Florida July 2011

The Savard Family vacation this year took us to sunny HOT Orlando Florida. Many people warned us that it would be hot. It didn't help that all of North America was going through an unusal heat wave. But that didn't stop us. We knew the outlets and malls would have air conditioning. hahhaha. To make this trip extra special, Lola and Lolo and Tita Melissa came along too. So really it was a Savard-Ortiz vacation.

On our first day, we took it easy. The heat took us aback and we decided to hit the outlets and then later on pool. The outlets were okay at this time of year, but we knew shopping with a toddler would be difficult. Olivia thankfully stayed in her stroller for a good amount of time (it must have been the snacks). After a good 45 minute nap in her stroller, she wanted out. Maman and Papa still wanted to walk around...soo that's were Lola, Lolo, and Tita Melissa come in. They gracously watched Miss Olivia through coins back and forth in the fountain (her new favourite thing to do these days). We ended the day by the pool and went out for dinner (PF CHANGS). After Olivia fell asleep for the night, Martin and I snuck out and did the outlets again. :0P till 11:00pm closing. Got to love these US shopping hours.

Next day, we decided to take advantage of the scorching heat and visit Sea World. We lathered up with sunscreen, packed our bottles of water and headed off to Olivia's favourite place in Orlando (at 2years old). We went last year in November (when she was not yet 18 months) at she was interested, but not like now. She was able to share her enthusiasm with us and was able to name all the sea creatures we meet. It was pretty cool. Maybe we have a marine biologist in the making. :0) As soon as we got there, she was squealing in excitement "What's that? What's that?"

Sea World has this special way to put people in awe of the sea. Love the underwater glass ceilings where you can see the sharks from above.

After that cool aquarium, we headed to Olivia's favourite animal - Penguins. It was a moving floor that took us from 1 end of the room to the other. We saw all kinds of penguins - swimming, eating, resting etc.

Olivia couldn't get enough, so we went back up to the observation deck, where she could just sit and watch the penguins play.

It was soooo hot that day, that Olivia didn't mind sitting in her stroller eating her ice cubes "DES GLACES". Needless to say, she was very hydrated during the day.

Of course, the best thing about these aquariums is the fact that you can go under and see the dolphins swim and get right up to the glass.

I have to say the highlight of Sea World was not the dolphins or the penguins, but was the chance to touch the manta rays in the feeding pools. At first she was afraid by these flapping sea creatures. But sure enough the curiosity took over and she was trying to grab them. The video we have is priceless because it looks like she literally tries to jump in.

A special moment with Tita Melissa.

The next day was Pool Day! We even got to eat by the pool and the food was fantastic. The first time we went into the pool Olivia was splashing like a seal all over the place. The term "NO FEAR" was our word of the day. It was pretty stressful containing her in the pool. She would leap of the ledge and dive into the water with little notice. She was sooo excited that she was running and falling all over the place in the water. Tita Melissa took one look at that and vowed she would never take Olivia swimming by herself. hahahaha. I have to say it wasn't the most relaxing day at the pool. HOWEVER, the second time we went to the big pool, she was awesome. She listened and waited for us. I guess the novelty of the pool wore off and she was swimming fabulously. Papa was soo proud. We even did some pool activities they had with the children.

Olivia participated in a hula hoop contest and won a green beaded necklace. Wish we had pictures of that. It was a great day.

We love to pour water. Back and forth. Back and forth.

After a lovely day by the pool, we had a yummy dinner at CHEESECAKE FACTORY at the Millenium Mall. We were supposed to go to City Walk at Universal and eat at Bubba Gumps but it was pouring rain. Well..with the humidity it had too.

After dinner, the downpour had stopped and it was actually very pleasant outside. Muggy yes, but a bit cooler so we decided to head down to City Walk and enjoy the night life. Aside: Every night when Martin and I stepped out after putting Miss O to bed we would see these families with their small kids at the outlets at 10pm eating at the foodcourt, walking around. I have to admit I was one of those people who shook their heads and said "Get your kids to bed at a decent hour!" - Well...ya..we were at City Walk at 9pm with Olivia. Sigh. I guess when you are on vacation and time is limited, you do what you can. Olivia had a great time, and she slept her 12 hours. :00

When we bought our Sea World tickets (which purchasing online is always cheaper and less line ups), we were able to get a second day free. So we decided that we would go back to Sea World. It was too hot the first day to do everything. Tita Melissa ended up going to Universal Studios by herself (she wanted to do the Harry Potter ride). Lola and Lolo explored International Drive and all the shopping by taking the I-Ride Trolley (which is fabulous for tourists).

The first thing we wanted to do was to see the Baluga whales. At this exhibiton, they had a giant block of Antartic Ice they transported. Of course, Olivia LOVED touching it. It was there in November, but I remember it being much bigger, but I guess it melts.

Papa and Olivia played in the polar bear dens.

Again, another hot day. Why not hit the splashpad!

While everyone was watching the Shamu show, we decided to take advantage of the children section. Papa and Olivia went on the spinning tea cups (Swirling Fishies). She actually was amused by it. I don't know if Papa was getting dizzy though.

The next ride...oh boy. There was this rid that was similar to the swinging boat. But we assumed it was at the children's section so it wouldn't go high. I knew Olivia hates going on swings (she is more a slide person), but she kept singing "Row row row your boat!" and pointing to the ride. So off Papa and Olivia went. Sure enough, while they were waiting in line. the boat not only swung back and forth but it TURNED SIDE TO SIDE too!!!!! I looked at Olivia's expression in line, and she wasn't smiling she was "observing". Papa and I took a good look at each other and didnt' think it was a good idea. But Olivia kept saying "Papa, boat, row row...". They went on...1 minute later the ride comes to and end. We had screaming Olivia trying to stand up and get out of the boat. Sigh. Thankfully, the ride was restarted for everyone again. Sheesh. WE TOLD YOU! Maybe next year.

Here was more of Olivia's thing. Sand, shade, and a slide. Perfect.

To top off our wonderful vacation. Lola and Lola treated us to an AWESOME restaurant. TEXAS DE BRAZIL. Ugh..can't even tell you how much I love this restaurant. We purposely didn't eat lots during the day so we could take advantage of this $50/person buffet of meat. Byt the end, we all had meat sweats. It was delicious. Definitely something that everyone should try at least once.

It was a great vacation. Not only because it was in Orlando (one of our favourite spots to vacation), but it was the company. Living in Ottawa and so far away from my home city, it's hard to get down and see everyone. Love my family, love my life. Blessings surround me everyday.

Big Girl Bed!

Well, it was time. It is the summer and we had to get Olivia used to sleeping in her own bed before her brother or sister arrived. Even our king size bed couldnt' fit 2 little monkeys in it.

Thanks to a my friend Elayna, Olivia has a new white toddler bed. We made a huge deal out of it. There was lots of praise going around and she was actually excited to sleep on it (well...at first to jump on it).

The first night, as expected proved to be similar to the first time we put Olivia in her crib. Not a lot of sleeping going on. She would wake up every 2 hours looking for me. Then I would bring her back (fortunately, with no fuss) and put her back to sleep. Let's just say, there was a makeshift bed next to hers. This would happen the same for naptimes. Just when Olivia has started to sleep through the night and had great 2 hour afternoon naps, we moved to this. Sigh.

Oh well, this is what we have to do. I'm out of school, I have the time, and a good massage will help my aching back. :0)

First trip to the Zoo - Papa and Olivia Adventure

Happy Canada Day!

Yes, Will and Kate were down. But no...we didn't get the chance to go downtown to see them. We went our regrets earlier. :0)
The thought of all those people downtown in the heat didn't make us jump up and go.
We had much more fun at the Canada Day festivities in our area.





As you can see...so did Papa!

A Star is Born!

The school year has come to an end, and with most schools there are end of the year concerts. We weren't sure what to expect with this summer concert. Olivia could have been in the last Christmas concert, but she was still having a hard time settling to her new environment that the teachers thought it would be a good idea to miss it. We agreed it would be awful to have Olivia standing on stage screaming her head off looking for us. I'm sure however when the teachers saw Olivia on the stage today, it might have been okay for Olivia to be in the winter concert.

Today, Olivia made the show. I would say (even though she was on the side of the stage because the teacher didn't trust her to stand still) she took center stage. She was amazing. She sang those songs that she was taught (that she would constantly sing at home too) and she loved the stage. Not only did she sing, she did all the actions too! All you could hear from the crowds were awing and laughing at how cute everyone was on the stage. I would like to think that it was all Oliva (which most of it was ) but the other toddlers did a great job. I was so proud of her. So now we are scratching our heads as to what to do next. Swimming lessons, soccer lessons, gymnastics... now singing and dancing lessons?

Father's Day #2

Hey everyone..been a while... got really busy but I can't pass on today!
As it is now a tradition on father's day week-end, I participated in the 2nd edition of the Tour du Courage, a 2 day, 3 stage cycling event to raise fund for prostate cancer.
Again this year I made the trip with my beautiful (and of course smarty pants) freshly 2 year old baby girl to grand papa and grand maman for the week-end. This is a real treat for me as I see my mom and dad but as well watch them ( and them watching over) Miss O.(merci papa, merci maman)

This year Mel did not made the trip as she was overloaded with report cards and as well as a well deserved rest. Sometimes you get so caught up in life and routines that you don't realize how quick and how much time has passed and how much you have been holding your breath pushing constantly.
Maman was a little bit apprehensive being away a whole week-end without her little soulmate her 1st time since being a full time maman, but it was well deserve. (even if she called me as we where halfway to Hawksbury to come back and pick her up!)

I still have a really hard time explaining to people and share the way I feel about my baby girl. The joy she brings to my life every single moments. Watching the connection she shares with maman is the most beautiful thing I have never seen and anything I have ever experienced.

Now it is more and more difficult to be away as everyday she has something new in store for us. They say terrible two's, for her I think it's terribly 2's.
Sometimes I just feel she wants to grow up so fast, every day I am excited about the next day, but already missing the previous.

I know people say having kids changes life, for me Olivia enriched it.
je t'aime
Papa

Birthday Party Bash

Another fun year! Another year of worrying if Mother Nature would cooperate. Thankfully she did (but we still got a tent).
This year we got John from Monkey Rock to come again. Last year she was bouncing away and this year she did not disappoint. She actually recognized some of the songs!





Something we did different this year was a pinata! It was great fun, but we didn't choose the right stick. I guess it's all about the stick.



This year as you can see the theme was MONKEY...right down to the cake.



Olivia was so fortunate to have an abundance of gifts. People were so very generous and thoughtful. I've packed some away for those rainy days of boredom. There was one gift that Oliva (acutally we wanted) to try was her new roller blades. Yes, she is a fast runner, but will that translate to awesome skater? Only time will tell. I think she was more amused with the whole set-up (the helmet, pads, and skates) than acutally skating. Of course though, like true Olivia style, if she couldn't go fast it in, she wasn't happy. I'm thinking it'll take her a few month to get the hang of it, then we are really screwed.



All in all, it was another perfect day. Olivia had a blast and I think everyone else did too. We still can't believe our little one is 2. When you ask her she's still says she's 1 but quickly corrects herself and says "Un an no...deux ans!" She's our little monkey. Even after the day she had, she was the last one standing at the end of the day. We were all pooped. That's our girl.

Happy 2nd Birthday!

Today Olivia was on a high. Meaning...she was in a super good mood, she was laughing, and running around. She was non-stop. Yes, Olivia is an active toddler, but today was different. She just seemed super excited. Maybe it's because she knew this was a special day. Maybe it's because all day long people were singing to her. A song she knew too well. A song that would eventually lead to yummy treats and gifts. hahahah.

Unfortunately, today Maman and Papa had to go to work. Fortunately though, she got to spend the day with Grandmaman. It was a win-win situation. There were tons of treats around and a Grandmaman who was willing to give it to her. :0) From what I found out about the day, she had a blast and I hope Grandmaman did too. There was something she learned today too - "Pepsi!". What does that mean? - wink wink.

Her birthday celebrations started at school on Wednesday. She brought her special cupcakes to school that day. Little pink vanilla cupcakes super cute. Of course, there were other birthdays in the class that day too. One parent got all the kids bubbles, and the other parent gave all the kids bran muffins. Sigh, we are the parents that give the treat loaded with sugar to toddlers. Oh well. It just happens once a year. I'm sure the parents are thanking us for it.




Today for dinner we went to our favourite restaurant. What made this night extra special was that we went with Olivia's BFF - Nalina.



Exhausted we came home and I was determined for her to blow the candles out of yet another birthday cake. But this cake was made with love. A perfect dessert to end the day. Tomorrow the Ortiz clan was coming - more TLC from Lola, Lolo, and Tita Melissa. The love just does not end. We better get some rest now, I am thinking this year's birthday bash will be as crazy as last years (with a smaller tent though).