Remember Thanksgiving?

Remember the trip to Sarnia?

Brooding

Oh how I wish I had more to say.
I frequently get frustrated with blogging. I have so much up in my head and
it's so much work to get it out into words.
I've just started to read a Kierkkegaard anthology and I'm struck how people
can just write down their thoughts. I read blogs, letter, journals and
emails and I'm struck how so many people write so coherently. I just flit
from thought to thought, never quite slowing down enough so others can see
what I'm thinking. It's also that it's terrifying to share. But K. was an
original thinker, shamed and ridiculed for his thoughts which are now
heralded as RIGHT THINKING. So, I'm considering being braver. We'll see.

Will there ever be pictures?

Well, still so much to say! But pictures would be ever so much nicer. A
birthday cake, a tent, a few beautiful little girls and a very happy Emily.
Yup. She's three.
We had her party yesterday, but today was her big day. It was quite a
bummer for her compared to yesterday. Hopefully the trip to McDonald's for
supper helped!

Ah, so here's the truth: I'm trying to see if I can email to my blog.
Here goes!

Quite Cute Quotes

I've been trying to get some pictures up, from our trip to Sarnia and Thanksgiving...not quite working out yet. Oh well. I'll try some Quite Cute Quotes instead.

Earlier this week...
Nathan: "Mommy, I heard on the news that the giants were going to meet the cowboys."
Eyes on Mommy with an inquiring gaze.
Mommy stifles guffaw.
Mommy: "Oh, really?"
Nathan gives up his unsuccessful attempt to read Mommy's expression.
Nathan: "Yes, isn't that silly?"

Oh the things that they put in the news these days! Ha ha ha ha ha ha haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa (breathe) ha ha ha ha!
I haven't explained it to him yet. I just handed him my cell phone and let him tell his daddy. Daddy didn't explain it either. It's just too precious.

Mommy: "How do you want me to decorate your birthday cake, Emily?"
Emily, with great frustration: "I don't want you to decorate my cake, Mommy. I want to EAT it."
Long pause while Mommy is laughing.
Emily, using a Mommy-you're-so-dull-I-guess-I-have-to-spell-it-out-for-you tone of voice:
"I want a BIRTHDAY cake, with SPRINKLES on it. And I want CANDLES. And I want people to sing happy birthday to ME."
Some time later: "And I want to EAT my birthday cake."

Hee hee, I'll guess I'll just enjoy the ride as we careen wildly towards the Age of 3.

And here's the latest from Nathan:
"Mommy, can you help me read this part?"

Yippee!Yippee!Yippee!Yippee!Yippee!Yippee!
We now have a Beginning Reader! WaHOO!

Paul and I are heading to Stratford on Saturday to make use of our Christmas gift certificate (Christmas '05). I don't know what we are going to see, I'm not trying to find out, but it shall be glorious! Wonderful Aunt Ana is hanging out with the kids.

That's it for now!

32 years, up in smoke

I have embarked on the journey of a lifetime....no, a journey of a year. My 33rd year, to be exact. Not much to report so far, wandered in the woods, danced in the snow, yelled at some kids. I know there is a deeper thing going on in all these activities. I know that God is at work and right here with me. Sometimes the daily life I see with my eyes filters the reality of His Son's life in me. It really should be the other way round.

ReJoy!

I have Rediscovered the Joy of being at home! I went from "grump, grump, ho hum, not-so-how" to "wheee, this IS fun!" in the space of, oh, about 1 second. I was in my kitchen. I was miming. I was holding a cucumber in my hand. Blue Man Group was playing on the stereo. You figure it out!

Yippee! Just gotta find those pearls.

Amy

Some pictures we DID take!

See the excited groom? See the groomsman on the right? He's mine!















Al and Nadine cutting the cake - "Lebanese stye"













Aboard the ferry, approaching Centre Island. They still don't know Centreville exists...we just walked around the island!

















Nathan's new friend. He lives at the lighthouse with his family. He didn't talk much.

Our trip to the Library

I asked Nathan tonight if he wanted to go to the library. He suggested I could walk and he could ride his bike. He got a two-wheeler avec training wheels last week and there's been no stopping him. That is, until Paul put air in his tires yesterday! After a bit of clever and loud Mommy negotiating ("Nathan, GO! Yes it's more wobbly....GO! NOW!") followed by some logic (Nathan...you can do it), he got going and has gotten used to his now wobbly bike. So off we went to the library.

This involved crossing at two intersections with lights and one with a 4-way stop. He did super well and pedalled his little heart out. Once at the library, we discovered it was closed ( I didn't check before leaving as I thought it was a worthwhile excursion anyway). We figured out how to lock his bike to the bike rack, went pee and came back out. After a small but traumatic mishap on the ramp downhill, he pedalled his little heart out back home. Oh the proud mommy moment!

When we got home, we found that Paul had begun to give Emily a bath. How great that was! He got to ride to the library and is now clean to boot!

It was fabulous. He's really tired and his bum hurts, but he is so happy.

Bikes. Hee!

We go ALL OUT!

Yup. Just couldn't stay home. Nope. Needed to get to higher ground. Ahem. Sky? Concrete?
Whatever.
We went to the CN tower today. Kids loved it. Nathan's fave: the Lego Racer simulator ride. ( I think he liked looking out from the SkyPod too).
It was quite all right, even the long line for the elevator up to the SkyPod.
Once we were finished, we exited the tower and walked in the direction of the old roundhouse just south of the tower. We were distracted by the OPP display of various cars and such and the bipedal furry dog and elephant. The kids got a couple of photo ops (not with our camera - which I left conveniently attached to the computer in an attempt to download pictures before we left this morning - HA!). And THEN, this cop lady asked if we got any treats. Then she got us the treats : hockey puck, tattoos, OPP badge AND a Junior OPP cap - in stylish black plastic! They were thrilled. The cops AND the kids.

When we finally made our way over to the round house we stopped to eat our lunch on a bench. We sat down with the CN Tower in the center of our view with the 'roger centre' off to the left. Emily's fave memory of the day was watching the elevators go up and down in the glass shaft. After lunch, Paul and Nathan disappeared into the tall grass in order to check out the roundhouse. Emily and I climbed some concrete thing while we waited for the boys to reappear.

While we were walking back to Union we saw a crew which was putting down some new track. Twenty minutes later, we finally got to Union, bought some candy and headed onto the subway.

It's so good to be back home. I've really enjoyed the extra special events but it was especially nice to get home, give them naps, do some errands and sit down to a nice dinner. Home is good.

Anniversary at the AGO.

It was just like 9 years ago. A little rainy, a little sunny and just the right temperature. We drove down to the AGO, just the two of us and wandered around the downright limited selection of the AGO's holdings. But it meant that we did the gallery in an hour ( it was free from 6-9pm!) and got to wander in the gift shop. We bought a fun looking card game for the kids where they get to build snakes!
Then we drove around trying to find a new parking spot ( the garage we had originally parked in was being used for filming) and ended up right in front of the CHUM City building at Queen and John at the ONLY parking meter directly in front of the Breakfast television/CityLine studio. It was a little weird. AND we didn't even have to pay because it was after 9pm.
We wandered east on Queen and found ourselves at the Indian Palace which was a simple but welcoming restaurant with very yummy food. It was such a nice evening.
And, Paul, "Happy Anniversary! Thanks for wandering the gallery with me. I love you!"

Spontaneous adventure

It was Sunday, around 11am. We had just come back from church. The children were playing happily but we, the parents, were unsettled. So we made a decision.
About an hour and a half later we found ourselves at Black Creek Pioneer Village.
What Fun!
Trouncing around on gravel paths ( much gentler on the feet), smelling spices, watching how to card and spin wool --oh so much fun! It amazed me how they just glowed as they ran around.
Nathan is just the right age to take in the information the village-people (non-YMCA types) shared. Emily enjoyedthe sheer energy of the excursion.
Paul and I found it wonderfully relaxing.
But, we didn't bring the camera.
Maybe next time!

"Mommy, look! They're playing coconut!"

Coconut? Ahem. Cricket, it is.
Hee hee. That one should be written down. Oh look. I just did. Oh Emily.....one day maybe you'll play coconut too!

oooh, the backyard....

We are having such fun this summer. Especially in our backyard. Emily really enjoys The Digging Spot.
















Look! Look! There's grass!
Beautiful! Restful!
Aaaah. Feel the softness under your bare feet.













My friend Sue called to say her cherries were ready. So, we grabbed this bucket and two Narnia popcorn buckets and headed over.
Paul climbed the tree, Emily sat on a chair, terrified of the dogs, and Nathan and I fought for time on the ladder. We filled this bucket and one popcorn one. Lotsa cherries.
These lovely cherries have now been apportioned to share, consumed in a pie and transformed into jam. Yippee! What fun!

Once upon a time we went strawberry picking...

Grumpy, here, didn't want to pick strawberries.
She wanted to see the goats. But, her brother was busily getting nice red fruit! Next time we'll try to find a farm without the goats.











Proud picker, Nathan. Proud straw twirler, Emily.



















We picked this much!












Mr. Scarecrow.



















Miss Scarecrow!

Antics

"Mom, look!"
"Oh, you're playing a french horn!"














"Look!"
"And so are you."














Summer means sprinkler time! What fun we are having in our fabulously sodded back yard. Thanks, Paul!



















Happy, wet munchkin. Lovely.















These are little Playmobile people, wise men actually, from Nathan's Nativity set. Emily enjoys playing with them too. On this day, they decided to take a jaunt out of the bedroom, aided by Emily. Do you suppose they were tired out and needed to sit down? I wonder....

Kids try new things every day!

My fabulous 4 year old. He's grating cheese! I see a budding kitchen helper. Yippee!!












Oblivious to gender stereotyping, the little lad sets up a venue for serving tea.













Hee, hee! Lemon face! This initial taste did not deter him, however. He continued to 'eat' it!

















She wanted to try it too. Missed getting the pucker, though. You'll just have to imagine it!

So, I thought I would post a quick one. It's taken me 15 minutes to get to this point of typing my words, from the initial click to log on. GRrrrrrr. So, I have pictures I taken.....but loading them on to the computer takes a conscious time commitment. It's like working with a 486 again. Turn it on, go have a coffee. Click a program, go make a snack. Type a few words, make a phone call. See the words appear, try to correct the spelling mistake, take your empy coffee cup to the sink while the computer thinks.
BAH!
Maybe my computer is PMSing too!
Hee.
Ah, well, kids are cute, wish I could show you. We're having fun, lots of stories to tell.
But, alas, I have to go vaccuum.

Bye!

It takes a LONG time to post!

So here I was thinking that I could just write a quick note to update you all. But NO, it took me far too long to even load up the login page. Aaaaagh.
Paul got a birthday present. A new hard drive. My computer has not been the same since....hence the lack of updates. Theoretically, the computer should be even faster.
Guess it's not well versed with the theory. I'm a little sad that it's not working quite as it should.

You really should have seen his face when he got his birthday money from his sister (and parents). "Oh, I know what this is for. A hard drive!" Kindof like Nathan's face last night when we told him he had to sleep in the same room as his sister. "Oh Thank you, Mommy. I've wanted to for....ummmm.......for a long time really! Oh thank you!".
THEY didn't get to sleep until 11pm. And my computer is SSSSSSSSSSSSLLLOW. Ah well.

The reason that Nathan slept in Emily's room was that his room is entering the final stages of transformation. The peeling paint has been scraped away. The ceiling and walls are all primed. And now, we'll see just how much painting a stay-at-home mom can accomplish, in a day, without sitting the kids in front of the tv for hours and hours. He might sleep in Emily's room yet again tonight. I'll have to be ok with that.

Yup, I have been working on his room, wall by wall, for 2 months. I'm a little impatient to finish, but still have to pace it.

Now, it is Nathan's turn:
lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllfrjyhytyy hy tf yhy yrt tufgerrewgwaevytvb4wetgvv r tg few fyerte fsgcdydf
nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnhhgjgfhfhgnbfgjfhgfgfdghyuiyuiunbhui5tiyhgfbnjhujghgyhujygh ut
b mnbhngfnytghjhutyyuuug
nathan

Ok we're done.
Bye

The tale of Sir Nathan, Princess Emily and King Mommy

Look, they are pre-"reading" their naptime stories! Awwww. A quiet moment in our day.
This pic belies the energy of the day. I gave Nathan a new toy. Oooh, he was thrilled. It was a a breastplate, a shield, a helmet and a sheathed sword - all plastic. He put it all on and went to the front mirror to admire himself. He declared that he looked "wonderful!" I agree. Then we had to figure out what knights did....we decided that they weren't supposed to kill people. Just have sword fights and win. And they could kill animals for lunch and supper.
Emily discovered the dressup box at this time and came over all decked out in a pink sunhat, chunky bracelets and a purse. We decided she must be princess Emily.

That's it for today. Just have to get to sewing those Easter outfits.
me