Camping Trip #2

The second camping trip we did this year happened to be during our biggest heat wave of the year. This means no fires and many trips to the Lake throughout the day. My brother and his wife just bought a tent trailer this year, so we went out to Rolley Lake with them. I've been wanting to camp here for awhile now and really liked it. The lake was a nice temperature and size for swimming in, although the beach was a little bit rocky. We love provincial campsites...they don't offer power, but all the big trees and space make it so beautiful. I hope this camping trip turns into an annual event because I had a great time!

The men planning out something...

The kids...probably waiting to go to the lake

Scott, Krystie, Peyton and Zoe chowing down

Awww...Christopher and his little cousin, Peyton

Everyone's cutie...Zoe

Camping Trip #1

The highlight of my summer is always our camping trips. The biggest one (and the best) is when we go camping with the Larnder family. This year we went to Maple Bay out at Cultus Lake. There are some things that are guaranteed when we all get together...such as laughing, card playing and a nice slushy drink, or two...
Other things, such as going to the beach and having a fire, depend on the weather. This year we were lucky enough to do both.

Heading to the beach

Chris tossing the frisbee around

Me and Kenton relaxing on our floaties

Christopher and his friend Dylan eating breakfast

Our annual round of mini golf

Well, that's a quick overview of Camping Trip #1. Can't wait to do it again next year!

Getting Back Into It

Well, now that summer is over and everyone is getting back to being on a schedule, it's time to make an attempt at this blogging thing again. I'm in the process of getting some of my recent pics downloaded and then hope to do a bit of a recap of our summer. Hope to see you soon!

My BFF

It always amazes me how there can be one person in your life who you will not be in touch with for weeks at a time, but when you finally meet up again, wether it be in person, online or via telephone, it's like time hasn't gone by at all since the last time. That would perfectly describe the relationship between myself and my Best Friend since childhood. I try to always be a positive, happy person, but in those rare moments when I feel discouraged or a little down there is one person who can always bring not only a smile to my face, but a laugh into the room. She is a happy, positive, easy-going, giving, loving, inspiring, Godly woman...and she is my BFF...Sonya. Thanks for all the great times girl, and to many, many more!! ;)

Adventures in Babysitting

This weekend, one of my cousins is getting married in Vegas. My brother was asked to be in the wedding party, so I volunteered to look after my two little nieces. They are three and one. So far, they've been perfect angels...

Baking!

We've done a fair bit of baking in the last few days...chocolate chip cookies, banana bread and peanut butter cookies. The boys have said they wouldn't mind if their cousins came over more often!

Extra! Extra!

This morning when you open up your papers, you will see a familiar face.
It was like Christmas morning for Kenton when he went to the front door to grab the morning paper. :)
On Thursday morning, I went to take Kenton to the Abbotsford News office to submit his speech as a letter to the editor. I hadn't even been home for five minutes when the phone rang and a voice said, "This is Vicki Hopes from the Abbotsford News and we'd like to do an exclusive interview with Kenton." It was explained to him that if he decided to do the exclusive, he could not submit his letter to all the other papers...it didn't take him long to decide!
So, off we went to the News office for Kenton's interview. Later that afternoon, they sent a photographer by to shoot a few pictures. They wanted the shot by the cameras since Kenton mentions it in his speech, so to get a good shot Kenton had to stand on the photographers Jeep. It was very interesting.
We were out for the day when the article was posted to the internet, but when we got home there was a message from Global TV asking if they could do an interview.

*Since then, Kenton has been on the front page of the Province and has met MP Ed Fast and Senator Yonah Martin. Way to go Kenton!

"Bacon is nice...but these guys are not..."

This year, for Grade 6 speeches, my eleven-year old's topic was "The Notorious Bacons". He made it to the quarter-finals, which meant that he presented his speech to the entire gymnasium. He received a beautiful ribbon for his efforts and caught the attention of a few influential persons in our city. A few of our local law enforcement officers heard his speech and asked to forward it to the chief of police and also asked him if he would please consider forwarding it to all the local newspapers, including the Vancouver Province and Sun. We are extremely proud of him!

Tonight, at Sunday dinner, he got up the courage to ask our personal surveillance/swat/bodyguard team for a photo-op!

Believing God

Tonight I skipped Book Club and went to a bible study I was invited to. It's a ten week program of watching a series of DVD's by Beth Moore and working through a workbook. The homework looks really intense, but good. There is 5 lessons to be done each week, each one taking approximately one hour! In the past, I haven't really enjoyed bible studies, but I'm really optimistic that this will be a good experience. After all, life is all about the experience and this year's goal is to challenge myself! I'll keep you all updated....and I welcome any input any of you have for me. :)

Happy Birthday Chris!

Today I want to wish my husband, Chris, a very Happy 39th Birthday!
Love you lots!!

( This is the delicious tuxedo cake we had... )

Beautiful!

My Valentine's flowers looked too beautiful sitting on the counter in the sunshine not to share with everyone!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Our Valentine's Day was just a nice, ordinary Saturday. Something I haven't had in awhile. I worked for a few hours this morning, then went to watch Kenton play soccer. It was soooo cold out there! Later on, I went for a run since it was so nice and sunny out. I definitely warmed up quickly. :) After a warm shower, I caught up on all my blogs, then it was time to make dinner. I had bought steaks earlier in the week, so I had saved them for tonight. Along with potatoes, mushrooms, yorkshire puddings and some veggies...it was the perfect dinner. Now Chris has gone to drop the kids off at friends' and get me some chocolate! I'm looking forward to a nice, quiet evening....

My sweethearts....

Third Annual Girls Ski Trip

This weekend four of us girls went on our third annual ski trip. The past two years, we have gone to Manning, but this year we went to Baker. I love Baker!

We rented a condo in Glacier, Washington, which is less than 30 minutes away from the top of the mountain and about 30 minutes away from home. How much more perfect can you get? The condo complex had a pool and hot tub too.

We left on Friday around lunch and headed down to Bellis Fair to pick up some new running shoes, then we headed back to Glacier and checked in. Later, we went for dinner at a little restaurant attached to the local corner store, then went back to sit around and chat over a few glasses of wine before turning in early for the night.

The weather on Saturday was absolutely gorgeous. What a perfect day of skiing! We even accomplished a few black diamond runs since the conditions were so great. On Sunday, two of us went skiing, while the others decided to take it easy. :) It was another great day...beautiful weather, great fellowship, and a few new undiscovered runs.

Next year's trip promises to be even better!

Ms. Independence

The last few days I've been busy learning little things that I've always wanted to know how to do by myself. My husband is the computer whiz around here, so whenever I've needed something I've just asked him to do it for me. But the last few days, I've had to learn on my own and I'm glad.
One of the projects I've been wanting to find time for is arranging all our photos from the trip with took with the kids last year and making it into a movie. It took me about a day and half to scan in a bunch of pics, arrange them, put in transitions and then set it all to music. I've already done a power point presentation, so the movie wasn't anything new, but burning it to a cd was an accomplishment.
Another thing I've never done myself, unbelievably for nowadays, is download songs to my mp3 player. It actually was really easy. I've learned a lot about limewire and where your songs get stored on your hard drive and all the rest.
So, that's what I've been up to the last few days. I love this little machine more and more each day...

A Rebel At Heart

Well, now that NaBloPoMo is finished, I was going to be rebellious and not post tonight, just because I don't have to...but I wanted to!

A few weeks back, Sonya had this on her blog and now it's time for me to make good on my part of the bargain...

Be one of the first 3 people to leave a comment on this post, and I will send you a handmade gift! How much fun does that sound? You then need to post the Pay It Forward challenge on your own blog and make a gift also for your first 3 commenters and so on it goes. :) The gift can be in any price range you like and you have 365 days to send it.

I've always been a great fan of this movie and the entire concept, so my goal is to do a Random Act of Kindness once a month and blog about it. Sound like something the rest of you would like to get in on? Can't wait to hear all about it!

I Made It!

I've always been known as a random blogger, so I'm extremely proud of myself that I blogged everyday this month...and I've got to say that I really enjoyed it. Of course, there were nights I didn't really feel in the mood, or I was too tired, but it was a great accomplishment. I look forward to being a more consistent blogger in the future and making many more friends.

Ten Things I Like...

Ten Things I Like that Start with "D"....

1. Daisies...they are one of my favourite flowers.

2. Dawn and Dusk...and anything else that has to do with the sun.

3. Donuts...I love them way too much for my own good.

4. Dad...he's a great guy!

5. Diamonds...and any other bling.

6. Dance shows...I know...pretty corny, but I love them!

7. Dark chocolate...any kind of chocolate really...

8. Dana...she's a great friend of mine. :)

9. Decorating...interior, Christmas, etc.

10. My favourite colour ends with "D"...red!

I'm Tired!

My back is throbbing,
My head is bobbing.
My skin is bumpy,
I'm feeling kinda' lumpy.
My eyes are puffy,
My hair's lookin' scruffy.
My mind is in a fog...
so that's it for tonight's blog!

Domestic Day

Today, I had the day off and spent it doing domestic chores. (I did sneak in a quick lunch with my mom though) Actually, every once in awhile I really enjoy being able to play the "stay-at-home mom" role. I turned on "Regis and Kelly" and "The View", although I didn't actually watch much, and proceeded to do a bunch of laundry, vacuum, bake banana bread and make an old favourite for dinner.

My dad used to make goulash after church on Sundays...goulash being shredded potatoes and onions with eggs cracked over top. I hadn't had it for years, so decided to make it with italian sausage added in and cheese melted on top. I thought it turned out pretty good.

Now I'm going to go finish off my day by watching some TV and sampling my yummy banana bread. I've been told my recipe is a good one, so I'm going to share it with you.

Banana Bread

1 cup white sugar

1 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 egg

dash of salt

splash of vanilla

3 medium bananas

1/2 cup margarine

Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Enjoy!

Sebastian

Our new kitty, Sebastian, has definitely been making himself at home. The first few days we got him, he was scared of us. Now he searches us out to pet and cuddle him, and we're usually happy to oblige! He has also become very playful...

Handy Girl

Today I finally bought a bookshelf that I've had my eye on for a few weeks now. I'm so excited because I don't think I've ever had a bookshelf since we've been married. I fell in love with it instantly. As soon as I got home, I set to work putting it together...all by myself. All the books on my bedside table inspired me to set it up in the corner of my bedroom.

Love Is...

Love is very patient and kind,
never jealous or envious,
never boastful or proud,
never haughty or selfish or rude.
Love does not demand its own way.
It is not irritable or touchy.
It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice
when others do it wrong.
It is never glad about injustice,
but rejoices whenever truth wins out.
If you love someone you will be loyal to him no matter what the cost.
You will always believe in him,
always expect the best of him,
and always stand your ground in defending him.
All the special gifts and powers from God will someday come to an end,
but love goes on forever.

I Corinthians 13:4-8
The Living Bible

Where The Sidewalk Ends

When I was in elementary school, one of my favourite books was "Where The Sidewalk Ends", a collection of poetry by Shel Silverstein. A few years back, I noticed it in one of the boys' Scholastic Book Orders, so I bought it for myself. Here's a favourite...

Sick

"I cannot go to school today,"

Said little Peggy Ann McKay.

"I have the measles and the mumps,

A gash, a rash and purple bumps.

My mouth is wet, my throat is dry,

I'm going blind in my right eye.

My tonsils are as big as rocks,

I've counted sixteen chicken pox

And there's one more-that's seventeen,

And don't you think my face looks green?

My leg is cut, my eyes are blue-

It might be instamatic flu.

I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke,

I'm sure that my left leg is broke-

My hip hurts when I move my chin,

My bellybutton's caving in,
My back is wrenched, my ankle's sprained,

My 'pendix pains each time it rains.

My nose is cold, my toes are numb,

I have a sliver in my thumb.

My neck is stiff, my voice is weak,

I hardly whisper when I speak.

My tongue is filling up my mouth,

I think my hair is falling out.

My elbow's bent, my spine ain't straight,

My temperature is one-o-eight.

My brain is shrunk, I cannot hear,

There is a hole inside my ear.

I have a hangnail, and my heart is-what?

What's that? What's that you say?

You say today is....Saturday?

G'bye, I'm going out to play!"

Thank you!

I just wanted to say "thank you" to a fellow blogger. You inspired me to do the NaBloPoMo challenge, you've passed along many insightful posts and tonight I watched a wonderful movie that you suggested a few weeks ago. This evening I watched "The Ultimate Gift" with a friend. We both agreed that it was one of the best movies we have seen in a long time.
I'm really thankful for the opportunities this blog has given to me...growing friendships and sharing and affirming thoughts with other women. I've discovered that this blogging thing is really something special and worthwhile! Thank you. :)

Deep Thoughts

As a teenager, we used to love to watch Saturday Night Live. For some reason, the other day Jack Handey and his "Deep Thoughts" came to mind. I recently decided to google this topic and discovered that Jack Handey is a real person. He was born in San Antonio, Texas on Feb. 25, 1949. He is a humorist known for his one-liners. He worked for a newspaper, but was fired for offending someone. He then went to work with Steve Martin, which led to him working on SNL. This past April, he published his first collection. Here is are a few samples of Jack Handey's "Deep Thoughts"....

"Maybe in order to understand mankind, we have to look at the word itself: "Mankind". Basically, it's made up of two separate words - "mank" and "ind". What do these words mean ? It's a mystery, and that's why so is mankind."

"Instead of a trap door, what about a trap window? The guy looks out it, and if he leans too far, he falls out. Wait. I guess that's like a regular window."

"Instead of having 'answers' on a math test, they should just call them 'impressions' and it you got a different 'impression' so what, can't we all be brothers?"

"I hope that someday we will be able to put away our fears and prejudices and just laugh at people. "

"I wish I would have a real tragic love affair and get so bummed out that I'd just quit my job and become a bum for a few years, because I was thinking about doing that anyway."

"If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason."

"Better not take a dog on the space shuttle, because if he sticks his head out when you're coming home his face might burn up."

"One thing kids like is to be tricked. For instance, I was going to take my little nephew to Disneyland, but instead I drove him to an old burned-out warehouse. "Oh, no," I said. "Disneyland burned down." He cried and cried, but I think that deep down, he thought it was a pretty good joke. I started to drive over to the real Disneyland, but it was getting pretty late."

As you can see, you definitely need a different sense of humour to enjoy "Deep Thoughts", but I hope at least one or two of these made you smile!

LOST is Back!

After a long wait, LOST is back tonight! If you haven't been following, here is a cute 5 minute trailer to get you all caught up. Enjoy!

My Best Friend

Yesterday, I received a gift in the mail from my BFF, Sonya. She sent me a beautiful necklace that she brought back from her cruise vacation. Along with it, was a great card.

This is what it read...

How to be an amazing friend...

listen

hang out

laugh when it's funny

cry when it's sad

remember the good stuff

share dreams

stay true...

be you!

I just want to take this time and tell everyone what an amazing friend Sonya is to me...she is everything the card says, and more! I can always be "me" around her, which is one of the things I love most about her. Here are a few pics of us together throughout the years.

Thanks for the special gift Sonya. I love it! You're the best friend a girl could ever have!

Love As A Way of Life

I got this new book for Christmas and I can't wait to read it! It was one of the books in my pile of must-reads from an earlier blog. This is what the front jacket cover reads:

What does a love-driven life look like-not just at home, but in friendships, at work, in the church, and in business relationships? And how does the pursuit of authentic love change not only your relationships, but also your life?

In "Love As A Way of Life", Gary Chapman shows how the seven traits of love work together to transform the way you live. Over time, you will learn how to allow love to direct the way you respond to others in every situation. Your interactions with other people-from your spouse or best friend to business associates and casual acquaintances-can have an eternal impact on their lives.

Embark on the daily adventure of loving others. As you do, you will discover new meaning in every aspect of life.

New Easter Candy

This weekend I was introduced to a new Easter treat...Cadbury Popping Mini Eggs. Now I've seen it all! A mini egg with pop rocks mixed in with the chocolate. The chocolate and the pop rocks get stuck in your teeth and keep popping and crackling for a few seconds after you're done your chocolate treat. I guess it's the treat that keeps on giving!