The return of autumn!

Today was about 10 degrees C colder than yesterday, reminding me not to get too used to last weekend's weather ;) Although cooler, it was really sunny and great sweater weather... that is pretty nice too! Hope you had a great day!

Goofy kid

Oliver started his swimming lessons again. This time, he gets to do this activity all by himself, like a big boy. Usually, he has been tagging along on the bigger boys' activities but, this time, we decided that Alexander and Nicklas have enough with their basketball and they are already pretty good swimmers. Oliver gets to have some special time where he isn't the midget ;)

Here is the little man in action....

Pool party?

Yesterday (Saturday) was just a phenomenal day- so warm and summerlike! I took Oliver to a birthday party in the afternoon and it ended up with all the little boys going in the pool! It was actually that warm...
Today should be similar so, at least after some of the homework gets done, we will be heading back outside. We're expecting rain this evening and who knows what is coming up this week so I am grabbing every bit of sun today :) You will all get enough of me complaining of winter weather soon enough!
Happy day to all xox

September 27... not a bad date for a pool party!

Beautiful Friday!

What else can I say? It was absolutely beautiful today.... and a shame that I was stuck in meetings all day long ;)  Andreas and I got 2 scientific papers published this week- as a team- good reason to celebrate! Any special plans for this weekend? Whatever you are doing I wish you all a happy weekend!

This morning

This is what it looked like this morning, on my way to work. I was so glad that I didn't put my summer shoes away because it was awesome to wear sandals again. Beautiful weather = good way to start the day :)

Brief return to summer

Over the next week or so, we are supposed to have summerlike weather again :) The last few weeks of summer have been quite grey and cold so the warm temperatures and sun are very welome, especially now that it is autumn and I had almost given up! While the boys were doing some homework last night, I snuck outside to sit on the front steps for a few minutes. It was nice to enjoy a moment of peace during the chaos (I am not a big fan of homework time!) and feel some sun. We're supposed to get a really bad winter again so I am appreciating every moment of warmth :)
Good day to you all!

Red

I love autumn, although it can be a bit sad, knowing that winter is just around the corner. The last few days of summer here were really cool and very late fall like. Funny, now that it is autumn, we are expected to get very summer-like weather. Maybe I can wear my sandals again for a few days and give them the proper honour before having to put them away again? ;)

Since the weather has been so cool, the leaves are already starting to turn red. Here are some glimpses of the season change from my walk to work. Happy autumn :)

Haircuts

I usually cut the boys' hair... all of them. Basically, I find a bit of time and then call them into the bathroom- one by one- for their haircuts. Unfortunately, though, finding the time (and patience!) has been harder and  harder to do lately. So, on Saturday, I impulsively took the boys (little ones only- the big boy- aka Andreas- was away) to the local barber shop. It is an old school kind of place.... no frills, no appointments, just show up and get a good old cut. One by one, they got their mops cut down, with little stress (at least, for me). They listen much better, and complain way less, when strangers cut their hair! Money worth spent ;)

Hope you had a good weekend! Happy week to all xox

Looking very handsome :)

Believe it or not... this is the AFTER picture (not allowed to cut the front). It does look much cleaner though!

Just like my brothers, please!

More Montreal scenes

I drove by this mural on my way to work yesterday. Needless to say, I had to stop and take a picture. What a great ode to Montreal... from the bike (yes, we are actually starting to have a bicycle culture here) to the wagon with Mount Royal, Place Ville Marie (with the light on top) and, of course, BAGELS!! Location: Ste. Catherine and St. Marc :)

Had a great soccer party last night..... for me, not the boys ;) Not a hotdog in sight!!!! :) It was a great time! Now, today consists of chauffeuring the boys from one basketball evaluation to another (yes, we are now onto the winter sports!) and to a birthday party. Andreas is on a work-related retreat for the day... hmmm... smart guy to get himself invited to that!

Happy day to you all xox

Being Batman...

Today, Oliver decided that he was Batman. He ran around with his jacket magically becoming his wings. He even sang the theme song... but only when he was not yelling "I am Batman!". Maybe I should take a lesson from my youngest son... I could use some Wonder Woman power on my side! I think that, from now on, I'll just yell "I am Wonder Woman" when I need it. Do you think that will work? ;) At least it is worth a shot!

Good night to you all!

I am Bat Man!

New finds

After the chaos of yesterday, I was a bit relieved that our tutorial session ended a bit early today (thank you, students!). Since I had to wait to pick up the boys, I treated myself to a trip to the local thrift shop. Just to repeat myself: I LOVE THRIFT SHOPS!!!! You never know what you are going to find :) Today, I picked up some retro looking items: a small yellow vase, a wooden tray with a paisley design and a cool brown/blue flower pot. With a coffee in hand, it was a great way to unwind after what had started as a pretty crappy week :)

Anyone else into thrift shops or am I just strange?

Have a great rest of the day xox

Busy, busy, busy....

Friday and Saturday flew by, like a hurricane!

On Friday, I went to work with Andreas because we needed to finish/catch up on some common projects. We managed to get a lot of stuff done but also found the time to go to a great (real) taco place not far from his work. Cap it off with a visit to the next door pastry shop (strong double espresso + pastry) and it was a great lunch ;) After rushing through groceries, picking up the kids, making them dinner, I went to see the finals for my soccer league.... unfortunately, my team only watched- not played ;)

Yesterday was my brother-in-law's 40th birthday party. It was held at his parent's new house, just over the Ontario border. It is a really nice place, right on the water (= Andreas was happy to boat watch). Darn weather didn't co-operate, though, and it was pretty cold and really windy! That was tough when there were so many little boys in attendance! After that we headed to Alexander's soccer team party, celebrating their league win (way more little boys in attendance). It was great to see the boys/families one more time before we all part ways over the winter season (thanks to the awesome hosts!) Bonus: we got to eat more cake... yum!

Today will be calmer ;) and filled with homework :(

Hope you all have a  great Sunday! Here are lots of random shots from the weekend so far.... xox

SO wrong... aka we have it SO good!

Thankfully this is not in Montreal... but I feel SO bad for my friends living in Calgary! What did they get over the last few days??? SNOW! Lots and lots of SNOW :( That is so wrong, on multiple levels, especially since they just had the longest winter ever! So I am sending all Calgarians my best, warm thoughts.... and hoping that you keep the snow over there ;)

Picture of Calgary on September 9, 2014.... thanks to the Weather Network for the nightmare pic!