Monday, June 27, 2016

Welcome to Holland (Nurseries)

This weekend involved a bit of trial and error for us. Ok, a lot of trial, and a lot of error. It was the first long weekend of the Summer, and the weather was beautiful, with temperatures in the 20's and the sunshine streaming down. It's the type of weather where us Newfoundlanders get sunburned quickly, because we are just so excited to see the sun, we spend all day out in it without the required SPF.

With such a short window of Summer weather, we feel obligated to enjoy outdoor adventures as much as possible, and we had big plans for this weekend. On Saturday, however, Andrew woke up with a cold, so Brennen and I headed out to Bannerman Park to take some pictures. It was beautiful and sunny and warm, but he wasn't really feeling it, so we made it a quick trip. Saturday afternoon, Andrew was feeling a little better, so we decided to drive up Signal Hill and walk the trails around the Geo Centre. Again, it was beautiful up there and there were loads of families out enjoying the sunshine, but Brennen didn't like the wind, so we headed home.


On Sunday we planned to take Brennen out to Petty Harbour - a picturesque little town on the Avalon Peninsula. We have been out there many times before, and we just love to walk around and take in the views, and the salt sea air. We packed up our things (snacks, drinks, sunscreen..) and drove out around the bay. As soon as we arrived in Petty Harbour, we noticed that it didn't seem to be as warm as it was when we left St. John's, and it was pretty windy. Brennen wanted no part if it. We did manage to have lunch at the Water Shed Coffee Shop out there, which was really lovely, but then we knew it was time to get Brennen home.


It is frustrating, I have to admit. There are so many things that we would love to be able to do together as a family, and we see so many families and young children out enjoying the parks and all of the attractions that the city has to offer, now that the kids are on Summer holidays, but it's just not always that easy for us. Brennen doesn't like the wind. Or the cold. Or if it's too sunny. Or too loud. Or too busy. Or too anything. I know that we just need to stop putting too much pressure on ourselves, and to just go with the flow. Brennen dictates our schedule and our plans, so if he is done, we are done. That's it. We will keep trying, and we will have some great days, but not all of our outings are successful.

Monday (today) was a holiday for Discovery Day, and we had planned to give Brennen a break. He was going to hang out with Nanny and Poppy for the day while Andrew and I went for a hike on the East Coast Trail, but we woke up this morning to pouring rain. Honestly. It was warm, but calling for showers all afternoon, so we changed our plans. We thought, where could we take Brennen to enjoy a couple of hours where it is out of the rain, and the wind, and is temperature-controlled?!

We went to Holland Nurseries! It was like a bloody sauna in the greenhouses, but there was no wind or rain, and the flowers were out in full bloom and it was beautiful. Brennen didn't even hate it!


These beautiful blooms were a welcome pick-me-up, and the skies even cleared while we were there, allowing us to get outside and enjoy the fresh air. See? It's not all bad. We will carry on, making plans, making changes, going with the flow, without too many expectations, and without so much pressure for everything to be perfect. It is difficult sometimes, and in the challenging moments it can be hard to remember that everything is usually fine.. and manageable.. and pretty darn perfect.

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