this & that

Just last week we had ALOT of kids come to our door asking for treats. I happened to have my camera handy for the five MOST adorable ones, in fact, we invited them in & fed them supper too. (We were a little afraid of the tiny lion - he was pretty fierce!)

We actually had two lions come for supper, so we ate in the den...

Fast forward to tonight - yes, that's right, I said tonight. Yes, I know it's Nov 9th. No, I'm not crazy. Any other questions?

Now, I take you back about three weeks to the weekend of our "big cook". If you haven't read Cindi's blog lately, she did a great post on this endeavour. We've been enjoying many great dinners ( and some which we wouldn't do again). It's a great concept & I'm sure we'll repeat it sometime early in the new year. That's how long it'll be until I have to think "what should I make for dinner". Instead, I just have to choose a dinner that's oven ready! Good times!!
Have a great weekend everyone. I'll be decorating - woohoo!!!!!

Autumn Getaway

Last week, Rick & I took a rare week off together & drove a little distance north. This is one of the paths we walked, as we enjoyed reflecting on our many blessings...

...one of them being a succesful six month checkup for Rick at the cancer clinic, what a great relief that is! Reason to celebrate & give thanks!!!

We were joined for the last few days by my sister & bro-in-law - I gotta say - she makes the absolute best eggs benny!! I should say they - Ron poached the eggs to perfection. What a man.

Rick went on a hike by himself one afternoon (which I wouldn't recommend, since Viv & I had a close encounter with a black bear one evening) but he snapped some nice shots of God's creation. This one reminds us to keep looking up, even if there's alot of "stuff" in the way.

The first four days of our vacation, we were joined by our wonderful children & grandchildren. It was, at times, close fellowship and at all times - great fun!

Practicing for 2010; they still need some work on form, but enthusiasm is high...

...always good to relax in the hot tub after a day on the slopes (or just in the village)

This lucky grandma got lots of quality cuddle time - what else are you gonna do when you've got 11 people in a 2 bedroom condo?
Good Times!!!

Hang in there...

...a bunch of healthy, happy kidlets hangin' around at our house! What happy, grateful grandparents we are!!

where there's fire...

One of the advantages of living in Mission is that we're allowed to have contained fire in our own backyard. For the last two years I've envied our neighbours across the street. Their backyard looks like a scene right out of Survivor most nights, with the torches & the chiminea burning brightly. This spring they got us going by giving us a couple of their bamboo torches & we've added to the number over the course of the summer. The fire, however, was still missing. This weekend we remedied that. This evening we had our first fire in our new chiminea!

!

Of course, where there's fire...

...there's gotta be smores!!!!

Mmmmmm...can I have s'more?

ROSIE

We have a new baby at our house...


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...come a little closer & I'll show you...

This is Rosie. She has been christened thus by Olivia, who thinks all vehicles should have an appropriate name. Rosie's name is derived from a combination of her color & her owners' love of roses.

Rosie is not overly high maintenance - she just likes to be clean, get some fluids occasionally, go for drives (preferably out in the countryside, although she likes a fast ride every once in awhile). Friday night she wanted to go all the way to Coquitlam for pizza. Apparently she shares my love for Me & Ed's. Isn't she pretty?

Ya, we got a new car. It was time to replace "Oma Van" (appropriately named because of her age) :) Never had a new car before, and I've ALWAYS wanted a sunroof. Road trip anyone???

picnic?

This morning we decided on an impromptu picnic at a local park with our family. The skies were a little overcast, but it was still quite warm so we decided on a time to meet & I got to work making a picnic lunch. We met @ 11:00, the kidlets played at the playground & rode their bikes, Isaiah was just finishing his lunch & it was about time for the rest of us to eat when it started to rain. It quickly became apparent that it was not going to be just a passing shower - so - the last picture of this series will show you where we finished our picnic.

Isaiah is not only adorable but also one of the happiest babies I've ever known

Malcolm has learned how to say "cheese" when the camera is aimed his way (what a ham!)

Sabrina, Olivia & Noah - the three amigos - always have such fun together

...yes, that's our picnic blanket in the middle of our living room (and yes, it's still raining outside) What season is this again?

60th ANNIVERSARY!

Last weekend we had the priviledge of hosting Rick's family for the purpose of celebrating his parents' 60th wedding anniversary. It's the first time that we have all been together for that concentrated a length of time & it was SO good to catch up! We are spread out as far as Toronto (used to be as far as Peru) and we rarely get together as an entire family. We missed seeing alot of the grandkids - most didn't make the trip with their parents. Anyhow, we had everyone who could come for a bbq on friday night. Saturday & Sunday was just Dad & Mom & the sibs. We visited lots, laughed lots, cried some, ate well, slept a little & just generally enjoyed each others company.

This is the original family - before I led the invasion of in-laws back in 1973...

...and this is the family now. I wish we could have had all the kids & kidlets for a picture - now that would be impressive!!!

We took a little drive up to West Minster Abbey, a nice place for meandering & chatting, checking out the view.
Happy 60th Dad & Mom - thanks for the great weekend together!

DOUGLAS STEWART

There you are! :)

Victoria

Last weekend, we & the Reids went to Victoria to reconnect with old friends, Doug & Carol Stewart. I used to work with Carol before we started our families - then we had our firstborn within three weeks of each other. They have been living in Victoria for about 25 years, having grown up there. We so enjoyed being together again - there really is something special about old friendships. Here we are waiting for the ferry. We were priviledged to see whales, both on the way there & back home again!

Saturday morning, after the YUMMIEST cinnamon buns ever, we headed off to Beacon Hill Park. It's beautiful & fun with georgeous flower gardens & a petting zoo for the kids.

Saturday afternoon we walked the breakwater...quite possibly the scariest thing I've done in a while. I'm not sure why I was so afraid, possibly my fear of drowning combined with a fear of heights. Regardless, Nicole & Carol held my hands & off we went - no turning back. On the return trip, I pushed Malcolm in the stroller, & I must say, we made it in record time. :)

Sunday we went to Island View to explore the beach, collect shells, leave our mark in the sand & let Rick get back to his roots. It was a cool morning, but still lots of fun. Thanks for a great weekend, Doug & Carol. We'll be back for sure!!

Rollkuchen

So yesterday I had a craving for rollkuchen & watermelon - could have been the warm sunshine or could have been Lovella's blog. Either way, I only got as far as mixing the dough and putting it in the fridge. But this afternoon, my beautiful assistant Cindi & I rolled 'em out & fried 'em up. Just to make sure we got some protein, we included chicken wings and Voila, we had a yummy supper.

Notice how the puffy pillows house the watermelon? Now that's functional food!

For dessert, we just got out the syrup bottle. NOW summer's officially here. :)

WE ARE CANADIAN!

Our family took advantage of the beautiful, sunny morning (finally) and went to Abbotsford to watch the Canada Day Parade, eh? We had a great time, all except Isaiah who had alot of pouts during and after all the emergency vehicles going by sounding their sirens. But he persevered & we enjoyed the entertainment & treats which were plentiful.

I guess summer is now officially here, since school's out & so is the sun. The abundant rain over the past month has everything very green & lush - now, bring on the heat!!

For those interested, both Isaiah & Rick are doing very well. We are grateful for God's blessing & mercy & for the prayers of family & friends.

Happy Canada Day!