The actual anniversary of the day she was born is not until Monday. But I planned her party five days early in the hope that more people would not be out of town for the weekend. Summer birthdays are tricky because the usual schedules do not apply, and it's harder to hand out invitations when the guests won't be seeing each other regularly at school.
We delivered invitations last week that were covered in sparkly stars, and heralded the upcoming festivities. Right off the bat two of the girls' moms said they would be away this week and couldn't make it. Oh no! So I invited one more girl from Caylie's class, and hoped the rest would be able to attend.
We set up tables in the park, and laid out some snacks. The guests all arrived (most of them brought siblings), and even one family who we hadn't invited but came to celebrate with us anyway. First the kids decorated home-made jet packs with stickers - some of the siblings had to share jet packs because there were more kids than I had planned! Then they zoomed around with jet power to catch the coloured bubbles Kent blew for them.
Once we'd had enough of the bubbles, they sat down at the table again to decorate cookies. I had made sugar cookies in the shapes of rockets, stars, and moons and I set out lots of icing, candies and sprinkles for them to adorn them. This was a popular activity and they kept at it quite a while. When the first child was done his cookies, I led him over to my "moon rock" station where he took a moon rock (a ball of baking soda with a small toy hidden inside), and dropped it into a jar of vinegar. Then we watched the fizzling, bubbling jar until the toy floated up to the top, and he fished it out with the tongs.
When everyone had had a turn fizzling a moon rock, we uncovered the food and had snack time. Then I turned them loose on the water park and the parents had a breather for a few minutes while they ran around. At this point some of the kids had to leave soon, so I rounded them up and they sat down for cake. I had made a cake with different coloured cake balls around a yellow sun, and the kids had fun ordering what planet they'd like to eat.
As usual, we had specified for the guests not to bring gifts, but that we were collecting donations for the Penticton Food Bank. The guests brought lots of donations, and Caylie will proudly deliver them to the Food Bank this afternoon.
My youngest child proclaimed her party a success, and is satisfied with this eagerly awaited event. Hooray!
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
TKD news
In the recent world of Tae Kwon Do, the kids have some exciting news. Madison has successfully completed her test for green stripe! Not only that, but her test was in Summerland in front of a HUGE panel of judges and lots of spectators. Good for her! Kai and Caylie were not ready to test in so intimidating a venue, so they are waiting until fall to have their patterns better memorized and work on their kicks a bit more.
Madison and Kai have also participated in their first tournament. Madison earned a gold medal for her pattern (against 3 other competitors - aged 9-12). Kai earned a silver for his pattern against one other boy - both boys forgot their patterns and didn't complete them in the competition, but were awarded medals anyway.
Madison was reluctant to spar in the tourney, but she did anyway and did great! Her opponent was an enormous 12 year old boy who had just creamed his first match. At the end of the first round, Madison was ahead! But he kicked her in the neck and she was hurt - she sucked it up and finished the match anyway very bravely but she lost a little steam, and the boy realized he had to step up his game. She ended up losing the match with a final score of 11-16. She was shaky at first afterward, but as time wore on she was really proud of how she did and pretty impressed that she'd scored 11 points on the guy! Kai also sparred and is proud of how he did.
I think we may try another tournament after the summer break.
Madison and Kai have also participated in their first tournament. Madison earned a gold medal for her pattern (against 3 other competitors - aged 9-12). Kai earned a silver for his pattern against one other boy - both boys forgot their patterns and didn't complete them in the competition, but were awarded medals anyway.
Madison was reluctant to spar in the tourney, but she did anyway and did great! Her opponent was an enormous 12 year old boy who had just creamed his first match. At the end of the first round, Madison was ahead! But he kicked her in the neck and she was hurt - she sucked it up and finished the match anyway very bravely but she lost a little steam, and the boy realized he had to step up his game. She ended up losing the match with a final score of 11-16. She was shaky at first afterward, but as time wore on she was really proud of how she did and pretty impressed that she'd scored 11 points on the guy! Kai also sparred and is proud of how he did.
I think we may try another tournament after the summer break.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
New Member of the Family
We have adopted an adorable new puppy. His name is Revy (for Revelstoke), and he is an English Cream Golden Doodle. This means he is lean and athletic like a Poodle, and sweet natured like a Golden Retriever. His coat is white and wavy, but he will not shed or cause allergic reactions. What a score!
So far Revy is a very calm, gentle puppy. He learns some things very quickly and much of his training was already in place when he arrived. He could already follow the commands for "sit", "down," "come," "take it", and "leave it." He was already sleeping through the night in his crate, and was waiting to go outside to relieve himself. He is 15 weeks old.
Revy's first night at our house. Getting to know his new bed.
Tired puppy napping in the hallway to keep cool on a warm evening.
Out for a walk at the park.
Hanging out with Kent watching the kids in the playground.
Handsome pup!
I have never had a dog before, so there is lots to get used to. There are some things we're trying to train him about that are proving challenging: Walking on the leash without pulling; Not chewing furniture, shoes, toys; Showing affection without jumping up on people and furniture; Not barking or chasing when he sees another dog. These things will take time, and he is improving already, so we just need to be consistent.
There are some things about dogs that are new to me but I find entertaining. He likes to take short naps in succession; he will sleep for 20 minutes under the table, and then get up and flop down across the room for another nap in the hallway before finishing up with yet another nap by the fireplace. Another quirk of his happens when he catches sight of a bird; all efforts to follow commands or please us fly out of his head and he can only think of one thing: Get that bird!
We have adopted an adorable new puppy. His name is Revy (for Revelstoke), and he is an English Cream Golden Doodle. This means he is lean and athletic like a Poodle, and sweet natured like a Golden Retriever. His coat is white and wavy, but he will not shed or cause allergic reactions. What a score!
So far Revy is a very calm, gentle puppy. He learns some things very quickly and much of his training was already in place when he arrived. He could already follow the commands for "sit", "down," "come," "take it", and "leave it." He was already sleeping through the night in his crate, and was waiting to go outside to relieve himself. He is 15 weeks old.
Revy's first night at our house. Getting to know his new bed.
Tired puppy napping in the hallway to keep cool on a warm evening.
Out for a walk at the park.
Hanging out with Kent watching the kids in the playground.
Handsome pup!I have never had a dog before, so there is lots to get used to. There are some things we're trying to train him about that are proving challenging: Walking on the leash without pulling; Not chewing furniture, shoes, toys; Showing affection without jumping up on people and furniture; Not barking or chasing when he sees another dog. These things will take time, and he is improving already, so we just need to be consistent.
There are some things about dogs that are new to me but I find entertaining. He likes to take short naps in succession; he will sleep for 20 minutes under the table, and then get up and flop down across the room for another nap in the hallway before finishing up with yet another nap by the fireplace. Another quirk of his happens when he catches sight of a bird; all efforts to follow commands or please us fly out of his head and he can only think of one thing: Get that bird!
Monday, July 4, 2011
Swimming
I have been forced to stop running for a while so my injuries can heal once and for all. I have been battling leg pain on and off since last year, and I need that crap out of my life. The doc suggests at least six weeks off my feet, and then a very gradual return program.
In the meantime, I decided to try swimming to keep my fitness up. I haven't been much of a swimmer since I was a kid, but it's probably like riding a bike, right? Sort of. I do remember how to keep my head above water, but there is so much more to swimming lengths than just flailing around at the surface (which is largely what I used to do as a kid).
Some things I've learned since I've been frequenting the pool:
Swimming pools are really gross. Nothing like immersing yourself in a tank of bacteria to get you fit and healthy! Other people's sweat, snot, and saliva mingling with your own - gag.
The swimmers' society is a world unto itself. The lean, bathing capped, goggle sporting, speedo clad torpedoes shooting to and fro in the lane pool have an exclusive club with rules, etiquette, and protocol that is confusing to newcomers. Which lane do you choose if you are faster than the old ladies in the "slow" lane, but can't keep up with the serious swimmers in the "medium" lane?
The delicate balance of oxygen and exertion. Trying to get enough air without drowning in the process is a fine line, and takes practice and finesse. You can't just breathe whenever you feel the need as you do in the entire rest of your life's activities.
The equipment. Yes, running has a lot of gadgets and equipment too, but the swimming ones are foreign to me still. I see some swimmers with fancy snorkels, some with different types of earplugs, strange devices I can only guess are for keeping one's legs in a certain position. And of course, most of the other people I see in that end of the pool wear special sporty bathing suits that don't feature ruffles, polka dots, or jazzy embellishments.
How far is far? I was starting to become familiar with the running distances and speeds, what runs are respectable in context of effort and in conjunction with the other adjacent runs. But swimming is entirely new. How many laps is a "decent" workout? How fast is "good"?
I really suck at swimming! Learning a new skill takes time. I feel like I'm just learning to walk - toddling a few steps at a time before falling on my butt over and over again. Trying my best but not really covering much ground.
Patience. Whenever I wish I was better at something, I try to remind myself that with patience and perseverance come the rewards one seeks. And in the meantime, swimming is affording me an outlet for exercise while I am forbidden to run. But it has given me a new appreciation for the simplicity of running; just going out and putting one foot in front of the other seems so easy once compared to the many faceted phenomenon of moving through water.
In the meantime, I decided to try swimming to keep my fitness up. I haven't been much of a swimmer since I was a kid, but it's probably like riding a bike, right? Sort of. I do remember how to keep my head above water, but there is so much more to swimming lengths than just flailing around at the surface (which is largely what I used to do as a kid).
Some things I've learned since I've been frequenting the pool:
Swimming pools are really gross. Nothing like immersing yourself in a tank of bacteria to get you fit and healthy! Other people's sweat, snot, and saliva mingling with your own - gag.
The swimmers' society is a world unto itself. The lean, bathing capped, goggle sporting, speedo clad torpedoes shooting to and fro in the lane pool have an exclusive club with rules, etiquette, and protocol that is confusing to newcomers. Which lane do you choose if you are faster than the old ladies in the "slow" lane, but can't keep up with the serious swimmers in the "medium" lane?
The delicate balance of oxygen and exertion. Trying to get enough air without drowning in the process is a fine line, and takes practice and finesse. You can't just breathe whenever you feel the need as you do in the entire rest of your life's activities.
The equipment. Yes, running has a lot of gadgets and equipment too, but the swimming ones are foreign to me still. I see some swimmers with fancy snorkels, some with different types of earplugs, strange devices I can only guess are for keeping one's legs in a certain position. And of course, most of the other people I see in that end of the pool wear special sporty bathing suits that don't feature ruffles, polka dots, or jazzy embellishments.
How far is far? I was starting to become familiar with the running distances and speeds, what runs are respectable in context of effort and in conjunction with the other adjacent runs. But swimming is entirely new. How many laps is a "decent" workout? How fast is "good"?
I really suck at swimming! Learning a new skill takes time. I feel like I'm just learning to walk - toddling a few steps at a time before falling on my butt over and over again. Trying my best but not really covering much ground.
Patience. Whenever I wish I was better at something, I try to remind myself that with patience and perseverance come the rewards one seeks. And in the meantime, swimming is affording me an outlet for exercise while I am forbidden to run. But it has given me a new appreciation for the simplicity of running; just going out and putting one foot in front of the other seems so easy once compared to the many faceted phenomenon of moving through water.
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