Nature + Beauty

I went outside this morning to water the grass (really, the lack of it...we are trying to get seed to grow) along with our new flower bed (which looks pretty lovely) and I was struck by how the kids behaved. There are some definite qualities we hope to instill in our children and one of them is a love to be outdoors and active. Phineas was so quick to help out with watering the garden and gets such a kick out of helping. Atticus and Milayla are typically right along side looking for tasks to help out but they had dashed off to the back yard. I figured there were running off to play in the tree house (we just finished building a tree house) but when they were super quiet in the back yard I went to investigate.

Turns out they were making bouquets. I first came upon Atticus, sitting in the tree house, tying together some long grass he found that had begun to seed. He was using one of the stalks to tie the other stalks together. His comment to me was, "Mommy, look! It was so pretty I wanted to make sure we had some inside as well.". Milayla was nearby gathering violets and dandelions.

The result was so visually stunning I couldn't resist taking a few pictures of their artistic collaboration. The ombre effect of the stalks that Atticus had to shorten off looks really pretty (he also subbed in some scotch tape when we came inside because he thought that might hold better).

And Milayla was so diligent in getting violets and dandelions to have some beautiful colour. They are so proud of the finished result and I think it is so beautifully wonderful and photographed really well.

We headed to the park in the afternoon (after dance class) and Atticus was pretty excited when they found a plethora of forget-me-nots (!) to add to our bouquet. So he and Milayla each tenderly brought home a little bouquet of forget-me-nots and have added them to our little bouquet. I sure love seeing their eyes light up about nature (and music + art!). It's a gift to see the beauty in the things and people around us. Truly.

Family Fun Day

This afternoon we headed to what was being labeled as a 'Family Fun Day' but what it really was was more of a 'come get a taster for the materials we have and purchase one of our pricey camps day'. The  organization puts together camps, after school activities, homeschool things etc based around STEM programs. The resources they use are cool (some of them we already have at home) but we weren't blown away by it. The kids, however, were excited enough about the soccer playing robots to make it worth the little trip over there. Phineas loved the straw & connectors. Milayla showed how she could make a 3D shape with the straws. And Atticus, knowing my love for tulips, was pretty excited about building a tulip for me out of lego before we headed off. I love their curious minds. I am in awe of seeing how each of our children have grown and developed so far. I am learning so much as their mom. With Mother's Day being tomorrow my thoughts are very reflective, perhaps I will have to write them down if I have the chance. In the mean time, here are a few curiosity photos. 

Visiting the Fire Hall

Once a year the fire halls in Montreal and area open up their doors for families to come and check them out. It was pretty cool to see. The kids were pretty excited to climb up into the fire trucks and see the rescue boat as well. The firefighters even got a call while we were there and off some of them went with the rescue boat (hope no one was hurt!). 

We were particularly happy to walk out the front door this morning and see that our tulips had begun to open. So beautiful! It's actually just a really beautiful day. It feels like summer is officially here and we are anxious for the water parks to turn on the water (which doesn't typically happen until June). 

And I just love getting to snuggle up these kids of mine and see their curiosity flourish. Atticus even asked the fire fighters a question which is a great step forward! I am in awe at how big Phineas is getting; he wanted to do everything on his own just like his big siblings were. And Milayla, with her crown braid that she loves so much, has so much courage to step up and try new things. Love them each so much. 

It was a fun little excursion this morning. 

Phineas and the garden sprayer

I think today finally saw the official welcome of spring. We no longer have evening temperatures below 0 (hopefully!) and today was 100% t-shirt weather at 20 degrees. Our tulips look like they are just about ready to burst and we've nearly completed a treehouse in the backyard. Milayla even decided today that she would give her larger bike a try (we bought both kids larger frames this year) and she went off without a hitch - when she decides she wants to do something she does it.

All this to say that after running around in the sun, finishing the treehouse, walking around the neighbourhood, and biking left us feeling like summer was even here. So I offered to the children that we could bring out the hose. This got them pretty excited as it officially feels like summer when we let them get sprayed with the hose or run through the sprinkler. This was a first for Phineas (as far as he remembers) and let's just say that he got pretty excited about it all. At least he got pretty excited about spraying everyone.

It took him a couple tries to figure out how to squeeze the handle, but once he got that figured out he was pretty excited to spray everyone and to experiment with the different settings. He had a huge smile on his face underneath those sunglasses of his that he seems to have permanently borrowed from Atticus. He would have kept going with spraying well into the evening if we hadn't turned off the water. Even then, he discovered the joys of drinking from the sprayer. It was pretty cute getting to watch him put the sprayer up to his face when the sprayer is about half the size of his face.

Love these kids so much and have a fun little outing in our neighbourhood planned for tomorrow that I'm pretty sure they are going to love. At least I hope so!

Beethoven Lives Upstairs (and the Museum of Fine Arts)

Today I got to take Atticus and Milayla to a play called Beethoven Lives Upstairs. A lady in a homeschool group that we are part of organized for us to be able to go together with a small group of us to the showing during the day for school groups. It was nice to go with some other homeschoolers, but especially nice to go with these two cuties. They are just absolutely awesome people. It was a surprise for them that we went and what exactly it was but they definitely enjoyed it. Milayla was a little frightened by some of the loud noises when it first started but in no more than 10 minutes they were laughing at the fun characters and they even learned some things about Beethoven. I really enjoyed that they both recognized the music. And Atticus make the remark that it's a good thing we listen to classical music! 

We had some time afterward (Jason had dropped us off and was running some errands with Phineas) and since we were just around the corner from the Fine Art Museum we headed on over. The kids were pretty excited that we got to pick not one, but two exhibits to go through. Love that place. Though, I think the kids were most excited about taking the stairs :). 

It was a fun morning/afternoon and I am so glad that we were able to make it all come together, that Jason was able to take a little time off work, and that the kids enjoyed their time so much. It was great. 

Baking bread with Phineas

I lucked out and found a really great 100% whole wheat bread recipe that cannot fail. At least, it cannot as long as you don't accidentally put too much salt in (which I have done..). Milayla won't eat store bought bread anymore because she says the homemade stuff is just too good. And the boys aren't too far behind her. 

So when I had to stay home from church with a sick little Phineas today I was happy to recruit my little helper to make bread. He LOVES helping in the kitchen and I think he was particularly in love with the fact that he was the only helper in there so he got to put in all the ingredients that we needed. And the big kids were pretty excited about fresh homemade bread in the afternoon after church. I'm happy to make bread to see the smiles of my happy helper and my happy eaters :). 

And if anyone is looking for a great bread recipe - this is it HERE. 

Just a little note

:::I found this little note in my drafts from some point during winter. I remember the hurting of my foot but cannot remember when during winter it was. Anyhow, I thought this was too cute not to post. I love those kiddos. So much.::::


I'm sitting on the couch. On a Saturday morning. Watching the children play in the snow out the window. My heart aches that I am not out there with them. Like, seriously aches.

I hurt my foot which frustrates me terribly. I shan't get into that, though.

What I will get in to is how much fun it is to even just watch those kids at work. Setting their imagination to work in the snow. Building ice rinks and pretending to skate around on them. I would usually be out there doing it all with them.

But for now, I need to sit back. Rest my foot (and hope it heals quickly!). And let Jason have a turn with those sweet kids. And I must say, seeing the lot of them traipse off towards the mailbox to see if Milayla's backpack had arrived was mighty sweet to watch. 

Can't wait to be out there playing in the snow with them. Though I will be equally excited when I get to scoop them up in my arms for so snuggles and book time when they are all done out there.