2nd ANNUAL BROTHER'S DAY!

At 4 years of age Kieran asked us "when is brother's day?" Having just celebrated Mother's Day and Father's Day he was curious as to when "Brother's Day" might be.  We thought it was a good point so we instituted a very special day, just for brother's in our household.  We decided this day falls on the Sunday following Father's Day, which was yesterday.  As the boys came down for breakfast they saw some special treats for being amazing brothers to one another.

Superhero shirts on their chairs and a bag with some of the new CARS 2 characters.

Finn McMissile, Holley and Fancesco Bernoulli

Still waking up!

ASTOUNDING TO WATCH!

Today Quinn asked Kieran if he could try his big boy 2 wheeler (no training wheels) bike.  Kieran was very kind and said, "sure, but I'll have to help you out."  Dave thought he should jump in on the action too, just to be sure.  Well, we were all AMAZED when Quinn at 3 years of age, hopped on Kieran's bike and rode away, on his own accord, own balance, and over the moon proud of himself.  I regret not running upstairs to grab my camera just to capture the look on his face, but I didn't want to miss a second of it.  He tried it again just before dinner and I did grab my iPhone to some video of it.  I was running within arms reach of him so I apologize for the jumpy video.  Our plan is to get Quinn his own big boy 2 wheeler for his upcoming 4th birthday.  Fun times ahead!

FLYING UP TO GRADE 1

It's astounding to me to think that come September we will have 2 boys in school.  I know it sounds cliché, but I am constantly amazed at how fast the years are going by.  The older I get, the faster they go!  Dave, Quinn, Mum (aka: Grams) and I attended Kieran's SK graduation at Annette P.S. on Friday.  The celebratory hour is adorable and the kids love it.  We started with the actual graduation, mortarboard hats, diplomas, handshakes and smiles all around.  We then went to the gym for both the JK and SK classes to perform their favourite songs learned in music this term.  A lot of work for the teaching staff for an hour event but it means a lot to both the kids and parents.  We are grateful for their time, dedication, support, love and efforts.  Happy well deserved summer!

Kieran shaking Ms. Chang's hand, accepting his SK diploma.  Quite cute!

Celebrating!

The SK group, soon to be grade 1's

A celebratory snuggle.

Grams, Dave and Quinn waiting for the concert portion to begin.

Ms. Alice Chang.  We could not have asked for a better JK/SK teacher.  We are thrilled that Quinn will have her for his 2 kindergarten years too!  Four straight years of Fitzpatrick's?  Yikes, poor Ms. Chang!

THE KINDERGARTEN FAMI'LY

I had meant to post this video of the JK and SK class singing to the tune "The Adam's Family" but forgot until now.  It's quite sweet.

FATHER'S DAY FUN!

Dave and Kieran returned from the cottage after a day and night of fun with all of the Fitz aunts, uncles, cousins and Grampa Mike on the island.  Quinn and I stayed in the city to ensure he could attend one of his best buds birthday parties.  It is nice to have one on one time, not something we do very often.  Having one kid at a time is far easier than juggling 2!  We hosted Poppy, Nana, Great Grampa and Jally for dinner to raise a glass and celebrate the wonderful ways of Dads.  It was great fun to gather around the table together.  Lets do it again soon!

Celebrating Dads!

Great Grampa Bosley (Turning 90 in August)

ANT Jal getting silly with the whip cream

Kieran jumping in the fun!  He asked for a whip cream beard.

More of an explosing from his mouth than a beard!

Quinn LOVES his new ITALIA shirt.  Thanks Nana and Poppy!  We're glad you had a great trip!

Poppy throwing money into the tub.  The boys were EXCITED!

Found some!

SK GRAD & FATHER'S DAY CELEBRATIONS!

Who knew 5 years could fly by so fast?  I will never forget dropping Kieran off at the tender age of 9 months for his first day of daycare.  It was the beginning of "mother's guilt".  I cried more than he did.  Was I making the right decision going back to work when he was still so young?  Was this place going to be a good place for him?  Who were these people taking care of my greatest gift in life?  Now, nearly 5 years post first drop off I know we made the right decision.  We have met countless wonderful people through Humberside and it has been a positive and enriching environment for both Kieran and Quinn.  It's hard to believe that come June 30th, his days there are complete.  We are grateful to so many people for loving, teaching, caring, supporting and believing in our boys.  Friday afternoon marked Kieran's SK graduation as well as a Father's Day celebration in both Quinn's pre-school class and SK.

BOOT CAMP 101

I have signed up for fitness Boot Camp on Monday and Wednesday nights, it's rather nice to not be the instructor for once and have someone else calling the shots, creating the workout and kicking butt!  With the craziness that comes with the end of the school year, I have missed a whole bunch so far.  With Dave out at graduation last night and not wanting to miss another workout I decided to bring the boys.  Boot camp takes place in a school yard just west of here so I knew there was a play structure for them to play on.  Carolyn (one of Kieran's teachers from daycare) kindly spent an hour watching, playing and chasing the boys while cheering me on.  At the end they told me they were doing their own mini boot camp.  See short videos attached...

RIDE TO CONQUER CANCER - DAY 2

A very fun and emotional day!  K&Q were excited to go back downstairs for breakfast and a swim.  Unfortunately the pool did not open until 10:30am and we were long gone by then.  We set off on our adventure undecided of how to spend the morning before wandering over to the finish line.  We were all amazed at the beauty and power of the Falls.  We wanted to go on the Maid of the Mist but it was too long a walk for us to get there, take the boat and get back to the other side of town so we opted to go on The Journey Behind The Falls.  We donned our yellow plastic ponchos and hopped on an elevator which took us 150 feet under ground that let you out to tunnels leading to the Cataract Portal and Great Falls Portal.  The sound of the water (like thunder) rushing around you is incredible.  We descended on to a deck where we were standing at the very edge of the falls.  We got soaked and loved every minute of it!  From there we made our way to the finish line to cheer Dave and the rest of the RSGC team on.  The number of people, the energy, the support and love could be felt for miles.  It was an inspirational and emotional place to be! 

I just pulled up the post from when I did the RTCC.  If you go to 2008, June, Ride To Conquer Cancer it is amazing to see how little K & Q were.  My oh my how fast they change!

The Maid of the Mist

Going in close to the Falls

Wow!

The Journey Behind The Falls deck 1

Kieran trying to drink some of the mist

One of a few tunnels

Right behind the Falls.  There is so much water you cannot see anything!

The Biker Chicks coming into the finish.  The boys loved the chicks on their helmets.

Dave and our colleague Tom Wade-West coming in at the end.

Royal St. George's College Team

A tired Dave and Kieran enjoying the view.

HOLIDAY INN HAVEN

As the door to our hotel room opened, Kieran walked in and said, "wow, this place is beautiful!"  Allow me to paint you the picture...  Niagara Falls, Holiday Inn, overlooking the parking lot!  I hadn't really considered the fact that these guys had never been in a hotel before.  We certainly have been to some fantastic places with them, but we have always had the luxury of staying in a cottage, a friends house, condo in Tremblant etc. Clearly we are very spoiled people!  We spent the night dining on the outdoor patio, listening to some live tunes and going for a bed night swim.  The boys happily fell into bed, as did I.

I was on the balcony with Kieran and when I came back in I saw that Quinn had unpacked their clothes into a drawer!  Hilarious!

Quinn, nice and pink post hot tub.  Yes, that is a red cape he is planning on sleeping in!  Safety first!

Good morning show with all of the animals, red superhero capes mandatory!

RIDE TO CONQUER CANCER - DAY 1

We are very proud of Dave for building a Royal St. George's College team to ride in the Ride To Conquer Cancer.  Many of us have been touched by this disease and we have more than a handful of students whose parents are currently fighting cancer or have recently lost their battle.  Day one has participants riding from the CNE grounds in Toronto to Mohawk College in Hamilton.  K, Q and I drove to Hamilton with the hopes of being there to greet the RSGC team.  We missed half of them, but we did see Dave and 2 of our colleagues pull in on top of the mountain.  K and Q dressed up as superheros for the occasion and they so enjoyed cheering the riders on.  It was great fun!  As I write this I am in a hotel room in Niagara Falls (quite the place), both of the boys are asleep, tired from a double swim and day of travel.  We are looking forward to the fun day ahead tomorrow.  RTCC day 2 post will be put up Sunday night or Monday.  Stay tuned...  Thanks to many of you for your love and continued support. 

The boys LOVED these ladies flowers growing out of their helmets.  They both laughed out loud!

Enjoying the action

Quinn in his red cape, spied a banana on a bicycle!

They loved this too!

Woo Hoo!  Daddy pulls in to Hamilton!

Even Mr. Monkey came out to cheer!

The Fitz boyz watching some crazy BMX bikers show off their mad skills! (K&Q please don't ever do that stuff!)

A DAILY EVENT!

We have been having water fights daily the past few weeks.  What started with simple spray bottles from Dollarama which turned into proper water guns and even full on hose fights!  Many of our poor neighbours have been hit in the warfare.  It's been quite fun and we are talking about going back to buy more water guns to ensure all necessary neighbours are armed appropriately!

Reload with neigbour Bradley

I love Kieran's face here!

Uh Oh, the hose seems to be changing directions.

Gotcha!