Life has been very Novemberish over here. Right now all the children are asleep and my husband is watching comedy to try to unwind after an almost twelve hour work day. I still have many dishes to wash and lots to do but I have not posted for a while. It isn't that I don't want to. I just have so much happening every day here that trying to sort out things in my brain and then getting it out on here isn't working for me.
The latest November happenings:
I have gone to two more craft fairs and each one was amazing and completely different. I'll write more about them later because they were each worth their own posts.
There have been two big wind storms and so all the leaves are gone. We lost power for one of the storms for an afternoon. It was ridiculous how totally unprepared I was for no power.
There was a terrorist attack on Paris that captured the world's attention yet again ~ but there were other attacks also and the warfare is so evil. The world's hackles are up. I am trying to hold my babies close and be thankful for every day that I have with them in relative peace. What is to come? What is to come.
The snow line on the mountains comes lower and then goes higher but we have not had a snow flakes here in the valley yet.
I have started doing a bit of Christmas shopping.
I am planning my ten year old's eleventh birthday which is happening in early December. She has invited a lot of girls and it is going to be fun....right? For them yes!
Report cards are coming tomorrow and today my oldest was making a wreath at school. I told her if I like it I will hang it on the front door. I went to Walmart (without her) and tried to find some decorations that were manageable. I had to go to Walmart. I just needed the cheap sparkle and glitz. It lifted my spirit in a way I cant explain. So I did find a little white owl, some cranberry ribbon and some little lights. She gathered branches that had fallen from the storm and some pinecones. She didn't bring it home today because she was not done. She explained that she didn't want me controlling how it was made so she will finish it at school. Fair enough! She knows me well.
One of the most exciting November happenings was that my cousin had a baby girl. This baby is so incredibly precious and she arrived safely and is healthy. My cousin was a trooper, a hero, during her pregnancy with four children five and under at home and being very ill the entire pregnancy. I am so glad for her that she gets to snuggle a sweet baby now and that these last nine months are behind her.
I need to go wash dishes.
I hope that your November is going well. Sometimes November seems like a month that should be skipped because everyone just wants Christmas and decorations. However I have really enjoyed this November. The leaves were so glorious, the storms wild and out of control, the snow on the mountains glow each morning with the sun rise. November 11th ~ Remembrance day is a day that stops me every year and helps me remember to be filled with thankfulness. Last but not least my baby sister was born in November and life with her is awesome.
As the last couple days of November go by I hope you are doing well and that each day something catches you eye, warms your heart, and sparkles up your soul
xo
Thursday, 26 November 2015
Thursday, 19 November 2015
Giving
Giving ~ How much do you give? What do you give? How do you give?
I have been taught how to give. My dad was always someone who would give away anything someone needed. If someone needed food, a place to stay, money, you name it...his heart wanted to provide it. He is still like this. His whole life he has wished to win the lottery so that he could give in the way his heart wants to. I think I understand. With a heart that big you don't really put a lot of stock in the small things you give every day. However if you added it up over the course of your life I think you'd realize you didn't need a lottery. I have been the recipient of this generous heart more times than I can count. Growing up I also was given a lot of things from people who saw our family in need and wanted to give. I remember many Christmases when we received a Christmas hamper from Salvation Army. I remember my Aunties always giving us beautiful gifts and practical gifts that I was so so thankful to get for our birthdays or Christmas. I remember my grandparents also giving a lot to us in times of need.
My life was shaped by giving.
Was yours? I feel like some people's lives have been shaped by mostly receiving. They have not experienced the joy that giving brings. It is interesting to watch people who do not care about giving and who DO care about receiving.
When I got married my husband had not grown up the same way. He had not grown up being taught to give. It blew him away when I would want to give someone money or help someone in a big way. He didn't quite know how to handle it. As time has gone on he has realized how amazing it is and how much is actually blesses the giver as much as the receiver. I hope our children are also learning this trait as I really do believe it needs to be taught to most.
I am so thankful for the countless times I have been given to.
For my grandparents who gave me the gift of taking me to the mountains to hike and feed Whiskey jacks, for taking me on their sailboat, for the walks in Autumn, for the summer swims, for the record player music, the board games, for the garden produce, the fresh baking and canning.
For my parents who allowed me to have a lot of freedom. They gave me the gift of trust. They also gave me the gift of responsibility. I was able to own a horse, a goat, chickens, rabbits and they trusted me to take care of them. They helped me pay for them by giving me jobs and being consistent in paying me for them. They also helped me learn about money and be responsible with it. My parents nurtured in me a love of nature and good literature and music. They gave me life.
For my friends who have given me so many life giving words. They have given me time. Gifts that show how much they know who I am. They have prayed for me and gifted me with the trust of their hearts. I cannot express how greatful I am for my friends.
For my siblings. We have been through so much together. They have given me gift after gift after gift. They are so wonderful. We had this skype date one time...it was random and by chance. We were all over the place in the world and we all ended up on skype at the same time. I laughed the hardest I had laughed in years. I think one of the biggest gifts they have given me is laughter. They can make me laugh like no one else can.
For my children ~ they have put their hope and trust in me. They have given me their hearts. They have loved me just for me. I have been so transformed because of their love.
For my husband ~ he chose me and he has given me all of himself. I could not ask for more.
The list goes on and on....
All this giving to just one person.
As we reach out and give ~ it is not just about giving money or gifts. It goes so beyond that. We give our smiles, our eye contact, our mercy, our friendship, our trust, we give our presence, our loyalty, our forgiveness, our love, our light. We give and give and give...
And in our giving we are filled so full that we overflow.
I have been taught how to give. My dad was always someone who would give away anything someone needed. If someone needed food, a place to stay, money, you name it...his heart wanted to provide it. He is still like this. His whole life he has wished to win the lottery so that he could give in the way his heart wants to. I think I understand. With a heart that big you don't really put a lot of stock in the small things you give every day. However if you added it up over the course of your life I think you'd realize you didn't need a lottery. I have been the recipient of this generous heart more times than I can count. Growing up I also was given a lot of things from people who saw our family in need and wanted to give. I remember many Christmases when we received a Christmas hamper from Salvation Army. I remember my Aunties always giving us beautiful gifts and practical gifts that I was so so thankful to get for our birthdays or Christmas. I remember my grandparents also giving a lot to us in times of need.
My life was shaped by giving.
Was yours? I feel like some people's lives have been shaped by mostly receiving. They have not experienced the joy that giving brings. It is interesting to watch people who do not care about giving and who DO care about receiving.
When I got married my husband had not grown up the same way. He had not grown up being taught to give. It blew him away when I would want to give someone money or help someone in a big way. He didn't quite know how to handle it. As time has gone on he has realized how amazing it is and how much is actually blesses the giver as much as the receiver. I hope our children are also learning this trait as I really do believe it needs to be taught to most.
I am so thankful for the countless times I have been given to.
For my grandparents who gave me the gift of taking me to the mountains to hike and feed Whiskey jacks, for taking me on their sailboat, for the walks in Autumn, for the summer swims, for the record player music, the board games, for the garden produce, the fresh baking and canning.
For my parents who allowed me to have a lot of freedom. They gave me the gift of trust. They also gave me the gift of responsibility. I was able to own a horse, a goat, chickens, rabbits and they trusted me to take care of them. They helped me pay for them by giving me jobs and being consistent in paying me for them. They also helped me learn about money and be responsible with it. My parents nurtured in me a love of nature and good literature and music. They gave me life.
For my friends who have given me so many life giving words. They have given me time. Gifts that show how much they know who I am. They have prayed for me and gifted me with the trust of their hearts. I cannot express how greatful I am for my friends.
For my siblings. We have been through so much together. They have given me gift after gift after gift. They are so wonderful. We had this skype date one time...it was random and by chance. We were all over the place in the world and we all ended up on skype at the same time. I laughed the hardest I had laughed in years. I think one of the biggest gifts they have given me is laughter. They can make me laugh like no one else can.
For my children ~ they have put their hope and trust in me. They have given me their hearts. They have loved me just for me. I have been so transformed because of their love.
For my husband ~ he chose me and he has given me all of himself. I could not ask for more.
The list goes on and on....
All this giving to just one person.
As we reach out and give ~ it is not just about giving money or gifts. It goes so beyond that. We give our smiles, our eye contact, our mercy, our friendship, our trust, we give our presence, our loyalty, our forgiveness, our love, our light. We give and give and give...
And in our giving we are filled so full that we overflow.
Wednesday, 18 November 2015
Dad
Here is one of the pies my dad has made me on my birthday...Looks like it has a good twenty seven candles on it that I got to blow out. My dad...making me a birthday pie WITH my name AND candles... and I'm turning twenty seven on this pie...not ten, not fourteen..twenty seven years old!!
When I was little I thought my dad was pretty horrible. That is just the brutal truth. He yelled a lot. No children like yelling. Now as an adult when I look back I HOPE that I FULLY realize just how amazing my dad really was. He worked at a job that was very stressful for him every single moment. He worked in maximum security prisons for most of my life. However because he had five children and this job had good benefits he did the job. It was shift work to boot and he had to get up before the sun rose and when he came home he was so tired he usually couldn't do much. Yet he had five children that really wanted his attention! Not a really great combo. My dad worked so incredibly hard. He was also someone who had impeccable work ethic in whatever he did. He never ever slacked off. He was good natured and kind at work also.
We went through a time where we lived on a farm and he worked the land. He grew the purest produce possible and installed acres of fence by himself...pounding fence posts, clearing broom trees...by hand. All through growing up though I focused on the negative things that I knew to be true at that time. I knew he was angry a lot, I knew he yelled and that we were scared around him. It created me a lot of bitterness in me. However I remember this one time he cried. My mom was gone at the time and had taken the other children. I was there and someone was over talking to him and he was crying that gut wrenching cry when all is lost. In that moment I realized he was human. Do you know what I mean? Where you realize they are not just your parents? That they have feelings and a name and that they haven't always been 'old?' Well I remember that moment particularly. It was one of the most heart breaking things I have every heard. My parents were going through a particularly horrific time in life then. Us kids didn't get it at all and how could we?
As life has gone on and I have had the chance to come into adult hood and look back....I have also had the privilege to see truth and to forgive, and move on. I have come to realize how incredibly hard my parents had it ~ in every sense of the word. Being an adult is so dang hard. You just want to do well. You want to make good choices, you want to be kind and giving, you want to be impactful and faithful and you want to love your children well...however sometimes it just isn't that easy.
Sometimes as we grow up we never fully recognize our parents as human. We always look at them from child's eyes. It is liberating and completely incredible to find our grown up eyes. We can then look on the past with empathy and maturity. Something I have realized is that my dad was always there for me. Maybe he couldn't be there in ways I thought I needed him back then. However my dad worked as hard as he could every single day so that I could eat, so I could have quality education, so that I could have warm clothes. When he couldn't do that he accepted charity so that we would be okay. My dad wanted to be a better father then he was able to be. He sought help but it didn't come in a way he could utilize it. He did all he could.
My dad is a gem. When I was a teenager and I was not making the wisest choices he knew best and he told me truth. When I got married he gave me away with pride because he was a huge reason I was marrying someone so amazing. When I got sick with cancer he took my husband and I in when we could not afford to pay rent. So many times over the years he has given anything we needed. If we were hungry he would make us a meal, if we didn't have money and he did he'd give us some, and every Christmas he makes a dinner and every Thanksgiving. Words that I can now use to describe my dad are hard working, selfless and kind, giving and empathetic and there are many more. We named our youngest son after him and I already see characteristics from my dad in my son.
I am so grateful that he never left. That he kept working through the hell his life was. That he was my father and that he is my father. Whenever I have a cooking question I call him. When I don't want to make something for dinner I ask him to and he does. If I need something and I don't know where to turn I call dad. I am so thankful for all the birthday pies, for all the soup, for all the cooked roasts, for the fresh bread, for the Dairy Queen dipped cones, for all the times and ways he has been a really wonderful father to me. When I think back on the past now ~ much of it ~ dare I say all of it ~ has lost its sting. I am able to see with the eyes of an adult and forgive.
Monday, 16 November 2015
Lemon Cake Top Pudding
This is another recipe that has imprinted its flavor on me. It is divine. The texture is both soothing and comforting, velvety and molten. It was another one of my granny's special recipes.
Lemon Cake Top Pudding 375 degrees F
2 Tablespoons of flour
3/4 cup of sugar
1 TBSP of butter
2 eggs separated
1/4 cup of lemon juice
1 cup of milk
Cream flour, sugar, and butter. Beat eggs yolks and add to creamed mixture then the lemon juice and milk. Beat egg whites until stiff and then fold them into the mixture.
Bake in an eight inch unbuttered dish standing in a pan of water for 35 minutes. This separates into a magical cake on top and custard on the bottom. Serve hot or cold and it serves about four.
Lemon Cake Top Pudding 375 degrees F
2 Tablespoons of flour
3/4 cup of sugar
1 TBSP of butter
2 eggs separated
1/4 cup of lemon juice
1 cup of milk
Cream flour, sugar, and butter. Beat eggs yolks and add to creamed mixture then the lemon juice and milk. Beat egg whites until stiff and then fold them into the mixture.
Bake in an eight inch unbuttered dish standing in a pan of water for 35 minutes. This separates into a magical cake on top and custard on the bottom. Serve hot or cold and it serves about four.
The Best Birthday Cake is Made with Love
Growing up I had two birthday cakes that I LOVED. They were completely different but both had to do with my grandma's. When I was seven I moved to Vancouver Island and we lived close to my granny for the first time. My granny would make me a birthday cake that I loved. Each year I'd ask her to make it not giving a thought to my request and she faithfully would oblige. I had no idea until years later how much work went into this cake...and to me...how much love!
I am writing out this recipe so that it can be preserved :)
Orange Chiffon Cake
pre heat oven to 325 degrees
13/4 cups of white flour
11/2 cups of sugar
3 teaspoons of Baking Powder
1 tsp salt
The grated rind of one orange
1/2 cup vegetable oil
6 egg yolks
1/4 cup of orange juice
1/2 cup of cold water
1/2 tsp of cream of tarter
6 egg whites
Stir flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange rind together. Make a well in centre of dry ingredients and add in this order
vegetable oil
egg yolks
orange juice and water
Beat until smooth.
Add cream of tarter to egg whites in a large bowl and beat until egg whites form very stiff peaks. Gradually pour batter over beaten egg whites gently folding in until just blended. DO NOT STIR! Pour batter into ungreased 10 inch tube pan and bake at 325 degrees for 55 minutes increase to 350 and bake 10 minutes longer
Invert pan letting cake hung until cool
Orange Frosting
Grated rind of one orange
3 Tablespoons of orange juice
1 Tablespoon of lemon juice
1 Tablespoon of butter
3Tablespoons of light cream
3 to 4 cups of sifted icing sugar
Mix first five ingredients together. Gradually add icing sugar until good spreading consistency.
The other cake came from the small town my grandma lived in on the mainland. It was a German bakery and it made an incredible Black Forest Cake. When we moved off the island and back to the mainland when I was thirteen I asked for that cake every year. The bakery closed eventually and I had my last Black Forest Cake when I was about twenty. I still remember how each cake tastes and I miss them every year. I have not found a replacement cake. Usually I ask my dad to make me apple pie. It is funny how things like this are so special and create such fond memories. I miss both my grandma and granny so much. They both poured a lot of themselves into me. I hope I will get the chance to do the same for my grandchildren.
I am writing out this recipe so that it can be preserved :)
Orange Chiffon Cake
pre heat oven to 325 degrees
13/4 cups of white flour
11/2 cups of sugar
3 teaspoons of Baking Powder
1 tsp salt
The grated rind of one orange
1/2 cup vegetable oil
6 egg yolks
1/4 cup of orange juice
1/2 cup of cold water
1/2 tsp of cream of tarter
6 egg whites
Stir flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange rind together. Make a well in centre of dry ingredients and add in this order
vegetable oil
egg yolks
orange juice and water
Beat until smooth.
Add cream of tarter to egg whites in a large bowl and beat until egg whites form very stiff peaks. Gradually pour batter over beaten egg whites gently folding in until just blended. DO NOT STIR! Pour batter into ungreased 10 inch tube pan and bake at 325 degrees for 55 minutes increase to 350 and bake 10 minutes longer
Invert pan letting cake hung until cool
Orange Frosting
Grated rind of one orange
3 Tablespoons of orange juice
1 Tablespoon of lemon juice
1 Tablespoon of butter
3Tablespoons of light cream
3 to 4 cups of sifted icing sugar
Mix first five ingredients together. Gradually add icing sugar until good spreading consistency.
The other cake came from the small town my grandma lived in on the mainland. It was a German bakery and it made an incredible Black Forest Cake. When we moved off the island and back to the mainland when I was thirteen I asked for that cake every year. The bakery closed eventually and I had my last Black Forest Cake when I was about twenty. I still remember how each cake tastes and I miss them every year. I have not found a replacement cake. Usually I ask my dad to make me apple pie. It is funny how things like this are so special and create such fond memories. I miss both my grandma and granny so much. They both poured a lot of themselves into me. I hope I will get the chance to do the same for my grandchildren.
Beautiful November
Oh November ~ Your raiments are glory. The colours draw me in. They nourish the call that is ever there.
Nature calls us to come away. To come away into its' quiet, its' majesty and its' vastness. It calls us to lay down our ideas of grandeur and to let them be re made. This call can be heard from the tiniest bud in a sidewalk garden and from the great tree hidden deep and unknown but by a few that wander far. I answer the call every day. It doesn't mean I am in the forest, or on the river, or at the ocean. I am in my home ~ but the trees that brush my window, the mountain freshly crowned with snow, the neighbor's trio of trees ~ they are my eyes ease. My hearts refresh. It helps me hold on.
Somehow this call is the one our heart has to answer. When we don't we are stagnant, deafened and blinded inside. We are more callous and we are not as kind. The great beauty of all that has been created just for us is the greatest healer. Do not let yourself forget. It is there, at your fingertips..
These Walls (the inside of my house)
I've been thinking about my house lately or I guess the inside of the house. The last two houses I have lived in were really beautiful in that the first one was a heritage home and the second one was a home that we built ourselves. This house we live in now is an upstairs with a living room, kitchen, dining room, hallway with closets and the a bathroom and three bedrooms. Right now we fit perfectly although sometimes I feel a little cramped. Our last house was very very big and this house is not so much. The funny thing is with this house I have been struggling more and more with keeping it clean. It makes sense that the more children I have and the less space I have the more messy it would be. Often times I feel like the mess defines how my mind is doing. I feel like I can't function in the disaster. I feel like my house is a reflection of who I am. However this last week I have wanted to break free of that.
I thought today I would introduce you to my house ~well the floor and some counters. I wanted to embrace the mess today and so I sat in the hall way and took some time to look around. It all started when I went in to brush my teeth ~ I happened to look up and saw two toothbrushes stuck to the ceiling of my bathroom. I sighed...laughed...took a picture to text to my sister and then really started looking around. Then I pulled out my camera.
Welcome to my home:
My husband made these shelves for me. He is enormously talented. I really really like them.
These bowls are treasures to me. They are from my grandma's house and from my friend Bethany. Please note the rainbows...from a prism I made on a trip with my friend Emily.
This is my little man. He knocked over his high chair and then climbed in it and he spilled lots of food that had been sitting in the tray.
When we moved into this house my husband put a window in our dining room. This is my view. I am thankful for it every single day.
This is my eight year old's room but my four year old sleep in it. We play a lot of musical beds in this house but we are starting to get more sleep. I say do what it takes!
This is my room.
My view from the hall way
My living room
A Beanie Boo
The kitchen in ALL its glory.
We have to keep all the chairs outside on the covered deck right now because of the babies' climbing skills. I'll be so happy when the thrill of trying to table dance is over....
Another counter view. Wow...is all I can say ~ my calendar is a treasure though.
A book shelf that has a lot more than books
I have written about my issues with my broom and my children......as you can see today it was being used for something ~ I am not sure what
Another view of the handy broom ~ please note the pink telephone tied to it
I am an incredible homeschooling mom as you can see from the calendar. I'll give myself points for the fact that it IS November.
No words for this but I was impressed.
Oh my children...I love you so
This amazing contraption once again
And again ~ A guerrilla spider's home I guess
Everything is on this floor...spread far and wide
Wow..just wow...
I decided to dress up like Lunette from a show called 'The Big Comfy Couch' to tried to inspire them (and myself) to do a 'Ten Second Tidy' and it sort of worked. She is a clown and wears long socks every day. We did actually get some of the living room cleaned up. It was great.
Today I managed to not let the inside of these walls define me. It was nice. I might not succeed tomorrow but its nice to have a day of victory once in a while. xo
I thought today I would introduce you to my house ~well the floor and some counters. I wanted to embrace the mess today and so I sat in the hall way and took some time to look around. It all started when I went in to brush my teeth ~ I happened to look up and saw two toothbrushes stuck to the ceiling of my bathroom. I sighed...laughed...took a picture to text to my sister and then really started looking around. Then I pulled out my camera.
Welcome to my home:
My husband made these shelves for me. He is enormously talented. I really really like them.
These bowls are treasures to me. They are from my grandma's house and from my friend Bethany. Please note the rainbows...from a prism I made on a trip with my friend Emily.
This is my little man. He knocked over his high chair and then climbed in it and he spilled lots of food that had been sitting in the tray.
When we moved into this house my husband put a window in our dining room. This is my view. I am thankful for it every single day.
This is my eight year old's room but my four year old sleep in it. We play a lot of musical beds in this house but we are starting to get more sleep. I say do what it takes!
This is my room.
My view from the hall way
My living room
The kitchen in ALL its glory.
We have to keep all the chairs outside on the covered deck right now because of the babies' climbing skills. I'll be so happy when the thrill of trying to table dance is over....
Another counter view. Wow...is all I can say ~ my calendar is a treasure though.
Another view of the handy broom ~ please note the pink telephone tied to it
I am an incredible homeschooling mom as you can see from the calendar. I'll give myself points for the fact that it IS November.
No words for this but I was impressed.
Oh my children...I love you so
This amazing contraption once again
And again ~ A guerrilla spider's home I guess
Everything is on this floor...spread far and wide
Wow..just wow...
I decided to dress up like Lunette from a show called 'The Big Comfy Couch' to tried to inspire them (and myself) to do a 'Ten Second Tidy' and it sort of worked. She is a clown and wears long socks every day. We did actually get some of the living room cleaned up. It was great.
Today I managed to not let the inside of these walls define me. It was nice. I might not succeed tomorrow but its nice to have a day of victory once in a while. xo
Saturday, 14 November 2015
Christmas at Walmart
Last night I went to Walmart. I went with my oldest. I was pretty tired after a long week but we had a mission. One was to get her new gum boots. We live in town but we are farm people at heart and so we must have gum boots that fit ~ that and it rains so much here ~ and her feet have far surpassed my size now so she had nothing that fit.
When we walked into Walmart the first thing I saw was live little green trees with silver sparkles sprayed all over them and I was almost convinced that I liked them ~ but when I shook my head and looked again...I didn't. Good try Walmart! You almost got me!
Our main purpose for going to Walmart was to fill a shoe box. My daughter's school participates in Samaritan's Purse's Christmas shoe box initiative. You fill a shoe box with gifts for a child who would not otherwise receive a Christmas gift in a country where there is lack. Then you enclose seven dollars on the top and check a little box as to what age group it is for and drop it off at the designated drop off place. She has done this before but this year things were a bit different. I had come across a blog post where someone had observed children receiving the shoe boxes and she had written what would be super helpful and appreciated as people often send things they maybe dont want or things that are scary to the children unintentionally or things like cars with tiny wheels that wont work. So months ago I had written a list in preparation and this year I was really inspired. We went to Walmart with my list and started in the soap section. We got a bar of soap and a soap holder. We then got a new tooth brush and toothbrush holder. We got a pick, comb and two pretty head bands, nail clippers and sun glasses. After that we were suddenly in the Christmas section.
Walmart does NOT disappoint ~ not in the glitter department anyway! My oldest picked up a hot blue bird with feathers, glitter and sequins and told me it was for your hair. I tried not to smile and told her I was pretty sure it was for a Christmas tree but I could imagine that she would love to clip this bird (about half the size of her head) into her hair. She argued again that it was for her hair and tried to put it IN her hair so I said we should move on. We looked at bowls but I decided it would take up too much space and we went and chose a tiny but bright flashlight and batteries. Then we went to the boots section and she got zebra print gum boots with a wide stripe of red at the top. Yup...her and I have very different taste and that's okay (sort of). After this big decision was made we got my husband socks. It is sort of an inside joke but the night before he had given me a card and in it he had thanked me for putting his socks away. I do a lot for him and one of the things I do is making sure his socks don't have holes and keeping his sock drawer organized. He doesn't necessarily even realize that and I pointed it out quite emphatically a couple days ago..hence the card...and hence the new socks as some of his are holey.
After we chose socks we went and picked out a beautiful but small journal, pencils, a pencil case, pens (red,green, black and blue) because they do not have good quality pens usually available, pencil crayons, felts, erasers, pencil sharpener, calculator, and more. Then we came around a corner and ran into my in laws. My heart stopped for a moment and that was my 'Walmart moment,' it far surpassed the blue bird in my daughter's hair argument. I said hi awkwardly and we had a couple moments of chit chat and then we parted ways. My in laws and I are from different worlds and I'll leave it at that. They are wonderful in their own way.
After this we ventured back into the Christmas section and chose some sparkly snow flakes that could be hung up that were flat and could easily fit in the shoe box. This is for Christmas! Then my daughter found a hot pink sparkly mask also with feathers that she insisted was an actual mask for your face. She thought you clipped it to the front of your hair. I insisted it was for the tree and we started arguing again..she once again tried to demonstrate and I knew it was time to go!
When we got home I packed the shoe box. I realized how excited I was to do this when I was gushing over everything I had bought to my husband! I felt like I was thinking of so many helpful things I could fit in there. This box is for a 10-14 year old girl and that is a pretty broad age range so I wanted to include things for a less mature girl and then things that a more mature girl would appreciate.
I put a Canada Flag post card on the bottom of the box with the journal, then the soap in the soap holder and the tooth brush in the tooth brush holder. I put stickers we had also purchased along the sides with the snow flakes and wrapped nail clippers and sun glasses in two body cloths I had bought from Norwex to send. Norwex body cloths are anti bacterial and they have little hooks on them so they are easy to hang up. After that I put in two skipping ropes (I forget to mention these before), the head bands, and everything else. When I packed the pencil case I put in a whole bunch of different sizes and strengths of rubber elastics and thumb tacks to hang up the snow flakes. I also wrapped the pencil case in hair elastics to make it more compact and I added paper clips to the pencil case and some chalk. We ended up having room to put a key chain sized Beani Boo that was soft, cute and endearing, and a super pretty lacey pearly type head band that I feel would make any 10 -14 year old girl's heart happy.
I feel like if I got this shoe box for Christmas I would be very happy at that age!!! Everything in that box is practical and helpful yet pretty and special. My daughter ended up getting upset at me because I was packing it and she wanted to. However she has packed so many through the years and I was so ridiculously excited about it that I did it. This morning she wrote a letter for it and we also put Christmas cards in it too. I feel like I packed an awesome Christmas box and I hope the girl who gets it is so so SO blessed because it blessed me so much to pack it. It is funny the things that get me excited. Craft fairs...and apparently packing a shoe box. I am still feeling high from it today. It is winking at me from the counter and I just want to make about fifty more.If you have a chance you should pack a box. It is super fun! Well it is if one of your love languages is gift giving...which apparently one of mine is. xo
Here are the boots :)
The finished shoe box (we did not wrap it)
What it looks like inside
The Festive inside of the lid :)
When we walked into Walmart the first thing I saw was live little green trees with silver sparkles sprayed all over them and I was almost convinced that I liked them ~ but when I shook my head and looked again...I didn't. Good try Walmart! You almost got me!
Our main purpose for going to Walmart was to fill a shoe box. My daughter's school participates in Samaritan's Purse's Christmas shoe box initiative. You fill a shoe box with gifts for a child who would not otherwise receive a Christmas gift in a country where there is lack. Then you enclose seven dollars on the top and check a little box as to what age group it is for and drop it off at the designated drop off place. She has done this before but this year things were a bit different. I had come across a blog post where someone had observed children receiving the shoe boxes and she had written what would be super helpful and appreciated as people often send things they maybe dont want or things that are scary to the children unintentionally or things like cars with tiny wheels that wont work. So months ago I had written a list in preparation and this year I was really inspired. We went to Walmart with my list and started in the soap section. We got a bar of soap and a soap holder. We then got a new tooth brush and toothbrush holder. We got a pick, comb and two pretty head bands, nail clippers and sun glasses. After that we were suddenly in the Christmas section.
Walmart does NOT disappoint ~ not in the glitter department anyway! My oldest picked up a hot blue bird with feathers, glitter and sequins and told me it was for your hair. I tried not to smile and told her I was pretty sure it was for a Christmas tree but I could imagine that she would love to clip this bird (about half the size of her head) into her hair. She argued again that it was for her hair and tried to put it IN her hair so I said we should move on. We looked at bowls but I decided it would take up too much space and we went and chose a tiny but bright flashlight and batteries. Then we went to the boots section and she got zebra print gum boots with a wide stripe of red at the top. Yup...her and I have very different taste and that's okay (sort of). After this big decision was made we got my husband socks. It is sort of an inside joke but the night before he had given me a card and in it he had thanked me for putting his socks away. I do a lot for him and one of the things I do is making sure his socks don't have holes and keeping his sock drawer organized. He doesn't necessarily even realize that and I pointed it out quite emphatically a couple days ago..hence the card...and hence the new socks as some of his are holey.
After we chose socks we went and picked out a beautiful but small journal, pencils, a pencil case, pens (red,green, black and blue) because they do not have good quality pens usually available, pencil crayons, felts, erasers, pencil sharpener, calculator, and more. Then we came around a corner and ran into my in laws. My heart stopped for a moment and that was my 'Walmart moment,' it far surpassed the blue bird in my daughter's hair argument. I said hi awkwardly and we had a couple moments of chit chat and then we parted ways. My in laws and I are from different worlds and I'll leave it at that. They are wonderful in their own way.
After this we ventured back into the Christmas section and chose some sparkly snow flakes that could be hung up that were flat and could easily fit in the shoe box. This is for Christmas! Then my daughter found a hot pink sparkly mask also with feathers that she insisted was an actual mask for your face. She thought you clipped it to the front of your hair. I insisted it was for the tree and we started arguing again..she once again tried to demonstrate and I knew it was time to go!
When we got home I packed the shoe box. I realized how excited I was to do this when I was gushing over everything I had bought to my husband! I felt like I was thinking of so many helpful things I could fit in there. This box is for a 10-14 year old girl and that is a pretty broad age range so I wanted to include things for a less mature girl and then things that a more mature girl would appreciate.
I put a Canada Flag post card on the bottom of the box with the journal, then the soap in the soap holder and the tooth brush in the tooth brush holder. I put stickers we had also purchased along the sides with the snow flakes and wrapped nail clippers and sun glasses in two body cloths I had bought from Norwex to send. Norwex body cloths are anti bacterial and they have little hooks on them so they are easy to hang up. After that I put in two skipping ropes (I forget to mention these before), the head bands, and everything else. When I packed the pencil case I put in a whole bunch of different sizes and strengths of rubber elastics and thumb tacks to hang up the snow flakes. I also wrapped the pencil case in hair elastics to make it more compact and I added paper clips to the pencil case and some chalk. We ended up having room to put a key chain sized Beani Boo that was soft, cute and endearing, and a super pretty lacey pearly type head band that I feel would make any 10 -14 year old girl's heart happy.
I feel like if I got this shoe box for Christmas I would be very happy at that age!!! Everything in that box is practical and helpful yet pretty and special. My daughter ended up getting upset at me because I was packing it and she wanted to. However she has packed so many through the years and I was so ridiculously excited about it that I did it. This morning she wrote a letter for it and we also put Christmas cards in it too. I feel like I packed an awesome Christmas box and I hope the girl who gets it is so so SO blessed because it blessed me so much to pack it. It is funny the things that get me excited. Craft fairs...and apparently packing a shoe box. I am still feeling high from it today. It is winking at me from the counter and I just want to make about fifty more.If you have a chance you should pack a box. It is super fun! Well it is if one of your love languages is gift giving...which apparently one of mine is. xo
Here are the boots :)
The finished shoe box (we did not wrap it)
What it looks like inside
The Festive inside of the lid :)
Friday, 13 November 2015
The Love We All Need
"But it is not what I am saying that is hurting you; it is that you have wounds that I touch by what I have said."
Don Miguel Ruiz
When my two oldest were younger I attended a course through Community Services and my life was changed. It really was. I think many moms that I have observed have grown up in families that are healthy, and the parents have been able to model to these mothers healthy ways to attach and grow and nurture. When they have children they instinctively do what was modeled to them. I missed the boat in a lot of those areas. When I started having children it was glaringly apparent that I knew how to be anxious and over protective and strict, but I didn't really know how to have fun, relax and therefore attach.I am so grateful for all the things this course has taught me.
A Secure Attachment: A relationship that creates confidence in the availability of a specific protective caregiver if needed, and supports exploration when it is safe to do so.
Do you have secure attachment? I liken it to an umbilical cord that you and someone else share. When things are rough and you need nurture and love you can pull on that cord and the other person will be there in whatever capacity they need to be. It is something you dont take a second to worry about ~ you trust and love that person completely. They have shown you time and time again that they are trust worthy and they will be there for you. If you have this umbilical cord the safety and assurance that you are loved and therefore that no matter what happens you are safe is always there ~ and this knowledge changes everything. You have a certain level of freedom to go out into the world. You have learned that yes, there is hurt and pain and hard ship, but you have also learned that you are worth loving and worth sacrificing for and that you are precious.
When you dont have that it is like you are free falling all the time ~ you grasp onto people hoping to make an attachment. However you are so vulnerable and self protective that as soon as the other person does something that threatens ~you run away or lash out ~ and you never form a strong enough cord that does not break. It is a great tragedy if you think about it ~ this lack of connection. It leaves one so hungry, a spirit so void, and a heart that is so delicate that something is always breaking it. Often you lose the capacity to feel true joy and your life is ruled by anxiety and an emptiness. You want to be happy and to feel love and free but you feel weighed down and worn.
Dr. Bruce Perry ~ Being born human does not ensure a child will become humane. The capacity to share, care, listen, value and to be empathetic ~ to be compassionate ~ develops from being cared for ~ shared with, listened to, valued and nurtured.
Isn't that so powerful! It is such an incredible reminder to us as humans ~ to us as mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, mothers and to us as fathers, husbands, brothers, sons ~ who we are to others is impacting.
Our past has deeply and directly affected us and the ones who have raised us are in the same boat. However because we are adults we have this opportunity to change something that in us has been remiss. We can create attachment in our lives. However it is a terrifying thing if it is something we have lacked, because we have learned that we needed to protect our heart...pain and rejection as a child is devastating ~ it's devastating as an adult too ~ but we have been stripped of our identity and our preciousness if it happened when we were children. So when we decide to change that, and start to create attachment in our lives, we need to go back to that place in our childhood and help ourselves heal that wound.
When I took this course I also started counseling. I was in counseling for a long time. I have found that a lot of people look on counseling in a negative light. I guess it is admitting to the world that help is needed. It is talking to a stranger about the deepest hurts. However counseling was such an amazing experience for me. I cannot recommend it enough.
I'll end with some notes from my course
In humans, the attachment need is the searching for, and maintaining of, closeness and connection to the humans who meet their needs in a way that allows them to feel safe and secure.
We build attachment relationship with a child when we cultivate connection, when we make it easy for them to depend on us and when we provide a 'village' of people that they can safely connect to.
It is in the context of an attachment relationship that a parent (noun) has the ability to parent (verb). More specifically, it is not the love of a parent to a child, but the love of a child to a parent that gives a parent this ability. Therefore, a parent must hold the heart of a child gently so that a child feels safe and secure despite his vulnerability and dependent state of being.
There is so much I need to work on in this right now as a parent to my children. I STILL am to harsh, impatient, overwhelmed and distracted. I love them so but often I find them overwhelming rather then enjoyable. I find them annoying rather then endearing. They know this. I needed to remind myself of these concepts and so here I am...reminding
Happy Friday ~ I hope you have a nurturing and wonderful weekend with whoever you spend time with. It will feed your soul and fill you with light in a way that no sun can. xo
Don Miguel Ruiz
When my two oldest were younger I attended a course through Community Services and my life was changed. It really was. I think many moms that I have observed have grown up in families that are healthy, and the parents have been able to model to these mothers healthy ways to attach and grow and nurture. When they have children they instinctively do what was modeled to them. I missed the boat in a lot of those areas. When I started having children it was glaringly apparent that I knew how to be anxious and over protective and strict, but I didn't really know how to have fun, relax and therefore attach.I am so grateful for all the things this course has taught me.
A Secure Attachment: A relationship that creates confidence in the availability of a specific protective caregiver if needed, and supports exploration when it is safe to do so.
Do you have secure attachment? I liken it to an umbilical cord that you and someone else share. When things are rough and you need nurture and love you can pull on that cord and the other person will be there in whatever capacity they need to be. It is something you dont take a second to worry about ~ you trust and love that person completely. They have shown you time and time again that they are trust worthy and they will be there for you. If you have this umbilical cord the safety and assurance that you are loved and therefore that no matter what happens you are safe is always there ~ and this knowledge changes everything. You have a certain level of freedom to go out into the world. You have learned that yes, there is hurt and pain and hard ship, but you have also learned that you are worth loving and worth sacrificing for and that you are precious.
When you dont have that it is like you are free falling all the time ~ you grasp onto people hoping to make an attachment. However you are so vulnerable and self protective that as soon as the other person does something that threatens ~you run away or lash out ~ and you never form a strong enough cord that does not break. It is a great tragedy if you think about it ~ this lack of connection. It leaves one so hungry, a spirit so void, and a heart that is so delicate that something is always breaking it. Often you lose the capacity to feel true joy and your life is ruled by anxiety and an emptiness. You want to be happy and to feel love and free but you feel weighed down and worn.
Dr. Bruce Perry ~ Being born human does not ensure a child will become humane. The capacity to share, care, listen, value and to be empathetic ~ to be compassionate ~ develops from being cared for ~ shared with, listened to, valued and nurtured.
Isn't that so powerful! It is such an incredible reminder to us as humans ~ to us as mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, mothers and to us as fathers, husbands, brothers, sons ~ who we are to others is impacting.
Our past has deeply and directly affected us and the ones who have raised us are in the same boat. However because we are adults we have this opportunity to change something that in us has been remiss. We can create attachment in our lives. However it is a terrifying thing if it is something we have lacked, because we have learned that we needed to protect our heart...pain and rejection as a child is devastating ~ it's devastating as an adult too ~ but we have been stripped of our identity and our preciousness if it happened when we were children. So when we decide to change that, and start to create attachment in our lives, we need to go back to that place in our childhood and help ourselves heal that wound.
When I took this course I also started counseling. I was in counseling for a long time. I have found that a lot of people look on counseling in a negative light. I guess it is admitting to the world that help is needed. It is talking to a stranger about the deepest hurts. However counseling was such an amazing experience for me. I cannot recommend it enough.
I'll end with some notes from my course
In humans, the attachment need is the searching for, and maintaining of, closeness and connection to the humans who meet their needs in a way that allows them to feel safe and secure.
We build attachment relationship with a child when we cultivate connection, when we make it easy for them to depend on us and when we provide a 'village' of people that they can safely connect to.
It is in the context of an attachment relationship that a parent (noun) has the ability to parent (verb). More specifically, it is not the love of a parent to a child, but the love of a child to a parent that gives a parent this ability. Therefore, a parent must hold the heart of a child gently so that a child feels safe and secure despite his vulnerability and dependent state of being.
There is so much I need to work on in this right now as a parent to my children. I STILL am to harsh, impatient, overwhelmed and distracted. I love them so but often I find them overwhelming rather then enjoyable. I find them annoying rather then endearing. They know this. I needed to remind myself of these concepts and so here I am...reminding
Happy Friday ~ I hope you have a nurturing and wonderful weekend with whoever you spend time with. It will feed your soul and fill you with light in a way that no sun can. xo
Winner :)
The winner from the One Hundred Blog Giveaway is
Alexis :)
And because I couldn't help myself and had to pull another name out of the hat too....
The other winner is
Rachelle :)
Yay!!!
Congrats!!!!!!
You will be receiving a candle shortly! xo
Alexis :)
And because I couldn't help myself and had to pull another name out of the hat too....
The other winner is
Rachelle :)
Yay!!!
Congrats!!!!!!
You will be receiving a candle shortly! xo
Thursday, 12 November 2015
Poem By Grandma (3) November Rain
Today is the perfect and typical November day. Grey, misty, the cold has a bit of a bite to it, and the rain is falling steadily. Before the rain was too heavy I got my three youngest out for a walk with some support from my sister and another girl who is coming a couple times a week to help with my eight year old son. We went to a trail beside the river.
The river looked grumpy today. It was rushing by like it didn't have a second to spare and the water was green and dark. I tried to keep my children well away from the edge. The river looked mean to. The trees around it though still have leaves left and they looked sweet and fragile ~ the next big wind will sweep off the last of their garments and they will be left naked and shivering. The pathway was lined in yellow, crimson, brown speckled and green leaves and the arches of the trees over head made me wish I could paint. I can't though.
Yesterday my sister was reading poems aloud from my grandma's poetry book. They are incredible. I am going to put one here today. It describes the day well, perfectly!
November Rain
by June Green
Green hills were wrapped in misty clouds,
The rain came teeming down
Where wet and soggy autumn leaves
Lay scattered on the ground
Road gutters ran with water
And depression in the grass
Formed many little fairy ponds
Where raindrops made a splash.
The trail beside the river
Showed that water on the rise,
Engulfing grass and brambles
That grew on either side.
The wind tugged my umbrella
Like a colored air balloon
As I hurried home to shelter
In the grey November gloom.
I hope you were able to enjoy something lovely in your day no matter how dark the weather. xo
The river looked grumpy today. It was rushing by like it didn't have a second to spare and the water was green and dark. I tried to keep my children well away from the edge. The river looked mean to. The trees around it though still have leaves left and they looked sweet and fragile ~ the next big wind will sweep off the last of their garments and they will be left naked and shivering. The pathway was lined in yellow, crimson, brown speckled and green leaves and the arches of the trees over head made me wish I could paint. I can't though.
Yesterday my sister was reading poems aloud from my grandma's poetry book. They are incredible. I am going to put one here today. It describes the day well, perfectly!
November Rain
by June Green
Green hills were wrapped in misty clouds,
The rain came teeming down
Where wet and soggy autumn leaves
Lay scattered on the ground
Road gutters ran with water
And depression in the grass
Formed many little fairy ponds
Where raindrops made a splash.
The trail beside the river
Showed that water on the rise,
Engulfing grass and brambles
That grew on either side.
The wind tugged my umbrella
Like a colored air balloon
As I hurried home to shelter
In the grey November gloom.
I hope you were able to enjoy something lovely in your day no matter how dark the weather. xo
Wednesday, 11 November 2015
A World War ~ The Shaping of Families for Generations
A Meeting Place (by June Green ~ My Grandmother)
Right at the corner of Portage and Main,
When the Second World War was on,
Was a place called the Knights of Columbus Hut,
The canteen, where I met John
They had a piano, a space to dance,
There were popular records to spin,
And I happened to be a hostess there
On a night when John came in.
One special day, near the middle of May,
When I walked through the open door
There were new recruits wearing sailor suits
That I hadn't seen before.
The sailor called John was tall and blond,
With hair like the golden wheat,
And the look in his eye said, "I'm the guy
You've been waiting for years to meet."
That was how it began, with this sailor man,
We knew it was meant to be,
For I was the girl he was looking for
And John was the boy for me.
Today is Remembrance Day.
When I was in grade 12 I had a teacher that helped our class really grasp the magnitude of what had been done, the sacrifice that had been made, for my personal freedom and for our country. After grade 12 it hit me one day just how much I was a product of the war and how directly my family and generations to come have been affected.
My dad's father was in Europe throughout the second world war fighting for a number of years. He was from Canada. He wrote my granny letters as she waited in a small town in British Columbia for him, and they married when he returned home. They had eight living children and my grandpa passed away in his fifties from the results of a heart attack. He had struggled with depression and other issues the years after the war. His children were greatly affected by who he was as a result of the war. It was not easy. I never got to meet him. Whenever I went to my grannie's I would look at his picture with the poppy pinned to it and try to imagine all that he had had to go through. I have heard a few stories of his close calls with death while fighting. The horror he must have seen and the pain he must have had to deal with the rest of his life must have been immense. The lingerings of that Post Traumatic Stress have been felt by myself, through who my father is, as a result of that war. It has grieved me ~ I wonder who my grandfather would have been if he had not had to go through all he did. I wonder also of the stories of valor and honor that he never shared and the bravery he had that no one got to see but his fellow soldiers. I am honored to be his granddaughter.
My mother's parents only met because the war was on. I included a poem up above that my grandma wrote after she lost most of her sight and could not quilt and do all the creative things she used her eyes for. So she started writing poetry. My grandpa published a book of the poems and they are amazing. They leave a legacy for my children and for myself. My grandfather grew up in Vancouver and my grandmother grew up on the Prairies. However during the Depression my grandmother's parents had to leave their farm and move to Winnipeg. With the war on my grandpa's older brother joined up as soon as he was old enough and fought in the war. My grandfather joined up as soon as he was old enough also but the war was almost over. However he was in Winnipeg for training (far far away from his home town of Vancouver) and one fateful day my grandma walked into a canteen to hostess there, and they caught each others eye. They married in 1948 much to the chagrin of my grandpa's parents who predicted the marriage would never last. It did and they went on to have five children and one of those children was my mother.
My parents married and had five children. I am the oldest. The people my parents are ~ well, it has a lot to do with who their parents were and what their parents went through and how they were raised....that's how it works generation after generation. My great great grandparents had had to go through World War One. It has shaped us all ~ and we can't forget that.
I can't express my thanks properly but I wish I could.
So often I look around at where I live ~ Canada. It is a land that has a rich but complex heritage. The beauty here is stunning and the opportunity endless. It has been a blessing to be able to grow up here, to enjoy all I have and to live and thrive in the freedoms offered. All of this because so many payed such a dear price....I know I will never forget and I will never let my children and grandchildren forget. The gift given can never be repaid in full or even properly appreciated ~ but I can be thankful and full of honor and I can do my all to pass that on to my children.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
John McCrae
Right at the corner of Portage and Main,
When the Second World War was on,
Was a place called the Knights of Columbus Hut,
The canteen, where I met John
They had a piano, a space to dance,
There were popular records to spin,
And I happened to be a hostess there
On a night when John came in.
One special day, near the middle of May,
When I walked through the open door
There were new recruits wearing sailor suits
That I hadn't seen before.
The sailor called John was tall and blond,
With hair like the golden wheat,
And the look in his eye said, "I'm the guy
You've been waiting for years to meet."
That was how it began, with this sailor man,
We knew it was meant to be,
For I was the girl he was looking for
And John was the boy for me.
Today is Remembrance Day.
When I was in grade 12 I had a teacher that helped our class really grasp the magnitude of what had been done, the sacrifice that had been made, for my personal freedom and for our country. After grade 12 it hit me one day just how much I was a product of the war and how directly my family and generations to come have been affected.
My dad's father was in Europe throughout the second world war fighting for a number of years. He was from Canada. He wrote my granny letters as she waited in a small town in British Columbia for him, and they married when he returned home. They had eight living children and my grandpa passed away in his fifties from the results of a heart attack. He had struggled with depression and other issues the years after the war. His children were greatly affected by who he was as a result of the war. It was not easy. I never got to meet him. Whenever I went to my grannie's I would look at his picture with the poppy pinned to it and try to imagine all that he had had to go through. I have heard a few stories of his close calls with death while fighting. The horror he must have seen and the pain he must have had to deal with the rest of his life must have been immense. The lingerings of that Post Traumatic Stress have been felt by myself, through who my father is, as a result of that war. It has grieved me ~ I wonder who my grandfather would have been if he had not had to go through all he did. I wonder also of the stories of valor and honor that he never shared and the bravery he had that no one got to see but his fellow soldiers. I am honored to be his granddaughter.
My mother's parents only met because the war was on. I included a poem up above that my grandma wrote after she lost most of her sight and could not quilt and do all the creative things she used her eyes for. So she started writing poetry. My grandpa published a book of the poems and they are amazing. They leave a legacy for my children and for myself. My grandfather grew up in Vancouver and my grandmother grew up on the Prairies. However during the Depression my grandmother's parents had to leave their farm and move to Winnipeg. With the war on my grandpa's older brother joined up as soon as he was old enough and fought in the war. My grandfather joined up as soon as he was old enough also but the war was almost over. However he was in Winnipeg for training (far far away from his home town of Vancouver) and one fateful day my grandma walked into a canteen to hostess there, and they caught each others eye. They married in 1948 much to the chagrin of my grandpa's parents who predicted the marriage would never last. It did and they went on to have five children and one of those children was my mother.
My parents married and had five children. I am the oldest. The people my parents are ~ well, it has a lot to do with who their parents were and what their parents went through and how they were raised....that's how it works generation after generation. My great great grandparents had had to go through World War One. It has shaped us all ~ and we can't forget that.
I can't express my thanks properly but I wish I could.
So often I look around at where I live ~ Canada. It is a land that has a rich but complex heritage. The beauty here is stunning and the opportunity endless. It has been a blessing to be able to grow up here, to enjoy all I have and to live and thrive in the freedoms offered. All of this because so many payed such a dear price....I know I will never forget and I will never let my children and grandchildren forget. The gift given can never be repaid in full or even properly appreciated ~ but I can be thankful and full of honor and I can do my all to pass that on to my children.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
John McCrae
Tuesday, 10 November 2015
To My Children
Well loves, it has been a particularly hard week. You all have been going through different things. Nothing that on their own would be too hard I dont think, but I am tired and things have been building. Did you know right now I am forcing you to play outside? Its because fresh air helps you feel better and helps your bodies feel more relaxed. You so did not want to have to go play in your play house or jump on your trampoline. The horror of it...I know...I am cruel.
Tonight I am going to try to convince you to eat soup ~ the beef is from a cow that grew up in the hill country and has only been fed grass no hormones or anything bad. I made the soup stock from bones of the same type of cow. I am going to put lots of vegetables in it and hope no one will throw it at me or proclaim it disgusting. I know I will probably have to spoon feed at least two of you. Dinner's are such a joy right now...NOT
Then this morning I wanted to bath you and wash your hair. I had not done that for a while because I know you dont like it, but at the same time I dont want you stink and for people to not want to be around you. However its just another mark against me, mom, the ogre, who actually loves you so much.
I am trying to teach you both to read or help you read better, or learn your spelling words....and trying to help you learn to clean, and to be caring and responsible, not to mention shoe lace tying and dressing for the weather. I am trying to teach you self regulation and self control and trying to help you navigate all sorts of emotional issues.
I am up over and over again in the night to help you go to the bathroom, tuck you back in, help you through night mares or being thirsty. I sleep on the couch usually so that I am totally available. I have not slept properly for about nine years. It's aged me and taken a lot of me. I have done this for you!!!!!
I actually love you.
I am a human being. I am not just mom. I have a name. My name is Tansy and I am not that old. I know you think I lived during the time of horse and buggy and that I can't possibly understand all the things you are going through...but I do.
You see me cry a lot. I never saw my mom cry. I dont know how she managed that but I can't. I just wish you could see how much I love you and that you would fight me a little less. I wish I could get through to you that so much of what I do is for your future and for your safety and health.
You are my treasures, I love you so much! Yet it seems like you think I am just a pain, an interruption, an annoyance, a slave, and someone you can hit, call names, and take your anger out on whenever you want. I have gone to counseling for a long time to try to be a better mother and I have someone come to our house once a month to try to help me help you more. I care SO MUCH
So if you ever read this..
Just know
Every time I got you to clean your room or forced you to drink the greens shake or go outside and jump on the trampoline, every single night that I brush your teeth for you and you made it has hard as possible, and every single time I ask you to wear shoes outside
Its because I love you with everything with in me
okay
Back to the soup
You are standing on the back of the couch, playing with your stuffed animals now oblivious to the world and I love you
Love your
Mom
Tonight I am going to try to convince you to eat soup ~ the beef is from a cow that grew up in the hill country and has only been fed grass no hormones or anything bad. I made the soup stock from bones of the same type of cow. I am going to put lots of vegetables in it and hope no one will throw it at me or proclaim it disgusting. I know I will probably have to spoon feed at least two of you. Dinner's are such a joy right now...NOT
Then this morning I wanted to bath you and wash your hair. I had not done that for a while because I know you dont like it, but at the same time I dont want you stink and for people to not want to be around you. However its just another mark against me, mom, the ogre, who actually loves you so much.
I am trying to teach you both to read or help you read better, or learn your spelling words....and trying to help you learn to clean, and to be caring and responsible, not to mention shoe lace tying and dressing for the weather. I am trying to teach you self regulation and self control and trying to help you navigate all sorts of emotional issues.
I am up over and over again in the night to help you go to the bathroom, tuck you back in, help you through night mares or being thirsty. I sleep on the couch usually so that I am totally available. I have not slept properly for about nine years. It's aged me and taken a lot of me. I have done this for you!!!!!
I actually love you.
I am a human being. I am not just mom. I have a name. My name is Tansy and I am not that old. I know you think I lived during the time of horse and buggy and that I can't possibly understand all the things you are going through...but I do.
You see me cry a lot. I never saw my mom cry. I dont know how she managed that but I can't. I just wish you could see how much I love you and that you would fight me a little less. I wish I could get through to you that so much of what I do is for your future and for your safety and health.
You are my treasures, I love you so much! Yet it seems like you think I am just a pain, an interruption, an annoyance, a slave, and someone you can hit, call names, and take your anger out on whenever you want. I have gone to counseling for a long time to try to be a better mother and I have someone come to our house once a month to try to help me help you more. I care SO MUCH
So if you ever read this..
Just know
Every time I got you to clean your room or forced you to drink the greens shake or go outside and jump on the trampoline, every single night that I brush your teeth for you and you made it has hard as possible, and every single time I ask you to wear shoes outside
Its because I love you with everything with in me
okay
Back to the soup
You are standing on the back of the couch, playing with your stuffed animals now oblivious to the world and I love you
Love your
Mom
Monday, 9 November 2015
One Hundred Posts ~
Here I am writing my one hundredth post. For me this is a big moment. Right now I am huddled in bed and the children are out in the living room hopefully not hurting each other too badly. Writing is always like this. I have a few snatched minutes. It has been so wonderful for me so far to be able to do this small thing for myself as my other big thrill is getting out grocery shopping and we all know how that goes for me. Craft fairs only happen in November and sometimes December...so blogging is sort of IT right now. There are not many of you out there that read what I write but there are some! Thank you so much.
I wanted to celebrate you as readers and myself somehow and I wasn't sure how. So I decided to do a give away. I am FAR from an experienced anything in regards to technology. So I am thinking the best way to do this is if you want to enter email me at tansyjune@hotmail.com. I'll randomly draw your name and post the first name of the winner here on the blog on Friday (and privately email you also) ~ today is Monday :) And if you win I will send you the gift in the mail (or drop if off if you live locally). I am giving away a candle. I know...a candle...but honestly these candles are SO beautiful and they smell divine. Their brand name is Voluspa and I will be giving away the Santiago Huckleberry Scent. This scent is not horribly strong and it is more fruity than nauseatingly perfumey. http://www.voluspa.com ~ you can check out the candles if you would like. If you are a gentleman...this is a beautiful gift if you'd rather not keep it. I'll surprise you with the size of candle as there is a variety.
I chose this also because a candle is a beautiful symbol of light and hope. When you light a candle you are purposely lighting a fire! It is powerful. This blog is for me a way to vent yes but also express light when times are dark or what I have learned through the dark times.
Once again thank you for reading what I write. It means a lot. xo
Why Crafts Fairs Are Simply the Best!
It is Sunday night. The baby just fell asleep and its after ten. Everyone else is sleeping and its a good feeling this quiet house. This weekend was full. I love November for a couple reasons and one of them is the beautiful trees resplendent in their Autumn finery. Another reason is the craft fairs. I have no clue if I am slightly odd...actually yes I do have a clue and I AM slightly odd, but craft fairs are basically my favorite thing ever. If I am having a bad day...just ask me something about craft fairs and I'll perk right up. I realized that last year after my brother stopped by late one night. That was when the baby was super colicky and I was home a lot but I guess I had gotten out to a craft fair. I went on and on about the vendors and their creativity and how happy everyone is because their hard work is finally on display for all to see, and I was so animated telling him this and I saw the look on hi face, then I was hearing myself...apparently craft fairs make me SUPER happy ~ and they do.
So November...I love you because...there are craft fairs every weekend! I grew up going to craft fairs. My granny used to take me. We'd go to an Old Age Pensioners (OAP) hall and there would be tables of crochet doilies and angels made with sparkles and lace and there would be so many beaded treasures and the glorious baking tables, the knitted slippers and sweaters and booties, there were cross stitch recipe books and photo albums, and the list was just endless. I LOVED it.
The craft fair I went to this weekend reminded me a little of the craft fairs I used to go to when I was young. It wasn't all trendy vintage, re purposed, eco friendly, organic, etc...(which I love also by the way) but it was a lot of older 'grandmas' that had worked for hours making kitchen dish cloths stunning and aprons with ruffles and Christmas tree decorations that take me back in time! There were fifty cent earrings that were zippers and bells and Christmas balls, and hand knit sweaters and SOCKS (I got a rainbow pair) and baking and preserves and felted hats and ooooold books. My mom went to this craft fair later on in the day and had a crazy moment where she found a book, at the antique book table, that had HER name in it. Her great grandmother had given it to her. It was 160 years old. She had owned it for years but then had given it up during a move. It was eerie to open up this book and see her maiden name written in her thirteen year old hand writing on it!
I took my eldest daughter and her friend. We had done that last year and I thought it was a fun little tradition to start. Another one of their friends ended up being there and I had my first experience of my daughter being old enough to look around with her friends!!! I was right there the entire time but it was a different feeling to realize that soon enough she will be fine looking by herself in her own aisle while I am one or two aisles over! My baby is growing up and there are moments when it hits you just a certain way. They were so cute in what they LOVED and they had to touch everything. It made me smile and realize they are not THAT grown up yet.
So my first craft fair of the year was this weekend and it was a success. I got some treasures and I will put pictures at the bottom for your viewing pleasure because this craft fair, like I said, took me back in time and I purchased some gems.
In other news ~ this weekend my friend and neighbor came back from two weeks in Hawaii and my children are all the proud owners of authentic lava rocks. They are beyond thrilled. When she came home I had made sure to put some fresh cream in her fridge. I imagined that she would feel the need for some coffee as its cold, grey and rainy here....and two weeks in Hawaii is about the best thing I can imagine right now. Coming back would be a bit of a shocker. So she left a message on my phone about how that cream just blessed her! Also this weekend my fifteen month old baby boy called 911. That is the emergency response number here where I live. I didnt realize he had done this so I took the phone from him and hung it up. It rang shortly after and someone identified themselves as the 911 Operator. I said, ' Are you kidding me,!!!!' and she said, 'No ma'am I am not, do you have a young child in the house, is everything alright?' I assured her that the baby was playing with the phone and all was well, but she had to send an officer over anyway just to make absolutely sure everything was okay. He was kind and came in for a little chat. However I now am officially on file at the police station for the first time in my life and so is our baby!!! Our fourth little one is really quite something. He is the busiest and most inquisitive of all our babies so far I think. He climbs, he tastes, he runs, he jumps, he calls 911, and he tries to use Suri (the voice search engine)on our IPAD but he can't talk. So he is keeping me running ~ literally.
Today we also went out for lunch to our Nana's house. This is someone who looked after me when I was little and who now means A LOT to my children especially my eldest. She was once their foster daughter as a tiny baby and she is considered their youngest grandchild now as all of their other grandchildren are pretty much grown up. They were having a big family gathering and we were included. I was so tired today. My children attended with hair not done, clothes obviously chosen themselves. I woke up two minutes before we had to go from a very deep sleep and so went feeling sleep drunk. It was such a special lunch for me and it didnt matter that my hair was not done and I felt like crying. This family is so special to me. I am so glad we were included. Their love means the world.
I feel tiredness creeping in so I'll stop blabbing and sleep while the baby does. His dang eye teeth are STILL not through and I am hoping for the grand entrance sooner than soon. Then I might start to get sleeping for more than a couple hours straight and then watch out world...I am not sure what for, but watch out!
I hope your weekend was wonderful or at least good :) xo
Enjoy these pictures :)
So November...I love you because...there are craft fairs every weekend! I grew up going to craft fairs. My granny used to take me. We'd go to an Old Age Pensioners (OAP) hall and there would be tables of crochet doilies and angels made with sparkles and lace and there would be so many beaded treasures and the glorious baking tables, the knitted slippers and sweaters and booties, there were cross stitch recipe books and photo albums, and the list was just endless. I LOVED it.
The craft fair I went to this weekend reminded me a little of the craft fairs I used to go to when I was young. It wasn't all trendy vintage, re purposed, eco friendly, organic, etc...(which I love also by the way) but it was a lot of older 'grandmas' that had worked for hours making kitchen dish cloths stunning and aprons with ruffles and Christmas tree decorations that take me back in time! There were fifty cent earrings that were zippers and bells and Christmas balls, and hand knit sweaters and SOCKS (I got a rainbow pair) and baking and preserves and felted hats and ooooold books. My mom went to this craft fair later on in the day and had a crazy moment where she found a book, at the antique book table, that had HER name in it. Her great grandmother had given it to her. It was 160 years old. She had owned it for years but then had given it up during a move. It was eerie to open up this book and see her maiden name written in her thirteen year old hand writing on it!
I took my eldest daughter and her friend. We had done that last year and I thought it was a fun little tradition to start. Another one of their friends ended up being there and I had my first experience of my daughter being old enough to look around with her friends!!! I was right there the entire time but it was a different feeling to realize that soon enough she will be fine looking by herself in her own aisle while I am one or two aisles over! My baby is growing up and there are moments when it hits you just a certain way. They were so cute in what they LOVED and they had to touch everything. It made me smile and realize they are not THAT grown up yet.
So my first craft fair of the year was this weekend and it was a success. I got some treasures and I will put pictures at the bottom for your viewing pleasure because this craft fair, like I said, took me back in time and I purchased some gems.
In other news ~ this weekend my friend and neighbor came back from two weeks in Hawaii and my children are all the proud owners of authentic lava rocks. They are beyond thrilled. When she came home I had made sure to put some fresh cream in her fridge. I imagined that she would feel the need for some coffee as its cold, grey and rainy here....and two weeks in Hawaii is about the best thing I can imagine right now. Coming back would be a bit of a shocker. So she left a message on my phone about how that cream just blessed her! Also this weekend my fifteen month old baby boy called 911. That is the emergency response number here where I live. I didnt realize he had done this so I took the phone from him and hung it up. It rang shortly after and someone identified themselves as the 911 Operator. I said, ' Are you kidding me,!!!!' and she said, 'No ma'am I am not, do you have a young child in the house, is everything alright?' I assured her that the baby was playing with the phone and all was well, but she had to send an officer over anyway just to make absolutely sure everything was okay. He was kind and came in for a little chat. However I now am officially on file at the police station for the first time in my life and so is our baby!!! Our fourth little one is really quite something. He is the busiest and most inquisitive of all our babies so far I think. He climbs, he tastes, he runs, he jumps, he calls 911, and he tries to use Suri (the voice search engine)on our IPAD but he can't talk. So he is keeping me running ~ literally.
Today we also went out for lunch to our Nana's house. This is someone who looked after me when I was little and who now means A LOT to my children especially my eldest. She was once their foster daughter as a tiny baby and she is considered their youngest grandchild now as all of their other grandchildren are pretty much grown up. They were having a big family gathering and we were included. I was so tired today. My children attended with hair not done, clothes obviously chosen themselves. I woke up two minutes before we had to go from a very deep sleep and so went feeling sleep drunk. It was such a special lunch for me and it didnt matter that my hair was not done and I felt like crying. This family is so special to me. I am so glad we were included. Their love means the world.
I feel tiredness creeping in so I'll stop blabbing and sleep while the baby does. His dang eye teeth are STILL not through and I am hoping for the grand entrance sooner than soon. Then I might start to get sleeping for more than a couple hours straight and then watch out world...I am not sure what for, but watch out!
I hope your weekend was wonderful or at least good :) xo
Enjoy these pictures :)
Friday, 6 November 2015
Celebrating Other's Beauty
I wrote about going to Costco (the Costco AGAIN post) and being blessed and inspired by a stunning girl and her incredibly sweet children. This Costco is in a different town then I live in and I had no idea who this girl was. I wrote the post about her and put it up one evening and the next day on facebook I saw a picture of her children in my news feed! It was sort of crazy. Turns out this lovely one has FIVE children and anyway they are all beautiful gems. I felt that it was something I could not ignore...the fact that she had blessed me so much just by being at Costco that day...I had not gone up to her at Costco and told her because I felt to insecure. So I ended up writing her and telling her on facebook.
It got me thinking about all the women I see that I find so beautiful. Beauty blesses me. It is everywhere in many shapes and forms but often when I am out getting food for my family I will see someone that glows just a little more than others in that moment. I can't explain why it uplifts me as it does...but it just does! Last week it was an older lady at Superstore ~ she was probably in her sixties ~ she had a long light mustard colored knitted sweater, a long necklace, jeans that were not too skinny, amazing short boots and a great hair cut with her naturally grey hair. She looked incredible. She was so stylish and trendy and elegant! I didn't compliment her. Why? I just felt too insecure.
So often I will be with one of my friends and notice something so beautiful about them. However I don't voice my thoughts. I let them slip past and move on. I want that to change. My friend Marie has amazing hair. It is this beautiful brown and its curly and she has grown it longer lately and she sometimes just braids the front and it look so great! I THINK the thoughts of how amazing it looks....but forget to say it. Or my friend Emily ~ she has a way with accessories and makeup that is absolutely stunning and her hair is amazing too. She lives across the road from me so I see her often....and do I say it enough? That she inspires me and that her beauty is a gift? There is my friend Heather who loves bright colors. Usually she has something super bright on...nail polish or a sweater or an undershirt or just something that is neon and happy and cheerful. She has this style that says happy. I LOVE it and have I EVER told her that? I don't know. My friend Laura can be in work out pants, gum boots and a simple sweater, she tells me she has not showered in days...and every.single.time. she looks like a model. It blows my mind. She has mile long eye lashes and the sweetest smile. All three of my sisters have hair that anyway would want, like really badly. Their hair is amazing and all of their smiles light up their eyes in this really incredibly illuminating way. My friend Rachelle has delicate petite arms and wrists. They are so graceful. She dances so expressively and her voice is soothing and pretty! My cousin Sharon...I have always admired her features, her perfect body that looks incredible in everything she wears and her style that is both delicate and strong. My friend Shanda...her smile is the best and her hair so smooth and glossy...even in the most humid environment (she lives in Jamaica)... and she is another one with beautiful arms and hands AND she makes me laugh so hard. My friend Bethany's eyes and the fact her skin is always natural and clear. She never wears makeup and I LOVE that about her. I also love her style. he always has some sort of purse or bag she has made that blows your mind. I have probably never told them any of this.
A couple days ago my sister randomly complimented my hands. Once when I was quite young someone told me I had alligator hands. For whatever reason that stuck in my mind and all through life I have looked at my hands as alligatorish :) She really blessed me by saying that sweet and kind though that flashed through her mind. I have had a couple random compliments given to me through my life. One was when I was young and an elderly man told me that my freckles were angels kisses and that they were beautiful. Another time an elderly East Indian man told me my hair looked like fire. The way he said it...was like he was in awe of my hair...and I never forgot it. One time another person complimented me on my beautiful smile and how it lit up my face and another person told me how much they liked my voice when I talked... that it was pleasant... Sometimes it is the random compliments from strangers that bless you the most. They dont KNOW you and they didn't have to take the time to tell you that you captivated them for a moment, but they DID.
I have friends that have a A LOT of beauty inside them. Their spirits are kind and their hearts giving. However they ALL blow me away by their beauty. I wanted to say that if you see someone out there who blows you away by their beauty...consider letting them know. If your heart is in the right place that will come through and it will come out the right way. They may really need that little pick me up from a total stranger (if that is indeed what you are) or you as their dear friend. It may be words that stick with them the rest of their life.
I hope I can do that with more confidence and not just through a facebook post. It's real life that matters more.
It got me thinking about all the women I see that I find so beautiful. Beauty blesses me. It is everywhere in many shapes and forms but often when I am out getting food for my family I will see someone that glows just a little more than others in that moment. I can't explain why it uplifts me as it does...but it just does! Last week it was an older lady at Superstore ~ she was probably in her sixties ~ she had a long light mustard colored knitted sweater, a long necklace, jeans that were not too skinny, amazing short boots and a great hair cut with her naturally grey hair. She looked incredible. She was so stylish and trendy and elegant! I didn't compliment her. Why? I just felt too insecure.
So often I will be with one of my friends and notice something so beautiful about them. However I don't voice my thoughts. I let them slip past and move on. I want that to change. My friend Marie has amazing hair. It is this beautiful brown and its curly and she has grown it longer lately and she sometimes just braids the front and it look so great! I THINK the thoughts of how amazing it looks....but forget to say it. Or my friend Emily ~ she has a way with accessories and makeup that is absolutely stunning and her hair is amazing too. She lives across the road from me so I see her often....and do I say it enough? That she inspires me and that her beauty is a gift? There is my friend Heather who loves bright colors. Usually she has something super bright on...nail polish or a sweater or an undershirt or just something that is neon and happy and cheerful. She has this style that says happy. I LOVE it and have I EVER told her that? I don't know. My friend Laura can be in work out pants, gum boots and a simple sweater, she tells me she has not showered in days...and every.single.time. she looks like a model. It blows my mind. She has mile long eye lashes and the sweetest smile. All three of my sisters have hair that anyway would want, like really badly. Their hair is amazing and all of their smiles light up their eyes in this really incredibly illuminating way. My friend Rachelle has delicate petite arms and wrists. They are so graceful. She dances so expressively and her voice is soothing and pretty! My cousin Sharon...I have always admired her features, her perfect body that looks incredible in everything she wears and her style that is both delicate and strong. My friend Shanda...her smile is the best and her hair so smooth and glossy...even in the most humid environment (she lives in Jamaica)... and she is another one with beautiful arms and hands AND she makes me laugh so hard. My friend Bethany's eyes and the fact her skin is always natural and clear. She never wears makeup and I LOVE that about her. I also love her style. he always has some sort of purse or bag she has made that blows your mind. I have probably never told them any of this.
A couple days ago my sister randomly complimented my hands. Once when I was quite young someone told me I had alligator hands. For whatever reason that stuck in my mind and all through life I have looked at my hands as alligatorish :) She really blessed me by saying that sweet and kind though that flashed through her mind. I have had a couple random compliments given to me through my life. One was when I was young and an elderly man told me that my freckles were angels kisses and that they were beautiful. Another time an elderly East Indian man told me my hair looked like fire. The way he said it...was like he was in awe of my hair...and I never forgot it. One time another person complimented me on my beautiful smile and how it lit up my face and another person told me how much they liked my voice when I talked... that it was pleasant... Sometimes it is the random compliments from strangers that bless you the most. They dont KNOW you and they didn't have to take the time to tell you that you captivated them for a moment, but they DID.
I have friends that have a A LOT of beauty inside them. Their spirits are kind and their hearts giving. However they ALL blow me away by their beauty. I wanted to say that if you see someone out there who blows you away by their beauty...consider letting them know. If your heart is in the right place that will come through and it will come out the right way. They may really need that little pick me up from a total stranger (if that is indeed what you are) or you as their dear friend. It may be words that stick with them the rest of their life.
I hope I can do that with more confidence and not just through a facebook post. It's real life that matters more.
Thursday, 5 November 2015
Another Mother Blessing
A couple days ago I attended another mother blessing. This one was so different from the last I attended. There was no comparison (which I loved because each mother blessing so reflected who the mother was) other than that the mother left feeling so encouraged and yes, blessed. This mother blessing had six people in attendance and we were asked to bring a Bible verse to put in a jar and then words to read over the mother that were filled with encouragement and life. This mother blessing was full of simplicity, warmth, generous hearts and nurture. The mother sat on the floor by a cozy fire. The mountain view through the living room window can not be adequately described in words as the Autumn colors were in full cry. Each person there was a mother and had a fierce mother's heart. It felt like time stood still for all of us as we had busy, demanding lives back home, but for now where we were was what mattered so much. We each took turns reading what we had brought for our friend. As I have said before ~ each baby is a miracle ~ a treasure ~ and this one is baby number five. It is coming into a family FULL of life and love and action and adventure. It is going to be one very treasured very loved little one. This mom is an amazing woman. Her heart's cry is to mother well and to not feel burdened or bowed down in drudgery by her task. She wants to accept each moment mothering as the deep blessing it is, the gift that it is, the joy that it is, and to view her children as the greatest shaper's and builder's her soul has at this time as she selflessly serves and pours out herself. It is inspiring, and in the words we all read, this was reflected. We all admired and looked to her as inspiration. In turn she needed these words deeply and they filled her in a moment where she needed strength and courage. Her cup overflowed. After we read our words, trying to manage the vulnerability in a setting where we did not all know each other well (at least I was trying to manage my feelings of vulnerability ~ I cried a lot as I read ~ this girls means so much to me), we prayed over her and her husband. Men ~ the husbands and fathers ~ they do not have moments like this and really they need it too. They work so hard, they give so much, and they are just as worn out. We wished that something like this ~ a building up, words of affirmation, could happen for them in a setting where they didn't feel incredibly uncomfortable! After we prayed we were given mason (canning) jars with a little note attached to remember to pray for our friend. We filled them with candy and it was a sweet reminder each time we had one to pray. This mother blessing was once again another reminder of how many many mother's hearts are so much the same. However we struggle with feeling like we are not enough, we are not doing our job well, that we can't quite reach the mark we set, and the underlying weariness runs deep. Our mother's hearts though...they don't stop. They keep on beating and they keep fighting and they keep hoping for the best. They want to see their children really live and to grow and know God. To be surrounded by those hearts in that sort of a setting did not just bless the mother we were focusing on but us as the blessers. I was honored to be there. I so deeply feel that each mother needs a mother blessing no matter if a new baby is coming or not. In those daily moments where she feels like she has failed in every way she needs to be able to remember those words spoken such as the ones spoken at this shower...to wash over her like a baptism of grace...and to remind her that she can always get back up and always keep on. xo
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)