A memory

Let me preface this story by saying that we don't usually have white store bought bread in our home. But, yesterday, I bought a loaf just for fun. Reactions from my family were "sweet! White bread!"~and over half the loaf is gone this morning.

This afternoon, I was looking for lunch~and what did my eyes spy, some tuna salad that was left over from yesterday. So, Tuna for lunch it is! However, I put it on white bread, and it brought me back to the following memory.

When I was growing up, vacations were seldom on the horizon. My parents owned their own business, so time away was very limited. Several times, or should I say all of our vacations consisted of packing up the car(lightly), and cruising to BC to pick cherries (or other fruit) for canning. We had to pack lightly, so that there was room for all those cherries that mom would can for winter. On one of those trips, my dad decided to come along. We left from our home, traveled past the Brazeau Dam, and went back roads to Nordegg~gravel roads all the way, to continue on through the mountains to BC.

My dad was known for stopping along the way to pick up treats. My mom hated that dad allowed us to eat in the car. It was the only time we were allowed to eat in the car. Chips, drinks etc. Dad was good for that. Mom..not so much! We ended up stopping at a road side cafe, truck stop, where there were upside down trees cemented to the ground. The roots were the tree tops. I won't ever forget that, because I thought that was just amazing. I also remember the rocket ship playground that we could run around and play on.

I also remember on this trip that we got to go inside to eat. I wonder if mom didn't win the battle of not allowing food in the car. The cafe was long and narrow, but it looked great to me. We didn't get to eat out too often. My choice? A tuna fish sandwich on white bread, and blueberry pie! (You know, the kind from the cooler with glass windows). Who knew that such a mundane lunch in 2012 would bring back fond memories of a summer vacation 30 odd years ago. I do remember that the pie was better than the tuna, but I had to have it so that I could eat white bread~which was never allowed in our home either.

Funny how traditions are passed through generations. I think I will buy white bread more often. Who am I to deprive my children of something so treasured?

Also, Wishing my dad a happy birthday! He would have been 73 today. It would be great to share a piece of blueberry pie with him~he was not one to eat tuna~or white bread! Although he loved his burgers, so he had his fill of white bread then! ;) Maybe he is having a slice of cake in Heaven.

Memories are great things! Have a great day!


I am so thankful for this picture. Dad decided to go on our annual mountain trip with the kids. (2008) We are on/at Spirit Island close to Jasper, AB. My mom and I would take the kids to different spots in the mountains each year. Dad didn't ever want to go, but this year was different. He decided he wanted to go along. We had a great time, and spotted 5 black bears, elk, mountain sheep, and bighorn sheep. All in about 48 hours. He was our good luck charm. By the time the trip was over he was done with the kids and the truck! It was like any trip we had when I was a child~drive, drive, drive~stop, look around~and drive back home. (Minus the fruit picking, it was too early in the season) Too funny!

Oh the joys of parenting!

Did anyone hear the sarcasm of the title? Why do I have the privilege of mothering a high school student and a middle school student at the same time? Well, I guess I know, but yikes! This year has been a difficult one in terms of parenting. They are getting older, and thus, they have more responsibility for their own actions. But, it is so difficult letting them make their own mistakes~and suffering the consequences that arrive with said mistakes. It hurts my heart, and makes me question the right or wrong of the whole thing. Deep down, I know that it is better for them to learn now, when they are at home with a mom and dad to help brush them off and prop them back up for the next challenge ahead. But it just bugs me!

I guess I better understand my relationship to my Heavenly Father. He is around me, he sees me, and watches what I'm doing. However, I know I make mistakes all the time, and I am continually suffering the consequences thereof. I know he would like to protect me and keep me from doing dumb things, but he doesn't. If he did, would I grow? Would I become better? No. And besides, Agency is a fundamental. We all get to choose what we do with our lives. So, I can just picture Heavenly Father lovingly bashing his head against a wall, wondering just what I am doing,~the same thing I am doing concerning my own children.

Anyways, patience is a virtue. Guess I am learning all about that virtue~AGAIN!

To end this post, I would like to share a few photos of my darling angels~although I do question their angelic natures at this age. It will come back again, but I am assuming not for another 10yrs or so. They will both be in their 20's then, and will have resumed their human nature at that point. I hope. ;)

Time is Still A-Flyin'

Time is still a-flyin' on past me! Where did time go? How did my cute "baby" turn into this handsome, intelligent, well mannered young man. A mom couldn't be prouder than me! He is also very photo shy, so it is a miracle that we have even one semi decent photo of him each year.

I love seeing the progression through the photos. I guess, I should say regression, because we start with the most recent first.


Summer 2011-High School is about to begin. We are at the Garden of The Gods with family. What a great day!


Grade 8. He decided to spike his hair this year. He likes it because the "girls" like it too! :) 2010

2009-Summer Vacation- in British Columbia


2008- Final set of braces on! Yay!



Spring 2007. We had professional photos taken.



2006-Love his eyes in this photo. They are such a nice shade of blue!


2005-We were on vacation with Oma, he is always happy to see her!


2004-jog-a-thon-Welcome to the digital age. One of the first photos with my new digital Camera.

There is something about birthdays that make me sentimental. I hope that the next 15 years will be as enjoyable as the first. Although, look out world, a new driver will soon be on the road!

How time flies!

 2004

 2005                                                                                         2006

                                                                           2007

                                                                         2008

                                                                           2009

                                                                            2010

                                                                         2011

My daughter--who turned from the pretty young girl to beautiful young lady.  I admit it, I am biased.


Dear Daughter,

In case you ever get lost, I thought I would tell you about yourself.  This is how I see you.  I hope you see yourself the same way.

From the photos, it is obvious that your favorite colour is pink-and blue!  Not that you don't wear other colours, you just pick these as your photo colours.  You prefer your hair short.   The only reason it is as long as it is, is because your friend dared you to grow it out this summer.  I love that you took her up on the offer, but you are debating getting it cut--as it's just too hot.  You have your dad's thick, somewhat wavy hair.  Lucky you.

You love to sing.  At the moment you are in private voice lessons, which you think are not quite as fun as you'd like.  You have such a beautiful voice.  I am glad that you have that talent.  You are also in choir--holding down the alto section by yourself.  What a compliment to have your teacher tell the class that if they are lost, they are to follow you.  That's my girl!  You definitely did not get that talent from me either.

You are a great student, who is striving to do her best in school.  I love how you put effort into learning.  I also love how creative you are.  Currently, you are teaching yourself to sculpt.  You also are teaching yourself to sew.  Such an independent soul.  Guess you haven't changed much since you were born.  You were always able to do things by yourself.  Sometimes that still gets you in trouble, but you learn best that way.

Although you are creative in an artistic way, you also are very linear in some thinking.  You have lists, and notebooks and journals all over the place.  You do well with math, but you also can write.  You love your computer(s), I can't believe that you have two.  You love your camera, but you intend to put together a web site with your creative projects and how to instructions on it for others to learn more from.  

I am so proud of you!  You are learning to be responsible for your own actions, and you are learning from the consequences.  You have faith in God, and a testimony of the Savior.  You are so excited to go to Young Women's.  I can't believe that you will be one of those bouncy smiley girls!  :)  You love others, stand up for what is right, and don't let yourself get pushed around.  I am glad that you are becoming who you are.  I am anxious to see what you will do in your life.  Only time will tell.

You signed up for volleyball.  You bike to and from school(mostly).  You like to stay up late, and get up late, which is slightly problematic when school starts so early at 7:20am.  You don't take crap from your brother.  The world is black and white to you--very little grey.  You are finding great friends to hang out with.  If there is something unjust, it offends your senses.  Teachers are sure to hear about it.  You are not a quiet girl.  You love rock and roll-not the gently easy stuff either.  You love to swim.  You love your dog.  We have had her for a year now.  She is a great addition to our family.  You take care of her and her needs.  You keep her yard clean, and walk her diligently.  You are responsible!  Thank you!

Mostly, I am just glad that I get to be your mom. That doesn't mean that we don't butt heads, we certainly do.  You are a challenging daughter, who allows me to develop talents that I didn't know I had in me.  Thank you for being you.  I love you!  Happy Birthday!

Random thoughts

My handsome son, starting high school this year!



My beautiful daughter, starting middle school this year!



Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs, CO


Remember way back when, I stated that my castle was crumbling...well it continues to do so. I can't imagine why all these repairs are necessary at this moment of time, but it appears that everything that I own is breaking. Yikes, repair bills, here we come. A few of our needed repairs: broken spinkler head (Thank you hubby, for running it over with your pick-up truck. So nice of you) Garage door, picture window (seal is broken, therefore worthless in keeping out the relentless Colorado heat), powder room sink faucet needs to be replaced. I had the refrigerator repair man out last week, and all I really wanted to do was save my money for a new to me automobile...guess that is off in the far future again! Grrrr!

Anyways, the joys of home ownership!

Other than that, summer officially ended last Monday, as that was the day my children started school. How fun, high school and middle school. Where does the time go?

I am, however enjoying the summer weather, by lounging by our community pool in the middle of the day, when there is no one there, cuz they are all in school. There is method to my madness I know. That way, I can sun burn in peace! :)

Generally we are getting back into routine. I am hoping that this year is another great one! Wish us luck! I am thinking we are going to need lots!

Growing

There are times in our life that constitute of growing periods. You know what I mean. Just like our growing season in the garden, we all have growing periods in our lives. Sometimes we grow like mad, other times, we aren't nurtured as we should, so we stagnate, just a little. Then, there are things that pop into our lives, that make us grow again! Seems to me, that we (as in our collective family) has been doing a lot of growing lately. I was looking for a downward cycle, but seems that we are forever growing. Perhaps in the end, our family will be like a beautiful lush forest, teeming with beauty and elegance. For now, we are just shrubs, surviving under somewhat harsh conditions.

My dear son is embarking on Trek. He gets to hike approximately 30 miles through the territory in Wyoming, that LDS pioneers pulled their handcarts through. He is having a hard time conceiving that this experience will be beneficial to him in any way, shape or form. We, as parents, have encouraged, bribed, and now, in my dear son's vocab, forced him to go. Unwillingly. And yet, we see the good in this experience, the growth that will happen, that will allow him to become a better person.

His situation has made me become a little introspective. Isn't this how our Heavenly Father has us grow? He puts us into situations that are difficult, uncomfortable, and sometimes nearly impossible to overcome, and yet, in the end we are better for it. Without those oppositions, we would not be able to grow, and learn, and become better people for it. We are not in control of our lives. There are too many extraneous factors that affect us. We can either accept and move forward, or dig in our heels and fight. And yet, somehow, we end up going through the experience anyways. We can alter our attitude, and make the situation better by doing so. However, I find that when I am in the so called growth period in my life, I tend to act like my son. Begrudgingly moving forward, only because I am forced to. Guess I have a lot more to learn--and grow!

So, I wish you all happy gardening! May your family grow into something beautiful! I sure hope that mine does, with or without my attitude!

Summer!

Summer is in full swing down here in the central plains of Colorado. It has been for almost a month. School was out at the end of May, so we are in the middle of our summer break. It is sad to think that we start school all over again, the second week of August. Sadder still to think I have a high school aged son, and a middle school aged daughter. I am feeling older than usual this summer. We started summer off with a bang, with our second ever family vacation (not including visits to family). We went to Disneyland for 4 days, Southern California for another two. I must say that the ocean is beautiful. I think I need to move close to one someday. But, for now, I am safely surrounded by mountains and plains! No need to worry about hurricanes or Tsunami's for a while! :)

The Castle-on our last night. It started to rain, so the park cleared out rather quickly.


Resting for a few minutes!


What's that you say? A payphone! How obsolete!


Star Tours opening weekend!

I also decided that where I live is totally whiteville. I don't mean to sound racist, I am not. I will say that I miss the cultural diversity of our former residence, about an hour north of our current location. I will also say, that for southern california, our all white, (non-tanned) anglo/german family stood out like a sore thumb. I totally appreciated seeing people of all cultures/races intermingled into happy families--maybe it was because we were at the "happiest" place on earth, but I was reminded once again, that all God's children are searching for happiness. It was fun to see families together.

We stayed at a "resort" hotel not too far from Disney--although, I am not sure that resort would be the word to use. It was nicely appointed, and I enjoyed our suite hotel. I am sure the kids enjoyed it as well. I enjoyed the pool, and our room being in a rather isolated area, I enjoyed the quiet-the palm trees, and all the unusual flowers. I miss beautiful lush greenery. I also enjoyed the humidity. My skin loved it! I also loved be so near to sea level. I am used to our "mile hi" air around here. I could actually spend more than 10mins out in the sun without crispy frying! I returned home with an actual tan! Almost unheard of in my house these past years! Most of all, I enjoyed my time spent with my hubby and kids. Note to any one else thinking of going--don't wear new shoes. Ask my dear hubs about that experience.


Last day of vacation, right before leaving for the airport. :(


Once we returned home, I painted my dear daughter's room--I told her that this was the last colour I would put up for her. Besides, if she decides to paint again, she will be able to do most of the work herself. She was a great helper. The room went together quickly, and I think it looks great. It is a light aqua/turquoise colour. I know that colour never quite transfers from wall to photo, but hey, it gives you an idea anyways. Quite mild from her previous choices. (lime greens and bubbl-icious pink) It is fun to see how her taste in colour changes with age.



I am also putting together our guest room, for we are expecting company later this summer. It will be fun to have our guests for about a week! It will mean that we can have a "stay-cation" with them. :) Other than that, My dear daughter is at drama camp. Her performance is this Friday. I am looking forward to that. My dear son has been working a little this summer, earning money by mowing lawns and babysitting. Dear daughter is going to her first girl's camp next month, and dear son is preparing for Trek. He did survive his high adventure scout camp this year.

Next month, I am working with foreign exchange students, 2 from France, 2 from Spain. I am their ESL tutor. It will be fun! I am looking forward to it! Can you tell that my summer is uber-busy? Why is that? I think I am looking forward to August, when school is in session and everyone settles into their routine. Although I love having them here with me, it sure is a busy time! Enjoy your time wherever you may be this summer! Remember that summer 2011 only comes around once in your lifetime! I am planning on enjoying it to it's fullest, regardless of the little annoyances that appear. Have fun!