Week Two - COLD

Well this is quite a fitting subject for this weeks' challenge! This week has been cold and with the wind chill feels even colder. According to our local weather station it was 14F but felt like -14F. The wind was blowing and biting. I was just generally happy to be inside. Out of the elements.

Friday  I was admiring an amazing sunset on my half hour commute. I was also kicking myself for not bringing my camera so I could capture the beauty. The sky was glowing a beautiful pinky orange around the setting sun. The trees and barns of the countryside were silhouettes on the horizon. The wind was whipping the snow into what looked like a cold mist hovering over the fields.

I sped home all the while keeping an eye out my window. Sunsets change very quickly. The transforming beauty is captivating but is gone in the twinkling of an eye.

I was less than a block from my home, ready to grab my camera and run, when the snow started swirling and the sky grew grey and the beautiful warm sunset vanished. I grabbed my camera regardless and headed for the golf course down the road, hoping to at least catch the swirling snow.

In honour of the effects of the wind chill factor, this is how it looked

This is how it felt

The next day, the sun shone again. None of the children were begging to go and play in the yard this week!

Saturday, I wanted to see what else I could capture that encompasses COLD. 

The Detroit River was frozen and looked enchantingly dangerous with the entrance to Lake Erie on the horizon.

The broken ice. If my hands weren't freezing from the whipping wind, I would have spent significant time taking pictures.

The road ends at the river, the water's edge protected by a dock, the contrast was stark as just two feet further the broken ice took over the landscape as far as the eye could see. But here, the ice is peaceful and glistens in the sunlight.

I love spending time with my girl. She braved the cold and even grabbed the camera to take a few shots of her own.

I also realized that I am not very good at settling on one photo to meet a photo challenge but I guess that is another one of my defining characteristics!

Photography Challenge 2015

Once again I am joining a photography challenge. I found this challenge mentioned on a couple of other blogs and I found inspiration in skimming the different themes listed without the intimidation of a large community.

As always, I take these challenges as an interesting way to document our life with a unique perspective. It encourages me to look at life through a new and refreshing lens.

Feel free to join me on this journey  - the more the merrier.

Week One - Beginnings

New Words for a New Year

This Little Word of Mine.....

A word a year. That has been my tradition for a number of years now. I started off in 2009 with INTENTIONAL. I wrote the following on Ali Edwards Blog: One Little Word

"Marnie Pouget

6 YEARS AGO

I am trying to decide between deliberate, intentional and choose. You could say I am deliberating about deliberate! I know the meanings are similar-it is the nuance of each word that I am trying to work out.
I read the challenge to my 11 year old son and he has chosen the word "attack". "As in attack the year. Do what you want to do. Get outside. Have fun. Maybe throw in a water park" (I'm hoping that throught he year he will decide to apply this word to his schoolwork as well!)"

I followed this with FOCUS, FOLLOW, ABIDE, PURSUE, and finally  [learning to] LAUGH.

At the beginning of last year I envisioned our home filled with joy and times of laughter. Happiness overflowing from an easy life. HA! I guess that laughing during the easy times doesn't need to be learned - it flows freely and abundantly. 

You have to learn to laugh in the tough times. That's the training ground. You know the old saying "no pain, no gain"? Well, there were some easy times of joy and peace but mostly 2014 seemed full of difficult challenges that pushed me to seek joy and trust God. If I am honest, I didn't to either as well as I would have liked.

I started my year with a trip to Ottawa. I love our nation's capitol and am thankful that I get to experience it's beauty each year. I love my boss and the people I work with.

Then in February, McKenna competed in the Shining Star Competition. She didn't get beyond the preliminaries but she met her goals and certainly made us proud. We enjoyed Winter Jam 2014 in Detroit.

This year I had the privilege of counselling two amazing groups of young women for Spring and Fall Purity and Holiness retreats at BLBC. "I laughed, I cried. They moved me..."

My beautiful girl graduated from Grade 8 and it was so much fun to find a dress, have manicures together, get her hair done and celebrate this milestone. 

We spent a ton of our summer at BLBC - exhausting but fulfilling. I love this ministry and the people there.

Leo and I got away for an overnight vacation in September. It was relaxing and lovely to spend time just the two of us.

We replaced our van. It was an incredible faith walk that was stressful in the midst but a joy at the end.

The holidays were full of family and friends. More restful in some ways than other years but extremely full of visiting and travel. A lovely way to end the year.

These were my "highs". 

If I could settle in on the laughter through these times I would say I had done well however, life is full of peaks and valleys. Highs and lows.

My "lows" included way too much snow and though I enjoy the occasional snow day, last year they were a little much. 

The van breaking. 

The freezer reaching its end. 

Financial stress. 

Moving two steps forward and then falling back, sometimes further than I had gained. 

Changing friendships. Sometimes forcing me into a very "alone" place.

There were too many deaths in 2014. It seemed that there was always a funeral to attend and a loss to mourn including those of my aunt from my mom's family and my uncle from my dad's family, within a few weeks of each other. Though often there was the celebration of a home-going, the loss was tangible and raw.

I also experienced two very heavy seasons of uncontrollable sadness - not diagnosed depression, but overwhelming sadness that required significant breaks from everyday life. I am thankful for my friends that intervened and my family that loved and supported through those seasons.

It was hard to laugh during those times.True laughs of joy not the bitter laugh of unbelief and cynicism. It would be easy to take the hard days and allow bitterness to get a firm grip choking the joy and the laughter from even the good times. I chose not to harbour bitterness. I didn't always embrace the rough stuff and I certainly can't claim laughter but I grew. My marriage became stronger. My faith became stronger.

I am still [learning to] LAUGH but a new season is upon me.....

A season of REST.

I admit that I am hesitant to share my thoughts of full nights of sleep. Sleeping in on Saturdays. Afternoon naps in the sunshine. I am bone-weary and the thought of rest invokes in me desires of deep slumber. 

though, it doesn't have to be all sleep....

Hot chocolate and a blanket snuggled up with a good book. Lounging in hammocks enjoying my backyard. Downton Abbey dates with my son. Evening worship with my kidlets. Mini vacations with my beloved.

If only that were it. I have a feeling that my anticipation of rest isn't all there is to this word for me this year.

I am claiming the following verses for 2015:

Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from Him. 

Psalm 62:5

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High

    will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

Psalm 91:1

Often, I will quietly choose a verse for my family for the year. One I pray through and think on and anticipate for them. I rarely share that verse but this year's verse encompasses both Leo and my words for the year so I have shared it with the children and we are memorizing it. You are welcome to join us

The fruit of that righteousness 

will be peace;

    its effect will be

 quietness and confidence

forever.

 My people will live in 

peaceful dwelling places,

    in secure homes,

    in undisturbed places of 

rest.

Isaiah 32:17&18

Time Flies

So here I am on the eve of my return to Camp. It is amazing to me that 6 weeks have passed since I was there last. Crazy!

Ladies Retreat. An amazing weekend with an incredible speaker, Robyn Dykstra, who challenged us to see God as our Refuge.

I shared in a breakout session at Ladies' Retreat a message entitled From Here to There, practical ideas to becoming the woman you want to be.

As I wrote my thoughts I realized that there was so much more to say than I could fit in an hour. There were so many ideas that would take time to mull and process and "do" without feeling overwhelmed.

I intended to come home and start posting sections of my notes. To be honest, this thought scared me. I was a little overwhelmed, to say the least. So here I am six weeks later, still struggling with this but going out on a limb and trusting that something I have to say may resonate with someone. somewhere.

This is the road that I have been on. Things that I have done or want to do. My thoughts. My desires.

So....here we go.......

We are all on the same basic journey. We are born and live until we face our eternity. Though this is true, each of us is at a different place and our circumstances make our journey unique.

I want to preface this by saying I don’t have it all together. I don’t have all the answers and I haven’t reached the “there”. I feel like I am just moving past the here.

I hope that through our discussion, you can find the place that you are and be encouraged in your journey.

Please join me each week as I share an expanded version of what I covered at Ladies' Retreat and all that I didn't manage to get to.


This weekend I am heading with my two eldest children for P & H. I am looking forward to being in the Word. Connecting with my Camp family. Enjoying a little R&R (or more realistically, late nights, early mornings, lots of laughing and way too much fun!)

Me. Alone.

"Once upon a time, in a town not so far away, an idea for a book was born. “Diary of an Old Maid” was the first title

I chose for it– I was twenty-four years old."

I am a guest today on this beautiful lady's blog. Kerrington is a lovely young woman with a heart for God and a joy that overflows. You cannot help being drawn to her. I am privileged to count her as a friend.

Join me over here to read the rest of the post.

 

It's One of Those Days

I'm sure you've had one. I think we all do at some point or another. Today was mine.

Nothing was going to go right. Nothing.

The littlest had too runny of a nose to go to Co-op, so I had to stay home for the morning. Just when I thought I could get in a shower before he awoke, he started stirring. Disappearing for an extended period with no opportunity to hear him awake is NOT a good idea.

What could have been a productive morning was not so much. He was clingy and needy and since he was not feeling well, it would have been mean and un-motherly to just let him cry. I do admit to feeling, at moments, un-motherliness however, I generally give in before the mommy-guilt completely overtakes me.

Days like this I find it hard to be naturally thankful. I tend to over-think the unpleasing and have to force myself to see the blessing. How glad I am that my list is not limited to THIS day.

140.  Arriving home safely from a late night drive.
141.  A friend who can see below my surface and enforce a much needed break.
142.  Kind words of concern from a man I respect.
143.  A belated birthday dinner out with my "bestie" - lots of good delicious food!
144.  The safe arrival of TWO camp grand-babies!
145.  My mom sharing our family history with the two eldest.
146.  Leo having the opportunity to golf twice and fish in the course of a week.
147.  Chemical free cleaning!
148.  Chocolate Truffle Cake - for a birthday treat - to die for
149.  a Sunday morning message that hit home for me.
150.  This hair system - my hair feels like silk! Thank you BzzAgent for the opportunity to try products and share experiences -this one was a winner by far!

Never Too Late For Thanks.

121. An unexpected thank you - colourful arrangement of daisies and Tim's
122. A piano and a tea cup - memories of my beloved Aunt Mary.
123. My thoughtful girl buying her brothers "bribe" candy for her babysitting and long hours without complaining.
124. A clean washer.
125. The eldest snuggling with the youngest. ♥
126. Kids that understand harmony and use it during family worship.
127. Historical fiction that takes my mind off today.
128. An amazing deal for my girl - her very own keyboard.
129. Clean rooms and properly sorted laundry.
130. A thoughtful gift of connecting time away with my love.
131. Assorted fudge sample pack from Harbourtown Fudge.
132. A relaxing escape

133. Refreshing infused water - I am addicted.
134. Cheese cake to go from Killer Desserts

135. Walking through the picturesque quaint town of Port Stanley

136. Dream homes.

137. Children taking good care of each other.

138. Creamy homemade rice pudding with friend.

139. Schoolwork without a hassle.