Wraping it all up!

Well Ladies,

I just wanted to put up an entry to wrap things up, literally and figuratively!

The Ladies Night Out was a huge success! Thank you to all that braved the cold and came out to join us. We had lot's of fun playing games, handing out prizes, eating wedding cake, and bidding each other up in the silent auction. The photo booth also was a place of great entertainment! When the night was said and done, we raised $106.00 for Hands at Work through our ticket sales, $55.00 for Childhood Cancer Foundation via the photo booth, and a whopping $1691.00 for the MOMS ministry through the silent auction. So on behalf of all these organizations, I would like to say THANK YOU!! Feel free to check out the MOMS facebook page to see all the photos that L4 photography took for us that evening!

The moms ministry team has wrapped up until January. We have a good start on the spring term. Check out our spring dates to the right, and stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks!

Today, I'm wrapping up my Christmas Baking and wrapping the last remaining gifts to place under the tree. These activities always make me think how Blessed I am to have a warm home when it is -45 outside, a wonderful family, and the means to give my children a great Christmas. I pray that you all have a Very Merry Christmas and I wish you all of Gods Blessings for the New Year!

Teri Clearwater

Dust Jackets

I've been off the blog scene for a while and I apologize. To be honest I've been mulling over whether or not I would blog about what you're about to read. Obviously I've decided to do it so here goes...

I do not buy books, am not a buyer of books or a fan of buying books... but I do like receiving books. Why spend money on a book when you can borrow it from the library right? However, my Mom bought me the Twilight boxed set for my birthday this year - well, if you wanto get technical I bought it and she sent me a check but I digress. So even when I borrow a book from the library the first thing I do before I read it is take the dust jacket off (if you can cause most times they have them secured onto those books with superglue). When I am lucky enough to have a book lent to me by a friend I always take off the dust jacket while reading - actually, not to anyone who might possibly lend me a book in the future, I would prefer it if you kept your dust jacket at home and just gave me the book! Dust jackets are the skin of a book - they hide the imperfections, take on the scratches and scrapes and protect what's most important on the inside.

You've heard the saying "Never judge a book by it's cover." right? Well, that's kind of my underlying message here. Every book has a bad chapter or two. Yes ladies, there is even a part in Eclipse that I usually skip over (that's the third book in the Twilight series in case you don't know). Well, my personal book of life is no different - there are definitely a few bad chapers. My dust jacket is pretty scratched up but it does a really good job of hiding my imperfections.

There are very few people in my life I show weakness too. I will readily admit I'm a sympathetic cryer but that's the dust jacket... and it's what's inside the dust jacket that really matters. I know how I come across to people. Outgoing, energetic, smiley, in charge, organized, not shy, confident... you get the idea. In truth I have even been called Super Mom a few times. I am the Chair of School Community Council, I work from home transcribing, I sell Norwex, I delivery flyers three times a week, I do monthly newsletters for a Mary Kay director, I'm on the MOM's Ministry team at Church and I'm a stay at home Mom. Up until about a month ago I was also the secretary of our Community Association. Everyone always says they don't know how I do it and how amazing I am. I'm not trying to brag myself up here (although that does sound pretty good when I re-read it) but I just want to give you an idea of what my dust jacket hides.

Chapter 25. May 23, 2000. Sydney was born. We lived in Winnipeg. I had no family or friends there. After she was born was a huge up... and it was also a huge down. It wasn't until after Chapter 27 that I realized I had Post Partum Depression.

Chapter 27. April 2002. We moved back to Saskatoon. Thank God - literally, because I was slowly dying in Winnipeg. July 25, 2002. Megan was born. 3 months later I was sitting on the couch feeding her her bottle and my eyes scanned her body from head to toe and I realized I didn't know when she got that big - I missed it. It was as if I had blinked and three months had passed when I opened my eyes. I went to my Doctor and broke down in his office. I had Post Partum Depression. I started taking anti-depressants and for the first time in my life I felt like I couldn't talk to my Mom about something. My Mom is a very black and white person. Everything is a choice. If you sad - suck it up and smile. If you're addicted to pain killers it's your choice, all you have to do is stop taking them.

Chapter 28. At some point around the end of Chapter 27 and the start of Chapter 28 I began to realize that there was nothing to be ashamed of. I told my Mom. And she did just what a Mom is supposed to do - she supported me and told me she loved me and was happy I recognised when I needed help.

Chapters 29-31. Lots of ups and downs. I did go off my meds by choice and was doing pretty good. I always have to work really hard at keeping a positive frame of mind.

Chapter 31. February 2, 2007. Jeremy was born. In March I went to my Doctor and asked him for anti-depressants again.

Chapter 34. Summer 2009. I am noticing my anger getting out of control. I am not a weepy, sadly pathetic depressed person. I am mean. I yell at my kids and husband... a lot. November 2009. On our way home from Church one Sunday and I went nuclear. Megan didn't like the way her car seat felt on her bum and wouldn't stop crying/whining. I screamed "Shut Up!" at her three times and if she didn't "Shut up I was going to literally beat her when we got home I am so mad." It was as if I was standing outside the van window watching myself say these things. Ryan sat quietly in the passenger seat. Sydney kept her mouth shut and I looked in the rear-view mirror and saw Jeremy just staring at me.

I know what I have is not just Post Partum Depression. I have Depression. Period. And the reason I decided to blog about this is I'm tired of keeping my dust jacket on all the time. The first thing I do when I read a book is take it off so why should I keep mine on all the time? Let me state a few things though. I do enjoy life - I have never come anywhere close to wanting to hurt myself or my children. I am by nature a very outgoing person and I am also very self conscious of myself. When I'm talking in front of a group my stomach is in knots and I feel like I'm gonna throw up a lot. Part of me thinks that when I take off the dust jacket people's perceptions of me might change but you know what? They should. I am NOT Super Mom and I can't do it all. I cry, I yell at my kids, my house is messy and there are lots of times I just go into my bedroom, shut the door and listen to my iPod - messy house or no messy house. Rule #1 - you gotta take care of yourself in order to take care of your family. I am not good to anyone, not even myself, if I don't take care of the pages in my book.

I know most of you who read this blog know me but what I'm hoping is that maybe you know somebody who SHOULD read this blog that doesn't know me and point them in this direction.

And just to update you on the time between me going nuclear in the van and now... I recently saw my doctor and asked him if we could up the dosage on my anit-depressants. I am very happy to be able to tell you that last week was my PMS week and I actually felt like a normal person. Please keep me in your prayers so that I can continue to stay on top of my depression and keep control of my own life. Thank you.

Photography

On Tuesday we had Kimberly Evans of L4 Photography come to teach us about photography. Kim got the name for her business from the 4 L's, live, love, laugh, learn. Some of the tips she shared with us were:

-Have your camera accessible

By having your camera accessible you are more likely to get the candid shots that you love

- When looking to hire a professional photographer check out their web sites to get an idea of their style and if you want have a meeting prior to booking to be sure that you are comfortable with them as your photographer.

- Kim recommended hiring a professional photographer over taking your own pictures when you are wanting to capture those moments that are extra special that you will want to treasure always. Such things as: weddings, baby's first year

- When looking for something to do with the boxes of old photographs, Kim recommended taking them and having them scanned and put on a CD. Then you could clear out all the old negatives and pictures that are cluttering up your house.

- Another great idea Kim shared with us is the idea of a coffee table book. The website she recommended was photobookcanada.com, or the business she uses in Saskatoon is Don's Photo.

If you are interested in contacting Kim for more information please check out her web site at:

http://www.l4photo.com/

Shattered Pieces

Well this quote that I'm leaving with you today has quite an emotional story behind it. It is about a lady that I know. She had a little girl pass away from cancer at the age of 2. Her story is a long and emotional one to say the least. At the funeral for her daughter I went up to give her a hug and ended up being the one bawling my eyes out and her comforting me! I told her that she was the strongest person I have ever met. All she could say was it was God and not her. If God were not with her she would be a wreck. Anyway, fast forward to today and she has made a beautiful quilt that she is raffling off and the money raised is going toward the Small Hands Initiative and the Childhood Cancer Foundation. When you look at the picture of the quilt think of this:

When your life is shattered, you can let the pieces stay in a pile, or let God put them together to create something even more beautiful.

All the broken pieces of your life are nothing more than the beautiful mosaic of your future.

I'm not sure who to give credit to for the quotes, but I thought they were beautiful, as well as something we can all learn from no matter what the situations are in our life.

Check out her web page for more info:

http://childhoodcancer.akaraisin.com/pledge/Participant/Home.aspx?seid=512&mid=9&Lang=en-CA&pid=184336

I'm not gonna talk about H1N1... honest!

It would take a lot for me to consider boycotting Facebook... but after the last few days I could actually seriously consider it. Well, maybe in a passing thought I did... very briefly as I was thinking about how I should start this blog.

Remember in school when you would always come up with codes for the alphabet so nobody could read your notes (that's a hint by the way)? It seems that every status update, email, tweet, newspaper, radio show, newscast and even the neighbourhood cat has something to say about the 8a14a and I have to tell you it's driving me crazy... especially since I jumped off the fence and got Jeremy vaccinated on Tuesday. Oh, and I was interviewed that afternoon by someone from CBC radio... not sure if they aired it, but I was interviewed!

I was reading a friends status update this morning on Facebook and she referred to the fact that their decision had been made. There was a "like" and lots of comments and then there was one comment that stood out from the rest that said something like this: "I'd suggest NOT inflicting vaccines filled with mercury and [poop] on your son. Especially when they are totally unnecessary." ????????????????????

When I was still on the fence I had lots of discussions with people regarding the 8a14a vaccine - and everyone seemed to be on the fence. There were a few people who were pretty confident in their decision - whether it before or against it but here's the key: out of all the people discussing it - nobody had gotten anything done yet (at that point). So after you hop off your fence and make a choice, no matter what the choice, it is YOUR choice. That's the bottom line. You can ask your Mom, doctors, nurses, friends, your dentist or the neighbourhood cat for their opinions and thoughts, but it is still YOUR choice. After you've hopped off the fence and done what you think is right for your child (and contrary to popular belief, we Mother's do care about our children more than our own lives and don't hop off fences just for fun) - what gives people the right to criticize what you've done and, worse yet, try to make you feel like you made the wrong decision? Seriously - these are our children we're talking about, and I don't know anyone who would do anything at all to endanger their lives... it doesn't matter which way you decided to hop but when you hopped your child was first and foremost on your mind and you did what you felt was in their best interest.

There is no right or wrong here. I could offer my insight on the 8a14a vaccine but I won't. I could tell you why I decided to have Jeremy vaccinated and why I intend to have Sydney and Megan vaccinated but I won't. I hope that when you decide to hop off the fence that you feel good about it - I hope that some over opinionated person doesn't say something to make you regret your decision or make you feel like you didn't have your child's best interests in mind. And finally, when you do decide to hop, no matter which side of the fence you're hopping to, I hope you do it with both feet.

For more information on the 8a14a click here http://www.saskatoonhealthregion.ca/your_health/ps_public_health_ip07_about.htm

Tip of the Week

Well ladies, sorry I have slipped a bit. But here is your tip for the last couple weeks. Hope you find it handy!

Need to remove a carpet stain? Try using a baby wipe or premoistened facial-cleansing wipe! Just soak up the spill with a paper towel. Then blot the carpet with the wipe, turning it as it absorbs the stain until clean. Then sponge the area with a damp cloth to rinse and let dry.

This tip was taken from the Good Housekeeping magazine. They tested with red wine and chocolate, and the stains dissapeared without any damage to the carpet's pile!

Kim's Editing!!

This past week we were challenged by Kim Gilbert with Editing our home!! A great morning with some fabulous insight into how to overcome our clutter! Kim had some great tips for us to take home to try to apply to how we EDIT our home.

~Think about the people and event that represent your things. How would you like to 'honor' those people/things with your treasures?? This will help you in knowing what you are meant to keep. Is it honoring by keeping the items in a box downstairs??

~All those things from our kids, whether they are clothing items or crafts from school..lay them out on the floor and take a picture of them for your scrapbook. This is a great way to have memories of those items and not feel guilty in Editing them out of your home.

~Enjoy good magazine articles?? Take out that page, and put in a binder.

~There are many great organizations that are happy to take the items that we want to share...Value Village, Aids Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Institute on Community Living as well as donating any good, used clothing to our own Lakeview Church Clothing Exchange!! (just call them before hand to make sure they can take what you are willing to donate)

There are 4 key items to think about while you are in the process of Editing your time/life...

1. Tasks or projects that are important/urgent
2. Tasks that are important but not urgent
3. Tasks that 'feel' urgent but really are not important
4. Tasks that are clearly both not important or urgent

When you are focused on getting things done, think about where your time is spent...you can edit out alot in your schedule just by putting those things into categories.

I have to admit, I have a hard time in letting things go, but this past few months I have realized that when you have a busy schedule, the less 'stuff' at home, the easier it is to keep the home clean and tidy!! So, this weekend, I am going to go thru some more 'things' and Edit my home so that I can Edit my life!!

Happy Editing Everyone!!

Feel the need to organize???

Coming soon to a Theatre near you...

Lakeview MOMS presents...

ORGANIZING 101

with Kim Gilbert

Our home... a place where we come to after a busy day...looking to

...unwind, relax and spend time with our families. When we are organized in our home, there is a better chance of that happening.

This week, join the MOMS in the Theatre to find out different ways to organize your home and your life!!

Tis' the Season

So who went to church this weekend?

I just did a mental tally of how much we spend on Christmas gifts every year. We buy for our parents (4 = $100.00), our kids (3 = $400.00), nieces/nephews (5 = $125.00) and each other ($200.00). Christmas tree ($50), extra food over the Christmas season (I'm gonna be generous here and say $200.00), teachers gifts (we bake so that's included in the food surplus), Christmas cards/pictures inserted/postage ($100.00 - might be over here, might be under, depends on whether or not your pics are professional and how big your list is) and there may be travel expenses for some of you (we stay home). Oh, and there is also Ryan's sister/husband and my brother/wife - thankfully we decided to just buy for the kids last year.

So I suck at math (seriously, I had a tutor all through grade 12 (once a week ALL year) and I still barely passed) but I do know how to use a calculator. Take a good look at the number below:

$1075.00

Let's think about this... say we downsize that number to average $800.00 on the off chance that I over estimated in a few areas and some of you spend more or less. Now let's take a look at our MOM's group. I just talked to Rachel and she thinks we have about 48 Moms... I'm not sure of the exact number myself but let's go with 45.

$36,000.00

I'm the first one to admit that I don't know everything... but I do know that we (we being my husband and I) can't afford Christmas but every year we spend the money.

So let's get back to the service at Church this weekend. It made me sad and it made me think. Before I started blogging I went to the Hands at Work in Africa website just out of curiosity (well, not totally out of curiosity cause I wanted to tell you something in this post).

$180.00

That is how much it costs to provide one child with basic healthcare, food security and education for one year. My first thought? I can't afford to give away $180.00. That's 3 sets of swim lessons, 3 months of Taekwondo and a whole season of Rhythmic Gymnastics. It's groceries for a week, gas for 3 weeks, RRSP's for 3 months... anyone else thinking the same things?

BUT... what if I spend $10 less on each parent, $5.00 less on nieces/nephews, send out an e-card instead of mailing cards, buy one less gift for each of my children and spend $50 less on Christmas treats?

$240.00

I'm going to be generous and average that number out at $200.00. Multiple that by the 45 Mom's in our group every Tuesday morning.

$9000.00
$180.00 per child.
You do the math.

Tip of the Week

Ladies, Halloween is just around the corner and this means pumpkin carving. This is a great activity for your family to do together. So I thought I would use this theme as my topic. Here are a few tips. More bang for your buck so to say!


Instead of buying your pumpkins in a grocery store, check your phone book and newspaper for local pumpkin farms. Make a week-end trip with your kids and let them pick out their own pumpkins! Also, pumpkins are usually less expensive at farms and stands. After carving your pumpkins, try lighting them with battery powered LED lights. They are much safer with children around, and they flicker just like a real candle!! Then when your pumpkin has served it purpose instead of throwing it away, why not start a tradition of burying your pumpkin and giving it a proper fare well for sacrificing itself. It is also good compost for you!

Happy Pantry

We had a great show today and for anyone who missed it or has forgotten the top 8 list already here is a brief recap!
Tiffany Banow, a registered dietitian and nutritionist came and shared with us what she thought every kitchen should be stocked with. Here is the top 8 in no consectiative order:
8. Black Beans
> can be added in many dishes, or substitute meat
> great source of fibre
7. Convenience Dairy
>Mini Yogurt (low fat for adults and regular for children)
> Cheese Strings (low fat or part skimmed)
6. Canned Fish
>ie. Tuna or Salmon
5. High Fibre Cereals
>should contain 3-4g of fibre per serving
>less than 10g of sugar
>mix in all bran buds for a fibre boost
>watch out for sodium!
4.Frozen Fruit
>power fruit "Blueberries"
3. Milled Flaxseed
>mix in anything
>be sure to get the milled because it is broken down to give us the benefit of the oils, whole flax does not give us much benefit
2. Barley
1. Fresh Produce
>Wash and ready to go!

There you have it! Hope this leaves you inspired! If anyone is interested in further education feel free to contact Tiffany Banow.
Phone: 380-1008
e-mail: tiffany@happypantry.ca
web: http://www.happypantry.ca/

As a last note I came upon this quote at my chiropractors office this afternoon and I thought it was fitting with our morning!

"Strength is the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands- and then eat just one of the pieces."
-Judith Viorst

My Pantry

I would like to interupt this program for a review of my pantry. Quick... name the four food groups... was ketchup one of them? Well it is in my house! First things first... you need to know that I have nothing against the Happy Pantry lady - I quite enjoyed this morning's show - but she would probably have a heart attack if she came to look in my pantry.

Cheerios are good - great... ours our Honey Nut. Oatmeal is another good one - okee dokee we buy the Maple and Brown Sugar and sometimes add MORE brown sugar. Rice Krispies - excellent, but most of the time mine are mixed in with melted marshmallows. I was sooo happy to hear that cheese strings are good - at least I had something in my fridge that was on the table!

I try. I really do try. My kids have to pack one fruit or veggie in their lunches and cheese is always included... I also try to remember to tell them they have to have fruit first when they come home from school and there are always cold carrots/cucumbers on the table at supper. So that's three servings down... and how many to go???

So please tell me, what do you pack in your kids lunches for snacks (other than fruits/veggies)? The regulars around here are bear paws, crackers, granola bars, cookies, etc. What can you buy for snacks and lunches that is healthy, tastes good (this is a key requirement) and is relatively inexpensive... because let's face it... healthy foods are more expensive.

I was actually inspired by this morning's show... I would like to take some steps (we'll start with baby steps) to making meals a bit more healthy around here. I would like you all to take a moment and share some healthy eating tips with everyone - you don't have to sign up to make a comment on the blog and you can even leave "anonymous" comments. I hope to hear from all of you!!!

So Glad to be back!

Well ladies I'm so excited for the morning. Being gone for 2 weeks, I have really missed the fellowship and the coffee! I'm so glad to hear the the Lisa Rendal morning and the Reitmans morning were a success! We are going to have a great time with Happy Pantry tomorrow!
While I had many hours in the truck to reflect and pray one thing that I came across was a quote. I apologize that I can not remember who it was by, but he said that
"Laughter is the closest thing to the grace of God"
I loved this thought and I hope to hear lots of laughter in the morning!
Also sharpen your brains as there will be questions to answer to decide which table gets to eat first!
See you all in the morning!
-Teri

Tip of the Week??

Do you have a great 'Mommy Tip'?? Let us know what your tip is and it just might be displayed on our MOMS Blog!! Share your Mommy smarts here!!

Tip of the Week

Make your own baby wipes at home!!

All you need is a roll of Bounty paper towel, cut in half (so you have 2 short rolls), a large margarine tub, about 2 1/2c of hot water and 2-3 tbsp of baby bath. Mix the water and baby bath in the tub, place the paper towel in (standing up). Do not take out the cardboard centre right away, the water will make it soft and it will pull out easily. Now you are ready to use them..the paper towel will pull out from the centre of the container. Make sure you seal the container though...it will dry out.

Also..the BEST thing for diaper rash...apply vaseline and then cornstartch! Works like a charm!! (careful though...do not grab the flour by mistake, I did that and my daughters diaper looked like she was making cake dough!!)

~Helen

See you later.

After listening to Lisa Rendall speak last week it really made me think. I definitely know I don't live each day to it's fullest. I don't appreciate all that I should. I don't tell my husband or children that I love them every single day. My kids have left for school angry or upset with me and I didn't do anything to make it better because I was just as frustrated. We all know we need to slow down and take time to smell the roses... so why don't we?

Every day someone loses a loved one. Every day is another year since someone passed away. I've always felt that one of the hardest parts of losing someone you love is life. How do you continue on with life when you feel like your whole world has fallen apart? When it feels wrong to continue on with the mundane day to day tasks? Taking those steps to everyday life means letting go just a little bit more, it takes you further away from that person that you just don't want to let go of.

You hear a lot of people say they wished they could've said goodbye. Both of my Grandma's are gone - one passed away when I was seventeen and the other 5 years ago. The first I didn't get to tell her goodbye and I was with my other Grandma in the hospital when she died. For 10 years I kept having dreams about my first Grandma and in the dreams I was always trying to tell her I loved her. Now logically I know that she knew I loved her - but there's something different about saying I love you to someone on their way out the door to work and saying I love you to someone you know is dying.

We are all going to die and we need to treat each day as if it might be the last (sounds like a country music song I know). Tell them you love them every day and always remember that it's not goodbye, it's see you later. It might be work, a weekend hockey tournament, a 2 week vacation... or it might be a car accident. There are no parting words that will make anyone feel better about losing someone. The pain will never completely go away - but I take some comfort in knowing that I don't have to say goodbye because I know I'll see them later... and they will be just as excited to see me as I am to see them.

'MOMS Favorite Recipes' Booklet!!

Our MOMS Recipe booklet...

Each mom will bring 2 recipes, one is your favorite recipe and the other will coordinate with the table number you are at for Fall term...

Table one-Supper

Table two-Dessert

Table three-Dessert

Table four-Supper

Table five-Salad

Table six-Appy

Please bring your copy this coming Tuesday or the following Tuesday, Oct. 6th. There are extra forms on our back table if you lost yours of if you want to submit more great recipes!!

Thanks Ladies!!

~Helen

Resentful Mom?

I had a breakdown last night and I don't like to admit that to anyone so I figured I might as well blog it.

Note to self... I AM NORMAL.

I am a Mom and I stay home. I'm a stay at home Mom. I know I made a choice to stay home but does that mean I have to like it all the time? What happened to Shauna? If someone asked me to talk about me could I do it? Well, don't answer that but seriously - how do I define myself? How do YOU define yourself? Can you see past the toys, laundry, dinners, sports, kids, husband, work, house and find your soul - what makes you, well, you?

Why do I look forward to Tuesday mornings? Because I know that every other woman in that room would understand EXACTLY how I am feeling and nobody would judge. How do you stop doing something you like? Where do you draw the line and say no (and I'm not talking about your kids here)? I think we all need to take a step back and figure out what's really important, decide what we want to do about it and then (and this is the hardest part) follow through.

I am now sitting here deciding whether or not to post this blog. Yikes. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna click the "publish post" button below I mean I'm still typing aren't I? There's something about baring your innermost thoughts to people you don't know but most of you reading this know me and I have a tendency to put on a good show - life is great, um... sometimes it is.

If you're going to respond to this post (apparently I'm going to post it because as metioned before I'm still typing) it can't be anything related to sorrow or sympathy or "it'll be okay we all go through it" kind of things. I want you to tell me what makes you YOU and how you remember what makes you YOU. A therapist once said to me, "When you're on an airplane and the attendents are demonstrating what to do in case of an emergency think about the oxygen masks... put yours on first and then help your children or others around you." Wow, someone actually telling a Mom to think about herself first... but the kicker is it's true.

How my 2 year old broke my nose!

What a good morning! It felt so good to be back at MOMS. I am so glad we have a room leader for every room AND a Child Coordinator. It was also great of Joanne to come and help us out - the first morning is such a busy one!!!

So I told y'all I would tell you how Jeremy broke my nose and here I am - telling you yet another story. All righty... my daughter Megan (who is 7) has bunk beds in her room. Jeremy loves going on the top bunk and is great at climbing up the ladder... but doesn't like coming back down. So he sits at the top cross legged and yells for us to come get him down. Here is how he comes down - he count to three or counts backwards from five like the Little Einsteins and then freefalls forward headfirst with his arms out and we catch him.


Tuesday, August 11, 2009

This next paragraph happened over the course of about 5 seconds... I am standing there waiting for him to come down but was looking to the right when he quickly counted backwards and fell forward - so his head caught the the left side of my nose/eye/forehead. Now this is the important part - I CAUGHT HIM... but then immediately put him down when I heard the crunch (you're all squirming in your seats right now with that heeby jeeby feeling in your stomach) and screamed. I put my hand up to my nose and moved it back and forth at the top (again, you've got the heeby jeeby feeling in your stomach), put my hand under my nose to catch the stream of blood that started coming and thought to myself... "Oh x-x-x-x (4 letter word for crap that's not nice) this can't be happening" and by the time that thought was finished I had my head over the sink and had grabbed the closest cloth that was there - which happened to be a Norwex cloth (insert crap word again here).

This next paragraph happened over the course of about 2 minutes... the girls come running asking what happened before I was out of the bedroom. I tell them Jeremy broke my nose and they both start crying and screaming. So now all three of my kids are screaming while I'm hanging over the bathroom sink. Jeremy is trying to crawl up my leg as I yell to Sydney (she's 9) to get the phone and call her Dad (she informed me afterwards she thought she was gonna get to call 911). A side note here is that my best friend lives right across the street and she is ALWAYS home - literally, she does daycare and is always home during the day - but they had taken a 3 day trip to Lethbridge. So, Megan ran screaming back into her room and slammed the door shut so I was yelling for her to come and get Jeremy away from me. Ryan gets on the phone and I tell him Jeremy broke my nose and there's nothing... silence... then he says, "Are you sure?" WHAT????? Seriously???? I tell him to come home then hang up on him cause I feel like I'm gonna get sick but thankfully didn't. Megan is now in the living room and yells at me, "How do know it's broken?" ***WARNING - THE NEXT SENTENCE IS RATED R**** I reply, "Because it's f*$#ing crooked and it's moving!" Yep, I dropped the f-bomb on my 7 year old. SHE starts crying again and says, "But I don't want a Mommy with a crooked nose!". Ha... ha ha... ha. No, I was not laughing for real.

Ryan gets home, we get ahold of our other neighbour and his son comes over to watch the girls - irony here is that he's 10... and Sydney is 9... but his Dad was home in case he needed any help. I wasn't too concerned about the kids at that moment. We head to Emergency at St. Paul's - I wait for 3 hours to be told that there is too much swelling and fluid to do anything there. He gets me an appointment with an ENT (ear, nose, throat) for Monday morning and says he'll fix it up then for me. I spend the entire weekend FREAKING out because this is gonna hurt only to be told that "Oh no, that is much too uncomfortable to do in the office" and get booked in for surgery that Thursday. Surgery? Yep. Surgery.

The Aftermath...

There isn't much to the story after this point - surgery was okay. I felt like crap afterwards and had to eat my lasagna with my head laying on the table I felt so sick but I was soooo hungry (I'm a big fan of food) cause all they gave me afterwards was 2 pieces of toast. Those of you who saw me at church that Sunday saw me with a splint and the after effect of this whole thing is a crooked nose. Yes, if you look carefully you'll see that it's a bit crooked but I have decided against doing anything to fix it cause that would mean surgery again - and I figure as long as my breathing is okay why mess with a good thing. As far as I'm concerned my crooked nose = another life story.

Tip of the week

As a ministry team we have decided to use this blog to stay interactive with all of you! So in order to do this we must keep it up to date, and interesting. One of the ideas was to add a tip of the week. So watch for them. Also please feel free to comment on this blog and use it as yours! Also don't forget to check us out on Twitter and Facebook!

When getting organized for back to school try this tip. Use permanent marker to help keep track of childrens clothing. One dot on oldest childs clothing tags, two dots on middle childs clothing tags, three dots on youngest, and so on. Then all you have to do is add a dot for hand me downs! Makes folding laundry much less of a game of guess who.

They're letting me blog so you gotta read my stories now!

I have been entrusted to blog on the site - wheee!!!! I'll start off easy so they don't kick me out after my first entry. So let's start by telling you my MOMS story (if you haven't already seen it at church on the big screen). I met my friend Shelby through a curling iron (seriously) and we soon discovered we have lots in common... kids, staying home, life tribulations, Old Navy and headaches. Our friendship evolved through email and I can't even remember the first time we actually got together in person. At some point in time Shelby mentioned MOMS and at some point I asked her if it was "churchy". At that point in my life I wasn't into church - actually, I never had been into church. I come from a Catholic family and pretty much viewed church as stand up, sit down, say this, sing that... very methodical and repetitive (which is my nice word for boring). Not to mention the fact that you had to actually have your kids IN the church with you - I spent more time hunting down fish crackers and toys than I did actually listening to anything that was being said. I decided to give MOMS a try and was hooked. What do I love best about MOMS? Well at first it was the chance to sit and eat breakfast with NO kids present and just relax. Now breakfast is still high on the list (I like food) but the women I have met through MOMS and some of the discussions that have been had are priceless - literally, they are like those Mastercard commercials, money can't buy them and neither can credit. The food, stories, women, laughter and tears - it's Vegas in a church and it all stays in that room. You don't have to hide who you are and you learn that you are not alone. I know we all know that we aren't alone but really - when you hear other Mom's tell the same stories and share the same ups and downs as you it makes you feel NORMAL. Eventually Shelby and her hubby came over for supper so the husbands could meet (thankfully they got along) and they invited us to come to a fall kickoff and then for lunch afterwards. I had been thinking about attending a service for a while and I'm not sure why we never went, maybe the invite was what we needed (maybe the lunch... kidding!). Think back to my description of a Catholic church service... can you snore? No offense to all you Catholics out there but I got more out of this one service than I had out of my thirty some years of being Catholic. Amazing and eye opening. I knew immediately that God was stirring my soul... and he probably started doing it when I met Shelby. Well I can see that this blog thing might become time consuming - I'm liking it! I'm gonna have to learn to make a long story short at some point but since I'm already close to the end of this one I'll stop... almost. My story ends with me still attending MOMS - starting my fourth session next week and I am now a part of the MOM's Ministry Team - and wow, what a group of women they are. I am very grateful to be able to spend time with them and have already learned so much more than I thought possible. I am looking very forward to this term of MOMS and hope that we get to see some new faces out there along with the veterans. BTW - Lakeview Moms is Twittering... join us... it's a super way to quickly check out what's happening at MOM's.

Recipe from Jacki!!

A big hit at our Ladies Salad night...here is the recipe you've been waiting for....


Thai Noodle Salad
1 pkg fresh chow mein noodles
1 red pepper
1 red onion
1/2 c. celery
2 grated carrots
2 green onions
1 cup bean sprouts
1/4 c. roasted peanuts
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro

Dressing
1/2c. oil
3 tbsp. sesame oil
1/2 c. rice vinegar
2 tbsp. sugar
1 tbsp. minced ginger
3 tbsp. soya sauce
1 tbsp. chilli paste

Soak noodles in hot water for 15 minutes and then drain. Mix dressing.Slice veggies. Chop peanuts and cilantro. Toss all ingredients. Enjoy!


Thanks Jacki!!

Serenity Prayer

This term we had the privilege of having Nancy speak to us on Balance and Simplicity and something she touched on that dealt with this was the Serenity Prayer. So for those who did not get one of the cards I thought that I would post it.

Lord, give me the courage to change the things which can and ought to be changed, the serenity to accept the things which can not be changed, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Phone call...

Today, as I am preparing supper for my family, my phone rings. It happens to be a woman that is calling to find out some info on the MOMS program at Church. She contacted the church and they gave her my name and number. We talked for a bit...I told her about the program, the basic information that she was looking for. But our talk went a bit deeper then that. She broke down on the phone...someone I don't even know...was vulnerable...broken and searching for some answers. I realized a few things in that moment. I realized that MOMS is AMAZING. I realized that I am so very blessed. I realized that God loves us and He made us to love and serve others...plain and simple!!! Each and everyone of us has a story to tell. I do not know this lady or her story, but by our phone call I could tell that she is hurting and needs a means of support. THIS is what MOMS is all about! I encouraged her to come and give moms a try. I PRAY that she will be able to come out on Tuesday, I PRAY that she will connect and feel LOVE, SUPPORT and know that she isn't alone in her Journey.

~Helen

Song...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VU_rTX23V7Q

I LOVE this song! Casting Crowns- Who am I?

This song is amazing...it really amazes me how a God so Big, so Powerful...a God that tells the SEA (the huge, open SEA...can you imagine?) to be calm..can love and care for itsy, bitsy little ol' ME! What did I do to deserve such LOVE? NOTHING! He sees my sin and still loves me! He still LOVES us! HE calms the storms in ME and YOU!

We are HIS!

~Helen