Happy 2nd Birthday Meghan!

1 yr old	2 yrs old

Happy Birthday Meghan
June 21, 2007

Happy Father's Day!

This is Meghan wishing all the fathers out there a very happy Father's Day. I celebrated the day by making a zen garden for my daddy with my favouritest rocks and fork and some sand from the park on the corner. I also picked out an awesome card with a picture of a digging machine on it, then baked him a really big cookie. I think Daddy liked the rocks the best though.

Later I took Daddy and Mommy to the Brantford zoo where we had a lot of fun. We talked to all the animals, played in the playground, had a picnic lunch, and rode a pony! Since it's my birthday in a couple days, I also got to pick out a nice yellow safari hat in the gift shop on the way out. I tried to share it with Daddy, but it's Meghan-sized and looked funny on him.

After my nap, Daddy and I played some more and then we ordered Pizza (my favourite) for dinner! It was so good! We finished the day with a funny story. Now it's time for me to sleep.

For Schwindt blog news, this is Meghan signing off.

Summer Pleasures

Meghan the Tree Hugger

Vacation in Dyers Bay

On the May long weekend (and most of the following week) we stayed with David's parents at Cabot Head Cottage in Dyers Bay, a small cottage community on the Bruce Peninsula, just south of Tobermory.

The view from the Deck (seen in the picture on the right) was breath-taking. The shoreline was made up of big white rocks, which Meghan loved. She spent hours throwing them in the water, thinking that it was the best thing in the world.
Nearby attractions included: David's parents' property, complete with a newly installed driveway, and a couple newly planted trees; the Gremm cottage; and the Cabot Head Lighthouse & Provincial Nature Preserve. The picture below is of Meghan spotting a snake emerging from underneath the paved Nature Trail at the Lighthouse. Thankfully, I wasn't there at the time.

There were, of course, many other attractions in the area, but this is what we have pictures for. All in all a really great long weekend, which rumour has it, we'll have the opportunity to repeat next year.

May in Review

As Meghan's second birthday approaches, this adventure seems to be growing exponentially. Her increasing independence has given David and I the opportunity to expand our lives too. For David, hockey has been traded in for baseball. My time on the Board for Volunteer and Information Cambridge is coming to an end, so I've taken on the Volunteer Coordinator role for the Cambridge Arts Festival. As well, my time at the gym has paid off in a 20lb weight loss so far this year. As you can imagine, this has had a very positive impact on my kidney situation. Now the important stuff: what Meghan's been up to.

Career Ambition: Meghan's portfolio has expanded to include landscaping. The picture above shows how she moves the heavier pieces like rocks.

Favorite Colour: Yellow (she can both identify and say it)

Expression: Oh Oh Trouble (pronounced Oh Oh bubble)

Food: corn on the cob

Sport: Hockey (while on vacation in Dyers Bay she had to improvise with fly swatters and a balloon)

Success!

May 3, 2007 - Meghan successfully slept the night
in her big girl bed for the first time ever!

Butterflies

Faced with the prospect of enduring yet another grey, miserable day, we opted instead to escape to the Wings of Paradise Butterfly Conservatory. Unfortunately we forgot our camera so all we have are grainy photos taken by cell phone.

I highly recommend visiting this attraction. The term paradise was not an overstatement. It required little to no planning ahead, and we were able to get a discount on tickets from the Shoppers Drugmart site.

The whole point of the place is to spend as much time as you'd like sitting on a bench or stopping to smell the flowers. Also it's relatively small, making it the perfect size for young children and those with mobility concerns. After about an hour, Meghan realized that she had successfully surveyed the entire place so she started to slow down and really enjoy the experience. Her favourite spot was under the waterfall. The photo on the right was taken from that vantage point. From here she could watch a variety of wild life including butterflies, fish and turtles. If you look closely, you can see a turtle sunning itself under the lamps in the middle of the picture. She was also taken by the button quails responsible for cleaning up the dead butterflies. All in all it was definitely time well spent.

Doing our Bit

Just doing our bit to add some sunshine to the sad grey of April.

Feeling the Call of the Road

An Eventful Week

Meghan here reporting on the events of the past week.

Last Friday Grammy, Grandpa Walker, and Uncle Ryan came to spend the weekend with me. I really enjoyed their visit, especially since I hadn't seen them in a long time. They brought me lots of presents including books, candy, and a wee (translation: a slide). The picture on the right is me and Grandpa reading one of my new books. During the weekend we ate at the Moose restaurant twice, rode a pretend horsy, and got our picture taken in a photo booth. I had lots of fun and was sad to see them go.

Since last weekend was Easter, we also celebrated that. On Saturday morning I woke up to find that the Easter Bunny had visited me! He left me lots and lots of eggs. Some eggs had candy in them, others had toys! Although I was most excited about my new tricycle! Later that day, Grandma and Grandpa Schwindt came over to give me more candy! They also ate dinner with all of us. There was lots and lots of good food. I even tried the asparagus soup; not my favourite but everyone else seemed to like it.

On Monday, I spent the day with Daddy and cousin Erin. We played and played and watched Mommy, GG, and my Great Aunts Peggy and Sue on TV. On Tuesday Daddy and I went to the fish store. We brought home some new fish for our big aquarium and a brand new aquarium just for me!

On Wednesday I became a big girl when my new bed arrived!

Tomorrow is Mommy's book club meeting. She tells me that these ladies and their babies are coming to see her, not me. I'll believe that when I see it.

That's the end of our string of consecutive special events. I really enjoy entertaining our visitors but I think it'll be nice to take a bit of a break for a while.

For Schwindt blog news, this is Meghan signing off.

Peek-A-Boo!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

This past Monday, April 2, we celebrated Daddy's birthday. Actually we celebrated it with Grandma and Grandpa the Friday prior to that as well, but this report is really about the cake not the party.

For dessert we brought home a Black Forest cake from Zehrs. Mommy said that it was in everyone's best interest for her to leave the baking to Daddy. She didn't say why, but I believed her. I'd never tried this kind of cake before, but I'm happy to report that it's definitely my favourite thus far.

This one had something for everybody. Daddy's favourite was the three layers of chocolate cake, the good kind that isn't too sweet. Melt-in-your-mouth whipped cream separated the cake pieces, and the lowest of these layers had cherry chunks and sauce mixed into it (my favourite part). For decoration (Mommy's favourite part), the outside was coated in chocolate shavings and topped with cherries.

Hooray for cake! For Schwindt Blog news, this is Meghan signing off.

Sleeping Beauty

Meghan's sleeping positions are a constant source of amusement for us.

Often she insists on sleeping in ways that seem rather uncomfortable. In the picture on the right, she has her hands behind her head, one leg wedged between the bars and the other unable to stretch out.

Other times, particularly for afternoon naps, Meghan just plays and plays and plays until she literally falls over. In the picture on the left, she was playing with the musical toy in her crib when she fell asleep. She slept with her hand up like that for the full two hours!

Also, she very rarely duplicates a position. The only constant seems to be the lack of covers. Regardless of how many blankets we put in the crib, inevitably, she'll fall asleep on top of all of them (no matter how high the hump). I guess the most important thing is that she does sleep. Hopefully, this consistency will continue for a little longer.

Meghan the Builder

An Afternoon in the Mall

Meghan and I spent an afternoon in the mall shopping for a birthday present for David. She had a lot of fun driving the police car stroller and riding the horses.

Everyone there seemed to fall in love with her. They all stopped to watch as we went by. She spent most of the time yelling at the top of her lungs, alternating between "vroom vroom" and "neigh neigh". We sang and acted out the Wheels on the Bus and the Itsy Bitsy Spider a few times too. She even hugged a lady that stopped us to say hello.

Promise of Summer

Today, in between thunder and lightning storms, we enjoyed the best weather of the year thus far. Other people's kids were out in short shorts and barely-there t-shirts. Mine was dressed a little more sensibly in a splash outfit and rubber boots. It was, after all, only 20 degrees and damp; hardly a heat wave.

In our backyard, Meghan played happily in the mud. She even shovelled the last little pile of snow into her sand bucket and carried it away somewhere.

At one point a helicopter flew overhead. I think her 'what's that' expression is my favorite of them all.

Ongoing Rennovations

Meghan here with an exclusive report on the ongoing renovations occurring in my room. I'm currently in said room ready to tour the changes.

After three weeks (four weekends), the enhancements are beginning to look like improvements rather than messes that even I'd get scolded for.

Two weekends ago I returned home from visiting Grandma and Grandpa to find that the hideous green tape on my walls had been replaced by pretty cream and yellow stripes. It's a lot of fun to count them, plus they look nice. Good job Mommy!

Daddy's been busy too. He's building really great book cases for me to put my toys in. Now I can easily find the toy I'm looking for without having to empty out all my toy boxes first. For some reason this makes Mommy happy too. Below is a picture of what they look like now. Good job so far Daddy!

I'm excited to see what will happen by the end of next weekend. I've heard rumours of a toddler bed. I don't know what that is but I'm pretty sure it'll be a really great surprise.

For Schwindt Blog news, this is Meghan signing off.

A Whole New World!

Today Meghan joined the world of peanut lovers. We put some peanut sauce on her noodles and were very happy to note the absence of an allergic reaction. She liked the noodles so much that she ate all of them (including the ones Mommy and Daddy had intended to eat). Tomorrow ... peanut butter!

Old MacDonald Had a Farm ...

E-I-E-I-O

... With a Neigh Neigh here ...

... and a Cluck Cluck there ...

... here a Ruff there a Ruff ...


... everywhere a bleat bleat ...

February in Review

These were Meghan's fav's this month:

Colour: pink
Word: Oh Oh! (new words spoken this month include apple, banana, open, birdie, go, town, and Gracka (translation: grandma or grandpa); mommy and daddy are both still dada)

Dinner: Ribs

Shape: circle
Letter: O

Activities: Painting and
feeding the fish

Toy: ball (although it's hard to tell because she plays with every toy (even the ones Mommy and Daddy try to hide) and reads every book every day)

Item of Clothing: still her rubber boots; her new crocs are a close second

Song: The Wheels on the Bus

Reasons for Suspicion When the House is Eerily Quiet

1. You miscounted the number of crayons you put away after your last colouring session.

2. Hello Operator? Guam please.

3. You need a new glass of water

Happy Valentine's Day!

What's the best way to celebrate Valentine's Day when you're 20 months old?

1. Play outside in the snow with Daddy



2. Finish the day with a cupcake

Beep! Beep!

Meghan enjoying a leisurely Saturday drive in the mall.