Our Compassion Story

Our story starts in 2000, when Neil and I decided to sponsor a child. Madeline had been born the year before, and we expanded our family to include a girl in Mexico, too. We picked Mexico thinking that it might be the most likely place for us to get to if we were ever to visit our Compassion child. This is Lucina when she first became ours, and the latest picture:





Fast forward to 2004. Neil had been gone one year, and Madeline and I decided to sponsor another child. This is Maria:



One year later, in late 2005, Maria and her family moved out of the area of the project she had been a part of, so Compassion sent us Roberto:



In early 2007, when Sean and I were newly married, Compassion had to shut down the project that Lucina was a part of. She had been ours for 7 years! You can see from the pictures above (the first and last of 4 that we got) how much she grew in that time. We sponsored Abigail next:



Only one year later (early 2008), Abigail's parents pulled her out of the program. We decided not to take another child at that time, so just had Roberto. Later that year, Roberto's parents moved, and Compassion sent us Damian:



In April of this year, I was browsing through the kids on the Compassion site. The author of one of the blogs I read is a Compassion Advocate, and mentioned once that she looks through the unsponsored kids and prays for them every week. So that's what I was doing (since I had to log on to update my email address anyway) and I started punching in our birthdays... Well there was only one child that had the same birthday as Madeline, and she was a girl, and she was even born the same year. A twin! And she had a cute name, too: Salomey Coffie. I went into the other room and jokingly told Sean that I found a way for us to spend some money, and told him about Salomey. He reminded me that when we didn't take another child after Abigail left, we said we would again someday when money was less tight, and that it wasn't, so why not? That's how Salomey came to join our family. We haven't heard from her yet, but I've got some stuff for both her and Damian ready to go in the mail today. Salomey is a break from our Mexican habit, too; she's from Ghana:



So that's our long complicated Compassion story. I've found that although we haven't had many long term relationships with most of our kids, we have had a chance to get to know more than just one or two. In most of the cases, too, someone from the project has written to us to let us know why they have left and to thank us for our involvement - that's a nice touch and wrap up, I think. We love getting letters in the mail, and now that M is old enough, she can write her own, too, instead of just sending along pictures. I hope she and Salomey develop a neat friendship.

I told you a while ago about some mail we got from Compassion asking us to help find a sponsor for Pyetra, a little girl from Brazil. I think I might have found one tonight... I'll keep you posted on that!

Two of the writers whose blogs I follow happened to be going on a Compassion blogger trip to India lately - they just got back, and it was pretty interesting to follow their stories. I have a good friend here in town who is an Advocate, which is a volunteer who works to try to get kids sponsored. If this has raised any interest in sponsoring in you, I encourage you to check out Compassion Canada - I think that link should get you to Karen's Compassion page.

Have a great night - I'm going to print off a few pictures to send in my letters to Damian and Salomey now!

Need some help here.

Playing around again...

I need you to help me pick a header. I made this one, but when I matched the page color to the grey it was a little too much, and the other colors I used were picked from the tea colors. It's not perfect, though. It's hard being a perfectionist.

So here are a few of the headers I've made - please leave a comment with your favorite and maybe I'll use the one that gets the most votes. I said maybe. But I do value your input!!

Oh, and look up by the web address... it matches the teacup!! How fun is that?

**********
M got sick and had to come home from the birthday party sleep over she was at tonight. Poor kid is crashed and sleeping... hope it doesn't last long.

I don't understand.

Some things just fix themselves.

This blog was messed up yesterday - I couldn't change things, messed up the code somehow... so when I got home from class tonight, I saved the template code as it was, messed around with new templates, tried downloading another one... nothing worked. I came close to having something I could live with for now, but had to go back to this damaged template to copy the widget codes, and *poof!* some fairy godmother waved her wand and it's back.

I don't understand it.

But I'm happy! Now to change a few things, and then I will get back to blogging about something other than my blog.

Like scrapbooking, and the fact that it is National Scrapbooking Day tomorrow, and I'm in class all day. That happened last year, too. It's been a while since I played... soon, though. Papers are not the only things in my life. There are pages, too...!

New Color Scheme

I learned something! Thanks Wilna for teaching about the hex colors - that's good to know.

I opened my blog header in photoshop, used the eyedropper tool to get the color blue that I used, and plugged in that # into this website, which gave me a set of colors to use with it... I like how coordinated it looks.

I don't know how long it will last, though - I found a deadly fun template that I want to download and try out.

*** Update - I tried out the new template and it didn't work. Bummer. ***

Did I mention that I sent in another paper today? And that the profs of the last class and this next class (starting tomorrow) got together and gave us a bit of a break on due dates? I figured I could take tonight off and play with my 'bling out your blog' class instead.

*** Update #2 - Oh, my goodness, that was crazy!! I did manage to get that new template uploaded, and it looked great:



But it didn't work! Or maybe I should say I could not figure out how to use it and move things around and make changes...

So we're back to this. But with a few mistakes that I will have to figure out how to fix. Ah, renos...

New Header

I fooled around in Photoshop tonight and made a new header. This was after I finished all the prework for my class this weekend (yay, me!) and even did some reading for the other class...

I think I like it - not sure that's where it will stay, but it's better than the old one for now. Tomorrow I'll have to change my green font to something that matches a little better.

I did this all with photoshop stuff; no digital scrap stuff at all. I know I had some downloaded, but can't remember where it is. I like messing around with the colors and I added a gradient and a texture and it's pretty sweet - I like that it looks Bazzill-ish.

More playing tomorrow!

Not Covered???

More good content in my mailbox yesterday.

We got an envelope from our health benefit provider. I am usually happy to see one of those because usually they have cheques in them. This one didn't. It had a note about why our claim was denied. It said:

"YOUR PLAN DOES NOT COVER A FRENCH MANICURE."

Seriously?? They seriously thought that I was submitting for the manicure and not the massage on the same receipt? The massage that was CIRCLED along with the date and the massuse's credentials? I seriously need to keep this for a laugh. French manicures. Not covered. Really.

Compassion Plug

I got mail today from Compassion Canada. They sent me a child packet and asked if I would help find a sponsor for this little girl. On one hand, I sort of feel that this is a dirty guilt trip trick. But on the other, if kids get sponsored because people think about sharing it with their coworkers or family, then ok, that's a good thing. Each child sponsored is one life - you can see the picture, look into their eyes and see how you can help. I think that's what makes child sponsor programs so attractive.

The child who is looking up at me from this packet I have in front of me is named Pyetra. She's a 5 year old from Brazil. Let me know if you're interested. Or go to the Compassion site and search for a child. You can browse by country or birthdates. This is what I was doing when I found our latest sponsored child, Salome. She was born the exact same day as Madeline; now she has a twin that lives in Ghana!

I just looked for the post with that story, and realized I never told it - I think I just put the short version on facebook and didn't get it on here. That will be my reward for finishing this paper I'm working on - I will scan pictures and tell the stories of our Compassion experiences. Now I'll quit procrastinating and get back to the paper. This never ends...

new shoes

Remember the other day when I went on a shopping spree?

Today I bought 5 pairs of shoes.

This is not typical. Truth is, we were running low on lots of stuff; you know when your whole wardrobe needs an overhaul? I was kinda there. With shoes, too. And only 3 pairs were mine; the other 2 were Madeline's. A pair of everyday runners and CLEATS! Her first pair. I got some dress shoes, 'coach' runners and some fun everyday shoes. Let me go take a picture for you...

These are hers:



And these are mine:



Ok, mine look pretty boring there compared to hers, but they look smashing on with a good pair of jeans...

Does anyone else have a problem buying stuff? Part of the reason my wardrobe gets so blah is that I really don't like to spend money on myself. Every time I think "I need" something, that voice kicks in and says "No, you don't." And that's the truth - that is more the real me than the "I need it" voice. I have been to a lot of places where people just don't have anything. The drainboard in my kitchen that needs replacing is just one of the examples from today - What some people would give to have a KITCHEN like mine, let alone a drainboard that I think needs replacing because of a few dents and drainage problems. Here's a picture of a kitchen on a farm I visited in Kenya:



So. I am glad that I have had the chance to see a wider glimpse of what life is like elsewhere in our world. It does keep things in perspective here - we need to have a balance, right? of giving away what we have and at the same time looking after ourselves. Maybe generosity is the key - It's fine for me to own 15 pairs of shoes, as long as I am willing to provide for others who need as well. My money is not for me to provide for myself; it is God's and I am simply a steward.

And yes, they were all on sale.

Thanks, Father God, for our new shoes.

What Happened Wednesday

I am going to get to homework, I am! (Maybe.) But I just realized that I didn't tell you about WEDNESDAY.

Wednesday was the day that I had to go pick up the equipment for M's soccer team. I got a phone call a couple of weeks ago saying that they were still finalizing the coaches for the teams, but wanted to nail down people to come and pick up the equipment, and could I help with that.

Yes, I could do that. No problem. Happy to help.

So Wednesday rolls around, I go to the office and they tell me that the meeting for the coaches will start right away. "Oh, I'm not the coach," I said. "I was just asked to pick up the equipment."

"Ok, well, sit through the meeting anyway - it'll be short, and might have some information you need, and then we're handing out the equipment at the end."

I go into the meeting, and get our team's envelope.


See that C- beside my name? Yeah. That stands for coach. And the part of the meeting that I might find useful? I think that was the part where he said that they didn't get enough parents to volunteer to coach, so some of us who said we would help should contact the other parents on the team and tell them we can't do it on our own. (So not only am I coach, but now I'm recruiter, too!)

Here's all the stuff I brought home:



And here it is in the context of my 'studio' where it got dumped:



The thing is, I was thinking about coaching anyway. I hadn't decided if I would call and volunteer or not, and now I don't have to - I think subconsciously I was waiting to see if they'd need me or if I could just sit and watch like last year... Here's my dilemma. If I'm coaching, then I'm not sitting and enjoying the evening with my husband. If I'm coaching, then there's more on my plate and I will get stressed easier. (Maybe. I do have a certain limit to things on my to do list before I get anxious. And then my husband has to put up with a stressed me. While he relaxes and does exactly what he wants to, not what he thinks he should for the good of everyone else... Sigh.) But if I'm coaching, then I am meeting people. I am doing something for the good of the community. For others. That's what I want to be about. I don't believe my purpose in life is to look after myself and make myself comfortable. It's to be in relationships.

I just hope that coaching the 9 & 10 year olds might be more about soccer than it was when I coached her first year. That was more about keeping them on the field!

And THAT'S what happened on Wednesday.

Friday Fun

I wrote the title thinking about tonight, and then thought back to the rest of my day... that made me laugh; my day started out at the doctors for a physical. Not what I'd call fun. But I have a great doctor and now it's over!

I spent a few hours at work, but left just after lunch and went shopping instead. :) I've been planning to do that for a while. Needed to stock up my wardrobe a bit. I tried on some shoes I might go back for, and came home with 2 bras, 2 tank tops, 2 t-shirts, 2 sweatshirts, 1 dress shirt and 1 pair of jeans. Got some good sales, though - all that for only $150!

For supper the menu said "BBQ" so Sean cooked. Mmm. I love when he (and not I) cooks.

He went off to help a friend with his car after supper, so M and I headed out to Chapters and got some drinks at the Starbucks there and browsed. A good Friday night.

And I just realized that this Bling Out Your Blog class that I signed up for starts on MONDAY. Cool. I'm looking forward to it. Since I have LOTS of homework to do before my next class next Friday (Pastoral Ethics - you should see the texts...) I think I might go tackle some of that now. To leave more time for blog fun next week.

Oh, and a question: SAD - Seasonal Affective Disorder. Anyone else suffer from this? How do you manage it? Can you do it without going the meds route? Please comment!!!

More Layouts

Journalling: It's always so good to see you when you first get home from school. My other favorite time is 5:15, but dad wouldn't let me take his picture when he walked in the door.


Journalling:
* The backs of these photos say "Feb. 2005" in my mom's writing, so she was apparently the recipient (+recorder!) of this show.
* Madeline loves to perform for the camera, especially if Granny's behind it.
* Possibly the funniest part is that just now, four years later, I finally took away that black bodysuit - she was still trying to wear it!
* Just look at that eye contact!

"Big Sister" Layouts

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I facilitated a scrapbooking night for the Big Sisters program here. I got supplies and made 3 simple sample pages for them to copy, thinking that if it's something you've never done, it's easier maybe to have something to copy or use as a guideline for the first time.

What was I thinking?

It was a free for all - the supplies went over great; everything was used. One girl made 13 pages. It was awesome to see the creativity and freedom these girls had in their crafting, but I was reminded that yeah, kids are sure different than adults.

Here are the pages I made:

randomness from my weekend

I played Dutch Blitz last night. It was so fun and has been so long since I played anything like that. (Pounce ROCKS!) I honestly don't remember the last time I enjoyed myself that much. It might be partly that it feels more like spring now, but it was raining yesterday; I think it was more that playing the game released those feel good feelings... yeah.

And today I felt GREAT. It has been way too long since I've just enjoyed life like I did today. The wind was chilly, but it was 15* out and the sun was shining. We went out and bought a new BBQ to replace the 14 year old one, got out our patio set, and Sean grilled burgers for supper... It might be, too, that this morning went well, and that I have felt pretty stressed this week about getting ready for my new class, and trying to find time for homework, and being out of routine with M home on spring break and not having time to do that stuff... Wow, I feel rambly, but that's ok - It's my blog and I can ramble if I want to! Bottom line, today was a great day. Relaxed, happy, played games with the kid, baked cookies, smiled, laughed... very nice.

I talked to my dad the other night. For 68 minutes. That was a highlight of my week.

We took M to Walking With the Dinosaurs on Friday night. Sean bought the tickets before Christmas but didn't get the time to actually pick them up before we left for Winnipeg so we didn't have them to wrap. We meant to print something off the computer to give her, but never got around to that either. And then we just never told her. She didn't know we were going till we walked in the Brandt Center and she said, "Is it the Circus?!" When I said no, she said, with quite a bit less enthusiasm, "A hockey game?" But she was suitably impressed when she realized...

Today was the last Sunday at church for our good friends the McIntyres. They have been transferred to Calgary and move this week. We have loved their family since they moved here 9 years ago and will miss them very much.

Prayer for the youth of Canada

I have to admit, as a prayer warrior, I am still in training. It is not often I open up the folder with the lists of people that I feel it is important for me to be praying for. Journaling, reading the Bible, those come easier for me. But today I did open it up and one of the things on one of the lists begged to be shared here. Most of my lists are people, but this one is a list that I picked up at a prayer room somewhere. It's called 'Prayer for the Next Generation' and has 31 prayers based on Scripture for the youth of Canada.

"Jesus, the one anointed with the oil of joy, raise up young men and women who, although brought up in a culture of murmuring and disrespect, will be filled with joy, thankfulness, and strength of character. May they be the radiant ones known as the offspring of the Lord in a depraved and crooked generation. (Philippians 2:14-15)"

14Do everything without grumbling or arguing, 15so that you may become blameless and pure, "children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation." Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16as you hold firmly to the word of life.

Pray this with me today.

The Passions That Should Define a Christ Follower

I copied this list out of the book Unchristian and just found it in some notes:

- Worshiping God intimately & passionately.

- Engaging in spiritual friendships with other believers.

- Pursuing faith in the context of family.

- Embracing intentional forms of spiritual growth.

- Serving others.

- Investing time & resources in spiritual pursuits.

- Having faith based conversations with outsiders.

How does reading that make you feel? I did a yep, uh huh, okay, oh oh, shoot... Some yes, and some are a little lacking.

Unchristian was a great book; if you think Christians are a bunch of hypocrites, I'm sorry. The list above? That's what we're supposed to be like. I doubt many people would be able to say that all seven of those characterize them, but the thing is, a lot of us are working on it.

mojo missing...

We had a great turn out this morning at scrapbooking at the church.

8 scrapbookers and 4 babysitters and 7 kids and 3 babies. Ah, spring break.

And I got pretty much nothing done. I would get a picture out, find a paper that worked for the background, then sit and stare till I put it away for another day. I did that for three pages before I got one that I actually worked on. That one's not finished either, but at least it's mostly there. One of these days I'll have to get some creativity flowing somehow and get them done. It's supposed to be a fun outlet, so I rarely make myself get stuff done, but it has been a long while. I bet if my studio was sunnier I'd be down there more.

So - watch this space - there MAY be more layouts posted someday. Don't hold your breath, though.

And let me send you off to have a laugh or two at Cake Wrecks.

A Fun Find

I just had some fun playing around on a site that I saw on someone else's blog... Here's some photos I did - check out BeFunky.com to do your own. That last one is of our niece Raelene - this was taken new year's day. She's healing from her burns really well, I hear - we are looking forward to seeing her for ourselves tomorrow.

A Weekend of Events

Six events in four days this weekend.

Today we drove four hours up to Nipawin for Sean's Grandpa's funeral. And four hours back again. His siblings all went to the service yesterday that was held closer, for his Grandma's benefit, since she's not well enough to make the drive, but we got to see some aunts and uncles and cousins as well as his parents. It was a nice service - the pastor was a small man with a great big voice. Sean was a pallbearer; his first time doing that. (And he wore a tie. I've never seen him in a tie except for our wedding day. We had to go out and buy one last night. He looked smashing.)

Tomorrow is the Good Friday service at church; normally I wouldn't include this as an event, but it's a joint service for our 3 churches here, and I get to play coordinator and make sure it goes smoothly. It's a tenebre service, which focuses on the seven sayings of Christ on the cross.

Also tomorrow is my nephew Matthew's birthday, so we'll be taking in part of the afternoon movie / Tony Roma's supper / cake at Grandma and Grandpa's. Uncle Ian got in from England today, so tomorrow's party should be an extra good time.

Saturday is an unfortunate overlap. We have a wedding to go to, which is fine, but the Ward family Easter get together happens to be at the same time. It will be good to see everyone, if we make it to some of that. It is here in the city, so at least it's a possibility.

Sunday at church is only one service, but it's a full one with a baptism and Lori and Byron having Kaleb dedicated. Then the McCall family is having Easter dinner at Carla's. I should find out what I should take for that...

We will definitely need a good sleep in on Saturday morning!!

A Clarification is in Order.

My friend Dori left a comment on my last post (entitled "Je suis finis!!!").

She said, "hmm, perhaps you would rather be "J'ai Fini" otherwise you won't be around to write another paper:)"


At supper, I asked the resident bilingual, "What does 'J'ai Fini' mean?"

"It means you are finished what you are doing," she said.

"And what does 'Je suis finis' mean?"

With a pause and a funny look, "It means you're...dead."

Je suis finis!!!

One PM and I'm FINISHED. Done. What to do now with the rest of the day?? Oh, right, lunch and the cleaning and shopping for groceries and making supper and going to M's piano recital and maybe starting on the next paper...

And the winner is...
Mom! I was surprised that you would guess by supper - I thought it would be closer to bedtime. You had more faith in me than I did! So you'll be getting something from me in the mail one of these days...! And thank you all for your votes!

Writing up a storm!

It's 10 AM and I've just added a page and a half to the two I had last night. I thought I'd reward myself with a break and say hi to you all and show the pictures I took last night so you can picture me here hard at work...



Yes, I read some from all of these books...!

The big difference is that this morning the SUN IS SHINING, so it's quite a bit more cheery than the pictures show. Ok, back at it. Leave a comment with a guess as to what time I'll be done - oh, and I have to send the paper to BC, so I actually have till 12:59 AM. The one who's closest will win something fun and homemade. I haven't decided what yet.

Part Way

My miraculous little paper is about a third done.

Today's procrastination:
*A nap on the love seat.
*Going out for blizzards at DQ.
*Kissing the husband so he doesn't feel like a "paper widower." That's like a "golf widow" or "poker widow" or "racing widow"...
*Taking pictures of my work space to post on my blog, so you can see I am actually working. (But it would take too much time to actually post them. I'm working, you know.)


There were FOUR comments on my last post! Keep up the good work, readers!! (Oh, I guess one of those was me. Drat.)

On Procrastination

Once upon a time, there was an assignment. It was a short paper of an assignment, with some additional reading required before the paper could be written. This paper was due in two days, and the writer was not finished reading. She turned down invitations to outings, griped about the meeting she could not skip, and was thrilled when the child in her charge was happy to be cared for elsewhere to give the writer time to write.

What time did the writer get to work on the paper? Half an hour here, half an hour there, and a final half an hour after she had brushed her teeth and prepared for bed.

All day, and she's not much closer than she was yesterday. Her hope? That her 5 pages of notes will miraculously transform themselves into a comprehensive treatment of the subject at hand, and be quite satisfactorily turned into the professor on time. Which happily is 11:59 PM on the date due.

Secrets for procrastination that you can adopt to put off your own assignments:
- spend time on the other things that have been left for the last minute, like a lesson to be taught the next morning.
- spend quality time with your child because you've missed having her around all day (or because you appreciate her more after not having her around all day??)
- finish your novel so it is no longer a draw away from study.
- play a game or three to exercise your mind and get it ready to work.
- catch up on the blogs you've been neglecting, because it is Saturday, after all.

Tune in again to hear the (as yet unwritten) finale of the story of the (as yet unwritten) little assignment!

Some Good and Some Bad

So we got word today that Raelene can go home!!! I don't think I've talked about Raelene's ordeal over the last couple of weeks, so I'll fill you in:

Monday, just about 2 weeks ago, our 14 month old niece Raelene grabbed a measuring cup with boiling water off the counter and got burned pretty badly. They've been here in the city in the hospital since then - the silver lining being that we got to see them more than we usually do - but they are so ready to go home! They were hoping they'd hear today that they could, and yay - that's the good news. They'll have to come back to get dressings changed, but she's doing really well; her face is just about all healed - except for the patch along her jawline and under her chin, you can hardly tell. She's been bandaged around her chest and one arm that got the worst of it, so that will stay under doctor's care for a while, but it's so good now compared to what it was.

The not so good news that isn't really terrible news, but still sad news, is that Sean's Grandpa Cecil died yesterday. He was 99, ready to go, and talking and happy with his family right till the end.

I got to hold a friend's baby today. Solomon Peter is just a newborn; it's amazing to see the two ends of life like that. One at the very beginning, and one at the very end.

On Twilight...

No, I haven't read the books.
A month or so ago Sean and I had a date night and took in the movie - I wasn't expecting much, but we both enjoyed it - Sean said, "When does the next one come out??" I think he's just being a boy and waiting for the vampire vs warewolves part...

Anyway, about 3 weeks ago I read a great blog post by Kayla Aimee that addressed the Twilight thing and why people are so addicted. Please check it out here. She has some good stuff to say.

And then let me know what you think!

Post 100!

This is my one hundredth post. How exciting...

Last week I facilitated a scrapbooking night for the big sisters program in town; my friend Rebecca is the director of that. A few nights before, I made up 3 pages for them to copy, or just as examples of what could be done with the supplies available. (And of course they had a free for all and did their own thing completely, but that's okay... Insert rolling eyes here - was I really thinking I'd be teaching them to do it like I did? I HAVE been around children before. I know how they work.) Anyway, the point is that after making three pages, I was actually inspired to keep playing, and this is what I made:



And this one I made this weekend - it's simple, but has so much new stuff and fun stuff that I was trying out and experimenting with that I quite enjoyed myself in the process.



The "beautiful" is a stamp set I've had for a while but not used yet, the M is a Heidi Swapp ghost letter that I covered with white ink, and embossed with clear embossing powder. The plastic got a little melty and warped, but oh well... The glitter is from a kit I picked up at the new shop on Saturday (it came with glitter and flock and double sided glue designs); the ticket was picked up in the same spree (thanks Carla for the gift certificate!), and the bottom stamp was a gift that came with my gift certificate. :) In the bottom left corner you'll notice I used my date stamp, which is exciting because I thought I lost it. Yay, the lost is found!

Have a good night!

Lazy Saturday

Today is the first Saturday after swimming lessons. It's extra quiet because M was out at an "Awakeover" last night - have you ever heard of this? It's self explanatory, really: the opposite of a sleepover, an awakeover is when the girls stay up all night. And at this age, they need adult help to do it. That doesn't quite seem right, but she was looking forward to it for weeks... after she wakes up we'll see if it was worth it!

There were 4 girl guide / pathfinder troups that did this crazy event together. Among other things, they went swimming at 3 am, toured the downtown post office, did a scavenger hunt at Sobeys, painted t-shirts, played laser tag, and ate breakfast at McDonalds. And as if that weren't ridiculous enough, she went to a birthday party for the 2 1/2 hours before it started. Yep. She'll be sleeping all day, I think, if we let her.

And because she was busy, we went out for supper, then picked her up and dropped her off, then out for dessert with friends. Nice night out for mom and dad - we quite enjoy some of the perks of her social life.

In school news, I have 3 papers to write in about 5 weeks, and I just found out that the next class (which starts in 5 weeks) has some pre-course work. {Big sigh.} Sean just smiled - "Don't you love school?" He thinks I bring it on myself. Yes, I do, but does that take away the right to grumble a bit about a heavy workload?? Really. And what's stressing me about it is that so far I don't have the books to get me the 160 extra pages of reading for THIS paper, which is deterring me from finishing it and getting on with the next one.

The other school news is that Carey is now offering a Master of Divinity, which I think will only be 4 classes more than the Master of Pastoral Ministry program I'm enrolled in. I'm in the process of checking out what exactly that means for me and then I'll probably switch to the MDiv for the more recognized degree. I figure I've got about 5 years left, if I do 2 classes a year...

Have a great day!

On prayer being a joyful noise, and a HOPE.

My friend Cherie gave me a Daily Lenten Devotional guide that we are both reading and chatting about every once in a while. Each day has a selection from the writings of Henri Nouwen, a verse and a one liner prayer. Yesterday's selection was quite good, and I wanted to share it with you.

"Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joful noise to him with songs of praise!" Psalm 95:20

"Every prayer of petition becomes a prayer of thanksgiving and praise as well, precisely because it is a prayer of hope... Our numerous requests simply become the concrete way of saying that we trust in the fullness of God's goodness, which he wants to share with us."

"Every prayer we pray, heavenly Father, is a sign of our love, our hope and our trust in you."

So if you feel that your 'shopping lists' of praying for people is not that deeply spiritual, take heart - you are being thankful and hopeful and praising.

I took it a slightly different way, because in the last weeks, we've become aware of 3 marriages - friends we are close to - that are on the rocks. How do you pray for that? Sometimes I tend towards despair - what can I do? Sometimes I get mad, honestly - Why don't they get it? Why don't they just love each other like they were the most amazing gift in the world? Reflecting on this reading gave me a calmness and hope. I can just pray for them, however that looks, and know that just by praying, I am showing hope that God has a better plan for them. I am trusting in him for their situations.

And then a song by Casting Crowns came on - Praise You in this Storm. I've added it to my playlist so you can listen. A couple of lines I really liked:

"you are who you are no matter where I am"

"though my heart is torn, I will praise you in this storm"

So I will keep praying and trusting. And if you would, please pray for these 3 couples. Thanks.

Happy Wednesday!

The sun is shining.
I didn't get stuck in the slush today.
I got some good errands done this morning.
I've just had a nice bowl of homemade beef and barley soup for lunch.
I will have time to get some work done before staff meeting.
My orchids still look fabulous.

Just a few of the things that I'm happy with right now.

and some layouts

birthday week / food and flowers

Just a few shots from my birthday...

This one is the cake I made (Four Layer Skor Cake) for the combined birthday party:



These are the flowers Sean brought home for me:





And this is my midnight snack at 20 to 1 last night! I was up late because Sean was out with the guys and M was at a sleepover... Home alone and still fixed it up nice with the syrup swirl on the plate and the whip cream. I made this frozen chocolate pudding pie for Thursday's 'we're having company' supper. That's two weeks in a row that we've had people over for dinner, and we have people invited for next week, too!

read this book.

I have about three chapters left to go in this book. It's beautiful - I highly recommend you read it.

on the upside...

My family called at lunch to say happy birthday, and my sister asked, "Are you feeling better?" I paused, then laughed - "Did you read my blog?" "Yes, and you made me cry!"

Sorry about that! Talking to her also reminded me that 5 years ago, Jess and Jen (and 4 year old Levi) came out for my birthday, and we had a decadent time going spa-ing in Moose Jaw. It was also a good day. (Not all bad.)

And today has been a good day, too. Sean and all his brothers are out at the farm sledding, so Lynsey (also on her own today because of the afore-mentioned brothers-sledding event) and I got to hang out this morning at church, and she and M's friend T who always comes to church with us came for lunch, and I made my favorite family scone recipe... And my Sunday School class had cupcakes for me, complete with Happy Birthday napkins, a big sparkler and singing! That was a good start.

This morning we were talking about living in the present; the video was about not hanging on to the past, and we talked a lot about the 'new reality' that sometimes we need to learn to live with, like it or not. Let me just say, my new reality is pretty good. Yes, five years ago, I had no idea what the future would bring, but I DID know that God was in control, and that he knew.

A job as a pastor, taking my masters, a new marriage... My reality right now is a good one. (I should clarify that list is chronological - my marriage is not at the bottom of the pile!!)

**We also talked about parenting a bit - instead of trying to keep your kids young, be present every minute. BE there with them. It does make a difference in wondering about their tomorrows. The more we're WITH them now, the better their future and ours will be.**

I was going to leave you with a photo from that decadent spa birthday, but I can't find them. Strange. Maybe they were not from my camera? But this one from my birthday in 2005 has a good story to it.


I got a call about 7:30 in the morning from a friend, saying she was having problems and could she come over and talk. Ok, sure, so I got out of bed, and was SURPRISED by these 4 coming to make me a birthday breakfast before they were off to school and work. What great friends.

***And Mom said today that she is coming for a visit next week! Yay! Happy birthday to me!***

not living in the past

It's Saturday night, and I just finished preparing my lesson for Sunday School tomorrow. Normally I do that Thursday-ish, but sometimes my weeks get a little hi-jacked.

The video we're going to use as our discussion starter is talking about living in the present; not living in the past. One of the questions is, "Does your life today look anything like you would've imagined it five, ten, or twenty years ago?"

And here's the thing - it's my birthday tomorrow, so I can remember what I was doing five, ten and twenty years ago. Twenty years ago I turned 16. I think I started driver's ed on my birthday. I had just come through a rough couple of months; don't know if it was full blown depression, or just regular teenaged cry all the time garbage, but I remember it was pretty bad. But 16 was ok.

Ten years ago, I was pregnant with my first child. (And we were in Quebec on an epic snowboarding road trip.) Nothing had touched our fairy tale yet; I expected, or hoped for, a second one to come along a couple years later, then another one after that...

Five years ago, I was turning 31. I was grieving that Neil would never have the chance to turn 31 and catch up. I had no idea what life would be like in five years.

I think I am living fully in the present. But maybe I won't wear my non-waterproof mascara to church tomorrow in case I end up crying like I did tonight.

changing up

the tunes now.

I made a new playlist, changed it to blue, made it not automatically come on...
Such wild changes in my life.

Speaking of wild, we ORDERED IN supper tonight. That never happens. It was SO good.

Let me know what songs you think I should check out. Honestly, the last few new good songs I've discovered have been on other people's blogs. Might have to go looking for more.

Hmmm...

Not sure I like the sidebar headings. Maybe I'll just leave them for a while and see if they grow on me. If not, they're cut.

We're enjoying a lazy Saturday today - next up is getting pictures ordered so I have something to work on this week.

Hope you are having a great day with your families!

-29 and thankful

I am thankful because I have the flexibility to work from home; I took that opportunity today, so I have not had to go out in the COLD!

I am also thankful for how beautiful it is outside, and that sitting here at the kitchen table, I'm almost blinded by the sunshine off the snow. Blue skies and lots of light. I like it almost as much as I need it. Soon enough blue skies and sunshine will mean really warm, not really cold. Thankful for that, too!

I am thankful that my homework is coming along well, and for the many chances I have to learn.

I am thankful to have a job where I am encouraged to pursue my strengths.

I am thankful for my family. Sean and Madeline are really wonderful people to be around, and I learn so much from being in relationship with them.

I am thankful for opportunities to do neat things. My friend runs the Big Sister program in this city, and she's asked me to lead a scrapbooking evening for them. I've had the same idea for a while - glad it's going to happen. For me, scrapbooking is primarily a creative outlet, but it can be really significant for people to put important things down on paper to remember. I've seen it be an affirming process for people to put their stories down in this way. I want to go into this Big Sister event with those things in mind, and will pray that it is more than just a fun event for them.

I'm thankful for others who put together important events - there is going to be another prayer house and 40 days of 24/7 prayer starting up soon. I love that idea and am thankful that it didn't have to wait for me to do it!

Thursday Morning

I put some water on to boil for tea this morning and noticed my plant:

leaning into the sunlight. This makes me smile, because that's just like me. I can't get enough sunlight, daylight, brightness. I said to Sean this morning that I wish we could go back to bed and stay there till spring. (That's called hibernating. Some animals do that, you know! Why don't we???)

It's also a spiritual parallel, as so much is in life. I want my life to be characterized by that same stretching out to the Son... Needing him and searching him out. That without God in my life, I'd wither up and die.

Tangent -What do we need in life? Sun and water and food and shelter?
Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." (John 8:12)
Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:13&14)
Jesus said, "I am the bread of life." (John 6:35)
And Psalm 91:1&2, "Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. They say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.""
Yep - everything we need, he IS.

But back to my Thursday morning...
Since I had the camera out, I took a photo of this for you:

This green blanket is unbelievably soft, and huge enough to wrap up two people, including toes. We use this at least twice a day, after breakfast and after supper, to cuddle on the couch. Life is good when we're wrapped up in this.

And instead of working out this morning, I am doing homework. I tried to read at 10 last night and fell asleep countless times... but this morning I'm blazing through it. As blazing as you can get with this book:

I do have to read the whole book for class, but my assignment right now is to write a six page paper on the third chapter. Which is on the Third Quest. Which is "one particular type of contemporary Jesus-research, namely, that which regards Jesus as an eschatological prophet announcing the long -awaited kingdom, and which undertakes serious historiography around that point." Yeah. The whole book is written like that. The whole book is looking at the questions "who was he? what were his aims? why did he die?" I was unaware of all the scholarship and study on this in history - it's really quite fascinating to me reading this. For example, I thought that Jesus knew he was God. Didn't you? But many scholars don't. That doesn't mean they are right and we are wrong, but I'm open to reading what they thought Jesus knew about his purpose; his aims in his ministry. This chapter has 7 pages addressing the question - a huge chunk more is going to go to looking at answers.

So I took a break to talk to you, but now I'm going to plow through the next section then head to work. Have a great day!

a new me. again.

I got roots. Didn't like that. Made an appointment. All one color. Closer to natural. With some red.

Here's the before:


Here's the after:


Three word sentences! Fun to write.

I should be packing...

but I'm posting layouts instead.

You'll notice by the counter over there ----> that we go to Fernie in one day! The trip is on, although with the midnight ear infection and puking of the girl, it was iffy for a while. Not really - we got antibiotics at the clinic first thing this morning, kept her home from school all day, and she's good to go. Very happily for her as well as us, since she's going to winter camp this weekend while we're gone. Last year was the first year she did winter camp, and got an ear infection while she was there and had a miserable time, missing all the fun. We've got that beat this year, sending her pre-drugged... :) She loves camp and is counting down to summer camp already.

So here's some layouts I finished this week:


This is just a silly 8x8 for her little book - these are funny old photos from years ago.


This one needs something... it's my first 12x12 two page spread. Fun papers from that colorbok kit.


Mmmm - LOVE this picture. LOVE this guy. LOVE that I can look at that and have good memories and not remember how miserably out of shape I was. Although I honestly think it was the asthma, not my muscles.


December 2003. A long time ago. A lifetime ago? I remember that this was a nice break from crying... but that's another story, and I chose not to write about it on the layout. It was more important for me to make a fun page with this shot.

Web Pastor?

A friend made a comment about me being a web pastor (I think it was because I suggested we have a staff blog on our church website, and they agreed, and now we do). But that phrase made me sit back... I do connect with my people more online and through texting than face to face. Young adults are not program-goers, and while I've been frustrated over what I do and what I'm not doing in my role there, this is legit. I am staying connected. It's not a cop out, but where they are. And I should do more of it, and less stressing about not seeing them weekly. Hmmm - web pastor...

Here is the blog on our site if you want to check it out. It's new, so there's not much on there yet.

Tag... I'm it.

I got tagged by the Kenny's a while ago to write 7 things about myself on my blog. And then I got tagged by two people, Alexis and Kim, within the last week on facebook to write 25 things about myself.

Sh here are 25 things about myself that you may not know. This should be easy since I'll assume you know nothing about me. (Except you, Jess.) I'm doing this here instead of on fb because it's a little less public. Maybe I'll do a really random one there, instead.

1. I am a believer in Jesus. Wholly and completely, and that influences every other thing on this list.

2. I have a big brother and a little sister. They are both married and have wonderful families.

3. I have 12 nieces and nephews and 2 on the way. (Not all from that brother and sister!)

4. I have been to 13 countries on 4 continents. Canada, USA, Mexico, Barbados, Venezuela, England, Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Portugal, and Kenya.

5. I have been to Mexico 5 times, but never overnight.

6. My new summer hobby is being pit crew at the drag races.

7. My husband is playing poker online right now. With play money.

8. I am halfway through my masters degree.

9. My personality type is INFJ, which is the most rare type.

10. I played soccer for 10 years, basketball for ever, and rugby for 2.

11. I coached M's soccer team when she was 5, and co-coached basketball for 2 years. I'm not a very good coach.

12. I have one daughter who is going to be 10 this summer. She gets all her bad traits from me. That's so annoying.

13. I have a second daughter, Lucy, who was stillborn at 5 months.

14. I have been married twice.

15. My first husband died of cancer when we were 30.

16. Lucy and her dad share a plot in the cemetery. I find comfort in this.

17. I am almost 36, but as S (and Bon Jovi) say, it's not old, it's just older.

18. I have been on two missions trips.

19. My trip to Kenya was a scholarship, because God loves giving me good gifts.

20. My sister and her husband watched my girl for the month I was in Kenya, partly because I watched their 3 boys for the month they went to Kenya a couple of years back.

21. I love reading. There's nothing better than getting lost in a good fiction read.

22. I work part time at a church as a pastor to young adults.

23. I scrapbook, and have had 2 layouts published.

24. I quilt once in a while.

25. I have my own 'studio' in the basement for my hobbies.

Watch This

and then show your kids, if you think they're old enough. M and I had a good conversation after I showed her and asked, "What can we do?"



I saw this on Anne Jackson's blog, which I've been following for a couple of weeks now. She had a good post the next day, too about the 'shock value' of showing poverty like this. I hope by passing it on to you, it spurs you on to something - in my heart right now is 'how do we grow kids to know God's heart?' so talking to M about this was what I did.

Breakforth

is a great weekend of learning and spiritual renewal. I think you should go. Seriously. It's always the last weekend of January in Edmonton.

The driving was great for a change, and we had a really good weekend. There were 13 of us in a van, plus some friends from another church who caravaned with us.

The weekend has 4 main sessions and 5 options sessions, which you pick out of a couple of hundred options. (There are 7000 people at this event!) I had 3 sessions with Tim Kimmel about family stuff (Grace Based Parenting, Why Christian Kids Rebel, and the Strong Willed Child), one session with Shane Claiborne (have you read his Irresistible Revolution yet? If not, do.), and one with Brett Ullman, on culture, which was really good. Sean had the same 3 parenting ones (and our requests were really different - you have to pick your top 3 options for each spot) and then had 2 drumming ones.

Here are the main points from the main sessions, just in case you want a little peek at what we heard / learned:


Erwin McManus

If your greatest dream became your life, would it make the world a better place?

“You were a dream in the mind of God before you took your first breath.” Doesn’t it make sense that your life live out the dream God had of you?

Is there a dream that you’re supposed to be living that is trapped under the rubble of your past?

Are you willing to take the risk from the life you have today to the life entrusted to and controlled by God?


John Eldredge

God SPEAKS to us. And not just through the Bible.

Do you recognize his voice? Do you ask him what he is speaking to you?

Quiet down. Ask simple questions. Surrender.


Wayne Coderio

One common denominator in all successful Christian leaders: RESILIANCE.

Learn quickly. Train your eyes to see things Godly. Never forget who you are.

People are waiting for Jesus. They need hope. We are to bring hope to the world.


Phil Calloway

Keys for effective ministry in a fast paced world:

Laugh. Slow down. Where is your treasure?