*Lotsa pics
Madeline attended a friend's birthday party with a magician, airbrushed tattoos, potato sack races, games, lots of food and tons of fun. Us preschool parents often joke about how each birthday party gets more and more elaborate and that it will soon be out of control!
We celebrated Nelda and Angela's birthday with a fabulous turkey dinner at Olivia and Rob's. We've also had a lot of help from Travis and Natalie in doing electrical work around our house. We're lucky to have such talented and generous siblings!
Friends of ours were evacuated for a long while after the fire in Slave Lake. We were lucky enough to see them a lot while they were staying with family here. Thankfully their home wasn't burned and they've been able to return.
Despite the uncertainty of displacement, we had a wonderful long, long weekend.
Here's Claire's new "elevator" in action, as we left to go to Galaxyland.
Claire loves the rides and the sounds.
Madeline was only a little bit excited.
Luckily Ryan is tall and strong so he can wrangle Claire onto the carousel because she does love it!
We also spent a morning at the waterpark. One of these days I want to go there without kids so I can actually go on some big slides! We did have lots of fun though. :)
We also spent lots of fun time outdoors.
Until the kids finally got the hang of doing it on their own, Ryan was the designated slip n' slider.
Our swingset always gets good use when friends come to visit. :)
I'd like to thank Ryan for including the smokies in this picture. It's a good way to document the candidness of life.
Group photo! We're lucky to have such great friends! I wish we could see everyone more often.
Claire's class had a field trip to the Royal Alberta Museum and they got to explore different stations that depicted things about spring. Here she is, working on a puzzle with Miss Amanda and Logan.
One of her favourite parts of the museum is the Wild Alberta gallery. The lighting is perfect for her visual attention and there are parts of the exhibit that she can touch. She was having a really fun time exploring!
I love her sweet smiles, even when she's punching me in the throat.
Madeline's preschool is nearly over for the year. We took a community walk to observe traffic signs as part of their safety unit. We miraculously ended up at Hayley's house where there was a picnic blanket for snack and a popsicle treat. There was also a pretty cool play space. :)
Playing all day long can be very tiring.
We had our year-end preschool carnival and it was a big success and lots of fun!
Part of the carnival was the bike-a-thon fund raiser. Here is Madeline pedalling away. She did a great job!
Luckily my mom came to be with the girls so I could help out with the games and the cash table as part of my preschool exec duties. (Every time I use the word "duty" I think of this movie - skip to 0:50 to hear the part)
The girls always love spending time with Grandma Patterson and Grandpa even came at the end to hang out for a bit!
Here's me and my crazy girls.
Madeline and Claire both enjoyed the carnival games a lot!
Dizzy the clown is there every year and the balloon animals are always a big hit! Madeline requested a photo with him and he was so kind as to oblige.
We've been trying to get things sorted for Claire's grade 1 year. It's quite a process and as a parent, I'm constantly questioning if the choices we're making are the best ones. I think every parent struggles with this responsibility, but in Claire's case the burden feels a bit heavier because her needs are so complex. I am encouraged by the open communication we've established with the school. The principal and I are going to observe a student with similar needs at another school who has had a lot of success with inclusion. I hope the experience will point us in the right direction for making Claire's school career as meaningful as possible!
I had a couple of fun girls' nights recently. Kathy introduced me to the world of Moxie's appetizers and we've made big plans for turning 30 next year! (THIRTY! ACK! GAH!) I got to see Little Women at the Citadel with my sisters, mom and Val as a Christmas present from dad. It was a beautiful production!
Ryan's been extremely busy with work and work. :) He attended a neat Google workshop for educators yesterday and continues to be a really positive influence in his school.
