Grrr. Bleep. Bleepity Bleep.

What was I saying? Oh yes. So I’m up late. AGAIN. And my goal is to get 8 hours of sleep every night… notsomuchsofar. So before I get all grumpy about being an absolute failure at that goal, let me tell you why I’m posting – and being grumpy about it too.

I got an email from a friend. I don’t know what is going on in her life.  But she is barely making it. Those times in our lives, when going to sleep sucks because then the next day is going to come – and then you’re going to have to do it all over again – those days. They suck.

And so I’m emailing her back.

And it occurs to me, I can’t really say anything to make it better.

As a side note- sometimes, I just get fed up with all this nonsense about a spiritual war. Yes, I know. You have your opinions. But I have mine too. And I think this ridiculous focus on a war, completely puts our eyes on the waves lapping up against our feet, instead of on the one with His hand outstretched to catch us.

So you’re getting my opinion tonight, because 1) I is grumpy, and 2) I just wrote this to my friend:

Just remember, Jesus is so much more than we could ever imagine. we often put Him in a box, thinking that our troubles are of this word = of satan or free will = king of this world = blah, blah, blah… Whatever. Jesus is MORE. Bigger. You just need to relax in Him. He can take care of you. And your little ones. And your man. We’re sisters in this together, and I certainly don’t relax into His care, nearly enough… but I know that I should!  And so should you!

So yeah. I actually don’t know what her particular troubles are, or who she tends to blame for them, but when I wrote the above note, it totally rang true to me. It resonates in my heart. It’s the truth: God is BIGGER.

And I forget that.

A lot.

So, from Mrs. Grumpy-Pants,
Good night!

All drama aside, I really am a little leary about cramming anything Biblical down their throats. I don’t want them to see God the way I do – the big guy in the sky that you really don’t want to piss off.  You know what I mean?

So anyway, back on topic – this activity was to let the kids create “Brownies” without the rules.

Here’s the recap:

Happy Weekend, everyone!

Thursday the kids were off school for the rest of the summer.  And the fact that I have two giant shopping bags full of crap treasures from school heightens my neurosis.

Where, oh someone please tell me where, I’m to store a plate covered in plasticine?  And exactly for how long does one store said plate before it fades from memory and I can FINALLY toss it in the large round filing bin?  And what is with sending home every. single. paper. that my daughter ever drew on, spat upon, looked at, or pondered over?  Bring back the slates! Could there be a better solution?  Less mess, less waste, better for the planet, much more fun, and most importantly, no lasting treasures.

Drama: Brought to you by Haley

Haley can take her neck brace off today.  About a week and a half ago, she fell off a swing at school.  Yessireebob.  There was a 3 hour wait in Emergency while they strapped her to a spinal board, and transported her, via ambulance, to Children’s.  Then there was a 12 hour or so wait for an MRI, after the obligatory x-ray, during which time she wasn’t allowed to eat, or move.   Say hello to Ms. Bed Pan.

As it turns out the swing wasn’t exactly moving when she fell.  Note to teacher:  It’s in the details, folks. So she`s fine and after 14 days, (or 10) of wearing the thing, she can finally take her neck brace off.

And we went to Maple Wood Farms for her birthday yesterday.  She wanted “something to do with animals” and was initially set on making all her friends come with us to the animal shelter to clean out cages.  Fortuantely I still have some say on party venues.  You should have seen the kids at the farm: they were entirely, 100%, wholly enthralled with farm animals. Did you catch that?   FARM ANIMALS.  Who would have thought we’d be paying for our kids to see farm animals?  We’re just your regular Country Bumpkins, we are.

Drama brought to you by BAD people

If you’ve been to my foodie blog, or to our family website this week, you’ll have noticed that Google has blocked us.

Shucks, we’ve been caught.  I’m sad to report, that beyond all the witty conversation is just a bunch of spam.

Or.

It could be that some very naughty person that needs his/her fingers flicked, inserted some malicious code on our server and has been using us as a medium to infect unsuspecting readers.  The audacity!   If you haven’t been following this saga on Facebook, I’ll let ya know here – you need to download malwarebytes software and scan your computer.  Malware bytes will find more than your current desktop software, and is recommended in tandem with your other anti virus software.

This little freakofnature saved-by-grace human being has wreaked havoc on my designing and hosting clients as well.  And created hours upon hours of extra work for me.  You may send flowers/cash in lieu of sympathies.

</end drama>

From there, I’ve caught up with Denise.  Denise and I were friends way back for several years when we were just starting our families.  Have  a look at her and her new daughter – cute enough to eat!  Denise Naus’ new blog: Silence and Throw Up.  Love the stuff she writes on there.  Check her out for some laughs, and some warm fuzzies about parenting.  She is a realist, and knows how to express herself.

And, seriously – have you checked out Simply Frugal in Canada yet?  Save yourself a ton of time, and visit this blog!!  Then you can unsubscribe from all your flyers and save yourself the hassle of recycling them!

That’s it.  Go on.  Clicky- clicky.

Okay, I’ve spent an hour(or two?)  looking for a photo of Mike with the girls, any of them, with his eyes open.  I’ve come to a conclusion:

1.  He’s nearly always behind the camera and

2.  I need eyelid tape for when he’s not.

So without further ado, and sans photographs, Happy Father’s Day!!

Love,
Cathy

I wish I were kidding, but alas.  I’m totally NOT kidding!!  Little Finn Sullivan, that’s him below, loved Uniqua from the Backyardigans.  I can understand why.  So do my two youngest.  She is pretty cool.  And Team Finn, with Uniqua as their muse, will be riding a la Uniqua.  Patrick, Finn’s Dad explains the whole pink/uniqua thing here.

And very poignantly writes about his reasons to ride on his Team Page:

Why I Ride:

I ride for Finn.

I ride because one of the last things Finn said to me was “daddy, you have a big belly”.

I ride because my heart aches with loss.

I ride to change other futures.

I ride because 65 miles is not enough miles for the number of anaesthetics’ Finn endured.

I ride for a lost friend.

I ride for a brother’s silent tears.

I ride for a sister’s wise sadness.

I ride for a mother’s grief and her search for answers.

I ride because I can’t hold his hand anymore and I want to, I so desparately want to.

I ride so others don’t have to cry these tears.

I ride for purple and pink and for sunshine coming through the window.

I ride for full moons and Finnrises.

I ride for drum sticks and feral dancing.

I ride for better answers and fewer questions.

I ride for life. I ride for living.

I ride because I can,

and maybe, just maybe, someday they will tell me that someone can because I ride.

And, to switch gears, my approach to this epic journey and cause my hubby is taking:

A blessing for you, Honey.

May your bike be sound and your mind be sound again too one day.

May your seat be springy,and your spandex loose.

May your lungs fill with oxygen and your muscles with analgesics.

May the derrieres in front of you pale in comparison to the real purpose of spandex.

May your senses confuse the Ben-gay & body odour with mint tea and perfume.

May the first aid attendants triage quickly,and the caterers arrive first.

May your bike outlast you and you outlast the journey.

We love you!!

And she’s allowed.  For now.  I’m okay with it, I approve, I condone it -- this one time.

She’s singing and dancing -- be prepared to oooooh and aaaaaaah.

And she can sing in Mandarin! We pride ourselves in her preschool.

Apparently, in Mandarin, there’s a bird involved in “Its A Small World”.

Now, beginning Kindergarten -- that’s a whole ‘nother story!  There will be NO Kindergarten come September 8.  Nope.  Nadda. Not goin’ to happen.

Pkg said “cook from frozen” for 15 minutes per side.

Apparently, package directions are designed to sell more packages. Unless, of course, the goal IS burnt bloody chicken.

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A tip from a neighbour:  rub the grill with an onion soaked in olive oil first.

He neglected to mention that oil is flammable (also FYI: chicken skin is oily).

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Add barbecue sauce near the end to prevent burning and keep the flavors.

They underestimate the power of smoke to override ANY added flavors (and make your eyes water, and set off the fire alarm 2 floors above the patio).

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table top barbecue – small, compact, and cheap

My super-compact barbecue puts the grill approx. 1/2 inch away from the flames.  It is essentially a wiener cooker, if you cook the wieners first.

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Cook on medium high heat.

FYI – if you have a ‘compact’ wiener cooker, you have two settings: hot & windy (lid off) and hot & smokey (lid on).

I am hopelessly stuck on this idea of barbecuing.  What have YOU learned about Barbecuing that I could use?