Peek into Our Day

On top of all the farming stuff we are learning to do, the kids still have 'school work' to do. As a substitute for math today we played a board game that involved money and counting. They get bored doing math problems on their own all the time, so it was a fun way for them to learn and have my full attention at the same time.

Science for Lara involved creating lip balm all on her own. We will find out in a couple of hours how she did. If it doesn't work, then we get to check out the science and figure out what went wrong. I'm a learn by doing (and messing up) kind of person, and I think Lara is as well. 

It is a gorgeous fall day today, so we are going outside for a while. I hope you are able to enjoy some of the day as well.

me.

I'm a cool mom and I know it...so there

The girls hard at work drawing the digestive system. I just love sharing my knowledge with them. I tried telling them, that tights worn as head scarves are not cool. 

They disagreed with me.

Apparently I'm allowed to teach about the human body, but not style.  Lol, that's o.k because I'm pretty sure while taking this picture I was wearing bright pink pj bottoms with cats on them.

Art Class disguised as a Birthday Party ;)

One of the reasons my 7 year old didn't like school, is that she thought it was quite unfair that she didn't get the day off for such a special occasion.  I agree. I think a day off should always be awarded to the birthday person.

One of the perks of homeschooling is that we get to do what we want, when we want, and today was no different.  Our baby turns 3 this week and wanted a princess party with her little friends. I would be lying if I didn't say it was a lot of fun.   How could it not be when all that was involved was a relaxed play time, with my older girls watching the kids, and us moms drinking coffee, chatting and finishing 'their' craft??

I love that I have this birthday thing down. Especially at 3. A balloon, some friends and some cupcakes. Oh, and lots of coffee :)  Let them paint something, and then play with toys for hours. Good enough for me!!   It helped having only two little friends over. I've never been one for crowds of screaming kids.
We all seemed to get into the craft. I'm really not sure who had more fun. The kids or us. 

My older kids loved the craft, and ended up mixing some colours and making some pretty great creations.  Does all this count as Art Class? Ummm y'a!  Only better because they didn't have to finish it in the class time allotted. 

Want to know the funniest part of the day??  As I sit here typing this post (because I really need a little space to myself for a sec), the pictures below are what I am looking at. 

That would be the older 3 playing school. Erin is the teacher and they are doing their real work books.  Too funny.  Oh, and the birthday girl??  She is sitting on her throne 'singing' VERY LOUDLY into a mic that turns her voice into a chipmunk. OVER AND OVER AND OVER again.
She is lucky it is her birthday :)

 

So that was our home schooling day for today.  Let's see... subjects covered were:

 

Home Economics:      Cupcake baking, and Party planning,

Art:               Freestyle paint and colour mixing

Character:     Getting along with others and sharing,

Gym:            Trampoline

Science:       Diffusion of sparkles across a house (o.k that is stretching it)

Book Work:   Math for Peyton and English for Lara. How to be a leader for Erin :)

Health:         Why we need to bathe, and what happens when we eat too many cupcakes

English/History:  Reading living history books for quiet time

 

Lol no this is not a typical home school day for us. Obviously a little on the lighter side. The great part is that tomorrow they will do a little more work to make up for it. They may not get out of their jammies because of it, but really...who really cares.

 

The moments that make up a Glorious Day...for me

It was a Glorious day in so many ways today.  So much happened today including work, laughter and good attitudes. I spent the morning cleaning a chicken coop (satisfying believe it or not), jumping on a trampoline, and visiting with a great friend. 


I cleaned Henry's wool that we sheared back in May. I thought that was kind of fun. 

That's me cutting out all the gnarled hair, straw bits and clumps.  This is only 1/3 of the hair we have. I figured I would do it in batches so I don't pull my own hair out. 

Oh..on the fridge beside me is our new chore chart. We are on week two and it was one of the best things I've done in a while. I'll blog about it later because it is just that awesome.  I stole the ideas from a bunch of people off Pinterest so don't be too impressed.

Here are my babies helping me wash the wool. We put it in a laundry bag, added a little soap to the baby pool and let it soak for 1/2 hour.  Again...Don't be impressed. You Tube taught me how to do this one.

Here is the water after 1/2 hour. We had to rinse and repeat 3 times and even then I don't think all the dirt is out.

All washed and in the sun.  I still had a bunch of straw to pick out. Now I know why the You Tube people used a blow dryer on the Alpaca to get the stuff out before shearing.

Ah... There we are. Drying in the evening sun alongside my onions and garlic. Other than the cars in the background I would say it is almost an 'Anne' moment wouldn't you?? No I'm not going to spin it. I think instead it will be stuffing for a pillow. Of course never say never! lol

Anyway, enough about Alpaca wool.  Here are a few other reasons why my day was great.  Above is what it looks like outside my computer window.  I am blessed with the most beautiful hydrangea bush/tree.  Again...don't hate. I had nothing to do with the pruning and care of this thing. It was here when we moved in.

Remember our new duck babies?? Those are them on the left (Ding and Dong). Ping and Pong on the right of the picture are their real parents (not the chicken).  Pong does not realize it and has become super mean to Dong. Anyone want a duck?

The view from my deck made me happy tonight. A trampoline that was well used today. So much fun on that thing. And yes that is a calf hut being used as a dog house :)

I even cooked a turnip today. I can honestly say that I have never cooked a turnip in my life. Let alone grown one. O.K I didn't grow this either. My mother in law did. What to do...what to do...

I had to come up with dinner anyway so I decided to take advantage of my kids amazing attitudes today and make it a cool first time turnip tasting experience.   and they bought it!!! suckers.

Mashed potatoes and turnip cooked in homemade chicken broth it was.  Along with fresh sweet corn, cucumbers, beans and tomatoes from the garden. Oh and our beef of course. Seriously. I'm pretty sure only our own home made ice cream (dairy cow to come in the future), could make this better.

Fresh cut flowers from our garden on the table....yep. It is the simple things that bring a smile to my face.

That seems to be the theme of the summer. Simple and fun. Like throwing a party for absolutely no reason other than to have a little fun.  Again....not my idea. I'm not that creative or energetic. It was the girls idea. I just drank coffee and watched.

Like bobbing for apples and popping balloons with their butts to get the candy out, and watching them entertain their friends.

Glorious day....Glorious summer.

2012..So busy

As you can see, we are very very busy here on the farm today. We put those cross country skis to good use ;)

Time for Great Discoveries

Since I am on the subject of time this week, I thought I would share with you another reason I am glad to have some extra time during the day.

You see...I now have more time to do the basic picking up and organizing of things. I can now be a little more thorough instead of stuffing things in drawers and closets.


Like having more time to investigate funny smells coming from Lara and Erin's room......

Apparently I need to have a chat with the girls about stuffing things in drawers and closets.  I guess I have been leading by example...lol 

To answer your question ( because I know you are wondering)...

No it was not Audrey
Yes it smelled
Yes I bleached it for days
No I could not get the smell out
Yes I threw the drawer away
Yes the kid responsible got a 'What were you thinking??'
No I did not get a good explanation
Yes I am still saying things like 'Really?'

Yes I am glad I now have more time for discovery of such things ;)

Days of Joy and Sorrow

Having the extra time to breathe and fix up our home has been wonderful, but it is the time I now have to devote to my babies that is the best part.  Before I felt so torn between them all that I could not FOCUS on the babies. I would get them set up doing something but I never seemed to have a moment to help, encourage and sit down with them.  ( I DID but not for as long as I would like)

Watching the look on Audrey's face today as she completed a puzzle that Lara did 7 years ago was priceless. I felt like I turned the clock back 5 years today as I spent the day being mommy to two little people again. I was able to feel the joy and simplicity of the day and soak in every moment.

Chores were done, but also Sesame Street was watched, Play d'oh was played, Puzzles were completed, train tracks created, snacks and naps were taken, and the sand box was pee'd in.  Perfect :)

Ultimately it is just nice to feel a little joy again.  My heart is still aching every day and a piece of it feels like it is missing when they are at school.  I miss them TERRIBLY and I'm wondering when it won't hurt so much anymore. Regardless I know that we made the right decision and I just need to go through a period of adjustment. I know that it is o.k to feel pain if it means the healing of our family.  So worth it.

My summer Staycation continues

Last week I was at camp with 3 of my babies. I did not stop moving from 7am-10pm. This week my brother is in town from Vancouver and I would be lying if I said I have done much more than this ;)

I hope I don't bore him to death but I am rather enjoying doing nothing right now. I think I've taken this summer vacation thing quite literally. I suppose that at some point I may have to cook and clean again or bathe my children in something other than my mothers pool ;) 

Till then...I can be found at my mother's poolside....

Our July so far

So far July around here has consisted of sun, pool, beach, sun, pool, a  little more beach time, and some more sun. 
I'm loving doing farm and house chores in the morning, eating lunch, putting my feet up while the babies nap, and then heading out to either the beach or my mom's pool.
This weather does not last very long here in Ontario so we might as well soak it up as long as we can before the chilly weather returns.
Besides...the beach is the PERFECT spot for a very very busy and curious toddler and her mommy.

The berries are also in season. We have a TON of wild Black cap raspberries growing on our property. I would make a pie or something but the kids spend most of their spare time  searching them out and eating them on me.

I'm liking country life once again today. I REALLY liking the fact that I can hang laundry, stain my deck, and feed chickens in my underwear and there are no neighbors to see me ;) 

July Staycation

I've had a wonderful few days hanging out in pools, the beach, with friends, and just enjoying the sun.  For the first time in a few years I've even been able to sit in the sand or by the pool and be a little more 'hands off', and be able to enjoy myself as well.
I have 2 months to spend every day with  my babies before school is in session. I'm trying not to think about it. Instead I'm cleaning less and chilling out more.  They are growing up so incredibly fast and before I know it they won't want to hang out with me anymore. 

So cheers to summer!!

Happy Canada Day!!

Happy Canada Day!! We are all decked out in Red and White. Up early and off to the Canada Day kids Fun Run. Sun is shinning and the heat is on! We started the Day with a Canada Day Family Run, will be swimming this afternoon with friends, and tonight the girls will see fireworks for the first time!!
I love a good excuse to let the chores slide and to have a little fun.  I'm proud to be Canadian Eh!

Moments Like This

It is moments like these I find myself stopping. I take a mental picture of the moment. I want to remember it. These are the times to remember. The times when we are simply together. I want to cherish it. I want to cherish the insignificant moments that are greatly significant in so many ways. I want to look back at my life 30 years from now and feel confident that I took to time to enjoy their littleness. Their innocence. Their love.

May Day

May has FINALLY arrived on the farm. April showers turned into a wet and soggy May, but alas! We have warm weather and 'funshine'!!


Bring out the freezies!!



and Lilacs!! and Construction projects!!

And hours of sandbox play and tire swinging!

We will just ignore the daily thundershower

and take pictures of cute baby calves

And sell tomatoes on the side of the road

and then sit in my sun porch with the blooming flowers as the kids play for hours on end with the neighbors

We can ignore the plants in my 'garden' as they once again prove to me that I don't know a thing about transplanting perennials. Seriously...will someone not save me from myself? I'm sure there are rules about planting things in clumps.

Ah yes. What May Day would be complete without soccer gear that is cleaned and ready to go.
(please insert extreme sarcasm).... Oh soccer, how I've missed you!