Le Preschool

Kate's preschool is part of a French immersion elementary school in one of the Moose Jaw school districts. Unlike Maddox Jolie-Pitt's French immersion school ($18,000 a year!), Kate's is absolutely free.

Here is a good Q and A about French immersion from the Canadian Parents for French--Saskatchewan site. And Statistics Canada also has some interesting information.

We'll see how it goes, but for now, Kate is really enjoying it! Since the parents rotate as helpers in the classroom, I get to see what goes on! It's so cute to hear the kids go around the room and say, "Je m'appelle Kate" (My name is Kate) or to sing songs like "Bonjour Mes Amis" (Hello my friends). I studied French in high school and college, but never gained fluency, so hopefully I'll regain some as I spend time in the classroom and read French books to Kate.

Our first Canadian credit card

Yep, we now have a credit card through our Canadian bank! One of the issues we had in Scotland and here in Canada, is that banks are hesitant to give credit cards to people who aren't permanent residents. This is annoying, because if we needed to charge something like plane tickets to a credit card, we had to use our American one, and then pay the bill out of our US account. Telemarketers would call me last year and offer me a credit card, and eager for one, I would give them my information. Then a couple weeks later, we would get a letter saying we didn't meet the qualifications. Eric has a temporary Social Insurance Number (like a SSN) and I just have a Temporary Tax Number, so that alone gives away our status. Once we gain permanent residency, we can both have proper SINs.

The Bank of Scotland gave us one after two years there. And I suppose our bank here figured they'd given us a mortgage, so surely we could handle a credit card? Just one more little thing that helps us feel more settled here!

Happy Birthday Dad!

It's my Dad's birthday! Wish we could bake a cake for you, Dad! Have a great day!

Check out these photos

I love these pictures on my friend Mandy's blog of her little girls on the prairie. I need to get some photos like that of my kids. If you're interested to know more about life in Caronport, read some of Mandy's entries. She's another stay-at-home mom in Caronport, married to a professor, and has a really great sense of humor!

Caronport in the fall

It's really pretty in Caronport these days, so we went for a long walk and snapped some pictures.


View up our street toward the prairie road. We used to live in that townhouse on the end.




Kate by the Tot Lot sign




I have no idea what this graffiti means.




Pathway through campus




Campus laundromat, one of the original air force buildings




The Clothes Closet, our favorite outing on a Friday morning



Briercrest Seminary




Hildebrand Chapel



Starbucks!




Campus directory sign




Our little post office




Kate with her new haircut and her favorite shoes!




Will loves to watch Kate

Letting go...

So Kate is in preschool now, and Will turns one in four months! I am selling some of their baby clothes at a secondhand sale on Saturday, and it made me pretty nostalgic! The time has flown by! I remember last year feeling like the days as a stay-at-home mom in Caronport were so long. Now I'm realizing that the days of having all day to be with your children are fleeting. Walks on the prairie road, hours in the backyard baby pool, kids digging in the garden while I weed, making oatmeal cookies together. I know we will continue all that, but we'll have less time for it as they grow, spend more time with friends, and get busy with school and activities.

It reminds me of some lyrics by singer-songwriter, Jan Krist:

"Well I know mercy will find you
Unforgiveness will bind you
Children grow
And it's hard to let 'em go."

It's funny--I always wanted kids but I wasn't so eager to do the actual work of mothering, because as a childless woman, it seemed pretty boring! A blog like mine would have put me to sleep back then! And sure, it has its boring elements, but for me, these have been the best years of my life. So, experienced parents, any words of wisdom for me as I struggle with how fast time is flying by?

Cutting Kate's hair

So Kate's hair has been very straggly, to the point that she could hardly see beyond her bangs if they weren't pulled back. So I got out my sewing scissors and decided to trim the bangs. I cut them pretty short, so thought I should cut some of her other hair as well. She looked in the mirror afterward and said, "I wish there was more hair." I'm getting used to it, but there's a reason I'm not posting a photo! I don't think I'll attempt that again. ;)

It really froze two days ago????

It's 5 PM and 88 degrees (31 C) outside.

Weather Report

Well, a couple nights ago, it did indeed freeze! My peppers and tomatoes got a bit nipped, despite being covered, so I'm not sure if they will grow and ripen much more. The potato plants are dead but I've been told that doesn't affect the potatoes, which is great, as I have yet to harvest many!

Despite the freezing weather we had, I was out in the garden in my shorts today, almost sweating as I worked in the hot sun and the mid-70s temperature. I have transplanted all my herbs into pots so they can be brought inside as necessary. Because who knows when it might freeze again!

Caronport High School football game

Fall is in the air! So we decided to take in a Caronport High School football game! It was fun to cheer on the team, especially when they won!


Eric and Will enjoying the game



Go Cougars!



Our friend Ken Guenter, football coach and one of Eric's Old Testament colleagues



Cougars ahead!



Kate with our good friend, Judy Guenter



Eric, Will, and our friend and seminary student, "Mr. Neil"




Will can sit on his own!

Possible freeze

This Saskatchewan weather takes some getting used to! The forecast says it is likely to get to freezing tonight, so I've just come in from the garden, where I've thrown blankets over my tomatoes, bell peppers, and all my herbs. Hopefully nothing will die! I've spent all summer nurturing, watering, and weeding this garden. Now I feel pressure to harvest everything soon and find a way to use it up. I'm hoping the warmer weather comes back...

Kate, Church Historian and Professional Ambulance Impersonator

At church last week, we had a service of celebration and remembrance for our name's sake, St. Aidan, an early Irish monk who helped to get Christianity into English soil. (He was a traveling evangelist and church planter.) Anyway, Kate heard that St. Aidan moved to Scotland, where she was born. Very loudly, she said in the middle of the service: "But I was born in Scotland, and one time I did a huge poopie and it got on Daddy!"

Also, this morning, while she was feeding Will his breakfast, she was making a kind of wailing noise. She proudly announced that she was making loud noises, and then: "I'm pretending to be an ambulance!" After seeing me laugh, she said: "Well, I'm just pretending!"

The Canadian National Anthem

Kate said they sang "O Canada" during circle time at preschool. Kind of funny to think of my American daughter learning all things Canadian. It is quite a nice song though! You can read the lyrics below or listen to it sung here.

O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land
Glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee;
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

And in French:

Ô Canada! Terre de nos aïeux,
Ton front est ceint de fleurons glorieux!
Car ton bras sait porter l'épée,
Il sait porter la croix!
Ton histoire est une épopée
Des plus brillants exploits.
Et ta valeur, de foi trempée,
Protégera nos foyers et nos droits;
Protégera nos foyers et nos droits.

First day of preschool

A new school year!

The students are arriving in droves for another year at Briercrest! We are excited to get to know more of them this year. They come from all over, and you'd likely be surprised how many American students there are. Eric just completed writing a distance learning class on the Pentateuch. Briercrest has extensive offerings in distance learning. Eric is also gearing up to teach Hebrew Exegesis (mixed class of college and seminary students) and a college Pentateuch class this fall. He will also be spending lots of time preparing for the three seminary modulars he teaches next winter/spring.

And Kate starts preschool tomorrow!

Exciting new book!

Eric's mother, Jani Ortlund, has written a wonderful new book called His Loving Law, Our Lasting Legacy: Living the Ten Commandments and Giving Them to Our Children.

We just got our copy, and it looks great! You can find it in your local Christian bookstore, on Amazon, or from the publisher Crossway.