The smell of freshly sharpened pencils

I picked up my French curriculum for school today. It was the last thing I needed for this year for school, so now we are ready! I am very excited to sit down this week with all my books and start scheduling (Did I just say I was excited about scheduling? Wow, it must be the heat!).
I have loved this time of year ever since I was a little girl. I never really loved school, but I sure loved shopping for it! I love how the stores are full of packages of pens, pencils and stacks of paper. I love the newness of pencils that aren't sharpened, markers that have never been used and a lunchbox that I've never left a moldy sandwich in.
Now that I homeschool, I think I love school supplies even more. When I bring them home now I have the satisfaction of knowing they are staying here! I don't even have to write my name on anything, because when the kids steal things, I can put them in time out! Oh how I wish I could revisit elementary school and put a few people in time out!
The anticipation of another year starting is really getting to me. This year Jack will start kindergarten and he is so excited to learn. Originally I had thought I would hold off on starting him until Elie was ready and start them both at the same time, but he is so eager to get going that I changed my plan.
I hope I can remember this enthusiasm in the dreary cold of February when the school supplies are chewed and ratty looking, and the kids are starting to whine about getting their work done. Maybe I should plan a trip to Staples for a midwinter supply pick up!

Communication in a House with Five Kids

Our house is wonderful. I fell in love with it the moment I laid eyes on it, almost 7 years ago. However, 7 years ago things were different. There were 3 of us who moved in here. Something has happened over the years. I can't explain it, but the house has shrank. Seriously, it's gotten a whole lot smaller.

I'm not complaining, not even a little bit. I still love my house and we fit perfectly as far as I'm concerned. The only problem that we do run into, from time to time, is trying to find a place to talk where no little ears are listening.
I have to say we have been very creative in finding ways to get our point across without the kids catching on. Over the years we've had to evolve our methods. In the beginning Spelling worked beautifully. Then I went and taught the kids to read and BAM they knew what we were saying. "ICE CREAM?!?! WE'RE GETTING ICE CREAM!?!?" I really should have thought this "education" thing through! 

Next, we moved on to French, this has served us well. It has also resulted in a lot of hilarity, as we try to come up with words to use when we can't think of the real French word for what we are trying to say. I fear this method will soon be obsolete as the little people are starting to pick up words here and there! I told Mark we could learn Latin together, but I want to teach them that at some point as well. Perhaps German is a safer choice! 

I really shouldn't worry though, I think we are starting to pick up on each other's thoughts. The evidence of this happening was overwhelming this week, when Emmitt decided to give us both a few extra grey hairs. 

We've gotten used to not having a baby around and had gotten lax about putting up gates. I left the baby playing with Mark and walked away. Assuming I had put up the baby gate he put Emmitt on the floor to play. I was doing Elianna's hair when I happened to glance towards the stairway, and noticed my wee little man happily bum scooching his way towards the top of the stairs! He was a mere half scooch away from toppling right down our hard wooden stairs and landing on the ceramic tiles at the bottom!

My mind froze! My mouth froze! My body froze! I screamed! All I could manage to get out of my mouth was  "MARK MARK MARK MARK!!!"
In the time it took me to screech out the last MARK at the top of my lungs, my knight in shining armour was at the top of the stairs with his arms around my sweet baby. 

After we both started breathing again, I apologized for incoherently screaming like a banshee at him. My Knight's answer? "That's ok, I knew what you meant, I got him!" 

Phewph - I guess when the kids learn French, I'll just start speaking banshee.  

The Gender Gap

Anyone who tells you there's no difference between boys and girls, has obviously never raised both. My girls aren't girly girls, at least not all the time. They can be very rough and tumble and enjoy a lot of things with Daddy, that I have to admit I really don't understand.

Jack isn't always the classic definition of "all boy" either. As evidenced by various blackmail photos I have taken, and am saving for when he's a teenager. He enjoys glitter, pink, and stands in line to have his nails painted right along with the girls (Much to Daddy's chagrin, it's my payback for the times I have to listen to my girls speak geek to me. "You know mom, when Luke was on the ice planet Hoth...").

But when it comes down to it, they are different. I love when I get glimpses into just how different their little brains really work.

We have been geocaching (if you don't know what I'm talking about, head over to www.groundspeak.com and check it out). It's a great family activity, and I'd like the kids to be able to remember as much as possible about it as they get older, so I've been keeping a journal of our time together. Each time we find a cache I interview the kids about it. I want them to be able to read about it later through their own eyes.

This has provided a great example of the differences between a little boy brain, and a little girl brain. Here is the interview from our find on Saturday.

"What do you want to tell me about the treasure?"

Elianna: "The treasure was the airplanes! There was a little box with a lid on it. It had stickers, marble and 2 things I don't know."

Libby: "It was hanging on a tree. It was so exciting to find it. I got it out of the tree! I got some stickers, train stickers. We thought it was a box in the tree, but it wasn't, it looked like a jam jar!"

Danya: "I love how it's like a treasure hunt, because if we change the GPS to a map it really looks like a treasure hunt. I really like that we brought our dog because of the clue about huskies."

Notice how the girls all use a lot of words, I'm not even sure I captured all that they said because they spoke so fast. I know I didn't get all that Elianna said, she wouldn't slow down for a second. The cache was hidden right by our airport in Lachute and she talked about the airplanes and what everything looked like before even getting to the "treasure" part!

Then I called in Jack. I asked him the same question I asked the girls. His response?

"It was in the tree, that's all I know"

That was literally all I could get out of him. He later told his grandparents that he got a toy soldier out of it, but he wouldn't elaborate at all for me. He's already the strong silent type!

oops

Posted to the wrong blog

What would I say on a Wednesday?

We'll never know because I forgot to finish my post! I am able to multitask, but apparently not well.

Summer cleaning

I kind of missed the Spring somehow this year. Maybe it was because the majority of my time since Christmas had been spent in someone else's house. I'm really not sure. Somehow it escaped me and I didn't get any real decluttering done.

I've actually decided I like Summer cleaning better anyway. It's hot outside right now. I have the air conditioners running and inside is nice and cool!

I've really started to get the "left behind" areas of my house put back together today and I can see the light at the end of the (very long) tunnel. I can't wait to have my craft area back. I'm itching to have a usable space and I have actually had a few inquiries for jewelry.

Dependency

I am acutely aware this week of how dependent I am on modern conveniences.

I miss the mail. Not only do I miss the mail but the postal strike has thrown us for a real loop! We were doing really well on our budget but we really depend on my cheques right now and we aren't getting them. I have no idea when they will be here and that's maddening. I'm really glad I don't rely on the pony express anymore! We are supposed to leave on a small vacation on Sunday and we budgeted funds for that out of the cheque we aren't getting till who knows when. BOO!

Our van is being ridiculous again. We took it in for an oil and tire change yesterday and it decided not to start again. It's amazing how much you take for granted that your car will just start. It really makes me realize how I don't even think about it, until it doesn't!

Our phone is also on the fritz and I'm waiting to find out why. Being unable to call long distance is very annoying! I forget all the time and go to call out only to get the crazy tone.

These are all things that I've grown accustomed to working smoothly and boy is it frustrating to have no control over them right now!

Chaos

It was our churches 125th Anniversary this weekend. Of course we celebrate everything with food. I tried. I really, really, tried. I made hot dog buns and brought our own hot dogs to the BBQ. I brought our own juice. I brought our own chips.

Potluck today. I brought potato salad, egg salad sandwiches and our own juice. I bought our own ice cream for dessert.

I really, really, really tried.

If I could show you a picture of my kitchen table at the moment you'd see pure chaos. Chaos that after 2 months of doing this food thing, I am fully convinced is caused by food.

Chaos caused by the handfulls of ketchup chips (surely that brilliant red is natural colouring) that Jack had yesterday before I realized he was eating them. Chaos caused by the 3 or 4 glasses of orange pop and cream soda that Libby had before I got there. Chaos caused by the cupcakes I gave in and let them have after the BBQ yesterday when I realized I forgot dessert and felt guilty.

So for the next 24 hours or so we will live with chaos. Chaos that convinces us that this program IS working, because we see the results of infractions. Chaos that makes me thankful that I found Feingold because chaos doesn't reign here anymore, it just visits.

By Your Side

by Tenth Avenue North

Why are you striving these days
Why are you trying to earn grace
Why are you crying
Let me lift up your face
Just don't turn away

Why are you looking for love
Why are you still searching as if I'm not enough
To where will you go child
Tell me where will you run
To where will you run

And I'll be by your side
Wherever you fall
In the dead of night
Whenever you call
And please don't fight
These hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

Look at these hands and my side
They swallowed the grave on that night
When I drank the world's sin
So I could carry you in
And give you lifeI want to give you life

Cause I, I love you
I want you to know
That I, I love you
I'll never let you go

Perhaps

Sporadic - occuring occasionally, singly, or in irregular or random instances.

That about sums it up!

Consistent - Unchanging in achievement or effect over a period of time.

Well it's a goal!

Putting a house back together is a lot of work. I haven't decided if it's better or worse than just moving. At least when I move it's a totally clean slate. Right now when I unpack a box, the things in it used to have a home. Sometimes that home has been moved, often it's now just gone. In a new house it's a bit of fun to find a new home for an object. In a house where it had a previous home, I am currently lacking the imagination to find it a new home.

The upside is that a lot of things that I once thought I might need, don't seem so important and have gone on to greener pastures (the local second hand store)

I had grand goals to be finished and completely re-organized by now, but life! It keeps happening! The kids keep wanting to eat, they need a bath, they actually like it when Mommy interacts with them a little during the day. And so, it's been a slow process. Much, much slower than I'd like.

14 minutes of fame

Well! I'm feeling a little chuffed today. Dan Pearce of Single Dad Laughing fame shared the story of Jack and the butterfly charm. I've always wondered when my 15 minutes of fame would arrive and it figures that it's Jack that made it happen! I'm really only counting this as 14 minutes as it's only internet fame, but it's fame non the less. http://http://www.danoah.com/2011/03/your-kid-traumatized.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheAdventuresOfDanAndNoah+%28Single+Dad+Laughing%29

Avocado chocolate pudding that your kids will actually eat

Disclaimer: Maybe your kids have more refined palates than my kids and will eat the regular avocado chocolate pudding recipe. In that case this post is not for you!


If you're looking to sneak a healthy food into something as tasty as chocolate pudding and you don't have food allergies, look no further!

First blend 3 large mashed avocados, 4tbsps of cocoa and 2tbsps of honey until well mixed. This will take a while if you don't have a vitamix. I wish I had a vitamix.

Let your kids taste it. If they say "OH YUM!!!" and not "I think I'm gonna PUKE!" then you're good to stop here! Lass #1 declared this was delicious, The lad was the less gracious child, he did later apologize in case he hurt my feelings. I forgave him, undid the duct tape and let him off the wall.

Step Two, the step you thought you wouldn't have to do because your children have eaten the avocado pudding before at a friends and loved it. Oh wait, no that was me. Sorry.

Measure a cup and a half of milk into a pot. Put it on the stove over low heat until tiny bubbles form around the edge. DO NOT USE LOW FAT MILK. 2% OR MORE PLEASE!

Don't let it boil or burn, though.

Meanwhile, stir together
3 tablespoons cornstarch,
4 tablespoons sugar,
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons of cocoa

Stir half a cup of cold milk into these dry ingredients, and mix well.
Stir this mixture into the scalded milk -- use a whisk if you've got one.

Keep stirring and raise the heat to medium. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly.

Remove from the heat and let it thicken up a little then mix the two "puddings" together.

There you go! I figure it's still a lot less sugar than other chocolate pudding recipes, and avocados are really good for you!

I blog, sure I do!

My 1 post a month is completely overwhelming! How will readers ever keep up? Oh... I don't think I have any :) This is probably a perfect pace!
To be fair, I have been through some pretty hefty upheaval in the past month or so. Two days after my first post here we found a leak in our basement. Not a very big deal, except that we found mold to go with the leak. The big lad and the middle lad having the lungs we do, meant that we hightailed it outta there!
Fast forward a month and a half. I've been living at my Mom's with the kids while the big lad lives with a church couple. Things are looking up though, perhaps we will be back in our house soon!
In the meantime, the change of routine and more "out and aboutness" has been fantastic for the kids and I. It has also made me see some behaviours in lass #1 and the middle lad that I'm not overly thrilled with. Is it ADHD/ADD? I don't know. I go through checklists and it sure sounds like it but we have no official diagnosis. That costs a lot and isn't something I think we'll pursue for now.
What we are going to try is the Feingold program. It doesn't look super easy but it is do-able and if it makes a difference I'm totally for it! I've ordered the package and it should be here soon. While we wait I might start a food diary and see if I can find trigger foods on my own.

Alright, let's do this. I've had this blog set up for a kajillion years now and I've never done anything with it. I should, I have a lot to say! I've started a few other blogs but they are all out there, dusty and sadly neglected taking up tiny corners of the web. I often start strong and then fizzle out like a seriously disappointing dollar store firecracker.
Having recently been inspired by a few amazing blogs I follow, I'm resolving to embark on this and stick with it!
I don't have anything specific to talk about (I'm the first one to admit I change the subject more than some people change their underwear) but if there's one thing I do well, it's talk!
Hang on, it's gonna be a wild ride! (ok, honestly? Probably not all that wild, but I've been stuck inside all week with a house full of sick kids, humour me)