Gifts in the Mail

Oh wonderful day...not one, but TWO National Geographic Magazines in our mail box today!!!

Block Party !!!

A big part of my paid employment is about community development - helping people to meet, connect with, and come to care for one another.  It is something that I am passionate about, and that (I think) we do a generally lousy job of these days.  So, in an effort to practice what I preach, the boys and I decided it was time to have a neighborhood party.  Our goal was fairly simple - pick a day, and get everyone in our neighborhood outside so that they could met, play, eat, have fun, and connect with each other. 

The boys helped me to make signs to post around the block, we recruited some of our closest friends on the street to help, made some snacks to share, put up a few balloons, and that was about it!  The results were fabulous.   Lots of visiting and getting to know each other, an impromptu pool part, water fights, great snacks, hola hooping, a bar-b que thanks to Pop, and fire works to end things off.  For the fairly small investment of time and energy that it took, we had a wonderful afternoon with old friends and new ones.  This will definitely need to become a yearly tradition...

It is easy to believe that we are each waves and forget we are also the ocean.

~Jon J. Muth

Making Soap

The boys have been looking forward to the annual home school group Christmas Craft Sale for a while now.  Last year was the first year that they participated, and it was a highlight of the season.  They have been planning, pricing, designing, and crafting their little hearts out.  Today, we made a family project out of making soap.  The lye in it is a little too dangerous to use around little people, but they love helping out before and after that step.  I think that making your own soap is one of those crazy ``Ì wish I was born 100 years ago`` things that I like to do.  It likely ends up costing more than just running to  the store to pick up a bar of Ivory, but I do love it, and the end product is much nicer than store-bought.   Oh well, Jim tends to humour me and the kids do to.  Not to mention that it is a great seller at the craft sale!

 

This is candy cane soap scented with peppermint essential oil, and tomorrow we are going to make oatmeal, almond and honey soap.  Yum!

The NEW Nature Table

We have had this nature table in our living room for a few years now, and the boys have enjoyed playing with it on and off through the seasons.  They both love setting it up and changing it over each season, but lately it has been gathering a bit of dust (I guess that is what happens when you leave gnomes out for 9 year old boys to play with!!)

I decided that rather than scrapping the whole thing (which I really love) we just needed to update it a bit, and fill it a less with things cute and magical, and more with things natural, and creepy.

So, here is the grand unveiling of the 'new and improved nature table'. 

They have been much more interested after the re-vamping, and have been on an endless search for magnifying glasses and field guides - perfect!

Summer Love

A little something juicy from my garden this morning...

Bookcrossing

William, Charlie and I have been bog fans of Postcrossing for a few years now.  It is a great way to trade postcards with other people from around the world, and makes checking the mail box (not to mention learning a bit of geography)  a whole lot more fun.

Today we expanded our 'crossing' activities after finding out about Bookcrossing.  In a nutshell, you 'release books into the wild' and trust that whoever finds them will read it and release it again, or pass it along to someone else who might enjoy it.  You can track where your book travels through postings tied to the tracking number in the book, and read reviews or comments from other people who have picked up and appreciated the book.

It is a really nice way to fight back against the scarcity mindset that can get so overwhelming these days.  Not only is there enough of what we all need, but there is plenty left over to share and gift to others.

Today I released my first book - left it on the counter at a local coffee shop, as a matter of fact.  It is tagged with a sticker that says "I am not lost!" and some instructions on the inside cover as to how to register the book.  I can't wait to see if / where it travels!!

Here is the link to Bookcrossing if you are interested in getting in on the action.

Oldies but Goodies

We recently undertook a rather overdue cleaning of the boys' toy room, and ended up not only with a cleaner space, but also some new favorite toys.  Underneath all of the dress up clothes, cars, science experiments and LEGO (of course LEGO!)  they unearthed a box of Lincoln Logs.

They spent a good part of the afternoon building wilderness outposts and trading shacks, saloons and corrals. 

As for me, I got to thinking how much these older toys still grab our kids attention (when they have the time and space to explore them).  When I look at the toys that kids go back to over and over again, they are simple, durable (and often made out of natural materials), plain, and flexible.  You can make almost anything with them if you put your mind to it, rather than a toy or game that can only be used in one way.  They also get the kids relying on their imaginations to create the story line, rather than acting out the latest Disney movie plot.

I guess it is an extension of the toddler who plays with the box more than the new toy, right? 

So if we know this, why on earth is there still such a market for restrictive, cheap, plastic toys?  Do we forget?  Do we not trust what we all know to be true?  Or are we also taken in by the advertisement champagnes of the biggest toy companies?  Whatever it is, my goal is to stop it.  I don't have the money to waste on toys that they are not interested in, and the boys happiness is more important than what commercials tell me they need.

As for now, I think that we have some Tinker Toys around here somewhere...

Sundaes on Sunday

I know that the more health-conscious of readers will cringe at this, but sometimes you just need sugar.  Or friends.  Or rest.  Or some combination of the three.

Today the boys were full of energy, and wanting more focused attention than I had it in me to provide.  They wanted to play, to explore, to go out, to build, to do something new, and I wanted to sit still.

So, we did the only thing that a mother can do in circumstances like that (assuming that yelling at the kids and locking yourself in the bathroom is not the solution of choice).  We decided to have a  Sunday Sundae party.

The boys invited their neighbourhood friends over for a quick pizza dinner, and then to make their own sundaes.  I provided the food, and the friends provided the entertainment - a rather nice exchange in my mind.  The kids all created sugar-filled masterpieces with ice cream, sauce, nuts, candy, chocolate chips, coconut and whipped cream, and then retreated to the basement to play and to burn off all of their newly acquired energy. 

As for me, I enjoyed almost 2 1/2 hours sitting on my butt with a book.

Win - win, wouldn't you say?

First Snow

Today was the first 'real' snow of the winter.  I am pretty sure it won't last, but we enjoyed playing it in it while we could.  Lessons put aside, the boys and I went for a walk in the white (which was made even  more special by seeing the boys both reach for their mama-made hats to keep their heads warm).

Happy winter!

Mystery Bird

This little bird has been hanging out at our bird feeder lately, driving us all crazy. We couldn't for the life of us figure out what it was!! It is a bit smaller than a robin, and has similar coloring to a sparrow. The boys have been through every bird book we have and were ready to give up, when I heard a little snip it on the radio about rose breasted grosbeaks (of which we have seen a few males) and their brown, sparrow-colored females!! So there you go - in case you have ever wanted to know what a female rose-breasted grosbeak looks like...(I know, you have all been dying of curiosity!!)

Sweet, sweet cookies!

I could give you all sorts of education-heavy reasons to bake with your kids - learning about temperatures, time, measurement and baking soda. But really, today it was all about the icing.


“Once in a young lifetime one should be allowed to have as much sweetness as one can possibly want and hold.”
~Judith Olney

Happy Easter!!

Wishing you all a happy Easter, filled with family and friends...



and maybe a little bit of chocolate!

Cold, wet fingers, but happy smiley faces. The errosion table made it through the winter!!

A Little Bit of Green

Just a little touch of something green to remind us that spring is coming...and to point out a little proudly (which is ridiculous, I know)that I haven't killed them yet!

Outside and In

We have all been so excited about the coming spring lately. The deck has been cleared off so that we could walk outside in bare feet, we have gone for walks in our t-shirts and sandals, and we have generally decided that winter is behind us. Today, we wake up to this nastiness. I know it is not unusual to have snow this time of year, but still!!

So, early or not, we decided to plant some seeds today and just pretend that it is nice and warm and sunny outside.

A Litle More Birthday...

William had a wonderful birthday party today with both sides fo the family and a few close friends.
Balloons...

Sugar...

And Lego...

What more could an eight-year-old ask for?

Happy Birthday William!!

8 years ago, my very first little baby was born. Sigh - he is very far from being a baby anymore. I do miss those early days, but he is also so great now. We can share a conversation, read together, and still (always, I hope!) cuddle.

To celebrate his special day today, William took the reins. We started off with chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, and then headed into Toronto to the ROM together.





William was thrilled with his gift - a real camera to replace the very old and ridiculously unreliable one that he has been using. I anticipate many William photo posts to come!

And of course, the day ended with his favorite dinner - fish and chips, and birthday cake.

Now we are off to bed early to enjoy cuddles and an extra few chapters of reading The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis, the book of the week.

Happy Birthday, William!