Blueberry Picking

We picked blueberries last weekend! 

We love picking fruit - we've picked strawberries and raspberries in the past, as well as apples and citrus fruit, but this was our first time at a blueberry farm.

The cousins came, too.

Also grandma Karen

and Grandpa Arne.

I hadn't seen a blueberry plant in person till that morning. 

The berries were exquisite. So flavorful.

After, we stopped at our regular strawberry farm to buy some ready-picked strawberries. We were sad to have missed the strawberry U-pick season but glad there were still farm berries to take home and turn into jam!

Swim Meet 2

A fortnight ago, the girls swam in another swim meet. All did well - they were put in mostly longer-distance events than the previous meet, and everyone swam the maximum number of events (four) allowed. I volunteered for a job on deck, so when I had some down time, I got to take some close-up shots and videotape some of the races. 

Here is Emily winning her 100 yd backstroke heat.

And here is Emily again, winning her 100 yd freestyle heat.

These Little Piggies

These little piggies

Were once just like peas;

Oh, to always hold precious

The days such as these.

Swim Meet

On January 6th, the girls swam in their first meet. Actually, this was Emily's second meet - her first was earlier in the summer - but this was her first in which she swam in all four stroke events. All three girls were very excited (and Kate and Jenna were also a little nervous, understandably). 

Jenna's events

Emily's events

Kate's events

Everyone had fun, nobody got disqualified, and - as a bonus - they also swam really well. Emily swam in the 11-12 age category and Kate and Jenna both swam in the 10-and-under category.

Emily won her 50yd backstroke heat and Kate won both her 50yd backstroke and freestyle heats. Jenna was 4th in her 50yd backstroke heat. Here are some photos from the day, with captions. Lane 1 is closest to the camera and Lane 8 is farthest.

50 Yard Backstroke - 10 and under: Jenna in lane 5 and Kate in lane 1

50 Yard Backstroke - 10 and under: Jenna in lane 5 and Kate in lane 1

50 Yard Backstroke - 10 and under: Kate in lane 1 winning her heat.
Jenna finished 4th.

50 Yard Backstroke - 11-12: Emily is in lane 8.

50 Yard Backstroke - 11-12: Emily is in lane 8, leading after the turn.

50 Yard Backstroke - 11-12: Emily is in lane 8, winning her heat.

50 Yard Breaststroke - 11-12: Emily is in lane 4 -
that's her head above the water!

50 Yard Breaststroke - 11-12: Emily is in lane 4. She finished 3rd in this heat.

50 Yard Freestyle - 10 and under: Kate is in lane 3. She finished first in this heat.

50 Yard Freestyle- 10 and under: Jenna is in lane 4. She finished 7th in this heat.

100 yd IM - 10 and under: breaststroke lap. Kate is in lane 3 (that's her head!).

100 yd IM - 10 and under: final lap (freestyle). Kate is in lane 3.

100 yd IM - 10 and under: Kate is the swimmer closer to the camera. It was very exciting to watch the two lead swimmers streaking home in such a close race.

So proud to watch the girls swim their events. This being Emily's second meet, she was excited to swim in events she hadn't before, and to see if she could improve on her times from the last meet. For Jenna and Kate, this first meet was all about trying out something new and swimming as well and as fast as they could in water that was (reportedly) frigid. We didn't care about who beat whom or who won or didn't win; just the thrill of writing on our own arms with a permanent marker was enough to make our day.

There are videos, too, but if I waited to upload them, this post would never get published. Saving them for another post, then!

Bunnies at the Farm

In early October 2016, we spent a day at Nelson Farm. Here are a couple of shots of the girls in the rabbit enclosure, where they spent a large chunk of their time holding (and naming the rabbits).

Happy New Year!

Some random winter shots from late December.

We had a lot of snow, and a lot of rain. Which made for poor driving, but the upside was a white Christmas and some nice sledding.

Here is a shot on one of the precious few sunny days. We had (what felt to me like) a record number of sunless, grey winter days in all memory, and everyone was in a bit of a funk which even the endorphins from exercise and chocolate could not cure.

But then the sun came out at last.

We also spent Christmas in our own house for the very first time since moving into it 11 years ago. We missed the extended family up north with whom we usually spend the Christmas weekend, but it was nice to wake up on Christmas morning to stockings hanging from our banister and home-cooked breakfast. 

But - the cold. Too much of it. We can't wait for spring!