Narrating the CAMERA ROLL.....

*** Please note: This is the FIFTH time I've tried to do this post!!! For some reason, either my computer or the interweb (or my brain!) has not wanted to cooperate.  BUT - we leave for Thunder Bay in the morning and if you thought I've been a bad blogger this week, wait until next!  HA!  Enjoy this one, will ya?!  

Cuddles with Grandpa!  Grandpa has three magic words he uses to make Nory smile.  Works like a charm, every single time.  I'm not sure I can release his secret at this time ;)

Last week, Dad and I bonded over construction materials.  We drove really far to pick up long pieces of wood.  Then we went headed to Home Depot for some skinny but big pieces of wood (but stopped at Chapters en route!).  And then we went to Tim Horton's - the place we BOTH understand :)  I had a great morning, Dad! XO

Check out this "lobster claw" gift from Grandma and Grumps!!!  This little seat can fit into the diaper bag and come with us to restaurants!  Wait until IHOP Kuwait sees this!!!

Another view of the claw.  It's just SO CLEVER.  Look at Nory's little toes dangling there!

Remember how I told you her tooth started to come through?  Well - the next day we went to the mall and happened upon a store called ONE TOOTH!  HAHA!  Since then, however, the tooth has submerged into the gums and is nowhere to be seen.....this hide and seek game isn't the most fun.

Patches gets a second stamp in his PAWSPORT!  He has officially been to Ontario.  SUPERB!

Okay - I'm not sure anyone else will see the humour in this.  But this see-through, plastic tupperware container here?  It's Uncle Stephen's "purse".  Ya, it's a bin.  But really, it's a purse.  I told him he better cover it with stickers to make his important belongings a little more discreet.  Guess what?  HE DID!!!!  Good work, Stephen!

BREAKING NEWS!  Nory and Oscar are part of a secret club with Grumps called the 501 Club.  We have no idea what the 501 Club is or does, but it seems to hold regular meetings of high importance.  Grumps is the PREZ and enjoys making all club-related decisions ;)

Grandma and Grumps babysat the other morning while Phil and I did some shopping (thanks guys!!!).  We came home to find our little cutie sleeping soundly in Grandma's arms.  Grumps says we owe them more time with Nory because she slept most of the time!

Meet Elroy - Nory's elephant floatie toy :)  She LOVES this thing, as you can tell.  What a wonderful FIVE MONTH BIRTHDAY present from Grandma and Grumps!!!

SMORE night!  Nory enjoyed our late afternoon campfire but didn't really appreciate not being able to eat these sweet treats herself.  Poor gal.  Soon enough, my girl!

SPA GIRL!  Time for some more WARM TUBBIN'!  Haha, this housecoat is PRICELESS! 

WHERE'S THAT BABY?!

While getting ready to go out this morning....

Lindsay:  (disappointed) Kate hasn't had her baby yet. 

Phil:  Kate who?

Lindsay:  Kate Middleton!!!

Phil:  (laughs) You're on a first name basis with royalty?

Lindsay:  (acts surprised) You're NOT on a first name basis with royalty?!

If this sweet-as-pie, little lady goes "missing".......

BABY-NAPPERS.  You know.  Like kid-nappers, but for babies.  Anyways, my instincts tell me that this may be an issue for us.  Actually, the potential criminals have said this to my face (smooth, eh?).  They've even tried to validate this illegal act with lovey-dovey remarks about how they can't function without her - OUR (ahem!) daughter.  Here's what I want the world to know:

#1 - She's learned how to scream.

#2 -  In case our little Nory Darling ends up MIA, as in she doesn't end up on our flight to Thunder Bay and/or she doesn't make it on our flight back to Toronto and/or she doesn't end up on our flight to Kuwait...........and her parents are absolutely too distraught to cope with life.......please inform the police to begin their questioning with the following suspects:

*  Grandpa
*  Nana
*  Grumps
*  Grandma

Thank you for your cooperation.

Sincerely,
Proud Papa and Smitten Mama (and as much as she loves her grandparents, I'm pretty sure Nory's on OUR side at age five months!)

You haven't gone swimming unless you've gone swimming with this gal!

And here are the many faces of said GAL....

(and HUNNY, I think we need a "warm tub" for the new house)....

Yesterday.

We had so many giggles together and it all started with a game of peek-a-boo.  I love that she thinks I'm the funniest person ever.

Nory, you're the cat's pajamas!  I LOVE YOU!!!

Nory's FIRST TRIP to the ZOO!!!!!!!!!

Today we ventured across the bridge to meet some friends at the Detroit Zoo.  Yep, we braved Nory's hate for long car rides, Phil's hate for finding new places, and my hate for scary graffiti and '8 mile' in order to reunite with two wonderful people we met in Kuwait.  Alas, it was a no-brainer.  Kate and Matt had a baby girl named Ada Kay 7 weeks ago and we needed to see their sweet little bundle before she started walking and talking.  Besides an embarrassing poo situation in the Tim Horton's drive thru (thanks, Nory Darling!), the trip was a great one and Nory was INCREDIBLE in the car!  I'm starting to think this hokey amber necklace is the real deal.  Enjoy the pictures!

Here we are waiting for our friends to arrive at the zoo entrance!  We seemed to be a big hit with the Zoo Volunteers.  A whole pack of sweet old ladies were eager to obtain a Parkinson Biography.  They pulled out a map and made sure we knew how to locate the lion enclosure, too.  The zoo's lion, Simba, came all the way from Qatar and they thought we could communicate with him in Arabic :)

Lily Pad Lake.  I'm not sure if it was actually called this but we enjoyed an entire boardwalk of these suckers.  You'd think we'd be able to spot a frog or two, but NOPE!  Not a single leaper in sight.  Perhaps they were taking advantage of their habitat and staying submerged to beat the heat.  We were DRIPPING FOOLS I tell ya.  Talk about a SWEATY DAY at the ZOO!

Break time!  Time to play around in the park while Ada Kay has some lunch.  It's so much fun when Daddy lifts me UP, UP, UP in the air!!!  Mommy thinks I'm funny and laughs especially hard when I make cute photos even MORE amazing as I giggle and spit all over my chin! 

This picture was taken seconds before a bunch of summer camp groups walked by.  The campers were supposed to be checking out the camels and deer, but Nory became the main attraction.  "Hey!!!  Look at that baby!!!" was a common phrase.  Yep, our little darling was a temporary zoo attraction :)

This guy's a real stud.  He walks with such swag - attracting visitors with the littlest effort.  I think he was my favourite animal of the day! 

Outfit change (for both girlies)!  When you sweat through your first one, getting into something cool and dry is a must!  This picture is here for two reasons - her hair looks really red and her eyes are so captivating!

Favourite face of the day.  She's just a ball of AWESOME.  You can see that Patches came too!  The two of them made some happy memories at this picnic table.  Oh - and check out Phil's new ring!  It belonged to his Grandad and his Dad gave it to him this week!

We LOVE playdates!  Is it sad that the best picture of the two of them involves HANDS ONLY?  YEESH.  Baby photography is tough work, y'all.  Em has a real knack for it though.  Too bad she was all the way north.

LUNCH TIME!  We were hoping for an air-conditioned venue, but sometimes your stomach takes over and leads you to wherever the closest food is.  This was my first time eating french fries in.........YEARS???  GROSS.  Oh well.

We left the zoo just before the rain came - PERFECT TIMING!  The trip back to Canadian soil was easy-peezy and we arrived home tired from a great day out (and grateful for A/C).  Nory hit the sack early and after this episode of Big Brother, we intend to do the same. 

Thanks for a wonderful day, SCHWARTZ FAMILY!  Your daughter is a real beauty and we can't wait to watch the little ladies run around together next summer!

BIG NEWS in the LITTLE MOUTH DEPARTMENT!

An itty bitty piece of one of the bottom teeth peaked out this morning!  This explains the rosy red cheeks, puppy-dog drooling, and all-around not-herself-ness that's been going on for the last couple of weeks.  

Grandma got her an amber teething necklace while we were out and about today.  It sounds hokey but it's supposed to reduce the pain associated with teething and some even claim it stops the slobber!  Nory wore it all afternoon and, I'm not sure if it can be attributed to the necklace or not, but her mood improved ten-fold (although the drooling held strong).  To add to the "amber jewelry case", Grandma purchased an amber bracelet for her arthritis and said she didn't feel a thing when the storm came in this evening (usually, she does!).  SO STRANGE.  Perhaps we're victims of the placebo affect, but when you become a mom, the motto becomes "WHATEVER WORKS"!!!

I'll keep you posted in the days that follow :)

IF YOU WERE HERE FOR TEA.

*  Our former deputy principal stopped by the house for lunch the other day.  He spoiled Nory with a whole bag of clothes!!!  This is hilarious because people keep commenting on Nory's endless number of outfits and we just thought that all babies have TOO MANY clothes.  Honestly, disposable laundry is a legitimate option for us.  Thank you to everyone who has given so kindly to Nory's wardrobe!

*  I LOVE ANDY MURRAY and I'm all goose-bumpy thinking about yesterday's big win.  He's a WIMBLEDON CHAMPION!!!!!

*  Speaking of "Murray"......I have a new baby cousin!!!!  No, his name is NOT Murray.  But the last text message I sent to my Dad read "let me know the name!" and when I saw "YEAH MURRAY" on my phone a few hours later, I figured that was in reference to the family's newest darling.  WRONG-O!  Dad was totally referring to the tennis match.  But here I was bouncing around with a big grin - thinking about HOW COOL my cousin was already.  BABY MURRAY!  Haha, silly me.  His ACTUAL name is Fionn (pronounced FIN) and the one picture I've seen reflects his totally gobble-up-able self :)  WELCOME BABY FIONN!  XOXO    

*  Has anyone else tried the Tim Horton's Grilled Cheese combo?!  MY OH MY.  Just another reason to fall head over heels for Canada's Best!     

*  The lady we purchased the house from is a real sweetheart.  She organized a party for us on Friday evening so that we could meet the neighbours.  The neighbours seem great - both friendly and funny!  Nory already has a clubhouse with the neighbour to the left and she was given a small wooden toy by the artist who lives to the right.  It is quite reassuring to know that these kind of people will be around. 

*  I miss GEMILY.  Even with our iPhones, I'm feeling BFF-deprived. 

*  After about a six hour journey, we arrived in Wheatley on Saturday afternoon.  Nory still isn't a huge fan of her car seat which made parts of the drive a little unhappy.  Alas, we are HERE and the longest drive of the summer is (hopefully) behind us!

*  We've been pretty busy here at Mom and Dad P's!  The first day we arrived was a whirlwind of Christmas, Birthday, Welcome to Canada, and Anniversary celebrations!  We also toured the house for all things "NORY" and she feels right at home here in "Nory's Nook".  Thank you Grandma and Grumps!!!

*  Never in my life have I had red, itchy eyes that last for days....until now.  Too bad I'm a big wuss when it come to eye drops.  Phil and Mom P almost had to hold me down in order to get the drops on my eyeballs!  The good news is, it got so bad in the night that I did it MYSELF!  WOOT!  Now to conquer the middle-of-the-day eye drop phobia.....

*  Nory is a full blown ROLLOVER BABY.  She rolls over any chance she gets (both ways now!) in one smooth, well-rehearsed move.  It's AWESOME.

Back to AMAZING Monday night television.  The Bachelorette and Mistresses!  JEAH!!!!!!!

4th of July Pictures!

Two Americans visited the Hoit house for the 4th of July holiday (I initially called it "our" house, but given the recent purchase, that could be confusing)!  They worked with Uncle Graeme and Aunt Dana to throw one outstanding BBQ - or 'cookout' - on the lake.  Here are the photos I promised....
    

I think Nory is getting used to the camera.  She's quite good at flashing her smile when she sees one come out!

Nory and her new friend, Penelope.  Penelope was born one day after Nory!!!!  They are 24 hours away from being BIRTHDAY TWINS!!!

That pretty lady on the left is the reason we celebrated the 4th to begin with.  Nory and her Auntie Aubrey wore matching outfits :)

You'll be happy to know that Nory gives it her all with any task.  Check out her passion and intensity for a holiday that isn't even her own!!!!

Look who NORY met the other day!!!

Her older cousin JOYCIE (or her "sister" as Joyce likes to refer to them as)!  She also got to meet her Bubby and Auntie Taylor!  What an exciting day :)  We had a wonderful afternoon walking around Lakefield, playing in the park, and throwing stones into the water.  Joyce was a big help, too - always offering to hold, feed, or push Nory in her stroller.

Thanks for driving to see us, family!!!!  WE LOVE YOU!

XOXO