picture perfect

I'm hoping Jarvis and Alyson don't mind me adding these photos ... since I did take them ... but on their camera! Is that still a copy write issue?! Anyway, it is proof that they were here not that long ago!

an attempt at a photo shoot

When Jarv and Aly were here we attempted to take some photos at the lake. It wasn't a planned occasion ... and obviously Phil wasn't there. It was entertaining to say the least!

our visitors

An overdue post ... since now our special visitors are already on their way back to Neverland! It was fun while it lasted! Jarvis took the kids for a walk in the woods with a little snack of chocolate bars. The kids are still talking about it ... and the caterpillar they found. I understand that Rhett and Daudi wanted to squish it and Samara and Keithan were the animal rights activists.

school kids

There are officially 2 school kids in the house now ... and one wanna-be! Rhett enjoyed his first day at home, almost alone! Poor Grady doesn't really show up on the friend radar yet. Anyway, Rhett talked non-stop. The second day I had to work and he cried himself to sleep by 10:00am. Thank goodness the poor guy has adjusted now!
Keithan is enjoying French Immersion kindergarten - more than I expected! He's still excited to go and counts down the 3 days weekends until he gets to go back.
Samara seems to be enjoying grade 2. I hear more about her days when I overhear her telling other people. How bad is that at 7 years old?! She only gives me the brief Reader's Digest version.
Keithan and Samara are both in Music for Young Children so our weeks are busy and go by too quickly. I am so thankful we're not into hockey ... the neighbors are tied up on weekends too with that craziness.

lake time .... camping for a change

We had an excellent September long weekend camping with old friends and new friends. I was a little suspect at first ... not sure how I would make out with 4 kids camping with no services, as we were camping at a lake in the middle of a community pasture! Thankfully I was able to use the trailer complete with a generator, so I didn't have to rough it too much! And the big bonus ... we had the lake to ourselves, with the exception of a few cows.
The weather couldn't have been better on Saturday. We enjoyed the sunshine and the skiing. Both Kiethan and Samara tried skiing. Even I tried one ski ... and got up on the boom, but didn't succeed with the rope, this time! It was a busy weekend, with 9 kids 7 and under ... and 2 others who joined us at times during the day (Jarvis is in the photos with Grady). Jarvis is the same age as Grady ... but weighs twice as much and talks 10 times as much! Looking back at the summer photos (even though I never take enough) it seems like all we did was hang out at the lake! We're going back to the cabin today to close things up for the winter; a little earlier this year as usually we're too busy with harvest at this time. Phil is hoping to go to the farm next week for harvest - what there is to do that survived the frost and dry spells!

this one is for auntie carla

Auntie Carla has made it known that she was tired of loading the blog only to see the old ketchup bottle AGAIN!!! So, here are a few photos for a change of scenery. We went to the cabin a few weeks ago and our neighbors (extended family) came with us. The kids go back and forth so much we should really just take down the fence in between us! Both Keithan and Thomas started Kindergarten this year, but go to different schools. This is probably a good thing for them and for the teachers!

Lake fun 2009

We've been spending some weekends at the cabin this summer ... 3 nights for Phil! Last year he never spent one night, so this is progress of some kind! The resort people pulled out the rotten dock this spring and piled it in front of the cabin. It was unsightly for a while, but as of last weekend all the rubble was taken away - yay! Now we are enjoying our own beach area. We welcome visitors!! This is a collection of photos from the summer so far. The weather has been great this month for cabin life. Our crops on the other hand are not faring so well.