Some group photos.

This year's staff held a 'Biggest Loser' competition during the last 9 months. On total, they lost 196 lbs!!! The winner at Christmas time was Dave (in the blue) and at Spring Break the winner was Amy (in the white shirt). The goal was percent of body weight lost - not actual lbs. This made the playing field as fair as possible. Ryan lost about 7% of his body weight and has kept it off! This campaign was wonderful and the competition kept everyone on track and motivated.
From a nurses 'health promotion and prevention' point of view: WOW! YOU GUYS ROCKED!!!!

L-R: Megan Devereaux, Yvonne Lassard, Gloria Gladue, Melissa Woods, Amy Ocher, Alaina Farmer, Rachelle Best, Denise Parranto, Ryan Cracknell ;-), David Skoglund.

Evelyn's entire class was there for the Track and Field day. I can't recall that happening before, so I had to get a picture!
L-R: Front row: Ruscetta, Megan, Savannah, Shanay, Evelyn, Blair, Chassidy.
Back row: Trevor, Cohen, Koby, Isaiah, Isaiah, Hayden, Caleb, Mikey.






In their caps and gowns...












Hanging around...I asked them what they wanted to be when they grew up. Some of their answers were a Ninja, a cowboy, an army man (x2), a cop (x2 girls), a nurse, a care aid, an animal helper...I think that's all. The goal of a Ninja may be a bit far-fetched, but the rest are totally achievable! I hope they remember their goals and continue to work toward them!





One last photo with Miss. Megan Devereaux and Mrs. Irene Gautier.

Caslan School ECS class of 2010.

Track and Field

Ethan was able to join the girls of Evelyn's class for Track and Field day. He did very well, and fit right in. It was a beautiful, sunny and warm day. At the end, as the ribbons were passed out for each event, I found it very humorous that the girls were trading ribbons to collect all the colours. One girl was lamenting that she didn't have any burgundy or white ribbons (participation and 3rd place). I tried explaining that that was because she always placed 1st 2nd or 4th but that didn't matter to her!

When we got home, Ethan and Evelyn went through a very similar scene where they traded each other so they'd get the colours they liked best. Ethan happily traded away his 2nd place ribbon for a 3rd place (because he liked the white ribbon best) and Evelyn was happy to give him a 4th place ribbon in return for a participant ribbon.

I just chuckled and found the whole thing very amusing.

Western Day Penny Carnival

The highlight of this years carnival for Ethan was throwing wet sponges at his Daddy. I'm not sure which of them got more wet, Ryan from the thrown sponges, or Ethan's back from the dripping water falling on him when he reached back to throw!

Evelyn loved having her face painted and she enjoyed doing her own thing as she went from game to game and redeemed her tickets for a prize.

Grad Photos

Here's a sampling of photos of Evelyn in a grad cap and tassel. The B&W is from Ryan's second convocation in 2005 when he completed his Education degree.

The photos of her in Red are from this year. She has completed ECS (kindergarten). This was a full day, 4 day a week program. She has learned to read, (grade 1 level) write, and 'make stuff' (as she says). The highlights of the year were being a mermaid in Peter Pan, meeting a de-musked skunk, going on a swimming field trip, and seeing a magician.

The photo of her in a blue cap and gown is from last year when she finished pre-school.

Runaway, Playground, Poses, Sticks, and a Cat

Today was a beautiful day. It was warm and sunny when I got off work, and even nicer after I got up after lunch. So, I decided to take the kids to the park.

Ethan got a massive burst of energy at the idea of being outside and being allowed to be noisy and boisterous and he took off down the road. If you click on this picture to make it bigger, you can just see him in the distance. I sent Evelyn running after him. Despite repeated (hoarse) commands to "Stop", he kept going. Eventually, he stopped just before the main road and waited for us to catch up. He must have sprinted about 400 m! Now, in my house the command "Stop" is serious. The kids know they need to obey that one right away and I only use it when they are in an unsafe situation. Lets just say that when I caught up with my little runaway and discussed this with him, he readily accepted his discipline without any fuss. He knew he had done very wrong. (I was very impressed with his speed and endurance though!)














We enjoyed our time at the playground and I got some good photos of the kids. This one of them on the Teeter-totter made me think about how much they have grown since we've lived here. The first pics I have of them on the playground are from when Evelyn was 10 months old, and Ethan was 5 months old. (LOL! They look the same size!)

They both climbed up one of the structures and I got this photo.

I LOVE IT!









Evelyn wanted to do some modeling, so we took several photos. These were my favorites. She also sang a song and wanted me to record a 'trailer plug' for the new tinkerbell movie. I'll post those later.

Ethan found this branch that had been trimmed off a tree and wanted to take it home. He lugged that stick for almost a kilometer - then tossed it aside because he wanted to run!

For full effect of the ferocity of his face, click on the wide pic to enlarge it.




Finally, we stopped in to visit a neighbors cat. This is a very friendly and gentle little feline. The kids had it batting at the dandelions like they were a ball of yarn.

After we got home, Evelyn and I had a 'Princess makeover Tea Party'. I put eyeshadow on Evelyn and we both dressed up in dresses and had raspberry tea, cookies, and Smarties while we watched 'Enchanted'. Ethan got to participate in the tea and goodies and movie too.

Finally, Miss. Alaina came over for supper and she treated both kids to bedtime stories. Ethan was so excited and engaged in the books, and then he fell right asleep! Evelyn followed him a few minutes later. They were both totally out by 8 pm. So Ryan and I watched a chick flick he was sent to review (When in Rome) which had funny moments, times of awkward writing and iffy acting, and other solidly good scenes. On the plus side, it had no swearing, and nothing more than kissing. I'm not quite sure whether to say it was good, or sucked. It was very inconsistent in it's quality, but overall, I liked it.

So here I sit at 11:30 pm, still very awake. In the last 24 hrs, I've logged 8 hrs of work, 3.5 hrs of sleep, and a full day with lots of memories. Aside from hacking up my lungs on a frequent basis, I feel pretty good! It's been a full, and enjoyable day!

Peter Pan

This was the first theatrical production in the schools memory. The kids did well, considering. It was obvious that they enjoyed being in costume and found the experience fun. Some of the items they found for the lost boys to wear were amazing!







Shortly before the play was to happen, the student that was going to play 'Nana' the dog was not able to continue. Ryan stepped in, squeezed himself into a cut up dog costume, and assumed the role with comedic results.

Evelyn made a beautiful mermaid her name was 'Moonglow'. She remembered to speak clearly and loudly - in fact, I think she was the loudest one up there! She said she was not scared at all and loved to 'act'. Again, I think we have a budding actress in our midst.

life and activities outside

I just love those harmonious moments in life when the kids get along, and agree to pose for a picture!

In the first one, they are giving their 'Build-A-Bears' a swing ride. I think 'Rainbow bear' and 'Race Car' enjoyed the ride!





Some random photos from the last week. We have all been sick this week with sinus congestion, sore throats, coughs and headaches. I kept Evelyn home today because her cough is getting more congested. Ryan and I are pretty miserable, as is Evelyn, and Ethan has only a mild form so far. I've totally lost my voice intermittently today, so, lots of salt water gargles and honey lemon tea for me!






The purple bows Evelyn is wearing were made by a former co-worker of mine from Calgary. Evelyn loves them and she received several compliments when she wore them.

In other news, Ryan did not get the position at that private school that he really wanted. This has been a pretty big disappointment for him. The only jobs posted in Nanaimo for teachers are either Kindergarten or French immersion. Now, if he was a french speaking kindergarten teacher - we'd be set! It is very nerve wracking to know we will be going from a 1.4 FTE between us to a 0.77 FTE and our living cost will only rise with the move.

The people who saw the house a while back seem very serious. They are pursuing info about the land and want to come and dig a hole to see what the soil is like (is it suitable to build a massive garage on). All this will take a couple more weeks before we can even begin to talk money.

Rainy Day Walk

This past weekend was dreary and drizzling. In other words - it was great! We took the kids for a walk in the rain and we taught them the art of splashing in puddles for maximum splash effect. Think of it as training for future puddle battles! The end of the driveway for the school has a MASSIVE puddle that was at least a foot deep. Evelyn, of course, wanted to walk through it. So she flooded her boots and had the pleasure of dumping them out. She did not wine much on the way home, but wanted a warm bath as soon as we got in. I also did some training with them on how to hold their umbrellas so they won't be caught by the wind, and will shield the largest area of their body. These lessons will continue in earnest after we move as well. :-)

We did our Walk-a-Thon today. It was beautiful, sunny, and a bit windy. We had 6 Moms and about 10 kids participate, which is pretty good! Actually, if I count the babies, it was 12 kids. We stopped in at the villa and said "Hi" to the seniors. It was nice to see many familiar faces, and looking healthy too!

The group raised a total of $586, with a couple pledges outstanding. This covers our deficit, and will allow the group to replace a few worn out toys and buy a couple new things. Thank-you to everyone who contributed.

walkathon

By beautiful Daughter.

These are from yesterday. Evelyn looks SO GOOD in that shade of blue!

The school is hard at work preparing for a production of 'Peter Pan'. Evelyn will be a mermaid called 'Moonglow'. She has memorized her lines, and last night we worked with her on knowing when to say them. She is SO excited about being in a play.

We had a disagreement about what she wanted to wear yesterday. She picked out a nice outfit that matched for colour and was weather appropriate, but the shorts had gotten WAY too short. They were like little hot pants.

So, I had to try to explain to her why she could not wear them to school. I don't care if she wears them at home, or under a dress, but not paired with a t-shirt. This was trickier to explain than I thought it would be. I did not want to bring in the concept of 'sexy' or anything like that. That was not the issue for her anyway!

She could not understand what the issue was, because usually, my objections are that her chosen outfit is too warm, or cold, or way too un-coordinated for her to wear. This outfit was none of those things! So, she eventually, after some pouting and sitting curled up among the clothes in her laundry hamper for a few minutes, allowed me to chose an alternate outfit to wear. She apologized for being rude (without prompting!) and stated she decided to change her attitude, and will like the outfit I chose for her. She has really matured lately in her self control and emotional control. I'm so proud of her when she stops herself from totally loosing it and pulls herself together.

This last photo is from playgroup yesterday. These are Ethan's closest friends in the group. The boy in the red shirt is Nicholas. He and Ethan are inseparable when they're both there. The girl on the far side is Nicholas' twin sister Julie and the little guy in the striped shirt is Corstian. The group took advantage of the nice day to head to the park.

At one point, Ethan tossed some sand in the face of Corstian. Sand throwing is a big 'No-no' for obvious reasons. Thankfully, it did not go in Corstian's eyes. Ethan immediately fessed up to his misdeed and apologized without any coaxing on my part. For that, I am very thankful! Later, when Ryan asked him about his day, Ethan told Daddy that we went to the park and he played with Nicholas, but he threw sand in Corstians face and that was not good. So, I think he really internalized that lesson!

In other news, the house showing on Monday went really well. The wife, apparently, loved the house. But, they want to build a HUGE garage and are not sure where they could put it... So, we are trying to figure out exactly where our property ends on the treed side of the lot, to see if they could stick something over there. Alternately, at the very end of the property, in the back, they may be able to build something, but they'd have to be careful of the septic field and would need to put in quite a long driveway to access it. Ryan and I have both tried to find the survey stakes with a metal detector, but we have not been able to find one yet. So... we wait. When I talked with our realtor yesterday, she said the husband is away to work now for a couple weeks. So they likely would not move on the sale until he returns. In the meantime, our listing was the 'featured property' in the LLB paper, and also had an add in the Athabasca paper. I am hoping that we may be able to show it again this weekend.

This afternoon, I am planning to take the kids to a co-workers house to see her baby lambs. The kids are so excited to see a farm.

Ryan is still waiting to hear back from the position he applied for. He is hopeful that he will get a call soon.

music night, toothpick towers and raindrops

Evelyn, her kindergarten class, and 3 older students from her school participated in a night of music in Lac La Biche. The older girls sang and rapped the majority of the song, and the kids joined in for the chorus. It was that popular song they're playing on the radio now about a waving flag. It was cute, and even Ethan has learned how to sing it.













Ryan is doing a science unit that involves evaluating and learning about the strength of objects. For a demonstration he is planning, we all pitched in to build several types of towers out of toothpicks and marshmallows. Evelyn worked on this tower based in square units for about 20 minutes. Shortly after I took this photo, she decided her design was too unstable and was not going to work. So, she took it apart and promptly ate all the marshmallows. I'm not sure if her evaluation, or her desire for some treats was the main motivator for her taking it apart!

Earlier in the day, I gave her a princess makeover using the 'hair' and makeup from her Disney makeover. This is why she is wearing fake hair and eyeshadow in this photo!







This last photo is from today. It was a very gray, rainy sort of day. Evelyn decided to dress to match the weather and came out of her room, stood straight and tall, and declared "I'm a raindrop!" After taking a photo of my little raindrop, I reminded her to get used to the weather. When we move home to the island, there will be LOTS of rain and cloudy days.

On that note, I cleaned my house thoroughly yesterday, and today we heard from the realtor that someone from the LLB area wants to come look at the house tomorrow! So, at around 11 am, we will be heading to the school while some stranger looks around the house. It's a bit of an odd idea, but I hope it will bring great results! So... guess what I'll be doing tomorrow morning? Cleaning - again!

snow white - the home grown stage play

A quick update

House hunting went well. There were 4 properties that interest me. Any of them will work, each have their own good and bad points. I was able to spend a little time with the Parrish and Sahota's and their friend Christina.

We will have to wait until our house gets an offer before we put an offer on one of them. Or, there may be another house that will come onto the market and blow all the others out of the water!



Back at home, Ryan has applied to a grade 2 position at a private school in north Nanaimo/Lantzville. Please pray that this will work out well.

Ethan has been helping around the house, cutting grass with Ryan and doing odd jobs. We have noticed him rubbing his eyes and sniffing quite a bit. His eyes get red and puffy and he says they itch. It sounds like he has some environmental allergies. Tonight, he went into the bathroom, got a bunch of lotion, and rubbed it in his eyes! His rationale was that when his skin is itchy, we put lotion on it, so lotion should help his eyes too! Yikes! He does better with Benadryl, so I'm pretty sure he has Hay Fever.


Evelyn has been great at helping keep the house clean. She sorted the laundry without me asking her, and happily cleaned both her room AND Ethan's room. She is going to be singing a song in Lac La Biche tomorrow night, and in early June she will be a Mermaid in the schools production of Peter Pan.

The kids had 'camp out's' in their rooms last week. They made forts in their rooms and Evelyn actually slept all night in hers. Ethan kept kicking his and then it would fall in. Eventually, he gave up and went to bed.








#1 is actually 4 bedrooms and a bunch of small rooms in the basement. (the listing says 8 bedrooms) They have done a lot of work on the structure of the house, but there is a bit left to do. It is close to the hospital. Evergreen Way.

#2 is completely done inside, is a short walk to Departure Bay beach, and has a cool rock wall in the back yard that looks like it would be fun to climb. This house needs new windows. King Richard Drive.

#3 is also completely done inside, is close to all the malls in the north, and, if Ryan gets that grade 2 position, it would be close to that school too. It has a nice back yard, granite counters in the kitchen, and it needs the roof to be re-shingled. Doreen Place.

#4 is in a nice neighbourhood, has a great, bright kitchen and a massive amount of space in the basement. It needs quite a bit done in the basement, and the upstairs bedrooms and closets are tiny. This was my favorite house until I really thought about how much needed to be done. Now, I just like it. Hillside Ave.

Our house is listed!

Check out our listing!

Please, pray that we sell quickly, and at asking price. All of you who live on the island will appreciate how much we want to move home. There are a lot of pieces that need to fall in place, but I know it can happen.

Lot 7 Caslan Crescent

Our asking price is a bit lower than I had hoped. The idea was to excite interest and hopefully sell faster. This weekend is a very busy one for Caslan, and we hope to have an open house for a couple hours on Saturday. This may attract some of the 'city people' who are up for camping.

I have 3 properties in Nanaimo that are on our short list. I hope that one of them, or some other perfect house I have not seen yet, will be on the market when we receive an offer on this house.

So, the waiting game begins... I am believing on God for great things to happen. He has blessed us immensely in the past, and I expect those blessings to continue to pour forth on us.

Before and after

It's been a 4 year, gradual process. The kitchen is probably the most dramatic change. The paint colour made a big difference too. I'm very pleased with the outcome. For those of you who have actually been up to visit, the 'after' photos will look different even from the time you visited. I don't think anyone (except our babysitter Serena) has seen how it looks now!

As an update, I got my letter of hire, but it did not include my FTE (0.77), so I am waiting for a revised letter (the bank needs the FTE to calculate the mortgage). Shortly, I expect to have a pre-approved mortgage that I can use to go house shopping! I am planning a trip (just me) mid-May to look at several houses. I hope to place an offer and possibly have an inspection of our future house done before I leave. If you're interested in getting a link of the top 5 houses we are considering, LMK and I'll send them to you...I'd appreciate your opinions.

Ryan is still waiting to hear back on one position he applied for. The postings for teachers have not gone up yet, so it's still a waiting game.

Once I have an approved mortgage, I will look into selling our house. Overall, we have taken one step forward, but have many more to take before we are 'home' again.