Well with Ken working from home I have found that we have an odd sort of a-typical rhythm… every few days I get ready to go to bed just in time for Ken to announce HE needs a nap before he pulls a long night. That means 35min – an hour of late night time freed up before I head into bed which inevitably wakes up the baby (aka her cue to nurse). So tonight… a combination – tidying, watching of anime (Soul Eater… undecided on this one as to whether or not I like it… definitely a more mature listing) AND the basement. BUT last night – SUCCESS… I found a little floor! Ok so I covered another portion in stacks of boxes BUT floor… FLOOR! Of course there is still the futon frame to move (totally NOT my job) and some minor rearranging to go on in the completed corner but I have emptied all boxes from that area.

My cleared corner!

Annnnnd where some of the stuff went

I get my best work done when I am more than ready for bedtime. Yesterday the bulk of my time was spent with the schooling, and then meals and then just general upstairs upkeep. The kids are still a little bored and VERY mommy focused… everyone wants a major chunk of my time right now. And even when I give them time it is not enough. I think the combination of rain (like we are about ready to build and ark) and Ken having to work extra time on tricky bugs. They just don’t understand how hard he works sometimes, though they brag about it to people – and have started to believe that anything beyond games is one of us working VERY hard. So apparently BLOGGING is a difficult job and VERY important! Smart kids?

Basically what I have done is cleared the DVD/electronic games corner and sorted MOST of my craft stuff into a pile on and around MY desk (YUP I get my own DESK instead of having to temporarily use the table from time to time – speaking of which I found the pieces for that the night before last! ME! Woot!). I would LOVE to get the closet in the main area emptied out and then filled to the brim with ALL toys so I can slowly sort those out but still have room in the main area for play, tv AND the futon. Can you tell I am MOSTLY enjoying this? I am definitely an organizer at heart.

We brought out the Canada map puzzle again, the best way to continue working on the concepts of country, province and city. Echo decided to help us out by pointing out Quebec… or covering it, either way she was VERY determined to check it out.

Quebec!!!

We have continued our chapter story. More fun at summer camp. The boys are quite happy to sit and listen to the chapter though Zander has been less than enthusiastic with the picture that follows.

Completed pages

Today was a busy cooking day for yours truly. With Ken’s help I made up a triple batch of our baked beans in the slow cooker. Using bbq sauce instead of ketchup of course. The kids are overjoyed with the idea of beans for lunch tomorrow…

Cooking away

It was a play doh afternoon… We set up in front of the big window in the homeschooling area. Emanuel and Zander eventually lost interest BUT Gavin spent his time recreating some of the foods you find on recipe cards that came with the set Emanuel got for Christmas a year or  two back. It amazes me how much time he is willing to put towards an artistic project.

PlayDoh with Fat Sheep overseeing

A whole meal

Ken took THREE of the kids on a walk in the evening after dinner (Zander opted to stay home and watch the CareBears movie on Netfliks and Echo and I were hanging out with Karyn and Lauralee who stopped by to collect Fat Sheep for adventures elsewhere). Just up and down the street but the kids were all for it and the weather was kind enough to agree.

On a walk

Kristen and Fydo came over with game in hand (Ticket to Ride). The beginning of a new tradition – gaming nights! It has been quite some time since we have had a regular boardgame time. New traditions to replace the old.

Boardgames!

So some visitors (Mike stopped by too briefly), some more time spent on Canada (we even listened to the national anthem off the government site that then screwed up the netbook and had me calling Ken upstairs for help), some cooking and as you can see on the above picture – THE TABLE IS BUILT!!! Tomorrow Ken drives Karyn to the airport for her library conference in New Orleans and then heads back to the old place to finish up. A bit of a long day for yours truly to look forward to with the boys being so stubborn.

Practicing her standing skills!

So last night I got up to pee… what a start to a story, but no worries – general audience worthy. Anyway, I was getting up to pee and started to meander through the maze we call a bedroom when BAM I ran smack into the change table which, for some odd reason, is in the middle of the floor. OUCH shin in pain but luckily baby still blissfully unaware of the fact that her mommy is now hobbling to the washroom thinking words best left unsaid. In the minute or less it takes to get to the washroom and try and see the damage already there was a noticeable lump… a goose-egg on my shin – definitely a new one and an added incentive to GET OUR ROOM DONE! Seriously I need a flashlight and a ball of yarn to find my way back.

So to start our school day I gave each of the kids a piece of white paper and told them to draw something special for someone. Zander made a page for his Godmother (Darcy).

Zander's finished piece

…and Gavin made a page for his Goddaddy (Cory). These are added to the stacks they have waiting for the postal strike/lock out to end. I quiver in fear at the size of these packages as time goes on. The other option is to hold them until Christmas and do a parcel. It HAS been a while since anything has been sent down south.

Slurpees are involved in this one!

We managed to build our Dora themed Canada map AND start reading our Canadian ebook (I will share that info tomorrow). The Dora map is actually a favourite and a quick assembly.

Completed map

We pointed out ABOUT where we live now.

Or somewhere nearby

And then coloured flag themed bookmarks… the little ones did 2 each and the twins 3 – one for their godparent of choice and the other 2 for our lapbook project. I have the nasty suspicion that there is a really good Canadian story lurking in one of the boxes I have yet to open or find.

Bookmarks

We finished up our day with a chapter in our book. We learned about CAMP… briefly. The kids each drew their interpretation of the camp Louis the swan is at with his friend Sam Beaver.

Camp Kookooskoos

I took the big leap into insanity and CANCELLED NAPS! Instead we took advantage of temporarily sunny skies and blew up the little princess pool I got on clearance at the end of last season and dressed the kids in their swimsuits and let them go at it. We desperately need either our sprinkler (at old house until Wednesday) or to pick up a new, larger pool. I am hoping to have the spare cash for that luxury by the end of the month.

In her new bathing suit (another of last year's clearance finds)

"In" the pool

So lots accomplished, and hopefully a GOOD start to a productive week. I even found my bag of ribbons that go with the girls’ dresses for the wedding in August. Now I just need to ground myself long enough to get the bows started. I am torn, do I work on my basement or the bows… sadly I think the basement takes priority. I am dying to get my room done BUT it is going to take time around the naps of Miss Echo.

Echo boo

And the poster I forgot to share yesterday

Yet another week is coming to an end here in our new home. Another relatively overcast week sadly but we are settling in nicely. Echo officially has her crib set up in her corner of our new bedroom with screen in place. I FINALLY get to use her adorable crib set… a Superstore purchase before she was born. Now to clean AROUND the crib and make our room our own.

Echo's corner

So very cute!

We moved on to our next chapter. Louis the swan is determined to redeem his father by paying BACK the store for the trumpet (thank goodness).

Completed pages

After our story the boys chose their activities… a bit of sun came out so Zander jumped for the chance to head out and play on his bike in the backyard.

Helmet and all

Gavin chose to go the math route and get back to work on his book. He REALLY wants to move onto the grade 2 book as soon as he can. With Echo supervising of course.

Math with a supervisor

I actually had to make her standing toy TALLER! What a milestone! Note the jaunty little bow that she is wearing – it was a gift from her Canadian god-parents for Christmas this past year. She is growing bit by bit all round.

Standing tall

It feels good to start moving back into our homeschooling more rigorously. The plan is to start out look at Canada on Monday – it won’t be hugely in depth, they ARE only 7 and I don’t have a local library card yet but we do have quite a few resources that I purposely packed where I could find them right off.

Chris and Chris stopped by briefly on their way into the city for Comic-con. I REALLY wanted to go this year but we just couldn’t swing it with cost AND how busy we are right now settling in… next year I want to go for sure! They will be stopping by on the way back on Sunday as well. It has been a while since we have had a visit with them, and their move end of the month will have them closer to Saskatchewan and further from us!

I have arranged the livingroom to my own satisfaction… mostly! The sofa is turned, the baby area set up… though I need to put blankets along the fireplace. The netbook has its place of pride on the desk. I just need to find the bag for the pieces of the kitchen table…

Finished sitting area

Ken took the 4 bigger kids on a walk around the block after supper in the limited sunshine we have had. They came back with one dog poo shoe (Emanuel) and a scraped knee (Trinity) but happy kids ready for their baths and bed.

Out on the walk

We got our Anniversary dinner today – nothing extremely fancy, just KFC… but Ken caved and got the Double Down… soooo bad for you! I am sure in July Ken and I will get a more special meal but for now we are together and having dinner and that is what is the big thing.

KFC for 2

Oh I have to say – Cousin Veronika – PASSED!!!! And apparently her Audrey Hepburn themed photo shoot went swimmingly also! I am so proud and so glad I volunteered. I definitely have a greater appreciation for how difficult it is to make someone look good for a specific reason. On she goes to the next course on Monday!

Now for tonight I have the urge to get this basement going. After all Kathy is coming to visit next Friday which  gives me a concrete reason to hold onto to make this tidying a reality.

The best image sent to me by Chris and Chris from their first day at Comic-Con... Night Elf ready for fishing! WoW anyone?