On the Third day of Christmas...

On this the third day of gratitude I am grateful for...

1. A good friend to spend the evening with. She's awesome and she makes me want to be awesome too.
2. The chance to go view hundreds and hundreds of unique and beautiful nativities with this dear friend. The attention to detail was fantastic. The presentation was awe inspiring. We could have just hung out there all night.
3. The peaceful and calm feeling we were able to experience as we toured the nativity displays. This of course was possible because we elected to go with out our kids. 
4. Time spend chatting on the drive into and home from Lethbridge.  So much to catch up on now that the weather is cold and we don't go walking.
5. The many many walks we have gone on together and the many many things we talk about.
6. Delicious frozen yogurt and more good laughs.
7. A chance to get some shopping done without any tag alongs.
8. A nice warm van to sit in and chat some more when we got home from Lethbridge...because the hour in and the hour home just wasn't enough.
9. Wheat bags to warm up to help my feet warm up on a chilly night.
10. A microwave to warm up said wheat bag in just a few minutes.
11. Flannel sheets to cuddle up in for the night.
12. A promise of a new day

On the second day of Christmas...

On this second day of gratitude I am grateful for...

1) a vehicle to drive so that I don't have to walk the couple of blocks to the grocery store on a cold blustery day.
2) the chance to serve a neighbour who doesn't have the before mentioned luxury.
3) warm jacket,  mits,  touque,  and boots to ward off the cold when I do have to go outside
4) a house to provide protection from the cold and wind
5) a furnace to provide heat without me even having to think about it.  It just does its thing and keeps the house at a consistent  temperature.
6) Christmas lights on houses in the middle of nowhere,  they just make me smile as I drive down the hiway. 
7) my handy smart phone that allows me to type up this post while I sit on the couch at the church waiting for my girls to be done their activity. 
8) dedicated leaders that keep putting together activities for these young girls.
9) the sounds of laughter coming from these silly girls and the friendships being built.
10) good friends to help out and take a couple of my kids so I can bring these girls to there activity.
11) my comfy cozy flannel sheeted bed that I will, at some point tonight, get to enjoy.
12) fuzzy slippers to keep my feet warm.

On the first day of Christmas

I was reminded that way back in 2009 I took on a challenge to express gratitude for 12 things each day for the 12 Days of Christmas.  Well I think it's time to try that again,  so here I go

I am grateful for

1) a small school that allows all children the opportunity to compete in sports.
2) parents and teachers who volunteer their time to coach.
3) the excitement of a good game of basketball
4) medical advancements that allow my asthmatic daughter to play the game she loves.
5) the mountain of clean clothes on my couch.
6)a washing machine to clean those clothes
7) a drier to dry them
8)and soap to get them clean and make them smell good
9)a television to watch while folding the mountain of clothes
10) the game of survivor to entertain me for a couple of hours
11) a good cuddle with my three year old
12) pain killers to easy the discomfort in my back/neck today.

Remembering those we never knew

James has been asking a lot about war the past few days. I know they have been talking about it in school as Remembrance day is drawing near. Over dinner tonight, James asked if we had a 10 great grandpa that went to war. I told him that he had a two great grandpa that went to war. He gave me a surprised face. I asked him if he wanted to see a picture and he enthusiastically said yes. So I went and got out  my collection of family stuff about the war and showed him the picture of his Great Great Grandpa Neil Snow Forsyth, all dressed up in his uniform and another one of him standing with his war horse. I told him that he had served in WWI.

"In Canada?" he asked.
"Not right here in Canada, but he was fighting in the war to keep Canada safe" I told him.
Under those pictures was another picture, James asked if that was Neil too, I told him that it was Neil's son Rex. I told him how Rex was a navigator on a fighter plane in WWII. And that his plane was shot down.
"So he didn't make it home alive?" He asked.
"No, buddy, he didn't." I responded.
And with that he burst in to honest to goodness sad tears. My poor boy was heart broken over somebody he has only seen in a black and white photo. He made me cry too. And when I had gained some composure, I tried to explain to him that yes indeed it is sad, but that it is happy too, because Rex cared so much about other people, people he had never met before, and people who weren't even born yet, like James, that he went to war to keep us safe, and he was willing to give his life so that James would never have to know what war really was. Yes, it's sad, I told him, but that is why it is so important to go to remembrance day ceremonies, to sing songs, and to wear poppies. So that we can remember them and thank all those who went to war so that we could live in this beautiful country were we are safe and free.

My heart overflows with gratitude for these great men, and so many more who have given so much so that my kids have the pleasure of now living in this wonderful land.

The day I became Mom

Fourteen years ago I took my first steps on a journey that would change me for the better. At 2:28am a precious baby girl was laid on my chest all covered in goo, and she was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. In an instant I became Mom and I was in love. I'll never forget those moments...actually days, that we spent in the hospital waiting for her to arrive. The anticipation, the anxiety, the exhaustion. I'll never forget the feeling I had as the words were shouted "it's a GIRL!", I had been convinced we'd have a boy. But there she was, this perfect beautiful baby girl. Life changed forever in those early morning hours. Now look at her! She is smart, and beautiful, and clever, and talented, and self driven, and caring, and just simply amazing! Happy birthday Kathryn Love Court!

The good life

I'm sitting here by the last lingering coals of the fire at the end of this 40th birthday of mine, and feeling very contented. Life is good. I've got 5 great kids, an amazing husband, an awesome family and the best friends anyone could ask for. Our house is small and cozy, our yard is big enough to play in, grow a garden and have a fire. We live in a quiet town full of great people. We try to live a simple life and surround ourselves with the best people. I think we have done a pretty good job. Forty isn't so bad when I look at all I have gained over the years.
If you need me, I'll be over here, by the fire, living the good life.

A way with words

I walked in to my room to find this poem on my pillow. Kathryn had made it for the Royal Canadian Legion literacy contest. It reads

Through their eyes

They see horror and grief.

Deep in their hearts

They feel alone and abandoned.

In their minds

They think of their life before,

And what it will be after.

They feel pain

Some physical but ten times more emotional.

They risked

Their lives for the millions living in their country.

We can not

Imagine what they went through.

We will not

Forget the hope that they gave to us.

By Kathryn Court

This girl seriously has a way with words. The poems she writes often bring me to tears. Today she learned that this poem earned her second place in the literacy contest of the Foremost branch of the Royal Canadian Legion.