At the End of 2018

Praise the Lord, O my soul ...

Who satisfies your desires with good things,

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
Psalm 103:5

It's been a full year of learning, leaning, listening
and longings fulfilled.
My heart overflows with satisfied desires!

Thankful for 2018

Christmas Joy

The Friesens came ...

and then the Sawyers.

There was excitement in the air as we started with appies.

The kids still like to see something fun to color 

and they also tore and decorated paper Christmas trees while blindfolded,

which brought some laughter about the funny creations.

Papa opened a new storybook about the meaning of Christmas

and Saint Nicholas. 

Then the kids shared in verses and song.

Tradition here is to do separate gift openings, first all the kids

taking turns on the gift opening chair

and later the parents have time alone

while the kids play or watch a movie.

The boys had to go for a quick spin to try their new wheels,

even in the dark.

Teddy got her wish for a kick scooter with wheels that light up.

The older girls had fun trying on their twin outfits.

and the littlest ones didn't take long to try their new pajamas.

After dinner it was the adults' turn.

There was joy in giving and receiving,

but the greatest joy in my heart

was the fact that we love getting together.

Yes, we miss our Indonesia family,

but there is the comfort of knowing if they could,

they would be here.

Pictures and words cannot capture the contentment

and joy in our hearts,

as we realize what a blessing it is to celebrate

this most special day of the year.

After everyone had packed up their loot and tired kids.

I sat down, scrolling through the photos,
and had to think of the second verse of one of my favorite German Christmas songs.

Translation does not do it poetic justice, but I will try,
because it sums up my feelings at such a time as this.

"Yet such joys are all too short,

soon the candle light goes out.

Only Jesus can give joy that never, never ends."

All glory to God.

The Angel Story

My eyes were drawn to the beautiful painting

that gets rolled out every year at the MEI Christmas concert.

I found out that it was painted 30 years ago by an MEI teacher,

who may have had no idea how many students

would be singing the song of the angels under that banner.

How fitting that the joy the kids proclaim every year in song,

matches that of the angels' joyfull announcement!

My heart fills with joy just at the sight.

I could not help but be reminded of a reading in 25 Days of Advent,

where the writer points out how the angels were present

when God laid out the earth's foundations,

shouting with joy ...

and

how sad they must have been when 

they saw sin enter the world and the gate to the garden closed.

For a long time they waited,

for the redemption that was promised.

They knew not when.

Until one day a tiny baby was born

and God sent an angel to proclaim the message of salvation

to a group of shepherds ... ultimately to all people.

And then the angels could wait no more!

We all know how it says, that 

suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel,

praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest heaven,

and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."

Luke 2: 9-14

Only angels know how precious this news! 

Wishing you joy that lasts long after this day.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Birthday, Mom

Last Sunday, a couple of days before her birthday, 

Monika and I, with our hubbies, went to see mom at her home

to celebrate her 84th Birthday.

In years gone by, she felt bad that her birthday was so close to Christmas.

It was not that she felt sorry for herself, 

but for those of us who wanted to make it special ...

"when it's such a busy time."

Since she gets her food pureed now,

we decided to bring cookies to dunk in coffee.

A peppermint cookie may or may not have brought back some familiarity,

but we know she enjoyed the time around the table 

in the company of son-in-laws who still make her laugh. 

On her actual birthday, 

Monika and I had not planned to meet there, but we did.

Sometimes we try hard to make her smile for a picture.

The truth is, 

I want to guard others from seeing her with her strange expression.

And yet, this is what I've come to understand ...
she wants to smile

but most of the time, no matter how hard she tries,

something is off.

I believe she knows it has something to do with her mouth,

but her brain is forgetting how to send the smile signal to those muscles.

Strange, how simple things we do so naturally

still need a clear command and follow through.

On the other hand, 

it shows the complexity of how we are made.

So marvelously created. 

We have made new memories with mom this year

and I'm thankful for the peace and contentment she expresses. 

Happy Birthday to my smiling mom!

♡♡♡

Pinterest and Peppernut Inspired

A week ago Friday after school, 

the oldest three girls came over after school to craft.

It was a joy to see how excited they were!

I would love to show what they made, but they were so proud of their

accomplishments that they decided to use them as Christmas gifts.

So, no posting ... Mimi!

We also did some baking, rolling out a peppernut recipe
to make shaped gingerbread men etc. and these snowmen cookies.

After dinner we watched The Princess Switch ...

a perfect girl movie.

How I love this age!

As I do this one! So fun to see them experience their "firsts".

As they were cutting peppernuts,

they were humming a tune from Annie.

When I asked if they had seen the movie,

Evy said, "I'm not allowed to watch the end ... there's a scary part.

That's where a man chases Annie. His name is Chicken."

And if that does not make you laugh,

you have not seen the movie.

When Daddy picked up Jade, she told him,

"Mimi let us use a very safe knife!" 

I kept aside some of the Peppernut dough to do my own playing.

Our Community Group (Church Care Group) got together

for appies and dessert this week.

One game we played, we were blindfolded and 

given construction paper and stickers to shape and decorate trees.

And last night ... ending the second week of December,

we attended An Irish Christmas 
performed by the 

Abbotsford Youth Orchestra with Dr. Calvin Dyck,

the Steel School of Irish Dance and the Alumni Project

which is a choral group of graduates from MEI.

The readings were done with a beautiful Irish accent.

It was another wonderful evening with friends!

The first week of December

A couple of days before December 1st 

we grabbed a nice day and went to the tree farm,

making it an extended lunch hour.

Evy was intrigued with the fact that we have to water this tree.

We prepared for our sibling dinner on the first.

I love setting the tables.

We are still 16 all together, plus one cousin,

but one sister and husband could not make it. 

A precious time we had together.

This group may not be fond of taking photos

but I just have to include them as part of our beloved family.

One of my H's brothers came to faith in Jesus this past year

and it is such a joy to see the peace and purpose he has found,

so eager to share.

The next day we were welcomed into this lovely setting

for our MGCC party.

Lovella and her Beloved went to a lot of beautiful work.
She dreamed and he crafted ... candle holders made from

last winter's broken birch tree limbs.

The food and fellowship when we get together is like another family. 

A few days later, on December 5, we hosted our staff dinner

at Tanglebanks Gardens - Brambles Bistro.

The food was amazing.

Again, these are photos I offer with a bit of hesitation,

but I would like to share the beauty of some of the overall scene.

My H has had a propensity to hire new immigrants

and somehow learns to communicate well with them.

On this evening we were about 50 people - 19 nationalities.

Everyone had the chance to say Merry Christmas in their language.

And so ends our first week with a scene 

that distracted me one night as I was preparing dinner ...

our backyard aglow, in more than one way.

How awesome are His works

and how humbling to be made in His image

to enjoy this beauty!

♡♡♡

The Heritage Fair

I heard about the heritage project Lacey was working on

when I picked her up from school one day last week.

So when I was asked for a bit of help, 

I invited myself to see what this fair was all about.

It was great!

Lovella's granddaughter happened to be right beside Lacey,

both having chosen their Mennonite heritage -

so there were Peppernuts and Zwieback to sample, side by side ...
and your guess would be as good as mine, where they got that help from. 

A closer look at her work that I just have to show off -

her own artwork and research.

She also had on display a book published by her aunt -

the life story of her great-grandmother.

I found it so good that kids can learn and share about their background.

Although many in this school have similar backgrounds, 

there were also students from India, Paraguay, Brazil, Croatia,

Netherlands, Holland, Scotland and more...

each being shown value in who they are by

having been given this opportunity.

Even just to open conversations 

with their parents and grandparents is so good.

I am so proud of this beautiful girl -

eager to learn, talented, conscientious, thoughtful

and fun to be with. 

♡♡♡

Peppernuts

This girl ... she's not been with us for Christmas since 2013

when she was five.

So when this photo came to my phone 

I knew she was thinking about this past summer

 when they were back in Canada with us.

 One warm night after dinner I decided it was as good a time as any

and showed her how we roll and cut Peppernut cookies.

Then we baked them for our Christmas in July.

I guess they made an impression on more than one grand,

 because on this random day when I got these photos,

her mom told me she had done these all on her own.

How can it be that in these small ways,

God continues to care for the little things I thought we'd miss out on -

that even though she lives on the other side of the world,

and rarely participates in our traditions

she pulled out the cookbook and made a new memory.

Knowing that our special summer moments stayed in her heart

is a gift I'm cherishing these days.

Another way to see God's grace.

Love Passed On

Something I love about having my photos and slides scanned

is that I can usually find a photo pretty fast.

This one takes me back to 1984 -

a moment lost in time - but one that 

shows the tender love of an older sister.

A sister that can smother her little brother with love

as much as she can be his boss -

very much like the one that was texted to me last week.

It's not always I look at Jack and see Ben -

I see my sweet grandson, Jack, who has endeared me to him

on his own merits -

however, when I saw this photo I went back in time

and maybe you can imagine how moments like that can feel.

He's quite a bit older here,

but his little face I get to see again

in the face of his son.

And that just makes me smile.

About Being in the Fall Season

Ten years ago, when I began to blog, I declared myself in the fall season of life,

filled with the colors of the changes that had transpired in my life.

At the time we were recent empty nesters .

Two of our daughters had moved out of country and 

we had one newly married couple near by.

To see our five young grandchildren involved a lot of travel.

When the announcement came that our youngest was going to be a dad,

he commented that maybe they should name this one "Local"

because everyone was saying to him that 

we must be so happy to have a local grandchild.

The year after Lacey was born, our American family moved to be near to us!

It was an unexpected dream come true.

To make things interesting, our original locals moved to Saskatoon for three years.

But they came back to visit often.

There was great joy, also when our Indonesia family came home

and stayed for a few years, even though it was hard to
let them go again.

I know that ten years ago and even earlier, 

I struggled some to embrace this new season. 

Some things did not look the way I'd have chosen.

But looking back now, I see how God has worked for my growth

and given me opportunities I could have missed.

He gave me the desires of my heart in ways 

I could not have dreamt.

A gift for such a time as this and beyond.

This season,

sandwiched between summer and winter,
 has taken me through the contrast of losing my mom-in-law

at the same time as giving my mom away in marriage.
It has been a time of welcoming more babies.
A time of improving our home space.
A time of taking my cooking and baking skills to new levels
and sharing it in many ways that challenged me,
yet gave me confidence in a gift to be used.

It has allowed me to see life through the eyes of children

as well as through the eyes of a mom's failing memory,

especially so because of my desire to write.

It has given me reason to appreciate the moments.

The beauty of autumn continues to 

inspire me even as I see it waning and preparing me for the next.

But for now, I will be thankful for every leaf 

that still flutters to the ground to nourish it

 unto new life to come.