Friday's Fave Five ~ Juggling Men

Here we are at the end of another week.
For my past few weeks I've been juggling....
Some days I'm with the young and then with the elderly,
and then I mix them all together....
It's called, Juggling Men!

My older grandson, Levi loves to visit his Opa's shop!
It's called the Chocolate Factory.
He loves to create and imagine in this shop.
You see, there's lots of tools and interesting things...
Yesterday, he was going to make a new invention.

There it is...do you see that spinning tennis ball?
He grabbed the shop vac hose, propped it against a desk.
and plugged it in....the massive air movement spun his ball in space.

Meanwhile the little one loves nothing more than cutting lawns...
When he went home in the evening...he proudly stated,
"Nite Nite on Opa's lap."
Sometimes I want to stop TIME!!!!
I can still hear him singing...Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka!

I think this is the first time ever, that he fell asleep,
stayed sleeping while I found a blanket for him...
and enjoyed an hour of quietness with Great Opa.

There sits his Great Opa, admiring this little fellow.
I can just see him blessing this fellow through prayer.
Great Opa is 98 and Silas is just over two..
And the brown colored blanket is special....It belonged to Great Oma,
many years ago...and it's known as the cuddle blanket for
watching TV, or camping or just whatever....

He's up to another invention, as he proudly shows his Great Opa!
He loves to play with nuts and bolts and screw and wire things together.

Here we are, three generations.
What a rich heritage.
Great Opa has been spending more time with us,
as his be-beloved Helen has been hospitalized with medical concerns.
What a wonderful week of juggling these men.
What a wonderful opportunity to share life.

Thanks Susanne for letting me share my highlights.
I look forward to Friday's.
That's my life for this week.
I've learned so much through this past week.

Hope you've had a great week.

Life's Like That!

There are days...and there are DAYS!!!
Some days I fear...
There is no easy answer for some of life's dilemma's.
Sometimes I don't know which end is coming first.

So then it's time to stop and assess.
Carefully checking all the different angles....
inspecting, observing...trying to make heads out of tails.

Move forwards and backwards.
One needs to be thorough...sensitive, sensible.
You can't take things for granted.

Maybe I need to rethink how I do things.

I know...I need to learn to think out of the box...
There always a new way to do things!
I need to continue giving it, all I got.

"You pull Judy, and I'll push!"
A few days spent in Whistler, with farmer's wives,
helped bring some new perspective, once again.
That's what life is all about.
Life is much easier travelled with a friend.

"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity.

The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."

~ Winston Churchill

This Bugs Me!

When you hire a window washer,
and he washes the windows, but not the sills.

Dough rising too quickly,
making a mess in my fridge.

Who hung these wet ones on my patio chair?
I thought those days were long gone....

In our last wind storm....
my neighbors tree took a beating...
I see it through my window every day.

Now I looked from my neighbors view...
and saw the same thing,
a crooked tree on my yard,
but it's been that way for 15 years.
I can't imagine what she's had to look at.
"It has to go..."
Three people told me that, this past weekend.

I'm leaving for a few days....
I wonder if it will still be there on my return???

What bugs you today?

Friday's FAVE Five ~ Products from the Island

One more busy week,

but a dream come true for me.
I've been dreaming of an Island built just for me.
Over the past winter,
I've been drawing and scheming with a consultant.
It happened this week.

Monday morning arrived...the long awaited day.
My kitchen space was empty...I used to have a make shift island.
It was bare to the tiles.
The trucks arrived.
The men arrived
At the end of the day,
I had my new Island.

So, I began to bake....
I needed to share some products from the Island.
It's rhubarb season, so I made my families favorite Rhubarb Pie.

The next day it was a batch of fresh cinnamon buns.
I knew my little boys were coming over, so I quickly
whipped up a new batch of Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies.
Um...it's Yummy!
By now...I'm impressed how well the dough rolls out.

Then I tried another Rhubarb Tart recipe,
for a house full of company.
It's so delicious....
Add a dollop of whipping cream.

My hubby added one more final product to the Island.
A bouquet of Calla lilies added the finishing touch.

Thanks Susanne for allowing me to share my highlights.
Check out how you can also share you FFF.
I always look forward to Friday's
especially after a busy week.
Hope you all enjoyed your week.

At The Bridge

I've loved this quote by Robert Bateman. The other day when I went to Costco with a friend, we found the perfect centerpiece for her garden....a Bridge.

Every generation discovers anew the pleasures of a summer afternoon, a country road and a quick splash in a cooling stream.
A bridge like this one represents a piece of human heritage as valuable to me as a piece of nature.
This landscape reflects an earlier, more harmonious time when man worked more closely with nature. Robert Bateman


She quickly assembled the bridge with the help of her husband, added a few rocks and stones to make the most park like setting in the valley.

On any given day one can find a park like setting at her home.

As she toured me to her back yard, there they were....Cala Lilies. They are oh, so beautiful.

Her trimmed boxwood edge bordered her back yard against this freshly cut hay field, with the backdrop of the snow-capped mountains. I knew I better be on the run, because this gal would soon be driving a 10 ton truck, helping along with the rest of the crew as they would soon harvest.

Sure enough, just as we rounded the corner, there he was....I wasn't certain if he was calling her to come and drive tractor or truck, or whether he was waving at me. Anyways, my time is up, I better let her go.

This has been a beautiful week, and many farmers have been able to get there bumper crops harvested with out any rain.

This farming family still works harmoniously with nature. There yard is truly a masterpiece and a reflection of there love for nature.

Can any of you identify where this bridge is located or the name of the farm?

Thoughts from the Heart.

"If I had a single flower for every time I think about you,
I could walk forever in my garden."
Attributed to my Mom....
I miss you.

~~~~~
It's always extra special when you don't know what's happening.
You wonder....
But on the other hand...they are all busy,
work...friends....parents...children.

~~~~
I love your acts of kindness.
A special email!
A dinner invite!
A Hockey Game ~ Yea Canucks!
Sipping Kona Coffee
Gardening!
Flowers!
Special nieces!

I love being a Mother.

Friday's FAVE Five

It's time to celebrate our Friday's FAVE Five.

Thanks Susanne for hosting.
How many have you hosted so faithfully?
Eighty Six!

I enjoyed preparing my little boys for their Mom's Marathon.
Three family members participated in the pouring rain,
and all were successful at meeting their goals.

"Opa, my bike needs fixing."
So we took the tire...only to find out, it cost $40 to replace it.
Off we went to Bibles for Missions,and guess what we found?
A solid working bike for $13, with two excellent tires.

Now, why is that bike parked on my doorstep?
He wanted to make sure it would be safe all night,
and that he could see it. He was so proud.

Guess what else I found there...
Dishes from Bavaria...for only $30 a set.
They matched my German dishes I received from
my hubbies mother many years ago...
I love them.
I've never been the world's best bargain hunter,
but this was an exceptionally good day.

Today the sun is shining and the weather looks good.
Maybe it's time to work on those salads once again.
Hop over to MGCC and check out today's Opa's Yogurt Dip

A walk with a friend...
What an exquisite pink dogwood.
The Pacific Dogwood, (white in color)
was adopted as BC's floral emblem in 1956.
But I love the pink...they are beautiful.

There's my five highlights.
Hope you all have a wonderful week.

Marg

Wonderful Women's Wednesday ~ Marathon Winners

It's truly been another week of Wonderful Women.
This past weekend we were in Vancouver
where several family members
ran in the pouring rain.....
Vancouver Marathon 2010!
Let me introduce to you our hero's for the day!

Suzanne ran the half marathon...
her first run ever
and came out smiling!
Congratulations!
13.1 Miles
Congratulations also, to your friends that participated.

This young lady, Lora my DIL,
completed the full Marathon.
26.2 Miles
She also qualified for the Boston Marathon, April 18, 2011
just squeaking under her needing a 3.40 hours.
Enjoy reading about her adventure.
Suzie, her running friend, just finished the Boston Marathon.
Way to go girls.

It's always great to go and support them.
This time I decided to keep those little UM & UM's.

I've had the joy of watching them train, rain or shine.

Accomplishments
Opportunities
Perseverance
Commitment
Dedication
Discipline
Courage
Passion
Dreams
Faith
~~~
Two year ago, I participated in my first 8km in Victoria, 2008.
Lora convinced me with this quote...

"Jump at every opportunity you get,
Because when you get older,
You may no longer have the chance to jump." Lora

I've kept my runner's number tucked in my backpack.
It's always a reminder...for me and the girls,
that we can do anything that we put our mind to.

"To accomplish something on your own...
is of some benefit.
To share your accomplishments with someone else...
is of true value."
Lora