blessings...

I had yet another beautiful hot summer afternoon down in the slightly cool and rocky creek, with some very small and very sweet little people.   The two little brothers I had today have brown hair and brown eyes and are well tanned from being out in the sun all summer. I applied sunscreen on them only because it was the right thing to do.  However, today's three little girls are all fair! Very blonde, blue-eyed twin sisters and a pretty little red-haired girl whose appearance matches well with her Irish name ;) Without sunscreen long afternoons in the warm sunshine would end in painful and potentially dangerous sunburns.  Thank Heaven for sunscreen.

What a day! I don't know what I'd do or how I'd carry on without Sundays... It's always an oasis of peace and rest at the end of my week. Sometimes after church I like to take a walk by the creek or up in the hills.  Other times I am to be found bundled cozily in the lightest and warmest room in the house; talking on the phone to my parents or sisters, reading scriptures etc, searching out my great-great-great-great ancestors online. (I have a lot to learn about how to do this kind of research, but I enjoy every minute of it even if I don't get very far very often.)  Some Sundays I take a nap with Kirby, but not very often, as it's somehow a rather unfulfilling way to 'spend time together'. He falls asleep pretty fast, and isn't the quietest sleeper out there.  I like the awake family time we have on Sundays. Thank Heaven for the teachings of the prophets or I'd never experience all the benefits of a day of rest!

Every day of my life I love and enjoy my family and freedom. I have such beautiful memories of my childhood, especially on the farm... I am loved, and I know I always have been. My mother and father are good, fine people whom I admire and appreciate. My sisters are my dearest friends. My husband is an excellent man whom I love and am so grateful to live with. My children are safe and happy. We live without war or poverty, surrounded by opportunities; education, work, and immense natural beauty... Above all, I feel the constant care of our Heavenly Father and see every blessing by the pure and brilliant light of Jesus Christ! Still, I look forward to the future. It is bright and beautiful; of this much I'm sure... All sorrow will be left behind and love and truth and peace will live on forever. Of this I am sure, so how could I not want to keep such a time within my sights? As good as life is for some people, at some times, in some places, complete happiness demands at least a sur...

This morning Mary and I walked about five minutes up the hill with three sweet little children and picked saskatoon berries for about an hour with them. It would have been a hot day with the sun so bright, but it was perfect in the breeze blowing by us.  This is the third day in a row we have been up there collecting nature's little treats for fresh homemade desserts!  Mary is our kitchen angel and makes delicious berry (and sometimes berry-rhubarb) crisp.  As we were getting ready to leave this morning I was reminded of the children's picture book, 'Blueberries For Sal'. I am grateful that we didn't have the same experience on our little walk this morning!  I like seeing bears through the window when we are driving, but I have no wish to make their better acquaintance. I remember picking blackberries on Gabriola Island, and even at a highway gas station down at the coast. Those are easily my favorite wild berries to pick, in spite of the thorny brambles. Saskato...

Above all else in my life, I am grateful for my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is the light of my heart. Because He suffered my sufferings I never suffer alone. Because He died and lives again, I too, will embrace my loved ones after I pass from this life into the next one... Whenever I remember Him I clearly see what I should do, and actually want to live His way.  My favorite thing about my Redeemer though, is His pure and perfect love. His love warms my soul and brings me peace and hope. I love how it fills me to overflowing so I can love other people in a way that would be way beyond me on my own!

This will always be remembered in my body's memory as the cherry summer... Strawberries are always lovely, but hardly seasonal. (since we have California produce they are available almost year-round. Not that I'm complaining about that.) However those big beefy strawberries aren't even comparable to the fresh sweet juicy little morsels of flavour we grow in the  backyard strawberry patch. Suffice it to say, they don't make it as far as the house. Irresistible! Other personal favourites for me would definitely be raspberries and  apricots. Both are intensely delicious but not boringly sweet; enough tangy in there to make my tastebuds sing with joy.  But I am embarrassed to tell how many cherries I have eaten this summer. So I won't tell. I had a good excuse- after my hysterectomy I needed to eat lots of fruit and veggies. As much as I like fresh veggies, they are no competition for fresh cherries. By the box. Costco boxes. Thank Heaven I can get away with as...

We are so lucky! Living with modern conveniences can be so nice and easy that we forget: most of the people who have ever lived in this world haven't enjoyed these cushy little benefits. And that even now most people living on earth with us aren't so privileged as we are. Here are a few handy little helpers I am really appreciating today... Ice packs and a freezer; can't imagine this surgery recovery or a nasty migraine without an ice pack. Simple, sweet relief.  Running water. It's summer and in this glorious warm sunshine it's pretty nice to just turn on the tap inside or outside and effortlessly fill a glass or water bottle with cold refreshment, water thirsty plants, fill the wading pool or spray the slip&slide or just spray the little people with a rainbowy mist of water. Fans, and for some, air conditioners! There are days and nights when we have several fans blowing in strategic locations around the house. Kirby rigs up highly effective systems of air...

As much as I prefer the idea of naturally occurring optimum health, I can't help but count the silvery blessings I find lining the underbelly of my illness cloud... First of all, I was referred to a good surgeon and heard the wait would be long-ish. Then the phone rang and I was offered a (cancellation) appointment the following morning at 9am! It wasn't cancer. (Always a plus with scary symptoms:) Then when I first spoke with the office booking agent to set up a date for surgery, she said I would be in within a month or two. OK. However, when I next saw the surgeon for a pre-op consultation, she offered me a date only about 10 days away. Great! This was a big deal as it meant that I would have the full two months of school holidays to recover while my husband and teenagers are around a lot to help me with my little people! (dayhome :) Then my loving husband took the day off and drove me in to the city hospital at the crack of dawn and was there with flowers when I wo...

I am so grateful I get to serve as a youth leader! This weekend was a youth conference involving about 75 teenage girls and boys. It was so much fun, and I loved seeing the youth (especially my own three children ;) have such a great time together with their friends. They did everything from playing human 'hungry hippos' and human 'fussball'  Friday night, to Saturday morning when they were baptized in the temple in behalf of their deceased ancestors who didn't have that opportunity in their own lifetimes... They ate copious amounts of pizza, candy, roast beef, sub sandwiches, ice cream floats, etc etc ad infinitum. Really, they eat so much! And play so hard. They went on a hay ride, enjoyed the keynote speaker, and finished up by sharing their own thoughts, feelings, and experiences with each other before they headed off to the after-party! (Of course, they also stayed up all of Friday night at another party; the 'mid-party'?  ;) I so appreciate the m...

I am sitting way up in the southwest corner or our little town, soaking up the warm spring sunshine and listening to the creek running by the great rocks way below me in the curving creek bed. Also relishing the sound of the gentle wind (because it IS so gentle) and feeling so very grateful... I love my life and sometimes I feel so overwhelmed with the goodness of it all that I am bursting. (With blessings.) I talked to my Heavenly Father as I walked up here, thanking him for his kindness to me, and I can only hope to share as much as I am given! That's a tall order. I am so glad to know He hears and He answers my prayers. That I can speak to him while I am hiking in the hills, and know I am never alone. I also have a vast appreciation for my smartphone, and the amazing technology so easy to take for granted, that allows me to 'go tell it on the mountain'! I hope as you read this you can feel some of the golden glow surrounding me as I sit on sprawling juniper and drin...

I'd never heard of this before, but my sister Katie recommended it for migraine. So I googled it and learned it's a kind of specialized chiropractic treatment. I also found one in Lethbridge, an hour away (the closest city). On my first visit, my spine was measured and examined on various Dr Suess-ish looking equipment and was found to have 18.5 degrees total of crookedness. On a scale of 0-15%. My x-rays revealed that the curve in my neck is going the wrong way altogether. So with this very promising beginning, I have embarked on a course of treatment which has amazed me at every turn... He used a protractor on my neck the first few times he adjusted it. And there were no popcorn sounds! I can now hear a very quiet little noise if I listen for it. It's all very scientific and precise. Amazingly, I haven't had migraines since he started treating me!!! No, I did have one starting the day after daylight savings time began, as I'd taken a very late nap the day befo...

About 10 years ago when we lived in England I was visiting my dear friend Petra at her home while our children were at school. She gave her little son some popcorn from a saucepan on her stovetop (a.k.a. 'cooker'). I was surprised as I'd never seen popcorn made that way before. I asked her about it and she gave me the simple recipe... pour (sunflower) oil into the pot, just enough to cover the bottom, sprinkle in popping corn to also cover the bottom of the pan, put a lid on it (obviously important ;) cook it over medium heat until the popping sounds slow down/ stop (I wait until there are 2-3 seconds between pops) Then I tip it into a bowl and drop a spoonful of butter into the hot pan to melt. As soon as it is melted and has stopped sizzling, I drizzle it over the bowl of popcorn. Then I sprinkle some sea salt on it, and maybe sugar or even liquid honey. I have done this in pots of many sizes and it seems to work no matter what! Lovely. I like not having to have ...

Last week I went to see the doctor again about shuffling the 'combinations and permutations' of my medicines, with the aim of having fewer migraines. This was not a fun experience because I had a migraine that day. However, it was worth it to get some relief! A couple different drugs were added to the mix, and... voila! On Sunday a friend commented sweetly that I seemed to be feeling great, and wondered what I was doing...? (She was far to polite to put it like this, but essentially she wanted to know why I seemed so alive and energetic compared to my usual self.  ;) The answer? Good drugs!   Years ago my son teased me for being on a first name basis with staff at the pharmacy; he called them my 'homies'. (Thank you Jack ;) Over the years I'd quoted to my children the (ancient greek philosopher...?) quotation, "Let your food be your medicine, and your medicine be your food." How could my teenaged children resist the perfect opportunity to 'mock the ...

Last week was hard for our family as our beloved Golden Retriever, Jasper, suddenly got severely ill and died. We cried and cried, of course. We miss him now whenever we are coming home or going out, whenever we see someone walking a dog that looks like him, whenever I don't need to step carefully over him in the night... He was crazy about his ball. It's one of those bright orange and blue indestructible ones that bounce and float and can be far-flung using the chuck-it stick. This had two benefits; for Jasper it meant longer runs for each thrown ball, and for us it meant no touching the slobbery ball ;) He was also crazy about stealing food! We had to be ever vigilant to prevent him gobbling whatever he could get his mouth on (but oddly, not his own food. He ate plenty of that, but only at mealtimes. Otherwise, he couldn't be bothered. It was the appeal of 'forbidden fruit', I guess!) Once he sniffed out the remains of a bag lunch in Jack's bedroom, wolfed...

Yesterday I had time for a real conversation with one of my Dayhome moms... My big kids and niece and nephew had taken several small children to the playground, so we only had to negotiate our grown-up chat around one little person! It was manageable, and the talk was worthwhile :) This afternoon, once again, the big kids had taken the little kids to the playground, leaving me here with one baby who was sleeping in my lap. His mother came in with his three-year old sister to collect him while the others were out, and we had a good visit while her little son continued to slumber in my arms. (Highly enjoyable :) Of course these are rarities, but even just the day-to-day greetings at the front door and the little Facebook interactions over the photos of the children I share for their parents and grandparents are a source of social support and joy. Thank Heaven for the great moms.

The nasty migraine that plagued the past couple days is over, thank Heaven! Still, my head feels pretty tender, but of course I need to be up and doing. Today I am honestly just so grateful that the five little children who are here in my dayhome are the 'older' bunch; they are excellent, creative players!! It's amazing to see and hear their games. They are resourceful and imaginative, and they get along so well. They just gel, and make up such wonderful games. Usually involving animals. Stuffies, and of course, themselves! It's a brilliant gift that today when my head feels a bit bruised and my energy is low, these little ones are so happy to just PLAY!   :)

The great thing here is that it's hard to decide what to write about because I feel so blessed. Yesterday morning I thought it would be the glorious walk I had in the hills with Jasper the dog, under a beautiful winter blue sky and looking out over the rocks, creek, and mountains... It was just so beautiful. Then in the afternoon I decided on the joyful occasion of a baptism I attended. It was so wonderful to see the light and peace felt by loved ones who chose to make promises with God to follow the Lord and receive the best of His blessings forever... I could also focus on the amazing new bathroom Kirby has been building for our daughters, in hall upstairs. He's a perfectionist, which has its downsides, but the plumbing is water-tight and the tiling is pristine... However, in the end I think I will write and tell you how happy I am for Mary's birthday weekend... Friday night when she had asked a few friends to come over, they of course came up with excuses (since the...

Today I am extra-specially grateful for my sweet daughter Mary! She's all heart. Ever since she was a wee little girl herself, she's been showing how much she cares about everyone lucky enough to be close to her. I remember her as a little toddler, about 2 years old, lying by her very plump baby sister and holding her bottle for her. When they were children, how often did Mary carry Emma home piggyback from walks to the park...? She's the first one to help a friend in need, or to share treats, or to break her sweet heart caring for someone she's concerned about. Formidable champion of the underdog, Mary is a fierce foe to anyone who hurts those she loves. She's sensitive, and full of life, intelligent, and passionate. She can sing like an angel, and play like a child, cook like a chef, and write like a poet. She makes me laugh until I'm near tears sometimes with her hilarious 'voices' and improv humor. When I am ill, and one day when I am old and dyi...

At the risk of sounding very frivolous, I must write a second day in a row about the use of a beauty product. (Very happy with the result of the curl-forming by the way ;) In truth, the reason I am grateful tonight for fancy fingernail polish is anything but silly; hidden benefits... Yes, late this evening my dear teenage daughter suggested a nifty manicure idea she'd seen on an online video tutorial. I'd said I wanted to spend some more time together today, and this is what she came up with. So, off we went to the bathroom where we dropped alternating colors into a wee little container of water until they made a pattern like a target. Then she dipped her nail into/ onto it and I q-tipped off the excess. It is rather pretty, and she's immensely pleased with it. Which was the whole point. Except that the very best part was how much she chatted to me while I shaped and polished the other four nails on each of her hands. It was positively glorious! So really, you see, the...

There are these hair curlers I heard about a few years ago through a friend, called curlformers. I ordered them online... They are long bendy mesh tubes slipped over pieces of hair using plastic 'wands' that look like huge crochet hooks. Extremely bright colours ensure that there's no chance of not being spotted from afar, should anyone be so foolish as to think she can slip out for some errands, remaining incognito by staying in the vehicle. (Trust me; I've tried. ) The most accurate description I can give is to say that I look like a LalaLoopsy doll when they are in my hair. Minus the button eyes. Anyway, they work wonders. Once my hair is dry (aka when I wake up in the morning) I slide them out and voila! The best, bounciest curls ever. Smooth, shiny, lasting me for days, and no damage! These curlers can spend long weeks, even months just sitting patiently in their bags, forlorn and neglected. Then I'll remember them and pull them out. Like now. Looking forw...

We woke up to the prettiest snow ever this morning. Barely heavy enough to even fall, it almost floated, hovering above the old snow. Speaking of which, yesterday afternoon I was outside with several little children making several snowmen in the sticky, melting leftover snow. It was so much fun!!! I think the little ones enjoyed it almost as much as I did ;) Today's snow was irresistible. We went out with a few lightweight sleds, and I was amazed and delighted at how brave and fast these sweet and gentle little girls were on the hill!! I sat near the top  with Jasper. (who, incidentally,was super cute; cuddling with me, snuffling and rolling in the snow, watching the tobogganing...  ;) Meanwhile my little friends sped down and trekked up the steep hill countless times. They would usually end their run tumbling off in a cloud of snow. I cheered as if I were watching bull-riders at a rodeo. It was great. Thank Heaven for perfect snow, and skookum little girls :)

I have been down with a migraine since yesterday at lunchtime. The suffering is inevitable, but as the saying goes, misery is optional! And as much as I'd like to say I just choose the higher road, I know very well that living with chronic, very frequent migraines is only as civilized an experience as it is for me because of the kind ones who help... What would I do without Margaret? ...my dear hero of a friend who comes to look after my little dayhome people when I can't... She is an angel to them. And to me. How could I have made it through this long and painful afternoon without my sweet daughter Mary bringing me freshly frozen ice packs to put on my aching head? The relief she delivered with each one was immediate, and lasted as long as the pack stayed cold. She was home sick with a flu herself, but had woken by then and kindly came to my aid in spite of how she herself was feeling! And of course my good husband comes home from a 10-hour day at his very busy job, and bri...

Sometimes winter down here doesn't feel like winter in Alberta, which is fine with me, since Alberta winters aren't on my 'favorite things' list... It's great; the warm winds come in from the mountains in the west and blow away the cold, melting the snow and ice. The skies can be blue and full of gorgeous sunshine. Other times, we have real winter weather. Very cold, with plenty of snow. Pretty, light and fluffy. But it does get in the way! Meanwhile, we have two young missionaries in town this winter; one from Vancouver, and another from southern California. They willingly left their families, school, year-round green grass, etc to come at their own expense and serve where they were called. We invite them for dinner now and then (as I hope others will do for my good son when he's gone on his own mission!  :) This evening they were a couple minutes late arriving, and when we opened the front door to welcome them in from the cold, we discovered why... They...

And today.... I am in the throes of January bills and banking! Sadly, this isn't a short month, like February. It would be ok with me if all the wintry months were short, and we could make up for it with long summer ones. However, as I wasn't consulted on this little matter, I will have to accept it. And I have to accept the back-to-business business that inevitably follows the holidays. Thank Heaven there are only 29 days left in this month :)

Today I have been so blessed to be a part of the wedding of my dear long-time friend to her new, very lucky husband! Passing through town a few days ago, we were at her house just after they became engaged on Christmas Day, and that evening they arranged to marry on New Year's Day!! So, passing back through Calgary yesterday on our way home from a short but sweet visit to our parents in and around Edmonton, my family dropped me off with my lovely friend to help with the whirlwind preparations for their nuptials. They are both highly energetic, highly organized, and highly culinary, so I am pleased they could find enough to do to keep me busy... (They catered their own house-party reception! Thankfully I am remarkably gifted with spinach salad ;) During the simple ceremony at church this afternoon, the Bishop said something about happiness in their 'wedded life', and that little phrase has stuck in my mind. Thank Heaven for marriage, a building block of family life, which ...