COOKIES!!!

What is the holiday season without a few little tidbits of yumminess?? Well, I won't have to find out! On Saturday Peekaboo and I joined some friends (many of whom I had not seen in YEARS-I won't say how many!) to do a good ol' fashioned cookie bake! Peekaboo, Jill and Natalie ran around, played, licked beaters and iced cookies (when the mood struck them) and the 'big' girls drank wine and baked!



Between the seven of us, that were actually baking, we made about 20 different recipes. We set them up on Spinner's lovely dining table for a photo shoot, then divided them up amoungst ourselves to take home.
What a spread! And, how fun!! Thanks ladies.

Still mail-order shopping....!?!

Even having moved to the land of plenty, I am doing my Christmas shopping online! Peekaboo has asked Santa for a 'real piano, that I can play real songs on'. I looked around here; Toys R Us, Sears, The Toy Cupboard etc...they had some, but the reviews were awful (as was the sound they produce!)
After careful consideration, we went with the Schoenhut 30 Key piano. It, apparently, sounds pretty nice, never needs tuning, and suits a child of Peekaboo's age. It comes with a colour-coded song book and a key chart that fits on the piano. If I post a link on my blog
Little Wonders


the company Little Wonders will give me a discount!
So, all my northern friends, if you are still shopping try this site out!!

Happy Christmas Shopping to you all!

Happy November

Hey all. I have been negligent in my 'blogging'.....Ooops! To say I am sorry would be a lie. We have been busy, really busy!
Peekaboo started school. She is in Kindergarten Monday, Wednesday and every second Friday. Her teacher was concerned about the fact that she didn't attend a formal JK program...she is no longer concerned. I am, however. Peekaboo brings home one worksheet a week in her "Sharing folder". She is already asking me for more because the one from school is "boring"! If she thinks school is boring at 5 years-old...yikes! We will be getting a 'performance report' (or 'Report Card') this week and will know better....
Tim has started a job, quit it and started a different job! All I can say is-Thank Goodness! The first one was horrible. He has only had the second one for 2 weeks, and I can tell you it is WAY better.
I have been offered a part-time job as well. EyeGO is a Canadian Arts Council program that is working on getting a younger generation of theatre-goers. I am the new "Development Officer". It is a part-time position, out of my home (yay!) 10 hours a week. It has potential for growth, and could become full-time in a year or so. I haven't officially started yet, but I am optimistic.
I have also done a little stint at the University of Waterloo. I went in and 'taught' some of the second year tech class for four days. It was AWESOME! I really missed that in my life over the last few years...being appreciated for something other than my crafts skills and ability to make up songs at the drop of a hat!!
I have also been making the odd cake here and there. I posted some photos on Kijiji and waited to see what would happen...got 6 orders for cakes in October-not bad!! None for November yet, but I am kind of enjoying the break. And, to keep myself busy, I am making slipcovers for a friends' dining room chairs!
We have been to a local farm to celebrate Autumn. There were hay bales to play on, wagon rides, petting zoo, clown show and a corn maze-very fun. We also enjoyed a little of Octoberfest this year. The kids and I went to a free lunch at Waterloo Town Square for the opening ceremonies....


The weather has been holding nicely, with sunny days and cool, crisp evenings. Peekaboo has yet to wear her winter coat-and loves it!

Discovering Autumn!

My kids have never seen autumn....
OK, that isn't true, they have seen autumn...Northwest Territories style.

Welcome to autumn in southern Ontario! We regularly walk around the block near our home, usually after dinner. The street is lined with beautiful, huge maple trees. One has begun to turn early. The colours are better than I remember, and the kids LOVE it! It occured to me that in the NWT we didn't get the colours or the weather of autumn like we do here. Now our walks are twice as long around the block, because we must stop and play in the leaves for at least 20 minutes.....every time!


Watching my children play in the leaves makes my heart sing with joy. They throw them, jump in them, bury themselves...all by instinct, no directions required. Watching my kids reminds me that it doesn't really take much to make someone truly happy. I must admit, I scooped up a few handfuls to throw myself!

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!

IT'S OFFICIAL!!! THERE IS A KINDERGARTEN STUDENT IN MY HOUSE!!!
On Friday September 10th Peekaboo started her school career! She was very excited, nervous, happy, sad and just overwhelmed! (And so was Mommy!) We got ready extra early, chose a dress, had very little breakfast and then headed out. She played in the playground for a little bit until the bell rang. The students line up on yellow dots painted on the asphalt and then head into class. There were lots of anxious parents hovering around those dots too!!
She waved goodbye enthusiastically before disappearing into the depths of her first step in the long road to formal education.
Ezra cried. I did not, much!



(Ezra enjoyed playing on the equipment while we waited for her to be released.....)

When we arrived to pick her up, we hovered around the same dots, with the same anxious parents! She came running out, big smile on her face! I asked how her first day of school was and she shouted,
"GREAT!" can't beat that!

Meeting the teacher, seeing the classroom

On Wednesday, we went to Elizabeth Ziegler School to meet Peekaboo's teacher and see her classromm.
She and Ezra waited outside Mrs. Kennedy's room for our turn. When we went in Peekaboo was given a tour, and the kids played while Daddy and I spoke with Mrs. Kennedy. She has a 'cubby' for her things, there are lots of toys and little play areas. There are even two washrooms in the room (the kindergarten students don't have to go to the big bathroom across the hall, yay!!) with toilets about 1 1/2 feet off the ground! Ezra had to try one out!!




It was nice to get to see where she will be. She was nervous, but excited!

Crazier than usual!!

Well, it has been a harried month....so, lets get everyone up to date....
I started a job, in Guelph (ugh), the van died, I quit the job, Tim started a job, we got a second vehicle, Ezra got his 4th UTI in 18 months, Peekaboo started Kindergarten, I started decorating cakes again, we got a QUEEN sized bed (yahoo!)...ummmmm.....is that all??
Yep, I started a full-time job in Guelph. It was pretty neat. It was going to be a big adjustment for everyone...but then the van died and Tim got offered a full-time job here so I had to quit after only 2 days. Not cool. The kids are happy though.
Tim started a job this past Tuesday. Will be a challenge, but similar to what he was doing in the NWT, so I think he will be fine after a month or so.
The van......? Don't even want to talk about that!
Spent over 9 hours total trying to get Ezra in to see a Dr to get a prescription for his 4th UTI in the last 18 months-FRUSTRATING!!!
Mom bought herself a new bed, and brought us her Queen-sized bed-it is AWESOME!! And we got new sheets too! Happy Wedding to US!!
I will give some details of Peekaboo's first day of school in it's own entry-I think that is only fair!
I posted an ad on Kijiji for cake decorating.....I didn't expect to get many responses, after all I live somewhere that has actual bakeries now. Well, shock! I had 3 cakes in 3 days!! Check out my Sew Sweet blog for photos.

Not to be left out....

We are an equal opportunity "strange clothes that Mom made" house....which means that Ezra isn't missing out on my creations.

While at Mom's a couple of weeks ago, I partook in "Goods Exchange Day", which is code for "put your junk out at the curb, and crazy people will drive around for hours picking through it for treasures". Well, I found an old beach bag that someone had made, it was falling apart-needing some sewing TLC. I decided that I did not need any more bags, so I ripped it completely apart and started over....




I made them extra long, with a light blue lining that shows when we roll them up. That way he can wear these odd pants for many months to come!

Stay tuned for the overalls that are my current project!!

My newest project....

I have just finished a new dress for Peekaboo...It is a variation on the reversible dress I made her last year (which she is still wearing!)
This has the same bodice, with little gold buttons. The difference is that the skirt is made up of 80-ish 4" squares! Yup! I didn't think this through very well before starting! That is A LOT of cutting!
I bought 5 'fat squares' at Len's Mill and started cutting. There are 4 rows of squares, each one 1 1/2 x bigger than the row before. That means that I also had to gather each row before sewing it!! It was a lot of work, but well worth it-she loves it! Because of the amount of fabric, when she twirls it goes straight out! I will have to make matching panties for the next one!! (Next one?!?! Am I mad!?!?!)

Peek 'n Ezee with their #1 hit single....

"We drive Mom CRAZEEEEE!" tops the charts this week!

Happy Birthday Tim!!

On the 1st of August it was Tim's birthday!
We had his sister over for supper and a chat. Made a fantastic dinner of chicken korma, paneer darbari, naan, raosted carrots and basmati rice. Thank goodness the weather was a little cooler (not 30 + degrees out) or we would have been having cold sandwiches!!

The cake was an apple spice with buttercream...the Bulk Barn was awesome for the 'bits' on top for decorating! Red chocolate wafers for pepperoni, dried apples for mushrooms (only on half!) green gummies for green peppers!



Happy Birthday Hunny!!

Sunflowers

I can't help but think of my friend Jen when I think of sunflowers. She tried desperately to grow some at RKY camp one summer, but the chipmunks thwarted her every move!!
Well, Peekaboo had much better luck. She started some seeds in a little container with her Playschool in Hay River. We moved them, and I wasn't sure they would survive, but....
When Tim arrived in Ontario one had sprouted!! Yay! We set them in the window sill and kept watch. To our amazement a few more sprouted and I quickly decided we needed to move them out of their tiny container if we wanted them to do well. We have a large barrel in the backyard that was too heavy to move so we transplanted them into it. Some of them were too close together, but some were able to be separated. They have grown and grown! This week most of them are blooming! Peekaboo is thrilled (and so am I!!) The first sprout, the one I was able to separate from the rest, is still the biggest and it hasn't bloomed yet. We are interested to see how big it will grow.
In the meantime, Peekaboo is enjoying her "field of sunflowers". Hope you enjoy them too!!

How cute is this?!?

I sing to the kids a lot....usually before bed, but not always just then. Lately Ezra's favourite has been "Row, Row, Row your boat". He asks for it EVERY night. Well, I guess he has been listening...sort of!!! Enjoy!

The knot is tied!

We Did It!! On Canada Day, at 11am, Tim and I officially became hubby and old lady!! I can't believe it! It was a fantastic day. We were married in my Mom's backyard with our close family and a few select friends in attendance. The weather was perfect, sunny and warm without any humidity. My Mom did an amazing job, borrowing flowers and tables from neighbours, the gardens looked lovely. Her next-door- neightbour allowed us to pose in front of their garden for some photos as well.



Mike, Tim's sister's husband, is a very accomplished guitarist. We had asked him if he would play for us before and after the ceremony-it was awesome! He continued to play throughout the afternoon as well.


My Dad walked Peekaboo and I from my Mom's house to the garden where Tim and Ezra were waiting. I am so glad that it worked out so well.



Our officiate, Terri, was great. The ceremony was about 10 minutes long, and we had signed all the paperwork in advance, so by the end we were MARRIED!!


After the ceremony we took a few photos with family and then had our potluck BBQ. Mom made tiny burgers (sliders) and we had hot dogs. People brought all kinds of fabulous salads and side dishes. It was great. Dad and Liz provided the champagne to fill my awesome glasses, and I provided two cakes; a carrotcake with creamcheese frosting and a chocolate fudge sour cream cake with chocolate ganache! yum!!




If I had to change anything......I WOULDN'T!! It was a beautiful, perfect, wonderful day. Thanks to everyone who took part and all of those who sent us their happy thoughts and warm wishes.

MRS. Tigger McCullough!!

The Wedding.....

So, for those of you who don't know....Tim and I aren't actually married-yet.....
My Dad and Liz will be in Ontario as of this Saturday, whooohooooo! And our good friends Frances and Adam and their two boys will be too. I had a middle of the night brainwave....why don't Tim and I get married while they are here?!?! So, we had about 4 weeks to organize this 'extravaganza' for July 1st!
We got the licence, we met with an officiate (who is fabulous!) and sent out the homemade invitations. We only invited about 2 dozen people, but would have happily invited everyone we know!!! Unfortunately, most of the people we know are in another province....We will be thinking of you all.
Wanting to make this event as groovy and fantastic as possible, and also as inexpensive as we could, required some thinking and imagination....
I bought Peekaboo an off-white dress at the Thrift store. We then went to Len's Mill and bought ribbon, little ribbon flowers and sparkles for embellishment. I am making her a flowered headband with ribbons and beads to go with it!
I looked at some lovely dresses for myself in various Thrift stores and Value Village, but happened upon a beautiful, silk, awesome dress, NEW! I had to have it!!
We are having a potluck bbq after the ceremony, and the next consideration was dishes....Real or paper? China or plastic? I opted for paper plates, the 'good' ones, but have to have real glass for the champagne. I raided every Thrift store in the KW area and bought all the champagnesque glasses I could. I bought glass paint and got busy! These will be 'take-homes' for the attendees of our event!

Happy Canada Day Everyone!!


I really like the one with the blue stripe and the daisies....


Dad, Liz, Mom, Peter and Gramma


Groovy flowery...


For the kids!

Old dress!

This weekend, while in Owen Sound, I took photos of Peekaboo wearing this lovely little dress. There are photos of me wearing it when I was 4 and photos of my mom wearing it as well!! Isn't that crazy! I will have to get it printed out and find a 3-fold frame to put them all side-by-side!!

 

Projects......

I am constantly working on some project or another....moosehide or deer hide slippers, knitting, crocheting, cake building, bed painting....something.
Well, I started a project in Hay River in March-and finished it (Finally!) last night. While at the K'amba Carnival Pancake Breakfast in March, Peekaboo spotted rabbit fur dyed pink. Diane provides many Northern crafters with sinew, hides, pelts, beads....etc... She had pink fur, I thought Peekaboo was going to explode.... I told her I was NOT buying pink rabbit fur...Guess what? I bought it. And then I began my long, complicated project...slippers for her using said fur. She wanted ballerinas on the uppers. Well, having worked with beads quite a bit, I knew that I was not going to get the details required for a Ballerina with beads....no way. So, I began to experiment and ask around and decided on embroidery. I have never embroidered a thing in my life, why not start now!??!
I wanted a good contrasting colour for the background, and decided on denim. I even bought one of those hoopy things. I did two different ballerinas, a different pose on each foot. I had this all finished before we moved, then I packed everything away and haven't thought of it since!
Last night I finally finished putting the Pink Rabbit Fur trim on, and they are done! Peekaboo hasn't seen them yet, but I think she will love them!!





Part of the reason said slippers weren't finished sooner, I started another project since moving....a sweater for Ez.
I was at my Mom's with all my crafty stuff packed, when we first arrived in Ontario. I spotted a yarn store in downtown Owen Sound and, with my inability to pass a shop full of colourful wool, bought a pattern, some wool and the required needles (mine were all packed, but I can always use more!!)
I am not in the habit of using patterns, I find them difficult to read and the finished project never turns out quite like the photo. I prefer to make my own pattern and then pretend the finished piece is exactly what I was planning....! But, this time, I got the wool lady to explain it all to me and off I went. I finished said sweater on Saturday night. I tried it on Ez Sunday morning and he wouldn't take it off....must mean he likes it!!
Peekaboo has requested one... in PINK!!

And it begins......

This is me;

"Ezra, put on your shoes."

This is Ezra;

"Why Mommy?"

"So we can go get in the van"

"Why Mommy?"

"We need to go to the grocery store for bread"

You guessed it...."Why Mommy?"

It is actually pretty funny. He is now saying it ALL THE TIME!!

During lunch, Peekaboo finished first and got an oatmeal cookie. Ezra said "Mommy, cookie?" I said "When you finish your lunch.... "Why Mommy?"

Good grief!! Hahah!!

Fun week....

With the weather being so nice, and Tim still home, we decided to take advantage and go on a family trip to the Toronto Zoo.


We got up early (earlier than usual!) and were on the road by 6:45. Then.....the 401. Turns out that not much has changed in 7 years, including the frustrating endevour of trying to get anywhere on that highway. It was stop (litterally, STOP) and go from Milton on. It took us 2 1/5 hours to get to the zoo! Amazing! Luckily, we have awesome kids! They were great in the van, entertaining themselves and us for the entire trip!







We finally got there and it was great! The weather was perfect, warm but not awful. There weren't a lot of people there when we first arrived, and the improvements they have made to the overall layout made for a good time. We didn't get stuck behind big hoards of people, we could see, we could get into all the exhibits. Unfortunatley, there were a number of animals 'off exhibit' or enclosures that were closed for 'construction'...but, all-in-all, FUN!!
They have a new area, the KidZoo! So great! The kids, and the adults, thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

The trip home, only 1 1/5 hours! ohhhh the 401...we saw some OPP 4x4 race by and traffic started to slow around Cambridge, so we got off and went through town home. We arrived, safe and sound and exhausted. Both kids were in bed, asleep, by 6:30! Both parents probably could have been as well!

Our Crazy Life just got crazier!

Well, we did it. We have moved across the country with our two small childre and our dog! I don't know who is more traumatized currently....
The move was loooong. The kids and I flew, NeWT and Tim drove. We all met up a Mom's in Owen Sound on Saturday the first of May.
We knew we had a unit in the Co-op, but didn't know which one or when we could move in. We spent most of the first week of May phoning them to try and motivate them to hurry and make some decisions. Got word that we could move in on the 7th. Deni (who is 9 months pregnant) came down with us and watched/entertained the kids while Tim and I unloaded the truck...in the rain....and the cold... with no help....Not a great start. Thank heaven for Deni! Mom and Rob drove down later that night with the washer and dryer!!! Yay! All stayed over and left Saturday morning, that is when the real work began.....
So, a week later and things are starting to feel like home. We have become avid fans of Kijiji and have managed to furnish our new home fairly well. We are within walking distance of two major shopping centres, the Waterloo park (which has 2 playgrounds, geese, swans, ducks, rabbits, deer, goats, alpacas, llamas and mini horses, and a kicking waterpark!!) and the entire uptown Waterloo core! Location, Location, Location!!
The kids rooms are great, ours is nice and large, the living area is small but we have a lovely fully fenced yard that we plan on making LOTS of use of! We even found a couple of play groups to enjoy (they aren't Growing Together, but at least there is something!!)
The weather has been fairly sucky all week, but today it is sunny and awesome! Yay!!
The kids have been completely off the wall, a lot of change for two children as wed to their routines as these two. I am trying to be patient, but the whining may drive me over the brink!!! Hopefully this will pass quickly.
All in all, we are adjusting. It was a good move for us, if somewhat difficult.

Happy Easter all!