The Best-est Birthday!

Just this past Saturday, I was able to celebrate another birthday! 49 and holding! It was a great day with a few things happening that were not typical for a birthday! I was thankful it was a Saturday to not have to work and get a chance to do some other activities. We started off the day with "coffee cake" for breakfast. We shared this breakfast with Lorraine's brother Ron and his wife, Bev. They arrived the day before since he was putting on a short seminar for Dynamic Churches International discussing one on one discipleship right here in Lacombe. Definitely a worthwhile time that morning. You can check them out here: http://www.dynamicchurches.org

Tony and Michelle and their four kids were at our house too for part of the day so the parents could attend the seminar. The kids had great fun using up all the miscellaneous birthday cake decorations on the cupcakes that Lorraine had ordered as my birthday cake! Since I did not get a chance (but wanted to) to make cinnamon buns on Friday, I had started them on Saturday at noon. After lunch, I asked Thomas if he wanted to help me make the buns ready and he did an absolutely great job with them! It was too bad they could not stay long enough to have them baked and taken along for a snack on the way home :-(. They did make a great breakfast for Sunday morning.

Supper was just awesome at Tony Roma's in Red Deer with Ron and Bev after which we went to a Brian Doersken Concert at the CrossRoads Church. This was definitely a highlight of my day. I have used his songs numerous times as a worship leader and it was just great to be able to sing them with him (and a thousand others) that evening. He is on a tour called the "Holy God" tour.

One of my favorite songs is called "The River" which does not happen to be on this particular CD but I thought that it would let you see the words here. I feel this song could be a great one for an altar call, encouraging others to come to the "Water of Life" only available from our Lord Jesus Christ. It just gives me what I need to understand that no matter has happened in my life, I can receive blessing from God as I follow Him and take part in the life that He wants me to have!

The River
Brian Doerksen, Michael Hansen, Brian Thiessen

To the river I am going
Bringing sins I cannot bear
Come and cleanse me, come forgive me
Lord I need to meet you there

In these waters, healing mercy
Flows with freedom from despair
I am going, to that river
Lord I need to meet you there

Precious Jesus, I am ready
To surrender every care
Take my hand now, lead me closer
Lord I need to meet you there

Come and join us, in the river
Come find life beyond compare
He is calling, He is waiting
Jesus longs to meet you there

©2004 Integrity’s Hosanna! Music

Long Time No Blog!

Almost White Out!



Kev



Peter

We have been still living since February. At least we are still breathing - even if some days it doesn't feel like much of a life! Peter was going to blog a long, long time ago about the ski trip he and Kev took in the beginning of March. (I don't ski so I couldn't blog about it.) He still hasn't done it and I would like to move on to something else, so here are some pics you can at least look at and remember that winter really happened. And isn't it nice it is almost over?

Weekend Fun

This past weekend - family day weekend for those of us in Alberta - we worked on Eric and Becky's wedding gift some more. They've been married for a few years now - we should get this done! Before long they will have the room for a complete ensemble of bedroom furniture. Right now they don't have the space and all they have is bed with headboard and footboard and two night stands. We've been after them to come and work with us to finish the remaining pieces to their suite. Not that we are desperate for help - rather this was a woodworking project the four of us have been working on together. And what did Keira puppy do this weekend? Romp through ALL the snow in the backyard. Calgary doesn't have - or get snow like this - that lasts. So she had a grand time turning the backyard into what looked like a war zone! What a funny pup she is! But if the dog is happy - you get more work done! Every once in a while she would pop into the shop - but not for long. I don't think she cared for the sounds the power tools were making as they turned pine boards into an armour for Eric! When this piece is done it is Becky's dresser! Yah!



KEIRA GUARDING HER FRISBEE



LOOKING LIKE IT SHOULD!



YOUNG LOVE!

SNOW!

Who would even think we could get the snowfall we did yesterday afternoon and into the night sometime! It certainly wasn't in the forecast. Apparently the whole province didn't get this - so why us? I guess we had to have a turn sometime. And we had a turn! At least the sun is out today. Looking out the living room window yesterday evening it was beautiful. Coming straight down, and heavy! At least it looked heavy. When we shoveled this morning it was fluffy and light. Just needed to figure out where in the world to pile it! This morning when we arrived at the office the fellow doing our snow shovelling had the sidewalks by the building done and was using a small skidsteer to move our winter downpour to the edges of our parking lot. We get another downfall like this and it will have to be removed from the property altogether.

Here's a picture of our "waterfall" downspout. At least it is a waterfall in the summer during a downpour. Right now it is an "icefall". This is a real test for the chain downspouts! At least this one for sure. It seems to get the biggest ice buildup because of it's location on the south. Looks really cool anyway!

Even the train tracks have been buried under our snowfall! There is barely visable the far main line that has been used. The other three tracks are somewhere underneath all the white fluff we were given yesterday. Actually have to listen for the next train and watch the snow swirl up and around it as it passes through! We should have a snow day today. At least look outside at the snow when we think something interesting might be happening out there because of the snow! All in favor?

February the Fifth!

OK Brent and Kirstin! Here is our Feb 5th Pancake day picture story book!



Every good story has a beginning. Ours starts with the waffle iron. This waffle iron has faithfully made waffles for our family for many years. Sometimes on Feb 5th. Sometimes on the first snowfall of winter. Sometimes just because we wanted to have waffles.



The proper way to make waffles in our house is "from scratch" as Grandma would say. Not with a powdery mix from a bag. Oh the times we made mountains of waffles to feed hungry boys! Those ones were made "from scratch". But tonight we used the powdery mix and water. For added fluffiness we put in an egg. Not just any egg I might add. A BROWN egg. Then we were sure we would have light as a feather waffles! No white store egg would do!



Hmm. Something more was needed to celebrate tonight's Feb 5th supper. Ah ha! Up from the freezer there appeared a package of smokey sticks. Those wouldn't take long to cook. Surely they would be allowed at the special supper? There they are! Waiting quietly while the last waffle was baking!



Waiting quietly too was someone looking forward to waffles and smokies!



See! There's a waffle all ready to eat!



Every good story also has an ending. Ours ends with a plate holding a crisp golden waffle, pockets filled with butter and syrup and peanut butter and sugar! Now which bite to eat first! Num! Almost as good as the ones "from scratch" as Grandma would say!

50!

COR & JOANNE

This morning we woke up to a "bone chilling", "skin freezing", "teeth chattering" minus 49. Yes, I did say MINUS 49. Not really weather conditions for venturing out on the QE2. But we did need to come home - after all, the party was over. We spent the weekend in Calgary at Cor and Joanne's (Peter's brother and wife). Cor turned the big five-oh this past week so we felt it was important to help him over this hill and prod him up the next one. Besides, who would want to miss the roast! Family and friends were actually quite nice and eased him into the next decade with only a gentle reminder that he is becoming more and more chronologically gifted. Those of us who are not far behind were very careful - our day will come too!


Highlights of the weekend would be:

- Late night visits.

- Picture tours of Cor and Joanne's trips to Holland and the Dominican Republic. The lush green of Holland and the aqua green water and white sands in the D.R. created a longing for warmer days and possibly more "adventure" ideas!

- A good "girl chat" while the guys went to the store of all stores - Lee Valley.

- Seeing mutual friends from our much younger days.

- Second viewing of the fantastic video created by their kids for Cor's birthday.

- Day spent together in Banff. Browsing. Visiting over breakfast, coffeee at Starbucks and an early supper. (We did lots of visiting this weekend!)

- One more evening of visiting (and cake) seeing as the roads were taunting drivers to dare to venture out with the snow blowing across them creating low visability.



40 + 10


Our host graciously had us put our truck in their warm garage last night so with the sun shining and the heated seats turned on we didn't really feel the numming effect of the arctic wind on our delayed drive home. No matter what the weather was - we had a good time with family, friends and especially with Cor and Joanne. We've needed a good visit for a while now and this was an excellent reason to get together! Thanks for the visit Cor and Joanne - the good food - the visiting, sometimes serious and sometimes just plain fun - and sharing with us your home and catching up on news and your travels! Let's not wait so long to do this again. After all - we are all empty nesters now!

I had a fun weekend!

I had a fun weekend - I am assuming Peter did too! Friday night Kev and I started on MY HOUSE! No - we are not building again. No drywall in this house! Thursday night after work we picked up MY HOUSE. Peter found and bought me my own first real Lego kit. I received a little hummer in my stocking - but this is a big kit! I have instructions for 3 houses. So Kev and I made one of them on the weekend. How exciting to receive your own Lego! Saturday morning we finished putting on the roof. I can hardly wait to build the other two houses. I know that means pulling this one all apart - but that's what Lego is for!




Then Saturday afternoon and evening I helped Peter in the shop with Nicole from Crossroads create the pieces for a Sunday School Project for the "Faith Begins at Home" class the next day. I did lots and lots of sanding! But it was so worth all the work when you see a small child and parent walking in the foyer the next morning with their finished "Prayer Roledex". It was good to get back into the shop after a few years of not spending time there! The station took time and effort away from the "fun stuff". Now we can get back at being creative with things like this. A blessing we've been missing for a while now!