Rainy Day

I asked Kevin today if he remembers how he got his name, and he did not.  I told him Kevin is a combination of his parents' names:  Kevin = Karin + Steve.   Then I told him it works equally well with his new Mom's name!  Kevin = Kinga + Steven!!!

I had to take my car in for servicing today, and they gave me a loaner car which is not as well equipped as my car.  Kevin had a bit of a meltdown over the loaner car, because he could not manage his own air control from the backseat, he had no drink holder, he could not pull down the center armrest while strapped into his booster seat, and on and on.  Nothing like being a little spoiled!  LOL 

I have been having Kevin do at least 3 pages in a math workbook each day.  He chose a geometry section to do today.  Oh, my.  It challenged Grandma!  It took me a few minutes to come up with parallelogram and trapezoid.  Haven't used those terms in a LONG time!  And I certainly never learned them in elementary school! 

He practiced piano again today, as he has most days.  I realized I must make a video of the song he taught himself!  Coming on a future installment!  

Today was the first rainy day which limited out activities.  After yesterday's busy day, it was nice to veg a bit.  Kevin is absorbed by the cartoon channel we found.  BTW, Tivo is such a normal thing for kids these days that he cannot understand why Grandma cannot pause, back up, replay, save to watch later, etc. what is on TV.  And I seemed to be unable to explain what plain old TV is!  

Melanie came over this evening with her copy of "The Sound of Music."  Since seeing Julie Andrews, we have wanted to watch the movie again!

Crazy Day!

This morning, we went ice skating from 10:30 to noon.  We needed to allow enough time to get gas on the way and be ready to get on the ice at 10:30 so that Kevin wouldn't lose any precious moments of skating time.  There were no "cages" for beginning skaters to use which was a blessing!  Without that crutch available, Kevin was able to advance in his abilities.  Even though this is only his third time on the ice this summer, he ended the morning being more proficient than he ended last summer!  This morning he did turns and skated faster than before.  He wanted me to take a video to send to Mom and Dad!  Which I did, and they were impressed!

We were on a very cold pad, and both of us were freezing before our time was up.  We left 15 minutes early, and stopped at a Tim Horton's for some lunch before driving to the horse stables.  Yes!  We went horseback riding today!  :)

 I wondered if Kevin would be afraid of the horses up close, and fearful of riding one.  But he was not!  He was surprised at how bumpy it is to ride a horse. 

Petting my horse. 

 He rode Speckles, and I was on C.J.

 He loved it when his horse trotted up hills!  He had no fear! 

 He had a wonderful time and experience!

Grandma was silly enough to come with only plastic money which they don't accept, so they kept my Health Card while I drove to the nearest town for cash.  Since it was a hot day, we took time for a DQ as well.  He ordered a Banana Split Blizzard while I ordered a Brownie Blizzard.  We shared, not being able to decide which was better!

As we drove back onto the stable property, Kevin asked if we could go again!  He loved it!

Even though he wanted to ride again, he was eager to get home and relax in front of some cartoons.  And Grandma was delighted to curl up for an hour's nap!

Grandma needed to attend a wake this evening, so Laura came to play with Kevin for an hour.  She brought him a bug box, he fixed her hair again, and they played hide and seek.

He created a bubble sculpture in his bath tonight.

Water Fun and Gabe's News!

We were too tired to make it to church.  Went to Cora's for lunch.  Kevin loves their fruit displays on each plate!

This afternoon, we went swimming with Melanie's family;

 Kevin loves the huge waterslide!

 Here he is at the bottom.

And the splash park with the bucket of water that dumps is exciting!  Kevin huddled with other kids waiting for the dump to hit them!

 A quick stop at the playground.

then to dinner at a restaurant on the water.  

Kevin is peppered with mosquito bites all over from the outdoor movie last night.  We went to a drugstore this morning to ask a phamacist for a good solution, as my Caladryl does not seem to help much.   He recommended Benadryl orally since he has so many bites.  We bought that and it worked.  After 6 or more hours, he asked for more.  This evening he was driving me out of my mind with his hyperness.  It wasn't until later, I remembered being told Benadryl can cause sleepiness or . . . hyperactivity.  Yep!  Being in the pool all day, it was not noticeable.  No more Benadryl!    Poor kid will have to itch. 

He read The 3 Billy Goats Gruff at bedtime, then I read my fractured fairytale version of the story to him.  He asked if I was going to publish it.  I told him I would need to find an illustrator, then we both realized HE could be my illustrator!  :)   We looked up some pictures of trolls for ideas but found nothing we liked. 

At 10pm Central Time, Gabriel called me to say, "I went potty," and Kien added, "For the first time!!!!"   :)   Gabe was very pleased and told me he received some candy and a sticker.

Every Day is a Party!

Kevin has discovered a cartoon channel which has him mesmerized.  His favorites are Scooby Doo and Sylvester & Tweetie.   HE is a cartoon!  ha!  He set up an audience to enjoy the cartoons with him including "Doggie" on a pile of pillow behind him. 

 We went ice skating this afternoon.  He is doing very well!   

My Rotary Club had a farewell party for this year's exchange student.  She was everyone's favorite!

Melanie's boys came too, so Kevin enjoyed their company.

AND one of his babysitters was present as well!  Her family had hosted Katri part of the year.  Kevin wrapped her in a straw mat, and they she wrapped him!

This evening, Melanie invited us to her house for sliders and a movie outside!  Kevin was able to Skype with Mom and Dad while we were there.

Art Camp and Water Play

Today was the last day of Art Camp.  I asked Kevin last night which he liked better:  Science in Nature day camp at the Garden or Art Camp at the Art Centre.  Art Camp won hands down!  I asked, "What about going canoeing every day and playing games outside?"  Nope.  Doing artwork for six hours without large muscle activity was more fun for him!

At the end of the day, his teacher was telling the children they were the best class she has had in a long time, and gave them a hug as they left.  I told her that the art day camp was his favorite.  

We left his totem pole masterpiece to be exhibited in the art show in a couple of weeks.

He was the last to leave.  He modeled his head covering which he made in class.  It looks like it as a Fascinator on it!

It was a gorgeous day, so we went to the park at the lake to play on the playground and run in the splash park.

We ordered hamburgers for our dinner there, but Kevin's was ruined because they put mustard on it.
And he played on the playground.

 Melanie wanted to watch the Olympics Opening Ceremonies with us, so she came over this evening.

Art is His Passion

A babysitter came this morning so that I could attend my Rotary meeting.  I told her that Kevin will probably sleep in until I return which will be in plenty of time for me to get him up for his day camp.  Sure enough; he slept until I returned.  I was sitting at my computer and heard a strange noise, so got up to see what it was.  Kevin was just around the corner in the living room.  He startled me, and I screamed.  Because I screamed, I scared him!!!!   LOL  We both dissolved in a puddle of laughter! 

I told the babysitter he would probably cry because he didn't get to see her.  Actually, I was hoping he would forget she was coming this morning and continue on with his day.  He did forget.  Until . . . we got in the car to go to day camp.  He wanted to know why the car was all wet.  The rain gave my secret away!  And, yes, he did cry that he didn't see Laura. 

When I came at the end of the day, his totem pole was almost complete.  I took this photo.

Then he wanted to take some close-up shots:

He wants to enter it in an art show, so we will not be bringing it home tomorrow.  Grandma is going to have to ship it home after the show. 

Today, he spent a long time looking at everything in the gift shop -- especially all the paintings they have for sale.  There are many wonderful things to see! 

After grocery shopping, he watched cartoons on TV until dinner was ready.  He wanted to eat in front of the TV and set up a place for both of us to eat.  After his bath, it was a bit late to work on his math book, but I was determined he would do three pages anyway.  We skipped ahead in the book to money.  I thought that would be more fun.  It went well for a while, but then, he was just too tired.  We didn't complete the last page. 

At bedtime, I asked him which is more fun -- Science in Nature at the Garden where they did large muscle activities and games including canoeing every day, or Art Camp which has no large muscle activities that I am aware of.  It was an easy choice -- art!!!!  He would rather sit and work on creating art than run around and play games! 

Water and Puck

I pack a kit for Kevin with lunch and two snacks every day.  There also is a water bottle.  It is always full when I take it out.  I know he refilled each day it at the Garden day camp a couple of weeks ago, but it seems like he doesn't touch it this week at art camp.  I asked him, "Do you drink your water during the day?"  His reply:  "I am so busy with art I don't even want to drink!" 

Each day when I come to pick him up, he wants to tour around the galleries.  Today, we spent quite a bit of time looking at all of the fabulous ceramic and paper sculptures done by one woman over a lifetime. We spent so much time examining everything that the volunteer in charge of the room came over to talk to us.  She was very impressed with Kevin's keen interest in the objects.  She gave us additional information on many of the pieces and gave a Kevin a catalog of the works.  A little gold bird which is my personal favorite is only $1050.  Wish I could buy it!

Finally, tonight is the first opportunity we have had to go ice skating.  Family Skate, according to my booklet, began at 7:00 until 8:30.  We arrived a little after 7 and were told it started at 6:00 and ends at 7:30.  So we only had about 15 minutes to skate once we had our skates on.

After taking our skates off, two adult hockey teams were on the ice.  He wanted to stay and watch.  At first, he sat on a ledge right behind the boards.

At one point, a referee took a puck out of his pocket and gave it to Kevin!  :)

Eventually, we went upstairs to the gallery.  He watched through the entire first period and into the second before being ready to leave. 

When we finally left, he said he was hungry, so we went to Dairy Queen.  While we sat on our tailgate eating with a family next to us on their tailgate, one of their boys (about 10 yr.) announced he was going into the pet food store next door.  A few minutes later, Kevin told me he was going into the pet store.  ha!

He took the puck to bed with him.

Creativity, Playtime, and Math

Kevin called me to come see his bed.  He made it without being asked!!!  And did it creatively!

When I returned this afternoon, I couldn't find Kevin in the room.  His teacher told me to look under the table. 

We had to rush home today as Melanie and her boys were coming to play in our yard.  Originally, we were going to let them play in the sprinkler, but it was too cool. They had fun running anyway.

 And we had pizza for dinner.

Later, a neighbor turned his sprinkler on his rock garden, and the boys ran to it -- cool or not! 

I remembered the workbook we brought and pulled it out of his case.  I thought it was a fun book to keep up on school skills over the summer.  But it is a serious math book he should have been working on all along!!!!  I told him we had to do three pages every night from now on!  He had some trouble with the simple addition questions on the first pages indicating he really does need extra help!  He has already forgotten basic skills. 

Art Camp Begins

Kevin's Art Camp at the Art Centre began this morning.  They began making totem poles today.

He is cutting some wire.  This totem pole is on the table behind him.

When I came to pick him up, he showed me the totem poles in the inner garden.

He was in no rush to leave.  He loves looking at all the displays, but we did not have much time.  My mover representative was coming today after day camp. 

We had dinner with Julia tonight at a restaurant on the water at a marina.  The children's menu was on a placemat with a photo to color.  He did an impressive job of coloring.  Since our outdoor table top was an iron "waffle weave," it created a unique design in the water/lake of his picture.  I was trying to think of the right word to describe it, and he popped out "Texture."  Yes!  We told Julia he is in art camp this week.  She asked if it was challenging.  He responded, "Why would it be?  It is fun!"

Kevin fed our leftover bread to the ducks in the water behind us. 

After dinner, we went to the playground adjacent to the restaurant.  The lighting and clouds were amazing with a storm brewing. 

Julia took several photos of him.  As usual, he enjoyed posing, and she appreciated photographing someone who was willing to pose!