Our Year in Pictures
Since it’s been really tough to see people over the last year, and we don’t often post to FaceBook, we thought you might like to see our year in pictures. Click on each one to see what all we got up to.
– The Sweets
Our Backyard
Our neighbourhood is filled with kids. Charlotte loves to play with her friends along the paths, and especially in our yard.
Halloween Party
Charlotte’s about to “bob for doughnuts” at her friend’s place across the street.
Halloween Parade
Charlotte’s school normally has a parade for the seniors who live across the street. This year, they had their parade outside due to COVID-19.
Rock Climbing
Here, Charlotte and I are rock climbing together at the local indoor gym.
Massey’s Ready of Halloween
Charlotte likes dressing Massey up sometimes. Massey has given up on fighting it.
French Class
Ness took French lessons this year. Here are some tricky phrases that we needed Grand Memere’s help with.
Charlotte and Thomas
This fall we went to get some family pictures taken in Windsor, NS. Charlotte is in the background, with her cousin Thomas running toward the camera.
So many snuggles!
Charlotte’s bed normally has at least one dog in it. Here, Alex and Meredith’s dog Duncan is in on the fun, too.
Family day in Milford
Here we are in our natural habitat, lounging in Milford with the Versteegs.
Mere and the pups
Meredith and Alex moved in with us earlier this year. Here’s Mere with Massey and her dog Duncan.
Sleepy time
It’s rare these days for Charlotte to sleep on her own. After years of kicking Massey off our bed, she’s finally found somewhere her presence is more appreciated.
Gratitude in Cape Breton
Our trip through the Cabot Trail included a stay at our friend Leone’s cottage. Here’s Charlotte writing a thank you note at the end.
Pat and Charlotte in Cape Breton
Here’s Charlotte and I in one of my favourite pictures of us. We took this on a pit stop during our trip around the Cabot Trail this fall.
Charlotte Looking at her Shoe
Here we are at the end of the Skyline Trail along the Cabot Trail – one of the most picturesque places on Earth – and Charlotte is checking out the bottom of her shoe. What a kid.
The Sweets on the Cabot Trail
Pausing for a selfie along the Cabot Trail
Dog at the Mabou River Inn
Winnie, the Official Mabou River Inn Mascot, keeping a very close eye on a squirrel.
Watching for Seals on Brier Island
We visited the far west side of Nova Scotia this year, too – Brier Island. Here’s Ness and Charlotte keeping an eye our for seals.
Selfie on Brier Island
Taking a quick snap while out for a walk on Brier Island.
Brier Island Hike
We took a long walk to see what we could find along the coast. Charlotte was a champ that day and put in some real miles.
B&B on Brier Island
The owner of our B&B also had a small farm. Here’s Charlotte feeding the chickens some scraps from breakfast (They LOVE watermelon).
Charlotte and the Micro-horse
Charlotte loves cute things, like this very tiny horse.
Volvo Flat Take 1
Our new Volvo just did NOT want to end our road trip to Moncton. This is the beginning of what would be a *very* long last day in town.
Visiting the Moncton Sweets
Charlotte cuddled up with Uncle Troy, probably watching Frozen. And yes, Uncle Troy is having a good time here.
Podcast Relaunch
I relaunched my Engineering & Leadership podcast this year, which has been a blast. Here’s the basic set up.
Signage to remind Staverts to Quarantine
When Vanessa’s sister and brother-in-law moved back from Ontario, they had to quarantine for two weeks in the Versteegs’ trailer. We put up signage to remind them what to do.
Decorating for the Staverts’ Return
We decorated the trailer where Alex and Meredith would be spending their quarantine after returning to NS. I’m sure they loved that…
The end of a Camping Trip
We’re canoeing back to shore after a great backwoods camping trip in Kejimkujik National Park with our friends the Janzens.
Charlotte’s Camping Buddy
Charlotte and her friend Kaia caught a frog while camping. That poor frog got more attention that day than any frog should ever get.
Campfire at Keji
The end of a beautiful day of camping in the Keji backwoods.
The Girls
Charlotte and Vanessa posing by the canoe while camping at Keji. This is one of my favourite pictures of them ever.
Packing the Canoe
Charlotte letting us know we’re ready to paddle out to our campsite.
Pat and Vanessa Ride Bikes
We spend a lot of time riding this summer, including doing the beautiful (and hilly!) Aspotogan Loop for the first time.
Vanessa’s Flowers
One of Ness’ favourite things to do is work her flower beds. She had more time this year than usual, so she went all out.
More of Vanessa’s Flowers
A view of the large flower bed in the backyard.
Even MORE of Vanessa’s Flowers
Ness really went to town on the flowers this year, and they turned out great.
Backyard Fun
Charlotte, Frantiska, Maddy, her brother Daniel, THEIR babysitters and the dog in the yard. That’s basically how the yard looks all summer, and it’s great.
Charlotte and Kaia
Just a couple of kids having a meal on the deck. Kaia stayed over for a backyard camping sleepover, which was a lot of fun.
A Visit from Ms. Meagher
Charlotte got a visit from her Grade Primary teacher, Ms. Meagher at the end of the year, since school had be done virtually from March onward.
Studying for an Exam
This year, Pat wrote is Project Management Professional exam. This is his desk, complete with a “Stop” to remind Charlotte that Daddy was trying to focus. (I passed! Yay!)
Vanessa Working Hard
Vanessa working on her final project for her masters with Charlotte sneaking in some snuggles.
Charlotte being a Kid
Charlotte in her swimsuit riding a bike. Hellooooo summer!
Watch out for science!
Charlotte doing experiments with Vanessa in the kitchen on a typical weekend morning.
Massey getting a checkup
Charlotte checking Massey to make sure she doesn’t have COVID-19.
Zoom Yoga
Charlotte’s school did a great job with online learning this year, including virtual gym class.
Charlotte learning to ride
Charlotte learned to ride her bike without training wheels this summer. Didn’t take long before we had to work to keep up with her.
Zoom calls with Friends
Charlotte and her friend Eilidh catching up after not seeing one another in person for a while.
Running with Massey
Charlotte taking Massey out for a run on the paths in our neighbourhood.
Trimming the hedge
My favourite time of the year – hedge trimming! And yes… I’m sitting IN the hedge.
Zoom Class
Charlotte got *very* digitally savvy for school this year.
Bare Shelves in Hawaii
Toward the end of our trip to Hawaii, store shelves were already being ransacked as people stocked up on whatever they could find.
Charlotte posing in Hawaii
This statue in our resort fascinated Charlotte. Think she’s got the look down?
Charlotte in a Submarine
We’re not far from the surface, but the world looks very different from a submarine. Charlotte’s having a blast.
Butterscotch
The resort in Hawaii had a bird named Butterscotch. Here he is hanging out with the girls.
Charlotte and Ness in Hawaii
Here the girls are standing in front of a lava field.
Volcanic Crater
We hiked down to a giant crater in Volcanos National Park in Hawaii. It felt like we were in a different world.
Swimming at the Resort
Our Hawaiian vacation included our own private beach, complete with sea turtles that would visit from time to time.
Beautiful sunset
It’s hard to imagine that we were enjoying a vacation away just as COVID-19 was really starting to take hold on the world stage.
Our new car!
We decided to replace the Kia Sportage with a Volvo. We love the car… though the tires have caused us some trouble!
Poor Kia
Our beloved Kia Sportage was in a bit of a fender bender, leading us to say goodbye.
Home Brew
I started experimenting with making beer this year. For the most part, it’s turned out really well!
Rock climbing
Charlotte’s not unlike her dad in that she’s a pretty active kid. This year, we discovered a more productive way to channel that energy.
Rock climbing
Charlotte’s actually really good at this! She eventually climbed a 75′ run – the tallest indoor climb in Nova Scotia.
Hi, Rosie!
The Brooke Family brought a new addition to the clan. This is our first niece, Rosie.
Interesting Sand Sculpture
On a trip to Cape Breton, Charlotte fashioned this… interesting sculpture in the sand.
Annual Milkshake at The Armview
In what is now an annual tradition, Charlotte gets a milkshake at the end of the first day of school at The Armview, one of our favourite local restaurants.
First Day of School
Here’s Charlotte in her school uniform on the first day of Grade 1.
Visiting the Zoo
We stopped in at the Oaklawn Farm Zoo and saw some pretty impressive sunflowers.
Very loose tooth
It is so. Close. Charlotte spent more time wiggling this thing than I can explain.
Two down…
Charlotte lost her first two teeth this year. As you might imagine, this was a big deal here at the Sweets’.
Charlotte and Pat on the Deck
This is my favourite picture of Charlotte and I. We’re just goofing around on the deck.
Charlotte Walking on Water
Charlotte, feeling extremely zen while camping.
Charlotte and Maddy
Maddy lives right across the street from us. She and Charlotte are together constantly. This was taken moments after climbing a tree in their yard.
End of Grade Primary
Charlotte was given the “Peacock” award at the end of her first year in Sacred Heart.
Charlotte and Massey
Charlotte with Massey in Charlotte’s summer hat.
Massey is Cool
Charlotte loves to dress Massey up. Massey doesn’t even bother to fight it anymore. Sometimes it turns out really well!
Vanessa Modelling PPE
Vanessa tried sewing some home-made PPE for work. Nobody expected how fashionable it would be.
Chebecto Rd. Quiet at Rush Hour
At the beginning of COVID, it was pretty shocking to see how quiet the world got. This is one of the city’s busier streets at rush hour.
Racing Stripes
Being on lockdown gives you (or in this case, your wife) to get creative… I didn’t end up sticking with this look in the end.
Dutch Babies
A simple pancake-like recipe that Vanessa dug out early in COVID.
Vanessa’s Ready
This was in the early days of COIVD and Ness was testing different PPE. It’s a good look!
Doodles on the plane
One of Charlotte’s favourite things to do is colour. Here she is passing the time doodling on the flight to Hawaii.
Swimming Lessons
Charlotte at the end of swimming lessons. This weekend she had responsibility for the class “pets”, some stuffed sea turtles.
Snowman
Charlotte and I making a giant snow man at the very beginning of 2020.