more smiles

this has seriously been the most amazing month!

there is some "gossip" about me. heehee

craft gossip. yup. go HERE.


it's been a long and busy couple of weeks. i am really looking forward to putting my feet up and watching a movie with the kids. or maybe even just sleeping while they watch the movie. either option sounds great. i have a hair appointment to look forward to. ahhhh pampering. one of these days i need to schedule a massage and then the hair appointment in the same evening. that would be bliss.


before i forget...i have decided that learning to take better photos is soooo worth it. again, i came across the most perfect photo moment and did not have my camera! murphy's law strikes again!! this morning there was a bit of hoar frost and light fog. clear skies. a completely visible full moon. even better were the colours with the sun just rising. i really hope i get another moment like that when i have my camera and the knowledge of how to do the photo justice to the real thing. a nice way to start the day don't you think?

so

last Sunday i had to get the kids away from the house. Kris had his brother helping him with the garage. and Aidan feels that he should be helping. then Kiara thinks that she should as well. it ends up being more work for all of us trying to keep them away!

it was the harvest fair at fort edmonton.

there were some new sights for the kids to enjoy.

this was the first one. and i have to add a very slow way to harvest a field...i guess the million dollar price tag on those combines is worth every penny.

then there was the treat. i love feeding my kids lunch at home and having them refusing to eat. but when you are a "safe" distance from home....they suddenly become hungry. i'm sure there is a psychology term somewhere for that phenomenon.

{oh and this was the healthiest snack i could find that was nearby}

they really love these tents.

so many people lived in these tents for two years while they waited for their home to be built...they bought haybales and piled them around the canvas as insulation. and then added some asbestos around the stove pipe to prevent their tent-home from burning down. that was a different world.

the train was busy, busy, busy. they had a couple of extra streetcars out. we tried out a new one. this was the most modern one. the kids were thrilled to get their own little seat. so was i. but the actress in front of them was quite unaware that she was now responsible for them....


although these special days are fun and new, there is a price. tired children. very tired mothers. and tired employees and volunteers. the kids do get a lot more attention and enjoyment on the quieter days we've gone. those days when i don't have the stamina to keep up with them, but some interested staff person thinks they are the most adorable children ever laid eyes on. it helps. we're all happier. i've also learned that the "short" trip to the park needs to have at least two hours set aside for the adventure. it always seems to take that long!


what a crazy, busy and interesting week we've had.

Kristian almost got a project at work that would have made him very busy. at the last minute it was cancelled. he was not disappointed.

we had friends over for most of the days this week. Kelley and Christopher are much loved friends of the kids. if they could chose a new family to join, then this would be the one. fortunately her kids feel that way about us too. phew! Kelley enjoys doing crafts with me. she's a very creative girl. Christopher looks forward to checking out the toys and seeing if we had new additions. and our kids adore whatever they suggest. it is very cute. the trade-off is more clean up and having to stay close to home. but the kids actually quite ignore me and want to do their own thing and talk each others' ears off. it's great. the last day they were here they decorated boxes into cars and had their own drive-in movie theatre. they actually sat in the "cars" for most of the movie.


i had a surprise call on Tuesday asking if we could watch Will (15 month boy) because it seemed pretty clear that his little brother Daniel was ready to be born. so four hours after they left Will at our house, he was born. and i got to hold him two days later....so tiny! 7 lbs. 1 oz. that newborn stage is so amazing.


i was so happy to get out twice this week. once to laugh about life in Vi's while we enjoyed chocolate caramel cake. {i'll just say in memory of a certain person who was missed!} then i got to hang out at my favourite scrapbook store. and then laugh with Timmy. love those times...never happen often enough, but so good when it does work!


i thought the week was getting pretty quiet. until today. i got another surprise phone call from Waverly School. they had a .5 (morning) teaching position for a temporary period - until the end of October. i have only ever been offered one other teaching position with the school board.

{a .475 (9:10 am to 11:15am) in February, right after we learned we'd have Aidan in October. i had to pass that one up and it hurt! it would have been great, except it would not have let me take on any long term assignments. which meant that i would have to sacrifice my benefits from EI.}

so i actually surprised myself when i listened to Joanne on the phone and allowed her to describe the situation. then i was shocked that my voice was saying that i would take it if i could arrange childcare. keep in mind that the official first day of school is on Tuesday. they only had a few hours to let me decide. in the past it has taken me weeks to arrange for child care. now it had to be done by lunch time....and i only had drunk one cup of coffee!!

i called Kris first and he was ecstatic. that was a good sign.

i went through my mental list of people that may know someone or be able to help. everyone that i called was not at home. or ignoring me! and you think i didn't know! lol!! i pulled out my cell phone - otherwise known as my other phone directory - and went down my list. almost the last person was Vicky. we go way back. taught together for seven years. and she now - after a series of moves - lives around the corner to the school i'd work at. and she was home. and she was interested!

in a matter of hours, which truly did feel like weeks, i managed to get a schedule with Vicky, their grandma and my friend Gloria {also known as their other mom!}.

by this time Joanne was getting more anxious. she's like me and was not comfortable that it was taking so long to fill this position. it was nice to call her with my decision and have her scream with joy. that is always a nice start to a job!

now normally i would be in a panic. i don't even know what classroom i'll be in! no idea of the students' names or their abilities. i do know who will be working with me and feel very assured that they have the room ready. and i have a sneaking suspicion that - although it stressed them out - they had fun doing it. Erna and Dymphna will be my heros. and i can't wait!

i already went out to look at clothes. but i think i'll have to sort that one out. i'll be working with lots of messy stuff. the last thing i want to do is get something brand new and stain it with blue paint in a month. that has happened before. it's one of those jobs where you want to look nice, but you don't want to wear anything too nice. kind of like what i wear around the house! maybe i need to sew an apron? or buy one!


and i have taken photos. they are being stored safely on my camera. waiting for a spare minute to download and then print.


just need to quiet the excitement and then get down to the tasks that still need to be done!


tomorrow is another busy day. but it will be fun. can't wait!