Cooper reunion 2013

We hosted the majority of Dan's siblings for a family reunion here in the north over the weekend. It was a lot of fun and everyone seemed pleased with the area. We camped in beautiful Marten River campground in Lesser Slave Lake Provincial Park. The downside - it rained pretty much the whole time we had everyone there (right on par with the summer weather we've had so far!). The upside - we saw everyone, had a lot of good laughs, good food and great fishing.  Here are a few photos from the event. 


It happened to be the Alberta Open Sandcastle Building Competition down the road at Devonshire Beach, so we went by to see the entries.  The theme was Jungle, and the pics don't do it justice.  It was pretty neat to see.

Uncle Dwayne brought his canoe, which all the kids loved.

And Brooklyn and Dan managed to catch us supper - 5 fish in all, 3 walleye and 2 pike. Brooklyn held the title til Dan pulled his biggest fish ever after many people had gone home.  It was so big he had to bring it to the shore to land it.  It was 81 cm long and weighed 8 lbs. 

 

Here is Brooklyn with her largest pike - 65 cm.  She liked fishing but didn't want to touch it for the picture, so Dan obliged by holding it up for her.

Lots of fun and so good to see everyone.  Thanks for making the trip!

Hell has frozen over!

In case any of you wondered when this would happen, I live there so I know. April 6 and we have more new snow. That alone wouldn't be too bad. A little spring snow is expected. Except we haven't seen the ground since the middle of October.

But on to the freezing over bit. Yesterday we had a high of -7, with a wind chill of -20. The kids are so put out. Some spring break!

Spelling Bee Honesty

Clayton participated in the school spelling bee yesterday. A handful of kids from grades 4-6 chosen, by their teachers, have spent every Monday noon hour quizzing each other on spelling to get ready for the big day. I was unable to be there, but Dan was and he related this story to me.

After a few easy rounds, Clayton was given the word "wrong".  He was really nervous (so he told me later) and began spelling quickly "r..o.."  Realizing he had missed the W, but not allowed to begin again, he simply finished the word and waited for the bell to ding indicating he had made an error. But no bell came. "Correct!" the judges said. He stood for a moment, then returned to his seat. Dan was confused, as was the father next to him (Clayton's friend's dad) who gave him a questioning look. Dan said he could see the conflict going on inside Clay's mind, but the bee had moved on.

On his next turn, Clay was given the word "youth". Without missing a beat, he blurted out "u-t-h", then with a big grin took his seat in the chairs reserved for those who have been eliminated from the competition. He was practically there before the bell dinged.  The father again gave Dan a very puzzled look and mouthed, "What was that?"

But Dan and Clayton knew what that was. I am so proud of my little man. His teacher recently told me how impressed she is with his strong moral compass. He doesn't seem to have trouble making those kind of choices to do what is right.

And there's always next year...

Snow, snow, go away!

I worked my first day as an aide sub at the elementary school yesterday. It was a pretty easy start - we watched a movie in the gym for the first hour and a half, then I just meandered around different classrooms basically providing crowd control. Throw in a little recess supervision and, all in all, it was a fairly easy day. I'm sure they won't all be that way...

The only complicated thing was I was in classrooms who also had teacher subs. Talk about mass confusion! They had no idea what I should be doing to help them, most of the time they didn't even know which child I was there for!  Oh well, the little kinks. 

The kids were good about me being there. I was even in Clay's class for the afternoon. I think they secretly liked it, but they would never admit it.

The snow keeps coming. We got more overnight and we are sitting at -17 degrees right now.  It feels like January, so everyone has the blahs. Where is spring???

I've been asked to speak in Stake Conference for the Adult Session. How mothers can teach their children faith at home.  Hmmm....anyone with insights is welcome to comment. 

Good News

Earlier this week I was offered a position on the Educational Assistant Sub list at our Elementary School. This is just the step I need to get on permanently down the road. Yippee! It will also be a much smoother transition back to working, considering I still have Spencer home 3 days a week. I can say yes or no for the next few months, then increase my availability next year.  Big thanks to anyone who was praying for this for me. I really appreciate your support!

And, in other random thoughts, is anyone else out there hating Daylight Savings Time? I much prefer my light in the morning, thanks, since I prefer my children (and myself) in bed at a decent hour. I'm so tired! My circadian rhythms are apparently suffering immensely.  But we shall press forward!

Huge apology

Sorry. I lost my mind. I let my emotions run wild. It was not the right day to blog and, well, TMI error to everyone. I appreciate all the concern and love I felt tho. Maybe that's why I needed to say it. To know how many people really care. I have figured things out. I have a solution. I am making it work.

If I ever need any of you, don't worry - apparently I know how to find you!

Lunch for Mom and Dad

Yesterday the school phoned to inform us that Spencer had won a prize (a major award! lol). We had no ideas what for, but we went down to the Children's Resource Council to find out. Turns out he drew a picture at kindergarten that was chosen as the winner for "What I Love to do with My Family." He won a $20 gift certificate to Smitty's, which shares a parking lot with the CRC. So he called Dad and asked him to come to lunch with us today.

I now realize that this 4th child has pretty much never been to an actual restaruant where he gets to choose his own meal. He was so excited he could hardly contain himself. He even ordered his own orange float. The waitress thought he was so funny she gave him a toonie to put in the prize machine at the front. It was the best day of his life!

And lunch was pretty good too. Thanks Spencer!

This is the pictures, but I can't figure out how to rotate it...