Finding the Lost Fingers

Friday Stéphane was off work so we decided to go to the Jazz Festival and catch a free show by our new favourite band, the Lost Fingers. I know Montreal is famous for the Jazz Fest but ironically I haven't spent a lot of time down there in all the ten years I've lived here... Not sure why exactly. Anyway, bringing Liliane to her first live show seemed like a good idea so we hopped on the metro and headed downtown.

This is where the show took place - and it was AIR CONDITIONED in there. Bonus!

Super fun atmosphere inside, comfy seats, room to fit the stroller underneath!

We ran into our friend Brigitte and her daughter Capucine so we conveniently slid into the booth beside them... Good thing too because we were an hour early and it was getting packed in there already.

You can't really tell from this photo, but Liliane really dug the whole scene. We listen to their CD a lot at home so she was kicking her feet and going all crazy along with the rest of us.

And here they are:

They play 80s music in their own special style. It's ridiculously fun and yet sad when you realize that you know all the words...

Once that was done, we walked around the site:

While Liliane napped.

We stopped for coffee, natch:

And I took this artsy pic of the Modern Art Museum.

Yep, there were lots and lots of people, but it wasn't claustrophobic or anything.





Afterwards we were feeling ambitious so we went out for dinner. It was the first time we actually ordered something for Liliane! We made such a huge mess, a picture was in order:

You can't really see the floor, but believe me, it's gross.

Aww, cute.

Reminds me of this one we took in L.A. last year... BEFORE we were parents. Look how well-rested we are!

And that was our Jazz Festival experience! We had a really great time and if it wasn't so dang hot and muggy around here, we would even think about going again before it's all over next week.

It's already Sunday night and I can't believe how fast the weekend has flown by. On Saturday the good times continued when Stéphane and I went to see Get Smart while Liliane hung out with my SIL Danielle and my BIL André. They were so sweet to not only babysit for a few hours but then to also feed us an excellent dinner. Get Smart is hilarious by the way. I was still laughing today about the retard thing (sorry, not politically correct but I nearly peed my pants) and Anne Hathaway IS gorgeous. Worth seeing in theatres.

We also made a couple of trips to that black hole of credit card debt also known as Wal-Mart. Is it mandatory to spend $100 every time you step in the door? You would think so by going over my Visa bill... I finally got Liliane a portable booster seat/high chair that we can take with us when we go places AND will hopefully replace our high chair. Our kitchen is just too dadgummed small (to quote Pioneer Woman - love her!) for another piece of furniture. I can only stub my toe so many times before I have to spend more money.

Oh yeah, speaking of spending, we also got this excellent MEC backpack baby carrier! I know that we could have found a used one but Stéphane and I suffer from lack of patience combined with a minor intolerance for other people's cooties I mean stuff. You know what I mean? It would be OK if someone we know offered us something used, but otherwise, we're not into it.

Tomorrow Stéphane is back at work but he's off on Tuesday for Canada Day. As I have already mentioned, we are going out to visit Eric and Tina on Tuesday to finally show them their wedding video. I'll let y'all know how that goes.

Happy National Beer Drinking I mean St. Jean Baptiste Day!

Sorry for being so slack on the blogging, it's just that a girl can only stand so much humidity before she goes a little crazy. Plus, my other baby, our Canon Rebel camera, had an issue or two and was away in the shop and while I love our new replacement baby the Cybershot, no one can replace the Rebel. She's back to us now, good as new and my photog instincts are back in place...

The good news is that we finished the wedding video! A feat I never thought we would live to accomplish, but we did. And we're still married. Eric and Tina will finally get to see it when we go out to visit them July 1st. If you don't see me blogging shortly thereafter, assume that it didn't go over well... Ha ha. They are going to love it. They waited more than a year to see it, they HAVE to love it.

Back to baby... Tuesday was Liliane's first St. Jean Baptist Day! This is Quebec's provincial holiday (naturally celebrated in JUNE while the rest of the country celebrates in AUGUST) and kicks off the summer season around here. Stéphane, as some of you may know, is a proud countryman and bought a flag for the car. Thanks to his separatist tendencies, he will also be flying it proudly on Canada Day.

We drove out to visit my in-laws at their campsite about 45 minutes from Montréal. Also Liliane's first trip to the country! They have a super comfortable set up out there - more like a big outdoor living room than a campsite.

This face says "I'm hot. If I knew what a popsicle was, I would ask for one."

We compensated for our photo-less (or almost) last two weeks by taking about 500 photos of our afternoon. I am sharing the highlights only so you can imagine.

Note Liliane's bathing suit. We got her all ready to go to the pool but it was closed over the dinner hour. We thought we would go back at 6:30 when it opened but it was a little too chilly by then. Oh well. She went on the swings instead.

And played on some real grass which is a big deal for us city folk...

Stéphane's artsy flare. Nice.

I have a dream...





After a delicious BBQ dinner, we wound up our visit by the campfire. Our daughter is literally like a moth to the candle flame when it comes to anything that lights up so she was totally captivated by the fire. A wee pyromaniac in the making??

Please don't interrupt me, I'm watching the fire.






We didn't make it to the St. Jean parade like we hoped we would, but we definitely will next year. Got home in time for most of the bedtime routine and Liliane drifted off to sleep surely dreaming of setting the house on fire. Or eating roasted marshmallows and getting them in her hair. Or cupcakes. Who knows.

Tag, I'm It.

My sister is making me do this. It's weird to post with nary a Liliane photo/anecdote in sight, but she threatened not to give me any more baby advice if I didn't. Ouch.

The rules: Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

What was I doing ten years ago?
1. Graduating from university.
2. Getting a wisdom tooth pulled.
3. Moving into this apartment.
4. Getting a job at the 24-hour Second Cup on St-Laurent Blvd.

What are five (non-work) things on my to-do list for today?
1. Take Liliane's 8-month portrait.
2. Make Szechuan chicken salad for dinner (go Rachael Ray!).
3. Laundry.
4. Wash the kitchen floor since my flip flops are now sticking to it.
5. Get outside and MOVE MY BUTT. And take Liliane on the swings.

Five snacks I enjoy:
1. Baked Cheetos if I'm feeling virtuous, salt and vinegar chips if I'm not.
2. Dark chocolate.
3. Anything my mom makes (I agree with Jen on this one).
4. Lime tortilla chips and salsa.
5. Pineapple (this one too).

5 Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
1.Pay off, pay off, pay off. Us and our families.
2. Make movies/run a studio, old-Hollywood style.
3. Buy houses/pieds-à-terres here, in Vancouver, NYC and London.
4. SHOP.
5. Travel.

Places I’ve lived:
1. North Vancouver, B.C.
2. Vancouver, B.C.
3. Surrey, B.C.
4. Richmond, B.C.
5. Montreal, Qc

Jobs I’ve had:
1. TV/Live event gopher, film PA
2. Clothing store associate (go Bootlegger!)
3. Starbucks barista
4. Postproduction supervisor
5. Producer

TAG! You’re it !I am tagging.... (Jen and I have the same blog friends so I don't know if I can come up with five but I'll try):
1. My friend Ann
2. Pal Tina (check out her awesome jewelry blog!)
3. Ann's sister Ruth (love your new site, baby!)
4. Hey! My husband has a blog!
5. Since Jen did Shawna, I'll tag Shawna's Mom, Joanne.

Voilà! Back to the baby tomorrow, I promise :)

Eight Months Old + Father's Day

Eight months old today.

I will forgo my usual "I can't believe she's already 8 months old" spiel, and simply post this blast from the past:

You've come a long way, baby!

Yesterday was Stéphane's very first Father's Day. Liliane got him a card and a gift or two:

We had croissants for breakfast (oh, big surprise, baby likes butter), packed a picnic supper and headed off to the park at Ile Bizard for some fun:

Her first dip! We just put our toes in.

Um, this is NOT linoleum.

My daughter and I with our matching pirate squints:

Papa got the whole thing on camera and Liliane loves almost nothing better than seeing herself in action:

There have been thunderstorm warnings almost every day around here for the last week or two and wouldn't you know it, we actually had one out there at Ile Bizard. Just as we were sitting down to our picnic dinner, the sky opened and we ran for cover in the (luckily) nearby welcome centre.

And that was our big day on Sunday.

On Saturday Liliane and I went to my friend Isabelle's baby shower. She got all dressed up for her first girlie event:

Isabelle's diaper cake gift. No more pregnant friends that I know of so this is the last one for a while.

A quiet week ahead to get ready for another busy weekend. Starting to figure out what I want to accomplish during my last three months (gulp) of mat leave. OK, I won't think about that now, it's all going by so fast... Happy Monday y'all.