Tag: memories

Now you are three.

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It’s hard to believe how fast this past year with you flew by.  It seems like only yesterday we were blowing out the candles on your cake together as we geared up for your very first visit to the cottage.

So many firsts.  So many blurred memories.  So much learned.

Our first family all-inclusive beach vacation.  You LOVED playing in the ocean waves and chasing your dear friend Quincy around everywhere.

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Your first monster jam truck rally.  It was a life altering experience for you, and all you wanted to do was re-create the event again and again on the living room floor every night.

Your first full sentences.  The first time you made me REALLY laugh because you “told a joke” (even though you didn’t necessary realize it was a joke); the first time you paid me a compliment (“mom, I really like your earrings today”), the first time you offered me some criticism (“mom, your hair looks like butter; I don’t like the strings”)

The first time you peed all by yourself, after a solid week of me doubting myself about this whole potty-training thing: had we pushed you to potty train too soon? Will I seriously have to give you stickers every single time you make a bowel movement until I send you off to college?

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Your first day of preschool.  You didn’t shed a tear or miss a beat and you were SO excited for your routine, new friends, new TOYS.  I was so proud of you.

Your first cousin.

Our first totally public, totally confined epic toddler melt down (inside an airplane, for approximately 20 minutes).

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The longest time you and I have been apart in 3 years, and the longest distance by thousands of miles.  That was a long 9 days away from you and Dubai is a very very far ways away.

Your first time requesting a specific song to be played (Footloose.  It’s always Footloose)

The first time you sang…..like REALLY SANG…a full song in its entirety!  You started with ABC and as we moved through your second year, row row row your boat, the Robo Car Poli theme song (thanks, Netflix), and Twinkle Twinkle, have all been added to your rotation.

Your first time truly saying good-bye, to our amazing nanny, Amber.

The first time you saw that I was crying, and recognized and understood that I was upset, when a dear friends’ daughter left this world way too soon.  I struggled to find a simple way of explaining the tragedy to you.

Your first time sleeping in a “big boy bed”.

Your first time taking off your shoes, socks, hat, and coat…all by yourself.

Your first time becoming our in-home barista, mastering the art of the Nespresso Coffee.

Your first organized sport, playing soccer with Little kickers.

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Your first sleepover, which involved actually sleeping in the SAME ROOM as another toddler!  Winning!

The first time you demanded independence.

The first time you refused to hold my hand.

The first time you negotiated with us.

The first time you tried to articulate your feelings with words.

The first time you “read” (memorized) a book.  First favorite = The Giving Tree

The first time you swam in Clear Lake.

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Your first ice cream, scooter ride, balance bike-ride, ride in an excavator and flight outside of North America.

And yet, within a flurry of firsts, there were also so many last times….these I find so hard to pinpoint.  When was the last time I picked you up without worrying about my back?  When did you stop calling me ‘mama’ and instead start calling me “mum”?   When did I stop singing the “good morning” song to you each day?  The past year is starting to melt together with the year prior.  Those small, precious memories are already slipping into the back of my memory bank — this is the most difficult part about accepting that you are now another year older.

But, do you want to know something?  It keeps getting better.  That first year with you….boy…..I wasn’t so sure.

I wasn’t sure it was ever going to get better.  There were some tough days, weeks and months.

But, now you are 3.

I love the boy that you are becoming.  I love to laugh with you, play with you and sing with you.  I love to watch your curious mind working at 5,000 miles an hour.  I love to sneak in and tuck you in and give you a kiss good-night before resting my head on the pillow after a long day.  I love reading to you…your attention span is unbelievable.

I love to watch you grow.

I love you more today than yesterday.  But not as much as tomorrow.

Happy Birthday, my love.

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Cottage Series Part 1: Taking the plunge.

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It’s hard to believe that summer is half over.

Summer in Ontario is about so many things: soaking up as much of the dearly-missed sunshine as possible, endless trips to farmers markets, hitting every patio in sight, racing home to hit the road and drive up north to the lake….the lake.  Yes, the lake calls us.  It had been calling Christian and I for the better part of a decade.  And we are so excited to say that summer 2017 is our first year as cottage owners!  The most exciting part about that statement?  Knowing that we have countless summers of cottage memory-making ahead of us.

But, before we plunge into the future, allow me to share our winding journey of how we got here in the first place.

We didn’t just wake up one morning and decide “today is the day!” (have you met my husband?  He’s a very planned and calculated guy — these kinds of decisions don’t just “happen”!).

No, there were a lot of pieces and experiences over a number of years that came together in order to turn this dream into a reality.

It begins on near opposite sides of the country: me, a west-coast gal raised about as close to the ocean as you can get in beautiful British Columbia.  I grew up in a small coastal town called Tsawwassen (literally meaning “facing the ocean”) and the ocean was always there.  I was fortunate to have friends with homes on or near the beach from when I was in elementary school all the way into my teens.  My best friend, Leah, has a family cabin right on the beach and I spent many summer weeks there: playing football on the sandbar, falling asleep to the sound of the waves lapping up against the rocks, the salty air in my hair and on my face; it is to this day one of my favourite places on earth.

Meanwhile, Christian is growing up with his own version of life-on-water.  With his grandparents owning a family cottage near Minden, Ontario, he spent most summers at the lake with his brothers: swinging on the rope swing, diving into the water, pulling the darned pump in and out of the lake to help get things running right, starring up at the stars in the night sky and just being a BOY.  To this day, some of Christian’s most treasured family memories occurred at the Huggett family cottage.

We both had some magic moments, independently, by water: mine on the ocean, and Christian’s by the lake.  We both decided from a young age that we wanted that association with water, in some way, to be in our lives.

What is it about being by a body of water?  The smell.  The sound.  The way your shoulders instantly sink away from your ears and relax.  The way it simply allows you to sit and enjoy. There is nothing like it.

10 years ago, the ocean-born gal meets the lake-bound boy.  Our first date in Toronto took us to Ashbridge’s Bay beach where we starred out at the massive lake and shared our first kiss.  I had the chance to visit Christian’s grandparents cottage that fall (fortunately, as it was sold just a few years later…this photo is the last one we ever took up there):

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Christian came to BC with me the following summer and we took a trip to Tofino together. I’ll never forget his reaction when he jumped into the Pacific.  He was collecting sand dollars and starfish like a wild man.  He’d never seen a kelp doll before; he was mesmerized by all the sea critters we would come across.  I realized how much I had taken these gifts for granted.  How spoiled I was to have grown up by the sea!

In our early years of marriage, while we juggled never-ending home renovations, tried to balance our bills, all while growing our careers and figuring out life as husband and wife, we would often go for walks.  On our walks, we would always talk about our future: our hopes, our dreams and our plans together.  Always, the topic of a family cottage came up.

At first, I was against it.  In those early years, I still felt torn calling Toronto home. Although we had put down roots and bought a home together, purchasing a cottage property in Ontario just felt so….FINAL.  One house you can sell, but two properties?  How will I ever return out west when we have two properties tying us down?

But on went the years, and our lives.  And slowing but surely, Ontario became my home.

We would go on beach vacations, a trip to the south of France, a journey around the Greek islands, a road trip from Santa Monica to Santa Barbara…and always the topic would arise: how can we find our own slice of the beautiful waters’ edge?

The truth is, we didn’t necessarily know when it would happen.  But what we did know, is that we had talked abut it enough to know that when it was right, it would just feel right, and we would know.

Last year, after the sale of our first home (which had since evolved into a rental property), and after spending a glorious week at our friends’ cottage on the Lake of Bays, we looked at each other and said: we either take this opportunity and re-invest in another rental property, or we take the plunge — and dive into cottage life.  You can tell which option we chose by now…

Stay tuned for “the hunt” post coming soon to a blog near you!  The story continues…