Summer Camping!

The kids and I ventured out for our first camping trip without Dad, including the tent trailer.  Rand started a new job this year and it is very busy so is unable to take holidays until the Fall.  Our best friends keep their trailer at a resort near Rocky Mountain House so we got a double site and camped together.  It was lots of fun except for the heat.  I think I had some remnants of heat stroke with a horrible headache the day we left and the day after.  The day after it was 40 degrees with the humidity and there was a weather warning to stay in air conditioned places and not outdoors.  Ha!  So we wandered into town and had iced drink after iced drink and Popsicles.  Eventually the headache faded but it was so hot we didn't want to cook.  We spent more time in and near the pool.

I took the kids to Twin Lakes a couple of times.  There were perch and rainbow trout swimming right near the dock we were fishing off of.  We used worms initially (fake ones and tied ones) but did not catch a fish.  The perch nibbled on the worms but must have been full.  The other folks nearby were using power bait so we went to the store to get some and returned to the same spot that evening.  The sad thing was shortly after we settled into a good spot on the dock, all alone, about 9 other people showed up and stayed.  Pretty poor fishing manners if you ask me.  So too much going on for any bites then, either.  Boo.

The kids and I also went to see the Rocky Mountain House National Historic Site.  After wandering a bit I realized I had been there when we were on holidays as a family when I was about 8 years old.  I had vague memories of being there but could remember pictures of my family at different spots.  Rowan said this and fishing was the highlight of the trip!

Learning about the life of David Thompson inside the museum part of the site.

Getting ready to go on a little hike.  The heat was just letting up as some rain clouds rolled in but there was no rain.

One of the original chimneys from the original fort built by the Voyageurs who came to set up business for trade with the Blackfoot.

One of the original boats used by the Voyageurs to bring goods to and from Eastern Canada down the North Saskatchewan River.

The kids rode their bikes quite a bit around our campsite as we had lots of space.  The shot above is blurry but we had to get one of Poppy and Brandon on their Strider running bikes!

Both Rowan and Poppy slept very well on the trip.  I couldn't fall asleep until later due to the heat and some people leaving campfires burning so the smoke wafted into our trailer.

One of the super hot days we went to Crimson Lake for the afternoon.  Rowan was so excited to search for and catch leaches and minnows.  He caught two leaches and a dozen or so minnows.  Our friends were not so enthusiastic as to join us at this beach due to the leaches there but we were able to see them very plainly (they were about the size of my pinkie finger, maybe a bit bigger and black). 

Poppy spent most of her time crawling on her tummy in the water or swimming.  

A different very hot day we went for a nice swim earlier in the day.  Then we went to the deck beside the pool to have a big ice cream cone.  Rowan and I played Rat A Tat Cat while Poppy and I coloured in her Fairy Colouring Book at the same time.  We were in the shade and it was so peaceful.  Another family we know came that day as well so we went visited with them a bit and went to the petting zoo together.

Poppy and Rowan enjoyed candy from the store and made sure to bring some home for Daddy!  It was a nice holiday and especially nice to be able to spend time with our friends, too.

Jumpin' June!

Rowan, Poppy and I got ourselves organized and out the door early enough to join some folks downtown for the Peace Walk for the Journey for Reconciliation.  June 10th marks the anniversary of the first public apology made by our Prime Minister to the First Nations People of Canada for the horrors that occurred during the development and running of residential schools in this country.  While the reason for the walk may seem too much of an adult idea to share with children, it is not in our home.  If course my children do not know the graphic details of the abuse that took place but I have given them bits of information that I feel they can handle at their age.  My Father's close friend of many years is from the Blood Reserve and was raised for some years in a residential school along with her siblings.  My best friend and her husband are Metis.  We have close connections to people we care deeply about who were affected by the residential school system.  And above that, we were compassionate human beings who care about social consciousness and want to work toward a peaceful world in any way we can.  And so we walked.

As we walked with people of all colours, many of them children, some of them in foster care, we heard the drums beating ahead of us.  It was not a walk that was advertised but somehow the number of people who attended was much greater than the year before.   I was quite proud to be employed by one of the supporting and organizing agencies as a foster parent and contract staff.  We all stopped the walk at one point and later learned there was an eagle flying above us - a sign that we were doing the right thing.

The end point of the walk was at Fort Calgary.  There were speeches and recognitions.  Everyone was invited to paint a buffalo to be placed on a large table with many other buffalo.  A local artist was attempting to create a piece that would display 4,000 buffalo to demonstrate what our plains looked like at any given time prior to European settlement when they were nearly killed to extinction.

 Rowan and Poppy painted an extra buffalo to bring home for Daddy for Father's Day.

Rowan had a different experience with his music class than he has in the past.  The expectations were much higher than in the lower grades.  Rowan attended his music gala and played one piece with his class.  In the photo below he is playing one of two songs on the teacher's piano in front of the class.  All of Rowan's participation is truly voluntary in music.  I have become more structured in practice at home but he knows he can refuse the public performances and final exam if he wishes.  While he chose to take the exam and perform he was quite nervous about them all.  He was very excited at the same time and I have to admit I was beaming the entire time he was performing.

The class prepared a special song just for the parents.  When we got home Rowan wrote a short piece for Rand for Father's Day.  It was so awesome!

I had to show you what Rowan and Poppy often look like first thing in the morning while they are getting TV time in.  They cuddle in the morning all the time.  I often wonder if this sibling bond they have will stand the test of time and be as strong or even stronger when they are adults.

 For Summer Solstice, like last year, we released our Painted Lady butterflies (raised from wee larvae to brightly winged butterflies).  This time we brought close friends to the park near our house.

 Every year I kick myself that another year has gone by and we haven't planted trees.  We have one sad evergreen that will be cut down this year for our Christmas tree due to the shape and location, and now we have a Honey crisp Apple tree and a Paper Birch tree!  Poppy helped Rand plant them in her fancy shoes.

I also begged Rand to build me 3 raised garden beds and ordered some awesome compost and garden soil this year.  You can see the very beginnings of radishes, potatoes, kale, lettuce, zucchini, pumpkin, beans, peas, and carrots.  There is also dill, basil, mint, and cilantro.  The bushy green stuff is my huge strawberry patch that has been going strong for 7 years or so and the chives have been there for about 5 years.  Rand is not a gardening kind of guy - he truly considers yard work WORK.

We attended my lovely friend's Summer Solstice party this year at her farm and it was a glorious day.  I was asked to do henna for anyone who was interested and quite a few people had it done on the porch overlooking gorgeous green fields.

Poppy and I in the little field of poppies.  If you look back  2 years ago when we were at the Solstice Party of 2010 you can see Poppy and I in the same spot but she was much smaller!

And much to Rowan's dismay, soccer ended for the year at the end of June!  He had lots of family come out to different games to cheer him on.  Rowan wants to continue with soccer in some way or another as he really loved it.   I need a break from the evening activities so I think we will wait until next year but it was sure worth the time and effort!

Magnificent May

Rowan became interested in another sport this May, and that was soccer.  He started his first ever team sport an was really excited.  The team didn't have a Coach, Assistant Coach, or Manager but we were told some Under 20 players would volunteer on a rotating basis to help with coaching.  Rand offered to help with coaching as well when the team was in a jam.  It turned out that Rand coached every game and we didn't see any of the volunteers we were told about!  While it made for a busy week with Rowan and Rand having to be at soccer 2 nights per week plus Rowan being in Music one night a week, it was all worth it.  The kids all loved Rand and they were an amazing team.  Rowan was so enthusiastic about his team he was heard on the sidelines cheering throughout the game when he wasn't on the field.  He showed a bit of an aptitude toward soccer as well.  

We started out the Spring taking Nature Walks to various parks and natural areas in and around the city.  The photo below is of Rowan and Poppy along the banks of the Bow River at Carburn Park.

 We went on our first camping trip of the year with my brother and his family to Tall Timber, near Sundre, Alberta.  It was the coldest camping trip we have taken as a family with a bit of rain but mostly cool weather.  We used the furnace every night!  Poppy and Rowan have started helping around camp a lot as you can see by Poppy drying the dishes!

I think these cousins could spend endless hours together as they did while camping.  Our sites were very close together and there was a little path through the trees behind us where the kids would run around playing spies and hiding.  Memories they will have for a lifetime.

 Rowan comes from a long line of avid fishermen and his passion is a match for them all.  The significant difference is he has never caught a thing. You can see my brother getting his fly rod set up and Rowan patiently fishing with his spinning rod.  We were at a small lake called Beaver Lake which is known for producing trophy sized trout.  We could see the fish jumping everywhere.  Cody helped guide Rowan as best as he could but I think the lake was too busy in this particular day.

 Poppy was given her own rod and tackle box for her birthday from her Grandpa Brown and she wasted no time in wetting a line for the first time.

Rowan is really excited because he is finished the dishes!  We had so much fun camping on this trip and hope it will be a tradition for our family that we can carry on for many years to come.

 A few days after returning home from camping Rowan and I put together a space where he could have his audio books, sketching books, and other important items that he doesn't want Poppy to get in to.  Rowan is not comfortable playing upstairs in his room or downstairs where we have lots of toys and fun things, so we set up a little indoor tent in the living room.  Poppy needed her own tent as well so we put hers together.  Rowan made a sign on his own that said "OPN" and "CLOZD".  I think he got the idea from the tee pees at the Stampede.  Anyway the space was used a lot and enjoyed for a few weeks!

For one of our weekly Nature Walks we invited some close friends to Shannon Terrace in Fish Creek Park.  We took a long, lovely hike and had our lunch at this beautiful spot.  Poppy and her friend were about to take their clothes off to go in for a dip when a large school group  of children about the same ages as our children came walking up to us.  I think they were going to use the same spot for a project and looked thoroughly puzzled at what we were all doing playing in the middle of the say in this particular spot.  There was much staring and giggling.  My friend and I looked at each other with gratitude as we often do that we live this homeschooling life.

May brought us many wonderful adventures and a taste of the beginning of Spring and all of life waking up!