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.