Hannah's Speech

Oh...I forgot one thing! Hannah's class has been preparing for the speech competition at our school. Actually, it's a Gr. 6/7 competition and three kids from each class are chosen to give their speech to the school and others who like to listen. Hannah was chosen as one from her class. So we listened today to these speeches - they all did a great job. Public speaking is something I missed in elementary school - and believe me it's much too late to change when you're an adult. Well, she was chosen as one of the three from our school to go on to the quad school Public Speaking Competition in Yarrow, BC this Friday. Her speech was on Foster Care & and I think she made a great speach... I get a lump in my throat each time I hear it. We wish her well on Friday.

Bit's & Bites...

Well, I feel like posting but don't have that much to write. Life is back to regular routine now that Amanda has left. Our little guy left after 6 days and so it's life with just our family again. This past weekend brought us another beautiful Saturday and we were able to work around the house again. Henry tilled the veggie garden for me and added a bit of compost. With the shocking price of food in the grocery store I think this summer we will take gardening more seriously. We don't have plans to take much time off so we will just stay put and enjoy our summer at home. With the shocking price at the pumps that's not a bad idea either. Here's a few cute pics my Mom sent - might as well laugh about it...

Amanda's Visit

Last Friday we were scheduled to pick up Amanda from the Seattle airport. I was counting on leaving around noon, picking up Lorelle from school to join me, and heading off at a leisurely pace to pick her up. The day before I was called by DSHS if I could take a baby who was being discharged from Seattle's Children's Hospital until the permanent foster "mom" was over a nasty flu & fever. I hesitantly agreed - not knowing what kind of weekend we would then have. This little guy turned out to be one of the sweetest babies I've taken care of. He had been hospitalized many times with respiratory problems - and so a crash course was given on inhalers, steroids, and other medications to be administered at different times of the day. Well, that was the first morning with the little guy - and Henry walks into the kitchen to remind me that Amanda's plane arrives in 2 1/2 hours. That's a bit of a problem since it's a 2 hour drive to Seattle. You never did see anyone fly around the house so fast. Lorelle didn't go to school that day and we left within the hour - baby and all. We managed to arrive on time - Lorelle went into the airport to get her but unfortunately Amanda's suitcases were not arriving. We left after they promised to deliver her suitcases that evening (don't hold your breath).

We stopped in at Pike's Place Market - a must see if you're visiting Seattle. The weather was sunny and cold. Here's a photo of the girls trying to ride the pig - it's harder than it looks, The following days were filled with fun - an evening out with 14 of us to watch a wonderful performance of "Little Women", a walk along the ocean, a drive up Mount Baker, a visit to the school and more.

Meet Our New Groundskeeper!

This past weekend - particularly Saturday - was absolutely beautiful! The temperature probably hit close to 70 degrees and so our entire family spent time outside. Some of us put on our bathing suits (no, that was not me) and worked on the tan, while others spent time making the lawn & gardens beautiful. Last year Jocelyn did most of the lawnmowing and trimming around the house but we are hoping with her that she will have some sort of summer employment. We are working hard at making that happen.

When Alec expressed interest in helping, I spent some time with him on the lawnmower. This picture shows him hard at work - it just makes my heart swell... what a cutie!! And just in case you are dashing off to phone the authorities...I was close at hand to help him if things went wrong. With a very protective mother as a trainer, he is well aware of the safety issues & the rules that go along with operating a John Deere. Let's hope the eagerness to help continues throughout the summer.

Capilano Bridge Field Trip

Today was the last day before Spring Break and Alec's Gr. 3/4 class was scheduled to go to Capilano Bridge in Vancouver, BC. They finished their unit on bridges and each student had a chance to build one of the 3 main bridge types. I volunteered to join them, along with three other adults. The weather was rainy - but it didn't dampen their enthusiasm for the day. It's been about 8-10 years since I've been there last. They've added a tree-top walk, with suspension bridges hanging from tree to tree so you can walk through the tree tops. This really makes it more worth going. Miss K. had arrranged for a guide to explain bridge structures as well as a nature guide. It was a nice day - but by 1:30 we were happy to get back into a warm vehicle and dry up.