Friday 27 December 2013

Christmas

Lots of driving and eating was done this Christmas. We are thankful for our families and the time we could spend with them. God has given us many blessings and we couldn't be more grateful!

Here are a few pictures from this Christmas:

{Groenwold Christmas}

playing "The Sneaky Squirrel"
Brad and Jace

Grandpa taking a nap in the "princess castle"
Callie/Ashley selfie!

(Kottelenberg Christmas)

Winter Wonderland
O Christmas Tree!
Colsen and Grandma
Grandpa and Hayden putting Daisy's glasses on
watercolour pencils!
Lindsay's "mute button"
reading "Panda Bear, Panda Bear"
Christmas hairdos
And in everything, we give thanks, knowing that:
"God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, 
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
John 3:16

Wednesday 18 December 2013

A Birthday Outing

On Monday, James celebrated his quarter century birthday, and to celebrate we drove over to Peterborough to visit the Canadian Canoe Museum. Since James loves everything outdoors and canoe-related (and is slowly inspiring me to be interested in the same!), this was the perfect way to spend our afternoon!
poem making station

 We were really impressed with the quality of the displays and how interactive and interesting the whole museum experience was. I would even venture to say this museum is one of the best I've been to! It has some great hands-on displays for little kids- and adults- and does a great job of displaying the canoes, promoting outdoor culture and teaching about Canadian history as it relates to canoes!

workshop area- these benches are used to teach students how to carve canoe paddles

A voyageur canoe and all its contents! 
HBC blanket capotes- you can also take a class to learn to make these!

The day turned out to be a blast! We also visited the Whetung Ojibwa Crafts and Art Gallery. The gallery is a fantastic place to check out some native art and possibly get yourself an amazing pair of moccasins! :)

I'm going to leave you with a quote from Bill Mason. He was a famous Canadian outdoorsman who truly loved the outdoors and inspired many people to get out and enjoy it. Hopefully it will inspire you to get out and enjoy God's great creation as well! (Yes, even in the cold...)

A journey by canoe along ancient waterways is a good way to rediscover our lost relationship with the natural world and the Creator who put it together so long ago. - Bill Mason, Path of the Paddle

Sunday 15 December 2013

A Night at the Cottage

We had the special privilege of spending the night at a cottage in Fenelon Falls with a group of friends who came up for the weekend. It was so much fun to see them again: we played "Catchphrase", sat in the hot tub (...but not me *sniff sniff*), and laughed a whole lot! It was great to spend time again with good friends we don't see as much as we'd like to!

Here are a couple pictures of the place:

The view out the back winder- Sturgeon Lake



James enjoying the lake from the dock
 And of course... the quinzhee where James, Chris and Man slept. For those of you who aren't sure what a quinzhee is, it's basically a snow fort for big kids- read: men playing in the snow! Chris, Man and Reuben piled up the snow and then dug out a fort in the inside to sleep in. They even thought of a windbreak in front of the door to "keep out the cold air". Nevertheless they slept all night in -20 and survived to tell about it!

The quinzhee



Monday 9 December 2013

Winter {Wonder}land

This morning I took a walk into town to do some errands. We had some snow overnight and everything was covered in a beautiful blanket of fresh snow.

My walks have become slower lately (due to obvious reasons). Those of you who know my family know we have a hard time walking slowly. Or thinking slowly. But today I was grateful for my slow walk down the street. I really felt that I had an opportunity to slow down and enjoy the winter wonderland God created overnight.

These last few months, and the few to come, have been and will be filled with an overabundance of thinking, worrying, and stressing. There is so much to plan and think about that sometimes I forget to stop and think about what is. It's hard to remember the good and beautiful things that are happening now.

The snow today was so pretty. So white and so quiet. Quiet is hard for me. I'm not a quiet or a still person. So today I am just happy to have been given the reminder to be still. As my body slows down even more (still 8 weeks to go...!), I will take it as a reminder to let my mind slow be still in the midst of the madness.

The quieter you become, the more you can hear ~ Ram Dass

Tuesday 3 December 2013

{Gratitude Lately}

Today I'm thankful for...

...a beautiful crib where my baby can sleep and dream sweet dreams.

... a husband who is adventurous and excited to teach our baby about God's creation 
(in an awesome backpack carrier!)

... a job offer (finally!) for relief work in a group home


... the park near our house where I can enjoy the sun and the river

... our neighbour girls who apologize for "stealing" our snow to build their fort

... games of Sorry (and a husband who says he's not competitive, but...)

and
... a husband who puts up with things like this. all the time. I love you James!


What are YOU thankful for today? Please share!