This was a busy Sunday Family Day! Al went for a run in Shubie park while Liam rode his bike. I'm so excited that we're at that stage, or I guess I should say, Liam is. Zachary stayed home with me to play some games, and help clean up the toy room. We hope he gets excited about biking too, but we won't push it, especially when he's willing to help me clean.
Then we headed to MEC's paddle fest at Graham's Cove in Dartmouth. There were lots of boats to try. From my perspective, it could have been better organized, and/or staff that knew what was going on. However, there were lots of people on the water trying out new things. And soon after arriving, my kids had a couple of kids sit-on-top kayaks. The paddles were a bit heavy and a little long for them, but it was great to give them a try for free. I'd love to see the kids and us get on the water some this summer, but still not sure what boat would be the best for the boys to learn to paddle. The kids jumped in the water to cool off (in their pants). It started to get quite warm and we had a change of clothes for them. We had our free chocolate milk from Scotsburn Milk - Yum, and then headed for hiking.
I have been wanting to check out the Nova Scotia Nature Trust Conservation Lands in Purcell's Cove for awhile now. It was almost 2pm and it's a shorter hike, so we figured this was a good day to hike it. By the time we arrived, it was really warm and sunny, with a few slight breezes. Thankfully, I packed lots of water, even for a short hike. I loved the trail, but wet in a few sections. It's not signed so we were not entirely sure of where we were going. Al knew there was a pond, and he was a bit familiar with the property from his work, plus he had his GPS phone. Again, he assured me that we would be fine, and we were. There were a few other parties at the pond, sunbathing and relaxing. We didn't hang out much as everyone in our family were quite hot, and there were a few flies annoying the adults (funny how they buzzed us, and not the kids). We had a little snack in the shade right on the trail. Two girls in flipflops walked by us. Liam tried to warn them that it was difficult ahead, but they decided to go for it anyway. It's not a terribly difficult hike, but I wouldn't want flip flops for it (there's my old age showing! ha! I probably wouldn't have thought anything of it when I was a teenager either). We explored a bit around the other side of the pond. Zachary had a poop! and I wiped his bum with moss. I love that he's completely comfortable with doing it outside now. (yeah, I know I'm weird about the things I plan to pick up a book on plants, trees, and animals to increase my knowledge, and add to the kids' experience in the outdoors.
We headed to the Dingle Tower ice cream stand (now Beavertails), and the boys all had ice cream. They shared a few licks with me :) From the parking lot, it's a minute to the playground which was extremely busy. We stayed a little while, and Liam wet his feet at the beach (I didn't have any further changes of clothes).
In the car again, and again we weren't sure where we were going. We ended up at Rogue's Roost on Spring Garden Rd.- a nice little pub with a new kids' menu, and not terribly busy. We were starving and the food was good. It was great to have window seats overlooking Spring Garden Rd. It kept the kids busy, and the helpful waiter brought some superhero coloring books, too.
With full bellies, we decided we needed a little more exercise for the day. After much discussion, we drove to the Lake Banook playground where new exercise equipment had been installed. When we arrived, no one was using them. It was fun to check out all the different equipment. I got a workout for my core and arms. The kids had fun at them too. Then we played hide-and-seek and police-and-robbers on the playground equipment.
By 7:30pm, we had some very tired kids and parents! Time to head home!
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