Sunday visit with the Macnab Grandparents

Alex and I took Ruby over to visit with her grandparents on Sunday.


Ruby gets a hug from Grandma Macnab.










Ruby had a blast exploring their house and playing with her cousin's toys.

Alex brews his second batch of beer

I gave Alex a beer brewing kit for Christmas. He did his first round several months ago and it came out pretty good. He decided to try brewing a different kind of beer this time, an IPA. So this past weekend he bottled it and it should be ready for tasting in a few weeks.

Weekend with the Jaaskelainens

This past Saturday Annette, Sakari and their son Matias came to stay with us. We went to our neighborhood pools and then out to a nice dinner at a nearby German restaurant. Then we had a fun game night back at our house.

Ruby and Matias play beforehand.

Alex and Sakari enjoying the food.





The restaurant had a polka band and the music was great. Ruby got to listen to it up close and one of the musicians even gave the babies tamborines to shake while they were listening and dancing. It was so cute.


Ruby watching the band intently!

Ruby's friend Thomas comes over to play

This past week my friend Jennifer needed to go to a doctor's appointment so I watched her son Thomas for a short while. Ruby and Thomas are only a few days apart in age. They played really well along side each other and even made a few attempts at sharing things back and forth. I think Ruby was fascinated at how differently Thomas played with her toys. He is quite the thrower! Such a nice morning.

Fingerpainting playdate at our house

I hosted a fingerpainting playdate this week. Ruby invited several of her buddies and we painted canvases under the shade outside. Some babies liked it more than others. On a scale of 0 to 10, Ruby liked fingerpainting about .25. She was not a fan.

I did help her to create her first masterpiece. We call it 'Tornado' and it is now hanging proudly in our gameroom.

Dinner with the Robersons at Rainforest cafe

Last Sunday we met the Robersons at the Rainforest cafe for dinner. I suggested it since Ruby has enjoyed seeing the fish in their aquariums when we've been to the mall.




Ruby got to visit with her auntie and cousin.




She loves fish and says 'issshh' when she sees them.




Ruby kind of looked like a stunned deer the whole time we were there. There is so much stimulation, you could tell she was on overload. (Thunder, lightning, moving monkeys and alligators, a waterfall, sound effecs). But I think she enjoyed it.

Ruby visits a vineyard

Sometimes I miss living in the big city of London, but I'm actually loving the area where we live now. It is near several farms and at least 2 vineyards that I know of. Recently Ruby and I picked peaches and plums and chatted with a coop full of chickens and a pasture full of goats. On our drive home we sometimes get views of rolling hills with cows, and what look to be buffalos or bison as well as the occasional camel.

Ruby and I visited a vineyard last weekend. We waved at their horses.

And picked a few pounds of Shiraz grapes. I got to taste them right off the vine. Later that evening I smashed them with my potato masher, strained them and had fresh Shiraz grape juice.






I think Ruby thought they were blueberries (she says buuh buhh).







Such a fun outing with my daughter!