:: Hello, anyone out there?!?! ::

:: Hello All (if there is anyone that has still kept up on reading this dusty old thing!), sorry for the delay in posts! It's not that I don't have anything to post about it's just that I'm too busy living to actually sit down and write it out ::

:: I have actually been really torn at posting things for a variety of reasons, I love being my candid self and being brutally honest but not at the cost of others feelings. If I were to write something or an opinion or something that we did in our lives I wouldn't want it to hurt or offend anyone. Well, we all know that is an impossible task! So I have had to think long and hard about doing this blog and having it be so personal ::

:: I don't want to shut this down or stop blogging, heaven knows I have enough to talk about, however I don't want to be guarded at what I do and don't say. I don't want to come across as being perfect or having a perfect life, Lord knows I have my issues and struggles just as much as anyone else ::

:: That is another reason I haven't been around. I have been trying to find balance in my life. I am a "keep everyone happy" kinda gal. That's great and all but that isn't necessarily the best way to be. It sounds good, sometimes feels good but the tower can come crashing down pretty fast when you are through with making everyone happy but yourself. So I have had to measure my life and all of the things I'm involved in and decide what kind of role and precedent they are going to take in my life and at what cost? ::

:: So there you have it, my heart on my sleeve...yeah, I know, that's so unlike me...well it actually is. I'm outspoken but not argumentative or confrontational, which is a bad way to be but remember I'm a "keep everyone happy" kinda gal ::

:: I will finish this and get on with posting all of the running nothingness that I have had saved on blogger for well over a month now...and then we'll get on to Christmas. I'm going home for Christmas, I'm staying right here focusing on the heart of the matter, my home, my love, my boys and in that I will find myself ::

:: To better things... ::

:: Happy Birthday Cole! ::

:: On November 1st Cole turned 1 ~ Unbelievable, my baby is ONE!!! ::

:: We had a great Autumn fest with pumpkin everything {I figure I can only milk this one for a few years, then he will be sick of all the pumpkin stuff} ::

:: We enjoyed great friends... ::

:: And family ::

:: We opened presents, he was a pro...it seems like big brother has taught him a thing or two! ::

:: We blew out candles on a single pumpkin cake just for him ::

:: We had some good laughs... ::

:: And some great conversation ::

:: Thank you all for joining us in celebrating our sweet boy - We are blessed to call you all our "family" ::

:: To my sweet, tender, dramatic little boy, you have my heart. You are a blessing from your yells from your crib in the morning to your over dramatic response when your brother runs by you. I love you through and through. My heart delights in your spirit and joy. God has truly blessed us with your presence and I can't wait to see what He has in store for your life ::

:: "And now thus says the Lord, your creator, and He who formed you, fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine." Isaiah 43:1 ::

:: Halloween 2008 ::

:: We had a great Halloween, we spent the evening with my parents and the "B" family. It's so lovely to go to my parent's place, they prepare dinner, so we can focus on going out knocking...it was a great time! ::



:: We had a race car driver ::

:: And a giraffe ::

:: Thanks M&D for hosting a great night, it's always so fun to have traditions! ::

:: Pumpkin Patch ::

:: Back at the end of October just before Halloween we headed out to the APPLE BARN ::

:: It is a great little farm with lots and lots to do without costing a cent! Just my type of fun! ::

:: There was a petting zoo & fabulous slides in and out of the barn ::

:: Apparently Jacob wasn't too fond of the animals! ::

:: Cole's a whole different city - Ha Ha! ::

:: Here goes Emma down the slide...look at that excitement! ::

:: My boys heading down the slide ::

:: You can't get better colours than this! ::

:: They also had a super cute measuring board for the kids to measure themselves against ::

:: The pumpkins all lined up ::

:: The acreage ::

:: Cole and Me in front of the "Mater" truck ::

:: Paul and Jacob checking out the Pumpkins ::

:: The boys picking the pumpkins ::

:: How cute is this!?!? I think this is the first time Jacob didn't actually tackle Madelyne to the ground! Hopefully we're past that stage! ::

:: Picking his pumpkin ::

:: Paul made a pumpkin topiary..I want one of these for our front door next year! ::

:: Perfect Pair ::

:: Madelyne with Daddy & Emma ::

:: So until next year...we'll be back at the Apple Barn again, it was a fabulous time and wonderful memories! Thanks for joining us the "B" family! ::

:: Falling Behind ::

:: Yes, that's me...behind in so many area's in life! So sorry for the lack of blogging going on around here. I have set my mind to getting so many other things completed that blogging has to take a back burner {although in my heart of hearts I'd rather be blogging}, but I guess we all need to have priorities! ::

:: I have been enjoying life and this wonderful season that we are in, our Fall here in BC has been amazing! ::

:: I'll update you as soon as I have time, but for now you can check out the outstanding photo shoot that Miss. Jamie Delaine did for us over the weekend. She rocks and we love her for more than her talent and her creative eye, she is truly a sweet sweet daughter of the King ::

:: Thank you Jamie for using your gift to the glory of our Lord. You my friend will have a fabulous crown waiting for you! ::

:: I'll be back with some exciting news and no, I'm not expecting #3...more on that later ::

:: The ER ::

:: It all started last Tuesday when Paul felt he had a head cold ::

:: He declined taking some extra pills as he felt that some good food {like an apple} and some rest {like 7 hours instead of 5} would cure his cold and aches ::

:: It didn't ::

:: By Friday night he was in some serious pain so I was able to give him a good dose of pills. They didn't touch the pain ::

:: We had friends over for breaky on Saturday followed by dinner at his parents place for Thanksgiving. We returned home to Paul worshiping the porcelain god aka: he was sick ::

:: That evening he took a total of 5 Tylenol 3's and 2 gravol and they didn't make this headache go away. Frankly the pain was so bad he couldn't sleep ::

:: By 5 am Sunday morning he was in so much pain he could barely stand. I called the nurses hot line and she asked how bad the pain was, he said that it was an 8 out of 10 and she also asked if it was the worse headache he had ever had...um, yes! She said she could only advise to go to the hospital as his pain was so severe. So we made the decision to head into the hospital ::


:: We get to the hospital and we're the only ones in the waiting room....this is good news! ::

:: He gets admitted and the doc comes to see him..long story short it took 5 doses of 4 different meds {fed intravenously} to get the headache to finally subside. The last drug was a double dose of morphine with gravol ::

:: We were in the hospital from 6:30 am - 11:30 am and he left feeling SO much better ::

:: The doc said that he had/has a sinus infection that went bad. The sinus infection got so bad that he got a headache and couldn't even feel the sinus infection. Now that the headache is gone he can now feel the affects of the sinus infection and he's now on antibiotics to clear that up ::

:: The doc also said that he would not have been able to fight this off by himself, he was too far gone ::

:: He is much better now and he now knows to take something for his headaches right away as it could turn really bad if he doesn't ::

:: It's that time again! ::

:: I can't believe it's already been a month since we had our last event...now on to Prayer, Praise & Pastries ::

:: If you have time tomorrow, take time out of your crazy life and come out and have some fabulous fellowship, some amazing worship & some wonderful pastries ::

:: I'm almost finished my portion of the preparation...I said almost! There is always some last minute things to keep me on my toes! ::

:: Happy Thanksgiving ::

:: {Thanksgiving flowers from my love} ::

:: This past weekend we celebrated Thanksgiving {for those of you who read this and live in the States} ::

:: We had a fabulous time celebrating with all of our family at different times throughout the weekend ::

:: {Paul with his Papa, Victoria & Cole} ::
:: {One of the food tables @ my parent's place} ::

:: It was a great weekend but very very exhausting. We ended up loosing some sleep due to the boys being off of their normal schedule. We always seem to not worry about their schedule when we're celebrating the holiday's because they are well behaved and happy but we really should stick to their schedule as they turn themselves inside out for the next two days following the celebration ::

:: {Thanks Trev for grabbing my camera and taking these shots. Pics from my parent's place and the grand gathering} ::

:: At any rate it was a great weekend {minus a visit to the ER - more on that later} and we had a great time racing around preparing and celebrating with all the people we are SO thankful for! ::

:: I hope ya'll had a fabulous weekend and took some time to remember what you are thankful for ::

:: My cup of thankfulness is running over ::

:: Victoria's Christening ::

:: A few weekends ago we had the pleasure of joining my SIL Jen and her husband Michael as they Christened Victoria ::

:: Michael & Jen, thank you so much for including us in this special day - We pray God's richest blessing on Victoria's life ::

:: xoxo - Paul, Shawna & Co. ::

:: New Release ::

:: I know, I know...it's still early in October, but Christmas is right around the corner! ::

:: Yesterday Travis Cottrell {he is the worship leader for Beth Moore Ministries} just released a new Christmas album called "RING THE BELLS" ::

:: You can go to his website and get a snip-it of the sounds on his new album, I can't wait to get my hands on it! ::

:: Music is such a huge thing in my life; I was raised listening to 106.5 fm all night long. It planted good seeds & we now do the same thing with our boys ::

:: All in all, I love music. It's not often that I don't have some sort of music playing in my home, car or head. When I am weak I listen to music, when I am strong I listen to music, when I'm happy, when I'm sad...I listen. The impact music can have on my life is huge ::

:: I do think of the music that will be in heaven and the music that I want played at my funeral. It may be morbid but, that's me. Deal with it ::

:: Anyway, grab his new cd and get in the spirit - you'll love it! ::