Pictures from Kidz Quarterz...

Thank you to Val for sending me some pictures she snapped in the 'Balladium' at KQ yesterday!!! The colours in there are kind of MANIC!!!! It's quite dark in there too so I had to lighten the pictures a lot which is why they look weird! I don't think I would pay for them to play this game but they had fun for a free game! Doesn't last long!

Relaxing after a hard week.....

I couldn't resist snapping a picture of the way I found Sams teddies tucked up in bed this morning....he had made sure they were all warm and cuddled up!

Relaxing after a hard week.....

;)

Display table..

Here is the table in the hallway where we are displaying our work for Chinese New Year as we do it. I think we have decided to continue studying about China as our 'community' to learn to about this year as we are finding it so interesting, so I bought an information and activity pack on it at Education Station on Wednesday which looks really fun! And the fun the pack can be pulled out each year at New year for us to go through as well! We also bought these fun lanterns that can be reused each New Year too!

We have so many more crafts that we want to do that we just can't fit them in by Monday...it's such a fascinating country and culture, so we plan to just keep learning about it!

Oh and the little Valentine Tree isn't part of the Chinese project - just my little holiday tree - oops!

Tomorrow we are off to see the Dragon Dance at West Edmonton Mall :) We've been before but this year they have a market there too as well as all the other events they normally have. Grace was telling us about the market before she left for Hong Kong!

The little box on the table is made from Bamboo, which pandas eat, and was made in China!

Chinese numerals

Losing it...

Sometimes it's funny what you can completely 'lose it' over.....this afternoon I have completely 'lost it' over a box of sugar cubes. As ridiculous as that may sound it makes complete sense to ME. Ggggrrrrr. And I refuse to step down on the issue. For a little while at least.

'nuff said.......

I think it's time for a little Mamma Mia....LOUD......

Come and Join us!!!

Tuesday 27th. 7pm. East Side Marios. Baseline Road. Girls night out/Dinner. Why? Because we didn't get to go out at Christmas because SOMEONE could hardly walk...... ;) Oh and because I need help to forget I'm turning 37.... ;) hear that??? Help me FORGET!!!!!!

NO REMINDERS!!!!!!

So if you read this it means you are invited and VERY welcome to come and join us!!! We are not a cliquey bunch :) Just keep your mitts off my funnel cake!!! ;)

If you want to let me know that you're coming to confirm numbers feel free to Email me - JaneThorpe@syban.net

I'm loving this right now.....

Thursday 22nd

Yesterday we met Val and her youngest at Kidz Quarterz for while. On Thursdays now you get two free games of Balladium when you go in, and we also had a coupon for 10 free tokens, so the children used those up. The Balladium looked kind of fun although I think Sam was a little young - it was JUST long enough for him I think. You feed balls into guns and fire them at targets.

I normally have a rule that I do NOT buy tokens at indoor playgrounds - I don't even think they should HAVE those stupid machines at indoor playgrounds....so it was a real treat for them to get some tokens...and I have to admit I found the whole thing bloody annoying!! The kids were there to play in the playground BUT from the moment we got there all they were interested in was the tokens and the machines :( THAT is why I do NOT buy them. And that is why I will not buy them normally!!! We go to the indoor playground for the INDOOR PLAYGROUND!!!!

Ok gripe over!!!

After KQ I took Sam to Pre-K for his class. While he was there, Abigail wanted to go ice skating, so off we went to the ice rink!!!! We were in the ice rink for 1 and a quarter hours and then we headed to the changing rooms and changed into our running gear. We then headed up to the running track for half an hour or so. Abigail did so well - she is so well behaved up there and goes off on her own now and knows how to go round people - overtaking them etc. She ran 2.5km!!! :)

We had thought about going swimming instead but were glad we didn't because when we looked into the pool on our way to the running track, it had been closed - someone had thrown up in the pool and everyone had to get out, shower and get in the hot tub instead while they decontaminate the pool!!!! YUCK!!! :)

Abigail fell asleep in the truck on the way home - tired out from all her activity! Her favourite part of the day was the running. She is loving our project on China - I wonder if I can entice her to add running the Great Wall of China Marathon to her Bucket List!!!!

Lloyd was late leaving work last night (well, 6pm lol) as they're having issues with a release at work. He then ran to Safeway, so he was really quite late for him....so I made dinner for the kids and he and I had dinner together - in fact we just had some nice French bread, some cheeses and then some melon. It was really yummy....and we ate that watching Mr Woodcock! never watched that before but OMG what a ridiculous but funny movie! Its kind of bad but really funny at the same time and has those moments where you feel the pain for them - like when Farley falls off the treadmill and when Woodcock's stretcher flips over - OUCH!!!!! And all through it I kept thinking how much Susan Sarandon looks like Val!!! I Just love Billy Bob Thornton!!!

Anyway, that was my Thursday! How was yours?

Happy Birthday!!!

Just want to say Happy Birthday to my friend Kathy!!! I hope you are having a wonderful day!

Thinking of you

Best wishes
Jane
x

Making mint ritz cookies...

Yum!

Too warm for coats....

Abigail and Sam soon shed their coats this afternoon and hung them on the gate while they played. It was just too warm to wear them. we have been enjoying lovely temperatures lately. Hard to believe that that is set to change tomorrow. It is supposed to be VERY cold starting tomorrow and lasting all weekend. What a shame. I think it is going to warm up to average temperatures by the time my birthday arrives next week. I hope so anyway! It is normally sooooo cold for it! One year (2005 I think because I think my Mom was here) It was REALLY bad. I remember we went out for dinner for my birthday but the windchill was so nasty it was horrible :(

Sam in the snow.....

Sam enjoying the snow this afternoon.

Jasper...

Meeting the bus!

The children had some good news this week! A new kindergarten child has joined the school and he or she lives on our road! Because of this, the bus has to take an alternate route and come past our house each afternoon - and the children will now be dropped off at the end of our driveway every afternoon! So I will no longer be known as the terrible mother who makes her children walk from the end of the road! I will now only make my children walk from the end of the driveway! 117 metres only! Oh my how ever will they cope?????????

Still, this afternoon it was nice to go and meet the children from the bus at the end of the driveway - I will miss the walk to the end of the road in Summer - which we will still do to the mail box of course, but in winter it IS more effort because the road is icy and there are no sidewalks out here and the compressed snow on the road never seems to clear - even now because of all of the trees and the direction of the sun, the compressed snow has not melted at ALL, so our road is very icy still, but in Summer I loved to walk to meet the bus. Yet because the bus will be at the end of the driveway I am sure we will go to meet them far more often although I would still worry about Sam and Abigail going alone - I know it sounds crazy not to let them go alone to the end of the driveway but the end of our driveway is soooo far from the house and I can't watch them that far away and if a car stopped and went to grab them they are too far to get to quickly. Big trucks, tractors, fast cars - you get idiots driving up these little township roads soooo fast sometimes.

But yes, it was nice today to be outside for a while and to meet the children from the bus and it IS nice that they don't have to walk so far in the cold and even in the rain on days when I have pre-K. I'm happy for them but I don't appreciate other Mothers telling me how to parent my children - I think some parents are ridiculous these days - it's because other parents don't let their kids get exercise that there are so many obese kids! They taxi their kids everywhere! OMG!!