From Daddy: 
From Mommy:
The boys are ready!
Monthly Archives: September 2014
Be Click Click Clicking
I love family photos with a professional photographer.
I love thinking about meaningful locations, picking out matching clothing and being able to look back on family photos many years after.
I have numerous treasured photos of me as ‘getting ready to grow girl’, ‘getting ready to grow into my teeth girl’ and my personal favourite ‘mullet hockey hair girl’. Priceless memories.
Today, I was again able to instil this torture love of family photos onto my boys.
It started with me asking them to wear jeans and good shoes then proceeded to asking them to wait to play at the playground so that we could do our rapid fire fifteen minute PAC fundraiser photoshoot traipsing around the top of a local mountain for family photos.
Pure awesomeness.
Memory morning.
Family time.
I had to take a few of my own after we were done:
Thanks boys for humouring your Mama! It was wonderful to see you climbing trees, sitting on fences and making chairs out of stumps. The dust on your shoes, your uncomfortable jeans and beautiful smiles will create wonderful family photos.
I can hardly wait!
Be. Be. Be.
Be present.
Be listening.
Be open.
What does a mom say when her two year old looks out the car window one Wednesday morning and suddenly yells, “I see Nana in heaven. On the mountain.”?
What do you do that same day when your middle son paints a picture of Nana in heaven? He’s painting her right now.
And what do you think the next day when you have your oldest son’s friend over and she asks you to put on music and play “It’s a Small World”, my mom’s favourite ride at Disneyland?
Be present.
Be Listening.
Be open.
I am grateful my children are so assured their beloved Nana is in heaven. I can’t even accept she has died.
I love that my children are so connected to their ever-present Nana that they think to paint her. I can barely look at her photos without being overcome with sadness.
I am blessed that there are so many signs on a daily basis that remind all of us of my mom’s love, kindness and who she was. She was a great human BEing.
Be.
Be.
Be.
Be Playing with Colours
Take a plate.
Pour in some milk.
Add a few drops of food colouring.
Pour in some dish soap right in the middle.
Et viola!
Magnificent colours.
Swirling.
Mixing.
I was mesmerized by the colours.
My boys were filled with wonder.
It is truly the little things in life.
Be Gobsmacked
Gobsmacked.
Flat on my face in awe.
Humbled.
Grateful.
Watching God’s miracles (coincidences) on a daily basis.
Living the presence of God.
This week, a friend was healed from months of pain in her foot. God’s touch healed her. In one moment her pain was gone. I have never experienced anything like this before in my life!
On Thursday, I took out a jacket that I bought for my mom last autumn to bring her warmth and comfort as her body shrunk during chemotherapy. I placed this jacket over my shoulders and I was overwhelmed that this beautiful jacket fits me.
How is this possible?
Last night, Sexy Neck told me that he wanted to keep a few large blue Tupperware bins that I was going to give away. I unpacked each of these bins. One of them had 0 to 3 month old boys clothing and at the bottom of the bin, I found a ring Steve bought me for our fifth anniversary that I lost SEVEN YEARS AGO! I am grateful Steve asked me to keep the bins.
This beautiful ring now sits back upon my finger. I am amazed at God’s goodness. I grieved losing this ring when my oldest was a newborn.
And now this morning…
Often I leave colouring or activity sheets or notes for my boys on the table when they wake up in the morning.
This is the sheet I picked out for OC.
Notice the scripture on the bottom of his colouring sheet?
As OC was colouring his sheet, I opened my bible to look up some scripture on a 40 day challenge I am doing from Igniting Hope Ministries. If you are curious, here is the website.
Anyways, I open my bible to look up the scripture I was wondering about AND IT IS THE SAME SCRIPTURE THAT IS ON OC’S SHEET! I had to underline this word in my bible.
Flat on my face.
Wondrous God.
Gobsmacked.
Can’t think of a better word.
Be a Preschooler
This week our almost three year old, OC, started preschool one day per week for two hours.
It was one of those days where OC appeared to “grow-up” overnight.
We stared Friday with our Preschooler wanting to pour his own milk. His lunch kit and water bottle were on the counter. He proudly hung his new MEC backpack beside his brothers.
OC grabbed his backpack and we were off. Everyone was excited.
OC is happy that he has the same teacher as his big brother CC. He was very happy with his flag creation on his first day of preschool.
The big brothers were happy to spend this day celebrating OC and enjoyed “hanging” out at the preschool playground.
You are a gift OC, to our family and this world.
We appreciate your laughter, your emotions, your spunk, your wanting to try everything! We love you!
As we said Welcome to Preschool to OC, I said goodbye to my preschool scrapbook into the recycling bin.
I am learning life is about being open and letting go…
Freedom.
Joy.
Peace.
Preschool.
Be Introducing Sexy Neck
This is Sexy Neck, aka Steve, one year before we got married. (1996)
![IMG_5891[1]](https://beenough.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/img_58911.jpg)
We met playing volleyball, living 785 kilometres apart, then dated long distance for four and a half years living 298 kilometres apart. We had never lived in the same city until we got engaged.
Sexy Neck is first and foremost kind. Also very athletic. Intelligent. Loves God. Witty. Sexy. Artistic (most people don’t know he can draw and learned to play guitar by ear). Hardworking. Dog lover. Gardener. Handy. He’s an idea guy. I think he tells me about a new idea every day!
And he is incredibly “cool”. He loved taking “Selfie’s” before selfies were selfies.
Here we are back in 1996!
![IMG_5892[1]](https://beenough.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/img_58921.jpg)
Full of gratitude for this man.
His strong shoulders.
The love for his boys.
His passion and care for me.
Sexy Neck, are you blushing?
P.S. We ran into a friend’s mom that we had never met before, but she had been reading the blog. She giggled when she saw Steve, called him Sexy Neck then asked to see his neck. It was one of the sweetest moments in our new neighbourhood with an old volleyball friend’s mom!
Be Talking About Money $$ (and Food)
September should be the new year.
New activities.
New routines.
An almost new school year.
New lessons while cooking dinner.
And talk about money!
Sexy Neck and I have embarked on an intensive look at our budget.
Spreadsheets.
Bills.
Bank statements.
Daily conversations.
We have lived in our home for over a year. Our boys are in the activities they would like to be in. We have found our places to grocery shop and realized how our spending has changed. We miss our backyard rental suite that we had in our old home, but we have ideas. STAY TUNED!
I have been working on our budgeting spreadsheet as well as listening to Youtube videos about budgeting. I have come across a very interesting man, who was once bankrupt, who believes in God and now teaches others about finance. His name is Dave Ramsey. Youtube him and you will find out some interesting things. I listened last night to a short eight minute video and here are some of the highlights:
- God owns money, stuff, time and talents.
- We are the managers.
- These things (money, stuff, time and talents) are not ours, stop worrying about them.
- God made us to be givers.
He also spoke about giving money to others or tithing. He basically said that to tithe means one tenth. We could give away one tenth of our income right at the beginning of the month.
Today, I was cooking dinner and thought about this concept of giving away one tenth of our income right away.
When I was cooking dinner, I was stretching our leftovers from last night to feed us all dinner as well as make sure that I had leftovers for Sexy Neck’s lunch for tomorrow. I decided to first put the food in Sexy Neck’s lunch and then serve the rest of us dinner.
Guess what? When I served the lunch first there was enough for dinner, but I know if I served dinner first there wouldn’t have been any leftovers.
I wonder if we gave away ten percent of our income right at the beginning of the month… I bet there would be enough for everything else too!
"Be" ENOUGH 