Beautiful Winter...

The kids have been loving the woods across our house, they get home from school put their skates on and travel through the trees to their "fort" they have cleared huge surfaces of the frozen water that has accumulated in the fall after it rains and under the snow they found "ICE" and I have to say it's pretty neat for living in the suburbs to find outdoor ice. Since we've moved here I have often worried what kind of upbringing the kids would have without nature all around them, but the constant little blessings of finding a precious ice patch for them to spend hours on or having parents in-law now live in Florida for the winter( and they have a dog, that Jakob can't wait to see) makes March Break really special. We have so much to be thankful for and it's good to remember those things. I'm loving the snow, missing beautiful Québec but loving where God has put me for the moment.

Burnt Soup...

The icing on the cake to my long week. Here are some pictures of my week-end soup :( I have to say that I haven't been really thankful lately, even though I know I should be, it feels like there is a big fire of frustration raging inside, that I'm continually trying to put out. Not that the frustration of burning my whole supper isn't justify but where do I go from there. What do I feel like doing? You don't want to know. I started reading a great little book with a friend called cultivating contentment and it has been making me think a lot all week. I thought I wasn't too hard to please, and I tend not to set my expectations to high fearing that I will be disappointed, but I guess they are still too high! I see it in my kids ALL the time, that constent, I waaaaaaant this, I wish I had thaaat but I don't think of myself as having any huge discontentment issue, big reality check! So this week I'm hoping to hopefully move closer to a life that reflects the joy that I should have for simply being alive, and knowing that God should be the one filling that void of wants in my life even thought my list might seem insignificant, it is enough to plant a seed of unhappiness inside of me. In her book she has an awesome quote: Longings. Coming face to face with the fact that there are empty places in our lives that haven't been filled. Yearnings. Wanting more than we have: more love, more enjoyment, more passion, more hope, more rest. Cravings. The hope of finding something that will satisfy the rumbling we feel in the stomach of our soul. Nicole Johnson




So I'm not sure where that came from but it felt good :) So since I love writing silly list here is my thankfulness list:

1. I'm thankful that the kids didn't notice too much the lovely taste of my soup.
2. I'm very thankful for the snow that provides "hours" 7 to be precise, of fun for the kids
3. I'm thankful for my brother and sister in law living minutes away and thinking of us on the week-ends
   
4. I'm thankful for a very patient husband who has a very intense wife
5. I'm thankful for God's forgiveness of my selfish and sinful state of heart
6. there is so much more but I won't make this too too boring... even though I could go on.
   

Sleeping Beauty!

This is how I found Emma couple mornings ago when I went to wake her up notice the layering of clothing, from the inside out dora top, to layer #2 the flower print nightie, #3 penguin pg pants and to top it all #4 the long knee hight socks, what can I say, she's my girl!



Doesn't that look comfortable!

Me, My Chai and I !!!

It's almost Monday again, the week-end goes by too fast. The more the years go by, the faster life seems to pass. I still remember our first couple years of marriage religiously taking our Sunday naps. Now it's running from one thing to an other from the moment we wake up until everyone comes back from Awana. I have been ditched by hubby for football :( He had a really long day of non-stop work so he really does deserve a break. So here I am with earphones, diet coke, and lots of my favorite music blogging away to whoever cares about the small details of my life. Peace is wonderful. Last night I also got ditched by what I thought was a great friend, now I would rather call her an acquaintance. So off to Value Village I went on my own ( no Angie ) then I HAD to go to Chapters to drink a wonderful chai latte and browse for a whole hour at all the wonderful books, I love the smell of that store, paper and coffee, AND good music what a mix. It had been a rather long 2 weeks of watching kids, trying to keep some kind of order in the house and then round 2 of the flue came with Jakob having the stomach flue and Joe got a cold. Jakob has started his hockey tournaments so we're almost done with that. I am so pleased that we decided to finish the year even though it has been a big stretch for our family. I feel he learned a big lesson in finishing what you start. As a parent it's so hard to always have to make those critical decision in your child's life, that really shape the way they will learn to deal with hard circumstances that come up. Today Emma asked if she HAD to finish her puzzle if she started it?. It made me smile to know she was thinking hard about it.



We had a soccer coach call for Maggy to try out for the Rep soccer team, she was thrilled to know they thought she would be good enough she's so brave. I was all worried that she was insecure, meeting a bunch of vicious pre-teen girls, but nop she said: I don't care, she such a good girl ( xoxo) she sneaks to read my blog :) so I have to be careful what I say... Managing all of our lives and still having a life is extremely hard... We will learn to cherish our small family getaways.

So I think hubby has time for me now :) I'm thankful for our family, even if sometimes looking back on a week-end I really have to dig hard to find the " good moments". Tomorrow Bartley and I are off on a date so I'm looking forward to a fun time away from the house, the munchkins to snuggle up to my man for a night.

Almost winter...

We've had just a little bit of snow and ice, the kids are LOVING playing outside, I'm really enjoying finally seeing white :) Let's hope we get more. I don't know what they would do with an actual storm? because this is just a tease. Long week here at the Sawatsky household. Lots of babysitting and routine stuff, I'm looking forward to getting out a bit more. Angie and I are dreaming Value Village so watch out we're coming soon...Dangerous stuff :) You all have a great day...

Indulging

A minute for me... Today I had a grapefruit for dessert, and I just got thinking of how it always brings back such great memories for me, wait until I explain. Growing up we often visited my grandmother for a sleepover and when we would wake up in the morning she always had the table set up with breakfast. I just remember so often she would have a half of a grapefruit, facedown in a bowl and I felt like she had prepared such a nice treat. It's not one of those fruits you just bit in while your working around the house like and apple, banana, even a hand full of grapes. It take lots of planning . Bartley and I sometimes have contest on who eats it the neater ( he wins). I always seem to splash the juices everywhere, but it's soooo worth the getting messy. And just when you think it's all done you get to squeeze the last couple tablespoon out to your spoons. As a kid I use to load it up with sugar. It still taste amazing that way, but now I feel to guilty to ruin it with big spoonful of sugar I try just to enjoy it (almost) plain :) Anyways my sister challenged us to take a moment for ourselves and leave the 4 loads of laundry, full dishwasher, supper preparation... To enjoy a moment in our day, and this was mine.

Big Goals For 2007

Well I've never been one to make a huge list of goals when the new year comes around, probably because 2 of those past years I've been busy giving birth and 2 of those years a month from giving birth. Bartley and I have always decided to let God show us what he had in store for our future, not that we don't make any plan. Bartley has his new year planner bought before the new year even starts and we do make long term plans ( like going away together :) yummy )but we've learn our plans can change pretty quick and then your either left feeling disappointed, like you have failed or undisciplined. As a mom I can feel that way a lot. Of course I want to be in shape and eat healthy, patient with my kids... blah blah but on my own it will probably last a big 4 weeks and then the February blues will come, the stomach flues and I'll feel in a big boring routine about to go crazy. I just hope this year we will keep making God happy with the way we live and raise our kids, and serve him out of love, not because it's our job. Bartley said to me last night that I needed more refocusing time to be quiet and have some thinking space, ( I had mildley freaked out at Jake at dinner). And I said but... He spilled butter all over my floor! and then husband said, " but Sarah, didn't you want kids? and I said but Joe pied all over the bathroom floor... And he said but Sarah" didn't you want kids? We have great conversations. So yes this was my life Goal to serve God with my husband and have a beautiful family like I have, but it's much harder then I thought on some levels. I never thought I would be that mom that gets upset because my house has been destroyed. You should have seen my room growing up. And sometimes I forget that they have to walk on my floor and make sweaty foot prints and eat supper and spill there water, buttery biscuit, fork ... On the floor and that they will pee twice on the floor because they are just learning, or that they will come in and out all day to go to the bathroom, drink, blow there noses, put mittens on, ask me to be the ref on there huge life crisis. They are just kids and it's so easy to be heavy on them and to forget how God has lent me those 4 beautiful lives with the hope and lots of praying that they will become adults that will seek to do his will and love him and have a real relationship with him . So many times this week my heart has felt full with love as I looked at them, with their friends, or Emma getting her first build a bear and her face as she saw the bear's birth certificate come out, Jakob being a pirate, or going with his friends on a huge hike, playing in the back of the big ugly green van ( it has no seats), watching Josef discover animals on a little day trip to a park in Toronto. I just think how much I love them, and even thought I might not have time to go to the gym every morning at a reasonable hour ( not 5:40) or I might have to babysit for a couple more years to make ends meet, or that I might not find out what it is that " I " like to do besides getting a thrill at the look of my clean floors, I love being a mom and wife to a wonderful men. So my goals for 2007 is to let God at work in me and I'm sure it will be good if I listen.

Christmas is over :(

Well it's January first and all of the Christmas stress is over. All the action, cooking, cleaning, organizing of activities, buying presents, returning presents, preparing for family, lack of sleep, colds, fevers, vomiting, wrapping, baking, drinking LOTS of coffee, sitting around not doing much...Soon things will all be back to normal. My family was here to visit over the holidays and we had a really good time, I did miss going home though, and no snow :( The kids still have a week of from school so we'll have lots of fun hanging out for one more week.