You Are Special

This was the craft idea our boys worked on to celebrate love, a gift from God. I wish the boys could make one of these for each of you ...

You Are Special ... to us & to God!

Grandma's Gift

Our little Faith in a cute little outfit from Grandma Wiebe... Thank you, Grandma!

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from te Father of lights..." James 1:17

We were thrilled to discover that Faith's second name, Mattaya, which means "gift of God" has the same meaning as Grandma's name. It was only after we named her and told Grandma her name that we found out from Grandma herself that their names have the same meaning ... both "Olga" (Grandma's name) and "Mattaya" mean "gift of God". How special is that?

God is good all the time. Unintentional orchestration, evidence of His hand at work in our lives!

Weather Report

Our weather meter told us we were getting Freezing Rain.
What would you say?
The last two days have been above freezing temperatures
with lots of rain, only the first day was freezing rain.

Here are the bigger pictures of our "Mystery Photo". Our front deck is covered by about 8'x16' of this lattice. For one day this was all decorated with a
"lacy fringe". Most of the icicles where about 2" long.



Yes, you're seeing this right! He is on the highway wearing skates!!! The highway past our farm is not very used, especially when there is a 1/4 inch of ice on everything.

The spruce and pine trees where very weighed down, here you can see why.

The other trees faired a lot better, but also had a layer of ice.

One of the guys said our clothes line looked like an "upside-down bar graph".

Thanks to those that tried guessing our "mystery photo". You were all very close.

4-week supply of Activia yogurt (Canadians only)

For those of you who live in Canada, you can
go here to sign up to receive a coupon for a 14-day supply of Activia probiotic yogurt - at no cost to you. After you try the yogurt for two weeks and take another survey, you'll receive a coupon for a second two-week supply of Activia - their way of saying "thank you" for completing the survey.

Thanks to Crystal @ MoneySavingMom.com for the info on this offer.

Mystery Photo

Any guesses? Who can figure out what it is that Corbyn has photographed in this picture?

I'm Learning to Walk, Part 2

The second little tidbit of information that I'm learning about walking is that, contrary to what I've always thought, taking regular, shorter 10-20 minutes walks at a moderate pace is actually better for your health than longer endurance. Hard to believe? I know, but I've read about this in more than one place.

Amazingly, I find it easier to get myself motivated to get out to do a couple shorter walks than one 30-45 minute walk.

Yesterday my dear hubby measured the distance of my regular walk - the length of our driveway & back is almost exactly 1/2 mile. So, if I go out two times a day for two trips to the road & back I'm putting on 2 miles. Whoohoo!

And getting fresh air to boot ... and often spending time with Ken ... benefits galore.

I'm Learning to Walk, Part 1

Ok, so I'm not learning to walk right from the start, but I am learning about a fitness way to walk known as Nordic walking.

What's that? Basically, you go for your regular walk, but carry a walking stick in each hand - and get your arm swing technique in sync with your step.

Unwittingly, I started Nordic walking last Fall when I started going out to the pasture - through the bush, up & down the trails and over tree roots - with our youngest three boys. Being pregnant I wanted walking sticks for stability. I just used walking sticks that our older boys had fashioned out of sticks they'd found in our bush.

Somehow, during the winter I googled "walking" and discovered "Nordic walking", an exercise that is well known in some countries. For an excellent website to check it out further go here.

Apparently, Nordic walking increases the cardiovascular workout one gets. It makes sense because your arms are working as well. Another benefit - and there are others - is that this method is easier on the joints of your back, knees and feet.

A Milestone

They grow up so-o-o fast ...

Last week Carsyn celebrated his sixteenth birthday, reaching a time-honored milestone.

He marked it by writing the test and getting his learner's permit - so, we now have four drivers in our household.

Way to go, Carsyn!

Easy Clean Stove-top

Thanks to my mother-in-law for a kitchen cleaning tip resulting in an "easy clean stove-top". Here's how:



Clean your stove-top well then coat with car wax - I used "Turtle Wax".

This is a wonderful way to make your stove-top easy to clean.

Since getting my stove I've been frustrated with the difficulty in cleaning it - any drip would bake on if not whisked off before the current operation was even completed ... and then it would need to be scoured off. Now I can swipe the stove top clean with a quick wipe after each use without having to get out the scouring pads, baking soda, etc.every time I want to clean my stove-top.

Thanks Mom!

I always appreciate finding a "better way" ... so I'm passing it on.

"Our Little Bundle of Faith"

A loving "title" given by a loving brother ...