How time flies

Well, it has been a long time since we have put together a post and put up some pictures. There will be a few new picture posts coming to get you back up to speed.

We will start with the big news first. We have another baby on the way, Andrea is expecting sometime in the middle of January. We will wait until the day to find out the sex, just like Johan. Andrea is starting to show and the baby is starting to let us know that she is there. All very exciting.

Since the last post, we have done a lot of things. Barbados was amazing, a nice warm and sunny getaway in the middle of winter. Lots of swimming, snorkeling, surfing, playing in the waves and on the beach. The rest of the winter we spent xc skiing, with record snowfalls, the skiing was excellent and Johan loved having his naps in the pulk. As soon as we would put him in his snowsuit, his eyes would start rolling. We celebrated Johan's 1st birthday in March with lots of his friends. This was also the time that he started to walk, although he preferred to run down hills.

The spring time brought great weather and we did some hikes and bike rides. Johan loves being outdoors. He also enjoys putting on his cycling helmet, often encouraging us to put on our helmets and bringing us to the door to go for a ride. The swings and slides in the various parks are also a big favourite.

We had a great visit from the Brouwer family in the beginning of the summer. Johan got plenty of time to hang out with his dutch cousin, Vlinder, and it was as though they were brother and sister. They were so excited to see each other and would spend hours chasing each other and screaming with joy. Vlinder also had quite the vocabulary, which rubbed off on Johan. He has started speaking more and more, mostly in dutch.

In the middle of July we went for an adventure to Whitehorse to visit Pippa and Brent. We spent the majority of the time in Whitehorse with Pippa, checking out Bald Eagles, taking train rides, going for walks and hikes, and soaking in the hot tub (Johan's favourite). We did manage a four-day trip to Skagway, Haines and Haines Junction. We had great weather in Kluane and managed to do some fabulous hikes, with Andrea (and baby) climbing all the way up to the King's Throne.

Right after we returned, Andrea had to make a short visit to Iqaluit, leaving papa and Johan to tear up the town. The rest of the summer has been spent working on the house, hanging at the beach on Meech Lake and preparing Johan for his new daycare which he will start in September.

That is a very quick overview of the last 6 months. I hope the pictures will fill in the gaps and we will attempt to be better in the coming months as we prepare for number 2.

Sven