We are home!

We have sand in our hair and we smell of ocean salt. We are relaxed, amazed at what we saw, and thankful to have such an amazing family to enjoy travelling with.

So much to share (ghost crabs, beach combing, aligators, pelicans, sting rays, fireworks and more!).....patience grammy we are going through the photos. (we hope you are enjoying england :)

It truly was fabulous!

And we are off!

For a week at the ocean, combing the beach, playing in the sand, eating ice cream and just being!
see you when we return!

Butterflies and Sunshine

What a beautiful day. Lots of deep breaths, sunshine on our face, butterflies to follow, frogs to spot, stories to weave, mud to step in. We invited some friends to join us on a spontaneous hike, which didn't happen to work for anyone else. At the end of the two hours playing in the woods, the kids commented how wonderful it is being just us together in the woods. It was a beautiful day.

In preparation for our trip I downloaded all the pictures off the cards. These were some that caught my eye :P Friends, family, daily life.

The First of the Season

Since the nice weather has arrived (oh it is glorious!) we have been enjoying morning walks before our table time. We head out for about an hour, stroller, bikes, scooters and follow one of the trails close by. It frames the day wonderfully.

Today on the walk, while biking through tall grass Elias noticed a snake. The kids did their ritual yeah it's a snake dance, passed it around gently all the while squealing with delight! Then they realized it was Shai's 1st snake, showing him and telling him all the great things about snakes.

After that there was an extra spring in every one's step for the day.

Ha Ha Ha

Ben keeps stuff a white pillow in his shirt, walking around so that I can't see his head. He calls himself The Tooth Man. I am in hysterics every time!

While we were at the grocery store in the produce section the boys found a rubber snake on the floor. They have a knick knack section and we guessed it was from there. Elias said we should hide it in the fruit, I said we shouldn't do that. But I got thinking, and really why couldn't we. That is a funny joke. So we went back and hid it amongst the apples. We are thinking of making it a regular part of our grocery shopping, so watch out "


We ran in to the library yesterday after a walk. Shai is at the stage of pulling all the books off the shelves so our visits are getting shorter. While I ran around picking stuff up the kids sat with another child looking at books. The other little girl commented that at school she was reading about how the seasons change. Aria (my oh so shy daughter) replied that was a really silly thing. That why would you read a book about the season changing when you could go outside and watch it. The seasons changing happens, if you want to learn about it go watch it!!!!
She cracks me up....although I do agree :)

Road Hockey

Elias has been chatting with his friends, and asking constantly for me to organize a road hockey day. Today was the day, and after a few days of cold rainy weather we were thankful for the sunshine to show up just in time. I spent most of the time following Shai around, and enjoying watching my family play with their friends. It was a good day.

The kids enjoying building sailboats at the Home Depot kids program today. They have big plans to varnish and sail these beauties.

It was interesting to me that my kids noticed that all the kids they could see around them weren't using their hammers, it was their parents. The other kids weren't much younger than my kids. This surprised my kids. It was a very simple project, some of my guys choose to follow the directions and some didn't. They just love to build, either way.

what would you consider dangerous?

There has been lots of talk about how our society has insulated our children in a culture of safety. I tend to agree. Here is another TED video that talks about 5 dangerous things you should let your kids do.
I admit my kids have done them all :)

I can feel the shift of spring

-the garage is emptied on a daily basis

-someone is refusing to be the one watching this year

-a new addition to the world of two wheels

He's our man!

we are thrilled for him! he got the job he wanted....which means we are off for a holiday in two weeks! south carolina here we come :)

shifting

I have been feeling unmotivated. Uninterested. Unable. I was reading about people shifting with the seasons. That now they are starting to try new things, reconnect with interests they have and want to begin again. I was starting to wonder if that would happen to me. But here I am thinking of what I want to begin this season for myself and with the kids.
New coops have been a part of that. We asked a family to join us in exploring different types of houses. We pictured it having two parts; talking about the home, who lives there, what era and geographical place the home was from, what does the home tell us about those people, etc. The second part was building a model of the house. This was our first week. Our family choose the first house, a long house. This is a house that the Iroquois peoples lived in, here in what is now southern Ontario. We gathered sticks, bark and boxes. Depending on their age and ability, the kids each built models with a frame and bark over lapping. Aria chose to build a boat :) ( I really love her individuality!)

Ben especially enjoyed the activity, and showed the neighbours his model. The kids enjoyed the sunshine and played a long while outside. I am feeling a little more able, interested and excited about our plans.

I think it's official

We enjoyed a field trip to a local museum which we haven't visited in a long time. It was a wonderful program (and reasonably priced), which included looking at pioneer items, learning about herbs and creating an herb sachet, dipping bees wax candles, carding wool and spinning it. The highlight for me was looking at the display of hooked rugs that were each created in honour of the artist's mother. They really were beautiful.

While it was an excellent program, and everyone enjoyed themselves, the information wasn't new for the kids. The conversations in the back seat involved some comments about an 'official' theme of the year being pioneers and handicrafts.

Shocked

We have been doing lots of hikes and walks this past week, in the woods and around different neighbour hoods. We have witnessed lots of spring emerging but the one that has shocked the kids the most is the garbage underneath the melting snow. They can't believe how much litter they see. With no suggestion on any one's part they whittled points on sticks to spear garbage along our walks. It's been inspiring.

Herself

This session of dance class has ended, we went to watch the last class. The class the same; most of the same people, the same moves, the same music, the same photos. This time though there was a different Aria. She has physically grown, she was taller then most of the other kids.

She knows the moves inside and out, so she has added her own pizazz to them. She sings the songs, acting out the routine with complete ease. The confidence she has in her body is clear as she moves around the room. The belief in herself is clear, it's magical really.

Handicrafts Continue

With the visible changes in the seasons some new schedules, interests and routines are emerging. Baths seem to increase with the mud level. Thankfully people are sleeping in a little (6:30...it's doable). Aria and Ben have both been enthralled with corking. They have been working on things for their stuffed animals; rugs, collars, leashes. Their concentration is amazing, and they couldn't look cuter working side by side.

Elias has been finding sunny spots around the yard to whittle in. He has been working on designs and patterns. For a little while there was a secret project for a friend's birthday. It was something he never tried before and while it wasn't exactly how he imagined it, he was sooo thrilled to give it.

Spring has Sprung

This past week we have been out enjoying the final arrival of spring. The snow has almost completely melted, leaving mud in its place. We have stopped counting robins, since they seem to be around each corner. The river is running high, the trees are being climbed and we found a park that wasn't a pond. There are signs of green in our gardens, the iris has it's head out first. Bike tires were pumped and side walk chalk emerged. We have found worms and the kids when walking with Chris say butterflies - 2! Windows were opened, spring jackets brought out, stroller replacing toboggans.

It's exciting.