The Eyes, Who I want to be, and a Funny Story!

The Eyes!

So, the one thing I didn't expect from this weekend was the "eyes". Everywhere we went, and everyone that we met was wonderful. Let me just get that out of the way, and say that really we had a fantastic time. Nevertheless, I couldn't get it out of my mind that everywhere we went, people were curious. Who was I? How had I turned out? How did I measure up? Did I bear any family resemblance? I too was looking at them and wondering some of the same things, and when I wasn't wondering about them, I was wondering what they were wondering about me:-) That part was emotionally draining and has caused me to do some heavy duty thinking about who I am, where I have come from, and what I want people to see when they see me and my family. Therefore in true Bonnie fashion I have devised a list. This is not a complete list, but it is a beginning.... So, for this Tuesday, that is all I have to say about that. Feel free to hold me accountable when my actions don't measure up to my goals, but go easy on me... I don't take criticism well:-)

Who I want to Be: part one - the first 5 off the top of my head.

1. Godly - I want to teach my kids to put others first and love God and others above all else. whew... that's a big one.
2. Priorities - I want my family to know that they are my priority.
3. Time conscious - clearly, this is not my strength, here i sit blogging when I should be snuggling, so... moving on....
4. A good friend! One who listens, and cares!
5. Healthy. I want to be the kind of person who grabs an apple, I want to teach my kids to love the good food God gave us and to take care of their bodies. Therefore, tonite, I made salmon... first time for everything... it was actually pretty good, healthy even....

So... Off to make bedtime snuggles a priority..... Sleep Tight!!

WAIT... FUNNY albeit gross story first!

The scene... B on a ride all by himself at Calaway!!! What a big boy ... we're so proud!!! The ride is finished and B is dismounting and.... wait for it.... chewing?!?x?! I rush towards him pandering him with questions.. "What are you eating?What are you eating?What are you eating?What are you eating?" to which he patiently responds.... "a cracker"! Seriously, can you get anymore gross than that??? So, to random kid who lost his cracker on the boat.... we found it :-)

We're Back!!!!

A wonderful trip was had by all... too many things to note at 10pm, the main thought I brought home from my trip was a reminder of who I want to be.... I will leave you with that scintilating thought, and the question, who do you want to be? If you were to be judged right here, right now, based on what you do, what you look like, how you react, how would you measure up to what you want to be?????

Road Trip 2007 - The Journey to Bio land and beyond!

Mom's super thorough Checklist

1. Valium

2. Vehicle washed and vacumed on the inside - yes, the sticky parts too! (by the way -- what is that chunky stuff under the seat....EWWWW!)

3. Hotel Reservations made

4. Itinerary Planned

5. Packing Checklists for the kids

6. Earplugs

7. Activities for the kids - eg. books, movies, games, valium.... (WHAT????)

8. Extra blankets, pillows, yadda yadda, because you know we will exceed any hotel occupant limit on our room!

9. Vehicle once over - Gas, oil, thingamabobs, thingamadooeys... maybe I should just leave that one to the Boy.

10. Valium

Well, I think we are almost set. 2 more days and we are off to HP for Lance and Denises' wedding. Everyone at our house is pretty excited. This will be a very unique trip for everyone, for those of you that are new to our lives and have entered mid story, I will give you a brief synopsis... Chapter One: I was adopted at 5 months into the most fantastic family ever. I have since lived Happily Ever After. (tee hee - O.K really I'm a poop, but my mom and dad are fantastic and put up with me!) for more thoughts on adoption and the boring story of "me" check this out http://bonnielc.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!92962B453FD4F471!130.entry

Chapter 2 : Quite a few years ago I met my birth mother... CAROL (tada). A fantastic lady whom I am priviledged to have gotten to know over the past few years, and am lucky to call my friend. Also, I now have someone to blame for any bad genes I may come accross:-)

Chapter 3: This past year, through internet contacts I found out that my birth father (who is unfortunately deceased) had two other children. One of which I have come to know and forge a friendship with... honestly, I've completely fallen for his entire family. They are funny, sweet, thoughtful, and kind, and...they are getting married this weekend! I'm pretty excited!

Chapter 4: We are going to HP... way up in northern Alberta for Lance and Denise's wedding. Here we will meet many relatives from both sides that we have never met before. We will stay with my "birth-maternal-grandmother" (how's that for a title?). We will meet aunts, uncles, cousins etc. and quite frankly I have no idea how to feel, I am nervous, excited, nervous, anxious, excited and maybe a bit nervous. We have toyed with the idea of this trip for years, knowing it would mean alot to a few people, but not knowing how the kids would handle it and stuff, nevertheless the time has come. We decided to put all of our talk into action when Lance and Denise anounced their wedding. So... off we will go. I hope all of the reactions to our arrival will be positive, I hope everyone realizes that we have no intention of getting in the way or changing things in their family.. I hope no one feels threatened by our presence at the wedding or is overwhelmed by having us at their house:-) Nevertheless, the kids are home from their haircuts, all groomed and ready to go, the motel is booked, and I think the four year old is climbing the walls, so.... I should run! Wish me luck only 2 days to put this plan into action!

Hopefully C has better luck this time with the music choices :-)

P.S. Any road trip activity suggestions or Movie choices to suit ages 4-13 are welcome, welcome, welcome!!!!

Sonforce Kids - VBS 2007

Check out these disguises???!!!!!

Well, it's finally here, VBS week! It is going soooo great. It is a little tiring and kind of saps all of the energy out of a person, but the big smiles on the kids faces, the crazy games that Mark and Dale come up with, the fun music, the bibles kids take home, the spontaneous hugs I get on the street.... I love it!!!! It is sooo worth while. The theme this year is Sonforce Kids, Trust, Unite, Train, Follow, and Lead. It is a really fun curiculum with a secret agent/spy type theme and although I was a little skeptical at the beginning things are turning out fantastic. The kids are totally into it! Well, the bummer part of it all is that it is early to work, 3am is going to come too early, when it's this hot, showering is not an optional thing :-) So... I'll have to leave the pictures to tell the rest of the story of our fun week, maybe I'll take more at the closing program, but this gives you all a great overview of how much fun the kids and I are having at VBS 2007 ROCK ON!!! Oh yeah, and here is the link to the programing, just incase you care :-)......

http://gospellightvbs.com/sonforce/

Anyhow, have a fantastic night, and may the force be with you!!!!!

Roll Kuchen and Watermelon!

O.K, so here it is! When J and I were first married he was very excited to try this Mennonite tradition that we all raved about! When we were done, he was still waiting.... he had become convinced that this Roll Kuchen was a festival or party, someting major from all the hullabaloo surrounding the event. Unfortunatley for J our big excitment was deep fried dough. It doesn't take much to excite us simple folk :-) Needless to say this sweet treat ranks right up there for him with "waffles and ice cream for dinner". Ahhhh, the things I love that don't excite him much. I believe his response went like this... "where's the meat?". Nevertheless, if you've never tried it, I highly suggest you get yourself some Roger's Golden Syrup for dipping and a big fat watermelon to chow down on because this is one time honored tradition you don't want to miss! Nevertheless, if you're waiting for the dancing girls or the parade, you might be there for a while :-)

Roll Kuchen!!
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk
Add to 6 tablespoons butter, melted
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
Beat eggs well.
Put into a 1 cup measuring cup and fill with milk. (This may end up being more or less than the 3/4 cup listed in the ingredients.)
Add to remaining ingredients and mix to combine.
Roll out very thin and cut into strips. (I use a pizza cutter)
Cut again so that pieces are approximately 1 inch long by 3 inches wide. (little rectangles - kind of)
Cut a slit in the middle and pull one end through to knot it.
Fry four to six at a time, in deep hot fat until golden brown.
Serve with Watermelon!
A Mennonite summer tradition!

Hot Fun in the Summertime

Summertime and the livin' is easy!

Check it out People! Have you seen this stuff??? I believe it was invented in heaven!

I am in love with summer, I am in love with sun. I truely love the color that the sun brings to people's cheeks, the feeling of the warm rays on your skin, the way that my stretch marks and cellulite, just seem to fade a little bit while my skin morphs into it's warm, bronze hue. I am nevertheless in all my vantiy....willing to acknowledge that the sun can be dangerous, therefore I, like every other guilt driven, determined mother, face summer head on armed with my arsenal of goopy sunscreen, hats, waterbottles and various other beach-like paraphanalia ( as beachy as we get here on the praries that is :-) . Every year the scenario at my house gets a little bit uglier as I wrangle, wrestle, bribe, and threaghten all who dare to forget the Slip, Slap, Slop motto. Slip into a t-shirt, Slap on a hat, and slop on some sunscreen. Generally there is a great display of flexibility and determination at my house when it comes to the slop part, they don't enjoy the goop, I don't enjoy the goop. Honestly, the bigger they get, the harder I fall as I chase them down unmerciless in my rampage, avoiding the goop at all cost, pinning for my miracle cure that will eventually turn me into a weathered, leather skinned, wrinkly old lady. Now that I've set the stage we can let you in on the GREAT NEWS!!!!!

WE HAVE DISCOVERED AEROSOL SUNSCREEN!!!! Unbelievable! Why did no one tell me about this sooner??? NO MESS, NO GOOP, NO RUBBING IT IN, JUST SPRAY!!!! I AM NOW FREE TO ENJOY THE FINER THINGS OF SUMMER...without alerting the WWF first :-) So, In honor of this fantastic, wonderful, new to me invention here is my list of summer stuff!

An ice cube melting in your hand

Lemonade Stands

Fluffy clouds

Mr. Turtle Pools

Sprinklers

Swim Passes to the Local Pool

No School

Holidays

Flowers

BarBQ

Bare feet!!!

Roll Kuchen... that's got to be a post of it's own (coming soon!)

An ice cold beverage

Campfires

Fresh Fruit

Evening Walks/Runs

Late bedtimes

Late rising times:-)

Coffee and the Paper in the morning with sunbeams in my window!

SLURPEES!!!!

Ben has one more to add.... Playing with great friends!

Now it's time to head to bed so that I can enjoy that morning sun. Tomorrow we're going to the pool after church... shhh don't tell the kids, it's a surprise! I'm packing the sunscreen! Well,it's been a long hot day, but suddenly I don't feel quite so sticky and icky, just a little more sunshinny!

Sunrise, Sunset!

Genesis 1:14-19 And God said, "Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years,and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth." And it was so. God made the two great lights-- the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night-- and the stars. God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.

Both of these pictures were taken today... morning and night.

Proud Mama

Every now and then we have those moments with our children when we just sit back and smile! Today I was going to a movie with a friend and because of circumstances, T#1 was going to come along and enjoy the fun. I asked T#2 to babysit her brother (she had already been doing just that for the better part of the day), and in return I offered to take her to a movie with a friend on the weekend. She agreed without complaining and we had a really fun evening. Upon my return home T#2 asked me if it was alright if she invited her sister instead of a friend, because she knew that her sister was really dying to go see Nancy Drew. Can you believe that??? She wants to take her sister who already went to a movie!!! It's unbelievable no arguing, no... it's not fairing... just plain sharing and consideratness (is that a word???) Who knows. Anyhow, I am proud of her! Nice Job Bear! I think I'll pitch in for popcorn too!!!

What's for Dinner???

As I sit here contemplating dinner, I find it easiest to do that which I seem to do best.... procrastinate. Such an evil sounding word really. In a kinder society we'd employ a much more user friendly term like... say... defer. "I prefer to defer my decisions regarding dinner until such time as someone sees fit to cook it for me :-)" I find it absolutely amazing how many things I can find to occupy my time, when all the while the essential task which I am "defering" sits idly by and glares at me, daring me to dismiss it for just one more minute.... dinner.
Since our return from vacation, no one in our house has been grocery shopping, I mean really shopping. We've made numerous trips to the store for bread, milk, eggs, and other various staples. For crying out loud, I do work next to a grocery store. Nevertheless, the situation is so dire that I may begin keeping company with Old Mother Hubbard.... So, Dinner.
I have scrounged from the bowels of my freezer a margerine container filled with bite size pieces of Roast beef (slightly freezer burnt, but let's remember we're feeding a man and children... they come from pretty hearty stock, and not usually to fussy). This chopped concoction, I have managed to put in the microwave on the defrost setting. All the while, checking my e-mail, listening to stories of skating camp, looking up random words in a thesaurus, and organizing the mass of dirty dishes that have miraculously appeared on my counter since I left for work this am... not to shabby... but hmmm.... dinner.
Yesterday while making a visit to my parents house my mom bestowed upon me a bag of leftover, slightly shriveled peppers... "Aha! She exclaimed (not outloud mind you,) a girl wise enough to appreciate this gift of prehistoric peppers, and fool enough to thank me profusely." Score one for grandma. So.... beef, peppers..... blogging?... dinner.
Well, back to digging... hmmm in the dark receptacles of my cupboard, I have come accross a bargain!!!! That's right, you heard me... A FREAKIN BARGIN! I have found the largest ever (ever-so-slightly dented) can of stewed tomatoes, with this simple, yet elegant marking in black jiffy marker accross the top of the can...... .85 ! It is unbelieveable, as a vote of affirmation for my bargain hunting husband who never leaves a can unturned in a discount bin, the tomatoes must be added... did I mention we have a pan now, containing, peppers in various states of witheredness, meat (presumably, but not positively beef), bargain stewed tomatoes, a lone package of onion soup mix and some water.... I'm experiencing a slight perk in my nasal passages, is that, do I detect, could it be.....the quite savory aroma of.... dinner.
Who knows! No time for that now, there is a crisis! Our neighbor who I will call McKinely has informed our 4 year old that he will one day die. What kind of lemonade stand talk is that? One minute they are sitting sweetly on the corner pawning off stolen goods from my already dry cupboards to strangers for a quarter and now this..... a theological discourse including much whinning, crying and gnashing of teeth debating intense subjects such as life expectancy, and the afterlife. Time to snuggle and stir... oops, doorbell!
It is now 4:52 J will be home at 5 and expect dinner on the table. I have accomplished: "Rice, Reddish stuff in a pan including peppers (surprisingly crisp - which I really should have browned, and greens from the garden. All the while, blogging, door answering (silly 13 year old boys who pretend they have the wrong house when the 13 year old female does not magically appear ;-) Do I look like I was born yesterday????, discussing theology with neighborhood children, considering sweeping... yes, I did say considering, or possibly... defering. Nevertheless, it seems like the time is imminent, I can defer no longer, Well, I suppose it's time to enlist the troops! "Kids, please set the table... you do want to attend that sleepover right????" (tee hee bribery always works), oops... 4:58 gotta run...... DINNER!

Deliciously Defered Pepper Steak

Fresh Roast beef slivered or leftover from the depths of your freezer. - 1 lb
3 or 4 colored Peppers or Capsicums if you're fancy :-)
Onion and Garlic - if you have it.
Stir fry these ingredients and add...
One Package of Onion soup mix
One Large can of Stewed tomatoes and water to consistency
serve over rice and call the troops!

I must admit we ate on disposable plates and clean up is over.... everyone raved.... Watch out Martha, here I come......

Take your Children Off line

So... I read this last nite and it greatly disturbed me, enough that I changed a few details in my blog, but didn't remove any pictures. What do you think?????

http://urbansemiotic.com/2005/07/13/take-your-children-offline-now/#comments

Uncle Ben's Quote of the Day

Ben: "Daddy smoked the plants again mommy"

Me: "Pardon me Ben?"

Ben: "Daddy smoked the plants again mommy"

Me: "Pardon me Ben?"

Ben: "mommy, smoked means water - Daddy smoked the plants again"

Me:..................... mommy collapses in a hilarious heap ontop of T#1, T#2, and C laughing histarically, and later goes on to explain to the addamant four year old that no, smoked really does not mean water... he's still not going for it. Tomorrow it's supposed to be 19 degrees C. Probably J should smoke the plants yet again :-)

The Menu:

Tarragon Roasted Salmon with Sour Cream Dill Sauce

Wild Rice

Spinach and Gouda Stuffed Chicken

Roasted Garlic Potatoes and Onions

Sesame Mandarin Spinach Salad

Japaneese Cabbage Salald

I tell you it is really nice to start work once the sun is already up. Today since we were catering a wedding through the bakery I started work at 9am as opposed to 3am. Wow!! I feel like a million bucks! The wedding was outside and all the dishes were disposable. The bride's sister was taking care of dessert, therefore, once the items listed above were consumed we were out of there. Not only did I get to be a good employee, by feeding the natives and satisfying their gourmet palates, but also I was home by 8pm - I may have heard tell that I am not surpassing the mark as complete failure on the mother front. It is amazing how two days home from holidays and I'm convinced that I am forever going to be confined to mother-guilt purgatory for the rest of my life. Who said juggling work and home were easy???? Today though, when I came home, the house was in a relative state of assembledness (?), and the children were waiting with fantastic tales of Settler's Days activities.

Today is the day our town celebrates it's.....uniqueness, settlerness??(hmmm), well , I'm not really sure, mostly I think it's an excuse for the adults to act like children, and the children to run into the streets chasing after candy.






J drove the rescue truck in the parade..........HOT!!! The children are still regaling me with tales of magic shows, candy, balloon animals, and face paint. Have I mentioned what awesome big sibblings Ben has??? All in all, it has been a fantastic day all around, I shall snuggle all children to their respective degrees of boundaries :-) and go to bed satisfied. Tomorrow am is a community worship service which should be fun for all. After that we are having some company over for a bonfire. Mostly people that J knows from the fire department, and some other friends so... if you are up for a wienie roast... come on over!!!

Memories, and Madness!

Well, I must say, a good time was had by all, and since a picture is worth a thousand words I think I'll just let them talk for themselves.

Fairmont and Fort Steele will never be the same! We came, we saw, we puked, left some nose skin behind, we giggled, we played twister, minigolf, real golf, we swam, we shopped, we ATE, and we spent time with some of our favorite people in the world!

We reaquainted ourselves with cousins we hadn't seen in a while, we snuggled with people we see all the time and in general, we had a blast. Now, it's back to real life for a few weeks, but soon.... look out high prarie! You never know who might be sneaking up on you.....!

Well, here I am with an update on our week so far. Things I've done and moments I've cherished. Swimming, swimming and more swimming. B is now treading water and yesterday in the pool he told me quite demurely that he has 26 secrets. Not 25, not 27, but 26... don't worry though, I've been working on him. C is hanging out with Z getting into trouble, yesterday we went to the big pool up at the top and everyone got sufficiently sunburned. Today we had all the cousins over for Roll Kuchen and watermelon. Last night we played mini golf and aside from one teenage tantrum it was a fairly successful event. Really, there is not a whole lot to report. C's golf game is getting quite good, and T#1 golfed for the first time ever. T#2 is having a ball running around in her bikini with a really skinned nose. The first nite here in the pool she swam into the wall :-) Well, she's maybe not the most co-ordinated, but cute still.... Anyhow, I must run 2 min. left on the clock to post! I'll let everyone know soon how the HYH Challenge is going... easy this week ;-) So... Cheers from Fairmont!