we went to the park, looking for friends to play hide and seek….we found a lot of crunchy leaves so went back for the rake. i’m excited for fall now!

i had so much fun with these 2 little ones the other day.  i’ve photographed this gal i think 4 times now and it’s amazing to see her grow over the years - shy and cheeky much like little A. her little brother just kept filling my pockets with treasures.

with such a delayed start i feel myself holding fast to summer before it is too soon over. little bits that make me smile;

it seems i haven’t much time for words these days.

we just love them. that’s all there is to it.

ranunculus;

magnolias;

flower pressing;

i wander’d lonely as a cloud
that floats on high o’er vales and hills
when all at once i saw a crowd
a host of golden daffodils
beside the lake, beneath the trees
fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

from Daffodils - William Wordsworth

we scored A Child’s Book of Flowers by Janet Marsh at the thrift store last year and in addition to the sweetest illustrations there are little poems and verses;

buttercups and daisies
oh, the pretty flowers;
coming ere the springtime,
to tell of sunny hours.

-Mary Howitt

yesterday we were out with some new friends; beaching, wandering, flower searching and snapping shots. C and her gorgeous belly are due 1 month before me….exciting times! and our kiddos got on pretty nicely too! (i hope you don’t mind i’ve posted this C. i really love it. of course i’ll remove it if you wish)

Our Spring break has begun and what gorgeous sunshine we’re having. We’re taking the opportunity to explore some favorite places. This time of year we tend to focus on the birds, their nests, their eggs and their habits. Last year we found ourselves in exactly the right place at the right time to witness a goshawk capturing duck for lunch. Recently we happened upon a heronry right in Stanley Park, a place we’ve driven past several times each week and only just noticed.  After some googling, we’ve learned that the Pacific Great Blue Herons do not migrate. They live in the marshlands and shoreline of our beaches feasting on frogs and stickleback and nesting from March through to July. Their eggs are pale blue and there may be up to 3 chicks in a nest. The park raccoons have taken a liking to the chicks as a meal and so you’ll find that most of the tree bases containing nests will have metal sheets wrapped around to prevent the raccoons from climbing. The young birds are still prey to bald eagles, hawks and great horned owls. oooh if only we could go owling. I’d love to see one.

Some favorite bird books have been pulled out, our crow mobile is hanging in the front window and the little one is keen to do more activities…like build a bird box. Any other activity suggestions are gratefully welcome.

if there couldn’t be snow then we had the best other option - thick, magical fog. i love that. so much.

papa’s back to work. the little one and i are into leftover ginger cookies and plan to bus out to the bookstore later to spend gift certificates.  the sun is shining. we’ll see where the day takes us. i hope you all continue to enjoy some cozy down time.

At the preschool snack table yesterday the little ones called out about tv, what they like, how much they watch. i was surprised but not really. This week in particular has felt a little wild in the classroom as though many of the kids stayed in from the rain. i admit that we too have turned the movie on some - Mary Poppins is totally magical. i’m loving it - but - outside is better. While the day was gorgeous, sunny, brisk and beckoning i hope that i can keep up the oomph to explore outdoors even on the inevitable soggy West Coast in Autumn/Winter days.

i got to meet the lovely Fabiola and her beautiful family at the beach yesterday. short and sweet. i sort of wish i could have joined a caravan with them on their tour to the island. (i can’t seem to click and drag larger images from my flickr just now?)

Though parched, our little garden grew while we were away. The Helmer’s fingerlings were by far the best surprise since i assumed the plants were stunted. Jamie was right - regardless of limited space, anyone can grow potatoes.

heirloom tomatoes are coming soon…

i tried hard to enjoy thoroughly and not complain too much about the heat wave last week but it was rather overwhelming and hard to breathe. The weather is quite the opposite now, cool and hinting at Fall. i hope you all will brave the expected rain and get out to support your local farmers at the markets this weekend. i’ll be there. rain or shine.

Every day we wandered around the trails and garden in back of the house.What an amazing playground for children, big & little, to explore and play. A family garden is growing with everyone planting and contributing some thing. i was not at all organized with this and i regret it but Grandma P brought irises out from the Okanagan for the little ones to plant. i had planned to plant an acorn that i found on the trail but i forgot about it in my pocket and found it later in my washing machine once i returned home. So many distractions to keep a plan;

i always think of the wood burning stove when i think of the farm and since i failed to get a decent photograph of the stove, the wood shall serve as the reminder. Who can resist a nicely stacked pile of wood anyhow?;

here we go again;

“wait for me papa” his foot is getting better but he has yet to bear full weight on it for more than 1 step. he prefers to crawl. the knees on many of his pants are either gone or grass stained. “i don’t mind” he says.

it’s good to have papa home again. these may look endearing but there was a whole lot of monkeying going on that is bordering annoying. apparently no means yes. we’re at that stage of acting out the opposite. if i can always remember to say the opposite of what i mean then it’s all good. sweet shots despite what’s really going on;

buttercup chains? not so easy;

“whatever you do don’t look at the camera” gets a perfect smile from the little one;

his not so flattering angle of us but i like it because we have so few photos of us together;