These boys had waited patiently (not!) for their birthdays and on Thursday it was Xman’s turn to be super excited. He already knew what his present was as he is the one who found it but now he got to use it! Super fun!
We had cheeza (cheese pizza) for lunch after Xman helped me with the cake then off we went to the play café again with some family and friends. After much running and chasing we had a light dinner and a library visit before heading home for birthday songs and cake and a very late bedtime!
Happy birthday, my love, you are indescribable!
X brought his Snap Circuits to the table that he had received last year in order to get ready for what was to come…
Snap Circuits Add-Ons! Now he can make an AM/FM radio, an LED number count-down and more!
On to decorating the cake and chocolate acorn Pokémon.
He looks quite good for 61.
As X had done for L so too would he do for himself. He played Happy Birthday on the keyboard while we sang!
And, of course, we have the traditional family photos!Mr Xman you are super awesome and a little silly too. Thank you.
X ended up catching a cold again this week so there was a lot of low energy going around. I brought L to sports class this week while X stayed home with Daddy and played Yahtzee. I really didn’t want him running around being all snot-filled and feeling like he just wanted to lay down and rest. That being said, L scored a goal during their soccer game!
This week was filled with little projects and board games, me second shooting a wedding on Thursday (weird I know!), reading and resting, and Xman really wanting to clean the floors!
Floor washing attracts a curious Gypsy girl!
L got the Lego Play Book for his birthday and he has been building a miniature town complete with a museum, beach and hover trucks.
The days were beautiful so we took advantage by spending our time outside playing chess, strategizing, snacking and planning more creations.
X won chess pretty much fair and square I gotta say.
…all while the house siding is being torn down around us to make way for new siding!
L and I played scrabble and I showed him how to incorporate one word into another while utilizing the ‘triple word score’ making him beat me by a long shot. See bottom left where he added ‘go’ to ‘car’ then next turn ‘soy’ to ‘cargo’. Great game!
We read a FABULOUS book by Neil Gaiman which had the boys and I roaring with laughter and enjoying the notion that time travel can make someone be in two places at one time, while flying in a Floaty-Ball-Person-Carrier with a dinosaur. Dinosaurs aren’t really extinct, did you know that?
I just finished reading a wonderful book filled with myth and magic which has left images in my head and set my mind to wondering…and wandering…
We have a cousin arriving today for a week of visiting! I am glad and thankful that Xman was so keen to clean the floors!
Hope everyone is having a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend – we bought two Tofurkey’s this time around because last year we found they were so good that one just wasn’t enough! 😉
It’s been a great weekend for us all and especially for L. This weekend he had his 9th birthday. Wowza!
This is a post with A LOT of pictures for those family and friends who do not live nearby.
We started out at a play café called Rebel Space with friends. They had a great time together and tired each other out indeed!
From there were went for some lunch and then to the library. In the parking lot we found many a fire truck so, naturally, we went to visit some trucks and the boys got to go inside of them and try out the firehose too!
I found it interesting to learn that this particular truck is no longer used to carry more than two firefighters. The seats in the back (sorry I didn’t take a pic!) would have been facing sideways facing each other which wouldn’t be safe if they were t-boned. They changed the truck seating about 6 or 7 years ago. This truck is still used as a support vehicle for extra equipment, communications (they have a fax), and other supplies.
The boys loved aiming the hose (a smaller hose than the firefighters would have used!) at the target. Xman wanted to use the hose twice.
Lucas only wanted to use it once but he hit the target so quickly I only managed to catch the end of it with Stephen untangling the hose.
I managed to get a video of X the second time around!
This truck is used at the interpretation centre to help the public become more aware of fires and fire safety.
Off to the library for a bit of reading…and relaxing…we came home with many a comic books and then some!
On the way home we stopped at the market for eggs and some fun chalk drawing by L. Have you seen a crockasoraus before? If not, it looks a little something like this.
L loves to make long squiggly arrows…
When we left the market the sky outside reflected in this building looked pink in the windows’ reflection. I had to take a pic. Lovely.
Sunday:
Lucas: “I slept off and on like an elephant last night I was so excited!”.
I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. Apparently, he explains, it’s true, elephants only sleep four hours at night and not all at the same time. 🙂
L was so exited in the morning and he brought his favourite stuffy, Milkshake, that has been with him since birth to partake.
“No pictures, please!” L was specific about the few things for which he asked. This is his first model to build.
I had no idea L already had a hot wheels type Blue Angel which is one reason why he wanted this model. I think there will be more of these!
Lego? Is that Lego? 🙂
This set came with cool transparent stickers!
A new scorpion character.
Lego Galaxy Squad Star Slicer. Pretty cool, I have to admit. Nice mantid!
Our most awesome friend, Sharon, came by for the big day as she has known the boys since they were in my belly. She is totally in love and we love her too! She helped decorate the cupcakes to be Koopa Troopa shells. Xman helped add the white icing too. L placed them aside. A good system going to keep things moving! Oh yes, and these were little mushrooms with eyes! Cute Koopas! Happy Birthday, L! Of course we had to make room on the table for his Lego and winged friends!Xman decided to run over to the piano and play a song for a sing-along. So fun!
After the sweet celebration we went out to the book store and came home with the Lego Playbook that L has wanted for like, foreverrr.
It’s very cool…
We always take a family photo at the end of each birthday. Some nice ones and some fun ones. Happy birthday, sweet boy! We love you!
I guess you could say I’m posting this one for me because it may not be of any particular interest to anyone else other than immediate family. For us it was a big day.
Yesterday was Stephen’s birthday. Yay! Happy birthday, my love! You are my most wonderful partner and I am blessed that we were led to each other.
The birthday plan was going to be breakfast out and maybe a café, a nice walk or something in the lovely outdoors and mixed into this was L and the removal of his brace after one year. So we were out to celebrate both. As it turned out all boys ended up with awful colds. So the breakfast, café and outdoor excursion were crossed off the list. Pizza and a movie at home instead. Still fun, just more on the ‘lay low’ side.
But, we did still go into our dentist’s office to have L’s brace removed that has been in place for just over a year now. It’s a different kind of brace from what I have seen before. This one was inserted to help his front teeth grow down and not out. You see, L tends to sleep with his tongue pressing up against his teeth and he does still have a bit of a lisp which is now much better and his teeth have managed to grow down straighter than without the brace. It was awkward for him at first, especially eating as I can only imagine, but he was a trooper for a whole year. Very proud of him.
L said to me yesterday morning that he was going to miss being able to cut through bananas with his brace. It was like a knife in his mouth. Kids are amazing. One positive thought just erases all the others. So wonderful.
So this is L, filled with congestion and looking like he just woke up, getting ready from his brace to be removed. He did a great job staying still. There was some difficulty at first as the brace was cemented on and at first didn’t want to budge.
Ah, there we go!
Ya, we have like the best dentist everrrr….he’s awesome. Really.
Cleaning the cement, well scraping really, the cement off the teeth was a chore and called for a bit of hand-holding by Daddy.Whew! All done!
“It feels so different in there!”
My sleepy happy boy.
Still energetic enough to run around with his brother. I managed to get him to stay still for just a moment.
All in all it was a wonderful day.
Happy birthday, my sweet husband, happy birthday.
You all may be been snotty but that doesn’t make the day less important.
Oh, and the cake was so yum (and not just because I made it!). Using coconut oil in place of margarine for icing is amazing, just saying.
Can you guess how old Stephen turned? I had a bit of a scrounge for candles…plus Xman thought to put them on backwards for fun.
Xman wanted to learn to play this for Daddy so Steve figured out the keys for him.
Yes, that’s right. It’s a bit of a slow one today. Last night was filled with some bed hopping on my part.
A few days ago we all went to see Despicable Me 2. We own the first movie (found it in mint condition at a used store!) as we just loved it. The boys were very excited to see the new one in the threatre and, I gotta tell ya, I even laughed out loud in a couple parts, louder than the kids. Good times. But, there were a few parts that really freaked the boys. I won’t give it away but I can see how it was a bit freaky for them. Let’s just say the minions go through a bit of a change… Those changes are sticking by them come bedtime and emerging into their dreams. Darn minions. Trouble-makers! 🙂
I slept in those narrow beds close to my favourite men. It was totally worth it for the closeness it made and the comfort it created but has made me a tired one today. It will be a slow day. That is okay, because with the lovely rain (yes, I do love love love it), it feels like a cuddle under a blanket kind of day. Perhaps we can read another chapter of this book that the boys are loving just as much as their Legos. It’s the last of the series which L found second hand and has encouraged him to read more of the series on his own. I too, am enjoying the books and it’s so much fun to be able to talk Lego with them and know who is who. Ya, that’s right, I’m cool. Teehee.
I have grabbed my knitting to work on – a free pattern from Craftsy. I am also in the midst of making a turtle neck style cape which I hope to complete for this winter. Fingers crossed. In the meantime it’s nice to have a smaller portable project on the go. Can’t wait to wear it!
As (almost) always, I have CBC2 Tempo playing in the background (competing with a Sonic dvd in the other room). I sip my tea, my lovely earl grey tea. Oh, it just isn’t morning without it. It is the perfect knitting/reading/sewing companion. I think I may need to make another cup…getting kind of low in there…in my cup that reminds me of home. 🙂
Once tea is done and the knitting is put aside, I think we will finish creating our so-much-fun (!) tissue paper lanterns from a lovely book I just happened to find roaming the library. More on that when the lanterns are finished. Then we are off to the library for a book drop-off/pick-up and maybe a little moment enjoying the rain.
What have you been making and listening to today?
For more inspirational making and listening visit Dawn’s lovely blog.
We had a lovely day yesterday despite the rain and despite the fact there has been a lot of it these days! My garden is super-green but my radishes aren’t too happy about that, nor my greens. They are craving the sun after so much moisture!
I think we all tend to get a bit of cabin fever with all this inside business. A few days ago we went to an indoor play area to let the boys run like crazy and it really helped. It made me feel better too to see them getting the ants out of their pants (that saying was a fun one to explain to the boys!).
Yesterday, I figured that rain or not it was time to venture out. I really wanted to collect some leaves to do some printing as I was excited to use the brayer that I just purchased from Michaels during their 40% off everything sale. Oh, I think we (that means mostly ‘I’) did a pretty good job of containing myself among all the crafty goodies and art supplies. I also purchased a Fiskars rotary cutter which has been on my list for a long time and used it shortly after on a skirt I was sizing. I instantly fell in love. Soo nice!
Although it was not raining at present, the forecast called for more so upon leaving the house we decided to take our umbrellas. We walked along the path near our house which overlooks the lovely waterfront harbour going out to the Atlantic Ocean. Despite the overcast sky it was a lovely day and the birds were singing and so many flowers were in full bloom including some St John’s Wort and Birdsfoot Treefoil which are both such a brilliant yellow you can’t help but say ‘hello’! It was a surprise to see all the blooms and plants in full greenery on our first trip to the trail this summer/spring. We’ve been kept away by the weather but reminded that despite a bit of rain, it’s still a great time to get outside. Hey, I used to do it all the time when I was a kid so why not now?
About half way along the trail the rain started but we were prepared and it was just a light drizzle. At first. Prior to our departure we had told the boys we would walk along the trail and go to the new Starbucks at the other end. It was a nice destination spot and a treat and as the rain came down the idea of getting inside with a nice hot cup of something proved sweet indeed!
After a nice treat and a bit of drying off we went on our way again. We only got hit by a smidgen of rain, so little that as soon as we raised the umbrellas it stopped! We had to laugh at the oddity of our weather!
The boys found some young snails on the path and so began our search of saving the little newbies from the doom of squishdom by moving them to the edge of the grass. A good deed and something for which we are always on the lookout: taking care of the little creatures. By the time we arrived home the sun was out and we had to laugh at that timing. Then again, with the sun came the humidity so were happy to now be indoors.
After lunch we started on printing leaves onto paper. We didn’t have much luck this time as we found that painting onto the leaves and then placing paper on top and rolling with the brayer just didn’t suffice. I think I need to buy a foam brayer and try rolling the paint onto the leaves and then placing under paper and pressing. Any input here would be appreciated! I know I saw this done somewhere and feel so silly that such a simple thing is beyond my abilities to figure out at the moment. Alas, I did not take leaf printing in art school! Haha!
We moved on to some printing with the screen and squeegee that we purchased at the same time at Michaels. Stephen cut out a Maple Leaf (very apropos for the day!) as a stencil. I borrowed this book from the library and it was a great help as we figured out what we needed to do. The boys were excited to finally have a go at printing as they would like to make t-shirts to sell with their own creations printed on them. We learned that running the paint over the area to be printed several times is the key. I’d say first time was pretty successful!
Not bad, right? Perfect timing for going out to see the fireworks later that night, too!
Onto dinner and a movie while we waited for 10pm to roll around. I cooked up some spinach and chickpea curry from this book and it was delicious. We all really enjoyed watching Nanny MacPhee while we ate and had a good laugh!
Time to cut the hair and have a bath! During this time I checked for an update on the fireworks as the day had been so overcast and had turned that way again as evening came on. The fireworks ended up being postponed, but hey, no loss as we’d had a great day and the boys got to stay up late!
I played around with the colouring on my little camera on this one.
Happy Day to all!
Okay, now time to get onto the latest issue of Alphabet Glue that Dawn helped put together!
Last Saturday our book club got together to discuss this meet’s book, which I loved. This book was the author’s first novel and as I don’t read a lot of fiction these days (I am more of a non-fiction fan lately) it was nice to sit down and enjoy a group of characters that were unusual enough to seem almost unreal but free enough in their ways to make me feel free too. When the main character suggested to her christian teacher that perhaps Jesus were an unplanned pregnancy I laughed out loud. Hey, God must have a sense of humour – he made humans after all. I think we were all split down the middle on our likes and dislikes of the book which was nice as it gave way to some good criticism and interpretation on what the author was trying to convey.
Prior to discussing the book we ate a raw food dinner where each person contributed a dish. I was so excited about this as I am a big fan of raw food and absolutely super-heart my Excalibur. That means I really love my dehydrator. Arms-out-to-here much. We had a delightful dinner with amazing raw food and even more amazing company. What a wonderful group of women who are all so different yet alike in many ways. I have only been a part of two meets so far but I have to say, “Love you ladies!”.
When I was searching for a recipe to bring to the meet I happened upon one that I’d book marked in one of my recipe books. I figured it would be too much prep for the time so I decided to make it for today – which means I had to start prep yesterday. I did however, bring some kale chips and bliss balls to our meet and they were a delightful part of a wonderfully tasty night indeed.
Tomorrow, I make Raw Banana Bread Breakfast Bars! …which means I actually begin prep today with bananas in the dehydrator. I’ll try to remember to post those too, if I don’t eat them all first!
Snap Circuits Add-Ons! Now he can make an AM/FM radio, an LED number count-down and more!
He looks quite good for 61.
As X had done for L so too would he do for himself. He played Happy Birthday on the keyboard while we sang!
And, of course, we have the traditional family photos!
Mr Xman you are super awesome and a little silly too. Thank you.
