Celebrating a birthday is ALWAYS fun and a two year old’s is no exception. Of course we had to play chase the baby with the camera as was shown in the previous blog post… Can you believe that lovely brown and pink dress was size 6-9 and fit perfectly?? Kohl’s clearance find.

Our not so baby baby

So with breakfast out of the way and  the birthday girl thoroughly photographed what is there to do? Well… schoolwork for the big ones! Gotta draw that butterfly Chrysalis. 

Monday AND Tuesday’s efforts

Once what we had set up was accomplished with only ONE time out we let the kids go run, play and generally do as they please. Then once that was out of their system and Ken done his computer related things we packed up the kids for a walk down one side of the street. The goal: to map the neighbourhood. Step by step, house by house… We have already worked on learning the name of the street we are living on, now it is time to  work on understanding how streets are set up… and enjoy the sunshine. 

Working on our maps

With her matching book and outfit

And after lunch some nice quiet time (can you believe I got in a nap too!!!). Naps were started late and ended late so to burn off the built up energy we ALL headed into the vehicles and went to a newly discovered park. Echo was totally ready to climb, slide and run her heart out. All of the kids were! 

Swinging birthday girl

Up on the hippo

We were there long enough to turn the boys’ faces red from exertion and as Zander put it… make him dripping with cold sweat. They played hard and were HUNGRY!

My 3 boys

While supper and kids were made ready Ken and I ran to Walmart to get a price correction on something and then went to Walgreens to get a sale price on pencil crayons and then finally DAIRY QUEEN for an ice cream cake. That leaves cake and presents. 

Cake!!

Both went over SUPER well… our Echo is well and truly 2. We still need to plan the kids’ party and the family party is set for middle of September. Planning in a whole new place with different people is definitely something new for us. Thank goodness she is only 2 so we have time to plan without her wondering why.

Presents first

Blow out those candles baby

NOMS

We took Tuesday as a one off day pretty much… wrote one more letter (under MASSIVE duress I might add) to go in the post box with the flag up (seriously that works here!!!) and drew our daily observation of our chrysalis. There are just days when everyone needs a break and that was today… well halfway as we also did a picture each in what is going to become their observation journals.

Gavin’s map

Which meant time was freed up to take MORE pictures of the girls in dresses… I just love the livingroom for pictures. Echo was adamant that today’s be mostly with Trinity. I love it when they feel like being buddies.

My girls

And then of course time was spent outside. Baba still has a bunch of those tree branches to take apart to be put out for recycling and until the neighbour boy came over to mow it was time to play outside. Then back out again to take down the trees with the neighbour boy and his older brother’s help! 

Watching the tree work

Now tomorrow is lined up to be fun… hopefully busy and always enjoyable. 

Hanging with Nana (Zander)

I have to admit I felt my foreign-ness Monday, up in Alberta it was a long weekend (as was greatly reflected on my Facebook feed) – Heritage Day actually. But here in sunny Minnesota it was business as usual. This did work in our favour, as while we could not do our calling up north we COULD do our errands locally… that means that as of the end of Monday we had gotten Ken a haircut (he had also shaved! So if pigs fly do NOT be surprised!), ordered our library cards (with no bills in our names of course, we were able to fill it all out and then to prove that you live locally they mail them out. If you are telling the truth you get it then…), mailed the first of the penpal letters (9 in all!) and opened an independent chequing account at a local credit union (did you know that having a bulletin from the local church you visit is enough for residency? At least for that place… we haven’t picked a church yet). I cannot get my name on it until I get a Social Security Number but it is a start! 

So many envelopes

So not only is Ken searching for that lovely 9-5 job but he is also clean cut and shaved, which means he is ready to interview when need be! So please, positive thoughts and prayers that the process is not a lengthy one and the job all we had hoped! I really do feel that we are finally where we need to be for the time being! 

The smiles on these creative faces (they are making their own boxes out of paper) is proof that we are doing the right thing (Gavin)

There is a major sale going on on Currclick right now! So I bopped over there and with some of my remaining paypal cash from previous surveys I ordered a grand total of FOUR downloadables for 1.80 Canadian! With the Mars rover recently landed and a meteor shower supposed to be in the making asap I figured why not do a quick hunt for lapbooks and notebooks regarding Mars… I chose a quick one day one for the twins… you can find it HERE. And then there was the dinosaur one I came across by accident HERE and finally TWO on Minnesota… a State study and general lapbook. I may just have to go back and think future topics and snap up a few more to save on my desktop. One of the ones I bought was only 30 cents! 

Today we faced a quieter day, or tentative plans to see Quinn and Bree fell through but the excitement of the removal of some trees in the backyard by Baba and Daddy made up for it. The removal of those trees left branches for play. 

Tree removal

Watching Daddy

So of course they did… they made their very own little “tree house”. I love the creativity and teamwork that went on. It was still a rather warm day so the shade was lovely under the other trees and for the kids, the sun deck. 

Tree house

School wise we continued with our workbooks, and added in some time for Gavin with a small cross stitch project that managed to sneak its way into our luggage on the way down here. He actually was quite the go getter on it today. He has pretty much mastered the half stitch, as long as I can keep his attention on the pattern. 

My little stitcher

Emanuel got to try out one of my newest Target purchases… a little set of dry erase ABC cards. 

Who can resist dry erase?

We also added in our Mars items. I have found some wonderful print outs from Education.com. I will share links to those later. We also found a great show on the On Demand on tv here from National Geographic kids called Is There Life on Mars? They were not totally enthused but after watching it we had an interesting talk about what they thought. So I quickly recorded the information so that tomorrow they can draw their own ideas out in some sort of picture form. 

Now to continue on with the themes… keep the kids active in their learning and of course HAVE FUN! After all what sticks better but the things we enjoy, love and accomplish with a smile on our faces???

Dancing babies

August 2-3

If you have 5 kids and a free hubby (DONE DONE DONE his contracts) what should you do? Well if you are a homeschooling family… you start like you did the day before – breakfast and then right into the review books and letters to the people who have stepped up to be our pen pals. Right now they don’t really understand how much work they WON’T be doing once we get all the first letters out but we are working down out list quite doggedly. Some even people the boys have never met before!!

Hard at work at a letter/picture (Gavin)

Now with the schooling out of the way, the kids dressed and the husband not tied to the computer beyond his morning’s job hunt (go Ken go!!) what to do? Well there was this promised LONG awaited outing… Victoria Secret and my first proper bra fitting and purchase of a proper NON nursing bra in over 9 years!! We had coupons that had come to the house in the mail recently and I ended up SAVING 120.00 while spending well under 100 and within the allotted budget… how so? Well we ended up with close enough to the target amount to get this really nice travel bag… which is also ALL of Lisa’s Secrets you will see… Victoria lets hers all hang out, me… not so much!

The bag!

In front of the store. All Trinity wanted was the bag it all came in!

After VS it was time to drive around and keep an eye peeled for MORE garage sales… check back at an old haunt and show the kids more of the beauty of the area. I have decided that next week or so we shall start collecting pictures of interesting street signs… trust me there are some REAL giggles. 

So now I have TWO new books to read… AND a list of suggestions (I had already read some but so neat how Barnes and Nobles does that!).

The two newest acquisitions

Suggestions

We had to make a stop off at a gaming store we remembered from years back that had moved to a NEW location that was HUGE so that the kids could each get a die. They do love having dice around! At 1.50 a piece certainly no hardship. Oh but don’t forget about lunch – TACO BELL!

Taco Bell

YUM!

This marked the beginning of our solo weekend. Nana and Baba headed off with Ken’s brother Joe and his family to camp for the weekend. We opted to stick around here so that we could work on some discipline issues, enjoy each other’s company and sort through a few more items we have laying around. Ken’s folks picked up some storage for our bedroom so I was able to further organize… and everyone knows how happy that makes me!!! 

Echo checking out from the inside out

We had a slow start to Friday as I finally have a more minor version of the rest of the family’s cold. But we did get out the door in the afternoon… for the ever magic garage sales (more squinkies and a spelling boardgame) and then the main attraction for the day – once we found it (two parks named the same on different streets in the same town???) – Andrew’s baseball game. The first of the tournament.

Andrew action shot

Another very hot day so the kids were a little fussy but we had a blast! Ken took pictures, Echo played with her Anthony and the boys played at the park. We always have fun with the Novaks. 

Watching from some shade

Echo and her Anthony

Andrew’s team won! And on that positive note we said see you LATER (that still brings a smile to my face) and headed off down the backroads home. We lucked out on our travels and came across ANOTHER garage sale… this one with everything for 25cents!! I picked up a zipper up sweater (just needed a wash), a push/ride car that we had up north and sold (seriously a QUARTER!) and a car that came with dominoes that turned out to be a gem. You fill the car and then let it go and it sets dominoes in a line!!!

She was so excited she wouldn’t let me put her pj’s on before she got onto it!

Don’t forget a stop off at Sam’s Club and an attempt at Slurpee in the form of a Coke flavoured Icee… head’s up… it is NOT the same thing!!!

Not quite

In the end the kids were pleased, we got to spend the day with friends and that night Ken and I sat around and did nothing! I just hope the rest of the family is having as much fun camping!!!

Cheering for our best boys!