Cooper's been sick - missed some school - spent a lot, a lot, of time playing with his Lego guys.

Now I'm sick. I should be in bed. But instead I sit here documenting something I don't want to forget.

Today was an extremely busy day and when you're feeling crummy and Daddy's away, the first thing to go is patience. I was not at my best today and the kids felt it. At bedtime (the moment I had been waiting for since first thing this morning), Cooper said to me "I crave Daddy". Such an interesting choice of words. Not "I miss Daddy" but "I crave Daddy". If you read my blog every once in a while you'll know that Tony has been very busy at work for a long time and our time with him is precious. Cooper went on to explain: "Daddy's like a cigarette. When you have him you just want more of him, and when he's not here you crave him". At first I laughed a little at his analogy but the more I thought about it I realized how smart he is to be able to describe his feelings that way. I know that because today I didn't shine as a parent, the kids probably missed their Dad even more. Cooper even said he didn't think we could handle this (life) without Daddy. Feeling a little defensive I assured him that we can handle it and we'll be just fine. And fine we'll be until Saturday when Tony comes back. And Cooper can satisfy his craving.

Peaches, cafe`s, & flags

Eventhough I have said in the past that Summer really is my favorite season, I think Fall really brings out the 'Susie Homemaker" in me.

A couple of weeks ago Tony and I made jars and jars of salsa and this weekend I was determined to get some peaches for canning before the season was over. So on Sunday we all went on a little road trip to Hamilton Farms in Aldergrove (I did say 'little') to get some. On the way home the kids were all complaining they were hungry (we always manage to leave the house just before lunch time). Tony suggested stopping for them but a quick stop with 4 kids often means McBarfy's which I really didn't feel like so I suggested we stop at the Milsean Shoppe which I've heard about but never been to. I wasn't sure how kid friendly it would be but we were willing to give it a try. Their light lunch menu didn't offer much that the kids would like but they had gelatin and we've been known to have ice cream for a meal every now and then so we stayed. Tony and I shared a grilled panini and Cooper decided that he liked that so I think I got maybe a quarter of the very yummy sandwich.

You may wonder why this very normal story is worthy of a blog post. I'll tell you. This very cute little shop full of breakable knick-knacks and things to buy, with tiny tables with very little walk-by space is not a place we would have thought to stop at with the kids in the past 10 years or so. But we no longer have a stroller to try and maneuver into places, we no longer require a highchair or booster seat. We can now stop at a quaint little eatery and enjoy ourselves as a family. So that is what we did. Times are changing.
Today I went on a field trip with Hudson's class. It was possibly the most boring field trip I have ever been on. The grand opening ceremony of the new Cultural Center in Abbotsford. Only a few classes were invited so the kids were led to believe it was a big deal. They sat through (but couldn't see) an excruciating amount of boring speeches by some important Abbotsford people and then were handed a piece of cake as they headed back to the bus. Hudson kept looking at me through the crowd with a look of "get me outta here" but once he got his cake he was okay. The sad thing is that they didn't even get to go in the Cultural Center which was too bad. Maybe we will try to get there another time on our own. It was nice to be able to go with Hudson anyway. Last year I didn't make it to any of his field trips - a fact he won't let me forget - so I think that eventhough I could have possibly picked a more exciting one to attend it meant something to Hudson that I was there. Oh ya, he also got a free pen and a paper flag. :)

Sun and Soccer

The rainy soccer Saturdays are undoubtedly coming so for now, we thought we better take full advantage of the sunny ones. We all went to Reagan's game on the weekend. Cooper had a little complaining to do but we quickly reminded him that Reagan has sat through a many of his games so we weren't listening.

Reagan really loves the game and she never wants to miss a week. She hustles out there for the whole hour and has a lot of fun.

You know she's really working hard when her tongue is out.

Daddy got her with the water bottle on a water break.

Cooper lost his football in the creek. It took me at least 10 minutes to convince him to get in the water. I thought boys liked wading in creeks.

Hudson sat in the shade with his nose in a book almost all game. He got a new one from the library and he spent most of his Saturday this way. Could hardly eat his dinner.

What?? No Taggart?? He was there too but amazingly enough he didn't make into the lens this time, at least not after the edits.

This week...

Tag had his first day of preschool. He said he didn't want to go when he first woke up because he had the 'sniffles'. That was true, but a very small case so we decided that he would go anyway. He was happy walking there and very comfortable going into the classroom (same one as last year). When I picked him up I got a huge hug and a huge smile. But when I asked him how it went he said "horrible". Why? "We always have to go to the dumb park and I always get dumb rocks in my shoes." So we decided that next time he would tighten up his shoes best he could and maybe that would prevent the rocks. As it turned out, the next time he still got rocks in his shoes but he seems to have accepted it. I still get huge hugs at pick up time. 'Wrap' hugs, as I like to call them. The ones where his little arms wrap all the way around my neck and his legs all the way around my waist. Feels good. The weather has been beautiful. The kind of fall warmth where it's cold in the morning, hot in the afternoon, and then cold again in the evening. Dressing in layers is a must. The garden still looks beautiful and even though Tony and I have both petered out as far as tending to it - there is still lots to enjoy.

Cooper had been fighting a nasty ear infection and after a full week on antibiotics is still in a lot of pain. I saw two doctors in two days with two different diagnoses. So we are treating with painkillers and decongestants and hoping for the best. Saw a slight improvement this afternoon but he still missed two days of school. Taggart has enjoyed his company. Today they watched lots of TV and built train tracks.

Reagan got a new do. She has been asking for a short haircut for a while, and since brushing out the tangles has become much more painful lately (for her and I), today was the day. She loves it and so do I. She swung her head around proudly for quite a while this afternoon.

We ended the first full week of school at the park tonight for a picnic dinner. They burned off some steam and even though Cooper really didn't want to go he ended up having a good time. Especially because him and I got sushi while the rest got McDonalds. Tony is working late so Nana joined us. But this time she brought the camera, not me.

Fresh start

Even though I really didn't feel ready to let summer go (it really is my favorite season) I am really enjoying September. The newness of it. It always makes me want to start fresh with good habits, re-organize my house (which I have done a ton of this week), and much to my kids chagrin, start the 'chore chart' up again. Summer is all about having fun and goofing off but that's all over in September. :)

And something else that I'm excited about is to start scrapbooking again. I always figure summer is about making the memories and now it's time to document them. Today Tag and I took a trip to the scrapbbok store to get a few goodies to get me going and the new book by my favorite "life-artist" for some much needed inspiration.

Tomorrow I will blow the cobwebs off my desk and dig in. Can't wait.

And just because I can't blog without a photo - here's one from a few nights ago. Love it when Tony picks up the camera.

Hello September

Along with the usual traditional first day of school photos they all wanted to do a 'silly' one. Funny, that's the one I liked the best.

Goodbye to summer nights in the pool, staying up late, video game marathons in the morning, and for Taggart, goodbye to all-day playmates.

Today he ate his lunch on the front porch all by himself. I think he was missing the chaos.