Prayers Answered ...

For Teresa
Dec. 19, 2011


Teresa reading her early Christmas card ...
she was so surprised ...
when she realized that her prayers had been answered to move to the Island ...

This is the card that was presented to Teresa ... !!!

Rob & Cindy arrived on Sunday, Dec. 18th ...

with news that Teresa had a chance to move to the Island ... 

to the Stanford Manor ...

After contacting them on Monday ...

they were informed that Teresa would have 48hrs to move into her new place ...

It was Christmas time and that meant that she would miss seeing her family ...

travelling here from Repulse Bay and Wisconsin ...

and spending Christmas in Mayook ...

After a few hours on the phone ...

the case worker was able to give them a few extra days to enjoy Christmas ...

Teresa would have to fly to Parksville on Dec. 27th ...

so that meant a busy time of organizing a move thru the holidays ...

This would be the last time that the Knight's and Roberts family ...

would be sharing Christmas together ...

Stockings Hung ...

Knights & Roberts

The Roberts family has arrived ...

waiting for the rest of the Knight family today ...

these two families are growing in numbers ...

Mike had to add another board to hold all the stockings ...

we are now at "22" stockings ...

We are going to have a wonderful Christmas ... !!!!

A Beautiful Arrangement ...

For Christmas 

Ian decided to surprise Kendall ...

and brought home this beautiful floral arrangement ...

he thought she needed something special ...

to be placed on the table for Christmas ...

It is absolutely beautiful ... !!!

Sledding Day ...

With Daddy

Daigen loves playing outside in the snow ...

especially when daddy is home ... 

that means that he will be pulled behind the quad ...

all around the yard ... 

hang on tight little buddy ...

Yeeeee  Haaaa ... !!!!

Ian and Daigen going for a ride on the Quad ...

spending time with dad ...

"Priceless"

Kendall was delighted to go for a ride on her Quad ...

mind you she did take it easy ...

as not to shake up the baby too much  ...

although ... that may encourage him to enter this world a little sooner ...

Having time for herself ...

"Priceless"

Christmas in Mayook ...

At The School House

Once again it was time for the community to get together ...

and celebrate this festive time of year ...

Mike & I have been taking part in this celebration for 31 years ...

this year we were fortunate to have this trio ...

playing classical Christmas carols...

 while people started to gather ...

we have some vary talented folks in the valley ..

Shelagh on the violin ... Dana on the piano ... Linda on the cello ...

It's great to see everyone ... old & young ... 

 welcoming new families into our yearly tradition in the valley ...

gathering around the wood stove ... in the kitchen ... and out at the fire pit ...

enjoying a glass of good cheer and delicious appetizers and goodies ...

lots of fun filled chattering and laughter could be heard as well as singing ...

our usual collection of carols ...

This is my favourite part of the evening ...

joining in singing ...

with Van and Sheelagh ...

not sure where the rest of the carolers are ...

 

As we were singing our carols ...

it was time for us to sing "Here Comes Santa Claus " ... 

then all of a sudden we heard bells ringing ...

and what a surprise for all the children ...

to see Santa entering the Schoolhouse ...

it was so exciting ... the hooting and hollering ... jumping and running ...

what joy the children bring with their smiles and laughter ...

each child (and the older kids as well) ...

sat on Santa's knee when their names were called ...

after the Elf took the gifts out from Santa's sack ...

Each of them were give an mandarin and candy cane as well ...

after Santa had paid us all a visit ...

we continued in our Merry way with visiting, singing, eating and drinking ...

ending the evening with everyone singing ...

"Silent Night"

Another wonderful evening with family, friends and neighbours ...

this is the true beginning of the Christmas season for us ... !!!!

Ice n' Go ...

Skating Rink

Preparing the area by the shop to build this Ice n' Go skating rink ...

the kit comes with the frame and a liner ...

which is constructed out of 4.5ml gauge polyethylene membrane

this ones measures approximately 22X36 ...

we had to bring out the transit level ...

There isn't any area out here that is level enough ...

(it was out about 12" from one end to the other ) ...

so with bricks, styrofoam and snow ...

we were able to hopefully get the white frame built ...

While Mike was adding snow at the deep end ...

(no it's not going to be a swimming pool)

my job was to pack down the snow ...

inside the frame before the liner was placed ...

it would take a lot of my little steps ...

so we ended up shovelling the snow to fill the lower end ...

therefore it didn't require as many steps to pack down the area then ...

the liner in place and secured with the blue tubular snap-on clips ...

Ready to bring out the water hose and start filling it ...

Hoping the temperature co-operates with us and continues to stay below freezing ... !!!!

Pretty Cakes ...

Cake Decorating

These are the masterpieces that Kendall created ...

she attended a cake decorating class ...

that her friend Christine was teaching ...

Kendall learned quite a few new techniques ...

She used the piping method for the snowflake ...

and the tree and present were done in fondant ...

a new experience for her ...

Kendall had a great time ... and plans to go to more classes ..

this family will be looking forward in tasting some of her creations ...

Dinner With Mom ...

At Joseph Creek Village

We spent an evening at the "Resort" ...

 enjoying a lovely dinner ...

with live entertainment playing Christmas music ...

the Village puts on a buffet once a month ...

this one was celebrating Christmas time with family and friends ...

It is so wonderful that they provide this venue ...

for all the residents ...

Christmas Delivery ...

A Plate Of Cookies

This plate of cookies ...

was delivered to the dental office yesterday ...

I had worked there for 10 years ...

and every Christmas I would bring an arrangement of cookies ...

(and other baking throughout the year)

Since I had an dental appointment ...

it was the perfect time to bring them ...

I was scorned at a prior appointment for not bringing any goodies ...

and I didn't want to go thru that again ...

Needless to say ...

the  gift was greatly appreciated ...

and taken immediately to the lunch room ...

where, I believe the doctor may have had a taster before my treatment ... !!!

My Package Arrived ...

Gifts From Dagmar

My package finally arrived in the mail ...

Dagmar had sent it awhile ago ...

I knew that she had knitted me a scarf ...

and that was all I was expecting ...

what a wonderful surprise to find that the scarf was packed ...

into a beautiful handbag ...

that was just perfect for all my gadgets ...

(she has one as well ... so she knew the phone, iTouch and iPad2 would fit in)

then later discovering that a homemade potholder was in one of the many pockets ...

It was like celebrating my birthday all over again ...

Thank you my dear cherished friend ...

you made my day ... !!!

Sending My Love ... !!!

A Day Of Baking ...

The Cookies Are Done

Spent my day in the kitchen ... 

finishing with the Christmas cookies ...

all baked and ready to be iced ... 

Cut-out Shortbread ... Whipped Shortbread ... Pinwheels ... Biscotti's ...
that should do it for the holidays ...
Next on the to do list ...
is to start wrapping gifts ...

Think I did enough for one day ...
feels great getting it done ...

Nature's Beauty ...

A Special Visitor



It is wonderful to gaze out your picture window ...
to see the wildlife ...
so content to be in the yard ...
with no fear at all ...
as I was watching ...

I am grateful to live in this valley ...
to witness it's beauty ...

Our Christmas Tree ...

Decorated Today ...

We had the tree stored in the shop ...

It was too large for me to help Mike pack it in ...

so he came up with a plan to put it on a large tarp ...

then we could drag it over the snow to the house ...

once it was placed on the deck we were able to bring it in ...

(after removing the sliding glass door)

we have this technique down solid now ...

once it enters the house ...

to get in in an upright position ...

Mike had to bring in the tall ladder ...

as he started to string the lights ...

I started getting the bulbs ready for Mike to decorate after the lights were finished ...

some of these bulbs are 40 years old ...

sure brings back a lot of memories ...

The Christmas Tree completed while there was still daylight ...

As darkness falls ...

we sit back to admire the beauty of the lights 

on the perfect Christmas Tree ...

The Stockings Are Hung ...

By The Staircase With Care

Today I decided to hang our family stockings ...

(even one for the new baby due to arrive at any time)

Mike is going to put another board across the railings ...

as we are expecting to hang 11 more stockings ...

once the Roberts family arrives for Christmas ...

Oh my ... 22 stockings for Santa to fill ... !!!!

Old Games ...

Hidden in the Closet

Today I decided to clean out a closet in the spare bedroom ... 

this is where we keep games and puzzles ...

hidden under some of the adult games ...

were some of the old kids games and puzzles ...

that belonged to our boys ....

we had forgotten all about them ...

some of these games go back as far as 1982 ...

they were tattered boxes all taped up

the grandchildren have played with the other games and puzzles that I kept ...

I'm sure they will be excited to see that I have found a couple more ...

After opening the puzzle box ...

I ended up putting the pieces together ...

(like I didn't have anything else to do ... ya right ...)

wanted to make sure we were not missing any ...

as you can see ...

they were all there ... !!!

I actually enjoyed playing today ...

was a nice break ...

brought back a lot of memories ...

My Baby ...

Another Year Older On Dec. 5,  2011

This is a picture of Ian when he was 2 days old ...

picture was taken just before we left the hospital ...

He was such a cutie and a good baby ... 

not sure what happened ...

(just kidding... !!!)

This picture was taken this summer ...

We are so proud of the man that he has become ... !!!

We love you son ... !!!  Happy Birthday ... !!

Cards & Cookies ...

Another Busy Day

It was time to get busy with the Christmas cards ...

managed to get them all addressed ...

ready to be written in ...

and sent ...

After working on the cards for a few hours ...

it was time to get the oven started ...

and another couple batches of cookies baked ...

It felt good to sit down with a cup of tea ...

as I sampled the goods ...

mmmmmmmmm ... !!!!

Oven's On...

Baking Cookies

Spent another day in the kitchen ... 

baking Christmas Cookies ..

Vanilla Kipferl (Viennese Crescents) ...

and German Pfefferneusse ...

(Peppernut Balls)...

These two recipes take a bit of time to make ...

they are a once a year a tradition ...

and well worth the effort ... 

everyones favourite ...

Will continue baking tomorrow ...

with another couple of recipes ...

trying to get it all done  ...

before the guests arrive in a few weeks ...