Done. Hallelujah.

We have bought a "new" van. A 2003 Toyota Sienna. I'm thrilled because it met my oh so very high standards
1. Can't be white (it's a dark navy)
2. Has to have good cupholders
3. Has to be automatic (hey, can't use those cupholders if it isn't!)
4. Has to have air conditioning.
5. Can't have a stupid name (like 'neon', or 'matrix' etc etc)

So I'm happy with our purchase - we prayed and it came in almost $200.00 less than our max we wanted to spend. And best of all, Reid can now move on from 'car search' mode to 'putting up baseboards and other menial household tasks' mode. He tends to get a bit obsessive when something is on his mind.

Our last van was a Safari (which we loved because it felt like driving a truck) and we named it Mowgli (get it? Safari/Mowgli: Jungle Book - nudge,nudge) The kids have decided to name this one Skyler. You know, 'cause its blue. Better than the first suggestion of "Bobba-loo-blue" sang in operatic style because it sounded better that way. Can't see Reid going for that one. We'll stick with Skyler. I think it suits.

I'll be the first to admit - I don't typically sit down on Saturday nights to watch the infamous "Hockey Night in Canada". I probably spent the first 10-12 years of my life eating Kraft Dinner on Sat. evenings and watching it. Enough that I can not bother to watch anymore games and still call myself a good Canadian.

BUT, that said all four of us settled in to watch our Vancouver Canucks play game seven of their series. It was devastating to watch the Stars score the first goal. I'm happy to say however that it was their only goal. Vancouver won - 4 - 1 with Trevor Linden scoring the second and game winning goal. Our house was alive with the sound of cheering!

What a week that was! I'm so glad it's over. It was an unusual week for me.

I am typically a "no" person. I have things to which I am joyfully committed and then I feel no guilt in saying 'no' to most everything else. I did however say 'yes' to a couple things that were, in my estimation, important and added them into my schedule.

One was to plan for and decorate the gym at the Church for a fund raiser for Caris' honour band trip to Victoria. The parents of the students brought decadent desserts and the guests,who have paid $5.00 each, come and enjoy. They are also able to bid on some silent auction items (donated from town businesses) and in this case the creme de la creme was a Canucks Hockey jersey (old style). We sold raffle tickets on this item & it raised a mint!! The band played on and off throughout the evening - it was a fun night. BUT I felt pressure. Mostly due to the stress of others but it did raise my stress level a tad as well! Then the next night I hosted a Bridal Shower for a gal getting married May 5th. A true pleasure for me to do for her. It was a great night as well. Very special to be a part of. It was also the final evening for our Friday Night Live and it was a HUGE blowout evening that was a blast but required a little planning and time on our part. On top of all this Reid threw out his back on Monday and was in bed pretty much incapacitated until Thursday evening. Poor guy. It was difficult for me and even more so for him.

All that said, it meant that my week was busy. And when I am busy, I am unable to have any down-time. And believe me when I say that I NEED my downtime. Everybody suffers unfortunately when it isn't a part of my day.

So my lesson I guess is that I can still say 'yes' to the extra things that are important - I just need to make sure that they don't all happen in the same week!

I may be feeling a tad bad about my childish tantrum the other day. I was so unhappy with the van in the shop and the need for a new one and my washer on the fritz ALL on the same day. It was so much money all at the same time to spend. Well, it appears that perhaps I was a bit hasty and it true when they say that things have a way of working themselves out.

We do still need to buy a vehicle and yes, it will cost money but we don't need to be in as much of a hurry as I first thought. The van's repair was a little less than half the mechanics original estimate (does that ever happen??) and I found a fairly new washer, in great working order for $100!

I am both humbled and thankful for the reminder that I do have a God who cares about these petty things - because He cares about me. And He provides for me and that if I'd just relax and pray - He would take care of the details.

It's what He does.

You know that old saying..."When it rains - it pours". There is great truth in that expression.
Our van went into the shop today. It's really on it's last legs and as much as we love it - it's not worth putting to much more money into. So off we go into debt to find a new vehicle. I hate spending money on cars and I hate needing cars. Such a double edged sword.
Last week our washing machine quit. So today my favourite appliance repairman came over and took one look at it and said "it's not worth fixing - it's too old". sigh. So we need a washing machine as well.
What else is going to end up costing us money? Who knows, but I'm sure it'll show up just around the corner. We seem to be on a roll.

I typed several posts yesterday and managed to post none. Suffice it to say:
HE IS RISEN. HE IS RISEN INDEED.

So now as I'm attempting to post, I have Miko, Kuhn dog extraordinaire whining at me. Why? I have no idea. She in, she's out, she's in, she's out...I can't quite figure her out...sigh.

I was reading a book the other day - about buying and living in a villa in Tuscany. Maybe I was dreaming a bit about chucking it all and heading to Italy. It sounds just so very - very. Anyway, as I was reading I came across a word I'd never heard of. I couldn't even figure it out in context of what I was reading. Unusual. So I of course then ask my very wise friend Mark, who knows ALL words and even some Latin ones. What greater source could I have?? Well, it turns out even he hadn't heard of it. I then turned to that wonderful source of everything: Google. It of course had the answer. So here is your English lesson for today.

lugubrious: mournful, dismal, or gloomy, esp. in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner.

Use that in a sentence!

Talk about the difference a day makes! This morning we woke up to ....SNOW! I am so done with Winter! Although, I must confess, it made the house a bright place to wake up to. It does look pretty beautiful although I'm hopeful it's not going to thwart the blooming of my unbelievably gorgeous Magnolia Tree.

Last night we had a special worship evening at the Church. It was Palm Sunday. The beginning of Holy Week - the week leading to the death and resurrection of Jesus. What a night. I don't think I can even express it in words. I was overwhelmed. Full band, loud, but not hurt my ears, and it was all about Jesus. The evening was centered around Jesus and His kingdom. Reid's comment was that it was cleansing. Phoebe said that she's pretty sure that it is what it will sound like in heaven. I'm inclined to agree. It was a beautiful mix of contemporary, of old hymns, of fast of slow, of Scripture and prayer. Our Elder of Worship is indeed anointed and we are so fortunate to have him.