Jumping in Puddles

I went for a hike last week with Beth and was struck by the fact that my girl couldn't avoid a puddle for the life of her.  It was as if those pink boots of hers were drawn like a magnet to every puddle in her path.  Even the small ones.

I loved watching her.  I was in awe.

It made me long for a childlike spirit of adventure.  I wanted to recapture the five year old in me.

Ever felt that way?

I couldn't help but think that as I get older, I go out of my way to avoid puddles.  I go out of my way to avoid mess.  In the process, I miss out on adventure.  I miss out on the freedom of living in the moment.  The joy of fully embracing life.

It's no secret that these days that I am missing my girl tons.  She's at school full days now.  I never expected to feel like this.  No one is more surpirsed than I am.  The truth is I'm kind of lost without her around.

There's a part of me that doesn't want Beth to grow up.  I guess maybe I just don't want her to stop jumping in puddles.

I hope along that way that I can learn from her.  Learn more of what it means to fully embrace life and find joy in the simplist of pleasures.

Only God.

This evening, Steve and I are leading an 8 week marriage study in our home in the form of a "life group" through our local church.

As I've been thinking about and preparing for this evening, lots has been filling my mind and heart.  Excitement.  Fear.  Inadequacy.  Anticipation.  Hope.

I'm in a place today where I am so in love with Steve.

I've also been married long enough to know that these kind of feelings can change in the course of a day.  Literally.

I know that marriage and love and commitment has nothing to do with feelings, but let's face it - it's great when they are there.  Today they are and my heart is full.  I hope God gives me 60 more years with him.  I'm crazy about him right now.

Last night, Steve and I attended a reunion/celebration of a ministry called Youth Eventz that I was a part of in my teens and twenties.  This ministry played a huge role in shaping who I am today and was without question the catalyst that God used to draw me into a relationship with Him.  I am forever grateful for this ministry.  For  the life change, leadership opportunities and friendships that came out of such an era.  Truly beautiful gifts.  Last night was a chance to celebrate all of that and give God all of the glory.

I've never gone to a high school reunion and so this would have been the closest big reunion type event that I attended.  Along with that comes lots of awkward conversations where you are catching people up on the last 10-20 years of your life in a matter of minutes.

Driving home, I was overwhelmed with God's goodness and faithfulness on a number of levels.  I couldn't help but think of Steve and I and what a miracle our marriage is.  Our road started out so rocky.  We came from such different worlds.  Our strong personalities clashed constantly in the early days.

As we chatted with old friends last night, the question came up, "how long have you been married?" and "how old are your kids?" and so on.  It occurred to me afresh that we can't take the credit for anything.  It's not like we can say that we did something outstanding to stay together and be in a place of deep connection today.  Nope.  Not even close.  It goes something like this:  Only God.  In our twenties, we were a mess.  It didn't take us long in our married lives to learn that if we were going to make it and thrive (not just survive), we had better surround ourselves with some great friends.  That was a huge prayer for us in the early days of our marriage and wow, did God ever deliver.  More than that, we came to the realization that without God at the center of our relationship and soon to be family, we were destined for trouble.  We hung on to Jesus with everything we had and we still do.  He was and continues to be our only hope.

Driving home last night, I was overcome with the abundance of his faithfulness.  Only God.

As I spend this afternoon preparing for tonight's life group, the irony is not lost on me.  I am thankful for and challenged by the gift of marriage.  I am in awe of God's faithfulness.  I am excited about learning and growing and laughing and maybe even crying with new friends around my living room in  the next 8 weeks.  I'm excited about what Only God can do when we give Him the chance.  I want to keep on giving Him the chance...

October Links

Welcome to October.  Turns out I like fall way more than I remembered!

It's been ages since I've blogged, and I really have no excuse other than the fact that this fall has been all about me adjusting to and embracing a new reality.  More on that to come....still processing:)

Here are a few of my faves as of late:

Vision Night - This is one of many, many reasons why I love my local church.  Total high point of this fall.  Unforgettable.

This quote from this post pretty much sums up why I chose to blog in the first place:  "there will always be enough beauty, enough hope, enough good, if we decide to be people who are always on the lookout for it.  I want to use my voice to bring light and hope and beauty.  I want to search for what’s good, and shout about that."  Shauna Niequist

Something about this blog post made me smile and feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  Maybe it was this quote:  "But mostly, home is...Feeling loved not despite my vulnerabilities and imperfection but because of them.  Always knowing there’s a place where I belong. No matter what. Never needing to shrink or play small when I’m proud of an accomplishment and never needing to puff up when I’m struggling."  Brene Brown

Out of my desire and prayer to use my time and energy well, I am going to give this a try.

I can't wait to read this book.  It's been ordered.  I even talked some friends into reading it with me :)

Lastly, this week I've been watching bits and pieces of the documentary on PBS entitled, Half the Sky.  Hard to put into words.  Gripping.  Devastating.  Empowering.  Inspiring.  It's a must watch.  Especially if you are a girl.  Or have daughters.  Or if you know a girl.  You'll also want to check out www.halftheskymovement.org.  I can't stop thinking about what I'm learning.

Have a lovely Thanksgiving!

4 Reasons.

 4 Reasons why I am loving September:

• Parenthood is back on for a 4th Season.  Love the Braverman's.  
• Honey Crisp Apples are in season. I am dying to buy my first bushel. 
• Boots, scarves and sweaters.
• Windows are open.  No more air conditioning running 24/7.

How about you?  What are you loving about September?

Back to School

As you know, I loved summer.

And now, I am loving the routine of back to school.  This is my first school year ever where all three girls are in school all day.  Wow.  It's kind of surreal.

When my girls were wee, I couldn't even imagine what this would look or feel like.

I can hardly put into words what I am feeling this week, but here are a few main themes:

• Shock.  How did this happen so fast?  Seriously, weren't they all just in diapers?
• Scattered.  I don't even know where to begin or what to do first.
• Breathing deeply.  Feels amazing.
• Margin.  It feels so great to have margin in my day and in my calendar.

Honestly, most of the time, I feel giddy.  Ecstatic.  It feels great.  I'm not going to lie.  I know things could change for me in an instant, but for today and for this week, I am breathing deeply and loving the month of September:)

I have to say, our girls attend a fantastic school with great kids and teachers.  That makes a big difference.  No question.

Here they are on the first day:

Here's Beth on the second day.  Honestly, she is so cute I can hardly stand it.  At moments like this, I don't ever want her to grow up.  I call this her "sporty spice" look:)

In other news, we are 4 for 4 in making school lunches the night before.  That's right, the girls are making their lunches the night before.  All I can say is that this simple change has been life altering and I can't believe we didn't do this sooner.  No tears.  No stress. No yelling.  Mornings have been redeemed.

How has the first week of school been for you?

September Links

Every parent will want to read this post.  Especially if you're sending little ones (or big ones) off to school.

I can't wait to try this recipe.  (thanks Christa!)

Shauna Niequist's newest book can be pre-ordered.  Yay!

I scored big points by making my husband these last week.   They're sooooo easy. They were super delicious, but next time I think I will try these ones ( because they have even more cocoa in them and that matters around here).

Check out these chore charts.  Do you use chore charts in your home?  I just downloaded #8 to use in our home this fall.   Now, I just need to purchase some fun stickers:)

Lastly, if you are thinking about giving a kiva loan, check out this opportunity.

Happy Labour Day weekend, friends!

p.s.  This gluten free blog is on my reading list for fall.  I so need to find gluten free recipes that I can bake for my family.  Since I have gone gluten free, I have deprived them of all things baking.  That needs to change this fall.  Thanks Vicky for passing on this blog to me :)

Soaking Up Summer - Part Three (the final installment)

I'm in the home stretch now as far as summer goes.  Totally gearing up for all things school related.  Consider this the last installment of soaking up summer.

Here are are few more ways that we soaked up summer in 2012:

This photo is an old photo (from July Long weekend).  I came across it recently and remembered how much I liked it.  This was also back in the early days of summer when I still blow dryed my hair!

Camping:

Campfires, smores and pie-irons.  

Beach Time.

All things breakfast.

Sleepovers.

This summer, Beth is in the process of learning to ride a two-wheeler:)

Watching the sunset.  One of my favourite parts of camping.

I love the annual traditon I am a part of - a day of canning peaches with 3 lovely friends.  What a great day of hard work and fantastic conversation.  I look forward to it every year!

Watching Steve re-live his youth at the pool.

One of our absolute hightlights this summer was that Beth became a swimmer!  She passed her "deep end" swim test at our local pool in July and has been going strong ever since.  We are super proud of her and she is delighted with herself.

At Safari Niagara last week, Grace and Eva fed a giraffe:)

No question, we've loved summer!

Now.....we're ready for September:)

An honest moment.

I love summer.  Everything about it.  We've had a great summer, but this week all of that has changed.  It's like I've hit a wall.  Everything in me is ready for school to start.  And I mean everything.  Out of nowhere.  It's funny how things can shift so quickly.

Maybe it's because my house is upside down and I've stopped making my bed or any other bed for that matter?

Maybe it's because I realized that I have actually only blow dried and styled my hair a handful of times this summer?

Maybe it's because all of a sudden I'm falling apart at the seams?

My confession is that I am craving routine and order and a clean house and time for me.

Please tell me that I am not alone!

I've loved summer, but right now I am in survival mode and counting down the days till September 4th.  Anyone else with me?  Teachers are my heroes :)

August Links

These days, my girls and I are all about sock buns.  Thanks Jess :)

This post was just what I needed to read after having my girls home all summer.  I was kid-free for a span of 24 hours this week, thanks to my sister-in-law and I had forgotten how easy it was to have a clean house when no one is home!

This is my new favourite salad.

I loved this honest and beautiful story about adoption.

Lastly, if you are following Lydia's journey, you know there is much to celebrate.  Lydia is a friend of Grace's from camp and although I don't know Lydia or her family personally, we have some mutual friends and I have prayed for and followed their journey very closely.  Prepare to be touched, deeply.


Enjoy the last days of August!  Read anything great lately?

Fall Goals

On Sunday afternoon, we arrived home from a fantastic week of camping.  It was wonderful to be away and wonderful to be back home too.  Just the way it schould be.

The evenings cooled right down while we were camping and it felt great to snuggle in close by the campfire and wear cozy flannels to bed.  I have loved this summer and been intentional about savouring it, but something about camping got me thinking about and gearing up for fall.

Over breakfast on Monday morning, my friend Alison and I got to chatting about fall goals.  Our conversation made me want to commit to writing down some goals in a way that makes me take them seriously.  I'm the type that if I don't set goals and write them down, they just don't happen.  I always like to throw a few easy-to-attain goals in the mix.  That way I feel an immediate sense of accomplishment, but that's just me:)

Here are a few of mine.  They are in no specific order.

• Take a photography course.
• Back up all of my current photos.
• Meditate on and maybe even memorize Isaiah 58
• Get in shape.  Walk regularly.
• Organize my spice cupboard.
• Improve posture (this one is for you, Leah)
• Buy a pair of coloured jeans :)
• Silent retreat for a day.
• Family bike ride along the canal path.
• Work on and improve my listening skills
• Mail a letter to Sonia, our sponser child through World Vision
• Sew blinds for my family room (thank you in advance, Emma!)
• Finish off our new mudroom that we began in the Spring.
• Embrace conflict and differences of opinion.
• Ask really great questions.
• Critical thinking without being critical.
• Try out some gluten-free recipes for cookies, muffins and so on.  Since I have gone gluten-free this past spring, I have deprived my family of all things baking.  

Enough about me.  How about you?  What are your fall goals?  Post a list of attach a link.  I'd love to read them!

Morning Prayer

Earlier this spring, my parents were helping a friend move as she was downsizing her home.  This friend of theirs is an individual who loves to learn and had a tremendous collection of books which reflected her curiosity for life.   I was fortunate enough to be given the chance to look through a number of the boxes of books, which included everything from cookbooks to gardening books to fiction to theology to spiritual direction to psychology and more!  

One day as I was going through the books, this little piece of paper with a typed litergical prayer fell from the pages.  As I picked it up, I was drawn to it.  Immedietly I was drawn to the simplicity, beauty and depth of this prayer.  This summer I have gotten into the habit of starting most days with this simple prayer.  It has been so life giving to me and often verbalizes what I cannot put into words.  

Come, Holy Spirit

Replace the tension within us with a holy relaxation.

Replace the turbulance within us with a sacred calm.

Replace the anxiety within us with a quiet confidence.

Replace the fear within us with a strong faith.

Replace the bitterness within us with the sweetness of grace.

Replace the darkness within us with a gentle light.

Replace the coldness within us with a loving warmth.

Replace the night within us with your light.

Replace the winter within us with your spring.

Straighten our crookedness.

Fill our emptiness.

Dull the edge of our pride.

Sharpen the edge of our humility.

Light the fires of our love.

Quench the flames of our lust.

Let us see ourselves as you see us

That we may see you as you have promised

And be fortunate according to your word.

Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.

This prayer has been a lifeline of sorts to me this summer.   A real unexpected gift.

Soaking up Summer - Part Two.

Here are a couple more ways that we are soaking up summer around here....

Fresh local raspberries.

Beth has loved playing Lego Friends and Polly Pockets this summer and on most days, my living room looks like this (often on a larger scale)!  Super cute.  I love to listen to her singing and talking while she plays.  Imagination is a gift and a delight and I am treasuring hers this summer.

One evening, Grace and I drove down to the Lake to watch the sunset.  It was so breathtakingly beautiful.

Eva had a great week at camp and check out the letter she mailed us:

We have definitely gotten use out of our summer membership at our local pool.  We no longer have to bring our membership card with us.  Most of the lifeguards know us by name :)  We are a regular fixture at the pool and wouldn't have it any other way.  Our local pool has been a lifesaver for us on this hot summer!

lazy mornings.

We discovered at the beginning of the summer that Wendy's has their small Frosty's on for 99 cents all summer long.  Now it seems that we can't drive by a Wendy's without swinging by the drive-through.  Again, a lifesaver on this hot summer! 

To be continued...

July Links

July has been an awesome month and I am soaking up the last few days.

For me, some hightlights include: weekend at the cottage, local fruit, membership at the local pool, no more school lunches to make, happy kids, lazy mornings, living in our bathing suits, new blackberry (LOVE) -  there's no question, this summer is off to a great start!

I haven't had much time to be reading on-line, which is the way that it should be in the summer.  However, from what I have stumbled upon....here are a few of my July faves:)

Bangs - this was super helpful as I got bangs cut recently.

Swimming.  This post was timely for me and solidified my commitment to getting wet and swimming often this summer with my girls.

I keep meaning to listen to this podcast on how to maximize vacation time.

As the Mom of a new teenager, I resonated with this post.

One of my all time favourite posts on marriage.

This is my new favourite summer salad..

I appreciated this parenting reminder.

Classic Donald Miller.  Simply fantastic.

And lastly, I loved, loved this post:)


Enjoy the last few days of July!  Are you reading anything good on these lazy, hazy summer days?

Soaking up Summer - Part One.

Summer is already going by too fast.

Anyone else beside me want to press "pause"?

Lately, I've been imagining Labour Day weekend and all the feelings and traditions that go along with that in my house.  I've been thinking about how I don't want any regrets come Labour Day weekend.

So I'm intentionally soaking up summer, even if it means that my house is messy:)

Here are a few ways we've been soaking up summer:  beach-time, boat-time, sister-time, new-garden-time, picnic-time, birthday-time and cousin-time:

To be continued...