What to do when it's 90 degrees out

Sam's new sleeping spot

Wednesday it was 99 degrees.

So hot.

I love warm weather, but it was too hot for me.

After a day working (in my home office with broken A/C) I was ready to cool off.

I took Sam, a friend, and two of Sam's babysitters to the beach.

Crane's Beach.

It was heavenly. We were only there for about an hour, but it was just enough to cool off.

Do we have to leave mom?

Sam was so sad to leave.

And so was I.

An ecstatic Sam

 Yesterday, I was working again.

The fans were on high and it was tolerable - in shorts & a t-shirt.

Hopefully we can fix our A/C OR get a new window unit SOON - so far stores have been sold out due to the heat wave.

On the positive, maybe we're using a little less electricity?

I don't know how people managed w/out air conditioning!

After work, I decided to take Sam to the beach again.

Solo trip.

He was ecstatic.

He met a few little kids.

He ran in the tidal pools.

He ran into the ocean.

He splashed.

He squealed.

He had a snack.

He chased seagulls.

He loved every bit.

And then he sat down.

And cried.

He was tired.

We were there for 2.5 hours.

We got home at 8pm.

It was dinner & bath quick.

Sam was asleep pretty quickly.

I don't mind the heat when I have a fabulous place to cool off.

I am so thankful we live near a beach.

I am thankful I have a beach sticker.

I am thankful said beach is amazing for kids & adults alike.

so tired.

 Happy summer! Glad midsommar and longest day of the year (yesterday)!

Now the days will be shorter.

Just Another Day In Paradise...

Before Caleb came home from India, we had a beach photo session with Sam.
Here are a few unedited photos for your viewing pleasure. :)
Hopefully I'll update the blog about Caleb's trip to India, our trip to Sweden, our trip to France, Summer's wedding and Sammy's first birthday (which was on Friday, but the party is this Saturday).
Until then.
Here are a few beachy photos... from my fave beach. Chappy.
And Sammy is oh so proud in the life guard chair.

{well hello there}

{climbing up the stand}

{sand is delish}

{oh so proud of himself}

{checking out the views}

{saving lives}

{headed for the ocean}

{nekked baby at sunset}

swimming to India

sam checking out the waves

walking in the sand with mommy

Caleb left for India today.

Sam and I will be missing him mucho.

But hopefully we'll be doing some of the following:

1) texting

2) emailing

3) calling

4) SKYPING!!!

Today I helped get Caleb on his way and then worked.

When I came home, I was greeted by Sam who crawled to me in record time. We had dinner and took a little swim in the ocean. Sam LOVED it!

It was his first time actually in the ocean. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to go sooner, but today was a success. Sam LOVED the sand. Then, we put him at the water's edge and he thought it was just great. Since I grew up on the ocean and LOVED going to the beach, I'm so glad to have a little boy who seems to have the same appreciation for the ocean as I do.

sitting in the sand for the first time and the verdict is out. he likes it!

sam's on a mission... ocean here he comes.

 

taking a dip in the ocean, sheer joy on his face

hugs for mommy

sam walking in the waves

Sammy Swimming to India

Above is a link to a video of Sam crawling towards one of my first loves. The ocean. I think he wanted to swim to his dad in India. Well, his dad wasn't quite there yet, but he will be tomorrow. Hope you enjoy. And thanks to my Dad (morfar) and my brother (uncle Pete) for making the video possible, ie making sure Sam didn't drown!
(note: my frantic voice as I'm recording Sam's crawl into the ocean and a wave splashes over him. Uncle Pete came to the rescue)

"i can't wait" -sam giguere

so we moved AND had a baby in the same week!!

i have not had time to breath blog until now...

there's so much to catch up on...

we moved into a bigger apartment on september 11 - we had friends and family help us move which was incredible. i took monday off from work to start to unpack our apartment and then headed to the cape tuesday and wednesday for work. wednesday i came back to the north shore... and decided to open the box which had our carseat in it (it had arrived in the mail a few days earlier, but i didn't unpack it until AFTER we moved).

little precious sam was born the next day.

first family photo minutes after little sam was born

mommy and sam

proud daddy sharing the news that's he a dad

Samuel Henry Giguere was born two and a half weeks early on Thursday, September 16, 2010 at 8:03pm - so we have ourselves a summer baby instead of a fall baby...

He weighed 7 lbs 9 oz and was 18.5 inches long. We actually didn't name him until Monday, September 20, 2010.

hydrangeas

they are one of my FAVORITE flowers...

my mom has a lot of hydrangea bushes... below are a few snapshots from the summer

she has both purple and blue

oh how i love them :)

don't quit

check out this video...

it's based on the below poem.

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.
- Author unknown

 i love it! my dad used to have it in his office... i took a copy of it and it's stayed with me since...

today i'm posting it for my buddy Ben, he's been through quite a lot this summer.
Ben, keep up your positive attitude, don't quit :)

saft: a swedish adventure in the states

earlier in the week i posted about saft

now, i'll detail a little about making it...

first of all - saft is a DEEEEELICIOUS drink you can buy in sweden, and at ikea, but not online, only in the ikea store...

anyway, my mormor is awesome and she makes it from scratch - raspberry, strawberry, black currant, etc

one day i went to russell orchards and decided to pick strawberries... mmm... they were so yummy. i had so many strawberries on hand, i decided to eat some, freeze some and make saft out of some.

google translate says saft = juice - but it's so much more...

basically you use the juice from berries, boil it with sugar to make a concentrated liquid and store it. then when you're ready to drink, you pour a little saft into a glass and mix with water... voila, delicious, refreshing drink :)

here's a photo montage of my attempt. it turned out OK, but it's best to mix berries (strawberries and blueberries, or raspberries, etc) and i added TOO MUCH sugar (who would have thought?)

{first, pick berries and decide which ones you want to use}

 i separated mine into eat this week now, freeze and make into saft ;)

{weigh your strawberries}

this is necessary to ensure you have the right amount of other ingredients

{wash your strawberries}

{slice off the green part}

 

 

{weigh the strawberries again, just in case}

{add water}

{boil strawberries in the water, stirring occasionally - approx 10 min}

{use the spoon to crush the strawberries on the edge of the pot to get all the juiciness out}

{i put a strainer in a bowl for this next part}

{put a cheesecloth in the strainer - this is for straining the berries from the liquid}

{pour the boiled berries into the cheesecloth and let the liquid drain into the bowl}

{let it sit for a 30 minutes to ensure all liquid is in the bowl and not in the cheesecloth}

{pour into a measuring container - i used a glass pyrex one - woo hoo! 500ml}

{pour the liquid BACK into the pot on the stove}

{add the sugar - this is what makes it tasty, stir until the sugar has dissolved}

{cook until it comes to a boil}

{towards the end, this is what you should see}

{there's "skumm" - swedish for foam - you don't want it - so take it off with a spoon}

{it's yummy though - strawberry sugary - mmm}

{i set mine on a plate - and then ate it} :)

{pour non skumm liquid into a container so you can pour into bottles; it's easier w/a funnel which i did not have}

{clean the bottles you're using - i baked mine in the oven, but you can also boil them}

{pour liquid into WARM clean bottles, put on the cap and let cool}

 

 

 

 

saft should be stored at a cool temperature (fridge, basement, etc)

{image}

when you're ready to drink, pour some saft into a glass and add water to taste. i don't know how what the saft to water ratio is... i just go by what tastes good...

for those of you who want to try it, here's the recipe i used:

Strawberry Saft

(500 ml of saft or approx 2 cups):

500 grams strawberries

2 deciliters water (a little more than 3/4 cup or 200 ml)

3 deciliters sugar (1 1/4 cup or 300 ml)

note: it should be consumed within a few weeks, if not, some type of preservative should be added - i don't mess with that, i just drink it!