A weekend at the lake

This weekend we decided to camp up at Diefenbaker Lake - a place called Douglas Park. It was a gorgeous weekend, and a great campground - even though we were in the overflow. The lake was a little cool, but it felt nice on the hot days... Chloe and mom hangin' out :) Jalen tryin' to get in on the pic!
Opa and Chloe digging in the sand.
We had to improvise when it came to bath time. Opa had a shower tap on the side of his trailer which he hooked a hose up to, so we filled a green bin from Superstore with warm water and in hopped the girls! The green bins are good for more than just groceries!
Chloe wasn't quite so happy to get in and get clean!
Oma and Opa with all their grandkids... Don't they look so proud?

Daddy and Chloe at the lake.
Jalen found a cool log to sit on and Joel pushed it out into the water a ways so they could float.
Loungin' around the campsite :)
Chloe trying on Opa's hat - so cute!
The girls all sittin' on the log having a great time!

We had an absolutely awesome time while Oma, Opa and Jalen were out. It was hard to say goodbye this morning. We're so glad that they could stay as long as they did, though... it was so much fun!!!

Having a blast!

Hi! Oma and Opa Luypen arrived on Sunday and we've been having a great time with them! Unfortunately, Joel had to work up until today, so that's why he's not in any photos yet... It's been fabulous weather, minus one rain day.... take a look! I found a little slide on sale at Canadian Tire (wahoo!), and everyone is having a great time with it!
Wish my kids were smiling like their cousin, Jalen... it was a chore to get that picture, maybe we'll try again in a few days...
Opa had fun taking Jalen and Karissa out on the ATV. They had a great time and even saw 8 deer crossing the road!
Our little 2-fisted eater :) We stopped at Timmy's in Regina after I had to pick something up. We needed a snack before we headed to the museum... Chloe loves her donuts!

If you ever come to Regina - visit the Royal Canadian Museum. It is unreal! and it's free!!! They have a ton of displays from animals that you find in Canada, as well as a bit of history and lots of native history. It is so great - the kids had a blast and us adults did too!
Chloe was just excited to walk around instead of being stuck in her stroller. Her enthusiasm was hysterical! She thought everything was just the coolest thing ever.
Some of the displays...


They even had a fossil of a triceratops! I couldn't read where it was from or anything - it was hard for me to keep up with everyone - I wanted to read more, but I couldn't read as fast as they were walking!

This is 'megamunsch'. Good ol' T-Rex that scared the bajeebers out of Karissa. We just went in to look at him, and then a man and his son came in and pressed a button that made him start to move and roar! Karissa was NOT impressed :) She was quite scared until Oma convinced her that it was a toy. whew!
I got to take Karissa and Oma out on the ATV too! It's pretty fun out on the dirt roads - although it would be even more fun to have some more challenging terrain to drive on!

The kids were throwing water at Angel today - she absolutely loves it! She tries to catch it in her mouth... She was rather wet when all was said and done - and I think Karissa got just as much on her and she got on the dog!

Tomorrow we head off to Lake Diefenbaker to go camping for a couple of days. We are very excited about it, as Joel and I haven't been there, either. I will be sure to post pics when we come back!

Havin' some fun...

We haven't been doing a whole lot since we've been back, besides being sick... well, the girls were, anyway. So, I just thought I'd post a few pics, just because! Joel calls this the "after-fart" picture... nice. She was tootin' up storm and thought it was very funny... (I think that trait might come from Joel...)
First day in panties! (yes, Sam, that's what we call them at our house... we'll have some fun when you come out!) We started potty training on Tuesday, July 15 and we're doing so well! She's been great about everything... we have a sticker chart, but she's much more into us getting all excited for her a giving her hugs for going on the potty.
I had to get a picture of the pigtails! They are just so cute!!! It's a chore to get them in, but so worth it!
Joel wanted this on camera because it's been a LONG time since she cuddled with him like this. This was the day she was super sick and did nothing but sleep and watch cartoons all day. Poor thing!

Trip to BC

After the July long weekend that we spent in Pine Lake, Alberta, I travelled to Abbotsford with my parents and the girls so I could spend a week there. We took a couple of days to get back, stopping in Revelstoke for the night. While we were in Revelstoke, Karissa discovered the ducks! She really liked chasing after them :) It was hilarious to watch.
In the morning we had breakfast in Grandma and Grandpa's trailer before we headed off for home.
One of the days we took the girls out to Guildford mall. Karissa and Chloe discovered the cars that you put coins into and had a blast - it was actually pretty hard to tear them away...
James, Lesley and I took the girls to the park down at Thomas Swift one day. The girls had loads of fun!
Lesley wanted to see what Karissa would do in this little spinny chair - she had a riot and got quite dizzy! It was so funny to watch her try to walk after!

Monday we met Oma out at Mill Lake and played there for a good part of the morning. The girls played in the water park. Chloe would have stayed there forever - shivering and all! She was actually almost turning blue - but still smiling!
Karissa made it to the top of this climbing wall with the help of Oma! Way to go!
I couldn't let the grandma's get away with this and not take a picture! It's priceless!
We went out to Oma and Opa's new house - their new trailer. It's actually quite roomy! The girls had fun exploring the small space - and Karissa almost stuck a key into the electrical socket! That would have made for an interesting evening...
If Chloe isn't quite sure where she's going, or isn't super steady, she resorts to the bear crawl. Hilarious to watch, but gets the job done!

Something Chloe discovered while she was in BC was wearing shoes on her hands! Karissa's fit a lot better, but she also tried out Grandma's, Grandpa's and mom's shoes...
Tea party with Oma!
We had dinner all together on Monday night. We almost got everyone looking in this picture!

Hanging out in the pool in Grandma and Grandpa's backyard.
Picnic at the park. It was such a great day! The weather was perfect and company was great!

I had an absolutely fantastic time in Abbotsford... Sorry I didn't see everyone, but I was only out for a short time this time around. One of these times when we are out we will just invite everyone we know to a park or something so we can see all of you!

July Long Weekend

This year we had our family camp out in Pine Lake, Alberta - about 15 minutes from Red Deer.  It was a great campground right on the lake.  The weather was gorgeous all weekend, except for a little bit of rain.  We had a lot of fun as a family, it was great to all be together again!

The girls had fun on the beach digging holes to put water in, and building sand castles.
When we needed a bit of a break from the sun, we came up to the site, put a blanket in the shade and let the girls play with the little people.
Dad brought his canoe out, so all of us got a turn taking it out on the lake.  Karissa had a great time - she kept leaning over and putting her hands in the water.  I actually had to sit not quite centred so we would tip because she was leaning!  The water was really disgusting.  There were weeds everywhere, and lots of algae and gross motor boat stuff.  How people let their kids swim in it all day is beyond me!
Karissa caught sight of a hot air balloon that went right over us!  She was so excited - she kept saying "balloon!" and pointing, then she would run after it when it got too far to see.  She even wanted to climb the fence!
Grandma's girls.
Karissa loved walking into the water.  She would never stay in for very long, but liked to cool off her feet anyway :)
Naptime!  The best part of the day!!
Tegan was quite happy to hold her little cousin on her lap.  
It was a great weekend!  Wish it could have lasted longer... I guess we can always look forward to next year!