A new hobby

Ben has been enjoying exploring the world through a new perspective...the camera. These are a few of his latest photos.

Where is the Black Cat?

What can be more fun than some buckets, mud, lots of grass, sticks, dead flower heads and water on a nice fall day? For these three witches - not much!

three...two ....one...BLAST OFF!!!!!!!

Last Christmas Ben got a Rocket kit that is fuelled by vinnegar and baking soda. After the holidays, Ben decided to wait for the perfect time to launch it and it was stored away. We have been talking about the solar system, taking a tour so to speak. During a discussion the other day about how scientists gathered information about the planets, differenet types of space machines and travel in outerspace, Ben mentioned his rocket. The perfect time for launching it came!
After reading the lengthy safety warnings and instructions we gathered our material and headed outside. We assembled the rocket following the directions exactly...but no launch. We tried again with more vinnegar and baking soda.....still no launch. This time when I took it apart to retry- it popped like a champagne bottle all over me- I was covered in white chunks of baking soda and vinnegar. Despite my temporary blindness we tried again. We filled up the rocket and set it down. After reading the trouble shooting we decided to try some patience and just wait a little while longer to see if we would suceed. It was cold out, I was tired, I admit I probably was short on patience for this rocket taking so long. I picked it up to shake it some more and ..........POP ...ZOOOM!!!!!!! The rocket flew (while I was holding the base) from the front yard, over the maple tree, the first fence, over the second and almost on the main road!!!! I squealled with excitment as the kids roared with laughter and amazement, it was a blast!!!!
When dad he asked why I smelled like fish and chips...which lead to a demonstration for him, which was almost as exciting!

In search of gems, crystals and hidden treasures

Friends introduced us to a new hiking trail just on the outskirts of town. It is an old quarry, with two huge pits filled with water, scattered rock and a pine forest which we didn't venture through. The kids loved climbing over the scattered rock field and hills. With hammers in hand they quickly started banging rocks in hopes of finding crystals inside the rock. I wasn't sure what would be discovered, after a slow start I was amazed at what they found. A large rock was split open to show a slate like pieces inside (we haven't worked to identify anything yet), iron, another with crystal and many interesting fossils. It was a beautful fall day, the long brown grass was filled with crickets, grasshoppers and Monarchs! No doubt we will be back to search for some more 'buried' treasure.

What you learn at Lego club

After summer break, Lego Club at the Library has started up again. It is one of the kid's favorite activities, with friends and buckets of Lego it is easy to understand why. Aria will play with Lego, enjoys creating, but by far enjoys the social interaction and stories that go with her creations even more. Today at Lego club one of the children (that neither of us knew) picked up a piece of Lego she was still playing with. In the past this would have been a very very frustrating experience for her, requiring me to intervene and console (which I would do happily). However, today she calmly explained herself, let the child and his mother know how she felt and offered a solution to the conflict. When she wasn't being understood she didn't 'loose her cool', she continued negotiating. I sat close by listening ready to step in if needed, the other mother was helping her son talk also. I was taken aback at how she was able to communicate her feelings and needs, and how she was able to have the patience to stick with the negotiating process. She is growing up, into such an incredible person.

Apple picking is something we look forward to each year. This year was no different. I think the biggest draw for everyone is eating a fresh apple right from the tree- its the first thing we do before even putting one in the bag-it's our rule! We have heard from many farmers this is a poor year for apples, although that wasn't obvious from the size and quantity of apples on the trees. It was a beautiful fall day, crisp and sunny. The farm we visited is famous for their homemade additive, preservative free carmel sauce. We indulged and have been enjoying it at tea time- it's worth being famous for.

A Sandbox Education

Despite looming black clouds we headed to the park to have a little play, stretch our legs and take the dog for a walk. The wet sand was perfect for digging in and sculpting into buildings. Before long the three of them had organized themselves into a building crew. They were building an Eygptian city, complete with pyramids, the Nile, temples, crops, beehives, roads and statues. They talked among themselves about where the crops should go, that the houses needed to be a short distance from the Nile so that when it flooded they weren't ruined, and what they would put in their tomb with them if they could choose. It is amazing what they learn in the sandbox.

A new place to explore

Our neighbourhood is growing, new houses are going up everywhere. While overall I feel like is growing way to fast without any direction or intentional decision making (but that is a whole different RANT!). For discovery sake it has been interesting watching frames be put up, cement poured, siding appear, roofs put on, and paths put in.
There is one particular close area that we are excited about. It has a few ponds with a path surrounding it. We have seen Kildeer each time we have come here, which are extremely interesting birds. They nest on the ground and when a person or predator gets to close to the nest the adult Kildeer diverts their attention by pretending to have a broken wing and running away from the nest. We have seen Blue Herons, sunflowers growing and lots of gold finches. It is like a little oasis for us to explore after breakfast.

And the Judges Results are IN!!!!

After getting their prizes, the kids are thinking about 'doing' the fair ciruit next year. (I wonder if there are people that really do that!). They worked so hard, they are so proud of the crafts they produced and so honored to have been recognized. For Elias the highlight was receiving the Halton Agricultural Society Honorary Ribbon for the tractor him and Dad worked on together. Ben received a ribbon on everything he entered! Aria was most proud of her third place ribbon for the picture she worked meticulously on of what she would look like at 65 years old! Now the planning of what to do with the money begins!

Fall Fair

Our day at the fair finally arrived and despite the intermittent downpours of rain, fun was had by all. There was a full day worth of activities which we shared with Nana, who joined us for the annual event. On the top of the list was the children's tractor pull. The kids are divided into weight categories, all participants win a ribbon for merritt and some tickets for the rides, if you pulled in the top five you also won money. Ben- for the second year in a row won first place in his weight, coming away with a trophy, large ribbon, coloring book, $10, and ride tickets!!!! They were all thrilled at the choosing two rides each! Elias and Ben choose to spend some of their prize money on a game, each winning a bear. Aria headed straight for the cotton candy!
There was tractor pulls of a larger scale, a smash up derby, waterfowl, chickens, horses, sheep, cows, 4H demonstrations and music! I haven't even touched on the exhibition halls yet and the craft results...which were very very exciting!!
I will write about those tommorrow. It was so great to see them light up with pride over the crafts they worked so hard on displayed, many with ribbons. It's definetely a tradition we will keep up.

Name Updates

This weekend names for the baby having been flying around, some of the more memorable are :

Tin Tin
Nacho Grande (the most popular)
Jesus
Boing
Issac (Newton)
Merlin
Karaq
micro
bubbles

Thank goodness we are only at 24 weeks!!!

The British are coming!!!!

While doing some work at the computer I overheard this conversation while the kids were playing with a castle and their playmobile.

A: Who wants to enter the castle?
E: It is the British Royalty; the Highness.
B: We are British too.
A: Ahhhhh! close up the gate, quickly, quickly - the British are coming, they are hideous! They wear funny clothes and want to tell us what to do!!!!!

Especially amusing since the entire generation before me immigrated from England and we still have family who live their! Please take no offense family and friends....we are currently embarking on a trip through Europe beginning with England. Impressions will either be cleared up....or enforced...stay tuned!!!!!

The toothless gang!

I don't think I know of anything more anticipated then the falling out of Ben's tooth. It has been wiggly - or at least hoped to have been wiggly for at least the past 6 months. The last few days it has been holding on by threads. In his sleep last night it came out. I awoke to squeals of joy, not only from Ben but also his brother and sister. They know how badly he wanted his tooth to fall out and they couldn't have been more happy. Now they have a club....the toothless gang!

Tis Time for the Fair

The Milton fair has become an greatly anticipated and enjoyed event by our family. This is the third year we have entered our handicrafts to be put on display and potentially be recognized by the judges. The past few weeks the kids have been pouring over the category options, narrowing down which they would enjoy the most. Tommorrow all the crafts have to be in for judging and the fair takes place all weekend long.
Elias' contribution included a handprint wreath, a decorated pancake, a marshmallow polar bear, a mounted leaf, a sock puppet, a craft of his choice (handpainted egg), a farm vehicle made from recycled material (which kept him and dad up pretty late), a drawing of a farm scene. Ben choose to enter his penmenship, a weird shape vegetable, a decorated pancake, a sock puppet, a tissue paper flower, a marshmallow hand, a craft of his choice (his mask) and a pasta bracelet. Aria made a marshmallow hand, a weird shape vegetable, a mounted leaf, a decorated pancake, a picture of what she looks like at 65 years old, a craft of choice ( a sponge painting) and a pasta bracelet.
The kids have been saving their money to go to the fair, maybe some cotton candy or a ride. Its great to see the three of them plan the order of the events, remembering from the previous year what they enjoyed. No doubt you will hear all about it!

Summer days

Saying goodbye to summer

The seasons will formally change at the end of the week, even though it felt as though the fall weather came quite awhile ago. With this change we have been talking about the days we enjoyed during the summer; beach days, Ontario Place, golfing, swimming in outdoor pools, barefeet, nakedness, icecream, backyard pool, sand, late nights.