Excuse me while I gush over my new neighbourhood for a moment. I am currently sitting on my back deck; it is overcast but it is warm and there is a gentle, cool breeze blowing. I can hear the birds chirping and the chipmunks chattering. I am eating my lunch and blogging, while the babies snooze in their stroller beside me. They are exhausted because we just spent the morning at our local YMCA, where they ran for 45 minutes with other toddlers and preschoolers in the open gym that was filled with balls, ride-on cars, scooters AND a ginormous bouncy castle. Then, we headed to the pool, which was a lot of work for this mama who only has two hands but also has two independent, adventurous, free-spirits to protect from drowning . . . hello, workout! We all managed to survive, though, and only one of our threesome was crying as we headed out the door. That's a pretty good ratio for us . . . and no I was not the one crying . . . this time . . . tee hee! But the best part of all this is that these activities, plus a ginormous indoor play structure, are only a fifteen minute walk from our house and are available every morning of the work week. Excuse me while I do a little dance. I am currently living in stay-at-home mom heaven, which leads me to think that there has to be more of us out there. I briefly chatted with a few mamas this morning, and I hope that by going more regularly we will make some new friends in no time. Because, let's be honest, that's the biggest downside to living here in Winnipeg right now, we are without our people, and it can get pretty lonely and boring without your people, even with so much cool stuff at your fingertips.
Harriet was so tired from all that playing that she fell asleep mid-sandwich . . . what a sweetie!
Last night we took Avery to his basketball class at the Y and let the babies play on the indoor playground. I thought Harriet would only climb to the top of these stairs and then stand around and watch all the kids whizzing by her. Leif tends to get into these mazes and stands there, looking all pathetic and cute until some little girl takes pity on him and comes along to guide him safely through. The funny thing is that it actually works! I tell ya' he might be our smartest wee Webster yet . . . Sorry, Baby Girl. But Harriet was having nothing to do with this helpless baby routine, and the minute she got up those stairs, she took off! I panicked and headed into the playground after her. She was on the third level by the time I caught up to her because I had to squirm through tiny holes and dodge kids coming at me from every direction, and those same kids would give Harriet a boost if she needed to get up to another platform. It was total mayhem in there, but I can see why kids love it. It is an adult-free zone, they get to make the rules and from what I could tell on the inside, they manage it quite well. It was neat to see how the older ones look out for the younger ones. It warmed my heart . . . after I had my fifteen month back in my arms . . . sheesh!
It really is a monstrosity!
Yep, all of this plus lots of outdoor playgrounds, a swimming pool, splash pads, all three levels of schools, restaurants and major shopping chains all within walking distance and I think you can see why I am quickly falling in love with our new neighbourhood. Winnipeg, despite your mosquitoes and your notoriously cold winters, I may actually be developing a crush on you.
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