First Full Week of Summer Vacation

The two older kids are spending the days this whole week at an arts camp run through our local art gallery. According to Middle Child, he had anticipated that it would be the highlight of his summer. At Junior Kindergarten, they discussed what they were going to do while they weren't in school. Middle Child mentioned Art Camp. Are you going on any trips, he was asked? "I think so. But I'm going to Art Camp."

Anyway, he went today and he said it was "a little bit stinky." He wouldn't really elaborate, but I have the distinct impression that he feels that he's better than anyone and there's nothing the instructors can teach him. Oh well, suck it up. Mumma paid for the whole week. He had more fun yesterday at Ikea (where the five of us ate dinner for $12! And we got the frozen yogurts at closing for 50 cents each).

We spent Canada Day at home. My parents and sister came over for the day and we did lots of small town stuff: walked around downtown, went to the city's daytime Canada Day celebrations (the kids got their faces painted and they got free balloon animals, popcorn and cotton candy so they were happy), had a barbecue and then wrapped it up with the city's parade. It's a candy grab but I waited in anticipation for the Tim Horton's float. The local owners hand out waxed paper wrapped Timbits and water bottles.

The folks left and Husband took the older kids to the big fireworks show. I plunked Baby Boy into the stroller and went for a walk, hoping it would knock him out. I popped some popcorn, left it to cool and went out. My route was going to be to walk to the kids' school and back but just as I was walking past my friend's house, one of her sons said, from the backyard, "There's Jen!" They poked their heads out, hands full of sparklers, and invited us to light them off with them.

That led to a glass of wine.

That led to us sticking around until the fireworks which we could see near perfectly. I swear, it was the longest show the city has ever put on: about 30 minutes.

Today's American Independence Day. Huzzah. I had to call a company in Pennsylvania to clear up some stuff regarding a magazine subscription payment. Apparantly, their bank has problems recognizing credit cards from "international banks". "Well, I personally am going to call up your bank up there today and make sure everything's hunky-dory," Becky Sue told me (and I'm not making up the name). I explained that it may be difficult "because this was our, for lack of a more understandable term, our Fourth of July." "Oh, happy Fourth of July!" "Actually, it's the first of July and we call it Canada Day." "Well, happy Independence Day! Enjoy your tailgate parties." "Yeah, I'm just gonna get my biscuits and shoo-fly pie out of the oven and rev up the barbecue for some beer can chicken."

No sense trying to educate. Yeehaw!