Kid Quotes from the Car

Driving, with a four year old and other times a seven and nine-year old added to the mix . . . two buckled in booster seats and one proud one sitting in the front seat now . . . can be entertaining. It's a mix of the nine-year-old's choice of buttons pressed for music and random conversations floating about, such as . . .

"When I was a baby, I was "nothing" (with high pitched expression) . . . then I turned one and then I turned two and then . . . three and then . . . four and then I will be five, and then I will be six and . . ." It went on, but I'll leave you with some suspense.

" That's the good thing about gum! If you swallow it, you don't have to throw it in the garbage."

and (quoting a sign she had read and liked)
"Save the earth, it's the only planet with chocolate!"

Can't you just see the progression of how their minds work, what they find interesting or humorous as life unfolds before them. I drive and smile.

These are moments skype does not pick up so easily.

Replay

For the last two days I've had a little visitor here while her Mom went to visit one of her best friends. One morning we got out the barbie car and some old travel cases filled with barbies and accessories. We undressed them and dressed them up again, even braiding and fixing some messy hairdos.

 

It reminded me of another time . . . on a humid porch in Indonesia. She wanted to see the pictures and we had fun going through them.

There we sat in the hammock surrounded by windows of fine mesh. The barbies were loved.

She introduced me to auntie Laura, auntie Kristal and auntie Kari.

As we swayed and chatted there,
her brother and sister were jumping on the tramp just off side.

It's a memory now of a time I would not have guessed that in exactly a year we'd be playing barbies in Canada, in our family room . . . and picking up the other two after school. A sweet surprise.

First Blooms

The camellias in our front yard are one of the first bushes to be in bloom every spring.

The red one always coming along a little behind the pink one.

Many of the plants in our yard were put in twenty five years ago,
 when I was about the age our youngest child is now!
Maybe that is why I do not know the names of many of them
 . . . such as this one

or this one. I think they are a type of rhododendron.

Last weekend I went out and cut clippings of what was growing in the yard.

and a few days later noticed buds had opened right in the vase.

These first appear as lime green buds that resemble closed fists (third photo from top)
and soon each little finger opens up into a yellow flower . . . to display a large pom-pom like flower. Such intricate beauty in the open hand!

Baked Potatoes

Once a month we host a church Care Group that begins with a simple dinner together. I enjoy the challenge of coming up with ideas that are easy to make, easy to serve and easy to clean up for this kind of an evening. Did you pick up on the repeated word? With a large group and limited time for socializing . . . one just has to be organized.

Taking time to think through how a potato bar would work, I scrubbed potatoes way ahead of time and let them dry. After planning the toppings, I set out the serving dishes . (You do not want to be looking for those last minute.)

While the chili was simmering . . .

I chopped up tomatoes and peppers for salsa . ..

vegetables for Greek salad . . .

crisped the bacon . . .

cooked the onions . . .

prepared vegetables to steam . . . made cheese sauce . . . put the corn in a pot to heat . . .

got out grated cheese . . .

chopped chives . . .

and cubed the butter.

If your day (or the night before) allows for it, most of the work can be done before the potatoes ever make it into the oven.

When the time came to eat, it was easy to just enjoy and let everyone help themselves.

I enjoyed observing the uniqueness of the final plated presentations.

(for more details see today's post on MGCC)

She's Working with Me

One day this week, a day after some of the grandkids were here,
 I turned in the kitchen and something bright greeted me on the side of the fridge.
It brought a smile. I read it as a note saying,
 "I was here"
. . . still a fairly new concept, to be cherished

My grandkids know that my fridge door stays bare.
One asked me recently, "Grammy, why don't you put magnets on it?"
Well . . .  I have a reason and a half . . . sort of.
The whole reason is that magnets scratch the finish on this particular model.
The half reason is that I don't really care for cluttered fridge doors ...
but that is only half a reason . ..
because I'd be willing to ignore that reason in certain circumstances.

When I saw this alternative . . . I was happy. Not a big space, but it works.

Isn't it great when we can find a way to make everyone happy?

I think I will Make it Now

For the past three weeks or so I have sniffled . . .

coughed up a storm . . .

felt all kinds of whistles and sounds . . .

much like wind going at sails, in my ears

as I moved through mountain passes and a number of flights. 

Then I sniffled some more and dealt with a feeling much like

a heavy rock shifting in my head, as my sinuses filled up.

I've felt frustration . . .  irritation . . . shivers . . . pain

and a loss of what to do or take next.

Buckley's . . . Vic's Vapor Rub . . . salt water rinses . . . . hot baths
. . . . vitamin C . . . Tylenol . . . a round of antibiotics . . .
and finally some clearing and hope coming back in the form of

Tylenol with codeine and ibuprofen extra strength!

 

But what put the rainbow in the sky was

 the chicken noodle soup that arrived at my door  . . .

lovingly made my my mom. 

A mother's love, no matter what age, is still the best medicine.

 I think I will make it now.

The Weekend Sale

It's late Sunday night. After a much needed nap this afternoon, company from Ontario came by and I was prepared with a delicious boysenberry pie brought all the way from the MCC Sale in Fresno.

The West Coast Mennonite Sale and Auction for World Relief just celebrated it's 45th year! We felt very much at home in this setting as it is not unlike the one hosted in Abbotsford every September.

Read more here: http://calendar.fresnobee.com/fresno_ca/events/show/244889124-west-coast-mennonite-central-committee-relief-sale-and-auction#story

This yearly event is a means to raise funds through generous donations to be sold or auctioned and given directly to MCC. In turn, MCC uses these funds to give aid to people around the world, in the name of Christ.

The sale was held on the Fresno Pacific University campus. We went there on Friday morning to check out the venue. Our hearts went out to the volunteers who had to do set up in the rain. It made for last minute changes and having to be flexible.

We dashed in and out of the rain . . .

and dealt with traffic slow down as a result of the unusual downpour.

Undaunted, our Seattle girl . . .  Ellen, was wonderful at getting us around.

 

Our "story time" on Friday night was moved indoors to the cafeteria, where we also had the opportunity to do a cooking show on Saturday morning.

By Saturday afternoon the sun was out. We had a chance to leave our signing table for a while to look around and get some lunch.

We took note of the beautiful campus and a great feeling of community.

 

We chose a nice sunny bench to have our Borscht.

Highlights for us included sharing our story, witnessing a number of cookbooks get actioned off, including one for $1000 (going directly to the orphanage greenhouse project) and meeting new friends! The warm welcome and care given to us by Kevin and Rose was exceptional.

And not a moment was wasted as we deliberated and made plans for the future . . . almost to the last moments of landing on home soil again.

Mennonite Girls Fly to Fresno

Our aprons are pressed and our bags are packed

 as we anticipate  a couple of days at the Fresno MCC Sale.

Four of us are going . . . Ellen, Judy, Lovella and I.

We look forward to meeting many of our visitors!

We have been asked to share the MGCC story, teach a cooking class

 and help promote the sale of the cookbook,

that is helping street kids, through MCC work in the Ukraine.

I am a little nervous, but mostly excited,

and look forward to what the next few days hold.

We'll keep you posted on this, yet another, unexpected adventure!

Reflections on a Road Trip

We set out Thursday morning in a truck that is not ours, being made aware that

 it got left behind for us to take when it would be convenient for us.

Although close to home we have magnolia trees blossoming, it took but maybe five hours

 before we drove through these snow banks.

I was looking forward to catching some good shots of the Rockies, but on a trip like this
I have to be prepared for going out of the way to stop off at job sites

and waiting for certain inspections to be done.

By the time we saw them in the distance, it was time to stop for dinner.

And by the time dinner was done, we could only enjoy them by the light of the moon.

We drove late into the night.

The next morning, it did not take long

before we drove through a completely different landscape!

It was many hours on the road in a black Nissan truck,
one I always loved seeing when it came whipping into our driveway.
I looked at my H and bluntly asked him,

"Why do we do this?"

We had a little discussion about similar trips.

Like . . .why did we haul our piano down the I-5 to a daughter waiting?

And . . . why did we pack homemade strawberry jam amongst our clothing and travel to a foreign country to build a tree house?

Why? Is this what parents do? Is this what it means to help them out of the nest?

Of course, we smiled . . .
I'm not trying to write another sad post, I'm just saying . . .
The good thing is that, after all is said and done, these times become a good memory
pointing out the diverstiy of life and how we love.
But the question remains . . .

Why, when it hurts to let them go, do we make it easier for them?

I could not help but notice what looked like crosses flying by, enlarging the distance between the here and the there . . . on Good Friday.

And just now I see it . . .

How very much our Heavenly Father must love us!

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

Romans 8:32