Where the Hecka Have We Been?

Holy Man I haven't been here in a while but I promise to catch up soon soon soon.  It is March in Canada and that meens mega hibernation and maybe a bit of SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) which I swear we get a touch every year around this time!  However I am starting to feel a bit better so we shall catch up on our adventures as soon as this Momma finds a quiet moment to sort through photos!

What the Hecka is Going on Here? Part 3

Oh yeah baby, at the end of this winter craft we had somewhere around 12 kids running around the fort painting it with the spray bottles full of paint and water (FYI use food colouring not paint). 

Everyone had a chance to express themselves in the snow and the result is nothing less than fabulous.  My front yard has been transformed into a massive fridge front covered with drawings from all the the neighborhood kids.  So far this morning we have all taken our tuns running to the dining room window to check it out.

This is one of my favorite pictures of the day.  The two moms admiring their work knowing it was thoroughly enjoyed by many.

What the Hecka is Going on Here? Part 2

Part 2 of this neighborhood craft project involved some major snow moving.  Ben and Jack were total troopers and definitely moved a lot of snow in preparation for this craft project.  The lump of snow that we slowly accumulted was many things in the half hour the three of us worked away at it.  A mountain, a cone, a cylinder, and of course Jack prayed it would magically turn into a train.  I think the boys were pretty thankful when Katie our neighbor and Mom of Peyton and Ethan arrived to help with the snow! 

Between the two moms we moved some major snow!  I am talking a good hour and a half of shoveling.  Coats and hats were shed.  We were sweating it out, neighbors drove by and slowed as they passed us wondering what the hecka we were up to.  Slowly what started out as a big lump of snow began to take shape and turned into a super awesome snow fort complete with two rooms.  The energy between us changed and we became SUPER MOMS. 

This isn't something that happens everyday of course but once in a while you do something so cool for your kids that you are elevated to the peak of SUPER MOMNESS and we achieved it on this day.  We were great, plans have been made to expand the fort of course.  We are just waiting for more snow so we can add furniture and of course more rooms.

You can see the excitement (relief) on our faces as part 2 of this super winter craft day is completed.  Bet you can guess what is next!

What the Hecka is Going on Here? Part 1

I love to craft.  I think the boys do too.  I know sometimes my boys get sick of it...clearly I planned a few too many at Christmas time but now that we have had a chance to recuperate from Christmas it was time to get back at it.  Can you guess what we are making?  A few clues:

1) Empty contents of all the spray bottles in the house into mason jars.

2) Fill up spray bottles with water and paint.  Two very excited boys are wonderful helpers for this step!

3) Text all neighbourhood moms and arrange to meet outside.

4) Win the Mom of the Week award!

What The Hecka is This?

Our big plan is to finish the basement in the New Year so that the boys have a hangout spot for them and their friends.  So I have been preparing the basement.

Step 1:  Remove six years of artwork from the walls.  I was so sad when I did this.  I look at it all the time when I am on my treadmill and had no idea I was so attached to it.  Some of it will have to be framed and brought back into the basement when it is done.

Step 2: Say goodbye to the race track on the floor.  Don and I painted this on the floor about four years ago and many a child has whizzed around our basement on a tricycle or plasma car or whatever vehicle was popular at the time.  You can see how worn the paint is on the sharpest corner.  It is proof of the traffic this race track has seen.  Don told Ben the paint fairy came and made it for Ben and Jack.  Ben has asked me if the paint fairy was real, haven't told him about that one yet either...  So hard to say good bye, more for me than the boys of course.

Lots of trouble letting go lately...hope I get better at it because at some point the boys are going to be irritated with me...like when I try to go on their first date with them...

Fish In A Bag

While away we got to do some snorkeling on a coral reef.  Totally awesome.  Benny loved it while Jack spent some time on the boat with the captain feeding the fish with chunks of bread lifted from the buffet.

The absolute highlight of this day wasn't necessarily the snorkeling but what occurred after the snorkeling was done.  I was still in the water when I heard the excited shrieks of two very happy boys!  What should I see but two boys who had caught a fish with a zip loc bag.  What the hecka I say.  A joint effort, Jack put the chunk of bread in the bag and Benny held the bag under water until an unsuspecting fishy swam in and was captured long enough to catch this perfect photo.

Good work boys!

Our guide was kind enough to take some underwater shots and send them home with us.  Thank you Michael!

The reef was beautiful of course.

What the Hecka is Going on Here?

It is haircut night of course!!!! Daddy has a phobia. It is bad. He gets totally freaked out when we cut the boys hair on the house because some of the hair EEK might not get cleaned up and then it would be in the kitchen, coexisting with us and bugging Don to no end. Sooo on nice days we do it in the backyard. The boys are really pretty good about it but on this particular night a little bribing with a swim after haircuts was needed. Ben got the stool set up while Jack picked up the stools...from the dog. Nothing like watching a little naked boy quite seriously go about his work!