Halloween 2010

My little ballerina...
Costume supplied by the great Nana
So Izzie could look like a "real" ballerina
Flashing Halloween pumpkin necklace not included.

Our Craft Corner

Which doubles as our dining table.

Mommy works on her hand quilting while Izzie works on her cutting, taping and colouring. Mostly cutting, she's fascinated with her blunt, round end scissors. Toddler bliss.

Halloween Costume

Izzie decided that she is going as a ballerina this Halloween...

And then pulled this awesome costume out of her tickle truck/play basket.

Halloween Costume, consider yourself done.....by a two year old. Sweet.

Another Reason

To love fall



Several reasons actually. I am off to make 13.5 pounds of apples into applesauce. Love it!

This Morning...

Dancing in

the sunlight

on

tiptoes.

Busy Kitchen

A lot has happened in the last little while. Izzie was struck down with a stomach bug that took forever to bugger off, my birthday passed with a tired, ucky (and cuddly) toddler on my chest and good company/food/drink, and we all were kept busy with spring planting.

And while all of this has been going on, our kitchen has been the busiest place in the house.

My two yellow bowls, whom I love, love, love. One with rye dough, one with baguette dough. One from Phil for Christmas(?) and one I bought for myself at our local antique store. Izzie loves the green star. And of course my tea, warming itself on the element.

Phil's second beer attempt. His first attempt was a rousing success. We hope to be able to support our love of beer for many years to come! (I help cap the bottles....when I don't snap the necks)

And lastly, full watering cans. We all love our new little garden. So far it has only onions but I hope to plant potatoes and tomatoes soon. And then, bring on canning season!

Hope you are all enjoying your spring.

Our Easter

Knit up a few easter eggs...

add a felted basket made by the Nana...

Add a note from the easter bunny..

And you have one very excited little girl!

Oh the utter glee that took over our house. Coffee and tea were not even close to being started and we were out the door.

Thank goodness the weather held off. It had rained and hailed the day before, so I...I mean the easter bunny wrapped the eggs in foil.

Izzie found all 5 of her eggs, but found one all by herself.

Do you see the egg?

And all to soon we were all done. All to soon for Izzie, not for the rest of us. We needed caffeine!

So we headed inside where I had set out the easter presents from our extended family. Everyone wanted to shower Izzie in easter love. The rest of the day passed in a sugar induced haze.

Her eggs and basket now sit on our nature table.

And we have all re-read that card to her about a gazillion times now.

Not bad for her first easter egg hunt!

Wordless Wednesday: Slurp

Rhythm in our Home: Part Two

"Rhythm is the magic word for parents and educators of young children. Young children thrive on a simple, flexible rhythm that carries them through their day, through each week and through the slowly unfolding years of their lives."

Heaven on Earth: A Handbook for Parents of Young Children - Sharifa Oppenheimer

Where did the week go?! I apologize for the pause in my posts, so I will make it up to you by now giving you part two.

Thursday is ..... Craft Day

This is the hardest day for me to think of creative things to do. Izzie is still a little too young to do and focus on crafty things. We've started learning how to finger knit, use scissors, home made play dough (pizza dough!) and use pipe cleaners. We try to use what we have in the house.

Friday is ..... Painting Day

But you knew that already! We paint with either finger paints or water colour paints. And sometimes we get a little crazy and paint with Jello! With finger painting Izzie and I work on the same paper. With water colouring we paint on separate pieces of paper. Painting in the past has been a bit of a struggle but I'm getting better!

Saturday and Sunday are what I like to call Family Days. We don't have any specific activities other than enjoying each others' presence. There's lots of biking, outside time if the weather is nice, reading, grocery shopping, cuddling, wrestling and so forth and so on. Basically Izzie and I soak in all the Daddy time we can get.

I thought you might also like to know what our daily routine looks like during the week....

7am - 8am: Wake up, Izzie and Daddy have breakfast while I catch a few more winks.

8:30am: Daddy off to work, Izzie and I finish up breakfast and clean up

8:30am - 9:30am: Sing songs and rhymes. Then Izzie plays with her toys while I catch up on my e-mail and blogs.

9:30am: Snack Time

9:40am - 10:30am: If the weather is nice, we head out for a morning walk. If the weather is foul we start on our daily project. If it is Monday, the first batch of laundry is ready to be folded in the bedroom. (Izzie usually has another snack, or as I like to call it her third breakfast, around this time too.)

10:30am: Play time ramping down to quiet time in the bedroom.

11am - 11:30am: Izzie naps while I get some work done. Sometimes I fall asleep with her:)

Anywhere from 12:15 pm - 2 pm: Izzie wakes, we spend some time waking up upstairs then come downstairs for lunch.

1pm - 2pm: Start or finish our daily project.

2:30pm - 3pm: If the day is nice, we head out for another walk or a bike ride to the park. If the weather is foul we read, play with dolls and clean up the house together. This is usually when the dishes are washed and the floors are vacuumed/swept.

4pm - 4:30pm: Phil gets home, is bombarded with what we did today.

5pm: Supper is served.

6pm - 6:30pm: If it's bath night, Phil takes Izzie for her bath. If not, we may go outside for a walk or hang out together inside.

7pm - 7:30pm: Bedtime.

It would be nice to pretend that we stay on schedule every single day, no matter what, but it doesn't always happen. I always try to stay on schedule as much as possible, but some days it doesn't work or we just want to stay outside for the whole day. I rarely, if ever, waiver with her nap and bedtimes . (Izzie has missed her nap once, and it was a very bad scene.) She needs her sleep. And I need her to sleep as well.

Thank you for visiting and reading. Up next, what resources do we use in our quest for a happier and healthier home.

Rhythm in our Home: Part One

We are surround by rhythm in nature: the alternation of day and night, the phases of the moon, the cycle of the seasons, the ebb and flow of the tides. Our bodies are permeated by rhythm, in the beating of our hearts, the breathing of our lungs, women's cycles of fertility and the circadian rhythms of our metabolism. But as modern human beings, we have also established a life that is removed from the rhythms of nature. Through electric light we can work well into the night; we can shop at twenty-four-hour supermarkets; we can fly strawberries to Minnesota in January. Through technology we can live outside of most of the messages and rhythms of our bodies and have forgotten the importance of rhythm in daily life."

You Are Your Child's First Teacher - Rahima Baldwin Dancy

Every day has a meaning, every day has a goal. This is something my Waldorf readings have impressed upon me. Rhythm is key, rhythm is home, rhythm is comfort.

Izzie thrives with a rhythmic balance in her life, we all do in our household. Every day has a meaning, a task to complete which gives a flow to our day. It keeps us busy, entertained and helps us love and enjoy our home and each other.

Monday is .... Laundry Day.

This day is for both Izzie and I. I love starting the week off with freshly cleaned laundry. Clean sheets on the bed, all of the outfits lined up for the rest of the week. It helps me relax, oddly enough. (I deplore doing laundry on the weekend! Weekends are for fun, not for folding!) Izzie and I tackle the laundry together. She helps me sort the clothes into piles, she carries articles of clothes to hang on the line, she hands me hangers when the laundry is clean, and she dances up a storm to my helpless giggles.

(I do not have Izzie help me put the laundry into the machines. They are down in the basement, not a place I want her to go anytime too soon. Tricky, scary stairs lead down there!)

Tuesday is ....Baking Day.

But you knew that already. We bake anything from cookies, to pizza dough, to a fruit crisp. The only stipulations are that it must be baked and it must be edible. As of now I do most of the mixing and measuring, but Izzie loves to pour, help me mix and taste test. Best baking helper ever!

Wednesday is .... Colouring Day

We have an art table set up in the living room with crayons for Izzie to colour at anytime. However, on colouring day we sit together at the dining table, listen to music and colour together. I pull out all of the colouring tools on this day, markers, pencil crayons and crayons. We both enjoy watching what the other is creating (a little too much sometimes) and chat while we work.

....to be continued.

Tuesday is....

Baking day!

And the

best part

about baking day

is

the taste test.

Wordless Wednesday: BROOMBALL!!

A wonderful way to spend a "stuck inside" day.

Tutu optional.

Painting Together

And surviving...

Rhythm is a very important part of our daily lives. Every day of the week has a special activity that drives our day. Friday is painting day.

I have been working very hard on calming my inner crank since we started painting.

Today we ventured back into painting with a brush.

I took the advice of Rahima Baldwin Dancy (love her!) and started with one colour and one colour only.

(Fingers just had to make contact with the paints.)

We painted for a good long while, then we were done.

No spazzing, no crying, no cringing. Just fun.

I think the matching headbands may have helped. Or not...

Happy Friday to you all! Enjoy your weekend.

Wordless Wednesday: Kilt!

These pictures were taken the morning of the Winnipeg Scottish Festival. The same festival where I first met Phil! (Nana brought this kilt back from Scotland. It is the Dress Gordon tartan, our tartan.)


(And a shot of Izzie wearing her protective earmuffs at the festival. Bagpipes are loud!)