The Post-Christmas Post

 Merry mid-week what day is it? My family has asked this countless times in the past week. Last week Chad & I were trying to figure out what day of the week Boxing day was going to be, and it took us about 10 minutes to pin that one down.  With all the church services, and no school, every day feels like Sunday, or Saturday.... or is it Thursday? My Google now tells me both the date, and the day of the week in my morning routine!

We had a pretty good Christmas.  We are used to not seeing family over the holidays, although the last few years we were close enough to my parents that they'd usually come up for Christmas.  This year it felt weird since we are close enough to see Chad's family, but we weren't allowed to see them. We are doing lots of Zooms instead, which is better than nothing, but we can't wait to get together with family & friends... whenever that will be allowed again.

With Chad being busy with Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, & Sunday church we were still pretty busy.  Because of the tighter restrictions we have to sign up to attend church in person, and I did not remember to do so before all the Christmas services got filled, so we waved Chad off, & watched them from home.  That was definitely a weird feeling!

Then on Christmas day we opened our gifts.  Did I take any pictures? Nope, not a single one.  Asher's first gift was a WaterPik. He said, "This is a terrible present!" (Sums up 2020 pretty well though!)  I told him, "It can only get better from here!"  We got lots of new books to read which  everyone was happy about.

I bought myself some really nice bunny slippers, wrapped them up, and boy, was I delighted to open them! Unfortunately they were too small, so Chancery is happy, and I have cold feet!  Chad said that's what I deserve for buying myself a present.

The kids don't go back to school until Jan 11, so now we will have lots of time to bake, play games, & read.  We're borrowing skates so the kids can take advantage of the ice rink that is just beside our neighbourhood, and we have lots of ski-doing that can be done on the lake. I'm appointing myself the hot chocolate maker so I can stay in the warm house!

Easter Egg Hunt

This year the kids really wanted to do an Easter Egg hunt.  There were a few factors that were going to make this difficult:

1. Chad gave away our Easter Eggs at the children's message last year

2. There is still about a foot of snow on the ground

3. We don't let the kids have much candy,  so I didn't want to fill a bunch of eggs with things they can't have.

So I decided instead to order some eggs from Amazon, & make a treasure hunt instead with a small prize at the end.  The eggs were all filled with the location of the next egg, but the kids had to take turns giving clues, and finding the egg.  The twist was that they were not allowed to say any of the words on the paper.  I had ordered a pack of 100 eggs, and ended up using about 75 of them.

I did have about 8 small items that I put into a few of the eggs, but as the kids found them, they'd say, "Here, mom, I don't want this." So I was glad I didn't fill every egg!  The kids really enjoyed it, and it was fun to see their wheels turning trying to think of ways to give the clue without saying the words.  I also noticed a few times they would look right at the spot as they were thinking of it.

It took about an hour for them to do the egg hunt, and since they enjoy making treasure hunts for each other I'm sure we'll get lots of use out of our new eggs.

Not Social Distancing

It's crazy times.  Who would have thought that we'd all be hunkering down at home not from a

natural disaster or some freak weather storm, but from an illness that came out of the blue.  I know

there are lots of people who are frightened about what the future holds, not just for during this time in

Quarantine, but after we come out of it. How many businesses will have to close?  How many jobs

won't exist anymore? How many of our loved ones will have become ill, or even died from the virus?

There's a lot of talk about physical health, but we need to also remember that our health is not just

based on if we have a fever or not. Health is a multi-faceted part of us.  We have to find a balance of

mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health.

I don't like the "Social Distancing" line that has been thrown around, because that makes it sound

like we should be antisocial. We should be Physically Distant, but now is the time to be there for

each other.  This is an unprecedented time, and everyone is struggling with it in some way or

another. There are lots of extroverts who may get depressed if they can't socialize with others,

which can also lead to health problems. There are many who are anxious with what the future will

hold, which leads to sleeplessness and burnout.  Hopefully this will lead to a new normal where

people are more in tune with their mental health and it won't be such a stigma to say "I'm struggling.

I need help.".

I have hope that this will lead to some positive changes in many ways. This could change the way

we interact in our communities. Maybe instead of driving into our garages and not talking to our

neighbours, we'll start to really care about one another and look after the needs around us.

I've seen on FaceBook quite a few homeschooling parents telling all the parents who have suddenly

been thrown into quarantine schooling, that this isn't even normal for homeschoolers.  It's new

territory for everyone (pulling together, reassuring). They have said not to expect 6 hours of work

from your kids, most students do between 2-3 depending on what they are working on. That's

COMMUNITY!

It's important to remember these guidelines for adults working from home as well.  There are many

parts of your normal workday that help break up the stress, that you are missing right now. It's

important to take into account the coffee breaks, drive time, etc. Locking yourself off from the world

to work for 8 hours isn't healthy in a stressful time like this. It's really important to take care of your

body and mind (emotional, physical, mental,& spiritual health). Maybe it means working until

lunchtime, eating with the family, playing some board games, and going for a walk in the afternoon.

I'm sure you know that you can't do your best work if you're stressed.  Two hours of good work is

better than 6 hours of stress an anxiety riddled work. Work yourself into more hours as you get used

to this new normal. Take care of yourself, take care of your family, take care of your friends.

Remember, don't cut yourself off from everyone.  Social Distancing doesn't mean Social Isolation!

Call your friends, Play virtual poker, FaceTime that friend you haven't had time to connect with, Send

a message to say, "I was thinking about you... Remember when we went on that epic adventure?"

Ask how they are REALLY doing.  Let them know they are not alone. We're all in this together.

Prelude at Grandpa & Grandma's!

The kids & went to my parents' house for a week to help them prepare for the whole family being there in a few weeks.  On the way down we went through Whidby Island to visit some friends.  

We went to the beach with them to hunt for sea glass, & the kids found some cool driftwood!

Then we took some time to wander around Coupeville & had a delicious lunch as well.

Once we got to my parents house we were set to work picking raspberries, making jam & cookies, & mulching flowerbeds

In our enthusiasm we even managed to splatter raspberry juice on the ceiling!

It wasn't all work though, we stopped at a few thrift stores, & the kids found this tiny piano & insisted on posing as Lucy & Schroeder from Peanuts!

And of course we visited "The Oak" in the neighbourhood. 

 I spent a lot of time here with the neighbourhood kids growing up, & Asher & Chancery have a lot of fun playing here too!

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We also met up with my friend Theresa & her kids.  We became friends in grade 7, & hadn't seen each other in 17 years!

The kids had a blast playing together, & we decided to try to see each other  more often (which shouldn't be THAT hard, right?)

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Next was a quest to find some climbing trees in the woods by my parents' house.  Unfortunately most the trees I used to climb are now dead (I'm not THAT old!), so we didn't have any luck...

We also had to make our way through quite a bit of salal since the trails are not kept up anymore.  The kids decided they are ready to apply to be on "Alone" since they didn't find it too difficult.

Last but not least, I showed them "The Best Ditch in The Neighbourhood".  It has the perfect slope, & I read many a book in it while waiting for my friends' school bus to bring them home.

Waterton

Sunday we all went to Waterton National Park.  When Chad was growing up, quite often the family would go to Waterton & walk up the creek in Red Rock Canyon.  It was the kids' first time in Waterton, & it was time they partook of the tradition.  They were excited!

It was a bit chilly, so the kids were wearing jeans & long sleeves.  They probably should have changed first, but they were so excited to go up the canyon!  They did get their shoes & jeans wet, but we had brought shorts & sandals for them & by the time everyone got back out of hte canyon it  had warmed up quite a bit.

 It was quite the adventure, & I had to turn back due to inappropriate footwear.  Next time I'll know better!

It was awesome jumping from rock ot rock, trying to keep dry (& not always succeeding)

Troy & Tara said the water was way lower then they had ever seen it before, so they made it all the way to the end of the canyon!

After all the canyon adventures, we headed to the lake for some rock skipping.  For some reason I am a terrible rock skipper, so I was rejoicing in my accomplishment of throwing a rock with 2 bounces!

Than Chad told me, it was only one bounce, & a plop since it never came out of the water the second time.  I guess I need more practice!

After the lake it was time for dinner, then shopping (without much luck), then ice cream (you can't mess with tradition!), then the candy store (as if they needed any more sugar!)

It was a great time hanging with the family!

We're Having Fun In Alberta!

Grandpa & Grandma's house is always a fun place to visit.  There are so many things to do that are different from what you can do at home!  We came for a week's holidays to visit & relax, & we achieved our goals!

The kids caught a bunch of grasshoppers & kept them in an old cookie container as pets.

Chancery said, "Look they like me so much that even after I set them free they just stay here with me!"

That probably had more to do with them being lethargic & hungry from being in the container for several days than liking her, but anything is possible!

Digby enjoyed cuddling up in blankets on the cool mornings. 

I love thrift shopping, & there are several good shops in town.  I scored these shoes for 50 cents!

Chancery achieved her dream of looking like a real cowgirl, & we picked up several pairs of cowboy boots, at reasonable prices, to fit as the kids' feet grow.

Chad's parents live near a river, so we walked down to it & the kids had great time playing with the rocks & building towers.

 Meanwhile, I got a free fish pedicure!  It was bit tickly, but the price was right!

 Digby also enjoyed the walks to the river, though he did not seem to enjoy the walks back home quite so much.  After cooling off, it's a long, hot walk back to the house.

It's hot enough that cactus grow along the trail!

Deer frequently visit the yard, & Digby gets very excited every time they show up.  At one point there were 2 Does, & 4 fawns under the trees!

We love Southern Alberta!

Beach Day!

One of the things we do as often as we can is go to the beach!  When we have company we take them to the beach with us!  Normally it's just the kids & I, & while the kids play in the water & build things in the sand I read a book.  Troy & Tara's family is not used to being so sedentary, so they did a bit of  beach exploring as well.

They found big & small starfish...

Asher became a merman...

 And the kids built a few sandcastles!

After our fun day at the beach we went to dinner at one of our local pubs.  The kids like it because they have etch-a-sketches to play with, & we like it because it has good food & a fun atmosphere.

When we got the bill we saw that we hadn't been charged for the kids' meals, so we brought it to the waitress' attention.  "Kids meals are free this month!" we were told!  If only we had known earlier, we would have come more often!

Capilano Bridge & Granville Island

When we have visitors, we finally visit the touristy places!

Our first stop was the Capilano Suspension Bridge & Cliffside Walk.

The kids were being part of the totem pole

We had a lot of fun walking all the cool walkways.

There were quite a few signs stating that if you dropped something off the walkway, you were not to attempt retrieving it yourself, but to alert staff.

We tried to figure out what they would determine as valuable enough to retrieve since we saw a shoe, a coat, & a sippy cup that apparently did not make the cut.  For example, if you dropped your wallet we assumed they would get that, but what if you dropped a single credit card?

The actual suspension bridge was packed with people moving like herds of cattle, so we did not get a photo.  You'll have to go see it yourself!

 Once across the bridge, there is a treetop walk, & inexplicably this 'room'.  Perhaps it is for those who do not like heights to wait while their friends do the treetop walk?  But if you do not like heights it is unlikely you would have crossed the suspension bridge in the first place...  So many questions, so few answers!

We were unafraid to do the treetop walk! 

Asher found a large tree, but it was unclimbable.

 Chancery found someone willing to give her a shoulder ride!

The next stop was Granville Island to get some lunch!

We walked through the market & everyone was happy with the choices for lunch.  It's not always easy to please 8 people's palates, but we did it!  We had some Chinese, Curry, Deli Sandwiches, Bagels, & Pizza!

We walked around for a while, then decided to go on a 30 minute harbour cruise.

 

We saw a lot of waterfront floating homes 

 And the cement factory is painted to look like people!

After our cruise, we had some gelato, then it was time to head back home for the day!