Party On!

Somehow I was blessed enough to get invited to my lovely daughter-n-luv's birthday on the actual day of!

We checked ahead and when we saw it was going to be sunny Nicole opted for a patio party which was a perfectly lovely idea.

So thankful to live in this valley.

I love this group of gals and we had a scrumptious time celebrating this bronzed beauty. 

It was nice to arrive early and to be able to take advantage of all the early bird specials so we feasted and drank to the special occasion of Nicole turning 31.

Wow!

I'm praying that this coming year will be far less stressful for her and full of times of refreshing for her. 

It's such a gift to live in one place long enough to have good long friendships with people.

And I've lived with each one of these beauties at one point or another.

We decided to go big or go home.

And tore into the sweets like some starved sharks!!

I don't usually order desserts at these fancy places, but there is definitely a right time and my daughter's birthday is one of them!!
They were works of art and the flavour was fabulous.

Always Hope

This beautiful woman.

She has become my precious daughter. 

But sometimes, as time passes, if I don't get enough "one on one" with her, I forget who she is. 

But yesterday I remembered.

We went for lunch at a favourite spot downtown and somehow the gates were open and communication was easy.

Last week I attended a forum on Youth and Addiction that she has been part of planning and organizing for the past 15 months or so. 

It was amazing, raw, heart wrenching and hopeful.

It was the culmination of a ton of hard work; extra hours on top of her already stressful job, agonizing with organizations that are all part of the solution but don't know how to work together yet, and hope for a solution for kids who are caught in addiction without easy access to resources to break the cycle. 

It reminded me of what she is about, how deep and big her heart is for those who are trapped in addiction and out on the streets. 

So we talked about that.

I let her know how proud I was of her for how hard she works for those who are oppressed.

There were many tears on her part and on my part.

Her work is intense and very consuming.

She comes in contact with death on a regular basis.

Relapses and sometimes the death of her clients who have become her friends.

People she has fought really hard for and has loved passionately.

We kept our conversation going as we walked along the lakeside.

I was grateful for this time of reconnection, especially before she joins Daniel in Vancouver next week.

The extra few weeks were needed here to do her presentation and to finish up her job.

She will leave a huge gap at that place (drug withdrawal management) but I think the break will be good for her.

Time to refuel and get some R&R after this gruelling season.

We made our way through the bird sanctuary, marvelling at the peace and beauty.

What a gift to be together on this peaceful day.

It's all twirled and twisted together, somehow.

The beauty, the trials, the tears and some laughter.

I'm glad I have family to do life with.

Grateful for moments when our worlds collide and things feel clear again.

There may be clouds, but there is light beyond and there is always hope.

And these three remain,

Faith

Hope 

&

Love.

SUNNY SEPTEMBER

September's been chugging along at a rapid clip!

People to see, places to go and things to do, do, do...

Elsie went on a well deserved vacation to Vancouver for awhile so I tried to fill in the gaps with Mom and Dad.

There are lots of little things that still need sorting out in their new place and Mom was eager to get a few things from the thrift store.

Here she is sporting her new warm blue sweater with a matching blue winter purse.

We had lots of fun getting things done asap since mom isn't too comfortable standing for long. 

Anita joined me on one of my visits and she cheered Dad right up with a spontaneous cuddle and hug.  

Puts a whole new twist on a house call from a Doctor. 

It was good to see him smile for a change as things have been challenging for him, to say the least. 

Moose has moved in with Anita for the remainder of her stay.  I get a kick of him peeking out of her room and gazing down the hallway at me. 

Anita has been faithfully taking the dogs for walks to make sure they stay "regular"!

One evening Anita and I were invited to Rob & Dianne's for a lovely home cooked organic meal made mostly from their beautiful garden.

They are artistic, creative, beautiful, loving people and I continue to marvel at the miracle of Dianne being alive following the ruptured brain aneurysm and cardiac arrest in May.

It was such a gift to spend the evening with them.

Glad we are part of the same small fellowship, developing relationship and loving God together.

In my forays through boxes of Mom and Dad's I've found some interesting stuff. Here is a cute note Daniel wrote some time ago...

Thank goodness he improved enough to get into his Master's program this fall.

I was also surprised to find the wedding invitation to my parent's wedding way back on that hot September 3, 1950.

Obviously only German people were invited. 

It's been a journey back in time as I work my way through the cards and pictures and I don't think I'll be done anytime soon.

Mom enjoys it when I read through some of the cards and letters with her, as she had hoped to do that one day but now her sight prevents her from doing that.

AND...

Finally the evening arrived that Nicole has been working towards for the past year and a half or so.  She was part of a group tasked with figuring out some needed solutions to the desperate problem of youth in our community who are addicted to substance abuse. 

It was a sobering, educational, informative event and I think the most important part was the fact that different professionals and organizations that are all working on the same problem came together to brainstorm and to create a more cohesive network.

Our dear friend Liz was covering the event and her write up can be found on Kelowna Now.

I was so proud of Nicole and for how she has persevered for these ones that she loves so much. 

It is a calling on her life and she has such a gift with these ones who struggle.

It's also been an incredible sunny and beautiful month with an abundant crop of apples almost ready for harvest.

The air smells sweet as I drive up Spiers with apple orchards on either side looking and smelling heavenly.

Such an incredible season.

Sara had her birthday celebration and Anita and I snuck in to enjoy some yummy snacks and fun games.

I LOVE THESE GAGNONS!!! 

Rouladen and So Much More

This Sunday started out a little rough.

I couldn't muster the energy to get out of bed for church and a headache kicked in for good measure so I knew I needed to lay low and do some self care.

I've been on a roll these past few days - getting lots done but apparently doing too much for this broken body to cope with.

I must be kind to my my 55 year old self which is struggling to keep up with my extroverted, eager to help personality.

However, I have been having fun and getting things done and thankfully I rallied by the afternoon so I could attend a dinner party hosted by Donara.

We were going to sit on the deck overlooking the lake, but the evening was a tad too cool.

The indoor view is pretty spectacular so I decided not to complain. 

Instead I sat at this lovely piano and played some hymns while admiring God's handiwork.

The beautiful valley spread out before me and my heart felt such peace.

His mercy and grace pursues me.

Little Golda was eager to show me her new necklace!

We cracked her up with some of our jokes...

She didn't find all of them amusing though.  

Haha.  

What a sweet puppy she is. 

We were treated to such a delicious meal - roulanden and mashed potatoes.

Good German fare! 

There is such comfort around a shared meal with trusted friends who are all having a hard journey on some level.

So much overcoming,

So much kindness and love.

The refiner's fire produces beautiful gold if we allow it to do it's good work.

All of these ladies are doing that. 

Keeping their eyes fixed on the prize.

Jesus...

We watched a movie on a screen that conveniently popped out of the ceiling over the fireplace.  

"The Kindness Diaries."

So incredibly inspiring and beautiful.  

I need to pray for eyes to see the opportunities that surround me.

Opportunities to show kindness whenever possible. 

Help me dear Jesus...

Here's the group shot including Golda, just because. 

Fabulous Friday Fun

Since I've got his new wheelchair / motorcycle attachment I've had some opportunities to go on some fun rides! 

Nicole was excited to head out to the greenway with me when she found out I was motorized.  

We're both looking pretty groovy here if I don't say so myself.

These crazy glasses of mine - so hilarious with the sparkles and bling but I'm old enough to rock whatever I want to.

It was so awesome to be able to go all the way to Springfield park without my hands getting sore or my wearing out my shoulders.

I just zoom along with the wind in my hair feeling pretty much awesome!!

We got to see the Kokanee doing their fall fishy thing in Mission Creek which was AMAZING!! 

Just being near the water and hearing it splash and gurgle over the rocks was so life-giving. 

I'm just so grateful to have this new toy to get me out in nature a bit more.

We ran into some friends who were also watching the fish and enjoying the beautiful day.

Little Boaz loved sitting on my lap and wasn't afraid of speeding along with me.

We missed out on sighting one of the bears that was apparently enjoying the fish and the outdoors as well.

I had to hurry home to pick up Moose from his Salon treatment and he tried sitting like a human in the front seat since I had too much gear in the back. 

THEN I picked up Oma and Tante Hilda to get them to the lake to soak in some of summer's last warm rays. 

We picked up some coffee's and found our little park.

Anita and Ollie were already there and Lisa also joined us.

Just loving these sunny smokeless September days.