But officer....

This weekend J was able to spend some hands-on time with her Bellingham Police Explorer program. She's been involved in this program for the past year but has so far only been to meetings where they learn different aspects of the police program (search & seizure, citizen/officer rights, drugs, taser use). She absolutely loves it. Yesterday we dropped her off at the police station and after being briefed on their task she was paired up with an officer. Their task was to patrol an area of the Ski to Sea Parade. Although this was definitely the least exciting task they could be assigned she thought the experience was fun. Here she is in full uniform.

Jr. Ski to Sea

Last weekend Alec was on a team for our local Jr. Ski to Sea event. His leg was to run 1.5 miles, with others on his team were biking, three-legged racing, moving a soccer ball, and doing an obstacle course. The middle picture shows him thinking about what he's got to do - very serious business. There were around 75 teams and their team came in at 12th place - not bad!

Surprise!

This week L was scheduled to play in the Abbotsford Music Festival. She's been so busy with school work that's she didn't feel she was prepared and badly wanted to just not show up. Her teacher (as always) encouraged her to practice a certain way throughout the weekend and just try. So, on Monday she went - all nerves - complaining all the way. I was not able to sit in and listen since I had committed to driving H's class to a Government Convention in Bellingham. So, Grandma and Grandpa came from Chilliwack (thanks!!) and supported her. I saw her later at school and she showed me the adjudication paperwork & she had been awarded First Place. Even her teacher was surprised!! So she goes on to play in the "playoff's" this Friday morning. I'm looking forward to being there with her this time.

Here's just a sneak preview of the beautiful photos Lisa took last weekend. She's definitely talented with the camera!!

What's up?

So I'm finally sitting down after a busy Saturday morning. We had a friend over for breakfast with her kids. After a fine breakfast she went out with L to take her senior photos and I stayed with the kids. You'll probably see some examples of what she took posted here in the future. I managed to make a big pot of chicken soup and banana muffins for tomorrow. You've got to love the Day of Rest - so necessary to stop and reflect on God's blessings during the previous week.

So what's kept us all so busy? H has been working to prepare for a speech competition. Each year our school decides on three best speeches/speakers and they go on to compete in the Quad School Competition in the valley. H was chose as one of the three from CCS. She gave a winner of a speech on the lost Roanoke colony but the competition was very stiff this year and she didn't place. This was her second (and final) year in this competition with last year bringing home the fourth place trophy. Today she also completed (graduated) from her babysitting class. It's held over three Saturdays at the Fire Station and is largely funded by the Lions Club. It's an excellent class - first aid, cpr, babysitting as a business, fire safety, etc. Her only serious babysitting job is for a neighbor who is planning to move to Australia.

L has been practicing with renewed energy for her upcoming piano festival and her 8th grade RCM piano exam. So much so that her wrists began to hurt badly and she couldn't play her scheduled volleyball game. She wasn't happy with the results and as wise parents we tried to explain that going from 0 to 100 mph in the matter of a few days just isn't good for any part of the body. She's taking it a bit easier but is feeling a bit of pressure as the dates are nearing quickly.

J has been practicing a lot on her violin as she is accompanying a musical performance of Fiddler on the Roof. She's having a lot of fun with it. I'm so happy sometimes when I push my kids into doing something they don't want to do... :) She will be accompanying 6 different performances and I'm sure she'll be tired of it at the end.

A tries not to be bored - but it is sometimes tough when your sisters are all busy with things and you don't have a brother to play with. He points that out quite often and we do try to keep him happy. He loves lego - especially castle lego. You should see his medieval setup - keeps him busy for hours. He also loves his ripstick. He's got tons of energy and is often found ripsticking on the driveway and sidewalk. Of course, he also loves his dog Carman - not sure what he'd do without him. His latest interest is chess and he is happy if anyone would come over to play him a game.

Another week...

Well, it's Monday morning and I've got a list of things that I'd just love to get done. A few loads of laundry are partly finished and I think it's time to enjoy some green tea (yup, I like green tea) and do some important work on the computer :).

The last few weeks have been busy. We had an adorable little 3 year old living with us for 1 1/2 weeks while her parents were in Australia. Her dad is Hannah's teacher and so Hannah had a substitute teacher for the time they were away. It all went really well but it does change life somewhat and your expectations are somewhat lowered as far as what you think you will accomplish. The first thing she said once she was awake was "go bye bye?". She just loved to go out and so my busy lifestyle suited her just fine.

At the end of last week was also our annual Plant Sale - a two day event where we sell an assortment of perennials and annuals and crafty gardening items. It is one of our biggest fundraisers and so it also takes up a bit of time planning, potting, advertising and working at the sale. I don't have the figures yet but we feel it was successful. I could not help both days because I had our annual "Sisters" Retreat. We get together with 10 - 12 friends for a two day overnight retreat. We enjoyed a hike, bible study, craft (succulent wreath), and just hanging out together and enjoying each other's company. Lots of laughter! It's a real blessing to have good friends that share your faith in God and are on the same path together as moms, wives and women in the church.

Spring Break

This week has been Spring Break for our kids. It began with a couple days of gorgeous weather - between 60 and 70 degrees. We just enjoyed being outside, reading, gardening and just sitting in the sun with shorts on. Lorelle was away for a few days to Idaho visiting a friend that's in college there.

It became a bit cooler mid week but still quite nice. We visited Boulevard Park which is a beautiful park by the ocean and the kids enjoyed rollerblading, ripsticking, etc. while we just walked the trail. I also spent some time working as I have begun to work part-time with an agency that provides transportation and supervision for foster children and parents who have scheduled court ordered visits. It's going well - a lot of documentation as the reports I need to make are used in court cases at times to determine whether the child can return home, to which parent, or not at all. At this point it's very part-time and we'll see where it leads.

The last two days of Spring Break our youngest two are busy at the Youth Fair - one enrolled in Chess and the other in Photography. It's a nice way to fill up the week if we're staying home and not making any trips. I am also busy transplanting perennials as I am on our Plant Sale Committee. This is a big fundraiser for our school and it's coming up at the end of April. I went out and bought some cool spikey plants for my two large planters I bought last year. Now I have to figure what else to add to it. I hope to use these also as decorations for Lorelle's grad ceremony as their school colors are burgundy and black. I'll show you the pots again when they're full & (hopefully) beautiful.

Mass Band

This past week just flew by. I've been busy getting ready for our mass band guests, making sure there's food in the house & beds and rooms are ready. The group from Winnipeg arrived last Thursday and all of them are staying on this side of the border. We have two young girls staying with us - they're quieter than we're used to but they're slowly becoming a bit more talkative.

We hosted a welcome dinner at our school on Thursday and then had a volleyball & basketball competition afterwards. The kids were grouped into teams which included both schools as a way to get to know each other better. I think they had a lot of fun. They spent Friday practicing together with the 5 schools in Langley. On Saturday they went out together as "tourists". J had to work so she did not join them. Our church service was fuller than usual & we enjoyed a potluck lunch with whoever wanted to stay between services. Today is the last practice before their Mass Band Performance in Surrey tonight. We're looking forward to it!!

I made sure to include some photos of my garden. After my negative post last week I felt I needed to show something a bit brighter. We've had a few sunny days and I made sure to go outside & work in the garden a bit. Here's some of what's up in my bulb garden where I was able to sit and enjoy the sunshine.

Ho Hum

So what's happened since I came back from Arizona? Well, it has rained almost every day and I'm seriously thinking that a permanent move to Phoenix might be a good option. Each day the weather forecast is slightly modified to include one more day of showers, sprinkles, rain, sleet, or whatever other synonym that can be thought of to describe precipitation. Sorry if I sound a bit negative - I'm really trying to see the bright side of things. I do think if the sun shone just a bit then it would be a bit easier to see that side... This week was just a regular run of the mill kind - book study meeting, library duties at the school, volleyball, dog sitting for a friend (well, that's not too regular, thankfully). We just came home from our school's Fine Arts Evening. It was a beautiful evening with band performances, individual performances, displays, etc. This was a first for our school and hopefully we can build on this idea in the years to come. Well, it's time to have a glass of wine and unwind. I'm sure our lives will become a bit more interesting in the next few weeks that I'll have something more significant to post about.

Back from Arizona

It feels like quite a while ago but from what I can remember our trip to Arizona was wonderful... :) We had amazing weather and came back to cold, rain, hail and now snow. The terrain was beautiful - it really struck me that there is beauty in every region and that a desert is just as beautiful as a rain forest. We made it to the Grand Canyon - a long day but worth our drive. We went on a Jeep tour of the Tucson area, including the hills and desert trails. While the guys were at meetings we enjoyed a bit of shopping and mostly relaxing by the pool. It certainly was warm and just being in the sun makes things better. I think it's time for spring - once the snow melts I'm sure I'll have some time to work in the garden and keep my tan for summer. Unless, of course, we're getting another round of winter. sigh...

Hello and Good-bye...

Just a quick update on how my week's been going. I enjoyed a great training on Tuesday - part of the requirements for re-licensing for foster parenting. We are required to complete 36 hours of training in a 3 year period. My license was supposed to be renewed last June & the licensor finally made an appt. with me last week. I was reminded that I was not in compliance with the training hour requirements & if I wanted to continue being a foster care provider I should fix that. So I chose a course called "Helping Children Manage Grief and Loss". I wasn't looking forward to it as most of these classes are not taught from a Christian perspective - a little like suffering through a Psychology course in college. But this class was well worth my time. It was taught by a Pastor and long time Counsellor. He was quite interesting and entertaining to listen to and shared a wealth of information on child psychology as it relates to foster and adoption issues. He is a national speaker and author (Fire Spitters - Gary Benton).

This week was a very short school week as Thursday and Friday were off for our mid-winter break. And, let me tell you it is still winter around here. The forecast was calling for snow on Wednesday but I figured that meant a little bit of white stuff with the rain that was already coming down. By midday, as I was helping with hot lunch at school it indeed looked like it would be staying. It became much colder by evening and the snow kept coming down - enough to close some schools and cause others to begin late the next morning. Ours was already scheduled off so we just enjoyed a relaxing morning while we watched the pretty white stuff outside. This also gave me time to prepare for a short trip we had planned. Henry is attending a convention put on by one of their work suppliers and so I have the opportunity to go to Phoenix AZ with him. (twist my arm... okay I'll come with!) My suitcase is packed - shorts, swimsuit, suntan lotion... you get the picture. I'm looking forward to warmer weather & I'll tell you more about it later and possibly share some pictures.

Fondue

On Valentine's Day weekend I finally used the fondue set that our youngest bought me for Christmas. I borrowed two other sets so we could have different types of foods - one was chocolate for strawberries, grapes, bananas, etc. and the other was cheese for broccoli, french bread and ham and the main one was oil for the different types of meat. The nice part about having fondue is that it takes quite a while to eat - which makes up for how long it took to cut & prepare everything. We had friends join us and we all had a great time eating very yummy food. The kids especially loved it as it was their first time eating a fondue meal. We'll definitely do it again.

What I'm reading...

Not a lot of news to report from our home. I've been reading some good books... I finished Cry the Beloved Country by Alan Paton - a story about the history of South Africa. Interesting but sad... "H"s class did presentations on various countries this past Friday - with displays, maps, power points, music and food to make it come alive. H and her friend did South Africa so we both learned about this country together.

I am also reading some children's literature - which it nothing out of the ordinary since I volunteer at our school library. I really enjoy reading books geared towards the elementary grades (not sure what that says about me...) Several of our school librarians (including me) are registered to attend an Author's Conference at Western Washington University. I am really looking forward to it since I was not able to attend last year. The authors that will be speaking there are Pam Munoz Ryan (When Marian Sang), Sara Pennypacker (Clementine), Joan Bauer (Hope Was Here) and Brian Selznick (The Invention of Hugo Cabret). I do not recommend the Clementine books - they remind me of Amelia Bedelia, except she has a very bad attitude...

Basketball Tournament

This past weekend J had an overnight trip with the Sr. basketball team to play in a tournament in Vancouver. It was hosted by West Point Grey Academy and it was their first year hosting it. I think there were 8 teams involved - mostly smaller schools - some private and some not. We found out Saturday morning that they had won both of their games and would be playing late afternoon for the championship. A bunch of us decided it was worth driving down to cheer them on. They played a tough game but could not pull ahead to win it but were quite happy to take home a trophy for second place. All around it was a great experience for them and a wonderful learning opportunity. Here's a few pictures - not the greatest but better than nothing.

This and that...

This past week has been busy. A couple weeks ago I committed to taking two little ones from a foster family (respite care). I have a 3 yo girl and an 8 month little boy until Sunday. We were all quite excited since we've done this before and really enjoyed it. The little girl is a cutie - far too wise for her years. She was sitting at the kitchen table and glanced at the local paper that was sitting there. She pipes up in her tiny voice, "Hey, that's Bawack Obama". I was so shocked that I laughed out loud. She knows all the "social worker world" lingo - quite sad that she has no "forever family". The little baby however, has not proven to be that much fun. The last words of the foster mom who dropped him off was "he's the easiest kid I've ever had". Well, he must be either sick or really not happy with this change in his life because he cries about almost everything. This is when I feel I'm just too old to keep doing this.... Well, tomorrow is a new day and let's hope he feels a bit happier!! And, by the way, this is all happening while hubby and L are off to Iowa checking out a possible college for next year! Talk about bad timing...

An afternoon out with Edwar & Femmie...

This past Wednesday evening L and I went to Willoughby for the Mission Presentation of Edwar & Femmie. They were in the valley for a week before going back to Indonesia. They've been in Ontario for about 2 months prior to this. The evening was very interesting and more real for me because I've been to the places he described. God is really blessing his work there and it was nice to speak with them again. The next day Henry took part of the afternoon off and we picked them up to show them around the valley a bit. We left our home with bright sunshine & were excited to take them to Vancouver or up Seymour Mtn. When we got there the entire area was covered in fog - so much so that there was no way to see anything past a few feet. We ended up driving east and had a nice time showing them the valleys, mountains, rivers etc. in that area. We ended up on Hemlock Mtn. and then drove back and enjoyed soup and sandwiches at Tim's. Their kids did very well - Moses gave us a running commentary on what he was seeing - especially the volcanoes in the distance... Sorry about the photo - that's up Hemlock but you can't see the people :(

Just for fun....

When you begin a new year it's quite possible that you're looking ahead to change things or looking back to assess what you've accomplished or come from. Here's something fun I read on another blog - one hundred random things you may or may not have done. If you've done them you make the item bold... looks like I have lots of living to do yet...

1. Started my own blog

2. Slept under the stars (as a teenager)

3. Played in a band - does taking piano lessons count?

4. Visited Hawaii

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than I can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyland/world)

8. Climbed a mountain- with high school students - tough, but I made it

9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sung a solo - does in the shower count?

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris

13. Watched lightening at sea,

14. Taught myself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child - I think fostering should be added here

16. Had food poisoning

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty - stood across the river from it two years ago

18. Grown my own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train- between Calgary and Vancouver

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitchhiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Run a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run - I'm sure I did when I played for the Warriors in '86

32. Been on a cruise

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught myself a new language- learned some Indonesian...

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person

39. Gone rock climbing,

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David

41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Been transported in an ambulance

47. Had my portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud - gardening must count...

54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason - don't all moms get dandelions at some point?

64.Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check- just this past year...how embarrassing.

68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

71. Eaten Caviar

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London

77. Broken a bone

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person.

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car - our Toyota van

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had my picture in the newspaper

85. Read the entire Bible

86. Visited the White House- it was closed in 2002 bcs of 9-11...

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous

92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one

94. Had a baby

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit- when I was 21...

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee

100. Rode an elephant

The rains came down, and the floods came up...

The past week has been a tense, difficult one for many people in the Pacific Northwest. The beautiful snow that I described the last few weeks has proven once again to be a problem. You see, with all the rain we normally get in the winter you just know that this snow needs to melt and go somewhere. The weather warmed up, causing the snow to melt quickly, the temperatures caused the record mountain snowfall to melt and then the rains came down... and down... Since the ground was frozen and the snow was covering drains and culverts the rain could not flow downstream at the rate the rain was coming down. We have never seen it this bad before and it made us very nervous as our field backed up because streams further down were not flowing. It came up to our fence line - but our house is up on a bit of a hill so my dear hubby assures me that it would take a lot more to actually flood our house. I try to believe him but this water makes me nervous. Many roads are still impassable and will be for a while. Some schools have been cancelled because it's difficult for buses to make all these detours. L went with some friends to canoe in a flooded area - normally this area is a farmer's field. J took our tube (from boating) and a paddle and went for a leisurely float down our little lake... Oh to be a kid and think this is all fun & games...

Happy New Year!

We went to church on New Years Eve and heard a very beautiful sermon on Hebrews 12. It was about "running the race" and looking ahead at the cloud of witnesses that have gone before us. I will not soon forget it - a very fitting way to end a year and look forward in faith to beginning a new one!

Let us then full of confidence
Run to complete the race
And put off sin and every weight
Which could slow down our pace

We look to Jesus even more
Than to all those around;
In Him, the Author of our faith,
Its Finisher is found.

Fun Times!

So what have we been up to since the last post? Well, I told you I was waiting for a phone call on Christmas morning to say that church was cancelled. We did get that phone call - yes, rather sad because it just didn't feel right to celebrate Christmas without first going to church. The day was absolutely beautiful with snow falling peacefully and the temperatures just below freezing. After a leisurely breakfast, we called some friends to see if they wanted to come for some four-wheeling fun and coffee. H pulled the kids on a tube behind the four-wheeler, and since the roads were covered with powdery snow and not a vehicle in sight they had perfect conditions for this type of fun. My friend took her cross country skis with and we went for a nice trip around the block and just enjoyed the winter wonderland. Later that day we joined a few families at another friend's cabin on the lake. It was a beautiful day. We were thankful for safety on the roads - the snowplows were working hard to clear most of the major roads at this point.

The next day (for Canadians that would be Boxing Day) our family had planned a ski day on Mt. Baker. I had been busy on Craigslist the previous month trying to get good deals on skis and for the most part had succeeded. At this point I am the only one that needed to rent. The day was beautiful except for the last few hours when the snowfall was becoming heavy and the wind was whipping it around a bit fiercely. Our youngest two had not been skiing for a few years so hubby and I spent a fair bit of time skiing with them. It was fun just to see them learn and become more confident.

The following day was Saturday and I had forgotten our plans to do something with cousins in Langley. We arranged to meet at a 5-pin bowling alley in Cloverdale - and our families had two hours of bowling time together. On this side of the border we are not that familiar with 5-pin and I must say I much prefer 10. That's probably because I performed rather horribly using the whimpy little ball they use in this game. We did have lots of fun - mostly laughing at each other's miserable performance... We enjoyed pizza and visiting at their house afterwards.

Another day was spent teaching H to quilt (no, not my hubby). She had a friend (and mom) over who was learning as well. We have become 4H members again through an informal group. There are no meetings and the parents are the "leaders" - that would be me again. We are trying to think of projects that our kids would find interesting and hope to tackle a few of these during the year. H sewed a beautiful "fence rail" quilted pillow to match her comforter. I will try to post pictures later - she is supposed to be sleeping right now. It took the better part of the day but it was well worth the effort.

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

Well, it's Christmas morning and I'm enjoying my coffee and the quiet... I am wondering whether I will get a phone call to say that Christmas Church Service is cancelled. It snowed most of yesterday and seems that it snowed overnight as well. It's absolutely beautiful but without snowplows it makes for difficult driving conditions. We are hoping to spend time with friends at their cottage and I'm hoping we'll still be able to get there. For all of the times we've heard the "romantic" songs about white Christmases - I guess we got it!! Wherever you are, and whatever the weather we wish you the Lord's blessing on this day and may the real meaning of the season bring you much joy and comfort!