Video below!!

Morning

The morning started with some crisp, fresh apples we picked up from Walmart. Surprisingly, they have good apples and we’ve been enjoying them during our trip. Ethan likes having apple first thing in the morning, as he sometimes wakes up hungry.

We didn’t want to eat much in the van, as we were heading to the Boyce Farmer’s Market, one of the must see places in Fredericton. We just so happened to be here when it was open, which is only on Saturdays.

Ethan was excited about visiting the market because he knew we were going to the science centre afterwards. But once he got to the market, he was more excited because of all the food! And because we didn’t have breakfast, and it was nearly lunchtime, Ethan got to have a real sausage hot dog, rather than the typical store bought ones. The sausages from one of the vendors was made with real meat and no preservatives or additives, so we were fine with him enjoying one. In fact, it tasted similar to the sausages Dong Eun and I had when we were in Germany during our honeymoon.

Dong Eun had a couple of the famous samosas, while I had a schnitzel burger. I should have gotten the sausage like Ethan because mine was the only one that wasn’t that good.

One thing that Ethan has found interesting about the markets we visit are the arts and crafts. It’s most likely because he likes making things that he finds what other people make interesting, too.

Afternoon

After enjoying lunch and looking around the market, we walked next door to Science East. Again, we were able to use our Science World membership to get in for free at another science centre. But this place quite different.

For one, it was housed in what used to be a jail up until 1966(?) and even had bathrooms that used to be jail cells. Second, most of the activities and exhibits were more analogue based, rather than just machines. Finally, they even had outdoor exhibits. As usual, Ethan loved all the activities.

At the outdoor chess board, a couple of kids were playing a match. Ethan loves chess, so he went over and started giving the other kids tips and advice. He’s really not shy about approaching other kids and joining them in whatever activity they are doing.

It was now time to leave Science East and go for a swim, which means it was also shower time! We’re all getting quite used to going 5-7 days in between showers. Dong Eun has the most issues, as her hair starts getting itchy after 5 days, but Ethan doesn’t seem to care at all. Anyway, it was nice to finally get cleaned up and head towards Moncton, NB.

Leatherman found!

When we were getting our stuff ready to go into the pool, Dong Eun found Ethan’s leatherman in the main cupboard, on top of a pot lid. It had been placed in the drawer and had somehow fallen down. We knew it had to be in the van, and Dong Eun found it. He was obviously very happy. Thank goodness for mom’s special way of finding things.

The drive to Moncton was beautiful, as the scenery along the river was awesome.

On the way, Ethan worked on a new necktie and decorated this one with one of his favourite things…smilies.

Along the way, we came across a local farmer’s market and had to stop, as the number of cars in the parking lot told us that this was a good place. Ethan was happy because they had a playground, as well as animals to feed and pet.

We bought a pack of locally made peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies to have for a snack. The cookies were amazing. A little more sugar than we normally like, but still very good.

We had to keep moving, as the sun sets pretty quick nowadays. Hard to believe we’ve been on the road for more than a month, but we’re loving every minute of it. And sometimes, when the view is spectacular, we just have to stop.

Ethan kept himself busy by picking a daisy and blowing it. He then found a sort of porcupine that got stuck to his pants and shoes.

Evening

We rolled into Moncton a little after 8pm and got dinner ready. Ethan worked on his paper airplane designs on the way here.

Dinner was a delicious spaghetti dish with broccoli and carrots from the farmer’s market topped with a sunny side up egg. Awesome!

And to cap off the evening, Ethan told us that Juju was hugging him before going to bed.

And tomorrow, we try for Prince Edward Island!

The post Home Learning Journal October 21, 2017 – Real Sausages & Science in Fredericton, NB appeared first on How to Do Stuff With Ethan.

Video to come!

Morning

We wanted to get an early start to the day because we wanted to visit a couple of spots where we could possibly see some whales. Apparently, all sorts of whales come through the area at different times of the year, such as beluga (of course), minke, and even blue whales.

Ethan helped get things packed up and ready for breakfast, then sat down to continue reading Harry Potter. I think he’s on book five now, but we’re just glad he found something other than Big Nate and Minecraft that he enjoys. He’s read all the Roald Dahl books, along with Charlotte’s Web and some other classic kid’s books, and we wanted him to get back to those. Harry will hopefully be a good segue.

Breakfast was not poutine today, but more of what we would normally have: scrambled eggs, veggies and toast, along with some blackstrap molasses (with hot milk today!). Ethan isn’t a blackstrap molasses fan, so he gets hot milk. It’s chilly in the mornings now, so the hot drinks are most welcome.

As we were cleaning up after breakfast, we asked Ethan to get rid of a bunch of sticks he’s been keeping in the van. One of them is a walking stick, but he never used it, so it was time to go.

We’re trying to be minimalist on this trip, too, so we’d like Ethan to not horde things that he really doesn’t need or use. So, one photo with the stick before saying bye to it.

Another one of our “neighbours” came to say hi. He used to live in BC, but now lives in southern Ontario and has been sort of criss-crossing the country in his van. He stopped to ask about Juju Jr. because he used to have a ’69 Westfalia.

Ethan liked it that he had a dog, so that was fun for all of us. We’d love to get a dog one day, especially for road trips, as it would be a lot of fun for Ethan to have one as a companion. But for now, we enjoy them when we can.

One thing Ethan is observing is how we talk to new people. We had a chat with the neighbour from Fort Saint John again, this time with the wife, and we think it’s good for Ethan to hear how we have conversations and engage new people.

Time for whale spotting!

We drove to Parc de la Pointe, as Trip Advisor reviews said it was nice and a possible spot to view whales. The tide was out so it was a good chance to check out the beach area, too. Unfortunately, no whale sighting.

There was a playground and also a lot of leaves for a couple fun GIFs.

So, we drove along the Routes des Navigateurs to find a lighthouse lookout point. We drove for a while but couldn’t find the lighthouse. We did see a lot of charming little houses and another VW Westfalia, though. Unfortunately, no whale sighting.

We went back the other way and got to the ferry terminal. This was a cool spot with big rocks to walk on, so we checked out the view from here. Unfortunately, no whale sighting.

I guess whales don’t like coming out on cloudy, windy days.

Afternoon – Scenic drive to Fredericton

Since the whale watching was a fail, we hit the road for Fredericton, New Brunswick. Dong Eun heard about a scenic route along the St. John River so we found it and loved the beautiful views along this road through the valley.

It was past lunchtime and we needed food, so we pulled into a Walmart (what else!) to buy some more fruit. But we went to one of the Walmart stores without fresh fruit and veggies, so it was scrambled eggs and toast with cucumber, peaches and strawberries, instead.

Sometimes, Ethan wants other food that we don’t have at that time, so he’s learning to accept what we have. Hopefully, he’s also learning to be grateful for it, too.

The scenic route goes all the way to Fredericton, which was around 270km (best guess from my shaky memory), so we needed to stop for a snack. This time, it was a way too sweet Tim Hortons donut that Ethan was definitely grateful for.

Once filled with sugar, we kept going and came across the world’s longest covered bridge. It was pretty cool, but we didn’t go through because it would have meant finding a way to come back through it again.

By now, the sun was setting and it was a beautiful sight. A little trippy at times because we were heading southwest, instead of due east, like we have been.

We arrived at the Walmart in Fredericton and picked up a few things to make dinner. While Dong Eun was cooking, Ethan made her an origami pot holder and an extra pot cover to keep the steam from going everywhere.

He also had time to make a new heart design that can change from a heart, to double hearts, and finally, to a tower.

And then it was time for some pasta! We’re trying to balance out having meat with more vegetarian dishes to find what works for us. For Ethan and I, it seems the meat has been good, but for Dong Eun, she needs something leaner, such as fish or skinless chicken. Now that we’re getting closer to the Atlantic, we’ll likely start having more fish again, like we did back home.

But for tonight, another yummy pasta dinner by Dong Eun. She’s gotten very good at making one pot pastas for us. We’re lucky and grateful that she’s been working so hard to ensure we’re eating well on this trip.

Tomorrow, it’s off to explore Fredericton.

If you’re just reading this blog for the first time, we are a family of three traveling across Canada (and likely beyond) in a 1994 VW Westfalia camper van called Juju Jr. Our son Ethan, age 9, is unschooling and so we want him to learn from being on the road and traveling. So he’s also now a roadschooler and we are documenting the trip and his learning on this blog.

The post Home Learning Journal October 20, 2017 – Whale Watching Fail & Familiar Places appeared first on How to Do Stuff With Ethan.