Strong Start

It could be that with both David and me working full-time, Hayden in school, and church activities, I had no reason to go hunting extra-curricular activities for Hayden. Fastfoward to us living in Canada and adjusting to an entirely new lifestyle and suddenly I need things to help us meet people and fill our days!

 We've had such beautiful weather (apparently, not the norm and according to friends, we were getting spoiled!), but now the gray skies seem to have arrived. Not so much the incessant drizzle yet, but we have the overcast days. Bummer. We have not put Hayden into a sport this fall for a number of reasons. One is that with David coaching football and only one vehicle, practice during the week could be difficult to get to. The other is that we hope to return to the Coast for a visit at some point before the holidays, and when/if we do, we will miss at least 2-3 weeks. We want Hayden to be consistent if he's going to be involved, and this allows me the time to learn what's here. So that's what has led me to Strong Start.

Yesterday afternoon/evening I was able to venture across the border with some new friends to do a bit of grocery shopping. Sounds like the highlight of my week, right? Well, I was able to have adult conversation with other believers and not have to worry about bedtime (thanks, Dave!) and shop in peace. PEACE, I tell you. No "I want this!" or "What is that?" or "Are we going to another store?" Cassandra mentioned last night about Strong Start. This is the website's definition: "StrongStart BC early learning programs provide school-based early learning services for adults and their young children, aged birth to five, at no cost to families." Nice, right? And it's a come-and-go thing. I don't have to go everyday, I participate WITH Hayden, and it's free! FREE. That's huge. I'm working on the best location for us and filling out the paperwork. With all of the rainy days ahead, this will be perfect for getting us out of the apartment and doing something that doesn't cost us anything but time.

Our most local community centre (yep, centRe) primarily offers recreational activites and some can be pricey. There is an aquatic centre that we'll likely get Hayden involved in this spring. The aquatic centre is more like a YMCA. You have to buy a membership ($$) or we can do drop-ins for, I think, $10 a class. Hayden has done great in the pool and the spring will still be rainy, so this would be a great way to get Hayden moving and out of the apartment again. However, we did find a community centre not too far away that offers classes--some that cost and others that don't. There's a sports class on Thursdays that introduces preschoolers to all different types of sports. So we're going to start plugging in!

Within the next few months, I'll be starting some sort of job, so please be praying for that. Please be praying for David, too, because he'll become a stay-at-home dad concentrating on The Common Place. Whatever we get Hayden involved in, we want it to be good for all of us. With one vehicle, we'll have to do some figuring on a few things, but it's all going to work out. Right?