Our August began with a trip to the Whitecourt Lion's Campground on August long weekend ... I know you're jealous ;) Kidding aside, the campground was better than we expected and the company was as fabulous as expected!!!! We met my bff and her family and had an awesome long weekend!! Our kids love each other, Blake and Nicholas are best buds and the girls play great together too! And turns out the town of Whitecourt has THE best park!!! The Rotary park in Whitecourt is a-m-a-z-i-n-g. It has a nice spray park, a great playground, a pond you can fish in and the coolest outdoor 'waterslides'! We had a blast!! It was a super hot day and the kids absolutely loved the slides. Earlier in the summer we took a day trip to Discovery Canyon in Red Deer and had a great time but I would totally recommend this park in Whitecourt over Discovery Canyon. Discovery Canyon is pretty (a more natural scene with rocks surrounding the slides and a waterfall, etc.) but the slides in Whitecourt, combined with the spray park and playground, trumps Discovery Canyon! If we don't camp in Whitecourt next summer, we will be making a day trip to visit the park! Besides visiting the park, we had a pretty chill weekend, hanging around the campsite, visiting, the kids riding bikes to and from the lack lustre park (but of course the kids didn't notice!!), playing games, campfires and just enjoying our weekend!
Tuesday to Friday was Pedalheads bike camp for all three kids! Reese was super excited for her first bike camp :) Em was almost on 2 wheels last summer and we knew she was ready for a 2-wheeler. She would not let us take her training wheels off, she wanted to wait until bike camp! So of course, within an hour of her first day of bike camp, she was riding on 2 wheels! Blake had a great week, learning more about road safety and hand signals, traffic signs, etc and Reese loved her little class! She pedals like a maniac and I have no doubt she will be on 2 wheels next summer! As parents, Cal and I love this summer camp! The staff are all so fabulous and it is a really great quality camp, combining biking, games and fun!
Rewind to August long weekend - late Sunday afternoon Blake started not feeling well. He had a fever and was very tired. We had a more normal bedtime that night and he woke up Monday morning with a fever, again. I wasn't too worried, I figured he was tired and maybe a bit run down. By Wednesday his fever was still high and it was not responding to Tylenol and after a few hours Advil was not doing the trick either. So I took him in to the medi-centre on Thursday afternoon and the Dr. suspected pneumonia :( He prescribed antibiotics and we went to the lab to have a chest x-ray to confirm. On Saturday morning we had a follow-up Dr. appt and it was confirmed that he did have pneumonia. I was surprised because even though he had a fever, he did not seem as ill as I would have thought a 7 yr old with pneumonia would be. He was very upset that he could not participate in his upcoming hockey camp or a 3 on 3 hockey game on Sunday afternoon. He still attended his friends birthday party on Saturday afternoon, but did not take part in the floor hockey game. I felt so bad for him, it brought tears to my eyes :( He was really looking forward to his Edges hockey camp, he loves the Edges coaches and his friend was going to be at camp with him. But obviously it was more important for him to rest and get better asap.
So the next week was significantly slower than originally planned! We spent the majority of Sunday, Monday and Tuesday at home. Our pediatrician was back from vacation this week, so we went in to see him on Tuesday afternoon. He listened to Blake's lungs and said he did not hear anything and that the antibiotics must have done their job! At this point Blake's fever had been gone since Friday but his cough was still there. Dr. R said it could take some time for him to feel 100% better but that he was on the road to recovery! He also suggested following up with an x-ray in a few weeks to confirm the pneumonia was gone. By Wednesday we really needed to get out of the house and do something fun!! So we met my sister and nephews and my Mom at the Valley Zoo! The zoo has undergone some renovations since we were last there! The renovations looked great and we had a fun time! We've always loved visiting our little zoo. The kids are free to roam, as we follow along and it is never too busy. Lucy the elephant is always a big draw and within a few minutes of walking through the gates, we spotted Lucy! She was on a walk around the zoo with her trainers :)
Mixed in with the above, we also found out that Cal's interview in Red Deer was successful and he was offered a new job!! This is a very exciting career move for Cal, we're all so proud of him and very happy for this step up the ladder! He will be the new Design Specialist II for ATOPS (Access Technology Outside Plant Standards). He is responsible for standards in access engineering for Telus - this encompasses ON, Quebec, AB and BC. This position will entail some travel. His first day is September 15th and he will be flying to Vancouver on the 14th for meetings and team building on the 15th, 16th and 17th. Then at the end of September he will be in Calgary for meetings. I have a feeling it will be an adjustment, with him away from home every now and then but we're behind him 110% and are very excited for the new opportunities this job will present! Congrats Cal, we love you and are soooo proud of you :)
Cal's also been playing hockey with his good friend Eric and began attending the November Project in July! He's loving these workouts and the atmosphere of the group. Check out their website!!
I've been enjoying my break from Cameron's Closet! It's nice to just enjoy the summer and time with the kids and not juggle working during the day/evening and still being a good stay at home Mom!!
And now the month of August is nearly 1/2 over! We still have our last camping trip of the year coming up + many more fun summer days :)
I hope you're having a great summer!!
xo
Tracy
