Summer fly, winters walk. T got an extra week of vacation this year but it’s time to head back to school this week. This has been a strange challenging summer. I’m thankful my family stayed safe and got to make the most of it and explored the beauty of Ontario. I know this was aContinue reading “Happy Meals and Summer Memories”
Category Archives: Fun
Visiting Our Old Home and Playground
You can go home again and we did. This past Sunday, we took a late afternoon drive to our old neighbourhood. T had been feeling nostalgic and wanted to see the old playground and we spent close to two hours playing there in the late afternoon. The hubby and I lived in this previous homeContinue reading “Visiting Our Old Home and Playground”
Playgrounds Are Back!
One of the hardest moments for me during lockdown was when T broke down in tears after seeing the playground wrapped in caution tape. I still remember the pain and anguish in his voice as he asked me why everything was closed? Thankfully, playgrounds reopened two weeks ago. I’m mindful there is a possibility weContinue reading “Playgrounds Are Back!”
Meeting Mr. Alex
A year after starting at his daycare, I finally met the wonderful staff member who has won T over. I’ve always believed that teachers and educators play an important role in a child’s life and have a big influence on their self concept and their enjoyment of learning and school. For kids with special needsContinue reading “Meeting Mr. Alex”
Teaching My Son To Be Bored
When we started lockdown homeschooling, the blank page of a day gave me great anxiety. I’ve since learned it’s okay to leave pockets of time during the day as unstructured time for five-year-old T to be bored. Research has shown that boredom supports a child’s healthy development, as it helps them build creativity, resilience, andContinue reading “Teaching My Son To Be Bored”
Learning and Fun in the Summer
On a scorching Friday morning, T and I went for a hike in our city’s beautiful Botanical Garden. We explored nature, had a picnic of apple juice and Goldfish crackers in the shade of a willow tree, and he saw and learned about cactus plants. Oh, and he spotted a beaver up close too. ThisContinue reading “Learning and Fun in the Summer”
Return to the Pool!
Our City opened outdoor public pools this week and T and I leapt into its refreshing water this afternoon like reuniting with an old friend. It brought me so much joy to see how giddy he got in the water, the first swim since early March. We’ve always gone to indoor pools, but we’re notContinue reading “Return to the Pool!”
Camping in Our Backyard
The hubby and I were not going to let a pandemic take away our family camping tradition, so we pitched our tent in the backyard this weekend. It was also camping week at homeschool this week. T’s teacher gave a series of camping-themed learning activities, from books and poems, to math exercises, and more. TContinue reading “Camping in Our Backyard”
Our Budding Little Baker
Learning comes in all forms, as we’ve learned from homeschooling in lockdown. Making a no-bake keylime pie with T reinforced lessons in measurement, chemistry and having fun! The hubby enjoyed the strawberry and rhubarb pie that T and I made last week and asked us to make this no-bake keylime pie recipe from A MillionContinue reading “Our Budding Little Baker”
Magical Colours and Ingredients in Our Garden
T and I made our first strawberry rhubarb pie thanks to the garden lovingly nurtured by the family who lived in our home for over half a century. We are the second family to live in our late 1950s side split. The home is old and we are slowly fixing it up over time butContinue reading “Magical Colours and Ingredients in Our Garden”
Bonding Over Video Games With My Son
I’ve unlocked another fatherhood badge: Playing video games with my five-year-old T. For all the worries that I have about the learning gains that T may be missing out on while in lockdown, I have full confidence that he is excelling in digital literacy skills. Last weekend, T pulled up a chair and plopped itContinue reading “Bonding Over Video Games With My Son”
Sharing A Little Love, Hope and Cheer on Our Windows
We started drawing art on our windows to share cheer and positive energy with our neighbours. We used washable markers that we ordered from Amazon and got the idea from a neighbour down the street. Our time and energy is admittedly all focused on T and our work, so we don’t get to focus moreContinue reading “Sharing A Little Love, Hope and Cheer on Our Windows”
Homemade Bird Feeders to Help Our Backyard Friends
We’ve reached the point in the pandemic where we’re now coating pine cones in peanut butter. Jokes aside, these home-made bird feeders were a nifty craft idea suggested by T’s teacher and he worked on it with the hubby last night while I got some personal rest time for myself. During last night’s walk, weContinue reading “Homemade Bird Feeders to Help Our Backyard Friends”
Easter and the Resiliency of Nature
“The oak fought the wind and was broken, the willow bent when it must and survived.” – Robert Jordan It has been a long week. But we get a reprieve from the insanity of simultaneously working and parenting from home with this four-day Easter long weekend. The big change this week was T’s teachers areContinue reading “Easter and the Resiliency of Nature”
Cooking & Finding Calm in Isolation
“Life itself is the proper binge.” – Julia Child Cooking is something I enjoy. I’m not artful at it, but I like to try to new recipes or to recreate childhood comforts. In the three weeks that we’ve been in isolation, I’ve been cooking more. It brings me calm to be in the kitchen silentlyContinue reading “Cooking & Finding Calm in Isolation”
“Go for it. Step on all the puddles!”
“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” – Heraclitus It’s been two weeks since we’ve started our self isolation, when everything came to a standstill. I am thankful my family is safe and healthy and that we’ve only been lightly inconvenienced.Continue reading ““Go for it. Step on all the puddles!””
Our Fixer Upper Renovation – One Year Later
“There’s no place like home.” – Dorothy, The Wizard of Oz A year ago this week, our family made the leap and moved into our house. The hubby and I had previously lived in a small townhouse for over 10 years. T spent three wonderful years in that condo with us, but it was evidentContinue reading “Our Fixer Upper Renovation – One Year Later”
Celebrating My Birthday in Self Isolation
“There is still no cure for the common birthday.” – John Glenn Today is the first time – and hopefully only time in a hopefully long life to still unfold – that I will celebrate my birthday in self isolation during a global pandemic. Schools are closed but supposed to be officially back in businessContinue reading “Celebrating My Birthday in Self Isolation”
Evening Walks with My Little One Are the Best Part of My Day
“Freedom: To walk free and own no superior.” – Walt Whitman Spring is not officially here till next weekend but you can feel it in the air. We just had our first warm sunny weekend. Families and kids came out of winter hibernation to play in our park. My evening walks with T, which weContinue reading “Evening Walks with My Little One Are the Best Part of My Day”
The Healing Therapy of Pets for Children
“An animal’s eyes have the power to speak a great language.” – Martin Buber When we lived in our former home, T and I would enjoy early Saturday morning walks in the park. At around 9, a group of regulars would gather with their dogs and T would never be shy or afraid about goingContinue reading “The Healing Therapy of Pets for Children”
