Sunday, December 17th, 2023

Working Together

Iris & Akiva write letters to their uncle Dan

 

 

Monday, November 27th, 2023

House of the Candy Faerie

 

 

 

 

Previous years’ houses:

2022 (none)

2021

2020

2019

2018 (none)

2017

Sunday, November 26th, 2023

Family Portrait

Thursday, November 23rd, 2023

candy house framing project

When my family came up for US Thanksgiving, we still hadn’t built the house for the Candy Faerie. Sure, the kids had eaten and given away plenty of candy, but the faerie herself was getting pretty annoyed, threatening the children’s teeth at night and whatnot. So Mom, the amateur architect, not one to simply cut holes and slap things together in a hurry, sized up our boxes and did some miniature cabin design with Iris. They decided on the number, size, and location of windows and doors, the length and height of the walls, and even the pitch of the roof. Lucky faerie! Hope we didn’t spoil her because, unless Iris gets as into building houses as I was at her age (which I was, at her age), I’m probably going to go back to slapping together a quick house again next year.

 

measuring the roof pitch

 

 

 

cutting the window opening

 

 

 

procuring roofing materials

 

 

 

After the structure of the house was completed, our fine contractor absconded. She returned to work on bigger, less instantly-rewarding projects, namely the seemingly endless renovation of her own dwelling.

Saturday, September 23rd, 2023

New Family Member

Brook the Dog

born December 21st, 2020

 

 

Monday, September 4th, 2023

Waterville Water Park

I took over 500 photos at the water park.

This was a mistake.

On the first draft of this post, I narrowed it down to twenty-one.

That is still too many for the average viewer!

Here are eleven of my favorites.

They are not necessarily the best.

I like them, tho!

You might like some, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friday, August 25th, 2023

Playing at the beach in the morning

 

Canal building commenced around seven in the morning.

 

 

 

The purpose of the canal was the creation of an island.

 

 

 

Digging of the pool began past eight. Akiva dug, Martin brought the reinforcement material.

 

 

 

Iris documented the days activities in her journal.

 

 

 

She drew and wrote in the morning light on a driftwood log by the bay.

 

 

 

After allowing them to admire it a bit, the rising tide lent its creative hand to Martin & Akiva’s stone ringed pool.

 

 

 

Back at camp, there was a chess tournament.

It is very difficult to get an action shot in chess.

I have never seen one.

 

 

 

This is our kitchen tent. We have our own spot on the bay with our own entrance, to the water.

It is just a bit over two kilometers from where the nearest car can drive.

There are no idling RVs, no cars driving, no speakers playing, no people walking by (usually), and there is no cell reception.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, August 23rd, 2023

Camping @ Parc National du Fjord-du-Saguenay, Baie Sainte-Marguerite, 2023

I got Lyme disease at my folk’s house in mid-July. It was exhausting and painful.

I spent most of our camping trip sleeping on the beach.

The kids didn’t have as much fun this year, due to all my sleeping.

Martin says it was the last year we’re going, in his opinion.

He has never enjoyed camping.

It’s still the best place ever for family camping, in my opinion. I simply love it here.

 

 

deciding on the building site

 

 

 

building the foundation

 

 

 

raising the walls

 

 

 

sandcastle legs

 

 

 

playing in the bay

 

 

 

shoreline at sunset

 

 

 

children at sunset

 

Thursday, July 13th, 2023

Pogo Stick

I

Pogo Stick

 

 

 

My mom’s had it in her garage since we were little.

 

 

 

Before that, it was in someone else’s garage.

 

 

 

It goesβ€”

SPRINK-SPRANK-SPRINK-SPRANK!

SPRINK-SPRANK-SPRINK-SPRANK!

 

 

 

SPRINK-SPRANK-SPRINK-SPRANK

SPRINK-SPRANK-SPRINK-SPRANK!

 

 

 

Akiva wants me to let you know that his record number of hops is 84 in a row.

 

 

 

II

SUPERMAN

said Ma, as she pointed to the sky!

 

 

 

Then the kids ran

 

 

 

mad circles in the grass,

 

 

 

mirroring the superhero’s gyre

 

 

 

as he flew above the yard.

 

 

 

When at last the man of steel

 

 

 

tumbled from the skyβ€”

 

 

 

the world as we imagined it was over.

Tuesday, July 11th, 2023

Wall Window