Pumpkin Carving

Continued list of Thanksgiving:

1. Pumpkin carving the other day.

2. Daddy helping the boys so that I could take pictures and sit back to enjoy the scene.

3. Marcus saying, "I'm so excited!" as he carves out the seeds for roasting.

4. The glow of anticipation on his face as he waits for Daddy's help with his pumpkin.

5. The happy glow of pumpkins lit in a row on the steps.


6. And a marshmallow roast with friends last night in our backyard.


7. The sound of children running and playing in the dark.


8. The swirl of light as flashlights held by little hands swoop back and forth in the night.


9. The warm glow of firelight and wonder on smiling faces as marshmallows turn golden at the ends of twigs pulled from trees.


10. Tired 6 yr. old saying in a soft sweet voice, "Can I go to bed now, Dad?" as friends pull out of the driveway.


11. A hug from said boy and a whisper of, " I had lots of special things today, eh mom?"



"Yes you did, my son, WE ALL DID."

Cozy Dreamin'

Check out this HOUSECOAT, isn't it fabulous?

LOVE. IT.

Just wanna curl up in it with a hot "cuppa"!

What do you think?

"Gayety of Spirit"

“Seeing our Father in everything

makes life

one long thanksgiving
and gives a rest of heart,

and,

more than that,
a gayety of spirit, that is unspeakable.”

~ Hannah Whitall Smith

A walk to "the pond" for a picnic in the crisp cool air.

Jayden exclaiming over the table we found hidden in the trees where we decided to have our lunch, "This is so cool!"

Me enjoying the excitement on their faces as they run around looking for nature things to put in the paper bags that held their sandwiches.

A gentle reminder from this book to get out into nature more often.

Picture taken of my boys in 2007 at "the pond".

Our New Car...

Our new '08 Mazda 5!

My DH came home with this for me last Friday. The interesting thing to me is that the 4 yr. lease on our van ran out on the exact day of Allan's 3rd birthday. Who knew that exactly 1 year, to the day, after we bought our van that we would have another child! I think that's pretty neat.

Anyway, so when we told Allan that we would be getting a new car on his birthday, he assumed it was for him and said to me, with wide eyes,

"Yuh, and you gon' to sit in duh back and I'n gon' to drive to town!"

We all laughed so hard but I guess he was serious 'cause he still calls it his "birthday car"! *smile*

What do you think? The cars pretty cute, eh? Not much room, though.

I went for groceries yesterday and didn't even buy that much but I still had to put down a seat in order to get it all in!

Oh well, we'll make it work... I hope!

Inner wild

This beautiful book was given to me today by my dear Sister. (Thanks Tracy!)

It's all about encouraging us to live more outdoors. So I spent an hour outside this afternoon flipping through the pages and exclaiming over the GOR.GE.OUS pictures within.

I love love love it and am planning on reading it from cover to cover. There are so many good ideas within! I hope to share some with you all as I make my way through it.

For now, here is a quote that I found on one of the pages:

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do

with your one wild and precious life."

~Mary Oliver

Hmmm...

Row of Bouquets

These are making me HAPPY this morning. Who knew that a row of three mason jars filled with flowers could bring me so much pleasure to look upon?

They are just so bright and cheerful as they sit on my counter top... inspiring me to keep it clean and tidy. Remember the bouquet that my dear man gave to me about a week and a half ago? Well it was looking a little sad and so this is what I did with it.

And I am sure they are smiling at me now, just as much as I am smiling at them!
I'm not crazy or anything... Really. :D

My Pets

Is it just me, OR... ...do I REALLY have THE MOST lovable "Pets" on earth?

Allan's Birthday '08

It's my baby's birthday today. I can hardly believe he's 3 yrs. already! I made him chocolate cake. He was so excited to have candles and sang "Happy Birthday" right along with us at the top of his lungs. LOL.
We got him the brio "fire rescue" train set. I love that they can add it to the brio sets they already have. They are busy playing with it now as I type. As much as we love to celebrate, it is also a bit sad...
*Sigh* I no longer have a 2 yr. old. They just grow up so fast. :(

...The Best Medicine.

Anyone who has had their fair share of moles digging up their lawn is going to be able to relate well with this story. LOL.

When my husband and I were first married we lived in the Fraser Valley and, believe me, the moles in our yard would drive me to distraction.

Thankfully we don't have moles on the prairies.

I had such a good laugh when I read what Antique Mommy had to say about her experiences.

Enjoy.

On Being Together

I love the fact that I can be at home with my children.

Today was a wonderfully full day at home in which the boys and I tidied up together, read together, home schooled together and did yard work together. The weather was gorgeous and I am so thankful for being able to spend this time with my boys while they are still young and willing workers.

Just a cute thing that the boys did today:

We have a large patch of tall weeds that are dried up but still standing where our vegetable garden should have been (needless to say, our vegetable's didn't do very well this year *wink*) and the boys found out that they could make trails within them and little "huts" to live. They played for a longtime this afternoon amongst these weeds and I so enjoyed watching them with their spears/sticks hunting for "animals" in the "forest" and crouching together inside their abodes. *smile*

And who said weeds were "good for nothin'"?

Not my boys, obviously!

Day 14 Blessing

I got to spend the whole day at my sister's place organizing and redecorating. I absolutely love doing this sort of thing and am so thankful for the opportunity to bless her in this way. As a result, though, I am exhausted and am going to bed! :0

Busy day tomorrow... plan to do a bunch of yard work as "they" say the weather will be nice.

Have a good evening!

Family Treasures

I will praise you, O Lord, with my whole heart;

I will show forth (recount and tell a loud)

all your marvelous works and worderful deeds!

I will rejoice in You and be in high spirits;

I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High!

Psalm 9: 1&2 (Amplified Bible) For He is Good...

On Canadian Thanksgiving Day:

Thanking the Lord for our Heritage from Him (3 sons).

Thankgsgiving Sunday '08

After sunday morning worship we went home to enjoy turkey dinner with our dear friends, John-murdo and Debbie and their son, Samuel. We had a wonderful time of sweet fellowship together and when they went home at 5:30 we decided to go for a walk as we were not near hungry for supper.

So we bundled up the children and strolled down to the bird sanctuary to see what the geese where up to....

Allan checks out some rosy red rosehips.

I was so thrilled to get this shot. I've been wanting to try for this a long time. :)
Marcus finally knows how to ride a bike with training wheels! Yeah! (He's so proud.)
Beautiful blue-eyed boy. Marcus (4 3/4)
The moon and its reflection on the pond.

Allan takes a ride home in the crisp, cold dark on Daddy's shoulders.

I am so thankful for my health and that of my family that allows us to go out on walks like this in the chill of the evening. It is so special just to be together.

"Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving,

and make a joyful noise unto him..."

Psalm 95:2

I've come to realize...

...the challenge I gave myself for this month is just too challenging. Not that don't have a hundred things to be thankful for each and every day but that it is just to much to have to list them. I find myself already getting behind and I am only on day 11 and instead of fighting it I am just gonna let it go.

Maybe some of you have already looked at my challenge and thought "she's crazy, doesn't she realize how many items she will have to list?"

Truth is I didn't do the math until this morning and I must say it was the deciding factor on whether I would give this up or not. Here is the math: 1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9+10+11+12+13+14+15+16+17+18+19+20+21+22+23
+24+25+26 +27+28 +29+30+31 =496!

That's a lot of blessings to write out!

And so I give myself a new challenge... to think of one particular gift each day for which I have stopped and consciously thanked the Lord. This will give me a bit more of a chance to blog about other things... or not. Although this is not necessarily challenging because we are so blessed, I still want to focus each day of this month on giving thanks to the One who so lavishly bestows upon us.

I love this prayer that Ann quotes at Holy Experience today. This pretty much says it all... may it be the prayer of my heart as well.

Day 10 (because I didn't blog yesterday)

As I was driving my niece home yesterday evening I had the chance to watch the sun setting in all it's glory, a huge yellow ball hovering over the horizon, then slowly sinking until only the last streaks of pale pink remained... a cool, crisp autumn dusk. I marveled at the beauty of His creation and how every day is different and thanked Him for reminding me again that He is in control of all things and that He loves to show us a glimpse of His beauty and power through the wonders of His creation. I wish I had had my camera... a truly special moment in my day.

Day 11

Icy sparkling snow greeted me as I opened the curtains this morning and I gazed at the quiet stillness of it. I thanked the Lord that, even though I don't feel like I am ready for winter to set in, I still could appreciate the beauty of a blanket of white outside my window. As I am typing this the sun shines and the snow is gone... the day is slowly warming up.

May warm, sunny Autumn stick around just a little bit longer... please! :)

How's the weather where you are?

Day 9

1. Thankful that Allan calls me "Mama". He's the first of my children to say Mama instead of Mommy. It's especially precious when he comes up and gives me a hug and kiss and says, "Mama, I love you... I love you, Mama".

2. For quiet time with hubby in the early hours of the morning while it is still dark, the children aren't up yet, and the day is still fresh.

3. For hot mug of coffee to wrap chilly hands 'round.

4. Thankful that mom loved to read to us as children, passing down that love to me.

5. That Allan still naps 2 hours every afternoon so that I can get the home schooling done in relative peace.

6. For Internet access so that I can blog! ;)

7. For the sound of my childrens voices as they talk together in their play.

8. For Lego blocks that help them to use their imagination so delightfully! *smile*

9. For a quiet day at home. The van is in getting it's bumper fixed so I had to stay home, which was fine with me! :)

How are you all doing? I haven't been getting any comments lately. :( I do love a good comment! *hint, hint*

An Excuse and Day 8 & 9 Blessings

Well, so much for doing a second post yesterday. I just had such a wonderfully full and active day, with 3 of my girlfriends over in the evening, I didn't get a chance until after 11:00 and by then I was too tired and went straight to bed.

So anyways, here are my Day 8 Blessings:

Thankful for;
1. An afternoon with my friend digging up perennials in my garden in order to transplant them into hers.

2. The chance to harvest my potatoes in the sunshine. I dug them up and told the boys they could sift through the soil looking for "gold". They had so much fun and this is what they came up with.
2. Bright and beautiful flower bouquet from hard-working hubby... aren't they gorgeous? 4. The time that my dear husband took to go with the boys and I to pick out pumpkins at a local pumpkin patch. These are the three we chose, promptly set outside into my fall display at the front door. :)
5. This fall mom that I found at the grocery store along with these adorable mini pumpkins and gourds.
6. A beautiful evening with friends in my home, yummy food and candles lit.

7. Getting my latest scrapbook completed and having them enjoy looking through it.

8. A clean house when I went to bed last night. I could turn out the lights with a sense of satisfaction for a day well spent.

Hopefully I'll get day 9 done this evening!

Day 7 & 8 Blessings

So, as you may have noticed I didn't get a chance to write out my list of thanksgiving for yesterday so here it is bright and early this morning:

Day 7 Blessings

1. Walking with my children out in the wind and sunshine.

2. That Jayden took the innitiative to send a card to his Oma all on his own.

3. That my boys love to look in books and will spend hours after we have come home from the library perusing them.

4. That my hubby took the evening off from working on the house so that we could spend a quiet evening together.

5. That he supports me in not watching T.V. but instead will read a book or listen to classical music... so much more peaceful and wholesome than a blaring Television.

6. Classical Music. I want to bring more of it into my life. The beauty of it is so inspiring and I believe it is good for the children as well. Humble thanks to my sister and my homeschool facilitator for gently reminding me of this.

7. A fireplace that keeps us warm and cozy on windy evenings like the one we had yesterday.

So, I will post my list for today later on and hopefully I won't get too preoccupied with other things! :)

Day 6 Blessings

1. The color purple of Asters blooming in my garden.


2. These words from His word this morning.

"But if one loves God truly [with effectionate reverence, prompt obedience, and grateful recognition of His blessing], he is known by God [recognized as worthy of His intimacy and love, and he is owned by Him]." 1 Corinthians 8:3 May this be so, not just for this month as I am printing out His blessings but for always in every area of my life.

3. An unexpected and pleasant visit from my sister this morning.

4. A sense of smell. ...Especially the heavenly scent of sweet peas blooming along the fence of my vegetable patch.

5. This little boy... need I say more?

6. And these two pairs of blue, blue eyes.

Day 5 Blessings

1. I am thankful for good fellowship and the freedom and oppertunity to go to church every Sunday.

2. The Lord's message and promise that He "will never leave me nor forsake me." Hebrews 13:5

3. My husband, for all that he does for me. He made dinner for us this evening without my even asking... I so appreciate him!

4. Cuddles with my children as I read them a bedtime story this evening.

5. The feel of the soft skin and the joyful sound of his giggles as I tickle the belly of my almost 3 yr. old while getting him in his jammies before bed... simply delightful! (sigh) They're all growing up too fast.

Day 4 Blessings

1. Kind words in my comments box yesterday. Thank you so much.

2. Rain earlier this afternoon on this cloudy Saturday. Perfect weather for our new grass that we laid this morning!


3. Eldest son, Jayden singing as he works. "All I wanna do is have some fun..." so cute.

4.The color red against the blue sky on my walk this evening... Breathtaking.

"God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today.

Have you used one to say"thank you?""

~William A. Ward

What are you thankful for today?

Day 3 Blessings

Thankful for:

1. their great imagination that kept all three boys busy on the dirt pile for hours this morning so that I could get the dirt swept and washed from my floors and the dirt washed from the pile of laundry.

~Busy little worker man. ~

~ I love how Allan talks when he's busy doing "man" things...real low... just like his daddy.~

2. This yummy recipe for homemade granola that I found here.

I did these jars up this morning and it was so easy. You should try the recipe! I love the sweet/salty taste of it. So delicious over yogurt or ice cream... believe me I tried it both ways already! Really! :) Yogurt for snack and ice cream for lunch. Just so you know, I don't normally eat like this but I couldn't resist just this once. ;)

(Let me now what you think if you do try it, OK?)

3. The chance to scrapbook (and visit) all afternoon with my dear friend while the children played quietly.

Haven't done a day like this in a while ...it's been so refreshing.

Pumpkin Spice

Thanking Him for the many blessings every day;

1. Kind Facilitator who came today to help me with my homeschool plans. Confirming that what I was already doing was wonderful and gently suggesting a few more ideas.

::: and :::

2. The spicy scent of 3 dozen pumpkin cookies baked this afternoon, from our homegrown pumpkins, cooling on my countertop.
Mmmm, mmmm, GOOD!

Month of Thanksgiving

So I've been thinking a lot about Thanksgiving Day coming up and how we need to always have a heart of thankfulness. (For all those of you in the "States", I know Thanksgiving is in November but for us it's October 13 this year.) And I have decided that for each day in October I will be blogging about the things I am thankful for in my life.

I will list as many things as the date we are on so for today, being the 1st, I will post 1 thing, tomorrow 2 things, and so on.

Anyone wanna join me? Let me know, I always love getting "comments"! ;)
Yeah? Okay, I'm excited to check your blogs each day to see all the blessing in your life!

So here's my first point of gratitude:

(On the side: I couldn't resist saying something about fall and will probably have more to say as the month goes on because... I LOVE THIS SEASON! :D )


1. The sound of crunching leaves under little feet as I walked with my toddler to the mailbox this afternoon.

(Ooh, it's hard to say just one because I'd love to mention "his little hand in mine and the sunshine glinting off his blond head" but maybe I'll save that for another post. I hope there are many more such walks in the near future!)

Happy Thanksgiving Month!