Hi all! If any of you are still able to access this blog.... I am sorry for the confusion... I've decided to stay with the original o;ne... www.lovegracejoy.blogspot.com

I hope this works for all of you or any of you who might actually have the time to read another blog! Blessings all, N

Hi all! Just a little update.... 

Why am I so fascinated with pictures? I've come to the conclusion that I don't really "enjoy the moment..." I seem to have an inability to "enter into" the moment at hand and fully appreciate it, (good or bad) and really "live it..." So... I'm thinking I try to relive these moments later when "I have time..." or "when it suits..." or"when I'm not soo emotional..."   whatever it is... I do like to have things looking "picture perfect..." even if it wasn't that at the time... 

Isn't it funny how we all smile for pictures... and look happy and contented and enjoying the moment... but half the time we really aren't..... pictures really "dont" tell a thousand words...

They very rarely ever tell the whole story, let alone half the story.... we are all soo complex and so many things can be going on inside us or in our lives... at any given moment and very rarely do they come "out" and almost never are they displayed in a picture...

I've just been thinking about these things lately and praying that I will lose my fascination with the picture (which is a replica of a very brief moment in time) and gain a fascination and love for the "object" of the picture.... and enter into each God given moment with them and really "seize the day... or hour... or minute..."

Blessings all...

N

Zoo

Last week the kids were off school for a few days... so right in the midst of potty training, we decided to up and go to the zoo. We have such a good zoo here and since we have a pass, we can go anytime and not feel like we have to stay all day. We have definitely got our money's worth out of the pass. This day was just great for seeing the animals. They were all out and roaming about (not freely!) but in their cages... as opposed to the usual laying around in a far off corner behind the rocks and bushes... 

We saw a red panda, a snowy owl, ibex, condors, sloths, ant eaters, gibbons, elephants, hippos, giraffes, lions, bears, a baby gorillas and the list goes on. We learned soo much. It was really worth it.... I love the zoo, and I am thankful for the memories we made....

Halloween pics

The proverbial pumpkin and halloween pics. What more can I say? Except that when Finn figured out that dressing in the monkey costume and carrying a bucket and knocking on doors got him candy... he wouldn't take off the costume!!

Luke's birthday

My big boy turned 11 last month and like all parents, I can't believe how the time has flown. I also notice a big difference from 10 to 11, some of which involves things like girls, and friends being more important than parents. However, I am so proud to be Luke's mom. He is a compassionate and sweet boy whose smile lights up my whole day. 

Luke celebrated with a bazillion friends at our house and Andy took them to the club to play street hockey and football. It was fun, but crazy and I told LUke this was his last year for a big party. 

Luke is saving for golf clubs. A sport I would rather have him do than football!! Not nearly as dangerous! Ah well,,,, sigh... I doubt my vote counts for much anymore as I mentioned earlier in the blog. Perhaps I can convince some of the girls at his school to tell him they really like "golfers" over "football players....!!!"

City and Provincial Champs

I realize that this blog sounds somewhat like a brag book, but if you will allow one more... it is kinda neat. Luke played football for the first time this year. He played for the cowboys and it turned out to be an excellent team. The coaching was top notch and they never belittled the kids or got out of hand, etc... it was overall a very positive experience for Luke. He played second string safety. He learned lots about discipline, teamwork, physical conditioning and not always getting to play...

Well as it turns out everything came together for this team this year... they were undefeated in their regular season, only letting in 6 points the whole season!! Then soundly defeated their opponents in the city championship, going on to provincials in edmonton the following week... where they beat their opponents again 28-7.....!  Here is Luke holding the city trophy which all the players get a turn at "hosting" at their home... I don't have pics of their provincial championship as neither Andy or I could make the game... it sounded pretty exciting though, as we heard all about it the next night at the cowboys banquet. 

Way to go cowboys..!  (And  no broken bones for Luke!) Yeah!

October happenings

Hello everyone. Welcome to my new blog. I honestly couldn't figure out how to access my old one with my new computer. I'm not kidding. This is not surprising considering I'm the girl with 222 emails in my inbox!! I'm still not kidding. My husband despairs of me ever getting this computer thing down. Sigh. But I do love blogging and have really missed it. Everyday I have a thought going through my head that I want to write about and rarely get the chance to sit down and actually put those thoughts on "paper." October was a very crazy busy month. A good one, but busy none the less. Lots of sports, trips and ministries mixed in there with school and life in general. A quick overview would include a weekend trip to banff for a conference, our anniversary, Luke's 11th birthday, thanksgiving, lots of football, Andy to DC for another conference, then to London for a compassion board meeting, alpha marriage course, swimming lessons, did I mention lots of football? Yes, I know we are all busy these days, and it is somewhat of a concern that we rarely have time to connect with friends and family. Seems like connections and doing life together was really more the point of life here on our big blue planet, but I'm not sure how to redeem that...? Any thoughts? Well, for now, just wanted to let you all know that we are still here and I am still blogging and hoping to get back at it. Blessings to all and any of you who might actually have the time to read this. Know we are thinking of you too. N