Snow, Sons and Grandson

Hank and I are home again after a wonderful weekend in BC. The talk of the weekend for most people was the snow and there was a lot of snow! And people in BC are not used to the white stuff like Manitobans are. There aren't snowplows or other snow clearing machines and the drivers are unsure of what to do. We don't have that many huge hills to naviagate either. So being in a blizzard in BC was an interesting experience. We even got a bonus Snow Day and saw Oliver one more time. The sad part was that the weather was so much worse in Abbotsford than in Surrey that we were only 5 miles from Scott and Margaret and didn't get to see them again. We met a couple of semis in a white out that pretty much did me in for traveling further onto the Sumas Prairie!

Visiting with Scott & Margaret and Ryan & Steph is always great. I feel so blest that we can just hang out with our kids - talk, share iMac hints, play Settlers of Cattan - though we may have to ban Steph if anyone else is ever gong to win! Kayla and Harley, we missed you!

And Oliver! It was just so wonderful to hug and cuddle this little guy. I didn't know being a grandma would be so sweet. He just feels like he belongs!

Wine - not Kool-aid or vinegar

I love my days off. But today was rather odd. I have to go for regular blood tests - nothing serious - the bane of many middle aged people - cholesterol check. But I have to fast for 12 hours before the test. I like to do it on a day off because then I sleep in a bit, take a shower and go and the waiting for water and coffee in the morning doesn't seem so hard. Today at 9:30 I'm ready to go but I cannot find the form from my doctor I need to take to the lab. I remember moving it from its regular place to another place 2 weeks ago - somewhere supposedly better, but I can't remember where! I went through every drawer and hiding place I could think off, tried calling my doctor for a new form but couldn't conncect and finally at 10:45 when I was very unhappy and hungry I gave up the search and went to Tim Horton's for coffee and a treat. So I just came back from the doctor's office this afternoon with a new form and I can to this all over again tomorrow.

We leave in two days to go to BC to visit our kids there and the star - Baby Oliver. Its funny because I can't really anticipate going to see a grandchild because I have no reference for this. When I see people my age with their grandchildren is looks really appealling but I can't picture myself doing this yet. I am looking forward to seeing the little guy a lot so I can try on grandmotherhoos first hand. I also am excited to see Ryan and Steph and celebrate their new life as parents. I think they will be wonderful. But I am looking forward to seeing Scott and Margaret too. Its suprises me how much I miss them. They fit into the flow of our house so well last spring.

I also cried for Kevin twice in the last few days. Maybe its just that my emotions are so sharp again. Such joy with the birth of Oliver makes the sorrow more real again. Sunday in church we sang, Jerusalem the Golden. I usually don't like that song but it fit so well with the sermon that I was singing the first verse very lustily. We were celebrating that believers will go to heaven when it suddenly hit me that Kevin was there. I was not able to sing the rest. It wasn't so much sadness but just overwhelming awe that he is gone.

Life brings many joys and many sorrows all interwoven and we have to be willing to experience both. Henri Nouwen talks about this in his book, "Can You Drink This cup?". He says life has to be like wine - a mixture of the bitter and the sweet otherwise it would be Kool-aide or vinegar. (My very meager retelling.) But it is a concept that is good to remember.

Good trip to the mall

For me that seems almost an oxymoron - I don't like shopping and being in the mall at 5:30 always seems a little creepy. BUT tonight I had to pick something up and thought I would just walk around. After trying on a few shirts and deciding I'm just not the right body type for some stores I decided to call it quits. I went and got a guilt free decaf, low fat latte and a huge puffed wheat square. YUM. The latte had about the best foam I have ever had so that was great. Then as I was walking out a little blond girl , about a year and a half, in blue jeans and a pink shirt toddled up to the Santa's shop that is there, stopped infront of one of the trees and said, "Oh WOW!" She did not remember seeing a tree before. It was so cute. It made the trip worthwhile.

A smile and a blog

I am totally new to this blogging thing and I am not sure why I am here. Its taken me awhile just to figure out how to set things, where to find things and what the process is. But I'm learning - and I haven't even called Scott yet!
I have also noticed that a lot of the blogs I've looked at are written by people my kids' age - maybe I am just looking in the wrong places. I don't know if anyone wants to read a blog by someone over 50 but I can try.
But its almost midnight and I think I have to get a little philosophical before I sign off. (Is there spell check in this process!). I just became a grandmother (grandma?gram? nana? ....... not sure) and so am walking a somewhat new path right now. It's a much bigger and newer path for Ryan and Steph but its still a slighty different journey for me too. I will walk some of it on line. So her I go...entering grandma-hood with a smile and a blog!