It's orientation week

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Robin and I had orientation week at Wesleyan HQ in Fishers, Indiana. The kids stayed with their grandparents in NJ. So, on Saturday, October 17, we drove all the way to NJ. 

We made a quick stop at LL Bean. 3 years ago I bought a backpack for Gaëlle and last year the zipper broke. We held onto it until we knew we were going to be passing through Maine. Sure enough, they gave us a credit for $35 and I bought another backpack. 

We flew out of Newark Airport on Sunday morning and headed to Indiana where it was #partyweek at Global Partners. We had a great week and were treated to treats ALL week. We stayed at a gorgeous Bed and Breakfast for missionaries, called Shunem House. As soon as we walked in the door and saw the treats in the kitchen, I made the decision to not have any candy. Somehow I managed to stay away and didn't have a single piece of candy while I was there. But we were treated so well and really felt spoiled.

There were 8 of us in orientation with a huge range of ages and skills and passions. It was fun to connect with them all. I now know what a physician's assistant is. The week was jam packed with training and Robin and I found it all beneficial and helpful. 

We flew back to NJ Friday night and found the pumpkins Peter and Gaëlle had carved that week. My parents kept the kids busy with all kinds of activities. They helped out at the library sale, went to exercise at the YMCA, ate out many times, went for a hike, and spent a day at the Liberty Science Center. 

They put together several puzzles. 

Both kids helped out with cooking during the week, but Gaëlle especially enjoyed her time in the kitchen.

The kids had a great time and I'm so thankful for all of the work my parents did to make their stay special. 

On Saturday we headed to Ephrata/Akron, Pennsylvania to visit Josh. It was so good to see him and we had great weather.

He took us for a tour of the MCC HQ in Akron. We were impressed with the village out back where they host groups and conferences. 

For lunch I told Josh I wanted the Lancaster type tourist experience. So, he took us to the largest buffet I have ever seen. Not that they food was more than other buffets, altho it probably was, but the building was huge. 

It was the Maple Shady Smorgasbord and we definitely enjoyed ourselves.

Gaëlle and I were amused by the squash for sale.

Josh showed us some of the sights in his area and we stopped in at place. He rents a room in a house in Ephrata. The owner is fixing it up a little bit at a time and it looks really nice. It was a super quick visit, only 4 hours, but I'm so glad we were finally able to see where Josh lives. 

Starbucks coffee is way too strong for Robin and myself. We were both amused by this shirt. Anyway, it was a great week but we are glad to be home and back in our routine. 

Thankful

Last week Robin convinced Peter to go out for a run with him. We didn't think Peter would last the whole time but there's nothing quite like youth. He ran for 5K without stopping and then sprinted at the end to beat Robin to the finish. Way to go.

Friday night we went to a Christian concert by City Harmonic. They have some great songs. My favourite was "Mountaintop". So powerful. I haven't been to a concert in a long time and it was fun.

On Saturday we went to Beulah and closed up the cottage for Dick. When we arrived the cottage was a little nippy.

Soon we had a fire going and all was well. Gaëlle especially seemed to enjoy the fire crackling. 

We were also greeted by some little mice in the tub. In fact, there was evidence of mice throughout the cottage. 

We picked up Snickers and Kaylin in Moncton and so we went for lots of walks while we were there. It was such a great weekend with beautiful fall weather.

On Saturday night somebody set off some firecrackers. Snickers does not enjoy the noise, so she did a little shaking and got some hugs.

We played some Monopoly which Robin managed to win quite easily. He started building his houses before the rest of us and the rest was history.

The horses in the back field came running as soon as Gaëlle showed up. She loved that.

Robin cooked up some eggs and bacon on the big griddle. He just loves that big cooking surface.

We stayed until the potluck on Monday. The kids requested "Pink Stuff" which is just jello and Cool Whip. They also wanted sweet potato casserole. So Gaëlle helped me on Monday morning do a little cooking.

There were about 150 people at the potluck and plenty of desserts. I'm glad I took some side dishes because people were taking home desserts but the veggies and salads were all gone.

My 27th Wedding Anniversary was this week. Kaylin surprised us with some flowers when we picked her up. They were pretty to look at all weekend.

A summer September weekend

Last weekend was gorgeous. It was hot and sunny and just perfect. On Saturday we headed to downtown Halifax to have breakfast at the Farmer's Market. Not only can you buy fresh produce and fruit, but there are also so many booths selling sweets and breads and crafts. Robin decided to go for sweet treat and Peter was right behind him. Gaëlle's eyes are sometimes bigger than her stomach so she had to finish her first selection before she could choose anything else.

I can remember one of the first times we did this, Peter was all grumpy about going away and maybe missing out on playing with his friends. This has since become a true treat for all of us and Peter no longer gets grumpy about leaving the house on a beautiful day if we are headed to the market. 

Peter and Gaëlle finishing off with a fruit smoothie. This is not a cheap breakfast, but I love it and the sunny day made it all that more fun.

The Farmer's Market is on the waterfront, so we always walk down to the playground area so the kids can climb the wave, and play on the anchors. 

On Sunday we had a dedication at our church for a new building, a celebration for the 40 years the church has been around, and a BBQ at the end. We all enjoyed the morning and spent the afternoon at a local beach area. The kids played in the sand and rocks for a bit.

Robin and I cruised the boardwalk and then Peter did the honours taking our picture. He does have the longest arm. Another amazing day and weekend.

Meet Your Farmer

Every September farms in Nova Scotia open up to the public and every year we take the kids to meet the farmer. We love it and have great experiences. This year we went to a local dairy farm. 

This dairy farm has just started using biowaste to produce energy. So not only did we get a tour of the actual dairy production, we got a tour of the biowaste facility. 

Robin was really fascinated with this, but even I was impressed at the simplicity and the genius behind using cow poop to create energy. Apparently this is very common in Europe but this farm is the only one east of Toronto trying this in Canada.

Robin and Peter taking a closer look.

The string of power lines leading away from the farm. This farm has only had the biowaste online for 5 months and they are easily producing their own energy needs. They sell all the energy they produce to NS Power and then buy back what they need

This facility is very impressive but Robin's mind was racing with possibilities for using biowaste on a smaller scale in Haiti. He came home and immediately started looking the concept up and sure enough, it is being used on small scales all over the world. 

It was a gorgeous day and a great time for the family to get out and meet our farmers.

Catch Up Time

I tried to upload these birthday party photos earlier but the computer wasn't co-operating. Then I didn't get back to it. So, here are some birthday party shots almost a month later. 

Birthday parties are hugely anticipated in our household by a certain young lady. This year she asked for a Hawaiian theme and so we made paper flowers and grass skirts from table cloths. Then the girls tried to learn some dance moves.

They were all game and it was cute to see their attempts. 

I teach children in Junior Church and have pretty much given up on crafts for the kids. It just seems as though the majority of kids really don't enjoy them. But I knew the kids at this party would enjoy crafts so we did some modge podge with tissue paper on wooden containers. None of the kids had done it before and they turned out really cute.

Gaëlle asked for a red velvet cake which of course comes with a cream cheese icing. My kids love cheesecake and so that seemed like a good option. It turns out other kids are not as fond of cream cheese flavour as mine. 

But we also had fruit for the kids. This was a big hit. All of the girls hate fruit and some of the girls ate lots of fruit.

The kids came and filled up a bowl with the kind of fruit they wanted. 

I can't believe she is already nine. I look at pictures of her when she first came to Canada as a four and half year old. She looks so tiny. Now she has grown so big and is so strong and healthy. Wow. 

I'm closing with this photo because this is one thing Gaëlle never tires of; any kind of swinging. She spins constantly on the poles at the playgrounds. Front. Back. Over and over. Love it.

September happenings

Somehow I missed putting up the first day of school photo. So here it is. This year the bus comes 40 minutes later than last year because there is a new French school in our town. Yeah. I think it will make the morning much easier for Gaëlle altho for the most part she handled the early mornings with a good attitude.

September brings the first day of school and also Gaëlle's birthday. Such anticipation. Such excitement. Such joy. This year we were missing a few family members. In fact, there were only 3 of us here on the actual birthday. Not much of a family birthday. So there were big smiles when Carol drove up to join in the celebration. I even got Carol to help decorate the cheesecake.

When Emily left, she gifted Gaëlle with all of her American Girl doll things. So thoughtful of her.

When Kaylin left for school she also left behind a gift. All along, this was the gift to be opened first. And it was. A very delicate necklace. So sweet.

Big smiles as the birthday girl is surrounded by her bags of loot.

Carol also brought a family gift; a big bag of jelly bellies. That makes Peter smile.

By the time we had our cake, the cool whip had dripped a little. Oops. Lesson learned. But the birthday girl didn't care. 9 candles for the Birthday Girl. 

Missing our girls

This week, we took another daughter back to school. Kaylin decided she wanted to take Snickers back with her. After all, Snickers is her dog.

Snickers is always up for a car ride.

Peter and Gaëlle had to come with us but they were good sports even though they were crammed in.

I was slightly nervous about the mattress on top of the van and even pulled over in a panic at one point because I thought it was slipping. But it was just my imagination. 

We made it and got all of her stuff unloaded. It was raining a bit while we hauled bags into the house, but it soon stopped and the sun came out. 

Last stop before we left was a trip to the grocery store. Kaylin is sharing a house with 2 other girls. It's a really nice set up and the girls shared an apartment last year so they know how to get along and work together. 

Meanwhile, we not only miss Kaylin, but also the joy of Snickers when we come home. There's nothing quite like the enthusiasm of a little dog greeting you.