July 12/13

Back to the Bleau family with boys in tow. So how do we start our time together as a family??? You got it – repeat performance at the splash park! Seriously whoever came up with these deserves a medal. We could LIVE at one! 

Back to the splash park

Cups, boys and daddy and all… lots of splash and run and play and smiles… what a great way to celebrate being together again. 

With Daddy

Mr. Emanuel

With Mommy

Oh and stopping to smell the flowers…

Pretty

Then back to our home base and the chance to hang out with another family we have missed who are up temporarily visiting from California. The Davey family. It is the first time in years that we have all been together… 11 kids in total! Catherine and Trinity were instant buddies. 

Catherine and Trinity

Although at first it was just the Davey 3 and our 5. After all, the Bleau 3 had their program at the swimming pool. 

Some of the kids

The next day it was the Reinsch-Johnsons and the Daveys at the splash park. With the wildfires in other areas of Alberta there was some smoke coverage but nothing too horrible. That did mean the splash park was empty of all but us though. Definitely a nice situation! 

Splish

Splash

Catherine and Trinity

Jeff and Zack

Amanda and Chris

And then Sharon joined us after her lane swim.

Sharon and Echo

Which meant that she and Ken banded together and drug me into the park and soaked me good. All in good fun of course. 

SOAKED

And then for lunch… McDonald’s thanks to Jeff. And for the afternoon/evening… we got to watch the guys fix a kitchen faucet. It really DOES take 3 programmers to do so! From the dismantling, trip to the store and then to the final installation. But what a lovely faucet indeed!

Under the sink

Work in progress

Success

Don’t forget supper around the table… 11 kids at one meal! It was so much fun!!! Our last chance to have all 3 families together for possibly years and years!

BBQing

Full table

And then the evening free of men as they went to Spiderman. The night before as well, just us girls watching movies and hanging out. It was so much fun!

Hanging out

We even had the guys hamming it up for us after their showers and our girls in their first sleepover party!

Emma, Trinity and Catherine

It was so nice to be with old friends. I hope that one day we can do it again. But it will be quite a long time…

Our big boys

July 2nd and 3rd

And so goes the days one after another… well this week was different! With Darryl off to California and back again for the week and Sharon at loose ends we volunteered up our company. The kids were beyond excited as that meant THREE kids to play with along with their toys and electronics. For me it was a chance to relax, hang out and with Sharon’s amazing selection – WATCH MOVIES! She has the comfiest movie watching bed EVER! 

Self sufficient for breakfast

And the best news of all – we FINALLY managed to coordinate with our facilitator and he (with wife in tow) were able to meet us at the Bleau family’s house and do our end of year assessment. It was actually rather a pleasant surprise to see everything spread out on the table. With how our last 6+ months have been from the extended move to Echo’s heart surgery and everything in-between we actually accomplished a lot! We had more than he could look through in the time allotted and he was very pleased with our progress. We talked about the upcoming year and how we want to homeschool. The verdict? Well, we need to school the REINSCH-JOHNSON way… the way that works best for our family regardless of what others think or say or do. After all, what is the most important is that it WORKS, that there is PROGRESS and that we are HAPPY. I think I can do that!!! And with our sort through I found ideas, items I had forgotten about and things to pass on to other families that would find better use for it. 

6+ months of work

The facilitator was a little later than scheduled so we overlapped our next exciting visit – Karyn and Victoria here for the afternoon. As Canada Day fell on a weekend some people had Friday off, others Monday (some chose). The timing was perfect as Ken and I had to run out and get passport photos done of myself and the girls (the boys’ are still good, time to get ducks in a line). So instead of all 5 kids sitting and waiting at Walmart the boys went out to the park that is a few blocks from Sharon’s to run out some of that excess energy. 

Local park

So much fun

And some fun in the backyard

Our next adventure was a government/travel inspired one. Time to get/renew the 3 passports we are lacking (thank goodness the boys’ are all still good). So there was forms to fill… a drive to make and a rather surprisingly SHORT wait at the passport office in the city. So of course I had to take pictures… apparently you are only allowed to take them facing North and South! The nice guard told us AND gave the kids flags! So learn something new every day!

Yup, that flag is RIGHT in front of Gavin's face

We also took pictures of the arch that marks the start of China time. The kids recognized the country of origin right off the bat. Proof of our China units taking root in the mind. 

The arch

Plaque

What else to do in the city.. stop and get my favourite red pepper dip to go with pitas we bought at H&W… 

Out front of the produce store

Pitas and dip

And then a quick stop off at Bulk Barn!

Bulk Barn

And then back to the Bleau house and the fun times with kids. It feels good to have lots of kids for our kids to play with and a friend to watch movies with… and watch movies we will!!!

Emma and the girls

Our morning may have been rushed with Ken having to drop us off at mom’s and run but we made our afternoon count. As soon as Ken headed out to get Darryl I got to work weeding through what we had left at mom’s and packing for our newest adventure – spending time with the Bleau family! Sharon and Darryl were sweet enough to open their home to us and the use of their landline so we could get a firmer grasp on our plans for the future and sort out all the little bumps that could come along the way. We are so blessed with the family we have created out of our dear friends. 

Making Trinity a special Canada Day shirt

Too cute

I got done as much as I could before we headed off to enjoy our time celebrating Canada’s birth as a nation. Sharon had to take the kids to a birthday party so we got our bits and bobs into the house there and then took the kids off for a special treat – lunch IN McDonalds. Definitely NOT relaxing for Mommy and Daddy but so much fun for our kiddos. Usually we only get drive through.

FOOD

After lunch it was time to meet up and see what is going on at the local museum. The answer – quite a bit! We started with the train! Of course, we ALL had to ride on it. Ken was nominated to go in the caboose with the bulk of the kids while Sharon and I took the next car with my girls. It was bumpy but fun and a reasonable price per person with Echo free. 

Tickets

Most of our group

Me and my baby

Waiting

Very Canadian

With Aunty Sharon

Caboose

All the kids piled in

Our next stop was a walk through the local museum. Short but varied enough to keep the kids interested.

Museum

Train

Very cool

Sharon took 7 of the kids to the bouncy castles to allow Ken, Echo and myself the opportunity to check out some of the independent buildings. Specifically the church and the school. 

Church

School

Thought this was coo

A bouncy castle

After all that sun and fun it was time to head back to the house for supper… but first stopping for SLURPEES!! YAY!! Oh how I love slurpees…

Dinner was homemade hamburgers cooked on the grill by Ken. (Assembled by Sharon) 8 kids and 3 adults was so much fun! That evening when all the kids were in bed (early) we watched the fireworks from a window in Sharon’s bedroom… so much better than being out with mosquitoes! All in all a great way to celebrate Canada Day!

Daddy and baby

Cute AND Canadian