Inspiration

As I sit here in the library I think,"Ahhh." The quiet feels so good! As the parent of an extrovert that seems to thrive on talking, (As a matter of fact she says she "has to talk".) a bit of quietude does my soul good. At this moment she is honing her skills on the library computer and she seems to be learning quickly. I was a bit apprehensive the first time she wanted to start using it but I realized that in today's world computer skills are an absolute necessity. Our computer at home spends its time in the closet awaiting repair or replacement and I have to admit I really don't miss it. I can do most of the essentials, and the non-essentials, from my handy dandy iPhone. (I swear this is not an advertisement or an endorsement, just a statement of the facts.)
Yesterday, we said goodbye to my great aunt, a woman that I didn't know that well but one that I admired for her strength and independence. She lived alone for over twenty years after her husband passed away and drove up until last year at the ripe age of 97. There was a good turnout to pay tribute to her life as I'm sure that a woman of 98 years would have touched many lives. As unfortunate as a funeral is it always serves to make one more thankful in their own life.
It is hard to believe that my grandparents are the last survivors of their families and that they are the babies at 87 and 89. What I find even more amazing is that in this day of Hollywood style marriages and divorces, they have been married for 68 years. I think that should be an inspiration to us all.

Festivities

I feel like the holidays are really coming up fast. You can't fail to notice the holiday music and decorations in every store you set foot in. I do love the feeling of the holidays-that warm, fuzzy inside feeling-I just wish we could have some snow to go with that!
I remember reading somewhere that our odds of having a white Christmas here in Southwestern Ontario were only something like 25% or less. I wish I could find that article to verify but with the weather we've been having in the last ten years or so it doesn't surprise me. Green Christmases are kind of lame-unless you live in Florida.
Even Savanna's playhouse and garage have been decorated. If we add any more buildings we will soon have a Christmas village! I vote for an outhouse for the female members of the family! It would be especially handy for bonfire nights.
We got our Christmas tree on Sunday and now we just have to get a new tree stand so we can put it up. I get a little sad every year when we chop down a perfectly good tree but its a family tradition and you don't mess with those! Like last year, they have a fry stand set up as soon as you get into the bush. They must make a killing! I mean how many parents out there do you know whose kids don't like French fries?
So now it's on to buying the last of the presents, wrapping and then sitting back to relax and enjoy-if that's possible in the holiday season.

The Number Five

Today we worked on some math just for fun. I was pleased that Savanna has been remembering the number five. Normally, when counting she would skip right to six. In the past two days she has been successfully counting to ten without missing five. Now I just hope she remembers it!
Last night after supper, Wayne was asking her some basic math questions using some Halloween candy-yes, we do still have leftovers, chocolate is closely monitored in this house as she tends to get hyper after what seems like a single M&M. Off topic, I tend to think that whoever said sugar doesn't make kids hyper is off their rocker. Maybe it's the caffeine in the chocolate? Anyway, back on topic, he was quizzing her and asking simple questions like, "If you had one candy and I gave you another, how many would you have?" Surprisingly, she seemed to catch right on. It never fails to amaze me what kids actually know. It's just so fascinating to see their little brains at work.
So today, I wrote down the numbers from one to ten and had her practise writing them underneath. This now takes her less than a minute and she's getting pretty good at it. She still seems to have trouble with writing the number two but I know it'll come.
We did some reading today too-the books she wanted about octopuses. Yes, I wasn't sure if it was octopuses or octopi either until I got the books. We learned that they can taste with their suckers and that some species of octopuses are poisonous. Tonight's reading selection-How to Potty Train Your Monster.
Tomorrow, we plan to bake some banana muffins and maybe we will do some more holiday decorating-the snowman in the living room looks like he needs some companionship.

Thankful

Today I am feeling coincidently, very thankful. I know it is not our thanksgiving but I think everyone could benefit from finding just one thing, each day, to be thankful for.
Right now, I am thankful for:
A mild sunny day, a chance to squeeze in a load of laundry before the cold weather forces us to borrow a dryer.
The opportunity to be outside and enjoy said weather.
Savanna being able to spend some time with her Grandfather and just enjoy being a kid.
The impromptu drum solo with three generations happily banging away on junk found behind the shop.
A child's imagination, that can take what we see as junk and turn it into music.
A slow cooker that gives me an opportunity to take time to chat with a neighbour.
Baking muffins with my daughter and the wonderful smell of carrot, pineapple and cinnamon wafting through the house.
Relaxing on the couch with my next crochet project.

Crocheting...Finally!

With aching fingers I am happy to report that I have finally gotten the hang of the single stitch crochet.
Much thanks to everyone who has tried to help me out and to a good friend who spent the better part if an afternoon patiently guiding me through it. I really needed to see it demonstrated and YouTube just wasn't working for me.
I knew I needed help when my first solo attempt came out in a circle! Quick to save face I said,"Here Savanna, I made you a bracelet."
Wayne was teasing me today that it took me half an hour to make a "Barbie scarf" (a piece about four inches long by an inch high). He told me at that rate I would have to charge about $40 for it. I reassured him that I was not planning to sell anything any time soon. After another hour and a half I showed him my "Barbie comforter". Progress may be slow but I'm just thrilled to be making something that actually looks like what it's supposed to. Maybe in a week I will actually have the scarf I planned to make for Savanna.

An Early Start to the Holidays

Yesterday, we had our first family Christmas. Yes, I think it gets earlier every year.
It seemed strange having it on Remembrance Day and I couldn't help but wonder what the ceremonies would have been like back at CFB Petawawa. Something to see I'm sure. I'll admit that sometimes I miss living on an army base, it was pretty interesting.
I feel like I spent much of my weekend cooking. Saturday it was prepping Loaded Baked Potato soup for the slowcooker and baking Zucchini loaf, and Sunday it was scalloped potatoes to feed forty people. I must have sliced about seven pounds of potatoes! They are well worth the effort though. Totally not good for you, with cream cheese, sour cream and more cheese but I do throw in some peas-hey, it's a vegetable!
This week I think we will bake some Rhubarb muffins and make some salt dough ornaments for the Christmas tree that we will get-eek-next month-already?

Extra Time

I'm going to add my name to the list of people who hate daylight savings time. I mean come on-its 6:30 and its pitch black out-it really makes for a long evening! On the other hand I have been going to bed at 10 and getting up hours earlier than I used to so maybe it's not all bad.
This morning I was up by 8:51, yes I always remember exact times, not early by early bird standards but very early by mine. Since I felt rested I decided to venture out of the bedroom and see what the day looked like. Again, its amazing how long a day can seem with just two extra hours or so.
To fill some of the time I decided to first, check the U.S. election results (I'm much relieved to see that Obama was re-elected because frankly, Mitt Romney scares the heck out of me.), and second, take Savanna to story time to kill some of that extra time.
I'm still not very good with story time, my husbands aunt is a great story teller but the other kids drive me nuts!
To drown out some of the commotion I concentrated on starting my crochet chain, sadly, the only stitch I know-I really need to figure out how to get the second row started. I guess worse comes to worse I will have a collection of lovely bookmarks.
After returning home lunch was served (leftover egg salad sandwich, surprisingly not soggy, and leftover salad) after which we got busy working on the alphabet. I notice that for some reason Savanna tends to make some letters upside down or backwards but I'm really not worried about it at this point. I didn't push her too hard, just wrote it out and let her try to copy. She seemed to get stuck on K, N and V so we took a little time to try and work it out and moved on when she got frustrated. After all, I want her to want to do it. She then drew a very nice mouse family and I know I'm biased but I think she does quite well.
As our "science project" we planted a paper star that has flower seeds in it. We put it in a nice sunny location and hopefully it will grow into flowers. (It is a little old but I thought it was worth a try.)
Being as we only have a compact wash machine (no room for a dryer here so we hang them out) and it was a sunny day I thought I should throw in a load of laundry. I was happy to see that there wasn't as many dirty clothes as I thought. I have to say that for me there is something therapeutic about having a few minutes of peace and quiet while hanging up the laundry.
While I was there I noticed how nice the white branches of the birch trees looked against the clear blue sky and couldn't resist taking some pictures.

Happy Day!

It was an exciting day for us here! Installing the whiteboard in Savanna's "school" corner turns out to be one of the best things we've done. She really enjoys practicing her writing on it and its much more environmentally friendly than using reams of paper, although we do have a giant roll of craft paper to go through. I think the paper will be great for anatomy lessons, have her lay down and trace her outline and we can label the body parts.
Today I asked her if she wanted to do some writing and she quickly agreed so I wrote her name on the board. She immediately said ,"Savanna." I'm constantly surprised by the words that she is starting to recognize. I asked her if she would like to write her own name and with very little encouragement she came up with what I deem to be a very reasonable copy for a four year old. I had her leave it up so Wayne could see it when he got home and he was pretty impressed.
So that was my excitement for the day. You may not think its exciting but to me it is a huge accomplishment.
She wants to learn her alphabet tomorrow...

Soup's On!

I was excited to get the new Milk Calendar in the mail last week. Yes, I'm such a housewife but I love it! I'm always in search of new recipes and as much as I like cooking, sometimes I do run out of ideas.
So far I have tried two of the recipes, a chicken stir fry with super easy soy and honey sauce, and tonight's offering, parsnip and carrot soup. It is a really good fall soup, a little labour intensive but worth the effort. My husband being a meat-with-every-meal guy, I think I will sauté a little bacon to add to the soup next time. What doesn't go with bacon?

More Books-Hurray!

Today we had the luck of being at the library at the same time their book sale was occurring. To book fans like Savanna and I it was truly exciting!
I was even more excited when I went to pay and the total came to $3-I actually asked her to repeat it, I was so surprised. I bet the total price for all 5 books new was almost $100!
I'm sorry if I seem like I'm ranting but for a bargain hunter like me it was like hitting the jackpot, plus we got more material for the homeschool corner.
Savanna really wanted to have a "school" of her own so I took an unused corner of our living room and did a little makeover. How do we have an unused corner in an 800 square foot house you ask? Well it's called IKEA living or as I like say, living simply and not collecting a things you don't need or use.
To start, I took an old whiteboard I had as a child and had Savanna paint the frame as the art project of the day. Since I inherited my Dad's aversion to putting holes in the wall I used 3M Velcro fasteners to put it up and then Mac tacked a dollar store number chart above it. They were all out of the alphabet so maybe next time.
The project I had the most fun with was her bookshelf. I love going out to the barn and seeing what I can make with whatever I find. What I found was a wooden apple crate, a scrap of weathered plywood and some old chair legs. Put them together and I think it turned out great.
So far Savanna has collected a children's atlas, encyclopedia, a book about the human body, an A-Z book of animals, one about pets, a whole Reader's Digest series of question and answer books and some free materials from the government on flags and symbols of Canada. If I can't answer her questions with those books there's always Google! On top of all this she has been given loads of workbooks and an entire K-8 set of mathematics and phonics materials. I think we will be well equipped!

Learning Everyday

Well, we survived Frankenstorm. We lost power a few times but thankfully by 9:30 it was back on for the duration. Our only casualties were two scarecrow decorations I found laying in the yard soaked to the gills.
The weather was just too wild for me to venture out today so I had to break it to Savanna gently that we would be missing gymnastics. To cushion the blow I whipped out the Magic Tree kit I had purchased a month ago at the Dollarama. Unfortunately it didn't do too much before her bedtime but it looks like it will be in full bloom by tomorrow morning.
Savanna has been excited to work in her erasable work book she had given to her last week. It never fails to amaze me how much better she does when I don't try to teach her. That's right-it is far more frustrating to try and make her learn something as opposed to waiting until she wants to learn it. I'm beginning to see how unschooling really works. I fully believe that it needs to be relevant and of interest to the child otherwise you might as well be flogging a dead horse. Given the chance, children will happily learn but at their own pace.

The Garden Bed

Today we harvested the last of our produce from the garden. A few tomatoes, green peppers, cauliflower and one giant hornworm. We didn't know quite what to do with him so I put him on the compost pile and hopefully he will find some shelter from the weather.
After that the garden was officially put to bed with a load of sand and some extra top soil-manure to be added in the spring. I have to admit I looked away as the last of the tomato plants was disked under.
Darn these pregnancy hormones that make me cry at anything! I had a hard time keeping it together during the Lorax the other night.
Is anyone else getting tired of hearing about Frankenstorm? Okay, I guess I did spend most of the afternoon helping to put away potential projectiles but doesn't that just guarantee that it won't be as bad as originally forecasted? There goes that Murphy's law again. I suppose it was time to put the patio furniture away. It's sad to see the last vestiges of summer slowly disappear, flowers, vegetables and gatherings on the patio. I know what I'll do, I'll just look forward to Christmas.

Murphy's law

I'm afraid we may have had the last of our nice weather. Last fall and winter-if you could call it that-really spoiled us. Oh we'll, if we have to have winter I hope we at least have some snow to play in.
Today I was not encouraged to get up. From what I could see laying in my nice heated bed it was dark and dreary out. However, I did feel obligated to get up and attempt to help my Dad work on Savanna's garage. That's right, a garage for her vehicles! Just imagine what will happen when the baby comes along.
Savanna was eager to help so we bundled up and went out. Sure enough shortly after the metal cutting blade for the circular saw was located, the power went out. Murphy's law, get out your power tools, get all set up and the power will go out. I still don't know what the cause was but we ended up resorting to gasp-using tin snips. It's something like this that makes you realize just how dependent on gadgets to do our work that we have all become.

Here I am!

I'm back-again. I never actually left but I just wasn't feeling myself. Fall is never a great time for me. It is by far my least favourite season and every year when it comes calling I have to struggle to pick myself out of a funk. Let me tell you I've been down the road to depression, I recognize the signs, so I know when it's time to do something. My biggest wish is that all people would realize that it is not something anyone chooses-it just happens. I mean really, who would want to feel that way? Anyway, I am glad to report that I feel pretty darn good now.
After doing some research I found that there were a number of vitamins that could help me with my seasonal depression, D3 (the vitamin that is produced by exposure to sunlight), Omega 3 (essentially fish oil) and B12. This combination seems to have helped tremendously along with the power of positive thinking. So enough of that stuff, lets move on to some truly happy news!
So I have a big announcement to make and this was one of the reasons I was holding back on blogging. It is incredibly hard to keep it a secret for 13 weeks and not say anything incriminating! So for those of you who don't already know...
Wayne, Savanna and I are happy to announce that there will be a new little Harper come April!
We don't know if its a boy or a girl yet but, fingers crossed, will hopefully know by Christmas. (I never could wait to find out-I'm either way too practical or too anal retentive, I'm not sure which.) Savanna has already taken to telling everyone that her little sister is on the way so either she knows something we don't or she may be in for disappointment. I'm sure she'll get over it.
I also found out that one of my best friend is due on the same day so it will be interesting to see who goes first, and no, this is not a contest.:)

Oh The Places We Have Been!

So I thought it might be worth recapping some of the places we have seen on our adventure.
Obviously, we saw a lot of Petawawa and it's neighboring town Pembroke. My favorite things from these places? The bakery in Petawawa, I'm not even sure it had a name but it was delicious! The military museum on the base was well worth a look with lots of interesting artifacts. The parks and trails in Petawawa were amazing! They certainly have public spaces figured out and the library was a weekly trip for us.
In Pembroke, Brum's Dairy. Some of the best ice cream and dairy products I've tasted. I love buying local! The downtown was beautiful and they also had the biggest Giant Tiger store I'd ever seen. Hugli's Blueberry Ranch was also fun. It was almost the same as Park's Blueberries here except the blueberries were all organic as they don't do any spraying.
Another favorite was the Laurentian Dairy in Deep River. Great ice cream and the biggest hotdogs I've seen.
We spent some time on Muskrat Lake near Cobden visiting relatives. They had a beautiful park in town where you could camp overnight.
That's one thing I noticed that most towns had a municipal park that offered overnight sites. I think that's a great idea.
We toured around through lots of other small towns like Golden Lake, Killaloe and Barry's Bay and we were also lucky enough to be in the area when the Chalk River Medical Isotope facility had its first open house in 10 years. It was neat to see but never at any point, did you come close to actually seeing anything remotely nuclear.
I'm sure we'll have lots more adventures in the years to come but right now I'm happy to be settled again.

Home is Where My Heart Is

Well I'm going to admit it-I'm homesick. Despite the beautiful scenery I'm ready for some old familiarity. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I grew up in a very close family. I miss my support network, NASCAR Sundays, and sitting on the deck with my grandparents.
I'm sure everyone else is missing us too, okay, maybe more Savanna but still.
I feel like we've conquered a lot up here and we've had some big changes but we've missed a lot at home too, the not-back-to-school picnic, Lego club, splash pad days and now gymnastics is right around the corner.
I still feel like there's a few loose ends to be tied up, a trip to the Chinese buffet, a drive through Algonquin, and more photographs to take but I'm almost ready for home.

Busy, busy, busy!

What have we been up to?
Well, we have been super busy running back and forth lately and I'll be glad when it's all over and I feel like we can settle down again. A little change will do us good though.
It has been nice to actually spend a weekend at the site. I used to think that we had to be doing something every day of every weekend or we'd be wasting time. I will admit that right now, Savanna is watching Curious George for probably the third time but one day isn't going to kill her. Normally, we don't let her watch much television but sometimes when you need to get things done uninterrupted a good DVD isn't a bad thing. She's really been enjoying the Eyewitness series lately and I'm sure she'll love the books, just like I did, when she is able to read them.
She sure does love the library here! We've become regular patrons at Wednesdays story time and are anxious for the September session to start. The library also has a great kids space and their collection of DVD's really makes up for the 2 channels we get here.
Since the fire ban has finally been lifted we can now start making up for lost fireside time. Note to self, stock up on S'mores fixings.
We're looking forward to having visitors up on Thursday and maybe taking advantage of the hotel pool. If anyone else wants to take the drive I can assure you it's well worth it!

It Happened at the Library

I'm happy to say these last few days have been much better. I no longer feel like I'm at a loss as to how to entertain Savanna and I feel like we're both having a good time.
Today we made another trip to the library. I can't help it, I love the library, and around here it's a happening place. Does anyone say that anymore? Anyway, it's usually a great place to find other children and if you don't see many around all you have to do is look across the parking lot to Civitan Park. I love the fact that there are so many young families here. Everyone I've met has been so friendly and it's great to have some adult conversation.
I found it rather amusing today when Savanna decided to "infiltrate" a group of children from a library program who were playing when we got there.
She found an older boy at the Lego table and gave him her standard, "Do you want to play with me?" She has a way with people, this one. He was reluctant at first but soon they were involved in new creations, him, Super Mario characters and her, a princess tower. Shortly after, they announced that they were going to start their puppet show and as soon as the children were told to sit, well, she went and sat! There wasn't much I could do, so I stood back with the other mothers and pretended like she had been there all along. Soon enough, she was putting her hand up to perform. Unfortunately, they ran out of time but I'm sure she will be back to give a performance another day. That's my social butterfly!
As a side note, once again, forgive my lack of photos. It has been raining all day so the iPhone has been safely tucked away and I didn't really miss it.

Freedom!

These last two days have been amazing. Just being able to get out and about has made a huge difference in Savanna and I's previously sour attitudes. I have to admit that we were getting on each others nerves and I'm sure that had something to do with the cabin fever produced by three weeks of living in a trailer without a vehicle. It's also taken some of the stress off Daddy, AKA Wayne, who doesn't have to worry about going out in the evenings to grocery shop or taking us out all weekend to drive around.
We haven't strayed far these last two days but what we have done has been worth it's weight in gold for mommy daughter relations. We did simple things like go to the grocery store followed by a stop at the park, story time at the library and going for ice cream-my personal favorite! Ah, sweet freedom!
Today I also inadvertently forgot my phone, hence no pictures, but it was nice. I actually enjoyed not being attached to it and I think I will attempting to unplug more often.
Supper tonight featured some of our very own garden bounty, imported 700 kilometers to our trailer. Mmm sweet corn-there's nothing like it. I loved going home to see piles of produce waiting for us. Squash, very early, I might add, zucchini, loads and loads of giant zucchini, sweet corn, beans, potatoes and onions. I had many happy bonfire guests taking home produce by the bag load. There's nothing quite like the satisfaction of knowing that what you're eating is 100% organic goodness.

Back Again

So I haven't written much lately-neither has Shakespeare! Tired old jokes aside I feel like I have been way to busy and lacking in the creative spirit lately. Today, I hope to get back on track...
We made the long trip home this weekend. Leaving at 5pm we made it home just after 12:30am-Savanna was awake the whole way.
It was a nice visit and I thought the days were passing slowly, until it was Sunday night. By then it felt like time had flown and then came the hard part of saying goodbyes again. Oh how I hate the goodbyes! Luckily, it gets better by the time you are about two hours down the highway but it sure isn't fun. We probably won't be back until the fall and then it will likely be to stay.
It was nice to have a few minutes of peace and quiet even if it was just sitting on the Kubota in the shop. I have noticed that ever since we went up Savanna has been much less independent and any scrap of free time has gone out the window. I'm hoping that will change now that we will have an extra vehicle. I just hope we make it up in one piece with this car dolly. Anyway...
We have much sightseeing to do and a few visits-we hope-to look forward to so that will keep us busy. I can't wait to take Savanna to the Petawawa library for Dr.Seuss story time, and to the park and, heck, I just can't wait to drive.
There's also this years calendar to consider so picture taking is a must. I can't wait to see it in print!
Whew! Well back to the long drive-wish us good luck.

Natural Lessons

Nature has been providing us with many free science lessons.
We've observed deer and chipmunks, and toads and all kinds of new insects-although we'd rather forget the giant hairy spider.
No curriculum needed here-We're too busy counting rocks and writing letters in the sand. Exploring new trails and swimming in the lake. All those wonderful things that children need to make their mind and body grow!

The People You Meet

We had another wonderful encounter today.
As we were taking Boulder for a walk we just happened to be passing by the beach parking lot. Savanna, as usual had to greet a woman standing next to her car. She mentioned that her five year old was sleeping inside and that she would probably love to play with Savanna.
We raced against the darkening sky back to the trailer to change. When we returned to the beach Savanna eagerly spotted her and went to see if her daughter could play. While she was off with her new friend I chatted to the mother and grandmother. I learned that the mother was home for a visit from Whitehorse. This is certainly the place to meet world travelers, as army personnel tend to move quite frequently with their postings. (Last week we met a family who had spent three years in Russia.)
I found it very interesting to learn that they do not have thunderstorms in the Yukon. Unfortunately, our visit was cut short by the weather but I know Savanna was happy to have a playmate for a while.
I was pleased to hear them comment on how friendly and outgoing Savanna was. I wish for the life of me I could remember what it was that Savanna said that was so remarkable but I know I was taken aback that she would know that at her age. It must be all that Bill Nye The Science Guy!
I find it amusing that the Bill Nye DVD's are labeled for grades four and up. Savanna loves them and I'm sure that there are other kids younger than nine or ten that would too. If you look at the educational trends, much of the way things that are taught today are watered down compared to the way they used to be. Take for instance, the fact that Shakespeare used to be taught to elementary school students. If you look at some of the text books from the early part of the 20th century, you will find that the materials taught in the lower grade levels have been shifted to a significantly later grade.
If you would like to know more about this I highly recommend the works of John Taylor Gatto and John Holt. I'm currently reading John Holt's, 'How Children Fail'. I also love his, 'Teach Your Own' and 'Learning All The Time'.