Cooking Class Birthday Party!!!

I survived another birthday party. I should have a t-shirt printed up with that on it. It's like a badge of honour in motherhood! 

We hemmed and hawed on a theme for this year's eighth birthday. After getting away with a quiet family party last year, little girl was ready to whoop it up with the girlfriends and get her party on. I mustered up all the excitement I possibly could and searched around to see what it would cost to have this big event SOMEWHERE OTHER THAN MY HOUSE.  

That search lasted all of five minutes as I quickly realized that I'd have to shell out more moo-la than I was willing to part with. It was after I hung up the phone with the nice lady from our local grocery store who informed me that to have a cooking class party at their lovely establishment, it would be $18 a head and require at least 12 heads. To which I firmly decided right then and there, I do it myself!!!! 

Which is how I came to be wandering up and down the aisles of Michaels, Winners and searching Pinterest for inspiration. 

I suggested to little girl that we could come up with the menu she'd like - maybe an Italian theme with pasta? A Mexican theme with tacos? Perhaps make your own pizza? She responded with-  

Hotdogs.

Really? Really? Whatevs. It's her day, not mine. 

The menu:

• Cupcakes and homemade chocolate frosting
• Pigs in a blanket (hotdogs rolled up in crescent rolls, with or without a cheese slice)
• Fruit Kabobs
• Caesar Salad
• Pink Lemonade

I still managed not to have this blessed event at my house. We had it at our church. It was perfect because we have a nice, new kitchen over there and plenty of space in the basement. I could set up table stations which kept things going smoothly. 

Station 1 was the craft table. Everyone got a plain apron and access to cloth markers for decoration. After all the boy parties I've done, I forgot how different girls are in this area. Boys would have slapped something on in about 5 minutes and started to look around for the food. Or start punching each other. Instead, the girls were still carefully and intensively decorating 20 minutes later. I had to encourage them to get a move on - we need to get those cupcakes in the oven!! 

After their aprons were just perfect, we moved over to Station 2. This was our cooking table! After everyone took a turn adding to the batter and mixing, they put the batter into muffin tins and made a complete mess doing it. 

Next up was making the fruit kabobs. They liked to pick the fruit they liked for their kabob. I was glad I did it this way as opposed to fruit salad where they'd end up picking out what they don't want. Less waste this way.

This would be where I missed my mother's presence the most. I turned around and there was a sink full of dirty dishes and I needed some of them! Mom just knows what needs to be done without me asking. Now after all these years of throwing parties with her help, I'm reminded of all she does! 
*not to make it sound ominous but my mother is fine. She just couldn't come from Wisconsin this time for reasons beyond her control.

Will was my new helper. He helped in a different way! As I frantically cleaned the dishes I needed for the next task, he took the group on a scavenger hunt he had made up. What a guy! (I bought him a Starbucks latte as a perk!) 

Next was making the Caesar salad. I divided up the tasks to include tearing the lettuce leaves, crumbling the bacon and seasoning the bread cubes for croutons. We assembled the salad right before we ate. 

Will took them all again on some mysterious game he made up that may not have made much sense but everyone seemed to enjoy. By the time they returned, I was ready to show them how to make the pigs in a blanket. 

Zanna was on to something with this one. It was so easy to make and the girls really seemed to enjoy making them and eating them. Sure hotdogs are gross and no one is sure exactly what's in them, but that didn't stop anyone from devouring them! 

Station 3 was the eating table and I had that one all set and decorated. We were starting to run out of time so I ended up going ahead and making the frosting. Then after they finished eating their dinner they frosted their cupcakes. They each got two - one to eat right away and one to take. I had found these plastic cupcake shaped holders in different colours on the clearance shelf at Winners and they worked out great for this! Zanna opened her presents while her guests ate their cupcakes and then it was time to go! 

I think she had a good time - 

A Homeschool Day in the Life - ages 13 & 7

It's that time of year again! Simple Homeschool  is inviting readers to link up to their "Homeschool Day in the Life". I don't quite know why I get so excited about it. There's something appealing to me about being allowed a peek at someone's life without getting arrested. It may go all the way back to when I watched and secretly enjoyed MTV's "The Real World". "The Bachelor"  only encouraged me in what I knew was smut. And American and/or Canadian Idol? Love it. "Duck Dynasty"? You had me at redneck. So in my defence, this blog linky is way more acceptable than slowly driving through my neighbourhood after dark and looking into lighted windows to see what putrid colours people choose to paint their walls. OK? OK.

This particular day open for peeking in on is a typical Wednesday.

Our family - Wayne, Rachel, Will and Zanna

My alarm goes off at 7am and I'm embarrassed to admit that the snooze button is hit for the next half hour or so. I'm clearly not a morning person.

On the other hand, my 13 year old son's alarm goes off at 6:15am and he gets up right away. Or so I'm assuming.  I'm fast asleep in my warm, cozy bed. But I believe this is the case because he tells me and he has usually accomplished enough by the time I'm on the scene to validate that he'd need that much time.

I'd like to take full credit for having a child who's so eager to start his day and can't wait to learn. But this is a day in real life and who am I kidding? Several years ago, I implemented a schedule that he can see and know what subjects he's expected to do each day. He finds great inner motivation to cross them off his list as soon as possible. The problem has been that sometimes in an effort to quickly cross items off his list, he's done a crappy job. This has meant that I've had to be very diligent about checking up on his work and holding him to a higher standard if he's not holding himself to that standard.

So from about 6:30 to 9:00am he is:

•  reading several chapters of his assigned book for school - currently Son of Charlemangne by Barbara Willard
• eat breakfast
• morning chores
• play legos
• completes a lesson from Teaching Textbooks Algebra
• if he has the time and the motivation he may even do his Apologia Science and notebook. Otherwise he'll just do it later. 

My 7 year old gets up about 7:30am and has breakfast (which takes forever because she's the slowest eater in the history of the world), morning chores, and plays.

We all aim to be ready to go by 9am for our Morning Meeting. Because the span in ages between my two kids are fairly decent, this makes it challenging  to share subjects that I can teach at the same time. During Morning Meeting, the three of us have devotion, work on memorizing the Sermon on the Mount, read aloud poetry and read aloud a chapter from Story of the World. My daughter likes to colour the coordinating picture while I'm reading. Then I ask them both the comprehension questions. After this, it's time to separate and each has their age/level appropriate work.

It's about  9:40 or so and Will's ready for a break. This allows me to work one on one with Zanna.  We'll do Saxon Math 2, the red book LLAL for language arts and All About Spelling.

10:15am - I call Will back and I tag team between the two kids. I give Zanna her worksheets to do from the lessons I just gave her. 
Meanwhile, Will and I have a grammar lesson (Easy Grammar Plus).

10:30 - Dad calls the kids and it's time for them to go with him to the retirement home. He's a pastor and he goes there weekly to lead a worship service for the residents. The kids go along and help usher, shake hands and sometimes play their violins.

Meanwhile, I'm in the house by.my.self.

 I run around naked , eat bon-bons and look at Pinterest clean up around the house and generally catch up on things that didn't get done earlier , i.e.. make my bed, take care of breakfast dishes, sweep the floor. I start working on lunch.

After lunch is finished and cleaned up, Will finishes up his book work for the day. He's got an informal essay letter he's writing for the IEW Continuation Course. We go over his rough draft together and make some notes.  Zanna's back to playing, reading, etc. 

Quiet time is usually between 1-2pm. Both kids are in their rooms and the general idea is that whatever they're doing must be quiet. That may seem obvious given the name but I occasionally must remind my children to keep the noise level down. Both of them like to listen to audio books on CD while playing with their legos, barbies, whatever. Meanwhile for me this is my Bible study time, reading, etc. In other words - my sanity. Today though it's taken up with a phone call with my Mom that lasts an hour and a half. We talk about once a week and between the two of us we've each had a lot going on in our lives this last week that apparently takes a while to discuss!

From 2-4pm is pretty free today. Violin must be practiced by each of them. Legos are to be played with.  Zanna plays with a neighbour friend. Will has a weekly paper route and he'll work on getting half of it done today. I catch up on my Bible time and mop the floor - completely unrelated, I know. 

The kids are allowed to watch an hour of TV from 4-5pm. Looks like reruns of "The Brady Bunch".

 Wayne and I go for a walk.

 I get dinner started once we're home.

We need dinner to be cleaned up by around 6pm so we can get out the door by 6:15 for choir at church. Our choir director is gracious enough to allow us to bring them and let's them participate on top of it. Even though they've been in the children's choir over the years, it's been surprising to see Will especially step up his game. I think it's another example of including our kids in our lives (as opposed to sending them off with their own) and they rise to the occasion. When they're exposed to an environment of maturity, this can't help but rub off on them in a positive way. They're still kids to be sure! But it's exciting to see them rise to the level where the bar's been raised.

We're home by 7:45pm and Zanna gets ready for bed. Will stays for a Bible class at church with Wayne. Wayne drops him off at home about 8:45pm on his way to another Bible class. Will heads upstairs and gets ready for bed.

Once Wayne is home from his classes, the night is ours. Bedtime is 11pm. And the alarm goes off again at 7am. I hit snooze.

Our Daily Docket

What we've been eating: Super Nachos for Superbowl Sunday! The only time of year when our family eats in the living room in front of the TV (gasp!). 

What's in my email box: Mom I love you and I think you are the best in spite of your many faults   If that's not unconditional love, I don't know what is!! The teacher in me sees the grammatical errors. The mother in me knows I have my own grammatical errors so who am I to judge? 

What's in the mail box: Will's completed high school placement test and made up report card sent off to Luther Preparatory School. Gulp. 

What we're watching: I mean other than my DVD's of the old Alias  TV show (which forever shall rock my world). Tonight we'll be tuned into the big debate - 

If you miss it live, it will be available anytime after to view. But there's something about watching in the moment.

What we do to keep active in the winter:

Wayne is taking the kids skiing while Mom gets a day off! Cheers to that:)

What we're celebrating: Chinese New Year! We had a potluck at church and had a blast eating different foods and learning more about the Chinese culture among friends. 

I love our cutlery tray at church! We're not attempting a ministry that keeps cultures apart but brings them together through the commonality of redeemed children of God. I'm sure forks and chopsticks will be used in heaven!! 

What we're missing: Zanna's baby teeth - finally! 

She waited awhile for an opportunity to have the tooth fairy visit her! She's lost two already and has another wiggly one on top. 

What you've gotta have every now and then: PJ Day! Winter is the perfect time to stay in pj's all day. Maybe not everyday but when she asked for permission I thought, "why not?" When choir came around that night she wore snow pants anyway so no one was on to the fact. 

What we're reading: I finished "Calling me Home" and let me tell you, go read it! I haven't read a fiction piece for awhile but this one is great. It's a mix between "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "The Help". Very good. Right now I'm reading my first Steven King book. Not what you may think. It's called "On Writing" about the craft of writing. He swears like a sailor but so far it's been interesting. Sort of biography/informational. With lots of swearing.

Will's reading the Calvin and Hobbes complete series and may be on his third go round. I know when he's reading them because of the deep belly laugh coming from his room. Makes me laugh! 

Zanna's reading whatever she can get her hands on but she's been making her way through the Rose series and the Caroline series because apparently the Little House books weren't enough. She also finished her first American girl book on Molly. Molly is the doll she got for Christmas. 

What I'm baking: lots. Maybe it's winter and having the oven on and the smell of homemade cookies and the taste of warm, gooey chocolate …. OK. Sorry. I got lost there somewhere in all that. Chocolate chip cookies, fudge topped brownies, oatmeal/coconut/raisin/chocolate chip cookies, whole grain bread, banana bread - my family is happy! And possibly 5 pounds heavier. Oh, well. It keeps us warm living in a frozen tundra! 

What we're learning: The Human Nervous System, Ancient History, Limiting Adjectives, Sermon on the Mount, Algebra to name a few.

What we've gotten ourselves into: remember the NXT Lego Robotics competition a few years ago and how exhausting it all was? Yep. 

What we're planning: an 8th birthday party cooking class. If I survive, I'll update on the other side. 

Happy February!!

My Family

This past fall we had family friend and photographer Dina take our family pictures. I've always wanted the beauty of the local fall colours to be included in the family pics - and I was not disappointed! We wanted the location to be very "local" and with the Parliament buildings in the background, there can be no doubt where we call home! 

I love these pictures so much that I've sort of gotten carried away. I had a small handful of Christmas cards made up most of which were never given because I never got them in the mail. Of course, I did just receive in our mail today a Christmas card postmarked on January 13 (what's up, Janine?!) so maybe it's not too late? 

Anyway, Shutterfly was having a rockin' sale somewhere around the end of November and I took advantage of it big time. I had a table runner made up, two Christmas ornaments and a huge throw blanket with really large pictures of us all over it. I was thinking at the time how nice it would be for Will to take it to school next fall to remember his family and snuggle beneath. But it may be too over the top for that upon further thought and only result in him getting beaten up by his classmates. 

And can I just say that the most stressful part of it all was what we were going to all wear!! I didn't want to be too matchy matchy and I didn't want to clash. I perused Pinterest for further wisdom which really helped with visuals. 

Maybe 40 years from now when I'm pushing 80, I'll be the one cuddling under the massive and obnoxious picture blanket of my family wondering how the years went by so fast! 

A New York Minute

It's been a dream of mine to visit New York City at Christmastime for awhile now. I'm sure it was influenced by the countless movies set there in iconic spots all over the city. So when we talked about our family getting away after a more stressful than usual fall, that was the place we agreed upon!

I knew I was possibly setting myself up for disappointment if my expectations weren't met but it was a risk I was willing to take. Turns out - it was totally worth it and if anything, exceeded my expectations!!

We've learned from previous trips to other big cities - this is the environment where our family shines. I did some preliminary work in reading travel books and scoping out what attractions would most appeal to us. I didn't want to plan our trip minute to minute but we wanted at least one planned thing a day and plenty of free time to work around that. Then once we're there and get a better idea of our surroundings and get a feel for what's really important to us, we start planning our days. Wayne shines in getting us from one place to the next and navigating where we need to be, what direction we're going, what subway train to take and when to get off. The rest of us are like little chicks following him around, confident that he'll get us wherever it is we're going! The kids are joyfully along for the ride and thrilled with "vacation mode" and the heightened possibility of ice cream for lunch.

We flew into LaGuardia and took a NYC taxi to our hotel. We stayed at the Excelsior hotel. Because we bought a flight/hotel package deal, it's hard to say what we payed per night and I'm sure there are cheaper ways to go - but this place was wonderful!! It was on the upper west side next to Central Park and across from the Museum of Natural History (Night at the Museum, anyone?).  In an insanely large city shoved onto a tiny island with cars honking, sirens blaring and the general racket of people, this hotel provided an oasis in the middle of insanity. Because of it's location off a main road and across from a quiet museum, the noise was minimal and gave us peace at the end of the day! It also helped that they upgraded us to a suite which gave us an extra room to put Zanna down to bed earlier than the rest of us. And of course, location, location, location. We were in walking distance to many areas and had access to the subway at the end of the street.

Food. It makes or breaks holidays for me. NYC fare did not disappoint us! In the mornings, Wayne and Zanna would head out and search for breakfast - bagels! Meanwhile, Will and I would get ready for the day and while I got ready I had the TV turned to the Today Show and/or Kelly and whoever his name is. I mention this because watching these shows when we were there took on new meaning. I never cared before what the weather was in NYC - why should I? Now I was fascinated! And while I wouldn't necessarily stand outside to be one of those crazy fans freezing their butts off just to catch a glimpse of Al Roker, it was neat to know we walked around that area the day before.

Sorry. Back to food. We ate at the overrated Carnegie Deli, had famous cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery, a latte at Dean and Delucca, ice cream for lunch at Tom and Jerry's and Dim Sum in Chinatown and pizza from Ray's Pizza which is apparently a local joke. My only regret was I never did have a chance to try a ConeyIsland hotdog. But I still did well!

The weather was great considering it was the beginning of December. It started in the upper 40's and got well into the 50's near the end of our visit. It didn't rain and it was never icky. We were still well dressed but being Canadians, it didn't phase us at all.

Our first day there we took a 90 minute scenic boat ride that we ended up getting for free with our travel package. It turned out to be great as we followed the shoreline of the city while the guide pointed out buildings and told stories. It took us out to Ellis Island and gave us a fantastic view of Lady Liberty.

We explored the area around Rockefeller Center and went to the "Top of the Rock" for an amazing view of the city. The famous ice skating rink was up and there were people on it already. The big Christmas tree was up too but not lighted yet. The official lighting would come a few days later. Meanwhile we made sure to hit some stores in the area - Will wanted to check out Lego, Zanna wanted to see the American Girl store and I was itching to browse Anthropologie.

We were amazed by Times Square and the utter insanity of craziness and action! Just walking around and taking in the sights and sounds was fun. We walked a ton and only took the subway 3 or 4 times while we were there just to save our legs and any energy we had left.

We walked through Central Park and recalled the movies we remembered were filmed there - Mr. Popper's Penguins, Home Alone 2, Elf etc. It was so clean and peaceful and the kids appreciated their "leash" being loosened up and allowed to run around. We made our way over to the east side of the park and marvelled at the impressive apartments, walked into the lobby of the Guggenheim and made our way to 5th Ave.

Christmas in New York! I gawked at the window displays of Sak's, Bergdorf Goodman and Tiffany and Co. I don't know exactly what they were trying to sell but they were works of art to look at!  We explored FAO Schwarz and Zanna played on the gigantic piano keys from Big. The Plaza Hotel sat across the street but under some scaffolding for repair. We liked being out after dark when the city really lit up and everything seemed magical.

The evening of the second day we bit the bullet and went to see a real Broadway show - Annie! This was the perfect family musical to see in NYC at Christmas.  It was an incredible experience and an huge opportunity for all of us!!! "It's a hard knock life, for us!" 

Day three we explored Chinatown and the Financial District which included a visit to the 911 memorial. Soberly we remembered the events of that fateful day as we circled the two memorials and tried to explain it to the kids. A museum is currently under construction.

From there we headed over to Grand Central Station which now gives me new meaning to the phrase, "What is this? Grand Central Station?". Then we hung out at the New York Public Library, found the kids section and some comfy couches and connected to their free Wifi. It was lovely!

That night was the official lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. We knew it was a big production and if we were going to attempt to go, we should get there early. We were in the area by 4:30 or so and crowds were already swarming, policemen were everywhere setting up gates to corral crowds like cattle and we found ourselves being pushed along in a sea of people with no idea where it was going! Wayne took control and dragged our family out of the current and into a nearby store whose doors were not yet locked. He thought we'd cut across the store and come out on the other side to see if it was better over there. As we approached the doors to exit, in walked in Matt Lauer! Zanna said, "Hey, that guy's on TV!" and I said, "Hey, Matt Lauer!". So that was our big famous person sighting. When we got out and the crowds were not better and we realized the tree wouldn't be lit for another 4 and a half hours and - what do people do when they have to pee? - we hit the road back to our hotel. We knew that although it was a once in a lifetime opportunity, we'd be way more comfortable watching from our hotel, warm and able to use the facilities whenever needed! And we saw Matt Lauer in person, so there you go!

On our way back to the hotel we happened to wander by Tiffany's. I thought it would be interesting to look around. Really. It wasn't a hint. The fact that we walked out with a Tiffany blue box is strictly coincidence.  Wonder what's in there? I'll show you sometime:) And yes. I posed my Tiffany bag and box and took pictures of them. Because when will I get the chance again?

 Our fourth day was our last day but we didn't leave until later in the evening. We checked out and  leaving our bags behind the counter, we walked across the street to check out the museum we had been looking at from our window all week. Truth be told, this was really the only thing that didn't live up to my expectations. Maybe because we have such fantastic museums in our own city, many of which have been recently renovated or kept up to date at least. We found this New York one underwhelming and frankly, disappointing. It didn't help that the evolutionary worldview clouded just about everything and while not surprising, wasn't even well done! No matter, we were exhausted anyways. Our flight home went well and even came with $40 of meal vouchers to use in the airport thanks to WestJet. Perfect for a quick Tim Horton's stop in Toronto:)

I loved NewYork City and we made such good memories!! I'd go back in a New York minute:)

December 25 - Merry Christmas!

Happy Birthday, Jesus! Merry Christmas!

Jesus left the starry heavens to save us from our sins. (256) That's it in a nutshell. Go and tell it on the mountain!

More details, more prophecies fulfilled, more "just as it was said". Now, at the foot of every tree, we are all only recipients of grace. (257) Think on that when you unwrap your presents. Now that you've come to the conclusion of the slowly unwrapping of the Greatest Gift, give thanks!

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favour rests." How many years was that the memory verse "my angel" recited on Christmas Eve?
What a sight that must have been for the shepherds to behold - those lucky ducks:) For a brief moment in time, God allows His created angel beings to be seen and heard on earth by His created mankind. When we sing the Gloria in Excelsis as a congregation as part of The Common Service (CW), we join the angels in their worship and song! What a glorious taste of heaven this is when His whole creation will be joined together without separation in voice and adoration to The King!!! I get chills ….

My angel and shepherd 

When your heart burns, you're a flaming match for other hearts. When you're a manger tramp who came with nothing but your ragged heart and leaned in close over that creche, when you've beheld His glory, the white heat of a Love like this - who doesn't tramp out of the manger and into the world with a heart glowing like hot embers in your chest? (258) Go tell it on the mountain! This Love came for the world - for all mankind! We hold this Gift given to us so we can share it with others. Go tell it on the mountain!

Christ, the always Gift for all our days. (259) 

This angel's halo is a little askew!

December 24

This night is Christmas Eve and our church family will be celebrating with choir singing and children testifying to the story of Jesus' birth in front of friends, family and strangers. This night we'll close the service like we do every year with ushers passing out candles, silent prayers that the church doesn't burn down and thankfulness that the fire station is across the street! Candles are lit, one off the other and the lights are turned off and while candles glow we sing "Silent Night".

This night a battle has been waged and won for you. Love had to come back for you. Love had to get to you. The Love that has been coming for you since the beginning - He slays dragons for you. This is the truest love store of history, and it's His-Story, and it's for you. All the other fairy-tale love stories only echo your yearning for this truest, realest one - this one that has its beginning before the beginning of time. This night, you on this visited planet, your rescue is here. You can breathe. (245)

He lays Himself down in your mire.
He unfolds Himself in the stench you want to hide, in that mess that is your impossible, in the mucked straw you don't want anyone to know. 

Rejected at the inn, holy God comes in small to where you feel rejected and small. God is with you now. Wherever you are - in a soundless cry or hidden brokenness or in your ache - God always wants to be with you. You are not ever left alone in this. We are never left alone in this; God is with us. (246) 

At home we put the final nativity figures on the Advent picture made of felt and attached with velcro. We, the manger tramps, who kneel where thrones tremble and demons fall and the self-made crumble and the self-righteous weep.
Tonight there are only manger tramps, who tramp in with all our poverty of spirit … so there can be an abundance of God. (247) 

We lay the final piece into the nativity - a baby.
The greatest Gift laid into our empty hands … (248)

Silent night, holy night …