Sun dogs in the sky this morning. It was -20 but blue sky and ice crystals in the air. Absolutely beautiful! I had to stop and take this shot! 

Sun dogs!

Water, water everywhere

It's melting in Edmonton. Who would have thought it would be +10 C in January! The roads are back to pavement after the City has been busy grading and scraping and with all the warm weather for the past week, and a little rain thrown into the mix, the snow has shrunk and you would never know the huge quantity we once had here. 

That brings me to the subject of the 'pooling' of melting water. You never know what is below that standing water in the middle of the road. We are known for our potholes and it blows me away when people come sailing down the road into the water hole - without regard for pedestrians and other vehicles they pass - only to stop abruptly because they just sank into a pothole! I have no sympathy for them! Today, I was coming upon one of those huge waterways in the middle of the road. I was going slow 'anticipating' a problem and this little sports car with it's window part-way down to let out 2nd hand smoke, came flying down the road and into the pool! I had my windows closed. He did not. The surprised look on his face was priceless but I enjoyed even more the water that splashed up into his car through his open window. I am sure it put out that cigarette he was puffing on! 

Guess that is my joke for the day or big experience to share with others!

Should have...

So when do you go to a funeral? When is the cost prohibitive or the time not available, or the distance too great or.....whatever other 'excuse' will do? Now, I know there are good reasons for being unable to attend. There are also a lot of reasons why we don't make time in the first place before a funeral even happens. Having said that, it is still interesting to hear the reasons why people can't make it.

I think Guilt is a good one. Would have, could have, should have always creeps into these kinds of situations. "I meant to", "I was going to", "I wish I had", 'if only". Do these sound familiar to you? I know I have said a few of these myself from time to time. 

I guess it comes down to priorities. Even that is not really fair as a person may have really been a priority but 'life does get in the way'. I get it. I just don't like it.

I recall a situation in the past where a person said they were so sorry that they never got a chance to go visit someone - they had good intentions but it never materialized into action. Then the dreaded news came that it was now too late and the person was gone and MORE guilt piles up. How do you deal with those kinds of situations?

Presumably, you are sorry and no amount of apologies will change the facts. I guess you just "deal with it"! Ask forgiveness, move on and try not to let it happen again.

A Life Well Lived

This is Nina and her beautiful daughter, Sharon. Picture taken 3 months ago. She looked great. Who would have thought...yet she was not well then. What's going on in the 'inside', doesn't always show on the 'outside'. That can refer to more than just physical health. It can be our emotional and spiritual side as well. It never hurts to take a quick 'check' of what's going on so that we don't get blindsided by our emotions!

Flying out next week for her funeral. How do you sum up a life? I guess when it comes to her and her husband, it would be something related to scripture. As Philippians 1:27 says: Whatever happens, conduct yourself in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ." She did that to her very last breath! When asked if she wanted flowers, she said 'Prayer is most important....flowers won't do what prayer will". Those were her last words to us - words to live by. We'll still shower her with flowers next week but hopefully can follow her lead and be consistent in prayer.

Together Again

It is with much sadness that I tell of my sister in law Nina's passing on Thursday, January 9, 2014. She has left this world and moved on to the next. After much individual prayer and a special request from her for God to heal her, or take her home, He did exactly that. She is now with her husband, brother, father, gramma and auntie. Home at last. We now pray that God would comfort and encourage us.

Green Bug

If you haven't notice, there is some sort of ad kit bug that is advertising on my blog. The green underlining is NOT mine. I have tried to remove it but each time I click on the green line, it gives me an advertising box. Whatever you do, don't download it!  Just a warning from me.

Settling Into 2014

Well, it is January 8th and I guess we are now settling into 2014. I don't write 2014 very often - especially as I don't write many cheques these days - mainly debit! So the number doesn't  F - L - O - W from within! I'm caught now in the chasm between 2013 and 2014. I have to stop and think what the year is versus automatic 2013. I guess it takes a year for you to get in sync with it. 

Already this year, my sister in law has had some health issues. We did a day of unified family prayer for her on Tuesday. We were praying for a miracle. Last night, her daughter phoned and said she had a good day and her mind and speech were clearer. She is not healed but feeling much better. She still has a lot of work ahead of her to be able to go home to her own place. We pray for that to happen. 

So, RESOLUTIONS. Did you make any? I have to say - NO. Why waste the time. I will try to do what I always try to do in January and that is cut back a bit in eating, watch the calorie intake, TRY to get out and do some exercise and portion control. These are challenges that I meet every day, every week, every month, all year long! That's enough 'great expectation' for me!

I was out today for a little while. It started to snow. Go figure! Thankfully it did not last long but, eight days into January and already having more snow in total than we got all of last winter...well, the challenge for us will be to get through the next four months!! Where do we shovel it all to!!!! This spring, we may have a backyard swimming pool!

Happy New Year

Well, 2014 has arrived which means that we have seen the last of 2013! That year went by too fast! I hope this one takes a little longer and I am able to enjoy it a little more.

2013 saw the passing of our brother-in-law, John on January 25th. The funeral was on Vancouver Island but since he had worked here in Edmonton most of his adult life, they had a memorial service for him. We were booked for Hawaii so were unable to attend, but gave our house up for visitors and family to meet and greet.

Hawaii was wonderful and over too soon. We had three weeks and planned on four for 2014 but have since changed it to only two thinking we would use our extra time to spend more of it camping in our trailer. We'll see how that works out.

In May I fell down some steps in Jasper and fractured my right hand. It took a good six weeks to strengthen again and it still gives me problems when I use it too much or carry things too heavy. Not sure if that is just me or if it is a problem with the hand. Nevertheless, we still have not heard from the insurers of the place we were staying at. It sure takes a long time for things to get processed!

We did a fair bit of camping in the summer and visited with our daughter and family and those lovely grandkids as well. We also did a bit of camping just the two of us which is also very nice. We all need time to be alone and revisit our relationships. It makes life more interesting and definitely exciting!

In late August John's sister had a heart attack and once she was released from hospital she was moved into a Senior lodge where she was doing better. Another one happened in Sept after she was settled into her new home so we went out to visit. We spent a little time with our kids also. On our return home in October, John's oldest brother had a stroke and before we knew it, we were headed to Ottawa for a funeral.

Special things that happened...our grandson turned 13 - a teenager! He and his dad went on an overnight hike up a mountain - went as a boy...came back as a man. That was the idea! We are so proud of him. He is quite the young man. All the g'kids are great but only one is a teenager right now!

Christmas was spent with friends this year as it was the in-laws turn with the kids. We found lots to do and keep us busy but I must admit, it's not the same. We look forward to the kids coming this way next year.

We got a printer for my laptop and a new desktop for John. We are now adjusting to all the changes in the new systems. It went from XP to Windows 8. My laptop is Windows 7 so things are a bit different each time you go to a different computer. We still have the same t.v. so when we get frustrated, we go and watch a tv show!

Anyway, cold and crisp out there today! Blue sky and plenty of sunshine but -22 C with a windchill of -32 C. At least it is not supposed to snow now for a few days! We'll take it!

The following picture kind of sums up the mood for today.... but... also wanted to say:
Happy New Year!

I love a stay-in-you jammies kind of day!