Thursday, July 28, 2016

Why I Love to PoGo

I'll let you in on a little secret. Trains were not something that I was passionate about.
 
That might come as a surprise to anyone who has seen me post train pictures for years.
 
Trains we've ridden, visited, bought, built, traveled to see; train collections, train shows, train trips and train stores.


The boys loved everything about trains; we spent hours talking about them.
(And my kids would smell me faking it from a mile away so I really had to commit to loving trains.)

When I engaged with them on this common interest they were so energized and passionate.
And I got a front row seat to so many of their discoveries and joys.
(M was right there along for the ride too.)
 
All this to say .... I'm still pursuing that shared experience with the kids.
The older they get the less they share.
But when I'm committed to loving what they love ... I can still get that front row seat to their life.
(I've also logged a lot of km walking, met some nice people and my ocd tendencies have me dreaming of a full Pokedex.)

Just a note: my love of Medieval History, Warships and Submarines and LEGO may be 'family based' .... but my love of colouring is all me!!!

Monday, July 25, 2016

BabesInTown

It's different when your cousins are small.
You get to be seen as more of a grown up.

And test out your babysitting skills.
If you're really brave .... you get to try things that you'd otherwise be considered 'too old' for.
They didn't have these cool riding toys at the mall when the boys were small.
And if you happen to have a baseball event .... you get quite the cheering squad.
 
I feel like Adm has perhaps lost his interest in watching his brother at baseball. Haha
 
It was good practice for Charlie also.
The babes are very well behaved at not crowding him or grabbing at him.
And he's starting to warm up to these little people.

Thursday, July 21, 2016

Re'new'ed Stuff

The re'new'ed lawn furniture. 
Great colour choice M.
He saved his Christmas&birthday money ....
.... and today he bought a Nuu phone. 
(His previous phone was about 4 years old and starting to glitch a lot.)

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Front Hall Done

We've had a problem with our front hall. It didn't really function well for us.
You can see that, as a result of the closet doors and the door to the hall, movement was restricted.
Typically, we entered one at a time ... proceeded forward to remove our shoes and jackets ... then shuffled to the right-to make room- ... then back towards the door to enter the hall. 
During the winter this was a somewhat hurried process in an attempt to get the door closed asap so the cold air wouldn't get in!!
Speaking of the door closing ... while that was happening someone would need to step into the closet.
And if there was more than 4 people ..... well you can just imagine the bottle neck.
Voila! The solution. 
Reducing the footprint of the closet by almost half (but adding a much needed bench), and removing the wall and door that separated the hall from the front area.
Lots of room for the front door to open and close. Lots of room for people to come in, sit down, hang their coats and comfortably enter.
Coming in and looking to the right. 
First the front wall and then the hall to the kitchen.
 
Finally, the cabinet/bench and EXIT wall.
We love it!!!!
 
And the garden continues to grow.
   

Monday, July 18, 2016

Sigh of Contentment

Beautiful weather and a Sunday morning stretched out in front of us ...
we enjoyed a ride on local bike paths. 
Then, we stopped for a water break, and to skip stones, along the river. 
And just when I thought the day couldn't get any better ..... we saw 4 chairs and a bench put out for collection the next day. 
After some sanding and staining these will be great. 
 

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

1st Fruit (or Veggie)

I'm learning a lot about what I won't(!) do next year. 
Particularly in regards to produce placement.
But regardless, this year's veggies are growing nicely. 
  

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Ooooh Ca-na---what?

The learning never stops around here.
This summer I'm leading a little unit on Canadian Geography.
To start things off with a giggle I asked the kids .... without peeking ahead of time .....
to draw the outline of Canada with the provincial/territorial boundaries.
Of course, E immediately challenged me to do it along with them.
We had a lot of giggles during the process.
While they won't allow me to share their finished products ....
I'm willing to put mine and M's out there.

Sunday, July 10, 2016

Running Funny

Last year A was left with a very distinct 'Cheeto' look. 

This year I'm thinking he looked more like a blueberry!
Bring on the run .....
and bring on the fun!
 
 
The rain held off until the very end of the 5km.

... which was good news for me as my umbrella left a little to be desired.

Update Dec2020

My Guy A My Guy E School Rooms at Home Deck the Halls It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas