Summer in April

Eat your heart out, Saskatchewani..., Saskatchewon..., Saskatchian... - PEOPLE OF SASKATCHEWAN (and other inhabitants of the northern hemisphere)! ☺ .

You could literally watch the bushes turn green here today, with a high of a sunny 24°C. Shorts, t-shirts, flip-flops - on April 3rd, mind you! Ina was picked up by her dad this afternoon (she gets to visit with her family two afternoons per week), so we had a few hours to do something special with Finn and Lily. First we went for a 4 mile (6.4km) run/bike ride (Finn biked, Lily rode in the kiddie seat on Neil's bike, and I ran), then we relaxed with coffee and cake on our patio ...

... and then we went to a nature reserve a 10min drive from our house. Grandpa will remember throwing pebbles in this little lake with Finn. And see what I mean about summer in April?

We didn't bring swimsuits, though. Just nets, a pail, a towel, and no change of clothes (I will get to this.)

No fish to be seen, but lots of other treasures found: rocks, green slime, an old bottle, water plants and an assortment of surprised bugs.

And those kids swimming in the lake were brave, the water was cold (of course). It didn't faze Finn ...

... but proved to be quite the shock to Lily's system. Ahem.

And since I didn't think to bring spare clothes, but had some diapers for Ina in my bag, this is what Lily looked like until we got home. She couldn't have cared less.

And you can say what you want about those rubber shoes laden with chemicals, but the kids love them. They are good water shoes ...

... make great boats that you can try to sink by throwing rocks at them ...

... and if they are THIS color they are easy to find. (P.S. In the picture above you can see why I WILL bring spare pants next time. Finn managed to sit in the water.)

The way back to the car was long, so walking sticks were needed. Finn finally saw reason when Neil told him the stick wouldn't fit in the trunk. Actually, he seemed relieved to be able to leave it behind.

We made it home in time for supper and a half hour before Ina was brought back. Finn and Lily were happy to see her, I really can't praise my sweet kids enough. ♥ Now they are all asleep and actually we should be too. Who knows how many times we will be up tonight. Ina is a light sleeper. So, good night!