a hippie with a minivan

3 months old

Wilhelmina is now three months old..

It is hard to believe that she is already three months old, but in another light I have trouble not seeing her in our family. It was just yesterday it seems that she was so tiny, yet it feels like an eternity since the birth.

She is such an amazing little one. She is smiley and happy but don’t let that fool you, when she is not happy she is not happy at all.

The time I was away with her was great, but I have to admit that it was a bit harder than I thought it would be. At home, she cries at times, but not much… but while we were away it seemed bit hard for her. The routine was off, the noises were different, we were out a lot more, and we were in and out of the car a lot more also.

But now that we are back home, car rides are no problem again, she seems happier in the day and naps better also and continues to sleep well at night. She is a lot more smiley and doesn’t mind being in dad’s arms as well as mine and it shows that though mom is important, so is Dad, and though I don’t know how concsious it was, I do believe that she was missing him and her brothers.

EC is also back on track a bit more as things were off a bit also with the travelling. I had actually forgot about using diapers all the time and forgot them a few times when we went out. Even when we were having a quieter day, thing were just a bit more off. Now that we are at home again though, the routine is back and we are having minimal misses… Diapering is so much more work!

Willa has always been a good sleeper in the night and that is one thing that travelling did not change. She kept her routine of sleeping through the night with one or two times of waking up to potty and nurse… usually at around 1-2am and then again at about 5am… but, in the last half of the trip things started changing. When I wold hear her wake a bit at about 1-2 am I would put her on the potty as I usually did, but she would not pee and instead would either cry or just fall asleep right on the potty… and she also wouldn’t nurse. So I had to start keeping myself from reacting to her slight movements as I was doing before and she just continues sleeping until about 5-6am when she wakes up dry, pees quickly and then wants to nurse even more readily. She then goes back to sleep and wakes up a bit more often but will easily and readily stay in bed for as long as we are. Of course, we have other kids to attend to so we did need to get up eventually…

3 months…. it might not seem like a big deal to some, but as a mom that has been through this period 3 times in the past, 3 months is when a lot of things start to happen, and I am looking forward to expeirences all the “firsts” that are soon to come as well as mourning the fact aht I don’t have a ‘newborn’ anymore, I now have a baby….

What an amazing week (part 2)

I’m home now and finally able to sit down and write this while I nurse the little one…

So, after McClymount park our plan was to head to Smithers. Annie had an eye appointment at 2pm and with a 4 hour drive and 3 kids in tow, we decided that we needed to leave bright and early. One thing about Wilhelmina is that she may not like short car rides, but longer ones are a different story. We were able to drive about 2 1/2 hours before she started to wake up and when she did so we were just right next to an amazing Organic Bakery. We stopped for a treat, some coffee for me, and a bathroom brake and a nurse and then headed back on the road for the final stretch, arriving in Smithers with about 2 hours to spare before the appointment.

I actually didn’t get many pictures of Smithers because I was just enjoying walking and hanging out with Annie and the kids. We checked into our hotel and right away decided that we might spend two nights instead of just one. We headed over to fellow blogger Taimarie‘s home for a nice supper and to hang out and I was so happy to get to know them. Taimarie also met up with us the next day for lunch and a walk which was equally great…

We headed back to Prince-Rupert slowly on Saturday morning and saw the first bit of rain in more than a week…

On Sunday we headed out to Kloiya Bay with Erin, Keith and little Hayden. The weather called for rain in the afternoon so we decided to go in the morning before the rain came and by luck, we didn’t get any rain at all, but we did get tons of wind which made Willa gasp a few times…

What another beautiful place. The tide was going out so every few minutes new beach appeared along with new little hidden creatures. Erin and Keith had brought their little rubber boat and the crab trap and Cam headed out with the baited trap to put it down. The dogs, not wanting to be left behind ran and swam, following them and because of the lowering tide and sand banks they looked at times as if they were running on the water. The trap stayed down for just an hour or so but we had 8 crabs in that time (3 that were big enough to keep) and we cooked them right then and there on the beach… Amazing and delicious!

Finally on Monday we took the day to stay around the house, do laundry and just hang around and planned on going to the museum on Tuesday as I was leaving Wednesday… The museum was great, though I didn’t get any pics, and I was able to finish my tourist shopping there and at another little store after eating an amazing lunch at the Cow Bay café…

If was an amazing week to end the perfect vacation… (have I said amazing enough in this post??… it all truly was 🙂 )

What an amazing week… (part 1)

I am now on the way home, stopped over in Vancouver for the night and heading to Montreal in the morning.I am eager to be home but had an amazing trip with a great last week of time with Annie and her family.

I couldn’t have asked for more; from the Ocean and a warm secluded beach, to the moutains and snow, to a beautiful walk in a mossy forest, to a beautiful drive for a two night stay 4 hours away and then eating freshly caught crab on the beach and then a tour of the Museum of Northern BC… it was great.

I had never really been in Northern BC besides for a stay in the Queen Charlotte Islands as a young child. I have to admit though, now that I am seeing it and metting the people, I am loving it, and would definately concider looking into it if we decided to move to BC as I have wanted ever since we left.

Just after I posted my last blog post, we headed out on Keith and Erin’s boat (friends of Annie) and with their new little rubber boat we headed for Kitson Island, a secluded Island park just south of Prince Rupert. Getting on the little boat from the big one was a bit nervewracking with Wilhelmina (and Camera) in tow but it went perfectly well and it was an amazing adventure…

(as usual click on any of the below pics to see them larger)

The day after the beach we headed to the top of Mount Haze, the mountain that casts a shadow on Prince-Rupert. We starterd up the bumpy road toward the top and almost considered heading back at one point with all of the snow and Ice, but with help of the 4X4 we made it to the top and the view was just breathtaking. Ocean and islands, eagles and seaplanes flying far below. Seeing the city from high up and the calm and silence of the mountain top…

The next day was a walk in McClymount park, a park/forest in the middle of Prince-Rupert. The wetness of Prince-Rupert makes everything so green and mossy.

Part 2 to come…

Week two…

The weather here has been a bit crazy this past week. We have had a few sunny afternoons but we had three days of snow also so we have kept busy inside and out.

Wilhelmina is dong well, though she has a way of going from the extreme of happy to not very easily, so she when she cries, she cries hard. But I don’t think that it has anything to do with travelling then just personality. She is 10 weeks old now and is getting stronger and starting to grab things a bit.

The snowy days were mostly inside days… Lily and Leif are adorable and it has been so much fun getting to know them more as older kids.

It is so beautiful here and the air is so pure. What I love about BC, the mountains, the water, the air, the scenery and the people, it is all here.

Meals of course are also amazing… Making our favourites and sharing recipes and hanging out with others…

(annie making potstickers) (Sushi Party with friends)

Thought there was snow… there have been other great days and there are definate signs of Spring…

and beautiful views…

and fun events…

(Launch of the Longest Canoe in North America)

(that is 6’2″ Cam next to it)

Today it is beautiful and we are heading to the boat again for a new adventure…

Week one…

Well, here I am! I left my house last Monday just around noon and headed out to Costco to pick up a few treats before I headed to Gen’s house so that she could then bring me to the Airport. I am really happy with the system that I had set up. Wilhelmina on me in the wrap, one of my backpacks in the stroller and the other on my back and then pulling my two suitcases…

Going through Security was interesting, the plane ride was way better than I hoped for it to be with Wilhelmina sleeping most of the way. We got to Vancouver and my mom was waiting for me at the airport with a rented car and we headed to a friend’s apartment to spend the night. I was absolutely amazed by the view from the apartment. We had an unobstructed downtown Vancouver and three of the surrounding mountains.

A good night’s sleep and the next day we were off for some Dim Sum in New Westminster and then a birthday supper back at the apartment for the friend that we were staying with. On Wednesday we headed out to Grandville Island for lunch and then went out for Sushi and then headed to bed to be ready to leave in the morning for Prince-Rupert. Going through Security in Vancouver was a lot easier, and my mom and I headed for the planes, hers leaving for Castlegar at the next gate 10 min later. Wilhelmina slept the whole way and we arrived in Prince-Rupert at about 10am and met Annie’s mom as we were getting off the plane. The whole procedure to get to the Prince Rupert from the island that the plane lands on was quite interesting, but it went smoothly and Annie was waiting for us when we got into town.

So, now I am at Annie’s. It is so beautiful here and the weather is ever changing. On the day we arrived there was snow, and we stayed around the house (except for a quick run to the grocery store) which felt great. Though Wilhelmina has been doing so well, the lack of routine and always being on the go was taking its toll and it felt good to just hang out around the home for a day or two. On Saturday there was a mix of rain and snow but we headed out downtown for a walk, some shopping and some Sushi. I found some amazing earrings which was one of the things that I wanted to do while I was here and the sushi was equally amazing.

On Sunday the weather turned around completely and we headed out on the boat belonging to some friends. We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day. The sun was shining, the ocean was calm and it was just so perfect. The scenery, the fresh air, the wildlife…

I never thought that I would come out here to Prince-Rupert, especially so soon and without my family. It has been weird to be away thought I have to admit that it has been much calmer here. I miss my family though, my Simon and my boys, especially my little Khéna. I talk to them every day on the phone but it is of course not the same. During the day, I keep busy and it isn’t that bad, but at night I miss them all more and have small tinges of regret that I am not with them.

However, I think that this break will be good. It is not an opportunity that will come up again soon. I was in a rut cooking wise and I know that this will help with that and will hopefully help me get som better habits established again. Winter, the end of pregnancy and then a newborn really made things go downhill in our diet; too much meat, too little veggies and too many easy meals without enough nutrition. We were still eating well but we were falling far from our ideals.

The time away from home will hopefully help a bit with my patience levels also. I can see that it can get hard when you are in the moment everyday without respite, and though I love being with the family, I can see how this little time away from home will give me a breather so that I will come back and be able to deal with situations that arise in a better headspace.

As for Wilhelmina, she is doing good. She is either happy or not. She is crying a bit more than usual, often because I miss a pee or poop or something similar but she seems to be getting a bit better every day. She is growing and changing on a daily basis…

So, one week down, two m ore to go. I am looking forward to the next adventures…

(to see more pics click here to see the whole set)