Happy Dad's Day

He didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.

~Clarence Budington Kelland

Any man can be a father. It takes someone special to be a dad.

~Author Unknown

They say genes skip generations. Maybe that's why grandparents find their grandchildren so likeable.

~Joan McIntosh

A grandfather is someone with silver in his hair and gold in his heart.

~Author Unknown

The lucky man has a daughter as his first child.

-- Spanish Proverb

Of course my father was a great influence on me. He taught me how to read.

-- Michael Foot

His heritage to his children wasn't words or possessions, but an unspoken treasure, the treasure of his example as a man and a father.
-- Will Rogers Jr.

“My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me.”

-Jim Valvano

The father who would taste the essence of his fatherhood must turn back from the plane of his experience, take with him the fruits of his journey and begin again beside his child, marching step by step over the same old road.

~Angelo Patri

Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children.

~Alex Haley

A grandparent is old on the outside but young on the inside.

~Author Unknown

The best place to be when you're sad is Grandpa's lap.

~Author Unknown

When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years.

~Mark Twain

"One father is more than a hundred schoolmasters."

-- George Herbert

The history of our grandparents is remembered not with rose petals but in the laughter and tears of their children and their children's children. It is into us that the lives of grandparents have gone. It is in us that their history becomes a future.

~Charles and Ann Morse

A man never stands as tall as when he kneels to help a child.

~Anonymous

Up on his shoulders, is where I want to be.

~Michael Carr

A copious plethora of daily depictions*

*Lotsa pics

Madeline attended a friend's birthday party with a magician, airbrushed tattoos, potato sack races, games, lots of food and tons of fun. Us preschool parents often joke about how each birthday party gets more and more elaborate and that it will soon be out of control!

We celebrated Nelda and Angela's birthday with a fabulous turkey dinner at Olivia and Rob's. We've also had a lot of help from Travis and Natalie in doing electrical work around our house. We're lucky to have such talented and generous siblings!

Friends of ours were evacuated for a long while after the fire in Slave Lake. We were lucky enough to see them a lot while they were staying with family here. Thankfully their home wasn't burned and they've been able to return.

Despite the uncertainty of displacement, we had a wonderful long, long weekend.

Here's Claire's new "elevator" in action, as we left to go to Galaxyland.

Claire loves the rides and the sounds.

Madeline was only a little bit excited.

Luckily Ryan is tall and strong so he can wrangle Claire onto the carousel because she does love it!

We also spent a morning at the waterpark. One of these days I want to go there without kids so I can actually go on some big slides! We did have lots of fun though. :)

We also spent lots of fun time outdoors.

Until the kids finally got the hang of doing it on their own, Ryan was the designated slip n' slider.

A summer weekend with friends wouldn't be complete without Blizzards, right?

Our swingset always gets good use when friends come to visit. :)

I'd like to thank Ryan for including the smokies in this picture. It's a good way to document the candidness of life.

Group photo! We're lucky to have such great friends! I wish we could see everyone more often.

Claire's class had a field trip to the Royal Alberta Museum and they got to explore different stations that depicted things about spring. Here she is, working on a puzzle with Miss Amanda and Logan.

One of her favourite parts of the museum is the Wild Alberta gallery. The lighting is perfect for her visual attention and there are parts of the exhibit that she can touch. She was having a really fun time exploring!

I love her sweet smiles, even when she's punching me in the throat.

Madeline's preschool is nearly over for the year. We took a community walk to observe traffic signs as part of their safety unit. We miraculously ended up at Hayley's house where there was a picnic blanket for snack and a popsicle treat. There was also a pretty cool play space. :)

Playing all day long can be very tiring.

We had our year-end preschool carnival and it was a big success and lots of fun!

Part of the carnival was the bike-a-thon fund raiser. Here is Madeline pedalling away. She did a great job!

Luckily my mom came to be with the girls so I could help out with the games and the cash table as part of my preschool exec duties. (Every time I use the word "duty" I think of this movie - skip to 0:50 to hear the part)

The girls always love spending time with Grandma Patterson and Grandpa even came at the end to hang out for a bit!

Here's me and my crazy girls.

Madeline and Claire both enjoyed the carnival games a lot!

Dizzy the clown is there every year and the balloon animals are always a big hit! Madeline requested a photo with him and he was so kind as to oblige.

We've been trying to get things sorted for Claire's grade 1 year. It's quite a process and as a parent, I'm constantly questioning if the choices we're making are the best ones. I think every parent struggles with this responsibility, but in Claire's case the burden feels a bit heavier because her needs are so complex. I am encouraged by the open communication we've established with the school. The principal and I are going to observe a student with similar needs at another school who has had a lot of success with inclusion. I hope the experience will point us in the right direction for making Claire's school career as meaningful as possible!

I had a couple of fun girls' nights recently. Kathy introduced me to the world of Moxie's appetizers and we've made big plans for turning 30 next year! (THIRTY! ACK! GAH!) I got to see Little Women at the Citadel with my sisters, mom and Val as a Christmas present from dad. It was a beautiful production!

Ryan's been extremely busy with work and work. :) He attended a neat Google workshop for educators yesterday and continues to be a really positive influence in his school.

As we head toward the end of the school year, the days will be even busier! I shall try to be more timely with my posts. :)

P.S. This morning I woke up with curly hair. It was odd.

A quick picture blog

Because I'm so far behind, I keep putting off doing this entry. So I'm going to do a lightning picture round to catch up!

A rare, rare napping moment. I had to get pictorial evidence.

Claire's been doing really well at riding again.

Luckily it's been nice enough to ride outside lately - she enjoys that so much more!

Since Ryan and I have both been working on the computers in the basement during the evenings lately, Madeline's learned that she can sneak around upstairs without us hearing. We've found her tucked into our bed a few times when we come up. :)

Here's Claire and her class performing for an assembly at school. :)

I was very spoiled for Mother's Day.

I attended a special "Muffins with Mom" day at preschool. The kids made juice and muffins and served them to us. Then they sang some very cute songs and presented us with a gift - a hand-painted picture frame with a family photo! Claire also made me a beautiful flower present at school.

Oh Mother's Day proper, I awoke to a delicious French toast breakfast. I got a new yoga mat complete with a carrier, my favourite Satsuma body butter and tickets to Wicked! We got to spend time with our mothers/grandmas in Wetaskiwin as well. It was a very good day.

Grandpa Layton has the same special touch with Claire as Ryan.

The moment they cuddle, both fall asleep. :)

:)

Ryan and his mom. :)

Me and my crazy chicklets.

Ryan got his bike all fixed up and washed, even donning a new jacket to make early morning rides a warm possibility. Then his bike was vandalized while he was at work! Someone tried to cut through the clutch cable, apparently for kicks? Luckily he's become somewhat of a guru and repaired it himself. :)

He's training the new generation of bikers. :)

She LOVED this!

Some big news - we finally got Claire's wheelchair lift installed! After Trevor helped us build a deck last year, and Uncle Travis did all the electrical work, and we waited 8 months for funding, it's done! What a help and what a relief! We call it Claire's Elevator. :)

The empty spot.

The inaugural ride!

We're on the cusp of an awesome long, long weekend, so I will be more diligent in posting something about that right away!