We've had fairly lazy times at home lately. Interspersed with lots of meal-time visitors and other arrangements. We've enjoyed early morning walks- we found a field of wild flowers and crickets nearby to explore! - and the park, but also lots of home time:


Jasmin enjoying a soak in her "tub". Not exactly what we bought it for- but it kept her happily occupied for a good long time!

We've also begun having some Fallish weather.... One evening walk even required their new raincoats, which Grace was extraordinarily pleased with,hence the odd smile. And Jasmin! Such a little girl now!

Here's a try at something new... a video clip of Grace and Jasmin enjoying their reading corner. Grace is "reading " a book to herself - and doing a very accurate job, too! - and Jasmin is imitating her.

Yesterday we had a huge thunderstorm. Unfortunately, we had to go out just as it was approaching. Fortunately, we had shut the windows before we left home (not because we saw the storm coming but because it was so muggy we wanted to use the aircon for awhile to make our house bearable). It was kind of neat though. We got to see it coming, a dark threatening sheet slowly being pulled across the sky as we drove into it. it got so dark! Saw some awesomely clear lightening strikes too! I ran in to get my blood test done, and before I came back out the storm broke. From inside a 2 story building, on the first floor in the middle of the building I could hear the rain! When I came out it was sheeting down rain and as dark as late evening. I had to take three uncovered steps to the car and was soaked through before I got the door shut. Grace was awed, and Jasmin slept through it. Even the hail we drove though on our way home! We had fun juggling umbrella, bags, babies, and keys to get into the house relatively dry :o) It has to be one of the first storms that I have really enjoyed and not feared.

Today it is like Fall. The sun is shining brightly in a blue sky, but the air is cold enough to redden cheeks and make Mommy thankful we bought Grace sneakers yesterday - and she wore them when we went to the park this morning. A few more days of this and I'll have to dig out the girls long sleeves and socks. I love weather like this - it makes me feel so alive. I just wish I could be doing all the things being outside in this weather makes me want to do: dig over gardens, go for hikes, have a bonfire... We did spend the morning learning about apple trees as we found on with baby apples on it on our walk this morning. Almost as good :o)

This weekend was the Cambodian Fellowship Annual Conference. The youth and young adults went to Providence Point, and the adults had theirs at our church. Five or six churches participated from St Thomas, Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa. Michael was the main speaker for the youth, but because there was no childcare there, I stayed at home and attended the adult conference. It wasn't hard for me being on my own, because I wasn't! I was so very well taken care of that I only had to look after the girls on my own for about 1/2 hour in the morning and again at night!! The days were long: 8am - 9:30pm, but good. I enjoyed the weekend of Khmer talk, food, and family, and the girls enjoyed all the kids and the new/old activities:


Canadian-Khmer style cooking. Still outdoors and in huge woks and pots, but on nifty propane burners instead of charcoal pots. Here they are frying battered banana for snack. The cooks worked full tilt all weekend, cooking three meals a day for 60 odd people... they did a fantastic job!
Playing in the dirt is always good fun!!
So is dressing up:


Another very Khmer thing: informal sing-a-long/karaoke-type sessions breaking out during free time in between formal teaching sessions:

We attempted gluten-free playdough this afternoon. It is a hit! In fact, I think I like it better than "normal" homemade playdough... Jasmin quickly discovered that the taste isn't that great though :o)

Going gluten-free as a household certainly has made Jasmin a happier, healthier child, but it is taking a lot of getting used to! It requires a thorough vigilance: not only must her food be not made with gluten, but neither can it be touch any gluten-containing foods, nor even be cooked with the same utensils without thorough cleaning! The hardest part is going out and remembering to take food for her along! The big test will be this next weekend when we attend the Annual Cambodian church conference... a weekend worth of meals and snacks to remember!

I guess it is good for us - we eat more made-from-scratch foods, are forced to be health conscious all the time (no cheating allowed!), and mommy has to finally conquer being organized and on top of things in the kitchen. But right now there isn't all that much inner resource to rise to the challenge... after all, moving house, dealing with needed back surgery, one child ready for toilet training, a new "family" job - each one needs a fair bit of inner strength to cope with! We are managing though, and even having fun as we do have many wonderful friends and family to help.

It's been a busy week! On Friday last we moved into the rental we need until the house we are buying is available. Saturday my parents came for a visit - from Halifax! So Friday and Saturday morning were chock full of moving and unpacking and sorting our new place out so we could enjoy my parents' visit. And we made it too! This is what it looks like:


The pictures are taken from either side of the counter dividing the living room and kitchen; a beautiful compact yet open and spacious place!

As you can see from the kitchen picture, we overlook a park. Everyone enjoyed that this week: Grace and Jasmin learning to conquer the slides and meeting neighbourhood kids, Mommy for the green view and activity for the girls, Daddy and Abba for the convenient view of soccer and baseball games!
(a side note: this picture captures a rare moment - Grace has left her hair tied up! Mommy had to cut her some bangs as she is pulling out everything that gets put in her hair - and then spends so much time brushing it out of her face!)

Then on Sunday, our church held its service at a park on the St Lawrence river for a baptism and picnic. It was rather a chilly day and mommy didn't pack any warm clothes for the girls :o( But a friend of Jasmin had some to share with her. I guess mommy was still rather turned around from moving and all, as she also forgot to bring some food Jasmin can eat... there was an interesting mix of things she could eat, but she didn't mind as she got to chow down on her beloved watermelon.

I'm not sure just what Grace and Jasmin make of the move, but they handled it well - even the change in grandparents :o) Grace enjoyed listening to Abba's stories - and telling him lots too!
Park available, but there's nothing like parking lot puddles after the rain...