Five on Friday

1.  Today the neighbor walked his cows 2 1/2 miles down the road to their summer pasture at our farm.  There were no cowbells and I missed taking a picture of the drive - but I still feel like I'm in Switzerland when I say "summer pasture!"  Remember Heidi and her grandfather taking the goats up the mountain?

2.  Lots of grain is being planted these days.  And the dust blows and the mosquitoes bite!

3.  In the past 24 hours, suddenly all the fruit trees have started blooming.  They look gorgeous and the smell is divine.

4.  I noticed today just how many colors of green there are when the leaves first appear.

(poplar tree growing in the ditch)

5.  I spent a good part of the day planting, watering and rototilling.  It was wonderful to have a day outside to enjoy spring and marvel at how fast everything is growing.  Thank you, Lord - for the growing and for the day.

Lists of 2011 - #20

Listography #20 - Things That Are Over-rated

In my humble opinion -

1.  Video games

2.  Celebrity lives

3.  Reality TV shows

4.  Tim Horton's Coffee

5.  Walmart

6.  Scary Halloween decorations

7.  Facebook

8.  Pickled herring

9.  Diet soft drinks

10.  Immaculate houses

Wordless Wednesday

Creating

A few years back, circle journals were a hot project in the scrapbooking world.  I joined two groups and faithfully completed layouts in each journal as it came to me, using the journal topic that each participant had chosen.  The first group was made up of 13 people - and that journal has not yet arrived home!  I wish I could get it back - hopefully one day.   But this weekend I finished my entry - and the journal! - for the last person in the second group.

Jackie chose the topic "Happiness" and this is what I created for her book.  I quite like how it turned out with all the little tags and I know Jackie is going to have fun seeing what everyone shared with her.   Another checkmark on my to-do list!

Gratitude Gifts

This middle part of May (goodness, how can that be already?!)  brings our grandson's birthday and I definitely miss being part of his celebrations.  He lives right across on the other side of the country, which is much too far away for my liking, but we were able to Skype with him on his special day.  It's just amazing to use all the technology that can keep us connected!  Last night I found some pictures of the day he was born and then some of his party with us last year - and I am amazed that this little bundle of boy has grown into a running, babbling, energetic, full of smiles little man!  Happy, happy Birthday, Samuel - we love you!

In both our Bible study and the pastor's sermon this week, I was reminded that the plan God has for us can often seem strange - think of the story of Joseph (Genesis 39 - 50).  And even though we believe in HIm, we are not guaranteed that we will be treated 'fairly' or that we will live a charmed life.  But I do know that He is my Gate  (John 10) and His is the path I travel because He is with me.   And I need Him there and He stays with me - and His grace falls on me daily.



#2489 - #2514

- Samuel's second birthday

- a mommy and a daddy who love their son with every ounce of their being

- Canada Post who delivers birthday presents

- barbecued burgers and a multitude of salads

- bird songs as I walk along the road

- Blake's smile and his arms reaching out to me (really it just melts my heart!)

- another visit to the greenhouse

- growing things

- mosquito repellent (it's essential right now)

- bumblebees and the promise of pollination

- Meadow's excitement at every plant in the greenhouse

- pansies - and the reminder of my gramma

- friends and late night conversation

- doctors and medicine for a friend

- Saturday morning with no alarm clock ringing

- fields drying

- plants for my pots

- telephone, email and Skype

- envelopes of pictures found

- memories, memories, memories

- chats with my sister

- the smell of cultivated fields

- learning more from His word

- welcoming a new couple at church

- living in Him, rejoicing and trusting

Lists of 2011 - #19

Listography #19 - Favorite Childhood Memories

1.  Getting ice cream revels with Grampa Hetman  at the creamery in Onoway.

2.  Washing cucumbers in the big washtub with my Mom when the local county councillor bustled onto the yard.  He  talked about upgrading the nearby gravel road so the bus could get to our farm because I was starting school soon.

3.  Sitting on my dad's knee at the kitchen table  and reading the whole grade one reader ("See Dick and Jane") on the first day of Christmas vacation.

4.  Going to watch the parade in Wetaskiwin - and seeing my Dad and his stuccoing partner come down the street with their truck, throwing out candy - when he'd told Mom that he had to go to work that day.  She'd really wanted him to come with us to the parade and he kept his part in the parade a complete secret from us.

5.  Helping milk cows in the barn while my parents discussed buying his parent's farm - and telling them it would be a good idea because Gramma had running water and my brothers were always so dirty at the end of the day.  I was 8 years old, I think!

6.  Coming home from school one winter day while Mom and Dad were in Edmonton (they went like once a year - it was 40 miles away!) and going to check on a cow who had just calved.  She needed a vet and I ran over to Uncle Dick's (our neighbor) so he could come and help.

7.  Dressing up with Aunt Addie's hats and purses (she was Uncle Dick's wife and we were like their grandchildren who lived far away in Grande Prairie and Fort St. John).

8.  Gramma and Grampa Hetman arriving with a big Dole banana box full of fresh donuts.

9.  The geese at their farm, especially how quiet and sleepy they would be in the afternoon, after Gramma fed them chopped grain with poppyseeds, soaked in milk!

10.  Laying on the floor upstairs and looking through the grate, down in to the living room where the adults were visiting when we had company.

11.  Chasing the boys at school on the merry-go-round.

12.  Crying when I was supposed to go with Dad to take Gramma Hetman home when my youngest sister was born.   He was taking all 4 of us kids so that Mom and the new baby could have a quiet afternoon - but I got to stay home too!

Apparently this lead prompted a whole host of memories to come rushing to the surface!!

Wordless Wednesday

Creating

It was National Scrapbooking Day on Saturday and Heather and I spent the day at a crop event in Calgary.  It's been a long time since I've sat down and created from noon til midnight - and that's just what we did!

Several scrapbookers that I admire, including Stacy Julian and Leigh Penner, have lately done "Right Now" layouts that feature their children.  So I took that inspiration and created layouts featuring our grandchildren.  I am half done this little project and am so happy with how it's turning out.  Someday I'd love to mount these and display them in our living room.

Becky Novacek said today that she'd like to wallpaper her house with pictures of her grandchildren - and I'd be just fine with that idea!!

Helayna

Samuel

Maëlle

The journaling describes some of the unique characteristics of each of them at this stage in their lives.  I'm looking forward to having all 6 of them completed soon.  Thanks for looking!

Gratitude Gifts

Spring is definitely being enjoyed with all its warmth and new growth here.  This morning I noticed that the trees have a definite green tinge to them and the lawn is looking very green.   I was thinking about how our lives reflect this change in the seasons too.  The last two Sundays I've gone to church with Heather and Jonathan, where the pastors are preaching a series on ICHTHUS (the Greek word for fish). Last Sunday it was about our Saviour and this week's topic was Sanctified.  It means set apart for God's purposes, after accepting Him as our Saviour.  Some of the doubts and worries that have troubled me lately fell away yesterday and I feel like new attitudes are growing in me.  How very blessed I am to experience His grace in this way and so I count His gifts to me!



#2456 - #2489

- sun shining brightly
- a rainbow as I drove out of the rain
- warm temperatures
- green leaves starting to peek through
- a day of creating

- an evening with my Mom, just us 2
- walking Helayna to Sunday School
- talking to our grandchildren on the phone
- scrapbook layouts that capture them right now
- lawn growing again

- supportive colleagues
- energy as I work for several days in a row
- a visit to the greenhouse (thanks, N!)
- beautiful growing things
- pussy willows turning to leaves

- chai latte'
- snacks packed along
- strong hands to open tight lids (thanks, J!)
- help transplanting 65 tomato seedlings (thanks, H!)
- mayday tree budding
- hearing frogs croak

- fields being seeded
- Mother's Day phone calls
- first watermelon of the season
- setting plants out for a bit of fresh air and sunshine
- watching my daughters become mothers
- my Mom and my mother-in-law
- water and plants

- the reminder of baptism and new birth for me
- to be loved unconditionally
- reading His word
- being taught what that word means for me daily
- God's promises for me

Five on Friday

1.  It's National Scrapbook Day tomorrow and Heather and I are going to an all day crop sponsored by Scrapshotz in Calgary.  It's the first time I'll spend a whole day scrapbooking since last May!  I bought this new paper trimmer to use tomorrow.  It seems kind of bulky but it's going to have to work.

2.  My mom and I went to see a local community drama production of "Faith County" last night - and we laughed alot!  One of my teaching friends played one of the main characters and she was priceless.  The story revolves around the local county fair, competition between two women in a craft class and the search, by 2 of the women, for husbands.  Drama queens at their best!  It was good to spend time with my mom as we celebrate Mother's Day this weekend.

3.  I'm 2 days into a three week long stint of substitute teaching in a grade 5 and 6 class and it's going to be lots of fun.  But man, oh, man it's crazy busy and there's so much to do every day!

4.  Education Week in Alberta ended today and the school I'm at had a giant book exchange.  Kids brought in their used books and then could exchange them for the same number of new-to-them books.  There were so many books and they had so much fun!!  What a great way to share books.

5.  Some of our family is quadding tomorrow - and I'm really sad to miss it.  We had to postpone from an earlier date because of all the snow and the wet fields.  I hope those who do go take lots of pictures!

Lists of 2011 - #18

Listography #18 - 10 Things I'd Tell Myself Before I Became a Mom

1.  Your life will never be the same again!

2.  To be a mom is to live with your heart outside your body forever.
(I read this somewhere - I don't know who's the author.)

3.  God never gives you more than you can handle.

4.  This too shall pass.  (my sister's famous quote)

5.  Travel and experience lots of life with your girlfriends.

6.  Find a good babysitter that your kids love.

7.  Trust yourself!

8.  Don't listen to everyone else's worst case scenarios.

9.  You'll never be able to afford kids - but  you'll be a millionaire once you're a parent.

10.  Grow up with your kids.

and just because -

11,  God will take care of you - and them.

Wordless Wednesday

Gratitude Gifts

Another month ended and we are living in the days of Easter now.  These are the days of remembering that He took all our sins so that we might live forever.  These are the days that remind me that there is really no other way to heaven, except by believing and then thanking Him for taking it all from me.  All the good I try to do doesn't matter one single bit if I don't accept that He is my Saviour.  It's only through Him that I live and breath and have my being - and it's through Him that I have grace every day.




#2411 - #2456


- snowbanks reduced to nothing
- waking to sunshine
- hiking around the yard with grandchildren
- finding the first stalks of rhubarb pushing through the ground
- tiny purple crocuses blooming beside the snow
- planning for weiner roasts
- little hands clasped across carseats
- Sunday's message about our Saviour
- dads that cook Sunday lunches
- playing Cinderella and Three Billy Goats Gruff

- piles of folded laundry

- plants growing in containers

- a windowsill full of note cards
- blue sky and puffy clouds

- new shoes
- soup for lunch
- fresh bread
- a new barbecue (thanks D & K, N & J!)
- babysitting our beautiful grandchildren
- little boys playing

- summer plans
- greenhouse opening
- peanut butter chocolate cups
- Mother's Day
- colors
- the vacuum cleaner
- first bike rides

- last bags of summer fruit from the freezer
- the right and responsibility of voting
- bills paid
- turning the calendar to find new pictures
- finding birthday gifts

- learning more about Bible heroes
- healing for a broken body part
- tax returns filed
- buds on branches

- book orders
- dishes washed
- weddings
- sound of tractor starting after a complete overhaul
- my husband's pride in completing the job well
- delphinium growing

- encouragement
- thoughts of my grandma
- reading this:  
Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die." John 11: 25 - 26

Spring Flowers

These spring flowers graced our home during Easter week.  Tulips, irises, daffodils - I love them all as harbingers of the bright and beautiful things that spring will bring.   And they are a reminder too of the bright and beautiful things that God will work in our lives when we accept that Jesus, our Saviour, died for our sins so that we might have new life!

"Flowers preach to us if we will hear."

Christina G. Rossetti

Five on Friday

1.  I never really planned to do it - but when I woke up about 2:30 this morning, I decided to watch the Royal Wedding on TV.  And I'm so glad that I did!  It was spectacular but not overdone, romantic and just like every woman dreams a wedding will be, I think.  I loved Kate's reaction when she came through the doors onto the balcony - she was surprised to see so many people waiting for them.  I'm sure Lady Diana would have been so proud of her son and his new wife.

It will definitely be fun to watch William and Kate when they visit Canada this summer.

2.  I dug last year's parsnips out of the garden this week and they were delicious - sweet and crisp!  This was a bit of an experiment since I had read that leaving parsnips in the ground was a good way to preserve them over the winter.  I'll definitely be doing it again and it was a total bonus to have something fresh from the garden in April!

3.   Have you heard of or used this product?

It's a one time, made in Canada, natural made application for wood that is safe for planters.  We're going to try it.

4.  It was a good day for baking Ben Bread  today - the smell is divine :)

5.  This is the scene in our living room where 79 tomatoes have been transplanted and even more are waiting for bigger pots.

Lists of 2011 - #17

Listography #17 - Jobs I Would Be Good At

1.  Book store owner

2.  Event coordinator

3.  Travel agent

4.  Cooking school instructor

5.  Chocolate taster :)

6.  Bed and breakfast owner (but I'd have to hire out the cleaning!)

7.  Fabric salesperson

8.  Promoter of children's clothes and toys

9.  Baker

10.  Editor / proofreader

11.  Scrapbooker and stamper

12.  Professional shopper

13.  Tour guide

14.  Kids camp director

15.   Cook book writer

Wordless Wednesday

Movie Review

Some time ago our book club read "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen.  It's just been released as a movie starring Reese Witherspoon so tonight our group headed out to see it at cheap Tuesday movie night.  It was a great evening!!

When Jacob, a veterinary school student, is orphaned during the Depression, he jumps on a passing train and ends up with the circus.  He is given odd jobs, eventually ending up in charge of Rosie, a newly acquired elephant.  Right from the beginning, he is attracted to Marlena, the beautiful horse trainer and wife of the circus owner.  As time goes on, cruelty to animals and cruelty to people by the owner take their toll on everyone.  The close knit family of performers and workers look out for Jacob along the way.  

This movie is an excellent depiction of the book and was a wonderful watch.  There were some 'jump-out-of-your-seat" moments and Jacob's rapport with Rosie, especially when he discovers she understands Polish(what a surprise this was!), is amazing.  The depiction of a traveling circus from the 1930's, scenes of the train meandering along to the next town, and Reese Witherspoon as Marlena all add to the appeal of the movie.  Definitely a must-see, especially if you've read the book!

Gratitude Gifts - Easter Edition

In the suffering of Good Friday, the waiting of Saturday and the joy of Sunday, I follow my Saviour.   I thank Him, in awe, that He would die for my sins and I rejoice with Him that He lives forever.  Glorious news!



#2391 - #2411

- a house full of family and friends

- Easter hymns

- bright tulips, wide open

- chocolate eggs, melting in the sun

- conversations with friends

- bright sunshine

- 'no jacket' weather

- Christians witnessing together in our community

- help in the kitchen

- baked ham

- strawberry shortcake

- colored eggs

- seeing pussy willows on branches

- moments recorded in photographs

- our daughter-in-law and her wonderful parents

- egg hunts

- catching up by telephone

- healthy transplants

- imagining the joy that they felt when they saw He was alive

- that I live in the wonder of His grace every day

Simply Ten Good Things

Inspired by Amanda at SouleMama this morning, to just pause and reflect on how many good things surround me.  I'm looking at it as kind of a morning prelude to my gratitude gifts post.

1.  a house filled up with people we love

2.  ham bones simmering

3.  colored eggs nestled in Easter grass

4.  ball caps on little boy heads

5.  watching our children be aunts and uncles

6.  lovely little gifts from friends (thanks, S and L!)

7.  leftovers

8.  little girl twirly skirts (some even with matching rubber boots!)

9.  how she's really only one week old and already seems to have been in our family forever (I guess it's actually nine months and one week!)

10.  re-reading the Easter story this morning, quietly and without my mind racing