downs were opened. The twins are starting to stretch out, fitting lots of size 6 clothes now! 

- Proof that AFOs are sandbox-friendly

- Zoë excited to be out of her snowsuit

- Jacob looking like a real big brother

- Zoë is obsessed with my iPhone. Here is a great self-portrait

- Probably my favourite photo of the year thus far

- I'll sneak in one cutesie kitten photo. Paddy Clarke HAHAHA snuggled up with Rosie the Riveter

- Jacob before his big final game of the season

- And this one's worth a giggle, especially if you're feeling a little disillusioned by concussions, pre-game brawls, or the Habs making a run for a high draft pick.

Molly's braces

Molly got out of her casts for good on March 9th, so she had March Break to get used to the new AFO braces. She's doing great but isn't running full speed yet and is still experiencing tiredness and pain in her feet, especially at the end of the day.

Here she is at Sick Kids, waiting for the braces

 - And the new braces. They're light but kind of bulky. They fit inside a shoe, but only a shoe that's 3 sizes too big for her, so it takes some getting used to. And she can be out of them for an hour or two a day for now.

- Check out the butterfly pattern Molly chose

Skipped Spring

Straight to summer, with 20+C all week. The lake's still frozen but not for long. One of the old dudes on the island informed me that the earliest the ice has ever come off has been March 26th, so this should set a record.

- Two dinners in a row outdoors - pretty good for mid March

- 3 kids skinnydipping in the sliver of water beside the ice, clothes scattered over the lawn, while Kate burns stuff

My Big-Hearted Little Man

Each month Jacob and Molly's school focuses on a particular character trait and February's was "caring". I went to the school assembly this morning to see Jacob be recognized for his caring - there was one kid from every class. His teacher phoned me last night and said that his nomination wasn't due to how nice he has been with Molly during all her foot stuff, it was because he is always caring and empathetic about the other kids in the class. She told a story by way of example that a girl in the class was crying last week and Jacob went up and gave her a kiss on the shoulder and asked if she was okay. What a player!

Here are a few photos of our little man. In the group photo, he's on the far right.

Casts Off and Montreal Trip

We spent Friday at Sick Kids getting Molly's casts off and getting her fitted for AFO braces. The braces will be ready in two weeks, so in the meantime she's wearing the casts (bandaged together). The surgery was apparently successful. She does appear to have more flexibility in her ankles but we won't really be able to tell much until she's out of the casts for good.

- Here are two photos of the casts being sawed off and then removed. I love Zoë and Jacob's looks of interest/concern.

- Molly showing off her "new" feet

- Chatting with the surgeon

Friday night we drove to Montreal, just missing the snowstorm (but seeing lots of carnage along the highway). Then we had a fabulous time at Beth and Don's. Hot tub, Biodome, swimming pool, hanging out, cousins having a great time together. It's a shame I didn't take any video of Kate doing Dance Dance Revolution on the Wii - serious blackmail possibilities.

Here are a couple of photos from the biodome.

Weekend Plans

We're off to Toronto in the morning for Molly's cast removal and AFO brace fitting appointments. Then it's off to Montreal for a weekend with Beth, Don and the ten year-old (!!) cousins.

And here are some more February photos I've just uploaded off my phone.

- My fantastic fox mother, who celebrated her birthday along with Zoë's

- My snowboard punk son

- Zoë rocking her new puffy vest

- Jacob and Zoë ice fishing on the coldest day of the winter. An OPP diver was down there attaching toys to the kids' fishing lines.

- Zoë trying out Kate's new barefoot shoes

Zoë's Birthday

Still struggling to find the minutes to catch up on the blog. And the further behind I fall, the more daunting the catch-up becomes. So, before it's entirely too late, here are some photos of Zoë's birthday, which extended for weeks due to staggered grandparent visits and Zoë's own enthusiasm for her big day.

- Putting the toppings on the cake. "The" being the wrong word, as there were many, many cakes.

- Singing along with Kate

- We need a bigger table!

- Zoë recently declared that her favourite thing to eat for dinner is cupcakes.

- Zoë's favourite new toy is her wooden magnet board. Every time she finishes a picture she insists that I take a photo of it. The newspaper in the background is a giveaway that we're not in Orillia. 

- Watching the start of the Super Bowl. Fortunately the kids didn't stay up late enough to see the game fall through Brady's (or Welker's) fingers.

And a little birthday song video of Zoë at her smiling best.