Our 35th Anniversary!

Yes it's true.....today we have been married for 35 years! I can hardly believe that we are old enough to have been married this long. Especially since when we got married we thought that anyone that had been married for more than 10 years was old. And of course our parents were really old!(at least we thought so!) But they had been married less than we have now......so old or not, today is our anniversary and I am just so thankful for the amazing gift God has given me in my wonderful husband, the love of my life! We are going to be taking a trip to celebrate so I won't be online much in the coming weeks. But don't despair....I will be back! I'll just be enjoying some time away with my best friend.

Two Sides of Friendship

I know that my blog is definitely not the place anyone would ever go to get recipes or even see pictures of food. But these two pictures are symbolic of this past week and have made me think of the two sides of friendship.

A week ago a friend asked if she could bring a dessert for our small group in the coming week. Since I never turn down anyone that offers to bring food to our house, I said yes, little knowing that God was putting something in place that I knew nothing about.

You see on Thursday when I normally would have come home from work and baked something for our small group, a good friend was in critical condition fighting for her life in a nearby hospital. And instead of coming straight home after work, we went to the hospital instead to see her and pray over her. As we were driving home, arriving just minutes before the rest of our group members, Dave and I marvelled at how God knew that I wouldn't have time to fix dessert, but He had already put it all in place....and so on that day we saw the two sides of friendship....giving and receiving. And our group enjoyed this amazing 'pavlova'!! Mmm, mmm good!

Happy 2nd Birthday Jaxon!

Happy Birthday my little man! You are our 'Smiley' because seeing your smile always makes me smile!

Aidan wasn't sure at first about sharing his Mommy and Daddy with a little brother, but it didn't take long before he was so excited.You adore your big brother and follow him around so you can do everything he does.

As a baby it was really hard to get you to smile but then after your first Christmas in Grand Rapids that all changed and you came back with the biggest smile and you have been smiling ever since!

You love anything to do with balls, and the downstairs hallway is a great place to play with them. They are just sitting there waiting for you to come and visit...2 big basketballs, 1 small basketball, 2 soccer balls, and a football. And then of course there is the Foosball Table which you love playing with too.

Anytime is a good time to read and you are quick to ask for someone to read a book for you. It just doesn't get any better than having someone who has time to just sit and read another one, and another one, and another one and another one....you get the picture.

We love you Jaxon and hope you have a wonderful Birthday today!

The Vancouver Aquarium - through the eyes of a child

After lunch on Mother's Day we headed to the Vancouver Aquarium, one of the boys' favorite places! We hadn't been there in years and it was so much fun to see it through they eyes of the boys. They literally ran from one tank to the next.

I was just as enthralled as they were......so many different kinds of starfish!

Aidan loved the Jellyfish and could hardly wait to get into the area where they were. 

A chance to get into the tank as it were.

At times it seemed as though the boys were hardly even breathing.

Every child knows that Nemo was a clownfish....so this tank of clownfish was a hit!

Jaxon thought he could reach out and touch this big guy.

The Dolphin Tank was definitely a highlight.

We were all excited about watching the Dolphin show so outside we went and made sure that we had spots right on the fence.

We were right behind the trainers so we got a good look.

Definitely a trip to remember.....and what a blessing to see it all through the eyes of a child.

Celebrating Mother's Day at the Vancouver Sun Run

We were off early on Sunday morning to head into Vancouver  so we could cheer on Megan as she ran her first Sun Run, a 10 kilometer run alongside 51, 000 others!! Aidan was hanging onto the ticket so we could get onto the Sky Train and head downtown. He took his job very seriously as you can tell.

Here we are at the start...under the white balloons which is where Megan was starting based on the time it would take her to run the 10 km. We were close but didn't actually get to see her take off.

Jaxon wasn't at all sure about seeing all these people and not his Mommy.

It was the most amazing day, warm and sunny and absolutely beautiful. Once Megan's group took off we walked to the finish line.

We made it....but where is she?

Have you ever looked for 1 runner in 51,000 people? 

 Here she comes...running under the overpass I was standing on waiting for her.

 And there she goes....headed for the finish line!!! We were all so proud of her.

 51,000 people and we only cared about one very special lady! Daughter-in-love, wife, mother...we are so proud of you Megs!! Way to Go!

Big & Little

Yesterday morning we had the boys with us while Jamie and Megs went shopping for trees and shrubs for their landscaping project(their entire yard!) Dave and I had talked about possibly going to the park or the playground but in the end decided to just do some of the tasks that needed doing in our yard since it was such a beautiful Saturday and there was no shortage of things to do. They boys were just so excited to be with us doing the everyday things. Jaxon helped me as I picked the dead blossoms off the rhododendron bushes and Aidan was helping Pa mix up the Fish Fertilizer and then pour it onto the plants. He was just so excited to be holding the hose while the pail filled up and then helped Dave walk it to the plant.

But then both boys grew tired of helping us us and decided to play with the hammers they had found in Dave's Tool Box.

They were building....big and little, with their different sizes of hammers.

I had to laugh when Aidan lined them all up....he just loved having three different sizes. As we got ready to take them back home we marvelled at how much fun we had with our two boys, big and little! They had enjoyed working so hard according to Aidan, and we were thankful for the chance to just spend time together. It was a good lesson learned. We don't necessarily always have to do special things with the people we love. Instead we just need to enjoy being together, enjoying the moments and recognizing how blessed we are.

Happy Birthday Miss Lexi!

I could hardly wait to meet you Miss Lexi!! You were such an incredible surprise because we were all so sure that you were going to be a boy! But instead you were this dark haired little girl with the biggest eyes and the longest eyelashes.

It was so awesome to have you here at Christmas time and hold you and your cousin Kai at the same time. You will share so many of the same things as you grow up...going to school, graduating from High School....just 4 1/2 months apart.

You are totally your Mommy's little girl and I remember how excited I was when we were visiting in March and you finally let me hold you even if your Mommy was in the same room. Never have I had to work so hard to hold a grandbaby but that makes it even that much more special.

You are quick to smile, but not so quick to go to someone other than your Mommy.

Your Bupa had to work really hard to hold you too and even when he did have you, you weren't too sure about it.

We wish we didn't live so far away from you so we could do those every day things with you. But thankfully you know us now and your face lights up with smiles when you see us on Skype.

It seems hard to believe that you are one year old already our dear Miss Lexi! What a little sweetheart you are!

Happy Birthday my Beautiful Daughter

It's hard to believe that today you entering a new decade of life!! Happy Birthday Heather!! I still remember that hot day in Hamilton when you decided to make your appearance!!! You were our little 'Gerber Baby', didn't even look like a newborn because of your chubby cheeks. You were only 6 weeks old when we moved to BC and you were the best baby ever to make a move like that because you slept and slept and slept.

You have grown up to be a beautiful woman, both outside and inside. Always ready for adventure, when you got word of where you would be living you embraced the move with gusto. You and I went on a road trip and bought your house in the same weekend that Matt sold your house in Yarrow. And right from the start, you had a picture of what the house would look like when you finished painting every surface, inside and outside. Whether cheering for your beloved Canucks, going to the Opera with a friend or hunting with Matt, you do it with your whole heart!

You are not only my daughter, but also a good friend! You are my encourager, my interior decorator, painting partner, personal shopping assistant and the person who isn't afraid to challenge me if I am not taking care of myself.

You and Matt are an awesome couple and it's so fun to watch you embrace life. Your journey together has had more than it's share of disappointments, but rather than get bitter, you have embraced the journey, both the tears and the laughter. Because of your grief, you now minister to others whose path isn't always the way they had planned it to be.

What an amazing night it was when you welcomed Kai into your family! You are awesome Mom, willing to love on your beautiful baby boy and be incredibly patient with him.

It's so much fun to watch you grow as a Mom to your little brown-eyed cutie!

I wish I could be there today to cook your birthday dinner and dessert. Know that I am thinking of you today and wishing you a wonderful birthday!