That Was Stupid!

Today was my turn to drive for band. I didn't have many groceries to buy - I had just stocked up the other day.  But I did want to grab some more yogurt - for this cleansing stage we're in. The Co-op was my first stop. I was going to do some price checking on the brand of yogurt we like. And while there I passed a rack of Christian fiction books, and there was 1 book that I wanted. So I grabbed it, and while I was on my way to the check-out counter - the express lane - I reached into my big purse for my wallet.  Guess what wasn't in my big purse?  That was so stupid. I remembered taking my wallet out yesterday when I ran into town for choir practice. I didn't need my big purse at the school. And,as I was putting the book I wanted back on the rack, I remembered that I had forgotten to put my wallet back in my big purse. Dumb time to remember.  At least I didn't make it to the check out counter with my book that I wasn't able to purchase. Then I would have felt idiotic.
So, I had some free "no-shopping" time on my hands. I went and chatted with a friend, ran to the library - the city library - to check out some books, booted 'er over to Tim's for a coffee, which I enjoyed while reading 1 of those books (even though the rim once again told me to "play again"), and then I went to the band room to wait.  Fortunately, for me, 1 of the band moms from home was coming into the city, and she brought my wallet with her.  Thank you, My Sweetheart, for finding my wallet and running it into the school so she could do that for me!  And then, after band, the girls and I went to the store and bought yogurt.  But before that I had to scout around for a tall person to reach the yogurt.  It was on the very top shelf at the very back of the shelf! I was thankful today for a tall stranger who was more than willing to grab the 1 item I needed!
I doubt I'll forget my wallet again!

For the Better of us all...

My dear friend dropped off a book for me at the library on Monday. I was so excited about it because her enthusiasm was definitely contagious. A doctor had been on Dr. Phil a while ago - I had even seen that episode - talking about a diet. It's called the 17 day diet. It sounded good at the time, and after reading aloud to my Sweetheart yesterday on my way to Regina for a medical appointment, we both agreed that, yes, this is something we need to do.  There are different phases to this diet, each one is 17 days long.  And do-able.

You see, the 4 of us really need to change our eating habits.  I take a pill daily for high blood pressure, my husband takes a pill daily for high cholesterol.  And DD and DS are learning from our bad habits. So, with the encouragement and support of my Sweetheart we have embarked on this lifestyle change. For the next 17 days we are cutting out sugar and carbohydrates (the carbs will be re-introduced in another phase) and replacing them with lots of protein, vegetables, fruit (not all fruit though) and probiotics. And lots of water.  Lots of water.  This is the "cleansing" stage.  We have stocked up on salmon, tilapia, tuna, chicken, and lots of good healthy fruit and vegetables.  It is a good thing we have 2 fridges.

And when I think about it, didn't Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego forego bad food? And they stuck to the healthy "God created" foods? And they were rewarded with fitness and good health!
So tonight for supper we will be feasting on ....

roast turkey stuffed with lemons and onion and sprinkled with Greek seasoning. We won't be eating the skin though...

spinach salad with hard cooked egg whites and mushrooms, or a tossed salad loaded with tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, ...

steamed broccoli and carrots!  yum!

Want to come for supper? I'd love to share with you!

Books! Books! Books!

Four years ago, when I took my then sixth grader to the library, I noticed an ad on the library bulletin board that captured my attention! "Help Wanted" - it was a perfect fit! My love for books, my desire to have a small part time job, the ability to work by myself (after training of course), and visiting time with the patrons - all reasons to apply! The next library day I was training! After training I became the Monday library lady! And I have been the Monday librarian for 4 years now! I thought you'd love to see some pictures of where I work, so today I took my camera with me!

Welcome to my Monday afternoon world!

If you pop into our cozy library I might be sitting at this desk,with my go-cup of tea handy!

We have a small selection of Christian fiction - this is where I grab most of my books!

This is a tiny area of the children's section, and where some of my favorite little patrons hang out!

We have a separate resource room, complete with computers, magazines, and a table and chairs!

Believe it or not, there are some patrons who would rather watch a movie than read a book!  We have a great selection of DVD's!

So, this is where I spend 4 hours a week!  I enjoy my job. I enjoy getting off the farm for a little while anyway. I enjoy books!  Lately I've been researching e-readers.  Do I want a kindle?  or a sony? What about a be-book? Honestly, there are so many options out there. And there are pros and cons to each one. I can download library books on the sony.  But the kindle is a good price. All of them hold thousands of books! Decisions, decisions, decisions!

And speaking of books - I have a pretty great collection of books in a special library in my home. My library of 66 books. This collection is priceless. Most of the books in this library are ancient.  Written by many authors. One of the authors wrote his book around 1400 BC.  Some of the other books in this collection were written around 2000 years ago. And each book in this collection is relevant today.  Amazing!  Want to know more about this library? Maybe you have a similar one in your home!  I think I might just go and see which book in my library appeals to me right now!  Want to join me?

Giving Thanks

Today is the last Sunday in March this year. I can't believe how quickly this month flew by - even with all the snow and wintery weather!  It is still feeling rather wintery, but the forecast shows that it will be warming up! I'm thankful for that!  I'm thankful for many more things as I reflect on this past week.

71. I am thankful that we made it home safely last night - #1 hwy from home to Regina, and then home again was terrible.  Very icy and therefore treacherous! We stopped to help, on our way home in the dark, a motorist who had rolled his vehicle.
72. I am thankful, extremely, that the motorist was not injured.
73. I am thankful that I am certified in First Aid and CPR - and glad I didn't have to use it last night! Very glad!
74. I am thankful to have 2 teens who enjoy being with us!
75. I am thankful for friends who sent cards and phoned on my birthday. I still got a few cards this week - it's nice to be thought of.
76. I am thankful for the opportunity to worship freely. I will never take that for granted.
77.I am thankful for my technically minded husband and son who can figure things out for me when I am totally clueless!
78. I am thankful for my daughter who enjoys baking cookies with me.
79.I am thankful for Phil Callaway - it is so good to laugh!  We really laughed on Friday night!
80. I am thankful for the opportunity to volunteer a little bit with the grades 8 and 9's at our school!

I hope you are able to reflect on this past week and be glad for the week that was!

He Does

A friend of a few friends of mine is blogging. I'm following her blog because of the hope and trust she has in the Lord in spite of personal tragedy. She is an encouragement to me and we've never met. You can read her blog.  It's called "journeying" and you can find the link to that by looking at the list of blogs I follow. Yesterday, or maybe the day before, her blog was very powerful and spoke volumes to me. And a comment by 1 of her followers pointed to Isaiah chapter 61. The 'great exchange' if you will, between the God who loves me so much, and me.  And you. He takes all our yuck and exchanges it for all His goodness. But we need to ask Him to do that.He will. So, as I was thinking of that love, that love that exchanges our bad for His good, and Easter, and the Good News, or the Gospel, of Jesus Christ I wrote a song. I just finished it. You can't hear the music right now, but I will share the lyrics with you.  My prayer and my hope is that the Lord, of Whom I write about and love, will reach out to you and exchange all  the bad in your life for the riches He longs to give you.  All you need to do is ask Him to.  He will. That's why Jesus came. To take all our sin, and shame, and pain - all our "yuck" and exchange it for all His goodness, and mercy and forgiveness and eternal life. But He had to go to the cross to do that. And the Good News is that He conquered death!

Here are the lyrics -

He Does
copyright Heather Arnelien

Tear-stained pillow
sleepless nights
"why's and  "what ifs?"
no hope in sight.
feeling abandoned
not wanting  to live
you've screamed and cried and died inside
you've nothing to give.

Oh, but He does.
Oh, He does.

He gives beauty for ashes
His strength for fear,
gladness for mourning,
peace for despair.
He gives hope for the broken
The Best, for 'what was' -
When you've got nothing to give -  He does.

Tears of mercy,
prayer-filled night,
in that garden-
He was fighting your fight.
Every sorrow, each sin and each loss-
He bore them all upon Him when He hung on the cross.
Oh, and He lives.
And He gives...

He gives beauty for ashes,
His strength for fear,
gladness for mourning,
peace for despair.
He gives hope for the broken,
the Best for "what was"-
when you've got nothing to give - He does.
When you've got nothing to give, He does.

Cupcakes, Choirs, and Closets

In the middle of the night, when I couldn't sleep because My Sweetheart was tossing and turning and obviously not sleeping himself, I leaned over to him and said, "I'm going to bake cupcakes in the morning; it's Lorene's birthday and I'll be at the school anyway, so I'm going to bake cupcakes for her and for the rest of the grade 8 and 9 class."   There.  It was settled. I could go back to sleep. Not sure what My Sweetheart thought of my announcement in the middle of the night though!
So, before Dear Son and Darling Daughter left for school, I had the ingredients out.  I was going to make chocolate cupcakes, because I have a never fail recipe for them, and they are delicious, but then DD informed me that a couple of the kids in her class couldn't have chocolate. She told me she had a cupcake book with some good recipes in it, so after discussing it with her, I set out to make the vanilla cupcakes from the recipe in her cupcake book. I wish I wouldn't have done that.  That recipe, obviously, was not a never-fail recipe. They were not light and fluffy; rather, they were dense and squashed looking. Oh well, they would do - they would have to do. I split the icing into 2 different bowls, and added food coloring to each.  I knew that the birthday girl liked pink and yellow, so those colors were the colors of the icing.
When I got to the school, I grabbed the grade 8's and we went to the gym stage to start practicing the song they will be singing for assembly next month. The grade 9's were going to join us shortly. That gave me time to discuss the "plan" with 1/2 of the choir. Lorene was in the grade 9 class - she wouldn't know. I told them, that just before we went over the song for the final time I would say I was going to try the song again, this time with a different intro, and that would be their cue to sing "Happy Birthday". And it worked! The choir sang, the cupcakes were distributed and it was a good morning! I don't even think they minded the dense, squashed  looking cupcakes.
So, then after lunch, and a little nap, I looked into our bedroom closet. I really let it get out of hand.  There were just too many clothes in it- clothes that hadn't been worn for years.  So I took the plunge and started sorting.

These clothes are going down to the city for either the safe shelter or recycling. They are perfectly good, just the wrong size, or else I'm just tired of them.

See that bottle on the floor in the closet? Isn't that sick? That was a fresca bottle, with fresca still in it.  It was in my carry on bag from last November when my mom and I went to Peterborough.  Speaking of finding stuff in the closet - I found a DVD in there - still in it's packaging. I was wondering, on Christmas Eve, where that gift for Dear Son was!!

I better get back at 'er! There's still a pile of closet to clean out!

That's my day so far. I really hate cleaning closets.  This is just the beginning. There are more closets in the house. And cupboards. It's one of those things that needs to be done every year. Most of the closets in this house do get cleaned out, but the bedroom one just got away on me. I do know, from past experience, that when the nooks and crannies are cleaned out I will feel better. There is something rewarding and freeing in doing that. I believe that's how it is with sin. It creeps in and takes over and makes life messy and disorganized.  Then when we allow Jesus to come in and clean up - well, that's where the freedom is.  And the reward.  But, I still have to do my part too.

Melancholy

Cheryl, a mom whom  I just met, was at the school today. The School Community Council, (SCC) which I'm fortunate to be part of, has tried before to have Cheryl come to the school. The last time SCC tried, I wasn't a part of the SCC yet. Cheryl is a very gifted speaker.  She has 10 years of speaking to high school assemblies under her belt. She is a very sought after mom. She's cool, she's young-ish, she's hip. She might not think so. But I thought so.  I think it would be very difficult to be a mom speaking in front of high schoolers. But she did it. She grabbed their attention right away. And she grabbed the attention of everybody else in the auditorium.  Her story was sobering. Cheryl is part of an elite group of parents that I, in no way, ever ever want to be a part of. Cheryl has buried a daughter.  A beautiful, young, vibrant daughter.  Her young life, that was so full of promise, was cut short at the age of 16. Cheryl's daughter made a decision, a bad decision, that ended her life. Alcohol, sadly, was involved. I'm not going to say more about that.

I believe Cheryl's presentation had an impact on the teenagers that were there. I hope it did anyway. I know she impacted me, as well as the other parents that were there. She offered valuable insights, lessons learned, stuff like that.

I'm glad for people like Cheryl.  People who care so much for others that they are willing to reach out and offer help, in spite of their own deep pain. People who are out there being vulnerable in the hopes of helping "just 1 person". 

Here's the link to Cheryl's website.  I really hope you have the opportunity to hear her speak. If you do, make sure you have a wad of Kleenex - you'll need them.
http://www.danaessong.com/

Seasons, Smiles and Snowmen

A lot has transpired this past week.  Winter left.  Spring arrived. Snowmen took up residence on our front lawn. I became another year older. And through it all I have reason to be thankful.  Or, rather, reasons to be thankful. This week I am thankful for:

61. smiles. Ever notice how a smile can brighten a day?  I have. I have had my spirits lifted by a simple smile!
62.winter. I love winter. I love to hibernate inside when the cold winter wind is blowing. I love the beauty of winter.
63. spring's arrival - I say this almost reluctantly because I tend to suffer a touch of depression during the spring.  My doctor and I were discussing this at my annual physical this past week. I think it has something to do with the fact that the arrival of spring heralds the ending of winter. I really really like winter and am sad when it ends. But, on the other hand, spring brings with it the promise of new life. And that encourages me. So, "spring's arrival" is on my list of "reasons I am thankful."
64. snowmen - We rarely have snowmen in our yard, but it signifies that Darling Daughter took the time to enjoy being outdoors and had so much fun bringing these snow-people to life!



65.my annual check up. I am thankful for health care in this province and the accessibility to health care. And it was a good report this year, so I am thankful to the Lord for that!
66. my family's love - this is always evident on my birthday.  It's always there, but alway evident on special days, when my Sweetheart, Darling Daughter and Dear Son go out of their way to show me I'm special. And this week I had a birthday!
67. Another birthday! Always good news!!
68.Norm - Norm and his wife have been good friends to my parents and our family all my life. This week we said good-bye to Norm.  I'm glad to have known him, and am rejoicing that "good-bye" here, on this earth, isn't really good-bye!
69. Help.  I love it when someone offers me their help, or when they just help without even offering!  Like last night, when there was a pile of dirty dishes, even after the dishwasher was filled, and Dear Son grabbed a dish towel, without being asked, and came and started drying! What a super opportunity to 'catch up'!
70.My expanding Table - it expanded last night as we welcomed DD's and DS's Grandma and Grandpa for Sunday Supper!

This past week was definitely a week of seasons.  Not only the season of winter and spring, but the season of life and death - as experienced with the passing of a friend.  And also the season of the passing of time. Another year older for me. I'm obviously in the season of middle age - the season of youth is gone. And the seasons go so quickly. I'm glad for the constancy of the Lord throughout the seasons of  life. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. So thankful.



Spring has Sprung!



Tulips announcing the first day of spring!

Cute litte bunny heralding the beginning of this season!

Lady wearing her snow-laden red fur coat!

WHAT??????

Yes, spring has sprung, and in stark contrast to yesterday's 'last day of winter' blog, there seems to be an error. Yesterday, the final day of winter, was like a beautiful spring day.  And today, the first day of spring, is like a wintery day in January. Here's another picture, taken from the deck, just 5 minutes ago - today, March 20, 2011.  The first day of spring....



Yes, that's snow!  And that is snow covering the mud from yesterday!



So, instead of a barbecue and potato salad, today will be a roast beef and yorkshire pudding day. That suits me just fine! I can enjoy the warm comfort food meal with my mom and my Sweetheart's dad.  And I can enjoy letting the inside dogs outside and not fret over the mud that they won't clomp in today!  And, once the apple crisp is cooling and the roast is in the oven, I might just take the opportunity  to open up a good book and read by the comfort of the fireplace. It's that kind of day!

Welcome to spring!

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven"  Ecclesiastes 3:1

I'm thankful to live where the seasons change!

Last Day of Winter

J.C., the weather guy on TV, told us, yesterday, that spring will arrive March 20 at about suppertime. I paraphrased his report. He went into a little more detail than that. So, to celebrate, although I much prefer winter to spring, I thought I would capture the last day of winter 2011, in order to be ready for the first day of spring.
Come along and enjoy the sights of winter on our farm!

The first stop on the tour is the middle of our yard! Note the groovy tire tracks in the centre. Also worth noting is what's not in the picture. Nothing stuck! It is, after all, winter!

We have bubbles on the farm. They are located in the water in the mud. The stylish boots, like the ones modelled in the picture,  will likely be available at Wal-Mart. But you might want to wait until srping to grab yourself a snazzy pair. You better hurry before they sell out though!

I thought you would enjoy seeing the reflection of the bins!

We have REAL mud here, otherwise known as GUMBO! It is much like wet cement!

Any guesses as to what this is?

Lady is so happy to be part of the farm tour! She is wearing a lovely coat of red dog hair encrusted with gumbo.

Here we have a small puddle.

The same small puddle taken from a different angle!

The dug-out is full! Thankfully it isn't very warm today, or the dug-out would be fuller!

You are looking at the yard of our neighbor's who live right across the road. The water in this picture will head north and cross the road and join up with the water in our dug-out, or run in the ditch and cut a swath through a field.

There is still snow in our yard!

This is why I shudder when the inside dogs need to go outside.

I took this picture to show that the green grass is starting to make an appearance.

I hope you've enjoyed your little tour of the farm on this, the last day of winter for 2011!

The Good The Bad and the Ugly



I have not seen the movie - "The Good The Bad and the Ugly". I am not a Clint Eastwood fan, and therefore have had no desire to ever see that movie. But I was thinking of my day today - the good, the bad and the ugly parts of my day.

It started good! I was doing some online banking and was surprised to see a SOCAN deposit. I had received a letter from SOCAN after our cruise, congratulating me on my first royalites. I put the letter aside and promptly forgot all about it. I wasn't going to get excited over a few cents, and doubted that it would be deposited into my account anyway.  But.  I love that word. There's something coming when "but" is interjected. But, it was more than a few cents. It was even more than a few dollars. I was shocked.  Pleasantly. I couldn't understand how that much money could have been deposited. Not that it was a HUGE amount, but it was way more than I wasn't expecting. Truly.  I was not expecting any money.  I had dropped off 1 CD at 1 radio station.  And left it at that.  My friend, just the other day, informed me that the radio station plays my songs every week. I don't really listen to the radio, so I didn't know that. My music is played usually on Sunday morning. I still knew the songs weren't played THAT often. And here's the surprise. The radio station I dropped it off at is actually 1 station in the whole Golden West Radio stations - there are stations in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.  My songs have been getting air play in the 3 prairie provinces. Yes, it was a good morning!!



And then the bad.  And it's really not that bad. But, oh, there's that word again.  This time, not so promising.  But, I had my annual check up today.  My tune up. Oh, I'm pretty good. I'm up a couple pounds - I will blame that on the cruise. And my triglyceride count was high.  Not too high. Just high enough for my doctor to notice. As was my bad cholesterol count. We need to keep an eye on that. Looks like I might be predisposed to diabetes.  But, you know, I can do something about that. I can watch my "sweets" intake. Change my diet. I can work at that. That's do-able.

And then the ugly.

NEED I SAY MORE?

Well, it wasn't that ugly - just one of the perks of being a woman who is doing all she can to monitor and take care of this physical body. One of those things that, every 3 years for me, just has to get done. I'm making sure that those cells are behaving.

And, that's been my day so far!  Alll the good, the bad and the ugly. But the day itself is grand.  The sun is shining.  The snow is melting.  The mud is growing. And God loves me!

I'm Older



Birthdays aren't exciting anymore.  At least, my birthdays aren't exciting anymore. And the sad part is, I LOVE parties. If it would have been anyone else's birthday I would have enjoyed planning and executing the party. Perhaps 'executing' isn't the best word to use when discussing parties. It is almost an oxymoron. I'll try and think of a better word.

Anyway, yesterday was my birthday. My 47th birthday.  And it was on a Wednesday. How exciting are 47th birthdays and Wednesdays? Obviously, not too exciting here. No breakfast in bed. In fact, not even a special breakfast for the birthday girl. Just a bowl of cereal. My Sweetheart did, however, make coffee for me. That was nice. There was no birthday cake baked by anyone in my family. Not even a birthday card from my sweetheart. He thought he got my a birthday card.  It was an anniversary card. And I am laughing! The card was very funny. And the thought was there. He didn't notice it was an anniversary card until he wrote in it!

 Darling Daughter made me a lovely keepsake scrapbook. She put a lot of love and time and thought into her special gift. And Dear Son is going to give me the movie 'Tangled' when it comes out on DVD. He knows that I will enjoy that movie. I doubt he'll watch it with me though. High school boys and Disney cartoons just aren't a mix. My sweetheart combined anniversary and valentine's and my birthday for my gift - a lovely piece of jewellery. I seem to be always spoiled when it comes to gifts - this year was no exception.

 I was taken out for supper. BP's. I had a coupon. My meal was free because it was my birthday. I got the coupon via email.  I could have even cut out the paper "happy birthday" badge on the coupon and worn it into the restaurant.  Worn it?  Or wore it? Oh well! But I didn't want the servers to know it was my birthday until it was time to pay.  I did not want to have to crawl up on the bench seat and  stand there while they sang to me. Ewww!

And, I must confess, although I did not get a home made cake, my family did bring home a DQ ice cream  cake. And the neighbors across the road came and had a piece with us. Mom was here too.  She came to supper with us.  My husband found a '45' candle, and added an extra 2 candles to the cake. I couldn't even blow them all out - all 4 of them - the 4 and the 5 and the 2 single candles. How sad is that?  If there would have been 47 individual candles, well, then it would be acceptable to not have the oomph to blow them out. But 4?

So, I'm older. I'm having a hard time with this age. My aunt died when she was 48. I was 27 at the time.  And when one is 27, 48 seems, well -almost old. I'll be 48 next year. And 48 is not old.

I'm not sure why this birthday is bothering me. It is just another day after all. A day that will run together with other days and soon be part of last week, then last month, then last year...And so on and so on.

And then, next year my birthday will be on a Thursday. I wonder if my birthday will be more exciting then.

Farewells and Welcome Homes



The picture on the funeral card is riveting. It was the picture on the card for a dear man, a good friend. He is home now. And if the welcome is anything like it is depicted in the picture, by Danny Hohlbohm, how can I be anything but ecstatic for Norm?  And Dad?  And Kim?  And Aunt Shirley?  Auntie Evelyn?  Uncle Chester? Chris and Carol? And the thousands and thousands of Christ-followers, redeemed by Him alone, forgiven, and welcomed into their eternal home? Their hand crafted mansions designed by the Master Carpenter Himself have been built and ready. They've been  hugged tightly by Jesus with a huge welcoming committee ready for even more hugs I'm sure!

As soon as I was handed the card by the funeral attendant today, and looked at the picture, I smiled. I doubt very much if the artist's rendition of the great welcome that awaits the believers is anything like the reality that awaits. The welcome will be more glorious.  More wonderful.  More awe-inspiring. How can it not be?

 Farewells are difficult, but the welcome waiting must be wonderful!

Thankful

It's time for my weekly, or almost weekly list of 'things I am thankful for'.  So, here goes..

51. at the end of the week, there are glimpses that spring is coming. It's warming up a little!  I am thankful1
52. date night - my Sweetheart and I went to 'leahy last night' with good friends. I guess it was almost like a double date night.
53.  Leahy - wow!  what entertainment! And they're siblings!  8 of them! Great concert!
54. Our friends, Tim and Angie, who came to the concert with us.
55. my Bible Study group - great group of great friends who provide great support and encouragement
56. the praying moms group that I am part of - I am finding I am in need of prayer more than ever!
57.my oven and clothes dryer are both working!  Need I say more?
58.the electrician who got my dryer and stove going!
59. another safe week of driving for Dear Son.
60.laughter and giggles that accompany Darling Daughter when she has a friend here for a sleepover!

As each week comes and goes I am discovering that it is getting easier and easier to find 10 things that I am thankful to the Lord for.  This week, in stark contrast to my feelings of happiness and delight in the above mentioned list, provided me with such urgency and deep need to pray for the people in Japan, and all the people in the world who have been, and will be affected by the horrible earthquake and subsequent tsunami. I know there are people who question how a loving God would allow that to happen.  And why would He? I can only say to that, I of course, don't know so many answers to so many questions, but I do know that the God I serve and love is a God of great love and compassion. I do know that He, by His Holy Spirit will be moving through the hands and feet of so many people who love Him. He is drawing people to Him. Jesus is alive. And maybe, for me, the only really effective prayer I can pray this week is, "Thy will be done. And use me, Lord, any way You can in accordance with Your will."

Bah Bah Bentley

The start of Bentley's first haircut.

He has so much hair!

We had to move him from the floor to the table - the floor was too hard on my Sweetheart's back!

Bobble-head Bentley

He looks more like a poodle now!

Yes sir, yes sir, 3 bags full....

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Yesterday it seemed like spring had sprung! The sun was quickly melting the snow in the yard, replacing it with muck. Muck and Bentley's long, long hair did not seem like a good mix. So, after supper, when it was still very mild outside, my Sweetheart willingly agreed that it would be a good time for Bentley's first haircut.  And he would be the one to cut it, with Dear Son helping. Darling Daughter and I were going to clean up after supper and bake some cookies. My sweetheart probably thought that the haircut would be done at the same time as the cookies! Secretly, I knew better, but I decided to let him think his happy thoughts!

They started clipping away in the laundry room. It was close to the brooms and the vacuum and the garbage bags after all. Those few things should have come out of the closet before the haircut began. But they didn't. And for the first hour it was impossible to get into the closet. My sweetheart's back began to ache, as did his legs, from being on the floor, so the boys decided to move Bentley to the kitchen table. I ran to get an old sheet to cover the table with, to protect it from puppy claws.

By now the cookies were just about done. And I picked up some scissors while my Sweetheart continued on with the clippers. DS and DD took turns holding Bentley while us 2 lovebirds clipped and trimmed. Pretty soon DS and DD went off to bed while the 2 of us continued our hairdressing.  3 hours and 45 minutes later, with 3 bags full of puppy hair, we declared we were finished - for now.  We still need to trim up the scraggles, but oh my goodness, what a transformation. Bentley ran outside like a free man!  Leaping and bounding! Chico stared at him in disbelief.

And this morning, poor Bentley had to run outside, almost naked looking, into the snow and wind. When we went to bed last night, it was +2.  This morning, with the wind chill, it is -22.  That has to be a shock to the puppy system.

But he's happy! The cold didn't seem to bother him! He must be part tough Norwegian!

Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!

My husband and his cousin built this little elevator years ago when they were young men. It has been on this farm for quite a few years.  Since I've lived here I've never been more in awe of the sunrise, which takes place just behind this building, then I was this morning. When I got up today, the first thing I did was check the temperature. It was -26.  Quite cold for March 9. When I looked outside I didn't mind the cold. For with the cold and the touch of fog - just a touch of fog, the sunrise that the Lord blessed me with, was breathtaking. And I had to capture, the best I could, a picture that would freeze that scene.
The Bible Study group, that I'm privileged to be part of, met last night.  We are attempting to memorize Scripture.  The book that is aiding us, along with the Bible, is Robert J. Morgan's "100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know by Heart."  We just started this study. And the beginning verses to memorize start at the beginning of creation.  Genesis 1:1 and John 1:1.  In the beginning....both verses start that way.  God created....
The beginning of my day today attested to the fact that God created. Such beauty in the sunrise. Such beauty in the cold. Yes, I saw the beauty. And I was thankful. What a lovely way to start the day. 
When my husband and I came home from the city, around noon, the temperature had warmed up considerably.  The sunshine felt very warm.  And the birds were singing. I haven't heard them singing much this year.  Until today.  They seemed, to me anyway, to be heralding another beginning.  Spring. New life. Resurrection.  Hope.  Warmth. And more sunrises to enjoy.

Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.  Lamentations 3:22-23



Waiting

"The act of remaining inactive or stationary." That's how 1 dictionary defined 'waiting'. It's probably best to use the dictionary's version instead of mine. Mine would be something like "the state of turmoil while being unable to do what one wants to do because the electrician's lunch hour has already been way over 2 hours, over 2 1/2 hours, and one is still inactively unable to use the dryer and oven, which should have been hooked up by now."
We've only been waiting almost a month. What's a few more hours in light of weeks?  At least it isn't 'months'. That would be awful. Ok, a few more hours is manageable. But, darn it all, I was really wanting to do laundry this afternoon, and bake. My goodness, I think I will bake up a storm when I have the use of my oven again. And, the laundry! I can't begin to blab about how happy I will be to have the use of my dryer!
But, until then, I wait. I was hoping that while I was in town today for 2 hours, that when I came home, the power would have been all hooked up. Not happening.  So I wait.  I have no choice. I guess I'll remain inactive and stationary. I'll have to curl up in front of the fireplace with a good book when the rest of the power gets turned off in order to turn on the power that we don't have. If that makes any sense at all. It makes sense to me.
And hopefully soon the waiting will be over.  The electrician drove in half way during my rant, so that's good! I'm happy. I'll maybe even bake him a pie when all is said and done. I might bake pies for anybody who has helped us during this season of "no 220 power to the house."  Well, maybe not everybody.  My father in law, who graciously allowed us the use of a dryer, is diabetic.  No pie for him.  We'll have to have him out for a meal, considering the stove will be working.  And my mom - 1 whole pie would be too much for her. I'll bake a lemon pie when I have my father in law out, when the oven is working, and have my mom out for supper too.  That should work. 
And my neigbors - they deserve a pie - definitely!
Well, that's settled!  And now, I'm off to go be inactive and stationary while I wait!

TV Tables, Sardine Sandwiches and Wonderful World of Disney!



I'm reminiscing today. I'm remembering Sundays from my childhood. Sundays when we would, as a family, attend Scandia Lutheran, and sit in the 3rd pew from the back, pulpit side, every Sunday. The Berg family always sat in front of us. And then, after church, if we didn't walk to Auntie Evelyn's and Uncle Stan's who lived kind of kitty-corner from the yellowy-orange church and have tea, we would head to the farm and have home made buns with sardines. I always rooted for Auntie Evelyn's. I never had sardines at her place. But we always had tea, or more than likely coffee. Juice for the kids. And quite often my older, more sophisticated cousins would polish my nails with the groovy hip colors in their collection - black, yellow, purple, blue.  Mom had clear nail polish. And then, after tea and lunch, if we were at Auntie Evelyn's, or sardines if we were home, we'd alway look forward to The Wonderful World of Disney. A great way to end the weekend if you ask me! We'd pull out the the TV tables much like the ones in this picture,but with bright colored flowers on a background of white, and have our supper in the living room, and watch Disney on our 1 channeled television.

Tonight we'll have supper in our kitchen - tonight it will be chicken quesadillas with home made guacamole.  After supper we'll head to the various televisions in our home - the ones hooked up with satellite and hundreds of channels and hundreds of remotes and flip through to see what grabs our fancy.

I wonder what my dear children will remember about this time of their lives when they get to the stage of their lives when they will be reminiscing.

Cinderella



I was thinking about Cinderella yesterday. And not the 'ready for the ball' Cinderella, but the Cinderella that was busy scrubbing and catering to the needs of her demanding family. I wasn't, like Cinderella, catering to the needs of my family, but I was busy scrubbing. The house was kind of dirty. Well, not kind of dirty, it was really dirty. At least it was to me. DS didn't think it was too bad. But he's not me. He might have thought that I would have recruited him to do some cleaning if he would of  agreed that the house was dirty. But he had something else to do.  He had to go to school. Lucky guy! I think I was maybe just overwhelmed. I had laundry to do, and right now doing laundry is a nuisance. We still don't have the power issues resolved so I still don't have my dryer. So when I do laundry I have to make sure I have a dryer lined up to run to. Or, as in my case yesterday, drive to. I was happy that I had access to 2 clothes dryers yesterday - my mom's and my father's in law. But I also had to stay in town until the laundry was dry.  Then I had to run home, get 2 more loads washed, and run back in with the wet stuff.  And then I had to do it again. And in between running with laundry  there was the matter of the floors.  They hadn't been cleaned since before the vacation. So they got scrubbed.  And that's when I began thinking of Cinderella. I was trying to imagine the scrubbing bubbles from the cleaner-laden bucket floating up out of the bucket with my cartoonish face imprinted on each bubble, each bubble face smiling and singing, with little cleaning mice and birds fervently helping in the cleaning of the rest of the house. But then reality hit. And the bubbles and the mice and the birds disappeared. But as they disappeared, so did the dirty floor and the dusty furniture, and my feeling of being overwhelmed. The house is now clean and the laundry is  done, for now. And now?  Now, I'm waiting for Prince Charming to meet up with me at the ball!

Up to 50!

At the end of this blog I will be at the 50th thankful item in my thankfulness journey. I could easily surpass #50, but I will stick to 10 more items to add! And it's not even the weekend...
So, on this first week in March, 2011 I am thankful for:

41. my toaster oven. I can fit small casseroles, pies, small pizzas, baked potatoes in it. Pretty handy when I still don't have use of my oven!
42. frozen lasagnas that fit in my toaster oven!

43.my 2 burner hot pad that I just bought. Since I can't use my stove top, I thought this would come in very handy for boiling pasta, potatoes, cooking pudding, making omelets...

44. the new driver in the family! What a blessing to have another driver in the family. He came to the rescue today when he was able to pick his sister up at the doctor's!

45.My dear daughter. She is a joy.  And...
46. My sweetheart. He took such good care of me yesterday when I was suffering miserably with a headache.
47.Advil and caffeine - the combination of the 2 usually helps my headaches..
48. Our family doctor - we are blessed to have a great doctor.  And thankful that he was able to see DD today on short notice!
49. Antibiotics - and the accessibility to health care
50. the great family vacation that we just had!

In everything give thanks, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus - 1 Thessalonians 5:18