Harvest

Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 2b "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to plant and a time to harvest."
and so it is time to harvest our corn.

With the beautiful weather today and on Saturday it made it super easy to get all the crop off. Hurray!

Blessings

saying good-bye

why is saying good-bye so hard? We just returned home from the long trip to and from Orillia. Kyle & Teya were here for a few days during their reading week break from school. We were quite busy while they were here. We moved Krystle & Gerard to their new home, Kyle played volleyball with his dad, we enjoyed our family Thanksgiving Dinner together, and Kyle spent time at his brothers studio apartment at the Inn. whew! To say it was a busy week is an understatement.

It was so wonderful having Kyle & Teya home for several days and before I knew it, {sigh} it was time for them to return. It's so hard to say good-bye. {double sigh} After hugging him twice we left and of course the tears are streaming down my face. Even after living apart for more than a year, saying good-bye doesn't seem to get any easier.

Thankfully it's only a few months until Christmas, when we get to do this all over again. >.<

Blessings

on a Wednesday?

The table is set, the food all prepared, the guests have arrived and it's time for dinner.

Thanksgiving Dinner! wait a minute isn't today Wednesday? With Scalloped potatoes, Baked ham, Butternut squash casserole, Green beans with sauteed red onions, Carrots with browned butter and Cherry Cheesecake for dessert, can you say scrumptious?, dinner was served.

As I was preparing dinner for my family I was overwhelmed with emotions. With all the kids scattered here an there it is rare that we are all home at the same time. I was so thankful that it worked out to have everyone home. It's time like this when I am reminded of the many blessings in my life.

Blessings

What are you living for?

This was shared with me and you know it really got me to thinking. I am definitely one of those people who tends to focus on the here and now. The one who looks at the red end of the rope and becomes consumed with all the decisions I make, not really thinking about the everlasting.

It's hard not to though - with all the drama surrounding our lives. Sometimes it feels like I am in a soap opera ^.^

Hopefully I can keep this visual reminder with me as I go about my day to day business and keep it all in it's proper perspective.

Blessings

It's her birthday!

and we're celebrating! Our little puppy turns 3 today!

For alot of people, it might seem silly or not important to remember the day your dog was born. But lately I've learned that life is way more fun when you celebrate all sorts of different things. Whether those events are monumental or fairly insignificant. Just celebrate!

How does one celebrate their dog? Well for Sasha, we'll take her for walk, go for a drive, and give her oodles of puppy treats when we play catch together. She's one of those dogs who just loves to be with you. In fact, she'll follow me from room to room as I go about my day. It makes me smile.

Blessings

To think or not to ....

There is so much whirring around in my head but I can’t seem to organize any of it into a well packaged blog post. There is everything and there is nothing. Sorting through it is overwhelming. I take a deep breath and keep going.

Everyday.

One day at a time.

Looking too far ahead makes the butterflies in my tummy start flapping. Reflecting on the past sometimes stirs up more pain than joy. So I try my best to keep my head and my heart in today.

To be present.

To savor every moment I have with the people I love. Instead of giving up on God coming through for me, I need to go to him and ask him what he wants me to change. I can start with me. And it begins with learning to wait.

We need times of quiet and reflection, times of inner peace and relaxation. If we are preoccupied with plans and a compulsive need to succeed and be appreciated, or if we are tired, tense and stressed, it is difficult to slow down and listen to reality and to others.

Our internal motor runs too fast. It is impossible to be silent and stand back from what is happening in order to consider our motives and fears. The heart's silence is blotted out by the noise of the motor. Growth demands that we are fit, well rested, and relaxed both in body and spirit.

There is this feeling of 'betwixt and between'? It seems that the way I used to define myself, my life, no longer makes sense. So it is important to find a healthy rhythm of life, and to know how much rest we need and the types of relaxation that give life.

Blessings

Pouting Puppy

Here's a picture I took of our sweet little puppy Sasha who, while I am running on the treadmill, goes into her crate all on her own and waits patiently until I am finished.

Blessings

Home Owners

It's Official.

Krystle & Gerard bought their first house. Nestled on a back street in the quaint town of Exeter; this three bedroom, two bathroom bungalow is perfect fit for them. With a full recreation room including a wet bar in the basement will give them lots of opportunities to host many a shindig. Having just got the keys today, the fun now begins, with packing, moving, unpacking and getting settled. This is such a super exciting time for them.

Blessings

Twin Pines

My friend Deb & I spent the day today at the Lambton Craft Sale that's held each year at the Lambton Heritage Museum.

On our way home we took a little detour to the Twin Pines apple orchard. If you've never been there, I would totally recommend taking drive over there. It is awesome! This time of year the cider house is full of pumpkins, apples & wine, oh my! Upstairs in the loft they were offering a wine tasting opportunity so we stayed and I tried a few. What an awesome way to spend the day! Thanks Deb!

Blessings

Celebrating Me

Today Wayne & I celebrated my birthday by going out to a local Chinese restaurant (I was super hungry for Chinese) and then stopped at the local bakery to purchase a carrot cake. Since I think it is totally unfair to have to make my own birthday cake. With all the kids away it was a quieter celebration, but one I enjoyed none the less. My best friend Deb made me these and I absolutely love them!

As I was thinking about this post, I thought I wanted to write or say something profound. It seems at milestones such as a birthday, one would or should take time to reflect on ones life. But as each day approached closer to my birthday, I found that I was at a loss for what I should say. So I'll let Tim McGraw say it in his song:
"My Next Thirty Years"
I think I’ll take a moment, celebrate my age
The ending of an era and the turning of a page
Now it’s time to focus in on where I go from here
Lord have mercy on my next thirty years

I like the way he says it.

Blessings

Another sleepless night

It's so frustrating, this not sleeping thing I seem to have. Even though I sit here somewhat bleary eyed and perhaps a little zoned out, it continues to baffle me why I cannot sleep. I'll lay there listening to my husband's rythmic breathing trying my best to match him breath for breath detemined to resume sleep. But after a couple of hours I tend to give up - and here I am. While I may not be bright eyed and bushy tailed tomorrow (er, later on today), at least I blogged again. ^.^

Blessings

A new addiction

Not only do I love to blog, but I also love to read other blogs. In fact I can start at one blog, and I find myself reading the blogs they like to read, and continue on until I find myself about 4 or 5 blogs away from where I originally started. Does that make me a stalker?

Anyway, I stumbled across this blog and I am hooked.

With the diet restrictions that I have, it had been quite difficult to find recipes that are not only good for me but that also taste good. I must admit I've only tried a few recipes, but oh wow, so far so mhmm mhmm good!

Blessings

New Authors

One of my favourite past times is reading. In fact I love to read that quite often other things - like cleaning - tend to get neglected. My first choice of genre would be mystery, I do however love a good romance now and then too. With so many different authors and so many genres to choose from, I'm glad the local public library has it all. I love it when I find a new author. It seems if you stick with only one author you soon get a feel for how they write and I can soon figure out the story before I've even finished reading the book. Currently I have over 30 holds at the library and here too I have several novels waiting for me.

Recently I've been reading Lisa Unger - check her website here.
Having just finished Beautiful Lies (synopsis)

What if your family was a lie? What if your name was a lie? What if your whole life was just a pack of Beautiful Lies? If Ridley Jones had slept ten minutes later or had taken the subway instead of waiting for a cab, she would still be living the lie she used to call her perfect life. Instead, she's in the wrong place at the right time to unleash a chain of events that begins with a mysterious package on her doorstep. A package that informs her that her entire world is just an illusion. Forced to question everything she knows about herself, Ridley wanders into dark territory, where everyone is hiding something.

Sexy and fast-paced, Beautiful Lies is a true literary thriller featuring one of the freshest new voices in years. Lisa Unger takes us on a breathtaking ride in which every choice Ridley makes creates a whirlwind of consequences that are impossible to imagine.

I'm super excited to continue with Ridley's story in Sliver of Truth (synopsis)

In Beautiful Lies, Ridley Jones stepped off a street corner and into an abyss of violence, deception, and fear. She is being a lot more careful about where she steps and trying to get on with her life when another seemingly mundane act-picking up a few envelopes of prints at a photo lab-puts Ridley at the nexus of a global network of crime. A shadowy figure of a man appears in almost every picture she's taken in the last year, lurking just far enough away to make identification impossible. Everyone from the federal government to the criminal underworld wants to know who the man is- and where he is-and some people are willing to kill to find out.

Now the FBI is at her door, some serious bad guys are following her every move, and the family she once loved and relied on is more distant than ever. Ridley has never felt so confused or alone in her life. Everyone she loves has turned out to be a stranger-she even feels like a stranger to herself. Is she a product of nature or nurture?

At once hunting down a ghost and running for her life, Ridley doesn't know if she ever had the power to shape her own destiny or if love exists anywhere beyond her imagination. The only thing Ridley knows for sure is that she has to get to the truth about herself and her past if she's ever going to find her way home.

Charged with relentless intensity and kinetic action, playing out with unnerving suspense on the streets of New York and London, and seen through the terrified but determined eyes of a young woman whose body and heart are pushed to the point of shattering.

So today, if you're looking for me I'll be outside soaking up some of the last rays of sun ~ reading.

Imagine

Today in Iceland, Yoko Ono will relight the Imagine Peace Tower in memory of her late husband John Lennon.

First unveiled on October 9, 2007 by Yoko Ono, the Imagine Peace Tower is a powerful beacon of light representing people’s wishes for peace, set to shine every year between October 9, John Lennon’s birthday, and December 8, the anniversary of his death.

Yoko Ono told NYPost.com: “I wanted the tower to stay forever, but 24 hours a day, 365 days a year is heavy maintenance and electricity. With 24-hour daylight in summer, keeping it visible becomes an expensive undertaking, which scared the administration. So for now, it starts from John’s birthday until his death – Oct. 9 to Dec. 8. Creating it wasn’t that expensive. The government helped since this becomes a tourist attraction. I realized that, with contrasting the two symbolic dates, it gives an understanding of the shortness of life, and eternity of the spirit. It reminds one how brief life can be and is significant even for those not into John Lennon’s life. Actually, this is answered prayer because my first time in John’s house he talked about building a lighthouse. I never knew how to conceptualize that. I never believed this could be reality. Someday this tower will be lit 365 days for 24 hours, but for now I’m not pushing it. Forever is a long time.”

Imagine
Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

Since its release, "Imagine" has been included in a broad array of most-influential and greatest-songs-of-all-time lists. And has been recorded by over 100 artists.

Blessings

Busy time

Spring & Fall are probably the busiest times of the year for those of us who make our living from farming. This weekend with the beautiful weather we've been having doubles the amount of work needed to do. Today, my farmer is busy with planting the winter wheat crop. Monday he'll be filling silo, cutting hay, harvesting white beans and the list goes on. A crazy time for sure, but thankfully one that doesn't last too long.

Blessings

History of lyrics that aren't really lyrics

This was posted on another blog and I thought I would share it.

Pretty cool, eh!

Blessings

I love you venti much!

oh indeed I do! Blessings

Just be

Found this photo taken by Krista Hall Jefferson of her staircase in her house to be quite inspiring.

What do you think?

Blessings

Day tripper

whew! what a day!

We just returned from a day trip to Orillia where we were visiting our son. Faithful readers will recall that Kyle is at Georgian College in his second year in the Police Foundations Program. It was wonderful to see him and spend time together at his new place.

We don't get to Orillia very often - last time we were there was August - so we stayed a little longer than usual. Not arriving back home until quite late.

It was a busy and emotional weekend for me. While I am glad that both boys are becoming independent young men, it's hard not to feel not needed anymore. To everything there is a season.. . ... ..

Blessings

Another Move - More Tears

We just returned from moving our youngest son to his new apartment. It's a studio apartment at The Little Inn of Bayfield; where he works not only as a dishwasher but also now as the Night-keeper. (hence the move) As we're settling him in to his new place by putting stuff away and re-arranging the furniture to his liking, I began to clean. Although it wasn't too dirty, it was just something I needed to do. As I'm scrubbing the the floor in the bathroom, Darcy says to me "gee thanks mom, you're awesome!"

While I am excited for Darcy and all the opportunities this move will offer him, I still found myself tearing up. This is definitely one of those bitter-sweet times in my life.

Blessings