1st snow

A few days ago this fell.  The kids were SO EXCITED!  Emora wanted to get dressed and go right outside.  She ran in the snow and threw snow balls at our cat.

The kids had a snow fight the second they got home from school.

The following days, each night had brought a little more.

They like to shake the tree and watch it all pummel down.

This year's first taste test- yep as yummy as last year's.

Eating snow is fun.  In my opinion, you can never get too old for it.  And yes, we only eat white snow.

Of course in Quebec, they pour hot maple syrop on the snow and that makes it VERY yummy- but then it's not so much the snow you're eating, but sugar on steroids.

Ivan also gave himself a face wash.  I took a picture of it, but he looks a bit possessed in it.  Maybe he was- possessed by the snow happy spirit!

Can you all stand still one second for a picture?  Our tree is not so pretty, it kind of leans and has two trunks, but it's worth really shines in the winter and spring.  It's so nice to have something green in all the white and in the spring, there are always one or several bird families that make a home and have babies in it.

As I write this, the snow has about all melted.  It's felt like spring... and so my mood is looking to summer next, but I hope that my heart will be happy again as the snow returns.  I'm sure it will.  3 days would be much too short for winter!- we didn't even get out sledding yet (at least not on a hill- I pulled Emora to school a couple of times- but that doesn't count).

Now that it's November!!

I figured that I'd better post pics from Halloween before Christmas was upon us!  Yep, that time of year is just around the corner.  A little ways yet, but still...

I let the kids draw a design on their pumpkin and then carve it.  I didn't realize until I'd uploaded pics that I didn't get a picture of each kid with their own pumpkin.  Of course I had my little helper, so we got her pic done.

This was the face Emora drew I really liked the nose she made.

I'm thankful that they are happy to choose costumes either from our dress up pile or something we make.  Emora was a "pony" 'cause she could not remember the name "unicorn".  Dominique a ballet dancer and Ivan a karate/kung fo master.  He lost his black belt during the week, so he got demoted to a blue belt at the last minute.  I tried to tell him to let the shirt hang out, but he had his own idea and when he does, you just have to leave it at that!  Of course my other idea is that you will all be cold and to put your jackets under your costume.  The only one to listen was my littlest and so the older two were also frozen popsicles.  We were only out 30 min. on our street before they were crying and running home!

Left to right- Emora's pumpkin, then Dominique's and then Ivan's.  I'm not sure where the candles from the first two pumpkins came from, but they sure worked good!  Ivan's not so much.

Apart from the tears, and my staying up way too late to cook up pumpkins, we ended up with a super duper deal.  Victoria called up to ask if she and Tyler (her bf) could take the kids for a cousins time.  So they took Ivan and Dominique back out after we had done our street.  Not only did they take the big kids- who had a blast with their well dressed and used to cold cousins, but they let my kids ride in the car periodically to warm up while they took the kid's bags to the door and said there are 2 more in the car!  Can we say SPOILED and LOVED and SPOILED!

Thank you Vikka and Tyler- you guys rock!

Take 2- Ivan, Ivan, Ivan!

We couldn't miss out on our traditional pose.  Ivan was born on my birthday, so each birthday we try to take this picture, with me holding him, sitting at the dining room table (usually with birthday cake or pumpkins, but we missed on the accessories this time!)  He is getting bigger and bigger!

I had found a bow for Ivan at a garage sale for 50 cents in the summer.  It was so cheap because it had no arrows.  Ivan was so excited about that bow and I saw on pinterest how to make arrows.

So Emora and I spent the week creating.  It was fun.  Of course I always think a project will take a couple of hours, which turns into days!  And everything takes a bit longer with a little one to interact with still.

I was surprised at how well the arrows fly.  I don't know if they are accurate at all, but he has hit the target a time or two.

Vana white always wanting to help out.

He's serious, everyone make way!!

He wanted to teach his sister of course.

Ivan's had another good run with guitar.  For now, he's going to take a break from lessons.  Maybe he'll take it up again some day.  He did do a great bluesy song that I'll have to post- all about looking at his bow in the garage with no arrows, no target... oh the sorrow!

He's on again off again about skating too.  It all really depends on who is there.  He loved skating when Dominique's friend was there and swimming when his friends went.  I picked up on this over the summer and found a way to kill two birds with one stone.  Ivan loves being with his cousin Arwen, who loves being at the lake.  The girls and I also love the lake and Arwen's family is often busy with stuff- so it was a perfect marriage of sorts.  We grabbed her and everyone was happy!

Lots and lots about Ivan part 1

I realized that I hadn't posted the pictures from Ivan's party yet!  And here it is November already.  Sometimes the days just zoom by.  Now that Halloween is over, I can take a breath.

Ivan had a brother pair Konomu (the older one in glasses- who is Ivan's age), his brother Nozomu (Dominique's age) and Kellen (also Dominique's age) for an all boys' birthday and sleepover.  The theme was Star Wars- much to all of them's delight.

I was super excited to NOT have to do a big party and to let Brian take care of it.  I made the cake and decorated it and (so happy) the kids loved it even if it only took me a bit to create it.

The secondary theme to the evening was shooting daddy with nerf guns.  Apparently Brian thought he could deflect the bullets with a light saber.  As he nearly got his eye shot out, he decided some safety gear was in order.  They don't make nerf guns like they used to!

It was the Sinclair boys' first sleep over ever.  Brian got them all pizza and they were all so wonderful.

The girls were excited to go to the city with me to do some shopping (OK, they weren't excited about that part)- to eat out (MacDonalds- unfortunately for me, happy for them) and SWIMMING! 

The girls each got Ivan something with their own money- he was excited to see what they'd gotten him.

More weapons!  Another light saber and nerf gun- cause you can never have enough.

Next episode I will show you his reaction to the gift I'd made him... stay tuned.

From the wet suit swim day

Oops- I was in the process of posting these and got sidetracked...

for about a week or so!

This seems like so long ago...

It was the warm day, when Ivan went to play with Kellen and the girls played at the beach

while I tried out my wet suit!

Such a fun day!

The girls wanted to swim, but I kept telling them it was too cold without a wet suit.  They did put their toes in and I carried Lannelle over so that she could put her fingers in.

They thought they wanted to swim anyways.

Skating, dancing, games and reading

I found this idea on pinterest.  I was told about Pinterest by lots of people saying I'd love it, before I actually ventured over to check it out.  I do kind of like it.  This was made by leaving construction paper out in the sun a day with letters on it.  Now we have a puzzle to play and Emora LOVES to play games.  We have lots at her level, so that's fun.  She likes puzzles and coloring too and YEAH for me, has decided that she finally loves skating!  I've taken her for 2 years before this year and she always hated it, but now she begs to go and likes for me to push her around super fast, but she has started- like Dominique showed her- to push the bar away and skate to it.

Dominique is not sure which she likes more- dancing or skating.  But then she kind of likes it all- she's doing an after school yoga program too and going with her BFF this week to her "Sparks" outing (like Brownies).

Here she is off the bar.  Unfortunately, Ivan takes a lot longer feeling comfortable with new things and got teased by a not so nice kid in his class last time he skated, so it took me a couple of weeks to coax him back onto the ice.  I hope he will get back into it.  He really liked to go last year.

Emora found an auntie to play a game with at thanksgiving.  This is Sheena's sister Andrea- so my kids have 2 auntie Andreas!

Ivan loves playing legos, getting play times with his cousin Kellen and friends from his sleepover, doing archery and reading.  He also really loves to tease his sisters.  Can you tell?  He's mostly good with them though!

Natasha and Dominique are in ballet together.  Natasha also has a set of twin sisters in Ivan's class- so that's pretty neat.

We got our first smattering of snow today.  Well, it kinda snowed one day, but not enough to stay on the ground and this stuff didn't really stay either, but it was all excitement when I got the kids up and I made them guess what the surprise was outside.  Dominique and Ivan both guessed snow right away.  Emora didn't know what the surprise was and when I took her to the window she still wasn't sure.  Is that rain or snow?  It's white and really, really wet.  We had to dig out boots and warmer jackets.  It's coming!