Easter travels!

We got out of town just in time! 

I had decided to head down to the balmy, sunny, southern part of the province for Easter weekend and was originally planning to head down on Good Friday morning. Instead the littles and I loaded up and left right after school on Thursday. Boy, am I ever glad I did! It had been snowing/raining off and on during the day, and was really starting to come down as we pulled out of the driveway, but it cleared up before we got to our first (and amazingly enough only) stop in Red Deer! Smooth traffic, dry roads, really good passengers, and we made really good time; despite Monkey alternately telling me to drive faster because she wanted to get there sooner and telling me to "stop breaking the driving rules" by going too fast. And in my defense... I wasn't going all at fast! 

Colouring Easter Eggs

But we arrived in Vulcan and Amma's house before dark. We saw some deer crossing the highway, lots of singing along to the music that was playing, and no one slept at all!! We attended the Walk of the Cross on Friday morning, helped move some of Amma's furniture around with Uncle K and Aunt C, and had a pretty good visit. Saturday brought a community egg hunt. It was so sunny! Cool wind, but none of the rain that had been forecast for the weekend. After discovering Easter baskets and going to the service, we pulled out of Vulcan and made our way farther south to see my parents. 

My oldest sister was hosting supper and there was an egg scavenger hunt for all the grandchildren. It was a loud supper and lots of running around for the hunt, and there were of course a few blowups, but the cousins had so much fun together.

Easter goodies on the trampoline

The next day most of the cousins came over to make bunny buns. They are a sweet dough rolled to look like a bunny with a glaze. And they were so tasty! I've made them before, but not in years. So yummy! Especially still warm from the oven!

Roads were pretty clear driving back home Tuesday. It had been snowing overnight in Edmonton, but the roads were dry the whole way up. And when we arrived there we found that someone had wonderfully shoveled our driveway and sidewalk! 

Laundry and back to school the next day. The weekend so far has been busy too. Swimming lessons and a visit with a couple of hubby's cousins, home for cleaning. I am such a mean mommy. I put everyone to work to with tasks and chores and it went pretty well! Once the livingroom was clean there was an impromptu dance party (because, let's face it: is there a better kind??)

We woke up to a white world once again with a snowfall warning in effect. So, guess who is getting everyone to put snow boots and and remove the cold fluffy stuff from the driveway? Yup! This mean mom! 

Side note: try saying "fat fluffy flakes" three times fast. It's not easy!!

Baby Bear!

We've been contaminated! The flu hit a few houses in the neighbourhood last weekend (after Sergeant's busy birthday party), and we were hoping that it would have missed us completely, but alas. It did not.

Friday evening, after 10 extra 8-9 years old children left the house and detritus was picked up, we had our visitors we were expecting arrive. Poppa and Grandma made the trip out for a few days before Hubby was scheduled to leave, it helped that it was Spring break for the kids too. We kept busy; going to the waterpark at the "big mall", checking out Cabela's (always a favourite for this crew), going to the library, and showing where the kids' schools are. It is really heartwarming to see the grandparent relationships grow, and I love the unique bond that they have with all grandparents in the family tree.

Poppa and Gandma left mid week for more visiting down in the south part of the province, and we spent some family time going for walks and filling bicycle tires, and just enjoying our little unit until it was time to go to the airport.

The crew did a good job with the goodbyes. Some tears and hugs before and after, and transition to Daddy being away is what it is, but that's normal.

We were able to invade some friends' afternoon to get some general funk out, and then everyone had a bath or shower before bed. The next day, I wanted to start on the right foot, so I plugged in to school first thing in the morning while the Littles had their "morning Netflix". We went to work, did lots of house cleaning, made root beer floats as a reward, then they got to watch Mary Poppins so I could do some more school.

Then the flu hit. Girlie started first thing in morning, then Smarty got hit hard. Monkey decided she couldn't be left out, but Sergeant was grateful to not join that group! So yesterday we stripped beds, did more wash, and stayed pretty low key. Appetites were more or less back to normal for supper, too. Hooray for a quick bug!

It's been fun getting pictures of Baby Bear from Hubby. Monkey insisted that he go with Daddy too, so I made him a hat to match Hubby's so he could be camouflaged with the rest of the troops.

 He was making himself comfortable in Hubby's new, temporary digs, listening to the birds and wildlife outside. Making friends too  below is Bentley the Beaver who lives with the group.

Baby Bear went to church this morning and this evening, and I'm told behaved very well through the services. I'm glad he wasn't disruptive!

Since today has been so incredibly sunny, we walked. We walked to and from church this morning, we walked to a park this afternoon. I have loved the sun, even with the cooler wind. Just about all of our snow is gone, and the puddles are nearly dried up too. I am looking forward to the grass turning green again and being able to wear flip flops again!

That sums up our week. School, laundry, movies. Gearing up for routine to be back tomorrow with school and preschool, and noses back to the grindstone.

Report cards and learning!

It has been the end of a term and the beginning of a new one! Everyone is doing well, learning and growing, challenging themselves academically and socially. It's good to see and hear about.

Plus, Sergeant has turned 9 successfully! We have decided that everyone needs to stop growing up. Right now! He is going to be having a birthday party with friends on Friday, and it sounds like everyone is excited for that. They have no school that day so they can all assist to help with the preparations! I'm sure they'll love that! He's also decided that he wants "that cake we made from Germany" so I get to do another Black Forest cake this week. I'm definitely not complaining, though! It was so so yummy!

Hubby is officially on leave right now! It was a really nice day spent running some errands, hanging out with Monkey and I, picking up things for projects and to prepare for him going away for a few weeks. He dropped her off at preschool and did a few extra errands while I tackled some more of my online studies, and we team worked pickup.

Swimming lessons are finished for a couple of weeks, and I have everyone signed up for a new session starting in April in Edmonton, but it was a place that they could all do it at the same time, so I'm happy with that! Makes it easier when I'm flying as solo parent. Plus it frees up our after school play time and piano practice time.

Yesterday we ended up with a very full house. Smarty texted from the bus to see if a friend down the street could come over and Sergeant asked if another friend down the road in the other direction could come over, so they did. Then Sergeant went to the friend's house for a bit and Smarty's friend called his parents to see if he could stay for supper. So there was another chair at the table and another voice for conversation. It was a good time.

Then we walked to the mall down the way for a prescription pick up and some fresh air. And some complaining, but that's normal! Today after supper I was super mean and made the kids clean up the toys in the basement and then we went out. It was cold and grey all day but the sun decided to shine right before dinner time, so we enjoyed some fresh air. Walked through a few trails, played at a muddy park, and came home. Lots of water in those boots!

Spring break is next week! And before we know it, it'll be Easter. I'm making a trip down to see family with the littles for that weekend since we live so much closer now. I feel really good about that decision and the kids are super excited too.

How was the time change for all of you? That first week was absolutely brutal here! I think we are still adjusting to it. Slowly getting readjusted, but there is a lot of tired going around! 

Use the Force!

I am enjoying the way that Facebook brings memories of past years back to look at. This morning I was greeted with a short little video of Girlie playing with Daddy with the boys chuckling in the background. I though I would share it here too.

The Force sure is strong with this crew!



Isn't that adorable??

As I'm sitting here we just finished a family game of UNO (the boys wanted payback for me winning twice last night) and guess who won? Again? :D

Just a quick, short one today. Have a good night!

Learning Curve!

I have been losing track of the places we've visited! This last week was Norway, the week before was Bermuda. I have started a new blog specifically for food/crafting, so I'll update food travels there later this week. My first post can be found here.

It's been busy as always here at home. Sergeant started archery as an extra curricular through the school and he signed up for a couple of tournaments. His first was a week ago and he did well. They focused on sportsmanship, the experience of competing, and helping with scoring. It was certainly cool to watch! He has another one this Saturday, and he's pretty excited for it.

This round of swimming lessons is finishing up this week. Last one for the three bigger children, then maybe a little break and sign them up again. Get at least one more session done before school gets out. It is wonderful to watch the kids' water confidence skyrocket, boys getting more and more confident in the deeper water, Girlie too! Monkey is fearless in the deep end as long as she has a life jacket. I'm so incredibly pleased with how they all are doing. They are taking instruction from their instructors well, and incorporating it quickly. Exactly what a parent hopes to see.

I received a message from one of Smarty's teachers earlier this week. Just to let us know how much she appreciates him and his contributions to the class. That he exhibits respect for everyone, that he's kind and thoughtful, and responsible. It was so nice to hear those words, and to have that communication with the teaching staff.

Girlie is continuing to astound her teacher with reading and vocabulary, just plowing through the site words that they have for each reading level. At the end of the day, we've found it difficult at times to get her to talk openly about her day, simply because she says "I don't know" or "I don't remember" so the first thing I ask her now is "what did you read today?" and then she usually starts going on and on and on. It's so good to hear how she feels about certain story lines or different characters!

Monkey is practicing writing her name more and more. It's not terribly legible, but it's better than it was a few weeks ago. Seeing that improvement, and knowing she wants to keep going shows a really strong determination. I have a feeling that she'll be, much like Sergeant when he first started full time school, disappointed and sad when she doesn't instantly know how to read after the first day!

So Monkey is started Kindergarten in the fall, and I'm staring an online program tomorrow! It's a good shift and change in my focus, and I feel that the timing is right. I'm grateful that I'll be doing this program now, at a place where we have so many wonderful supports, and when Monkey will be starting school. Hooray for learning new things!

travels!

Empanadas were awesome! The flan flopped, but it tasted really yummy. Hard to go wrong with that much milk and sugar. The following week we went to Germany with a favorite of Hubby and mine: mashed potatoes with a creamy mushroom and sauerkraut gravy and bratwurst. AND I made a nearly authentic Black Forest cake! (I didn't soak the cherries in Kirsch, but I had the coffee in the middle layer frosting) and it was AMAZING!! The following week we went to Saudi Arabia (Monkey chose it because it was pink on our little globe...) and we made Kapsa (chicken and rice) and Basboosa which was all delicious too. We've been pretty lucky so far in the meals we've prepared. Added fun is when friends are able to join us in our travels. Good friends from our time in Calgary way back when there were only two little Macintyres running around our house were in the area that weekend and came for an afternoon visit and joined us for that particular destination.

Last weekend Smarty didn't want to go to a new country, but visit another area from within our own wonderful mosaic of culture in Canada. He decided that poutine was needed to explore Quebec, and I found a tarte au sucre recipe that was so yummy. In my excitement and haste, I didn't thicken the gravy quite enough, but I made that adjustment before we had the leftovers for lunch a couple days later. The tarte au sucre was absolutely delicious (again, hard to go wrong with sugar and eggs!). Next up is apparently New Zealand.

Aside from broadening our tastes and experiences, this activity we are doing is making the children aware of what they are eating and creating an excitement in them that I'm very happy to see! I made up Parmesan breaded pork chops last week just because, and Sergeant asked what country that recipe came from. They are looking at the ingredients, seeing how they are put together, what foods create which tastes, and an eagerness to choose the next country.

Monkey and Smarty got sick the week we went to Germany. Smarty came home from school  one day and stayed home the following two. Monkey was worse when she got it. There was lethargy, sore throats, coughing, and headaches. She spent a full week in pajamas, not eating much but we supplemented her with meal replacement shakes. And seriously pushed the fluids. She has now gotten into the habit of sleeping with her water bottle tucked in beside her in bed and cuddling it like she would a stuffed animal! Thankfully the other two more or less avoided it. Sergeant got the cough really bad but not the rest. Girlie developed a sore throat a week later but it only lasted a day or two. Very grateful for antibiotics!

Hubby was able to get away to Canmore a couple weeks ago for the pastor's study conference and I was very glad he did! It was good for him to reconnect with friends and colleagues from civilian ministry and feed that part of him. He missed most of the snow on his travel days too, so that was fortunate.

Sergeant has the opportunity to learn archery this spring! He is pretty excited and his after school practices start tomorrow, running for the next two months with a couple of competitions in there as well. I think it is so cool that there's a chance to learn this skill! After seeing him with Hubby's pellet gun over the Christmas break, I think he's really going to enjoy it and do well too.

That'll be all for now, I think. Busy times have past, busy times ahead. Looking forward to more yummy food, crafting, and school. I will be starting a medical transcription program in the next few weeks that I'm pretty excited about. So it'll be school for the kids and myself for the next while! And registering Monkey for Kindergarten. Yikes! Time moves too quickly!

Zoom, there goes the time!

It was a very busy holiday season with just the right amount of downtime. I was able to get the crafting done that I needed to (a cross stitch for Hubby's office wall and a couple other things for assorted extended family members) , the school session ended well.  I took the kids out of school an afternoon early so they could build a gingerbread house to kick off the vacation. Turned out to be quite structurally unsound, so it was demolished and consumed quite quickly.

It was an odd Christmas Eve for us this year, the first in years that Hubby wasn't leading a service in the evening. So we shovelled snow and went sledding. Attended the late service at the congregation here in town, and spent some time looking at lights. We watched the live nativity pageant at the LDS church a few days prior to that and we all enjoyed that evening. It brought back some fum memories of participating in it as a youth when I was a teen and we talked with the children about the story and different interpretations of it.

Christmas day was early (naturally) and we played Sequence as a family, Kerplunk, Trouble, and did some painting, Lego building, food eating, and then went to the base chapel for a Christmas morning service that Hubby was leading. Came home, did more of the same, napped, and bundled off to Edmonton to have supper with some extended family on Hubby's mom's side.  It is so nice to connect with family again! And getting to know better some of the extra cousins floating around the family tree.

Travel time saw us heading down to Vulcan for a few days to see Amma, connect with a good friend and her dog that we hadn't seen since last new years, and Uncle K and Aunt C. Then off farther south for my family visits, cards in Lethbridge at Uncle K and Aunt C's to bring in the New Year with another friend we hadn't seen in even longer. I think we figured out that Sergeant might have been a baby/toddler when we last saw him... way too long.

Taught some family members a few new games and learned some others. We learned a game called Chicken Foot that is hilarious, so we ended up buying a box of dominoes so we could play it at home. We have been playing lots of family games since our return too. 313 (which is a favourite that Hubby and his brother and sister in law taught me way back in the first year or so we were together), Sequence, Chicken foot. Hubby was brushing up on Cribbage and taught me, so we taught Smarty. He does well with it too. He loaded the game onto his phone and plays it a lot.

Last week I made pollo al ajillo for our trip to Spain. Wow, garlic! And wine! The recipe called for both sherry and port, and suggested serving it with French bread.  So we did. It. Was. Delicious. And tomorrow we are going to Chile. I conversed with my youngest brother, who lived there for two years while serving a mission for his church, to get some suggestions for something authentic and I'm pretty excited. I've never made empanadas before. And I'll make a flan for dessert, which I've never done before either. Win or fail, I'll let you know either way!

Swimming lessons are in full swing. Monkey is going two mornings a week while the others are in school, team brown (brown eyes so Smarty and Girlie) are on Thursdays after school, and Sergeant is on Saturday mornings. It is fun watching them learn and gain confidence, especially Monkey since she is really still just starting to learn it all. We went for a family swim last Saturday and everyone had their new goggles and I think she spent most of her time with her face in the pool! "Mommy! I can see the floor!"

It is difficult to believe it's already nearly February. Thinking ahead to kindergarten registration for Monkey, grades 6, 4, and 2  for the others... where does the time go? Soon we'll start the birthdays again, and we've given explicit orders that there will be none this year. No one is allowed to age. They must stay the same size and age for a little bit longer. They just laugh and say they can't. That it's nature and science that makes it just happen. Sigh. !