It's Coming!

These days there's a lot of talk about kindergarten.  A lot of talk about getting extra snuggles in.  It's still a long way off but if all goes well and these two remain healthy it's actually only 215 days give or take a day or three until they have their turn to climb up those big bus steps.

 I'm going to miss them and their sweet chatter, endless games and imagination and occasional fights!

When "scool work" Gets Tricky

This morning Cara, Cody and I sat down to do some work sheets leftover from Cam.  I was thinking mostly scissor practice but listening to their chatter is so amusing...and enlightening!

Cara was matching food to its source.  When she got to the carton of milk, this non dairy girl said, "silk milk" cause her soy milk comes in cartons, everyone else's dairy milk comes in jugs.  She went to put the milk by the wheat but figured it out when she picked up the square with the loaf of bread.

The best part?  When she saw this picture she said, "look at my face, I don't know what to do with it!"

Kindergarten teachers must hear the best things some days!!!

So Blessed

How many 33 year old women do you know can, when in a pinch, drop their 4 year old twins off at their great-grand parents house to be babysat for an hour or two?

I absolutely would have loved to be a fly on the wall when Opa loaded Cara and Cody into the car and took them out to Tim Hortons.  I can just see their little legs swinging back and forth as they chatted his ears off nibbling on timbits...oh for a picture of that!

Opa's puzzling, you know.  He doesn't have a computer!  On the way to drop them off I told Cara and Cody that Opa is usually good for a game of UNO or two.  I asked them what they thought he might be doing when they got there and Cody suggested he might be sitting behind the computer.  (can you imagine all my aunties and alberta cousins?!)   When I informed Cody Opa and Oma didn't have a computer one of them asked in shock, "well how do they find out the weather for the next day?!"  I tried to describe a portable radio but quickly gave up when it became obvious I clearly was speaking Greek to them.

On the flip side, when I told Oma the story she reminded me of my Ome Ryke, great, great uncle who, when as a young married man brought a radio into the house was warned by his father that such a thing was worldly and dangerous.  Might seem strange to us but when that radio burst into flames one day and nearly burnt the house down, Ome Ryke was convinced and never, ever had a radio again in his life!

Anyway, a bit of history and a whole bunch of preciousness!

Formal Day

at school today!  The kids were so delighted to dress up for school!  Too bad for the picture side of things I had about 3 min to snap pictures of the boys and 12 sec to get something of Leah.

Our morning went something like this.  

•  Opened for breakfast
•  Mom served the first round of banana bread and juice
• Mom started in on Leah's hair
• Boys finished first round, asked for seconds and helped themselves and eachother
• Mom took down the next layer of hair to be curled and looked at the time
• Boys finished breakfast and went off to brush teeth and wash faces
• Mom looked at the time remembered the lunches and told Sam and Cam to fill up their water bottles, grab their snacks and put it all in their bags.
• Mom looked at the amount of hair still straight as a board and asked the boys to get Leah's water bottle filled and into her bag too
• Mom kept curling and Leah started getting antsy wanting to know how much hair was still left to be completed
• Mom started listing all the things Leah had to do before the bus showed up...and looked at the time again.
• Mom finished the curling, pulled back Leah's hair with some bobby pins and told Leah to brush her teeth and wash her face, grab her glasses etc. 
• Mom looked at the time
• And sighed
• Took a few pictures of her boys
• Encouraged Leah to HURRY
• Took a couple of pictures of Leah
• Shoved everyone into coats and back packs
• Ran out the door just in time for the bus

• and just in time for the rain to undo a great gob of hair gel, multiple applications of strong hold hair spray and 40 minutes of curling iron work...

But, we got out there on time for the bus, everyone felt special as they left the house and despite the tight time frame, there was no yelling, crying or major stress.

Makes it a success in my books! 

Regarding our outfits...  Leah's dress was a special dress from Gramma's dress up box.  At one time it was sewn for Auntie Joanne to wear for someone's wedding...maybe Auntie Diane's?

BFM supplied the boys with new church pants in excellent condition.  At $2 a pop I was more than willing to let them break them in at school.  At the rate my boys go through their knees (yes even of their church pants it was a win win)  Sam has been asking for a white button up shirt for a long time and so for an additional $1.50 each the boys got their pristine white shirts.  As for the ties, for $0.50 I got decent ties, washed them and cut them a bit shorter.  So, they're a little fat  but they look nicer than if I had tried to shorten and re-sew the thick end.  Plus, Sam can HARDLY wait to wear his new outfit to church.  He is, after all, the one who wants to be a minister like Opa and today he looked the part :)

 

An Off Day

This morning Sam woke up coughing a dry hacking kind of cough and Steve and I decided it was best he just stayed home.  Of all the special things we did this was the sunniest exercise :)  (He was proud to say he did art - a paint by # sitting around from his 6th birthday, computers - 15 min. of games on Lego.com, gym - following some directions on a music CD plus going for a run, choir- singing along with a CD in the van and even some LA homework that his sister brought home for him :)

 

Sam is a great runner and so I told him no bikes this time we were going to run together.  We ran a good long ways before letting Cody out to run with us.  SUCH beautiful weather!

ps.  if you needed a laugh today you will be sad to know you should have seen me trying to get this picture.  I wanted a picture of all of us on it but with no one there to take it I would run up behind the boys, put my arms out way straight behind me, then click (in a very awkward manner) until the boys were too far ahead again and then check out the results.  I wanted a little bit of my coat to say I was there but not a butt shot!!  It took a FEW tries.

This little mouse was VERY willing to laze back in the stroller and let her brother give her a ride.  Rascal!

The man of the hour... murphy's law he didn't really cough all day until we went back into the warm house at 2:30.  Ah well, every kid needs a special day once in a while...

Cody, who really wanted to go running "with Sam and Mama" thought it was a great day to run a lap around the neighborhood park complete with "mark, set, go" from the stop -turned- start line.

The rains are coming again, maybe even soon, but today it was good to soak in that sun and let it warm and light from the outside in.

 

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
² Oh, give thanks to the God of gods!
For His mercy endures forever.
³ Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords!
For His mercy endures forever:

 

⁷ To Him who made great lights,
For His mercy endures forever—
⁸ The sun to rule by day,
For His mercy endures forever;

Psalm 136: 1-3, 7&8

Home Again

This year quite literally started with a wonderful visit to Opa & Nana's. 

A few of the highlights from a too short trip.  We played lots of games...

Some played more vigorously than others :)

Cody convinced Opa to try a little chess :)

And then we went toboganning... no matter that the thermometer said cold our hats didn't last long in that sunshine!

The most priceless picture of the trip, I think. Cody says "wheeee!"  Opa says, "this is going to hurt!!!"  Sorry that you never did preview this picture, Dad!

That little bump gave a decent amount of air as shown by

Leah

Cam

And Steve and Cam!! hahaha

We went to check out Christmas lights at Spruce Meadows...still sorry about the havok this picture wreaked on everyone as it caused us to get separated from eachother.  Have you ever tried to find another car in the dark, in unfamiliar territory/city when one party has left their cell phone at home!?  (Nice phone message, Dad & Mom!)

 

We went with Nana on the C-train into the downtown and spent 1.5 hours at the public library...yup, we're cool like that.  We enjoyed every minute of all that reading!

We also had 4 hours of fun at THE BEST leisure center but the fun took a bit of a turn when Cara flipped off the bench in the change room.  Seriously, we were that close to leaving when she fell backwards lifting her leg up so I could put on her socks.  A trip to the children's hospital ER gave us an xray photo that showed a broken collarbone and a fancy little sling to hold her arm in place.

As a side note I would like to share that when I asked the doctor if I could have a copy of the xray she told me the easiest way was probably with my phone.  When I informed her I did not own a cell phone she asked incredulously, "HOW OLD ARE YOU?!!"  Thankfully Mom had Dad's nice phone with :)

Mr. Billy stories were a highlight and when I heard all the giggling and went to investigate I heard some talk about boyfriends/girlfriends or something like that :)  Quite obviously the info was quite enjoyed!

And before we knew it that short week of laughter and games, of royal treatment and delicious meals, of love, heaps and heaps of love, well, it was past and it was time to return home again.
Thankful though we are to be safely home, the end of the special time just came so quick.