October Mud!

The river dam's been let down for winter

Perfect for these three

For long hours of fun

In the warm October we've been given

Sculpting, gooping, piling, churning

Mud socks, mud gloves, mud clothes

Adventures to new places now accessible

No one else ready to let kids loose

Mommy amused

So many passer by comments

Of messy bathrooms, ruined clothes,

Long faff in the bath

Only one lovely couple

Old enough to see

The fun and bliss

Skipping over the inevitable mess

We stayed long

Till cold sunset sent shivers

And still little boy burst into tears

At the thought of losing this rare chance

So we went back

And enjoyed it again

Now Mommy gets daily requests!

Not exactly in the plans.

Outdoor Play

One recess time Mommy found all three in our tiny tree

Hmm, must be time for a forest jaunt...

So today we walked through lovely Fall weather - finally!

To enjoy an afternoon by the river

 And when they were 

wet enough

cold enough

sore enough

cut enough

happy enough

We wandered slowly home

Aiden's Turn!

After reading Colour by Christina Rosetti last week, Aiden wanted to try write a color poem too...

What is brown?
A tree is brown
Sucking up carbon dioxide.

What is black?
The night is black
With twinkling stars sailing through the sky.

What is green?
An apple is green
A person eating a happy apple.

What is white?
The clouds are white
Raining water.

What is purple?
A binder is purple
People using it to do school.

What is magenta?
What is magenta?!?
An elastic used to make a ponytail!

It gives interesting insight into this boy's view of the world, no?

We Got A Pass!

A rare occasion indeed

An impulsive look as Mom went past

Picking up holds at the library

A museum pass was in!

We set a day carefully - only a week in which to choose - 

putting together an itinerary to warrant the trip:

Museum, looking at a violin off kijij, supper with NiNi and YeaYea

But that day got hijacked for other things

So, we did things in reverse

Stayed the night at NiNi and YeaYea's

Saw (and bought) the violin in the morning

And spent the rest of the day at the Museum of Nature

A rather unexpectedly long rest of the day!

I guess it helps that Aiden is older

more willing to engage than lie on the floor 

Like last time

Once again the favourite places

Blowing up volcanoes

Creating earthquakes

Crawling through caves

Imagination trips in the submarine

The two surprises:

Jasmin over the moon enamoured 

By the gemstone displays

Soaking it in

Voicing longing to find one herself

Begging for pictures of each

 The live bug display 

Enthusiastically explored by all three

And then

Climbing on the beetle

Jumping as far as a cricket

I think I'll check for other passes - this was a good afternoon spent!

Unusual Summer Part 3

For the kids, Halifax means...

Playing with Selah, Imma's new dog

She is puppy enough still to have all the energy to keep up with kids! They had great fun in the house and taking her for exploring trips in the woods. They also had the taste of frustration that comes with a not-quite-fully-trained dog that gets loose or wants to play more than they did...

... at Imma's house and at friends' houses

Backyard campfires

Practicing for that perfect s'more I think we got pretty close....

Sandy beach days

Queensland beach, the day we went... Lots of people on the sand but very few in the water.... Disappointingly too cold for us Asian water temperature spoiled people... But that didn't stop Grace from trying at least!

Hanging out with cousins

At Imma's, at their house... Wherever we are, lots of noise and lots of fun!

Enjoying summer sun

So glad for the down time to just enjoy sun and quiet beauty!

For the kids, Argyle means...

Rocky beach days

Crab hunting

Exploring the places of Mommy's growing up...

Reliving memories

Twilight windmill walks

... Mommy looking like Imma, talking with Imma's friend in a place they went often!

Crash course in sailing

...and Mommy actually did crash the boat!! Well, only scraped up on a rock between two islands, but still... Aiden was pretty worried we'd have to swim :o)

 

Mackerel fishing

 Aiden has wanted to fish for ages, so our friend who took us sailing brought along some rods and we all got to feel the thrill of catching fish. Although now the kids are spoiled for "ordinary" fishing as every cast caught a fish in under a minute!

Hats from a friend

For Mom and Dad, a bit of what Halifax & Argyle means...

Giving Imma grandma time with kids

Catching up with family and friends -  

so much great talk and good food!

Very full days charging and draining us

Alive in prayer

Juggling family fun, rest, ministry.

Moving Imma to her new house - so perfect for her!

Enjoying precious evenings of talk over tea

Sharing childhood experiences with our own kids

But also, 

Michael had to make a weekend trip back to Toronto for his grandma's funeral

We flew to St John's without the kids for a weekend to speak at a few gatherings of our soon return to Asia

Pressure to finish work leftover from before we came

So many people we didn't get to connect with!

Maybe, we'll just have to go again....

Unusual Summer Part 2

Those two weeks of "normal" summer?
Got pretty filled up too
No real lazy days of summery nothing much to do
And yet, somehow, just right

Grace sang again at the Glebe Centre
Much appreciated, especially since Aiden joined in

Mom tried out AquaFit class
And discovered that a morning run and a lunch time AquaFit is a bit too much
A great recipe for a solid afternoon nap

A few park days fit in
A splash pad evening
An over lunch time meeting with homeschool friends
An on the way home stop for some extended monkey bar practice

We made it to some friends' hobby farm for an afternoon
No one wanted to leave!
Watching a baby chick begin to hatch
Exploring the woods
Whirl pooling the backyard pool

Normal life extras:
Friends over for supper
Daddy to a Redblacks game
Skype calls with far away friends
Lots and lots of backyard raspberry recipes
Muffins galore and even a pie

And a once in a lifetime Canada150 opportunity
La Machines in downtown Ottawa
We took the bus (our first time, and we almost missed it!)
Braved the crushing crowds
Got close to Kumo the spider to watch it wake up
Surprisingly was passed closely by Long Ma the dragon horse
Discovered Jasmin's violin teacher in the mobile orchestra

And in-between we tackled a 3 page long to do list
Preparing our house for our Airbnb guests while we're away this month
Fixing all those little things to be fixed "sometime when I have time"
And at the same time planning and preparing ourselves
For the long drive to Halifax
A month at Imma's house
As many meetings with dear ones as we can fit in
And school for when we return

We made it!
Everything got done
Nothing left behind (nothing important at least)
Only took us an extra hour than we budgeted
And here we are enjoying ourselves

Unusual Summer Part 1

We stopped school June 16
Stopped, not really finished
And our schedule went haywire

The first week mom and dad had a week long training seminar to attend
Last minute changes meant
A week of juggling childcare transport arrangements

Those last minute changes?
YeaYea having open heart surgery in Kingston
Wow, what a week!

The next week we had cousins to play
All day every day
Living in our house

Lots of fun and new experiences
Singing for seniors
Touring the animal shelter

July began with a wet muddy Canada Day
Saw no fireworks
But made many memories

We had a few days peace - well, not really, as we had to
Catch up with all we'd been missing
Plan and prepare for our week in Toronto

Concerned it'd be too much for us
Worried there'd be melt downs
Too many changes, not enough rest

But God was gracious
2 days camping just our family
2 friends homes giving us plenty of room for rest

Think we came home more rested than we left!
Thank you God, thank you friends
You gave us just what we needed

And then 2 weeks of "normal" summer
An oasis in the busyness
Wait - we have to plan and prepare for being away in August....

I know there's a whole month and a half missing...

...hopefully I'll get around to sharing some things of that busy summer start later, but here is a surprising contrast of time at the river from last year. It was our first time there this summer yesterday (it's been an uncommon summer so far) and it was so different!

This year:

Aiden "fishing"

Intrepid (and wet) explorers making it to the rock that was just a first step last year

 And last year:

I think we've had both years' worth of rain this year...

A few events of the last of May

Aiden's co-op camping class learned how to put up tents... and now nearly every day he asks to go camping!

We finally got back to one of our favourite walks by the river after the flooding.

The climbing trees are still the highlight!

Imma came for Mommy's birthday and brought Beatrice with her too. A very special present to have them for the weekend.

Something A Little Different

We've been having fun making and colouring these psalm posters that now decorate our kitchen:

Want to join us?

Download Psalm 25 and/or Psalm 37 in NLT

Watch out summer....

Aiden's learning about camping and is brimming with excitement to try it all out!

Finishing Season

AWANA
Aiden finished last week and the girls this week.  All of them finished their books and received awards. Even Dad memorized the 4 books along with Grace and got a reward. Grace has now finished all books of T&T and all challenges associated with them!  So in the Fall we'll be trying out some other programs.

Math U See Alpha & Beta
Both Aiden and Jasmin have finished their math levels for the year - and want to start the next rather than stopping for the rest of the school year!

Sunday School verse memorizing
Each class has a verse pack to memorize over the course of the year.  All three kids have worked hard to keep up with a verse a week. It has been tough especially for Jasmin, but with perseverance she has made it!

Perspectives
May 1st was the last class of Perspectives of World Mission course. Mom is enjoying having her Monday evenings back (class time) and her Thursday afternoons back (homework time), but she's missing the external impetus to grapple with mission issues and attempt to apply them to life.

Quilt
Mom finally finished the quilt she started over a year ago! Too late to use this year, but in the Fall...

 ...someone will get to stay warm with this piece of hard work!

Spontaneous Lunch time Rhyming (Grace, Jasmin, Aiden)

Do you wanna go to the moon
With a spoon,
In a cocoon?

Do you wanna have a boon
Do you wanna see a coon?

Who-o-o!

Do you wanna see some dunes
With sand dollar runes?
Do you wanna see some
Upside - down flying loons,
In a lagoon?

Bom-bom-bom!

Driven by baboons and run by balloons?

(one more time)

Oh, yeah!
Moon, spoon,
Cocoon, boon,
Coon, dune,
Dune and rune,
loon, lagoon,
Baboon, balloon

O-o-o-o-o-h, ye-e-e-ah!

Aiden's Date Talk

Each week I take a different kid with me shopping and we take a pause at Tim Hortons for a "date."  It was Aiden's turn this week. Our conversation went something like this:

So, what would like to talk about while you eat your Timbits?

5 - 4=1 right? 

And 5x5=25. 

And 3x3=9 because 3+3+3 is 9.

You certainly have gotten those bits of math well.

I  don't know this question but I want to know, so...

What is 300 square rooted times 300 times 400?

Well, I don't know that either; you'll have to ask a computer.

Or a phone. Ask your phone. It has a calculator.

Ok.

So we get the answer, and Aiden laughs delightedly.

Why did you want to know that?

Because I really wanted to know that.

What are you going to do now that you know it?

Now I can do divided by questions!

He's still not yet five.

I think my boy likes math.

Break from What?

Break from Normal, yes
A restful week
Invitingly empty and free, no

Starting behind in sleep
A planned week of school to catch up
A normal week in house

Then

A pleasant surprise
Neighbours take up a long ago invitation
Suddenly we're driving to
March Break church camp the first three days

So

In again out again Monday...

A wildly unexpected job interview (out and in)
A broken up school morning

March Break camp (out)
  Grocery shopping with Aiden in tow
 Quickly now - must be back to pick up the girls
 Squeeze in a bank stop to sign something (in and out and in)
A car full of loud happy girls (out and in)

An errand out requiring parents and YeaYea (out and in)
A quick crockpot supper with YeaYea
Out go Dad and YeaYea - Dad teaching tonight
In comes a babysitter
Out goes Mom as a student to Dad's class (out and in and out cuz Dad forgot things)
Home again late, whew!

Snowy blowy Tuesday...

A late start for all - but not too late
Skype calls at 8, tutoring at 9:30
A ragged attempt at schoolwork

A rather scattered lunch
A tiny breather
Off we go to friends
A long awaited monthly excursion across the city
Snow already falling and laying

Fantastic time of talk and food
Games and play
Late departure after hours of snow
This happened last time too...
A rather drawn out tense journey home
Extremely late to bed for everyone

Midnight wakings
Aiden whimpering in the hallway
"I don't know what to do"
"It's the middle of the night! You should sleep!"
Daddy can't sleep - emails set the thinking whirling
So extremely early morning whispered conversations and prayer
Resulting in morning time sleepy groans.

Wobbly Wednesday...

Staggering awake times
Barely there school attempts
Except for bird-eye bright Aiden
March Break camp with happy girls
Slow, slippy roads meaning Mom doesn't join in
A rare time of Thrift store shopping alone - and successful
Within the two hours, witnessing 3 vehicles off the road
Play dates for Grace and Jasmin tacked on after camp
So thankful for a cancellation that gives Mom a break tonight!

Will we do school at all tomorrow?
Will we go out as planned in the afternoon?
The day will not be a normal Thursday
Whatever we do.
Friday?
Sorry, can't think that far at the moment.

March Break - a break from normal
Please give me normal back again
Our normal is not regular
But it at least doesn't
Wring us out and leave us in a heap!

Grace's View of Last Sunday

When it was -20 on Sunday morning, we thought it was too cold to go. After church, it had warmed up (-13). We could go! We ate lunch at NiNi's,  then drove into more rural land. When we got there, I saw a poster that said there was a Pokémaze, where you went and found and photographed Pokémon. I was disappointed when we found out the maze was only open in summer.

 The hay ride wouldn't come until later, so Jasmin and I explored the area. We slid down slides, went through a maze, slid down two gigantinormous snow piles, and looked through a playhouse. We also climbed a huge pile of hay bales. Mom and dad climbed the haystack too. The farm was still decorated for Halloween and Christmas in places! We also went and looked at the barn. In front of the barn were PortaPotties, and behind the portaPotties was an extension of the barn, and over the door to the barn-extension was a sword, which said

 "___ Asylum for the Insane

please have your tokens ready"

I don't get that. Inside the barn, there were lots of pens, which had animals. The first pen held some pigs, which I think were rather youngish, since they were smaller than other pigs I've seen, but they were too big for the piglets I'd once seen. The next pen had sheep, two adults and two lambs. One of the lambs really liked standing on one of the adult sheep's back for some reason. The sheep didn't seem to mind. There was also a goat pen, with three or four goats in it. One of the goats was really friendly, and if you held out hay he would come and eat it. There was also a chicken in the goat pen! I got to feel the goat's horns. There was also a pen that had a door to the outside field.  In there was a donkey and a shy little pony. The donkey was really friendly and would let you stroke him all over and feed him. The pony was too shy and wouldn't let you get close enough to stroke. The donkey also seemed to act like a guardian for the pony, protecting it from us. After that we went back out to the fenced area the barn was connected to and found this yak/ox/cow thing. It had pretty big horns and was very shaggy. I managed to touch its horns, but it moved away before Jasmin could. Then we went back to exploring the area.

 Finally, the hay ride was ready. Me and Jasmin had to run to the ride. When we got in, we took a picture. But we all had to squuiissh to fit in the picture. Then someone hurried up to the bench-trailer-hay-ride-of-sorts-without-the-hay-:(-thing and climbed in. She almost missed the hay ride!
It was a pretty bumpy ride. We saw more outdated Christmas and Halloween decorations, and more sap lines. When we finally got there, we saw a maple taffy place and hurried over. We got to make maple taffy! A guy poured out some boiled maple syrup (I think), and told us to wait 10 seconds before rolling the taffy. I did, and then had to put it in the snow more so it would stay on my stick. I finished it pretty quickly, and then we went with a guy into another building and he showed us how they made the syrup. Then I washed my hands in snow because my taffy had been so sticky. My hands were cold after that for a little while. Then we rode back, played a little longer, said goodbye to the animals, (Jasmin managed to touch the pony! I saw a rabbit at the end of the hall with tons of wheelbarrows in a pen.) and went to small group. That was a little boring since there was no-one our age there. But we found a new season of How to Train Your Dragon: Race to the Edge! (season 3 or 4)

We went to a sugar bush farm!