The Orchard

Sledding Fun...For Now

2012-01-29T21:22:00.004-05:00

The kids and I spent about an hour-and-a-half shoveling and lugging snow this morning. Heather, in particular, worked hard alongside me to prepare our backyard sled run.

We make a sled run every year, but have not had much snow so far this year. Today was our lucky day!

Heather helped pile snow from
the driveway into the big shovel...

...and I then lugged it to the backyard.

Addie helped bank up the snow all the way down.

Here she goes!

Whee!

It was so great to see our kids and the neighbours playing on the sled run several times throughout the day. The temperatures are supposed to rise (again!) in a few days and there is rain in the forecast (again!). I don't think the sled run will last for much longer.

Way To Go!

2012-01-28T21:09:00.004-05:00

Heather has been in Brownies since September and we finally got around to sewing the badges on her scarf! And by "we" I mean Jeff. Sewing - not my strong suit! Not at all. Which is why you see Jeff at the machine and not me.

Jeff helped her get started and stayed with her to help when she needed it. But for the most part, Heather sewed all the badges on by herself. A few more badges and Heather will be good enough to teach me!

Soo cute!

That is one proud smile!

Beach Day

2012-01-27T08:25:00.004-05:00

There's another theme day at school today: Beach Day!

Ah, what a great day to wear shorts, tank tops, flip flops, and bathing suits to school!

See the snow coming down behind them?

Lauchy sidled into the photo -
Addie is not impressed!

Heather is going to do a small change mid-way
through the day - from sun hat to flower! Ooh la la!

See what I mean? A perfect day to wear summer clothing! :)

It is hard to get a good shot of the snow, but it has
been coming down since about 6 a.m. this morning!

Shhhh...

2012-01-26T21:20:00.003-05:00

I have a secret. Every night before bed I go into Heather's room, I make sure she is covered, and kiss her on the cheek. Then I do the same thing to Addie.

When I get to Lauchy, however, I make sure he is covered, lean over and I kiss him. And then I kiss him again. And again. And again. Smooch, smooch, smooch, smooch - all over his warm, soft, squishy cheek!

Lauchy is actually in our bed here.

Look at that cheek! Doesn't it look scrumptious! He has no idea that I kiss him. He never even budges!

Don't get me wrong, I love kissing the girls, too. But sadly, their cheeks aren't squishy anymore! I am just trying to take full advantage of Lauchy's cheeks before they start to get thinner. It will be a sad day when his juicy cheeks are gone!

Do You Like Books?

2012-01-26T20:04:00.002-05:00

I like books, too. Would you like a chance to win one? Go to my friend Carrie's blog for a chance to win a signed copy of her book Hair Hat. You will also win the latest copy of The New Quarterly. Inside TNQ you will find a chapter from Carrie's soon-to-be-released book, The Juliet Stories.

All you have to do is leave a comment. Tomorrow is the deadline!

While you're at it, Carrie's husband launched a website to make The Juliet Stories a bestseller. Can you help? Go to this page for more details! You can win some prizes there, too!

No Reading Challenge Badge For Me!

2012-01-23T06:00:00.001-05:00

On December 7th, I got this e-mail from Goodreads:

You have read 30 books toward your goal of 52 books (58%).

If you haven't yet completed your challenge, don't worry—you're in good company. Goodreads members optimistically pledged to read 10 million books in 2011. So far we've finished 4 million with an average of 27 books per reader. Impressive numbers, but there's still time to read more in December. So here's your gentle reminder.

If you reach your target, you will get a special 2011 Reading Challenge badge for your Goodreads profile!

*********************

Unfortunately, I did not earn my 2011 Reading Challenge badge from Goodreads, but as I have said all along, I am not surprised! I gave it a good shot, but came up short by 22 books (ouch!). Here are the books that I did manage to read in 2011:

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson
Committed - Elizabeth Gilbert
The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson
Her Fearful Symmetry - Audrey Niffenegger
The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson
Room - Emma Donoghue
The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels To Tractor Wheels - Ree Drummond
How To Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk - Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish
The Notebook - Nicholas Sparks
Tuesdays With Morrie - Mitch Albom
This Cake is For the Party - Sarah Selecky
Secret Daughter - Shilpi Somaya Gowda
Light on Snow - Anita Shreve
Summer Sisters - Judy Blume
The Mother-Daughter Project - SuEllen Hamkins
The Plain Truth - Jodi Picoult
Motherless Mothers - Hope Edelman
Three Cups of Tea - Greg Mortenson
The Help - Kathryn Stockett
The Glass Castle - Jeannette Walls
Unbearable Lightness - Portia deRossi
The Hour I First Believed - Wally Lamb
Half Broke Horses - Jeannette Walls
Water For Elephants - Sara Gruen
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Annie Barrows
Hair Hat - Carrie Snyder
I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced - Nujood Ali
Sarah's Key - Tatiana deRosnay
The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards

And here is the book that did me in:

59 Seconds: Think a Little, Change a Lot - Richard Wiseman

This book is actually a fascinating and interesting book, but every time I went to read it, I only managed to get through a few pages at a time. When I read fiction, especially fiction that I love, I think about the book throughout the day and can't wait to get back to it at night. I often read for the entire evening and not just once I am in bed. When I read non-fiction, however, even if I enjoy the content, I just can't get through it the same way! It takes me forever.

I have to remind myself that I started reading 59 Seconds right around the time that I started swimming and spinning, which meant I was suddenly getting up really early 4 mornings/week. The first few months when I went to bed at night I could barely get through a paragraph before I had to close the book.

Those are the books I read in 2011. I am thinking about doing the challenge again this year, but reading 40 books rather than 52. Actually, even if I read more than 30 books I will be happy, but 40 is that much closer to 52. I am also considering NOT reading any non-fiction books this time around, except that I already have 2 that I am interested in reading: The 5 Love Languages of Children, and the Steve Jobs biography. I am currently reading 3 Day Road by Joseph Boyden and would like to read We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver.

I am always happy to hear other book recommendations.

One More Time

2012-01-22T18:53:00.005-05:00

We went sledding one more time, this time to a bigger hill. The temperature is expected to go up to 8 degrees Celsius tomorrow and it is supposed to rain. All day. I am guessing that the toboggan hill will not be up to snuff within a few days!

***************
On another note, please go to my friend Carrie's blog and check out her giveaway. You could win a signed copy of her first book Hair Hat, as well as the latest issue of The New Quarterly. Inside TNQ you will find a chapter from Carrie's latest book, The Juliet Stories!

I should mention that you don't have to have your own blog to enter the giveaway. There is an option to leave a comment as "anonymous". Just make sure that you leave your contact info if that is the case!

A Giveaway!

2012-01-21T17:48:00.005-05:00

I have mentioned my friend Carrie's upcoming book a few times already, but I would like to draw your attention to a giveaway that she is having on her blog.

So, even though this will likely lessen my chances of winning (sigh), I would love it if you would go over to Carrie's blog and enter for a chance to win. If your name is chosen, you will win a copy of the latest issue of The New Quarterly AND you will also win a signed copy of Carrie's first book, Hair Hat!

If you read through a few of Carrie's blog posts, you'll see what an amazing writer she is. I often say to Jeff that even though Carrie and I both write about similar things, Carrie's blog posts always sound so much better! She has a beautiful way of conveying her thoughts and feelings and I always look forward to hearing what Carrie has to say.

Here is the link to the giveaway! Go there. Now. Go on!

Finally!

2012-01-21T17:24:00.006-05:00

There was finally enough snow for us to hit the toboggan hill this afternoon! It was so much fun!

My brave girls! I would hurt my back if I attempted this!
Note Addie's octopus hat - it cracks me up!

A big clump coming down the hill!

*************

Lauchy ended his day playing with his diggers.

Cookies!

2012-01-20T11:52:00.002-05:00

I love this cookie recipe! The cookies below are just made with store-bought whipped icing that we added food colouring to. We often use the royal icing recipe though.

The Hallway

2012-01-19T12:36:00.003-05:00

I love it when I go upstairs to bed and come across interesting things that my kids do. Long after they should be asleep, they make things, clean their rooms, set-up their animals...who knows! Heather, in particular, seems to spend a lot of time doing things.

Here is the latest, found outside her room:

things that you can take

I took the pizza and cookie cut-out. Addie scored the Chipits bag,
which although empty, smells delicious on the inside! Lucky!

mail Box
look down
only nice nots
fliyers alaoud

Heather is much more tolerant with the things that go in her mailbox than I am with my mailbox! Remember the note on my mailbox? Not as tolerant!

In The Mail

2012-01-19T12:08:00.004-05:00

I am in the process of getting a "Letter Writing Centre" set-up for the girls, but have yet to find a permanent place to put everything.

I was inspired by the Playful Learning blog and book, and then I happened to notice that Pink and Green Mama did something similar a few days ago. We currently have most of our supplies in baskets so I brought the baskets out last weekend. I wanted the girls to write cards to family and pen pals. Both girls got special note cards for Christmas and they used up most of them at once! I got "H" and "A" note cards from Michael's in the $1 bins. That is a fantastic place to get letter writing supplies - always so inexpensive (the $1 bins, I mean, not the rest of the store)!

Letter writing in progress.

I got those colourful note cards from Talize.
Again, they were really inexpensive!

A bunch of cards ready to go, complete with LOTS of stickers!

I finally got a chance to mail everything a few days ago.
Hmmm....I wonder where the letters are headed?

I would still like to set-up an area that has the paper, note cards, stamps and address labels all ready to go so that the girls are inspired to write to people more often. Perhaps that will be my goal this weekend.

I will post again once I have a permanent centre up and running.

Dead Man Car

2012-01-16T12:00:00.001-05:00

Lauchlan was wheeling around this cute little contraption yesterday.

Notice the man lying on the back? "Look at this mom - this is my dead man car".

AKA a hearse?

I don't know if I should be impressed or horrified by his imagination!

Organization Station

2012-01-16T08:00:00.000-05:00

We finally got something set-up in the foyer for the kids and their home reading books, library books, agendas, and other school-related paperwork.

For the past few years I have been the one responsible for ensuring that everything gets put into backpacks in the morning and then taken out at the end of the day. Every single time I did that job, I would think to myself, Why am I doing this? What am I teaching the kids by doing this job for them? But I wanted to find something that would make it easy for the kids to be organized but I couldn't find anything suitable.

A few weeks ago I stumbled upon an organizational store called Solutions and they had exactly what I was looking for. I found a magazine rack that was sturdy enough to hold books and agendas, and that had one section for each kid.

Voila!

We also put up a small bulletin board for the school calendars. Now the kids can just look on the calendar themselves to figure out what is going on at school each day.

Heather in particular is very keen on this new system and on Friday after school she immediately put her agenda and home reading in the mesh basket, put her lunch bag and water bottle on the counter, and hung up her backpack.

We hope that this will become a regular routine where after school the girls put their items in the baskets. In the evening Jeff or I will sign the agenda, look in the folder and then put the items back into the baskets. It will be up to the girls to get the items from the baskets back into their backpacks before leaving for school.

Maybe the next project on the to-do list
could be sand and paint over drywall mud...

Now there is one less thing that I have to do and one more way for the girls to be more independent and responsible.

Let's hope this new system works.

Airborne Trampoline

2012-01-15T20:50:00.005-05:00

I took the kids to Airborne Trampoline today. They LOVED it!

Henna Hands & Masks

2012-01-15T00:28:00.006-05:00

Here are a few other easy art activities that we did from the 1000 Things to Make and Do book.

First up: Henna Hands

Addie

Josh

Heather

Lauchy's version!

My hand in progress.
I'm not going to lie - I loved doing this activity.

Book sample

Next up: Masks

The kids also used the same book to make masks. The mask samples in the book are even more elaborate than these ones, but these ones were quick to make. Perhaps we will add more details (sequins, tissue paper) another time.

Dotted Painting

2012-01-15T00:15:00.003-05:00

Here is a quick and easy art activity to do. All you need is:

black paper
white crayon or pencil crayon
paint
cotton swabs

The idea is from 1000 Things to Make and Do. There are a ton of great ideas in this book!

As usual, I think I enjoyed this activity more than the kids (see snake and turtle above). I finally had to stop so that I could tend to other things like lunch and laundry! But I would love to do this activity again!

Entrance Addie Coming

2012-01-14T18:47:00.006-05:00

The other day I heard Lauchy say, "Entrance Addie coming", and this is what I saw:

So cute. I love it when they dress up. Addie asked me if they could re-do the entrance so that I could video it. Here is the video below...

Addie told Lauchy to say his name was "Franklin" but he said "Frankin" instead.
**************************

Yesterday, Heather emerged from the attic looking like this:

I think the wig and hat actually kind of suit her. She looks tres chic!

Latest Song Obsession

2012-01-13T13:42:00.004-05:00

I haven't found the time to post anything in the past few days. I hope to post something later.

In the mean time, here is my latest Mumford obsession (there doesn't appear to be an "official" video for this song yet).

Hold On To What You Believe

After playing this song several times in a row, Heather finally looked up at me and said, "Why do you keep playing this song?". Because I LOVE it!

The Joy of Books

2012-01-11T07:16:00.005-05:00

Good old Facebook! Someone posted this video yesterday morning and when I first looked at it there was just 316 views. A few hours later there was just over 27,000 views. Last night at around 7:00 there had been 74, 000 views.

Now, there are over 307, 000 views. I can see why, though, as it is a really cool video!

Plus, this bookstore is in Toronto! Go Canada! :)

How Did I Do?

2012-01-10T09:02:00.004-05:00

I have been kind of dreading this post - the post where I look back to my "goals" of 2011 and see how I actually did. Here goes...

1. Be open to new things.

I think I did well with this goal. I read books I wouldn't normally read, and watched movies I wouldn't normally watch. I introduced myself to new people (something that scares me) and I ate bugs. Okay, the bugs were covered in chocolate, but still, I tried them. I tried eating a seafood appetizer that my sister made (I can't remember what it was). I went on a Ferris wheel and went out to a variety of shows with friends (Fred Penner, Kidstreet and The Rotten). I stepped out of my comfort zone for many of these activities and guess what? I had fun. Well, maybe the seafood thing wasn't that fun! I was hoping to try either hot air ballooning or zip lining, but didn't get to either. Maybe this year...

2. Try to see the positive in things.

This goal was kind of a fail. One thing about making goals is that you have to re-visit them every once in awhile. I sort of forgot to focus on this and sadly, I think I am still more of a "glass half-empty" person. This is something that I will continue to work on!

3. Find alternative forms of exercise.

I am pleased with the outcome of this goal. At the beginning of 2011 my only form of exercise (besides walking) was going to a spin class once a week. By the end of 2011 not only was I still attending my spin class, I was also running again and swimming, too. I also did some outdoor biking in preparation for a duathlon.

I am pleased to say that in 2012 I am still going strong with my exercise regime, getting up early 4 mornings a week to swim and spin, and running 3 times a week. That works out to 6 days/week of exercise. Once the weather improves I know that I will add a few outdoor bike sessions to the mix. It feels good to exercise again!

4. Read more, watch TV less.

I did fairly well with this goal. I managed to read 30 books (I will post about it soon) this year and although I regularly watched a few shows, I cut out a lot of my TV viewing. Survivor was the one show that I religiously watched. I tuned into The Amazing Race and Dancing with the Stars from time-to-time (often I forgot). The only other show that we watched on a regular basis was the Rick Mercer Report, a new favourite. I cut out Grey's Anatomy, Glee, The Office and 30 Rock.

5. Tackle my monstrous to-do list.

I think this is an impossible task due to the fact that it is ever-changing and always-growing. Some of the things I wanted to accomplish were purge the house (I managed to do a lot of that), finish Lauchlan's baby book & photo albums (fail), and finish sewing projects (fail). Ah well, lucky for me, those projects are still there!

Goals for this year? I honestly haven't thought much about it. I would like to do some more racing (running and triathlon), I would still like to read more books, I would like to continue making connections with friends, and I would like to continue doing more meaningful activities with my family. Fairly simple goals. That is what I want this year. Simplicity and connections.

Worth Dying For

2012-01-08T20:19:00.003-05:00

Have you seen this video yet? Wow. Just wow!

My Favourite Sister

2012-01-06T22:04:00.004-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TANIS!

I have to wish my favourite sister a very happy birthday! She is cute, fun, funny and an amazing auntie! The kids always ask about "Auntie Tan". That says a lot!

We love you and miss you! Hope you have a wonderful birthday!

(She's my only sister, too!)

The Other Day

2012-01-06T17:18:00.002-05:00

This is what Addie came downstairs wearing the other day. I love the cute and crazy outfits that she sometimes chooses!

I took the girls to a scrapbook store to make these little snowmen. You just need 2 pairs of socks, twine, buttons and rice.

Aren't they adorable? Just don't drop into boiling water!

Most Anticipated Book of the Season...

2012-01-05T20:44:00.005-05:00

I mentioned my friend Carrie's book last week. But look at this - according to Canadian Bookshelf it is one of the most anticipated books of the season!

Better order yours soon!

Cold Soap

2012-01-04T16:40:00.003-05:00

I mentioned yesterday how cold our place was. When I went to use the dish soap this morning I found it like this:

I think the soap is in the process of freezing. Even when the furnace is working properly, the cupboard where we keep the soap usually feels like an icebox. Our kitchen is one of the rooms in our house still in need of a renovation. The walls are lathe and plaster and there is no insulation. You can feel a draft coming from those cupboards when it is really cold out (like yesterday) and you will freeze your arm when you have to reach for something on the inside. I have never seen the dish soap look like that before, so I am wondering if it was a combination of the cold from the outside and from the inside.

It looks cool, though!

Chilly, Inside and Out!

2012-01-03T21:26:00.004-05:00

So far, this winter has been very un-winter-like! There has been a lot of rain, barely any snow, and temperatures above zero. I am not a huge fan of winter, but even I would be okay with some colder temps and some snow. The kids are eager to get out and build forts, make snowmen, and go skating and sledding!

Finally, the past few days we have had some snow and colder temperatures. Today has been the coldest day so far with a high of -13 degrees, -20 with the windchill. And wouldn't today also be the day that our furnace decides to stop working! Of course.

Thankfully we already had plans to go see a friend in the morning so while Jeff worked from home and awaited the repairman, the kids and I were warm elsewhere. The repairman was supposed to show up between 10 and 2. I love how they give a "generous" range of when we might expect to see them. By 1:30 Jeff had to go and teach so me and the kids waited and waited.

While we waited...

Poor Charlie looked for whatever scrap of sun he could find and stayed curled up in the smallest ball I have ever seen. I didn't know he could make himself so small!

We sat in front of the space heater and
played games most of the afternoon.

Lots of games!

There is still plenty of Christmas baking left, but
we made cookies anyways just to have the heat of the oven!

Games...

I threw this over Charlie thinking he would move...but he didn't!

...and more games!

Heather added another blanket and he still didn't move!

In the mean time, 2:00 comes and goes and there is no sign of the repairman. At 2:30 I called to see what was going on. The woman told me that if the repairman was not here by 3:00 to call back. By 3:00, another person called to say that the repairman was delayed but was coming soon. The man clarified, "this is just a service call, but the furnace is running, right". Uh...nope, the furnace is off and it is 13 degrees in here right now. Oh....

Another phone call from me (should I expect to see someone here today?!!!) and FINALLY, the repairman shows up at 4:55! So much for coming between the hours of 10-2! Nothing like Jeff and I staying home the entire day waiting around! Thankfully, all we needed was a new igniter and the problem was solved. Here it is now 9:12 and the furnace has not stopped running. It has taken over 4 hours to get the house temperature to 19 degrees, which is what we keep it at during the day. It won't be long now before the temperature starts to drop again for the night.

I am thankful that the problem was fairly easily solved, and I am grateful for the time I got to spend with the kids. It was a nice afternoon and we got to play with many of our games. The kids had a blast!

I am also glad that I can feel my toes now, too! :)

Gift Exchange

2012-01-02T21:41:00.005-05:00

I took the Christmas tree down today and took photos of these two ornaments before putting them away for the year.

Our first Christmas in our house Jeff and I started a tradition of exchanging ornaments. Each year I buy something for Jeff and he buys something for me. We have a nice collection of ornaments from the past 8 years. Here are the two we exchanged this year:

This is the one I gave Jeff.
A cat - what else is new!

This is the one Addie and Jeff picked for me! Cute!

I love this tradition!

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T21:23:00.002-05:00

On new year's eve we had a family dance party. The kids love it! For some reason Addie is not in any of the photos, but she was dancing up a storm too!

Later on that night, Jeff and I went out to not one, but two parties! We felt pretty lucky to be able to hang out with two groups of fantastic friends!

Happy New Year! I hope 2012 is spectacular!

The Juliet Stories

2011-12-29T00:15:00.000-05:00

My friend Carrie has a new book coming out in March. I am so looking forward to reading it and have already pre-ordered a copy. You can do the same! Go on, order a copy! Let's support our Canadian authors!

I read Carrie's other book Hair Hat and thought it was excellent. I have no doubt The Juliet Stories will be the same!

Click here to read more about the book.

Chickadees!

2011-12-28T23:16:00.004-05:00

This was fun!

Cats Vs. Treadmill

2011-12-28T14:09:00.001-05:00

And now for today's YouTube video installment.

May I present: Cats Vs. Treadmill!

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

2011-12-27T20:31:00.003-05:00

Finally!

Boxing Day Purge Fest!

2011-12-26T16:11:00.000-05:00

I did a BIG sort, purge, and clean in the girls rooms today. I was so proud of them for being willing to get rid of so much stuff! If it was broken, it was tossed. If it was not played with very much, gone! I even convinced Addie to part with a few of her stuffed animals. She did very well! I wish I had remembered to take a photo of the pile of garbage and recycling that was in the hallway when we were done. It was big and very satisfying!

Addie's room during the big clean!

Heather's room during the big clean!

We rearranged Heather's furniture, too. It was a good thing!
I think there were some living creatures under her bed!

The baseboards are all sparkling clean now! Phew!

The after photos! There is even sunlight on the bed!

Way to go girls! I am proud of your hard work in your rooms!

Christmas Day

2011-12-25T15:46:00.000-05:00

We had a lovely Christmas. One of our best ones yet, even though poor little Addie threw up in the middle of the night. I thought it was from too much rich food the night before, but she vomited again in the early afternoon. I took Heather and Lauchy with me to a wonderful Christmas dinner with friends. It was weird not having Jeff and Addie there, but Jeff did still get a plate of delicious dinner!

This was just before Addie threw up the second time!

One More Sleep...

2011-12-24T22:21:00.003-05:00

It was a good day today.

We went skating.

A tradition from my childhood -
opening one gift on Christmas eve.

Treats for Santa and the reindeer.

Stockings are hung, or in this case, laid out on the floor!

I hope Santa is good to you!

Merry Christmas!

Jigsaw Ornament

2011-12-23T21:50:00.001-05:00

Do you have a jigsaw puzzle with missing pieces? Don't throw it out! Or at least don't throw all of it out. You can make some cute crafts with the pieces, like this ornament.

See below:

This was another craft I did with the kids in my grade 1 class, years and years ago!

**********************

I looked on Pinterest and found a bunch of other neat things to do with jigsaw puzzle pieces.

Source: google.com.au via Jessie on Pinterest

Source: freshlyfound.blogspot.com via Cary on Pinterest

Source: lessonplans.craftgossip.com via Ildiko on Pinterest

Source: zibbet.com via Frauke on Pinterest

Source: creationsbysheryl.blogspot.com via Maggie on Pinterest

Source: creationsbysheryl.blogspot.com via Tiffany on Pinterest

Source: ucreatewithkids.com via Nancy on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Katie on Pinterest

See? I told you not to throw those pieces out!

Christmas Cards

2011-12-23T19:17:00.006-05:00

A few weeks ago we made Santa cards and got a start on another kind of card. We finally finished the cards to give to the teachers (nothing like a deadline to make us hurry).

Step 1:
Glue down strips of magazine in rows.

We used Mod Podge on top to seal it all together.

Step 2:
After the paper is thoroughly dry, cut out
circles of various sizes and glue down on blank cards.

Step 3:
Add details like string and ribbon.

Voila!

We made these cards for the teachers and then added the following note: In lieu of Christmas gifts, $40 was donated to Empire to be used for French reading materials for Immersion and Core French classes.

I was so relieved when we were sent an e-mail a few weeks ago about gifts for teachers. I certainly want to acknowledge the great job that the teachers do, but to buy 5 gifts (including one for Lauchy's teacher) really starts to add up. When I was teaching eons ago, I always appreciated the gifts that I was given, but I didn't always need them. I think this is a nice compromise. The school (and teachers and students) will benefit from the books and the teachers are not getting a bunch of things that they might not need.

BTW, I got the idea for this card from the Dilly-Dally Art blog. Cute, hey?

Just Ducky

2011-12-22T17:30:00.001-05:00

While on our walk today, we stopped to admire the ducks in the water. They were all sleeping until we came along but as soon as they saw us they started swimming around in the hopes of receiving some food. Before I knew it, duck after duck came flying towards us, moving away from us at the last second and landing on the ground.

We stood for a long time, hoping to
get some photos of ducks in flight.

It was a lot harder than I thought!

Here comes another one!

So handsome!

1924 - It Was A Good Year!

2011-12-21T16:30:00.001-05:00

Why, you ask?

Because William (Cal) McLean was born then. How lucky we all are!

Happy birthday to a very special man!

He's one cool cat!

Happy birthday Poppa! We love you and miss you every day!

Window Art

2011-12-21T15:54:00.000-05:00

The kids loved this easy advent activity. I bought this on-sale last year to do as an advent activity last year but we never had time for it. I am so glad that we pulled it out today. The girls loved doing it!

Advent Catch-Up

2011-12-20T21:27:00.002-05:00

I feel like I am getting nothing done these days and there has been no time to post anything either! Here are a few of the 25 Days of Christmas activities that we have done lately:

I found this box of cards at our favourite toy shop and thought it would be a perfect activity for dinner time.

When this card came up, Jeff and I loved Heather's answer. She said, "The Medium List" because when she is at school she is nice, but when she is at home she is sometimes mean to the rest of us. I thought that was a very accurate answer, indeed! At least she is honest and she sure does know herself well!

My Christmas wish is that there is no more hunger in the world. I wonder if that will ever happen?

We also did a family jigsaw puzzle on one of the days. Actually, we finished the puzzle below so quickly that we ended up pulling out a 500 piece puzzle which is still on the dining room table. Must finish that soon!

I made one of these fairy dolls as a gift for one of Lauchy's friends and just as I suspected, the girls wanted me to make them some, too. On the weekend I made a bunch for the girls and for their friends. I got the idea from the Twig and Toadstool website.

Last night our activity was to walk uptown for some hot chocolate and a cookie. Lauchy refused to have his photo taken.

Handsome hubby!

Me and my girls!

We brought along our Christmas box
of questions and played a few rounds.

A few of our other activities have been:

make snowflakes (still haven't actually done this)
have a bubble bath and do nails
make a gingerbread house

I bought the first gingerbread kit from a discount store only to discover that it was almost a year old. The coconut snow was a grayish-yellow and the gingerbread itself had a rancid smell to it. Not good. Lauchy and I hoofed it to another store to pick up another kit for after school. It still wasn't the greatest kit but the kids loved doing it.

I have a great gingerbread recipe and I have always wanted to try making our own pieces for a gingerbread house. Hmmm....maybe that will be a perfect activity to try next year when the kids are a little bit older.

What have you been up to lately?

My Drummer Boy

2011-12-20T17:03:00.005-05:00

Sunday morning I asked Lauchlan to choose some clothes to wear to the potluck lunch we were going to. He came downstairs wearing shorts and a long-sleeved shirt. We told him that he was going to be cold but he still wanted to wear the shorts. Off we went to the party and he kept his shorts on the whole time.

Once we got home I sent the kids outside to play. Not only did Lauchlan refuse to put on snow pants, he also continued to wear his shorts.

I made a comment to myself about it - something like - "I can't believe he is wearing shorts." and Addie told me that he wanted to be like the drummer boy. "Who?" I wondered. Addie said, "You know, the little drummer boy from the video."

Ah, that makes sense. Lauchlan is absolutely obsessed with this video and with the guy in the shorts.

I posted this once before, but I will post it again!

Friday Night Party!

2011-12-17T09:14:00.007-05:00

The girls and I went to a kit packing party on Friday night for the Mennonite Central Committee. They LOVED it and are eager to do it again!

There were approximately 24 volunteers there, including Heather, Addie, their friend C, and about 4 other kids. The kits that we packed were school kits which include 4 notebooks, 4 pencils, pencil crayons, an eraser and a ruler. All of the items are packed in a particular way and then put into a handmade cloth bag.

My job was to get a bag, put the first notebook on top, place a ruler inside the notebook and then add the 3 other notebooks on top of that. I then passed it to Addie who added pencil crayons, she passed to Heather who added an eraser and down the line it went.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much the girls enjoyed it. I wondered if once we were there they would find it boring or tiring but not at all. They were enthusiastic and cheerful and loved packing the kits. The organizers thought it would take us 2 hours to pack 500 kits, but everyone was so efficient that we were done in just 40 minutes. The organizers said that next year they will get enough supplies to pack 1,000 kits. We will go again for sure next year!

Before we went I told the girls what we would be packing and that some children in another country were going to be so thrilled to receive this package. I was really trying to get across to the girls that we have an abundance of these items in our house right now - lots of notebooks, and a ton of pencils and pencil crayons at their disposal all the time. I wanted them to understand just how lucky they are and what we have access to all the time. I think what really helped was showing them this page here and the girls on it with their kits.

I am hoping that there will be many more volunteer opportunities for me and the kids in the future. I am open to suggestions of places to take kids to volunteer. Any ideas?

Prunes, Prunes, The Magical Fruit?

2011-12-16T16:39:00.003-05:00

I sure hope so! Here's hoping that:

this

plus this

equals no more of this! Poor kid!

It has been a shitty few days around here. Literally. Lauchlan ran out of diapers about 5 days ago and we decided that was the end of them. It has been several days of accidents, tears, screaming, and thankfully, successful trips to the washroom, too. Lauchlan has not been wearing diapers during the day for several months and has been independently going to the bathroom to pee. However, he has also been holding in his poop and saving it for bedtime when we put a diaper on him. So, when we discovered one evening that the diapers had run out it was a blessing in disguise. It has been a rough few days, but getting better. I am hoping that the "chocolate" yogurt works and makes it easier. Poor little guy. I admire the kids who just "get it" and can go to the bathroom easily after the first try. Must be nice. Back to the laundry I go!

Isn't this a lovely post to get your weekend started?! :)

You're welcome!

It Worked!

2011-12-16T13:17:00.002-05:00

I am not a big fan of junk mail in my mailbox. It is such a waste and it always goes straight into the recycling box. For awhile I had a small "No Flyers" sign on the mailbox but it seemed like it wasn't working anymore.

Yesterday I noticed a sign on another mailbox and I loved the message. I made up my own last night and put it on before the Penny Saver carrier came along.

Sure enough, it worked! There was no Penny Saver left in the box last night. Finally!

I hope that the sign continues to work!

Bring On Winter!

2011-12-15T21:42:00.003-05:00

This little fella sat on our stroller for quite some time today. He (she?) spends a lot of time on our porch, often on the table peering in. At this time it was pouring rain so I am guessing the squirrel was trying to stay dry.

I think it would be fair to say that this particular squirrel is ready for winter. What do you think?

Cut the feed!

Please let me in - I am freezing!

Change For A Dollar

2011-12-14T23:14:00.000-05:00

This had me in tears.

Holiday Cards

2011-12-14T22:05:00.005-05:00

A few days ago our 25 Days of Christmas activity was to make cards. I found a sample of a card my grade 1 class made years ago and decided we would make the same one.

I had a bag of pre-cut paper in the shed so this was very easy to do.

We let the cards dry for a few days and then finished them up last night. Hmmm....I wonder who is getting these ones?

Or this card?

*******************

Here is another set we have been working on.

Stay tuned for details!

Beady Advent

2011-12-13T21:35:00.005-05:00

I had to choose another quick and easy advent activity today, so we did an activity similar to the one Addie did at the KW Art Gallery a few weeks ago.

Beads + pipe cleaners =

some more decorations for the tree!

I think these are so cute and are an easy

gift for the kids to make for someone else.

Even Lauchy had no trouble doing this activity.
Here is the ornament that he made:

Easy and fun!

Little Drummer Boy

2011-12-11T22:20:00.001-05:00

I'm lovin' the YouTube!

Uptown Skating!

2011-12-11T13:20:00.001-05:00

The girls have been itching to go uptown to the outdoor skating rink. We finally managed to make our way there yesterday.

A quick stop here to get our skates sharpened
and to get another pair for Heather (when
do their feet stop growing?!)

All smiles (except for Lauchy in the background!).

Back away from the kid, Santa!

I think he needs a drink!

Warming up while watching
Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer.

While I was helping Lauchy on the ice we were photographed by someone from the Waterloo Chronicle. She took our names down so it is possible that we will be in the Chronicle (again!). Ho hum!

Exactly One Year Ago...

2011-12-10T20:15:00.004-05:00

...I was hanging out with my good buddy Jim!

Ah Jim! He's good people!

Put Up The Christmas Tree!

2011-12-10T19:37:00.006-05:00

Our advent calendar activity today was to put up the Christmas tree. It is not that hard, since it is only a fake tree. One day we would like to go out and cut down a real tree, but for now, this is just so much easier! I like easy!

Lauchy helped out in this area...

...that is quite a collection of icicles in one location, Lauchy!

A few of our favourite ornaments:

I love how our tree looks at night!

Easy Advent!

2011-12-10T19:11:00.005-05:00

Friday's advent activity was to paint nails in Christmas colours. It is so easy to please my kids!

Addie

Heather

Lauchy

The girls got new outfits this year. I would say that 95% of their clothing is given to us by our neighbour or cousins, or I get from consignment shops. After much internal debate I decided to buy them each a new outfit. The gasps and squeals of delight made it worth it. Heather and Addie were soo excited with their new outfits. They wore them to Jeff's Christmas party last night and Addie told me that she and Heather got up in the middle of the night to put the outfits on again. They have been wearing them non-stop.

I remember getting a new outfit at Christmas time each year and we wore them on Christmas day and for Christmas dinner. Some of the outfits were real doozy's as I got older!

Crafty Advent

2011-12-09T18:33:00.002-05:00

We finished the craft that we started a few days ago. I think they look really cute and the kids always love using glitter glue and sequins!

Our next activity was to make paper chains. Given the limited amount of time we had after school, this was a quick and easy craft. I prepped all the strips ahead of time (I love my paper cutter!) and we used the glue dots that I got on sale last year.

Hmmm...now that I see Addie and Lauchy in their PJ's, I think we ended up bumping this to the next morning. The craft above took too much time.

Such an easy way to decorate the house. The kids could work on those chains all day!

Hallelujah Chorus

2011-12-08T13:37:00.000-05:00

Have you seen this yet? I love this kind of thing!

25 Days of Christmas

2011-12-07T16:23:00.003-05:00

I mentioned here that I am having to choose easier/shorter activities during the week. Yesterday's activity was to make a Christmas craft. I was thinking about getting the kids to make ornaments with beads and pipe cleaners (like Addie did here) but after school the older kids happily played in the snow for quite some time. By the time they came in and had their snack it was starting to get late.

Earlier in the day I had Lauchy and his friend stamp trees onto paper with the intention of decorating them later. I decided at the last minute to get the rest of the kids to stamp trees onto paper as well and we put them aside to dry. Tomorrow we will add details with cotton balls, glitter glue and glitter paint.

******************

Today after school is also busy so I chose an easy activity again.

Think of 10 things you are thankful for and post them where you can see them.

Here is what we came up with. We are thankful for:

clean water
healthy food
candy (that was Addie's - surprise, surprise)
sharing
getting presents on Christmas
family
friends
heat (our warm home)
education/going to school
mommy and daddy
my kids
books
clothing

Lego Boy

2011-12-07T14:14:00.006-05:00

My boy has a new favourite toy. Lego. He loves Lego! This is great news for us, because now we know what to buy him for Christmas. I like buying something that we can add onto and that is creative.

Here is what Lauchy's room looks like lately...

Lego creations in every nook and cranny,

at the end of his bed,

at the top of his bed,

and on the floor beside his bed.

I love it when my kids love a toy that is imaginative and that we enjoy playing with too!

***************

The Frizzifier

On a completely unrelated note, may I present you with Addie's hair!

This is what her hair typically looks like in the morning. She didn't actually get any hair until she was about 2, but since then it has been frizzed out in the morning. We always ask her if she was in the "Frizzifier" in the night!

I love that hair!

UNO

2011-12-07T12:51:00.004-05:00

Remember this game? I sure do! My brother and I played it a lot when we were kids. For some reason I can picture playing this game in the back of our station wagon so I am wondering if we played it when we drove from Manitoba to BC? Years later, I discovered that we had been playing it the wrong way. In fact, to this day I am not even sure what we were doing that was wrong. I just remember piling on the + 2's and +4's so much that we eventually couldn't hold all of our cards.

I just found an UNO game in our shed a few days ago and guess who loves it?

They do!

This is such a great game for kids this age! I am so glad that I found it amidst all the junk in the shed!

Family Sunday Fun!

2011-12-05T07:27:00.009-05:00

Yesterday was my day to do something special with Addie. I decided to take her to a free program that the KW Art Gallery has once a month. It is called "Family Sundays" and it is a drop-in program. Here is the description:

Spend the afternoon with friends and family exploring the world of art and creativity. Enjoy the exhibitions, make one-of-a-kind artwork, take part in drama workshops and listen to stories read by Kitchener Public Library staff.

If you have never gone to these activities before, I highly recommend that you go next time. I was so impressed with all of the activities! There were 4 crafts to do as well as an art hunt, story time, drama activities and a dance workshop. Addie was only interested in the crafts so we didn't see the drama or dance, but I was keen to check them out. Maybe next time.

Our first craft: Snow 'n Sew

We did the art hunt next, searching the gallery
for a work of art that is animated,
or has geometric lines and shapes, and so on.

We did the Miniature Winterscape after the art hunt.

Here are two of the sample winterscapes:

Josh and Addie with their completed winterscapes.

The last thing we did was the Sparkling Icicles craft.

The next Family Sunday is on Jauary 8th. I will go again for sure and take Heather next time as well. I know she will like it too!

***************************

It is going to be difficult to fit in all of our 25 Days of Christmas activities. The kids are so much busier now than they were last year that I am going to have to find easier/shorter activities for the week days. I also have 5 extra kids after school on Tuesday and Thursday and some of them don't get picked up until 5:00 or 5:30. That doesn't leave us much time in the evening to have dinner, make lunches, do home-reading or bathe, never mind fitting in a craft or outing.

Today is one of those busy days. Once I get the girls from school, we rush home, try to fit in home reading, head to the pool for swim lessons, rush home to eat dinner and then rush out to Lauchy's preschool Christmas party. I was trying to think of what we could do for our daily activity and Jeff suggested that the kids could buy some candy from the candy machines at the pool. Perfect. They are always asking us if they can get candy after swimming and we always say "no". Today is their lucky day!

Dress Fancy For Dinner

2011-12-04T23:03:00.003-05:00

Tonight we got fancied up for dinner. What I love best about this activity is that the kids are really into it. Especially the girls. When I told them that it was almost time to eat and that they should get their fancy clothing on, they were upstairs in a flash. They both chose their fancy outfits and did their hair. Heather shyly asked me if she could put on some of my lipstick and Addie put on some of her new birthday lip gloss. Lauchy didn't really seem as interested but he did wear his best pirate costume! Aar matey! Nothing like having a pirate at dinner!

I love this photo - I am sitting as tall as I can and
Jeff looks like he is shrinking. I am wearing a
bridesmaid dress from about 11 years ago!

Now you can see what the kids are wearing.
I love that they all have their own vision of how
to dress fancy.

Here is how we looked in 2010
(I can't believe how short my hair is!).

And this is us in 2009.

Jeff and I think we might do this once a month and go all out - fancy clothing, candles and wine glasses with apple juice. It was probably one of the easiest dinners that we have had in a long time. It is amazing what a fancy outfit can do!

Christkindl Market & Museum

2011-12-03T16:22:00.001-05:00

Our 25 Days of Christmas activity was to go to the Christkindl Market in Kitchener. I have always wanted to check it out and we were planning on going to The Museum for a free pancake breakfast anyways. The market is near the museum.

We enjoyed yummy pancakes for breakfast.

Then we looked at the new exhibit,
Rethinking Art & Machine.

This is my shadow on the garbage.

A close-up of the garbage pieces.

After we left The Museum we walked down the street to the Christkindl Market. My kids enjoyed looking at the trains, but that was about it. I didn't realize that it was only vendors selling their wares. It was busy and crowded so we didn't stay long.

Even though the kids were not crazy about the market, it was still a nice morning out.

Eat Dessert Before Dinner

2011-12-02T22:03:00.003-05:00

Our 25 Days of Christmas activity was to eat dessert before dinner. It was such a busy afternoon and then a busy evening that our activity turned out to be "eat dessert for dinner". I was hosting an activity here for Heather and some friends, and Jeff was rushing the other 2 kids out the door before the guests arrived. Heather and I just ate dessert while Jeff took the other 2 out for a bite after.

I don't think the kids minded one bit!

The Whiteboard Chronicles

2011-12-01T19:15:00.003-05:00

I have been finding little messages and drawings on the whiteboard in the basement. They are such a treasure!

This was on Addie's side of the board:

This was on Heather's side of the board:

I hope this tradition continues!

Write A Letter To Santa

2011-12-01T18:56:00.002-05:00

This morning, the kids awoke to
find the envelopes on the wall...

...and the Playmobil advent calendars, too.

They were very excited!

Our advent activity today
was to write a letter to Santa.

Both girls want Santa to bring them a magic wand. Hmmm....not sure if Santa can manage that gift! Yikes!

Getting Ready - 25 Days of Christmas

2011-11-30T19:15:00.005-05:00

I pulled out our advent calendar today and will spend tonight looking at my calendar and planning out activities.

Here is a list of some of the things we have done in the past.

Bring the Christmas books inside
Write a letter to Santa
Wear fancy clothes for dinner
Write & decorate Christmas cards
Put up the tree & decorate the house
Donate a toy or book
Host a tea party with friends
Go to Swiss Chalet for dinner
Spa experience - have a bubble bath & paint nails
Make paper chains for the tree
Make a list of things we are thankful for
Make a bird feeder for the birds
Eat dessert before dinner
Make snowflakes
Walk uptown for cookies & hot chocolate
Bake gingerbread cookies
Decorate cookies & give some to friends
Watch a Christmas movie together
Make candy cane play-doh
Go skating
Go sledding
Go for a drive to look at Christmas lights
Do a special Christmas craft
Make salt dough ornaments
Decorate ornaments
Have a friend over & decorate nails green and red
Have a family games night
Open one present on Christmas Eve

This year I might add some of these ideas:

Make fairies
Work on a jigsaw puzzle together
Make stain glass window art
Decorate gingerbread house
Make felt necklaces
Spend the day doing acts of kindness for others
See the lights in Victoria Park
Build a train track under the tree
Make a fort
Make a puppet show
Make rice krispie squares
Play pin the nose on the snowman
Go to the library and get books about Christmas
Take a night walk
Paint on snow with food color and squirt bottles
Paint a giant mural on the floor
Make a map on the floor
Family swim night
Make a book about Christmas

Wow! There are a lot of ideas now! I revisited the blog where I originally got this idea from. From that blog, I came across this blog where I got many of the ideas above. Obviously, we aren't going to get to all of the ideas listed above, but I like to have plenty in mind and then choose the ideas based on what our week ahead looks like.

I can't wait to get started!

Birthday Girl

2011-11-30T17:04:00.005-05:00

It was my birthday yesterday, too. I always say that my dad was lucky to have me born on his special day. Best present in the world! :)

I had such a lovely day, thanks to my family and friends spoiling me! Thanks everyone!

I came home from spinning to find Heather waiting
with some gifts (the other 2 were still asleep!).

A selection of the wonderful cards I received throughout the day.

Cute picture from Addie (there were many more).

Another one from Heather.

Sweet Addie gave me one of the gifts that she got
on her birthday from one of her teachers.

Jeff surprised me with a Skor Blizzard cake from DQ. YUM!

We enjoyed wine and chocolates later.
Thanks Grandma Anne for the chocolates!

Jeff treated me to breakfast this morning.

What a fabulous day!

Birthday Boy!

2011-11-29T13:06:00.006-05:00

Today is my dads birthday! I hope you had a great day dad! Love you lots!

Here are some photos of dad in the summer:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

I Love You Famle

2011-11-27T19:28:00.006-05:00

Aw...we love you too, Addie!

That's certainly an accurate portrayal
of how my neck & shoulders usually feel!

Bring Kleenex!

2011-11-26T23:47:00.002-05:00

Wow! I didn't have any Kleenex with me at this movie. Big mistake!

The Descendants

Slowly, But Surely

2011-11-25T13:34:00.005-05:00

I made some headway this morning on the purge/clean front. I started with two of the easiest spots in the house: the hall closet and Lauchlan's room (sorry, no "before" photos).

The hall closet is normally fairly organized, but lately it was becoming a dumping ground. I noticed that there were some baby blankets in there, along with some crib sheets that were ripped. I washed the blankets and tossed the sheets. We also keep a bin in the closet which houses our seasonal running gear. There was some paint spattered clothing in the bin and a few summer items that I never wore, so those got tossed or put in the charity shop bag.

Much better! There are Christmas presents
hidden under the red and white table clothes at top.

Wow! We can see the floor now!

Lauchlan's room was also fairly easy to organize. We recently moved all the Playmobil downstairs so all I needed to do was gather up the rest of the Playmobil and take downstairs. I looked through every drawer and took out all of the size 2 clothing. Finally, I tossed a bunch of broken toys and a few that weren't broken, but were junky.

Much better!

I even changed the faded photo in the
blue frame for a more recent and vivid photo!

The baseboards have all been wiped down, too.

Two rooms down, 16 more areas/rooms to go! There is still:

Front attic room
Back attic room
My bedroom
Addie's room
Heather's room
Upstairs Bathroom
Foyer Closet/Foyer
Living room
Dining room
Kitchen
Main floor bathroom
Guest room
Craft room
Family room
Laundry room
Storage area

Damn, we have a lot of rooms in this house! No wonder there is so much s*&t to get rid of! The rooms that I am dreading the most are the attic rooms (a bunch of stuff shoved in the closets) and the basement rooms. Who am I kidding! Heather and Addie's rooms are going to take some time too, and will require us to buy some proper shelving or storage units. Ah, this is going to take some time!

Love It Or Use It?

2011-11-25T10:00:00.000-05:00

The Great Purge of 2011 has begun! Oh, wait. Haven't I already done that this year? Yup, if you look here and here you can see that I have done lots of sorting, purging and cleaning over the year(s). So why do I have to do it again already?

Seriously, I start to wonder if we are abnormal or do other families experience the same thing? We are not out constantly shopping and bringing new stuff into the house on a regular basis, so why am I always getting rid of stuff? Does it multiply when I am not looking?

I have decided to spend the next few weeks going through every nook and cranny of every single room and closet in the house. I am going to ask myself for each item, "Do I love it?" or "Do I use it?". If the answer is "no" then it will get the toss!

I think our home looks neat and tidy to most people upon first glance, but if you were to look in any drawers, bins, closets or cupboards you might be horrified by what you see. Most homes have just one junk drawer, but we seem to have many! There seems to be many random objects just shoved in various places throughout the house. The funny thing is, it is probably me that puts most of the things away so I am likely to blame.

I already have a bag of clothing for my niece, a few bags to go to the charity shop, winter jackets for the Jacket Drive at school, and a ton of stuff to go to St. Monica House. I figure that it is time to get rid of the baby monitor, baby spoons, baby blankets and board books. Clearly, we don't need those anymore and there are others out there who could really use them.

Sounds like I'm in for a hoppin' good weekend, doesn't it! Hope yours is better than mine!

Mother Knows Best

2011-11-23T10:12:00.001-05:00

My mom used to tell me that a person can be polite and assertive at the same time. Wouldn't you know it! She was right and I put that idea into practice just this afternoon!

Lauchy and I had just gotten home from preschool and I was in the foyer putting away coats and boots. I happened to notice a man walking his dog. Nothing out of the ordinary but when I noticed the dog sniffing around our boulevard I decided to watch. The dog was smelling a big pile of poo that was there but it moved on and kept going (Was the poo from the same dog, a different dog? I have no idea but dogs seem to like pooping there!). They were just about off of our part of the sidewalk when the dog started sniffing the ground again and wouldn't you know it, it squatted and pooped. Right there. On our boulevard. I kept watching and thinking, I hope the owner picks up the poo. Nope. They kept going.

Quickly, I opened the door and called out to the man, "Excuse me, would you like a bag for that?"

The man, looking unimpressed and a bit sheepish said, "Do you have one?"

Me, in a very cheerful and polite way, "Oh yes, we have lots of bags!"

I ran inside and grabbed a few bags and back out I went. As I handed him the bag I told the man that our kids play out here all the time and have stepped in dog poo before, which is a real pain especially since we don't have a dog. I told him that I really appreciate it. Then I came in and spied on him. Thankfully, he picked up the poo and kept going. Then it occurred to me that he might just drop the poop bag somewhere else so I watched him for a bit. I could see the man and dog stopping up the street but he was still carrying the bag.

I have to say that I was pretty pleased with myself. That is exactly the kind of situation where I usually don't say something and then I am so mad at myself later and I end up spending the rest of the day fuming and complaining to Jeff. Last year, I saw a woman out with her dog. I was curious to see her stop and put something into the sewer grate. I wondered, in horror, if she put her dog poo bag in the sewer, but I wasn't wearing my glasses so I couldn't be sure. I didn't want to accuse her of something I wasn't sure about, so a few minutes later, I went down the street to investigate. I was absolutely disgusted to see that she had hidden her bag of dog poo in the top part of the sewer grate. I was so furious and wished that I had just confronted her.

My mom was right. You can still be assertive and get your point across in a polite and friendly way. Thanks mom! :)

It Must Be Nice...

2011-11-22T20:30:00.005-05:00

...to be a cat. Especially a cat that lives in this household.

The Neatest Guy In Town

2011-11-21T22:02:00.001-05:00

Today is my uncle Brad's birthday. He died of leukemia in 1984 at the age of 26. If he were still alive today he would be 54 years old. I can't even begin to imagine him as a 54-year old. He will always be 26 in my mind.

The Clan McLean
Brad is on the right, beside his sister Heather (my mom)

I have this vivid memory of the day I was told about his illness. I can picture where I was standing in our kitchen in The Pas, Manitoba. I was facing the front door, which was yellow. There was a utensil rack on the wall beside the door. I don't know what my mom said exactly, but I could tell by the look on her face that it wasn't good. "Will he die?", I asked. Again, I don't know her exact answer but it wasn't "yes" and it wasn't "no".

At the time my uncle was living in Kelowna, BC. The details are a little sketchy now, all these years later, but I believe that Brad was diagnosed in 1981 or 1982. Brad had a persistent cold and when it would not go away he went to the doctor. Shortly after that, Brad was flown to Vancouver to start treatment. I am guessing he went through chemo and I know that he also had a bone marrow transplant from his brother Ritch. Eventually, the leukemia went into remission.

The summer of 1983 Brad realized a dream when he rode his Harley Davidson from BC to Manitoba. He spent the summer in The Pas and I have some funny memories of him helping out at our garage sale. That summer my family packed up and we moved from Manitoba to BC. Picture this: my parents, my uncle Brad, 3 kids, 2 cats on leashes, and whatever else you need to drive across 4 provinces - all crammed into a station wagon. Whee! How fun! The adults were all sitting up front while my siblings and I took up the back seat. I remember playing a lot of table-top Donkey Kong and Miss Pac Man, eating chips, and sharing a 2 litre bottle of coke. Then I noticed chips floating in the coke bottle and that was the end of the coke for my brother and I. Big score for my little sister, who back-washed into the bottle.

We settled into life in Kelowna, with Uncle Brad living with us. I was in grade 5 by then and just starting to get into music. Brad had a large record collection and he played music a lot. Some favourite songs from that time are from this album by Genesis. In particular I like, "Home By the Sea", "That's All", and "Mama".

Uncle Brad with the Gee kids
December 25, 1983

The day before that photo was taken, we 3 kids were driving my mom crazy. It was the day before Christmas and we were soo excited. Uncle Brad decided to take us to Scandia Golf & Games to get us out of the way. I don't remember a lot about being at Scandia, but I do remember what we did when we got back to the house. Brad had all of us walk into the house singing. We practiced a few times in the carport first, and then walked into the house in a line with Brad leading, Allan next, followed by me and then my sister Tanis. We were singing, "Don't cry sister cry, it'll be alright in the morning. Don't cry sister cry, everything'll be just fine", a song by J. J. Cale that my mom loved.

Another thing that Brad used to make us do was this:
He would sing, "Who's the neatest guy in town?" and we would all have to sing back, "You are, you are". We loved it!

He also frequently sang a song from a YMCA commercial: "There's fun in the water but there's danger too. Learn to swim so nothing happens to you. Learn how to swim at the YMCA." Ever heard of it?

It was after that Christmas that the leukemia came back and Brad spent a lot of time going back and forth to Vancouver for treatment. I would lie in my bed at night and try to cry quietly so that no one would hear. I prayed so hard every night that God would make Brad better. I bargained with God - I will be SOOOO good if you just make Brad better. It didn't work. That was a hard thing to take as a kid in grade 5.

It has been 27 years since Brad died and I still think about him a lot. He was a funny, fun and silly uncle and he always had time for us kids. I am sure we got on his nerves a lot, but he never said anything if we did. His "Neatest Guy in Town" legacy lives on in our household today. I have my own little version that I often sing to Lauchy. Our version goes this way: "Whose the cutest boy I know?" and Lauchy says, "I am, I am".

You are still missed Brad, all these years later.

Don't Cry Sister - J.J. Cale & Eric Clapton

N.G.I.T

The Girl Is Now 6!

2011-11-20T21:35:00.004-05:00

We teased her all day (poor girl). Sorry Addie, you're not 6 yet! Only 6 more hours until you are officially 6. I think she was so relieved to finally hear us say, "You are 6!".

Just after 7:53 tonight, before we tucked everyone in, we looked at photos and watched videos of Addie being born. I know it might sound gross to some, but the video we have of Addie being born is priceless and I am so glad that we have it. It's funny, I wasn't keen on there being any kind of video being taken when Heather was born (although we have audio), but with Addie, I felt differently and Jeff videoed the big moment (there was no time for photos or videos when Lauchy was born). It is very tastefully done and you can't see anything "inappropriate" on the video. It is a special moment in our lives and neat that we get to see it again.

A few minutes after Addie's birth.
November 20, 2005

December 2005

January 2006

Summer 2006

Summer 2007

Summer 2008
(I love how pudgy her face is!)

Babushka - one of my all-time favourite Addie shots!

September 2008
First day of school.

November 2011

Happy birthday to my sweet Adelaide. Thanks for brightening our lives each and every day.

Not 6 Yet...

2011-11-19T22:44:00.002-05:00

This cutie of mine is only 5 for one more sleep. Where does the time go?

Busy Day

2011-11-18T20:44:00.006-05:00

It was a PD day today. How much can we cram into one day? There was:

dancing,

ornament decorating,

pinata decorating,

cookie decorating,

and there was even a sunset!

How was your day?

Liberia '77 | Knowledge Network

2011-11-17T19:15:00.002-05:00

This documentary is made by Jeff & Andrew Topham, brothers from Summerland, BC (my hometown).

Liberia '77 | Knowledge Network

Craft Fail - Birthday Edition

2011-11-16T22:01:00.005-05:00

Addie's birthday party is this Saturday and so far, it has been one disaster after another trying to get ready for it.

Craft Fail #1:
We started making a pinata on Sunday.

Looks good so far...

...or NOT! It still needs another layer of paper so
I am hoping it will be easy to fix, but still, not really
what I was expecting to find!

Craft Fail #2:
We are supposed to make winter decorations at
the party, but I am not having much luck with the
salt dough recipe either. I followed the recipe carefully...

...but for some reason the salt dough exploded
and oozed out leaving a hollow shell instead.

This is not what I was expecting!

There are only 3 more sleeps until the BIG party day! Gulp!

Sleep Tight Sweetie!

2011-11-16T13:15:00.003-05:00

Remember her? I thought I would have a little fun with her before I put her in the shed for the winter. I thought Jeff might enjoy a little surprise!

Play With Clay - Part I

2011-11-15T22:14:00.006-05:00

After living in Waterloo for 8 years, we finally went to the Clay and Glass building on the weekend. I heard from many people about how great the Play With Clay sessions are and I have been wanting to take the kids there for years. Finally on the weekend we went to check it out.

For $8 the kids get a huge chunk of clay,
some instruction from a teacher and use of materials.

Addie made this kitty head.

I think Jeff and I had more fun than the kids.
There were many brains made that day!

Next week, we get to go back and put glaze on the finished pieces (which is also included in the price). A few weeks after that we get to take home our creations - and there are a LOT!

If you live in the area, I highly recommend going. You need to get there early as the spots fill up quickly.

Meet My New BFF!

2011-11-15T22:04:00.003-05:00

I am finally starting to get used to my exercise routine, but it is taking a toll on this old body of mine! I don't remember feeling achy at all the last time I trained for a triathlon, but this time it's a different story.

I often joke with Jeff or friends about being so old now! I know I am not that old, but my body is certainly not what it used to be! My legs and knees have been aching a lot this week, although I think the achy knees come from my dad and grandma Gee (arthritis runs in the family). I see a lot more A535 in my future!

Happy Birthday Mom!

2011-11-14T19:12:00.002-05:00

It feels weird to title my blog, "Happy Birthday Mom". She's not alive, it's not like she is going to read this. But every year on her birthday and on her death day I have this need to acknowledge her and remember her.

My mom would be 60 today. I have no doubt in my mind that she would be as beautiful and as stylish as ever. I don't think she would have much grey hair - that is something that seems to run in the family.

August, 1995

I am guessing by the hair and clothing, 1970's!

One of the first times that my new boyfriend came for a visit (Jeff!) my mom made hamburger soup. I am not even really sure why she made soup as it was August, however, she made it and while she was adding pepper to the soup the lid came unscrewed and the entire contents of the pepper shaker went into the soup. Naturally, mom decided not to say anything and during dinner our noses were running and our eyes were burning. Jeff, being the gracious boyfriend, was nothing but complementary about the soup. I know that he got extra brownie points for that!

August, 1995 (Hamburger Soup fiasco)

1977 or 1978

If she were still here, I am sure that she would be in a ton of debt for all the traveling back and forth to visit her grand kids in Ontario. She would spoil them and they would know her well. Actually, my kids do know quite a lot about her. I talk about my mom a lot and my kids are at the age now where they enjoy hearing funny stories from days gone by. A favourite of mine is the one about my mom at age 3. A family friend liked to call her "Feather" and she would stamp her little foot and say, "I NOT Feather!". My little Heather particularly likes that story.

February, 1971 (baby Allan)

August, 1995 (McLean Family Reunion)

A year or two before my mom died she had taken a leap of faith and quit her job as a nurse. Writing was her true passion and she was finally going to realize her dream. I think she took a few courses in "How To Get Published" and before she died she had several published articles under her belt. She wrote a few articles for "Okanagan Life", and for "BC Women". I wonder what she would have accomplished as a writer by the age of 60?

November 29, 1973 (baby me!)

October 10, 1970

I know that my mom touched many lives. Over the years I have been fortunate to have people tell me just how much my mom meant to them. Just this summer as I attended my 20-year graduation reunion, a friend told me how much my mom meant to them. I had no idea that my mom had connected with this person or made an impact on their life, but it meant the world to me to find that out.

I have also heard funny stories over the years from friends. One friend remembered that my mom used scissors to cut pizza and meat. That was something that I had totally forgotten about but it made me smile to remember. I also use scissors to cut chicken and other meat (although, not pizza).

My mom was a huge cat lover (hmmm - me too) and she always had voices for each cat. Growing up the cats would talk to us on a regular basis and we would talk back to them without ever questioning how odd or weird it might be! I think many of my childhood friends would remember the talking cats too, as the cats often talked to my friends as well.

1970's, The Pas, MB

1986/1987?

The day that my mom died we were all there. I remember the moments leading up to her death and I remember a few blurry moments after (another mother that I know had come to visit, not knowing that my mom had just died moments earlier - I do remember talking to her). I have absolutely no recollection of how long we stayed in the room or of leaving the hospital, but my brother recently told me that as we left the hospital the song "Amazing Grace" was playing on a loudspeaker. I was astonished. I never would have remembered that detail in a million years! Did the nurses play it for us as we left? Hospitals don't normally have music playing on an loudspeaker, do they? What a neat thing to discover, all these years later.

As I said above, I talk about my mom to the kids often and almost every time we have gone to Summerland we have gone to visit mom at the cemetery (we didn't go when there was snow in December 2007). Here are some photos of the kids visiting grandma Heather over the years.

Heather (4 weeks), August 2004

Heather (22 months), May 2006

Addie (6 months), May 2006

Heather (7), Addie (5), Lauchy (3), August 2011

Always in my heart, always missed. Love you mom.

We Got It Auntie Tan!

2011-11-13T19:19:00.001-05:00

Thanks for the HUGE candy bars Auntie Tan & Uncle Josh! 'Cause we didn't have enough from Halloween!