Scenic Saturday - Our Move

Over the next week or whatever, I will post some pics of our lives recently.  Today is devoted to our move out West.

This is a pic of the kids their last night in our house.  They got to "camp out" on the floor in Liam's room since everything else was pretty much packed.  They thought it was fun, but I will say it brought a lump to my throat.  I loved our house there and we have many sweet memories in that place.  We brought both Libby and Lexi home from the hospital to that house.  Many good and happy, as well as sad memories.  It made me tear up.  It was hard to leave, but made it easier knowing that God had great things in store for us as we were following him.

                                   

This truck came with two mover dudes to pack up all our stuff.  Can I just say it was SUCH a blessing to not have to worry about driving all our things all the way to Alberta?  Our things were loaded onto this truck, taken to a warehouse, then loaded onto a big moving truck with several other shipments.  It took them almost 2 weeks to get our stuff to Alberta.

Packing, in my opinion, is a good form of modern day torture.  I hated pretty much every single minute of it.  I was SO glad to see the truck pull away with everything so it could be out of my hair!  Pretty sure I don't want to do that again for a very, VERY long time!

 We were still pretty loaded down in the van.  It was full of our clothes for the travel, food so we wouldn't have to eat out all the time, toys, books, school stuff, blankets in case we got stranded somewhere in the snow.... you get the idea. And I was constantly climbing back and forth from the front seat to the empty middle seat to tend to Lexi and the kids.  I got my exercise for sure!

Yes, I still made the kids do school while travelling.  I shudder to think just how much farther behind we would be if I hadn't done this!  Plus, it helped pass the time for the kids and cut down on the whining.  Somewhat.

We were sitting at a gas station filling up somewhere in Pennsylvania (I think - it kinda all runs together now...) when I noticed this sign above the ICE machine.  Its hard to read but it read on there, "Healthier than Homemade."  This struck me funny because 1 - I had never thought of ice as "homemade" or not before, and B- I had never thought of it not being healthy.  What some people advertise just to make a sale....

 So, you could TOTALLY tell we are from the country when we came upon the big cities.  When we would see the big tall buildings the kids would be yelling, "Whoa!  Look at that!  Look at all the buildings!  Wow!"  Especially when we went right by Chicago.  I did the "touristy" thing and tried to get some shots of the Sears Tower (or whatever it is called now).  That's hard to do in a moving vehicle!

We can't really complain, though.  We have great travellers and, although there was some whining, they were generally VERY good.  Even this little one who HATES her car seat!

Part way through the trip, we stopped at our friends house and stayed a day and two nights there.  It was a nice little break from the road and the kids got to have fun with their friends!

So, our last day travelling we went through a small town I think is called Brooks.  Anyways, you can sort of see it off in the distance.  But you don't have to see it to know that it is there.  You see, this is the location of the largest slaughter houses in Canada.  Oh. My. Goodness!  I almost threw up is smelled SO BAD!!!!! And you could smell it for quite some time.  How in the world people can live near and work there is beyond me.  It was horrible!

 But this sign, "Welcome to Ponoka" was a very, very welcome sight!  It had been eight days of travel.  We had driven more miles than it is from one side of the USA to the other. We were tired of the car.  Tired of hotel rooms.  Just plain tired.  It was very exciting to pull into our new town.  We were so ready to begin our new lives.

We were in Ponoka a little more than a week when the moving truck finally came.  Oh, it was an exciting afternoon, let me tell you!  It was like Christmas - the kids were so excited!

And then I had the joy of UN-packing everything I had packed.  That's not too fun either.  But I like it better than packing.

 And, of course, we had to have a Christmas tree since it was just about 2 weeks until Christmas Day.  Matt actually surprised us while we were not home and put up the tree and some decorations.  What a great Daddy!

Almost two weeks after moving it was Matt's birthday.  Some people in the church had us over and I made him a cake - one he requested.  It tasted good but did NOT look anything like the picture.  Mine never do.  Probably because I have no patience for that kind of stuff. The man sitting next to Matt is Carl.  He is the head of the search committee and is the guy we were in contact with throughout the whole hiring process.  He is a very good man and we are really enjoying getting to know him. (Sorry pic is so blurry!)

So that, in a few pictures, was our trip.  It was a good time together as a family, but I know that none of us wants to do that again anytime soon!

Until next time...

I'm Back!

So, is anyone still out there?  It's been a while, huh?  Well, I'm hopefully back for good, now!  Let me see if I can bring you up to speed on our lives lately.  Here we go!

- Obviously, we made It safely to Alberta, our new home.  The trip here was, well, long!  It took us a total of eight days to get here - seven of those actually on the road.  Our sixth day we got to Manitoba  at our friends, Rob and Lena's house.  They actually had just moved there from New Brunswick just a few months before.  You know you're good friends when they let your family of six stay with you in your new house the day after you moved in!  They have three kids the same ages as our three youngest and it was so nice to see them.  We decided to stay an extra night and day to just have a break from the road.  I think the kids needed it and they loved being out of the car and playing with their friends.  It worked out nicely as it turns out I got one of my really bad headaches that day.  You know, the kind where I can only lay down in a quiet, dark room with my eyes covered in order to get rid of it.  That would have been miserable to deal with in the car!

- We got here on Wednesday, December 5, around 3:30 in the afternoon.  We stopped by the house we are renting to see it for the first time, and then headed over to the church building.  The kids were able to meet the pastor and his wife and the secretary and see the building.  Then we headed out to some church members house where we stayed for the next three days.

-  We didn't stay at "our" house for a few days because it, we'll, it needed a good cleaning.  It basically needed a GOOD scrubbing from top to bottom.  Ad I didn't want to stay there with Lexi crawling all around before we could clean the carpets.  So a sweet couple was kind enough to take us in.

- The Friday after we got there, a bunch of ladies met us at the house and we cleaned and cleaned.  What a blessing that was!  There was even a mom in the church who offered to watch our kids for us so we wouldn't have to worry about them.  The neat thing is that her good friend who has four young kids lives right across the street from us, and they both watched our kids there so they kids were close to me and they got to meet and play with the neighbour kids.  They loved that.

- Exactly one week after we got here, the moving truck arrived with our things.  That was an exciting day!  And overwhelming. Remember all that packing I did?  Well now I had to UN - pack everything!  I'm still not totally done, but the most Important things are done.

- We love, love, love our church.  They have welcomed us with open arms.  We have been invited over to their homes, given furniture (remember how I sold most of our other furniture?), and truly felt welcomed.  They had a special welcome fellowship for us, and took up an offering to help us with the settling in expenses.  Let me just say the amount blew us off our feet.  On top of that, we have been given beef to fill our freezer, jams, and so much other goodies to fill our pantry.  This church body has been so giving.  The kids got more Christmas gifts than they even needed, as well.  We are truly humbled by their generosity.

- After only being here for a little over two weeks, we took off again on another road trip.  Apparently we thought we hadn't had enough of the car.  But actually, we drove 20 hours south to surprise my family for Christmas.  All along we were telling them we didn't think we were going to be able to come.  But, due in part to the extreme generosity of the church people, we were able to go, we just didn't tell anyone. (In case you didn't know, my side of the family tries to get together every other year for Christmas).  So, we drove through the big ole state of Montana, and then Wyoming and finally Colorado.  We took two days to do this.  We got there around four in the afternoon, on December 21.  I had been praying the whole time that God would work it our that we could totally catch my parents off guard.  S when we pulled on their street, and saw my parents going to their neighbours to deliver some goodies, I new it wasn't going to be as fun to yell "surprise!"

But, God knew what my hearts desire was and my parents didn't notice us - even though my mom looked RIGHT at our van!  S the went around the corner to the neighbours door.  We quickly jumped out of the car, telling the kids to be quiet.  We all stood in a line in the driveway.  My dad came around the corner first and just stopped in his tracks, staring at us - not saying a word.  My mom came right behind him, almost ran into him, then looked up at us.  We all together yelled, "Merry Christmas!"  Well, my mom's mouth dropped to the ground almost, she started to cry, and said, "What are you doing here?" We then all started hugging and laughing and it was great!  My brother Jeremy and his family were there as well.  They must have heard the commotion as they all came out of the house and we all hugged and such.  The surprise couldn't have gone better.  It was awesome!

- We spent 10 days in Colorado and it was great to be with my family.  I hadn't seen my brother's Kip and Jeremy and their families for two years - since the last time we were out there.  And they hadn't meet Lexi yet.  So it was really nice to see them.  We had a great Christmas, complete with kids getting that awful stomach virus.  One night my sis-in-law Jenni and I were up all night with kids who were throwing up every few minutes.  Thankfully, though, Lexi didn't get it.  Its so much worse the younger they are.  And that virus is pretty bad.  Be thankful if it hasn't reached your household!

- Once we got back to Alberta, it was time to resume life and get on with our new normal.  Matt officially started at church, we started back up to school (we are still a bit behind, but we have an good excuse - at least I think so), and life has sorta slowed down.  We have been sort of in a state of limbo the past 5 months since July, so it is nice to have some normalcy again.

- We are loving living here.  I love the town, I love the church.  I'm thankful for the home we are able to rent and we are very happy here.  It was a hard transition - this past year was not one I would necessarily want to repeat.  But God showed Himself so real in so many ways.  He took care of us in ways I could never have imagined.  Honestly, we have been without an official paycheck since the end of July.  We still won't get one for another two weeks.  But we have not gone in want for anything.  If anything, we have had more than we ever have in our married life.  And that is all attributed to our awesome, incredible, and loving God.

So, I suppose that, in a somewhat large nutshell, fills you in on us.  It feels good to be back to blogging, although I really haven't had the time or energy (yes, it takes energy to blog) to sit at the computer lately. But I'm back, so stay tuned to hear all about our new adventures in our new lives!

Until next time...

Are You Selling Us?

So, my days are so busy with packing, selling, organizing, etc. that I hardly have time for pleasures like blogging!  It's so crazy to think that in just over two weeks we will be pulling out of here and driving across the country to our new dwelling place!  I have been feeling quite overwhelmed with everything, but I am just trying to take it one day at a time.  Our house is looking less and less "homey."  One of our couches is gone.  The girls' dressers are gone. The dining room chairs are gone.  My living room lamps are gone.  All sold and in someone else's house. We have more furniture and various items leaving tomorrow.  The kids get nervous a out me selling their clothes, their toys, or even them! Ha!  Whenever I am getting ready to sell something,  take a picture of it, then post it online.  It's crazy because often within just a minute or two I start get inquiries and offers on stuff. I thine will spend the next hour or hours dealing with prices, meeting times, etc.

Well, Matt had taken a cute picture of the kids the other day.  I was emailing it to my mom when Leila came up, so me looking at it on the computer and asked, "Are you going to sell us, Mommy?"  I just hugged her and assured her I would never do that.

With all this going on, the kids are really sensing the changes coming.  They know we are moving to Alberta (or "Alaberta" as Leila calls calls it.), but they don't really know what that means.  They think we are just going on a big trip.  They will ask if they can take such-and-such with them.  But we have also been having a lot more attitude and obedience issues.  It is a stressful time, and the kids feel it too.  I will be very glad when this part is over and we can begin settling into our new life out west.

Our house still has not sold.  We have another open house this Friday.  Praying, praying something comes of that, if not before.  We have a few possibilities of places to rent out there.  One is actually a house that Matt and I looked at when we were out there and I really liked.  But, we can't buy until we sell our house.  But, the house is sitting there empty and the owners have been contacted and are willing to rent it to us for a few months.  We are just waiting to hear how much rent would be.  But we will see!

So, that's basically what we are up to.  Matt's leaving on Wednesday to go up to northern Quebec again to speak at a conference among the Cree.  The kids and I aren't going for several reasons.  One is that it is the north, and it's gonna be cold.  And its a good 12 or 13 hours drive one way.  And we are getting ready to drive 50 hours across Canada and the USA.  So we are staying at Matt's parents house with my mother-in-law.  Matt will be gone until Monday, then, Tuesday morning we have family pics, then we head out to go to New Hampshire for American Thanksgiving.  Then we will come home, meet up with the truck that is taking our things, then off we go on our new adventure!  So, I may not be posting too much, but will try to when I can, as I know you all are just dying to know what's going on with the Sealys!

So, until next time.....

Okay. So, Here's the Scoop....

Well, we went out to Alberta and have come back again.  It was a great trip.  It started with a very loooooooong day of travel.  We left our house at about 9a.m. And after two and a half hours on the road, six and a half hours on a plane, another hour on the road, and a three hour time difference, we finally got to our destination - completely exhausted.  By the time we went to bed, it was about three in the morning our time.

The next day we got up, met with a local bank, then headed out to look at houses.  We saw five that day and found one we really liked.  The next day was the "big" day when Matt had his final meeting. The church we have been looking at is a part of the Associated Gospel Churches (AGC) here in Canada.  A requirement with the AGC is that a pastor has to have an interview with other pastors from AGC churches.  It's a time where they question the candidate about his beliefs, doctrine, philosophy of ministry, etc.  I suppose it's very similar to an ordination council, except that it isn't these men confirming your calling to preach, just confirming that you wold be a right fit in the church.  Anyways, this meeting lasted from about 10 a.m. until 1:30 p.m.  I was out with the pastors wife and one of the deacons wives getting lunch ready during much of this.

As I knew he would, Matt did very well and the pastors were all very impressed (many of them told me this personally).  After lunch we looked at more houses and found another one we liked.  The next day (Saturday) there was a ladies brunch at the church where I was able to meet a lot of the ladies.  I had a great time.  Each night we ate at different houses of church members.  Sunday morning Matt preached for the service.  Then we had lunch at church then headed with a group to a retirement centre where they go every five or six weeks and hold a service.  That night we went out to eat with a couple in the church and had some wonderful fellowship.  It was great.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time, but was very ready to see my kids!  I think they missed us too.  The first whole day I was home Liam kept coming up to me and hugging me and holding my hand.  Aww!

So, as for the church - I loved it.  I felt very at home there and definitely saw the ministry we could have there.  Both Matt and I agree that we still feel this is where God wants us.  All that is left is the official church vote which will occur this Thursday, November 1.  As far as we can tell, and for what we have been told, it is expected that we will be voted in and asked to come on staff.  We have not sold our house yet, so that is the only thing that will be holding us here.

Please pray for us.  Pray that our house will sell.  Pray that we will find the exact house for us.  There are a total of three that we liked, but can't make a move on anything until this house is sold.  We do have a showing on Tuesday as well as an open house on Saturday.  Pray for our move.  In case you did t know this, Alberta is VERY far from New Brunswick.  Almost across the country!  Because of that, it's a big deal moving so we are trying the least expensive way to do this.  We are going to sell most of our furniture and lots of other stuff.  Whatever won't fit into two small uhaul trailers isn't going with us.  Pray that the move will go well.  We will be moving - during the winter.  In Canada.  Pray for safety.  Pray for our children as this is going to be a big adjustment for them.  Well, for all of us. Pray for me as I am still recovering from my surgery. I still am not allowed to move my shoulder. I do see the surgeon on Tuesday and will start physical therapy then as well.  But I am looking at weeks of therapy.  So that will definitely add a little fun to the mixture!

We are very excited for where God is directing our lives. It's not been an easy few months, but we have seen God work and provide in such amazing ways.  It truly is wonderful to be right where God wants you!  No better place on earth I would rather be!  Check back in on Friday if you care to know what the official "verdict" is from the church! :-). There is always the chance they could say no!

Scenic Saturday

Libby's Potty chart!  We started on Tuesday and she is doing GREAT!
Will talk more about that in a future post!

Matt and Liam went fishing on Monday.  They caught a total of 8, I believe.
Matt let Liam reel in most of them.

Matt's 19 inch bass.  I'll tell you about THIS one soon, too!

Liam's very first fish he caught with his own rod.  Proud little boy!
(And yes, the fish was caught in its underside.  Why do you ask? :-) )

I tried a new method to packing on our recent trip.  It worked pretty
good, though I am going to tweak it a bit for our next trip.

Packing for family of 6 is hard.  But I managed to fit it ALL in one suitcase.
Enough clothes for all of us for a week.  I was so proud of myself I had to take
a picture.  And yes, it did weight about 679 pounds.  But I wasn't the one who had to carry it. Ha!

Until next time....

Vacation

So, a few weeks ago, Matt and I were talking about how it would be nice to get away for a bit.  We looked at out schedule and found that last week was the perfect week to get away.  So we made our plans and off we went to New Hampshire to my brother's house.  I don't think we realized how much we needed that vacation until we were there!  Here's a few highlights of the week:

We drove there on Friday, getting there Friday night.  Andrew and Danielle were not home at the time because they were at the school play they put on each year.  For those of you who may not know, my brother works at a Christian school and is in charge of the drama production each year.  And this is no small "play." Its put on at a small community theater with scene changes and all.  It is put on for three nights - Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Last year they did Tom Sawyer.  And this year they did Cyrano de Bergerac.  To put it plainly - It. Was. Awesome.  There were 5 different scenes, fabulous costumes, sword fighting, sound effects, cool sets - the whole kit and caboodle.  The students did a great job and I was just SO proud of my brother.  So anyway, they were there when we got there.

Saturday Matt and Andrew went out golfing and Danielle and I hung out at home with the kids.  That night, Matt and I were able to go to the play while my sister, Amanda, and her husband watched all 7 kids.  We joked that our kids would be good birth control for the now - 7 ages 6 and under - all at once!  Ha!  Matt and I really enjoyed our date night out and really enjoyed the play.

Sunday was sort of a lazy day at home for all of us.  The kids played, the adults talked.  It was great.  Sunday night Amanda and Andrew had all of us over to their new apartment for supper.  We ate yummy tacos then all headed back to Andrew and Danielle's to get the kids in bed.  On the way home we stopped by Bruster's to get some ice cream (kids got free cones!  Woohoo!).

Monday night Danielle, Amanda, and myself went out for s girl's night which was great!

The rest of the time was spent with playing, shopping, and lots of talking and laughing.  Danielle and I were able to do some projects that we both have seen on Pintrest and have wanted to try.  That was a lot of fun!  Matt went golfing 2 other times, which he loved, of course!

Wednesday, the night before we left, Danielle and I got the kids in bed then went to Target for some shopping.  I LOVE Target, and go there as many times as I can whenever I am near one!  It was supposed to be a quick trip, but somehow we ended up at Chili's eating chips and queso and talking.  But it was great.  We rarely get the opportunity to just talk uninterrupted like that, so we soaked it all in.  And to top it all off, we ended up getting the chips, salsa, and queso for free!  So we only had to pay a tip!  Cool!

Thursday mid-morning we packed up and left for home.  We stopped in Bangor, about 2 hours from here, to meet up with some friends from college.  This couple were the ones that we hung out with all the time when we lived in Florida.  We hadn't seen them in almost 4 years!  They recently moved back up to Maine, and we were finally able to meet up.  We had supper at -you guessed it - Chili's.  They have a 2 year old son who is just too cute!  It was great to catch up.  And even though we had not seen them in 4 years, it felt like it had only been a few weeks.  There's a sign of good friends!

We got home about 9:30 at night, tired but refreshed.  This trip was just what we needed to get our second wind and prepare for the busy summer season.  We aren't going to get an opportunity to go anywhere for quite some time, so I am very thankful that we took the time now!

In our absence, a few things did happen in among our church people.  We had a lady pass away from cancer, and a baby was born!  So since we came back it was like we "hit the ground running," but that's okay.

Friday I was unpacking (my least favorite thing to do!) when I got this terrible urge to rearrange our living room.  So I did.  It took much of the day because I did some major changes, but it felt so good to get it done and I LOVE how it all looks now!  Why didn't I think of putting it this way sooner!

So that's what's been happening here!  Tomorrow begins a BIG day in this household.  Potty training!  Yup!  Our Libby is saying bye-bye to diapers and hello to being a big girl!  I planned to start in June, but we decided to start now since I want to get it over with she's running out of diapers and we don't want to buy more.  She's been saying for the past week or more that she "needs to go potty" and then running to the bathroom, so I think she's ready.  Liam and Leila we SO EASY to train, I'm a little afraid she will be our hard one.  Either way, tonight is her last night in diapers!  We go cold turkey - no pull-ups or anything - so I plan to have a bunch of laundry here in the next couple of days.  but its so worth it, in my opinion!

Anyways, hope all of you "in America" had a great Memorial Day!

Until next time...

So, Ya......

Well, a lot has been going on since my last post.  Let's see if I can "summarize" it all for you...
Since I last posted we:
 
- Have been to many, many dr. appts.  For me, for Liam, for Matt.  We are all fine, just some check-ups and such.  But I'm pretty sure we are close to having met every doctor in the Province.  I have been seeing my regular GPs for my monthly (now bi-weekly!  yay!) prenatal appointments, but also, because of my other non-pregnancy related health issues, I have been seeing high risk OBs and other OBs.  And every time I see one they tell me something new.  Like the last one I saw informed me that my official due date, according to my first ultrasound at around 10 weeks, is January 18.  That's a whole 6 days earlier than the January 24 date they were giving me.  I guess since we weren't for sure on exactly all my dates, they took the farthest date, which is the 24th.  But it is kinda nice for me to think that maybe I only have 7 weeks left rather than 8.  But don't worry, I'm not getting my hopes up (or trying not to).  I am really getting uncomfortable, though.  But I have done this before and I know I can do it again!

 -Have had a lot going on at church.  Of course its been all the usual stuff for Matt.  And I had our last ladies' Bible study for the year.  We finished up the book of Esther(we had been there for a little over a year!).  I am thinking of moving on to Ruth now.  Now things are in full swing of decorating and planning for the Christmas festivities.

 - Got our Christmas tree. I don't know about you, but I LOVE a real tree.  On the years that we go to Colorado for Christmas, we just put up our fake tree.  But every other year we get a real one!  We are blessed to have a family in our church that has their own tree lot and they always give us one as a gift.  What a blessing (because if they didn't, I doubt we could afford one - they seem to be quite pricey these days unless you tramp out into the middle of the woods and cut one yourself).  We decorated it the same day - the kids love it!  Libby is definitely quite interested it the "balls" on the tree and she is learning to not touch.  I love our tree!

  - Got snow tires.  Wowsers - are tires expensive, especially if the ones for your vehicle are not a standard size and most places here don't carry the "off" brands in the non-standard size.  But, my husband, being the deal finder that he is, got a couple places to compete with each other and we got a great deal.  And it basically came down to not only competing with other companies, but the place that gave us the deal did it partly because of our loyalty to them.  It is the place where we bought the van, and we get all our oil changes and tire rotations, etc. done through them.  Matt has sent several customers their way to whom they have sold cars.  Maybe its the small town thing, but the company really seems to appreciate it and they often give us a break when we need it.  So it does pay to be a loyal customer!

- Spent Thanksgiving with my brother and his family.  I think I told you all we were going.  Well, we did!  It was so much fun!  They have three children - a boy that is Liam's age, and girl that is Leila's age, and a 7 month old.  The kids played very well together and it was just so fun to watch them interact.  I love it that my kids have cousins that they can be good friends with.  In our family we actually have 4 kids Liam's age, and 4 Leila's age, and one a bit older than Libby (with some older ones in there and of course the 7 month old).  So that is really nice for them to always have friends that are family! 

I did find out what I already suspected.  I think we are going to have a hard time with Libby being jealous of the new baby.  Every time I held Oliver (the 7 month old), Libby was NOT happy.  She hated it and would run to me, cry, and start to throw a little fit.  Great.  At least now we know and we will hopefully be able to deal with it easily.

We left our house on Tuesday and drove the 6 hours there and made good time, with stopping every few hours for me to stretch and go to the restroom.  We are so thankful for the good travelers we have and the kids gave us no problems.  Wednesday night was a girl's night out for Danielle and I, and it was really fun.  I don't get that but maybe 2 or 3 times a year, so I really enjoy it when I can!

Thursday we went to Danielle's mom's house and had a delicious meal.  Pierre, Danielle's brother-in-law, made the turkey and I have to say, it was the best turkey I have ever had (and I am not really a huge fan of turkey!).  Oh, it was so good!  It was a little crazy with our three kids, Andrew and Danielle's three kids, and Pierre and Deanna's four kids, along with the rest of the adults, but it was fun.

Matt went out shopping around 10 p.m. to get some of the deals.  There were long lines, but since we weren't going for any of the door busters or the big items that everyone seemed to want, it wasn't that bad.  Then on Thursday Matt, Danielle, and I (along with Leila and Evie), went out for a few hours mid-morning.  We went to Target and Kohl's.  There were long lines at Kohl's, but we only waited for maybe 30 mins - not too bad at all.  Actually, I stayed in the toy sections with the girls so they could play while Matt and Danielle stood in line.  We also went to Babies R Us and I was able to get a new outfit for the new baby!  Its so cute and I can't wait to put it on her!

By the time we got home from that, I was wiped out, but didn't feel like I had outdone it like I did two years ago.  We got home, Matt and Andrew went out golfing, and I took a nice long nap on the couch.  That night we had a super delicious meal of ham, scalloped potatoes, rolls, and veggies.  It was so good!  Then, Saturday we got up early and headed off.  We drove the 4 hours to Bangor, ME (well, we stopped one time in between) and did a little more shopping there.  We had just a couple things that we still wanted to get.  Well, that's when our nice day went downhill.

We didn't want to spend a lot on lunch, so we just ordered an $11 pizza from Papa John's and ate it in the car.  Dumb idea.  The kids wanted their pizza cut up, and I didn't have any way to cut it up.  So they made a huge mess.  Because we were trying to save time, Matt ran into Kohl's while I fed the kids in the car.  But trying to balance stuff on your almost non-existent lap with a big belly in the way is not an easy task.  But we all got some food in us and headed back into Kohl's.  Now, let me say here - I usually love Kohl's.  I still do.  I look forward to going there anytime I am near one (which isn't all that often!).  But I was upset with them on Saturday.  First of all, I could not for the life of me find a cart.  With all the stuff we travel with, we didn't have room for a stroller.  I searched all over and could not find one.  This has happened in the past and it irritates me that they never seem to have enough!  I tried not to give an "evil eye" to the people I saw pushing around the carts that have the seats for kids, except they had no kids and were using the seat part for their coat!  That made me mad! (Ha, can you sense I have some strong preggo hormones going on right now? :-)  So I was having a hard time keeping up with all three kids.  They weren't really being bad, just having fun playing among the racks and stuff.  We were trying to find some clothes for Matt.  He has been in desperate need for some new clothes for quite sometime.  Well, we walked around and found some stuff and got ready to check out.  There was not a very long line (thankfully) and we were at the cash in almost no time.  We were excited because we had some Kohl's cash and a 15% off card, so we were only going to have to pay maybe $14 for some really nice stuff.  Well, the clerk was almost done with the order when she informed us that we couldn't use our Kohl's cash that day.  We had to wait until Monday.  What?  I mean, I had looked at the thing, and guess I didn't realize that it had start dates on it.  I looked at her and said, "Really?  Even if we are from out of the country?"  She then smiled really big and said, "Oh are you from Canada? Well we can take it late, just not early.  So you can come later!"  I appreciate her enthusiasm, but really, when I say out of country, what do you think that means?  Its not like its a quick jaunt over to "pick something up at Kohl's."  I asked her if there was anything she could do, and she said again that they can take it late, just not early.  Well, I know you have to have rules, but that one doesn't make sense to me.  What's the difference?  Really?  So, we just told her, "Never mind, then." and walked out of the store with nothing.  We just didn't have the money for it without the Kohl's cash.

The kid's were confused and asking why we weren't bringing our stuff, so we were trying to explain why we left the stuff there.  And that's when I started crying.  It was a combination of being tired, frustrated, a little embarrassed, and upset that we couldn't get the stuff for Matt.  Oh, and those pregnancy hormones seem to be in full force these days.  So, I was upset.  I guess it isn't really Kohl's fault, but it feels better to blame them.  Haha!  So, to help me calm down some, Matt got the kids in the car and I went next door by myself to Old Navy.  They have slippers there that I always like to get for the kids.  They are my favorite kind of slippers I have found and the kids actually wear them!  So I was able to get those on sale, and to make myself feel a little better, I also got Matt and good deal on a pair of jeans.  So when I came out, I was feeling a bit better.

I'm still irritated that we spent 45 mins looking and digging through the mess at Kohl's with me a bit stressed about the kids being loose and free, only to have to leave everything there.  And to come home with hardly anything new for Matt, which he really needs, is bothering me.  But we will get him new clothes - someday!

So that was our Thanksgiving!

 - Got sick.  The cold or whatever bug has hit our house.  Everyone but Matt is sniffling, coughing, and wheezing.  But thankfully no fevers or anything so far.  I stayed home from church on Sunday with the girls in order to not spread all our germs with everyone else.

So, I guess that is what is up with us!  This is a busy week getting the church decorated.  We are having a pot-luck at church on Sunday so we have that to set up for as well.  Also, we, as a family, always give a homemade goodies-gift to each family in our church every Christmas, along with our Christmas cards.  We plan to hand those out this Sunday as well.  So we have some baking to do!

Well, I hope everyone's Thanksgiving was an enjoyable one!  Now the countdown begins to Christmas.  And then baby for me!  Getting really excited!

Until next time....

Home, Prayer, and a Song.

We made it home safe and sound - though a little weary.  Yesterday (Monday) we left just before 7 am and didn't pull into a hotel until 15 hours later.  The kids did GREAT, and we were so happy to have made it that far.  That made today much easier and we only had a 7 hour drive.  We are exhausted, but so very happy to be home.  There really is no place like home.  When we left last week our roof was being put on, and was about 1/4 of the way done.  When we drove up today it was so nice to see it all done and it looks great!  I haven't taken a picture yet because it is raining, but hopefully I can take a picture tomorrow.  Of course, now our charcoal roof does not match our brown and tan house, but that will be remedied in just a couple of weeks!

In the next couple of days, I will post all about the trip and some pics, but for now just know that it was a great time, although very tiring.  It didn't help that we all got sick.  I think I got the cold the worst, and its still hanging on.  I am coughing up a storm, my voice is coming and going.  When I do have my voice, I think I could sing bass in a quartet!  Ha!  But, hopefully it will all pass soon.

On to other things, please continue to pray for my friend, Amy Bixby.  She has been moved to a hospice house due to the around the clock care she needs.  There are a lot of other things involved with this (such as her oldest daughter coming down with chicken pox and all the kids being kept away from Amy so that she won't come down with shingles) which is very hard on them all.  They are just praying that the kids will get to see Amy and say good-bye before the Lord takes her home with Him.  Amy is in a lot of pain, but is still keeping her outlook to the Lord.  Please just pray for the whole family.

As I pray for Amy each day, I find myself thinking of how we really don't know what tomorrow will bring.  It brings all things in perspective.  I find myself hugging my children a few more times each day.  I make sure I say "I love you" as much as I can to all my family.  I want to treasure each and every moment as we have no idea when our breath will be our last.  That being said, I recently heard a song that I fell in love with, which I want to share with you all here.  It made me cry, which is a big deal as that doesn't happen all that often.  So just to warn you, it may bring tears to your eyes, but in a good way, I think.

Anyways, enjoy the song and have a great day.

Until next time...

We Made It!

Well, after three days of traveling, we made it safely to Waskaganish.  It was a long trip and the kids are tired of sitting and I am dying for some "real" food.  Basically there is not much to eat besides McDonald's and KFC in between home and here.  We did pack some food like bread and peanut butter, but we certainly can't take the whole kitchen with us!  Anyways, we will hopefully get some good meals soon! :-)  Just to give you an idea of how "in the middle of nowhere" we are, our GPS didn't even know where we are!  The last 4 hours of the trip, it just told us that we were driving on "Road".  Haha!  The last hour is just on a dirt road, and the GPS just said we were driving north.  Funny.  Oh, and speaking of the GPS, its very funny to hear the guy try to pronounce all the french names!  It keeps us entertained!  Hey, on a long trip its the simple things that can keep your attention!

The kids are doing very well.  We are blessed with great travellers, for which we are so thankful!  Libby does seem to be coming down with a cold, so that's not cool.  Pray that it goes away soon! 

It is now about 10 p.m.  We are spending tonight in the hotel in the village, and will have different accommodations tomorrow and the rest of the time.  Matt and his parents are at the meetings, which have been known to run quite late into the night.  I was just too tired to go tonight, and the kids really needed to sleep.  Really the purpose of us coming is just to be together as a family.  When Matt and I got married, we decided that as much as possible, we would always travel together as a family.  We have broken that "rule" a few times, but don't like it at all.  Although in two weeks Matt is speaking again at a men's retreat back in Mistissini (where we were the last time we were up this way), and we will not be coming with him.  Mainly because it is a men's retreat at a camp and it really would be odd for me and the kids to be there!

But never fear, I will have my sister there to keep me company!  Yes, my dear sister, who lives on a tiny island in the Caribbean thousands of miles away is coming back to the "mainland" for a visit!  Yay!

Well, I think my brain has stopped working, so I will get some much needed shut-eye.  Hope all is well with all you reading this!

Until next time...

These Past Few Days

Well, we've been here in Misstisini, Quebec since Tuesday and have been having a very nice time.  I last updated you when we were halfway here on Monday night.  Tuesday we got up, had a nice breakfast at the hotel after which Matt and I headed down the street to the Wal-mart.  We needed to have the car looked at.  We knew there was something either wrong with the balancing of the tires or the brakes or something.  So we went to see if the automotive department could squeeze us in right away.  But there was one problem - the auto guy only spoke about three words in English ("yes", "no", and "car") and Matt's French is quite rusty.  So it was interesting watching the two of them attempt to communicate what needed to be done.  But, after a few minutes of us all laughing and filling out some paperwork (which in and of itself was quite the task!) the guy took our van right away and we walked off to walk around while we waited.  I told Matt I sure hope he communicated "rotate and balance" correctly and didn't accidentally say we wanted a new paint job or something!  Ha!

So, we waited for about 45 minutes and the car was done and the balancing and rotating of the tires had been done.  So all was well.  We then headed out to travel the final 5 hours to Misstissini.  We did have to stop in Chibougamou which is a town about 45 minutes from Misstissini to get our groceries for the week, and then we went to our final destination. 

Our accommodations are very nice here.  We are all staying in a newly built apartment.  It has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a nice kitchen, washer and dryer, and is fully furnished.  It is working our perfectly and we are very comfortable here.  The kids are having a great time running around and playing, coloring and watching videos, and of course, eating.  We only have one slight problem.  The fist light of day appears here at around 4:15 a.m.  EARLY!  And all the windows only have blinds on the windows, so by 5 a.m. our rooms are as bright as it is at noon, and the first two mornings the kids were wide awake too!  Wow, is that early! Libby is the first one up.  But thankfully, this morning, she "slept in" until about 6:45.  But boy is that wearing us out!  I tried to hang up some trash bags on the blinds, but that didn't work out too well. 

The meetings are going well.  Matt speaks each morning at a Bible study which starts at 6:45 am - before people head off to work.  Then each night at 7p.m. my father-in-law speaks for the revival services.  Oh, and by the way, when we say that it starts at 7, in Cree time that really means around 8 pm or a little later.  The lifestyle is quite laid back here, and so you just learn that nothing starts on time, and if you are an hour late, you are actually a little early!  Its okay for a little while, but I do think it would drive me nuts if I lived like that all the time!

Matt was able to do one of his favorite things yesterday - go fishing.  He and one of the men from the church, Gordon, went out on a boat for a few hours and fished.  And what was supposed to be just a few hours turned into a 7 1/2 hour trip.  You see, Gordon has a nice boat and such, but he forgot a little thing called GAS in the engine.  So a few hours into the trip, when they were ready to head back, they ran out of gas!  It really is funny to hear them talk about it.  He also forgot his cell phone and the boat didn't have any paddles in it!  So, for three hours they drifted, and tried to "paddle" with sticks they found.  Finally, after praying for help, a boat of some Frenchmen came by and were kind enough to give them a can of gas.  And so they made it home.  I had been here waiting for Matt to come home so we could go to the meetings.  He  got home around 8, rushed to change clothes, and then we headed out to the services.  But we weren't worried. We got there at 8:30 which ended up being right on time!  Ha!

Oh, and by the way, they did catch 5 good sized fish which we are headed out soon to go and eat for supper.  Yes, all you who know me and know that I do not like seafood of any kind.  That is what we are having for supper.  But, they know that I don't care for it, and I warned them that my sense of smell is rather picky these days, so I *hopefully* won't have to eat any!  Haha!  But I won't be rude if they give it to me!  I promise!

So that is briefly what we have been up to.  Its been a nice, relaxing time here.  There is no TV, no radio, our cell phones don't work here, so we have nothing to do during the day but read, sleep, and just enjoy being together.  Its great!  I have been feeling pretty good - except for being tired.  But I am able to take a couple naps a day, so that is wonderful!

I trust all is well with everyone there.  I am taking lots of pictures, but forgot the cord that connects to the computer, so you will just have to wait until we get home to see them.  Sorry!  Have a wonderful day, to all reading this!

Until next time...

Halfway There

Well, we woke up this morning and hit the ground running.  Matt had a bunch of errands to run in town, and I had cleaning and packing to do.  So I plopped the kids down in front of a video (yes, I'm one of those moms! :-)) and got to work.  I was running around the house like a mad woman for about three hours straight until finally everything was packed, in the car, and as clean as I was gonna get it.  We hopped in the car, had a few quick stops to make and we were on the road! 

The kids were so excited - mostly about staying in a hotel.  I am not sure what the great fascination with staying in a hotel is, but they asked every five minutes at first, "Is that the hotel?"  Finally we got it through to them that it would be HOURS before we got there and they quieted down.  And amazingly, we made it 250 miles without making one stop.  I'd say that is pretty good with three young kids and a pregnant mommy! 

All in all, we drove about 8 hours today and the kids did great!  I am so glad that, for the most part, we have really good travellers!  Libby is the one who has the hardest with sitting still, but as long as you keep food in her hands or are looking right at her, she does fine.  I'm glad that my belly is really big just yet, because I wouldn't have been able to turn all around and climb all around the car like I did today. 

We are now in our hotel, this kids did their share of running around, and now they are tucked away in bed "sleeping."  We will see how this goes.  Libby has her pack n' play, but Liam and Leila are sharing a double bed for the first time, and Leila is having a hard time not talking to Liam.  But, I'm sure soon exhaustion will settle in and they will all be sound asleep.

As for me, I can tell people are praying for me because I have had a great day!  Today is by far the best I have felt since my morning sickness has set in.  Praise the Lord!  He surely does give us the strength that we need just when we need it!  We plan to get a good night's sleep tonight, then have a bit of a relaxing morning and then head on out for the rest of the trip.  With stops, we should have about a 5 hour trip tomorrow, which isn't that bad.

So, there was our day!  I enjoy family road trips like this (although I HATE the packing for it!) and am cherishing these times we have together as a family.  I know that all too soon the kids will be grown and I will be missing these times.

Oh, one fun thing that kept me entertained most of the day was figuring out our new GPS that we got.  We have been wanting one for a while, and finally got one today and I enjoyed playing around with it.  Although it does kinda weird me out that someone, somewhere, can know EXACTLY where I am.  Hmmm....

Anyways, that's all for now!  Have a wonderful night!  Until next time...

Having Fun

That's what we have been doing - having fun!  The special meetings are only in the evenings, so our days are free to explore and get to know the people here.

The village we are in is Mistissini, population of about 4,000.  It is one of the larger reserves in Canada.  It is located right on Lake Mistassini (google it if you want!).  Unlike many other reserves in Canada, a large percentage of the population are "Christian."  At one time, this village was about 80% Christian, though I am not sure what it would be today.  Now, just as in any other part of the world, just because they say they are Christian doesn't mean they live like it. 

The gospel reaching these Cree people can be attributed in large part to a man named Larry Linton.  He was a bush pilot who felt called to bring the gospel to these people.  So, over 40 years ago, he and his wife, Peggy, used any means of transportation they could to get to the Cree.  They used plane, canoe, whatever they could.  He first went to the village of Nemeska, then came here.  Nemeska is where Matt and I came three weeks after we were married to run a Bible camp.  Anyways, Larry and his wife brought the gospel here, and now many know the Lord as their personal Saviour.  I guess we could say that the Christians we are meeting this week are his spiritual children and grandchildren!  What a legacy! 

This missionary, Larry, is truly a man who loves the Lord.  If you were to meet him, you would know that he is cut from a different mold, but it doesn't matter to the Cree.  By the way, he and his wife still live here among the Cree.  They have given their lives to these people, and are accepted as one of the Cree.  Something that also speaks volumes about what kind of man Larry is is how he takes care of his wife.  Peggy was always very involved with the Cree,  and the people very much love her.  But Peggy became very sick many years ago, and is unable to do anything on her own.  She does not speak, move or eat on her own.  She is what many would call in a "vegetative state."  But instead of sending her off to some "home" where she would spend the majority of her time all alone, Larry takes care of her in their home.  Ha bathes her, feeds her, moves her when she needs to move, dresses her - he does everything for her.  Now that is love.  How many people would do that?  Many would send them away and pay someone else to take care of them so that they wouldn't have to.  I cannot think of a more beautiful display of a husband loving his wife through thick and thin, "in sickness and in health."  By the way, he has been doing this for over 10 years.

Coming to this village, you really do step right into another culture.  I don't know how many of you are familiar with any of the native culture.  Although their modern day "tee-pee" are houses that are most often nicer than our house, and everywhere you look they have cell phones and nice big trucks and SUVs, they still stick to their roots in culture in many ways.  They still love to live off the land.  They hunt and fish as a way to provide food.  The still use their ancient native medicines for many things.  They still do some of the traditional ceremonies, although they have changed them from worshipping their false gods to using it to worship the true God.

Yesterday Matt and I were able to see some of this firsthand.  Every year, for about a week or maybe two, many of the Cree, especially the elders, travel to the other side of the lake to where the old site of the village was.  Over there is like it used to be.  No running water, and they live in shack-type buildings.  They do have a generator to run some appliances, but they generally cook over the open fire.  They have a smoke house set up where they smoke their fish to eat.  So during this time, they go over there to relive these times.  Many of the elders love this time.  That is what they know best and love. 

We took a boat ride over there to see it.  I was a little nervous at first getting on the boat with Libby, but reminded myself that they all take their babies over, so it should be no different with me!  It was only a short ride anyway - maybe 3-5 minutes.  Well, we got off on shore, and I look up and what is the first thing I see?  Yup - a black bear laying on a picnic table.  The bear was killed the day before by one of the nephews of the pastor we were with.  He killed the bear with his bow and arrow!  They had already removed the intestines, and when we got there they were beginning to skin the bear while the ladies were taking care of the intestines.  How they do this reminds me much of when you buy sausage and squeeze it out of the outer casing.  That is exactly what they were doing with the intestines, only it took them a lot longer since the intestines are so long!  I sure am glad that I don't have a weak stomach!  By the time we left a few hours later, then had completely removed the skin, and most of the fat, which they cut up and cook almost like popcorn.  They were all describing how good it was!  Also, they smoke the intestines then cook them in water and then eat them.  They utilize everything they can to eat!  Waste not, want not!

While there we walked around and saw a lot of neat stuff, one of which was the pastor's uncle who was making paddles out of wood.  He did each one by hand and only with an ax and knife.  Very cool.  I really enjoyed yesterday and seeing all the things that we did.  It is an eye opener to a whole other way of life. 

I will close this post with one of the funniest things (to me at least!) from yesterday.  We were sitting down talking with a couple of the people when, somehow, the topic of food came up.  And somehow, I can't remember how, the topic of eating monkey brains came up.  The Cree lady said that a missionary from India told them that the most expensive meal there was monkey brains.  And that they had holes in the table, the monkey's head was put there, they smashed the head with a hammer and then ate the brains.  We all agreed that that was pretty gross.  Then the lady said, "At least we cook them before we eat the brains of any animal!"  And then she went on like that was nothing.  I tried not to laugh, because to me, the thought of eating BRAINS at all is gross, but to her, only the thought of eating them uncooked was gross.  Ha!  Oh, the different cultures we have....

Well, that is about all for now.  I hope I didn't ramble on too much.  Not exactly sure what is in store for today!  The meetings are going well.  Please continue to pray.  By the way - I am taking pictures of everything, but forgot the cord to connect to the computer, so I will have to wait until we get home to post them!

Until next time...