weekend in austin...

well, we managed to stick with our goal of heading to Austin once a month, it was very relaxing. Michael and I spent Saturday each working on our own projects. I was painting & staining furniture, Michael was taking apart an old sleeper. Saturday night we hung out with Duane and Wendy. We played catch, Wenday and I had fun tossing the ball at a safer distance and slower speed than the guys and left them to their own devices.

We ended the evening with a bonfire, complete with wieners & smores!

On Sunday we went quadding! It was a blast!

Duane remembered a few more trails from back in the day, so we got to ride some new trail. I always find this exciting, especially when it's a little hilly and windy. Often the MB trails are a little boring after riding in BC.

long...but something to ponder

Our pastor emails devotionals out almost everyday. This one touched me, there's so much going on in my life that feels very overwhelming...here it is: “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! ‘Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?’ ” Romans 11:33-34 What does GOD know? That is almost a funny question… He knows all about all. He has a knowledge of not only all that is real but also all that is possible. He has never needed to learn anything — about anyone or anything, for He cannot add to His knowledge. Never once has GOD been surprised, caught off guard, or even distracted. He knows everything perfectly. That means His is a complete, thorough, and exhaustive knowledge. He understands everything. It is a knowledge that He has always had and always will. He knows all things fully, because He is the original designer and manufacturer. His observations are never tainted in any way. He is not obscured from seeing what is really going on. Nor does He become biased, misled, or deceived. He has never forgotten anything nor will He. To Him, nothing is a secret. Nothing is a mystery. There is no possibility that He has not thought out. There is no problem that He is unable to figure out. He knows all things—both the natural and the spiritual. He is brilliant in His knowledge. Just look at the masterpiece of His creation. It is perfect. Where there is a seeming lack of perfection, it is the creativity of God. He knows all events—past, present, future. There is no event without His full awareness. He knows all people—our actions, thoughts, feelings, intentions, and interactions. GOD is listening, understanding, interacting, and working in the lives of more than six billion people at this very moment. And yet in the midst, He remains unconfused, undistracted, and completely focused. He is fully and perfectly aware of all people, all things, and all events at all times. He leaves no motives left unchecked. No thought unheard or misunderstood. No problem without His best solution. There has been no human thought that He has not perceived already. He knows you. Everything you have done, even if you never remember it. He is acquainted with your tendencies, your mannerisms, your personality, your issues, and quirks. When you have good intentions, He knows them, even when others may question them. When you are trying to do what is right, it brings comfort to know that God is aware and keeping account. When you have selfish intentions, He knows them, although others may not question them. God knows you and me completely, and He loves us all the more. He knows what you can encounter for that coming day, and He has provided all that you need. He knows what happened, when it happened, where it happened, how it happened, what could have happened, and why it happened. He knows all the elements involved, all the motives involved. He knows what the causes are. He knows all possible solutions. He knows the best solution. He even knows how you feel. He also can identify with how you feel. GOD knows and understands. God is able to look at you and attend to you as though you were the only creature in the entire universe. He knows situations. Take your current situation. He knows how you feel, what your hopes are, your disappointments, your heart in the matter, your motives. He knows the other people involved. What their motives are. What their hearts are like. What can come about in the situation. What needs to happen to make all involved better. He knows all the intricacies involved. He knows what can be done. He knows what should be done. He knows what the best end would be—for the long haul. GOD knows everything going on. And in that He has left us with His plan in what to do in the midst of His working—to trust in Him and to obey His Word. He is not unaware. He is at work. from: Gerry Michalski Lead Pastor Soul Sanctuary

spring is here...we're eating on the deck!

need I say more? just so you all know, those of you in BC, we have by far been having warmer weather than you! (not to rub it in or anything)

cheesecake & adventures in odessy, what a great combo

thought this might produce a chuckle or two...who knew that grown ups like Adventures in Odessy this much! Actually it's become a bit of a Saturday morning ritual for Michael and I to listen to Adventures in Odessy before we get out of bed.

everybody say...paska!

what can I say, I had to try my hand at making the special bread, since it was a little too far to drop in at Oma's and enjoy some! It was definitely an interesting experience! After I had followed the instructions carefully I had soup, instead of dough. So, I added more and more and more flour (I had to actually divide the batter in half because it didn't all fit in the mixer). Then I left it to rise, which it didn't. So, I got creative, dissolved some yeast in warm water & sugar, added that plus some more flour. Tried letting it rise again! Victory!!!



We had some huge paska loaves, but it tasted quite good. The other things I learned is that I should really really learn to spread the cheese spread a little thinner (now that I have made it and am aware of all the ingredients that go into making such a delicious spread, there's a reason it tastes so good!)

Friday Easter Dinner...

another part of recreating Easter with my substitute family was having an Easter dinner...which was quite a lot of fun, despite the fact that we waited over an hour for the ham to actually be done (note to self: DO NOT trust the package instructions, and next time, factor in some extra time).

here's the guys peeling carrots & potatoes...(yes, that is a chess board between them, they were doing that at the same time)

since us "newly weds" had never made a ham before, we asked Henry to do the honors and carve the meat...

here's some evidence of the amazing table we set:

(aka: tischbild)

easter eggs!

Well, Easter is one of my favorite times with family, but since we stayed in Manitoba this year, I decided that I could still have fun at Easter and do it with substitute family. So, Jen & I dyed Easter eggs! It was a lot of fun even though we didn't actually coordinate a hunt. Actually it was slightly distasterous, since I dumped over the purple dye and it poured into my lap. Everything came out clean in the wash thankfully!

melting...

Well, I got my dreaded Corp Fi exam back today, and of course my exam was at the bottom of the stack, so I had a whole slew of butterflies in my stomach by the time I finally got it. Anyway, the class average was 52%, and I got 71%! I am quite happy with that mark, especially considering I didn't have time to finish the exam, and simply colored in random bubbles for about 10 multiple choice questions.
I've only got 4 and a half weeks left of classes! I can't hardly believe I've completed another year of school. It really feels like spring around here, lots of snow melting and sunshine. It's pretty nice, accept that there's so many puddles everywhere. I was going to walk home from the post office yesterday, but thought the better of it as I watched walls of water shower over the side walks from passing cars. I look forward to getting out and walking soon though. I might even walk to school, it should take about 30 minutes to do that.
Life is pretty uneventful these days, so I don't have much to tell you, I'll share our plans for the summer months with you later, when they are a little more finalized. Michael and I did go to a concert (as part of my Music class), it was incredible. check out the website of this group, called the Montreal Guitar Trio: http://www.trioguitaresmontreal.com/en/news.php
We got our computer fixed (thanks Ray!) and I managed to get the Festival pictures off before we reformatted, so I'll share them with you now...

Some pretty detailed snow carvings...

If you had the cash, you could pay for an
overnight stay in an igloo!

Who knew that yerba would ever become a money maker?

We didn't quite fit...

love/hate relationship with my computer...

Sorry there isn't more pictures. I didn't take the time to load them right away, and now my computer is dead (at first it wouldn't even stay on, now it's on, but it won't do anything!) and I have to wait to get the pictures from my Dad again, since I lost the files on my computer. (grrr) So, more pictures another time, and hopefully another post too. The past two weeks, since the Festival have been really crazy, I had a very aggravating group project, and the scary CorpFi midterm (the one where the class average is usually around 40%). From now until the end of the term should be a little more sane, so once I get the computer back I'll try to let you know of anything new that's going on out here in the 'Peg. Actually before I sign off, one thing. We've had some wonderful mild weather, around the -5 to 0 degrees range for a couple of weeks. Well, this morning is was -25 and -40 with the wind chill. Yikes! The even more disturbing thing about it is that it's super sunny and the birds are chirping, so it sounds and feels like spring (because I'm either squinting or wearing sunglasses), but it's still bitterly cold! The weather out here sure plays games with one's mind!

birthday boy!

ran into this picturess and thought I would add them in...

that was my first ever banana cream pie, that I made for Stuart's birthday!