the twilight saga?

I have been hearing so much about The Twilight Saga books, by Stephenie Meyer, lately that I decided I had to see for myself what all the hoopla is about. So today, despite the fact that books about vampires are not something I normally would read, I bought the first book in the series. I'll let you know what I think...

parc omega and le chateau montebello

We didn't have much planned for this past weekend - shocking, I know. So, spur-of-moment on Saturday morning, K suggested taking the kiddies to Parc Omega, something he has been wanting to do for a while.

Before I knew it, K had booked us into a hotel for the night, and we were on our way, following Ella's directions...

to Quebec, a short road trip and ferry ride away...

and checking in...

{the kiddies insisted on taking their own bags which they actually carried the entire time...and really, isn't it about time they start hauling their own crap things around - I've been toting a diaper bag for enough years now. And you should see what R considers 'just the essentials for an overnight' - Bear and Bear, Paul the peeing baby, 2 footballs, 2 toy airplanes, 3 books, a coin purse, a baseball cap, a flashlight, a roll of tape, his pirate costume, a box of Band aids,...etc}

to our room, at Le Chateau Montebello - "famed for its rugged luxery" {this should be an oxymoron, right? But this place manages to be log cabin charming and elegant at the same time!}

We loved the hotel, the wonderful meals { K booked us the Breakfast & Dinner Escape Package}...

and all the activities on the grounds {we swam, relaxed by the river, played at the park...

and even had pony rides!

We spent a full day here...

at Jurassic Park Parc Omega, where we enjoyed the close-up, {but slightly bizarre} encounters with the animals. Well, all of us but Miss S, that is...

{She screamed for the first five minutes, every time a "big deer lick my window", then she was OK}!

Here are some photos of the walking/1847 farm part of Parc Omega, and the other walking part {where we drove a golf cart because K said Miss S couldn't walk the distance - really he just wanted to drive the golf cart, and have me almost fall out the back...good times!}

I know, I know...enough photos already!

spa day and swamp {???} day

This past weekend I spent Friday evening with new neighbor friends - a girl party with eleven {!!!} other women from my street - tons of food, a fun time and a plan to do this every month - how cool is that to have such great neighbors!

Saturday afternoon found me at the spa, enjoying the peace and quiet, and getting pampered. I finally used a gift certificate that K {thanks thoughtful hubby} gave me the day the kiddies and I moved to our new city. It was a thank you from K, for packing up our house and dealing with the house showings, etc while he was already in the new city working...seems like so long ago already, but really it was only a few months ago.

Sunday, I put my pedicure to the test, while trekking around in Stony Swamp {you can not tell me I am not well-rounded...a spa and a swamp all in the same weekend...really}

The kiddies loved the swamp {what's not to love about a swamp} - we saw frogs, chipmunks, birds, a snake...although we didn't see the elusive beavers that R was hoping to run into!

{I hope the frogs at least appreciated my glowing skin and perfectly polished piggies}

Miss S was quite the trooper, walking almost the entire time {only wanting to be picked up when she thought she heard T-Rex in the bushes...so, uh, no more The Land Before Time movies for that one}...

{By the way Jamie, thanks so much for the Olympic souvenirs - the kiddies love the water bottles - Miss S carried hers the entire day - and the soccer ball and purse. Hope you are getting to some of the events!}

And on the way home from the swamp we had the best burgers ever at The Works. Love The Works! This is going on our list of places to take friends that come to visit, so be warned - start looking through the menu now to find your favorite toppings... The kiddies love that our drinks were served in measuring cups!

Good times!

super star

Here he is. Our little superstar...

with his first trophy ever. And the proud Daddy, that got him through his first season, a growing season.

And here is R's number one cheerleader {giving him our signal from the sidelines - the thumbs up that gave him courage when he was nervous}...

And here's to next season!

thankful for naptime

This is what I did today while the kiddies were snoozing...

I am still not so good at taking photos of my layouts {maybe I need a big scanner???} - so it is hard to tell that the title is done in Doodlebug Designs Glitter Chipboard. I am always trying to add glitter to my Miss S pages lately...fun.

And here's one that Auntie M should like...

{a little bling for Auntie}...

Maybe it will convince her to move here even, 'cause I know she misses the little Miss and her big brother...hmmm. Maybe?

Note: I am editing my post to add in a comment from Miss S. She just sat on my lap, looked at this post and said "Wook, Auntie M wuv me!" {ie. Look, Auntie M loves me}

and finally some scrapbooking...

It's been a while since I have posted something I've made. So, here are some recent layouts, completed while the kiddies were napping...

I broke down and unpacked my sewing machine to stitch the crepe ruffle on to this layout. It was still in the box from our move, but I have really missed being able to sew on my layouts, so I finally unpacked it. Whatever, I have a ton of other stuff that will all have to be re-packed for the next move anyway!

I really need to get scrapping. So many ideas, so little time...

s'more camping...

Just call us the happy campers! Our little house on wheels has been getting lots of use lately. Too bad there was so much rain and mud this past weekend...

not that the kiddies seemed to mind!

It was pouring rain when we first arrived in the 1000 Islands {we didn't even set up camp right away, and a campfire was out of the question}, so we headed into Gananoque for lunch. We ate at Muskie Jake's in the Gananoque Inn overlooking the St Lawrence.

Gananoque is a picturesque little town. This is the Town Hall...



We had a wonderful seafood dinner one night in town too {again it was pouring and cooking at the campsite did not seem like a fun idea}. Luckily the rain stopped often enough for us to get in a nature hike, roasting marshmallows, ice cream sundaes at the pool and lots of swimming...


Everything was done while wearing rain boots though!

if you have built castles in the air...

If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost, that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them. - Henry David Thoreau

This past weekend we camped in the 1000 Islands Region, on the Canadian side of the St Lawrence River, which was just a short hour or so drive from home. We were delighted to explore the nearby Boldt Castle on Heart Island,New York. It is such a majestic place - the island and castle are beautiful, and the story behind the castle is fascinating. George C. Boldt, proprietor of the famous Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City, was building the castle for his beloved wife Louise, on the heart shaped island. When Louise died suddenly, Boldt stopped the construction of the castle and never set foot on the island again {read the entire story here}.

To get to the island we set out on a boat from Rockport, which was a few minutes drive from our campsite. The weather was not great this weekend, but the rain held off for the trip out to the island.

The 1000 Islands Region is so picturesque, and the homes are just amazing. The boat's tour guide said that this cottage is on an island that is Canadian land and the flagpole {on the other side of the bridge} is on an island that is United States land...

Heart Island is in the United States, so we needed our passports to visit the island. This is where you 'cross the border'...

I took so many photos of the castle is was hard to narrow them down, but here are a few of my favorites.

This is the Power House...

and this is Alster Tower...

The Arch...

This is the Yacht House, which is located on Wellesley Island {we didn't go this time, but when we come back, we will take the tour that includes it}...

It was built to house the Boldt's three yachts and house boat, a workshop, etc, - now you can see antique boats on display there.

You can see from the sky in my photos that the nice weather did not last long. The rain started again while we were on the island, stopped for a bit...

and then started again while we were on the boat trip back!

Maybe you can tell from my long post that we had a great time? This is definitely somewhere that we will visit again {and take our family and friends too, when they come out east...}!