Last day here. Its been a great month and we appreciate you who have helped to keep us in touch with this blog. This will be our last post as our flight is at 6 pm tonight. Hopefully, the condo won't smell too much like diapers after we leave. We wanted to end this blog on a positive note. So here it is, the top ten things we have been thankful for (and we'll miss) during our time here in Montreal.
10. Seventy-eight degrees...enough said?
9. The half-empty bottle of vodka the previous tenant left here. After travelling internationally with two kids under three, it was much better than little chocolates on the pillows.
8. French bakery (if you don't get this reference you haven't read our blog!)
7. 8:30-3:30 work hours with a 10 minute (walking commute).
6. Relaxing on the balcony watching fireworks
5. maman, bebe, et cafe
4. Jacuzzi tub
3. Walking to old montreal and the port for dinner
2. Canadian Idol
1. Vietnamese spring rolls within walking distance!
So, we're off. Its been an adventure, but there is nothing like coming home. See you soon...
Au revoir!
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Thursday, July 5, 2007
really, i'm not complaining...
...ok, yes i am. forgive the whiney tone of ths blog. i am running on less sleep than is required to be operational, i believe. let's just say that wes is now adept at climbing out of the crib. and still waking up at 5 am. not a good combination. especially when you add a 2-month old to the picture.
last night. both kids down by 8. wes back up at 10 and was in and out of the crib. we've developed a total fear of him, since we never know when he'll show up. kind of freaky to parents who are used to being in control of when to get one's child up. now he just appears in my face like a ghost in the night. i feel like i wake up to every creek in condo with a vision of wes tumbling down our 2 flights of stairs. not that he can't normally go down stairs, but, you know, what if he all of a sudden becomes a nocturnal daredevil and decides to slide down the bannister or something? what is it about nighttime and irrational thoughts??? anyways, wes was back down when we went to bed, hopefully trembling with serious fear of what his parents would do to him if he climbed out again before morning.
then gwads was up at 12:30, ate, and had a hard time getting back to sleep. and then up again at 3:30 to eat. and then wes at 5, climbing on my stomach asking for orange juice and a vitamin.
let me remind you that 5am here is 4am back in dallas.
and it's supposed to rain all day today and tomorrow. so i get to spend all day inside with a little boy who is already ready for a nap at 8am and is, shall we say, not on his game, as he, too, is operating on very little sleep.
anyone know of a good night nanny? or of a fabulous tropical vacation and a wet nurse? please forward all resumes of qualified applicants.
last night. both kids down by 8. wes back up at 10 and was in and out of the crib. we've developed a total fear of him, since we never know when he'll show up. kind of freaky to parents who are used to being in control of when to get one's child up. now he just appears in my face like a ghost in the night. i feel like i wake up to every creek in condo with a vision of wes tumbling down our 2 flights of stairs. not that he can't normally go down stairs, but, you know, what if he all of a sudden becomes a nocturnal daredevil and decides to slide down the bannister or something? what is it about nighttime and irrational thoughts??? anyways, wes was back down when we went to bed, hopefully trembling with serious fear of what his parents would do to him if he climbed out again before morning.
then gwads was up at 12:30, ate, and had a hard time getting back to sleep. and then up again at 3:30 to eat. and then wes at 5, climbing on my stomach asking for orange juice and a vitamin.
let me remind you that 5am here is 4am back in dallas.
and it's supposed to rain all day today and tomorrow. so i get to spend all day inside with a little boy who is already ready for a nap at 8am and is, shall we say, not on his game, as he, too, is operating on very little sleep.
anyone know of a good night nanny? or of a fabulous tropical vacation and a wet nurse? please forward all resumes of qualified applicants.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
winding down...
uma and bump left quebec today, and somehow that's made us feel as though it's time for us to get home, too! it could be the rain that's forecasted for the next few days as well, mind you...i suppose it will just get us ready to be back home, where we hear of nothing but thunderstorms from you dallasites that are keeping us in touch!
great times had by all with the wadsworth/anderson visit, i would say. a personal highlight was watching my dad's expression as wes handed him his freshly-picked booger. i could have assisted with the discarding of the nose stuff, but it was much more fun to watch dad figure out what to do. wish my camera had caught that one!
so today was as "back to normal" as one can get here. georgia, wes, and i headed to what i call the "gas station" park. primarily because of it's bizarre location directly behind a...you guessed it...gas station. a nice bonus included a little girl at the park finding a used syringe needle in the bushes. montreal certainly has it's "culture."
this afternoon we headed to a local spot i've been wanting to check out called Maman, Bebe, et Cafe. very cool concept. it's a spa, work-out place, play area, and cafe all in one. so one can sign up for salsa classes (with or without your child). you can stay with your kiddo at the play area or let the staff watch them while you get a pedicure. no joke.
why haven't i been earlier, you may be asking yourself??? after the visit today, i was wondering the very same thing. georgia and i chilled with tea and magazines while wes played. don't think i wasn't trying to figure out their business model...dallas moms would be a total target for such a place, don't you think?
so we're a bit bittersweet at the prospect of leaving on saturday. certainly ready to see friends and get back to our house, but we'll miss the vacation-feel we've got going here (not to mention bob's hours). and, of course, there's the fact that we'll be missing the canadian idol finale. you think i'm kidding.
happy independence day!
great times had by all with the wadsworth/anderson visit, i would say. a personal highlight was watching my dad's expression as wes handed him his freshly-picked booger. i could have assisted with the discarding of the nose stuff, but it was much more fun to watch dad figure out what to do. wish my camera had caught that one!
so today was as "back to normal" as one can get here. georgia, wes, and i headed to what i call the "gas station" park. primarily because of it's bizarre location directly behind a...you guessed it...gas station. a nice bonus included a little girl at the park finding a used syringe needle in the bushes. montreal certainly has it's "culture."
this afternoon we headed to a local spot i've been wanting to check out called Maman, Bebe, et Cafe. very cool concept. it's a spa, work-out place, play area, and cafe all in one. so one can sign up for salsa classes (with or without your child). you can stay with your kiddo at the play area or let the staff watch them while you get a pedicure. no joke.
why haven't i been earlier, you may be asking yourself??? after the visit today, i was wondering the very same thing. georgia and i chilled with tea and magazines while wes played. don't think i wasn't trying to figure out their business model...dallas moms would be a total target for such a place, don't you think?
so we're a bit bittersweet at the prospect of leaving on saturday. certainly ready to see friends and get back to our house, but we'll miss the vacation-feel we've got going here (not to mention bob's hours). and, of course, there's the fact that we'll be missing the canadian idol finale. you think i'm kidding.
happy independence day!
Monday, July 2, 2007
A day of firsts...
Yesterday was a banner day for the Andersons as several anticipated and not-so-anticipated firsts came to pass. July 1st was the first day of the rest of my life as my fellowship (the final hurdle of my formal medical training) came to an end. The light at the end of the tunnel that we've been talking about for the last 14 years is upon us...but, of course, if you're Wes, you think the tunnel is the best part. We'll see about that! The 1st of July 2007 was also the Anderson family's first Canada Day celebration.
Canada Day is basically their fourth of July. We marked the day with getting Georgia's first babysitter as we went out on the town with Amy's family for a phenomenal dinner, which ended with "l'inspiration du momente" (inspiration of the moment...also known as dessert of the day). Wes suprised us all (and especially the babysitter) as he climbed out of his crib for the first time while we were out. I'm sure future counseling will be needed to deal with the trauma of walking out of his room to find his parents gone and a strange philippino lady sitting on the sofa. Needless to say, Wes was apparently happy to get back into his crib (only to repeat the feat and walk proudly into our bedroom this morning at 6 am). Other landmarks included Georgia rolling over for the first time and Wes successfully using the big boy potty (just once, so don't get too excited). What a day!
Saturday we took the fam on a double decker bus ride throughout the city. A first we will never repeat was trying to feed Georgia on top of the bus...I think you'll find our pictures on the CCPS (canadian child protective services) most-wanted list. Yesterday was the botanical gardens which was full of (you guessed it) plants! Since it was cool, we spent most of the time walking through the greenhouses and looking at the rare plants and flowers (or running past them in Wes' case). Light a sparkeler for us on the fourth.
Happy Canada Day!
Canada Day is basically their fourth of July. We marked the day with getting Georgia's first babysitter as we went out on the town with Amy's family for a phenomenal dinner, which ended with "l'inspiration du momente" (inspiration of the moment...also known as dessert of the day). Wes suprised us all (and especially the babysitter) as he climbed out of his crib for the first time while we were out. I'm sure future counseling will be needed to deal with the trauma of walking out of his room to find his parents gone and a strange philippino lady sitting on the sofa. Needless to say, Wes was apparently happy to get back into his crib (only to repeat the feat and walk proudly into our bedroom this morning at 6 am). Other landmarks included Georgia rolling over for the first time and Wes successfully using the big boy potty (just once, so don't get too excited). What a day!
Saturday we took the fam on a double decker bus ride throughout the city. A first we will never repeat was trying to feed Georgia on top of the bus...I think you'll find our pictures on the CCPS (canadian child protective services) most-wanted list. Yesterday was the botanical gardens which was full of (you guessed it) plants! Since it was cool, we spent most of the time walking through the greenhouses and looking at the rare plants and flowers (or running past them in Wes' case). Light a sparkeler for us on the fourth.
Happy Canada Day!
Friday, June 29, 2007
highlights
it's been awhile, so here are some highlights from the last few days:
1) my mom, a.k.a. "uma", is here! we are loving the company and help.
2) we found a wading pool at the parc la fontaine. definitely a hit with a certain someone...
3) i made a friend! her name is julia, and she speaks russian as her first language, french as her second, and english as her third. despite this, we still had the majority of our conversation in english. slightly embarrassing, but whatever. she has a little boy named sasha who is a year younger than wes and has about the best hair ever. wish i had a pic, but i forgot my camera...promise they are not just figments of my imagination! anyways, we met at the park and hit it off the way moms tend to do...she tied wes' shoe for me when my hands were full with the gwads, and one thing led to another. picnic lunch, walking home together, etc. kind of like an awkward first play date times 10 with the language barrier. picture wes hitting sasha and apologizing in enlgish with sasha staring blankly back (since he only speaks russian and french and isn't even 2 yet, poor limited soul). needless to say, the boys and moms hit it off despite the communication difficulites, and wes keeps asking to play with him. cute.
4) mom babysat last night, so bob and i walked up to the montreal jazz festival, which is the largest in the world. jazz connoisseurs and large-crowd enjoyers we are not, but we still had a great time people-watching and pretending to be music critics. bob learned that an untucked shirt and a phone clipped to your belt is not a good look...in fact, is a phone on your belt ever a good look?
5) uma took wes on a tram tour of the pier. wes refused to get off said tram. what is it with boys and modes of transportation???
6) sunday morning wes slept until 9:30 and georgia until 8:30. i have no idea what posessed them both to sleep a good 4 hours longer than normal, but i will not question it. truly it was the Lord's day. needless to say, we are back to 5am around here now.
7) more fireworks! we love that we can see them from the condo.
8) an arts festival is happening around the corner from us in the gay district. we happened upon it on our way to the previously- blogged- about favorite french bakery (we did purchase a small painting).
i am trying to resist getting my hair cut at the salon next to the bakery that advertises "lesbian haircuts." what???
dad, a.k.a. "bump" comes in tomorrow to get crazy in quebec!
1) my mom, a.k.a. "uma", is here! we are loving the company and help.
2) we found a wading pool at the parc la fontaine. definitely a hit with a certain someone...
3) i made a friend! her name is julia, and she speaks russian as her first language, french as her second, and english as her third. despite this, we still had the majority of our conversation in english. slightly embarrassing, but whatever. she has a little boy named sasha who is a year younger than wes and has about the best hair ever. wish i had a pic, but i forgot my camera...promise they are not just figments of my imagination! anyways, we met at the park and hit it off the way moms tend to do...she tied wes' shoe for me when my hands were full with the gwads, and one thing led to another. picnic lunch, walking home together, etc. kind of like an awkward first play date times 10 with the language barrier. picture wes hitting sasha and apologizing in enlgish with sasha staring blankly back (since he only speaks russian and french and isn't even 2 yet, poor limited soul). needless to say, the boys and moms hit it off despite the communication difficulites, and wes keeps asking to play with him. cute.
4) mom babysat last night, so bob and i walked up to the montreal jazz festival, which is the largest in the world. jazz connoisseurs and large-crowd enjoyers we are not, but we still had a great time people-watching and pretending to be music critics. bob learned that an untucked shirt and a phone clipped to your belt is not a good look...in fact, is a phone on your belt ever a good look?
5) uma took wes on a tram tour of the pier. wes refused to get off said tram. what is it with boys and modes of transportation???
6) sunday morning wes slept until 9:30 and georgia until 8:30. i have no idea what posessed them both to sleep a good 4 hours longer than normal, but i will not question it. truly it was the Lord's day. needless to say, we are back to 5am around here now.
7) more fireworks! we love that we can see them from the condo.
8) an arts festival is happening around the corner from us in the gay district. we happened upon it on our way to the previously- blogged- about favorite french bakery (we did purchase a small painting).
i am trying to resist getting my hair cut at the salon next to the bakery that advertises "lesbian haircuts." what??? dad, a.k.a. "bump" comes in tomorrow to get crazy in quebec!
Monday, June 25, 2007
In Honor of Jean-Baptiste...
Jean-Baptiste...the patron saint of French-Canada. I wonder if Texas has a patron saint? Oh well, didn't mean to get this post off to a slow start. To me, three day weekends are like s'mores... they're so good you wonder why you don't have them more often. I, for one, would like to re-vote on the whole 5- work -days to 2- days- off issue. I'm sure there were some hanging chads on more than a few ballots. 
Well, we started our first day with wheels driving out to the children's museum. Anxious to beat the crowds, we arrived 5 minutes after opening and we had the whole museum to ourselves. Absent of the usual screaming voices one expects to find in a children's museum, the French version of the Lion King in the background began to sound like crickets chirping, and we were glad when some other visitors finally arrived. At least hakuna matata is still a wonderful phrase in French as well. Wes had a great time... very cool museum if you ever are passing through on your way to Greenland.
As we have alluded to in previous posts, our lives have been somewhat centered around Wes' entertainment. It's hard to believe that kids used to be amused by sticks and dirt. Wes has watched a little more TV here than he is used to at home, and I swear that our Blues Clues DVD runs at least ten minutes shorter per episode since we arrived in Canada. I think its due to the time change (or maybe Canadian taxes), but Amy doesn't believe me.
Sunday we visited Mont Royale, which, (legend has it) is where Mont-real gets its name. The park is really beautiful and the weather was good to us. Basically, Mont Royale is a small mountain/large hill composed of hiking trails, art sculptures, and a lake which is located in the center of town. No, we didn't make it to the summit.
Our new favorite dinner option is to pick up Vietnamese food in Chinatown, which is about a 10 minute walk from the condo. No offense to China, but we are big fans of the Vietnamese spring roll...
Well, we started our first day with wheels driving out to the children's museum. Anxious to beat the crowds, we arrived 5 minutes after opening and we had the whole museum to ourselves. Absent of the usual screaming voices one expects to find in a children's museum, the French version of the Lion King in the background began to sound like crickets chirping, and we were glad when some other visitors finally arrived. At least hakuna matata is still a wonderful phrase in French as well. Wes had a great time... very cool museum if you ever are passing through on your way to Greenland.
As we have alluded to in previous posts, our lives have been somewhat centered around Wes' entertainment. It's hard to believe that kids used to be amused by sticks and dirt. Wes has watched a little more TV here than he is used to at home, and I swear that our Blues Clues DVD runs at least ten minutes shorter per episode since we arrived in Canada. I think its due to the time change (or maybe Canadian taxes), but Amy doesn't believe me.
Sunday we visited Mont Royale, which, (legend has it) is where Mont-real gets its name. The park is really beautiful and the weather was good to us. Basically, Mont Royale is a small mountain/large hill composed of hiking trails, art sculptures, and a lake which is located in the center of town. No, we didn't make it to the summit.
Our new favorite dinner option is to pick up Vietnamese food in Chinatown, which is about a 10 minute walk from the condo. No offense to China, but we are big fans of the Vietnamese spring roll...
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
