Mushrooms

Pre-bed piggy-back

This past week has felt very... epic.  This was Juniper's first full week of kindergarten, and Linden's first full week of child centre (though he doesn't go every day like Juniper does).  My mom and Clark traded places halfway through the week, and though we are all more than a little exhausted, we have tried grasping at the first blurry edges of a fall routine.
We are not quite there yet, of course - that will take time.  But I have to say I consider it all to be a pretty big success - if even because we have so far (KNOCK ON WOOD) remained healthy!  I know that the fall grossness will hit us at some point, but for now, we have been able to enjoy this fabulous time of the year, while we settle into all the newness.

So what, you may ask, does this have to do with mushrooms?  Nothing, really, save the fact that in all the busy-ness of the week and the new routine, I took very few pictures.  So instead, I bring you a little gallery of photos I accumulated in the height of summer, all featuring mushrooms.  Most were from around close to where we live in the Cape, though there are also a few from New Brunswick. Some were taken with the good camera, others were taken with my phone while I was out and about.

I actually know very little about wild mushrooms, other than I find them fascinating, beautiful, and a little bit magical.  So I became obsessed with documenting all of the ones I found while they were at their peak.  I also know that this may be of little to no interest to anyone but myself, but hopefully someone gets at least a little enjoyment out of them!

See you next week!

First day(s) of school!

Newest entrepreneurial endeavour: homemade drawings. $0.10 per drawing; $0.25 for commissions

Last Thursday marked two milestones: Juniper's very first day of kindergarten, and Linden's first day of preschool at the Child Center.

Juniper insisted that she was going to take the bus to and from school on her first day, despite my (multiple) suggestions that we drop her off. (Apparently I did the exact same thing on my first day of school). So, as per her insistence, we all got ready, made sure everything was packed in her ginormous book bag and that she was wearing her special sign that designated her as a kindergartener, so that everyone could help her get where she was going. Here is a little photo series from that morning:

All dressed up and ready to go!

Dwarfed by her book bag en route to the bus stop

Close-up on her hand-decorated book bag: her family, holding hands, with a rainbow, a sun a flower and a butterfly

Close-up on the VERY fancy, sparkly hair bow and stick-on earrings

You can tell she's excited by the real smiles!

Getting on the school bus...

... and big waves and smiles as they take off!

I only cried a *little* after the bus left. I might have been (extraordinarily) tempted to hop in the car and stalk follow the bus until it got to school, and then watch everything unfold from the sidelines. As it so happened, however, I had parent helping duty at Linden's preschool that morning. So instead, I gathered all the things I needed for Linden and myself, and off we went to the child centre.  Here are photos from that part of the day:

All set to cause trouble (notice the steri-strips above his nose?  Library accident. Only Linden).

Naturally, Linden went right for the trucks

Because I was parent helper, he got to ring the bell when it was time to come inside.  

Linden can't just ride the zip-line - he needs to maximize injury potential

And how did everyone do on their first days?  Well, shortly after we got to the child center, Linden declared, "OK - you can go now".  

"Actually", I informed him excitedly, "I'm parent helper today, so I'm going to stay!" 

"Well, after you finish your helping, you can go, OK?"

Yup, Linden is going to be fine.

Juniper was still smiling when she got off the bus at 4pm, and when I asked her if she thinks she'll like school, she replied:

"Oh, I already do!  I love everything about it!"

I think she's going to be fine as well.

With a little adjustment time, I believe that I will also pull through it all, thanks for asking.

Right now, my mom is visiting, as Clark is spending the better part of a week on a work trip. Could things be more exciting? And with that, I'm off to the playground.  Have a great week!

Some breakfast fairy-type conversations.

Getting Settled...

I always forget exactly how amazing O'Dell Park is

We are back on the Cape!  Just a little over three weeks of relatively constant road-tripping, visiting, playing and appointment-keeping, and I would say that all four of us are ready for a whole lot of down-time back in our own little space.

Whether or not we actually get that down-time remains to be seen - this week marks not only the beginning of September, but also the beginning of what I have always considered the new year.  Juniper will be starting her very first day of Kindergarten, Linden will be starting his very first day at the Child Centre, and, for the very first time since Juniper was born, I get 4 consecutive mornings to work.  I have grand aspirations to actually pump out the rest of my thesis - wish me luck!

Dreaming big

And so, as we pause momentarily at the edges of jumping into so much newness and excitement, I shall briefly recap our last week in Canada. Enjoy!

Mary's Birthday:

My mom turned 65 while we were in Fredericton!  To celebrate, we all descended upon my sister Kelli and family (who had all just returned from a Hawaiian vacation earlier that morning), and had a delicious meal compliments of Faye and Sandeep. 

Juniper and Bob

Hijinx in the wagon (Ethan is piled under Sawyer and Linden!)

Sawyer helping Linden make the shot

Cousins!

Group shot

CRAZY group shot (I think my dad wins)

Visiting
Clearly, our whole trip was one non-stop continuum of visits, which is amazing. And exhausting. But way more amazing than exhausting.

Linden and Great Aunt Evie

Evie got out her huge box of buttons, and let the kids dump them out and play. Heaven.

The kids had SO much fun with Faye and Sandeep (and Clark and I had SO much fun while they were looking after them!)

 Miscellaneous...

"I am the Lorax! I speak for the trees!  Let them grow! Let them grow!" (Linden proclaims this loudly every time he finds a tree stump)

On a mission to find fairies in O'Dell Park

Juniper came equipped with a flashlight and magnifying glass.  Sadly, no fairies appeared.

NEW HAIRCUT! (she got about 10 inches off!)

After the big haircut, Juniper became obsessed with doing everyone else's hair

Right before our epic journey home, bright and early Saturday morning

Goodbye, New Brunswick (and Nova Scotia)!  Hello Cape Cod!  Stay tuned for some "first day" pictures next week...