And… we jump forward a month! But I figured I really needed to first of all congratulate our friends Cory and Karen on their BEAUTIFUL wedding on June 14th. I have a few pictures to share.
My hair was done at the Regency school for hair etc… I LOVE IT!
The back with the addition of my own black rose hairclip.
Ken was a groomsman so… TUX!
I hope I held up my end of the stylish bargain. Gotta look good with my man in a tux and NO KIDS
Two groomsmen (Chris and Ken) and an Usher (Matt)… and PAD??
Gorgeous Maid (Matron?) of Honour… Renee!
Still waiting around
One of 2 ring bearers… Evan! ADORABLE
Resting before the ceremony (you can just see the groom at the end) with Usher Anthony (standing)
I have a few from the ceremony but the camera did not like the ambiance and I really had a bad angle. Everyone looked amazing! (I will of course share any official photos I get my hands on eventually!)
Sitting during the ceremony… gorgeous bride !!!
I only knew the bride and the MOA so I really did lean towards pictures of my boys!
Saying their vows
We lucked out and though it was a rainy dad we had the sun peek through during pictures at the farm! And a special thank you to Darcy and Andy for watching our 5 kids to simplify our time out at this special event!!!
Moving the trailer (for pictures) all dressed to the 9’s awsome
Anthony on the tractor
It was a little chilly when the sun came and went BUT the menfolk were sure it was too warm!
Anthony, Ken and Matt resting at the bride’s folks’ house between pictures
Gorgeous
Total gentleman shared his coat between pictures
There were lots of creative shots but I was too busy giggling at the menfolk and their jokes or helping where I could to take pictures
Ken took this one for me. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this dress.. the era… it was so fun!
The reception was a blast. I ended up with the adorable ring bearers (Evan and Nathan) and their baby brother (Jeffrey) and their grandparents with Ken at the head table. There was gaming buddies to finally meet with wives, fiances and children. So much fun! Also a photo booth (Ken and I took some pictures together which I have but yet to scan and Renee and I had a go too). I have to admit to cutting loose and drinking for the first time in a decade or more! So not too many pictures, just lots of memories.
Thanks Renee for this picture!
Though Father’s Day was a rather sedate one (as Ken requested) I want to thank all the special men in our lives here who have willingly taken on the responsibility of being a part of our children’s (and our) lives. There is no way we could have as rich and amazing a life without all of you there to share it! So a special thank you to Baba, Grandpa Reinsch, Grandpa Mike… and our God Daddies – Andy, Cory, Alan, Nathan and Scott. Thank you so much!!!
And for the 16th of June – a date special specifically to Ken and myself – we happily celebrated 13 amazing years of marriage. It may not have all been roses and sunshine but with a man like Ken to love and hold onto it has been a ride to remember. I cannot wait to experience all the many decades we have to look forward to. I love you dear!!!! A special thank you to Cousin Robbie and the lovely Alicia who watched the fab 5 so we could get out without minions in tow!
Indian food on recommendation of Shandai… AMAZING
Of course these are just the photos off our camera (and a couple thanks to Renee)… I have one or two on the camera… but I will share those later. Sorry about the massive amount but I had to share!
And of course, it would not be an event if Ken did not take ONE of these!
Once we finished our day out with zoo fun and egg hunting it was right back into the school fray. England was our topic over multiple days thanks to a combination of Little Passports, Activity Village print outs (on right) and library books.
Of course we are hard at work reading Treasure Island. Though the twins have suggested at times that MAYBE with all the deaths and mean pirates that this classic is not really kid friendly. Oh the world they have yet to experience!
We are, of course, keeping up with our reading.
But on advice of the always amazing Brave Writer and other inspirational homeschooling blogs, we have started to take advantage of the sunny days. So in the afternoon we dropped everything to enjoy sunshine and fresh air.
To celebrate all that spring and sunshine the kids had their last Pizza Hut reading program pizza for the year! We are already registered for the following year and are eagerly awaiting the summer program (though that one is online only with website rewards instead of pizza). We accomplished a lot of reading and together time over some really good books this year!
Our next big countdown is a short one… Trinity turns SIX on the 26th with her birthday party on the 27th! So we kept ourselves busy for the rest of the week cleaning and thinking happy nice day thoughts. After all the 26th is a bridal shower and the bachelor party for Gavin’s godfather Cory and his fiance Karen. Of course all of the adults were invited to these events so there was some kid juggling as we tried to work out ways to have the girls at the morning event and the guys at the afternoon… but that is skipping over a whole bunch of school and family fun!! So back to our week…
Tuesday had us watching Wild Kratts…
Bison
Reading about pirates…
And the girls hard at work on Echo’s ladybug mask thanks to her Easter stash from Gammie.
Middle of the week has our soon to be 6 year old completing her adding and subtracting book! I decided that since I already had a copy of our beloved Canadian math series for grade one that it was time for her to hop right into it! She is so pleased that she is on the same book as Emanuel… Emanuel… not so much!
We did spend some lovely quiet time with our Dirty Jobs episodes…
More Treasure Island… really the portions that stand out to them in a chapter are varied and interesting! Actually, we continued the trend with ANOTHER chapter the next day… I think we are ready for individual book reports in the summer!! At least by the twins! Exciting!!
And the decent weather is holding!!! And with that, our week is over and one of our busier weekends begun! Wish us luck!
Winding down the week had us with one busy day (Thursday) and one rather laid back one (today). So let’s start with Thursday and our accelerated morning of schooling… with good reason! We had plans with Gavin’s god-daddy (Cory) to go walking and enjoying the park. We went back to the same park we went to with Nana, Baba and the cousins. This time without suits with the intention to go for a walk and then heading to the park to play before a picnic.
Along the path
We are still learning to judge the weather here… so it was a bit of a surprise when the weather turned out to be MUCH warmer than we expected. The kids were not entirely enamoured with the idea of having to go for the walk in the first place. Especially since you park right in front of the PLAY PARK. But we adults persevered and we went around a portion of the walking loop. Emanuel ran to check each sign we passed (I think a grand total of two) and we even had a discussion about how weeds that are not stopped by being pulled out or poisoned grow to be HUGE. There was a patch of what they at first assumed to be sunflowers that were quite impressive.
With Mommy
By the time we got to the park it was very clear that the day was nice and warm. So off Ken went to head BACK to the house to collect our swimsuits. I really need to keep those in the van… leaving Cory and myself to supervise the fab 5. While playing in the sand they found a bucket and digging tool. I was so proud of them, since there was no other kids there and no one to claim the toys I said they COULD play with them until someone came to claim them or we left. When that DID occur they were so swift to give it back I didn’t even have to pressure them and Zander said he was GLAD the boy had gotten back his toys. He figured he would have been sad to have lost them.
The park
By the time Ken returned with the suits everyone was hot and sweaty and ready for water. A quick change into suits later and into the water they went with Cory, myself and Echo standing watch in the wake.
So serious!
Floating kids
We were just winding down on the play in the water when it started to sprinkle and then POUR! We quickly packed up and made it to the enclosure for lunch – cheese and crackers and meat with grapes and pretzels and juice pouches… yum! And that is where yours truly got her first experience with a (very small in hindsight) leech… on my toe… yes I DID freak… Seriously I am not too enthused about going back to that particular body of water any time soon. I HATE bugs. But I am proud of myself, I managed to keep my freak out mildly quiet and Cory was able to help me get it off my toe but EWWWWWW and thankfully NEITHER of the guys laughed at me… seriously totally NOT funny.
In out of the rain
Anyway… once we ate, got changed and the kids did some running around at the park we were more than ready to head home. Not surprisingly Echo, Trinity, Ken, Cory and myself all ended up having naps. A great pick me up so that we were all ready for our next planned event… a bbq with Nana, Baba, Ann and Gary (family friends), Cory and his girlfriend Karen (not with a y). The kids ate early and watched movies and we visited well into the evening. It was a GREAT day!
Getting to know Karen, spinning the rubber jacks
Everyone was well worn out and I think we all woke up a little later than our norms. Not a bad thing at all! So today I had the boys look at a great FREE app I found while looking for an app on the Mars rover Curiosity. It is called Spacecraft 3D. There are two vehicles you can try out but we only got around to Curiosity. You have a sheet you need to print out that your camera focuses on and PRESTO you can play with Curiosity! I cannot wait until they add MORE vehicles.
VERY cool
Another fun app we have on our iPad is the Skyview Free which superimposes the stars on what you see through your camera… and Starlight. This one is doubly neat as you can click on the planets or stars and read a blurb about them as well! Starlight is 99 cents (I think I got it on a free day) but Skyview is as it says… free. I love hunting for free apps… there are some real hidden gems.
What else is there to do on a Friday with all our friends busy or at work? Well pack the family up into the van and do a little shopping. First a garage sale with a boardgame find and 5 matchbox cars. 3.50, so a good deal for all. Then off to Michaels to pick up some more of the needed list. AND to check the clearance section and find a hidden gem… a Dr. Seuss themed educational felt board set. 3.99 instead of 12.99. Then Walmart to get Echo’s birthday dress (3.00 photos to be taken on Monday!!)… a dress for Trinity (3.00) a movie (5.00) and erasers (50 cents)… there is a pair of jeggings (seriously!) for Echo BUT we realized halfway from home we got charged full price on something that was marked 1.00. Ken will go back for that later.
Trinity trying the letters out
So I think we bought ONE thing for full price today – a squishy football that Echo fell in love with at Michaels… price… 1.00! Not bad not bad! It is time for a very quiet evening with Nana and Baba off to a movie. I am not sure what all the weekend will hold but there IS a meteor shower in the making I am told and the kids are begging for another lake visit… maybe a different lake to sooth mommy’s bug fearing soul??? Next thing to plan… celebrating Echo’s birth!!!