Finally...

A coworker said "FINALLY" to me when I drove up in my new truck. Apparently she thought it was about time. Ian has been looking for months. Finally found this 2000 Dakota in Calgary...my new minivan and his hunting truck. So, we are both happy. Ian wanted me to post these pictures for Tim P, so hope you enjoy Tim.
Saying good bye to my old friend...will be delightful!

What would make you sad?

I heard the very end of an interview on the Gill Deacon show this morning. I think her question was something like "What would it be that you missed out on that would make you sad at the end of your life?" (That seems like a strange question, but I think it was asked more eloquently.)

The answer given was something like...
To not have loved enough. To not have enjoyed life enough. To not have taken advantage of the little moments. To not have appreciated people.

What a good reminder for me to keep perspective on life. Sometimes I think about all the things I want to go do and see. I feel like I miss out sometimes. But truly the sad thing would be not loving every moment I have and not seeing beauty in it. It made me glad that this morning I ignored the messy kitchen, the unmade beds, the laundry, the dirty floor... and I found so much joy playing outside with Kellen! It was so fun to watch him try to walk up and down the hills in the park.

It was a beautiful morning and a couple other moms were out with their kids. I had a cup of coffee with me and good company...a perfect morning! Kellen actually played with Mason. It's amazing to see him learning how to interact. (Although he did make a few mistakes...like hitting him sticks a few times.)
See Mason up at the top? Kellen tried hard to keep up, but he's just a little guy still! I loved his determination. He never gave up or got frustrated. He was yelling saying his usual blabber. I imagined he was yelling at Mason "Slow down! Wait for me!"

Still Growing

Time to post some pictures of Kellen. I'm sure that's what some of you may be checking for?! I haven't even taken many lately. This is what most look like...mad face because mom won't give him the camera! I have to sneak up on him to get a good picture.
He's learned some new games. A favorite being filling up a basket and emptying it again. This can go on forever... See how serious he is about the task.
He is definately his parents' child. He loves to be outside and will bring his shoes to us to let us know when its time to go outside. I'm pretty sure he is saying "shoes". Kinda sounds like "shes". I'll add it to his "list". The public health nurse told me he should have 5 words by now. "Would I like him referred to a speech pathologist?" "No? Well, then, at 18 months he should have 10 words or we'll be referring him." So, I'm making a list of "words" he says. Doesn't this sound crazy to anyone else? I would think language develops normally at a variety of rates. And, if he is his mothers son, he may not speak well until he is 4! Also, I think he communicates quite well in many ways. He uses the sign for "more" a lot these days. I think his concept of it is "give me want I want". At least I know he is really trying to communicate something to me when he uses it.
Kellen loves dogs. Has absolutely no fear of them. A lick from a dog is delightful to him. Yuck.
His favorite thing lately is brooms. Entertaining for hours. He seems to find a broom wherever we are visiting.

That's Kellen's update for now. He's changing so fast. Did I mention he's been walking for almost a month now? Crazy. He's not my baby anymore.

Hope

A month ago Ian and I went to Kenossee for the weekend. I had an experience that got me thinking about hope and I'm still thinking about it. I maybe never thought about the importance of hope or maybe I'd never felt truly hopeless. My hopeless feeling may seem laughable now, but it was very real at the time and left an impression on me.

We headed off early Sunday morning for the x-country ski trails. We had less then 2 hours, so when Ian suggested we do a loop that was 13.5 km I protested. But he really wanted to do it, and who am I to put the kibosh on an adventure! I was loving the scenery and the quiet morning at first. But as the trail got tougher and I got tired, I started wishing I had protested more loudly. It had been really warm so the snow was abrasive and our sticky wax seemed to do us little good as it quickly disappeared. Skiing was becoming more frustrating than fun in these conditions. We were still trying to hurry so we would make it to church in Estevan. As our 2 hour mark passed and I knew we weren't close yet, I let frustration and tiredness take over my attitude. I actually started to feel like I couldn't make it. I wanted to sit down and give up, because even if I kept going farther, I didn't believe I would be able to make it to the end. My arms hurt. I have to confess at the height of it all, my chin even quivered. My speed had dramatically declined to barely moving. But, around another corner and there it was...the little cabin that let me know we only had 1.6 km to go! We'd made our loop! Soon I was flying along again and enjoying the scenery. It seemed like only minutes after seeing the cabin that I was standing by the car.

It got me thinking about many of the people I visit with on my job. I often feel I can never understand why people don't make better choices for their health. Why wouldn't a person eat better to prevent disease? Why wouldn't a person follow advice to manage diabetes to prevent complications? But that day, when I really thought about what it would be like to feel completely hopeless, I felt like I could understand just a little. Why try to make good decisions for your life when you have absolutely no hope for good things in your life? I don't think its something that many of us can understand. I think its easy to judge from the other side. Looking back, I was obviously going to reach the end of the trail if I kept going. But that moment of feeling like I might as well give up because I couldn't make it was so powerful. Yet, it was also just a brief moment in my life. What if I felt that way everyday about my life? What about people who have no hope in their life?

At Grandpa Cecil's funeral I was reminded of the strong hope he had to reach heaven. That is the same hope that changes my life. I am so thankful for hope. I am thankful for the example of people like Cecil Bailey whose steadfast faith give me hope that I too can finish the race!

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enteres the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, wehre Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. Hebrews 6:19.