leading up to August 29

We have continued with Fina reading just about anything she can get her hands on. We aren't rushing, or pushing. She is just reading what she wants, when she wants. And it is pure joy!!!

We have had a great many beach days.

We went to our local Provincial Park to scope out campsites for our trip with friends.

Disgustingly sweet cherry dipped (over a lovely ice cream) cone

Lots of outside playtime with friends!

We have continued to have unstable weather which has continued to provide us with some lovely views.

On this rainbow day, August 15, while playing with her little friend K, Fina hit her 1000 hours outside. We started counting, for the second year, on November 1 2015. (By August of 2015, we had only hit 862 hours outside. The lack of mosquitoes this year has definitely helped the summer hours!) With 2.5 months to go, we've got many more hours yet. Last year, by October 31 (our year-end, she was at 1084). I think it is such a great challenge. It certainly motivates me to get her outside more and more.  (I wrote more about this 1000 hour challenge in my September 24 2015 post, if you'd like to read more about it!)

There has been A LOT of chalking this summer

The other big news is that Fina and I went camping with our friend E, and her three kiddies J, S and E. It was our first time camping, and in a tent, no less!  We had a marvellous time which we will never forget. Fina certainly got the camping bug. She wants to go back.  Here is just a peak into our three day adventure.

Fina and I were in the little blue tent, so fun!

Here she is in it.

Swimming at dusk. Wonderful!

Fina's first s'more. She LOVED it. It was NOT her last, even of the evening.

Picking chokecherries

And eating them.

The family with which we went camping is also a CM homeschooling family (they are in our CM co-op as well). We asked the kids to draw something pertaining to our camping trip, something they were looking at or remembering etc (while we were packing up) and this is what Fina drew. The love of her life, representing our campsite, J11. "I want to camp to J11 again." I thought it was a cute thing to draw.

We had such a lovely time and we are hoping to camp again in the early fall. It was an incredible experience for the both of us.

Among the cattails.

We also went for a day trip to the rolling hills of Holland Manitoba, to the Trappist Monastery. We wandered around the grounds, the church, and were able to purchase some of their cheese. It was a great day. (Check out this NFB film about their cheese.)

We are off to another beach day. Thanks for following along some of our summer adventures with us!

Leading up to August 10

Well, Fina is reading up a storm! We haven't been doing school work per se, but she is reading many little books every day and loving it.

We have had many more beach days, including on July 19, my last post. It was so hot that day at our outdoor playgroup, that the kids were listless (which NEVER happens). A bunch of families only stayed for a bit and then left. We were left with our good friend L and her kids L,  and S. So we decided to make our own beach day. So off we went to St Malo beach for the afternoon and evening.

Look at that sky! We had a huge storm the next day. A HUGE storm!

Fina built many Lego items, free style.

This was at our local Lego store's 1 year anniversary celebration.

And this, the pièce de résistance! She built this and then dad helped her (or she helped him, I guess) enter it into the program Lego Digital Designer and now we have an instruction booklet as a .pdf for how to build her set, the "Star Wars Helicopter Pilot."

It took them hours to enter each piece into the software, but they had so much fun!

She also made a little BB8.

We have had a great many, very fun, beach days.

She even found a four-leaf clover!

On an inpromptu meet up at the park, one of our friends found a little baby bird who had fallen out of its nest. So the whole lot of us rallied around to get it back up in its nest.

We went fishing with our good friends L, K and C. It was our first time fishing. I caught a perch. Fina hooked her own worm, and wanted to keep hooking everybody else's worm too!

We got our homeschooling number, after we notified the government of our intention to homeschool Fina. We have signed up MB education library and we also have access to teacher discounts at certain stores as well as special pricing for things like the zoo!!!

We did manage to squeeze in chapters 19 and 21 of our catechism book.

Playing under a bridge in our creek.

Carrots from K's garden.

Climbing on

anything she can!

We have been so blessed with the lack of mosquitoes these last few weeks. We have been spending as much time outdoors as possible and having a great time!

Next week, we are going to go tent camping for two nights with our friends E, J, S and E. It is going to be such fun!

Thanks for reading. I hope you too are enjoying your summer!