Crafts With Chloe

My friend Chloe and I had a fun little impromptu craft night last week.  While I tucked the boys in bed, Chloe brewed up some tea and then we were ready to get our craft on.  I found this cute idea for a pin cushion jar on pinterest (my new favourite site) that I had been dying to try out and Chloe was also in desperate need of home for her sewing pins.

The finished products




It's always a fun time crafting with Chloe! :)

Jasper

We're in the midst of vacation living here and it's been so nice.  Rob has two and a half weeks off from work so we've been checking a few things off our long list of "To Do's"...and enjoying our time together before we ALL have to go back to work.  The boys and I start work at the Rec Centre Day Care after the September long weekend.

So last week we took the beautiful drive out to Jasper and camped out for three nights.  Camping proved to be just a little easier this time compared to our last trip...still by no means was it a walk in the park mind you but that's life with twins, it's hard work but it's all worth it. 

We spent the first two nights at Wapiti Campground just outside of Jasper.  The nights and mornings were chilly but the boys didn't seem to mind as much as we did.  They just went along playing and exploring while Rob and I complained to each other that our hands were freezing. 

  

I love the little mountain town of Jasper.  The people are friendly the town is quaint and the surrounding scenery is spectacular.  To warm ourselves up after our cold night in the tent we enjoyed a coffee and a cinnamon bun from the local bakery as we strolled the shops...I bought a toque it was so cold.  We were still a little chilly though so we made our way out to the Miette Hot Springs just outside of town.

Town of Jasper

Drive to the hot springs

We did three really nice hikes on our trip.  The first was close to home, right in our campground there was a trail that followed along the Athabasca River, so after dinner one night we explored a section of it.

The second hike we did was Maligne Canyon.  It was "gorge-ous" (haha!) 

 
 We planned to spend our third night camping somewhere along the Icefields Parkway making our way closer to home.  We made a quick pit stop to see Athabasca Falls just off the highway then carried on to our next hike just past the Columbia Icefields.

We saved the best hike for last.  Wilcox Pass is our favourite hike in the area.  It's a hike that gives you the most bang for your buck.  After only hiking up about 20 minutes the views that reward you are mouth watering.  In the past Rob and I have sweat it out to the very top of the pass but we weren't carrying babies on our backs back then.  This time we stopped short at a nice little field where the boys could do a little hiking around too...and check out the view.



Handmade Hats

For the longest time I've wanted to make the boys some cute hats.  I've seen people selling them before at outdoor markets or folk festivals and figured "I could make that".
On a side note, my Mom used to say those exact words to me when I was a kid.  She's a pro sewer and knitter, she does it all.  So you can imagine with skills like that, why over pay for something when you could just make it yourself for half the cost?  Well I didn't always see it that way and when I would ask for all the latest fashions that was often her response...it drove me crazy.  But now I can finally understand and appreciate her craftiness.
So back to the hats...the other day my friend who has a boy the same age as Liam and Casey had one of these hats that her friend made.  We tried it on Liam and that was the last straw, I was determined to make one (two actually).  I scoured the Internet for patterns and tutorials and ended up buying this pattern from etsy for only $6.00.  It was well worth the 6 bucks...

A Place I Love

 Yesterday we visited one of our favourite places in Canmore. Rob and I used to hang out there when we first met, so it brings back fond memories of that time in our lives.  It's also very special to us because it's the place where he proposed to me on our six year anniversary.  Yesterday we were in the neighbourhood so we brought the boys up for a little exploring.

It's just a short hike up with a nice big bench at the top so you can sit and relax while you check out the view.



Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend!

Goin' Down Smooth

We've been experiencing some heat here in the mountains lately, although when I try to brag to my Mom in Ontario about our "hot" 24 degree day, she just laughs...so I guess it depends what your definition of "hot" is. When you live in the mountains you just gotta take what you can get, so we've been enjoying this weather while it lasts.  And with that we've also been lovin' the smoothies these days as a healthy treat to help cools us down.

My smoothie concoction consists of a handful of frozen berries, a banana, plain yogurt, spinach (A trick from my Mom. You can't even taste it, I swear!) and milk.  Simple and delicious.

And perfect for sharing...

...Or not.

Enjoy the heat! :)