Halloween 2017

Our church had its annual neighbourhood fun night with games, candy & prizes.

Chad was running one of the games, & the dress code was COSTUME!

So, Bowser gathered his minion, & off they went!

Then the kids got dressed & off we went for a bit of trick-or-treating around the cul-de-sac,

& then the fun night at church!

It was a pretty successful haul for the Ninja & Masquerade guest!

Some people gave them each 3 handfuls of candy!

We had way too much candy, so I told the kids they could keep all their chips & prizes they had gotten, then choose 25 pieces of candy.  After that, they switched places & chose 5 from the other person's pile.  The rest went to trick-or-treaters who came to our house, or to Chad's & my stash!  We're set for the next year!

I figured I couldn't be the only family member at the church party without a

costume, so I dressed up too!

Any guesses as to who I am?

Summer TV Drought

Summer is both a good time & bad time for TV shows for me.  It's good because there are less shows I like during the summer, so I can get caught up on the shows I have fallen behind on, but it's also bad because sometimes in the evenings I feel like there is nothing good to watch at all!  After I go on holidays I always have a look through my SideReel tracker & decide what shows I don't think are worth trying to get caught up on, & I pare down what I watch.  When it seems like there's just nothing good to watch, I'll start a shows that didn't really interest me initially, but I have heard a lot about, which is how I came to watch 13 Reasons Why.

What I had heard about it before watching was that it was dark, & it was about a girl who committed suicide.  That's all I knew.  Now, after watching all of season 1, I have to say it's a really well written show that is a pretty accurate portrayal of high school.  Not every high school has all the same dynamics, but there are a lot of things going on in the students' lives that they just don't feel they can talk about with any of the adults in their lives, or even some of their peers.  Some of the issues they face could have been avoided had they just told an adult, or talked to their friends about them, but instead they all felt like they were alone, & because of that, they had to face many of their problems alone.  Also, you see the kids refusing to acknowledge things they may have done, & repeatedly make the situation worse by trying to cover it up, or bully others into denying it as well.

Would I recommend it?  Yes.  Now there is swearing, & there are adult themes, & the last episode is a bit graphic, but I'd still recommend it.  It's not fluffy, mindless TV.  Watch it more like a documentary.
Now, for who I'd recommend it to:

-If you know your children have watched this show, you should also watch it.
-Watch it if you work with kids.
-If you have kids who are heading off to University or College, watch this show with them.  Even if they seem well adjusted, a lot of things go on at college/university that they have not encountered before, & them knowing you are aware of what is going on with their peers can open up some amazing dialog.

Don't pretend it's not happening.  It's way more prevalent than you can imagine.  Watch it, & talk about it with your kids.

Samples!

Friday I had a few errands to run, & it happened that I was at Costco over lunchtime.  I was pretty hungry, so I was looking forward to having some samples to tide me over until I got home!  I roamed the store filling my cart with the few items I needed, & about halfway through my trek, I got my first (& sadly, also my last) sample.

Needless to say, I was still hungry!

School's in Session!

School has started back up & the kids were raring to go!  They were on their bikes riding around the cul-de-sac 20 minutes before they needed to leave.

Asher is going into grade 6 this year,

& Chancery moves into the middle school building for Grade 4!

Just a Trim

Chancery was in dire need of a haircut.  Her split ends had split ends, & now that school is out we had time to go to the salon.  She was called back to sit in the chair, & started to explain to the hairdresser what she'd like done.  Chancery turned to me & said, "I got this, Mom, you just go & sit down."

So off I went to sit & read my book while she chatted away with the hairdresser, & communicated how she wanted her haircut.  Perhaps some layers?  Just a little off the bottom?

Nope, she decided to donate 10 inches of her hair, & is thrilled with the results!  It's much cooler for summer, but there won't be anymore braids for awhile!

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.

Asher Turns 11!

Asher' birthday this year was also the last day of school, so his whole class celebrated with pizza, donuts, & going bowling!  You might think that was enough, but Asher was not satisfied that that was enough of a celebration!

After school we let Asher open his presents!

 A card from Grandma & Grandpa!

A new video game (which we have all been enjoying!)

A new book by David Walliams!  The kids love these books, & Asher actually is happy about the gift, he just insisted on not smiling...

Then we headed to Montana's for dinner since Asher wanted to go somewhere that would make a big deal out of his birthday.  Seeing as they put a giant hat with moose antlers on your head while they sing to you, Montana's fit the bill!

Looking forward to a year of 11!

A few days later we had a birthday party at the splash park with some friends from church & school, but we had such a good time we didn't take any photos.  We'll just have to remember the good times instead!

News: Edition 2

The second edition of the Coffeetime News is all about summer excitement!

Fancy Clothes

Last week the kids' school had a big concert for Canada's 150th celebration.  The dress code for the event was "white & red".  Most kids at the concert wore jeans & a red or white shirt with "Canada" on it.  Chancery loves to get dressed up, & she first attempted to wear her fanciest dress, but it's more of a silver colour, so I said no; then she tried to wear another fancy dress, but it's hot pink, so I also vetoed that option & told her to wear jeans & a red or white t-shirt.

Not long afterward I was handed this paper...

Chancery was wearing a white shirt & a black puffy skirt.  I decided that was ok since it was still following the dress code.  I have a feeling this is just the beginning though!

News: Edition 1

Last Saturday saw the first edition of

The Coffeetime Saturday News

Asher is quite proud of his publication, & I hope they keep coming!

Hotel-like Service

Asher's school requires him to do some service hours each term, & he was a bit short, so this weekend he decided to help Chancery out by re-organizing her bookshelf.  It was a disaster to start with, so I figured it would take about an hour for him to get it under control.

What I didn't anticipate was that once he finished the big bookcase, he'd then move on to the small shelves, the nightstand, & even under the bed!  It took him 2 hours to get it looking like this, hopefully it stays clean for a while!

Asher told me, "I just made it look like how I'd want it if it was my room."

And when Chancery got into bed, her comment was, "I feel like I'm at a hotel!"

Ice cream truck

Sometimes a promise isn't enough. Sometimes you need to document that your kids said it...

Delicious, Delicious Popcorn

I am coming out of rain-induced hibernation to share my friend Tara's delicious popcorn recipe.  It might have a special name, but I don't know it.  I call it Tara's Popcorn. It's delicious.  I think I said that already...

The kids started helping me make it, but they scampered off in the middle of the process, & I really could have used the extra hands since I discovered the bowl I was trying to mix it in was too small, so mine isn't perfect, but for a first attempt I think I did a pretty good job, & it still tastes awesome.


Basically cook as much popcorn as you want and pick out the unpopped kernels.
(I made about 2/3 cup kernels)

Then on the stove take 1/2 cup butter to 1 cup brown sugar and put it in a pot and babysit it the whole time on med stirring it the whole time. you can dip a spoon in and touch it to the counter and let it cool, should be brittle and break not chewy. oh before you start that concoction though you should have about 1 cup semi sweet chocochips, a big pinch or two of salt, about 3/4 cup ruff chopped almonds and 1.5 cups mini marshmallows.
(I didn't add the almonds, I don't really like nuts in my sweets)

Basically when the caramel is ready you have to pour it on the popcorn, then almonds, then salt evenly, then marshmallows and finally the cocoa chips, without over mixing and making it look like poo.
(Since I was slow adding my marshmallows & choc chips, they didn't melt in nicely with the popcorn, so I stuck the whole bowl in the microwave for about 10 seconds, waited about a minute, then gave it a stir.)

Jump For Joy!

For the past year, Asher & Chancery had been begging for a trampoline.  Chad & I decided that they could pool their allowance & Birthday money & buy one together.  We researched online prices & found the best option was to buy from the States & have it shipped to my parents.  After a few months, the kids had saved enough money, & we ordered the trampoline in October.  We decided it didn't make sense to put it together just before winter, so we held off, & we were glad we had when we got snow in December.

In February, once it had all melted we decided it was time to assemble!

About an hour later & the kids were bouncing all around!

Now, a week later we have another foot of snow, so it's a bit too wet & chilly for bouncing, but as soon as the weather warms up the kids'll be back at it!

I'm Spicy!

A few days ago Chad was scheduled to go to a meeting over dinnertime, so in his absence, the kids & I were going to enjoy some ramen noodles (Which aren't Chad's favourite).  We had some guests give us a large box of Korean noodles, so we had decided to have them instead of our regular kind.

Chad's meeting got cancelled, & he was not really looking forward to a dinner of ramen noodles, but that's what was on the menu.  We sat down for dinner, prayed, & took a bite, to discover that our lips were burning!  The ramen was super SPICY!

Now, Chad loves spicy food, but he rarely gets it at home because the rest of us are all babies, & don't like things very spicy.  Chad was thrilled to get to get an entire pot all to himself!

But the kids weren't impressed at all...

instead we had sandwiches.