a quote i love

 "The most freeing place for the soul 

is in the abandonment to the will of God."

Ann Voskamp

love this one so much.  thought you might to.  i saw it a few weeks ago and it's surfaced lots as i've contemplated all the truth the words hold.  it's not always easy to get to the place of "abandonment", honestly.  wait~ let's be fully, entirely honest, is it ever easy?  there's often lots of wrestling and angst and inner turmoil along the way, but once there, my life experience has taught me that there's peace and freedom as you let God take over.  not sure why i struggle so hard against it, clinging to perceived control or comfort or familiarity or whatever else i grasp at.  human nature, i suppose.  just a good reminder, and i wanted to pass it along!  

be well... 

painted canvas credits go to my Layla.  i love her artwork!  

surfer girl

recently Joelle sent me the most gorgeous pictures of her Tofino surfing adventures.  the shots are stunning.  she's a free spirit and set on adventure seeking and i love hearing and seeing glimpses of her days out west. 

 surfing in February even?  incredible! 

love you and miss you, my dear!

The Chosen

 i've thought about this all day.  what do i say about this series, The Chosen?  A lot or a little?  do i deep dive into how it's riveted me and met me at just about the perfect time?  not that there's a less than perfect time for something this good.  but really, please give it a look.  whether you are a full fledged believer or nothing even remotely close, it doesn't matter.  check it out.  it brings the Gospels to life in a manner that i cannot describe...it's captivating and thought provoking.  Jesus' life here on earth was nothing short of revolutionary.  you get a beautiful visual glimpse of His earthly journey through every episode of this series.  i will not say much more.  not today at least.  i certainly won't do it justice. 

so, off you go...get the app!!

enjoy, friends...

the stragglers

 the last of the photo dump from 2021.  a few more stragglers.  last but not least.  

dear AJ had a killer return football season and won the "Defensive MVP" award at his football banquet.  well deserved, buddy.  you are so fun to watch out there!

Layla, looking great and having so much fun at a real-deal super competitive wrestling tournament, pre-omicron...we didn't know at the time that it would again be her last for awhile, unfortunately.

 baby C's cherished turtle (aka "lolo") in amongst the cheerios.  perfectly normal, right?!

Hannah napping in the new tent on Christmas day...well, not for long it appears.  cute baby boy was about to disrupt things.  he's good at that! :)

 

rink build, 2021...another masterpiece.

couch snuggles during family isolation.  thus the mask. these two, still together as much as possible.

festive leftovers

 this feels weird.  posting pics from Christmas when it's nearly the end of January.  still, it must be done.  i want to remember the highlights most, after all!  seasons come and go in a blur so this will be  100% priceless to me, and hopefully my kids, one day...here are a few favourites.  

 

missing a few for the tree cutting this year.  another beauty tree though!

we actually went out.  dressed up.  to Jeff's Christmas party with Archway.  a lonnngggg time coming.  hasn't happened since, i'm afraid, but we loved that night!

a Christmas Eve walk through the lights.  another beautiful night, even though there was not a snowflake to be found.

a boy in suspenders.  who can resist?!

Christmas Day, a different year, missing lots of family members on both sides.  again, making the best of it, so thankful mom and dad joined in to put a dent in the turkey...it was pretty delicious, if i do say so myself! :)  that's a lot coming from me.  i have big, big shoes to fill.  i've been blessed with two awesome cooks in my life.

love these cute kids. missing one who's far west.  nice to see the others together in a picture because they are harder to capture these days.

 

well, that's it for today's photo drop. be well and take good care! 

longer days are coming!

new year

 i'm back...it's high time i get back at it, don't ya think?! it's been a necessary break and the holiday season has come and gone.  Christmas was so blessed, yet still there were twists and turns...the big one~ Joelle couldn't fly home due to covid exposure at her job.  that was hard for me, our first year ever where we weren't all together.  we did make the best of it though.  then, a few days after Christmas a few of us got covid here.  mild, thankfully.  so grateful for the vaccine, and having Hannah and Jeff home to tag team care of the sweet toddler while some were banished to bedrooms (me!).  then there was some delicious soup from my lovely mom, and a fun meal from a dear friend...,so yes, a few curve balls thrown, but evidence of God's goodness all over the place still. 

so, with the new year here and hopes that lighter and brighter days lie ahead, i'm going to drop a few November and December pics in the next few weeks to get things caught up before i move into 2022.  i'm type A, remember?! :)

soooo, way back before Omicron ruined everything, we were watching Hannah's long awaited return to the mats.  it was pure bliss!  it felt so amazing to be back in that environment and cheering my girl on.  really fun.  sweet baby C. got to attend his first wrestling tournament, and he was so happy to see Hannah again too..

these two~ so happy to be reunited!  precious thing they have going.

Happy New Year, dear ones...good to be back! 

blog break

 i'm going to take a few weeks break over Christmas holidays, to soak up the season and the extra people who are home.  

before i break, i had to share these words from my favourite author, Ann Voskamp,  so timely.

"Someone told me that this Advent has felt more like a Lent—a grieving.

You don’t have to close your eyes to see how the news has been screaming for months & we are all exhausted & bruised.

How in the world does a weary world rejoice?

We may not know why God doesn’t stop all the different kinds of suffering—but we definitely know it’s not because He’s indifferent.

God is so moved by our being entangled in suffering—that He moved Himself into our world & entangled Himself in the suffering with us. God with us.

God knows suffering.

He chose to be born in the middle of a genocide.

God knows suffering.

He chose to be born as a minority, a refugee.

God knows suffering.

He chose to come from a place where people said no good thing could come from.

God knows suffering.

He chose to be poor. He chose to absorb pain. He chose to be powerless.

God penetrates the ache of our world through the willing yes of a poor, unwed teen. In both the Incarnation & the Resurrection, God reveals Himself first to the dismissed & disregarded & dissed.

God chose the first witnesses to both His nativity, & to His nailed hands, to be the very people who suffered because they were regarded as suspect, small, sketchy.

Because the point is:

Christmas is the beginning of the end of all suffering.

“Comfort, comfort my people,” says your God.

The road’s been weary, but we can rest beside the road, beside the boarding gate, beside each other, & listen to how the angels sing.

Christmas says that everyone needed Christ to come down from heaven & carry every single one of us, every single step of the way back to heaven. Christmas says that we all need rescuing, we all need a Savior.

This is what His glory does—like a river, His glory in the highest runs down to meet us who are at our lowest, those left out in the field, those who’ve lost our flock, lost our way, lost our hope, His glory in the highest always runs down to meet us who are at our lowest.

This is what lets us sing like the angels do... even now."

so good, right?! (you know when people ask the question, "if you could have lunch with anyone in the world, who would it be?" my answer- always- "Ann Voskamp") 

and who doesn't love an amazing version of O Holy Night?!  this one by Carrie Underwood.  

Merry Christmas!