Special Exposure / Wordless Weds: Harvest Time

This has become one of my favourite seasons -- summer's winding down and the rich colours, smells, and tastes of Harvest begin. Holiday planning starts in earnest, and both kids look forward to their birthdays.

What better way to capture some of this than at our Sunday Farmers' Market, on my cell phone?

James loves live music and musicians.

Beautiful and tasty display

It's relaxing, listening to live music

Now here's a thought -- bring an instrument!

Or, you know, sing along ...

Largest focaccia on record!

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visit Special Exposure Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Special Needs.






               and ... Wordless Wednesday

Summer Reading Rewards

On our visit to the library last week we updated our Reading Lists for the 2012 Summer Reading program. Because both kids earned their week 5 stickers, they received gift certificates for some frozen yogurt from a newly opened shop that was just across the Town Green. As it was about 90 degrees out, this was a welcome reward.

I had trouble keeping James focused on writing the titles on his list ...

... because the Blues Clues game (see top of image) suddenly became available.

Yodeling for yogurt.

Mmmmmmm, yoooooogurt. Vanilla, comme toujours.

Thank you, Windsor Library and Yogurt Farms, for making literature delicious and delightful for the next generation!

SOOC Saturday: Gold Coins

How was your St. Patrick's Day? Ours was Very Green. We wore green, had a little green food (apples), and we hunted for gold on the Town Green.




James' sister's class was invited to participate in the town's first ever Gold Coin Hunt on the Windsor Town Green. As a sibling, James was able to attend. He mostly had fun running around the lawns with the other kids and testing his balance by walking on the low curbs around their edges. He was all about fun in the sun, being able to run about and yell freely, and not spending another day in the house sick with a cold.


His sister, however, struck gold ... in more ways than one:





We love the Town Green. We have had many picnics here on the lawns, played at the playground, and been fascinated with the fountains. We've enjoyed some of their Summer Music concerts (the kids love dancing to live music). We've wrapped up in blankets and watched movies there for free, under the stars.

The City of Windsor's Parks and Rec Dept. has many great programs that use the Green as well. James has enjoyed 2 summers of their preschool summer camp sessions. At first, I had to have an initial interview with the program and Park directors to make sure the programs and James would be a good fit.

They listened to me talk about James as a person and were happy to try having him, even though for the first year he could barely speak words and was still in pull ups. James quickly won over staff and co-campers, and he loved being able to go to camp and have fun new things to do with such fun and supportive people. After each session, his language and communication skills would take huge jumps forward. This is what inspired us to try having James try being in a mainstream program outside of his Special Day class.

So I guess that James too has struck gold on the Town Green!


The Slurping Life is ready for Spring. Visit Melody and check out SOOC Saturday/Sunday entries past & present. No cropping or fixing -- it's life, straight out of the camera.



  

Feast for the Soul

One thing I love about summer is that I can move meal times outdoors. It makes a nice break in routine and helps keep the house a little cleaner. This is also good for my sanity. I think the kids like the novelty. As long as we pack Their Foods, that is.

Our town in blessed with a Town Green and some dedicated merchants and council members. On Tuesday nights, we can watch a movie there for free. On Thursday afternoons into evening, there's a Farmers' Market and music concert. A few years ago, a Shakespeare festival began.

I take the kids to these events several times over the summer. Not as often as I'd like, but we'd stay in the house a lot more without them. We also feel good about supporting our local growers, restauranteurs, and other business people. We are supporting local food, green-friendly endeavors, and small-time artisans. We meet our neighbours, friends, and classmates in a different setting and just socialize.

Last weekend, on a whim, we packed a picnic dinner and parked the kids at the Town Green for some food and The Tempest. The kids were interested for a while before the production lost its allure. My husband and I took turns watching the kids have fun at the playground on the Green.

This year, James sat on a chair instead of rolling all over me and the picnic quilt. Such a big boy!