60 Adventures in 60 Days

With September upon us, and back-to-school in full swing, I took a look at the fun-filled Summer I had with my family.  Because my husband is a teacher and I work part-time, we are lucky to have lots of family time in July and August.  And this year we’ve been in ‘puppy training bootcamp’, so we stuck relatively close to home.

We managed to pack in 60 adventures in 60 days.

Here’s what we did, in random order:

The Canada Day celebrations at Spencer Smith Park.

1)  The Canada Day celebrations at Spencer Smith Park.

2)  Casey learned to walk!

Taking the GO Train to see the Toronto Blue Jays play!

3)  The GO Train to a Toronto Blue Jays game.

4)  Frequent trips to the driving range.

5.  Hand-feeding giraffes at Safari Niagara.

5)  Hand-feeding giraffes at Safari Niagara.

6)  Visiting the Pet Store to buy dog treats and say hello to the animals.

9.  Cruising through the Burlington Mall in one of the mall's double strollers.

7)  Cruising through the Burlington Mall in one of the mall’s double strollers.

8)  We took my 4-yr-old to his first (and second) movie in the theatre.

9)  Got a balloon animal from Halaloo the Clown at Tansley Woods Rec Centre- this was through a great program offered by the Burlington Public Library.

10.  The Canadian Open golf tournament at Glen Abbey.

10)  The Canadian Open golf tournament at Glen Abbey.

11)  Mini-SNAP camp at Brant Hills two afternoons/week.

Exploring the creek that runs behind our house.

12)  Exploring the creek that runs behind our house.

13)  The ‘Biggest Little Night’ carnival, put on by the City of Burlington’s Parks & Rec Department.

14)  Thursday night soccer with DASH Sports.

12.  My half-marathon row.

15)  My half-marathon row.

16)  Climbing trees.

17)  Drew learned to ride his bike without training wheels.

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18)  Skating lessons at Centre Ice with Coach Tommy.

19)  ‘Small Oneders’ library program at BPL’s Central Branch.

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20) Raspberry picking at Hutchinson’s Farm.

21)  Backyard BBQ’s with our neighbors.

22)  ‘Creep, Crawl, and Toddle’ at the Ontario Early Year’s Centre.

23)  Weekly Monday night dinners (minus myself, as I work Monday evenings!) with cousins and grandparents.

Valens Conservation Area.

24)  Valens Conservation Area.

25)  Playing baseball at Emerson Park.

26) My friend Dale, whom I haven't seen in 13 years, came to visit from Bristol, England.

26) My friend Dale, whom I haven’t seen in 13 years, came to visit from Bristol, England.

27)  Burlington Centaur's Rugby match.

27)  We watched him play in a Burlington Centaur’s Rugby match.

28)  Lil’ Monkeys indoor playground and Tansley Woods indoor Treehouse.

29)  A family reunion with my mother-in-law’s extended family.

My cousin Lindsay (from Edmonton) came for a visit, and met Casey for the first time!

30)  My cousin Lindsay (from Edmonton) came for a visit- we toured ‘Fielding Estates’ winery in Beamsville.

31)  Mountainside outdoor pool and splashpad.

32)  Nelson outdoor pool and splashpad.

32)  Nelson outdoor pool and splashpad.

33)  Valleyridge splashpad in Oakville.

34)  Bronte Park outdoor pool.

34)  Bronte Park outdoor pool.

35)  Bike rides with the double bike trailer attached.

The Bird Kingdom in Niagara Falls.

36)  The Bird Kingdom in Niagara Falls.

37)  The Niagara Skywheel in Clifton Hill.

37)  Walks through the Orchard trail system, ending up at the duck pond.

38)  Walks through the Orchard trail system, ending up at the duck pond.

39)  A Hamilton TigerCats game at the University of Guelph.

39)  Wasaga Beach.

40)  Wasaga Beach.

41)  Blue Mountain Village.

41)  Blue Mountain Village.

42)  Hosting friends for backyard lunchtime playdates.

43)  August long weekend cottage time.

43)  August long weekend cottage time.

44)  Regular swims in my sister-in-law’s and in-law’s backyard pools.

45)  Neighborhood ice cream truck visits and snow-cone stands.

47)  Centre Island.

46)  Centre Island.

47)  LaSalle Park wading pool.

48)  Burlington Children’s Festival at Beachway Park.

49)  Fishing at my sister-in-law's cottage.

49)  Fishing at my sister-in-law’s cottage.

50)  The Burlington Farmer’s Market.

51)  Going to my husband’s weekly Touch Football games to cheer him on.

52)  Hand-feeding chipmunks at the LaSalle marina.

52)  Hand-feeding chipmunks at the LaSalle marina.

53.  Paddleboarding at Burlington Beach.

54)  Visiting the animals at Bronte Park.

54)  Visiting the animals at Bronte Park.

55)  Assumption Crusaders football camp.

56)  Brantford Zoo.

56)  Brantford Twin Valley Zoo.

57)  Competing in the 'Day/Night Challenge' at Crossfit Altitude.

57)  Competing in the ‘Day/Night Challenge’ at Crossfit Altitude.

58)  Ribfest.

59)  An overnight getaway with friends in downtown Toronto.

60)  Grandma and Grandpa visited from Sundre, Alberta.

60)  Grandma and Grandpa visited from Sundre, Alberta.

“One must maintain a little bit of Summer, even in the middle of Winter.”

~Henry David Thoreau


My Floors Are Always Dirty

My floors are always dirty.  Especially in the Spring and Summer.  Especially the kitchen floor.

cause it's summer

You see, our back patio door opens off our kitchen, and we spend more time outside than inside when the weather is nice.  Our backyard is our oasis in the city- complete with trees, grass, and a sandpit.  The sandpit that we have may be the same kind that you have….. you know, the kind that sand seems to jump out of and stick to any child or dog within a 5m radius?  Yep, that kind.  This sand is then tracked into my house via the patio door via my kitchen floor.  Along with grass clippings, pebbles, sticks, twigs, rocks, bugs, dog food, flowers, grass seed, leaves, and all other backyard flora and fauna.

By day’s end, my floors feel more like sandpaper than tile, they look more beige than white, and they sound more rough than smooth.  Out comes the broom and the steammop, and I have nice clean floors again between the hours of 8pm and 8am.

But the sand I clean up reminds me of the huge sandcastle my son built, and the pride I saw on his face.

The grass clippings remind me of the excited smile my daughter had when she felt the lawn on her bare toes, and the sense of wonder in her eyes.

The sidewalk chalk dust reminds me of the artwork that graces my driveway, and the creativity and imagination it inspired.

The twigs remind me of the fun our puppy had exploring his new environment.

So I will take the sand.  And the grass clippings.  And the chalk dust and the twigs.  Because a clean kitchen floor means far less to me than a day of backyard fun with the dirt to prove it.

My floors are always dirty.  And I like it that way.

***This post was originally written as a Guest Blog post for Momstown.ca.