Happy Easter!!

Bright and early Easter morning, before our annual Easter Sunday breakfast at the church, our girls wake up to many colourful eggs full of treats hidden throughout the living room. This year poor Emmy woke up a little too early, before her sisters had even thought of stirring, and had to amuse her very excited self until Ryan and I finally allowed her to go and wake them up.

                                                  Happily waiting!

                                         Elin's first time discovering what these eggs were all about!

                                                                Trying on the new Easter dress...over her Jammies!

                                                              Elle loving the hunt.

                                                             Eva searching away.

                                                     Elin found out  early on that if she dropped the eggs, they would break... and ta da ..candy!

                                             

                                     Inside we were busily celebrating our risen Lord, and the arrival of spring..new life...but outside..it was quite the snowstorm.

                                                Elin getting into her Easter basket

                                         We still had church that morning, and our kids put on a great program in spite of the storm.

                                    After our lunch, we headed out in the dwindling storm to celebrate Easter with the Skaling family..This is Elin having a great time "talking" on the dvd remote!

                                          Auntie Ang had an Easter egg find planned for the next morning, so the girls had a busy time personalizing loot bags  before they went to bed that night.

                 

                                  The cousins had excitedly set gotten their trampoline set up for the big day to enjoy with our girls, so they all went out first thing the next morning in spite of the layer of snow..which Ryan shovelled off while the girls anxiously waited!

                                       This was the welcome sign on the front door  when we arrived. It was the very first time we had stayed at the cousin's house for a sleepover, and the all the girls  had a ball together!

                                     Elin desperately wanting to out to the trampoline with the big girls.

                                                 and the hunt was on.

                                              Elin found Auntie Ang's tiny dog Tullula Belle snuggled in her little bed..and lets just say the poor dog's nap didn't last long!

                                                  Counting up the loot

                                              Finally the big meal we all had been waiting for!

                                                    Grampie and Grammie enjoying their meal

                                 The oldest cousins at their table

                                    Elle and Grammie palying games on the DS

                                                             After dinner we were treated to a show of greatest proportions!

                                                  The dancing

                                  and performing were  truly inspirational!

                                   We had a great time being all together again. We just wished it could have lasted longer.

It's A Girl!!

We have been  awaiting the arrival of our goat Bella's baby all winter, and as her due date was tomorrow, we have been checking on her very frequently in the last few days. We didn't want to miss the big event, and hoped to be there for it! Emily especially has been hovering over Bella, and Bella has hardly been able to sigh without Em observing, and running in the house to tell me!

                                                     Emmy out in the pasture over the weekend, checking on Bella's labour signs..or lack of them!!

                                                         A picture of the baby belly(the goat in behind). Seriously with all the groans ,moans and waddling she has been doing we at least expected twins.

                                                      Our "lady in waiting" with 4 days to go.

                                                    Yesterday I was washing dishes, and I had heard the door slam minutes before, and looking out my kitchen window, this is what I saw..Emmy just had to make a quick dash outside to peek in the barn and make sure Bella was doing fine!

                                                 Then to the window for a better look.

Well it all went down this morning. All 3 of our goats had been outside enjoying the spring day, when I noticed Bella was missing, and the other 2 were milling around outside the barn. I didn't mention anything to Emmy, but seconds later, she said "Mommy where is Bella?" "do you think she is having the baby?" I told Emmy to give her a few minutes and if she wasn't back out of the barn by then, she could go look. Well as soon as I said o.k. she had her boots on and was bounding outside. She peeked in the barn and I saw her barrelling back in yelling."I think she is in labour Mommy!" I told her to go back and I'd be right there. When I got to the barn, Emmy was sitting, patting a very anxious mommy-to-be, who was indeed very much in labour.Well to make a very long story short, I eventually had   all 3 little girls quietly sitting around a very distressed goat, who just wanted to snuggle with us,and be patted in the midst of her pain. A baby napping in the house after having a very rushed lunch. A casserole hastily removed from the oven a little early, and rapidly cooling, awaiting  us to eat it...much later!!, and a husband who had to rush to return a carpet cleaner at noon back in town. So in spite of  feeling a little scattered and rushed ,I put everything aside, and sat with Bella and my girls to welcome this new little life into the world.

  Emmy trying to comfort Bella while she was labouring.

                                     

                                            Here they are observing every development!  Seriously, could there be any better science lesson for the week?

                                                    And here she is!! So cute ,fluffy and adorable!

                                 

                                             We are all awaiting her fancy name.Elle has the honours this year, and is vacillating between "Dora March.(.which is a name she made up last year for the goat she got to name this year ) and Tinkerbelle. which she came up with today. Ryan has given her till supper to decide, and we will know then!  So that was our day, and we are very happy with it!!

Spring Fun!!

We had a very fun busy day on Saturday. We were at Main Street Baptist Church bright and early for Elle's Awana Boat race. She had worked hard on her little wooden boat, and was all set for the races!! Can you pick out Elle's personally designed boat? The 10 gallon hat "cow girl" boat is Elle's pride and joy! 

                                                 All the boats lined up pre-race.

                                                Singing their cubbies song for everyone.

                                                Excitedly waiting for her name to be called for her race.

                                            Here she goes! She chose the blue water for her first race.

                                               franticly blowing on her sail to make her boat go.

                                                     

                                            Almost to the end!

                                                     A very proud 5 year old with her medal and certificate!

                                  With all her fellow Cubbies for the group picture.

                                              Sharing her cake with Elin...or her icing mostly!!

                                                               We went home for a quick lunch, pulled on our rubber boots, and for some, splash pants, then headed to the sugar woods!! Our church plans an outing to the sugar woods every year, and this year our group of faithfuls was especially small, but it was a big- on- fun time!! Here is Emmy loving her Maple candy!

                                               Elle and Adrianna checking out the maple sugar maple leaves..Yum!

 The Sugar camp we love going to is a completely off the grid maple syrup production. Every year we go down the looong set of stairs..84 in total( we do a count every year, up and down just to make sure!!), to see the water wheel at work and the sap coming in out of the trees.

                                                  Here is the water wheel busily churning away

                                         And the sap filling up the huge vats.

                                      Checking out the water wheel

                                                  The sap filling up the milk jug, and emptying . The girls loved this as they would hear the pressure build up and the hiss as it released then the huge whoosh as the sap rushed out.

                                                     This is their new and improved equipment that they added this year. They tap over 15,000 trees, and burn 100 cord of wood in the few weeks of the sap running. Crazy!!

                                                      Elin getting her maple candy!

                                                     The huge boiler

                                                   Eva a little worn out from the big walk in and all the stairs!! She also had a meet and greet with the mud a few times!

                                                 Just relaxing with Daddy.

                                         Now these 2 were full of it!

                                                    Adrianna's family and another couple (Sandra's parents) from our church went with us. The girls all love Dale (Sandra's dad) and he was tossing snow at them the whole way back. They were all busily running from snow spot to snow spot , gathering snow to throw at him.

                                                 Dale and the girls found an old fashioned sap bucket and sampled the pure sap..The owners have been so busy with the syrup making they haven't even been collecting the sap from the demo buckets they have around, so they are overflowing and dripping on the ground. Well the girls think we should bring straws with us next year!!

                                                       They loved it!

                                                 Even Eva got off her perch to get a taste.

                                                           Elin had a cushy ride for the afternoon, she was so quiet and content she hardly even moved the whole trip.

                                           One last picture of the revellers!  Em is concealing a snowball behind her back. They had so much fun!