Turning 3.

Anouk started in her new daycare a couple of weeks ago and she has been the happiest little girl in the city. She is finally a "big girl". She really warms my heart, to see her grow, to see her learn, to snuggle with her and to see the world through her eyes.

Tomorrow she will turn three. It's hard to believe it's been three years...

She has been looking forward to this birthday for a long time, probably the first birthday she really planned ahead of time and experiences as her own special day.

I asked her what she would like for her birthday:

"A cow."
"You really like farm animals. You like your piggy, you like playing with your farmer..."
"Actually I don't need a cow. I already have one." [true]
"Is there anything else you would like? You like playing with the baby dolls..."
"I already have a doll."
[pause]
"I don't need anything."

Big snuggle, tear wiped out of the corner of my eye... Bewilderment - is she turning 30 or 3??!!

I guess it just really shows that she is absolutely happy - and that makes me absolutely happy.

One thing she has been adamant about: chocolate cake with smarties. No problem.

And over the last few days she has been wanting a truck, a really big truck. We got her a red fire truck. And a red balancing bike (the ones without pedals). I think she'll be pretty stoked.

And when the kids were in bed tonight I finished her dress for her birthday - in bright colours with zebras (she really likes zebras, too!).

Happy birthday, my happy big girl!

:: postcards :: Sailing - Dolphins & Orcas

One of the things I really wanted to see on this trip was orcas. I've been living here for about ten years, have done numerous whale watching trips, taken the ferry to Vancouver Island countless times - and have never seen an orca. 

We saw lots of dolphins, swimming in large groups, around our boat, jumping in the air. Some were playful, but mostly they were hunting following a school of fish.

We sailed all the way up to Robson Bite, a known orca spot. And... (drum roll) I saw orcas.

What beautiful animals...

:: postcards :: Sailing - Octopus Islands

This was one of my favourite spots of the trip.

Enjoy the pictures.

The Kitsilano Preservation Society

This weekend was one of those nice warm Vancouver weekends. I spent the weekend putting that warmth and that sunshine into jars. Of course it is crazy to do this on a hot day, but how else do you get the sunshine into the jars??

It was so wonderful to work with a friend all day long. We went through 30 kg of tomatoes, worked hand in hand while the kids were outside in the wading pool and the husbands were watching them. I don't usually spend that much time in the kitchen, Mark does almost all of the cooking around here, so this was a real treat.

La Pommarola - ingredients:

Tomatoes, white onion, a dash of salt and two basil leaves in each jar, sunshine, warmth, friendship

That would have been enough for one weekend: 26 litres of tomato sauce for two families!!

But, once you start canning, you can't stop. It becomes a compulsion. The thought of neatly aligned jars of yummy food on the counter to then put away in the cupboard for a rainy day...

And, the plums are ripe. All of them. 

So, we canned halved plums and made copious amounts of plum jam. 

Enough? No. Blackberries are ripe, too. And what's a lazy weekend breakfast without blackberry jam? See - you get it! 

Now, I'm pretty tired, hot and sweaty and really happy with our bounty. 

I guess this is why my friend calls me a "Pazza furiosa"!

:: postcards :: Sailing - Squirrel Cove

Our first stop on our sailing trip was Squirrel Cove on Cortes Island. At the northern end of the Desolation Sound area it was a great way to start our trip.

We got to explore some tidal pools - this is where we ripped a hole into the dingy... Who knew that Oyster shells could be so sharp??

One of the big attractions in Squirrel cove is the floating bakery. You drop off your order for cinnamon buns in the evening and pick them up in the morning. Liam was up and in his life jacket very early to pick up the fresh buns with his grandpa.

... and everyone enjoyed a yummy treat!

:: postcards :: Greetings from Oregon

Beautiful trip to the Oregon coast! We enjoyed the beach but had to run from the rain quite a bit... We cut our camping trip a bit short and decided to stay in a hotel for a couple of days instead. Anouk: "This is better - we don't have to walk through the rain to get to the bathroom!" - Couldn't agree more...

The Oregon coast had been calling to me to come visit for a long time now, so this summer we packed everyone in the car and made our way there. It really is gorgeous! Next time we will need to plan the weather a bit better...

Postcards

I remember coming home from summer vacation to a nice pile of postcards: "Having fun on the beach! See you in September" "Lots of rain in the mountains this year, had really good fondue last night." And I in turn would spend sunny afternoons while on vacation writing postcards to my friends.

It's too bad that we don't spend time writing postcards anymore... Emails and blogs have taken over. We're in touch all the time, but still... I miss those postcards... My kids were lucky to receive a postcard each from their friends on holidays and they receive the odd postcard from their grandparents.

This summer I didn't write any postcards and I didn't even write on this blog...

So, I thought I would send a few postcards on this blog. Over the next couple of weeks I'll send some postcards here with pictures and stories from our holidays. There will be rain and sun, the ocean, a boat, a bear, animals and children...

Enjoy!