The good, the bad, and the Island

So C says to me the other day:

“Mommy, I love you Mommy, so much Mommy, you’re my best fwend Mommy.”

Oh you don’t have to tell me how sweet that is because I’ve already melted over it a few times.

I have to remember lines like that after I hear lines like this screamed at the top of her lungs…in the house… “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, IT’S MIIIIIINNNNNE-NUH!” or when she deliberatly runs the other way after being asked to come here. That one boils my blood, people.

In other equally uninteresting news, we’re heading to PEI on Saturday morning for a couple days. It’ll be C’s first trip to the island and having spent most of my family summer vacations there as a child, I’m pretty excited to go. If anyone wants pop in glass bottles or something Island-y let me know by friday night and I’ll bring you home a “PPI” treat.

We’re renting a cottage with mom and dad and their two dogs. There are better scenarios that I can imagine for a peaceful few days vacation that don’t involve dogs at all but, you know, splitting the cost of a waterfront cottage is more budget friendly. So, I can put up with the dogs who will hopefully be tied outside most of the weekend.

One of my mom’s sisters and her two brothers all live on PEI so I imagine some visiting will be in order. Mostly I’m just hoping for one day of decent weather for beach play in the sand and surf. C loves sand and surf. The benefit of having grown up vacationing on the Island is that I’ve seen all the touristy things a gazillion times before and couldn’t care less if we hit them again. Since C is at an age where all that matters is sand, water, and playgrounds, it’ll save us packing too much into our already too short trip.

Maybe something funny will happen while on our little excursion and I can concentrate on some humurous bloggy material for y’all.

This is about a missionary I know

In the summer of ’04, I spent three wonderful weeks at Truth for Youth Bible camp as a cousellor and program coordinator. I can’t really explain what an amazing spiritual experience this was for me so I’m not even gonna try because words are not sufficient enough to really tell you how close to Jesus I became during those weeks. I wish I could go back.

At camp, I met a girl we’ll call JB. Oh, and I also met JF who I want to send a shout out to cuz I know she’s reading even though she never comments 🙂 Love Yo!

Anyway, back to JB. She has a heart for the children in “inner city” Halifax that have not likely had a chance to hear the Gospel. So with the help of CSSM, she began a group called Rejoice that same summer after camp was over. JF and I volunteered to come with her that first week to help out and see if we could do some fun things in The Square that might attract children. And then, you know, if they stayed for a Bible story then that would be bonus land for sure.

I have to tell ya, this was out of my comfort zone. I was intimidated by the people that were around. In the Valley, we don’t see many street fights in the middle of the day. We don’t hear too many parents cursing out their children on the street. And we don’t let our kids hang out with perfect strangers a the park…because, ya know, we’re around to see what they’re doing.

But I’ve also never seen so many children who had never heard about Jesus unless it was used in a swearing context.

That first week of bubbles, water balloons, trampoline, and Bible stories turned into many more weeks for JB. It turned in to a full time ministry to those kids.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to help her again. I knew she needed some drivers to get some of those kids from the city to TFY for teen camp this week. When I drove into that parking lot across from the North End Library and saw about 12 teens there with all their gear for camp, it made my heart warm. JB answered God’s call and now what started in a park three years ago with about five kids is four different groups around the city and at least twenty kids that are also experiencing Bible camp.

I tend to think of missionaries as people who are in other countries learning new languages and customs to reach lost souls for Christ. JB went 15 minutes from her home to reach little lost souls. I think she’s pretty cool.

Not a real post

I’m going to post something interesting soon. Oh yes I am.

I just don’t know what that is yet.

I must update the blog I must update the blog I must update the blog.

So in the meantime, check out my two favorite funny blogs if you don’t already read there because they are humurous and I enjoy them.

BooMama and Big Mama. They did a riot of a podcast that you might want to listen to while you fold laundry or do the dishes or sweep the floor or whatever it is you do.

From the Cruiser

I sat down to read The Advertiser which in case you don’t know is one of the local valley newspapers that gets published once a week. Usually I just read through for exciting things like festival times, people I might know, or what’s happening in nearby towns. You know, the really, really important stuff.

Seeing as my friends husband just graduated from RCMP training school (It’s actually called Depot but I’m gonna call it training school) I thought I would read through the section entitled “from the cruiser”. It’s a list of 911 calls recieved in a certain period of time.  I honestly usually skip this section because having just read the court report beside this feature, I’ve found out all I need to know about local criminals AKA people I went to school with. Heh, heh.

I found it so interesting that I thought I would list some of the important ones for ya. Just so you know what the cops deal with around here in small town AV. These are all word for word…I might add italics or bolds where I see fit to accentuate accordingly.

– Four possible counterfeit $5 bills were noticed in Greenwich.

– A canoe was stolen out of an unlocked garage between DECEMBER and MAY. (seruously people, if you don’t lock your garage or even check on your canoe for about six months, you don’t deserve to own it)

– Police received a 911 call about two abandoned cats. (you can call 911 for that and they put it in the paper??)

– A green mountain bike was found in Wolfville. (I saw a green mountain bike once. Should I have reported that?)

– A case of gas and go occured in Coldbrook. (Can you really make a case out of that?)

– Two youth were shoplifting in Wal-Mart. Twenty minutes later a vehicle in the Wal-Mart parking lot was engulfed in flames. (Oh the conspiracy theories here!)

– An electric guitar was stolen at the corn boil in Burlington.

This next one if my personal favorite. Remember, these are word for word from the paper.

– A drunk blonde cause a passerby to call police after she was spotted staggering on Main Street. (If it was a man, do you think they would have mentioned the blonde part? If I were blonde, I might have been offended 🙂

And lastly…

– A cow was on Black Rock Rd at 9:26am last Wednesday. (I can hear it now…”Martha! Martha! What time is it? There’s a cow on the road! call the cops!)

There were a few more but I’ll let you read through them on your own time. I think I’ll be paying better attention to the “From the Cruiser” section from now on. It’s good fun. I wonder if Cooter will get lots of calls like this in SK? I should get him to write a weekly “from the cruiser” column.

The whole night

She did it. She slept the whole night in her new bed without getting up! I’m still a little shocked, actually.

I was awake when she woke up so I heard her get out of bed and go into the hallway. She came in our room with her blanket, handed it to me and headed back to bed. Then I heard, “Mommy, put my blanket on!” So I did and she played in her bed for another few minutes. It was cute.

I forgot to tell you last night that for the last few weeks, everytime she woke up, she would cry and get really upset until I came to get her. Which she never used to do. That’s sorta what made me think she might be ready to get out of jail bed and into some bed freedom. Maybe I was right?

And maybe soon, I’ll sleep through the night and stop worrying 🙂

She’s a big girl now

I serioulsy don’t know what happened in the last week. C went from little girl to big girl and I missed it somewhere along the way.

It started last weekend when she decided it was time to put pig tails in her hair after MONTHS of me trying to persuade her how pretty she would be in pigtails. I should have known that this little girl does things on her own time. oh yes she does. So now, everytime we get ready to go anywhere, she says,”Oh, mommy! My pigtails my pigtails!” And gosh darn it, it’s really stinkin cute.

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So today, we planned a trip to Walmart since it was raining like it has been in Texas, and on the way stopped at a baby stuff consignment shop type place. I had it in my mind that maybe I could find a reasonably priced toddler bed to store away for sometime. Well, there it was, a gently used Dora toddler bed for a good price. When C saw what it was, she knew it was a big girl bed and there was no waiting until she was ready. In her mind, she was oh so ready for a big girl bed. TODAY.

We set it up while she was taking her last nap in her crib. Which turned out not to be a nap at all. She didn’t sleep. In retrospect I think God looks out for things like that, too.

By the time 7:00pm rolled around she was asking to go to sleep in her new big girl bed. I got a little nervous, I mean, there is nothing keeping her in this bed. She could escape at anytime.

The routine being accomplished and prayers being said, I kissed my big girl good night and tucked her in. She immediatly tried to climb out but I said no and tucked her back in and told her I would sit in the rocking chair beside her for a minute. She settled. Not even two minutes later she was sleeping. I’m not doing any happy dances yet seeing as she could get out of bed at any point if she wakes up but I think the first tuck in was a success.

Um, how did she grow up so fast?

I was going to

I had big plans this morning to type a quality post while C slept this afternoon. She slept. So did I. It is rare that I sleep during the day. I can probably count the number of day time naps I’ve EVER had on one hand (not counting college naps, those didn’t count). Truly, I’m not a napper. But I had an hour and a half snooze right along with C (and when I say right along with her, I mean at the same time, not the same place, that would never do). I really liked the nap, except for the constant dreaming. What’s with all the dreaming?

Anywho, I feel somewhat more refreshed than I previously did.

But I still don’t have a post. I guess you could call this a post but it’s none too exciting yet. I suppose I was probably just going to write about things like the fact that I am not babysitting full time anymore and I like it. It wasn’t even my decision but I think it might have been one that God made for me. I’m already thanking Him.

And I might have written about the fact that I am going to be doing a moms and tots program at the Town Hall this fall. And they’re going to pay me…just a little but a little is better than none. I think this will be fun and a good chance to get to meet some other moms that I wouldn’t have met randomly. And since C might miss T just a little it could help her find some new friends too. But what will most likely happen more than anything is that we will come down with more colds and flus than any winter previous to this one becuase of all the kids and the toys and the possible contact and the germs. Oh the germs.

I’ll be carrying my Purel hand sanitizer. Oh yes I will.

I probably would have wrote that this is Mike’s last work day before he takes an entire week of vacation! This is big only becuase Mike rarely takes vacation unless it’s to build something and although he’ll be working at finishing some things around here (woohoo!) we are going to do some family things and maybe even go camping for one night. We haven’t taken C camping yet and I’m really curious about how she’s going to handle it. It could be good, it could be bad but it’ll be an adventure and I WILL take pictures.

Then there’s also the topic that one of my bestest friends is moving a good deal across the country tomorrow and maybe I am a little sad. Maybe. But I’m really happy for them so it’s hard to be sad without feeling selfish. I’m just gonna miss her. We have a big history in our five year friendship. Lots of important things have happened to us while we’ve been good friends but I especially love that over the last two years, we have both become the mothers of daughters. It’s just kinda special so get over it. Sheesh. Can’t I be cheesy sometimes? Yes, yes I can. I have a lot of “cheese” in me and I don’t often let it all out.

They’ll be back. Maritimers always come back 🙂

Well, I think C wants to play outside and I need a snack. We’ll be gearing up for the big good-bye party tonight at Shannon’s. We do love a good party but the good-bye part makes it a little bitter sweet.

And then she said…

It wasn’t raining this morning and since we spent the WHOLE day inside yesterday I decided to get C out early in case it got yucky later. We were getting ready to walk up to mom’s when C ran over and gave me a big leg hug, paused, and said, “Mommy, you smell.”

I should have just left well enough alone but I couldn’t resist, what if she said mommy you smell like flowers or cookies or kittens?

But I didn’t.

“What do I smell like C?”

“You smell like dog poop mommy.”

The only comforts I had were the fact that I had just showered an hour previous to this delightful conversation and that I was pretty sure she had never even smelled that before.

We had a quick chat about that fact that you should never say that to people. And then I asked her if she knew what dog poop smelled like…just to make a point. She said no.

Am I in for it or what? 🙂

But if you think I didn’t have a complex this morning, then you are sadly mistaken. Leave it to me to dwell on something like that.

When I say I am a Christian

If you are looking for pics of Erin, scroll down 🙂

I read this today on a friends blog. I loved it. It’s so accurate that I can say nothing more. Just go read it.

I have this friend…

…and she thought it would be funny for her to post all kinds of pictures of me on her blog around my birthday.

I’m always up for a challenge. I’ve been meaning to do this for awhile so here it is, Erin. Here are the pictures I promised. The thing is, she doesn’t take a bad photo. Ever. So here are some nice pictures of my good friend.

You have to click to see them. I know, it’s an annoying extra step but I am still in a fight with WordPress and Flickr to try and post pics here. All you have to do is click HERE to go to my old blog site and see my friend.

In case you missed it, click HERE

Thank you and please leave a comment 🙂