Charlie's Happy Heart: October 2015

I miss the summer already. Everything is in full swing now - Matt's back to work, Charlie has started JK and Elizabeth and I are into a (mostly) nice little rhythm at home. But the summer was so lovely even in its tumultuous moments, I can't help but miss it immensely. It serves to remind me how lucky I am to be a teacher who is married to another teacher!
We spent a week with lovely friends in a beyond-our-dreams cottage on the Muskoka River. Charlie had a great time swimming - he certainly overcame some fears while we were up there and Matt and I could see the benefit of cottage life for kids. The friends we were up there with were family already and this trip only strengthened that bond. We were planning futures trips by mid-week. I cried on the way home because I didn't want to leave.
We also went to another cottage. Our friends Tom and Leanne have their own up in Bracebridge, and we are lucky that they are kind enough to invite us up for a few days each summer. It is the PERFECT spot to visit friends who like your kids - they have a bunkie, a main cottage, a boat. And a dog, Satchmo, who is one of Charlie's favourites (Leanne was Charlie's daycare provider, and will be Elizabeth's next year).
We also went to the CNE, the Aquarium, a Blue Jays game, Matt's parent's place, my parent's place, the library, parks...the list was seemingly endless. The summer seemed to LAST this year, even though we did so much and had so much fun.
I was anxious for Charlie to start school, though, so even as our wonderful summer ended, I was glad to get back into everything. He has mostly transitioned well. There were a few tantrums from sheer exhaustion during the first week (my personal favourite was when he started crying because I couldn't get a cricket to sing in the garage...) but he is doing better now. He LOVES school, even though he has spent some time in the Thinking Chair - for touching the girl's hair who sits in front of him at carpet time. I couldn't get mad at him, even though the Thinking Chair is a Big Deal in Kinderworld. I just couldn't.
Elizabeth is a Dream Baby, still. She had a few rough days this week for whatever reason (It's teeth! No, she's growing! No, it's a cold! Maybe it's a developmental leap!) but she seems to be back on track. She's beautiful and charming and adorable. And all mine.
I have been working out and cooking (see how those are related? ;)). I have lost 20+ lbs of the baby weight so far and have about 7 more pounds to go. I had a LARGE piece of cake to celebrate tonight, so maybe I have 8 to go now. Whatever. My jeans fit! Big plans for a fundraiser once I'm ready to truly start training. I'll save that for the next post.
I'll leave you with some photos of our summer. Love, love, love my little family. We are so incredibly lucky.