Celebrating Sophie

Sophie.

Dear sweet Sophie turned 8 the other day.

How can that be?

I remember craving lemons and jelly donuts when I was expecting her.  I ate a lot of lemon pie that year.

I was about 37 weeks along when I went into a Timmy's wanting jelly donuts.  And it just so happened that they didn't make jelly donuts in that particular Timmy's.  I was devastated....and the girl working at the till knew it.  She said that she could go to the back and make me one.  But I said that I didn't want one...I needed a dozen.  But it was funny because I wasn't going to eat a dozen all by myself....I had told the kids all about jelly donuts and that I was going to get them some.  But the girl thought that I wanted to eat a dozen....and she told me that she couldn't make a dozen....she would get in trouble.

I also remember the nurse that helped me along on the night of Sophie's birth.  Her name was April and she was such a good nurse.  We had many conversations that night....because I always took my time when I had a baby.  I remember her telling me that she was actually born in October...but her name was April....because her father said that she looked like a spring flower when she was born and he named her April.  And she said that her father was a wee bit crazy.  And then she said that it was actually her mothers birthday today.  So I told her that I would name my baby after her mother...I was completely joking.  But she said....oh heavens, NO...don't name it after her mother because her mother hated her name and she would die if I did that.  I think her mothers' name was Doris.

So...anyways....we've been celebrating Sophie.....at Grandma and Grandpa's pool!

She requested a dolphin cake.

And lemonade....because she LOVES lemons!!

Brenda

Summer Crafts

We've been crafting.

These fabric banner things are all over pinterest.  But I have no time to sew....so I just used hot glue!  I cut out cereal boxes in the shape of triangles and I hot glued the fabric on.  Then I just hot glued then onto a piece of twine....

Pretty huh?

And this one on a big old window....

Jean at The Artful Parent made these amazing glue on canvas paintings and I wanted to give it a try.  Her tutorial is here.

I picked up some canvas at the dollar store and we used regular white glue to make a picture.  Sophie did one.

And I did one.  And I didn't take a photo of it. 

Let them dry.

Then we were suppose to use 'water paint'....which I've never heard of....and I didn't have any.  So I took my paste colours that I use for tinting icing and I coloured water.  Food colouring would also work.

And we just painted all over the canvas.  And the glue sucked up the colour.

Sophie had drawn the dolphin on with pencil before she used the glue and unfortunately it showed thru because the glue dries clear.

While we were at the dollar store, the girls decided that we should buy some embroidery thread.  Even though they had no idea what they were going to do with it.

I did some google searching and they've been making "God's Eyes"....

And they made several bracelets.

Sophie also did a little bit of embroidering on her pillow case but she dropped the needle on the floor and we've never found it....and she didn't get finished.

Funny how things can just 'disappear' in this house.

I need to buy another big needle.

Brenda

Fishing with the Girls

The Annual Douglas Fishing Derby was on Sunday at the river.  The boys decided to go with their uncle and cousins this year....in a boat.  They wanted to catch 'the big one'.

That left me and the girls alone.  And I decided that we were going to go fishing.  We could fish off of the dock.  I went to the store and bought some worms.

Then I noticed that our rods didn't have hooks on them.  Jack had taken his tackle box with him.....so I stopped at my Dad's and he gave me a box of hooks.....and a box of sinkers...because I would need those too.

Of course....I knew that.  I knew what a sinker was for but I had never put one on a line.

When I used to go fishing with my Dad and brothers, I just had to sit in the boat and hold the rod and reel it in.  They didn't even let me cast.

Actually, I really couldn't remember how to cast.  But Sophie said that she knew how.

We could do this.

We got to the river and Johanna and I got the hooks and sinkers on....easy peasy!  The sinkers actually just pinch onto the line!  We put on two...because we really didn't know how many we needed.

I pinched the worms into pieces and got them on the hooks.  I think I made them a little too small....

When Johanna made the first cast out she caught a fish!  But I told her that it was much to small and I unhooked it and let it go back.  We were going to get 'the big one'.

But then not much happened....other than me continuously putting worms on hooks and casting out the lines for Sophie and Lydia.  Sophie did know how to cast but she liked that I could cast out farther.

And I think it was about 35 degrees.  We felt like we were melting right there on the dock.

But we were determined that we were going to catch another fish.

Johanna sat in the shade of the truck for a few minutes and found the camera....

Doesn't that look tranquil?  Peaceful?

This was the reality of it....

Lydia had no confidence in my casting ability.

BUT Sophie did manage to finally catch another fish!  We put it in the pail and headed to the beach....

Of course the winners had fish that were much bigger.  Jack tied for 4th place with a 2.9 lb.

But everyone got a prize...the girls were thrilled!

Brenda

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Lydia's 6

This girl.

Some call her Bill.

Some call her Jimmy.

We all used to call her Pretty Liddie.

She's a tonne of fun.

She wears a sequin skirt and a camo hat to t-ball.

She's the youngest of 5...and she can hold her own.

She turned 6 last week.

And she wanted a beach cake.

She pretty much decorated it herself.

There is a party going on right on this cake.  BBQ, pizza, whales, sandcastles, boom box, drinks....yes that's a party.

And today she danced for all the seniors at Marianhill for the July birthday party.

They thought she was as sweet as sugar. 

She is.

I wish that she wouldn't grow up so fast.

Brenda

He's Home.

Terry and the boys have been busy with the hay for the last couple of weeks. 

They finished with the square bales......until second cut starts....they have been doing all round bales.

It's been great weather for getting the hay in.

And well....look it here.....

Here comes another load.  Terry's been using the new truck to haul it home.

This guy is the happiest guy in the world.

He is home.

Home everyday.

He had been working in construction for about the last 25 years and farming when he came home at night and on weekends.  Actually, when we were first married he was away working at construction all over Ontario and only home on weekends.  Actually.....it's all been crazy and I don't really know how we farmed and he worked construction.

But we did it.

And now he is finally home to farm with us everyday.

And check his phone.  because he gets a lot of texts.

And he's still sitting in the truck texting.  Meanwhile, Lydia will pose for a photo.

There.  He's done.

He's home.

Brenda