Category: Childhood

Point in Time: Talking with Ro

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About two weeks ago I posted my first “Point in Time” interview with Sen in a very simple effort to document conversations, favourites and opinions held by my children over time. This time it’s Ro’s turn.

Ro – Sunday June 5th, 2016

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What is your favourite food? That’s not fair, you know I can’t pick just one! Lasagna, pot pie, and ramen.

What is your favourite dessert? Pie…with ice cream

Favourite movie? The Giver, I saw it at Maya’s birthday party.

Favourite book? Rain Shadow by Valerie Sherrard

Favourite flower? Dalia

What is something you can do that you are proud of? Speak French

What’s your favourite place in Ottawa? The holes on the path to the river (the ones that have trees growing in them where you can have a hidden picnic)

Favourite colour? Sparkly

Favourite song? Cheap Thrills

Favourite animal? Axalotyl

What makes you happy? Happy people, haha!

What is your favourite art form? You can’t ask me that!!! All of them, obviously.

What are you afraid of? Medical needles

What are you looking forward to? SUMMER

What is your favourite thing to do with Sen? Tell jokes

What is your favourite thing to do with me? Chill

What is your favourite thing to cook? Food. Haha! Seriously, though, pie.

What is something you want to do when you are an adult? Be a visual artist. Then a Singer-Actor-Model-Dancer- Magician. Kidding! (A reference to You Tube Comedian Miranda Sings)

Who is a role model for you? Jane Goodall

Do you have any advice for people? When you are sad realize that you are being sad (and boring) and then be awesome instead.

{ Ro’s blouse is from Coco & Ginger }

I would love to know if you have ways of documenting ages and stages with your children. Please share in the comments below or leave ideas for questions I can ask.

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A Drawing A Day : A Summer Drawing Project

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Let’s be friends! Please come find me in other places:

Point in Time: Talking with Sen about Favourites

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You’d think with my blogging I would have kept better track of milestones with the children, but it seems I’ve mostly talked about other people on this blog. Such is my nature…I’ve always been bad with attention directed my way. In any case, I do want to keep better track of Ro and Sen’s development, and keep snapshots of them at different ages and stages. Not just photo snapshots (goodness I have plenty of those!), but snapshots of their interests, their vocabulary, their quirks and opinions.

So, when I saw a “toddler quiz” posted around on Facebook I thought this would be a fun and easy way to get a little snapshot of the children at one point in time. I’ve decided to use the quiz format for a documented check in with the kids. I won’t always use the same questions — I’d like to incorporate more opinion questions, but for now this is a good start.

Sharing some recent photos of Sen to go with his ‘Point in Time’ check in –> He found a broken fern leaf and said he wanted to wear it on his head. Because: obviously.

Sen – Saturday June 4th, 2016

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What’s your name? Seneca Otis Kid Flash Batman

How old are you? Five

When is your birthday? Today [ his birthday is in March, but June 4th, the day of this quiz, was his party day ]

How old is mommy? How old are you, mama?

What’s your favourite color? Blue

What’s your favourite food? I don’t have one yet

Who’s your best friend? Veevee

What’s your favourite show? That’s a tough decision

What’s your favorite movie? I don’t have one

What’s your favourite song? Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

What’s your favourite animal? Tyrannosaurus Rex

What are you scared of? Ghosts, because you don’t know which ones are nice or not

What makes you happy? Going to the pool and having my birthday party

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{ Sen’s shorts are from Nico Nico organic clothing }

I would love to know if you have ways of documenting ages and stages with your children. Please share in the comments below!

You might also like my post:

Family Traditions: Apple Picking

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Let’s be friends! Please come find me in other places:

Odds and Ends 

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The week was one of sickness and snuggles. While I don’t wish for my children to be sick, I do enjoy the extra time with them, being able to take leave from work to nurse them back to health. In any case, I didn’t have much time and energy between making tea, giving baths, and dowsing them in essential oils to do much blogging or sharing on Instagram so I decided to collect up a few of my favourite moments from the week and share them as odds and ends. Well, okay, it’s mostly cute things Sen said that I don’t want to forget.

Sen is a highly analytical child and when he is presented with a problem he will solve it. When it comes to being told he can’t do something he rarely reacts emotionally, instead he comes up with logical (and sometimes not so logical) reasons to persuade his parents to come around to his view. Normally his reasons are quite rational and often Matt and I are quite surprised by his level of intelligence. This week, however, he started using two reasons that made little sense at first. When asked to put away his puzzle he replied “I can’t mama it wouldn’t be good for the environment.” Another variation, when telling me why we had to take a particular route to walk to the market “Because this way is better for the earth!” It wasn’t any better, but he knew what sorts of emotional arguments to use with me to get his way. Then, explaining to Matt why he should get a new Lego set “But papa, don’t you know it’s vegan and organic?!” I almost burst out laughing when I heard him say it. Then I heard my own voice come back to me…because when Ro asks for treats at the market I always reply “Is it vegan? Is it organic? Well, I think you know the answer…” So, it seems he is internalizing these as persuasive words and using them with us. Sweet, clever child.

Being at home, I did have some time to catch up on my reading. I finished Marie Kondo’s opus The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. I’ve read parts here and there but never read it cover to cover until this week. I’m glad I did. I would definitely recommend it for anyone interested in minimalism and de-cluttering or seeking to create a calm home space. I have a few reservations when it comes to her lack of discussion of how to consciously discard items and not have them end up as landfill (she often mentions garbage bags, lots of garbage bags, which is a bit of dirty word around here, no pun intended). I’m also not convinced by her “spark joy” litmus test. But overall the book is excellent and especially the last section where she talks about the emotional life of things and the deep respect we should give to all objects we possess. A good book for sure.

I started reading Simple Matters by Erin Boyle and it’s excellent. I would definitely recommend this book! Stay tuned to hear more about it.

The local winter festival, known as Winterlude, started Friday night we couldn’t go due to sickness so hopefully we will make it next weekend. Here’s hoping for cold winds and snow so the ice sculptures won’t melt!

This week on the blog I have another interview with a minimalist to share and selections for the January Slow Living project focusing on “renew”. Come back and visit.

Xo, Danielle

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