New Beginnings

We are home. In our new "Home Sweet Home" here in Stratford.

It's a beautiful home on an older street with lots of huge, mature Maple trees and a big backyard with a clothesline that spans its width. There's a swing set, a deck that fits both the BBQ and the smoker and our neighbours are friendly (and have pools!).

We're 90% unpacked. I can't believe it! We were beasts at unpacking this move. I've spent some time weeding the front perennial gardens and Jason has already been up on the roof and cleaned out the eaves. We're totally nesting and it's feeling good. I think one of the reasons we're enjoying this house is because it reminds us of our 1st home on Palmerston Ave in Whitby. Lots of greenery, front porches and little traffic. Some of the neighbours we've met have been in the same house for almost 20 years.

There's a corner store just down the street.

And a pizza parlour.

(We've already caved on the $3 slices.)

I have so much to update this blog about.

I became a great-auntie again this past week!

So many feelings. Photos. Momenteous moments of our journey to get here and experiences we've already had in the short time we've lived here.

It will all have to wait until I have more time to sit and type it all out.

This weekend we're on our way to visit family. We can do that now! Just a two hour trip by car. It's amazing. Even if we don't get to see everyone, we can pop over next month and try it again. And the next month after that.

We've eaten Swiss Chalet twice.

(Again, posting about food...)

Next week, we pile into our little trailer for a 5 night camping trip a few hours up north. Looking forward to the beach and all those thoughts and feelings I posted about a few weeks/months ago.

Life is good.

God is great.

Love is grand.

Peace out. xoxo

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Photo source.

They're Here

Last Trip to Banff

One of our favourite places in Alberta is being surrounded by the beauty of the mountains, especially in Banff.

We took one last trip there this past Saturday, hoping to ride a few horses in the process, but unfortunately the weather did not cooperate.

I snapped a few last pics, even though I have a fujillion (our kids' word) pics of this area to look back on whenever I get to missing this part of God's awesome creation.

Best Friend Goodbyes

My Happy Place

Life has been a whirlwind lately.

We found out we're moving.

I was away at a conference for a week.

The kids were sick while I was away. Both of them.

Jason received a call to assist in Slave Lake for 5 days.

One kid was sick again just before he left.

We had a significant and symbolic Sunday Service while Jason was away.

We're still packing, packing and more packing.

And preparing for a garage sale.

The interior of our house is "in slings" as my Mom would say.

Boxes. Paper. Piles of stuff.

What to keep, to sell, to throw out.

Wondering if our new home has air conditioning as temps there hit 30 degrees today.

Trying to do all those "one last time" events that can only be experienced here in Alberta.

Book hotels for a 5 day journey through 4 provinces. By car. With 2 kids.
And 2 cats who haven't travelled since they were brought home as kittens.

The kids are asking lots of questions about our move. Mostly out of excitement, but there are a few anxious moments as well. Trying to make them a priority out of everything else that's going on.

Redirect mail. Cancel phone/cable/internet.

Process relocation paperwork. (And there's a lot of it!)

Arrange for carpets/furniture/ducts to be cleaned.

Battle allergies.

Goodbye breakfasts to attend. And lunches. And dinners.

(People have been so kind!)

Scheduling time for the kidlets to spend with their friends.

Inform the current school. Inform the new school.

Tie up loose ends. Personally. Professionally.

So I go to my happy place.


Well, not literally.

Not as in a location, but in the comfort and security that our family's trailer brings.

Because one day in the future, we will all be gathered at this trailer.

Amid the trees and sun and sand and lake.

Sandcastles, beach floaties, nature walks, BBQ suppers with pie irons for dessert.

Kids tucked into their sleeping bags each night, giggling while watching "The Little Rascals" (they're favourite camping series) until they drift off to sleep.

And Jason & I will be just outside by the romantic glow/scent of a campfire and citronella candles, sipping out of our ginormous camping mugs filled with tea or flavoured coffee.

Maybe then we can debrief about these past months of craziness.

About where we've been and where we're going.

Planning for the future. Praying.

Or maybe we'll just sit in silence and listen to the sweet sounds of nature at night.

But for now...

Back to today and its to-do's and the memories that they will once be.

A Rainbow of Thoughts

Monday's ramblings amid all the beautiful colours of the rainbow.

I wonder if when we get to Heaven, we will see colours that we've never seen before?

That was rambling #1.

Read on, if you're intrigued.


This week is a "gearing-up" kinda week.

I have an assignment to complete for LDI part deux, which I will be attending next week near Vancouver, BC.

Excited about going (never been to Van before), but not too thrilled with flying on my own.

The last (and only) time I've ever flown on my own was when Dad was moved into the hospital.

Happy this flight will, at least, be more positive in overall general circumstance.

Also, I get to attend the Divisional Jr. Youth Together this weekend with Bria and 5 other girls. This is likely to mean very little sleep the day before I fly to BC. I know the girls are very excited, so maybe I can run on their adrenaline.

I used to be so good at staying up late!

A real night owl.

*Hoot*

I went to bed at 8pm last week.


We've been told someone should be contacting us about dropping off boxes for our move sometime this week.

Jas & I were pondering the fact that this next house will be our 6th house to live in since we got married, including a short stint of living with my parents just prior to our move to Winnipeg for CFOT.

Anyone else immediately think of Mary whenever they hear/use the word ponder?

"And Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart."
- Luke 2:19


My dieting has gone to pot lately.

One would think with the nicer weather we've been (finally) having, I'd be spending more time outdoors walking/running/leaping.

No such dice. I need to make this a priority for all of us.

I have a lot of priorities right now.

Not good when you're a natural born procrastinator.


Today our goal is to (somewhat) sort through the two disaster areas of our home.

1. The garage.

(Where does all the STUFF come from?!?!?)

2. My craft room, which in recent months has ended up being more of a catch-all than a place of creativity.

I must get to those teacher appreciation gifts and other tokens of thanks that I have floating around in my head!

My greatest ideas of inspiration come to me in the middle of night when everyone else is asleep.

Why IS that?

I need to keep a pad of paper and a pen on my bedside table and record these random creative thoughts immediately.

For future pondering.


Speaking of weather (a few ramblings back), I was recently chatting with another Albertan Mom about how difficult it is to dress kids for school during this time of year.

The day can start out at 0 degrees and end up close to +20.

Last week when I picked the kids up from school, I literally saw a boy dressed in shorts, a sleeveless shirt and sandals being chased by a kid wearing a parka.

I can empathize with and relate to both of their Moms.

Signing off to tend to several of the priorities that I've procrastinated about.

*giggle*

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Image sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

On the Move

We have been appointed to The Salvation Army Stratford Community Church in Ontario effective July 1st.

This is bittersweet for us as Red Deer has been our home for the past 4 years and a wonderful place of growth and ministry.

We know, however, that God continues to have good things in store for Red Deer and for our family in this new season of our faith.

(In other words, expect lots of blogging about lists, grieving, excitement, anticipation, tying up loose ends, parties, reflection, personal growth, joy, boxes, packing, goodbyes, driving across the country with 2 kids + 2 cats, and new beginnings.)

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Image source.

We Made It!

WE'RE HERE!

We arrived in Winnipeg around 3:30 p.m. Note that we're now in the Central Time Zone and are 1 hour behind the Toronto area. All I can say about Manitoba is that it's very, very...

FLAT! haha I swear, only an hour before entering Manitoba, Jason & I were winding down huge mountains and rock-cuts, up and down valleys and hills. Then we hit Manitoba and BAM! Nothing but flat for miles and miles. I can only imagine what Saskatchewan must look like.

We headed straight for the hotel and then drove over to our new condo apartment. It's beautiful! Jason & I peeked inside one of the windows quickly and it looks very nice, from what we saw. They are still doing a lot of construction surrounding the complex and a lot of the new condo's and homes are still for sale. I was pleased to see so many familiar stores, etc. when we drove around like Walmart, Zellers, Value Village and TWO Perkin's Restaurants! Whoohooo! Breakfast at Perkin's is the best.

We aren't able to get into our new home until 8:30 a.m. tomorrow, so we came back to the hotel which is by far the nicest one we've stayed in during the whole trip. We went to "Tony Roma's" for supper and then Jason took Bria for a swim in the hotel's pool while Blaise and I did a load of laundry in the guest services.

I'm not sure when I will be able to update this blog again, since we won't have internet service right away. Please remember us in your prayers, especially the kids - that the transition will be smooth for them. They've done so well during the drive out - much better than we had thought. We've had a wonderful trip with many great memories, but it will be very nice to unpack and just stay in the same bed night after night - even if only for two years.

Hopefully it won't take to long to get internet/cable/phone hook-up! God bless. xoxo

Thunder Bay

We had a LONG drive today, but once again the scenery was absolutely gorgeous. We stopped at White River, the tiny town Winnie-the-Pooh originated from. We bought the kids Pooh t-shirts and they got their picture taken beside the Pooh monument. I'll include the background story on once I get the pics uploaded. Very interesting to find out that the real Pooh was a Canadian bear!

The kids slept a lot during the drive and we stopped for lunch and snacks a few times so Bria could run around. Every town up here, big or small, seems to have an A&W. One of the scenic places we stopped to rest at was "Old Woman Lake." There was a beautiful beach with awesome mountains in the distance. Bria collected rocks and Blaise had fun playing in the sand, although he kept trying to eat it! Again, I was able to get some nice pictures. The air feels so clean up here.

We arrived in Thunder Bay around 6 p.m. We stayed at the Ramada Landmark Inn. They had an awesome pool with two water slides that Bria loved (took lots of pics), but the hotel itself wasn't one of our favourites. There was a family with a bunch of kids staying either above or beside our room that were up very late . Even Bria kept saying, "Who's making all that racket???" That's Bria, our 3 year old going on 70. We had asked the front desk for extra pillows. We're still waiting. (haha) We were so tired from the drive that we didn't even go out for dinner, we ordered room service. If you get the chance, ask Jason about it because his description of the meal is priceless.

We didn't get to see a whole lot of Thunder Bay, because we were up and out of there by 8:30 a.m. I did see a beautiful sunrise through the hotel's window. We stopped at Tim's for bagels and apple juice (our breakfast staples) and then were on our way.

Sault Ste. Marie

It's a rainy day here in the City of Sault Ste. Marie. We just got back from the Mall across the street from our hotel. We had lunch in the food court and Bria bought a new toy and some hair "pretties" from Dollarama. We arrived here around 1:00 p.m. and had pretty good weather, but did drive through a couple of showers. The leaves are starting to turn and you can see the mountains in the background - breathtaking! There is a beautiful waterfront here but because it's raining, we haven't be able to take advantage of it. The kids (well, Bria) are watching "Blues Clues" on tv and Jason is trying to take a nap. We plan on going for a swim at the hotel's indoor pool in a little while and then head out for supper.

Just a funny note, last night we woke up sweating to find that Mommy hit the "heat" button on the air conditioner instead of the "off" button. We had a nice breakfast at Perkin's and Jason got to shake the hand of Mike Foligno (Leafs) on the way out. Even NHL'ers enjoy a good Perkin's breakfast!

We've been checking the t.v. for updates on Hurricane Katrina. Very scary! Good to hear it's been downgraded, but the footage of New Orleans and hearing about all the devestation is really sad.

Well, I'm sure we'll all get to bed early tonight as we have a LONG drive ahead of us tomorrow - likely between 6-7 hours. Hopefully there will be a good movie on later tonight. That seemed to get the kids settled down and ready for bed last night.

Off to the pooooooool now!

The Big Nickel, Sudbury

In the words of Daniel Cook (for those of you familiar with the Treehouse channel), "Here we are!" It took us 2 hours and 45 mins. to reach Sudbury, after leaving Bracebridge around 12:30 p.m. today. What a beautiful drive! Lots of rock cuts, forest and SO many lakes. God's creation is so incredibly awesome! Both kids slept the WHOLE way, so Jason and I had a really nice time just to talk. I was poking fun at him because he's really in his glory up here with all the trees and water. *grunt* He's smiling while he's driving for no apparent reason, but I'm wise to it. We're really enjoying the drive, so far. We're praying the weather stays nice. It's a little cooler here, but still warm.

Our hotel is very nice. We checked in around 3:15 p.m. and then drove to The Big Nickel to get some pictures. They had a small park there for Bria to play in, too. You can see the mines in the distance and it's really quite incredible. All over Sudbury there are huge rocks (reminded me of Newfoundland), although most of them are blackened from the smelting of the ash, etc. We read some material about it up at the Nickel and they say the mining process is much more environmentally friendly now, so most of the "black" we see is from many years ago. Very interesting to read about. (Disclaimer: Please note (ahem - specifically DEAN and CONNIE) that, in protection of Jason's impeccable personal hygiene, the "sweat" looking stain on the back of Jason's shirt is merely a shadow. hahaha)

Afterwards, we went out for supper and then had a swim back at the hotel. They have a hot tub, so I was loving that! Blaise is now sleeping and Bria & Daddy are watching "Madagascar." Both of us were able to speak to our parents tonight which was nice. We miss everyone, but we really are enjoying the trip. It's been very relaxing to just be here, after all the planning we've done to get to this point.

We have another 3-4 hour drive tomorrow, so hopefully the kids will sleep a lot again. I'm off to catch the rest of the movie. Good-night!

Santa's Village, Bracebridge

Well, here we are - day 1 of our trip out to Winnipeg. So far the weather has been sunny and warm and the kids have been behaving themselves in the car (sleeping most of the time). We had some thunderstorms at night, but at least it wasn't while we were driving. The hotel we stayed at didn't have wireless internet, so I'm updating this a day or two late.

We arrived in Bracebridge around 10:00 a.m. and after finding the location of our hotel, headed straight to Santa's Village. The road leading into it has many beautiful houses and they each have their roadside mailboxes decorated with Christmas lights, garland, santa's, etc. Really cute! Bria really enjoyed all the rides and climbers - it really was geared to her age group. Blaise stayed in his stroller most of the time, but he was fine with that (just fed him snacks & let him sleep). We got a lot of great pictures, although Bria was not into seeing Santa at all so we by-passed that part. Poor Jason wasn't able to get a new Santa's hat, as they were all out. (Go figure, Santa's Village is "all out" of Santa hats?!?!?) Bria's souvenier is a funky rubber ball that she's been playing with ever since. As we were leaving, I made Jason stop at the check-in booth to see if they had any brochures, etc. for me. The girls who worked there asked him if it was for scrapbooking! haha Apparently, I'm not the only one into the obsession.

We checked into the hotel around 2:45 p.m. and lounged around until 5:00 p.m, then we went out to Kelsey's for supper. The hotel we stayed at Inn At the Falls in the "Hammond House" which was beautiful. It's a pretty ritzy hotel, so we felt like VIP's for at least the few hours we were there (haha). Actually, it was the only hotel vacant when I tried to reserve something a few weeks before. We all fell asleep around 9:00 p.m. (yep, that early!). Both Jason & I woke up around 2:00 a.m. WIDE awake, thinking it was morning (we had slept 5 hours, after all!). But we ended up going back to sleep and woke up around 7:00 a.m.

We were given a complimentary continental buffet breakfest at The Inn, but since the whole atmosphere really catered to adults, we skipped it and ended up at Tim Horton's for a bagel. (Much more relaxing when you have 2 kiddies under 3.) We had found The Salvation Army while driving around town the day before, so we attended their service at 10:30 a.m. Everyone was very friendly as well as encouraging, especially once they found out we were on our way to CFOT in Winnipeg. Bria even went up on the platform with the other kids during children's time. She met a little friend there her age and spent the service watching a Veggie Tales video with her and a few others.

Bracebridge is a gorgeous town! I wish we had more time because there were a lot of cute shops downtown that I would have loved to visit. I was able to get most of the day's pictures developed, so I've freed up more space on my camera. Unfortunately, I never even thought to download the camera's software to the laptop. Remind me to post the pic of Jason on one of the kiddie rides at Santa's Village. He's the biggest "kid" on the ride and the picture is hilarious!

Off We Go

Happy "official" Birthday, Blaise! Our Baby Bear is now 1 years old. His picture was in today's Milestones section of Whitby News Advertiser, so Bria thinks he's famous. I think my Mom has collected every newspaper in the townhouse complex to save. (We did the same thing for Bria's 1st birthday.)

I have to also add, "Congratulations to Joe & Angela!" They got married last weekend in Niagara Falls, and we're very happy for them. All the best, you two! xoxo

Today was a very busy day with lots of running around. First, Jason & I headed to downtown Toronto to pick up our SA uniforms from the tailor. We had to be back by noon because I had made an appointment to get the kids' pictures taken at 12:30 pm. Well, wouldn't ya know it we ran over a BOLT which got lodged in our tire and we had to stop and get it fixed. We did make it in time for the portrait session and then we were all off to Chuck E. Cheese where we met Jason's parents. Don & Cheryl surprised us by showing up too. Later in the evening Don, Cheryl, Dean, Vicki & Kyle came over and we all had chinese food and good conversation.

Did I mention the laptop we got from Dean for CHEAP?!?! We are so happy and grateful, as this would have been an expense we just wouldn't have been able to afford had we went through a regular computer shop. It even has a built-in DVD player, so Jason bought an adaptor for the van and we let Bria pick out a few movies to buy for the trip out. (I'm sure we'll know every word to "Pooh's Heffalump" by the time we hit Manitoba!) I'm a happy Mommy because we also got a wireless card, so I can blog it up the whole way out. Yay!

We finished the evening with a prayer from each of us. We really felt the Holy Spirit's presence and comfort. God has been so good. He's given both Jason and I a great sense of peace about everything. We know that the Lord is with us and will continue to be, so we can rest calmly in His will and all that He has prepared for us to experience. It might sound cheesy, but we've come up with a family slogan - "We're a team of four under the coaching authority of Almighty God."

I'm not sure how soon I'll be able to update this blog, as I don't think the hotel in Bracebridge has an internet connection, so I leave you all with the lyrics to a very special song by Michael W. Smith - and a thank you from our family...

Packing up the dreams God planted
In the fertile soil of you
I can't believe the hopes He's granted
Means a chapter in our life is through

But we'll keep you close as always
It won't even seem you've gone
'Cause our hearts in big and small ways
Will keep the love that keeps us strong

And friends are friends forever
If the Lord's the Lord of them
And a friend will not say never
'Cause the welcome will not end
Though it's hard to let you go
In the Father's hands we know
That a lifetime's not too long
To live as friends

Thanks to all of our family and friends for your support, encouragement, generosity and kindness. We love you all very much. Please stay in touch. See ya's on the road!!!

A Few More Goodbyes

Just a little update on our weekend. We had a fun evening on Friday with dinner and a movie with our good friends, Dean & Vicki. We saw "Red Eye" which was pretty good and then piggied-out on desserts at the Rendezvous in Ajax. We always have a great time when the four of us get together - always lots of laughs!

Yesterday we had a very nice birthday party at the Hope Centre for Blaise. Thanks to everyone who spoiled him with gifts! He was a very tired boy at the end of the evening and fell asleep with birthday cake icing in his hair, after having two fist fulls for supper. I found out my brother Don is a champion ping-pong player! haha I was able to get a lot of nice pictures for Blaise's scrapbook, which always makes me happy. It was bittersweet leaving the Hope Centre, since it's in the building we used for church when my parent's were stationed in Ajax. We've had many celebrations there, including my parent's 40th wedding anniversary, my bridal shower, and birthdays for both Bria & Blaise.

Today was our last Sunday at Hope Community Church. It was sad saying goodbye to all of our friends, many whom have truly become like family to us. Everyone has been so encouraging and supportive, and we're so thankful that God lead us to Hope CC. Wayne & Kelly came to church & we said goodbye to them after lunch and also to Fred & Sharon, who stopped by my parents' in the afternoon. We are planning to come back for a visit during Christmas, so hopefully we'll get to see everyone again at that time. That certainly makes saying goodbye right now A LOT easier!

The moving company comes on Tuesday to pick up all of our boxes. I spent a few hours this evening packing up most of the little everyday things we've been using here, so we're left with only what we're taking on the drive out to Winnipeg. I spoke with Jodi today and they're gearing up to head out west this Thursday, although they'll be travelling down through the USA. It's so nice to know that when we arrive in Winnipeg, we will already have friends there to meet us!

It's a little past 10:00 p.m. and Pastor Adrian Rogers is on tv - so I'm off to watch & then to bed. Nighty-night!