It's just a bad day, not a bad life

Most days are great.  The girls play nicely together, and go their separate ways at times. I get a bit of work done before they both wake up, and a bit more in the afternoon when they scatter after lunch.  

Friday was not one of those great day.  

Friday started off bad and just went downhill. An early morning was followed by tantrums, arguments, crying, screaming (squeal - like screaming actually, and lots of it), a demand or disturbance every few minutes, and just general grumpiness. I don't know if the messed up energy was due to the trifecta of the vernal equinox, solar eclipse and the supermoon, or if we all just had a rough night sleep, but at least it's over! 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/spring-is-in-the-air-and-so-is-a-supermoon-and-solar-eclipse-1.2990315 

The girls were watching tv in our room just before supper and I went up to talk to them because they were arguing and jumping off the bed again .  I laid down with them for a few minutes and Chloe asked for a foot rub, so we exchanged foot and hand massages.  Then Kaiana and I had a conversation that switched the mood for the remainder of the day.

Kaiana - Is it ok if I lay down and take a nap?
Me - Yes, for sure. 
Kaiana - It was a long day.
Me - Yes, yes it was.
Kaiana - I'm sorry for yelling. 
Me - I'm sorry for yelling too.
Kaiana - Friends?
Me -Yes, friends! 

Proceeded by awesome toddler hugs and kisses!

After supper I went out for some alone time and browsed the book store. It's ok to have a bad day, and they will happen.  But admit the challenges, take time to regroup and try again the next day.  The will be more good days than bad. So far today has been way better than yesterday. We did a short yoga routine after breakfast then we sat and did some deep breathing while Kaiana counted to 20. 

Yoga 101, The Aromatherapy Bible and Raising Your Spirited Child 

 
What do you do to regroup from a bad day?

Happy Valentine's Day!

You may go all out on Valentine's Day with expensive gifts, dinner at a fancy restaurant, you may do a homemade version (that's more our speed), or you may say bah humbug and don't acknowledge the Hallmark holiday. Whatever you choose, try to spend some extra time with loved ones and let them know you care.  Our lives can get pretty hectic sometimes and although you may say I love you everyday, take a day to spend some quality time with the ones that make your heart go Pitter Patter! 

I've had a great time with the girls so far today as my husband is at work.  They had a mailbox waiting with valentines from Mom and Dad, a gift bag for each with a few treats, a Dr. Seuss book and Water Magic Coloring Books that they spend hours with (use water and a paint brush to cover a page and see the bright colors appear, a great dollar store find).  

They got mail! For $5 from the Superstore, it's going to get lots of use!

Using the Magic Water books while I make breakfast

It's always fun to make heart shaped foods, so they had heart shaped cranberry juice ice cubes to go in their water bottles this morning, heart shaped pizza for lunch and some heart and flower shaped homemade chocolates for a treat tonight. The chocolates were recommended to me by Kathy at Challenge Yourself Healthy (https://www.facebook.com/challengeyourselfhealth) and the recipe for them is from the Lean Green Mommy (http://leangreenmommy.com/2013/04/01/healthy-fudge/).  

Tomato tortillas and a hear shaped cookie cutter, sauce, pepperoni and cheese

Homemade chocolates in Ikea ice cube trays.  See link above for recipe

Chloe helped make a homemade card for Dad and after they kiddos are in bed tonight, we'll have a scrumptious homemade steak dinner and watch a movie together (I'll try not to fall asleep!). 

Used a felt kit she got for her birthday, and drew a picture of a house with a mailbox

How are you spending Valentine's Day? 

Winter Adventures - Part 2

December was jammed packed with activities! Road trips, concerts, birthdays and Christmas parties, seasonal crafts and decorating, and then Christmas! Christmas with a 5 and 2 year old can be pretty intense but overall it was a fun, memorable time. 

We started off the month with a road trip to Saskatoon to see the live stage show Mickey Mouse Music Festival.  We made a couple stops along the way to see some sights, hit up the pool at the hotel and the morning of the show we visited the University of Saskatchewan to see some replica dinosaur bones! The girls had a blast at the show, dancing and singing along. 

Largest pysanka in the world, Vegreville, Alberta

Historic Delta Bessborough in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

Museum of Natural History, a free self guided exhibit in the Geology / Biology Departments of the University of Saskatchewan 

Then came another highlight - going to see the Nutcracker! We had registered for tickets through our homeschool board, with the cost coming out of funding (bonus!).  I have never seen a live performance of the Nutcracker and Chloe was so excited to be dressing up and going to a ballet! Since the theatre was on the other side of the city, we took the LRT (Light Rail Transit for folks not in Edmonton, think above ground / below ground subway).  On the way there a young lady boarded the LRT and commented on how lovely my daughter looked and asked where we were off to.  Chloe excitedly exclaimed we were going to the Nutcracker! As it turned out, when she was younger, the young lady played one of the party girls, so her and Chloe talked dance till she got off at her stop.  As she was leaving a young gentleman was also departing but took a moment to talk to us.  He said he had overheard the conversation and just wanted to say what a bright, well mannered little girl I had.  Proud mommy moment right there!  

Riding the LRT to see the Nutcracker

When we arrived, we got some snacks, explored the theatre and then found our seats.  Chloe usually talks a mile a minute but she sat through the performance with a smile on her face and her eyes gleaming!  During intermission, we discussed the orchestra, instruments, and Russia and the Kremlin as it was on the backdrop.  Such a wonderful night!

The next few weeks were filled with a choir recital, birthday and Christmas parties, baking, decorating and playing in the snow! Mid month I made a batch of gingerbread play dough, it was a hit!  I found my recipe on Pinterest, so many great things on there! We still have it and it comes out once a week.  We keep it in an airtight glass container.  The girls helped make a few homemade presents, decorated some ornaments for the tree and on Christmas Eve, we went for a drive around the city and took in the Christmas lights.  

Cookie cutters and Gingerbread Playdough

Ready for a movie on Christmas Eve

Christmas Day was full of excitement.  Fun in the morning followed by family visits later in the day and a relaxed dinner in the evening made it a memorable one. We took in some more Christmas lights on an acreage outside the city after Christmas, quite a beautiful sight. 

Beautiful Christmas Lights display outside of Leduc

January flew by! It took a little while to unwind from the holidays but the girls had lots of time to catch up on sleep! I took some time to get the house organized again - the decorations put away, the basement playroom reorganized to accommodate some new toys, the bedrooms that were neglected during the holidays. Coming up this month I need to sort through kids clothes and sell or donate the toys and books the girls have outgrown.

For the girls, their month was filled with coloring, painting, lego, puzzles (had a late Saturday night working on a 300 piece together), play dough, sands alive, pretend play, sledding and a couple workbook sessions in math and language arts for Chloe. It was also time to go back to choir, dance and 1 more drama class at the homeschool office.

Late night collaboration on a 300 piece Frozen puzzle

Lego!

The end of January is a special time in our house, Chloe's birthday!  It's hard to believe she's 6 already and it's been great to see her creativity and skills grow so much this school year at home!  

February is full of interesting field trips and activities.  Throw in some house organizing and the regular scheduled activities and it's sure to fly by too!  What's on your calendar for February? 

Winter Adventures...Part 1

Happy New Year!! Whew, where did the time go?! 2015 is here and we are into our fifth month of Grade 1.The past two months have been filled with lots of great learning opportunities and it's awesome to see her progress.  She has started writing and spelling names and short words with letter fridge magnets and on her whiteboard, reading place names and words on signs, 100 piece puzzles, and dances and sings her way through the day.  

Teaching little sis how to do puzzles

Finished her first 100 piece by herself

When the weather outside is frightful, bring the fun inside. We had a snow storm in early November and instead of going outside in the cold to play, I filled a few buckets with freshly fallen snow and dumped them into the sink.  Also works great with a warm sink full of bubbles and some measuring cups

Warm water, dish soap and measuring cups

Fresh snow, food color and cups and spoons

Mid November, C had an outdoor Winter Adventure organized through her board. We headed to the park with snow suits and extra mittens. C joined up with her group, played games and fed squirrels and chickadees. K and I went for a walk in the snow and she practiced some snow angles before we met back up with the group for hot chocolate.

Having fun in the snow

A few nights later we got some crisp winter air when we ventured downtown to watch the tree lighting.

Christmas tree lighting, downtown Edmonton

One of C's favorite activities in November was indoor wall climbing, a group activity organized her homeschool board. She attended two more drama classes put on through her board as well and we had our first facilitator meeting in late November, which went very well.  The meeting was an hour long at our kitchen table, very casual and relaxed. He reviewed some samples of her work, discussed what we have covered so far, and asked her what her favorite subjects and activities are. He said we were progressing nicely and see you in the spring. 

Has a style all her own!

We finished up November with a visit to the Festival of Trees, a beautiful way to begin the Holiday season. The girls loved going downtown at night and seeing the tall buildings lit up. The trees were amazing, so colorful and bright. The Festival of Trees is a great fundraiser for the University Hospital Foundation.  To showcase what the money goes to support, they had a mock hospital set up.  The girls had the chance to listen to their heart beats, look at x-rays and had a small cast put on their finger. An unexpected learning opportunity  emerges from a fun night out!

posing at the Festival of Trees

Coming sooner than later, Winter Adventures Part 2 - our December craziness!