New Adventures in Daycareland

We have a new little girl at the daycare for the next few weeks! Her name is Riko and she is almost 3 years old. She has come all the way from Japan, with her mother. She speaks very little English, and so is quite the little warrior in a new land.

I have had kids come into the daycare who cry the first few days (most common), and I have had kids come into the daycare who didn't even seem at all bothered by their parents' departure. But I have never had a child come into the daycare who started off quite strong and happy, and became sad suddenly three days in. It did coincide with an epic meltdown and time-out that Noah was having, so perhaps this spooked her. Or perhaps it was the heat. Or exhaustion. Or a cold she may have caught (Leila was under the weather as well.)

Whatever the reason, Riko was then very sad for two days straight. I felt so bad for her. New country. New language. New people. The only thing we could do was hug her and give her as much love as possible, to show her that she could trust us.

 

She has really started to cheer up, as of late. Having a nap here and there, at the daycare, really helped matters as well.

She made a beautiful painting one day, at the easel. I later learned that this was her very first time painting. She was so proud to show her art work to her mommy!

Another morning (with Leila asleep, and older boys at school), we made pretend ice cream with Playdough.

This was the situation at the bottom of Lithuania Park one day, after some heavy rain. Thomas was well-equipped in his rain boots, but the other kids were not. Noah and B. had to take their shoes off to go into this little pond.

The batteries in my camera died out before I could catch the progression of this pond play. Thomas stayed pretty well in tact, since he spent most of his time in the playground area. But Noah and B....well, they ran through the pond (splashing everywhere), took their baseball caps off and scooped water into them, which they then hurled at each other, and eventually just SAT in the water! They did everything but roll in it. I will never forget watching them enjoy such this crazy day. They were so joyful. I had to give Noah and B. a really quick bath before I gave everyone lunch. It was a lot of work and not something I'd want to do every day, but once in a while, I think kids need a bit of crazy freedom.

This little princess decided to watch the action from the sidelines, and enjoy a snack with her baby!

Playin' in the Rain

These pictures are actually from a couple of weeks ago. I completely forgot to post them, but they are so cute, I figured it was better late than never!

It was a pretty mild, spring rain on this day. When Noah and B.'s classes got out of Junior Kindergarten, all the other kids left to get out of the rain.

It was kind of nice to have the yard all to ourselves! Noah, who I think fancies himself a Phys-Ed teacher at times, had us running circles around the playground.

Thomas practised his jumping skills, so he could make the biggest splash possible!

Even Leila was well prepared in her rain pants. She also wore plastic baggies over her shoes. (I cannot for the life of me find rain boots in her size!)

I can't wait to play in the summer rain as it warms up!

Mother's Day Craft: Flower Photograph

We did a simple craft for Mother's Day using Bristol Board, various foam shapes, and photos of the children. The kids just had to glue their photo onto a circle shape, stick the foam stem onto a rectangle outline, and then add the leaves and petals. They are all their mommy's little flowers!

These are the pictures we used (plus a few more takes of Thomas).

Lazy Days of....Summer?

Between April and May, the season seemed to change directly from winter to summer. (We're not complaining!) Much of the time it has been shorts and t-shirt weather. We have even started applying sunscreen.

As of late April, Oscar has left the daycare. Then last week, B. went on holiday with his family for one week. So, it has just been Noah, Leila, Thomas and me. It really seems like vacation time around here too! It is very quiet compared to the usual din. It's not my style to keep it that quiet around here, but it's been a nice little break!

One afternoon, when the babies went for their naps, Noah and I made some popcorn and watched The Wizard of Oz. Thomas woke up from his nap a little too early. I debated whether to encourage him to sleep more, or to come on out of bed. In the end I got him out, but I guess that was a mistake!

Glad he got his zzzz's one way or another!

Another afternoon, Noah and I played Chutes and Ladders on the balcony.

He won. Phew. You don't want to see Noah when he loses the game. It definitely wakes the babies up.

Leila's finally riding like a big kid in the wagon! I babied her longer than I have any other child in the daycare (yes, including Noah). She's tough as nails though, so I really have nothing to worry about. Here she is riding with her bestie, Thomas. They're both donning their Pooh Bear hats. That's what the cool kids are wearing these days!

I thought Thomas looked like quite the sight, with his hat, sunglasses and "susie" (bottom left). So cute! Someone actually said to him, endearingly, "You've got a lot going on with your face right now".  Leila's favourite game is to pull the "susie" out of his mouth, then give it back to him, so they can play the game again. Despite some of my pictures, Thomas actually spends a lot of time without the "susie". He's working on it, okay?! :)

We've been spending much more of our time outside lately. In the late afternoons, after the babies wake up, we've been trekking outside for walks or to the playground. Last Thursday we were leaving Lithuania Park. The ice cream truck was there, and Noah kept commenting that he would like ice cream. I kept telling him "another day" and was pulling the wagon up the hill when I realized, it was the perfect day.

We had the PERFECT reason to get ice cream. Noah had been working very hard on something in particular, since last September, and had completed a large portion of it on this very day. I was so proud of him! I started backing the wagon back down the hill.

The younger two were surprisingly patient as we waited in line for our treats. I got Noah, Thomas and I twist cones. I offered some to Leila, but she preferred her cracker. Thomas had his cone pretty much glued to his face for the whole way home. Oh, and did I mention this was right before dinner? Yes, on this day, we were "Rebel Daycare"! I was pleasantly surprised when the kids went on to eat their dinner at home, like champs!

Conflicting Goals

My goal: to get Leila to stop banging the remote
Leila's goal: to bang the remote
Final Score:    Leila: 1           Mommy: 0

High Park Cherry Blossoms 2013

As of the May 4/5 weekend, the cherry blossoms in High Park have, well, blossomed! Although they are located in a few different places within the park, the best spot, hands down, is the steep hill, leading from the road (right by the Grenadier Restaurant) to Grenadier Pond. This is at the southwest side of the park.

As we headed over to see them on Sunday, I felt very lucky that we are a quick walk from High Park. This was NOT something you would want to drive to, especially on a weekend. I don't ever remember seeing the park this busy, although we have never been to see the blossoms on a weekend, so I guess that just added to the mayhem!

They were very beautiful. Leila was squawking happily in her stroller, so I guess you're never too young to enjoy their beauty.

A lot of people were admiring Leila's beauty too. Some people asked permission to take a photo of her, some did not. She's my little cherry blossom!

 Here she is trying to grab the camera from me. She had had enough of the paparazzi!

I hope you get a chance to see the cherry blossoms. They're only here for less than a week. But if you go, expect quite a crowd. It's just one big sakura party!