Music, Mudroom, Parade, Holiday Train, Duffin's Creek, Pickering Tree Lighting, Tree, Wood Signs
While we are always busy, the last few weeks were no different.
The kids are practicing their instruments routinely. Hadley is a few new songs each week. Soon she will try songs that she recognizes but for now they are the standard two line songs with just a few notes. She happily practices and it sounds lovely!
Easton is playing songs that are recognizable like Wild Thing by the Troggs and Time Of Your Life by Green Day. He likes that he can play them but doesn't love to practice. Although when people come to visit they both happily put on their little concerts. (So practice time on those days is amazing)!
Brian and I have been working hard to get the mudroom closet functioning. Up until now we just had a space with doors. Now there are shelves, and a coat rack. SO MUCH BETTER!
We took the kids to the Ajax Santa Claus Parade to kick start the holiday season. While it was green and warm it still jolted us into Christmas!
Then I took the kids out of school about an hour early so we could go to Oshawa to see the CP Holiday Train come through. This year Colin James and Emma Lee sang the carols. The lights on the side of the train were lovely and even had a Canada 150 tribute however it was so early this year at 3pm that it was still light out and hard to see the lights even though they were on.
I was fortunate enough to go with Hadley on her trip to Duffin's Creek. In the morning we learned how to make an A frame shelter with ropes (that they needed to learn how to tie a knot with), logs, and tarp. Then each child got a turn to light a match and build a small fire. This was very exciting for them!
In the afternoon the kids did a mapping exercise where they had to locate things around the property while keeping note of where north was.
I remember doing something similar as a kid at a place called Wildwood. FUN TIMES!
This past weekend I took the kids to the Pickering Tree Lighting Ceremony. It is always busy but always good. This year Splash & Boots sang, (we managed to find a spot literally under the tree near the front and the kids could see fairly well, then we were eventually able to get them right up front when a few people left to do other events), the kids did a Christmas tree craft, saw Santa and Mrs. Claus, went on some rides, and of course we enjoyed the fireworks and saw the large trees with all their beautiful lights!
We are hosting the Verkley Christmas this year so we decided this weekend to go pick out our tree and because it is a special year (hosting and all), we decided to go BIG! We got a 12 foot tree! It looks amazing! I can't wait for it to open fully and decorate it!
Shaye came this weekend for our Christmas visit as her family Christmas was in Oshawa this year. The kids were spoiled with My little pony figures for Hadley and Pokemon cards for Easton. Shaye and I decided to gift each other an experience this year. So we went and painted wood signs. They turned out fairly well actually. The group that was there were regulars and we were the new people so they seemed pretty excited that we were there. Lots of laughter and some concentration.