Favorite Places

When the kids were little, the oldest were about 6, 4 and 2 years old we belonged to our first coop. There were four families, all with homeschooling plans and similarly aged kids. We planned activities that ranged from gymnastics to crafting to art. The kids loved it, as did the mums. We also planned a series of field trips which we opened up to a larger group of homeschoolers. I organized some hiking outings to a few different natural spots. We visited these different spots during the different seasons, so the kids could see the same area changed through the seasons.

Ever since that coop we have tried as a family to visit our favorite natural places during each of the seasons, giving us the opportunity to observe the changes and see the beauty in the different stages. Today we went back to a favorite park, on a trail we are beginning to know well. As we round different corners I can hear the kids shouting out, "the rock slide is just up ahead" or "the stream of many waterfalls is around the corner". They are beginning to claim it as part of their world, know it on a completely new level.

It was a wonderful hike. Shai is getting to stage where he walks more than he does ride in the toboggan (there is barely enough snow in the woods for it now). His comfort zone for exploring is growing and he often wants to do it without me. There was lots of mud and water to tromp through and rocks to climb. Only one person fell in and only one close call at the waters edge.
And that sunshine. Truly. Magical.

Finally!

Raising and keeping chickens has been a crazy and fun journey! I am the first to admit I am smitten over my ladies. Although the road to collecting eggs hasn't been an easy one; a raccoon break in, cold winter nights, short days, inexperienced care takers. We have had an egg here and there, each one cherished, but I am thrilled to announce that we are collecting eggs on a regular basis. In fact the kids came running in the other day, they had found a secret stash in the far corner of the coop. They brought in 12 eggs!

Apparently the hens prefer to lay on the straw bails and not their nesting boxes filled with straw. Some talented people are willing to go the extra mile for their ladies to lay, I am thankful now not to have too :) Regardless of where they lay their eggs, we are so excited to just have eggs. We can say YES! we have chickens with pride, and wow do we make a mean quiche!

A Hard Sell

Technically, it's still winter. But the past two weeks the temperatures have been hovering 10 degrees, sunny (only one evening of a tiny bit of rain), and beautiful. The bikes are out, the rubber boots are on, we hung the hammock up today, the snow has melted and gone except for a pile here or there. The pond is thawed, the laundry is on the line, the heat is off, the windows open. The time change has meant we had dinner at 7pm and the sun was still out! The kids are eating lunch on the deck, picnicking every snack they can and asking about the sprinkler!!!
But technically, it's still winter.

Our Friendly Visitors

This morning I stepped onto our back deck to hang up the laundry on the line, to see Elias beside our chicken coop with a huge smile on his face. The house was hiding what was beside him, but he was giving me a look as to say "shhhh, look here!". I read his expression right, I stepped over to see 5 deer standing literally a few feet away from him. Apparently he didn't notice them when he was letting the chickens out but turned around to find them all beside him. I quickly put everyone on deer alert, each scattering to their different windows or outside.

Ben choose to go onto the driveway, where they happened to cross a few minutes later. They were so comfortable with the two boys being nearby that a mama deer came very close to them sniffing them out. We often see deer, but never this bold. And rarely so many at one time. Sighting them is something the locals told us we would tire of, but I can't see that ever happening.

Crafting Meets Birthing

I continue to be amazed at what grows from unideal situations. Had someone asked me a few months ago if I had the desire to complement being a busy home school mama with some work outside of the house I think I would have answered fairly quickly no. Mainly because I enjoy the path I have chosen, it fuels and fills me, what would changing that add? But over those few months out of necessity I began working teaching a variety of classes. The ones that have become most successful; both financially and personally have been a series of different childbirth and breastfeeding classes.

Creating creative ways to pass along information to adults about an incredible process has been truly rewarding. My partner and I have enjoyed pulling together our resources and skills to have props and teaching aids to enhance different aspects of the class. This is our 'baby o baby' we use when reviewing the process of birth, its a great visual summary. Amber and I combined our talents, she knit the uterus and corked the umbilical cord and I sewed the gauze amniotic sac and embroidered the felt placenta.

Since most of my wonderful friends are birth junkies and crafting divas I knew could appreciate this combination!

Breath

Parenting in its day to day form requires you to be in the moment. The tasks required of you are in the now, consuming your time. There is the food prep., hugs, story time, peace making, play dates, table time, housework, nursing, diapers, fixing scrapes and bumps, etc. Time passes rather quickly, day fills after day. There are events though that pull us out of the now, that help give us some perspective into how quickly are kids are growing. The first tooth, beginning solids, first steps, a haircut, learning to ride a bike, etc. These are all the ones we talk about mother to mother, even though they often feel as if they were sprung on us we still expect them, perhaps even anticipate them.
There are other markers that catch us off guard, that get us to step out of our day to day and see that our baby....isn't a baby. There was the time at the park where my one who felt most comfortable attached to my leg decided to join in a game. Gradually the physical distance grew between us and before both of us knew it he was over on the other side of the park. In surprise I looked up to find him looking back at me, looking to be contemplating whether to run back to me. After a minute he ran to catch up with the group and join in with the game again. A first for both of us. I caught my breath.
Or that time I was waiting for them to bring that shoe that is so tricky to tie up like I always did before we head out the door. Instead this time they did it on their on and were now waiting in the car for me!
There are lots of them, they are different for each kid and mum, but they always cause you to loose your breath for just a second. The other day Elias babysat a friend of the family's daughter. For the whole day. They decided to try it at our house, but the job was his with the comfort of knowing I was there if he needed it. Not surprisingly, he didn't. He watched her from 9-4, getting her snacks and cooking lunch. He managed to include some of his siblings in their play, balancing entertaining and problem solving as he went.
I wasn't surprised that he would do so well. He is a kind, responsible and loving person. But I had one of those moments of needing to catch my breath. He was playing outside with the person he was watching and his youngest brother. The two little ones were trying to negotiate who rode in the wagon and who pulled. After what looked like lots of discussion he ended up in the wagon with them pulling him. Two times around the driveway, ending with a big group hug. He navigated it like a pro. And kindness. And so grown up.
Just catching my breath.

Standing Proud

The handmade Olympic torches have been lit again. The excitement of watch powerful, skilled athletes is once again in the air. The Paralympics has started and everyone is thrilled. There is a real love for sledge hockey happening, with snowboards and sticks being used to create their own equipment (with the very last bit of snow). The buzz around the dinner table is how different sports can be modified, for the winter but also all year round.

Painting

Painting. Finger or brush?

That is the question.

Celebrating

Such a sweet way to celebrate International Women's Day, listening to an an array of talented artists, including my daughter. For year's I attended coffee house style concerts organized by grass root groups spreading awareness and fostering community among women. These concerts filled me with inspiration and entertained me. It has been quite a few years since I have been to one. Having kids and a very different schedule has made room for different things. Good things, but different.

Aria and I rushed over to the hall, having gulped dinner down and leaving the house in a hurry 10 minutes behind schedule. We made it in time, I had just enough time to find a seat before the opening piece. Aria's choir was on next; singing a piece about Winnie Mandela and her strength and This Little Light of Mine. They were beautiful. She came to sit with me after, cuddling in as it was getting late. We stayed to listen to some story telling, drumming, piano accompanied by harp, duets and poets. As we listened I couldn't help but think about the woman I was and the woman I am today. It felt so right to be celebrating with Aria, appropriate as it is being a mother that has really formed the woman I have become.

Pancake Men

The days are getting longer. Tonight there was light till 6:40pm, such a treat. Combined with all the sun and warmth we have been having it gets us itching for spring. The longer days mean a few things at our house. One of them is the kids start getting up early again. My guys are morning people, this is a rhythm I have come to expect every year around this time. From my bed I can hear them get up, head outside for early morning adventures, making tea for some reading on the couch, playing with each other.

This year has brought a new part to the tradition. The kids cooking skills and confidence has grown. They have been making themselves breakfast for awhile now, but they have been adding waffles, pancakes, muffins, french toast to their independent early morning time. It is wonderful watching them take on such challenges-including a great clean up! If I time it right, I join them for a nice hot breakfast; such a treat. I just have to get them to add making coffee to their new routine.

The sun made us

No reason other than just because is needed to go hiking. But the sun really did require us to enjoy! With some friends we headed out to off to a nearby provincial park to explore some trails. A trail we are familiar with was where we choose to explore, in large part to share feeding the gray jays, nuthatches and chickadees. The walk began and ended with them eating from the palms of our hand the seeds we brought to share.

In between we played in the tons of snow still left, especially in the woods. The kids climbed up the large rock faces which became the perfect advantage to have a snowball fight against Dad. Sliding spots were also found and enjoyed. We stopped by the visitor centre for a quick peek at the bird feeders, a look at the displays and a bathroom break. Everyone left full of vitamin D and contented spirits.

The added bonus

Our ultimate goal of tapping the trees and boiling the sap is obviously to produce some of our own maple syrup. It is a time consuming process, especially in our small pot. Without a doubt it is time well spent. The process of building and maintaining the fire, skimming off the syrup, refilling the pot for many, many hours at a time has led way to other wonderful rewards.

We head outside at first to tend to our tasks, but the sun and warmth keep us out. There was ice collected for winter fairy houses, hockey played. The swings were enjoyed, lunch roasted, snowball fights had. We tried our hand at bannock on a stick, which was a huge hit. The process involved in making sap together as a family is one we cherish, but just as much is the time spent together outside just hanging out. Or maybe the bonus is that for days on end we all smell like campfire!

Sweet Water

Cold crisp nights, warm sunny days, which means the sap is running. We put up our three buckets last week and since then have gathered about 8 buckets full sap! It is amazing how much sap drips, which I guess is a good thing considering the sap/syrup ration (about 18litres to 1 litre). This weekend we began boiling off the sap. We have a tripod set up over our fire pit and we continually fill a pot hung over the fire. There is so much sap and our process isn't as quick as it would be if we had a large flat tray for the boil off, but it works and its what we have at the moment. It just means we will be boiling for days to come....maybe even weeks. The reward for all the hard work and fire maintaining happens to be sweet enough!

It Rocked

Unanimous; curling was a hit. I am so thankful for chances like these for my kids to give different things a try for a few weeks in a warm environment with their friends. They are too. I don' t think this will be the last we see of curling.

Thanks Grammy and Grampy

When we were down south visiting family we had our grouped together birthday celebration. Grammy, Grampy, Elias, and Shai all got to blow out the candles. Part of Elias' gift was a pulley. Everyone has been enjoying using to lift themselves and each other higher into their tree. There was talk of attaching a bucket for Shai, he was thrilled at the idea....anyone else watch the movie Wild America ? I have flashes of that in my head when I hear them say things like that!

Trip Time

We were south for a few days. It is a trip we are started to get under our belt. With a few minor tweaks we are learning what combination of visits works best for everyone, how many visits to make in a day, what essentials we should pack, the best spots to stretch our legs if needed along the way. Despite all the planning and reorganizing there is never enough time to see everyone and do everything we had hoped. Regardless our visits are always full of family, friends and fun.

For Shai the anticipation was all about seeing his cousin who is only 6 months his senior. He had plans to show him his favorite stickers, special shirts, sing certain songs, big plans he had. Some of his list was checked and other items traded for time in the snow, a night time walk and a bubble bath. Seeing the two of them cherish each other is beautiful. Before long I don't doubt the two of them will be planning more adventures for the next visit.