Coming Soon

Hello friends,

The bags are packed, the itinerary is printed, and we are ready for the big day.

There is much to fill you in on, but not tonight.

Another day you will see pictures of Matt's School and Sunday School Christmas Concerts, hear the tales of driving to the country restaurant in the blizzard and all the other wonderful adventures we have had these past few weeks.

All this and more...I know you're excited beyond all reason.

See you soon!

Lately

Well, it's been an awfully long time since my last post. Sorry about that. Since a picture is worth a thousand words - here ya'll go:

Dixie has been freezing ever since her last haircut. She's taken to snuggling into any empty bed she can find.
Matt really does have better moves than me.

Lunch with his neighbourhood pal.


Taking a shot.

Thank you, Brent and Connie, for the wonderful teeth.

Decorating the tree.

Despite the teeth, we had a great visit with some wonderful friends.

I hosted a baby shower, and made the guests "make a baby" out of play dough. It's a baby - can't you tell??

I also melted chocolate bars into diapers and made everyone smell the diapers and then guess which chocolate bar it was.

That's pretty much what we've been up to. It's been busy preparing for Christmas and other events. Will write again soon!

Things Are Bigger Here

Maybe the saying is true, and things really are bigger in Alberta, or, maybe things are just the same size they would be if they were anywhere else, but once in Alberta, we become drastically more perceptive. I'm not sure, but here are a few of my observations:

• Bugs are HUGE in the fall. Especially in Alberta. Ever noticed how when the weather begins to turn cold, every spider within 5km makes a dash for your basement?? And it puts on its winter weight immediately? Spiders don't seem to wait for those cold winter nights of eating potato chips and watching movies. They just show up ENORMOUS at the first sign of cold weather. I don't like spiders. Especially ones that could stand to loose a few.
• Matt is also getting far too big too fast. He asked Barry and I the other night, "Who did I live with when you were kids, and you were still living with Grandma and Grandpa and Grandma and Papa?" I'm amazed at how his little mind ponders these huge questions - Where was I before I was born? Who knew about me then? Who looked after me? These are the matters of the heart and questions about our very souls that people don't always even let themselves ask. These are big questions that will help determine what we believe - and what we believe shapes who we are for the rest of our lives. He's getting far too big. Far too fast.
• And, he scored a goal in hockey. Against kids a year or two older than him. Barry hasn't stopped grinning. Matt hasn't stopped re-telling it.

Well, all, I'm off for a much needed moment of rest. Been busy with a banquet, cleaning, church things, a baby shower, a deathly flu, and back to back batches of company. All huge blessings (with the exception of the flu) but now I'm hugely tuckered.

'Night.

L

Better Moves

Carving Jack

Trying Again

Getting the hang of it

Hello friends,

I'm back to fill you in on the past couple of weeks, and to post a few pics.

• Our truck is at the bodyshop in Olds getting its paint job all touched up, so I'm driving a courtesy car. It's terrifying. They told me that it might not be the best idea to take the car "far." Didsbury is 10 minutes from Olds. That is far. I had 20 minutes to get to work, and I was late!! I'm really going to appreciate our truck when it comes home.


• I was listening to a new song in our itunes, and was kind of moving to the music. Matt comes around the corner and informs me, "I have better moves than you." I just had to make him prove it. He was wearing his little superhero unders (getting ready for bed...scantily clad). He does have pretty good moves, he's awfully cute when he shakes his little superhero unders!


• We've been boo-ed. The doorbell rang the other night, and we opened the door to find a pumpkin shaped bucket on the porch, filled with Halloween treats, a picture of a ghost and a letter. The letter informed us our task was to put the ghost picture up on our door, so the other ghosts would know that we've been booed. Then we prepare two treats (like the one we found on our doorstep) and "boo" two houses that are not displaying the Boo ghost. It was soo much fun! Matthew wanted to dress "dark" so we wouldn't get caught. He put on his toque so that his brown hair wouldn't be shiny. Then he put on his winter jacket ('cause it's the heaviest) it just happens to be bright orange. These two articles of clothing were accompanied by his runners, which light up with every heel strike. He may not have been in camo, but he sure loved it! We waited till it was good and dark outside and then out we went booing. He wanted me to ring the doorbells and he would stand a little bit behind me so that he could start running right away. So, I snuck up to the first house, rang the doorbell, and when I turned around, all I saw of Matt was a streak of orange and some flashing shoes - he was off and running for home! He loved it!


• I made a tough decision this week. I opted out of an opportunity. It was hard to do, and big parts of me still feel like crying. It was everything I want down the road, it would just be soo very difficult to accommodate right now. I pray that I made the right decision, and that if I didn't, God will hold the door open, or perhaps bring about a new one.


• Barry was in Quebec for most of the week. He's been there a few times. I've never been there. He assures me that I would love it. I wonder if next time the company needs someone to look at equipment, they'd mind if I went instead? I don't know much at all about production, but I bet I'd find some really great shoes - that's equipment, right?


• We went to our first night of the "Connect Group." Barry always has to drag me out, and then I'm always glad I went.

I'll be back soon,

L

Lasterday

Matt has this word that I absolutely love! It's "Lasturday." He used to say "Last Day" when he was talking about yesterday. Now he says Lasterday, and I love it. I use it a lot.

Speaking of Lasterday, it was great. One of those days that glitters on the calendar of my memory for months ahead. I had a girls shopping day in Calgary. Nothing like a little retail therapy:) The best part, I had an unexpected friend join us, and it just "made the day!" Thank you Char!! We left early, we started with a Starbucks - yes, we know how to start the day right! We found wonderful deals (the Le Chateau outlet is a really fantastic thing), not to mention the $10.00 jacket I got off the clearance rack at RW & Co (one of my favourite places)! Aaahh. Bargains just fill my heart with joy!

And for those of you who know me, and have seen on more than just one or two isolated occasions, you'll be pleased to know, that thanks to my excellent team of shopping advisors, I now have colour in my wardrobe. I went into my change room more than once to find things in there that I certainly would never had picked off the rack - and guess what?!! Those were the things I bought - with the exception of one terrifying turtleneck that was impossible to get in or out of, and for one split second I was sure I was going to die in there! It was getting me!!! HERBERT!!! (Ya had to be there) I have pinstripes and "cranberry" and a fabulous green - a far stretch from my uniform black, white, beige and brown. It feels great!

But the best part? Not the things. We talked, we laughed, we wandered along, we sat and just enjoyed being. We listened to music...to each other, and to the advice on the Starbucks cup (you should read those, they really know their stuff). It was a wonderful mix of being with an old friend and a new one, the best of both worlds all in one day.

Lasterday was wonderful.

Thanks Ladies.

We'll have to do that one over again.

Love ya much,

L

Thanksgiving

Hockey!!

We really do live in Alberta

I still feel like crying every time he gets on the bus!

Hello all,

Thanks to everyone who called, commented, or sent a message after my last "poor me" post. I am truly blessed. Thanks especially to the Jacksons, who drove so far to visit all of their friends who live "away". Our visit was not nearly long enough, but it was wonderful just the same!

We had a really fantastic Thanksgiving weekend, we didn't go anywhere at all, so we managed to get a lot done around here, and relax while we were at it. Barry went to the season opener on Saturday, and watched the Canucks beat the Calgary Flames. He was not popular, but he was pretty happy that Vancouver won!

We ate turkey, and pumpkin pie, and it was just the three of us. It was just the three of us because that's kind of what we all wanted, just to relax and be home as a family, not because I was digging in my heels and having a snit about having to put out effort to meet people.

Matt learned his first Bible verse at school, and is pretty proud. I learned that I really need to help my little boy with his memory work. He struggled and struggled, and could barely come up with the first few words, until we started practicing on a regular basis. Now he's a little pro!

Swimming lessons have started, and hockey begins on Saturday. Did I tell you that he's in the fun league? The fun league plays once a week, and does not travel all over God's creation for tournaments every weekend. Sounds like it's up our alley! We've got our boy all outfitted and he can hardly wait!

Oh - I'm searching for some good songs, so leave a comment or send me a message and let me know what you're listening to!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone,

Laura

Because. I Just Don't Want To

We are starting to get involved here. I am digging in my heels. A lot. I don't really want to get involved. In anything.

I've been put on the schedule to help out with Sunday School at church. Not often. Just once in a while. Do I have to? Apparently.

We had another family over for dinner for the first time since moving here (with the exception of out of town company that we already know). It was fine. My heart wasn't really there. I grumbled inside the whole time I was cleaning the house in preparation for the "big night". I just didn't want to do it.

We've joined a "Connect Group". This is a new name for Bible Study, I think. We do follow a study that is based on God's Word, but there is much more emphasis on connecting with other people and building relationships. I'd rather not connect or build.

I think I just want to kind of hang out with only my family for however long we live here - even though we're planning to be here for the next 25-30. Pretty much a life sentence, if ya look at it that way.

I'll let you in on why. Don't tell Barry. He just won't get it.

I'm tired.

I've moved over and over and over. Every time it's hard. Every time I eventually make some wonderful "I don't know how I ever lived without this person" friends.

Then we move.

Again.

The friends that are truly "keep forever" friends, I do keep forever. But now it's bittersweet.

These kinds of friends are few and far between. It takes years to find them, and now they don't come for coffee on a Wednesday afternoon. Now my heart lights up when I see their number on the call display. I pour one cup of coffee, I drink my coffee and dust my house while we chat.

Then I cry after we hang up.

My heart is tired.

I don't want to put out the effort to get to know all these new people. I already have friends that I love. The problem is that they don't live in Didsbury.

I know that it would be good for me to make friends here. I know that I can still keep all my wonderful friends even if I make new ones. I just don't want to. Because.

So, when are you moving to Didsbury?

Dribbles and Drabs

• In honour of the movie "P.S. I Love You" I will use green text for this post. I think I might be addicted to that movie. Barry rented it for me when I was sick. I loved it. I think maybe too much. I didn't want to take it back. I cried, and cried, pretty much the whole way through, but I still found the whole movie pretty much charming.
• Matt has been waking up at weird hours. One night he'll wake up at 3:00 and have a hard time getting back to sleep (which means we're all up). The next night, he'll wake up at 6:00. Then he'll sleep until 8:00...he goes to bed between 7:30 and 8:00 every night!! No idea what the deal is there. It needs to end, though.
• Dixie has no idea that she is actually a dog. She's such a suck, and I let her be. I don't make her do any of the things that I made our Cola do. Dixie doesn't have to stay on the entrance mat, or sleep outside. I don't even have it in me to take her to the kennel. We're going away for Christmas and I've made arrangements for a friend who fosters dogs to look after her. Cola had to deal with the barking masses at the kennel. Dixie got new food the other day. I mixed it with her old kibbles so that the transition would be easier on her tummy. I came home at lunch today to find all the new kibbles gone from her bowl, and all the old kibbles on her place mat under the bowl (yes, she has her own pink place mat).
• Matthew now loves riding the bus. He asked me if he really had to get off the bus and go to school. He'd really rather just ride the bus all day, and then come home, and sort of skip the school part. Dear Lord, help me, it has occurred to my kindergartner that he'd like to cut class!
• That's the long and the short of the news, will post some pics soon so that you can actually see what's been going on.

Love and hugs,

Laura

Are We Sick Enough For Jell-O?

Our household is sick. All of us. At the same time.

It's been a steep downhill slide here ever since we got home from holidays at the beginning of September.

Barry led the pack with one day that he actually stayed home from work - almost unheard of for him. He thought he recovered quickly.

I tried to be a trooper on Monday and in I went to work. My co-workers took one look at me and sent me home. Bless them.

Barry now looks (and feels) like the walking dead.

Matt is all stuffed up too, poor little guy. So much that we actually tried doing sinus rinse on him this evening. For those of you who have no idea what that is - just think about the name. Mmm Hmmm.

When I was a little girl, if we were really really sick and it hurt to eat because your throat was so sore, you got to pretty much live on Jell-O. We used to ask Mom, "Are we sick enough for Jell-O?"

I think our whole family is sick enough for Jell-O.

I'll be back once we've recovered.

Stay tuned...just in case we don't recover.

Londyn

On our way home from holidays we had the wonderful privilege of stopping in Sparwood to visit a new family. Stephanie (and Dave) now have a beautiful baby girl - Londyn Julia Freheit.

I had forgotten how sweet and cuddly, and tiny new babies are. It was so nice to hold her while she slept and listen to the little baby sounds she made.

Steph is a great little mom; handling the feedings and changings and burpings, and changings very much in stride. Dave, like most dads, is quite smitten with his little girl, and is really enjoying her a lot as well.

Matt took his responsibility as an uncle very seriously, and made sure she was (at all times) covered with a blanket if she was not being held. He also gave her a bottle and sang songs to her. Very cute!!

Have a wonderful weekend all!

It's Over

Hi all,

Thank goodness!

We got a phone call from the bus driver.

They have added the stop near our house.

The wonderful neighbour will not have to be inconvenienced and Matthew will not be damaged by my attempts to home school.

God is good.

It's Not Over Yet

So, with my wonderful neighbour offering to pick up Matt, I think that all my transport woes are solved. Think again. She's willing to pick him up from the stop that is near our house, because it's convenient....I received a phone call tonight saying that they haven't got a stop there this year.

Here's the strange thing. The phone call I got from the transportation department said that he would be picked up at the stop across the street. The bus driver who phoned me to confirm that Matt should indeed be riding the bus said that the message on her answering machine stated that he had been added to her route, and that he would be picked up at our stop.

However, she is not scheduled to stop there anymore. She stops at a different point about 5 more blocks away. Suddenly not so convenient for my neighbour. And the worst of it?? I had to give the vice principal at the public school an answer today, and since it wasn't until 8:30 tonight that I found out the bus stop had moved, I told her "Thank you so very much for your kind and generous offer, but the busing issue has been resolved, and he can stay at his current school."

Oh my goodness!! I'm just about ready to pull him out of school and home school him on Saturdays. If we worked hard enough we could do it, right?

Well folks, for some reason I'm suddenly feeling very nauseous, and I think I'll take myself a sedative and go lie down.

I'm trusting that I will post wonderful news tomorrow that this has all been resolved.

Pray hard.

It's Only Tuesday??

Oh, my goodness!


What a week! And it's only Tuesday.



So, here's the low down:



Today was Matt's first day at kindergarten (will post a picture soon - having some computer issues). We have him registered at a Christian School that is out in the country a little ways from our town (only about 5 or ten minutes, so not really that far).



However, any distance that takes 5 or ten minutes to drive means that it is not within "walk to and from school" distance. Matt will be a "bus kid". Last spring when we were filling out all the forms to register Matt for school, we filled one out to register him for the bus route. The bus would apparently leave at 8:10 and return at 4:00. Perfect. I can put him on the bus in the mornings and still be at work on time. As far as after school - Matthew was going to ride the bus to Olds with a little girl from his class whose mom runs a day home (they go to our church - this is how I know the family and managed to make the connection - day homes are not easy to find around here!). I would pick him up in Olds after work twice a week - a little bit of driving, but not the end of the world.



Guess what??!! The school district will not allow Matt to ride the bus to Olds. The rule is "kids who come from Didsbury go back to Didsbury." Aaaagghh! When I was speaking to the transportation department in the spring I asked if he could ride the bus to a different stop. They told me that "yes" - as long as he's on a scheduled route getting off at a scheduled stop he can ride the school district's bus. I took that at face value. What was I thinking?



So now, here we are, with Matt registered in a school that he has actually gone to once - so he thinks that's his classroom, and he thinks that Mrs. Abel is his teacher, and that Mr. Brown who gave him jelly beans today is the "prince" of the school....and my poor little boy is going to be sent home on a bus with no one at the other end to meet him!!!! This is not okay. This is how kids end up on the milk carton.



Okay, so I calmed down and I phoned the public school down the street. I am miraculously able to speak to the vice principal on week two of classes. They have 3 kindergarten classes - the two day a week classes are full, however, she would be willing to place him in her class that she teaches (five days a week, mornings only). However, I would then need to permanently and without any flexibility or lee-way change my lunch hour to 11:30 -12:30 so that I could pick him up and take him to day care. I'm not entirely sure that would truly be feasible with my job. My employer and co-workers would be super supportive, but let's face it, reality hits - daily, and it's not always possible to leave the office at that specific time each day.



Then, enter the wonderful neighbour lady who works at the public school, and who has a son a year younger than Matt. They play together every evening until we drag them in for baths and bedtime. She has graciously offered to pick Matt up from the bus so that he can still go to the Christian school and he won't end up on the Missing Child poster.

Thank goodness!

On that note, time for me to sign off and simmer down.

Matthew

Hello all,

You probably think I'm dead and gone, it's been so long since I've blogged.

My boy turned 5 a while ago. Wow. He starts kindergarten on Tuesday. How did this happen? When I tickle Matt's tummy and ask if my baby Matthew is still in there he gleefully smiles at me and tells me, "I ate him." At least he's in there somwhere.

It's been a busy summer, full of coming and going, working and playing and seeing family.

I'll update you in greater detail later, but this post is about Matt.

Where to begin. Matthew means gift from God. And he is. I have been pregnant 4 times, and I have one beautiful, wonderful, kind, loving, generous and gentle little boy.

He was so worth it. I won't go into the details, let's just suffice to say that my first one wasn't your "ordinary" miscarriage. There were surgeries involved, diffucult diagnosis, and at one point, the doctor actually told me, "We don't know exactly what's wrong, but you need to wrap your mind around the fact at that the end of this, you won't have a baby." It was weeks after the pregnancy had ended that it actually really hit me and I can remember so clearly the ache that filled my chest and choked my throat for days. I remember the feeling of exhaustion after many, many nights of long cries. I was terrified to try again. Thanks to God, I did.

I think what has hit me the hardest in the past few months as I try to accept the fact that Matt is big enough to do jumps on his bikes (yes, it was a very short while ago that I posted about the training wheels coming off - and now he's going over jumps!), do a front flip on the trampoline (oh my gosh!!) and add in his head at the dinner table, is that he just knows, so deeply that he is able to assume it - that I love him soooo much.

We were on our way to a store in Penticton, and I sat in the back seat next to him. He says to me, "Mommy, why are you in the back?"

"Why do you think?"

"'Cause you love me so so so much."

"Matt, you must stay right beside me while we cross the parking lot. Do you know why?"

"Because you love me so much and the stealers will get me if I don't say close."

(Yes, I have taught my son about the people who steal children).

HOWEVER, the moral of the story is that he knows I love him. AND the happy ending is that I have him to love.

More updates to come, but for now, goodnight.

Loves,

Laura

Twice!!! In One Night

Before

During

After

Sunday School BBQ Face Painting

No Training Wheels!!!

Okay folks, get your minds out of the gutter. It's not like that. On July 12th we put sod down on our yard. It was delivered on the 11th - so it had to make it through the night. Sounds simple enough. Don't be fooled. This turned out to be no ordinary task.

I was just finishing up cleaning the bathrooms at around 11:00, when I heard the strangest noise coming from the back. I looked out the window and found some local punks throwing our sod strips into the street. I'm normally pretty mild mannered, but I was pretty tired, plus we had a bunch of help scheduled to arrive the next day. So, I placed a phone call to the RCMP complaint number. I realize that this wasn't exactly a crime, or an emergency of any kind. I just asked that if they happened to drive by and notice more sod in the street, that they let us know so that we could deal with it. Then, we thought that maybe they might be too busy to be driving by our house looking at the grass, so Barry slept in the living room (which is at the back of the house) to make sure that if it happened again he would hear them.

It got worse. We were sleeping happily at around 3:00am, when our neighbours decided to move their very loud, very boisterous party OUTSIDE. We could scarcely believe our crummy luck as we stared out the window at the crowd milling around in the yard across the street. Again, it got worse. I really could hardly believe my eyes when I saw someone stagger, drink in hand, into the driver's seat of a vehicle and drive away. That was the last straw for me. Normally I would have put in ear plugs and gone back to bed, trying to ignore the party. BUT, having been raised an "RCMP kid" I knew full well that even if they were only driving across town, that's too far. People die when there are drunk drivers behind the wheel. I called the complaint line AGAIN!

AND..., hats off to the Didsbury RCMP. A member called me back within 15 minutes, stated that they had already noticed and dealt with the intoxicated driver, they drove past the party a few times and that was all it took to disperse the crowd. Thankfully, everyone walked on home, and as far as I know there were no casualties that evening.

We spend the next day putting our sod down, although we were indeed very tuckered by the end of our adventure!!

I've put some pics at the top, just to keep you all up to date on what else is happening, when we're not busy fighting crime and/or evil, that is!

Blessings,

Laura

Coffee

So, pretty soon I'm turning 29. For real. This isn't "another 29". It's the first time around for me.

I think I'm finally beginning to have adult taste. I got rid of my "barnyard" dishes, and bought some classic white ones. I have no desire to paint any wall in my house red, and I worry about "the future" a whole lot more than I ever used to.

And not just my future, Steph and Dave's future, my sister's future, Ashely and Jeremy's future, and without a doubt, Matt's future is a daily concern. I'm definitely getting older, or at least, beginning to think older.

There is a bright side, though. Coffee. I've been easing into coffee drinking for a few years now. For the longest time I could take it or leave it. Usually left it. Then I discovered Starbucks. Ahhhh. I LOVE their Lattes. They're mild tasting, hot, comforting, and when the holidays roll around they come in wonderful flavours like pumpkin spice, eggnog, and ginger. What could be better?

Lately, however, I've been drinking coffee at home on weekend mornings. These are precious times at our house. Matt and Barry play, and drive Dixie nuts (what else are dogs for?). We visit, laugh, hang out in our PJ's and frequently eat pancakes. Yup, very precious moments.

This past week, I took the precious coffee moments to work with me. I stopped at the convenience store before work and got a coffee. I didn't even have to pay for it. This is a very busy time at the convenience store, and cashier looked at my one small coffee, and said, "You just take that and have a nice day." Wow. Thanks, cashier lady. Made my day.

Sitting down at my desk every morning to face another day of learning and lending is not always easy. Sitting down in my office with a wonderful coffee sweetened with that yummy french vanilla stuff is pretty darn nice. Pretty darn nice indeed.

So, I guess I'm growing up. I work full time now. At a real job. I drank coffee every day. I liked the coffee, and I looked forward to it every morning.

Coffee is a small thing, but it makes me glad. When I sit down at my desk, I smile at my coffee and remember the "coffee" hour at home, with everyone relaxing and being silly. My co-workers laugh. Maybe they should appreciate their coffee more.

Enjoy those "coffee" moments. Smile at your mug.

Start your day with something that makes you happy. I am.

Lots of warm fuzzies to you all,

Laura

Stop Rockin' the Boat

Hello all,

Well, it's been interesting. We've been putting fence posts in, and watching them fall over in the muck created by the two weeks of solid rain we endured. The yard is just now beginning to dry out!

We had a house guest for a while, and thankfully she didn't go into labour while she was here. Stephanie stopped by for about a week while Dave was trying to secure a residence for the two of them in Sparwood. Dave started a job there on Monday, so they are very thankful for the work, as he was laid off after the Pope & Talbot shutdown hit Mackenzie.

As for me, it's been a whirlwind. I've been to Calgary, Red Deer (twice) and Edmonton on courses. I've been feeling very flu-ish off and on throughout all the travelling (maybe just a bit too busy) and am still training at work. The good news is that the scale we bought a while back is now giving me a much friendlier number!!

Matt is hilarious as ever. He has informed me of several pieces of interesting information over the last few weeks:

"Mommy, did you know that there are workers inside my body?"

"Really, that's interesting."

"Yup, and they put "4" in me. They'll know when I turn 5, and then they'll put "5" in me."

Matt seems to be very much into "age" right now.

"Mom, I have a really good idea. How 'bout, I get a skateboard for Christmas...but not till I'm 27. When I'm 27 then I'll ride a skateboard."

"I will not be the best boy ever until I'm 5. Right now I'm still 4, so I will make you crazy."

He's a genius!! He's got it all figured out already!! It's definitely not safe to ride a skateboard until you're 27, and hopefully by then he'll grow out of the idea.

Anyway, must go balance the cheque book, make popcorn and dust.

Blessings on you,

Laura

Recent Photos

• Just a quick note - the contractor showed up and the yard is properly levelled!! Yay!

Soccer Practice

Such a serious player!!

Two nutcases roasting marshmallows


Don't they look studious? (They're learning at the museum)



Man! Those dinosaurs were big!

That's about all for now, hope you are all loving spring (well, we're pretty much into summer now), and I'll be back soon!

Hugs,

Laura

The Wee One is the Wii Winner

So, we've not been having the nicest spring. Don't get me wrong, we've had nice days. It's just that a nice day here and there doesn't really cut it for me right now, and I'll tell you why: The May long weekend was beautiful for three days straight. We postponed our trip to Drumheller until the weekend after because our contractor assured us that he would take that opportunity to come and level the yard. We REALLY need him to do this, because the yard needs to be leveled BEFORE we can properly position the shed (and then empty out the garage), we need the yard leveled BEFORE we dig holes for the fence posts, and BEFORE we have sod put down. Get my drift?? So, we stayed home. He didn't show. Am I mad? Steaming. We've been through the "I'll be there" and the "he didn't show" scenario THREE times!!! Where does the weather fit in? Every time it rains we have to wait another week for the mud around our house to dry out, and we end up being EVEN FURTHER BEHIND!!! At this rate, Matt won't have a yard to play in until he's 10.... Anyway, the latest is that he'll be here tonight at 6:30. I'll let you know how that pans out.

Matt held a boa at Reptile World in Drumheller. He though it was a pretty good idea until she was actually on him. Then he was ready to give her back to the staff member. Wanna know something neat? When I was in grade 8 my class took a trip to Drumheller, and I held that very same boa (named Brittany). Wow. I was a lot braver back then.



Matt is an absolute Wii Master!! It did crush his little ego a bit when Nicola beat him at boxing last night...until then he was undefeated.

We had such a wonderful day yesterday!! We met some good friends of ours in Calgary, and the husbands and the kids all went to a movie, while myself and one of my dearest friends had some great "girls" time shopping and drinking Starbucks. Sighhhh. I found the most perfect skirt, and it was on sale!!! Could it have been better? Then we came home to a clean house, a dinner that was already prepped, and we were able to just eat and visit while all the kids played happily. Heaven!

This morning (after our friends left, we called the contractor and Matt stopped crying) we took Matt to a track to practice riding his bike without training wheels. He's doing so very well!! He's determined to keep up with Nicola and Chane when we camp with them this summer, and I think he'll definitely be able to!

Blessings to all,

Laura

Quickie

Hey folks, this one will have to be a quickie - get your minds out of the gutter, not that kind of a quickie!

Things are pretty much okay. Crazy busy. I've been on training courses, driving to Red Deer and Calgary, and having no idea how to find my way around in either one of those cities does not help.

We've tried out the new trailer, and after many "close" catastrophes, we have determined that it functions just fine and we really love it!

Matt is wonderful, although he seems to be a little obsessed with numbers and age. He told me the other day, "If you are 12 you are bigger than me, and if you are 16, then you are huge." Interesting take on the teenage years.

Anyway, I promise I will be back soon to post some pics and give some details.

Comments do help to inspire a blogger, you know...

Loves,

Laura

When the Rubber Meets the Road

Hi everyone,



Wow! Have I ever learned some lessons over the past few weeks. The first, really, really, really don't take the ones you love for granted. I know you hear it every day "It can happen just like that (insert snap)" It can. Barry has been having some scans and tests done lately - we were scheduled to get results back on Tuesday (April 29) - did we ever get results. There were some tumors in his sinus cavities that the specialist didn't like the look of - so they scheduled Barry in for surgery on Thursday and removed them. It was a torturous 24 hours while we waited for the results of the tests they ran on the tumors to see if it was the dreaded C word. Thankfully - they were benign. We're not completely out of the woods yet, though. Barry did have some "abnormal" things show up in some of the tests so he has to go back in three months for a follow up. We are just praying that the follow up goes well and that everything checks out normal.

I've also learned how truly and abundantly blessed we are by everyone God has brought into our lives. SO many people offered to drop everything they had planned and come to our aide if we needed it. Some in big ways (like the most wonderful care giver ever, Matt's "Grammy" from Mackenzie, my dear friend Char and my sister, who offered to come and stay with us to take care of Matt and things around the house, and one of my new co-workers who offered to come over and babysit at 5:00 am so that we could leave early enough to be at the hospital on time the day of Barry's operation). There were others who offered encouraging words, took note of when we got home from the hospital and called to check in on us, and buckets upon buckets of heartfelt gratitude go out to all of those who prayed, fasted, and genuinely interceded on our behalf. I am sure that it is rare, and that we are so very privileged to have amazing friends and family like each and every one of you. May you all know how much you are loved and appreciated, and that your caring certainly has not gone unnoticed.

This latest adventure has also caused me to ponder such things as "How often do I lose my temper when there is really no need for it?" "In 10 years will this issue seem so pressing?" "How many things am I leaving unsaid, that I take for granted the people in my life know, and don't need to hear again?" "Am I taking the people in my life for granted? Do I give them the time, attention, and affection they deserve?" and on a very practical note "Are my ducks in a row? - Would there be a big mess to sort through if it were me?"

On a much lighter note - soccer has started and Matt is really enjoying it. I will post some pictures soon.

We went to Red Deer on Saturday and bought a scale. I've never owned one before and this was either a very good move or a very bad one. I step on it ALL THE TIME!!! I just can't seem to leave it alone! The bad news is it continually tells me I have a lot of work to do! No matter how many times a day I get on that darn thing it just won't display the number I want it to!! Must be defective.

Well, many blessings to all, and to all a Good Night.

Laura

One Day at a Time

• We survived the blizzard!!! I have no idea how much snow actually piled up out there once it was all said and done, but boy, was it ever nasty business for a good long while. Glad that's over!! It has all melted now, and we are back to having an abundance of muck outside. Wonderful.
• Matt has absolutely mastered the Wii! I'm wondering if one of our controllers has a stronger connection to the actual Wii than the other one, because Matt always insists on using this one particular controller, and he kicks our butts but good! I think I'll proceed believing this theory, because it beats having to admit that my four year old can smoke me at boxing, golf, baseball...
• Speaking of sports, we called to inquire about registering Matt for Lacrosse. Wow! Were we ever in for a shock! The lady on the other end of the phone politely told Barry that the Lacrosse league has some requirements of families wanting to be involved. The registration fee is around $100, then the equipment can run $300 -$350, depending on where you manage to find it, there are two practices a week, and games on most weekends. Some of the games require travel, and they do want the entire team there, so we would pretty much have to pack up our bags and go to wherever the games are held. They also like to see about 100 volunteer hours coming from each family. Barry asks her, politely though, "So, you know that he's four, right, not fourteen?" Yah, so, we've registered Matt for soccer.
• Things are going well for me at work, I'm learning lots in some different departments, and there might be some movement coming up, so we'll see what happens. I'm enjoying it more than I thought I would, and Matt is loving daycare so much I'm almost jealous!! Well, he really only gets overly excited about Fridays - show and tell day. The daycare director tells me that he LOVES to be the centre of attention, and apparently, he holds the crowd quite well. Oh my.
• As usual, Matt had some interesting stories for me lately. We borrowed a video from the library (a documentary sort of thing about African animals) and while we were watching it this afternoon, he turned to me and said, "I have three elephants you know. One is a girl. She is the mom, and her name is Crossy. I keep the two babies in a giant cage. The babies are named Lefty and Fastie. Fastie is the Fastest you've ever seen! Yup, I keep them in a cage at Home Depot. Do you think they have toys at Home Depot?"
• Barry headed to Mackenzie this weekend for a multitude of reasons. He needed to finish the seemingly never ending Peach Tree renovation, and view it since the vast majority of the restoration is complete (the pipe bursting incident after all his hard work was really the icing on the cake). This time I think we're really done! He also picked up the patio set and other outdoor items that were too far buried under the snow to get at when we moved the majority of our belongings in February. He is also pulling a friend's RV here (well, to Calgary) for him, so it seemed like there were enough reasons to just bite the bullet and go.
• I, however, am exhausted now. With Barry gone it has been a full plate for me this weekend. I have cleaned, done laundry, ironed, done the grocery shopping, played Wii with Matt (and been soundly beaten) been to the park, played chaotic (whatever that is, Matt pretty much tells what to do, how to do it, and when to say what), ...and it feels like the list goes on and on.

So, folks, it is possible to feel completely drained and completely happy all at the same time.

Hugs,

Laura

Spring in Alberta

Wow! I thought the weather was crazy in Mackenzie!! It was +15 yesterday, wonderful and sunny - and the forecast for tonight is an overnight low of -18!!! There are heavy snow fall warnings out for Canmore and Banff, thank goodness we only get the tail end of what they're seeing. It' s snowing, blowing, and generally terrible out there right now.

Last weekend was super busy - that's why no blog post. We went into Calgary on Friday evening for a surprise 30th birthday party for a childhood friend of mine, and was she ever surprised! The party caught her totally off guard, and so did the fact that we were there. I haven't seen her for 6 years, I've never met her kids, she's never seen Matt - so it was a great night! It was also wonderful to see her parents again, as I don't think I've seen them for over a decade!! Saturday and Sunday were booked full, too and by Monday I was sure ready for a weekend!!! No such luck though.

Barry and Matt have started to build us a shed. Matt just loves being outside helping his dad around the place. I, however, try to avoid our yard at all costs. We don't have grass yet, and I just can't stand the dust when things are dry, or the muck when things are wet. One of the customers at the bank was asking me if we're going to seed the lawn...I told her that I have a 4 year old and a puppy - she says to me, "Oh, dear. You should absolutely go with sod. If anyone needs instant grass, it's you." I think she's right. With a street behind us, I also feel like a bit of a fish in a fishbowl. A fence is definitely on the wish list for this summer. I suppose we'll see what time and budget allow. All is well here, we're having a quiet weekend (thank goodness). We've rented a few movies and a game for the Wii, so we'll settle in, avoid the blizzard, try to stay warm and pray for warmer weather. I told my co-workers that I really think this April blizzard stuff is truly uncalled for. I was informed that spring in Alberta is always a dicey thing. Hmmm. Not sure I quite like spring in Alberta.

That's about all for now. Just a quick hello! Hope all is well with all of you, I'm off to try and stay warm!

Blessings,

Laura

What's Happenin'

Cutest puppeteer ever!

Barry opening his Wii

Kitchen

Great Room

Coziest Corner

Decorating eggs

The Hunt

I'm back, and I remembered to download some pictures from the camera onto the computer to give you all an update on what's been happening around here.

We're at the tail end of another weekend here in Didsbury, and it's been a busy one. I gave Barry his birthday present early, as Ashley arrived on Thursday evening, and I thought we might want to play with it this weekend. He now has a Wii!!! He was so surprised!!! I am one of the most practical people I know, and he thought that never in a million years would I give him something so completely unpractical and just plain unnecessary! The funny part? I really like it! It's just so much fun!

On Saturday we went to Calgary to enjoy some sale hunting time while Barry and Matt took in Horton Hears a Hoo. Ashley and I stopped at a hairdressing distributor and picked out two colours that I thought I'd really like to have highlighted into my hair. One is a dark caramel blonde and the other is a light ash blonde. When we got home, she foiled both colours into my hair, which we thought would give a very flattering effect, seeing as one shade is darker than my natural colour and the other is lighter. It processed, she checked it, we rinsed it out---and it looks the very same!!! You can't even tell that we did anything! Ashely smiled and told me, "Well, at least you know you like your natural colour!" Her flight left at 8:00 this morning, so her and Barry were out the door by 6:00 in order to have her there by 7:00. I went for a jog on the treadmill, did some laundry, and was playing Golf on the Wii with Matt when Barry got home at 8:00 - no wonder I'm ready for bed now. Matt is one heck of a good little Wii Golfer!! He told Barry this afternoon -" I put your ball in the hole for you, because I'm sorry I beat you." So kind of him to help out the less talented.

Oh, I've posted a few pics of the new house - we are starting to feel more at home here now, we can walk from our room to Matt's in the dark without crashing if we have to, and I can find the light switches without feeling all over the entire wall. I'm guessing that's progress in the right direction?! Oh, and by the way - the RV is home now - and it makes great guest quarters if any of you are coming our way!!

Blessings,

Laura

Whoa Momma!

So, Easter weekend was quiet around here, with just the three of us. I'll post some pictures soon, we relaxed a lot, got a bit more organized around here and enjoyed the time together.

We are looking forward to having Ashley visit us for the weekend, and a day in Calgary shopping!! I'm finding that I have a hard time creating "business" wear out of my current clothing selection, so I really must boost up the wardrobe a bit.

Matt cracked me up so much the other day on our way home. I had to brake fairly hard to let someone cross the street (not at a crosswalk) and Matt says to me, "Whoa Momma!!! Nice headers!" He has recently watched the Transformers movie with Barry, and they say that line while looking at a vehicle, so Matt figured it would be an appropriate thing to repeat at that particular moment!!

Will write more soon!

L

So Little Time...

Hi all,

Well, here we are on the Saturday evening of Easter weekend. Matt is in bed (probably not sleeping because he's so excited about the Bunny coming tonight) and I am FULL of turkey!!

It has really been hitting me lately that there is not very much time. Days are not long enough, weeks are too short, months go flying past at breakneck speed, and there are for sure not enough holidays to go around!! Then I remember that God created our calendar, and He is perfect in all that He does. What is it that we do with all our time that robs it from us? How much of our time do we spend on the unnecessary and idle, while the truly meaningful begs for our attention, yet we find ourselves too busy? Since I have started working full time I'm shocked at how I really don't care if I update my status on Facebook, or dust the tops of the door frames each and every week (every other week will do, seeing as no one is home all day to notice anyways)...and I find myself really wanting to go grocery shopping with Barry and Matt, instead of one of us rushing to the store while the other stays home and cleans like mad fiend. I find myself staring at my little boy while he plays play dough at the table on Saturday mornings, and I get out of bed at 5;45am on weekdays so that I'm done exercising and am ready for work before he wakes up just so that I can catch that five minute snuggle he's willing to give when he first climbs out of bed. I'm not so concerned about moving up into a higher position at work; what I'm doing is fine, and will continue to be fine, as long as I can be out the door in time to pick him up at daycare and spend a few hours with him and Barry in the evening.

Time is not a renewable resource. It is a truly precious commodity. I'm trying to chill out a bit about my usual militant cleaning and organizing. Today, we went to the park after dinner and I did dishes when we got home...a huge step for me...hopefully in the right direction.

Well, I must run, as usual, the clock is catching up to me, time to go see what the Bunny is bringing for Matt!

Let's not forget why we have some extra time this weekend. It is because God loved us enough, it is because Christ cared enough to sacrifice himself. He paid the price, with His time, with His blood, with His life.

Hope this wasn't too serious and "downer" for and Easter weekend blog. Things really are good, and we are enjoying the little moments in each day. I hope you all do the same.

Love and prayers,

Laura

Lions and Tigers and Bears...

My goodness am I ever a terrible blogger! I had no idea how totally crazy life would be when I started working full time. The last blog post was on the day before I started work...it's been three weeks and I'm just getting back now!! I'm hoping to find a good pace around here and be able to keep up with at least a weekly blog update.

So, the past three weeks? We've been busy. We went to the Calgary Zoo - it was so wonderful. We spent most of our time in the African area (let's face it - they have the very best animals). Matt walked the whole time (I gave away all the strollers when we moved, so he really had no choice) and did so well. He didn't complain about getting tired, or cold when we were outside, or hot when we were inside. He was wonderful the whole day...then slept the whole drive home and was completely wired at bed time. Figures.

We've also been to Edson to visit our friends there. Another wonderful weekend. We always enjoy our time with them so very much!! We relaxed, ate some awesome food (thanks Jansens!) had the privilege of a very professional photo shoot (thanks for that too...I have the frame up in my entrance way and it's gorgeous). Matt loves to visit them so much it's almost a double edged sword. He gets soo excited about three days before hand he can hardly sleep. Then he cries for about three days after we leave. As usual, he had us in stitches a few times. He picked out a little something from home to give to each of the Jansen girls. He then surveyed his choices, puffed out his chest and told me, "Jeepers, lucky girls!" What a kid.

We also had the opportunity to visit some friends from Mackenzie who were in Calgary visiting for the weekend. We met up with them on the Saturday afternoon, enjoyed some wander through the mall time while the men looked after the kids and then stumbled upon the neatest little place for dinner. We tried several "known" restaurants (Olive Garden, Earls, The Keg) and the shortest wait time for a table was more than an hour. So, in a last ditch effort we drove downtown thinking that there may be a surplus of restaurants down there and this would help us find something without such an outrageous wait. Did we ever luck out! We did have to walk past a few very questionable looking characters (if you're ever downtown Calgary - hold on to your kids tightly) and ended up finding the most enjoyable dinner experience ever! It's a two story book store (much like a large Chapters) called Prairie Ink...and upstairs it has a coffee bar and a full restaurant. While we were eating, they had a jazz duet playing at just the right volume (we could still converse comfortably). Even Matt was so charmed that he sat quietly the entire time.

This past week has been a serious roller coaster. Barry headed back to BC on Sunday to finish up some business with Canfor and also to bring home our RV that has been in storage all winter. He arrived in Vanderhoof on Sunday evening and realized that all four keys for the trailer were HERE - IN ALBERTA!!! As you can imagine...he was not a happy camper. Meanwhile...back at the ranch...I have discovered that our sump pump has kicked in (apparently a very normal thing for an Alberta spring). It drains out to the north side of the house. Our house is brand new, and is not landscaped yet...this means that the ground outside is not built up properly, and also not sloped to the proper grade...so all the water was flowing back towards the house and creating a bit of a pond that settled itself right up against our foundation. Our foundation is cement...which is porous...so if left long enough the water will eventually make its way into the basement.

I spent the next two days not only working and looking after Matt, but calling Purolator, Westjet, Greyhound, Expresspost and anyone else I could think of who might be getting to Prince George quickly to take the keys to Barry. In between phone calls, I tried to shovel a little trough for the water to drain away in, but the ground was either too mucky and just slid back into place, or too frozen to move. Then I would go back to phone calls...I tried locksmiths and other people who have RV's to see if we could find a matching key. In the end, we realized that our friends from Mackenzie were flying home on Tuesday morning and could take the keys to Barry - the only problem was that I would have to get the keys to them in Calgary. I've never driven there...and I'm quite sure that I'd get terribly lost. I thought that perhaps our real estate agent (one of the only people we know here in Didsbury) would be able to recommend someone trustworthy who could make the run for me; I could give them some gas money and everyone would win. We trust our real estate agent a lot, he's a wonderful guys and you're absolutely not going to believe what he told me!!! I asked if he knew of anyone who could do this, and he said, "Sure!! I'll run the keys down there for you. I'll stop at your place to pick them up in about ten minutes. If you could jot down the address that'd be great." WOW!!! Talk about above and beyond the call of duty. So, the keys got to Barry, the RV got home, and lake did mostly dry up (I think some of the water drained away in my trough:).

After that week, we needed a quiet weekend. Today, we tidied up the house, hung a few pictures and got groceries. Then we just chilled and played games with our little Matt.

Well folks, I must sign off. Time to wind down.

Blessings to you all,

Laura

A Year In The Life

Hello All,

For those of you who follow our blog, and for those of you who stop in on occasion, most know that 2007 was quite a year for us.

It began with mild thoughts of transition, and a few local changes. It progressed through feelings of panic, of provision, of peace, and then more panic. We played and had fun winter days, enjoying the beauty of God's creation; we cried as we said farewell to some great friends, then rejoiced as we saw them blessed...Ever faithful, God gave us just the right mix of both the old and the new.

We camped, we fished, we laughed, we worked, we cried, we taught, we fell, we loved, and we learned. I felt over and over that 2007 was so hard, so stressful, such a struggle and an overwhelming battle for all things good. What I learned as I looked back over the pictures, was that in each month, the memories I kept, the images I have stamped on my soul, reflect abundance. I am surrounded by wondrous and vast nature, which others long to glimpse on a fleeting holiday, I am able, I am blessed, I am loved by so many, some very near, and some very far, and although my heart aches with the freshness of change, I have not lost, it is now only a longer journey to enjoy.

It is because of these reflections that I decided to put together a slide show of "2007 With The Candlines". I was so focused on the struggles of this year that I had lost sight of the blessings, until I looked, and when I really looked, that was all I saw. Each loss can be counted for gain, and each struggle could be considered a privilege. I chose the song, "You and Me" by Lifehouse because the words really spoke to me. The song begins by talking about the rapid movement of time, how it can truly take on a life of its own. This rang very true to me when I looked back over 2007; time really was alive, and it certainly didn't stop to wait for me. So, I encourage each one of you, enjoy the moment, whatever it is, because it will not come again. And I promise, if you do this, when you look back at your own "year at a glance," whatever your struggles have been, the gifts, the blessings, the love and the glory of God will come shining through.

P.S.

I'm expecting EVERY person who views this to leave me a comment, or I may never go through this much trouble again!!!