Oh, Canada!

A tribute to Canada & a GREAT song!

I Can Add!

We were walking to the park & Asher found some orange berries on the ground near the woods. He picked up a few, but decided only one was worth saving. He carried it whilst we walked the trail & once we got to the other end he was thrilled to discover another tree with green berries on it!

Asher reached up & picked a few off of the tree & ended up with 2 of the green berries in one hand & one orange berry in his other.

Asher: "Mummy! I have one berry, and 2 MORE berries!"

Me: "That's right!"

Asher: "That means I have THREE berries, Mum!"

Me: "Very good!"

Asher: "See, because I have one.... two.... and one more makes THREE!"

Fruit Fly Trap

We've been having real trouble with fruit flies this summer & we've tried a couple different methods to get rid of them, but much to our chagrin, none have worked.

A friend of mine recently blogged about the same problem & mentioned she had a solution that killed like no tomorrow, so I thought it was time to give it a shot.

Put a little bit of apple cider vinegar in a small glass and add a few drops of liquid dish soap. Apparently the fruit flies are attracted to the scent & then die. I have yet to see a fly actually go in, but I have seen the results & I'm a believer!

In the last few days we have had over 50 fruit flies caught in the trap. (I told you we had a real problem!) So, many thanks to Tracy of Meengs Family Moments for putting an end to my infestation!

Fresh Fruit Pie

When I was shopping at the grocery store yesterday there were raspberries on sale, so I bought some to make this pie. It was delicious, with just the right amount of sweetness & tartness. Asher claims, "it's DELICIOUS!!" Here's the recipe!

Bake pie crust as directed & let cool

Add 3-4 Cups berries

Mix 1 Cup Sugar, 2T Cornstarch, 4T jello (flavour of fruit used)

Add 1 Cup Water

Boil for 2 minutes

Pour over fruit

Take Picture

Store in fridge

Daddy's On Holidays!

PChad is taking a few weeks holidays & we started out yesterday by having breakfast at the PEI Preserve Company.

Between the car park & the restaurant, we found this handsome bagpiper.

Before we made it into the restaurant, Asher had to be king of the castle.

The waitress had just brought our drinks & as I was pouring Chancery's into her sippy cup I heard a big, "sluuuurp, Ahh"

Asher had finished off his apple juice. He ended up having 3 refills. I was surprised the waitress didn't just bring him a bigger glass!

After we had stuffed ourselves, we decided to walk through their gardens & work off some of the sugar we'd just consumed. It was drizzling a little bit, but we were not to be deterred. I told Asher to run up to the man in the garden so I could get a picture.

From afar, we heard him say: "You're getting wet, hey, Man?" That's my little Canadian!


They had some pretty neat artsy stuff to look at (I'm not one to just admire the flowers)

Chancery took a minute to admire the flowerbeds....

...but she was more interested in the bark than the flowers themselves (the apple doesn't fall to far from the tree)

On out way back to the car Asher stopped & asked me: "Can you get another picture of me as a bagpiper man?" And though Daddy wasn't around to help, I obliged.

Learning to Ride a Bicycle

Asher got some money from his grandparents for his birthday & I was looking for just the right thing to buy with it. I was in the mall with PChad's sister & brother-in-law when I saw the sporting goods store had bikes on sale. I figured that Asher was at the age where he's a bit big for a tricycle, but he could learn to ride a bike. So I made the purchase & wrangled Troy into carrying it out to the truck while Tara dealt with the kids & I tottered after them on my crutches.

Asher has never ridden on a tricycle or a bike, so it's a totally new thing for him to try to master. A few weeks ago, PChad took Asher across the street to learn to ride. There's a very slight hill there, so he set Asher up to go down the hill, so it would be easier for him to learn to both pedal & steer at the same time.



After awhile I joined them with Chancery, but Chancery just wanted to get out of the stroller, so I came back home so as not to distract the boy whilst he was learning. About 20 minutes later, Asher & PChad came in the house & Asher declared:

"I tried to ride my bike, but it's no use. I can't do it."

I told him that it takes practice & that eventually he'd learn, but he was distracted & didn't want to listen to my little pep-talk. Later when I got the pictures off the camera, this is what I found:

Sunday Pictures: week 53

Asher - 3 years
Chancery - 1 year
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Ok, kids, time for pictures! Look at Mummy!

Chancery, can you look at Mummy please?

Ok, good, Chancery! Asher! Asher?

Chancery: "Don't freak out, Mum! We're looking!"

Is it too much to ask for a smile as well?

Asher: "How's this, Mum?"

Oh Grow Up!

We were planning on going somewhere the other day, & Asher told us that he was going to drive. We told him that he couldn't drive yet, but when he grew up a bit he could. He replied:

"I'm not growing!"

PChad: "Yes you are growing a little more everyday."

Asher: "No! I am not a vegetable!"

Anne Of Green Gables -review

Since I live on Prince Edward Island, the home of Anne of Green Gables, I figured it was time I read the book. It's been awhile since I saw the movie, but I remembered the main parts of the storyline quite well.

I found that the movie & the book were pretty accurate to each other, which was nice. Of course there's a bit more detail in the book, which in some instances, I liked, & in others.... not so much.

I found some of Anne's monologues to be exhaustively long & seemingly without purpose. I was too worried that I might miss something vital to skip over them though. Other than that the story was quite interesting, & since at the end of the book Anne is maturing & speaking up less, I think I might enjoy the next book a bit more.

One thing I really noticed in the last weeks whilst reading this book, is that Anne has real ups & downs of emotion. She can go very quickly from the highest of heights, to the depths of despair. I saw that mirrored in Asher. He can be playing nicely outside, but when I tell him to come in for lunch.... BAM! Tears & protestations! I know that three-year-olds' emotions & reasoning skills are not fully developed. I can see that in Anne's case, being passed around from one home to the next, those would not have the chance to mature. But after a few years with the love of a family, she has finally had the chance to love & be loved.

Hugs & Kisses

Each night as I put Asher to bed I ask him if he wants hugs & kisses. Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't. The other night this was his answer:

"I don't want kisses. Kisses are wet & I don't want wet on me. I do want hugs though because hugs are not kisses & they are not wet."

More Great Dancing

If you haven't seen this one, it's a must!

Chancery Tells All

Asher was walking through the woods with PChad & Chancery when he found a new treasure. "What was it?" you ask? We'll let Chancery explain it.



And just like that, she learned a new word...... Now to try to get her to say "Mum"!

Sunday Pictures: week 52

Asher - 3 years
Chancery - 1 year
*********************

Chancery: "I will not smile as long as Asher is detaining me!"

Asher: "Do you think she will notice if I just hold her arm?"

Chancery: "If this is how you are going to act, I will just leave!"

Asher: "Fine, I suppose you can sit on your own!"

*************************************

Last weeks pictures are stuck on the other camera, but will be posted as soon as I get it back. Hopefully soon, I really miss my other camera!

Chancery Turns ONE!

Yesterday was Chancery's birthday. We don't tend to do much for birthdays around here, especially when they're so young & don't really get it anyways.

Since I have new-found freedom, I took the kids to Walmart the other day & we picked out a doll for Chancery. I figured she should have something girly to play with, since she seems to have the car & truck sounds figured out. She picks up a car & shows it to us & says, "Neeeeee nee."

Asher presenting Chancery with her new doll....

.......and pointing out it's eyes.

Chancery decided it was naptime for baby.

The other exciting birthday surprise, was a trip to the doctor! She was very excited about this, I could just tell! It was just a check-up, so she just got weighed & measured. She is growing like a Dutch girl, tall & skinny. She was 30" tall (75%) & 18 pounds (10%). Since she stayed on the same percentile trend for weight as she had been on, the doctor wasn't worried about it at all. He just said she'll probably be a string-bean. It's pretty interesting to put her next to other kids her age, b/c she just looks so tiny!

I did hear her very distinctly say that she wanted to go out for Chinese food for dinner & since she doesn't ask for much, I figured it was our parental duty to oblige, since it was her birthday after all. We had a very enjoyable day celebrating Chancery's birthday. It's always nice to have an excuse to go out to dinner!


I also decided it was time to start getting Chancery used to having her hair done, so I tried a few things yesterday. I settled on a ponytail, much to PChad's chagrin. But had it not been for the ponytail, we would have not overheard this conversation from the table next to us at dinner:

Lady: "Look at it, it goes straight up from the top of her head!"

Man: "Mmm."

Lady: "Just look at her shoveling it in! I've never seen a child her age eat Chinese food so well!"

Man: "Mmm."

Lady: "Her mum can't cut it up fast enough! She's DEVOURING it!"

Man: "Mmm-hmm. I think I'll go back up for seconds."

Chancery did really enjoy her Chinese cuisine. She hardly had room for the fortune cookie. We stopped at the park on the way home & let the kids play for awhile. Chancery was all shrieks & giggles on the swing. I think she had a pretty good birthday, even if there was no cake.

Learing To Walk

Yesterday I had an appointment to see the Doctor about my foot. After a few x-rays & a look at my foot, he gave me clearance to take off the cast-boot & walk on it. He told me I'm allowed to walk on it, but I'm not allowed to do any athletic activities. Not that there is any real danger of that in the near future.

I found that I am very accustomed to walking on my heel, since that was all I was allowed to do in the last 6 weeks. As I left his office I caught myself on my heel & had to really think about putting the rest of my foot down.

I had thought ahead enough to bring my other shoe, which I was happy about. However, I had neglected to bring a sock. Thankfully I was wearing rather long jeans, so no one could really tell that I was wearing one sock & not the other.

So now I have to get my muscles used to doing all the things they are supposed to do when you walk, like stretching! I think at this point, Chancery is walking faster than I am!

Hold Real Still

Asher & I were playing on the deck during Chancery's nap.

All of a sudden he told me, "Mummy, don't move. You have to hold really still."

He walked around to the side of my chair, & SMACKED the side of my face!

Then he says, "Sorry, Mum, I didn't get the bee. It flew away instead."

Pearly Whites

We made a new discovery last week. Chancery has gotten her first tooth. One week before her first birthday. They say that the later your teeth come in, the stronger they are. Well, she ought to have some pretty strong teeth then!

She hasn't been excessively fussy or droolly, so that has been nice. I'd put a picture up, but unfortunately I dropped my camera a few days ago & it refuses to work at all.

Look At What I Can Do!

Chancery has been tottering around for a few weeks now, but in the last few days she has gotten a lot more confident (& a lot faster!)

From 2009 08 Movies

Something Borrowed, Something Blue -review

Awhile ago, after I had read Twilight, I discovered there is a manuscript (which Stephenie Meyer has now decided to finish) of the same story from Edward's point of view. One of the things I really enjoyed about Twilight, was that the story is told strictly from the main character's point of view & that we only know what she knows.

One of the next books I read was Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin. Rachel is just entering her 30s. She has a job which she isn't particularly fond of, but it pays the bills. She has a best friend (Darcy) that she met when they were 5 & lived on the same street. But she still hasn't found the right guy.

Rachel met Dexter while they were both at law school. She didn't think she was good enough for him, so she introduced him to her friend Darcy. Now Dexter & Darcy are engaged, but Rachel feels an attraction to Dexter.

As is common with books in the Chick-Lit genre, the reader starts to sympathize with the single girl who's just trying to find love & we start to find fault with the relationship that Dex is in, trying to find an "out" for him.



Something Blue is the second book in this series & I was delighted to discover that the first part of the book covers some of the same ground as the end of Something Borrowed, but from Darcy's point of view. Suddenly Darcy isn't such a cow! We can start to understand her way of thinking a little bit!

What I found particularly interesting about these books is how similar things happen in our lives. We hear one side of the story & start making judgments about people/situations. It can colour our whole perception. But once we hear the other side of the story, it takes on a whole new meaning. Sometimes it's unintentional that we start thinking badly of someone because the person relating the story doesn't fully understand the other person's rationale for acting the way they have.

All in all, I really enjoyed both of theses books and would recommend them for more mature readers as there are some sex scenes, though they aren't particularly graphic

Playing In The Park

After supper one night we went to a park for awhile with the kids. They really enjoyed the chance to run around & play on the toys. And I do mean they ALL enjoyed it.... the big kids too.

Having a "picnic"

Racing to the next activity

Trying to balance the teeter-totter

Trying to picture Asher's future as a fisherman

Rocky

Amazing the guy had the guts to do this!




And I saw this & just HAD to share it as well:



Go to failblog.org to see more

Hopewell Rocks

Last week we took a trip "over & across" (as the locals say) off the island to New Brunswick & Nova Scotia with PChad's sister & family. We went to Hopewell Rocks one morning & "walked on the ocean floor!" To get from the visitor centre to the beach, there's about a 15 minute walk, but the ticket agent kindly gave us all tram tickets since I was a bit handicapped in the walking department.

There are 99 steps from the top down to the ocean floor. This is a view from the top.

We walked around a bit.............

Some faster than others.........

The kids really enjoyed exploring all the tide pools & dodging the waves

I had no problem dodging the waves.

From where I was seated, most tourists had to pass by me, & I heard quite a few interesting conversations. One clearly American couple discussed quite loudly how this area wasn't so great & they didn't think they would get their money's worth out of their park fee since it's "not much different from the Oregon coast." I conceed that the beach might have a similar feel when the tide is out, but it's missing the large rock formations & the tides that can only be found at Hopewell Rocks.

I finally got tired of waiting for everyone to come back, so I left my not-so-comfortable rock, & I headed back up the stairs. I was greeted my many people, who all felt the need to comment on how difficult it must be to go back up those 99 stairs, but not one person offered to help.

Once I finally made it up to the top & had found a bench to lie across, the park personnel informed me that had I gone a little bit further down the path, I would have found a place to access the ocean floor with a mere 22 steps. While I did find that information interesting, I think it might have come in handy before I went down, & certainly more helpful had I been told before I started my ascent.

One benefit I have found is that at the end of this ordeal, it's quite possible that I will be the proud owner of some sweet rippling biceps!

Baby In A Basket

When you can't choose just ONE toy to play with, it's just easier to hop in yourself.