DIY Spider Pops Video Tutorial

Do your kids have Halloween Parties at school and need to bring a snack or treat?

Here's a really cute treat you can make with your kids that they'll love to hand out to friends at a party, or on Halloween! 

(This is coming at you from a previous year, but it's too good not to share again this year!)

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Katrina woke up sick on Thanksgiving morning so she (& Ken) missed our extended family Thanksgiving dinner. She stayed home from school yesterday to finish recovering even though she was feeling a lot better than she was on Monday. We decided to break up the relaxing on the couch & watching My Little Pony routine with a little Fall crafting.

We gathered our supplies and grabbed some tootsie pops to make these cute (and super simple) Halloween themed treats.

Popsicle Stick PomPom Spider Craft

We made this cute spider craft a couple of years ago and they were so cute & can be used in so many different ways that I wanted to re-share this post with you now that we're into October!  I hope you're all having some fun preparing for Halloween!

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We are in Halloween craft mode over here! Earlier this week it was a spider treat and today it's a simple spider craft. These would be fun to hang with fishing wire, just about anywhere, to give a creepy (yet cute) vibe. :)

Here's what you'll need to make your own:

Nature Inspires Creativity!

It was interesting to sit back and observe the way that being in nature brought out creativity in our girls while we were living by the lake. We didn't have a good Internet connection while living there, so screen time was easily avoided. The girls were homeschooling during that time, so they had more free time than they typically would, and we didn't have any friends in the area. With all of those factors combined, they needed to find things to do with their time and the backyard was one of the best places to do that. They found so much to do out there, and all of it exercised their creativity.

It was common for me to be busy in the cottage and to glance out the window to see a scene that looked something like this:

Cheesy Tortilla Chip After School Snack

We're a couple of weeks into school now and like every year, I find myself searching for ways to fit quality time in with my kids during the busy time between getting home from school and going to bed for the night. We're so busy with the necessary chores, homework, and running around that I'm finding the best way to fit quality time in, is to slide right up next to them while they're busy with something on their list of things to do. One thing on our list is after school snack time, and it makes things run more smoothly if I can have a snack prepared for them when they walk through the door!  This seemed like a good time to re-share this blog post from a few years ago, with an easy snack idea that everyone in our family likes. All you need are 4 ingredients and a microwave!

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My family is made up of cheese-monsters! We all love a good cheesy snack or meal.  Last month I shared a favourite after school snack from my childhood (these chocolate chip cookies) that could be made ahead and frozen. This month I want to share another after school snack from my childhood. This one is really quick and easy to prepare right before you eat it!

We made this snack with Ivanhoe's high quality aged cheddar cheese and it was delicious! 

Here's what you'll need:

- Tortilla Chips (or Crackers)
- Shredded Ivanhoe Old Cheese
- Sour Cream (we used the extra thick Gay Lea Gold Sour Cream)
- Salsa

And the preparation is ridiculously easy:

Living at the Cottage

Here are some photos from the time we spent living in a cottage, on a lake.
It was a special, meaningful, healing period of time for our family.
I cherish my memories of that time!

Back in February when we knew we would be moving, I spent a lot of time looking at websites, searching for a home for our family. It was difficult to find very many rental homes that were in our price range. As time continued to pass, I became pretty discouraged and worried. Then I found someone looking to rent their cottage out by the week or by the month. The cottage backed onto the lake, we would be able to afford it, and although not close to work, it was less than an hour drive away so we thought it could work as a temporary place to live while we continued our home search in person. I struggled with knowing whether this was the best choice for us, and continually tried to remind myself that things would work out somehow, and that I needed to exercise trust that that was true. Looking back, I can see that it was totally true. I hope I'm learning through experiences like this, so that when times come in the future that I need to exercise that sort of trust, I'll be stronger at doing so.

5 Ways to Prepare for Smoother School Mornings

This post was originally written a couple of years ago when our girls were heading back to school. I wanted to re-share these tips and in looking at these photos I noticed that the backpacks they got that year were re-used last year and are still in great shape, so this year they're going on year 3! I can definitely speak to the quality of High Sierra's bags. Now, whether you just started a school year or you're about to, I hope you'll appreciate these tips for smoother school mornings!

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We had a whirlwind first school morning and after just one school day, I'm reminded of the huge difference a little preparation can make for smoother school mornings!

Yesterday was the first day of grade 4 for Katrina and grade 6 for Talia. I usually like to take nice "1st day of school" photos in the morning and drive them to school so I can help them find their new classes and be there to offer any reassurance, comfort, or pep talks that may be needed.

Disclaimer: This calm photo was not taken on the first day of school.

This year however, we were in a hurry because I received a court summons for jury selection for yesterday. I was just as nervous about that as the girls were for school yesterday morning! We only have one car so I grabbed a quick cell phone shot of each girl before jumping in the car and we all drove to the courthouse where I said goodbye and Ken took the girls to school.