Songs and hair

The youth at The Club love to sing and talk with microphones. Guess who else loves it? Robin hooked some up to an amp my dad bought for the puppets (which is working out GREAT) and she went at it. Sorry the photo is a little dark but she was having a blast. As long as she had an audience.

I am a little discouraged with how Gaelle is handling her hair lately. She has really been playing with it along the front and the edges. It's so hard to ask her to stop when most little girls can twirl their hair and it doesn't do anything. But for her, it causes breakage and creates little knots that are hard to take out.

This week I decided to do something a bit different with her hair routine and it went well. After washing and conditioning the hair, I left some of the amazing deep conditioner in her hair.

Then I detangled the hair while it was still wet and sopping with conditioner and I put her hair in big twists. I let it sit in the twists for about 2 hours while I did other things. Then I rinsed out the conditioner without taking out the twists. While I styled the front of her hair, I left the back in twists. It seemed to make the styling process much smoother. I'll definitely try it again, but I don't always have time to let her sit while the conditioner soaks in her hair. 

Father Daughter Times

Every Friday night Robin and Emily go to The Club and last night was no exception. The Club had a Masquerade Gala as a winter fun activity. Apparently Robin wasn't wearing his mask all night but the 2 of them took time to pose for a photo. Once again, Robin and Emily had a great time interacting with some of the youth of Halifax. I wasn't there so I can't share any stories but I know there are some good ones.

A night at the improv

Robin has done it again. He and Emily have started up another puppet group. Actually, they are kind of involved in 2 new puppet groups. Last night the 2 groups met and what a night it was. There are 6 youth at our church that have been working weekly since November. 2 of them are leaders in the youth group at church. The other 3 are not always able to be involved in youth ministries, but are part of the youth group, and puppets is proving to be a GREAT fit for them. They are enthusiastic and seem to love being involved. The last member is Peter. He is not old enough to go to youth group but he loves puppets and so he is a part of the group. Gaëlle was the paper thrower last night during the black light song. Normally she is just part of the audience.

Their first performance was in December at our church and the puppets proved to be a big hit with young and old alike. They were then invited to perform at the Christmas Eve service. Another great night.

Last night they headed to The Club. Every Friday night Emily and Robin volunteer at The Club. They both love it and have started a puppet club there as well. So the church group performed 2 songs for The Club and then the club members put on their puppets and went at it. There was soooo much energy in the room. There were smiles and laughter and just generally a lot of people - young and old - having a great time. 

Last night there was another volunteer who does music therapy with the members of the club. She was fantastic and really added to the energy in the room. All puppet groups should have one of her. It's going to be so exciting to see what roads open up for ministry with this group of youth. Stay tuned.

Small Recap

Josh loves donair sauce. He introduced the kids to grilled cheese sandwiches with donair sauce. They think he is a genius. 

We had a lot of snow over the weekend. Fortunately Robin hauled out the snowblower and it still works. He spent a lot of time outside cleaning up the snow and not just around our house. He helped out the neighbors as well. And I think he loved it.

It was time to come up with some Valentine goodies for school. Gaëlle did hers all by herself. She was focused and was pleased with the results. I bought little stamps and notepads on sale at Michaels. So she put them in little bags and we stapled the card on top. 

I found an idea for Peter online. His teacher this year loves Skittles, the candy. So he asked if he could give out skittles. Normally the kids just give out cards. Home made or store bought. But I decided to let him give out candy. 

I found circle tags online which he taped to cardstock and then we stapled it to small bags of candy. He was also pleased with the result.

Baking Fun

My sister, Ruth, gave me this Whoopie Pie recipe book for Christmas. We've all been drooling over some of the recipes and one day Josh and Robin were on the same wave length about having some whoopie pies. However, only Josh put his thoughts into action.

Josh actually made some whoopee pies. He chose Snickerdoodle Whoopie Pies with a Coffee Filling. That's mainly because we had all the ingredients. 

This should be where I say that Gaëlle cleaned up all the dishes. However, this is actually where Gaëlle played with the dishes in the sink and used up 1/2 the bottle of dish detergent before I realized it. 

Our taste tester or bowl licker outer extroadinaire.

The finished product. They were really good. The coffee filling was definitely noticeable but a good addition to the cinnamon of the snicker doodle. As far as I'm concerned, Josh can make these anytime he wants.

PG Day 2013

 January 27, 2013 was our 3rd year anniversary of Peter and Gaëlle coming to Canada and joining our family for good. It's so hard to believe all that has gone on in the past 3 years. Most celebrations revolve around food in this family so we asked the kids how they wanted to celebrate.

Peter wanted to eat ribs and Gaëlle wanted to eat pizza. Because the 27th landed on a Sunday we decided to go out to eat after church. So both kids could have their choice of food.

Peter had no problem demolishing the ribs. He wasn't as crazy about the veggies.

Gaëlle changed her mind once we were at the restaurant and chose a chicken rice dish. 

We actually shared a couple of desserts.

These happy moments in our lives also come with a bit of sadness. 3 years ago Peter and Gaëlle said goodbye to everything and everybody they had ever known. They said goodbye to their country of birth and their native language. I will never cease to be amazed by their courage and bravery. In the past 3 years they have tried more new things. They have embraced their new family and their new country. They have been enthusiastic participants in school and church. 

A lot of the experts say that 3 years is the magic period of time for kids to assimilate in their new families. I think we have felt like a solid family for at least a year now. Probably longer. The experts also say there are ebbs and flows to this adoption life. Peter and Gaëlle have not done a lot of questioning about their situation. But as they age, the questions and doubts will certainly hit them hard at times and we will probably feel the brunt of that. There are moments when my fears hit me hard. Sometimes I fear the future and the unknowns. 

But I will continue to turn to my word for 2013. GRATEFUL. I am so blessed and grateful to be the mother to 5 unique and amazing children. I am thankful to be sharing this journey with my amazing partner and husband. No matter what the future brings, I pray that I will focus on the blessings of my life. The blessings of this family. And I will never forget January 27, 2010.

Old Technology

This week the grade 2 classes did simple presentations on old technology. They had to bring in something from home and present it to the class. We had several old items Gaëlle could have brought but decided she would be happy to present something with buttons. 

So, a Sony Walkman it was. We bought this when we lived on Grand Manan island and we knew we would be traveling back and forth to the mainland. This was part of our entertainment bag that the kids could have when we were on long trips. It was a big deal at the time.

So, Josh helped her use it. She kept calling the tapes, CDs. She shared that this wasn't around when her mom was a little girl but it was common when her big brother and sisters were young. Now they don't even sell them anymore. Ah.... old technology. 

I took this from Kaylin's Facebook page. She got her nursing tag this week.

She got all dressed up just to see how it would all look. She starts her clinical this week and is very excited but also nervous. Please pray for her as she starts this new part of her journey. 

Good ol' board games

Several years ago my brother got us started on these amazing games. The first one he gave us was EuroRails. It's recommended for ages 10 and up.  From the Mayfair Games website:

Celebrate one of the world's most vital and enduring passions: railroads. Use your initial investment to build track. Then pick up commodities where they are grown, mined, or manufactured and deliver them to a lucrative place of demand. Complete a delivery and make the money you need to buy larger, faster trains, and expand your railroad empire. Win the game by building the most effective railroad empire!

It certainly was a hit with some of us. Others found it a bit too long to play. No matter, Tim then gifted us with Empire Builder and IndiaRails. Same idea but different countries and shorter time to play a game. These are really great strategy games that can be quite addictive.  This Christmas we started playing them again and Peter joined in the fun. He loves it and it's nice to play a game we can share.

A few years ago Tim gave us The Settlers of Catan. Another amazing game that we soon discovered was popular with lots of people. It doesn't take too long to play and is easy to learn. Also recommended for ages 10 and up. 

So far we haven't introduced Peter to the joys of Settlers. This weekend is the time. I think I'll haul this out today and get Peter going. I have also heard that there is an iPad app for this game. If Peter decides he likes this, which I'm sure he will, I think we'll invest in the app. 

What's so amazing about these board games is how it stretches Peter's world. His life in Haiti was quite small. Even kids his age in Canada and the USA don't have the knowledge of basic geography and history. When you find a quality game with the benefit of expanding our knowledge, it's just a win-win.  I guess that's the point of educational games. But I don't think Mayfair Games markets itself in this category. They just make quality games that are educational. 

Why did I include this photo? It was right next to another image on my computer this morning and it makes me smile. May 2010. Wow. So long ago. 

Quick visit

On Saturday Emily and I were able to stop in briefly to visit Kaylin. Sisters sharing a smile.

Kaylin had just picked up her stethoscope and so she tried it out on Emily. Good for a few laughs.

Kaylin had her books neatly piled in a stack. Ready to go for her next semester.

Our final weekend

Saturday was Thai night. Emily offered to cook the entire meal for us.

Robin picked up the ingredients that she didn't already have and she was off.

It was delicious.

Her 2 main dishes were Chicken Pad Thai and Massaman Curry. 

She also made sticky rice which Gaelle enjoyed rolling in a ball and dipping in her food.

We ended the evening with a family game my brother made. 

There seemed to be a lot of covering of the mouths as answers were written down. 

A few attempts to see the answers anyway that were being written down.

 

Emily won the game although we're fairly certain there was some cheating going on.

My mom gave Kaylin these capri pants shrunken into a tiny shape. She has been saving them for just the right time and decided to finally grow them. Gaelle was in heaven watching the pants expand.

But expand they did and after they were dried out, Kaylin couldn't believe she waited so long. She loves them.

Peter has been asking to be baptized for a while and this Sunday was the special day. The children's pastor along with the assistance of the senior pastor were the ones to lead him through this. It was a special moment and all of us were able to be there to witness the celebration. I have a video that I have to get ready to put up. I forgot to remind Kaylin to bring her good camera but at least we have a photo.