Tracy Returns to the Valley...take four.

I still update...sometimes...

2009-03-27T17:07:00.003-06:00

Okay, I know I'm not a good blogger but at least I try...sort of. Not a lot going on in my world except for a new baby coming. I can't believe I am going to be a parent...scary. I'm starting to feel little flutters and I'm told it's the baby/alien. It's a very bizarre feeling. I've been blessed with a very easy pregnancy so far, no sickness or any of the other million horrible things that can happen to you while you are pregnant. I am extremely tired but for the most part very good. Baby/Alien will be here in September or earlier (I hope) as everyone keeps telling me that this summer is going to be a hot one. Here is a picture of me at 15ish weeks.

Lovin the Stage

2008-05-25T18:25:00.004-06:00

I had quite forgotten how much I love the stage. "Chapter Two" is a stinkin' rotten blast. The cast is great, the crew is awesome. I will actually be sad once the rehearsals are finished. I love the actual run of the play but the rehearsals have been so intersesting and fun. And I am so glad to have finally found someone that dislikes Frenchy's as much as I do!!! I love you Susie. Although I must say I do apprecaite those germ infested clothes bins when I need a costume...or need a funky pair of gold shoes. As long as Susan keeps a large supply of wipes I'm all set.

So if anyone out there needs a good laugh and a good cry in one night come on out.

Returning to the Stage

2008-04-15T15:43:00.002-06:00

Something finally happened!! I got cast in the next play at CentreStage Theatre. I decided, sort of last minute, to go to an audition at my old stomping ground and it paid off. I got the intense role of Jennie Malone in Neil Simon's "Chapter Two". Not only do I get to punch and scream at Stephen Abyss but he throws me across the stage...haha...only other actors will appreciate how exciting that is. We just started rehersals and it will run from June 5- July something. If anyone is interested in checking it out go to www.centrestagetheatre.ca.

***Although CentreStage is always accommodating to me and my refusal to curse this play does have a bit of swearing***

(Not bad eh Amy...two posts in less than a month)

Well then...

2008-03-30T13:10:00.002-06:00

I admit it I am a terrible blogger!! I don't have internet at home so it's a bit challenging to be a consistent blogger. But it seems that I'm getting a bad reputation in the blogging world (Amy) so I thought I had better update...it's only been 6 months since my last one.
James and I are doing well. James has a job working with applied geomatics. He seems to really love it and he will be doing a project that he can combine this with a wildlife study for the summer. If you don't know what geomatics are then go download Google Earth. He helps to take laser images of landscape so that a 3D image can be analyzed.
I am working at my dads restaurant and at Purolator courier. I enjoy both but as always I am working too much and have no time for anything else. I do believe I am a workaholic. I'm hoping to do some theatre again soon...perhaps in the early summer.
Other than that things are pretty dull. Maybe that is why I don't blog that often. The only thing I ever have to say is that I am working too much.
My latest tally for nieces and nephews...4 nephews and 3 nieces. The newest edition is Thomas James Freeland Duke. He is a beautiful new edition to James' sister Laura's house.
Well, I must run. Perhaps in another six months I will post again. Hahaha. I love you Amy.

Back in Canada

2007-10-07T11:01:00.000-06:00

Well, it is finally offical...we are back in Canada and loving it. We are still a bit jet-lagged and disorganized but settling in very quickly. The Havill's have very lovingly given us a place to stay for as long as we need it (a beautiful log cabin). I have started work at my fathers restaurant and James will start looking for a job within the next couple of days. We have so many stories and pictures to share. We don't have internet at our place yet so we have to rely on our parents computers. Hopefully tomorrow will see some pictures on the blog from our travels. We want to thank you all for your prayers and thoughts while we are travelling. We avoided sickness, robbery and matatu accidents the whole 4 months. I (Tracy) will hopefully be in Edmonton near the beginning of November so I can't wait to catch up with everyone then.

a quick update

2007-09-09T07:24:00.000-06:00

Hey y'all. We are heading back to the village to start work on the posho mill. Thank you so much for all of your support. If you are still thinking about supporting the project please feel free because we are settling up a sustainability fund (for wage of the person running and for repairs that may need to be done) and perhaps future projects for the village. We will be in the village for a couple of weeks and will hopefully get in up and running before we come back to Canada. We will take lots of pictures and share them with you all. We can't express to you how much this means to us and the community. We will give a very detailed account of the whole project when we get home. Love you all.

Who would have thought

2007-08-25T02:24:00.000-06:00

Okay here is ANOTHER one...wow. This might be useful for Wendy as well. The maize here is planted twice a year. Mr. Orwa, behind the plow, is plowing the field to get ready for planting so that the maize will be ready in December. These people work so hard because as he is plowing some fields to plant maize his other fields are being harvested.

pushing my Kenyan luck...here's another one

2007-08-25T01:55:00.000-06:00

chewing on some sugar cane

Miracle of miracles

2007-08-25T01:40:00.000-06:00

Well here it is folks. I believe I have found a place where I can upload photos. This one if for Wendy Elliot and for Sharon Havill to see my braids. I'll try to get some more pictures too.

An update from Mombasa

2007-08-24T02:41:00.000-06:00

Hi everyone, James and I are now in Mombasa which is on the coast of eastern Kenya...right on the Indian Ocean. We are here on our own but will be meeting up with the Orwa's again in September to put in the Posho mill. We really appreciate all the support that has been rolling in. I apologize for the lack of pictures but I haven't been able to get the photo optain to load since we have been in Africa but no worries because I will add TONS when we get get home in October. I think James and I have close to 2000 photos so I will have lots to choose from. I hope Cheryl is planning to help be scrapbook when I get home...YOU PROMISED!

Things are going well here. James and I are slowing getting use to the Kenya pace and the menu. I have learned how to cook so many wonderful things. Chapatis and Mandazis are our favorites so far. Ugali is a bit heavy but oh so useful when eating soup. I plan to cook an African feast when we get home.

I don't have tons to report other than we have been living the typical African life for the past month...harvesting, eating and cooking. The day revoles around preparing the next meal. But know we are in mombasa which is a tourist place so we plan to relax and drink lots of African coffee. Luke we promise to bring some home for you. We also have a safari on the horizon. Well I must go and post this before the power or internet goes down. Miss and Love you.

Support for a small Kenyan village

2007-08-10T06:41:00.000-06:00

Hello family and friends!
We would love some help in helping a Kenyan village!

Tracy and I are on the last leg of our journey, and currently residing near Lake Victoria in Western Kenya. We have been staying with the Orwa family who live in a very small agricultural village near the town of Dede (“grasshopper”). This remote area is inhabited by the spirited Luo tribe who came originally from southern Sudan, and most youth have never or rarely seen “white” people (“Mizungus”; some children were convinced I was Jesus). More than half of Kenyans live below the poverty line and villagers in this region are no exception. Most families live without electricity and running water, and survive through subsistence agriculture. A family may have a couple of acres of land which they must work very hard year-round to grow food for themselves. Any food or products that they produce beyond this would be sold at markets and would be their major source of income. To sell these goods women, generally, must hike up to 10 km multiple times a week to markets that are scattered in cardinal directions. They also must hike this distance to grind maize (corn, basically; which makes up a large part of their diet) into flour at a posho (POE-show) mill. This also often involves long lineups and high charges since flour is a basic necessity.

As a gift to the community, we were asked if we could help set up a posho mill that would serve local families within a few kilometer radius. This would be overseen by the Orwa family who would provide land and a shed for the mill, and who would charge a minimal usage fee to villagers to cover the cost of fuel to run the mill. In essence this would be a non-profit service run by the Orwa family who have been involved in a number of community service projects with villagers and schools in the area.

Tracy and I have made a goal of purchasing and having the mill installed and pumping out flour by the time we leave at the end of September, yet we can not afford this on our own. We are hoping to raise enough money to purchase a mill and, if possible, leave a small cash reserve to help ensure longer-term sustainability of the service (i.e., to cover general repair and maintenance costs for a while). We are hoping to raise $1700 CDN (115 000 Kenya Shillings, KSh) for the mill and about $75 CDN (5000 KSh) as a reserve fund. It is hard to put this amount into perspective, but in this village, it would take years to afford this without outside help. This is a huge amount of money here.

We would sincerely appreciate any financial help that you could give us in achieving this goal. If you would like to help financially, we can arrange payment via mail (John and Lana Churchill, P.O. Box 56, Port Williams NS, Canada, B0P 1T0; jchurchill@ns.sympatico.ca) or in person when we get back in October. If you would like any more information about anything please ask us (james.churchill@ualberta.ca, tlc6@ualberta.ca). We will not have reliable access to email until we get home, but will do our best!

Please pass this along to others you think might be interested. We hope to hear from you soon, and we will give an update with pictures as things progress. Thank you in advance for your support and prayers,

Love, James and Tracy Churchill

Emails and africa

2007-08-10T06:16:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone, just a quick note to say that we are doing well. Also, to thank you for the emails and for some reason I cannot reply to them. So Sharon H. and Lisa, Sherry, Melody, mom and Julie I got your emails I just can't reply...sorry. I love and miss you all. Melody we left your swipe card with your neightbor. By the way you are welcome to both our phones if you would like them..we kept our SIM cards. Neither one is a tri-band but I was told that mine works everywhere in the world except Canada and US, you would just have to buy a European sim card.

Things are going well in Africa. We are in a little village and having so much fun. We now know how to harvest peanuts, bananas and sugar cane. ahahaha. We have so much to tell and so many pictures to share when we find a better internet connections.

Africa and culture shock

2007-07-28T02:24:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone, sorry that it has been so long since my last post but we haven't had a ton of internet my last entry. We finished up our stay in Thailand which was absolutely wonderful. I can't believe how much I loved Thailand. I would go back in a second and I would recommend to anyone looking for an adventure to go!! It's a bit expensive to fly there but once you are there it is very reasonable and the people are wonderful.

We are now in Africa and I must admit that both James and I are a bit culture shocked for the first time on our trip. Everything is just so different from what we expected...it's taking some time for us to adjust. It is beautiful here and we have a wonderful host family who are showing us the ropes. Felix, Amos and Winnie are wonderful and have been showing us around Nairobi. On Monday we will be heading to the village were Felix and Amos are from...it is part of the Luo tribe in case anyone wants to look them up.

I would ask for prayer for my stomach, it is having some trouble adjusting to the food. And our safety as it can be a little unsafe for "mzungu" (white people) to walk around without a guide. So far we have been with Felix and Amos so we are safe...so no need to worry Mom and Lana. Please also pray for our host family...Felix and Winnie...they are preparing their wedding ceremony celebration and moving into a house so their finances are very tight. Any finally for the Kenyan people, their is a great deal of poverty here, Nairobi is home to one of the larges slums in Africa.

We miss you so much, we are both a bit homesick so any emails you would like to send out way would greatly be appreciated!! Stories from your side would be lovely. Can't wait to see all soon. Our email is churchillswithoutborders@yahoo.ca

Warning...ELEPHANT EDUCATION TO FOLLOW

2007-07-13T21:20:00.000-06:00

How's it going? James and I are getting ready to head to Koi Samui this afternoon...can't wait to park it on the beach for a few days. We have had some amazing adventures since we came to Chiang Mai!! We spent 2 days at the Elephant nature park (www.elephantnaturepark.org) which was one of the most amazing and sad places I've ever been. It was started and is run by a Thai woman named Lek (means small in Thai). She rescues trekking elephants and mistreated elephants from all over Thailand and gives them a place to live that is free from mahouts (elephant trainers) that beat them with big metal hooks. These elephants are free to roam and do not have to give curious tourists rides. Because tourism is the only way for captive elephants to make money since logging was banned Lek gives tourists a better way to interact with the elephants. Instead of sitting on them in a basket that sits on the weakest part of their spine you get to help out with their morning feeding session and you get to walk with them down to the river where you can help wash them off. James and I had a great time and have tons of pictures to show you all soon. Check out the website it is such a cool place and they could definitely use financial support if someone is looking for a good cause to support. They don't charity status because of some PR damage that PETA did 5 years ago(way to go PETA). But it is a great establishment and Lek is really trying to change the way elephants are trained. Right now most elephants (around the age of 5) are forced into a cage that is too small for them to move in and are beaten until they submit to their trainer. Most people, including most Thais, don't realize that this is taking place so Lek is trying to make people aware. The problem with this practice, besides the obvious, is that because tourists like the baby elephants the mahouts are doing this process on younger and younger elephants and the process can lead to their death. Lek is trying to use a positive reinforcement system instead of beating the elephants. James and I got to meet some of the baby elephants that are being trained with a postive system and it seems to be working great. I got a big wet kiss to prove it. :) The training is not the only hardship that elephants are facing...we met an elephant that was a drug addict because her mahout worked her 24hours a day and gave her "uppers" so she could had the energy, we met a blind elephant that had her eyes sling-shotted out, one that had her back broken because she was chained to an aggressive male elephant and another that was missing part of her foot because she stepped on a landmine....very sad. Anyway, sorry for my big soap box speech but Asia elephants will be GONE by the year 2015 if methods aren't changed soon. We've done lots more in Chiang Mai but I think I've said enough for now :) We both loves Thailand and have TONS of pictures to share. Love you all!

Stories from Thailand

2007-07-07T01:34:00.000-06:00

"HereWell we left the sdafety of Darlene's school after a fabulous week, headed into insane bangkok! here's a glimpse:

...zzzzzzzzzOOOOOOOOOOOOooommm...the light turns green and 80 morotcycles and a steady stream of cars scream down Silom. On the side of the "lawsuit-waiting-to-happen" sidewalks (as tracy calls them) there is a line of about 20 women waiting for motorcycle taxis that come one by one and deliver each woman, side-saddle, to other destinations. Walking the sidewalks, there is no room for error - if you are bumped you will either step into the whelming traffic, or walk on a man with 1 limb selling flowers. Street vendors (selling barely-noticeable things) and 7-11s every three steps. Beautiful thai people with "We love the King" shirts on, wearing filters to mask out air pollution or inhaling from pocket menthol inhalers to personalize their breathing experience...

We are finding that for basic things we are generally ok with our level of english, but in many places we have been, it has been an awkward and sometimes impossible experience communicating with a 10 word vocabulary. The major problem is that the Thai language is built on 5 tones (which all sound identical to us) but apparently "mai mai mai mai mai" spoken using all five tones can communicate a whole sentence! For example, an english teacher, Jim, at Sammuk was received by uproarious laughter on his first day, because his name, spoken with the tone he chose is slang for female anatomy. He's currently working on a name change.

After bangkok (more about that later when we go back there for 4 more days) we took a back-up bus (the first one broke down on the way) to a small town called Pak Chong, northeast of BKK. From there we took a songtow (sp?) to our 200 Baht (about $6) pre-arranged accommodation (which in Thailand means "can we stay there tonight?" replied in turn by "yes!"). It turned out to be about as grimy, dingy, hot and infested as you can get (complete with bugs on the wall), but had a bed and a lock on the door. James said "perfect!!!!"...

[Tracy's addition to James narrative....I was ready to cry because it was the grossest room I'd ever seen...end Tracy's addition]

...but we held off on the utterly bohoemian experience until hill tribe trekking (Chiang Mai - coming to your local station in a few days). We pushed on to Jungle house up the road with a zoo in the backyard, and a rat in the air conditioner.

In the morning we joined a tour group with 2 hollandaise, and 2 brits and had the best wildlife tour of our lives!!! The tour took us to Khao Yai National Park and was led by two supremely knowledgeable guides. I think there names were Nine and Lek. We were continually amazed at their ability to spot white-handed gibbons and Oriental Hornbills sitting in the canopy far off on the horizon (it became a joke actually...we thought they must have had inside information). They had two spotting scopes with them which made watching birds etc. like tv. Other incredible things we saw were a water monitor lizard, one of the last remaining wild Asian elephant herds in thailand (from 250 left in the park - many other elephants, like those we saw in Chonburi, are kept alive as work elephants (for agriculture, forestry, entertainment, jungle treks) since this is the only way to pay for the the enormous cost of feeding them each day) tons of incredible birds (we got some awesome pictures by putting the dgital camera up to the spotting scope) and lots of other things i cant remember at the moment

From Khao Yai we took local transportation to the town and then a local train to Ayutthaya. Although we both de-trained exhausted and with massive headaches it was a great taste of small village travel. To travel about 100km took 3 hours, with stops at every village along the way. When the train was up to speed it felt rickety like acarnival ride where you know the cart could pop off at any time. Air conditioning was acheived through the open windows when the train was up to speed, and even better when you stuck your head out (but you had to dodge garbage being thrown out the windows). At each town a new cast of locals would board, walk up and down the aisles and sell you whatever they grew or made, from lychee to a dead chciken on a stick to beer. We are now in Chiang Mai after a 12 more tomorrow In Chiang mai we are hoping to do hill-tribe treks and maybe an elephant trek. Hill-tribe trekking involves hiking through the wilderness to visit small tribes that still practice the traditional way of life. is a quick update from James and a few pictures from me. " End James' story.

#1- we had a lovely few days with Melody...she and I had manicures and pedicure ($3 each) and ate at some great restaurants. Thanks again Mel.

#2 James and are bothe the proud owners of cell phones now...they really do make travelling easier.

#3 and #4 some wildlife that we saw on our tour...see Kerrie there are turkeys in Thailand too.

#5 James had a bit of a problem with the land leeches on our trek...yes Shannon you read it right...land leeches!!! They are everywhere in the woods around here....

A few more

2007-07-01T23:59:00.001-06:00

The first picture is from a class at Sammuk Chrisitan Academy.Then a long line of tuk tuk drivers. then James was brave enough to ride the cart down the hill at the Chinese temple. We all held our breath as he made a speed decent. And finally could thid centipede get any bigger...wowzer.

Some Thailand pictures

2007-07-01T23:41:00.001-06:00

Hey y'all, here are a few pictures of dear sweet Thailand. The first one shows a job that I would not want...this guy caught the elephant poo in a bag then had to carry it around for the evening (there aren't very many public garbage cans around). After the elephant did his business I got to feed him some sugar cane. The third is picture is Darlene and I doing a funny Thai pose in Chonburi. Then James and I drinking Thai iced tea out of bags. When you buy a drink at a market they put it in a plastic bag for you :) I love Thailand!! Another cool thing is that the electircity in hotel rooms is connected to your room key...such a cool idea. Keeps people from wasting electricity. Awesome.

Keeping busy in Thailand

2007-06-30T05:02:00.000-06:00

Thailand is such an awesome place!! James and I are having a fabulous time in this extremely hot country. We spent our first week with Darlene at Sammuck Christian Academy...what a cool place. We went bowling with some of the English teachers and as the night came to a close we realized that we really didn't have a way back to the school. So what do you do when you don't have a ride in Thailand? Do you get a cab? Noooooo! You pile nine people on 3 scooters...hehehe....sorry mom, Sharon H. and Darlene but it was so fun. Darlene was wonderful to us...she spoiled us rotten, she is such a great person. Thai markets have also been a favorite with us. Darlene took us to our first one which was handy because she is fluent in Thai, Melody Hopkins took us to the second one...man can that girl barter!! Then today James and I went on our own...let's just say that we have A TON of presents for people back home. The food is great! The people are great! The weather is great! The clothes are great (finally some girly clothes)!

In Thailand

2007-06-25T00:39:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone, we made it to Thailand!!! Hurray! After many hours on the plane we made it too very hot Thailand. We were welcomed to our room at Sammuck Christian Academy by a very large cockroach and lizard. :) The school is awesome, Darlene is wonderful and the kids are fantastic. James has already been invited to play soccer by the boys. The butterflies here are the size of birds and James is in bird heaven. I'm not sure about phone access yet but I'll let you all know when we get a new cell number. Love you guys.

Movin' on

2007-06-23T17:42:00.000-06:00

Hello all, just a quick update. I am using the FREE internet in the Austraila airport. We are on our way to Thailand today but have 8 hours to kill here in Sydney. It costs $140 each if we leave the airport so we decided to hang here for the day. There is tons of shopping here which is somewhat depressing since my backpack to already filled to overflowing. Things are going well, New Zealand was lovely but both of us are excited for Thailand. Darlene, James' cousin, has arranged a ride from the airport in Thailand to her school where we will hang out for a few days. It should be lots of fun. Well I guess that is all for now...I'll try to post some Thailand pictures in a few days but I'm not sure how much access to internet we will have. Love you guys

Fiji pictures

2007-06-16T18:23:00.000-06:00

We are at the university computer lab where Sharon goes to school and they have a wonderfully fast internet connection so I'm adding more pictures. Here are some Fiji ones. The first is Joe...a local who showed us around, then our little beach hut, a typical sun set and then me trying my best to husk a coconut.

Pictures for you all

2007-06-16T18:16:00.001-06:00

Hey everyone...here are some New Zealand pictures. The first is the four of us on a boat cruise, then our mug shots from a hostel that used to be a prison, then James was very excited that he got to meet the Simpsons, then another picture from our boat cruise in Milford Sound. Miss you all bunches

Hangin' in the moutains

2007-06-11T00:41:00.000-06:00

Hello all. Things are going well in NZ. It's so cold here...like November in Nova Scotia. We have been doing a lot of driving but having a lot fun. There are LOTS of birds here...any birdwatchers dream come true. As for Kerrie and I we enjoy making fun of James and Sharon for how excited they get about the birds. I've taken to calling all birds turkeys. I find it saves time and energy. We have been staying in some neat places...mostly hostels. Most of them are very cozy and quaint. I have had moments when I would like to sleep in a real double bed with James but most places have bunk beds. We are heading to Millford Sound tomorrow there are fiords there...I don't really know what they are but apparently they are pretty. Miss you guys a lot. Love you.

Hello from Kiwi Land

2007-06-08T01:10:00.000-06:00

Here are a few pictures. The first is for Sharon H. who wanted to see us with our packs on. The second is a view from our beach front bure. The third is me testing out my face mask before we went snorkelling. We will try to add a few more pictures as we go. We are now in New Zealand...it's VERY cold here. Beautiful here but it's cold since we are in the middle of winter. We are making jade necklaces tomorrow. We love you all...missing you guys.

Finished in Fiji

2007-06-06T00:14:00.000-06:00

Hello all...Sorry to have taken so long but the internet and phone service in Fiji is not that reliable. We had a great time in Fiji. We snorkeled 3 times and saw some AMAZING fish. No sharks though...thank goodness. We swan a lot, met lots of British people and have very nice tans. The place we stayed at was called Funky Fish restort. It is on the Malolo Island, it was remote and very peaceful. There was never more than a dozen people there. James went fishing without any success but he had fun. We sat in on a Kava ceremony and just so you know Kava makes your tongue numb and makes you dream weird dreams. James and I played the role of fishermen in the ceremony. We head to New Zealand in the morning where we meet up with Sharon and Kerrie. We should have better internet and phone access there. Miss you all. Loves of love. Logan would LOVE Fiji. Pictures to follow soon.

Almost time

2007-05-28T09:17:00.000-06:00

Hello All,

James and I are getting ready to head out on our big journey tomorrow at 1:50pm. Here is a run down of where we will be and when. Fiji from May 31-June 7, then on to New Zealand where we will meet with Sharon and Kerrie from June 7-24. Then it's Thailand until July 24 then finally Africa until October 1. We arrive back in Nova Scotia on October 1 at 9:31pm. Your prayers will be greatly appreciated. We will hopefully be updating our blog fairly regularly and for those of you who haven't joined facebook yet...get on it!! We miss you already.

Blessed are the little children

2007-04-09T10:46:00.000-06:00

So I don't have a huge Sunday School class at SBC...in fact it usually consists of two children. Ade, a very smart 9 year old boy, and Caro, an equally smart 10 year old girl. Normally there are two teachers that do the lesson but this past weekend I was on my own with these two geniuses. We don't really follow a curriculum so we can focus on whatever we feel the kids need. I decided to be very original and discuss the Easter story :) I explained to them that I wanted to make sure that really understood why the crucifixion and resurrection are important. Well, let me tell you I was blown away by these kids...we discussed why Jesus had the power to take our sins, we talked about the end times and the creation of the world. We talked about what heaven and hell will be like. These kids had so many questions that we ran out of time...wow...I was exhausted and exhilarated by the end of our time together. I love how children are never afraid to ask questions or say "that does not make sense to me" and then proceed to question something until it does make sense. They tackle the hard stuff...they want to know. Please pray for Ade and Caro they are special children who have amazing potential to serve the Lord.

Birds in the City Assignment #1

2007-03-24T21:22:00.000-06:00

Okay so I happen to think my husband is the best at everything...I realize that this is a bias opinion but whatever. A couple of the many things I think he rocks at are photography and writing. I really want him to take tons of pictures while we are travelling and take notes of things we see and write stories of things we experience. In order to give him practice I decided to give him a local photo/writing assignment every week. His first assignment was to take a picture of a bird that was not a chickadee and write a piece, 50-100 words, about the photo. I can't gurantee that I will post all of his work but I was totally in love with the first piece I just had to share it. I hope you all enjoy Assignment #1.

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It’s hard to think we would miss Rock Pigeons if they were gone. Their unremarkable personalities and understated plumage camouflaged in the dusty concrete tones of the city. Walking under the CN overpass on Argyll, carcasses are scattered in all stages of decomposition - externalities of our urban agenda. But looking up, females are warming eggs on cold concrete ledges. Males hover in air currents above. A train passes, dozens take flight and their bodies silhouette against the afternoon sky. As they turn in unison, light catches and highlights their undersides. The pollution fades, the traffic quiets and the colour of the city changes.

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huh

2007-02-24T20:05:00.000-07:00

Yes I still blog...I realize that I haven't kept up with the whole "I'm going to post once a week thing"....blah, blah. I am extremely jetlagged at the moment so please forgive my random train of thought. I HATE Air Canada. In the past week we have encountered not 1...not 2 but THREE mechanical failures in an Air Canada plane which resulted in too many to count delays and 2 cancelled flights. We were put in a hotel that was not informed we were coming and wouldn't take our food vouchers. We encountered broken TV sets on the planes...rude flight attendents and 2 very nasty children that were in great need of a spanking (which I was very tempted to do myself). We had a wonderful and hectic time in Nova Scotia but I must say Air Canada certainly put a damper on the beginning and end of it. I intended to write a strongly worded letter to Air Canada and I will be requesting free stuff...and not free air miles because I don't want to ever get on an Air Crappy plane again...I think I want new luggage...I'm going to ask for new luggage. :) Here are a couple of pictures from our wonderful trip.

Newsboys

2007-01-29T10:10:00.000-07:00

Wow, who knew that the Newsboys had so much energy. Just before Christmas our friend Kim asked if we would be interested in going to a Newsboys concert with her and her husband Derek. I said sure thinking that it would be cool seeing a band from when I was a teen. I'm thinking that these guys have got to be old by now and that they have mellowed...oh boy was I wrong. While waiting for the doors to open I overheard people talking about how "seeker-friendly" the Newsboys were...and I thought oh great what have I got myself into.

The concert took a bizarre turn at the beginning because the Newboys were delayed in arriving in Edmonton; so they had to add stuff to the concert to allow time for them to get to the auditorium. It opened with some worship lead by Mark Roberts...very talented songwriter then a guy named Bob Lentz spoke...wow...there was nothing seeker friendly or wishy-washy about him. He blasted the audience with the clearest salvation message I've heard in years and challenged those of us who are Christians to get out of comfort zones and share Christ.

The concert then went to Geoff Moore who I think was popular in the 90s as well. He delievered a powerful set of music. He then talked about getting involved with Compassion Canada. He is very invovled with the organization and had been promoting adoptions all weekend (this concert was part of a weekend long conference called Breakforth) and 1000 children in third world countries have been adopted with past weekend. Not only will their physical needs be met now but they will be taught in christian schools and go to evangelical churches. Awesome.

Okay by this point in the evening the Newsboys were almost at the auditorium but would need time to set up so they gave us a 30 minute break. So after 45 minutes the Newsboys took the stage. It was AWESOME. They were loud, they were energetic and they love Jesus. Who knew that a bunch of 40 year olds could make praising God so much fun. The lead singer also talked about giving your life to Christ does not mean being good, it's all about KNOWING God as your Saviour and then getting out in the world and sharing the good news.

I was so impressed with the whole evening. I love how God used the travel delay to allow Bob Lentz to share such an amazing message. I am so glad that I agreed to go to the concert back in December. I love what I thought was going to be a blast from my past was a real challenge from God in my life. I love that 40 year old men who wear make-up made me realize that serving Jesus can be a ton fun when we let it. God is awesome people...go tell someone today.

Viva Las Vegas...in Edmonton

2007-01-28T00:18:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry Cheryl that I am a little behind in my weekly posting. It's not because I forgot it's just that my life is really boring right now. I don't have much to post about; so I had to wait until something interesting happened. Tonight we had a poker/games night at our house. We had a bunch of people over and had a poker tournament downstairs(Mafiz cleaned up) and a "Settlers of Katan" game upstairs (Kim is still the Queen). It was great to hang out with a bunch of people (Christy and Miro, Andrea and Riaan, Doug, Mafiz, Kim and Derek, Barb and Dwayne, Tim and Celia)...the house was crowded but it was great. Christy, Dwayne and I even manage to sneak in a game of Dutch Blitz. What a great ending to a hectic and boring week. Thanks everyone for coming and hanging out. Next adventure will be Newsboys concert tomorrow night...

Comings and Going

2007-01-15T07:45:00.000-07:00

Well my dreams of blogging a lot at Christmas fell through...oh well. And I come back to find that everyone is either gone (Lynds, Ash, Taye) or moved (Shan and Kim). So now I am updated as to where everyone is or isn't. My goal this year is to blog once a week. I need to get into the habit so that when James and I start travelling I'll keep up with this blog.

James and I spent 3 hours last night discussing our travel plans and this is what we have come up with:
1. we don't want to travel for 8 months.
2. fewer places is better

So with that in mind we had a tentitive plan for travelling. Leave Halifax at the beginning of June...spent a couple of weeks in Hawaii, then fly to New Zealand to spend a couple of weeks with Sharon C. Then fly to Thailand where we would have 6 weeks to investigate South east Asia and then finally fly to Kenya where we will spend 6 weeks in Africa. We will then return home at the end of September. We decided to cut out Central and South America altogether because it adds a lot time and money onto this trip and because it is fairly cheap to get there from Nova Scotia at a later time. So tomorrow we are heading to the travel agent to book our tickets...hurray.

In other news...oh wait...I don't have other news. :) Classes are back in now so I don't have a life anymore. Okay I'll talk to you all next week.

Finally

2006-12-19T11:49:00.000-07:00

Well I guess I am back. What a semester...I think by far it was the worst one yet. But thanks to all of your prayers I have, as of 11am today, finished another term. Thank you all for praying for me while I was writing my papers, I seem to have one emotional breakdown per semester and I definitely had on during all those 10 pagers. Lots has happened over that last little while.James finished his masters program, Laura came to visit with Daniel, James had his final surgery and of course we have been getting ready for our first Christmas not with our Nova Scotia families. We are sad but excited just to hang out and relax in the SNOW COVERED city.
The most recent of new is my friend Julie will be leaving Edmonton to pursue her career in Speech Pathology. The other night she had her grad banquet and I was honoured along with our other friend Adele to be invited. We had a GREAT time hanging out, laughing, etc ;) I guess that is all I can think of to say right now. But now that I will have some free time you guys can count of more posts, maybe I'll even get to do some book reviews.

Please

2006-11-21T21:25:00.000-07:00

Hello All,
I do realize that I haven't been a good blogger and for the moment I am not really going to give an update. I really am just asking for prayer. I do realize that my life is wonderful and I am truly blessed with many things but that does not change the fact that I have 2 ten page papers due Friday and neither one are done or even started for that matter. I was sick in bed for over a week and I am SO far behind I could just cry. So please if you can spare a moment please pray that God will give me clarity and the ability to ramble about 17th century print culture and the Victorian Class structure. Thank you all. I promise to update a lot over Christmas.

Sorry it's been so long

2006-11-03T09:03:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, I guess it's been awhile since my last entry. As always I have the lame excuse that I've been busy. School and work have once again taken over my days and made time slip by far too quickly. Since my last post Logan has had his seventeenth birthday.

I cannot believe that he is practically an adult...wow...where did the time go. I'm so proud of my surfer dude nephew. Love you Logan. Lisa has also managed to squeeze in another birthday.

Also, as of yesterday James is offical done his Master program. He presented and defended his thesis on October 26. He did a few revisions to fix it up and yesterday he submitted his final copy to the graduate studies offical. The lady at the office congratulated him and told him he was offically done (he even got a fancy pen). Hurray.

Well, I guess that is all that's been going on. We are now looking forward to Laura and Daniel's visit on the 19th. By the way I will try my best to actually post something about 3 John today. Somebody yell at me if I don't. I'm so bad at this. I hope everyone is well.

It's me Mams birthday

2006-10-19T08:15:00.000-06:00

On this day not that long ago my sweet grandmother gave birth to my sweet mother. Happy Birthday Mama. Have a great day. I hope you like your present.

Love you
t.

As days go by

2006-10-17T18:23:00.000-06:00

I don't even know how it got to be the 17th of October. Life is beyond busy right now and I don't really like it. I apologize to all of you who have emailed and I haven't responded yet. Cheryl, thank you so much for the picture...it made my day. Shannon, I will respond soon...I love the updates...they make me realize that there is more to this life.
Since the purpose of a blog is to vent, journal, criticize, correspond,etc., I am going to let you all know that I am and have been grumpy for days upon end. It all started last Saturday when I was supposed to have a relaxing day off and then spend an evening with a bunch of my girlfriends. I was told last minute that I had to attend a play for one of my classes in the evening which I must write a 3 page report on...There goes my girls night out. Then I got called into work...There goes my day off. No problem...right?! Work was fine I managed to get through it. Then I went to the play.........words cannot describe what I experienced. Stupid and pointless are just not harsh enough. A complete and utter waste of time and let me just tell you, I am pretty artsy so for me to think a play is stupid I'm sure most of you would have walked out after 5 seconds. I had to sit through 90 minutes of a grown man acting like a crow (I'm totally serious). Then came Sunday...oh dear...I don't even want to go there again. Let's just say I'll be contacting Anne to find out what time their morning service is. Then on Monday morning one of my professors tried to convince our class that "common sense" does not really exist...COME ON PEOPLE, WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO. Normally I can just laugh all of this stuff off and chalk it up to "those academics" but I'm coming to the end of my rope with this stuff. I was somewhat encouraged when, on Monday, we discussed the "Crow Play" in class and my teacher apologized for making us go...she didn't realize that it would be so dumb. She also gave us an assignment to make a list of things we are grateful for (this is a drama class)...so I am thankful for my drama teacher. I am grateful that she restored my faith in mankind (just a bit). Well, that is what I have been up to. I just go to school and work (a lot). James' mom and dad were very nice and put some money in our bank account so that we could go out to eat and go to a movie. It was great to get out and have fun. Thanks Lana and John. I think that is my life right now. Also some breaking news...James and I are not coming home for Christmas this year...boohoo. It was just far too expensive so courtesy of Mom and Dad and their air miles we will be home Feb 17 for a week. It will be sad not to be home for Christmas but at least in February we will actually have time to visit with everyone. Okay I'm tired of typing. Anne and Charmin I apologize for any typos but I just don't have it in me to proofread.

Pretend it is October 7th

2006-10-17T18:18:00.000-06:00

So I am a little behind with my blogging...Although I did not forget my dear brother's birthday I feel bad that I didn't get a chance to post a Happy Birthday blog for him on the 7th. So here it is Scott. I hope you have a fabulous birthday. Love ya.

So I freaked out just a bit

2006-10-06T15:56:00.000-06:00

As most of you know I am almost always signed into MSN but am rarely around to chat on it, I usually get any messages sent my way before I go to bed. Last night I headed to bed around 11pm and noticed that Anne has sent me a message. My first thought was that maybe she wants to got shopping at "Once upon a Child". But no...all it says is..."u there? I'm so sad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
My heart starts to pound and I don't know what to do. She has signed off so I cannot reply to this. I start to write her an email and then I think...what if something really serious has happened and she needs a support system right now. Of course I jump to conclusions and think that Trevor and Leah have both killed or injured in a freak accident or something has happened to family in Nova Scotia. So I take a deep breath and resolve to be strong and call Anne regardless of the late hour. At 11:15pm I call Anne...Trevor answers the phone...I am somewhat relieved. "Anne are you okay?" I ask. "I'm fine, I'm just talking quiet so I don't wake Leah"...I am feeling even better now, Trevor and the baby are fine. I ask again if she is okay and she says that she is. "What can I do for ya?" she asks. "I'm calling about the MSN message you sent me" I say, feeling a bit stupid at this point. "What MSN message?" I start to giggle. "The one you sent about being sad" I replied. Anne is also laughing at this point. "I have not idea what you are talking about but you have made my night" was Anne's reply. It turns out that they have some company who likes to use Anne's MSN. :) Besides feeling like a complete idiot I had a good laugh after I hung up the phone. I have also resolved to get the facts before I freak out. By the way Anne we really do need to go to Once upon a Child soon.

Happy Birthday to Emma

2006-10-04T07:56:00.000-06:00

I can't believe that Emma is 6 years old today...wow...Happy Birthday dear Emma. I''ll call you later today. I love you.

Happy Birthday Reggie

2006-10-02T08:50:00.000-06:00

October is a month full of birthday celebrations for me. Today is the first of them. Dearest Reggie...I hope you have a wonderful day. I wish I could be with you. I love you.

Doesn't he look great!

I'm not good at this

2006-10-01T20:18:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone, I hope everything is well in the blogging world. I've been a bit busy with school and I just got a job so I don't have tons of spare time. But I've been checking in from time to time. Can anyone give me advice on my links? I don't know why there is a space before and after Anne's link and Charmin's link is supposed to be there too...but as you can see it is not. What am I doing wrong?

I'm off to have cake and ice cream with James...I'll post more later.

My links are invisible

2006-09-25T23:16:00.000-06:00

I know it looks like there aren't any links except for Christy but they are there, you just can't see them. If you click on the white space underneath Christy then you will go to a new blog.

Lisa my dearest Lisa

2006-09-24T12:38:00.000-06:00

Thanks so much for calling me last night. You are so crazy...good luck rolling all of your change. I love this picture of us. Love ya.

Livin la Vida Loca

2006-09-18T19:10:00.000-06:00

I want to be back in Nova Scotia having fun!with my friends!! But alas I am back in the evil world of academia. Classes that I don't care about (except Drama...oh the fun I have in that class), always having an assignment hanging over my head and worst of all pompous professors. GROAN. I feel as though that being on campus makes me more stupid. For example: the first day of classes I see a tent set up and they are giving out free student planners...hurray, I think to myself and I saunter over in order to get one and save myself a few bucks. The young ,almost prepubescent, man says to me, "What faculty?". I hear "Are you faculty?" I smile and say no. He looks at me with a look that informs me I have indeed said something stupid/wrong. He bravely tries again..."What faculty?" (His voice cracks this time). Then I started to giggle because I realize my mistake and it is not just a quick giggle, oh no, it's one of those nervous over the top giggles. I attempt to pull myself together and between gasps and giggles I manage to say, probably far too loud, "ENGLISH, I'm an English Major...Okay?". I think next time I will just buy my own stupid planner. I cannot wait to graduate from university so that my common sense will return...I hope...maybe I'm too far gone already. Good night everyone. And for those of you out there who are rolling their eyes because I, a member of the English faculty, have no idea how to use puncuation and grammar...go ahead. I'm too tired to care.

My new jacket

2006-09-12T19:42:00.000-06:00

My friend Leanne told me before I went to Nova Scotia that she had gotten my birthday present but it was so awesome that I had to wait until I back to Edmonton to get it. Well boys and girls she was right...it is amazing...a Cheri Milaney jacket!!!! Wow!!!! I am including a picture but it doesn't even begin to do it justice! I think it is the nicest piece of clothing I have ever owned!! THANK YOU LEANNE.

oops

2006-09-12T10:59:00.000-06:00

So my attempt to add a link was unsuccessful! Just type in www.kylasandulak.com and click on the "songs" tab to find her music.

Kyla Sandulak

2006-09-12T10:46:00.000-06:00

In the summer I took a drama class and let me say I had a wonderful time. It was a great class, a great professor and a great group of people. I met a lot of fun and interesting people. One girl that I met, Kyla, I quickly found out had an amazing singing voice. She told me that she sings a lot around Edmonton and has released a CD of original music, she also told me about her website. This brings me to the point of this blog, you all have to check out her music. There are 3 songs on website that you can listen to. She is so amazing.
I hope you enjoy.

Tea Party

2006-09-11T22:04:00.000-06:00

I know I have been a bad blogger lately but I have just started back to class and I'm a little overwhelmed with life at the moment. I also got hit hard this past weekend with the stomach flu/food poisoning. But I must report about the lovely visit with Anne and her sweet baby, Leah. If every baby was like Leah I would have a hundred. Never in all of my life have a seen such a pleasant, agreeable child. Anne is definitely doing something right. It was so nice to talk with Anne and catch up a bit with her. Anne, we really need to do that more often. Anyway, here are a few pictures from our visit.

She'll probably kill me but...

2006-09-07T09:36:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was my friend Shannon's birthday and it made me stop and ponder our 25 year friendship. We've have had some ups and downs but have remained close over the years. We have battled several fashion trends, hair mishaps, heartbreaks and many, many laughs together. When I was little I didn't realize how blessed I was to have such a friend, I swear at times we were able to read each others minds. Even now that we are "all growd up" and are at very different stages of our lives we are connected by our heart strings. It feels good to know that regardless how often or not we talk when we see each other face to face we can pick up where we left off. It's amazing how two people as different as we are from each other can be kinred spirits. I am blessed to know her. I thank God for my friend, for the memories that we have made and for the ones we will make. Happy Birthday Shan. Love you always.

Okay Christy enough is enough!!

2006-09-05T10:51:00.000-06:00

This picture is of my long lost sister in law, her name is Christy Lynn (Koonts) Benson. It has been some time since her last blog and I am very concerned for her safety. If you have any information concerning her whereabouts please post a comment. Christy if you are out there somewhere put a blog up!!!!!!!!!!!

Proud of my dad

2006-09-03T22:30:00.000-06:00

For those of you who know my dad you are probably aware of the fact that he had a crappy childhood and he worked at a job he hated for over 30 years. So it really did my heart good while I was home because I got to see him doing things that he really loves. I think it's great to see how much he enjoys running "The Driftwood" even when the Pepsi guy doesn't show up. He treated Leanne and I to a boat tour of Aylesford lake and I got to cruise around on his motorcycle with him. I love how my dad knows how to appreciate the small in things in life. And I am so happy that he has a chance to enjoy things that he chooses.

On my birthday

2006-09-02T16:28:00.000-06:00

So I have a lot of catching up to do. I thought I would start with my birthday that seems like forever ago. I LOVE birthdays, I always have so much fun and James spoils me too. We started out with a healthy breakfast of grease.

Then we when to the waterpark with Amanda, Arthur and Caius and had SO much fun and had more grease to eat.

Then before I hopped a plane to Nova Scotia James took me to Koutouki's Greek Restaurant. So we ended up having grease 3 times :)...get it? Grease or Greece...hahaha...I crack myself up. I really need to get out more.

Anyway, I had a wonderful birthday. It was fun to hang out and be silly with friends. I hope you enjoy the pictures and I promise to post NS pictures soon too.

I'm home

2006-09-01T08:33:00.000-06:00

Hey Everyone, I'm back to blogging. I had such a wonderful time while I was in Nova Scotia. I have so many pictures to share with you but I promise not to overload you. It was nice to get off the plane last night and see James' face smiling! It is good to be back in Edmonton. It is so true that your home is where your heart is and my heart is with James. Don't worry though mom because I am a Maritimer through and through. Enjoy my pics.

Want to have some fun

2006-08-24T08:55:00.001-06:00

Hello Blogger friends,

Leanne and I are planning to have a bon fire Friday night in Harbourville just behind the restaurant around 7pm. You are all welcome to come, even if you don't post blogs and are just a reader of my blog you are more than welcome to come. I would love to see you all. Man, woman and child are all welcome to come. Bring your own treats if you want any.

2006-08-24T08:32:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone,
It has come to my attention that I have been missed in the blogging world. I am happily in Nova Scotia with my friend Leanne. We are having a great time. We have got to the city, Lisa's cottage, Cape Split and we have eaten sooo much. Here are a few pictures to keep a certain sister-in-law happy. I will give a full report soon. By the way, to all of you Nova Scotia bloggers are you up for a tea party next week? Let me know.

Birthday Girl

2006-08-19T22:32:00.000-06:00

So I turned 30 today. I had a wonderful day!!! I've got lots of pictures to share but at the moment I need to get to the airport so I can take the redeye to Nova Scotia. I'm excited but I am very sad to be leaving James for so long. I am counting on all you Bluenosers to help me forget my sorrows. See most of you soon. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

Lyndsie is so right

2006-08-18T11:15:00.000-06:00

I decided to help a friend out and bake for her bake sale. I was rewared by burning my arm on the oven door. The oven door had it in for as it seemed to close before I got my arm out. I think next time I will just give a lump of cookie dough that someone else can bake. Poor me. Does anyone feel sorry for me?

Free At Last

2006-08-17T22:23:00.000-06:00

Well, I am finally finished my summer session courses and I am truly thankful. I cannot believe that this coming school year is my last. In April I will finally get my degree and be free from the world of academia...at least until I go back to get my Education degree. I wish I had a funny antedote to tell about my final exam but there really isn't one. I left studying for my exam until the last minute as usual, crammed my head full of information that I will never use (It was a history of design exam) and then walked in the room and wrote for 2 hours. I managed to fill an exam booklet with information that is only good for trivial pursuit. But I am finished and have added another six hours of credits to my degree. Hurray for me. Now that I am done I have 2 1/2 weeks off to enjoy myself. I can't wait to bask in the sea salt air of Turner's Brook, stuff my face full of seafood and most importantly see my friends and family. But FIRST I must first turn 30...although I am not excited to be entering a new decade I am excited to be spending the day at the West Edmonton Mall waterpark. I wish Taye and Bronson were here to go with me. Bronson I will make James go down that big red one for you :) Well, since this post has very little point I will sign off. Good night all.

Daniel John (aka Chirp)

2006-08-15T17:38:00.000-06:00

I thought I would post a new picture of Laura and David's new little guy. From what I hear he is a great little guy. I am looking forward to meeting him next week.

It's a small world thanks to Kelly

2006-08-14T21:44:00.000-06:00

I was talking to my friend Amy Hannam tonight, she is from Nova Scotia, and I discovered what a small world this really is. Amy told me that she has been reading my blogs lately and checking out some of the links on my page. She was delighted to find that there was a familar face amongst my links. She recognized Kelly's shining smile. Amy moonlights at the Staples Copy Centre where she told me she encountered a delightful woman who use to print menus at Staples. She told me that she just knew Kelly was a Christain. We both agreed that Kelly is a blessing to know.

Me and my puppy

2006-08-13T19:48:00.000-06:00

Since I don't have kids I am still in love with my dog. She may be slobbery and smelly but she is so cute and has a ton of personality. She jumped on the coach for some lovin' the other night.

Sunday musings

2006-08-13T16:11:00.000-06:00

Everyone one knows that it isn't nice to judge others. Despite how we were raised most of us eventually learn that judging others only makes us bitter and cynical; so why do we do it? In the Bible it tells us DO NOT judge and to leave the judgment up to God, but I like to add a clause to this command. It usually takes the form of "I just need to vent..." or "If they weren't so...I wouldn't say this, but..." or "What were they thinking..." or "It's not what I'm used to...". I have been very guilty of this since I moved to Edmonton. Most of my Christian life I have attended Weston and if not at Weston I was at NBBI. Two places that I would say are theologically sound (NBBI is a bit weird but that is a topic for a different post). I have been blessed to have been brought up in such an environment. However, I am no longer in that environment. I am in the Wild, yet conservative, Western province of Alberta. I have had a chip on my spiritual shoulder since I got here. Right from the beginning I have had it in for churches out here. When I started attending Strathcona Baptist I fell in love with the people, they are nice and friendly and people who are interested in what I am interested in. But I have never given the church a chance. I will admit, there are a number of things that I do not agree with. But is it all bad? Is my failure to grow as a Christian out here the churches fault or mine? I really don't know. I don't feel like I get meaty sermons anymore but does that mean there isn't anything I can learn? Has my judgmental attitude been the problem? I was struck today in the sermon by how judgmental I have been lately. Before James and I even made it through the doors I had thrown out a negative comment on how long the worship part of the service was. My attitude only soured more when I found out we were having a guest speaker, a woman. But I was soon captivated by what she was saying. What really stood out to me today was the passion in which this woman spoke. Her voice cracked as she read of God's holiness in Psalm 99. I don't remember the last time I felt like that while reading the Bible. She did not deliver a bland sermon at all, it was one of stable conviction. She spoke about how God is a God of love but He is also a God of justice, one who will punish when necessary. I found and still find myself humbled because my judgmental attitude is worth punishing. By the end of the service I had the verse "All things work together for good to those who love God" (paraphrased by me, I don't have the greatest memory). I may not be 100% satisfied in my church but perhaps God is teaching me how to work for my spiritual growth. And if I am open to His teaching I can still learn things out here. Growth is not always going to be handed to me an a silver platter. James and I are preparing to travel for a number of months, perhaps missing church on a regular basis. I need to start learning how to grow on my own. I need to be thankful for what God has given to me out here, friends who will drop everything to pray for me, an opportunity to teach Sunday School, experiencing new Christians who are SO excited to be saved by grace. I still crave sermons Horton-style but thanks to Charmin's link I can get Pastor Horton 3 times a week (Thank you Charmin). Please pray for me as God teaches me to be motivated to work for what I want and that I will learn to love my neighbor as myself. (Sorry this is so long, I have lots of musings today).

Happy Birthday my sweet, wonderful niece

2006-08-12T09:31:00.000-06:00

Taye, I wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday! I cannot believe that you are 14 today! I can't wait to get home and celebrate with you and give you your present (gee I wonder what it could be...:p) I will call you later today. I'm so glad that you are back from camp, I can't wait to hear all about it and California too. Love you so much!!

Quick, easy and refreshing summer dessert

2006-08-11T10:53:00.000-06:00

Hey Shannon, here is the recipe I was telling you about. It takes less than a half an hour to make from start to table. Best of all you don't have to use the oven, so it's a perfect summer treat. If you are on a diet there is no need to read any further...to is sooooo bad for you. It does have fruit in it so maybe you could justify it even if you are cutting back.

2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 c margarine melted
1/2 c margarine
2 cups confectioners' sugar (I used a bit less and it was still very sweet)
2 eggs
4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 bananas (should be firm)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 can crushed pineapple
1 80z tub of Cool Whip

Combine crumbs and melted margarine and press into bottom of 9 by 13 dish.

In medium saucepan combine margarine, sugar, eggs, corn starch and vanilla. On medium heat bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer for 8-10 mins. (If you have hot stove top maybe less, I only had to simmer for about 5 mins) Put in fridge to cool, pour over crust.

Coin bananas and dip in lemon juice to prevent them from going brown, spread them over dessert. Drain pineapple and spread over bananas. Spread cool whip over pineapple. Put in fridge until ready to serve.

Sorry I don't have a picture. It goes great with a cup of hot tea for any of you tea drinkers out there. Enjoy.

Bored

2006-08-09T21:53:00.000-06:00

I am SO tired! I have nothing to say because my mind has self-destructed. I really just feel like posting some pictures, so here are a few from my New York trip. It was tons of fun.

Still here

2006-08-09T12:48:00.000-06:00

No I have not gone anywhere! I apologize for not blogging very much lately but I am in my last week of class so I've been busy. I have a presentation and an article review due tomorrow and next week I have a group presentation and a final exam. But by next Thursday night by 8pm I will be free from school. Hurray and PTL. I will then have 2 1/2 weeks off before fall classes start. I will do my best to blog a bit but I probably won't be around a lot until next week.

Humbled and in need of help

2006-08-07T18:54:00.000-06:00

I need help you guys. I was a good Proverbs Lady today and read chapter seven but I must admit I had troubles applying it to my own life. I humbly admit that I am out of practice with my devotions. Please do not think that I am stupid because I did catch that prostitution is wrong and being lead astray is wrong but I feel like there is more to this chapter than the obvious...help please!

Nova Scotia in 13 days

2006-08-07T16:54:00.000-06:00

I cannot wait to get home to Nova Scotia! I feel so excited to see all of my new blogging buddies face to face. I can't wait to see the ocean, to smell salt air. I can't wait to sit down and chat with old Christian friends. I can't wait to laugh until my cheeks hurt over something that isn't funny with Shannon. I can't wait to go to church at Weston. I can't wait to see my family. I can't wait to show off Nova Scotia with my friend Leanne, who has never been east before. Less than 2 weeks.

This is my friend Leanne,

Thank you Anne

2006-08-06T16:54:00.000-06:00

I got the cutiest dress from Good Will (I checked Fairweather Lynds...no luck) and I found a navy polka dot dress to go with my new red shoes. I did a little altering and presto...a very cute outfit. (I even found a little red clutch). I don't have a picture but I wanted everyone to know that Anne is now my fashion guru.

Heritage Festival

2006-08-06T16:40:00.000-06:00

Hello Everyone, I'm sorry to have taken a break from blogging but James and I went to Heritage Days yesterday. It is a festival that celebrates different cultures around the world. There are tons of tents set up and each tent is fill with a countries food and cultural products (clothes, hats, etc.) They also have shows throughout the day on different stages. James and I saw African dancing and singing, Aboriginal dancing, Pakistani dancing, a Japanese dragon dance and LOTS of different food (Serbian, Hawaiian, Croatian, etc). It was so cool because a lot of Edmontonians that have don't have Canadian heritage came dressed in their native dress...so cool. Lots of kimonos and saris. It was so beautiful. It was so fun just to hang out together for the day.

Can't wait to get to Nova Scotia...2 weeks from today.

Taye's birthday present?

2006-08-04T18:24:00.000-06:00

Hey Taye,
This is the bag I got, if you would rather I got the shoes I can take this back. I think it is so funny that we both bought red bags...

Is this the right bag Lisa?

2006-08-03T15:22:00.000-06:00

Taye, let me know if this is the right bag. I took a picture of the inside too because I thought it was cool.

Clean apartment and new shoes

2006-08-02T17:34:00.000-06:00

So I spent my afternoon cleaning and I must say that I am pleased. James and I have a cat and a dog that shed copious amounts of hair. It is so gross and I don't always have time to vacuum. But today I did it. But I think the most satisfying job was the bathroom. I have no idea why but I love cleaning the bathroom. Now I have a sparkling sink.

I am also posting a picture of my new shoes for Taylor. We share a shoe addiction. They are sooooo awesome.

Daniel

2006-08-02T15:16:00.000-06:00

I forgot to post a picture of my new nephew. Daniel John (aka Chirp) was born July 16. Laura says that he is sleeping well and is a good baby.

This one's for Christy

2006-08-01T16:03:00.000-06:00

I love this picture of Emma and Maelynn. I thought I would post it for you Christy. Are they not the cutest things.

Links and my thanks

2006-08-01T15:54:00.000-06:00

I have finally figured out how to add the links, thank you Christy and Shannon for the help. I have added Christy, Shan, Kim, Amy and Taye to my links; if any of you do not want to be up there I will take you off. Just let me know.

Can I just say thank you to all of you for your blogs. My life is so far removed from anything Christian that it is so nice to be in contact with women my age who are spiritually sound. I'm not trying to exalt you guys or anything but I wanted you to know that it is a blessing to hear about verses, quotes or moments that challange you and help you grow. I have very little Christian influence in my life right now and I am starting to feel it's effects. Please pray that I will have the endurance and motivation to read my Bible and pray so I will stay spiritually strong.

Baking in a Modern World

2006-07-31T17:25:00.000-06:00

I know it isn't very modern of me to say, but I love doing housewifey things. I like cleaning and organizing and cooking. The problem is that I am living a very modern lifestyle. James and I are usually up and at 'em by 7am and then either bike or take the bus to school. I then spend the next several hours in class, come home walk the dog, do homework, whip up a quick supper and then park my ever growing butt in front of the TV. I am so tired out from school that the thought of cleaning, baking or even making a decent meal makes me feel yucky. I honestly don't know how women work and have kids. I would lose my mind. It is very difficult to take a step back from my self-centred life in a world that encourages me to be on the go ALL the time. But I did it today--I took several steps back. I came home from school and instead of taking a nap or doing homework I baked. I made mini lemon tarts and banana bread (Sorry dorey girls, I don't have a picture). I also am planning on cooking a Cornish hen for supper with a spinach salad and perogies. I love it!! I can't guarantee that I will get the vacuuming done but there is always tomorrow...

2006-07-31T16:57:00.000-06:00

Okay, I'm trying this picture thing one more time...This is a picture of our new tree that we got. Sharon (James' sister) sent James a Home Depot gift certificate for his birthday and this is what we got. Isn't it pretty? PLease tell me this worked.

Small World

2006-07-27T16:26:00.000-06:00

I am so excited about this blogging thing. Christy has now started and I found Kim Wade's blog too...how exciting. I love that getting information about peoples lives and staying in touch is so easy this way. I have a midterm tonight, I hate exams. Oh well, it will all be over by 930pm.
The only problem I have with this blogging is that my life is boring and I don't have anything to report. James is in school, I'm in school...WOW...isn't that exciting.
I am excited about going to Nova Scotia in August. I can't wait to see everyone and breathe the ocean air. Alberta is beautiful and I love it here but it does not even come close to measuring up to NS.
Well, I should be off. Take care. Can someone please tell me how to put pictures on here. It tells my that my pictures are too big...how do I make them smaller...

Another day

2006-07-20T22:24:00.000-06:00

Okay, this is how my day started. I overslept so I had to drive to class and pay $7.50 for 3 hours of parking...what a rip off. My class was really fun, it's an oral communications class and today we practiced reading short stories in front of the class. I read "A Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin. Such a great story, you should read it...just google the title and it will come up. It's a quick read. I then came home and wrote an article review within 30 minutes; I smell a B- coming on. I somehow managed to be late again thus having to drive to school and pay for parking AGAIN. I decided to pass in the article review and then skip class. Who really cares about the history of design anyway. I ended up at the movies and watched "The Devil Wears Prada". Cute but not Oscar worthy. It you like before and after makeover stories then you will like this movie. The swearing and smut, although slightly present, are not excessive. Now I am home in my very stuffy house blogging...which still seems weird. One of you Dorey girls will have to show me how to add links to other blogs to the side of my page. Well, that's all I have to say. Good night and good luck.

The Duke of Kentville

2006-07-16T15:28:00.000-06:00

Hello Everyone,

I thought I would get use to blogging before James and I start travelling next year. Also, because I am such a bad emailer and phone caller this is a good way for you all to check in.

My biggest news today is that I am an aunt again. Laura gave birth to a very large 8 pounder today. Daniel John was born this morning at 6:50am Atlantic time. Laura is doing great, although somewhat hoarse from screaming...hehe. Daniel is on an IV because his chest is a bit congested but I am assured that there are no serious problems. Mom and baby should be going home on Tuesday. Hurray. I will get to see him for the first time in August. James will probably get home sometime in October to see his first nephew.