Loopy and the bee...

Susannahs Lupin seems to grow constantly! The bees LOVE it! I think I will buy a lot of these next year - I love them - the leaves are as stunning as the flowers! They look gorgeous in the rain!

Lloyd and I had to run to Costco today so we also went to Greenlands for coffee and I bought a few more perennials for my flower garden. I love buying a few each weekend and adding to my garden - it's coming together nicely and I know it won't look perfect this year - and probably not next year, but it's coming together - and considering that we only dug it up this Spring and just a few weeks ago it was a pile of mud and nothing more really, I'm proud of what we've done to it :) I know what I want to do with it, so this year is really about sorting it out and bringing it together and next year will be about rearranging it and seeing what survives and where the spaces are and what I need to get and what needs to go where.

I'd also like a bird bath in there somewhere.The Goldfinches spend a lot of time in there and I think they'd like a birdbath - and maybe a birdfeeder in there too. I'll have to remove the bird bath in winter of course.

Another video

Chris and his friends messing around yesterday :)

Susannah

Susannah on the porch this afternoon after a storm - she had been picking up hailstones during the storm and paddling in the puddles left by the rain....and her hair was all curly and damp from the rain.

Photocopies :) Oh my, the things kids do :)

We did some photocopying today :) Firstly we did his hand and face, and then his big brother mentioned that he could do his butt lol and of course Sam thought this was a GREAT idea!!!! I won't impress you with the results of THIS scan lol! Too funny :)

All booked

We're all booked up! We've found a lovely place. Heated outdoor pool (which for me was a MUST). It's going to be so strange going with only three children! I can't wait! I just want a small break because we're off to Florida again for 3 weeks or so in March so I don't need a big holiday now, but I do feel the need to go somewhere - especially with all our trips being canceled and with all the renovations which are driving me crazy. It will just be nice to have a few days away.

Friday

Abigail and Sam were ill all night - both with fevers and bad headaches. Lloyd sponged Abby down all night with a cool flannel and we gave them advil regularly and they slept off and on and today has been the same pretty much - they aren't too bad when they have had meds and they have kicked in but as soon as the meds wear off they are feverish and miserable and bad heads and sleepy and not well. When the meds are working they are well and happy and playing.

So I had to cancel breakfast with Val and our trip to a splashpark.

Chris moved his movie making venture from here at the house and instead he met 8 of his friends at South Cooking Lake where they filmed a movie all afternoon. I supplied refreshments - endless cans of pop and endless snacks as well as the camera and tripod and 'green screen'. I dropped him there at 11am and stayed chatting to his friends Dad for about an hour then came home. As I left Chris was directing his friends in a movie involving lots of guns and various boys and girls running here there and everywhere by the lake and the picnic ground and parking lot...He phoned at 4pm to say they were still filing and he would be walking home!

It's been a boring lazy day. I haven't done much at all. I haven't been in the mood to do much at all. I am tired from having sick kids when I want to be out and about enjoying summer. I am sad I had to miss breakfast with Val! I am frustrated with the building work outside - or LACK of it which is PISSING ME OFF! I am frustrated with our holiday plans or LACK OF THEM for next week. Our trip to Toronto in April got canceled. Our trip to Vancouver Island in July got canceled and now we can't decide where to go next week and Lloyd can't seem to make a decision and now everywhere I look is booked up and trying to get Lloyd to make a decision is impossible....And everywhere I think about going is BORING because I want to go somewhere fun and interesting and I want an outdoor pool but I can't find anywhere nice with an outdoor pool that has rooms available!

So until I find somewhere I am going to be cranky!

Can anyone recommend somewhere fairly close for a family of 5 (2 adults and 3 kids) for 4 nights with an outdoor pool. And JPL is full :(

Tadpoles in the kitchen!

The tadpoles in our pond are about 6 weeks late this year - that must be because of the cold snap we had in early May ad maybe because of the long winter and late Spring we had. We normally have tadpoles in mid to late May but we checked and checked and then gave up checking for them. We figured it was just a bad year for them. Then last weekend we saw bubbles rising in the pond - we went to check and were shocked to find tiny tadpoles! Just before Canada Day!!! A few are big with legs just sprouting but most are tiny baby tadpoles. So at last we are able to finish our life-cycles project.

This week we were also able to finish the bee life-cycles project with the baby bees emerging too from their life cycle completion.

So we have done the butterflies, the seeds and flowers, the bees, and now the tadpoles. Last year we did the meal worms too. 'A' was given grass seeds to grow as well, on Canada Day as part of the Good Growing Edmonton Campaign.

Archeologists!

Yesterday the children went digging for Mummies and old bones! They had to be very careful with their tools and brushes so as not to break the ancient bones and fossils!

Bee swarm!

We had a swarm of honey bees land in a shrub in our flower garden right outside of our house - it was on a day when we had some friends over for a playdate and a picnic. 'A ' got to watch up close as I picked up the swarm and put it in a box ready to put it into a hive.

Two weeks later this colony is now thriving in the new hive and has plenty of new brood - so a wonderful laying Queen :)

'A' loves to help me with the bees and often joins me when I go down to check on the hives and feed them. I have three hives now. You can see a video of the swarm at http://bee-tales.blogspot.com/

Thursday (which feels like Friday!)

The boys camped in the tent last night.....I packed them up some snacks and a flashlight and they seemed to have fun out there :)

The plan was to take the twins home today via the library so they could all take part in the sumer reading game there and so Susie could get her own library card (something she's desperate to have) but Abigail didn't feel well all morning (maybe too much sun yesterday) and was in bed crying a lot with tummy ache and a headache...so we stayed home.

Laurie now has the twins here and some school friends here hanging out...

Susie, Abby and Sam just made lemonade and are now at the table doing an archaeological dig for skeletons. We're having a quieter day today inside and mainly out of the sun. I love my airconditioning :) Tomorrow we will be out in the sunshine again so its nice to have a day inside even if it wasn't planned!

Chris has been at work all day...weeding. He's home - as happy as ever....grrrrrr....I don't think he should be doing this job. Lloyd thinks he should be doing this job LESS. Chris of course thinks he knows EVERYTHING and continues to work as MUCH as he can....can't wake up on time and snaps at us constantly...but there ya go....15 year olds know EVERYTHING.....

He leaves for camp on Sunday....we are not allowing him to take his cell phone with him (another thing he hates us for I'm sure lol in fact I took it from him yesterday) and I am hoping the break does him good - I hope he meets some good friends he has a lot in common with....I hope the break from all this physical labour does him good....summer holidays at 15 should be about having fun with your friends not about killing yourself on some old couples acreage all day every day. Its crazy! I'm proud he has stuck it out and is earning good money but he also has to learn to say no and learn to say he wants days off! There aren't too many years left where he can just relax and have fun with his friends!

Our day at the lake....

....was so much fun! We got there around 12:30 after running into town to pick up Laurie and his friends and also running into Sobeys for some picnic foods. Headed out to Miquelon to find that it was sooo quiet out there! I expected it to be really busy as I thought many people would still be camping out there after Canada Day! I guess not, as the beach was really quiet.

We found our usual spot, and Susie and I set up the blanket and everything - before we had the blanket laid out, the boys were already swimming - and Sam had already wandered off with Abby into the water....terrible Mother that I am lol - good job he wear practically a pfd!!! lol!!!

It wasn't long before we saw Val and her crew waving at us from the distance :) It was great to see them all :) Felt like only yesterday that we were all there the last time! Can it really be a whole year ago? The only difference is that Miquelon is not in as great condition! They have built a new big toilet block which I was really impressed with - and was much needed! Right on the beach, but the waters edge was all green and slimy and there was a lot of garbage that I hope is going to be picked up - maybe it was because of partying over Canada Day - I will give them the benefit of the doubt and put it down to canada Day partying and too much hot weather - and we will go again in a couple of weeks, but we will also try another local lake too because compared to last year I was VERY disappointed :( If they want people to keep going there to use all these facilities they are building then they are going to HAVE to keep the beach clean!

Surely it wouldn't hurt them to have someone come along in the evening and pick up the garbage and clean down the sand at night - there must be something they can use to clean up that green slime that does not damage the natural habitat.

Anyway that aside, we still had a fab time - there were pathways that avoided the green slime thankfully and then the water was fine and clear and the children could swim and the water wasn't too cold and they had a great time. Abigails swimming has come on so well - last year she was wearing her floaties swimming suit but this year she is in her normal bathing suit and is just swimming with everyone else with no help at all and she is doing great :) Right at the end she got tired and needed my help once but that was all - she was out of her depth, the current was just too much for her and she was just tired out after an afternoon of too much play with friends :)

Vals youngest has grown up so much since last year and Sam was also so much more independent and able to just potter about playing.....and I think we both really noticed that we had soooo much more time to chat and relax together. Its funny how a day of sitting in the sunshine, eating and chatting can be so darn EXHAUSTING :)

Loopy!

At last Susannahs Lupin 'Loopy' has a flower growing in the centre! It's going to be beautiful! I didn't think it was going to flower this year but it will! It's going to be a stunner too!!! :) I'm thrilled for Susannah as this is the plant she chose from Greenlands :)

On a sad note - my Peony isn't doing well since we moved it - I think we lost half of it - It was actually in three parts at the root and two parts will be ok but one part ()sadly the largest part) is dying. I actually cut the blooms off of that part and have them in water inside hoping they will still open inside the way Martha opens hers..maybe the other two thirds of the peony will be ok and come back next year. I knew they didn't like to be moved - maybe I'll buy another next year - we had no choice but to move them - we have to remove the flower beds they were in. Sad though...they were stunning.....obviously quite mature....I bet my neighbour hates me lol (she lived in this house and probably planted them.....she has already asked me to have all the daylilies back lol and here am I giving them to Val!!!! lol! Well thats my sweet revenge for them selling off MY land lol! ;)

My flower garden delights...

Summer scene from home.....

Poppies from my flower garden....