I adore these petunias with the green edges. So cool. This one is growing in one of Laurel's beautiful planters. I've also seen them in some city-owned pots downtown.
After posting almost daily for a month, it was good to have a little break from blogging but I certainly don't want to miss recording some of the details of our weekend.
We spent Thursday evening at L&B's to celebrate our niece's 11th birthday. Neil had taken the girls over earlier in the afternoon and then he picked me up from work so we could go straight there. Shauna, Cole, and Rian had arrived from Edmonton earlier in the day, and Donna, Lou, Darren, Ali, Gabe, and Avery were there as well. We had a great dinner (bbq'd hamburgers, corn on the cob, etc) and birthday cake from Coldstone Creamery. We didn't get home until about 9:30 and I was exhausted, so I stayed in bed after reading to Madeline and Georgia.
I was up early on Friday, Canada Day. I worked on email and Bite-sized Scrapbooking stuff until after lunch and then weeded the garden for three hours in the afternoon. Meanwhile, Neil took the girls to a Rider practice (11:00 am) where they got a bunch of things autographed, and then to the park for Canada Day festivities in the afternoon. Laurel, Bronwyn, Shauna, Cole, and Rian also did those things with them. Around 5:30 pm, we picked up Donna from the Pasqua hospital where Grandma Louise is recovering from surgery, and we went to L&B's house for our nephew's 7th birthday celebration. We had Houston Pizza for supper and a delicious "zebra" cake which Shauna made and decorated with white icing and red fondont maple leafs. After supper, Sophia went to a movie with her friend Meghan, while we stayed at L&B's until almost 9 pm. Once again, that was the end of the day for me. I don't know why, but I can't seem to stay up late any more! I guess I'm working harder these days.
On Saturday, I got up at 6:00 am and did a little more BSS work. I really don't mind getting up early on weekends. For awhile on Saturday morning, I appreciated the complete silence of the house. Not even the A/C was running. :) When Madeline got up, she and I (with coffee in hand) enjoyed a stroll around our garden on a gorgeous sunny morning. I loved chatting with Madeline as we looked at the plants and flowers. I love to hear her perspective on things.
Before too long, I went to work cleaning the living room and dining room floors while Neil hauled all of the toys out to the front lawn, placing them on top of old sheets. Once everything was out and the floors cleared, Madeline and I took a little break to pick up bread and treats at Orange Boot Bakery (I was after the Rhubarb & Walnut muffins in particular). At 1:00 pm, Neil took the girls to go swimming with their cousins at the Sandra Schmirler Leisure Centre. Meanwhile, I sorted toys for about six hours straight (with Neil's help for some of those hours). Can you believe that? I didn't think it would take that long -- and was frustrated that it did -- but at least it was a gorgeous day outside. And it is great to have this done but I know there are more toys lurking in our house somewhere. There are a few obvious things missing from sets and games. That drives me nuts!
Neil made an awesome supper (bison tenderloin steak, perfect potatoes/carrots/onions, corn on the cob) and we ate out on the patio for the first time this year. And then I had to take the girls to 7-11 for 5-cent candies because I had promised. Ugggh. What was I thinking? Oh yeah, that they were supposed to help me with the toy sorting -- and they did, but less than I was hoping due to the swimming excursion and playing with their new friend, Zoe, from two doors down. After that, we hauled all of the toys into the house.
Sunday was another gruelling day of working with the toys. This time indoors, we went through every container deciding what toys to give away (all but one miscellaneous box as we ran out of time). The girls did pretty well. We collected another large box full of toys and dress-up clothes, 30 small stuffed animals (unfortunately, very little relative to the remaining stuffies: I cannot get them to part with Webkinz!), and a bag of play dough paraphernalia (we kept the best tools and cookie cutters) to give away. Also on Sunday, Neil and the girls took Dash for a play date, we took Neil to the Rider game, and the girls played with Zoe for 90 minutes before supper. When we finished going through the stuffed animals in the evening, which was quite challenging, I rewarded the girls: for each stuffie they gave away, they received 25 cents toward DQ treats. They ended up with $7.50 total, so we went to the new DQ at 8:00 pm and they each enjoyed a small sundae. We also picked up Neil, just two blocks from our house, on his way home from the football game (he often walks home; it takes about 40 minutes). It was another LONG day -- with an extremely messy kitchen at the end of it.
After all of this toy business, I now have good solid inventory of the things we're hanging onto (for now), and have divided them into these categories: (1) All-season, (2) Summer (Jun-Sep), (3) Fall/Winter (Oct-Jan), and (4) Winter/Spring (Feb-May). This week, we'll be be putting away categories 3 and 4, totally out-of-sight and inaccessible to the kids. My hope is that we'll be able to keep the girls' rooms and our living spaces tidier on an ongoing basis. It's got to help, right?!
