Sierra’s 26th Month

This summer has been jammed packed.  So much so that I’m writing this recap of July around mid-August so I’ll have to scour my brain for what happened with Sierra over her 26th month.  Luckily I have photos to job my memory banks!

July was HOT across the world and when it’s hot, there’s really only one solution.  Splash pads!  We had never been to the splash pad before and I have to say this is definitely a great idea from a taxpayer perspective.  Look at the happiness on that kid’s face!

You can’t go to the splash pad and not partake in the fun.  Sierra had a great time at the splash pad but it did end up being quite cold and I think after 30 minutes her lips were blue.  Rob, Jenna and Janice came out to see us and we hung out in the park afterwards so Sierra could warm up.

On the hottest day of the summer (or one of them), a few of us headed over to celebrate Mike’s birthday.  I luckily got to hang out with the kids and the water hose.

Caesar fun day!

Relaxing by the pool.

You can create any type of game if you involve water and a hot day.

Check out this sweet ride!

Watch out!

Happy Canada Day!

In the morning we headed over to the Vars park on probably the hottest day of the year.  I’m pretty sure it was 45 with the humidity.  So…it was a little ridiculous to be out in the sun for any length of time. 

They had an awesome hose set up just spraying water into the air.

The local firefighters were on hand with some gigantic Mr. Freezies for everyone!

There’s no harm in hanging outdoors in sweltering heat when you know your friends Joelle and Alan have hooked you up with an awesome Canada Day BBQ with friends!

Check out Josh mid-cannonball!  Also, you can see Sierra in her mom’s arms.  Hilariously Sierra did NOT want to be in her Maman’s arms, but she also doesn’t know how to swim.  We would spend the rest of the summer bringing her into the cool tub and practicing.

When we arrived home we found out that there was no power in the neighbourhood and the culprit was right outside our house!  I asked the guy working there what was going on and he said that once he resets something, it’ll either be working or we will hear a loud bang and they’ll have to replace the entire unit.  20 minutes later all we hear is BANG!  Oh well….it was entertaining watching other trucks show up over the next few hours.  Too bad it was sweltering heat!  The neighbourhood was great to them though…I saw a bunch of people drop by offering water and Mr. Freezies.

Sierra having fun in our bed in the morning

The most important thing about this photo is not the tricycle, but the fact that it may be the first time I got Sierra to smile for the camera!  Hilariously she just knows how to show her teeth. 

Pouring water takes tongue concentration

Bluesfest!  Vero and I went down for three days.  Good times were had and it wasn’t ridiculously hot outside.

I was introduced to The War On Drugs at Folk Festival a few years back and have fallen in love with them.  They put on another excellent show.

I went over to see St. Paul and the Broken Bones and I was highly impressed.  This band was top notch and anyone who has the chance to see them should not pass the opportunity up!  Not my photo.

After St. Paul, I wandered over to see Jethro Tull.  As much as I am a fan of most classic rock, I never gave Tull much of a listen.  Let me tell you it’s an odd experience when you walk into the middle of a Jethro Tull concert and you see videos of dancing dwarves and a flutist on stage.  I felt like I was at a Spinal Tap concert!  I can’t say I was blown away by the show and when I talked to some fans, they also said that the band is beyond their prime.  Makes sense…they’ve been around for fifty years!  Not my photo.

I flew to London, Ontario to spend a few nights with Troy and Connie before heading to Uncle Tony’s celebration of life.  We ended up at Stormstayed Brewing Company one night where we realized we both love playing cribbage.  Troy does not appreciate losing two games in a row.

Troy and I on our second run through of ‘Back to the Sea’.  Turns out that a month later I would be sitting in the Red Room recording it in its proper form.  Thanks to Connie for capturing this!

Troy, Connie and I headed out to Kitchener to meet up with a whole lot of people who showed up to Uncle Tony’s celebration of life.  Like..A LOT of people.  I couldn’t believe the amount of older vehicles out in the parking lot.  If you were a fan of older cars, then chances are, you were there at this celebration of life.  I will miss Uncle Tony.  Even though everyone knows I have zero knowledge about cars, I do admire people with passion and he sure was passionate.

Two nicest people in London, Ontario!

When I got off the airplane in Ottawa on Monday morning I saw someone who worked in our building and then I thought “Hey wait a second!  I think my colleague Samantha is heading out to Sudbury this morning!”  I roamed the halls looking for her and sure enough, there she was waiting for her flight.

Practicing that smile!

Nat hanging out at Gainsbourg before the Foo Fighters show.

Greta Van Fleet opened for the Foo Fighters and they were quite rocking young lads.  Not my photo.

It’s not often you get to see these two out and about together!

In a crowd of 30,000 people, it was quite hard to move around.  Luckily, everyone seemed to find us.

Foo Fighters have officially achieved what I like to call the AC/DC status of a touring band.  You can go to a Foo Fighters concert, not know one song, and still come out being highly entertained.  The band gave it their all.  It’s really great to have seen them over the past 20 years and see how they have achieved ultimate rock and roll status.

30,000 people looks like this!  Not my photo.

Our friend Nat is around six months pregnant so we developed a maneuver to protect her from anyone coming through the crowd towards her.  We had all angles covered in making sure the baby and mom were safe!

The next night was a little tamer.  Mike and I saw this band called Oh Wonder in the River stage tent.  Not bad?  We only stayed for a couple of songs but people seemed to be really into them.

Together again!

Here’s my deal with Dave Matthews Band.  People love them.  I…am ok with them.  I like some songs, but I’m not a diehard fan.  I know people follow them from show to show to show.  I just can’t understand it.  I thought by seeing them in concert something would click.  It did not.  They put on an amazing show and they are amazing musicians.  But I guess I’ll just be one of those fans that don’t follow their every movement.

Last night at Bluesfest with these jokers!  It was a great three days.  I don’t think my body could handle going an entire festival any longer, but never say never.

I love how Vero begged her Dad to play a tune on the accordion (note: he doesn’t play often) but when he begged her to play the fiddle she outright refused.  How fair is that?!

Sierra somehow loves putting the fear of god in me when I’m thinking she’s going to fart on me.

Oh look!  Another sweltering day hit Ottawa and guess who was invited to play at a wedding along with his buds?  Yeah, that’s right.  We sweated our asses off with that gig!  After setting up in the morning, I returned home and got us all hats to wear because there was no way we would have survived without them.

Here’s a fine example of us sweating.

And another.

And another!  Martin’s amp literally overheated and was cutting in and out!  All kidding aside, it was a fun gig and I’m happy with how it turned out.  Plus, who can say they played music in a cornfield?!

My smoking hot wife and I.

Vero and Vero were helping out at the water stations, looking cool.

Annabel was trying to hang out at the cool kid’s table.

The next day, Evan shows up showing me some new dance moves that I clearly needed the night before at the wedding!

Heading to the park!

After a hard day at the park, it’s time for Mr. Freeze!

Slow motion videos of kids are definitely my new favourite thing in life

Big gang for supper!

Having fun in the sprinkler!  Special thanks to Danielle for coming up for a week to take care of Sierra while the daycare was closed.  Very much appreciated!

Sierra`s tradition with Maman after a visit to the park.

We took a few days off of work to hang out with Sierra while daycare was closed.  We decided to head out to Mooney’s Bay/Hogs Back for a visit one morning.

Pulling a wagon uphill is quite tricky!

Vero said that Mooney’s Bay had the largest man made park in Canada.  So we definitely had to check it out!  It has a good variety of park structures for kids of all ages…which was a pain sometimes when Sierra wished to go on one for the older kids!

Taking a break with a banana

Check out the stare down between Sierra and Yogi Bear!

I am definitely not the greatest parent to have on these rides.  I was getting motion sick just from being on this merry go-round!  Also, merry go rounds have definitely changed since the 80s.

The grilled cheese from Five Guys wasn’t the biggest hit for Sierra but the fries sure were!

Maman makes a good couch.

Is this the cupcake train?

It’s always a great day when I stumble upon Jonah and Maelle at the gas station!  Look at the amount of babies going on tour to the cottage!

Mike and Eric came over to try out the Whiskey Trail set of scotch that Mom and Dad bought for me at Christmas.  We enjoyed the trail!  We did not enjoy staying up to 2am and waking up early the next morning.

Always a sweetheart for photo with Maman

And then Dad comes along

I love how roles get reversed a lot in our family.

Sierra is learning that jumping is part of any good dance routine!

There’s that awesome smile again!  Also, don’t worry folks.  Uncle Billy won’t be rolling in his grave.  I am not buying a ride-on mower.

But we WERE eyeing up some clearance patio furniture sets.  We ended up picking this set up when we got back from Gaspé.  LET ME TELL YOU…I never knew how much a couch in my backyard would change my life. 

Having fun on the ride home

Having fun in the driveway!

Team Awesome reunited!  Nicki was back in town for a few days before moving to a job in London England so we managed to get Laura and Nat out for lunch at the same time.  To this day, this is still the best team I’ve had the pleasure working with!