Happy Thanksgiving!

 Happy Thanksgiving! What? Are you confused? Do you think I'm confused? It's Thanksgiving in Canada. While you might be celebrating Columbus Day this weekend, the rest of us north of the border are busy being thankful. 

I've been celebrating my own Thanksgiving for 20 years - as in, I've moved out of the house and I'm now responsible for making my own turkey. I've also celebrated two Thanksgivings every year for 17 years regardless of where we lived. So that means I've made a total of 37 turkeys that went with 37 everything you'd expect a Thanksgiving table to offer meal. Let's just say, I've got Thanksgiving down. 

When we first moved to Canada, it took some getting used to having everyone be thankful in October. For 10 years it snuck up on me. It also took some getting used to having no one around us celebrating in November. Just another day here!  I thought the only difference between the two holidays was the date but that was a rookie mistake. I finally clued into a few distinctions that made each one unique. 

1. October is actually a smart month to have it in. It's at the peak of fall, looks like fall, you can still buy food at the farmers' market and (this is important) you can take a nice long walk after you've stuffed yourselves. November = cold and snow. The pumpkins are frozen. 

2. The Pilgrims are missing. That's right. No Pilgrims, no Indians. I'm sorry - make that Aboriginals (here in Canada). There's really no history attached to Canadian Thanksgiving. There's no story. No Charlie Brown video. It's just about the thanks here. Passionate, unadulterated, secular thanks (unless you go to church and religious it up yourself). 

picking pumpkins

3. You can celebrate Thanksgiving in Canada anytime during your weekend and it's just as valid. Saturday, Sunday or Monday. Just be aware that on Monday stores are shut down so if you forgot to buy the cranberry in a can, you're out of luck. Should have had your dinner on Saturday. November Thanksgiving must be celebrated on Thursday. But don't worry about forgetting a crucial ingredient to your meal because the stores seem to be opening up earlier and earlier to beat the Black Friday rush. Does Kohl's sell cranberry in a can? If they do, you can bet it'll be on sale!

Farmer's Market!

4. There's really no Black Friday in Canada. Oh, they try! But you can't mimic the anxiety of Christmas being only a month away. We've still got 2 1/2 months here. We're good! 

Reading special just for fall books

5. Yes, the food is pretty much the same. Turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, corn, squash, pumpkin pie. You may have some regional, traditional dishes added like tourtiere but it's the same. Except the green bean casserole is missing in October. I don't know why this recipe didn't make it across the border. The Campbell's soup company seemed to drop the ball on that one. But anytime I make it I get rave reviews and a request for the recipe. It's sort of embarrassing!  

Nature Walk

6. Macy's Day Parade, afternoon football game, the first viewing of "A Muppet Christmas Carol" - November. OK, maybe just the first two for most homes. But all three help to make the mood in November for me in my home when no one else around us is celebrating. Bonus - we still get mail that day! (not a holiday here, you with me?) 

Decorating leaf cookies!

It's not such a bad deal celebrating two Thanksgivings every year. After all, can you ever be too thankful? And as far as my family is concerned, you can never have too much turkey. 

Wreath Songs

 Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. Colossians 3:16

 Words cannot express how happy I am with how my wreath turned out! It is GORGEOUS. Yes it is. 

There are many tutorials for book page wreaths out there but I was inspired by the one I found on Holy Hen House. It was this one in particular that used the pages of an old The Lutheran Hymnal (TLH) which I absolutely adored. 

 Truth be told, I felt a little sinful tearing the pages out of the binding. But I got over it. And before I knew it, I was singing away to all the old tunes with the thous and the thees and the thys. I also was rolling the pages while watching the LiveStream of Luther Prep's opening service. It was quite the experience. 

There's something about the smell of an old book that makes me giddy. And I love how the edges of the hymnal pages are red. 

We can never move now because this wreath would never make it intact. So I guess I will die in this house. 

O God, our Father, whose praise is in the Church, uplift our souls to the holiness of Thy presence that with pure hearts we may adore Thee and worship Thee with joyful lip; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

                                                                                   ~TLH

Son Flower Season

For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 1 Corinthians 4:6

It is with these words that we humbly begin another school year. 

The wise owl vase sits on books where only true wisdom is found. 

We do well to imitate the sunflowers - they turn towards the light of the sun. Aren't we Son-flowers too? 

There's advantages to having my kids six years apart.  It means I've had some breathing room and time to reflect. I've had a break between changes diapers and teaching geography. I sort of get a second chance. I can learn from my first experiences and apply that wisdom going forward. One thing that stands out in my mind is how very fast it really goes even when you have days, weeks or even months that seem to drag. As sure as there are seasons in a year, there are also seasons of life. My challenge has been to embrace the uniqueness of each season even in the midst of the trials it may bring and still appreciate it. Even in those seasons, I can reflect back and see the good, the blessings, the growth. I know my seasons yet to come will bring the same.  

Grade 4 is where she's at this year - so exciting! This is the year she turns "double digits", we study American history and she learns to add and subtract fractions with different denominators. 

We'll start the day the best way I know how - One Hundred Bible Stories and workbook. We'll study hymns and memorize verses. 

 Saxon 54  It's not about the math -   it's just digits when she's trying to comprehend a number line. And when negative numbers are introduced and she doesn't get it the first time (or the 2nd or the 3rd), I sit by her side and we draw a number line together. I used to think there was a rush. A deadline. But now I know we've got time and I refuse to rush this moment. 

She can't stop reading. I totally get that. And I appreciate that this is  her strength. I know this now because he had different strengths and it's clear to me now but wasn't always back then. So if this is where she shines, then I run with it! I find all the good books that I can - classics that have stood the test of time, books full of words that she sometimes has to ask, "what's a blouse or a patent?".  I order books from the interlibrary loan system and I fill our own shelves with books that we call ours. We haunt flea markets and find diamonds in the ruff and they are proudly displayed around our house. We learn History  through fictional and real characters and experience their time and space through the pages. And as I get to reread some of these books with her that he and I snuggled up with, the memories remind me that it was worth it. This is worth it. 

Our Language Arts core starts with The Boxcar Children literature study. She's already obsessed with the series and piles found throughout the house reflect our recent flea market purchases. This year she'll keep Writing and studying Grammar which she claims to love, crazy girl. She'll Explode the Code and Spell what we didn't finish last year. And believe me - I wondered how I was planning on accomplishing all this. I found Sarah Mackenzie who walked me through teaching from a state of rest. And I discovered loop scheduling and block scheduling and wondered how I ever lived without this insight? And she encouraged me to be faithful. Leave the results to God. 

My nemesis must surely be Science. I managed to farm it out as often as I could with him. He spent summers at various science camps and participated in museum classes. We'd have to talk after (and before) about what was true and what others believe to be true.  I boldly took on my nemesis over the years and discovered my own appreciation for knowledge labeled "science" and found God very much present there and willing to help me. So when I found this curriculum last year after hearing from the author himself at a conference, I jumped in! I realized I could manage the experiments and we could learn together. Taught through the eyes of Truth by an amateur is better than lies from a competent teacher.  

We'll continue our Co-op group this year and enjoy the friends we've made. She'll be playing her violin and learn to sew. She'll keep swimming and even branch out to synchronized swimming for fun! She loves going to Chinese school and Lutheran Girl Pioneers. She'll continue a monthly cooking class that leaves all the mess there:) And she'll be by my side at church choir and mid week evening Bible class. 

She'll walk life with us. 

*Pictures are from our first day of homeschool field trip to Malone, NY to visit the Almanzo Wilder farm. We met up with our dear friends from Syracuse and enjoyed a beautiful day! 

Halldorson Homeschool 14/15 Yearbook

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Summer Fly By

Fastest. Summer. Ever.

What the heck happened?!
Our fabulous summer started with our trip to Wisconsin that included a visit with my family. We enjoyed a few days in the Northwoods hanging out with Mom and Dad and my Grandma and Grandpa. Then we drove down to pick up our beloved first born from school, celebrated our nieces graduation and enjoyed a few days with Wayne's side of the family. I RELISHED my little family back together again and couldn't stop pinching myself and that I - I mean - Will had made it through his first year of Prep. Praise God!

Cleaning out the dorm room

We celebrated Will's 15th birthday a bit belated. He was willing to hold out for the old Dairy Queen ice cream cake. He was able to choose his favourite meal for dinner and lunch was celebrated at our usual pick for special days - the local Chinese buffet.

There's no doubt we had one heck of a spring. It was very stressful and included some time apart while Wayne spent some extra time in Calgary with his Mom and worked to iron some business out in regards to his Father's passing away.  Local friends of ours intuitively saw our need and graciously offered their beautiful lake home to us to use once Will was home. We enjoyed a few days of quiet and serene lake living, board game playing, long walks and a change of scenery. It was just what we needed!

And then, of course, there was our WONDERFUL trip to Virginia, Maryland and D.C. It was so worth doing and exceeded my expectations! God blessed us with many precious memories and sweet fellowship we didn't even know we were missing.

Mount Vernon

Of course, no summer is complete without VBS! So we had a week of being busy in that area as we each participated in our roles.

Zanna spent an afternoon with the Girl Pioneer group on their weekend camping retreat. Our schedule didn't allow her to do the overnight part, but she still had a great time spending a day swimming in the lake, playing with friends and going for a nature walk.

Will took a swimming course that was meant to work on his strokes and rebuild some endurance he'd lost over the last year. There was to be about 15 participants in the program but it ended up he was the only one registered. He ended up having private lessons that were tailor made to his needs and prepared him for applying for lifeguard training. It was a great experience!

Wayne took the kids to Calypso Water Park for a day and they had a blast getting wet and risking their lives in only their swimsuits. I stayed at home and got dinner ready:)

I turned 40. The morning of my birthday, Wayne announced to the kids that we were going to IKEA and they were to follow me around without complaining. I love that man!

We also celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary. We went to Le Cordon Bleu's restaurant and had a scrumptious meal together!

And since our anniversary falls on the 4th of July, we had a party with some of our favourite Americans!

My festive mantle

The kids put this together!

Thanks for the sign, Zanna!

Wayne also turned 40. We had a lot of fun that evening enjoying Shakespeare in the Park as they retold their version of A Comedy of Errors. 

You can never have too many DQ cakes! 

I was inspired from our D.C. trip to look again at our own capital for some entertainment. We decided to Time Travel  and explore our city's past! OK, it was a little cheesy as our guide wore her time travel googles and we pretended we were being transported back to 18something - but it was fun too. We all got a kick out of interacting with the guide and even learning a little something along the way.

The kids got to dual with Nerf guns and eye googles with Parliament as a backdrop. Fun!

What's on my summer coffee table - The Story of Canada, The Landmark History of the American People, an American and Canadian flag, a TV remote, the phone, a LEGO book, and MacGyver Season 2 DVD

Every good summer brings the desire for kids to earn their own money whether in the way of a lemonade stand, face painting or nail polishing. Since Zanna tried all those things last summer, she went the route of Dog Walking and Watering Plants. Will helped her make up flyers and she distributed them around the neighbourhood and taped them to mailboxes. She impatiently waited to "clients" to call. Alas, they never did. It wasn't for lack of trying!

Sadly, our last trip of summer was taken separately. We all left the driveway the same morning and we all ended up in Michigan later that day. Wayne went to Saginaw for Synod Convention and the kids and I made our way to Wisconsin stopping for the night in the U.P. of Michigan.  Zanna helped feed the area deer in my Mom and Dad's driveway. We hit the flea markets, ate fish fry, rode in the boat, ate dinner around the campfire and enjoyed the beauty of  Northern Wisconsin. Zanna wanted SO BAD to catch a fish - she could just taste it! After a few attempts that yielded no results, she finally caught the big one! Actually, it wasn't that big but it was HUGE to her! And she ate it for lunch the next day along with the smaller one Opa caught. She was thrilled!

MANY games of Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, and Hand and Foot were played during this trip. Lots of episodes of Murdoch Mysteries were watched snuggled up on the couch. A fair amount of 14 Hands was consumed.

Will and I also spent time practicing violin for the duets we did with my Mom at her church that Sunday we were there. It was a treat to play together,  a challenge at keeping up our skill and an honour to use it to praise the Lord!

Mom and I also did an Annie Sloan Chalk Painting class. We spent an afternoon learning and practicing different painting techniques with the paint and had a fun time. Now I dream about what my first real project to paint will be but I have to be bold enough to actually do it. Anyone want to cheer me on?

The time quickly came for the main reason for our trip. I drove Will down to school and settled him into the dorms in time for the 3 week football camp. I enjoyed my car ride with him and the extra special time I had with him before I had to say goodbye. We had driven 21 hours together to get here, bunked at Jeff and Steph's the night before, ate Mexican food for lunch and shopped for back to school at Target. We unpacked his stuff kept in storage and it seemed like only yesterday I had spent all day at the laundromat washing it all up and putting it in the giant Rubbermaid. Where did the time go? He was excited to see his friends again and set up a new room with his new roommate. But he didn't disappear before giving me a big hug and as I drove away, he stood in the window of his room and waved to me. And I bawled (while some sad song played on the radio).
Lord, help me do this ...

Back to my Mom and Dad's to enjoy the rest of the week before heading back home! One afternoon, Zanna and I went bowling. She REALLY wanted to go! We played three games. The first was OK, the second one we peaked and the third I started to be sore in places I didn't know could get sore and it quickly went downhill. But not before I took a picture of my awesome 2nd game. Hey, 153 is pretty awesome for me. If you can do better, please keep it to yourself:)

Mom and Dad drove back with us but in their own car. They spent a few days at our place before flying out to the UK to see my sister. We'll get to spend a few more days with them at the tail end of their trip before they head back home.

Zanna just finished up an Art Camp with the same sweet gal that taught Will art for many years. She had such a great time and came away with something to frame and proudly display!

I'm busy going over all my curriculum for the upcoming school year and planning for Grade 4! Perfect timing that we'll be starting year 1 of American History on the heels of our D.C. trip.  I've taught it all to Will before, but I'm looking forward to reviewing it for myself again and learning alongside my daughter. I'm updating the schoolroom, planning extra curricular activities for the year and also trying to expand my hair business. Church work offers many opportunities to serve and calls for wisdom in knowing where best to be. We are truly blessed to have our family, a place to call home, work to do, the ability to do it, and a church to serve. It really is all good! 

Found it!