A Few Sweet Savored Moments

It's been a long time a comin'

2011-09-24T20:23:00.000-07:00

It really has! I believe 2 whole years have passed since I last blogged anything, which is really a cryin' shame - for me that is. It is a shame since I enjoy this creative outlet a whole lot!
Thankfully, I have my wonderful bakery friends to remind me that writing is a good way to feed my soul and for encouraging me to continue, so THANKs guys! (you know who you are ;-)

Looking back over the things I have written in the past I can see that in some ways things change so incredibly fast, yet some things remain constant. Our family is growing and changing...allow me to clarify, "growing" as in growing up... not expanding in numbers - I don't want to be the next Sunny South news headline .. "Crazy Mennonite woman - leaves bakery life for one more bumpy ride on the baby train" ACH! Perish the thought ;-) The changes and growth I am referring to are things like graduations, puberty, athletic accomplishments, drivers licenses...and babies in grade three. that play football..did I mention.. our tiny little baby started grade three and plays football??? It's just not right. Nevertheless, amid all the changes, some things still remain. Our Faith, values, beliefs, interests and core relationships are mostly in tact. This is encouraging to me. Lately I've been reflecting a fair bit on "where I'm at in life"... "oh dear" you say ---"NO", you can relax..I'm certain I hear a collective groan around cyberspace from my imaginary audience. It's not really all that in depth or involved, I've been thinking about the fact that I am incredibly blessed.. blessed with fantastic family - children who amaze me every day, friends and co-workers - unbelievably and oddly enough, all of these categories overlap. I am blessed with hobbies that I enjoy that make my life full and rich, blessed with health, blessed with resources, blessed with my favorite things like wine and cookies, and occasional moments of peace and quiet where i can engage in said activities like running, singing, reading, writing and cooking, blessed with a relationship with my husband that continues to evolve - i know this is family, but it's a different "sort' of family, so Jamie - you get your own category! All in all, I can honestly say "I am richly blessed". As I dawdle along the path towards middle age taking a mental inventory of where i am and where I've been, I'm learning to relax, let the little things slide, stop trying to be something that I am not, stop trying to meet some perfect "churchy" or "worky' ideal but yet somehow figure out what is important and still strive to improve myself on that level - not because society expects it, or because it will impress someone, but because it involves becoming the woman of God that i know God wants me to be and based on that, that I want to be. So I suppose the purpose of this post is a bit redundant, I'm merely posting to begin posting. I have no set plan of how often I'd like to post and the newer.. nearing 40 me doesn't care so much about stressing herself out with a post every day or a new insight full thought bi-weekly. The new almost 40ish Bonnie would like to use this outlet when she has something to say. It doesn't matter if no one wants to read it, it doesn't matter if it is updated once a day, week, hour, month, or year what matters most are two things, growth that inspires change for the sake of betterment, not for the sake of outside influences and the things that remain the same ; Faith, values, beliefs and core relationships. If writing inspires me to remain the same in those aspects or to change in things that actually matter or simply to voice an opinion or an inspired recipie then I am going to do so, if for no other reason than to resonate the thought that I am truly blessed and to push away any other misgivings, self-doubt or cranky ungrateful thoughts that often plague my conciousness.. be gone nastiness.. hello gratefull , inspired heart:-)

Happy Easter from the Egg Family!

2008-03-22T19:15:00.000-07:00

Meet our Egg Family!

Baby Stinkbreath - This egg is an evil space alien. He has one eye, 2 feet, and one very large hand protruding from his foot. He is going to destroy the whole egg planet.
Her name is Kimmie. She is the hottest egg eva', nevertheless she will probably crack due to the evil scheming powers of baby stinkbreath.
Gerardo - is a lonesome, but sophisticated buisnessman who lives in an apartment by himself. He's looking for a date.
Miss Yokelmire - is an eccentric, fun loving Mom.

Wendy - Loves to shop, her favorie color is pink and she's an eggstraterestrial!

Happy Easter From the Egg Family, also from Ben, Taylor, Tannis, Mc Kenna and I!!!!

2008-03-11T19:22:00.000-07:00

Well, I'd just like to say that if Ann Murray is correct and the answer is indeed "blowing in the wind..." I am pretty sure we have got all the answers in this little corner of the world! This picture is just a tiny glimpse into how incredibly windy it was today... This is our front lawn... yes, I do mean LAWN!

The property accross from us was razed for construction recently and therefore there is no longer any grass to hold down the dirt... gross, eh? It looks like the Sahara in my front yard.. I'll try not to look.
So... by now you've noticed... I got SPOILED!!! Carol sent us a new camera.. I feel like a pooper for complaining that I missed the other one, but on the other hand I am SOOO excited, and just in time for the kid's play this weekend, and our road trip to Calgary on Thursday for Avril. Get ready for photo/extravaganza. For today, I settled on the big news only... 1. The dessert sands come to Coaldale. 2. Fridge art:

I suppose you can't read our crazy acrostic about our family that we have arranged with the magnetic scrabble letters that we created, but you'll have to trust me when I tell you just how cool they really are! Cool as well, is Ben's picture of a monster posted below the letters... impressive, I know... Picasso, look out! And finally 3. Yes I did make a totally new funky recipie with ingredients we don't normally incorporate into our diet, and yes indeed it was healthy and full of antioxidants and dang was it good.. we really liked it.. Mangos and all!!!! WIERD!

It is called Brazillian Black Bean Stew, and it Rox! If you click on the title you can get the recipie... if i'm that coool - then you too, can make whacko, mango, sweet potato, healthy anti-oxident stew! Not sure if I was successful tho... Anyhow, Hope your day was as fulfilling as ours.. and hope you can get some sleep, cause the wind's not ROARING in your ears! Cheers!

Another One Bites the Dust

2008-03-02T07:57:00.000-08:00

It has been a fairly social week at the Chartier's. Monday Jamie and I went out with some friends and partied like it was 1984... I really don't know what about 1984, but we had a great time, stayed out a little late, and paid for it like old people. Nevertheless, it was really nice to see some friends that we haven't seen in a while, and connect socially with the rest of the world. Tuesday was spent working and trying to cement it into our minds why we don't usually go out late, also on Tuesday Jamie joined the gym!!!! Collective applause from accross cyberspace please!! I was sooo impressed, I worry about that guys heart and really want him to be healthy, plus it is fun time we can have together when our schedules permit. Tuesday night Brenda and I went to Bible Study sans Jamie (he was studying). We are still discussing Nehemiah, and the topic this week was discouragment.. hmmm... what are the causes... stress, sleeplessness etc. Funny, Tim our "leader" told me that he thought of me as an Otter, fun, fun, fun, and never discouraged.... baha!!! I still havent stopped laughing. Aside from that the entire night was quite enjoyable, I feel like I got to know the people in our group just a little better. Any input you have into dealing with discouragement, or causes of would be greatly appreciated, we're continuing our discussion next week.. I love our group! Wednesday Brenda and I spent most of the day pre-planning and shopping for Friday, we had two major catering events totalling about 450 people, so we made meatballs and Lasagna for 2 different events for about 200-250 people each, It was a long but reallllly productive day. At the end of the day, Brenda and I were scanning the internet researching her plans for a trip to Cuba when suddenly a bird was chirping in our midst. You have NEVER seen two more afraid people, we jumped so high we nearly hit the roof, What the.... heck!!!???? We looked around and suddenly felt incredibly foolish to realize that the sound was actually coming from the hidden computer speaker. It was a sound effect from the website... hmmm.. I'd say we blushed (and giggled) a little! Thursday was my day off and was spent cursing the gymnastics club and T4 slips, I am NOT, I repeat ... NOT meant to be an accountant. We are talking about the girl who couldn't organize herself out of a paper bag, nor add a column of numbers twice and end up with the same answer, but the long and the short of it was it is done (mostly :-) In the evening we had friends over for a BarBQ, it was a fun, but NOISY evening, our kids were REALLY rambunctious (if that is even how you spell that word). We watched our new favorite show, "Big Love", it is really quite an interesting show about a group of polygamist mormons. It's not anti-mormon, it is obvious that these people are a unique sect, but the whole concept is kind of intreiging (?) in a creepy and crazy sort of way. Friday we catered, catered, catered and still found time in the middle of the day to stop for a cheeseburger at "Good ol' boys" (tee hee) what a trashy week! It was really fun, and thanks to mucho prayers all the catering turned out well. For the evening catering we made lasagna for 250 people. When we took it out of the oven, finally.. we were worried it wouldn't be hot enough.. at the last minute it was, but... it was runny like soup. We were thinking Oh no! Do we need to bring bowls, spoons and crackers... ARGH, we were 1/2 an hour until show time, and there were no adjustments that could be made... so we got in the van and prayed. Our destination was about 20 minutes away, and when we arrived I sneakily peeked under the foil of a pan and... VOILA!!! Perfectly set.. Thank you Lord! I don't know how it happened, I knew it would "set" a bit, but really, it was way more than I could have hoped for! Everything was set and it was home to bed! Saturday Tannis and I went on a shopping spree! Probably we should not shop together, as for the one child that recieved almost 100% of my DNA, it was crazy! You have never seen two more distracted people. We needed Jeans for Tannis and Runners for me, we got both... and a bit more.. and ALOT of "oooh look at this" and "check this out.. I really should...." and "Hey one time we could get something like this for..." Wow, it's a wonder that we made it home by our deadline, we had a blast! We got 2 pair of Jeans for Tannis... success since she's so skinny and long, and I got a pair of CRAZY FANTASTIC runners that I've been begging for. To punish myself for spending a ridiculous amount on runners (even though my old ones had holes right through each of the soles) I went for a SUPER long run when I got home, I beat my personal best, I ran 7.5 miles in 65 min. It was SOOOOO fun! Anyhow, after that we have mostly just watched Connor and Ben playing their new Monopoly game that Tannis and I picked up at Value Village, and waiting to make the fridge magnets from scrabble pieces from the game we also picked up... fun eh??? I can't wait, maybe we'll post a picture once we're done and writing words on our fridge with magnetic scrabble peices. Anyhow, that was our action packed week.. Also, another Praise item :-) Jamie got %84 on his most recent EMT test, and is carrying an average well into the 80's. His next section is about learning how to read EKGs, and he's a bit worried, so keep praying. Any test scores under 80 are a fail and if your average at the end of the course is below 80 it is an automatic FLUNK... so far, so good, my man is brilliant, but he's still got to work at it and prayer never hurt! So, that is life within the walls of this house, full of fun, busy, crazy, little bit of everything but all in all... I am the luckiest gal alive! Mmmm.. me and my coffee are going to trip over a "middle of the floor game of Monopoly" and stumble bleary eyed but cheerfull to a really warm shower. Hopefully today will be somewhat productive! Cheers!

I miss my Camera!

2008-02-25T14:43:00.000-08:00

Ho humm, I really do miss my camera.. I'm actually blaming the petty, selfish theives who stole it from my van for my lack of blogging! Somehow, a picture of Tannis riding the Chair Lift back down Castle mountain (because she forgot to get off), or a picture of me bleeding out as Jamie was practising IV's on me at the firehall, would be much more fun, than just plain words! Boo Hoo, I know, I really should still be writing, but there are a million circumstances that you've just got to see to believe. Crazy stuff happens around here. I believe I live in a zoo. Not that I don't love my zoo!
This afternoon, Ben was reaching for a "Sunny D", I said to him, "Ben, please check your backpack and finish the one that we sent to school with you for snack time." Ben said " I drank alot, are you checking,.... don't check" (little liar :-) Taking this opportunity for a teachable moment I told him that Jesus could see what we did all the time, he loved us and he didn't want us to lie. He, in turn looked at me with a twinkle in his eye and said "Is he peeking in my backpack???" Awww, sometimes I just want to freeze frame the moments. So, generally what I'm saying is that life is going as usual here. Our quest for health is going well, I have been a dilligent gymite for 2 1/2 months now, and am down about 13 lbs, and back running again! It feels so good! I'm up to six miles a day, I'm just waiting for the perfect race to finally take the plunge and run with some others, maybe I see a 1/2 marathon in my future... MAYBE! I'm just starting to add some weight training to that and my body doth protest.... LOUDLY, but you know what they say.. no pain no gain... idiots! Jamie and I are taking walks on a more regular basis, he often refers to them as the "walk to skinny" or "journey for lives", at least he has a sense of humor to go with that hot body:-) The girls are trying really hard to eat healthy and try new stuff... like fish, smoothie building, brown rice and a few new fruits and cleverly disguised vegetables. The boys... well, I believe that they believe that they need junk food for survival.. we still cave... alot! The great part about life in this part of the country is the variable weather conditions. If one were to go outside today he would think to himself... "what an amazing spring day!" ... at least a month early!! This morning we had snow... now it's beautiful.. aside from being a bit confused, we are loving it... I'm pretty sure a run outdoors is in order, seems silly to hop on that old treadmill on a day like today when the sun is shining like... well, like my flylady sink! I suppose I should get my little fingers off the computer, I've been feeling alot of mother-guilt lately for not spending more quality time with the kids and currently ben is manipulating his toes with a log pincher from the fireplace set and begging me to "see if we have all the stuff for play-dough", I on the other hand am sitting with a blank stare, considering making supper and sipping a cup of tepid coffee... hmmm... time to burst into action I'd say... off to playdough and dinnerville! C U Soon! Hopefully I have something more exciting to add, or maybe even insightfull --- hey, what about some pictures! (tee hee!) Hopefully soon!:-) Cheers!

A Valentines Rock Out!

2008-02-17T09:09:00.000-08:00

Upon my arrival home from work at about 8am on valentines day I was greeted in the street by my daughter's music. Not unusual. Avril Lavigne's "Hey, Hey, you, you, I don't like your girlfriend" was being belted out in the way only distorted computer speakers could manage on their way to being blasted to smitherines. It was one of those belly laughing, doubled over moments when Ben greeted me at the door with a shout: "Taylor is listening to this song..... and it's not very VALENTINESY!" Who would've thought that a four year old could be so astute, all day we were tutored about our actions having them labled as valentinesey or not valentinesy. At least we have one day in our house when the kindness police are on our side, it's usually such a lonely task... THANKS BEN!

2008-02-13T19:45:00.000-08:00

River
This is a metaphorical poem Taylor wrote for her dad in English.. she's SOOO smart.

River

My Dad is the river
The soft smooth flow
Of calm and alming
That makes one smile

The vigorous rush
Determined to be somewhere
Faster and faster
Never stopping

A current that pushes you
Places where you don't kow you could go
And you scream because it's hard to swim
But all of a sudden you arrive and you're happy

A river that is hard to swim against
And will never change it's direction
A river that knows it's purpose
And never stops flowing

A river that gets frozen over
And you think it's only ice
But there is so much life and activity underneath
It's just hidden for a while

A river that makes sure
If your arms are tired
All you have to do is float
And let it's current carry you

A book meme' Fun!!!!!

2008-02-06T05:46:00.000-08:00

So, some love these, some hate em' - but it was really fun. Leslie tagged me for a book meme'. Here are the rules, and here is my contribution! Have fun!!

Here are the rules:
Pick up the nearest book of 123 pages or more. (No cheating!)
Find Page 123.
Find the first 5 sentences.
Post the next 3 sentences.
Tag 5 people.

"Put peppers, onions and garlic in pan. Saute' until soft. Add tomato and soy sauce, beef boullion cube, water, mushrooms and juice. Break up and dissolve cube."

Fun!!! Company's coming casseroles was mine... Chineese Pepper Steak mmmm. Although I'm reading John Grisham's "The innocent Man" pretty interesting non-fiction. Anyhow, thanks for the fun Leslie!!!

I tag Carol, Kalie, Dale, Taylor, Cola :-)

Notes from Nehemiah

2008-01-23T06:50:00.000-08:00

Don'tcha' Love, Love, Love mornings when it's still dark outside, everyone else is still sleeping, the coffee is hot and a new day is about to begin. I love the thought of fresh starts, new beginnings, and morning is my favorite time of day... when I can get my sorry fat butt out of the sack! Anyhow, morning it is and another day is upon us. Last night at Bible Study (we are studying Nehemiah), we were talking about what makes an influential person. The question was posed... Think of someone in your life who has a positive influence on you... why? what characteristics do they have that make them influential. Of course the group was pretty quiet, those are some pretty heavy questions, but I am intrieged by the different responses.. and so I put it out to the blogsphere... What qualities make someone influential in your life? I came up with consistency (fleeting friendships come easy... are you in it for the long haul... even when it gets tough???), honesty - they tell it like it is (usually without being hurtfull, although sometimes the truth hurts a bit), kindness, and compassion, they see your needs and come along side, and also vulnerability - the flip side, they allow me to be there for them, being honest about where they need me as well ... a gal always needs to be needed right??? Anyhow, it was really an interesting study, we then discussed how we can be influential in other people's lives putting into practice prayer AND action. How often do we say "if there is anything i can do....." or "i'll pray for you....". These are some thoughts to ponder for all of you out there, how do you influence people???? Hmmmm... I'm pretty sure I drive them to drink, but... I'm workin' on that :-) Hope your day is as full of promise as mine appears to be, I'm off to shower... always good to start the day clean :-) Don't forget to weigh in..

Birthday Party Shinanigans

2008-01-22T15:39:00.000-08:00

Our littlest man attended his very first birthday party yesterday sans mommies. It's like a rite of passage. A little hard, we had tears over the present that was to GIVE away. He woke with the words "I just can't get up mommy, I'm too jelous of Isaac!", these moments morphed into excited rantings over the activities to be, which then morphed into tears that it wasn't time to go, by noon I was ready to go insane, madly rooting around in my head for any parenting technique I may have learned over my 14 year journey... nada. I finally relied on distraction. It worked. In the end, he had a fantastic time, Isaac enjoyed his presents, Isaac's mom says that our son did not throw a fit... I'm not so sure I believe her, but nonetheless, it was an enjoyable afternoon for all!

hmmmm.....

2008-01-18T04:45:00.001-08:00

I don't know how it is that an entire week can pass and I have nothing to say!!! I mean really, this is me we're dealing with! Nothing to say??? hmmm... probably I am the most talkative, o.k, noisy, obnoxious person on the planet, yet when it comes time to try to say something profound, or that sounds moderately interesting about my life... hmmm.... I got nothin'. This is what's been up lateley. Saw a couple movies: "The Nanny Diaries" Scarlette Johansen is hot, but the movie, not so much, O.K, just not fantastic. Saw "Hairspray" LOVED ITTTTTTT!!! Loved every obnoxious song!!!! Especially when the mr. and mrs. tunblad, are singing to each other... awwwww! My most current pet peeve, is my cats.... when you open the door for them because they are meowing like the house is on fire, and they stand there staring at the -40 degree weather, with their tail in the air and then turn around and walk back in..I know how they feel, I'm a little jelous that there is nothing beyond these doors that is so important that they need to brave the weather, none the less, it is irritating, and still..... they haven't "done their buisness" hmmmm. We're still eating healthy... impressive huh? Also, I am still hitting the virtual track... not bad eh? We're three weeks into it and this week I have run 16 miles, I love it.... when it's over! Actually my biggest new years resolution was to not hit snooze.... EVER! Still good on that one, I figure snooze is slowly robbing my life! Nevertheless, I still can't manage to leave for work on time. Well, there is always next years resolutions. Oh, yeah and the healthy thing, I've got a few great recipies that we've come accross, like last nights dinner when my parents were over..... Jambalaya, "simple" salmon (has become a staple), and a yummy tirimasu type dessert that is NOT on my eating healthy list! Kids, let seee...... Tannis is FURIOUS with us bcause we won't let her go skiing on a bus to westcastle with her friend and said friend's 16 year old brother for the day.... Uh..... NO! We've got tears, whinning, gnashing of teeth! Veeeery unlike Tannis, but still.... NO. Finally Jamie has made peace by offering to take them skiing over Feb break, whew, crisis averted, are we unreasonable??? Actually, I don't care, the answer is still NO, no daytrips to other cities, ski hills, towns, countries when you're 13, sorry... nope :-) Taylor is writing exams... lots of days off, I think she will enjoy them... study??? we'll see. Connor, is back from skiing with the Bezooyens, and had a blast... yes, Connor got to go... with a FAMILY! He had fun and is still recovering. Ben has learned to count to ONE HUNDRED!!!! It is wayyyy cute, but difficult to listen to AGAIN! Jamie is loving school, and our new routine, if only he could get paid for going to school! Really everything is just honkey dorey here, boring, boring, but that's what I love. So, that's our little corner of the world for this week, Peace out! I'm off to work... 15 min to shower and get there... oops :-)

Healthy Choices

2008-01-05T03:48:00.000-08:00

O.K, so EVERYONE in our house has "resloved" to eat healthier (well, maybe not Ben, we're thinking of enlisitng him in a five step program for sugar addicts! :-). Jamie and I want to set a good example for the kids, and the kids are in on the madness, we've seen a transformation, kids are reaching for salad and vegetables, after a couple weeks of holidays the kids have emptied all the cupboards, including the produce drawer... so far so good. We've been eating lots of produce, brown rice, whole grains, lots of fibre, but it's tricky. I still haven't figured out how to master the sodium factor... well, that being said, I'm running out of plans... already, and lasagna is sounding like a viable option for dinner, Pizza pops a tempting snack option. We've done salmon, we've done stir frys but we need MORE variety to keep us on track, so, I'm looking for your best HEALTHY recipie. I figured this would be a good place to start collecting, well... on that note I'm off to finish my oatmeal and apple! Take care and PLEASE, leave us a comment or a link to your favorite HEALTHY treat!

One of my favorite Christmas songs!

2007-12-30T15:34:00.000-08:00

The sometimes wonderful Land of Hand-me-downs

2007-12-29T19:05:00.000-08:00

I just had the rare treat of walking into a living room that looked like a tornado ravaged Value Village. Purses, belts, clothes of all varieties... Oh my word! I didn't know ANYONE posessed this many clothes, and now we do... thus we call them hand-me-downs from a cousin in Medicine Hat. Sometime in the hours that I was at work some loving relative innocently deposited many garbage bags of these fun treats in the centre of our home. Therefore, when I arrived home I had one girl sleeping with the sheer exhaustion of overturning the entire living room and making it appear asv though it were carpeted in womens wear... I kid you not, there are winter garments, undergarments, over garments, sporty garments, dressy garments, and even some garments that I can not figure out. OH, yes and the other daughter sat amid the chaos with eyes glassed over and murmered somthing about sizes and piles. Well, well, well, another fun filled day at the epicentre of fun. Now I really need to go and find some room for my new finds, I should also lead Tannis toward the light and towards her closet as well, all this sorting has made me kind of tired!

Are these yours mam?

2007-12-27T17:11:00.001-08:00

It is not every day that you get to spend the wee hours of the morning idenitifying your feminine hygene products to the local constabulory. Last week In this order I embarassed myself by opening the door and anouncing "I surrender" in my pajamas to a perfect stranger policeman... who for the record was not the police man neighbor I thought I saw outside, and then was also treated to the grand adventure of identifying the contents of my purse which had been strewn down our sidewalk in some fiends mad rampage for cash. Really all that resulted was the loss of a few minor things a bit of cash (not enough to ruin Christmas) and the gain of a good story to tell. Word on the street is that they caught the theif after he terrorized the comunity with about 46 vehicles being rummaged through. All in all, I'm glad, and I've learned some lessons, which I will happily pass along to you...
1. Lock your vehicle
2. Don't leave your purse or feminine hygine in the vehicle... well, that one is debateable, due to this hilarious post I read a long time ago....
3. Always be polite, never atempt funny, when answering your door.
4. Never make assumptions
5. When the police want you to come out to their car they mean the back... however cool that may seem, it still makes one feel a little criminal.
6. Did I say lock your vehicle????
Anyhow, little Christmas lessons learned.

The Day After....

2007-12-26T09:56:00.000-08:00

Today settles in the ahhh.... all of the chaos is over. Kids are still treating their new treasures gingerly, the house is still relatively assembled, and family is still all together. New toys are a novelty, as is a peacefull morning enjoying the quiet. As with any other holiday this one had it's Lampoon moments... some that arent funny until after.... well after... actually I'm still waiting :-). Nevertheless, settling into the peace and quiet of a morning at home... feeling acute pains for the poor sods who have to trek to work at the mall, it truley seems like a peaceful world. We have yet another Christmas to reminisce upon, gifts exchanged, food eaten, kids one year older, it astounds me when we come upon this seasonal hubub how fast the years go by. Just when did I graduate from buying tiny little socks and baby toys for stockings to blowing the budget on cell phones and motorized scooters? Just when did an Christmas afternoon of Turkey dinner followed by naps and colicky babys turn into a fun afternoon of games and puzzles. Each season has it's own charm and like anyone else there are moments when I dream of a Christmas by the beach or a quiet moment alone with my significant other (of the Rescue Hero variety :-) by once again I am drawn to the theme for this entire space... savor the moment! Therefore, I have come up with a new list... shocker, I know Here they are ... the top ten Unconventional things that I am thankful for this Christmas... these things may seem whacko to you, but to me... they are part of the moment!

10. The worlds most hideously decorated tree... sparse lights, a few scattered ornaments, needles everywhere.
9. The really LOUD moments.. ear drum splitting, floor pounding, kid squealing noise!
8. A wicked case of indigestion and bloating. - We really are a gluttenous society!
7. Garbage, Garbage and more garbage - wrapping, stuffing, bows, boxes etc.!
6. Stinky kids that haven't spared a moment from family time to .... SHOWER!!! - today is the day!
5. The brown mud outside that is evidence of the chinook that brought us some unseasonally warm weather.
4. Caffine induced halucinations that are a symptom of too much coffee in the morning.
3. Hyperactive bouncy, silly, giggly menaces to society, we call children on an extreme overdose of sugar.
2. Crumbs... and lots of them inbetween the couch cushions.
1. Early thoughts of broken new years resolutions... I really must be crazy, there is just something appealing about that whole fresh start, blank page thing that makes me want to.... start afresh, only to screw up I'm sure, but still, there is always hope :-)

So, there they are in no particular order, the crazy nutty, unconventional things that I am thankful for, now, off to laundry and in-laws... whew, good thing I had those few uplifing moments first :-) Cheers!

My very own Rescue Hero

2007-12-08T21:32:00.000-08:00

So... Here it is! Some of you may have heard already since this happened last week, and well, I've talked about it alot!!!! Jamie saved someone's life!! I mean really! Not just figuratively, really!!! I know, I'm really lucky to be married to a real live rescue hero. It all came about one snowy morning after he dropped Ben off to school, he was meandering on home to enjoy some coffee and quiet time when he noticed an unusual site on the side of the road. There was a gentleman lying face down on the sidewalk and another standing over him. Being the super-hero that he is, he stopped the van assessed the situation, determined that the man had no vital signs and began CPR, telling himself all the while to keep on going that these situations rarely turn around, when suddenly.... they did! The man resumed breathing and his heart began to beat again. The rest happened after the ambulance arrived and therefore I can't talk about the rest, nevertheless, word on the street is... the man is going to make it, and I'm super duper proud of him.

Tis' the season

2007-12-02T07:57:00.000-08:00

Life is full... no other words to describe it. As I sit here, on a very pretty wintery Sunday morning, I can hear Ben in the tub singing at the top of his lungs "It's the most wonderful time of the year....." and I'm thinking "If we could only bottle that enthusiasm, or even channel it!" I, on the other hand am coming off of another 14 1/2 hour day at work . Yesterday I worked from 4am (making sure everyone had their cake, pastry, sugar fix for the day ) till 6:30 when we delivered turkey dinner for 200 people to the MB church. After that it was home for an incredibly fast superhero type change of clothes and then on to the Firehall Christmas banquet.. to atempt to be polite about eating a turkey dinner, and trays of pastries that I'm sure were fabulous. Nevertheless, I have spent the last two weeks feeling like I've been hit by a mac truck, and now these feelings have manifested themselves in a mystery illness. I know whiny bloggers blabbing on about their health... it's just that... I'm sure I have tuberculosis... well, o.k, fine maybe it's just a really bad flu/cold, but for 3 or for days now I have been sick, my family enjoys the silence of my vocal cords on strike, but I'm pretty sure I just coughed up a lung. Even my coffee and muffin are not cheering me to the prospect of a guilt fueled trip to church today to get everyone to their christmas program practises and act like all is fine and dandy in the land of the "slowly colapsing as a result of christmas chaos" . Fact is I'm just bagged and need some time to re-fuel. I am probably more ahead of schedule than most years, I think I need to take care of presents for just a few more people, and there are a couple other things I'd like to bake, of course, a few decorations left to set out, and 10 thousand more dinners to cater... argh! If I see another Turkey, I think I'll cry. O.K, my tirade is over. I know, stop whining, make a list and get those kids out the door and put your smile on for cryin' out loud! O.k, here I go off to wash Ben's hair for the second time! Of all times for the four year old to go OCD on me! Wow, did I mention that my muffin is cranberry orange (one of my favorites)?... I think I need more coffee, and an attitude adjustment... maybe church will help.... I really do have an exciting post for the next time. I can't believe I haven't even mentioned it yet... hopefully this afternoon or tomorrow, I'll tell you the really great news!... oops, gotta go... disinfect/degerm my keyboard/monitor, and other stuff :-)

Christmas Cookies

2007-11-22T19:27:00.001-08:00

Not much has been happening on my blog these days because I have been busy....eating :-). Monday was Christmas Cookie day. Brenda and I went to the bakery to mass produce our own "home-made" goodies in one giant location. It was fun, tiring and tedious, but fun. Here is a peek at our yummy taste filled day.We made 142 dozen cookes, this was just a few before the camera died!

We made - Toffee filled Shortbread cups, Whipped Shortbread, Chocolate Chip Shortbread, Jam-Jams, Cream wafers and Sugar Cookies... I think that is it, but my tummy is telling me to run for the freezer, so.....adios!

The Big Dunk!

2007-10-26T18:51:00.000-07:00

My all time favorite baptism story is this:
A young friend of our family went home the Sunday after Jamie was baptised and was having a discussion about the morning's service with her mom, who had not attended. Her mother asked her how the service was, and if anything memorable had happened. To this her daughter promptly replied : "Well mom, it was really weird. Jamie got up and said some stuff, and I think he must've said something wrong because after he was done, they stuck his head under the water!" When we heard this story we began laughing, and I don't think we've stopped yet, it was hilarious! Nevertheless, on a more serious note I am sooooo excited that Carol is getting baptised! I find it absolutely fantastic to see the way that God is working in her life! She is a woman of incredible strength and I am extremely proud of her for all that she has come through and the amazing woman she is! So, I found this poem for her, and I thought I'd share it all around!
It takes a lot of courage

To be baptized in His name

To die to the old self

And be forever changed

May God bless your life

For stepping out for Him

Proclaiming unto others

The faith you have within.

© By M.S.Lowndes
Carol - I love you and I'm proud of you! I know it won't be easy always, and sometimes life in general seems like God is completely absent, but he promises that he will never leave us or forsake us, and I'll stop now lest I begin to sound trite. I think baptism is important for Christians because it is a public confession of what we believe and a visible step of obedience to God, proclaiming that you intend to die to all of your old self and sinful nature, and try - try - and try again to follow him. Good Luck and God Bless you and Gladys on Sunday. My thoughts and prayers are with you, and I really wish I could be there!

My Knight in Shinning Armor

2007-10-19T17:40:00.000-07:00

Space Ranger BennieJ

O.K, so my Knight in Shinning armor declares himself a space ranger, has a paper towel "mask", carries a flipper slash sword, and swears he won't defend me - even if the alien forces are closing in (heck, he won't even open his eyes!)... I think he's really dashing, and at least he's having fun... outside! Yes this is the kid who just a few weeks ago announced that "actually mom, I am allergic to fresh air" geepers, what a goof! Man I love that guy! Even if he won't protect me... I was responsible for reducing his weapon choices from sword slash killing implement to well.... a flipper. But what if the alien forces had eggs????

He's resourcfull... and funny

2007-10-18T15:55:00.000-07:00

After 20 years of faithfull service to the Coaldale and District Fire Department a volunteer can expect to be honored with a very special statue. A new prototype of this statue was recently delivered to the the firehall for approval, and an estimate given as to the cost of casting this bronze statue....wow, the price was out of this world! Here is a picture of the Beautiful statue awaiting aproval, ready to be cast into bronze.

My dear husband being the frugal, practical man that he is, noting the price of the statue was shocked. Suddenly his artisic abilities, and creativity kicked in. Noting the deficiency of family funds being aloted to his "EMR School fund", he devised an plan, and created a way to save the firehall thousands of dollars, thus allowing them to attribute these monies to his ever so noble cause. Let me now introduce to you.....

"Billy Blazes in Bronze" - by JC Edition #12, Series #1

And who said I didn't marry a creative genius.. this well thought out, brilliantly creative work of art will save our fair town thousands of dollars! It is worth noting Billy's glorious sheen, handy movable limbs, full bronze gear and rounded hand for inserting various possibly seasonal paraphanalia. I ask you... frugal genius.... or scheming nutcase... well, maybe a bit of both, but gosh darn, that's why I love that guy!

A last glimpse at the competition... side by side !

A visit from an old friend - and a birthday wish!

2007-10-12T04:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was pleasantly surprised by a visit from an old friend... well, the friend wasn't old, just the friendship- over the last 7 or 8 years we had kind of lost touch, for no apparant reason. Then yesterday, there she was to inspire me. This particular gal used to stop by to visit frequently and our toddler children would run amok as we whiled away the hours visiting, and I must say yesterday was just like old times, only I was truly inspired by the passion and love with which she spoke of her kids.... so here comes the crux for me. Her daughter is in figure skating with Taylor. We (Jamie and I) agreed a few years back to let the ice princess have her reign. I have never been a very good "sports" mom and have talked about this before, I know. I don't like to compare, generally I feel quite inadiquate. I don't like my kids to think that their activity is the sole source of lifes outpouring for all of mankind. I don't like to chase small children around the ice rink or any other such sports facility, and contrary to popular belief I'm really afraid of small talk... unless I'm in the kitchen, therefore.... and here comes my latest confession.... "I don't watch Taylor's skating, generally I don't watch most of my kids practices." I show up and cheer louder than everyone else at competitions, or carnivals or games (if the sport is like that), but I don't spend countless hours lacing skates, or whining on the sidelines. I'm generally at home trying to make the rest of my house function, or catching a bit of down time before bakery babe needs to morph into taxi mom. So, yesterday I was challenged. My old friend made me honestly examine my motives for staying away and helped me recognize how much it would mean to the kids if I expended the extra effort that it would take to get my chubby butt there... for a little bit. What? You mean I could show up for a while... do it in moderation... it's not all or nothing? O.K, Thanks Miss Vickie for the inspiration - even if you didn't know you were inspiring. I enjoyed a renewed friendship and hope it continues and I appreciated the challenge.
On a side note.... but very happy one.... baby #2 is 13 today!!!!! Happy birthday Tannis!!!! We are soooo proud of you and love you soooooo much! You are fun, crazy, caring, thoughtful and a hard worker and I am very lucky to have a fantastic daughter like you!!!!! Have fun at camp... We will miss you!

Wordless Wednesday

2007-10-10T15:54:00.001-07:00

The Puke Catcher

2007-10-09T20:21:00.001-07:00

I think we should add puke catching at the next olympics -- with child number 3 puking her guts out for the entire day I am becoming quite the expert. After a week of various vomiters, the flu is obviously taking it's tole on my home. I feel like a walking zombie with bleach burned hands, nevertheless, I was reminded this afternoon why I do what I do, and why I shouldn't complain when I heard Ben say to me: " I need to sit here mommy, because when Taylor calls I'm going to run, I'm good at taking care of her." He proceeded to fetch her water and come running when she was woofing her cookies to see what he could do to help.... is that some empathy i'm detecting!!!! The sun is shining through the clouds --- I love my kids!

Saturday night at the movies.

2007-09-29T21:54:00.001-07:00

What a week, completely uneventfull, yet things seem to fly by tickety boo. I seem to have encountered a little bit of writers block, many of my thoughts during the day start out with phrases like "I should blog about that..." or "that would be funny to put on my blog", yet once I sit myself down after all the chores are done, I can barely muster the energy or creativity to write anything. Nevertheless, tonite I must put an end to the quiet, I will write.. creative or boring, drivel or schmivel, I will put a few thoughts into words, really... just for posterity sake. In true Bonnie form, I thought I should write a list although today my list is going to be completely random, hopefully it will give me direction for my blogging future, I can't bear to post another recipie.. besides tonites dinner was a big failure... but I'll get to that later.

Bonnie's top 10 random list of what is going on in her head while the kids are watching a movie we just rented at blockbuster.

1. Taylor just got her first job and we are SOOOO proud of her. I think she has recieved "the lecture" about working hard, staying busy and giving it your hundred and ten percent, about a million times. Each time I get the same exasperated response... teenage eyeroll, followed by teenage hand on the hip, followed by "I know mom!!!" "well, I'm just sayin'!" She is working at Dairy Queen, and day one was a huge success, I'd say it's a close second to the bakery, icecream, chocolate, burgers, and fries... I think I should spy on her often.
2. Why did we just start watching a movie at 10pm... I'm a bad mother.
3. Ben asked to go to sunday school tomorrow... not got coerced into it, not got bribed into it... really asked... of course it's the same sunday Taylor is "running for the cure".. why are things always so complicated, and why did my "Jones soda" say "Now is the time to set priorities"... what are they trying to say????
4. Why do I keep exploding over nothing??? I'm pretty sure it wasn't a personal insult when someone left a cup in the sink, nor did they mean to scorn me when they started arguing... my fuse is as short as... well... me! Crazy! a 5ft. 2 fuse, ridiculous.
5. Does anyone know how much I loveeeeee a kid snuggle?
6. Why did our dinner which I meticulously planned... Mahogany Beef stew, horseradish mashed potatoes, salad and garlic cheese buns, taste like cakapooy? I was pretty excited I cooked with wine and parsnips, I even used wine from Chile, because I figured Chilli and Stew are kind of similar... guess not, it sucked!
7. Why has J worked for 36 hours straight two times this week between taxi and ambulance... I love J, I miss him!
8. Ben says "do you know what fantastic 4 is about?" I think they might be wasp fighting maniacs. Ben stepped into a wasp's nest this week and got horribly stung. Luckily he recovered quickly .. physically, that is. As for the fact that he runs screaming everytime he sees a flying "bug"... I hope the trauma abates soon!
9. I'm reading a book called "A good house" Sometimes I feel like my house is good... other times, I'm not so sure... family and life is hard work!
10. At the bakery yesterday we made 2 salads for 100ppl, fried mushrooms, onions and fresh tomatoes, and lettuce all for 100ppl, and Dressing for a turkey dinner for 500ppl. I love turkey, I'm pretty excited about thanksgiving next weekend!
11. Mom and dad arrive home from their big vacation this week, I really miss them!
12. I guess I'm over 10 on my list now, so I'm going to snuggle under my flannel blanket and read myself into peacefull slumber... gnite! by the way, does anyone want some leftover "mahogany stew" ????

Harvest Poatao and Corn Chowder

2007-09-24T06:20:00.000-07:00

So, here it is, the Recipie you've been waiting for! (tee hee!)

1/2 pkg. bacon chopped
2 onions, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic
Fry the above in some olive oil and then add all the ingredients into the crock pot.

2 potatoes, chopped bite size
4 c frozen corn
4 c chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 tsp salt
a few splashes of hot sauce
a sprinkle of dried red pepper
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Let this mixture simmer in your crockpot for 8-10 hours on low or 4-6 hours on high, until vegetables are soft and soup is bubbly.
In a saucepan, over medium-high heat,melt 2 tsp butter, add 2 Tbsp flour and stir to make a smooth paste. Slowly add 1 can evaporated milk,whisking constantly to combine. Bring mixture from heat and stir in 1 cup of the cheese of your choice until completely melted. Gradually stir milk sauce mixture into slow cooker.
Cover and cook on High for 20-30 min longer. Serve garnished with additional cheese and parsley.

We had some fresh Scotch Baps with this, it was yummy!

Hope you enjoy on a soup day. I hope i haven't jinxed things cause the sun is coming out here!

Don't you love it when a plan comes together?

2007-09-22T03:05:00.001-07:00

So, the other day I put a pot of soup in the crockpot. Anyone who knows me (in real life) knows that I have a bit of an obsession with my crockpot. Since I work early, it is really handy for me to throw it in the pot in the morning and know that if I don't get home till 4:30 or 5, Jamie can still have dinner on the table before he leaves for work. Also, I love cookbooks. My friend Stacey, being the fantastic gal that she is, found me a cookbook the other day called 300 slow cooker favorites.... I know, isn't it amazing. Anyhow, back to the soup:
Harvest Corn Chowder with Bacon and Cheddar - recipie to follow later, momentarily, I am late for work (shocking, I know!) Anyow, my point was... I put soup in the crockpot, and I walked outside and.... It was snowing.... much to my dismay, until I remembered, it was a soup day... well, that put things into perspective for me. It all came up roses because everytime I looked out the window at that september snow (argh!) I could remember that I was going home to a bubbling cauldron of yummy proportions. Now, we're back to "normal" temperatures and I'm off to face another day.. tonite, when I'm not pushing my luck, I'll post ya' the recipie. So, off I run to work and wish everyone out there in cyberland a happy, not so snowy, yummy day...

What happens in Vegas.... :-)

2007-09-16T14:11:00.000-07:00

So, now that I am fully recovered from my whirlwind trip to Vegas I want to write about it so that I remember every detail!!!
Saturday night upon our arrival from a perfectly uneventful flight... I didn't even get strip searched... Geez, what does a girl have to do to have a little fun at the border??? (teehee - just joking!!!) Anyhow, once we arrived at the airport we took a shuttle to the hotel, it was a little bit of a tour, but we were pretty excited. We settled into the most beautiful hotel room ever with SOFT beds and a million pillows, a HUGE flat screen TV and a really deep tub! We stayed at the Las Vegas Hilton this is a tour of an almost exact room (except we had two beds :-) It was amazing. So, Saturday night we toured our Motel and got our bearings, we had a drink in one of the many lounges (I got carded....I LOVE VEGAS!!!!), and some reeeeaaaly yummy nachos and then headed to bed.

Sunday morning we headed to the bakery Expo... It was FANTASTIC!!! These are some of the great things we saw, and tasted!!!!!

By the time we left, we were FUUUULLLL, and loaded with lots of COOL swag, baguette pens, canvas bags, information, and more! Then it was time to hit the town to see the show we were waiting for!!! We got glitzed up and headed to the Bellagio....

At the Bellagio we found the theatre, then headed out to find some dinner... NOT at the Bellagio, the prices in the motel were absolutely outragous!!! So, we hoofed it over to Caesar's Palace and found a more affordable place to eat. After dinner it was time for O. The most amazing, fantastic, stupendous show EVER!!! I can't even begin to describe it. The usher even let me talk into his walkie talkie thing!!!! After the show we walked around with our mouths open for a while, checked out the water show, headed back to the room to change our shoes and headed back out. We saw New York, New York, drank "slurpee like" beverages, walked a bit of the strip, and then called it a night, I went to bed still digesting all that I had seen.. too much to take in all at once!

The next day we hit the Expo for a while met our boss Joe and his crew (wife, daughter, and son-in-law) and hooked up with them for the remainder of the day. We spent some fantastic quality time sipping Pina Coladas by the hotel pool and then went for a fabulous dinner at a Brazilian BBQ place, it had a fancy little doodad on the table with one green end and one red end, when you wanted them to bring you meat on a sword, you left it on green, when you wanted them to stop, you turned it to red.... simple...delicious. Along with a bunch of different kinds of BBQ, they brought salad, breads, beans and all kinds of sides including plantains . After dinner we hit the town, we galavanted and caroused, If anyone says that they saw me acting unrully, they are a liar! At 3:30am I finally hit the hay, although sleep did not come easy after a few too many Red Bull's (oops). At 5:30 am we were up and off to the Grand Canyon. Although I was mighty tired I didn't regret a moment.

The Grand Canyon was all that and more. From our motel we were bussed to the airport, where we flew over Hoover Dam to the Grand Canyon. Once we were at the Grand Canyon we boarded a helicopter that flew us into the Canyon....I KNOW RIGHT!~!!!!

It was amazing. To go from blazing lights and tall buildings to the beauty of God's creation... right in the middle of it.. was freaking awesome!!! After we landed in the bowl of the Canyon, we boarded a boat for a little tour down the Columbia River. It was beautiful! I was very surprized by the color of the water, kind of like a slate milkshake, ...interesting! Then we headed to Guano Point which literally translates to "bat poo". There they served us a traditional native lunch (that had nothing to do with poo)... beef on a bun, corn on the cobb, coleslaw, and a sweet cornbread... it was fabulous, and the view was stunning! Then back to the strip for an hour or two of shopping and finally a bit of shut eye by the pool. From the pool it was straight to our plane and back home. We boarded our plane at 8:30pm, arrived in Calgary at about 1:00am and were at work by 3am. Needless to say by the end of those few days I was a bit of a narcileptic. I was hallucinating and could barely see straight, but every second of it was absolutely worth it.

*So, if you want to see all the pics they are on my space site...I know I'm a bit of a nut, but they are there if you are interested, if not, I have them recorded for posterity sake !

2007-09-07T05:01:00.000-07:00

So, although I am on the fly and don't have much time I just had to tell you about these strange new creatures that have invaded my house. On a particularily warm September afternoon, just around 3:30 after a quiet day where the house remained strangely still, four smiling, bouncing, energetic creatures came through my door, I have taken to affectionatley dubbing them "the backtoschooligans". Let me take a moment and describe each of them to you, as their traits are unique to each individual beast.
backtoschooligan #1 seems to be the leader of the pack, she claims to have spent the day at a place called High School, I beilieve that must be a place that demands a little more maturity than low school, yet induces some minute bit of humility as well, perhaps because as she tells me, she is one of the youngest peers at this place a position wich is looked down upon by the elder students. She comes in the door regaling us with tales of 80 minute classes, trying to stifle a smile around her awkwardly braced teeth. She has embraced her new culture with a vengence, staying organized, keeping a positive attitude and all the while twirling around the house in various strech positions, and dance moves while listening to Miley Syrus videos on YouTube.... Strange indeed!
backtoschooligan #2 Talks non stop, it must be an aquired skill quite usefull as most elder of her Middle school. At times her prose flies by so quickly it would take a super-hero listening device to determine the exact structure and message of the verbal flyby. She is animated, noisy, smiley, and compasionate as she often has sought out others less blessed by the social "butterflieness" she possesses. I'm not sure if any work actually happens at this place she calls middle school as most of the verbal excitement (that I can understand) includes stories of friends, teachers lives, plans for socializing, clothes, plans for clothes and back to friends again... these subjects repeat with great frequency and varied volume throughout the afternoon and evening until she finally colapses into her bed at night.
backtoschooligan #3 Is a little more subdued although he also regales us with tales of the middle school. He is quite enamored with this woman he calls "teacher" perhaps it is a bit of a crush. "Our class is getting a bird", "she raises dogs", "she has a chart on the board", "she lives next door to Carson", are phrases that repeat over and over with a slight sly grin. He is energetic, and enjoying his time at this place called middle school also telling us about cross country teams, and intramurals, oportunities to build friendships, enhance skills, and bleed money out of us like stuck pigs, but we love it. Often backtoschoolagin #3 disapears for hours on end to bike, hang out at friend's houses, get slurpees, and play ball in the drive way, nevertheless he always returns in time to torment backtoschooligan #1 to some degree.
backtoschooligan #4 Is a little more tempermental, he enjoys his new playschool, the beginning of this school journey as long as his mother is within arms reach. If she disapears from his line of vision he responds with whining, crying, gnashing of teeth, yelling, kicking and more heart wrenching tears. I watch this scene as little as possible as tears blur my vision. Tears still fresh from leaving backtoschooligan #1 at a place where the boys aka. men have facial hair and drive themselves to school. These transitions are fun, but they are tough!!! Once home backtoschooligan #4 is hesitant to show the picture he painted or admit the fun he had doing puzzles, playing in the water table, the dool house, the play house, drawing pictures etc. although I am aware that he has done these things with great enthusiasm when not too many were paying attention.

All in all these are quite enjoyable creatures and I think I'll keep them. Their feeding is relatively simple, their care is enjoyable, and they give FANTASTIC hugs, I just hope they don't sprout wings toooooo fast, because I don't know if the gutters can handle my tears, super proud, yet nostalgic! Hope you're all enjoying this new phase as much as I. Now, I'm late for work, no time for spell check... SORRY ! and tomorrow is VEGAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good Reminder!

2007-09-06T04:49:00.000-07:00

"Don't sweat the small stuff; what doesn't matter just doesn't matter. Laugh every day even if it is at yourself. And love like there is no tomorrow! "

Author Unknown (but God Bless them!)

Wordless Wednesday

2007-09-05T20:06:00.001-07:00

My Secret Shame - and I'm blaming "fly lady"

2007-09-02T16:08:00.001-07:00

So, as most of you know, I have totally bought into the "Fly Lady" cult. I absolutely love it, and it is a sytem that (for now :-) is really working for me! One of the favorite things that I have learned is the importance of a shiny sink. I know, that sounds pretty ridiculous, but with 6 of us in our little house, it does'nt take any time for the dishes to pile up, just one or two cups on the counter make the entire kitchen look messy. Therefore the "fly lady" suggests that a gal get a bin under the sink in wich to store some of these unmentionables before they pile up. Works like a charm! So, being me, I was very proud of this new system and eager to show people how great it is, after all, my house is now 9 times out of 10 company ready. Show off time came when my mom and dad came over for dinner:
"Tada!" I exclaimed

There before us was my shiny sink and bare counter top. She was visibly impressed. (insert oohs and ahhs here.) Then came my moment of shame. I proudly flung open my cupboard door to show this stroke of genius, the bin below where we now keep our secret cache of dirty dishes before the time comes to cleanse them from their vile filth :-)

Judging by the look on my mother's face you would think that I had just let her take a glimpse of our secret stash of porn, or stood in the middle of the street and mooned the pastor! She covered very well once she realized that this was a system that was working for us and that I was actually "proud" of this ridiculous debacle. Her face underwent an extreme transformation from shock and horror to ... well somthing else, in two point five seconds flat... impressive. She smiled, nodded, and feighned interest in my crazy scheme. "Well," I thought "I might be able to impress some, and it might work for me.... but I guess I haven't quite arrived". So, there you have it dishes and shame from the fly lady cult. Really, it's all quite enjoyable, and a clean, de-cluttered house is working for us.... for now :-)

Confessions of a Cookie Crazed Maniac!

2007-09-01T19:15:00.000-07:00

Confession #1:
Ben changed my Desktop picture to a chips ahoy picture of a giant talking cookie ................... and i LOVE it!!!!!!!

Confession #2:
I love to eat Jumbo Pb cookies (yes that is plural... so what!) from the bakery for breakfast

Confession #3:
The cookie Monster song is one of my all time favorites, it is worth noting that it is the most versatile song....ever!! C is for Cookie.

Confession #4:
I have a weakness for men.....of the gingerbread variety :-)

Confession #5:
I go nuts for White Chocolate/Macadamia nut cookies.

Confession #6:
If I could have a super-hero power, it would probably be the ability to make delicious cookies out of anything.

Confession #7:
If you were a cookie, I'd probably gobble you up :-)

Confession #8:
When the song "It's Raining Men" comes on at the bakery, I run for the nearest gingerbread dude and perform the coolest dance routine....EVER!

Confession #9:
I wish I had cookie perfume!

Confession #10
mmmmmglsdfoijmklsdkl..... sorry, did you miss that? My mouth was full!

Catch U next time!

TAXI TUESDAY

2007-08-28T20:45:00.001-07:00

So, J's last "taxi" story generated so much interesting conversation that I've decided to make some of the stories that he tells me a weekly thing :-) Sometimes the things he tells me are sad, some stir up righteous indignation, some scare me, last week I laughed :-)
At about 5am the other day I answered the phone at work. Usually at this time it is Jamie telling me he is home from his night shift, this day though he greeted me by asking me what it was like to be married to such an athletic, young man. Having grown accustomed to his strange sense of humor over the 15 + years that we've been married, I didn't really bat an eyelash before I asked the few leading questions which led to the story of the night. Jamie had just outrun a ninteen year old. I know, hold your hat, Mr. 35 years old, 200 and something ish pounds, "can we walk a little slower", just outran a ninteen year old..... wait it gets better.... for a $10.00 fare. Remember what I've said about J being all about the principle? Well, heck be danged, he wasn't going to let some punk run out on the $10.00 that was rightfully intended to be added to the mortgage fund, or buy milk for B or buy T#1's birthday gift. So, when that kid ran, J ran, and when that kid ran some more, J ran some more and so goes the story, until J finally caught the kid and held him in a headlock until the police arrived. The police promptly handcuffed the delinquent youth, marched him into the nearest convenience store and demanded that he pay J the money that was owed. At this point in the conversation the police officer then turned to look at my sweat drenched, panting, red faced husband (and I wasn't even around!), turned to the little brat and stated, "actually take a look at this guy, you made HIM run... you're paying double", and he did. The moral of this story is... "it never pays to make the fat guy run :-)"

You're it!

2007-08-25T19:34:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine over at Rambling On tagged me for a meme, I am really new to this, but I'll try anything once!
Here are the rules....
THE RULES OF THIS TAG ARE AS FOLLOWS:
Each person posts the rules before their list, then list 8 things about themselves. At the end of the post, that person tags and links to 8 other people. Then that person visits those people's spaces and leaves them comments, letting them know that they have been tagged, and to come and read the post so they know what they have to do.
So, here goes:
8 Things you might not know about Bonnie:
1. I really, really, really want to be a Godly Woman. I may flop misserably sometimes, but this is my #1 goal in life!!
2. The most important job I have is Mother and Wife. 4 fantastic Children, and One fabulous Man (some days I may call them other things, but just ignore me, I don't mean it :-)Also, daughter, sister, auntie, to the most fabulous set of people EVER!!!
3. I am the self-appointed, official, full-time, officer in cheif of Tasting at the Coaldale Bakery (it is a great thing that they give us stretchy pants for our bakery suits!!) - this is a very difficult, demanding job, nevertheless, I feel that with my training, and expertiece in the eating feild I will enjoy the challenge of using my tasting talents each and every day!!! TEE HEE! (Actually my official title is Catering Coordinator, that is what it says on my buisness card... all lies :-).. Oh, yeah, and I'm going to VEGAS for a Bakery Exposition in exactly 2 WEEKS!!!!!
4. I'm a sucker for pretty MATCHING underwear!!!
5. I'm a little addicted to blogging (like you didn't know that) I love learning about new people... tell
me about you... whoever you are :-)
6. I love to sing, in the shower, at church, at work... especially Grease songs!!!!!
7. I can be really obnoxious!! - see #6
8. I am not a details girl. I really try, but I'm a bit of a Dennis the Mennace...I love to feed people, but as for the mess.... not so much!

As you can see by all the excalmation marks, I am very excited about my life, I am a lucky, lucky girl!!!
Thanks for reminding me of this... Ms. Rambling On :-) That was fun ... O.K so there goes the narcicism again. So, this is who I am tagging.. Dale, Yvonne, Taylor, Carol , Denise, Kalie, Connor , Naphi

2007-08-23T19:52:00.001-07:00

A friend of mine over at D'caffeinated Pickle blogged a while back about this site and subsequent books called "Post Secrets". The premise behind this site and books are as follows: Some random guy (said author of blog and subsequent books :-) decided that for a project he would invite strangers from any and all walks of life to send him their secrets anonymously. For some reason the vouyeur in me found this extremely interesting. I laughed at the funny secrets, and cried at the sad ones. The art work and creativity were astounding. I showed a few people that I care about, and did not get the same reaction that I had. I was moved. I absolutely loved the humanity, the reality, the vulnerability. Why is it that it feels better to some to unload one's secrets? Is that the reason Catholics have confession, does it do a body good to speak these things out loud? Well, no worries here, my biggest confesion is going to be the mess in my laundry room, or that time I was blogging instead of doing one of the other million things that I should be doing. I found it curious that I loved it so much while others were indifferent. I could have read for hours. Anyhow, if you are looking for an interesting break, I think it is worth checking out, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on why we read them, why some love them, others don't? Why some send them, and if you're really daring... what's yours????

WordlessWednesday

2007-08-22T20:03:00.000-07:00

Vigilante Taxi Stories

2007-08-18T16:47:00.000-07:00

This... is why I am proud of my husband :-) As many of you know J is a Taxi driver by night and an EMR by day. But, did you know that he is a vigilante??? For J there is no grey. Sometimes he and I disagree, since I believe I am the more liberal and tolerant in our relationship, he may beg to differ. Nevertheless, J sees things as black and white, good and evil.. he is a defender of the right and the just and nothing makes him more angry than an injustice. So, about last night......
Imagine this. J driving his cab minding his own buisness when he overhears this conversation: (is it possible to eavesdrop and mind your own buisness simutaneously??? Whatever... continuing on...) "Yeah, buddy, I know that I still owe you five bucks I just need a bit more to get me by, listen, no I don't have any money, but I just picked up a food hamper from the food bank, there's like $80.00 worth of food in here.. seriously man, there's lots here.....(pause here supposedly for the other person to agree) O.k, I'll be right there, thanks man." Peculiar, I know. Knowing his customer base and being the observant type of person he is - in a minding your own buisness sort of way, J says to said customer "Am I hearing things or did you just trade your food hamper for Crack Cocaine" To which the passenger replied, "yes, what's it to ya'". J, a man never to be reckoned with on a good day, as I said, Mr. "defender of the right, good and just" pondered momentarily over the good people who donated food to the food bank assumably imagining hungry, struggling individuals grateful for the support they were recieving. The thought of this guy ripping off all of the good folks and using their generosity to support his habbit angered Jamie. He imediately stopped the car and told his passenger to get out. His passenger argued briefly, but his protestations were drowned out as J drove off with his "hamper" and returned it to the nearest supermarket "donation to the food bank bin". Oh, yeah and he left the guy with one closing comment... "what do you mean I can't kick you out of my cab and take your hamper?? Why don't you call the cops???"

No, I would never do this. Maybe because I'm too chicken, maybe because I consider the possibility that the person who is selling the drugs could use the food, maybe because I don't stand up for my principles like he does, but that is what I respect about J, right or wrong (mostly right I think :-) he stands up for what he believes in and does just that little bit every day in every way (however unusual or unorthodox) to make the world a better place. I think the veggie tales sang it best -- StandUp, for what you believe in, believe in, believe in God -- he will see you through! Anyhow, it's something to think about for today anyway -- Cheers! P.S. --- DOn't Do DRUgs :-)

That's it!!!

2007-08-16T18:19:00.001-07:00

This is it!!! THank you so much for your help, it is exactly what I was looking for.. look out, this may be just the motivation that I need!! Now if I could just do something about that extra 15 lbs!!!!
www.flylady.com

Wordless Wednesday

2007-08-15T17:48:00.000-07:00

poor, poor kitty

2007-08-14T19:04:00.001-07:00

Our poor little kitties had to go to the vet and it is official. The little white one is forever christened... "handicat". Unfortunately, (maybe because mom was so young.. and a tramp) he was born with a few serious handicaps, he still can't walk, his legs are completely splayed. It is really sad to see him roll around on his tummy although he does seem quite content. His brother is quite normal but doesn't seem want to assume any responsibility for his well being. All jokes aside, the handibus is going to cost us a fortune. J made a comment that if only we could change his sexual orientation, we could possibly get government funding for his care and feeding, alas... we will wait and perform much carefull physiotherapy on the kitten.. the kids are still holding out hope. PLEASE DON't BE OFFENDED! I just couldn't stop giggling at the poor kitty's expense.. honest the only time he's unhappy is when we're giving him his medicine!

Sometimes Sundays are like that!?!

2007-08-13T12:08:00.000-07:00

So, after a 65 hour work week, I've had it. Thursday night we catered a roast beef dinner for 120 ppl. Friday Evening we delivered 456 mini pastries and picked up two very tired girls from Summer camp, only to deliver one of them to a birthday party in the country. Then Saturday, we catered a Birthday party for another 120 ppl. Sunday, I was sleeping in!!!! Not! My ever loving husband decided that we needed to spend time together, since he is finished work at about 5am he waited till 8 to wake me up.... oops. Well, anyone who knows me knows that I value my sleep, sometimes to a fault (well, o.k, all the time to a fault, but keep in mind, I'm severely sleep deprived at this point). I'm pretty sure at this point you could have set of the bell that they ring at the beginning of a fight, bcause the fight was on. Unfortunately I can be a little bit of a ... well, cover your eyes all you wholesome folks out there, bcause I was a full out bitch. Once again, putting work and sleep in front of my family. Will I ever get my priorities straight. Anyhow, that isn't even the point of my story, so continuing on... Poor J as I will affectionately call him from here on in :-) made some sort of comment about the state of our house. (true, yet hurtful) Really, we're all piggies- especially the four little ones! I took offense and took off on a mad cleaning rampage. I spent 8 hours and I didn't make it past my kitchen!! I've got clean cupboards and drawers, and shinny surfaces (well, I did have.. you know how it goes) Nevertheless, there are still things, like my oven that I didn't get done. By 6pm I was less mad, and by 8:30 dinner was over, the kids were watching Harry Potter (we started the book on holidays and are now officially on the bandwagon... yes, I know, a different entry.... focus Bonnie!) Anyhow, J and I went for a walk and I felt better because I had accomplished much, today we made some good progress in the bedroom (cleaning I mean :-) ... teehee) and now it's on to the bathroom... I am armed and ready! Mom and Dad are coming for dinner and I will have prevailed!
Having said all of this, I am looking for help!!! A friend of mine used to subscribe to an internet site that had an actual schedule of how to keep up on the cleaning, every day gave her a small task and before you knew it you had worked your way through all the little things that get overlooked. I looked for it a bit yesterday, but to no avail, I can't remember what it was called and I don't know if she would even remember even if I did try to contact her, and after so many years, that might just be weird... anyhow, if you know of anything like this... PLEASE pass it on!
So, Cheers, I'm off to procrastinate my bathroom some more, anyone want to insult me to get me motivated :-).... AH, you're not as daring as he is are you????

Wordless Wednesday

2007-08-08T22:47:00.000-07:00

Kitten Update!

2007-08-06T15:15:00.000-07:00

I forgot to update you... Good News! Kitten number 2 is right back where he belonged under T#2's bed! Who knows where he went on his little adventure? The white one still can't get his little legs under himself to walk, but apparantly the black one is getting around just fine... silly little furballs!

BBQ Time!

2007-08-06T10:53:00.000-07:00

I am so excited! Finally we have a BBQ! About a month ago our BBQ bit the dust, and cooking...like real cooking in the oven has been an ever-lovin' drag with temperatures that don't go below 28 degrees! So, yesterday J and I finally found ourselves faced with a few moments together and decided to go out to purchase a new BBQ. We began putting it together at about 6pm.

About 10 to 15 minutes after this picture was taken my help was enlisted.... About 10 minutes after that J got hit in the head with a leg from the BBQ, said a bad word, and disapeared into the basement, probably a wise choice, although this meant....the job was left to me. A little bit of a problem, since BBQ set up is clearly a blue job. Nevertheless, I took it on like a champ! By step 7 I was a little bit frustrated, I was, however pleasantly surprised to read step seven which said.. and I quote... "pour yourself a glass of wine".... honest it did ;-) So, in true trooper fashion, I carried on. By 9:30, after dis-assembling the BBQ a couple of times to backtrack, stifling a few expletives, enilsting the help of several innocent passerbys:-) (could you just hold this for a sec...) our BBQ was finished.....

hopefully you are suitably impressed (insert oohs and ahhs here)

nevermind the fact that there are still a few leftover parts, I believe that the legs, yes, the very same ones that smashed into J's skull, are on backwards, which I discovered at the very end when I needed to put on one last piece, but I am NOT dis-assembling that freaking thing for all the tea in China! I'm pretty sure that those legs have a mind of their own anyhow, I'm not tempting fate.

Dinner guests arrived at 9:30ish, and dinner was served at 10:00pm... J BBQed steaks in the pouring rain, and in the dark, after he emerged seeminly unscathed from the basement :-) We had a really good time with Kalie and Kevin and I think the kids will be talking about their dinner in the middle of the night for a while. Thankfully, C was in much better spirits AFTER he ate. Earlier in the night he was threaghtening to go and knock on the neighbor's doors until someone fed him something that wasn't the unsuitable leftovers from the fridge.... thankfully we filled his belly and everyone was safely tucked in by 11:00.

He Put a Song in My Heart!

2007-08-05T11:09:00.000-07:00

I heard a new song last nite, Tim (our pastor) had mentioned that we were going to be singing it on Sunday when he asked if I wanted to sing on the "worship team" (funny phrase I'll address some other time!), anyhow, I looked it up so that I would know it.... I love it! Wow, what fantastic lyrics! Here is the link if you want to listen to it:

http://www.espew.com/cgi-bin/play.cgi/1281865

and, here are the fantastic lyrics that I speak of:

Indescribable - Chris Tomlin
From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea

Creation's revealing Your majesty

From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring

Every creature unique in the song that it sings

All exclaiming

Indescribable, uncontainable,You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.You are amazing God

All powerful, untamable,Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim

You are amazing God

Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go

Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow

Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light

Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night

None can fathom

Indescribable, uncontainable,You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name

You are amazing God

All powerful, untamable,Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim

You are amazing God

So... here I am trying to focus again in the midst of chaos. God is the centre, where I want to be, even when chaos reigns supreme and my house looks like the scene of a ... get ready for it DALE......a cataclysmic apocalypse! Isn't that a great phrase, Dale writes about heavy smart people stuff in his blog...http://dcaffeinatedpickler.blogspot.com/ Mostly I just use him and his knowledge for the big words :-) Just joking, he actually writes all sorts of fantastic stuff, sometimes even stuff that I can understand :-) Regardless, that one just got me, I'm going to say it all the time for anyone who cares! Anyhow, speaking of focus.... I need to deal with life.... the house is quiet...scary...I have 3 kids at home... where are they??? Searching for the missing week old kitten... how does a family loose a baby kitten??? We have company coming tonite for the bonfire that is not really a bonfire because of the fire ban... disappointing. Regardless, I am sure if they came to our house in it's current state they would be disgusted. I believe I just wiped pb off of my computer tower...ewwww, there are three different puzzles on my kitchen floor and an unidentified substance in my sink.... therefore, I must go... clean, cook, mother, and perform other such wifey duties... (whatever those might be???) Jamie is finally home for two days... hooray! Two parents in one home... why is that such an anomaly around here?? So, before I get distracted once again.....(oh look.... shiny:-))I shall bid my computer adieu.
P.S. anyone have any ideas on where to find a missing kitten??.... I'm not even kidding!!! Really, suggestions would be welcome! We can't find him anywhere!!!!

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

2007-07-31T18:47:00.000-07:00

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!!!!

2007-07-30T21:29:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-07-24T14:36:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-18T19:57:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-07-16T12:21:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-14T19:40:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-07-12T21:09:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-11T21:46:00.000-07:00

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???

2007-07-10T15:16:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-09T08:10:00.001-07:00

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

2007-07-08T22:51:00.000-07:00

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 :-)

2007-07-07T19:28:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-07-06T22:41:00.000-07:00

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.....!

2007-07-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

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!

Holidays

2007-06-30T17:20:00.000-07:00

So, Today begins the wonderful world of family holidays!! 10 of us crammed into a tiny little condo in beautiful Fairmont BC. Don't get me wrong, we're having a blast! Swimming, movies, hikes, it has been a fantastic day so far, but only one more computer min. left... got to run!!! xoxoxo from B.C. lol

B's Flyin' High - Tomorrow's Fairmont!!!!

2007-06-28T21:17:00.000-07:00

The Graduates

2007-06-27T18:01:00.000-07:00

So.... First off! T#1 has officially completed Grade 8 .This is her Certificate of Recognition for her accomplishments and contributions in Choir, Cross Country, Handbell, Track and Field, and Drama! Way to go Taylor, we're proud of you! No more middle school.

Secondly... C is now officially finished

Elementary School! Congrats.. he is on his

way to Middle School!!! Connor is currently celebrating this milestone by having a homework burning bonfire with all of his friends.

I, am ready to do some fun summer stuff with the kids.... first stop Fairmont B.C.!!! I can't wait! Two more days till we leave on official vacation.

The Challenge

2007-06-27T04:07:00.000-07:00

Well, it's moving day, I have been over at "windows live spaces" and have really become quite addicted to this networking tool we call blogging, but out searching the world of blogs, I quite enjoy this format, so I have decided to add this to my list of places that I like to be. Enough said. I am constantly amazed at the amount of hours and effort that people put into their blogs!! Today I found a really inspiring site and idea that I wanted to share with you. The idea is a 30 day Honor your husband Challenge .
This is my synopsis of the concept.... We all have busy lives. In the beginning of our relationships it is easy to focus on our mate. To remember the fantastic things about them... then we get married.
"Just think, if it weren't for marriage, men would go through life thinking they had no faults at all."
Funny, but not. We learn all about our mate, faultsand all, we hurt one another, we forget to forgive and we constantly let Satan remind us of the things that our spouse does wrong or doesn't do. For me, I have become too accustomed to focusing on these things. I don't make my husband a priority, in all of my responsibilities I forget that he is one of the most important ones. He is the one that I made a vow to cherish. I have been guilty of making dumb jokes about men, or being a nag, or not building Jamie up to our children. So.... Challenge on. Society teaches us to de-masculinate our men, I want my husband to feel loved, treasured, needed, and honored in our home and everywhere he goes. Here is a quote I stole from the site where I got this fabulous idea:
God has a solution that, if we adopt it, will revolutionize our relationships. While many people fight to receive respect, Christian marriage calls us to focus our efforts on giving respect. We are called to honor someone even when we know only too well their deepest character flaws. We are called to stretch ourselves, to find out how we can learn to respect this person with whom we've become so familiar.from Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas

So... here is the site where the idea began: http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2007/06/challenge-is-here.html
I encourage you to visit, it. She will encourage you and inspire you.
Because I am a little bit of a lister, I decided to start this challenge off with a list. Here are some of the reasons that I am proud of my husband and things that I love about him.

Jamie is:
1. A man of God. With incredible bible knowledge.

2. A Hero - at work and in his volunteer stuff (EMR and firecrew), and every day. He will always be the one to help people, and more often than not annonymously. He brings home stray animals, gives rides to strangers, sends people on the greyhound to their destinations, gives away his "lunch" to drunks... you name it.. he's a hero.

3. Funny - J can make me smile anytime - he is drop dead hilarious.

4. A fantastic Father! - He often goes days without sleep, in order to make sure that Ben gets adequate care ie: Rescue heros time, or someone to actually WATCH dvd's with him, not just plug them in. He makes sure he brings something home for the kids every morning and always lays out field trip forms, whatever funds are nessecary signs agendas, and is completely abreast of whatever is going on for that day!

5. Brilliant! Any fact historical or otherwise, J knows it! He is a brilliant guy and well rounded, he knows about history, politics, literature, scripture... anything, he is always my source when I have a question!

6. A thoughtful husband... how many other men will buy their wives shoes because they know that there are holes in them. Talk about going out on a limb!

So... Today begins the challenge for me! I will try my best to make my husband a priority and try to make him feel treasured and honored!!!