...keep your feet up.
Just thought I'd give the world a little update regarding my current condition. I am going to be laid up for a few days and have to keep my feet up...I know... tough times. Yesterday I spilled a perc full of hot water on my ankle and suffered second degree burns. The kitchen was full of ladies and gentlemen doing dishes when there arose such a clatter of urns and percs falling to the floor. Hope I didn't swear.... I peeled my sock off right away and with it came all the skin. I know....yucky. (I think you will be glad that I am not posting a picture, although I know how meaningful it would be to Randall.....) Into a sink full of freezing cold water for 10 or 15 minutes and then, off to emerg where they wheeled me right through to be taken care of. I think we were home in an hour. Ray's Aunt Anne and Uncle Henry insisted on driving me to the hospital and stayed til I was released. Then they took me to their house to pick up some crutches and drove me home to the couch. (They're the BEST!!!) Within hours, meals began to arrive....and offers to help with the work that still has to be done at church. My first thought was. "I don't have time for this. THis is sooo inconvenient. There is so much to do!!" But everything is under control. I love my church family, always have , always will. And I really feel like they love me too.
It looks like I'm going to have some time to read those books that I was piling up to return to the library unread. I have a stack of Christmas cards ready to address and send off, which I was going to skip because it was such a busy season here. I was wishing that things might slow down for a while....be careful what you wish for. I hadn't anticipated that they would grind to a complete halt.
That's where I'm at....I'm getting ready to go to the doctor now. I have to find a shoe of some sort, I think a croc will work best. One hot pink croc and my periwinkle winter boots. What a sight that will be. I think I should take a picture of that...but first....time for a piece of cranberry raisin bread that arrived yesterday...
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Saturday, December 6, 2008
You Know It's Christmas When....
...Kellogg's comes out with the Holiday Rice Krispies edition. Red and green krispies everywhere, and it was high time to introduce Kevin the wonderful Canadian delight called, Rice Krispy ...em...shapes. Our box had the "house" mold in it. It causes me much shame to admit that it took me two tries to make these little nuggets but I blame it on the marshmallows. I had a few left from campfire days....and just for your benefit, a tip: don't try to melt large ones and small ones at the same time. The melting point is different. Let's just leave it at that, and see for yourself that our second attempt was successful. Good thing, because we are out of marshmallows. A bowl of dry krispies just isn't the same without the gooey stuff, then it's called brekkie.
I am so excited to say that I made some Christmas cards today. I decided up until now that I wasn't going to make any. No pressure... ...but today I got an idea and had some time. I don't always have those two items at the same time these days. Some of you out there will be so pleased!! You know exactly who you are!!!
We put our Christmas tree up this morning after breakfast. I thought it might be onteresting to find out from Kevin what they do in Korea. Well, they have an artficial tree, just like we do, hang lights and garland on it, just like we do, and hang ornaments in it, just like we do. We did find out that his family has a conservatory type room where they have all kinds of plants, which came out of the comment that some people in Canada and other countries, have real evergreen trees in their homes at Christmas time. They open their presents on Christmas eve, which is what our family does too sometimes, depending on where the holiday falls in the week. We haven't really decided on that little detail yet. He is very excitedly expecting a parcel from his mom and dad, which is due to arrive on Monday, we'll have to see how expedient international parcel delivery is. I don't sense a lot of homesickness in that lad. He really likes it here in Canada. He likes the food. He enjoys school and playing with his friends. He is challenging himself in the reading program at school. THe kids take quizes on the classroom computer to test their reading comprehension and there are books at every reading level. He saw that his friend was reading at a higher grade level than he was so he took one of the books out on Library day and lo and behold, he got 10 out of 10! He was so pleased. You earn rewards as you advance in readinglevel and that is JUST his cup of tea. You also receive award certificates at the awards assemblies as you advance.
Today we outfitted him for hockey equipment. He skates fairly well so we decided to enroll him in hockey practise with the school team. Anyone in Grade 5-8 may come out to practise on TUesdays at 7am, starting in the new year. He is soooooooooooooo excited. Not too excited about dressing and undressing in the dressing room, and not even mentioning that EVERYONE is in their underwear would change his feelings on that subject. So....we said he could wear his long johns, and that seemed to make him feel better. For some reason we still have some TINY equipment laying around, as you may have seen, his stature is quite small. (See the picture beside Craig in the next post.) We are only missing a few pieces and there might be some in the school equipment room. Good thing we never got rid of that stuff!!!!
As for my secret project. No...I can't tell anyone about it here. Such a shame:):) It turned out really well. But it feels nice to be finished. I wasn't allowing myself the fun of making Christmas cards until that was all done. The time will come when I can tell all, just not yet.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
I Have Returned
Good thing Ray was sharing his Wabikimi adventure over the last few weeks or my blog would have been a virtual wasteland. It has been very busy, and the other day I realized that when I don't have time to blog, I fall out of the loop of other people's lives too. Not good.
Winter has arrived in Ontario and with that comes the shovelling. I usually enjoy doing that part of my work which surprises a lot of people. It
only becomes a problem when all my jobs collide. Good thing I can be flexible, but you can still only be in one place at one time. Joe and Kevin had a PD Day and Craig got a bonafide snow day when the white stuff arrived. So....I had lots of help. Ray stayed home that day as well, since London can be a real mess when it snows like this. We have had to outfit Kevin properly for Canadian winter since ankle boots just aren't going cut it. We went to TSC and took care of business.
I can't say exactly what has made life so busy. There have been school meetings, fundraising events, worship visuals to plan, create, and carry out....There have been many obligations but also many things that are a privilege to be a part of. Doing the visuals is always a wonderful visit with my friend Winnie. I'm in a great Bible/book study on forgiveness. The mother of Craig's friend Tristan died last week and we went to the funeral, Craig's whole class came on buses sent by the school (Did I mention that I love London District Christian Secondary School!!!!!) I've also had a lot on my mind and sometimes when you are pre-occupied everything gets to be a bit too much. You feel like you go-go-go from the minute your feet hit the floor in the morning until you drop into bed at night. The last two days have been really nice, and today is shaping up that way too. The rest of the month will be busy so I'll take advantage of these days while I have them.
My top secret projects are finished and I'm so excited. It's fun to have something up your sleeve!!! I also finished Christmas shopping for myself. Ray and I had chatted about what to get each other and he came home from his conference in Toronto with a half a suitcase of camping gear which he is going to wrap and put under the Christmas tree. I mentioned that I really only want some CD's and he said....oh, just go and get them and put them under the tree. Hey, that's all the permission I need. I opened one though.....has anyone heard of a band called "33 Miles"? They're a country-ish band.....I know....who'd have thought.... and they're sooo good. Anyone who is a fan of the Gaithers and their friends will love this CD! I love it because it is so upbeat and I really needed that these past few weeks.
I got my hair cut a couple of weeks ago and my shortest layers are just past my chin. I added some colour too and the blond highlights are gone. And I have bangs. It is great to straighten it, and have it hold its shape....it's just the right length. I think I got 6-8 inches taken off. It takes no time at all to my hair now since I only have half of what there used to be! It is quite wavy and unruly now that so much of the weight is gone.
Things with Kevin are still going really well. He is very excited about Christmas and the parcel his mom is sending from Korea. He told us everything that his mom is sending. That boy couldn't keep a secret if his life depended on it. :):) I should mention to him how much I LOVE surprises. But anyway!!! He is doing really well in school and works really hard. He loves to sleep in during the week but come Saturday morning he is the first one to bound out of bed and head for the PS2 to play a little Guitar Hero. He loves "Slow Ride" and "Hit Me With Your Best Shot".... He had a really good report card.
Joe was SO proud of his report card that he wanted to pin it up on the wall. I loved seeing him that excited. He is really maturing in his outlook on life lately. In some ways I am not ready for him to grow up, but it is wonderful to see him grow in independence and develop a good head on his shoulders.... But it comes in spurts. I still love it that he heads out the door in big boots and snow pants so he can build forts all recess long. His fort has a la-Z-boy and a big flat screen tv.
Tonight Craig's whole school is going Scrooging . That's canvassing for the foodbank in London neighbourhoods. Afterwards they are have pizza together and go bowling. I think that is one of the highlights of their week. I love how the school makes these kinds of opportunities available to the kids. In the same way they encouraged Tristan's class mates to go to his Mom's funeral. I've met his mom a few times and I went too. It was so neat how when the service was beginning the kids just started streaming in, filling up pew after pew, after pew, until they had filled 1/3 of the church. Tristan came and stood by them for a minute before his family was walked in. It was just so cool. Every once in a while you are criticized for choosing private Christian education....but days like that remind me of the privilege I have and of the freedom to choose.
I'm glad you have enjoyed Ray's adventure and getting a glimpse of his "wild" side. It's so much a part of who he is...how could I NOT let him go?
Well...I have remained within earshot of the laundry facilities all this while and I have been "working", doing the laundry. Time for the next shift...
Winter has arrived in Ontario and with that comes the shovelling. I usually enjoy doing that part of my work which surprises a lot of people. It
only becomes a problem when all my jobs collide. Good thing I can be flexible, but you can still only be in one place at one time. Joe and Kevin had a PD Day and Craig got a bonafide snow day when the white stuff arrived. So....I had lots of help. Ray stayed home that day as well, since London can be a real mess when it snows like this. We have had to outfit Kevin properly for Canadian winter since ankle boots just aren't going cut it. We went to TSC and took care of business.I can't say exactly what has made life so busy. There have been school meetings, fundraising events, worship visuals to plan, create, and carry out....There have been many obligations but also many things that are a privilege to be a part of. Doing the visuals is always a wonderful visit with my friend Winnie. I'm in a great Bible/book study on forgiveness. The mother of Craig's friend Tristan died last week and we went to the funeral, Craig's whole class came on buses sent by the school (Did I mention that I love London District Christian Secondary School!!!!!) I've also had a lot on my mind and sometimes when you are pre-occupied everything gets to be a bit too much. You feel like you go-go-go from the minute your feet hit the floor in the morning until you drop into bed at night. The last two days have been really nice, and today is shaping up that way too. The rest of the month will be busy so I'll take advantage of these days while I have them.
My top secret projects are finished and I'm so excited. It's fun to have something up your sleeve!!! I also finished Christmas shopping for myself. Ray and I had chatted about what to get each other and he came home from his conference in Toronto with a half a suitcase of camping gear which he is going to wrap and put under the Christmas tree. I mentioned that I really only want some CD's and he said....oh, just go and get them and put them under the tree. Hey, that's all the permission I need. I opened one though.....has anyone heard of a band called "33 Miles"? They're a country-ish band.....I know....who'd have thought.... and they're sooo good. Anyone who is a fan of the Gaithers and their friends will love this CD! I love it because it is so upbeat and I really needed that these past few weeks.
I got my hair cut a couple of weeks ago and my shortest layers are just past my chin. I added some colour too and the blond highlights are gone. And I have bangs. It is great to straighten it, and have it hold its shape....it's just the right length. I think I got 6-8 inches taken off. It takes no time at all to my hair now since I only have half of what there used to be! It is quite wavy and unruly now that so much of the weight is gone.
Things with Kevin are still going really well. He is very excited about Christmas and the parcel his mom is sending from Korea. He told us everything that his mom is sending. That boy couldn't keep a secret if his life depended on it. :):) I should mention to him how much I LOVE surprises. But anyway!!! He is doing really well in school and works really hard. He loves to sleep in during the week but come Saturday morning he is the first one to bound out of bed and head for the PS2 to play a little Guitar Hero. He loves "Slow Ride" and "Hit Me With Your Best Shot".... He had a really good report card.
Joe was SO proud of his report card that he wanted to pin it up on the wall. I loved seeing him that excited. He is really maturing in his outlook on life lately. In some ways I am not ready for him to grow up, but it is wonderful to see him grow in independence and develop a good head on his shoulders.... But it comes in spurts. I still love it that he heads out the door in big boots and snow pants so he can build forts all recess long. His fort has a la-Z-boy and a big flat screen tv.
Tonight Craig's whole school is going Scrooging . That's canvassing for the foodbank in London neighbourhoods. Afterwards they are have pizza together and go bowling. I think that is one of the highlights of their week. I love how the school makes these kinds of opportunities available to the kids. In the same way they encouraged Tristan's class mates to go to his Mom's funeral. I've met his mom a few times and I went too. It was so neat how when the service was beginning the kids just started streaming in, filling up pew after pew, after pew, until they had filled 1/3 of the church. Tristan came and stood by them for a minute before his family was walked in. It was just so cool. Every once in a while you are criticized for choosing private Christian education....but days like that remind me of the privilege I have and of the freedom to choose.
I'm glad you have enjoyed Ray's adventure and getting a glimpse of his "wild" side. It's so much a part of who he is...how could I NOT let him go?
Well...I have remained within earshot of the laundry facilities all this while and I have been "working", doing the laundry. Time for the next shift...
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