This weekend some of our favourite people came to Montreal to visit. I've mentioned them in previous posts (Billy Elliott and Wonderful friends). We always have such a great time together and this time was no different.

They arrived on Friday night and we were able to enjoy some of the London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremonies together. I found them quite enjoyable, especially the Queen and James Bond part! Their 16-month-old girl LJ got acquainted with Taco. She was nervous and cautious at first, but they became good friends by the end of the visit.

On Saturday, we left the men in charge of the young toddler while we went out shopping. We got good teaching clothes and were able to catch up on much needed girl talk! In the afternoon, we went for a walk along the Lachine canal towards Atwater market. We then had veggie burritos for dinner and my sister came over, which made it special.

Oh I have to mention our weekend was interspersed with a LOT of Olympic watching. All four of us enjoy it tremendously, so it was always on in the background. We were able to watch Canada's first win live (synchronized diving)!

On Sunday, we took LJ to the park in front of our house and then to the wading pool. She loved both! In the afternoon, we went to the Old Port where my sister joined us once more. We walked around for a bit and then had drinks (delicious rose sangria and beer) on a terrace right on the Old Port quay. We then had dinner at Giorgio's and enjoyed the Italian food.

On Monday, we went to the Biodome, and LJ loved watching the penguins swim and waddle. We had a pretty relaxed afternoon and ordered Chinese for dinner.

Memories from this trip that we cannot forget:
- LJ getting into Taco's cage and finding it hilarious (my nephew really liked the cage too, I wonder what it is with toddlers and dog cages?)
- LJ's vocabulary: daddy = all adults she trusts, including (much to her dismay) her mom!; bus = almost any form of transportation from cars to trucks to bicycles to trains and even the metro (she experienced for the first time this weekend!)
- LJ greeting Taco with 'There he is!' in the morning = soooo cute!

A visitor from Boston

After a busy week, it feels so good to have a three-day weekend to relax! We had a friend visit from Boston this weekend. She was our neighbour in Mexico and is originally from Washington state. On Friday after work we went for a picnic on Mount Royal with some friends. Actually, we only knew one girl there, but we met lots of her nursing friends and we had a great time. We sat right by Beaver Lake.

On Saturday morning, C came to work with me. I don't know if I've mentioned this before but I lead groups of small children (they are about 2 and 3 years old) in basic gymnastics skills in order to develop their sense of balance, hand-eye co-ordination, etc. It's called 'Le tour du monde de Karibou' and it's great fun!

We then went for lunch at a place called 'Kilo' in the Village. It was AMAZING!!! I have to say, it was a beautiful sunny day so the terraces were open and people-watching was fun! We had sangria and sandwiches and everything was delicious!

Afterwards, we walked to the Old Port to get some ice cream and walked and walked some more. We saw a street entertainer and watched him for a while, we walked to Notre Dame church and then back home. We rested for a while and then went out for dinner at La Banquise, which apparently has the best poutine in Montreal (there's a picture here if you don't remember what poutine is), but I was a bit disappointed this time. I've been before and liked the food, but this time it seemed like the fries were cold, the sauce wasn't salty enough and the cheese hadn't melted. Honestly, I prefer the poutine from the small pizza place that's just around the corner by my house!

Sunday morning we went to Chez Cora for breakfast, of course and I had the usual: a crepomelette with spinach and cheddar. We then walked along St. Catherine's street, went into various stores and visited the underground mall. I bought shoes. I think I have a little problem with summer shoes. They are just so pretty!!!

My friend C had to go back to Boston, but the fun didn't stop there! We went over to our friend's for a lobster dinner last night, which was amazing. I LOVE lobster! I had forgotten how good it was. It tastes like the ocean, and with the garlic butter dipping sauce he had made, it was perfect!

The plans for today are to help my siblings plant a garden. We'll see how that goes!

the sun is up, the sky is blue, it's beautiful and so are you

My husband tells me I'm ridiculous. Apparently I'm a loser for loving weddings, especially royal ones, and then sharing my thoughts about it on Facebook. Well so be it. I'm not ashamed about my loser-ish ways. I love life and I'm a happy go lucky person and if I like something, I'll tell you. (Also, this pseudo-rant might be brought on by the fact that we just watched the Glee 'Born this way' episode, which was amazing).

Life is really grand. Spring is in the air and I just love it! I've been substituting in a Kindergarten classroom this week and I'll be there next week as well and it is just amazing! I've had a great weekend too. Friday was my brother's birthday and we went to the restaurant to celebrate. Afterwards I went to my friend MM's birthday party and got to meet loads of really interesting people.

Saturday, Paul and I went rollerblading along the canal. We started out near Atwater market (where our potential condo will be - more on that later) and went all the way to the Old Port, where we stopped for lunch and ice cream.

Photos courtesy of Paul (view his blog here)

Beautiful day

Old Port of Montreal

So there you have it! Have a great week!