The winter season is upon us...

As the years go by, I start to see the ebb and flow of our lives, and the times we typically lean toward certain activities. For some reason, we tend to make smoothie's more in the spring, and read the most in the fall and in February/March. And in the winter months, November to January, is the time of year we spend a ton of time playing games. The girls and I spent the afternoon yesterday playing a new to them game - Sequence. Then we pulled Jeff into a game after dinner.

It is so much fun having the girls willing and able to learn and play the games we often play with our friends and family and I can see many more years of family gaming nights in our future.

Halloween 2010

Peter Pan at the Stratford Festival

(More as a journal entry -- helps me keep track of when we do things for future reference!)

Back in September we had a chance to head down to Stratford for a viewing of Peter Pan at the Avon Theatre. The girls are huge fans of J.M. Barrie, and all of the wonderful fairy stories that have stemmed from his "Tinkerbell" character.

It was an amazing day, beautiful weather, pre-show games with some of the cast members, picnic lunch, and an amazing theatre production, and some good memories.

(Tara also acquired a snowflake ornament from the Christmas store, and Aislinn a new addition to her rock/gem collection through our new "allowance system" - more details to follow.)

Tyler pics!

Finally! He is now somewhere around the 7-8 mth mark, but so far staying on the small side - probably due to his less than ideal start at life. He is keeping us well entertained though!

Look what I got!

A New Camera!!
I am not 100% sold on it yet -have 30 days to be sure - but at the very least, it has inspired me to start taking pictures again, and to blog again! My old camera just became so problematic, I stopped using it - hence the lack of pictures this summer. This shot is not super clear, being that it is a 14.1 MP, but it was in a mirror in low light -- I will have to do some more playing I think...
But over all, it is a point and shoot that was relatively affordable, we'll see where it takes us!

They did come home!!

Well, after purposefully trying to ignore the existence of my blog, I just had a look to confirm that I had indeed left it hanging a bit... (Only 3 months have past - insert sheepish smilie)

The girls did indeed come home (and have had 2 more visits), and they did get their big hugs as well!

The summer has passed in a flourish of activity... no vacations as such, but tons of time spent swimming and biking and being with friends. Two week long vacation bible school adventures, trips to the science center, and the regular sort of summer adventures... tree climbing, ice cream, campfires, parks, etc.

We did enjoy making use of our community outdoor swimming pool, especially after finding out , about halfway through the summer, that it is actually heated!

Some highlights of the summer were Tara turning 6, and having the nerve to get her ears pierced, and the new addition to our family -a stray that was turned into the clinic I work at- our kitten, Tyler Rhyn. He was originally meant to be Tara's birthday present, but arrived late due to illness... hence the earrings! :)

From an educational standpoint, Aislinn has moved along with her reading to the point of almost complete independence (a few words here and there will still stump her) and can often be found absorbed in the latest library finds. She finished a math workbook during the summer, which ended with a brief intro to multiplication, so we have started a small surge into that world. In the mean time, we had picked up a JumpMath 3.1 workbook which she has launched into, still mostly at her own discretion.

Tara has continued her reading practise, but is still struggling with finding the confidence to show her ability - we are sticking with no pressure, just offering her lots of chances for one on one reading time. Her math skills are moving well ahead in adding and subtracting.

The biggest difference for both of them is their level of maturity - in the discussions we are having, in the questions they ask, and in their ability to think through, process, and articulate their thoughts and feelings.

Left - our annual star watching trampoline sleepout... the tarp being an new addition from last year due to the bats joining us and the incredible damp feeling from the dew the next morning.

Interspersed are a few pictures of our summer highlights... and more coming once I figure out why my camera won't hold a battery charge!

A week away...

It is only day 2 and already the quiet is getting to me.

I think it is a wonderful thing, that I have parents who are willing and enthusiastic about having my girls for visits, and also that I have girls who are willing and enthusiastic about visiting their grandparents for a week... but it sure is quieter around here without the constant (seriously--constant) chatter of the girls.

I do think parents having occasional "vacations" from their children is a good thing though... already I sit here and think about everything they add to our lives.
All in all they are fantastic kids; despite how frustrating the in-the-moment power struggles and the less than perfect listening skills they exhibit may be!

I do know that when they do come home, they will get a little bigger of a hug than usual!

(Seems like when they are not home, I also have more time to blog! :)

National Ballet

Another amazing opportunity we had this past week, was a free educational tour of the National Ballet of Canada. We maximized the day by driving in to the "big city" and taking a ferry ride over to the island, enjoying a picnic lunch, and walking the harbour front to the National Ballet.


There we were greeted by our tour guide and with a group of our best friends enjoyed probably one of the best tours we have been on yet!
Our first stop was the "Shoe Room", where the kids (and adults) got an in depth description and look at the intricacies of the male and female ballet shoe.
How each dancer has their shoes specially made by their own "shoemaker", the materials they are constructed with, how often they are replaced (every performance!) and at what cost --- Wow!)

Then we were taken to the model room, where the initial designs are made and stored for the stage props of each performance. The intricate designs totally caught the kids' eyes, and the work and record keeping involved in each ballet is extraordinary.

Moving our way along, we were taken to the costume area where a number of seamstresses were hard at work finishing costumes for a ballet opening in just two weeks. One of the ladies left her duties to come over and show us some of the costumes close up and to answer all our questions.

And finally, we were treated to sitting in on rehearsal, and were able to watch a full 20 min. of the dancers practising a full run with music of a the upcoming opening ballet. We were also seated with many very famous individuals which was lost on the kids, but made the day for the adults! :)
(Of course, no pictures were allowed for the dancing, but I think I may have enjoyed it more than I would have attending an actual ballet... being 10 feet away definitely helped!)

After the Ballet, we continued a little mini-vacation which included an Imax; 3-D movie, dinner out, an overnight with family, a day at the science center, a one night hotel stay where we maximized the pool amenities, and then a drive East to visit with family including the girls great-Grandma and to celebrate my uncle's retirement. Some more swimming, lots of food :) and a long drive home (of which Tara slept 3 1/2 hrs!!!) rounded out our fun filled weekend.
-We all slept well that night... including Tara! :)

Summer weather

It's not officially summer yet, but it sure does feel like it...

The weather has been so beautiful, that most of the girls' days are spent outside, biking, swinging, jumping, sliding, making elaborate "soups" and "cakes", climbing trees, visiting the park, swimming in lakes and pools and too-many-to-count campfires!

It seems early for some of these activities, and I have been asked about their "schooling", but if I was a kid, this is exactly how I would be wanting to spend my days!

(but for those that are concerned :) -- we do sneak in some math and reading practise on the occasional evening!)

Visit to the Farm (Dairy this time!)

One of the girls I work with grew up on a dairy farm and as I am always looking for opportunities for the girls to get hands on, we asked if we could drive out for a "tour".
The girls had a great time and a wonderful personalized visit with the cows, machinery, and whatever barn cat they could get close to. (Even an up close with a dead bird --one of their favorite past times... poking at dead things!)

But back to the tour, the girls got to meet the farm's week old calves, including a set of twins, had a walk though of the milking process and a discussion about the different tractors, machinery and the planting process.
It was great fun, and when the girls got home they drew their favorite parts as thank you cards for C. (I forgot to take pictures, but they were pretty cute cow drawings!)

Earth Day

This spring has been a complete whirlwind for us... all of the balance we had found in the fall has given way to complete chaos! :) Good chaos, but always feeling a step behind has made a lot of my "strewing" ideas fall to the wayside, and a lot of our activities are unplanned, fly by the seat of our pants activities! One day we attempted clay pendants for mother's day necklaces, but the unplanned and untried got the better of us and they fell apart -- :( , but this is one that did work...Tara working on her "Terra" and being her usual goofy self.

After a bit of chatting about the purpose of Earth Day and what we can do everyday to help our precious planet, we made these Earth (or Terra -commence giggles from 4 girls) zipper pulls.
The girls went at it, and after they had figured out the technique, it was all I could do to keep up! Pretty soon I am going to put the girls in charge of these activities, and I am going to be the one at the table!!

Final result

Easter 2010

One of the traditions that have lasted year to year for the girls has been the Easter Egg Hunt at Aunt Carolyn's house. From great big egg's not seen until their toddler body's have been pointed right at it, to the attempts at outwitting a 5yr old mind by hiding brightly coloured egg's around one or two rooms, to this years 100 chocolate eggs spread around a large front yard. And to my surprise it was pretty much over in minutes... well ok... 97 of them were.

With my girls slowly climbing in age, we can start

to look forward to the next stage of our family --

Aislinn and Tara's cousins joining in on the fun.

Ryan soaked in some rays, and Maya

contemplated whether her feet should actually be

touching the rough, tickly stuff beneath them this

year, but it won't be long until they are running along side them!

Spring

Spring is here, with a very summer like entrance!
Shorts and tank tops have been the norm for the past few days. The trampoline is in full use, the swings in constant motion, our clothes carry the residual smell of campfire and our meals have been based around the bbq!
It's wonderful! I caught myself today actually weeding the front garden wondering what in the world I was doing being only the 5th of April.


Tara in full spin, and below, Tara's introduction to photography (along with the other 150ish pics of our back yard on my camera) :)

The massive huge bug we found basking near our sliding doors. We let him continue on his way after some heavy inspection -- pretty cool!

And Rory - loving her new freedom of coming and going from backyard to house whenever she wishes!

The ROM

Last Friday, we took another trip to the big city to visit the Royal Ontario Museum. Aunt Jenn and Uncle Jay bought tickets for the girls for Aislinn's 7th birthday, and we had an awesome trip.

We went with friends again which made the whole driving/ parking experience much better! :) and left us with 6 hours to explore the 5 story building.

We started in the Egypt wing, and the girls really got into what they were seeing since all our previous discussions and activities from Story of the World gave them a good perspective. Hmm, favorites? the animal mummies and the replica of a tomb. A lot of the artifacts from the ancient Egyptian life the girls could recognize as well.

Next we moved on to the minerals room. I think Aislinn could have spent all day in there. Surrounded by sparkly rocks and minerals and then to see the cut jewels as well -- pretty cool!

Our next stop was the biodiversity floor, and I was truly in awe. This museum has done an amazing job of setting up the exhibits to be interesting, hands on, and interactive. This floor by far made the visit phenomenal, and would be well worth exploring again. The kids area was on this floor as well, and the girls got to try on costumes, uncover dinosaur bones and touch all sorts of things. The staff were so great too, and happy to talk and explain things to the girls and draw them into the exhibits.

After finally pulling ourselves away, we did a quick tour of the Canadian display which was in all honesty extremely boring. It contained paintings and antique furniture and that was all. Needless to say it was deserted, and we spent just enough time there to walk through and out. Then we visited the First peoples displays, which had some interesting things, but not much interactive, so the girls focus was quickly lost.

The other display I need to mention, was the dinosaurs -- Wow! It had been a long time since I had visited the museum -- my childhood I think, and I had no idea they had such cool stuff! You could really get a feel for the size these creatures were, and the girls were happily pointing out the skulls and features of the dinosaurs they had "uncovered" earlier.

All in all a terrific day, and to me, it's amazing the amount of learning that can happen in a place like that compared to how many books you would have to read to get the same understanding. To pet a beaver and a raccoon, stand beside a white rhino, walk around, and check out the toes of a mummy, pick up a snake skin, an owl talon, a whale bone... stand beside a dinosaur...

can you tell I really get into this stuff?

Anyway... learning? check! (for this week anyway!) :)
Here are some of the pictures... the girls took most of them.