Happy Thanksgiving!

Just had our big Thanksgiving dinner at Mom-I and Pop-I's.  The boys were thrilled to finally have a boy cousin to play with!  They got along so well with Elliott and it was so much fun to watch.

A few family members didn't make it this year but they were not forgotten...

So much to be thankful for each and every year.  This year was no different...

Street Hockey

The neighborhood had a pick-up street hockey game this afternoon.  There were 8 boys playing.  It was so much fun to watch.  I love where we live!

Future curlers? ... I think so!

Yesterday was the open house for the junior program at the curling club.  We decided to take the boys to check it out and see if they might be interested in playing this winter.  We arrived at the end of the open house since Coby spent the better part of the afternoon with the boys at our house.  There were not very many people still around but the boys (all three of them) got to go out on the ice and throw some rocks.  Needless to say, the boys loved it!

They had a ton of fun and want to start curling this winter.  So, it looks like we will be signing them up for the junior program.  It is for an hour and a half on either Saturday or Sunday afternoon.  So, it should be very easy to work into our schedule.  The nice thing is that I don't think it will tie them down too much.  I cannot wait to see how it goes...

Playdates

The boys have been lucky enough to have had a few playdates over the last two weekends.  They enjoy it so much and it is so great to see them hanging out with their friends.  They have done a wonderful choice at picking their buddies.  It is great to see that they are already very judges of character.  I can only hope that this continues into the future.  I think it will serve them well.

Fun with Casimir:

Practicing Karate with Coby:

Off to a good a start...

The new school year has begun and the boys are in full swing.  They are already bringing home homework and are loving this new challenge.  They are gearing up to reading and my boys have been looking forward to this day since they began kindergarten.

The boys seem to have lucked out in the teacher department.  Both of their teachers are very friendly and sweet ladies.  Nicolas' teacher seems a little more strict but likes Nicolas quite a bit.  She informed us that he is very bright and enjoys participating in class.  He is always one of the first to raise his hand and is doing very well.  We are not in the least surprised by all of this.  We are so proud of him!

Zachary's teacher is so sweet and gentle.  She is the perfect person for Zachary.  He has already clicked with her and is making so much progress.  Last year our biggest struggle was trying to get Zachary to talk to his teacher.  Even though he liked her a great deal, he was unable to get over the anxiety of speaking in school.  We worked very hard with his teacher last year but was never able to break through.  This meant that grade one would prove to be a little bit more challenging for all involved until we could come up with a solution that worked.

As it stands now, Zachary has said something, out loud, to his teacher every day for almost the last week!  We started out by recording a video and sending it to his new teacher.  The next day, he went in and asked her to use the restroom!   I am just thrilled to know that if there is a problem, he can now verbalize it to his teacher.  I am so proud of just how far he has come.  We worked very hard with him to put him in new situations and boost his confidence and it seems to be paying off.  Let's just hope the trend continues!  But his teacher is completely on board and already has a soft spot for Zachary.  Who can blame her?

Charlie is doing so well.  He is so smart and caring.  I plan on getting him into an activity at the library this year and he will be helping me volunteer at the school library.  He misses his bog brothers during the day but it makes him so happy to see them when they get off the school bus.  I think he enjoys having the run of the house and access to all they toys!

Grade 1

Well, it is that time of year again.  School has officially started and today was the first full day (they went to school for a half day Thursday and Friday last week).

Zachary was home sick since he came down with a raging fever (only other symptom was a headache) on Sunday night.  The fever finally broke this morning and all he needs now is to regain his appetite so he can get some energy.  Hopefully he will be well enough tomorrow since I know he is very upset about missing the first full day.

Nicolas had a great day/  Details are sketchy but he came off the bus happy, excited and full of energy.  I am sure it's going to be a good year.  Here are a few pictures we snapped on the very first (half day) of grade 1!

Another successful family trip to Mont Tremblant!

It's that time of year again when we have returned home from our family trip up North to Mont Tremblant.  Again this year we had a fantastic time.  The weather cooperated and it was warm but not too hot.  The nights got very cool and it only rained one evening/night.

The kids got to do all of their favorite activities and even managed to add a few new ones.  Zachary got to go out one evening to a real golf course and hit a few balls off the driving range.  Then, he even got to go out to a real course and play a few holes!  He was so very excited!  During this time Nicolas and Charlie got to spend extra time at the pool and even have a few runs down the luge!  We also took a pontoon ride on the river and Nicolas got to drive the boat!

This year the boys tried the Euro Bungee.  Nicolas was a little scared and didn't jump all that much.  He was, however, the first to volunteer to try and jump.  Charlie was not overly impressed and didn't last.  He was a little too young and didn't want to jump.  It took Zachary watching both of his brothers trying to finally decide to get on it.  Once he did he loved it!  He even managed to get in a few flips!  After seeing Zachary go, Nicolas wanted another shot at it but that meant another hour long wait so it never happened.  I'm sure they will try again next year.

Steve managed to play 3 rounds of golf and I got to hike a new trail up the mountain.  It was quite challenging and it took me 1 hour and 53 minutes to get to the peak.  That included a 5-10 minute detour when I turned the wrong way in a clearing!  It was quite the beautiful hike.  One I would love to repeat.

Here are some pictures from our adventures up North...