Tag Archive | Felties

Library is Visited… Children are Run… Slurpees are Had

We have continued our trend of creative outside the dwelling outings. Thursday was overcast and cool (some snow even!) for the bulk of the day with a good stiff wind. So that threw our plan of walking to the the Mac’s store for slurpees out the window. Instead we DROVE to the store and picked out slurpees and then drove to a park where Echo and Mommy were able to sit inside the van in comfort and the kids run and play and yet have a nice place to go when they got cold or thirsty.

Swinging

The boys shared a slurpee – very creative, they each got to pick a flavour… rootbeer, cherry lime and watermelon with a little blue raspberry on top! Trinity saved enough of her allowance for her own little bitty one – pink of course! And I got some time to work on another feltie penguin. I do love crafting in the van now, there is this little table like thing between my and Ken’s seat which is so useful for placing objects within reach! 

Zander and the Technicolor slurpee

Trinity in the warm

We managed to get right back on track with Farmer Boy where Almanzo made his own whip… and managed some math work as well. So we are continuing our trek through learning at some semblance of a pace! I am on the look out for some more field trips and ideas of outdoor learning for us though for the rest of the month of May. 

Our evening was also special – we headed to the same town Karyn works in to meet up with Victoria at the public library there. She activated my TAL card so we can take books out from that branch and the one here by Chris and Chris. The building the library is in there is absolutely gorgeous! And the library is HUGE for the size of the town. So of course I had to take a picture! 

Train table

Well 4 out of 5 looking this way

We have made tentative plans to see her on my special out and about Mother’s Day Sunday! We have missed people. With the van being an issue for the longest time and then this stalled move… well normal life has definitely been a thing of the past. So I am determined to get a little back. AND to take advantage of ANY warm days! 

Friday was a prime example of taking advantage of weather. It was a bit chilly but nothing pants and sweaters couldn’t combat. So out we went with out blanket in hand. This time with all the items we needed to work on the newest chapter of Farmer Boy (they made maple syrup) and the nature books. No apples so we had to settle for a bottle of Pepsi to share and soda crackers… maybe not the most balanced of snacks but everyone enjoyed it. 

Working on the printing

Trinity and her nature book

After some school work was completed we continued our walk to the park now dubbed “the one we get splinters at”… for those interested this trip resulted in one and it was tiny (Trinity). Shoes off… go go go until I noticed we had been gone for around 2 hours and I was STARVING. Even with the promise of lunch I had to push to get us back to the house. They really do love a good park! 

Gotta run!

With Mother’s Day this upcoming weekend we of course had to sit down and make cards for the various God Mommies. Trinity has the most work with her TWO and Zander’s will be the latest delivered as it has to go all the way to Minnesota. 

Emanuel and his card

Trinity and one of hers

We had a minor mishap with Zander’s glasses so pictures may be a bit confusing for a while if we cannot repair. The leg came loose and came off of what looks like a peg that it is glued to and attaches to the rest of the frame. That reminded me that we need to get Zander’s follow up rescheduled. I don’t know if everyone remembers, but he had one in the first half of the year that was cancelled due to over booking at eye place back in the city (an hour + away). So we were hunting for a local doctor. Sadly Echo’s surgery totally blew that out of our heads so I had to call the local Public Health to get suggestions. Luckily the nurse I got had a doctor she could personally recommend… not so lucky, I called after the office was closed for the weekend and the phone there cannot take messages. So add to the list on Monday!!

I am hoping the trend of completions (van, surgery, etc) will continue on with our income tax… we have been dealing with an audit forever. Mainly because it was NOT us who were the focus of the audit, rather two bigger companies Ken did contracts for. Not fun and definitely annoying as it has held up our tax related benefits… but we have held strong and are coming to the end of it. That means it will be simpler SOON to replace the glasses! YAY! 

Anyway… in order to keep the income going for our one income family we are trying to compress the bulk of our viewings into this weekend (as it is not late in the month landlords aren’t exactly rushing to set them up anyway). Which makes me more anxious but glad that there ARE some options out there. Again, I will keep everyone posted and all I ask is that you all keep a positive thought or a prayer out for us! 

And now it is time to continue the crafting. The craft sale is on the 9th and I have a table to fill… and some simple business cards to print out… I still need to figure out some sort of a sign for the table as well… oh and the pricing. Lately it has been felt that has held my attention. I am not sure how many I can make in time but I am hoping for enough to put in a basket. I am at a loss as to what to price my stuff. The larger of my owls I figure I will leave at 10.00, the smaller maybe down to 7.00 as it has been pointed out to me that people SEEING two sized owls would not want to spend the same amount… my felt bows maybe at 2 for 1.00… the duct tape ones at a buck or two? But those stacked bows… and the fancy ribbon ones… HELP!!! Suggestions????

Some of today's completions

The race is on to make whatever I can… the sale is set for 6 hours and I must admit a little worry about whether or not I will have enough stuff  to fill the table!! This delayed move has messed me up for supplies so I have had to drop the idea of having a tutu or two or any wands to sell. BUT I have a lovely selection of owls and bows… and time to make more! 

Hard to believe that Mother’s Day is this weekend! Be sure to hug your mom’s and tell them how much you love them!!

Baby on the go... with curls

Ending the Week on a Mediocre Note

This family, for some reason, seems to crave confusion and excitement or at least subconsciously call it to us! Yesterday I got an email from our facilitator, apparently he had NOT gotten our message about the move and the meeting which is supposed to be… today… ack! So I called his hotel AND emailed to hopefully erase the confusion. That is what I get for leaving contact up to the husband. Emails are his favourite and I swear between him and our facilitator there is more lost emails  than found! But they do enjoy talking to  each other on the phone! Of course… he WAS calling our home number… which IS on hold right now… so… joy. Thankfully we were able to connect up and plan to do a later visit when things settle down. Score another one for the flexibility of homeschooling. 

We did get some more schooling done though. The boys were workbooking and writing words, drawing pictures,  talking about money… we did tons. With SOME complaints (trust me there were some iPad minutes lost) but we did have improvement. Emanuel is fighting getting into really working on things. Right now he has a “fun” workbook and a regular workbook he is in need of finishing before the fall… after all he is registered in the fall for his first year! But he is VERY resistant to doing work. I am  going to keep pushing him though… when he DOES do his work he does a wonderful job! 

Workbook time

There was some crafting going on too yesterday! Trinity made Aunty Chris her very own bracelet! 

Purty

Oh and I have those 6 bows  to share that I completed. 

Purses

Pretty pattern

Silvery

A bit of Halloween

Made With Love

Another silver classy one

Echo had an unlucky day yesterday and not only got knocked over but also pinched her finger in a folding door. She had a rather sleepless night  as well. (and was a total crank to boot) I think it was the yellow and orange peppers she ate last night. Either way she has NOT been a joy to be around the second half of the week.

But Daddy made her giggle

The news is not good for our rental. The owner hunted down his contractor today and the 14th does not look viable. So we are supposed to move in on the 1st… this has everyone in our family completely out of sorts. We love Chris and Chris, the kids would love to visit Grandma and Grandpa Mike (if we can EVER get this darn van situation resolved) but we would really love to be back in our own place with our own stuff. We have a new plan of action, Ken has kept in contact with the owner of our (supposed) new place all along and has again emailed asking for assurances on our 1st move date but he has ALSO started the process all over again to see if we can secure a rental sooner. The hard part about all of this is that this new place would REALLY work for us. The owner is just as upset about this situation as we are, he was sure it would be ready in time for the 1st but there was an electrical issue found in renovations that HAD TO be done to bring the place up to code and be signed off on… and then again he assumed it would be ready for the 14th. Now he is out a full month on this rental. BUT on the other hand we need a home for our family… it is all a whole lot of NO FUN! 

Add this to the equation canceling the kids' run to the park with Daddy and no one was pleased!

So not the week ending that I had been hoping for. There is still a chance for saving it though… the van… and our miracle worker Sean. He went to see our first pick tonight but was way over tired after his first day back to work so we shall get the details tomorrow! Keep those fingers crossed. I will surely have some sort of news about that tomorrow.

With a lovely evening visit with Karyn who brought some of her own handmade flowers for me to peek at AND some feltie fluff since I have mine in storage and need it for TWO spontaneous projects!!! It is  time to get back to my OWN crafting and a wee bit of pouting. But not too much as it is not going to get me anywhere and I KNOW that on some level…

Baby in a headband

Reflection on 3 Days

It amazes me how by the weekend you can feel so worn out! I really didn’t FEEL the exhaustion until I stopped going and keeping the week progressing… come Sunday afternoon with the baby in nap and the kids playing something and BANG I was tired. But I should backtrack to Saturday first!

Let’s see… I will get the van issue out of the way, er almost out of the way! Ken took the poor thing BACK to Canadian Tire for attempt #4 at creating a working coolant system. They popped the hood, put in some coolant and started it up… and out poured coolant! Apparently this time it was OBVIOUS where the issue was. Not the same place as the last 3 times but instead a piece that holds a portion of the tubing on was now cracked. They figure it was a little cracked last time and obscure enough that they missed it when the last repair was done. SO… they have to call around the the junk yards to try and find a part for a ’96 Quest. It shouldn’t take too long, there are still tons on the road. AND we only have to pay the part!!! 

So no out of town visiting yet everyone, sorry. Though (she) Chris is sweet enough to lend us her van mid week so we can get to my physical (am I really all THAT thankful??) and Echo’s 1 1/2 year check up that is a 10 or 15 min drive away. I could reschedule but we are being VERY stiff on Echo’s appointments… especially when she is without her surgery. We want each appointment made and her seen properly. That way if something DOES change we catch it quick! 

Well the rest of Saturday DAY was rather sedate… Ken picked up groceries allowing me to bake bread (seriously a loaf purchased is pretty much a MEAL for this family, especially since the cheaper loaves are the store brand and slightly smaller) in the breadmaker (yum!) and then it was games games games for the kids. After all, it IS the weekend I was told! 

Anyway… Saturday evening Kristen and Fydo came over with a new game in hand and a box of mozza sticks to bake. This was a new game for all of us and I think  very little true strategy resulted towards the end. Still the company was good, the game fun and the snacks totally yummy. We found out that Echo WILL eat cheese… in breaded stick form! AND she gets VERY upset when you tell her no more after she has had 3 of them!!!

Dominant Species

Cheese!

They also came bearing clothing! Apparently Kristen’s sister has a daughter who is bigger than Trinity. AND included in that bag was a full snowsuit size 6 yrs… perfect for Emanuel!! And REVERSIBLE! So no more girly snowpants, I Freecycled them Monday anyway as they have a cracked buckle but are good otherwise. We are so blessed that people think of us when they come across used useful items! 

New clothes!

But the evening did not end there! Around 10pm (she) Chris picked up myself and my slurpee cup (refillable huge one) and we went back to their new place for the grand tour and then snacks! (Chips and my favourite dip! So spoiled!). They live the next town over so it is only a 10-15 min drive. I think I got home after one! So a full evening! 

Now onto Sunday! Ken gets to sleep in on Sundays as he is the one who generally takes the kids to Sunday School. Remember our church here has it BEFORE service at 9:30 am. Very much not Echo friendly lately so I stay home with her, clean up and put baby down to nap around the time they get home. BUT before Sunday School there was a bit of time with the kids all dressed and basically ready to go. To fill the time they all sat down and drew pictures. Pictures of play parks, themselves and one of Minecraft (Zander). Gavin gave his to one of the people in charge of Sunday School, sadly Emanuel’s made it to Sunday School and back only to be washed in his pants pocket!!

Pre-church art

Echo and I made do with each other for the little over an hour of time the kids were gone. We had an aborted nap where I thought she was sleepy, put her to bed, had my bath and then found her playing in the crib! Emanuel came home with a special birthday eraser, the sang happy birthday to him and another little girl with a birthday this week. The twins get their turn this coming Sunday.

Birthday eraser

As a special treat to myself and Echo, after Echo’s nap we went out with Karyn to hang out at her place (no pictures sorry)… Echo wandered around and stared at the kitty while we visited. So I certainly kept busy this weekend. 

Hanging with Aunty Karyn

Today we were back to work with our school stuff. Zander is still working downstairs with Ken on stuff I am not yet allowed to see. But progress is occurring. Gavin took half of today and worked on his cross stitch. The goal is to finish this piece up over the next few weeks. 

Sewing away

We brought out some game dvds for the kids today as well… though I have misplaced the Thomas one for Emanuel. Instead he listened to a book on cd that I played on the laptop. BUT the games went pretty well… all 4 of them squished together watching the screen was ADORABLE! 

Educational game time

Zander built a lifeguard tower out of Legos (I am not sure why the lifeguard has no arms!). 

Lifeguard tower

We had a treat for the whole family today – Ken worked late into the evening Sunday and hard this morning so that in the afternoon we could head over to the Museum and Art Gallery to take a peek at their Inuit exhibition. (sorry no pictures in, there were no signs but I didn’t want to risk it). There were examples of traditional winter clothing, pictures, art pieces AND a polar bear skin rug they could touch. I brought home some colouring pages they had for the kids. I hope to go back next week and look at more of the images on the walls. The kids got bored quickly. I wish I could have taken a picture of Echo, she was walking around holding Ken’s hand. I am totally going to have to have them try that again in an open area! 

Colouring pages

The kids were MOST excited by the koi they have right in the entrance! There were some rather large fish BUT the favourite was the smaller baby fish swimming along after them! 

At the pond

Some of the fish

We also had to take pictures out front… of course! LOOK I am even IN one!!!

Out front

Tomorrow is a work work work day for Ken as Wednesday morning is that doctor trip. We have to dig out our Valentine’s decorations from our tub and figure out what we want to do to decorate! The boys had a special quiet time assignment dealing with halves and whole – they had to go through my entire tupperware cabinet and find all the matching pieces… they did a great job and refilled the cabinet with their own style of organization. I am not sure how user friendly it will be but they worked hard and seem to have a good grasp of having HALF of something… and that two pieces are involved when you are working on halves and wholes. And to top it off – I have an organized cabinet! 

Emanuel and his dinosaur

I am currently brainstorming for Christmas now. I have one idea but am missing half the info I need. I am  going to add a page on this site for Christmas wishes and gift ideas so that those of you we see and exchange with can give me ideas! I want to do more cross stitching this year, expand on my felties AND maybe find a new craft or two?? 

Bitty snack time