A cast of thousands....

Knowing her love of this particular art form, Savannah's bff, M, gifted her with a sock-puppet making kit.....a much fancier one than her other one....complete with pre-cut embellishments and super-fuzzy socks.

I've forgotten the names of these two.....I shall have to consult the latest playbill.....

Winter Solstice, Charlie Brown's tree and magnetic poetry...*

*note: attempting to document our Countdown has been entirely abandoned.  Suffice it to say, we only missed a few things.....I'm voting for the shitey chocolate calendar next year.

The above picture is the peanut butter and birdseed English muffins that we made for our fur and feathered friends....placed reverently out at the base of the maple tree and around the yard.  I won't mention what became of our Solstice lanterns although there are two soup tins full of ice languishing in our freezer....

Anyway...'twas a lovely observance....gifts by candlelight and a lovely roast chicken feast....prezzies unwrapped beneath our fabulous tree...

As a matter of perspective....B is a former jockey (read: short man)...and those are cardboard spacers I improvised to hold the slender trunk in place as the screw thingies were at their maximum.  It may not have been a tall tree, but, as was repeatedly commented, it was a very full tree.

Savannah once again took charge of decorating it.....due to the elfin nature of the tree, there were lots of decorations left in their boxes this year.

One of the coolest gifts ever (if I do say so myself) was the box of Magnetic Poetry for Kids....we are having a grand old time spontaneously composing verse every time we walk through the kitchen. I'm pretty sure this is how Shel Silverstein got famous.  Keep your eye out for the Kitchen Whiteboard Collection....coming soon to a fine bookseller near you......;)

Holiday Countdown....Reader's Digest version

Yes, I've been utterly lax with the documentation of our countdown. I've given up apologizing for my lack of commitment here, suffice it to say, some days, amidst the sheer randomness of life-as-we-know-it around these parts, the prospect of uploading and posting photos is more than I can bear.....:)  And I'm continually wrestling with the thought that really, who gives a rat's ass what we're up to and why am I doing this again? Excuse the existentialist sidetracking, such is my head-space amongst the holiday frenzy.  Plus we're thoroughly embroiled in the new Mystery Case Files game - Dire Grove.

That said....here's a smattering of what we've been up to. We're a tad behind but finding it all quite scintillating and there are only a couple of things I might change up for next year...

Much baking of cookies has occurred...

Savannah has produced a startling amount of holiday craftiness...she's been like a little elf in the Art Cave/Santa's Workshop...and our invisible tree (invisible because we haven't got one yet) already has a pile of handmade goodness underneath for both two and four-legged family members alike.  I am shamelessly proud of her un-prompted generosity and thoughtfulness. She's powering through scads of paper and glue and paint so I only hope that The Elves got my message and are planning to replenish her stock...;)

Of course, there has been a lot of outdoorsy-ness as well....and sometimes, when the mood strikes, we simply put our snowsuits on over our pajamas*.
 

*NB. Once it darkness falls, no matter what the time (which is around 5:30pm-ish these days), Sebastian likes to don his nightwear...and so our various forays into the night to witness the twinkly, sparkly light displays mean he's most often in his jammies...

One of our annual treks to the Festival of Lights....thankfully they've got some new displays as it was starting to get a bit old.....this one is one of the originals and second only to the train as Sebastian's favourite.

Other highlights  so far have included an attempt at Solstice lanterns, making edible gifts for the wildlife around our 'hood, putting together a big bag of food for the Food Bank, choosing gifts from Plan Canada (we went with mango trees and bee-keeping kits, I bought a home-birthing kit on behalf of my work-chums)....

Today we're off to get our tree to complete the greenery within.....

Holiday Countdown - Days Two and Three - December 2, 3

Wednesdays and Thursdays are tricky days as they're my work days so we are limited to what we can accomplish......Wednesday's task was to dig out our holiday/winter book collection and start reading one each night at bedtime. We also have a  copy of Do You See What I See? Christmas so we're working our way through that one. The seek-and-find books are big favourite of Sebastian's but these ones are a bit more challenging so we do a few pages at at time.  Thursday was 'decorate windows with paper snowflakes' -- which we sort of did. Savannah wanted to save the actual crafting of the snowflakes until her bff M. came over in the afternoon {she and her mom look after the kids when I go to work on Thursday afternoons} so I missed out on any pics.....this is one she'd made earlier....

Holiday Countdown - Day One - December 1

Because you can never have enough pictures of your kids sleeping...

...especially when they're up way early and can't help but tip over on the sofa and immediately be fallen upon by heat-seeking snuggle-hounds {Oscar is curled up in the crook of her knees}

Today marked our first holiday countdown day....not a very original or new one, but we're starting off slowly so as not to ramp up into a frenzy too soon before the Big Days ahead....

So off we went to the library and indeed maxed out our cards....we actually had to put two things back because for some Grinchy reason, adult cards are only allowed to take out two things as opposed to the five allowed for kid cards. {insert raspberry here}. Alas, Sebastian was coughing and hacking and snortling all over the library computer - upon which we were getting some rather nervous glances from the other patrons - so we didn't stay long. I'm quite certain someone immediately swooped in and disinfected everything we'd touched......

We meandered to our usual apres-library coffee shop destination, drank hot chocolate and ate cookies to fortify ourselves {okay, fortify ME, who had to carry five tons of library books and movies in the backpack} for the walk home...

....upon which, after much deliberation, we reactivated Savannah's Club Penguin account.  Being a bit older and having basic reading skills now makes all the difference and she's quite charmed with the whole thing. If anyone else out there plays, her penguin's name is Wagonberry....

Hot chocolate and a jam doughnut wears off fast when you're working your way up the belts in Card Ju-jitsu, so milk and an Oreo was in order by mid-afternoon.

Peace & legos, jam sandwiches & cups of tea...

I'm the first to admit that life around our little patch is not all sunshine and roses...theres' that whole misconception that just because two siblings are close in age that they'll automatically be best chums {which, in a fit of starry-eyed foolishness I bought into}. So yeah, our two Shinies fight a lot....less than they used to...but they do fight. I've come to the conclusion that it's a grand karmic punishment for my own wretched big sisterness...but that's a whole other navel-gazing session.

SO...when peace does reign in our house, 'tis a lovely thing.....

Peace comes in the form of legos and pattern blocks and Candyland strewn around the floor of the Bat Cave....with Snowbell in the thick of things...naturally.

Of course, there's the ceremonial breaking of bread...which in this case are jam sandwiches -- all the rage around here of late, they just can't get enough of 'em....

Behold...the fruits of their labours.....{it's two horses attached to a cart, in case you couldn't tell}. Okay, so that was Savannah's contribution, Sebastian is all about building high towers. There were other constructions but they fell to ruin as part of some complex scenario involving dinosaurs and a remote-controlled tarantula taking over the world....

And what does the mama do when all is quiet and Zen?  Why this....

Ah....sweet serenity....

Retro viewing....

Sebastian is currently on a VHS bender. Yes, they do still exist.

Sadly, the Henry's Amazing Animals videos he dearly loves are ONLY available in VHS...yeah, so what's THAT all about?!?! But he's also excavated some ancient Blue's Clues tapes (from the Steve era!!), which I believe were around when my soon-to-be 14 year old niece was a tot. 

And whoever said children's television isn't educational has evidently not seen the Blue's Clues episode where they learn the planets...I can now recite (actually sing in a jaunty little tune) the planets in order from closest to the sun...which, I might add, I couldn't do before watching this program. And so can the kids. So there.

So YAY for retro video tapes....but not so YAY for all that rewinding....

Holiday Countdown 2009

In a shameless pilfering of Other People's Ideas, we've decided to do a holiday countdown...sort of an advent calendar-esque type thing.  It took some convincing as Savannah is rather fond of the shitey chocolates that come in the shitey-yet-ever-so-fabulous cardboard calendars that we've added to our repertoire in the past, so we negotiated the additional creation of a  Countdown Jar of Chocolate which we will fill with some yummy niblets and sample each day as we ponder our assignments.

Absolutely determined not to make a Huge Production out of the thing, we just made-do with what we had around the house (as my mind soared off in all sorts of grand and crafty directions of how we could make each envelope a fragment of Divinity itself)....thusly we used construction paper scavenged from the Art Cave and glossy flyers of a Christmassy theme we found by rummaging through the recycling bin.

'Twas also a shameless opportunity for Savannah to practice scribing her numbers...particularly those which she has trouble with....2, 3 and 5.  We made up some silly rhymes to remember how to draw them and by the end, after each one was the proclamation... "Look!!! It's the perfect..{insert number here}!!!!"

Our little pile of lopsided envelopes grew over the course of the afternoon....my template was a bit off, trying to be as frugal as possible with our paper usage....plus, I'm wonky on a good day.

Then, Savannah stuck the numbers onto each envelope....we went from 1-25, deciding not to go past into the days past Christmas. It was harder than I thought, when factoring in work-days and times when we would want B to be around etc, but in the end I was quite happy with The List.







And here's our list:

1.Max-out our library cards on holiday books and movies (you're allowed 5 items per card)
2. Get out our own collection of holiday books and read one each night.  See how much of the Do You See What I See? Christmas book we can finish this year.
3. Decorate the windows with paper snowflakes.
4. Go to see the Festival of Lights at Spencer Smith Park.
5. Family dinner tonight at Auntie B's! Bake something to take for dessert.
6. Use up last year's Blockbuster gift cards on a previously-viewed movie.
7. Go to the mall with Nanna to see the decorations. Put our gift(s) in the Toy Drive Bin. Eat lunch in the Food Court.
8. Make a holiday parcel for the Food Bank.
9. Choose a gift from Heifer Int'l or Plan Canada.
10. Change over our nature table. Listen to some holiday music while we do it.
11. Drive along Lakeshore to see all the lights on the fancy rich people's houses.
12. Happy Hanukkah! Shop for some yummy snacks for our........family movie night!!! Go ahead...open up the surprise. {a copy of the new 'Buddies' movie}
13. Go to Kerncliff for a winter hike. Gather evergreens for our decorations.
14. Decorate the house.
15. Make Solstice lanterns.
16. String popcorn for the tree.
17. Make edible gifts for Bushy and her friends and the birds.
18. Choose the Best Tree Ever.
19.  Decorate the tree; dinner at Nanna and Granda's house! Don't forget to take your homemade gifts for the kid's exchange.
20.  Christmas party at the Navy Club!  Light our Solstice lanterns and leave our edible gifts out for our animal friends.
21. Happy Winter Solstice!! Welcome back the Sun and be thankful for our warm, cozy house and our cupboards full of food.  Prepare a festive dinner and open our Solstice gifts when Daddy gets home from work.
22.Make a batch of cookies for all the family dogs.
23. Watch holiday specials/movies. (Mommy votes for It's a Wonderful Life...please?)
24.  It's Christmas Eve!! Bake cookies to eat while we read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas. Don't forget to leave the magick key out for Santa.
25.  Merry Christmas! Have a wonderful day filled with laughter and joy and the love of family and friends.

 I shall perhaps unleash my creative urges on the Chocolate Jar.....currently masquerading as an empty Mason jar smelling slightly of the pasta sauce that used to occupy it....it's sitting in the middle of the table, just waiting for inspiration....

Puddles, puppets and hot cups of tea

November has been a very kind month so far....above-normal to downright balmy temperatures and noticeable lack of rain...or as the case sometimes is...The Other (aka, the S-word - just can't bring myself to say it).

But, into every life, a little rain must fall...and so it did...making for a damp and dreary sort of day. So I  wandered out into our little garden patch to take some pictures of the greenery which has finally decided to give up it's green in favour of something a little more red...

 

 

Our outdoor *offering* basket....we decorated it with our painted pumpkins left from Thanksgiving...sadly, it seems that our visitors are not overly fond of the grapes, but *someone* ate the apple...

One of our Gargoyles....cozying up with some leaves...perhaps I should knit them scarves for the winter...

I did manage to convince my fairweather friends that we should get out for a walk with the dogs between rainshowers and we managed to do just that, getting home just in time for another downpour. At which point it was decided that it was a good day to stay inside and make sock puppets....as one does when it's raining and cold outside.

Savannah has an aversion to wearing any brand of socks other than Happy Feet socks -- being the sensitive soul she is -- thusly, she has a drawer full of failed experiments in acceptable foot coverings..which lend themselves nicely to becoming an entire theatre troupe of sock puppets.

We're working on some Glamour Shots....because every budding thespian needs a Glamour Shot, right? There are murmurings of a holiday puppet theatre performance of Rapunzel...which apparently will require elaborate set decorations and the sub-contracting out of the *extras*.....

In the midst of this creative frenzy, I managed to do a *final* edit on my manuscript, only to discover it is about thirty pages over the maximum to be entered in the contest I had my eye on...*sigh*...so instead of weeping with frustration, I made tea. Lots of it. Maple tea, to be exact...yes..you're thinking "Eww",which is what I thought until I tried it...it's quite delicious....and suitable for wallowing in creative self-pity.

Of mice and math

Math is not my friend.

I have a deep psychological scar about math that I've traced back to an incident in my early school years involving a recitation of my times tables. *shudder*.  Oh, I get by...I even did reasonably well in university-level calculus (thanks to a great professor), but in general, math makes me queasy.

Sadly, however, it's one of those necessary skills....

Early last week Savannah expressed an interest in earning some extra coin (she's saving up to buy a horse, btw)  so an opportunity to start doing some basic math arose. So what's a math-o-phobe to do? Why, find some computer software, of course!  {in my defense, it is her preferred method for doing new things -- it's all about being able to puzzle it out on her own} And from her experience playing Fairy-o-poly, I figured she'd grasp it quite easily when put into a *real* context, rather than faffing about with abstracts.

So now she's buying scooter accessories and making change in a virtual store where the shopkeeper is a rather obnoxious little mouse with a nerve-jarring  Frosted-Lucky-Charms Irish brogue. And when she got frustrated with the horrible rodent, she went off to make pizzas and has grasped fractions with amazing alacrity...amazing only because it took me until adulthood and I was riding fast horses in a circle to truly grasp fractions...

Malcolm...

And one of the best parts about this kind of learning, is that you get much cuddlier seat-mates than you'd find at conventional school...

Stack-Rat Tuesday...

The main road we walk along to get to the library is....well....fairly hideous. Nothing really that you could put your finger on...it's just old and ugly and completely lacks character.  Thusly, the stark and dismal sight of these huddling pigeons completely captures the feel of it...especially since a rather biting wind was tunnelling through...

We rather enjoy our little neighbourhood branch. Sure it's not as fancy as some of the larger branches and sure, you pretty much have to put holds on most of the books you might want...but it's small and rarely busy and the librarians are very sweet and helpful.

So we prowled for 'next-ones' of some of the series books we're reading (getting all giddy when we discovered they were actually On The Shelf as opposed to at the branch across town), Sebastian played on the computer, amusing us greatly with his earphones-on Loud Talking and Savannah did the provided craft.

As per usual, after we pillage the stacks for our reading material for the week...it's a short (and chilly) walk to the coffee shop for our traditional apres library snack.  Today was cold enough to merit a hot chocolate in lieu of coffee...and...of course....

Ye Olde Gingerbread cookie..all dressed for the season

Sebastian enjoyed the polar bear version....

The remains of a nest that we spotted on the walk home...we went a more scenic way for the trip back.

Finally, windswept and runny-nosed, we retired to the warmth for an afternoon with our stash......

In which we paint in our pajamas...

Sometimes you just have to listen when the Muse calls you.....even if you haven't had breakfast yet.

  

from the Smiley-Face collection

Weiner love....

Sometimes, a little sausage-dog love, is all a girl needs when she's feelin' blue....

Autumn...views from the bus-stop

 

Stream of Dreams...

Whereupon a group assembles to learn of the perils of putting crap down the storm drains and how washing their cars with vile soapy concoctions do unfathomable things to the Earth and the Water and our friends, the fishes....

...and when they have completed the aforementioned learnings, great fun is had painting wooden fishes and attaching them to otherwise ugly fences...

my favourite

 

Catching up,....November 9

Introducing... Sir Oscar....our latest foster-dog. (we added the title to distinguish him from our own Oscar...plus he's a rather refined gentleman, worthy of a peerage).  He's a gem, a love-bug, but a sad and broken-hearted little soul. He's been let down a lot in the past but has finally reached safe-haven.

the healing power of love

I'm happy to report that, as of today (November 12) it seems that Sir Oscar has found his forever home.....and as sad as we will be to see him go, we know that he will be loved and cared for and need never worry about being left behind again....

An even happier bonus...is that we'll still get to see him because we happen to be tight with his new family...:)