Hope... a beautiful thing!

According to wikipedia, hope is defined as...

"Hope is the belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one's life."


"Hope is distinct from positive thinking, which refers to a therapeutic or systematic proces
used in psychology for reversing pessimism. In other words, hope is a feeling of optimistic feelings in a negative or falling situation to overcome it in success."

In a nutshell, that describes the kind of HOPE I have held on to tightly this last year! It's not the first time in my life that I have embraced hope in a real way.  When my sister died (just over 12 years ago) I embraced the promise of hope, the promise of eternity and the promise that God doesn't make mistakes or break promises!

HOPE gives me a reason to wake up every day! HOPE for the future helps me get through the tough days! HOPE for reconciliation gets me through the really tough days.  HOPE for restoration gives me courage to say what I need to say.  HOPE encourages me to dream for what is really mine!

The past month has been a month of that hope coming to life.  Daniel and I have made steps, big ones and little towards reinstating our lives together... like really together, as a family again! Even though there are still so many decisions to be made and so many details to be ironed out -- it's progress!  Hope!

Daniel has come to visit two times now, on two separate weekends.... the time together, as a family has been SO enjoyable. So simple.  So sweet.  We have enjoyed time together doing the things that we used to do as a family, before life and crap got in the way.  We went for walks, we ate together, we played together and we read together.  Hope!

We spend Father's Day together today.  Last year we didn't.  This year we celebrated our family.  Celebrated Daniel and how he has transformed as a Dad.  He has two kids who love him so much and who miss him desperately when he is gone.  Hope!

Thanks for listening.  I haven't written on this blog in so long, but really felt like tonight was the night! :) 

Javan, Halia & Chocolate!

My three all-time favourite things!!

My wonderful almost-7-year old (how on earth did that happen?) who is SO full of energy, has enough spunk for three people, ideas to spare and stories, oh the stories! 

My ever-surprising 5 year old who is inquisitive enough for at least a dozen children.  She is as smart as a whip, super duper helpful, and about as busy as they come! 

My fave comfort food -- chocolate!  Tonight the kids and I made peanut butter cookies with kisses in the middle.  I made these when I was pregnant with Javan -- I think that was the last time.  They were SO good, I think we were all drooling!!

After the last week of super stressful days and nights and days and nights, I have come to cherish the moments even more than before.  Cherish the chocolate teeth that occured when Halia bit in to her cookie.  Cherish the noise (what would I do without the noise?).  Cherish the stories, even if they are at times when talking could be replaced with working.  Cherish the nights when they want to sleep together.  The kids, not the cookies! :)  Cherish the kisses (both the chocolate ones and the real ones!).  Cherish the days, the hours, the minutes and the moments!

Cherish...

Christmas... my favourite time of year!!

I haven't posted in a long time... it's been a busy fall! 

What is your favourite time of year?? Mine is Christmas.  It's the time of year that we get to spoil our friends and family with gifts and kindness.  I love it! 

Growing up we always had a perfectly decorated tree, perfectly baked cookies and perfectly wrapped gifts.  Now that I'm "all grown up" my goal is to focus on the meaning behind the tree, the cookies and the gifts! I try to not get caught up in the temptation of being "perfect" but instead, pour my heart into everything that we do over the season!

Here are a few traditions that we partake in as a family:

1. The celebration of advent.  The kids and I do somet kind of advent calendar/countdown/countup thing to keep track of the month.  We read a couple of different stories about the first Christmas and talk about the meaning behind the advent themes:  peace, hope, love and joy!   In the past we have lit advent candles every week, but this year we made some out of paper...

2.  Gifts... we do give gifts! I love shopping, I love seeing the kids' eyes as they open their gifts on Christmas!  We give gifts, because we believe the Jesus was given as a gift, to the world.  The kids also give gifts away, as we put together Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes every year to give to children who may or may not have a Christmas.

3.  Food!  Of course, food... Turkey with all the fixins'  This year in school we learned about the food in France and Mexico at Christmas time... we are going to try and make something like what they would eat in those countries for dinner... just to spice things up a little bit!  On Christmas morning we have a "wife saver"  -- we always had this growing up and I have made it almost every year, this year will be the same!

4. Christmas Eve -- we will read the Christmas story and open 1 gift that is always pajamas... this year homemade pajamas, by yours truly!  We will likely go to church on Sunday morning instead of Christmas Eve this year, simply because Mama likes an early bedtime... cause we all know it will be an early morning!

Enjoy your traditions this year and why not make a new one? 

Merry Christmas!

A Great Idea!

As many of you know, my life has been turned upside down in the last few months. I've been just surviing most days, but every week, every month it seems to get easier and life is getting back to "normal" -- even though our "normal" is not what it used to be! I said to a friend the other day, "Life as I knew it before June does not exisit anymore!" I am able to find happiness and contentment in life now, even though it's not the life I thought I'd be living!


Anyways..... on to the great idea!

So I was thinking the other day about Christmas gifts and making something this year. I decided to make reheatable rice bags, the kind you put in the microwave to warm up. We have used them for years and both me and kids love them. Then I thought, "Why not make them to sell, or at least see if there is any interest!" What a great idea. It's something I can do from home, while the kids are sleeping. It's a perfect gift for Christmas, or any other occasion fo

My main motivation for starting to make Butterfly Bags! was that I really, really, really, (you get the idea!) want to stay home with the kids and not go to work full-time.  So between this and another part-time job, I'm hopigng this will make it possible, or continue to mamke it posible.


So I put it out there, on FB of course and had my first order the next day, and then my second and third... and you get the idea, I've had orders for almost two dozen bags already! Double Yay!

Here is the little blogspot I've created for Butterfly Bags! and it's also on FB too, of course. :)


Check it out, I'd love to make one (or more!) for you

Friends... one of my favourite things!

Life just wouldn't be life without friends!

I have had a whole bunch of really great friends in my life... friends who I don't think I would have been able to live without!

Here are some of the best of the best that I remember...

C, L, T & J -- friends who accepted me for who I was, even when I was SUPER dorky and didn't even know how to do my hair or dress myself properly! LOL! Friends who made me do things that I wouldn't have normally done... both good and not so good! Friends who made junior high and high school liveable. Friends who will always be friends, even if we don't see eachother all the time!

A - Hmm... a friend who made me feel so special, every time we were together. Someone who encouraged me, lifted me up and helped me through some of the hardest, most difficult times in my life. A friend who stuck with my, from thousands of miles away. A friend who made me laugh, gave great hugs and spent so many hours on the phone, when I needed her the most! I wish we were still friends, I miss her SO much.

J - Oh my -- I've never had a friend like J before, and never since. She was my sanity, amidst of my crazy life situations. She knew how to have fun, and we had so much fun together. Endless days and nights of talking, praying and laughing -- did I mention laughing? J and I could laugh for hours, about nothing, and everything. I will NEVER forget the year we spent together and the trips and the days worth of phone calls inbetween it all. Man, I wish we were still super good friends!

A - When life happens you just need a great friend. That's how I feel about A -- it was perfect timing when we met, we have so much in common, it's crazy! Our lives have meshed together so nicely it's been a blast getting to know her over the past few years. A and I just "get" eachother -- we are so different, yet so passionate about the same things... I don't think I would have survived the past year and a half without her. I love her determination, her zest for life and her passion for being the best she can be... She has lived through some seriously crappy stuff and has come out stronger on the other side! I'm so honoured to be her friend!

S - Oh my -- if two people were meant to be friends, it's me and S. It's like we were made with the same mold sometimes. She encourages me to be the person Iwant to be. She has lived through so much stuff that I have gone through recently -- her wisdom and gentle advice is just perfect. I love her laugh, her smile and her ability to deal with what comes her way. She is a great Mom and a wonderful friend. I am so glad that our paths crossed and I hope they never "uncross!"

D - Hmm? Another painful one. I don't think I can do it right now. I miss this friend so much. I thought we'd be friends forever. This friend knows ALL my secrets and all my shortcomings. They everything about me, the good, the bad and the ugly. I feel lost somedays without them around. I wish... I wish!

Well, that didn't turn out like I thought it would. What is the point of this post you ask?

What would our lives be like if we didn't have any friends? Man, how boring it would be without someone to laugh with, cry with, celebrate with , encourage, build up, do crazy stuff with.... talk to...

I wish I had been a better friend thoughout my life. I know I have lost friendships because I was not the friend I should have been. I judged when I should have accepted. I was intolerant when I should have been forgiving. I was mean when I should have been kind. For that, I'm SORRY, so sorry!

I hope that I've learned from my mistakes and can be a better friend in my second 3 decades! I appreciate my friends SO much, I honestly don't know what I'd do without them.

*sniffle*

*wipes away the tears*

"Friendships don't just happen,

but the best ones seem to fall into place

right from the start, naturally and easily

as if they were always meant to be!"

~ Anonymous

Babywearing Part 2 - BabyHawks ROCK!

When Halia was 3 1/2 years I bought a BabyHawk from EcoBaby Canada -- I designed my own, what a perfect thing to do for a anal person like me.  Andrea, with EcoBaby is doing a pre-order on custom BabyHawks -- you get 15% off, great deal!


BabyHawks can be used for front carries and back carries.  All sizes -- newborn, infant, toddler and big kids! My daughter is 40 pounds and it is still comfortable -- but that will depend on your comfort level and strength.


**note** There are more "brands" of these carriers, which are called Mei Tai's -- so it's kinda like jeans, Mei Tai is the pair of jeans and BabyHawk is the brand, like Levi or Wrangler! 


So, the same babywearing safety applies to these carriers!


1.  Make sure you use the appropriate carrier for you and your child.
2.  Make sure you learn and use the carrier properly. 
3.  Make sure baby is free to breathe when in the carrier.  Face should be visible at all times!

Newborn carry with a BabyHawk,
feet can also be "froggied" inside,
with little ones, and
head support can be folded down.

An older baby carried on the front, with feet out,
using head support.  Straps can be tied in
front or around back.  So versatile!

A very fun to look at :) back carry with an older
baby.   Notice how child's legs are NOT dangling. 
These carriers encourage a deep-seated
position with encourages spine and hip health.

So if you are looking for a comfy, versatile, washable, colorful (or not!) carrier for newborns all the way to preschoolers -- this might just be the carrier for you!!

_______


The photo below is a new carrier designed by BabyHawk, but it's more of a Soft Structured Carrier -- so now not only can you customized a BabyHawk, but if you don't like the straps, you can go with an "Oh, Snap" and have the beauty of a Hawk, with the ease of a SSC.  Oh the options!!

Giveaway at 50 followers!

The hot-of-the-press copy of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding is still up for grabs... all we need is 38 more followers to this blog!!

Keep sharing!