Nothing special happened Friday night, except that I finished the third and final book in the Hunger Games series. I really enjoyed reading the books so I was sad that I finished the last one. But they are soooo good! I recommend them to anyone, although they are books for teens. They contain a bit of violence but not too much (I really can't handle violence and I was fine).
On Saturday Avery had his third swimming lesson. His lessons are so much fun because he really enjoys himself in the water. When I put him on his back he kicks like crazy! Of course, sometimes he sticks both feet straight into the air instead, but hey, he's still learning! When he's on his front he is usually too distracted watching all the other kids to focus on his kicking. And he's not too crazy about being dunked but I don't blame him because he really has no idea what is going on. I've included some photos of his swimming lessons.
After Avery's swimming lessons Noel, myself, Avery and Shelby all piled into the car and went to Grimsby. Noel's aunt had called us earlier in week and said she was going to visit Noel's uncle for her birthday, and did we want to come too. It sounded like fun so we agreed. It's kind of a big deal, because this was our first overnight outing as a family. (Once, my Mom and I took Avery to visit my Grandma, but it was easier and different without Noel and Shelby and since my Mom and Grandma are a huge help to me).
We managed to remember to pack everything we needed and had an uneventful drive down to Grimsby. It took under 3 hours and Avery just slept and played in his car seat. When we got there everyone was so excited to see Avery. The last time these relatives say Avery was several months ago so they saw lots of changes in him. Noel's Uncle Colin adores Avery and says "he's such a little doll!". He even has Avery as his desktop computer photo so that it cheers him up every time he sees it. Noel's Uncle Brock and Marianne also love Avery too. They both raised their own kids so they are great with him and he loves them right back! It was nice to see everyone. 
On Saturday night we ordered Italian food and I had the unfortunate veal incident. I was telling Marianne that I thought it was strange that my Chicken Parmigiana was made out of dark meat because I didn't know how they would get it in the same shape as a chicken breast. It wasn't until after I was completely finished eating that Marianne said "Laurie! I bet they made a mistake and sent you veal parmigiana instead!". So I was upset, since I don't eat veal, but as my S-I-L pointed out, it's not really any better(kinder) to eat chicken that was raised for food. : ( We also had lots of chocolate because part of the fun of staying at Colin's is that he always has lots of yummy food! 
Because we had the baby, Noel and I got to sleep in the spare bedroom and Brock and Marianne had to sleep on the air mattress in the living room. As an additional bonus, for some reason Shelby consented to sleep on the couch beside Brock so I got to sleep next to Noel without a dog between us for the first time in years! It was nice. Avery was excellent, sleeping in his play yard, and he slept about the same as he usually does. He only woke once in the night to nurse. Then he woke me up at 7am and we got up to have breakfast. Brock, who is really very sweet, made me an English muffin and Colin made me coffee. He was concerned that I was eating already, since he was going to make pancakes later, but I explained to him that it was just a "pre-breakfast" and that I would still have room for pancakes later. : )
While I was eating breakfast, Brock and Marianne took Shelby and their dog Roxy out for a walk/off-leash run. Apparently Shelby rolled in something dead, then Roxy decided to do it too! So, we had two smelly dogs. Marianne made them swim in the lake (although Lake Ontario probably isn't much cleaner!) then her and Brock tried to wash them off under the hose with Colin's shampoo, as best they could. Shelby is still a bit stinky, but Noel has promised to give her a bath if it doesn't seem better soon.
After yummy pancakes with raspberries, we headed out to Niagara-on-the-Lake. We enjoyed looking in the stores. We went to the Christmas store and saw a Christmas ball ornament that had Avery's name on it but I refused to let anyone spend $16 on a ornament! That was ridiculous! They had Santa at the store but he was on break while we were there. I was a bit disappointed because I wanted Avery to get used to seeing him so he doesn't cry when he gets his Santa photo done at Christmas. Oh well. So we kept shopping, and had some fudge, rum balls, and gelato - yummy! A clerk in one of the stores gave Avery a Halloween sticker for his cheek.
We had to leave mid-afternoon in order to get home for Avery's bed time. On the way back Noel wanted to stop in Hamilton for hot & sour soup. It's one of his favourites and it helps when he is not feeling well (he seems to be getting Avery's cold). But we still made good time driving home and arrived without any meltdowns on anyone's part. Avery was such a good boy, although I did have to sing "The Wheels on the Bus" several times!
Overall, it was a great weekend. It was nice to get out and do something as a family.
Glad you all had a good time! That is an excellent picture of everyone !
ReplyDelete-Nicole