First horse riding lesson

Abigail started horse riding lessons this morning at a local stable.  The classes were set up by a fellow homeschooling Mom.  I think there are 4 people in the class - only three today as one couldn't make it - but it's a lovely small class.  The teacher was fabulous - kind but strict - and teachers them EVERYTHING - even things they aren't quite ready to do but need to know - like cleaning out the feet before riding - and she taught them the types of horses and colours etc etc....how they are measured...

It was a great class and lasted almost two hours!  They groomed their horses before riding and walked with the horses...then rode them for a long while, before dismounting, removing the bit and washing it, then taking the saddle off and putting it back in the tack room properly - and then taking the horses outside to feed them and groom them again.  

I think I had as much fun watching Abigail as she had riding!

Sam didn't want lessons as he wants to do other things, but he sat and watched and cuddled the stable cats the whole time :)  

We can't wait until next week!!

My Tuesday....

We overslept this morning.....or rather Abby and Sam did!  They didn't want to get out of bed!!!  They DID however want to go to gymnastics though, so we finally got going and made it there for most of the session!  As always they had a GREAT time and I got to spend time with my crazy friends too....crazy AWESOME friends I might add - I mean not many people have friends as great as mine - they brought me coffee in a travel mug AND coupons for money off coffee from my favourite coffee place!!  Which I am going to use tomorrow by the way!!!  :)  

Abigail kept trying until she managed to do a cartwheel on the beam!!  I caught it on video too!!  Her friend Miss G also managed it too - they were so proud of themselves :)  

We were supposed to go to homeschool club this afternoon at the library, but after gymnastics Sam was quite upset by a bad headache.  He said he might feel better if he ate and asked if he could have chinese from the mall.  It worked out well as I had to get pants for Abby for horseriding, and rubber boots for me.  They had a really good sale on at Please Mom, so I got Sam some pants too...so happy to get some for Abby as she has real issues with finding pants she will wear because of tactile issues and ocd's , but we got about 5 pairs today :)  It's getting too cold for her to wear skirts and capris now and those are the only things she has been happy to wear lately.

Tonight sam went to Lloyds house for the evening, and I took everyone else to Brits, so we could introduce Kevin to British fish and chips :)  He seemed to really enjoy them!  So he has been able to experience our British culture AND Canadian culture while staying here :)  

Abigail wanted to try a deep fried Mars bar, but she wasn't too impressed.  Kevin couldn't believe they even make them - he thought the idea was crazy!  Hahaha!!

We stopped off at the grocery store and then headed home....Abigail and Kevin played Uno and then then all of us except Laurence played a few rounds of Spot It which was fun :)  

Laurence headed to bed and then so did I - leaving the others down stairs playing on the computer.

Sam came home and we read a Winnie The Pooh story before he went to sleep...another day is over..and now I am sitting here listening to the wind blowing outside and wondering what tomorrow will bring...

A few more snapshots from the last few days....

Learning about nodding donkeys and oil rigs at Crossiron Mills Mall:

Face painting at Bass Pro store:

Cuddle with our neighbours kitty:

Doodling last night:

For Ayla.....

Today is Pregnancy and Infant loss 

Remembrance day....

This candle is lit 

in memory of 

Christies little girl 

Ayla

xxx

Love this :)

Laurence turns 17 :)

Ice cream cake to celebrate:

A picture to show how much he HASN'T changed:

A few of his gifts:

A pic of him when he was little (seems like only yesterday) :

Life is good :)

For today...

Outside my window...blue skies, fluffy clouds and sunshine.  15c and lovely :)  I'm hoping Sam can play at the park for a while during Abby's French class :)  

I am thinking...that the laws regarding child protection are all wrong in this Province and seem to be on the adults side and NOT the childs side :(  It is ridiculous.  

I am thankful...that my boy is celebrating his 17th birthday today and is happy and healthy.  

I am wearing...boots and a new hat that I got that FITS and I LOVE it - and two people complimented me on it yesterday which made me soooo happy :)

I am creating...a Fall mini album :)  Full of memories of Fall 2012

I am going...to meet Laurence at DQ after he finished work so we can have ice cream and watch him open his gifts :)  

I am wondering...when the homeschool funding cheque will arrive.

I am reading...no time to read right now.

I am hoping...that Kevin is enjoying his stay in Canada.

I am looking forward to...getting settled in our new place - and our next adventure :)

I am learning...that life is one long adventure and it is fun - and each step teaches us something new - even the sad parts :)  

Around the house...chaos - but fun crazy chaos - for the most part - and even the tough stuff is making us the people we are meant to be!

I am pondering...why some people do the things they do - and why some people continue to do the things they do even when it is clear those things are NOT working for them.

A favorite quote for today...whatever will be, will be...

One of my favorite things...Canmore and Banff - the mountains :)  I love them!!!

A few plans for the rest of the week:  Horse riding lessons start, Celebrating Laurences birthday, gymnastics class tomorrow, homeschool club, Whyte Ave, pumpkin patch fun with homeschool group, Crazy chicks turkey supper, Elk Island Park....

Other things we saw and did this weekend...

Bow Falls and the Bow River:

Lake Minnewanka loop and Twojack:

Elk herd on the Lake Minnewanka loop:

The Banff Hoodoos (today Kevin has gone to Drumheller for an overnight trip, and will see the Drumheller Hoodoos)

The 'Three Sisters' mountains in Canmore:

Tunnel Mountain loop ending with an amazing view of Cascade Mountain:

Playing on the Bellman cart in the hotel:

Bass Pro/ Outdoor World store and Crossiron Mills Mall

 in Airdrie on the way home.  The boys went shopping together and I found something to send back to Germany for Kevins Mom.  We had supper there too.  I had Lebanese food which was really good:

Learning to Lasso at Bass Pro with Miss Airdrie Rodeo 2012:

Seagulls in the parking lot:

And then home!!  Laurence drove ALL the way!  In fact apart from the trip from Red deer to Canmore on Friday night, Laurence did ALL the driving this weekend - he wanted to prove to himself he could drive all the way home from Canmore and could find his way so he can drive himself at some point!

Sulphur Mountain

On Sunday morning we headed to the Banff Gondola and went up to the top of Sulphur Mountain.  It was drizzling rain and was VERY cold and windy up there - the wind really was crazy.

Sam decided to stay inside in the warm, Susannah and I just walked about half way, but Laurence, Kevin and Abby ventured to the top - a friend of Laurences had been up there Saturday with her German exchange partner, and they had written their names somewhere, so Laurence and Kevin were determined to find them :)  They did!

Yes it was VERY blowy:

Luckily despite the weather it was still quite clear and we had a nice view

Up on the panoramic viewing deck they have signs showing you the direction and distance of various cities around the world - Edmonton was right next to Berlin, Germany, which was PERFECT for a photograph :)  

Saturday in Banff continued....

After Lake Louise we were all a bit sweaty and damp from hiking in the rain, and so we headed back to the hotel to shower and change, then drove back in to Banff.  The stores stay open until about 9:30pm and it is lovely strolling along the sidewalks and seeing all the people and just soaking up the atmosphere.  Laurence and Kevin went off for a couple of hours to do some shopping.  I took the younger three and we looked through all the souvenir stores and then found a really nice coffee shop and sat in there until the boys were done.  Everyone was hungry by then, so we went to our usual supper haunt when in Banff - Old Spaghetti Factory.