Victoria Day Weekend

We drove to Rochester Friday night. The girls were just a little excited!

 

We stayed overnight in a hotel and then went to the Children's Museum on Saturday. Every time we go we talk about going to see the Butterflies and every time we say, next time. Today was the day!

 

On Sunday We went to church of course. The drive to Heidi's building, the fact that it is a historical site, it never gets old. It's so beautiful!

We had a lazy afternoon and finished off the day with a cookout down the hill.

We usually go to the grove - if we go anywhere on the way home, but this time, I wanted to go to the Hill. We don't usually (ever) go to Hill Cumorah, so that's where we went on Monday instead of the grove/farm. It was fun, the visitor centre is awesome, and of course walking up the hill is great. I hope the girls will develop their own testimonies of the history of these amazing places.

Random Monday Fun

When I called Ken - one of the times I called Ken after school to check in, he informed me that there was a power failure.  We decided to meet in Nobleton at the Cappuccino Cafe for dinner - they have excellent wood fire pizza that I had once before on my birthday.  We had a fun dinner, the food is so good, we had a couple treats and it was just fun. Next was a quick shopping trip to No Frills and then home.  The power still wasn't on so we read books and played board games - Guess Who and Battleship. Fiona fell asleep during the reading of books. We saw a rainbow on the drive home. There was a thunderstorm by candle light, except that it was still light out. It was just kind of a magical family night. And there was Kate cuteness.

Number one: Kate told me about her sadness chamber in her Minecraft house.  It has a birch door so you can't see out, and bedrock everywhere, and a clock. And when you feel sad you just go there and no one will bother you.

Number two: She was telling me about something and she said I don't know how to say the word in English. It almost made me cry. (The French thing is really going well.  It means so much to me for my children not to be uni-lingual. Canadians shouldn't be uni-lingual. I wish I wasn't!) It was so awesome, I told her to say the word in French which was explique, which I knew meant explain. Seriously, I was so happy.

There was one other bit of Kate cuteness but I can't remember it now. Maybe it will come to me later. I had a fun night enjoying my family. Sometimes there are so many things to do I kind of ignore everyone. That was not the case tonight and it was lovely!

Alice Speaks!

Last year when it was primary presentation time Alice didn't want to give a talk or read a scripture. She wanted to sing and that was it. She and Kate are very different and that is good and great and as it should be but I would be lying if I didn't admit that I was a little disappointed.

Alice is figuring things out for herself at her own speed. Her reading is progressing really nicely and I'm so proud of her. Last week in church - or maybe two weeks ago, she was very sad because she wanted to speak in primary and she wasn't being asked.

Sis. Downie is the primary secretary and I asked her if Alice could speak and she was excited. She often finds it difficult to find kids to speak in junior primary.

We practiced all week. Alice did great. She could read her whole talk. She helped write a little bit of it. She was ready.

Today when she stepped up to the microphone she was asked if she needed help and she said yes. Then the sweet YW who was helping in primary (because all the women were released to go to the chapel for a special meeting) read Alice's talk one line at a time for Alice to repeat. I was so sad. Alice could do it she could read it on her own. But really, she did do it. She stood up in front of all the kids and teachers and said her talk. I'm so proud of my girl!

Mom Stuff on Mom's Day

My mantra the last little while has been, there aren't enough hours in the day.  Just as soon as I check a few things off the list there are just as many things that still need to be done, and there's never enough time. I've come to know that I do like being busy, but there's busy and then there's ridiculous. My evaluation at school is almost finished - at least my part is finished, well, except that I need to write my annual learning plan, but that shouldn't take too long, and there's still another meeting with admin, but the bulk of the work is done. Now the house, always the children, and then things like the blog which have been wildly abandoned, but of course there's also the day to day teaching, the report cards, the concert, the mothering, the laundry and finding moments to stare out the window at pretty yellow birds in the tree. So many distractions, so little time.

I love being a mother, the challenge, the growth, the stretching of my capacities. I love reading with the girls, I love watching them play - or at least listening to them play sweetly together. I love watching my sweet husband be a good dad, loving them like no one else ever can. I'm looking forward to the summer of spending time doing things together. I hope I can slow down and really be with them - I feel the lack of that in my life right now. I'm tired of being tired... BUT!

But when I start to go down that path I stop myself and I remember to be grateful, grateful for the noise and the mess and the chaos and the love in my life of my three little girls, because really, what's the alternative? I'm grateful for the health of my children, that they are alive and well, that they were born to me, that I am here to wake up each day with them, because really, what's the alternative?

There will never be enough hours in the day, and hopefully I will get better at choosing what to fill my hours with, and it will get easier to know that there is a time and a season for things in life. Being a mom is hard, and although that is usually the beginning place of my thoughts, it is not the end.  Out of hard things come the best things and I am grateful, so eternally grateful to be a mother to Kate, and to Alice and to Fiona. And grateful to my partner who supports me in all of my mothering, Ken you make me feel valued as a mother every day!

Another Duty Day

Another duty day... the last duty day... It has been a slight scheduling pain, but also so much fun to be with Fiona (insert Alice, insert Kate) for mornings here and there for their preschool experiences. I love their preschool teachers, I love the preschool program that they've all participated in.

It's also fun to do a duty day because I get to pretend for the day that I'm a stay at home mom. I get to make lunch when we're about to eat (not hours in advance - oh who am I kidding, Ken makes the lunches), I get to pick kids up from the bus and school. I get to relax and breathe and be.

Yay for duty days!

Tottenham P.S. Fun

It was the cutest outdoor little concert/get together. The had instruments set up, the choir sang, there were games. The girls had a blast.