December 5-6

Middle of the week comes and goes and with it another busy busy day! Poor Baba is feeling under the weather but yours truly feels more the norm. I have to admit, having SOMETHING to do (aka attempt, however impossibly to find my immunization records.. yah right) and the knowledge that Ken IS talking to people and making progress just soothes the soul. It is something I have been working on and fighting with… I just do not handle massive anxiety well, though once the issue has passed or we gain control I am able to smooth right out. Certainly NOT helpful.

We have continued our making of cards, colouring of pictures and working on word searches – all Christmas themed! Trinity has fallen in love with colouring CANDY CANES! Thankfully no one else is complaining.

Today’s big family together time was baking cookies. Nana had picked up sugar cookie dough so while she was out with the weekly time with the cousins and Baba in bed we baked. Again all 5 together elbow deep in dough and flour. So much fun! Though they are definitely not our usual sugar cookie. Ken and I are a bit picky about our cookies after all and love the recipe I got from my mom. BUT everyone else loved them!

With Daddy

Echo at work

Busy bees

Can you tell which is Echo’s masterpiece?

We are hard at work on the first of our Christmas Carols for our mini concert we plan to post on youTube… Away in a Manger. It started out as just the twins and now the younger ones are trickling in to learn too. I wish we had found a Sunday School and the chance to really make it to church regularly but I think that this is our second choice. I am proud of their wish to share these moments with you all… as I was told VERY clearly we HAVE to post this, after all did you know that GRANDMA wants to hear them sing too?? (yup mom they said that SERIOUSLY)

We also did our “Things I Like About Christmas” print out, we did this one last year as well. You can find it on Activity Village. I have printed off extras so that we can continue to do it each year. I love hearing what is important to them each Christmas!

Last year and this year

Thursday was an even better day, though the twins were a little ill. We did another Candy Cane themed craft and made Candy Cane Hearts!

Yummy hearts

Again thanks to Activity Village. Trinity and I lucked out and found tri-cornered beads, so we took some of our special Christmas coloured pipe cleaners and made special beaded candy canes.  I think that each of the kids has done this craft and I was worried that this year we would not come across the right beads to make one for Trinity. She did rather well with her pattern on the one (only a mistake or two) and her yellow one seems to shine! I was so proud of her!

Stringing beads together

The golden version

We read ANOTHER book… Santa’s Snow Cat… so another journal page. Just a cover style illustration with the title written on the page. I am not making them do much more than enjoy the story and the family time with these Christmas themed books. Don’t forget Santa Bear from a previous day!

Santa’s Snow Cat

Santa Bear

I want to try an idea I saw online next year and wrap up 25 NEW Christmas books and then each day open one with the kids and read it! We also had a MATH day… we went online and hunted around for free Christmas themed workpages and printed off a bunch. A lot of adding and subtracting and recognizing which is which. I am hoping to make January a math month, the past few months we have REALLY been focused on the reading.

Joint creation

We, of course, had to work on ELVES from Art for Kids! Zander added his to his already VERY active Santa! I look forward to saving these instructions for years to come! 

So much fun!

Add to that our daily Advent with videos and colouring pages and the kids are rather happy with the direction our learning has gone. I took a poll and it turns out that the kids prefer next week to be REINDEER themed instead of gingerbread. I have been hunting down Rudolf related pages and whatever I can find for colouring for Trinity. Don’t forget our Christmas themed drawings thanks to Art for Kids!!!

Our little resting copy cats watching Christmas themed tv

A weekend with the Reinsch-Johnson family NEVER goes as planned. We HAD thought to meet up with Steven and Quinn in the afternoon on Saturday for play time and picnic type foods. Sadly, Steven got called into work (sad for us, great for his pocket book) and by the time he was done his shift he was too worn out to meet up. What do to do with the day instead? Well… spend time with Ken NOT on the computer! After a week of Ken working on code for jobs and on the phone for interviews (2 in 2 weeks!) we were all feeling the lack of time with him. 

So we packed everyone up and headed out, first to mail off our intent to home school forms, complete with immunization records at the post office which closed at noon and then to the park! The kids were off and running as soon as the vehicle was parked and the seatbelts removed. They had a blast climbing, sliding, running… we really needed that time out without a string of errands to go with it. 

Digging

Swinging

Sliding

After some park time Ken figured what was better than checking out the walking path? So, we did! Sadly our walk included a dead bird but we managed to work through it (and walk AROUND it) and check out the grasshoppers (plentiful), leaves (everywhere) and trees (some cut down and left and one HUGE one marked for cutting that was noticeably dead).

Walking

We ended up in a little neighbourhood at the end of a path. There were some dogs to see (one with an invisible fence, a first for me) and some interesting vehicles and such and then we realized we could not find the path that continued on the way back to the park so we had to turn back and back track. 

We wore ourselves and the kids out and then headed to the stores for some groceries (Ken and Emanuel scouted out some sales for us) and Michaels to check out the teacher discount. Apparently they do not give out a card but rather have you bring in proof. Not something super simple as the proof I have is my intent to home school forms. BUT we managed and I picked up some more crafty bits (on sale or super cheap to begin with). Just a few more items and I have some rather cool crafts to create with the kids! I have to say, I prefer Jo-Ann’s for yarn (more selection) and crafty kits (again more selection). 

There was even time to wash out the pop bottles we need for a craft I have in mind for the kids to do. Lots of soapy water OUTSIDE.

Sudsing it up

We followed up our Saturday with a Sunday with the Novaks. We did NOT make it to church – we are just not organized enough as well as needing to have Ken home to code lately and working on that job hunt has slowed our search for a new congregation to join. I am hoping we can make to the church that the Novaks belong to and try it on for size some time really soon. 

Anyway, instead we tidied, got the kids ready and ran to Target for birthday cupcakes (belated) for Echo to share with the kids. Ken even went out of his way to get us out of the house with enough time to spare for me to stop by Jo-Ann’s with coupons in hand to purchase TWO balls of yarn for myself to create my OWN project… a… scarf of course. A friend on Facebook asked if it was a Cat in the Hat scarf… oops! I was going for Canadian/Valentine’s Day/Christmas colours… but that works too! I almost bought a sparkly blue to add to the mix but red white and blue just didn’t work for me. 

A beginning of my personal project

After our shopping trip it was time to head to the Novak’s and then onto the soccer game. Another one of Anthony’s in his new league. There were not enough kids in Anthony’s age range to create a team so he was moved up to the older kids. He really did hold his own. Sadly, they did NOT win but the little kids had a blast at the nearby park and the adults (with Andy there and all!), Echo and Andrew enjoyed the game. 

Running drills

Action shot

It was a lovely sunny day and I not only got to finish the actual crocheting of Ken’s scarf but put my red and white yarn into balls for my next project. Add in a tiny soccer ball for Echo to kick, some snacks and good friends and we had a wonderful afternoon. It was great to have (big) Andy there, we have seen so little of him since we moved down here. He and Ken have been friends since elementary school! 

In the sun

After the game we went back to the Novak’s for the rest of the day. Hot dogs and brats for supper… good company and… CUPCAKES for Echo! Target has some really yummy ones that are a good price. We didn’t do the candle and song and still she cried… until Andrew helped her out with her cupcake.

Not too happy belated birthday girl

Soothed by cupcake

We stayed past 8pm when the kids had to get ready for their bedtime routine and Echo had already voluntarily crawled up on Ken to nap. So I think we managed to fill our Sunday with joy, friendship and celebration. Just what we needed. AND we have planned a Tuesday cupcake get together with Quinn and his family here at home so the fun continues! I am hoping we can plan more get togethers with people… more games to see and more moments of joy with others.

Hanging with the Daddies