big girl

Maia has been getting noticeably older. In the last week, she's figured out how to get on the swing by herself (yay!), put on her shoes by herself (yay!), say four syllable words like "watermelon" (yay!) and open the front door by herself (boo!). Last month she tried to touch both door posts at once and couldn't, but tonight was delighted to find out she now can. She likes to wear dresses and have her hair done up in pigtails. And she has a shoe fettish... already. She's riding a tricycle, asking to play at the park and make phone calls. She can lead the way in prayer time at dinner (heart melting). And when I suggested we make a thank you call to someone who had dropped off a birthday present for her, I think she assumed that since we couldn't see the person we were thanking, we must be calling the same One we always thank at meal times. So she took the phone as I was dialing up my friend and said, "God? Thank you!".

And today? Today was definitely a big girl day. The first thing I heard from her room this morning was, "Mommy! Toilet! Bafroom!"

So off we went to the throne room, though I didn't expect much after a dozen or so 'dry runs' in the past couple of weeks. Lots of interest... no results. But soon after taking her seat came the poop face, and then, well, mission accomplished.



I'm such a proud mama today.

dashing denver

This month we've had some memorable visits from Maia's dashing little friend Denver. Just turned three, this little man is quick to move, uber-charming and full of funnies.

Upon arrival the other day, I told Denver the plan for the day, to which he quipped, "That sounds great!". Mr. Positive himself. But since the plan included waiting to play in the backyard until Maia had finished her nap, he did what any logical three-year-old would do... when I turned my back, he went upstairs to wake up Maia!









One of those moments when I wish another adult had been here to giggle with me about it happened while Maia and Denver and I were picking tomatoes in the backyard. Denver took a good look at one of the tomatoes and sunk his teeth into it without hesitation. "It's not an apple -- it's a tomato!" I said. But Denver loved it. Once I'd given the green light, he made it his mission to eat the whole thing. But just before he finished it, I caught this moment on camera. Wait a minute... is this a fair trade?


Don't puddles have magnetic power over kids? Denver couldn't stay away. So after the initial soak, I did what any reasonable guardian would do. I took off his pants and let him splash away and get soaked while Maia and I laughed and I took pictures. Then I gave him a bath while his clothes were in the dryer.


Both Denver and Maia love the demo feature on my keyboard. Who wouldn't love making all that noise? They're good little playmates on the piano bench.

The video below is the result of my attempt to have them playing with one finger. (Give me a break, I'm a piano teacher. I have to try!)

I love watching them feed off each other. At one point, Denver goes quite out of his way to look at Maia's face. Charming.




Denver, you're a treasure and we're glad to know you.

adventures with miss maia

Is it time for more videos of the little adventurer? I've got a few everyday moments from the last month that capture her well...

Maia prepares specialty dishes for dad in her mini kitchen.



Opa tries to decipher Maia's one word sentences at the poolside.



On a visit to Great Grandma, Maia liked the idea of putting a daisy in everyone's hair. And she figured out how to 'fake smile' for the camera. Hilarious.

Oma sings one of Maia's favourite Dutch songs while visiting Great Grandma. This little Dutchie can't get enough of it.

beach bums

We can't seem to get enough of the beach these days. Tim especially loves the Lake Huron sunsets, which are as stunning as ever. I can't get enough of the feeling of the sand under my feet and the uber-fresh air. Phil lives to fetch sticks as an excuse to go swimming. And Maia fits right in.

Her first word on waking yesterday morning was, "BEACH!". We had promised a trip to the beach on Tim's day off (the next day) and true to form, she had not forgotten after a night's sleep. Tonight she was educating her little one-year-old neighbour friend about beach sunsets... "sun"... "down"... "water"...."bed"... "all done". How early we love to pass on our knowledge to those coming after us.

100 tomatoes for my 100th blog

Maia's 2nd birthday blog is on the way... but first, a hundred tomatoes for my one hundreth blog!


Tonight Maia's adoptive grandparents in Zurich brought her a sweet little wheelbarrow for her birthday. She wasn't keen on using it to move the weeds we'd pulled earlier, so we found a better task -- picking the first crop of tomatoes from the tomato/carrot/marigold/basil crop circle in our backyard. And that's only the beginning. I'm hoping my friend Bri's crop of peppers gets ripe in a hurry so we can make.... salsa!

What else am I going to do with all these belles tomates?

road trip

When we planned a 1.5 week holiday that included Ottawa, Montreal and Algonquin with car camping and a couple of B&B stops in between, I thought we might not feel so rested at the end of the holiday. But it was a great time away -- all of it. (Well, all except the part where our car was broken into in Montreal.)

The days since coming home have been so full, I'm just finally getting to blogging about it now... and I think it will just be videos for tonight until I have time to tell more. Enjoy!

In Montreal, I couldn't seem to get Pad Thai into Maia for dinner, but Auntie Christine had just the trick.



Everyone has a reaction as we are introduced to the idea of feeding carrots to large friendly deer at Parc Omega in Quebec. Crazy stuff!



Maia tries tasting the lake while sitting beside daddy in the canoe. Just an ordinary, priceless moment on Lake Opeongo.



How do you keep a toddler happy in the car for 23 hours? Well, you don't. But snacks really help. So do songs. And a great idea from a friend: little things from around the house that I wrapped before we left to keep her busy unwrapping and playing with different things.

But my personal favourite? Get the girl laughing. Maia has the most infectious and delightful laugh I've ever known. And getting her to laugh has a dual purpose... not only does everyone get a kick out of her laughter, but it also helps tucker her out so she can nap in the car.