Happy Canada Day! We are wearing the tie dye shirts that we made for JC’s seventh birthday party.
All day I have been singing part of our national anthem, “God keep our land, glorious and free!”
We swam, sang O Canada while eating cupcakes, visited Papa in Vtown, ate together and enjoyed movies together. I don’t think we will make it to the fireworks, but we are very grateful to be together sporting our tie dye Canada day t-shirts!
Our youngest made the plunge and came in our pool today – for the first time, first time!
Refreshing water.
Healing water.
Buoyant water.
Changing water.
Still waters.
Living water.
Blessings to my baby boy as he learns all about water.
My dad loves golf. Two eighteen holes of golf LOVES golfing.
Since his hockey playing days, golf has been a part of his “off-season” life.
In all of our grief, we are trying to meet our dear Papa right where he is at without nana at his side.
This afternoon we met him at the driving range.
Papa loves to teach!
CC (age 4) has been asking every day when he can go golfing with papa.
JC (age 7) loves to swing away.
OC (age 2) tried golf for the very first time. We think he might be a lefty like CC.
Ahhh, that feels better….
Golf.
Time.
Being where you are.
Quiet.
Focus.
One ball at a time.
As a stay-at-home mom, my Monday to Fridays are weekends and my weekends are a holidays because I have all my boys at home. My favourite quote as I raise up young men, “The days are long, but the years are short?”
My usual weekends involve cooking, cleaning, laundry, driving, encouraging, creating and loving up my boys to get ready to launch them ‘back into the world’ for another week. I feel profoundly grateful that I can be my three boys first teacher and that Sexy Neck supports me emotionally as well as financially. I feel completely content with my ‘job’ but sometimes I cringe at the Monday morning school drop-off where people ask about your weekend.
Tomorrow, I am going to be laughing my head off as I answer the question, “What did you do on the weekend?”.
I did surgery on a bear!
Thanks JC for taking the photo of me sewing on daddy bear’s head. Nana would be proud. We had daddy bear sitting by Nana’s sewing machine since the fall, but we brought him home. I sewed on my first teddy bear head. I can do anything.
New.
Risk taking.
Needle.
Thread.
One head at a time.
Grace.
Peace.
Joy.
Huge smile from JC.
Proud Mama.
Another great day.
Week.
Weekend.
Doing.
Being.
Our garden behind us runs wild like children chasing bubbles.
We are sticking with contained spaces this year.
Big projects cannot be harnessed with our little energy.
The wild garden will be ‘fallow’ this year.
We will still garden though.
The coveted Nana pots are brought out and chosen.
“Boys, take as many as you want.”
Pots and plants are carefully chosen.
Photos taken by Sexy Neck as he fixed the clothes line.
Sitting on the grass.
Soil.
Filling our pots.
Filling our souls.
Watering.
Helping our plants grow.
Helping us go deeper.
The sun.
Oh, the son.
Both lights on this earth.
Ever present.
Holding us together.
Plants in a pot.
Secure.
Protected.
Ah, my sons.
Incredibly hardworking, creative, playful…
Gardener’s that Nana would be proud of.
Planted by CC and JC
Planted by Mama and OC
Haha! I just reread my title, we aren’t growing marijuana, just keep everything in pots.
Like Sexy Neck, our boys are idea guys.
They often get an idea in their heads and they are going for it.
On Saturday, this involved a banana chip stand at 8:30am in the morning.
The most beautiful thing was that they had two customers buy their banana chips!
They created this stand all on their own. It even had a cool slot to put change into that made a tinkling noise when you dropped your coin in.
How many ideas have you had today? Have you decided to run with them or sit on them? After watching my boys, I think I am going to run with a few of my ideas.
Stay tuned…
The walls and kitchen cupboards (photos to come!) of our home are painted.
The outside will have to wait til warmer, more consistent weather.
Time to pick up the small brushes and paints Sexy Neck and the boys bought me for my birthday.
I was out for a sunset walk
and was inspired by these three trees:
They reminded me of my three handsome boys.
I got home, picked up my brushes, started playing with paint colour and off I went.
I thought about my wonderful boys.
I poured out love and joy through the paint.
I felt peace and happiness flowing through me.
I created this with my heart and soul.
Small triumphs.
Being creative.
Soul care.
Letting go.
Laughing that this Type A jock is painting… and loving it.
Freedom.
To be.
Me.
A few weeks ago, I received a comment, an innocent comment, that I have pondered and chewed on for weeks.
“Wow, you guys always do such a great job of including your children in what you are doing!”
I am surprised by this comment because:
🌀 On a daily basis, I love including my boys bustling energy of curiosity with what we are doing.
🌀 I never imagine doing anything without my boys hovering near by or asking to help. Even when I am just folding laundry they often help or play hockey behind me.
🌀 If we do ‘want’ to do something without the boys, we will plan for one of us to take them on an excursion outside of the house or do the activity during Naptime or after bedtime. I must admit that these times are few and far between.
Here is our family in action over the last few weeks working together on landscaping, pool opening, crib disassembling and dog training:
Sexy Neck moves one load of dirt then one load of boys.
JC heard that we were going to take down the crib… One morning he awoke, got the tools, disassembled the crib and brought it all downstairs. He’s seven and had remembered working with Sexy Neck to put it up last summer.
Loading up the trailer for the dump and then getting a ride in the trailer across the yard.
Laying brick with Papa Bob.
Rolling out turf.
‘Preparing’ the new garden.
Dog training and walking.
Before and after: Taking off the winter pool cover.
Working together.
Team.
Family.
Takes longer?
Yes!
Raising boys into men.
Harnessing energy.
Pouring in.
Pouring out.
Sticking together.
Perfectly imperfect.
Patiently teaching.
Creating lovely memories.
Putting down roots.
Together.
"Be" ENOUGH 