Our little gardener

If you have had a baby and have ever tried to rush to be somewhere at a certain time then you will understand our day yesterday!!!

We got up and packed our picnic and braai goodies, fed and dressed Jared got the car packed and dashed off to the shops for a few last minute things. By the time we got to our picnic site it was already after 1pm hahahaha!! We had left home at 10:30am and the site is only 20 minutes away from home!! So of course all the good spots in the shade were taken. It was over 32 degrees yesterday so there was no way we were going to brave sitting out in the sun with no shade.

So we stopped off at a few pretty spots and took some pics and decided to come home and fill Jared's pool and braai at home. Hannes was watering the garden when Jared decided that he quite fancied giving daddy a hand. He got hold of the hosepipe and kept himself busy for ages. He really enjoyed himself. Not so much though when he kept spraying himself in the face lol!!!

We are probably going to attempt getting out there again sometime this weekend. We realise now though that we will have to get up really early if we have any hopes of getting there at a decent hour, but I think we have a good plan for the next time hahahaha!! Watch this space...

So close to home...

Hannes got home nice and early yesterday, so we took a drive out to Bragg Creek which is about 20 mins from home. We found the most gorgeous places along the river en-route. They all have picnic tables and braai areas right along the river and the water is clean enough to drink :o) We stopped off at one and I got a few pics - I am loving the rivers and waterfalls all over the place. They are really beautiful. We are hoping to find a spot tomorrow and have a braai and spend some time enjoying the outdoors. Will let you all know...

Playground Fun!

Yesterday Jared and I popped down the road to the playground close to our house. We spent some time enjoying the sunshine and fresh air. Jared was more interested in playing with the little stones on the ground than he was on playing on the equipment :o) He had fun though.

A general update on Jared:

He is really and truly growing so quickly. He speaks the hind leg of a donkey. He babbles from the minute his eyes open in the morning. He says quite a few words. Bear, bottle, bubble, no-no-no, bye-bye, hello, dada, mama, baba, more, ta, doodoo, car, book, he makes a car noise while pushing his cars on the floor and my personal favourite... I am now mommy. It is too cute to hear.

He has a will of his own and lets you know exactly what he wants and when he wants it. When we get in the car he points to the nappy bag and tells me bear, in other words "hand it over, I know it's in there"!!!!

I have been showing him for the past few mornings that his pj's go into the washing basket once he is dressed. This morning he took them, pointed to the basket and put them in himself!! I could have eaten him right there. When you say clever Jared he claps his hands.

He is also quite the little tease and I fear he may have inherited his uncle's genes there. His favourite is to take something he knows he shouldn't put in his mouth and threaten to do it while smiling and waiting for you to say no.

He still sleeps well and thankfully the long daylight hours haven't affected him. He is still in bed asleep anytime between 6pm and 7pm and then sleeps till after 7am most mornings!

He is a real cutie and both Hannes and I are still enjoying every minute with him.

Beautiful Banff

This morning we decided to get out a bit and took a drive through to Banff again. What a breathtaking place. We ventured out to the cable car and the three of us climbed (the easy way of course!!) to the top of what felt like the highest mountain in the world! Jared had absolutely not fear of the height and was often almost hanging out of the window. The same could not be said for me lol!! The views were amazing. It is almost impossible to capture the beauty on film - although we did our best and took 119 photos lol!! After lunch and a bit of window shopping on top of the mountain we caught the car back down and then drove to the Bow Waterfall which was just as lovely. We really never realised that there is so much to do in Banff alone and we will definitely be going back again sometime soon.

Rotary Park Wading Pool

Jared and I spent the better part of the morning yesterday at a really cool little wading pool near town. As you will see from the pics there is a lovely playground right there as well. So we spent some time in the pool and then put on our shoes and walked over to the playground for a different kind of fun!! It was a lovely day :o) Oh, and it seems I have finally solved the problem of Jared refusing to wear a hat... I bought one that ties under his chin and presto, it stays put! (he looks so cute with it on lol)

Fish Creek Park

Jared and I had a really special day today. We were treated to a guided walk through Fish Creek Park with a few other moms and babes. It was a really lovely outing and such a beautiful place. The weather really played along too - it was a stunning 29 degree day today. I must sound like such a cheepo, but it really blows my mind... This was all free today again. We stopped and had some lunch and paid for that, but nothing else cost a cent!! It has really struck me how much is free here in terms of entertainment and it is all so beautifully kept.

Here are a few pics I took on the walk. The first is of our guide. She has a butterfly net in her hand and managed to catch us a few to get a closer look at lol!! Nobody lost any limbs which surprised me! The next pic is of the group and the last is one of Fish Creek.

Beautiful Thunder Storm

I will do 2 entries today since I forgot to post this 2 days ago!!

We had a thundershower here on Sunday evening. When we went up to bed Hannes looked out of the window and saw how beautiful the houses diagonally opposite us looked with the sun shining through the clouds onto them. So, he rushed downstairs in his PJ's and stood on the pavement and took a few pics. It was already 9:30pm. My little point and shoot digital didn't capture it too well unfortunately, but it is gorgeous nonetheless.

A whole week gone...

I can't believe it is a week ago since I last checked into my blog. I was given a stern talking to about that this weekend, so I promise to try and get here more often even if the news isn't terribly exciting!!!


We have had a relatively quiet weekend comparatively speaking. We were invited to a 2nd birthday party BBQ yesterday which was really nice. Everybody there was Canadian and they were really complaining about the weather. It was 32 degrees but felt like 41 with the discomfort index and they we really unhappy. We of course felt right at home. Come winter though and I am sure the rolls will be reversed :o)


Hannes was watering the lawn today and just after Jared's supper he and Jared went out to move the sprinkler. It wasn't long and I was summoned outside upon which I found my little monkey sopping wet running in and out of the sprinkler giving his customary shriek all the while!! (It was already 6pm!!!) Hannes swears that he did it all by himself lol!!! I am sure though that that is true since he really does love water. I managed to get a few photos, so that is my offering for the day.


Till next time xxx

Fruit & Veggies!!

I took my camera into the Co-Op this afternoon when we went to get some fruit and I snuck a few shots of the goods on offer lol!!! (Hannes nearly died of embarassment!!!) How awesome do these look!!?? I could not believe the quality of the stuff when we arrived here, I thought I was in the plastic fruit section :o)

We experienced our first Canadian BBQ today. We were invited to the home of a guy working with Hannes this afternoon. It was really nice. They did hamburgers and hotdogs on the braai. Quite different from what we consider a braai, but great nonetheless. Jared had a ball since there were 3 teenage girls there all fawning over him. He was in his element and we certainly know where to look should we ever need a babysitter!!!

We went for a long walk around our neighbourhood after our walk up to the Co-Op and we discovered a lovely playground about 300m's from our door which we will definitely visit sometime soon.

Till tomorrow xxx

Calgary Stampede Parade Day!!!

Today was the Calgary Stampede Parade which marks the start of Stampede week here in Calgary. What a great experience!!! We were up at 5am as we wanted to get an early start in as we had decided to bus it into town. We were out of the house by 6:30am and in town just before 7:30am. The bus trip was a first for Jared and I and it was really pleasant. I was impressed with how easy it was to get into town on public transport. I can vaguely remember catching a bus into JHB in the 80’s lol!!!

Once we arrived in town we were really happy that we left the car at home. People were already lining the streets waiting for the parade to start. I have no idea what time they arrived, but they were there in force with their flasks and deck chairs on the pavements. The city had put up grand stands all over as well which people made use of too.

The first thing we did when we arrived was stop off for breakfast. After that we decided to make our way to the start of the parade on 6th Avenue. Jared was all over the place. He had Hannes walking up and down the street chatting to anyone who would listen. He had an absolute ball. (here is the link to a video clip for those interested http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIL3kduFs-Y) The parade started just before 9am with 9 red and white fighter jets overhead. That was amazing to see and of course with all the buildings around the sound of their engines was really audible. And then the floats came and came and came and came!!!! The people were all very festive shouting Ya Hoo at the crowd and the crowd in return. :o)

We enjoyed the start of the festivities and then decided to move to Hannes’s office which is on 9th Avenue which is where the parade would end. We went in and said “Hi” to the very few people who were working today (they really weren’t joking when they said not much work gets done during Stampede Week!!) and then we went out and joined the crowds on the street waiting for the parade. It was a real eye opener to see that people had come out early and put their deck chairs on the street and then gone off to do other things only to return hours later and still find their deck chairs exactly where they had left them earlier!!! We had a good giggle about that. It was also really refreshing to be able to put the back pack on the floor and not have to put my foot through the straps so that I would feel if someone was grabbing it lol!!! It is amazing how relaxed we already are here in terms of our safety etc.

After the parade was done we wandered around the streets for a while enjoying the vibe and all the people and the entertainment. Jared was fast asleep in his pram so we decided that the perfect end to a perfect day would be lunch!!! So we went off and had sushi and beer :o) and then made our way home and all had a well deserved sleep!!!

We have decided that those of you who plan to come and visit us have to come during winter and then again during Stampede. Both would be awesome and very different holidays. The summer here is wonderful, better than I ever could have imagined!!!

Here are some pics of the parade. It was tough to choose a few, so I did the best I could ;o) Enjoy!!!

Fun in the sun!!!

Today was a really sunny, hot summers day!! It reached around 32 degrees here today. Jared and I went and had our photo taken this afternoon for our first photo competition!! The reason I went was because you get a free family portrait from Sears for taking part, but I will send you all the link to vote for us once it is up and who knows we might win it lol!!! We then went and bought a swimming pool for Jared since he loves water so much we thought it would be nice for him. He had a ball splashing around in it late this afternoon. The water was freezing but he had a ball.

Tomorrow is the start of Stampede week here. I am not really sure what that entails, but I am about to find out. Tomorrow morning there is a parade through town so we plan to catch the bus in early and go and watch it from Hannes's office as they go right past his offices. He has the day off tomorrow which is really super. Apparently not much gets done in Calgary during Stampede so it should be educational. Hopefully I'll get some nice pics to post.

So for today, here are some pics of our boy enjoying his new pool.

Postman Pat!

It was a public holiday here today, so we had a very quiet day doing nothing too exciting. So I really have no news today, and so I decided to post a pic of our mailboxes lol!!! Every street here has their mailboxes like this. If you look behind the boxes to the right you will see our red front door :o)

The other pic is of Jared's new wheels. We went for a walk this afternoon with him in his car and he loves it. He is a real little adrenalin junkie though, the faster you push the louder he shrieks!!

Happy Canada Day!!

Yesterday was Canada day here so today is a public holiday. We went into town again for the day and just walked around enjoying all the people and sights. The Annual Day Rockfest and Street Hockey festival was held yesterday which was quite fun to see. We sat in one of the parks for a while. They were setting up for a music concert later that afternoon. There were 2 little kiddies sitting close to us who meandered over and played with Jared. We stopped at a really nice restaurant for lunch where Jared devoured an orange and made a complete mess of the floor around him having an absolute ball!! It really was a super day. The weather was stunning. When we left we drove to the town of Okotoks. What a gorgeous place. They have an airdrive (I think that is what it is called lol!!) It is a suburb with a runway down the middle. Residents park their planes there and just walk up to the airfield to fly off wherever they want to go!!! What a life.