Home Is Where Your Heart Is.

A Funny For A Friday

2011-12-09T15:41:00.002-06:00

You may have heard me mention that we often get into deep conversations with our 5 year old usually when she is tired. Well here is something she said that made my hubby and I laugh SO hard. Let me tell you...It was NOT easy holding the laugh in until later!

As we were driving home from some evening event, my husband and I were explaining why it is so important to be even more careful around vehicles especially around this time of year (she had darted out into the street a little too far). We explained that people often are not as careful this time of year because some people choose to celebrate Christmas by drinking alcohol and by not making good choices. We explained that some of these people decide that they can still drive vehicles after drinking poison. Since she recently got glasses we told her that when people drink alcohol, they can see like she does without her glasses which is not so great. Then they try and drive a car. We also said it's like when she spins in circles for a long time and tries to walk straight. Since they can't see so well, she could have been hit by a car or truck even if she wasn't really on the road. So we had thought that we had done a wonderful job explaining why she should be careful not to walk into the street and why she shouldn't drink alcohol and why it's not good for people to drink and drive. She on the other hand had her own good reason not to drink and drive. In her words (after we were done our explanation):

"AND You should not drink alcohol and drive because the government might be watching!"

Makes me wonder why we explain anything! We should have just let her tell us why it's not a good idea! HA HA! Happy Friday!

Holiday Treasure # 6

2011-11-29T18:01:00.002-06:00

Hello. I bet you are shocked that I am even back so early. I thought I would take time here and there to write when I can. Since my family is sick and this has forced me to slow down, I thought now may be a good time to continue...

We had spent a few lovely days exploring beautiful B.C. with the folks and then we decided to begin to make our way home. Since I am not feeling the best I am going to give you the Reader's Digest version of the story. Basically, we decided to leave a day earlier to a campground that would normally take 1.5 hrs to get too but we decided to go with the folks on a scenic tour instead that took us 4 hrs. It was worth it. We took two small ferries (free) on this route and saw many wonderful sights this way. We arrived at the camp and the parents helped us set up as best as possible. There happened to be a park across from our campsite and our little one made a friend there. The friend's Mom was doing some laundry as they were preparing to move on to another campground in the morning. We struck up a conversation and I really felt strongly that the Lord wanted me to ask her to stay another night so we could visit a place called "The Enchanted Forrest" together. I must say, selfishly that was the last thing I wanted to do...I wanted just my family together for the day but who am I to argue with God?? LOL! She agreed to come along with us. So the next morning we prepared to go to the Enchanted Forrest. It was a neat place! It was a forrest full of fairytale/storybook characters. We hiked the forrest, rowed boats through lily pad ponds and talked about all things! It was a good time. At the end of the day at the forrest, we parted ways as our new friends went for supper and we did too. We met back at the campground later in the evening to say our good night greetings.

The next morning we packed up and decided to move on. Our new friends actually decided to stay another day. As Mike was finishing packing the car, the other Mom and I took the girls to the playground to play. As we were sitting at the playground we talked more and more about God. Mike came and told me it was time to go and I really felt God prompting me to ask her THE question. So I said to her, "I just can't leave here without knowing where she was in her relationship with God." I proceeded to explain that religion and relationship with Jesus were two very different things and I told her that God was offering her freedom (she grew up in a religious home), I told her that God was offering her the gift of new life. Freedom in Jesus. My new friend began to shake and cry and right there in the parking lot of the campground we bowed in prayer together as she accepted this free gift of a new life in Christ. We hugged and we parted ways. I am in the process of finding her a good church home in her town. Please pray for our new sister in Christ. :)

The treasure here is that even though our plans had changed (spur of the moment decision to leave to a campground instead of staying with the parents for another day or two) God had a reason why...Another treasure is that God's timing is perfect. Had we stuck to OUR plans, we would have missed our friends as they would have already been gone to a different campground. Also, had I been selfish and not invited her along for the day as God had prompted, I would not have a new sister in Christ. So you see, when you leave the planning up to God and go with the flow as He leads, good things happen. :) Well that is all for now. Again, not editing... Take care and remember to let God lead and you will find treasures.

Holiday Treasure #5

2011-11-20T16:27:00.003-06:00

WOW! It has been a long time. I am so glad I made no promises as to when you would get another post. :) I sure hope I can remember all the wonderful things I wanted to tell you about. I believe I left off with us leaving the beautiful island.

So that is what we did. We took the ferry back to the mainland and made our way to a special little vacation condo where we were to meet my hubbies parents. Remember they were coming back from NS where they did the funeral and burial of Mike's Grandma. Anyhow we showed up at the condo and made ourselves at home and the next day we decided to walk across a beautiful field where we found a beautiful little park and a perfect sized beach. My little gal had a blast playing at the park and when she was all warm from that she decided to take a dip in the lake. It was so nice and refreshing. I could have stayed at the beach all day building sand castles, splashing in the water and just enjoying my beautiful family and creation that God had given to me. Yet, my pregnant belly was getting hungry so we decided to pack up and head back to our vacation spot. We were so pleasantly surprised to find the parents unloading their vehicle from the long trip they had taken. This was a treasure in itself as we were not expecting them to arrive until the next day at least! Anyhow, as they settled in I rustled up some lunch for us and we just basked in the blessings of being together. WOW I am CHEESY! :) Really tho, if you know me at all...You will know that family is just THAT important to me.

It was so nice for our little girl to have her Papa and Gram with her and she was so excited that I am sure the Grandparents wished they had come the next day just to have that much needed rest! She did keep them on their toes. She couldn't wait for her Papa to play with her and take her for walks and to the park. I must say, Papa was a real trooper because he did all of those things and more. I could tell he was tired but I could also tell that he was just as glad to be with her as she was to be with him. It was a treasure indeed to see their relationship grow.

With the parents we travelled to a place called Peachland. Now in my head I pictured this to be a place where you pick luscious peaches from trees and eat them right there. Turns out it was not that. However, I was not disappointed. Peachland is such a neat little community where there are all kinds of little shops and boutiques to browse through as well as places to picnic along the shoreline. There were little places you could just park, get out set up a picnic area and go swimming at the same time. It was such a neat experience. During this trip to Peachland we took the opportunity to rent a family bike (4 seater) and we rode around town. It just so happens that it was my my Mom-in-laws first time on a bike ever!! It was so nice to experience that with her. The grin on her face was worth every peddle. Our little girl was a free loader!!! She got to sit up front with the best view AND when we rented the bike we were given a coupon for a free ice cream so guess who got to eat that?? Not the ones sweating up a storm as we peddled together...Noooo It was the little kid who's only job was to honk the bike horn and wave and smile at all those walking beside us! It was too cute. She took her job seriously.

During our time with the parents we also celebrated my daughter's 5th Birthday in style with a yummy homemade supper, ice cream cake and of course a few presents. It was so nice to celebrate together. I will never take for granted any time I get to share with my extended family. I keep thinking that there will be a day where either the miles or health or life will separate us. So as I have said before, family is so important to me. The closer I get to God the closer I get to my family. That is my daily prayer. "Lord may we grow closer to You and closer to each other." It really is about relationship isn't it?

Well this is getting pretty long so I guess I will stop for now and continue the story later. Again, I have no idea when...could be after this baby is born. By the way...on the baby front things are looking good. I feel great. I am in my last trimester I have gained a total of 4 lbs so that is great. A C-section has been tentatively scheduled for Jan. 3rd. I will know more for sure about that on December 6th. If I remember I will post an update. In the meantime, please pray for that whole situation. I am at peace with the fact of having to have a C-section now but I still covet your prayers.

Ok, please keep checking back because I have still have some wonderful stories to tell of our vacation. One is about our kiddo telling us she asked Jesus in her heart and how she came to do that all by herself as well as a story where at a divine appointment the Lord used me to lead a woman to the Lord...at a campground...It will be great.

Oh...I am not going back to edditt thiss sooo pleazse forgiive anny grammatiKal/speliling airrors. ;) Have a wonderful Advent Season!!

Holiday Treasure #4

2011-10-05T16:47:00.003-05:00

Hello Again...

I am finding it tougher to find time to write. I was pondering just the other day about how fast my pregnancy has gone! I am already in my last trimester! Time has gone so fast...I am going to use that as my excuse for not being diligent at blogging. Instead I have been stocking my freezer with yummy foods and cleaning like crazy...Must be what they (whoever they are) call nesting. Anyhow...Onto my 4th treasure.

After we left Tofino, we stayed on the Island a few days longer as we camped at different campgrounds. We saw so much beautiful nature and we enjoyed one anothers company. I love my family.

While we were away, My hubby and I celebrated our 12th Wedding Anniversary. Or is it 13?? Hmmmm, wow. I think it is 12. Anyhow, we celebrated by camping out in the gorgeous creation God had given us. I made BBQ ribs, fried rice and garlic toast. There is just something so tasty about food cooked outdoors. We enjoyed our time together. The day after our anniversary, we celebrated our little gals 5th birthday in the same fashion. We set up camp in a different location in the wonderful outdoors. We gave the birthday girl a choice whether she wanted to go out and eat at a restaurant or cook at the campground and she said, "Mom all I want to do is buy a bun and make a sandwich at the camp for supper." A girl after my own heart. Not only did she want just a sandwich for her birthday supper, she wanted to make it herself. So that is what we did. We went into town and got her exactly what she wanted for her birthday supper and as her Dad and I set up camp, there she sat at the picnic table making her birthday sandwich! What a sweet kid we are blessed with! We also made sure to have marshmallows roasted on the fire and hot chocolate as well later. Nice and simple ways to celebrate! That was a treasure for sure. We also took our little girl mini golfing at a really beautiful place and for a first time golfer, she did so well! We went to a beach and a park that had a little water slide that she enjoyed a lot. It was so much fun just being together and playing together.

Another neat experience we had was eating on a floating restaurant. We took a little ferry to Protection Island (I believe that is what it is called) where the restaurant is. The ferry actually brings you right to the restaurant. The ferry comes and goes every hour on the hour. It is the coolest little place. It had a place for kids to bait fishing poles with kernels of corn and fish right at the restaurant. Our little girl really enjoyed doing that. It was fun to hear the excitement in her voice when the fish nibbled all the corn off her hook! The experience was so unique and I think I had a permanent grin on my face the whole time we were there from the experience itself. Seeing my family enjoy themselves was such a treasure in itself.

Alas, after spending time on the beautiful Island, it was time for us to take a ferry back to the mainland so to speak and finally meet up with my hubbies parents. I was excited to begin a new adventure with them of a different sort. The treasures just kept coming. You will hear more about that some time. I make no promises as to when. :)

Holiday Treasure #3

2011-09-24T19:44:00.002-05:00

Ok, it has been a long time yet again. I am sorry it has taken so long. I know, I know, you have heard that before. :)

On to my holiday treasure #3...This is the odd one. My husband's Grandmother passed away at the beginning of our trip and this changed our plans. Originally the plan was for us to travel with his parents to BC to spend some time together. Well, obviously this didn't happen right away as his Dad and Mom flew to NS to do his Mom's funeral. The best part about this sad event was that we were all together as a family to love and support his Dad as he prepared to fly back to his home and do what I could only think would be one of the hardest things to do in life, bury a loved one.

Anyhow, it was decided that we would go on our way to the west coast without his parents and meet up with his parents later. With this new opportunity we decided to carry on to Vancouver Island where we had an awesome time in Tofino visiting some very close friends of ours. These wonderful friends moved to the Island a couple of years ago and bought a wonderful chocolate shop called "Chocolate Tofino". At this place magic happens! They home make their own chocolates AND gelato!! The whole experience there was refreshing! Tofino really has a hippee feel. Everything/everyone is so laid-back. It was here we hiked some rainforests, went to some pretty amazing beaches, ate ridiculously GREAT food (one place was comprised of a chef and a fisherman who are partners...one catches the seafood and the other cooks it fresh!) and of course you will never find any better quality chocolate AND gelato! Best of all, we were able to catch up with our good friends and see where they live now. What a life!

So maybe you can understand now why this odd turn of events (of his Grandma's death) ended up being a treasure. Mainly because we were able to be with his Dad when he got the news that his Mom had passed away. Then, when our plans changed we made the best of this change and this started a grand vacation that our family will cherish for a long time. It was a sad time yes. Do I always deal well with change? Nope. This time I had to and it worked out pretty great. Sometimes the treasure comes with not knowing exactly what life will hand to you.

On this trip to Tofino we had so much fun hanging out with our family and close friends. Seeing gorgeous sights and enjoying one another's company. A treasure in the unexpected. Beautiful.

Holiday Treasure #2

2011-09-13T09:43:00.003-05:00

I know, I know, it has been a while. Sorry.

So after we spent some time with my Grandmother and Aunts and Uncle we went to a gorgeous hotel where we are treated just like family. We LOVE going to this hotel. They know us by name and treat us just like family. It could be because the owner is a friend of the family (more friends of Mike's parents) none the less they treat us no different. Anyhow, the reason we were at this hotel was to plan for a treasure indeed. Both of Mike's brothers and their wives were coming to the hotel so we could prepare to celebrate their parents 40th wedding anniversary. We did a whole wedding and reception at the hotel. I do want to say how much the hotel did for us. I had a meeting with wonderful lady who did all I had asked or imagined for this special day. She took care of every little detail even to the point of asking the florist to spray paint some flowers to match a color I really wanted. The food was fantastic and my sister in law made an absolutely gorgeous gluten free wedding cake. It was her first and I must say it was GORGEOUS! It tasted great too! I know you are probably wanting to see pictures but I haven't had time to put them on the computer yet. One of my blogs will be just pictures of these things. I promise. Anyhow, Mike did the ceremony and I helped a little. His youngest brother walked his Mom down the aisle, his middle brother played a song he wrote as she walked down and the daughter in laws stood with our Mama. It was such a beautiful time! A really neat thing is that their actual anniversary fell on a Sunday and the vow renewal was not until the afternoon so before all the wedding activities, we all circled our cars in a parking lot of a liquor store and had a church service. Each of us were able to share a blessing, scripture and pick a song to sing. I like these times. They are intimate and we can always feel the presence of God so close during these times. That was a huge treasure. Getting together with family to worship God is something I will never take for granted. Our family is spread across different provinces so anytime we can get together to share the Word of God is fantastic.

There is more to this part of our journey as well but it will have to wait until the next time I am able to write. Please have patience with me as there is a lot on my plate at the moment. I will get to it tho. Don't worry. Treasure your family for as long as the Lord gives them to you. Bless you all.

Holiday Treasure #1

2011-08-29T22:08:00.003-05:00

Hello Friends!

Well I know it has been a long time since I have really written a post but I am BACK! My family and I were away for what feels like forever. Over the next while I will be highlighting some fond memories I have from the trip we just took. I hope you enjoy what I share with you.

I want to say at the very start that after reflecting on this journey, my holiday has one theme to it: "Treasures in Heaven" The Bible says in Matthew 6:19-21 New International Version (NIV):

Treasures in Heaven
19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

With this in mind I want to share with you my holiday treasures. The first treasure took place while I was back in my hometown getting to see 5 of my 6 nieces and nephews. We just hung out and caught up with one another. It was so strange to see how fast kids grow!!! After spending some time in my hometown, we travelled to where my Grandmother lives and it was there that we were able to celebrate her 75th birthday and my daughter's 5th birthday together. I realized that my Grandma had only met my daughter once before and that was at my daughter's 1st birthday party! How SAD is THAT??? Needless to say, the visit was so great. My Aunt made the party so special with balloons, old time games like pin the tail on the donkey (they use stickers now for the tails...how smart is THAT?), she made a ton of delicious food and it was so nice to see my Grandma who is blind play the game with my daughter. Turns out that Grandma won but in my Aunt's house that means BOTH birthday girls got a prize of $5.00 each! Too fun! I was able to catch up with two Aunts, an Uncle and my lovely Grandma. All are treasures that I pray will be stored up in heaven. It seems that time and life has a way of getting in the way of staying connected. This has made me think a lot and I pray that I will no longer take the treasure of my extended family for granted. I must do better at staying connected.

Well sadly, I left my camera at the hotel for this venture and my Mom still has not sent any to me so I have no pictures to share from this holiday treasure. Maybe just maybe if and when I get them I will be able to share this part with you.

I will end this holiday treasure for now. I ask you...Do you have a family member(s) that you have not connected with in a long time? Maybe it is time to reconnect! Think about it...They are treasures.

Holiday Blessings

2011-08-14T23:21:00.002-05:00

It has been a while since I have shared. I am sorry to report that it will be longer still. I have one week of holidays left and one week of camp to attend before I can go into any details on the following holiday blessings:

- Birthday celebrations with family
- 40th Wedding Anniversary vow renewal
- "Circle Church"
- The passing of my husband's Grandmother (sounds odd as a blessing I know but wait for it)
- Visiting friends on Vancouver Island (Didn't get to see all our friends tho *sigh*)
- Chocolate Tofino
- Hiking Rain forests
- Walking many beaches
- Camping in the fresh air
- Spending time in BC with family

These are just a few of the blessing I look forward to sharing with you when I am back from vacation and we aren't even done yet! Hopefully you will be ready to hear some stories and see some pictures. See you in a couple of weeks. Hope your summer is as great as mine.

A Tough 4 Weeks

2011-07-23T22:44:00.004-05:00

The title of this post is lacking creativity but then again so is my brain! It really has been a tough 4 weeks. My household has been battling sickness for the last month and I am soooo SICK of it...(no pun intended)! When we were away in Toronto both of my family members came down with strep throat. Needless to say it was a horrible flight home for our 4 yr old but like always she is a real trooper. She barely complained at all. After we got home I got her into a doctor right away and she was put on amoxicillin and after day 2 she was ready to go. My dear hubby on the other hand took 6 days of the same antibiotic and NOTHING! Poor guy had to suffer until we could get him in to see our doctor. As it happened our family doctor was away and because of this we had a strange blessing. Mike (hubby) was able to see a different doctor who explained why he always gets so sick. I was quite concerned because if someone gets a cold he will ALWAYS get it and for him it just hangs on for so long! When we were in college I felt so bad for him because he was sick so often. No one was more frustrated about it than him. Anyhow, back to the strange blessing. During his visit with this other doctor he learned more about the effects of his medical condition. Mike's blood is absent IgA (immunoglobulins) basically you (I am assuming) and I have the antibodies present to fight off upper respiratory infections whereas Mike's blood does not have this. So every single little "bug" that he comes into contact with sticks. This is horribly inconvenient for us because we have a kiddo who attends day care and soon school where parents will still send their sick children knowing they are not well. I am sure they have their reasons but it sucks for us. Yet, the blessing comes because now that we are fully aware of why he easily gets sick, we are able to take the proper measures to help build his immune system. We are not a family who enjoys taking medications so we will up the anti oxidants by eating certain berries, taking oil of oregano and different natural remedies. Also, we will be telling ANYONE who is sick and out to just GO HOME! People are just not aware that they may be harming someone else by being out while sick. I understand that some people may not have a choice and that they may have to work but I am sure something could be done.

Anyhow, it has been a tough 4 weeks because so many people around my town are sick and do not have enough common sense to just stay home or keep their kids home. Our 4 yr old has been sick for the 3rd time now in 4 weeks and thus has given it to her Dad. I have managed to stay healthy...until now. I am getting over a cold that I just got the other day but I am happy to report that I am feeling better. Yet because of this cold I have been sleeping in a different room than Mike and that is not ideal. We have decided to keep our little one out of day care since we are so close to leaving on holidays and we just don't want to risk her getting something else to share with us. Could you please pray for us? Pray for health and safe travels. We leave really soon and we are very excited to be going. Also pray for this new baby growing. We were able to hear the heartbeat and the doctor was able to get a reading of 147 beats and she said it was a nice strong healthy heartbeat. For this I am thankful. God is good.

Since I don't think I will get to post anything until I get home, have a wonderful summer and remember...if you are sick...STAY HOME! :)

Getting Close

2011-07-15T22:23:00.003-05:00

Hello Blogger Family,

I just wanted to drop in and say how excited I am that my holiday time is so close. It has been really busy around here lately with the flooding and everything else ministry related. I am looking forward to hitting the road with my family. It should be a good time. I have to admit that it is really hard to get into the office when our summer so far here has been so gorgeous! We have had so many hot and sunny days that sitting in an office is torture! However, there is so much to do before we go that we have to be at the office preparing for our departure. We leave pretty soon yet the list of tasks that needs completed before we leave seems super long. We are just taking it one day at a time. Today's work day was pretty good. We went to the larger city from here which is only about 1hr away and we shopped for new shelves for our food bank. We had lunch in the city and came home in time to pick up our daughter from daycare. That was a fun work day. When we got home my 4 yr old helped me make a yummy lasagna full of veggies and some ground turkey. It was really good. This reminds me of a funny I want to leave you with:

At the supper table our daughter was telling us all about her day at daycare. She told me that at quiet time she went to lay down but a boy named Devon tried to steal her mat. She said he didn't like her because when he was laying down he "gave her a dirty face." I couldn't help but smile...Even now I am smiling. He didn't give her a dirty look he gave her a dirty face! How DARE he?!? LOL! Too cute. Also she informed us after supper that she is "literally too big for the small potty at daycare because when she sat down on it her bum hit the water!" Kids have a way of really making you smile. Where did she get the word literally from??? Hmmmm, I am pretty sure I say it....a lot. I am literally going to have to watch what I say...Opps. Anyhow, Just thought I would let you know that our holidays are close and maybe we will get to see some of you on our travels??...Maybe I can experience a little "Hospitality Haven" along the way?...That would be nice. **Wink** Have a good summer.

Silly Hormones!!

2011-07-11T18:09:00.002-05:00

So here is something funny that happened to me today. My dear husband took our little dog in to the vet today for a free check up before she gets fixed tomorrow morning. A little later in the day when we had some free time he told me about her check up and about the upcoming procedure. After he was done telling me the information he said in passing "Oh and I signed a form saying that if they get in there and discover that she is pregnant to just continue the procedure." Well THAT did NOT go over well with me! I immediately said something to the effect of "No WAY would I EVER let that happen!" and I burst out into tears. Poor hubby had no clue what he was in for. I sobbed for a good 20 mins explaining that abortion is abortion and it doesn't matter if she is a dog or not. Life is life and life is not ours to take away. Then I went on crying thinking about our poor puppy and how she could have lost her babies if that had happened without me knowing. I was all concerned about her feelings.

Anyhow after my little rant my patient and loving hubby told me that he understood how I could feel this way being pregnant myself and always concerned about the health of our little baby who is God willing growing strong and healthy. Well he has now told me he will make sure to change the paperwork at the vet tomorrow. So if my dog is pregnant they will hold off on the surgery until after she has her puppies. I mean it is very unlikely that she is pregnant but I couldn't bare the thought of a puppy abortion.

The funny part is that those silly hormones made me BAWL...I mean the ugly cry kind...snot everywhere and when I was done I had puffy eyes. I am just glad we were at home and not at the office when that happened! WHEW! I am thinking that if my hormones wern't so out of whack I could have just calmly told him my wishes. As it happened I was a wreck...Silly, SILLY hormones...I won't miss you!

A Chest Full of Pride...In a Good Way of Course!

2011-07-08T21:27:00.002-05:00

I am a true Mother. For the last week my 4 yr old (who will be 5 next month) has been taking swimming lessons and I could not be any prouder. She is done as of today and here is what makes me a true Mother...I could NOT sleep last night wondering if she passed this level. I tossed and turned concerned that she didn't have the skills to pass into the next level to become a crocodile. I didn't think she was ready to be in the sunfish level but as I watched her I could not believe my eyes. She was doing fantastic! However I lost sleep concerned that she would not "win the level" as we called it. I wasn't quite sure she had mastered the skills to her teachers liking. I was most concerned about how she would take the news of not making it to the next level and having to repeat the sunfish level. Too funny, when I woke up dead tired to get her ready for her final class, I asked her if she would be sad if she had to do sunfish over again and she immediately answered with an upbeat "No!". She thought I was silly to even ask that. Apparently to her it doesn't matter what level she is in as long as she gets to swim! LOL! I lost sleep for nothing. Oooo if only we could go back to the days where our biggest worry was whether or not we could do a back float for 5 seconds or not!

Ok, so I lost sleep worrying about what? Nothing apparently. The Bible once again is true when it says in Matthew AND Luke: "Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?" The answer is no. All it did for me was make me have a horrible sleep.

I do want to tell you why my chest is full of pride as I look back at the week. My kiddo was the youngest and smallest in her class and some of the things they had her doing was crazy! I watched as my 4 year old jumped into the deep end of the pool (no life jacket) make her way to the top of the water and tread water for 5 seconds! I watched as she did back floats, front floats, front and back glides, swim for 5 meters, do a side glide and other skills that seemed too advanced for her. Granted she needs to work on the back floats and glides still but I was UBER impressed! I could not believe what a great little swimmer I have. I watched as she dove under the water to find "treasures" we would just call them rings...She really enjoys to swim under the water.

Then came today...After a sleepless night, today is when I would find out if she advanced to the next level. It seems as if I was the only one concerned about this. Her Dad didn't seem to be bothered by it and I must say I was relieved and could breathe easily when my kiddo announced that it wouldn't bother her if she had to repeat the level. I don't like to see my kid disappointed. What parent does really? So the moment of truth the class was taken to the sauna and given their report cards...She came out later with her card and I couldn't wait to take a peek. But her teacher was there and he stopped to chat with us and told us (Dad was there too) that she needed to work on her back float and glides (this we already knew) so I was thinking "ahhh he is telling us why she didn't pass" so with a hint of disappointment (from me) I turned to her report card and glanced down to where it says "Please register in _______________" and I saw the word crocodile!!! Which of course is the next level!!! I was so excited for her. The teacher told us that she has all the skills to advance to crocodile he just wants her to practice her back floats/glides. I was so happy for her. Yet, that was not the biggest reason for my chest full of pride. It wasn't even because of all the skills my kiddo learned. My chest was full of pride because even though I lost sleep wondering how she would feel if she didn't advance; she did NOT! It didn't matter to her. We don't like using the word failing or failure in our house. My husband was taught growing up to reward effort and that is what we do in our house. We told our girl before today that it didn't matter if she won the level or not, we were proud of her because she gave it all she had. It just so happens that I have a crocodile in my house now...Not a sunfish! :D

A Tiny Update

2011-06-28T16:51:00.003-05:00

Hello. I know I have been absent lately. Please forgive me. Between the flood here and numerous other happenings, I have not had a chance to even think about much.

Here is a bit of what has been happening for us:

-Flood recovery. Been helping numerous people cope with the significant loss that was experienced. Our church needs serious help too. That is tiring.

-Finished my 1st Trimester. All is going well...I think. Been too tired to tune into my own body. :( That will change soon I am sure.

-Went to Toronto for a great conference. Went to the CN Tower...Discovered my 4 yr old is FEARLESS! She walked on the glass floor with NO problems. I on the other hand am a CHICKEN! She had to pull me across the floor while I stared straight ahead. I did it tho! :) We also went to Ontario Place...A fun place with rides, water park, games, side stages...Good times.

My family is sick. 4 yr old has a throat infection and the hubby is no better. Thank God I am ok...Who would keep the family together? Well that is what is happening here. Take care. Will post more when I have time...I promise. Have a great summer.

In A State....

2011-06-18T10:16:00.002-05:00

I am briefly writing to ask for your prayers. Our city has declared a state of emergency due to a high volume of rain waters. There is also a boil water advisory. Our house is ok so far but our church is not so great. Sewers have been backing up in numerous basements. My hubby has been at the church for going on 18 straight hours. He was up all night fighting the waters back from our Food Bank. We need your prayers for our city and us. Thank you.

Looking Forward...

2011-06-16T20:42:00.002-05:00

Here are a few things I am looking forward to:

1) Summer Holidays! We have been so busy here with work that my family and I need to have a break together. We really need to reconnect somewhere other then here. So I am looking forward to leaving work behind! Don't get me wrong I feel completely blessed to do what I do...But I need a break. I intend on getting away for real. Here is what some of our holidays will entail: Heading to our hometown for a night to see my bros, then heading to Edmonton to see more family AND to officiate a vow renewal. My in-laws are celebrating their 40th Anniversary so we are having a family get together to honor them and WE (hubby and I) get to do the ceremony. That will be a highlight. Then off we go to BC to spend some time with some more family. We are also hoping to get to Tofino where some really good friends of ours run "Chocolate Tofino" pretty self explanitory...I am Really looking forward to that.

Before holidays here is what I look forward to:

1) Swimming lessons for the kiddo! You may wonder why I am looking forward to it. Well let me explain. Where we live it literally is a labour of love to get your kid into swimming lessons. Last year I stood in line for 2.5 hrs to get her into lessons and after that long it was announced that her particular class was full! GRRRR! So this year I was prepared. I cleared my schedule and I arrived at the pool 2 hrs before registration time. I was the second in line! That's right...There was another Mom who got there 1/2 hr before I did. So we sat for 2 hours but the good news is she got into swimming lessons this year!! That is going to be fun to watch. Don't even get me started on the process of how they register kids...I have thought of at least 5 different ways they can do it differently but what do I know really? I am sure they have thought of them too but can't make it work? Not sure...All I know is I WON!

2) Church Family Beach Day. Yep...Betcha' you wish you were here for it! We are planning a church family get together where we are going to spend the whole day at a beach just hanging out with each other. Our church family is great.

3) Time away in Toronto. My whole family and I are heading there for a conference. It will be great to see some good friends and just be together for that time. It will be busy but great.

I am sure I am missing some things we are doing before we go.

As a side thought...It seems as if time goes so quickly. When we get back from our holidays, our fall programs will be starting up, our kid will be starting kindergarten, we will be preparing for Christmas (I am not nutts...In The Salvation Army, well...where I am anyways I have to start planning for Chirstmas in September) next thing I know Christmas will be done, a new year will begin and God willing we will welcome an addition to the family. Life goes so fast. So this summer take some time to slow down and enjoy every moment you can with your family. Here is a quote I will leave you with I pray you remember this and enjoy the summer:

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."
— Maya Angelou

A Little Funny Goes a LONG Way!

2011-05-31T16:16:00.004-05:00

In a world that is so full of sadness, disappointment and pain don't you think that we all need a little funny in our lives? I do. I am blessed to have such a wonderful 4 1/2 year old child who truly is my funny bone and not the kind that hurts! Right now in the heavy mood that I am in, I really want to share some of the funny that she brings into my life...You may have heard some of these before but just in case you haven't here they are! Enjoy.

When she was 3 & 4:
(Dancing around in the living room pretending to teach a class)
Me: "What kind of dance do you teach?"
Kiddo: "Roll over, ballet and wiggle"
Me: "What time is your next class?
Kiddo: "6-0-4-8…I better be on time!" (Talking about me)

(She was not in the best mood at this point. We were in the car going home from somewhere) Kiddo: "Mom don't look at me, I'm lazy!" (She meant cranky).

Some of her funny sentences/word mistakes...

Kiddo: "Mommy, I have a headache in my stomach."

"I'm boring!" This one STILL makes me laugh.

"Can somebody help me a hand?"

After hurting her baby finger…in a whiny voice…"But that is my favorite finger of all, it is soooo small."

Talking about wanting a kitten or a puppy…"When I grow up I would really like a kittlette AND a puplette."

About the shrimp in her pasta: "I only like rotten shrimp" (She uses rotten for raw!)

Kiddo singing loudly in the car with her headphones on: "You are the ever lusty God…the ever lusty God (a pause)...What's lusty mean?" (This is when we quickly told her that the correct wording in the song is ever LASTING God...)HA HA HA!!

Running into the house after looking at our tulips in the front yard: "MOM!!! The Daisies are QUILTING!!" (Too cute.)

Our Kiddo and Mike (husband) were talking about the movie Mission Impossible and our kiddo told her Dad about a show she watched on TV and there are "Special Asians" on there too! She meant special agents!

Me: "Kiddo you are Wacky!!"
Kiddo: "Thanks!"

Kiddo was helping me cook in the kitchen (Pushing a chair to help me in the kitchen)Kiddo: "Whew!! This is difficult!!"..."What's difficults mean?"

Now before I share the most recent funny...You need to hear some exciting news of ours...We are expecting a baby! :) So here is the funny...

Once our kiddo found out she was going to be a big sister we started talking about hormones so she would understand why I am happy one second and crying the next...Well at the risk of being embarrassed, I had some gas and something slipped out and she says: "Oh Mom, don't worry, it’s just your hormones!"

Well...Hopefully this has helped lift your mood a little bit! I know it has lifted mine. Remember that God will always provide a way for us to smile even when times are tough!

Far From Friends

2011-05-23T22:01:00.003-05:00

Tonight I started to think about those friends I had way back in the day that sadly I have lost contact with. There are friends from junior & senior high school, college days, youth group days and some childhood friends that I really miss. I think of them often and wonder how we allowed ourselves to drift so far from contact.

I had a chat with one of these friends just the other night and I was able to catch up on her life. It felt so good to chat with her. She is one of those friends that you can not speak to for months on end yet it seems that God places us together just at the right time. When we reunite it is as if we had just spoken to one another just the other day. It is a neat feeling and I sure appreciate her friendship. Her name is Shauna. I am not sure if she reads my little blog but if you do...I want you to know how much I love you. We have seen each other through some tough times and I am so glad that God has brought you into my life. Let's try better to keep in touch. Coffee phone date? Maybe I can learn how to make your fabulous cake and you make one too and we can eat it "together". I don't care what we do...Let's just connect OK?

How about you dear friends? Is there someone in your life that you feel far from? If so, make a point to connect in some form. Let's try and not be so far from our friends. Take care.

Happy Bestie Day

2011-05-07T16:39:00.004-05:00

Hello Friends,

Well I am sure that all of us are aware of what tomorrow is. It is Mother's Day. You may question why I have titled my post the way I did...I will explain here.

First I want to say that I am not opposed to Mother's Day. You are 100% entitled to celebrate your Mother, you Grandmother, your Step Mom or celebrate because you are a Mother. I have no problems with that at all. Good Mothers deserve to be honored. In fact I too will be celebrating and I too will be celebrated because I have and am a Mother. Yet this day also brings some sadness to my heart as I think about my bestie. I love her with so much of myself that I hurt with and for her because her dream is to be a Mom and she has yet to celebrate a Mother's Day as a Mother. She has dreamed of being pregnant and of being a Mom for so many years. It just has not happened for her yet. My heart hurts for her with each passing year and even though I will celebrate tomorrow I will also be praying for her. Her and her husband (my other bestie) want a child so badly and they would be amazing parents. About 1/2 a year ago they had a little boy that they were allowed to call their own through adoption. Then suddenly the adoption was put to a stop. We cried together. When she got her period after thinking she could be pregnant, I cried for her. Her and her hubby suffer with millions of others with infertility. I question often like I am sure some of you do, why 15 year olds can get pregnant so easily and not want the child but my bestie who would be the best Mommy cannot get pregnant naturally. Some would say it is God's timing or that they need to learn something and my favorite as to why they have no children yet: God can use this in their ministry. That part is true I am sure but the truth is it doesn't make it any easier. The fact remains that this is another Mother's Day where once again her arms are empty and I can't help but think of her. So where I will be celebrating my own Mom and I will be celebrated as a Mom I am ever mindful of those who ache on Mother's Day for various reasons: infertility, a poor relationship with their own Mother, death of a Mother...the list can go on. I will be praying. I am also aware of how much I love my bestie and I will be celebrating her through prayer tomorrow. After all, she is a strong woman of God who I believe deserves to be celebrated!! So as you celebrate tomorrow, would you please celebrate my bestie and pray for her?

You my dear Bestie are an example of love. I appreciate you and feel honored that God has put you in my life. We will continue this journey together, the sorrows and the joys. Tomorrow, I will be celebrating you!!! Happy Bestie Day!

Tons to Celebrate

2011-04-27T22:40:00.003-05:00

SO this last while has been so busy that I feel I have neglected you my faithful readers. Easter was fantastic. How was yours?

We had some special guests with us during Easter. We had cadets (college students who are training to become pastors within The Salvation Army) While with us they were able to help us out in different ways. They also were able to observe our annual church review which went well I think. They did some visitation, a TV interview, the church review, colored eggs with my daughter and we had an Easter egg hunt! They also preached, lead Sunday school and helped us with our first ever outreach Easter breakfast. It was wonderful. We had over 60 people come out to the breakfast and 51 of them stayed for the church service. To me that is a success because that is 51 more people who were able to hear the message of God!! Our breakfast was yummy. My church family pitched in and the breakfast consisted of pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausages, hash browns, homemade muffins and fruit. Of course there was coffee and orange juice. It was a good time.

We had a good time with the cadets and this Friday is a big day for those of us in The Salvation Army...That is the day that moves come out. So for three of these cadets they will be receiving their first appointments and one will get their summer appointment. By the way, training is 22 (intense) months. So I am excited to hear where my friends will be going.

Now, a cute "funny" from my kiddo...Today while driving in the car I asked her if she likes living in the city we are in and she says "Yes." "But Mommy, is (name of city) a city?" I told her that yes, it is but a very small city. Anyhow, we were on the topic of moving someday and she said "I would like to move one day to a different place...(a bit of a pause)...I think we will move to Africa one day." I really didn't know what to say...Does my four and a half yr old know something I don't? Hmmmmm. I asked her why she thought Africa and she didn't really know. It wasn't because she wants to go there, she said she just thought of it. So if one day we are in Africa, we will know that my kiddo called that one! :)

Well, that is all I have for you now....I would love to hear how your Easter was.

Back to Life as I Know It

2011-04-11T12:30:00.003-05:00

Hello...
So I do have some catching up to do when it comes to letting you know what I have been up too. On March 18th my hubby and I had to leave our sweet 4 1/2 yr old behind and fly two provinces away for a mandatory conference/course that kept us away for two weeks. Was it hard leaving our girl behind? You may ask...For me ABSOLUTELY!!! For her...Ummmmm Not so much! I managed to get her on the phone only once while I was away. I heard her in the background chatting and playing but once asked if she wanted to talk to me I would hear her reply, "Nope, that's ok, I'm busy." and off she would skip to play again. I guess I was glad she was content but it would have been nice to hear from her more. You may be wondering who we left her with for so long. Well, all I can tell you is that they were the PERFECT people. She is our little ones daycare director (so our girl was in her same routine of going to daycare everyday) and her husband is a city police officer. The couple also has a teenage boy who I trust. So that part made it really easy for me to go. When I got home, the lady I left her with told me that she has never in her life met such a secure child. I felt proud but I know it is only by the grace of God that our girl is the way she is.

The first week away was enriching! We were able to fellowship with our friends and peers who we went to school with. It was wonderful. The weekend we had a break so we traveled to some college mates hometown and had a wonderful weekend there! The second week we did an intensive course on the book of Genesis. Again this was so great! Have you ever really read the book of Genesis? What I will say about it is this...If it was a movie it certainly would NOT be G rated!! Not even PG! There is so much sex and violence in the first book of the Bible that if they were made into movies, I may not watch them! Shocking material. The point I learned the most out of this course is the fact that people are people are people...Meaning, people are the same today as they were in Bible days. We need a Savior just as much today as they did in Genesis. Here is a challenge for you...If you are looking for scandals, deceit, sex, violence etc...(I don't know why you would be but if you watch it on TV already...)put away the trashy romance novels or quit watching TV and read the Bible! Genesis to be exact. Might I suggest chapter 38? Read it and go see what I mean. By today's standards, that chapter would make a good movie. Or chapter 34 which entails some sexual violence and the revenge of it. Or chapter 27 which features family betrayal when the younger brother deceives his father by tricking him into giving him a blessing that in those days, belonged to the firstborn. OHHHH the drama! Yet the message is all the same. I believe that sin is born out of selfishness. All people need redemption. Genesis although filled with horrible scenarios of selfishness tells us that we need saving. We need redemption and a Savior. Do you know Jesus? He is THE Savior. If you want to know more about Him, just let me know...I will tell you.

The Bible can make a person question many different things. A big question I get is "How can you believe in God, when so many bad things happen?" or "How can someone have faith when God let's them down?" Take for instance a person who has lost a spouse or a child. They may question why it happened, which is normal. My answer would be to use the example of an earthly parent who walks hand in hand with their child. Just because the parent walks with them, doesn't mean they won't fall down and scrape their knee. It does mean that the parent is there to pick the child up, hug them, help the hurt if they can and unconditionally love them. Did the parent want the child to fall? Absolutely not. Does God want bad things to happen to us? Absolutely not. God does promise to be with us and love us unconditionally no matter what our circumstances are. He does not cause bad circumstances but He does walk with us through them if we let Him. Well, I do have so much more to tell you but I fear this has gone on long enough and you may be bored of reading...I will write more at another time. Remember, if you want to know more about God, just ask.

Please forgive the errors of spelling and grammar. God Bless and keep you all in His hand.

Back In Action

2011-04-02T20:44:00.002-05:00

Hello...
I just wanted to drop you a line to let you know that I have not fallen off the face of the earth. I have just been MIA for the last couple of weeks as I was a couple of provinces away. So just hang tight because I lots to tell you but I also have a few really busy weeks coming up. After some of the busy work is done I will report in. I am still here tho! :) Take care my friends.

Growing Pains

2011-03-06T16:28:00.003-06:00

Just the other day I did something that was painful. Not the kind of pain where you stub your toe or bang your head...None the less, it was painful. Just the other day, I registered my baby for kindergarten!! My life is changing...Never mind HER life.

My kid is growing up yet I am the one with the growing pains.

I have experienced growing pains. Here is how:
First, the moment I took that test that told me I was pregnant, I became a mother. I was no longer just a wife, at that moment I was responsible for another life. Let the growing pains begin.
Second, as my belly expanded as God knit my daughter together in my womb, I experienced the pains and joys of pregnancy and giving birth. Growing pains.
Through all the wonderful events such as breastfeeding, potty training, sickness, dance recitals, swimming lessons and many others...I have experienced growing pains. As I watched my baby grow into a wonderful little girl I experienced growing pains. It is hard for me to watch my only child grow up. I have changed to meet her needs. I became a mother. A Mom who hugs her, teaches her to read, wipes her nose and wipes her tears. It seems as if I can physically see her growing...I mean I know I can't really, but it seems as if I can and as she is growing...I feel the pains.

As I mentioned at the beginning, I registered my daughter for kindergarten the other day. Now, I could have called and registered her that way but nope, not me. I had to go down to the school and see it, ask all the right questions and meet her new teacher. Turns out that I know her teacher. That is a relief. It makes the pain of letting her go to school a little easier. So as we cross this new bridge, I feel the growing pains. I am now entering a new phase in my daughters life. It is not just a new phase in her life, it is a new one for us as parents. The phase of school days. **Sigh** I know it is only kindergarten but once she starts that, there is no going back. Next thing I know, she will be coming home with huge papers to write, clubs to be involved with, hard decisions to make such as to drink or not to drink, dating, sex, drugs, parties, sleepovers, driving....AHHHHHH!!! There is no stopping this! IIIII have growing pains. As she grows I have to as well. I need to have the knowledge and wisdom to answer some potentially difficult questions.

The only peace I have, is in knowing that we are raising a girl who loves God. We are trying our best to train up our child in the way she should go...just as the Bible tells us too. Our prayer is that she will not part from these ways.

So, my little girl is growing up and I have the growing pains. I am thankful for each stage of her life because it means that I grow as well. I pray that God keeps us all close to Him and close to each other as we take this next journey.

Personal Revival

2011-02-21T18:53:00.003-06:00

NOTE: This is not well put together (grammar/thoughts) but I really wanted a place to put these thoughts so if they seem scattered, please forgive me. I hope it gets you thinking as well.

Sooo what has been on my heart lately? A personal revival. I want a personal revival like Isaiah had. During his emotional difficulty in the year King Uzziah died (Isaiah 6:1) I want to be able to say like Isaiah did "I saw the Lord." For Isaiah, it must have been difficult for him to learn of the Kings death. We should know that King Uzziah was probably related to Isaiah and that the Kings death was most likely hard on Isaiah. More then that, the King was not living for the Lord. So he died while his life was not pleasing to God. That knowledge for Isaiah must have been emotionally devastating. Not only that, what about the financial implications of the Kings death? Isaiah was most likely being taken care of financially by the King but what was going to happen to Isaiah now that he was gone? So much to think about.

YET...during this what I could only assume to be a hard time for Isaiah, he "saw the Lord high and exalted..." THAT is where I want to be. I want to have a personal revival...What is a personal revival? It is seeing Jesus through every circumstance. It is seeing Him in the good and seeing Him through the bad. A personal revival is having Jesus. Having Jesus above me, below me, around me, Jesus on my mind, Jesus in my heart and Jesus on my lips. In all times of my life, I want to say just as Isaiah did that "I saw the Lord..."

I am doing a wonderful Bible Study that is all about Isaiah and currently I am preaching on Isaiah and the more I read about Isaiah...the more I want a personal revival. So here is what I am doing besides reading my Bible and praying:

1) I am setting up my prayer room more and more each day...it is becoming a wonderful refuge.
2) I am praying more and more with my husband and daughter.
3) I try and bring Jesus up at least once in every conversation...with words and without words...(that could be deep).

So that is where I am right now. I pray that you too experience a personal revival.

Overdue Update

2011-02-08T21:46:00.002-06:00

Hello faithful readers! Here is an update...

Janurary was super busy...We spent a lot of the month wrapping up Christmas activites. We have been preparing budgets, recipting donations and just trying to clean up after the crazy season.

February has been great so far. We had our retreat and what a treat it was! We were able to meet together with fellow officers (pastors) to get spiritually, emotionally and physically renewed. I was able to spend some time at the spa getting my feet pampered and the next day my sweet Mom in law and I soaked our bodies in a nice mineral spa. I spent the evenings playing games, talking and laughing with colleagues. I also was able to spend some relaxing evenings with my sweet husband as we hung out in our room with the fireplace lit. It was really refreshing...

We came home and hit the ground running...We are currently really excited about our family Bible Study nights. We encourage families to come out on Tuesday nights and we begin the evening all together with prayer. Then the adults stay with me for a lesson while the kids go with my hubby to "Kings Kids" for thier lesson. Then when we are done the kids join us again, let us know what they learned and we close the evening with a bit of fellowship and prayer. It is a wonderful time of fellowship.

Well, this is the update so far. I will try to be more diligent in keeping you up to date on what we are doing. Thanks for not forgetting me! :) Take care!!

Our Merry Little Christmas/Boxing Day

2010-12-28T10:04:00.007-06:00

Merry Christmas everyone! I would like to share with you a bunch of pictures having to do with how my family celebrates Christmas. It starts with Christmas Eve service.

Here are some pictures of how we decorated the church for the candlelight service...This is actually on boxing day as I was way too busy to take pics at the service. I didn't include how the piano was decorated with five hurricane candle lamps or the beautiful table that had the food on it...Trust me, they were gorgeous! Anyhow here are a few:

So that was our Christmas Eve...Now I would like to show you our Christmas tree and some of the food we had. Now I mentioned last year that we don't do the traditional turkey supper. Instead we each choose a favorite dish or two and that makes up our meal...So here is what you are seeing...First you are seeing our Christmas tree. Of course front and center is our awesome nativity scene...You can click on the pics to see them bigger (I hope). Then you see our napkins and some raspberry bubbly and my favorite pop...Pineapple! Then there is our supper. We had surprise spread, shake and bake chicken wings, stuffed mushrooms, homemade beef jerky, curly fries (4 yr old's pick), chocolate covered strawberries, grapes, steamed carrots and asparagus, some pickles and olives and some ham coil and a bit of imitation crab. It was so yummy. To decorate the table I moved the nativity scene to the center of the table to help us remember why we are celebrating. It was so yummy. I have TONS of food left over!

Finally, I would like to share another tradition we have. A lot of people have Christmas stockings...and in those stockings is usually a piece of fruit. Well instead of the traditional apple or orange that my husband and I grew up having...We decided to always have a pomegranate in the toe (however this year we opted to have pomegranate juice) and then we choose a different fruit to share/learn about and we eat it at breakfast on boxing day. This year we had a Dragon Fruit. It was pretty good. It seems to be a cross between a kiwi and a pear. Here are the pictures of it:

Well, that is just a little picture of our merry little Christmas...How was yours?

My Community

2010-12-19T15:21:00.002-06:00

I have to say...I LOVE where I live. My community is so loving and caring. Here is just one example of why I really love this community:

Word got out that a family (not a rich family, poor family, popular family...one with significant influence etc.) needed support. So my community that I love stepped up. This family recently found out that their eight year old boy has cancer. This means that he had to travel to a different city to receive radiation and chemo treatments. Now, the Dad of this family is with his son while living at the hospital which leaves the Mom at home with her daughter (who my daughter danced with last year) AND her newborn daughter who is just six weeks old. To top it off, the Dad just recently donated a kidney to a family member so took time off of work to heal and he was just getting back to work when his son got sick. So here is what my wonderful community did:

1) The call went out for prayer. (This was pretty much the first thing that happened)
2) A group (the kid's school, the Dad's company and a community program that the kids attend) organized a benefit brunch.
3) A trust fund was set up at a local bank for the family.

Today, my family attended the brunch where a silent auction was set up. It was just so wonderful to see so many people come and surround this family. I was able to see the Mom, hug her and let her know that we are here for her. I live in a wonderfully supportive community.

After the yummy brunch, we headed to church where I was able to spend time with my church family. I feel full in every way today. God bless my community and church family who make my life so rich.

An Update

2010-12-08T18:05:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone...

I am sorry it has been so long since I have been here. Tis the season! It is super busy these days and yet I am feeling calm and peaceful.

Our kettle campaign is going well, hamper applications are in, our "Adopt A Family" program is well on the way and our hampers are being put together! This is a very generous community and I feel blessed to be a part of it.

Also, my Mom and Dad were here for almost a week. We did such a wonderful job of creating a holiday feel that it seems like Christmas should be over already. I am glad it is not.

This year is different. Last year was our first year as Salvation Army officers and the Christmas season was very different. I felt tense because I was learning all about ministry here. Now with one year under my belt, I feel GREAT! I feel organized and as if I have a good handle on all that takes place during the Christmas season here.

Although Christmas will never be the same as I remember it as a kid...we are creating new traditions and I still enjoy the entire Christmas season. It is super fun!! Well, I have to admit...I am so exhausted so my post is quite thoughtless and boring...I will get back into the groove later... :)

What are you doing for Christmas?

Kick Off CRAZINESS!

2010-11-20T16:23:00.003-06:00

Yesterday was a crazy day. It was the kick off for our kettle campaign. This year we launched a new campaign called "Cash for our Community". We asked companies and individuals to take a jar and get creative on how to fill it. They were asked to come down to the Canadian Tire and drop off their jars between the hours of 12-5pm...Anyhow...Here is what went crazy...

We woke up that morning excited to "kick off our kettles" and that morning the guy we had hired to drop off/pick up kettles called in sick. What made it worse is that we had to assemble the new stands as well as drop them off. I also had to scramble to find someone to take the shift he signed up for from 10-2!! Anyhow, not a big deal...We just had to do what we had too. So we would get our girl to daycare and then drop the kettles off and race over to Canadian Tire to set up for the kick off. WELLL...we went to start the van to transport some larger items we needed for the kick off and...Yep! You guessed it, the van would not start! GRRRR! Thank God for a man in our church who has a truck and offered to help us out. I am thankful.

Anyhow, as the day went on we only received a total of 5 jars. We think this happened for a number of reasons: it is a new campaign so it will take a bit to catch on, we had a horrible cold snap, people just forgot...We know that there are more jars out there and the radio is going to remind people to bring them down to us sometime. Anyhow we set our kick off goal higher this year but we did not meet it. That is very disappointing but it is a new campaign still. We did manage to bring in about $4500-$5000 so that is GREAT! Even though it was down $3000 from last year, it is a good way to start our campaign. Plus we feel good about having our own campaign instead of copying another organizations campaign. So that in itself is a success.

Anyhow, I am officially counting down...After today I only have 19 days of kettle shifts to fill!! Actually less because of the "Adopt A Kettle" campaign! THAT has been very successful so far! Well, that is all I have for you today. I am going to go and look over my sermon and rest a little bit! Take care.

A Divine Meeting and A Spiritual Awakening

2010-11-17T10:47:00.004-06:00

I wanted to tell you about a divine meeting I had on Monday. I woke up ready to head to my little girls daycare to have a meeting with the daycare director. We were going to talk about the daycare participating in a program that is new for us this year called "Adopt A Kettle". Also since the daycare is in a seniors home I wanted to invite the kids to join us as we do some caroling and pass out sunshine bags to the residents.

Well...God had different plans. We started our meeting by just talking and before we talked about the business we had planned, the daycare director ended up responding to God by giving her life to Him. Our meeting was right in the cafeteria and at that moment the cafeteria became holy ground. At that moment, this very ordinary place was transformed into a life changing place. It was here that we bowed our heads as she surrendered her life to Jesus. I am amazed at what God does.

I have always known that God doesn't always bring others to Him solely in the church. Actually recently it seems that more people are coming to Him outside of the building. Whether it was at the Thrift Store counter as was the case with one of my employees, sitting in my office with the mother of a member of the church, on the telephone with a woman recently widowed or in a cafeteria...God works wherever we allow Him to. We just have to be sensitive to God leading us and He will in turn lead others to Him.

Be open, be sensitive, get out of the church and be ready for the divine meetings.

2010-11-14T15:28:00.002-06:00

Hi. I have a prayer room. Well, I have a prayer room in the making. It isn't all set up the way I want it yet but it will get there. The important part is that I have a place of my own that I can go to read God's word, meditate, worship, journal and of course pray. It has been such a blessing. I make sure to wake up earlier then Mike...which isn't hard and I slip into the room and spend some time in there before making breakfast for my family.

This room is important for so many reasons but the biggest perk for me is having my four year old wanting to join me in the morning. It was on the second day that I went in to my prayer room when my little girl asked if she could come too. I have two comfy chairs, two shelves and soon a coffee table...Anyhow, I walked into the room with my girl in tow I sat in one chair and she sat in the other. I opened my Bible and she quickly ran out of the room and came back holding her Bible. So together we rocked in the chairs and I read my Bible and she "read" hers...(flipped through looking at the pictures). I found myself lost in prayer as I rocked in my chair with my Bible placed open on my chest. I forgot she was in the room until I opened my eyes to see her eyes closed, rocking in her chair with her Bible open as she hugged it to her chest.

So my prayer room is not just a benefit for me. I have always known that it is important for kids to see their parents in action spiritually but and I have really experienced this truth. Seeing my daughter spending time with God is wonderful. One day I was busy in the kitchen getting a meal ready and my little one came to me and said, "Mom, may I go into your prayer room so I can have some God time?" I was so touched. Especially when I looked in on her and she was there rocking in her chair and flipping through her Bible. What a blessing. Now any time that I walk out my bedroom door in the morning she rushes out of her room to meet me and together we go into the room and begin our day...

A New Life Begins

2010-11-10T21:25:00.003-06:00

God is good!

So I went to the office today as usual. I was answering phones, paying bills, signing people up for kettle shifts, getting ready for 24/7 prayer meetings held at our church, scheduling more meetings, booking food bank appointments and returning phone calls. Well today I returned a phone call to a woman who wanted to volunteer her time doing whatever we needed. We got to talking and I learned that she was recently widowed. She is trying to fill her time up and keep busy. Anyhow, I felt God telling me to speak to her about Him. So we got to talking and she shared a lot about her past and her life. Well, today was the day that she was ready to give God her life. She was ready to allow God to help her heal she was ready for Him to take away her guilt and other baggage that she was carrying...So over the phone we prayed together and it was then that she asked the Lord to take her life. I have not met this woman before and I am thankful for the telephone. We have set up an official meeting for Monday. I am excited to meet my new sister in the Lord! Not only did she give her life to the Lord, she signed up for a kettle shift every day (except Tuesdays) until they end...This is another blessing from God. So Lord...Thank you for this day. Please surround my new sister in the Lord with your love and peace this night. Thank you for your love. :)

A Beautiful Life

2010-11-06T19:54:00.003-05:00

Those who know me know that I love life. In fact I have two shirts (in different colors) that say "Life is beautiful" and it is! I am blessed for many reasons but I consider myself really blessed because God allows me to be with people as they walk through their lives. I encounter some people who are riding the highs of life and I am also blessed to walk with people who are struggling to keep their heads above water in the seas of life. God seems to put me "in the right place at the right time" and this happens on numerous occasions. Allow me to share the most recent one:

Mike and I were up at the local TV station chatting with people after we finished an interview. As we were there talking to people, a young man walked in. He looked familiar (he had come to the church once) he wasn't in the habit of going to church but he was staying with a friend who came one morning so he tagged along...Anyhow, turns out he remembered us and we got to talking. Sadly, his Dad had passed away the night before and his Mom was sitting in the truck. He asked if I could possibly go and talk to her. She had just moved here from another province and had no one else. Without hesitation I went out to the truck to say hello while Mike stayed and talked to the young man. I listened to her share her sorrow and I was able to be there for her. It turns out that she was having a tough time feeling at peace with her husbands decision to be cremated. After our talk, I ended up at the funeral home with her. Her son didn't want to view the body so I offered to go with her. The look of relief on her face was so rewarding. So right after our talk I hopped in the car and met her at the funeral home. I went in the room with her and watched as she said her good byes to her dear husband. I watched and listened as she talked to her husbands shell of a body. You could tell she loved him dearly. If she could have taken him out of the casket to hold him, she would have. She kissed him and told him she loves him. I felt honored to be with her. After she said her good byes I got a tissue (for both of us) and I prayed for her as we stood before her loved ones casket. After that she wanted me to be with her as she talked to the funeral director. After the meeting we embraced. We exchanged phone numbers and she said she would like to come to church. I really hope she does so she can feel the support of others around her during this difficult time. So that was my most recent experience.

So as you can see, I lead a beautiful life because my life is not my own. I have committed it to God and have asked Him to lead me. I pray that He gives me many more divine appointments like this one. It is during these times that I can share about Jesus and the beautiful life He offers!

Creative Pumpkins

2010-11-02T18:56:00.005-05:00

So...We just passed Halloween and I wanted to show you our creative pumpkins.

First here is Mike's pumpkin...It turned out really well!

It was game day for the Rough Riders so he thought it was an appropriate choice. I think so too.

Next was my idea. This is what would happen if a pumpkin ate too much candy!

I put bits of candy in the pumpkin guts and I placed candy wrappers all over the step! I think it is yucky but also creative and fun!

Then of course there is our 4 year olds pumpkin. She specifically asked for it to have two teeth and two tongues...So there it is!

We had a lot of fun this year. It is also a wonderful opportunity to share the love of God. One year before we had a kid, I made up treat bags and put a nice Scripture verse on the outside of the bag and a church business card on the inside for the parents. It was a way to share about our church.

After our kid came along, we made sure to trick or treat in the area where the church was. As people were opening their doors to share their candy, we took the opportunity to share the love of God by introducing ourselves and passing them a little flyer about what The Salvation Army was doing in their community. It was super awesome and many people wanted to chat. So you see, a holiday is what you make it. Our founder (of The Salvation Army) William Booth once said, "Why should the Devil have all the good music?" In the same way, why should the Devil have all the good holidays? As Christians, we don't make Christmas about Santa (well we don't anyways) and as a Christian, I won't make Halloween about Satan. However, I will take this opportunity as people are willingly opening their doors to us to give a smile, meet my neighbors and share the love of God where I can!

Well, that is just my view of Halloween. There was a time (many years ago) where I would lock myself downstairs with the lights all off and ignore all those freeloading kids out there who just wanted my chocolate bars! Not anymore! I see it as being a part of my community and I will take advantage of getting out there and sharing God's love when ever the opportunity opens the door!

Oh, The Masks We Wear...

2010-10-30T22:06:00.005-05:00

This sounds like a post that could be really deep. Well it is NOT! I simply wanted to show you a project that my hubby is working on. He is super creative...

As you know, Halloween is tomorrow. We enjoy dressing up and going out as a family as our lil one trick or treats...Well, she is only 4 so she doesn't do any tricking...I hope as she grows up she doesn't start tricking either. Or I hope she doesn't get caught by me anyways. :)

Alright back to my creative husband...He is making a mask. A Batman mask to be more specific. He has shaped it out of wire and then he covered it with duct tape. Next he will spray paint it and it will be done. Isn't that neat? When it is finished I will show you the finished product...He is always coming up with fun things.

At a later date, I will share some pictures and share some other ideas that we have done on Halloween in order to share God's love during this day.

Anyhow, are you doing anything special for Halloween? We are doing the normal "candy walk" and visiting some people from the church. Should be fun! Take care and be safe!!

A Rewarding Day

2010-10-27T14:32:00.003-05:00

So yesterday was a rewarding work day. I tried to take yesterday as my study day and for sermon prep...and well...you know how that goes! Instead of getting my study time in, I found myself dealing with two people who are dealing with very emotional incidences that had occurred during the day/evening. One was with helping someone in the Corps and the other was with a very dear friend. I like that part of my job. I like that I am a person that people can come to with tough life issues. It is always nice to have someone there for you. Anyhow...after dealing with these situations, I was going to settle down and get some more work done and then just relax for a few moments before bed when the phone rang at 10:30pm. It was the police station wondering if we (The Salvation Army) had some blankets, sleeping bags and pillows that we could take up to the high school. Apparently a bus full of a high school football team was heading to an out of town game and because of the HORRIBLE weather here (storm watch) the bus hit the ditch. This left 55 people stranded in our town. So instead of resting and relaxing, off I went into the blustery weather to see what I had for blankets at the Thrift Store...Between us and a hotel we were able to make sure each person at least had a blanket. I wanted to make sure that the team had some hot chocolate for the night so I packed up all the things I needed for that and headed to the high school. Once I was satisfied that everyone was alright I made the trip home and by this time is was well after midnight. Of course I couldn't sleep when I got home...To pumped up from the day/evening.

So the day was rewarding. Sure, I had planned it one way but it ended up being MUCH more fulfilling because God planned it better. :) Well...I am tired. I might try and nap.

Challenge # 15

2010-10-25T21:28:00.003-05:00

So today marks the half way point of this challenge. I am glad I decided not to do one a day. I have taken much longer to do this challenge and I am glad. Some of these challenges are difficult. Also, I am extremely busy these days so I don't get to blog as much. But here it is...

The person I miss the most...

I don't know who I miss the most. I miss many people. I miss people who have passed away, I miss people who are still living. So I don't really miss one person more then the other.

However, tonight I was talking to my bestie and I could say that right now, I miss her the most. My bestie has been through some tough situations lately and I really wish I could be there for them. I say them because I consider her hubby to be one of my besties too...He is actually my husband's best friend but really the four of us are really close. I think they would agree with me! Actually there have been times where I have called to talk to her and I end up talking to him much longer then her. I love them both dearly and I miss them. I wish we lived closer so we could support one another more as we serve God. Anyhow...I miss you besties! Love you.

The picture above is of my besties reading my daughter what happens to be his favorite story. :)

My Funny Girl

2010-10-18T20:05:00.002-05:00

For all the parents out there...Or future parents...Have you ever been afraid that you were going to ruin your kid's life? Well, I have to tell you that yesterday I didn't just ruin my 4 year olds life...I ruined her WHOLE WORLD! Here's what happened:

I had to punish her for a bad choice she made and as she was in her room she yelled "Mom, when you get me in trouble you ruin my world!" Soooo being the mature adult I am, I informed her that when I have to punish her it ruins my world too! Even though she was serious, it was cute.

Another cute thing from her today...

Megan (holding her pink bunny hug)"Mom, may I wear my hunny bug today?"

Too cute.

Challenge # 14

2010-10-17T16:53:00.004-05:00

There may be some weird sentences but I DON'T care today! LOL!

I thought I would remind you of the challenge I am working through...Here it is and I would like to see you take it up:

30 Day Challenge: Tell a little about the following...

Day 1 — Your Best Friend
Day 2 — Your vices
Day 3 — Your parents
Day 4 —Your siblings
Day 5 — Your dreams
Day 6 — Someone that inspires you
Day 7 — Your job
Day 8 — Your favorite internet friend that you’ve never met
Day 9 — Someone you wish you could meet
Day 10 — Someone you don’t talk to as much as you’d like to
Day 11 — A deceased person you wish you could talk to
Day 12 — Your dream vacation
Day 13 — Something you’re looking forward to
Day 14 — Someone you’ve drifted away from
Day 15 — The person you miss the most
Day 16 — Someone that’s not in your state/country
Day 17 — The place you wish you were from
Day 18 — The person that you wish you could be
Day 19 — Something that makes you different
Day 20 — Your favorite television shows
Day 21 — Someone you judged by their first impression
Day 22 — Your pet peeves
Day 23 — The last person you kissed
Day 24 — The person that gave you your favorite memory
Day 25 — A life changing moment
Day 26 — The last person you made a pinky promise to
Day 27 — The thing you most enjoy doing
Day 28 — Someone that changed your life
Day 29 — Your talent
Day 30 — Your reflection in the mirror

Someone I have drifted away from...

I have drifted away from many people that I really didn't want too. You know how it is right? Well, I hope I am not alone in this! But the truth for me is that life changes. It doesn't just change, it morphs into something completely different! Let me explain...There are a few people that I love so dearly but I have drifted away from because life happened. My life before I met God was completely different then now. For example, before I met God I was into drinking and partying...and some other activities that I am not proud of. So what happened is I hung out with people who accepted what I was doing...I hung out with people who also drank and partied so we got on very well. BUT my life changed and I found my fulfillment in God and didn't need the drinking and parties any more. So naturally what happened was I drifted away from the the friends I drank with. I remember being younger and I would get a call to go to a party but at that time in my life, I was more excited to go to youth group. I would try and invite my buddies to youth group but they opted for the parties instead. I felt the sadness when eventually the phone calls stopped. Do I miss those friends? ABSOLUTELY! I had a core group of girl friends that I considered close to me before I met God. I do keep in touch with two of those friends as much as possible now that we are adults but I am sad that I have drifted away from the others. I think of them often and I pray for them. So to "my" girls...Angela, Becky Charma and Tara...I may have drifted away but you are thought of often. Well,I could talk all day/night about this topic because there are many more people that I have drifted from...All I can say, is I miss them.

Challenge # 12

2010-10-16T21:39:00.002-05:00

Something I am looking forward to...

Hmmm, I haven't really thought about anything immediate. So I will go into the future: I am looking forward to seeing my daughter grow up and I am looking forward to seeing what God does in her life. I am also looking forward to seeing what God does in my personal life and in the life of my husband, I am looking forward to growing old with my hubby (God willing). I am looking forward to seeing the kingdom of God!! I am looking forward to seeing my extended family members come to God and serving Him...I look forward to spending time with God and getting to know Him more and more...Well, that is what I am most looking forward too.

I am sure I have other exciting things coming up but to be quite honest I have learned not to get too excited over things that may happen because as life has taught me...things change. Plans change and that is just part of life. So instead of getting excited about what may happen, I choose to get excited about the things that I KNOW will happen...Spiritual growth and the things of God. THAT is what I look forward too! God never disappoints! :)

Challenge #12

2010-10-13T23:25:00.004-05:00

Picture 1: Camping up North
Picture 2: Trip to Alaska
Picture 3: Hawaii

My Dream Vacation(s)...

I have a couple of dream vacation scenarios:

1) The 1st scenario would involve my hot husband (just the two of us), a beach, clear blue waters, HOT weather, romantic sunset walks on a beach, candle lit dinners (that I didn't make), no agendas, no planned sight seeing or schedules...etc. So that is the romantic me's dream vacation...Not too original is it?

2) The 2nd scenario would involve my husband (shocker) and my sweet preschool daughter. I would love to take my daughter on a Disney cruise. I just think it would be a fun family vacation. Now to be fair, we did go to Hawaii together and that was absolutely beautiful! So I am not sure if this dream vacation will ever happen but you never know. To be real, anywhere I go with my family is great! We can have fun together anywhere.

3) The 3rd scenario would involve me and maybe 1-2 close friends going to a spa resort. A weekend get away. That would be FUN! This one doesn't seem too unattainable. I am not so great at doing things just for me so I am not sure how quick this would happen...We shall see.

Well, that is what I have...I would also REALLY love to visit Italy, Scotland and the Holy Land. HUGE dreams I know. But, like I said, where ever my family is I am happy. Camping, long road trips, staying at hotels, swimming...it is great.

Well that is that. :) Where would you like to go?

Challenge # 11

2010-10-09T21:56:00.004-05:00

A deceased person I wish I could talk to...

Well, right away I think of my Grandparents on my Fathers side. I have so many fond memories about hanging out with them. As a small child I can remember wearing a HUGE over sized hat and going out into a raspberry patch to pick some berries with my Grandma. I can remember going to their home to visit and being welcomed with a piping hot bowl of borscht that was made just because we were visiting...YUMMM. My Grandpa taught me how to scale a fish and he had the BEST pool table downstairs. Whenever I see a pool table I think of my Grandpa with his tongue sticking out as he concentrated on the shot he was making during pool. Even now, it makes me smile. I can also remember being told that I would get a rug burn on my...bottom if I kept sliding down the stairs like I did...

I miss the good times. Both my Grandparents died while I was still young. So yes, I miss the good times but now that I am an adult I miss them more because I would really like to talk to them, get to know them. I want to know where they came from. It is like our parents. Most kids don't see their parents as people who have memories as well. They are just your parents but they had lives outside of you. Same with my Grandparents. Sure they spoiled me and gave me many wonderful memories but now I wish I could know some of their memories, what games did they play as kids? Where did they live? What were their parents like?...As an adult I want to know where my family has come come. I want to know where I came from. All the bumps and bruises all the successes and failures. I want to hear from them what their lives were like. I have been making it a point to talk to my Mom and ask her questions about her childhood and her life. Now that I am an adult and a Mother, I realize more than ever that my Mom is just as much as a person as I am. She had (has) a life outside of Motherhood....I want to know her. What about you? Who would you want to talk too?

Pictured above is 3 generations of girls that I hope get to know each other well!

Monday Check In

2010-10-04T19:01:00.003-05:00

Hi. :( Not too happy. I gained a pound. That is disappointing. I don't want to say too much but I think part of the reason is because my doc and I have made a change to a medication I was taking. Don't worry, I am alright. :) I will just have to work harder and be more conscious about what I am eating and how much I exercise. Well that is all for now! Take care.

Challenge # 10

2010-10-03T19:49:00.002-05:00

Someone I don't talk to as much as I'd like to...

Well...my family. I have many family members that I don't get to talk to as much as I would like too. I have Aunts and Uncles and many cousins that I have lost track of. It really makes me sad but it is a part of life. I have learned not to feel guilty or to take all of the ownership on myself for keeping in touch. What is that saying? "The road goes both ways"? Well...So does the telephone line. To be honest with you, I don't even talk to my own parents/in laws as much as I would like too. My siblings are also people I don't talk to as much as I would like. I have two nieces and four nephews that I don't talk to enough either...The list goes on. So yes, my family.

Many people come to mind...Neen, Becky S., Angela T...

A specific person that I would like to talk to more and I don't is my sweet friend Shauna. Her and I go way back and I view her family to be my family. We have known each other for many years and ANY time we talk it is as if there has been no time separation. I really like that about our relationship. So Shauna, if you happen to be reading this (which I doubt you are because you are a super busy person) lets try and talk more alright? Email, phone...what ever it takes! I love and miss you my friend!!

To all the people I would like to chat with more, lets try and do that alright? Drop me a line and I will write back...Or pick up the phone so we can chat! We CAN do it. :) Take care.

Check In & Meal Plan

2010-09-27T22:49:00.003-05:00

Hello!

Sorry it is late but I just got home. Well for the first time I don't have great news. :( It seems that I have gained 1.3 lbs. I am disappointed but I am not giving up! It was a crazy busy week and I had ZERO time to exercise and I went out for supper a couple of times where I could have chosen better...In my opinion. I mean I didn't eat fried food or anything but I did have potatoes at least 2 times this week and I did have some dessert. I don't feel guilty which feels GREAT! I will get back to eating healthier. I miss my exercise. Anyhow, I hope to report next Monday that I lost what I gained...Wish me luck and send a prayer up for me.

Here is my meal plan: You will see some repeats because I didn't get to use them last week.

Mon-We went to Apple Bee's I had steak tips, veggies and mashed potatoes (again with the potatoes) LOL!
Tues-Grilled Chicken Salad
Wed-Quesadilla Torte
Thurs-Sloppy Lentils (fresh buns) raw veggies
Fri-Borscht (beet & cabbage soup)
Sat-Chicken Wraps
Sun-Potluck (Haven't decided what to make yet)

Well, that is all for now! Have a good evening or day... ;)

A Day Off

2010-09-27T09:54:00.004-05:00

Hello Friends!

It has been a few days I know...Sorry. We have been SUPER busy and by the time the evening comes, I have no energy left to spend with you. However, today I am taking the day off!!! An actual real day off!! I get teased a lot because of what I call a day off. For me a "day off" would be going into the office without my uniform on and working...often hard cleaning the building or paying bills...what ever it is, I spend the whole day there. Well, today I am not doing that. Today I am going to hang out with my family. My Mom is here visiting. PLUS the last week has been crazy! I have been going hard since last Tuesday! My hours during that time were 9am-9pm...The odd evening during the week I was able to get home in time for my little one to go to bed. Here is why it was a crazy week:

-Sick staff so I had to cover
-Prepping for our 15th Annual food drive (which fell on the same day as our 1st Thrift Store Fall Fashion Show)
-So naturally I prepped for the Fashion Show
-I prepped for our prayer service for Human Trafficking
Then throw in 4 meetings that week and I was running constantly!

It was a lot of work. Here is how it went:

-The staff is slowly getting better...Thank GOD!
-The food drive began at 10am and was great in the way of volunteers! They were quick and we were very organized. Last year we were left to bring the food to the back ourselves...This year it was all sorted and brought for us. It was brilliant!
-Our Fashion Show which was at 2pm on the same day as the food drive was a HUGE success! I am still on cloud nine about it. God is good! We had a sold out crowd and had to turn two people away :( That was sad. Anyhow the cupcakes were amazing!! I heard so much wonderful feed back from the venture. One lady said, "I'm not waiting a whole year to come to another one! You have six months for the next!" Good feeling. At first we weren't sure how it was going to go because many other events were happening that day. Even another fashion show!! We went from selling only 20 tickets to having a sold out crowd!! I didn't have my camera but I will ask around so I can show you some pictures of it. Anyhow, it went wonderfully!!
-The prayer service was also good! Many people came out and took the time to visit the prayer stations I set up. It felt good.

So after this marathon of a week/weekend, I am going to spend time with my family. They are still in bed as of now so that gave me the time to spend with you! OH and I have yet to step on the scale and report my success/not so success...I will make sure to do so today soon! So check back sometime today for that update as well as my meal plan! :) Blessings!

My Busy Day

2010-09-22T20:58:00.002-05:00

Today was a fun day. It was super busy...I ended up going to the office by myself today for Food Bank appointments. After that I went and picked up Mike so we could go for nice lunch together and catch up on what is happening today...You know, we wanted to connect. Except that is not what happened. We found out during lunch that our appointment just after lunch was moved up so we had to rush to that meeting...To top it off, the lunch date we planned changed as well...I will leave the details about that event out for now. After the one meeting I had just enough time to make our yummy supper pictured above. Fettucini Alfredo with Garlic Shrimp, cucumber and cherry tomatoes. I literally had time to eat supper but I had to leave the dishes for my family (thank you family) to do because I was late for another board meeting tonight. Then I left that meeting and went to the prayer meeting at our church and now I am home! It was a fun and busy day!!!

I have a little more work to do tonight before I can really relax. I have another meeting first thing tomorrow morning that I need to prep a bit for...SO I need to sign off for now. Take care. :)

Challenge # 9

2010-09-21T20:37:00.002-05:00

Tell a bit about someone you wish you could meet...

Who would I like to meet? I think I would like to meet many Biblical "characters"...A lot of us think of the people mentioned in the Bible as just that...characters. Well, once I stop and think about these characters I stop and think, "WOW! These are REAL people, people who have been through many trials and have fascinating lives! People who have rubbed shoulders with Jesus!!" It is a long thought I know! One person from Biblical days I would really like to meet is Paul. If you don't know his story you should pick up a Bible and read about him go searching, you will find it!...What a story he has! He went from a person who persecuted Christians severely by putting them to death in a brutal manner, to becoming a missionary!! What a life change he had and I would love to hear about his travels and hear all about his trials of beginning a church. He was not always a liked man but he made it through and I believe he has heard God say, "Well done! Good and faithful servant." So, that is my pick. Paul. Would you like to meet someone from the Bible?

Three Posts in ONE day!!! WOW!

2010-09-20T22:08:00.002-05:00

This is crazy! You may think I have too much time on my hands but really it is the opposite...I am very busy that is why I have three posts on one day! LOL! If I would have planned this post out I would not have to do three separate ones. Anyhow, I said I would post my meal plan so here it is:

Mon-Pizza out at Yellow Grass (Church family Games and Pizza Night)...
Tues-Baked fish with rice and veggies
Wed-Homemade chicken veggie soup with homemade buns
Thurs-Grilled Chicken Salad and garlic cheese toast
Fri-Spagettini with homemade beef/chicken meatballs & tomato sauce
Sat-Quesadilla Torte

Hmmm, just noticed that I normally try and do two meatless dishes in a week but this one seems to have only one meatless dish (Quesadilla Torte). I may tweak this so one of the meals ends up being meatless.

What are you going to be eating this week? Anyhthing you are excited about??

Opps NEW total...

2010-09-20T11:55:00.002-05:00

The new total of weight loss is 14.9! Almost 15 lbs. The last time was 11.4 so plus an extra 3.5 would be 14.9 lbs right?!? Lets just go with that! LOL!

Monday Check-In

2010-09-20T09:49:00.002-05:00

Hi!

It is early but I just checked my weight and it looks like what I didn't lose last week...remember I stayed the same? Well it came off this week! I lost 3.5 pounds!!! So that brings me to 14.5 lbs total! Yippee! I needed that too boost me and encourage me to keep on track! :) I was thinking that I would like to share my meal plans for the week with you. That is another way of remaining accountable...Would that be alright with you? If so, I will post my plan for the week a little later today...

Have a good day and I will most likely be back later!!

Challenge # 8

2010-09-19T20:36:00.002-05:00

Tell about my favorite internet friend I have never met...

Well this one is easy. I don't have one. I have not made friends with anyone on the net that I don't know already...It may happen someday!

Let us move on to the day I had...
"It is church day!!! YAYYYYY!!!" As my 4 year old says. She LOVES going to church. However, today we had to stay home due to her fever and cold. She developed a cold the day before and we can't seem to get the fever to stay away. It was so hard because I sent my hubby off to church without us. Both my daughter and I wanted to go...especially because I was excited to do Sunday school with my kids. We thought of every possible scenario...Keeping her in the office by herself (away from the other people) but we figured that it wouldn't be fair because her Daddy would be preaching and I would be having fun with the kids downstairs. :( And the people who could have sat with her at church today while we did our thing are the ones who really can't afford to get sick as they are recovering from surgeries. And the other lady needs a lung transplant and needs to remain healthy...Turns out that we made the right decision by staying home because I found out that many families were away this morning due to sickness anyways. So if I brought her hoping for some people to watch her, we would have been in a jam. Plus it isn't fair to allow people around our sick kid. Anyhow, it was a challenge to stay home...My hubby did just fine. We hope to have her back on her feet in time for our church family hang out night tomorrow evening! She has been getting lots of sleep and I hope that tonight she stays asleep...Selfishly so I can too!! Well that was my day. I think I am going to curl up with my hubby, relax and watch a movie...Take care!

Challenge # 7

2010-09-18T20:32:00.003-05:00

Tell a bit about my job...

This is a picture of my family last Christmas...Thought I would share it with you. It was taken in our church.

Well for starters, my job is my calling. I am an officer (pastor for those who don't understand the term officer) within The Salvation Army. I adore what I do because of WHO I do it for. I minister for God.

At times it is very trying and I have learned early on NOT to ask God for patience!!! Why? You may ask...Well it has been my experience that if you ask God for something He will give it to you and the best way to give you patience is to place you in situations where you have to exercise patience. :) This has been the case for me. I am a work in progress and as I serve God it is my desire to continually grow closer to Him.

I do have the wonderful privilege of working with my best friend and the second(God being the first of course) love of my life...my husband. We work so well together. We balance each other and we absolutely LOVE spending as much time together as possible so this ministry for us is perfect! We get to go to the office together, and we get to leave together (most of the time). We are partners in life and work with God as our boss in both areas. I feel blessed and very privileged to be doing what I do.

In our particular ministry my hubby and I are responsible for the church, a thrift store and a food bank (the only one in our town). There is tons of potential in our little town of 10,000 people and we are excited to see what God does this year!

Can what I do be tough? It almost always is...Would I have chosen this life for myself? Nope...But since when do I know what is best for me? LOL! God knows best and He needed me. People are coming to understand God and His love and forgiveness and His grace. He has given me so much...How could I not give back? If I had a choice would I change my job? NO! Never. Partly because I know that if I don't obey what God as asked me to do, I would be horribly miserable. More importantly I would not change my job because I genuinely like what I do.

What about you? Do you like your job?

Challenge # 6

2010-09-17T16:24:00.003-05:00

Tell about someone who inspires you...

Who inspires me? Wow. That is a question. People in general inspire me. Particually people who endure hardships and are positive throughout it. I can think of a couple of people right away. My Mother & Father in law inspire me for many reasons...But I am not sure I can share much more about why without their permission first. So here are two others:

My school days friend Darcy from "Snips & Snails and Puppy Dog Tails"...I read her blog and as she was raising a young family she was also losing her bestfriend and husband to cancer. I followed her story through the ups and downs of her husband finding out he had cancer to the very sad announcement that she had lost him. To make matters worse, she lost her father I believe within days of losing her husband. Double the greif. She inspires me because all through this time she clung to our Father in heaven. She continued to remain faithful to Him. She shared her raw emotion with us and always directed her face to the Lord. So a shout out to you Darcy! You inspire me to be a better person, to look to God and to always remember that He will be with me. Feel free to look on my blog list and follow her blog.

Shannnnon & Jeffy. My besties inspire me. If you have been following my blog you know that these two people have been dealing with many difficult issues regarding infertility and adoption. Yet they seem to remain as positive as possible. Yes, Shannon will share how hurt she is and she shares how she has cried until her eyes are sore. She is real and her tears teach us that it's okay to have emotions. I am believing for them that they will have a child. God will give them one. Will you believe with me? Will you commit to pray for them with me?

Many other people inspire me. Today these are the three people that I have chosen to share with you. I may do another post oneday about some others...Take care and remember to inspire others with your care and concern and with your very lives.

Challenge # 5

2010-09-15T11:17:00.002-05:00

Tell a bit about my dreams...

Well, it is obvious that I was stalled on this question...

I am choosing to take this as what I hope and wish for. Not what I dream about while sleeping or what I day dream about during the day.

To be honest with you, here is why I stalled...I haven't really thought about my own personal dreams. I do have dreams but my dreams are for other people. So I guess my dream is to see my dreams for others fulfilled. I realize that I need to dream for myself as well and I probably should learn how to do that. Make sense? Until I learn how, here is what I dream:

For my best friends to become parents. For 7 long years I have journeyed with my best friend as she tried to conceive a child. I was with her (mostly on the phone) as we cried together as she discovered once again that she was not pregnant. And again when she found out that the likelihood of her getting pregnant was not good. She has allowed me to journey with her as they decided to adopt a child. It has been a roller coaster ride from the beginning. Just recently we were at the peak of the roller coaster as they found out that they were chosen to adopt a fantastic little boy. Well, just yesterday the roller coaster crashed. Again, we were together crying with heart break. If you want to know the story feel free to read her blog. It is on my list: "Thoughts and Feelings of a Wanna-Be-Mother". After all, it is her story to tell. But please, pray for my best friends...They need your prayers.

For my child to grow strong in the Lord and to serve Him with all her might. I want my daughter to grow up knowing who she is in God. I want her to know how precious she is to her Heavenly Father. We are doing our part as best we can as we raise her to know God but I dream of the day where she is living her life FOR God.

Hmmmm, I noticed that I am still very emotional about the journey my best friend is on and I can't really concentrate on this post. So I need to stop blogging for now so I can chat with her for a while. I hope to finish this another time. Meanwhile, please lift my best friends up in prayer. Thank you.

Monday Check-In

2010-09-13T23:02:00.001-05:00

I didn't lose weight but I didn't gain any either! I stayed exactly the same. I think if I would have exercised more this last week it would have been better. Hopefully this week is better. :)

How are you?

Day # 32-The End...Well Not REALLY...

2010-09-11T20:12:00.003-05:00

Hello my blogging buddies...

Well, I have reached day 32! I was wondering when I was going to stop blogging about/taking pictures of my various meals. Sadly, I have decided that tonight will be the last. This DOES NOT mean that I will be giving up this healthy lifestyle...It just means that you will be seeing less of it. I will continue to share my weight loss progress with you every Monday. From time to time I may share a wonderful meal we have had as well. Or something new we have done. :)

As you can see, I did take a picture of this meal. It was supposed to be Baked Salmon but I didn't have salmon. I used cod. It had spinach, fresh tomatoes, mushrooms and some Italian dressing mixed together and placed on top of the fish and baked. The cod tasted very strong but the flavor that was on the fish was very nice. Again with it was some rice, beans & carrots. The sauce from the fish would have been really nice on the rice but I just wasn't that hungry. Now...To conclude my time of sharing this journey I would like to share some things I have learned and will take from this.

1-Anyone can change how they eat and live. We are VERY busy people yet we still managed to make time to eat healthier and to get some family activity in. I have learned that I am worth it! I need to take the time to take care of myself and my family. YOU are worth it too! YOU should take care of yourselves!! Don't use the "I'm too busy to make prep for meals..." etc. because the truth is, you CAN do it. You may just have to adjust how you spend some of your time. I was so impressed with myself (sounds like I am bragging a bit) because not once did we eat out because "I ran out of time..." if we ate out, we chose to earlier in the day. :) So You CAN do it! You ARE worth it!!

2-I am shocked that I have eaten chips only twice during this whole time!! If you know me, you KNOW I LIKE my chips! Once was at camp and I only ate maybe 5 tops! The second time was because I was curious as to how my body would react. So I sent the hubby out to get the chips. Not just any chips...Salt & Vinegar! They blew my mind! The amount of salt was CRAZY! I drank so much water that night! Same kind of deal with the sugar. We have used pure maple syrup and honey (actually from a man who makes it here) which is the purest form. I have had one chocolate bar during this time and I have to say that I got a headache from it. I couldn't believe it!

3-Potatoes. In the old days, I would have made potatoes at least 3-4 times a week for meals. :0 I have not made potatoes once for a meal during this time. Whatever I ate for potatoes came from eating out. Now we did try eating couscous and quinoa and my family was alright with it but they sure enjoy the rice. I may add potato once a week but I know I will try different types of grains and rices.

4-I REALLY like beans.

5-I have not missed milk all that much.

6-How I eat determines how I feel. As a Mom I have felt so good knowing that I am teaching my impressionable little girl how to choose foods wisely. We have involved her with the shopping and we have discussed why some foods are not the best choices. As a wife, I feel great. I know that I am making choices for my family that will enable me and my hubby to be around longer. This means we can enjoy life together and most importantly, serve God and be good stewards of what God has given to us, this means our bodies as well.

7-Losing weight has been great, but feeling healthy is better!

Well, I thank all of those who have journeyed with my family as we did this challenge. I want to thank Alison for challenging us! We have changed our diets and we have changed our lives. We no longer eat out of cans or boxes, we have introduced beans and legumes into our diets, we have let go of sugar and salt and we have benefited for it! So, although the journey of blogging faithfully about this journey is coming to an end...Our new lifestyle will live on! I will be sure to update you when I feel the need. :) As I said I will continue to share my weight loss progress. This will also help me remain accountable...

Alright...If you are interested in learning how to begin this simple yet life enhancing change, just look at my blog roll and click on "Hospitality Haven" and ask Alison to hook you up with your personalized plan!! You won't regret it!

Again, thanks for following and continue to follow as I continue to share about our lives! God Bless!

Day # 31

2010-09-10T22:00:00.003-05:00

Our girl was sooo hungry she almost ate the plate!!
Hello...I will apologize in advance for this quick post. I don't have so much to tell you really. Our supper was good. I have made it before it was cantonese chicken, rice, corn and broccoli and cauliflower. Of course I made enough for left overs. I am super tired now because my family and I went out for a loooooong walk. I am about to sit down and do as little as possible! :)

OH I do want to tell you more about another switch our house is making. We are investing in some non toxic cleaning supplies, shampoo, toothpaste, even our vitamins are changing for the better. These products are so safe that none of the products have saftey caps on them...I know they won't hurt my kid/pet. But like I said, I am tired but I will tell you about them in another blog. I actually don't have them yet...They were shipped today and should get here on Monday...Until then, Chat later.

Day # 30

2010-09-09T18:45:00.003-05:00

Hello. Another busy day. I managed to get home and make supper tho! We don't have too long before we have to be out again so I wanted to get this update to you. Our lives will be pretty busy until...Well who am I kidding? We will ALWAYS be busy and I love it! Anyhow, I wanted to let you know that since we have taken up this challenge to eat only wholesome food, we have felt so good! I even managed to prep tomorrows supper.

Tonight we had Creamy Qunioa Primevera. Ummm, at first sight of it, I was not impressed. The taste was good tho! It was qunioa cooked in chicken broth and after cooked I added some cream cheese. I sauteed some garlic, onion, carrots, red & yellow peppers, mushrooms and added some spinach then after they were soft we added them to the qunioa and then topped it with a bit of cheese! It is a very filling dish. Well, I have to go and get ready for the next item on my agenda. We will chat tomorrow! =)

Day # 29

2010-09-08T20:39:00.002-05:00

WoW! 29 days have passed by fast! Today was a super crazy busy day. We had a "day off" today. Well what we call a day off anyways. We went into the office not in uniform and I cleaned part of the basement. Well a corner of it anyways. LOL! I made an area for our kids in the basement complete with two love seats a mat, and area for playing, a book shelf, a TV for some of our lessons...I am very happy with the little area. I am SURE my kids will love it too. Now, my body is sore! I did hard labor and it was worth it!!!

After our "day off" I can home for a short rest and then went grocery shopping so I could be prepared for our suppers. I was SO tempted to go out for supper but I really wanted something from home instead. So I grabbed some herb and garlic salmon from the freezer (M&M Meats) It was just sitting in the freezer and I needed to use it up. I was running out of time before our prayer meeting at the church so I just took some left over rice and threw in some peas and then did the left over corn. It was quite good. I also managed to make some bread...I substituted 1/4c of flour for flax seeds so we will see what happens with that recipe!

Have you tried anything new?

Day # 28

2010-09-07T21:43:00.002-05:00

Hello People.

Just thought I would tell you that today was a very busy and unpredictable day. I didn't get home today until 8:30pm. I left the house at 9:15 this morning. It seemed as if everyone needed us today! Anyhow, I didn't even get a chance to get home to make supper so we went out. I had a pork slovakia with a baked potato and some peas and a slice of garlic bread. It was good. I couldn't finish the baked potato, it was so big!

Anyhow, I am looking forward to being home tomorrow to make a yummy supper! Take care. I am tired. Going to unwind for a bit before bed. Take care!!

Day # 27

2010-09-06T19:28:00.002-05:00

Hey!

Well today has been such a nice holiday. I have done almost nothing. I say almost because I did get a lot done around the house. I have not gone out at all today and it was nice. Even better, it is raining out so it makes it easier to be home.

For supper tonight I made a yummy spaghetti & bean sauce. It had so many veggies in it as well as some beans. For veggies in the sauce we had onions, yellow peppers, carrots, broccoli and zucchini. It was very filling. I wish I would have had a salad with it. The garlic cheese toast was filling but the greens would have been nice to have. I have my meal plan all made out for this coming week so lets hope that we have good success.

I should also report that on Mondays we weigh ourselves to see our progress...So I stepped on the scale waiting to see if the Rotary lunch or pizza suppers affected my weight loss. I am very happy to report that the Rotary lunch and the pizza suppers did NOT affect my plan (which is to lose weight & feel healthy). In fact it did the opposite. I ended up losing another 4.2 lbs bringing my total loss to 11.4 lbs! Very satisfying. However, I am thinking I may see the pizza next week. I also thought I would see some weight come back on after Officer's camp...but I still haven't seen that. So that is good news.

Ok, so that is my report. I am going to go and join my family as we watch our lil ones baby videos...Take care my friends.

Day # 26

2010-09-05T00:16:00.002-05:00

Hi!

Well I have to say right off the bat, if there was a day to fail...Today was it. For supper we had pizza. I had two small pieces of ham, mushrooms and black olive pizza. It was made by a family from our church. It was good. I find I am drinking lots of water due to the salt intake. Other then supper I was good well sort of. We had an omelet, a waffle with fruit and a fruit smoothie for breakfast. We were too full to eat lunch (not good to skip meals I know) but we did have a snack of fruit before we set off on a nice hike through the trails around our little ones daycare. We were out exploring for about 40 mins before the nippers (mosquitoes) got to us.

Tomorrow we have a potluck at church and I am hoping that there is a lot of wholesome food. I know I am bringing some soup so I will be satisfied with that. What do you do at potlucks to make sure you eat well?

Day # 25

2010-09-03T21:53:00.002-05:00

Hi!

I have to make this short because I have a date to watch a movie with my hubby. That will be nice.

So today was a good day. I tried to have a day off...That never works. Oh well. I enjoy what I do. Ok, for supper as a family we made chicken kabobs. We each got to make our own and then we had rice and corn with it. It was really good. That is all I have for you. Later.

Day # 24

2010-09-02T19:27:00.002-05:00

Today we had minestrone soup (instead of canned tomatoes I used fresh). With it we had homemade garlic cheese toast. It was a tasty. I think next time I would use less pasta. But it was good. I plan to use the Wii again for my activity. I find it to be really fun and I get a good workout, depending on what I do. Well, that is all I have for you today. I am tired. Sorry for the boring post....I am sure they will get better! :)

Day # 23 & 30 Day Challenge # 4

2010-09-01T21:11:00.004-05:00

Hi!

Just to let you know that tonight the family went out to do some visiting tonight. A family from our church just opened a pizza and coffee bar so we drove out to check it out. We also had to support them by eating there ;)! So we ordered a pizza and it was good! They get all their ingredients fresh and they make their own pizza dough so it felt good. It wasn't a greasy pizza either. Just some ham, mushrooms and black olives and of course cheese! I think the only thing that came from a can was their sauce. Anyhow, it was good. Sorry I don't have a picture. I am happy to report that I was full quick! I have also already gotten in my 30 mins of activity for the day. Feels good. What do you do for activity?

Challenge #4: Tell a bit about your siblings...

Well ok...I have two older brothers. One is 5yrs older and the other is 7yrs older...I think. Anyhow, my bros mean the world to me! We are close. Our age difference when we were younger was challenging only because my bros usually didn't want their bratty sister hanging around. Now, we would do almost anything just to get together and catch up. I love them, even now when I think of the two of them I can't help but smile. Jason and I hold so many funny memories in our hearts and we can laugh for hours on end. We can also pick ANY random object and figure out a way to kill you with it so ummm...Don't tick us off! LOL! As for my bro BJ, I would say that our relationship tends to be more serious. We can talk about all the serious stuff and encourage one another to grow and shape up. I have felt bad about the way I have treated BJ in the past but I have come to realize that I treated him poorly sometimes out of my frustrations about where he is with God. We both know he should be serving God in different ways but I have learned to to love him better. I have learned to pray for him. The three of us are tight! We got each other's backs. When the tough times come, I KNOW I can call on my brothers and it is my hope that they know they can count on me. So here is a shout out to my bros!!! LOOOVEEE YOUUUU!

Now I do have to mention the siblings that I have inherited. BJ has given me a wonderful sister in DJ. She is a wonderful Mom and a beautiful sister. She is extremely talented at anything she touches...baking, toffee making, quilt making...etc. I love her. Jason...Welllll, Jason is working on getting me a new Sis...and from what I know of her, I am going to LOVE having her in our family! :) Hurry it up Jay! *kidding*...sorta'. Mike also has two bros that I have adopted as my own. Both are wonderfully talented. Ray can sing the phonebook and I would listen. Bill is ridiculously intelligent and too wise for his age. Both have married wonderful women who I adore. Bill's wife is so tender. I can talk to her about almost anything. I like that. Ray's wife is a fire cracker! We get along well. She is funny yet serious. I am so thankful for my siblings! So a HUGGGE shout out to you all! I love you!

Day # 22 & 30 Day Challenge # 3

2010-08-31T20:10:00.006-05:00

Hi!

Today was very good. I have felt FULL alllll day! Our supper was super yummy. It is called Ranch Chicken. Basically brown some boneless skinless chicken breasts in some olive oil. Add some chicken broth and some ranch dressing. I added onion. Cook the breasts through and then add a fresh diced tomato. Serve it with some pasta. Top the chicken with a little cheese. I added some peas (our lil ones choice). The sauce is yummy on the noodles as well.

The other picture is of the leftovers. I just diced the chicken breast that was left over into the two dishes with the pasta and peas. I topped it with cheese and there is our lunch. I think I will make something like this for the potluck on Sunday. It is something I know we can eat and get full and it will be a hit with others! For my Bestie...just take away the tomato and you will be fine! Just make sure to add a fruit or veggie to your plate for nutrition and color! :)

I am going to play on the Wii tonight for my activity. My family is doing it now. I am next! Now for the 30 Day challenge # 3: Tell a bit about your parents.

Well, I could say a lot about my 'rents. First, they are strong! Things have not always been easy for my family but my parents have remained strong. I am VERY proud to say that my parents are still together after MANY years of marriage...38 I believe. There have been times of trial but what I can say is that my Dad is a HARD worker and was always a wonderful provider for our family. My Mom, although not always the healthiest has been there for us kids. She was home making suppers, doing laundry, listening to us when we needed to talk. Now that I am an adult, I like to reflect on all of the wonderful memories I had as a kid. All the camping trips and fun vacations. When I was little, I can remember my dad filling his boat full of water just so I could swim on a hot day. So yes, while there was some trials (as almost all families have) the good outweighs the bad (if you let it)...I love my parents and I am glad that God gave them to me!

Day # 21

2010-08-30T20:49:00.003-05:00

Ok, so my numbers are a little wonky! LOL! I just noticed that I completely missed the # 7 in the mix because today actually marks three weeks of our new life style. Anyhow, I am on track again.

Drum ROOOLLLLL PLEEEASSSSE.....I lost another 1 lb! This is great news. I was not expecting that! So within the last 3 weeks I have lost a total of 7 lbs. :) I am happy. Our area commander commented that she said it looked like I had lost some weight. THAT feels good. I like that it is noticeable.

Tonight my family and I played on our Wii Fit. We had a good time. Tonight's supper was a big hit! I made Baked Fish Florentine. Our lil ones comment was "yummm, that's my favorite!" Mike also really enjoyed it. There was none left! Along with it was some rice, corn, brussels sprouts and raw orange peppers. VERY filling and great!

Again if you want to see any recipies let me know...I can get them to you. Have you tried a new recipe lately?

Day # 22

2010-08-29T20:38:00.004-05:00

Alright so today we did well. Kinda' a cleansing day. We had a piece of toast for breakfast with lots of fruit. I had a fruit smoothie and some nuts for lunch and then for supper I made a meatless dish. 6-bean and cheese quesadilla. It was yummy! Basically it is a smaller version of the Quesadilla Torte. So good. Tonight I might have some more fruits and veggies.

The other picture you see is our lil one eating what she calls "spaghetti" it is actually apple peels. I am making some apple sauce and our girl LOVES eating the peels! We shall see how it turns out.

Well that is all for now. Take care. I step on the scale again tomorrow. I have a feeling camp and that time of month may not be kind to me...I will fill you in tomorrow! :)

Day # 21 & 30 Day Challenge # 2

2010-08-28T21:25:00.003-05:00

Hi!

So tonight we went out for supper with our DC's. It was a good time. I ended up getting a steak, mashed potatoes that I didn't eat all of and some veggies. I did have a small piece of cheesecake. I feel waaayyyy too full but I feel like I was able to pick and choose. I could have had the garlic toast that came with it, I could have had the soup that came with it and I could have had the potatoes smothered in gravy but I didn't. I also could have had a pop as well but I did not. SO although I did go out, I didn't do as bad as I could have. So I am happy.

30 Day Challenge # 2: Tell a little bit about my vices...

Wow! My vices. Hmmmmmm, Welllll I really don't know what to say about it. I don't want to pretend that my life is perfect because it is not. I am not addicted to facebook, I don't play video games... So if I have a vice it would have to be food and blogging (about food) LOL! Now I really don't believe I am addicted to food...anymore. The food does not control me because I control it! I am feeling as if I am in a good place right now. This is a lame post but that is all I have for you right now. I will check back later. Most likely tomorrow! Have a great evening (if it is evening for you) and have a GREAT Sunday.

30 Day Challenge # 1

2010-08-27T21:43:00.004-05:00

Challenge 1: Write a bit about your best friend.

Ok, so I could talk about my husband or Jesus but I really don't think that this is the way I am going to interpret this. I am going to tell you about my BFF "Best friend Forever" Shannon.

Shannon and I have known each other for a number of years now. We met through our husbands who also are best friends. How often does that happen?!?

Anyhow, I am almost speechless when I think about her. She is a picture of beauty and strength. We have laughed together, cried together, talked until the wee hours of the night/morning, shared our struggles and fears. She saw me through some scary times as I gave birth to my daughter and all that happened after that! We have camped in the rain, swam in lakes ;), travelled hundreds of miles just to spend some time together. We have prayed for each other and have kept each other accountable on some tough issues. Together we have grown. We have grown closer to God and our friendship has gotten stronger through the years. There is not one thing that I couldn't share with her. Friends like her are hard to find and I am glad that I did.

So to you my "bestie"...Thank you for all of the memories past and for all the new ones coming. Thanks for being the one that I share with, have fun with and pray with. Here is to you, who can make me laugh (sometimes so hard I cry) and to you, the one I know I can cry with. I raise my cyber glass of...water in honor of you and our friendship. I love you.

There, challenge one is done. That is enough mush for one evening don't you think? Who is your "bestie" and why are they yours?

30 Day Challenge

2010-08-27T20:55:00.002-05:00

Alright!

In addition to updating you about our healthy lifestyle change, I have decided to take up this other challenge...I am to write about each of the topics on the list below. Now I can't promise it will be everyday but it will happen! Maybe you can take up the challenge as well. Let me know if you are so I can follow it. Here is the list:

30 Day Challenge: Tell a little about the following...

Day 1 — Your Best Friend
Day 2 — Your vices
Day 3 — Your parents
Day 4 —Your siblings
Day 5 — Your dreams
Day 6 — Someone that inspires you
Day 7 — Your job
Day 8 — Your favorite internet friend that you’ve never met
Day 9 — Someone you wish you could meet
Day 10 — Someone you don’t talk to as much as you’d like to
Day 11 — A deceased person you wish you could talk to
Day 12 — Your dream vacation
Day 13 — Something you’re looking forward to
Day 14 — Someone you’ve drifted away from
Day 15 — The person you miss the most
Day 16 — Someone that’s not in your state/country
Day 17 — The place you wish you were from
Day 18 — The person that you wish you could be
Day 19 — Something that makes you different
Day 20 — Your favorite television shows
Day 21 — Someone you judged by their first impression
Day 22 — Your pet peeves
Day 23 — The last person you kissed
Day 24 — The person that gave you your favorite memory
Day 25 — A life changing moment
Day 26 — The last person you made a pinky promise to
Day 27 — The thing you most enjoy doing
Day 28 — Someone that changed your life
Day 29 — Your talent
Day 30 — Your reflection in the mirror

Days # 15-20

2010-08-27T17:09:00.004-05:00

Hi!

Well I am back from camp. I am sorry but I ended up not taking pictures of the food. I forgot the first night and then the next so I thought I would just tell you about it. I have to say that camp food is good by many peoples standards. I did find the food to have tons of salt and sugar. I always left food on my plate. So I was conscious of what I was taking for portions and then I left some on the plate as well. We had meals such as:

Turkey dinner-I asked for a half portion of potato, more veggies and a small amount of gravy.

Tacos-I made sure to have lots of lettuce and minimal meat. I did use salsa and sour cream. I had a bit of cheese with it.

BBQ hot dogs, sausages, hamburgers: I chose a hot dog. BAD mistake. I did not finish it because the salt almost killed me! All of the salads were covered in sauces (coleslaw, mayo etc...) So I found it challenging to eat that day. I will confess that I took a few potato chips and some beans in tomato sauce. Can't say I really enjoyed the chips. However they were not horribly salty so that was a bonus.

Roast Beef Dinner: Came with veggies and potatoes. I am grateful that the gravy was on the side in a dish because I am SURE it was made mostly of sodium!! For dessert there was fruit in a waffle bowl topped with whipped topping. I didn't catch the server in time to ask for no topping so I picked through the topping to get to the fresh fruit. I ate some fruit but not the bowl. As a side note it was a wonderful time with the Commissioners of The Salvation Army and a nice service to install our new DC's.

It was a challenge. for snacks I was happy to see some fresh fruit put out. One night the snack was popcorn and sno cones!!! The snack was at 9pm and the KIDS were allowed to have SNO CONES!!! My kid did not have one. I actually decided to try one. Couldn't finish it all. HA!

I think this experience has taught me that I won't always be able to control what I am eating. I can control things like portions, if I have seconds (which I didn't), whether I eat dessert (I did, sometimes like the fruit bowl or once I had a cookie with a tiny bit of ice cream) my stomach did not like me much. I also learned that it was alright for me to ask for honey so I could have honey on my oatmeal in the morning instead of brown sugar.

Oh, it was really hard to exercise as well because our time was jammed packed with sessions. Any free time I had entailed trying to get our daughter to nap. That was a challenge especially because Mike and I REALLY wanted to explore the camp and the walking trails.

I am sure this week has affected my weight loss for the worst but I will be back on track now! By the way I stepped on the scale before I left for camp and it showed that I lost another pound so that would be a total of 6lbs. That is great.

Tonight for supper I made Maple Salmon you can check out the recipe here: http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/maple-salmon/Detail.aspx
Along with it I made dill carrots, brussels sprouts and some salsa basmati rice. Yummy.

When you are away from your normal routine what do you do to make healthy choices?

Day # 14

2010-08-22T21:49:00.003-05:00

Well today was good. A little off but still alright. For supper tonight we went to Subway because I thought it would be nice to try the salads there. Not sure if you knew but at Subway you are able to make any of the subs into salads. We have never done that so I wanted to see what it would be like. I ordered the "Veggie Delight" sub as a salad but I had a sour taste in my mouth (not literally) because the cost was close to $6 for some lettuce, cukes, black olives and onions. NOT happy. Sure I didn't have to make it but I wish I had for that price! LOL! Well, now I know. THAT won't be happening again!

Tomorrow we leave for camp and this will prove to be very interesting for a few reasons. For me, ummm how can I say this so my male readers don't go away screaming??? Lets just say I have a visitor coming really soon which usually creates some cravings. I was really hoping to be home for the first one so I can make sure that I have those foods around me that would satisfy the cravings but in a healthy way. I plan to hit the nearest town to camp so I can stock up on some yummy fresh things like fruits and veggies for snacks and for those possible cravings. Anyhow, I will be taking pics of my meals at camp. I find that when I do that, I choose better because I know you are watching! LOL! Plus it is just plain fun! Well, I will be gone for a while but I will be back. If you want to check out some of the recipes and other yummy things to try head over to "Hospitality Haven" or check out any of blogs on my blog list! They all are great reads! Take care...and pray I do well! I will pray for you too! Oh I didn't have a supper pic so please enjoy this one that was taken in Alaska. We went there this summer. :)

Day # 13

2010-08-21T21:23:00.003-05:00

Hi Healthy Buddies!

Today I had a burger...Now before you gasp too much, it wasn't from a fast food place. Close though. We travelled to a neighboring community for a hospital visitation and afterwards we had the opportunity to visit some fellow officers and they asked us to join them to have lunch at a charity BBQ. The proceeds were going to those who lost everything in a fire. So our choices were a hot dog, smokie or a hamburger. I chose the burger. It seemed the lesser evil! LOL! Anyhow, I didn't really enjoy it but it was for a good cause and the visit was AWESOME!! Afterwards, we went to DQ where I didn't get anything. My stomach was unsure after lunch as it was...I couldn't imagine adding milk and sugar to the mix! The great news is that I shared what we were doing with our friends and she was SUPER excited about the whole idea and wants to do it herself! So we will see what happens...I may be referring her to you Alison!

As for supper, I did a "clean out the fridge" thing. So I took some chicken, turkey bacon, rice, veggies some soy sauce for the main dish and added some fresh garden cukes and apples. I ended up picking out the meat because it wasn't appealing to me. Especially after my lunch earlier.

Just so you know, I will me missing in action for one week due to Officer's camp so please know that I will update you when I return. By the way, we had fresh bread waiting for us this morning for breakfast. I think I am going to LOVE my bread maker! :) Do you have a bread maker?

Day # 12

2010-08-20T23:45:00.002-05:00

Hi! (I am really tired, please excuse mistakes...Not really editing this...) :)

Tonight's supper was YUMMY! It was chicken Kiev with basmati rice, broccoli and corn on the cob. It was super delicious! There was definitely some prep work involved as we pounded the chicken breasts, made a filling of butter, cheese and oregano. We made the coating out of parm cheese and oregano. So we rolled the chicken up carefully making sure the filling stayed IN as we dipped them in egg and coated them! LOL! It was SOOOOO worth it!

We invited some friends over and they really enjoyed our healthy meal. Hard to believe that this meal was considered healthy. As we shared our meal with our friends they told us that this was the healthiest meal they had eaten all WEEK! WOW! This meal wasn't our healthiest either...I actually thought it was almost like "cheating" not that I can cheat because I am not on a diet right? HA! Still LOVE that. Anyhow, it was a good day. Our family went to the park and I tossed a ball with a friend. Good day. Looking forward to tomorrow. Right now I have programmed my bread maker to have fresh bread for us in the morning...I have never used it before so I am curious to see what happens. It is like Christmas! Have a good evening everyone!

Day # 11

2010-08-19T23:07:00.002-05:00

Today was a good day. Food was alright...I did have a very small sliver of carrot cake today to celebrate a 96 year old birthday. I also had some crackers and cheese. I have to say that when I got home to prepare for supper tomorrow...(yes for tomorrow!), I was feeling ill. I needed to drink large amounts of water to feel better. Tonight there will be no picture of our supper because it was leftovers. Our little one REALLY wanted the broccoli casserole again for supper so we actually ate it cold like a salad! It was GOOD! I really enjoyed it.

I also got lots of activity tonight! A friend and I went for a walk and before we knew it, we were out well after an hour. It was nice. Mike and our lil one went swimming while I went walking so they had some great activity again! Swimming 2 days in a row! Wow!

I am looking forward to tomorrows supper. More because I want to see how it turns out...I will tell you more about that tomorrow tho! Well, tell me...What have you tried new? Keep commenting...It keeps me going! :)

Day # 10

2010-08-18T21:47:00.003-05:00

Day 10 and feeling....OK. Been a tough week...Not food wise but other things. Has this affected my eating? No not really. Has it affected my activity level? YES. :(
Tonight we went swimming as a family so that was good. Anyhow, I need to make more of an effort to get some activity in.

I am about to sit and relax now but first I will tell you a bit about our supper. It is a meatless dish. Called Broccoli Casserole. Basically whole wheat pasta on the bottom of a dish, broccoli layer, plain yogurt, cottage cheese and eggs all blended together and put on the broccoli then more noodles, cottage cheese mix and then cheese on top and baked. It was really tasty and filling. I added some watermelon and snap peas and carrots. It was good. Well that is all I have tonight. See you!

Day # 9

2010-08-17T21:34:00.002-05:00

The truth about peanut butter. After switching to natural peanut butter (no salt or sugar), Mike and I decided to see the difference between the two by taking out a spoon and tasting the highly processed stuff. We were both SHOCKED at how much salt you can taste in it! I thought it would have been the sugar I tasted...NOPE! Salt. Huh! It is crazy how our bodies get used to the junk we put into ourselves. We both found the processed peanut butter HORRIBLE! :) Great news!!

Well, tonight's supper was fun. Our family tried something new. Today I cooked whole wheat couscous. I liked it! I think my family found the texture tough to take but all have agreed not to give up on it! Along with it I made an assortment of sauteed veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, yellow pepper, celery, carrots, onion, fresh garlic). Also you will see teriyaki chicken breast and fresh garden cucumber. It was a good supper. GRRRRRRRRRRR I just tried to upload my picture of my supper! I was SO proud of it!! So turns out I took the camera to Meg's swimming lessons and took pics of my supper with NO card in it...Which means they didn't save. So I am sorry you couldn't see it. I'm even more sorry that I don't have pics of swimming lessons! *Sigh* maybe tomorrow. :(

I need to get some exercise in yet tonight so I have to go...What have you done for exercise today? Let me know.

Day # 8

2010-08-16T22:09:00.003-05:00

Hey All!

Today I stepped on the scale to see if there were any other benefits to my new lifestyle. I am happy to report that there have been -5 benefits! You heard me...I have lost 5lbs. It feels really good.

Today was a bit difficult because we had a staff meeting where we brought in pizza. So I did have a piece but I also made sure to bring salad and fresh fruits and veggies. So I loaded my plate with salad, and veggies first and then I picked the pizza. Instead of taking the cookies and pasteries that were at the meeting, I had fruit. So another day of good choices. I have noticed that I am ALOT thirstier now after eating the pizza. It was very salty. I did enjoy it though. I still think homemade pizza would have been better. I think I would like to make a homemade greek pizza for supper one day...Yummm.

We are heading into week two and hopefully we will be just as strong. Have you tried anything new this last week?

Day # 7

2010-08-15T22:56:00.004-05:00

YAYYYY!!!

We have made it one week!

Disclaimer: I am extremely tired so please excuse any spelling errors. I am too tired to pay that much attention to this post. Hopefully it makes some sense.

Well, today was a different day! My poor hubby has been having BAD back problems lately. So bad to the point that he could not take this Sunday. It was his turn to preach but he was in so much pain that he could not do it. He couldn't even pick up his guitar. Well...That means it was me up. Now I need to mention as well that it was discovered only this morning that the pain was that bad. Which means that gave me an hour to plan a service. I want to say that God came through!!! He pulled a beautiful service together for me and we used iworship because we do not have a worship team. All in all, it worked wonderfully. Even the kids time flowed with the service! Praise God!!! Today could have been a stressful day but instead we trusted in God and worship today was wonderful!

Another praise report: Amidst the possible stress, our eating was not affected! **Insert thumbs up here!** Now I have decided that I would like one day a week where I am not cooking. So Sundays it is! We rely on leftovers and eating out. Today we went out and I believe we did well in choosing our meals. I had crab legs (no butter), some stuffed (with cheese, rice, broccoli) shrimp (which I couldn't eat all of because it was too rich and greasy) and instead of choosing mashed potatoes or fries I asked for some broccoli. It also came with a tossed salad but I forgot to ask for the dressing on the side. I found that I couldn't eat all of the salad because it had so much dressing on it! I actually dug to the bottom for some "fresh" veggies :). I found that when I eat out, I am less shy about asking about alternative choices such as having a veggie instead of potato. I have also learned that most places are accommodating and with no extra cost. Now, I do have to say that coming home after eating out, I have a BIG headache. I have been drinking water to help and I know that I have met my quota so that is not the cause of the headache...I have to wonder if it is because we ate out. I am thinking so! Hmmm...

Also another great report: My family and I were driving by a McDonald's and we have this game where we would point out the restaurant and then say "EWWWWWW!!!" Our little one would sometimes say "Nooooo!" but today when we mentioned McDonald's she chimes in with the resounding "EWWWWWWWWWWW!!!" It was GREAT! :)

When I look at the picture of my paid for meal...I can't help but think that what I make looks better!!! This is good news! Well, I did some walking today but no real exercise...I can't wait to do it tomorrow. As for you: When you go out to eat, don't be afraid to ask for healthier choices. The worst they can say is no. Happy eating.

Day # 6

2010-08-14T19:23:00.004-05:00

Almost a whole week has passed on our new lifestyle! I can hardly believe it...It has seemed so easy, I wonder if it will only get easier from here? I get to have another week here to form the good habits before I am off to Officer's camp for 4 days where we will be at the mercy of someone else's cooking...Even though the cooking is good, I am now used to eating nothing processed or full of salt or sugar. I intend to go to the closest town and grab some fresh fruit for snacks and some veggies too. We will survive!!

So yesterday I gave Megan the choice of what to have for supper for today. I was impressed with her choice. She said "May I have spaghetti and meatballs please Mommy?" She also kept adding to the requests with asparagus and garlic toast (that is the impressive part). So off we went to the store to find some ground turkey/chicken for the meatballs. She picked orange pepper, celery, broccoli, cauliflower and I added to it onions and fresh garlic for the sauce. The garlic toast is homemade bread (my moms). For dessert (our first this week) we had baked apples. I made a yummy mix of oatmeal, cinnamon, raisins, chopped almonds, and maple syrup for the middles of apples. It was sooooo GOOD! Well that is all I have for you tonight. Here is your challenge: Make a dessert but instead of using sugar try some pure maple syrup...just be sure to use a little less then the recipe calls for! Let me know how it is!

RIDERVILLE

2010-08-13T22:15:00.003-05:00

Hi Blogger Friends!

Could you do me a favor? Could you go to the link below and on the right hand side of the page find "fan poll" and vote for Weyburn? The community is going for this title and it will help out the local football teams get some funding for the club! PLUS it would just be cool to be known as "Riderville"! Please vote everyday beginning tonight until the the 31st! Any help is GREAT! Thanks!

http://www.riderville.ca/

Day # 5

2010-08-13T20:09:00.003-05:00

Day five already! Feeling strong! I am TIRED! I just finished using my Wii for exercise tonight. I played the game "Just Dance" it is so fun! You sure get the heart rate up as you dance.

The supper you see on the right was our "other white meat". A family in our church bought a pig from a local farmer here and their family is the size of ours with the kids being the same age so they decided to share their meat with us! What a blessing! Let me tell you how great it is knowing where your meat has come from. It was all prepped and butchered locally which is AWESOME! It is SUPER fresh and lean. It tasted so good. You will also see some raw carrots, swiss chard and beet tops. I must say I have been trying to think of more creative side dishes...I am getting tired of plain rice. So this rice has more veggies then rice in it (fresh snap peas, onion, garlic, corn, yellow pepper, spinach, carrots)...I think I am missing one or two! Oh well. It was all sauteed with about a tablespoon of soy sauce. It was good! My family could eat rice every day so I need to get creative with it for my sake. Today was a great day! Still feeling good! How are you doing? :)

Day # 4

2010-08-12T20:36:00.004-05:00

Well, I have a confession to make. NO I did not "cheat" or "fall off the wagon"...Know why? Because I can't cheat or fall off anything I am not on! I LOVE that! See I am so used to diets where you can fail, but my family is not on a diet. We are living a new lifestyle. I think it just hit me today really. I know I have said it but it just sunk in today when Mike said, "Do you think we could have this or that?" and my response was "Yes!" We are not on diet. As long as it not processed and it is wholesome then we can have whatever we want! We are enjoying it! Anyhow, that was my revelation today!

Alright, a quick update on today: Breakfast was yummy. Pancakes and fresh fruit. Lunch was eaten out and I had a great salad. NOW...I want to tell you that I was NOT happy with the color of my supper tonight. I almost didn't want to show you. (It is basmati rice, cauliflower with homemade cheese sauce, salmon, a tossed salad in a corn tortilla). I was SOOOOO tired that I didn't get the red peppers sliced or raw carrots cut to go along with it as planned. Also I planned to pick up fresh salmon but we don't have it here apparently. It was frozen and took overnight to thaw. Opps! I should have checked the store sooner. Like a good girl, instead of skipping the fish meal, I decided to use what was left in my freezer (M&M Meat salmon in dill sauce). NOT my first choice. Fresh would have been better. Oh well, at least it was not fast food or from a box so YAY me!

I DO have good news! The reason I was so tired was because Mike and I took some time together after lunch to go to our outdoor pool to swim! Mike did something he never has before...He swam in the deep end! That is HUGE for him! We swam laps and just enjoyed some time together without a kid...SHOCKING! We had a wonderful time getting some exercise and connecting again. So this lifestyle is not only benefiting our physical health but it is benefiting our relationship. Anyhow, I have learned that I have to watch and see how tired I am because that will affect the color of my meals. Sounds goofy but color to me is BIG. If it looks appealing I will enjoy it better and it looks yummy to my family too. Today I also realized the importance of prepping meals. I didn't really look over the meal last night. I just decided to have fish and this is what happened. Now I know...

ANNNNDD a funny from my lil one: (sitting at the breakfast table about to put pure maple syrup on her cakes):

Meg: "Mom may I have some of the other syrup?"
Mom: "No, that has chemicals in it."
Meg: "But I like chemicals!"
Mom: "You don't even know what chemicals are."
Meg: "Oh, what are they?"
Mom: "Some stuff that could hurt your body."
Meg: "Oh." She ate the pure stuff! I did let her have a little of the other stuff too mixed in just so I could use it up.
(I must say, I don't think there are chemicals in it really but I couldn't think of a good word that early! LOL!). I could have said it's not pure...Oh well, mornings!

Have a good night all! If you can, eat some fish sometime this week! You don't have much time left! Let me know if you did or not!

Day # 3

2010-08-11T21:20:00.006-05:00

Hello!

Another good day! Lunch was late today but when we finally had it, it was sooo good! It was the leftover Cantonese chicken. For some reason today my water intake SUCKED!!! I will definitely have to make a point to drink more during the day tomorrow.

As for supper tonight, it was a meatless dish called Quesadilla torte...SOOO YUMMY! Basically you take some onion and green or red or yellow pepper...whatever you like and sautee them until they are soft. Then you add some beans. I chose a canned six bean blend. Ideally I would like to use real beans but I need to learn how to cook with them first. Anyhow, then you add some frozen corn. In a spring form pan you put a tortilla on the bottom then some of the bean mix, some salsa and cheese. You repeat until you have 4 layers and on top you brush the final tortilla with some olive oil and cheese and bake it. If you try this, make sure to cut the tortilla into pie pieces and form it back together, it worked well! Mike and Meg also make some freshly squeezed OJ to go along with supper. It was SOOOO tasty!

This evening, our family spent some time in the backyard. Our lil one jumped on the trampoline to entertain us and Mike and I tossed a ball around. We tried to toss the ball fast enough to get a bit of a workout and it worked well. Tonight I may make myself a fruit smoothie as a dessert. That sounds yummy. Well, that is all for today! Your challenge...Pick a meatless dish to make, experiment you just may be surprised! Take care!

Day # 2

2010-08-10T21:26:00.003-05:00

Hi Again! It is day two of our new change. Today seemed to be just as easy. Breakfast was....Interesting. I had made some whole wheat blueberry and raspberry muffins and put them in the freezer so I could just pull them out when we needed them. I don't know what went wrong with them...Maybe I left them out too long before freezing them and the berries went bad but the muffins were HORRIBLE! LOL! That is alright though! We ate around the berries and had additional fruit with it! We had some almonds later for snacks and for lunch we ate leftover Mac N Cheese along with a side tossed salad....FILLING! Also the Mac N Cheese was good the second day!!

Our supper tonight is pictured above. Cantonese chicken, basmati rice, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and sauteed red, yellow, orange peppers with onion. It was so tasty and I made enough for leftovers tomorrow! I am looking forward to it. :)

As for exercise it was tougher today. We managed to walk a bit but the weather is very threatening.

My family and I have not been hungry at all and we don't feel deprived of anything as of yet. I am not missing pop or sugary drinks or candy! WOW! Could it be because I have cut sugar out of our diets? I really think so! I find that if I want a dessert or candy (which I have not yet, fruit will be enough). I am feeling really good. I know that I am feeding my family properly and it just feels so right! There are so many benefits to eating better and getting active! I can't wait until I can report how these changes have affected our health! Until tomorrow...instead of that ice cream to cool you down grab a few strawberries, or other fruit on hand with some ice cubes, throw it in the blender and enjoy a refreshing, healthy treat! :)

Day # 1

2010-08-09T21:56:00.003-05:00

Here I am with one whole day of eating healthy under my belt (dare I say smaller belt?) Ok so it wouldn't be THAT quick but lets just say that I stepped on the scale this morning (poor thing...) and did NOT like what I saw. I am happy to begin this venture.

It was REALLY tough to begin to today as I am not feeling well at all! I have a sore throat and I have been fighting a fever all day. I think it was because of lack of sleep and the fact that I had 10 kids over yesterday for our now four year old's birthday party. The kids didn't make me sick (well I don't think anyways) but I think it was because it was STINKING HOT (33 degrees Celsius) and I was running in and out of our air conditioned house. I think the temp. change plus the lack of sleep finally caught up with me. I am sure the added stress of work doesn't help either. God will win, Yes He will...HOWEVER, I will say that today was a great success! Here is why:

It would have been so easy to grab a bowl of sugary cereal but we managed to have some plain yogurt and fruit for breakfast. I tried to eat it without sweetener but decided to try it with some pure Maple Syrup...YUMMY! I had some ginger mint tea with it as well. I think I would need more substance in the morning...Maybe a protein so I added a few almonds and that seemed to help (I ate maybe 2 or three). For lunch we went out and I had a delicious bowl of homemade beef vegetable soup and a side garden salad (which I took home because I was too full). After I got home from a tough day at the office, I decided to make a meatless meal because I was missing one ingredient for my Cantonese chicken. I made Gourmet Mac N Cheese. If I was up to it and knew how...I would post the link to the recipe. Just check on Hospitality Haven's blog for the recipe she is on my blog list! This was the first time I used coconut milk for anything and I have to say that I smiled when I opened it, tasted it, and cooked with it! I felt I was somewhere exotic, somewhere tropical. I had a wonderful feeling, It just felt good. The picture you see is our actual meal. The Mac N Cheese was made with coconut milk (as mentioned) but sprinkled on top are bread crumbs and cheese. The veggies were locally grown and bought from a farmers market, except the spinach unfortunately. I LOVVVVE fresh veggies! With being sick, we still managed to get in some exercise. Our lil one rode her bike and we all walked for 1/2 an hour. On the walk I told my dear hubby that I think we will do well! I think so because it could have been SOOOO easy to start tomorrow instead of today because of how we are feeling but we decided to stick to the plan and I feel GREAT (well, I don't physically but I do about our new life!)...I even have our breakfast prepped and in the fridge ready for tomorrow and our supper is marinating in the fridge. I am sure you will hear about that tomorrow. OH and I drank my quota of water today! Go Me!!

Well this was a long post/day so I am going to now sit down with a bowl of air popped, buttered (sans salt), sprinkled with herb and garlic sea salt (YUMMY) popcorn and enjoy some mindless entertainment. Have you tried something new and healthy lately?

A New Direction

2010-08-01T15:55:00.005-05:00

Hello Blogger Friends!

Well, as promised I am here to tell you about the new direction that my family is taking. This new direction will affect our health and well being....For the BETTER! We are taking up a challenge that a friend has given to us. Beginning August 9th, Our challenge will be to eat better. We are to eat only wholesome foods. This means nothing processed, nothing full of grease or sugar. We are doing away with that harmful salt and we have replaced it with sea salt (which we prefer anyway). This challenge looks awesome! I feel so much better already just preparing for it! Yesterday I cleaned out my pantry as instructed. I packed up two laundry baskets FULL of the foods that our family is to stay away from. These foods included: canned meats, canned soups, KD, packaged soups, iced tea and other drinks full of chemicals. As I was packing up the pantry and taking note of the ingredients listed on the side of the boxes or cans, my eyes grew big and I was shocked at the amount of junk that I was willing to feed my family. I didn't often use that food because I prefer to cook fresh but I was amazed that I had that much processed food in my house!

So why the change? Because I am ready. Recently I was diagnosed with PCOS (Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome) you can google it if you wish. Basically it means that it would be tough for me to conceive again without some sort of treatments, rapid weight gain with it being hard to lose which can lead to more serious diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, bad cholesterol (high or low) etc...! There is more to this disease but that is the short of it. I have decided that with Gods help, I will be healthy in order to serve him better and longer!!! I am passionate about my health and I am ready to take control. THAT is why I have accepted this healthy lifestyle change. I don't like calling it a diet because it really isn't. It is a lifestyle change. I am re-learning how to choose healthier food and I am re-learning how to take the time to care for myself and my family by preparing proper meals. Also, my three year old will learn at an early age how to choose healthier foods and meals. She has been involved with the grocery shopping and the baking. I intend on allowing her to help prepare all the meals she wants! She has enjoyed making our Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins that we will eat for breakfast along with fresh fruit (instead of sugar we used real maple syrup). We also made Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies...Again, no sugar. Both were VERY YUMMY!!! If you would like the recipes just let me know. :)

Anyhow, as for blogging I will be sharing my journey of this change of lifestyle. I will tell the truth...the good the bad and the UGLY! I will share my thoughts and feelings about all of the changes and I will hopefully be able to post a picture of myself that hopefully will grow smaller and smaller each week! I am sure I will have other posts about life as well. My hope is that you will join me in this journey and the odd time I may challenge you as well! For now...Here is YOUR challenge...Go to your cupboards and take a box or can from it. Now...READ THE INGREDIENTS! Pay particular attention to the serving size and then look at the sodium content and other harmful ingredients that are in it. So far I have really learned that if you can't pronounce the name...STAY AWAY! :) Here's to a new direction and a healthy life!

I am Still Here

2010-07-13T15:00:00.003-05:00

Hi!

I just thought I would let my faithful readers know that I am still here...Just on holidays. I plan on sharing more about our trip when I get home in a few weeks. For those who don't know, we are in the Yukon and we are enjoying the midnight sun! What an experience but like I said I will tell you more about this journey later. We are Alaska bound here in a few days and then we are going camping with our good friends the Howards. So I will fill you in when I return.

I also wanted to let you know that when I get back my blog may look a bit different (content wise) for a while as I have accepted an interesting and exciting challenge from my friend Alison http://alison.blogsome.com/ again you will hear more about that when I return. Until then, I will "see" you later! Thanks for still following me. :)

Exciting Times Ahead!

2010-06-03T13:37:00.002-05:00

Hello Blogger Friends!

I am sorry that I have been away for a bit but of course I have come back!!! Here is an update on various things:

Work: STILL loving it! It is challenging, exhausting, never the same and VERY rewarding. We feel blessed to be where we are AND I have wonderful news...Some of you may have heard me share about our Thrift Store. When we first arrived and looked over the budget we learned that over the years our store had incurred over $50,000 worth of debt which the employees did not not about. NOT good considering TSA owns the building and everything is donated. So right off the bat when we arrived we were faced with the possibility of having to close our doors. This is something we really felt we could not do so we gave it some time. I am glad we did! I am VERY pleased to report that by the end of this year we should have the store out of debt and actually MAKING money! :D GOD is GREAT! We have to give Him all the credit because he has given us the wisdom to know what to do. Here is a simple example of a change we made (there have been many): I was looking over one of the Thrift Store's phone bills and I noticed that there was a $9.00 charge for extra services so I went to the store to ask our staff about it and no one knew the reason. So the next step was to go to the company. The company explained that we are paying to use their phones!!! So I asked "Are we able to use our own phones?" "Of course you can." was the reply. It took all of 10 mins. to ask our staff to pick some phones from the store to use and to please pack up the money eaters! I returned the phones and on this last bill we saved $17.80!! Here is some perspective: $9.00/month may not seem much to many people BUT $9.00/month x 12 months ends up to be $108.00 and one of our employees who has worked with us for 10 years said that they have had those phones since she has been there soooo essentially $108.00 (for one year) x 10= is $1080.00 NOT including the taxes that could have been saved. Maybe there was a reason the store started with the phones but I see no reason now. Also we have had many new customers who love to shop in our store so that is great! I am sure you are sick of hearing about this so lets move on!

Personally: I am gearing up and getting so excited for this busy month! I am off to Women's camp this weekend and I am looking forward to fellowshipping with some great gals! Then on the 16th Mike and I are heading to Newfoundland for Congress!!! I am super excited about that! THEN we are heading to Whitehorse in July to hopefully meet the newest member to the Howard Family...MY new Nephew Matty. Please pray that the adoption process goes well and that funds will be raised for the Howards to bring Anesu (Matty) over from Zimbabwe. I am excited for all our adventures coming up. I trust you have many things on the go yourself and I hope and pray that you continue to walk with the Lord as you go! Until next time...

2010-05-21T15:59:00.005-05:00

So here is the latest question Meg asked me while she was helping me put some books on the shelf in our office: By the way the book pictured is "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" by Joshua Harris and it is a GREAT book for youth!

Megan: "Mom, is that Michael Jackson?"
Mom: (Chin dropped, eyes wide, small chuckle) "Ummm, no. How do you know who Michael Jackson is?!?" No answer.

She is THREE people THRRREEE! Wow.

So the renovations are still ALMOST all done! Since beginning and almost completing the basement, we have now started on the upstairs bathroom. A man who is new to the Church is renovating it for us...On that note, in the beginning we couldn't find a contractor in town to help, now we have TWO attending the church who are SOOO willing to help out. Anyhow back to the bathroom. You know how the story goes...We were ONLY getting the tub replaced HA! Now we are getting a new floor AND vanity! It really needs it. After all taking care of the quarters (house) is part of good stewardship. It has been fun yet tough to make decisions that will be good for future Officers and their family's. I am glad that we can do this. We also have plans for the church! God give us wisdom!!

The basement is so close to being completed and it is super exciting! Don't worry, I will post before and after photos once we have it all done. We are planning to get new furniture and finish decorating first before we share the outcome. Anyhow, that is what we are up too. We are excited to have some dear friends from Lloydminster come and visit us. We have not seen them since we officiated their wedding last October. I am looking forward to a nice long weekend! Have a great weekend!! What are you doing this weekend?

Trading one Wave for the Next

2010-05-08T21:15:00.003-05:00

Today marks a certain day of change. My family and I traded one wave for another. We have finally put away our microwave. I have wanted to do this for a couple of years now. Some right now would be thinking I am crazy and some may be asking WHY on earth would you do THAT??? Well for me it is simple. The main reason I put it away is because I hardly ever use it. The second and most important reason is because it just doesn't seem healthy to be cooking with the microwave. I can't really explain it well. The only way to explain it is to say that every time I used the microwave, it just felt unhealthy...I felt unhealthy. Plus I noticed that when recipes offered the convenience of using the microwave, I generally took the other route (stove or kettle). The only thing I think I may miss is quickly heating my butter up for my popcorn. BUT Like I mentioned we traded one wave in for another today so I am sure my new wave will do the trick with the right dish. For quite a while now we have been looking into getting an infra wave oven. The infrared technology uses light to cook rather than microwave radiation so it cooks the food much like a conventional oven does without the "microwave taste". With this system the cooking times are cut in half but the taste of the food is not. So far I am impressed. We have only had it so far for one meal but it really did cook fast and even!! I cooked chicken in it and it took MUCH less time and it was done just the way I like it. Yummy!!! Another HUGE bonus and part of the reason we made the decision to buy today was that this counter top model was $75 off the original price. So we paid $65 which is a great price! So this begins our journey with no microwave. I know it has only been one day but so far so good. If it can cook chicken the way we like it and in half the time...I am game! I feel better. Especially because my family's food is not being cooked with microwave radiation. That just sounds bad, cooking with radiation I mean. Anyhow, so begins another kitchen adventure! I will let you know a little later how I make out with this new wave of cooking. Take care my friends!!

New Look

2010-05-04T23:36:00.002-05:00

Well...After much time and finally asking my husband to help me put this together... Here is my new blog look for now anyways. I really like it! I really like the whole "Life is Beautiful" thing...I actually have 2 shirts that say that!

Thank you for your input and I hope you like the new look as well. I do have some stuff to share with you but it is late and I will leave that for another day. Until then take care! :)

I Need Help.

2010-04-29T01:43:00.002-05:00

So...I am so tired of the way my blog looks...I need a facelift but don't know how or where to go to do that. I see so many pretty blogs some you should check out on my list...To those friends with the pretty blogs, help me! How can I make mine more personal? More me? Links would be helpful! :)

An Off Day.

2010-04-20T18:32:00.005-05:00

The only way I can describe today as is "off". Not because I was overly busy today. Not busy like the previous two weeks anyway. My day started out by going on a field trip with 16 preschoolers. Can you believe I survived?!! I volunteered to drive our 15 passenger van out to a farm so the kids at Megan's daycare could enjoy a horse drawn hayride, see some baby calves and colts, pet some newborn kittens and play with the goats. So after loading up many carseats off we went for some hot fresh air. It was so nice. After that I went back to the office where Mike filled me in on his morning meeting with a man who is a retired pastor, drug councellor and who worked in finances...He wants to volunteer with us to teach basic budgeting courses for our clients! That is answered prayer. After I was filled in, I went downstairs to make up some hampers for our appointments tomorrow. In the process of that I forgot about my hair appointment that was scheduled for 3pm. BOOOO! I was looking forward to my haircut. It was at about 3:30 when I realized I had missed it. THEN I realized that today is dance day not only is it dance day but it is her final class before the recital! Dance begins at 4pm so Mike rushed off home to get Meg's dance gear but on the way realized that the car seat was still in the van...GRRR...So he had to come back and get that. I told him he should have taken the van but he already had the seat out....See? Off. While getting Megan ready for dance apparently she had a massive fit in the washroom. Mike called to tell me about Megan's real "melt down" and it just seemed to add to the craziness. SO...Mike and Megan finally came to pick me up at the office and while we were in the car Megan said, "Mommy, today I had a real "milk out" at dance." I looked at Mike and smiled. Suddenly the day didn't seem so "off".

Out of the Mouths of Babes

2010-04-19T16:03:00.003-05:00

Alright...So it has been a little while since I have been able to come on here and share about what has been going on in my life. It has been BUSY! Last weekend our church pulled together a fundraiser for Partners in Mission. We had a garage sale, bake table and BBQ. It was such a blessing to have so many people pour through the doors of the church! A bonus is that we raised $692.05 for missions! My sweet little girl was such a huge help. She was sitting at the bake table which was also the place you paid for your goods...Strategic? Yep. Having my three year old at the bake table taking money...Strategic? Ummm, nope but it sure didn't hurt! Anyhow here is how she helped...She would take their money for the goods and then offer them cookies. She wouldn't just say "You should buy some cookies." Ohhhh NO...She would describe the cookies like "These ones have Hershey's chocolate chips in them or these muffins are organic carrot ones..." BUT my favorite was when a lady said she didn't need baking (refusing an adult who had asked) my three year old chimed in by telling this lady that the money was going to kids who need clean water. She told her that the money was going for missions so that we can take the poison out of the kids' water! I heard her tell the lady that the kids would also get some clothes and some toys. She was colorful in her descriptions and my mouth hung open as I listened to her share her knowledge. The lady bought two trays of baking and smiled on her way out. This exchange really opened my eyes. Sure we as her parents have taught her about why we do what we do BUT what really got me is that she learned her information from the Partners in Mission DVD that we had been playing all through the garage sale. We just had a TV set up and we played the various videos throughout the day. If she picked up that information in that small amount of time, I have got to wonder what else she picks up from cartoons or other television shows. AMAZING! I am reminded once again to mind my manners and watch my actions because I have a bright three year old sponge who is just waiting to share what she has learned with others! Lord help me be more like you!

On another note...Today is my day off but true to form, I ended up in the office. It was a God thing today because one of my employees came in to drop off a deposit slip before heading to work and she shared about how much she enjoyed church yesterday. She has come to church twice now so that is great. Anyhow, she shared a few things about her life and after a while I really felt God telling me to go on over to the Thrift Store to talk to her so I did. I was not in uniform so that was great! I told her that I wanted to talk to her as a pastor and not as her boss (because I couldn't as her boss) and we talked about God and I told her that when she was ready I would be willing to pray with her to make her commitment sure. She told me she was ready right then! So right there at the till of the Thrift Store we bowed before God as she gave her life over to Him. It was so real! Another awesome element to this praise report happened when one of our new adherents, a baby himself and who is working on becoming a soldier, came into the store. Our employee shared her news with him right away and he shook her hand and asked her if she was interested in becoming an adherent! Out of the mouths of babes. LOL! He is on fire...and she (our newest convert) wants to become an adherent already! WOW! God is SOOO good and is moving like crazy. Day off or not...This was worth it!

Toddlers & Tiaras (Dance version)

2010-03-21T20:00:00.009-05:00

Have you ever seen that show "Toddlers & Tiaras"? If not, allow me to sicken...I mean enlighten you. TLC has this one show devoted to sharing the lives of parents who put their children in beauty pageants. These kids (sometimes younger then my 3 year old) are spray tanned, fake haired, caked on make up wearing...Fluffy dressed kids with fake teeth. They prance around in dresses that cost more then my wedding rings and sport bathing suits and show case what talent they have to a panel of judges who do just that. They are judged on looks and presentation. Need I say more about that? I am sure most of us can come up with biblical reasons why this SUCKS. Anyhow, I am not here to talk about those poor kids/parents. I am here to tell you about my experience. I feel like I had a similar experience today. Only this was the dance version.

After much research into the different schools of dance in town, we put our sweet little girl into dance class (ballet and tap) it was one class where the instructor (WONDERFUL lady) did 15 mins. of tap first to teach rhythm, then 15 mins. of ballet for coordination. The cost was only $30/month and I can claim it on my income tax so that is a bonus! Plus it got us out in the community more. What I didn't know was all that came along with the recital. WOW!!! First of all I would like to mention that our little one LOVES dance class so we were enjoying this activity with her. BUT things got hectic when they decided to put the picture/rehearsal day on a SUNDAY! Not only that but the time for her pictures conflicted with church. Right away I got in contact with the dance instructor and explained that this set up would not be possible for us. I told her that both of us are pastors and it would be impossible for us to get to the site on time for this event. Also I mentioned that if the actual recital was at the same time and on a Sunday that we would have to rethink our future in dance. This really made me sad for Megan because I know how much she loves her dance so I left it in God's hands. The next day we were told that the whole rehearsal/recital times had been changed to accommodate our family. Apparently it had slipped the instructors mind and she had meant to accommodate us all along. So we felt very blessed to be able to have the best of both worlds. We had the chance to share and rub shoulders with people outside of our circle. I also feel like God blessed our faithfulness. We were not willing to compromise our first commitment and I believe we were honored for that.

BUTTTTT I did not enjoy the atmosphere. We showed up on site and I felt as if I was in the middle of an episode of Toddlers & Tiaras. Megan had two costumes with two pairs of different tights, she had to have a bun with a hairnet (standard ballerina stuff) then I placed a hair piece on her!...We were told that she needed red lipstick, brown eye shadow and bronzer for her cheeks! All that was missing was the fake teeth and spray tan. She was ushered in for pictures, then she went on stage then she was whisked off where we did a wardrobe change, pictures again and then she hit the stage again however she didn't get to dance because she twisted her little knee. Poor thing bawled because she didn't get to dance. We assured her that she did get to go on stage again sometime. Dance was not over...

The chaos was too much. We showed up in the outfit that we were told to and when we arrived we found out that it was changed. So we rushed to switch tights and the outfit. Apparently I was more gracious about the mix up. Another Mom was SOOO mad about the mix up that she was dropping the *F* Bomb in the change room and completely yelling at the dance instructor...Thankfully we didn't hear it. I was able to communicate to one of the instructors that the Mom was probably not mad at that incident. She was most likely reacting to something else negative that happened during the day and unfortunately this was her outlet. So that was a neat exchange. Regardless...I am glad it is over and thankfully the competition day/time conflicts with our Sunday schedule. This means that Megan will not be judged and we will get to take part in the less stressful event which is the recital (just for fun). However, now that we have had this complete dance experience we will be choosing another activity for Megan. We asked her if she would like to dance again next year and thank God she said no...for now anyways. She said she would like to swim or play soccer. No make up or fake hair involved. WHEW! Anyhow...I couldn't get away without sharing some pictures of our experience so I hope you liked them!

Time for Change...And Not Just my Hair!

2010-03-14T21:39:00.003-05:00

Hello Friends!

I am back to share some thoughts of mine and maybe a funny conversation we had with my sweet daughter.

Before I share the funny, I am sure some of you have noticed that I have recently closed my Facebook account. Allow me to share my thoughts on why I did this. After a really tough week of many trying events, I found myself turning to Facebook rather then to God for a break. Which is horrible I know...I should have prayed, read my Bible...Or even called a friend to talk. I didn't do those things. Instead I decided to kill some time by "creeping" my "friends" and family. I put friends in quotations because most of friends I have are from my past life. One that definitely did NOT glorify God. Yes, it is nice to connect with them, to see how they are doing...and yes I had the opportunity to share my life with them as a witnessing tool. However, I found this "opportunity" was a time waster for me. I felt convicted and I was no longer using these opportunities to share and connect but I used it more often to escape for a while and I often wasted more time on Facebook then I would like. To top it off, I realized that I was bringing my work home with me. I would read people's statuses and at times they were not good at all. I would focus too much attention on the hurts and I was becoming wrapped up in the turmoils of life that did not belong to me. I am not a big fan of conflict and I find that it is much worse when done though email or through Facebook because you cannot hear the tone or fully understand what is trying to be communicated through those brief interactions. I also got really tired of the games (not just Farmville or Mafia Wars etc.) but the emotional turmoil that without my fully noticing, was able to shift my focus from God. Some may think I am so weak because I couldn't just let other people's hurts roll off my back but that is alright. My main concern is that Facebook became too much of a distraction for me. At times I find it hard to balance my personal devotional life let alone the turmoils of the Facebook world. So the decision came quick...One evening I was sifting though my friend list weeding through trying to decide who to let go of when I said (out loud) "This is ridiculous!" That is when I decided to delete it all. I spent one hour looking though my friend list in order to cut it down...That is a whole hour I will never get back! One hour I could have been praying or reading my Bible ORRRR actually connecting with my friends by telephone or dropping a letter in the mail...I LOVE mail...Not just email but REAL mail. Then I thought why sift through, why not just get rid of it all and blog instead? When it came down to it I realized that while there are many pros to using Facebook examples include: Mass email for events, sharing pictures, witnessing to long time friends...None of them could compete with the greatest con: distracting me from my goal...To know and be known by my Creator. I was so busy trying to "connect" with others that my time with God was shorted. So, that is how I came to my decision. Will I miss Facebook?...Sometimes. Will I miss connecting with those friends that I cherish? No, I won't. I figure that I can personally email them or who knows...I may even use the archaic form of letter writing :O!! All I know is that God is leading me. He will place people on my heart and we will connect. Those who know me and want to connect will find a way other then on Facebook. I too will connect with them but more importantly I feel that I am already connecting better and more intimately with my Creator. So that is PART of my thoughts on this issue. Now would you like to hear a funny daughter moment? I thought you would...

While sitting at the supper table discussing our next event of swimming with our church family:

Megan:"Daddy do you want to wear shorts to the swimming pool?"
Daddy:(looking at his stomach)"Ummm no."
Megan:"Don't worry Daddy, your big fat belly won't explode in the water."
The laughter began! The funniest part is that she was really trying to console. Isn't she sweet?

Until next time my friends: Stay close to God and to each other!

Learning a Lesson.

2010-01-30T15:49:00.005-06:00

Hey! I thought it was time to blog again before my buddy Alison reminds me that it is time! :) So although I don't have much to share I can tell you that I really feel like I am learning a lesson. That lesson is to "Let go and let God" well...not only to let God but let His people take care of me when I need it. The last week has been horrible for me in terms of health. I ended up in the ER one night due to some intense abdominal pain and it has been a roller coaster of thoughts and feelings as I wait for results from the various tests that I have been put through. During this time I have been instructed to pull back and allow God and my people take care of some of the responsibilities for this week. As tough as it has been I have learned or RE learned some very valuable lessons. The biggest one I will share tonight is that if I don't step back, other people in the kingdom can't and won't be able to find their place in the church. By allowing someone else to lead the service, preach, and lead worship these people can experience the blessings that come when we serve Him. So that is what I wanted to share. I am learning, leaning and trusting. Praise God for His peace. Blessings.

The Simplicities of Ministry

2010-01-19T20:27:00.002-06:00

So, the craziness of Christmas is over...Well not quite for us. We are having some more celebrations with our best friends who are coming here in Feb! So where almost every other household has their trees, nativities and lights put away, ours are still up! I feel like it is advent all over again! Only we don't have kettles, services or hampers to organize! Although I enjoyed every moment of it! I do want to give God credit for our amazing success of kettles this year...We managed to have a 116% increase of kettle income! That's right, we over doubled the goal! Also ALL families with kids were sponsored out which meant 47 less families to provide food and toys for! I would say that Christmas was a great success!!! All aspects of Christmas was fun but I am looking forward to celebrating some more!

I did want to share something that blessed my socks off. Yesterday we began a second Bible Study. We are working through "My New Life in Christ" our 4 new converts. We have opened the study up for all those who want to get back to basics and learn how to disciple others. Anyhow, during our first study one man gave his heart back to the Lord. Another man who attended has been Christian for awhile and he learned how to use the Bible for the first time!!! He had NO clue what the numbers were for...He said he always wondered what they were but couldn't figure it out. I was so excited today when he stopped by the church to tell us that he went home after Bible Study last night and looked up all the verses we talked about last night. He was SOOO excited to know how and he highlighted all the verses himself for the first time! THAT was SOOOO rewarding. So I guess what I am trying to say is that although Christmas was a success and a joy...It is the simplicities of ministry that have me stoked. Simply sitting down to teach someone how to navigate through the Bible, or sharing the miracle of salvation with those searching is what makes my life full of joy. My advent, my anticipation is not only applied to Christmas. I anticipate the many opportunities that God is going to give to share, teach, grow and love people into the kingdom. May God bless your New Year!