Who took the batteries out of my camera?

I won't have many photos to add to this post as each time I picked up my camera to take a picture I found there were no batteries inside!! I broke down and bought rechargeable batteries for my camera and made the mistake of telling the kids. They have a few books on CD they are listening to on the "walkman" so they took the liberty of using my batteries and not returning them.

This past week has been busy with lots of visiting and kid watching. On Tuesday a little 14 month foster girl was added to our household for a week. This is just for respite - a foster family went away on vacation and needed someone to take her. On Wednesday we had friends from Australia over for a BBQ as well as a birthday celebration for Hannah and her friends. It wasn't the warmest day so the hot tub was the perfect place to hang out together. Her birthday was a week later but she will be away to Stepping Stones Bible Camp this week so we decided to celebrate early.

On Thursday we had our friend's 2 year old come for a couple nights as his parents were in California. On Saturday morning we went out for breakfast with my sister & hubby from Ontario and hung out for the morning at our house. They came for a very quick three day trip to attend a nephew's wedding. They were gone maybe half an hour and Henry's cousin from Manitoba arrived & stayed till the following afternoon. We ended up going boating on the lake that evening & staying till sunset. That was a lot of visiting and I went to bed early Sunday evening because I was tired and it was fairly boring without guests to talk with :) I'm off this morning to bring Hannah to camp and then out for lunch with a group of ladies for a 40th birthday celebration!! This week looks to be quieter so I'm hoping to catch up on some inside-and-outside-the-house work!!

Reformed String Camp 2009

This past weekend was a busy but enjoyable one. With 4th of July celebrations as well as three concerts from the 2009 Reformed Strings Camp we were kept hopping from one event to another. Jocelyn spent the past week in Langley with her cousin and friend from Ontario at this camp. They had 3 performances on the weekend - we went to the last two. The final one was held in Langley and we think it was their best one! Jocelyn played her quartet piece again that evening and we were thrilled because we had missed hearing it on the first evening. The girls were very ready to be done - it's a long, intense week of playing music but it was worth it! Here's a few photos - some of them are a bit dark. We're happy to have a dvd recording of the last evening - a nice keepsake. The girls were too tired to come to a 4th of July fireworks at a friends so I made sure to make something patriotic to celebrate on Sunday - it was very yummy!

The relatives came...

This title is one of my favorite children's books (Cynthia Rylant). The pictures are just great and captures a house where a group of relatives come to visit and stay for part of a summer. We have relatives staying here as well - maybe not quite as many as the book describes. My nephew is here as an end of eighth grade gift. We've been on several fun outings but I've only managed to take my camera once and take two pictures... There's just too many other things to think about when you're taking a bunch of kids somewhere... and I'm sticking to that excuse. Here's a picture of the boys hanging out at the Windmill Mall. That day we went to visit J at the Lynden Dutch Bakery where she works. As we were waiting for our food she got a migraine and needed to be taken home. The places we didn't take the camera to were Cultus Lake Water Slides, Lummi Island (biking), Company BBQ in Mt. Vernon (view of the ocean & islands), Fourth of July BBQ & fireworks at a friend's and a picnic at Birch Bay (ocean). Kaleb's sister & friend were also with us this weekend and are now at the Strings Camp in Langley.

Looking Good...

I showed you this planter a couple months ago and said I'd show it once it had grown. I planted two of these knowing it would be used as decoration for the senior grad. It filled in nicely and looked beautiful at the back of the church. It now looks great on my back deck!!

Lorelle's Grad

As soon as I returned from Ontario I was immersed in the prep for Lorelle's senior grad. At our school the parents (moms...) of the graduates are responsible for the setup and decorating of the church (ceremony) as well as the decorating for the dinner which is held before the ceremony. Our group felt a little challenged in that department but we really did an amazing job!! Here's a few photos I managed to sneak. I'll post more later as the graduates had a wonderful photographer who took hundreds I'm sure. The following Sunday we had an Open House to celebrate with family and friends. Lots of fun and now it's a bit quieter as summer holidays have begun!! Ahhhh....

Trip to Ontario - Mom's Birthday

It's been a while since I posted but there's good reason for that. My Mom turned 70 on June 6 and I decided (with a little help from my sister) that this warranted a surprise visit to Ontario. A "gourmetten" dinner had been planned at my sister's in a gazebo/greenhouse type building they've built on their property.

I arrived in Buffalo on Thursday evening after traveling by Bellair bus to Seattle airport, one leg to Newark and then another to Buffalo. It was a good flight because I finished a great book! I spent the weekend visiting with family - got to see my new niece Ryeanne as well as my new great nephew Tyler. It was lots of fun and Mom was totally surprised when I walked into the building for dinner.

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...