Beloved One

Look at all the color and sweetness and beauty in this picture!  This is my very beautiful and precious sister and today we celebrated her birthday.  She's holding a mug I gave her that says "do all things with love".  

Such a very fitting motto for her as she is so very full of love and kindness. And I have been the recipient of that love for over 54 years!  She was on the scene before me and she welcomed the "german baby" she had ordered with adoration and love which has never stopped.

But this isn't about me haha!  

I'm just viewing this birthday through the lens of one of those who has been deeply touched by the deep well and amazing masterpiece that is my sister.  

This is about Elsie and the precious gift that she is to all of our lives. 

It was just a little group that gathered on her back patio on a warm June evening to celebrate her one wild and precious life, but it was sweet and lovely and full of delicious things and beautiful music. 

It's hard to know where to begin when describing this sister of mine.  

Music flows from her finger tips and songs from her heart,

Color swirls around her, 

she is like her Father who makes all things beautiful

her clothing is her artistry,

unique and colourful paintings she creates with love

 flowers are her language.

Generous and kind

Thoughtful and passionate

Fierce and devoted

Noble and true. 

She's my sister and I'm glad I get to share life with her.

Happy, Happy Birthday Dear Noble One! 

Legacy

Some evenings feel just perfectly wonderful. 

This was one of those evenings.

A coming together of generations of family, an evening of remembering times gone by and of making history and the living out of legacy. Enjoying the moment, and the presence of those who have walked many miles together.

There is brokenness and there are missing pieces, but we live in a beautiful reality that allows us to experience a deep and abiding joy in spite of and even in the midst of painful circumstances.

Because this is not the end of the story.

We are all overcoming difficult things but miraculously we are all still alive and are more than conquerors, because Jesus is alive and well inside of each one of us.

Our bodies may be wasting away but our spirits are strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.  

So glad we could share a meal on this gorgeous sun kissed evening.

Gentle breezes cooled us and we celebrated the simple pleasures of togetherness around a picnic style supper. 

First cousins and second cousins sharing the ever delicious dessert of watermelon. Unfortunately I haven't perfected the art of creating roll kuchen to round out the meal but we had nachos and pizza instead as this was a meal that just sort of happened on short notice.

Precious moments with very precious people.

And puppies...that have also grown old along with us.

Non book Club

I'm still meeting with this beautiful group of women - my former "book club" which has now morphed into more of a prophetic, prayer, praise club.

Or more aptly, we should perhaps call ourselves the Hot Flash Gals... as we take turns in that department.  Perhaps it's just the fire of God making it's way around the circle, landing inside of us instead of on our heads.  When Bomi gave me this bottle as a thank you gift, I was happy to share it with my ladies as it seemed quite appropriate on so many levels.  

Here's one of our lovelies burning up while Donna beside her is wearing a fuzzy warm sweater due to the cool rainy evening.  We started off outside, but before long I was handing out blankets and then the rain came along with a double rainbow.  We took that as a good sign and headed indoors to pray for more miracles.  

Bomi

Sometimes, from out of the blue, the Lord drops beautiful gifts into our lives.

My sweet friend Bomi texted that she was camping nearby and would love to come by and see me.  She was part of the staff of my Word By Heart school in Kona over two years ago and the only other Canadian in our group.

She's vivacious, bright, beautiful and is a true lover of God.

So of course, I said YES, COME!!  We had a great time re-connecting and sharing our journey; highs and lows.  The blessing didn't stop there, however.  Bomi's whole family came by the next morning to pick her up and we all had such a sweet time of fellowship together in the kitchen, in spite of the rainy weather. Bomi's parents are missionaries to the least and lost in downtown Calgary, feeding the hungry and ministering the love and salvation of God to those on the streets.  

Such a precious family.  

I can see why Bomi is as sweet as she is!  Bomi's mom is passionate about prayer and she ministered to me for an extended period of time, letting the Lord guide her hands as she prayed for healing for various parts of my body.  It was a heavenly experience to say the least.  She was formerly a professional singer and her prayers were interspersed with beautiful singing and tongues.  Heaven touched earth in my kitchen and I felt greatly encouraged. 

Houseboat Fiesta

I work for such an amazingly wonderful department at my school. I don't even know what it's called, to be honest, but it's the best.

(I know the name of the school, just not the department haha!)

For our "end of year" party all of us "educational assistants" got to board a houseboat and float around our beautiful lake.

The boat we were on is one of the tall ones to the left above my head. The lovely lady with me is the mom of one of my favourite students as well as a coworker of Patrice.  

Thankfully I didn't know ahead of time that THIS was part of the package...

Or I wouldn't have showed up!

A very steep and very narrow staircase needed to be navigated if I was to join the rest of the partiers on the boat.The other option was to sit alone below in a rather small space. Which is not really the first choice for an extrovert such as myself! 

Thankfully the captain on board was not easily daunted and he and another fellow grabbed the front and back of my chair and squeezed me up to the top.

There may have been some grunting and straining involved, but they persevered and I popped out on the upper deck! 

It was a perfect day and even though I felt a little awkward due to my closest colleague not being on board, I chatted it up with a few people and enjoyed some sort of a special drink the friendly houseboat man concocted for me. 

If all else fails, sip on a fruity beverage...

Not to worry, it was non alcoholic as I knew I was the designated (and only) driver on the way home. Although, had I wanted something that packed a bit of a punch there were plenty of options available! 

We slowly floated past homes of the "rich and famous" and the steward was more than happy to impart some gossipy stories that didn't put them in the best light.

However, I have a short memory and I don't envy these places as I can't even imagine how they would get me from the house down to the lake.

Such a pretty city and so fun to see new angles while the wind is blowing through your hair and the Okanagan sun is shining down and motor boats are zooming past.

We floated under the bridge and back to the dock while munching on chips and enjoying each other.

School's out for another year folks!! 

So glad I was healthy and able to attend this little celebration as I don't get many opportunities to get out on this gorgeous lake which I gaze upon daily.

Downtown Wedding Fun

There's just something so amazing about the whole ritual surrounding weddings.  

The practice run as it were, a foreshadowing of the great event that is so imminent, yet still feeling very far away...

The Daddy walks his precious daughter down the aisle...in this case it was Don with his sweet and lovely Sierra.

A childhood friend of Patrice's who has grown into a confident, beautiful, intelligent, God fearing woman. 

Releasing her to become one with the eager, expectant groom.

The joy, the celebration, the rapture of it all.

All those months of preparation. 

A lifetime, really...

The wedding song is sung, the table is set,

And the party begins.

There were cousins with babies to enjoy

And friends coming together from far off places to rejoice and make merry.

And our longing increases for our "groom" and THE BIG EVENT, the wedding feast that will be like no other.

So glad I get to be part of that one.

It will be the beginning of eternal bliss.

Literally!

Prayers in High Places

This city is worth praying for.

It's so much more than just a beautiful view or a fabulous playground; it's crowded with people who have a calling and destiny but who have forgotten their Maker. It's a place full of promise as well as a fierce battleground.

Because there is an enemy at work here who is lulling people to sleep and keeping them so distracted they forget why they've been created.

There's a lot at stake for everyone involved. 

It's life or death.

For eternity.

Not long ago our little Wednesday night group joined a prayer meeting taking place on a local mountain so that we could worship our Creator, take communion in unity and make scriptural proclamations over this land and it's people.

There was a massive drum, flags, a violin, some disorganized attempts at leading worship and a ragtag assortment of personalities which could have the potential of putting me off, but we push differences aside and come together as brothers and sisters under One God.

This makes Him really happy.

Probably one of the prettiest prayer rooms I've ever been in, albeit somewhat cool and windy. 

Before our eyes the clouds rolled over us in an incredible display, the sun peeking out to light up the bridge and harbour and to warm our backs as we called out to our Mighty King to move in power. 

So glad that size doesn't matter and that even a remnant can touch the Father's heart on behalf of the lost.  

"If my people, who are called by my Name, will humble themselves and pray..."

Storms and Such

Since getting in and out of the car is a workout I don't always feel up to, there is the magnificent option of picking up a hot drink on a cool day and parking at a spot with this kind of a vantage point.

Pretty dramatic and completely free.

My dear niece is great at keeping in touch, so when she called and wanted a coffee this is where we ended up.

We watched a spectacular storm roll in and crash wildly around us as we sat tucked cozily in my little "red rolling coffee shop" and visited.

The next morning I was at it again. 

Breakfast with my Butterflies friends, but this time I got out of the car and enjoyed  a delicious meal while us girlfriends told our latest stories and had a few good laughs.

We get to find out about answered prayers and about ones that are on their way to being answered.

One of the crowd brought us all commemorative butterfly mugs and magnets which was such a sweet gesture.  

Over the years we've shared numerous meaningful gifts, often with the butterfly motif, to cheer each other on in the journey of going from chrysalis to winged wonders.

The end of my school year came incredibly quickly and I managed to get all of my students finished up and assessed by the 13th.

There were hours of sitting in front of the computer hammering out year end reports while my back screamed at me to be finished already!! I'm so grateful that I don't have a computer job as that position is definitely not the best for my body.

Somehow with my job of sitting next to the kids while teaching there is enough movement and good positioning that I can handle a couple of hours before I'm ready to have a major change.

I'm so glad that I have the privilege of sitting with these kids and giving them keys to reading in such an incredibly supportive and great school environment.

Another major answer to prayer and such a gift from God.

Red Hot

This beauty and I had lunch at a new spot that serves a menu that she can handle. Unfortunately she's got some food intolerances that can make things pretty painful so we try to find a place that serves what works for her. 

We had such a nice visit at a lovely spot overlooking the valley and finished off with an iced matcha lemonade to combat the unbelievable heat. 

My car read this temperature when I got into it one morning after teaching. 

Hot stuff baby!

We also found out we were wearing our smoking hot matching red shoes!

Like mother- like daughter. 

And she took off on the "new" motor bike Daniel put together for her.

She just recently got her licence and is loving zooming around town. 

Not my favourite thing exactly, but thankfully I can pray while they are out having fun.

Jumping into June

Somehow when we hit June I already feel like we've swung straight into summer.

It's a marvellous month when the days are long and getting longer! 

I just love still being on this side of the Summer Equinox - knowing that the best of the year is still around the corner.

The long, hazy, lazy days of summer stretch out before me full of promise and adventure.

June began with a trip to the airport - not for me this time, but for Mom, Elsie and Tante Hilda.

And little Pupcake, of course. 

He 's a little jetsetter!

What a sweet bunch of travellers flying off over the Rocky Mountains to spend some time with Vic and a multitude of Calgary friends. 

I had no energy to fly anywhere and I was on a timeline with finishing up with my students since I had taken that three week Europe trip.

While they were away I took care of business back at home.

Coffee with friends is always a treat, especially when it looks like this! 

It's the little things in life that are the really big things. 

A yummy drink shared with people I love.  

Often after my teaching mornings I arrange to meet someone before heading home up the hill for my afternoon siesta.

I knew dear Daddio was alone while mom was gone, so I made a salmon dinner and invited him and Ollie over for a lovely evening on the back patio. 

There are just so many things I love about this Season! 

I'm so grateful to God for family and friends and how we are tucked in with one another.

Speaking of which, here are some beautiful people that are part of my "church family".  Matthew Baker is such a precious friend of mine and has taught me so much about grace and endurance and love.

His "disability" disappears when you find out that he is more "able" than many of us to connect with what really matters in life.

He is my teacher and one of my hero's.

His family walks out servanthood, gratitude and joy with incredible humility and grace.

Because we've known each other for about 15 years or more, and because we're good friends from church and school, I was honoured to be invited onto the micro board for the society he and his family started up for his care.  

We celebrated this grand event with a steak dinner at their place.

Matthew and his family were also a part of this gathering.

Church in the back yard on a scorching hot day; the temperature was somewhere up in the thirties. 

We celebrated this dear man's 60th birthday.  He lost his wife to cancer about 8 years ago and has been fighting his own battle with the same scourge for several years now so to turn 60 was significant for him.

There were tears and there was laughter, and prayer, of course.

I love all the ages eating and playing together.  This Daddy and his son had the cutest little set up for their picnic.

I bought a mister to combat the intense heat and it threw off a nice cool spray on these fellows.

These ladies found a spot of shade and the evening was a success.

I'm so glad I'm a part of the family of God...