ducky house

minted

They arrived! A sweet package from minted. 

I ordered Thank You/New Year cards last month for those who attended a big famiy birthday party that we had in late 2013. Besides the "thank you" portion, I owe family & friends updated photos of my growing crew. 

I've been waiting to get them all addressed and sent out before I committed to this post. No sense in spoiling the snail mail surprise for the recipients who are reading my blog. 

My thoughts: The photo is 5 x 7 in size with a nice matte finish. It will be easy for people to frame later on, if so desired. I ordered 25 cards plus envelopes and I didn't bother with their proof reading service so that saved me a bit extra cash. Shipping to Canada was via FedEx and cost $9.95, great for over the border. 

Overall, the process was simple and delivery was quick. I really enjoyed my minted experience and I will definitely be ordering from them again. 

september/october highlights

Happy Be-lated Holidays and New Year!! I'm popping in to finish up my last update on our summer/fall happenings. I originallly started this post back in early December but then I got caught up in a whirlwind of activity and BAM, here it is the new year. How did that happen? 

A week after the big wedding we loaded up our minivan & small trailer and headed down south for 3 weeks. Destination: Walt Disney World Florida with a pit stop in Tennesee to drop my mum off for a visit with my sister - who had recently relocated with her family close to Nashville. 

Wow, let me say that again "WOW, what a drive". I should have ordered t-shirts that said "I survived 3 - 12 hour days of driving with 7 people in one vehicle". Now don't get me wrong, it wasn't a bad roadtrip by any means. I just have pre-twins memory when we would make 3 or 4 long road trips per year into the US (the boys & us). Things seemed to be simpler and there were way less bathroom stops - lol! I guess it is pretty unreasonable to expect everyone to have "to go" at the same time but when you know you got a deadline you don't want to be stopping everyhour if you know what I mean. So as you can imagine after the first day this mumma got a little more militant and threw phrases around like: "you'll just have to hold it", etc.  Crazy I tell ya! 

By the end of the 3rd day we arrived in WDW late in the evening in time to crash into our beds. The next morning we woke up and headed out to the parks. We had a 10 day hopper pass including water parks & more. We couldn't have asked for better weather, in fact it was a tad bit too warm some days but I think that had more to do with the humidity - it was relentless. Side note: It feels a bit ridiculous writing those words right now as the local temperatures here are -17 celcius and I would love to be too warm ;) 

Well what can I say about WDW that hasn't been said. It was 29 years since I was last there and the rest of my family were first timers. We stayed on site at the All Star Music resort recommended by a couple different people - Krisite, a new bloggy friend who had recently taken her brood down there (and who happens to live in the same city/neighborhood) as myself and another friend who treks to WDW a few times a year (lucky/crazy duck - she lives in Louisiana so her trekking is a little easier). Another local friend of mine does the time-share thing with her family every Christmas at WDW so we had a plethora of helps and recommendations to make our trip great (and yes we did the dining plan). 

Some of our favourites were: Typhoon Lagoon - alas no pictures as we spent our time in the water doing the big wave, water slides and snorkeling. Our family favourite restaurant was Teppan Edo in Epcot and eating at Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom with the Winnie the Pooh Characters. The Haunted Mansion still remains one of my personal favourites. We really enjoyed the Hall of Presidents, American's really do a much better job with patriotism and honouring their past than us Canadians. We loved Animal Kingdom and didn't get enough time to see everything - we were supposed to go a second time on our last day but one of the girlies passed out in the hubby's arms and needed to sleep off her exhaustion. Miss Abby's personal favourite was Tom Sawyer's Island, I'm going out of my way to put that part in so I don't forget. I'm pretty sure there are more things I'm forgetting to add to this list but that'll have to do. 

After WDW we headed over to Universal Studios for a couple of days. I had a mission: to see Hogwarts. I have to admit that I was probably more excited than my kids at this point - big HP fan :)  The ride at Hogwarts was probably the best ride I've ever been on. I'm not much for roller coasters and turning upside down so for me the ride combination of virtual reality and movement was just perfect. We ate at 3 Broomsticks, tried butter beer and went to Honeyduke's Sweetshop. All in all it was a pretty satisfying experience and I did get the sweatshirt! 

The rest of Universal was just okay for us. We enjoyed the Indiana Jones show, Jurassic Park & the Spiderman rides. I think if you aren't a big roller coaster lover Universal Studios runs out of stimuli pretty fast. I'm glad we went because we had some great fun at a few attractions but overall I don't think we would visit it again if down in the area.

Okay, enough said I think that sums up our summer/fall: a relaxing summer, a big wedding, a family trip of a lifetime/road trip (next time we are flying), and since then we have settled into homeschooling and winter.  Now if you made it through this l-o-n-g post congratulations and thanks! Here's to hoping my next update will include something a wee bit crafty now that the days of being indoors have arrived. Woohoo, lets here it for winter **brrrr**

september celebration

I'm back with another update and this time I'm covering the earlier part of September and I have one word for you *wedding*

My niece decided to tie the knot with her secret highschool sweetheart. It was a big deal for our family since a) we haven't had a wedding in a while, b) it was my sister's only daughter, c) I've watched this girlie grow up from a wee girl to a big girl (insert 'where have the years gone' & tears), d) she was my flower girl some 19 years ago and e) my twin girlies were her flower girls. 

Well weddings along with being fun, require a fair amount of organizing & spiffing up as you can imagine. Thankfully my niece, my sister & bro-in-law took care of all the organizing and we as guests were left to making sure all were bathed and properly clothed for the event. My shopping started early when I found some awesome flower girl dresses in spring for my girlies which my niece approved of *sweet*. Buying early meant I didn't end up having to spend hundreds of $$ on their dresses later or panic that time was running out. Shoes on the other hand were a completely different story. I could not find anything suitable in this fair city of ours so I gave up and went to the internet where Zulily saved the day. After the girls were set to go I had to turn my focus to the two scraggly teens that seem to be growing faster than a golden retriever in his first year of life. Since dress pants & ties are not required homeschooling attire in our home, the boys needed the whole 9 yards, pants, shirt, ties, socks & shoes. I cut the fellows some slack and did not make them wear a full suit. As for the hubby, he was pretty good in the dress up department, though he did get a new shirt, tie and shoes. Me on the other hand, I needed a whole new ensemble. I went with an strapless formal gown, shoes, etc. Okay so the reason why I'm spilling all the details in print is because that's pretty much all you are going to get. Yes, I forgot to get a family photo (of us) except for a wee instagram shot on the way to the church in our chariot (minivan) *ugh* - you'll have to cut me some slack as I had more important things on my mind like making sure the girlies were good to go down the isle. Enough said, lets take a peek at the day's events starting with the rehearsal.

 

~ rehearsal night where the girlies get their walking practice.

~ on the way to the church, all dressed up and nary a picture to show - no I am not naked - remember strapless gown.

~ the girlies doing the stuff for real and doing a fabulous job at it

~ my niece and her daddy taking that walk

~ the bride - so beautiful

~ the happy couple cutting the fantastic cake my sister made! 

So ends the day and they begin their journey. I'm sure they will make a wonderful life together. I'll be back with an end of September/October update soon. xoxo

summer summary

Hello there, it's been awhile hasn't it? I mean - July to November - now that's just way too long for an update! So what on earth could have taken me away from this space all this time?? Life. I've embraced it and I've been busy in the thick of it, much like many of you I suppose (& to those that are able to keep up blogging along the way kudos to you).

As for me, my mojo for internet ramblings have up and left me right now, as have my crafty endeavors. I'm not fretting too much as I know things are cyclical. Overall I think I am more distressed that my craftyness is on the fritz as it is usually a huge energy booster for me. And couldn't we all use an extra boost of energy in our days? 

But lets not focus on that, I'm here today and I have a wee bit o' an update for ya. Our happenings were normal fodder for a family of 6 during the summer: 

~ bike riding continued on through the whole summer as a family 

~ and sometimes friends joined us

~ had a fight with the white cabbage butterfly and made decoys...

~ and bug juice - more likely salad dressing because I lost the fight and have no garden kale to speak of :( 

~ saw the local sights

~ hung out together at the pool

~ and by the fire

~ we baked apples

~ and then we baked  in the late summer heat

~ harvested vegetables and savoured their lovely taste and wished that the garden was bigger and the growing season was longer

So there we have it, all caught up with July & August for the most part. Watch for September's highlights, I promise it won't take 4 more months, lol.

strawberries anyone?

savouring a few more of those summer moments, the family went strawberry picking this week...

We: 

~ picked a bunch = 5 gallons; 

~ made 3 strawberry & rhubarb pies, delivering one to my sister whose kitchen is currently undergoing a major renovation; 

~ froze a ton for more strawberry & rhubarb pie because I did not think making 20 pies in one week and eating them all would be such a good idea for my waistline; 

~ will be making some strawberry jam as soon I get to the grocery store and replenish our sugar supply. 

~ and of course... ate a bunch, there is nothing like a fresh strawberry!

summer rituals and finding a new rhythym

we ride as a family almost every evening enjoying the trails. exploring new areas and paths being paved around our home. Our goal is to have some good ol' bike ride fun, but with that we find a common way to be together as family, a way to engage each of us.

I've been having a paralyzing fear of my kids growing up for the past while. It's happening right before my eyes and I can't seem to slow them down. I vacillate between my longing for those earlier years when days blurred into each other and it felt like those "baby-days" would never end and the reality of where we are today.The transition is both hard and wonderful as I watch my not so wee ones grow into strong, independent persons. My thoughts wander: where do I fit in now? is my job done?

Surely not with 7 year olds, teens & pre-teens still roaming the house. My role has simply changed and finding my groove is not so easy. Then again I am not alone, we are all changing. The eldest one is now a man cub, almost as tall as me at 5'10 ~ well maybe a few more inches to go. He has gone through the most transition this past year. His interests have taken him away from his world of physical imagination play to more adult like mimicking and conversation. It's been expected but at the same time hard on the others. They long for their "leader" to play again like he did once before. To lead them on an adventure filled with magic, monsters and villans. I see their broken heart and it breaks mine. I feel sad for the ones left behind but recognize the inevitability of it. As the youngest of 13, I understand all to well being left behind while others move on, it's a lonely road.

This is where we are right now, navigating a new phase. We are still a family, changing and finding a new rhythym and new ways to express our togetherness. Hoping ultimately that we will embrace it with grace and enjoy the ride.

hello and goodbye

A fitting title since my first post this month comes almost at the end of February. I am slow time of year, as I make my way through what I hope is the end of winter. Not that it was a bad one; our winter has been unseasonably warm this year, even kibboshing all attemps at an ice rink on the lake as customary for us. Still, I find myself day dreaming of gardening, beaches & warm sunshine on my skin, ahhh! 

For now we keep ourselves busy with:

 

~ posies: something special to spice up a little something I made this past fall

~ tea parties: now that they are reading & writing, little notes are given to me with special requests <3  

~ minecraft: because this mumma caves & gives them techie time   

~ doggy cuddles: because the theme for SPFebruary is with something you love

~ kale goodness: dehydrated for chips, in smoothies, lasagna, soup - as many ways as possible.

~ impromptu weddings: since my niece recently became engaged, the talk at the table & the play has been all things weddings. Here she is a flower girl & this summer my girlies will be her flower girls :)  

~ thank you iPhone for helping me capture a little bit of each day ~ 

cranberry bread

The girls and I have been busy in the kitchen making cranberry bread, The recipe is from the book Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende & Harry Devlin, which we studied & made lapbooks of during the thanksgiving season.

My girls are ever willing and capable in the kitchen these days, they always want to help & make and I'm all for that. On this particular day I set out the ingredients, they round up the tools. We work slowly and try to stay the course of the recipe all the while they chat up my ear. I'm happy to have them so interested in making even if baking with kids twins can be daunting. Patience I tell myself, one day they won't need my help anymore. 

They carefully cut up the cranberries, measure & mix the ingredients. Help me pour it into the dish and let me put it in the oven, there have to be some rules in the kitchen. The recipe itself was a nice loaf loaded with fruit, we reduced the sugar & substituted raw honey into the mix, we also substituted the oil with coconut oil. The first time around we made the bread as one large loaf and recently made it again as mini loaves for teacher gifts (aside: fruit should be reduced for the mini loaves, in my opinion).

my rating: recipe was good

time with the girls: priceless

hello july

You sure started out with a bang! No sooner did I post my summer goings on then we had another trip to the emergency room that very evening. This time however it was not one of the kids rather it was my mum. She was walking in a park when a young girl on a scooter ran into her knocking her over. What followed was: she couldn't get up...she knew it was bad...a trip to the hospital for x-rays plus a CT scan revealed my mum's hip was broken. Argh and $%&*@#% for her. A bugger of way to start the summer.  

My mum is a very active 80 year old who never spends a day in bed, to see her lay in bed waiting for her turn in surgery was both nerve wracking and frustrating. Finally 3 days after the fall she had her surgery - a partial hip replacement, pretty amazing what they can do surgically. She started walking (with a walker) on her new hip by day 2, day 3 she did stairs and by day 7 we brought her home with us. We have given her the girls room as it is on the same floor as the kitchen, LR, DR & deck. We have some fancy gadgets in the bathroom like toilet armrests to help mum in her daily needs. I get the pleasure of giving her a needle every day - not really my forte but live and learn right? 

Our summer holidays have re-adjusted themselves, first week was all about hospital visits and moving furniture to get a room set up for mum. Second week was spent close to home making sure all was well with mum. This week we have enlisted some help (for my mum) so we can sneak away with the kids on a few day trips to the local events & beaches...and maybe even a movie or two with my sweetie ♥ (I'm so behind).  Not exactly the way we had planned to spend our three weeks of holidays but right now flexibility is a very good thing and I'm feeling grateful that things were not worse (for mum). 

Until I stop by again, Happy Weekending. xoxo.

off, in all senses of the word...

As I write this post I am thinking that it would be lovely to tell you that my absence has been due to mr. duckyhouse whisking me away for a week long adventure to some far off exotic land. Alas, it is not true. Instead I have falling off the blogosphere radar for family doings and general unwellness. 

Mr. duckyhouse's parents arrived a couple of weeks ago for a surprise visit and left yesterday to return to their homestead. It was nice to visit and break from our daily routine. We enjoyed extended family time, visits and eating out for Easter - oh boy, it was nice not to cook a big meal this time around - thank you mom & dad, xoxo. 

The girlies took a while to get over their spring colds but not without sharing with me first. I was dragging my feet all last week but with a little help from vitamin D, I'm feeling back to normal.

Mr. duckyhouse was away on business for a few days, he headed off to the east coast for a conference that lucky bugger. He wanted me to join him, but I'm still stuck on the logistics of travelling and leaving kids behind. One day...

     

My beloved B-meister, Benjamin, turned 11 and we had his customary birthday party over the weekend with some crazy weather to match, it snowed again. Thankfully it is all melted and I hope I won't have to type the word snow again until November. His outdoor soccer season just started as well and that looks to keep us hopping a few evenings a week (or maybe that will be a dad/son deal). 

Birthday's and such make me realize things are spinning fast and the kids are growing up too quickly for my liking. I can't spend a lot of time thinking about it or it does a number on me. Life is all about moving forward and embracing the stages and I especially need to remember that this week as I feel a bit in a funk. Rationally I know it isn't real, I always tend to feel a bit off during/after being sick, it will pass as it always does but sometimes it really does kick me down.

Thankfully I believe in being gentle with myself, loving myself at all stages - all moods. I believe life is what you make it and when you can't make your day into anything special, that is when being gentle with yourself really helps. For me that means not getting much done beyond being with the kids, some stretching & exercise, reading and lots of hot baths. If you're wondering where I've been, that pretty much sums it up. I'm embracing my week of non-productivity and I write in optimism that the ol' funk will lift. Thanks for listening, even if you don't understand, it helps. Be back with a fresh perspective soon. xoxo