Time and Time Ago.

I'm back after a few days of not knowing what to sit and write about and not feeling energetic enough to think of something. As I've said before fall, especially October is my pensive month, a time I think of treasured moments. The other day my sister was telling me how her daughter had talked about a moment she would always cherish and my sister said that quality of her daughter was alot like myself. I thought about that for awhile and it's true, I hold on to and cherish a lot of memories. I'm usually stumped when I'm supposed to describe myself but this one definitely fits. They say you're not supposed to live in the past which I don't think I do because my reality is very real. However, my mind often visits times of childhood and the events that are seared into my memory. Pictures certainly help this cause. So this week I'm going to do some reminiscing and bring out some older photos to share. (also because I haven't snapped any new pics in a while.)  

Don't memories have a share in shaping our characters and the way we choose to live? The feelings we get from an action in the present are often associated to a memory of the past. We do things in our homes like our mothers did or repeat the same words to our children that our fathers used. The sound of a Braun dough machine will always remind me waking up Saturday mornings to my mom starting up her batch of buns. The Sunday Request Show takes me back to sitting between mom and dad in the front seat of the truck on the way home from church. Even as a teen I chose most often to sit wedged between my parents, singing along with my dad to Johny Cash or the Statler Brothers. I know for sure that these times have shaped who I am today and I want to share them with my children to store in their memory. Maybe I'm just to sappy. I'm probably the only person who cries while watching a summary of the Anne of Green Gables movies at a ladies tea. (being pregnant might have had something to do with that :)

So these pictures go back to September of 2007. I believe the celebration, a BBQ at my sister's summer kitchen, was in favor of family birthdays held in September. I thought of this event  because we had Thanksgiving at my mom's yesterday. Mom had us all say something we were thankful for and most of my family, not being great at sharing emotions vocally, said they were thankful for everything. That works though! When I think of 'everything' I think of all the changes in the last five years that Wayne and I have gone through and how we have come out thankful. At this BBQ in fall of 07 we were unaware that God had already formed a new life between us. It would be the change of a lifetime for me. Just over a year of marriage and about to enter a new phase, the anticipation of motherhood. Four years later we give thanks to be blessed with five years of marriage,  a three year old daughter and a nine month baby boy.

This picture of mom reminds me of those first years when it was so hard to have family events and not see our father amongst the men, laughing and smiling his lazy half smile. Three years after his death the pain was still raw, especially for mom and the sadness in her eyes. There was a yearning in all of us to feel his presence still. Dad would've loved sitting with a cup of coffee in a summer kitchen. Seven years ago at his last Thanksgiving table Dad said he was thankful for his family and that it was growing. So looking around our table yesterday at a family that his grown in more ways than just numbers, makes dads last words a healing salve. How could we not be thankful for everything?

 Susie

great faith, patient

Katherine ('Teen')

creative, deep thinker

Trudy ('Trut')

funny, practical

This event also reminds me of these women who I'm honored to call my sisters. At the time Susie, my sister-in-law, was two months away from giving birth to Chase. Little did I know I would soon follow. These little children that were to come have played a big part in bring a new sense of joy and life into our family again. As sisters we all share different personalities and qualities but combined we bring something unique to each others lives.

Together we share many treasured memories.

Christina

Raindrops of Gratitude

"Just before the death of flowers,
And before they are buried in snow,
There comes a festival season
When nature is all aglow."- Author Unknown

It was so wonderful to wake up Monday morning to see that it had rained in the night. It wasn't much but the ground was wet and crystal beads of rain were shining every where. A Thanksgiving morning of splendid colors with the renewal of moisture. I couldn't resist taking Hanna out along with my camera and capture the colors of what's left in my flowerbeds.

I would be content with fall all year long but then I suppose the beauty would cease to amaze if there was never a change of season.

There is a harmony
In autumn, and a lustre in its sky,
Which through the summer is not heard or seen,
As if it could not be, as if it had not been!
Percy Bysshe Shelley

Showers of rain have been almost painfully few this late summer and fall. I gave up on watering the yard because it was all too dry to keep up with. We could count on one hand how many days of rain there have been lately. Yet on Thanksgiving morning there are countless drops of rain hanging on the branches till late in the morning. In this I'm reminded that despite the days when blessings seem few, God has not forgotten. With practice of Thankfulness we would recognize countless showers of blessings even when times are dry.

Hanna asked me to take a  picture of her and I because "we are best friends!" Good reason for a snapshot although I forgot the camera was zoomed in when I took it. :)

Christina

Heart Felt...

I'm catching a few minutes of blogging while sitting down with a steaming bowl of fresh Turkey Vegetable Soup and waiting for the buns to rise. I have a list of what feels like a hundred things to do today but I will be thankful to at least stroke a few off that list, like making some yummy thanksgiving foods, cleaning the bathroom, washing the floor, sticker book time with Hanna, putting tomatoes in the freezer, and hopefully finding time to try a recipe for homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte(a recipe I'll share if it turns out). I just love cooking and baking fall comfort food...cranberry loaves, pumpkin cinnamon buns, beef stew and dumplings, chicken pot pie, pumpkin pie, pumpkin cream cheese roll..basically anything to do with pumpkin. It's delicious just writing these down and way less self indulgence if I only stick to writing about them. :)

So this first week of Blogtober I realized that blogging every day takes a lot of effort and somedays there just isn't enough energy for it. Oh well, it'll just be the the month where I try my best to keep up. It's been a good week in this household, with some milestones met. On Monday my handsome hubby turned 30. We celebrated Sunday night but he wouldn't let me call him thirty until Monday.He's gone through many changes in his twenties: marriage, babies, buying a home, job changes, new friends, new family, and more. Wonder what changes the thirties will bring? I'm so very thankful for the man that chose to love me as his life partner and be a wonderful, fun loving father to his children. There are countless blessings to having Wayne as my love and provider.

I've been thankful this week too, that I've had time to catch up on practical things around my home like cleaning up outside, canning two batches of tomatoe soup, eventually getting laundry folded and put away and actually having ambition to make good suppers each day. The harvest has been blessed and I'm excited each time I walk into my cold storage to place fresh cannning on the shelves or more frozen goods into the freezer. There will be much to carry us through the winter.

Miss Hanna was much easier to handle this week due to an effort and prayers on my part to be  more patient and seek strategies that don't have me losing my cool so quickly. There were some big challenges like an over  the top temper tantrum but she and I both came out in the end having learned a good lesson. I was very pleased that she followed through and told Phil at the grocery store that she could not have a treat that day because she hadn't been listening to mom. It's hard giving consequences but proves when obedience follows. As a mother I try to instruct daily and each day I find I'm also being taught.

And what can I say about this sweet, dimpled, lovable boy. This week he's officially nine months old. With that milestone his two top teeth cut through, he stood up in the crib for the first time, does not lay still at all when I change his diaper and is still sleeping soundly through the night. I'm just so in love with this little version of Wayne.

There are a multitude of things to be thankful for, may our hearts be open to the bounty this Thanksgiving and each day following.

"We never approach God without cause for gratitude.
Thankfulness, a duty and delight greatly prominent in the Bible, is the declarative mood of gratitude - a bright fire in the world's frigid zone,
the memory and homage of the heart, a master force in soul-building, the greatest tonic faith has. Be ye thankful."
[Robert G. Lee]

Christina

Being Aunty Chris

 Don't those eyes immediately capture your attention? Boys always get those big charming eyes and lashes that every female desires. Well those charmers belong to my nephew, Chase. Hanna calls him "my sweetheart" and it's not hard to see why.

I
I've been babysitting him since the beginning of September. Many days have been filled with the two kiddos chasing each other around the house, bouncing off energy on the trampoline, screaming and laughing over their crazy antics and laying in bed together; looking at books. They fight, hug, say sorry, laugh, fight some more and on it goes as toddlers do.

This is the third fall that I've had Chase at my house and this year stands out as the one that the two are really forming a close bond. Chase tells his mom that he loves coming to Hanna's house and it so reassuring to have him smiling when he comes in the morning. Some mornings he stays asleep when Susie carries him in, and she tells me that his way of showing that he's really comfortable staying here. It's been a bonding time for him and I and I'm so proud to be his Aunty.

Chase and Hanna have been sharing new experiences together like beginning Nursery School. On Mondays when I take the two, we have to stop in front foyer and say good morning to the fishes in the school fish tank. It hits me how fast the years will fly when I see them carrying their backpacks down the hallways eager to see their class and it's not even Kindergarten yet. Chase and Hanna are only six months apart and will be in the same grade during the school years.

Something really unique about Chase is his ability to color and stay in the line. It astounds me how he focuses and there is absolutely no scribbling all over the page. And the good thing, it's rubbing off on Hanna. Everytime she colors now she excitedly says "Mom! I'm staying in the lines, really good just like Chase does!" The comparison is not too close but she getting much better. He's been learning from Hanna with catching on to riding the trike around the house. The first several times he kept spinning out, often giving up with some attitude. But practice has won over and now I deal with the both of them expertly racing around the house. My toes have been run over a few times already. It's so interesting watching them interact, often I can't help but laugh out loud at them, and other times totally exasperated. Jake loves watching them too, screeching and laughing.

I also had the privilege of babysitting my two nephews, Dillon and Reid, from Waynes' side of the family one morning this week. We spent a morning together while Hanna was in Nursery School. Reid was a little magnet to any stair in sight and boy can he motor; loved his big smiles while cruised around on the trampoline. Dillon, the little farmer boy, informed me that John Deere just doesn't run like red and pointed out exactly what farm implements I should stock up on. Couldn't help but chuckle. It's so interesting getting to know all the unique characters of these kiddos!

I'm also getting a lot done because they're keeping themselves busy with playing and I don't constantly have a 'helper' at my side. Although every morning my list to do is way longer than what I actually get done. Today I figured on canning in the morning and fall cleaning in the afternoon. Well between refereeing child spats, mealtimes, and a baby routine; canning became an all day affair. Oh well, it's been a good day! I missed doing a thankful 'Blogtober' post yesterday due to no time and trying to get to bed earlier. I had Chase yesterday morning too, so today I'm double thankful for the time these cousins are spending together. It's defintiely tiring and trying at times but these are precious times and memories for years to come.

Christina

Nature's Remedy

I stood on my porch this morning just taking in the beauty that fall brings. It makes you want to breathe so deep, that the fresh air will stay pungent in your lungs all day. Jake and I walked to the chicken coop and opened the doors to a flock so eager to get out and about into their treasure hunting world. The leaves were so dense beneath my feet, it was tempting to roll about like a little girl. Maybe that will be tomorrow's plan with Hanna! 

For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together. For nature, it is a time of sowing, of scattering abroad. ~Edwin Way Teale

I just love the feeling that I get strolling about my yard. It like the trees are winding down to take a long nap, and the birds and wind playing a lullaby. The leaves a warm blanket to the ground that is getting colder. I love the awakening of Spring, the Renewal; and the slumber of Autumn, the Peace.

Today I'm left thankful for Nature's healing touch, His light shining through the Masterful crafting of this earth.

Christina

Sundays' Smile

Autumn, the year's last, loveliest smile.
William Cullen Bryant

A very short post as I'm fighting heavy eyelids. A most wonderful October Sunday today;just loved the warm, colorful afternoon as Hanna and I crunched though the blanket of leaves all over the yard. God gave rest and rejuvenation to my soul today. It felt good to serve the Sabbath with a smile today and I'm left thankful for:

*puzzling with Hanna in our pj's

*an encouraging group of women in mother's sunday school

* a challenge to keep the faith amidst struggles and hurt

*taking in the beauty of a fall afternoon and freezing the moment with the click of a button

*Hanna riding her trike to the neighbours and joining a group of children for play

*hotdogs and fries for supper

*coffee, cake and celebration for Waynes 'tomorrow' birthday

*a day of feeling blessed

Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn.
Elizabeth Lawrence

Christina

Giving Thanks

October 1st today.

A month that is always a big deal for me. I love the changes of scenery, the colors, crispness and cool air that is so refreshing after a hot, dry summer. It's the month of Wayne's bithday which happens to be a milestone for him in two days. It's the month my creative juices start flowing as i feel the work outside will wind down and soon there will be time for nesting in and crafting, reading, cooking and baking comfort food, etc. Most of all it's the month I really turn pensive about life, the month I lost my Dad, a time a of memories that never escape. I think of all I've lost but more importantly it's a time to think of all that I have gained though my loss. This month of this year begins differently than the past several years, as I am learning to give Thanks to God for using the hurt and pain to bring me closer to Him.

 I'm committing myself  this month, to bring Thanksgiving to His Table each day. This doesn't come easy to me as by nature I focus so long on the pain, the negative and unjust feelings. I fall into a mire of self pity and find it hard to say Thanks for the blessings when  I'm too blind to see them. I had that kind of a day today, a good morning that went downhill; not a good first day of thankfulness. A day of overwhelming motherhood and feeling so inadequate; failing. A day where love didn't come easy and frustrations heaped. I needed my mother's assurance to clear my vision. I needed my husband to understand and talk me through tears. I need my Father's forgiveness. At the end of day we needed friends to share and understand with. The final touch, my Hanna climbing on my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck, and peace filling me in that moment. I can rest, with Thankfulness that I learned much through the pain of today.

"He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God." Psalm 50:23

Christina