A Special Gift of the 12 Days of Christmas!

Well about a week ago, Sherree de Jong dropped of a bag from a sister in the ward who wishes to remain anonymous. On December 13th I started to open the gifts one by one. It has been so much fun. So I wanted to post each item. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I have. And to that special someone who ever you are. Thanks for making my Christmas special.

First Day said:

"On the first day of Christmas my true friend game to me: "A Partridge in a Pear Tree." The Partridge left you a Pear to remember her"

Second Day said:

"On the second day of Chrsitmas my true friend gave to me: "Two Turtle Doves." The doves fly away, but left a reminder behind."

Third Day said:

"On the third day of Christmas my true friend gave to me: "Three French Hens." The hens left you some chicken soup to warm the tummy and a candle to warm the soul."

Forth Day said:

"On the fourth day of Christmas my true friend gave to me: "Four Calling Birds" As the birds flew away they called out four of your great qualities. You are a wonderful Mom. You are a optomistic person. You are a hard worker. You are a joy to be around."

Fifth Day said:

"On the fifth day of Christmas my true friend gave to me: "Five Gold Rings" Gold is pricey, will gold pineapple rings do?"

Sixth Day said:

"On the sixth day of Christmas my true friend gave to me: "Six Geese a Laying" The geese layed some chocolate eggs for you before leaving."

Seventh Day said:

"On the seventh day of Christmas my true friend gave to me: "Seven Swans a Swimming" Before swimming away the swans left you the bubble bath they used."

What a Wonderful Family I Have!

Have you ever had one of those days that you are so glad that your Heavenly Father has blessed your life with a wonderful husband and children. Well I'm having one of those days today. It makes me so happy that I was sealed to my husband for time and all eternity. What peace of mind that brings to me to know that we can be together after this life. Sure we have our difference, but that is what helps us grow. He is a good man and treats me far better then I treat him. I need to improve in that area. I will never forget the first day I saw him in the gym at a YSA activity. I turned to my girlfriend and said, "I will have him by the end of the night". Well the rest is history. So thank you Gary for loving me and teach me patience.

Then there is my Jacquie! She is wise beyond her years. She is teaching me things everyday. Especially to trust in the Lord and it will all work out. She has a strong testimony of our Savior. She has become a wonderful cook. And what a great home decorator she is. She has the crafty talent that her mother lacks so much. She is so kind and helpful to her siblings. What a great example she has been to them. She is a wonderful friend. I read her blog and I now that she has alot of friends that love her and appreciate her. She loves to have parties and she sure knows how to put them on. Thank you Jacquie for teaching an old mom new treats.

We have been blessed with a wonderful son-in-law. He is so patience and kind. I am so grateful that I don't have to worry about Jacquie because I know Ryan is taking such good care of her. He is a hard worker. He goes after what he wants and he gets it. Even if it means he has to work at little harder or longer. He puts up with his in-laws living with him for a week at a time. And he loves us even though we are Canadian. Thanks Ryan for being the best son-in-law we have.

Our next girl is Vanessa. Well let me tell you that Vanessa never fails to make me smile. I can be down in the dumps pretty bad, but Vanessa always seems to be able to make me laugh. She is so strong in the gospel. She is good friend and she will help you in anyway she can. I appreciated her dedication to exercising with me this summer. When she puts her mind to something she does it. She has the wonderful talent of playing the piano and I love when she and her siblings are home and she plays and they sing. What beautiful music they bring out our home. Thank you Vanessa for teaching me to enjoy life and laugh at the small things.

Then there is our boy, Josh. Well he is currently serving a mission in Ireland. He has grown so much in the gospel. His testimony of the Savior is so strong. He loves to make you laugh. He is a great friend and will do anything for you. He is a great teacher. He has been blessed with a beautiful voice (like his sister Jacquie). He has learned to share that talent with others thanks to his sisters encouragement. He has taught me that I need to chill out more and not worry. He really doesn't stress to much about things. Well at least he never use to. His Missionary President said he is a great missionary. Thank you Josh for teaching us patience and laughter.

Well I really have been blessed so I thought I would share those blessings with all of you. Thank you Lord for the wonderful people you have brought into my life. They really have taught me alot. So thank you family for putting up with a crazy, crying, over protection mother for all these years. I love you all.

The Real Review

Well girls here you go. These are the pictures you have waited for. I personally don't think these pictures do it justice, but at least you can see what it looks like. We hope you like. Let us know what you think.

Remodeled Bathroom

So our girls are waiting for the reveal of the bathroom makeover. We are almost there. Gary is painting the last of the cupboards and then I can take pictures and post them. But in the mean time, I thought I would post the old bathroom pictures so that they can remember what a mess it was really in.

Happy Halloween!

Well today was halloween and we had a party at work. It is so much fun with those girls. They really do know how to have fun. We had a potluck and played some games. And then tonight we handed out candy. There really wasn't very many people tonight. There seems to be less and less each year. I don't know if we even had 50 kids. So we have lots of candy left over. But anyways I wanted to share with everyone my pictures from today. I decided for our potluck that I was going to make a cake called Kitty Litter Cake.

Well didn't I come up with the idea to dress like a cat today and then surprize everyone with the dessert. It was a really big hit. Well except everyone thought it looked so really that they didn't want to try it. LOL

So that was the excitement around here.

Josh Is Doing Great In Ireland!

Well Josh is doing great in Ireland. He just had his first transfer. He is now in a place called Carpenterstown, which is like a suburb of Dublin. The Mission President has made him the senior companion with an Elder that has only been out 6 weeks. Also the area he is moving to has just been opened one transfer. So lots of work and responsibilties ahead for him. But he is really excited and can't wait to start a new adventure. He just had his first baptism on October 18th.


He said it went really well and Christina was so happy. Her mom was even there. And I was so excited because he sent us pictures. He really is loving serving the Lord. He said it is the best thing he has ever done. We are so proud of him and happy that things are going so well.

Oh here is a story he shared with us. I thought you would all enjoy it.

We were walking back to Ian's house and this girl was like have you seen a dog?? And we saw one run past so we were like YUP, and she went one way with ian and me and elder urano went another way, we found the dog, so i grabbed it by its collar, and walked it back, and we sat waiting with the dog, and i was covered in what it looked to be mud, and we thought the dog was really muddy, but it was dark so we couldnt see. But we pulled out the phone light and shined it on my hands and it was blood! My hands my white shirt, by suit jacket and pants were aboslutely covered in blood!! I was like ahhh heck this isn't good haha So we had to go back to Ian's to wash up and wear his clothes. haha It cost 14.50 to get my suit dry cleaned! It was ridiculous!!! But hey that was my week! : )

Thankgiving

This past weekend was thanksgiving and had the opportunity to go and spend time with both sides of the family. We had dinner at the Musson's on Sunday. It was so good to see everyone again. Debbie and Jessie's children are getting really big.

Erik

Kharma and Logan

Then on Monday we went to my parent's house. There was about 22 people there. It was great to see everyone. We were so glad the weather was so beautiful so that everyone could be outside. The temperature was around 26 degrees celsius. We are so thankful for family and for opportunities to see all of them.

On the way home we also saw some beautiful fall colours.