Say it isn't so!

Unbelievably, it snowed again! in mid April!?!?!??!? This is getting to be ridiculous. I'm so ready to be done with the stinky holey winter boots that are cluttering up the entryway! Bring on the light coats and rubber boots I say! But no one listens to me!

So we make our own fun by having special guests! We lured Shirley into our lair with the promise of homemade Belgian waffles and she took us up on it. But not before she ran home to pick up the Easter presents she had for the girls. I swear we don't invite you just to get gifts Shirley!!! They were much appreciated and enjoyed though. The earrings have been a huge hit! and they never tire of chocolate ( and we don't tire of helping them with it muahahaha!!!)

After lunch we took Checkers for a walk only to be hit with this blizzard! Having special company took the sting out of the nasty weather and we enjoyed the visit!

Spring? Is that YOU???

We don't want to get too crazy around here but it looks like spring may be approaching! If the rate that our sub pumps are running is any indication, melt is full steam ahead this week! So far they're managing the water very well and our floors have been dry since Murray installed them a couple years ago. Best home improvement job ever!

The pavement was so dry that the girls were anxious to get their bikes out for a spin! Every year Lovey has been nervous about biking and very rarely got up enough speed to stay upright or coast at all. This time, she was off like a shot and zipping around like mad! No fear this year! Plus she'd accessorized appropriately and was looking pretty fine!

Sweetie has figured out how to pedal standing up so she'll be rocket this year no doubt! Honey is perfectly happy to bike along at her own pace and enjoyed the ride as much as anyone. It felt great to be out after supper and enjoying the evening in the daylight!!!

Hit the road Jack!

A great evening! The kids hopped on bikes and Lovey was so excited to try hers out that she got all her violin done BEFORE supper so she'd have lots of time after eating to play outside! They recruited the girls next door to join them on the expedition and they ran and raced around having a great time. 

Yay for warmer evenings that aren't dark!!!

Snow Picnic

To avoid a whole week of sitting and watching tv/playing on iPods, I thought we'd try a snow picnic! We phoned the neighbours, rounded up Miss E and Tulip and packed our grub and headed for the woods! We weren't very far in when they started asking "how much further!?!?!?" and "I'm thirsty" started even before that. I held them off til we got to the beaver dam and then we set out the feast. Of course, that's exactly when the biting wind picked up and gave us all instant frostbite! Ok not quite but it was COLD!

We decided to retreat into the trees and found a sheltered spot and started over. It wasn't long before our fingers chilled and our drinks froze in our glasses so we didn't linger! The way back over the pond was a wide open area and the wind had blown the snow in over Murray's trail. It was harder going since we couldn't use his packed surface so the kids took turns being the trailblazer and forging the new path. It was very organized and I was impressed! 

We took a shortcut once we got closer to the road and came home to find Boo waiting for us! She'd brought her skates again but we needed to get the chill out of our bones so we had a Minecraft break before lacing up and heading back out to the rink. 

Teena and I were able to have a nice visit and get lots of chatting in!

Snow Hike

We invited Tulip to come along for a walk in the woods and go check out the beaver dam! Not much was happening there but they found a fun place to climb and jump from nearby. That killed quite a bit of time and we played with Checkers while they did that. It was a nice way to get some outdoor time and the kids actually had fun and didn't complain! They raced and ran along the trail together, hiding sometimes to try and scare each other and other mischief. It was great to get outdoors and have some fresh air and stretch our legs!

Snow Day

Remember the excitement of waking up on a school day and tuning in hopefully to the radio on a messy weather day, hoping against hope that school would be cancelled and you could just roll over and go back to bed? 

Well that would have been a good idea this week! If only I'd known we were expecting a storm. Except we weren't! They were calling for some possible snow later in the day, maybe some rain. With already snow packed roads, a nice coating of rain can turn the bus route into a skating rink. I wouldn't recommend driving 70+ kids in those conditions!

Not knowing the forecast was calling for anything, I got everybody up, started breakfast and we were half an hour away from going out to the bus stop when I happened to see a Facebook post mentioning an extra day off. Wondering what holiday they had planned, I read further and found out school was cancelled IN CASE the weather turned later in the day and made the roads messy.

The kids thought they'd go back to bed but they never fell asleep, they were too busy on their iPods to shut their eyes! After a few hours of that (and some Rainbow looming), I told them Checkers needed a walk. He actually is fine for exercise but telling them I just want to go for a walk or telling them they should get outside to play is an undertaking I didn't want to fight out. When it's for the dog, they're much more willing. I go with whatever works!

We spent an hour following the paths to find the beaver pond and dam and home again. We used to go for walks in the woods all the time and they talked about things they remembered from when they were "little". It was cute to hear them recall details and stories. They kept asking for pictures which made me sorry I hadn't brought my real camera! If I'd known they'd be willing to work the photo ops for me.... Oh well! The best camera is the one you have with you!

Underneath that snow is a huge rock. It seemed much bigger to them when they were 2 & 3 and needed a boost to get up on it. They call it "Rocky Mountain" because it was sooooooooo large and hard to climb back then!

Voila le beaver dam!

and what's an event without a selfie?!?!? I love the rosy cheeks and big smiles :)))

 

When we got home, everyone was tired and hungry so Honey got to work and whipped up grilled cheese sandwiches for her sisters and herself.

In the celebratory spirit of the snow day, we ate lunch in front of the TV and I introduced them to some of my old faves, Bewitched and Diff'rent Strokes. Honey wasn't impressed that Bewitched was in black and white and complained until I changed shows. We all howled at the antics of Willis and Arnold and watched as many shows as we could before Teena & Boo came to visit. I have them hooked now and we'll be watching lots of episodes! We're loving our Apple TV!!!

Trekkers

Murray was about to head out for a walk in the woods with Checkers when I suggested that Sweetie go with him. He gets to spend quite a bit of time with Lovey & Honey at hockey so we try and even it out with some Sweetie time when we get a chance. She's not always keen on outdoor pursuits but she does love having one on one and jumped on this opportunity!

They were gone quite a while and came home with rosy cheeks!

Hockey Night in Canada

Ok so it was a day game but hey, why mess with a good title???

The girls actually had 2 games today, one in the morning and another mid afternoon today. The morning one was with their regular team and this afternoon was the girls' team. They ended up losing both games but seemed to enjoy both. The 2nd game took a lot out of them as they didn't have quite enough skaters for two shifts, so they were on the ice A LOT! They were missing their older players this afternoon and the other team was not! The scorekeepers are kind in this league and hold the scores at a 3 goal lead so I'm not sure what the real final score was but we did have two goals in the end!

Sweetie spent some time at Tulip's house for the morning game while I was at my class at the gym this morning and came home for lunch and to get ready for the game. We ended up getting to the rink quite early and as it turned out, complex was next door to Teena's mom's house! Since we had time to kill anyway, Sweetie & I walked over and had a little visit until it was time for the game to begin. She was surprised to find us on our doorstep but seemed to welcome the diversion to undecorating her tree!

We got home from the game right at supper time and upheld another Canadian tradition, beans & wieners on Saturday night! We jazzed it up with Honey's homemade brown bread in the breadmaker. She was pleased when I announced we were eating HER bread for dinner :)

After dinner Lovey did her violin and then we had movie night & snacks! Mmmm mmmm!!! Needless to say they fell asleep fast tonight and I think I'm ready to do the same!

Midweek Surprise!

Guess who landed on our doorstep the other night for supper and a visit! Grammie & Grandad! The kids had the day off and it was Mum's day off too so they were in doing some shopping (big event coming up so they gotta get prepared you know :))) and came to our house after they finished loading up the car (woohoo!) with purchases.

We had a rather rambunctious meal as my children have never sat at a table before, or used utensils, or been taught not to scream at the table etc. I wish the apes that raised them had done a better job on table manners... :S Oh well, no one will ever claim boredom at one of our "dinner parties".

After supper we took the dogs for a nice walk and the girls next door came along and joined us. You know you live in the sticks when you can pick up your road and take it with you for the walk right?

Have Compass, Will Travel!

Or at least, we would, if anyone had remembered to bring a compass! We didn't let a little thing like lack of compulsory equipment stop us from entering and enjoying an orienteering race this weekend! That's why God made iPhones right? There's an app for that! This is why we hang around Murray's brother, he keeps us current :)

The kids had a great time tearing through the woods in search of the different stations or checkpoints or whatever they're called. It was a nice day for a stroll through the trees and my glutes got a workout on the steep hills!

The girls took good care of Mr Bojangles and got him through all the tricky sections when he got afraid that holes in the earth might suck him in.

We had a great afternoon in the fresh air, won the race (only 1 other family participated though LOL)  and got home in time for a fabulously delicious turkey dinner!!! Nice way to end a day :)))

In the Woods!

 While Karen was here for a visit, we took the opportunity to hit the trail in the woods! We hadn't gone for a walk in there for ages, mostly because it's so much of a fight to get the kids to go. As usual, once we forced them in there, they were off and running, happy as clams! They climbed on rocks, played in puddles, checked out a dragonfly I found and had a blast in there!. Why do they make us work so hard? Don't they know that we know best already???