Yes, I'm still taking a picture a day and today's worked out pretty well.
I drive by this farm every day on my way to and from work, and every day I want to take a picture of the silos. They have a black and white top, and a very gray, so they look like a black and white spot on a colored horizon.
Today, the light at 4:00 was amazing, with these great dark clouds, so I bundled the kids in the van and drove two minutes down the road to take the photo. Amazingly, the light stayed perfect so I was able to get some fantastic colors.
When I got back in the van, Faith was suitably embarrassed. "Couldn't you just take the picture from the van? People are going to drive by and think you're crazy?"
"They won't think that."
"The kids will. That's how they think."
Welcome to the tween years.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Officially decorated
We decorated outside a few weeks ago, taking advantage of the late indian summer weather. This weekend, we made it official inside and the kids (and a few adults) decorated our tree. As the kids have gotten taller, the decorations have gradually moved up the tree, and spread out a little more. Watching them figure out the best spot for each ornament (including the back of the tree that no one sees) is great entertainment!
Bloooowww!
Turning 60 makes for a lot of candles on the cake. So Dad had to huff and puff to blow them out.
We celebrated his birthday at my house this weekend with brunch, and a coffee cake with candles. All my brothers were able to attend, minus Allyson and Jordyn as they just got home from the hospital, and Blake was trying to cough up a lung all weekend. So they stayed safely at home.
This meant a full house for us (seven extra people on Friday night) but lots of laughs, and of course, storytelling.
For Dad's birthday our present was to make him cry, but in a good way. We all contributed to a scrapbook for him that I put together, with pictures and stories. He made it about 5 pages in and had to the leave the room. He's such a softie! Hopefully he'll be able to make it all the way through the book by the time he turns 65!
We celebrated his birthday at my house this weekend with brunch, and a coffee cake with candles. All my brothers were able to attend, minus Allyson and Jordyn as they just got home from the hospital, and Blake was trying to cough up a lung all weekend. So they stayed safely at home.
This meant a full house for us (seven extra people on Friday night) but lots of laughs, and of course, storytelling.
For Dad's birthday our present was to make him cry, but in a good way. We all contributed to a scrapbook for him that I put together, with pictures and stories. He made it about 5 pages in and had to the leave the room. He's such a softie! Hopefully he'll be able to make it all the way through the book by the time he turns 65!
What happens when my brothers visit
This is what happens on our front porch when Curtis and Ryan get together.
Curtis actually started this "tradition" a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, because of how they were situated in the corner of the porch, it took me a week to notice. The neighbours must have loved it.
Yesterday, after I made them separate the deer for modesty, they decided to hang one of them by the hook at the front of our house, and then stick arrows in its side. They were "this close" to taking down some of the red lights at the front of the house to create a pooling blood effect, but took pity on George, so he wouldn't have to put them back up again.
And, this all happened while everyone was relatively sober!
Curtis actually started this "tradition" a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, because of how they were situated in the corner of the porch, it took me a week to notice. The neighbours must have loved it.
Yesterday, after I made them separate the deer for modesty, they decided to hang one of them by the hook at the front of our house, and then stick arrows in its side. They were "this close" to taking down some of the red lights at the front of the house to create a pooling blood effect, but took pity on George, so he wouldn't have to put them back up again.
And, this all happened while everyone was relatively sober!
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Living with a wild animal
Blake likes to roar. Not just little wimpy roars, but huge, loud, menacing, scare small children ROAARRRS. He does this to the cashier at the grocery checkout, to strangers in the street, and to kids on the playground. He even came into our room at 7:00 am when we were staying at my mom's place and "snuck up" to the side of the bed to give us a morning roar. Luckily it was a quiet one.
So, I'm usually the one pushing him along in the grocery cart or holding his hand with this half-embarrassed smile on my face explaining that "he's a dragon today" or "he's a monster today". Once in awhile, he's also a lion.
Here's a video example of his roaring, this time as what I can only assume is a massively large dinosaur. Sorry that it's flipped the wrong direction...I took it on my cameraphone when I just starting messing around with the video, so I hadn't figured out the optimimum direction yet. But, it more than gets the point across.
So, I'm usually the one pushing him along in the grocery cart or holding his hand with this half-embarrassed smile on my face explaining that "he's a dragon today" or "he's a monster today". Once in awhile, he's also a lion.
Here's a video example of his roaring, this time as what I can only assume is a massively large dinosaur. Sorry that it's flipped the wrong direction...I took it on my cameraphone when I just starting messing around with the video, so I hadn't figured out the optimimum direction yet. But, it more than gets the point across.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
My newest niece
We have a new niece in the family! Jordyn Evelyn arrived at a little after 3:00 pm today, weighing 6 lb 12 oz. Congratulations Curt and Allyson! (And I love this picture because my brother's hand looks huuuuge next to Jordyn.)
Santa Parade
We spent Saturday morning at the Santa Claus Parade. Or more accurately, we spent Saturday morning waiting for the Santa Claus parade, and making sure none of the kids ran into the road.
Faith and George were up and out early for the parade because they participate in collecting toys and money for needy kids. This translates to riding in the back of the pick-up truck pulling the float and sorting buckets of loonies and toonies.
The rest of us, including Karen, Cordelia, and William, and Curtis, Allyson and Logan, all picked a decent spot to watch the parade -- not too busy, with lots of room to run. We then spent the next hour watching the kids roll around in the muddy grass like this:
The parade itself was fine for a parade, and we weren't freezing our butts off, which helped immensely. But, an hour to wait for Santa is a loooong time for little kids, and even longer for the adults. There were a few too many clowns for Karen's taste as well...even an entire band!
We did, however, walk home with pockets full of little candy canes, which we put to good use that night in our first Christmas martinis of the season. Cheers!
Faith and George were up and out early for the parade because they participate in collecting toys and money for needy kids. This translates to riding in the back of the pick-up truck pulling the float and sorting buckets of loonies and toonies.
The rest of us, including Karen, Cordelia, and William, and Curtis, Allyson and Logan, all picked a decent spot to watch the parade -- not too busy, with lots of room to run. We then spent the next hour watching the kids roll around in the muddy grass like this:
The parade itself was fine for a parade, and we weren't freezing our butts off, which helped immensely. But, an hour to wait for Santa is a loooong time for little kids, and even longer for the adults. There were a few too many clowns for Karen's taste as well...even an entire band!
We did, however, walk home with pockets full of little candy canes, which we put to good use that night in our first Christmas martinis of the season. Cheers!
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Happy 60th Birthday
It was my Dad's 60th birthday yesterday. So, I would have posted this baby picture of him on his actual birthday, but my internet connection died. Bad timing!
Anyway, this is dad when he was 6 months old soaking up some rays on the farm.
Happy Birthday!
Anyway, this is dad when he was 6 months old soaking up some rays on the farm.
Happy Birthday!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Happy 2nd Birthday
My beautiful and smart niece, Logan, turned 2 today. We celebrated with cupcakes (and wine for the adults) on the weekend, complete with presents, appetizers and pizza.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Better late than never
I'm not sure how it got to be the middle of November, but here it is. I promised some vacation pictures a looooong time ago, and I finally remembered to post a link. I won't subject you to all the pictures I took, but here are my favourites from the two weeks:
http://flickr.com/gp/robinsnest3/516Qb6
http://flickr.com/gp/
Thursday, November 12, 2009
A school worksheet
Faith brought home an interesting worksheet yesterday that reminded me of those "25 questions about...." emails that pass around the web and Facebook. I thought I'd share it because it was funny and touching. The first part each sentence was on the sheet, and her answers were pencilled in at the end (with spelling mistakes kept in).
Today I feel ... happy.
Something special about me is ... I'm different than everybody.
What bugs me most about school is... don't have enof time to play.
I'd rather...ride a camel...than...a bull.
I like teachers that ... are fun.
My favorite place to be is ... a farm.
Something that bothers me is... don't have enof time to play with Lara.
At our house we ... do crafts.
When I'm alone I like to... braid.
The most important person in the world is ... me. (!)
I wish I could ... ride a horse every day.
Sometimes I like to ... make bracelets.
I think school should be a place where... you have lots of fun.
I feel nervous when ... it's the first day of school.
Better than anything, I like ... spending time with my family.
I really get angry when...someone hurts me.
I feel proud when...I do something new.
I wish people wouldn't...litter.
This year I hope...I learn how to hand write.
One thing I'd like to know about the teacher is...what they do in the summer.
One thing I'd like the teacher to know about me is...I love horses and art.
Today I feel ... happy.
Something special about me is ... I'm different than everybody.
What bugs me most about school is... don't have enof time to play.
I'd rather...ride a camel...than...a bull.
I like teachers that ... are fun.
My favorite place to be is ... a farm.
Something that bothers me is... don't have enof time to play with Lara.
At our house we ... do crafts.
When I'm alone I like to... braid.
The most important person in the world is ... me. (!)
I wish I could ... ride a horse every day.
Sometimes I like to ... make bracelets.
I think school should be a place where... you have lots of fun.
I feel nervous when ... it's the first day of school.
Better than anything, I like ... spending time with my family.
I really get angry when...someone hurts me.
I feel proud when...I do something new.
I wish people wouldn't...litter.
This year I hope...I learn how to hand write.
One thing I'd like to know about the teacher is...what they do in the summer.
One thing I'd like the teacher to know about me is...I love horses and art.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Jumping and helping (November 11, 2009)
This marks day 48 of the 365 day project. Wow! That went by fast. Here's the story behind today's photo...
Tonight was Faith's horseback riding lesson, so we headed off to the riding stable for 6:00 to drop her off, and then Blake and I went grocery shopping.
Lately, Blake's had one massive case of emotional PMS. One minute he's happy and laughing, the next he's whining, the next he's putting a smackdown on his sister. So, when we drove up to the grocery store, it didn't surprise me that he freaked out. "That's not the grocery store!" True...it wasn't our regular store. But, this one carried a few items we needed. As I tried to get him out of the car, he started crying that he didn't want to get groceries, so I was prepared to endure to get the three things I wanted at the store.
Fortunately, the tide turned when I let him put in the quarter to get the cart. Finally, a use for those stupid coin return carts. In grocery stores, I don't both putting him in the cart anymore. He can get out of the belt and stand up when my back is turned, so rather than defy death, he "helps" me get the groceries.
Tonight, he picked out bananas and oranges, and insisted on picking up plums and pears "for Daddy". After he filled each bag, he looked at me very seriously and said, "I'm a good helper."
After our store adventure, capped by pushing the little button on the checkout conveyor belt for us and the people in front of us, we headed back to the stable to pick up Faith. (That's when I took the picture of the barn entrance. It's on the cameraphone, so not the greatest quality, but I liked the composition.)
We got there in time to watch the end of Faith's lesson, and see her do her canter over a one foot jump! She'd done it earlier in the lesson for the first time, but she threw one in for us to watch. Faith was beyond excited that she cantered, off the lunge line, and jumped! Woohoo!
As we chatted while she untacked the horse, Blake watched one of the other girls clean up the horse poop from the riding ring. He became expert enough to then follow her around and point out not only where she missed some poop, but also led her to the bucket where the poop is dumped. At the end, he informed us, "I think that's the last one." He's so helpful.
After we got home, Faith phoned up Grampa to tell him of her horsey accomplishments, and we ended the evening with celebratory popcorn.
Tonight was Faith's horseback riding lesson, so we headed off to the riding stable for 6:00 to drop her off, and then Blake and I went grocery shopping.
Lately, Blake's had one massive case of emotional PMS. One minute he's happy and laughing, the next he's whining, the next he's putting a smackdown on his sister. So, when we drove up to the grocery store, it didn't surprise me that he freaked out. "That's not the grocery store!" True...it wasn't our regular store. But, this one carried a few items we needed. As I tried to get him out of the car, he started crying that he didn't want to get groceries, so I was prepared to endure to get the three things I wanted at the store.
Fortunately, the tide turned when I let him put in the quarter to get the cart. Finally, a use for those stupid coin return carts. In grocery stores, I don't both putting him in the cart anymore. He can get out of the belt and stand up when my back is turned, so rather than defy death, he "helps" me get the groceries.
Tonight, he picked out bananas and oranges, and insisted on picking up plums and pears "for Daddy". After he filled each bag, he looked at me very seriously and said, "I'm a good helper."
After our store adventure, capped by pushing the little button on the checkout conveyor belt for us and the people in front of us, we headed back to the stable to pick up Faith. (That's when I took the picture of the barn entrance. It's on the cameraphone, so not the greatest quality, but I liked the composition.)
We got there in time to watch the end of Faith's lesson, and see her do her canter over a one foot jump! She'd done it earlier in the lesson for the first time, but she threw one in for us to watch. Faith was beyond excited that she cantered, off the lunge line, and jumped! Woohoo!
As we chatted while she untacked the horse, Blake watched one of the other girls clean up the horse poop from the riding ring. He became expert enough to then follow her around and point out not only where she missed some poop, but also led her to the bucket where the poop is dumped. At the end, he informed us, "I think that's the last one." He's so helpful.
After we got home, Faith phoned up Grampa to tell him of her horsey accomplishments, and we ended the evening with celebratory popcorn.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Lights in t-shirts (November 8, 2009)
Our unseasonably warm weather continued into Sunday this weekend, so we got out the Christmas lights and outdoor decorations (along with half the neighbourhood). There's something very strange about putting up lights in a t-shirt. But, it beats doing it in minus 20!
Steroid squash (November 7, 2009)
We spent Saturday morning with my brother and his family hanging out in Stratford. The weather was perfect, Indian summer in November, so we hit the Stratford Market first. It's a small farmer's market, but it has all the prerequisites of any good market -- produce, baked goods, and meat. The squash were particularly huge!
After the market, we hit the river and witnessed all the geese floating long with the current. Once the swans go in for the winter, the geese take over. Apparently swans and geese don't mix.
The kids had fun running up and down the river, and we crossed over to the little island in the middle of the river. Of course, this was the time Blake decided he had to pee. Because it was a looong way to any bathroom, Uncle Curtis got to introduce Blake to the art of peeing on a tree. (Well hidden behind some bushes.)
Blake was so excited that he was "a big boy" now that he's been peeing standing up at home ever since. I fear for my bathroom tiles.
Anyway, it was wonderful to enjoy the taste of sunny, warm weather, especially after I spent Friday morning getting my snow tires on.
After the market, we hit the river and witnessed all the geese floating long with the current. Once the swans go in for the winter, the geese take over. Apparently swans and geese don't mix.
The kids had fun running up and down the river, and we crossed over to the little island in the middle of the river. Of course, this was the time Blake decided he had to pee. Because it was a looong way to any bathroom, Uncle Curtis got to introduce Blake to the art of peeing on a tree. (Well hidden behind some bushes.)
Blake was so excited that he was "a big boy" now that he's been peeing standing up at home ever since. I fear for my bathroom tiles.
Anyway, it was wonderful to enjoy the taste of sunny, warm weather, especially after I spent Friday morning getting my snow tires on.
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Is that snow?
Yes, we actually got a few ice pellets that you could call snow yesterday. We were outside for a few minutes when it happened, and Blake bent down to get a closer look.
So, we've officially had snow. Let the hibernation begin!
So, we've officially had snow. Let the hibernation begin!
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