How to Make a Shark Cake

Step #1: Spend two weeks worth of nap time scouring the Internet for images of shark cakes. Realize that this is the best one that you can find...even though its missing the second half of his tail and has a really large fin.

Step #2: Cut out the outline of the shark. Realize that it looks ridiculous and spend a few hours "fixing" the image. Basically, redraw the shark picture. Cut the outline of the shark out of the cake.

Step #3: Put the two pieces of shark cake together to form the shark.

Step #4: Ice the cake. And add additional cakes (seaweed and fish) out of the leftover cake pieces.

Step #5: Admire your finished cake.

Step #6: Add candle and allow birthday boy to "try" blow out candle. Blow out candle for him.

Step #7: Give piece of cake to birthday boy. Watch as he slowly pushes it away and melts down into tears. "Don't make me eat this bright blue thing!!!"

Step #8: Wait until following day. Give a piece of cake to birthday boy on a fork. Watch him eat it. Then watch him devour cake, piece by piece.

Step #9: Watch cake being eaten.

Step #10: Allow birthday boy to eat every last piece of cake. Or at least throw it on the floor until he's finished.

 

Christmas Baking

Our dear friends, Matt and Rachel came over a few weeks ago, so we could bake some delicious Christmas cookies.

In just over 3 hours, we had a TON of cookies baked, fudge cooling in the freezer, and some savoury treats to enjoy.


We each chose some of our favourite family recipes, and a few new ones to try out.

The evening was filled with wonderful smells, good memories and almost losing our treats to a vicious neighbourhood raccoon (Note to self: do not leave treats outside to cool, raccoons may abound). We thanked Rachel repeatedly for saving our treats!

We had a few good laughs while we assembled gingerbread men (and woman). By that time of night, we had eaten way too much sugar, and didn't have enough protein in our bodies. Things got a bit crazy....but were easily fixed by eating a few pigs in a blanket.

This is our half of the haul from the evening. Pigs in a blanket, quiche, sugar cookies, chocolate mint cookies, chocolate mints, butter tarts, shortbread cookies, gingerbread cookies. And missing from the photo, cookies and cream fudge and chocolate mint fudge. Yummy!

Our semi-annual Hospital Visit (around Christmas)

Last year, at the end of December, we took Joel to Abbotsford's newly finished hospital for an infected finger. This resulted in a 4 day stay.
This past Monday, it was Dan's turn. This would be his first hospital visit in 26 years. (Basically, he hasn't been back since he was born).

What necessitated the visit you ask? A lovely 1st degree burn to his arm (aka 1% of his body). You see, Dan decided that it would be a GOOD idea to catch a falling jug of hot water while at work. Please do not attempt EVER! This may result in a cloth diaper wrap (and wet bag) being put on your arm to keep the wet towel away from your bandage. (Basically, the wet bag started to leak, so we put a cloth diaper wrap around that to keep Dan dry, and the burn cool). As the doctor put it: "You have reflexes of a parent with a young child. Your first instinct is to catch anything that is falling."

Needless to say, Dan was sent home from the hospital all bandaged up with some nice pain killers to boot (they hand out morphine there like its candy! And tetanus shots.) The next night, we uncovered his arm and found a nice reddish/blackish burn staring back at us.

The pharmacist gave us some nice burn cream, a very expensive non-adhesive sheet to place over his burn and then some netting to cinch it all in place.

Fast forward two days and the blisters have started. Gross! A week (minimum) off work and Dan should be well on his way to recovery. Stay tuned for next week when Dan attempts to catch falling knives!

You know you're a parent of a young child when...

... you go looking for your pots and pans in the toy box, rather than the cupboard... sleeping in consists of 7:30am
... staying up late consists of any time after 10pm
... you know that the washing machine can remove stains, but crumbs are a whole other story
... everything you own that has any value is at least 4 feet off the ground and progressively climbing
... your vocabulary is reduced to derivatives of "no" or "stop" and the ever favorite "don't touch"
... the most used implement in your house is a broom, closely followed by a vacuum

Mt. Baker

Friends of ours sent us an email inviting us to hike up Mt. Baker this past Saturday. It read as follows:

"The plan is to hike in the Mt Baker area, up to the Coleman glacier on this side of the mountain... Most of the trail is pleasant hiking up through the forest to treeline, with one steeper section from treeline to the glacier, around 2 hours one way (5.5+ hrs round trip w/ breaks). "

I think that the description was slightly inaccurate (sorry Matt!). The pleasant hike up, should have been described as "hike up through the forest with a few small sections of level walking."

This picture best shows the "steeper section." Just below the tree in the center of the photo is a person (can you find them?) Oh, and that tree is about 1/4 of the way up the steeper section.  It was 600 ft of vertical ascension with very minimal lateral movement!

We were OVERJOYED to make it to the top and be able to sit down!

The view was incredible!

As was the wind. Dan is trying to brace himself and Joel, so as not to be blown off the mountain!

Joel enjoyed a lunch of rocks and grass, with a few sticks for snacks. Apparently apple sauce and chicken isn't as good as what God can provide.

But overall, we are happy we went. It was a pleasant day of hiking, amazing views, great fellowship, another check off our bucket list and good memories.....

....that are haunting every muscle in our body days later!

A Summer Hiatus

Its been a full summer. The empty shelves have now been filled and restocked with scrumptious goodies. Five varieties of jam, tomatoes, salsa, peaches, apricots, pears, pear butter, pear sauce, cherries, green beans, carrots (from the garden) and pickles. We ran out of jars (and space) before we got around to canning apple sauce. But maybe in a few months when the jars begin to empty, we'll be able to remedy that situation.

 

The dehydrator is finally put away and all those berries (strawberries, blueberries, cherries and raspberries) are stored away for the winter. Dan sure is happy that he doesn't have to pierce any more blueberries by hand to help with the dehydration process. We've frozen berries for later use including strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and handpicked blackberries.

The ugly egg dresser (its missing the bright yellow knobs) has FINALLY been painted.


And yes, we did complete the job with new dresser knobs that aren't sooo ugly. Silver ones to be exact.

We've tried our hand at making yogurt in the crockpot. It turned out great, and is now added to our lovely repertoire of handmade things we enjoy.

I've spent endless hours putting books back onto the shelves. And yes, my desire for "perfection" and nicely lined up books has been thrown away. I've learned to "let it go" and I'm mostly just happy to have the books off the floor!

The cesspool of germs has commenced and the kids have infiltrated our house once again. Mostly just one or two additions. This picture shows the odd day, when I had three extras. (Have I mentioned how much I hate the slow integration of kindergarten? Worst idea ever!)

The garden has finally granted us some bounty. My first tomato of the year. It tasted about as good as it looked (which really wasn't that great). But no need to worry, we've had a few more since and they have been much better. This year's garden was pitiful due to late planting and bad weather. But we got beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots and celery from the garden. I was disappointed that my zucchini failed again and that I only got a handful of peas before the plant died.

Our summer has been busy! We also went to three weddings, and took a two week road trip to Eastern BC/Alberta. Our lives have been full of winter preparation, raising a young man (and a few of his friends), and trying to rest in those days off. We hope to be more purposeful in blogging a bit more frequently (but that's no guarantee). Especially since we have succumb to the parental bedtime of 9 o'clock! But you would too if your kid didn't sleep well at night! So, we apologize for the summer hiatus. But we hope the fall and winter brings a "bounty" of blog posts.

It's Happened!!!!

Our lives will never be the same after today... Joel has learned how to crawl!!  He has been lurching forward for the past couple of weeks and coming closer and closer to the real event.  Then yesterday he finally put one hand in front of the other just once or twice.  Today he was up to four or five hand over hands movements at a time, slowly making his way across the room.
The baby proofing has begun earnestly today with electrical outlets plugged, coasters put away and anything else that we think he could get into moved out of range.  There are sure to be things that we've missed and he will get into, but that's all part of the wonderful adventure of parenthood.

A bit of encouragement: Mothering

I read this on someone's blog and found it to be quite encouraging. Its a bit long, but worth the read.


Motherhood as a Mission Field
By: Rachel Jankovic
You can find the original post here.

There is a good old saying, perhaps only said by my Grandfather, that distance adds intrigue. It is certainly true — just think back to anything that has ever been distant from you that is now near. Your driver’s license. Marriage. Children. Things that used to seem so fascinating, but as they draw near become less mystical and more, well, real.

This same principle certainly applies to mission fields too. The closer you get to home, the less intriguing the work of sacrifice seems. As someone once said, “Everyone wants to save the world, but no one wants to help Mom with the dishes.” When you are a mother at home with your children, the church is not clamoring for monthly ministry updates. When you talk to other believers, there is not any kind of awe about what you are sacrificing for the gospel. People are not pressing you for needs you might have, how they can pray for you. It does not feel intriguing, or glamorous. Your work is normal, because it is as close to home as you can possibly be. You have actually gone so far as to become home.

Home: The Headwaters of Mission

If you are a Christian woman who loves the Lord, the gospel is important to you. It is easy to become discouraged, thinking that the work you are doing does not matter much. If you were really doing something for Christ you would be out there, somewhere else, doing it. Even if you have a great perspective on your role in the kingdom, it is easy to lose sight of it in the mismatched socks, in the morning sickness, in the dirty dishes. It is easy to confuse intrigue with value, and begin viewing yourself as the least valuable part of the Church.

There are a number of ways in which mothers need to study their own roles, and begin to see them, not as boring and inconsequential, but as home, the headwaters of missions.
At the very heart of the gospel is sacrifice, and there is perhaps no occupation in the world so intrinsically sacrificial as motherhood. Motherhood is a wonderful opportunity to live the gospel. Jim Elliot famously said, “He is no fool who gives up that which he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” Motherhood provides you with an opportunity to lay down the things that you cannot keep on behalf of the people that you cannot lose. They are eternal souls, they are your children, they are your mission field.

Faith Makes the Small Offering Great

If you are like me, then you may be thinking “What did I ever give up for them? A desk job? Time at the gym? Extra spending money? My twenty- year- old figure? Some sleep?” Doesn’t seem like much when you put it next to the work of some of the great missionaries, people who gave their lives for the gospel.

Think about the feeding of the five thousand when the disciples went out and rounded up the food that was available. It wasn’t much. Some loaves. Some fish. Think of some woman pulling her fish out and handing it to one of the disciples. That had to have felt like a small offering. But the important thing about those loaves and those fishes was not how big they were when they were given, it was about whose hands they were given into. In the hands of the Lord, that offering was sufficient. It was more than sufficient. There were leftovers. Given in faith, even a small offering becomes great.

Look at your children in faith, and see how many people will be ministered to by your ministering to them. How many people will your children know in their lives? How many grandchildren are represented in the faces around your table now?

Gain What You Cannot Lose in Them

So, if mothers are strategically situated to impact missions so greatly, why do we see so little coming from it? I think the answer to this is quite simple: sin. Discontent, pettiness, selfishness, resentment. Christians often feel like the right thing to do is to be ashamed about what we have. We hear that quote of Jim Elliot’s and think that we ought to sell our homes and move to some place where they need the gospel.

But I’d like to challenge you to look at it differently. Giving up what you cannot keep does not mean giving up your home, or your job so you can go serve somewhere else. It is giving up yourself. Lay yourself down. Sacrifice yourself here, now. Cheerfully wipe the nose for the fiftieth time today. Make dinner again for the people who don’t like the green beans. Laugh when your plans are thwarted by a vomiting child. Lay yourself down for the people here with you, the people who annoy you, the people who get in your way, the people who take up so much of your time that you can’t read anymore. Rejoice in them. Sacrifice for them. Gain that which you cannot lose in them.

It is easy to think you have a heart for orphans on the other side of the world, but if you spend your time at home resenting the imposition your children are on you, you do not. You cannot have a heart for the gospel and a fussiness about your life at the same time. You will never make any difference there if you cannot be at peace here

God loves the little offerings. Given in faith, that plate of PB&J’s will feed thousands. Given in faith, those presents on Christmas morning will bring delight to more children than you can count. Offered with thankfulness, your work at home is only the beginning. Your laundry pile, selflessly tackled daily, will be used in the hands of God to clothe many. Do not think that your work does not matter. In God’s hands, it will be broken, and broken, and broken again, until all who have need of it have eaten and are satisfied. And even then, there will be leftovers.

Rachel Jankovic is a wife, homemaker, and mother. She is the author of "Loving the Little Years" and blogs at Femina. Her husband is Luke, and they have five children: Evangeline (5), Daphne (4), Chloe (2), Titus (2), and Blaire (5 months).

Zoo

We took our zoo to visit the zoo! Here is Joel riding his favorite pet crocodile! Joel named the crocodile Crickey!

Teapot Hill

Our first hike with Joel in the hiking backpack. He loved it! He even managed to fall asleep on the hike.